Super long update! Hooray!

I like the way this chapter came out. We're taking a break from those dark themes for a little while longer (I think Ash and Misty need to relax a little bit, no?) so for now we're going to have some sweet, Pokeshippy fluff. But there's still going to be some angst. You'll see why. But not everything is all happy and perfect now that Misty is back.

Curious? Read on and find out...

Everything was dark.

Misty couldn't see a single thing, although there were some haunting noises sounding off in the background. The series of unsettling sounds could be taken as a group of Hoothoot, while the high pitched, "chirping" like noises were most likely coming from some nocturnal bug Pokémon.

Even though she couldn't see, Misty felt the need to shut her eyes as tightly as possible. She was scared, and lonely. Aiden, Michelle, and even Ash were all gone. She had no idea where they were. They had just been with her a moment ago, before everything turned dark…

A door suddenly slammed, causing Misty to involuntarily shriek and further squeeze her eyelids closed. Her body was trembling, her heart and mind racing.

"Where are you, my Queen?"

Misty stopped any form of movement at that point. All of the noise had stopped, and the only thing she could hear at the moment was her heavily beating heart. She knew that voice, she was sure of it. But Misty had thought the whole ordeal was over…was it not?

"Why do you not answer me when I call you?"

The familiar voice was angry now, clearly displeased by her silence. Letting out a shuttered breath, Misty looked up and demanded, "Who are you? What do you want?"

A single ray of light appeared, illuminating the figure of none other than Loki.

"You!" Misty couldn't help but to scream, her eyes widening.

"Who were you expecting?" Loki's voice curled.

Lowering her eyes, Misty realized that the dastardly villain was holding a baby girl. She couldn't see the child's face, but what Misty could see was the very dark, almost brown, wispy hair of the baby, who was loosely covered in a white and pink blanket. She was screaming and crying, clearly not happy with being held by the silver haired man. Biting her lip, Misty pressed a hand against her stomach and felt that it was perfectly flat.

"My baby," Misty whimpered, silently begging for the child. Loki chuckled darkly and shook his head, while the baby continued to cry. "Give her to me! Can't you see she's upset?"

"Children cry, dear, it's as simple as that," Loki sneered. "Either way, I was just about to send her off with Castor. You and I have much work to be done."

"What work?" Misty blinked.

"You know very well that in order to build our empire, we need a decent number of offspring," Loki grinned deviously at the terrified gym leader. "This child isn't even mine, so she can't have a large part in our future world. In fact, the only reason I keep her around is because of the aura she possesses."

"Don't talk about my little girl that way!" Misty yelled.

"Silence!" Loki barked. "You had this little brat months ago, so now it's about time you provide me with a child of my own!"

"Never!" Misty cried. She jumped up and tried to run away, but Loki caught her with his aura and pulled her back harshly.

"You don't get a say in the matter," Loki hissed through clenched teeth. "Your fate is sealed. It is in my hands now…"

Misty was trapped, and all she could do was scream, "no, no, NO!"

XXX

"NO!"

Misty shot up, sweating profusely as she breathed heavily towards the point of hyperventilating. Ash was quick to follow, jumping up in order to turn the lamp by his side of the bed on. With the room now gently illuminated, Ash's wide and frightened eyes carefully studied the sobbing and trembling figure of his wife, and right away he felt the need to help her.

"Hey, hey, hey," Ash hushed, rubbing up and down Misty's back, "are you okay? Did you have a nightmare, Mist?"

Misty nodded wordlessly as tears began to fall down her cheeks. Ash's frown deepened, and he reached out with his free hand in order to wipe away his wife's tears.

"No need to cry, angel," Ash whispered. "You're okay."

In reality, Ash was rather concerned about Misty. Ever since she'd been brought back home two weeks ago after her torturous time with Loki, Misty had been suffering from frequent night terrors, although she hadn't opened up to him on what these bad dreams were about. Of course, Ash had a pretty good idea of what it was, but he didn't want to make any assumptions for fear of further upsetting his wife.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ash asked after a few tense moments of silence. Misty sniffed and shook her head. "But sweetheart," Ash tried reasoning, "you might feel better if you can tell me what's wrong. You know I'd do anything in my power to help you feel better."

