Pokeshipping Week 2015, Day 4 - Family

A/N: So this originally was a drabble posted on tumblr (jinxedseries) a few months ago from a prompt done through my ask box. For the family theme, I decided to take it and expand it into a short one-shot. Enjoy. I'm going to be posting a bit more today, hopefully posting the rest of the days by the end of the day.

-Sarah

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon and its characters.

It was late one fall night. The leaves were barely changing color. That's how early in the season it was. The air outside was slightly crisp, but still considered quite warm for the season's change. Everyone in the quiet town of Pallet was asleep—everyone, but two individuals residing in a tiny cottage that lay on the outskirts of town, near the beginning of Route 1.

"I'm never going to let you go," the young man whispered to her that night as he stroked her delicate cheek, feeling the smoothness of her skin.

The response he got was a yawn. Nothing more. He smiled back at the favorite girl in his life. She hadn't been his for a surmountable time, but she was everything to him. Every time he looked at her, he experienced incredible joy. He knew that this was the one person he would throw his life down for in a heartbeat, no doubt about it. He was about to brush his hand against her soft cheek again when a voice chimed behind him.

"You'll have to let her go someday, Ash. We can't just lock her in our basement forever."

Ash turned around to see his wife standing in the doorway, adorning her bathrobe. She greeted him with a small smile, a gesture that he returned, albeit sheepishly. The moonlight coming from the window illuminated her glowing skin and bright red hair, which was messily strewn about, causing Ash's breath to catch in his throat. Even after being together for more than five years, Ash's love for her had never wavered. Instead, it had grown stronger.

He would never forget the day she told him that he was going to be a dad. She had been acting strange all day that day. To his surprise, she suggested that they go out to dinner, something that she rarely did after they got married. She usually was determined to become a wonderful cook and claimed that she needed all the practice she could get. When pressed, all she said at first was that it was a special occasion. Ash panicked, thinking he had forgotten a birthday or an anniversary. He spent all evening on edge, until dessert came and she told him. At first, he sat there in shock. They hadn't planned it, even used protection religiously. He must have asked her if she was sure a dozen times before she whipped the test out of her purse to show him, for she had anticipated that he wouldn't believe her.

During much of her pregnancy, he was terrified that he would be a terrible father. Even though Misty reassured him that he would be fine a hundred times, he could not qualm his fears. It wasn't until she was born, and he held her for the first time that he felt better. He knew then that he could do this. Misty had known all along. It was the reason she fell in love with him in the first place—he had the biggest heart she had ever seen.

"What are you going to do when she starts dating?" Misty asked him with a smirk.

"Boys are idiots, and she will not be dating. Nope she will become a great Pokemon trainer. Dating will be a distraction."

"Uh huh…because dating me was such a distraction. If I recall, you got much better once I was your girlfriend."

"Anyway…what are you doing up?" he asked, ignoring her comment, as she came up to him and clung her arms around the waist, careful not to disturb the sleeping child in his arms. They hadn't been getting much sleep over the past few weeks, so any moment of quiet was precious to her.

"I heard her cry and went to check on her," she replied, removing her arms. She stifled a yawn. Ash thought about how similar mother and daughter were already. He grinned, realizing how lucky he was to have them. He finally had the family he always wanted.

"You could have stayed in bed," he replied. "You know that it was my night to get up with her."

"Yeah I know," she said as she walked over to the rocking chair in the corner of the room. She plopped her body down in it, exhaustion hitting her in every muscle. "I couldn't get back to sleep though. Besides, I can't have you having all the fun with her."

"Who? Me?" Ash joked, chuckling. He took his eyes off of Misty for a moment to stare at his daughter once more. The baby in his arms was so small. Her black hair clung against her head in curly wisps. Her eyes were closed at the moment, but when they were open, they were brilliant aqua–the same as her mother's. She was barely three weeks old, and cried every night, but Ash was not complaining. All his life, he had longed for a family like this. The desire for it had always been stronger than that of becoming a Pokemon Master, forever affected by the absence of his father. As his daughter slept, he knew that he would never do that to her, even if that meant giving up a few things. She wouldn't grow up without her father.

He glanced back at Misty for a moment, and grinned. It had only been a couple of minutes, but there she was, fast asleep in the chair. With his free arm, he gently slung the blanket, previously strewn about the floor, over his wife. He placed a gentle kiss against her forehead, thinking about all that they had been together. She was the reason he was the person had had become. She had pushed him to grow in ways he never expected. He would have never expected to find the love of his life and mother of his future children on the very first day of his Pokemon journey. The greatest moment of his life would forever be the day that she had fished him out of the water.

"C'mon, let's let Mommy get her rest," he said to his daughter as he carried her out of the room.