Upon meeting Ash for the first time, Misty thought he was an insensitive trainer. She sees how seriously injured his Pikachu was, and comes to the conclusion that he simply doesn't care about his Pokémon. She was concerned about his Pikachu, and even told him where he could go to heal it. All of a sudden, they see a flock of angry Spearow heading towards them. He takes her bike without asking. She's confused about what's going on. She's bothered by his behavior. It's feasible, because it happened so suddenly. Then, we, the audience, see what happened with the Spearow. We know that Ash is a good guy, but HELLO! Misty doesn't! She has no idea. She doesn't know him like we do. Remember, Misty was never told about what happened to her bike. She wasn't there when it happened. Later, Ash is at the Pokémon center taking care of Pikachu. Misty enters, insulting him for destroying her bike. She still thinks he's an insensitive jerk. Then, Team Rocket shows up, not giving them a chance to explain what happened. They work together and get Team Rocket to leave. She's still ticked off about him, thinking he's not a nice person. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure that out. He doesn't understand why she's angry with him. Meanwhile, neither of them explained their side of the story to the other in order to understand each other. Instead of telling her what happened, he tried running away from the situation.
Later, Misty learns Ash really does care about Pokémon. She's pleased knowing that. This is when she discovers she was wrong about him being a bad guy. He didn't see her reaction or even heard her. The problem is now, Ash is mad at her for how she treated him, and he's rude towards her. She gets upset about it. She just learned she was wrong, and now he's not giving her a chance. He's wondering why she's following him, and she lies saying it's because of her bike. He tells her to get over it. She thinks he's being insensitive again.
She's actually following him, because she wants to get to know him better. He doesn't know how to pick up on subtle hints, and that pushes her buttons. Misty is wondering, "How does he not get it?" With Ash, you have to be straightforward with him, or else he won't get what you're trying to say.
If the episode was from Misty's point of view, you'd see Ash as some rude, careless trainer who doesn't care about his Pokémon's condition, who took her bike without permission and destroyed it on her. He never explained the situation to her! If he did, she would have been okay with it. He didn't think he had to. He actually thought Misty was only following him for her bike. It is clear Misty was lying. She even stuttered like she was trying to come up with an excuse to be with him. Misty is the type of person who doesn't express herself in a straightforward way. She's subtle and mysterious. You have to be in her shoes to really understand her.
Look at how her sisters treat her. Doesn't it seem like Misty treats Ash the same way her sisters treat her? That's how her sisters show love. That's the only way she knows how to behave. Ash is completely ignorant and doesn't realize Misty's feelings. Also, he teases her. She cares and he's hurting her feelings. She cares about his opinion of her. Ash and Misty argued, because they never talked things out, thoroughly. Misty began to develop feelings for him and even cried when he wasn't around. She didn't want anyone to let Ash know how she felt about him, because she feared he would reject her. Look at when Team Rocket called Ash and Misty lovebirds. They stared at each other blushing, shocked. They didn't think the other one actually cared, so they denied their feelings. "Aww, they're blushing!" exclaimed Jessie. James added, "Kissy kissy!' Ash seemed sad when he's said "It's not true!" He also got jealous when Rudy liked her, and when Misty showed Danny affection. She probably did it, because Ash denied liking her, saying "you must be crazy!" She was trying to be with those other guys, to heal her broken heart. But, when she had to choose between Rudy and Ash, she chose Ash. She still had feelings for him. Rudy was a nice guy, and seemed perfect, but she loves Ash. That must be why she would sometimes tease him for "no reason." She was still hurt by what he said in that cage. She didn't want to show emotions in front of him, because she had a tough facade. She assumed Ash would be smart enough to pick up on her hints, but he wasn't. He was completely clueless. He was also very arrogant, and thought he can be great at Pokémon with minimal effort. Training Pokémon takes lot of work. You can't slack off with it. Misty was trying to show him that, but he was getting very defensive by her remarks, and vice versa. He didn't want to admit he was wrong to her. He felt he had to prove something to her. Why would he care what she thinks? She says something, and he gets defensive. Why does he care about her opinion of him?
Brock was annoyed about the constant arguing. He'd see why they're doing it, but he wouldn't tell Ash why Misty is mad. Misty got incredibly jealous and offended when Ash thought Giselle was pretty. She would pull Brock's ear, because she doesn't want Ash to copy Brock's behavior. (However, that is a theory.) Another theory would be that she didn't want Brock to leave, because if he found someone, he'd be out of the group. She needed someone to get along with and talk about Ash to. I think Brock knew Misty's feelings for Ash. Even Team Rocket pointed it out. However, no one told Ash why Misty was there. Misty didn't want Ash to know her feelings, because of the cage incident.
