Author's note: I can't remember the last time that I updated this story. Sorry a good man years too late?

/

The storm outside was about as bad as Paul supposed it was ever going to be. The winds battered at his face burning his eyes to the extent that he found himself forced to close them. Not an issue, Magmar wasn't bothered by the cold. He was leading the way slowly but surely. Anger caused him to storm ahead, never stopping or slowing. He had to get away. The more distance he could put between himself and the man whom like it or not was his father the better. Every second he spent up on this mountain seemed to remind him of how much the man's words had hurt him.

Your mother would have been ashamed of you, boy…

Those few words echoed through his head endlessly. He couldn't get rid of them no matter how hard he tried. They seemed to be endlessly taunting them. No doubt that had been the intention of his father when he had said them. He would have known how much they would sting at his very being preventing him from thinking clearly. Every thought he had seemed to come back to that one sentence. It hurt like a burning fire inside of him, only fuelling his anger.

What would Brandon know about what his mother would have thought of him?! He argued with himself internally. A great deal… Some voice inside of him said. He didn't know anything. The lad tried to tell himself. The man had hardly spoken to him in years. The Pyramid King didn't know him enough to be making any kind of comment. He had no right to do so. The man didn't care! How could he?! He had abandoned them! He had lied to them. The things that the Frontier Brain had said couldn't be taken back or forgotten and only a fool like Reggie would ever forgive him for it.

He almost felt some pity for his brother. The guy was so terribly naïve it was – to use one of his favourite words – pathetic. He truly believed that there was something which could be salvaged in their relationship. God knew why but he always had. He hung to that one foolish hope so desperately that it blinded him to the world around him. The truth was a simple one: they weren't a family and they hadn't been one for a long time. Their best bet would have been to sever all ties with their father and to make the best of it. Instead, he had been desperate to try and recreate something which Paul increasingly found himself struggling to remember even being there in the first place. Now, the Pyramid King was at best an annoyance, at worst (which was most of the time) an embodiment of all that his youngest hated.

Only a fool would forgive him for the lie he told that day. Their mother would have agreed with her youngest son. Had things been different that day, she would never have said that everything would be "alright".

The thought caused him to stop. His mother's image was faint in his mind. It had been for quite some time now since he had last laid eyes on it. He'd had the locket but never looked at it. He found it to be far too painful to do so. Over the years, he'd slowly become more and more accustomed to not seeing it. It was as if he had deprived himself of any chance to get used to it so that now, he found it almost impossible for him to contain himself. It was as if simply seeing even the faintest of her features or hearing the mere whisper of her voice was enough to cause him excruciating pain. Thankfully, they had never been a family for going over the family photo-album or watching old home videos. That implied a certain relationship which they plainly didn't have.

Magmar waited for him for a few moments. It was vital that they didn't become separated. Paul was aware of the danger he was in. This sort of weather could easily kill someone. It wasn't just the cold. The howling winds and ice made it almost impossible to see more than a couple of feet in front of him. Given they were on a mountain, it made the potential danger of falling down a cliff a real one. If they were careful and kept on descending then they should be alright, that's what he kept on telling himself. True, he wasn't nearly as experienced as Brandon was when it came to exploring, even he would admit that but he was used to coping by himself. That meant he wasn't exactly harmless.

"Lets keep moving!" He told his pokemon eager to get off of the side of the darn mountain.

"Magmar..."

Magmar hesitated. That stopped Paul instantly. He trained his pokemon to be as tough and ruthless as possible. That meant when they showed reluctance something serious was usually up. He frowned, giving the pokemon a cold glare in the hopes of reminding him just who he was dealing with. He still hadn't quite forgiven the fire-type for flinching during its fight against registeel and as such was inclined to be a little harsher with him than he would have been the rest of his team in an attempt to stamp out any lingering cowardice which he knew could potentially cost him a battle.

"What is it?!" He demanded losing his patience.

The fire pokemon was uneasy. He had initially passed it off as simply being because of the weather or perhaps he had managed to sense the state of mind of his partner. Now, Paul had his doubts. Magmar was looking past him out into the snowstorm. He turned to try and see what it was which was causing his usually trusted ally to become distracted. The weather was such however that he found himself only able to keep his eyes open for a few seconds. Cursing slightly, he closed his eyes. He didn't want to go blind out here.

