"Look, Isaac. Say hello to your new little brother!"

My mother just introduced me to my new little brother. Honestly, I could care less. That little shrimp is just gonna steal all the attention of anyone around him. He can't talk correctly, or even walk on two feet, or even on all fours, but that's what others will enjoy about him. Ever since I turned ten, I've been expected to do all kinds of stupid chores, both in my house and out in the village. I'm still just a Buizel; I can't do that much.

Both of my parents are Floatzels, and now, there's another Buizel that's gonna need attention 24/7. Whether it's something to eat, or something to play with, that little shrimp is gonna need something, and I'm gonna be expected to bring it.

"So, Isaac, what do you think of your new baby brother?" my mom asked me.

"Does he have a name, or can I just call him 'Shrimp?'" I responded bluntly. My parents apparently didn't take too well to my response, because I ended up with a swift smack to the back of the head shortly afterwards.

"That was very rude, Isaac. His name is Tyler, and you may not call him 'shrimp.'" I still will, heh heh… "Tyler, look, it's your big brother, Isaac." The little Buizel was presented before me, still cradled in my mother's arms. He just looked over at me with big, round eyes, illegible sounds coming from his mouth. He apparently took an instant liking towards me, because he extended his arms out and motioned like he wanted to be closer to me.

"Aww, do you want to be with your brother?" Crap… "Come here, Isaac." The little Buizel was forced into my arms by my mother. I was so tempted to just drop him on the spot, but if I did that, my parents probably would've grounded me until he was my age.

He really was just a baby Buizel, not even a foot long. The second he was in my arms he just cuddled up as close as he probably could to me. He seemed to get as comfortable as he could before closing his eyes and falling asleep, evident by his quiet snoring. This little Buizel is gonna suck all the fun out of my life. Since he apparently enjoys my company, my parents are gonna have me be responsible for keeping him entertained. Hopefully they'll still take care of his everyday needs, but if he ever wants to play or something, they're gonna expect me to be the one to play with him.

"Shrimp fell asleep. Where's his bed?" My mom reared her hand to slap me again, but stopped halfway, probably because I'm holding the little terror.

"We still need to make one for him, so just set him on ours for now," my mom replied. I nodded and, as quickly as my feet would allow me, I raced up the planks that were the stairs to the second floor of our house. Easily finding the straw and wood that made up my parent's bed, I set the little Buizel down on top of it. Thankfully, he didn't wake up; otherwise he probably would've wanted to be in my arms again. I gotta get out of this house…

"I'm going over to Sean's," I called out to my parents as I walked down the planks, "I'll be back later."

"Ah, ah, ah," My mom stopped me at the door, "Have you cleaned up the house like you had been told earlier?" Jeez… All these never-ending chores… If that little Shrimp isn't gonna be the death of me, these chores will.

"Tch, man… I can't believe this. So unfair," I started mumbling.

"We all have jobs to do, son, whether we want to or not."

After about an hour of cleaning, I finally got the house to my parent's expectations. "There, now can I go to Sean's?"

"Yes, you may, but just one more thing," my mother responded. Great, what else does she want from me? "Don't call your little brother 'Shrimp,'" and as she said that, she smacked me upside the head once again.

"Gah! Jeez…" How did she remember that? Even I don't remember when I called him that. Guess it's gonna be a hard habit to kick, which may mean more smacks in the future… Oh well, I believe it's worth it.

Finally out of that house. Hopefully Sean isn't too busy right now; that would just throw a monkey wrench into any hopes I had of getting out of my house. Well, maybe talking about my village will help me keep my mind off of that house. It's a fairly large community, but everyone still knows everyone in some way. I'm even known by almost everyone here. Just walking to Sean's house, I'm getting a bunch of 'Hey, Isaac.' and 'Where ya headin' to, Isaac?' Honestly, it's kinda annoying. There really isn't just one particular type of Pokemon that lives here, either. There are all kinds: Water, Fire, Grass, Electric, the list goes on. Dark, Ghost, and Dragon types are probably the only types you won't find here. No one knows exactly where all the Dark types were; same with the Ghost types, but everyone knew that the Dragon types commanded the mountain not too far from our village. If you look closely enough, you could probably see a few of 'em flying around the peak. Thankfully, they haven't really bothered us at all. They could easily destroy our village if they wanted to.

I think they are kept at bay by the village's hidden guardian. There's a large lake very close to the village where a powerful Milotic lives. No one has really ever even seen it, or knows what its name even is. Everyone just calls it "The Sage." That's pretty much all I know about that detail. It would be pretty cool to see it, actually.

After a while, I could finally see Sean's house in the distance. A minute more of walking, and I'm knocking on the door. A Raichu answered the door shortly after; I instantly recognized it as Sean's mom. "Hey there, is Sean around?" I asked the Raichu.

