This is a one shot that has everything: a peek into Ash and Misty's home life, poke girl friendships, and twin chaos ;)
Aiden and Michelle: 15 months old
Home Good
Misty couldn't help but to smile as her children's squeaky laughter filled the air.
The twins had just woken up from their afternoon nap and were in a good mood, which had resulted in some lowkey playtime for the two while their mother worked on refilling the diffuser in their room with a new container of lavender oil.
Aiden and Michelle had each busied themselves with their plush rocking toys: Aiden's resembling a Girafarig and Michelle's in the likeness of a Galarian Ponyta. Like many of the twins' toys, they had been a gift; from Lillie and her family when the twins were first born. For quite a while, the rockers had simply served as cute furniture pieces in the babies' room, but now that they were older and able to sit on the rockers themselves, Aiden and Michelle had made it clear that those were among their favorite things to play with.
"Hee!" Aiden laughed as he rocked the Girafarig back and forth, his brown eyes sparkling with delight.
Misty looked over her shoulder and giggled. "Are you having fun, little guy?"
Aiden beamed at his mother and laughed again, much to Misty's amusement. She turned back around and finished changing the oil, spinning around to fully face the twins after the fact.
"There, all set!" She crowed. "Now your room will smell so nice tonight when you go to sleep!"
That was another thing one of their friends had tipped them off on. When Michelle had been nearing a year old and still wouldn't sleep through the night, Misty had been at a loss for what else to try. Then Dawn had suggested trying out aromatherapy; something she was quite passionate about and had been using for a while to help herself relax, especially before contests or bed. As soon as Misty had bought a diffuser for the twins' room and began using lavender oil, Michelle's streaks of sleeping through the night grew longer and longer, and before either of her parents knew it, the little girl was finally sleeping through the night. It even seemed to help get Aiden to sleep more easily! As a result, Misty had declared aromatherapy a miracle and was very on top of making sure the diffuser was always filled and ready to go.
"Go seep?" Michelle parroted, gazing up at her mother as she tilted her head.
"Not now, silly girl!" Misty giggled. "You and Aiden just took a nice, long nap! I mean tonight, once it's bedtime."
Michelle smiled and resumed rocking on her Galarian Ponyta, much to her mother's amusement.
"But I'm sure you two are a little hungry now," Misty continued, stepping away from the dresser and smiling at the twins. "Do you want to go get a snack?"
They both squealed excitedly; not with any clear words, but clear enough to Misty that it was an emphatic yes from them both. She laughed again and scooped both babies up from their rocking toys, holding one in each arm so she could carry them down the stairs.
Both twins had gotten quite good at walking, and they greatly enjoyed toddling around. Misty, however, knew they weren't ready to begin going up and down stairs just yet, nor was she ready for it. So, it had set up her now very familiar daily routine of lugging the twins up and down the stairs, while also having to open the baby gates and making sure that she actually closed them behind her. Ash had a very bad habit of forgetting to close the gates himself, which had led to a few close calls of the twins trying to amble up or crawl down the stairs. It's not like they were open for long, either; it truly seemed like the twins had some kind of "danger sensor" where as soon as there was an opening for them to create some kind of mischief, they'd take immediate advantage.
That Misty was hoping was just a phase, but considering who their father was, she had a sinking suspicion she wouldn't be that lucky.
When she made it into the living room, she was pleased to find Vaporeon sitting patiently on the couch, the water type's sleek black eyes locked onto the stairs. It was clear that her partner had been waiting for her to return. "Perfect! Vaporeon, would you mind keeping an eye on Aiden and Michelle for me while I get their snack together? I'll be sure to bring you back something tasty as well!"
"Vay," Vaporeon confirmed, shifting her tail side-to-side.
Misty smiled and carefully placed the twins on the floor. Vaporeon quickly jumped down so she was hovering above the babies, but she was soon on more equal footing as both Aiden and Michelle managed to get up on their feet in no time flat.
"I know it's gotten a little harder since they don't just stay in one spot anymore," Misty sighed sympathetically. "I'll be back as quickly as possible; promise!"
"Pore," Vaporeon calmly assured her, leading Misty to let out a relieved breath.
"Thanks, Vaporeon," the gym leader respired. "I don't know what I'd do without you!"
She bent over to pet the Pokémon's head, earning some happy purrs from the water type. This seemed to catch the attention of Aiden and Michelle, who soon reached out and began to pat her as well.
"Look at you two, playing so nice with Vaporeon!" Misty playfully gasped. "That sure makes Mommy happy! And I bet Vaporeon appreciates it too, huh?"
