Hello :P It is Wednesday and I am back with another Christmas themed story for the month of December. I've had this idea in my mind for a little while now and I finally wrote it a couple of weeks ago. It focuses on some sweet and festive family time for Ash and Misty and their three young children and it ends in a bit of a new beginning. I hope you enjoy!

Ages:

Ash: 26

Misty: 26

Ben: 6

Katie: 6

James: 6 Months Old

Daisy: 32

Violet: 30

Disclaimer: I own the story and the OCs mentioned!

"And that's why that movie can definitely pass as a Christmas one!" Katie concluded with an adamant but airy nod of her head, her nose slightly in the air as she continued looking out of the car window. After she couldn't help but mumble 'mmhmm' as well like one of her beloved characters, she spoke once more. "Case closed."

From the back seat along with his sister, Ben didn't stop himself from rolling his eyes and folding his arms over his chest but he kept quiet, swinging his legs after he had endured the last half an hour of Katie proving a point to him. I smirked over at him but he didn't smirk back. He too had resumed looking out the window. So I did as well.

The gentle humming of the Ketchum family car and our peaceful late evening trip was relaxing enough as it was but on top of that, the sound of Katie informatively and enthusiastically chattering on had been making me feel on the brink of sleepiness. But all in all, I was far too glad to close my eyes. I was far too happy! We were having such happy times. It was such simplicity. But it was so contented.

I felt even more full when I saw Ash and Misty sharing a fond look over their six year old daughter from their from seats before the orange haired female played with her bangs and looked in the rear view mirror from the passenger seat to address the child.

"Well Katie, I didn't realise that there were thirteen other reasons how a film about a man with scissor hands could be classed as a Christmas film – aside from there being snow and part of it being set at Christmas." Misty began as she tried to contain her fond laughter but after she saw the orange haired little girl's eyes light up at the subtle praise, she stopped feeling the laughter tickling her throat and just smiled at her instead. "But thank you for that. We all feel very informed now!"

While Ben rolled his eyes once more and continued moving each of his legs rhythmically and separately from one and other in the back seat, his twin sister breathed out freely at the words from her Mother and leaned back in her own seat, her cheeks pink with her own contentment. I nodded my head and felt the same way. I smiled along with her and felt even more of that tranquillity that I felt just moments ago.

I really treasured moments such as those. They were a gift. We had all enjoyed a hearty meal that Ash and Misty had cooked together and because it was one of the rare successful ones, all of our bellies were full. Our stomachs were filled to the brim with home cooked food and because it was such a lovely evening out, we had all decided to take a drive to look at the Christmas lights.

The raven haired boys were hesitant at first and I understood. They both wanted to eat even more food and probably crash on the sofa in front of the television and watch a heated battle on one of the channels. But after both of the girls' eyes lit up at the idea and even little James gurgled and smiled too, they couldn't help but go along with it. Even Ben had quickly shut up his grumbling and pouting and decided that he'd quite like to make his Mommy happy. And his sister too. Though he was probably started to regret his maturity after the long lecture from her.

But despite this, we were all still happy. As we were in the Ketchum family car with Misty in the passenger seat and Ash driving with his wife's hand on the back of his neck affectionately, we were all content. Together as a family, when we were not chatting and laughing with one and other (and being educated) we were looking out the window and slowing down the car outside to look at the lights. We had seen so many wonderful ones!

There had been some lovely ones rather far away from our family home with blow up characters and bright, flashing lights. The raven haired six year old boy liked them best. His eyes lit up when he saw them and his orbs grew so bright that they were reflected in them. They were full of wonder. They were full of dreams. They were so like Ash's when he was a bit older than that little boy was. And I knew I was so lucky to see those kind and determined chocolate eyes twice over.

Katie liked the simple ones best. We had similar taste in that way. As I sat on her lap to be close to both her and baby James who was in his seat in the middle, we both cooed over most of the same lights - ones that were decorating the edges of roofs and flashing festive colours of red, green and white. We appreciated the classic ones. They didn't scream for attention but they got it anyway. That was a bit like the orange haired six year old girl. Sure, she could be loud like her Mother and stubborn like her Father but she was smart. And she knew she had to shine in a different way now that she was one of three!

