The sky was grey and murky as rain pelted down onto the cliffs below, droplets splattering harmlessly against the teeth of Sharpedo Bluff as the storm's winds sent the water flying this way and that. My partner lay prone on a pile of dry grass, warming herself by the small fire that burned in the middle of the room, and I walked over to her, her blue scarf pinched between my pawpads after dipping it in the nearby wellspring. As I dabbed at Rose's face and forehead, the storm grew stronger, and both the Ninetales and I peered out towards the open ocean, which was hidden by an increasing fog. I smiled, wringing out the makeshift washcloth across from the fox.

"Good day for us to stay inside, huh?" I remarked, loosely throwing the scarf over my shoulder and sitting down next to my partner. Rose weakly lifted her head to give me a slight look, sniffling as she did, and I reached over to tousle her headfur affectionately.

"At least it means we won't miss anything while I'm sick," The fire type replied with a croak, red eyes glazing over as she let out a heavy sigh, listlessly twiddling her front paws. "I hope Cyan and Erin aren't trying to come back home in this weather..."

I nodded, pushing my aura tassels back behind my shoulders. "As long as they were able to get some lum berries for your medicine, it'll be just fine. Maybe Erin can try and mix them up before she gets back! That'll save us all some time."

"Why didn't you go with them, Bill? I'd have been fine on my own today-" Rose's statement was punctuated by a harsh series of coughs, letting her neck fall as her muscles tensed. I quickly moved around to massage the fox's throat, and a few minutes passed before she continued. "Mmhrrk... I can understand sending Erin, since she gets sick easily... but I don't want you to catch whatever I have either."

A wry smile wriggled its way onto my muzzle, and I rubbed my pawspike gently behind one of her ears. "Can't. Steel type, remember?"

My partner blinked before pouting cutely, mumbling something incoherent; I chuckled, standing up and ambling over to the spring again. Orange firelight twitched back and forth against the wall of the bluff as another gust of stormy wind whistled through, and I furrowed my brow, thinking hard as I dunked my paws. "Is there anything else you want me to do, Rose? Stoke the fire more, maybe try and roast some apples?"

"Nchoo!" She half-blurted, half-sneezed, shaking her head as best she could in response. Her tails waved ever-so-slightly in the breeze, and I looked over my shoulder, watching as the Ninetales wiped her nose on a clump of dry grass. "No... thank you. Blech... I wouldn't be able to taste an apple anyway."

I rolled my eyes jokingly before returning to my partner's side, picking up her makeshift tissue and tossing it into the fire, shrinking back quickly as the embers greedily caught the hay and flared up a bit from the extra fuel. Both Rose and I flinched as a flash of light pierced through the clouds, followed seconds later by a low rumbling. The pitter-patter of the raindrops grew heavier, and the sound of the waves below grew louder as they crashed up against the base of the cliffside. The Ninetales yawned.

"Tired?" I asked. She nodded, and I tucked her scarf between her paws, smiling at the fox. "Go ahead and rest. I'll keep an ear out for Cyan and Erin, maybe read a book in the meantime or something."

"Thanks... Bill..." She replied quietly, holding the still-damp fabric close, and her tails softly curled up close, one of them attempting to wrap itself around my own.

Soon enough, she had fallen asleep, her gentle breathing difficult to hear above the din of the storm outside. Glancing one more time at Rose, I walked over to the wall and pushed away the hanging vines, stepping down into the small burrow hidden behind them. It was dark, but cool, with stored foodstuffs on one end and paper-covered shelves on the other. I walked over to the barrels that were stored in the corner, stifling a sneeze as some dust motes floated up from the wooden planks. Lifting the top off, I reached inside and pulled out a gummi, nibbling the end of it.

I cringed and stared at the candy, letting the half-eaten, sharp-tasting bite rest on the tip of my tongue. It was bright green: wepear flavored. Wonderful.

Taking a deep, annoyed breath, I popped the rest of it into my mouth and turned around, thoughtfully scanning over the rough bark bindings and crusty old newspapers. Another thunderclap rolled in from the sea; snatching a tome at random, I shook my head and went back outside, plopping down at a safe distance from the fire and settling in.

"Mmmmgh. Hmmff."

