DISCLAIMER: I don't own Pokémon. No seriously, it's only a distant dream!

A/N: Wowee, here we are! And it's now rated R! I can't stop saying that…um, well thanks so much for the reviews thus far, and here it is, the morning after!

Chapter nine - Hope shining through the nightmare.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Mom demanded to know as she strode towards my bed. If I hadn't been quaking in absolute fear and anger I could've thrown the question back at her, but my lips were sealed against my will. "You answer your mother, girl!" Mom yelled when I failed to reply. She had a face like thunder and her voice would have woken up my sisters by now.

"I…I, um…Mom, listen -" I pathetically started.

"I am listening" Mom interrupted. I just prayed Ash would keep his mouth shut and not get on an even worse level with Mom, if that was at all possible.

"I'm in love with Ash" I blurted out. "I didn't tell you cos I knew you'd be angry, but I can't help it. I love him."

"Oh for God's sake, Misty, I absolutely REFUSE to go through all this love crap again. You," she pointed at Ash, "get out of here as soon as possible. I hope and expect to never see or hear from you again" she announced. "As for you Misty…I suggest you move it to the lounge as soon as possible." With that she slammed the door and I turned to Ash in shellshock.

"Um, I guess I better get going" he muttered.

"Yeah" I whispered, feeling tears well up in my eyes. An unwanted sob escaped my mouth and they only multiplied when Ash put his arms around me and held me close, letting me literally cry into his shoulder.

"Shh, Mist, this will work out somehow" he said soothingly.

"Not with her around!" I wailed.

"Misty, come on, hush" Ash said quietly. He kissed the top of my head and stroked my hair. "She can't stop our emotions, that's for sure."

"Yeah" I sniffled, pulling away from him and looking at him carefully in case I wouldn't be seeing him again for a long time. "I'll sneak out and visit you, I'll lie to her face to see you, I'll -"

"Misty, I don't want you getting in more trouble with her" Ash said.

"I couldn't possibly be" I smiled weakly as he wiped away the rivers of tears that had stained my cheeks.

"I'm sorry Mist, I shouldn't have -"

"Don't you dare say that!" I snapped. "This is not your fault. What happened happened because we both wanted it to and if she can't handle it then that's her own problem."

"Misty!" Mom's voice rang out. "Get out here!"

"Go" Ash urged. I slipped on a robe and initiated a long tender kiss between us.

"I love you" I murmured as I pulled away and stood up.

"Yeah yeah, I love you too" Ash said teasingly. "Get going. And don't go digging your grave deeper. You have to believe this will work out somehow."

"How are you gonna get out?" I asked timidly.

"Window" Ash replied, pointing to the window above my bed.

"Okay." I held back more tears and slowly stepped out of my room, walking towards my doom. I entered the lounge silently but keeping my head held high as I sat opposite my infuriated mother.

"I thought you told me you two were just friends" Mom started.

"Yeah, and I thought you told me it was just me and the other three coming here, not Mark and certainly not you" I replied calmly.

"This has nothing to do with Mark or myself. This is about you and your lies and your little toy boy" Mom snarled.

"Bullshit it is!" I yelled, my mouth getting away on me. "This is about your insecurity when I fall in love, your absolute hatred for Ash!"

"You honestly don't think you're in love with him" Mom slightly laughed. My narrowed eyes said it all and her sarcastic smile instantly dissolved. "I can't believe how incredibly naïve you are! God Misty, I thought I brought you up better than that!"

"You didn't bring me up at all! You brought up Violet and Daisy and Lily with all the love and care you'd expect from a mother. You practically gave Dad full custody of me and tended to overlook what you probably called the blemish in your otherwise perfect life!"

"Misty, I strongly suggest you take those tones out of your voice" Mom warned through clenched teeth.

"And what are you gonna do that could possibly upset me now, huh? You've done more than enough. I think you punished the both of us by being the one who gave birth to me" I said.

