Ok, so although the rest of my past readers appear to have thoroughly disappeared, Thank you, Alex Warlorn, for still reading and reviewing ^_^ If only more people were as inquisitive as you. And you know what? Although I'm not going to have it the exact way that you originally thought, I might just have to work that into the storyline… heh-heh… and it'll also mean I lied on something to you…

Ash fluttered in place over his own head… it was almost surreal, to see your own self below you, no matter whether you know who's in it at that moment or not. Pikachu had just ran out of the house after Chikorita had requested his help… he hadn't let Ash come with him, because they didn't need more people/pokémon than necessary knowing about the current situation. So Ash was left to determine, on his own, how to explain the situation to Togetic and, if necessary, Misty…

Human? If Only…

6 - And that you can believe

**********

Pikachu hurried along behind Chikorita. All she'd said to him, as they dashed away from the house, was that she hoped he could help her with something. What exactly that meant, Pikachu was clueless to. But he figured he was about to find out.

"Ok," she saiod, stopping by some bushes behind the condo the others were staying in. "Look… I knew, out of all the pokémon, you'd probably be the one most helpful in this situation. I… got into a little bit of trouble… And, well, I need someone to help me take care, of this…" she winced as she pulled back the branches of the bush with her vine whip, expecting Pikachu to be shocked and appaled at the concealed item. Instead he was just… rather stunned.

"But, 'Rita… who? How?"

**********

"Daddy!"

"Shhh…. Keep it down, Togetic. Follow me…" Ash sighed, leading the pokémon that was in his body up the stairs to his room. "What did you wish?"

"I… I'm not going to tell you!" Togetic said suddenly. "I'm old enough to be able to do things on my own, so I don't need your permission to wish!"

"I'm not trying to boss you around, Togetic… I'm just a bit concerned about you, that's all. There's a lot happening in my life right now, and I don't want you to get hurt by being thrown in in the middle of it!"

"You're just concerned about your status in the pokémon league, that's all. You're worried that if I take your place for a little while, then you'll loose, right?"

"That's only the smallest part of it! It's… Misty that I'm worried about…" Ash admitted.

"What about my Mommy? I can protect her, there's nothing that can happen to her…"

"That's not it…"

"What, then, Daddy? What could happen with Mommy that you'd be worried about?"

"Togetic… you know we're your… 'parents', right? And as your 'Daddy', I really love your 'Mom'… And it's not how you'd think of love though…"

"What is it, if not that?"

"I… can't explain it…. I'm not good at these things… It's just… different, alright?" Ash grimaced. He knew the differences, including several that, even if he knew how to explain them, weren't really good to tell to a three year old, even a pokémon one…

"I will tell you one thing. That's why I wanted to be human, so I could know what love was…"

"You're getting yourself into things you shouldn't, Togetic! It'll be one big mess…" Ash sighed, realizing the absence of his audience as Togetic left the room, harumphing as he ran down the stairs in a huff. "Oh no…"

**********

Pikachu leaned over and set his ear against the small pokémon egg. "It's already moving around… it's going to hatch within a week. You really *should* tell him, you know that, Chikorita…"

"I know, it's just… what will the others think? You know, and if it's a Chikorita too, then anyone could be it's father, for all they have to know…" Chikorita suggested, pacing around Pikachu and her egg nervously.

"But he'll know the truth, even if you don't tell him…"

"How will he know? I could have had other… boyfriends, for all he know…"

"The abilities, 'Rita, you know as well as I do that we all are born with some of our father's abilities… and it *will* be a Chikorita. It's always the mother's species, except with Dittos… You're just making up excuses, hoping that just once you'll say something I didn't know the answer to and cheat out of this. It's not going to happen though." He sighed and pressed his ear to the egg again, gently turning it as he did so. "How'd you and he get into this mess, anyway? And who is he, you wouldn't tell me…"

"It's a really, really long story… and I know that you'll go tell him if I tell you, so I'm not going to tell you… I didn't think anything like this would happen, though… we were just wandering through town night before last, arguing about things… He was determined to prove a few things, though, and had run out of other things to do… We both got bored, and, well…" she gulped, blushing and debating how much of the story to tell. "This morning… this happened…"

"That quickly?" Pikachu asked, eyes wide. "I'm really fairy surprised, actually… I though only Magikarp eggs birthed and hatched quickly… But that's beside the point.. I still can't believe this happened, but I figured it'd be you, if any, of the pokémon…"

"What's THAT supposed to mean?!" she growled, glaring at him and snatching a leaf from a nearby bush to vent her anger. She quickly calmed down and put the leaf over the egg, curling up beside it. Pikachu sweatdropped as he fully realized that the egg was nearly a third her size…

"Nothing, actually… Look, I won't tell anyone, and I'll help take care of it. For the baby's sake, not yours. I'm not going to help you, however, until you've told whoever the father is about it." Pikachu sighed, wandering away slowly. And since I've got a good hunch, I'm gonna go ask right now…he added silently.