I felt almost sorry for little baby James as he was facing the other way in his car seat but when I poked my head in the contraption, he seemed content enough. He gave me lots of smiles and gurgled at me. He wanted to hold his big sister's hand the entire time and even though it annoyed her at first while she wanted to focus on spilling facts to her family, after a while, she began to enjoy it herself. So much so that after he dropped her hand himself when Ash and Misty spotted more lights for them to look at, she was the one to pick it back up and entwine her fingers with his tiny ones. Sweet.

"Look over there, guys." My raven haired best friend spoke to the three of his children in the back of his car and looked at his wife too, smiling at the fact that her hand was still on the back of his neck and massaging it gently. After he pulled over to the side of the road and stalled his vehicle, he pointed properly. He chuckled to himself. "Look at these lights. Katie, some of them look like the ones in the film you were telling us about."

Needless to say, upon hearing this, the orange haired little girl reacted very strongly. But she didn't jolt forward and try to desperately peer to get a better look at the house's lights, no; it was Ben who did that. I was certain he was trying to do it to beat his sister. Katie stayed sitting back in her seat for a few moments longer, her eyes just lighting up. It had been a treat for her for Misty to praise her but her Father was as well. It was like Christmas had come early!

The Pokémon Master spotted his daughter's wide eyed and pleased but almost sheepish expression in the rear view mirror and he turned around to face her. He gave her a smile that was full of sincerity but playfulness too. He scrunched his nose up.

"See? I do listen and I do pay attention." He told her airily and regardless of the fact that Katie in turn rolled her eyes like her twin brother had done previously and raised her eyebrow at her Father, she swung her legs in a pleased manner. And then Ash being Ash, made sure Ben was included too and grinned at him, reaching his arm to punch his kneecap lightly. "What do you think, buddy? You like these lights over there?"

I glanced over at the raven haired six year old boy and he just nodded his head, not saying anything while his hands were pressed against the glass of his Daddy's car window. He didn't speak but it was obvious that he did like them, judging by how intensely he was looking at them. But after Ash faced forward again and entwined his fingers with Misty's while he wasn't driving, Ben shrugged and kicked his legs while little James did in his baby seat.

"I do like them. I do." He told everyone and after he could feel everyone's attention on him, he leaned forward in his seat to make sure that they could all hear him over the radio singing jolly Christmas tunes. "I just like the ones with Pokémon the best. You can't beat those ones."

Upon hearing this, my eye roll contrasted greatly with the one that Katie had for her twin brother after he father. But she didn't say anything. She didn't comment. She was too busy enjoying the lights and thinking of her own thoughts. My eye roll was greatly fond. I knew that a present exchanging holiday was quickly approaching but I firmly believed that one of the greatest gifts I could ever receive was seeing Ash grow up through Ben.

I had missed my best friend's very early years but I was around for his son's. And they were wonderful. Seeing his natural enthusiasm for Pokémon and people and everything was a treat. I really did have everything that I could ever possibly want. And it was right there in the car with me.

"What about you, Mist? What sort of ones have you enjoyed so far?" My raven haired best friend asked his orange haired wife and after their hands remained entwined for a little while, he pressed a kiss to the top of hers and went back to driving. Her hand didn't move away from stroking the back of his hair. "Tell me what you think."

"Oh, I just love them all, I have to say." The pale skinned woman didn't hesitate to say, a contented smile on her face and twinkles in her eyes as she conversed with her husband while she could hear her twins murmuring to each other behind her. She blushed slightly when she knew Ash was giving her quick glances when he wasn't concentrating on the road, feeling her gushing about pretty things like she used to when they were ten years old. "This whole drive has been romantic. All of the lights are beautiful. But I have to agree with Ben a little bit. Once we see some with lots of water Pokémon, then we'll have seen my favourites!"

Like Katie did when she glowed as she was reassured that her parents were listening to her and enjoyed hearing her speak, Ben's eyes couldn't help but light up at his Mother agreeing with him. He stopped mumbling with his sister and sat further up in his seat so quickly that his seatbelt almost became unclicked. The orange haired female jumped but made sure she didn't let go of baby James' hand.

