DISCLAIMER: Neither of us authors own Pokémon. Sucks huh?
A/N: Alrighty I wrote this one and aimed for it not to be longer than seven pages but blah, it only just went over. I also wrote it at work so yeah, blame the environment around me if it sucks, lol. Sorry about the delays too, holidays and general keeping-busy-after-holidays has seen to that. Soz everyone!
The next day was planned to be the visitors' last, as it was the end of the weekend and on Monday things would resume their usual rituals of school and work. A thought that, apparently, had to be dampened by one last outing. Well, that was according to Cory and Jack at least.
"I say we go on the ice-cream factory tour" was Cory's suggestion.
"No, the new go-karting place just opened, that would be way better than a boring tour" Jack said excitedly. He loved cars, which seemed ironic to his parents who remembered only too well how he had once been kidnapped in their own car.
"Bo-ring" Felicity rang out. "Boys have no imagination."
"Well where do you want to go?" Cory asked accusingly. Felicity eyed her older brother in shock, obviously not expecting that question.
"I dunno…" she weakly replied.
"Gee, that's some imagination you've got on you" Cory sniggered.
"How about we just do something, low-key, quiet…cheap" James muttered, finally getting some sort of input in from the adult circle.
"Yeah, we've gotta get going by four at the latest. I mean, we're packed and all but I don't wanna do something that could drag on" Jessie added. Ash nodded and put forth his idea.
"We could all go on a picnic."
"A picnic?" Brock raised an eyebrow. "The kinda thing where we frolic through wildflowers and make daisy chains while eating dainty club sandwiches?"
"Whaaaat?" Wilhelmina questioned her husband's scenario with a slight laugh. "Where did you ever get an idea like that?"
"I dunno. I thought I painted that picture pretty well, with your upbringing and all" Brock shrugged.
"Oh whatever" Wilhelmina sighed. She turned to Ash with a small smile. "That sounds like a great idea. We could let the kids run around while we lay back and relax. Doesn't take much effort either."
Wilhelmina soon found herself regretting that last sentence when she fully came to understand what an effort it really was. Seven kids who all had different tastes were not easy to satisfy and after making five different variations of baloney sandwiches, she was ready to throw in the towel.
"How the hell do you do it, Mist? Geez, one is enough" she complained, cutting the crusts off a particular sandwich at Scott's request. Misty smiled to herself as she was reminded of the news she had broken to her husband the previous night. One obviously wasn't enough for those two.
"We get by" she finally replied to her friend. Wilhelmina raised an eyebrow at the aloof attitude Misty was displaying with a small smile adorning her face. There was something lurking in the depths of her mind, something she wouldn't share until she felt ready, and Wilhelmina accepted this without further question. They all knew how Misty felt when it came to her own privacy.
Things finally started moving when the lunch was confirmed to be ready and transport was sorted - although, of course, at the expense of squabbling over who was sitting next to whom. Feeling a little frazzled but excited nonetheless, the brood left at 11.30 to make the half-hour drive to a picnic spot Ash knew of.
"You've been planning this for a while, haven't you?" Misty asked gently as their van roared down the road to the sound of excited kids in the back.
"If you call since last night a while then yes" Ash replied. He laughed shortly before continuing. "I didn't wanna make any plans while you were on the warpath. Aiming low to avoid disappointment and all that."
"You understand why I -"
"Yes Mist, and I don't even wanna think about it right now. Not one of the best days of my life."
"Yeah." Misty lowered her voice when she next spoke and Ash had to strain to hear over the boastings of whose kite would fly the highest. "Are we gonna tell the guys today?"
"I don't see why not. Great time to announce it."
"What about the kids?" Misty asked worriedly.
"We'll tell them too. They deserve to know" Ash shrugged. Misty smiled, placed her hand on his and squeezed it in a gesture of many meanings - love, gratitude, excitement, anticipation…
"What do we deserve to know?" Rose suddenly piped up.
"You'll find out soon enough" Ash replied calmly. He was getting a little worried that she had been asking so many questions lately - about the fight, their 'high-school' years, and now this. It was leading him to believe that she was becoming more than inquisitive, perhaps even suspicious.
"I think I deserve to know now. I'm not a kid anymore, y'know. I am twelve years old" Rose pointed out, causing her parents to suppress their giggles at such a naïve statement.
"You can know at the same time as the others" Misty said. Rose sat back in her seat with a small pout on her lips at still being on the same level as her younger siblings. What was with all the secrets lately? And that phone call from the day before still haunted her constantly. She was quickly shook out of her thoughts by Cory, who gained his sister's attention by punching her lightly in the arm.
"Ow! What was that for?" Rose demanded to know.
