We were on the boat to Poni Island. This boat, however, was way larger than the other one and had multiple passengers besides my classmates, my dad, and I. There was an actual captain as well.

Haunter and Froslass floated by my side. They both seemed to be enjoying the breeze. There was barely a cloud in the sky, and I enjoyed the hot sun beating on my skin. All three of us peered over the railing. The breeze from the ocean blew into my hair, as I enjoyed the smell of salt water all around me.

"Mommy, look!" I heard what sounded like a little boy's voice behind me. "A Haunter!" He exclaimed. I then turned around, as I noticed a little black haired boy with blue eyes approach Haunter. He wore a black shirt with a Gastly on it, and bright purple shorts and black sandals. He looked to be no more than five years old.

The little boy then noticed me. "Excuse me miss, but can I please pet your Haunter?!" He asked excitedly, as he looked at Haunter like he was a giant piece of candy. Haunter then turned towards him, with a big smile on his face.

I smiled at him. "Sure, go ahead." I felt my cheeks heat up. "He really likes to be scratched right in the center of his head." I said.

The little boy had issues reaching the center of his head. "Wow, your Haunter is gigantic!" He exclaimed, as he still had issues. But, what happened next amazed me. I watched Haunter float down a bit so the little boy could reach him. I had never seen him be so gentle before. I smiled as I watched the two of them. "Wow, so amazing!" The little boy exclaimed. He then looked over and noticed Froslass, and immediately ran over to her.

"Wow, and a Froslass too! Are you a ghost type trainer?!" The little boy asked, as he looked back over at me. He then examined what I was wearing, and his blue eyes grew ten times in size. "Wow! I love your outfit!" He exclaimed. "It's almost like mine!" He said, as he looked down.

A woman then walked over to me, I assumed to be the boy's mother. "Calm down, Tommy." The woman said. She then looked over at me. The moment I laid eyes on her, the moment I was reminded of my own mother. She had bright green eyes and black hair, and wore a white sundress with lacey flower designs in it. "I'm really sorry dear, Tommy really likes ghost type Pokemon." She said, as she smiled embarrassingly.

I returned her smile. "Oh no, he's fine. I was once just like your son." I said, as I recalled the days when I was younger. I remembered the time my mom and I went to the Johto region. I remember seeing a boy with a Misdreavus, and I was the same exact way as Tommy was. However, the boy was a bit mean to me at first, but he came around. I guess kids at a certain age think they're superior to younger kids, but I didn't think that way.

The woman then smiled at me. "You must have younger siblings." The woman said. I looked over at Tommy, who was infatuated with my Pokemon.

"Actually, I'm an only child." I said. It was funny to hear someone say that to me.

The woman then looked at me with a shocked expression. "Wow. You have a lot of patience." She said, as she smiled at me. "A lot of other trainers would have blew him off."

"Aw, that's mean." I said, as I looked down at Tommy. The poor kid wasn't causing any harm; He just wanted to see my Pokemon is all.

I noticed my dad approaching me out of my peripheral vision. However, I played it cool and just continued talking as normal.

"But yeah, when I was younger I loved ghost types too." I said, trying to keep the conversation going. "Your son has good taste in Pokemon." I said, smiling.

The little boy then walked back over to me. "One day, I hope to have one of every ghost type Pokemon, even Giratina!!" The little boy exclaimed happily.

I smiled at how innocent he was. I even dreamed of the day that I had a show down with Giratina himself. But, one can only dream unfortunately.

"There you are, Emethyst!" My dad said, as he approached me. "I've been looking everywhere for you." He said.

"Oh," I said. "Hey dad. Sorry, I've been over here this whole time." I turned to face him.

The woman and Tommy then turned their attention to him. It was then I guessed they realized who he was.

"Wow! The Alola Pokemon Professor is your dad?!?!" Tommy exclaimed. "That's so awesome!"

The woman then approached my dad. "Your daughter is very sweet," she said. "My son really loves ghost types, and she let him look at them both." She said, as she smiled.

My dad smiled at her. "Emethyst is a very sweet girl who does care about others, even her own Pokemon." He said, as he smiled at her.

