Savior
#1 of Vaporeon
Midnight Visit
Wind lashed at the beachside hotel, a bonechilling rain crashing into the windows and tiled roof, the occasional hailstone tearing through the palm trees and crashing noisily against cobbles. This was a night to hunker down and curl up with hot cocoa and a warm fire. The seas were lashed to fury, and only the most foolhardy of adventurer would have gone out in such horrid conditions. Three had settled in the hotel for the night to sleep off their trek from Lilycove City. Sandy, Terry and Simon had gotten rooms on the bottom floor despite the hotel being in peak season. The time was roughly two thirty A.M. when a skulking figure slid through the hotel grounds in search of a place to hide from the appauling weather. It moved an unsteady path, as if drunk, and eventually found the western wall. The figure slid open a partially opened window and crawled in, even sliding it shut afterwards. In the half light inside the figure shows to be quadrapedal, and it crawled over to Sandy's bed, in which she slept soundlessly. The creature shook itself off and pulled itself onto her bed. The shift in weight caused her to stir.
"Nngh... Go back to bed, Charmander!" Sandy grumbled, turning over.
The quadraped moved up the bed until it's head was level with Sandy's and let out a low growl. She screamed, jerking awake and lashed out, kicking the animal to the foot of her bed, where it landed in a heap with a soft whine. Sandy groggily looked about the room for a humanoid shape, desperately checking to see if one of the boys had crept into her room to play a trick on her. As she awakened more she could feel the foot of the bed sag dramatically, and her attention was pulled to the crumpled heap which she had so recently lashed out at. It was a male Vaporeon, roughly smaller than the ones she had done battle with recently, and looked so malnourished and pathetic that she choked. His half focused eyes looked right at her as he raised his head and pined. Whatever consiousness she hadn't kicked out of it slowly dribbled away as his head became heavy and the world from his eyes turned black. Sandy crawled out of bed and put a hand on his chest. Still breathing... Still a heart beat... She smiled slightly, but it was a smile of relief that she hadn't killed it, and it was all she could do to refrain from bursting into tears. She pulled her shoes on and slung on her backpack before clipping her party belt on. She pulled a note out of her bag and put it on the bedside cabinet. 'At Pokécenter, see you there.' She then gently slid her arms around the Vaporeon's frail frame and waltzed out, choking back tears as his ribs and spine made his smooth thin fur reflect the light in terrible ways. She stepped out into the rain and began running as fast as her legs could take her. She raked her brain trying to remember where the nearest center was. There were two, one at Fortree and another back in Lilycove. With the weather like this, Fortree would have locked the path gates. Her only possible destination was Lilycove, almost ten kilometers away. She might never make it there in this cold, but she had to try.
She had been trekking for roughly half an hour when the Vaporeon stirred and looked up at her. He bared his teeth, but she simply jostled him playfully. Sandy shifted the Vaporeon onto one arm and pulled out a Poké Ball, releasing her Charmander, which promptly rolled into her and sheltered his tail from the rain.
"Charmander!" Sandy yelled above the roar of the wind. "Use Sunny Day and get rid of this rain!" Charmander nodded and his tail glowed brightly. The rain slowly subsided, but the clouds didn't show any sign of leaving, hanging overhead like a threatening overdraft. "Thanks, Charm." She said. "This makes it a little easier." And promptly returned him to his Poké Ball.
Vaporeon raked his brain. All this effort for him? He'd never thought anyone would put this much effort into helping him, he'd always been called useless and pathetic by his trainer, whom he had escaped after viciously biting his leg and running with all the strength he had. He struggled to fight back the thoughts of that... Monster; treating him like people treat gum underfoot. But, he had almost attacked this girl in her own bed out of fear and she had kicked him. But the look she had on her face as she strode on, a look of pure determination mixed with sadness lifted his heart. Maybe not all humans are monsters? He thought. Maybe she's truly got enough of a heart to care for a lost cause like him? He closed his eyes again and started to lick her arm. She tasted sweet. He thought. He moved in her arms and licked her face, opening his eyes and getting a good look at his savior. She had turned her face to him as she ran on down the path, past night dwelling Pokémon and sleeping people's houses. She smiled at him, relieved that he had woken, tears running down her face as the wind tore through them, chilling them to the bone.
