Since today was the airing of the second episode featuring Brock and Misty in Japan, I thought it'd be fun to have another nostalgia-esque one shot to put up. This is another one I've been saving for a while, and I think today is the perfect day to share it!
Aiden and Michelle: 18 months
Ash and Brock's Little Adventure
"Wa!"
"Alright, hang on, little buddy!"
"Wa wa!"
"Yeah, I see the water! Hold on!"
The toddler boy whined and continued trying to move towards the nearby lake. His left hand was caught in Brock's right, however, and that alone was preventing the boy from going anywhere. This began to frustrate the child, who quickly began moaning and whimpering while he struggled.
"Ash, come on, Aiden's really fighting me over here!" Brock called over his shoulder.
"I'm trying," Ash groaned, struggling to push the double stroller across the grass while at the same time trying to keep the diaper bag secure in the stroller's basket. "Man, I don't know how Misty does this. It's basically impossible!"
Aiden continued to shriek, and in one swift motion, threw himself down on his butt. Once he was sitting, however, the little boy became silent, and stopped struggling against his godfather.
"Huh, that's all it took?" Brock wondered aloud. "Alright then, little guy. If that's what makes you happy!"
"Ugh, finally."
Brock looked back over at Ash and smirked. "Figure out that stroller yet?"
"Yeah," Ash replied with a sigh. "Sorry about this, Brock."
"Don't apologize," Brock chuckled. "You know that I love Aiden and Michelle! It's not a problem."
"I know, but this was just supposed to a guys' day, ya know?" Ash sighed. "We had it all figured out, and then someone just had to come challenge Misty at the gym. And somehow no one else in the family is around…"
"I can deal with it just fine," Brock assured.
"This thing totally isn't necessary," Ash grumbled, glaring down at the stroller. "The twins barely like sitting in it anyway! But Misty said if I didn't bring it, I'd have to carry the diaper bag myself. Which would be fine, if it wasn't so heavy and didn't look like a giant purse…"
Brock laughed loudly, causing Aiden to turn his head to look up at the man. "Well, Pikachu seems to be enjoying it!"
The electric mouse was halfway inside the bag, tail end sticking out as he dug through its content. Ash sighed and knelt down, raising an eyebrow as he watched his partner.
"If you want some of the twins' snacks, all you have to do is ask," Ash informed the Pokémon.
Pikachu pulled his head out of the bag, twitching his ears. "Pi-ka?"
"Yeah, I don't mind!" Ash chuckled. "I'm sure the twins don't either. Misty packed enough snacks to last them for the next year anyway."
Brock tilted his head. "Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?"
"I don't know," Ash grumbled, reaching into the bag and pulling out a massive snack bag full of various goodies. "You tell me."
"She knows they're not even 2 years old, right?" Brock questioned. "They couldn't eat half of that combined! Not even with Aiden's massive appetite."
"I'm pretty sure she knows that, but she always wants to be 'prepared'," Ash replied, using air quotes when said "prepared" to assert that it was a direct quote from Misty. "It's still crazy, though. I guess she's expecting the end of the world or something."
Brock chuckled before reasoning, "she just worries. It's what makes her such a good mom!"
"That I know," Ash relented, smiling at his best friend. "I may tease her about it, but it's really sweet. I love that about her."
From inside the stroller, Michelle unleashed a shrill whine, struggling as she attempted to climb out of the seat.
"You're sick of the mushy stuff?" Ash chuckled, glancing down at the little girl.
"I think what she's really sick of is that stroller," Brock snickered.
"Told you they don't even like it," Ash remarked, folding his arms. "It's alright, princess! Daddy will get you out of there."
Ash bent over and lifted Michelle out, which quickly got the girl quiet. He smiled and rubbed their noses together, earning a shrill giggle from the toddler.
"You're so cute," Ash chuckled, placing the child on the ground. He watched as she toddled over to Aiden, placing one hand atop his head while sticking the fingers of her other hand in her mouth. "Good, no fighting! For now, at least. We should take advantage of the peace and quiet."
"Sounds good to me!" Brock guffawed. "I've got lunch all ready to go."
He put down his backpack, unzipping the compartment and pulling out the food he had crafted especially for him and Ash.
"I feel bad that I didn't make anything for Aiden and Michelle," Brock sighed, frowning as he looked at the lunch spread out in front of him.
"It's totally fine, neither of us had any idea they'd be tagging along!" Ash assured. "Besides, you saw how much food Misty packed just for them. Neither one will be going hungry today. Or ever, honestly."
"You've got a point there," Brock chuckled.
