Notes: Again, not based on any episode, though it might take the place of episode 30 with introducing/featuring grimer and muk as a species.
And yes, I'm back and very excited to continue to share the rest of this story! I decided to continue with weekly updates, skipping some weeks for certain holidays and after especially long chapters. We've still got a ways to go. I hope any readers keep enjoying.
23: Brock vs. Muk
The smell in the air was still present when Brock awoke the next day, leaving the dorm in the pokemon center and heading outside. He'd wanted to enjoy the sunshine with his pokemon first thing in the morning, but a smog made the area hazy, and thoroughly unenjoyable. The pokemon could still be fed, so Brock let them out, feeding them the pellets he'd prepared the night before, then returning them to their pokeballs and going inside for his own meal.
After picking up a tray of the pokemon center's pre-prepared food, Brock sat with his friends. Ash and Misty already seemed to have mostly finished their own meal, and were in conversation. "So, Ash, maybe you want to go to this other gym. It's in a small town, kind of nearby Lavender Town. It would be great for a beginner," Misty suggested.
Ash shook his head. "I'm not a beginner! I have three badges!" he protested.
"Well... I guess you fairly earned at least one of those," Misty muttered.
"And I already told you I decided," Ash continued. "We're closer to Saffron City, so I'll beat the gym there. There's other places to train there, too."
"There's a lot to see in general. Saffron's the biggest, most populous city in our region, by far," Brock said. "Any reason you don't want to visit, Misty?"
"No," Misty said firmly. "I'm just thinking of Ash."
"You don't need to worry about me at all," Ash said.
"Then maybe you should worry about yourself," Misty snapped. "Sabrina's not just a good gym leader. By win ratio, she's the absolute best. The top there is, don't you get what that means?"
"Woah, I didn't know that," Brock interjected as Ash stared across the room at a trainer entering with his rapidash, oblivious to the question.
"You didn't really keep up as a gym leader, huh? Not that I'm judging," Misty said. "But yeah. She's the top on the chart each time, for I don't even know how long. Maybe since she started. No one else can compete."
"So," Brock drawled, putting down his fork. "She's not, um, your age or anything?"
"No," Misty said. "I think she's in her twenties."
"A woman in her prime. Do you have a picture?" Brock asked.
"Why would I carry that around?" Misty asked.
Ash's league guide was on the table in front of him. Brock grabbed it without asking, starting to flip through it furiously. If she was really tops, she ought to have a mention, if not a pin-up.
"Brock?" Misty smiled awkwardly. "Are you really that interested?"
"We could have so much in common. We're both gym leaders, we both care about pokemon- Oh! There she is!" Brock exclaimed, pointing at a picture in the book.
"Huh?" Ash finally turned back to them. He peered over Brock's shoulder. "Yeah, I already saw that. It doesn't talk about a good strategy or anything."
Brock stared at the picture closely. The woman wore a bright red outfit with long boots. In the particular shot, a breeze seemed to have caught onto her straight, waist-length hair, and she pointed forward, looking battle ready. "She does look pretty cool," Brock commented.
"Of course!" Misty agreed. "I've always thought Sabrina is the coolest... I'd love to see her in person... But not at a friend's expense." She smirked at Ash.
"Yeah," Brock continued tentatively. "But I sense a kind of coldness with her. I don't think she's my type."
"Are you really worried about your 'type' right now?" Misty asked, smiling wryly.
"Worried? No. But I do know it," Brock said.
"I mean, we don't have to worry about it right now, huh?" Misty asked.
Brock looked toward the counter, seeing it empty before glancing back at Misty. "You're still too young, that's for sure," he said. "But me - I've been wanting to date for a while. I'm ready to go do it, now that I don't have to worry about my family too much. Every time I call, they're all doing great."
"You should do some things for yourself!" Misty exclaimed. "Me and Ash don't have to be your replacement siblings or anything. Yeah, go date and have fun! How about you ask Melanie? She'll be here the next few days."
