A/N: HOORAY!!! IT'S FINALLY WINTER BREAK!!! Well kinda….we had a snow day on Friday so now we have a make-up day on Monday :|…..BUT STILL! NOW I CAN WRITE!! YESSSS!! Alright well anyway, here is the first chapter to my newest AAML mini-fic! There's only gonna be like one or two more chapters after this one so that's why it's mini!

Italics – memories/flashbacks

And this fic is dedicated to my best friend on fanfiction, Alyss Ashworth! :D I HOPE YOU LIKE IT!!! And if you've never read any of her stories, check them out! They're AWESOME!

Okay, enough of my rambling! ON TO THE FIC! -zooms away-

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Santa Claus is Comin' to Town

A five-year-old Misty sat on the kitchen floor humming to herself. It was Christmas time at the Cerulean Gym, and the young redhead was definitely in the spirit! Dipping her fingers into a bucket of red paint, she slathered it onto a piece of poster board, finishing her masterpiece. Smiling proudly, Misty held up her finger-painting for her sister to see.

"Look, Daisy! It's Santa Claus!" She grinned toothily, setting the picture down on the kitchen table.

Daisy looked up from her magazine to glance briefly at the artwork in front of her. "Mmhmm, that's nice, Misty. But, like, too bad Santa's not real…." She mumbled, uninterested.

At this, Misty stamped her foot. "He is too real, Daisy! I see him everywhere! On TV, at the mall, riding motorcycles! He! Is! REAL!" She screamed, her fiery temper taking over.

Daisy just rolled her eyes. "Like, whatever, Misty…" She began to turn back to her magazine when, suddenly, an evil grin spread across her face.

Violet and Lily were sneaking up behind their little sister, giggling maniacally as they ushered a caterpie into the room. The confused pokémon had been dressed up like Santa.

"On second thought, maybe you're, like, right, little sis!" Daisy said, smirking. "Santa is real! In fact, why don't you turn around and, like, see for yourself!"

"Huh?" Misty turned around just as her older sisters threw the caterpie at her. However, they missed by a longshot and the little pokémon fell right into Misty's bucket of paint.

"Hey!" cried Misty, reaching down to help the wriggling critter. "What the heck did you throw in there?"

She slowly looked down at what she was holding and froze.

The caterpie continued to squirm around in her grasp before staring up at her with frightened eyes.

Misty's vision turned as red as the liquid dripping from the bug's Santa hat and beard.

"AAAAAHHH!!!!" She screamed, dropping the pokémon and scrambling backward.

Her vision whirled and she whimpered and squealed as the caterpie crawled towards her, red paint running down its face in a grotesque manner. Her sisters' jeering voices became distorted as fear took over.

"Merry Christmas, Misty! You'd, like, better tell Santa what you want! Hahaha!"

But the terrified redhead could barely hear them over the shrill cry of the approaching caterpie who, to her, was a bloody, evil demon that was now the only Santa figure she knew….

---^_^---

Misty shuddered, pushing the memory out of her mind as she hung another ornament on the tree.

"Thanks for helpin' me with the tree, Mist!" Ash called, coming up from the basement with another box of decorations.

Still focused on decorating, she smiled. "No problem! Since my sisters were too cheap to even buy a tree this year, it's nice to know there's still some Christmas spirit left in the world!" She said over her shoulder, pulling out another ornament.

"Hehe, you said it! If you ask me, the holidays have become so commercialized when they should be about family and just bein' together, y'know?" Ash dropped the box onto the couch, sitting down beside it.

Misty facefaulted. "Ash, your mom's away for Christmas. In fact, she's always away when you're not traveling! Where the heck does she go? I mean, if I were you, I'd be pissed if I was alone on Christmas! No one to laugh with, no sharing of memories, or good food….not to mention the-----."

"Alright, alright! Jeez, I'm a neglected child, can I not dream? Besides," He got up and turned his girlfriend around to face him. Taking her hands in his, he gazed deep into her eyes. "I will be happy this Christmas because I have you! The magic of the holidays has brought us together! You're my family now, Mist, and nothing in the world could change that!"

The two stared at each other for a beat before Misty burst out laughing.

"What the hell, Ketchum?! That was the weirdest thing you've ever said to me!" She exclaimed, still giggling. "Well, other than the time you asked me if bread is what you put in the toaster to make toast but still…."

Ash frowned, crossing his arms. "I'm serious! Holiday magic is a powerful thing! So you shouldn't make fun lest the spirit of Christmas will SMITE YOU WHERE YOU STAND!" He threw his arms up for emphasis. "Or an angry mob of children will throw lumps of coal at you. Your choice."

Misty shook her head. "Whatever, Ash….Now what did you find in the basement?"

"Oh my gosh! How could I forget?! Alright, check this out! Close your eyes!" He cried as he began rummaging through the box.

She rolled her eyes, but closed them.

"Hold on…….almost there……….BAM! Okay, open!"

Misty slowly opened her eyes to find Ash entirely decked out in a Santa outfit, complete with a bushy white wig/beard ensemble.

"Ta-daaa!! Pretty sweet, huh?" He grinned, assuming a heroic pose. "Now don't you think I could win some battles just by wearin' this? I'd just walk out onto the battlefield, shoot Christmas cheer out of my fingertips and defeat EVERYONE! I wouldn't even have to use any po----Whoa! You okay, Misty?" Ash stopped as he noticed his girlfriend's frightened stare.

