Chapter 21: Home At Last
The next morning, as he usually was, Brock was the first to wake. He just lay there for a moment trying to reorient himself after a wonderful night's sleep. Brock realized that he felt extremely rested and ready for the day and it was only when he glanced beside him that he understood why. He saw Angelica sleeping comfortably next to him and he remembered the night before when she had come to him saying she couldn't sleep. He had wanted her to stay with him and tried to stay awake but after Angelica had promised that she wouldn't leave she began rubbing his back and had soon lulled Brock into an extremely deep sleep.
Brock then slid from his bed, being extremely careful not to wake Angelica, and crept out of the room and down the hall into the kitchen. He was planning to make breakfast for everyone. The hardest problem for Brock was trying to keep relatively quiet and not disturb the others because he was used to cooking for his siblings and purposely banging pots and pans around to get them up for school. But this morning, he went about making breakfast with such silence that a pin drop could be heard.
A few minutes later, Brock heard quiet footsteps and felt Angelica wrap her arms around him. He turned around and gave her a kiss and gathered her into his arms and gave her a great hug.
"Good morning, my lovely angel." Brock greeted her with a smile.
"Good morning. What, may I ask, are you doing? One minute I felt you beside me and a few minutes later I woke up and you were gone." Angelica asked.
"Well, I'm making breakfast for all of us. The reason I was gone when you woke up was because I was going to let you sleep for a while. You seemed so comfortable when I left."
"I didn't know you could cook. On top of that you are one of the sweetest, most caring guys that I have ever met. Will I ever stop being amazed by you, Brock?" Angelica laughed.
"There are several interesting things about me that you don't know yet so no I don't think you'll ever have an end to your amazement with me. I'll always try to find a new way to surprise you." Brock teased her.
"Would you mind too much if I helped you to make breakfast?" Angelica asked.
"Of course I don't mind. But you'll have to be quiet though because we need to let the others get some sleep because they have a pretty good drive ahead of them after they leave here and they were all exhausted last night. No need to wake them just yet." Brock whispered.
So Angelica helped Brock make breakfast, neither of them was saying very much. They were just content on enjoying each other's company and they were very quiet so they didn't disturb their friends who were still sleeping down the hall.
* * * * *
About fifteen minutes later Ash was awakened by the wonderful smells coming from the kitchen. He slowly opened his eyes and saw that Misty was already awake and looking at him smiling. He returned her smile and gave her a small kiss.
"Good morning. I thought you'd never wake up." Misty teased playfully.
"What in the world were you doing this whole time?" Ash asked sleepily.
"Actually I wasn't doing much. Just lying here beside you and watching you sleep." Misty confessed.
Upon hearing this Ash just groaned and put the pillow over his head. This really had no effect on anything other than relieving a little embarrassment because Misty simply picked the pillow up and kissed Ash's lips.
"You are so predictable Misty." Ash whispered.
"I know. Thanks for the compliment." Misty giggled. "Anyway, did you sleep well last night? You looked very peaceful."
"Yeah. I slept like a rock last night. I don't think I realized how beat I really was until we went to bed and were resting. Sorry I fell asleep on you while you were talking last night but you have such a relaxing voice that I couldn't keep my eyes open. I don't think I've slept so soundly in a long time." Ash said quietly.
"It's okay. I wasn't offended when you fell asleep on me. I knew that you were worn out after all of our return travel yesterday and then driving all the way here from the airport. I also knew since we're heading home today that you really needed to rest." Misty reassured Ash with a sweet smile before deciding to change the subject. "Hey, do you smell that? Smells like Brock's making some breakfast."
"Yep. It does smell good. Actually that's what woke me up this morning." Ash blushed a little. "Some things never change, do they Mist?"
"Nope. Hey, I have an idea. Why don't we get dressed and go see what Brock's whipping up that smells so good." Misty suggested.
"Sounds good, but there's something else I'd like to do first." Ash smiled.
"What's that, Ash?" Misty's curiosity was peaked.
Instead of answering her question, Ash turned to face Misty, being very careful not to disturb Pikachu who was sleeping at the end of the bed, and leaned in like he intended to kiss her. Then as he went to seemingly put his arms around Misty, Ash sneakily put his plan into action and slid his hands down and started to lightly tickle her ribs. He knew this was one of her worst tickle spots so she wouldn't be able to keep from laughing.
"Hey! Ash, what are you doing? That tickles!" Misty laughed.
"Aren't paybacks horrible, love? I know that your ribs are extremely ticklish and very sensitive so I decided that was my target for your little tickle torture." Ash grinned as he began to tickle up and down Misty's ribs very lightly as to really tickle her.
"Paybacks.. are.. the.. worst!" Misty couldn't believe that Ash was doing this.
As Ash continued to tickle Misty's ribs, even occasionally sneaking a very light tickle under her arms, he spied something that would help him to torture her even more. There was a hole in the side of the pillow he had been sleeping on that was just big enough that he might be able to pull a couple of the feathers out. So he reached over and felt for and grabbed the two biggest feathers and pulled them just into Misty's view and freaked her out.
"Ash. no! What. are. you. going. to. do. with. those. feathers? You. know. I'm. too. ticklish. If. you. tickle. me. with. those. you're. being. cruel." Misty pleaded, trying to buy time against the unbearable tickle torture that she knew was coming.
"Call me cruel then." Ash grinned evilly as he took a feather in each hand and began to tickle Misty's ribs again.
"Oh. You are so very ticklish and these feathers are so soft. I'll bet they tickle so badly when I stroke them slowly down your sides. You probably wish I was still using my fingers. Let's see if I can find some other ticklish spots when I use my little friends." Ash taunted Misty as she wriggled and squirmed trying unsuccessfully to get away from the feathers he was using to torment her with.
Then Ash began exploring with his fingers again trying to narrow down her weakest tickle points. It wasn't long before he found another one on her feet. Misty laughed harder than she ever had before when Ash went for his feathers and began using the soft points to draw on her feet in all sorts of designs, each of them tickling her more than the last.
"I can't believe he's actually using feathers and drawing pictures with them to tickle my feet. This is horrible torture. What he's doing now tickles worse than when he was tickling my ribs." Misty thought. But nothing could prepare her for the intense tickles that were coming up.
As soon as he finished using the feathers to draw on Misty's feet, Ash decided to give her a taste of what she had put him through when she had tickled his feet that one morning on the boat. So he winked at her as he reached one hand up and pulled the toes back on one of Misty's very ticklish feet.
"No! You. can't. tickle. my. toes. with. that! I. won't. be. able. to. stand. it. Please. don't.tickle. my. toes. with. that. feather!" Misty begged as Ash continued to tickle her foot with the feather in his free hand while he held her toes back with the other.
