Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Life is Full of Little Surprises ❯ The Eye of the Storm ( Chapter 14 )

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Life's Full of Little Surprises

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Disclaimer:

Ash, Misty, Brock, Pikachu, Team Rocket, Persian, and all the other 250 Pokemon do not belong to me. They belong to 4Kids, etc. Please do not sue me you will have better luck trying to get water from a dry well. The base story is property of Jaelle and Orla I asked before posting it. ^_^

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Chapter 14: The Eye of the Storm

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It is a quiet Sunday afternoon in November and Ash and Misty are relaxing on the couch. The Pokemon are working to prepare the garden for winter. Chikorita is helping Bulbasaur and Totodile is dancing around spraying water on all the plants. Everything seemed peaceful but one occupant of the Ketchum residence knew better. The next day would bring the start of what Ash felt was the worst thing about Misty being pregnant. The mood swings he could deal with…for the most part…the morning sickness or all day sickness wasn't too bad considering he had to experience it instead of her…odd food combinations no problem he just didn't look at what she ate…odd cravings at two am a slight problem but not bad. But the doctor ordering Misty to stop battling…oh boy…the only thing that could be worse would be to force her to have complete bed rest. Needless to say she wasn't happy with the idea and tried to fight both him and the doctor every chance she could get.

“Ash, what do you think we should name the baby?” She leaned back till her head was resting on his chest while he played with her hair.

He stopped his hand mid stroke, “I really don't have any ideas. Can we talk about this later? I mean we still have time…” She tensed *Uh oh!*

“Great, so our child will come home nameless!” She sat up, which was starting to get hard to do and turned away from him silently fuming.

Ash panicked *Shoot! That came out wrong. Not the silent treatment again! Think…think…think…got it!*

“That's not what I meant. We still have about four months. The baby isn't due till early March. I'm sure we'll come up with something by then.” He sat up and put a hand on her shoulder. *At least she isn't moving away…*

Misty relaxed then turned toward him and leaned back again her head resting on his shoulder, “Okay, I guess I'm over reacting...I hate these mood swings” she yawned. Ash chuckled and wrapped his arm around her. “You've been really tired lately. Why don't you take a nap?”

“Sound's good to me.” She yawned again “Wake me in an hour.” She snuggled into Ash's shoulder and fell asleep.

Ash just leaned back and continued to stroke her hair. *At least I don't have to worry about waking her up. Well I might as well join her.* He smiled and dozed off himself.

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An hour and a half later a faint ringing sound registered in his brain. *What is that? Where am I?* A bit disoriented from his nap he blinked a few times realizing the sound was the doorbell ringing every five seconds. He looked down to see Misty with her head in his lap.

Somehow she went from sitting to lying down. *All right I'm coming…now to get up with out waking her.* He grabbed a throw pillow and switched it and his lap. Thankfully the only thing she did was mutter and snuggle the pillow. He sighed and got up to answer the door.

*Wonder who would come by now? Brock and Joy are busy, Mom and Sam are at some kind of convention…* He unlocked and opened the door and was greeted by a smiling man who came up to Ash's shoulder. He had dark brown hair and brown eyes and was about to push the button again.

The smile faded replaced by a nervous expression as he either recognized Ash or was just plain intimidated by Ash's height. “Umm... Hi! Does Misty Waterflower live here?”

Ash' s brow furrowed in confusion as he wracked his brain to figure out who this guy was and how he knew Misty. Ash's voice was a bit gruff from his nap as he answered the guy, “Actually it's Misty Ketchum and yes she does live here. How do you k…”

The man relaxed a bit and the smile returned as realization struck, “So, you must be Ash!” He stuck out his hand, “Pleased to meet you I'm Bryan Kumashiro.”

Ash shook his hand still not sure who this person was and what connection he had with his wife. “Nice to meet you too…”

“Could I possibly come in? It's kind of cold out here.” Bryan elaborated by rubbing his arms through the thick coat.

“Ummm…sure.” Ash stepped aside inviting him in.

