(A/N: Sorry everyone! I've been really busy! I won't go on with what happened, but everyone's been wondering where ch 13 is so here it is! Special thanks to Hakki for her e-mail, it really gave me the nerve to keep going! Sorry for making it really late! I'm a procrastinator! Enjoy!)

Ash sat on a chair by his mother's bed, cradling Pikachu I his arms. Both had been wounded very badly, but he was reassured that they were both going to survive. Ash had steady tears rolling down his face, how could he have not been there? He could have protected his mother, and Pikachu wouldn't have to exert all of his energy and be wounded. It was all his fault. The door opened to the room and Misty walked in, she closed the door quietly behind her and Ash didn't even acknowledge that she was there. She walked over and stood beside him.

"Ash…" She whispered, "Are…are you feeling alright?" Ash looked down to the ground as he heard her speak,

"How can you say that? My mother was just attacked, Pikachu nearly died to protect her, all while I was out having fun…how can I be 'alright'?"

"Ash none of this is your fault."

"Not my fault!" Ash snapped at her, "Not my fault!" He stood up and looked to her, his eyes burning with misdirected hatred. "Of course it is my fault! While I was out with you this happened! She could have been protected! But no! I was too blinded by you to reason that something could happen to her!" Misty looked absolutely hurt, she looked into his eyes, her eyes starting to water, but then she looked away.

"Well, Ash…I'm sorry you feel that way…I'll…I'll leave you alone now…" She said as she turned to leave, Ash suddenly realized what he had said, but it was a bit too late.

"Misty…I'm sorry…" Misty didn't look at him,

"I'm going to go to my sisters' house, if you still think you love me, then later on after you think some you can come and get me. If I really am the problem, then leave me there and I'll know your answer." She left the room, before tears could accumulate and she would beg Ash for forgiveness. Ash sank down to his knees once she had left the room.

"What…what have I done…" He asked himself as he felt the tears rushing out of his eyes much faster than before. He blamed Misty for something that no one could control. He felt a quiet sob escape his lips, he was so pitiful, and he blamed the only woman that he had feelings for just because he was upset. Brock opened the door slowly and came into the room,

"Ash, what the hell happened in here? Misty ran out crying I couldn't even get her to tell me anything." Ash sniffed back tears,

"I…I blamed her for something that none of us could control…I'm such an ass." Brock shook his head and sighed heavily.

"I'm sure she understands, at least I hope she does. Tensions are running high between us all, all you have to do is apologize and set these things straight."

"I shouldn't have said anything…" Ash replied, Brock sighed and pulled Ash up to his feet,

"It's about that dream isn't it?" Brock asked, Ash, gasped,

"How…how did you…" Brock interrupted him before he could finish.

"I know now, thanks to your outburst." Ash looked down, flushing red with embarrassment. "Tell me about it, now that I know something's going on, and I know is has something to do with Misty and Gary."

"I can't tell you." Ash replied, shaking his head, "I'm going crazy…if I tell you, you'll never think of me the same way again."

"If you won't tell me, then at least tell Misty, let her know, she's probably the only one who can comfort you properly and put your mind at ease."

"She doesn't want to see me anymore…"

"That's what you think, how about you try this. After your mom gets better, you go talk to her." Ash wiped his eyes.

"…Okay…" Ash replied, Brock patted him on the shoulder.

"I'll call her now, I'm sure her feelings haven't changed."

"Thank you…" Ash replied as he stood up, sighing heavily with Pikachu still in his arms,

"The doctor said your mother will recover perfectly, she just needs some rest." Brock, replied, Ash nodded.

"I feel…so bad for Misty…I nearly turned her away from me…damn…some boyfriend I am." Brock walked to the door,

"I'll talk to here, you just stay here with your mom." Brock left the room; Ash slumped back into the chair, looking at his mother.

"Mom…I'm sorry, I should have protected you…but Misty wasn't the one to blame…" After a while, the door started to open, Ash turned, thinking that it was Brock, but he gasped with what he saw. It was another man, but with the same eyes, same build, and the same messy hair as his own. It was someone he hadn't seen since he was a young child. His father, Ashura Ketchum, Ash looked him directly in the eyes, and noticed that his father's eyes were filling with tears.

