Made it to (my!) day four just under the wire!

This one was crazy fun to write.

Traveling Companions React to Them Dating

By all accounts, Ash and Misty had expected that Brock would start jumping up and down, hollering, going all but wild once they announced to him that they were dating.

Instead, all they got was a lowering of the newspaper he was reading and a roll of his eyes before he lifted the newspaper back up to his face.

"Finally."

Misty scowled and grabbed the newspaper, forcefully lowering it, much to Brock's chagrin. "What do you mean finally?!"

"Misty, I've been waiting for this for years," Brock sighed, assuming the reason had been obvious. "You and Ash aren't very subtle, despite how naïve you both are."

"I resent that remark," Misty scoffed. "The only naïve one here is Ash. Don't lump me in with him."

The raven haired teen narrowed his eyes. "Seriously?"

Misty furrowed her brow. "Well, am I wrong?"

"Uh, yeah!" Ash cried.

The two started to argue, earning another eye roll from Brock before he lifted his newspaper back up.

"You two may have finally realized how you feel about one another, but I see your arguments are still going strong…"

XXX

Tracey was very happy to hear the news, but perhaps unsurprisingly, he wasn't shocked by it either.

"I've been waiting for this!" Tracey happily commented, glancing up from his sketchbook. He'd been working on recreating the scene of a Budew and Oddish playing in front of him on paper.

"What do you mean you've been waiting?" Ash asked, vaguely remembering that Brock had said something similar.

"I always kind of knew you two liked one another," Tracey replied, looking back down at his work. "I was just wondering if you'd both ever stop being stubborn enough to admit it."

Misty didn't seem pleased with this answer. "Tracey, come on, we're not stubborn!"

Tracey looked up from his sketchbook once more, this time fully. His expression reflected an unmistakable "really?" , one that was a bit more pointed than either Ash or Misty were used to seeing out of the Pokémon watcher.

"Okay, fine," Misty grumbled, folding her arms. "We're stubborn."

XXX

Telling May they were dating resulted in a near over-the-top reaction. Ash and Misty had seen a lot out of the brunette coordinator over the years in terms of emotion, but even this one was new to them.

First of all, she'd shrieked so loudly that both Ash and Misty were certain only some Pokémon were able to hear the full magnitude of her inhuman noise. Then she'd started jumping up and down, rambling on and on about how "sweet" and how "cute" it was, and how she couldn't wait to help the two start planning their wedding.

"Whoa, May, hold on!" Misty cried, waving her hands in front of herself. "We just made this official; we're not getting married any time soon!"

"Never too early to start thinking about that kind of stuff!" May refuted. "Besides, you guys have liked each other for so long that-"

"Wait a second," Ash interrupted, May still too thrilled with the news to even care. "You knew we liked each other?"

May's joy subsided a bit. "Well, yeah, Ash. It was kind of obvious."

"I didn't think it was…" Ash murmured, rubbing the back of his neck.

"May! All your screaming broke the glass I was drinking out of!"

Max came stomping into the living room, his hands on his hips.

"Seriously?" May asked, sounding mystified. "I thought that only happened in TV shows!"

"Of course you would," Max scoffed, earning a glare from his sister. "What's got you so excited anyway?"

Her face lighting up again, May motioned towards the video phone where Ash and Misty were visible on the screen and gleefully announced, "These two are officially dating!"

Max shifted his eyes from May, to the video screen, back to May.

"That's the least surprising thing I've heard all day. Like…less surprising than you thinking physics isn't real."

May went right back to looking offended, while Ash and Misty just appeared stunned. Turning his attention back towards the screen, Max gave the visibly shocked couple a salute.

"I'm proud of you two for finally coming to your senses," Max concluded, turning on a heel. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go clean up the mess May made."

XXX

When Dawn heard the news, she burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Ash asked, furrowing his brow.

"You guys are acting like this is Earth shattering," Dawn snickered.

"It's not?" Ash squeaked.

"No!" Dawn guffawed. "Ash, seriously, you almost tore my head off that one time I tried using your Misty lure. I knew then that you were in love with her."

"But…but…that didn't…I didn't…"

Dawn smirked as Ash stammered. She knew what he was trying to say. "You might not have thought it meant anything, but it totally did. I'm a girl, Ash. I'm in tune to this kind of stuff!"

Misty could hardly believe what she was hearing. "So…you're really not surprised by this."

