Note: The first of two chapters based on episode 5. This one mostly focuses on Brock. I am keeping my promise for multi-character focus.

7: Ash vs. Brock

"There you are!" Misty greeted Ash, standing up from the stone she'd sat on outside the pokemon center. She noted Ash walking slowly, possibly limping. "Hey! Are you alright?"

"Uh, yeah," Ash said. His gaze went up, looking at the 'P' on the building. "This is the pokemon center, right?" he asked. It wasn't quite as fancy as Viridian's, much smaller. Several rocks blocked the direct view of the entrance. Some other trainers and pokemon were lounging on them.

"Yeah, that's why I've been waiting for you here. I told you, you should have taken the same way I did," Misty chided.

"Yeah, yeah," Ash said, walking past her. "That's good," he said. "Pidgey and Butterfree really need some help."

"Butterfree?" Misty exclaimed. "So it evolved again?"

"Yeah, I just need to help them. Maybe the nurse should see Pikachu too," Ash said. As he looked around the lobby, he missed stepping over the landing completely, then stumbled and cringed.

"So you got hurt?" Misty said.

"No- I mean, forget about that! I need to take care of my pokemon!" he insisted, pulling himself to his feet.

"Come on Ash, enough. You need to take care of yourself first, otherwise you can't take care of anyone." Misty sighed, then held out her hands to help her friend up. "I'll make sure the nurse gets them. You go to the walk-in clinic down the street, okay?"

"Ugh, fine," Ash said, being bratty even as Misty offered to help him. "I'll be right back, okay?" he said as he gave her the two pokeballs. "Let them know that too." He walked away, going relatively slowly.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu followed him.

"Pikachu, wait," Misty called, but it was too late. The pokemon looked overall fine anyway, and she didn't want to delay Ash getting some help for himself. Instead of chasing after it, she went to the counter to wait for the nurse.

As Ash went into the clinic, Pikachu waited outside, seeing a few other pokemon doing the same. It waited a while before he came out. "Pikapi," Pikachu called as it approached, looking at the leg that had seemed to be injured.

"Hey, Pikachu," Ash said, patting his pokemon on the head. "It's just a sprain," he explained, lifting up the pant leg and showing some ace bandages. "I've got some ice, and I need to rest and stuff. It'll be fine."

"Pika." Pikachu expressed understanding. It had been worried. Ash had gotten hurt, and things might have been worse if it hadn't interfered. Would he really not give up his pokemon, even to help himself? The idea brought up some mixed feelings. Before Pikachu could think about it too much, Ash started walking off.

"Come on," the boy said. "Let's check on everyone. I bet they're fine. We'll be training and challenging the gym before you know it!"

Brock awoke as the basic hint of sunlight peeked through the partially opened blinds. The teenage boy quietly moved out of the futon, trying not to disturb his youngest siblings, twins Billy and Tilly, who had slept next to him. The two of them didn't move at all as Brock stood. He smiled as he saw their silly expressions, then went into the next room where his other younger siblings still slept soundly in their own futon. Good, he had some time before everyone's demands began.

Brock went to the bathroom first, using the family's single toilet and washing it up as he did every morning before washing himself up. Afterward, he took a longer look outside. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, a change from the previous day. It was perfect for doing laundry.

Brock filled up the tub. He took the large stack of clothing that had built up over the busy week, then put in a reasonable amount to start to soak. As they did, he went into the kitchen, getting out the eggs, rice, and vegetables he'd planned to use. He opened the blinds completely to see better as he started to cook. Just as he was almost finished, his siblings started to wake up. Tommy got out the dishes, Cindy and Suzie sat at the table. Billy started to cry as he was suddenly awoken by the commotion. Forrest and Salvadore went to comfort their youngest brother, so Brock was able to continue with the meal. By the time he was done, everyone had woken up, and sat waiting for the food.

Brock served it hurriedly, leaving a portion for himself before going back to the tub, swishing around the clothing. As it drained, he went and took a few bites of his meal before running back and filling the tub again. "Help, help, help," Timmy repeated as he approached Brock, filed down crayon in hand.

"It's fine," Brock assured, showing him how to take the paper off.