Bryan thankfully walked in to the house observing everything but missing the sleeping person on the couch. “Nice house.”

Ash observed Bryan's facial expression as he examined the house. “Can I take your coat and bag? How about we go in the kitchen and talk? Misty's kind of taking a nap on the couch and I don't want to disturb her.”

Bryan stopped his observation and looked back at Ash. “Sure, it's nice and warm in here. Can I ask why she's sleeping in the middle of the afternoon?” He removed his bag and coat handing them to Ash who put them away in the closet.

Ash turned back from the closet leading his guest to the kitchen, “I'll explain later.” Bryan followed Ash catching a glimpse of Misty lying on the couch facing away from them.

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Bryan and Ash sat quietly at the dining room table sipping tea. Ash took a sip before asking the question that was plaguing him the most since meeting Bryan, “How do you know Misty?”

Bryan put down his cup “Well I battled her in Cerulean City before her sisters locked her up in the office. I stopped by every now and then to see how things were. I knew she was going to help you but it's been a while since I've been out this way. I was traveling around the Jhoto region this past year.”

Ash furrowed his brow a bit, “So you're a pokemon trainer…”

“Y…no…I mean…I like to study pokemon. My father kind of forced me to be a trainer and wanted me to be a Pokemon Master but I've always wanted to be a Pokemon Researcher. When I went to visit him after I got back from Jhoto he finally understood that I didn't want to be a Master and said I could do what I want.” Bryan took a drink of tea, “I wanted to let Misty know before I went to find someone to study under.”

Ash mulled over all of this, “So you're just a friend…”

Bryan looked surprised by Ash's comment “Yep! I was surprised she got married but I kind of figured you two would get together. The way she would get wistful every now and then when remembering your adventures together clued me in. We have a totally platonic relationship I'm not much for red heads anyway, I prefer brunets. If you tell her that I said that I'll probably be a living pancake!”

Ash chucked, “You have no idea how true that is, especially recently!”

His smile returned to his face another thought occurred to him and he relaxed again. “If you were referring to my reaction to you I had only seen Misty's pictures of you and those are really old.”

Ash quickly frowned and mumbled under his breath. Leaving Bryan worried he upset Ash. He was really hoping to be friends with the Pokemon Master. *All I said was the pictures of him were old…*

Bryan laughed as he realized what caused the change in mood “Don't worry I know people change physically over the years. I keep on getting hassled about my occasional growth spurts. Though I doubt I'll ever get as tall as you my parents are both on the shorter side. At least I'm taller than my father.”

Ash let out a sigh “Thanks for not commenting and sympathizing on my plight.”

Bryan just smiled, “So how is Misty doing besides taking naps in the afternoon, come to think about it she never did that before. Is it because she is finally away from the “twit trio” who never let her have a moments rest?”

“Actually…she's pregnant. The baby seems to sap a lot of her energy…not to mention makes her moody.” Ash stared at his tea.

Bryan's smile widened though Ash really didn't think it could get any bigger “Congratulations! Now I understand the earlier comment about her flattening me.” He laughed loudly “No offense but I don't envy you, she was moody enough before.”

Ash smirked in agreement “You don't have to tell me about it…” “Ash? Where are you?” Misty's call from the living room interrupted him.

She came into the kitchen rubbing the sleep from her eyes “I told you to wake me up in an hour…BRYAN!?!” Seeing her friend woke her up quickly as she rushed…well as much as she could… to give him a friendly hug.

“Hey Misty!” Bryan returned the gesture, “I see Ash wasn't lying.”

Misty blushed and put her hands self-consciously on her growing abdomen which was thankfully not too big yet. “Just what are you implying mister?”

Ash shot Bryan a look that warned him to choose his words wisely. Thankfully Bryan picked up on the change in Misty's demeanor. “Don't take it that way, you look great!” He smiled again and she couldn't stay angry with him.

She smiled again and went to sit next to Ash across from her friend “Well what are you doing here? You were on your way to Jhoto the last time I heard from you.”

“Well that's the reason I came to see you, my father is letting me do what I want. I'm free to study pokemon!”

