Disclaimer: Don’t own pokemon! A/N: Not much to say but here’s chapter 4 and thanks for reviewing. Keep them coming! Chapter 4 ‘Why hasn’t he called me yet? I’m starting to get worried,’ thought a very frustrated Misty as she sat poolside at the Cerulean City gym. It had been several days since Ash had left for the Emerald Coliseum tournament and still no word from him. Misty’s anxiety was at an all time high, each time the phone would ring, she would be the first to answer, only to find complete and utter disappointment at hearing a strangers’ voice. Every time the phone rang, Daisy, Violet, and Lily rolled their eyes in unison as they watched their desperate younger sister dive for the phone. Each time felt more and more disappointing for Misty. Had something happened to Ash? No, she didn’t want to worry herself, let alone, anyone else. “Oh, you worry to much sis, like, Ash can take care of himself,” replied Misty’s eldest sister, Daisy. Misty sighed deeply and thought about her sisters’ words. “Maybe your right,” she sighed. Misty clutched the locket that Ash had given her just a few days ago and hoped her sister was right. Her biggest worry was that he wouldn’t make it to the tournament safely, especially since her dream concerning Aki and Marissa. “Besides, I’m sure it’ll take more than a few days to reach the next town,” nodded Daisy, “Give him a break Misty.” Daisy began to walk away from the pool area when, all of a sudden, a voice rang throughout the gym. “HEY MISTY!” screamed Lily as she ran into the pool area, phone in hand. Daisy covered her ears and cringed at the sound of her younger sister’s voice. “Like, what the hell is your problem?! We’re not deaf Lily!” yelled Daisy. Lily smiled sheepishly and put her hand behind her head in embarrassment. “Sorry guys,” she smiled, handing the phone to Misty, “Here Mist, it’s for you. It’s Ash.” Misty’s heart skipped a beat as she heard her utter his name. She let out a breath, a bit relieved that Ash had made it to the next town. She excitedly took the phone from her sister and put it to her ear. “Speak of the devil,” shrugged Daisy, as she walked out of the pool area, followed by Lily, thinking that her sister deserved a little alone time. “Hello?” she said nervously, although she wasn’t sure why she was nervous. “Hey you,” replied a familiar voice. “Ash!” Misty exclaimed, a little louder than she wanted. “Hey, are you trying to make me deaf or something?” laughed Ash. Misty laughed at his antics, happy to hear the sound of his sweet voice again. It had felt like forever since she had last heard from him, although, in actuality, it was only a few days. The sound of his voice reassured her that everything was okay for the time being and her worries slowly began to diminish. “Where are you?” Misty asked. “I just reached the first town. It took a little longer than I thought it would,” explained Ash, “Sorry if I worried you.” “It’s okay. I’m just glad to hear that you made it all right,” replied Misty happily. “Yeah, both me and Pikachu are just fine,” smiled Ash, “Hey, want to do me a favor?” “Uh…sure, I guess,” she said, a little uncertain as to what his request would be. “Go inside and hook up your video phone…I want to see you,” he admitted. Misty walked inside of the gym, smiling at Ash’s charms. He had never failed to make her feel more special than she already was. “You miss me that much, do you?” laughed Misty, sitting down in front of the screen. “Maybe just a little,” he replied. Misty pushed a button and the screen came to life. Immediately, she saw Ash’s smiling face and it made her want to melt on the spot. Why did he always make her feel this way? “Seeing your face again makes me realize how much more I miss you,” smiled Ash sincerely. “I miss you too,” sighed Misty, “I wish you were here.” “Hey, don’t pull that on me. This whole thing was your idea,” argued Ash. “I know, I just miss you, that’s all,” replied Misty. She set the phone down on the table and smiled at him. “I feel the same,” he smiled. There were a few moments of silence, which caught Misty’s attention. There had never been silence between the two of them before, not that she could remember anyway. She watched as Ash stared at something off screen, seemingly in another world. “Ash, what’s wrong?” she asked, sensing his dismay. “Nothing,” he said simply. “Ash, don’t you lie to me,” said Misty seriously, “This is not the time to be keeping secrets from me.” Ash fiddled with his fingers, as he played with the phone in his hands. “Look, I’m not hiding anything. I guess I’m just nervous about the tournament,” he admitted, “I’m not used to being out here alone.” Misty just smiled at him, a bit relieved about his worries. “You’ll be just fine. You always tend to come out on top in the end,” she comforted. Ash just sighed and smiled at her words, finding some confidence within them. “Maybe