Well Now We're Just Freaking Lost (Kai)

Chiyoko was far too absorbed in trying to sift through the crowds to see the Digimon coming.  Between having to keep as small of a profile as possible to avoid bumping into anyone and having to keep her eyes focused on the storefronts, how could she even notice it?  It took a gentle tap on the shoulder from Big Blue to finally break the girl's focus; as she turned, she noticed her KoKabuterimon partner pointing towards a strange, white cat.  By the time Chiyoko finally noticed it the Digimon had already reached her and begun jumping around her in circles, leaving the girl somewhat dazed as she tried to look at it.

"H-hello there!" she said, voice somewhat quiet and hesitant.  Generally first impressions came in two flavors for Chiyoko; shy and awkward, or worriedly intimidating.  Thankfully, tiny cats fell into the latter category with ease.  Chiyoko would've felt awkward as heck if she panicked when faced with something so small and cute.  Still, she kept her profile small and tried not to move so much.  Sudden actions might startle the little Digimon, after all.

Big Blue simply watched. For a brief second she looked the Digimon up and down to try and assess its strength. Size didn't matter too much in the Digital World, and she knew if the cat wanted to be dangerous it very well could be. However, initial watchfulness aside, they seemed like they were nothing but friendly. There would be no need for protecting her general today.  She chuckled warmly as she looked down at the cat, pointing to Chiyoko and then herself.  "Chiyoko.  Big Blue.  You?"

Then another human rounded the corner. The relief in Chiyoko's eyes was practically tangible as she snapped into attention, checking to make sure he wasn't actually one of those angel-like Digimon messing with her. Upon seeing a distinct lack of wings, she was convinced. Now she wasn't the only human to be stranded here! Maybe he could help her finally get home.

She still had a duty to her new partner, though, didn't she? This was going to be more of a mess to sort out than she thought.

In all of her worries, and all of her excitement, she tried to think of something to say. Instead, the first thing to come to mind, and then come out of her mouth, was a question. "Are they with you?"

Smooth.

"I think so," Chiyoko answered, very thankful that the white cat had interrupted and gotten introductions out of the way.  Those were always the hardest part. "I'm still trying to get used to this place, really. I only got here a few hours ago."


"Just one," Big Blue added, pointing to the Xros Loader in Chiyoko's hand. "More soon? Maybe."

That statement worried the girl a little. Chiyoko didn't know much about the whole partnership thing, except for the fact that she and her Digimon friend had obligations to protect and help each other. How many was she going to have to make such a deal with? Would she even be able to get home at this rate, or would she have to go looking for other Digimon to meet first? It was becoming clear to Chiyoko that her partner knew more about what was going on than she did. The two of them were going to need a little talk later to sort everything out, weren't they?

No time to worry about that right now, though.  For once there was another human here, too.  This was finally her chance to learn more from a perspective like hers, and maybe even find out a bit more about this whole tamer-general-whatever thing.  "Well, it's very nice to meet you too, Kai. How long have you been here for?"

"D-Scanner?"

It was clear Chiyoko had absolutely no idea what Kai was talking about.  She looked hers over, as if trying to see whether she missed a program or not, but it didn't seem like it.  The girl simply concluded that, like almost everything else in this world, it was a mystery she wasn't entirely privy to yet.  Maybe she'd end up finding later on, but for now she figured it wasn't worth questioning.  "Big Blue told me this was a Loader.  I just figured that's what these things were called.  How is it different from your-" She paused, trying to remember the word.  "Digivice?"

Of course, then the boy offered to show her around. Chiyoko's eyes lit up hopefully at the news, smiling widely. "Wait, really? You'd do that for me?" she asked, still a little caught off guard by how quickly he offered. "That means a lot to hear. Thank you so much for the offer." Sure, he said he was only here for an hour, but he seemed like he knew what he was doing. It beat wandering around with a quiet beetle and a huge, intimidating city, that's for sure.

Of course, then they heard Shiro's request for food. Chiyoko may have loaded up on chocolate before coming here, but all of this wandering was starting to get her hungry. Besides, it would be rude to just ignore a hungry cat. She looked to Big Blue for approval, the beetle giving her a nod in return.

"That sounds great to me. Do you have any favorite places around here?"

So he didn't know what her Loader was either. Damnit, that made two of them. At least he had some sort of idea how these things worked, though, so his counsel was better than having nothing. She smiled politely anyway, but there was a bit of disappointment behind her eyes. "It's okay," she said, attempting to reassure Kai. "Big Blue and I can figure it out later. 'Sides, while we think things over we might as well get food, right?"

The mention of Digimon not often being the most friendly to humans was ringing pretty true to Chiyoko's experiences so far.  Generally it was just through suspect glares and the occasional overheard whisper, but the girl couldn't deny that she hadn't exactly gotten the welcome wagon rolled out for her.  At first she just thought it was part of the whole city thing, because Shibuya wasn't much friendlier.  Was it really more of a cross-species concern?   If it was, it wasn't exactly an unwarranted one.  Chiyoko was just as confused about the Digital World as the Digimon likely were about another human popping up.  These circumstances weren't really the most enjoyable for either side of this situation.

"What's it like here?" Chiyoko asked as they walked. "Have you been out of the city yet?"

Easy prey? That was a worrying thought. She looked at Big Blue, as if hoping for a different answer, but Big Blue simply nodded in response. The thought lay unspoken between the two; they were going to have to get stronger, and they were going to have to do so quickly. The girl started to look nervous, but she shook her head slightly to try and shake the thought. It was far too late for nerves, and the last thing she wanted was to look overly nervous in front of her new guide.

"How do you get them away?" she asked, holding onto her composure closely. "Are there other ways around it? Or do you have to, well, fight often?" For her sake, she hoped it was the former. If she had any strong suits, confrontation sure as heck wasn't one of them. Unfortunately for her, in this new world conflict seemed like the law of the land. She hoped it was safer than Kai said it was.

Soon they reached the Kamemon's stall. Chiyoko smiled politely as the curtain was pulled back, still somewhat nervous. "I would like one plain as well, please. How about you, Big Blue?"

"Three, please."

Chiyoko paled slightly, but the KoKabuterimon gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll pay."

Food was going to be an issue, wasn't it? And probably travel, too. There were so many things to worry about, even on top of the whole safety and conflict thing. It was starting to make Chiyoko worry just how involved this little journey of hers would be.

All of this was painting somewhat of a worrying picture, where Chiyoko would have to find someone to escort her fast or risk getting torn to bits. She hadn't imagined a single missed train stop would get her into this much hot water. Maybe it would be best to try and forget this all as soon as she could find a proper diversion. Like food. The food really couldn't get here fast enough, because at least it would move this conversation to a less worrying place.

Then Kai brought up going back to the human world. Truth be told, that was a topic on Chiyoko's mind very prominently for the past hour. Even after bumping into Kai, her feelings of being out of place were still persisting. She wanted to help Big Blue, but at the same time she wanted to go home, and more than anything she just wanted time to think. Maybe finding some way to get back would be the best thing for her after all.

"I've been wondering if I should for a while now," Chiyoko admitted. "But I can't just leave my partner behind. I guess we're both kind of looking for how to fit in around here. I can't just turn my back on all of that, can I?"

Big Blue quietly observed the conversation, lost in thoughts of her own. They were two wanderers, two outsiders in a world they'd have to start calling their own. The main problem was how to finally go about such a plan.

Maybe when the food got here, it'd help her brainstorm. Besides, eating was always nice.