Walking over the foothills, Chris found a couple of lost items, a TM containing Mega Punch, and a loose Great Ball. Chris took a moment to admire its patterning difference to the classic Poke Ball.
The cliffs got suddenly steeper right outside the city, even to the point that the path was blocked by what appeared to be a recent landslide. Considering his choices, Chris slid down the cliff a bit farther from the city gates, landing into a small glade. His descent startled a rattata that rushed out of its nest in challenge. Chris found this one to be rather small, but called out Bartles regardless.
Chris chose Bartles because he was, of his pokemon, the one who'd best demonstrated restraint in battle. No reason to risk the death of a pokemon simply defending its home. Bartles gave a very feline stretch and chirruped his readiness.
"Nice and easy, Bartles, no need to really hurt it." Chris reminded him, and Bartles nodded. The fight was over quickly, and Bartles didn't take a single hit. He danced around the rattata effortlessly, even yawning at it at one point. Chris nodded approvingly as the small pokemon scampered into the tall grass. He turned to Bartles to praise him, but found the turtle had retreated into his shell.
As Chris watched, it appeared that the shell was slowly expanding, like a balloon being inflated. Simultaneously, a light, blue glow was emanating from the openings. Chris watched curiously, then concerned as it persisted. After several minutes, the glow subsided. Chris waited a few seconds longer, anxiety climbing quickly.
Then, the bubble burst as a white, fluffy tail popped from the shell. Followed shortly after by four longer limbs, and a more angular head that sported a pair of ear-like appendages. Bartles, in his new form, turned to Chris and growled in greeting, smiling. It was much taller now, too, only a bit shorter than Chris himself.
A quick check of his License named this new form wartortle. It commented on the uses of the furry tail and ears. For swimming. Apparently. Chris shrugged and continued walking through the grass, leaving Bartles out to allow him to stretch his new limbs.
Just before he cleared the tall grass, a pokemon cried out in fury, blasting from the shrubs to attack Chris. Bartles immediately intercepted, taking the strike on his shell without an issue. As the dust settled, Chris could identify the spearow. Nodding, Chris directed Bartles forward and readied a pokeball.
After the quick exchange, and the subsequent naming of Ali Baba, Chris continued forward onto the path to Cerulean City. As they walked through the city gates, Chris had a moment to reflect that the wild pokemon really posed no threat to him any longer. What was once his greatest source of anxiety was hardly a stumbling block. He had never been able to so tangibly see his growth, before.
As Chris walked into the city proper, he marveled at the unique, light blue sandstone construction the city was named for. The whole city felt soft and gentle, comforting, like a childhood blanket. Chris admired the low building as he made his way toward the, now seemingly out of place, Pokemon Center.
The Center was bigger than any of the others Chris had been in, yet. A second floor staircase sat at his left, and the main hall had multiple smaller hallways leading deeper into the Center to intensive care units and lodging. The entire wall on Chris' right as he entered was an impressive aquarium. What seemed to be hundreds of pokemon filled the water. Chris recognized tentacool and magikarp, but there were many more that he couldn't identify. Some that looked like birds, others that looked like magikarp in different colors, and yet others that looked like they didn't belong in the water at all.
As Chris stood enraptured by the display, a huge shadow drifted across the glass. An absolutely massive pokemon floated by above him, just out of sight. He tried to press himself to the glass to peer upward, but he could only catch a glimpse of a blue fin as it vanished deeper into the tank, lost behind a school of silvery-blue fish pokemon.
Disappointed, he stepped back from the glass, stumbling into someone he hadn't noticed.
"Hey, watch it, kid!" A sharp, feminine voice reprimanded him. Chris jumped back into the glass again, facing the lady he'd hit.
She was short, not much taller than Chris, with a slim build hidden under a light blue tracksuit, though the jacket was open to reveal a one piece bathing suit. Her hair was a bright red cut into a bob. Her eyes stared seriously at Chris, seeming to size him up.
"New trainer in town, huh?" She continued, and Chris nodded. "Gotcha." Suddenly, she snatched Chris' wrist, twisting it forcefully, but not painfully, to expose his pokeballs. "A full team, huh? Wouldn't have pegged you for it. Must be pretty good. Gonna challenge the Gym Leader?"
"I, uh, yeah, I plan to?" Chris stuttered, caught very much off-guard by how forward this lady was. Chris couldn't tell if she was happy or not, the combo of glaring eyes and sly smirk revealed little. Chris tried to back away, and only then did her posture relaxed posture and smile.
