Behind her metal-framed glasses, Lorelei's eyes shifted with quiet curiosity, her interest in Caster growing by the moment.
"I have you to thank for this, Lorelei. Without Jynx's ability holding the crowd in check, catching Shellder would never have gone so smoothly."
Caster bowed respectfully, his expression full of genuine gratitude.
And that much was true.
Without Jynx, Gyarados and Pikachu alone might not have been enough to keep order. Icefall Cave was nothing like Cape Brink.
The cave housed a large population of Pokémon, many of them formidable. The group of Weavile and Sneasel they had encountered earlier were clearly not the kind to trifle with.
On top of that, the freezing temperatures inside the cave would have made it nearly impossible for Caster's Pokémon to pull off Rain Dance, and even if rain did fall, it would have turned to hail on the spot, only strengthening the Ice-types.
"I didn't do much. Thank Jynx if you want to thank anyone."
Lorelei waved a hand dismissively, then glanced at her watch and smiled. "It's nearly noon. Since you've caught your Shellder, let's head back for lunch. You can always come back this afternoon if you want to keep fishing."
Caster had no objection.
The group retraced their steps out of Icefall Cave and returned to Lorelei's villa.
After lunch, Caster went out to the back garden and released his Pokémon.
Shellder appeared and immediately began darting its eyes around, scanning for Slowpoke. Finding it, Shellder crept up alongside the pink Pokémon and drew a long, deep breath near its tail.
Top-tier. Straight to the lungs.
Ahh. Heavenly.
The intoxicating scent hit Shellder like a wave, and it fell into a blissful daze, tongue lolling, with a look of devotion so shameless it was painful to witness.
"Pika, pika..."
The other Pokémon watched with expressions of pure contempt.
Was the smell really that good? Have some self-respect.
Shellder paid them no mind and laughed inwardly.
So what if it was devoted? They had never been devoted, so what would they know about the joy of it?
The moment it caught that extraordinary scent from Slowpoke's tail, Shellder had lost all control of itself.
Seeing that the terrifying Jynx was nowhere in sight, Shellder retracted its tongue, snapped its shell open, and lunged straight for Slowpoke's sweet, fragrant tail.
Evolution, here I come! From this day forward, a shameless, blissful life together awaited. Slowpoke would belong to Shellder alone. Its tail — an endless, private feast.
But in the very next instant, Shellder froze.
Its body refused to move, locked in place less than a tongue's length from Slowpoke's tail. It desperately wanted to stretch out and lick, but it simply could not.
"Nyaah..."
Slowpoke let out a soft cry, a faint, strange light flickering in its eyes. It had used Disable, locking Shellder in place before it could do anything untoward.
Then a wave of Psychic energy swept Shellder off its feet. Without so much as grazing a single hair on Slowpoke, it was hurled a considerable distance away.
Shellder burst into wailing tears, absolutely devastated.
Hadn't they agreed that once it was caught, it could taste Slowpoke's tail every single day and even fuse together in evolution? So why, the moment it tried to take one little taste, did it get beaten up?
What was this?
This was a sham marriage, plain and simple!
It was going to report this to the League!
Watching the scene unfold and hearing Slowpoke's translation, Caster felt caught somewhere between laughter and exasperation.
This Shellder was a real character.
"All right, Shellder. Stop crying."
Caster shook his head and walked over to console it, though from Shellder's perspective, this was the height of hypocrisy. The one who had claimed ownership over it was now refusing to honor the promise. Caster was nothing but a fraud.
"Shellder, I'm not a fraud. If you want a taste of Slowpoke's tail, you tell me, and I'll extract the nectar for you."
Caster's tone was firm and earnest. "What I give you, you may have. What I haven't given you, you may not take. Understood?"
Shellder seemed to take this in, its wailing gradually subsiding.
"As for the two of you fusing and evolving together, I have no objection to that. In fact, I fully support it. I know how much you care for Slowpoke, and Slowpoke doesn't dislike you either."
Caster crouched down and spoke with measured sincerity. "But right now, you're both still young. Your strength is limited and your potential hasn't been fully developed. Evolving too soon would mean missing the most important growth period, and that would be a waste for both of you."
"So here is what I'm thinking. You and Slowpoke will both train hard and grow as fast as you can. Once your potential has been realized and your strength is where it needs to be, then you fuse and evolve."
Caster looked at Shellder, then glanced over at Slowpoke nearby. "That's Slowpoke's wish too. Can you accept that?"
Shellder seemed to absorb some of what was said, but the prospect of seeing Slowpoke every day without being able to taste it was, frankly, almost beyond bearing.
Slowpoke saw this and stepped in. It dragged itself over with a cold expression and said icily, "You really are shortsighted. I have no patience for a Pokémon with no drive to improve. Trainer, let's go back to Icefall Cave and find a different Shellder."
The color drained from Shellder's shell — or whatever passed for its face.
In that moment, it felt as though the sky had caved in.
It had only just secured exclusive rights to Slowpoke. To lose that now would be worse than death.
At that realization, Shellder decided that waiting was really not so bad after all.
It immediately caved, plastered on its most ingratiating expression, and groveled before Slowpoke with frantic apologies.
"Hmph."
Slowpoke turned its face away and refused to acknowledge it.
Left with no choice, Shellder bounced around to Slowpoke's other side and continued pleading.
After repeated apologies and solemn promises, Slowpoke finally relented and forgave Shellder, then allowed Caster to extract a small amount of tail nectar for it to taste.
Watching Shellder savor the nectar with that expression of rapturous, helpless addiction, Caster shook his head inwardly with a mixture of awe and amusement.
"High looks, high intelligence, it really does make a difference. The way Slowpoke has Shellder completely wrapped around its tail... that is some serious leverage."
Afterward, Caster activated an Energy Orb and channeled it into Shellder.
After that, Shellder stopped muttering anything about reporting anyone to the League, and instead developed a deep, devoted attachment to Caster as well.
Just then, Lorelei walked over. "Caster, what are your plans for the afternoon? More fishing, or would you like to visit the Trainer Tower?"
"The Trainer Tower?"
Caster's eyebrows rose as the relevant details surfaced in his memory.
In the games, the Trainer Tower stood at the northern tip of Seven Island, structured much like the Battle Frontier's Trainer Tower: a multi-floor challenge where trainers battled their way to the top as fast as possible.
Clearing all eight floors within the time limit counted as a successful run, earning the trainer a place on the top-floor record board and item rewards.
In the real world, however, the Trainer Tower was more than just a speed challenge.
It also served as a venue for trainers to battle and spar with one another freely, much like the Trainer Tower in LaRousse City from "Destiny Deoxys," though somewhat less well-appointed.
"That's right. The Trainer Tower is a place to sharpen real battle instincts. I used to go there all the time when I was coming up."
A nostalgic look crossed Lorelei's face. "A trainer can't grow by training in isolation. Battling, reflecting, training, and battling again: that's the fastest way to improve."
The idea appealed to Caster.
For one thing, if he caught fish too quickly, he would have no excuse to keep staying at Lorelei's. Slowing down the fishing meant his Pokémon could benefit longer from their time here.
Apart from Slowpoke, both Gyarados and Dratini had already begun humbly seeking guidance from Lorelei's Pokémon on how to handle Water-type and Ice-type energy.
The gains from Icy Wind alone had been significant for several of his team. And it was no small thing, being tutored by one of the world's foremost Ice-type specialists.
"Lorelei, I'll go to the Trainer Tower."
Caster gave a firm nod, his mind made up.