Indy raised his eyebrows, skeptical of what Dan was telling him. Not that he thought Dan was lying, but then why was Margo so quiet? Surely, a spunky girl like her would have been invigorated by the close battle? And her Squirtle, being carried in her arms, looked quite scratched up. Had it really been that close? "She almost beat you? That's surprising. Her pokemon haven't had as much training and they're not evolved..."

Then again, it's not like I know her super well. Losing sucks, I know that better than anyone else. I get it, I get how she feels... She shouldn't feel bad though. She just hasn't had as much practice yet. What else would she expect? He's got an evolved pokemon and she doesn't. She was pretty much slated to lose. And she still gave it a shot. That's better than me. It's better than a lot of people. She's brave... Truly, Margo was. And as Dan kept asking Margo questions, it became evident that the battle had clearly not been so close. Why else with all the incessant questions and asking her if he'd been to hard on her? Alright, I dunno if I actually believe Dan...

Still, Indy said nothing. He hadn't seen the battle and he didn't want to interject based on anything but what he was sure of. It wasn't clear whether Margo really needed to be comforted, let alone by him. Though plain that Dan was trying to console her, Indigo figured he'd listen to the conversation between them first, before jumping in with any thoughts of his own. The issue was between them, after all.

C'mon Margo... You're annoying but you're brave. You gotta know that, at least.

Margo's ears perked as Dan began to retell the battle, her brows knitting together as she heard the words coming from his mouth. 'Why is he lying about the battle? It's not like I didn't realize what I was getting into...' She thought to herself, squinting at her hands on the counter as she waited for her pokemon to be given back to her. Dan joined her at the counter now, the Chansey on duty grabbing his pokeballs before turning cheerily to hand them to the nurse.

He continued talking, asking her questions and complimenting her pokemon. She appreciated the kindness, and she was sure his intentions were genuinely nice but it was coming off... differently to Margo. She felt like he was protecting her from judgement from Indy, which of all things she really didn't need that. "Hey, look," Margo paused, taking her pokeballs back from the nurse--she had put Crowne back in his ball at this point--and looked at Dan with sad eyes but a smile on her face. She was trying to not sound angry about this, but she was confused as to why he was lying for her. "I appreciate what you're doing, I do, but I'm not upset about the battle. I don't think I did too bad, for someone who had never battled with another trainer as of yet... I did at least make one of your pokemon faint, and I'm proud of that. You don't have to lie about it for me, let alone lying to In--him." Margo gave Dan's arm a friendly squeeze, hopefully conveying that she wasn't as emotional about the battle as he seemed to think she was.

Margo returned her pokeballs to her belt, bringing her shirt over them and moving towards the table Indy had been napping at. "What time does the boat leave again? And how long is the boat ride? I'm curious if I'll be able to do any sketches on the way to Kanto of the sea.." Margo's voice trailed, trying to distract herself from her own frustrations.

Dan lingered by the counter for a while, waiting on his pokemon, before joining the two yet again. He checked his watch

"The boat leaves in three days, and we have a day and a half's walk ahead of us. We could rest the last day and a half in Wanzo before we leave, gives me and Indy a chance to check in with the professor. The boat ride itself is about a half day, you should have time to draw at least a quick sketch." He said with a yawn "We better get going." Dan said, excited to see his mom and wanting to leave right away.

"A day and a half's walk..." Margo repeated the words under her breath, mulling over that time. Perhaps they would run into some wild pokemon to train on during that time--she felt like she was being consumed by the idea of training, but she couldn't help it. She had an obsessive personality; I mean, she ran away from home because she found a new hobby for painting, drawing, etc.

Margo stepped in line with Dan, following him out of the pokemon center with Indy presumably following shortly after, so long as he didn't fall back asleep. She was feeling tired herself, but she was very anxious to see yet another new region without her parents on her back. Maybe she could even catch a new teammate in Kanto! She walked with a pep in her step behind Dan.

Though Dan had fibbed some, Margo didn't seem to offended and had taken the comments in stride. She held her head high even though she had lost and was gracious through and through. Indigo took a moment to reflect on himself.

If it had been him, he wouldn't have minded the lie. In fact, he might have even found it helpful and would have tried to spin the story in favour of the not so valid truth.

