Tini had already known how to fish. This was not a surprise, he was a wild Pokemon not too long ago after all. And he was pretty good at it too.
Nina watched as the little blue eel snuck up on a group of fish. Then in a flash of movement, began circling around his prey, conjuring a whirlpool of purple Dragon Type Energy. This was the move Twister, and Dratini used it to trap large groups of fish in its vortex before killing them within.
Nina gave her partner a thumbs up, bubbles gurgling out of her rebreather in excitement. She swooped in with a net in hand and secured her Dratini’s latest catch. Meanwhile, the Dragon treated himself with a little snack, swallowing one of the fish whole, bones and all.
The two swam up to shore on a gravel beach. Pikachu with her goofy star shaped sunglasses was waiting for them while sunbathing on a cooler that Nina bought with her own money. Much to Pikachu’s annoyance, Nina trudged up to her impromptu tanning bed and shooed her off in order for the girl to deposit Dratini’s catch, the cooler itself looking like it was almost full.
The trio were actually near Bill’s famous Sea Cottage, past route 25 and Nugget Bridge. Though the place was less of a cottage and more like a gated estate where Bill ran his own ranch. Sea Cottage was simply what he named it. In fact, Nina couldn’t even see anything resembling a building nearby, only a long stretch of metal fences.
It was one of the spots that Kumiko recommended to Nina, something about this being where the inlet met the sea and how there was a healthy accumulation of plankton, attracting both fish and pokemon.
But mainly, Nina chose this spot because there was a bus that ran here periodically. The Sea Cottage was quite the tourist attraction, with Bill allowing daily tours. And even on the days that they weren’t, the buses still ran for the benefit of the employees working in the man’s lab.
“Okay Tini, I think we’ve got enough fish to last you for a couple of days. How about we practice your Twister next. You’re still pretty bad at using it on land.”
Nina had intended to use Twister as the foundation to teach Tini some other moves. But unfortunately, maybe because of the environment he lived in, her partner wasn’t really adept at using it on land. He always just ended up doing an awkward simile of Wrap with Dragon Type Energy instead.
“Remember that video I showed you last night? That Dragonair simply twisted his tail to direct the energy and released it with a swipe. Then the Twister gradually built up in size when it left Dragonair. You don’t actually have to use your entire body to prime it, just maintain a connection to the Twister and feed it with more energy once it gets going.”
“Dra!” Nodded Dratini. The baby Dragon was a fairly adept visual learner. So instead of reinventing the wheel, Nina decided to just look up footage of other people’s battles online and showed it to him.
Tini did as he was told, tensing his tail muscles and twisting it. It was really cute how the little blue Dragon furrows his brows when he’s concentrating. It would be a dead giveaway of his intentions in an actual battle, but for now it didn’t matter.
Tini swiped out his tail, looking nowhere as graceful as the Dragonair in the video. But he did manage to conjure up a small ball of purple wind which barely lasted more than a couple of seconds before dissipating.
“Great job, I can tell you’re almost there. It already seemed stronger than your last attempt. You just gotta focus on maintaining that connection. Treat the Twister as a part of your body rather than just a ball of energy you’re releasing.”
“Tiin…” cried the despondent Dragon. Seeing that, Nina went in for a boop and a kiss to her partner’s forehead, eliciting giggles from him.
“No need to rush, we’re still just getting started. Besides, you’re now good enough at it to use Dragon Tail so that’s still a win. Do you wanna continue with Twister or take a break and then try out Dragon Rush?”
Dratini booped her right hand. “Break and then Dragon Rush it is,” confirmed Nina.
Dragon Rush in the games was an advanced move that Dratini wasn’t supposed to learn yet. But after seeing how adept Dratini’s movement was in water, and how he had a tendency to saturate his entire body with Dragon Energy to prime Twister, she figured there was a good chance he might be able to learn Dragon Rush if he tried doing it underwater. Tini agreed as well after she showed him a video and explained her logic.
Nina unzipped the upper half of her wetsuit and sat down on the little camping chair she bought. The first time they came here to fish, she was wholly unprepared. They ended up just having a seaside barbecue with the fish that Tini caught because she couldn’t bring them back. It actually had been a while since she had meat and forgotten how good it tasted.
“So does that make me a pescetarian now? Even though I refuse to eat fish Pokemon?”
“Tiin~” Tini curled up in her lap, demanding cuddles.
Nina giggled and gladly obliged, smothering the tiny noodle with her whole being. She looked out at the sparkling seas, thinking she could probably afford to get herself a pair of sunglasses as well. A rush of wind rustled her hair, cooling her body down from the stuffy wetsuit.
“This new life ain’t bad… not bad at all.”
***
The next day, Nina walked down Cerulean Quay in the morning. Her Dratini wrapped around her as usual, and Pikachu stood her legs on the girl’s backpack while resting her head on top of Nina’s. The girl was quite the spectacle, and not just because of the rare Dragon she was carrying around with her. But by this point she was fairly used to all the staring.