After nearly an hour of almost uninterrupted running, Sandy barreled through the Pokémon Center's doors and skidded to a wet stop at the counter. Nurse Joy turned to her from re-alphabetising the medecine cabinet.
"Weren't you here two days ago?" She asked. "That's right! You came in after practicing with your charmander! What's the problem?"
Sandy gasped in huge gulps of air before she stood upright and plopped the Vapoeron onto the counter. "I've been running for almost an hour to *gasp* get him here as fast as *gasp* I could!"
Nurse Joy almost fell over a trolley of medecine bottles behind her as she gasped in shock. "What've you done to this poor Vaporeon?!" She yelled in outrage, before noticing Sandy's tears.
"He's not mine! He crept in through the window while I was at the hotel on the shores by Fortree City. I may have injured him when he startled me awake, please help! Sandy cried, panicked. "There aren't enough potions in the world to fix this!" She broke into full fledged crying and sagged to her knees.
"Why didn't you take him to the Fortree Pokécenter?" Nurse Joy asked.
"The path was closed and I couldn't get through, I've trekked all this way through the storm." Sandy said, sobbing.
Nurse Joy motioned to the Chansey next to the counter which rushed off and soon returned with a stretcher. Joy manhandled the unconcious Vaporeon onto it and Chansey wheeled it away to the Emergency Ward. Nurse Joy helped Sandy to her feet and handed her a ox of tissues.
"You go get some rest on the seats while I take care of our friend." She said. "I will want to keep him overnight for observation, so when I'm done I'll put you in our spare Dormitory room."
Sandy walked over to the soft couches and slumped into one heavily as Joy walked off, the light above the Emergency Ward ficking on as the door clicked shut behind her. She puled out her phone from the waterproof compartment in her bag and called Simon. when she got no response she sent a message telling him where she had gone and left it at that. She lay in the couch for what felt like an eternity, wiping the tears from her rain soaked face as she hiccuped from her crying and ten kilometer run until an hour later the light flicked off and Nurse Joy walked back in. Joy leaned on the back of the couch and watched the weather outside.
"He's going to be alright." She reported, sombrely. "His bones are surprisingly strong despite him being so undernourished. His body is riddled with scars and there is barely an inch of meat on him, his basic muscles are all that're left, and they've almost atrophied. His body temperature is incredibly low, probably due to the cold outside so I've covered him in blankets to keep him warm and turned up the thermostat. I've also applied a Hyper Potion salve to the point you kicked him, and he's on liquid foods to increase his bodyfat, although he'll be extremely hungry in the morning."
Sandy leapt up out of the couch and hugged Joy. "Thankyou, thakyou, thankyou!" she cried. "I'm so sorry to bother you this late at night! I just didn't know where else to turn!"
Joy patted her on the back. "It's alright, we're here to help in whatever way we can, though I was about to turn the lights off and leave the centre to Chansey. It's a good thing you got here when you did." Joy say down next to Sandy and handed her a towel. "This is for you, I don't want you getting a cold. You really do care for Pokémon, don't you?"
Sandy nodded, taking the towel and drying herself off somewhat. "Thanks. Yeah, I am a trainer after all, and my parents are serious breeders. I've grown up around Pokémon so they're all my friends, even if I don't know them yet." She sighed. "I've got an affinity for water Pokémon, they're so sleek and smooth." Her eyes went a little misty. "That anyone could do this to their Pokémon... Finding him was a real shock."
Nurse Joy nodded. "I know what you mean. It's traumatic when people bring in severely inured Pokémon, but this... This is like the owner cared nothing for him and made him battle past the point of fainting. I would hate to see any more Pokémon owned by him."
"Personally I'd like to get my hands on him." Sandy said, angrily. "Give him a nice trip to Officer Jenny and her Growlithe brigade and the emergency ward. Not necessarily in that order.."
Joy stood up, clapping her hands together. "Alright! I believe that it's time you got back to bed!" She said cheerfully, picking Sandy up. "Only you're going to have to change before you do, I still don't want you to catch a cold and those clothes will soak the mattress."
Sandy sighed heavily and pulled a change of clothed out of her backpack and followed Joy to the dormitories where she promptly changed. She hung the wet clothes on a line and released Charmander, who she told to use his tail to dry them a little bit faster. Nurse Joy walked in, gave Sandy's Charmander a Poffin and handed a blue and white Poké Ball to Sandy.