There was the sound of something else out there however. Initially, he couldn't quite make it out over the storm but gradually his ears began to pick it out against the gusting winds. There was a car or something similar out here. It wasn't impossible. There were roads which would allow someone to drive up here but who would? It wasn't as if the top of mount Coronet had anything other than nice views to recommend it. They could have been tourists he supposed or perhaps part of some sort of research team working out here, at any rate, he saw them as a potential way off of this hellhole and back to civilisation.

He wondered how best to get their attention. In this weather, he didn't want to run the risk of trying to get in front of the vehicle. They might not see him until it was too late, in which case he would end up under the thing's wheels. Thinking quickly, he tried to imagine how best to draw their attention to his presence. It would be a shame if his ticket off of the side of this mountain drove straight past him. Looking around, he wondered what he could do… It wasn't as if he had a signal flare with him. An idea suddenly came to the pokemon trainer as he turned to his pokemon.

"Magmar, use flamethrower at the sky now!"

The pokemon looked at him puzzled for a moment. Before he could tell him not to think about it and just to do as he was told however, the pokemon kicked into action. With a roar, it sent a large burst of flame into the sky. Paul had to shield his eyes slightly as it lit up the air. That being said, the heat it provided, although sudden wasn't unwelcome. He was beginning to lose the feeling in his toes. The burst of fire must only have lasted about ten seconds but what it was was bright and visible, hopefully enough for whoever was passing by to spot him.

Bright lights seemed to effortlessly cut through the snow causing Paul to wince and forcing him to close his eyes. When he managed to find the strength to open them again, he found himself looking at a large truck type vehicle. He realized in an instant that these weren't your average tourists. This was some pretty serious get-up. Perhaps one of his initial guesses of these being researchers of one kind or another had been correct. He couldn't see who else would be up here. His father and brother had been mad enough to trek up here and drag him with them but they were the exception, few others would be so full-hardy or stupid he reasoned. He heard a door open and breathed an internal sigh of relief. It was by pure chance that his eyes travelled down slightly and fell upon a logo on the front of the truck.

Oh no…

"Well now… Who might you be?"

He frowned slightly, struggling to make out anything in the storm. He knew it was a man's voice however. Instinctively, he found himself reaching for a pokeball. His heart had begun to pound in his chest as fear took over. His concern only doubled when he spotted two other vehicles pull up next to the one in front of him. Magmar moved a little closer to him, not out of fear but rather sensing that proximity would be safer for them. It limited the chances of them being surrounded or taken by surprise.

Gritting his teeth, Paul quickly tried to think of his best options. He could try and run but in this weather that could easily prove to be more dangerous than staying here. Alternatively, he could fight. The problem there would be that not only was his outnumbered but he himself would be at a severe disadvantage due to the conditions. He trusted his pokemon but like this he would struggle to direct a battle which could prove to be a show-stopper. He found himself instinctively backing away as more figures stepped out of the doors. Slowly, the feeling that he was in some serious trouble was beginning to hit home.

"I won't ask again." The voice spoke out cold and crisply. "Who are you?"

Anger coursed through his vanes without warning. He didn't know why. He rarely did. It was the same feeling of injustice which seemed to rise up inside of him and call for blood. In an odd way, he was aware of what was going on around him. It wasn't as if he forgot where or who he was. He remained fully aware of what was happening and in truth he was largely in full control of his actions but that voice inside of his head was still seething after his encounter with Brandon. The Pyramid King's words were still going round in his head.

Your mother would have been ashamed of you, boy…

"Elekid stand by for battle!"

A second later, his faithful pokemon was out. The electric-type was buffeted by the wind for a few seconds but quickly adapted. It was clear on his face that he was decidedly confused by the whole situation. He appeared to be a little unsettled when he spotted the number of foes. Then, his face clouded over and a look of hatred filled the pokemon's eyes. It confirmed Paul's guess as he faced the man that these two had already met before. Reggie had been telling the truth… Paul had never doubted him that much, although naturally he had wondered if some of his tales had been something of an exaggeration.