As Timmy tried it by himself, Brock turned back to the task at hand to see Suzie by the wash, trying to wring it out as Brock himself did, smiling happily as she saw her brother noticing her effort. "Ima help," she declared.

"Yes, thank you," Brock said, trying to remain patient as he saw his younger sister's efforts had left a drippy mess on the floor. As he tried to wring the clothing out again, he saw Suzie looking up at him crossly for redoing her own work. Brock sighed. She'd tried to help, but was so young, she couldn't really complete the task effectively. Maybe he could help her. "Suzie, listen, it's just-"

"Brock! Hey bro, I can't find my books. I've got to get to class," Salvadore said.

Brock stood up to help with the search. "It's right in the front by the shoes!" Yolanda shouted. "We told you not to just drop it there!"

"It's found," Brock said with a sigh. He started cleaning up the table, getting in a few more bites, as other preparations for school continued. Seeing his siblings lined up by the door, he looked them over, pointing out to Tommy that his shirt was inside out. As his brother changed the shirt around, Brock looked to the older three. "Make sure everyone's safe," he told them. They nodded, then Brock said good-bye to the group with Billy and Tilly, the only two that were too young to yet go. As he finished, he went back to the laundry, one eye on the twins who kicked around a ball outside. He eventually joined them, hanging the clothing on the clothesline.

As he was about to finish, Brock heard the cry of his onix around the corner. Running out to see what was going on, he saw Tilly poking it with one of the handled brushes. "Brush, brush! Keep still, Onix! Brush!" Onix moved away, stopping right before it would have knocked Tilly over.

"Tilly!" Brock said firmly. As his sister looked up at him, he shook his head. Billy, approaching with a second brush, stopped himself as he saw Brock's expression. Brock crouched down, his expression calm yet serious as he looked at first his sister, then brother. "Onix isn't a toy," he explained. As he paused, Tilly and Billy put down the brushes. He sighed and smiled at them. "I see you want to help, but you have to listen to Onix, too."

"It doesn't talk," Tilly pointed out, staring up at the large pokemon.

"You two shared how you felt before you could talk, too. Didn't you hear, or see, Onix letting you know it had enough, too?" Brock asked. He paused to give Tilly a chance to think about it. The girl looked up at the pokemon, who peered back down at her. Onix was very patient with all of Brock's siblings, and certainly wouldn't hurt any of them, but its cries and movement had told Tilly it was annoyed by her attempts. "It's alright," Brock assured as he saw the girls's eyes getting watery as she looked down. "Just remember to be more careful next time, and listen to Onix."

"Okay," Tilly agreed.

"Yeah, okay," Billy echoed.

Brock stood back up, stretching and sighing as he thought of all the rest of the chores to be done. "If you two want to help, I'll show you more when I'm done with everything else. Stick around me!"

After hanging up the washing, Brock went and did more, clearing up the kitchen and dining area in-between. After that, he had to make lunch. Since it was Saturday, everyone would be back early, so that meant Brock didn't have to pack lunch during the evening, though he had more to make it then as an exchange. He finished the meal and set everything out, dealing with another fight between Billy and Tilly in-between, and then greeting and having conversation with everyone as they returned. After they ate, he took the laundry in, getting it properly put away. He helped some of his siblings with their homework, while others asked him to play a game. Despite only playing one, he had a crunch time to prepare the pokemon food and their dinner at the same time.

Finally, in the early evening, he had the time to take care of his pokemon. Brock's geodude bounced around, getting a good amount of exercise during the day, but Onix struggled in the small-ish yard. Brock returned both to their pokeballs before going into the gym and releasing them. "Onix, stretch out!" he said. The large pokemon moved around with more freedom in the gym, though it was still limited. Perhaps he could take it out into the forest tomorrow, since it would be Sunday. Even so, challengers were allowed to sign up any day at Pewter Gym, but the last time he checked there weren't any for the coming day. Brock noticed his youngest siblings weren't around, even though they'd asked him to teach them. They were probably still too young to help out much. Brock brushed Geodude without much issue, then fed it before going to do the same for Onix.

"Brock," the little girl spoke from the door. Brock grinned at her, and she came in. "Brush, brush?" she said tentatively.

