Day-Care 2

Suzie rummaged through a drawer, her fingers searching for something before pulling out her Pokégear along with a small work card. She studied the numbers printed on it before dialing.

"Umm, hello! This is the Kanto Day-Care Center! I want to talk with. Talk with...." she said cheerfully, waiting for the words to come. After a moment, she pressed a button to mute the microphone and glanced at me expectantly.

"Skyla," I whispered.

She nodded and continued, "Yes, Miss Skyla! Can you pass a message to her? Let her know that Alex Carter is here and is waiting for his Rotom at Day-Care! Yes. Thank you so much for answering! Good night."

With that, she ended the call and sat down in front of me, her eyes studying me with quiet curiosity.

"So, what are your plans after this? Any big dreams?" she asked, catching me off guard.

I hesitated for a moment before answering. "I think I'll challenge Lieutenant Surge, then take on the rest of the Gyms as quickly as possible… and become The Champion."

That was the truth—at least, part of it. I needed to become Champion of every Pokémon League in this world if I wanted to return to Real World and kill—

"You know, it's not bad to have a dream!" she interrupted, cutting through my thoughts. "But you should never fall into despair or give up if things don't go as planned."

Her words were firm, carrying the weight of experience.

"There was a time when I fell into my own kind of depression," she admitted, her gaze drifting for a moment. "People told me that my way of raising Pokémon was wrong. Everyone believed that outer beauty was all that mattered—that a Pokémon's appearance was more important than its spirit."

She glanced at Ninetales, a nostalgic smile crossing her lips.

"But me and this one—back when she was just a little Vulpix—we proved them wrong. Didn't we, Ninetales?"

Suzie's voice carried a proud energy, and Ninetales let out a cry—soft and haunting, as delicate as the moonlight filtering through the windows.

"So what I'm saying is, never give up!" she declared, raising a fist toward the ceiling. "Even if people doubt your methods, even if they tell you you're wrong—never back down!"

Her enthusiasm was infectious, her energy defying her age.

I let out a small chuckle before raising my own fist to the roof.

"Never!" I echoed.

She grinned at me before laughing and following with a yawn. Then, standing up, she walked to a wooden panel at the back of the room, sliding it open to reveal neatly folded bedding. She pulled out a futon style sleeping bag, laying it on the floor with practiced ease.

"You can sleep here," she said, smoothing out the blanket. "It's getting pretty late, and you'll need all your energy if you want to help me with handling the baby Pokémons."

With that, she stretched, then turned toward the wooden staircase leading to the second floor. "Good night, Alex," she said before disappearing up the steps, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. Shrugging off my coat, I draped it over the nearby table, making myself comfortable before settling into the futon. For a while, I simply stared at the ceiling, my fingers idly playing with an empty Pokéball from my Inventory. I opened and closed it absentmindedly, tossing it into the air and catching it, the motion strangely soothing.

After catching it one last time, I placed it back in my Inventory, exhaling softly.

"I want to listen some music…" I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper as ı falled into the sleep.

I woke to the muffled sounds of Pokémon chirping, growling, and playing in the garden of the Day-Care, along with the unwelcome intrusion of golden sunlight piercing through the window, hitting my face like a spotlight. Groaning, I pulled the futon over my head, trying to steal at least five more minutes of sleep. The warmth of the blanket and the lingering haze of sleep wrapped around me like a protective cocoon—until it was ripped away by a sudden, unrelenting force.

"Wake up, Trainer! You need to keep your promise!" Miss Suzie's voice rang out, sharp yet amused.

Before I could react, another, much stronger pull yanked the futon clean off, exposing me to the brisk morning air. I cracked open one eye just in time to see Ninetales, her elegant, golden fur shimmering under the morning light, holding the blanket in her jaws as she flicked her tails impatiently.

"Can't I at least get five more minutes?" I groaned, blindly reaching for the blanket, but when my hand met nothing but air, I resorted to pulling my coat over my face instead.

"No! You said you'd help me, so you're going to help me!" Suzie declared with the energy of someone who had clearly been awake for hours.

Before I could secure my coat properly, she yanked that away too, leaving me utterly defenseless. With a defeated sigh, I forced myself upright, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I shot them both a glare—one that had zero effect on either of them.

"Alright, alright… what should I do?" I muttered, still groggy as I stretched my arms.

Suzie simply smiled—a knowing, almost mischievous grin.

(Not even thirthy minutes later…)

There I was. A shovel in my hands. A mess in front of me. A smell in my nose.

"How did I end up doing this?" I grumbled under my breath, stabbing the shovel into the dirt with a bit too much force.

