Pokemon: An Icy Path

Chapter 9

I slowly open my eyes and take a few moments to gather myself. I lazily sit up and look around, still half asleep, looking for Skadi or one of my plushies and wondering why my room looks so empty. After nearly a full minute, my brain finally catches up with the rest of my body and I realize I am no longer at home and I stayed in a Pokecenter last night. As I remember last night, I finally fully woke up and rushed towards the door so I could go check on my Pokemon. I make it to the door and partially open it before remembering that I am still in my post shower state. I quickly close the door again and with my face glowing crimson and pick up my dress from where I hung it up the night before and put it on.

Now that I was presentable again, I grab my phone and strap my bag to my thigh before heading down to the lobby. As I reach the lobby, I notice that it is much cleaner than it was when I left last night, despite the new ingress and egress options for the Pokecenter. The lobby itself is deserted except for Nurse Joy who is manning the desk while a few pokemon continue cleaning up. 

“Good day Frost. Thank you for your assistance last night. I hate to think what could have happened if you did not assist.” Greeted Nurse joy with a smile on her face as she bowed to me slightly.

“Oh, it was no problem at all.” I quickly replied while waving my hands to show it was no issue. “I just did what anyone would do in that situation. How are my Vulpix and Fletchling?”

“Your Vulpix was just tired and woke up not too long ago, just like her trainer.” Nurse Joy smiles at me knowingly. “Fletchling will still need another day to heal up properly. Her wings were broken when she attacked that Koffing so we are just making sure she is healed properly before releasing her back to you. I will get Vulpix for you.”

I breathe a sigh of relief at her words. I was still worried about Fletchling but I knew she was in good hands. Nurse Joy stepped away and went into the back and a few moments later with Skadi in her arms. When Skadi saw me, she excitedly jumped from Nurse Joy's arms and into mine. I give her a tight hug, happy that she is back.

“Pix~! Vul Vulpix!”

I smile warmly at Skadi. “I missed you too sweetie.” I turned back to Nurse Joy before speaking again. “Seeing as how Fletchling still needs another day, I will be staying tonight as well. In the meantime We will go out and explore the city, it is our first time here.”

“I shall see you when you return. Have a good day out!” Nurse Joy bows again before getting back to work.

While still holding Skadi and enjoying her fluffy tail which is back to its pristine white color we head out of the Pokecenter. As I step outside I take a look around at the city that I didn’t pay much attention to last night. I do notice that my eyes don’t seem to need to adjust to the bright sunshine as it was just as bright inside the Pokecenter as it is currently outside. After taking a few moments to look around I picked a random direction and started walking. The city during the day was completely different than it was at night. 

I spot a number of stalls and shops selling different goods as well as a number of small outdoor cafes. I notice a few shops that seem to be selling what I would consider as Idol merch. There are various pins, posters, shirts, towels and just about anything that could be printed on that had different faces on them. I do notice some that look like Cynthia that seem to cover most of one wall. I smile slightly to myself and shake my head, it doesn’t matter where you go in the universe, there will always be someone trying to make some money from someone else’s fame.

Walking along the street while petting Skadi, I just can’t get enough of her fluff some days, my nose catches the scent of heaven and hell. That delectable smell of sweet things full of the evils of carbs. I put up a token amount of resistance about following the scent, before letting my nose lead me to my demise. A short while later, I am standing in front of a glass display case showing every type of heavenly treat under the sun. There are slices of pies with all sorts of fillings from fruits that I can identify and those I have no idea about, layered cakes of all colors and decorated in picturesque ways, cookies of every flavor, mini fruit tarts and the list just keeps going on and on.

“Skadi, I think I died and went to heaven.” I whisper quietly while trying not to drool. I set Skadi down and pull out my phone and start taking a few pictures of the selection. I am so absorbed with the sweets in front of me that I don’t notice a pokemon that hopped on top of the display case.

“Alcremie!” The pokemon shouts out like it is calling out hello to a customer.

