As Ash, Misty, Brock, and Pikachu walk along the path to Port Seamen, they wonder what lies ahead.

"So the next badge is where?" Ash asked as Brock took a look at the map.

"Cinnabar Island. We can hop a ship from Port Seamen to get there. It says here you can earn a Volcano Badge."

"So where’s this Port?" Misty said as she looked over Brock’s shoulder."

"Ugh. Ahh! This path should take us there." He said.

"Yeah!" Ash said as he ran forward.

"Way down there!" Ash pointed from on top of the hill. The sea was a good long ways away.

"Unfortunately, this map needs something of a measurement of distance." Brock said looking at it a little more.

"Don’t tell me we have to camp out again!" Misty yelled as she hated the camping bit of travel.

"Why? I like camping." Ash said.

"Cause, it’s no way to wake up, on dirty ground with all sorts of bugs around."

"Yeah, well I like camping in a sleeping bag with a good fire near by."

"Oh you would."

"Pika, Pika, Pi! (Love-hate relationships!)"

"Cut it out you two." Brock said as he checked the map. He took a look down.

"Is that a bug?" He said looking at Misty’s shoe. Misty jumped higher than Ash’s head as she grabbed a tree limb above her.

"Where? Where?" Misty said looking around frantically.

"Oh! My mistake. It’s just a little grass." He said laughing it off. He was thanked by Misty’s foot in the back of the head. Ash picked up the map and studied it.

"Where can we get some beds?!" She said almost screaming.

"Well according to this, Cape Bret is just a little ways from here."

"Then let’s go!" Misty said as Brock adjusted his neck.

***************

"Ekans." The snake pokemon said as it slithered through the bushes.

This particular Ekans was recently abandoned by it’s former trainer. All because he couldn’t beat a Kadabra. What was worse is that his former trainer forget about the poison pokemon weakness, psychic. Now it’s anger spotted a target. Three kids on the road, and there was no protection for the young lady. A pair of bare legs that were easy targets. He quickly got in to position.

***************

Ash felt a little funny. As if something was... Nah, he joshed himself. Cape Bret was only a small walk away. The forest only lasted a short distance and the city would be within sight as they cleared the trees. Just then he had another funny feeling. He took a look back with wide opened eyes as an Ekans jumped up towards Misty. Reactions took over.

"Misty, look out!" He yelled as he pushed her out of the way.

The dazed girl saw the Ekans as she fell back. The Ekans missed it’s target but clamped its jaws on Ash’s arm. Pikachu looked in horror as its trainer and friend fell back as the Ekans released him. Pikachu delivered a Thunder Shock to the snake as it ran back to the bush.

"Ash! Ash! Ash can you hear me?" Misty yelled as Ash’s shivering body lay on the ground. Brock felt Ash’s forehead.

"A fever?" Brock said puzzled. Then it hit him.

"Ash has been poisoned!"

"What?" Misty said as Ash’s shivering continued.

***************

Even with his heavy pack, Brock carried Ash as Misty kept watch on Ash’s condition. He didn’t look any better. Finally after the long dash they reached a hospital. They went directly in as a doctor saw them rushing in.

"What happened ?" The doctor asked as he ran up.

"You have to… help him." Misty said breathing heavily.

"He was… bitten by… an Ekans."

"My god!" The doctor said as he ran to the desk.

"I need a stretcher for a young boy, and get some Ekans anti-venom ready!" He barked out on a radio. Two nurses quickly came up and placed Ash on the stretcher. The nurses and the doctor ran quickly to the nearest ER.

***************

Brock and Misty waited in the front room while Pikachu paced the floor. The doctor returned, and not with a happy face. Misty, Brock and Pikachu walked up to him.

"How is he?" Misty asked very much worried.

"Not well. Let me show you." The doctor led them to a room with a large one-way window. Ash was in the other room with a thin white sheet up to his waist.

"Unlike pokemon we humans don’t have a pumped up immune system. It’s something pokemon gained to counteract poison. Antidotes only pump it up even more than normal to destroy the poison. But when the same stuff gets into humans, particularly Ekans venom, the cases are usually fatal." At this Misty’s tears ran like a Duodo being chased by a Rydon.

"And the only thing we can give is anti-venom. The poison however is strong. We can only hope. You can come here whenever you want. But all we can really do is pray."

***************

Misty stood with her nose to the window. She never admitted it to anyone but herself, but she was in love with the boy who laid in the next room. She thought he could be a jerk and sometimes a little too impulsive, but when she saw how much he cares for his pokemon she got to know him better. Then slowly and surely she let herself fall in love. She fell down to her knees staring at the bleak floor. She wanted to tell him that she liked him but she was afraid. Afraid of getting close. Afraid about getting hurt. She hadn’t noticed Brock enter the room until he placed a hand on her shoulder. He looked out the window at Ash and tried to keep calm.

"You love him don’t you?" He said.

"Yes." Misty said softly.

"I should’ve known that. I guess I should have noticed." Misty said nothing. Not that he expected her to.

"Why didn’t you tell him?" Misty still looked down.

"I guess I didn’t want to ruin what we have now. Even if it’s full of arguments and debates, I didn’t want to take a risk." Brock thought for a moment.

