DISCLAIMER: No one round here owns Pokémon. Don't sue, you have no right, and I'm really low on cash, haha.
A/N: Ohhh wow, it's the final one! This is my piece of genius (yeaaaah right, lol) and the end, well…it is an open road to the sequel (which will be starting in about a week, woohoo!) Anyways, read on guys, it's shorter than usual but it's meaningful!
Ash stared at Misty in shock, unable to comprehend whether he had heard her words right. Had she really just said triplets? He took her hands in his and tried to make some sense of the situation.
"Tri…t-trip…" He couldn't seem to get the word out through his shock. Misty grinned sheepishly and grasped her husband's hands tight as relief flooded throughout her, seeing that Ash looked more stunned than angry or upset.
"Triplets, yes, three. It's gonna be…" She drew in a deep breath and bit her lip. "Different. Interesting."
"Interesting?" Ash spluttered in disbelief. "Interesting is an understatement" he laughed slightly, shaking his head as if trying to comprehend the situation. "Misty, that's…unbelievable." He smiled and tightened the grasp on his wife's hands before bestowing a soft and tender kiss on her lips.
"No kidding it's unbelievable, how the hell did you guys manage that?!" Brock exclaimed, breaking his and the rest of the group's silence. Ash reluctantly and prematurely broke the kiss and shrugged at his long-time friend.
"I dunno Brocko, maybe it was something in all that stuff you fed us…" he replied vaguely.
"Uh guys, you seem to be overlooking something" James spoke up.
"And what's that exactly?" Misty asked.
"The fact that those kids might be -"
"Gary's, yeah, it didn't escape me James, don't worry" Misty sighed. "But even if they are, like we told you, it doesn't matter. Ash can still be as much a father to them as he is to Rose and Cory." She had finished speaking when she noticed a tugging at her legs and looked down to see her daughter looking up at her.
"Mommy, what's triplets?" she asked cautiously. Misty grinned before she replied.
"It just means that you're gonna have three brothers or sisters in a few months time" she explained.
"I could have sisters?" Rose asked, her eyes lighting up at the thought.
"You could have three, just like your mom" Ash supplied, wrapping his arms around Misty's waist and gently kissing her neck.
"And they could all play Barbies with me, and we could share clothes, and we could all share a room together and keep Cory out, and -"
"Rose, slow down a bit there" Ash laughed, picking up his daughter in his arms. "You might have three brothers too. Or two sisters and a brother. Or whatever, the point is, this family is going to increase dramatically in size soon." There was a tinge of worry in his voice as a million thoughts suddenly hit his mind, most of them concerning their future financial issues. They'd need a bigger car, a bigger house, more school uniforms once they actually hit school, more doctors' fees…
Misty picked up the worry and delicately raised a hand to his cheek. "Don't worry about it baby. It'll work out somehow. We'll make it work" she told him with a reassuring smile. Ash smiled back, once again settled by his wife's words.
"Well guys, I guess this is a cause for celebration then. I say we get on the next plane to Celadon, pick up Cory and get home A.S.A.P" Brock said wearily.
"I couldn't agree with you more on that one" James added. He sat next to Jessie and breathed a sigh that spoke of relief, exhaustion and even a tinge of happiness at the way things had worked out in the end.
"Mommy, are you gonna have triplets?" Jack suddenly asked, catching his mother off guard as she laughed, holding him close as though she were afraid he would get away again.
"No way, you're the same amount of trouble as three put together" she grinned, but everyone could see that the teasing in her voice didn't veil the joy she had at having her son back. James smiled, wrapping an arm around his wife's shoulders, almost securing their family's rediscovered bond as he did.
"Okay guys, say we book a flight for any time tomorrow to Celadon, pick up Cory and just head on home. I don't think any of us can stay here another day longer" Ash said. The others nodded and the plan was silently approved. Now the only things on their minds were getting home and restoring their normal lives again.
Four Years Later…
The van pulled up beside the lake that was slowly but surely starting to flow with visitors and other families out for Sunday excursions. Ash turned off the engine and looked out the window to his right, a smile crossing his face at the place he hadn't visited in…he thought for a moment. Seventeen years, it must've been.
"Ash, can I please take this blindfold off now?" Misty demanded, although the anticipation in her voice was easy to pick up.
"Just a sec" Ash said distractedly, still staring out the window.
"Where are we, Dad?" Rose asked curiously. Ash didn't reply to his nine-year old daughter, just smiled all the wider at the memories this place held. "Dad? Hello?" Rose tried to get her father's attention again and, seeing she had failed, shrugged and turned to her 4-year old sister, Felicity. "Your hair looks real pretty today, Flick. Don't ya think I did a good job?"
