DPA: Rivals

Chapter 31: Daryon Daycare

Daryon took in a deep breath of the calm afternoon air, Pikachu trotting happily beside him, Vince floating a few feet above him.

"Well, what do we do now?" Cameron asked as the group walked out of the Cerulean City Gym.

"I have an errand to run at the local Bike Shop," Ero said. "So I'll go do that, and catch up with you later."

"Ooh, bikes!" Max said. "Can I come with you? I want to look at the bikes."

Ero looked at Skye for confirmation.

"Sure," Skye said. "But I'm going to come with him, otherwise he's going to beg you to buy him one."

"Okay then," Ero said. "We'll meet up at the inn tonight, okay?"

"Got it," Daryon agreed as Ero, Max and Skye headed west towards the Bike Shop.

"What do you want to do?" Daryon asked, turning to Cameron.

"There was a cave over in the middle of Psyduck Lake," Cameron answered. "It is a bit of a swim, but considering I haven't had a good swim since when we were in Pallet Town, I thought it would be nice."

Daryon paused for a moment. "You know what, I think after that battle with Misty, I've had enough water for now. Are you good on your own?"

"I could use the alone time," said Cameron. "Give me time to think."

"Okay. Well, I'm gonna go for a walk. I saw this really large building about a mile to the south, I don't know what it is, but it looks fun."

"I will go with Daryon," Vince chimed in. "Water is not very compatible with my system."

"Fair enough," Cameron said, turning around and heading north towards Psyduck Lake.

Arriving at the large building, Daryon read the large sign out front. "Cerulean Daycare: From Eggs To Excellence!" Curious, Daryon entered the front doors, surprised at what he found.

Each wall was lined with rows upon rows of Pokémon eggs, each one identical in design, but different in shape and size. Every egg was a bright lime green, with little splotches of dark green scattered about. Some were massive, the size of a beach ball, while some were no bigger than a golf ball. Each one rested in a metal incubator, the combined heat of all of these incubating eggs making the entire building very warm.

In the middle of the room stood a few tables with various random pieces of equipment. Two people, an elderly couple dressed in identical white smocks, were discussing something before noticing him. The woman, probably in her late seventies, approached.

"Hello there, young man," she said. "My name is Dell. Welcome to the Cerulean Daycare."

"Hi!" Daryon replied with a smile. "My name is Daryon. This is my partner, Pikachu, and my friend, Vince!"

"Hello!" Vince said.

"Pika!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Dell said. "This is my husband Penn. Together we take care of Pokémon eggs at this facility. Some are given to us by trainers who don't have the resources to raise them, some are collected from nests where their parent Pokémon have passed, and some are just found in the wild, unattended. We make sure each egg is taken care of."

"That's so cool!" Daryon said. "Can I look around?"

"Of course," Dell replied. "But do not touch any of the eggs, they are very fragile."

"Okay," Daryon said. He began to walk around the building, staring at various eggs, while the couple went back into their discussion about who knows what.

At one point, Daryon's attention narrowed in on one particular egg. About the size of a football, something about it seemed different. The shell gleamed with a shine that the others did not. Daryon glanced back at the Daycare owners, who were too focused on their own conversation to give him any attention. Daryon turned back to the egg, carefully removing it from the incubator, just to hold it, feel it.

"Daryon, I don't think-" Vince began.

Daryon dropped the egg.

He didn't mean to, he had tried to be very careful, but this egg felt hot, really hot, like it was on fire! The egg hit the ground with a loud crack, one long crack halfway along one side. Dell and Penn's heads whipped towards the sound, their faces covered in horrified expressions.

"I'm sorry!" Daryon said, hands in the air. "I didn't mean to, I just-"

The egg fell apart, a small figure crawling out, tail lit, approaching Daryon. It was a Charmander.

"I, I don't..." Daryon didn't know what to say as the newborn Charmander climbed over to Pikachu, gripping on its tail, looking at the surprised Pikachu with wide, curious eyes..

"For the love of Arceus," Penn yelled, his face landing square in his palm. "Kid, the Charmander has clearly imprinted on your Pikachu. We don't have a choice but to let you keep it."

"Oh, really?" Daryon began. "Thank-"

"Get out!" Penn roared, pointing towards the door. "Now, before you get an innocent infant Pokémon hurt! You're lucky this one was a Charmander. If it had been a Caterpie, or something more fragile, you could've killed it!"

"Okay, I'll go!" Daryon replied, heading for the door, Vince having already floated outside. Pikachu followed behind, leading the newborn Charmander, who held onto Pikachu's tail. Daryon, Vince, Pikachu and Charmander left the Cerulean Daycare, heading back to Cerulean City. That was enough exploring for one day.