Part XX: Ash's Birthday Surprise
The party had been amazing from start to finish. The whole celebration was more than Ash could have possibly hoped for and it had been great to see so many friends again, especially after such a long time for many of them. Ash hadn't thought it possible to have a party like this but it had been done, without his knowledge no less, and Ash had made sure to have as much fun as possible.
It was after Brock's latest round with Croagunk, his fourth or fifth as they had lost count, the dancing had started and the party had really hit its stride. From then on it was a whirlwind of fun for Ash and Misty.
They danced, caught up fully with all their old friends while Ash introduced Misty to those she didn't know and generally had a good time. There was no more drama like what Misty had to deal with at the start but naturally with that many trainers in the same place, many with egos twice the size of an average Wailord, challenges were inevitable. Several battles had been accepted and they had been set up for the next day as many were staying on the ranch for the night so they could all battle in the morning.
In the end a list had to be drawn up so that challenges could be determined on a first come first serve basis based on when the challenge was issued. It was already decided that Ash and Max would battle first followed by of all things a battle between Misty and Angie that Ash didn't understand.
After that there was the expected battles of Cilan and Burgundy, though Cilan and Brock had also agreed to a battle first, Georgia and Iris, Morrison and Stephan, which Ash had predicted given their personalities, and many more were set up. Zoe and May had even agreed to have a contest battle that Misty would officiate so that the Unova lot could see one first hand, with the added bonus of it being between two Top Coordinators of Sinnoh. Yes, the celebrations were going to continue the next day and Ash couldn't be happier.
Alas night had eventually fully set in and it was time to hit the hay, in a few cases literally. Most of the gang headed out to the campsites they had set with friends or in Morrison's case a hammock he had set up in a nearby tree. Others like Brock, May, Max and Cilan were staying at the lab as they had arranged to do so with Professor Oak but for the most part the guests were camping out.
In addition, Dawn had taken Pikachu as well as Piplup at a look from Misty which earned Misty a wink from Dawn. Pikachu looked as confused as Ash did for a moment before Piplup whispered something to him and Pikachu seemed to understand what was going on. Ash, of course, still didn't.
"Why is Dawn taking our Pokémon?" Ash asked as his old friend retired for the night by heading out into the ranch. "And for that matter where is she going? Isn't Dawn staying in the lab?"
"I think Dawn intends to go and try and talk to your Palpitoad, she mentioned him earlier at least so I assume that is where she is going." Misty said with a shrug. "And likely sleep near a body of water knowing her. As for why, well I asked her to take care of Piplup and she understood and took Pikachu as well."
"You did?" Ash asked still very confused. "Why?"
"I did." Misty said with a smile that Ash couldn't read as she took his hand and led him deeper into the ranch. "And because I felt that we could spend the night together, alone. It will be just the two of us and no Pokémon to interrupt us, just like the picnic we had before the party. You know how those two are, I swear they are conspiring to emulate Croagunk as best as possible. I want to have you all to myself tonight and they will get in the way otherwise."
"I can't argue with that." Ash said with a smile of his own as he let Misty lead him deeper into the ranch. "Just for tonight of course. If we do this too often then I think they will really conspire to make us suffer. They may even ask Croagunk for advice and I don't trust him one bit. Any Pokémon that routinely attacks Brock over his romantic advances knows a thing or two about inflicting pain."
"True." Misty said with a chuckle and a shudder at the thought of Croagunk advising Piplup on how to best deny Misty her fun with Ash. "At least after this Piplup will stop being upset at me for what happened in Cerulean City."
"Until you decide to challenge another girl I had no idea liked me." Ash pointed out. "Then he'll probably take another Hyper Beam from a powerful Pokémon in the process."
"No Piplup is taking a break from the next one tomorrow." Misty said idly as they walked. "He isn't a good match against an electric type and Angie will use her Luxio tomorrow for sure."
"Yeah they are great partners." Ash said with a nod before stopping in his tracks as what Misty had said suddenly hit him. "Wait? Does that mean…"
"Yes, Angie liked you back in Sinnoh." Misty said clearing it up for him and tugging on his hand to get him to walk again. "You know, you have a real habit of pissing girls off, then showing them who you truly are, then saving their lives at the risk of your own and causing them to fall for you in the process. It's like you have a routine that always works for you when it comes to women."
"Huh?" Ash ask confused as to what Misty was saying. "I never noticed any of that. I am just being myself that's all. I don't intend anything."
