Berries for the Queen
Jenn liked the work. She mostly just helped with straightening things up and cleaning at first. Occasionally, she helped the other aides with minor tasks, like carrying stacks of papers or helping Sammy and the other ranch hands carry bags of feed. Jenn worked hard to earn her place there and otherwise kept her head down.
She and Sammy became friends fairly quick. He spent much of his free time with her, often helping her clean without being asked. He was nice and funny, and they talked a lot. The only thing was that Sammy was more than a bit flirty, and Jenn couldn’t shake the feeling that he watched her a lot when he was sure she wasn't looking. She ignored it, though; she was grateful to have a friendly face she could talk to at the lab, and her self esteem was such that she was willing to put up with the times he made her feel a little uncomfortable out of fear of losing him as a friend.
Jenn also became friendly with Tracey Sketchit, one of Oak’s lead aides. She also became friends with a very affectionate Muk! The Muk hung around the house and followed the Professor around; he was very fond of Professor Oak in particular, and seemed to have anxiety when they were separated. Muk eventually came to adore Jenn as well, always rushing over to give her a big, sticky hug when she’d come in to speak with the Professor. As much as she liked the Muk (he
was sweet and kind of adorable in his own way) she didn’t like how she had to constantly mop up after him, or the way his sludgey body stained her clothes. The smell was hard to get out, too.
One morning, while mopping up the floors in the main laboratory (Muk had decided to have a one-Muk dance party from the looks of it) Jenn heard a loud crash and a deafening bang that rattled the building. The doors to the lab were crashed inward as an anrgy Nidoqueen came barging in. It roared, thrashing around like one possessed. Jenn ducked under a desk, hoping the Nidoqueen would overlook her.
However, one of the other aides came over to try to pacify Nidoqueen. The attempt seemed to anger it instead: Nidoqueen turned on the guy, lifting him into the air with a rumbling growl. Hearing his pleas for help, Jen shot to her feet on instinct. She didn’t know what she was doing; she wanted to help but had no real idea how to do that. So, she did the first thing she thought of and called out to Nidoqueen: she sternly but calmly told Nidoqueen to “put the tiny man down. Right now, little miss!”
The Nidoqueen froze, just staring at Jenn with an incredulous expression. Slowly and cautiously, Jenn approached her and asked Nidoqueen what the problem was; what was bothering her? The Nidoqueen remained wary, snorting and posturing as Jenn approached, but it didn’t outright attack her. Jenn calmly offered it a Nanab Berry that she had pulled from a nearby table. Nidoqueen sniffed it and then unceremoniously dropped the aid, eating the berry with a happy grunt. Jenn grabbed the whole plate and fed her more, and by the fourth Nanab Berry, Professor Oak and Tracey caught up to them.
Oak almost immediately calmed Nidoqueen, defusing the situation. Tracey explained that a group of Tauros had started rough-housing in the pen, and the fighting startled a bunch of other Pokemon—including this Nidoqueen and her young. The Nidoran had run off in the chaos and Nidoqueen simply panicked. Professor Oak presented Nidoqueen with her pup, and the poison Pokemon's entire personality seemed to soften.
As Tracey brought Nidoqueen back outside, the Professor congratulated her on her quick-thinking and natural way with Pokemon. If Jenn hadn’t have stepped up and done what she did, people might have really gotten hurt.
"You have good instincts when it comes to handling Pokemon." Oak said, "I'm wondering if we might not...change the scope of your duties."
"The scope of my duties? In...what way?"
"I think you might be better suited to working outside with the Pokemon. It would be simple work until you were trained and had a bit more experience, of course, but you seem like a natural at it!"
Starting the the following day Jenn was no longer on cleaning/gopher duty. She worked outside along with Sammy, Tracey, and the other ranch hands. Jenn loved getting fresh air every day, and she was quick to pick up the ins and outs of their care; grooming, feeding, play. Jenn loved the grooming and the play parts the most. Whenever she had to deal with sick or injured Pokemon, she was always very gentle. She also quickly took to the more intellectual parts of the job, taking detailed notes about their behavior and other observations. Oak always seemed impressed with her reports, which was a nice little boost to the old self-esteem!
Jenn also volunteered to assist the more experienced aides in recovering and caring for injured or sick Pokemon; some were abandoned, some surrendered to the Professor’s care, and others simply spotted by locals or workers at the lab. Jenn had a natural talent for working with such Pokemon; Pokemon seemed to trust her and she was quickly able to put them at ease. It always broke her heart to see Pokemon in such states, but she also got to be there as they were rehabilitated. It was a beautiful journey to watch, and sometimes they’d let Jenn into the corral to play with them or to help groom them.
Jenn struck up a particularly strong bond with a young Bulbasaur. It was likely illegally bred and then abandoned for whatever reason. Bulbasaur was very aggressive at first, but Jenn was able to get through to him. Thanks to her, Bulbasaur calmed down enough to go with Tracey and the others. At first, Bulbasaur would only eat if Jenn was there. Jenn grew to care for the Bulbasaur, and promised to find him a good trainer one day.