"Look," Brock said. "You have to hold it firmly in your hand. Brush it, then pick it up and sweep again. Don't just hit with the brush. Do you get it?"

Tilly took the brush, brushing carefully, though probably still more lightly than it preferred, getting up a small amount of excess dirt. Brock placed his hand on the giant pokemon's side, always grateful for how patient it was, even though he didn't have much time to take care of it. As Tilly worked, he went to the door, seeing Forrest with the gym's schedule book. "Nothing for tomorrow?" he asked.

"Uh - There's somebody," Forrest informed.

Brock look the book and read. "Another trainer from Pallet Town. I never heard of him before, but I've seen all the newbies already. Maybe Mom battled him before."

"No!" Forrest shook his head. "This is the one I heard of. He got hurt coming from Viridian."

"So it is a new one." Brock frowned. This was the first April he was a gym leader, therefore getting the greenest trainers from Pallet. With how busy the Viridian Gym leader seemed to be, they'd come right to Pewter. He'd beaten all of them but one so far. It helped him keep his win ratio up, but seemed too much like bullying kids. Well, he had to respect them as real trainers, since that's what they were. Brock put the schedule book back down in the box under the sign which demanded anyone sign up at least a day in advance. This guy, he'd done that. Brock would have follow through.

After Tilly got bored and left, Brock went through, rebrushing Onix, as he usually had to redo tasks after his siblings tried to help. They were still pretty endearing. "Thanks for letting Tilly help, Onix," Brock said. The pokemon gave a brief but deep call to him in response, seeming to indicate it didn't mind. Brock laughed. "And sorry about tomorrow - Maybe we'll go out next week. This week there's a Sunday challenger."

Brock entered Pewter Gym a few minutes before the scheduled challenge. The challenger didn't arrive right away. Brock observed the public spectator's area, wondering if he'd see his siblings there, but there was only a girl he didn't know. None of his family had arrived - at least not yet. He'd had plenty of challengers lately, so maybe they were bored with watching. Also, it was Sunday, so the older ones were around to watch the younger ones. Brock himself was certainly bored of waiting. At glance at the clock let him know his courtesy fifteen minute wait time wasn't up. If this challenger wasn't going to show up, the very least he could have done was sign up for a weekday.

At nine past the hour, the door creaked open. In walked a boy, a pikachu at his feet. The tiny pokemon looked around warily, certainly tense, perhaps because they were lost. The boy's smile dispelled that theory. He moved the brim of his hat behind his head. "I'm Ash from Pallet Town, and I challenge you to a battle!" he declared, pointing Brock's way.

Brock stood up, stepping to his usual spot for battle. "This is your first gym challenge, isn't it?" he said.

"Uh, yeah," Ash confirmed, his brow creasing. "I'm ready!"

"Just so you know for the future, punctuality is appreciated," Brock said. He glanced at the ground. "Also, any pokemon that won't be participating should be back in their pokeballs."

The advice seemed to irritate the boy further. "We do things our own way!" he declared. "Maybe my pokemon will punch, and maybe they'll kick. I'm not telling you in advance."

Brock stifled a laugh, as that would probably irritate his challenger further. Observing the boy as he walked closer, he really did look young. Maybe Forrest's age, except he'd have to be at least a year older, since Forrest had recently turned nine. Even so, Brock felt even more guilty, both in having to battle the boy as well as riling him up. "By 'punctual', I mean on time," he spoke frankly, keeping a straight face.

"Oh." Ash turned to the clock. "Sorry I'm late," he said in a mutter.

"Was there a reason? Were you hesitating to challenge me today?" Brock asked. Maybe if he said yes, Brock could end this all early without having to clean up Onix and maybe even Geodude later.

"No." Ash met his gaze, taking out a pokeball. "I'm a serious challenger!"

"Let's begin. This will be a two vs. two battle," Brock said.

"But I have three pokemon," Ash said.

"Again, for future knowledge, gym leaders decide the terms of a battle," Brock informed.

Ash swallowed and nodded, glancing down as he tried to hide the embarrassment of his ignorance. As he took his spot across from Brock, he looked back up. "Go, Butterfree!"

"Go, Onix!" Brock said.

"I know about this one... Butterfree, sleep powder!" Ash ordered.