I stood in the middle of the garden, surrounded by baby Pokémon of all kinds, Pichu,Clefa,Togepi and many more. Their happy chirps and playful squeaks completely at odds with the fact that I was cleaning up after them. Every few steps, another pile. Another mess. Another reminder that Pokémon, despite their cute and majestic appearances, were still very much living creatures with bodily functions.

"I've been around Aria and Oddy for days and never saw them do this! Why do these Pokémon do it this much?!" I shouted, dramatically flinging a scoop of dirt into the designated compost bin before sighing in exhaustion.

Suzie chuckled, shaking her head as she leaned against the white fence, watching Aria and Oddy play with the baby Pokémon. Aria twirled in the air, using her ghostly energy to scare a small, dazed Cleffa, while Oddy nudged a tiny Pichu, encouraging it to run faster.

"That's because your Gloom is a Grass-type! Grass-types use photosynthesis, meaning they don't do this instead they let it mix into the air without even knowing" Suzie explained, hoisting a large bag of Pokémon food onto her shoulder as she strolled toward me. "And your Kirlia is a Ghost-type—Ghost-types don't have metabolisms like regular Pokémon. no digestion means...well, this." She gestured vaguely to the pile of shit I was dealing with.

I blinked. That actually made a lot of sense.

"Great," I muttered, wiping my brow. "Guess that means I need to get as much as Ghost-type possible."

Suzie let out a hearty laugh before tossing me a pair of gloves. "Come on, city boy, you're not done yet!"

I groaned but picked up the shovel again, resigning myself to my fate.

After what felt like an eternity of shoveling, I finally saw an opportunity for a break. Miss Suzie was busy tending to the Pokémon, and with her back turned, I seized the moment. Dropping the shovel against the fence, I wiped my hands on eachother and took a deep breath, allowing myself to relax for the first time that morning.

I leaned against the wooden fence, watching the Pokémon in the garden. The sight was surprisingly calming—baby Pokémon of all kinds scampered around, tumbling through the grass in a chaotic yet oddly harmonious way. Aria and Oddy had become the center of attention, surrounded by a small group of baby Pokémon who eagerly followed their every move. Aria tried to scare them but only met with a playfull tiny Azurill, while Oddy lifted a Cleffa into the air with one of his mouths. spinning it gently before setting it down. The little Cleffa let out a delighted squeak, immediately bouncing toward her for another turn.

A faint smile tugged at my lips. Seeing them like this… It was nice. Peaceful.

But that peace was soon interrupted by the sound of the gate creaking open.

I turned my head, watching as a man in his late twenties entered the garden.

He had a yellow cap tucked into his belt, along with a set of Pokéballs strapped to his side. A red hoodie hung loosely over his frame, contrasting with the blue jeans he wore. His black hair was slightly messy, and from this angle, I couldn't quite see his eyes, but there was something about the way he moved—confident yet relaxed, like he had walked into this scene a hundred times before.

He strolled across the garden, heading straight toward Miss Suzie, who was pouring food into the Pokémon's feeding containers. He moved with silent precision, his steps careful as he crept closer to her… Then he struck.

With a sudden jump, he startled her from behind.

The reaction was instantaneous.

Miss Suzie spun around and smacked him—hard.

"OW—OKAY, OKAY, I DESERVED THAT!" he yelped, clutching his arm as she glared at him.

Then, just as quickly as she had hit him, her expression softened into something warmer.

She sighed. "You're impossible."

Before I could fully process the shift, he suddenly hugged her, laughing as she hesitated for a brief second before returning the embrace. It was clear that they knew each other well.

After their reunion, the man pulled away and reached into his bag, carefully producing something wrapped in a soft cloth. He gently placed it in Miss Suzie's hands—a Pokémon Egg.

She stared at it for a moment, her fingers tracing the smooth shell. Then, she looked up at him with a mixture of curiosity and appreciation.

He gave her a small salute, then turned away, pulling out a Pokéball.

With a quick toss, a Togekiss emerged in a burst of light. The large, white Pokémon let out a determined cry as he climbed onto its back. With one last wave in Miss Suzie's direction, the Togekiss took off, soaring gracefully into the sky before disappearing beyond the treetops.

For a few seconds, I simply stood there, watching the sky where he had vanished.

Then, curiosity got the better of me.

I walked toward Miss Suzie, who was still examining the egg, her expression unreadable.

"Miss Suzie?"

She glanced up. "Yeah, Alex? What's up?"

I hesitated, eyeing the egg in her hands before shifting my gaze back to her.

"Who was that guy?"

She let out a small chuckle. "Oh, him? His name is Gold. He's a Pokémon Breeder—just like me!"