Category: Uh...general...
Part: 0

Author's Note: This story takes place two years after the manga by Toshihiro Ono(in other words, Ash and Gary are friends. What, don't believe me? Read the end of the fourth pocket book). Ash is fifteen, Gary is sixteenwell, you know the rest. I made up some dates, don't be mad. Also, I'm a GAMR/Egoshipper/Denialshipper, and darn proud of it. I look at a list of fanfics and all I see are AAMRN, AAMRN, even the general fanfics are AAMR- ::stares at AAMRs with pitch forks and torches, sweatdrops:: I'd better go

The Crusade for the Holy Grail Seems Logical
OR
Mission Impossible, Pokemon Style
By:
Trix

"You're crazy."
Misty Waterflower gawked at her best friend, Ash Ketchum.
"Complete lunatic, out of control, you can't be serious," Gary shook his head. "I already told him that. He won't listen."
"Great Goddess above, you'd think I'd just told you I was going on a crusade for the Holy Grail," Ash rolled his eyes. "C'mon, you two can have a little faith in me."
"No way, man. It's a no go," Gary shook his head.
"A crusade for the Holy Grail seems logical in comparison," Misty threw her hands above her head. "I mean, it's impossible"
"Undoable," Gary nodded in agreement.
"There's just no way," Misty pushed it.
"Pika."
"You don't have to agree," Ash glared at his Pikachu.
The three trainers and the Pokemon were lounging in the Waterflower's spacious living room. Gary was sprawled all over the only armchair in the room, blue, faded, overstuffed, and extremely comfortable. Misty was sitting on the couch, and Ash was lying on the floor, staring at the ceiling. His Pikachu was on the coffee table, drinking juice. Gary's Arcanine was asleep in the corner.
"Here, Ash, I'll give you the reason to why this little task is, well, a stupid idea. First of all, you don't even have a date, and second of all, I mean, c'monyou're not really serious, are you?"
Ash nodded solemnly.
"Ash, think about it, what girl in their right mind would go with Brock to the Cerulean Ball?" Gary finally asked, exasperated.
"Well, allow me to point out that you don't have a date either-"
"I do too!" Gary said indignantly. "Well, not yet. Hey, Misty, wanna go to the ball with me?"
"Oh, Gary, you're so romantic," Misty replied sarcastically.
He winked. "Oh, you just wait. I'm saving all of the romance for the date before and the moonlit stroll afterwards."
"Fine, fine," Misty waved her hand and Gary smirked at Ash.
"Okay, okay, so you do have a date, but Brock's not that bad looking," Ash argued his case. "And on top of that, he's probably the nicest guy I know-"
"Aside form me, right?" Gary grinned.
"As I was saying," Ash ignored him. "Brock is the nicest guy I know and I owe him something for all of the meals he fixed for Misty and I"
"Oh, so you're repaying him," Gary nodded. "I understand now. And why isn't the beautiful and talented Misty helping out?"
He smiled at her.
"Because I'm not stupid," she replied.
"Oh, but Misty, my dear, you're an expert at these matters!" Gary's eyes widened. "I'm sure you can do a little match making Match maker, match maker, make me a match"
She scowled at him, then turned to Ash. "Hey, Ash, need a date?"
"Hey! I was just kidding!" Gary protested. "Please, forgive me all mighty one! I didn't mean it! I take it back! Please go to the Cerulean Ball with me!"
"Well, I dunno" Misty grinned at Ash, who winked back.
"It would be smashing to go with you, Misty dear. Simply smashing," he accepted in a fake British accent.
Gary fell to his knees. "Misty is sexy. Misty is dead sexy. Misty rocks my world. I want her, I need her. Oh baby, oh baby."
"Stop torturing him," Ash laughed. "He can't take it."
"Okay, fine," Misty turned to the crestfallen Pokemon trainer. "Gary, you're forgiven. I'll go to the Ball with you."
"Whoopie!!"
"Now, back to the matter at hand" Misty looked over at Ash. "If you're really serious, I'll help you out. But, mind you, I can only do so much."
"Thanks, Misty."

