#063 Abra

Abra, the psi Pokémon. Abra can sense danger by reading minds. When it does, it teleports itself to a safe location. By hypnotizing itself, Abra is able to teleport or use any of its other extrasensory abilities at any time. Due to the strain of its telepathic powers, however, Abra sleeps 18 hours each day. If it fails to rest long enough, it will become unable to use its powers. Abra lives in urban areas, but has been observed to teleport to a different location once per hour – Nurse Evergreen.

Tonight was the night Nurse Isabelle had been anticipating for a couple weeks, ever since the e-mail reached her. Tonight, she'd have her first, official date with Dominic Whitewater. He'd asked her out almost casually, asking if she'd mind spending the day with him off-duty. Whenever she reread the email, it made her giddy all over again.

Standing in her old bedroom of her parental house in Celadon, Isabelle inspected herself in the full-length mirror one more time, touching up on her make-up. No trousers and sneakers tonight. She wore a knee-length dress in Nidoran blue, adorned with white lace. On her feet, she wore white, strappy heels of medium height. Her curly blonde hair had been done up in a bun on her head, fastened with a flower in the same colour of Ivysaur's bulb. She rarely had the chance to wear this dress (not to mention having to steam out the wrinkles from being stored away in her closet for so long), so she was going to enjoy herself.

Her mother wasn't at home luckily, working a late shift, so when the doorbell rang, Isabelle had to go down to open the door herself. As expected, Dom stood at the door, holding a bouquet of flowers for her, causing her to smile brightly. He'd gone for safe, giving her tulips in a variety of colours. She invited him in as she headed to the kitchen to place the flowers in a vase on the kitchen table. Mum would love these as well, if she remembered correctly.

Dominic looked handsome, no doubt about it; he'd changed his hoodie for a grey jacket on top of a dark coloured shirt. Dark slacks and black shoes never looked wrong on a guy. He'd even combed and put some gel in his brown hair, and his beard was neatly trimmed by a barber. Despite his sweet smile, she could see the nerves in his eyes. His apprehension seemed less when he took in how she looked.

"I hope I look okay?" Isabelle asked, smoothing down her dress. "Despite growing up here, I've never actually been to the game corner."

"You look amazing," Dom promised her, a little breathless. He quickly masked it with a cough. She gave him a fond smile, took his offered arm, and off they went. On the table, next to the flowers, Izzy had left a note for her mum, explaining where she was and promising to call if she wouldn't be home by curfew. Despite having moved out, she still had to hold to her mum's rules whenever she visited.

It was a clear evening as they walked to the arcade. They discussed their plans for the night, only planning on staying for an hour or two at most, before going out for dinner. Dom mentioned he made reservations at a pancake place, which made Isabelle giggle. She'd mention to him she enjoyed pancakes, but hadn't actually expected him to pick that. He seemed a beer and bbq kind of guy.

It wasn't busy inside. A handful of people were already at the slots machines, hoping to win something. While Dom bought some coins for their coin boxes, Isabelle checked out the prizes. There were some neat little prizes such as a few CDs teaching powerful moves as ice beam and flamethrower, to be taught to Pokémon who did not learn them naturally. There was a different set of prizes available, too, but a man stood in front of the sign, making it impossible for Izzy to read it. Oh well, it didn't matter.

For the next hour, Dom and Izzy had a lot of fun, challenging each other who could win something first, or who had the most winnings. After a while, they had doubled their winnings, so they decided to stop while lady luck was still smiling their way.

At the desk, Dom informed what he could get with this amount of coins. The lady behind the counter cheerfully told them they could purchase an Abra with that amount of coins. That immediately killed Isabelle's mood. She tried to play it easy, though.

"An Abra? Can we see it first? Or maybe even pick one? I want a cute one, of course."

"Sure! We got loads." Came the cheerful reply, which was the exact opposite of what Izzy wished to hear.

As they were led to the floor underneath the game corner by a man, Isabelle shot Dom a worried look. He, in turn, took her hand and squeezed it, telling her to stay calm.

The "price room" was as bad as Isabelle feared. The air smelled highly chemical and not in a good way. In tiny cages all over the room were Abra, slouching unnaturally. From the dazed look in their eyes, it was obvious they had been drugged. In horror, Isabelle walked around, faking indecisiveness on which one to pick. What she was actually doing was slide her hand in her purse, locate her phone, and pressed the emergency button. That alerted the police and sent a squad her way as soon as possible.

Isabelle knelt in front of an Abra that had been throwing up in her cage. "They don't look so good, do they?" She remarked casually. The man shrugged. "Aren't you their caretaker?" Isabelle asked, struggling to maintain her cool.

"What do I care about them, missy? They're just for sale."

"Pokémon aren't merchandise," Dominic commented, crossing his arms. While he was muscled from his job, the 'caretaker' had the weight advantage on him.

Isabelle rummaged through her purse for her badge and showed it to him. "I am a Pokémon Nurse. I demand these are taken to a centre right away, or else we'll have them confiscated and you arrested for Pokémon neglect and abuse." Behind her, Dominic held up his badge as well, filling Izzy with pride.

"What?! How dare you, you little…" He reached for the blond nurse while she was distracted, but Dominic leapt in front of her, taking the hit harmlessly against his chest.

"That's my girl you're talking about," the ranger proclaimed, before punching the fat guy himself. That was all it took; one hit and the abuser went down.

The door swung open and a pack of Growlithe ran inside, barking furiously, followed by the police squad Isabelle asked for. A look was enough for the decision to arrest the fat guy to be made, and he was dragged off. Taking her phone out of her purse, Isabelle turned the emergency signal off.

While someone was calling for a Pokémon ambulance, Isabelle sat Dominic down against the wall upstairs, away from that chemic stench that gave her a headache. Feeling a little guilty, Isabelle pressed her cold hands against Dom's cheek. She was quite shaken by what she saw and her hands trembled some. As she knelt between his legs on the plush carpet, Isabelle was close enough to see a scar underneath his left eye which she had never noticed before. His blue eyes stared at her intensely.

Then, he grabbed her blushing cheeks with both hands and pressed his lips against hers. In surprise, she froze for a moment before wrapping her arms around his neck to kiss him back. When some of the police agents on the background cheered, Isabelle broke away, with her cheeks as red as a Charmander. Dominic merely grinned at her, kissing her forehead before sitting back.

Taking a glance at his watch, Dominic laughed; "We missed our dinner." Isabelle chuckled, smiling softly.

"Yeah… we've been distracted. I'm not really hungry, though. Are you?"

"Nah,"

Hand in hand, he walked her home. At her doorstep, he kissed her one more time. Because he was taller than her, she had to stand on her toes, and still he had to bow down. Neither seemed to mind, though. With Butterfree in her stomach, Isabelle watched him leave from the kitchen window, sighing happily.