Vaporeon slowly nodded. The twins were being just a bit too heavy handed, but the Pokémon knew it was only because they were young and not because they actually meant her any harm. As a result, she didn't want to make Misty aware of it either, because she didn't want her to stop the twins. In Vaporeon's mind, a little rough petting was still better than no petting at all.
Feeling content with the situation in the living room, Misty walked into the kitchen so she could begin preparing everyone's snacks.
As strange as it might have sounded, considering she had only learned to cook before getting married, the kitchen was one of Misty's favorite rooms in the house. She loved the whole place, which wasn't a surprise considering Ash had let her plan and pick out just about everything. From wall colors to floors to furniture to the actual layout of the house, he had deferred to her.
"You're a lot better at this kind of stuff than I am, and you'll probably be at home more often than me anyway" had been Ash's reasoning. "I trust you!"
That had certainly been a fun nod to get, but Misty felt bad totally leaving Ash out of the equation. So, she'd still run just about everything by him, and just as she expected, he'd happily agreed to it all.
The kitchen, however, brought her a very specific sense of calm. Maybe it was because that was where she tended to be bothered the least and could just focus on cooking or baking or whatever else she was doing in there.
Of course, she still didn't consider herself an expert chef, and probably never would. Fortunately for her, the twins' snack was easy enough to put together since it just involved cutting things up and putting them in a little bowl. Even Ash could handle that when he was home, so it definitely wasn't a challenge.
But that was just as relaxing for Misty as something more labor intensive, which was fine by her. She thinly sliced an apple, cubed some cheese, and opened up a small bag of vegetable straws, splitting the items between the compartments of two small, plastic bowls.
Once the twins' snack was all set, Misty pulled out the box of poke puffs that Serena had recently sent and retrieved one that had proven to be Vaporeon's favorite: a fancy citrus puff. Misty marveled at the beautiful orange color of the treat and the thin slice of orange on top. Now she was someone who Misty would consider a master baker. Serena had offered to teach Misty how to make them, but Misty had assured her it would've been a waste of time. The gym leader knew that there was no way she'd ever be able to match Serena's skill level, no matter how hard she tried. Knowing that didn't bother her, and in fact, made her appreciate the shipments of sweets from her friend even more.
With everything finally ready to go, Misty placed the bowls and the poke puff on a tray and carefully carried it back into the living room, a proud smile on her face.
"Okay, everyone, here's your…what the f- "
Misty quickly looked over at her wide-eyed babies and managed to seal her lips before uttering the curse that had been hanging at the tip of her tongue.
To her, however, the near swear had been warranted. When Misty had left the living room, everything was in order. The room had looked pristine, even with the twins' larger playthings taking up the formerly free spaces in the room.
Now, it looked like a tornado had ripped through. Blankets that had previously been draped over the back of the steel blue couch were now strewn over the sofa's arms and across the floor. The throw pillows had suffered a similar fate, with some now residing on the other side of the room. The wicker baskets that housed the twins' smaller toys had been dragged out and tipped over, creating a messy pile. And…had one of the side tables been moved? She took a closer look and indeed, it was now located several inches away from the couch, turned to an awkward angle with the lamp sitting atop it perched dangerously close to the table's edge.
"How did you two do this?" Misty muttered to herself, carefully putting the tray down nearby. Ruefully, she didn't even sound mad; in fact, she sounded kind of impressed. Misty knew it was wrong, but she really couldn't help herself. After all, the twins were still considered babies. It honestly blew her mind trying to figure out how a pair of 15-month olds had crated such a mess.
When she walked over to the side table in order to straighten it out, she wound up catching sight of Vaporeon hiding behind the couch. Misty mentally smacked herself for being so distracted by the mess that she hadn't realized her Pokémon wasn't with the twins when she'd walked back in.
"Vaporeon, what happened in here?" Misty asked, kneeling down to get closer to her partner.
The water type slunk out from behind the couch, looking rather shameful. "Pore…Vaporeon pore eon vapore…"
Misty sighed. "You tried to stop them, but it was no good?"
"Vay…"
She glanced back up at Aiden and Michelle, who were both still staring at her. It was almost like they knew they had done something wrong and had been caught in the act, but at the same time, they also seemed aloof to what they had really done and weren't quite sure how to respond in such a situation where their mother was clearly frazzled.
