AN: More Hoennshipping! Probably the longest one-shot I've ever written, and maybe the longest one I'll ever write. Well, this was pretty fun to write. I have more ideas for other shippings, which I may attempt to write. We'll see! Also, I noticed I tend to write with May as the protagonist. I'll try switching it around in the future ~

May

1. Brendan was a total dork, but she loved that. He always insisted on wearing his weird white hat (even though she thought he looked better without it), and he even slept with it. May couldn't figure out why, though.

The lights dimmed in the theatre, and the spotlights turned on, turning to the stage. May was on the edge of her seat in excitement, wanting to see Brendan's outfit. She was watching his contest performance, and he'd kept his outfit a surprise from her, saying that she'd have to watch to find out.

The lights shone down on four contestants, three random people she didn't know first, and then Brendan. She gasped out upon seeing him.

He wasn't wearing his hat!

His stupid, weird, white hat that he always insisted on wearing. Personally, she thought he looked way better without it, but he never listened. He even slept with his hat on.

May watched the rest of the contest in a daze. All she could think was that Brendan wasn't wearing his hat. He ended up getting second place, and once the contest ended she ran to meet him outside.

"Brendan!" she called out, seeing her friend walk out of the changing rooms. He was back in his normal outfit, with his hat back on. "You did awesome! And you looked really nice without your hat on!"

He grinned sheepishly. "Really? Thanks."

"How come you always wear your hat?" she went on. "I mean, you never take it off, really."

Brendan looked embarrassed. "I just don't feel safe without it." He pulled his hat over his eyes as he talked, as if in attempt to hide.

May laughed and rolled her eyes. "Okay, if you insist."

But really, he did look better without it.

2. He was selfless and brave, something she'd come to discover. True, he was moody at times, and annoying, but he'd fought among side her many times. She didn't know what she would've done on her journey without him. He was always willing to go out and help other people in need.

May stepped out of the Pokemon Center in Fallarbor Town, clutching her pokeballs. She was looking forward to doing some training, before challenging Flannery. She hummed as she walked along, and bumped into someone. It was Brendan.

"May! Thank Arceus you're here!" he cried. May's eyes widened in concern as she noticed how distressed her friend looked. "Everything's a mess! Come with me," he added quickly, grabbing her hand, and pulling her along to a house.

It turned out to be Professor Cozmo's house, and the professor's wife met them inside. Brendan started by explaining, "It's ridiculous...Professor Cozmo was kidnapped by these people calling themselves Team Something or other..."

"They called themselves Team Magma," added the professor's wife. She looked very worried. "I believe they plan to do something with the meteorite the professor was researching. The professor is just too gullible. If you show the least bit of interest in his work, he'll happily go with you to explain."

"I can't just stand by and let those people use his work for corrupt reasons!" Brendan exclaimed, looking over at May. "We've gotta go help him. I'm off to Meteor Falls. Catch up to me when you can!"

And he was off. Wow. May was quite a bit impressed by how willing he was to help. It wasn't his problem - he could've just walked away without risking his life, but he didn't. May quickly thanked the professor's wife, and promised her that they'd bring the professor back. Then she quickly headed out, desperate to catch up to Brendan.

3. May ended up finding out that Brendan liked Pokedolls, and she found it really cute. Since the time they'd met at Lilycove City, and he'd insisted he hadn't been buying dolls, May had been intent on finding out if he actually had been buying them or not. Later on, she discovered a secret collection of Pokedolls in his room. She couldn't help teasing him for many weeks afterward.

"I'm going to the bathroom. I'll be right back," May said, a sudden idea appearing in her head. Brendan just shrugged.

She quickly headed up the stairs, and stopped at the top, listening. Good, he wasn't following her. If this worked out...she grinned devilishly, and tip-toed to his bedroom. The door was half open, and she carefully pushed it open. She stepped inside, and began looking around.

May was absolutely sure Brendan liked Pokedolls, but that he'd always been hiding it from her. Now, she was going to find out. She crept around his room, peeking behind his furniture, checking under his bed, and lastly, tip-toed to his closet. She slowly pulled open the door, and almost laughed out loud in delight.

Aha! There they were. Two shelves of Pokedolls, all lined up neatly and in order. She spotted several Swablu Pokedolls, and an Altaria Pokedoll with a tag saying "Limited Edition!" May giggled quietly to herself, and shut the closet door.

