Our heroes were on their way out of Lilycove City to get back to Fortree City, but a big crowd of people was blocking Route 121, the only way along with Route 120, to get back to their destination.

“Hmmm… I wonder what the big crowd is for?” Ash said.

“Maybe they’re having a Pokemon battle.” May suggested.

“There couldn’t be this many people to watch a wild Pokemon battle!” Max said.

“Guys! We should check it out for ourselves.” Brock said. The group of pals then fought their way through the crowd before getting to the very front. It was there that they discovered what the holdup was for.

A Snorlax was blocking the road!

“Huh!? A Snorlax?” Ash said, with a stunned look on his face.

“But Snorlax are very rare around Hoenn! Where did this one come from?” Max said.

“Well, whatever. It’s here now, and it’s blocking our way back.” May said. The four could hear all the murmurs from the crowd as to how they were going to move this thing, especially since Poke Flutes were just as rare in Hoenn. Finally, after watching many trainers fail to catch the Snorlax for themselves, Ash stepped up.

“All right! Watch how a real trainer catches a Snorlax! I choose…” Before Ash could say any more, he was interrupted by Brock.

“Wait! Hold everything!!!” Brock shouted.

“Huh? What’s the holdup?” Ash asked.

“Ash, I don’t mean to doubt your abilities as a Pokemon master, but I feel I’m the only one with the proper tools to catch a Snorlax.” Brock said.

“What kind of tools are you talking about?” May asked.

“Nothing… except this!” Brock said. He then flashed before everyone’s eyes something that Ash wasn’t expecting the very least.

“Ack!!! Brock, not the Heavy Ball that Kurt made a long ways back!” Ash said.

“Yes, Ash. With this, the rare sight of a Snorlax in Hoenn, now is the perfect opportunity to put this special gift of mine to good use!” Brock said.

“Uh… don’t you have to weaken the Pokemon first?” Max asked.

“Not with this. This ball was designed to easily catch Pokemon over 1,000 pounds, regardless of their strength!” Brock said.

“He’s certainly into this.” May said.

“Tell me about it. I haven’t seen him sound this determined since bumerfree Mating Season.” Ash said. Brock then walked up to the Snorlax and carefully aimed his Heavy Ball.

“Okay! Go Heavy Ball!” Brock shouted as he threw the ball right at Snorlax’s face. Hitting the stomach wasn’t a good idea as it would just bounce right off. As soon as the ball hit Snorlax’s head, the red beam emerged from the ball and pulled the Pokemon inside. It then landed on the ground, and everyone watched in a tense feeling as the ball shook back and forth.

Then, it stopped. Brock had caught the Snorlax. Ash and May wanted to drop their jaws in surprise.

“Woohoo! I got a Snorlax!” Brock said as he cheered happily. The rest of the crowd didn’t care much. They were just happy to see the roads open up again as they moved along. Only Ash, May, Max, and Brock holding his Heavy Ball remained.

“Brock… I can’t believe you just caught that Snorlax that easily!” May said, stating the obvious.

“Ditto. I know the Heavy Ball is strong, but it’s not that strong, is it?” Ash asked.

“Yeah, I was kinda surprised myself. It was just that simple throw to clear a roadblock. This is nothing compared to all that hard work we used to do with the Snorlax in Kanto.” Brock said.

“Never mind that! I want to see that Snorlax you caught! I’ve always wanted to study one up close and personal!” Max shouted in anticipation.

“Okay, okay… come out Snorlax!” Brock said as he threw the Heavy Ball into the air. It fell down on the ground and opened up.

What the kids were looking at next was something they couldn’t believe… Yeah, Snorlax was there. But the kids absolutely dwarfed over it like it were a Caterpie.

“What the…? This is impossible! Normally a Snorlax is 6 feet, 11 inches and weighs over one thousand pounds!” Max shouted. May walked up to the tiny Snorlax.

“Well, I guess we’re the roadblocks for this little Snorlax now.” May said.

“Brock, what do you suppose went wrong?” Ash asked.

“I don’t know… I just caught it in this Heavy Ball, like I normally would.” Brock said. Then, suddenly, Brock was taken by surprise as the red laser came shooting out of this ball and towards him! He didn’t have time to get away before he was pulled inside of the ball.

