AN: Sorry for such a long wait! :O It seems I spent a little too much time enjoying my summer, but now it's back to school and back to work. I write more often when I feel more productive, so thank you all for your patience. Enjoy! :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. This is for pure entertainment only.

The first rays of morning sunshine came particularly early that day, slipping through the wooden blinds stealthily, like a lion hunting it's prey. Paul sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Much to his displeasure, his headache had not loosened it's hold on him just yet and this managed to infuriate him to no end.

"Somebody took their time getting up," Autumn snorted, running a hand through her freshly combed hair.

"And I see that somebody woke up at the crack of dawn," Paul bit back, kicking back the blankets on the bed with his feet. It was natural for him to wake up tangled after a fitful rest. He had been pulled out of sleep a number of times last night due to bouts of nausea, migraines, and the fever that he had developed just mere hours ago. One minute he felt as though he had been dropped into a tub of ice, and the next, as if he had been lying in the scorching sun on a humid day at the beach. It was all very bizarre, and Paul hated every second of it.

"I'm guessing you aren't a morning person. It's not very surprising considering my observation on how you aren't very sociable during any point of the day," Autumn murmured, tying her hair up into a ponytail.

Paul ignored her words, allowing them to buzz in his ears while he made an attempt to pull himself together. He cupped his face in his hands and coughed, closing his eyes in the process as a moment of extra rest. When he felt slightly better, he sat up on the edge of the mattress, grazing his toes against the carpet.

It took some additional effort to get through his morning routine and it seemed that even the steamy shower he took did nothing to soothe his aching temples. Autumn was of no help either due to her constant nagging on how dreadful he looked and how he should ask Nurse Joy for some assistance.

The last thing he wanted was to be confined to the pokemon center for some ridiculous amount of time. Plus, Reggie would have to be informed of the situation and neither of them had cooled off enough to make another attempt at conversation. He could handle this pesky ailment on his own, and would find a way out of this problem. He always did.

"You are the most stubborn person I've ever met. Is your pride more important than your health?" Autumn growled.

Paul ignored her yet again, absently sipping the orange juice he had acquired for breakfast. He hadn't touched his buttered toast, fearful that one wrong bite would doom him to kneeling in front of the toilet for the following hour. He had to get moving to Pastoria City today and nothing was going to hold him back now.

"You're a real idiot, you know that?" Autumn sighed.

"I want to win," he retorted, "and the only way to do that is to push through the things blocking my way. This is just another test of strength."

"I don't know why I even try to get you to be reasonable." Autumn shook her head in disappointment. "I gotta get moving. I'll see you at the league, maybe. Thanks for the room, incase I didn't say it before. Good luck with… everything I guess."

Finally, one nuisance checked off the list.

Paul didn't bother returning any words. Instead, he just gave a lazy nod. If she was looking for some tearful goodbye, she wasn't going to get it.

Autumn took one last critical look at him, then walked off.

Good riddance.

After breakfast, Paul collected his belongings together fairly quickly and made for a hasty retreat, planning to take the southern exit out of Veilstone, then traveling down route 214 to reach the Valor Lakefront, where he could stay at a lodge for the night, before continuing through route 213 and finally making it to Pastoria City.

He was actually looking forward to spending some time alone to travel. Considering the recent events, he could use a little isolation from the rest of the world.

He was halfway out the door of the pokemon center when Nurse Joy intervened.

"You're welcome to stay a few more nights," she called after him, concerned.

Paul stood in the silence for a moment, then trudged off, ignoring the suggestion. He didn't need anyone to pity him. What came on it's own would go away on it's own.

The doors of the pokemon center slid open automatically, and Paul proceeded to exit, ready to get as far away from Veilstone as possible.

And so, he trudged on, having already memorized the path he had planned to take. There wasn't a cloud in the sky to block the sun, which was shining proudly overhead. Things seemed to be going his way this morning, even if his aching head was protesting with every step he took.

However, he did not get very far before the dirt ground began to swim before his eyes. Dizziness overcame the trainer and he was forced to lean against a nearby tree for a moment of rest. He took the opportunity to survey his surroundings, taking in the clear sky and the mild breeze ruffling his hair. There wasn't much to do except wait for the bout of weakness to pass.

But to his dismay, it wasn't letting up anytime soon and he had precious few options left.