"Why not? If I remember correctly you had a great time tickling my feet the morning by the pool. I don't see what the big deal is." Ash smiled.
"But. I. didn't. tickle. your. toes. with. a. soft. feather. I. know. that. you're. too. ticklish." Misty begged, somehow knowing that she wasn't doing any good.
"I can't give you any points there love, because you wouldn't have hesitated to use a feather to inflict even more tickle torture if you'd had one. I just lucked out." Ash teased.
Then he decided that he wouldn't wait any longer. Ash took one of the feathers that he was using to tickle the soles of Misty's feet while he taunted her and began tickling under her toes very lightly with it. As he had guessed the base of her toes were highly ticklish and since Misty couldn't move her toes to stop the feather's tickle it was driving her out of her mind. Ash also decided to up the ante a little and reach up with a free finger and tickle her toes themselves as he stroked under them with the feather.
"Hmmm. Looks like you're more ticklish than you're letting on. This is very interesting. Your toes are very sensitive but I think that I know one more place that will tickle even worse and is even more ticklish than your feet." Ash taunted as he reached up, grabbing Misty's wrist and pulling her arm up over her head.
"Now, my dear, it's time for you to really laugh. Nobody can stand having their underarms tickled and soft feathers are bound to make it worse." Ash smiled as he took both of the feathers in one hand and began tickling Misty's underarms. "Tickle, tickle, tickle."
It was obvious to Ash that he had found her very weakest point where she couldn't stand to be tickled because her underarms were extremely sensitive and the tickle was intense.
"Ash. stop! I. can't. stand. it. anymore. You. win. My. underarms. are. very. sensitive. I'm. sorry. about. that. thing. on. the.ship." Misty laughed breathlessly as she spied a way out of this. "Pikachu. help!!!"
"Pika, Pikachupi." (Okay, Misty.) Pikachu said as he took aim. "Pi ka CHUUU!" Pikachu cried as he fired a strong jolt of electricity that knocked Ash back against the bed, causing him to stop tickling Misty.
"Pikachu! Why did you do that?" Ash asked, trying to sound angry even though he was extremely amused.
"Pikachupi chu ka pika pi pikachu, Pikapi." (Misty asked for my help first, Ash.) Pikachu answered as he jumped in between Ash and Misty and they cuddled him.
"I'll give you one thing, Ash. You sure did get even with me." Misty laughed as she gave her fiancé a kiss to show she wasn't mad at him.
"Yeah. Well I also got you to apologize which was something that was very welcomed." Ash said. The result he got from this comment was that Misty took her pillow and threw it at his head.
"Hey, why don't we check out what Brock's coming up with in the kitchen now?" Ash asked as he got up off of the bed and began changing clothes.
"Yeah. That does sound like a good idea. I'm starving." Misty smiled as she winked at Ash and went to get dressed as well.
A few minutes later both of them were ready and they walked hand in hand to the kitchen to see what Brock was up to.
* * * * *
Carla sat up and was suddenly frightened as she tried to ascertain just what was going on. Then she realized what it was that had woke her up. Ash and Misty were in the next room making so much noise that it sounded like the wall was going to come crashing down. Just then Carla looked next to her and saw that Tracey was still sleeping peacefully. She rolled her eyes and smiled.
"How in the world can he sleep through that?" Carla thought.
Just then Carla leaned down and kissed Tracey on the cheek. When she did this he stirred and slowly opened his eyes and looked at her. By this time the noise from the room next door had died down and the wall had stopped shaking.
"Good morning, pretty lady." Tracey smiled sleepily.
"Hey. You must have been really exhausted last night. You seemed to be sleeping pretty hard just now." Carla said as she leaned up against him.
"Yeah. I think I was pretty out of it. Why? Did I miss something while I was asleep?" Tracey asked, confused.
"Well. A few minutes ago it sounded like the wall was going to come crashing down on top of us because Ash and Misty were making so much noise." Carla laughed.
"Ugh. I guess it's a good thing I didn't hear it then. I probably would have tried to put a stop to it. What do you think they were doing in there anyway?" Tracey groaned.
"I don't really know but I do know it was loud. It scared me to death. I thought it was an earthquake or something. But right now, judging by what I smell, I would venture a guess that they're going to follow those smells into the kitchen." Carla smiled.
"Yeah. When I was traveling with Ash and Misty, I always knew Ash to think with his stomach. I guess that's one thing about him that will never change in a million years." Tracey laughed.
"Maybe not but my stomach is telling me that it might be a good idea for us to join them. I'm really hungry." Carla said as she took Tracey's hand and helped him to get up off of the bed.
"I agree with you. I'm hungry too and from what Ash and Misty have told me from past experience, Brock can cook up a storm." Tracey agreed, getting ready for breakfast as he was talking.
Soon they were both ready to join their friends and when they left the room Tracey decided to be cute so he picked Carla up in his arms and carried her down the hall into the kitchen.
* * * * *
A few minutes later, Ash and Misty appeared in the kitchen and were greeted by a smile from their friends. As their noses told them, Brock was just finishing preparing a wonderful breakfast with Angelica's help.
"Hey guys. What were you guys doing? Trying to tear my place down. We heard the walls shaking all the way in here." Brock laughed.
"Well, let's just say I got a little bit of payback." Ash grinned as he hugged Misty and Brock rolled his eyes.
In the same moment, they saw Tracey come walking into the kitchen carrying Carla in his arms. Upon seeing this, the four standing in the kitchen began laughing.
"You sure do know how to make an entrance, don't you Tracey?" Ash laughed.
"I guess I do. But at least I didn't give Misty a frightening wake up call by making so much noise that it sounded like the wall was going to collapse on you guys." Tracey countered.
"Well, anyway. Let's quit goofing around and get to some breakfast before it gets cold." Angelica smiled as they all sat down to eat.
After they finished polishing off the delicious breakfast that Brock had made, Ash, Misty, Tracey and Carla gathered their thing and got ready to leave for Pallet Town.
* * * * *
Once they had everything that they had brought inside with them and had said goodbye to their friends, thanking Brock for giving them somewhere to stay the night before, Ash, Misty, Tracey and Carla loaded into Ash's car to make the hour and a half trip back. As they traveled down the road, the four began talking about the previous night and the noisy fun that had been had that morning.
"That sure was nice of Brock to let us stay with him last night. I don't know about you guys, but I feel a lot better after a good rest." Tracey said.
"Yeah. I'm really glad we stayed. I didn't realize how worn out I was until Misty and I went to bed and were just lying there relaxing. I didn't know that driving that short of a distance would make me so tired."
"Maybe it was that on top of the fact that we had a couple of time changes on the way back too." Misty pointed out.