Notice how the arguing lessoned in the Orange Islands and Johto? The bike wasn't mentioned as much. When Misty got her bike back, she was disappointed. She lost her fake excuse for staying with him. She was upset thinking he didn't even care. He thought she was only there for the bike. She was there because she liked him, and he didn't realize. Later in the episode, he compliments her and tells her that he thinks they met for a reason. It was meant to be for them to meet and become friends. He was being kind to her, and it made her feel better. It showed he does care about her feelings. When he cried, it showed he cared about her. That's what she wanted all along. To know he cares. But, them being young, and them off on separate goals, they need time apart to grow. Misty has to take care of the gym, and Ash is going from region to region collecting badges. She came back a few times, and he wanted to be with her. He was the first to run after the blimp that Misty was in. Also, he waved with both hands, and Misty looked really happy. (Note, he didn't even bother try hanging out with May in her cameo. He let her hang out with Dawn.) Also, he's very protective of his Misty lure, and doesn't want Dawn to hold it. Why would he care so much about a lure? Misty doesn't get mad at him anymore. She matured while she was away from him.
I think Ash starts fights with May and Dawn, because deep down, he misses arguing with Misty. He even behaved the way Misty did when May and Dawn would act the way he used to. He'd scold them and tell them what they did wrong. However, he apologized for it, because he didn't want them to have a grudge against him. The other two girls were upset by Ash's remarks. His first female friend left unexpectedly. Ash didn't cry when May left, because he knew she'd be back just like Misty came back. Also, May seemed to have feelings for Drew. Ash was a good friend to her, and didn't want to interfere. He got jealous when Misty would show affection to Rudy and Danny, but didn't care when Drew flirted with May. He didn't even care when Kenny teased Dawn. I think Ash knows that Kenny likes Dawn, but won't say anything. Like Brock said, when someone likes someone else, they tease the person, because they don't know any other way. Ash said, "of course!" I think that's when Dawn realized Kenny may like her at that point. That was a hint for Pokeshipping, Contestshipping AND Penguinshipping.
If the writers didn't like Misty, why would they even have her as a character in the first place? It's on the contract that only her voice actress can play the role, but she's off doing something else. May and Dawn got replaced, because it wouldn't be fair if they stayed and Misty didn't. Also, May and Dawn were only there to advertise the games. Misty stayed for Kanto, Orange Islands, and Johto. GameFreak made it so half the Hoenn region was in Water! Even Manaphy was a water type. Misty would have enjoyed it. It was like GameFreak made it for her. But, sadly, her voice actress left. In Sinnoh, they evolved Misty's baby Pokemon, Togepi, into Togekiss. But, since the writers set it free, they had to give it to Dawn instead. Now, in Issu, there appears to be a Luvdisc evolution. Misty has a Luvdisc as seen in Pokemon Chronicles. Maybe she'll evolve hers if she gets a cameo?
Misty has shown that she cares about him. The two of them have been through so much together. She taught him a lot. Ash does for May and Dawn what Misty did for him. It's like he's doing that to honor her. He even has her handkerchief and her Misty lure. Brock is also Misty's friend, yet she never gave him any gifts. Ash uses her presents without her there. He was even proud to show his lure to Dawn, but wouldn't let her use it. (IMO, it was a cute moment.) I think if Misty and Ash do get together, it will be when he's older. Ash only took out the ribbon when May showed up. It's not like he looked at it when she wasn't there. Misty was very special to him. He treats May and Dawn as friends. The writers make references to the past sometimes, to show that Ash's past still matters. Just because she has an obligation to her gym and isn't always around, doesn't mean she doesn't care. She knows he has a goal, and he's getting better at it. Also, Brock has been with him. She saw him in the Hoenn league on a television set. But, she has a responsibility to the gym. She knows he's in good hands, and he'll always be in her heart. Just because someone isn't around you all the time, doesn't mean they don't still care. Like she said in Pokémon 2000, "Ash is never really alone, because he has …me." Misty is a good person, too. I'm still a Pokeshipper, because I have faith that these two, despite whatever misunderstandings they've had, still care for one another, and when they're older, they can have a future together. Misty cares the most. If anything, the other girls are just infatuated with him in my opinion.
I apologize if this was a bit tl;dr, but it's 3 pages on word. When I saw the old episodes, I watched from Misty's POV.