"You two were naughty," Misty calmly informed the twins, standing up so she could finish fixing the lamp and side table. She wanted them to know that they hadn't behaved, and shouldn't do those kinds of things, but she also felt they were both still too young for any real punishment. After all, it was clear just from the looks on their faces that they were beyond confused by the whole thing. Honestly, they had probably just thought they were playing. "Making a big mess like this is a no-no."
"No!" Aiden repeated, holding his hand up.
"That's right," Misty confirmed. "No more of that, okay?" Neither twin responded to her, causing Misty to sigh. "Can you guys tell me that you understand?"
Although Aiden and Michelle said nothing verbally, they did both slowly nod their heads, so Misty just hoped that they had gotten the message to some extent. "Do you two want your snack now?"
That got much more fervent nods out of both Aiden and Michelle. Misty just smirked and rolled her eyes. How typical of Ash's children: staring at her like she had two heads until the mention of food came up. Then they could answer her with no hesitation.
"Alright, let's sit down," Misty calmly requested. "Once you're both sitting, I'll give you your bowls."
Aiden and Michelle both lowered themselves, not once taking their eyes off their mother. Smiling, Misty walked over to the tray and grabbed the bowls, handing the red one to Aiden and the light blue one to Michelle. "What do you say?"
"-ank -oo!" They squeaked at the same time, earning a giggle from their mother.
"You're welcome!" She replied, watching in interest as both babies picked up an apple slice and began nibbling at them. Misty always found it so interesting that Aiden and Michelle had wildly different personalities and interests that became more apparent every day, but whenever she gave them something to eat, they always started with the same thing.
While the twins busied themselves with their own snacks, Misty walked back over to the tray in order to retrieve Vaporeon's poke puff. When she brought the treat over, however, she was surprised when Vaporeon put her head down and looked away.
"What's the matter, Vaporeon?" Misty asked gently. "This is one of your favorites! Aren't you hungry?"
Vaporeon mewled sadly and tilted her head up ever so slightly. Misty followed the Pokémon's gaze and realized she was looking at Aiden and Michelle…and wearing an obvious guilty expression.
"Oh, Vaporeon, don't feel bad!" Misty cried. "I understand that Aiden and Michelle can be quite the handful! Besides, nobody got hurt, nothing's broken…it's just a little mess that I can clean up no problem. So please, don't take it so hard! You know that I still trust you. After all, we're partners!"
The water type slowly turned her head towards her trainer, who was beaming at her. As soon as their eyes locked, Misty giggled and reached out to pet Vaporeon on the head. She mewled, this time happily, and watched as Misty placed the poke puff in front of her.
"You've earned this," Misty assured her, a twinkle playing in her eyes. "Enjoy it!"
With a flick of her tail, Vaporeon bent down to take a bite of the poke puff, beaming once she'd swallowed it. "Vay!"
Misty shot the bubble jet Pokémon one last smile before standing back up to her full height. Looking around the still messy room, she grimaced, knowing she'd have to start cleaning everything up. With a resigned sigh, Misty walked over to the couch and picked up one of the astray blankets, neatly folding it and draping it over the back of the sofa where it belonged. Before she could move onto the next throw, however, she could just feel someone's eyes boring into her. Or rather, two someone's. Slowly glancing down, she found that Aiden and Michelle had turned themselves around to look at her once more, slowly eating their snacks as they did so.
And again, Misty couldn't help but to smirk. "You two are watching Mommy clean up your mess?"
Aiden and Michelle kept their plain expressions but nodded to affirm this.
"Should I tell Daddy about the mess you two made?"
"No!" Aiden cried.
"No?" Misty repeated with a snicker. "We shouldn't tell Daddy?"
"No," Aiden repeated before stuffing a cheese cube into his mouth.
"Do you think he'd be upset to know that you guys made such a big mess?" Misty asked, working on folding the next blanket.
"No," Michelle finally chirped, shaking her head.
Misty inwardly groaned. Her daughter had a point. Yes, her baby daughter had a point. Misty, a 22-year-old woman, had just been dragged back down to reality by a kid with roughly five words in her vocabulary. Of course, there was no possible way Ash would ever be upset with them for such a miniscule thing, and even when the kids couldn't really grasp what exactly they'd done, that much they knew to be true.
Okay, guess it's time to stop teasing Ash for telling me the kids make good arguments.
"You two finish up your snacks," Misty sighed, tossing the second re-folded blanket back in its place. "Once Mommy is done cleaning up, we can play together! Something that doesn't involve making another mess I have to clean up..."
I wanted to pick Aiden and Michelle up and hug them the whole time I was writing this. It's pretty easy to see why Ash and Misty have such a hard time getting mad at them!