"Maybe you're right on that one. You're a disgrace to this family and you know it. You haven't got half the talent your sisters possess, you embarrass the lot of us by nearly drowning…and now this! Sleeping with some boy who you claim to love when you really don't have a clue!" Mom exclaimed.

Her words twisted an already planted knife in my heart and I struggled to let the tears break down my strength. To hear my own mother, no matter how much I despise her at times, calling me a disgrace and practically wishing I had never been born was a pain I could hardly bear. The only other person who could hurt me that badly with the same words would be Dad.

"Mom…" I regained my composure and tried to keep my voice stable. "I love Ash. I wouldn't have slept with him if I didn't love him."

"God help me…" Mom muttered in frustration. "I bet you didn't use any sort of protection either."

I froze. The thought had never even slightly occurred to me. Oh my God, how could I have forgotten something that important?! Speech pretty much escaped me at the realisation.

"Um…I, well, you see -"

"Oh great, now we'll have some Ketchum disease riddling you for the rest of our lives" Mom said coldly. "Just great. Nice one Misty. Imagine what our friends are going to say, and the press -"

"MOM! Give it a goddamn rest!" I screamed. "The press won't give a damn. I won't have a disease anyways."

"What makes you so sure of that?" Mom asked.

"I just know" I whispered unconvincingly.

"You don't know jack. I'll charge that bastard with statutory rape -"

"HE'S NOT A BASTARD AND IT WASN'T RAPE!" I screamed.

"You're underage and he knows it! That's statutory rape" Mom explained.

"Yeah, and rape is defined as forcing someone to have sex against their will. That isn't what happened. I wanted to -"

"You just shut your mouth, you little smart-ass" Mom interrupted. I lowered my eyes to the floor and clenched my fists into balls of rage. "Now, you're going to stay in Washbay for the next five weeks as we originally planned. But you are not going to see that boy ever again and I will be here to make sure of it" she announced.

"You're crazy!" I yelled. "Why do you have to do this to me and not to the other three?"

"Because they had the sense to wait until they were old enough and to use protection. They work hard for their careers so they can afford to go out and have sensible boyfriends. We thought if your swimming wasn't going to get you anywhere then Pokémon training might. But instead you come running home at the first downfall, you mope around the gym and achieve nothing but self-pity" Mom said.

"I was a lousy trainer anyway" I muttered.

"Maybe so, but at least it was a prospect. So we decide to send you here to see more of the world and meet different people. And instead you're back in the arms of the boy who ruined it all!" Mom sighed.

"So? What has that got to do with you?" I asked.

"I'm your mother and he is the world's youngest Pokémon Master! We all have public reputations to uphold here" Mom said.

"Well I don't" I pointed out.

"Talented or not, Misty, you are still a Waterflower. If any of this leaked to the press we would all be done for" Mom said severely.

"Why would the press care about what I do? They only care about the other thr -" I stopped myself as one simple but powerful word came into my head.

Giselle. Look what had happened to her because of the press. Of course, I didn't want to end up like her, but I still couldn't see any real interest in little old me. Giselle was important herself. Only my sisters were important, I wasn't, so who would…

"Misty? You were saying?" Mom had interrupted my pondering and I quickly shook my head in an attempt to rid my confusing thoughts.

"I can't remember" I said honestly.

"Look, I am doing this for the sake of the family. We can't afford to have our reputation tarnished" Mom said.

"Well gee Mom, that's real considerate, stopping my whole life so the rest of the family can benefit" I said bitterly.

"You can do better than someone who treats you like a whore" Mom informed me.

"He does anything but! He loves me, he always has, and I've always loved him. You can go ahead and try to stop us, but feelings like these only happen once in a lifetime and they're certainly powerful enough to overcome you" I said in pure determination. I was becoming exhausted from this battle that was going nowhere and I was already angry enough at everything Mom had to say about Ash and I.

"Stay away from him, Misty. That's an order. If you go against me the consequences will be too overwhelming for you to comprehend" Mom threatened.

"What the hell have you got against him?!" I yelled.

