Time: 9:40 AM

Greeted by a joking Margo, Indy couldn't help but feel stung. He forced a smile on his face, though it looked more like a grimace. It was embarrassing, but that was just the icing on the cake compared to the real problem.

"He's a little kid but he's good," Indigo admitted in a low voice. "I know you think it's funny. I mean, I would too." He could barely hold the cracking in his voice back. "But I'm nervous. I... I just had a rough night." Despite his tryhard nature to act nonchalant, that facade was all but crumbling away. He truly wanted to tell Dan what happened. However, Dan came in with a quick greeting before heading out again.

"Bye," Indigo called out as Dan rushed out the door. Truth be told, he looked a little grimy as if he had been sleeping on the streets. Naturally, Indy was worried, and he wanted to have a conversation about the night before. Still, if Dan had things he had to do, then he supposed all he could do was wait. Perhaps today they would be able to call Dan's mother, though Indy wasn't going to press it.

Well, Margo was there. And Indigo was desperate for some consoling words, despite Margo not being his first choice of friend. He had to admit she gave good advice, pokemon wise at least.

"Hey do you think... If you do something wrong, like hurt someone, you can make it better? I mean, has that ever happened to you before?" It was a vague and cryptic question, not to mention strangely obvious, but he couldn't express himself inconspicuously with so much going on in his mind. The very least he could do was blur the details and not reveal too much. Or else he was positive she would find him reprehensible. Worse than what she currently thought of him, anyway. Not that I could blame her... But it's not like telling her what I did would do me any good either.

Time: 9:40 a.m.
Dan's quick appearance, and subsequent disappearance was like a blur for Margo. He was in and out before she could even give him the same chipper greeting she gave Indy, her hand still in the air to wave at Dan by the time he left the center. "Well that was brief." She sighed under her breath--was he dirty-looking? Did he actually go sleep on that trail last night?

Once Indy joined her, Margo leaned on her elbows on the table expectantly, surprised at how stressed out he seemed to be about this battle. She didn't think her little taunt would really get to him, but apparently Indy was more concerned with his showdown than he had been letting on earlier. "Sorry, I didn't think this would get to you like that." She spoke her apology quickly, not wanting him to take advantage of her forgiving nature and then say something stupid to make her revoke it.

Instead, Indy posed a question she wasn't entirely sure wasn't a joke. If it wasn't for the look in his eyes, Margaret would've told him to shut up and rolled her eyes. She thought about his question seriously, looking down at the table to focus her thoughts.

"I mean... I guess you did something hurtful to me, and while it hasn't been entirely fixed, it seems we've moved past it, right?" She kept her gaze on the table in front of her, wondering if he was still worried about their own rocky start to a maybe-friendship. She remembered the other night when Dan had made her think of her own family. Could she make it better for her family? Would she ever return and tell them why she ran away? Would she ever apologize for what she did to them? They've probably been printing missing signs and talking to the police force and all the typical run-away children protocol. She chewed her bottom lip, mulling over his question more seriously now when she applied it to herself.

"Well, sure, Indy, why wouldn't you be able to make it better? It might take a lot of effort and a lot more actions than you might be willing to take, but... I think you can move past most things that hurt people. I think you have to, like, acknowledge that you hurt the other person. Let yourself be vulnerable instead of selfish, express to them that you made the mistake and ask... how you can make it better instead of assuming you can do what they want, maybe?" She felt like she was rambling now, forcing herself to stop talking and look at her companion, focusing on why he was asking her this instead of letting her own troubled mind catch up to her. "Are you alright? How rough of a night was it?"

Margo didn't really expect him to be honest to her second question, but she was hoping he would be truthful with the first. Obviously he was being vague for a reason, but he didn't have to lie about how he was feeling, even if they weren't best friends. She worried she would have to go find Dan and ask him to check on his friend--although both of them seemed a bit... off.

"I mean... I guess you did something hurtful to me, and while it hasn't been entirely fixed, it seems we've moved past it, right?"

"Yeah..." Indigo replied back, feeling slightly better. Still, he'd been able to apologize to Margo. Hero, in the other hand... "I guess we did end up okay. I just feel like in this specific case, I wouldn't be able to make it better."

Well, sure, Indy, why wouldn't you be able to make it better? It might take a lot of effort and a lot more actions than you might be willing to take, but... I think you can move past most things that hurt people. I think you have to, like, acknowledge that you hurt the other person. Let yourself be vulnerable instead of selfish, express to them that you made the mistake and ask... how you can make it better instead of assuming you can do what they want, maybe?"

That had been more than he had been anticipating. In fact, he was surprised that Margo was helping him so much. Her points were not only valid, but also an entirely new perspective. Knowing that he'd hurt Hero and taking responsibility was the first step, it seemed. And he felt quite acquainted with it. He cringed, thinking about how obvious it had seemed when he didn't want to play with Hero like his other pokemon.

He felt like the worst.

What Margo said was the best course of action to take but how was he supposed to do it if he never saw Hero again? The thought made his chest feel tight with worry. Would Hero be okay? Not just mentally, but would he be able to stay safe, take care of himself? The ugliest scenarios startes flooding Indy's mind all at once. He dropped his head into his hands.

"Are you alright? How rough of a night was it?"

Having no clue how to honestly respond Indigo opened and closed his mouth several times before sighing and laying his head atop his folded arms. There was no telling how Margo would take his actions. Though he knew it was selfish, he felt like he felt awful enough without any possible barrage of reprimands.

But he could still be honest.

"I just... I'm not sure if I can really open up about it," he said slowly. "I guess I'm not okay. But it's not really about me..." He knew his vague wording was useless. "I just wanted to talk." But how could he open up when he was so terrible at it? "It's just that the someone that I hurt might not be in contact with me anymore and I don't know how to deal with it. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I know it doesn't make a whole lot of sense but it's just a mess right now."

@prettydrops@iKatamalicious
9:45 AM - Pokemon Center

From the top of the stairs that lead to Pokemon Center bedrooms came a loud yawn. It was Jack and Jill. Jill's mouth was still wide from her yawn as she spoke. "I doubt that guy's even going to-" She stopped mid sentence when she spotted Indigo and Margo. Lowering her voice, she nudged her brother as they continued walking down the stairs. "Well, looky there. He showed."

The smile on Jack's face, while small and seemingly modest, also held something deeper, something mischievous, but he remained quiet, opting instead for cold eye-locked intimidation. Normally, he wouldn't be as excited as he was, but he had an amusing surprise waiting for his opponent.

After a quick refresh and another quick travel, Dan reached Zvi, the tree that was next to him. Gone.

"You ready for that battle?" Dan said to the boy

12:30PM - Mt. Leeman Trail

Zvi stretched as he stood up, his eyes still focused on the clouds above. After a moment, he took a deep breath and looked to Daniel. "Sure! If that's what you want to do, let's do it. I'll be using two of my buddies today."

He then looked over his shoulder. This was the signal for Sudowoodo to come running out of the treeline. When he stopped beside Zvi, it became apparent, this was the tree that Daniel had been seeing every time he met Zvi. Seconds later, a large Noctowl came flying out the woods as well. She landed directly beside Zvi and began to stare at Daniel. She stood and inch or two taller than Zvi.