"If I can change the subject, what in the world were you two up to this morning? At first I thought it was an earthquake or something and then I realized that it was you guys making an awful commotion. I never knew two people could make so much noise." Carla inquired with a curious smile.
"Do you want to tell them what was going on?" Ash asked.
"If you think we should, it's okay with me." Misty smiled.
"Okay. Tracey, do you remember that morning on the ship when we went up to the pool and you stayed in the room and went back to sleep? The morning before Misty and I got engaged." Ash asked.
"Yeah. I remember that. I came up to join you later on and you were taking a nap." Tracey recalled.
"Well, that morning before you and Brock met up with us Misty and I were talking about the formal dinner that night. Anyway, I was trying to get her to tell me about her dress for that night and she wanted to keep it a surprise and didn't want me pestering her so she decided to keep me quiet about it and she tickled my feet." Ash explained.
"So when we woke up this morning Ash decided to get even with me for that so he acted like he was going to kiss me but instead he started tickling me. Then he found a couple of feathers from somewhere and started using those. That's why we were making so much noise." Misty smiled.
"Oh. So that's what was going on. I knew something had to have been happening for you to sound like you were bringing the walls down." Carla laughed.
"How in the world did you stop him from doing that?" Tracey remarked.
"Well. Luckily for me, Pikachu was down on the end of the bed and I screamed for his help and he thundershocked Ash and saved me." Misty grinned as she patted Pikachu on the head and gave Ash a kiss.
As they were talking, Ash was so distracted that he almost missed Professor Oak's lab and would have if Misty hadn't alerted him.
* * * * *
When they reached Professor Oak's lab, Ash and Misty helped Tracey and Carla get their things out of the car and walked inside with them to say hello to Professor Oak.
As they walked into the lab, Muk came barreling down the hall and preceded to jump on Tracey happily and he fell to the floor and disappeared under the Pokemon's slimy purple body, causing Carla to scream. Hearing the noise in the hallway, Professor Oak stepped out to see what the noise was all about and smiled as he saw Muk on top of Tracey and Ash and Misty trying to explain the whole situation to a frightened young woman.
"Okay Muk. Get off of Tracey. I know you're happy to see him but crushing him isn't really the way to show it." Professor Oak admonished the Pokemon as it crawled contentedly away down the hall.
"Thanks, Professor. It was really getting hard to breathe under there." Tracey smiled in greeting.
"It's no problem at all, Tracey. I know how Muk is. You remember that I've been crushed by him many times. You must be the young woman that Tracey told me so much about." Professor Oak addressed Carla who had immediately gone to Tracey's side as soon as Muk had gotten off of him.
"Hi. My name is Carla. Tracey has told me nothing but great things about you also." Carla smiled.
"It's nice to meet you, Carla. I'm glad to have you here. Tracey and I have been in the market for some good help for a long time." Professor Oak finished as he turned to the others. "So did you have a nice trip?"
"Yeah. It was great! There were no problems at all with the air situation. I wouldn't mind doing the whole vacation thing again sometime." Ash said.
"You should see the new things that they did to the S.S. Anne. It's absolutely beautiful. We stayed in a very comfortable room. I knew that it had been improved but it was more spectacular than I even expected." Misty smiled.
"A vacation was exactly what I needed. I feel like a totally different person than I was when I left. It felt really good to just get away for a while and be able to relax without having to worry. I really appreciate the opportunity, Professor." Tracey said. "I got a little bonus out of it too."
"Yeah. I still can't believe that this is actually happening. This is way more than I've ever dreamed of." Carla grinned.
"Well, I can certainly understand how you feel. How about Tracey and I show you around a little." Professor Oak smiled. He was beginning to realize what Tracey had told him about Carla.
"Sure. That would be wonderful. I'd love to see this place that I've heard so much about."
"Okay. Let's go. Ash, Misty would you guys like to have something to drink with us." Professor Oak offered.
"No thanks. We really have to get going. After two weeks of being gone my mom is probably pacing holes in the floor wondering where we are." Ash laughed.
"Yeah. You guys have things to do anyway making sure Carla gets settled here. We'll see you guys later, though." Misty smiled as she took Ash by the hand.
"Okay. Tell your mom hello, Ash. See you later." Professor Oak said as Ash and Misty headed out the door.
* * * * *
Once they had arrived back home, Ash and Misty got their luggage and went in the house. They opened the door and were greeted by Mr. Mime.
"Mime, mime mime!" (Hey, they're back!) Mr. Mime shouted excitedly.
"What's wrong, Mimie? Oh my goodness! Hi, honey. Did you and Misty have a good time on your vacation?" Delia said as she came in from the living room and hugged Ash and Misty.
"Yeah, we had a great time, Mom. It was a nice change from the hectic stuff that Misty and I normally do. Actually it felt kind of weird at first to just get to relax but once you got used to it, it was really fantastic. As a matter of fact, Misty and I have a little surprise for you, don't we love." Ash smiled at his mom as he gave Misty a sly little wink.
"A surprise?" Delia asked.
"That's right, Mrs. Ketchum. Or, wait, maybe it might be more appropriate now for me to call you mom, just like Ash does." Misty said as she stepped closer to her fiancé.
"Oh my! Are you two trying to tell me that you got engaged?" Delia exclaimed happily.
"Yep. Misty and I are engaged. I proposed to her on the ship the night that they had the formal dinner. You can see pictures of it when I get my film developed because I had Brock take some." Ash was beaming as he kissed Misty.
"This is a wonderful surprise! Why didn't you tell me you were planning this, honey? My, you picked out a beautiful ring." Delia said as Misty showed her the engagement ring Ash had given her.
"Thanks for the compliment first of all. Second, I didn't tell you what I was planning as a surprise for Misty because I know how you can't seem to keep a secret. I didn't want the surprise spoiled before we even left." Ash laughed.
"Well, I guess I do have a small tendency to spill secrets." Delia blushed.
"The greatest thing about this is now I get to plan the wedding that I've been dreaming of for so long." Misty smiled as she and Ash sat down on the couch to have some lunch and told Delia more about the wonderful time they had on their vacation.
"Oh, by the way, mom, Professor Oak said to tell you hello when we were over there a little while ago." Ash suddenly remembered.
"Okay. Hey, I have a great idea. Why don't we invite him and Tracey to come over for dinner a little later so we can all celebrate." Delia suggested.
"That's a great idea, mom! Do you want us to call them?" Ash offered.
"No, that's okay. You and Misty should get all of your things unpacked and relax for a while. I'll call Professor Oak and then get started on dinner." Delia smiled as she took Mr. Mime and went into the kitchen.
* * * * *
Professor Oak had just finished helping Tracey show Carla around the lab and get her settled when the telephone started ringing.
"Hello." Professor Oak said happily.
"Hi, Sam! How are you?" Delia asked.
