What If...?

Disclaimer: I. OWN. NOTHING, you hear me? NOTHING!

Summary: What if Misty didn’t pulled Ash and Pikachu out of the river? What if he didn’t trash her bike? What if he actually had a clue?!

Note: If the story seems familiar to you, that’s because it’s mostly based on the first two episodes of Pokémon. However, certain elements of the story have been changed, including Misty’s role in helping Ash to Viridian City. I’ve also changed what some characters actually said in order for the story to play out a bit smoother. (Some of the lines from the original episodes were beyond bad!) Enjoy!

New Note: Once again, another re-formatted story... ‘Yami Ash’, thank you for your original review, and this is pretty much what you wanted me to do, so I hope you can read it better this way. (you were right; they were hard to read before I got my computer to do HTML...

Speech. Thoughts. Pokémon.

“Ahhh! What time is it?!” The boy yelled as he leapt out of bed and dashed downstairs, his scruffy black hair flopping about. His mother stared at him as he rushed out the door without breakfast, then sighed. ‘That boy, always in a hurry.’ She smiled faintly. ‘What a day to sleep in.’

“Please, please, keep one for me! I don’t care what, just keep one for me!” he panted as he raced up the hill to the Pokémon Laboratory. As he drew nearer, he could see a crowd of people gathered around the entrance. “Excuse me, sorry, let me through.” He pushed his way to the front of the crowd and, just as he broke through to the other side, he crashed into somebody and fell to the ground. “Hey, watch it! Well, if it isn’t Ash! Better late than never I guess. At least you get to meet me.” Ash looked up at the brown haired boy in front of him. “Gary?” Gary smirked down at Ash sitting in the dirt. “Mr. Gary to you, show some respect! You snooze, you lose! We’ve barely started and you’re already way behind. I‘ve got a Pokémon and you don’t.” Ash picked himself up and brushed the dirt off his clothes. “You’ve got your first Pokémon?” “Yep, and it’s inside this Pokéball.” Ash stared at the small red-and-white ball in Gary’s hand. ‘He probably grabbed the one I wanted.’ He thought glumly, not even hearing Gary ranting on about how great he was. Ash had already heard it all about a million times before anyway. “Excuse me?” Gary glanced over. “Yeah?” “I was just wondering if you could tell me which type of Pokémon you got?...” Gary smirked. He knew why Ash had asked. Several weeks ago, Gary had pretended to be all friendly with Ash in order to find out which one he wanted to start with, and Gary had made sure that he’d picked it first. He’d even woken up and gotten to the lab extra early just to be sure. “None of your business! If you’d shown up on time, you’d have seen that I got the best Pokémon from Professor Oak. It’s good to have a Grandfather in the Pokémon business, isn’t it?” Ash’s blood boiled over as Gary ranted on some more as he left, and the crowd followed him. “I’ll show you!” Ash growled under his breath. “So, you’ve decided to show up after all.”

After a brief, and embarrassing, conversation with Professor Oak, during which Ash realized he was still in his pyjamas, he finally got to go inside and pick a Pokémon. One-by-one, he was disappointed by the news that the Pokémon was already taken until finally, there were no Pokéballs left to choose from. “You mean, they’re all gone?!” Ash asked in disbelief. Professor Oak looked nervous. “Well, there’s still one left, but...” “I’ll take it!” Ash practically screamed. He couldn’t believe his luck. “I should warn you, there is a problem with this one...” Professor Oak said as he tapped a button on the console, revealing one last Pokéball. “I have to have a Pokémon.” Ash stared at the ball hungrily. This was understandable as he’d skipped breakfast. Professor Oak sighed. “Well, in that case...” he said as the ball opened by itself.

After a shocking introduction to his new, if slightly unwilling Pokémon, Pikachu, and a totally embarrassing encounter with his mother and her home-made cheer squad, Ash was finally free to do what he’d always wanted to do. First, he went home, changed his clothes and had breakfast of course. Then, slipping on some rubber gloves and tying a clothesline around Pikachu’s waist, he proceeded to drag his way north out of town. He was now wearing his favourite jacket, sneakers and Pokémon League hat with a pair of blue jeans and a black shirt. The yellow dishwashing gloves really didn’t work with the outfit he’d taken years to perfect. But it wasn’t as if Pikachu was giving him any other choice...