She headed back down the stairs. Brendan who was lying on the couch eating popcorn, with the movie that they were watching paused. He grumbled as she sat down beside him. "Finally, you took forever."

May grinned a devilish grin. "So, Brendan...Pokedolls, huh?"

"W-what?" he stuttered, suddenly looking embarrassed. "What do you mean? Have y-you been peeking - May!"

She giggled, but didn't reply. She was enjoying watching Brendan's face turn shades of red.

4. He was always there for her. Whether it was supporting her while she went to face Primal Groudon, or cheering her on for a gym battle, he was always there behind her, a friend she could confide in, a person who would always listen to her troubles.

"May!"

She turned around, hearing the cry, to see Brendan running towards her. He looked out of breath, and began taking really quickly.

"When I saw you on BuzzNav, May, all I could think of was coming to help," he said, panting. "You don't know how glad I am to see you in one piece."

May smiled at her best friend, and replied, "And I promise you I'll stay in one piece."

She felt so happy that he had come - he was the one person she'd choose to have most with her right now. Even if she was doing her task alone, him being there to support her made her feel much braver.

"I know there's nothing much I can do, but I..." Brendan paused. May swore she could see him blushing - or was that just a trick of the light? Sunburn maybe, from the harsh sunlight? "I'll always be right there behind you...because you're my best friend, May," he finished, looking serious.

Warmth swept through her body, and her grin widened. "I'm proud to call you my best friend, Brendan."

The boy grinned, and stepped forward to embrace her. May blinked in surprise, but returned the hug, feeling her own cheeks warm. There was a murmur of "aw" from around them by the adults, and Brendan broke apart the hug.

"Good luck, May," he added, and stepped back.

5. Brendan was a pretty good cook and baker, who May could always rely on. She was a terrible chef, so his talents matched up perfectly. If she wanted some food, she could just turn to him. He made great cookies, cake, and various meals.

"You never told me you could cook," May grumbled to Brendan, as she watched him fry an omelette in her kitchen. "There were so many times on our journey when I was tired of that food the pokemon centers have to offer, and you never offered to cook."

Brendan looked back at her, smirking. "Maybe that was because I didn't want to cook for you."

She punched him lightly on his shoulder, grinning, gently enough so that it wouldn't hurt, but hard enough to send him the message. "Jerk."

"Hey, watch it. If you keep punching me and talking, I'll eat this omelette by myself and I won't make another one for you," said Brendan, shrugging and looking nonchalant.

That was enough to shut May up - she was extremely hungry. With a sigh, she seated herself nearby, watching as he moved the omelette from the pan, and onto a dish. The smell of the omelette reached her from where she sat, and her stomach growled loudly.

"Did you hear something, May?" Brendan asked innocently. He set the second omelette onto a plate, and smirked.

She scowled. "So, can we eat now?"

Brendan handed one of the omelettes to her, and sat down to eat his own. Without hesitating, May picked up hers and took a big bite.

It was just the right bit of salty, and tasted like heaven. She took another bite, and within a minute, had finished it off.

"How do you like it?" Brendan asked her, grinning his cocky grin. "Am I a good cook or not?'

She would never admit to to him, but he was a really good cook.

6. He was actually really sweet, though he did seem very arrogant. On the Valentines Day after she'd saved the world from the meteor, she woke up that morning to hear someone knocking at the door. And guess who she'd found standing at the door, holding a box of chocolates and blushing?

The sound of a knock on the door woke May up.

She yawned and rolled over in bed, checking the time. 10:02. She'd overslept, again. She sat up in bed, putting her slippers and pajamas on, and hurried down the stairs.

There was another knock, and May called out, "Coming!" as she rushed to the door. Who could it be? It was Valentines Day, yes, but she didn't know why anyone would knock at the door...unless...

She opened the door to see Brendan standing there, holding something behind his back. He looked strangely shy, and very red in the face. May's heart started jumping, and she cursed herself for not looking nicer.

Brendan coughed. "You, uh, look nice."

She laughed. "I just rolled out of bed. So, what's up?"

He blushed, and looking at his feet, held out the thing he was holding behind his back to her. "Um...happy Valentines Day."

May took it, and saw it was a box of chocolates. A grin slowly made its way onto her face, and she thought to herself, 'it's taken you all this time to make a move, huh?' So she leaned forward and kissed him. Simple as that.

