Work Text:
Misty: The DREAMS
A taxi rushes on a narrow street with open fields on both its sides. It passes past a sign board saying:
CERULEAN CITY – 15 KM
On the passenger’s seat, sits Liam.
“Yes Sir, I am on my way Sir", he says to someone on the other end of the call, “Of course, Sir... by
tomorrow “, he continues trying his best and failing to sound confident, “Yes Sir, thank you Sir”, he
greets and hangs the call. He sighs in relief and peeks out of the window, looking at the river that is
flowing along the street. Some Poliwag are busy in their play on the other end of the river. He smiles
at the view before putting on his sunglasses back.
“How much time will it take?”, he asks the driver.
“About 30 minutes”, the old man answers. He looks at Liam through the top mirror. Liam nods to
confirm that he heard the answer.
“Are you going to inspect the Cerulean Gym?”, the driver tries to continue the chat.
“Yes", Liam replies still looking out of the window, not wanting to indulge in any conversation. The
driver pauses and then coughs before starting.
“A Gym Inspector. That’s really a prestigious job. I mean, people respect, admire the Gym Leaders,
they are some of the strongest trainers in the Region and they are, kind of below you people... It
must feel good", says the driver.
“Yes, it does. Till you keep ignoring the fact that the people appointed by you are actually earning
more respect than you... and salary too”, Liam replies.
“So, this is your first one, right?”, asks the driver.
“Yes... Hey! How do you know that?”, Liam is startled and finally turns towards the driver.
“Oh, that was a pure guess considering how nervous you are", the driver says confidently.
Liam bends towards him, “Do I sound nervous?”, asks a shocked Liam.
“Slightly. Although, normal ears are unlikely to figure it out. But, for someone like me having 30
years of experience listening to people talking to other people, even a shaky breath is enough to tell
the level of nervousness”, the diver tells him in a philosophical tone.
A shocked Liam sticks back to his seat and holds its breath for a moment.
“Holding breathe for too long is also a sign of nervousness”, the driver points it out and Liam
exhaled.
CERULEAN CITY
The taxi stops at the Cerulean Gym. Liam steps out and takes a careful look of the exterior of the
Gym. The driver opens his window and sticks out his head.
“Close your eyes and breathe slowly. The perfect counter to your nerves", he gives his final a“Of course. Thanks for the suggestions, and the ride too", says Liam before the taxi speeds up away
from him, “He seems to be an expert", he says to himself.
Liam walks near the Gym and spots a note on the door: ‘THE GYM IS CLOSED FOR A WEEK. The Gym
Leader is on vacation’
Liam removed his glasses and rubs his eyes to have a clear look. “Is this a joke?!”, he shouts in pure
amusement.
MIKADO TOWN... That Evening
Misty walks into a guest room at the local Pokemon Centre. The noise of people singing Karaoke,
children playing and the overall chatter of people around can be heard coming from the window.
However, Misty ignores all the noise and searches for something in her bag. She soon pulls out a
Pokeball and lies on her bed, admiring it.
“Gyarados, you’ll be a perfect addition to the team", she says to the Pokeball which holds the
Gyarados that she caught in the morning.
She is distracted by her phone. She gets up and picks it up and finds it to be her Dad calling her. She
excitedly picks the call.
‘Hey, Dad! You know what happened today? I won the Pokemon Fishing Competition and...”, she
starts her narration, but is cut short.
“Yes, dear. That’s all right but...”, his father speaks through the phone, but is cut short.
“... and I caught a Gyarados! A powerful one", she pauses, waiting for praises.
“A Gyarados! That’s amazing, show it to me when you come back", his father’s tone changes
completely on the mention of his favourite Pokemon. However, he coughs and returns in the ‘father’
mode, “I mean, that is good that you are spending a good vacation, but, I have something very
important to tell you.. your mother wants to talk to you.”
“Mom wants to talk, then why didn’t she call herself?”, Misty asks politely.
“Because, I thought you would be too busy to pick my call", her mother yells at her from the phone,
having taken over from her father.
“Mom, I never do that! Why do you always think so?”, and the fight begins.