He could always walk back to the Pokemon Center, though he wasn't sure he could make it that far before collapsing, or he could try to resume with his plans and make a futile attempt at reaching the lodge he planned to stay at, but that seemed to be out of the question at this point.

There was only one option left and Paul could not bear the thought of it much longer. He could send out one of his pokemon to contact Reggie, so that his elder brother could help him back home, but that would mean having to apologize for offending him.

A wave of nausea rose in the pit of Paul's stomach, persuading him to decide on what he wanted to do quickly. Within three seconds, the boy was digging through his pockets for Honchkrow's pokeball before throwing it into the air. The bird pokemon let out a battle cry as it emerged, circling the perimeter a few times before stopping in front of it's trainer with a questioning look.

"Go home and bring Reggie back," Paul commanded, his brother's name rolling off his tongue in a way that felt so strange and foreign.

"Honch!" cried the pokemon, understanding.

"Hurry," Paul added, his face growing pale. He watched as Honchkrow flew off into the distance, disappearing over the canopy of trees.

More waiting commenced as Paul's stomach did somersaults, leaving his heart racing and breathing ragged. After about 15 minutes of endless anticipation, he could no longer suppress the uncomfortable feelings sweeping throughout his abdomen. His saliva grew salty and sweat broke out on his forehead as he turned onto his side, retching and spluttering into a nearby bush.

He nearly had a heart attack when an oddish hopped out of the bush, looking very displeased at the damage Paul had done to its shelter. He grimaced, scolding himself for angering yet another living organism. It seemed that everyone had a fight to pick with him lately.

"M'sorry," he said lamely to the oddish, feeling too miserable to elaborate.

"Oddish.." The pokemon sighed in a put out way, but seemed to sense the trainer's discomfort and hopped onto Paul's left leg, scrutinizing him. "Odd?"

"Go away," he muttered, clutching his stomach with a small groan.

Just then, Honchkrow appeared overhead, followed by a very worried Reggie jogging along the dirt path. Paul tried his best to keep his face expressionless, but failed to look the least bit passive.

Reggie was now standing directly in front of him, furrowing at the Oddish resting on his lower leg.

"What happened?" Reggie asked, his lips twitching into a small smile at the sight of the fussing pokemon.

Paul groaned loudly as his stomach made another gurgling noise.

Reggie knelt next to his younger brother, finally noticing the stench of vomit in the air. He scrunched his nose up at the sharp scent, surveying the ruined bush.

"Well, it seems Oddish isn't too angry with you. I think it likes you," Reggie smiled.

Paul looked as if he was about to retort a scathing reply, but stopped himself when his vision began to grow fuzzy.

Hesitantly, Reggie stamped his palm to Paul's forehead, holding it for a few seconds before releasing him.

"You're burning with fever. I told you to take it easy for a few days, but you didn't listen did you? No, of course not. Instead you've just made yourself more sick," Reggie lectured, followed by a long sigh.

Paul wisely kept quiet.

"Let's get you home," Reggie stated, holding out a hand to Paul.

Paul couldn't stand to think about the idea of falling another week behind schedule, but it seemed as if he had little or no choice in the matter, so with the remainder of his dignity, he took his older brother's hand and allowed himself to be helped off of the ground. Oddish was now standing off to the side, debating on what to do next.

Reggie grinned warmly, "You can come with us, Oddish."

"Odd?... Oddish!" The pokemon cried ecstatically, following the two trainers.

Paul suppressed the urge to groan in protest, continuing to drag his fatigued body along the dirt trail. He was able to take a few strong steps on his own, before his knees began to buckle beneath him. Thankfully, Reggie slid his arms under Paul's shoulders and grasped him by the waist before he could do further damage to himself.

"Let me help you," Reggie spoke softly.

"Why would you want to help me?" Paul murmured, mustering all his strength to stand upright once more.

"For the millionth time, I'm your brother, it's my job."

"But I insulted you," Paul whispered.

"Yes, you did, but that doesn't mean I don't care about you anymore. I'll always be here for you, no matter how much we disagree with each other. When I saw Honchkrow, I thought the worst. I worry about you. I'll never let anything hurt you if I can help it."

Abruptly, Reggie wrapped his arms around Paul, hugging him. Paul stood stiffly for a moment, staring at the blooming flowers a few yards away. Images of the last week circulated throughout his mind, until he finally succumbed to the gentle caresses being offered to him. He slumped on his brother's shoulder and inhaled deeply, a foreign stinging sensation working it's way into his eyes.