What did that say about him, he wondered. And with a sharp and uncomfortable realization, it dawned on him that perhaps Margo's philosophy and take on losing a battle may have been better than his.

It was painful to admit. And it was even more difficult that he wanted to ask Margo more, but she would have brushed him off, it seemed. He bristled. Why did she have to be so damned difficult? He had learned his lesson and he still felt awful about the day before! Why oh why didn't she believe he had learned his lesson?

Regardless, there was much to contemplate. He got up silently, still sleepy, but his mind churning. Well there was a full day's walk ahead of them. There was plenty of time to think.

As the group got out of town dan piped up, breaking the silence between the three,

"What do y'all think of taking a break about halfway there and just relax? Ya know, catch some more pokemon or somethin." He said.

"Oh, and remind me to show you Grotle, Indy." He muttered

Oh Jeez, someone pleaseeee say something... He thought.

As they walked the whole route of Quiet Road, the awkwardness and tension eventually broke somewhat. Mostly because it was difficult for Indigo and Margo to completely ignore one another. On the way, a trainer ended up challenging Indigo after seeing his Vivillion.

Managing to win with his Vivillion, Indigo then found 5 Cheri berries and one White Herb as they all continued walking. With the wild Pokemon ever persistent to challenge or practice battling with humans, Hawka and Mimzy had to battle as well.

Eventually, they reached Wanzo Town. After checking in with the Professor and updating him, they had some time to rest. Afterwards was smooth sailing to Kanto.

Soon, Indigo found himself back in his familiar birthplace and home of Cerulean City. He hadn't realized how much he had missed it.

"Guys, I can't believe we're here," he said grinning. After stopping by the Pokemon Center, he retrieved his gift of freesia flowers for Dan's mother.

"Where are we headed to next, Dan? Did you call your mom on the way here? Are we staying at your house?" Indigo wasn't sure whether he could impose on Dan during such a difficult time. "If it's easier for your mom, I could stay at the center..."

Dan had been excited about this trip for awhile, but finally being he almost brought a tear to his eye, remembering fond memories of him and Indy hanging out around the town. Dan had been taken out of his thoughts by Indy's questions.

"I think we should get to moms right away, I'm sure she's excited to see us." He said as he threw his bag on the ground and dug out the necklace and it's case. Dan chuckled a little at Indy's statement "C'mon Indy, you shouldn't worry so much. We got plenty of room in our house. Seeing as how Dad's gone on another trip and all. I can sleep on the couch if we don't have enough space." He said as he looked at Margo "Mom's especially excited to meet you. She's always loved meeting new people. Just know she can ramble though. I remember when she first met Indy she talked for hours about flowers, cause she was so excited." Dan said, it didn't take long for them to reach Dan's old house, he turned before knocking. "You two ready? Honestly..." Dan said as he scratched his head, "It's gonna be hard to see mom the way she is. I hate seeing her so sick."

The trip to the boat was rather uneventful for Margo. Simply following along with the boys and musing to herself silently the whole way--it was a long time to be stuck in her own thoughts for so long, but she ruminated on a number of things. Her thoughts kept circling back to the fact that she was about to cross oceans to meet Daniel's mother when she crossed oceans to get rid of her own mother and father. It was a little disturbing, especially after thinking about it for hours. She was delighted for the distraction of the professor, even though she didn't speak to him much. Dan and Indy gave the courteous introduction and that was that, but she enjoyed eavesdropping on their conversation.

On the boat ride to Kanto, Margo took herself away from her negative thoughts with her art. Her mind instead wandered to Indy's older brother--she had to remind herself to get his number from Indy--and his comments on her work. It was sweet, of course, and her passion was reignited after remembering his words. Margaret took this opportunity to create a present for Dan's mother. She felt silly giving her a gift in the first place, she didn't know her, but she felt like she would feel even more awkward if she came empty-handed while Dan and Indy gave her something. On the way, she made a fun watercolor painting. She had sat on the deck and made a portrait of her view. She added some Wingull to her skies (after consulting Oceana and asking her to be a model for her), and a beautiful school of Goldeen jumping from the frothy waves. Her finishing touches of a Seaking at the front of the group of fish was being completed just at the time of their arrival to Cerulean.