Brock paused, thinking of the trainer girl they'd met up with a few times on their journeys. Melanie was a sweet girl that he'd had fun talking to. But, of course- "She's too young," he said.
"Huh?" Misty put down her cup. "Brock, she's the same age as you. And you can talk to her without being a weirdo, unlike with some other girls. It doesn't have to be anything serious, just an idea."
"But I am serious," Brock said. "If I met the love of my life, I'd be ready to get married tomorrow!"
"Married?" Ash turned from observing the various trainers around them, and suddenly started paying attention to the people in front of him. "Brock, you're getting married? To who?"
"He's not. Because he's too young. Right, Brock?" Misty asked tersely.
"Na." Brock shook his head. He looked toward the counter again before back at Misty. "If it's right, it's right, and if you're ready, you're ready."
"I don't think a day is enough time." Misty sighed, stirring her tea before taking another sip. She then put it down forcefully. "Come on Brock, you're not dumb."
"You just never know where things are going," Brock said. His heart rate increased as he looked back to the counter instead, seeing the person he'd been hoping to. He quickly looked back to Ash and Misty, tensing up. "I, um... I think I might have met a nice girl. She's beautiful, smart, and we have a lot in common. He looked over his shoulder again before turning back quickly.
"You're not talking about our nurse here... Are you?" Misty asked. The lady at the counter behind him spoke to a trainer, a pidgey with a bandaged leg between them.
"Yes," Brock said, his voice going higher. "You could tell?"
"Do you even know her name?" Misty asked, scowling.
"Of course! Nurse Joy!"
"That much is obvious." Misty tapped her hands on the table as she looked toward the counter. The nurse certainly had a family resemblance to the other members of the Joy family that they'd met. "But Joy is just a family name, right? An alias for the ones who go into pokemon nursing. It's not her given name."
"Um, yeah. So I'll just ask her," Brock said. "When I ask her out, maybe." He turned and smiled at the nurse before turning back around as she seemed to look his way.
"Yeah, I'm done," Misty said with a sigh. "We've all got our weak points," she commented to Ash.
"Yeah, I know," Ash said defensively. "I can make my own plan to win in Saffron Gym."
"Not even what I was talking about, Ash," Misty said.
"I can't just rely on Pikachu. I think I'll use Charmander, or Squirtle. Maybe Pidgeotto. I gotta stay here to train them," Ash said. "I heard there's all these grimer in this pond... I'll battle them to train, and maybe even catch one!"
"Is that what the smell in the air is?" Misty lamented. "Don't catch any!"
"So we're going to stay a little while?" Brock asked, standing up. "If that's the case, I've gotta take this chance. No excuses!" Before he could really think about it too much, Brock stood up and walked to the counter.
Saying he was going to do something and actually doing it were two different things. Even though he could drag himself over to the lovely nurse, once he was there, his body started to tense, and he just stared at her. As the nurse noticed him, she jumped in surprise at his presence, making Brock all the more embarrassed he hadn't started to speak already. She smiled at him, making him feel happy at her interest yet more nervous at the same time. Brock tried to open his mouth, but closed it, saying nothing. Eventually, the nurse's brow furrowed, and she began to talk with him instead. "Yes?" she said. "Can I help you?"
"Ah-" True words still wouldn't leave Brock's mouth. The nurse seemed to become impatient with him, giving a slight sigh, so he forced himself to speak. "I really do... Think you're very beautiful..." he began. Of course, that wasn't enough. What else could he say to express his feelings, keep her interest?
The nurse turned to the approaching trainers, who had their pokeballs out, ready to have her look over their pokemon. "I don't really have time for this," she said frankly, then happily greeted the trainers as they reached the counter.
Brock felt a pain in his chest. How had he messed this up this badly? He was such a waste... If only he could have properly expressed his feelings to her, but he had choked up. After standing a few moments in shock, he forced himself to turn away. Immediately facing his younger friends wasn't a better option. Ash appeared perturbed, while Misty closed her eyes and sighed in exasperation. There might be questions if he went to see them. Maybe he could explain to Ash about heartbreak sometime, but not right after this experience. Brock went to the door.
