Silently Broken

by MilkywayScribbles

Now working for a leading company in Viridian City, Jayce Ketchum tackles the everyday life of parenting with his wife Delia, as well as strengthening their marriage. However, on a trip to visit his aging grandmother accompanied by his six year-old son, Ash, Jayce finds himself caught in the middle of a predicament that could tear his family apart. Prequel to Everything Changes.

3. Ketchum's House of Laughs

Silently Broken

Chapter Three

Ketchum's House of Laughs

"Once upon a time in the faraway land of Palletshire, there lived a farmer and his wife the inn keeper, who brought up a beautiful miltankherderess-"

"Miltankherderess? Why don't you make her a shepherdess?"

"Because miltankherderess is a lot more fun to say."

Attending Sunday night dinners at exactly six-thirty on the dot every other week was a begrudging task for the Ketchum family. They had been established soon after Delia and Jay were married and now it seemed more like a ritual than anything. A ritual they were forced to attend. It was a way of keeping in contact with Emily and Richard on a regular basis and it was a way for the grandparents to visit with Ash and see the boy grow with great strides. Though that visiting time wasn't used as intended, for Richard was too enthralled with his stamp collection or newspaper, and Emily was gossiping away about workers at the hospital or filling them in about a maid she recently fired. Apparently, their priorities of hoarding stickers that were meant for mailing and jabbering on about how a nurse carried a bed pan, letting all the vomit swish back and forth, nearly splattering on the tiled floor, were much more valuable than interacting with their grandson.

Ash didn't seem to mind however. The boy took pleasure in his time away from home, and entertained himself with various toys he dragged along. They were all stuffed away in a massive backpack, and ironically, Jay ended up hauling it over because it turned out to be heavier than Ash himself. His parents wished they were children again when the thought of discussing world topics and residents of Pallet came to Emily's mind. Ash was lucky he had a distraction to keep him occupied from discussing the stock market and what function The Daughters of Kanto were hosting. Not that the boy would have much to say on the matter.

Nevertheless, the couple and their child showed up for the evening, and followed the same routine of Ash not wanting to put on an itchy sweater his mother insisted he wear to look presentable for the evening and, in general, the overall fussing about heading up to the old massive home. And it wasn't Ash who fussed about that.

Jay adjusted his throat before continuing, his warm fingers wrapped securely in Ash's hand, shielding him from the bitter temperature that decided to decline that evening. "As I was saying," he started, eyeing his wife briefly, "they raised the girl and as the years passed, she became well known for her kind heart and smiles of generosity."

It was inevitable to think that Jay wouldn't conjure up some silly scheme to avoid minutes spent with his parents, and what better way to do it than to amuse Ash with a spur of the moment fairy tale?

"And when she wasn't busy handing out milk to the poor or palpating the Miltank-"

Delia's eyes widened from the term her husband so willingly used in front of their son, hissing as if a warning was given, "Jay, let's not get graphic-"

"She spent her time walking through the forest and talking to all the woodland creatures within it."

That was much better.

He continued to pursue with such liveliness and flamboyancy mixed in with a hint of facetiousness, Delia was about ready to take her small clutch and smack her husband upside the head. She didn't want to grace his parents with her presence as much as he did; alas, they had promised to fulfill the occasional dinner, and they were going to uphold it. No matter how many times she had to rattle his head with her clutch.

"But one day on one of her many nature walks," Jay went on, his tone changing to keep Ash's engagement, "she ventured too far in the dense forest, and soon stumbled upon a great big scary castle with detailed glass windows, stone walls, and overly elaborate statues with a touch of a slightly suggestive fountain planted in front of the lavish, yet dreary home." He stopped short of breath for a moment and eyed his still son, producing a question. "You liking it so far, Ash?"

The boy never denied his father's offer at telling a story, and he was almost enamored with the tale every time. Even when it didn't make sense due to Jay's large vocabulary or lengthy descriptions, Ash tried to follow and soon forgot about the bag full of goodies he anxiously awaited to play with.

He beamed up at his dad with a nod. "Keep going."

"All right." The man paused for a second to collect his thoughts then followed through with another deep breath of air. Soon, a release of more overly elaborate details took flight.

"Where, come to find out, lived a lonely prince who was stashed away in a tower thanks to the queen herself, keeping him hidden from all the dirty peasants and their bad cultural influences. So spotting the young fellow high in the balcony, the miltankherderess climbed the great stone walls that miraculously had vines draping from them and as she reached the top, the maiden fell head over heels for the prince."

"That's mushy, Daddy!" Ash suddenly exclaimed with a scrunched up face.

Jay returned his son's declaration with a toothy grin. "It gets good, kid. By her sheer beauty and glazed expression, the prince fell madly in love too, and soon they devised a plan to run away together and raise many miltankherderer and herderess babies.

"But before they could make their great escape to live happily ever after, the wicked queen stormed in with raging flames burning in her eyes after hollering at her many supposedly 'incompetent ' maids, as well as her absent minded king who liked to use his telescope he got for Christmas to eye the pretty neighbors, which really was supposed to be used for star gazing or bird watching and-"

"You know you're practically reiterating our teenage years in a fairy tale setting?"

Delia didn't feel inclined to praise her witty husband on the condescending picture he painted of Ash's grandparents, whether it was accurate or not. The true-to-life material that Jay felt compelled to incorporate was not appropriate, nor was their son able to follow the story.

Jay arched an eyebrow, titling his head to the side with a spark of mischievousness shimmering in his eyes. "Was it that obvious?"

"Daddy," Ash's voice abruptly called out with a look of befuddlement, "this story's confusing. How could the queen's eyes have flames in them?" Before his dad could give an explanation that the boy could comprehend, the cold wind tickled Ash's nostrils and caused him to sneeze. "Achoo!" he exclaimed suddenly, and then sniffed as he watched the small spots of mucus fly onto the concrete. A shiver soon traveled up his spine, his voice trembling in a soft whimper. "I'm cold..."

Delia's eyebrows lowered as she removed her hand out of the tight sweaty grasp she had formed with Ash's, feeling his rosy cheeks. "Oh, his cheeks are getting awfully chilled, Jay," she stated, looking back up at her husband.

Even that darn prickly sweater wasn't enough to fend off the chilly air roaming through Pallet that night. Jay felt a twinge of guilt for making them withstand the night air, for Ash was more prone to feeling the repercussions of the cold. Even if it was a spring evening.

"Sorry buddy," Jay apologized as he rubbed his son's fingers tenderly. His eyes then fell upon the intimidating big door and sighed. There was no more stalling. "I guess that's our cue to go in..."

No one moved a muscle. Delia had initially waited for her husband to announce their arrival with a ring of the doorbell, but his frozen stance was telling her otherwise.

Till he turned his head to face her.

"Do we have to?"

Was he serious? She didn't need both her boys complaining! It was hard enough getting Ash to submit to the sweater he thankfully put on, and now Delia had to play mom to her obstinate husband just because he didn't want to sit down for a couple of hours and chat about literally nothing relevant with his parents? Jay was forgetting he wasn't the only person who had to attend these dinners, nor did the idea of running back to the car and driving off into the distance fly either. No, there would be a phone call in the morning, and with Emily's gift of persistence there was no way of avoiding the talk of their absence.

If they were going to go in they were going together. And they were going to go for the right reasons. There was no need to hightail and run.

Delia narrowed her eyebrows. "Jay, ring the doorbell."

"I can impersonate each and every one of my family members very well," he pushed with a cheeky grin. "I can do it in the car on our way home, and it'll feel like they're actually with us!"

It was time for Delia to put on her 'I mean it' look. A look she used often when Ash begged to stay up past his bed time or rummage around for a midnight snack after she finally got him to brush his teeth.

And so, she did with repetition. "Ring the doorbell."

Jay fell through with his wife's command, catching onto the most assertive expression she could bare. Though before he pressed his finger on the bell he added one last remark. "Fine, but you'll never hear an offer from me again."

"I think I'll manage."

Her resolve finally led to Jay pushing down and releasing his finger off the bell, a loud ring sounding off in the massive home. They waited patiently with barely any time to spare, for one of Emily's newly hired maids promptly greeted them with a welcoming smile, coaxing them in the house.

"Mrs. Ketchum is waiting for you in the foyer with your other family members," the maid informed as she shut the door behind them. "May I take your coats?"

