| Unexpected Direction | ||
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Summary: A wrong choice of metro line leads Sam to meet a brown bear named Riz that has just done some shopping. They band together to head in the same direction for a while and uncover a bit of local history, as told by foxes. |
Two of his senses, his best ones, were operating almost blind. A sharp nose and ears provided minimal help against the dense urban backdrop, and while his eyes were usually fine enough, this map must have been made for someone who could see more colours than he could. Which one of those criss crossing metro lines should he have taken? Was it the brown one, the brown one, or perhaps maybe it was the brown one? One of those lines had led him here. It was a large park of some sorts, grass under his boots, benches, tall gently swaying trees. It was a welcome break from the dense urban sprawl for certain, his nose finally picking up on something more natural than diesel exhaust and street food vendors. He took the moment to try and regain some sense of just where he was. High altitude photography showed several large parks and green spaces spotted around the metropolis, this must have been one of those, though which one he wasn't quite sure. It was nice though. He slipped the datatab back into his pocket and sat back on a bench, can of *something* in his hand. He figured it was some sort of soft drink. Sam wasn't exactly pressed for time. Might as well enjoy it for a bit. Crack. Sip. Yeah, this was soup. Self heating too, the can suddenly started growing hot against his hand. What the hell Denko? Two children come running along the path, laughing and chasing one another. "You'll never catch me, Beastar!" exclaims the boy in the front, slightly older than the girl chasing after from the looks of his relative size, using that advantage to keep a few steps ahead. "Keep running! I'll just drag you to jail tired!" replies the girl with giddy laughter as if these were lines from a popular manga they've read before and were merely acting out. Behind the two weasels a weary but relaxed mother follows along without any real chance to keep up now that they have room to run and play, whizzing right in front of the benched wolf, detouring off the path to round a tree, and nearly running right into another parkgoer. "Sasa, honey, wait for mommy," she calls out, blind to the near accident that results in the boy bumping into the other person's cloth shopping bag. A few apples and a block of tofu jostle out onto the ground. Lost in the moment of fun, the boy keeps running yet Sasa stops in her tracks and puts her hand over her mouth. A big brown bear leans out from behind the tree's obfuscation to pick up the battered tofu while the apples roll down the path in the direction the trio are traveling. Some of the things he was picking up on were more familiar. The trees were the same, or, at least near enough to it. Oak and cherry for sure, though it would be easier to list off things he couldn't identify from just sitting here breathing normally rather than what he could. Sam wasn't an expert, in fact he was fairly certain he had slept through more lessons on botany than he had actually taken though even he knew how important such things could be for Citadel's agriculture and hydroponics efforts. It was in the middle of this mental note taking he heard the shouting, his ears passively flicking towards fast footsteps and high pitched voices saying something about beastars. Louis had mentioned that before too, seemed like something of a vigilante mixed with a political figure, though he was still hardly certain of how whatever system it was a part of truly clicked together. Sounded like he was Batman or something. Though that name'd would probably take on a whole different meaning here. WHIZZ BONK There was something kind of comical about the kid taking a bag full of shopping to the face and sprinting off regardless seemingly without even noticing, more skull than brain cells apparently. Sam got to his feet, shaking his head slightly as he reached down to scoop up what he could and hand it on back. "Yeah I think that's all of it. You good?" Children are often like that, though. Tunnel vision, resilience, and unrepentant carelessness in the face of joy. The mother didn't see the incident, however, and seems more focused on one of her offspring getting way too far ahead. "Sasa, honey, what is it?" Before an answer is given, she immediately calls out to the boy. "Wait for us, you know what I've said about getting out of my sight!" A beat, then, "Come on, let's go catch up to your brother." The girl's eyes watch the bear, and then the wolf, too, before she gets ushered off back into whichever direction they were heading. The bear does make gentle eye contact with the girl before looking back to the wolf as his large hand places the seemingly-smaller-than-it-really-is block of tofu in his bag, but it requires setting upon the ground first. The soft cloth handles fall away to each side and some persuasion allows the curd to wind up approximately where it was. The apples must have been resting on top of it all. "Hey, thanks. I'm okay, but my food took a thumping. Not every day your shopping trip gets sabotaged by a Beastar chase, is it? Hmm. The tofu got a bit broken, sadly, but it's not a total loss. You can just put those there." The apples probably got a bit bruised, too. Sam definitely took note of the bear. Tall, muscular. Most of Denko's residents seemed to fall roughly within the 'baseliner' average save for a few major outliers. Some trended a little taller, some a little shorter, though the man standing next to him was built like a Hussar. "Yeah-" Sam said, looking down at the apple in his hand for a moment before placing it back in the bag. "-reckon this is just gonna be apple sauce in there after that. Should still be fine enough for cooking though if that was your plan." He offered a friendly smile and nod when he noticed the girl looking his way. He thought for a second about cracking a joke about the 'beastar' letting this 'criminal' get away after oh so violently attacking this poor guy's shopping but instead he thought better of it. Kid's parent had this already handled, no need for him to potentially make it worse. Even if it would be funny. "I was going to make a steamed dessert with them. If I can't grate them, I'll chop them up." The bear takes a moment to look at the apples and the load balance before he looks up to the wolf. This one looks a bit younger than Legosi and Juno, but about as tall as- Riz's gaze is drawn away into the direction he's looking to see the children and the mother continuing down the pathway. "You're thinking pretty loudly there," he comments while offering a neutral smile, bag at his feet, keeping his gaze mostly aligned with the wolf with a bit of curious side-eyeing. "What's on your mind?" "Hey, sounds like problem solved then, just so long as the 'beastar' don't run any more criminals into your shopping." Sam was about to say his goodbyes and go back to the task of figuring out where the heck he even was before the bear said something that caught his attention. 