"Yeah! We wanna see Pokémon!" the raven haired six year old boy nodded his head and rested his hands on the back of Misty's seat, his eyes lighting up even further when he could sense her smirking fondly to herself. He tried not to jump up and down in his own seat. "Keep driving Dad, we have to find those Christmas Pokémon. We have to!"

My best friend didn't need encouraging for two reasons. He adored making his family happy and would do that in a heartbeat and on top of that, he agreed with them as well. He loved seeing the festive Pokémon. He loved seeing most of the lights because the sight of them reminded him of Pallet Town and how much that little town used to get into the spirit.

Ash nodded his head and continued driving his family, both of his hands on the steering wheel and turning down a lane that would hopefully lead to a road and a decorated house that would make Misty and Ben's dream come true. He found himself humming along to the radio quietly before interrupting his wife and his son's enthusiastic musings to one and other.

"So I guess we know what everybody likes to see then, don't we? It's obvious that Katie likes the ones that are similar to a scene in a movie or a page in a book. And I can tell that Pikachu likes the simple ones, it's obvious." He paused to give me a fond and knowing look in the rear view mirror and I didn't hesitate to bare my teeth back in a grin. He knew me so well and he knew it. I knew it too. So I didn't try to hide it. "Mist and Ben are all for the Pokémon themed ones. And I'm just happy to see my family happy."

Ash didn't need to say those words. Like how he knew which Christmas scenery I favoured, I knew exactly how he felt. I always had done. I felt his emotions as my own and we often shared the same ones. It had always been like that, ever since we bonded properly for the first time. And he didn't need to sigh out contentedly afterwards but he did. He backed up his words with an action. Misty and Ben had their own actions too by nodding and smiling at the raven haired male's words. Katie had her own things to do. She had her own things to say. She found herself frowning momentarily.

"You didn't ask baby James." She informed her father with a frown that lasted a few more seconds, her bottom lip poking out slightly. Her raven haired twin brother tilted her head towards her, clueless but listening. Misty blinked. Ash opened his mouth to let out a 'huh' noise. But Katie clarified, shaking her head slightly so her bangs moved. She stopped furrowing her brow and raised both of her eyebrows innocently instead. "You didn't ask baby James what his favourite lights are."

And as if he knew that he was being talked about, the chestnut haired little baby let out a gurgle before he sneezed. It was very cute. It was almost as if a snowflake had fallen on his nose. Ben giggled at the noise but Katie's frown had returned. She had found his desperation to always be holding her hand when in the car with her to be annoying at first but that didn't mean she wanted him to be left out. And she was concerned that he was being forgotten about. Misty didn't hesitate to smile at her daughter's empathy that she believed she got from her father and turned around to face her and to smile at her.

"Daddy's concentrating on driving right now but why don't you ask him for him?" she encouraged her daughter and like her husband had done slightly earlier on in the little trip, she turned to look at Ben too. She reached out to stroke his tanned cheek before she proceeded to do the same to Katie's porcelain one. "Both of you can ask him."

And both of them didn't hesitate to do so. I moved onto the ledge between Ash and Misty's seats instead so I could be nearer to the adults and the twins could talk to their brother properly. They were such good kids. Really, they were such good children. I adored them. Needless to say, they didn't always do exactly what they were told but they did an awful lot of the time. They simply adored pleasing their parents. They loved feeling that they were making them proud and doing the right thing.

So they didn't hesitate to natter away to their six month old baby brother and wait for him to answer. And he did, in his own way. Misty listened to it too after she went back to facing the road along with her husband and Ash imagined it. After both Benjamin and Katie asked James which lights he liked best, he showed off a blank expression which the twins described to the rest of us, he suddenly let out a loud noise. He let out a loud hiccup!

Katie jumped and was taken aback at first but then she laughed. And following that, we all laughed. We all chuckled and this in turn made the little baby coo and gurgle as well. He kicked his little legs. He was most pleased he had been so amusing to us. And after the orange haired six year old girl and the raven haired one chatted amusedly to themselves, suggesting to each other what their little brother was saying with his hiccup, Ash reached an amber light while he was driving and had a moment somewhat alone with his wife.