“ Oh, I think you think of doing that! And what’s the noise behind you?!”, asks her mother.
“Mom, I am attending the Foundation Festival of Mikado Town. There must be noise! Have you ever
been to a quiet festival?”, Misty replies as she closes the window to lower the noise a little bit.
“Is that a way to talk to your mother, Misty? You’ve become a Gym Leader now. Be responsible and
remember your etiquette! Especially, when you leave the Gym”, her mother tells her.
“I am responsible!”, Misty defends herself.
“Don’t shout Misty!”, orders her mother.
I am not shouting. I am speaking loud because there is noise around me!”, she again defends herself.
“How can you leave the Gym closed at such a time? I’ve never felt so ashamed”, her mother comes
to the point.
“Felt ashamed, why? I left a notice that the Gym is closed. Nobody would have any problem.”, Misty
enquires her.
“Have you forgot about your quarterly Gym Inspection?”, her mother asks her.
“No! That’s on 23rd, I remember”, says Misty.
“Today’s 23rd!!”, her mother shouts.
“Yes, but... wait, what?!”, Misty gets shocked upon realisation.
“Come home by tomorrow or I won’t let you in! Ever!”, her mother hangs the call with her usual
motherly threat.
Misty is left blanked as she tries to register the problem she is in.
CERULEAN CITY... Next Morning
Misty hastily walks to her home, without even looking forward, talking to herself. “How can I forget
it? Mom won’t spare me”, she says nervously.
As she reaches her home, she spots a young man approaching her. The young man also looks at her.
“Hey, you must be Misty...”, the young man asked as soon as he saw her.
“Yes, I am Misty. And you are...?”, she replies with her doubt.
“I am Liam, your Inspector from PLA, I have been waiting for you from past 14 hours or so", he
chuckles as he concludes.
“Oh! You are the Gym Inspector!”, she exclaimed,” I am really sorry for keeping you waiting. I don’t
know how I forgot it, I always remember it and other things as well, uh.. thus was the first time... will
you deduct points for that?”, she asks.
“No, no. Don’t worry, I won’t “, he says.
Misty is about to say something, but the door is opened by her father. They share a look.
“Oh! Misty, my child. Why didn’t you ring the door bell? You would have...”, her father is pushed out
of the view by her mother before he could finish.
“You would have become an ex- Gym Leader by now! When will you grow up Misty? And what
happened to your manners? Why are you talking to a guest at the door? Ask him to come in and
thank him for not cancelling your licence!”, her mother tells her.
“Yes, Mom. I am sorry", she lowers her head as she listens to the welcome lecture by her mother.
SOMETIME Later...
Misty and Liam are outside the Gym. Misty half-heartedly leads Liam inside the Gym. Liam follows
her, starting to feel anxious again. Misty switches on the lights and displays the spacious interior of
the Gym. Liam looks at the big pool in the middle. He goes near to take a clear look. The crystal clear
water enables him to look at the bottom of the pool.
“Nice. How does the Pokemon unable to swim compete here?”, he asks out if curiosity.
“Yeah, wait a minute”, she says before pressing another switch that causes three big podiums to
emerge out of the pool in each half.
“Woah... Great!”, he is amused by the facility of retractable podiums. “It’s really in a great condition.
How often do you change the water?”, he asks.
“Generally, twice a week, or as per the situation’s demand. The temperature of the water is
maintained by the underground heating chambers built alongside the pool to be comfortable for
each kind of Pokemon. Neither too hot, nor too cold. And yes, we use steam for heating.”, she gives
her reply.
“Okay, what about those stands?”, he asks pointing to the big audience stands surrounding the
battlefield.
“Oh, they are biggest in all Gyms in the whole Kanto Region. 5000 carrying capacity. They are
cleaned every third day”, she ends it with it.
“Okay, I was actually asking, what’s the need of such big stands?”, he says.
“Oh, they are people to gather. When the Gym is not under use, the pool is used for competitive
water sports or even entertainment activities. It used to be an opera before being transformed into
a Gym. So...”, she stops awkwardly, expecting him to understand the tale ahead.