"Besides, I'm starving," Ash groaned. "So I'm gonna need some of that food before I waste away!"
"I would say I hope you like it, but I'm never too worried about you," Brock snickered, taking a seat on the ground.
"Everything you make is amazing, Brocko," Ash commented, joining the older male by the food. "And it all looks as good as always! Let's dig in!"
He picked up one of the fresh sandwiches and removed the plastic wrap around it, opening his mouth to take a bite. As soon as he had, he released a sound of clear satisfaction. "Yeah, just like I thought. So good!"
"Glad you're happy with it," Brock laughed. He started to open up his own sandwich, and that's what caught the attention of the twins. Aiden started crawling towards him, and Michelle scurried along as quickly as her little legs would take her. Just as Brock was raising the sandwich to his mouth, he felt two weights land squarely in his lap. Blinking, Brock glanced down and realized Aiden and Michelle were now situated there, gazing up at him with wide, curious eyes. "Aw, hello you two! Looking for some attention?"
Aiden pointed up at Brock's sandwich. "Foo?"
"Foo?" Brock repeated with a chuckle.
After swallowing his next bite, Ash explained, "That means 'food.' Misty and I hear it all the time out of him! I'm starting to think that's Aiden's favorite word now."
Brock once again glanced between his sandwich and Aiden. The little boy was undeterred, and continued staring up at his godfather. Finally, Brock smiled and tore a small piece of his sandwich off, holding it in front of the toddler's mouth. "You want to try some, little guy?"
Aiden opened his mouth and accepted Brock's offering. While Aiden slowly chewed the piece, Brock tore off an equally small piece and presented it to Michelle.
"Here, sweetie," Brock crooned, snickering as Michelle took the piece much more timidly than her brother. "I love how different their personalities are."
After a bit of chewing, Aiden had swallowed his bite, and Michelle finished up soon after. Both looked contemplative (as contemplative as a couple of not-yet 2 year olds could be) which amused their father and godfather.
"What did you think, guys?" Ash asked. "Did you like Brock's food?"
Huge grins suddenly broke out on both of their faces, and they quickly became livelier, jumping up at Brock with outstretched arms instead of simply sitting on his lap.
"Foo! Foo!"
"Oh, I'll take that as a yes!" Brock laughed.
"Except now they want the rest of your sandwich…" Ash muttered, watching the twins fervently surround Brock.
"That's no big deal!" Brock refuted. "They can have-"
"No, Brock, I'm not gonna let you give up your whole lunch to those two little Munchlax," Ash countered. "Aiden, Michelle, come here you two! Mommy packed a whole bunch of yummy food for you guys! How about we eat some of that?"
Aiden and Michelle both shook their heads before turning their attention back to Brock. "Foo!"
"Guess not," Ash sighed.
"Ash, seriously, I don't mind," Brock tried. "I can eat some of the side stuff. It's much more important that they get fed than me."
Ash let out a long breath before declaring, "No. Feeding them isn't your responsibility. Aiden, Michelle, come here. You want some more of that sandwich?"
Aiden and Michelle scurried over to their father as quickly as they'd done to Brock. Ash tore off two small pieces of his own sandwich and gave them to the twins, who rapidly gobbled them up. As soon as those pieces were gone, however, they started clamoring for more. With an almost pained look on his face, Ash tore the sandwich in half and began splitting each half up into even smaller pieces. He divided those between the twins, and watched with a smirk as they started eating it all up.
"Wow, they were right," Brock marveled. "Fatherhood really changes a man. I never thought I'd see you give up your lunch to anyone!"
"These two are the only ones I'd share with," Ash chuckled, watching the twins eat happily and quietly.
"Pikachu?" The electric mouse whined, looking up from the applesauce pouch he'd picked from the twins' expansive snack collection.
"Yeah, you too," Ash relented.
"Pi Pikachupi?"
"…yeah, Misty too."
Brock laughed deeply. "Wow, you've gotten soft, Ketchum! Giving out food like it's going out of style."
"You know, it's funny," Ash mused. "This sandwich is so amazing! I totally want to eat the whole thing! But somehow, I like seeing Aiden and Michelle super happy even more than having the entire sandwich to myself. And trust me, I love this sandwich."
"More than Misty?" Brock teased, Pikachu tittering in the background.
Ash blushed lightly and turned his head away so Brock couldn't see. "No comment."
Brock smirked to himself and went to take another bite out of his sandwich. Before he could, however, he caught sight of something across the lake…that something being a beautiful woman.
