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!: Ash and Misty spent time together, committing themselves to learning the script and trying to attempt perfection, for which Ash was more than grateful that he didn't have to act under normal circumstances. While they were left unchaperoned, Gerou makes his first move and hands over a revised addition of the play to Imuru, telling him that he should be sure to initiate the last scene to precision. Though confused, Imuru agreed, unknowing to the fact that, slower but surely, he is working towards breaking the very promise that is the basis of their friendship. Misty doesn't have a clue about the revision, and she won't be finding out any time soon. But, by then, will it be too late to stop it? Also, things become even more complicated (Which it turning out to be a common word in this fic) when two very old friends accidentally take their relationship up a notch. How much more can go wrong..?

***

Chapter Thirteen: Prologue

***

"--Oh, you idiot..! You annoying, badgering, dense, moronic, Pokemon-obsessed Trainer!" She started, ripping the decorative cushion from her head and hitting him with it, using more force than if they had still been joking around, "I'm not crying because I ostracized it! I-I'm upset because, ironically enough... I liked it..." She ended in another moan, leaving him with nothing but a flabbergasted expression to be worn because of his lack of a reply.

*

It had been two days since that scene and now Misty was sitting behind the sweeping red drapes, wringing her shirt in her nervousness over the situation. Not only had she not gotten to review the last two scenes but her social life was plummeting farther than Team Rocket's deepest pit. Imuru was standing about six feet away, giving her what seemed to be a scrutinizing glance every three seconds. One that she was too anxious to ask about.

Tonight they were opening. She knew all her lines, or at least she thought that she did, but one slip-up could knock her from her throne off the stage and one trip could send her falling into the stands. Just thinking about all of the things likely to go wrong made her heart leap into her throat. And that was something she really didn't need right now.

Seeing her overwhelming discomfort, Imuru stepped forward in order to try and console her. His best efforts were of no result, though, "Misty, I know how it is, having first night jitters. But we've rehearsed and rehearsed so don't worry. Almost every scene you have, I'll be in as well. I'll whisper to you anything you forget, an prompts that you need. I know you can do this, and I have a feeling that you know you can do this as well. It's time to stop living in the shadow's of your sisters stage glory. You have everything you need right inside of you and we all know that you'll be great..." Misty sighed as he smiled reassuringly.

"I know, believe me, I know. But I can't help feeling nervous. I've never acted in something so populated before. I've done tents and I've done gyms but..." She broke off, laughing lightly, "I can't believe that I'm this nervous. Two days ago, I was anything but and today it's like my life depends on it or something. God, and my heart is beating so fast. I'm glad that no one I know will be able to see me make a fool of myself. It'll be real embarrassing when they sweep the floor with me." She ended lamely just as the final curtain call was shouted.

"Are you... Nervous about the last scene?" Imuru asked, expecting an immediate reaction from her, and he got one, just not one he was expecting.

"Why would I be? I mean--" But she was cut off as she heard a voice calling her and turned to see none other than Ash, Brock, and Evette walking up to them wearing smiles. She tried to adjust her face muscles into the same gesture but failed miserably as her questioning got the better of her, "What are you guys doing here? I mean, you don't have tickets so how could you have possibly gotten backstage?"

"We got a special pass from that Gerou guy. We can't stay but we just wanted to give you a few words of encouragement before we go." Brock smiled kindly at her, not unlike what an older brother would look like, "Misty, I know I've been a bit... Busy this week and I haven't seen you practice but I was there when your sisters forced you into that mermaid play and you learned that in under twenty-four hours. I have no doubt that you are as ready for something along these lines as you can be. Remember, Brocko knows best." She laughed as he jerked a finger to his chest before winding his arm around Evette's shoulder, and she felt her heart lighten all ready.

"Miss Waterflower, Master Brock has not failed to mention the higher points of his friends and relatives and, from what I've gathered of his stories, you are superior to your fear of the grand stage. We know you can overcome this little bout of edginess." Evette bowed to her and stepped back and Ash came forward, still looking like he was in the middle of thinking for the perfect thing to say to her.

"Myst, I really can't say anymore than I know you can do it if you set your mind to it. And if you mess up, who cares? We'll be outta town way before the mobs from Juliard can come after you for your mistakes--" She put on a scowl and hit him in the head before cracking up into slight giggles over his poor attempt to alleviate her of her stage-fright, "No, really, Myst, c'mon! You aren't one to get so creeped out by a crowd. Just act like it's all your friends out there. We all know that you can't help but put on a show for them--!" She raised her fist but he laughed and continued, "Just remember, we all think you're capable of it, would you wanna let us down? I mean, I think you have everything down, and I think you're gonna be perfect. You're gonna blow 'em away, just like we planned it a couple days ago!" He finished, giving her one last smile before he went silent.

