Miss Discovery!

By: Chibi-Suiko

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Ash: 15

Misty: 16

Brock: 19

Imuru: 17

Evette: 20

Mr. Gerou: 31

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Last time on Miss Discovery!: As if things couldn't get any stranger, Ash has begun to suspect Imuru of being involved with the strange things happening to his friend and though the young actress Rein doesn't seem to believe him, he feels that after some persuasion, she'll begin to notice that he's not as wonderful as he seems. As he arrives back at the manor, he spots "Pretty-boy Imuru" bending over a moaning Misty, whose headache seemed to have brought her to the floor. She begins to remember things from the first couple days of their stay but is interrupted from her disposal of information by Mr. Gerou, who makes a convenient arrival and almost pleas Master Imuru's assistance in the preparations for the play. This had left Misty and Ash alone together, where he convinces her to take a nap. He was watching over her (She being too uneasy about being alone) but as it got later, he concluded he needed his sleep as well. But as he began to leave the room, he found his exhaustion too heavy for him to keep his weight up and, next moment, he fell asleep next to her.

***

***

***

She waited calmly for an answer from anyone. How come no one answered her call?

" Ash..?"

The voices echoed repeatedly around her head and she found it hard not to succumb to them as they took her over, from the start of her mind. Why did she keep hearing these things? Did she truly care what those people said?

" Imuru?!"

Who'd said that to her? She had no idea... In fact, half of the things said, she didn't seem to remember being spoken to about..! But she continued to listen, there being nothing else for her to do.

She felt herself falling to the ground as the many voices overrode her mind. She wanted away from these things..! She wanted desperately to wake up!

***

" --Aahhh!" She half-yelled and jumped up from under her covers. Rubbing her eyes, she looked to the alarm on the side of her bed... Eight a.m.?! She'd been asleep all night long?! She began to remove herself from the covers but felt something holding onto the right side of them, "...Hmmm?" She asked herself, looking down.

The sight that met her eyes almost made her have a heart attack. Right there! Ash lay right next to her all night long? She dimly remembered asking him to stay for a bit while she slept but... That did not mean that they should sleep together! Well... Actually, they hadn't really but still... Right there!

She felt something rise along her face and hurriedly rushed from her bed to her vanity, checking her cheeks.

Oh no..! They're pink! But that means--! She thought, I can't be! I can't actually be starting to... To fall for Ash..? Can I..?! Oh no, no, no, no, no, no..! This is wrong! Very wrong!

There was a small snort from her bed and a couple of arms rose before a yawn was heard. Next minute, Ash's eyes opened and he spoke, not noticing Misty, "Hey, this doesn't look like my room... Oh, CRAP!" He jumped up and finally set his eyes on his friend who suddenly felt that she couldn't face him. So she turned back to the mirror and began to investigate more closely on her face, hoping--no, praying--that it was only some leftover blush appliance and not the real thing...

" Oh no... Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, no..!" No matter how hard she rubbed, she couldn't get it off! It was true then, she was falling for Imuru and her best friend! "Why now, why not later, like when I'm thirty!" She cried in a whisper.

" Huh..? Myst, are you okay? I mean, I was sleeping there all night and the best thing you can think of is looking at your own face..? Not that that's a bad thing, no, but... Aren't you going to hit me for sleeping with you..? Well, not actually with you but..." He continued ranting under his breath the same words as her.

" God, don't remind me anymore about what you did, Ash." She spoke almost in a deadly tone, "You have no idea how much you've just complicated everything! Oh, just look what you did!" And she turned back to her mirror after accusing him of doing... Well, something he was completely unaware of.

" Wha'd I do? Cause you to lose the circles under your eyes..?" He tried but shrugged as she ignored him, rather enjoying her own reflection, "You know what? I think I'd better go." And he began to walk out the door but she threw a pillow at him, meaning that he should turn back around.

He sighed, knowing, or at least thinking, about what would be coming next. He saw her stomp over and throw herself onto her bed, pointing him towards the chair that he'd been sitting in the night before.