Maybe that was why right now, in his heart of hearts he was afraid.

"You!" Apparently the man he was faced with could remember the pokemon. "Well this is a surprise."

The man in front of him pulled out a pokeball. Paul gritted his teeth as he prepared for the fight he knew was about to come. All he hoped was that he could give them a good one.

Reggie looked out into the snowstorm. It seemed to never end. He didn't know how much time had passed. It felt as if he had been staring out at this blizzard forever. Maybe he had. His mind was oddly absent. He kept on dreaming of seeing a couple of human figures staggering in out of the weather before laughing and saying how stupid they had been. It was a foolish hope to cling to, he knew that but still he couldn't help but dream about it. Somehow, he was still struggling to process the fact that they were gone, maybe for good.

If he was foolish enough to dwell on the matter as without fail he found himself blaming himself for not doing more to stop them. He should have grabbed a hold of them and pulled them back. Screamed at them if necessary. Anything would have been better than what he had done. Now they were gone, he saw little prospect of either of them coming back. They would forever be separated in the world. That was if they even made it down the side of the mountain…

He was under no allusions, the weather out there was more than capable of killing someone. He tried to tell himself that both his father and brother were strong in their own ways. Brandon was as strong as an ox and had the experience to boot. Paul had all the aggression and drive to allow him to plough though the snow. Reggie knew that he himself wouldn't have been able to make it. He was the weak, soft-hearted member of his family. The one who was left behind. The same idiot who had been struggling so desperately these past few years to pull off some manner of miracle and reunite two individuals who no longer wanted anything to do with one another.

He let out a sigh, his eyes fell back upon the picture in the frame. They were all so happy in it. His father was proud and Paul just like any other joyful four year old. Their mother… What would she have said if she could have seen them now? She had been spared watching her family crumble and tear itself apart. He dreaded to think about what she would have said about all of this. There was little doubt in his mind that she would have whipped them all back into shape in a matter of moments with a mixture of harsh words and that endless kindness she had seemed to possess. Sadly though, without her guidance, he got the feeling that they were all permanently lost in the darkness. One that had begun one fateful night all those years ago and had never cleared.

"So um… Are you just going to sit there?"

He had almost forgotten that he wasn't alone. Team Rocket were still at the back of the cave. Reggie regretted the fact that they had witnessed the argument. They weren't the first but somehow the fact that both his father and brother had lost their cool in such a spectacular fashion in front of what was essentially a bunch of crooks only seemed to add insult to injury. In an odd way, even right now his father was still too dignified a man to fall into such things as losing his temper and Paul was his brother, despite everything, he still wanted to protect the lad, even if he had made it very clear at several points in his life he didn't need or want protection.

There was a part of Reggie which wanted to shout and them, to tell them to mind their own business. Thankfully, the aggressive side which he seemed to have inherited, as his brother had, from his father was drowned out by the sorrow, he was feeling right now. Shifting slightly, he elected to look elsewhere than out into the snow. He found himself surprised by how dark everything seemed to be. He might do best to give his eyes a rest from staring out into the intensity of the storm.

Facing the prisoners, he found himself wondering if he should maybe try ignoring them. Strangely though, the prospect of taking to them actually sounded somewhat soothing.

"What else can I do?"

He couldn't go out there and chase after them. He would never find them. Even if the storm miraculously cleared and he somehow managed to stumble upon one of them, what could he possibly say? There was no taking back what had happened. His father's words had been unforgivable. His brother's actions terrible. MAYBE, if he was exceptionally lucky, he might be able to convince Brandon to apologize. It would take some doing but it wasn't completely impossible. He hoped the man might at least slightly regret what he'd said. Paul however would never forgive him. That much could be counted on.

That meant it was pretty much pointless to go after them. Right now, they would both probably be too angry to even attempt to reason with. He let out a heavy sigh, allowing his head to hang lowly. He didn't expect Team Rocket to understand. Not many people could. Not many people knew who they were to one another and many of those who did had given up hope long ago that they could ever be a proper family again. Now it was his time.

"I give up..." He muttered quietly almost more to himself.

"What's with them anyway?" The man questioned.

