A Day Without Me

A doctor was waiting on the mainland. He examined the boy, but knew the worst had happened before he'd even taken a temperature. He turned to Ash and Misty and said, "I'm sorry. I'll give you some time." Only Misty, Ash, Derek and Rosy remained. Johnny's corpse had been wrapped in a blanket. They looked at it sadly. No one spoke. The search party slowly disbanded, and everyone headed home. Brock followed the Ketchams' back to Cerulean, offering his help in any way, which they utilized well. They met up with Delia Ketcham, Ash's mother, who had been helping on the home front with Rosy and Derek. They sat in the living room one evening, days after Johnny's death, unable to sleep. Misty had turned on the TV in an effort to think of anything but Johnny being dead. The nightly news was on. "The rest of the victims in the mysterious Whirl Islands phenomenon were identified today,” the anchor said. “Other than John Ketcham, ten years old, of Cerulean City, four others perished when the cave blew. Patrick Scott, forty, of New Bark Town, Kirk Halett, thirty-three, of Saffron City, James Fauntleroy II, eighteen, of Azalea Town, and Alan "Ace" Ketcham, sixty-seven, of Pallet Town also were killed. The elder Ketcham had been serving a prison sentence for Pokémon poaching earlier this year, but was released due to good behavior. The men were also believed to...."

Misty turned away from the screen to see Rosy and Ash wearing twin expressions of shock. "My father," Ash whispered. "He was still alive? A poacher? Mom," he said shakily.

Delia shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe it," she said. "I thought he was dead.... Ash, I'm so sorry."

Rosy's eyes filled with tears. "Jamie," she said. "You, and Johnny, you're both gone. Mom," she wailed. Misty hugged her close. "Why? Why did they both have to go? Why couldn't we all live here, happy, Jamie and Johnny too? What's next? Am I going to lose you and Daddy and Derek and Grammy and Uncle Brock too? What the fuck? It isn't fucking fair, Mom!"

"Honey, Rosy, I know," Misty said. "It's been a long few days. Come on, let's get you to bed. I'll make you some tea."

"No! I don't want any damned tea," she shouted. "I don't want to go to bed, I don't want to forget about Johnny!"

"Babe, no one said anything about forgetting Johnny," Ash said, rising. He looked older. "I know you're hurting. I’m sorry that Jamie is gone. It’s going to be even harder for you. You lost a brother, and a dear friend all at once. I lost a son, and my father, whom I thought was dead long ago. Grammy lost a grandson and a husband she thought was dead long ago. Mom lost a son. Derek lost a brother. We all lost someone we loved. Instead of pushing us away, Rosy, please, embrace the love we have now. We need to be strong now. Johnny will not be forgotten, ever. Let's all get some sleep. We've got more pain ahead."

*

Johnny's funeral had been planned quickly, and on the morning of his memorial, the funeral home was filled to the brim with friends and family. Misty's sisters came to support them. A tight circle had formed around them. The service itself was brief, but the words were well put and all those who had known and loved Johnny felt it was done to the best of him. After the service, Ash and Misty dared to take one last look at Johnny before the burial at the Viridian Cemetery. The Ketchams had a family plot there, and four generations before Ash were buried there. This day, both Johnny and Alan were to be laid to rest. Ash's chest was filled with sorrow looking at his deceased son, and hate for his dead father. Misty touched Johnny's face, and leaned in to whisper something to him. Ash’s eyes misted over. He saw Gary Oak, his longtime rival, and unfortunate half-brother, standing near the coffin. He held a small envelope and a single white rose. Gary looked at him, offering the envelope and his hand. Ash shook it. "I'm sorry, Ash," Gary said, sounding as sincere as Ash had ever heard him speak. Gary tended to speak mostly tongue-in-cheek. "It's awful, tragic," he continued. "My nephew." He sighed, placing the rose in an arrangement near the casket. He offered some words to Misty, and kissed her on the cheek. Misty looked shocked from underneath her black veil. As he passed Ash, he whispered, "If Misty had married me, this wouldn't have happened." He smiled at his own amusement.

Ash grabbed him roughly by the back of the neck. "What did you say," he growled.

"Nothing you already didn't know," Gary shot back, unfazed by Ash’s assault. Ash squeezed Gary's throat tightly, screaming incoherently. Misty rushed to him, trying to pull his hands away from Gary.

"Ash, stop," she cried. "What did he say?" Ash suddenly released Gary, who stumbled out of the funeral home. Ash collapsed into Misty's arms, crying hysterically. She tried to soothe him. The crowd that formed dispersed, and Ash calmed down slightly. All his anger about Johnny's death, his good-for-nothing father, Gary's existence, his own goddamned futility boiled over and created the ugly beast he'd just displayed. He felt eighty years old and two years old all at once. Everything was beyond his control now, but he wasn't naive enough to ignore it, or not know any better. He knew he was useless.