“Wah!” I jumped and stumbled backwards slightly because I was startled. What I saw was a pokemon that stood about one foot tall and looked like it was made out of cream with two strawberries on its head like an ice cream sundae. The pokemon giggles at me which causes me to blush slightly. A moment later I hear a deep chuckle coming from nearby.

“Welcome to Sugar & Spice! Sorry about spooking ya, but ya were too absorbed in my treats to notice me.” Said the deep voice from behind the display cases. I look up to see a brown wall of muscle and beard. He must have stood at nearly six foot five and was built like a house made of muscle. Most of his face was hidden by a thick, well kept beard but I could see that he was smiling at me by his eyes.

My face couldn’t help but feel like it was on fire. “I’m sorry about that. Everything is just so pretty that I couldn’t help but be mesmerized by it.” I reply sheepishly.

“Oh it is no problem. Anything I could get for you?”

Those six words just sent me into my own kind of hell as now I had to make a choice. It took me nearly an hour to actually decide on what to get, but I was able to get a treat for Nurse Joy, my pokemon and myself. Now that I was a hundred twenty Poke lighter in my wallet I took my spoils of war and quickly left the store. Before I left, I did scan the odd pokemon as I had never seen anything like it.

[Alcremie, the cream pokemon]

[The cells that compose its cream fluctuated suddenly during evolution, giving the cream a sweet and tart flavor. They say that any patisserie visited by Alcremie is guaranteed success and good fortune.]

[This Alcremie is female]

Maybe if I come across one of these in the future, I might catch it due to how cute it was. Even though I plan to be an ice type trainer, cute things should always be cherished just like fluffy things. That is just the way the world works! After walking for a little bit, I come across a Pokemart and decide to go in. It never hurts to see if I need something I might not have thought of to pack. I already had a popup tent, a sleeping pad and sleeping bag, a mess kit, a first aid kit, and a few meals for my pokemon and myself. 

While looking through the different offerings for sale I found some that would almost be considered luxury items. I found an thunder stone powered lantern, a small cook stove that uses a fire stone to produce flames and a small thermos that uses a water stone to keep itself full of water. Each one costs two thousand five hundred Poke, which for most new trainers is out of their price range. The league gives every trainer, when they register for the first time, one thousand Poke so they can buy potions and such for their pokemon. Grandpa gave Gary and me another nine thousand Poke so he didn’t need to worry about us.

After a few minutes of thinking, I decided that having those would be much more convenient than the other alternatives. For me, cooking by using a fire would be the next best thing to torture for me as I don’t know if my ice would be able to repel that much heat. The thermos would give me clean water to cook with or drink and the lantern is self explanatory. I look at the different designs available and I decide to keep with my snowflake motif. After I grab my items, I make my way past the fishing section and pick up a collapsible rod and lure set for an additional three hundred Poke. As I head towards the register, I come across a life sized Vanillite plushie. It is just about the perfect size to be used as a pillow and after touching it, I found it to be soft and fluffy as well. I don’t even bother to check the price tag before grabbing it and finishing my checkout. 

Eight thousand Poke later, and my newest purchases are stored away in my bag. Bags in the pokemon world are quite amazing, they function similarly to a Bag of Holding but can be any shape or size. Sadly, they only enlarge space and can’t keep items fresh, but if something cold or hot is put in the bag, it stays that way almost three times as long. Standing outside the Pokemart, I knit my fingers together and do a full body stretch to loosen my muscles. I did not do any training today as I did a good amount of walking yesterday. I notice the sky starting to turn colors and I look down at Skadi, who looks back up at me with her head tilted slightly creating an adorable look.

“What do you say sweetheart? Ready to head back to the center? We are in for a long day tomorrow.”

“Vul, vul! Vulpix!” Skadi answers me back happily.

“Alright let’s head back.” While we walk back to the Pokecenter, I pull out my phone and open up Pokegram. I decided to post my pictures that I took at the cake shop. I made sure to adjust each picture so the sweets look extra delicious and I added a picture that I took of the Alcremie before I left. I made sure to tag the store in my post before submitting it and closing Pokegram. 

