Part CXCIII: A Special Night
Misty smiled as Ash led her up onto the roof of the Lumiose Gym for their special dinner that he'd planned for them tonight. The dinner was to celebrate several milestones for them and so Misty was excited for it as she made her way to the ladder leading to the top corner that had the table set up on it.
It was the same corner of the gym's roof that they'd used the year before so the barriers that Clemont had erected for their dinner back then were still in place making it the perfect spot for this dinner as well though Clemont had extended the barriers to the whole roof since then. Last year's dinner had been a special one in its own right as it was their private dinner before their Kalos journey began, so Misty was looking forward to this one as well as she made her way to the ladder leading up to that corner and climbed up to it.
As with before there was a table for two set up there with silver serving dishes, electronic candles, and cutlery while a table to the side contained a full three course meal that was covered to keep each dish at the right temperature. Unbeknownst to Misty, each of their cook friends had prepared a course at Ash's request with Cilan preparing the starter, Brock the main course as he'd been their companion in Sinnoh so he got that honor, and Clemont the dessert. As such it was all set up and ready for them once more.
To Misty it felt like they were coming full circle as a couple in Kalos. They'd had a dinner like this the year before to mark the start of their journey here, along with another with everyone the night before they set out with May and Serena as Max and Bonnie had used that dinner to tell them that they were going on their own path in Kalos. Now they were going to have a dinner to almost mark the end of their Kalos journey as Ash had ended it with a victory in the Lumiose Conference and had earned his right to challenge the Kalos Elite Four.
That was to come in two days' time as tomorrow night would be a quiet night in with all their friends as they all gave their final support for Ash before his first battle of the challenge. It was right to have everyone together for the night before the challenge Ash had spent years of hard work, and which wouldn't be possible without all his friends, seeking, but tonight was just for them.
However, the full circle nature of the dinner to mark the end of their Kalos journey wasn't the main reason for this dinner as there were other things to celebrate as well as that. One natural one was that they'd been together for over 2 years at this point ever since Ash had shown up in Johto after Misty's loss in the Grand Festival final there and they'd been able to confess and start dating so that was another thing to celebrate at the dinner as they'd not had a proper 2nd anniversary dinner due to all that was going on around that time for them in Kalos.
They'd come a long way since then having decided to take their first journey together as a couple in Ash's home region of Kanto after going back to Pallet Town to tell his mother of what had happened and have a party for Ash's 18th birthday at the time. That party had been where they'd announced their status to everyone and where Misty had started to learn about her rivals, well more than just Dawn, as well as beginning Ash's birthday tradition though they'd not be able to do that this year what with being in Kalos for it.
That was fine with Misty though as the third thing this dinner was celebrating was Ash's birthday, albeit a little earlier than the actual date, as well as soon he'd be 20. That also meant that in short order after that Misty would be 19 so they were another year older.
All of that was on Misty's mind as she sat down at the table and Ash began to serve Cilan's starter. As a result, she couldn't help but smile at him and watch him work as she thought back over the last 2 years together and all that they'd been through since that fateful day of the Johto Grand Festival where they began their new journey as a couple.
It had started in Kanto, one of the two regions that had Contests at the time that Misty hadn't competed in and as it was Ash's home region it made the most sense to compete on the Kanto Contest circuit that year. Ash had already beaten the Kanto gyms during his rookie year as a trainer so he could re-enter the Indigo Conference without needing to challenge them again but he wanted to be ready for the Conference so he's challenged all 8 gym leaders to full battles which 7 accepted thus giving him a great was to train and get ready for the Indigo Conference.
Those battles against the Kanto Gym Leaders, 5 of whom were the ones he'd originally faced, and the year in general had taught Misty so much about Ash's past, both the great things he'd done like how he'd saved Sabrina from herself, his various actions within Kanto, and all the friends that he'd made along with the mistakes that he'd made and the numerous times he'd almost died. It had been a great time and to add to it they'd made new friends both people like Mollie and Emily or Pokémon who joined their teams and helped them in the end.
