Title: Overprotective
Summary: Misty was always overprotective of the especially danger-prone trainer, but what happens when Ash realizes she's no longer able to save him. #Pokeshippingweek2022 prompt "overprotective Misty." short and fluffy oneshot.
He can see it in the way she panics; her wide, blue-green eyes boring into his back with the power of an irradiating sun.
It's the little look she gives just before the danger, the "pre-fall" as he's dubbed it, because he always sees it during the microsecond before free-fall.
Where others freeze or shield themselves, she's relentlessly inching forward, and reaching out in a way that makes her willing to throw herself off cliff faces without a second thought in pursuit of him.
He knows that the others hold her back from following him over the edge. It's obvious in the bruises that appear on her arms and torso after the danger has quelled that she fought to follow him despite her own sense of self-preservation.
He hears it in the muted whispers of concern with the slightest trembling uptick in tonality at the end, as she's always pleading with him to be alright when she finally finds him, battered, broken, and maybe lacking pulse, in any of his haphazard landing points.
Despite all that, she's brought him back from the brink of death and stupidity so many times that he's begun to realize that the only thing he has to fear is losing her. With her by his side he's near invincible, though her nagging reminders and wiped tears remind him not to test his luck too far.
Sometimes people call her over-protective, but he's a special kind of danger-prone so he knows regular level protection wouldn't suffice.
What he doesn't understand is how to process when that look is directed at him and she's suddenly frozen. Instead of moving forward, as she always would, she's now like a stantler in headlights, staring at him with a weakly outstretched arm, and the final frontier is breached.
He realized it the second he leapt off the cliff of the Cerulean Cape following Pikachu into the rough ocean waves that were storming the beach below. For the first time ever, she hesitated without any of their friends, many of whom were at her side, having to hold her back.
Suddenly there was a new weight added as he spiraled downward through the stormy air and with it came a surprising, but valid reason to be OK and make it back from the turbulent surf that awaited his graceless dive.
In his free-fall, he noticed her release Gyarados from the top of the cliff and the powerful water pokemon met him near the crest of the waves as he flopped into the whitecaps barely managing to grab onto the spiny ornamental head piece of the water beast at the end of his fall. Effortlessly the well-trained beast managed to quickly locate and scoop up Pikachu, bringing both man and electric mouse to the shoreline before their sole diving breath's could expire.
The rescue was fluid and seamless, so much so that he found himself waiting on the small beach for her arrival. When she finally clambered down the sandy cliffs leading to the beach, he dashed across the wet sand to scoop her up into a chaotically jubilant embrace that left his remaining counterparts scratching their heads in confusion.
"How hard did you hit the water?" She smirked, veiling her concern with an easy taunt as he spun her around in an exuberant display.
"Myst…you're…" he sputtered, unable to form a complete sentence as he stared at the redhead in awe setting her down.
Brock, Tracey, May, and Max watched with quirked brows and concerned expressions as Ash had yet to fully release the redhead; they figured he was dazed or maybe even concussed at his dissonant reaction.
"Brock, you probably want to check him for a concussion," Misty directed, moving to wiggle out of the embrace.
Misty thanked and recalled Gyarados, gave Pikachu a quick once over of a check before passing the seemingly okay electric type to Brock for a more thorough checkup, and then turned away from the disheveled dark haired trainer.
"Myst," Ash ignored her directive and once again moved toward the redhead who was retreating down the shoreline, "you are, aren't you?"
"Ash, you have to use your words. You're not making any sense," Max interjected with a hopeless sigh, and Brock and Tracey exchanged a small glance that indicated that they also had no idea what Ash was talking about.
He must have really hit his head hard to be raving like a lunatic, and yet Misty's normal concern was muted with taunts and an obvious desire to be anywhere but there.
May, having an inkling of understanding, moved to shush her younger brother.
"You really hit your head this time didn't you?" Misty dismissed edging closer to the path back to the city.
"I feel totally fine, but why didn't you tell me?" Ash grinned like a fool, grabbing her hand and dragging the furiously blushing redhead back to the group.
"Maybe this is a conversation for later," Misty muttered through gritted teeth, hoping the dense trainer would catch the hint, but knowing it was a futile plea that would likely fall on deaf ears.
Once he was excited about something, there was nothing to be done to squash that enthusiasm. It was something she both loved and loathed about the energetic young man.
"How long have you known?" Ash plodded on cluelessly.
"OK," Brock finally stepped in, "what is going on?"
"I think it's pretty obvious..." May giggled, shooting a pointed glance at the duo.
Ash just stood there in a happy stupor while Misty looked as though she'd rather be anywhere but around people at that moment.
"If you think it's obvious and no one else knows what's going on, then I'm going to go out on a limb and say you're probably wrong, May," Max interjected snarkily.
"Am not. Misty's positively glowing," May emphasized.
"Are you sure you didn't hit your head? People don't glow," Max retorted with a heavy sigh.
His older sister was so dense sometimes.
But the commentary resonated with Tracey and Brock at least, who suddenly raised a curious brow at the furiously blushing redhead who's face confirmed the statement undeniably.
"Oh no, no, no, no," Brock insisted firmly, "I am way too young to be an uncle."
"Do your sisters know?" Tracey asked with concern; he didn't like the idea of keeping secrets from Daisy.
"Congratulations!" May chimed in happily grabbing Misty into a friendly hug, "I so called it!"
"Will somebody please tell me what's going on!" Max shouted quieting the frenzied group with a frustrated sigh.
"Ash and I…" Misty hesitantly spoke.
"You're what?" Max exasperated throwing his hands up and pacing across the beach. He hated that everyone else had figured something out before him though he had a feeling it had something to relationships which were still far from his mind given Max was only fifteen years old and hadn't yet met someone that had swayed his opinion that anything mattered more than pokemon.
"Well I'm pregnant," Misty muttered gesturing to Ash, "and the dad's apparently smarter than he looks."
Ash shrugged dismissing Misty's dig at his intelligence for the pure joy he was feeling about the current situation.
"So, Ash, how did you know?" Tracey asked finally realizing even the pokemon mater in training hadn't been aware of the news until he hit the water.
"She would've never let me fall without a reason," Ash simply stated, smiling at the redhead at his right and squeezing her hand lovingly.
I know it was short, but I hope you enjoyed!
I will be tackling "Mirror world" as my next pokeshipping theme (posting either Thur or Fri).
Reviews or favs are always appreciated!
-FWFT