"You might want to use three or four Pokemon if you have them. My buddies are tough." Zvi laughed.

As Jack made his presence known, Indigo and Margo's conversation was interrupted. The few trainers that were in the center began whispering excitedly, pulling out their pokedexes and phones. Soon it became apparent that more trainers were coming out of their rooms. Indigo's pretended to ignore Jack, though he was all too aware of his opponent's presence. He leaned towards Margo.

"That kid's like a celeb or something. Ugh, man, this happened last time too. We had this huge crowd... He shook his head. "I'm just getting super nervous. This is too much. I don't know if I can handle this. " In just about 15 more minutes their battle would start. He hoped he could talk to Margo for a little longer. He desperately needed it so.

"Well, some saps are coming in just like we planned," Jack said smugly to his sister. "Why don't we go outside and hype them up?"

"Okay!" Jill replied brightly. They stepped outside.

"Damnit," Indy whispered fiercely to Margo. "This just gets worse and worse..."

As Margo talked, she could tell something must really be weighing in on Indy's conscious. She wished she could be more supportive or give him more advice but there wasn't much she could say or do without specifics, other than giving, well, just as vague advice. Still, though, it appeared that at least this conversation was giving Indy something to work with, even if it's not necessarily the most helpful.

She couldn't help but smile at Indy's struggle to find words--he kept flopping his mouth like a fish and sighing like a moody teenager (although, she supposed, that's what they both were). "Hey, c'mon. I know I'm not Dan but if you let me, I could be a friend for ya too." She didn't want to press him, but she also figured this might be a crucial point in their relationship blossoming; the make or break. She was surprised that he did open up, vaguely, but he did so nonetheless.

'I just wanted to talk.' Indy's words really warmed her heart, suppressing her urge to bring a hand to her chest in disbelief at his actions. She listened more intently now, realizing that he did indeed need someone to be there for him. She began to wonder if he had a girlfriend and a bad break-up or something. It was all she could really formulate based on what he had been telling her. Or boyfriend? She wasn't concerned with the tiny details. She began to think about her answer, giving Indy the best apologetically sympathetic look she could muster.

She opened her mouth to give her thoughts, but before she could, her eyes caught sight of peoples camera's flashing. Looking at what the commotion was about, she couldn't help but furrow her brow. It was that little kid from the other day, apparently he was more famous than she would've guessed. Indy regained her attention, leaning her head towards his to hear his hushed voice. She heard the desperation in his voice, genuine anxiousness for this battle today and showing a more vulnerable side to her. Perhaps their relationship was already blossoming, Margo thought for a moment.

Margaret put on a brave face now, throwing out her sympathetic look and replacing it with an expression that she hoped would convey her belief in him. It was a hard expression to pull off, so hopefully her words would help express her feelings thoroughly. She gripped Indy's shoulders, looking at him squarely now. "Hey. Don't act like that. I'm not sure what happened to you last night or this morning or whenever, but you can't let that get to your right here, right now, when you have this big battle coming up. You gotta keep yourself focused, don't let yourself get psyched out, ok? Remember what I had told you yesterday about your pokemon? You gotta focus on that and think about how you're going to show that little brat what's what, you got that?" Margo didn't realize she had been emphasizing her words with an occasional jolt on Indy's shoulders, probably coming off too strong, but she felt like this was an important battle for Indy and he should start acting like it.

"Come on, Indy. I'll be right there on the sidelines, and Dan is supporting you too." Margo stood, hoping she didn't sound too corny, and put her hands on her hips adamantly.

The battle between the two had commenced. Dan's over-confidence had gotten him in trouble at the start having his Burmy quickly lose his fight and getting seriously injured at the hands of the sudowoodo, The battle turned briefly when Dan used Twiggy, hitting with a highly effective mix of absorb and withdraw. With the first of Zvi's pokemon down, and only Noctowl left. The battle looked desperate with Dan's two extremely hurt pokemon.

"Ugh....We can win guys...don't give up just yet!" Dan said "Hey! Don't think you've won just yet!"

Dan used his Rat first, sure there was some way to win, but that dream had been nearly crushed when Rat went down in only a single hit.

"No...Rat... You did well." He said as he put his pokemon in its ball.

"Okay Twiggy, You got this."

The battle went on longer than even Dan suspected, with Twiggy getting up after every hit, refusing to lose. Until one hit, when Twiggy didn't get up at all.

"Twiggy!" Dan said as he rushed to his injured Pokemon "Heh, you won...Kid..." A sadness rushed over Dan, it had stung him losing to a kid younger than him, but moreover

"Hehe, Wow they're tough..." Yelled Zvi gleefully

"Yea, that weird Tree one wiped the floor with me! Let's fight again sometime, and next time, I'll win!" Dan said with a chipper tone.

After a less-than-formal goodbye and a quick yell towards the farmland, Dan left bound for the center.

as Dan walked back toward the center, he called his mom.

The call was short but sweet, trading hello's and asking how everyone is.
His mom, Cynthia, asked about what crazy travels he has already gotten into, which started Dan on a rant about the beach and trail, and if he'd met any cute boys.

But, The Elephant in the room, her sickness, went undiscussed.

As he finally reached and entered the Pokemon center, (Around 1:50) he said his final words, which hit him in a hard way, for an unspoken reason.

"Goodbye Mom, I love you."

He hung up the phone an wiped a tear from his face, Only realizing now how dirty he was. But he didn't care.

After handing his pokemon to the Nurse he sat at the closest table and waited.

"Hey. Don't act like that. I'm not sure what happened to you last night or this morning or whenever, but you can't let that get to your right here, right now, when you have this big battle coming up. You gotta keep yourself focused, don't let yourself get psyched out, ok? Remember what I had told you yesterday about your pokemon? You gotta focus on that and think about how you're going to show that little brat what's what, you got that?"

He blinked. Margo was so trusting and encouraging. Would she still be, if she knew the extent to what he had done? Stop, just breathe, he told himself. Whether she would hate him or not was irrelevant-- she had a point. Focusing's the only thing that'll get me through this battle, not moping around.

But it was difficult for any teen to quell their emotions and Indy was no exception the rule. He only tried to focus on what Margo was saying.

"Come on, Indy. I'll be right there on the sidelines, and Dan is supporting you too."

Dan... I mean, he's going through a ton too. And I feel like it's worse for him than me. Do I even really get to be sad, after what I've done? I've got to pull it together. Dan, I seriously wish you were here right now...

"Got it. Margo, thanks. You have no idea how much I appreciate it, seriously. To be honest, I did something pretty terrible. And I'm not trying to be dramatic about it. I don't even know if I deserve to really feel bad when I knew better." That terrible pain that had risen when he'd abandoned Hero was proof of that. "But you're right. I'll focus on one thing. But just... One more question. If I lose, it'll be okay, right? Winning isn't everything, right? It's just that it feels like it's the only thing that matters sometimes..."

After some final words of encouragement from Margo, Indy squared his shoulders and made his way outside. Already, a sizeable crowd had formed.

"Hey there, Jack. How are you?" Indy called out, trying to be friendly, and gauge Jack's attitude. The crowd was chattering so excitedly, Indigo was both baffled and annoyed. If only they knew how awful he was...

