A/N: So… it's been almost a year… But look, here's another chapter! Thank you to all of those who are still reading! Obviously this huge gap was not the original plan… Initially, I got lost in planning and participating in NaNoWriMo, then I was busy with school and having a social life (be warned, all you single people out there, having a relationship costs more time than you expect :P), then were was graduating and moving houses, and now I'm working and finally all settled, so hopefully I'll have more time for my writing again. I'm planning on having weekly updates again, but we'll see how that goes. Again, thank you to all of the people who are still following this story, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

To Nutellagirl: Thank you for your reviews, and I'm sorry it took so long, but if you are still reading, here's another IkariShipping chapter ;)

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or the picture used as cover (though I did edit it).

Days

The day roofs fly

Paul

Wednesday, January 22nd

"It's fine, it's fine, it's fine," Reggie said, trying to soothe the upset Emolga in his arms. For a moment Paul watched him from the doorway, his brother sitting cross-legged amongst a bunch of Pokémon, before he spoke up.

"All the Pokémon are accounted for," he said. "Most are in their 'Balls, but a few wanted to stay outside. Torterra is keeping an eye on them. And I made sure to tie up the Blitzle."

"Thanks so much, Paul," Reggie said. "That Blitzle would just keep running after the storm otherwise and the owner wouldn't be very happy with that."

A thunderclap sounded and the Emolga let out a shriek and a burst of electricity, causing Reggie and the two Smoochum sitting close to jump.

"Oh, don't worry, don't worry, it's fine." Reggie quickly continued rocking the Emolga, while patting the two Smoochum with his other hand.

"Seriously, Paul, thanks, I really couldn't leave the babies here alone. The storm is only getting worse, and especially the electric types…" He cooed at Emolga, who snuggled close to him.

"Elekid seems fine," Paul said, nodding to the Pokémon that was running around the room.

Reggie smiled. "She's just excited. Normally I'd let her outside, but with this wind… I'm not gonna risk her being blown away and getting hurt."

Paul nodded, and then ran a hand through his slightly damp hair. He had worn a raincoat when he'd rounded up the Pokémon, but not even that could keep away all the water. It was an unexpected storm that had started out as a drizzle very early in the morning, but had quickly turned into a right downpour with strong winds as the day progressed, and now, at two in the afternoon, thunder and lightning made the spectacle complete.

"Did you hear anything from the Tournament?" Reggie asked.

Paul shook his head. "Nothing, but I highly doubt they're going to continue in this weather. I messaged Dawn, but I haven't gotten a response yet."

The Second Round was supposed to start today – double battles, randomly chosen whether it was going to be competitive or Contest style – and though his own battle hadn't been slated for today, he'd still planned some training with Dawn and May.

"Hm, that's too bad," Reggie said. "But you're probably right about the Tournament, it just isn't safe to go out in this kind of weather, let alone battle."

Paul hummed in response, while Reggie cooed to Emolga, who had quieted down somewhat.

"Is there anything else I can do to help?" Paul asked.

"No, thanks, Paul." Reggie shook his head. "If you'd occasionally look through the window to check on the Pokémon outside, that'd be great, but I trust Torterra will do a good job."

"She loves this kind of weather," Paul said, smiling a bit. Torterra enjoyed a good rain shower once in a while, and this storm definitely counted as one. Plus, the lightning couldn't hurt her, and the wind would have to be really strong to blow his tank away.

"But I'll keep an eye on them," Paul added. "I'm going to check if there's any news. Good luck with the babies."

"No problem, and thanks, Paul!" Reggie called while Paul was already walking away.

Paul went to the living room and turned on the TV; at least they still had electricity, though he wouldn't be surprised if that went down at some point today. He glanced out of the windows; he could see the silhouettes of the Pokémon in the strange darkness of the day, all still there.