“That's great! So what are you going to do now?”

Bryan shrugged, “I guess I'll journey around and study pokemon on my own. I still don't want to be a pokemon trainer or master.”

Misty got an idea and turned to Ash “Do you think Sam needs an assistant?”

Ash scratched his head “I guess he could use the help. We can give them a call tonight since their busy at conferences all day. They should be back at the hotel in…” Ash looked at his watch “Didn't realize it was 6 pm already, we can call at 9 pm.”

Bryan was confused, “Sam? Who's Sam?”

“Sorry, I meant Professor Oak.”

Bryan jumped out of his seat knocking over his chair then proceeded to stared at them slack jawed “PROFESSOR OAK!?! You mean `the' Professor Oak…”

“Why do I get the feeling that he's like Tracy?” Ash groaned.

Misty lightly hit his arm, “He's not like Tracy. Just because you grew up near him and he's your stepfather doesn't mean that everyone who is surprised is obsessed with him.”

Bryan eyes bugged out even more “He's your stepfather!”

Ash shrugged the question off and shot Misty an apologetic look. “He married my mom last year. Sorry, about the comment but a friend of ours was obsessed with him.”

Bryan calmed down and went to pick up his chair “Sorry for the outburst but he's THE top researcher in the whole world. You don't have to worry about me being like your friend…wait did you say your friend was Tracy, as in Tracy Sketchet?”

Misty answered him calmly “Yes, that's him…”

“Man! You know some important people in the research world. I've only dreamed of studying under either. Well it really was a dream until my dad said I was free to do as I choose.” Bryan sat in awe trying to digest all of the new information.

Misty got up “I think I'll go cook dinner since it is getting late.”

Ash grabbed her arm “Oh, no you don't!”

“I'm perfectly capable of cooking Ash Ketchum and you aren't going to stop me. Just because I can't battle doesn't mean I can't cook either. I'm pregnant not helpless!” Misty glared at him.

*I don't like how this is heading…I hope Ash knows what he's doing. I've heard that tone of voice before.* Bryan just sat there staring at Ash praying his new friend would make it out of the kitchen alive.

Ash stood up and glared right back at her but his tone of voice was even with out a hint of anger. “I know you aren't helpless. I've never said you were helpless, I just thought you would like to have some time to catch up with your friend. As for the no battling thing I think we have discussed it enough. It's only to protect both of you and I promise you can go back to battling as soon as the baby comes and the doctor says it's okay. I don't' like seeing you upset…”

Bryan's jaw dropped and his eyes bugged out for the umpteenth time that night as Ash did the impossible. He actually got Misty to calm down. “I-I've never seen that happen…”

Misty admitted defeat with a huff. “Okay, you've got a point…”

Ash smiled giving her a quick kiss before going to the refrigerator.

Misty sighed as she sat down and eyed her still gaping friend, “You know if you stay like that you'll catch flies. Besides I heard that!”

That snapped him out of it and caused him to laugh and blush “Married life sure changed you.”

Misty just smirked “Just wait till you get married.”

Bryan laughed heartily “Don't think I'll ever find someone I like. Now if you were only a brunet…”

Misty huffed, “HEY! I like being a red head. Not to mention I'm happily married even if he does make me crazy. Besides you're ten times worse than Ash at times.”

“I heard that!” Ash shot her a look.

Misty ignored him but couldn't help laughing, “Well that's enough of that. Don't worry, there has to be someone out there who is willing to put up with you. You are not unattractive…in fact you're kind of handsome…”

He acted insulted “Gee thanks, just what I needed to boost my self-esteem, `kind of handsome'”

“Well no offense but you aren't my type…your hair is too light since you keep on bringing up my hair color. Besides you have enough self-esteem for three of you I don't need a friend with a huge head.” Misty just smirked at him.

Ash decided to intervene “Okay, I think that is enough bickering out of both of you. Even if I don't know how you two interact normally you are starting to sound like siblings.”