Delia already stripped her top garment off and let it dangle in the crook of her arm. She almost felt silly for forgetting her mother-in-law's hired help, handing it over with a quick nod of her head. "Oh yes, thank you," the woman replied with a genuine grin.

Jay followed Delia's actions and handed his coat off as well, mumbling as he did so. "Did you hear that, Delia?" he questioned with raised brows, pretending to be ecstatic. "Mr. and Mrs. Oak have arrived."

His wife kept her smile on while the maid was in the room. If they dared to bad mouth the Oaks or even give the inclination they were not presently pleased with them, the maid might slip a comment to one of the other maids about the family, and horrifying enough, reach Emily.

"Then the night will be even more entertaining," Delia responded, playing along.

His voice lowered in a raspy whisper, continuing on with a forced grin between his teeth as he plopped Ash's bag of goodies on his mother's pristine, hand-woven rug. "And, let's not forget about their miscreant of a child-"

"Jay."

The woman had not gotten a hold of Annie that weekend. She was frustrated beyond belief to only catch the recording on the Oak's answering machine, and that they had not returned her call. Delia had left a very brief but informative message regarding the dispute and the result of it on Friday, and was not surprised, but irritated to receive no response. It was just like the Oaks to be busy with their lives and answer their hundreds of messages later, but this tidbit of news certainly needed to be addressed and handled sooner than later.

Though later seemed to appeal to Oaks.

Furthermore, the tempting but unnerving idea of bringing up the altercation between their sons at Emily and Richard's house would turn ugly the second Delia or Jay opened their mouths. It was no place to discuss anything on the lines of the boys' behavior, for Emily would most certainly intervene with her unwanted opinions of both sides. The Ketchums would have to wait a little longer.

Delia only hoped Jay would keep his mouth shut about it. If anyone was going to spout off about the problem, it was him.

Watching him already fumble around in his backpack, Ash's mom turned her attention to her son and bent down. "Ash?" Her voice caught the boy's attention and he removed his gaze from his toy-infested bag. "You can play with Gary before dinner, but please, be on your best behavior. Grandpa and Grandma have very-" How could she put it? "-nice things that can break and might give you a booboo if you're not careful. So no roughhousing. Understood?"

Ash's nod gave the indication he accepted the fair terms of his grandparents' house. However, he felt inclined to throw out a surprisingly on-topic question. "Do I have to play with Gary?"

Of course he didn't! Delia didn't blame him for not wanting to participate in Gary's fun after Friday's incident. It was understandable after seeing the sincere hesitation in his eyes, yet Delia was aware how much Ash loved to interact with others, and almost acted as if he wished to please if it meant keeping friends. Though if their friendship continued going south, both Delia and Jay weren't sure if they wanted them to interact so often. Much less, have either one of the children get their feelings hurt by the other's actions.

Gary probably could handle it if Ash pulled a mischievous antic on him; the kid tended to shrug anything off with the ego his folks innocently provided him with. But Ash, well, he was quite sensitive, and any little act, whether it was intended to be hurtful or not, led to the boy to take it to heart. And his parents couldn't handle the constant aggravation.

Delia's firm expression softened. "If you don't want to, you certainly don't have to."

"What if he's not being mean?"

If only that could stay consistent.

His mother began to rub his arms gently, and her grin started to grow steadily. "Then go ahead and have fun, sweetie."

Ash returned Delia's reply with another nod, though their conversation fell short at the sound of Emily's voice drifting from the living room around the corner.

"Jayce, Delia, we're in here!"

Delia shot a gaze at her husband as he produced a heavy sigh, then begrudgingly reached for his wife's hand. "C'mon dearest, let's not leave them waiting any longer."

She accepted his hand instantly and followed his lead, with Ash tagging along behind with an armful of selective toys. Toys that had no seams but instead, were made of plastic. It was Delia's doing in prepping her son for a lively evening with his cousin, and the mother went to every measure to avoid another tragic episode.

As they strolled into the nicely decorated living room, the three were greeted with turned heads and smiles spread across them. Annie and Chad were settled on the sofa nearest the entryway and Gary was already in the midst of entertaining himself on the floor behind the sofa his parents were seated on. As for the senior Ketchums, Richard was comfortably resting in his chair busily reading his entrancing newspaper, while his wife sat across from her daughter and son-in-law, sipping away on her alcoholic beverage.

Jay wondered how many of those his mother had already put down.

The man casually waved back at their agreeable expressions and took the liberty of giving a proper hello. "Hey, Mom. Sis, Chad..." Jay paused momentarily as he gazed at his father, waiting idly by for the man to lift his head from the article he was engaged in. But like many times before, he did not. "Dad?"

Richard made no attempt at greeting his son, and with this not being the first instance the older man absentmindedly didn't acknowledged him, Jay just turned his attention to his animated nephew.

Little Gary scooted a large fire truck around as his uncle bent down. From there, he eyed the boy with a faint smile, and the motion of the plastic truck stopped, for Gary spotted his uncle's feet near the wheels.

"And uh, Gary," Jay adjusted his throat. "Hey there kid, how are you doing?"

This greeting wasn't much better.

The hellion's bright expression faded into a dull one, his lips curving into a defiant frown. Then with his hand still resting on top of the fire truck the boy spat, "Bite me!"

Jay's eyebrows swiftly narrowed by the child's hello, and faint gasps soon followed throughout the room. Annie immediately took charge and swiveled herself in her seat, glaring over her shoulder to correct her grumpy son.

"Gary, is that any way to talk to your uncle?!" she hissed, though all he did in return was puff heavily through his nostrils and went back to playing. The exhausted mother only sighed as she looked up at her brother, embarrassed by her son's outburst. "I'm so sorry Jay-"

"It's fine, don't worry about," he assured as he rose back to his feet. Then as Chad and Annie scooted over on the piece of furniture to make room for him and Delia, Jay thought of a witty remark. Feeling's mutual anyway…

He was wise enough to keep it to himself.

After the greetings and not-so-polite hellos, Ash didn't join his parents on the sofa, but instead shot right past them. His little legs carried him over to Emily, surprisingly, who was astounded to find him anxiously crawling up on the couch.

"Grandma!" he cried joyfully.

His arms held on tight to all his toys as he struggled to climb, so Emily hoisted him up on her lap, her knees clamped together in a tight hold as she balanced the six year-old. "Ashton! It's very nice to see you came," she said, a subtle smile on her face.

Delia produced a soft grin at the sweet sight of her son's sincere excitement. Emily wasn't nearly as significant as Delia's mother, Leah, was to Ash. But she was his grandmother, and Ash always enjoyed seeing her on those every-other-week occasions. Neither Jay nor she were sure why their son adopted such a fondness for each of his grandparents, for they were all different and not all of them were as involved as some. But Ash's little heart of gold loved each of them dearly no matter what the circumstance was. After all, he was a child and seeing any gray of why he might not be so fond of one grandparent over another would be abnormal for a boy his age.

"I would have been here sooner," Ash started explaining bluntly, "but Daddy was busy telling stories outside."

Emily's eyebrows rose. "Oh was he?" she asked, intrigued by the comment, and soon she eyed her son. "What kind of stories?"

Jay huffed. "Nothing pertaining to you."

Then things began to spiral out of control.

"Fairy tales," Ash answered, his innocent eyes blinking up at his leering grandmother.

Emily's smirk only grew larger as she glimpsed over at her guilty son again. "I'm sure they were fairy tales."

"They were! I swear!" Jay exclaimed defensively.

Then his wife decided to pipe in, mumbling softly with her hands resting in her lap, glancing down. "They kind of were..."

Jay's eyes widened by the slip of her tongue, hissing in a harsh whisper, "Delia!"

Then, Ash broke the ice unintentionally. "Can I please play, Grandma?"

"Of course you may! But you must be careful," she ordered with a softer tone. "Grandma has just bought some very expensive imported lamps and she'd hate to see them topple over."

"I know," he nodded. "Momma already told me."

Well, he sorta did.

Now it was Delia's turn to get the eye. "Did she now? Well, I suppose we're on the same page. Go on and have fun."

"Okay!"

From there, the boy gracefully slipped off his grandmother's warm lap and ventured forth, plopping on the carpet with his cousin. Delia turned her upper torso slightly to watch the playtime unfold, only to find the boys behaving themselves and keeping each other entertained with their own belongings. A release of worry left Delia's body as she turned back around, though her sweaty palms still lingered. Her fear of an explosion unraveling was still haunting her.