My partner's mumbling brought me back to my senses, images of the Volcanic Island fading to the back of my mind as I lifted my head up from the pages. My ears no longer blocked out the rain and crackling fire, and out of the corner of my eyes I glimpsed Rose, who was starting to stir. Gently, I slapped the book shut and slid it over to the edge of the wellspring, then rolled onto my knees, crouching close to the cream-furred fox.

"Rose?" I dropped my voice to a whisper, wondering if she would end up lulling herself back to sleep for some more much-needed rest. However, it wasn't to be, and I stumbled onto my tiptoes as she straightened out, nearly kicking my arms as she stretched her limbs. I shook my head, aura tassels bumping against themselves.

"Goo mornn," She said groggily, letting herself relax again as she fully returned to consciousness.

"Good afternoon," I corrected with a grin, crawling over and lifting her head into my lap. The fox's ears twitched at the sensation, leaving me free to give them a playful poke. "Feeling any better?"

Rose fidgeted a little, trying to get a better look at me, and I leaned forward and stared down at her, giving a short wave to get her attention. After a few seconds, she rested again, letting out a long, quiet hum. "I'm feeling... I'm feeling hungry."

I followed the fire type's gaze as she stared at the fur on her belly, and I shrugged in response, catching a split-second peek at the storm through the jaws of the bluff before looking back to her. "Doesn't look like the storm's gonna let up anytime soon. You want me to try and whip something up for you now?"

"You don't need to cook anything," She replied, coughing slightly when she finished. Inwardly, I sighed in relief; she didn't sound nearly as hoarse anymore. "I wouldn't mind having a plain oran berry."

I eased the fox down to the ground before hopping to my feet and ducking into the storeroom again. A boom of thunder sounded outside, and I grabbed an armful of sticks and fruits, fur bristling as they pressed against my chestspike. My partner sniffled when she saw what I carried, and I sent her a confident wink. "Just one oran won't be enough to fill you up. I can roast some of these while you munch on one, okay?"

A worried glint appeared in her eye, and she raised her head to speak, but an abrupt gurgling from her stomach stole whatever words had been on her mind. I sat down next to her, her headfur brushing up against my side. "Oh... alright. Just don't burn yourself, okay, Bill?"

"If I do, I'll just go outside," I quipped dryly as I alternated sticking sliced apples and a few orans onto their skewers. Hefting one of the fruit kebabs above the burning logs, I took one of the leftover berries into my free paw, holding it out for Rose to bite down on. "Here. Aah."

"Uh?" She blinked, confused.

I grinned again. "No, aah."

That time she understood, coughing once before lifting her neck and opening her jaws wide, and I popped the oran into her mouth, smiling in amusement. The blue berry vanished almost instantly, my partner's head dropping back to the stone floor as she chewed ravenously. A satisfied sigh escaped her muzzle, no doubt from the fruit juices soothing her sore throat, and soon enough she had finished the tasty snack, smacking her lips together once or twice before practically shoving her face into her scarf.

I couldn't help but laugh at the silly display, though my laugh morphed into a yelp of surprise when the fire spattered loudly, prompting Rose to chuckle at me as I scooted backwards a short distance. The sound of her voice, hard to hear as it was, helped me relax again, and I let my grip on the kebab slacken.

"That's probably not done yet," She said, gesturing towards the stick with her nose. "If you keep it close, it should just take another minute or two."

"You sure?" I asked hesitantly, looking to the fire and then back to the fox. She nodded reassuringly, then sneezed lightly. Sighing, I forced myself to return to my spot, passing the skewer to my other paw and holding it over the heat again. "Hmph... it's always so much easier to deal with when you're out exploring in the wilderness."

"That's because... I'm normally the one who's working with fire," Came my partner's reply, the dry grass rustling underneath her as she shuffled around. For the first time that day, the rain seemed to slow down a lot, with nary a flash of lightning nor a boom of thunder to make up for it. Maybe Cyan and Erin would be able to make it back from Treasure Town now...

A trickle of piping hot apple juice ran down onto my pawpad, and I hissed, recoiling in shock and nearly dropping the fruit-laden stick into the ashes. Rose glanced sharply at me, and, to my surprise, rolled over and onto her feet, her brow furrowed as she pushed through the slight dizziness. Laying the clearly cooked kebab down next to me, I stuck my tongue out and lapped up the offending drip, extinguishing most of the pain instantly.

