Amber's

'It is her birthday after all so she must have slept in.' You thought as you turned to head to her place with her gift under your arm. The early morning sun and the fading mist made Pallet town nice in your eyes. Ideally at certain times of the year the town really did look like a collection of colors but it wasn't today.

In the sky you could hear Pokémon calling out their names and the sounds of construction in the distance. The town harbor was damaged during the winter storms so the boats couldn't go from Pallet to Cinnabar Island. If a trainer had a Pokémon with fly or surf it would be no problem but as a rookie with no badges it would be some time before you could go that way.

As you crossed into Amber's houses yard you could see her mother on the pourch staring into the distance. Miss Madison was a former trainer, a Pokémon coordinator who had gotten second in the Kanto region's tournament before she met Amber's father. She was like an aunt to you, even if you had a lot of adopted aunts and cousins, miss Madison was still close and you believed she was rooting for you and Amber to get together.

In your dreams that is. While she liked you for sure more than Blue, she was not happy with your choice to become a trainer before you had a stable income and also of your inability to tell her daughter above your crush. As a woman who experienced the league she knew the dangers that a gal could get into and your puppy crush could lead to problems in her eyes.

Sighing you braced yourself. "Morning Auntie Madison! "

"Morning Rory, what brings you here today? I thought you were going to the lab to get your Pokémon."

"I am, but I wanted to bring Amber her gift." You say, lifting the box to show her your present. "Is Amber up yet?"

Madison clicked her tongue. "You missed her Rory, she's probably getting her Pokémon right now."

You missed her on the way to her house? "Then I better hurry! If I know her she'll probably get into a battle with Blue with her new Pokémon. If she's lucky she'll win but Blue-"

"Just a minute young man." You gulp as she pointed to the chair next to her, her gaze forcing you to submit. Meekly you mived to the chair and sat down with her leaning on the rails staring at you. She always made you feel like a little boy.

Her lips curled into a thin smile. "Rory, Amber is a women now and a trainer to boot. Both of us know how much being a trainer means to her after my husband died. You can't shield her from the world forever you know. That's my job and while im saddened by my girl leaving home, you can't take away her freedom and her life's choices."

"But madam," you attempt to interrupt her other to stop when she gave you the adult-is-talking-time-to-shut-up-or-else look.

"... I understand your fears for her Rory but your not her boyfriend. For goodness sake your like a baby Pokémon who-

After ten minutes listening to Amber's mother dressing down you felt miserable. Today was supposed to be a great day but now you felt in the pits. She then sent you to the lab with a smile and something that made it worth it. "As her friend you can do this for me. Do so and you'll earn my respect. Stay her friend and don't take advantage of her. She'll need someone whom she can trust on the road and I hope you won't betray my trust."

So with a skip in your step you came to Oak's lab, only to find Amber on her knees with her Pokémon and Blue gloating over her.