Emily could see she had enough fun rattling her son's cage by his perturbed and flustered expression, strutting over to the drink cart near the stairwell, close to where her grandsons were playing. "Would you two like me to fix you a drink?" the older woman offered, skimming through the various opened bottles settled on the top rack. "You might need one after hearing your son confess your tales of fibs."

"They weren't fibs, Mom," Jay corrected, his arms crossed over his chest. "It was like- historical fiction." That seemed like a reasonable clarification. "And please and thank you about the drink," he added, trying to change the conversation. Then, the man proceeded to blow out a puff of air, grumbling underneath his breath for only his wife to hear. "Especially if I'm going to last through tonight..."

Delia nudged him in return, a physical scold for his uncalled for grumbling, in which he replied with an expression of defense and another huff.

"Martini I presume for you, Jayce?" Emily said, peering over her shoulder a bit to catch his eye.

Jay didn't turn, but answered. "With a twist as usual."

"Or I could fetch you a beer like I did for Chad," his mother suggested, placing her clean hand in a large silver holder of ice.

"Hey, don't go knockin' on beer, Em!" said Chad with his index finger pointing at her, his other hand holding onto his half-drunken bottle. "It's good for the soul."

Chad certainly didn't fit in with the Ketchums, nor did he really with his own father. Yet Annie still loved him for his- uniqueness and wouldn't part with him for the world no matter how much her mother wished for her to settle with someone who was more- accomplished.

"I am not criticizing your precious beer," Emily verified with narrowed brows as she went back to making the drink. "I will say however, that the majority of people who drink beer are people with round bellies, no goals in life, and live in squander."

Chad scrunched up his face after a short pause. "Squander?" he repeated, befuddled. "Where's Squander? We live in Pallet, Em!" he went on with a faint chuckle, presuming her geography to be false.

The older woman only let out sigh as she concocted her son's drink, too drained to explain her terminology for the use of squander. "And to think, I gave you my blessing to marry my daughter."

"Hey!" Jay jumped in suddenly before an argument consisting of nonsense broke out. "Aren't we all having fun here in Ketchum's House of Laughs?"

His sarcastic mouth was not as direly needed he presumed to believe.

"Have you lost your mind?" Emily spat back, dropping two green olives in his martini.

"No, it's still sloshing around up there," he retorted jokingly, swishing his head side to side. "Although I do think it has decreased by ten percent because I'm sitting here, listening to your shrill babble."

Goodness, they were in for a fun night.

Both Delia and Annie shook their heads as they heard Emily slam a bottle down, sending an irritated expression in her son's direction. "My voice is not shrill!" she argued, then looked to her husband for support. "Richard, is my voice shrill?"

The Ketchums were clearly easily excitable people.

Richard was still distracted by the smell of freshly printed ink to care about the conversation at hand. "Uh-huh," he responded halfheartedly as he turned to the next massive page of text. "Whatever you say, dear."

That was pointless.

"I digress," Emily sighed heavily with a roll of her eyes. Then she noticed an empty, perfectly polished glass, all by its lonesome, still waiting to be filled. She had forgotten about Delia's drink. "I apologize for not attending to your needs earlier Delia; now what would you like to drink?"

"Water's just fine, thank you."

Emily raised an eyebrow. "Not even a little wine?"

"Nope, I think I'll stay sober tonight."

Delia wasn't the kind of woman who partook in drinking. In her household growing up, her father was the only one who had beer stashed away in the fridge and her mother and older sister never seemed to enjoy it. So naturally, she didn't either. It was, however, different in Jay's house. Emily and Richard would usually have some kind of drink ever so often, and the establishment of the drink cart being a reach away was convenient for the children as they hit drinking age. It was just custom in their family compared to the daughter of a farmer.

With the way they drank however, Delia was surprised none of them were alcoholics.

"Very well," Emily answered with a hint of suspicion. "Here you both go."

The moment Emily handed the couple their drinks, Delia received a very odd look from her mother-in-law. An expression she couldn't read, though it was possible this was just a new look she had to add to the already long list of the many expression of Emily Ketchum. However, Jay was starting to catch onto the small smile his mother bared as well. It had a hint of mischievousness and almost a twinkle in her eyes. It didn't make sense. At first, he assumed she had some dust blurring her vision or she was still busy snickering about Ash's innocent confession on the fairy tales. No, something was off this time. And neither Delia or Jay could put their finger on it.

"So," Emily started as she contained her grin, settling back down in her spot, "how's work been treating you?"

"Fine."

Their unified response didn't seem to humor the wealthy woman for she gave her son a sharp gaze. "I meant Delia," she clarified bitterly.

Jay simply scoffed and raised his hands up in defense, one of them carefully holding his untouched beverage. "Oh, well excuse my intrusion."

Ignoring his usual comment, Emily diverted her attention over to her daughter-in-law who was gulping down her first sip of water. "Business is good," Delia responded, setting the glass down on the coffee table that laid between the sofas. "It's getting close to summer so we've had a lot more trainers and vacationers."

"Wonderful to hear. Is your mother doing well?" Emily continued to inquire.

"Very well. I've stepped up and taken over some of the desk work so she can have some time off."

"That's very kind of you. Children should always aid their parents when they are in need."

God, another pointless speech.

Jay couldn't resist the reflex of rolling his eyes and mumbling once more. "And that was directed at me."

"After all," she went on as if everyone cared to listen, "without parents who would have raised the children? We as parents do favors for our children." Emily's stern gaze then averted over to Chad, who was busy stuffing his face full of bonbons she placed on the coffee table. Emily had rules about how many bonbons one could take. They were after all, imported from Sinnoh. "Even at that, some parents do not fulfill their duties. It's so tragic to see such potential in a child, and have them end up with the occupation of hoodlum."

Everyone knew who she was referring to.

"And that was directed at Chad," Jay clarified outwardly. At the sound of his name, the claimed 'hoodlum' licked off the last bit of chocolate from his fingers, looking at his friend with confusion.

Though Emily quickly dismissed the conversation. "I trust your father is fine too?" she went on.

Delia nodded. "Oh, yes. He's been working up a sweat! Everything's been just- dandy!"

There really wasn't much to say. Life was fine with her parents and Delia's busy life was nothing out of the norm. Things had not been going as swimmingly as she and Jay hoped they would, but hey, they had a roof over their heads and food in their stomachs. There was no tragedy, no loss of work. So what was there to complain about? Sure, they had more burdens then Emily and Richard did; however, explaining the details of their everyday struggles would only turn bad. Emily would be in their business in mere seconds with her unwanted opinions, and the couple preferred to figure out their dilemmas on their own.

"Well, I am glad to know everything has gone wonderfully." Then with a turn of her head, her expression turned firm and her smile shrank. "Now it's your turn Jayce. How's the world of business doing for you? Enlighten me."

Oh, he'd enlighten her all right...

"Nothing out of the ordinary," the man shrugged casually. "The ones at the top of the food chain don't do half of the work their workers do, the office is stuffier than a car parked in the blazing sun, the elevator that decides to work properly half of the time still smells like an unwashed gym sock, and Grace gets me coffee on and off like a woman who calls a certain guy up every so often to get that one particular perk... So the only thing that keeps me around is the pay."

"Good man, stick it through."

Jay crinkled his nose as he stared at his dad, shocked to find him actually engaging in the discussion. Though his paper was still glued to his face.

"Go back to reading, Dad," Jay ordered sharply.

"All right, thank you."

The man just shook his head at how out-to-lunch his father was, not bothering to understand why he gave him such a ridiculous response.

Seeing the tension gradually build, Delia gleamed down in her crisp glass of water, then back at Emily. She had to start up a conversation. "How's work for you, Emily?"

"Same as usual, till I come home and see an obscene scene happening in my front yard," she griped, looking off to the side detested.

That was certainly a new development and quite possibly a riveting topic to discuss. There was however, the chance that if they wished for the woman to expand upon it, they might regret it. Still, Delia and Jay took their chances.

"An obscene scene?" Jay repeated with a lighthearted grin at his wife. "How intriguing."

Suddenly, Annie cut in and leaned forward in her seat. "You do not want to hear about this," she stated with a dead serious tone.

A chuckle glided out of Chad's mouth as he joined in. "Em's already spewed about it to us. It's actually pretty funny- Oww!"