"Your lunch is ready," I stated matter-of-factly, waving my wrist around a couple times.

She said nothing, shakily standing up and stepping over the skewer, ignoring her food in favor of nudging my paw with her nose. The Ninetales smiled, sticking her own tongue out and affectionately licking the singed dot of fur. I felt my face flush, and watched as she abruptly plopped back on the pile of hay, having used up what little strength her nap had helped her recover. I smiled back and cupped Rose's chin in my palm, returning the gesture by giving her cheek a loving nuzzle. I wondered if she was blushing too.

"I guess that's one nice thing since you can't get sick..." She said softly, nose just barely bumping one of my aura tassels as she spoke. "We still get to do this without having to worry about... ab-"

The fire type let out a mighty sneeze, her lower jaw colliding with my shoulder, and leaving a decidedly unpleasant wetness where she had been before. She realized it immediately, sitting straight up and staring at me with eyes as wide as saucers - if she hadn't been blushing before, she almost certainly was now, and not for the same reason. I took a deep breath and exhaled to hide my laughter.

"Maybe we can continue later," I replied, grinning slyly at the Ninetales as I picked up the fruit kebab, placing it in front of her paws as I hopped onto my feet. "But I'm going to go wash off. You should eat up before that gets cold."

Her embarrassed expression was quickly washed away by cheerfulness, and she smiled and nodded at me warmly. "Alright. Thanks, Bill!"

I gazed at her for a moment longer, then walked towards the wellspring, only stopping to fluff one of her tails before she started to eat. I leaned against the edge of the pool, shivering slightly as the cool, fresh water splashed onto my fire-warmed arm.

"Hmm..." Rose grunted, and my ears perked up. "I, um... I think I might have been wrong, Bill."

I furrowed my brow in confusion. "What's that mean?"

"The fruit's really soft. I think we overcooked it."

I rolled my eyes; just my luck. "Oh."

"It still tastes good, though!" Her words were muffled from having food in her mouth. "Are you going to make the other ones?"

"Eh, I dunno," I said with a shrug, turning on my heels and glancing out to the open ocean, quirking an eyebrow upward when I noticed a bright beam of sunlight piercing through the seemingly impenetrable cloud cover. Mist still rolled up from the sea below, but the rain itself had completely stopped, with only a few that still clung to the stalactites hanging from the roof of the bluff's mouth. Even the light from the fire was starting to wane, most of the kindling reduced to a pile of orange-speckled ashes.

A comfortable silence fell over the both of us, and I went back to Rose's pile of dry grass, looking at its occupant, her nine tails gently waving back and forth behind her. Kicking back, I lay down against the sandstone and relaxed, casually propping my head up with my paws. Rose glanced at me for a moment, swallowing a bite of berry, then coughing shortly in her throat. She ducked to her side, pressing her nose into her scarf to stifle a second, and shook her head wearily. She was tired of being sick, and I knew she had every right to be.

Wordlessly, I reached out with one paw and pinched a stray strand of headfur that had fallen in front of the fire type's face, tucking it safely behind her ear. Her gaze softened into a grateful expression, and she bit down onto the finished skewer, putting it next to the book I had been reading earlier before flopping onto her side again. I watched as she wriggled closer and let her head rest easily on my chestspike, feeling her breath hit the fur surrounding the edges of the blunted metal. Letting my arm fall to Rose's side, gingerly rubbing her belly, the Ninetales drifted to sleep again, trapping me where I was for however long she chose to nap.

There was a sound of stone and dirt scraping against wood, and Erin's bubbly voice came down the staircase. "Heyheyhey, we're baaaack you twooooo!"

"Just get inside, Erin, or I'm goin' t'drop th'trapdoor on your head!" I heard Cyan snap back at the Mienshao. She responded by sticking her tongue out at the Samurott and blowing loudly.

I let out a droll sigh, pulled my other paw out from under my head, held it in front of my muzzle, stared at the bottom of the steps, and prepared to shush the two young explorers as soon as they saw me.