"There," Misty hissed, pointing to a girl checking the price tag on a dress with a frown. "Maybe, just maybe, Alisha will do it. She owes me big time, and what a perfect time it is to pay me back."
Alisha was relatively pretty, with long brown hair, brown eyes, and a slender figure. Too Brock, she was probably stunning.
"Hey, 'Lish!" Misty greeted her, motioning for the two boys accompanying her to stay put.
"Misty!" Alisha waved. "What's happening?"
"Well, you see, I have a friend that needs a date-"
"Ooh," she was cut off. "Is it either of those two?"
She pointed at Ash and Gary, who were conversing in fervent whispers.
"Umno."
"Really? 'Cause I would have said yeswell, actually, I'm going with the guy that serves at the Pizza Plaza, you know, Rick? Ah, he's a dream boat," Alisha was obviously on the verge of a long and boring babble about Rick's finer qualities, so Misty bid her a quick goodbye and walked back to her two male companions.
"No go," she shook her head. "She's already got a date."
"Well, the day is new and there are plenty of other girls out there," Gary announced. "We shall succeed, I can feel it."
"Really? Last night you said it was impossible."
"Umwellwho knows," he shrugged.

But as the day wore on all of their confidence (and patience) began to wear very thin. Whatever girl didn't have a date was hoping for someone else to ask them or wasn't going or was, well, you can leave that up to your own imagination. They even sunk so low as to asking the resident Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny, who, of course, turned them down. (Politely on Joy's part, and rather bluntly on Jenny's) In fact, most of the mentioned girls seemed more interested in going with either Ash or Gary than Brock, from the much fluttering of eyelashes and giggles in their direction. Ash was oblivious(or simply chose to ignore them) and by noon Gary began muttering about "time wasters", "flirts", and "sluts".
"You. You're pretty enough. I have a friend that needs a date for the Ball. Go with him or die," was the only thing Misty was saying to anyone by five o'clock, all in a dead pan monotone. Most of the girls told this either stared at her or hurried on their way.
Ash and Gary decided they had better go home when Misty told an eighty-year old to get a facelift so she could go to the Ball with her ex-husband.
"Okay, Misty, time for bed," Gary urged her towards her bedroom.
"I'm going to kill him," Misty muttered. "I'm going to kill him and resurrect him and kill him and resurrect him again so you two can have a go."
Gary was a bit taken aback. "Umthat's very thoughtful of you, Misty. Now, time for bed"
"Alright" she muttered, stumbling off to her bedroom.
"She gets like that when she's in a bad mood," Ash reassured Gary. "I should know."
"How about we give up?" Gary asked. "Wow, concept! We could just give up and forget any of this ever happened!"
"We have a week," Ash shrugged.
"And we've already tried every girl in Cerulean," Gary added. "C'mon, Ash, give it up. Get a date for yourself, plenty of those girls seemed interested."
Ash made a face. "Yeah, too bad most of them were four years older than me and about a foot taller."
"Well, you win some, you lose some."

Over the next week Ash took their advice (for once). He rarely asked a girl if she needed a date, though he didn't seem too psyched about getting himself a date(it happened anyway, in a café, involving a long story including a Butterfree, a Sandshrew, a spastic waitress named June and a girl named Ameliabut that's for another day).
Finally, the night came. Gary and Misty went off on a date starting at sunrise. They had a lovely omelet for breakfast, ate at a charming deli for lunch, and had dinner at a very expensive Italian restaurant. After spending an hour getting ready, they walked down the hall to the gym, where the dance was being held, meeting Ash and his date Amelia in the entrance.
"Wow, Misty actually looks like a girl," were the first words out of Ash's mouth, and if Misty hadn't of had such a splendid day, she probably would have smashed a mallet into his cranium. Luckily for Ash she hadn't stowed one away.
"And Ash looks half way decent," she replied. But she had to admit her sleek blue dress was pretty stunning, and her hair-style was to die for (praise the Goddess for bobby pins!). "Hi Amelia!"
"Hi Misty! I'm so exited, my first dance!" the pink haired girl straitened her corsage nervously. She had let down her hair (which was normally in a ponytail) and her red dress didn't clash too horribly.
"Hi, guys!" Brock waved. He was standing next to a rather pretty girl in a dark purple dress with long blue hair. "I would like you to meet my date, Cory."
Ash and Gary both grabbed Misty's arms to stop her from jumping on him and killing him.
"I hate you Brock Stone! You'll pay for this!" she screamed. "But first"
She looked ready to murder Ash, who shrugged. "He told me he couldn't find a date."
"C'mon Misty," Gary, who had done little but stare at her all night and said even less lead her to the other side of the dance floor. "We don't want to ruin your dressand what about the moonlit stroll?"
Cory looked rather stunned. "Is she"
"Yes, she's always like that," Ash sighed.
"And what was that all about?" Brock shot his friend a quizzical look.
"Nothing, nothing, just don't ask," Ash shook his head. "Very long story."
"Right"

THE END


So, liked it? Hated it? This is one of my first fanfics (that made it to paper, anyway) so don't be harsh. All flames will be returned by Gary with even worse flames. Anyway, e-mail me at
q-chan@juno.com
Creative criticism requested.