"It is so not Chad!" his wife insisted after she slapped his knee. "It's gross!"

This they had to hear.

Emily couldn't stand any more of the bickering and decided to leak all the details out anyway, whether her daughter wanted to hear the story again or not. "You remember the Dawsons, don't you?" she asked Jay.

Ah, the Dawsons, such good memories for the Ketchum children.

"How could I forget?" he snorted without hesitation. "You always complained about their overly elaborate Halloween decorations and king-sized candy bars."

Jay could still vividly recall his eight year-old self parked in front of the window with his sisters, watching neighborhood children march up and down the streets draped in white sheets, and vampire fangs tucked safely in their mouths. The three were so fascinated by the children's delight of dressing up as scary creatures for the night of Halloween, and always drooled dreamily over the buckets of candy those giddy kids clamped onto so tightly. That's when the Dawsons came in. The overly extravagant decorations were put up during any holiday by the flashy couple, for they too indulged in the spirit with oversize spinarak webs and reapers and many carved pumpkins lining up along their driveway. It was no wonder the kids stopped coming around to the Ketchums' house and strutted over to the more elaborate home. The children especially ended their trick-or-treat visits when they learned dear Mrs. Ketchum handed out apples. And they didn't have caramel on them either.

Emily clearly had biased opinions on certain national holidays.

The only good that came from keeping her children locked up in the house on that spooky night, forbidding them from participating in the tradition of trick-or-treating, were the few trips they ventured to the dentist. With Emily's diligence and repeated denials of letting them run off in the night, there were no cavities in each of the triplet's mouths. At the time though, the children could not see the burden their mother spared them from. With that burden came the hardship of not being able to enjoy a perfectly kid friendly treat due to her righteous views.

It was certainly a catch twenty-two.

"They're devil worshipers," Emily spat with disgust. "And are the leading cause of cavities-"

"Mom," Jay moaned, looking as if he was suffering a mild headache, "get to the point."

"Their beloved Snubull passed away about two months ago," the woman explained in a blasé tone.

Delia's eyebrows lowered with sadness. "Oh, I'm sorry."

Her mother-in-law's reaction to the tragic passing of the Dawsons' pet didn't seem to stir the same emotion as it did for Delia. "So are we. Only a month later they picked up this apparently contest-quality Delcatty who is as dense as a doorknob." Emily produced a loud huff. "And I thought that grumpy Snubull of theirs was horrifying to look at... and smell."

"You had the Delcatty's IQ tested, Mom?" Jay asked with a wrinkled forehead.

"I should have," she scoffed, crinkled dark brown eyes harboring repugnance. "It parades around the neighborhood like it owns the entire block, and drops by almost three times a week because it insists it is capable of impregnating our Luxray statue."

"Oh, my!" Delia gasped with wide eyes, taken aback.

"You know how often it comes by?" Jay asked again, even more irked by it all.

That was very unexpected. When they heard of an obscene scene, the image of a Delcatty swinging by to get a perk out of an inanimate object didn't cross anyone's mind. Now the couple understood why Annie wished for the subject to be dropped, and they both could see why Chad thought it was so amusing. There was always something either absurd or just out of the norm occurring at the senior Ketchums' house, whether they brought it upon themselves or not. But this little incident would have never been on Jay's guess list of crazy happenings.

Now that she was on a roll, Emily went on explaining without asking anyone if they wanted to hear any extent on the matter. "I've been debating about starting a petition to have the Pokémon altered, but," she said as she tapped her glass, "your father claims it would be a tad extreme."

"And I still stand by that, Emily," Richard restated with his eyes still hidden by the thin sheets of paper.

For once, Jay just so happened to agree with his workaholic father. "Well I would say going door-to-door and asking your neighbors to sign a document entailing the altercation of a Delcatty would not only be extreme, but odd on your behalf."

"I should just call Pokemon-Control and get this whole thing over with," Emily said, waving a hand in the air.

"Mooom," Jay moaned. He was already becoming exasperated. "How about you find something to do with your time instead of focusing on when the neighborhood cat decides to stop by and pay an off-color visit?"

"How can I when it is constantly mating with one of my statues?!" she hollered back with a befuddled expression. "Tell me Jayce, how could you ignore such a disturbing display?"

One couldn't. It would be difficult to ignore the sight, much less think of it. Then again, this was the same woman who fixated on fellow members of The Daughters of Kanto and griped about what they did incorrectly and how gossipy they were, and how about her many staff members at the hospital and how unprofessional they all were? Something was always bugging Emily.

Jay diverted her question and made his own request. "Please don't use 'I' and 'mating' in the same sentence ever again."

As the repetitive complaining took flight once more, Delia's eyes kept wandering over to Ash and Gary, who appeared to be too distracted by their toys and animated noises to overhear the slightly inappropriate conversation. However, the mother wanted to end the discussion, not only because it looked like there would be no rational conclusion, but because she didn't want the boys' ears to be tainted.

Looking back at her jabbering mother-in-law Delia cried out with a little meekness, "Emily, could we please change the subject? We have children present."

Emily's narrowed eyebrows heightened as she stopped in the middle of one of her rambles. It finally dawned on her that her grandsons were in the room. "Oh of course, I do apologize!" Then she looked off to the side again, blaming the Delcatty itself for her mouth. "Damn cat..."

"Mom."

Jay's serious one-worded command to chill appeared to do good for the wealthy woman. "I have had my fill discussing that abhorrent creature tonight! We should find another topic for us to discuss anyway." Then after a pause, a smile grew. "I know, have you and Jayce talked over whether you'd like to accompany Annie and me to Cerulean?"

It was only a matter of time before Emily would ask the big question and they still hadn't settled on a decision yet. It would be a great chance for Delia to get out of Pallet and spend some time with Jay's sisters like they were teens again. Not to mention, she always dreamed of going shopping in larger department stores. It would have been nice for her to pick up some small new decor items, or even a souvenir for Ash. There were a flood of opportunities and minutes to relax, though Delia's natural worrying about her son held her back.

"A little- yes," the auburn-haired woman responded after sharing an unsure glance with her husband. "I would like to go, but I am hesitant about leaving Ash."

"Oh nonsense Delia!" Emily replied with a wave of her hand. "He'll be fine with Jayce! I'm more worried about Gary being left with Chad."

Chad's eyebrows narrowed as he placed his beer bottle on the coffee table. "Hey, I take care of my kid!"

"When reminded." That was reminder in itself. "It's only for a week Delia, and before you know it those seven days will have flown by and you still would not have had enough time to catch up with Zelda. Besides, she told me she was looking forward to seeing you again. You two haven't chatted in so long as it is."

"Yeah, Delia!" Annie piped up enthusiastically. "You should totally come! It'll be fun! We can have some girl time like the old days, and the kids will be okay. That's what these two are for," she added with a playful grin.

Emily and Annie were doing fairly well at persuading the indecisive mother. Delia truly wanted to accompany the women and go forth to the marvelous city of Cerulean, but leaving Ash in Jay's care? She knew he could do it. There was no doubt about it. Jay was an excellent and attentive father, keeping his eye on Ash's little wandering feet constantly. Jay was however currently overwhelmed, and she thought it would be considerate to evaluate his stress level and her own at that. Plus, was Ash really going to be all right without his momma? Being separated more and more from Delia was something Ash would have to accept as he aged, and she was sure he'd be perfectly fine being with his dad...

The real question was, was Delia ready to take the big step of taking a vacation without her baby boy?

Sighing softly, the concerned woman tried to convey her reasoning for being uncertain. "I know Emily, Annie, but I have my duties as a mother. You both should understand what it's like to leave your child for so long."

"And I do," Emily answered. "I left the three of them countless times on business trips. Even when Richard was away! Of course we had Gertrude, their nanny, to look out for them. However, a little separation from your family might do you some good. Might help you relax."

That was true. Delia had mentioned to Jay she hadn't had much time to herself. To do what she wanted, take a nap at an hour she preferred, go for a stroll in the early morning! Getting away from the house, her husband, and her son might have more positives than negatives. Of course she would miss the two terribly, but maybe it was time for them to have a little separation. It wouldn't hurt anyone. She could catch her breath and Ash and Jay could have some bonding time. Jay also talked about wanting to do more activities with Ash, so why not give the boys their space?

It was a win-win situation.

However as Jay pointed out silently, Delia wouldn't be away from all her family members. Well, she wouldn't exactly be getting a vacation from her family...