"Ash…" Ashura started to say, and then he dropped to his knees and bowed his head to the floor. "Ash, I'm so sorry! After all of these years I know you probably hate me now. But you have to understand I had to leave you as a baby for this exact reason! I couldn't let them know that you were my son; I knew you wouldn't understand as a kid but I had to protect you and your mother. I had to leave to protect the both of you until you were old enough. I had to disappear, I'm so sorry. I should have tried to keep in contact with you, but if they ever found out…" Ashura trailed off. Ash knelt down next to his long lost father,

"Just…answer me this okay? Are you going to leave now that I'm grown up…and it's apparent that they know we're family?"

"I'll never leave! They do know, and I have to stay to protect your mother!" Ash nodded his head,

"Good…now look at me, and tell me who did this to mom…" Ash replied, Ashura could hear the venom in his son's voice. Ashura looked up and saw the hatred in Ash's eyes.

"Ash…it was Team Rocket, they wanted to hurt the two of you to get back at me…but not anymore, we're going to work as a team to take them down."

"We better…not to mention you have a lot of explaining to do…"

"Okay…" Ashura replied and he would have said more but then Mrs. K groaned from the bed, both of them jumped up and rushed over as she awoke.

"Mom…mom are you okay?" Ash asked as she opened her eyes slightly, they fixed on Ash only for a moment then shifted over to Ashura. She looked downright shocked.

"A…Ashura?" She asked, looking very shocked, Ashura felt more tears in his eyes,

"Sasha…I'm here now, those bastards won't hurt you ever again!" He took Sasha into his arms and hugged her tightly, she immediately began crying and Ash decided that it was best to leave them alone, as happy as he was about his family being reunited. He left the room with Pikachu and closed the door behind him. Brock was standing in the hall, seeing the man, and the resemblance to Ash. But he couldn't help asking.

"Who…who was that?" Ash looked to Brock and a small smile broke out on his face,

"That…was my father." Ash replied, Brock looked even more shocked than before.

"Really? How did he find you?"

"I…I don't know, but he's back…at least that's what he promised." He looked down, "The only person who is missing now is Misty…"

"Well, let's wait until we go home, then you can call her alright?"

"Okay…thank you, Brock." Soon after, everything checked out with Mrs. K, she was discharged and they all left back home.

Misty sat down on her bed in her old room back in Cerulean City. She was trying very hard not to burst out into tears at what she had done several hours later. It took her a lot of guts to leave Ash behind at the hospital with his mother and Pikachu in such pain, but she had to make sure that she wasn't treated like that because it wasn't the normal Ash. She sighed, if only she would have listened and waited for him to calm down. Soon there was a knock at the door, followed by Daisy's voice.

"Misty? Would you like something to eat? You shouldn't just stay in there by yourself all day." Misty put her head in her knees,

"No thanks I want to stay here…I'm not hungry."

"Misty you've GOT to eat something." Misty didn't respond this time to her sister, and it seemed like Daisy left.

"Ash…you jerk…" She whispered to herself, but as soon as it escaped her lips, she regretted it. After a while of sitting in silence, she heard the phone rang, but ignored it. Soon one of her sister's yelled up to her.

"Misty it's for you!" Misty sighed and reached over, picking up the receiver and speaking into it,

"Hello?" She said, but she suddenly stopped any other words when someone else spoke,

"Misty…it's me, don't hang up on me just yet, let me explain first, please." It was Ash, and of course now Misty couldn't talk or hang up even if she wanted to. "Misty I was such a jerk to you, I shouldn't have yelled at you at all. I mean, you were just trying to comfort me and then I just lashed out at you. How could I have done such a stupid and mean thing to you?" Misty finally tried her hand at talking.

"Ash…I'm sorry…" Ash seemed shock, trying to form his words,

"Wh…why? Honey you have nothing to be sorry for. Just when I saw my mother like that, I just…snapped. You know how protective I get, and then I yelled at you for no reason. After all, you're the only one that's keeping me from going insane..."