‘Man, how do I get myself into these things?!’ Ash thought as he ran away from the flock of Spearow he’d somehow managed to annoy. All he did was throw a rock at one of them, and now he was running for his life. “Don’t worry Pikachu, I’ll protect you!” Pikachu ran ahead. <Okay, you protect my rear, loser!> This was lost on Ash as he didn’t speak Pokémon. “Hey, don’t run ahead, I said I’ll protect you!” Several Spearow swooped past him and started pecking Pikachu. “Hey, leave it alone, Spearow!” Ash ran forward and batted them away. Picking up the now injured Pikachu, he ran as fast as he could.

“Well this isn’t exactly the greatest fishing spot ever.” Misty sighed. “All I’ve managed to get so far is a Goldeen. Maybe I should move on now.” The red-haired girl stood up and brushed some dirt off the seat of her blue shorts. “Yeah, I’m outta here.” She turned and straightened out the wrinkles in her yellow tank top as she reattached her special fishing lure to one of her red suspenders. Leaping down from the rock she’d been fishing from, she headed over to her bicycle, which was leaning against a nearby tree. Half-way there, however, she stopped and stared back at the water. “Hmm, maybe I should try one more time... Nah, I’ve wasted too much time here already.” As she rode away though, Misty couldn’t help feeling like she’d just missed the biggest opportunity of her young life.

“Well, here goes...” Ash twisted his hat around, then leapt off the cliff in the raging riving below. The current was stronger than he’d expected, and he had no choice but to go with it, keeping a firm hold on the Pikachu in his arms so it wouldn’t be swept away. Through the murky darkness of the churning water, Ash could see many water Pokémon, and if he’d just been on dry land with a rod, he definitely would have liked to catch some of them. A large shadow burst from the darkness and he had to quickly dodge with the current as the Gyarados swept by. Okay, maybe he wouldn’t catch THAT one... Finally, the current lessened and Ash managed to regain some control over his momentum. Feeling like his lungs were about to burst, he swam for the surface as fast as he could, helped along the way by some friendly Poliwag. “Ahhh!” Ash gasped as he finally broke the surface of the water and made for the shore. Waving his thanks to the Poliwag, he turned his attention to the sodden electric mouse in front of him. “Pikachu...” He put his ear to its mouth and held his breath. ‘Please don’t be...’ Ash sighed with relief as he felt a small puff of air on his cheek. It was still alive.

“Um, excuse me.” Misty pulled her bike to a stop outside the first house she came to. A friendly looking woman with brown hair looked up from where she was kneeling in her garden. “Yes dear? Can I help you?” Misty nodded. “Um, yeah. Uh, can you tell me where to find the Oak Pokémon Lab? I’m, not from around here...” The woman smiled. “Sure, dear. It’s the large building on top of that hill there.” She said, standing up and pointing as she brushed the dirt off her dress. Misty looked up, then smiled back at the woman. “Thank you.” ‘What a polite young lady...’ the woman thought as the girl rode off before returning to her gardening.

“So, there’s really none left...?” Misty was disappointed. She’d come all this way hoping to get a Squirtle, and for what, nothing at all. The old man shook his head. “I’m sorry, young lady, but I just gave my last starter Pokémon to some new trainers only a couple of hours ago. And even then I almost didn’t have enough. If you’d just come before that last trainer who’d slept in, you might have gotten the last Pokémon I was keeping for him, but...” Misty sighed. “That’s okay. I guess I can make do without a Squirtle. Besides, I might get lucky and find one somewhere, right?” The old man smiled. “That’s the spirit! Sorry I can’t be more help to you.” Misty shrugged. “Nah, it’s okay, really. I’d better go now, good-bye.” She waved and hopped back on her bike. ‘Drat, I really wanted that Squirtle, too.’ She thought, waving at the gardening woman as she went by. ‘Maybe I should go to Johto. I hear they’ve got a different set of starter Pokémon over there. Eh, it’s an idea.’