"Good to hear! Woulda been worried if a traveling trainer was here for other reasons." With a glare, her eyes swept the lobby before returning to Chris. "I'm sure you've heard that Team Rocket has been making appearances lately. So make sure you're safe out there. And, if you see anything, report it to the police or the gym as soon as you can." And with a nod, she marched out of the Center.
Chris was left shell shocked. After a couple of moments assessing his personal state, Chris made his way to the counter, where the pale-skinned Nurse Joy was smiling pleasantly, as if she had not just watched Chris get interrogated by a stranger.
"Welcome to our Pokemon Center! Shall we heal your pokemon?" She greeted, warmly. Chris smiled, noting that she was slightly more tan than the other Nurse Joy's he had met so far. He started unclipping his pokeballs and laying them into the offered tray.
"Good afternoon, yes, please." Chris slid the tray across the counter, which the Nurse accepted with a polite bow. "My name's Chris. I'll probably be in town for a while." He waited as the Nurse started feeding the tray with his team into the restorative machine. When she didn't respond, he continued. "So, what's your name?"
That was when Chris finally saw her respond, though not favorably. Her back went stiff, hands curling into fists at her sides. With a snap her head whipped at Chris, a fierce glare reddening her cheeks. Her eyes rested on Chris and her expression immediately softened, but her cheeks stayed tight and red. She took a deep breath before speaking.
"I'm sorry, I don't like to give my personal information to customers. You're pokemon will be ready shortly, and I'll have a key for your room, as well. If you could please have a seat and wait." Her tone was even and measured, only slightly straining at the end. Chris wondered what that could possibly mean, but the Nurse Joy had already turned and walked away. Chris could see her lift her hand to wipe an eye just before disappearing behind a corner.
Left with little other option, Chris settled in to wait. After a couple of minutes watching the tank more, Chris turned his attention to his Trainer's License, accessing the Pokedex to peruse the detailed information on each of his pokemon. He was so busy learning that wartortles hold air in their fluffy tails that he was startled when the pokeball tray struck sharply on the counter. He stood and approached, but the Nurse Joy was already retreating.
"Thank you!" Chris called after her, but she did not even turn her head. He found the key to his room sitting next to his pokemon. With a resigned sigh, he collected his belongings and retreated, deciding to relax the rest of the day and try again tomorrow.
Chris spent the night with all of his pokemon released, allowing everyone to stretch and socialize. In the morning, he returned everyone to their pokeballs and set out. The front desk of the Center was busy, and the Nurse Joy didn't even spare Chris a look. Not wanting to bother her even more, Chris quietly slipped out.
He took his time exploring the city, finding the PokeMart easily enough, but also an interesting bicycle shop. As he walked about, Chris noticed a near constant police presence. Every turn he took, every street he walked, had at least one officer patrolling it or standing ready. Chris attributed that to the lack of a Rocket presence that had been so heavily rumored. If they were here, they were all laying low.
Chris noticed that the city was far more developed residentially than any of the others he'd been through, with defined districts and neighborhoods. As he was walking through one of these neighborhoods near the river, in the northwest of the city, he came across a house with its front door wide open. Immediately, Chris felt on edge. He approached cautiously, a pokeball already in hand just in case.
The interior of the home was dark compared to the sunlight of midday. Hesitant to enter, Chris stopped at the threshold, trying to let his eyes adjust. He was just about to call out when a voice reached out to him from the interior first.
"Don't loiter, if you're gonna come in, then come in!" The voice shouted, slightly annoyed. Chris jumped, but calmed himself and more boldly, but still slowly, entered the home.
"Hello? I just saw the door open and was worried." Chris called back as his eyes adjusted. Coalescing from the shadows, Chris could see an older man sitting calmly at a table, a cup in front of him.
"Yup, just getting some airflow a'flowin'. Some good air comes off the river and the mountain." The man thumbed over his shoulder, drawing Chris' attention to the open back door, allowing a steady stream of wind to push through the home. "So, can I help you, kid, or are you just playing at being a vigilante?"
"Sorry, no," Chris explained, "I didn't mean to intrude on your home." The man shrugged.
"Eh, it's fine. Was a time when people came through all the time. I used to be an area aficionado on badges. Now that they've changed all the rules, everyone learns it in school and no one needs to visit this old man." He muttered with a definitive tone of bitter sadness. Chris was prepared to leave, but made the snap decision to stay. He spent the rest of the afternoon watching the man open up and relax as he chatted with him. He also learned with greater detail the strange, pheromonic effect of Gym badges on pokemon.
