Nurse Isabelle and the Kanto Pokédex: the Diary of a Travelling Nurse

#045 Vileplume

Vileplume, the Flower Pokémon. The evolved form of Gloom and the final evolution of Oddish. Vileplume's flower is said to have the largest petals in the world, and is almost too heavy for the Pokémon itself to support. It can shake, flap, or burst its petals into bloom with a bang in order to release clouds of pollen. This pollen is highly allergenic to humans and toxic to other Pokémon; Vileplume uses it to paralyze its prey. Vileplume lives in grassy plains, where it is often mistaken for native flowers.

Back in her hometown of Celadon City, Nurse Isabelle was doing some shopping for herself. She'd already bought a new shirt and a new pair of trousers, and was currently in a perfume shop. The wonderful fragrances that had enticed her inside also made Izzy contemplate buying one. It'd been a while since she'd bought herself a gift. As she was inspecting the bottles, she saw that the scents came from Pokémon. One she especially liked was made of a Vileplume; one she knew well. It was Celadon City's Gym Leader Erika's Vileplume.

Seeing the name Erika made her stomach leap. Having grown up here, she and Erika had been close friends, since their mothers had done a lot of business together when they were younger. Wasting no time, Isabelle put the bottle back on the shelf and hurried out of the shop to rush to Celadon Gym.

One of the advantages of being a nurse was that no one stopped one when they saw one running. People assumed it was an emergency. So when Isabelle ran towards the entrance of Celadon Gym, the ladies that were the gym trainers immediately opened the door for her to allow her in. Isabelle couldn't be bothered to stop and explain. She just wished to see her good friend.

In the middle of the garden, near a gorgeous pond, a young lady sat in traditional eastern garments. Next to her, sitting on the ground with her petals on the lady's lap, sat a Vileplume.

"Your Oddish sure grew up, Eri," Isabelle said, grinning as she placed her hands on her hips. The black haired lady looked up, startled at first but then ecstatic.

"Izzy! Oh my goodness, is it actually you?" Her voice, ever soft, was like music to Isabelle's ears. The girls embraced and then sat down on the stone bench Erika had been sitting on. Because this was a gorgeous garden, Izzy let loose her own Pokémon. Pigeotto could fly around, Wartortle enjoyed the pure water of the pond, and Ivysaur napped in the shade, enjoying the scent of an actual garden for once.

"So, you took over as Gym Leader now, hm?" Isabelle asked. "How's your mother?" Erika nodded.

"She's well. At home, taking care of Pokémon that get injured in the battles here. Instead of leaving them at the Pokémon centre, they get nursed back to health at her place. Your mom goes there regularly, too." Isabelle chuckled and nodded.

"Yes, that does sound like Mom. At the lack of grandchildren, she fully focussed her doting attention on Pokémon."

"So, what do you do now? What is this clothing?"

"I'm a Pokémon nurse now. I travel around Kanto to take care of injured or sick wild Pokémon, or do house calls." Isabelle showed her badge proudly. Erika seemed impressed with her childhood friend. "Anyway, I was at a perfume store and found a bottle of Vileplume perfume. I recognised this beauty here," Izzy stroked the petals of the Vileplume sitting near them, who turned all bashful. "... and I immediately made my way over here. I had to see you. I forgot all about that perfume, though. What a shame, and it smelled so nice." Isabelle rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

"Oh, I know something to remedy that! I have a few experimental bottles around here. If you like any of those, they're my gift to you, as long as you check out my Pokémon from time to time."

"Deal," Izzy said with a grin.