@Balthazar007

After some final words of encouragement from Margo, Indy squared his shoulders and made his way outside. Already, a sizeable crowd had formed.

"Hey there, Jack. How are you?" Indy called out, trying to be friendly, and gauge Jack's attitude. The crowd was chattering so excitedly, Indigo was both baffled and annoyed. If only they knew how awful he was...

Jack hear Indy's call, but he was in the middle of answering a question, so he ignored it. "Yes, yes, I defeated Mbali with great ease, but we all know that head coordinators and gym leaders aren't allowed to use their strongest Pokemon against new trainers. I'm sure things would have been different if she were allowed to use any Pokemon she liked. Still, I'm happy we were able to win yesterday."

At the word 'we', Jill simply nodded her head in agreement and smiled. She had glanced over her shoulder at Indigo a few times while Jack was speaking. Now finished, she placed her hand on his shoulder to get his attention. "Look who it is Jack! I think he's ready."

Pretending to be genuinely surprised, Jack held out a hand to shake. "Oh hey there. How long have you been there? You should have said something. Are you ready to battle?"

While Jack spoke with Indigo, Jill worked the crowd. "Do you all want to see Jack at work?" They yelled their affirmation. "Are you ready to see how he won his first medallion?" They grew even louder. "Well this is Jacks next challenger." She motioned to Indigo. "Fun fact: this is actually a rematch. Of course, Jack was the winner last time, but who knows? Maybe things will be different today?"

This got the crowd going even more, as people started speaking up in the chaos. "There's no way Jack will loose!" ... "Who is that guy anyways!?" ... "I hope this is a good battle!" ... "Jack! Jack! Jack!"

At the sound of his name being chanted, Jack turned to wave, acting slightly embarrassed and modestly flattered. In actuality, he didn't care. It was just another day in the life of a celebrity. He turned back to Indigo and considered saying, "Let's get this over with." But then he caught sight of Margo. Not knowing whether she was a fan or not, he opted for a more polite, "Are you ready?". His smile radiated sincerity.

Like the Grinch, Margo felt like her heart grew two sizes already this morning, hearing Indy express his gratitude like that. This time, she couldn't help herself and she brought her hands to her heart, her serious position now turning more... motherly, if you will. "Of course, Indy. I can tell you needed someone, and while I might not be the first choice..." Her voice trailed off, not bothering to finish her sentence as Indy stood to leave.

His next question almost made her scoff. "What? No way. Winning is never everything, the be all end all. Don't you ever think that--that kind of philosophy is only going to make your relationship with your pokemon toxic. You just give your best and recognize that everyone gave their best efforts, your team as well as you." Margo waved her hand in the air frivolously, as if waving away the rest of Indy's anxiousness as they made their way outside.

Seeing the crowd forming outside, however, Margo's confidence shrunk just a bit. She had never been the best with crowds, and while New Margo had been working on this phobia, it was still alive an well within her. She chewed the inside of her cheek, putting on a nervous smile for Indy's benefit as he called out to his opponent. She was surprised at his handshake being offered to Indy, slightly suspicious considering how Indy spoke of the kid, but she didn't say much as Indy and Jack exchanged their greetings.

As he glanced at Margo, however, she felt something bubble up inside of her: New Margo, to be exact. "No, sir, the real question is if you are ready. Indy has been training quite a bit, I'll have you know. Don't expect this to be a one-off, here." Margo lifted her chin in defiance of Jack's celebrity aura, making a point to show that she wasn't going to be pulled in by his charms like the rest of the crowd.

"I believe in you, ok?" Margo assured Indy in a whisper, putting her hand on his shoulder and squeezing it the slightest bit before merging into the sidelines on Indy's side, looking at the battlefield with bright eyes, smiling at her new friend reassuringly.

Dismissive and rude as always, Jack took his time greeting Indy back, though the crowd certainly didn't notice. Despite his nerves, Indigo's ire began to replace his anxiousness. Jack was so smug, what was his problem? Maybe it's not his problem... Indigo wondered. He was trying to give Jack the benefit of the doubt. After all, growing up with so much fame couldn't have been easy, and he was younger than Indy. As Jack turned to ask him if he was ready, another voice rang out instead.

"No, sir, the real question is if you are ready. Indy has been training quite a bit, I'll have you know. Don't expect this to be a one-off, here." Then a whisper from Margo. "I believe in you, ok?"

She's really rooting for me, he thought, surprised, and also somewhat embarrassed. But mostly feeling supported. He gave her a cheeky smirk and flashed a thumbs up. Guess it's time. Dan, wish you were here. Margo, glad you are.

"Begin!" A nurse from the pokemon center started.

"Show the world how magnificent you are, Skiploom!"

"Kovi, you're up! Just like we talked about!" What's that pokemon? I'll look it up in my pokedex later. The battle started with an exchanging of Sleep Powders. Indigo gritted his teeth. It was as if Jack had known or something. However, while Kovi tossed out the glittering, sky blue powder by the wingful in uneven streams, Skiploom's attack had a much more controlled appearance. In fact, the pokemon whirled the yellow flower on its head like a propeller, releasing an elegant looking swirl.

Just like the Kricketune in the forest, and the Tail Whip from the Tepig... That move is super pretty. Pretty? What was he thinking? He was in the middle of a battle! But the appearance of the simple attack was elegant and made it look like so much more.

"Just what you would expect from Jack, a number one coordinator!" Said someone in the crowd.

Meanwhile...
A tall figure in the crowd looked at the battle with interest. He happened to be standing next to Margo. She was the one who was talking to Indigo... He thought. Well, at least Jack and Jill were present. He needed to find out more information about the whole situation, anyway. Was this the rival Jack had been talking about? "Excuse me, miss?" The taller, young man shot a friendly smile at Margo. "Do you know who's battling right now? The young man with the Vivillion, I mean."

As Skiploom had fallen asleep with a successful Sleep Powder, the crowd was going wild while Indigo whittled the pokemon down. Jack's face remained flat, but Indigo could have sworn he was looking displeased.

"Skiploom, return. Brionne!" And out popped that stupid, clown-looking seal pokemon that had clobbered Hawka during the first match. Except it had evolved. Indigo looked up at Kovi, who still looked determined.

"Kovi, you good?" He shouted, and when Kovi affirmed with a sharp nod, Indigo continued, "Send it to sleep!" Again, the flock of people screamed with excitement. The underdog was doing it, really doing it! Are they seriously cheering for me? They were making fun of me like ten minutes ago! Tough crowd I guess. Kind of nice being cheered for though. Brionne was looking seriously weakened. One more hit... But Jack withdrew his pokemon, looking more gleeful and than displeased.

"Go! Mothim!" And a butterfly similar to the Vivillion emerged. He was a spectacular sight, with deep plum and vivid orange coloring.

Was it his imagination or was the pokemon glaring at him? Why was it looking at him so intensely? The two flying and bug types attacked each other with ferocity. Mothim unleashed a hidden power, a move where his body glowed a brilliant but soft white, before emitting spheres of bright white light. The attack went from a full burst to softening into a blanket of smaller, twinkling globes that showered the the entire field and the crowd. It was like the stars themselves had decided to grace their battlefield. That's so gorgeous... What pokemon is that? How are his pokemon making his attacks look like this?

