DISCLAIMER: I don't own Pokémon.

A/N: This is hard to write because I have a German yelling in my ear. Haha! Just don't ask, just read and review and flame or whatever you feel like.

Chapter twenty four - Day One

"All rise for the honorable Judge Jacobs."

I practically shot to my feet at the words. Nothing was going wrong in this trial - nothing. Not even the judge's arrival. Ash eyed me strangely as he rose to greet the judge but didn't utter a word until we sat down.

"Relax." It was all he said and I nodded, keeping my stare straight ahead. I was anything but relaxed. I could see my mother plain as day, my sisters and my father sitting in the audience gallery behind me. This was so scary. An image flashed in my mind of me getting up and running straight out the door with aghast faces watching me, much like some sort of comedy or drama movie.

"Case 314, Waterflower vs. Ketchum, on the claims of emotional damage." I don't know who that guy was who said all that stuff. He just appeared to be the guy who filled the judge in. "Jury may enter." And right on command, twelve men and women walked in and took their seats.

There isn't usually a jury but Mom had sued for such a huge amount that it was one of those exceptions. Twelve strangers would decide whether my Ash was guilty of emotional damage when he had emotionally healed me after a long struggle.

The trial was only expected to take two or so days unless the jury couldn't come to a decision, in which case there would be a re-trial with a different jury board. I prayed that wouldn't happen. I just couldn't face all this again.

"The prosecution may make their opening statement" Judge Jacobs announced. Mom's lawyer stood up, his black hair sleeked back and beady eyes scanning over the court room. I glowered at the mere sight of him. He looked oilier than his hair.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, we are here to hopefully restore a shattered woman's life. A respected member of many communities, Maria Waterflower had watched her youngest daughter be sent home from a heartbreak that seemed unfixable. Her nurturing instincts welcomed young Misty back into the gym and for two years she tried to help her daughter through a very trying time."

I swear to God I would've screamed out 'objection' if my mouth wasn't superglued by the words I had just heard. Nurturing? Welcomed? Help?! This was ridiculous.

"Yet the defendant once again waltzed back into the Waterflowers' lives and enticed the youngest daughter back to a life of sin. That youngest daughter is now nearly nine months pregnant with his child. She has had her innocence and her life destroyed by the same man and all Maria Waterflower is trying to do, ladies and gents, is help her daughter. Reputations have been tarnished, rumours have spread and lives have been devastated by the events this man here -" He pointed to Ash at this stage " - has let come to pass. So all I ask of you is that you have an ear of sympathy for this woman. She has been through hell and back for the sake of her daughter, for the sake of her family and her other daughters' careers. All she wants is to see justice put in its rightful place."

I could've died. I could've screamed, I could've punched my mother for making that bullshit up, but I didn't. Of course I didn't, I would probably be in jail right now if I had done all that. No, I just sat calmly and squeezed Ash's hand when Jenny took to the stage. At least what she had to say was the truth.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I too am trying to restore shattered lives. Imagine it - you're fifteen years old, you run into an old flame you were head over heels in love with, and that flame soon ignites to something huge. Something you only get once in a lifetime. It's not something all of us can claim has happened to us, but for those of us who have been a part of this magic, we know that it's something incredible. My client felt this the moment he laid eyes on Misty Waterflower at the mere age of ten years old. Five years later the two were reunited and love ran its inevitable course. As a result, Misty is now pregnant and has had to face many tribulations. And who has been by her side the whole time? None other than Ashton Ketchum, the same man the prosecution is claiming to damage someone's life. How can this woman -" Now she was pointing at Mom, "- say she is looking out for her daughter's well-being when her daughter is obviously very happy and very in love with a man who wants nothing but to be there for her?"

Hmm. I liked the way she kept calling him a man. At this thought, I tried not to let my erupting giggles escape and instead bit my lip furiously.

"As you will hear in the upcoming witness accounts, Maria Waterflower apparently had no concern for her daughter at all. She was looking out for her reputation, for her triplet daughters' promising careers and for her own well-being. It's hard to imagine your daughter being pregnant and alone at the age of fifteen, but Misty was lucky. She had my client. The thought of having someone there for your child would usually be comforting - but not to Mrs. Waterflower. Ladies and gentlemen, these two teenagers have endured so much already and have no reason to be here except to witness a jealous woman's power trip. You too will see that in the upcoming days."

Wow! She really socked it to 'em! I was grinning when she sat back down and I could see Mom scathing opposite us. I had a mad desire to stick my tongue out at her or pull the finger out on her but I controlled myself. Ash was smiling too. He had every right to be confident. We would snag this.

"Prosecution may begin their examination." The judge didn't seem to do much. He wasn't even writing notes. And I couldn't stand his wig. Yuck. Even someone with no fashion sense had to cringe at the white deformed mop that adorned his head.

"Prosecution calls Maria Waterflower to the witness stand."

