Amber.
Later.
"Amber Lynn, what do you mean, 'this happens sometimes'? Before you ran away and blatantly disobeyed me, he was always healthy with energy to spare."
Naturally, my father grilled me when he got home. Why did Momma have to go blabbing?
I looked down at my feet. "He just...sometimes, Astro just tries doing too much," I explained helplessly. "More than he can handle, an-and he...he just gets...tired. It's been going on for...a while...Daddy..."
The situation started looking a lot bleaker than I'd imagined. I started considering spending the night at the Pokemon Center.
Daddy sighed heavily, running his hand nervously through his hair.
"I'm going to have to have a talk with you," He muttered. "Along, serious talk, after dinner. Do you hear me?"
I nodded sadly at my feet. "Yessir." Riley was still in my bedroom; Momma had the boys in the backyard, where they were playing with Daisy. I was alone with Daddy.
Daddy shook his head, turning back to the door. "Teenagers," He grumbled. "Tell your mother that I'm going back to work."
I watched him go out the door, and turned tail to the hall. I thundered into my bedroom, slamming the door shut.
Riley, sitting on my bed, jumped. "Jesus Christ, Amber!"
Ignoring him, I pulled out my Pokegear and dialed the first number in my contacts.
"Hello? Deadra here."
"Dee, where are you guys?" I paced the floor.
She thought for a moment. "Over by the park where the meteorites are," She answered carefully. "Amb, you sound upset."
"I am upset," I huffed.
"What's the matter?"
I shook my head. "Think you guys could stay there for a bit? Me and Riley'll meet you."
In the background, I heard her consult the others. "Uh...sure," She answered. "Are you okay?"
"Just peachy."
"Dammit, Amber Daniels, don't be sarcas-"
A bit rudely, I hung up on her, and turned to Riley. "C'mon, Riles. We're meeting Dee and the others."
Riley nodded, a bit of uncertainty in his eyes. "A-alright," He answered. Astro stirred, and he lowered his voice. "What did you and your da-"
"I'll tell you later." I grabbed his wrist, and pulled him behind me. "Come on."
Tess.
Later.
Flint whistled loudly. "He really blames you for it? Jeez-um. Talk about crappy parenting."
I nibbled at my ice cream cone. "Typical for Mr. Cyrus," I muttered. "Michelle's his favorite, even though she's only three."
Amber and Riley found us in Veilstone Park, looking at the meteors there, eating ice cream. They were bigger than houses. The meteors, not the ice cream cones.
Amber pouted. "Yeah," She agreed. "And it sucks! So, Astro has something going on neither of us can do anything about, and it's my fault! He lets Max and Michelle get away with murder, and it's a load of bull!"
"You could have phoned home." Leave it to Volkner to be the voice of reason in family matters. "I mean, your dad genetically engineered Astro in his lab. I'm pretty sure he would have appreciated hearing about Astro's physical condition."
Silence. Amber squinted her golden eyes at him, grumbling, "You really don't talk like a kid, Volkie."
"He's right," Flint pointed out. "Whatever he said, it makes sense.
"Don't go lecturing Amber," Dee chided them. "Her Riolu might have something wrong with him, and her dad's being a dick about it!"
"There's nothing wrong with Astro," Amber insisted. "He...He's a tough little guy. He was just doing too much, trying to impress Max's bratty friend."
All of us heard Amber's voice falter; she was lying, to us and to herself. Riley shifted his weight uncomfortably in the silence.
"H-hey, where'd you guys get the ice cream?" He asked, deftly changing the subject. "Amber and I skipped lunch, so I'm starving."
Dee nodded, understanding his discomfort. "There's a stand, not too far from here," She answered. "Why don't we all go back and get them some?"
Volkner nodded. "Best idea all day," He agreed with Dee. "I'll buy."
I took another dainty nibble at my ice cream, glancing from Amber to Riley to my sister.
I used to be so in tune with Amber and Dee, so why wasn't I the one to suggest we go back for Amber and Riley?
"Wait 'til you hear about how Tess won her gym battle today," Flint was teling them, changing the subject as we began walking. "Her Machop and Sneasel were monsters on the battlefield!"
Amber.
That Night, After Dinner.
Momma made spaghetti for dinner that night, but Astro was still resting, so he wasn't there to beg for scraps under the table. There was a hole in the atmosphere that no one could fill.
Daddy made some stern fatherly eye contact with me as everyone got up to put their plates in the sink, but I narrowly avoided his serious father-daughter talk.
"I'm gonna wash the dishes tonight," I announced.
Momma raised a pale eyebrow. "But, it's your brother's turn," She told me.
I glanced at my friends; Riley bit the inside of his cheek, and Dee rolled her eyes. Max, sitting next to Momma, still looked upset.
"Max has had a pretty rough day," I answered, using a thinly veiled lie. "Besides, he's so short, he can hardly reach the sink."
Max's face flushed pink. "Hey! I ain't short!"
I absolutely refused to let anyone else wash dishes that night, because I wanted to avoid what Daddy wanted to talk with me about. Because it was going to be unpleasant andmake me feel guilty.
And, let me tell you, washing the dishes alone is an act of charity on spaghetti night. Seven year olds like Max was have no clue how to eat neatly.
{Amber...dammit, remember who you're sitting next to.}
Well...anyway, yeah, the dishes were disgusting to wash. Took a half hour before I was done.
I walked out to the living room, where Daddy was. Riley and Dee were sitting on the foldaway bed, Riley reading one of those journals, and Dee taking her hair down.
"I'm gonna go ahead and go to bed, you guys." I thought that maybe Daddy had forgotten...
"Wait, Amber. I need to speak with you."
Damn! I guess it can't wait. I slumped my shoulders, and continued to my bedroom. Daddy followed.
As I turned around, I saw Dee look up to see me go, and she had a concerned look on her face. Riley was too engrossed in his reading to even acknowledge the world.
This, I thought, is gonna suck.