" I'm not the type to beat around the bush Ash. We gotta talk about something. And it's very important. It's about us." That was all it took for him to sit down as she sighed to herself. She hoped this would be as easy as she'd planned to make it.

***

" Master Imuru..! It is time to wake up. We should be heading down to the cathedral as we speak." A rushed whisper said through the wooden door leading to the Masters' sleeping quarters.

" Hhh-yyyyyaaaaa..." Imuru yawned at the older man and spoke, "Yes, I know. Do you think that Misty would like to join us this morning..?"

" Something tells me, sir, that she will all ready be having the productive day..." He said shortly but Imuru was too tired still to ask what he meant.

" ...Well, let's be going then. Let me just leave a letter for her so that she knows I didn't just bolt out the door." He scribbled something down and dropped it right at her doorway so that she'd be sure to see it, "I suppose that'll do, yes?" He asked the elder man, who nodded and turned towards the staircase.

As they were heading down the stairs, eyes crossed with Brock and Evette who were coming up. They nodded to each other with one of those forced early-day smiles before continuing on but Brock turned back to ask a question.

" Hey, Imuru sir, uh, man, uhn, dude? What's all that racket coming from Misty's room? Do you know?" They turned towards her door and overheard clattering and stomping, like there was a party going on or something.

" I'm not so sure... Maybe I should check it out real quick before I go..." And he dashed up a couple of stairs before Gerou pulled him back by the arm.

" Sir, we have no time for such antics. We should be heading to the cathedral now. And, it will only be Mr. Ketchem and Miss Waterflower."

" How do you know this?" Imuru asked, though he also wanted to know why they were in the same room this early in the morning...

" He's been with her ever since yesterday. He slept with her, you know--"

" --What?!" Imuru turned, shocking his agent into letting go of his arm.

" Well, not together in that way, I suppose."

" Either they did or they did not..."

" It does not matter. We will discuss the matter more efficiently in due time. Goodbye Mr. Slate, Miss Evette." He nodded to each of them and continued onward. Imuru gave one last deeply regretting look towards Misty's room and rushed after him.

Hmmm... All night, huh? Brock thought, suppressing a grin, It seems like they're finally beginning to grow up.

" Poor, dear Master. He's so very fond of the young Waterflower. And she'd become such a great Mistress to the Sir, too. Don't you think so Brock?" Evette asked and cupped his chin with a gentle grip, "...Come on, Brock-ey, your bedroom awaits..." And she pulled the stunned, yet pleased man away.

***

" ...Ash, what're you doing..?" Misty sweatdropped as Ash clambered from the chair he'd been sitting in and bent to the floor, removing his hat in a strangely calm manner.

All of the sudden, the calm was broken.

" PLEASE DON'T KILL ME MISTY! I DIDN'T MEAN TO SLEEP HERE! I WAS GETTING UP TO GO TO MY ROOM BUT I COLLAPSED FROM EXHAUSTION!!!" He stopped for a breath, "I SWEAR THAT WHAT I DID WAS NOT PLANNED, BELIEVE ME--"

" --ASH--!" Misty shouted with a furious glare, "Just get off it will you?! I didn't drag you back over here to hurt you for once but--" She pummeled him over the head, "--For acting like such a jackass--!"

" You mean that you aren't going to leave me to rot in your closet?" Ash asked hopefully.

" Uh... Nooo..." Misty said confusingly, "I think that there's something wrong with your head, something newly wrong with it. But never mind that..."

" Never mind... Just-just like that?" Ash asked and picked his hat back up, not caring about the growing lump on his head, "I'll probably regret asking about this but--What about us?"

" What... About us..?" She asked, That's right... I still have to tell him. Okay... I'm not nervous, I'm not nervous, I'm not nervous... Not at all...

" Yeah, about us. You said there was something important that you wanted to tell me in the absence of cracking my head in two." He was looking just as apprehensive about the situation as she was.