"Awe, thanks Ash. That means a lot, really. I never knew you believed in me so much." Misty stood up with a resolute expression and continued, "All right! You guys are right! Why should I be so nervous? Besides, my entire family has had a knack for acting on stage, why should I be any different? And I've proved my worth too many times for me to make a lapse! Yeah! Let's get this thing over with!" She leapt for the curtains before Imuru grabbed her hand and pulled her back with a slight smile on.

"Uh... Misty, about that... We have to go on during act three. Right now their completing the prologue and if you head on now, you kinda knock the whole thing around..." She sweatdropped and backed away from, what she was now dubbing 'The Blinds of Hell'.

"It's over for me, isn't it guys..?" She asked numbly, feeling her nerves twitching in their desire to escape the spot where they stood. They didn't reply and Ash and Co. began to walk away before she lost her nerve.

"Look, Myst, you're going on in a few. Me and Brock gotta get outta here before we do something wrong..." He left her standing there with a sweatdropping Imuru, and rushed after the, all ready vanished Brock and Evette.

***

Ash was about six feet from the front door when he turned and took notice of a familiar face standing at the door, searching for something. Gerou the manager stood in front of two double doors, making small conversation with a few of the appearing guests, while keeping his eyes wide for something/one that Ash was quite unsure of. He was about to ignore him and be on his way when Gerou caught his eye and began to come after him. Ash didn't bother to quicken his pace. After all, what could He do when they were completely surrounded by, like, five hundred pedestrians?

"Mr. Ketchem? I have something for you..!" Something? Now that got Ash's attention. Gerou was approaching him, his hand in the pocket of his Armani suit and his sights kept on the boy to make positive that he didn't escape. Little did he know that Ash wasn't planning on going anywhere soon. Truth be told, he was hoping to start a small conversation in order to stall until Misty came onto the stage. But he wasn't willing to admit to anyone but himself that he wanted to stay behind and catch sight of her initiating her first line.

"Um... Okay..." He ended in a question, showing his confusion as to why Gerou would bother holding him back. It would have really pissed him off if the old man was trying to get him taken by security but, next moment, Ash's insane negativities were diminished when Gerou produced a small clipped piece of paper from his pocket. It was thick, like the type of construction paper board that greeting cards were made out of. But it was too small for that, and rectangular. And it took him about two minutes for him to realize exactly what the manager was holding out to him.

"For you, as I'm sure you'd like to..." Gerou didn't finish his sentence and Ash didn't have a chance to reply as, soon after, Brock appeared back at the entrance door and questioned him for his laggard behavior. Ash still seemed a bit... Shocked?... About Gerou's sudden capability to attain an extra. He didn't understand. They had been completely sold out a week before. So how..?

"Ash..?" Brock's concerned tone made him shake out of his reverie and he took the clipping from the elder without a second thought, a grin appearing on his, before admonished, face.

"Brock... I think there's been a change in plans." He said in finality and, ignoring Brock's face, turned to find his seat. Row B, Seat forty-seven... Ah! Over there! I never thought I'd be able to see it happen! Now I've got nothing to worry about! And nothing to feel guilty about! he rushed towards his corner placement, leaving the others behind and not paying much notice to Gerou's newly resurrected smirk, his excitement being far too high.

***

'...Dating back to over thousands of years ago, during an early aged war with such an undetermined end that the death of the planet was in question, bravery was placed upon all--soldier or not--as a consequence for Their insolence. Civilizations torn down, dangers peaked, all races rose in order to conquer over equality and discrimination was the only answer. The start of an endless battle that would only rest... In death.' (At this point in time a sudden stream of light, making to look like the sun, floods the stage. There are large splatters of red along every few feet and crumbled buildings; but among these, there are still a few unbroken naturals.)

'It was a calling of a new Era, THE calling. It proclaimed the beginning of a time where those of subdued hope were weak and those who chose to stand were strong. It was also known as the mere start of a fruitless struggle for power and rank that would lead to an inevitable end. It feasted upon a void of such nothingness, feeble will, mindly thirst, breathless age, intimidation that even the Gods feared, final surfacing anticipation and...an immense lack of respect and love...' (Gruesome battle structures bound across at one another; two sides fight desperately for the same goal: To win. No acception and none who want to lose. Young and old, large and small, ill and well; the climax is brought upon by a clash of swords and magic from area to area.)