"I'm great, Delia. To what do I owe the pleasure of your call?"
"Well. Ash, Misty and I were wondering if you and Tracey would like to come over for dinner this evening because we have something to celebrate." Delia said.
"Sure. That sounds nice. When would you like us to come over?" Professor Oak asked eagerly.
"Well, how about you guys come on over in about an hour. I can't think of a better way to celebrate something good happening than with friends around." Delia laughed.
"Great. We'll see you then." Professor Oak smiled and broke the connection.
"Who was that on the phone, Professor?" Tracey asked as he and Carla walked into the room, startling Professor Oak.
"Oh, Tracey. I didn't hear you come in. That was Delia on the phone and she wants all of us to come over for dinner in about an hour. She said something about having something to celebrate. Are you two up for that?" Professor Oak replied.
"I'm up for anything. What about you, hon?" Tracey asked as he turned to Carla.
"It's fine with me. I'd love to get to spend some more time with Ash and Misty." Carla smiled.
"Okay. That settles it then. Let's go get ready and then we can go over to Delia's and see what this thing is that they have to celebrate." Professor Oak smiled.
"Little does he know that we already know." Tracey whispered to Carla as soon as Professor Oak walked out of the room.
* * * * *
Back at the Ketchum house, Ash and Misty were up in the bedroom getting all of their things unpacked and put away. Ash smiled as he noticed that Misty had taken the Horsea necklace that he had bought for her on the first island and was fastening it around her neck.
"I'm really glad that you like that necklace so much. I love seeing you so happy." Ash smiled.
"I adore this necklace. I think the only thing I like better is my engagement ring." Misty said quietly as she kissed Ash's cheek.
"You're amazing, Mist. No wonder I love you so much." Ash laughed as he stretched out on the bed and Misty lay down next to him.
"It sure is good to be home." Misty sighed.
"You got that right. I know one thing though. As much as I love just lying here and relaxing I need to get up because we're having dinner company any minute and if I stay here I'm going to end up falling asleep." Ash said as he stood up and stretched.
"Yeah. Me too. I have an idea. Why don't we go downstairs and see if we can help your mom." Misty suggested as she took Ash by the hand and they walked down to the kitchen.
* * * * *
Ten minutes later, Professor Oak along with Tracey and Carla arrived at the front door of the Ketchum residence and rang the doorbell. It wasn't very long before Delia opened the door smiling.
"Hi, Sam. How are you, Tracey? Oh, who's this?" Delia greeted, clearly puzzled when she saw Carla.
"I'm great, Mrs. Ketchum. This is Carla. She flew back on the plane with us and is staying with us at the lab." Tracey smiled.
"Oh. Well this afternoon has been absolutely full of wonderful surprises. It's very nice to meet you, Carla. I'm glad to have you here to have dinner with us." Delia smiled.
"It's nice to meet you too. I'm glad that you allowed me to come." Carla greeted Delia shyly.
"Well, now that everyone's here, let's get something to eat." Delia said as she led their three guests into the house.
* * * * *
As everyone was coming in the door, Ash and Misty were just coming down the stairs. They were happy to see that everyone had already arrived.
"Hey, guys. Did you get Carla settled in okay?" Ash asked.
"Yeah, we got her settled in. Amazingly we managed to do it without Muk completely attacking her." Tracey laughed.
"Muk really likes Carla so the last part wasn't easy at all." Professor Oak laughed.
"It's probably going to take a while to get used to some of them but I really do like all of the Pokemon at the lab." Carla couldn't help but laugh at herself.
"Well, that's good. I'm glad that you're so happy there, Carla." Misty smiled.
"I hate to interrupt all of the animated conversation but is anyone hungry?" Delia asked as she poked her head out of the kitchen.
"YEAH!" Ash yelled as he ran into the kitchen with Pikachu as the others followed behind him, laughing.
* * * * *
Once they were all sitting around the table, Professor Oak decided that he was going to put an end to the games and find out what it was that Delia had them over to celebrate.
"So Delia, what is this thing that you want to celebrate?" Professor Oak asked casually.
"Well. The special occasion that I wanted you to come over and share with us is that the Ketchum family is going to soon be increasing by one." Delia smiled broadly.
"What? When is this going to happen?" Professor Oak was pale with shock at what Delia had just said.
"As soon as Misty and I set a date." Ash grinned as Tracey and Carla started laughing at the look on Professor Oak's face.
"Hey! Whoa! Wait a minute. When did Ash and Misty get engaged?"
"When we were on vacation. Apparently Ash proposed to Misty one night on the ship and Misty said yes." Delia explained happily.
"No wonder you wanted to celebrate. That is absolutely wonderful news!" Professor Oak reached over and clapped Ash on the back. "Congratulations Ash and Misty."
"Thanks, Professor. This is absolutely a dream come true." Misty smiled.
"Why so quiet, Tracey? Hang on. You had something to do with this didn't you?" Professor Oak amusedly asked his young assistant.
"Had something to do with it, no. Aware of it, yes. We were at dinner when Ash popped the question to Misty so Brock and I were both there. I knew all about the whole thing the entire time." Tracey answered.
"Actually, Tracey, there's a little something about our being engaged that you don't know yet."
"What are you talking about Ash?" Tracey was confused as he thought he knew the whole situation.
"Well. Misty and I were talking about our upcoming wedding earlier today and I decided that I'm going to go a little untraditional so I'm not going to have a best man. I'm having two. I was wondering since you're one of my closest friends if you would be a best man for me, along with Brock?" Ash asked with a wide smile.
"Man, Ash. I'm surprised. Of course I'll be your best man. Nothing would be a bigger honor." Tracey walked over and gave Ash a hug.
"Thanks." Ash whispered.
"My turn!" Misty laughed. "I'm following Ash's lead and having two maids of honor. Carla, would you do me that honor? Angelica already said she would."
"Yeah. I don't know what to think. I've never been asked to be maid of honor for someone before." Carla laughed as she hugged Misty.
"Hey. I was just thinking about something." Misty whispered in Ash's ear as she leaned in close to him.
"What's that, sweetheart?" Ash replied.
"I think we should take the same vacation again on our one year wedding anniversary whenever that is." Misty smiled.
"That's the best idea I've ever heard in a while. But I think we should change one thing." Ash laughed a little as he looked at Tracey and Carla sitting across from them and holding hands.
"What do you want to change about it?" Misty frowned.
"Instead of getting one room, I think we're going to need three." Ash smiled as his pulled Misty into his arms and gave her a long passionate kiss, both totally oblivious to the buzz of conversation going on around them.
A/N: I finally did it! I finished Secrets in the Skies. I really hope you guys have had as much fun reading this fic as I have writing it. But don't expect me to fade off into the sunset any time soon. I already have another fic in the works so keep an eye out for that in the near future.
