章 289: Wooper School
{In the Festival}
After the incident in the stadium, the festival continued, and Ash joined up with the group, reuniting with Pikachu and everyone else. They bombarded him with questions about whether his shoulder was okay.
Ash responded with practiced lines, reassuring them that he was fine and had already had it checked out. With that settled, they decided to enjoy the festival. Now, it was dark, and they were watching the fireworks while sitting at a table. Ash forced himself to eat since they had all gotten him dinner, and it would've been rude to refuse.
As they watched the fireworks, Ash glanced over at Horace. He knew of Horace from Journeys and, honestly, liked his character for the most part. The main thing he didn't like was that Horace was a Goh simp, like actually,
They met once and made a promise to meet up again, but Horace was sick, and he still wanted to apologize TO GOH, like that is some next-level glazing, especially since he was willing to use the legendary Celebi to go back in time just to apologize.
Ash shook his head. It was a shame, really. But he hoped Goh wouldn't show up here. He really didn't want that. Goh might have his trainer's license, but a trainer's license and a League license were two entirely different things.
A trainer's license was akin to a driver's license; everyone got one when they turned 10 or graduated from school, whichever came first. However, a League license varied by region. In Kanto, you could apply for one at 10; in Johto, at 11; and so on. The only exceptions Ash knew of were Alola, Galar, and Paldea. Alola didn't have a League; in Galar, you need a recommendation from someone in power, and in Paldea, you needed permission from Naranja Academy.
This meant that since Goh wasn't pursuing Gym battles like Ash was, he could, unfortunately, appear during Ash's adventures. And Ash really didn't want to deal with Goh—at all.
Still, what did it matter? If it happened, what could he do about it? The best he could do was walk in the opposite direction and ask Abra to teleport him far away.
"So, what are you going to do after this festival is over? Are you taking on the Gyms too?" Brock asked, Bonsly and Larvitar sitting on his lap.
Horace shook his head and chuckled. "No, no, no. I'm not a trainer. I couldn't possibly be one. After this, I'm heading back to Cianwood City to continue my studies."
"Yeah, but I think he means, do you have any goals you're working toward?" Misty asked, holding Psyduck on her lap.
"Hmm, I guess I want to discover every Psychic-type Pokémon in the world," Horace said, gazing up at the night sky.
"Wow, that's really ambitious, right?" Ash said, leaning back in his seat. "I mean, we've only scratched the surface of Pokémon. There could be tons of psychic types we've never discovered, and maybe some of them are closer than we think."
"Hehe, yeah, maybe it is a bit strange. But you know what? It's what I want to do, so I'll do my best," Horace replied.
"Yeah, that sounds really cool," Yellow said, nodding along, "And we believe in you, right, guys?"
"Sure. I'm curious to see it," Misty said.
Brock nodded. "I believe you can do it."
"Yeah, go for it, man," Ash added. "It's your dream, so you shouldn't let anyone else tell you what to do."
"Thanks, everyone," Horace said, then turned to Ash. "By the way, are you sure you're fine? I mean, I know you said you were, but still, you were kind of bleeding out when I saw you."
Ash rolled up his sleeve, revealing his shoulder wrapped in a few bandages to maintain the lie. "Yeah, the doctors checked me out. I told them I had my Clefairy heal me, but they still examined it and said as long as I don't move it too much, I'll be fine in a few days."
"Oh, that reminds me," Brock said, pulling out Ash's neatly folded jacket. "I fixed this for you while you were gone."
Ash took the jacket and slipped it back on. "Thanks, man. I like this thing."
As the fireworks wrapped up, Horace turned to the group. "Well, this is where we say goodbye. It was nice to meet you all. Be sure to come see me when you get to Cianwood."
"We will, and thanks for your help," Brock said.
"No need—it was my pleasure," Horace replied as he waved and walked away.
Once he was gone, Misty laid her head down on the table. "I'm tired. Can we go find a hotel now?"
"Sure, but that reminds me of something I wanted to do," Ash said, standing up. "Hey, Brock, I'm gonna need you for this one."
"Really? What do you need?" Brock asked.
"Let's call Officer Jenny," Ash said with a grin, referring to the one with the former Squirtle Squad. Brock's eyes immediately lit up.
Misty and Yellow stood off to the side, both sighing as Misty spoke. "Nope, we're sitting this one out. We're going to find a hotel."
"Yeah, see you tomorrow then," Yellow said, waving as she ran after Misty. Meanwhile, Brock and Ash made their way to the Pokémon Center.