“Brock!” Ash shouted.

“What!?!? Again? How often does it occur that a Pokeball malfunctions and captures its own trainer?” Max shouted.

“About as often as you actually shut your mouth.” May said.

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean!?” Max shouted.

“Alright, guys. That’s enough.” Ash said. He picked up the heavy ball and opened it up in manual fashion, only to find his worst fears come true.

Brock was the one now shrunken.

“Uh… Brock, are you okay?” Ash asked.

“Yeah, but Ash, aren’t you a lot shorter than that?” Brock asked. Ash thought at least he still had a sense of humor. He then showed the ball to May and Max.

“Well, Brock, I guess you know how it felt to be Ash last time something like this happened.” Max said.

“Yeah, I sure do. But isn’t it amazing? I don’t think anything like this has ever happened.” Brock said.

“At least you can get up close and personal with the ladies now.” May said, giggling at that remark.

“May, please. Let’s be serious for a moment. We gotta keep you someplace safe while we go find the antidote.” Ash said.

“Where are we going to find it?” Max asked.

“I don’t know. We might have to go all the way to Johto, which is where Kurt lives. If he helped me, surely he can help Brock.” Ash said.

“I’m okay with it. I’ve always wanted to see Johto, after all.” May said.

“All right. But first, let’s go back to the Pokemon Center.” Ash said.

“The Pokemon Center? But won’t Brock go nuts over Nurse Joy? He might forget that he’s been shrunken to the point where she can crush him like a bug!” Max said.

“We don’t have much of a choice. Okay, Brock?” Ash said.

“Sure thing, Ash. Whatever works for me.” Brock said. May then took the ball from Ash’s hands and looked straight down at the little Brock.

“But please promise us you won’t go mad over Nurse Joy?” May said.

“Oh, I promise. I’ll keep a tight lip!” Brock said.

“Why is it I don’t particularly trust you?” May asked as she closed up the ball.

“Wait! What about the tiny Snorlax? We can’t just leave it out here!” Max asked.

“You’re right. Bring that too.” Ash said. Then the gang started to head back towards the Lilycove City Pokemon Center.

Inside, Nurse Joy was busy as usual, helping heal other trainers’ Pokemon on the spot. Ash, May, and Max all approached the front of the desk.

“Oh! Hello there. You must be Ash.” Nurse Joy said.

“Yeah. The one that was shrunken earlier thanks to a malfunctioning safari ball.” Ash said.

“So what brings you back here so soon?” Joy asked. Ash took a deep breath. He knew Joy was going to be in for quite a surprise.

“Well, would you believe it happened again?” Ash said. He then took the heavy ball and opened it up, revealing to Joy the shrunken Brock. Joy just gasped.

“Nurse Joy!!! We have been destined to…. whoa!!!” Brock started stepping towards Nurse Joy, but forgot about the fact that he was standing inside a heavy ball and started to fall towards the desk. May was quick enough to catch him in mid-air.

“You said you wouldn’t let Nurse Joy distract you!” May said.

“Well, I can’t help it, May. It’s like the dream girl you always think about when you’re young.” Brock said with a smile. May just shook her head and then held him close to her chest so that he couldn’t get close to Joy again..

“My goodness… it happened again!?” Joy said.

“Yep. We had volunteered to help move the Snorlax out of the way, and Brock used a heavy ball that he hadn’t used in over a year. When we captured it, it shrunk the Snorlax down to a tiny size, and that’s when Brock got zapped the same way I did.” Ash said. Max put the tiny Snorlax on the desk as Joy looked closely at it.

“Unbelievable.” This was all Joy could say.

“Yeah, that’s pretty much what we thought as well.” May said.

“Can you help us, Nurse Joy? With Brock, I mean. We don’t care what you do with the Snorlax.” Ash said.

“Well, if your friend shrunk in the same fashion, then perhaps Kurt from Johto could help you out again.” Joy said.

“We thought about that, but we’re not sure how we’re going to get all the way to Johto in such a short time.” Ash said.

“Someone need a lift to Johto?” A familiar voice said. The group looked to see it was Officer Jenny walking in to the center.