The next morning, as he usually was, Brock was the first to wake. He just lay there for a moment trying to reorient himself after a wonderful night's sleep. Brock realized that he felt extremely rested and ready for the day and it was only when he glanced beside him that he understood why. He saw Angelica sleeping comfortably next to him and he remembered the night before when she had come to him saying she couldn't sleep. He had wanted her to stay with him and tried to stay awake but after Angelica had promised that she wouldn't leave she began rubbing his back and had soon lulled Brock into an extremely deep sleep.
Brock then slid from his bed, being extremely careful not to wake Angelica, and crept out of the room and down the hall into the kitchen. He was planning to make breakfast for everyone. The hardest problem for Brock was trying to keep relatively quiet and not disturb the others because he was used to cooking for his siblings and purposely banging pots and pans around to get them up for school. But this morning, he went about making breakfast with such silence that a pin drop could be heard.
A few minutes later, Brock heard quiet footsteps and felt Angelica wrap her arms around him. He turned around and gave her a kiss and gathered her into his arms and gave her a great hug.
"Good morning, my lovely angel." Brock greeted her with a smile.
"Good morning. What, may I ask, are you doing? One minute I felt you beside me and a few minutes later I woke up and you were gone." Angelica asked.
"Well, I'm making breakfast for all of us. The reason I was gone when you woke up was because I was going to let you sleep for a while. You seemed so comfortable when I left."
"I didn't know you could cook. On top of that you are one of the sweetest, most caring guys that I have ever met. Will I ever stop being amazed by you, Brock?" Angelica laughed.
"There are several interesting things about me that you don't know yet so no I don't think you'll ever have an end to your amazement with me. I'll always try to find a new way to surprise you." Brock teased her.
"Would you mind too much if I helped you to make breakfast?" Angelica asked.
"Of course I don't mind. But you'll have to be quiet though because we need to let the others get some sleep because they have a pretty good drive ahead of them after they leave here and they were all exhausted last night. No need to wake them just yet." Brock whispered.
So Angelica helped Brock make breakfast, neither of them was saying very much. They were just content on enjoying each other's company and they were very quiet so they didn't disturb their friends who were still sleeping down the hall.
* * * * *
About fifteen minutes later Ash was awakened by the wonderful smells coming from the kitchen. He slowly opened his eyes and saw that Misty was already awake and looking at him smiling. He returned her smile and gave her a small kiss.
"Good morning. I thought you'd never wake up." Misty teased playfully.
"What in the world were you doing this whole time?" Ash asked sleepily.
"Actually I wasn't doing much. Just lying here beside you and watching you sleep." Misty confessed.
Upon hearing this Ash just groaned and put the pillow over his head. This really had no effect on anything other than relieving a little embarrassment because Misty simply picked the pillow up and kissed Ash's lips.
"You are so predictable Misty." Ash whispered.
"I know. Thanks for the compliment." Misty giggled. "Anyway, did you sleep well last night? You looked very peaceful."
"Yeah. I slept like a rock last night. I don't think I realized how beat I really was until we went to bed and were resting. Sorry I fell asleep on you while you were talking last night but you have such a relaxing voice that I couldn't keep my eyes open. I don't think I've slept so soundly in a long time." Ash said quietly.
"It's okay. I wasn't offended when you fell asleep on me. I knew that you were worn out after all of our return travel yesterday and then driving all the way here from the airport. I also knew since we're heading home today that you really needed to rest." Misty reassured Ash with a sweet smile before deciding to change the subject. "Hey, do you smell that? Smells like Brock's making some breakfast."
"Yep. It does smell good. Actually that's what woke me up this morning." Ash blushed a little. "Some things never change, do they Mist?"
"Nope. Hey, I have an idea. Why don't we get dressed and go see what Brock's whipping up that smells so good." Misty suggested.
"Sounds good, but there's something else I'd like to do first." Ash smiled.
"What's that, Ash?" Misty's curiosity was peaked.
Instead of answering her question, Ash turned to face Misty, being very careful not to disturb Pikachu who was sleeping at the end of the bed, and leaned in like he intended to kiss her. Then as he went to seemingly put his arms around Misty, Ash sneakily put his plan into action and slid his hands down and started to lightly tickle her ribs. He knew this was one of her worst tickle spots so she wouldn't be able to keep from laughing.
"Hey! Ash, what are you doing? That tickles!" Misty laughed.
"Aren't paybacks horrible, love? I know that your ribs are extremely ticklish and very sensitive so I decided that was my target for your little tickle torture." Ash grinned as he began to tickle up and down Misty's ribs very lightly as to really tickle her.
"Paybacks.. are.. the.. worst!" Misty couldn't believe that Ash was doing this.
As Ash continued to tickle Misty's ribs, even occasionally sneaking a very light tickle under her arms, he spied something that would help him to torture her even more. There was a hole in the side of the pillow he had been sleeping on that was just big enough that he might be able to pull a couple of the feathers out. So he reached over and felt for and grabbed the two biggest feathers and pulled them just into Misty's view and freaked her out.
"Ash. no! What. are. you. going. to. do. with. those. feathers? You. know. I'm. too. ticklish. If. you. tickle. me. with. those. you're. being. cruel." Misty pleaded, trying to buy time against the unbearable tickle torture that she knew was coming.
"Call me cruel then." Ash grinned evilly as he took a feather in each hand and began to tickle Misty's ribs again.
"Oh. You are so very ticklish and these feathers are so soft. I'll bet they tickle so badly when I stroke them slowly down your sides. You probably wish I was still using my fingers. Let's see if I can find some other ticklish spots when I use my little friends." Ash taunted Misty as she wriggled and squirmed trying unsuccessfully to get away from the feathers he was using to torment her with.
Then Ash began exploring with his fingers again trying to narrow down her weakest tickle points. It wasn't long before he found another one on her feet. Misty laughed harder than she ever had before when Ash went for his feathers and began using the soft points to draw on her feet in all sorts of designs, each of them tickling her more than the last.
"I can't believe he's actually using feathers and drawing pictures with them to tickle my feet. This is horrible torture. What he's doing now tickles worse than when he was tickling my ribs." Misty thought. But nothing could prepare her for the intense tickles that were coming up.
As soon as he finished using the feathers to draw on Misty's feet, Ash decided to give her a taste of what she had put him through when she had tickled his feet that one morning on the boat. So he winked at her as he reached one hand up and pulled the toes back on one of Misty's very ticklish feet.
"No! You. can't. tickle. my. toes. with. that! I. won't. be. able. to. stand. it. Please. don't.tickle. my. toes. with. that. feather!" Misty begged as Ash continued to tickle her foot with the feather in his free hand while he held her toes back with the other.