Wide-eyed, she spoke slowly and quietly, looking away, trying to calm herself. "Ashton Satoshi Ketchum, take that wretched thing off before I punch you in the face."

"Aww, come on, Mist! You can't tell me you're still afraid of Santa!" He said with a smirk.

"'Santa' is just a letter rearrangement away from 'Satan', Ash, now take it off RIGHT NOW!" She cried, squeezing her eyes shut.

Ash narrowed his eyes at her. "Alright, sheesh, I'm goin', I'm goin'!" But suddenly, he smirked, putting an arm around her shoulders and giving her a squeeze. "But, y'know, Mist….you could be Mrs. Claus! I hear she bakes the best cookies, and you'd look pretty hot in the kitch---OW! AAH!!! OWWW!!!! STOP IT!! AGHH!!!" Ash cried as Misty began beating him repeatedly with her mallet.

"I warned you, Ash! Not take off that damn outfit!"

A minute later, Ash was back in his regular clothes, nursing his throbbing head. "Jeez, Misty, you didn't have to hit me…..I try to have some fun around here and you just go and take it one step further! Getting hit is not fun! No way! Here I am stuck in an abusive relationship with a girl who hates Santa Claus! How can anyone hate Santa?! Alright, so you had one bad experience, but seriously that's not enough to make you hate the guy! I mean, Santa's the nicest guy I know! And that's saying something 'cause I know a lot of nice guys! And girls too, don't get me wrong! It's just-----."

"Ash, will it shut you up if I tell you why I hate Santa so much? 'Cause believe me I have reasons! And they're extremely rational too…." Misty growled from across the room.

"Okay then tell me!" Ash leaned forward in excitement.

Misty sighed, sitting down next to him on the couch. "Well, after the caterpie incident, I started doing some research. And frankly, Ash, I don't know if your little Santa-loving heart can handle the truth." She said in all seriousness.

"Try me." He deadpanned, raising an eyebrow.

She sighed again. "Well, like I said earlier, there's the whole name arrangement thing. Santa, Satan. That's pretty damn close! And why does he wear red and white together? Red's the color of blood and evil and death and fire, and white's the color of innocence and purity. So what does that mean? He kills innocent children?! That's just creepy, Ketchum!"

Ash continued to stare at her, unphased.

Not receiving a response, Misty continued. "A-And why does he come down chimneys? The only source of fire in the home! He's the devil! It's totally possible! And he knows if you've been naughty or nice! How in hell does he know that?! No pun intended!!! And his creepy little elf helpers! And he lives at the North Pole where it's cold so as not to arouse suspicion about his TRUE ORIGINS!!! And he sneaks into your house at night! And! And!!! GAHH!!! I'm freaking myself out just thinking about it!"

When Ash still hadn't said anything, Misty looked up dejectedly. "Well, Ash? Aren't you gonna tell me I'm stupid? Aren't you gonna start blabbering about holiday magic and Christmas joy and how Santa's amazing and I've got it all wrong?!"

Ash grinned, shaking his head. "'Course not, Mist! In fact, I think I can help you! There's only one way to cure you of your phobia!" He chuckled creepily as he rummaged around in the decorations box, pulling something out and holding it behind his back.

"Uhh…Ash? What do you have? What are you doing?! You better not---!" Panic rose in her voice as Ash shoved a Santa ornament in her face.

"Hiya, Misty! It's our friend Santa Claus!" He exclaimed, making his voice squeaky. "Merry MISTmas!!! Ahahaha!! Get it?! THAT'S YOUR NAME!"

Misty squealed, scooting away from him. "Stop it, Ash! This isn't gonna make any difference! Do you want to get pummeled again?!"

"Now, now, Misty! Is that any way to talk to the guy who brings you presents? You better watch out, you better not cryyy!! You better not pout I'm tellin' you why! Take it away, Mist!" Ash said, holding the ornament up to her like a microphone.

Misty growled a warning. "Asssshhhh….."

"It's 'cause SANTA CLAUS IS COMIN' TO TOWN!!!! Next verse! He sees you when you're sleeping! He knows when you're awake! He knows if you've been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake!!! OOOOOHHHHH!!!!"

"Singing is not the answer! Listen to the lyrics, do you hear how creepy that is?! ASH!!"

But Ash continued to ignore her. "Then how bout this one! Jolly Old Saint Nicholas!!! Lean your ear this wayyyyyy!!!!!!!! Don't you tell a single soul! What I'm going to sayyyy!!!" He wailed, tweaking her nose. "Don't tell anyone, Mist!" He hopped the ornament closer to Misty, only to have her cringe away yet again.

He sighed. "Alright, then…..looks like we're gonna have to do this the hard way…..Get your coat….We're going out…." Ash said cryptically, springing up from the couch.

Misty looked around nervously. "What are you talking about, Ash? This is not cool! Can't we just drop it?" She cried desperately.

Ash chuckled, as he pulled on the Santa hat, handing her a jacket. "Heh, sorry! No can do, Mist! We're gonna have to pay a visit…..a visit to the North Pole! BWAHAHAHAHAAAA!"

Laughing maniacally, Ash grabbed his girlfriend's hand and pulled her out the door in a flurry of Christmas mystery……

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A/N: CHAPTER ONE!! DONE!! Haha stay tuned for the next chapter! I'll try to update it quickly! Thanks for reading! XD