"Geez, it wasn't that hard" Cory muttered. Rose narrowed her eyes in a manner that silently told him she was not in the best of moods today and he instantly got to the point. "Are Mom and Dad…you know, alright?" he asked quietly.
"See for yourself" Rose mumbled. Cory looked over at his parents who had their fingers intertwined, even as Ash was driving, and he knew there was nothing to worry about.
"So you were right. You did sort it out."
"Sorta…" Rose trailed off.
The spot Ash had led the way to was quiet, deserted and spacious with the silence only occasionally fragmented by a quiet bird's whistle or the sound of a river running quietly on its way.
"Wow Ash, for one thing you didn't get us lost and for another you actually took us somewhere half-decent. Was sorta expecting to end up at a burger bar or something" Brock grinned.
"Well hello Brocko, welcome to twenty years later. Gotta find somewhere to let the kids get some fresh air without me having to really worry about them" Ash shrugged.
"I don't think I've ever been here" Misty commented as she took in her surroundings.
"Nah, this is me and the kids' hideaway spot whenever you…" Ash paused and considered his words. "When your monthly friend comes to visit."
"Monthly wha -" Misty stopped herself as she realised what her husband meant. "Oh for God's sake, I don't get that bad, do I?" Ash raised an eyebrow, which James saw as his opportunity to speak up.
"Well if you're as foul-tempered as Jess gets then I really don't blame Ash for -"
"One more word and you won't be around to see any sort of temper outta me" Jessie said warningly. James instantly fell quiet and it was from that point that chairs, picnic baskets, blankets and various toys started being hauled into the area they had chosen to ground themselves.
"Alright, say we eat first and then you guys can do…well, whatever you want, I suppose" Misty announced. Once again, small arguments broke out within the younger members of the group about which sandwich belonged to who but eventually a comfortable silence engulfed them as they settled down to eat.
"It's been a great weekend" Wilhelmina sighed after a few minutes silence.
"Yeah, kinda makes going home seem a bit drab" Jessie said reluctantly.
"It's been…eventful" Ash said, casting a glance at his wife who flashed him a quick smile. "And in the meantime, we are going to top it all off." This said, Ash reached into a nearby chilli bin near him and pulled out a bottle of expensive looking champagne.
"Woah, what's all this about?" Wilhelmina asked.
"You didn't just splash out on champagne to toast a good weekend, did you?" Brock added.
"We splashed out on it to toast something" Ash replied as he started filling glasses he had also brought along. The others noticed how he handed the glasses to everyone but Misty, who didn't make any sort of protest at all.
"Come on Mist, treat yourself, one glass in the middle of the day won't get you loaded" James urged.
"No can do, Jimmy" Misty said with a grin. Ash quickly spoke up to bring quiet around them again.
"Hush you lot" he directed to the gaggle of children near him. Rose had long since faded from the younger conversation and instead was waiting to hear what her father was so eager to toast. "This weekend hasn't been without its bumps and all, but I can honestly say that despite certain incidents," he discreetly winked at Misty, "it has been a weekend to remember, now even more so. And so, ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that I, Ash Ketchum, announce the -"
"Oh for God's sake Ash" Misty interrupted in frustration. "Guys, Ketchum junior number six is on the way" she beamed, causing nearly everyone to splutter on their drinks at such a blunt statement.
"Are you serious?" James asked in astonishment.
"Sure are" Ash nodded.
"Six kids?" Wilhelmina exclaimed. "By rights you two should've collapsed from exhaustion months ago with just your five, and now there's gonna be six?!"
"Well like you said Will, if it happens it happens. And now that it's happened, I'm not about to stop it" Misty explained.
"Six is a lot to take on. Are you sure you guys will be able to cope with it?" Jessie asked worriedly.
"Come on Jess, you know for a fact we've coped with much worse" Misty pointed out. Jessie smiled at her two friends, grinning in pure joy at breaking such news, and initiated a round of hugs and handshakes within the adults of the group.
"Rosella, what's going on?" Scott asked his older sister. The kids had grown strangely quiet out of confusion, as it seemed that only Rose, Cory and Jack knew what they were talking about.
"Mom's pregnant" Rose whispered.
"What?" Andrew almost shouted. He hadn't learnt the meaning of the term yet.
"You're gonna have another brother or sister" Jack supplied. The triplets stared at each other, dumbfounded.
"Well where is she…or he…" Lisa spoke up, frantically searching around. "I wanna find your new brother or sister" she said to Felicity, which also set her off on a frantic but small search with their eyes.
"Um…" Cory trailed off as he felt his cheeks burning in an embarrassment he hadn't even spoken.
"Oh geez, no way" Rose said defiantly when Cory turned to her with pleading eyes. "I'm outta here" she announced, standing up and brushing crumbs off her clothes.