"Yeah… Not much family goin' on there if ya know what I'm sayin'." The Meowth agreed with his partner.

How to even begin to describe it? They absolutely hated each other. For years, he had tried to convince himself that Brandon simply resented certain parts of his son's personality. Whilst harsh, it was better that him actually detesting the boy's entirety. There was no doubt that Paul loathed his father. There was barely even a scrap of love there. Any affections he did still have were likely due more to the memory of their mother than anything else but that didn't stop him from having some strange form of admiration for the man. No matter what he said, Reggie knew that the Pyramid King's opinion did matter to his sibling, despite how hard he tried to pretend that it didn't. Why else would he fly off the handle so easily when the man was around? Usually he simply didn't care. Ironically, the Frontier Brain was perhaps the only person who could bring out the caring Paul. Maybe that was partly why he hated him so much.

"It's complicated." There was no other way to put things. "They weren't always like that..."

It was strange but he found himself wanting to tell these crooks everything. He didn't know why. There were other more caring people out there he could tell. He doubted these three were interested for any other reason than simple curiosity. He probably wouldn't receive any sympathy from them much less understanding. Maybe that was why it was so tempting: he didn't know them and they didn't know him. He'd never tried talking to a stranger about his troubles, usually either Maylene or the picture of his mother were his only confidants. Regardless of the reason why, he found himself compelled to tell them more.

"So what made them change?" The woman asked, even if he didn't feel like talking, these three were definitely nosy enough.

"Mom died..." Reggie muttered under his breath.

It was impossible to pronounce those two words without it bringing back unpleasant memories. How could there be any pleasant ones about that terrible night? He thought of it as night, it hadn't been really, more like early evening but for some reason he always thought of it as being darker than it had been. There was no forgetting any of it. It was scarred into the depths of his very being as he suspected it was his father and brother. Even the mere mention of it caused him to close his eyes in an attempt to block the flashbacks. It was only somewhat effective as Paul's desperate shrieks filled his ears once more. He gasped slightly recalling just how painful it was to think back to it.

"It wasn't dad's fault…"

How many times had he repeated that to himself over the years? The logical part of him knew full well that Brandon had nothing to do with it. He had loved his wife and would never do anything to harm her. If he was guilty of anything it was negligence and even there, the man wasn't usually required to check that all of the proper safety precautions as far as things like structural integrity on a site that had already been excavated were concerned. Maybe he should have checked rather than assumed that all would be alright. After months spent wondering about it, the eldest of the man's sons had eventually told himself that it didn't matter. It had been an accident. A stupid accident and that all that really mattered what had been its result.

He closed his eyes briefly recalling how his mother had lay dying in his father's arms. He hadn't understood back then and the Frontier Brain's assurances that everything would be alright had sounded so sincere, he'd allowed himself to believe them. He wasn't to know that it was a lie, neither was Paul. They didn't know that a person couldn't survive that much stone falling on them. In their minds, if there was no blood and if dad said it was going to be okay then it most definitely was. She'd died less than a few minutes later.

"I mean he couldn't have done anything… It was just bad luck." It didn't matter that they probably had next to no idea what he was referring to, the words were just slipping out. "That's not how Paul saw things though."

His brother had always been angry. He'd hated the Frontier Brain for that night. Blaming him for almost everything that happened in his life, especially all the bad. It had been passed of as a "phase" for months, something he would get over and come to terms with. For a long time, both of them had bought it. He'd lost his mother, he was young, it was a lot to get through his head. Yes, they could understand and would be patient. Brandon was too wrapped up in his own sorrow and regret to notice anyhow. It was when his anger had changed and turned towards others that they had started to worry. He was always so angry, getting into fights over everything and anything. The Pyramid King could no longer turn a blind eye to his youngest son's rage. That had only made things worse.

The arguments had multiplied. The fighting intensified. It wasn't just the occasional hostile exchange, it became almost a permanent state of affairs. Ultimately, Brandon had left. Despite what Paul thought, he hadn't exactly walked out on them. He'd waited, waited until his eldest could be considered a young man legally and could be trusted to look after his sibling. He'd made sure that his family would at least have a source of revenue and a roof over their heads. Then he had left. Naturally he had checked with Reggie but it wasn't much of a choice. If he remained any longer, it would have been almost impossible. Since that day, they had barely talked and the few times that they had it had almost inevitably been hostile.