'Thinking pretty loud'. The choice of words struck him as a little odd. Was this bear a psycaster? Was that even a thing here? Mind reading and picking up surface thoughts wasn't out of the question for them from what he knew, but, what he knew of it wasn't much. Wasn't like a neuroformer would work on him anyhow, and as for the theory lessons? Again. Fell asleep. He figured his excuse about it being 'psycast meditation' was better than most though. "Agh, not much really. New in town and I ain't seen a city like this before, so I'm still finding my ways about an' all that. Pretty sure I took a wrong line on the subway." A little observation can go a long way, apparently. The big guy leans over to align the straps of the bag and heft the parcel up with barely any effort. While usually one for baggier clothes, today is a jogging pants and t-shirt day for the bear, but the shirt gets a bit tight when he moves in certain ways. At least he's finally putting on some weight again. "Oh yeah? Maybe I can help. Where are you trying to get?" Riz raises his other hand to scratch at his cheek in thought. "Even locals get a bit mixed up now and then." He at least looks earnest and the wolf did help with his runaway apples, so one good turn deserves another. "Trying to figure out where Kenko hospital is. Someone in there I owe a visit. Got to at least check up on him, see if he's doing ok and all that. Heard good things but, you know how it is." He rummaged around in a pocket as he said this, pulling out his disguised Citadel datatab and tap tapping on it to wake it up. On its display was a map of Denko's subway system, along with a few scrawled notes annotating the image. Most were of the mundane sort, though, a few were perhaps a little more frustratedly scrawled in and along the lines of 'why the hell was it designed this way?'. There weren't any fancy holograms this time around either of course unlike what Louis had seen, instead to all outside observers what the wolf had in his hand was just your standard run of the mill phone. "I'm colour blind. Reckon these lines are meant to look different but hell if I can see it." He let out a little amused snort of a laugh. "Yeah that was fun. 'just follow the red line 'till it meets up with the green one and you're all good'. Cool. Which one's green?" The bear transfers the bag from one hand to the other as he steps around to look down over Sam's shoulder from just behind. "Uh. Looks like you wound up heading south, so you could always double back on the line you used to get here to, uh, Kousaten Station?" A hand reaches in to point. Around there. You can then transfer to the line to heads northeast, to around here. Kenko is a bit of a walk from there, though, unless you take a taxi or rent a bike." Riz pulls his hand back. "Alternately, you could take a taxi from here or catch a bus. Could take about the same amount of time either way. If the weather is nice like this, I usually walk until I get tired and take a taxi. I was going to take these back to the dorm kitchen anyway and it's only a twenty minute walk to get to the school grounds from around there." There's a short pause before the bear asks, "Do you want me to help show you the way?" "So, this way, this way and this way, right?" Sam said, busily adding yet more notes and lines to his already messy map, though this time marked out in a colour he could actually see. "Got one of them day passes so figure I should at least get my money's worth with the subway. Guess it's been real useful for sightseeing even if I did end up god knows where. Funny really, never normally get turned around like this. Not used to cities." Sam weighed over the options, ticket or not, subway might be overkill if it was just in walking or cycling distance. The latter seemed like a more fun idea anyhow. He shrugged. "Uh, sure, yeah if you're going the same way I don't mind any. No need to go out of it though if you ain't." Time of day, weather, space preferences, and finances all affect which option is best. A bus ride might be pretty quiet, a taxi ride much more private, and those would be a comparable time to riding the underground and the Carnivore cars can get a bit loud during certain times of the day when things get packed. "Hmm," Riz hums in quiet amusement. "Cherryton Academy is in that area. Honest." The bear looks off northward. "It's up to you; I can help you transfer, or we can walk and grab a taxi. I'd have to call in one of the large cars, though. I usually at least walk far enough to leave the Shinagawa-to ward so it doesn't cost quite as much." Either way, it all starts leaving the park in one direction. "You like the canned soup?" From Sam's reckoning this distance wasn't too far at all, though then again, taking it all on foot would still take far more time than Sam would have liked. "Probably ain't no need to spend all that on a taxi. Fares seemed real steep. Unless I just got screwed over I guess." He took another sip. "Mmmph. This ain't half bad. Heater thing built in's a nice touch. Pretty sure I pressed the wrong button on the machine though." He was also looking north at this point, one ear flicking back the bear's way. "Yeah some smartass saw the guy from out of town with a funny accent and cranked the meter up a few notches. I could see that. Well, probably seems like the best option either way if it's the one you tend to take. You're gonna know this place a whole lot better than I do." With that, he slowly started to head off in the direction Riz pointed out, his first step or two slow as he checked back to make sure the bear was indeed coming with. "Cherryton? Heard that name come up a couple times. How's it like there?" Sam finds a nod in affirmation when he looks back at the bear even as the large breed shuffles the hanging bag to drape over one shoulder, perhaps casually for how bulging the cloth container seems to be in areas, walking forward a pace or two just behind. "At least it wasn't Sparkling Silver Vine Tea or something. Once saw a classmate get hosed when he opened one, but he got a local cat to go out on a date with him later that day, so..." The park, for what it is, does have rather distinct visual boundaries separating it from the city around it. It's not just fencing, but hedge work and trees and signage. Oh, the signs: 'Do not litter.' 'Do not sleep.' 'Do not urinate/defecate.' 'Please recycle.' 'Insufficient lighting for Herbivores after dark.' A thick finger points the direction out before the end of the park path brings them to a sidewalk. "I should make a good soup again soon, though. So, by the way, my name is Riz. Riz the Brown Bear." There was, admittedly, some amount of curiosity which type of wolf this fellow was and hopefully some introductions might clear that up. "Good to meet you," he adds with with that relaxed deep voice of his. Sam's memory flashed back for a moment, relaying the image and sensation of getting a solid jet of that stuff right up the snoot. He kept quiet about that part, same as the rather crude joke that sprung up to the forefront just moments later. That one still gave him a little chuckle though, but, easy enough to play off as just a polite response to the bear's anecdote. "Guess that worked out fine in the end then, provided he didn't have to keep spritzing himself down with it 'course." He hadn't seen a park like this before. Not outside of VR and holoscreens anyhow. Sure, Citadel had a few decent outdoor green spaces dotted about and the Scarlands had the remains of even more, but the scale of this place was something else altogether. He noted the insufficient lighting sign. Tracks, he supposed. His eyes worked fine enough after a little adjustment but back at the hall everyone who didn't have pointy teeth suddenly went just about blind when the power dropped. "Nice to meet ya as well." He turned around so he was facing Riz, walking backwards for a few paces. "Name's Sam. Sam the Gray Wolf." He'd noticed by this point that people here didn't really have last names as such. Instead their species seemed to fill that gap, or at least, did to an extent. Sam figured 'Gray Wolf' was probably the closest match given the ancient Earth canid was the starting point for Novscandia's gene modded 'Canis Sapien', even if he did seem to be a little on the taller side compared to the average wolf seen here. "That's an easy-sounding name." Easy to say, rolls off well, mouth open and shut. There's an increased detail to Riz's soft smile when Sam turns around to walk in such a way for the moment. A vehicle drives past. Some streets are really busy