"He's ruined you for life! I won't see it happen again. When we get home, you are getting a job, and I refuse to see him trash that" Mom announced. A job? I didn't want a job. Although I suppose the income would pay for any visits I wanted to take up to Indigo Plateau.

"I'm going to get some breakfast" I muttered as I stood up. It was a weak excuse to get away from Mom but she didn't seem to have any protests at the prospect of me getting food.

My feet felt like lead as I walked the short distance to the kitchen and my heart didn't feel much different. Ash had promised me this would work, but he had no idea what Mom was like. He'd only seen a fraction of her wrath that morning.

I bit my lip in protest to the tears that were forming in my eyes and walked to my room, a mug of hot chocolate taking the role of my breakfast. The window was open, a slight breeze making the curtains dance, and I had to smile when I saw a note hastily scrawled and left to be discovered on my bed. I picked it up, scanning the words over as my smile got broader.

You told me not to say it so I'll write it instead. I'm so sorry for all this, I swear I'll make it up to you. She won't stop us. You know where I am if you get the chance, but DON'T TAKE ANY RISKS! This will work out. It's all I can promise you right now. Loving you till the end of time, Ash xoxo.

I sighed and stashed the note in the back of a drawer - the aim was for Mom to never find it. Reluctance dominated me as I had a shower and started getting dressed, as the prospect of staying in the bed where I had given myself to Ash and bawling my eyes out seemed far more appealing. But, apparently, life goes on, and I was reminded of this when Mom's shrill voice once again rang out.

"Misty! Are you dressed?"

"Yeah" I feebly replied, walking out of my room and towards the lounge.

"Good, your sisters want to take you out for the day" Mom announced as I entered the lounge. I eyed my three sisters in surprise but they had one of those 'play along with it' looks I knew so well from them, so I did as the look said.

"Okay then, let's, like, make a move" Daisy suggested. I followed them out the door and was in for a shock when Violet and Lily grabbed my arms forcefully and started leading me down the steps and onto the beach.

"Hey! What's going on?" I demanded to know.

"Just shut up and keep walking. This is, like, for your own sake" Lily informed me. I kept my mouth shut but couldn't help ignoring the little mounts of fear building up inside me. What were they going to do? Did they have a gun or something? Had I slipped something incriminating to Mom on accident? I wracked my brain for an answer but found it impossible and we stopped walking five fear-filled minutes later. We were well away from our bach but, I sadly realized, within painstaking view of Ash's.

"Sit" Violet ordered. I sank into the sand and looked up at the towering form of the three of them, my heart going into overtime. By now I was more than a little scared. I was on the brink of being insanely terrified. I gulped and was rearing to start praying when my sisters' lethal faces suddenly broke into unexpected grins and laughter reverberated my ears.

"Oh my God, we totally had her crapping her pants" Lily smirked.

"What's going on?" I asked weakly. The three of them sat in front of me and Violet gently touched my shoulder.

"Relax sweetie, we were just winding you up."

"Well thanks a lot" I sighed.

"But seriously, we do have a reason for bringing you out here. And I don't think you're gonna be entirely ungrateful for it either" Daisy declared.

"So let's hear it" I cautiously urged.

"Misty…we heard the whole thing with Mom just before. Did you really sleep with Ash, or was that just Mom, like, going through the roof?" Lily asked as all three of them gazed at me expectedly.

"That wasn't Mom going through the roof. I slept with Ash last night for the first time, and -"

"She walked in on you?!" Violet gasped in horror.

"Well, it was morning, I'd only just woken up" I shrugged.

"Oh Mist" Daisy sighed. "That's why we were telling you to call her. She was threatening to come here if you didn't start behaving."

"What! And you didn't tell me?!" I exclaimed.

"We figured that since you weren't listening to us when we were telling you to call her that you wouldn't listen if we told you that she was visiting. You would've thought we were joking" Lily explained.

"Shit" I muttered. "You're probably right."

"Why'd ya do it, Mist? No protection or anything" Violet said in exasperation.

"Look, it happened because we're in love. We knew it was going to happen and we couldn't stop it, nor did we try to" I explained.