"Onix, tackle."

Butterfree flew around slowly, dispersing its powder as part of its technique. As it did, Onix swung its tail, hitting the more frail bug type. It gave a low call as Butterfree flew against the ground, obviously knocked out. "Butterfree!" Ash exclaimed, quickly returning his pokemon.

"That's one out," Brock informed. "You have one more. Choose wisely."

"Yeah, I know. I choose you, Pikachu!" Ash said, pointing forward.

"Pika?" Pikachu questioned. It had run across some Onix in the wild before. Despite looking intimidating, those of the giant pokemon species mostly just stayed to themselves, not battling as long as others left them alone. There were other, more aggressive rock-types that one had to be careful to look out for. Pikachu couldn't even imagine fighting a pokemon this big. Poor Butterfree hadn't stood a chance.

Brock could have shaken his head, but it was his job to take challengers seriously. The pikachu, though it didn't seem to be paying much attention, had already stepped on the field. "Onix, bind!" Brock directed.

"Pi?" Pikachu saw the giant pokemon coming toward it. "Pipika!" it shouted, running to the opposite side of the field in its panic, only making it easier for Onix to follow Brock's command.

"Pikachu, try thunderbolt!" Ash shouted.

Pikachu shouted in pain as Onix wrapped around it. "Pika, chuu!" it shouted as it did the suggested attack. Despite trying its best, Onix didn't stop at all. "Pika.. Pika," Pikachu gasped as its bind increased.

"Pikachu." Ash said nothing else as he observed his pokemon's state in horror.

"What will you do now?" Brock goaded.

"Pikachu, you-" Ash shook his head. "That's enough! I'm done!"

"You concede?" Brock asked. He decided not to wait for a confirmation, as it seemed obvious that was the case. "Onix, enough," he said.

The rock type loosened its bind before Brock returned it to the pokeball. He walked forward, going past Ash who ran to pick up his pokemon. "Why don't you go home?" Brock asked as the defeated challenger picked up the small pokemon.

"I know we're done," Ash said, wiping his eyes before standing up and glaring at Brock.

Brock glanced at the poor pikachu, obviously injured from the fight before glaring at Ash. "You obviously have no idea what you're doing. Just go home to your family, there's no point in continuing like this." Brock paused, and the boy said nothing in response. Realizing he was getting too heated up, Brock turned and walked out the door.

That butterfree really had been lovely. The pikachu was cute as all of its species were, and so energetic as well, at least until after the battle. It was Brock's job to take all challengers seriously and see battles until the end. It wasn't his job to make the calls for trainers, even ones that seemed this inexperienced and uninformed. They could make as many stupid decisions as they wanted. At least the pokemon center was nearby, and things had ended rather quickly.

Misty stepped away from the spectators area as Ash left. The Pewter gym leader had already told him what for, so Misty herself decided not to say anything. She trusted Ash would take care of his own pokemon at the pokemon center at least. In the meantime, she had another focus for the day.

Pewter was one of the closer gyms to Viridian, and yet Brock had never shown up for any of the meetings as far as Misty had seen. Giovanni had made excuses for him both times, saying they shouldn't bother the boy from Pewter for some reason. Misty had wondered if she'd see rocket agents wandering around, but instead there hadn't been anyone other than her observing. No matter who the leader was back in Cerulean, herself, one of her parents or sisters, Misty had usually seen at least a few spectators at gym matches. So why not here?

Probably just the day of week. Misty exited the gym, observing the front, where rock had been scaffolded up as decoration to match the gym's typing, and seemingly the whole city's motif. Wandering toward the back revealed a much plainer building overall, an oversized shed with metal paneling. Of course, being on the gym circuit didn't pay them that much. Viridian Gym and Misty's family's own gym were kind of fancy, but that might not be typical. In any case, it was plain to see they'd tried to decorate, especially on the inside. Even so, it was mostly humble.

As Misty came back toward the front, she saw Brock had returned, closing up the gym. "Hello," he greeted, then nodded to her before clicking the lock shut and turning away.

"Hey," Misty greeted happily, following him. "Is the gym shut already?" she asked as she increased her pace to keep up.

"If you want to challenge me, you need to sign up the day before," Brock informed. "You can use the book over there."