" Yeah... To make it easy--Because I'm not the type to act all goofy in front of a guy and give everything up over a little crush... I like you."

" Well, it's nice of you to admit it. Thanks Myst, I like you too." Ash asked, At least now I know not to take those 'I hate you's' so seriously... Why do I feel she means something just a little bit differently, though..?

" No... Ash... I know how I feel now. And I know that you, being-well-you, don't understand. I like you in a more... In a more... Oh, to Hell with it. I have feelings for you that fall deeper than our average relationship. You happy?!" She shouted and sighed. What did the little kid have to say about that?

" Am... Am I happy..?" Ash asked, shocked at the fact that he was smiling, "I-I am..! I think that I... No, I know that I feel that way too. I can't believe it, this is great!"

" What..?! No, it's not!"

" Why isn't it? You like me and I like you..! What could be making anything about that sound wrong?"

" I didn't get to finish. Yeah, I do like you, I think, as more than just a friend... But still, I-and Imuru--!"

" Oh..." He now sounded as disappointed as when he'd found out Gary was three badges ahead of him, "You mean that you're still not over that guy..? Well... You like him, right? And he likes you just as much, right?" He sighed, "Does that mean that I'm out of the picture..?"

" Uh..." Misty didn't know what to say. She'd never expected any part of that reaction from her little buddy, "...I guess, not necessarily..."

" Well, what's that mean..? You like him, he likes you. And as much as I hate to admit it, you two would make a wonderful couple. He's rich, mature, kind, rich, has a great profession, gives you the benefits, and did I mention that he's rich? I suppose that's what you'd want right? Me, I'm not any of that, I can't even afford to pay you back for your bike..."

" You can be such a dimwit sometimes, Ash!" Misty shouted, pounding her fists onto the mattress, "God, if I cared about that crap how do you think I'd have fallen for you?!" He remained silent, "Don't you get it?! I don't care about benefits! I don't care about cash! And for some reason, I don't even care about maturity! All I want is to be treated kindly, which, I notice, you've been doing for me lately..." She blushed, "I realize that your sleeping with me was only a very perverted way of expressing how much you care..."

" Uh... Yeah, let's go with that!" Ash said and listened as she continued.

Misty gripped the blankets of her bed and moaned, "I guess that it's gonna be a lot harder for me now... Because of you and Imuru..." She leant her head down to prevent the stress from venting on the boy beside her.

" Why's that..?" Ash asked, confused. She had two guys ready to do anything for her and she thought she had the hard part? He was the one who'd have to try and think of a way to ultimately win her heart!

" Because, now I have to choose between the two of you... And I don‘t want to hurt anyone." She sighed just as there was a knock on her door. Ash, deep in thought, jumped slightly and got to his feet to answer it. He didn't want to make the conversation between them any more embarrassing than it all ready was for anything!

" Uh... Hello..?" Ash asked as he opened the door to see nothing-or no one-there, "Hmmm... That's strange, nobody there... Hel-lo--!" He bent down to see a small package with a letter underneath. They both had Misty's name on them, "Something here for you, Myst!" He walked back in, shut the door, and handed them over to her as she sat on the bed.

A moment later, the package was unwrapped and they were both staring at one of the most exotic costumes made for humans. Misty was just blushing at how it looked when Ash made a point in saying, "Go try it on!"

She stumbled into the bathroom and looked at the outfit yet again, hoping that this time it would seem less... well... Revealing. It was beautiful and all, not unlike something her sisters would try to stuff her into but... It really wasn't her style. Though, she guessed that the reason she had this article of clothing was to make it so that she didn't look like herself. After all, she had to play the character in the script, not herself like inside some monologue. It seemed to fit anyway because there would be no other negotiation that would get her into such a thing other than that.

" Well..? What's going on in there, Myst? It's only me out here you know. Save the embarrassment act for the stage when you wear the thing in front of a few thousand other people!" Ash shouted from outside, softly tapping on the door to get her to rush.