Biting down on her lip, Delia released another sigh. "I don't know. Obviously I trust Jay more than anyone to leave Ash with, but I can't help but worry if something bad happens and I'm not there to fix it."

"May I remind you Delia, your husband is very capable of handling Ash."

Wow, a compliment from Emily? Usually she gave Jay more complaints than anything.

"Thank you, Mom," Jay said with genuine surprise.

"Of course I would have your mother check in on him on occasion."

His little moment of happiness faded with a frown. "Never mind."

"But seriously Del," Annie carried on, ignoring her mom's and brother's comments, "you should come with us. Zelda can show us around campus, we could go see a play, get our toes done, and did I mention fine dining?" she added with emphasis.

"I-I've never been fine dining before," Delia managed to reply with a tempting grin. Annie was making the trip all the more appealing and Delia could feel herself slowly succumb to their insistence of joining them.

"All the more reason for you to go with us!" Emily stated with enthusiasm. "So, what will it be? Yay or nay?"

Delia swung her gaze over at Jay. It was now or never to make the final call and with a glimmer of want in her eyes, Delia was able to convey silently how much she really wanted to journey to Cerulean. It only took Jay mere seconds to read through her big brown eyes and her tiny, sheepish grin.

"Honey, if you really want to go, then go," he said with all honesty. "It won't kill Ash and me to have you gone for a week."

"It might kill you of starvation."

He laughed a little to himself for she did make a point. Her cooking was phenomenal, and Jay's skills at grilling and boiling pasta was nothing compared to his wife's natural gift. Still, he was confident he could bring a meal to the table. "Please Delia, I know how to make pasta!" he reassured playfully. "We'll just eat spaghetti one night, then primavera, alfredo, macaroni, then lasagna and by the time the week is up, the kid will be so happy to see you again and thankful he will be rid of me and my pasta."

"Are you sure, Jay? Positive?"

He was being so understanding, so accepting of letting Delia adventure off that she didn't want him to feel like he was being taken advantage of. After all, it wouldn't exactly be much of a vacation for him. If she did go, she wanted to display how grateful she was to his willingness to watch Ash.

Her husband beamed a brilliant smile back at her. "When have I ever let you down?"

That was the thing-never. Jay was like the ideal boyfriend a girl could ask for, and now he was the ideal husband. He was mature, always considered her feelings, and he wasn't bad to look at either. He was handsome both inside and out and Delia could never imagine him steering her wrong.

So with that all in mind, the woman finally reached a decision. "Okay," she said after taking a deep breath. "I'll go."

Immediately, Annie and Emily broke out in cheers of delight, almost bouncing in their seats knowing they had gained another traveling companion.

"Wonderful! Just wonderful!" Delia's mother-in-law cried merrily. "I have already booked an extra room if you decided to come along, and Annie will give you a heads up on the weather so we know what to pack."

That was no surprise she thought ahead.

"Zelda says it's been really sunny there," Annie informed, "so I'm thinking of mainly packing dresses."

"That will be good to know, thank you." Delia then turned to her smiling husband and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. "And thank you, Jay," she said sweetly as she drew away, his face hinting a soft shade of crimson. "I guess I do need a break."

She must have really meant it, for she never gave him such public affection in front of his parents. But he liked it nonetheless, and was sincerely joyful to see her glow with such sheer eagerness to hit the road. It was good for Delia to get out and not worry about every little thing. Jay immensely appreciated her time and effort in being a wife, a mother, a homemaker and a manager at her mother's inn, and believed this was a kind way to let his precious 'Cabbage-Patch' know how much he loved her and wanted her to have a break.

"You deserve it," he replied warmly with a gentle rub of her hand.

While the married couple continued to gaze at each other with sincere expressions of thankfulness and weaving their fingers together to clasp hands, Emily's eyes traveled past the sofa her children and their spouses sat upon. She was watching Ash scurry out of the room to pull his big bag of toys out of the entryway. Once he got it settled on the edge rug he was playing on, Emily could barely see Ash carefully scoop up all his toys in one load, as he attempted to toss them back in the bag. In the midst of it however he dropped a couple, sending the waddling kindergartener back to pick up the ones that fell. Then once he placed them back in, he dug through the bulging backpack for a new set.

The wealthy woman made a small sound through her nostrils and gave a subtle smile. "Well that's nice."

"What?" Annie asked as she watched her mother lean to the side to look.

"Ash," she answered. "He's picking up his toys and trading them in for some other ones. I see you've taken the time to teach him how to clean up, Delia."

Delia turned her attention away from her husband to his mother, a little startled Jay's mom took notice of Ash's manners. "Well he needs to be able to do things on his own."

"I agree. If we as parents do not teach them certain things now, they will become hopeless individuals in the future."

"Whoa," Chad exclaimed suddenly after another sip of his beer, "harsh!"

"Yes Chad," Emily responded, almost talking down to her son-in-law, "reality can be very harsh. But you wouldn't know that, would you?"

"Actually I-"

"It would be nice to have another grandchild like him," the older woman stated randomly, cutting off Chad before he made a sad attempt at defending himself.

"Well," Delia threw out, unaware of what her words were about to cause, "maybe you will in the future."

Then in an instant, Emily went pale. She looked like someone who had just been given the news of a loved one's passing or had been touched by a haunting spirit!

Annie eyed her mother with concern, almost scared by the sight of her light pigmentation. "Mom?" she called out worriedly. "Are you okay?"

Okay? Was Emily okay? Well she was as okay as she was going to get, but never had they seen her so white, so... still. It looked like she was frozen, like she was relapsing to the time where Richard confessed his affair and it had taken her practically a year or two to forgive him and move on. It was a look they had seen before. Like she had been lied to, a horrible lie! Like someone was keeping a secret from her.

It wasn't too long before color returned to Emily's ghost-like complexion, and then with a breath of air, she screeched, "Oh my God, you're pregnant!"

What gave her that indication?! In the woman's defense it was a couple of things. At first it was Delia's refusal of a glass of wine, then it was the uncertainty of not wanting to come to Cerulean and using Ash as an excuse (even though that was legitimately true), and then it was her daughter-in-law's most recent comment!

Soon followed from the wealthy woman's outburst, specks of water flew right out of Delia's mouth and luckily she caught most of them with a napkin on the table. She started to cough heavily, almost choking on Emily's exclamation, and Jay immediately rested his hand on her shoulder, watching her with concern.

His mother's exclaimation and his wife's embarrassment as a result caused Jay to send a glare at Emily. "Mom!" he shouted, as Delia sputtered out a few more coughs.

Not long after did Richard finally raise his eyes from his paper, looking oddly back and forth between his wife then Delia, wrinkling his forehead. "Delia's pregnant?"

Boy, was he up to speed.

"Oh, so now you want to jump in on the conversation?" Jay spat at his dad.

"Delia, are you really?" Annie inquired as she leaned past her brother to gaze at her, not giving the woman a chance to speak. "When were you going to tell me?"

Then Chad joined in. Though instead he threw a question at Jay. "Hey dude, I thought you said you had night shifts on occasion?"

"Well, it could have happened during the day, duh!" his blonde wife suggested nonchalantly.

"I can't believe you were trying to hide this from me!" Emily cried in both anger and shock.

Delia's head was spinning between coughs, her eyes darted back and forth wildly with small tears leaking from them as the chaos continued to spiral out of control. Once she got control of her hacking, she kept her sweaty palms clasped tightly to her light blue dress, watching the assumption fly right off the handle. She didn't even have a chance to intervene and tell the truth with all the side conversations and hysteria erupting! Thankfully though, Jay's booming voice quieted everyone down. Including the confused children.

"Mom, no!" he hollered, drawing everyone's undivided attention. "Delia's not pregnant!" With a pause Jay could feel a small lump in his throat as he nervously crept his gaze over to his blushing wife. "Right?"

Jay didn't notice her having morning sickness or the occasional mood swings. Plus, her wanting to get intimate with him the other night was another obvious hint. And well, they hadn't done it in a while anyway.

Still, he had to make sure.

Delia narrowed her eyebrows at him as if he should have known the truth and shook her head from all the disruption, trying to clear things up. "Emily," she said calmly, redirecting her attention. "I'm not having a baby."

"Are you sure?"