“Yeah, I got it”, he says. Liam takes a deep breath, trying to control his nerves. “Well then, let’s start
with the Pokemon evaluation”, he tells Misty.
"Of course”, she says. Misty sighs, unnoticed by Liam as she moves towards the battlefield.
Soon, both are present at the opposite ends of the battlefield. Liam looks through some records in
his phone.
“It’s a minor inspection, so we are only going with the additions or evolutions, if any... I know you
would be knowing that but it’s my job to tell you”, he pauses to take a look into his phone, “So,
beginning with additions. Uh, you have sent a mail to PLA about a Starmie you caught lately?”, he
asks Misty.
“Yes, I have been using it in the Beginner Class", she replies.
“Let’s begin with your Starmie then", he says putting his phone back in his pocket.
Misty pulls out a Pokeball of her bag and throws it towards the pool. Starmie comes out and stands
firmly on a podium. Liam also pulls out a Pokeball from his container belt and throws it in. A Nuzleaf
comes out and takes its stand on a podium against Starmie.
“We will begin when you are ready", says Liam, in a shaky voice.
However, Misty, lost in her own thoughts, doesn’t hear him.
“Are you ready, Misty?”, Liam asks again, a little louder this time.
Misty snaps out of her thoughts, “Uh, what?”
“Can we begin?”, Liam asks.
“Yeah, of course. Starmie, use Swift!”, she quickly gives her command.
Starmie jumps into action. It spins high in the air and a burst of sparkling yellow stars are shot at
Nuzleaf. Liam doesn’t get enough time to react, or he is too nervous to give a quick response.
Nuzleaf takes a direct hit, but somehow manages to prevent itself from falling in water.
“Woah! I didn’t expect that”, Liam says to console himself, “Go on Nuzleaf, Energy Ball!”.
Nuzleaf holds out its arms and a green ball of energy form between its palms. It jumps high and
throws the ball towards Starmie.
“Into the pool, Starmie", says Misty.
Starmie quickly jumps into the pool. The Energy Ball crashes with the podium as Starmie is able to
dodge it. A small dust cloud is generated due to the crash.
“And now, Rapid Spin!”, Misty gives her command.
Starmie pops out behind Nuzleaf, vigorously spinning, it hits Nuzleaf and throws it into the water.
“Uhh, nice move. You are tough leader, Misty”, Liam praises Misty, but she gets lost into thoughts
again, “Anyways, it won’t do much damage”.
Misty doesn’t listen to him, “A tough leader...”, she thinks.
Nuzleaf shows off its excellent swimming skills as it quickly swims to the nearby podium. It crawls up
and Liam notices that Misty is not doing anything.
“What's she planning?”, Liam murmurs, ”Now, Nuzleaf, Sucker Punch!”.
Nuzleaf's right fist is engulfed in a dark purple energy. It jumps towards Starmie and punches it hard.
Multiple orange orbs of energy are transferred from Starmie to Nuzleaf as the former is drained of
energy.
“Starmie!”, Misty comes back to realization.
“Let's quickly end it Nuzleaf, use Solar Beam!”, commands Liam.
Nuzleaf holds out its arms. Many small yellow orbs of solar energy form around its body that begin
to aggregate between its palms in a large orb.
“Uh, Starmie. Hang in there, Recover”, Misty commands in clear confusion.
Starmie's body is engulfed in a green energy as it begins to heal itself. Nuzleaf gathers enough solar
energy and launches its Solar Beam. The beam crashes with Starmie while it is in the middle of its
recovery and it is blown out of the battlefield, leaving the podium cracked behind it. Starmie falls in
front of Misty, she quickly picks up her injured Pokemon.
“Woah... we won?”, Liam asks to himself before calling back his Nuzleaf, “Great job, Nuzleaf. Come
back and rest".
“Starmie, um.. I am sorry", she says as she sadly calls back her Starmie.
“Hey, Misty. Are you alright?”, Liam asks her.
“Yeah, I am alright", says Misty trying to look alright.
