Another late Christmas story. But on a happy note, this is my first Pokeshipping one-shot! You'd think I would've written one already, considering SatoKasu's my all time OTP and I've been on this site for 15 months and this is my 37th one-shot (37's my lucky number!). Oh, well. Better late than never!

Enjoy!
-RD :)

For the Love of Christmas

In which Ash is hopeless, Misty is clueless, and Dawn repeatedly smacks herself in the face.

.x.x.x.

"Okay, look," said Dawn as she wrapped her arm around her friend's shoulder. "The mistletoe is in the doorway that leads to the kitchen. All you gotta do is get her over there and voila! Happy Ash." She gave him a well-meaning clap on the back, though he winced at it. Dawn could hit hard.

"How do I get her over there?"

"Um," she began, scratching her head. "Ask her if she'd like something to drink. Make small talk, and before you know it, BAM!"

"Uh, okay," Ash said slowly as he stood up. "Wish me luck." Dawn gave him a thumbs up, and he walked to the other side of the room. Iris and Misty were talking over something and laughing together.

"I know! That was so funny!" Iris said right before she looked up. "Oh, hi, Ash!"

"Hey, guys." He flashed a warm smile at Iris before turning to Misty. "Ah, could I-"

"Misty," Iris began, "I'm gonna go talk to Cilan, okay?"

"Alright! I'll talk to you later," Misty said. Ash sighed in relief; this left him alone with Misty. "Now, Ash, what were you saying?"

Ash tried to say that he wanted to go to the kitchen and get something to drink, but instead he ended up staring into her turquoise eyes, and it all went downhill from there.

"Abumgiglesurf" was all that came out.

The redhead raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I… I… Do you… Have you lost weight?"

Across the room, Dawn face-palmed. Five times.

"Um, not that I know of?" Misty said, noticing the very odd behavior of her best friend and feeling slightly angry at that comment. Did she look fat? "Are you okay, Ash?"

"I, um, no," Ash admitted. This was so much harder than Dawn made it out to be. How in the world was he supposed to tell his best friend of eight years that he liked her? She made it even harder with those stupid pretty eyes, and her hair looking all nice and her lips—

Ash willed himself not to think about those yet.

"Let's go get you some water or something," Misty said, beginning to walk toward the kitchen. Ash's face lit up. The kitchen! Where the mistletoe was! He might win yet.

Of course, that's what he thought until Misty told him to sit down at the table in front of the doorway.

"You need to rest. Maybe the cold is getting to you? But isn't that usually heat?" she mumbled before going off into the kitchen. Alone.

When Misty walked back out of the kitchen, she placed a glass of water on the table. Ash's head was spinning. How in the world was he supposed to do this? Ash downed the glass of water in one gulp and slammed his head down on the table. "I give up on the world," he mumbled as she sat down next to him.

"What?" The look he gave her was so utterly pitiful that Misty cringed. She smacked him on the shoulder. "Get yourself together, Ash! This is a Christmas party! You're supposed to be having fun!"

"I can't."

"Why not?"

Ash sighed and looked up at her. "There's someone I want to do something with, but I can't get that person to the right place to do it."

"That's all?" Misty asked, eyes widening. "Do you have to get them to that special place?"

"Well, not necessarily…"

"Then just do it, place or no place."

"Yeah!" Ash cheered, standing up. "I don't need a stupid plant to tell me what to do!"

"That's the spirit— Wait, what?" Misty asked just before Ash grabbed her by the waist and pulled her in for a kiss. When he let go, Misty just stood there with a blank look on her face. Ash backed away nervously. And Dawn face-palmed again.

"Um, Misty, I um—" He was yanked forward by the collar toward his very scary best friend/crush. "Please don't kill me."

"Ash," she began with a very serious look on her face. "I didn't say I didn't like it." Ash smiled before pulling her in again.

Forget mistletoe.