The crowd was entranced. Gotta get them back on my side... Indigo was thinking quite like a coordinator, even if he was too stupid to realize it. I dunno if this is gonna work but here we go. "Kovi, fly around! Go right into the little pieces of Hidden Power!" Kovi obliged, and soon, his whole body looked like it was covered in diamond dust. Holy moly, that worked? It doesn't look half bad! Jack was irate.

How had this scrub, this scrub who hadn't even known who he was, gotten better in a matter of a few days? Not only was he putting up a fight, but he was using his own attacks against him? "So you've been practicing your coordinating skills too," Jack said with gritted teeth.

"What? What's that supposed to mean? I don't know about all that coordinating jazz, just having fun. Kovi, open your wings for a Sleep Powder, but spin!" Indigo called out. Kovi obliged, flaring his wings and letting out the blue Sleep Powder while spinning around. Not only did the Mothim fall asleep, but Kovi looked absolutely enchanting, especially with natural way his scales glittered. That spin trick isn't that hard. Huh.

The throng of people cheered.
"I saw this kid when he last battled Jack! He's gotten way better!"
"No way!"
"I loved that! That Sleep Powder and those Vivillion wings!"
"He's not even a coordinator and he thought of that?"

With a few more hits, the Mothim went down, and Indigo tried to shake off the feeling that he had done something wrong. Something about that Mothim... But it was here that the battle began to take a turn. Kovi had been weakened, having to fight three pokemon, and Jack brought out the Skiploom once more. This time, the Sleep Powder hit. Here was where Indigo made a slew of bad decisions. It was hard to say what would have won him the battle, but as he tried switching out his pokemon just as Jack had to defeat the Skiploom, they all succumbed to the Sleep Powder.

Oh no...

As Brionne came out, she was weak, but she wasn't asleep. Indigo's pokemon were swept unmercilessly with some gigantic Bubble attack. Perhaps, maybe if he had ordered different attacks in a certain order to defeat the Brionne, he might have stood a chance. As it was though, he hadn't thought ahead like Jack had. In the blink of an eye, he had lost.

He tried hard not to sink to his knees, though they felt as supportive as noodles. He flashed Margo a brief, weak smile and told himself to keep it together. Here it came, the jeers from the crowd...

"That was such a close battle!"
"Jack's actually got someone who's coming up on his tail!"
"His Vivillion was so pretty!"
"That Torchic and Buneary were so cute!"

To Indigo's surprise, the crowd seemed to be cheering for him, or at least, still pleased with his efforts. His pokemon looked around in awe, and Jack looked around with astonishment. He should have been getting the attention! He had won! But there was a certain charm that some underdog named Indigo had. For one, he was just a normal trainer challenging a celebrity, add a little gossip and exaggeration and...

"He said he didn't have any coordinating experience!"
"That's pretty impressive!"
"Jack's still my fave!"
"I'm going to be watching out for this other kid!"

Indigo-- and Jack and Jill, for that matter-- were absolutely flabbergasted. Their stupor was cut short, however, by a trainer pushing his way through. Indigo widened his eyes. Just when he thought the day couldn't get any worse--

"Stop right there! FINALLY found you guys!" The trainer seemed to half bark, half-laugh. "Oh, not a bad job Indigo. Gimme a sec-"

"Run!" Jill squealed. She and Jack began to make a get away but the crowd was too thick.

"Oh no you don't. Cut them off, Dao!" From the characteristic sound of a pokeball opening, a large Dragonite coalesced into the air and grabbed Jack and Jill by the necks of their clothes. The two kids squirmed. Indigo had never been more confused in his life.

"Morado?" He sputtered.

"And the rest of you, show's over!" Morado shouted over the chatter. "Mori, little brother. Just Mori. Hey! What did I tell you all? These kids parents don't want them getting swarmed over all the time! Scram before I get Dao to kick all your asses!" The crowd dispersed in a hurry, after that. Soon it was just the few of them.

"Mori, you're embarrassing," Jill whined. Jack said nothing, only glowered.

"Can it, kiddos. You want me to tell your mom and pop about this?" The children shook their heads furiously. "Didn't think so. Look, I'm the only one out of all those applicants that your parents approved to let me babysit you. If I leave, you're gonna be hard pressed for your parents to find someone else," Mori said, lifting a brow. "And then no pokemon journey for you until you're 16. So just behave."

"Mori, what the hell are you doing here?" Indigo finally burst out.

"Eh, just hanging around. Met your friend over here-" Mori jabbed a thumb towards Margo. "Her parents are breeders! Go figure. I told her we're just in the pokemon health industry." Morado Rose laughed, a husky and jovial sound. "Anyway, I just finished my sophmore year and I got this internship to do some pokemon breeding. Anyways, I'm babysitting the Septoh champions kids--"

"What?" Indigo nearly shouted. The Septoh Champions kids? That was who he had been up against? This day just seemed to be getting more and more confusing. And weird. Especially since he didn't know why his brother was acting so cheerful and happy when he had always been such a jerk. I can't believe him...

But Morado seemed more focused on Margo. "Hey, I'm sorry, I had to interrupt our conversation. I really liked those sketches you showed me. And for what it's worth, I think you'd make an amazing breeder. But hey, if you don't want to, that's cool too. Tell you what, let's battle some time? You seem like swell trainer, Margo."

Margo continued to put on a cheery face for her friend, returning his thumbs up as the crowd continued chattering amongst themselves excitedly. While she wasn't exactly worried for Indy, she was worried about what exactly Jack had in store for him. After all, he had lost against him before, so he had to be pretty tough presumably. A thought struck her, the girl pulling her backpack to her side and shuffling through its contents in search for her scratched up pokedex. The poor machine probably hated her already, but whenever she did drop it, she would apologize for three minutes straight.

Photography wasn't her favorite medium, but perhaps part of being a good artist would include being well-rounded in every medium. Or at least familiar with it. Margo swiped through to find the camera and put her pokedex up, taking a quick (and a little blurry) shot of Indy just before he threw his pokeball onto the battlefield. She kept taking photos every few moments, not wanting to miss anything, but slowly her photos began more and more towards the dirt as her own eyes wanted to see the pokemon in action. Their exchange of sleep powder definitely showed the crowd who was battling at what level--or perhaps it was more of who was coordinating at what level? Margo wasn't sure, but the glittery flecks dusting around the edges of the field were entrancing. She nearly jumped as someone seemed to spoke to her, looking up at the tall man next to her as he gave her a bright smile, dropping her pokedex in a fluster as he asked her if she knew Indy.

Margo scrambled to pick up her pokedex, looking back up at this handsome stranger with a sheepish smile, forgetting to apologize to her poor pokedex this one time. "U-Uh, yea.. We kind of know each other? We're kind of friends.. I mean, at least, I think we are? We had a fight over him calling my pokemon ugly, then he wouldn't really apologize sincerely--which is utterly rude--and then we went to the gym together and had a battle and he won but he was kind of a gloat about it and then," Margo stopped abruptly, her freckled face starting to glow a bit red as she realized she was rambling. Sometimes she tended to do that when her emotions got the best of her, kind of like this morning with Indy in the pokemon center. She took a breath and nodded affirmatively at the stranger. "Yes, I know Indy."

