Chapter Text
I glare down at my alarm clock when it starts to go off. I’d already been awake for about half an hour and had been watching it and waiting for it to go off so that I’d stop laying in my bed. And now it won’t shut up.
“Alright Kate, time to get ready.”
I get up, walk over to my dresser, and pick out my normal work clothes. It’s Monday, so I had to get ready to go to Paniola Ranch for work today. As much as I like working at the ranch, it is still work, and people don’t usually interact with me much. It sometimes gets lonely, but I always adore the Pokémon I get to work with there. I don’t have any Pokémon of my own, but all the Miltank and Tauros that live on the ranch are as good as my own. My apartment doesn’t have room for any Pokémon anyway, so I don’t feel any lost love.
Moving on with my morning routine, I pull my straw-blonde hair into those braided twintails that the other girls on the ranch considered stylish. I grab my bag and head for my apartment’s door, swiping up an apple on the way out. I have an early lunch today, so I figure the apple should tide me over.
I walk out the door of my apartment, then turn left and head down the stairs. My apartment was in one of the new complexes in Royal Avenue, and I’d gotten lucky enough to get a place on the sixth floor. The view was amazing, and it’s really close to the ranch. As I walk down the stairs, I can see most of the avenue and all of the trainers that have gathered there for the Battle Royal tournament taking place that day. I probably should’ve woken up a bit earlier to avoid that, but the past is the past.
I don’t really mind the crowds, but they do make the walk from one side of the avenue to the other take a bit longer. As I walk from the complex on the east side of town, there are plenty of trainers and merchants to talk to.
“Get your Pika-Chews here! Only two hundred Pokédollars!” Some merchant yells over the crowd.
I’d had them before. Not that great. As I looked at some of the other food and art around the avenue, a young trainer bumps into me and looks up with that happy, eager expression that only new trainers can have.
“Hey miss! Do you want to battle?” She says, a smile on her face. I can’t help but grin back, but I have to tell her one way or another.
“I’d love to, but I’m not a trainer. I don’t have any Pokémon, and I have to head to Paniola Ranch to work.” I say as sweetly as I can. I don’t want to crush the little girl’s spirit, but I can’t battle without any Pokémon.
“Aw. Thanks anyway though, miss!” she says, still enthusiastically. I almost turn away, but she starts to fumble with something in her backpack, so I watch her for a bit. She brings out one of the older models of Pokégear, and almost frantically hands it to me.
“Hey miss, if you wouldn’t mind, could we trade phone numbers? I know you’re a bit older than me, but I’d love to battle you if you ever do get a Pokémon.” the girl says, still smiling at me. I figure there’s no harm, and type in my number into her Pokégear. I look down at the device on my right wrist when I’m finished.
“I have an Xtransceiver myself,” I tell the girl, “so I’ll put your number into it.”
I tap the device on my wrist and press the option for a new contact. I type in the girl’s number, then realize I have no idea what her name is. I look up from the Xtransceiver, and begin to ask her for her name, but she beats me to it.
“My name’s Blake by the way, miss. Blake Rose.” she says, grinning all the while.
I smile back and type the name into the screen on my wrist. Realizing I didn’t really respond, I look back at the girl and introduce myself.
“I’m Kate Cire. It’s really nice to meet you Blake.” I tell Blake. She grins even wider, then stuffs her Pokégear back into her backpack. She looks at me and puts her hand out in front of her. I smile again and grab her hand, shaking it.
“Thanks for being so nice to me today, mi- Kate! I have to find my moms and sister, but I’m sure I’ll talk to you again!” Blake says in a rush. She dashes off, smiling at me from around her shoulder, and then she’s gone in the crowd.
Well, while I always do socialize a bit during these tournaments, that was new.
I get to the west side of the avenue and head north, continuing my walk to work. I head down Route 6, following the familiar path by memory. I wonder if I’ll ever actually see Blake again, or if she’ll meet a million other trainers to battle on her adventures. I don’t have any plans to become a trainer, so I’ll probably never battle Blake. Oh well, she’s still a good kid.