Ash stumbled a bit as he ran on. ‘Don’t these Spearow ever give up?!’ “Oww!” one swept by and pecked at the top of his head. He’d been running almost all day without a break and his feet were killing him. He rearranged Pikachu to bat at another Spearow fluttering in front of his face. ‘Man, if Gary could see me now, he’d be loving this.’ Ash could almost see the smirk on Gary’s face and hear that smarmy voice in his ear. “Ha! I knew you couldn’t make it, loser!” Ash clenched a fist and smacked another Spearow away. ‘Why does Gary always have to be right about everything?!’ he thought, tears starting to fall. Then he tripped over a rock and thought no more.

Misty hummed softly to herself as she cycled past the spot where she spent the morning fishing. ‘What a day! First, I fish all morning and the only thing I caught was a Goldeen. Then I find out the Squirtle I was hoping for was already taken by some punk new trainer. I’ll probably get a puncture next.’ She sighed. ‘That’d be right.’ A noise caught her attention. ‘What going on up there?’ A large flock of Spearow were fluttering about something in the path up ahead. Through a brief gap in the teeming, pecking mass, she could just see a pair of dirty, damp looking sneakers. “Hey, that’s a kid under there?!” She pulled her bike to a screeching halt and grabbed a Pokéball off her belt. “Staryu, Go! Use your Water Gun to blast those Spearow away!” Staryu burst out and spun off towards the flock, water jets blasting away everything they came in contact with. The flock scattered, squawking in anger at being interrupted so wetly. Misty jumped off her bike and ran over to the kid. The skinny black haired boy was covered in scratches just about everywhere that she could see, and was clearly unconscious. “Staryu, keep them off of me, okay?” she said, carefully turning the boy over. What she saw next almost caused her to drop him onto his wounds. For underneath him was a seriously injured Pikachu. Misty grabbed the Pikachu and carefully set the boy back down, turning his head so that he wouldn’t suffocate. She could see that he’d be alright, but if she didn’t get that Pikachu to the nearest Pokécenter soon, well... “Staryu, stay here and keep an eye on the kid. Don’t let those Spearow back on him. When he wakes up, bring him to the Viridian Pokécenter, okay?” she said all this whilst carrying the Pikachu over to her bike and placing it gently into the front basket. “Hya!” Staryu responded as Misty rode off at top speed. Misty knew that Staryu would do its job, but now she had one of her own to do.

“Uh, ugh, wha-what happened?” Ash moaned as he woke up. “Ahh!” he screamed as he rolled over and the pain finally hit him. Then he remembered. ‘Oh, that’s right. The Spearow were chasing me, and I fell... I guess I must have passed out.’ He was still dazed and stared blankly at a Pokémon nearby that was shooting jets of water at some Spearow for a while before finally realizing something was missing. “Pikachu!” Ash leapt to his feet and stared around desperately. “Pikachu!” The Pokémon blasted away one last Spearow and hovered over to him. “Hya!” “Huh?” Ash stared at it hopelessly for a moment before remembering his Pokedex. He took it out of his pocket and pointed it at the Pokémon who waited patiently. “Staryu, the star-shaped Pokémon. The core of this water Pokémon shines in a rainbow of seven colours. The core is valued by some as a sort of jewellery.” “Oh.” Ash said weakly. It still didn’t explain where this, Staryu, had come from or why it was helping him. “Um, Staryu, can you tell me, do you know, where my Pikachu is?” “Hya!” Staryu’s core flashed green as it swept past him. “Hya!” It motioned further down the path. “I guess, you want me to follow you?” “Hya!”

