Author's Note:

Howdy gang!

This here is just a little story for the world of Pokemon that I've been working on for a little while now. It's about Ash and Misty's youngest child beginning her journey and the surprising decisions she makes along the way. It's still being worked on and tweaked so please just bear with me. I just had to go ahead and get this first chapter out of my head so it wasn't so cluttered in there anymore. But here it is, hope you all enjoy it!

Read and review, if you would be so kind! I like feedback and any ideas for the story are most welcome!

Laters!

Ninja

P.S. I don't own Pokemon. If I did, I'd be one happy little ninja!

Chapter One: Ten Years in the Making

It was late into the night and most of the Ketchum household was fast asleep in their beds. Only one person still remained awake. She sat quietly at the kitchen table looking through a photo album with mute nostalgia. After tenderly examining each photo on both pages, she would turn to the next one and continue the process. She was nearly at the middle of the album now.

Misty Ketchum had been dreading this moment in her life. Her youngest child would soon begin her journey out into the world of Pokémon. It was the reason she was still awake looking at the photo album. It was an album filled with nothing but pictures of her youngest child, Lauren. There were three more like this one tucked away in her closet; one for each of her other three kids. The albums chronicled the first ten years of each child's life—right up until the start of their journey.

In all honesty, Misty felt a bit silly. She knew this day was coming; she had ten years to prepare for it! But here she was with the album, fighting with her muddled emotions. Misty was a stubborn woman who prided herself on her ability to control her emotions. Save her famous temper of course. It was also true that having kids had softened her up a bit when it came to her sensitive side. Slowly, but surely Misty was beginning to grasp the "it's okay to cry sometimes" concept. It still made her feel weak and she absolutely hated that feeling.

Misty sighed and propped her elbows on the table, resting her face in her hands. She stared absent-mindedly at a picture with all four children in it. She studied each of their smiling faces as they sat frozen on the living room couch. On the left was her oldest and only son, Dillon Michael. He was the spitting image of his father with a personality to match. He even shared Ash's love for hats. Beside him sat the twins, Jennifer Leigh and Kelly Renée. They were identical in every way except in hair color. Jenny had rich black hair like Ash and Kelly had fiery orange like Misty. The twins were a mischievous pair who had, unfortunately, inherited Misty's temper. Finally on the right was her youngest daughter Lauren Aurora. She was the only one who had inherited Misty's green eyes. If you changed her hair color to match Misty's, Lauren looked exactly like her mother. There were a few subtle hints of Ash in her features, but it seemed that Misty's genes were most prevalent.

With a loving smile, Misty shifted and lightly rubbed her finger over Lauren's face in the photo. She loved all her children equally, but it seemed that Lauren had a special place in her heart. This never led to playing favorites; it was more of a special connection she felt she had with her. Misty guessed it was probably due to them both being the youngest in their families—something she believed had helped forge the bond they now had. Misty pushed her chair back and stood up. She walked over to the refrigerator and opened the door. She leaned in and pulled out a bottle of water, unscrewed the cap, and then took a drink from the bottle. As she turned around to sit back down she suddenly gasped and jumped back, bumping into the refrigerator. Misty held a hand over her chest to try and calm her racing heart.

In the kitchen doorway stood Lauren, sleepily rubbing her eyes and squinting into the light. Misty hadn't heard her approach and Lauren's sudden appearance had scared her half to death. She sighed rather loudly, shaking her head.

"Good gracious Lauren! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" Misty exclaimed as she reclaimed her chair. She ran her fingers through her hair to help calm her nerves. "Don't sneak around the house like that!"

Lauren giggled softly. "Sorry Mom, I didn't mean to. And I'm not sneaking around! I just don't make much noise when I walk around—unlike Dad."

Misty smiled and beckoned Lauren forward to join her at the table. "That may be true, but at least I always know where he is," Misty replied as Lauren sat next to her. "Now, what are you doing up at this hour?"

"Well, first I needed to use the bathroom and I was thirsty," said Lauren, rubbing her right eye a little more. "What are you doing up?"

Lauren got up, retrieved her own bottle of water from the refrigerator, and sat back down. As she opened it and took a long drink from it, Misty turned back to the first page of the album and pushed it in front of her youngest daughter. Lauren replaced the cap and looked down at the book. She raised a questioning eyebrow and looked back at Misty.