Mori gave a small laugh at Margo's reaction, nodding thoughtfully as he turned his attention back to the battle, watching his little brother realize that people were actually cheering for him. It was sort of sweet, seeing his brother in this lime light. "Hey, my name is Mori, by the way." Mori realized he hadn't introduced himself, quickly fixing his mistake before moving on with his conversation. "What's your name? Did you guys meet shortly after you started your journey?" Mori looked at her with the same charming smile, quickly adding, "Assuming you're on a pokemon journey, that is."

Margo wasn't sure if it was because he was so tall, or because he seemed so much more mature than herself, but something about this stranger was making it hard for her to keep her thoughts in a straight line. She felt sort of awkward that he was even asking about her--what did he need to know about a teenager like her? However, New Margo put an end to this thinking quite quickly. 'He's cute! Let him ask all he wants, including our number!' Margo tried not to giggle giddily at her thoughts, instead focusing on his words but letting her eyes return to Indy's battle; perhaps not looking at him would help her focus.

"My name is Margaret, but I'd rather be called Margo. We actually just met the other day... I suppose I'm on a journey, but maybe not for gym badges or coordinating ribbons. I guess it's a journey to find myself? That probably sounds dumb. I'm from Unova originally and I think I was missing something to life there... I don't really know. I'm here now though and I'm trying to perfect myself for a career of being an artist. Something to that effect, anyways." Margo let out a quick, nervous laugh as she brought her pokedex back up to eye level, her plan of looking at the battle instead of the stranger appearing to make her less flustered at the very least. She snapped a picture of Indy's Vivillon as it exited Mothim's Hidden Power, the dust reflecting brightly in the lens.

Mori listened to Margo, the girl acting how any teenage girl would act around an older boy, he supposed. Still, it was interesting to see it directed towards him, the charming smile still on his face as he followed her lead to watching the battle. Indy wasn't half bad from the looks of it, and the crowd was starting to realize that he might be giving Jack a run for his money. He felt a strange sort of pride swell up inside of him. 'That's my brother out there, making this kid work for his fame.' But with this pride came a bittersweet sensation, remembering that perhaps he didn't deserve to feel proud of his little brother, to let himself support Indy in this way. He tried to push the thoughts out of his head for a moment, listening to Margo's voice. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at her, a slight sadness seeping into her words from the sound of it. "Well... you're quite far away from your family, huh? You're pretty brave to be in this new region all by yourself."

Margo, while not entirely giving Mori the attention he deserved as he spoke to her, wasn't blocking him out completely, only about halfway. She was letting herself get entangled with the battle before her, watching it both over her pokedex as well as through its camera, capturing vital moments as well as the expressions on Indy's face as he battled. A small shrug came from her at Mori's response. "I guess I'm brave... but not really." She paused as she squinted through the lens, hoping to capture the spark of determination in both trainer and pokemon's eyes. "I kind of, well, I guess I ran away from my family. I didn't leave anything to let them know where I was going or where I am. I don't know if they have a clue where I could be. I do miss them, and I have their phone number, I just can't bring myself to talk to them right now. They didn't understand me. They were breeders and I just... I'm not a breeder. They put me in a box and... I don't know. It's like a plant, I guess. They put me in a tiny planter's box and gave me all the things I needed: sun, water, soil, whatever. But I was more of a plant that needed room to spread my roots, more space to really thrive and live, and they just... didn't give that to me. So I left." Again, Margo wasn't truly paying attention to Mori so as he turned during her little unknowingly truthful speech, she didn't feel his eyes upon her.

Morado felt his heart go out to this girl. She had runaway from her parents, all the way in Unova? That was an awful long way for a girl to go just to prove a point about who she was. In some respects, she was silly for thinking that would be a good idea, but in other respects maybe she was braver than he had given her credit for. He thought back to what she had said about being an artist, seeing her look so intently into her camera and trying her best to get nice photos, he wondered if she had any work to show him. "I suppose if they didn't give you enough room, you had to make room, right? If you want to be an artist, that's awesome--of course, if you don't, that's also cool! Do you have any sketches I could look at?"

This, however, got Margo's attention, looking up at him with bright eyes. She wasn't sure if he was making fun of her--he sounded quite earnest though, and why would an older guy be lying to her? He wouldn't get anything out of it, so instead she trusted Mori, holding her pokedex in one hand while her free hand rummaged around in her backpack once more. She pulled out a medium-sized green sketchbook and held it out to Mori. She wasn't embarrassed about showing her work to people, often willingly handing it over and asking their opinions. Sometimes she had a hard time taking criticism but she always remembered their words, making changes to her coloring or techniques. "Here. This is all I have on me, I had more at my house but I could only really afford to bring this along and some of my materials." Margo gave Mori a small smile, before returning to her pokedex, still taking pictures every now and then, but now keeping an eye out for Mori and his reaction to her sketchbook.

Mori returned the smile, taking the green-covered sketchbook and holding it delicately. He opened up to a random page, and found a pencil sketch of a Throh and Sawk locked in combat. The Sawk had his leg above the Throh's head, the red pokemon holding his leg just above his skull. It elicited a sort of tense emotion. He flipped through a couple more pages and found a charcoal sketch of three little Pidove nestled together in a nest. They looked adorable, comforting one another in the warmth of each other. A few more pages and something really caught Mori's eye. It was a watercolor painting, slightly crumpled because the paper of the sketchbook wasn't the best for the paints, of a woman on a Zebstrika. She had flowing red hair, pronounced against the pale blue background and daring green eyes, a sort of 'come at me' smirk placed on her lips. She was posed on her Zebstrika so casually, the fierce pokemon glaring out onto the horizons and giving off little electrical currents on the ground, the grass around its hooves burnt. It was a beautiful picture, despite the paper being crinkly. Mori went to get Margo's attention, to express his like for her sketches, but she was shouting, along with the rest of the crowd. It seemed that the battle was over and Indy had lost, but everyone was still cheering from the excitement of the battle. And it was in this chaos that Mori realized he needed to get to work.

Margo barely registered Mori leaving, quickly handing back her sketchbook with his perpetual smile before rushing to the other side of the battlefield. She was too busy shouting for Indy, closing her pokedex and shoving it along with her sketchbook into her backpack as she hurried to his side. "You did amazing! I'll have to look through the pictures I took later to give you a glimpse of what it was like being on the outside! Not to say the inside wasn't just as amazing, but I think you know what I mean--a different perspective or whatever." Margo paused, clasping her hands in front of her and smiling at her companion. "Do you hear everyone? I told you winning wasn't everything, loser." She said the last part jokingly, hoping it wouldn't hurt Indy's feelings too much. She heard Indy say the stranger's name, her brows meeting in the middle suddenly. "What?"

Her attention was grabbed by a large Dragonite, the pokemon holding Indy's opponent and his sister by their scruffs, that handsome stranger coming to the two and shouting to clear the crowd. Did he just say little brother?

