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

#051 Dugtrio

Dugtrio, the Mole Pokémon. The evolved form of Diglett. Dugtrio are actually triplets that emerged from one body. As a result, each triplet thinks exactly like the other two triplets. They work cooperatively to burrow endlessly.

Wearing her Squirtle raincoat, Nurse Isabelle slowly walked over the empty streets of Viridian City. It truly was pouring, but the water was warm from the pleasant weather the last days, so it wasn't bad at all. Truth was, she was dragging her heels a little, having an appointment at Viridian Gym with that scary Giovanni, to check out his Pokémon. There was something very unsettling about him, and it wasn't his posse of bodyguards, though those didn't help one bit.

It truly was a gorgeous building. Compared to the tacky decorating of Vermillion Gym, this one was of an entire different class. Massive marble columns made the building look incredibly elegant. Like most gyms, it had a very high ceiling, Isabelle noticed as she entered Viridian Gym. Her looking around was stopped when two neckless goons stopped her, demanding her reason of entry. Isabelle showed her medical badge and said she had an appointment with the Gym to inspect the health of the Pokémon. Faced with authority like her, the goons immediately straightened up and went to get someone to escort her in. Isabelle merely rolled her eyes. Goodness forbid she walked around alone in a gym. Would almost make a girl wonder what they had to hide.

Her wet sneakers made squeaky noises on the marble floor as she followed a man in a suit without the jacket towards where presumably the Pokémon were kept. Her coat had been hung near the door, where the goons were. She hoped they liked Squirtle.

They appeared to be somewhere west of the main field, judging from the occasional glances Isabelle managed to get of it. They went through two double doors in a place that did smell vaguely of Pokémon. The first homely sense Isabelle got from this place. However, that seemed to be the only trace. In the place they've entered were lots and lots of cages. The ceiling was lower here, but still about twice as high as Izzy was. The bars reached all the way to the ceiling, only broken by a large, padlocked gate door.

Seeing her surprise, the man explained this is where the Pokémon were kept in between training and matches. It was too much to keep calling them back to their Pokéballs. As Isabelle approached the familiar Nidoking in the cage closest to her, the man behind her told her how often these were fed, what they ate, and when and how long they exercised. Theoretically, there was nothing wrong with their regime, and so she thanked the man for his time and explanation. However, as she looked at the Nidoking in his cage, she felt her heart break for him. She extended her hand out through the bars and smiled weakly when the Nidoking laid his snout against it. What about love? Who gave these Pokémon some love?

The Nidoqueen nearby was in a similar state. Physically she was pristine, yet her eyes were dull. There was nothing of that spark of life Isabelle had seen of the Nidoqueen back in the woods, with the Nidoran and Nidorina. A bit further ahead was a Dugtrio. The trainer explained something about the concrete being lower so that they basically had a bit of a dirt pit to reside in. Kneeling in front of the cage, Isabelle looked at the Mole Pokémon. Dugtrio were a little hard to read, Isabelle found, just like Diglett. Emotions were hard to see in them, aside from physical pain, which was usually very clear in their eyes.

Declaring all these perfectly healthy and taken care of, Isabelle inquired after the other Pokémon. The answer she received was a bit vague. Unavailable, the man in suit had said. For a moment, Isabelle contemplated demanding to see them. What if they were held back because they were in less of a good state? They were Pokémon, and Pokémon were her duty. So, she told the trainer she'd like to see every Pokémon that was in this gym. He surprised her by bowing and walking away.

Hovering around Nidoking's cage, Isabelle waited with crossed arms for whatever was going to happen. The doors opened, causing Izzy to stand upright again to face the trainer coming back. However, it wasn't him. Giovanni himself came striding in, in his impeccable suit and his awful mood. The most frightening part about his mood was that it wasn't to be read on his face. His face was calm. It was his aura that was stormy. A bit insecure, Isabelle took a step back when he came thundering towards her. Her back hit a wall, preventing her from escaping. His right hand slammed into the stone just next to her head, causing her to flinch.

"Who do you think you are, missy? Demanding to see my Pokémon, as if I'd hide them from a little girl like you?" He hissed near her ear. Izzy was frozen with fear. All words that had been on the tip of her tongue about treating his Pokémon in a more humane manner had been entirely forgotten. All she could do was glare at him. That was the only feature of her anger that was still available.

"If I catch you snooping around, looking for my other Pokémon, I'll make sure it's the last thing you do. Understood?" Isabelle nodded frantically, hoping he could not hear her heart pounding in her chest. "Good." He pushed off the wall and walked away without even sparing her one more glance. Utterly relieved, Isabelle sank to the floor, taking a moment to calm down before getting out of here as fast as she could.