Character Name: Mary Joy; to avoid the "Nurse Joy" family association, she lies that her surname is "Jones"
Gender: Female
Age: 10
Universe: Pokémon
Canon or Original: Original Character

Character Image:

Personality Traits:
• Timid
• Deceptive and distrusting
• Easily frightened—but won't admit it
• Jealous
• Down-to-earth and simple
• Accepts things at face value
• Good intentions
• Desires to change herself for the better

Universe Specific Information: In the world of Pokémon, humans live, work, learn, and fight alongside very special wild creatures known as Pokémon. These living things possess innate magical abilities that allow them to attack, defend, use innate abilities, and more. They naturally bond with humans and can use their powers with direction from the human they bond with, referred to as their "Trainer". Humans have developed technology that allows them to collect and store Pokémon in devices called Pokéballs, with information recorded in Pokédexes.

Fighting Pokémon against one another is more than mere sport in this world—it allows survival, when traveling in areas with wild Pokémon, and it fosters camaraderie between other Trainers and their Pokémon. Buildings called Gyms house a particularly strong Trainer known as a Gym Leader and are generally thematic. Defeating a Gym Leader earns a Badge. Collecting the requisite Badges allows one to face the Pokémon League. Defeating the Pokémon League establishes a Pokémon Champion.

When a child turns a particular age they qualify to become a Pokémon Trainer. By visiting their local Pokémon research facility and meeting the Professor of their area, they can receive a starter Pokémon and some basic equipment that they take on their journey to explore the world—possibly to try to become the next Pokémon Champion.

Storyline Specific Information:

[RTRP] PokéBeginnings:

[Casual] Pokémon Prism:

Additional Information:
Goal: Overcome her fear of Pokémon so that she can be a Nurse Joy someday.

Background: Mary is actually a member of the Joy family. (Yes, the Joy family that all "Nurse Joy" medical specialists belong to.) She has two cousins of the same age, Anna and Meg (Margaret), and two older sisters: Helen and Marnie. Like all Joys, Mary's older sisters are nurses in various Pokémon Centers. Her cousins eagerly look forward to taking on the same role. Mary, however, feels differently.

Mary has spent her entire life being compared to her sisters and cousins, usually unfavorably. Joys are supposed to be kind, strong, devoted, compassionate, focused, and helpful—traits that help them excel as nurses treating hundreds to thousands of Pokémon every day. Mary is shy, withdrawn, self-centered, and scatterbrained. Scary encounters with wild Pokémon have left her deeply afraid of the creatures—something that makes it difficult to embrace a future as a healer.

Recently, Mary overheard her mother (a retired Nurse Joy) on the phone with one of her many aunts. They were talking about Anna and Meg beginning apprenticeships at the local Pokémon Center, to start learning how to treat Pokémon. During the conversation where both women expressed how proud and excited they were to have more Joys carrying on the family tradition, Mary's mother paused: "...It's a shame that Mary doesn't seem to be cut out for it. I don't know what to do for a Joy so terrified of Pokémon that she can't be a nurse. The local center didn't want to train her."

She had known for years that she wasn't typical "Nurse Joy material", but learning that she was turned down for training and might never be a Nurse Joy filled her with dread. Her mother was right: there are no options for a Joy who isn't a nurse. At that moment, she decided that she would have to radically change her life. She decided to secretly embark on a Pokémon adventure as a new trainer, hoping that meeting other new trainers and getting involved in Pokémon battles can help her develop the skills needed to be a nurse someday!

Mary specifically wears her hair in a different style to hide her Joy heritage, and lies about her last name being "Jones" instead of "Joy".

Source: N/A

RP Sample: She couldn't sleep. Even as she lay here in the darkness, all she could think about were those words, her mother's voice echoing in her mind: "The local center didn't want to train her."

A year or two ago, this wouldn't have bothered her so much. She was part of the Joy family, of course, but a kid in the Joy family didn't have to worry about becoming a nurse just yet. Other families in her hometown might have children eagerly awaiting their 10th birthday so they could start a Pokémon adventure, but it was different for her sisters and cousins. Instead, they started helping at the local Pokémon Center, learning the skills they would need to treat Pokémon during their careers. Mary feared Pokémon and avoided them in every possible way, but she still imagined she'd be a nurse someday. Envisioning a future doing anything else was impossible: she was a Joy.

A Joy became a Nurse Joy. No exceptions.

Except for Mary. Always the exception, even now. She didn't like it then, and she didn't like it anymore right now. Her cousins Anna and Meg had futures brighter than hers, and she hated it. She had always been jealous of them, for being exactly the kind of kids her aunts talked fondly about. No one said nice things like that about Mary. They sighed when they glanced over at her, echoing concerns that she just wasn't much like her sisters. Helen and Marnie were respected Nurse Joys at their own respective Pokémon Centers.

She burrowed deeper under the covers, wishing she could turn into a Diglet and disappear beneath the ground. Then she thought of the dark, hard eyes of those creatures, and the way they just emerged out of the ground. You could be in a cave or just on one of the routes nearby, and suddenly a Diglet would be there, ready to shake the ground or scratch! How could something without fingernails even scratch? Mary shuddered, clutching her own arms, her panicked eyes wide in the darkness.

"This is why you won't be a Nurse Joy someday."

The sudden thought brought with it a stroke of clarity that immediately shoved the fear from her mind. She couldn't give up yet. She was 10 years old—she wasn't yet a decrepit old lady! There had to be time to become a Nurse Joy. Why was her future so bleak? Because she was afraid of Pokémon. Well, in that case, she'd just have to un-fear Pokémon! What did they always say about facing fears? She didn't let herself dwell too much on any of these thoughts, riding the brief wave of determination past the usual obstacles. She just needed to surround herself with Pokémon. All the time. Too many to run away from. Eventually it had to get less scary.

Mary almost jumped out bed, tangling her feet in the bed sheets that had previously been her hiding spot. She grabbed her new shoulder bag and shoved in some clothes and other accessories. She didn't exactly know what she needed, but she knew she was going somewhere. There was one way she could think of to surround herself with Pokémon: become a Pokémon Trainer. Her mom had been talking about Professor Maple getting ready to welcome new trainers. Well, that was where she was going to go.

She scrawled out a note before she left, pinning it to the front of the refrigerator with a Pokéball-shaped magnet: "Nurse training in another city. Love you! —Mary"

Narrator: And now she's off on a Pokémon adventure! Good luck overcoming your crippling fear, Mary! You have no idea what Pokémon await you down those many routes!

This is great! I love this idea and can't wait to see where this character goes!

Approved!