"Well lil' sis, we have a deal to propose to you" Lily announced.

I raised an eyebrow. "A deal?"

"Okay, Mom has no idea how wild it gets here. She knows there are parties and stuff but she doesn't really know how big" Daisy started.

"Yeah. She doesn't know about the drinking and the nights we don't come home and the…other stuff" Violet mumbled.

"What, the sex?" I grinned. Violet turned a shade of crimson at the word. "I've dropped hints to her before but she doesn't believe me" I added.

"Exactly. Even if she did hear what goes on here, she'd immediately tell herself that we wouldn't dare be a part of it. But the truth is, we are. And quite frankly, we're having too much of a good time to stop before we need to" Daisy said.

"You see how much she restricts us" Lily groaned. "How long she makes us work. If she found out what we were doing now, we'd be whisked home to practice and perform even more."

"Okay Mist, here's the bottom line: you help us, we help you" Daisy said.

"You want me to keep your little stunts under wraps?" I asked. The three of them nodded, and I immediately started thinking of blackmail. It was all too perfect, too easy in a situation like this. If you don't do this for me, I'll tell Mom that you… But something was intriguing me. "How does this benefit me at all?"

"Imagine how incredibly coincidental it would be if the three of us took you to a party every night and we just happened to go past that bach over there" Violet grinned slyly, pointing to Ash's bach.

"WHAT?!" I shouted.

"Geez Mist, keep it down" Violet complained, sounding like she now regretted her choice of words.

"It'd be so easy. We'd say we're taking you partying and instead of you coming with us, you could go see Ash. If you came home before us, you could say we got separated and you were tired" Lily explained. "We could always say we stayed at a friend's house if we didn't make it home till the next day. She knows our friends here."

"You…you guys would do that for me?" I asked in a voice strangled by emotion.

"We won't tell if you won't" Violet said.

"Sweetie, we know how much he means to you. We've known for…God, how many years now? Five?" Unable to find a conclusive answer, Daisy shrugged and turned back to me. "You wouldn't have slept with him if he wasn't important to you. But this is important to us. This is how we let loose and it's a lot harder to do that now that Mom's here."

"So Mist? Would you do it?" Lily asked hopefully. I didn't even have to think before an answer spurted from my mouth.

"Of course I'll do it!" I exclaimed. I quickly refrained from getting too excited when I thought flashed in my mind. "Are you all for real?"

"Duh!" Violet shouted. "As much as we love Mom, well…she can kinda be a dampener when it comes to parties."

"And we know how she treats you like shit. We've gotta admit…we haven't been much better" Daisy confessed as the other two nodded. "This is our way of making it up to you."

The words of gratitude refused to leave my choked up throat, so instead I hugged the three of them simultaneously, feeling some kind of bond develop between us. We'd never really bonded before, so this was nothing short of a miracle.

I pulled away with tears flooding my eyes. "Oh don't gimme that look Mist, you'll make me cry" Violet whine. I had to laugh. She had always been branded the emotional one out of the four of us.

"I'm sorry, it's just…"

"We know." Lily smiled compassionately. "Now tonight, we're going out. It's not essential we come home cos, like we said, Mom knows we have friends here. But it is critical that you do. You know what to say if we're not there, right?" I nodded. "Okay. Some nights we're gonna hafta meet up or she'll get suspicious, but we'll sort that out later."

"Sounds good" I confirmed.

"In that case, we're going to get some brunch. You want in?" Daisy asked. I stood up and smiled at the sisters I never would have imagined truly connecting with until now.

"I think I can handle a shake." With that the four of us walked off and I smiled in anticipation as we passed Ash's bach. It would become a second home for me every night from now on. Maybe he had been right when he said this would all work out.

A/N: I can barely type this, my fingernails have grown too long. That is totally not relevant so I think I will leave before it gets even worse. Next chapter out soon, I do update this thing quickly but I might start giving it a couple of days in between chapters. I might have to, my sis is getting titchy because I hog the computer. ANYWAYS, I swear I'll be quiet now! AAML forever!