" Uh... yeah... I-I mean--Shut up Ash! I didn't ask for you to make a mockery of me! And why does it seem that you want to see me in this thing more than I want to see myself, hm?" She asked with a smirk and when silence greeted it, it widened, "God, that's probably the most depraved silence I've ever not heard!"

" Yeah, well I'm a guy and guys like to see..." Ash started but she opened the door and stepped out, completely dressed in the absurd looking piece of cloth, "...Guys... Like to see... Guys like... Guys..." He had never been so shocked in his life, especially at her.

" Here..." She said sweetly, "Let me help you with that..." The next minute he was choking on a bar of soap, "Now... DON'T EVER GOGGLE AT ME LIKE THAT AGAIN!!!"

" But-but... It kinda can't be helped..." Ash whined, coughing up the rest of the cleanser, "You-you look good! Real good and I just kinda--" He broke off, not knowing much of a way to describe it.

" Yeah, um, I think you'd better talk to Brock about that type of 'change', Ash. After all, he knows everything..."

" Why can't you tell me..?" He asked in reply.

" Because, I'm a girl... I may not know the best way to put it... I know! Since Brock is probably busy with his girlfriend-Oh man, I'll never get used to saying that-we can call your mom up and she can introduce you to the world of puberty!" Misty said with great enthusiasm, picking up the phone to dial his house, "We haven't talked to her in a while anyway!"

" Yeah, and that's a perfect way to begin a conversation, Myst..." He grumbled, grabbing the phone from her, "'Hey Mom, it's me, Ash, just wanting to know why I've been looking at my best friend in a very interesting and perverted way! Oh, have we slept together yet? Why yes we have, it was very comfortable! Kids? No, none of those yet but here's hopin'!'" He was interrupted by her grabbing the phone from him again and beating him repeatedly over the head.

" DON'T--YOU--EV-ER--SPEAK--OF--THIS--A-GAIN--!" She yelled with every hit and, by the time she was finished, he was laughing in a very embarrassed way.

" Eh, heh, heh, heh..."

She dropped onto her bed again and lay there, spreading her arms wide around her. She felt something else and picked it up, noticing it was an envelope.

" Oh, that's right... Almost forgot about this!" She opened it and found a quickly scribbled note from Imuru.

*

Sorry I had to rush out again. There are still things left to be done for the production. Unfortunately it will probably take another couple days but don't let that distract your attention from the script. You're doing really well for such short notice and so it would be marvelous if you kept at your practice! Have Ash or someone play my part--(A/N: He was deeply regretting that line now...)--and come down to the auditorium later if you can. You know where it is, all right? Bring the others if you want to. I've got to go, bye!

Okay, so practice my lines, with Ash..? Thank him for the outfit... But study with Ash..? Practice my lines... Well, I suppose if it can't be helped--! She thought with a little smile, "Hey, Ash?" She asked him as he was about to walk out of the room, "GET BACK HERE!" He walked shamefully back over to her, "Would you like to help me with my rehearsal..?"

His body seemed to have gone completely numb. It must have been strange to him, one minute she's beating him up for perverted action, the next, asking for assistance in her run through for the play... He smiled kindly and said, "Sure, what harm could come of that, right..?"

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A/N: ...More than you think my little Ashy-boy! MWAAA-HA-HA-HA-HA--! Okay, the jig is up... Or-uh-not... God, I'm insane all ready and it's barely seven-thirty. You know something's wrong when that happens... Well, tell me if you liked the chapter because I seriously thought that some of it was funny... So, you know, do your thing... Or mine, if you think about it... Oh, like anybody cares! I could delete this thing and you people wouldn't even notice! (In case you didn't notice, that was only a means of getting you to review so that you don't lose this fic from the web). Review!

Okay, I'll go and be ready for an update (hopefully) next Saturday. I try to keep everything going nicely so... Yeah, all right. Thanks for reading and, as always, REVIEW!

--Chibi