“There, that’s it.” Misty sighed as she scrubbed the last black smear off the Pokécenter floor. She’d left it behind when she skidded in through the door on her bike. It was mostly pointless busy work so that she wouldn’t spend all her time worrying about that Pikachu. She sighed as she glanced over at the operating room door, and the light above it. ‘Nurse Joy took it in there hours ago. It must be worse off than I thought.’ As she finished putting the cleaning supplies away, she heard the outside door slide open. “Hya!” Staryu came over to her and flashed its core in several colours. Misty took this to mean that the kid was on his way. “Good job, Staryu.” She said as the door opened again and the kid came in, stumbling slightly and doubled over, breathing hard. Misty waited til he caught his breath. ‘Dumb kid.’ She thought as he straightened up and looked around. ‘He must be one of those new trainers that old guy was talking about earlier today. Probably the one who slept in.’ Ash looked over and saw the Staryu he’d been following next to a red-haired girl. ‘Must be its trainer.’ He went over. “Please miss, do you know anything about my Pikachu?” Misty nodded. “Yeah, Nurse Joy’s still looking at it.” She said, indicating the door with the light above it. Ash gulped. “Is, is it, o-okay?” he stammered, terrified of what he might hear. Misty sighed. “I really don’t know, kid. But I am curious as to how it got in that condition in the first place.” Ash opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. His mouth was so dry he’d temporarily lost the ability to speak. Misty sighed and went over to the drink machine. “Here.” She said, handing him a bottle of water. “Drink now, explain later.”

“So, that’s it.” Ash nodded. Misty sighed. “Sounds like you’ve had a worse day than I’ve had, and that’s an understatement.” They were sitting on one of the Pokécenter couches in the lobby, and Ash had just finished explaining everything that had happened. Every so often, however, he would stop and glance over at the door and its light, chewing his lip with worry. This was not lost on Misty. “Look kid, I’m not gonna lie to you. If your Pikachu doesn’t make it, the League will take away your license, bad luck or not. I hope you’re prepared for that.” Ash shook his head glumly and stared down at his feet, shaking slightly. Misty sighed as he pulled his hat down over his eyes. ‘Poor dumb kid. Hasn’t even been a trainer for a day yet, and he’s already in danger of losing his license.’ She sighed deeper. ‘Unfortunately, I’m probably gonna have to be the one to tear his license up. Man, that’s the worst thing about coming from an official Pokémon Gym. It’s okay when it’s someone who deserves it, but...’ Her thoughts trailed off as the light they been watching so intently finally went off. Standing up, Misty left Ash on the couch and went over to speak with Nurse Joy. “Well...?” Nurse Joy sighed and shook her head softly. “I’m sorry, it was just too badly injured. If I’d been able to see it a little bit earlier, then maybe...” Misty sighed and looked over at Ash. “Oh, man, he’s not gonna take this well.” Nurse Joy followed her glance and frowned. “Is that the trainer?” Misty nodded. “Yeah, at least, he was.”

Ash looked up as the girl came over with Nurse Joy and stood in front of him. Nurse Joy sighed. “I’m sorry, there wasn’t anything I could do.” she turned and walked over to the main desk to use the phone, leaving Misty standing there, watching Ash. He stared blankly until the full force of what he’d just heard finally hit him before bursting into tears. Misty hovered anxiously. ‘Man, I never was really good at the whole, emotions, thing.’ She sighed. Sitting down next to Ash, she cautiously placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “That’s it, just, get it out there.” She mumbled softly. Misty could hear sirens in the distance, coming closer. “It’s only gonna get worse from here on in, kid.” She sighed.

The next day... Misty tried to keep up a light banter as she escorted Ash back down to Pallet Town. It wasn’t made easy as Ash kept bursting into tears every so often, so Misty had to stop and cheer him up before they could continue. Finally, they reached Pallet Town, and Ash slowly made his way back to his house, Misty close behind. She was a little shocked to see that his was the same house she’d asked directions at the day before. ‘That woman must have been his mum.’ Ash walked in and trudged upstairs to his bedroom, leaving Misty downstairs to explain the situation to his mother. “So you see, that’s why he’s so, depressed.” Misty finished lamely. His mother had tears in her eyes. “Oh, my poor little boy!” Misty sighed. “On the bright side, it’s not a permanent ban from training. League rules states that he can reapply for a new license in five years time, so that might cheer him up. He’ll have to take a test to prove he can handle it this time around, but if he passes, he’ll be able to start over with a new Pokémon. Maybe he’ll have better luck next time.” She smiled sadly before looking at her watch. “Um, I’d better get on with my journey now. It was, nice, to meet you.” Misty said, getting up from the table. “Tell Ash I said bye, and good luck with that test.” His mother nodded. “Okay dear, thank you for bringing him back.”

