The next day blossomed into delirium.

Seven times had Constance glanced at those leaf green, salubrious, ticking hands till she heard the melodious lashing of her son's tongue after a minute of silence.

"O Mother, whatever the flying Farfetch'd did I tell you to not sneak out of town again?" He plopped onto the red sofa and crossed his arms. He then swept his hair till black strands shielded an eye that constantly judged her.

"You know I just had to, dearie! It's the only way!" She never met his gaze as she tied her floral apron round her waist.

"Right. What a joke." He kicked the air.

"Rhydon you understand? I'm doing this for the family!" Constance flipped her ponytail and headed to the kitchen to flip the pancakes.

As she waded her way there, he shouted, "You can go to that 24-hour mart at any time. Just because it's almost empty at midnight doesn't mean you have to go every night."

"Who will prepare your meals?" She shook her head. "And there are discounts! Big discounts!"

"What kind of mart jinxes itself with a daily closing-down sale anyway?"

Constance sighed. Opening a drawer, she fished out a black, slender cutting board, remembering that her daughter-in-law gave it to her. Dropping a pinch of salt and pepper onto the board, she swore to herself not to look at the time again throughout that day. Proceeding to place a few onions, garlics and guacamoles onto the cutting board, her elbow hit the button at the side of the board before turning to grab a knife. The board disappointed her with its light, and the time appeared on its screen.

"Darn." His words walked way faster than him. "O Mother! Whatever the sleeping Shiinotic have you done? My darling got you a nice, clean tablet, and you're using it as a cutting board? Again? Are you blinder than a Zubat? Have you gone crazy?"

She picked the sable object up and sniffed it, the fragrance of vegetables wafting into her nose. "It's not a tablet. This is a cutting board that tells the time. A marvellous invention my daughter-in-law gave me."

"No." Snatching the gadget from her, he tossed it into the bin. A crash, muffled by the shifting plastic, became audible. "If you don't need it, just say it."

"I don't get you, son. You spent seven months of intimacy with me before you got out of my womb. You met me before your wife!"

"I don't get you too. You're always conceiving jokes. What pancakes need vegetables? Also! Your puns and all are as irritating as Stardust in my eyes. Am I supposed to thank you for letting me hang out in your uterus? And be premature?"

"I didn't raise you to be immature, at least."

"I didn't choose a stupid mother like you too."

Just like that, he slapped her with words and a tender smirk. Huffing, he stormed out of the house, leaving the woman alone in the kitchen, shaking. The knife slid out of her grip. Silence strangled her for two whole minutes.

"Rhydon you understand at all?" She drew in a breath and closed her eyes. The sizzling of the pan caterwauled and shushed her. The legato hissing moulded her thoughts into a serpentine river. Her mind soon drifted to Magi, and her creases narrowed.

Each step toward the bathroom brought her hands closer to her heart, and the encaged mammal thrashed against the fine ribs, only to fall back. Each step toward the bathroom forced her eyes wide as thoughts slithered into a fissured peace of her mind, the immortal fear of stultifying conformity shedding scales into that black hole. Each step toward the bathroom created an uproar of murmurs only audible to herself. Did she underfeed Magi? Would she find him afloat in the waters? As much as she tried a relationship with the divine, she always found herself in the omens' mire. She could erase her fears and replace them with encouragements, but the former remained faint.

Her hand extended to the door and pressed the knob down before swinging the door outwards. Then, she backed away, her cold and clammy hands slamming against a wall. The sight she beheld was nothing she could ever conceive. First to make its appearance was a delicate scream.

"Kyaaa!" A boy enwrapped in a towel, dripping wet, faced her. "Grans! You didn't see my dickie duckie, right?"

"Ugh, Sebby. You did see my Magikarp, right?"

She earned a shrug from him.

"Why would you have a stupid Pokémon, grans? Didn't Dad say you should take care of yourself because you're already weak? Also, did you see my dickie duckie or not?"

"Listen to that father of yours again, Sebastian! Don't you listen!" Constance pulled his ear and gritted her teeth. "I am not frail! And so what if I saw your dickie duckie? I've seen it for years when I bathed and clothed you."

"He says you're bi—"

Constance lowered her voice. "Sebby, my dear. I'm not bipolar."

"But he says girls and women are all—"

"No," said the woman. "Your momma's not bipolar either. And if she's so vulnerable, you wouldn't be here too, living and breathing."

Constance let go and sighed. That's for bearing an ingrate and having to see my grandson suffer.