She went starry-eyed at the quaint little town, relishing in how quiet it was and the beauty of the ocean in its backdrop. She tuned out Dan and Indy when they first started speaking, walking a few steps away and taking everything in. Even the air smelled like the water, it was amazing. She glanced towards Dan as he mentioned meeting new people, her head tilting slightly to the side. 'To meet me?' She questioned, a swell of excitement suddenly blossoming. At the same time, she was hit with a feeling of deceit; she was getting excited to meet Dan's mom instead of her own. She bit back her sadness, taming it like a lion back into its cage.

Margo followed behind Dan and Indy as they lead their way back to Dan's house, Margo holding her watercolor sheepishly as they walked. By the time they got to his house, she was giddy with the prospect of meeting his mom once more, pretending that maybe it was normal she would rather meet this stranger than her own mother. However, her bubbly exterior deflated slightly at Dan's comments. She brought one hand to his arm and touched him gently.

"She's still your mom, you know. She's gonna know how you're feeling if you wear it on your face like that. She needs you to be stronger now more than ever, you know?" She hoped her words came off as encouraging, but in case she glanced towards Indy, hoping for a tiny bit of help. He was his best friend, after all.

Indigo processed what Margo and Dan said before finally adding, "yeah,I mean, the happier you are, the happier your mom is gonna feel. You know, you living your life means a lot to her. And she wants you to have fun. So even though it's hard, smiling and being cheerful can help her a lot." He patted Dan's shoulder. "Ready when you are."

"Right, thanks guys." Dan said as he smiled the best he could.

Dan knocked on the door, it only took a couple of seconds before the group heard a familiar voice of a little girl ring out from inside "One second!", a couple of loud banging footsteps approached the other side of the door followed by what sounded like a slip and a bang "Ouch." The voice said as the door opened.

"Hey, Celia, you okay there?" Dan said.

At the door stood a short 11-year-old girl, with blonde hair and tanned skin, Dan's sister Celia.

"Yea, Yea I'm fine." She said brightly as she hugged her brother "How's that trip to... what was it called again?"

She quickly looked to Indy and held out her first for a fist-bump "What's up Indy? Stayin cool?" She said, referencing an old joke between the group

She looked puzzlingly at the strange girl and said "Oh, I don't think we've met. I'm Celia, that kid cooler sister. Nice to meetcha!" She held out a hand for Margo to shake

"Mom's about to get up from her nap Danny, she told me to help you guys set-up here if she wasn't awake. Come on in!" She said as she broke away to hold the door open.

Dan's mom had always napped, though these naps only lasted a half-hour, they seemed to give her enough energy to last half a day.

She quickly looked to Indy and held out her first for a fist-bump "What's up Indy? Stayin cool?" She said, referencing an old joke between the group

"Always the chillest," Indigo responded with a smile.

After the round of introductions had finished and everyone was well re-acquainted with each other, Indigo gently set the glistening freesia blossoms near the windowsill. "I got this present for Mama Gareth," he chuckled. 'Mama Gareth' was what he'd been calling Daniel's mother since he was a child, even occasionally deferring to 'Mama G.' It was a much warmer and funnier way of expressing affection as well as respect, instead of a stuffy 'Mrs. Gareth.'

"They should do okay by the windowsill. What do you think, Celia? Man it feels like it's been ages since I been in your guys' house... By the way, where are we sleeping?"

Margo suddenly felt an overwhelmingly embarrassing amount of shyness wash over herself as this 11-year old greeted them. She had been expecting Dan's mother--of course, that was stupid when she realized she was a sick woman after all--and wanting to get over the shock of her introduction first, but instead it would be postponed for a bit longer. She would have to work up her excitement all over again, along with pushing away her anxiousness about the meeting as well. She half hid her painting behind her legs as she shook Celia's hand lightly, smiling down at her. "I'm Margaret, but my friends call me Margo. I'm very happy to meet you, as well."

