Last time, Clover fought against Team Rocket. She protected her Pokemon, earning grievous injuries. In the end, she blacked out. Now, after an uncertain amount of time she wakes up.

But where is she?

Marill

As Clover came to her senses, she realized she's not at the Mountain Moon any longer. The place was much warmer, with all the comforts of home. There was nobody in this room right now, and she wasn't sure who it belonged to anyway. It had the soft, blue carpet, blue painted walls, a simple round window covered with blue velvet curtains. There was another table there with the laptop, a built in closet and a night-stand with the stack of Pokemon magazines. Aside of that, there wasn't much.

She could sense the chloride scent in an air, like she was nearing the public pools. It was thin, but there. Her whole body was wrapped in bandages: she couldn't see them but could feel them under her shirt, tucked uncomfortably below her armpits, pressing her back in a way that made it hard to lay down without chafing.

The memory slowly returned back. She remembered protecting her Weedle, how it evolved into Beedrill, how it defeated the bird and then – nothing.

It was frustrating, but she couldn't even tell where she was – let alone how she ended up here. To clear out the mystery Clover decided to turn on the laptop, wincing in pain as she got up. A colorful screen showed the images of various water Pokemon: Gyarados, Seaking, Blastoise, Golduck and several others. As she pressed the button, username appeared.

User: Misty
Enter the password:

"So, that's where I am. Where does this Misty person live, then?" she wondered, trying few random passwords, mostly names of the Pokemon before she gave up. Just as she was turning the laptop off, the doors to the room slid open.

"Oh, you're awake." a voice shocked her. It belonged to Misty herself.

"Ah! I didn't mean to pry, I was just-"

"Nosing through my personal stuff? Don't worry about it, you wouldn't be able to break through the password anyway. How are you holding up?"

"Swimmingly."

"Just like water Pokemon." she murmured.

"Indeed. How did I get here anyway?"

Misty made her sit down before she explained.

"You have been out cold for hmm… I think it's three days now. Your injuries were considerable, but nothing that couldn't be healed. You're now in the Cerulean city. It's my home, and my gym."

"You're a gym leader?" she asked.

"Indeed. I have fought your friends: Red, Leaf, and Gary too as soon as you got here. They were too anxious to test themselves. I also fought that moron, Ash. Well, a lot of things happened, Team Rocket appeared again, he saved us so I gave him the badge anyway."

"It seems he can't obtain any badges with his own abilities." she weakly smiled.

"He's a good boy, and he deserved the badge for his bravery, if not the ability. I wish he would just act more mature." she uttered.

"You like him?" Clover asked.

"What?! L-like?! No, I wouldn't dream about something like that! He's an idiot, and he still owes me for breaking my bicycle!"

Clover just smiled, but didn't say a thing.

"You are not really thinking I like him?!" she asked.

"Not at all." Clover still smiled.

"You're lying!"

"I am totally honest."

"Fine… anyway, I hope you're feeling better now. As a leader of this Gym, I would gladly face you in Pokemon battle once you get better."

And she did get better, but it took days. In such days, Clover spent time walking around the Cerulean city. It was a vast, amazing port with so many things to see. Pretty much all the culture of the city was based around the water Pokemon. There were various fountains shaped like Dragonairs, stalls would sell water-Pokemon merchandise, public aquariums popped up on every corner. She explored the city on her own along with her Pokemon, and even managed to corner and catch a feisty Marill.

With a new Pokemon under the belt, she returned back to the swimming pool and Misty's apartment, finding none of her friends there.

"Look, Marill, I get it. You hate me for catching you. But we're going to have to work together, you know?" she asked her water Pokemon as it sat in the corner, all vexed.

"Marill!" it protested.

"Yes, yes. You said the same thing thousand times. How about you come to the lounge room? My other Pokemon are already there. You can make new friends, no?"

"Marill!" it was even angrier.

Misty appeared out of the door just like several days ago when she got here the first time. Red-haired girl observed the situation, clicking her tongue.

"Ah, you caught that one." she said.

"You mean you know this Pokemon? You don't sound very pleased."

"Know him? Yes, I do. He belonged to Team Rocket. His master and him wrecked havoc around the city. He was as evil as his trainer, and he enjoyed doing dastardly things for his own pleasure. His master abandoned him. One can't expect loyalty from the criminal."

"You say him? I often hear trainers referring to their Pokemon as it."

"There are two genders for Pokemon. Trainers prefer calling their Pokemon it because it's hard to tell whether a Pokemon is male or female. But I prefer calling Pokemon he or she. It's easy for me to tell the subtle difference in the way they walk and act."