you’re right,” he sighed and then smiled as he continued, “Well, I just called to check up on you. I have to go if I’m going to get started first thing tomorrow.” “Okay,” sighed Misty as she bit her lip, feeling tears welling up in her eyes, but trying her best to hold them back. Ash, sensing her discomfort, gave her a gentle smile. “Hey, what’s this?” smiled Ash, “You aren’t exactly making this easy on me, you know?” Misty wiped her eyes and smiled at him as best she could. “I know, I’m sorry, I just miss you so much,” she sighed. “I know, but before you know it, I’ll be back and we’ll continue our journey together. How does that sound?” he asked. “Sounds like a plan,” she smiled, hoping the days would fly by faster. “Okay, but until then, I need you to be strong for me,” he stated, lifting his hand up to the screen to attempt to touch her. She nodded and lifted her hand up as well. She wanted so much to touch him, to be with him, it was killing her inside, but for Ash’s sake, she would remain strong. “I love you and I’ll call you later,” he said. “I love you too. Be careful Ash,” she smiled, ready to end the call. “I will. Bye sweetie.” “Bye,” uttered Misty as the screen went blank. Instead of getting up out of her seat, she just sat there, not wanting to make a move. She put the phone back on the receiver and waited. She wasn’t sure exactly what it was she was waiting for. Finally, for what seemed like forever, she got up out of her seat and, absentmindedly, walked upstairs and into her room. She shut the door behind her, not wanting to deal with the questions from her sisters, and laid down on her bed. In the past, thinking had always made her feel calmer, it always soothed her to know that she was alone with her thoughts, but now, everything was different. Her thoughts worried her to the extent of crying. Although Ash had seemed confident that these so-called visions were indeed just dreams, Misty had other ideas. She wanted to trust Ash and believe his words, but she found that utterly impossible. And now, with him gone, she felt even more uneasy than ever. She kept telling herself that everything would be alright, that Hikara would have warned them by now, that she was just being extremely paranoid…but everything kept pointing to the possibility that it wasn’t just a dream, but that they were all in grave danger, especially Ash. Ash was the chosen one, or at least, that’s what they called him. Why did it have to be him? Why couldn’t it have been someone else? Their lives had changed because of the events of two years ago, why did it have to be them? Why? Why? Why? “Why!?” yelled Misty, a little louder than she would have liked. She held her head in her hands and then looked in her mirror that hung on her dresser. She stared at the locket Ash had given her and smiled, trying to relieve herself of the frustration that she felt. Grabbing a piece of paper and pen from her nearby end table, she began to write a letter to Ash. She needed something, anything to get her mind off of Aki and Marissa. ‘Dear Ash, I’m just writing to tell you how much I miss you. I felt like I needed to write this, don’t ask me why. I felt like I needed a way out, a way to escape reality. I’ll be blunt with you, Ash, I am afraid of what’s to come in the future, even though you tell me not to worry, I still do, but not for myself. I worry for you and only you because, without you, I’m not whole. That’s why I need you to hurry up, win the tournament, and come home ASAP! I’m just kidding sweetie. Seriously though, you never realize how much someone means to you until they are gone. Well, with that last thought, I hope to hear from you when you reach the next town. Good luck and be careful Ash. I love you with all my heart. Love, Misty’ She finished her letter and smiled at it in approval. She kissed it and then sealed it inside of its envelope. She then added the return address and the destination’s address as well as adding the stamp. Throwing the letter into her mailbox, she ran back up the stairs, and drifted off into a much needed slumber. * Misty found herself in total darkness. She had felt as if she had been here before. Everything felt strangely and yet, eerily familiar. She looked around for anything that would tell her where she was, a light, a person, anything. Just then, a sinister male laugh could be heard in the distance. With every passing second, the laugh seemed to be getting closer and closer. “W-Who’s there!?” yelled Misty, searching in all directions. “You did not heed my warning,” came a familiar voice, Aki. Misty let out the breath that she had been holding since being trapped in the darkness. It just couldn’t be, not again. She felt her throat constrict and her voice began to weaken. Continuing to search the area, her efforts became futile. “I will not be ignored!” yelled the voice as Misty felt her throat