A/N: Thank you all for the support! Here is another chapter, nicely on time. The last one of 2018! I hope you enjoy :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or the picture used as cover (though I did edit it).

Days

The day Ash asks stupid questions

Ash

Friday, December 13th

For a change, Ash was inside. And to make things even more odd, he was not working with his Pokémon. In fact, he was reading.

Surely that meant the world was going to end, as Misty had put it, but Ash had ignored her teasing (okay, he had thrown a pillow at her) and had continued reading. Pikachu was seated at the other corner of the couch, napping comfortably.

It was a book about Pokémon, of course. He was serious about this winning the whole League thing, you know. Plus, outside there was a constant, dreary rain, occasionally alternated with some wet snow. And since there were no challengers for the Gym, he might as well use his time wisely by reading about the abilities of more exotic Pokémon.

And it really wasn't so bad that Misty was teasing him. Since a few days she was home more and generally a lot more relaxed, and Ash concluded that whatever had kept the League busy these past few weeks had been put to rest. Which was a good thing, because he preferred to deal with a not-stressed-out Misty, that was already difficult enough.

He smiled, before it fell slightly as he thought about the newest developments. Misty had now gotten some training requirements from Leaf, which wasn't too bad, and apparently being an Elite Four also meant doing a lot of paperwork, which Misty abhorred (Ash could sympathize). But the most difficult part was the matter of the Gym; it needed a Gym Leader, but Misty was reluctant to part with it, after all these years.

Of course, she had not said so out loud, but Ash could see.

She had said she wanted it to stay in the family, and after a lot of arguments, a considerable amount of bribery and finally some begging, Daisy had agreed to give it a try for a few weeks. He had heard that from Tracey, though. And Tracey himself was convinced that Daisy was only doing it for Misty, and not because she cared so much about the Gym.

Ash himself was also picking up some challengers here and there, because Daisy was living in Pallet Town with Tracey, and they had two little kids to take care of. But between himself, Misty and Daisy, they were managing quite well – though Ash wondered how it would go once the new League season started.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked, having woken up and noticing Ash's drifting attention.

"You're right, buddy, I was just thinking…" Ash said, before attempting to return his focus to his book.

After a moment, however, he spoke again, "Misty really is happy with her Elite Four position, don't ya think?"

"Pika!" The Pokémon nodded in conviction, and Ash nodded as well.

"Yeah, you're right, she really is. Just getting used to things, I suppose. We'll have to see what we do with the Gym, though…"

"Chu," Pikachu said, and Ash hummed. They would just see how it would go. Maybe he could suggest some time to hold an audition for a replacement Gym Leader, someone who would uphold the spirit of the Gym…

But first he would let both of them enjoy this time of peace for a bit. After the holidays, he would bring it up, he decided. Things were going way too well to bring up problems.

Ash grinned as he remembered what had happened yesterday. Cilan had called, and then Iris had made it a three-way phone call, as if they had planned it – which they had, Ash had realized later. They had asked for Misty to join the conversation, and then they had announced they were getting married.

Married! He hadn't seen it coming, though Misty claimed that it had been obvious. They had almost gotten into one of their old arguments again, but he wasn't going to complain, it was wonderful to have her back. The Unovan pair hadn't mentioned a date yet, but Ash was sure-

"Pikachu!" Pikachu had gotten up and poked his arm. He grinned and pointed at the book, and Ash smiled sheepishly in response.

"Caught again." He chuckled, before determinedly looking back at the text. No matter how interesting, it was still a book, and Ash could be easily distracted. Still, he needed to focus-

"Ash, we need to talk."

Obviously it was not to be, and Ash looked up to see Misty coming down the stairs. He opened his mouth to greet her, but the words died on his tongue when he really saw her. She was pale, her eyes were wide and her hands were clenched in fists, but they were trembling.

"Pikachu-Pi!"

"Misty? What's wrong?" Ash jumped up and quickly walked over to her. She grabbed his hand and pulled him along, up the stairs and towards the bathroom. Pikachu hastily followed, worriedly asking questions as he ran.

"Misty? What-"

She let out a shaky breath and leaned against the wall next to bathroom door. She crossed her arms and it seemed she was doing her best to look angry and intimidating, but failing.

"Misty?" he asked carefully. He didn't know if she was going to blow up or break down, and considering the latter rarely happened, it was scary.

"I took a pregnancy test," she snapped at him.

Pikachu let out a surprised yelp, but Ash simply frowned and said the first thing that came to mind. "Why?"

Misty looked at him with a glare that told him not to ask stupid questions. Ash was about to defend himself when his mind finally caught up with what she said and words spilled out.

"Wait, wait, wait, what- You took a pregnancy test- But, but, you can't be pregnant- Right? Can you? Are you?"

"And so what if I were?" Misty narrowed her eyes and stepped towards him, almost threateningly.

"W-well-" On the floor, Pikachu was shouting things and Misty was glaring at him and she took a pregnancy test – it made it difficult to think. "That- that would be good, right? A bit- a bit surprising, but good. Right?"

Misty deflated, and let out something between a laugh and a sob, before falling into his arms. "I think I forgot my pill because of the stress of the wedding, and I only realized now, and-" She let out another laugh-sob, and absentmindedly Ash rubbed circles on her back.

A kid. They had talked about it. They had both wanted it. Just… hadn't planned it to be now.

But when did he ever plan something? It usually just happened.

Misty was saying something, but he only caught the last part. "-happy, then? You would be happy?" She pulled back to see his face, looking at him with teary eyes and an uncertain smile.

He opened his mouth, realized he didn't know what to say, and then simply grinned at her.

Misty's smile grew, before kissing him and hugging him again.

Ash was still grinning, and Pikachu was happily jumping around them. After some time of standing like that, his thoughts had caught up and Ash found his voice again.

"So… are you?" he asked.

Misty pulled back and looked at him in confusion.

"What?"

"Are you pregnant?" he asked.

She whacked his arm in response.

A/N: And another pregnancy confirmed! Sort of XD I hope the reactions and the way it went fitted them, but I found it a bit difficult. Thank you very much for reading, and please let me know what you thought about it!

Thank you!

Recommendations:

Pokémon: The Famished by The Light's Refrain. FFN. If you like horror stories, you'll love this. But if you like the Striaton triplets… you might not be happy after this story. It's a short story which is well written and seriously gave me the creeps.

Pokémon: Dreadfully Honest by The Light's Refrain. FFN. Ash finds the internet. He's appropriately horrified. Very short parody.

Harry Potter: The Best Revenge and The Best Revenge: Time of the Basilisk by Arsenoe de Blassenville. FFN. This is a finished series about how Snape decides to take Harry under his wing before he comes to Hogwarts, and it has far-reaching consequences.

Recommendations are welcome!