Memory Unforgotten
~ Mana Lugia, duh.

Disclaimer: I own nothing pokemon related. Ppl in fic are fake, owned by nintendo, and/or made up. Read this at your own discretion.

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He sighed. It has been so long, hasn't it? So damned long. He wonders if what he was looking for was still there... Maybe not. But one'd never get anywhere with that attitude. He took a deep breath, and entered the city. His eyes darted from left to right. If his newest version of the guidebook proves correct, it should be...

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All was quiet in the City of Cerulean. It was after work hours, and everyone was at home, getting ready for bed, and the end of another day. Standing at the foot of one of the minor streets in the city was a house. This was a different house than the rest. It stood only 1 story tall, with brown roofing and shedding sky blue paint. The house seemed as if it hasn't been touched in quite a while. The grass came up to about 1 foot tall, and dusted with fallen leaves, from this autumn and the ones further back. Inside, however, a light was lit.

She had just finished tidying up the house. Her pokemon had made a mess of things when it tried to take a bath, and suddenly remembered that it couldn't swim. It ended up splashing water everywhere, and she had to mop up after it. She was dead tired, and just wanted to sit down. She went to the living room, sat on her chair, and began to read.

===
He checked around. This should be the spot, but somehow, he didn't quite think so. The place looked too untidy for it to belong to her. Oh well, might as well take a look anyways. Trudging up the leaves-filled pathway, he made his way to the door, and knocked.

===
She was right about to get into the good part of the book when someone knocked on the door. Who could that be at this time of day? If it's that darned annoying salesman selling pokemon care products, she will personally grab him by the ear and dragging him down to the local police office for harassment.

She got up and lazily walked to the door, and opened it. The man wasn't anyone that she recognized. He had a brown jacket on, but it was tattered and torn. She couldn't see his face due to the shadow, but from his posture, he doesn't look very old.

"Yes? May I help you?" she asked.

"..." was the reply.

'Does he talk?' She thought to herself. "Um, hello? Can I help you?" She asked again.

The man stared at her, and she felt as if his eyes were piercing through her skin. He was silent, almost an eerie silent. She felt uneasy, and started to close the door. The man reached out and stopped her.

"M-Misty? Is that you?"

She stopped. Why does that voice sound so familiar, yet so foreign? It's odd, but she has a feeling that she has seen him before.

"W-Who are you? And how do you know my name?" Misty asked, genuinely surprised.

The man stepped out of the shadows. "Misty, don't you remember me?"

Misty was silent for a moment, before floods of memories came back to her... that fateful day...

~Flashback~

"Misty! Brock! Hurry up! The ferry is leaving the port in 10 minutes!" Ash, a 16-year-old teen with spiky black hair and a red cap shouted to his friends.

"We're coming, Ash! Don't you dare leave us behind!" Behind Ash, Misty hurriedly yelled. But Ash was not about to listen when he gets excited. He continued running in front of the other two with Pikachu on his shoulder. Misty and Brock had to chase Ash all the way down to their ship.

"A-Ash, d-don't run so fast next time!" Brock said in pants of breath. Meanwhile, Misty panted beside him. "Ash! Don't you dare do something like that again!" She exclaimed. But Ash was in no mood to listen. This was the ship that will take him to the next gym! He hurried aboard, and waved to his friends. "Come on, Misty, Brock! you're being slowpokes!"

Sighing, the two climbed aboard, knowing it is useless to argue when Ash has his spirits this high.

~#~#~#~
The ship was fully furnished, but somehow Misty felt it extra. Where there should be cloth, there was leather. Where there should be lights, there were gigantic chandeliers. There was a posh feel to the ship, the people on board were all gentlemen and rich ladies.

"Err, Ash, are you sure we're on the right ship?" Misty asked uncomfortably. It wasn't that she didn't like the ship, but the rich was making her nervous.

"Of course I'm sure! This ship will take us to the next island, where the nearest gym is!" Ash replied while looking around excitedly for a trainer to challenge.

"Then what's with these rich people?" Misty asked again. At this moment, Brock appeared after wandering off for a while.

"I can answer that, Misty. The captain told me there was a grand event that these people are celebrating, and they booked the ship, sort of." Brock replied.

"Nuts, I guess there's no one to battle. Rich people are horrible trainers, and so are old people." Ash sighed dejectedly.