"Of course, you didn't dear and that is why we all fall for you." Misty said with a shake of her head as they neared what she had asked Professor Oak to set up. "You wouldn't be you if you noticed. It is all part of who Ash Ketchum is and it works almost every time. I'm not complaining because I was the one who landed you in return but it does mean I have a lot of new rivals. I will put them all in their place though. I did so with Dawn and now it is Angie's turn."
"So, Angie liked me." Ash said thinking back on it. "That does explain her odd reaction when I tried to shake her hand before the marathon at the end of Professor Rowan's summer camp. She got all nervous and shy which was really out of character for her and I didn't understand it at the time."
"Oh yeah I remember that." Misty said the memory coming back to her as Ash said it. "That does explain her reaction."
"I take it that is where you went off to at the start of the party." Ash said. "To talk to her about it."
"Not intentionally." Misty replied.
"Huh?" Ash asked confused. "But you did go and chat with Angie, right?"
"Yes because I noticed that she had slipped off after everyone else came to say hi and you were distracted catching up so I went to see." Misty said. "That was when I found out why she was upset and it all clicked. We had a long, needed, talk about everything and she accepted it pretty well."
"Nothing was destroyed?" Ash asked worried. "Because last time this happened you and Dawn almost destroyed a gym."
"No surprisingly I can control myself around a rational rival." Misty said. "Dawn is an exception I think. Her temper can be infectious and she knows how to really set someone off."
"Yeah I know her temper well." Ash said remembering his many arguments with Dawn. "So, you and Angie are good then?"
"Yeah we are." Misty said with a nod. "Of course, we have to battle tomorrow so that I can assert my dominance over her."
"That explains why you two are battling tomorrow." Ash said as realization hit him. "I was wondering why you were so eager to battle her."
"Yup and I know that I will win." Misty said with a smirk. "I have a Pokémon that she won't be able to beat with her Luxio, or at least it will be impressive if she can. I will again assert my dominance over another rival."
"You know that is really sexy, right?" Ash said and Misty felt a pleasant shiver down her spine at his words. "Makes me feel special that you care so much about me to battle for my honor."
"Well you are special Mr. Ketchum." Misty said as they reached the clearing that had been set up for them. "And here is our special place for the night."
Ash gapped at what greeted him, all thoughts of Misty's battle with Angie driven from his mind. In a small clearing was a tent that was comfortably large enough for the two of them to camp out in under the stars. A lantern was lit on inside it and another one was outside it to illuminate the scene. Misty dropped his hand and walked slowly towards the tent, swaying her hips seductively the entire way knowing that Ash was watching here.
"Well, are you coming?" Misty called over her shoulder and Ash didn't need any hesitation to follow her. "Thought so."
Misty smirked; everything was going according to her plan. She picked up the outside lantern and led Ash into the tent. Inside was a thick roll matt for comfort, a few pillows and a double sleeping bag that was fully unzipped so it was more of a blanket then a sleeping bag. Everything had been set up perfectly just as Misty had asked it to be. Misty crawled in and lay on the sleeping bag, waiting for her boyfriend to join her.
Ash was by her side in a moment and they were passionately making out a second later. He had been so quick to be with her that he had forgotten to close the tent. A gust of cool wind brought the pair back to their senses and they broke apart breathing a little heavily from the make out session. Misty then crawled back and closed the tent before coming back to lay next to Ash as he pulled her close.
"There is one thing that still confuses me." Ash said as Misty tried to kiss him again but pulled away reluctantly knowing that Ash would speak his peace before they could resume their fun. "Angie came to say hi a fair bit before you returned to the party. Why were you held up?"
"You know, you can be so clueless at times." Misty said with a sigh as she rested her head on Ash's chest. "And then at times you can be accidentally observant. I was held up because I had to deal with something else. Something I hadn't expected to deal with but in reality probably should have seen coming."
"What?" Ash said concerned as he heard an off tone in Misty's voice. "You know I am here for you my love."
"I know." Misty said with a smile as Ash held her close. "I guess I should tell you, you do need to know after all. It is something that you will have to deal with eventually."
"Know what?" Ash asked.
"I'm not the only one of us with particular rivals." Misty said slowly, trying to word it as best as possible. "You have at least one, though I am certain there is a second, out there who will challenge you for me. Both were here tonight though the main one left after he confronted me."
"Kenny." Ash said recalling that he had seen Misty's old friend at the start but not since and thinking it was odd that Misty's oldest friend wouldn't say hi to her but he had been too preoccupied to really think about it until now. "Right?"