It had all been what Misty needed to finally break through the wall in front of her and achieve her goal. All she needed was another year with Ash to complete her growth and learn to branch out more so that she had the skill, support, and power to finally win a Ribbon Cup and claim the title of Top Coordinator when she won the Kanto Grand Festival that year.
She'd done it with two new Pokémon she never thought she'd catch in Banette, though she'd caught him as a Shuppet which she would have caught even before she began to catch more atypical Pokémon for someone like her, and Spiritomb which she never thought she'd catch. That one catch, a decision she'd made in the spur of the moment thanks to said Shuppet, which had followed her since their first encounter, had had a butterfly effect on her and she'd make it again in a heartbeat.
The main benefit of Spiritomb had been that he was the final piece Misty needed to beat Anabel in her matchup against the Frontier Brain and one of the lost love rivals she'd encountered since winning the battle for Ash's heart. It was the fourth of the six she'd end up having and by far the toughest of all those battles.
Still, Misty's battle with Anabel had been more about closure and not dominance or anything like that as it had been with Dawn. Anabel had accepted that she'd not be with Ash, and Misty hadn't expected to win it but the stars had aligned for her that day, helped by a training mistake on Anabel's part, and Misty had managed the one in one hundred situation to beat a superior battler and ensure that she would be 6 for 6 against her rivals.
That battle had also been a huge confidence boost following a painful, literally Misty had been blasted into a wall during it, Contest loss to her new rival and friend Mollie, and after beating Anabel Misty had gone on to win her next Contest in that town before going on to win the Grand Festival at last. Admittedly it had come at the cost of her friendship with Kenny but his feelings for her had turned from genuine love to obsession and he'd been unable to take no for an answer.
Unlike Dawn who's deep love for Ash was pure and thus while she had jealousy and anger issues that stemmed from her love for Ash she'd been able to get help to overcome them and forge a true friendship with Misty, Kenny's hadn't it seemed. He'd gone down the path of darkness as he let his love turn dark with Misty's win over him in the Grand Festival the final straw that caused him to snap.
They wouldn't see that snap until Kenny's unexpected return in Kalos but Ash had ended that with an epic display that would live on in lore in that area of Kalos for how it ended in utter destruction. While Misty still had two scars from that day, as did May and Serena on the scar front for that matter, they were a reminder of how Ash was there for her and defended her against Kenny.
Now Kenny was but a distant memory for her and while the twisted trio of him, Drew and Brianna were still out there and seething despite Brianna's win over Serena in the first Kalos Grand Festival final they weren't in Kalos anymore so not a worry for any of them. Misty was sure they'd not heard the last of that lot, between Ash's win forcing Kenny out of Kalos and how Serena had handled her loss to Brianna they'd be back again but they'd be ready for that day and when it came they'd end the war those three had started.
Thinking on that trio and how Brianna had become a major antagonist to their group that year got Misty's mind to focus on her second year with Ash, their year together in Kalos. After Misty's win in the Kanto Grand Festival, Ash had entered the Indigo Conference again with many of his friends from over the years also entering it that year so they were all rivals for the trophy.
Ash would face several of them on the way to his first ever Conference finals appearance where he faced a new friend in Brenden only to lose in heartbreaking fashion on the last move. It had been close and went down to the wire but in the end it broke in Brenden's favor and Ash lost on his first true shot at winning a Conference.
Not one to be deterred by something as trivial as losing in a Conference final, Ash bounced back almost immediately and even got a new Pokémon as Cynthia had shown up at the Indigo Conference with a Riolu egg that she felt Ash was the right trainer for as it had yet to hatch. That turned out to be the case, Misty wasn't too clear on the strange details of how a Riolu hatched, and so with a new Pokémon after the Conference, Ash decided to bring Riolu with him to Kalos as they'd decided to come here if Ash lost so that he could challenge the Kalos League.
May was already here and would show them around and they'd met Serena, May's friend who turned out knew and already had a crush on Ash, which had been an interesting revelation, so they had people to join them in Kalos this year. Add in that Serena was now challenging Contests on the inaugural Kalos Contest circuit to improve her own repertoire and it just added to their plans for the year.