right now, but the one bordering this park seems to be spared the stress in full for the moment. Stepping away from the greenery and trees, however, does make the coastal winds more apparent for the time of day. Angular buildings and compact streets make for some wind funneling at times. "Well, Sam. New to the city, you mentioned? Just moved here?" The bear can easily catch up and match pace, but he is a big guy and finds others seem to prefer a measure of personal space from him. As such, while maintaining stride, Riz keeps just a bit of distance between them. "Sure is. Guess my folks weren't too creative, but suits me fine enough." Truth be told it was actually a name Sam had picked for himself, plucked straight from the well worn pages of a cheesy old spaghetti western style novel he'd taken a liking to while he was still learning how to read. Fortunately for him only a couple people ever picked up on that, and even fewer still commented on how he was sharing the name of some fictional 19th century gunslinger. With his ears and nose, navigating even while looking Riz' way was barely any more difficult than if he was actively looking where he was going. Not that he was walking backwards much further of course, couple steps later the wolf was back to casually strolling through the streets again. He sniffed the air a couple times, seeing what that sea breeze dragged with it. For him it gave a pretty clear picture, crowds were denser that way, lot of people on the beach. Cooking smells too, perhaps there was a carnival in town though he couldn't pinpoint exactly what underneath the typical city diesel smell over the top of it all. "Yeah, been here what, couple 'a weeks or so now? Not sure if I'm sticking around yet. Might do. I don't tend to stay in one place too long really." There certainly wasn't much to question about the motives of a wanderer, even if the concept of moving from the city was a bit extreme for most of the animals living there. There is, though, a light blink of the eyes as thoughts piece together. "Oh, you moved here all by yourself? Must be tough with how expensive some places to live are these days. Unless you get lucky. I've heard about some apartments that are a good price but really small. Ten feet by ten, folding bed and counters, external bathroom. Single sink and hotplate. It's doable, but I prefer some kitchen space. We have that at the Carnivore dorm kitchen, at least. -oh, right, you asked about that! Sorry... It's great for a boarding school, I guess." The students there all pretty much live away from family. It certainly cultivates a unique sense of understanding community, even if dorms are segregated. "At least we get co-ed and Carni-Herbi classes and clubs. That's always nice. Most schools keep everybody pretty separated." Not that he can participate in some things there anymore. "Hey, I'll find a way. I always do. 'sides, cramped quarters don't matter much to me. Been living out my truck before mostly." Sam went to take another sip, only to find he'd reached the bottom of the can. "Woulda brought it here with but-" he thumbed it over in his hand, testing the weight before tossing it into a nearby trash can without so much as breaking his stride. "-hyup, nice. Yeah, don't think it'd be strictly road legal. Not worth grabbing that sort of attention." He took a few more mental notes as he walked. A few people seemed to be a little nervous, both of him which by now he'd simply figured as coming off as a little strange what with the cultural clash and all but of the bear too. Maybe it was a size thing. Sam was tall enough to invite the odd 'how's the weather up there' joke from some sure enough, but, this Riz was built like a Hussar. "Yeah? Guess there weren't enough people around to be much point in splitting us up when I was small. Feel it works better when that way anyhow, I mean, what, you're gonna be working around and with everyone anyway so best you get used to it right?" "Well. Yeah. I guess that's the point. Yeah." It isn't so much as a clearing of the throat that follows as much as a short nasal exhalation that accompanies fleeting darker thoughts on why separation isn't always bad. The bear simply lets it be and pushes on, walking along, nearing a street crossing; Riz is also aware of the looks and mannerisms that are revealed in his presence. You don't get used to them and they don't go away and most all Carnivores bear that burden silently. "What about your truck? Not legal for the roads? What, is it extra large or something? You've seen the ones elephants, hippos, and rhinos drive around in, right?" Fighting discomfort with a smile and a tilt of the head, the bear only interrupts himself to point out, "We can cross here and hit the downward road over there," at a five road intersection, though small and compact roads, "and we can cut through the back of the nearby shops after taking a few stairs instead of having to go north that way and around to catch the crosswalk over the storm drain. Can't quite see it from here." Sam had certainly noticed the looks too. He'd gotten his share of them, no matter how mild mannered and polite he'd tried to make himself seem. He looked over towards the bear after someone shot the both of them a particularly nasty one. "You get people looking at you like that too? Not sure what their problem is. Figured it was just a me thing before. Folk don't like people wandering in from out of town or something." He shrugged, barely resisting the temptation to flip the bird in reply. Not like that would have helped the situation any. Still, talk of vehicles was a much lighter thing to pivot to. "Hah, yeah, too large. Sure, sure. We'll go with that." The thought had crossed Sam's mind about just driving into Denko before, though rolling on up in a five tonne armoured truck with a .50cal charge munition thrower on the back probably wouldn't have been too great an idea even if its design was several hundreds of years in advance of Denko's technological base. "More it's just a bit improvised. I trust my handiwork, got me this far, but I ain't sure everyone else would at first glance so I'm not going to push my luck. Got to make do with what you have and sometimes that looks a little ugly." Riz glances to the side to make sure it's clear to cross before repositioning his grocery bag over his shoulder and stepping out onto the street. "Oh. You're an automobile mechanical enthusiast? I see what you mean. I've seen BeastBook posts about others modding their vehicles. Sucks if you can't drive it around, though, yeah? Is it an expensive hobby? Going to school for it?" The whole conversation point about the looks isn't forgotten. It's just...suspended for the moment. Until a better time and place, perhaps. Strange to feel a manner of comfort knowing you aren't the only one that sometimes gets wary looks, deserved or not. Up above, a flying animal rushes by over the building tops, followed by another, almost seeming a bit low for safe flying height. They don't even have to deal with sidewalk detours like this to get around quickly. The bear glances upward at the movement. You would be hard to find a Nomad who wasn't a gearhead to at least some extent. Having a certain level of mechanical knowhow was virtually a requirement, after all, if your vehicle failed on you that could be the end of it depending on how far out you got. "Self taught, mostly. More of a necessity really but I'd be lying if I said it weren't satisfying once it all clicks together." He too did the same, ears flicking back and forth listening out for traffic. "It's fine when you're out in the districts, no one's gonna bother you about it most places there but here? Someone'd be getting mad about it." Sam looked up as well, the sudden movement startling him for a moment, the wolf playing it off with a shrug. "See, that, that'd be an easier way of doing it