"No point trying to talk sense to either of them." Reggie muttered resting his head in his hands. "They're too stubborn."

"I have family like that..." The man declared quietly. "No reasoning with them..."

Reggie said nothing but nodded slowly in agreement. He saw now that all of his attempts had been completely pointless. He didn't know why he had been so desperate to reconcile two individuals so obviously bound to hate each other for the rest of their lives. All it had ever done was bring him pain. It had driven away the rest of their family and friends, isolated them in almost every way possible. Those who knew about them always ended up asking sooner or later why he bothered when the end result was always the same. The answer was simple and tragic:

The sad and undeniable truth was that he loved both of them too much to ever let go of them.

He liked to think that they loved him too. Neither of them ever said it. His father sometimes came close or at least he thought he did. With Paul however the most he could hope for was to not be told that he hated him. In actual fact, he didn't insult him that often. That was arguably proof that his sibling maybe didn't hate him as much as he seemed to the rest of the world. It wasn't something he either asked the two of them, even on the best of days they weren't the most open with their feelings. Unless it was letting someone know they didn't like them very much, in which case they could be very vocal sometimes.

"It doesn't matter any more..." The eldest son muttered under his breath. "They're gone now. I guess I can start trying to live my own life."

It was hard given the current situation for him to look on the bright side, no matter how hard he tried. In a way, he envied his father and brother, they were able to put everything behind them and keep on going or rather continue on as if it didn't affect them. He couldn't do that. No matter how hard he tried, they were always at the back of his mind. He worried about what they were doing, if they were well, in Paul's case how his pokemon journey was going… It was possible for him to ignore them for a small period of time but ultimately, it always came back to the same old issue: his father and brother.

Now, maybe knowing that it was pointless for him to worry about them, he would be able to put them out of his mind. No matter what he did, he imagined he would be lucky if they ever spoke to him again. That meant that he should concentrate on his own projects: he had a house, a job, maybe he could get some more friends, perhaps even a girlfriend… The wounds were still fresh, he reasoned, they would become easier to bear as time went on. Emotions would die down and he would realize how foolish all of this had been. If he was fortunate, maybe he would even think that it was for the best. That would be the only way for him to keep on going. It was the cold method which his father and brother seemed to have adopted and one which must have worked as it allowed them to soldier on.

Letting out a sigh, he looked back out into the storm. He would certainly rest easier when it was over and he knew that they were both safe, that was for sure. Only after that could he even begin to start attempting to get back to what some might consider to be a "normal" life. It was something he wasn't sure he had lived since his mother had died.

Reggie got to his feet suddenly. There was a figure out there. It was too faint to make out but something or someone was most definitely coming towards him. Naturally, he initially assumed that it was either his father or brother. Hope coursed through him, causing a large smile to appear on his face. Hopefully one of them had finally realized how stupid they were being and had decided to turn back. Either that or they had simply come to the conclusion that the conditions were too dangerous and they would have to wait out the storm back in the safety of the cave.

As the figure drew nearer however the pokemon breeder began to doubt. It looked increasingly less familiar. Increasingly less human for that matter… Suddenly growing concerned, he reached into his jacket, pulling out a pokeball. He held his breath wondering what could possibly be coming towards him. He could hear his heart thumping increasingly loudly in his chest as he held his breath. This really was the last thing he needed right now. His father and brother were the better battlers, without their help he wasn't entirely sure that he would be able to see off all attackers. Of course, they might not be hostile. They certainly weren't all that tall…

Teeth clenched, he readied himself. He wasn't entirely sure who or what was out there but didn't plan on being taken by surprise by it. If they were hostile, he would make sure to give them a fight.

Something was wrong… Whoever was out there wasn't walking normally. They seemed to be struggling. Of course, it could have been because of the storm buffeting or blinding them, probably both. Whatever the case, they were having great difficulty moving. The more that Reggie watched them, the more he found himself coming to the conclusion that they were more likely to be in trouble than to actually be posing a threat. He hesitated a moment, preparing to rush out to offer some kind of assistance. It was only then that he finally spotted who it was.