Five Years Later... “Ash, help me with this please!” “Coming, mum!” Ash called back. He’d grown considerably in the last five years, and was no longer the skinny black haired boy he’d once been. His mother remarked every chance she got about how he was getting more handsome every single day, which cause Ash considerable embarrassment. He couldn’t deny the fact, however, that most of the girls in town had taken to staring at him every time he went outside, some even gathering up the courage to ask him out. But every time, though, he’d turn them down for reasons he couldn’t quite explain. Ash still tended to wear a black shirt and blue jeans, but he’d put away the Pokémon League hat long ago, and hasn’t worn it since. He had several scars where the Spearow had pecked him that day, but some were already starting to fade. As Ash stepped out into the garden, he could see that his mother wanted his help lifting a large bag of fertiliser off of the cart. Ash went over and easily lifted the heavy bag and carried it over to where his mother was indicating. With a small grunt he set the bag down and wiped his hands on his jeans. “Anything else, mum?” she shook her head. “No, unless you want to retile the roof...?” Ash stared at her in horror, until he realized she was only kidding. “Very funny, Mum. I’m laughing on the inside.”

Misty stopped her bike at the edge of town. ‘It figures I’d be the one who has to give Ash the biggest test of his life.’ She sighed. ‘Oh well, at least it gives me a chance to see how he’s coping with what happened.’ She set off again. Not long after... “Hey kid, how’s it going?” Ash turned around and stared dumbly at the tall red-head just getting off a bike. The tight blue tank top, the equally tight yellow bike shorts, the legs... “Whoa.” Let’s face it, he drooled. Misty looked Ash over appreciatively with a small smile on her peach coloured lips. ‘Wow, he really, grew up. Not to mention, bulked up.’ She added quietly to herself, just noticing the bulge of muscles under his black shirt. Ash’s mother watched this silent exchange of mutual interest with bemusement. ‘Well, at least now I know why he kept turning those other girls down.’ “Why, hello there, Misty wasn’t it?” Misty shook herself slightly. “Huh, oh, uh, yeah, that’s right. Hi.” Misty answered, blushing deeply at being caught out like that. Ash snapped out of it too. “Misty?!” he asked in shock. ‘This cannot be the same scrawny little red-head from five years ago, right? Right?!’ “Hi, Ash. Long time, no see.” Misty replied cheerfully. Ash blushed. “Hey, um, wow, you look, uh...” he trailed off and stared again for a moment. Misty blushed deeply. “Uh, he he, yeah. You don’t look half bad yourself, kid. Better than the last time I saw you, anyway.” Ash’s mother smiled at her son’s continued embarrassment around the fairer sex. “Why don’t we all go inside and you can tell us what brings you here.”

“And that’s it basically.” Misty finished explaining. “I’m down here because Ash’s training ban has expired, and I’m the one who the League sent to give him the test.” Ash sat in silence. “You mean, I can, be a trainer now?” he asked hopefully and fearfully. Misty nodded. “Yes. Provided, of course, that you pass the test I’m to give you that is.” Ash didn’t know what to say. ‘The only thing I’ve ever wanted to be is a Pokémon trainer, and now’s my chance. But, what if I screw up again?’ he clenched his fist with fear. ‘I don’t want to, kill, another Pokémon with my stupidity.’ Misty noticed the look on his face. “It’s okay, Ash.” He looked up. “If I don’t think you’re ready to try again, then I simply won’t pass you on the test. But provided you don’t run into your old bad luck again, then there shouldn’t be any trouble, okay?” she smiled at him. Ash nodded as he could feel the heat rising up his face. ‘Calm down, your mum’s sitting right there.’ “O-Okay, Misty. I’ll, give it a try.” Misty nodded and threw back the last of her tea. “Great! I’ve got some stuff to arrange for the test, so I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? Be up bright and early tomorrow morning and meet me out by the front gate.” She got up to leave, then turned around. “Oh, and by-the-way, Ash?” “Yeah, Misty?” “Bring your trainer gear, everything you’d take on a Pokémon journey, okay?” she smiled and left him sitting there very confused.