She saw his eyes widen, but then he was kissing her back, and nothing else mattered in that moment.

Needless to say, it was the best Valentines Day May had ever had.

7. He had a sense of humour, and she loved it though he didn't make very good jokes. (On the contrary, he made pretty bad ones.) But they were funny, even if it was in a "it's so bad it's funny" way.

"Here we are, Petalburg City!" May grinned.

Brendan smirked at her. "Don't get too excited. There's nothing much to do here, except visit your dad."

May frowned. "Yeah, visit him, but can't I fight him as well?"

She was excited to show her dad that she'd become a trainer, and see how strong his pokemon were. Her dad had always been her role model.

"You can't, yet," he said, trying to sound experienced. "You have to have four -"

"Why not?" May interrupted him, feeling slightly angry. Why couldn't she? He was her father, and she should be able to choose who she wanted to fight. Brendan shrugged and said innocently, "Wobbuffet."

May frowned, and her brows furrowed. What? Wobbuffet? What in the world did that have to do with her question? She saw Brendan's grin widen, and it looked like he was struggling not to laugh. Then it came to her.

"Wow, really clever, Mr. Birch," she said sarcastically. "Wynaut, Wobbuffet...haha. You should be a comedian someday."

He bowed in mock appreciation. "Thank you."

She hit him in the shoulder, gently enough to show him she didn't mean it. "Come on. Let's go already, slowpoke."

"I'm afraid you're slower than me, SlowKING." He responded, giving her another grin. "Get it? King of slowness, Slowking? Slowking, an evolution of Slowpoke?"

"Never mind, you'd make a terrible comedian."

8. It seemed silly, but his grin. It was bold, cocky, and yes, slightly arrogant, but something about it made May's heart flutter against her will. She had tried many times to convince herself not to fall for him, but it never worked.

"So you have four gym badges now, right?" Brendan questioned her, looking curious. They had just set out from Lavaridge Town, heading to Petalburg City for her next gym battle.

May took out her badge case and opened it up, showing him her newly acquired Heat Badge. "Yep!" she replied with a grin. "What about you, Brendan?"

He hesitated for a second, and said with a cheeky grin, "That's for me to know, and for you to find out."

"Oh come on!" May protested, laughing. But she couldn't help noticing how...how cute his grin was. Something about it was just...it made her feel funny.

'No!' she thought to herself. 'It's just Brendan, your rival and annoying neighbour. His grin isn't cute, it's cocky, arrogant, and mischievous. Do NOT fall for him, May Maple. Not over a stupid grin, you idiot.'

"You'll find out," Brendan said, shrugging. "Sometime."

"I bet you're not telling me because you have less than me," she teased him, grinning. "Did you fight Flannery yet?"

He looked flustered, but quickly put on his signature grin again. "Maybe I'm not telling you because I have more than you, and I don't want you to feel bad."

"Yeah right," May said, poking him. Oh, she could look at his grin all day.

9. How flustered he got when he was embarrassed. His cheeks would redden and he would start stammering, and it was so different from his usual cheeky grin and confident attitude. She found it, like many other things about him, adorable.

May was silent, but focused on the meteor show. The Litleonids were absolutely beautiful, just like people had said they were. Her eyes were wide in awe and amazement, transfixed on them.

"They're beautiful," said Brendan from beside her, and she glanced over at him. His eyes were wide too, and as she turned she caught him peeking at her. But he quickly turned away once she met his gaze, his cheeks a light pink. May felt a fluttery feeling in her chest, and simply responded, "Yeah. They really are."

They fell silent again, until the last of the Litleonids fell from the sky.

"I'm really gonna have to thank your dad for this one," Brendan said, turning to look over at her with a grin. "I'm really glad I got to see them with you."

She grinned back. "And I'm glad I got to see them with you."

His cheeks flushed, and this made her giggle, causing his cheeks to turn an even darker shade of red. "What's s-so funny?" he stuttered, sounding very different from his usual, confident self. He pulled his hat over his eyes, which seemed to be a habit he'd developed when he was embarrassed.

May couldn't help giggling again, and she responded innocently, "Nothing."

"M-May!" Brendan protested, still hiding underneath his hat.