Misty's sobs intensified once again, causing Ash to sigh and pull her into his side. Her arm pressed into his body, and Ash grimaced at the contact. Misty had always been thin, even when she was pregnant. During this time, she only gained weight in her stomach, but her arm was much bonier than usual. She hadn't eaten much in the past two weeks, no matter how much Ash begged and pleaded for her to do so. On a normal basis, if Misty didn't want to eat, Ash would still try and force her to do it. But with Misty being nearly seven months pregnant, Ash also had their unborn daughter to be concerned about and he wanted to ensure that they were both getting a sufficient amount of nutrition.

"I really think you would feel better if you talked to me," Ash murmured after taking a few minutes to allow Misty to calm down.

"A…Ash, I…I really don't want to," Misty stammered, her body still shaking with silent sobs.

Ash grimaced. He wanted nothing more than for Misty to open up to him, but the last thing he wanted to do was make her even more upset than she already was. That wasn't good for the baby either.

"Alright then," Ash leaned his cheek against Misty's, listening as her breath began to even out, "you should go back to sleep now. You need lots of it."

"I don't like sleeping," Misty muttered, lowering her eyes once again.

"Because of the nightmares?" Ash asked. Misty slowly nodded her head, raising her arms in order to wrap them around herself. He breathed out softly and turned her face towards him, smiling gently as he touched their noses together. "Alright. I don't want you to get worked up anymore. Can you at least lie back down and rest?"

Misty didn't answer for a long time, causing Ash to scowl playfully. This earned a reluctant laugh from the red head, who, upon realizing this, quickly reverted back to her miserable expression.

"Well?" Ash pressed.

"Fine," Misty sighed, settling herself back down. Ash laid down next to her, combing his fingers through her bright red hair in an effort to relax her. Misty rolled her eyes back to stare at her husband, who in turn smiled softly at the woman.

Ash wasn't sure what he was going to do with Misty. Closing herself off from him was strange enough in itself. Ash knew he couldn't keep letting Misty suffer on her own, however. He was going to help her get past the whole ordeal if it was the last thing he did.

XXX

"Do you want some of my cereal, Mommy?"

Misty looked down at Michelle, who was holding a spoonful of the sugary breakfast food out towards her. Misty smiled sadly and shook her head, causing Michelle to frown and pull the utensil back.

"No baby, it's alright. You eat your breakfast."

"But…you don't have any food, Mommy," Michelle reasoned.

"I'm not very hungry."

"Isn't that bad?"

"Michelle," Misty sighed, burying her face in her hands. The younger red head only looked more flustered by this, not understanding why her mother was acting so strange. She just seemed so gloomy all the time, and rarely ever smiled. When she did grin, they were just half hearted and sad.

"Michelle, sweetheart, let Mommy be," Ash suddenly appeared, walking in from upstairs where he'd just been taking a shower. He was fully dressed, although not in his usual training clothes. Ash was instead dressed the way he would for an off day, which today certainly wasn't. Misty cast him a sideways glance, becoming especially bewildered by his still wet hair.

"But Daddy…"

"No buts!" Ash chuckled as he patted Michelle's head. "Finish up your breakfast, baby girl. Someone special is coming to see you and Aiden."

"Oooh, who?" Michelle squealed, getting to her feet and jumping up and down on her chair. "Who is it, Daddy?"

"You'll find out, princess," Ash sighed. Motioning with his hand, he continued, "Now sit down and eat. Or else you'll neverfind out."

Michelle gasped and quickly settled herself back into her seat, hurriedly eating the rest of her cereal.

"Ash, what do you mean someone is coming to see Aiden and Michelle?" Misty hissed at her husband. Once again surveying his outfit, she added, "and why are you not dressed for work? Don't you have training to do?"

"Probably, but it'll have to wait until another day," Ash replied. "I have more important things to take care of at the moment."