“The records say that you've done a lot better lately. Are you sure you’re alright?”, Liam asks again.
“Of course, things like these just happen sometimes and I am just... huh... I am not alright”, Misty
tells him.
“We can take a break then... if you want to. I don’t have any problem, it’s your call", Liam says and
smiles to cover his nervousness.
SOMETIME Later...
The duo sits on a bench, facing the deep valley ahead. Behind them, the Cerulean City can be seen at
a lower height. Around them, many identical benches are present around them. All occupied, mostly
by young couples who are gazing at the sunset ahead of them. The sun resembling a huge red dot on
an orange-yellow canvas looks beautiful.
Liam and Misty sit next to each other, the latter lost in her own thoughts.
“The Cerulean Cape, even more beautiful than its description”, Liam breaks the silence.
“Yes, I have been coming here since I was in primary school", she sighs and closes her eyes to feel
the beauty, “It is so peaceful here".
“Yeah, it just lacks a boundary at the edge. What if someone literally falls into the beauty”, he says
expecting a mutual laughter but ends up laughing alone as Misty doesn’t react to it.
You don’t need to be nervous. Just keep calm and think it is just a normal battle. You will perform
well”, says Liam.
“I am not nervous. You are the one who is nervous", Misty quickly replies, not opening her eyes.
Liam is taken aback by her words, “Oh, what are you saying? I am not nervous at all", he laughs to
hide the truth. ‘”He said no one will figure it out"', he thinks.
“Don’t lie. You clearly sound nervous”, Misty replies before opening her eyes. Her expressions
suddenly become somewhat serious, “I just don’t get the point of this".
“Point of what?”, asks a confused Liam.
“Point of continuing as a Gym Leader”, she says.
“You mean you want to quit?! Trainers dream of becoming a Gym Leader. Why in the world would
you want to quit?”, Liam asks in amusing confusion.
“I don’t know. When I was a child, I too dreamt of becoming a Gym Leader. I know what it means,
but... I don’t know. I even don’t know if I want to quit”, she tries to explain.
“Then, where is the problem. You have a good job, a good salary, people know you, respect you and
even admire you... what else do anyone want?”, Liam asks her.
“Is that really enough? I mean, just taking on Gym challenges, awarding the winners with Badges,
consolidating them if they lose and surviving inspections to continue to do the same thing. It’s not
like I don’t like it... I really like facing the challenges, this region wide recognition and all, but... it
feels too,,, monotonous. I don’t know, what to do next? It feels like my life has stopped somewhere
and I want to move on?, Misty says.
Liam looks at her, “So, you face restrictions to earn more?”, Liam whispers to himself.
“What?”, she asks.
“Nothing. I was saying, uh... it was your dream. You can’t give up on it. You should try asking
questions to yourself, like... why did become a Gym Leader in the first place? There must have been,
you know, something... behind that dream of yours", Liam advises Misty.
Misty finally looks up at him, “Behind the dream...”
FLASHBACK
A young Misty (8 yrs) opens the door of her house and charges out, with an Eevee following her.
“Shut the door behind you, Misty!”, shouts her mother from inside. She doesn’t listen to it, so her
mother has to come out to do the job herself.
“Misty! I won’t let you in today!”, her mother fumes over her, but she doesn’t care to stop and runs
as fast as she can.
“This girl will never learn to listen”, says her mother closing the door.
Eevee catches up to Misty. “We need to run faster Eevee, we are already missing out on the action",
she says worryingly as they run. Eevee also squeals in affirmative.
Soon, they reach the Cerulean Gym. They enter the magnificent hall, devoid of lighting, but packed
with crowd in the stands. They somehow manage to cross the crowd and find a place to watch the
show.
The cold in the Gym makes Eevee to sneeze. The completely frozen pool at the centre looks amazing.
Under the spotlights in the centre, stands Lorelei upon her Lapras. Misty’s face begins to glow as she
watches her idol.
“Lapras, use Blizzard!”, commands Lorelei. The crowd begins to chant her name.
Lapras opens its mouth and sends a powerful blizzard around the pool. The glittering snowfall
caused by the move looks spectacular.