around here. Bet that must be fun having wings and all. Ain't gotta worry about all that stuff, just, flap your arms a bit and you're there." There's a look that Sam gets from the bear when he specifically mentions District life. No words are attached to the glance. There is only silent thought on what should have been obvious. No sooner is one street crossed that another needs doing and the way is immediately clear. Riz hurries up just a bit to get across. "I guess so, but I like wandering the byways and sidepaths. It would be nice to just get where you want to be and all, but there's something comforting in getting to experience all the little twists and turns that get you there. I dunno." The side road upcoming dips down a bit of a hill and curves to the right a ways down. Before the main turn, though, it's not too hard to make out a wooden stair set leading up the other incline. "Not like some bird could ever fly this heap of bear high enough to count otherwise. Hah hah. You might be light enough, though. We could always chase them down and ask." Sam briefly glanced over at some squawking overhead, one bird passing just a little too close to another, his ear twitching at a cry of 'hey I'm flyin' here!'. He just shook his head. "Yeah don't think that's happening somehow, even if they could carry my ass. 'Sides, I'd feel awkward asking. Something weird to me about goin' up to a guy and asking to ride on their back or whatever." Sam was a little more cautious at the crossing, waiting just a bit longer than Riz. Citadel didn't really have traffic as such. They had land vehicles sure enough, from conventional wheeled types to the far more finicky gravcars but there were scarce few roads through the colony proper to really serve them. They saw most of their use outside of the walls. "So less about the destination and more about the journey type?" He asked, discarding his now empty mistakenly purchased soup into the nearest trash bin with a casual toss. "I get it. I get it. Most of the time I don't really have a place in mind, I just kinda, go. See what's out there. Got me this far so, I reckon it ain't done me too bad." There's an almost awkward -- or perhaps even ashamed -- smile that follows such a supposition on the behalf of Riz's nature traveling. "Let's just say that some things in life can help you appreciate being around more than just the rooms in buildings we spend a lot of our lives in." The bear's slightly open mouth clenches a little without his teeth touching; it's a most peculiar sense of deja vu that drifts by, but he just can't put his finger on why. As if to change the subject only slightly, or at least redirect it, Sam's new acquaintance points a finger after they cross to highlight a small stone monument. At around a meter tall, the well worn pillar holds a spot on top that could house a lantern. The bear shares a few pieces of trivia in the history of the thing and how it's been moved a few times, but is in the general area it used to be before Denko had spread beyond the road it had been upon. Small talk. The conversation, for what it is between strangers, ebbs and flows and winds much like the path that the pair take. Across the street, down the side road that veers off to the side, and a stair set that leads up mid-curve that seems to direct any pedestrians that use it behind some smaller buildings. Just as obvious on approach as it would be from a distance, only the closeness reveals that the wooden stairs look well used but not well maintained. Will they even support a heavy looking guy like Riz? From above and beyond, the smell of fried food and red bean-sweetened rice flour and a number of voices, muffled by architectural placement, speaking all at once. Sam took a slightly longer look at the monument. Its shape, the symbols, the weathering on the stone itself. In its on small way it showed the age of Denko, hints into its culture and past beyond what could be scraped from their networks and broadcasts. He snapped a quick 'picture' on his 'phone', the device taking a quick 3D scan for Citadel's historians and anthropologists to pore over later alongside all the other data gathered, both from snapshots like this or even just conversations like the one he was having right now. He paused for a moment, sniffing the air. While the generic city noise and smell blunted any chance of getting a more precise read he could certainly detect something. Smelled like party. Sounded like one too. "Something's going on up the- whoa." The feeling of loose rotten boards beneath his feet gave him pause, the staircase shifting slightly beneath him. "Yeah careful on that one." "Oh, sorry," remarks the bear. "I should have warned you about that. Most are a bit tougher than they look, but this way is the best way up if we want to avoid the storm drain. Uh." The bear leads the way, fairly confident, even if some of the steps aren't. There's a pause and Riz adds, "I could carry you if you're too nervous to do it by yourself." A joke, a smile, a turn of the head to face the direction of the local non-traffic noise. "But, yeah, I think you're right. Not sure what the deal is, but I guess we'll find out soon." Waiting for the pair up above, over the rise, around the store buildings from behind where the path leads are a few streets of celebration and revelry. The fox motif is very apparent on banners and fans. While many present are foxes, there are others. Stalls selling merchandise, offering games of luck, and cooking food dot the streetside gatherings and the smell of mochi and fried tofu become intense. Taiko drum music plays from performers somewhere down the way. "Hey all that'd do is put both our weight in one place. That'd make me way more nervous when-" Sam tested the next board over, tap-tapping on the wood with the toe of his sneakers before making sure his next step was planted a little closer to one of the braces supporting the staircase proper. "-this middle part here's got the tensile strength of fuck all. Yeesh." He was definitely cautious as he proceeded upwards, though not overly so, save for his ears reflexively pinning at a particularly nasty sounding creak or two. He paused at one point to sniff the air again, making that his reply to the bear asking what the 'deal' was. "Well, crowd's real large." Another sniff "Make it a few hundred at least. Couple dozen food stalls too, not sure what they're cooking 'cos that's just blending together but a whole lot of fried stuff." He shrugged, before continuing on. "Yeah usually I'm pretty good at this sort of thing but cities make it all hazy. Too many things going on to get a good read." "Ha ha ha. We'll have to see how close your guess is," offers Riz with a hint of amusement. He doesn't actively disbelieve or anything. He has experience with another wolf that has shown amazing olfactory acuity. It's arguable that bears have a far better sense of smell than even wolves, but actually training to use it makes a huge difference. To be fair, Riz has no idea what the occasion is for, but he does know that it's common in such a multi-species city to have a number of varying events going on. Reaching the top of the stair set, the brown bear readjusts his hold on his cloth shopping bag by swapping it to his left hand; his right hand extends to offer the wolf a potentially less scary and more stable alternative to help those last few steps. "Need a hand?" Sam was mostly over the rickety shift-y feeling of the stairs beneath his sneakers at this point. It hadn't given out on either of them yet, not him, nor the heavier set bear. By Citadel's standards this would be nowhere near up to any sort of code, though most everything there was made from printed plascrete rather than wood. He gave a quick dismissive wave of his hand as he climbed the last couple sets of stairs, combined with a smile and a quick "all good". At first Sam wasn't