He didn't say anything to her but he reached for her hand all over again while he was having a short pause from driving and he pressed a long, lingering kiss to the top of it. And while he did so, his eyes met hers. His eyes met hers and he smiled. He smiled a smile that was full of sincerity, love and gladness. Misty found herself giggling slightly but she reached out to stroke his cheek back and nodded her head. She didn't say anything but she felt the same way. And I felt the emotions coming off the both of them. I didn't need to imagine what they were thinking. I was connected to the both of them. I knew exactly that they were thinking.

It was so wonderful how they found one and other. They certainly didn't think that when they first met one and other but soon enough, they did. And they had since shared a wonderful life together. They had twins of their own. They had little James. They had friends. They had togetherness. They had happiness. And all of that got heightened at Christmas time.

It was such a happy time of year for them. Ash knew that it hadn't always been that way for Misty so he always made it his duty to give her a memorable time. But the truth was, he didn't need to. Just him being there, that was enough. Having him, the twins and James was enough. She didn't have a family-orientated Christmas growing up, from her memories. But she certainly did now. She had certainly made up for it,

After quite a noise and word-filled little adventure up until that moment, we had an instant of peace. Following pressing another kiss to his wife's hand and smiling at her in that loving way of his, Ash had gone back to driving. We had all gone back to hearing the sound of car wheels on the tarmac and the radio singing along absentmindedly.

Ben and Katie had been chatting and giggling away to little James but almost as soon as their Father started back up the car all over again, that died down. But it died down in a peaceful way. Like a song coming to an end, their child-like banter had. James had started to grow sleepy in his little baby seat and I knew I could potentially feel the same way as I clambered back to be close to him all over again.

But almost as if the raven haired little boy had known that his parents were thinking of how December hadn't always been very joyous and festive for one of them, he suddenly asked a question, sitting further up in his Poké Ball patterned car seat.

"What was Christmas like when you were our age, Daddy?" the chocolate orbed little boy asked his Father in an incredibly sweet and child-like voice that Misty soon got over the momentary panic that he was talking to her and she'd have to find a way to be honest without making her son concerned. He didn't notice her tense briefly, even though his hands had gone back to the back of her seat. He was too busy focusing on his hero who was also his male parent. "What did you do?"

"I had wonderful Christmases when I was you and Katie's age, Ben." My best friend found himself answering his son quickly and a memory-filled smile didn't hesitate to take over his face. He was still concentrating on driving his family past a road of lightly decorated lights, but he was glancing in the rear view mirror at Ben also. His face lit up as much as the displays while he spoke. "It was always my Mom and me and Gary and Professor Oak. It was small but it was nice."

The raven haired little boy nodded his head and he got ready to listen, slinking back against the back of his seat. Katie's eyes were curiously looking out the window at all the decorated houses that they were driving past but her ears were inquisitively honed in on her father's words. She hadn't asked the question but she wanted to hear the answers too. I almost climbed in baby James' little seat with him. His eyes were closed but I felt like he was listening as well.

"We used to have the biggest Christmas tree. Well, I thought it was the biggest but if I stood next to it now, it'd probably seem really small. But that's always the way, isn't it? My Mom would decorate the tree so neatly on her side but she didn't mind that I did it however I wanted on the other side. And she would cook the most amazing food! I thought it was delicious then but somehow, she's got even better now."

Misty smirked fondly as she heard all of her boy's stomachs rumbling at the mention of Delia's cooking and even though I was one of the ones with the bellies that kept quiet, I was glad to hear all of the other's squeaking. It made Misty shake her head fondly. And I knew that she was enjoying hearing her husband's tales all over again, rather than thinking about how delightfully different it was to her upbringing. Her eyes were on him and her fingers were on his arm while he happily informed everyone even more.

"We didn't have a lot of money but it was okay; we were together. We enjoyed being together even more at Christmas. Everyone would always say how great Christmas is but it can be a time where families argue lots but we didn't have that. We were close as close could be. We've always been that way, me and my Mom. She always worked her absolute hardest to make sure I was happy. And somehow, she did so even more come December time."