—-
After a few rings, the computer lit up, revealing Officer Jenny. "Hey there! You caught me just as I was about to head out. What can I do for you?"
Brock was about to swoon, but Ash quickly pushed him out of the way. "Hey, Officer Jenny—"
"Please, just call me Amalia," she interrupted with a smile. "I mean, I already gave you guys my personal number, so I think we're a bit past formalities."
Brock's muffled voice could be heard from the side of the screen. "Oh, Amalia, such a beautiful name for a bea—Gah!" His words were cut off as Ash shoved him harder.
"Right then, Amalia," Ash continued, "you're coming to the Fire and Rescue Grand Prix here in Johto, right?"
"Yes… How did you know? That's actually why I'm picking up here," Amalia replied curiously.
"Blastoise told me," Ash explained, holding up Blastoise's Pokéball. "He also said he wanted to participate with his squad. So, what do you say? Can your team use one more?"
Amalia's eyes lit up. "Oh yes, definitely! With Blastoise, we'll have a great chance of winning. And I'm sure he'd love to spend more time with his friends, too."
Ash nodded as he placed the Pokéball on the teleporter. "Alright, I'm sending him over." With a push of a button, the Pokéball disappeared and reappeared on Amalia's side of the screen.
"I got it, thanks! I'll be sure to surprise them. I'll call you guys when we win," Amalia said with a confident smile.
Only then did Ash finally release Brock, who shot up like a slingshot, knocking Ash out of his chair and taking his place in front of the screen to start flirting.
Ash picked himself up and glanced over at Pikachu, who was sitting on a table, trying to stifle his laughter. Ash gave him a deadpan stare. "Well, I guess we can leave without restocking the ketchup."
Pikachu's laughter immediately stopped as his eyes widened in shock. Realizing Ash was serious, Pikachu quickly jumped off the table and followed him out, protesting, "Pika-pika pi, Pikachu…"
As they exited the Pokémon Center, Brock stayed behind to continue talking to Amalia.
—-
{A Few Days Later}
They were back on the road, resuming their usual routine of traveling, eating, training, more traveling, and eventually setting up camp.
One day, as they walked along the edge of a 20-foot drop, they noticed a pink house at the bottom of the ravine, complete with a small pool beside it.
Yellow tilted her head as they stopped to look at the building. "What do you think that place is?"
Brock leaned over the edge. "It kinda looks like a daycare to me. What about y—" He was abruptly cut off.
Misty, who had been standing at the back, suddenly felt something cold and slimy touch her back. She screamed, "AHHH! Get it off! Get it off! Get it off!" and started scrambling around in a panic.
In her frantic state, she bumped into Ash, sending him teetering backward over the cliff edge. Pikachu, as always, was perched on his shoulder.
As Ash realized he had nothing under him, he looked up at Misty and, for a brief moment before falling, gave her a deadpan look. "If I die, I'm haunting you—AHHH!" he yelled as he plummeted.
Pikachu left momentarily suspended in mid-air, glanced down, sighed, and muttered, "Pika…. Pik-AAAAA!" before following Ash.
"Ash!" Brock and Yellow shouted in unison.
Meanwhile, Misty finally managed to identify and remove the slimy culprit—a little Wooper. She held it up sheepishly as Brock and Yellow glared at her. "Oh…" she chuckled nervously, giving them a helpless smile. "W-well… at least it's pretty cute, right?"
At the bottom of the ravine, Ash landed headfirst, tumbling onto his face, while Pikachu crashed next to him, his head stuck in the ground. Ash flipped over and pulled Pikachu out by his tail. Both lay on their backs for a moment, staring at the sky.
As they caught their breath, a girl with blue hair leaned over them from above. "Oh my goodness! That was quite the fall. Are you alright?"
"I'll be fine…" Ash groaned.
"Pika pi…" Pikachu mumbled in agreement.
Before they could get up, they saw Brock leap from the top of the cliff. Realizing what was about to happen, Ash grabbed Pikachu and rolled to the side just in time.
Brock landed with a heavy thud right where they had been moments before. The shock from the impact rippled through his body, but he didn't care.
Brock approached the girl enthusiastically. "Hello there! I'm Brock, and I'm so happy you showed such concern for my friend. You must be a very kind person. May I have the honor of knowing your name?"
"Uhh… I'm Olesia. It's nice to meet you, Brock," she replied hesitantly.
Brock took her hand and shook it, "We should get to know each other more, don't you think? I mean, it seems like destiny brought us together."
"Err… not really," Olesia said awkwardly. "What about your friend? Shouldn't you check on him?"