Despite being a City renowned for its Water Type Gym, Cerulean didn’t really have any beaches. In fact, it didn’t even really count as a coastal city since all they had was an inlet.
Instead, the city’s signature was its interconnected waterways running throughout the city and the seemingly infinite amount of fountains, each a distinctly unique work of art. Combined with the white architecture, the city almost seemed Greecian in its aesthetic.
There were of course little sandbanks dotted throughout the length of the Cerulean Inlet, but it was nothing in comparison to the wide sandy beaches of Cinnabar Island.
The Cerulean Quay was where all the boats were docked in the City. Mostly a whole bunch of luxury yachts and sailboats. It was also where the Sea Rangers were headquartered, in an unassuming boxy building by the end of the Quay.
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“Welcome… Oh gosh, look at you. Aren’t you the cutest little girl, walking around with all your Pokemon friends.”
The person who greeted Nina was the receptionist of the Sea Rangers; a tanned woman a bit on the shorter, stockier side.
“Good morning, Shizu. Can I trouble you to refill my rebreather” Nina held out her device with both her hands and assaulted the woman with her usual timid Baby-Doll Eyes combo.
“Aww… Of course you can, sweetie. Let me grab that from you and I’ll be right back,” said the receptionist as she turned around and went out of sight.
Nina just stood there shuffling her feet as she waited for the woman to come back, feeling awkward for the lack of seating. At which point, the doors slid open and a familiar looking blonde woman walked into the building.
“Shizu~ I’m here! Where you at, bitch?”
Nina was a little startled by the bombastic entrance as she stepped aside and gave the woman a small bow. “Good morning, Ms Daisy. Shizu has stepped away for the moment and will be back soon.”
Daisy swooned at the sight of the cute little girl covered in pokemon. “Oh Arceus, aren’t you just totes adorbs. And is that a Dratini I see?!”
Daisy crouched down to meet Nina at eye level, then she held out a hand to Dratini. She waited for the baby Dragon to sniff at her and boop her hand before moving in to touch him.
“Pika!” cried Pikachu, eager for some attention as well.
“And don’t think I forgot about you as well, Pikachu.” Lily moved her free hand to Pikachu’s cheeks and began lightly kneading them.
“Aren’t you three just the cutest? You know this Pikachu reminds me of that one guy Misty used to date. Bit of an airhead, that one. Always walking around with his Pikachu. Come to think of it, didn’t that slu- I mean, sister of mine date a Dragon Tamer at some point? Don’t remember him pulling out a Dratini though.”
Nina was speechless, a little overwhelmed by the carefree woman in front of her. “Was she just about to call Misty a slut? The guy with the Pikachu should be Ash. But it seems like this world’s equivalent of the anime characters are a bit… twisted?”
Thankfully, Nina did not really have to think about how to respond because Shizu came back shortly after with her rebreather.
“Oh hey, Daisy. What brings you in today.”
Daisy stood up, hands on her hips in faux anger. “Didn’t you guys call in asking for help with the Tentacruel? Misty’s hungover so I’m here instead.”
Shizu sighed. “Of course she is… Anyways, Nina, sweetie, I got your rebreather right here. Even took the liberty of adjusting the seal cause I noticed the pressure dropped a little. Make sure to check on that every once in a while, okay?”
Nina was about to thank Shizu when the rebreather was intercepted on its way to her.
“Oh my gosh!” exclaimed Daisy. “What a cute little antique. I remember using this… What? Ten years ago?”
The typhoon of a woman then went right up in Nina’s face. “Do you like to go swimming, little girl?”
Nina felt overwhelmed, but thankfully Shizu told her off. “Leave her alone, Daisy. Nina here is a hard worker. She takes her Dratini out fishing every day to help her daddy save money.”
“What does fishing have anything to do with saving money?” Asked the blonde.
“We don’t have enough money to afford enough Dragon Type Pokechow, so I’m trying to supplement Tini’s diet with some other sources of protein,” answered Nina.
“Wait, this little girl’s family can afford a Dratini, but can’t afford to feed it? How does that make sense?”
Shizu sighed. “Daisy, dear, Nina caught the Dratini herself. And not everyone’s family runs a Gym and can afford to sustain a Dragon.”
Daisy’s eyes sparkled and then went right up to Nina again. “That’s amazing! How old are you? Wait, one sec… Nina, Nina… Now where have I heard that name before? Right, you’re that girl with the splashy Goldeen from last year!”
“You remember me?” Asked the bewildered Nina. She had not attended the Little League this year because her school wanted to make sure everyone got a shot, so she was surprised the airheaded Gym Trainer still remembered her.
Daisy gave her a pompous nod. “Of course I do. We at the Cerulean Gym have a duty to nurture any and all promising trainers under our purview. My sisters and I keep a list of all the interesting little fishies that come our way to keep an eye out for promising apprentices.”
“I heard of something similar,” said Nina. “But that was about a potential sponsorship with Professor Oak.”