A boy that appeared slightly older than Brock stood by the door, moving to hold it open. "On your way out?"
"Yeah, thanks," Brock confirmed.
"She didn't even give you a chance," the other boy added. Again, Brock felt a jolt of pain go through his chest at the still fresh experience. "She really got to you, huh?" the boy said. Brock certainly couldn't respond, so he spoke again. "You a trainer?"
"I am," Brock said.
"Don't let her destroy you. Want to battle?" the boy asked.
He'd seen this person hanging around looking for battles. Brock must be the first that seemed available for one that morning. The other boy was right that he shouldn't really let it ruin his day. "Sure," Brock confirmed. As they walked outside, he decided to introduce himself. "I'm Brock, of Pewter City," he said.
"I'm Drake, of here," the boy said with a sigh indicating perhaps he wasn't that happy about it.
"Oh? You're a local? Did you just get back home?" Brock asked.
"Na, I've been here. I'm not a traveling trainer, I just used to be. Couldn't cut it."
"Well, challenging everyone here is probably a good way to improve," Brock said.
Drake forced a smile. "Yeah, that's the idea," he said. "How about one against one?" he asked.
"Works for me," Brock said, then thought of the pokemon of his that needed to stretch out the most. "Let's go to that bigger arena out back."
Drake followed him there. A few trainers were in the distance, but the referenced arena was completely clear of both people and pokemon. They both took their respective positions as challenger and opponent. "Go, Onix!" Brock shouted as his largest pokemon appeared.
Drake pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows, but still released his own pokemon right after. "Go, Muk! Use toxic!" he ordered the pokemon right away.
"Onix, use rock throw!" Brock ordered. With its blobby body, Muk moved surprisingly fast, charging forward before spitting the thick liquid from its mouth. Muk's attack was indeed a hit. Brock could easily tell from looking at how Onix moved before and after its own attack. The series of rocks hit Muk, affecting it only briefly. Poison types like this often weren't much of a problem for Brock's rock type pokemon, but some dedicated trainers could have their pokemon take advantage of a technique like this.
"Muk, minimize!" Drake shouted.
Avoiding misshaping the borrowed battlefield would have been preferable, but not at the expense of giving one's best. "Onix, dig!" Brock shouted the order.
As his pokemon dove under the ground, its large opponent almost seemed to shrink... Wait, the poison type really was shrinking. Drake smirked as Brock realized the major mistake. Of course, Onix's attack took an extended period of time. Meanwhile, Brock's pokemon had to still be experiencing the effect of the toxic poison, even underground. "Muk, minimize!" Drake said again. His pokemon shrunk even more.
Onix let out a low call as it appeared from the ground, just missing its opponent. Muk went completely unscathed by the complicated technique. Brock grit his teeth. A hit from dig was a possible win, but not guaranteed. This guy had obviously been training his muk for a while. Dig wasn't the right choice as a response, and there was only a moment to think of what might be.
"Muk, minimize!" Drake ordered again.
As the opponent started to shrink even more, Onix let out another low call that Brock easily recognized as distress. "Onix, bind!" he ordered. So the pokemon could shrink, but Onix could still hold it in place. His pokemon moved to do so, catching hold of its opponent before the small Muk oozed out of its grip. "Woah, hey!" Brock shouted in surprise.
"Muk, sludge attack!" Drake shouted.
As his pokemon was hit with the attack, calling out from the poison in front of its slippery, shrinking opponent, Brock knew he was beaten. "Onix, return!" he shouted before his pokemon could fall and get too hurt. The pokemon disappeared back into its pokeball. Brock walked across the field to his opponent, hand out. "Thanks, Drake. I think I needed a battle like that. I learned a lot."
"Yeah, thanks for the battle." Drake shook hands with Brock before calling Muk back into the pokeball.