"Wow, really Mom?" Lauren tittered, a small smile crossing her face.

"What? There's nothing wrong with looking at pictures of my little Laurie-loo," Misty shot back, using the nickname she had given her for good measure.

Lauren rolled her eyes, still grinning at her mother. "No, but at three in the morning?"

Misty shrugged, pulling the book a bit closer so they could both see it. She fixed her eyes on the first picture. It was of her holding newly born Lauren in the hospital. Baby Lauren was wrapped in a little pink blanket and Misty was smiling weakly. She wrinkled her nose, mentally criticizing her appearance in the picture. Her hair was a mess and some strands were stuck to her face from the amount of sweat. There was no makeup on her face and dark circles surrounded her eyes. Her already fair complexion was paled even more and her eyes seemed dulled. Happiness twinkled in them, but her exhaustion was very noticeable.

"Hey Mom, are you still with me?" Lauren poked Misty's shoulder. "Hello, are you in there?"

"Huh, what? Oh sorry, I guess I spaced out…" Misty offered a brittle smile, hoping Lauren wouldn't pry any further into her feelings. As an added measure, Misty decided to distract her further. "Why don't you look at this with me?"

Lauren studied her mom for a moment. Despite her obvious cover up attempts, Lauren could tell something was bothering her mom. She had a pretty good idea of what it might be as well, but thought it best to humor Misty for the time being. "I don't really have a choice do I?"

Misty smiled and tucked a lock of hair behind Lauren's ear and patted her cheek gently. "I think you already know the answer Laurie-loo." Mother and daughter turned their eyes to look at the book sitting between them. "Oh yuck, I just look so horrible in this picture!"

"You did just have a baby Mom."

"Maybe so, but you were our tiniest baby," Misty replied, "Jenny and Kelly weren't much bigger, but they were twins. You were so little and adorable! Oh look, here you are asleep on your father!"

As Misty fawned over the picture of baby Lauren asleep on Ash's chest, Lauren could only roll her eyes and shake her head. Typical Mom, she thought. She turned her attention back to the book, another photo catching her attention. "Hey, what's going on in this one?"

In the picture baby Lauren was peeking out from behind a cabinet door. Ash was sitting on the floor not far away, arms outstretched in an attempt to coax Lauren to him. Misty was looking in a neighboring cabinet with an amused look on her face. They were in her grandmother's kitchen; Lauren could tell by how the room was decorated. She also supposed that was who was taking the photo.

"Oh, I remember that day," said Misty, "You had just learned to crawl and we took you to go visit Grandma so she could see you crawl. We took our eyes off of you for just a moment and you disappeared. We searched that house up and down for almost twenty minutes before we finally found you hiding in one of Grandma's kitchen cabinets. Once we found you though, you wouldn't come out and we couldn't reach you. Pikachu was the one to finally get you to come out. We pretty much used him as bait."

The girls shared a giggle and then each took a sip from their water bottles. The next few pictures were an assortment of holidays, playtime with her siblings, and encounters with various Pokémon. On the next page was a picture of Lauren's first birthday. She had cake all over her, a hand stuffed in her mouth, and a partial smile. Another picture showed her napping on the couch, snuggling with Pikachu. There was one of her and Misty on a beach enjoying the waves lapping at their feet. A few were of other vacations the family had taken.

"Look at you in this one!" Misty hummed. She tapped the picture to show Lauren which one she meant. "That was on Dillon's eighth birthday."

Lauren leaned over to see the picture better. She grinned and shook her head. In the photo, three-year old Lauren was smiling happily at the camera. Her entire face was covered in chocolate icing making it look like she had a mud mask. Her emerald-green eyes seemed to dance with glee and amusement in picture. Ten year old Lauren glanced at Misty, noticing she had spaced out again.

Today was Dillon's eighth birthday. He was presently seated in another room with all his friends, waiting anxiously to eat the delicious cake on the table. As far as Misty could tell, the party was a hit with the kids.

Right then Misty was in the kitchen. She had been taking pictures of the party, but had taken a small break to get plates and silverware so the kids could begin eating cake. Her camera was sitting on the counter as she gathered everything up.

"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!"

Three year old Lauren came bounding into the kitchen, energetically seeking her mother for something. Misty set the plates down on the counter and turned around.