Margo followed everyone inside, taking a seat on the nearest thing she could find, which was a nice couch that had been loved over the years by the look of it. She placed her painting on the floor by her feet, the top of the painting resting against her leg to stay propped up. She watched Indy place his own present on the windowsill, the flowers beautiful in the light. She felt a blossom of anger sprout through her chest but she ignored it--how could Indy be so thoughtful towards a person but not a pokemon? This wasn't the time though, Margo reassured herself, prickling suddenly at Indy's next question. She had already been planning on telling them she was going to the center for her own slumber. After all, how could she expect Dan's poor sick mother to take care of some strange girl, on top of three other kids?

"I was actually going to sleep at the pokemon center while we're here, I was planning on doing some training and maybe catching some new pokemon!" Margo paused, putting on a small smile. "I have to call my parents tonight and give them an update on my journey anyways." It was a little white lie, but Margo could already feel it ballooning into a lie she'd have to keep addressing, making her throat start to close up at the thought.

They're cute! I'm sure mom will love this, But uh...I don't think she'll be able to reach the window sill, I know, put it here! She said, pointing to a circular table absolutely filled with flowers. "The table's low enough for momma to reach without hurting herself and the sun hits this table. Oh and we got rooms set up for you and Indy, Danny's gonna have to sleep on the couch though. Sorry, Danny, I made that choice." She said, smiling smugly.
She stopped to listen to Margo, as she had piped up to say something. Grabbing a piece of dark chocolate, unwrapping it and popping a square into her mouth.

"Awwe." Celia said to Margo "But we got a room set up for you and everything...". Celia had put on a set of puppy eyes, something she always does when she wants something, to woo Margo into staying.

"Celia, I'm sure it'll be fine. Anyways she has to call her parents after all. After all, I won't have to sleep on the couch." He said, looking at Margo "I'm sure Mom won't be too bugged about it anyways." He shrugged as Celia regained her happy eyes.

"Okay fine." Celia said with her normal pep "Oh! Dan, I forgot to tell you-" He sentence cut off by a ring of a bell from another room.

"Oh! Mom's awake." Celia said, dashing to the other room. Dan followed behind to go see his Mother.
"I'll be right back, she usually needs help getting up." He said, walking out of the living room.

Indigo's eyes flickered over to Margo before placing the flowers on the table. I hope she doesn't feel like a third wheel... Must be weird being here. She doesn't really know anyone here that well but she came along. She even worked on that drawing or painting or whatever for Dan's mom. Gotta fix that, somehow.

"You should definitely still have dinner with us," he suggested after Dan mentioned letting Margo sleep at the pokemon center. Indy avoided looking at her, because it was still too awkward. Margo was still mad at him-- she made that clear enough. Still, Indy wanted to let her know he wanted to communicate. Though he felt indignant at her attitude towards him, it still felt deserved at the same time. He couldn't get too angry without being drowned by sad guilt. Instead, he tried to push all of his feelings to the back of his mind.

As Dan made his way to his Mama G's room, Indigo quietly suggested, "And you should introduce yourself," to Margo. Padding softly on the carpet, he followed his friend to see Mama G.

Margo kept her pursed lip smile on her face at Celia's puppy dog eyes. "Really, that's quite alright, I'm sure Dan would rather not sleep on the couch anyways." She reassured Celia, glancing towards Dan's relief at her excuse to sleep in the pokemon center. She was surprised to hear that they had set up a room for her however--her parents would never let boys sleep in the house, especially if they were strangers! 'C'est la vie,' Margo thought with an internal shrug of her shoulders, watching Dan hop up to help his mother at the ring of a bell. She must be really sick.

The day was filled with surprises, it seemed, as Indy actually spoke to her. She had thought she had him completely iced out, but it seemed he did still have some courage to give her a sentence or two. A quick and curt nod was all he received before he went to follow Dan. He had mentioned an introduction and Margo gave an expression that said something along the lines of, 'Do you think I'm an idiot?'

She wasn't sure to follow the group or not, but she decided to stay put on the couch, fidgeting her legs while she decided how to give Dan's mother her present. She assumed the two boys would go first and then she could just tag herself onto their presents and show her painting. Margo hoped that Dan's mother would be well enough to see the three children and not be in pain during their encounter; she hated to think that they were putting her in a position of being an unwilling hostess.