The woman continued smiling. She then turned towards Tommy, who was still petting Haunter. "Alright Tommy, we have to go, okay?" She said.

Tommy then stopped petting Haunter, and turned towards his mom. "Okay mommy, it was nice meeting you and your Pokemon!" He exclaimed as he waved at me. "I want to be just like you one day!"

I felt the blood run to my cheeks. I was flattered. "You too," I said. "Oh, and catch Giratina for me one day!" I exclaimed, as I smiled at him.

"I will!" Tommy called back.

"Giratina?!" My dad exclaimed in shock, as he looked at me.

I laughed. "Oh dad, let the kid dream." I said. "So, what's up?" I asked, wondering why he came looking for me.

"Nothing, was just looking for you." He said, as he smiled lightly. "The ride to Poni Island from Akala is a little long, we should make it there by around dinner time.* He said.

I wasn't sure what time it was, so I checked my phone to see that it was 2pm. I shrugged. "Eh, that's fine." I said. I didn't mind the long ride, for I was enjoying the sun and warm breeze on my skin. I could feel myself getting a tad bit sunburnt, but I liked the feeling for I tanned right after.

"So, are you excited for the dance?" My dad asked.

I nodded my head. "Yeah. I think it'll be fun." I said, as I looked out over the ocean.

"You know this is a mother's day dance, are you sure you're going to be okay?" My dad said, as I felt his hand rest on my mildly sunburnt shoulder.

I then turned to face him, and nodded. "Yeah dad, I'll be fine." I said. I was suddenly reminded of Mallow, and wondering if she was going to go now that we were all kind of trapped on Poni Island. I started contemplating if I should ask her to come with me, or not.

"Okay, I just want to make sure." My dad said. "I don't want you to be uncomfortable."

I was beginning to get a little annoyed. "Dad, I know you're only trying to look out for me, but I'm a big girl now. I know I can handle this. I can't stay sad forever." I said. It was true, I couldn't dwell on my mother's death forever. But at the same time, I was praying I got the closure I needed while in Poni Island. I knew I would have to train hard.

My dad sighed. "I know. I just want to make sure you'll be okay." He said.

My small bit of annoyance went away, as soon as I realized my dad was actually trying. I began to feel bad that I had snapped a bit. "Thanks Dad." I said, as I willingly hugged him. I didn't know what came over me.

"Oh," he said, sounding shocked. "This is the first time you've willingly hugged me." He said, as I felt his arms wrap around me.

I was silent for the moment. I knew I had to play it off the best I could. I didn't want my dad worrying about me, and possibly breathing down my neck for the whole duration I was in Poni Island. "Eh, I figured it was about time." I said, as I released him from my embrace.

It was then that looked back at my backpack, and realized I didn't really have anything for the dance. Except for my cosmetic things. "Hey, uh dad?" I asked.

"Yes?" He asked.

"Um.. would it be too much for me to ask if I could get a new outfit for the dance?" I asked, as I slid my foot around on the deck. I didn't really like asking for much, but I wanted to look nice for the dance.

"What's wrong with what you have on?" My dad asked, as he looked down at me.

I mentally rolled my eyes. Was he serious right now? I was literally in sweatpants and sandals."Dad, I uh.." I stammered. "I want to look... Nice." I said. "Like, date nice." I had a plan, and I was for sure it was going to work.

I saw my dad's eyebrow raise. "You have a date? Who?" He asked.

"Uh, well sort of." I said. "They don't exactly know it yet. I was going to surprise them." I said, as I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. I didn't want to expose who it was just yet.

My dad then looked away for a moment, and smiled. "I don't see why not." He said. "You're growing up, aren't you? I can't really get in the way of that." He said.

If the heart eyed emoji was real, I was sure it was my face now. "Thank you so much, dad!" I exclaimed as I hugged him again.

"Anytime," he said. "Just nothing too revealing." He said, kind of sternly. "You're still only fourteen."

I chuckled. "Of course." I said. I wasn't interested in showing what all I had to offer, anyway. I was sure my plan was going to work. Now I just had to play the waiting game.