“Officer Jenny?” May said.

“I have something that might be able to help you guys get to your destination.” Jenny said. She then pulled out a Pokeball and threw it to the ground. Out came a Tropius.

“Wow! A Tropius! A mighty Pokemon that could resemble a floating island! If you think about it, anyway.” Max said as he looked over the Tropius.

“You mean, we can use this Tropius to fly all the way to Johto?” Ash said.

“Sure. I’ll do anything to help on your quest to get your friend back to normal.” Jenny said.

“Alright! Then I’ll fly to Johto and go look for Kurt to help us.” Ash said.

“Wait! Take us with you, Ash! We’d like to see Johto.” May said.

“What!? Are you crazy? Who’s going to watch over Brock?” Ash asked.

“I’ll watch over him. You guys go to Johto and get the antidote from Kurt.” Joy said. Ash nodded as he took Jenny’s Pokeball that contained Tropius and ran outside. May set Brock down on the desk as she and Max left as well.

Now it was just Joy, Jenny, and the tiny Brock at the desk. Though that would change rather quickly.

“Well, I have to get back to work. Take care, Joy.” Jenny said. Joy nodded as Jenny left. Brock looked straight up at his Nurse Joy. His bigger Nurse Joy, I may add…

“So, Nurse Joy, what time are we going out?” Brock asked.

“(sigh) Okay, first off… we’re not going out on any date. I’m only going to be protecting you for the next several hours while your friends are off in Johto.” Joy said.

“Ah… okay. Can I at least help you out with your job?” Brock asked.

“Well, alright. Just don’t get in the way!” Joy said, letting off another sigh as she prepared for what could possibly happen from someone as Joy-crazy as Brock, no matter how tall he is.

A customer soon approached the desk, laying a Pokeball or two forward.

“Can I help you?” Joy asked to the young girl.

“Just heal these Pokemon, please.” The girl said. She then looked down to see the miniature Brock climbing up onto the desk. She gasped at the sight.

“Hey, beautiful! Welcome to the Pokemon Center, where Nurse Joy is always available for bumistance!” Brock shouted. The girl took a closer look at the mini-Brock before she fainted to the ground. Joy ran over to pick her up just as soon as she placed the Pokeballs in the healing machine.

“Are you alright, miss?” Joy asked.

“Yeah… I’m fine, I think. But what was…” The girl started to say, but Joy put a finger over her mouth.

“You were just seeing things… it is a hot day, after all.” Joy said. She then ran over to pick up the Pokeballs after they have been healed.

“Here are your Pokemon, miss. Have a good day.” Joy said, patting the girl on the back as she left. She then walked back to the desk and let out a big sigh before looking down at Brock.

“Well, I’d say she’s thrilled to have her Pokemon healed.” Brock said. Joy then leaned in as close as she could to Brock without scaring him. She didn’t have a happy face.

“It’s not that! You practically scared her by showing yourself! What did I just tell you?” Joy said.

“You told me not to get in the way, right?” Brock said.

“Yeah, but when I say that, you should know what I mean. Just stay put until your friends get back.” Joy said. Brock then sat down low enough so he couldn’t be seen over the counter. He sat down through two customers, staring up at Joy’s body moving back and forth from the front of the desk to the healing machine. He wanted so badly to help out Joy so that she could perhaps get to know him better. After all, the poor guy has tried for so long to impress all the Nurse Joys he has met from Kanto to Johto to Hoenn.

So when the next customer came and left his Pokeballs to Nurse Joy, Brock waited for her to place them down next to him so that she could warm the healing machine up. That’s when Brock started pushing one of the balls towards the machine. Joy gasped when she saw the ball rolling, and then looked behind it to see Brock was rolling it. The trainer only noticed the ball moving and gave a confused face.

“Uh… automated process. A tiny conveyor belt is moving your Pokeball across. Saves me some work.” Joy said. The trainer just nodded while Joy had a face of ‘what the heck was I talking about?’ The trainer looked around the place as he waited for his Pokemon to heal, not bothering to see Brock place the ball on the machine. Joy afterwards activated the machine and the Pokemon was healed.