"Happy 18th Brendan!" All Brendan could hear were the creaks of the stairs as his mom ascended the staircase. He'd slowly open his eyes, noticing the bright sunlight that poured through the window. Brendan put on the best smile he could muster before looking over at his mother, who made it to the top of the stairs. Brendan's mother held a chocolate birthday cake in her hands with eighteen candles on it and an image of a Pokeball. Brendan's smile turned into a grin as he covered his face in embarrassment.

"Mom! You really didn't have to do that." he'd let out a small chuckle as his mother now stood by his bedside. "Oh but I wanted to. It's not everyday that your son turns 18. Not to mention, you have been the Pokemon Champion for a full six years! Can't you believe that honey?" Brendan sat straight up in his bed as he looked at his mother. He'd yawn and stretch his arms before speaking.

"Honestly, yeah. I can't believe it. I mean, when I went on my Pokemon adventure when I was 12, I figured I was going to achieve a lot of things, but not take the title as Champion." He'd yawn again as he slowly squirmed out of his bed, now standing next to his mother. "So, I take it that the cake is my breakfast?" His mother giggled "Yep! Don't take this opportunity for granted now, I rarely serve you cake for breakfast." Brendan followed his mother down the stairs, still drowsy from just waking up. As he walked down to the first floor he noticed a Slaking wandering around the kitchen. Brendan scratched his head before realizing that it was his father's Slaking. He'd grin and walk a little faster as he reached the kitchen table, only to notice his father waiting for him.

"Hi son!" Brendan quickly ran over to him, and gave him a tight hug. "Dad! Aren't you supposed to be getting the gym ready to open?" Brendan's dad, also known as Norman let out a chuckle. "Oh don't worry son, the gym is already ready to open when I get back. I couldn't miss eating cake with my Brendan on his birthday." Norman smiled as he looked over at his wife, who was cutting three slices for the family. "Besides, your mother is a wonderful baker." Norman sat back in his chair as Brendan rested his elbows on the table with his head cradled in his hands.

Brendan's mother served the cake slices before sitting down, she'd smile at her family as she took a bite of the cake. "So are you going Wally's Master Rank contest? Sounds like his Gallade might have a chance in this." Brendan nodded as he chowed down on his breakfast. "Well yeah, of course I'm going to be there, I help coach Wally for contests." Brendan smiled as he slumped back into his chair. Norman would then chime in.

"Oh, so is May going to be there?" Brendan shrugged "I'm not entirely sure, she's been so busy with field work lately that I doubt she'll make it out, but she said that she'll watch the show on TV if she can't." Brendan continued eating bites of his cake until he heard the sound of his cellphone ringing upstairs. "Um.. I'll be right back." Brendan got up and rushed to his phone, running up the stairs and taking a quick turn to his desk. He'd pick up the phone, recognizing the caller ID as Wally before clicking the answer button.

"Hello?" There was a short pause before Wally spoke from the other line.

"Uh.. h.. hi.. Brendan?" Brendan would smile and glance down at his desk, something about Wally's voice or the stutters that he made comforted him. Brendan walked over and sat back down on the side of his bed. "Yeah.. hey there Wally, are you ready for the master rank tough contest today? It's going to be a close one."

"Mmhm! I'm really excited, Lilycove City is a great city. I love the beaches." Brendan nodded to Wally's reponse. "Good! Good.. you fed Gallade some yellow pokeblocks right?"

"Yeah... I did. Oh! Y.. you're coming to the Pokemon Catching ceremony that your dad is holding, right?" Brendan paused, he almost forgot about the ceremony. Every year, Norman gave children between the ages of 10 and 12 a Zigzagoon to catch a Pokemon of their own, just like he did for Wally those six years ago and this year, the ceremony just happened to be on Brendan's birthday.

"Oh crap... I almost forgot! Yeah of course I'm going to be there, once we're done helping the kids we can make our way to Lilycove, sound good?"

"Yeah.. sounds good.. um... Brendan?" Brendan laid his upper body on the bed while his legs hung off the side. He glanced up at the ceiling as he held the phone to his ear. "Yeah Wally?"

"I um... I just want to say that... I miss you and I... gah... never mind, I.. I'll talk to you later alright? I'll see you in Petalburg." Brendan smiled softly as he listened to Wally's words as he stared up at the ceiling fan.

"I miss you too.. but y'know, we're going to see each other in a few hours." Brendan raised his eyebrow for a moment, was something wrong? Wally generally never talked like this, Brendan never knew that Wally actually missed him, they did see each other regularly after all.

"Uh.. hey Wally, is everything okay?"

"Y.. yeah! Everything's fine. Look, I gotta go, but I'll see you at the ceremony Brendan, I'll talk to you later." Brendan opened his mouth to speak, but before he could let any words out he heard Wally hang up the phone. He sighed and set his phone on his nightstand before getting back up and walking back downstairs. He sat back down with his parents, only to notice that the two of them were grinning fiercely at him.

"Was that May?" his mother asked. Brendan raised his eyebrow, confused at why his mother was asking him that. "Nah.. it was Wally. He was making sure I remembered dad's Pokemon Catching ceremony today, plus we were talking about the contest and all that." Norman let out a chuckle before getting up and patting Brendan on the shoulder. "You always have a way of talking to Wally, I always knew that you two had a bond." Brendan scratched the back of his head, even more confused than before. "Well yeah, Wally and I have a bond, we're friends." Brendan finished the last bites of his cake as Norman walked over to kiss Brendan's mother on the cheek.

"It was a nice gathering, but unfortunately work needs to be done at the gym. I'll see you in a few hours son." Norman smiled and gave his family a two fingered salute before walking out the door, his Slaking following him from behind. Brendan sighed and lowered his head until he was looking at the wooden floor of the dining room. "Uh.. hey mom? I think I'm going to take a shower and all that. I want to see May, see how her Pokemon research is going with Professor Birch." His mother nodded as she began to pick up the dirty dishes to take to the sink.

"Sure, have a wonderful day son. Be careful out there, I know you and your Pokemon are strong but our world is very unpredictable." Brendan let out a small laugh, he knew all too well about the dangers and the horrors of the Pokemon world but he also knew that there was still good left in the world to keep fighting for. "Yeah, I know mom. I'll see you later. I'll be sure to give you a call when I'm in Lilycove." And with that Brendan journeyed back up the stairs and prepared himself for the day ahead of him.