"Now I've got to go talk to the nurse... I mean, I should, since Onix was poisoned badly," he said, fidgeting with his hands. The battle hadn't helped him forget completely about that experience.
"I've got some antidotes, and a potion," Drake offered.
"Yeah, it might help, I mean for now... Of course I'd give Onix to the nurse later, after a battle like that," Brock said. "You really surprised me there!"
Drake beamed, the compliment appearing to please him. Brock took his offered items and released Onix to heal it. "Sorry," Drake said. "I didn't mean to go and make it so you had to see that heartless harpy."
"She doesn't seem that mean to me," Brock said, looking up from spraying Onix with the antidote. Of course, Drake actually lived in town, and presumably interacted with the nurse far more often.
"Come on, don't be like that," Drake said.
"Like what?" Brock asked.
"Blind. A doormat. She smacked you down mercilessly. You were talking to her. She should have given you a chance." Drake shook his head, frowning.
"Maybe she should have," Brock muttered, cringing at the embarrassing memory. His tension dissipated some as he saw his pokemon relaxing, indicating it had healed from the poison. Time for the potion.
"Instead... Boom," Drake continued. "Swat you away like you're nothing. What a bitch."
Brock paused, sharply inhaling as he remembered the nurse's cold face. Her comment hadn't even really addressed him personally, just seemed to lament his presence. He didn't agree completely with Drake's words, but the treatment really had been cold.
"Most women are like that," Drake said.
"Huh?" Brock stood up as he finished spraying Onix. Sure, not all women were perfect angels, but he hadn't thought that maybe a significant portion weren't a joy to be around. "Like what?" he decided to ask for clarification.
"They all go after the same super good-looking guys. Those guys all treat them badly because they know they can get away with it, but they just take it. No matter how ugly they are, they expect men to be completely attractive. If not, they don't even treat us like we're human. They'll look at us the same as sludge."
The idea was terrible. But was it true? Brock thought back on his first crush. Maybe he had actually been too young for her back then, but he'd still been heart broken when he'd found out she had a boyfriend. He had been a really good-looking guy, but they'd seemed to get along well enough. One of his later crushes also had a boyfriend, and lamented how badly he treated her. Women seemed to go for attractive guys, from what he'd seen.
Maybe there was something to it, and Brock doubted he was attractive enough to meet the cut. Was he really no better than sludge to women he liked?
"Don't mean to bring you down," Drake continued after Brock's silence. "I just saw that scene there, and yeah. Same old, same old, but still hurts as much for me to see. It's a shame."
"Yeah," Brock tried to speak cheerfully, but noted he couldn't really put as much energy into his voice. Changing the topic would be preferable. "Drake, um, are you looking to battle more?"
"That's the idea of me being here today," Drake confirmed.
"I have two friends you might battle. They're both pretty good trainers," Brock said.
"If you bring 'em, I'll battle."
"I'll be back, then," Brock said. As he made his way to the pokemon center, Ash was thankfully outside. "Hey Ash, where's Misty?" Brock asked.
"Dunno," Ash said.
"Never mind," Brock said after glancing around. He didn't feel much like looking around inside. "Follow me, I've got a guy you might battle. He was good enough to beat me."
Ash followed eagerly for the chance of a worthy opponent, Pikachu dashing behind him. "Oh, Ash, hey," Drake greeted as they found him.
"Hi," Ash greeted.
"Pikachu," the pokemon added.
"This your friend?" Drake asked, looking to Brock.
"You already know him?" Brock said.
"Yeah, we battled already a few times. His pikachu's a monster. The charmander needs work," Drake said.
"I'm going to go train it today!" Ash exclaimed. "I'm going to the grimer place you told me about."
"Maybe you need a guide," Drake offered.
"I can find it... I think," Ash said, looking up as he tried to picture the way.
Brock laughed at his friend's wishy-washy reaction. "Thanks, Drake. If you have time, that could really help us."