"Alright. And Pikachu… thank you. You're right… I'll tell him, once it hatches…" she smiled.

"That's good…"

**********

"ASH KETCHUM! I'M QUITE POSSIBLY GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Togetic glanced around suddenly, only barely realizing that he was currently Ash to the rest of the world. Misty came in, her hair dripping purple, meriting a shocked stare from Togetic… she was dressed only in a blue towel, which was also being dyed purple by the water dripping from her hair which, despite it's altered color, framed her face quite nicely.

"Grape Kool-Aid in the shower nozzle. I bet you think I won't know it's you, if you give me that vacant stare long enough. Hello?! Ash? Ugh, You're not hearing a word I'm saying, are you? Geesh… you better hope this comes out, for your sake…" she stormed violently out of the room, leaving a slightly purple tinted puddle where she had been standing.

"What… was that…" Togetic asked himself, grabbing his head and shaking it. "That was… nothing I'd ever thought before… and about Mommy?" he asked himself. Things were about to get more complicated, because although Ash's mind and memory had left that body with Ash himself… the human hormones and instinct had not. Togetic shook his head again, and walked silently out of the room. He was in desperate need of a father-son talk.

**********

"ASH, ASH, PROBLEM!"

"Yeah, I know, Pikachu. Misty found the little surprise I left for her and blew up at Togetic…" Ash sighed, flopping backwards onto the bed and then rising into the air much to his dismay.

"That… wasn't the issue I was referring to. Chikorita is the issue I meant," Pikachu grimaced, realizing that their were about three crisises currently running course within the area of two condos and the surrounding yard.

"What now…" Ash groaned, trying to force himself back down to the bed with little success.

"How do I put this…?"

"Simply would be nice…"

"Alright, fine then. Chikorita's going to be a mother," Pikachu said, pulling his ears over the sides of his head hoping to lessen the blow of the yell he was convinced he was about to hear. Instead, there was only a soft, sudden plop as Ash finally landed on the bed.

"Alright, who did she…"

"Wouldn't tell me. Says she'll tell me once it hatches. I'm thinking Tracey… they're always running around together…"

Ash rose back off the bed again suddenly. "Tracey? But he…. I just don't think so, though we shouldn't rule it out. And-" he was cut off as the door swung open suddenly, and none other than Togetic stormed in.

"Daddy! You did that just so mommy would get mad at me!"

"No." Ash said sincxerly. I did that so she'd walk into the room wet and only wearing a towel, hoping I could talk her out of being mad at me… he corrected within his own mind. "I set that up last night, long before this whole mess happened."

"Oh… well, maybe. But daddy…?" Togetic said slowly.

"Yeah?"

"What was it… that I was thinking, when mommy came in to yell at me? When I saw her… I don't know, my mind just locked up and went all weird…"

Ash glanced down at Pikachu and gave him the 'oh-no' look. Make that crisis total… four…

**********

"Hey, what's Chikorita doing out there?" Vixie asked, shielding her eyes from the sun as she looked out the window. Chikorita was scampering across the yard, glancing around nervously as she carried a small towel into some bushes. She emerged again moments later and picked up a stick, taking it back in with her.

"I don't know…" Martha said, looking out with her. Brock, Celebi, and Tracey quickly joined them, all three the boys being slightly curious as to what the other pokémon was doing, and each tempted to accuse another or themselves of what she might be doing.

"I'll bet I know," Tracey grinned sheepishly, and ran to the door. "I'll go ask, and be back in a minute or two!"

Ooo I bet you all think you have it figured out, don't you? Alex, tell them and die. And PLEASE review! I'm having serious second thoughts about this nearly R-rated storyline here, so tell me if it's a bad idea! Thank you all!!