"Absolutely not," Dawn confirmed. "But I am happy for you guys! You make such a cute couple. Plus, me and Brock can finally stop taking bets on when you two will actually make it official!"

Misty's eyes nearly fell out of her head. "There were bets?!"

XXX

Iris was busy eating an apple when Ash and Misty called her up to inform her of their relationship status.

"This is good!" Ash stressed to a bewildered Misty. "Iris always starts eating fruit when stuff gets all romantic!"

"I'm not eating this because of you two; I'm eating this because I'm hungry."

Ash's eyebrow twitched as he turned towards the screen. Iris was still munching away at her apple, and she didn't seem at all surprised.

"You really don't think this is romantic?" Misty asked, sounding exasperated. "Two of your friends calling you up to tell you they're dating?"

"Oh, of course it is!" Iris giggled. "It's just…I've kind of been expecting this for a while now."

Misty groaned and buried her face in her hands.

"Iris, who are you talking to?"

"Oh, Cilan's back!" Iris cried excitedly before looking over her shoulder. "It's Ash and Misty! Guess what? They finally broke down and admitted they like each other!"

Cilan gasped and pushed himself into the frame. "What wonderful news! A beautiful young couple with such fantastic chemistry!"

Iris sighed and muttered, "Arceus, you're so embarrassing," before taking another bite of her apple.

Misty picked her head up, her smile more genuine. "Thank you, Cilan! It's nice to hear from someone who's actually surprised!"

The connoisseur's face suddenly changed. "Oh, I'm not surprised. Just ecstatic it's finally come to fruition!"

Misty's head went right back into her hand.

XXX

Serena was clearly a little ticked off, perhaps saddened, by the news, but not even she appeared taken off guard. Neither did Clemont or Bonnie, for that matter.

"Let me get this straight," Misty practically growled. "You were all expecting this too?"

"Ash did talk a lot about you while he was in Kalos…" Clemont timidly replied.

"And I found a picture of you in his backpack once!" Bonnie crowed. "I always meant to ask you, Ash; was that just for innocent purposes, or did you ever use it to-"

"BONNIE!" Clemont shrieked, his whole face turning bright red. Misty was embarrassed as well, but Ash didn't seem to be getting it.

Serena sighed and finally looked both Ash and Misty in the eyes, her mood having shifted a bit. "Well, I'm happy for you two. I mean, I'm not really surprised either, but…I'm happy for you!"

Misty hung her head, and Ash just blinked his eyes.

"Wait…I still don't get what Bonnie was asking."

XXX

Lillie and Mallow actually had similar reactions to May, but both also admitted they weren't surprised by the news. Kiawe and Sophocles were far calmer than their female friends, and also agreed that it was a pretty obvious outcome.

"To be honest, we kind of thought you two were dating when we first went to Kanto," Mallow admitted. "We were more surprised to find out you weren't."

"Yeah, you two seemed made for each other!" Lillie agreed.

"That battle you two had was one giant flirt fest," Kiawe stated plainly.

"Mallow and Lillie told me not to go near you two at night in case you were making out," Sophocles added.

These things Ash did understand, and now it was his turn to blush furiously. Misty had her arms wrapped around herself, looking rather shell shocked.

"Come on, you guys are adorable together!" Mallow stressed. "Just because no one is surprised doesn't mean it's not great news."

"What's great news?"

Lana popped up amidst the group, taking a sip out of a drink she'd just returned with.

"Ash and Misty are dating!" Lillie announced.

The two of them leaned in, waiting for Lana's reaction. She seemed to think about it for a second before taking a long, slow sip from her drink and pulling away.

"Nice."

Ash and Misty nearly fell flat on their faces.

"Lana, really?!" Misty groaned. "That's all you have to say about it?!"

Lana shrugged her shoulders before taking another quick sip. "Well, it is nice. I always liked you two together!" Taking one more sip, Lana pulled away from her straw again and held up a single finger, her face growing serious. "Just don't forget to be safe."

Now everyone fell to the floor.

"Lana!" Kiawe hissed.

"What?" Lana asked plainly. "Teen pregnancy and STDs are serious issues, Kiawe."

"I'm hanging up now," Misty announced, disconnecting the call before Lana could continue with her unprovoked health lesson.

For a while after that, Ash and Misty just sat in silence. Finally, Ash slowly turned his head towards Misty and prompted, "Guess we're not very subtle, huh?"

Misty clicked her tongue. "Apparently not."

Bonnie and Lana 100% have the same energy.