"Fascinating. Can you help me tame him? I can't have a disobedient Pokemon."

"Hardly… I'm sorry, but Pokemon obtained from other trainers won't listen to new masters until they prove themselves. You only have one badge. I reckon you'll have to defeat me before the Pokemon up to twentieth level of experience obey your commands."

"Is that possible?"

"Defeating me or having him obey? I'm not sure about the former."

"Cocky, huh? I have an Ivysaur. You don't stand a chance."

"We'll see. Take a shower, prepare your Pokemon and rest for the remainder of the day. We'll have a match this evening. Oh, one more thing: match will take place at the pool so make sure to find the swimming suit!"

Clover did take a shower, but she had trouble choosing a good-looking swimming suit. While she never actually cared about her appearance, recently she's been bothered about certain changes in her physique. Thus, when it came to choosing between several options, she had a lot of trouble.

There was a cute green one-piece with Bulbasaur, and she would pick this one but quick glance proved she grew it over. Fortunately, there was also even cuter green two-piece bikini with frills. She also possessed two more one-pieces, both of them blue with low cut on the back and red straps.

For some reason, the thought about Gary crossed her mind but she swatted it away like an annoying bug.

"Why is he on my mind right now?" she uttered to herself, closing her eyes to pick one.

In the end, she wasn't satisfied with blue, low-cut one piece. She decided to wear the green frilled bikini. After she picked her swimming outfit, she decided to swim for fun a little bit. After all, her Pokemon gym fight was scheduled for the evening and she had all day for her activities. When she passed through the room with showers, once again she took a decent look in the mirror.

When she was younger, ever since she was aware of herself, Clover did not have any opinion about these devilish objects. Lately, however her opinion drastically changed. As was already mentioned, she observed certain changes and every single one filled her with trepidation. Thus, if she chanced upon the mirror somewhere she would avoid it like a plague. Furthermore, she thought, if her life was a novel she would ban the mirror descriptions: she always found them cheap way to introduce protagonist's appearance.

Perhaps, more than this it was the deep nausea about the aforementioned changes that really did her in.

"I am ten years old." she whispered, as if trying to convince herself. Clover didn't like using female products in such an early age, neither did she like her growing features that set her apart from peers.

In the end, prosthetic leg and scar-tissue was least of her problems.

Leaf still looked the same as when she was seven. Clover could pass as fifteen year old. She let out a sigh, staring at the belt with Pokeballs slung over chair.

"I'm a Pokemon trainer. This will define my worth way beyond the physical appearance."

She pep-talked herself, taking a shower before she finally entered the public pool.

The place wasn't exactly crowded. Three older girls practiced synchronized swimming, an older man glided through the water with amazing speed and one Psyduck rested on the surface.

Clover let her Marill out, thinking this might be a good time to try and become closer. However, tiny blue rodent did not appreciate this exercise in friendship. As soon as it left the Pokeball it pouted and dived under the surface.

"Marill, wait! I only want to-" she didn't even finish the sentence. Few more people entered the swimming pool: boy few years her senior, gentle chubby girl and their mother. She only grabbed the ledge of the pool to leave when she felt something tugging on the strings of her upper bikini. Cold sweat rolled down her back.

"Shit." she uttered, and could only see the blue ball speeding away. Next moment felt as if it lasted eternity, while it actually only lasted a moment before her bikini slipped and she was left half-naked in front of everyone.

Clover felt like her face burned from embarrassment. She quickly hid her features and disappeared under the surface, barely even noticing confused, shocked faces of pool-goers. Her bikini was there floating on the surface, but mischievous Pokemon quickly realized it won't just stop there.

Marill grabbed the piece, once again disappearing under the surface.

"You FRICKING MOUSE! GIVE IT BACK!" she screamed in anger.

"Give… it… back!" she yelled, trying to catch the Pokemon. Marill surfaced nearby, holding her bikini piece like a trophy.

"Marill!" it yelled.

"Give it back, you little blue runt! Right. Now!" she yelled.

"Marill, Marill!" it sounded like it laughed.

When it jumped out of the water, she knew she couldn't follow it any longer. Tears involuntarily started streaming down her face and she was crying while holding to the border of the pool. Marill did not return with her clothes. She saw it leaving through the doorway. This was the second time a Pokemon succeeded in nearly destroying her life.

She couldn't exit the pool, for to do so would mean exposing yourself in front of everyone. Thus, she resolved to stay there, not wishing to embarrass herself any further.

