A Morpheus Christmas, a pokémon fanfic

A Morpheus Christmas

By Fox McCloude

Above the Kanto skies…

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. This is your captain speaking. We are about to arrive to our destination, the Kanto International Airport. Please remain seated and prepare to fasten your belts. We wish you all happy holidays and thank you for flying with us."

The loudspeaker announcement snapped Angie out of the dream world. Well, it actually did Shinx first, as he rubbed against her to wake her up. The girl immediately looked outside the window to see that, indeed, they were about to land. A feeling of anxiety mixed with excitement immediately took her over, and she had to palm on her cheeks to relax.

"Nervous, sweetie?" her mother asked, right on the seat next to her.

"It's okay to be," her father, on the third seat, added. "It's the first Christmas we spend out of Sinnoh, after all."

"I'm not nervous! Just… a little excited, that's all," Angie said as she petted Shinx. "I'll finally get to see Ash's hometown, and meet his mom."

Angie glanced through the window once more. A few months before, Ash was visiting Sinnoh to try the Battle Frontier, and when he stopped by Solaceon Town, she decided to accompany him for a bit. After a lot of mental deliberation, she finally dared to ask him on a date, one thing led to another and the two eventually started going out in a serious relationship. And she couldn't feel happier about it.

However, once his little tour ended, Ash had to return to Kanto, and while she would have loved to follow him back, she had to push back those plans due to taking care of the Hollyhock Pokémon Daycare, until they found someone who could fill in for them. Fortunately, they did, at least enough to take a month off for the Christmas season.

Perfect timing to meet in person her future mother-in-law, even though they'd talked to each other a couple times via video call, and she'd heard plenty of good things of her from Ash. For the same reason, her parents decided to come along, as they were interested in meeting Ms. Ketchum as much as Angie herself.

Although she was worried about some things. Her parents were nice people and she loved them, but when it came to romantic business, they could be a little… different, sometimes.

The seatbelt fasting sign turned on, and immediately the clicks from all passengers' seats echoed all over the plane. Angie took a deep breath before fastening her own, preparing for the landing. In just a few minutes they'd be landing on Kantonian grounds for the first time.

…

The international airport was very crowded. Angie and her parents had to walk a few rounds trying to orient themselves, and they even had to double back once due to a baggage confusion, which almost caused her father to come to blows with an employee due to his clumsiness. The girl couldn't wait for them to get to their place to stay and shake off that embarrassment.

Luckily, she didn't have to wait long; a familiar voice called them out:

"Angie, over here! Here we are!"

Trying to see amongst the sea of people, Angie finally pinpointed the voice's source, and smiled upon seeing the familiar, smiling face of Ash. Next to him was a brunette woman who waved at them with a big smile, and a Mr. Mime holding up a large sign with her name in big letters for her to see.

'He really came to see me arrive.'

As she was busy with her thoughts, Ash's group approached to greet them, and she didn't notice until he was already in front of her, holding her up in his arms and twirling her around. Meanwhile, Ash's Pikachu jumped off of his shoulder to bump his tail with Shinx's as a high-five substitute.

"How's it going? Missed me?" the black-haired boy asked, after putting her back on the ground.

"You know I did, you big dummy." She smiled, before turning to Ash's mother. "Nice to meet you in person, Ms. Ketchum."

"Oh, you can call me Delia, and the pleasure is all mine, sweetheart." The woman hugged her too. "Congratulations; you have no idea how long I waited for my baby to bring someone home for dinner."

"Mom, I'm not a baby!" Ash replied, his cheeks reddening in embarrassment.

Ms. Ketchum simply ignored the remark, and approached her parents. "And you two must be…"

"Nice to meet you, Aoi Hollyhock, and this is my husband Clarke," her mother replied. "I hope we can get along as future in-laws."

"Honey, it's a bit too early for that yet," her father quipped. "Ash still needs to earn our approval, remember? He's a good kid, but he needs to prove his worth if we're leaving our little girl in his hands."

"Dad!" This time, it was Angie's turn to feel embarrassed.

"Speak for yourself, darling," her mother intervened. "As I was saying, it's a pleasure to meet you at last. Ash has been really nice to Angie, so it's clear you've raised your son very well."

"I certainly hope so." Ms. Ketchum placed her hands on her hips. "Well, time's a wasting. Ash, be a good boy and help them carry their luggage; our car's waiting."