"Oh, not this again," Misty grunted, gently pulling at her silky red tresses. "Ash Ketchum, how many times do I have to tell you that I'm fine, and that you do not need to put off work for me? You make me feel so useless!"

"You're anything but, angel," Ash reassured his clearly frustrated wife, "but you're definitely not fine. Anyone with half a brain could see that."

"Is that why you claim to see it?"

Ash just sat there with his mouth agape for a few moments before responding, "okay, I'm just gonna blame that one on your hormones."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night."

"Either way!" Ash cleared his throat, "I'm worried about you, Misty, and I made a promise to myself that I would help you. So that's my priority right now."

"I don't see what you could possibly do that would help me," Misty huffed. Ash looked a little hurt by that comment, and Misty regretted uttering those words almost instantly. She certainly hadn't meant to insult Ash like that; he was only trying to help after all. But really, Misty didn't want any help. No one could understand this except for her, and she didn't want anyone else to understand either. All of these thoughts just made Misty even more miserable. She was also too upset and stubborn to apologize to Ash at this point.

"I'm going to find a way," Ash continued, seemingly not deterred by Misty's retort. "I won't let you down, Misty."

"Whatever," Misty grumbled, sinking down in her chair. At this point, Ash wanted to do the same thing. But he was not the kind of man to give up, and he certainly would never give up on his wife.

"Okay Daddy, I'm done now!" Michelle laid her spoon down and stared at her father with big, emerald eyes. "Where's the surprise?"

"He won't be here for a little while longer," Ash smirked at the clearly excited child. "But now would be the perfect time for you to get dressed! I'm sure you don't want him to see you in your pajamas."

"I like my pajamas," Michelle frowned as she looked down at her purple and blue nightwear.

"Oh honey, I didn't mean it that way! They're very, very cute. But I think it would be better if you got into some clothes. Can you do that for me, baby girl?"

"Yes Daddy," Michelle nodded excitedly, sliding off onto the floor. "Should I tell Aiden, too?"

"That would be nice," Ash smiled. He processed Michelle's words, and quickly called out, "Michelle, where is Aiden?"

"He's sleeping," Michelle spun around and answered cutely.

"Ah, right, he's just like me," Ash rubbed the back of his neck in an almost bashful manner.

"Does this mean I can wake him up?" Michelle clapped her hands together.

"Yes it does. But do it nicely, okay princess?"

"Of course Daddy!" Michelle beamed, racing off towards the stairs.

Ash smiled after the girl until she was out of sight, at which point he turned back to Misty and realized how truly miserable she looked. He sighed and ran a hand through his still damp hair, trying to come up with something to distract his wife with.

Before he could conjure anything up, however, the door bell rang. Misty cast him a glance, indicating that she was about to kill him for whoever was at the door. Without changing his expression, Ash gently gripped Misty's bare shoulder as she stood up, trying to straighten his hair out slightly as he approached the door.

Twisting the knob, Ash found himself face to face with Justin, who looked rather relieved by the sight of the Pokémon master.

"Oh, I was so worried about you guys!" Justin breathed, his eyes widening slightly.

"Why would you be worried?" Ash's heart sped up ever so slightly. He hadn't told Justin or anyone else about the whole episode with Loki. It was mostly because he didn't want to freak them out, but also because their aura didn't need to be publicized.

"Well, because Misty was supposed to get back to working the gym a few days ago, but every time I came, the door still had the closed sign on it. I was afraid something bad happened to her. And every time I called her cell phone, she didn't answer…"

"Is that all?" Ash chuckled as Justin trailed off, hoping to cover his nervousness. "It's no big deal, really. Misty just wasn't feeling very well. The doctor decided a few more days of rest couldn't hurt, so that's what he ordered."

"And she's okay now?" Justin seemed to relax.

"Well, she's back to yelling at me, so she must be fine!" Ash winked. He felt guilty for lying to the young man, especially since Ash was highly experienced in what would happen when a lie went wrong. Fortunately, Justin began to laugh along with Ash, and the older male suddenly felt surer of himself.