"Yeah him." Misty muttered darkly. "I think my friendship with him might be over now. I am not sure how it can be repaired after tonight."
"Well whatever it is, it's not your fault." Ash said kindly and Misty smiled at him. "That much I know."
"That's sweet Ash but it is at least partially my fault." Misty admitted with a sigh. "I wasn't clear enough back when I turned Kenny down in Sinnoh. If I had been then maybe none of this would have happened, or at least he would have understood better."
"You turned him down in Sinnoh?" Ash asked cluelessly and Misty would have face palmed had she not been holding Ash. "When?"
"Remember when he challenged you in Sunyshore." Misty said. "Right before we left for the Lily of the Valley Island and the conference there."
"Yeah I remember that." Ash said recalling the incident easily, he remembered all his battles. "He was oddly intense for a training battle."
"That's because he didn't see it as a training battle." Misty explained. "He had tried to make a bet with me that if he could beat you in battle then I had to come on a journey with him right away and leave you and Brock behind."
"But we had the Sinnoh League to attend." Ash said his brows furrowing. "You weren't missing that."
"No, I wasn't." Misty said firmly. "I was with you until the end no matter what. Kenny was adamant though and that was when I realized he had feelings for me but I even back then I knew that I didn't share them."
"You didn't?" Ash ask and Misty smiled at the relief in is voice, it was cute that he was worried but Ash never had to worry, she had eyes only for him.
"No because by then I knew that I liked you, I just not how much." Misty said as she looked up lovingly into Ash's eyes. "Kenny's actions helped me realize that my crush on you was a lot deeper than I had initially thought. So, I left him a letter that I thought was letting him down easily but at the same time making it clear that I wasn't interested in him."
"But he didn't get it." Ash said realizing. "Most guys aren't great with subtlety, I've noticed that over the years."
"Coming from the king of obliviousness that is saying something." Misty said and they laughed before Misty got serious again. "But yeah he didn't get it and in all honesty I wasn't as clear as I could have been. I guess he still thought he had a chance with me hence why he came to this."
"And that was destroyed tonight." Ash said remembering how Misty had kissed him in front of everyone. "And he didn't handle it well."
"Well he handled it better than Dawn did." Misty said. "Though admittedly that is a high bar to reach given how well Dawn handled it. However, it was a scarier in a different way as I was a little worried about what Kenny would do. At least with Dawn her rage was more at you for not noticing her before I challenged her. Kenny was very angry and was willing to challenge you for me. It was a lot of macho shit and he wasn't getting it at all."
"He would have lost if he had tried it." Ash said bluntly. "Kenny is a good trainer with some good Pokémon but not only is this my home turf and I can field a team of fully evolved, powerful, Pokémon but he is a coordinator and not a trainer like me. A straight up battle will be hard for him to win, though a contest battle would be a different matter. Plus, I will be fighting for you, I will never lose when that happens."
"I love you." Misty said as she saw the dedication in Ash's eyes as he spoke. "You know that right?"
"I do and I love you too." Ash said with a smile and gave her a chaste kiss, pulling away too soon to toy with her and continue their discussion. "But he ran off before he could challenge me I take it."
"Well Dawn and May suddenly showed up and put an end to it." Misty said. "They had gone off to be alone for a bit because May was remembering her own bad former relationship, that's why she was a bit out of it tonight and not very engaged, and Dawn was helping her as she knew I would rub it in that I beat her. They heard Kenny getting angry at me and came to help out. Dawn put the fear of Arceus into him and he left almost as soon as she did."
"I don't doubt it." Ash said with a smile. "That is upsetting about May, I will have to spend some time with her tomorrow and remind her that she is one of my closest friends and that I am and always be there for her. You're right, she did seem a little off tonight and I feel bad for not spending time with her. We haven't seen each other since Sinnoh and that too long agio."
"Yeah I feel really bad for May, it must be tough seeing us so in love while knowing that her first foray into it didn't end well." Misty admitted, sad that her close friend had been so unlucky in love while Misty had struck gold. "I think that is a good idea though, May could use it and you two are old friends."
"I'll do that then." Ash said with a smile. "While some of the battles are going tomorrow, after our ones of course, we can all go on a walk and enjoy the ranch. Her Wartortle is from here so it will be nice to let it wander around again."
"Yeah I think we should all do that." Misty said with a smile of her own. "Just you, me, May and maybe Max if he is around as I didn't really get to know him tonight."
"Not Dawn?" Ash asked quirking an eyebrow.
