Barnaby had been inside Shoal Cave since daylight broke.

It had become something of a personal project of his: documenting the cave system, it's mysteries and it's changes over time. If he had to elaborate on why he'd chosen to do so, Barnaby would say he liked the solitude and the creatures within the cavern. Since childhood he'd always had an affinity for Ice-types. There was just something about them that resonated with him.

Currently, Barnaby was curious if the dome surrounding Hoenn had any effect on Shoal Cave's inhabitants, as it had on many migratory and sea-dwelling species.

He was sat on a flat-topped boulder taking a break, his champagne-colored VULPIX curled in his lap, when distinctly human footsteps caught his attention. Looking up, he saw a man and two Pokémon approaching from around a corner. They didn't seem overtly threatening, so Barnaby smiled and gave an amiable wave.

"I don't see others this deep in the cave too often."

thomas nightingale
[ice/ground]

☉

Upon hearing the dapper gentleman's comment, Barnaby's guarded smile morphed into an interested smirk.

"Oh?" Cobalt eyes trailed the man from head to toe. Given his Kalosian roots and interest in fashion, Barnaby appreciated the stylish pea coat he wore. The blunt angle of his jawline and sharp cheekbones also weren't bad to look at, either.

"Then we seem to have that in common." He remarked, rising to his feet as the other approached. Castor jumped daintily from Barnaby's lap as he did so, landing lightly on his paws.

"Though sometimes I like to be the one doing the daunting." There was enough of a teasing lilt to his voice that this could be taken as a joke, if desired. A cozy ambiguity.

"Barnaby." He would have extended a hand in greeting, but stopped himself after noticing that both of Thomas' hands were already occupied.

"Don't worry, you're not interrupting. I was just taking a small break before continuing on."

For a moment, his eyes flicked to a blue, gnarled blob approaching them. A SEISMITOAD. If left unchecked, it could be bothersome, so Barnaby released his SHAYMIN to take care of it. The little floral hedgehog packed a punch when he wanted to, and he seemed fairly motivated today. Luckily, he volleyed a SEED FLARE without much prompting.

"If you're heading in the same direction," Barnaby prompted, turning back to the other adventurer and gesturing further into the cavern. "Would you like to walk with me, Thomas?"

catching SEISMITOAD ♡
thomas nightingale
[ice/ground]

☉

He received thomas nightingale's free hand with a welcoming warmth, matching the man's grin as he nodded forward. "Of course, as would Castor." Upon hearing his name, the tiny VULPIX exhaled a happy chirp and scampered over to sniff at Thomas' ankle. In the meantime SEISMITOAD had succumbed and was subsequently captured.

With their respective opponents now taken care of, albeit by very different methods, the way was cleared for the two to continue deeper into the cavern.

"So what brings you so far out of the way?" Shoal Cave was nestled within a small archipelago nearest Mossdeep City. It wasn't a place reached easily, and was even less inviting to the everyday explorer. It especially surprised Barnaby to see a man with a cane venturing into what could be considered dangerous territory.

As they conversed, Thomas might have noticed BARNABY FINCH's wandering eye splitting his attentions. His gaze was slow and meticulous as he scanned the frozen cavern walls - covered in at least a foot of thick ice - and slick ground beneath their feet.

Unfortunately, they were yet again interrupted, this time by two predators - GABITE and BEARTIC. While Thomas lulled the former to sleep much like he had in their previous encounter, Barnaby decided to withdraw his SHAYMIN and release another of his Pokémon instead.

In a burst of azure flames Bellona was revealed. She barely needed more than a simple nod from Barnaby before contending with the larger bear in front of her. It was hardly a fair fight, though, considering the type disadvantage; a well-placed INFERNO was more than enough to subdue the BEARTIC.

catching BEARTIC ♡
thomas nightingale
[ice/ground]

☉

He saw. And found the other man to be quite charming in his explanation.

Barnaby regarded thomas nightingale with an amused twinkle in his eye, thinking that his gesture was rather convincing. "Ah, I see. Not going to let the world get you down, hm?"

To each his own. It was Thomas' body to do with what he wanted, even if that meant placing himself in harm's way. Who was Barnaby to judge? He purposefully faced danger on a regular basis himself.

"And what sort of adventure are you expecting to find within these icy walls?"

While they continued to converse, a MAMOSWINE stuck out in a larger section of the cavern ahead of them. Taking a page out of Thomas' book, Barnaby returned his HOUNDOOM in favor of his beloved PERSIAN.

"Gabrielle. Hypnosis, please, mon chaton."

catching MAMOSWINE ♡
thomas nightingale
[ice/ground]

☉

He did not miss the slight wince, the careful, fleeting pause as pain gripped his walking partner. But Barnaby refrained from commenting or offering aid, as it did not seem like something Thomas would even appreciate.

They continued on, and more and more Barnaby seemed to commiserate with the things thomas nightingale spoke of. Truth and desire seeped from every word and the journalist felt himself being drawn in by his raw charisma. Fame, fortune, celebrity. These were all things that Barnaby sought as well.

"Have you ever found the fame and renown of which you seek? Outside of these walls, I mean." He asked, although not in an accusatory way. Renown meant many things depending on the circles one traversed in life. Truly, it was just a roundabout way to probe into Thomas' background.

Meanwhile, their group passed into a large, icy chamber, in which a huge AVALUGG resided. With little else but a nod from her trainer, Gabrielle swiftly leapt forward and went to HYPNOTIZE the frigid creature.

catching AVALUGG ♡
thomas nightingale
[ice/ground]

☉