10. Brendan was an absolute nerd. He would often ramble on about random pokemon facts and trivia without knowing he was rambling, and at first it made her super annoyed. She ended up later on thinking it was funny, but cute of him too.

"Urgh!" May exclaimed in frustration. "Why can't I find a Vulpix?"

She'd been looking for ages (or, what felt like ages) outside Mount Pyre in hopes of catching one, but she hadn't seen a single one. As far as she knew, Vulpix weren't too rare, but they weren't too common either. But to have seen not a single one - come on!

"Maybe shouting isn't the best way to find one," said a voice from behind her, and she jumped in surprise. Behind her stood Brendan, who stepped towards her with his signature grin. "Having trouble?"

"You could say so," May muttered, turning back to the tall grass. "I haven't seen a single Vulpix since I first arrived."

"Well, Vulpix have an estimated encounter rate of fifteen percent, so they're kinda rare," said Brendan, looking thoughtful. "You can also meet them in hordes, but that's really rare. Did you know they have an average weight of 21.8 pounds? And that their height is about 0.6 metres?"

"Yeah, yeah, great to know," she mumbled, not really listening. "Thanks, Brendan."

"Seventy five percent of Vulpix are females," he added eagerly. "Vulpix can have the ability Flash Fire, but some have the hidden ability Drought. I've always wanted one of those."

She didn't respond, and instead tuned him out as she kept looking.

"They're number #160 in Hoenn's Pokedex," Brendan rambled on. "Vulpix have flames in their bodies that never go out, and they can manipulate fire to expel flames."

He paused, seeing that May hadn't answered, and was still running around in the tall grass. "May? Did you get that all? Well, if you didn't, Vulpix are -"

"I HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME, BRENDAN!"

"Be careful, shouting might scare the Vulpix away," called Brendan, smirking. From her spot in the tall grass, May scowled and muttered to herself, "Your rambling probably already did."

Brendan

1. Her eyes and her smile. Damn those eyes, they were so beautiful and blue, so easy to get lost in. When they bickered, he'd often forget what he was going to say, because he'd get lost in her sapphire eyes. And he couldn't say how much he loved that devilish smile, it was intimidating, but also extremely cute.

"Excuse me, but you clearly stated yesterday that you'd let me battle Roxanne first!"

"When did I say that? I said you could battle Brawly first, and I'd battle Roxanne first!"

The two brunette trainers stood facing each other in front of Roxanne's gym in Rustboro City. May had her hands on her hips, and Brendan was crossing his arms.

"Oh yeah? Well, how about you battle Brawly first, and I battle Roxanne first? What difference does it make?" May said, scowling. "Why does it matter?"

"It matters because I'm really excited for my first gym battle!" he responded.

"Well, so am I! Have you ever thought about that?"

Brendan glared back, meeting her eyes. "Yeah, but still, I..." his voice trailed off as he suddenly realized how pretty her eyes were. He'd never really noticed that before. They were a beautiful shade of sapphire blue, and looked like crystals. Wow. They were amazing.

Against his will, his cheeks started to turn pink, and the argument he had slipped from his mind. He opened his mouth again to speak, but nothing came out. He was hopelessly lost in her eyes.

"Well?" said May, now smirking. "Skitty got your tongue?"

"I..." he started to stutter. "I - no!"

But she wasn't listening to him anymore. She was already pushing her way through the doors, and headed into the gym. Brendan couldn't move, as all he could think of now was her eyes. How had he never noticed them before?

Absolutely beautiful, two, perfect crystals of blue.

2. May's sass, and her bubbly and energetic personality. He also found that she ended up teaching him many things throughout their journey together, things that helped him later on.

"Wow, look at those Tentacool! And those Wingull! Look, Peeko's flying with them!"

Brendan rolled his eyes, looking over to see May peering over the sides of the boat. Her eyes were shining, and she looked extremely happy. It kinda annoyed him, because of how big of a fuss she was making, because Tentacool and Wingull were common pokemon they'd both seen before.

Mr. Briney smiled. "Peeko loves meeting other Wingull. She always flies with them whenever I take a trip on my boat."

"The Tentacool are nothing to fuss over," Brendan muttered, joining her at the side of the boat. "They're really common pokemon."

He peered into the water beside her, seeing several Tentacool just beneath the surface, and as he watched, they surfaced and splashed around, causing May to laugh.