Like before they had other friends here and made new ones as well so it was a good, fun year they'd spent in Kalos where Ash did his thing, ended up with a special, once in a generation, Greninja because of course he did, Misty continued branching out and even tried Showcases which she found fun and once she got her feet under her she really shone in them due to her unique style that, unbeknownst to Misty, was starting to be emulated in Kalos. She may have lost in the Master Class but she'd had fun and grown which was the important thing.
However, the biggest thing that had happen, and of course what they were now getting ready for, was that Ash had finally done it, he'd won a Conference. In an epic final against an old rival from his days in Sinnoh, Paul, Ash had claimed victory and won the Lumiose Conference on the last move with the coin breaking for him and Greninja this time despite being the ones to face the type disadvantage in the final matchup. They'd cheered for that and now Ash was almost ready for the challenge he'd earned the right to have.
Yes, the year in Kalos had been a great year for them and their friends. A lot had happened, there had been great victories, bitter losses to grow from, challenges to overcome, negative rivals emerging to cause issues, and fun moments that they'd all grown from. The only thing that Misty regretted from the year was not finding a Key Stone of her own to use for her Banette and Pinsir.
She'd gotten their Mega Stones but no Key Stone and had to borrow May's for the one time she did Mega Evolve her Banette. That had been an experience to say the least, Banette's Mega Evolution had a notable side effect for its trainer, but Misty would do it again if she had to and also wanted to Mega Evolve her Pinsir as well but without a Key Stone of her own she couldn't.
That was something she'd have to rectify when she could but not at the moment. That was because it was now time to bring their year in Kalos to an end with Ash's Elite Four Challenge, one he fully intended to win.
"Ready for it?" Misty asked as Ash put the plates down and sat at the table before they started to eat the delicious starters that Cilan had prepared for them, one of the many dishes of his that they'd enjoyed together in Unova during their brief reunion in that region. "The challenge that is."
"As ready as I'll ever be." Ash said with a smile. "We've been training hard for the last week so I think I've got everything sorted for the coming battles. The teams are set, I won't be changing them as we've had the time to practice and prepare so it would mess up the chemistry to do so now, and we know that everything works. All that's left is the battles themselves and seeing what the Elite Four has beyond the two Mega Evolutions that I am expecting but I'm ready for it."
"True that is the big mystery." Misty said as they ate. "Thanks to Alain you know what two of the Mega Pokémon are going to be and you're ready for the Blastoise at least, hell thanks to Dawn you're ready for Siebold in general."
"True, of all the Elite Four he's the one I'm most confident about given all the water type training I've been able to do but naturally I'm not counting him out, he's a member of the Kalos Elite Four for a reason." Ash said. "Professor Sycamore said that he beat Alain with a super effective attack and that has me wondering what it is because it can't have been a water type attack."
"It can't?" Misty asked a little surprised. "But Alain's Mega Pokémon is his Charizard so against a Mega Blastoise it should be weak to water, right?"
"It would be if it was like my Mega Charizard and is why I'm not using Charizard in that match." Ash said. "However, Alain's Charizard is the other variant, the one that changes its flying to dragon type."
"Right." Misty said mentally slapping her forehead and taking another bite of food to distract her from that stupidity as she knew that she'd heard about the other Mega Charizard changing its secondary type upon Mega Evolving. "And that change negates a Charizard's weakness to water type attacks."
Ash may be denser than most rocks when it came to women, Misty knew that firsthand as did all those who'd fallen for him, but when it came to Pokémon and the intricacies of Pokémon battles he was up there with the best. It was one of the things that made Ash so great, he just got Pokémon and understood them both their nature and how battles worked.
Even when he encountered something new or different he was quick to adapt in the middle of a battle to overcome it. Add in his out of the box strategies along with his ability to bounce back from setbacks and learn from his losses had been why he'd always grown no matter what happened.
These were the reasons why Misty was certain that Ash would be successful in his coming challenge. Plus, he'd had the time to prepare and the range of Pokémon needed to overcome this latest obstacle on his path to becoming a Pokémon master.