closing in on her. She held her throat as she dropped to her knees. ‘Ash, where are you? Please…help me…’ she thought as tears started to drop down her face. “He will not come for you this time around,” came a second female voice, Marissa, “He is weak and does not possess the strength to save you now.” “He will die at my hands and there is nothing you can do to save him now.” Misty’s head started to get fuzzy as she felt herself losing consciousness. She felt the life being drained from her body as a cold chill ran up her spine. This was what it must feel like to die… * Catching her breath, Misty jolted up from her position on her bed. She looked down and saw that her hands were shaking and that she was engulfed in a cold sweat. “When will this ever stop,” whispered Misty, “Ash…please be careful…” “Pikachu!” greeted the pokemon as it tried to wake its sleepy trainer. “I know, I know,” yawned Ash as he stood from his bed, “Morning already, huh?” Ash stretched out his arms and proceeded to the bathroom, his stomach rumbling. “Man, I’m hungry. You ready for some breakfast buddy?” “Pika!” exclaimed the tiny pokemon. “All right, let’s go,” he smiled grabbing his bag and heading out the door. After finishing breakfast, Ash and Pikachu left in hopes of reaching the next town before sundown. “I hope we’re doing the right thing Pikachu,” sighed Ash. “Pika pikachu?” asked Pikachu. “What I mean is that I hope it was wise of me to leave Misty and Brock. I keep thinking about the dreams that Misty was having. What if Aki and Marissa are back and are planning an attack?” Ash asked, worried. “Pi…pika chu pikachu pi,” Pikachu said. “Yeah, I know I told Misty that there was nothing to worry about, but anything’s possible now. I feel like I’m playing right into their hands,” explained Ash. “Pikachu pi pika pika chu,” it reassured. “I hope you’re right buddy…for everyone’s sake,” sighed Ash. “Pikachu pi pikachu?” Pikachu asked. “Yeah, I’ll call Misty when we get to the next town,” he sighed, “She’ll kill me if I don’t.” “Pika,” it agreed. Ash put his hands behind his head and sighed once more. He took a glance up at the morning sky and thought about his friends back home. What were they doing now? Were they safe? And this led Ash to continue to think about Aki and Marissa. He prayed that, in the unfortunate event, Aki and Marissa did return, they would all remain safe and sound. Safety was a luxury that was hard to come by day after day and Ash was starting to have second thoughts about leaving, but it was what Misty had wanted, after all. ‘What if Aki and Marissa did return? Since we’re all scattered, which one of us would they go after first?’ he thought, not wanting to think of the answer. He knew the answer, of course, but didn’t want to admit it to himself. Misty seemed to be the most probable choice of the three of them. She seemed to have more mental and spiritual power than she thought and, Ash believed, Aki could use that as an advantage, a way to tip the scales in his favor. Ash quickly wiped the thoughts from memory and hoped that everything would be okay in the end. He would compete, return home, and then they’d carry on with their journey. Everything would be as it was when he had left, or so he thought. All the while, Ash completely absorbed in thought, neither him nor Pikachu had noticed the darkness that loomed overhead in the next town… “So, you had another dream, eh?” asked Brock, as he propped the phone on his shoulder, as he vigorously washed the dishes at the Ketchum residence. “Yeah…I don’t care what Ash says, they’re out there somewhere. I can almost feel their presence,” replied Misty in a scared tone. “Hey, don’t go worrying yourself now. That’s the last thing we need,” warned Brock as he put a plate down and gave Misty his full attention. “How can I not worry Brock!?” yelled Misty. “Whoa! Okay, okay, all I’m saying is that you shouldn’t be stressing about this until we know for sure. Let Hikara and Ash’s dad handle things for now. They’ll inform us if anything happens,” soothed Brock. “I just don’t like waiting for something to happen, especially if it involves Ash’s life,” sighed Misty as she took a seat on one of the bleachers in the pool area. “Ash will be fine for now. We need to give him a little credit; after all, he’s a smart kid. He’ll know if something’s going on and besides, Pikachu is with him too,” he reassured. “I guess your right,” said Misty, “Listen, I’ll call you back later. I need to clear my head.” “Okay, see you later. Take care,” smiled Brock, hanging up the phone. For several moments, Brock didn’t move, not sure what to believe anymore. He placed another set of dishes into the soapy water and sighed aloud. ‘Ash, you better come back in one piece.’ A/N: And that concludes Chapter 4. Sorry if it seems kind of boring, but the good stuff is still yet to come! Keep those reviews coming!