Margo switched between Mori and Indy, unsure of what to say. She suddenly felt more flustered than when he had first spoken to her. "You're his little brother?" She whisper-shouted to Indy, her hand enclosing around his wrist in disbelief. Her face went red once more as he spoke directly to her, giving a quick nod and trying not to giggle to herself. No way did this guy just challenge her to a battle sometime. He had a friggin Dragonite! "Please tell me you have his number, right?"

@iKatamalicious@prettydrops

Jack's temper was boiling under the surface. Most of the crowd had left at Mori's threat, but a few had stuck around. Not only was he put in an embarrassing situation, but he had been interrupted before he could have his fun tearing down Indigo. But all wasn't lost.

He waited till things calmed down before he spoke. "Okay Mori. You can let us go now."

Seeing no reason not to, Moril let the twins down. It was finally time for Jack to play his trump card. He only wished that more people had stuck around to see this.

He stepped toward Indigo slowly, with a respectful bow of his head. "You did well Indigo. I'm impressed you came so far in such a short time." His words seemed sincere, but the glare in his eye said otherwise. He then closed them dramatically and lowered his head in a sigh. "It's too bad though, all that talent going to waste on someone as horrible as you." A slight smile flickered across Jack's face, but dissipated quicker than it appeared. When he looked up, he looked genuinely disappointed. "You heartlessly abandoned one of your Pokemon last night, didn't you?"

Indigo's face went pallid. "What?"

"Don't act dumb. You abandoned your Bumy. I know because I had to take it in." Jack said, shrugging and shaking his head.

Indigo put his hands to his face, gawking. "Y-You've got Hero? Where? Where?! I have to apologize to him!" He shouted desperately.

"You didn't recognize him? Male Burmy evolve into Mothim." Jack said, as if comforting a toddler. "You've messed up pretty bad, huh?" A queasy feeling rolled over Indigo. No... Not like this. That Mothim was Hero? No!

"I know it was a mistake!" Indigo shouted. "Please, let me at least apologize to my pokemon. I have see him. I have to see Hero!" He looked to Margo and Mori and Jill and finally Jack. "I know what a huge mistake I made. Believe me, I know. I was stupid! SO stupid! But I regretted it as soon as I did it. I know that doesn't fix anything but Hero has to know how sorry I am!"

"First of all, he's not your Pokemon anymore. You threw him out. Plus, he was the only pokemon you took out. He needs his rest," Jack said with a cold smile. Indy's eyes began to gloss over. "Don't cry, Indigo. Maybe, after Mothim gets better, I'll ask if he wants to see you. But you were pretty awful. So don't be mad at him if he says no." Slowly, he began ticking off his fingers. "I mean, you called him ugly, useless, and you abandoned him right after you caught that Vivillion, like you only had room for one bug Pokemon in your life. I don't know why, but I expected better of you, Indy."

Mori ran his fingers through his loosely held ponytail of dark rivulets, saying nothing. Truth be told, he and Indy had never been too close. And while he wanted to help, while he wanted to be a mature adult, he had no idea how exactly to approach the situation. This was the first he was hearing of this scenario. "Indy--" he started.

Indigo whirled on him. "I don't need to hear it, not from you."

Damn, well, it's not really my place I guess... Mori thought. Seeing Indigo's scrunched up face and knowing that he couldn't do anything were both terrible to experience.

"I want to go," Jill announced suddenly. As much as she hated to admit it, her own brother was getting on her nerves. She'd seen this manipulative side of him before. He got it from their mother. It was starting to make her feel sorry for Indigo.

Jack recognized the tone in her voice and decided his work was done. "Yeah, we should get going." The twins took a few steps before Jack turned back. "You ready Mori?"

A part of Mori wanted to stay and check on his little brother, but he did have a job to do. As long as the twins weren't getting into trouble, he was supposed to follow them and help them however he could. "Yeah. I'm ready" he said. But before he could take a second step, he turned his head back to Margo and Indy. "Watch after my little bro, would ya?"

And so, they walked away. What little crowd had remained parted to let them pass, then dispersed to get back to their regular day.

Catching up to the twins Mori asked Jack, "Shouldn't you heal your Pokemon at the center?"

Jack put his hands in his pockets, and with a satisfied smile on his face, he spoke quietly. "Naw. I have plenty of potions."

Jill rolled her eyes, took a deep cleansing breath, and placed her hands behind her head. She was just happy to be on the road again.

Margo turned her attention from Indy, surprised at the way Jack's voice sounded. Could he actually be happy for Indy's progress as a trainer?

Definitely not. However, she wasn't concerned with Jack's view of Indy, she was too caught up what Indy had apparently done last night. She twisted back to look at him, furrowing her brows. "You... abandoned your pokemon?" She almost spat the words, physically withdrawing from Indy. From here, their rapid interaction made Margo's head swim, never taking her eyes from Indy in sheer horror. He couldn't possibly be serious, could he?

There was that word again: ugly. What was his problem? Had he not learned anything from when he had called Poinsettia names like that? What was the point of being so heartlessly cruel, to hurt a pokemon's feelings and make them feel like they weren't useful? Margo was beginning to feel sick, crossing her arms across her chest in physical defense of the words that the two trainers were spewing. While she couldn't say she was surprised, it caught her off-guard when Indy refused to hear anything from Mori. He was such a nice man, why would Indy act like that towards his older brother? He was just trying to support him.

Of course, Margo had been supporting him this morning and now look: he turned out to be the same ruthless teenager from the other day. Can't teach an old growlithe new tricks, she murmured to herself, more disappointed in herself than Indy. She let herself believe he learned something from her the other day. Hearing the other little girl announce their departure, Margo gave a curt nod in response. "Yea, that makes both of us." Margo snipped, shooting a glare over at Indy. Margo's attention was brought back to Mori, unable to keep her angry face on when she heard what he said. "I don't think your little brother needs me or my ugly pokemon to watch over him.." She muttered under her breath, the same time that she gave Mori the affirmative with a quick thumbs up.

As they crowd dispersed and they were left to themselves, Margo grabbed Indy by the collar harsher than she had anticipated. She could see the hurt in his eyes, but her own eyes were hazed with red, unable to truly grasp how upset Indy was due to her own anger taking over herself. "I can't even fucking believe you." She hissed in his face, searching his eyes for something--anything--that told her this was just a stupid prank or something. She was searching for something that wasn't there, she realized. "What is wrong with you." It wasn't a question, she realized as she said it, giving Indy a shove before stomping in the other direction.

She was furious, overwhelmed by how strongly she felt for that poor Mothim. Poor Hero. Margo would show Indy. She would show him just how useless bug pokemon are. Margo headed towards Mt. Leeman Trail, determined to train her pokemon with a renewed vigor. She would show Indy what happens when you throw aside your petty feelings for aesthetics and train pokemon with love and compassion. While she didn't realize it now, she was also being gripped by an overwhelming sadness, slowly tightening its grasp around her as she headed towards the trail.

"You... abandoned your pokemon?"

From Jack tearing him down to seeing Margo's once friendly face twist into disbelief and horror, Indy hadn't dreamed that he would have felt so awful. If had felt like a pile of garbage before, he was now a dumpster truck on fire, relatively speaking.