Minutes of waiting turned to hours. She was still waiting for someone to notice the state she was in, but those who saw what transpired didn't offer any help and newcomers thought she was just relaxing. Naturally, asking for the help was embarrassing. Thus, she resolved to wait until Misty returns and takes her out of this predicament.

"So, this is how Clover ends up." she idly uttered, staring at her water-wrinkled hands.

"Clover, are you ready for the match?" Misty's voice finally broke her apathy.

"No." she huffed.

Misty instantly noticed something was wrong. She crouched by her side.

"What's the matter? Your eyes are red. Were you crying?"

"It's the chlorine. I am fine."

"I spent nearly all my life near public pools. Trust me, I know the difference. So, what really happened?"

"Marill stole my upper bikini and then it fled. I've thought we could be friends, but it humiliated me and I've been in this pool for hours." she sniffled.

Misty rose up, looking through the door and into the distance.

"I saw a Marill an hour ago, wasn't sure whether it was yours or not. It carried an upper part of the bikini. No sane trainer would let their Pokemon roam like that, I thought, and I resolved on catching it but something told me not to. So, I didn't."

"Yes, it's mine. Can you h… can you hel… Damn it!"

"Stay here. I'll be right back."

Misty, indeed, returned a while later. She carried a plastic bag. Inside was a simple black bikini and a towel. There were people still here, so she got up and yelled:"All of you, move it! Pool is closed for today!"

She was a gym leader and others respected her word. Small crowd cleared out and soon it was only Misty and her.

"You can come out of the water now." she smiled.

"No way. Give it to me and I will put it on under the water." Clover uttered.

Misty shrugged, handing her the change of clothes. Clover did exactly what she said and only then swam out of the water. She left her peg-leg on the other side, thus she had no choice but to sit on the pool-side. The whole world felt like it was rocking here and there. Such things naturally happen when one spends a hefty amount of time in the swimming pool, she reckoned.

Misty looked at her, a little bit too intently. Clover blushed a little bit.

"Forgive me, Clover, but you are quite… developed. Is this bikini too small? I have sisters that-"

"No, I am okay. Thank you, Misty. Can you get me a prosthetic? It's by the chair, there!"

"Humh… okay. Look, you've been through a lot today. Come to my mansion. My family is wealthy, all of your friends are already there, waiting for you. We can relax and have fun. The battle can wait."

"I am not weak, okay? I can deal with this. I'm a daughter of the powerful trainer, and my destiny is to become the best. This will not stop me."

Misty scoffed.

"So-rry, Miss Independent."

"Look… I apologize for my rudeness, okay? I'm just… well, I feel deeply embarrassed right now. I want to vent these feelings somewhere, and the battle feels right."

"I will accept your offer, then. But first, we will find your Marill. It's yours and you should show it the ropes."

"Indeed."

Clover didn't expect to find Marill anytime soon. In fact, there was no way to tell where a small Pokemon could go in such a large city. They've went around the town anyway, asking the sailors who have worked around the port. None of them saw a Marill. A lot of people shrugged their shoulders anyway, saying they've never heard of such a Pokemon. After all, Marill was actually an imported Pokemon, as it could only be found in Johto and was a rare occurrence here in this place.

Misty and Clover did not lose patience, and their efforts were rewarded when they approached one of the less bustling streets leading from the big city square. It was one the narrow streets with tall buildings and merely a slit of sky above their heads. They could hear the voice coming from somewhere within. The street was clean, paved with stone, so the voice they've heard echoed across the cobblestone.

"Go back, you useless shit. I don't need this." the voice uttered. Clover and Misty approached closer, then hid.

"Marill..." it was definitively her Pokemon.

"Look!" Clover whispered, pointing at the place where the voice came from. It was one of the side alleys. They could clearly see Marill and a female trainer looking like an ordinary Rocket grunt, the beret and all. Neither grunt nor Marill noticed two girls spying on them.

"Look, Marill. Trainers sometimes release their Pokemon. I don't need you anymore, and I don't need second-hand clothes and gifts you try to give me. It won't change my mind, so stop following me!"

"Marill! Marill-Marill! Ma-Marill!" the Pokemon truly sounded desperate.

"Oh, don't try to appeal to my conscience. Yes, we've known each other since we were kids. We did bad shit, we went through some stuff. So what? Go, do something good with yourself. I have new friends. I don't need no stinking Marill anymore."

You could hear Marill's heart breaking from here. Tiny Pokemon dropped the bikini it stole, breaking into a loud cry.

