Pokemon Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ The Me You See ❯ Unmasked ( Chapter 3 )

Chapter 3: Unmasked

Ash found Misty in her bedroom just as she was putting Togepi down for the night. Maybe it was the mere fact that they'd never been apart so long, but Ash could've sworn Misty had gotten more beautiful. It was all he could do to keep from hugging and kissing her the minute he saw her.

Misty didn't say anything when she finally saw him. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her face into his shoulder.

Ash wrapped his arms around her tightly and kissed her cheek. "Misty…I'm sorry if I scared you. I didn't mean to, honest. If you're not ready, or even if you just don't want to get married, I-"

"Have no idea why I turned you down, do you?" she finished for him, stepping back to look into his eyes.

"Well…no," Ash admitted. "That's why I wanted to see you so badly. I didn't want us to end that way."

"Oh, Ash, I'm not trying to end anything between us. I didn't mean it like that. I'll always love you, and I'll always be in love with you. I want to marry you, but I can't. At least, not until we have a long talk."

Ash sighed in something close to relief. "Okay. What did I do wrong?"

Misty smiled sadly. "You didn't do anything, Ash. This is…all my fault, actually. I'm just afraid that…well…I can't be who you want me to be anymore. I can't be the girl you fell in love with."

"Misty, what are you saying? You ARE the girl I fell in love with. Do you realize how hard it was to keep from taking you into my arms just now and…and…you know what I'm saying!"

Misty turned bright red. "That's…sweet, Ash, but not what I meant. I'm not who you think I am."

"I don't care if you have a secret past. All I know is I love the girl in front of me."

"Do you, Ash? Do you really?" Misty asked quietly.

Ash blinked. Something about her voice had seemed…odd, yet in a familiar way. "Misty?"

"I need to show you something, Ash. I don't think you're going to like it at first, but promise you'll give me a chance to explain afterwards."

"Misty…what is it? Tell me!"

"I…I have to show you. Come with me." Misty turned and went into the bathroom.

Ash stayed at the door. "Misty, I really don't think you need to-" He froze as Misty removed blue-colored contacts from her eyes. "What…what are you…doing?"

"Just watch, Ash. And don't say anything until I'm done. Please."

Her eyes were a dark red, almost crimson, without the contacts. Ash was sure he'd seen them somewhere before.

Next, she lowered her head and splashed some water onto her face. Slowly, she rubbed the water into her skin, as if it were lotion. When she lifted her head again and looked into the mirror, she heard Ash gasp. He'd probably recognized her already, but she wasn't done. She closed her eyes and concentrated.

Ash nearly fainted as her red-orange hair pulled free of its ever-present ponytail and flowed down her neck, reaching to the small of her back, where every silky strand turned a blue-green color. Once his heart stopped pounding, he finally found his voice. "Du…Duplica," he whispered, disbelief in his eyes. "How…what…when?" He shook his head. "WHY?"

"I didn't want it to happen this way, I swear," she whispered, staring into the sink. "I thought I could tell you before it went this far. But I…I…" Duplica closed her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Ash. I didn't want you to find out like this."

"Where…is she?" Ash asked, his voice trembling.

"Ash, try to understand, I-"

"Where's Misty?!" Ash shouted, slamming his hand against the mirror.

Duplica gasped and backed away as the mirror shattered into many pieces. Then she noticed the dark red stain on some pieces of glass. "Ash…your hand…!"

"Tell me where she is," Ash whispered, ignoring his wound. "Tell me where Misty is right now, or so help me, Duplica, I'll….I'll…" He trailed off, letting her imagine what he might do. It was better that way, he thought.

Tears welled up in her eyes. "She's…gone, Ash."

"What do you mean, gone?" he asked.

"Misty is…she…she's dead."

Ash continued to stare at her with little or no change in his expression. "How long?"

Duplica blinked, somewhat startled. "A-Almost ten y-years now." Her eyes drifted down to his hand again, which was now covered in blood. "Ash, please…"

"No. Be quiet." Ash closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall, taking deep breaths. "I want you to leave, Duplica. I can't think right now. We'll talk about this…some other time."

"No."

His eyes snapped open, and he saw that she was standing mere inches away from him. Then he noticed the towel in her hands. Before he could react, she carefully took his bloody hand and wrapped the towel around it, making a strong knot around his wrist.

"Now I'll leave," she said, and left the room.

Ash noticed that she hadn't bothered to wipe his blood from her hands.

* * * * *

It was almost a month before Ash returned to the Cerulean Gym, and even then, he thought it might have been too soon. He went straight to Misty's room, but she wasn't there. Then he realized two very important things: Misty was dead, and he probably should've been looking Duplica, assuming she'd stopped trying to fool him.

He found her outside, swimming in a lake behind the gym. To his surprise, she WAS dressed as Misty…and then he saw that Togepi was with her.

"Misty" finally saw him as she was stepping out of the water. "Ash," she whispered. "I didn't…know you were coming. Please don't be angry. This is only for Togepi. He still doesn't realize that I…I mean, Misty is…well…you know."

Ash's expression went blank. "Yeah. I do now."

Her face fell. "Ash…let me explain. Please?"

"You'd better get dressed first," Ash said as he picked up Togepi. "Pikachu and I will watch Togepi."

For the first time that Duplica could remember, Pikachu was totally silent. She figured that Ash must've explained that Misty was gone. Togepi, on the other hand, recognized Ash, and was perfectly happy being held by him. With a sigh, she went to get dressed.