He couldn't exactly get the best look at her from such a distance, but it didn't matter. Brock could tell that she was absolutely stunning. Long and sleek chestnut brown hair, a gorgeous ivory complexion, shorts so short and tight that Brock had only envisioned such clothing in his dreams…
"Hey, Brock? You still in there?"
The Pokémon doctor blinked hard and turned his head back towards Ash. "Yeah! Um…just out of curiosity…do you see that girl over there?"
Ash raised an eyebrow. "Over where? I don't see any girls around here besides Michelle."
The little girl looked up from her sandwich bits upon hearing her name, releasing a tiny squeak as she tilted her head.
"Not right here," Brock sighed, nodding his head towards the lake. "Over there."
Ash looked in that direction, and quickly caught sight of the girl. He wasn't super impressed (he was married to the love of his life, after all, and believed she was the most beautiful woman alive) but Ash knew that Brock was definitely smitten, because he was by a majority of women.
"She's alright," Ash assessed with a shrug of his shoulders.
Brock nearly fell flat on his face. "Alright?!"
"Well, she's no Misty," Ash reasoned with his flustered friend.
"I have to go talk to her," Brock decided, gently smacking a determined fist against his open palm.
"What, now we're throwing women into the mix?" Ash whined. "This guys' day is seriously going out the window."
"I'm going to need something to get her attention," Brock continued formulating, causing Ash to sigh. Once Brock saw a pretty girl, there was really no talking him out of going after her. "Something that attracts women. Something cute…"
His eyes slowly trailed down towards the twins, who were still busy finishing off the remains of their father's sandwich. Ash suddenly realized Brock was now staring at his children, and that's when alarm instantly set in.
"Brock!" Ash hissed.
"Women love little kids!" Brock cried. "And honestly, you and Misty made two of the cutest babies I've ever seen. Those adorable faces have never failed me."
"You know Misty hates it when you use the kids as lady bait," Ash groaned. "And by the way, she came up with the term 'lady bait.' I had nothing to do with it."
"Aiden and Michelle mean the world to me," Brock continued, not at all phased by the fact that Misty had apparently come up with her own dictionary about him. "You know I would never put them in any danger or do anything stupid with them. They're just so adorable that no woman I've ever tried to attract can ever resist them. And Misty doesn't have to know! It'll be our little secret."
"Yeah, yours and mine maybe," Ash sighed. "Aiden and Michelle are both starting to talk, and they don't believe in censorship. They say whatever they want, even if it doesn't make total sense. And Misty is always the number one person they babble to. They just love telling their mommy everything. And Misty seems to understand every word! Did you know I can't even sneak a pre-dinner snack anymore? They tell her! I'm constantly getting tattled on by my own kids who can barely speak!"
Brock stared Ash dead in the eyes. "Glad you got that off your chest?"
"Yeah, it feels good," Ash breathed heavily, sagging his shoulders.
"Just let me try," Brock pleaded, returning to the subject as quickly as they'd come off it. "You can stay right here and watch! I won't go far at all. I swear."
Ash thought it over for a moment before reluctantly giving in. "Alright, fine. Just try and make it quick, okay?"
"You're the best," Brock sighed happily. "Aiden, Michelle, you want to go for a little walk?"
The twins both squealed and nodded happily. Brock took the twins' little hands and gently pulled them up, urging them along towards the lake. Ash watched with slightly narrowed eyes, not out of anger but out of concentration. He wanted to keep a close eye on the three of them and make sure everything was going smoothly. Ash watched over his children like a Fearrow; he adored them and was extremely protective.
Brock made it to the other side of the lake in near record time, which was impressive considering he was leading two toddlers. The woman was still there, in the same spot, just looking out over the water. Confidently puffing his chest out, Brock moved towards her, still holding onto the twins' hands. Once he reached her, he cleared his throat to get her attention, which worked instantly. The woman whipped her head around, staring up at Brock with wide, purple eyes.
"Hello there," Brock began smoothly. "I couldn't help but to notice you from across the lake."
The woman glanced quickly over the water before turning her focus back onto Brock.
"You're very beautiful," Brock added, shooting the woman a devilish grin.
"Thank you," the woman replied, her own lips bending into a thin smile. She looked down at Aiden and Michelle, and her smile suddenly became a bit wider. "Your little friends are awfully cute."
"Oh, thank you!" Brock guffawed. "They are, aren't they? Yeah, I just love kids. Especially these two!"
"Are they yours?" The woman asked.
"Oh, no," Brock refuted. "Not mine. But they are my godchildren! So I love and care for them as if they really were my own."
The woman's smile widened. "How nice. What's your name?"