"Here" Joy said. "I want you to quicky nip downstairs and capture Vaporeon in this ball, then release him again."
Sandy turned her head to one side. "You want me to be his owner?"
"Yes, please!" Joy responded. "You're a kind and gentle person and I wouldn't trust him with anyone else. The ball is special, and is designed for us to take Pokémon from abusive trainers."
Sandy took the Poké Ball and shook Nurse Joy's hand, and headed downstairs. She stepped into the ward where Vaporeon slept and quickly tapped the Poké Ball to his chest. In a burst of golden light he was caught in the ball, which eventually clicked, confirming that he was now hers. Sandy released him back onto the bed. He opened his eyes slightly and looked at her.
"Good night, Blueberry." She said. She walked out of the room and back to her own and dropped into bed watching Charmander flame dry her cothes and slowly drifted to sleep, images of that hour long trek flooding her mind as she smiled lightly, new tears filling her eyes.
Sandy awoke at ten the next day, groggily at that. She rummaged around her bed until she managed to get her phone and answer it. She had it to her ear for a whoe two seconds before she -painfully- realised it was the alarm clock function and turned it off. She yawned wide and put Charmander back in his Poké Ball before standing up and stretched, several of her joints clicked loudly. She was always stiff in the mornings, and some days she wished she could just stay in bed. She pulled her backpack to her side and reached for the doorknob when it suddenly flew away from her. Nurse Joy stood in the doorway, she looked extremely worried.
"Sandy, your Vaporeon is missing from the recovery ward!" She said, panicked. "All the doors and windows were locked before I went to bed last night, so he's not gotten out, but a Pokécenter is not a safe place for a roaming Pokémon!"
Sandy rushed past her. "You search the actual hospital wing, I'll look in the public areas!" She yelled, now scared. "Don't open the front door until we find him! My friends will be here soon, one has a Gardevoir, so he'll open the door from the outside."
Sandy rushed to the Pokécenter main hall pulling her backpack onto her back and searched under and in everything. With a Pokémon that can open windows she didn't want to take any chances. She checked the bathrooms, and finally went back to the main hall. She spent another few minutes searching here before she heard a low scratching sound coming from a room she hadn't searched yet. She nudged open the door to a kitchenette, probrably for preparing sick Pokémon's food and saw Blueberry scratching at the pantry door. Sandy's heart melted at the sight of this. She remembered Joy had said he'd be hungry. She stepped into the room and let the door click shut behind her loudly. Blueberry jumped at the sudden noise and spun around on the spot, growling menacingly. Sandy pulled her backpack off her back and took a bowl and bag of Pokémon food out, filling the bowl on the counter. She walked over to the still growling water type and lowered the bowl, putting it on the floor infront of her. Blueberry sniffed the bowl cautiously and took a small taste before he frantically dug in. Sandy smiled and walked back to the door and called Nurse Joy over. Joy appeared at the door with Chansey and smiled at the rapidly vanishing food.
"I told you he'd be hungry." She said.
"Yeah." Sandy said. "He was scratching at the pantry door." Blueberry finished his food and looked up at Sandy with eyes that told her he was still hungry. She obliged and poured another bag of food into his bowl.
Behind them the kitchen door opened again, this time a Rocket grunt occupying the doorway.
"There you are!" He yelled triumphantly. "Thanks for feeding my Vaporeon, now I really do suggest handing him back."
Nurse Joy turned to him. "You don't deserve Pokémon with the way you treat them!" She yelled. The grunt just laughed and knocked her to the ground as he pulled a pair of Poké Balls from his belt, releasing a shiny Zangoose and Riolu, both in as bad a shape as Blueberry. Joy gasped.
"Kill the humans." The grunt ordered, but the Pokémon simply stood their ground, defiantly glaring at him. "Damn useless animals!" he yelled, kicking them down. "How many times must I punish you before you do as I say?!"