"I..." I didn't... I just didn't know it would be like this. It was a weak excuse, not to mention pitiless. But it was the truth. Truthfully, no matter how much Margo yelled at him-- he knew he deserved it. He would have stood a thousand Margos yelling at him if it would have brought Hero back.

Hero... You were there. I would have done anything to apologize to you if it meant that you knew how sorry I was.

As the crowd dispersed and they were left to themselves, Margo grabbed Indy by the collar harsher than she had anticipated. He flinched, making no move to get away. "I can't even fucking believe you. What is wrong with you."

Everything. Everything's wrong with me. It's always been. Mori never took the time to care because I wasn't worth it, I let Mom and Dad think I was on a pokemon journey for two months when I was just spending money at Cinnabar... And I judge books by their covers, even though I know I shouldn't. I let Hero go. I hurt him. I'm the worst person. I know that. I don't know why I do this stuff! I just do!

With a final shove, Margo stormed off. And soon, Indigo was alone and bursting at the seams. It was strange-- he was so ashamed of himself that he didn't want to seek anyone out, but at the same time, he craved comfort. He wanted to be told everything was going to be okay, and that he was still a good person, or at least he could be. Even if he didn't deserve it.

But who could he tell? Given Margo's reaction, Indigo could only think that the world would see him as literal scum, which he wasn't far off from, true. But it was hard to ask for advice when no one would hear him out. "I want to make it better..." He mumbled, dragging his feet off.

He decided to record his thoughts.

Though there were several apps in the pokedex including voice memos and notepad, Indigo decided to write it out as a text to Dan. It felt much more therapeutic and comforting to send it to his gentle friend who seemed to have faith in him no matter what idiocy he committed.

Hey Dan,
Missed you dude. I know you're going through some stuff with your mom. I wish I knew what to say more when it comes up. It's not like I don't care. I do, but it's just... Hard to know what to say, I guess? I mean it's such a delicate topic and I know you're upset and idk man I don't wanna crack the eggshells I'm already walking on. I know that i need to focus on u more, but just give me a sec. I need your advice.

I did something messed up

I never really liked Hero that much bcuz he was kind of a fugly bug and idk he was weird and not that strong and I was nice but not as nice as I could've been. And I guess I was mad at him idk like... I'm ngl. i thought he was dumb. then like, I dunno, I traveled with him more and I liked him more. but i had this battle with jack. u remember him? crazy snooty kid and his lil sis who beat us. anyway, he was talking smack yesterday and I challenged him to a battle but like... i knew i kinda needed a better pokemon. and like i saw this vivillion and thought it was super pretty so i used the pokedex to find one, and then i somehow caught it. it was pretty crazy. but we almost missed a chance cuz of hero but i was like mad and relived but then i...

i don't know why. i just got super stressed out thinking about my battle with jack and idk i just felt like hero wasn't the best fit for my team. i mean i dunno it sounds weak as hell and confusing af and like i'm right there with u. it doesn't make any sense but i just... i don't know! i told burmy he wasn't a good fit for the team, i called him ugly and useless and stuff... im not proud of it ok. im SORRY. dammit im super sorry. i take back everything. hero ran away and right after i was like "o shit" and tried looking for him but he was gone.

i know i don't deserve any sympathy. the only victim here is hero... i just want to apologize to him. i dunno wtf i was thinking. do you still think im a good person...? or... can i be?

so i had my battle with jack this morning dude. i wish you were there. long story short i was actually in the lead for a while and my attacks were looking super pretty and shit, but then jack pretty much destroyed me. but fkin get this MORADO'S HERE. Mori! i know you don't know too much about him, i barely ever saw him when i was younger myself, but he's here babysitting those jack and jill kids who are the SEPTOH CHAMPS KIDS. wtf

yeah so mori's tryna act all nice and im not buying it and shit but... dude it just gets worse. forget all tht. forget mori. jack got hero... and hero EVOLVED. can you believe it?? he was this really huge, beautiful moth with these super bright orange wings and this really beautiful purple black coloring on the rest of him. he was so so beautful Dan.

but i didn't know it was him.

and then... i took him out. i got close to beating his popplio thingy, but arghh. i was close. but that doesn't matter. dude i would eat dirt to know it was Hero at that time... then i could have apologized. but jack...

he basically called me a terrible person and like... i dunno man. i deserve to be treated like hot garbage cuz thats what i am but jack like... he just seemed to be taunting me and like.. he told everyone about how i abandoned hero. how he was such a good person. and he wouldn't let me apologize to hero. he said i hurt hero badly... but i don't think so. i know hero. he's tough as nails... i wish i realized that before. i mean but even if he was weak i wouldn't have cared. i miss hero. i miss hero so much. i miss hero so so so much. why did i do the stuff that i did? what's wrong with me...

but like one of the worst parts was that margo was like super nice before and then she blew up at me. she... she kinda shoved me around, grabbed me by my collar and stuff.

Idk where Margo went. I dunno if I'll ever see her again?? She was so pissed. It looked like she was goin to leeman trail or somwthing... Idk if I should follow. I mean i get it... i deserve it. but dude... like... i dont know if im allowed to say this but i need some advice. i know what i did was wrong. i just... u kno whats crazy is i was asking margo for advice this morning and she was like, "yea of course if you hurt someone they can get over it." was she lying??? i dont kno wat to think. like hero's GONE and i know what i did wrong and i have to make him know that but... what if i can't? can i still do this?? hero doesnt have to come back to me. he just has to know how sorry i am.

How do you make something right when you’ve made it so wrong you can never go back?

Deciding not to send the text was the plan, but the opposite of Indigo's intention executed instead as he accidentally pressed the send button with a careless brush of his thumb. He wiped away the tears from his eyes, absolutely unaware and clueless. Perhaps... Perhaps Lukoo would be able to give him advice.

While Dan wouldn't see the text right away when he was talking to his mother, he would see it after, most likely...

Dan had gotten the text from Indy shortly after he had ended his call with his mom but hadn't checked it instead, focusing on his Pokemon When he did check it the incoherent and almost rambling text that had come out of seemingly nowhere surprised him.

Dan shot up after grabbing his Pokemon hearing about margo putting her hand on his friend, while though he wasn't very confrontational he drew the line on putting hands on someone else, despite whatever the events leading up to it had been, while walking to check Leeman Dan shot a quick text to his friend:

Look man, i know i have stuff with my mom going on but that shouldn't stop you from talking to me. your my best friend after all, im always here for you. Speaking of hero, I know hes an ugly bug, sure but you gotta remember though they have feelings, sure he or she or whatever was probably mad, if i was in the same shoes i would be too but, its never too late to apologize, you remember the phrase 'better late than never' that my mom always says? Well its true, hero might not forgive you but its never too late to say sorry. Ugh, I know im not making any sense but just know even though you can be an egghead but you know just as well as any we all make mistakes, its not the mistakes that define us its how we deal with it and move on, just do what you think is right now is all. I'll always be on team indy.

P.S Ill find margo.

Dan sent the text knowing his friend wouldn't understand his own incoherent rambling awash with mistakes and repetitive notions.

He reached Leeman trail soon after finding a figure, Margo, storming in the opposite direction, he managed to catch up with her and cut off her path of walking.