"Correct so it likely knows a dragon type attack but I don't know which." Ash said. "Regardless, it just meant that I didn't select a dragon type for that battle and so once I decided who to use against Siebold based on that info and generally what's best against water types all that was left to do was to practiced against various teams of Dawn's to get ready. Even though Siebold won't be using a Mega Gyarados, practicing against it helped a lot as we need to be ready for it, especially because it changes its secondary type from flying to dark so that was actually a good help as it lowered the effectiveness of electric attacks to just super, not double super effectiveness."
"True and while May's Mega Blaziken isn't what you'll face with Malva it was a good challenge to face regardless as it gave you a fire type Mega Pokémon to face." Misty said. "Even without facing the right Mega Pokémon, facing any helps deal with the power boost Mega Evolution gives in general."
"Precisely." Ash said. "All the fire types I trained against, even Bonnie's Chandelure the day before she and Max went to Galar to see their friend had been useful as a fire and ghost type is going to be a challenge if I end up facing one."
Misty nodded in agreement at that. That had been the one day, 3 days back, that Max and Bonnie had been able to help and both had been the main opponents for Ash with him testing himself against Bonnie's Chandelure as well as Max's Swampert and Barbaracle as they were the best Pokémon they had for Ash to face given what he was up against.
They'd been a great help and he'd needed the Chandelure matchup before they left as that was a possible Pokémon to face against Malva. It was also a good warmup for tomorrow as that was going to be the big fire type day where Misty would use Pyroar, Typhlosion and Ninetales, May Blaziken, and Serena Delphox against Ash's designated team for facing Malva. It would be the last big test and each night before the coming battles Ash the next day's team would do a final run through against what they could manage to test him for the coming battle.
For Malva and Siebold that wasn't an issue but it was harder for Wikstrom and Drasna. Regardless, Ash's training had focused on first finding the best teams for the facing them and then making sure certain tactics and strategies worked before finally putting it all together in the form of battles against Pokémon that Ash either might face or of the right types at least. That had been the best way to prep Ash for what was to come and he was pretty much as ready as he could be.
"We know that for the first two you're pretty well prepared for." Misty said. "It's the other two that I'm worried about. We basically know nothing about either of them or what Pokémon they might have."
"True but some we can make educated guesses about as they're the Kalos Elite Four so certain Pokémon will be more probably than others." Ash pointed out. "For example, there's a high chance that each of them have one Pokémon that is native to Kalos. In addition we know that, according to Professor Sycamore, no native Kalos Pokémon Mega Evolves with the exception of a mythic Pokémon that none of them use even if they have it as it's a rock type thus not one of their specialties, so from there we just go with what is available in Kalos, can Mega Evolve and is the right type and that limits what they could be."
This was true, they'd used that criteria and the list of all known Pokémon in Kalos that had the types the Elite Four specialized in to make educated guesses at what Pokémon each member might have. Of course it would be arrogant to believe that they'd not have Pokémon not native to, or even known to live in, Kalos as they could have gotten them on travels, especially Drasna as her grandparents were from Celestic Town in Sinnoh, but this was the best method they had to predict what the Elite Four had, especially with the latter two that Ash would face.
In the end they'd come up with lists of possible Pokémon for all of them with Malva and Siebold's lists pretty good with a lot to work with in terms of both having the same Pokémon or at least same type combinations, but it had been Wikstrom and Drasna that had been harder. They'd been the ones who Ash had to really think on as not only were they harder to predict but their group had less steel or dragon type Pokémon than they did with fire or water types.
In the end they'd listed Wikstrom's possible Pokémon as Lucario, Aegislash, Steelix, Klefki, Scizor, Mawile, Probopass, Escavalier, Bisharp, Magnezone, Aggron, and Skarmory as his shortlist with Lucario, Steelix, Scizor, Mawile, and Aggron as the potential Mega Pokémon based off their criteria. Also, as far as they knew, there were no Pokémon that added or changed to a steel type upon Mega Evolution so that was at least one avenue they'd not have to worry about.
Meanwhile, Drasna's list was Hydreigon, Druddigon, Altaria, Dragonite, Salamence, Haxorus, Goodra, Tyrantrum, Garchomp, Dragalge, Flygon, Noivern, and Kingdra with Altaria, Salamence, and Garchomp as the potential Mega Pokémon based off their criteria. Well, those and Ampharos and Charizard as they either added or change to a dragon type with Mega Evolution.