"He'll be fine. Anyway, I think we should talk abo—Gah!" Brock started but was abruptly cut off by a blast of water from the Wooper Misty was holding.
"Huh, good work, little buddy," Misty said, giving Wooper a pat on the head before walking over.
Olesia saw this and smiled warmly. "Oh, Wooper, there you are!" She ran over, took Wooper from Misty, and nuzzled it affectionately.
"Oh… so it's your Wooper," Misty said, her voice tinged with disappointment.
Olesia stopped nuzzling Wooper and shook her head. "Well, technically, no. I didn't catch Wooper—or any of the other ones, for that matter."
"Other ones?" Yellow asked, glancing over as she helped Ash and Pikachu to their feet to make sure they were okay.
"Yeah, other ones," Olesia said with a clap of her hands. "Come on out, everyone~!"
From the water, nine more Wooper emerged, looking up curiously. Olesia set her Wooper down, and it immediately ran back to the water to rejoin its friends.
"Wow, you weren't kidding," Misty said as she leaned closer to get a better look. "So, is this a daycare just for Wooper?"
"You got it! Well, it wasn't originally, but Wooper just kept coming, so I turned it into a Wooper-only daycare. It's for wild Wooper to learn how to survive or, if the opportunity arises, to find good trainers for them."
Misty's eyes lit up with excitement. "Oh, so you give them out? Well, in that case, can I—"
But before she could finish, Olesia's phone rang.
"Sorry, give me a second," Olesia said, walking over to pick up her phone. "Hello~?"
Her cheerful expression quickly turned somber. "Oh no… that's terrible. Do you need me to come over and take care of anything for you?"
After a pause, she continued, "Well… okay, if you say so. But call me if you need anything, alright? Yeah… love you. Bye." She hung up the phone and lowered her head with a sigh.
When she noticed everyone staring at her, she explained, "My poor mom… she fell down the stairs and broke her leg."
Brock immediately dropped his flirty demeanor and looked concerned. "Oh no! Is she going to be okay? Did she see a doctor?"
"We don't have many doctors in the town where she lives, so she's on a waitlist," Olesia said, her worry evident. "She said she'll be fine, but I think she's just saying that, so I don't worry. It's not working."
"Why don't you go see her then?" Yellow asked.
Olesia shook her head, her expression troubled. "I can't. The Wooper… I can't just leave them alone. I don't know what to do…"
Brock stepped forward and took her hands confidently. "You're going to go to her. Don't worry, we'll take care of the Wooper until you get back!"
Olesia shook her head again. "No, I can't ask you guys to take care of the Wooper."
Misty crossed her arms with a firm look. "You don't have to ask us."
"Yeah, we want to do it," Yellow added with a reassuring smile.
"And if you want, I can go with you," Ash offered. "I may not look like it, but I am a doctor by trade."
"Really?" Olesia said, her face lighting up with hope. "If you all insist, then I'll accept. Thank you so much! Let me write everything down."
She hurried back into the house, grabbed a pen and notepad, and started writing quickly. Once finished, she handed the notepad to Brock. "This has their entire schedule and the specific diets you need to follow. I'll try to get back as soon as I can," she said before dashing toward her garage.
Brock held the notepad, flipping through the pages. "Well, it can't be that bad—" His sentence cut off as his jaw dropped. The notes were long and painstakingly detailed, with diagrams and meticulous instructions.
The color drained from his face, but Olesia didn't seem to notice. She wheeled out a moped scooter with two helmets, handing one to Ash. "Come on, let's go! And everyone, good luck," she said, starting the engine.
Ash put on the helmet, and Pikachu secured himself snugly inside Ash's bag. "Yeah, good luck. From what I see, you're going to need it," Ash added as he climbed onto the back of the scooter.
With a wave, Olesia drove off with Ash, leaving Brock, Misty, and Yellow alone with the Wooper.
Misty sighed, her confidence steady. "Let's not be ridiculous. What bad things could such cute little Wooper possibly do?"
"Yeah, you're right. We're just being paranoid," Brock agreed with a nod. "Let's do this!"
The three turned around, their resolve firm. But the moment they laid eyes on the scene before them, their confidence shattered.
The area had devolved into chaos. Somehow, a fire pit had appeared in the middle of the yard, one Wooper was tied up and hanging from a tree, a few others were perched precariously on the roof of the house, and several more were gleefully playing in a mud pit that was rapidly spreading.
The three stood frozen in silence. Finally, Yellow turned to Brock and Misty. "We're in over our heads, aren't we?"
They both nodded wordlessly, bracing themselves for what was bound to be a long and chaotic next few hours.
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