A/N: Thank you for all your support! I appreciate every single review, follow and favorite that I get. They truly motivate me :D Anyway, here's the next chapter! It's rather long, it has Poké, LeafGreen and of course Ikari, and it was very much fun to write, so I hope you enjoy it as well :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or the picture used as cover.

Leave It To Brocko

Chapter 24

After wishing Dawn goodnight, I made my way towards the door Paul disappeared through. It led to a long corridor, with several doors on both sides, which either led to cramped bathrooms or small sleeping cabins. Though there were enough rooms available on this ferry, we had still opted to share the cabins, to reduce the costs. And because Gary and Paul barely knew each other, and Ash and Paul still didn't mix well, I was elected to share the room with the purple-haired teenager.

I hadn't had any problems with it, and now it was definitely an advantage for me. Paul needed some good romantic advice, and this was a golden opportunity. He was absolutely different from my other clients – heh, clients… made me sound like a real professional, don't ya think? Anyway, Paul wasn't as insecure as Cilan, nor as obviously confident – arrogant – as Gary, though I didn't doubt that he still had quite an ego. He definitely wasn't as dense as Ash, at least, I hoped-

Ash.

My eyes widened and I halted mid-step.

Ash was still outside with Misty.

Making a quick decision, I pivoted on my heels and walked back in the direction I came from. Just a quick look, and after that, I'd be back for Paul.

Thinking back, I realized that I hadn't heard any yelling or bickering the whole evening, and upon that thought, I quickened my steps.

Silence was dangerous when it came to Ash and Misty. Yes, they could be silent for a little while, when they were busy staring each other down, but any longer than that, it usually meant that they were ignoring each other or that Ash was knocked out by Misty.

Neither was a favorable situation for any romance to happen.

Although, there was of course the possibility that they were silent because their mouths were, ah, otherwise preoccupied.

Yeah, right, I scoffed at that irrational part of me. That would be too much to hope for. Perhaps they were just having a nice, not-too-loud conversation – they were still best friends, after all.

As I entered the common room, I noted that Dawn was already gone from the common room, and when I told Leaf and Gary I was going to get a bit of fresh air, I was ignored in favor of the TV.

In the corridor that connected the common room with the deck was it quite a bit colder, and my eyes had to adjust a bit to the dimmed lighting. After passing a few closets, I climbed up the stairs that lead to the deck, and a gush of cold air greeted me when I opened the door. I shut the door quickly and quietly, standing still for a moment to take in the situation.

It was darker than I had expected. The moon and stars were hidden by clouds, and the few lights on the deck were not nearly enough to chase away the darkness. It was advantageous for me though, and hidden by the shadows, I swiftly moved towards the two silhouettes visible against the lighter backdrop of the sea. They were leaning against the railing, Pikachu perched on Ash's shoulder, and no conversation seemed to be going on.

Well, that was unusual. Both of them seemed comfortable with it, just staring at the sea, standing arm-to-arm. It was a sight that had me intrigued for a few minutes, but the cold and tiredness pressed for my attention more and more. Still, I continued to wait, but when after yet another five minutes still nothing had happened, I was seriously considering getting back.

Yes, seeing Ash and Misty together, being friendly and silent and not asleep, was indeed quite a sight, but the lack of action was boring. If they continued like this, I was going to go back inside, where it was warm and where I could sit.

"Hey Mist, do you wanna go back inside? It's getting pretty late..." Ash's voice broke through the silence, and my plans of leaving dissipated.

"No, no!" she said quickly, almost nervously. "I mean, you can go, but I'll just stay here for a bit longer..."

Ash too had caught the strange tone in her voice, and asked concerned, slightly hesitantly, "Are you okay, Misty?"

"Of course I'm okay!" Her response came just a bit too fast. "Why wouldn't I be?" A nervous laugh.

I definitely didn't believe her, and Ash didn't either. "You sure?"

"Yes!" she growled. "Now go inside and leave me alone, Ketchum."