"Why not? If I remember correctly you had a great time tickling my feet the morning by the pool. I don't see what the big deal is." Ash smiled.
"But. I. didn't. tickle. your. toes. with. a. soft. feather. I. know. that. you're. too. ticklish." Misty begged, somehow knowing that she wasn't doing any good.
"I can't give you any points there love, because you wouldn't have hesitated to use a feather to inflict even more tickle torture if you'd had one. I just lucked out." Ash teased.
Then he decided that he wouldn't wait any longer. Ash took one of the feathers that he was using to tickle the soles of Misty's feet while he taunted her and began tickling under her toes very lightly with it. As he had guessed the base of her toes were highly ticklish and since Misty couldn't move her toes to stop the feather's tickle it was driving her out of her mind. Ash also decided to up the ante a little and reach up with a free finger and tickle her toes themselves as he stroked under them with the feather.
"Hmmm. Looks like you're more ticklish than you're letting on. This is very interesting. Your toes are very sensitive but I think that I know one more place that will tickle even worse and is even more ticklish than your feet." Ash taunted as he reached up, grabbing Misty's wrist and pulling her arm up over her head.
"Now, my dear, it's time for you to really laugh. Nobody can stand having their underarms tickled and soft feathers are bound to make it worse." Ash smiled as he took both of the feathers in one hand and began tickling Misty's underarms. "Tickle, tickle, tickle."
It was obvious to Ash that he had found her very weakest point where she couldn't stand to be tickled because her underarms were extremely sensitive and the tickle was intense.
"Ash. stop! I. can't. stand. it. anymore. You. win. My. underarms. are. very. sensitive. I'm. sorry. about. that. thing. on. the.ship." Misty laughed breathlessly as she spied a way out of this. "Pikachu. help!!!"
"Pika, Pikachupi." (Okay, Misty.) Pikachu said as he took aim. "Pi ka CHUUU!" Pikachu cried as he fired a strong jolt of electricity that knocked Ash back against the bed, causing him to stop tickling Misty.
"Pikachu! Why did you do that?" Ash asked, trying to sound angry even though he was extremely amused.
"Pikachupi chu ka pika pi pikachu, Pikapi." (Misty asked for my help first, Ash.) Pikachu answered as he jumped in between Ash and Misty and they cuddled him.
"I'll give you one thing, Ash. You sure did get even with me." Misty laughed as she gave her fiancé a kiss to show she wasn't mad at him.
"Yeah. Well I also got you to apologize which was something that was very welcomed." Ash said. The result he got from this comment was that Misty took her pillow and threw it at his head.
"Hey, why don't we check out what Brock's coming up with in the kitchen now?" Ash asked as he got up off of the bed and began changing clothes.
"Yeah. That does sound like a good idea. I'm starving." Misty smiled as she winked at Ash and went to get dressed as well.
A few minutes later both of them were ready and they walked hand in hand to the kitchen to see what Brock was up to.
* * * * *
Carla sat up and was suddenly frightened as she tried to ascertain just what was going on. Then she realized what it was that had woke her up. Ash and Misty were in the next room making so much noise that it sounded like the wall was going to come crashing down. Just then Carla looked next to her and saw that Tracey was still sleeping peacefully. She rolled her eyes and smiled.
"How in the world can he sleep through that?" Carla thought.
Just then Carla leaned down and kissed Tracey on the cheek. When she did this he stirred and slowly opened his eyes and looked at her. By this time the noise from the room next door had died down and the wall had stopped shaking.
"Good morning, pretty lady." Tracey smiled sleepily.
"Hey. You must have been really exhausted last night. You seemed to be sleeping pretty hard just now." Carla said as she leaned up against him.
"Yeah. I think I was pretty out of it. Why? Did I miss something while I was asleep?" Tracey asked, confused.
"Well. A few minutes ago it sounded like the wall was going to come crashing down on top of us because Ash and Misty were making so much noise." Carla laughed.
"Ugh. I guess it's a good thing I didn't hear it then. I probably would have tried to put a stop to it. What do you think they were doing in there anyway?" Tracey groaned.
"I don't really know but I do know it was loud. It scared me to death. I thought it was an earthquake or something. But right now, judging by what I smell, I would venture a guess that they're going to follow those smells into the kitchen." Carla smiled.
"Yeah. When I was traveling with Ash and Misty, I always knew Ash to think with his stomach. I guess that's one thing about him that will never change in a million years." Tracey laughed.
"Maybe not but my stomach is telling me that it might be a good idea for us to join them. I'm really hungry." Carla said as she took Tracey's hand and helped him to get up off of the bed.
"I agree with you. I'm hungry too and from what Ash and Misty have told me from past experience, Brock can cook up a storm." Tracey agreed, getting ready for breakfast as he was talking.
Soon they were both ready to join their friends and when they left the room Tracey decided to be cute so he picked Carla up in his arms and carried her down the hall into the kitchen.
* * * * *
A few minutes later, Ash and Misty appeared in the kitchen and were greeted by a smile from their friends. As their noses told them, Brock was just finishing preparing a wonderful breakfast with Angelica's help.
"Hey guys. What were you guys doing? Trying to tear my place down. We heard the walls shaking all the way in here." Brock laughed.
"Well, let's just say I got a little bit of payback." Ash grinned as he hugged Misty and Brock rolled his eyes.
In the same moment, they saw Tracey come walking into the kitchen carrying Carla in his arms. Upon seeing this, the four standing in the kitchen began laughing.
"You sure do know how to make an entrance, don't you Tracey?" Ash laughed.
"I guess I do. But at least I didn't give Misty a frightening wake up call by making so much noise that it sounded like the wall was going to collapse on you guys." Tracey countered.
"Well, anyway. Let's quit goofing around and get to some breakfast before it gets cold." Angelica smiled as they all sat down to eat.
After they finished polishing off the delicious breakfast that Brock had made, Ash, Misty, Tracey and Carla gathered their thing and got ready to leave for Pallet Town.
* * * * *
Once they had everything that they had brought inside with them and had said goodbye to their friends, thanking Brock for giving them somewhere to stay the night before, Ash, Misty, Tracey and Carla loaded into Ash's car to make the hour and a half trip back. As they traveled down the road, the four began talking about the previous night and the noisy fun that had been had that morning.
"That sure was nice of Brock to let us stay with him last night. I don't know about you guys, but I feel a lot better after a good rest." Tracey said.
"Yeah. I'm really glad we stayed. I didn't realize how worn out I was until Misty and I went to bed and were just lying there relaxing. I didn't know that driving that short of a distance would make me so tired."
"Maybe it was that on top of the fact that we had a couple of time changes on the way back too." Misty pointed out.
"If I can change the subject, what in the world were you two up to this morning? At first I thought it was an earthquake or something and then I realized that it was you guys making an awful commotion. I never knew two people could make so much noise." Carla inquired with a curious smile.