"Hey," Misty spoke irritably now. "I'm not gonna challenge you, and I know all about that. I'm Misty from Cerulean. I'm a gym leader, too."

"Oh." Brock glanced toward Misty curiously now, though he still wore the same blank expression. "Interesting. I've never seen another gym leader. You're pretty young, too."

"I'm eleven," Misty informed. "How old were you when you became the gym leader?"

"Thirteen. Even that was pretty young," Brock informed as he turned toward the nearby path. "Well, thanks for visiting me, but I don't really have time to talk."

Misty's brow furrowed as she realized Brock was probably trying to shake her off. It was Sunday, what could he be in such a hurry over?

"Bro!" a boy shouted as he ran toward them. "Brock, Yolanda wreaked lunch."

"Hey, I said to wait!" Brock spoke in a panic. "It was just one challenge, you know." He started running now, both Misty and his brother following him. Brock shouted again at the smell of smoke at his front door, all his siblings outside as the fire alarm was ringing. "It's alright," he said to the crying twins as he walked past them, but then ran inside in a panic.

Misty followed, her pokeball at the ready to help put out any fire. But as she got to the stove, it became obvious there was just a little smoke, no fire. Brock opened some windows, and eventually the alarm stopped. "Yolanda!" Brock chided. "You were supposed to wait."

"It smoked on its own."

"You put it here and started things up on your own," Brock said.

"I... I just wanted to help," Yolanda said.

Brock sighed again, then pat his sister's shoulder. "I appreciate it, but if you want to help, ask. I can find something safe for you."

The girl nodded, remaining silent. "Sorry," Misty said as Brock's gaze turned to her. "I didn't mean to barge in. It's just, I have water type pokemon, so I thought I could help."

"It's fine," Brock said.

"Is she a friend?" Yolanda asked, her expression lightening.

"I'm another gym leader," Misty informed.

"Like our bro! That's cool!" a younger child said.

"Well, we'll have to have this," Brock said, looking at the charred food in the pan. "You can stay if you want," he said to Misty.

"Yeah," Misty said. "I'll try some of your food, Yolanda. Don't worry, we're not all perfect the first try."

As Misty sat, the other siblings came and introduced themselves. She did the same in return. Brock placed the meal out, the burned option seeming to have been added to. Misty noticed Brock ate relatively quickly, excusing himself from the table. "Where's he going?" she thought aloud.

"Our bro's probably taking care of his pokemon," Forrest said.

"Oh, yeah. They did just have a battle. Does he take them to a pokemon center?" Misty mused, supposing not all gyms had the supplies on hand.

"No!" Tommy said loudly. "Big bro takes care of his pokemon himself!"

"Right," Misty said. Brock didn't necessarily need to take care of his gym pokemon in the gym. Misty finished up, then went outside, seeing Brock brushing off his Onix. "Hey!" she called, smiling at Brock as he briefly looked her way. "You're really a perfectionist, huh?" she complimented as Brock brushed off a tiny bit of dirt she probably wouldn't even have noticed.

Brock shrugged. "So, why did you come here?" he asked. "I mean, I guess you have a reason. You have to be really busy too. Did you shut down the gym?"

"No, I mean, I took a break," Misty admitted. "It really got to be too much. My sister Violet's the gym leader right now, since I'm on hiatus," she continued to explain.

"Oh." Brock paused brushing his onix just a moment before continuing. "So, your parents left too?"

"My-" Misty stopped herself as she realized the implication. "Wait, Brock, you mean, your parents are gone? With all these little ones?" They hadn't been at lunch of course, but she didn't realize that they were gone gone.

"Um, yeah. Yours are still around?" Brock said. "I shouldn't have assumed."

"They aren't," Misty admitted as she stared closely at Brock's work polishing Onix. "They left to become better trainers when their win ratios were too low."

"Same, for my mom," Brock said.

"But, with all these kids?" Misty lamented, looking up with surprise. Even the oldest of Brock's siblings was younger than her. "It's too much for you," she said.

"I manage," Brock said. He shook off the brush. "Hey, Onix, want to hang out back here?" he said. Taking the pokemon's low cry as an affirmative response, he walked toward the house.