"What is it sweet—oh my goodness! Lauren what happened?"

The toddler giggled happily. "I was looking at Dillon's cake and then he pushed my face into it! Now I got cake all over my face Mommy!"

Misty could only smile and nod her head. "Yes you certainly do."

"Guess what else Mommy!" Lauren added.

"What?"

"Now I really am your sweet girl!" she said as she burst into more giggles.

"You're absolutely right Laurie-loo!" agreed Misty as she grabbed her camera. She pointed it at Lauren, smiling at the sight of her messy daughter. "Now smile Lauren!"

"Mom, you did it again."

Startled out of her reverie, Misty shook her head to clear her thoughts. Lauren could only sigh and roll her eyes. Misty pursed her lips, staring at Lauren. If I keep day dreaming like this she's going to start asking questions, Misty thought, Questions I don't want to answer.

Propping her elbow on the table and resting her chin in her palm, Lauren stared at her mom. Her green eyes bore into Misty with a look she knew all too well and hated just as much. Misty began inwardly preparing for the meaningful conversation about to take place. The red-head closed her eyes, a tiny smile dancing on her lips. With a deep breath, she opened her eyes and was shocked to find Lauren smiling at her. It was a gentle smile that radiated sincerity and brought confusion to Misty's face. But before she could speak, Lauren beat her to it.

"I get it Mom; I understand."

This statement only furthered her confusion. "What? You…you do?"

Lauren's smile widened a bit. "Of course, I'm not stupid you know. I always know when something is bothering you."

"Nothing is bothering me!" Misty blurted, making Lauren chuckle softly.

"Oh Mom, I'll miss you too you know." Misty's cheeks flushed as she cast her eyes down to stare at the table. She could still feel Lauren's eyes on her as they sat there. The silence stretched on until finally Lauren sighed. "Mom, I know you want to say something so why won't you?"

There was no anger in Lauren's voice, Misty could tell. The ten-year old was simply seeking a response. Misty also knew that Lauren wouldn't relent until she got the response she after. She was never fooled or placated with a simple dismissal; she was too strong-willed and stubborn for that.

"Well," Lauren said loudly, causing Misty to look over at her sharply. "I know there's something you want to tell me, but I'm so tired Mom. I'm going back to bed. Maybe by tomorrow you'll be ready to talk."

Lauren gave Misty a fleeting hug before she turned and left the kitchen. Misty watched her disappear into the unlit portion of their home. She sighed, looking down at the book on the table. Lauren had been right, of course. There was something bothering Misty. She took a deep breath, exhaling loudly to express her frustration. She sat there in the silence for a little while longer before an idea finally struck her.

"Well, if I can't speak it, I'll just write it instead!" she announced to herself.

Misty hopped up, opened a drawer to grab a pen, and then headed for the living. She nabbed a notebook from one of the end tables and then settled onto the couch. She turned the lamp on beside her, flipped to an empty page in the notebook, and then began to write. One way or another Misty was determined to sort out her thoughts and let Lauren know exactly what she was feeling.

Lauren meanwhile, was struggling to get back to sleep. She felt tired, but her mind just wouldn't stop racing. Tomorrow was the big day; the day she would begin her Pokemon journey. Lauren loved Pokemon and was beyond excited about becoming an official trainer. She knew already she wanted to be a battle trainer and not a coordinator. Pokemon contests just didn't appeal to her. She would much rather be battling it out in a rugged tournament or facing down a strong opponent than trying to perform and show off her Pokemon's appearance.

No, Lauren's dilemma was more about what she was going to do once she actually started her journey. Of course she knew about the Pokemon gyms; her mother was Cerulean City's Gym Leader! Lauren was unsure if going around challenging gyms was what she wanted to do. Yes, the prospect of tough opponents was appealing, but she knew that was not what she wanted to do on her journey.

But what could she do? Were there other avenues to pursue? Was there more than one road to becoming a world class Pokemon trainer?

Rolling over again, she desperately sought comfort so that she might get to sleep. Lauren could feel the frustration burning in her cheeks.

She couldn't get comfortable. She couldn't get back to sleep. And worst of all, she still didn't know what she was going to do.

"This is just lovely." Lauren growled to herself as she switched positions for the hundredth time.