"Magmar!" He cried out in a mixture of shock and alarm.

The pokemon struggled in. His eyes were dull and barely conscious. He seemed to linger in the entrance for a moment before without any warning, his legs buckled causing him to fall forwards. Reggie was only just fast enough to rush forwards and catch him before he crashed to the ground. Team Rocket were naturally quick to approach, no doubt driven by a mixture of curiosity and concern. Magmar was a pretty tough pokemon, one of his brother's best. It took a lot to take him down like this.

Reggie approached cautiously. He didn't want to risk a burn from a powerful fire pokemon. Quickly however, he realized that Magmar was spent. He'd already been in a battle. He'd given it his all and struggled back here, no doubt seeking some assistance in the form of a rescue for his trainer. Although breathing heavily, he remained conscious. The young man approached him slowly, taking him in his arms cautiously. His experience as a breeder informed him that his brother's partner would survive. His life wasn't in any danger. Quietly, the young man tried his best to both comfort and calm the injured creature.

All the while, rage burned underneath.

His first assumption was that father and son must have bumped into one another in their attempt to flee the mountain. A battle had erupted and rather predictably, it was the younger of the two who had come off worse. Magmar's continued mutterings meant little to him. With every second, he was struggling with the urge to storm down the side of the slope and track down the man responsible for this so as to give him a piece of his mind. Nobody but nobody hurt his little brother and got away with it.

The young man was half-way to his feet when he noticed Meowth by his side. The pokemon seemed to be taking a strange interest in Magmar, straining to hear him speak. It calmed him for a moment. For the first time, he found himself in the company of a being capable of interpreting another pokemon and then more importantly translating it back to a language he could understand:

"What happened?!"

"He says your brother got jumped…" The pokemon seemed to take his time translating. "Some men in strange suits came. Magmar did his best but it wasn't enough. They've got your bro..."

"Men in strange suits..." Reggie muttered a sudden sinking sensation took a hold of him. "Oh no..."

There weren't a thousand people who fit into that category. In a storm like this, it would unlikely that any workers would be risking themselves outside. It would simply be too dangerous. They also wouldn't have attacked Paul and even in a bad mood, he trusted that his brother would have been sensible enough to ask for their help as opposed to turning on him. No, Reggie had a terrible feeling that he knew just who his little brother had had the misfortune of encountering. Panic took hold. As of now, every second counted. In a storm like this, the chances of being able to track down his sibling were few and far between but he had to try.

He placed Magmar down carefully. Whilst he was in a bad way, there was nothing which Reggie could do for him right now. Not without his pokeball. The best he could do was give the pokemon some rest. He would only be in danger if he came with him.

"I'll be back. I promise."

Reggie didn't waste another second, he turned around and ran towards the entrance to the cave. He was surprised to find that both his father and brother's footprints were still visible. They were fading quickly however and would be covered over in a matte of minutes by the seemingly never-ending snow. He didn't have long. He would have to run if he hoped to catch his sibling. The biting cold of the wind outside warned him not to leave shelter. Brandon and Paul must both have been insane to venture into the wilds…

Taking a deep breath in order to give himself some courage. Reggie tried his best to brace himself, readying his body for what he knew could be its rudest challenge yet. Instinct screamed at him not to go but it was love for his sibling which won the day. Making him take a first step outside. The snow and icy winds assaulted him in every way possible. Blinding him and eating away at every piece of exposed flesh. It wasn't even cold any more. It was like being slapped in the face. He gasped, struggling with the pain.

It took all of his courage to continue going. He followed his brother's footprints, the smaller of the two sets which remained. Staggering off in their direction. He became aware, to his astonishment, that Team Rocket were following behind him. He'd assumed that they would stay in the warmth of the cave. Instead, frozen though they were, they gave chase.

"Hey! Wait! You're going to need backup?" Called out the woman.

"From you three clowns?" The day's stresses and the bitter weather made Reggie more irritable than he usually was. "I don't think so."

"What about your father?" James suggested, looking in the direction of the second set of footprints. "We could do with his help."