'Magic installments and brute strength were used to topple inhabited empires and cause disaster... It was a death march such as the world has never known. Nimble, though the lives were, they still breathed in deathly wonder, for a hero-unnamed-to bring about the end of the death feast... But as the days grew longer, more bitter, the inhabitants grew tiresome, more restless. Before long, they too had begun invading other parts of the world and it seemed all was over.' (A large reanimated tumbling of a city, brought to life by sound effects, leaves the crowd in awe. There was a herding of foot call and then absolute silence before terrified, breathless screaming made the crowd gasp, then silence again. Suddenly a humungous huddled shadow, made to represent two bodies, appeared. Overwhelming smoke tricks left the crowd in silence as they witnessed unbelievable programming skills {Brought along by Yours Truly ^_~}. Suddenly an eclipse covered everything in darkness.)

'There was only one race who did not compete as the others did... They competed for glory, yes, for pride... But also for their right to live, for everyone's. It cost them dearly, though, they took the insanity for the bloodlust of the others too lightly and, in the end, they lost more than half of their tribes that had been scattered all over... It was only then, that they'd had enough.' (On a cliff stand to the right of all battles taking place stood a herd of acting Pokemon, staring transfixed by all the violence. They dropped their heads in dramatized angst and began to turn away. All of them turned to one Pokemon in particular, a Gengar who seemed to be the leader. He turned to a small pack of Raichuu, who staggered up to him. They were seemingly confusing them between two emotions: Rage at the state of the world and ecstasy. The Gengar set its eyes and raised a manicured paw to the sky. All of the others followed. Scene fades to black.)

'They beat together a mold, two of them, to complete a new race. One was supposed to fight back with power unknown, the other to care for the first. It was to bring proof of a new way of living, to show the many insane colonies exactly how peace would feel...' (A sudden slapping together of something like mud came to everyone's ears. There were chants of 'Geo-Dude! Geo-Dude!' and 'Ma-Chop! Ma-Chop!' as the teams of ground-types began to pressure the clay men into two giant molds of watered dust. Above them, the Leader Gengar supervised this, a slight grim smile appearing on his face. It had been so long...)

'...It is said that Love, the only unkempt emotion, the only one that nobody knew of, had been their savior. In gratitude, the puppets who'd created the Way had received two lives of their own. They moved on, prospering many of their own offspring. And thus, the light of Earth had been recreated. Through the prosperity of one branch of life, the others were only to reply with frequency...' (The two shadows lingered for a moment on top the highest of mountains, surrounded in darkness, as a blightingly deadly battle raged below. Their hands clasped in one-anothers, they heaved sighs and began their way down; on the way helping one another rather than the opposite.... Scenes continued showing clips of compassion towards the tiraders. Suddenly a blinding flash erupted from behind the two forms. It was (Search net for Greek God of War), the God who held only a step above death in Hades. Smoke props billowed around the seemingly-gigantic form as he strutted forth like the God that he was. A look of disapproval shone on the actors face and sound effects magnified his voice as he told the worldly folk of his disappointment. There was a sudden turn of their heads and a high cursing that sounded like a crackling fire. Suddenly, lightning and burning meteorites brewed within the sky and fell like sulfur steel warheads. It struck all types of characters and they fell upon the ground as though Death called for them.)

(A few moments after this scene ended, sprouts began to ebb from the ground, and sun filtered from above. Slowly, a charred corpse began to lift; two, ten, twenty. Hands raised, cheers grew, and desire to live felt contagious enough to die from. Which was quite impossible when speaking... Above the newly risen tribes, the Pokemon looked on with pride, their molded crafts standing beside them in the darkness-to-light. Everything went dark as the scene ended.)

'... Rather than be left to themselves, this new colony forged an immediate--yet forever lost--contract with the very ones who'd built them. Though to this day, they've stood side by side, the fakes have started to hate the first, to deem them unworthy because of their supposed superiority. And what's more, regret over their betrayal does not seem to become them...' (The scene reappeared with only the Pokemon and two human forms upon the stage. Their hands were grasping one another and their voices chanted a spell-binding legacy of soul-entwinement. A mysterious child's voice rung in the background, singing a tune that bewildered the all ready confused audience.)