"Rose honey, where are you going?" Misty suddenly asked.
"I dunno. Walking" Rose shrugged.
"By yourself?" Misty felt her throat going dry at the thought.
"Don't worry Mom, I'm not gonna get raped or anything" Rose said casually. Ash and the others immediately glanced over at Misty worriedly to gauge her reaction at this statement. They could almost see the pain rising back to her eyes, a pain she had sworn she had buried long ago. The memory of her own ordeal was bad enough, let along the idea of her daughter being vulnerable to the same thing. Rose, surprised at the lack of noise surrounding the usually chatty group, spoke up again.
"Mom? I'll be okay."
"No you can wait until everyone's finished" Misty said quietly.
"What? Why do I have to wait? All I wanna do is go for a stupid walk" Rose flared.
"Don't start, Rose. I don't want you walking by yourself and that's final. Don't you wanna celebrate at all? You're gonna have another brother or sister" Misty pointed out.
"I don't want another one. I've already got four." Misty fell into a shocked silence at Rose's unusual snippy attitude and portrayed her shock to Ash through her eyes. But Ash felt no shock through the anger that was surging throughout him and he stood up to face his daughter.
"Guys, just excuse us for a moment." With that he grabbed Rose's arm and led her out of earshot. "Alright young lady, you're going to tell me exactly what is going on right now or you're grounded" he threatened.
"Grounded? For not wanting another sibling?" Rose asked loudly.
"No, for answering back to your mother and your whole sulky attitude lately. What's up? You love the other four so much, we thought you'd be thrilled at the prospect of another sibling."
"Well I'm not, okay?" Rose mumbled. Ash sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Rose, it won't be that bad. I know something's up with you, I just wish you would tell me what it is."
Rose glanced upwards to meet her father's eyes and felt a wave of guilt wash over her. Maybe she should tell him about the phone call. The consideration quickly left her and she weakly smiled at Ash.
"I'm sorry Dad. I've just been…stressed." Yeah, that's a good word she thought. "School's hard and everyone's bitching -"
"Fighting" Ash sternly interrupted.
"Right. Anyways, it all kinda piled up, then you and Mom fell out and now this…" Rose trailed off, her mind replaying the image of her parents so happy at the news, an image much easier to digest than the tension that had crossed their paths the previous day.
"Your mother hasn't been this happy in a long time" Ash said quietly. "You just have no idea of some of the things she's seen and lived through in her lifetime. It's you kids that keep her going, you know."
"Really?" Rose asked, to which Ash nodded. She paused before tentatively putting forth her next question. "What had Mom been through that could possibly be so bad?"
"You don't wanna know, and I hope for your sake that you never find out" Ash said solemnly. It was the closest he had come to revealing any sort of truth and he knew he couldn't say anything more. "I'm sorry you feel this way about the baby but -"
"No Dad, I'm sorry, I kinda lost it. Really, I am happy." She emphasised her words with a smile and Ash gratefully reflected it.
"Good. Because I hate seeing any of you miserable over anything. Now, you gonna come and join us all again?"
"Sure" Rose replied. They walked back, with Ash giving Misty a reassuring smile, and the rest of the afternoon was spent with casual conversation amidst playing children. It was a scene that portrayed tranquility and serenity in an otherwise troubled world. The only things to bring them back to reality were the sounds of Rose's cellphone (something she had saved up for herself for the sole purpose of text messaging) and the occasional complaints of hunger and fatigue.
"How can you still be hungry?" Jessie asked her son as they began packing away.
"I'm a growing boy. I need my energy sources" Jack replied matter-of-factly.
"God, that sounds familiar" Misty muttered.
"Well the rest of the stuff's been packed away, you can have something before we leave to go home" Jessie compromised with Jack, who seemed satisfied with this arrangement. With everything finally packed and seating arrangements once again sorted, the group left to prepare for the final goodbye at the Ketchum household.
The drive back into the main township of Pallet was a quiet one, with tired occupants finding the energy to uphold a conversation too much. It was 3.15pm when the countryside gave way to a more urban scenario. Everything seemed so familiar, except…
"Gee, it was a lot sunnier out country. It's gone all hazy here" Misty commented.
"Yeah, it has" Ash agreed. It was the then he realised something. "Hold up, that's not a haze. It's smoke."
"It's not black enough to be smoke" Misty pointed out. In response to this Ash wound down his window, resulting in both himself and Misty inhaling a little of the fumes. "Woah, that's smoke alright" Misty said, coughing a bit to rid the last traces of the toxic substance.
"But where is it coming from?" Ash muttered. Panic slowly snaked into his heart as the smoke became thicker as they got closer to their house. Reaching their street, he was stopped by a policeman standing on the side of the road.