"Do you want to tell them what was going on?" Ash asked.
"If you think we should, it's okay with me." Misty smiled.
"Okay. Tracey, do you remember that morning on the ship when we went up to the pool and you stayed in the room and went back to sleep? The morning before Misty and I got engaged." Ash asked.
"Yeah. I remember that. I came up to join you later on and you were taking a nap." Tracey recalled.
"Well, that morning before you and Brock met up with us Misty and I were talking about the formal dinner that night. Anyway, I was trying to get her to tell me about her dress for that night and she wanted to keep it a surprise and didn't want me pestering her so she decided to keep me quiet about it and she tickled my feet." Ash explained.
"So when we woke up this morning Ash decided to get even with me for that so he acted like he was going to kiss me but instead he started tickling me. Then he found a couple of feathers from somewhere and started using those. That's why we were making so much noise." Misty smiled.
"Oh. So that's what was going on. I knew something had to have been happening for you to sound like you were bringing the walls down." Carla laughed.
"How in the world did you stop him from doing that?" Tracey remarked.
"Well. Luckily for me, Pikachu was down on the end of the bed and I screamed for his help and he thundershocked Ash and saved me." Misty grinned as she patted Pikachu on the head and gave Ash a kiss.
As they were talking, Ash was so distracted that he almost missed Professor Oak's lab and would have if Misty hadn't alerted him.
* * * * *
When they reached Professor Oak's lab, Ash and Misty helped Tracey and Carla get their things out of the car and walked inside with them to say hello to Professor Oak.
As they walked into the lab, Muk came barreling down the hall and preceded to jump on Tracey happily and he fell to the floor and disappeared under the Pokemon's slimy purple body, causing Carla to scream. Hearing the noise in the hallway, Professor Oak stepped out to see what the noise was all about and smiled as he saw Muk on top of Tracey and Ash and Misty trying to explain the whole situation to a frightened young woman.
"Okay Muk. Get off of Tracey. I know you're happy to see him but crushing him isn't really the way to show it." Professor Oak admonished the Pokemon as it crawled contentedly away down the hall.
"Thanks, Professor. It was really getting hard to breathe under there." Tracey smiled in greeting.
"It's no problem at all, Tracey. I know how Muk is. You remember that I've been crushed by him many times. You must be the young woman that Tracey told me so much about." Professor Oak addressed Carla who had immediately gone to Tracey's side as soon as Muk had gotten off of him.
"Hi. My name is Carla. Tracey has told me nothing but great things about you also." Carla smiled.
"It's nice to meet you, Carla. I'm glad to have you here. Tracey and I have been in the market for some good help for a long time." Professor Oak finished as he turned to the others. "So did you have a nice trip?"
"Yeah. It was great! There were no problems at all with the air situation. I wouldn't mind doing the whole vacation thing again sometime." Ash said.
"You should see the new things that they did to the S.S. Anne. It's absolutely beautiful. We stayed in a very comfortable room. I knew that it had been improved but it was more spectacular than I even expected." Misty smiled.
"A vacation was exactly what I needed. I feel like a totally different person than I was when I left. It felt really good to just get away for a while and be able to relax without having to worry. I really appreciate the opportunity, Professor." Tracey said. "I got a little bonus out of it too."
"Yeah. I still can't believe that this is actually happening. This is way more than I've ever dreamed of." Carla grinned.
"Well, I can certainly understand how you feel. How about Tracey and I show you around a little." Professor Oak smiled. He was beginning to realize what Tracey had told him about Carla.
"Sure. That would be wonderful. I'd love to see this place that I've heard so much about."
"Okay. Let's go. Ash, Misty would you guys like to have something to drink with us." Professor Oak offered.
"No thanks. We really have to get going. After two weeks of being gone my mom is probably pacing holes in the floor wondering where we are." Ash laughed.
"Yeah. You guys have things to do anyway making sure Carla gets settled here. We'll see you guys later, though." Misty smiled as she took Ash by the hand.
"Okay. Tell your mom hello, Ash. See you later." Professor Oak said as Ash and Misty headed out the door.
* * * * *
Once they had arrived back home, Ash and Misty got their luggage and went in the house. They opened the door and were greeted by Mr. Mime.
"Mime, mime mime!" (Hey, they're back!) Mr. Mime shouted excitedly.
"What's wrong, Mimie? Oh my goodness! Hi, honey. Did you and Misty have a good time on your vacation?" Delia said as she came in from the living room and hugged Ash and Misty.
"Yeah, we had a great time, Mom. It was a nice change from the hectic stuff that Misty and I normally do. Actually it felt kind of weird at first to just get to relax but once you got used to it, it was really fantastic. As a matter of fact, Misty and I have a little surprise for you, don't we love." Ash smiled at his mom as he gave Misty a sly little wink.
"A surprise?" Delia asked.
"That's right, Mrs. Ketchum. Or, wait, maybe it might be more appropriate now for me to call you mom, just like Ash does." Misty said as she stepped closer to her fiancé.
"Oh my! Are you two trying to tell me that you got engaged?" Delia exclaimed happily.
"Yep. Misty and I are engaged. I proposed to her on the ship the night that they had the formal dinner. You can see pictures of it when I get my film developed because I had Brock take some." Ash was beaming as he kissed Misty.
"This is a wonderful surprise! Why didn't you tell me you were planning this, honey? My, you picked out a beautiful ring." Delia said as Misty showed her the engagement ring Ash had given her.
"Thanks for the compliment first of all. Second, I didn't tell you what I was planning as a surprise for Misty because I know how you can't seem to keep a secret. I didn't want the surprise spoiled before we even left." Ash laughed.
"Well, I guess I do have a small tendency to spill secrets." Delia blushed.
"The greatest thing about this is now I get to plan the wedding that I've been dreaming of for so long." Misty smiled as she and Ash sat down on the couch to have some lunch and told Delia more about the wonderful time they had on their vacation.
"Oh, by the way, mom, Professor Oak said to tell you hello when we were over there a little while ago." Ash suddenly remembered.
"Okay. Hey, I have a great idea. Why don't we invite him and Tracey to come over for dinner a little later so we can all celebrate." Delia suggested.
"That's a great idea, mom! Do you want us to call them?" Ash offered.
"No, that's okay. You and Misty should get all of your things unpacked and relax for a while. I'll call Professor Oak and then get started on dinner." Delia smiled as she took Mr. Mime and went into the kitchen.
* * * * *
Professor Oak had just finished helping Tracey show Carla around the lab and get her settled when the telephone started ringing.
"Hello." Professor Oak said happily.
"Hi, Sam! How are you?" Delia asked.
"I'm great, Delia. To what do I owe the pleasure of your call?"