"I've never noticed how pretty the red crystals on the sides of their body are," she mused, looking excited again. "They're like jewels!"

Brendan shrugged, studying the Tentacool. He had to admit she was right. Though he'd done research on many pokemon before, including Tentacool, he'd never actually 'looked' at them for physical characteristics. He just did research on factual things, and didn't think twice to appreciate how they looked.

"They're pretty indeed," agreed Mr. Briney. "Everything has its beauty, whether it's clear or not."

"See, Brendan?" May teased, elbowing him. "They may be common, but they're really pretty, too."

Huh. Maybe she was right.

3. Brendan admired her, to put it simply. She was always one step ahead of him, whether it was a gym badge, an adventure, a deed, or even challenging the Elite Four and the Champion. Not to mention, she always won their battles. Sometimes it was a little disheartening, but his admiration always won over.

"We haven't seen each other in a while, so how about a battle?" Brendan suggested, grinning.

"You're on," said May, smirking back as she grabbed a pokeball.

/

Brendan recalled his Marshtomp to his pokeball, sighing. He never won to May, did he? She was just too strong, and too far ahead. He'd thought he would be the one ahead, but it turned out that she was the one who left him struggling to catch up.

He glanced up to say something, but paused when he saw something on her wrist. 'Was it...?'

"Is that a Mega Bracelet on your wrist?" he asked curiously.

"Huh? Oh yeah, it is," the brunette girl responded, looking down at her own wrist. "Steven gave it to me after we went to Southern Island."

Another thing that she'd beat him to achieving. She now had mega evolution, too. He felt admiration immediately - she really was something. He'd had a head start, but here she was, beating him to obtaining mega evolution.

"Then how come you didn't use it in our battle?" Brendan said, frowning. "I mean, it's totally be fair, because you earned it and I didn't."

May shrugged, looking uncharacteristically shy. "I...I didn't think it was fair. I didn't do anything, Steven gave the bracelet me it. It was totally unexpected."

"He must've given it to you for a reason," Brendan insisted. "There's a reason why you've got one and I don't. You earned it."

He did feel a bit disappointed in himself, but what won over was how impressed he was with her. She'd beat him to so many things, and now he had another thing to add to the list.

He wanted to be her role model, but she turned out to be his.

4. Her laugh. A silly little thing to say, but it was true. When May laughed, her voice was like music to his ears. Her laugh was cheerful, bright, and clear. He loved hearing her laugh.

They walked through the Lilycove Department Store, May dragging Brendan along to look at the various Pokedolls they had on sale.

"Look, Brendan! It's an Azumarill Pokedoll!" she said, looking delighted. "I've always wanted one of those!"

"Mmhm," he responded, trying to sound nonchalant. Though May didn't know it (and he wasn't planning for her to), he liked Pokedolls. Scratch that, he really liked them. But he was afraid that if she found out, she'd tease him. He'd accidentally blurted out that he thought Pokedolls were a girl thing, once, to deny liking them, and admitting he had a collection in his room would be very hypocritical and embarrassing.

May laughed, which surprised him. "Sorry, I forgot you're not interested in Pokedolls," she said, stressing the words 'not interested'. Brendan had a sudden suspicion that she suspected he liked Pokedolls, but he could only focus on the sound of her laugh.

He'd always liked hearing her laugh. Unlike him, she had a very nice sounding, happy sort of laugh. He thought he sounded like a dying Wailord when he laughed himself. Her laugh was music to his ears.

Brendan opened his mouth to retort, but May suddenly squealed and cried, "A Togekiss Pokedoll! I've always wanted one!"

She ran off to the other side of the aisle, leaving him standing there.

Oh well, at least he got time to repeat the sound of her laugh in his head again.

5. Her strength. She was the strongest and most determined girl he'd ever met. She never backed down from a challenge, and she seemed so intent on her goals that she managed to achieve them before Brendan did. She was tough and able to stand her ground, and mustering the strength to face Primal Groudon and Deoxys on her own was an incredible feat.

"It felt really weird riding into space on the back of a giant dragon pokemon, you know? I mean, it's not something people do often, right?" May laughed.

Brendan laughed as well, and said, "Keep going - what happened next?"

"Rayquaza flew right into the meteor, and it broke. Then Deoxys appeared from a shard of the meteor, and I fought it from Rayquaza's back. Once we were done, Rayquaza flew me back to the Sky Pillar. And...here I am," May finished. "I don't really know how to describe it. That experience was like one of those ones that you have to experience yourself to understand."