"Oh, hello Isaac. No, he's not. He left just a few minutes ago with Katie. I'm sure that if you hurry, you can catch up to them. They left down that way," and she pointed farther down the road. I knew exactly where they were, those two are so predictable sometimes. Well, at least Katie is, and she'd be the one to drag Sean anywhere she wanted with her.

"Ok, thank you."

I headed down the road towards a field near the village. This field was covered in a vibrant assortment of flowers, which is why Katie loved that area so much. And sure enough, I saw both Sean and Katie amidst the flowers. Katie was busy rolling around them and smelling the scents of each and every flower. Sean, meanwhile, was just on the sidelines, watching Katie as she continued her admiring of the flowers. One more thing about Katie, she is a little… eccentric in her greetings… I'm probably gonna regret this. "Hey guys, how's it going?"

"Isaac!" Yup… Crap. It'd be futile to try and run. Katie was exceptionally fast for a Flaaffy, so I just decided to take the greeting as best I could. She was running full force towards me, as expected. I braced myself and caught a breath of air before impact. Katie's unique greeting is a bit of a hug, but it's more like a death grip to the recipient. "How's it going, Isaac?"

"Gah! Katie, you're hugging too hard again!" I tried to say with what breath I had. It's a good thing she knows when to stop, or else she might just end up knocking someone out cold from lack of oxygen. I caught a few more breaths after she let go before finally regaining my composure. "Jeez, Katie. You need a new way to greet people that doesn't involve a death hug."

"Aww, you like my hugs, though, don't you?" Far from it… Sean was just sitting in the same place he was before Katie's 'greeting.'

"Hey, Sean, how's it going?" I called out to him to try and get him in the group again.

"It's going good, just like every other day. How 'bout you?" he called back.

"Horrible. My new brother came home today and he-"

"New brother? Aww, you're soooo lucky. I wish I had a little brother or sister…" Katie said as she kindly interrupted me.

"Yea, I heard about that from my mom," Sean said afterwards, "How is he?"

"Honestly, I'm not all that enthused. He is just going to be-"

"What's his name?" Katie so kindly interrupted again. She really needs to let people finish talking before she begins.

I let out a hefty sigh before I answered her question. "His name's Tyler. And I think the little Shrimp has taken a very huge liking to me, which isn't good at all."

"And why's that? Y'know, you shouldn't be so mean towards your brother, especially if you don't even know him yet. He's going to look up to you and I think he'd be better off if he got some sort of response from you," Sean said. He did have a point, but I've always looked out for just one person, me. I was never one to stick my neck out for anyone else; it's just not my thing.

"He's just going to take up all my time. Since he likes me so much, my parents are gonna force me to play with him, and I don't think I'll enjoy playing the games that babies play," I said to them. Both Sean and Katie had looks of disdain on their faces. Neither of them had any siblings, so they wouldn't know anything about what I'm going through. "All I'm saying is, that little Shrimp is gonna take up all my time, and I'm not gonna have any time or energy to have fun with anything else. He's just going to be one big pain in the tail, literally if he decides to pull on it."

Katie responded to my thoughts on Tyler by giving my a nice little shock to my arm. "Yah! What was that for!" I shouted. Being a Water type, Electric type attacks affect me a little more harshly. My arm went numb instantly after the jolt. One of the disadvantages of having two friends who were Electric types, but what are ya gonna do? Don't squander opportunities for friends.

"You should be excited that you have a little brother. Don't just let the moment pass, embrace it. He isn't going away anytime soon, so you should try and make friends with him, instead of just being a selfish jerk!" Katie said harshly. I was struck dumb by her words, and from the looks of things, even Sean was a little surprised at her.

"Hey, Katie! We need your help back home!" a voice from afar suddenly said. We all turned and saw a large Ampharos standing up on a hill.

"Aww, Mom, do I have to?" Katie replied.

"Yes, we need your help right now, so hurry up," and the Ampharos turned and walked away.

"Aww… Well, I'll see you guys later," Katie said as she started up the hill. A few seconds later, and she was gone from sight.

"Well, now what?" I asked Sean, hoping he had some sort of plan now. All that Katie had just said had kinda killed the mood that was in the area.

"I have no clue. I think I'll just go on home. You do the same," he said back. Returning home this early was one thing that I was not planning on doing. "And, hey, Katie actually said some stuff that you should probably listen to. Be nice to him. Who knows? Maybe you'll learn to like him after he ages."

"Fat chance at that," I replied. Sean sighed at my reply and started to head back towards his house. He turned his head just long enough to get one last thing in.

"Just don't screw him up," and he walked over the hill.