"You've gotta be kidding me," The old man wheezed, "And then he just gave you a magikarp? Kid, in the modern era, that's free real estate! And, let me guess, the Nurse Joy thought you were an idiot." Chris nodded, and the old man erupted into laughter once again. As he started to calm down, Chris took note of the time, excused himself, and stood to leave. the man composed himself before continuing.
"Hey, thanks for spending the afternoon with me. I really appreciate it. Didn't realize how lonely I was getting. So, I wanna give you something." He stood up and fished into his pocket. "Just found this, this morning. Probably dropped and kicked in just the right way off the bridge by those hoodlums, up there." The man produced a blue foil wrapped candy, one that Chris immediately recognized.
"A candy? Yeah, I guess… wait, I have one just like that." So Chris took out the identical foil candy he'd found in Mt. Moon. He'd forgotten he had it.
"Ha, so you've already got a Rare Candy of your own. Well, have another, can only help." He tossed the candy at Chris, catching it on reflex, he examined the two of them. The one he'd found in Mt. Moon was certainly more battered, but they both seemed to be luminous in the shade of blue they were.
"Well," Chris shrugged, "If I got two, might as well eat one." And he started to unwrap the battered candy.
"Wait, what?" interrupted the old man, "No, they're for your pokemon. It's a mix of things that give your pokemon a physical boost. It boosts your pokemon by a level in the League's rating system. You'll see more actual improvement through training, of course, but if you need immediate results, that's the way to go."
Chris rolled the candies over in his palm a couple times, assessing them. After a bit he shrugged again and stuffed them both back into his bag. He didn't really understand how they worked, but he supposed he didn't need to understand, he needed only to know that they did.
"One more thing, then I'll let you go. The bridge isn't safe right now. Some trainers have turned it into a gauntlet, of sorts. They've been picking off rookie trainers who try to head north. Route 24 has been a training grounds, but these punks are blocking them off." The old man looked pained.
"Are they good?" Chris asked. The old man shook his head.
"Not terribly, they pick off rookies, like I said, but they seem to leave anyone that looks tough enough unmolested. Cowards." He growled, staring at the wall in the direction of the bridge. Chris nodded, thanked him for the warning and the candy, and left.
When he stepped outside, Chris found that the sun had already started to set. He took one look up the stairs that lead to the raised bridge, then turned towards the Center. He had a plan, but he wanted to do some training first.
The Pokemon Center was calm and quiet when he walked in, and a different Nurse Joy, an older woman with soft features, was behind the desk. Chris approached and smiled through the scripted greeting.
"Hi," he returned, "I actually came in earlier today. Just wanted to say hi, since I met another nurse earlier… Hey, how many Nurse Joys are on staff at this Center? I'm from Pallet, so I've only seen smaller Centers up till now." The Nurse Joy smiled warmly.
"That's very kind of you to ask. Not many people can't even tell we are different people, at times. Since the Center is open twenty-four hours a day, we actually have four people at the position of Nurse Joy. We rotate in eight hour shifts, so someone always has a full day off each day, and everyone has sixteen hours between shifts." She smiled warmly throughout the explanation.
"That sounds like a really good system, and very fair to everyone." The Nurse nodded.
"Thank you for thinking so, I devised it myself." She laughed. Chris smiled.
"Do you mind if I ask your name?" He asked hesitantly.
"Not at all," she replied, "My name is Bella."
"It's wonderful to meet you, Ms. Bella, my name is Chris. I was worried that asking that was some kind of… taboo that I didn't know I was breaking. When I met the Nurse Joy on shift earlier she got really upset when I asked for her name. Like I'd deeply offended her…" Chris said slowly, remembering the bizarre incident. earlier that day. Bella did not look surprised, though, she looked sad.
"Oh… I know who you met. That Nurse Joy is… sensitive… about their name. It really isn't my place to say. If you really want to know, apologize, explain you meant nothing by it, and try again." She shook her head, avoiding eye contact with Chris.
"Why is she bothered by her name?" Chris questioned.
"It's not my place to say. It wouldn't be fair. If you want to know, you'll have to ask yourself." Ms. Bella said more firmly, but kindly.
Chris didn't know how possible that would be considering how hostile their last conversation had ended. As he walked back to his room he felt a headache building as he considered both training strategies and social skills. As he laid down for the night, a steady pulse building behind his eyes, Chris decided pokemon battles were easier.