(The scene again blacked out and, this time, a drum roll started up. It was a slow pented beat that seemed to revolve around the nothingness muttering of the crowd. Suddenly, there was a narration.)

'... Dead faith... Dead souls... Spirits who awoke with perished screams after a war that threatened all humanity. Two swords that pierced through that war and journeyed to help those who'd lost themselves. A story of how they brought all to life again, a reenactment of what exactly could have been forged between Pokemon and Human. For more than one of you should wonder exactly why our wilderly friends settle for containment and dog chow. And why must we submit to over-rule them? (There was a single flash of light and the curtain fell, this time not springing back up.)

Applause filtered from every column, every row, every seat. Ash found himself raising his hands to clap with the rest. It was inspiring, not to mention questionable. He'd never really given much thought as to why Pokemon of any kind chose their masters. Why did they decide not to rebel? Pokemon weren't meant for capture, and there was nothing about humans being forever in control; they had enough capability to take over power. Why did they let themselves fall to second best..?

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A/N: Happy? I finished this one on time, no matter how many hours it took me to. I hope you're all okay with what I wrote. I know it's not the best but, then again, nothing about anime is EVER completely accurate. And I'm only meaning this for fun, so don't take ANYTHING I say seriously. Well, except that. And that. And that. And--Yeah, all those. So, anyway, review, tell me what you think as Chibi needs TONS of support right now. Especially after racking my brain all night trying to think of a satisfactory finish after sitting in my mothers run-down Toyota Camry, waiting for my brother to show up at the bus station for three hours, only to find that we had arrived and hour later than him and he had ended up getting a ride from a friend anyway. Life's grand, ain't it?

Heh. Heh, heh, heh, heh... HAH, HAH, HAH, HAH, HAH--! Chibi is loved, Chibi is loved! Okay, fluffy reviews are my new high. I'm officially hooked on the sultry taste of cotton and sugar-coated sap you guys write me. I feel so obligated to shout ALL of your names out at the end of every chapter since you deserve it sooooo much. But I think we'll just have to settle for every goal-breaking. I think my next one will be for 140-150 reviews. I'm hoping that, with 17-18 chapters total, it'll come and pass like winter did. IT'S GONE, IT'S ALL GONE! All the lovely bits of snow that got me outta school! GONE, GONE! Please, all, join me in my sorrow!

JAMO: I'm glad you feel appreciated now. I kinda felt the same after reviewing a Yu-Gi-Oh fic where the author ended up using my question as an idea for her next chapter since she had no idea where she was going. Of course my reaction was a little different than yours. You OBVIOUSLY take flattery better than I do. (Especially since she ended up writing another shout-out to me stating that I should really learn about the 'Caps Lock' key... **Clears throat** Yeah... Anyway, was twice in a row good enough for you, my GREATEST FAN..?

Shippo123: Feel the love. Swim in the love. Measure the love. Drown in the--Wait, no, don't do that. I still wanna be able to talk to you and somehow I don't think that AIM reaches extra-terrestrial planes and dimensions. So, for now, DON'T drown in the love cause I like talking to you too much, kay?

Darkness4ever_fades: ...Was chapter 12 that good?

qtloveskittles: I'm so glad that you appreciated that single moment in time where Ash and Misty's hormones got the better of them. That's right; I said it, hormones. Otherwise Ash would be with Evette and Misty would be in bed with Brock. Can you tell that I need to set my priorities..? LOL!

DaJollyMan: **Clears throat and looks confused** Okay, I kinda got mixed messages in your last review... The way you spoke about that being a great chapter and all was understandable, but that you said I pissed you off because I update only once per week. Then you said that you could only think of it as sweet. Can you see what seems confusing..? Oh yeah, and about that comment you made about me doing pretty well considering I'm writing two fics at once? You were wrong; I think it's more along the lines of seven. HEH.

totodile: Thanks for your support and encouragement. You can't imagine how tickled I was when I heard that you nominated me on TPT. You're the first ever to like me enough to do that. THANKS! **Sniffle** You're too good for me. I'll give you a slice of pizza for your troubles. ;P

Kay, that's all I'm gonna do for now. Remember, if you all want a shout-out, tell me in your review. It seems that the last time I stated this, no one had a problem with it. **Sweatdrop** Not that I'm really complaining as it gives me something to do. Just be sure that you tell me whatever, and try to ask a few questions or something so I can say something other than the average 'Thanks for reading'! I want my shout-outs to be more individualized... Kay?

End transmission...

--Chibi-Suiko