quite sure what he was seeing when he reached the top. A celebration or festival of some sorts, sure, that much he could gather but seemingly so focused on what he would consider to be one 'ethnicity' of people found within Denko, to the point where their face was on the banners. Still, his nose was mostly on the money, something he looked perhaps slightly smug about. "Pretty close I'd say. Crowds and fried things. Worth checking out, or, you in a hurry to get back?" Internally, the wolf tried to calculate how he was going to pen his report on this. Combined with the talk of hybrids before and some of the attitudes he had seen so far, it struck him as more than a little concerning. The bear's hand lowers as Sam passes, chuckling softly, but the laughter stalls at seeing the wolf's apparent curiosity. There's a split second where he just stares, disassociated into deep thought, mesmerized by such a simple social notion. After all, it had been a very long time since somebody asked him if he was interested in doing something casually fun. Riz blinks twice. "Oh, sure. It could be worth looking over." It didn't look like there was any majority held by Herbivores at this Fox Festival. Only a few. That would make it a bit less of an anxious endeavor. At least two streets and four blocks of casual celebratory enjoyment, all fox themed. Balloon popping, fortune drawing, hot foods, cold drinks; more than enough fried tofu to go around. There's so much to choose from for such a limited area full of comfortable happiness. "I'll follow you," says Riz. "Where do you want to check out first?" Sam caught that look, though, couldn't quite place it. Maybe the bear wasn't good in crowds or was just trying to internally calculate how long this'd take. He shrugged, starting to make his way to the festival proper. "I dunno, haven't been to a festival like this before. Not one this big anyways. Not fox themed neither for that matter. Guess we'll just see what we see, right?" He turned slightly, looking over his shoulder mid stride with a slight grin on his face. "Ain't about the destination, right?" Internally he was still trying to figure out if perhaps the different species were viewed more in a cultural nationality sense or not. He couldn't really place a familiar equivalent to this. Humans were humans for the most part after all. Even the most divergent xenotype changed by nature or science was still man underneath, but, here it seemed like every single species was more similar to him than anyone else he had ever met back on the rim. He paused at an archery stall, bows were set up on a counter alongside offers of various edible fried prizes, and behind them sat a row of targets with balloons tied to them. "I think I can win us something good here." The ursine allows the handle of the cloth shopping bag to slip back until it rests in the crook of his arm while he pulls out and sorts from a handful of coins. Placing the fare for a game down on the counter for the vixen manning the attraction, Riz smiles a little. "I've never seen you play and I know you're better at it than I am. I've got this one for you, since you seem so confident." The fox at the stand offers the safety tipped arrows with fletching that seems a little worn from public overuse, but nobody ever expects the tools to be in the best of shape. That's part of the fun. "Same rules for everybody, fox or not," she says with a crafty leer. "Five arrows, balloons of different color are different points." Colors again? The balloons at least have different patterns to differentiate them. She points to the little board for details. "Stay behind the line on the ground and give it your best." The bear watches the wolf. Sam nodded, taking one of the arrows and rolling it in his hand to check it for any bends. It wasn't perfect, nowhere near it in fact, but given the rather short distance he figured that wasn't going to matter all that much. "Well I dunno, I ain't ever seen you shoot. I'll pay you back if I screw this up either way." Archery was part of Citadel's wilderness survival training, something that all of Citadel's Nomads had to pass to even quality for Nomad selection in the first place. He took the bow in his hand, checking the weight of its draw. Compared to anything used for actual hunting it was more akin to a toy, but given the only thing he was shooting at here were balloons he figured that much like the worn down arrows it too wasn't going to cause him much of a problem. "Right. Five arrows, five balloons. Here we go." He got into a proper stance and took a breath, then loosed the first arrow. THWIP... *POP!* Sam was pretty sure that was one of the most valuable targets on the board. He really couldn't tell. Even the patterns looked kind of similar. "Oooone down." Points high or not, it's still impressive in its own way. Balloons are only partially filled, of course, making them easy to roll away in place or deflect shots. It's a game of chance more than skill, most would say, with so many variables stacked against the player. "It's the tricky fox's nature to make one feel complacent in ability only to fool you and make you a fool," remarks the vixen behind the counter and to the side. The archery set would be hard pressed to actually cause injury should an arrow go errant. "Remember that as we celebrate her accomplishments of the past." The bear smiles as the first balloon pops. "Hey, that's pretty good," he says, already a bit impressed. His eyes focus back and forth from Sam to the target board and now to the lady running the game. For every balloon Sam might score, he's going to collect more of an audience. His technique already sticks out among the locals. Sam reset his stance, took another breath, and drew back a second arrow. THWIP... *POP*. A second balloon down. The wolf's movements were calm, precise, well practiced, able to sink an arrow fairly precisely to the middle of the balloons so that they wouldn't skip off though he wasn't too sure about the scoring. To him all these balloons looked like they were a similar-ish shade of greenish-yellowish-brown, as much as the patterns helped prioritise the higher scores in theory. "Beginner's luck, I'm sure." A third, then a fourth, both found their marks. From this distance even with worn down arrows and a bow with minimal weight behind it with all his Nomad training he would have probably had a harder time trying to miss in a way that looked convincing than actually hit the balloons here. There are other animals taking notice, for sure. The stall mistress has a number of remarks meant to trip up or goad participants with the cover of history or celebration to take away from the clear edging on. The third and fourth balloons get cheers from some of the nearby beasts while the stall mistress looks bored; either she's seen this kind of thing too much or it's all a calculated front. "And on the fifth day the fox, disguised as death, revealed herself to the ocean and the ocean knew it had been tricked. The tsunami never made it to land." Whatever it is she's spouting seems only loosely tied to the efforts being made to play a simple archery game, but perhaps it's all related to the activities at hand. Riz broadly smiles and claps after the fourth and a collective quiet comes over the nearby crowd so that the wolf can do his thing. "Try as you might, wolf, the tsunami never came, so perhaps-" The stall's vixen suddenly stops herself as she looks at Sam -- no, past Sam -- to see another vixen shake her head. For some reason, she's getting instruction to not rig the last shot. The game mistress takes a step back and crosses her arms silently. A presence stands just behind Sam and Riz, also watching, although not in the way. Sam had been mostly ignoring the fox talk so far, instead keeping a solid focus on the game at hand. Sure he'd heard enough of it to get the gist, something about being tricky, but he wasn't letting such things break his concentration. If anything it simply caused him to redouble his efforts, because someone getting shown up while talking of 'fools' and such make this at least twice as fun by his reckoning. "Well I don't know about any tsunami-" THWIP... *POP!