"Do you live on this street, sir?" he asked Ash formally.
"Yes" Ash replied meekly. "What's going on, officer?"
"It appears an arsonist has struck a house down this road. They've only just put the blaze out now and they're not letting any vehicles down" the officer explained. Ash's knuckles went white when he clutched the steering wheel. He then turned off the ignition and turned to Misty.
"Just stay here with the kids, I'll be back in a sec." He was gearing to leave when Misty grabbed his shoulder and forced his eyes to meet hers.
"You don't think it was ours, do you?" she asked quietly. She didn't want the kids to suspect anything, although their drowsy eyes were scanning the hazy scene around them.
"Why would an arsonist target us? I just wanna check out what's going on." Comforted by her husband's words, Misty smiled and accepted the brief kiss he bestowed on her lips before he jumped outside to walk through the slowly subsiding smoke.
"Was anyone hurt?" Ash cautiously asked the officer who walked beside him.
"No, none of the occupants were home at the time." This response only caused Ash's heart to beat a panicked rhythm and he strode quickly up the road towards his house.
Or what was left of it.
The second story had completely buckled from the pressure of the heat and had damaged most of the lower level, which was gutted and charred by the flames that had devoured it earlier. Nothing was recognizable and it was unlikely anything inside the house had survived. Everything they had worked for, a house full of memories and personal objects more valuable than any amount of money, was gone.
Ash stared at the remains like he wasn't really registering what was in front of him. That couldn't be his house. There had to be a mistake, he had to be thrown into a nightmare he would soon wake up from. It couldn't be real.
"Whoever did this was pretty sneaky. Managed to do it in broad daylight" the police officer commented. Noticing Ash's vacant stare, he spoke up again. "Sir? Are you alright?"
"It's g-gone…" Ash finally choked out. "Everything…" The officer's eyes went wide at the realisation.
"This was your house?" Ash nodded slowly, as if he were reluctant to admit it. "Oh sir, I'm terribly sorry. Charlie! We found the owner!" His sympathy moment over, the officer went to speak to 'Charlie' and to resume his normal duties, leaving Ash still staring in disbelief at the ruins.
Misty's wedding dress…their photo albums…even their friends' possessions they had brought for their weekend stay hadn't been spared in the fire's unstoppable path of demolition. Thoughts overwhelmed his mind, bringing him to his knees without him really realizing it.
He didn't know how long he sat there for until he heard Misty's voice in the not-too-far distance.
"Ash! Ash, oh my God." She crumpled to the ground beside him at the shock and then proceeded to sob her shattered heart into his shoulder as he held her close and whispered reassuring but empty words in her ear. Similar thoughts were cramping her mind also as she remembered the dozens of valued trinkets they had owned.
"Come on Mist, we better tell the others. We're gonna have to find somewhere to stay" Ash suddenly realised. Misty nodded, catching her breath from the toll the crying had taken on her.
"Sir we'll need you to help us file a report at the station. Just, whenever you're ready" the officer added as he noticed Misty's sobbing form leaning against Ash.
"Okay. Later" he replied simply. His voice trembled when he spoke to Misty as they made their way back to the others. "Come on honey, shh, we need to be strong for the kids." Misty nodded again and swiped at her eyes. The smoke had completely cleared by the time they made it back to their friends, who now knew what had happened and were too shocked to say much. The hugs that ensued seemed to be of more comfort than words though.
Rose and the rest of the children had all assembled in the van and had been told to stay there but they could see it all plain as day.
"That's our house, isn't it?" Andy said quietly. It was more a statement than a question. Rose nodded, holding back her tears at such destruction.
"Don't worry Andy, you can get a new house!" Lisa said brightly. Rose had to smile at the child's innocence at the situation but the smile was soon gone when Felicity crawled up to her.
"Is my dollhouse gonna be okay?" she asked hopefully.
"I…" Rose trailed off and pulled her younger sister onto her lap, holding her close as she spoke. "I don't think so, Flick." Felicity never said another word. She just stayed close to Rose, who let a silent tear fall before she quickly wiped it away. She had to show that she could be brave about something like this.
It was a minute later that Rose's cellphone beeped twice to indicate she had received a text message. Although she would usually pull the phone out in a frenzied hurry like it was something urgent, she instead slowly retrieved it from her bag. She always checked for the sender first, only this time no name or number came up. She frowned. She always thought a name or number had to come up. How could there be nothing at all?
The message that followed was short but it was enough to send Rose into a spin of more worried emotions, emotions similar to the ones that had been triggered by the phonecall.
'Welcome home Rose. TTYL. Luv, A.'
A/N: I don't have much to say, if I start I won't stop so I'll sign off and thankies for the reviews and all! Cheers everyone!