Misty stuck her tongue out at him “This is how we normally interact. Just go back to your cooking since you insisted on my resting and catching up with Bryan you can just deal with the torture of us `bickering' as you put it.”

“How mature…”

“Oh, be quiet!”

“Fine, I'll let you know when dinner is ready.” With that he returned to the sauce pan.

“You two really do complement each other. I doubt I would be able to see you with anyone else Misty. Well how about you tell me what else is going on in your life.” Bryan leaned back in his chair.

“Okay, but after dinner we are going to hear what you've been up to.”

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Dinner was quick and soon it was 9:00 PM, time to call Professor Oak. So after a quick over the phone interview Bryan was granted a trial job as a lab assistant. He would start as soon as the professor got back.

“Well since you've got a couple of months before you are permanent you can stay here.” Misty smiled at him.

Bryan looked apprehensive “Are you sure it won't be a problem? I can always go to the hotel…”

Ash smiled “It's no problem, you can stay in Misty's old room it's now the guest room.”

“Well…okay…but I'm going to look for an apartment…”

Ash interrupted him “You don't have to since most of the lab assistants live on Sam's estate. The lab has apartments of sorts; you only need to wait till Sam makes you a permanent assistant then you can move in to those. ”

“That sounds great! You sure you guys won't mind?”

Misty was irritated “For the last time we don't mind!”

“Sorry!”

Ash sighed “Misty calm down and show him to the room while I clean up. I'll be up after I finish.”

“Fine, this way.” She lead him upstairs and to her old room pointing out where the bathroom was and Ash's old room that now belonged to the pokemon.

“Well I guess I'll see you in the morning. I'm really grateful to both of you for all the help.” Bryan smiled.

“Like I said before it's not a problem.” Misty yawned “Well I'm going to bed goodnight!” Misty walked down the hall to the Master bedroom only thinking of the pillow that awaited her.

“Good night!” Bryan turned to the room in front of him as Misty disappeared behind the door.

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Ash finished cleaning up then went to check on their guest and the pokemon. The pokemon were asleep and Bryan was taking a bath judging from the sounds coming from the bathroom. The house secured he went in search of his wife whom he found crashed out on the bed.

Ash chuckled to himself as he readjusted her so she was under the sheets and kissed her forehead “You sure are tired. Well I'm going to go bathe and brush my teeth I'll be back.”

Tucking her in woke her up which he soon learned was a mistake “Ash don't cover me I'm hot!”

“How can you be hot? It's almost snowing outside.” He stared at her in awe.

“Well I'm hot. Go take a bath.” She grumbled trying to get comfortable.

“Whatever!” He huffed as he went to the bathroom making mental notes to leave her alone the next time she's asleep on the blankets.

*Great now I can't get back to sleep. Well maybe reading will help.* It didn't and the only thing she could think of was giving Ash a piece of her mind. Just as she figured out what she was going to say the bathroom door opened.

The minute Ash stepped out of the bathroom he apologized “Misty, I'm sorry for waking you up and arguing with you. I was just worried you were cold.”

She couldn't stay mad at him “Apology accepted, now come to bed we have an early start…oh!”

“What is it?” Ash rushed to the bed.

“Come here.” Misty grabbed his hand and put it on her abdomen. “The baby just kicked.”

Ash looked at his hand in wonder as he felt the baby kick his hand. Though it quickly turned to one of worry as he looked at her face, it was scrunched up a bit “It doesn't hurt does it?”

Misty relaxed her face “It just feels a little weird and pinches a bit. Don't worry if it really hurt I would let you know.” She smirked.

Ash laughed “I'm sure you would…it's amazing.” He rubbed her rounded abdomen noticing that the baby started to move around less.

“I think it's time to go to sleep. It's been a long and exciting day. I think the baby agrees with me since it has started to calm down.” Misty yawned. “Good night.”

“Okay, good night!” He kissed her and turned off the light.

They both snuggled in to bed for a good night's rest.

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To be continued…

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Not much changed this chapter just a few things I thought could have been edited a bit.

Thanks for reading…please review.

Until next chapter,

Kitcat ^_^