"Excuse me, I couldn't help overhearing your conversation, and I must disagree," An American accented voice came from behind Ash. They turned around to see an elderly gentleman standing there. His age is accentuated by his white beard and white hair. He was wearing a black suit and a large black top hat, and in his hand was a cane. "Not all rich people are bad trainers, young sprout."

Ash jumped back in surprise. "O-Oh yeah?" He sputtered.

The gentleman smiled. "Of course. Would you fancy a battle of sorts? A 3 on 3 battle, my kind of battle." Ash, being hotheaded and also prideful, accepted the challenge.

"But where are we supposed to battle? This is a ship, there's too many people around!" Ash asked.

"Oh, easy. There's a battle arena in the front." The gentleman led them to an open arena, where the last of a battle was being finished. There was a man who looked to be 20 with glasses and tree-like arms battling a nerdy looking kid of around 13. The kid had out a Magneton that looked to be in very bad condition. It could barely hover above the ground. Meanwhile, the man had out a Vileplume, which was spreading its toxic pollens everywhere.

"Come on, Magneton! We haven't been beaten in the last 10 games and we shouldn't start now! Can you muster up a substitute?" The kid yelled. Magneton buzzed slowly, and suddenly, in a flash of blinding light, there was two Magnetons!

"Ah, his weak little tricks won't stop me! Vileplume! Use hidden power!" Vileplume acknowledged, and before anyone realized what happened, the substitute was gone! The kid looked in shock. "H-How did you get a hidden power fire? Well, no biggie! Magneton! Thunder wave!"

Magneton let loose some sparks, paralyzing the Vileplume. "Ha! Just because you're a bodybuilder and look like Mr. Clean doesn't mean it'd help your wimpy weed! Why don't you go get a Murkrow instead? I'll beat it easier!" The kid laughed.

But the man remained calm. "Vileplume! Sleep powder him!" Vileplume immediately ran to the center of the arena. "Magneton! Dodge!" Magneton tried to hover away, but Vileplume has spread its pollen throughout the arena. "Now! While it's asleep! Hidden power it!" Vileplume let loose a burst of hot wind, and it was all over. "Return, Magneton! That was a good game, but you won! I'll beat you next time, but right now Spongebob's on!" The kid shouted as he ran off.

The gentleman smiled faintly, and went up to the man. After exchanging a few words, the man walked off, while the gentleman took his spot. "Ready, sprout?" He chuckled. But Ash had already taken up his spot, and the battle began.

Gentleman sent out a Growlithe, while Ash matched it with a Noctowl. "Holy cow! That Growlithe looks like the size of an Arcanine already! Be careful, Ash!" Brock yelled. But his words fell to deaf ears.

"Noctowl! Hypnosis that little puppy!" Ash commanded. Noctowl hooted in agreement, as its eyes glowed blue, and hypnotic waves flew towards the Growlithe. The Growlithe howled a little, but soon fell asleep. "Ha! Take that!" Ash grinned. The gentleman wasn't impressed.

"That was it? I thought young ones today would put up more of a fight! Oh well... Growlie knows what to do." He stood there waiting.

"Noctowl! Swoop in for a take-down!" Ash commanded, as Noctowl dived at Growlithe. Suddenly, Growlithe stood up, and let loose a furious fire blast. The fireball engulfed Noctowl, which was unable to finish the take down attack. Growlithe, its eyes still closed, let loose more fireballs, each one hitting Noctowl with such fury that the spectators began to sweat. Ash watched in horror.

"Ash! You moron! Call back Noctowl before it becomes KFC!" Misty yelled. Ash, as if waking up from a nightmare, recalled Noctowl.

"What the heck? How did that Growlithe do that?!" Ash yelled across the arena. The gentleman shrugged. "Ever heard of Sleep talk, sprout?"

Ash brings out another pokeball. "Go! Totodile!" Totodile appeared, jumping and laughing while shaking its stubby little legs.

"Totodile! Let's water gun down that dog!" Totodile shot a jet stream of water at the puppy, which was unable to dodge it because it was sleeping. After 20 seconds, Growlithe collapsed, and gentleman called it back. "Not bad, sprout! At least you know your type advantages! Let's see the power of Bessie!"

Out of the pokeball popped a Granbull, its large jaw ready to crush any opponent that comes its way. "Bessie! Let's attract the little croc!" Granbull started doing a weird dance, which made Totodile very much in love. Totodile started dancing around, while Granbull charged at it. When Granbull smacked right into Totodile, it flew all the way out of the ring, behind Ash, and into the crowd. Ash hurried ran into the crowd and recalled Totodile.

