After telling them to be careful, Victor carried the small basket back to the kitchen to prepare the afternoon tea, celebrating Mime Jr.'s arrival at the Breeding House.
After the tea party, Victor took Shana home and then holed up in the kitchen to research other herbal tea recipes.
He had Gengar try one. Seeing Gengar's pained frown, Victor tried it himself.
After a moment, he found that it was just a little bitter, but otherwise fine.
He just needed to take it to Nurse Joy for testing to get it certified.
He left the rest for Gengar to deal with, clapped his hands, and went back to his room to shower.
Gengar stared at the several clay pots of herbal tea, conflicted.
It couldn't bear to throw it out, but the other Pokémon didn't like to drink it.
Finally, it pinched its nose and poured all of it into its mouth.
"Gengar—"
Hiccup~
It then swayed unsteadily back to the room.
Over the next few days, news of the Breeding House's reopening seemed to spread throughout Twinleaf Town. Groups of people came to visit one after another.
Victor was swamped. The main problem was that a large portion of the visitors didn't buy any Pokémon Eggs or board any Pokémon; they just came to look around and chat.
Still, he managed to sell seven Pokémon Eggs and the Miracle Seed.
He also made time to discuss the herbal tea business with Jenny and Joy. After getting Joy's verification and Jenny's guarantee, he successfully obtained the certification, and the herbal tea business officially began.
Throughout this whole process, Mime Jr. began to imitate Victor, helping to share his workload. Although it was still small, it took a lot of pressure off Victor and Gengar, especially when it came to greeting guests. Mime Jr. and the Petilil just had to stand in the lounge area, and they could keep the visitors entertained.
Shana also began to slowly learn to help Victor. She watered the herb and vegetable gardens, washed the Torterra, and even attempted to greet a customer for the first time. Although it ended in failure, it was still a huge step forward.
"If this keeps up, we're really going to be short-staffed," Victor said, seeing the first group of morning customers off. He took the towel Shana handed him and wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Gengar—" Gengar nodded weakly. For several days straight, it had been out delivering herbal tea, and when it returned, it had to help greet customers. Without its help, Victor really would have been completely overwhelmed.
"Mime~" Mime Jr. hugged Victor's leg and cried out.
"Thank you, our little Mime Jr. And our Shana, and our Petilil. Without you all, Gengar and I really don't know what we would do," Victor said with a smile, picking up Mime Jr. and the Petilil.
"Lili~"
"Mime Jr.~"
Hearing their voices, Victor's tense mood relaxed.
But then he noticed Shana standing completely still, holding her Pokémon Egg.
"Shana, congratulations. It's finally time," Victor said, putting Mime Jr. and the Petilil down. He walked over to her, crouched down, and looked at the gently rocking egg in her arms with a smile.
"?!"
Shana looked up at him, then handed him the egg.
Victor took it and placed it on the table. He, Shana, Gengar, and the others all stared at it intently.
Before long, the eggshell was covered in cracks.
Then, a Pokémon poked its head out.
It had a yellow, bell-shaped body, short limbs, and a red-and-white ribbon-like appendage on its head.
"Ching~"
Hearing the sound, Victor gently nudged the silent, staring Shana, signaling her to go forward.
Watching Shana walk up, Victor focused his attention.
[Chingling]
[Type: Psychic]
[Gender: Female]
[Ability: Levitate]
[Known Moves: Wrap, Growl]
[Mood: Confused]
[Status: A little scared (Where's Mom?)]
[Friendship: 30 (You have met)]
[Introduction: The newly hatched Chingling, Shana's first Pokémon. It seems to have mistaken Shana for its mother?]
"He... hello, Chingling," Shana said earnestly, after glancing back at Victor and receiving an encouraging nod.
"Ching?"
"Ching, ching~"
The Chingling gently bounced into Shana's arms.
"Ching, ching~"
Mama~
Shana didn't know what its cries meant; she only knew that the Chingling liked her very much. She held it and listened to the pleasant sounds it made.
Her face broke into a happy smile.
Victor seized the opportunity and pressed the shutter button on his camera.
Shana then introduced Victor, Gengar, and the others to her Chingling, and then, mimicking Victor, she formally introduced the Chingling to them.
"Hello, Chingling."
"Gengar—"
"Lili~"
"Machoke."
"Mime Jr.~"
The Chingling looked at its new big brothers and sisters with its dark eyes and bounced nonstop, making a delightful sound.
"Ching, ching~"
Finally, Shana held the Chingling and looked at it seriously.
"My name is Shana. From now on, I'll call you Tinkerbell, okay?"
The Chingling happily nodded.
Shana smiled happily again.
Victor tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and saw that he was holding a shrunken Poké Ball.
Shana froze for a moment. Victor encouraged her with his eyes.
She nodded seriously, took the Poké Ball, and looked at her Chingling.
"Tinkerbell, will you come with me?"
"Ching, ching~"
Victor helped her enlarge the Poké Ball, then held her hand and gently tapped the Chingling with it.
Ding!
A perfect catch.
Just then, he noticed the expression in Mime Jr.'s eyes. He took out another Poké Ball, crouched down, and held it out.
"Mime Jr., will you come with me?"
Mime Jr. looked at Victor, then at the other Pokémon around it. Its big brothers and sisters were all looking at it with anticipation.
It then nodded and gently tapped the Poké Ball with its small hand.
Ding!
Another perfect catch.
Victor felt the Poké Ball in his hand. Although it wasn't his first time catching a Pokémon, he still felt a mix of emotions. Finally, he smiled, stood up, and struck a dramatic pose.
"Mime Jr., I got you!"
"Gengar—" Gengar floated beside Victor, a white handkerchief it had pulled from somewhere held in its mouth, tears welling in its eyes.
The other Pokémon all cheered happily.
Seeing Victor's pose, Shana paused for a moment, then copied him, striking the exact same pose.
"Tin... Tinkerbell, I got you!"
Patting her small head, Victor released Mime Jr. from its ball and told Shana to take them to the lounge area to watch TV.
He then answered a phone call and began to tally up the number of orders for Petilil Herbal Tea for the day.
In the lounge area, the Chingling rested on Shana's shoulder, the Petilil was held in her lap, and the Mime Jr. sat beside her, holding the Poffins Victor had prepared for them, eating while watching TV.
But Shana's eyes kept darting over to Victor.
When Victor finished his tally, he pulled out some order forms he'd had made a few days ago, stuffed them into Gengar's small bag, and then placed the bottles of herbal tea inside as well.
"Uncle," Shana called out.
"What is it, Shana?" Victor stopped what he was doing and turned to look at her.
"Um, for today's tea delivery... c-can I go?" Shana asked, as if she had made a huge decision. "Because I want to help you and Gengar, and I have Tinkerbell now. So, can I help you deliver the tea?"
Victor looked at Shana in surprise. Her delicate little face showed a bit of fear and worry about the task, but also a sincere desire to help.
Victor smiled. "Of course. Then I'll be counting on you, Shana and Tinkerbell."
Shana looked at Victor's warm, smiling face, and tears instantly filled her eyes. She then nodded firmly.
"Yes! I'll do my best!"
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