Hi and hello! Welcome, one and all, to Chapter 11 of Inconceivable. This time, we will rejoin our favourite couple and see what direction their lives have taken since they settled in Ecruteak. Without further ado, let's get this train wreck a'rollin'!

A/N: again, I know finding the job Ash does is not as easy as I've written it. File that under "pointless distractions from the plot", I guess.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon; Nintendo and Satoshi Tajiri do.

INCONCEIVABLE

CHAPTER 11-A QUIET, NORMAL LIFE

The weeks went by. If it weren't for the fact that she and Ash were essentially fugitives, hidden from their families, May would have thought she was living normally in Ecruteak City. At least, she was. Ash wasn't home yet; he had been insistent on finding some kind of work in the city, and had actually found a job close by, even though it was fairly intense for a young man his age. May knew he could probably handle it, but her sharpening maternal instinct was urging her to protect him.

Of course, they'd argued for hours when he first brought up the prospect of working in the city. She knew he was trying to take some kind of responsibility, but she didn't like the idea of risking their identities just to support her. He had argued, rightly, that their tournament winnings wouldn't last forever, and that he needed to find a job eventually if they planned to maintain their secret life indefinitely.

"May, I've seen how fast those tournament winnings disappear on you." he'd said, indicating that he was going ahead no matter what. "It's mainly my fault we're in this mess, so it's only right that I keep up my end of things." He'd told her what she already knew in her heart: he was doing this all for her, and for their child. His words right after this declaration stuck in her mind: "After all, I've got a family to support, now." May knew that when he was set on accomplishing something, he wasn't to be dissuaded, and she'd simply told him to be careful.

She sighed and looked out at the bright June midmorning with its cloudless blue sky, a sleeping Pikachu in her arms, and closed her eyes. Her condition would be advancing as time went by, and she knew their child would come before she knew it. She smiled, and stroked Pikachu's fur gently as she moved back from the window. She trusted Ash to get this right, and even though she was worried about maintaining their cover, she knew he would do anything to keep her safe. He could be rash at times, but this time his rashness was because he loved her, and in turn she was worried because she loved him.

"Alright, Buizel, let's get this thing cut! Water Gun!"

After consulting with Morty, Ash had landed a job helping renovate a section of the Bell Tower that had fallen into disrepair. He had been worried about the overseers trying to gain some further proof of his identity beyond Morty's word, but the Gym Leader had managed to get around that obstacle. After a few quick tests, he'd been assigned to help cut the wooden beams that would be used to repair the tower, and had therefore brought Heracross and Buizel to help in this endeavour.

Buizel had been taught to concentrate his Water Gun into a thin stream that could cut through the thick wood, eliminating the need for specialist equipment. A fellow Worker's Wartortle observed the Sea Weasel Pokémon as he worked, proud of his pupil's handiwork; the Wartortle's master had been assigned to teach Ash how the job was done, and used Wartortle to demonstrate. It had taken a few tries, but neither Ash nor Buizel would give up, and soon enough they had gone from off-angle cuts to straight clean ones, impressing both Worker and Pokémon.

Once Buizel had cut a beam, Heracross would carry it over to where another gang of Workers would put it into place. Ash was grateful he'd thought to take the Bug- and Fighting-type with him now; most Workers carried at least one Fighting-type, appropriate given the nature of their job. In turn, both Pokémon were happy to have something to do, instead of staying at the apartment all day. Buizel, though he would have preferred to battle, was keen to put his skills to work, even if that meant answering to another Pokémon.

As he watched Heracross carry another beam away, Ash breathed deeply and wiped a bead of sweat from his face with a gloved hand. Morty had helped him find the appropriate clothes for this line of work, and Ash felt like a Worker now, even if his yellow vest marked him as a rookie. As a small kid, he'd always found the career fascinating, working in tandem with Pokémon and a few machines to build structures like the Bell Tower. Now, actually doing the job instead of wondering about it, he felt like a kid among men again, and not just because he was a young newcomer. He'd been eager to learn the job, and thankfully the guy he was working under had been patient with him, guiding him through his training and making sure Ash knew what he was doing and what was expected. Ash, in turn, listened intently to him, knowing how important it was to know exactly what you were doing on a building site. He couldn't rush, or put his own spin on things like he might during a battle; everything had to be exactly as planned, no room for error or licence.

The afternoon dragged on, and eventually the shift supervisor called a halt to the day's work. Ash and Buizel stepped back from the pile of wooden beams, both tired but happy with their work.

"Hey, Narazaki, nice work today." The Worker addressing Ash had a gruff voice, his accent heavy and pointing to a big-city upbringing. "You've really picked this up quick."

"Thanks, Biff. I have a great teacher." Ash chuckled inwardly at the idea of being someone else's student for a change. He'd been May's teacher when they were traveling, so now he sort of knew how she felt. "Buizel's been doing most of the work, though. I think he's the one deserving the praise."

"Of course, Buizel's learned fast, too. I've never seen a Pokémon more eager to put his strength to work." Buizel raised a paw in agreement, feeling very proud of himself. Ash grinned and watched as Heracross flew over. "How's the girl back home?"