"Arg! So you think your dogs are powerful, huh? Go Pikachu!" Pikachu responded by jumping into the ring, sparks shooting out of its cheeks.

"A Pikachu? I see it has much power. Bessie! Let's use Headbutt!" Granbull agreed as it charged at Pikachu, but Pikachu dodged. "Pikachu! Thunderbolt!" But before Pikachu could let loose its thunder, the Granbull charged at Pikachu again, and hit it with a dynamic punch. Pikachu flew to the feet of the gentleman, and could barely move. Ash ran to its side.

"All right already! Y-You win..." Ash muttered, while applying a potion on Pikachu. "Careful now sprout, it's still confused from that punch." The gentleman warned. "Ah, Pikachu and I have been friends for a long time! He'd never shock- GAHHHHHHHH!" Ash yelled in pain as Pikachu used thunderbolt on Ash. The Gentleman chuckled. At this time, Brock and Misty ran over to see what the matter was.

"That was a very powerful Granbull you had there, Mister..." Brock complimented.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself to you kids. I'm Bob Lassens, leader of the Posh Battling Committee. We rented this ship." The gentleman bowed.

"Oh! So you rented this ship! Well, next time we battle, I'll beat you for sure!" Ash exclaimed. "But right now, I'm really really hungry! When's dinner?"

"Ash! It's only 5pm! Stop thinking about your stomach for once!" Misty smacked him on the back of his head.

"Well Misty, what did you want me to think about? You?" Ash argued back.

"Err, no, but stop thinking about your stomach!" Misty yelled back. "You're like a pig!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"SHUT UP!" Brock yelled. That quieted the duo down. Mr. Lassens chuckled. "Well, dinner starts in an hour, and since we booked the whole danged ship, we even took the liberty of putting some nice clothes in the closets! I'll see you guys at dinner, I got to go finish up some paperwork." With that, he departed for the inner chambers.

"Well, we should go to see our rooms before dinner," Brock suggested. The other two, tired from the day's activities, agreed. They walked through a dimly lit corridor of the ship until they came to their rooms, where Brock handed out the keys that he had gotten from the ship registration table. The trio went inside, and washed up for dinner.

~#~#~#~

"Oh, how do I say it... Any ideas Pikachu?" Ash asked as he paced around in his room. On the table stood Pikachu, savoring a bottle of Ketchup.

"Pika pi..." it shook its head. Ash sighed.

"But I really want to tell her! And... well, I really want to do it today..." Ash explained to himself. "Today's the day... I just know it!" But Pikachu wasn't listening. Ketchup had gotten on to its furry paws, and it's trying to lick it off.

"PIKACHU! Are you listening?" Ash yelled. His loud voice startled Pikachu, who responded in surprise as he let loose a thunderbolt at the nearest moving object, who ironically was Ash.

"Fine, fine... Pikachu, I'll just think it out for myself," Ash coughed, his body smoking.

~#~#~#~

The dinner hall was quite filled as the trio showed up. Mr. Lassens had taken the liberty of filling each closet on the ship with some very good-looking clothes, which the gang had put on to blend in. There was a large buffet table in the far corner of the dinner hall, while a stage was on the other side where shows are performed. The trio were led to a table in the corner, and waited until the announcement for dinner began.

"Arg! I'm so hungry!" Whined Ash, as he stared at his stomach. He felt really weird wearing a suit and dress pants, especially because he had his normal pokemon trainer outfit underneath. It just didn't feel right to abandon it. He had especially combed his spiky hair downwards to make them look more presentable, and left his cap in his room. Misty had put on an aquamarine gown, and had let her hair down for the occasion. Brock had on a black suit with a red bowtie and black pants. As dinner began, people began to file towards the buffet table, and who else was at the front but Ash?

Misty laughed. "Trust Ash to be the first one to be there," she commented as they got the food.

The lights dimmed as a band began to play on stage. A play began, about a sailor who lost his way home and had to fight pirates and monsters as he journeyed home. Ash had finished his food quickly, and now was waiting, waiting for the right moment. He watched as Misty finished her food, her hand gracefully wiped her mouth, and looked up to watch the play. For a moment, their eyes met, but both looked away quickly. Meanwhile, Brock looked on with amusement. Pikachu, meanwhile, continued to savor his ketchup.