"Wow," Brendan breathed, sitting back. "And you had the courage to do that - all by yourself?"

He couldn't believe it. He thought she'd done enough when she'd defeated Primal Groudon on her own, but then she'd saved the world again.

And, of course, on her own.

"I had to, I guess," May answered, flashing him a grin. "Though it was really frightening, I remember. What if I'd failed? Then the world would've been doomed."

"But you didn't," said Brendan, grinning back. "You really are something, Maple."

"I'll take that as a compliment," she responded, laughing lightly.

"I only have one request," he said suddenly, forcing a serious look on his face. May stopped laughing, and tilted her head at him, waiting. He went on, grinning again.

"The next time you have to save the world...take me along, okay?"

6. He'd always thought that May was beautiful, from the moment he saw her. And she was so dedicated and respectful to her pokemon. Maybe she wasn't extremely attractive by other peoples' standards, but she was perfect in his eyes. Her love for all pokemon was just a big bonus.

Brendan turned around, ready to leave his room, only to see someone standing in the doorway.

His first thought was, wow.

It was a girl, who looked about his age. She had light brown hair with a tiny ponytail tied at the back of her head, and bangs framing her face. A red bow was tied in her hair, too. She had a petite, delicate build, and blue eyes. His mind blanked, and for a moment he couldn't think. All he knew was that he probably looked like an idiot, gaping at her. But wow, she was beautiful.

"Um...hello?" said the girl, giving him a small smile.

Brendan blinked, still dazed, and smiled. "Sorry about that. I was just thinking..."

He trailed off, but quickly added, "So, you're the new girl, right? I kinda thought you'd be a guy, when my dad told me that you were the kid of a gym leader..."

The girl tilted her head, blue eyes wide. Then she smiled again. "Well, I'm May. Nice to meet you."

"I'm Brendan," he responded, but he still couldn't think properly. Latias, she was amazing. And he'd only just met her. 'Calm down Brendan,' he chided himself. 'You've only just met her.'

Then he remembered, with a jolt. "I'm really sorry, but I have to go help my dad catch some wild pokemon," he told May, offering her an apologetic smile. "Sorry. See ya later!"

And he sped out of his room, and down the stairs. His mind was still focused on her. He'd never been interested in girls before, and quite frankly, he never thought he would. But May was different from the other girls he knew, he could tell, somehow.

That was when he knew he was in trouble.

7. She would always confide in him when she was troubled, and he was happy to listen. He also felt honoured that she trusted him enough to tell him her troubles. She looked so innocent and worried when she told him her troubles, and he'd always feel the wanting to hug her. He finally worked up the courage to one day, and she'd even hugged him back.

"I can't believe I lost," May groaned, looking upset. "I don't know what went wrong. I had a plan, but I completely freaked out and let Wallace win. I was too nervous, thinking that it was my last gym battle and I'd have to do well."

"May, nobody wins all the time," Brendan said softly. "Look at me - I was so confident for my gym battle against Roxanne that I was too cocky, and I lost badly. Even with a type advantage. And you - you beat her on your first try, with a type disadvantage!"

She cracked a smile, and he could see that she appreciated his effort to make her feel better. "That's true. But you were less experienced back then."

"So were you, and you won," Brendan pointed out. He remembered he'd been upset for a while after their gym battles against Roxanne. But he'd fought her a second time, and won.

"Besides, I'm behind too. I haven't even fought Wallace yet. Don't leave me struggling behind again, like you always do," he joked.

"I can't help it," she responded, now laughing lightly. "Don't make me feel bad for it."

He shrugged, "who knows, maybe it'll take me ages to defeat Wallace. Don't get so down on yourself. I think this is actually the first time you've lost a battle."

May grinned now. "Thanks for listening to me, Brendan. I'm really glad you're here to listen to me."

"You're welcome," he responded softly, and reached over to hug her gently. Her eyes widened, but she returned his hug to his delight.

8. Her eyes would widen so innocently, and sparkle when she was excited or happy. Latias, he could not stay angry at her while she looked like that. It constantly bothered him in battles, too, so he often made silly mistakes. But it was worth it, seeing her like that.