"Well. Ash, Misty and I were wondering if you and Tracey would like to come over for dinner this evening because we have something to celebrate." Delia said.
"Sure. That sounds nice. When would you like us to come over?" Professor Oak asked eagerly.
"Well, how about you guys come on over in about an hour. I can't think of a better way to celebrate something good happening than with friends around." Delia laughed.
"Great. We'll see you then." Professor Oak smiled and broke the connection.
"Who was that on the phone, Professor?" Tracey asked as he and Carla walked into the room, startling Professor Oak.
"Oh, Tracey. I didn't hear you come in. That was Delia on the phone and she wants all of us to come over for dinner in about an hour. She said something about having something to celebrate. Are you two up for that?" Professor Oak replied.
"I'm up for anything. What about you, hon?" Tracey asked as he turned to Carla.
"It's fine with me. I'd love to get to spend some more time with Ash and Misty." Carla smiled.
"Okay. That settles it then. Let's go get ready and then we can go over to Delia's and see what this thing is that they have to celebrate." Professor Oak smiled.
"Little does he know that we already know." Tracey whispered to Carla as soon as Professor Oak walked out of the room.
* * * * *
Back at the Ketchum house, Ash and Misty were up in the bedroom getting all of their things unpacked and put away. Ash smiled as he noticed that Misty had taken the Horsea necklace that he had bought for her on the first island and was fastening it around her neck.
"I'm really glad that you like that necklace so much. I love seeing you so happy." Ash smiled.
"I adore this necklace. I think the only thing I like better is my engagement ring." Misty said quietly as she kissed Ash's cheek.
"You're amazing, Mist. No wonder I love you so much." Ash laughed as he stretched out on the bed and Misty lay down next to him.
"It sure is good to be home." Misty sighed.
"You got that right. I know one thing though. As much as I love just lying here and relaxing I need to get up because we're having dinner company any minute and if I stay here I'm going to end up falling asleep." Ash said as he stood up and stretched.
"Yeah. Me too. I have an idea. Why don't we go downstairs and see if we can help your mom." Misty suggested as she took Ash by the hand and they walked down to the kitchen.
* * * * *
Ten minutes later, Professor Oak along with Tracey and Carla arrived at the front door of the Ketchum residence and rang the doorbell. It wasn't very long before Delia opened the door smiling.
"Hi, Sam. How are you, Tracey? Oh, who's this?" Delia greeted, clearly puzzled when she saw Carla.
"I'm great, Mrs. Ketchum. This is Carla. She flew back on the plane with us and is staying with us at the lab." Tracey smiled.
"Oh. Well this afternoon has been absolutely full of wonderful surprises. It's very nice to meet you, Carla. I'm glad to have you here to have dinner with us." Delia smiled.
"It's nice to meet you too. I'm glad that you allowed me to come." Carla greeted Delia shyly.
"Well, now that everyone's here, let's get something to eat." Delia said as she led their three guests into the house.
* * * * *
As everyone was coming in the door, Ash and Misty were just coming down the stairs. They were happy to see that everyone had already arrived.
"Hey, guys. Did you get Carla settled in okay?" Ash asked.
"Yeah, we got her settled in. Amazingly we managed to do it without Muk completely attacking her." Tracey laughed.
"Muk really likes Carla so the last part wasn't easy at all." Professor Oak laughed.
"It's probably going to take a while to get used to some of them but I really do like all of the Pokemon at the lab." Carla couldn't help but laugh at herself.
"Well, that's good. I'm glad that you're so happy there, Carla." Misty smiled.
"I hate to interrupt all of the animated conversation but is anyone hungry?" Delia asked as she poked her head out of the kitchen.
"YEAH!" Ash yelled as he ran into the kitchen with Pikachu as the others followed behind him, laughing.
* * * * *
Once they were all sitting around the table, Professor Oak decided that he was going to put an end to the games and find out what it was that Delia had them over to celebrate.
"So Delia, what is this thing that you want to celebrate?" Professor Oak asked casually.
"Well. The special occasion that I wanted you to come over and share with us is that the Ketchum family is going to soon be increasing by one." Delia smiled broadly.
"What? When is this going to happen?" Professor Oak was pale with shock at what Delia had just said.
"As soon as Misty and I set a date." Ash grinned as Tracey and Carla started laughing at the look on Professor Oak's face.
"Hey! Whoa! Wait a minute. When did Ash and Misty get engaged?"
"When we were on vacation. Apparently Ash proposed to Misty one night on the ship and Misty said yes." Delia explained happily.
"No wonder you wanted to celebrate. That is absolutely wonderful news!" Professor Oak reached over and clapped Ash on the back. "Congratulations Ash and Misty."
"Thanks, Professor. This is absolutely a dream come true." Misty smiled.
"Why so quiet, Tracey? Hang on. You had something to do with this didn't you?" Professor Oak amusedly asked his young assistant.
"Had something to do with it, no. Aware of it, yes. We were at dinner when Ash popped the question to Misty so Brock and I were both there. I knew all about the whole thing the entire time." Tracey answered.
"Actually, Tracey, there's a little something about our being engaged that you don't know yet."
"What are you talking about Ash?" Tracey was confused as he thought he knew the whole situation.
"Well. Misty and I were talking about our upcoming wedding earlier today and I decided that I'm going to go a little untraditional so I'm not going to have a best man. I'm having two. I was wondering since you're one of my closest friends if you would be a best man for me, along with Brock?" Ash asked with a wide smile.
"Man, Ash. I'm surprised. Of course I'll be your best man. Nothing would be a bigger honor." Tracey walked over and gave Ash a hug.
"Thanks." Ash whispered.
"My turn!" Misty laughed. "I'm following Ash's lead and having two maids of honor. Carla, would you do me that honor? Angelica already said she would."
"Yeah. I don't know what to think. I've never been asked to be maid of honor for someone before." Carla laughed as she hugged Misty.
"Hey. I was just thinking about something." Misty whispered in Ash's ear as she leaned in close to him.
"What's that, sweetheart?" Ash replied.
"I think we should take the same vacation again on our one year wedding anniversary whenever that is." Misty smiled.
"That's the best idea I've ever heard in a while. But I think we should change one thing." Ash laughed a little as he looked at Tracey and Carla sitting across from them and holding hands.
"What do you want to change about it?" Misty frowned.
"Instead of getting one room, I think we're going to need three." Ash smiled as his pulled Misty into his arms and gave her a long passionate kiss, both totally oblivious to the buzz of conversation going on around them.
A/N: I finally did it! I finished Secrets in the Skies. I really hope you guys have had as much fun reading this fic as I have writing it. But don't expect me to fade off into the sunset any time soon. I already have another fic in the works so keep an eye out for that in the near future.