Early the next morning... Ash finished off the last of his breakfast and got up. “Okay mum, I’d better go and wait outside now.” He tried to sound calm and cool about it, but his voice cracked from stress about what was going to happen today. His mother smiled at him as he went to grab his things from the hall and went outside. “Just do your best, my little man. That’s all I ask of you.” She said softly to herself. She’d woken up extra early this morning to make him a special breakfast and to make sure that he woke up on time, but to her surprise he was already awake and going over what he was going to put into his backpack. Ash closed the front gate after him and leant back against it, inhaling the early morning air. He’d almost forgotten how sweet and clean it smelled. He shifted the newly replaced hat on his head nervously. ‘It’s been a while since I’ve worn this.’ So long, in fact, that he had to adjust the size of it just so that he could wear it again. ‘I can’t believe my head was ever that small.’ Really, he’d only gone up about a size, but he was still amazed about it. He was even more amazed about how much Misty had changed. ‘Man, why can’t I stop thinking about her?!’ he sighed. A blush crept across his face as Misty came jogging towards him. “Hey Ash.” She said softly. “Hey Misty. Good morning.” “Good morning. Are you ready?” Ash nodded. “Yep.”

A short while later... “Okay Ash, this is how it’s gonna be.” Misty said as she paused outside the gates to the lab. “The first part of your test is this. You’re gonna go inside, where that old guy will have some Pokémon waiting, okay? All you have to do is, pick one.” Ash looked confused. “Uh, what do you mean, ‘pick one’?” Misty smiled. “I’ll explain after, okay? Just go in there and pick out a Pokémon. Choose carefully, ‘cause you’ll be needing that Pokémon for the rest of your test, and maybe more.” She added cryptically. They waited as Professor Oak came out and unlocked the gates, yawning widely, before leading them inside. “Okay, Ash. The choice of Pokémon this time around is a little different from before, as it was such short notice, I couldn’t get all of the usual three.” Misty nodded. “Yeah, sorry ‘bout that.” Professor Oak nodded. “No matter. So, this time it’s between Squirtle, Pichu and Eevee. I’ll give you a moment to decide.” Ash sighed. ‘Okay, well, I wanted Squirtle last time, but seeing as Gary’s got one...’ He shook his head absentmindedly. ‘Pichu, um, oh... I’ve heard about that one. It’s the pre-evolved form of Pika...’ He shuddered. He couldn’t even bring himself to think the name. ‘Okay, so not Pichu... I guess that just leaves...’ Ash nodded. “Okay, I choose... Eevee.” Misty smiled. “Good choice, Ash. You won’t be strapped for evolutions with that one, that’s for sure.” Professor Oak nodded as Ash reached for the pokeball. “Yes, good choice indeed. Now, here’s some Pokéballs and a new Pokédex.” Ash looked curiously at Misty as he accepted the proffered supplies. Misty just shrugged. “I’ll tell you outside.”