"She's okay." Ash had mentioned the fact that May—no, Haruka, he had to remember that—was his girlfriend, but didn't elaborate much further, especially not about her pregnancy. The last thing he needed was these people to know about that. "We're just getting used to living out here, it's different from where we used to live."

"I hear that. This city is so much quieter than Goldenrod, that's why I prefer it here; the competition for construction work isn't as stiff, either." Biff had worked heavy construction in the Johto capital before moving out to Ecruteak, taking his wife and two daughters with him. As he'd told Ash, part of the appeal of training the younger Workers was passing on the experiences he'd had as a young buck himself; he'd been lucky enough to have a knowledgable, understanding mentor, and he felt it was important that the newcomers had that kind of foundation, contributing to a stronger workforce. A lot of trouble could be avoided if the old guard just took the time to help the younger generation, he said.

The other workers started packing in for the evening, and Ash and Biff did the same. Biff's friend Sully came over as they collected their stuff; he was a powerful man who didn't talk much, but he could carry twice as much as a regular worker, which made him invaluable on the site. His signature Pokémon, a Machoke, stood beside him, visibly exhausted from a long day of carrying material back and forth. Sully had been doing the same, and Biff nodded to him as he walked over.

"Hey, Sully, how's it goin'?" Sully nodded back in response, and Biff grinned. "Same old, same old, huh pal? Don't worry, this job shouldn't take us too long. After all, you and Machoke are doing half the work anyway." Ever the stoic, Sully didn't smile, but Ash could tell he was amused nonetheless. If the pair were together, Biff did most of the talking, while Sully simply stood there, working through the older Worker's bantering. "Alright, Sully, we'd better head home, me and the wife are celebrating our anniversary tonight."

"Oh, I didn't know that, congratulations Biff."

"Thanks, Narazaki. It's been twenty-six years, but we're still goin' strong. If you ever get around to marrying your girl, you'd be wise to remember stuff like that. Sandra was ready to kill me when I forgot last year, but the daughters remembered for me and I got off easy."

"I hear ya. See you tomorrow, guys." With a quick wave, Ash slung his jacket over his shoulder, punched out, and started back towards the apartment.

May was asleep when Ash returned home, and Pikachu was lying on the arm of the couch next to her head. Ash smiled at the sight and hung his jacket on the back of a chair, taking care not to wake either of them. He poured himself a glass of water and bolted it down before starting on making dinner; he'd insisted on this as well, despite May's protests that she was well able to take care of it. The sound of his preparations woke Pikachu, though, and the mouse ran over to greet his trainer.

"Hey, buddy," Ash whispered, scratching Pikachu behind his ears. "Did you take good care of May for me?" Pikachu nodded, miming falling asleep soon afterward. "She's been asleep most of the day, huh? I'm not surprised, she's been through a lot." He knew she must be under infinitely more stress than he was; her condition would be changing by the day, and not having him around would weigh on her too. Ash was convinced he was doing the right thing, but to tell the truth, he hated leaving her by herself. Even though they'd been separate for years, it seemed like his several hours of absence were weighed heavier on both of their minds.

It didn't take long to throw the meal together—it was just a chicken and vegetable dish his mother often made, though he didn't add anything elaborate the way she usually did. It definitely wasn't as good as Brock's cooking, but Ash had learned enough from the Pokémon Doctor-in-training to have some competence in this area. As he started to clear up, he saw May stir out of the corner of his eye; the prospect of food was one of the few things that could wake her up almost instantly. Ash grinned as he went about his work; she'd be thrilled to see him, and doubly so because there was food involved. He continued to clear the cooking stuff away as she came into the kitchenette, and put down the skillet he was holding as he felt her wrap her arms around him from behind.

"Hey, May," he said as he turned to embrace her properly. May relaxed into his chest, silently overjoyed he was back. "I'm guessing you missed me, huh?"

"More than anything," May responded, her voice slightly muffled. "Was it okay down at the site?"

"Yeah, Buizel and Heracross worked really hard. It's a good thing I brought them."

"It is. If Heracross wasn't with you, I'd have sent Blaziken with you."

"True, but I don't want to take your Pokémon from you, May. Their place is here with you, not working for hours on some building site." He released May and turned towards the food that was waiting on the counter. "I did the cooking tonight, I figured you had enough going on."

"It's not a problem, really. You put yourself through enough."

"Trust me, it's better this way." Ash moved to grab the food from the counter. "Why don't we just eat and not worry about whose responsibility it is?"

"You had me at eat," May said, giggling, and they moved swiftly to make it happen.

Alright, that's that, folks! Not as long (or good) as previous chapters, but I wanted to include a standard day to hopefully add a realism to the plot, as well as provide a stopgap between this and the next facet of the story. Plus, I've always found it funny imagining Ash's future career if he weren't a Pokémon Trainer, and the Worker trainer class popped into my head, so I ran with that (it was either that or working at a railway yard, folks, just to show how strange my thought process is).

Okay, standard operating procedure is in effect. Please do read, REVIEW and tell me how it went! Also, if you're interested, I may update my other story later tonight, or this weekend if I haven't done so then, so check it out if you want. A very happy Thanksgiving to those readers who celebrate it, and until next time, namárië!