"Are you going to bawl here all day? Get a move on! If the officer finds me, I'll be bust! Go!"

"Marill..." the Pokemon cried.

Clover looked at Misty.

"Misty, let me. I can't watch her treat the poor Pokemon this way."

"Oh, I won't stop you. I'm done with this bitch."

Both girls approached the Rocket grunt. She noticed it this time, giving Marill a cold, heartless, livid stare.

"Look what you've done now! Now I'm bust! Fuck!" she screamed, rearing her leg to hit him. Clover acted immediately, pushing the trainer away.

"You won't hurt Marill any longer!" she uttered.

"W-what?! You think you're his friend? That thing can't have friends. It's crooked, it's evil and it enjoys it. I know. I've made him this way." she shrilled. Misty had to agree.

"Clover, she's half-right. This Marill was behind plenty of nefarious actions Team Rocket made last year. It even orchestrated some of them."

"See? Listen to your pretty friend. Leave that thing where it belongs – on the street."

"So, you think you know all about Pokemon? You claim you've made this Marill evil. Do you think an evil Pokemon exists? Do you think Pokemon feel the malice just like we do? Pokemon are good, all of them! They do bad stuff because they want to please us, because we order them to do so! They love us so much they would even turn to evil, only to keep us by their side!"

"Leave your preaching for somebody else. I've abandoned this Marill, and I have no intent on accepting him any longer. I'm no longer a helpless beggar, a thief making ends meet. Now I have powerful friends, and I have powerful Pokemon. This one is useless."

"So you think leaving the street was a success, huh? You think, now that you're rich and powerful, your old friends are of no use to you? You deserve being left alone, by everyone who cared about you. Come, Marill. Come with me. I'll be your friend, no matter what."

She laughed.

"Take it! Please, take it! At least I won't have to bother with endless, pointless gifts. I threw them all away, they are in the trash, you little blue scum."

Marill screamed in pain.

"Now you're done! Ivysaur, get her!" Clover yelled.

"Oh? You want to fight! Fine, I'll destroy you!"

As Clover took the Pokemon, Marill stopped in front of his trainer and raised its tiny arms.

"Marill!" it yelled.

"What are you doing? She abandoned you, Marill!"

"Marill! Marill!"

"I should go through you, huh? Do you realize she doesn't care about you?" Clover asked.

"Marill!" he screamed.

Grunt was earnestly confused.

"What are you doing, Marill?! Get out of the way!"

Marill decided to show its intentions, and it hit Clover with a torrent of water. She fell backwards, all drenched. Grunt didn't like this, at all. Now she went through with her threat, kicking the Pokemon out of the way. Marill flew away, barely raising up on its legs, but returned back to protect his trainer nonetheless.

"You're quite persistent, little rat! Move!" she yelled, actually taking it in its arms only to toss it.

Marill returned back again. Misty covered her mouth.

"It's… trying to protect this scum of a person. We truly don't deserve Pokemon..." she uttered. Grunt tried kicking it away, but Marill curled into ball and didn't move a muscle. She hit it, and hit it, but Pokemon didn't budge an inch. Finally, Clover had enough.

"Okay, I'm done with this! Ivysaur, attack her!" she ordered. Ivysaur trotted forward, hitting the trainer with its heavy skull. Grunt fell backwards, coughing and heaving in pain.

"What… what are you doing? You're not meant to attack me! Don't you play by rules?"

"Rules? You're talking about rules? If you don't stop hurting him, right now, I'm going to order my Ivysaur to attack you until nothing remains! Am I clear?!"

"Hah… I'm not afraid of you! Arbok, go!" she let her Pokemon out. Ensuing battle was still one-sided. Clover also had a Beedrill, and it wasn't hard to win against one Pokemon, even though she didn't have a type advantage. When grunt realized she lost, she looked at the Marill and then at Clover.

"You're strong. You'd rise far in Team Rocket. Don't know why you bother with that weakling. I have no money. Spent it all. Take this Pokemon, I don't need it."

By this point, Marill was too weak to resist. Clover took it in her arms. It weakly heaved, tears still streaming from its eyes.

"Pray we don't meet again." Clover angrily uttered.

"Phah. You won't stand a chance when we do. Even if we don't, the boss will destroy you. The world will be reborn in the new order, where strong will rule over the weak. You won't be a part of that, tho. So long!" she said, leaving both Marill and her behind.

If you like my story, please, leave a review. I'd love to read your thoughts and opinions~ :)