“Yeah, Lorelei! I am your biggest fan!”, Misty joins the crowd in cheering.
SOMETIME Later...
Lorelei admires the beautiful sunset from a high ground, as a few workers and Machoke clear and
level the area around her. A Machoke fixes a big cement bench right behind her. Many identical
benches are kept at a distance to be fixed later. She turns to a worker, who seems to be the
supervisor, “I hope it will be finished soon", she says to the supervisor.
“Oh, yes Mam. Just a couple of weeks, then you’ll be standing at a completely new spot", the
supervisor replies confidently.
Lorelei and the worker are attracted by some noise. They look in the direction of the noise and find a
worker revoking a little girl, Misty.
“You can hurt yourself here, it is a construction site. Go back to your home", says the worker.
“No, I won’t get hurt. I just want to see Lorelei”, Misty refuses to listen to him.
“If you don’t go by yourself, I will have to take other measures”, the worker rebukes her. He steps
forward, but Eevee comes between, growling at the worker.
“Wait! Let her come here", Lorelei says.
The two look towards her and Misty quickly rushes to her. Lorelei gets bent to listen to Misty.
“Lorelei, I am a fan. A big fan, no biggest fan”, Misty starts.
“So sweet of you, but you should begin with your name first", Lorelei says politely.
“I am Misty", she introduces herself.
“Okay, Misty. You know that it’s a construction site and may be dangerous. Plus, it is dawn already,
your parents will be worried. You should rush home", she tells Misty.
Misty becomes sad at this.
“Aww, listen Misty... okay, tell me what are you doing here?”, Lorelei asks to keep her from crying.
“I’ve been following. I want to know more about you... I want to be like you”, she says innocently.
“So, you want to become a Gym Leader then?”, Lorelei asks her.
“Yes, a Gym Leader, like you", Misty doesn’t even think twice before agreeing to it.
“Hmm, I see. Then you’ll have to do a lot of hard work. I am sure you will become a good Gym
Leader one day”, she says and taps her head.
Misty peeks past Lorelei at the sunset.
“What are you making here?”, she asks with the same innocence.
Lorelei picks her up and Eevee comes to stand beside her. They look at the beautiful sunset.
“Do you like that view?”, she asks Misty.
She nods in affirmative, admiring the colourful sunset.
“I also love it. I want other people to enjoy it too. That’s why I am making thus place clean and good.
When the job is done, it will be called Cerulean Cape. You'll also be able to come here with your
parents to enjoy this beauty", she tells Misty.
PRESENT
Misty gazes at the horizon, comparing this sunset to that one. Suddenly, a new energy rushes
through her body as she jumps and stands up.
“Yes, it was Lorelei. I wanted to be like her”, she exclaims.
Liam is startled by the sudden change in her attitude. “Lorelei, the member of Elite Four. Yes, she
was also from Cerulean City”, he says.
“I have got it! Now, I am ready. Let’s get back to the Gym”, she commands Liam.
“Of course, if you want to", Liam agrees to her.
SOMETIME Later
Back at the Gym, Liam and Misty again stand against each other.
“So, are you having any other additions to your team for evaluation?”, Liam asks Misty.
“Yes, I have another one", she says before revealing a Pokeball, “Go Gyarados!”, she says as she
throws the Pokeball. The Atrocious Pokemon comes out and roars loudly.
“Wow, that looks really strong", says Liam as he watches the Gyarados in awe, “Anyways, I think I
have a perfect match for it", he says before pulling a Pokeball out of his belt and tossing it up, “Come
on, Electabuzz!”.
An Electabuzz comes out onto a podium, flaunting its black and yellow body.
The two trainers lock their eyes for a last time before beginning the battle. This time, they both look
different from before. Misty has found back her lost zeal and Liam’s nervousness has faded away.
“Electabuzz, Thunder Punch!”, Liam starts it.
Electabuzz’s right fist is engulfed in an yellow-sparkling aura as it jumps towards its foe.
“Gyarados, show them your strength. Hydro Pump!”, Misty commands.