"What do you mean?" Misty questioned, maybe she'll finally get the answer to what she had been thinking and being suspicious about all this time. She wiped the tears that fell down her face,

"I'll tell you somewhere in private later, now, come downstairs so we can go."

"Downstairs?" Ash chuckled,

"Yeah, I'm standing at the front door, waiting for you to come down, and these roses sure are getting heavy." Misty immediately put the phone back on the hook and ran downstairs. She still had on her pj's, but she didn't care. She went to the front door, unlocked it and threw it open. Ash was on the other side, smiling warmly at her. He had a big bouquet of roses in his hand. "Hey Misty, can you forgive me for being a jerk?" Misty looked at him then jumped up into his arms, hugging him tightly. He stumbled backward and dropped the roses, wrapping his arms around her so she wouldn't fall. "Ack! Misty hey calm down, we've only been away from each other for a few hours!" Misty wrapped her legs around his waist and hugged him tightly.

"I don't care…you're such a jerk, and I nearly lost you…" She felt tears in her eyes, she nuzzled her head into his shoulder, and Ash held her securely and stroked her head.

"Awwww, Misty…I know I didn't mean to be mean to you…I'm just sorry that I didn't try to get you back sooner." Misty tried to wipe her eyes, but Ash beat her to it. "Stop it, honey…I'll do all the comforting, that's what I'm supposed to do." He kissed her head, "Let's go to my house now, I have someone that you should meet." He didn't let her go inside to change; he didn't even let her down. He just leaned down and picked up her roses, "Let's go." Misty held onto him as Ash kicked the front door closed with his foot and carried her to the car,

"Who are we going to go see?" Misty asked as Ash set her into the passenger's seat.

"You'll see." He replied simply as he smiled at her and slid into the driver's seat. He leaned over and kissed her passionately. She blinked in shock and kissed him back. "Misty it's good to have you back. I'll keep you by my side at all times okay?"

"Okay…but as soon as we get home you're going to have to tell me what's bothering you."

"I will when I get the chance to, I won't back out on my promise." He said with a nod as he started the car and drove off back home.

Ash and Misty snuck into his house,

"Misty, go up to my room and change into something nice okay? I'll go distract them."

"Okay." Misty replied as she snuck up the stairs, Ash walked into the kitchen, where Brock and Ashura were cleaning up.

"I'm back…" Ash started, "How's mom doing?" He asked as Ashura flipped the table over to right it.

"She fine, she's resting right now. So where did you sneak off to?" Ash walked further into the kitchen and picked up a chair, putting it in it's right spot under the table.

"I just needed to pick something up." Ash replied, winking at Brock, who nodded in understanding.

"Ash I put Pikachu in your room, you should go check on him later." Brock said as he finished cleaning the blood off the walls.

"I will, thank you." Ashura then noticed someone on the threshold of the kitchen. She had fiery red hair flowing down her back; she was wearing a light blue tank top and a skirt. She was holding Pikachu in her arms. The look on her face told Ashura that she was quite shocked that the person in front of her looked exactly like Ash. Ash looked back to her, then to Ashura,

"Dad, I want you to meet someone very special to me, this is my fiancé, Misty." Ash said to his father as he motioned Misty into the kitchen, "Misty, this is my father, Ashura. Although I'm sure you know that, we look so much alike." Misty looked up at Ash, then looked shyly to Ashura,

"He…hello sir, it's very nice to meet you." She said as she smiled and bowed her head slightly. Ashura smiled and walked to Misty, taking her hand and kissing it.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Misty, I see my son did a fabulous job of finding a girl." Misty blushed madly, and Ash did as well.

"Aw c'mon dad…quit embarrassing me." Ash said as she scratched his head. Ashura smiled,

"Well aren't the two of you modest." Ashura replied as he chuckled, "I'm glad to meet you Misty, please treat my son right."

"I…I will sir. Thank you."

"Please just call me Ashura." Misty nodded her head, Ashura started for the door, "Well I better check on your mother, be good you three." He said as he ruffled Ash's hair, Misty watched as Ashura left.