Both the twin's eyes lit up at the mention of their beloved and loveable Grandmother but somehow, Misty's did most of all. And while her husband drove, she stopped resting her hand on his arm and rested her head on his shoulder instead. She didn't stop herself from smiling openly upon hearing about Delia. She adored that woman as much as Ash did.

She was like a mother to her. She taught her so much. She loved her so much. She had been the one to raise the raven haired man into the kind, caring and selfless person that he was. She would always respect Delia. And needless to say, Delia would always respect Misty. Anyone that made her son as happy as Misty did would be family for always.

"Those are my happiest memories of Christmas when I was your age. And some other ones are the sleepover that Gary and I used to have on Christmas Eve. Like you two, we were so hesitant to sleep! We didn't want to. We were way too excited. So we would stay up talking and driving my Mom and Professor Oak insane. But we didn't care. We were so cheeky! But I'm not going to say anymore. Because I know that you're likely to copy our antics!"

At the same time that Ash turned to give his wife a mischievous grin and a kiss on the cheek, Ben and Katie shared that exact same look and smirk to each other. They nodded their heads. They knew that they didn't even need to know what sort of thing that their Father got up to with Uncle Gary when they were their age. They knew that they were capable of far cheekier things!

And they were probably right. After all, they had Misty's genes on their side too and that made them slighter faster and smarter and creative than their Daddy. They didn't like to get up to mischief too much because like I said, they preferred pleasing them and being praised. But they had their moments! And in that moment, the orange haired woman's eyes and mind finally flickered to the childhood holidays of her own and she couldn't stop herself from quietening down. And like how Ben had seemingly sensed it in their mother before, it was Katie's turn.

"What about you, Mommy? What was Christmas like when you were our age?" the orange haired little girl asked and for once, she was showing off the naivety that Ben and Ash strongly possessed. Her eyes widened innocently. She wanted to know. She knew that her Mom's parents weren't always around for her but Christmas was always happy. Wasn't it? "We want to know."

"Christmas when I was a little bit younger than you is something that you'll love to hear about, Katie." Misty informed her daughter softly and calmly and Ash tilted his head towards his wife to see if she was okay. I did too. Despite the fact that she had had to swallow a slight lump in her throat and speak quietly, she was okay. In her own way. She had changed the subject to avoid it being too heavy for the six year old children. And she changed it to one that she was glad to discuss. And because of this, she found herself smiling slightly.

"My Dad – your Grandad Jordan – used to really get into Christmas. There were lots of handmade decorations that he'd put on the tree. Pokémon ones, Ben." Misty began telling her children and us all too and after she saw her son's mouth hang open slightly with wonder and his eyes light up too, she found herself fully relaxing. She started to remember it all through their eyes. With just pure innocence and wonder. "The house would always be full of singing. I don't remember too much about my parents together when I was younger but when it was December, they'd always be humming together. And Katie, we'd often be watching movies together, snuggled up on the sofa. In fact, I think you must get it from him because I reckon he would put on a film and convince us it was festive!"

Katie wrinkled her nose momentarily upon hearing this as she got the sense that her Mother was lightly making fun of this but she quickly let it go. She liked hearing everything that she was saying. Ben did as well. And I knew that little James did, even though he was starting to snore in his backwards facing car seat while holding his big sister's hand.

But it was Ash who enjoyed hearing all about it the most. In fact, while Misty continued talking about tree decorating and massively wrapped presents and Christmas carols and sea themed cupcakes that had red and green icing instead of blue and purple, he had more tears in his eyes than his wife.

Though he blinked them back, he wasn't dismissive of them. He accepted them. He was glad that the love of his life had happy times at Christmas with her family. And he was glad that she could start having them all over again since her parents were visiting more and more from 'up there' each year.

Ben and Katie didn't have tears in their eyes but they had wonder in them instead. Everything that their mother was saying was filling them with vivid imagery and words that were making their young minds whirl. Misty didn't talk too much about her family and her past but when she did, it was always special. When she pushed past the vulnerability and the pain as well, it made the twins feel even closer to her. And it was something that made her feel closer to the twins.

One thing that she loved was how close her orange haired daughter and her raven haired son was. Regardless of them being very different from one and other, they were as close as two twins could be. They were definitely each other's other person – the person that they went to for each other. They were definitely each other's best friend. And this was the opposite to how Misty felt with her siblings growing up.