Ash jumped back slightly from the aggressive tone in her voice, and I could see that his first instinct was to go and leave, but instead, he forced himself to stay.

"Misty..."

"Ash..."

While his voice had been filled with uncertain concern, his name had sounded more like a growl, and it was a definite warning that he should stop bothering her. I would've backed off by now, but Ash was too stubborn for his own good and pressed on.

"Are you coming inside later? You can't stay outside the whole night." At the sight of her annoyed face, he quickly backpedaled. "I mean, you can, obviously you can, but uh… It'll be getting cold, and what if it starts raining? I just… er…" He hesitated, before rushing the words out. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

And just like that, Misty's annoyance disappeared and she deflated. I smiled. Very impressive, even though I knew Ash didn't do it consciously. Misty just couldn't stay angry whenever he pulled the I'm-so-sweet-and-innocent-and-I-just-want-to-help-card. Because whenever he did that, he was truly, genuinely worried about her.

Misty let out a sigh, and leaned forward, resting her head against the railing. She muttered something, but I could only catch the last part, "...it's pathetic."

"It's not pathetic, everyone gets seasick," Ash quickly assured her.

"I'm not seasick," she snapped, before sighing. "Just... the sea is making it worse. It's worse inside than outside, so…"

Well, that explained a lot. Poor Misty. And it just had to happen when we were out on the sea. I prayed to Arceus that Ash wouldn't do something stupid.

"I'm sure you'll feel better tomorrow," he said, ignoring her snap at him. I nodded silently in approval – nothing stupid so far. For a while, they were silent, before Ash suddenly straightened up. If I had been closer, I didn't doubt that I would be able to see the light of an idea shining in his eyes.

"Wait here!" he told Misty enthusiastically, before turning around and running inside. I froze, but Ash fortunately didn't notice me standing in the shadows. I tried to sink even further in the shadows, praying that Misty, who was watching the door where Ash had disappeared through with a bemused expression, wouldn't see me either. After a moment, she shook her head, turning back to the sea, and I let out a breath I didn't know I had been holding.

Several minutes passed before the door opened again, revealing Ash, clutching something against his chest. Pikachu was sitting on top of whatever Ash was holding – a heap of colorful fabric? – and I breathed in sharply as the two passed me at less than three meters distance. But neither of them noticed me, too focused as they were on Misty.

"Ta-da!" Ash said happily, dropping the heap in front of Misty's feet as Pikachu jumped off. Before Misty could respond, Ash bent down and picked up something red. It unfolded and simultaneously with Misty I realized what it was: Misty's sleeping bag.

"Oh-"

"And I brought pillows too!" Ash said enthusiastically, pushing the sleeping bag in a shocked Misty's hands, before handing her a pillow as well, the other pillow clutched in his own hands.

"Here's a good place as any, right?" He didn't wait for Misty to reply, but plopped down and started to unroll the remaining piece of blue fabric on the ground, revealing it to be his own sleeping bag.

Misty stared at the pillow and sleeping bag in her hands, then glanced down at Ash, who was already settling in his own sleeping bag on the ground, Pikachu lying at his head.

"Well, are you going to lie down or not?" he asked her light-heartedly, situating the pillow properly under his head. "I'm pretty tired, you know, from standing there all the time."

A genuine smile broke out on her face, and Ash grinned widely in response, watching her as she placed her sleeping bag on the ground next to him.

"You really don't have to stay here, you know," Misty spoke in a soft voice, making herself comfortable in her sleeping bag and rearranging her pillow. "It's warmer inside."

"I know," he said simply, his voice now quieter as well. "But I want to."

Several beats of silence.

"Thanks, Ash."

"Anytime, Mist. 'Night."

"Goodnight."

A bit more shuffling was heard, and then there was silence. My eyes were wide with disbelief, and my cheeks started to hurt from grinning so much. I dared not to move for several minutes, afraid that I would alert them to my presence with skipping back inside, instead of the tiptoeing I needed to do.