Two of his siblings ran to visit him. "Hey, bro, we got you a present," Cindy said, Salvadore nodding happily next to him.

"That's so nice," Misty said.

"You shouldn't-" Brock began, then looked at the cover, which featured a beautiful girl and held it close, his face seemingly flushing.

Misty laughed at his response. "What is it? A girlie magazine? They gave it to these kids?" she said.

Cindy frowned. "What? It's a pokemon magazine!" she said.

Brock relaxed, still holding the item close as he looked at it. Misty peered over his shoulder. Sure enough, in the woman's lap was a pikachu, vulpix and clefairy sleeping on either side. The headlines talked about pokemon care tips and the cover was apparently a woman who was a top breeder. "You have rock and ground type pokemon, is this kind of thing really useful to you?" Misty asked.

"Hey, pokemon breeding involves all types of pokemon," Brock said.

"So you make baby pokemon?" Misty asked.

"No," Brock said. He pulled the magazine back up close, his head down in apparent embarrassment. "Pokemon breeding is how you care for and groom your pokemon. So it looks the best, feels the best, does the best in all activities. All pokemon need that kind of thing."

"Oh." Misty nodded. She'd seen those magazines before, but hadn't paid them much mind. Maybe there were some useful tips for her after all.

"Besides," Brock continued, getting Misty's attention again. "One day I want to be a pokemon breeder - for all kinds of pokemon. Cute, cool, tough. And all types, too. Not just rock."

"Wow," Misty said. Brock thanked his siblings before going toward the door. "Can I see that? I'll give it back, of course," she said.

Brock handed it to her. She flipped through it only a bit before she saw the older boy coming back out of his home, a canister in hand. He began to set out food for the pokemon. It looked homemade. "Is that your own food?" Misty asked.

"My recipe," Brock said.

"Maybe my pokemon could try some," Misty said.

"I wouldn't give this kind to them. There's different food for different types. I did make some for water types, but it's older." Brock went inside, coming out with a small bag. "Just an experiment of mine, but they could try it."

"Alright. Go Staryu, Starmie!" Misty released the pokemon in succession. "Here, this nice guy has some food. Gobble it down!" Misty said, taking out the food from the bag and holding it. They took a tentative taste from the mouth on their backs before eating more and more until the small sample was gone. "They really like it! I can tell!" Misty said.

"Good." Brock smiled. "So, um, Misty, right? You still didn't say what brings you away from your gym, and over to mine. Did you have to quit because of your win ratio?"

"No. Mine was even better than yours, last time I looked," Misty said, hand on her hip.

"Really? I don't really pay attention to that too much, I'm just glad mine is good enough," Brock said. "It's not as good as my dad's was, though."

"Huh?" Misty had assumed that his dad probably would have been as lacking at training as her parents were. "What happened to your dad?" she asked.

"Nothing bad or anything," Brock assured. "Since he was so good, he thought he'd be a big-shot trainer, but he couldn't even get very far in the league. It's different from just gym battles, you know? Who knows what he's doing now."

"Well, I just..." Misty paused. She thought she'd share her story with any gym leader who she came across, but Brock obviously had so much on his plate. She couldn't bother him with the reasons she'd stopped. "I thought it would be cool to see another gym leader, so I came to watch Ash's first challenge."

"Is he your friend?" Brock asked.

"Yeah, something like that," Misty said. She continued before he could comment more on that. "I tried to tell him it was too soon, or say he should borrow my water type pokemon, or-"

"Kids have to learn on their own," Brock said with a shrug. "Using another trainer's pokemon in a gym battle isn't great for a trainer's pride either, hm?"

"Yeah," Misty agreed, relaxing some. Of course, she wasn't responsible for that guy. She decided to change the topic back to pokemon breeding. "So, Brock, what kind of pokemon are you going to catch next? Which water type would be your favorite to take care of? And.." Misty stopped her questioning as she saw his melancholy expression. "Brock?"

Brock looked up, seeming to force a smile. "Yeah, well, maybe one day I'll be able to catch some other pokemon," he said with a shrug. "Pokeballs are expensive, you know? I'm saving some right now. I want to have at least one for Forrest next year when he turns ten."