"Hey guys!" The group turned, seeing Misty greeting them. "Is this where you were?" she asked as she approached them. "Are you training here today? Or are you still thinking about going and catching a grimer?" Misty raised her eyebrow at Ash.
"I'm gonna battle them, anyway," Ash said. "Maybe six pokemon is enough to train."
"Battling shouldn't be too bad," Misty said with a sigh of relief. "And yeah, don't you know, Ash? Six is the maximum recommended to travel with at a time. More and you'll have trouble caring for them and training them at the same time."
"I know that," Ash insisted. "I just thought I could handle maybe one more."
"You get a lot of help, especially from Brock," Misty pointed out, shrugging toward her other friend. "So you should really think about it more."
"I already said I'm not gonna catch one right now," Ash replied.
"Misty, this is Drake, he's a local," Brock interrupted. "He's gonna show us around. Want to come?"
"I feel better about Ash's training idea already!" Misty said. "Thanks for helping him, Drake. Oh, yeah, I'm Misty of Cerulean, nice to meet you."
"Yeah," Drake said, looking back at Onix in the arena.
"Maybe you could battle him before we go?" Brock suggested, guessing what might be on the other boy's mind. "He's around here looking for battles. Just to warn you, he's pretty good."
"I'd be glad to," Misty said. "I need to keep up with training myself. Let's go!"
After Brock smoothed out the area with Onix's help, Misty and Drake took their positions and threw out their pokeballs. "Let's go, my steady, Starmie!"
"Go, Muk!"
The pokemon appeared across from each other, both calling out as they did. "You really are a local, aren't you?" Misty commented before pointing forward at her pokemon. "Starmie, water gun!"
"Muk, toxic!" Drake followed with his own order directly after.
Starmie's attack hit first, but Muk followed with its own directly after. That move brought him a great advantage, so of course he'd start with it. Brock stood back, wondering if he'd continue with the same strategy as before.
"Oh, no," Misty said as the attack hit Starmie. It faltered as it floated, obviously affected by the poison. "Hang in there, Starmie! Bubble beam!"
"Muk, minimize!" Drake ordered.
So, he did end up going with that strategy after all. Starmie's attack hit it easily, and it started to shrink only slightly afterward. "This kind of stalling strategy?" Misty realized. "It won't work with Starmie's aim! Starmie, bubble beam!"
"Muk, sludge attack!" Drake shouted, finally realizing the initial strategy wasn't the best against Misty's speedy pokemon.
Starmie's bubble beam hit first again. Muk called out and flattened its form slightly, but quickly pulled itself back up, spitting out its attack and hitting Misty's pokemon with its sludge. Starmie's light started flashing.
"Muk, sludge attack! Quick, finish it off!" Drake shouted.
"Ah!" Misty exclaimed. "Starmie, bubble beam, again, you can do it!"
Starmie hit first with its attack, as the speedier pokemon had been. Muk lost its shape again, this time not returning to form, instead seeming to melt. Drake quickly returned it. "Alright!" Misty exclaimed, running onto the field to her pokemon. "Good job, Starmie!" Misty spun around her pokemon, then quickly took care of it with a potion. Afterward, she walked to Drake with her hand out. "Thanks for the battle. Brock was right about you, you're pretty good."
"Uh huh." Drake didn't respond otherwise, absorbed in looking in his backpack. "If we're going out by the grimer, we should have some more antidotes," he said.
"I'll get some," Misty offered. "Starmie needs one, anyway. I'll meet you over at the path up there, right?"
Drake didn't respond right away, so Ash jumped in. "That's what leads to that place near that factory, right?" he said.
Drake zipped up his bag. "Yeah," he said. "I've gotta take care of some things myself. I'll meet you there."
Drake was the last to arrive at the designated spot. "Come on," he said, walking past them and over to the nearby trail. "Now's a good time to go. I wouldn't want to get caught there when it gets dark."
They ascended the trail silently. As the factory building came into sight, Misty shuddered, waving a hand in front of her nose. "It smells even worse here!" she exclaimed.