* "-but that one hit." He placed the bow back down upon the counter. "Five arrows, five balloons." He glanced to Riz, speaking much more quietly, hoping that it was only him who was going to pick it up. "Okay, so I got no idea what I actually scored. Those were the big points ones, right?" "I think so? Let me double check," murmurs the bear in return, even though a dignified voice speaks up just a bit -- never a yell -- from right behind the two. "A round of applause for the ocean is in order." A clap begins by the owner of the voice and it resonates with the fifteen or so animals watching (mostly foxes). In fact, the voice belongs to a fox. She stands with great posture, clad in a cheongsam dress and black heels, and a patch covers her right eye. Her hands delicately meet with each clap, but the noise it makes is polite and noticeable despite the loudness of those around. However, excitement is fleeting and Sam's heroism at the archery game is quickly forgotten by most as they go about their way. A few discuss trying the game, too. Riz walk over to get closer to the points board to make a tally of everything based on the pinned remains still stuck to the board. "What brings you to the festival, mister wolf? Did you come just to win a vixen plushie or a voucher for free tofu?" Sam was fairly certain there was some sort of joke or pun he could have made about the ocean, in particular when he gave the assembled crowd a wave. This was his first time noticing them too, having been so focused on destroying this carnival game. Yeah, nothing comes to mind. At least, nothing good. "Honestly had no idea this was going on. We just sorta stumbled in. Tofu sounds good though. I could go for that." The wolf wasn't actually completely sure, tofu wasn't a thing in Citadel, but, he felt pretty safe assuming it's food of some sort. Judging by how this place smelled it was probably pretty great too it'd no doubt go down better than a plushie at the least either way. Despite her extremely polite appearance and ladylike mannerisms, there's something about the vixen near Sam that has a weight of presence. She doesn't seem to stand apart from any of the other beasts present, but there's something beneath it all that the trained wolf might be able to sense, at least in part. "Well, a wonderful time for you to drop by, mister wolf. We get a nice turnout from the locals to celebrate the victory of the Fox over the Sea, but not many of those are very fox-adjacent in breeds." Her hands clasp together formally. "If you decide you would like to learn more, there is a street performance of the play The Vixen and the Ocean in about an hour and we would adore your participation in this acknowledgment of respect." A box is held out to Sam, but this comes from the bear that walks over from the stallfront. The box is print waxboard with a clear plastic front showing a stylized chibi version of the apparent literary female fox as a plushie. Collectors would probably go crazy over it. Or not? It's certainly very girlish in the packaging's frilly design. "She said you were one point off from a perfect score, but this was the top prize anyway. Not sure if she was telling the truth or not. The point board was a bit confusing. Congratulations, though!" The older fox lady seems to find the image of the two boys with a pretty plush doll prize between them...cute? Sam checked his watch. The wolf wasn't in any real rush. He had set off a lot earlier than he needed to just in case he got completely turned around in the city proper not to mention to leave a little more time in case of running into a 'sidequest' such as this, but he wasn't so certain it was the same for Riz. "Well sure I got time, but, wait, where'd he go?" he glanced around. Last he checked the bear was right behind him. The crowd was still too dense for his eyes to do him much good, even with how tall he was, but at this range his nose and ears were working fine enough even in the city. "Oop, and he doth appear. Hey Riz, sounds like there's a street performance in an hour. You down for it or do you gotta head off? Uh, what, what you got there?" Sam's head tilted slightly as he looked the box over. A plushie of a fox in a box. It was cute he supposed, if a little odd. Perhaps this was the 'vixen' from the story they kept mentioning? "Well hey, reckon that's yours not mine. You're the one who paid into this after all." "I paid for you to play, though. You shot the balloons, so it's yours." The teddy bear face Riz manages to maintain almost cracks a little. The toy is too cute for him and it's not really his thing and he doesn't really have anyone to gift it to that wouldn't criticize him with biting wit, so- "Hey, why don't you give it to your girlfriend or something," offers the bear with a shot in the dark, a gambit, a social risk to take in order to save face. After all, anyone able to play it so cool at a prize game has to have admirers, right? The box gets pushed a little closer to the wolf. It's not that the question of the show stuff is ignored, exactly. One social crisis at a time and all that. Sam was in kind of a similar dilemma. If he rocked back up to Citadel with this in tow, well, he'd probably never hear the end of it. Sure he could try and make up some sort of excuse for it, hell, he wouldn't even be lying if he said it was an object of some cultural importance given how it seemingly related to this whole fox story, but while that'd work well enough for the more academically inclined his peers would probably still eat him alive. "Ain't got a girlfriend to give it to. Not right now anyways." He gave it another look over. It didn't really look cheap as such, especially not for something given out as a carnival prize. "'sides, I'd be surprised if you don't have anyone who'd appreciate it more anyways. Don't see this doing much more than gathering dust otherwise." The bear stammers. "But my shopping bag is full. I don't have room to take it with me anywhere." This really is the epitome of fox pranking. "If it's mine, then I'm giving it to you -- as an apology for making you take those wooden stairs." Again, he pushes it forward, this time while bowing forward some at the waist and saying an extremely formal, "I'm very sorry for what I did to you. Please forgive me." Riz tries real hard to not be overly aggressive in his tone of voice or body language, but this is practically a high school boys squabble. There's some amount of forwardness that can't be helped. As for the fox in the nice dress and heels, she must have slipped off into the gathering for other things, although she couldn't have gotten far, right? Sam actually laughed at the display, shaking his head. "They were just stairs, nothing to worry about. I just couldn't take this most wonderful gift from y-" He tried to stifle a further laugh, though that was only partially successful, seeing the bear bowing so much sending him over the edge again. "Snrrrk, a'ight a'ight, fine. Fiiiine. If it means that dang much to you I'll take it. Sure I can find someone who'll like the thing." With that he took the fox in a box in his hands, and flipped it over some to examine it properly. The rather 'girly' appearance aside, this likely would be of use to Citadel's research on Denko's culture and mythology at the very least. Even if he did feel slightly silly taking it. Into his bag it went, Sam being careful to sit it up as to not to crease the box. "Right. Uh, what was I saying? Oh right, they got a street performance coming up. I make it about uh, 55 minutes now? You want to check it out or do you gotta