He checked his phone, but there were no new messages. Paul walked back to the TV and was unsurprised to see the news featuring the storm right now; apparently it was a huge, unexpected thing that was covering whole eastern Sinnoh. Maybe it was a good thing it was relatively warm, otherwise there would've also been hail and snow-

The doorbell rang. And kept ringing, as if the person outside was afraid it wouldn't be heard over the rain and the thunder.

Which was not a strange thought, because it took Paul a moment to realize it was indeed the doorbell he was hearing, and he hurried to the door.

Who the hell was outside with this kind of weather?

Paul opened the door and was somehow not surprised to find a thoroughly soaked Dawn on the other side. However, the group of equally soaked people behind her did surprise him.

"Uh, hi," Dawn said, and then jumped right into it. "We need your help."

Paul stepped away from the door opening and Dawn entered, standing close to him so the other people could pass.

"What's going on?" He closed the door behind the last one, and about ten people of varying ages stood in the hallway, dripping water on the parquet floor. None of the faces rang a bell, though some did seem vaguely familiar.

"The storm destroyed our barrack," Dawn said, taking off her hood, though her hair seemed wet all the same. "Lighting struck and then the roof was blown off. Two people had to be taken to the hospital with minor injuries, and three Pokémon are now recovering in the Pokémon Center. We and the others from that barrack had to find shelter elsewhere. There were some places in other barracks, and the Pokémon Center and the Gym had some space, as did a hotel, but many places are already full because of the Tournament…" She smiled a bit helplessly. "So Cynthia hoped that the Breeding Center would also be able to take in some people."

Somehow, Paul had to wonder if it really had been Cynthia's idea. Then he turned his mind to more practical matters.

"Right," he said, scanning the group and counting the heads. "Right. You're with eleven persibs, right?"

"Yes," Dawn said, while others in the group also made agreeing sounds.

"Is anyone injured? Any Pokémon hurt?" he asked.

"Not that I know," Dawn said, her answer echoed by the rest.

"Alright, good," Paul said, his mind going over the possibilities. Four in the guest rooms, two in Reggie's room, two in his… They did have some air mattresses, he believed, and his own sleeping bag, and the couch had place for two…

"Dawn, go tell Reggie what's going on, he's in the Pokémon room," Paul said. "My sleeping bag is in my room, but you should ask Reggie where we keep the air mattresses."

"Alright," she said, nodding quickly. Then she shot him a quick smile. "Thanks a lot, Paul, I knew we could count on you."

Fortunately she was already off to find Reggie, so he didn't have to formulate a response to that.

"You ten," Paul called loudly to the group, which had started chattering as he and Dawn had discussed the situation. "Take off any extra clothes you can miss, and leave your bags and stuff here, and then come to the living room."

Even as he was saying that, Paul noted that most people didn't have much with them. Only one was holding a bag, and two people weren't even wearing proper coats.

Paul led the way to the living room, and then released his Magmortar and Honchkrow.

"Magmortar, heat up the room. Honchkrow, I want you to kick up some wind, to blow-dry these people," Paul said.

The Pokémon did as instructed and the combination of the hot air and wind turned into quite an efficient way of blow-drying. After the people were no longer shivering and dripping water everywhere, Paul told Magmortar and Honchkrow to work on drying the clothes and other things the people had left in the hallway.

"Now, find a place to sit and rest, I'm going to boil water for tea and get some blankets," Paul said to his unexpected guests. They nodded and muttered their thanks and Paul watched for a moment to see if they could all squeeze on the couch and the chairs. Seeing that it all fit, Paul went to the kitchen to put on the water, and then went upstairs to look for blankets.

Paul came across Reggie in one of the guest rooms, where Reggie was pulling out the air mattresses out of one of the closets.

"What a disaster," Reggie said. "The Stadium and a barrack destroyed…"

"The Stadium, too?" Paul asked, while moving next to Reggie to pull out the blankets.