As I walk up to the ranch, the nursery comes into view. Usually there’s one of the other girls standing outside, but right now the spot is empty. That’s weird. Whatever, that’s not my problem. I head into the nursery building to cut back into the ranch, but as I walk in I see the Lace sisters talking behind the counter. Calista and Casey seem like they’re on the verge of full-on arguing, so I walk up to see what’s going on. Casey’s pleading with her sister about something, and Cali already seems fed up with her younger sister.
“I already told you, I have to take Milly to the Pokémon Center today. She needs some type of berry mix to help with her stomach, and I’m sure Nurse Joy can make it. Plus, we need some more potions and stuff. I’ll be back later this afternoon.”
“Casey, we talked about this. You have to tell me this kind of thing before the day of your shift. I shouldn’t even have to tell you that, that’s like the most cliché piece of advice ever.”
Casey seems put off by this, but Cali closes her eyes and sighs. When she opens them again, she looks at me and I know immediately what she’s going to ask.
“Morning Kate. I’m assuming you heard my sister, she has to take Milly to the Pokémon Center. I guess. Would you mind covering her shift outside the nursery for today? It’d be a huge help.”
I freeze for just a second. I knew that was coming, but the actual question being asked doesn’t make it easier. Look, I don’t mind interacting with the people checking in on their Pokémon in the nursery, but I’m also fine just not interacting with actual humans. I guess I should be a good person though, at least for Cali’s sake.
“Sure, no problem. What do I have to do?”
“Not much,” Cali replies, “Just ask people what Pokémon are theirs and tell them how they’re doing, and then if an egg shows up give it to them. It’s not too hard, we just need to fill Casey’s shift.”
“Alright, no problem. Casey, you owe me.” I smile at the sisters, grab the nursery tablet from the counter, and head out the door.
I lean on the fence by the nursery, telling the trainers that come by how their Pokémon are doing. It’s not hard work, but it is a job, and my shift isn’t too long. After about two hours, a boy with black hair, a blue striped shirt, and a black hat goes into the nursery and leaves just a few seconds later.
He doesn’t really look at anyone, he’s focused as can be on something. He summons a ride Pokémon – Tauros, I find out a second later. He hops on and charges down to some hay bales, then starts spinning the Tauros in a circle while it tries to keep running.
“What the…”
I watch the odd trainer do this for only about a minute, and then the nursery tablet beeps to alert me about an egg. I turn around and take the egg from one of the girls working behind the fence, put it on the ground next to me, then cross my arms and lean up against the fence again. Immediately, the trainer gets off his ride Pokémon and runs over to me. He looks almost bored with the situation, but still initiates the normal conversation.
“Hey, I’m the guy with the Ditto and Glaceon, would you mind telling me how they’re doing?” He asks.
“Uh, sure,” I ask, a bit frazzled by how fast this conversation is happening.
“We actually seemed to have found your Pokémon holding an egg. We don’t really know where it came from exactly, but you want the egg your Pokémon was holding, right?”
The trainer nods and takes the egg, then resumes his odd routine of spinning the Tauros in a circle. Somehow, this seemingly keeps making his Pokémon mysteriously be found holding eggs. He continues this until I’ve given him five eggs, with another one sitting next to me. Then, instead of talking to me again, he sprints back into the nursery.
”Busy guy.”
He comes back out even faster than the first time, jogging towards me. I’m assuming Cali told him about his sixth egg that I have, and he’s coming to get it. He gets back to me, and I repeat my poffin-cutter response.
“We actually found your Pokémon holding an egg. We don’t know where it came from, but you want the egg your Pokémon was holding, right?”
Instead of the normal head nod I’d already gotten used to, he shakes his head no.
“What? Why not this one?”
“Are you sure?” I ask, “I’ll keep it if you don’t want it, but you want it, don’t you?”
He shakes his head no again, smiling a bit softly.
“Nah, five is plenty for me. You can keep that one.”
I look at the egg, and I think about what I just said. It’s common courtesy for us to keep any unwanted eggs, but this one feels special to me somehow.
“Then I’ll take it,” I say, smiling to myself.
“Thank you.”