"I know, I know," Ash said, grabbing both her parents' suitcases.

Angie for her part sighed, but also smiled. From the look of things, her parents and Ms. Ketchum would get along with each other wonderfully.

A bit later…

As Ash had told them, his mother earned her keep by running a restaurant named Pallet House. The upper floor also had an inn, and they'll stay there for the rest of the month. Even though Delia had invited them to stay at their home, Angie's parents insisted that they didn't want to be a bother, so they offered to book some rooms at the inn in advance.

Angie wouldn't have minded staying at Ash's home, but she wouldn't say that out loud. Besides, Pallet House's inn was quite welcoming, and they were comfy enough there. However, what the green-haired girl expected the most was to try Ms. Ketchum's famous cooking. He'd always speak of how great of a chef Delia was, and she wanted to taste it by herself.

And they were doing so right now: the five of them were sitting by the table, with the Hollyhock parents watching in awe how both youths devoured their food at alarming speed, without stopping and without choking one bit. They seemed to be competing on which of the two could eat faster or more, and when there was only one last steak on the table, both of them sank their forks on it simultaneously, making them glare at one another.

"Don't joke, Ash; I got it first," Angie said, pulling it to her side.

"In your dreams; the last one is for me," he replied, pulling in the opposite direction.

Right then, their parents could have sworn they saw sparks fly between the couple, but they laughed at it. Nevertheless, as if knowing she had to intervene, Delia raised a knife and cut the piece of meat in two, taking advantage of both Ash and Angie pulling each to their side.

"Okay, now you're even," Delia. "Each can eat half the steak."

"No fair, ma'am; you gave Ash the bigger piece!" Angie protested.

"You kidding me? Yours is thicker than mine!" he replied.

"Boy, don't be mean to our daughter. If you were a gentleman, you'd have given it to her," Clarke said.

"Come on now, it's not the time for that," Aoi asked, trying to get them to calm down.

"Enough, you two," Delia intervened. "You two finish that, and then walk outside for a bit. We adults have a lot to talk about, don't we?"

"What are you talking about, Mom?" Didn't you say we were…?"

"Now you mention it, maybe you should go with him, Angie," Aoi interrupted. "That way, you can show her the town, don't you agree?"

Angie wanted to say something, but after giving it some though, she realized her mom was right. It wouldn't hurt to know Ash's hometown and take a walk with him, alone. When she glanced at Ash, she saw the trainer's confused expression, but he finally shrugged and agreed.

"Okay, since you insist. You coming, Pikachu?"

"You too, Shinx."

…

A while later, both had gone through a little tour on every corner of the small town. There weren't any notable landmarks, except for Professor Oak's lab, where Ash could show her his other Pokémon. Angie was surprised on how many he had, and how colorful some of their personalities were.

Now, they were sitting on a snowy hill, relaxing while Pikachu and Shinx played and ran all over the field. From there they could see practically the whole town, and the sun was beginning to set on the horizon.

"What do you think our parents might be doing now?" Angie asked.

"Knowing my mom, probably showing your parents my baby photos," Ash said, half-laughing, half-embarrassed at the thought.

"Had they known, probably they would have brought mine too," she said. "I better hide them when I get back home."

"Won't you show them to me at least?" Ash asked, making her turn around. "Oh come on, sooner or later Mom's gonna show my photos to you. It's only fair that I see yours too, isn't it?"

Angie gave him a little nudge on the arm, but she laughed. Admittedly, she'd like to see Ash's baby photos too; he probably looked really adorable as a little boy. He already was when they first met, once they got over that rocky first meeting with the left foot.

"So… what do you think of Pallet Town?" he asked once the giggles died down.

"It's a lovely place," Angie replied. "Quiet and relaxing, the perfect place to come and rest far from everything."

"It's quiet now, but just wait for the Christmas party," Ash said. "Trust me, nobody will sleep at night once it starts, Mom will make sure of that."

"Are you serious?" Angie asked. "She doesn't strike me as a party woman."

"Haha, that's just because you haven't seen her at her best," Ash said, grinning, before turning more serious. "It's not a big town, so everyone gathers every year to celebrate, like a big family. Except, of course, those who are abroad traveling or something…"

Angie noted how Ash looked up to the sky and his expression became nostalgic.