This was huge progress. Huge. This moment right here reminded me why these two were so perfect for each other, and what I was doing this for. Ash had done it perfectly, and without any of my advice at all. I bet he hadn't even thought twice about his actions, he had just done what he thought was right. And well, that was Ash for ya – and I bet that Misty could see that as well.

I wasn't naïve enough to think it was all over now. In fact, it was probably far from over, with Gary and Leaf still in the game, and with our arrival in Hoenn nearing. But still, this gave me hope.

Ash's snores reached my ears and I recognized it as a sign that it was safe for me to go back now. I silently made my way back to the door, and when it was safely closed behind me, I breathed a sigh of relief.

That had gone way better than expected.

The warmth of the inside welcomed me as I entered the common room, finding Leaf and Gary still in front of the TV, but no longer watching. Instead, they were engaged in an animated conversation, and I hastily retreated, not wanting to disturb them.

Was it too much to hope that they were making progress as well? Probably, but I was still hoping.

It was only when I was faced with door leading to my assigned sleep cabin that I realized I wasn't done for today just yet.

I still had to talk to Paul. Well, if he was still awake, that is. I wouldn't be surprised if the teenager had already fallen asleep, with the long detour I had taken.

But that easy way out was squashed when I opened the door, with Paul sitting on his bed, not even looking up from his book as I entered.

I awkwardly lingered in the room, unsure how to proceed and pretending to be interested in something in my bag. I grabbed my toothbrush and fled to one of the small bathrooms, strategizing.

It was not easy to start a conversation with Paul, as he was definitely not the talkative type. Completely the opposite of Dawn in that aspect; it would be interesting to see how their relationship would play out. But as they say, opposites attract, don't they?

But that thought didn't help me with finding a way to approach the topic of Dawn with him. He was not interested in conversation, and I didn't need to be a fortuneteller to see that Paul would be even less interested in a conversation about his supposed crush on Dawn.

My mind raced through the ways I had worked with the others, briefly analyzing them before dismissing them. I couldn't pretend to be interested in Dawn, like I had done with Cilan – Paul was no friend of Dawn, and wouldn't feel protective of her. He would only feel jealous, if that, and I doubted he would confide in me. I couldn't pull a stunt like Dawn had done with Jessie and James, for obvious reasons. Any advice regarding romance I could give him would probably go ignored, and I had already figured that making him jealous would not help matters. Even if I told him that Dawn had supposedly a crush on someone, the most I would get out of it was confirmation whether he liked her or not, and even that wouldn't be easy – Paul was easily one of the most difficult persons to read.

This seemed like the biggest challenge so far, and that included Ash and his denseness.

No matter. I shook my head to force away those negative thoughts. I could do this. Paul didn't need to confide in me, he just needed to approach Dawn. He needed to see the possibility. I could do this.

I nodded confidently at my reflection. I just needed to mention the possibility to him and I had just the way for it.

The protective older brother approach.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized it would be a good idea. It would alert Paul to the possibility, while at the same time I was closing the possibility off for him. It would be a challenge.

Really, if you told someone they couldn't do something, the chance they would do it would at the very least double. And they would at the very least consider it.

Which was exactly what I needed Paul to do.

When I returned to the room, Paul was still in the same position, and I felt the slightest bit relieved. It would be a real letdown if I had returned, all ready for this, only to find him asleep. I puffed my chest out and squared my shoulders, before going to stand next to his bed, a stern look on my face.

He noticed my shadow falling on his book, and after a few moments, he turned his head, one eyebrow raised expectantly.

"Paul," I said, forcing as much seriousness and graveness I could muster in my voice. His eyes narrowed slightly at the tone of my voice, and I held his gaze, doing my best to look as threatening and intimidating as I could. "If you hurt her, I'll make sure you'll regret it."

Surprise flickered across his face – he had not expected me to say something like this – before his face held the usual indifferent expression again.