Delia could feel herself turn pale at the sound of a small voice speaking behind the sofa. Ash was the owner of that question, and whether he fully understood what the word pregnant meant or not, Delia could feel herself bake in a sticky sweat. She was certainly in an awkward situation. "No, honey," she replied as she maneuvered her head to face him. "Mommy's not having a baby."

"Does the Pidgeot know?" he went on asking with blinking eyes, an action figure resting in his grasp.

His mom produced a gentle smile and nodded. "The Pidgeot knows."

Why couldn't everyone be as calm as her son? If anyone was going to panic and have a fit over the new addition it was going to be Ash. But he didn't. He just wanted to make sure the great Pidgeot who dropped babies off doorsteps all over the world knew. And even in the midst of the madness, Delia thought it was mighty cute.

Emily had finally calmed down. Her muscles had relaxed and her color was back to normal. And so were her blunt comments. "Oh. Well that makes sense. You were lacking that glow."

Jay looked at his mom baffled, his mouth hanging open slightly. "Oh? All you can say is oh after you humiliated us and, not to mention, brought up a very delicate subject with children in the room?! Why would you even think that was the case, Mom?" the man demanded for a rational explanation after that fiasco, and wouldn't tolerate some silly reasons that led his mother to such an extreme belief.

"Well she said she didn't want wine, and then she dropped what I thought, was a hint!" his mom exclaimed in defense with a raised voice.

Misleading assumptions as always. Jay rubbed his temple in irritation before spewing out a reply. "It was a possibility, Mom..." he grumbled, then threw his hands up. "God, why does this family read into every little slight?!"

"I'm sorry Jayce," Emily apologized, though it was more of her playing the role as the victim of the situation. Like it was Delia's fault for shoving those ambiguous thoughts in her head and forcing her to open her big mouth. "Forgive me for my bad interpretation!"

Delia could see where this was going, and tried to intervene with some rationality. "Emily, it's no big deal-"

"I just thought it'd be nice if you two were having another little one, so forgive me for ever wanting your family to expand," the older woman carried on, all the adult eyes focused on her, even Richard. "You should take my noticing of your son's manners and wishes of wanting you two to have more children as a compliment."

Unbelievable. Emily had a knack at turning things around and making someone else look like the bad guy. But Jay wasn't going to condone her childish behavior. "You can't be serious..." he muttered, perplexed by her rants and the fact that she actually wished for them to have another child. "You actually want us to have another baby? Mom, have you forgotten you have three other children? And may I add two of them are not even married or parents? Let them give you more grandchildren."

It was true, Zelda and Drake were still unwed and without a companion. Zelda had dated a few men throughout her years on campus, yet they all ended horribly, her easygoing personality and quiet demeanor led to them almost bossing her around or pressuring her to participate in things she rather not. She always fell for the stereotypical 'bad boy' and it puzzled everyone why a mild-mannered, silent bookworm like Zelda ever took interest in a guy who liked to live life on the dangerous side. As for Drake...well, he was a whole other story entirely.

"But that's the thing, Jayce," Emily replied with irritation. "Annie refuses to have anymore-"

"Mom, I've told you before!" her daughter suddenly interrupted, feeling the need to protect her and her husband's choices. "Chad and I want to focus on Gary. We're not ready for another baby."

"I wasn't criticizing your decision, Annie. I was just stating a fact. You two already have enough to worry about anyway."

The hinted jab drew Annie back in her seat, sipping away on the club-soda she had not touched for a few minutes. After that remark about Gary, Jay wasn't the only one pondering when dinner was ever going to be ready. He could tell by the tapping of Annie's nails on her glass that she was growing quite impatient.

Though his gaze focused back onto his mother, replying logically, "That still leaves you with two other kids, Mom."

"You don't understand!" she appeared to be at her wit's end, like her other children were a hopeless cause at ever providing an abundance of grandchildren. "Zelda cannot seem to find a man without a criminal record, and Drake is hopeless. He can't settle down with any girl. If it's not one girl this week, there will be another girl the next! I swear he goes through them like water!"

Drake. The black sheep of the family. The title didn't really suite his persona, but with him being the child of Richard's affair, it was only natural he'd receive the cold shoulder on occasion. Emily, however, grew fond of the boy. Seeing none of the disgrace Richard brought to the family was his fault, she took him in and raised him as her own. And even though Drake was not related to her by blood, the woman eventually considered him her son, her second son, which eventually led to him feeling comfortable enough to call her mom. It had taken him a while to adjust; after all he was close to his biological mother, though with her untimely death he had to attach himself to a motherly figure.

As to why he could never settle down with a girl was beyond everyone's understanding. But maybe not Jay's. He out of the all the children was closest with his half brother, and understood the fear Drake endured of committing to a relationship, always afraid if he sincerely loved someone they'd be taken away from him within a blink of an eye. Just like his mother.

And well, the young man was still too young to think about marriage and a family, and Jay reminded his mother of just that. "Mom, he's nineteen. He's not looking for a wife!"

Emily released a huff. "Unlike some people."

"Oh dear God..."

"I remember a certain nineteen year old who was very eager to tie the knot and start a family."

That was true too. Jay had married Delia right after high school and Ash's birth followed soon after. But that was how he wanted it to be. He and Drake wanted different things at the time. Drake was pursuing his dream of training and becoming a great battler known to all of Pummelo Island, and Jay, well, he had those dreams of training Pokémon too, but loved Delia too much to journey across Kanto.

Still even at that, the man felt the need to remind his mother of his and his wife's original plans. "First of all, we were planning on waiting to have a baby till a year into our marriage-"

"And your hormones were telling you otherwise."

"Again," he said sternly with a cringe, "stop using sex references."

"It wasn't a shock Delia got pregnant right away," the older woman stated. "After all, you two could hardly keep your hands off of each other."

"I think you have us confused with Annie and Chad. There was always a boundary between us till we said 'I do'," he explained using one of his hands to form an imaginary wall between he and his wife. "You made sure of that."

"I am just saying it'd be nice to see your family grow. What's wrong with that?" Jay's mom questioned with a raised brow.

"There is nothing wrong with that-"

"Before you know it, you'll be thirty!"

So what? He was only twenty-four, there was still plenty of time. And what did that particular age have to do with anything?

"Wow, Mom," the man answered sarcastically. "I had no idea thirty was the new sixty."

"You know most women shouldn't conceive past thirty-five." Now she was using her health facts to get the better of them. "A lot of health problems can occur for both the mother and child. Would you like Delia to have complications?"

"She's tougher than she looks," was Jay's answer with a faint sneer.

"Well then, when are you going to have another? What are you going to do, give Ash a baby brother for his sweet sixteen?" she added dramatically with a touch of her wittiness, or one should say nuttiness.

That whole conversation was like merry-go-round. One question after another, a never-ending cycle of comebacks and more inquiry on the subject. And Delia could hardly get a word in. It was all Jay and Emily. Talking back and forth like the old days.

"Technically, boys don't have sweet sixteens," Jay pointed out.

"Teenagers are rebellious," his mother stated in return, listing more facts as well as her opinions. "They won't tolerate any new addition or change in their life; they're already at a delicate stage as it is. It's best to do it now while he's still old enough to accept a new person getting attention besides him."

"I'm not listening to this," he finally declared, throwing his hands up in the air. "We've argued over this discussion too many times before."

"You two are shockingly decent parents and it would be a waste for you not to have any more children. Plus, the Ketchum line needs to continue! Why can't you just listen to reason for a change?"

Was she serious? This wasn't the eighteen hundreds anymore! No one cared about lines and what status their family was, and how much money they'd be able to make. Only the wealthy really cared about upholding their title and for their children to continue on with their legacy, and the harsh reality of it was that Jay was a babe of wealthy folk. The oldest of the triplets, the older boy out of the two. He was Emily's son, so he was significant to the family's title.

However, Jay had other ways of looking at it. Logical ways. "The line?" he repeated, wondering if his ears were deceiving him. "Mom, have you considered that maybe we're not, I dunno, financially stable or that we-this might shock you-could possibly be happy with our one ray of sunshine? I mean, how many times do I have to say it before-"

"I wouldn't mind having another."

That's when the conversation shifted.

Jay's mouth dropped open after hearing Delia utter those very words. "What?" he said in shock, one of his eyebrows practically twitching.

Emily was taking delight in her's son state of astonishment. She figured Delia would see things differently than Jay. "Your wife is trying to tell you something, Jayce," said his mother mischievously, slurping her drink.