"Dawn said so. Still, it might not be as bad as it looked…" Reggie tried to stay positive. "Anyway, eleven people, plus us…" Reggie pulled out the last air mattress. "That makes four air mattresses, if they're all still whole, that is."

"It'll fit," Paul said, nodding. "We have my sleeping bag, too. Four beds in the guest rooms…"

"A double bed in my room, your single bed… That makes twelve…"

"And the couch has space for two, so that makes fourteen, more than enough," Paul said, nodding again. Then he frowned. "Where's Dawn?"

"I left her with the baby Pokémon," Reggie said. "I'm going to check if these air mattresses are still usable, and then I'll start on cooking something warm."

"I'll do the air mattresses, you bring them the blankets and then start cooking," Paul said, holding out the blankets.

"I already put on water for tea," he added when Reggie took the blankets and handed him the air mattresses.

"Good thinking," Reggie said. "The pump is in the other closet, I believe."

"I'll find it," Paul assured him, and Reggie went downstairs. The pump was indeed in the other closet, and after he had distributed the air mattresses over the guest rooms, he and Electivire took turns in using it to pump up the air mattresses.

"We'll give it half an hour and then check on them," Paul told Electivire, who nodded. "Thanks for the help," he said, and then recalled the Pokémon.

When Paul came downstairs, he found that Reggie had taken charge over the group of barrack refugees. Most of them were watching TV or talking amongst themselves, wrapped up in blankets or thick clothes and holding cups of tea. The spirits seemed significantly higher than before, and Paul nodded in satisfaction. Reggie was good at this kind of stuff.

His brother was in the kitchen, cutting up vegetables with the help of a middle-aged woman.

"Everything going alright here?" Paul asked.

Reggie half turned to look at him. "Perfect! Everyone seems to have settled in for now and Mitzie here is helping me with dinner, so things are going pretty well." The woman turned to smile at Paul, her lilac braid swinging over her shoulder.

"Good to hear," Paul said, nodding in greeting at Mitzie.

"How are the air mattresses?" Reggie asked.

"No big holes, it seems. I put them in the guest bedrooms, but we'll have to wait and see if they'll stay inflated," Paul said.

Reggie nodded, smiling contently. "Great! Then everything is working out so far." He frowned a bit. "Did someone already contact Cynthia or someone else from the Tournament to tell them?"

Paul didn't know, and he looked at Mitzie questioningly, who answered promptly, "If anyone did it or knew who did it, it'd be Dawn. She was the one who came up with this location and took the lead."

"Is she still with the baby Pokémon?" Paul asked, and in response Reggie slapped his own forehead.

"Yes, she is, I should go check on her, I left them alone long enough," Reggie said, already taking off his apron, but his motions were interrupted when a pan started boiling. He hurried to the stove to take care of it, with Mitzie watching worriedly.

"I'll go," Paul offered. "You should stay with the food. I know how to take care of the Pokémon."

"Well, yes, but Mitzie can watch the food, right?"

Mitzie's smile was hesitant but she nodded anyway. "Sure!"

Reggie seemed torn, and Paul said, "Just stay here, Reggie, I'll do it."

He didn't give his brother another chance to protest, and simply left the kitchen. On his way to the Pokémon room, he looked out of the windows to check on the Pokémon outside, which all still seemed present and well.

The door to the Pokémon room was open and Paul could hear Dawn humming and talking to the baby Pokémon. He walked in and Dawn turned to look at him from her position on the ground.

"Hey, Paul. How are the others doing? Do you think it'll fit? Sorry that I brought them all here, but we needed somewhere to go and I just thought that it'd work out, you know," she rambled, and then laughed sheepishly. "But I don't mind helping here and I'm sure the others don't, either. See, the Pokémon are calm, only Elekid stays restless," she added, gesturing to still pacing electric type.

Paul let the words flow over him as he stared at her. She had Emolga in her lap, who was warily watching him, but Paul didn't pay much attention to that. He was looking at Dawn, still in her wet clothes, with make-up that was somewhat smeared and her damp hair curling in different directions.

