Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon.

Pristine Uniforms

Posted December Second, 2007

Set in red/blue/yellow, but some things are taken from the (old) show.

Nurse Joy smiled pleasantly to the two children – trainers, she corrected herself, already trainers at their young age – that had walked up to the front desk of the hospital. They were in the middle of having a nice summer’s day, and she wondered how anyone could fight when the weather was as beautiful as this. There were only two and a half more hours before her shift was over - and then she could go home to clean. Her apartment had gotten embarrassingly messy as of late and she was determined to fix that today, when her windows could be opened without a chance of rain.

“Hello! Welcome to the Celadon Pokémon center!” The standard greeting was accompanied with a happy wave. It was her duty to make the trainers, especially the newer ones, feel at ease in this place. Most of them were still afraid of visiting an actual hospital, so it made sense that their fear carried on to visiting one meant for Pokémon. But it seemed as if this group wasn’t in a hurry, so any injuries must not have been serious. Joy absentmindedly smoothed down her uniform and then placed her hands where the children could see them on the pristine, white counter of her desk.

“We can heal your Pokémon to perfect health. Is there anything specific that you need today?” Her boss, who also happened to be her third cousin removed or something odd like that, (She never could manage to keep track of who was who besides her immediate family.) wasn’t here at the moment. It meant little more than the fact that she could make her greetings slightly different each time. That woman was so strict about the rules that it was insane.

She liked her job, she really did. Otherwise she wouldn’t be a nurse. Everyone thought that it was pressure from her family that made her go into the same profession as all the rest of them, but in actuality there just seemed to be a common interest throughout the family. She liked Pokémon and their trainers, and not only that, but she wanted her parents and family to be proud of her. So it was a natural decision to become a part of a Pokémon Center.

There were probably a few of her relatives who hadn’t gone into the family practice and who just weren’t talked about as a result. If your whole life was about healing Pokémon, how could you connect to a person who wanted nothing to do with it? If that were the case, then it was sad to think that there were people in her family who had been completely excluded from their history, but she could understand how things could get that way.

There was one girl in her family who had always been a bit strange, and now she worked in the Orange Islands with a permanent tan and bathing suit. At least, that was what she had overheard - she hadn’t seen the girl herself in at least ten years, and couldn’t validate rumors based on childhood characteristics that she could barely recall. But she was still a nurse, she still worked with Pokémon, and Joy couldn’t blame her if she wanted to do something just a little bit different than everyone else. That was why she had moved to Celadon, after all. Viridian City was just… too familiar, and too quiet.

She had needed something new.

Celadon had a large department store that brought tourists from all over the region. There were always new people to meet, and new restaurants being built in the downtown area - where she liked to visit in her off time - and so there was plenty of activities to do when on break. If she felt like it she could let her hair down and strip out of her uniform, and then it was as if no one could recognize her! It was a lot of fun to simply wander around the streets and be mistaken for a tourist from another town.

She had been right; it was not anything serious that plagued the duo. In fact it wasn’t even the Pokémon that they had come here for. They had just wanted to know where a good place to eat was! She directed them to the cheap buffet shop a couple blocks down the street while suppressing a giggle. They had probably walked right past a dozen places on their way here, and they would easily find somewhere better suited to their tastes than what she had recommended as they made their way towards it.

“I hope to see you here again!” She called out the door as they left, and then set to work filing papers on the patients that she had treated earlier in the week. Not only was she behind in her housework, but it seemed like she was behind in keeping records again as well. At least it wasn’t busy, because if that was the case then she’d never be able to get caught up, and would be severely lectured when her boss returned from her vacation. Then she’d probably tell her mother, because when you work in a place run by family members everyone knows who your parents are, and then her mother would call her up and lecture her as well…

But she wasn’t going to let it get to that point, because she was going to get caught up on everything today! She swore it, and settled down to work in the back of the Center so she wouldn’t become distracted by the comings and goings of the people passing by.

--

She only had about half an hour’s work of forms left when the glass doors of the Center burst open violently to welcome the on-break police officer who had driven in on her motorcycle. Joy ran out of the back room at the noise, and nearly panicked when she saw what was going on.Was there an emergency? Was the neighboring building on fire or was Team Rocket in town or had something equally as disastrous happened? Something that warranted such a rushed entry, at least...?

“Nurse Joy!” The woman announced with a grin as she held up a steaming take-out box from a restaurant downtown. “I have brought your favorite lunch!” Joy groaned in reply, and at the thought of the work that she still had to finish. Yes, she was hungry and would gladly accept the food, but she really needed to get these papers finished before her shift was over! She could just warm it up in the microwave when she finished. Or better yet, she could let the officer eat it because she was the one who had bought it, after all, and she wouldn’t want to let good food like that turn cold…

“You shouldn’t…” She started, neatly setting her forms on the edge of the front desk lest she drop them. “You really shouldn’t just barge in here like this!” Oh, if her superior were to see that these skid marks were all over her precious floor again… “Please use the parking lot next time, officer. That’s why we have one.” The other woman’s smile grew wider at this, and she shoved the hot meal in front of Joy’s face enticingly.

“I will next time.” No you won’t, she thought with a fond remembrance. This happened nearly every time she came to visit during work hours and the only times it hadn’t had been when the lobby had actually been full, and that one time when her vehicle had been away getting fixed after a run-in with a couple of members of Team Rocket. “Anyway, how about you and I share this delicious, freshly-cooked meal together? It looks like you could use a break.”

“I can’t take one right now!” She argued pointlessly. Jenny would win, she knew it already, because her stomach was growling and her mouth was watering and really, had she always felt this tired? “I have to finish this paperwork first. It will only take a little while.”

“Joy.” She heard the stern command and had to put a hand to her mouth in order to cover up her smile. “You need to eat. What would all the trainers of Celadon do if they were in dire need of a nurse and the only one in the entire Pokémon Center had passed out from hunger?” The officer had climbed off of her motorcycle and had taken off her gloves by now, pulling up a chair from the other side of the room and placing it on the counter opposite of her own. Joy had to admit that it was a good excuse to stop and eat, and the food was free, so why not?

It felt strangely naughty - but they ate right there on the front desk, and out of the same plastic container. Their cheap wooden chopsticks danced around each others’ fingers as they picked out the parts that they wanted and kept the companionable silence of two people who knew each other all too well.

Then Joy spoke up with a realization and a laugh, a sound that rang clear and true in the warmth of a perfect afternoon shared between young friends and a tray of still-warm rice.

“You know, this isn’t my favorite. It’s yours.”

“Oh really?” Came the reply with a nonchalance that only the still-in-uniform officer could pull off. “I hadn’t noticed.”

--

Please forgive me. This is set when it is because I have NO IDEA what is going on in the current US shows or games. There doesn't seem to be fanfiction (That aren't PWPs) that have Joy or Jenny as main characters, either. I have not watched the tv show since like, elementary school, so how the characters act will simply be from what little I can remember and with what I make up on my own. But I play Yellow Version all the time. :3

Also, I am trying to make this fluffy. Really, really trying. It will not collapse into angst!

EDIT: What was I on when I wrote this?! Has my writing improved that much since December/November or is it simply because I'm in unfamiliar territory? I can't... I can't even edit it, everything needs fixing! Does someone want to help...?