Indy had entered the room in the middle of Dan and Celia helping her up.

"Oh.... She muttered as she saw Indigo Hello Indigo. How've you been, I didn't even get to see you before you left." She said, looking at the floor. She hated having Dan's friends seeing her getting helped up, it was always just so awkward to her. When she was lifted out of her bed and into her chair she piped up and said "Thank you, Daniel, Celia. I appreciate it." She looked behind someone as if she was looking for someone, "Where's that, what was her name again Margret, the character you spoke of on the phone?" She asked

"Yea, Margo's here, I think she's still in the living room. Speaking of I think she got you a present."

"Oh, she didn't have to, but that's very kind." She said, as she took two wrapped presents and an envelope off a low table.

"Let's go great her than shall we?" She said, with a slight coughing fit as she was pushed outta the room by Dan, and into the living room

As she was driven into the living room by Dan, she noticed a figure on the couch nervously fidgeting with her legs

"You must be Margret. It's so nice to meet you, I've heard much about you from Daniel here, I'm glad we can finally meet." She held out the envelope

"I got you a present, I didn't know exactly what you like so I just got you $50 and a couple of gift cards to a nice perfume shop nearby. I hope you enjoy it, I can get you something else if you don't though."

Margo tried to hide her face as Dan drove his mother out to meet her--she bought her a present? She was appalled to think that his mother had gone out of her way to give her a present, her heart filling to bursting point at the thought of her spending money on this stranger.

She immediately bounced up from her seat and put on the biggest smile she could muster, the nervousness of showing her painting to his mother gone and now replaced with a feeling reminiscent to pride. She thrust her painting before her and hoped to Arceus that his mother found it at least a little pleasing to the eye.

"Hello, I'm very happy to meet you as well, ma'am. You really didn't have to spend money on getting a gift for me though, really, I appreciate the thought and I thank you... I made you this on the way here as a present for you. I really hope you like it, I think it really captured the beauty of the ocean right outside your city here. I've never been to Kanto, you see, so this is a very exciting trip for me--not only to meet my friend's mother, but also to see a new region for a couple days." Margo could feel herself rambling, her mouth moving on its own without her really having enough control to stop it for a few moments. Finally, she was able to shut herself up and present the painting to his mother.

She found herself really hoping she would like it--she wasn't sure what to do with the gift that his mother gave her. Could she return a gift card and give back the money discreetly? Or was that bad manners? Margo felt an inner conflict coming upon her.

Indigo greeted Dan's mother with a hug. After seeing her gift for Margo, he chimed in, "Hey, where's my gift?" Though it was definitely a joke. "Ha, just kidding, it's awesome to see you." The atmosphere was warm and inviting. And Daniel's house certainly felt like home.

Cynthia had been absorbing every word that Margo said, enjoying the company of a new face, and her son, the present she got was a topping on the cake. It was a wonderful painting with vibrant blues and wonderfully created ocean Pokémon dotting the area.

Dan's mom teared up at the gift, "Thank you, Margret, this is wonderful. I'll have it put up soon." She said as she set the painting down. "Daniel, Indigo. Here!" She said as she handed the gifts to the boys. Dan quickly opened his present as his mom spoke, Inside was a slip of paper with a 6 times over the week and a single Pokeball. "Daniel, Indigo, I got you a couple training sessions with a top class trainer in this city, He'll train up your Pokémon so you two don't fall too behind in your training. Daniel, That pokeball contains a Pokémon that your Dad caught on one of his trips, Exeggcute, I think is what he said it is. I really hope you like it, you can see it tomorrow, but I wouldn't wake 'em up this late at night." Dan nodded, he always wanted an exeggcute ever since he was little, they always seemed so cool and strong, and they looked like one of the best breakfast foods ever. "Indigo, in yours is a ticket to a nearby Art Museum. Maybe me and you could go one day. It'd be nice. Finally, with your parents help, I managed to get you a meeting with a fashionista and Pokémon breeder, from Lavender Town. I hope you two like it."

"Yea, Mom. Thanks so much." Dan said as he stared at the shiny pokeball.

Cynthia sat, waiting to see Indy's reaction to the Gifts. "Well? Do you like it? I can get something else if you don't."