I watched my mother slowly walk up to the box and calmly take a seat. No expression crossed her face when she swore to tell the truth (which I inwardly swore she wouldn't do) and the examination began.

"Mrs. Waterflower, how many children do you have?"

"I have four daughters." Ding ding, the most honest answer Mom would give today.

"Uh-huh. And you love your daughters."

"I love all four of them" Mom beamed. She almost looked genuine and I almost started gagging.

"You love your daughters so much that if a boy made any of them unhappy you would instantly feel protective towards them, correct?"

"It's a mother's maternal instinct. I only want the best for my daughters and I hate to see any of them unhappy."

"So when Misty fell pregnant to the defendant, who was your anger directed towards more?"

"Ash of course. He had devastated Misty once before, I didn't want her going through that again. It killed me to see her so forlorn" Mom said sadly.

Give me a goddamn break! Geez, if my mind had been my mouth I would've been in so much trouble by now. I couldn't look at Mom as she continued to sickly describe her overwhelming love for me and her anger towards Ash for 'making Misty unhappy.' Yeah, nice one Mom.

"How do you feel at the prospect of having a grandchild so early in your life?"

"That child is nothing more than an illegitimate offspring of the imbecile who broke my daughter's heart" Mom said coldly. Her words froze all sort of life within me as I struggled to comprehend what she was saying. Ash had broken my heart, sure, but that was in the past. Now he was making me happy and she didn't care. She still called him an imbecile. It really threw me.

The questions were pretty boring and all the answers were crap, but she was obviously appealing to the jury to make them realise how much she loved me. Oh Mom. The truth shall set you free, you silly git.

"Do you wish to cross-examine?" the judge asked Jenny.

"I do, your honor." With that she rose from her seat and slowly walked towards Mom with menacing eyes. Ooh she was good. Even her eyes scared the shit out of anyone she considered an enemy. "Mrs. Waterflower, did you or did you not physically slap your daughter in the face when she told you she was pregnant?"

A gasp reverberated around the court room, a gasp that developed into whispers that caused the judge to bang down his hammer in an order for silence. Mom's eyes had gone wide. She looked like a trapped doe, but I knew there was no innocence within her like there would be at a defenseless doe.

"I…I, um, well…"

"Please just answer yes or no, Mrs. Waterflower." There was a long pause before Mom averted her eyes and muttered out her answer.

"Yes."

The jurors started taking notes and Ash flashed a discreet smile at me. Round one to Jenny. We were on our way to freedom.

"And why did you do this to a daughter you were supposedly trying to protect? Surely if you were that concerned about her safety you wouldn't have slapped her, ultimately putting her in danger of physical and emotional injury?" Another bulls eye for Jenny.

"I…I was angry, I didn't know how to react. She broke the news so suddenly" Mom said feebly.

"Okay. Also shortly after Misty broke the news you ordered her out of your house, isn't that right?" Jenny started. Mom furiously shook her head in response. "Well we have evidence of this by the latest census of Kanto that showed that Misty was living in the Ketchum household in Pallet Town, whereas at the Cerulean Gym she was not even mentioned in the census." Jenny handed some papers over to the judge, who scanned them with fixated eyes.

"She chose to go!" Mom exclaimed. "She didn't want to stay, she thought she would shame us all."

Oh my God. I hate her.

"Misty, Ash, Delia Ketchum and Jeff Waterflower have all testified that she was kicked out. We have recorded the testaments for evidence."

Jeff Waterflower? Dad?! I turned my head with wide eyes to meet his vacant stare, but he smiled at me when he met my gaze.

"Jeff wanted her out too!"

"That's not the question, Mrs. Waterflower. You have lied to a state court about Misty's dwelling conditions. Your honesty will be observed closely from this moment on" Judge Jacobs said warningly. Mom looked despondent, I looked over the moon, and Jenny couldn't help a little smile escape her lips.

"No further questions."

"The prosecution may now call their second witness" Judge Jacobs announced. The nerves came back, no matter how confident I had felt at the last round victory.

Geez, I sounded like I was talking about a Pokémon battle.

"Prosecution calls Violet Waterflower to the witness stand."

I couldn't look up as Violet walked over to the stand. Just as I was beginning to get on with her and the other two they had gone against me and it was a pain that still stung at me like it had happened yesterday.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I do" Violet replied quietly.

"Can you tell me Violet what has happened since your sister fell pregnant to the defendant?"

"Once the media got a hold of it, we had to change our whole lifestyle. We've sold the gym, me and my sisters are working at various places rather than swimming which is our passion, we're living in a small house and it has put so much strain on our whole family. People think we encouraged her to be with Ash but we knew he was trouble. Lots of our things have been repossessed and…" Violet trailed off and bit her lip. "It's just so shameful, knowing that our baby sister went out and did something like this."

"And what kind of toll has it taken on your family?"

"We're all so stressed. Mom and Dad argue a lot and none of us seem to be happy anymore. It weighs on all our minds" Violet sighed.