"W…wow…" Misty said, Brock smiled,

"Just like twins right?" Misty nodded her head and Ash scratched his,

"Um, yeah, I don't really see it, but whatever." Ash replied as he took Pikachu into his arms and looked at the both of them, "Thanks, guys, I might have lost it if it wasn't for the both of you here with me." Brock smiled and patted Ash on the back,

"No problem! What are friends for right?" Ash nodded his head, but still totally appreciating the help from them. Pikachu started to stir a little, and Ash looked down at him,

"Hey, little buddy, are you feeling better?" Pikachu opened his eyes only more slightly, he looked in pain, and Ash's heart sank. Pikachu nodded his head and let out a little noise. Ash was about to speak, but Misty beat him to it,

"Pikachu, I'm sorry." Both Brock and Ash looked at her, she gently took Pikachu out of Ash's arms, cradling him in hers.

"This all started because of me coming back here, Pikachu. You wouldn't have gotten hurt if it wasn't for me. You were so brave, protecting Ash's mom like that. But I couldn't help protect you. I'm sorry…" Pikachu looked up to her, and then nuzzled his head into her shoulder, making a small squeak. Misty smiled; taking that as her apology that had been accepted. Ash put his hands on Misty's shoulders.

"Misty it's not your fault, we'll find out who's been doing this." Brock agreed, smiling,

"Yeah, Ash will kill them for you." Soon they heard Ashura's voice as he walked back into the kitchen.

"But you're going to need some help." Ashura looked between the three of them, "Do you know who kidnapped her in the first place?"

"Well…no…" Ash admitted, "But we were planning on finding out at the competition."

"Leave that to me. Ash, your mom wants to talk to you, Brock you go as well." He turned to Misty, "I need to talk to you." Misty looked slightly confused; she gave Pikachu to Ash and the two men left. "Misty, sit down." Ashura commanded as he glared at her, Misty looked slightly frightened; she sat down and looked down to the ground. Ashura stood over her, "What are you to my son, Misty?" There was menace in his voice; Misty kept her eyes averted,

"I don't know what you're—" She started to say, but Ashura cut her off,

"Misty I know you and him are in love, but what has been going on with the two of you? How long have you known him?"

"We…we're in love we're going to get married if that's what you mean. I've known Ash since we were about 10 years old."

"Who does Ash hate the most?"

"Wha?—" She started to ask, but Ashura slammed his hand on the table,

"I said WHO does Ash HATE the most!" Misty quivered when he slammed his hand down on the table,

"I…I don't know, it's probably Gary, they've hated each other even before we met! What is this all about?" Ashura quickly turned the chair she was in so she would face him, and then he held her arms and made her stay in place,

"Has Gary ever said anything to you before? Anything suspicious in the past years?" Misty squirmed in his grip,

"He's flirted with me really bad! Ash had saved me from his harassment. Stop! You're hurting me!"

"I still have some questions for you!" Ashura said, but then he suddenly let go when he heard Ash's voice,

"Dad? What are you doing?" Ashura quickly let go of Misty and stepped away from her,

"Err…I was just asking her a few questions, No big deal. Anyway, I should go help your mother some more." He left the room. Ash rushed in and knelt down next to Misty.

"Hey, are you alright?" Misty looked down and avoided his eyes, "Misty?" He put his hand on her shoulder, she flinched and hugged herself tightly, "Hey…it's alright." He said soothingly as he leaned over and hugged her tightly, she seemed to snap out of it after that.

"A-Ash?…" She looked very scared after that, "He…he asked about Gary…" Ash blinked,

"Why? He doesn't even know Gary or his family… Oh Misty just calm down it's going to be all right. We'll figure out why he asked. But now we should probably be getting to bed, it's late and we've both had a long day. I'll make sure I talk to him in the morning, okay? Let's go." Ash was about to pick her up, but she grabbed on his arm tightly, "……Misty?"

"Let's leave…" She said quietly, "Please…let's go out driving or something, just for a few hours." She practically pleaded with him, her eyes nearly helpless. Ash didn't reply, but he knew that he couldn't object to her. He smiled,

"Okay, we'll go, where would you like to disappear to?" He asked as he stood up, starting to help her up.

"Our secret spot, please…"

"Alright, let's go!" He said as he picked her up and carried her out of the house.

(A/N: please read and review, I will appreciate it! Thanks!)