"Right!" Brock laughed, realizing he had forgotten that little detail. "The name's Brock. And you are…?"
"Gina," the woman responded airily.
"Gina," Brock repeated, his face lighting up. "That's a beautiful name for a beautiful lady!"
Gina smirked. Aiden and Michelle suddenly started to get antsy, bewildering Brock. They were both whimpering and whining, moving back from the woman in front of them. Gina's smirk took on an almost evil appearance, which Brock missed because he was so busy trying to figure out why the twins were so upset.
"Hey, it's okay," Brock tried soothing. "Nothing happened! We're just standing here talking. Are you two getting shy?"
Gina started laughing, but it wasn't the sweet, melodic laugh Brock had been expecting. In fact, it was nearly malevolent…much like her smile. She looked at him with a glint in her eye and purred, "Looks like they're smarter than you are."
Brock tried stammering out a response, but was cut off by the woman turning into a hazy purple cloud. Ash jumped to his feet, Pikachu hopping onto his shoulder as the man started to run for the other side of the lake.
Aiden and Michelle were both clutching Brock's legs, digging their nails in as they cowered in fear. The purple smog fanned out to reveal a black face with big, narrowed eyes and a wide open mouth with two sharp teeth on either side.
"Gastly?!" Brock cried, appalled that he had never been speaking to a beautiful girl at all.
Ash came skidding to a halt beside Brock, warily eyeing the ghost type. "Well…this is fun."
Aiden and Michelle, upon hearing their father's voice, released Brock and went for his legs instead. Ash grimaced, but quickly shook that off to focus on the Pokémon floating across from them.
"I've got this," Ash muttered, reaching for one of the poke balls on his belt. "Krookodile, I choose you!"
The giant red crocodile materialized before his trainer, unleashing a determined cry as he stared down Gastly. The gas Pokémon was unaffected, laughing and sticking its tongue out to drag it up Krookodile's face.
"Ugh, lick attack," Brock muttered. "And to think I had my eyes set on that before…"
"Krookodile, foul play!" Ash ordered.
The intimidation Pokémon ran towards Gastly, grabbing onto the ghost type's still exposed tongue and whipping it around before throwing the ghost to the ground.
"Good idea!" Brock crowed. "Dark type moves are super effective against ghost types!"
"Yeah, except this Gastly isn't gonna give up so easy," Ash grumbled.
Brock was about to ask why Ash thought that, but he got his answer as soon as Gastly came flying back up, laughing in their faces.
"Your perception has become pretty flawless," Brock muttered.
Despite the situation, Ash smirked at the compliment. That smirk disappeared, however, as soon as Gastly fired a shadow ball off at Krookodile.
"Quick, dodge it!" Ash cried.
The crocodile slid out of the way, jumping back up just as Ash yelled, "Stone edge!"
Krookodile's body began glowing bright white, two equally bright rings appearing around his body. The light diminished almost as quickly as it had shown up, the rings transforming into solid gray rocks. Puffing his chest out, Krookodile sent the rocks flying towards Gastly, who was so busy laughing that it didn't see the attack coming. The stone edge made direct contact, causing Gastly a great deal of pain and, perhaps even more than that, a huge shot to the ego. As soon as the dust cleared, Gastly was left floating with a stunned look on its face. Ash and Krookodile both narrowed their eyes at nearly the exact same time, and Gastly yelped, melting away into thin air.
"Heh," Ash scoffed. "Not so tough now."
He knelt down and gently pried Aiden and Michelle off of his legs so he could wrap his arms around them instead. "Are you two okay?"
Surprisingly, for a couple of kids who had been quite frightened just a few minutes before, their eyes were quite bright as they nodded their heads.
"Dada –ool!" Aiden shouted, throwing his arms up.
"I'm cool?" Ash asked with a chuckle, causing Aiden to nod again. "What about Krookodile? Was he cool too?"
Aiden's grin widened. "Ya!"
Krookodile blushed, though it was hard to see thanks to his deep red skin.
"You really were awesome, Krookodile," Ash informed his Pokémon, pulling out his poke ball. "Thank you!"
"Krook!" Krookodile replied before being sucked back into the sphere.
As Ash stood back up, Brock sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm really sorry, Ash. If I had any idea I was getting tricked by a nasty ghost, I would've never come over here. Especially not with Aiden and Michelle."
Ash smiled at his best friend. He wanted to tell him it was okay, because it was, and that he knew he would never put Aiden and Michelle in danger. But there was only one thing hanging at the tip of his tongue, and Ash was too much of a smart ass to ignore it. Brock noticed the look on the younger male's face, and tilted his head in bewilderment.