Halfway through the play, Ash pulled Brock aside, and whispered something to him. Brock listened with a grin, and nodded. Misty turned her head towards them.

"What're you two talking about?" She asked.

The two quickly pulled apart, both with guilty faces. "Err, nothing at all, Misty! Just guy stuff!" Ash covered quickly.

Misty shrugged. "Oh, for a moment there I thought you said gay stuff." Ash's face went beet red while Brock tried to stifle his laughter.

"Nah, I'm not gay, Misty. Though that bodybuilder we saw earlier with the Vileplume probably is, I think," Ash commented. Brock couldn't help it. "You mean he's gay with you, Ash?" He said before bursting into a fit of laughter. Ash wasn't amused. "Nah, I think it's with that spongebob lover kid."

Misty rolled her eyes. "Boys will be boys..." She muttered to herself.

Ten minutes later, Brock pushed away from the table, and excused himself to go to the washroom, and left the table.

'Now's the time,' Ash thought to himself. He gently tapped Misty's hand, and she turned and looked at him. "Yeah?" she asked.

"W-well, Misty, um, I-I have something of extreme importance to tell you..." Ash said softly. "Um, well, Misty... I... I..." He hesitated, but he decided to let it out. "Misty, I l-" Suddenly, a loud bang from the stage startled them. They looked up, and the actors were no longer there. In the actors' places were men wearing black clothing and a large R on their chest.

"Team Rocket!" Ash exclaimed, as he jumped to his feet. The other people were already getting up. One of the Rockets on stage grabbed a microphone.

"DO NOT MOVE! We have surrounded the entire ship! We have infiltrated the ship so we can take your valuables and your pokemon! Now stay still as we hand them over or face our wrath!" He shouted.

But many people would not listen to them, Ash included. Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder. "Everyone! Let's fight these Rockets and show them who's boss!" Ash yelled, releasing his pokemons who are healed from the previous battle. Everywhere were calls of the trainers telling their pokemons to come forth and defend them.

"Go Squirtle!"

"Go Pidgeot!"

"Go Bessie!" Mr. Lassens yelled.

"Go Magikarp!" Someone behind Ash yelled. Everyone turned to look at the person, and the person explained sheepishly that he named his Hitmonchan Magikarp for fun. A fierce battle ensued, with the Rocket pokemons like Arbok, Vileplume, and Golbats fighting the fury and wrath of the Posh Battling Committee.

Mr. Lassens was having no trouble with the battle, as his Growlithe and Granbull destroyed every Rocket who ran his way. On the other side, the nerd who likes spongebob was wrecking havoc on his opponents with Magneton's thunder wave. Ash looked to where he could help, when he was tackled from behind. He got up and saw the bodybuilder standing there, smirking. Pikachu popped back up onto his should, warning the man with its sparks.

"Wimp! Hand over your valuables and Pokemon to us! Team Rocket always wins! You probably can't even protect yourself!" He commanded. Ash was not in the mood to obey him. He got up, and called out Cyndaquil.

"Ha! What's your wimpy hedgehog gonna do to my elite Vileplume?" He roared in laughter. "Vileplume! Sleep powder!" He commanded as the poisonous pokemon spread spore to induce sleep at the Cyndaquil. Cyndaquil replied with a flamethrower, burning the spores away while toasting the Vileplume.

"Who's laughing now, you gay bodybuilder?" Ash yelled back. But the bodybuilder wasn't done. He recalled Vileplume and sent out a Houndoom, the dark canine.

"Houndoom! Let's show him a taste of real fire! Let's have a few Fire blasts!" the bodybuilder yelled. But Ash was not about to be beaten. Asking Cyndaquil to retaliate with Fire blasts, the two pokemon began a battle of raging flames, while the Bodybuilder charged at Ash. Before Ash had time to respond, he felt a fist in his chest as he got the wind knocked out of him. Ash fell to the floor, barely able to breathe.

"Give up, pinky?" The bodybuilder smirked. When Ash shook his head, he reared up for another punch. Suddenly, the ship rocked, as everyone lost their footing and fell. Suddenly, someone exclaimed. "THE SHIP IS SINKING, EVERYONE!"

Brock grabbed Misty, and ran for the nearest lifeboat.

"Brock! What about Ash?" She yelled at him.