be heading on?" Sure, it was putting it on heavy, but the laugh it elicits from Sam is enough to make Riz quietly chuckle a bit. At the very least, it's out of his hands now. Even if he made it back to the dorm with that in tow, well, he doesn't need more reasons for people to talk about him behind his back even if a plush doll pales in comparison to other things. With the hand once holding the prize box free, that freed hand now moves to scratch lightly behind the bear's own head in thought. "Almost an hour?" Depending on the service he pays for, that might cut it close. Too early for curfew, but if he wants to use the communal Carnivore kitchen during his slot it will be a tight fit in the schedule to stay too long, especially depending on how long the performance is. "Hmm." Then again, he never gets any real social activity in his life outside of kitchen talk at his part time job. "I can stay for a little, but I might miss making dinner tonight, so I at least want to grab something to eat. If I have to leave part way through are you going to find your way through the city okay?" "Oh, yeah, no worries, I'm sure I'll figure it out fine from here. You know it's funny, I don't ever get lost like that but big cities are something real different. Just not used to them I guess." Sam rubbed his nose. The fumes from countless internal combustion engined vehicles and just the overwhelming amount of different smells were irritating and almost overwhelming to him. The dense urban sprawl was having a similar effect on his hearing too, all the noise essentially acting as though it was a jammer on his senses. "Guess you get used to it." He said, spotting a rather inviting looking fried tofu stand out of the corner of his vision and slowly starting to make his way towards it, making sure not to leave the bear behind. "You lived in the city long?" The big guy stays close enough. Even if others step through between the pair, Riz stands quite a bit taller than most everyone else. There might be some Herbivore breeds that are bigger or taller, but he does stick out. Walking after, pausing to allow somebody past before catching up, waving to somebody that waves up at him (for some reason; it's nobody he knows), Riz finally gets a chance to walk along beside. "The city? Oh, Denko? Not here, but elsewhere when I was younger. Parents sent me here for the academy. Cherryton. I'm still learning a lot about the place. Never really had a lot of chances to explore on my own until lately. The buses are super on time, so commuting is pretty easy when you aren't using the metro." Somebody else nearly bumps into his bag and he lifts it up out of the way just in time. The food stall is pretty typical. Hot plates, a grill, and various ingredients make for a seasoned aroma of enticing snack food. There are places to sit and eat and, if those are full, a streetside bench not too far away makes a good spot instead. "Yeah I noticed that. All the trains and stuff. They're right on the dot. Real impressive honestly, just a shame the maps suck. Or at least, they suck when you can't see 'em properly but my eyes are just weird I guess." Sam took a good look at the handwritten board serving as a menu, one ear still angled towards Riz. Half these names he didn't recognise, a few others came up in some historical archives somewhere, though he was never one to pay too much attention in those classes. Still, he absorbed enough to start putting a few things together. Perhaps Citadel wasn't transported through space like most of their scientists assumed but through timelines instead? It was about as valid a theory as anyone else had come up with. That would also track with the dates he'd seen. It wasn't the 56th century here, but, their calendars seemed to match all the same. "Hey I'll buy if you want anything, seeing as you got the archery thing. Only right given you didn't take the fox box you paid for." "I did, but it was a gift to you. Don't discount my apology offering. That'd be rude." The bear laughs a bit, then shakes his head. "Tofu, huh? What's your favorite kind of tofu dish? Deep fried tofu balls can be great with some sauce to dip them in, but I like grill- or wok-fried tofu. Nice crispiness on the outside, chewy and moist on the inside. Toss them in some soy or use a drizzle. Add them in a curry or serve in a bowl with rice. You can even find tofu ice cream at some Herbivore shops. Haven't tried any yet, though." ...no small wonder why. "I like making my own, but sometimes it's nice to have somebody else do all the work for you." All the foxes browsing and working for this little festival, it's quite a community effort for what it is. Come tomorrow, there will be no trace it was even there and some other celebration might be on the horizon. "So, fried tofu with soy and chili for me, if you're sure." "Hey I *graciously* accepted, now I'm apologising for you having to spend your money on a cute lil' fox plushie." Sam paused, unsure of how to respond to the bear's question for a moment. After all, he'd only found out this was a thing a few minutes ago, but, he could only assume that this must have been extremely popular here, perhaps even a staple part of this civilisation's diet. Being honest and saying he hadn't tried it might mark him as even more of an outsider. "Honestly just fried does the job well enough." He took another quick sniffsniff. He was close enough to tell that most of the actual oomph of whatever this is was going to be in the sauce rather than the tofu itself. "Chili's a good shout, I think I'm gonna go for the same as you. Never seen this in ice cream though, wouldn't have thought that'd uh, go well?" He was at the front of the line by now, and placed an order for two helpings of the fried soy and chili tofu, fumbling in his pockets for a second to pull out the right cash for it. Riz takes a moment to quietly watch and listen to Sam regarding tofu as an ingredient for ice cream. He did say he was from out of town, of course, so the bear has no idea of the state of the wolf's educational opportunities despite the fact he seems pretty sharp overall. There are a few gears turning behind those eyes held in such passive expression. Herbivore physiology and diet is different from Carnivore diets -- all depending on breed, of course -- so such a weird detail can only mean one thing: Herbivores don't have Tofu Ice Cream where he's from! "Oh, well, the Herbis where you're from don't know what they're missing out on. You take some soft tofu and combine it with sugar, almond milk, a bit of vanilla, and mix in some fruit like bananas if you want. Blend well. Chill it pretty low, scoops pretty nicely. Not too hard to make by hand. I could probably do it at the dorm at school, but-" But few of the Herbivores there would take any from him. Maybe one of the other bear classmates could hand out any leftovers instead. The tofu from the kiosk is fried on the spot in careful slices by a very practiced pair of fox hands. A small disposable serving plate is pulled out, placed, and the stall clerk turns to open a lid and scoop outs something white. These delicate grains are placed on the plate, but only a little for a bed, before the lid is replaced and the heated tofu is scooped and sat atop the rice. Two containers are pulled free, made for squeezing, allowing for two squiggly waves of one pass each of a thick rich sweet soy followed by a red pass of bright red chili sauce. Steam and a sizzle elicit from the finished dish as it is slid onto the counter, ready for payment in speedrun fashion, before the process can be repeated for the second plate. "Chopsticks there. Enjoy," motions the fox in case the eating utensil dispenser wasn't the most obvious, and he does so with a quick five degree bow. There are a couple benches nearby for sitting, as well. Sam even had the right change on hand, just to speed up that