Gyarados opens its mouth and fires a whole lot of water towards Electabuzz. However, the Thunder
Punch pierces it’s way through the water to hit Gyarados.
“Woah! I didn’t expect that”, says Misty.
“Don’t forget, you are under inspection", Liam teases her.
“Okay, then we should show everything we have. Gyarados, use Rain Dance!”, Misty says.
Gyarados flexes as dense black clouds form over the battlefield and begin to pour heavily.
“Do you really think that we are afraid of rain?”, Liam asks her.
“If you are not, then be ready to be afraid of it", Misty replies.
“Sounds like she does have a plan now”, Liam says to himself, “Do you know what comes with
downpour? It’s Thunder!”, Liam says.
Electabuzz’s antennae spark as it sends lightning to the clouds above. A bright yellow lightning bolt
strikes Gyarados from the clouds
“This time, I was expecting this. Gyarados use Dragon Rage!”, Misty commands.
Gyarados fires a purple beam of energy that meets the lightning bolt in a deafening. A large smoke
cloud is generated that engulfs the battlefield.
“Now Gyarados, use Hurricane!”, commands Misty.
Gyarados flexes again and a hurricane is produced that blows away the smoke and dust. Electabuzz
grips the edge of its podium tightly, trying to keep itself from blowing away. The pool water and rain
blows around, dampening the trainers.
“Hold on, Electabuzz. Use Protect!”, Liam says.
Electabuzz’s eyes glow and a turquoise force field is formed in front of it, blocking the string wind.
Electabuzz stands back on its field.
“Okay, let’send it now Gyarados. Dragon Rage!”, Misty gives her final command.
Gyarados fires a purple beam that Electabuzz tries to block with the force field. Both the Pokemon
give their full energy and begin to exhaust.
“Just a little more, Electabuzz”, Liam cheers for his Pokemon.
The force field begins to crack and Electabuzz’s concentration breaks. The force field is shattered and
the Dragon Rage blasts Electabuzz off the battlefield, defeating it.
“Electabuzz!”, Liam rushes to and holds up his Pokemon.
“Woo-hoo! Great job Gyarados, we won our first battle together”, Misty praises Gyarados.
Gyarados roars to celebrate its victory. The clouds disappear and the storm stops. Liam watches as
Misty enjoys her victory and gives Gyarados a hug. “She’s really surprising”, he says and chuckles.
NEXT Morning...
Liam comes out of the Pokemon Center, ready to leave. He looks back, as if looking for someone.
However, he turns to go.
“Hey, Liam. Are you leaving?”, a familiar voice calls him. He turns to find Misty.
She comes running and stops next to Liam. She breathes heavily, tries taking deep breaths to return
to normal as soon as possible.
“I can call you Liam, right?”, she asks.
“Of course, you can call me Liam. And, I have updated the data for your Starmie and Gyarados in
your PLA records. Your Gyarados is amazingly strong, it can be an ace in your Master Class party. You
should be happy you’ve survived another inspection. Um, anything else?”, Liam says with a broad
smile on his face.
“Yes, I actually wanted to say... Thank You", Misty says.
“Oh, that’s no problem. Even I sometimes forget important stuff", he replies.
“No, not for that", she corrects him.
“Then, for what?”, he asks.
“Thanks for making me realise my dream”, she says and Liam gives her a look that he didn’t
understand.
“Upon I became a Gym Leader, I thought I achieved my goal. Actually, I never thought what to do
ahead of that. When I said that I want to be like Lorelei, I thought it was becoming a Gym Leader.
Yesterday, I realised that I wanted to be like her... as a person. Huh, whatever... thank you", she says.
“I am glad you got it", Liam says.
“I know you didn’t mean that much”, she frowns at Liam and says, “Anyways, now my next goal is to
be more strong and join Elite Four one day".
“Ha, and my goal is to... um, look for a goal", Liam says and they share a mutual laughter.
“So, we’re friends now, right?”, Misty asks before holding out her hand.
Liam gives her a confused look before shaking hands with her, “Of course, we are”.
They chuckle again.
NOT THE END...