Paul never cried. He didn't think he was even physically capable of performing such an action, but right now, he was pretty sure it had become a possibility.

The pair stood in utter silence for a prolonged amount of time, before Reggie finally broke away, freeing Paul from entrapment. A rush of hollow emptiness rose in Paul's chest as he was released, falling back to the loneliness of his own body.

"Lean on me. I promise not to let you fall," Reggie assured.

And for once, in as long as Paul could remember, he willingly accepted the help.

Paul woke in his warm bed, blankets tucked tightly around him. His eyes felt heavy and he was awfully aware of the fact that he was clammy. A turn of the head brought a bucket into view, where Paul knew he had been sick into a few times during the night. Each time, Reggie was by his side, holding his hair back and whispering words of comfort into his ears.

The window was open a few inches to allow some fresh air into the bedroom and a gentle breeze to circulate the air.

The sky was a startling blue, rays of sunshine breaking through the barrier of massive, fluffy clouds attempting to conceal the sun's lustrous brilliance. The light always conquered the mist, penetrating and passing through it as though a mere wisp of smoke in it's path. The sun's power was greater than that of the cloud, because the cloud relied on it's isolated atmosphere, while the sun took all it's energy and allowed it to flow through the veins of the sky.

Paul hated to admit it, but he got lonely as well sometimes.

Footsteps on the stairs broke him out of his misery and within a few moments, Reggie was in the bedroom once more with a breakfast tray.

"I'm glad to see you're awake. You've had a long night."

"So, have you," Paul reminded, eyeing the tray of food with obvious disdain. "I don't think I'm up for any food right now."

"It's just some plain toast and juice. You need to restore some of your strength to recover," Reggie rationalized.

Under normal circumstances, Paul would have locked the door and slept through this entire illness on his own, but for the sake of being somewhat polite, he took the tray. He supposed he owed Reggie for all the sacrifices he had made to help.

But there was still some unfinished business to settle.

"Reggie? I.. I just wanted to say that I didn't mean any of the things I said to you. We both know that I couldn't be a competent pokemon breeder even if my life depended on it. I know your job is difficult sometimes and I don't think it's pathetic or useless at all. I know you must really hate me for it and I don't blame you, but-"

"Paul, it's already forgiven."

"I'm sorry for being such a terrible brother, but I thought I should still thank you for all you've done for me. I know it's not enough to repay you, but-"

"Paul, I said I forgive you."

"No, let me finish!" Paul growled, "This is really hard for me to do, so I'm going to thank you properly and you are going to listen!"

Reggie suppressed a smile. He should be recording this.

"After all, you are my brother and you can't choose your family, but I… I'd be really mad if something happened to you because I… I.."

"Cat got your tongue, Paul?" Reggie teased.

Paul scowled and lowered his voice to almost a whisper, "I.. I love you.."

Reggie raised an eyebrow, "Sorry? Didn't catch that."

Paul rubbed his forehead in frustration, "For Ho-Oh's sake, I love you, Reggie. Okay? You're my brother and I love you. Is there something wrong with that? It's my job isn't it?"

Reggie grinned, "Yeah, Paul. It is your job. I love you too, but you really know how to push me to my limit sometimes. Now, try to eat something. I'll be back to check on you soon, but I have to head out to run some errands."

Paul nodded, taking a bite of toast.

"Oh, and by the way, I've found someone to babysit you while I'm gone."

Paul spit out his toast, "A babysitter? Why on earth would you-"

"Oddish!" cried the little grass pokemon from yesterday, stepping into the room.

"Oh, no," Paul groaned pushing his tray of food away and pressing a pillow into his face to shield his eyes from the scene.

Reggie chuckled, "I'll see you guys soon."

"GET OUT, BOTH OF YOU!" Paul shouted hoarsely.

"So much for loving me," Reggie mocked playfully, shutting the door quietly on his way out.

A few seconds of silence hung eerily in the air before Oddish began to grow impatient.

"Odd?.."

"Go away, Oddish, or I'll make you," Paul warned.

"Oddish… Odd?"

"No, I won't let you come up on my bed."

"…Odd?"

"Fine, but only this once, for safety purposes of course," Paul surrendered, lifting Oddish up off the ground and placing it next to him.

"Odd!"

"You better not bother me."

"Oddish odd."

End.