At the cemetery, only the family and Brock, joined by a priest, laid Johnny and Ace to rest forever. The priest gave a few words, but otherwise, they were silent. Ash leaned against Misty, who was holding Rosy's hand tightly. Derek's hand was resting on his sister's shoulder. Brock stood with his hands folded. Delia's head was bowed with her hands under her chin. They watched the coffins go into the earth, and turned to leave.

*

The weeks that followed took a lot of getting used to for the Ketchams. Brock became a frequent visitor. Delia tried to visit more often as well, but found it difficult to travel between Pallet and Cerulean. Derek and Rosy went back to school. Ash returned to the university. Misty remained at the gym, but without Johnny around, it seemed very empty. The days passed, seasons changed, and summer came. Derek, Rosy and Ash came home for the summer. Rosy was soon to enter college, but had yet to announce where she was attending college. Indigo University still looked to be the front runner in the chase. She remained tight-lipped about her intentions. Since Johnny died, she’d aged in other ways than most girls her age did. She saw there was more to life than dominating an opponent, as she did in her Pokémon Tech class battles. She knew that life was about people, not things. She realized that not she nor her parents, or Derek would be around forever. She hedged about her plans for higher education because success meant nothing to her. Without those she loved, all the laud in the world would be useless. Every day the remaining members of her family awaited her announcement, trying not to pressure her or be overbearing. One warm summer evening, she joined her mother and father on the back patio, where they were sipping Long Island iced teas watching Derek prune the roses in the garden. He enjoyed plants almost as much as he did music and the arts. He had inherited Delia’s green thumb. “Mom, Dad, Derek, I know what I’m going to do next year.”

Misty and Ash set down their glasses. Derek came in from the garden. “Well, pumpkin, what is it,” Ash asked. Rosy stood with her eyes closed, inhaling the sweet breeze from the flowers. The gentle wind swished her loose skirt around her legs and blew her long, wavy, dark locks about her face. On the back of her eyelids she saw Johnny, grown up, tall, with that same shock of red hair sticking up in places on his head, throwing a Pokéball high, releasing a Pokémon to battle with. Only there was no one to face him. No opponent had challenged him. He looked over his shoulder and pleaded with his eyes to the sister he left behind. When she opened her eyes she saw her family looking at her, anticipating her answer.

“I’m going to be the new Gym leader here,” she said.

They looked at each other. “What,” Ash asked.

“Mom has done an amazing job here, but she can’t be the leader forever, right,” she replied. “I think it’s best to keep the gym in the family. Derek has his music to pursue, and Daddy has teaching to look after. I always assumed Johnny would take the reigns, but--” her voice broke. Her eyes teared up, but she regained her composure. “But he can’t now. I know I can’t be what he was, or what he is, or what he could have been, but I do know what I’m doing, and I know that I can keep this gym competitive and formidable. Opponents would expect nothing else from the daughter of Ash Ketcham and Misty Waterflower, right?” She smiled through her tears.

Misty rose to embrace her daughter. She was crying freely. “It’s perfect,” she said. “I know you can do it. Thank you, Rosy.” Ash and Derek hugged them, tears flowing.

*

It had been a year since Johnny died. A long year, filled with sorrow, tears, fear, pain, loneliness. Now the Cerulean Gym stood on the dawn of a new era: Rosy was primed to defend the Cascade badge of the Cerulean Gym against all comers for the first time. Misty helped Rosy get her Pokémon ready to battle a gym match, a challenge neither Rosy nor her Pokémon had seen before. Derek was standing guard outside the Gym, waiting for a challenger to appear. “Hey,” he suddenly shouted. “Here comes someone!” He ran in to dispatch the news. As he streaked past Ash to inform Rosy, Ash chuckled to himself. He’d never seen Derek so full of energy. Rosy stood up, and stepped onto the gym floor. She faced a young boy. “My name is Peter Straihan, and I’m going to be a Pokémon master,” he announced.

“My name is Rosy Ketcham, and I’m the leader of the Cerulean Gym,” Rosy answered. “This Cascade badge will be yours if you can defeat me.” She held the badge up for him to see.

“It’s as good as mine,” he boasted.

Rosy smiled. Water-type Pokémon were never her strongest suit, but Misty had shown her how to use Water-types to her advantage. Water was the official type of the gym, and tforefore, her best had to be at least some Water Pokémon. She grasped a Pokéball, thinking of the beast she planned to unleash in a few seconds. Years of her Pokémon education filled her head, as well as the tutelage Misty and Ash had passed on. Finally, she saw Johnny again. He smiled at her and gave her the thumbs-up. She took a deep breath and shouted, “Kingdra, I choose you!” Misty smiled from the shadows. Past, future and now present were one. Now she could sleep a little easier.