"There are too many people here! Even if we tried, we wouldn't  be able to find it! Knowing Ash, he'll probably get on a lifeboat and meet us at the next island!" He yelled back, but Misty wouldn't go. They stayed and looked for Ash for a while, until the ship was so close to the water that they had to leave. Misty sent out her water pokemons, who carried both Brock and her towards the port of their destination. Along the way, Misty felt tears in her eyes, or was that the ocean water?

They had waited a whole month at the port of their destination, but Ash never showed up. Dejected, they made the journey home, and seperated...

</Flashback>

She blinked. Could that be him? Tears welled up in her eyes. "A-Ash? I-is that you?" She whispered.

The man looked at her sadly, and walked out from the shadow. "It's been a while, hasn't it, Misty..." he whispered back.

Misty could barely speak. It was like a dream. Not only had Ash survived, but he came back to see her... She hugged Ash tightly, tears flowing. She didn't know why, but she felt a sense of warmness as she saw him again. Ash slowly hugged back.

"I missed you, Misty..." He whispered in her ear.

"I missed you too, Ash... Let's go in," She replied between sobs.

She led him to the kitchen, where he sat down and she made both of them some hot chocolate. "Ash, what happened to you that day?" She asked slowly.

Ash slowly took a sip of his chocolate, and retold his story.

<Flashback>

Utter chaos followed, as everyone tried to get up and run to the lifeboats. Ash barely cleared his head, and his first instinct told him to recall Cyndaquil and hold on to Pikachu, while his next was to find Brock, and more importantly, Misty. He got up, but his legs were wobbly. The rushing crowd quickly pushed him back down. When he finally found his footing, he ran after towards the lifeboats, thinking Misty and Brock would be there. The battles had created large amounted of damage to the ship, and it was sinking quickly. Lifeboats were being lowered at a fast rate, but he was unable to find Misty or Brock.

"Misty! Brock!" He yelled. But the sounds panicking people drowned his cries out. The ship suddenly rocked again, and someone bumped into Ash, throwing him and Pikachu, whom he was holding on to, overboard and into the cold and cruel ocean. He sent out his Totodile, but it was barely able to hold on to Pikachu. Meanwhile, Ash tried his hardest to float in the ocean. As the ship sank, more people fell in while the lifeboats rowed away to the other side while debris from the ship covered this side. Suddenly, Pikachu jumped onto Ash, while Totodile swam off. Ash, unable to carry the extra weight, sank into the ocean, when a group of Mantines caught him out of nowhere. It seems like Totodile had called for them to help Ash and the other people. Ash, overtired from the whole ordeal, passed out...

He woke up on the beach of a different island than the destination, the kind Mantines had brought him, Pikachu, and Totodile to a foreign place. He had looked for signs of civilization, and found a small village close by. He had gotten some aid for himself, and lucky for him, he had his pokedex with him so he could be identified. He had spent a few months on the island before he had made enough money to get off the island towards another gym...

</Flashback>

He sipped his hot chocolate again as he finished his tale. Misty just listened silently, not moving. When she finally came out of her trance-like state, she turned to Ash.

"Ash, remember before the Rockets attacked, you were going to tell me something important?" She asked. "What was it?"

Ash stopped drinking his hot chocolate. "You still remember, Misty?" He said quietly. Misty nodded slowly. "I wouldn't forget something like that, Ash, that day changed our lives..."

Ash reached into his tattered jacket and pulled out a box. "Well, Misty, on my journey home, I've been thinking... That day, when I didn't finish my sentence, I wanted to tell you... that I loved you, Misty..."

Misty sat there paralyzed with surprise. "Oh, Ash-" she said, but Ash interrupted her. "Look, Misty, I even battled every gym I could find to get the badges, just so I could prove to you that I'm more than just an annoying boy. I've been thinking of you every single day, Mist," He hurriedly explained, and opened the box to show a collection of pins from every gym he could find.

Misty took his hand, holding it tightly. "Ash, remember before the Rocket's attack, my sentence?" She asked. "Boys will be boys, Ash... But I loved you too..." She replied. Ash blinked with shock. He didn't quite expect such an answer, even though in his dreams he had often dreamt of Misty accepting his love. He put his face closer to hers, and they slowly met in a long kiss, their heart finally set free.

~Fin~

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What did you think? Horrible, ain't it? My writing sucks. >.<

well, comments, constructive criticism welcome. Flames aren't. So shoo now =P

~ Mana Lugia