"That's good to hear. So, you said you needed me to watch the twins?"

"Yeah. They should be down soon, they're just getting dressed."

"Is Misty down here?" Justin inquired, suddenly seeming a little anxious.

"She's sitting at the kitchen table," Ash nodded. He wasn't sure if asking the next question was such a good idea, what with Misty being in her current state and all, but Ash liked Justin too much to leave him in the dark. "Do you want to see her?"

"If she would be okay with it," Justin blushed slightly, worried that Misty would get upset with him.

"Don't get freaked out," Ash chuckled as soon as he took notice of Justin's newly tense state. "The only person here that Misty would potentially kill is me, so you have nothing to worry about."

Justin smiled slowly and followed Ash into the house. As soon as the two entered the kitchen, Misty whipped around, having heard the footsteps. Her eyes were narrowed in an intense glare at first, but as soon as she set those emerald orbs on Justin, her expression softened and the redness in her cheeks began to disappear.

"Justin?" Misty asked, almost in disbelief.

"The very same," Justin laughed, nervously wringing his hands together. "Are you feeling any better now?"

"Huh?" Misty turned her head towards Ash, her face once again reflecting a hostile emotion. Ash nodded, a motion that encouraged Misty to just go with it. "Uh…yeah, I am."

"That's good," Justin smiled at his gym leader boss. "So, do you think you're going to go back to battling soon?"

"What's the point?" Misty sighed, suddenly sounding extremely dejected. "I'm pretty much seven months pregnant; I'm fat and useless. Who wants to battle me?"

Ash's eyes widened. He was used to Misty being self deprecating towards herself when she was pregnant, but she usually didn't seem to hate herself this much. Shifting his eyes over towards Justin, Ash saw that the young assistant looked alarmed.

Misty's freaking the poor kid out, Ash groaned inwardly. He probably thinks she's going insane.

"Misty, sweetheart, don't say that," Ash broke in, trying to save Justin from the deed. "There are young trainers out there just waiting for their cascade badges! Besides, you have plenty of fight left in you."

"No I don't," Misty objected, lowering her eyes in pure dejection.

Ash opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut off by a high pitched, and rather terrified, shriek.

"What the hell was that?" Ash muttered, looking around in different directions. Misty was looking up now, her eyes a little more clear and her expression a little more concerned. Justin, meanwhile, just looked bewildered.

Pikachu came darting down the stairs, his beady black eyes narrowed in annoyance. He stopped right in front of Ash and glared up at his trainer, ears and tails twitching angrily.

"Pikachu, what's going on up there?" Ash folded his arms. Misty was already disgruntled with him, so the last thing Ash needed was for his Pokémon to be disconcerted with him as well.

"Pipikachu, pipika!" Pikachu spat out.

"What about Michelle and Aiden?"

"Pika pikachu. Pipika pi pikachu pipikachu."

"Do you actually understand what Pikachu is saying?" Justin asked Ash.

"Of course, we've been friends for 17 years," Ash smirked at the young man.

"So, what did he just say about Aiden and Michelle?"

"Apparently, they're fighting," Ash tilted his head, "because Michelle did something to Aiden."

"Pikachu, what are those two doing up there?" Misty demanded, sounding rather aggravated. Ash knew Misty would never do anything bad to their children, but right about now, she didn't sound too pleased with them.

"Aiden, stop!"

"No! You're mean!"

Michelle came flying down the stairs, fully dressed. Aiden wasn't far behind, although he was still in pajamas. He was holding a toy fishing pole in hand, and was swinging it mercilessly at his twin sister with anger set in his bright russet eyes.

"HEY!" Ash screamed, his patience quickly waning. Michelle stopped first, causing Aiden to smash into her and fall onto his bottom, the toy rod slipping out of his grip. "Knock it off, you two!"

"Daddy, Michelle jumped on me!" Aiden stormed, rising to his feet.

"You told me to wake him up!" Michelle accused her father.

"I said nicely," Ash narrowed his eyes. "Jumping on him isn't nice, Michelle."

