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

#058 Growlithe

Growlithe, the Puppy Pokémon. Growlithe has a superb sense of smell. Once it smells anything, this Pokémon won't forget the scent, no matter what. It uses its advanced olfactory sense to determine the emotions of other living things. It has a brave and trustworthy nature. It fearlessly stands up to bigger and stronger foes.

Not everyone loves Pokémon as much as Nurse Isabelle does. Not as much as many trainers, rangers, nurses, and common people do. Some people hate Pokémon. How that could be, no one knows, but such people exist. And Isabelle encountered one, today.

Isabelle was enjoying a lovely afternoon on the river bank, just outside of town, near a gorgeous wooden bridge. Her bag was at the Pokémon centre and all her Pokémon were there too. It was just her, jam sandwiches, and a bottle of milk.

As she wiggled open the wrap on her sandwiches, a man caught her attention as he walked over the bridge. He was carrying a closed basket, tied with ropes. However, from inside the basket, frightened squeaking could be heard. Calm down, she told herself. Maybe he's just going to the Pokémon centre and whatever's in there is scared of the nurses. It's possible. Children have it too.

However, all those thoughts left her when the man raised the basket over his head and flung it in the river. The whimpers changed into full blown terrified cries. He was drowning Pokémon! In a split second, Isabelle made a choice, tossed her sandwiches aside, and leapt after them into the water. If Isabelle had been a police woman, she'd immediately apprehended the man, but for Izzy, Pokémon went first.

Struggling against the strong current, Isabelle tried her hardest to get to the basket and tug it back on land. Gurgling inside of the basket told Izzy it wasn't water proof. However, she wasn't very trained and did not have the strength to both keep the basket above her head and swim to the shore. By the time she reached the shore, Isabelle was exhausted. A woman with leather gloves tugged her out of the water and immediately began cutting open the rope with a knife. As Isabelle coughed up some water, she saw the characteristic blue hair of Officer Jenny on the lady who helped her. However, this was not the kind face of the Jennys she knew. This one looked very grim, as if she wished to burn the basket open with the fierceness of her glare.

Inside the basket laid the tiniest Growlithe she had ever seen. Less than half the size of an adult one, these bald-ish puppies had hatched recently. And the worst thing of all, they were entirely silent as they laid there in the basket. Their little eyes hadn't even opened yet and never would, because some asshole, who did not want to take care of more puppies, drowned them.

Stroking the wet hair away from her face, Isabelle took one of them and gently did chest compressions, trying to bring it back to life. However, she did not have the equipment to give it the oxygen it needed. The tiny little thing remained heart-breakingly silent.

Sobs came from Officer Jenny as she hugged another of the three puppies against her chest, obviously thinking about her own Growlithe, back at the station.

"How could he...?" Jenny cried. "This is the second damn time! How could he?!" She screamed the last bit, voicing her frustrations and her pain.

Later, Isabelle sat at the station with a blanket around her wet body. Both women were staring into their tea, as silent as the puppies which were now being buried by the Diglett of the church yard. The women did not need to say anything. Their pain was in the air, the loss was fresh, and the anger was keeping them going. This man will be caught and he will pay.