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

#098 Krabby

Krabby, the River Crab Pokémon. Krabby live on beaches, burrowed inside holes dug into the sand. On sandy beaches with little in the way of food, these Pokémon can be seen squabbling with each other over territory.

Back at the beach again, where she met Shellder, Nurse Isabelle was training with Dewgong in the water. From one of the stores at the promenade, she had borrowed a wetsuit. Then together with Dewgong, she had entered the water. The coastguard were aware of her planned training and would keep an eye out in case she ran into trouble. Pidgeot was also flying around, somewhere. The independent bird could take care of himself.

Despite the sun being warm, the water was surprisingly cold. Dewgong didn't seem to mind at all, bouncing joyfully in the water, splashing Izzy. Submerging her entire body, she just got the acclimatising over with. Gasping, she came up again, cursing under her breath.

It took a while to convince Dewgong to lay still enough, but when he was finally ready to work, Isabelle climbed on his back.

Or at least, that was the plan. Dewgong's fur, normally so soft, had turned slick when wet, and Izzy slid right off when she tried to get on. Wrapping her arms around his thick neck, she managed on the second try. Squeezing his sides with her legs a tad tightly, she sought a place to hold on. Unfortunately, there were none. Her legs would be her only security not to fall off.

Together they swam around. From casually swimming along the shore, to racing as fast as they could and then coming to a halt. They also practiced staying in one exact space, pretending Izzy was treating some Pokémon. It wouldn't do to float away.

Only then did Isabelle notice someone on the beach. They had ended up in one of the lesser known parts of the beach without Izzy noticing. A girl sat on the beach, surrounded by little creatures. As Izzy and Dewgong set foot and flipper on the beach, the girl slowly looked up. The sandy hair and brown eyes were very familiar to Isabelle.

"Hey Wendy. Fancy seeing you here. What ... are you doing?"

All around her curious friend were Krabby. They were burrowed in the sand around her, they climbed over her lap. She even held one in her hands, stroking its pincers tenderly.

"Nothing," was the reply.

"Right..." Isabelle said slowly. She truly cared for the weird girl and her gift with Pokémon was seemingly unique, but sometimes, she was a weirdo. It was obvious she preferred the company of Pokémon over humans. Izzy did too, at times, but to sit surrounded by Krabby for no particular reason?

"See ya, Wendy," Isabelle said, since she felt hungry, possibly intruding on some complex Krabby ritual.

"Sleep tight."

After another frown directed at hers, Isabelle and Dewgong left her to do her business.

Only late at night did Wendy return to the Pokémon centre. She had seaweed in her hair and her clothing looked a bit torn and ragged, but she was beaming the brightest smile Izzy had seen in weeks. Isabelle, on the other hand, felt less like smiling. Her face and arms were pretty sunburnt, having spent inside for too long. She hadn't bothered using sunscreen either, today. Joy was lecturing her as she smeared some herbal ointment on her skin to help her heal faster. It would be a long night for Izzy.

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