The dark-haired man made a face. "I can see that, Mom."

Delia finally had the chance to speak up, and so with everyone's eyes peering at her, she did so. "I don't see the harm in it," she shrugged, feeling her husband's icy eyes gleam down at her. "I mean, it would teach Ash to share and we always talked about at least having two."

Then, Emily slipped in another remark. "There's obviously been some miscommunication."

"There is no miscommunication!" Jay abruptly growled, then to turned back to his wife. "Delia, what are you talking about?" he questioned addled in a frustrated whisper. "We've never discussed this any further-"

"Well, maybe we should," she interrupted openly. "I know money's tight right now, but I think it is something we should talk about. Maybe not now, but soon."

Not now was right. It wasn't exactly ideal to be discussing the chance of bringing another life into the world with Jay's family present, and Delia confessing her true feelings on the matter in front of them wasn't so pleasant either. But Jay was willing to listen, he just didn't care to have everyone's ears open on the matter. Thankfully though, Ash and Gary were too busy flying toy airplanes around and making noises to even notice the talk of Delia wanting a baby.

"Well sure," Delia's husband replied, tension built in his shoulder, "but we can talk about it later. I seriously don't think now is the best time for us to be having this discussion. Besides, we have to consider Ash's feelings. I need to spend more time with him anyway before ever thinking about devoting my time to another. I'm at work constantly, you're at work constantly, and I can only give him one on one time during the weekend."

This time, Emily appeared to be hearing out her son's feelings and seemed to find them to be understandable. "So you're telling everyone you wish there was a way for you two to bond more, devote more time to him, before ever thinking about having another?"

Jay blinked a couple of times at his mother, his muscles relaxing at the sound of her comprehension to the dilemma. "Yes."

"Well then, I propose an idea."

Thinking that his mother was actually listening was too good to be true. Jay appreciated his mom grasping his emotions, he didn't, however, entail her wacky proposals.

"Oh God, Mom-"

"Why don't you take Ash to visit Nana Esther while we go see Zelda?"

Nana Esther? Dear old Nana Esther who originally lived in that very home with Jay's deceased grandfather and moved out for them to have a place to live? The woman who was an aspiring artist and took pleasure in the great outdoors? The most calm yet interesting relative Jay had ever met? She was the one person he enjoyed visiting with most when they had their family reunions.

Jay and his grandfather were rather close before the man passed, and so his grandmother filled in that role for him, growing closer as grandson and grandma. The last time he saw his nana was when Ash was only a few months old. She came down from her home in Azalea Town to meet her great-grandsons and was thrilled to tears to see Jay contently married with a stable income and a newborn son.

To Jay, she was the perfect grandmother a kid could ask for.

Still, they hadn't made contact in such a long time and randomly dropping by unannounced to see her wasn't exactly Jay's style. "You're joking?" was all he sputtered out.

"Why would I be joking? Ash has never been to Johto before, it would give him a cultural outlook, and you have not paid your grandmother a visit in years anyway." Emily then looked at her husband who was, as always, reading away. "Don't you think your mother would like to see Jayce again, Richard?"

"Ah yes, dear. She would like that very much. She always found enjoyment talking with him."

"I don't know, Mom." The man's uncertainty was legitimate. "A trip to Johto? That's out of the region, and without Delia-"

"But you and Delia have always talked about wanting to take him places," Emily affirmed. "Now would be the perfect opportunity! Besides, what would you do at home with him while she is away? Sit him in front of the t.v. and fill him up on junk food?"

What would they do at home? Jay supposed they'd find something fun to do in their small town. They could always get ice cream or play a board game, or adventure off in the nearby woods. But they already did that on a regular basis. Ash was adventurous, he loved exploring and seeing sights, and both his parents knew how much their son would love an outing such as that. Plus, it would be wonderful one-on-one time for the boys; a real chance for them to connect as father and son. But it would be one long ride over to Azalea Town, and Jay was anxious enough to go as far as Pewter with Ash. Keeping a child contained all by oneself on a train ride to another region would be a chore in itself, and the man wasn't sure if he was capable of watching Ash like a Fearow without Delia around to be an extra set of eyes.

It would be grueling. Then again, once they arrived in the peaceful town they'd probably be pleased they made the long journey over.

"We'd order in semi-healthy food," Jay corrected with a sneer.

Before any more comebacks could be thrown across the room, the maid who took Jay and Delia's coats entered in with her arms tucked behind her back. She was there to announce the same thing she did every other night.

"Dinner is ready Mrs. Ketchum," the woman stated formally.

"Thank you, Henrietta." The maid gave another prompt nod and returned to her duties in the kitchen. From there, Emily rose from her seat and gave one last firm glare at Jay. It was a look she gave him when he had refused to submit to his piano lessons for an hour. "You're going to Johto and that's final. I'll have your father pick up some train tickets for the two of you a week in advance and I will inform Nana Esther of your arrival. Now," she went on, strutting in away with her glass balanced in her hand, "shall we have dinner?"

"We shall!" Annie replied for them all, bouncing off the couch. "Gary! C'mon honey, dinner's ready," she beckoned, holding out her hand for her son to join her. "Let's go wash our hands."

"Kay, Mommy!" he surprisingly didn't put up a fuss and took hold of his mother's grip, having them exit from the room.

"Dinner?" Richard perked up like a hungry Growlithe, finally tossing his paper to the side. "Is it seven already?" he asked, pulling back his sleeve to check his watch.

His wife only sighed and journeyed out of the room. "Yes, come along Richard."

So as the older man followed through with his wife's orders, Chad tagged along beside him, rubbing his hands together, famished and thrilled to know food was sitting on the table. Food that was ready to be dumped into his empty stomach. "Finally! I'm starved! It's nothing weird though right, Em?" he dared to ask.

Their voices grew faint as they finally entered in the dining room, leaving the ears of those who still sat in the living room able to pick up bits and pieces of their conversation.

"Weird?" she repeated with a strange look upon her face. "What would you define as weird?"

Delia and Jay were still seated in the now almost empty living room, staring off with agape mouths, then exchanged a mixed look with one another. Emily's order of Jay heading off to Johto with Ash was certainly startling and the couple couldn't believe how she trotted off like the matter was settled with agreement. Eventually, Ash came up to his befuddled parents, tugging on Jay's pant leg and when he wouldn't budge, the boy flew right into the dining room shouting, "Mommy, Daddy, let's eat!"

The couple remained looking at each other. Stunned at how all those wild discussions were produced that night and the result of all of them. And now, they were roped into some of those very results.

If only they still had their appetites, maybe they'd feel compelled to join everyone at the dinner table.

---

Jay and Delia were relieved to get out of the nuthouse.

Not a moment after they finished dinner did the pair stay longer. Once they said their goodbyes and repeated promises of making dinner again another Sunday, the couple headed towards their truck. Jay acted as if he had a breath of fresh air the moment they stepped outside. He wasn't sure if he could have handled another minute with his mother with her wild conversations and continuous jabs. And Ash was through with his playtime. He and Gary behaved quite well through dinner and even when they said bye. There was no whining, no crying, no tattling, nothing. The adults were acting out more so than the boys, though even with the little squabbles that sparked between the grown-ups, Jay was relieved Ash kept his cool and Gary minded his manners.

The night would have been perfect if Emily hadn't opened her big mouth, and the repercussions of it fell upon a snoring Ash and a sleepy-eyed Delia. Once Jay buckled Ash in the back seat of the truck, the boy fell fast asleep. However it was hard for him to doze between the bumpy rugged road and Jay's persistence on discussing the evening.

Loudly.

"Could you believe my mother tonight?" he groaned, his hands tightly bound on the steering wheel.

A flash of lights skimmed across Jay's eyesight, blurring him for a moment as he drove along. He scoffed to himself quietly and tapped his fingers on the wheel in irritation as the opposite car traveled on.

Delia could see the tension build up within him. "Actually she wasn't as bad as I thought she was going to be," she said gazing out the window.

"I mean, who gave her the right to tell us when we should have more kids and when we shouldn't? We can have a baby when we feel like it!" his thundering voice boomed, bouncing off the doors of the cramped truck. "You're no baby-making machine! And who gives her the right to tell me where I am going to go this summer and what I am going to do? Maybe I'm not ready to take Ash to Johto! Do you want him to go to a region he has never been to before?! Without you?!"

