I Will Stand By Your Side Forever by Awesome Anne Ages: Ash-14 Misty-14 1/2 Brock-19 "Ash, please, calm down." A vase was thrown at a window, followed by a slamming fist, shattering it. "Please, Ash...." A wooden table was kicked so hard, it broke in half and collapsed. "Ash...." When the person capable of all this damage slammed his fist into a bookshelf, it collapsed and every book was ruined. "Calm down...please, Ash...." More glass shattered, and more wood broke. Misty started to give up trying to soothe Ash so he would calm down and stop breaking things. If he were to stand still, he would be shaking, and his eyes would stare deeply into another person's eyes, full of an anger that had never taken control of his body in his life before. Misty sighed. Again, she watched Ash break anything he could find. He picked up a VCR, preparing to slam it into the wall and break both things, but suddenly, he stopped. This caught Misty's full attention, as he dropped the VCR and collapsed to his hands and knees. He cried out loud, his tears flowing out like his fury. Misty sighed once more, then walked over to him. "Ash, it's not your fault." "How many times are you going to say that lie...." muttered Ash between tears with a cracked voice. "Ash, I'm not lying. Why is it that everytime something happens, you blame it on yourself, and you know it's never your fault?" Misty kneeled down and outstretched her arms, allowing Ash to cry on her shoulder as she wrapped them around him gently and warmly. "It's never your fault," she repeated. A tear came down her own eye. "Things happen, and that's just the way it is. You didn't let Pikachu down on purpose." "Misty," he said, pulling apart from her and looking her in the eye, "I stood there and I watched as Pikachu fell, okay? I stood there as he fell from that cliff...and I did nothing about it! Nothing! How can you say then that it's not my fault? I could have sent Bulbasaur or Chikorita out to grab Pikachu, but I couldn't because I stupidly watched as Team Rocket captured all my other pokemon!" "Ash, you couldn't do anything. We were all inside those metal ring things, and no one could have done anything, even if you did have your pokemon!" Ash didn't seem to be listening. "I can't believe how bad a trainer I am to just watch and let my first and favorite pokemon fall to the ground while I stand there and watch...." Misty was getting sick of this. Ash had been blaming things on himself and doubting himself all day. She finally did what she felt like doing the whole time. She slapped him hard. On impulse, Ash looked up at her as he held his stinging cheek. "Will you shut up and listen for once?" she shouted. "Do you think everyone likes to see you tear yourself apart when you're really supposed to be happy? Pikachu took that fall for you, Ash! He thundershocked Team Rocket before they could push you off! If you can't be grateful Pikachu saved your life, then I have no choice but to think Pikachu did deserve better," she said. The last tear fell from Ash's eye. He nodded slowly. "You're right, Misty. He did." Then Ash got up and walked out the door. "He did what...?" Misty started to ask, but then remembered what she said. 'Oh my.... I didn't mean it like that!' she thought. 'Where is he going?! I'd better follow him and make sure he doesn't go crazy on anything...' Misty looked around the house. Everything was broken. 'Else....' she finished thinking as she secretly followed him. Not too long later, she found Ash, walking towards the cliff where Pikachu fell. 'Oh no....' she thought as she walked a little more closely behind him. She saw him take that last step, and was about to run to him and shout his name and grab him before he fell...but she found he wasn't going to jump at all. She felt pretty stupid as she watched him simply sit down and look down, then look at the sky. But she stayed just in case. He looked down again, not seeming to notice Misty hiding behind the tree behind him. "Pikachu," he said quietly, "I'm really sorry I let you down. Misty was right...you did deserve better than me. It's like I can save a human being and I can save the world and I can save a burning building...why can't I save my own best friend, then? I'm pretty sorry, huh?" he said, and laughed a little. Misty had never heard Ash insult himself like that before, not to anyone. She would not have said what she said if it meant it was going to stick in Ash's mind. "I really miss you a lot, buddy. I know that when we first met, you saw me as some punk kid, who couldn't even catch a Spearow, that stole you from the lab and was going to make your life miserable. It's funny, because that's the same situation with Misty, except I know deep inside that I still make her life miserable. And yet, just like you, she's always helping me out." Ash sighed. "I know what you're thinking, Pikachu. Almost everything I say everyday has the word 'Misty' in it, huh?" Ash laughed a little. "Don't worry, Pikachu, someday I'll become a little more mature to where I can understand her, and I won't always talk about her since I'll know why she acts the way she does." 'Why I act the way I do?! Why that little....' There was an eerie silence. "Pikachu," said Ash, a little louder, "if I were to join you...." Misty payed full attention and came as close as she could without being discovered to make sure he didn't jump. "Would we be in the same places?" Ash sighed. "I'm sorry that I can't be with you anymore, and that I'm not totally willing to join you..." Misty relaxed. "But I have a whole life ahead of me. But hey--I can make a promise that I won't ever break. As my life goes on and I become closer and closer to you, I'll store some mental notes in my mind, and as I visit you when of the time, I'll give you these notes and fill you in on everything that happens. It's gonna be hard in battle without my strongest pokemon, but I guess that couldn't last forever anyway, huh?" Ash sighed, and stood up. "I'm gonna miss you...and thanks." Before Ash even turned around, he sighed once more. "Well, Misty, let's head back." Misty's heart almost skipped a beat, and she came out of hiding. "What?! How'd you know I was here?" "For one thing, you always follow me, and for two, that stinky perfume's been bothering me since I got here," said Ash. Misty rolled her eyes. She sighed. "Well, are you feeling a little better now?" "Yeah," he said with a small half smile. "All I needed was to talk to my buddy." She smiled, and they headed back together. TO BE CONTINUED... Heh, you didn't think that was the END, did you? Heck no! I haven't even gotten to the story yet!! There's still a lotta action, romance, and whatever else in the next part!!! (Whenever I send it) Please review!!!!! (This email is shared with Melodi, so please if you send one of us a review, put the name of the person you're reviewing the story on, or just the story title) tweetiebird_chick@yahoo.com/ licensed_brat_1@yahoo.com