Outside the lab... “Okay Ash, now the test really begins.” Misty started as they walked back towards Ash’s house in the early morning light. “You see, the main problem you had last time was just getting to Viridian City with you and your Pokémon in one piece.” Ash winced at the memory. “So, that’s the test.” Ash looked blankly at Misty. “Huh?” Misty sighed. “It’s really quite simple, Ash. All you have to do to get a new Trainer’s License is get your own good self, and that Eevee, up to the Viridian City Pokémon Center where I’ll be waiting for you. If you can do that, then I’ll happily sign the form to reinstate you as a trainer.” Ash’s face lit up. “That’s, all I have to do?! Get to Viridian City?!” Misty nodded. “Yep. As long as you and Eevee aren’t too injured, then all you have to do is call your mum, tell her you’re going on a journey with your new Pokémon, and, go.” She looked at the strange looking watch on her wrist. “Okay, according to my Poketch, it’s almost six o’clock, and your test officially begins then, so...” Misty gave a cheeky grin. “Ahh, what the heck, I’ll give you a head start, just don’t tell anyone, okay? Go!” she gave Ash a shove towards the path out of town. “Good luck, Ash!” she shouted after him as he started to run. ‘Hmm, cute butt.’ Misty giggled as she went to collect her bike from in front of his house.

A couple of days later, at the Viridian Pokécenter... “Okay Ash, give Eevee to Nurse Joy and as soon as she tells me it’s condition is good, I’ll sign your new trainer’s license.” Ash nodded as he handed Eevees’ Pokéball over to Nurse Joy before yawning loudly. Misty smiled. “Okay, while we’re waiting, you’d better take a nap before you collapse or something.” She pointed him in the direction of the nearest room before settling herself down to wait for Nurse Joy’s verdict. Sometime later... ‘Ahh, now that was a good nap.’ Ash stopped, mid-stretch and half-way out of the door to the room as he saw Misty talking with Nurse Joy. ‘Uh-oh, the last time that happened...’ He relaxed as Misty beckoned him over with a small smile. “Well Ash, I have only one thing to say to you. Congratulations.” She grinned as she placed a newly signed Trainer’s Card in his hand. Ash stared at it in shock. “You mean...?” Misty nodded. “Yep. Oh, and you get to keep that Eevee, too. Well done, Ash.” Nurse Joy nodded. “Yes. I was pleasantly surprised when I examined your Eevee earlier. The only thing I could find wrong with it was just a little exhaustion, nothing a short sleep couldn’t fix. In fact, it woke up just a short while before you did.” She handed him Eevees Pokéball. Misty smiled as Ash stared at the ball avidly. “We’ve both signed the necessary forms, and they’ve been sent to the Pokémon League Headquarters up at the Indigo Plateau for confirmation. They sent that card over just before you woke up.” Ash grinned wildly. “Thanks. Both of you. I gotta go call my mum.” He ran off to the nearest phone. Misty nodded. “Right. I gotta go now anyway. See ya, Ash.” She called as she went out to her bike.

Three weeks later... “Okay, this must be it.” Ash looked up from the crudely drawn map someone had given him earlier. “Yep, that’s it alright.” He took a deep, steadying breath. “Okay, second badge, let’s go.” He stepped into the Cerulean City Gym, but soon stopped in awe. He could only watch silently as what he could only describe as a vision of beauty dove into the water of the Gym’s pool, twisting and spiralling in the air before entering the water with barely a splash. It wasn’t until the girl stepped out of the water and moved towards him that he realized who she was. “Misty?!” he croaked, temporarily losing his voice in shock. She smiled back at him. “Hey Ash. How’s it going?” Misty asked as she grabbed at a towel and started to dry herself off. When he didn’t answer, she glanced at him and blushed. He was staring blankly at her, jaw working silently, a steady blush creeping up his face and a thin trickle of drool creeping down his chin. “Uh, give me, two minutes...” she turned and half-ran to her room to get dressed. ‘Not that I mind the attention or anything,’ Misty mused to herself, ‘but I would like to have something resembling an intelligent conversation with the boy.’ She grinned. ‘Although, if he was the one who was barely half dressed, I’d probably be the same way.’

After a brief conversation, Ash finally found out Misty was the Cerulean Gym Leader, and promptly challenged her to a battle. He was still only half there because of what he'd seen earlier, and being so distracted, he lost. “Look, Ash. Don’t worry about it, okay?” Misty smiled and punched his arm playfully. “Okay, so I beat you, no big. After all, I’m an older and much more experienced trainer than you are, and a Gym Leader to boot. All you have to do is go out and train some more, and when you feel ready to try again, come back. I’m here pretty much every day ‘cept Sundays, so challenge me anytime to a re-match, I’ll be waiting.” Ash nodded, then started to make his way back to the Pokécenter. ‘Oh well,’ he thought glumly. ‘At least I have a reason to see Misty again.’ The thought cheered him up in a way he didn’t fully understand.