"Are you stupid?" Paul said the first thing that came to mind, and Dawn immediately seemed affronted. "Why are you still in your wet clothes?" That came out slightly better, but he didn't wait on a response, turning and stalking back to the kitchen.

"Mitzie, could you watch the food for a moment?" Paul asked as soon he entered the kitchen, making the woman and Reggie look up in surprise.

"Uh, sure!"

"Do you need my help, Paul?" Reggie asked with a stern glance in his direction, trying to make the interruption sound less rude.

"Yes," he said shortly, ignoring Reggie's look. Why had she not told Reggie that she needed dry clothes first? Did she want to catch pneumonia? And why hadn't Reggie said anything? Why hadn't he thought of this sooner?

Paul walked back to the Pokémon room, confident that Reggie would follow him, and soon he heard his brother's footsteps behind him.

"Well, you can't just leave like that-" Dawn started angrily as soon as he came into view, but stopped when she saw Reggie.

"Reggie, watch the Pokémon. Dawn, come with me," he directed, but Dawn only crossed her arms. Reggie scanned the room, looking for whatever disaster needed him to come so quickly, but upon finding none, he looked at Paul questioningly.

"Dawn needs dry clothes," Paul said when it became obvious neither of them understood the situation. Was he the only sensible person here?

"Oh," Reggie said. "Oh." He suddenly sounded full of understanding and had an odd smile on his face. "Of course. I'll stay here with the Pokémon, and you can help Dawn."

Ignoring Reggie's overly happy smile, Paul nodded and gestured for Dawn to get up. She did so, slowly and looking a bit confused, and when she stood, she handed the Emolga to Reggie.

"Come on," Paul said, stepping out of the Pokémon room and waiting for Dawn to follow.

"I can take care of myself, you know," Dawn said, frowning, though she followed him anyway.

Which was a fair point. He should just point her to the bathroom and tell her where to find the towels, and that'd be enough. Still, he found himself leading the way upstairs and he opened the bathroom door for her.

"Towels are in the left cabinet," he said, sounding gruff even to his own ears. He cleared his throat and added in a softer voice, "I'll get you some clothes."

He stalked to his own bedroom, feeling frustrated for some reason, and getting more frustrated because he couldn't understand why he was feeling frustrated in the first place. He grabbed an old T-shirt and a pair of pajama pants from the back of his closet; he hardly wore that one, since it was too tight around the waist.

Paul returned with the clothes and Dawn had already found herself a towel and was drying her hair, which was now standing in all directions.

"Here," Paul said before Dawn could speak up, shoving the clothes in her hands.

"Thanks-"

A flash of lightning lit up the room, followed almost immediately by a loud clap of thunder.

"Don't shower," Paul said.

Dawn pulled a face. "I know that, I'm not stupid."

Of course she knew that, she had travelled on her own long enough to know what to do or not to do during a storm. He didn't know what had compelled him to say that; it wasn't as if he wanted to pick a fight, but somehow everything he said came out wrong.

"Sorry," he said, though it came out more mumbled than he had intended. "Sorry," he repeated. "I'll go downstairs now."

He was about to flee the situation but stopped when Dawn suddenly smiled brightly. "Thank you, Paul."

Paul blinked and then nodded once, surprised but glad that things were finally going right. "Right. Uh, see you later."

"Alright, see you later," Dawn said, still smiling.

Paul smiled back, feeling a bit strange, and then quickly walked downstairs. It was only when he was halfway back to the Pokémon room that he realized he could've just had his Pokémon blow-dry Dawn.

A/N: Thank you very much for reading! I had fun writing this, so I hope you liked it :D And the Tournament is a bit postponed now, so the poll will stay open a bit longer (like it hasn't been open for months or something *sweatdrop*). Anyway, here's to hoping that the next update will be quicker, thank you very much for reading, and please vote and review!

Thank you!

Recommendation:

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