"Grans... I love you no matter what. I know life's hard. And I know Dad isn't quite nice to you. But I've got to hold onto being top in school too. It's hard for me. I want to go to Kalos and be a butler."

"Shh... I'm sorry, Sebby." Constance squatted down and looked into his eyes. Stroking his hair, she said, "I love you too."

"Right, I heard that if you want a strong Magikarp, you can evolve it into Gyarados. Its only strength is its ability to jump high. So if you have no other Pokémon or rare candies and want a Gyarados or a stronger Magikarp, maybe you should try another way. There's this place called the Dragon's Gate."

"Oh?" She could not hold her surprise. Her many years spent living in Kanto did not inform her there was indeed such a place.

"It's said to be behind a waterfall, but your Magikarp's got to jump over it first to evolve. Don't know if it's true." Sebastian wept his eyes and smiled. Hugging her, he said, "But... Grans, you're the best no matter what. Oh! What's for breakfast?"

The thought of pancakes for breakfast slithered into the crevices of her mind. Screaming and running down to the kitchen, she picked up the knife, turned off the stove and flipped the pancakes. They were charred. Sebastian entered the kitchen seconds later and pressed her temples. Constance's heart fluttered. She was glad to have a good grandson like him, filial, respectful and adorable.

"Don't look so Gloom, Grans. You got me."

She could not hide her feelings. Her smile saw dimples and her eyes were thin curves.

"Let's eat. I'll get Magi first."

Home is where the hearth is, where the cheerful fire shall burn free. She mused and ambled toward the bathroom to check again. Not there.

"Grans, the milk?" Sebastian called out to her to keep the carton of milk in the refrigerator.

Making her way to the kitchen, she opened the refrigerator to store the milk. It was then she saw it.

The eyes of a shivering Pokémon, young and afraid. A post-it note was placed beside him, with the word "Dinner" on it. That ingrate had done it!

"Why?" Constance took Magi out of the refrigerator. As her eyes ran across the Pokémon, she felt a bitter taste in her mouth. "My Magi."

A head popped out from the corner of the kitchen and the boy asked, "Grans? Something wrong?"

"N-No. It's just..." She couldn't bring herself to say it. She needed to be fast, but the nearest Pokémon Centre was in Viridian City, two kilometres from Pallet Town. Turning to Sebastian, she said, "Go to school, hun. Also, tell that no-good father of yours I'm going on a journey to find the Dragon's Gate! I got to bring Magi to the PC fast."

The boy nodded and stayed silent. She turned to the main door, glanced at him and twisted the doorknob. The moment the door burst open, Constance collided into a girl sniffing a bunch of chamomiles in her hands.

"Sorry! Are you alright? Is your Magikarp alright? Maybe some grooming will do," she offered with a smile. Picking up the chamomiles from the grass, she swept the dust off her. Then, she returned her gaze at the woman.

"That won't do. Magi's really cold." To be more precise, Constance thought her Pokémon was frozen. "I don't think an Ice Heal will work well either."

"I've some leftover Aspear Berries at home. They're much better than manmade medicine. Come with me."

Tilting her fedora, she nodded and clutched onto her Pokémon tightly, following the girl with the green dress into her house. The frost on Magi's scales were thawed after he consumed a berry, and he splashed in joy on the table.

The girl fed him a few Oran Berries and petted him, grooming him till his scales shone like the gemlike bulbs above, and the dirt in his barbels were scraped off. "There, there. All happy and healthy!"

"Thank you, girl. I see you love flowers a lot," Constance eyed the vases and flowerpots in the house. Roses, nightshades and snapdragons surrounded her, and a few stalks of chamomile and chrysanthemums in tiny vases calmed her down. "I can buy some for you to express my gratitude. I am friends with the florist in Viridian City."

"No, it's okay."

As soon as she completed her sentence, the front door was flung open with a tumultuous bang. Barging in was a frantic man terrifically engaged in pulling his hair and scratching his head, turning left and right, seeming to be in search of something, something that wasn't quite like lost time. His head snapped up and his eyes bore into the girl, drills into fragrant Black-eyed Susans.

"Daisy! Have you seen my hair?" The man Constance had wanted to avoid appeared before her, hollering. This day could never have been more perfect. What novelties and ideal thrills would await her!

"Grandpa, your hair's always on your head," the girl replied matter-of-factly. Then, her eyes darkened. "Hangover? Or were you drinking early in the morning? You do know it's bad for your health, don't you?"