The sky was starting to darken into the twilight hours as we made it back to the Pokecenter. I had to blink my eyes a few times once I stepped inside to get my eyes to adjust as I approached Nurse Joy. Just before I got there, I pulled out the treat that was recommended by the boss of the cake shop for Nurse Joy and handed it to her with a smile.

“For you Nurse Joy, for everything you and your clan do to keep our pokemon and us healthy.”

Nurse Joy looks taken aback by my gift and smiles and takes it. “Thank you Frost. I have some fantastic news for you…”

“LING!” With a loud cry, suddenly a feathery missile shoots out from the back rooms, causing the doors to swing back and forth wildly, and gently hits my chest. I quickly catch the sudden projectile and smile at my tiny bird that is now happily singing in my hands.

“Welcome back Zephyr. I hope you were a good girl for Nurse Joy.”

“Fletchling was a joy to take care of. Once she was all healed up, she would not stop singing so we were serenaded for a while until you returned.” Nurse Joy looks at Zephyr with a sweet smile. “If only all our patients could be that cheerful when they are healed.”

“Thank you again Nurse Joy, enjoy your treat and good night!”

“Vulpix~!””Fletchling~!”

“Good night everyone.”

I parted with Nurse Joy and headed up to the room I slept in the night before. Once I was in the room I pulled out the rest of the treats that I had gotten earlier and placed them on the desk so we could all enjoy ourselves. As Zephyr hopped onto the desk and over to her poffin, I noticed that her normally red orange head now has a small crown of bluish white feathers on it. Intrigued, I pull out my phone and scan Zephyr.

[Fletchling has learned the move Acrobatics]

The only new information I got was she had learned a new move. I decided to keep an eye on her to see if any other changes occur. Turning back to my treat, I take a bite of heaven. I seemed to fall into a wondrous landscape of sweet soft clouds of cream with swirls of chocolate and giant strawberry mountains. Once I finally swallow my bite, I let out a soft moan of pleasure. The next thirty minutes was heaven while I ate the food of the gods. Not realizing I had eaten it all, I went to take another bite and just hear a small thud as my fork hit the plate. I take a look at my plate and feel like I am going to cry as my mini chocolate covered strawberry cheesecake is all gone. The world seems to almost take a gray tone as I stare at my plate longingly.

-One eternity later-

I finally snap myself out of my mini cake induced depression and strip off my dress and silk shoes before tossing them into the washer in the bathroom. I take a quick shower to wash away the dust and grime from the city and then lay down on the bed. Zephyr hops over to the bed and snuggles into the nape of my neck. Skadi also hops onto the bed but decides to lay down at my hip, right where I can just lightly stroke her fur. It doesn’t take long for the three of us to quickly fall asleep, enjoying each other's company.

The next morning, I woke up with a small smile as I could still feel the body heat of my two family members. I gently sat up and climbed out of bed, making sure not to wake up my pokemon. I check the time on the alarm clock next to the bed and see that it is a little after four. I rummage in my bag looking for one of my outfits before pulling out a pair of dark blue biker shorts, a matching sports bra and my sneakers. I grab my keycard and stuff it in my sports bra before heading down to the lobby. I don’t know if it is my luck or if there truly isn’t anyone else in the center, but the lobby is empty again besides Nurse Joy. I greet her and ask where the gym is as every Pokecenter has a gym for the trainers to stay in shape. 

About two hours later I finish my workout and body training for the day and head back to my room. I pull my dress and shoes out of the washer and toss my current outfit and shoes in while I take a shower to clean off all the sweat. About the same time as I get out of the shower, the clothes are done as well. As I step back into the room, I am greeted by both of my pokemon who are now awake. I pack everything except for my dress and silk shoes, which I put on, into my bag before strapping it to my thigh again. 

“Alright, now it is time to officially start training! Are you two ready?”

“Vul!””Ling!”

“Well then, let’s go!” And with that we leave the Pokecenter after saying goodbye to Nurse Joy and returning the Keycard. The doors of the Pokecenter open, just as the sun peeks out over the horizon, bathing us in the warm glow of its light.

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