Screw him up? He's going to be the one to screw me up! My life was so much easier before he came in. A year ago, I could do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. If I wanted to go to a friend's house, there were no questions asked, and I didn't have to have something completed before I could go. When they went on grocery runs, I was allowed to stay home and sleep for hours on end. Everything was just so wonderful.

But starting just a few months ago, all that changed… It was like the second that I turned ten, I was now required to do all this complicated crap. I'm no longer able to do what I want. I now have to clean up all around our house, and even volunteer to help clean up older Pokemon's houses! My parents also take me on their trips to the market, and have me carry home most of the berries we get. It was very rare for me to be sleeping during the day after I turned ten.

And now… Little Shrimp is in the picture. He's just going to command all of the free time that I'm allowed, which isn't a lot to begin with. That little terror will suck every bit of fun out of my life. Sean and Katie don't know what I'm going through. That's why they're both against what I'm saying. 'Try and be friends with him.' Heh, that'll never work. He's not even old enough to do anything but steal my time.

"The sun's still high in the sky…" I said to myself quietly, "I've got time to burn. I'm in no hurry home." I started walking back towards the town, but walked down a different path than what I first walked this afternoon. The village was operating as normally as it could. There was a bunch of Pokemon building up a new house on one side of the road. Others were carrying loads of berries and straw from the crop fields. It probably wasn't going to be long until my parents make me get a solid job like everyone else here has, not just cleaning houses for charity, but an actual job to better help the whole community.

I decided I'd burn my time by going to a place that I enjoyed because of its solitude, a large cliff edge overlooking a large valley. The easiest way to get to it was to just follow a river through a small forest. The river ended up as a waterfall falling over the edge of the cliff and down into the valley below, where the river then gets created again. The sounds of the water and the view the cliff edge had were the reasons why I loved coming to this place so much. Also, if you can time it right, you can view the most amazing sunset one could ever see from this edge.

I set myself in the shade of a tree about 20 feet from the edge of the cliff. It was so cool and calm under there… It didn't take long before I was out like a light.

When I finally woke up, it seemed to still be light out. Good. The last thing I need is my parents mad at me for staying out too late. I lifted myself up from under the tree and gazed out towards the valley. The sun was still a ways in the sky, so the sunset wasn't going to be anytime soon. Shame, I could've used that last sight before returning home.

From the cliff to my house was about a 20 minute walk. The roads were a lot less crowded at this time, everyone was eating their dinner. As I got to my house, I took a deep breath, knowing full well what to expect on the other side. I opened the door and started in. "Hey, I'm home. What's fo- Agh!" Well, that wasn't exactly a graceful return home. The second I entered my house, I trip over something. Exactly what I tripped on remains to be seen. "Jeez… What was that?" I said, rubbing my head. A loud crying sound came from close by seconds later. Wait… That wasn't… Aww, crap! I opened my eyes and saw exactly what I tripped over. It was Tyler! And, now, he was crying up a storm. This won't end well…

"Isaac! What did you do?" my mom came screaming at me. She instantly ran over and started to try and calm Tyler down, but he must've been hurt or something, cuz nothing she did even quieted him down. "What happened?" she retorted.

"If that little Shrimp wasn't lying in the middle of the floor, I wouldn't have tripped over him!" I shouted back. That probably was not my best choice of words for the current situation. My dad was home now, and he could do a lot more damage than my mom ever could.

"Isaac! What did you just say!" Crap… Here we go… "What did you just say!" my dad yelled again. I knew that any way I looked at it, I was gonna get busted. I was in a hole, but I wondered if I should try and pull myself out or just dig it deeper to try and escape.

Let's try and get out of the hole. "Sorry Dad. I couldn't see him when I came into the house," I said, trying to sound as apologetic as I could. I actually didn't really care for Tyler's well-being; I just wanted him to shut up. If he keeps crying, it won't be a very restful night.

"That's all fine and dandy, but what did you first say?" he said in a voice that sounded like no matter what I did, I was gonna get burned that night. I just laid my head low and waited for him to speak. "First off, what was one thing that your mother told you NOT to call Tyler?" he said in an increasingly threatening voice.

I was scared half out of my fur by my father right then. I knew I had to answer something, lest I make him even more pissed off at me. "Calling him Shrimp…" I responded meekly.

"Exactly. His name is Tyler, not anything else. Don't call him Shrimp, or any other name like it ever again, understand?" He said with such ferocity, I was almost ready to just bolt for my bed. I refrained from doing so and just waited until he spoke again. My mom had taken Tyler into another room, but I could still hear him crying. "Now, I want you to go in there and apologize to Tyler, right now," he said. I was quick to comply, the last thing I needed was to disobey my father.