And once again, Katie picked up on this. But before she could question her Mother with words or even look at her with question filled eyes, Misty caught her children's gaze in the rear view mirror and found herself being very very honest with the young ones.

"You're lucky to have each other, Ben and Katie, and you're even luckier to be close to one and other. That's all I've ever wanted for you two. I want you to have a good bond. That kind of thing seems alien to me but I don't want it to be that way for you. I want you to be good to one and other. I want you to be friends. I'm lucky that I didn't have to encourage you two to be that way. You just were."

I had the urge to move away from little James and curl up close to Misty instead and I itched to do so but I knew that if I did, I would wake the sleeping baby up and cause him to cry. And I also would potentially cause the orange haired woman to cry. We had had such a lovely family trip looking at all of the lights but that ended in her being reflective over her own family. She was being brave. But she was going to show vulnerability towards that particular situation eventually.

We all kept quiet upon hearing those particular words from Misty but it wasn't in an uncomfortable way. It wasn't in an awkward way. Our silence was thoughtful. Our silence was caring. The orange haired woman remained just as quiet as the rest of us and looked down at her lap but Ash was there to reach his hand out to hers. He didn't say anything to her. He didn't even look at her. That was enough. In fact, that was plenty.

It was Ben and Katie who shared all of the glances. As they sat in the back seats together, instead of the playful side glances they often gave each other when they were in that position, they locked eyes on one and other properly. They seemed to converse. I studied them.

Ben's chocolate eyes seemed to ask Katie if she thinks that it will always be that way between Misty and her sisters; if they will go the rest of their lives only seeing each other a few times a year and not really connecting.

Katie's aquamarine eyes didn't hesitate to answer back as she thought to herself. She shrugged out loud but it was her eyes that spoke the most. She told her twin brother that it didn't have to be that way. Not if the right opportunity came along. Not if their Mother wanted more and not even a close bond with her sisters but just a comfortable one.

They both finished their eyeball conversing with a sigh and a shrug and Misty let out the same one at the exact same time. Her own head tilted and it tilted towards the window. She looked right out of it. I really was considering hopping onto her legs. I longed to be there. But her eyes longed to be looking out the window and at the lights.

But as Ash continued driving through a quiet town square that they were familiar with, something caught Misty's attention that was far more important than the lights. Not that she would have believed it at first, but that really was the case.

As the raven haired male continued driving slowly and thoughtfully with his three children in the back of his car and his wife at his side, he thought that the orange haired female's attention had been captivated by the decorations or perhaps one of the shop windows. He never would have guessed that it was something vastly different.

"O…Oh…" Misty breathed out and her eyes widened. She didn't tense and she didn't freeze. She peered. The truth was she couldn't believe her eyes. It was almost as if she had spotted Santa Clause himself. She peered further. She shook her head but her eyes weren't deceiving her. It couldn't just be a coincidence. "Is… Is that my sisters…?"

Her words were said with uncertainty. Even though she definitely knew what her relatives looked like and she had seen them less than half a year ago, she just couldn't believe her eyes. Ash definitely wouldn't have believed his eyes either. And he didn't believe his ears. After a few seconds pause, he chuckled, thinking it was his wife's brave sense of humour, playing some kind of joke. He found himself being light-hearted back, making a joke and reassuring Misty that he'd keep driving and put his foot down. She soon informed him.

"No, Ash, I'm being serious, my sisters are right there. It's Daisy and Violet." The orange haired female told her Pokémon Master husband in a tone that was starting to get slightly impatient and breathless too with shock and while he blinked and did a double take while somehow trying to slow down and check for cars behind him, Ben and Katie just looked at one and other before leaning to stare out the same window. Words slipped out before Misty could stop them. "Pull over to them. I'm not joking. Pull over to them."

While I finally made the decision to hop onto Misty's lap for moral support after seeing the flashes of blonde and violet hair looking in a shop window myself, Ash just blinked but knew to take his wife seriously. He wasn't even doing so because she had uttered those particular words to him. He didn't even need to hear them. The tone was enough. He knew she meant it.