"Pikachu." Pikachu wrinkled its nose.
"Do grimer really smell that bad?" Ash asked.
"Kind of," Drake admitted. "But they actually help the situation."
"How so?" Brock asked.
"The factory here is unregulated," Drake began. "Some try to fight the owners in court, but it takes a while. They keep polluting. But the smell reached farther into town before the grimer were around. The water's also gotten clearer downstream."
"Polluted water? That's pretty terrible," Misty said. "But these grimer are more useful than I thought. Aren't they?"
"You'd better get your pokemon ready, if you're here to train," Drake said as he turned to Ash.
"That's why I'm here," Ash said with a grin. "Pikachu, you can stand by. Go, Charmander!" Ash leaned down to address his pokemon as it appeared. "We're gonna fight some grimer! Let's see how far you can go."
"Char!" Charmander agreed, standing up as tall as it could as it took its spot in front of the group.
A stream came into view as they got further down the path. A grimer was right next to it, and got on alert as it saw Charmander. "Charmander, use flamethrower!" Ash shouted. The pokemon battle began, quickly scaring Grimer away and back into the stream.
Misty leaned down and observed the water, picking some up with her hands. "It really doesn't look too bad, even with the pokemon that just hopped in," she commented.
"If grimer really absorb the pollutants, maybe they could be put to use elsewhere," Brock said.
"Are there really that many grimer around here?" Misty asked, standing up and walking along the edge of the stream. Ash ran in front of her with Charmander, while the other two boys followed her. "I mean, there's absolutely no sign of them-" Misty stopped as she suddenly caught sight of what was certainly a huge collection of the poison type pokemon, peeking out from the water in a pile. As she did, Drake bumped into her, causing her to fall into the stream.
Misty shouted, struggling to stand up as the grimer rose up beneath her. "Help!" she managed to call, reaching her hand to Drake.
The boy just chortled, arms folded. Brock pushed past him. "Hang on, Misty," he said, reaching toward her.
"Pikachu pi?" Pikachu called to Ash. Ash turned his attention to his friend, grabbing her other hand as they pulled her out of the swamp of grimer.
With her feet on solid ground, Misty trembled, shivering, her clothing wet and covered in slime. "Are you okay?" Brock asked.
"The grimer were just trying to help her. She won't be poisoned or anything," Drake assured.
"Yeah," Misty said with a stilted laugh. "Well, um, I guess you still want to train," Misty said, looking at Ash.
"Well, yeah," Ash said. "That's why I'm here. Charmander still needs practice."
"Yeah, I've got it," Misty said. "But I'm going to head back to the pokemon center. Thanks for showing us around, Drake."
Misty released Staryu to patrol her path as she headed back down the path. As she left, Ash walked forward, having Charmander battle grimer after grimer as they appeared and retreated. Brock stood by and watched, eventually deciding to speak to Drake. "Hey, why didn't you help her?" he asked.
Drake shrugged. "The grimer weren't really going to do anything, like I said."
It seemed a reasonable explanation from someone who likely trained here often, but Brock still wasn't satisfied somehow. Something stunk about Drake's reaction. Even so, they kept watching in silence as Ash continued his battles against the grimer.
Charmander eventually grew tired, breathing more heavily. "Pikachu!" Pikachu called as it hopped in front of the fire type and used thundershock on the grimer approaching it.
"Charmander!" Charmander called back, poking its teammate with an annoyed expression.
"Thanks, Charmander," Ash interrupted the quarrel. "You really worked hard, and it's time to rest."
"Charmander," Charmander agreed with a nod before being returned to its pokeball.
"Pikachu, thunderbolt!" Ash called upon seeing the approaching grimer. Pikachu shocked them all at once, causing them to retreat, no other deciding to approach. "Aren't they gonna fight more?" Ash scowled. "I still have to train my other pokemon!"
"They're usually up for it," Drake said.
"Maybe they can see when they're outmatched," Brock added.