"After traveling so much, I missed out many things in Pallet Town's yearly Christmas parties," he confessed. "One of the few things, along with Mom's cooking, I always miss when I'm out traveling. Besides… having you here will make it even better."

The Sinnohan girl blushed at the remark. Now she was even happier for taking that vacation with her parents.

"Is it okay for me to come? I mean, I'm an outsider, isn't it a party for the locals?" she asked.

"That's no problem. Several of my friends often came in the past years. But this year they want to spend the holidays with their own families, so I felt it's only fair I do the same. And well," he placed his hand on hers, "we might be becoming family very soon…"

If she wasn't red enough before, now she officially was. That 'might' was still in transit, but it came very close to become a 'definitely will'.

"By the way… what would you like for a Christmas gift?" he suddenly asked, catching her off-guard. "I admit I haven't thought of anything yet, so…"

"Let's not worry about that, you big dummy," she giggled. "Being here with you is enough for me."

Ash then looked back up to the sky. The girl stared at him for a bit, and then coyly approached to give him a peck on the cheek. But right when she shut her eyes before making contact, Ash must have turned around.

Because what her lips touched definitely wasn't a cheek.

The green-haired girl pulled away in embarrassment. Even though they were dating 'seriously', they'd kissed on the lips very few times. Not because it was unpleasant; just because she felt it didn't come out quite right when they tried, due to her nervousness.

Feeling her heartbeat speeding up, she had to gather up courage to face him and say something once her voice came back.

"I… I'm sorry…"

"I'm not," he replied with amusement. Angie looked up, and although she saw a small pink tinge on his cheeks, the way he smiled made it clear it wasn't unpleasant at all.

She smiled too.

Right then, something beeped on Ash's pocket. The trainer pulled out of his pocket a Smartphone that looked like it was designed after a Rotom, complete with lightning-shaped antennae, and immediately pushed the button to answer the call.

"Yes?"

"You two are done relaxing?" It was Delia's voice: as clearly activated the speaker. "We could use some help here, since we're taking the Christmas tree decorations."

"Hey, don't go starting without me!" Ash declared before hanging up. "Shall we go back?"

"If you say so. So, the tree's decorations, huh? Can I put the star on top?"

"That depends. Are you willing to climb up to the highest?" asked Ash.

Angie tilted her head in confusion, as she didn't get what he meant. Ash then pointed to an open field, where a large, thin and tall pine tree stood out from the rest.

"See that pine over there? That's the tree we decorate every year for Christmas. If you really want to climb up there to put the star…"

Angie glanced at the pine, and then at Ash. The trainer's face almost said "You're not scared, are you?", as if challenging her.

Obviously, she wouldn't back down from that.

"If I end up falling, you'll catch me, right?"

"Obviously." He nodded.

"Then yes, gladly. Let's go."

She grabbed Ash's wrist and the two walked down the hill, picking up Pikachu and Shinx on the way out, back to the restaurant to meet with their parents. She was anxious to help decorate the tree.

Later she'd have to think of a good present for Ash, but there were still some days left before Christmas. Until then, it'd be worth it to spend time in his company, and in family with their parents.

FIN.

Author's notes:

Okay, I can only guess that some of my regular readers might be wondering what this is all about. As it turns out, last year I decided to be active during the holiday season and opened requests for short Christmas-themed stories. This one was written as a Christmas gift for Shadechu Nightray, and before any rabid shippers want to hang me by the eyebrows or something, a few things to clear up: 1) It was done as a gift at the request of a friend; 2) Even though I'm primarily a fan of the Poké and AmourShipping pairings (in that order), I like Angie enough that Morpheus is in the "I wouldn't mind" zone; and 3) it was fun to do, to get a bit out of the comfort zone. Besides, my intention was to make something that was a different experience, something out of what I usually do, and on that side, this story fulfills that.

On personal notes, about the names for Angie's parents, her mom's name was taken from Angie's Japanese name Aoi. Ten billion points to whomever guesses the association why I named her dad as Clarke. As for the family name, Hollyhock is one of the alternate readings of Angie's Japanese name, and I figured it'd sound good. Now that sticks as their family name in my headcanon.

Last but not least, I know we're still one month away before Christmas, but since someone asked if I planned to translate this, I figured it wouldn't hurt, since I'm taking a breather from other stories (and this one wasn't too long anyway). So then, Merry early (or late, as you prefer) Christmas, and I hope you've enjoyed it.