Felicity nodded eagerly, playing with the pigtails her sister had, not for the first time in her life, lovingly adorned on her that morning. "You always do a good job, Rosalla!" The nickname was still sticking and had been transferred from Cory to his other sister and two brothers, Scott and Andrew.
"Mommy Mommy, I wanna go swimming!" Scott announced excitedly, already undoing his seatbelt and unsuccessfully attempting to open the van's door, which was childproofed.
"Just a minute Scott. We're gonna surprise Mom first" Ash said. With that he leaned over towards his wife and paused before he started talking. "You haven't been here in a while, so it might be a shock. But I think you'll like it. I hope you'll like it anyways."
"Ash, for God's sake, enough with the suspense, can I please just take this blindfold off?" Misty asked with a small laugh.
"Okay okay" Ash conceded. He undid the blindfold and watched his wife's facial expression anxiously, reading her face as it revealed her emotions. At first there was a gasp of surprise and, quite possibly, shock, as she slowly put a hand to her mouth.
"So where are we, Mom?" Rose asked eagerly, still persisting for answers.
"I…I'm sorry Rose, I don't even know the name of it" Misty slightly laughed, fighting back the tears in her eyes.
"You remember it though, don't you?" Ash asked hopefully.
"God, how could I forget…" Misty muttered. She turned back to Ash after viewing her surroundings and smiled at him with those tears still flooding her eyes. "I do believe I fished you out somewhere round there" she said quietly, pointing to a spot near the lake.
"Wow, dead on sweetheart" Ash said softly, initiating a kiss that only lasted about two seconds before Cory piped up in the back.
"Can we get out now?" he asked wearily. Ash sighed as he reluctantly broke off the kiss and turned to face his five children.
"Alright, alright, we're going" he groaned, stepping out of the car at the same time as his wife. As he opened the back door for the kids to get out, Misty couldn't help but marvel at this place. A place she had only visited once in her lifetime, but that one brief visit had changed her life when she had fished out a ten-year old rookie trainer and his Pikachu.
She smiled at the memory. She never knew her initial disappointment at catching 'just a kid' would evaporate so quickly and develop into…well, into what lay before her now. A loving husband, five adorable children, and a mind and body that had conquered the greatest peaks of human terror.
"Now guys, just be careful round the lake!" Ash cautioned as he watched his children run off. He knew they'd be alright, Rose and Cory were old enough to teach their younger siblings how to act around water. He smiled and turned to Misty, who was still staring at the place in disbelief.
"So why did you bring me back here anyways?" she asked suddenly.
"Just thought it'd be a nice stop off point on the way to Viridian" Ash explained, mentioning the city they were travelling to in order for a group reunion. Jessie and James were holding it at their apartment, and Brock and Wilhemina were also travelling from Pallet with their 3-year old daughter Lisa to be there. It was something everyone had been looking forward to, and although it would be quite a big crowd, they all knew it would be worth it.
"A nice stop off point? Ash, I haven't been here since…"
"Yeah, since you fished me out" Ash rolled his eyes, still smiling. "Hard to imagine huh? Who would've thought…" He trailed off and scanned his surroundings. "This would be the one place where the rest of my life started."
"I know what you mean" Misty said softly. She then brought her lips to his, lost in their own world at the place their paths had first collided.
"Mommy! I wanna go swimming!" Andrew demanded crossly, his demands being backed up by his brothers and sisters. Misty sighed and walked over to her children, her hand intertwined with Ash's.
"Come on, if you don't stop whining there won't be any swimming. Just wait a minute, this place is really special to us" she told them.
"It is? How?" Cory asked.
"This is where your father and I first met" Misty said, flashing a smile at her husband.
"That's nice Mom, can we go swimming? The car was boiling" Rose complained, totally ignoring the significance this place held for her parents.
"Hold up a minute, we gotta get a photo first" Ash announced, fishing out his camera.
"Why?" Scott asked curiously.
"Because as little as this place means to you, it means something to us. If we both hadn't been here then you guys would not be around right now" Ash said.
"Really? Wow" Cory said in amazement.
"Okay then, we just gotta find someone to actually take the photo…" Misty muttered, looking around the lake. There were many families out that day, but they were all obviously preoccupied with their own activities. It was at that moment Ash noticed a young lady passing by, and immediately decided not to let the opportunity go to waste.
"Excuse me!" he called out. The woman turned around and eyed the family carefully. "Sorry to bother you, but we were just wondering if you could take a photo of us" he explained. The woman seemed to look a little surprised but walked towards them with a broad smile.
"Sure, I'd be happy to" she said.