A few days later, after some intense training just north of Cerulean City... “Okay Ash. Same rules as before. Two-on-Two, no time limit.” She grinned cheekily. “But let’s make this, shall we say, a little more interesting, okay?” Ash looked at her across the pool. “Huh, what do you mean, ‘more interesting’?” Misty flipped a Pokéball in the air and deftly caught it. “I mean, if you win, I’ll give you a Cascade Badge. But if I win again, well...” she blushed. “You have to go out with me tonight.” Ash’s jaw dropped and he could feel the heat rising up his face as he blushed deeply. “Uh, you mean, like a date...?” Misty nodded, trying to look cool about it. “Uh-huh. But only if I win. So, do we have a deal?” Ash laughed nervously as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Uh, sure, okay.” Misty clapped her hands loudly. “Okay! Let’s battle! Misty calls, Staryu!” “Hya!” Ash pulled a Pokéball off his belt. “Go, Bulbasaur!” Misty stared as the Pokémon materialised onto a platform on the pool’s surface. “Hey, when did you catch that?!” Ash grinned. “While I was training just north of here. It’s really strong, too.” Misty smiled. “I’ll bet. Staryu, Tackle!” “Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!”

Bulbasaur fainted, but not before knocking out Staryu and seriously weakening Starmie. Eevee was easily able to finish Starmie off, giving Ash the win... Misty stared in shock as Eevee ran into Ash’s arms. ‘Man, I really wanted that date, too.’ She sighed as she recalled Starmie and stood at the side of the pool waiting for Ash. “Okay, you beat me. Like I promised, here’s a Cascade Badge.” Ash’s face lit up as Misty handed him the small, blue tear-shaped badge. “Yes, I got a Cascade Badge!” he called as he thrust it into the air victoriously. Misty moved off and started fiddling with the Pokéball rack at the side of the Gym. ‘I can’t believe it. The one time I really go all out to win, and he beats me, just like that? This blows.’ Ash’s excitement at his win faded. ‘Oh yeah, the date. Maybe I should have lost...’ Ash pinned the badge inside his jacket nervously as he went over to Misty. “Um, Misty? About that offer, of a date, um well...” he shifted his feet nervously as she blushed and dropped a Pokéball and scurried to pick it up. “Wha-what about it?” Ash sighed. “Um well, seeing as you did win that first battle, and I’m not really doing anything at the moment, and, uh...” he paused. “Do you wanna go out with me?” Misty blurted before clapping her hand over her mouth in shock and blushing deeply. Ash grinned and nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah!”

Okay, let’s cut it off there before this goes from a PG to an MA rating. Insert own ending here, use your own imaginations. That way, if it gets too filthy you have only yourselves to blame.

I hope you liked this little tale of what could have been. After all, it might have been just sheer chance and luck combined that Misty just happened to be there at that particular moment to rescue Ash and Pikachu. Any number of things could have been different that day. Ash might not have slept in. Gary might have gotten Pikachu. And just as I’ve demonstrated, Misty might not have been there to save him. Mmmm, Multiple Universe Theory. (Drools like Homer Simpson). Hmm, just time for one last rant. Bring back Misty! We need her back in the T.V series, now, before it’s too late... Okay, I’m done.

I kept my little ramble in there. Hope the new formatting is making these fics easier to understand. I didn’t get many reviews for the originals, just from ‘Captain Bones’ and of course, the above mentioned ‘Yami Ash’. So obviously, being in text format made it too difficult to read properly.

This was one of my longest stories in text, being around seven pages on screen, apart from the x-mas story, which was in five parts, so that much text would have been difficult to read before... try it now...

AUSSIE WOLF

18-Oct-08. (fixed)