He did exactly what she said while the twins continued peering and little James' eyes sleepily opened up. We all listened to Misty do the opposite of what we expected her to do when she called her sisters names and moved the car window over and ushered them over.

Needless to say, they were both extremely surprised to see their little sister out on their family drive and they were even more surprised by her encouraging them over to her. As they followed her instructions and walked along the pavement before bending down to see Misty's face out of the car window, they couldn't hide their expressions on their own faces but they didn't show them in their actions. More words from Misty came burbling out. She was rambling, in her opinion.

"We've just been on a family drive to see all of the Christmas lights around here." She informed Daisy and Violet and after the raven haired male knew it was okay to lower the windows in the back seats briefly so the Aunts could get a look at their niece and nephew and the feet of their baby nephew, Misty continued talking. She was playing with her bangs in a somewhat nervous way. But she was doing well in keeping her cool. "Kind of surprised to see you."

"We're kind of surprised to see you." Violet couldn't help but say, though she managed to keep her head shakes to herself. They weren't judgemental, they were just really surprised. They hadn't spoken about it openly, but she knew that her little sister had grown uneasy since having children of her own. Their relationship had always been complicated but that had been heightened since realising how different it was between her own children and how different it could be from witnessing other siblings.

Daisy was being the quiet one and she was bending down from her tall height, quietly thinking to herself how much the twins had grown since the last time she had seen them. She had seen photos and been updated a couple of times since but it wasn't enough. She gave them both a slightly reserved wave. And then she spoke, to prevent Misty from taking Violet's words the wrong way.

"We've just been doing some last minute Christmas shopping, hence the peering in the window. We thought we'd be able to buy them elsewhere but no. Change of plans. Last minute change of plans. You know what it can be like."

Misty's eyes were flickering as she listened but it wasn't between looking at both of her siblings. Like the relationship with her sisters, she was uneasy. But upon hearing Daisy's words and after the raven haired male had a small smile and a nod for both the older women but not too much out of respect for his wife, Misty's brow furrowed together. And this led both of the other Williams' to explain.

Both Daisy and Violet were planning on having a group trip with their friend group to Kalos for Christmas but work obligations got in the way to prevent them from doing so. It was obvious how much they were looking forward to their holiday away from home judging by the expressions on their faces as they told it. And it was even more apparent from the way that Violet found herself giving all the details of everything she'd packed so far while rearranging her own bangs.

But like she often did, Daisy was the one to step in. She saw the innocent but clearly sympathetic looks on the twin's faces and gave them a smile. And then she smiled at Misty, though she could feel that she wasn't going to smile back. She didn't want her to be uneasy. But that was the way it was. And their situation was the way that it was.

"But it's going to be okay. We're going to have Christmas just us two sister's. Lily is already out there, she caught her flight days ago. But it's okay. But we have each other and if that's the way it has to be then that's the way it has to be. But we really should get back to shopping before all of the shops close up."

"But it doesn't have to be that way." Misty was certain that that's how those words came out but it wasn't. But like Daisy was saying, that was okay too. The truth was, her sentence came out cut a bit shorter than that but it didn't matter. The spontaneous courage was there. The twin's eyes widened. Ash's didn't but his head tilted. James hiccupped. I sat closer on Misty's lap. She swallowed. She played with some bangs even more. She was afraid of stammering. She was afraid of hesitating. She really didn't know how to say the words, even though they were on the tip of her tongue. She let out a sigh and almost buried her head in one of her hands as she finally spoke. "Why don't you spend it with us? I mean, if you're free. Seeing as you are free. And you have nowhere to go. You might as well spend it with our crazy lot."

Daisy and Violet perhaps did quite a few silly things in their youth but for once, they were the ones who were doing the right thing. Though their eyes were widening, they kept their composure otherwise. The rest of us did not. Ash almost gasped out loud. Ben and Katie obviously glanced at one and other, their secret conversation happening before their very eyes. Little James contrasted the mood heavily by letting out a humorous noise.