"Great, okay, here's the camera, all you have to do is push the button. Just give us a sec, gotta get the mob sorted." Ash rolled his eyes and handed over the camera as Misty started organising where everyone would be situated. It took a minute of arguing over who was sitting next to whom, but finally the Ketchums were seated by the lake and flashing smiles for the lens.
"Okay, smile!" And with that the shutter went off and the moment was sealed forever in the film. Ash stood up and took the camera off the woman.
"Thank you very much, Miss" he said gratefully. The woman smiled, differently to what she had before, and something suddenly hit Ash. It was an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach and he had felt it before, but he couldn't put his finger on why.
"No problem. Bye!" she farewelled, and with that she walked off. Ash continued to stare vacantly, wracking his brain as to why he was feeling like this towards someone he had never met before.
"Ash? Is everything okay?" Misty asked worriedly, noticing the look on her husband's face.
"There was something…weird…" He trailed off, unable to explain himself. "Something about those eyes, and that smile, I…" He shook his head and turned to Misty. "Don't worry, I'm probably just being paranoid or something." He kissed her briefly and turned back to the rest of his family, forcing himself to get the matter out of his mind.
What he didn't know was that the woman was herself in a bit of a conflict. She leaned against a tree when she was out of their view and breathed deeply, trying to regain some sort of self-control. They had never met before, but she knew who he was, and who his wife was too. Feeling more at ease with herself, she turned and began walking away, muttering inaudible words under her breath.
"Until we meet again, Ketchums. And next time it's not gonna be so rosy."
*******
"Ash! Misty! Oh wow, it's sooo good to see you guys!" Jessie exclaimed as she flung her arms around the two of them at the same time.
"Right back at ya, Jess" Ash said. The Ketchums had been the last to arrive, following more stops along the way to Viridian City, and hugs, handshakes and words were exchanged between everyone who had gathered at the Morgan residence.
"Wow, I can't believe we're all back together" Brock marvelled as the adults sat at the dinner table, keeping an eye on their respective children, who were slowly growing weary at the time of night.
"Yeah, it's been a while, huh?" James added. It was hard for everyone to be together at the same time with kids to look after and lives to lead in different places, and reunions such as these were always cherished and looked forward to.
It wasn't long before all the kids had been put to bed, surprisingly without protest that night, and the adults found themselves drinking coffee in the lounge during another one of their reflecting sessions.
"Do you guys realise that it's four years this weekend since we got the kids back?" Jessie announced.
"What? You've kept a date?" Misty asked in astonishment.
"Well...yeah..." Jessie admitted sheepishly. "How could I forget the day Jack came back to me?" She smiled at the memory, still able to stir up every emotion and feeling that had hit her at the sight of her little boy free from Gary's evil grasp and in her arms.
"S'pose you've got a point. Could be something to celebrate, the end of that horrible road we had to travel" Brock shrugged. His hand was intertwined with Wilhemina's, who was now resting her head on his shoulder in obvious fatigue. "You alright, Wil? You look shattered" Brock noticed.
"I'm alright" Wilhemina said reassuredly. "That trip still wacks me round a bit, though I don't know why. I don't think the constant chattering of your daughter helps matters" she grinned.
"Hey, remember, she did not get here by herself, she is as much you as she is me" Brock replied haughtily.
"Either way, she's gorgeous guys" Misty smiled. Wilhemina reflected her smile before she replied.
"Thanks Mist. Can say the same for your brood too."
"I think we're all pretty lucky, under the circumstances and all" Ash declared. Everyone agreed, silently thanking their lucky stars that they were all there in the first place, all alive and well. Ash was thanking his own lucky stars that he had been pronounced the father of Andrew, Scott and Felicity a few days after they had been born, thanking those stars that Gary's legacy only existed in the memory of those who had been unfortunate enough to cross his path.
They had all survived a combined battle and their own personal tragedies in the process, and had all come out with lives they'd been desperate for four years ago but had still seemed unreachable at the time. Something had spared them, their courage and determination had played a big part in their survival, and all of the devastation and tragedy had eventually paid off to give them what they had now. No one dared to look back, only to look forward, to the safety and happiness of themselves, their friends and their families.
A/N: Oh yeah, forgot to mention there was a huge time lapse there, 4 years, oops, lol. Anyways, both myself and G-O-Double-D would like to thank ALL you guys out there who have supported this story and reviewed, those reviews are always a buzz. Love 'em! Thanks soooo much guys, and keep an eye out for the sequel, "Dilemmas of the Heart," I'll be starting the prologue next week. Woohoo, the series doesn't end here! Once again, thanks everyone, take care, see ya in the sequel!!!