I walked into the other room, where my mom and Tyler were. She was sitting down, trying to calm Tyler down the best she could, but nothing was working. I didn't fall over him that hard… Did I? I walked over to them and tried to get Tyler's attention, if he even could focus on someone for longer than 2 seconds… I gotta stop doing that. It's only gonna end up making my parents mad at me when it leaks out.

"Sh- Tyler? I'm… sorry for tripping over you." It seemed so weird apologizing to him. He was just a baby. I'm not even sure if he knew I was there. Surprisingly, though, he ceased his crying for a short second to see me standing close to him. And, just like earlier in the day, he extended his arms out like he wanted to be carried by me. In direct fear of my parents, I quickly complied with Tyler's request and started to carry him in my arms. The second he was in my arms, though, his crying nearly ceased completely! This just baffled me. What was so special about me that made Tyler feel so comfortable? I was the cause of his discomfort in the first place, so why would I be his sanctuary? It was just so weird…

"This is incredible. A few minutes ago, he was crying with no end, and suddenly he's in Isaac's arms and he's calm?" my mother was saying. Apparently I wasn't the only one completely dumbstruck by Tyler's response to me.

After a few minutes passed, he seemed to be completely calmed down. "Well… What should I do now?" I asked. I couldn't just hold him in my arms the entire night. I needed some food.

"Well, let's go to the dinner table. Just keep Tyler next to you or in your lap if he starts crying again when you set him down," my mother responded. Keeping Tyler in my lap while I ate wasn't something I was looking forward to, but, again, I really don't need my parents any more mad at me than they are now.

As I got in the other room, with all the dinner items, I sat myself down at my end of the table. I set Tyler into his boosted up seat, and, thankfully, he appeared content that I was just next to him because he didn't start crying again. I breathed a sigh of relief, and got myself situated at my end and started to grab some berries from the pile in the center. Since Tyler couldn't really eat berries full, my mom had mashed some up into some berry mush, and started to feed that to him. Apparently he liked it, cuz he didn't put up a fuss or anything. I remember my parents telling me that I didn't like that stuff at all, that I would kick and scream and even one time, let out a little Water Gun to keep from eating it. Well, at least they didn't have that to deal with this time.

Ever since I was able to calm Tyler down, my father seems to have calmed down as well, but for how long? Once Tyler is asleep, will he start yelling at me again? This is just turning into a really bad day… I have both of my best friends mad at me, and now, we've had Tyler home for one day, and already I've trampled all over him. But… he also seems to be extremely calm when I'm around him. I still can't figure that out. He's known me for less than a day-actually, he's only seen me one other time! So how can he be so attached to me, and not either of my parents? He was with our mom for pretty much the entire day, but even she wasn't able to calm him down at first. What does Tyler see in me?

With all these thoughts in my head, dinner passed by relatively quickly. The sun was almost gone from sight; we wouldn't have been able to see without our Combeeswax candles. Tyler was already starting to nod off to sleep, but I was still wide awake. That little nap I had earlier in the evening kinda screwed up my sleep schedule. Oh well, what are ya gonna do?

As I started off towards my bed on the other side of our house, my mom stopped me. "Isaac, would you mind spending the night with Tyler?"

Is she serious? After all that's happened, she wants me to have Tyler sleep next to me? "Umm… Doesn't he have a bed of his own?" I asked back.

"No, we still haven't got one fully made yet, and he seems to like you, so he'd probably feel best if he slept next to you," my mom replied.

This is too much… I can't believe that she doesn't have his bed made yet. Unbelievable… "It's only for one night, Isaac. Tomorrow, we will have his bed made," my mom stated.

One night… the first night we'll have together with him, no less. I normally would fight it, but my dad is still right there… I don't need anything else provoking him. "…Alright. If it's only for tonight…" I responded reluctantly.

"Thank you, Isaac. Come, let's get you guys all set," my mom said. I followed her around to where my bed was, on the second floor but opposite in the hall where my parent's room was. My bed also wasn't a traditional bed. It was a bit of a hammock that was suspended alongside the edge of the room. It really wasn't made to accommodate two occupants, so I figured Tyler would be sleeping on my belly or something like that. I easily hopped up into my bed, and got comfortable quickly. My mom then set Tyler down onto my stomach. He was already sound asleep, so I'm not too sure if he even knew that he was sleeping on top of me. My mom bid us both good-night, and blew out the candle on the shelf.

So much is running through my mind now… This little Buizel on top of me adores me to an enormous extent, but why? What is going on in the mind of this little Buizel? What does he see in me? I guess the future might hold these answers. Hmm… Maybe Sean and Katie are right. Maybe I should try and be a little nicer to him. I don't know… It's just not like me. I can't change that quickly… Can I? Argh! This is insane! I don't know what to do! Maybe I should just let the days go by before trying to figure out what to do. Like Katie said, Tyler isn't leaving anytime soon… Oh, boy…