"I guess I'm done, then," Ash said with a frown. He soon smiled again as he turned to Pikachu. "Time to go back to the pokemon center and find someone else to battle!"
"Pikachu!" Pikachu called happily, following its trainer as he ran in the opposite direction.
Brock and Drake walked at a more leisurely pace as they went downhill back toward the main road. As they walked, Brock finally realized what had been bothering him. It took him a few moments to bring it up. "Hey Drake, you didn't push Misty in, did you?"
"She deserved that kind of humiliation, didn't she?" Drake answered firmly.
The answer wasn't a definite yes or no, but still said a lot about the other boy. Brock wasn't sure what to say a moment before he finally offered a weak response. "Why would you say that?" he asked, keeping his calm. "Didn't you just meet her today?"
"Unfortunately," Drake said. "I don't see how you can stand her. She's just like all the rest."
"All the rest of what?" Brock asked.
"She should have known I'm a local trainer because I failed at getting my badges and getting in the league. She rubbed her win right in my face to humiliate me, so she deserves the same."
Should Misty be responsible for anything this guy might have felt? Should she have considered his circumstances in detail before something as simple as a pokemon battle? Brock thought about it, pausing before he replied. "Do you really think that's what she was trying to do?"
"Obviously. You see how she treats Ash, acting like he's some know nothing trainer, trying to get him to doubt himself."
Brock stopped on the path. He met Drake's eyes as the other boy stopped himself. "You're wrong there," Brock said firmly.
"You really are just blind," Drake declared.
"No," Brock said. "I know those two pretty well by now. Ash isn't going to doubt himself that easily. And Misty wants him to be successful as a trainer, even if she hasn't realized that sometimes he needs to make mistakes on his own. She can be a little outspoken, but she'll get it eventually."
"You don't get it!" Drake shouted, true anger entering his voice. "You just fall for her little act and let her get away with acting like a little bitch. Open your eyes, she's exactly the same as any other woman!"
Brock noted the boy's infuriated face. Brock himself was starting to get angry, but gave himself a moment before he replied. "Misty is eleven," he said once he calmed.
"And she's already-"
"She's just a kid," Brock spoke firmly again. "Not even close to a woman yet. Kids need patience, you know."
"She's just like-"
"Sorry, Drake, I just know you're wrong about her. Maybe you're wrong about other ladies you come across as well." Brock did his best to put on a pleasant expression even in the face of the boy's angry presence.
Drake scowled and folded his arms in return, but still appeared to calm. "I'm just saying this so you realize it now. I don't want you to grow up and get taken advantage of and walked all over thinking you'll find anything from any woman."
"Don't worry. That won't happen," Brock assured. His grin widened as he thought of another lady he'd been interested in, though hadn't gotten the chance to talk to. Maybe they'd meet up with her again along the way... He shook his head to get himself back to the present, then continued with absolute confidence. "I'll find someone. I'm not worried. There's plenty of options."
"You think you're better than me?" Drake challenged, stepping forward with his fist clenched.
"Na," Brock said casually, stepping back and waving his hand.
"Yeah, 'cause you're not!" Drake stepped closer to Brock. "Look at yourself. You're far from a ten. And just look at how that nurse treated you! You've got the same future as me!"
Brock again backed away, deciding to take a chance to turn away despite Drake's aggression. "I do? Well, I don't think you should worry so much either. That's about all I have to say."
Brock kept walking away, even as Drake shouted various insults after him, about both Brock himself as well as Misty, and what she'd do and how stupid he would feel then. He mentioned how Brock would eventually be broken emotionally, possibly financially. Eventually, Brock turned into the path to the pokemon center, and Drake decided to stop following.
Ash was outside battling with another traveling trainer, while Misty, now cleaned up, watched on, cheering him with encouragement and other suggestions. Brock knew from spending so much time with them that Ash would either take the suggestions without comment, or get snippy about them. They were kind of like siblings, comfortable enough to rib each other, sometimes in less than friendly ways. They still got along in their own way.