"He wouldn't wake up!" Michelle cried. "I poked him and called his name and everything! So I had to do it!"

"No you didn't!" Aiden barked.

"Yes I did!" Michelle retorted.

"No you didn't!

"Yes I did!"

"No…"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Misty stormed, smacking her hand against the table. Aiden and Michelle were both startled, gasping and hugging one another for protection. Ash and Justin both had their mouths hanging open, neither one expecting that kind of reaction from Misty. She was always so docile when it came to Aiden and Michelle, even when they were fighting.

"Pikachupi…" Pikachu murmured, blinking in both shock and amazement.

As Misty continued to glare at Aiden and Michelle, both children started to tremble and cry from their mother's outburst, and it was at this point that Misty realized just what she'd done. She had never yelled at either of them like that! It was far too harsh, and she knew it.

"Oh, Aiden, Michelle, I'm so sorry!" Misty cried, getting to her feet as quickly as possible. "Please, don't cry!"

Misty's mark had already been left, however. Aiden and Michelle refused to hear her out, instead choosing to hurry back up the stairs, fearing that their mother would do something else horrible to them.

This reaction hurt Misty even more than the first one the twins had given her. Tears were beginning to flood her now dulled emerald eyes, and a deep pain filled her chest. Justin glanced towards Ash, silently wondering if he should do anything to help comfort the woman who was typically in charge of him.

"Uh…Justin, why don't you go see what Aiden and Michelle are up to?" Ash suggested. Justin finally closed his mouth and nodded wordlessly, walking up the steps to go check on the clearly frightened twins. The Pokémon master next turned his attention onto Misty, who was stuck in a full fledged crying fit. "Misty…"

"I…I do have a problem!" Misty wailed, raising her hands to her eyes. "I yelled at my babies…and I never yell at them! They…they must hate me now! I'm…a terrible mother!"

"Misty, dear, you are not a terrible mother!" Ash pleaded with the sobbing red head, wrapping his strong arms around her. "Your hormones are a mess, it isn't your fault. And your still worked up from…" Ash trailed off, but decided to finish his statement, "from the whole Loki ordeal."

"Fix it," Misty wailed, raising her watery eyes to look at Ash. "H…help me, Ash."

"I'm going to try my best," Ash gave her a single nod. "That's why I called Justin over to watch Aiden and Michelle."

"W…why?"

"You and I are going out," Ash smiled softly at the still crying red head. "It'll kind of be like a date, I guess. I just want us to spend some time together. We both need it, you know."

Misty could only nod, no longer feeling able to speak. Ash sighed sadly and tucked a strand of stray hair behind Misty's ear before working on wiping away her fallen tears. Once the drops of water were cleared away, Ash grinned gently at his wife and leaned forward to press a kiss against her fair, damp cheek.

"Just relax sweetheart," Ash whispered against her skin. "We're going to have fun. And you're going to be okay."

XXX

A little known fact about Ash Ketchum, Pokémon master, was that he was a romantic.

No one would've believed that this formerly (and still at times, though not as badly) dense boy could've held a single romantic bone in his body. All he'd ever cared about was Pokémon and food. His training came first and his ultimate dream was to become the best trainer who'd ever lived.

Misty, whether she wanted to believe it or not, had changed all of that.

When he first realized he was in love with her, Ash would've stopped at nothing to get the water specialist's attention. He cared about her in a way that he had never before known you could care for another human being. Misty was his whole world, and Ash just wanted her to feel well loved.

He was showing off this "secret side" of himself quite well at the moment. It was a warm June day, the hints of early summer blooming all around Cerulean City. Having lived here steadily for the past six years, Ash knew all of the spots that held good memories for Misty, and all of the places that could cheer her up.

There was one prime spot, however, and that was exactly where Ash was going to take Misty in an effort to raise her spirits. It was a little bit of a walk, and there was a sense of concern on Ash's part that a pregnant Misty wouldn't fair well on such a trek. She did get tired rather easily, after all, and she was definitely not quiet about her various ailments. So far, however, Misty seemed to be holding up quite well, although her lack of any conversation at all was bothering Ash to some extent. He wanted to hear her sweet voice.