already snappy process even further. He still wasn't quite sure what this 'tofu' was, but his snoot was already telling him that this right here was likely going to be at least a seven out of ten, even as he was grabbing the plates and handing one over to his new bear friend. "Alright, yeah." He said, nodding and committing the concept of 'tofu ice cream' to memory so he could note it down in a report later. "Might have to give that a shot sometime." His eyes scanned around for empty benches as his hand reached for the chopsticks, again handing over one of the packs to Riz while quickly opening his own with a quick chomp-tear-pull on the corner of the plastic. Citadel didn't tend to use chopsticks, at least, not on the daily anyhow, though he still at least knew how to use the things. Traders with all sorts of different cuisines, or even citizens coming from cultures bringing previously unfamiliar cuisines along with them weren't exactly uncommon. "Yeah wow this smells pretty great. Lookin' forward to this now gotta say." Not many animals walked around while eating food, even for as many little food stalls as there were amidst the merchandising. It seems that the beasts usually take food or drink to a place to sit or stand and finish before moving on. "Over there looks good." No surprise then that Riz joins Sam in looking for a place to sit and a bench nearby looks large enough for the big bear and tall wolf. Settling in, putting the bag of groceries down nearby gingerly, plate in one hand, a practiced yet careful toothy pull from the bear also helps to snap apart the cheap utensils for one-handed operation, even if they are a bit small in his hand. The tofu, or bean curd, is a golden brown on the outside now beneath the sauces and looks crispy. Within, however, is a mostly flavorless white that could be described as being on the gentler side of 'chewy'. It's a simple food that derives a lot of flavor from seasoning or condiments and the versatility is what makes it so popular as a plant-based protein-heavy food item. It still steams, but it's not really too hot to eat. The soy is more sweet than savory and the chili packs a flavorful kick that puts this simple dish directly in the Snack Food category. For what the tofu doesn't absorb, the small bed of rice beneath is there to keep the remainder from leaking off the plate. Even though Riz lifts a slice to his face, he pauses before eating it to look down at Sam to see his initial reaction with curiosity even as the mini festival buzzes on around them. Sam's sense of taste was, in relative terms, limited. Humanity and most of its offshoots had it far better in that regard, though even with that limitation in mind the oomph from the chili and soy sauce would have probably still broken through even if he completely lacked any taste buds altogether. "Mmm." More of an automatic response than a conscious utterance, especially with how it was paired with the slight side to side flick of his tail. He swallowed hard so he didn't have to speak up through a mouthful of tofu and rice. "Okay, yeah, that's pretty dang good. Guess that soup earlier didn't do it, still hungry enough." It was only after he'd taken his second, then reached for his third bite when he even noticed that look of curiosity from the bear. "What?" There aren't many opportunities where the brown bear finds himself in a situation or conversation where he genuinely smiles. He does. For the moment. Riz even laughs a little, too, before giving his head a bit of a shake and looking back to his own food to eat that bite in waiting after explaining, "I like seeing animals enjoy their food." It was there again, though. A crack in the social veneer; this time for a different reason. Everyone wears a social mask, especially with strangers, so it can be a bit of an experience to see hints of the real personality underneath when folks open up. This is by no means a full meal for the bear, but it makes a good snack for now. He enjoys it as one might treasure any food that one hasn't had in a long while. He eats slowly, one slice at a time, chewing thoroughly and allows his attention to drift over those nearby so as to not allow himself to stare like that again. "So," the bear adds as a conversational aside while looking through the crowd. "You going to that show, then, that vixen invited you to? You didn't already know her, did you?" He pushes some rice together aside the remaining slices of tofu to better soak up the sauce. "She was looking at you like she did." Riz glances over briefly to Sam. Sam smiled as well, it coming combined with a not-quite-laugh 'huff' exhale. "Yeah fair 'nough I guess. Tracks given you were saying about cooking and all that earlier. That been something you've always been interested in?" He took another bite, trying not to fumble with what he saw as slightly awkward 'cutlery'. "Honestly ain't one of my talents gotta admit. Never had the knack. Guess it's mostly practice same as anythin' else but last time I really tried I almost burnt the dang kitchen down." Another bite. Nomf. Swallow. "Still blaming the stove on that one though." It totally wasn't the stove. "Figured I would, yeah, but, never seen her before nah. I figured that look was just a 'damn someone who actually knows how to shoot straight showed up and now I gotta pay up' kinda look, rather than the familiar type." "Yeah, maybe so! It was impressive." For such a small portion the bear can eat sooo slowly. "As for cooking? Well, yeah. I'd like to be a chef one day. I work as a cook at a diner restaurant, but that doesn't let me get to really try things out. That's why I bring so many groceries back to the dorm." He pushes a tofu slice around a bit with his sticks before lifting it. "It's fun to watch Happy Happy Cooking in the kitchen while experimenting with Benny's dishes. Luna is great and all, but Benny's specialization really strikes more toward Carnivore diets, you know? I heard he has his own restaurant now, too. Must be pretty nice to cook for beasts both on and off camera." Lifting the slice, it disappears. Sam on the other hand was a much faster eater. It wasn't like he was lacking in manners or anything of that sort, but, the term 'wolfing it down' still came from somewhere and still seemed to apply even when said wolf had thumbs and walked on two legs. "Well again, that's the practice thing there. Been shooting since I was small." He paused a little there, almost imperceptibly, stopping himself from oversharing about a few choice experiences from Citadel. He'd found himself relaxing more and more into this conversation to the point where he had almost forgotten his 'role' so to speak. "Oh yeah? Ain't caught that show yet outside a few highlights, been meaning to. Heard a lot of good things." This line of conversation was probably at least a safer one. "Always got the vibe Luna wasn't a fan of that Benny guy but I get the vibe he knows what he's doing more than she does. Not that I'm an expert by any means." "Yeah, they have a weird tension between them, but it's probably all show business and acting." Riz is an actor. If he sees anything deeper in what is shown on television, he doesn't mention it. "It makes for a fun dynamic that keeps it so popular." It's not like Benny would actually devour Luna. "The tongue in cheek reflection to modern day crime in a cooking show is pretty popular, so they must be doing something right." Modern day crime? Devourings. "Educating the public about proper dietary nutrition while sharing fun dishes to serve to varying breeds of beasts is important. That's why something as simple as tofu can be so important and useful." Riz holds up his last bite in emphasis, then makes it disappear, too. There is a trash bin nearby, too. "Well, my belly is happier now. We can browse a bit more on the way to find where the show is going to be? I'll follow your lead." | |