"Get him with a spark!" May commanded her Cosplay Pikachu, grinning. Her Pikachu began charging power, and Brendan met his Swellow's eyes.

"Be prepared to dodge!" He shouted, and his Swellow gave a determined nod. "Then use aerial ace!"

But he knew that this was a lost battle, even before Pikachu's spark landed successfully on his Swellow, causing the bird to flail on the ground. Flying against electric wasn't a good matchup, and he and May were both down to their last pokemon.

"Swellow, get up and use aerial ace!" Brendan said determinedly, looking up to meet May's eyes. He immediately wished he hadn't because they were sparkling in excitement, and she looked so cute like that. He blanked out, and inwardly cursed himself. 'Why is it always her eyes that distract me?'

His Swellow looked uneasy, thinking that it had no chance of landing an aerial ace in its condition, and squawked loudly at Brendan to try to make him see sense. But Brendan was too busy thinking of how cute May looked with her eyes sparkling like that, and he paid no attention.

Swellow went for the aerial ace, but was unable to fly fast enough, and an electro ball knocked the bird out.

Brendan snapped back to the present just to see his pokemon fall to the ground, and as he was recalling his Swellow, he thought, 'Wait, why didn't I use double team? Maybe Swellow would've been able to dodge one or two attacks, and have some time to rest...I'm an idiot.'

He blamed May for that. It was all her fault.

9. She was so caring and sweet, despite how sassy she might be. He still remembers the time when he was ambushed by Zinnia in his bedroom, and how afterward she had showed up and worried over him.

Brendan groaned as his mother began looking him over. "I'm fine, mom, she just scratched me a bit with her nails. I mean, I'm kinda bruised, too, but I'm okay."

"How could anyone do such a thing to my sweet boy?" his mother replied, sounding anguished. Right now, Brendan's biggest worry was that the mystery girl stole his mega bracelet and key stone. He felt so stupid, because he'd been entrusted with a key stone and mega bracelet, and it had been such an honour. But now his was gone, snatched away in a matter of minutes.

"Brendan!"

He turned around, jerking his way from the grasp of his mother to see May opening their door, then running towards him. Her brows furrowed, and she raised her face to meet his, a concerned look on her face. "What happened?"

"Some strange girl came into my room, and took my mega bracelet," Brendan admitted, his words sounding hollow. "I tried to fight her off, but she was too strong. I couldn't reach any of my pokeballs before she took my mega bracelet from my wrist. But I heard her saying 'Petalburg's next' when she was leaving."

May's eyes hardened, and she eyed the bruise on his wrist where the girl had held him down. "Do you need anything for that?" she asked, sounding worried. "How hurt are you?"

Her concern warmed him, but he quickly answered, "I'm fine, May. Be careful...okay?"

She managed to smile back at him, but he sensed she was still upset. "See you later, Brendan. You be careful too, okay?"

10. The way she pouted and how sad she looked when she was upset or didn't get something she wanted. But it wasn't like she was pouting intentionally to get what she wanted, he just found it so cute. Brendan couldn't resist buying her a few Pokedolls for her birthday when she'd been down.

"I can't believe dad forgot, and arranged a meeting with the other gym leaders on my birthday," said May, frowning. "He usually always takes a day off when it's my birthday, and we go out to do something fun. It won't be the same."

Brendan didn't know what he could do to make her feel better. So he said feebly, "Hey, at least I'll be here, right? And maybe Wally could come over too?"

She brightened a bit, but there was still a pout on her face. "I know...and I'm really glad for your company. I just..."

Her voice trailed off, and she forced a smile on her face. "Sorry. You don't deserve to listen to me whine. Listen to me, complaining about my dad not being there for my birthday when it's probably the same for you with Professor Birch. I mean, he seems pretty busy.."

"It's alright," said Brendan reassuringly, but he was thinking of what he could do to cheer May up. Hm, maybe...

/

So he bought her a limited edition Eevee Pokedoll and a Sylveon Pokedoll, and gave her them on her birthday. It was amusing to see her reaction when he presented them to her.

May's eyes widened and her mouth hung open, before she hugged her new Pokedolls tightly and buried her face in them, uttering a squeal. Then she flew at Brendan and tackled him into a hug. (She almost knocked him over in the process, and he felt slightly sore afterwards from the force of her hug. She was surprisingly strong, despite her small looking build.)

But he didn't mind, not one bit.