Written for sorakh for the one-word prompt meme.

"Boy, Ash, sometimes I envy you," Cilan sighed. "I do love my brothers, but being a triplet isn't as glamorous as one may think!"

Ash only nodded, taking another long sip of his lemonade.

"It must be nice, though. Always having someone around," he said quietly. "Even if they drive you up the wall, at least they're there, right?"

Cilan frowned. In all the time he'd been traveling with Ash he'd seen many different sides to the boy's personality, but never this one. Ash just didn't seem like the melancholy type.

"Have I offended you?" he asked. "I certainly didn't mean to, please accept my apology."

"No, it's not your fault," Ash said, pushing his half-eaten plate of food away. "It's just me being silly again, that's all."

"Again?" Cilan leaned forward, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Tell me." Ash bit his lip and looked down for a moment before meeting Cilan's gaze again.

"Promise you won't laugh? Or think less of me?"

"It can't be that bad!" Cilan assured him. Ash sighed.

"I've always been jealous of people with brothers and sisters," he said. "Ever since my first journey when I was traveling with Brock and Misty. Misty complained about her sisters, but I thought she was so lucky...and I knew that deep down she loved them a lot. And Brock, with all his siblings, May and Max, Gary and his sister, Paul and Reggie." Ash swallowed, almost looking like he was about to cry. "Everyone used to say oh Ash, you're so lucky you're an only child, you never have to put up with kids begging for attention or older sisters bragging..."

Cilan's heart immediately went out to the boy, whose friends may have meant well but never realized how lonely Ash must be. Wasn't that always the way, he thought. Only children envy those with siblings and vice versa, a circle of envy with no end in sight.

"I guess the grass is always greener on the other side," he offered, wrapping an arm around his friend; Ash nodded, leaning his head against Cilan's shoulder.

"Cilan?"

"Hm?"

"...I...this is going to sound even sillier, but...I've always thought of my travel companions as being like my brothers and sisters. Well, most of them." He blushed a little and Cilan wondered if he was referring to that girl Misty he often talked about.

"I can understand that," he said. Ash's blush deepened.

"Would you...I know you already have two brothers at home, but...would you mind terribly if I thought of you as mine?"

Cilan laughed softly, tweaking the bill of Ash's cap. For all his boisterous confidence, it was amazing how shy Ash could be sometimes...it was rather endearing, he thought. Adorable.

"What makes you think I would? Ash, I would be honored to consider you my honorary third brother!"

"R-really? Wow, Cilan, thank you...thank you so much!" Ash said, his normal cheeriness coming back full force as he threw his arms around Cilan. "And I'll have to ask Iris, but I'm sure she'd like if we thought of her as our sister...she'd hate to be left out."

"Indeed!" Cilan grinned, returning his friend's embrace. Family wasn't only a matter of blood, after all.