Looking down at the grass that lined their current path, Ash smiled brightly as he caught sight of a patch of wild flowers. Now was the perfect time to bring out the charm; it would get Misty to open up a little more.

"Wait right here," Ash grabbed at Misty's wrist to stop her in her tracks. Misty did as Ash requested, but she was still confused by the command.

"Why?" Misty finally spoke, her eyes searching Ash for some kind of explanation.

"You'll see," Ash winked teasingly, a glint going off in his eye. He sprinted towards the flowers, leaving Misty only more bewildered.

Surveying the different colored blooms, Ash finally decided to just pick several of each color. Waltzing through the patch made him feel eerily like his five year old daughter, but Ash didn't mind so much. It made him feel free, like he didn't have a single care in the world. In a way, it was reminiscent of his childhood.

Once satisfied with his pickings, Ash strolled back over to Misty, who still had no clue as to why she had been left standing there by her seemingly insane husband.

"Well?" Misty pressed.

"I wanted to get you something," Ash smirked. "It's not something expensive and fancy, but they are beautiful, just like you."

"Ash…" Misty grumbled, although the blush that had been painted on her cheeks told a different story than her dark tone.

While her eyes were closed, Ash finished tying the stems of the flowers together and placed the crown on his wife's head, beaming lovingly at the sight he had just created.

"There," Ash stated cleanly. "Just perfect."

Misty raised her eyelids and rolled her eyes up, having felt whatever it was that Ash had put on her head. Catching a glimpse of the colorful tiara, Misty giggled quietly and glanced back at Ash, a familiar spark shining in her dark green eyes.

"You're so cute," Misty murmured, her blush decreasing slightly. It still remained present, however, and it was a fairly obvious accent.

"Thanks, I try," Ash reached one of his arms out and hooked it with Misty's. "Now, should we keep going?"

"Yes, we should," Misty smiled. This simple action was enough to warm Ash's heart like a sudden burst of fire. Because the smile that Misty was currently showing off was not sad, like they'd been for the past few days.

What graced her lips right now was a beautiful, genuine smile.

XXX

"Ash, are you ever going to tell me just where we're going?"

"Mist, you still don't know?" Ash smirked as he looked over his shoulder. "I thought you definitely would've figured it out by now!"

"I haven't a clue," Misty shrugged. The baby began to kick, causing Misty to sigh and place a hand on her burgeoning stomach. "But I'm getting tired, and the baby is getting restless. Tell me it won't be much longer."

"Nah, we're almost there," Ash shook his head. Looking ahead, a huge grin broke out on his face and he turned around to face Misty. "It's right up ahead!"

Misty peered over Ash's figure, trying to decipher where the handsome man had dragged her to. It didn't take long for Misty to recognize her favorite destination, however, and once she made the connection, she squealed and clasped her hands together.

"Oh Ash, you took me to Cerulean Cape?"

"Yeah!" Ash's face lit up. "I know how much you like it here. I thought it would be a good place for us to just relax…and be alone."

"It's perfect!" Misty trilled, racing forward to grab Ash's fingerless gloved hand. Lingering for a few moments, Misty gripped his palm and continued quietly, "thank you, Ash."

"Don't mention it, angel," Ash shrugged before stroking her hair. Giggling airily, Misty yanked him forward, eager to settle on the grass in the warm, early summer sun.

It didn't take long for Misty to find what she deemed to be a perfect spot, and with the smile remaining on her face, she pulled Ash down with her in order to sit.

"You've got quite a bit of energy all of a sudden," Ash smirked at his wife, who was leaning over the edge of the cape in order to look into the bright blue ocean that flowed down below.

"I love it here," Misty murmured, her smile broadening. "I know it's a good date spot, but when I was younger, I used to come out here when I wanted to be alone."