It was a mixed list that had some that had a higher probability than others while some like Aegislash and Dragalge were going to be easy to prepare for as May and Misty had them respectively. It helped that those two they were listed as Kalos natives so had a higher possibility of being used in Ash's opinion which meant being able to face them in battle was a big boost for him but others were harder to predict, especially the Mega Pokémon.
Ash's gut told him that Wikstrom wouldn't have a Mega Lucario but that left 4 possibilities in his mind though personally there were two, Steelix and Aggron, that he preferred as he'd faced both with the former being in training as Brock could Mega Evolve his Steelix and the latter being in the Lumiose Conference final as that had been Paul's first Pokémon in it. However, Ash had no way of guessing which one Drasna would have especially with the ones that either added or change a type to dragon type.
That too was a factor Ash had to consider. So far he knew that there was a variant of Mega Charizard that changed its flying to dragon type while Mega Gyarados changed its flying to dark type. Then there were the ones like Pinsir, Sceptile, Ampharos, and Lopunny who added types upon Mega Evolution, Miette had confirmed the last one though it was a fighting type addition so not one Ash was expecting to face, and Aggron that lost its secondary type. Type changes or additions upon Mega Evolution was a complete wildcard factor that Ash had to be aware of.
This was especially prudent when it came to a type change that drastically changed a strategy change. The expected ones would be those like Alain's Mega Charizard that turned weaknesses into either resistances or neutral while adding other changes but there was one change that Ash was really nervous about, a change from a weakness to a type to immunity to it and thus really shift things in a battle though it did add two new weaknesses to use providing his Pokémon knew moves of those types.
That would be rare indeed but he had to be aware of it being a possibility as it was the type that they knew the least about and which Professor Oak was certain they'd not found all of yet. Thankfully the one change he was most worried about, that one of Drasna's Pokémon would become a dragon and fairy type upon Mega Evolving, had never been proven but he still had to be aware of it.
Incidentally, Ash would be able to counter it if it happened but that had been incidental to that possibility not deliberately done to prepare for it as it was still, in Ash's mind, unlikely to happen. It might as Professor Sycamore didn't know everything about Mega Evolution yet, but it would have to be with Altaria or Salamence as Garchomp's Mega Evolution had no change.
This level of preparation just showed that Ash had done all that he could to prepare for the various Pokémon he'd face and create the strongest possible teams to counter them. Thankfully Brock's Mega Steelix had added to the practice on that front but still there was only so much that Ash could do to prepare for the Elite Four Challenge. He'd done all that he could and now it was up to the battles themselves and Ash was good at those.
"There are limits sure." Misty said as she finished her starter, Ash had already finished but was patiently waiting for her to finish as well. "But be ready for anything as they could use any Pokémon in theory, you will be using Pokémon that have never been recorded in Kalos after all so it's not a stretch that they would as well."
"I always am." Ash said with a grin as he picked up the plates and took them to the side to get the main dish. "Even the one I'm most nervous about, I've got something for that even if it wasn't intentional."
"I know but still, make sure that your team is properly ready for that battle." Misty said. "Drasna's the toughest of the lot according to Clemont and even with the emergence of fairy types as a counterbalance to dragon types she's still strong. Let's not forget that Dragalge is a poison and dragon type and native to Kalos so the perfect Pokémon for a dragon specialist to have in the wake of the fairy type emergence."
As he served the food for the main course, it was one of their favorites from their time in Sinnoh that Ash had asked Brock to whip up for this dinner, Ash nodded at Misty's words. She was right, Drasna was considered the strongest of the four so he couldn't take her lightly but it was also one of the reasons why he was all but certain that Dragalge was going to be one of her Pokémon, a fortunate thing with Misty having one as well so Ash had gotten plenty of training against that particular Pokémon.
In order to better prepare for the challenge, Ash had done what research he could on the Kalos Elite Four and learned that he'd be starting with the perceived weakest of the four, which didn't mean much as it was the Elite Four, in Malva and ending against the perceived strongest in Drasna hence why he knew what Misty said was true. There was a debate between Siebold and Wikstrom in the middle but Ash was bookending his challenge with the 4th and 1st ranked ones.