"In training no one wants to take a risk. But sometimes it pays off. One time a guy beat me in the Pewter Gym by a rage attack. It was down to our last pokemon and his was hurt bad. But when it attacked, Onix fell. His risk paid off. I never agreed with the punishment the pokemon took, but the trainer managed to win because of one big risk." Misty looked through the window as Brock continued.

"Training and life are similar. Fear is natural but risks are always taken. The worse he could say would be no. I’ll let you be." He then left the room.

"Come on Ash," She said.

"You never backed down from a battle. Don’t let this be your biggest loss."

***************

"Clear!" The Doctor call as the disc forced Ash off the bed.

"We got a beat." The nurse said as the flat-line stopped.

"This is the fifth time in seven hours." The other nurse said as she took the machine away.

"Nurse, get me fourteen milligrams of anti-venom." The nurse looked worried.

"Isn’t fourteen pushing it? Are you sure it’s safe?"

"No, but we can’t keep this up. The disc aren’t going to be reliable sooner or later, so we need to get rid of that venom."

"No worries about the disc now." The second nurse said as she came back.

"It’s blown. The discs we’re broken by a hyper active patient."

"Jimmy again? He’s broken the last one for this floor." The Doctor complained

"And we can’t borrow from another floor either." The first said.

"We have to hope the anti-venom works. I’ll relay the bad news."

The Doctor left the room to find Ash’s friends. It didn’t take long.

"Well?" Misty asked.

"Bad news." The Doctor said. Brock, Misty and Pikachu feared the worst.

"Thanks to Jimmy our last pulse disc are toast, and we can’t risk anymore anti-venom. Long story short, he’s on his own."

"Can we see him? In his room?" Misty asked.

"Go ahead. Room 235." The Doctor left to tend to other patents.

"You go on Misty." Brock said.

Misty didn’t ask why, she just walked until she found the room. She saw Ash in his bed. He almost looked peaceful. The monitor made the regular beeps. They didn’t look good. She found a chair and sat up by his right side.

"I wish you could hear me Ash." She said softly, her tears running again.

"But why when you can’t even hear me why, do I find it so hard to say three little words." She picked up his hand and held it in hers. The only resistance was the light force of the earth’s pull.

"But no matter what," She said almost choking.

"I love you." As the last word got out a screech was heard. He flat-lined.

"No." She said softly. Her next words were almost screams.

"Don’t you dare give up on me Ash Katchem!" But nothing happened.

"Ash! ASH!" Still nothing.

No doctors or nurses came because they knew nothing else could be done. Misty felt helpless. She thought for a moment how that could be her on the stretcher. That made thing worse. She cried into his shoulder. The lifeless body before her could offer no comfort. The screech of the flat-line felt like it pierced her very soul. Then the screech stopped. A beep, then another, and another. After realizing this she looked up and wiped away the tears that blocked her view. The line came went up and down a short distance, moved to the other side of the screen and jumped again. For the first time since the bite she smiled. Each pass the jump was longer. Not by much but soon it was at a normal stand point.

"You did it." Misty said standing up.

"You did it!" Misty let impulse take over as she found herself giving Ash a quick kiss.

As she got control over herself a slight moan was heard. Ash’s head slowly moved a little left and right as if he was shaking it. His eyes opened for the first time since the snake took a bite. Ash’s vision still had to right it self, but he could make out the figure before him.

"Misty?" He said rubbing his head with his left hand.

"Where am I?" He asked, still with blurry vision.

"Your in the hospital in Cape Bret."
"Hospital?" He wondered. He felt around his right forearm where he found a bandage covering two small holes.

"What happened to the Ekans?"

"It ran off." Misty said. Ash still felt weak but his vision finally came together. Misty still had one thing she had to know before anything else.

"Why?" She said in a low, sad voice.

"Why what?"

"Why did you push me out of the way? Why didn’t you let me take the bite?" She said sitting down. Ash put his hand on her shoulder and looked directly at her.

"I didn’t want to see you hurt." He explained.

"I just reacted. Didn’t think, didn’t wait, just did. I went on impulse and just tried to keep you from getting hurt." Ash then put his hand by his side and turned his head. Tears began to form in his eyes.

"But I don’t get it." Misty said.

"Why didn’t you want see me hurt?" Ash turned back to her and took her hand in his.

"Because," He started nervously.

"I love you." Misty took a deep breath as Ash’s tears came forth more than ever.

"Ash." Misty held his hand in both of hers.

"I love you too." She said almost giggling at the end.

"What?" Ash said surprised.

"I love you too." She said again. The two hugged lightly. This was the moment Misty has always wanted.

"Do you know how much you scared me when you flat-lined?"

"I flat-lined?" Ash asked.

"Yes you did." Misty said giving into more tears.

"But more important than that," She said as she rose above him.

"You came back." Both Ash and Misty smiled as their eyes closed and their lips came together.

***************

The Ekans slithered by, it’s anger not fading from his attack. He saw a lone Pidgy on the ground. He sneaked up on it and gave a big hiss. The Pidgy cawed and before the Ekans knew it, three to four dozen Pidgys surrounded him. He found himself in the worst trouble of his life.

The End.