"Hey, what the Hell happened earlier today. After that battle, I got a text from Indy and I want to hear your side first before I say anything. Did you really put your hands on him." He said in a cold tone ready to start screaming his head off.

Margo's anger had worn out by now, only frustration and disappointment swirling around in her head. She had gone to Mt. Leeman Trail and was able to geet in a good training session with each of her pokemon for about an hour before she had to go to the center and heal her pokemon. After healing, she went back out to the trail in hopes of training more but instead she walked with her pokemon, speaking to them like old friends without expecting responses from them (obviously).

"You know, I just can't believe it. I just really thought that he would have realized something from the other day. It's not like he hadn't realized his mistakes with Pons." Margo fidgeted with her hands, picking at the skin of her cuticles without much thought behind it. Crowne was waddling along next to her, nodding along to her words while looking along the trail's outskirts for anything to catch his eye. He was always itching to get into a battle, and thus Margo tried to keep a close eye on him. Julep was also out of his pokeball, scampering in between Margo's legs each time she took a step--it was one of his favorite games to play with his trainer. She had thought to let out Poinsettia but she didn't want to talk about Indy's words in front of her. Oceana and Wulford would probably be bored with her leisurely pace so Margo spared them the hassle.

Her two pokemon made an odd sound--a hostile sound--as a trainer suddenly appeared in front of her, a cold expression on his face. Dan had apparently found her and was going to make quick work of her. She opened her mouth to stop him from even accusing her of something that didn't happen, but found herself cut off before she even began. She was surprised to hear he wanted to hear her side of the story, but she wasn't buying the idea that he wouldn't be on Indy's side in the end. Her aggression flared for only a moment before she tried to put the lid back on that particular pot.

"Look, honestly, at this point, I can't bring myself to get angry about it. He didn't learn anything from how he treated Poinsettia the other day, and it pissed me off. You can't teach someone something that they don't want to learn." Margo turned from Dan's harsh gaze, unable to bring herself to face it head-on as Julep quickly moved to her front and stood on his hind legs, sneering at Dan from the ground. Crowne had taken similar action, standing at Margo's side with an equal glare to Dan's, his stubbly arms crossed. She appreciated the security her pokemon brought her.

"I just..." She paused, thinking for a moment longer before articulating herself. "I could tell he was upset by everything. But he brought it on himself, at the end of the day. He made a mistake, and I think he needed to see that his decision--intentional or not--came with consequences. I've wasted enough emotional energy being upset today, Dan. Please don't wind me up all over again." Again, Margo changed her gaze to the other side of the trail, only giving Dan eye contact for a few moments. She gave a defeated sigh and folded her arms, mirroring her Squirtle. "I bet he told you I hurt him or something. All I did was give him a little... shove, I guess. I was looking for something, Dan. I was hoping he would tell me it was just a joke or something. But he abandoned his poor pokemon in the wild. I don't know how long he had Hero for, but he was probably so frightened." Margo's heart clenched in her chest at the thought, the poor Burmy searching around for Indy after being left out in the darkness.

"His own trainer just left him there! Because he thought he was useless to him... Can you really blame me for being upset at something like that? Especially when we had just had an argument yesterday about treating a pokemon with respect, even if it doesn't fit his ideal of physical appearance. I appreciate the effort to get my side of the story, but does it really matter? Clearly, you're upset with me like I was upset with him." Margo decided it was time to meet Dan's eyes, looking at him without expectations of his reaction, she figured he wouldn't hear her out anyways so she wasn't hopeful for anything positive to come from their encounter. It wasn't until saying all this aloud that she began to rethink her actions. Was she too harsh in her physical reaction? She hadn't thought so... it wasn't like she had punched him or something. It was more like a physical reality check, in her opinion.

Dan sighed and audibly as he looked towards the ground his anger fading replaced more with sorrow, "Look... I didn't mean to come off so mean, I just get defensive when it comes to him. He's my only real friend, I just want him to be happy. But, seeing that text grew on me. Sure abandoning Pokemon the way he did...It's not right but the mistake he made he wants to right at least, even if he can't. I know you think he's a stubborn person, and he is but..." He looked back up facing Margo yet again "That doesn't make him a bad person."

Dan sat down and recounted to Margo the story about how Indy saved a 'stupid, ugly' bug, as Indy would call it now, and met Dan, and other times he helped Dan out, trying to get him under a more positive light.

"His minds not always there but every day his heart is. He's honestly a great guy," Dan blushed and looked towards the ground. "That's why I like him so much."

"Just please, give him another chance, I can't blame you for getting mad, but please..." Dan said.

It was an overzealous special talking about the good in his friend, He doubted Margo even listened but hoped she did and understood he really was sorry for the mistake he made.

Dan waited longer for Margo to speak and when nothing was said, he piped up himself

"Tomorrow, I'm going to visit my Mom, you can come along if you want. Indy might be coming too, even if...you know." He said meekly.

Margo took Dan's word with a grain of salt--he was biased towards Indy as it was, but she still took in his words. She began to bite the inside of her cheek, switching her hands again and placing them on her hips loosely. "I knoooow." She dragged out her word, making sure Dan did know, apparently. She joined him on the ground, crouching and giving Julep and Crowne two quick pets to signal their bodyguarding job was done.

The two pokemon didn't seem entirely satisfied with her decision, Julep hopping into her arms and still giving Dan a side eye. Crowne, on the other hand, hadn't moved and was still staring at him with his crossed arms. It was slightly comical with his stubby limbs.

Margo listened to Dan speak about Indy quietly, petting Julep in her arms as he recounted various stories about their friendship. It was nice hearing about positives from Indy's life--he wasn't all bad, she supposed--but her resolve was still sticking. She wanted to show Indy a lesson that Jack taught him with his own pokemon; she wanted him to realize that it wasn't just Hero, his own ugly pokemon, that could be useful. Her own 'ugly' pokemon were useful too.

When Dan stopped speaking, Margo stayed silent. They sat there for a few moments longer before he mentioned visiting his mom, Indy may be joining as well. She almost flinched as she remembered Dan's mother had really upset him the other night. "Oh, yea, I..." She stopped herself from saying she had forgotten. She also suddenly realized that if Indy and Dan left, she would be on her own again.

Sure, they had only met her a day ago but she had grown comfortable with having people around her other than strangers and her own pokemon. She didn't realize how much she craved attention from others, genuine interest and conversation with people her own age, until she was on her own in the wilds like this. Her family had always been close and they always had relatives visiting, Margo being accustomed to so much social interaction.

"I... I'd love to tag along, if you're going to invite me." She began sheepishly, giving a small smile, happy for the invitation in the first place. She had actually never been to Kanto--her family had taken her when she was only a few months old, but she obviously didn't remember--and figured maybe her and Indy could have their battle sometime during the trip. Not only that, but the possibility of an addition to her team was tantalizing. Moreover than that, she wished to see the sights of Kanto. She heard it was one of the most beautiful regions and wished to capture some images for herself while she was there; sketches, pictures, paintings, anything she could create.

Of course, she also wondered if this would mean Dan would open up to her like Indy had this morning. Perhaps she could come out of this situation with two friends instead of none.