That was fine with him, he'd face them and beat all of them no matter the order but it did play into his strategy somewhat and he had to be wary of things like that. He would be though, he knew it.
"I'm as ready as I can be." Ash said as he sat down. "And tomorrow is the last day of training with the entire focus being on Malva as she's who I'm up against first so how about we just enjoy dinner and not think of what is to come."
"Sure, I'd like that." Misty said with a smile as she tucked into Brock's food. "Damn, it's always great having Brock's cooking and this brings back memories of our time in Sinnoh back when we first met so perfect for tonight."
Ash nodded at that as they began to eat and chatted about nothing much while enjoying the food. Ash wanted this meal to be special so he didn't want to spend to much time focusing on the challenge to come, that had been for the week and this was for him and Misty to have a moment together and share their love.
They'd not had many over the year as they'd fallen into a good, comfortable spot in their relationship so they didn't have these nights as often as they should hence the need for it. Well that and they'd traveled with May and Serena, which meant they had to be respectful around their friends so he wanted to really enjoy this meal.
The others knew it as well, which was why Brock had taken Lucy for a romantic stroll just outside of Lumiose City before cooking her a meal under the stars. Meanwhile Clemont and Cilan were field testing a new fishing rod for the latter that would really help in an upcoming competition that Cilan was entering in Kalos and the girls were doing their own thing.
Dawn, May, Serena, and Miette all knew that Misty needed this and were more than happy for the group stuff the next night. However, as the main course ended and the dessert began with the moment drawing nearer they couldn't have imagined what would come next.
No one could as Ash had kept it close to his vest only confiding in one person his plans before a few days ago and even then that was only enough to get what he needed as even that guy didn't know the full extent until the item had been sorted out. However, as dessert wound down and Ash and Misty were full of good food the moment drew nearer and Ash got more and more nervous but Misty didn't notice as they chatted and finished the delicious dessert that Clemont had cooked up.
Ash noted that Clemont wasn't as good as Serena was when it came to making desserts but for this Ash felt it was more appropriate to ask Clemont to make it though he wasn't sure why. The reason was of course that Serena was one of Misty's special rivals who'd lost without ever having a chance but as Serena had yet to confess to Ash for her own closure he was unaware of this fact.
Regardless, Ash had made the right choice in asking Clemont to make the dessert and as Ash cleared the food Misty sat back in her chair contented after the meal and turned her head to look out over the largest city they'd ever been in. It was a beautiful and romantic view; Ash had shown her it the year before and it had made a great date night back then and had so again.
Misty was happy and content with the night and the fun to come in a bit but first she needed to digest and relax with Ash as she savored every minute of this wonderful night. In her mind there was nothing that could make this night better.
Ash just smiled as Misty looked out over the city, it was the perfect moment for this and as he cleared the dessert he bent down and reached under the tablecloth that covered the side table and picked up the small black box that he'd given Clemont to place there when he set out the table and food for dinner. Clemont had been the last one he'd brought in on his plan as he needed his help for this part which Clemont had been more than willing to give.
Now, as Misty turned back to Ash with a smile on her face as Ash rose with the box hidden his hands as he turned to face his girlfriend. It was time to make this night one to never forget.
Of course Ash didn't know how to do this and Misty gave him a quizzical look so without a word Ash just went for it and before Misty could say anything he got down on one knee in front of her and held out the box. Inside was the item he'd asked Alain to sort out for him back after their first meeting in front of the Chamber of Emptiness and which Alain had brought to the lab the other day, it was, in Ash's mind, the perfect item and he opened the box to show Misty.
The moment Ash had gotten down on one knee and shown her the box Misty's eyes had gone wide as she knew what that meant but they got even wider and her hands over her mouth when Ash opened the box to reveal that it held a Key Stone set into a simple platinum band. It wasn't the most traditional one for this but it was perfect for Misty and just the kind of thing you'd expect from Ash. Still there was one question that Ash had to ask with it to confirm it and so he did.
"Misty, will you marry me?"