Brock walked past them, stopping at the door of the pokemon center before he swallowed and went in.
Since this was a pokemon center in a relatively small town, the eating area, waiting area, and counter where the nurse greeted trainers who needed care for their pokemon were all in the same area, a back room for the nurse to work, and a few dorms and showers for the traveling trainers down a hall next to it. Seeing trainers eating, talking at the counter, and going back and forth from the dorm, Brock sat like he was just waiting for someone, though he was actually waiting to have less of an audience when he approached the nurse.
But a while went by, and it didn't seem like the place would be getting any less busy any time soon. Brock finally forced himself to stand. This time it was for his pokemon, not any hope that the nurse might change her mind classifying him as a mere "waste of time" as she had that morning. Onix might not be completely well after a loss with such intense poison, and shouldn't have to wait for care just because its trainer was too nervous to speak to the nurse. Standing behind the trainer in front of him, Brock waited his turn.
"Afternoon," Brock greeted once the previous trainer left, his eyes traveling to the counter as the nurse looked his way.
"Good afternoon. Thank you for visiting our pokemon center," the nurse said with a bow, all professional courtesy present.
"Can you look over my onix? It got hit by toxic earlier, and eventually fainted," Brock explained.
"Did you use an antidote?" the nurse asked.
"Yeah, of course, but I'm just not sure if it's completely better," Brock said.
The nurse looked away from him to the man who had sat in the waiting area for a while, then back with a smile. "Of course I'll take a look!" she said. "We don't have room for it in the building, so why don't we step outside?"
Brock agreed, and went with the nurse to an open battlefield. He released Onix, and the nurse circled the large pokemon, looking it over from multiple angles. "Wow. It's really well cared for," she noted. "Can you move from here to there, Onix?" she asked. Onix called out and complied. The nurse beamed at him. "You pokemon looks fine! You did what you should have for it."
"Oh, thanks," Brock said. He returned Onix, then decided to say something else. "Nurse... Can you tell me your name?" he asked.
"Ariana. But of course, it's fine to just call me Nurse Joy."
That was it. Her name, Ariana. How lovely! Brock's heart rate increased as he realized he was on a first name basis the beautiful woman. "Miss... Miss Ariana, would you-" Brock began.
"I'm sorry... If you have other pokemon for me to see, can you come back inside?" Ariana asked. "He knew I needed fresh air to look at the onix, but I suppose he's still waiting for me."
"Oh." That man in the waiting area did seem to be keeping his eye on her, maybe waiting for her to finish for the day. "Is he your boyfriend?"
"Oh no," Ariana drawled, denying the possibility strongly. "He's from the pokemon nursing school... I'm working as a nurse on an emergency license because no one else wanted to come to this pokemon center, but I'm technically just finishing up school. He's here for my practical evaluation. He's been watching me all day."
"That must be rough!" Brock exclaimed. It seemed that Nurse Joy, well, Ariana, had a lot she was dealing with while Brock had been thinking maybe she should have paid more attention to him.
"I know my stuff," Ariana assured as she made her way back toward the building. "I'll be fine."
"Of course!" Brock declared. "And well, if you want something to look forward to afterward, I'd be happy to take you out on the town. Dinner, my treat, for the beautiful aspiring nurse! We'll celebrate the sure success of one kind, lovely, talented lady!"
"Ha. You're sweet." Ariana beamed at him before entering the pokemon center.
He'd gotten a compliment in response, so it took Brock a while to realize she hadn't exactly accepted his offer. This was a different kind of rejection, perhaps a somewhat more of a padded one. Brock sunk his head down before pulling it back up. No, no one could call this a humiliating experience. He'd had a nice conversation with her actually, found out more about her, so it was a start. A start he'd never have gotten if he'd let the morning incident get to him too badly.
Maybe he wouldn't be getting married anytime soon. Even so, he wasn't about to get stuck in the sludge of doubt.
Next chapter: Meowth vs. Persian