She didn't present anything that was too damning so Jenny decided not to cross-examine. By the time Violet had finished answering her questions it was 4.30 (yeah, trials take a while don't they?) and the judge declared it adjourned until 1pm the next day. Then it would be our turn to call witnesses to the stand. We had three, even though the prosecution only had two, but there was nothing wrong with that.

And I was one of them. Lucky me.

"You guys were fantastic!" Brock exclaimed as we walked out of the court room. "You've pretty much got it nailed, those jurors were nothing but shocked when they heard about the whole slapping thing. Plus the fact that your mom lied has got her in a lot of hot water."

"I think we all owe Jenny a massive thank you" Ash said quietly. We would've, but Jenny was talking to the judge and a few other officials about witnesses or something. I don't really know. I was just so grateful to get out of that room and away from the people in there.

I sat down on a bench to rest my ankles (sounds pathetic doesn't it?) while the guys and Delia were discussing what had happened when someone sat beside me and took in a deep breath.

"I'm on your side, Misty."

I slowly turned my head around to meet my father's eyes and broke into a huge grin at the sight of him. No other words were said as I accepted his outstretched arms, falling into a hug I didn't want to let go of. I couldn't believe he had privately testified against Mom.

"Daddy…thank you" I whispered.

"I'm sorry your mother is doing this to you both" Dad started as he pulled away. "You don't deserve it. I've told her a thousand times over that she's mad and it's hopeless but she won't listen. With that lawyer you've got you should nail it."

"Here's hoping" I sighed. It was at this point Ash walked over and smiled broadly at the two of us. He could've been in a tropical spa resort, he looked so relaxed.

"You feeling okay Mist?" Ash asked in concern.

"My feet just got a bit sore. Stupid isn't it, I've only been standing up for five minutes" I laughed. Suddenly my manners found me as I realised Ash hadn't met Dad. "Um, Ash, this is my father, Jeff. Dad, this is Ash." The two of them shook hands and now my father was the one smiling.

"My many thanks to you, Ash. You have made my daughter happier than anyone I know."

"Huh? But I broke up with her when we were thirteen and got her pregnant and -"

"I know all that" Dad gently interrupted. "But I can safely say that it appears to be worth it. There is no way Misty would be smiling at all if she were back in Cerulean with us. You've given her enough love to last a lifetime and for that I am truly grateful. I don't care what Maria says, she's gone over the line this time, and I think I'll -"

"Jeff! I've been looking for you everywhere, come on, we've got a meeting with Jonathon" Mom's shrill voice rang out. I could see her but avoided her eye as she approached us.

"Who's Jonathon?" I cautiously asked.

"The lawyer" Dad explained. I nodded and watched Mom getting closer and closer. What would I say to her? What would Ash say to her? I suddenly became very frightened.

"Jeff, we've got to go" she said simply.

"Can you give me a minute?" Dad asked wearily.

"We can't afford to waste even a minute at the moment." Mom turned her glare on me and I gulped, cursing myself for being so pathetic in front of her.

"Hi Mom" I managed to squeak out.

"I don't think there's any room for pleasantries right now. We'll see the both of you tomorrow" Mom announced. She strode away with Dad slowly following, although he turned and waved to us both. He looked sort of sad as he followed her out of the court house, his shoulders slumped and his pace slow. I frowned at Ash when he sat down beside me.

"I hope Dad's alright. He doesn't seem to be acting like himself."

"This whole thing must be stressing him. It must be stressing everyone involved, yourself included, so we are getting you back to the hotel to rest" Ash announced.

"I don't want to rest" I complained, though I was actually exhausted. I didn't realise this would take such a toll on me. "I want to sort out what we're doing tomorrow."

"Simple, we're calling you to the stand and you're going to answer every single question truthfully" Ash said seriously. "You're the key to bringing her down and you don't have to lie to do it like she does. After this we'll be free, our lives are our own when this is over."

I smiled at that prospect and eventually let him talk me into leaving. There was nothing more we needed to discuss with Jenny or anyone else for that matter, so Ash and I left with Brock and Delia in tow for a night's rest we would all desperately be needing. Tomorrow was the defense's turn, we would all be in the spotlight.

Delia hugged the both of us simultaneously (as only Delia can do) and decided she'd make dinner at the hotel. I had to laugh. This wasn't exactly a holiday or a reason to celebrate (yet) but Delia couldn't help herself.

That night, for the first time in nine months, I slept beside Ash, thanks to Delia's backing down a bit on the rules. Now DON'T go getting any thoughts of that kind because seriously, I was nine months pregnant. Yeah, kinda freezes that idea doesn't it? But all sarcasm aside, it was the most comforting and nicest feeling in the world. I fell asleep with his arms around me, holding me close, and with nothing but sweet dreams of him and victory over my mother invading my mind.

A/N: Can't write much cos my concentration is shattered. AAML forever! (we'll throw that in there cos I haven't said it in a while!)