"But what don't you want to be a pokemon breeder? I mean, for all kinds of pokemon, you said," Misty pointed out.

"Maybe one day," Brock repeated, still with the forced pleasant expression. "Family's the most important thing, you know. Everyone's depending on me."

"Yeah," Misty said quietly, thinking of her parents who had gone traveling, leaving her and her sisters behind. Brock's had apparently done the same. All of these little kids - Misty hadn't even counted them, there were so many - they all only had Brock to rely on. But Brock hardly seemed like a fully grown adult himself. "Parents should take care of their own kids," Misty snapped. Realizing she'd said as much aloud, Misty started to worry about Brock's reaction. "I mean, um-"

"Yeah, sometimes I'm really mad at them," Brock said seriously. "I mean, I don't sit around complaining, but you feel the same way, right?"

"Totally," Misty said firmly.

Brock laughed. "Let's just keep going then, huh? What's next for you?" he asked.

Misty wasn't sure of what to say to that question. "Who knows," she finally spoke. "There's so much I can do. I can go anywhere I want, hm?"

"Yeah, seems like it. Maybe you'll go to another gym?" Brock mused.

"Well, I've learned a lot from here," Misty admitted. "You make me want to try harder with how I raise my pokemon."

"Glad I helped," Brock said. "Yeah, maybe you should go back and give your little sister a break, huh?"

"Oh, no," Misty shook her head. "I'm the youngest." She looked inside the dwelling, where the second oldest of all Brock's siblings talked to some of the younger ones. "So, Forrest will be ten next year? Maybe he can take over for you then."

"I won't let that happen," Brock said firmly. "I'm not going to put my responsibility on any of them."

Misty heard the resolution in the other gym leader's voice, and felt somewhat silly for making the suggestion. "Oh, right. You're a really responsible big brother," she praised. "Thanks for talking to me."

"Sure, it was great to meet another gym leader. You're headed out, then?" Brock asked.

"Yeah, I'm going to go check on Ash."

"Ash? Oh, that kid. Maybe I was a little harsh on him," Brock admitted, sighing in his regret.

"Maybe, but he does need to take care of his pokemon and think about things before he does them." Misty folded her arms, turning away. "Well," she began.

"Hey, wait." Brock ran back inside, coming out with two bags. "This one's for Pikachu, and this one's for Butterfree. I hope they're fine, let him know."

"Yeah! I'm sure he's taking care of them. I wonder if he'll appreciate this though." Misty held up the small bags of food, then looked up and smiled. "You take care, Brock!" she said, waving to him.

"You too, Misty! Maybe I'll visit your gym over in Cerulean if I get the chance."

"Yeah, that would be fun. Feel free to bring everyone."

They waved good-bye one more time. Going down the road, Misty looked at the bags of food, feeling impressed with all Brock managed to do. She even appreciated her own big sisters more, if only a little bit. Sometimes Misty had to take care of them as well, so it wasn't like Brock with all these little ones. Even so, they had responsibilities that perhaps were rather heavy put on them suddenly at a young age.

That description might include Ash, wandering out on his own. It was time to go and see if he wanted to go back home as Brock had suggested, or if he'd keep moving on as a trainer. That this kid wouldn't make the best decision seemed most likely. "Well, that's not my responsibility," Misty said to herself. Maybe she did feel a little like a big sister with Ash, but she annoyed him more often than not with her advice and warnings. He was just someone for her to be around for the moment, not anyone that would listen to her.

People were really bad at listening to her when it counted, after all.

End notes:
Brock's parents have a Tommy, Timmy, and Tilly? Whaaat.

Anyway, it will never not be amusing to me that 4Kids, a company known for erasing and glossing over death in their English adaptations, thought that Brock's mom leaving her young teenage son alone to raise her nine other very young kids was so problematic that they just killed her off. Of course, that lead to a continuity error since his mom shows up on screen much later on, but it's not like there's no other continuity errors in the series, even in the original. So yes, just to be clear - Takeshi/Brock's mom was alive in the original version of episode 5, that's not my creative liberty taken here.

'Questionable' parenting is rampant in early Pokemon anime, and I have fun including it as part of the culture in this story as well.

Next chapter: Pikachu vs. Onix