Constance gulped at the scene. Taking off her fedora, she covered her face with the massive accessory, the feather swaying in the light wind. She was wobbling, her head turned away, as she focused her vision on a vase blooming with tulips. A leaf lay beside it. Standing up, she stretched her hand to swipe it, feeling its smooth edges fondling her recently rough skin.

In her peripheral vision, as she gradually pulled down her fedora, a man's hardening wrinkles and a Falstaffian breath with the whiff of the bitterest coffee ever known greeted her amicably in less than an inch from her face.

"Oh, you're that young man—or young lady?—from yesterday! Feeling better?" Professor Oak's fingers gripped her fedora. If it wasn't for her face of pearl, she would have yielded to her heart of steel and stabbed his forehead with a finger.

"She's an—" Daisy was cut off by Constance who placed a finger on the girl's lips.

"Ahem." Constance coughed, and a shy leaf peeked out from behind her hat, "Leaf me alone, you overly curious and old geezer. Rhydon you give me some space?"

"I've got more to ask. You lied last night, right? Seriously, are you a boy or a girl? And your Magikarp? Are you abandoning it at my place? You know you want a starter Pokémon! How about a Charmander? It's just as fiery and has a charm in its name, just like you." He retreated and blinked at the leaf before taking it, not forgetting to slide his fingers across her ring finger. "Are you confessing your love with a heart-shaped leaf? My, I don't think I have any love interest in you; I'm married and too old. Daisy here couldn't and wouldn't think I'm a pedophile either."

Daisy blushed, got up and pushed him out of the house before slamming the door. His screams of protest rang through the house and the walls seemed to crack in fear. Panting, she faced the older female and grinned. "There, you won't be pestered by him anymore!"

"I miss having filial and wonderful children like you," Constance said before she could stop herself. "I got to go first. Sorry about that."

"No, I should be the one apologising, m'am. You see, grandpa can't remember Gary's name and keeps changing his name to those like Stu, Mary and Samuel the Third, Ruler of the Serendipity Era or other strange names. Many other instances too. Old age, I guess. They call it dementia, but I'm not sure. Sometimes, he doesn't seem to understand what he's saying too. Or maybe it's the work of alcohols."

"Well, dementia's sort of part of old age. I think he's drinking too. Last night was terrible! But Rhydon we have a bad memory to forget negative experiences? Happiness is a right."

"Uh, Gary can be cocky, but he's a good brother. It's not really a negative experience..."

"Oh, forgive my insolence! Right, I must leave for the Dragon's Gate. Thank you for today, Daisy." Constance put on her fedora and adjusted the feather.

"Wait! Can I have your name?"

"It's Constance."

Carrying her Magikarp in a tub of water big enough to fit him, she left the place. It was an offer given by Daisy after she told the girl putting a Pokémon inside a cutting-edge catching tool like a Pokéball was degrading and can hurt the Pokémon by means of confinement. Actually, she just couldn't bear the thought of placing Magi in a metallic space that seemed to be bereft of water.

Scuffing her feet, she sensed the sun glaring at her shadow. It was like a lively girl was in an elderly woman's body, with a heart that never stopped or slowed.

"I know it's still not very free for you to be trapped in a tub near your size, but bear with me for a while more, Magi. I will find a way for you to be free."

She didn't care if she would be judged by others. To protect Magi at all costs—he was all that mattered to her.

A scream sent a flock of Pidgey, previously nesting in the crown of a tree, flying, and dozens of green leaves dropped. Constance put on a decidedly cautious mien and tiptoed her way to Viridian City. Whatever that happened, she hoped it did not occur near her. She just hadn't the time for nonsense.

But nonsense coerced her with a shopkeep dashing toward her with sweat dotting his forehead, an alarmed expression so genuine that she thought him a figure that escaped from the wax museum.

"An evil monster attacked the city. You shan't go to Viridian!" Holding her hands shakily, he continued, "It's so scary Viridian is but a city of ice! In seconds!"

"Oh, you're not from a wax museum, but an ice gallery." Constance pushed his hands away and flipped over a ledge without difficulty, not one drop of water lost from the tub. Turning to face him, she asked, "Do you have something that can store water and a Magikarp?"

"No, but I think I know someone who might have that. He's probably at the ranch, that blond boy. If you want to go ahead to Viridian, then that's at your own risk. The monster is way too terrifying! You can't win with a Magikarp."

"He can only learn Splash now, but soon he will be the strongest Magikarp you'll ever know." Her eyes glinted as she balled up her fist. Magi swam in the tub beside her, waving his barbels about as he created tiny ripples. "I'll slay that monster for you, coward."