Of course she didn't. Delia preferred to be by Ash's side on vacations like that. And yes, she wasn't set on Ash wandering to Azalea Town even with his dear father accompanying him. It just didn't feel right. Her not being there to look out for him, especially after seeing how much stress her husband was bottling up would be very troublesome for the young mother. Though with night falling, Delia couldn't muster the energy to make a final decision. They were exhausted after a long weekend with some unresolved matters and they had a few weeks to ponder over it. They didn't need to decide on anything just then.

"We haven't finalized anything, Jay," Delia reminded calmly. "It's nothing to get riled up over."

"I know, I know!" he waved one of his hands in the air, then slammed it back down on the wheel. Then he breathed heavily through his nose. "It's just whenever I'm around her, she makes me feel like I have no breathing room, and then I start defending myself and back talking like I'm a teen again, because she cannot seem to comprehend the word 'space'!"

"You get very sarcastic when you're around her."

"Exactly! It's like I can't help but retort something right back to her! Gah! I don't understand her logic! She was the one who was against us getting married! She practically did everything in power to prevent it from happening, and now she wants us to have another baby? And did you hear the way she said, shockingly?! Like we're convicts or something!"

Delia could see Ash's eyes squint through the mirror hanging above the front window and soon, his head dove to the side, whimpering softly. He was trying to get some rest. "Lower your voice."

Jay did lower his hollering a notch, though he wasn't finished blowing off some steam. "For crying out loud the woman friggin' disowns me, but she still insists I come to those pointless dinners of hers every other Sunday and give her more grandchildren?! What kind of sick, twisted thinking is that?!"

"Well, maybe she sees we are cut out for a married lifestyle."

"And don't get me started on my father! Oblivious!" Jay went on dumbfounded and fed up all at once. "Completely oblivious to everything! It's absolutely stupefying how uninvolved he is with not only my mom, but his own kids! I don't understand how a man with such a high education and occupation can go around with his head in the clouds! I swear," he groaned, "the only things that can hold his attention are his paperwork and magazines with women all over them! If he actually paid attention to her, maybe she'd keep her nose out of everyone's business-"

"I'm not really in the mood to figure out your parents, Jay," Delia cut him off sternly, staring at the road. "They baffle me as much as they do you. And please, keep your voice down."

He lowered his voice slightly again, and followed through with another scoff and a shake of his head. "I should just call some specialist and have their heads examined. For all I know, my real parents could be normal folks settled in Viridan and reside in the middle class and instead, they got stuck with some crazy child!"

"I'm sure they're your parents, Jay." Not sure. Positive. "There are physical attributes and some personality traits that support it," Delia stated, his shouting wearing on her nerves.

"So I am the crazy child?" he snapped, both in paranoia and fury.

That's not what she meant! His hysterical behavior was way out of hand.

"Jay, relax and watch the road!" his wife finally burst as she motioned towards the path ahead, then she slapped her hand back on her leg in exasperation. "You're not like your parents! There might be some things that remind me of them, but no. No, you are not your parents. If you were I wouldn't be married to you."

"That's comforting," he frowned with a snort.

A moment of silence took hold of the drive home, and Delia's eyes wandered aimlessly to her now focused husband. She understood the pressure and anxiety baggage he carried since birth. Jay had never fit in with his parents' lifestyle nor did he agree with them on many subjects. And he especially hated it when they threw out their opinions or desires, like Emily had done that night.

Yet they were his folks, and as much as Jay liked to deny it, he couldn't make them magically disappear. And to a point, Emily's wish was reasonable. They were decent parents, and the couple had originally discussed having two children to complete their little family. But that was four years prior to now, and with Jay's pay increasing, his work piled up more and more, the demand and the strain wore on him. So discussing the possibility of adding an additional member ceased.

Deep down though, Delia longed to cradle another baby in her arms and create more precious moments with not only her and Jay, but Ash, and his hypothetical sibling. It was something she truly wanted, and believed that Jay did too. But she had to consider everything, not rely on wishful thinking alone. As for Jay, his logical reasoning on everything wasn't always befitting to hearing out his wife's wishes. He had to contemplate how having a baby would make them happy, would make Delia happy instead of focusing on finances and looking at it as another burden to add to their long list of responsibilities.

Inhaling a deep breath, Delia's gaze did not lift as she asked bluntly, "Are you really set against us not having another baby?"

Delia knew what this tantrum was all about. It wasn't that he didn't want to have a baby, it was that Jay didn't like to hear someone tell him what to do and when he should do it, and he was especially uncooperative when he had massive amounts of pressure already on came with that were worries of not living up to the idealistic wishes and ultimately failing.

Jay's tense expression faded quickly, and his icy eyes began to melt. "No," he sputtered, his tone calming. "No- I'm just not sure if we would be rushing into anything."

"Rushing? We've waited nearly six years, Jay. I don't think we're rushing at all."

"Well," he sighed, "if you really want to... I will."

"Jay, it doesn't work that way!" she groaned in a low whisper. "We both have to want this."

Ash's existence was certainly an unexpected but happy surprise for the couple those six years ago. Only three months into their marriage, and they were already planning the arrival of a baby. A baby in which Jay had no clue about raising. He was a nervous wreck, panicking, constantly fearing about what could happen to Delia when those hospital doors opened. Not to mention, their money situation. He had to work double time to make sure there was enough set aside for their child and for all the expenses Delia needed through her pregnancy and the hospital bill on top of that.

But after those nine long months, it was so worth it. They had a son, a son they both loved to death and wouldn't trade for the world. Ash was quite the sweetie and even when he did misbehave, they were always able to resolve the issue. He wasn't as big a handful in the disobedient department as some other children. Sure, the boy was inquisitive and adventurous, but there wasn't a mean bone in his body. He was what they dreamed of having, and maybe, it'd be nice to create another little dream once more.

So what was holding Jay back?

Pausing for a moment, Jay exhaled deeply through his nose. "Look, it's not that I don't," he started seriously. "You know I love Ash more than the world, I just can't help but think what if- I'm not cut out for raising two kids? I'm already working a lot and I'm afraid I won't be able to make time for another one. I can hardly make time for you and Ash."

So that was the problem. He was letting fear control him, something that he had to battle his entire childhood. Jay was always worried he wouldn't be able to fall through with his promises and make Delia happy, even behind that charming grin and confident stride. The last thing he wanted was to be an utter failure, and after being told he needed to work harder and harder and harder by his parents, it was only natural for him to doubt himself.

But Delia knew his potential.

Mrs. Ketchum's eyes softened as she lovingly placed her hand on his leg. "Of course you can," she assured in a tender tone. "Just because we have work that doesn't mean you'll forget about the other child. People make it work all the time Jay, and they have twice as many kids as we do!" Her lips began to form an affectionate smile and Jay could see her expression lighten from the corner of his eye. "You're really the best dad a kid could ask for. You're more nurturing than most men, you're thoughtful, mature, patience is another thing, but you do give Ash undivided attention.

"Honey," her hand was now running softly through his dark locks, "you're worrying way too much. I wouldn't just ask anyone to be the father of my children."

Jay was quite the catch, and he was definitely a rare find, especially in the small reclusive town of Pallet. The once ditzy farm girl was infected with an uncontrollable rush of giddiness when the handsome, charismatic, and unique boy, Jayce Ketchum, noticed her at school. And pursued her.

Jay's eyes brightened excitedly as he threw an alluring grin in his wife's direction. "I do like the sound of that and I would like to give it another go around after our failed attempt Friday night."

Sadly though, Delia had to let him down. "Not tonight, honey," she replied as her hand left the knots of his unruly hair to cover her yawn. "I'm tired, and Ash has school tomorrow."

"We could keep it down," he went on persuading with a twinkle in his eye.

Then, Delia released a mix of a scoff and a laugh. "And I thought you said we were rushing?"

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Author's Note:

First off, I would just like to say I am super sorry about how long it took me to write this chapter. It was a huge headache and a lot of dialogue exchange to come up with. Plus this month has just been hectic. But I hope you guys enjoyed it! I worked very hard to keep it flowing as nicely as I could. By the way, it's the longest chapter I have ever written!

Also things will start to move a bit faster by chapter five. There's still a little more to delve into so please bare with me. I hope the Ketchums held your interest!

So thank you all for reading, and as always, reviews are appreciated. :) And, have a Happy Halloween!