"What?"
"…you just hit on a Pokémon, Brocko."
XXX
"Mama! Mama!"
"Aw, there are my sweet babies! I missed you two so much!"
Misty was kneeling on the ground, snuggling her twin toddlers in her arms. Ash and Brock had ended up making it back to the house at practically the same time Misty was leaving the gym. As soon as Aiden and Michelle saw their mother, both had positively lit up and began clamoring for her. Misty, of course, was thrilled to see her children, and had immediately made a run for them.
"Did they behave?" Misty asked, glancing up at Ash and Brock.
"They were perfect little angels," Ash confirmed, nodding his head. "No tantrums, no running off, ate all their lunch…well…my lunch."
"Your lunch?" Misty repeated, smirking as she raised an eyebrow. "You shared your own food?"
"I was very impressed myself," Brock chuckled.
"Turns out they really liked the sandwiches Brock made, which isn't really a surprise," Ash laughed. "I was happy to share with my kiddos."
"That was very nice of Daddy," Misty playfully gasped, looking between the twins. "Wasn't it?"
Aiden and Michelle both nodded, leading Misty to giggle.
"I'm just sorry I ruined your day together," Misty sighed, once again looking between the two men. "You should've been having fun, not babysitting two toddlers, adorable as they are."
"It was no big deal," Brock assured her. "Ash and I can always plan another guys' day. These two will only be little for so long and not think hanging out with their daddy and godfather is the lamest thing ever. I love spending time with them!"
"That's very sweet of you, Brock," Misty murmured, gently tilting her head. "It means a lot to me!"
"Mama! Mama!"
Aiden was tugging on Misty's hair, which caused her to wince as she gently pried his little fingers away. "What is it, baby?"
"Dada baftle!" Aiden cried, his voice pitched with excitement.
"Battled?" Misty parroted, able to understand her son's relative gibberish. She was so busy staring at Aiden that she didn't notice Ash and Brock both pale behind him.
Aiden rapidly nodded his head. "A ghofty! It –ooked like a giwl. Bwock liked hew!"
Misty's eye started to twitch. "A ghost that looked like a girl…that Brock liked…did he bring you and your sister over to the girl?"
Aiden nodded once again. Misty finally looked up from the boy, narrowing her eyes at Brock.
"Was scawy," Michelle murmured, sounding far more timid than her brother. She perked up, however, when she added, "Dada bwave!"
Brock was still terrified, but Ash was now a bit more relaxed and proudly puffing his chest out.
"What did you two do with my babies?!"
Misty's shrill voice quickly crushed the haven Ash's ego had gone to. "It was no big deal, Misty! Aiden and Michelle were never in any danger!"
"Why was Brock using them to hit on girls again?" Misty growled, turning her pointed look solely onto Brock.
"Well, I did say it was okay-"
"ASH! Why would you tell him it was okay?! You know I hate it when he uses our children as lady bait!"
"I know, but I was right there, I was watching, and…you're missing the whole point of the story!" Ash cried.
"Oh yeah?" Misty drawled. "And what's that?"
"It wasn't a real woman, it was a Gastly pretending to be a human woman," Ash replied, trying his best not to laugh. "Which means Brock was flirting with a Pokémon."
Misty's narrowed gaze shifted back to Brock, who was now sporting a strong blush. After a moment, Misty's serious look broke, and she started to laugh freely, much to the curiosity of her two young children.
"Come on guys, it isn't that funny!" Brock cried.
"It's pretty funny," Misty argued through her laughter. "Isn't this the second time you've done this?"
"Oh yeah!" Ash crowed, his eyes widening. "It is! He hit on another Gastly at…ugh, what was that place called again?"
"Maiden's Peak," Misty assisted him with a snicker.
Brock groaned, while Ash just smirked and slung an arm over his friend's shoulder.
"Chin up, Brocko," Ash murmured. "At least Misty's not mad anymore!"
"Yeah, great…"
"Oh no, I'm still mad," Misty refuted, her eyes narrowing once again. "Don't think for one second that just because Brock was hitting on a Pokémon that I'm not."
Brock continued to stew in his own misery, while Ash groaned and rubbed his temple. "Told you they always go babbling to Misty."
I actually totally forgot about that aspect of the Maiden's Peak episode until I was proof reading this chapter. So instead of it just being "lol Brock hit on a Pokémon" it actually transformed into "lol Brock hit on a Pokémon again."
That was my favorite part of writing this one shot, quite honestly.