But nobody laughed. Misty's eyes were still flickering but they were intense. She stopped playing with her bangs and I rested my paw on the top of her hand as it rested on her lap. Ash did the same to the other. She had both our support but for once, she didn't need it. She had herself. And she was surprised at herself but she was reassured too. Many people had taught her to forgive and be brave but it was her that put it into practice every day. And she was doing so. All on her own.

Daisy and Violet looked at one and other. They couldn't stop themselves from letting out hesitant and somewhat confused noises and not giving their little sister an answer at first. It wasn't that they didn't want to join them but rather the invitation had taken them aback. They had been through many ups and downs together and had done especially that year. They had learnt to take a back seat in their sister's life but were suddenly being offered a front one. They were inwardly touched. But they were outwardly surprised.

The orange haired female found herself flushing lightly at their reactions but still, she knew she had our support. She had mine and Ash's support. And she had Ben and Katie's when the two of them stopped peering at their Aunt's and rested their hands on the back of their Mother's chair. And though she couldn't see it, little James was being encouraging too for he was smiling in his little baby seat. She had us all. She had her family. But she was willing to extend that family too.

And finally and after a good few minutes' hesitation, Violet was the one to speak to their little sister. She only said one word really but her reddish brown eyes were glistening in a way that really wanted a truthful answer. Her brow was furrowed. So was Daisy's. They were both listening. Violet asked out loud while Daisy's eyes did so.

"W… Why, Misty?" the slightly blue-ish haired female asked their little sister before she turned to look at the blonde, oldest sister but she wasn't looking at her back. Daisy was just looking at Misty. She wanted an answer, perhaps even more so than Violet. And she didn't want anything to put Misty off from telling the truth. But that was impossible.

The orange haired female was always going to be truthful. She had learnt to be true to herself and proud of herself thanks to people like myself and Ash and James and Jayden and her twins and her parents too after they came to visit. And for once, she wasn't doing what she was doing for Jordan and Lynne. She was doing it because it was the right thing to do. And she expressed it in her own way.

As the first snow of that December started to fall on Daisy and Violet outside of the car and it sprinkled on Misty's nose as she leaned out of the car window, she looked at both of her sister's. And she nodded her head. She knew what she had to say. She knew she had to be truthful. And she was. She was brave. And she was sincere too.

"Because it's Christmas." She told the both of them and while the twins held hands in the back of the car, she nodded her head a second time. And she found herself showing off a flicker of a smile too. "It's Christmas Time. And you're going to share this one with us."

And nobody needed to say anything else other than that. Daisy and Violet didn't even need to accept the invitation with words. They accepted it by an exhalation of breath and a smile and a nod back. It was a done deal. It was a done deal and we were all proud. We were all proud of Misty. But most of all, we were just happy.

We were just happy to have a slightly bigger group at Christmas that year. It wasn't always easy, but it was successful. And after all, nothing good ever comes easy, does it? But Misty knew it to be true that it was the right thing to do. Proper forgiveness would come in time but in the meantime, she was starting to build memories all over again. Happier ones. With her sisters. And at Christmas time.

Because Christmas was truly about family. Christmas is about family. And she knew that she would never have that courage to start all over again if it wasn't for her family. Her proper family. Myself and Ash and the crazy, mad group that we all have together. They are all our family. And that was growing bigger and closer every single day. And every single Christmas Time too.

The End.

There you go! Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed :3 I've wanted to tackle the subject of Misty and her sisters for a really long time now but have almost always put it off. I need to clarify that the uneasy relationship between Misty and them doesn't come from the way they appear in the anime. In my stories, it's far more than that. I'm hoping to go into it further in the next year, hence featuring them in this Christmas story. With Jordan and Lynne coming back down from 'up there' it goes without saying that that is going to bring up some feelings and past hurt which affects the way that they interact, and especially Misty with the other three. And like the story states, a lot of those feelings come up heavily for Misty after the birth of little James and just one of the reasons is because she realises how close Ben and Katie are and how she never had that. But I will be writing about that one day! I've already shown how James (Morgan) and Daisy have a bit of a friendship and that probably begins here because even though Misty invited her to Christmas, they always have their Christmas meal with the crazy Morgan lot :P Thanks again and I will be back next Wednesday with another Wintery fic so see you then!

AmyBieberKetchum signing out :P