"I don't know what you're talking about." His voice didn't waver, and he held my stare a moment longer, before turning back to his book, a telltale sign that he thought this conversation over.

He was wrong.

"I think you do," I said slowly, and he looked up again, annoyance now visible in the frown on his face. I knew he knew what I was talking about, but I still decided clarify it for him anyway, otherwise he would undoubtedly keep dancing around the topic. "Dawn. She's like a little sister to me, and if you hurt her, you'll regret it. Severely."

He still didn't look away, but he shifted slightly in a more upright position. We both knew he was at a disadvantage, being seated, while I was towering over him. On that note, I squared my shoulders further, and leaned over the slightest bit.

"You're mistaken," he said, and I almost breathed a sigh of relief when I noticed the slight waver in his voice. "I have no interest in that girl."

"I doubt that," I said, now extra confidence from the previous observation leaking in.

"It's none of your business," he spat, his dark eyes narrowed in annoyance, his hands curling into fists.

I pretended to tense up even further, and leaned forwards, invading his personal space as I brought my face close to his.

"It is," I hissed, "because it's Dawn." I scrunched up my face even more – man, I was going to have cramp in my facial muscles tomorrow, how did Paul handle frowning all the time? – and added in a low voice. "Consider yourself warned."

I rose up again, confident Paul had gotten my message. Paul's eyes were spitting fire, a defiant scowl set on his face – he was not going to let me tell him what to do. Not at all. It didn't matter that he hadn't had any intention of pursuing Dawn, he was going to do as he wanted, and if that included pursuing Dawn, then so be it.

As I turned my back to Paul, picking up my pajamas from the bed to change, I hoped that those thoughts were now running through Paul's head. I doubted Paul would actively go after Dawn, but if the opportunity presented itself, I hoped that Paul would accept Dawn's offer to go have a drink somewhere. Or to have a normal conversation. Or, you know, tosmile.

Yes, this conversation had gone well. I flicked of the light, and in the semi-dark, made my way to the bed, both my and Paul's bed side lamps burning. As I got into bed, I realized it could've gone different as well. If Paul was purely out to spite me, he would take Dawn on a date and dump her after that. But I was counting on his pride and his common sense to save me from that scenario – it didn't seem like Paul at all. He was prideful and arrogant, but not intentionally out to hurt people.

There was also the possibility that I had intimidated him too much and that his fragile feelings for Dawn were now squashed away, in fear of retribution from me. I disregarded that scenario quickly – Paul's reaction just now didn't add up.

No, this could be considered a success, I congratulated myself. Paul would now be more receptive towards Dawn, and that should hopefully be enough to spur their relationship on. It would be a slow progress, but it would be progress and that was good enough.

I turned off my bedside light, and then finally allowed a huge grin to split my face. Today had been a success. A huge success.

"Goodnight, Paul," I said, maybe a bit more cheerfully than I should have.

He growled in response.

My grin widened. Ah, Brocko, I love being a matchmaker.

A/N: Thank you very much for reading! A long chapter, and I hope you guys liked the PokeShipping. I really liked writing this chapter, and though Paul was difficult, I hope he came out well. Please let me know what you thought about it! Press that little review button and make me very happy :D

Thank you!

Recommendations:

Pokémon: Unbelievable by Apheleia. ContestShipping! A sweet and funny one-shot, in which May and Drew beat all the clichés. Also, the accompanying piece, Uncomfortable, a LeafxGary one-shot, is very amusing as well.

Pokémon: Stupid Cupid by Amulet Misty. We all know Ash isn't the brightest bulb in the box when it comes to romance. But even he can see something is up between his two friends. A short collection of one-shots with Ash getting stuck in WishfulShipping situations. Funny and cute :D

Wreck-It Ralph: Ghost Boy by turbomun. A pretty amazing multi-chaptered story that puts the villain of the movie in a different light. A heart-warming story that I really recommend; features the other main characters as well, of course. And it's complete!

Let me know if you have any stories you'd want me to recommend!