Sandy stood back up from the bowl, her face a mask of fury and tears. Blueberry had also changed his attention to the grunt, only now his form wavered slightly. A blue mist fell from him and his eyes glowed a vibrant yellow. Suddenly the faucet on the sink exploded, water rushing out the opening, only instead of splashing against the roof, it flowed to Blueberry surrounding him in a sphere of rushing water, his glowing eyes the only things visible through all the water. The ball of water plummeted at the distracted grunt, who was surprised to be knocked out the kitchen door by a blast of water, but even more surprised that he never hit the ground. Sandy's friend, Simon, walked up next to him and took his Poké Balls. Gardevoir, who was keeping the grunt from hitting the floor also appeared in his vision.
"I know what you've done." She said angrily, her psychic hold starting to squeeze him. The grunt was suddenly flung across the room, sliding to a halt underneath a large, and angry looking Arcanine, which growled at him menacingly.
"And so do I." Jenny said, whipping out a pair of cuffs. "You're under arrest."
Across the room and through the door to the kitchenette Sandy had filled another bowl for Blueberry and was currently stroking him down his back, her palm gliding across the small Vaporeon's spine. She used her Pokédex to find his favourite kind of food and had hidden several dry poffins through the bowl. She took out another two bowls for the Zangoose and Riolu and filled them some food too, which they ate furiously. Blueberry finished eating and yipped happily, padding up to Sandy and nuzzling her side before falling asleep in her lap. She fed the Zangoose and Riolu again before reaching to pet the little golden pup. Quick as a flash, the Zangoose stopped eating and held a claw to Sandy's wrist. Sandy jumped at this and pulled her hand away. Zangoose went back to eating, shooting Sandy a wary glance. Just then, Arcanine came wandering in holding the grunt in his teeth, followed closely by Jenny. The grunt turned his gaze to Sandy, who glared down her nose at him.
"Get away from my Pokémon!" he yelled, writhing to get free. Sandy stood up and took the two Poké Balls that were the Zangoose and Riolu's and held them up to his face, forcing them open until they snapped. She then turned around and tapped one of her own to the Zangoose's head, who vanished in a bolt of red light. She tapped another on the Riolu, capturing him as well. The balls shook momentarily but eventually clicked. Sandy released her new female Zangoose and male Riolu and smugly turned her face to the grunt.
"Sorry, whose Pokémon?"
Joy had seemed a little reluctant at this, but didn't stop Sandy as she put her hand on the Zangoose's head. "I guess I should nickname you two." She said as her hand was playfully swatted away. "I guess you'll be Azure." The zangoose beamed happily. Sandy went to put her hand on the Riolu's head, but was again stopped by Azure. She seemed protective of him, afraid that Sandy would harm the little Pokémon. "I'm not going to hurt him." Sandy reassured her, which only got a suspicous look. Sandy looked from Azure to the Riolu and put two and two together, turning her face to the grunt. "Where did you get this Riolu?!"
The grunt spat at her, but the large Arcanine holding him up jostled him. "The Zangoose layed his egg." He said bitterly. "Freaks of nature!" the Arcanine jostled him again, growling loudly.
Now she understood. Azure was only protecting her pup, as any mother would. Sandy got tears in her eyes as she put her hand back on Azure's head. "I promise I shall not harm your son." She said through tears. Azure nodded bitterly and allowed Sandy to lower her hand to the Riolu, where upon she took about tickling him. Riolu giggled and fidgeted, trying to get out of her reach. "I'll call you Izaac." Sandy said, still tickling the giggling pup.
Jenny led the Arcanine out and Joy followed. She had a whole Pokécenter to run, so she couldn't stick around forever. However she had Sandy bring her three newest additions to the counter for a checkup. Despite being dangerously undernourished they were in amazingly good shape.
Sandy thanked Joy as she took her Pokémon back and released them from their Poké Balls. She wanted them to get to know her, and te best way for them to do this was to stay with her outside their cramped little spheres. Azure pulled Izaac onto her shoulders before she almost fell on her back.
"You're not strong enough to do that yet." Sandy said, catching them. "Come here!" She pulled the two of them into her arms and carried them, Blueberry walking alongside them as she got Simon to join them.
"So." Simon had asked after several minutes of walking, breaking the monotony of their travels after he had to pick up Blueberry and carry him as they walked, the Pokémon sleeping sweetly in their arms. "How long until you think they're ready to trust you fully?"
"I don't know." Sandy responded, cradling the mother and son pair in her arms. "But I bet it'll be fun along the way."