“Pfeh!” Spat the blonde bombshell. “That old lecher isn’t the only one doing sponsorships. All the major Gyms do it as well. In fact, we might even be one of the more generous ones,” she gloated.
Nina did in fact know about Gym Sponsorships, but she did not know that she was being considered for one.
Daisy made an exaggerated tap of her temple then lit up with a bright idea. “Say, Nina… You said you needed money right? Would you consider renting out your Dratini?”
Nina embraced her partner and looked at the woman warily. “Tini is my friend… Not just ‘stuff’ that I can lend out.”
Daisy laughed in amusement. “Of course, honey. I didn’t mean it that way. You should’ve seen our monthly shows before, right?”
The little girl nodded enthusiastically. “Yeap! I always love it at the end when the Milotics come out to dance. Their scales are so pretty.”
Daisy had a smug look on her face. “Yeap, we take pride in all our Pokemon! So hear me out, I just had an idea to work Dratini into our monthly performance. Obviously, this little cutie pie here would need a bit of training first but we can manage. We’ll pay you for each show, and we’ll feed him for when he’s training at the gym. How about it?”
Nina’s adult mind began working frantically. This was an incredible opportunity, but she needed to make sure that Dratini was okay with it and that the two of them wouldn’t be taken advantage of.
Nina looked up at Daisy with sparkling eyes. “Will you train Dratini to use cool moves like Water Pulse and Dragon Dance?”
Daisy grinned. “That and so much more. Dragons are versatile like you wouldn’t believe. Well… all except Dragon Dance maybe. That one is a bit more complicated, unless you want your little boy here to evolve prematurely.”
She explained that Dragon Dance was usually a coming of age thing for Dragons and mastering it almost always guarantees an evolution. This was something that Nina had not known about before.
“We can show him the basics, so that he has a good idea of it when he feels ready. But probably not the best idea to have him practice it before he’s ready,” she continued.
Nina nodded in agreement. “Tini’s mom is a great singer. I got to hear her sing when they were saying goodbye. It made me cry.”
“Aww…”
“Do you think he’ll be able to sing like his mom as well?” Asked Nina.
“I don’t see why not. So long as your friend here is willing to put in the work, anything is possible,” answered Daisy, with a bright smile.
Nina went on to explain Daisy’s proposal to Tini. It took a bit of effort to simplify everything in a way that the young Dragon could understand, but he almost jumped at Daisy in excitement when Nina pulled up a fan recording of the Cerulean Sister’s shows.
The two trainers then negotiated the details with Shizu as a witness to make sure Daisy didn’t accidentally screw over Nina. The blonde beauty can be quite insensitive at times.
“Despite her flaws, there’s a reason why the youngest Misty is the Gym Leader,” whispered Shizu. “She tends to be the more level headed one of the four.”
In the end it was decided that Nina would bring Dratini over for two days during the weekends so that he could be trained. This was due to the fact that Nina’s summer break was ending and she needed to return to school.
“You know Nina, since we’re already doing so much anyway. Do you wanna just come over and do a part time apprenticeship? We only have our cousin apprenticing right now, I think she’d appreciate your help in doing all the grun- I mean, great work we do with all our pokemon.”
Nina eyed the woman suspiciously. “I’m underage, also I have school. And don’t you have other Gym Trainers to help out?”
Daisy gave Nina a sly wink, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth from the side even though she was speaking at a normal volume.
“Don’t tell anyone I said this, but apprenticeships are a bit of a loophole. You can technically apprentice people of any age. But most tend to only take in apprentices below ten if they’re family. That’s not a hard rule though, just tradition.
“And school won’t be an issue. Our cousin Beverly is underaged as well, she just comes by once school lets out. Also all our Gym Trainers have their own work, plus getting them to clean the Dewgong exhibit is like trying to get a Charmander into water,” she said, ending the last part with a shiver.
Shizu yelled at Daisy. “Enough, Daisy! You’re just trying to take advantage of the poor girl.”
Nina was well aware of the situation, but she was also cognizant of what an opportunity this was. In this world and her last, connections were very important, and having an apprenticeship with the Cerulean Gym on record might open up other opportunities for her in the future.
“I don’t think I’ll end up specializing in Water Types in the future though. Is that okay?" said Nina, after some consideration.
Daisy waved her hand. “Oh that won’t be an issue. Not all of the people we sponsor are as obsessed with Water Types as we are. It’s just that we don’t have much space to house non Water Types, but you’re too little to be having this discussion anyway.”
“Also, there’s no guarantee that I might even want a sponsorship with the Cerulean Sisters.” Thought Nina.
Shizu went down to Nina with a look of concern. “Nina… Are you sure about this?”
Nina shook her head. “Not really, But I think I can learn a lot from working at a Gym. Besides, you’ll promise to feed Tini on the days that I’m apprenticing as well right? Which by the way, can’t be every day. I need to be around for my dad as well.”
The last question was directed towards Daisy and she gave a thumbs up in response.
In the end, it was decided that Nina will go to the Cerulean Gym for two days of her choosing during the week in addition to the weekends.