"She has other duties." Misty said. "And with her around I will be unable to take my hands off you to reinforce to Dawn that you're mine and that's not fair to May after what she went through."
"True it's not." Ash said. "Though I am happy that you and Dawn are getting along after everything."
"We are getting there." Misty agreed. "It will take a little more time but the worst is far behind us now. There is a mutual respect there after our battle and that is a good basis for a friendship. Though I am sure that we will always but heads just a little."
"She will be fine in time; Dawn is very resilient and adaptable." Ash said and Misty just nodded, she had a feeling her little war with Dawn would likely never end but Ash didn't need to know precisely what that was about as he returned to the main topic that they had been discussing. "At least Kenny left thanks to her."
"For now." Misty said. "But he will be back, I know it."
"And when he is I will crush him and send him running back to Sinnoh with his tail between his legs after I thrash his ass." Ash said firmly and Misty shivered in pleasure at Ash's assertiveness and defense of her honor. "You aren't the only one who can show dominance over a rival, even an inferior one like Kenny."
"You know that is really sexy right." Misty purred repeating what Ash had said earlier.
"I know." Ash said as he gave her another chaste kiss to toy with her again before pulling away. "But you said there were 2 guys here tonight that would be rivals to me. Who's the other fly I will have to squash one day?"
"Oh, you have already beaten him once so I know you can do." Misty said before shivering at his creepiness as she said his name. "Conway."
"Conway likes you?" Ash asked confused. "I never realized that."
"Yeah that figures." Misty muttered with a sigh before explaining her theory to her boyfriend. "I think he fell for me when we were paired up in that tag battle. Then at the summer camp he was constantly analyzing me the entire time as he saw me as a rival apparently."
"I do remember that and thinking that it was odd." Ash said recalling Conway's strange obsession with Misty at the camp. "He's a gym trainer and you are a coordinator, it made no sense to me."
"Yeah I know, it was a little unsettling." Misty said with an involuntary shiver at the memory. "He was also like that when we were at the Sinnoh League. He always creeps up on me and gives me the shivers the moment he speaks in my ear. While Kenny's anger scares me now and I think he is letting it take him to a dark place from which he may not return, Conway is straight up creepy."
"Well I will beat him again if I face him." Ash said confidently. "Though that does explain why he said that Kanto would be his new region this year and right after I said I was entering the Indigo Conference again."
"That figures." Misty said with a sigh. "He would want to be near you so as to strike when he calculated the best time was to attack. He has always been good at crunching numbers."
"Well when he does I will be ready and I will again show him who the real master is." Ash said. "Then I will make sure he knows you are mine."
"That's it, I can't take it anymore." Misty said pushing Ash onto his back and straddling him. "No more talk, kiss me Ketchum. Now."
Ash obliged without hesitation. What followed was a full on, passionate make out session with no attacks from their Pokémon for the first time in their relationship. In seconds Misty had her tongue down Ash's throat and they were wrestling for supremacy. Ash had no idea what came over Misty but he went with it without complaint, fully enjoying the moment with the girl he loved.
Misty finally broke the kiss, enjoying Ash's whimper at the end of it, it was fun toying with him after he had toyed with him earlier. She sat up on his lap, her head thankfully not touching the top of the tent, she had made sure it wouldn't but it was nice to know that her calculations had been correct.
Misty smiled at Ash. She could feel his excitement underneath her as she teased him, her own was very noticeable to her as well. She looked down and saw the love and lust in Ash's eyes, knowing that hers were filled with the same emotions.
"I think it is time for your birthday present." Misty said and a little blush crept into her cheeks at what was about to happen. "I have a very special present for you."
"What?" Ash asked confused.
"Me." Misty said as she pulled her tank top, undershirt and bra off in one smooth, practiced, move before throwing it to the side. Ash's eyes went wide at the sight and Misty smiled at his stunned reaction. "I'm ready Ash, it's time and I can't think of a more special day then today to share this special moment with you. Take me, I'm all yours Mr. Ketchum."
Ash didn't need telling twice as he pulled himself up and capture Misty's lips with his in another passionate embrace. She smiled into the kiss as the fell back to the mat. Misty knew in her heart that she was ready for this, tonight was that night. Everything was perfect for such a special occasion for them. It was both of theirs first time and it was as special as Misty had hoped it would be.
At last, under the night stars they gave into their love for one another, knowing that neither would forget tonight for as long as they lived. It was the perfect end to a perfect day. Happy birthday Ash was the last thing that went through Misty's mind as they lost themselves to the passion of their love.