"Which I imagine was quite often?" Ash asked softly. Misty nodded wordlessly, her expression barely changing. Ash knew that Misty had not had the ideal childhood; it was lonely, alienating, and empty. He assumed that was the main reason why Misty was such a good mother. She wanted to make sure their children had the wholesome kind of childhood she never had a chance of.

"It's peaceful here," Misty finally spoke, her eyes scanning the whole area. "No one to bother you."

The couple were silent for a few minutes. Finally, Misty let out a sigh that was part peaceful, part exasperated, and rolled over onto her back. Ash watched the beautiful woman with concentrated interest, and eventually joined her by laying on his own back and staring up into the clouds with her.

"I see a heart," Ash murmured.

"Huh?" Misty blinked, turning her head towards Ash. "What do you mean?"

"Up there," Ash raised an arm and pointed up towards the clouds. "I see a heart in the sky."

"Oh," Misty breathed, understanding what Ash was saying. Laughing, she looked back up and began to carefully study each and every cloud. Finding a good one, she pointed at her chosen target the way Ash had, and called out, "that one looks like a Gyrados!"

Ash chuckled and pulled his hands behind his head, resting on his palms. "You would find one shaped like a water type, huh Mist?"

"One of my favorite water types," Misty winked at him.

"Well, if we're gonna play it that way…" Ash trailed off as he tried to find a cloud that would one up Misty's seemingly perfect find. Letting out a short laugh, Ash gently tilted Misty's head towards another cloud and asked, "Doesn't this one look like the cascade badge?"

"Yeah, I can see that…" Misty beamed, setting her eyes on the fluffy white cloud that was seemingly shaped like a water drop.

Ash grinned boldly to himself. Misty definitely seemed happier, and that was all Ash could've asked for. Seeing his wife so sad and miserable was tearing Ash apart, but now they were laying side by side, staring up into the clouds and laughing like they were kids again. There was still one thing different from when they were kids, however. And that was an action Ash wouldn't have dared to take before the age of sixteen.

He turned onto his side, gazing at Misty's face with a look of both love and lust. She finally felt his eyes on her, and she looked into the bright russet orbs, giggling girlishly at the look he was giving her.

"What?" Misty asked sweetly.

Ash inched closer to Misty and placed his hand on her knee, moving it all the way up her leg, onto her swollen stomach, to her shoulder, and finally to rest on her lightly blushing cheek. Ash decided now was the perfect time to make his move. He leaned in, ready to kiss Misty on her soft, pink lips. Misty closed her eyes and waited for the moment, but as soon as Ash's lips brushed against hers, only one image flashed through Misty's eyes.

Loki. Trying to kiss her.

Misty gasped sharply as her eyes snapped open and she pulled away as quickly as possible. Ash looked alarmed by her sudden movement, but none the less tried to kiss her again. Misty began to breathe heavily, her heart pounding as Ash moved in closer. She knew it was Ash, and that he loved her and would never hurt her, but all Misty could see was Loki.

"No!" Misty cried when their lips touched again. She turned her head away as quickly as possible, trembling as Ash backed off once more.

"Misty?" Ash questioned softly. He reached out to touch her arm, and as soon as their skin made contact, Misty flinched and let out a whimper. "Misty…"

"I…I'm sorry," Misty stammered. "I…I can't…"

Ash breathed out heavily and felt his shoulders sag. He had been so close. So close to completely freeing Misty from her pain.

Now, it seemed he couldn't be further away.

I couldn't just leave Misty all "everything is okay now!" after some guy kidnapped her and her children, and was hitting on her without a care in the world while at the same time threatening the life of her baby. That's pretty stressful, so she had to have some kind of reprecution, no?

So now, Ash is going to have to work even harder to gain Misty's trust. What will he do? You'll find out next time :)

Got lots of great reviews last chapter; you guys all rock! I'd really love to see this story get to 200 reviews, maybe even more than it's prior story! Whoever gets the 200th review gets a chapter dedicated to them! I think it'll still take awhile to get to 200, but just thought I'd announce that little prize :P

So, what are you still doing reading my boring author's notes? Go leave a review, voice your opinon, and tell me what's up!