Chapter 18: Meeting Melanie
"You said these Pokémon aren't yours? Then why are they all here, and why are you raising them?" Brock asked, gesturing towards the Pokémon.
"Yes, none of these Pokémon are mine. Actually, the Pokémon here are ones that were injured in battle or abandoned. Pokémon whose minds or bodies have been hurt come here to recover, so this place has become like a Pokémon rehabilitation center," Melanie explained with a smile.
"Melanie, then how do you treat these Pokémon?" Brock asked after hearing her explanation.
"I treat these Pokémon using folk remedies. There are no battles here; they live together with their companions and recover from their injuries naturally," Melanie replied. "Brock, let's go inside the house to talk. Besides, Brock, your clothes are still wet. You need to change out of them quickly, or you'll catch a cold."
"Then thank you for your concern, Miss Melanie," Brock said, then went inside the small wooden cabin with Melanie. The cabin had a living room, two bedrooms, and a kitchen. Brock and Melanie entered the living room.
"Brock, do you have any dry clothes? If you do, hurry and change, otherwise what if you catch a cold?" Melanie asked worriedly.
Hearing Melanie, Brock opened the backpack that had fallen into the river with him to check if the clothes inside had gotten wet. He found the backpack was waterproof, so nothing inside was wet. He thought, How stupid of me! The technology in this world is so advanced; of course, there would be waterproof things! I really need to learn more about things besides just Pokémon.
"Melanie, the clothes in my backpack aren't wet. Excuse me, where is the washroom so I can change?" Brock asked, taking his clothes out of the backpack.
"Oh, the washroom is over there," Melanie replied, pointing the way. Hearing Melanie, Brock took his change of clothes and headed to the washroom.
Brock came out of the washroom carrying his wet clothes and entered the living room, but didn't see Melanie. He thought, Miss Melanie must have gone out. Oh well, I should wash these clothes first, then ask Melanie a question later.
Brock took his changed clothes outside to the pond area and washed them. After hanging the washed clothes up to dry, Brock was about to go back into the living room when Ash's group, who had been searching for him, saw him and called out together, "Brock! So you're here! We had such a hard time looking for you! We thought you'd been washed really far downstream!"
"Ash! Misty! Daisy! It's you guys!" Brock said happily, turning around to see them.
Ash asked curiously, "Brock, how did you get rescued?" Hearing Ash, Brock told them what had happened.
"So, that Miss Melanie is your savior? And this is her house?" Misty exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes," Brock confirmed.
Hearing Brock's confirmation, Daisy and Misty pulled Brock aside and whispered, "Brock, is that Miss Melanie pretty? Do you like her? You know the saying, 'A debt for saving one's life can only be repaid by pledging oneself.' Brock, quickly tell us, is that what you're thinking?"
Hearing Misty and Daisy, Brock blushed and stammered, "You're thinking too much! There's nothing like that!" After saying this, he thought, I mean, I am thinking about it! But would she agree? This is the first time since my previous life that I've touched the hand of a girl other than family... Hmm... Besides, I've lived twenty-something more years than these two little girls; how could I possibly not handle them?!
"Brock, you're blushing and still denying it! Am I right or am I right?" Misty asked, gossiping curiously.
"Yeah, Brock, just tell us, are we right?" Daisy also asked curiously.
"Can you two stop gossiping?! Besides, what about Misty liking Ash?! Right, Misty?" Brock deflected.
Hearing Brock, Daisy immediately shifted the topic to Misty, "Misty! Tell me about you and Ash!"
Hearing Brock and Daisy, Misty immediately blushed and said shyly, "Brock! Sister Daisy! There's nothing between Ash and me! Besides, Brock, the weather's really nice today, isn't it!"
Hearing Misty try to change the subject, Daisy said, "Misty, don't change the subject!" Just then, Melanie returned.
Seeing Brock and the others talking, Melanie asked Brock, "Brock, are these gentlemen and ladies your friends?"
Brock replied, "Yes, Melanie. This is—" Before Brock could finish, Daisy stepped forward and introduced herself, "Hello! My name is Daisy, I'm from Cerulean City. This is Misty, my younger sister," Daisy said, pulling Misty forward.
Then Ash stepped up and introduced himself, "Hi! I'm Ash, a trainer from Pallet Town!"
"Hello! Please, come inside my house and chat!" Melanie said hospitably.
"Okay!" Brock and the others replied and went inside the cabin together.
In the cabin's living room, Brock and the group were chatting with Melanie.
"Melanie, so does that mean you're a Pokémon Nurse?" Misty asked curiously.
"No, you misunderstand. I don't have the qualifications for that yet! But my dream is to become a Pokémon Breeder. I just don't know how I should go about it right now," Melanie replied.
"Melanie, you want to become a Breeder? Brock is a Breeder! If you don't know something, just ask Brock!" Misty suggested kindly.
"Really? Brock, you're a Pokémon Breeder? Can you tell me the essential points of becoming a Pokémon Breeder?" Melanie asked happily after hearing Misty.
"Sure!..." Before Brock could finish speaking, a loud bang came from outside. Hearing the noise, Brock and the others went outside. They saw a robot outside, capturing the Pokémon near the cabin.
"What's going on?" Ash exclaimed. Suddenly, voices came from the robot:
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all peoples within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars1 above!"
"Cassidy!"
"Butch!"
"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now or prepare2 to fight!"
Two figures in Team Rocket uniforms emerged from the robot after reciting their motto.
"Team Rocket! What are you doing here?" Ash demanded after hearing their motto.
"We're here to capture all the Pokémon, of course!" Cassidy replied.
"Team Rocket, I won't let you get away with this!" Ash declared confidently.
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt! Destroy that robot for me!" Ash commanded Pikachu beside him, pointing at the robot.
Hearing Ash's command, Pikachu ran in front of the robot, jumped up, and unleashed a Thunderbolt. Pikachu's Thunderbolt struck the robot directly.
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