"Forget about him. We don't have time go chasing after him." Anger swelled back up inside of him. If Brandon had just stayed with them or stood his ground, none of this would have happened. "Just let him leave in peace, if it's what he wants so badly."

"But-"

"I said FORGET ABOUT IT!"

He didn't give them any more time to think about matters. He steamed on ahead. Paul was all that mattered right now.

Brandon stumbled down the side of the mountain. He'd made good progress but this storm was… Something else. He'd never encountered one like it before. With every step that he took, he felt his strength being sapped by the cold. It was an unpleasant reminder that he was no longer as young as he had once been. His cut lip screamed as it was exposed to the freezing temperatures. Already, he could feel that the blood there had dried and frozen over. He could very well end up needing a doctor.

Naturally, his thoughts drifted back to the two sons he had abandoned. One would be safe in the cave but the youngest? Paul was tough but when all was said and done, he was also a child. A child with too great an opinion of himself and who frequently overestimated his own abilities. He would be in trouble and his father knew that. The boy's words hard hurt him deeply. Opening wounds which had never fully healed in the first place and drawing out all of the bile and bitterness. The worst of him was on show and had taken over.

It now left him here. Alone.

In the snowstorm, he strained his eyes to try and make out anything. All he encountered was freezing temperatures and a blinding whiteness. He gasped, stumbling forwards onto his knees. He was in pain but not all of it from the ice.

"Damn kids!" The man cursed loudly to only the mountain.

His frustration only served to make the pain more acute. It was with a trembling hand that the man reached into his pocket. His fingers, practically numb, struggled to locate what he was looking for. Eventually, they met a piece of paper. He managed to pull it out. Ordinarily, he would never dared have exposed it to such harsh conditions. The wind could blow it away and the snow and ice would most certainly damage it. There was a little voice inside of his head which compelled him to look at it however, to remind himself of what had once been.

Naturally, his gaze fell upon what had been torn away so violently from him. His wife, beautiful Diana was by his side, smiling as they had struggled to get both of the boys into place and looking suitable for the photo. He could still hear Paul's laughter, ringing through his ears as he'd been picked up and tickled, convinced to behave in front of the photographer. He'd loved that boy. The child with the endless questions and beaming smile. Where had he gone? Somewhere down a mountain… That same voice seemed to say to him. Brandon shifted, he looked over his shoulder, almost as if he was actually expecting to find his youngest there. Nothing but snow and ice.

Letting out a groan, he tried to convince himself to keep on moving. Stopping here would most definitely be fatal.

In truth, it wasn't the conditions which were holding him back. It was the knowledge that he'd just abandoned his boys, both of them. The shame prevented him from taken so much as one more step. He could only imagine just what his wife would have said, how she would have started gently and then dragged him back there herself if the need arose. There was a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach as it dawned on the man that he had made a terrible mistake. One which might even have had even worse consequences…

With slightly shaking legs, the turned his attention back the way that he had come. His own footprints were vanishing at a steady rate. He would struggle to find the cave again, yet alone Paul. Still, he had to try… Gritting his teeth, he made his way back somewhat more vigorously than he had left. His resolve was firmer. He would find his youngest and take his back to safety by force if need be. It would be unpleasant and he could already hear the complaints but at least the lad would be safe.

Brandon had travelled at least some of the distance back when up ahead of him, he caught sight of a silhouette. It was too small to be either of his sons and most definitely not human. Weary, he found himself pulling out a pokeball. He reasoned that Dusclops would be best. Up here, there was a good chance of him encountering an ice-type. His eyes stung from the storm however and he had trouble making out just what he was about to go up against. He raised his hand, ready to call out the pokemon.

"Hay! Wait!" An odd voice called out to him.

"You!" Brandon recognised the strange Meowth in an instant. "What are you-"

"One of your boys has been taken!" The pokemon seemed stressed, there was a clear sense of urgency.

"Taken?" The Pyramid King repeated, his mouth dry, unable to process things properly.

"By Team Galactic! We gotta move-!"

"Team-"

He couldn't quite think of where to start. Shaking his head, he quickly realized that time was now of the essence. He didn't wait, taking off in the direction where he had left both of his boys. Every second counted.

He couldn't and wouldn't let them down a second time.