Courage Building [Ophelia]

[Ophelia]

All in all, past the initial glances cast Toki's way, it didn't take long for the customers present to turn their attentions back to their own business. It seemed that as far as anyone cared, he wasn't all that unusual - just a new face in the area.

When Ophelia glanced back to Toki though, she would notice his nervous demeanor - both in scent, and in reading his expression. She would decide to slow her steps a little so that she could reach back and hold his hand, her tailtip perked and swishing. "It's alright," She spoke with a grin, squeezing his hand slightly. "We're all friends here! And V would kick their ass if anyone ever tried to give us trouble under his 'n Ryuu's roof."

In regards to Toki's age though, Ophelia would take a moment to process it all, before nodding. "Human age is a bit odd - but I guess it's more... Consistent, than digimon age?" She mused out loud - thoughtfully tapping the tip of one of her claws on the table. She'd soon flash him a bright smile though, adding in response to his gratitude "Of course! We all gotta stick together one way or another, yeah?"

Briefly, Ophelia would mull over something. "Though going back to that and what you mentioned about this Aylin... Yeah, usually us Rookies are basically considered old enough to take care of our own shit and watch our own backs - but it isn't weird for us to stick with our parents or guardians until we get bigger, either?" She spoke, thinking back to her own upbringing. "I guess the closest thing to human adulthood is when we reach Champion? But that isn't always exact either. You just kinda... Tend to know, when another digimon's mature or not."

And speaking of other Rookies... Ophelia, for a moment, looked as though she was gonna mention something else. However, she would instead pause, her ears briefly twitching and swiveling as she soon heard Valt's approach.

Glancing over to the Vmon, the young lioness would grin brightly - responding "Hell yeah, V! This is Toki - he's a uh, an Angoramon!" It had taken her a second to remember the species name - briefly glancing towards Toki incase he had to correct her at all. Nonetheless, she'd continue "He's new - but I met him out in the city, and we had a quick spar. He's pretty good! And he's cool! And nice! And his fur's cozy!"

Briefly though, she couldn't help but turn her attention to Toki with curiosity in her eyes - asking "By the way... Are you from someplace cold, like I am? That's why my fur tends to get all thick and fluffy like this!"

Although... Maybe saying that Toki was 'new' like she did wasn't exactly right, since it could imply he was a digimon who just crossed over - but it was the best way Ophelia could put it. She wasn't sure if he'd appreciate her just dropping all of the baggage he had mentioned to her here and now, after all - he could decide when to talk about it.

For their orders though, Ophelia already knew what she wanted. "Ehehehe - you know me, V - Cordon Bleu!" She spoke eagerly, ears perked and tail twitching. Nothing like a meaty meal, to refuel after a good spar! "What about you, Toki?"

[Toki Akiyama]

The chef was a lot different than he imagined. He seemed like a former fighter, or someone who really likes to stay in shape given his build. Either way, he was never one to judge someone based on their build when it came to their job. He seemed more focus on getting orders out, while the Vmon spoke to them directly. At his question, he stammered, unsure of what to say about that, but Ophelia helped him out by introducing him. "Y-yes. My name is Toki...an Angoramon." He repeated with a slow nod of his head.

He tried to puzzle together what Ophelia meant about human and Digimon age. Humans were more...consistent? "Do Digimon fluctuate a lot in terms of...well, how they grow up and mature? I see some Digimon that act like curious children, but then I see another of the same type that acts like an aloof teenager or wizened adult. It's all very confusing to me and a lot to take in." Now that she mentioned it, he did feel as if he could tell a Digimon's strength at a glance. A kind of aura. Setsuna's was almost suffocating to those who don't expect his presence. Not in a bad way...it's just overwhelming at first.

He stammered slightly as Ophelia kept listing off positive adjectives about him, a blush forming as he tugged at his ears lightly "You're overselling me, Ophelia..." he said under his breath. "I-I was born and raised in Goldenview just across the river...it never seemed too cold to me..." He winced a bit "Ah...oh don't...don't worry about that. It's nothing I want to trouble strangers with." He said to Valt with a nervous sigh.

He listened to the recommendations "Oh you serve pizza here...hm...but you know I'll have the Cordon Bleu too..." He smiled softly, though seemed surprised at Valt's generosity "Y-you don't have to do...hm...come to think of it I don't have any of my money on me...s-so I guess I have no choice but to take you up on that offer. Th-thanks." he bowed his head appreciatively.

[taiyou]

Valt listened to their back and forth with quite the interest. However, one thing that caught his attention is how Toki mentioned that he lived in Goldenview... that, and how he's unsure about his own species. That definitely raised an interest in the blue dragon's mind. That, and added with the information... could it be?

He looked around for any Digivice or similar device that could be an explanation of this form... Which... he doesn't find any he think... which meant... Oh dear. They got a "completely" new Digimon here, don't they? Valt takes notes on the order sheet before looking back up at the two of them. "I don't know your circumstances, and I don't want to poke in too unnecessarily, but... From what I can gather is that you're not used to "this life" at all. And you know, it's good to have friends. If you need to talk or anything, I'm all ears. When the shop is open for human, just knock on the backdoor. If I'm around I'll be with you after. I might be weakened severely at the moment, but it doesn't change that I have spent more than six years human world time with my human partner. I had my shares of battles, both physical and mental."

Valt gently scratched at the scars etched on his skin. Claw marks, cut marks, some suggests very high heat also involved. As if trying to shoo off the lingering feelings though, the Vmon subspecies with black sclera smirked. "...Well, don't worry about it. You might notice, I have tendency to pick up protege. Although you have your own, you don't have to just limit your ranting to your sensei. Sometimes it's easier to speak to strangers. Anyway, I'll get your food ready. Would you like some juices or anything like that?"

He walked to the counter, tore the paper off the board and inserted it to a machine.

"Order, two cordon bleu. The usual. Supersize one of them, could ya?"

"Aye, gotcha," a voice from the kitchen answered.

Valt then grabbed a pitcher of chilled water and two glasses, putting them on Ophi and Toki's table. He seem to also snuck in a bottle of sake, which he poured for himself. The blue dragon sipped the alcoholic drink with care.

"Enjoy your stay and take your time. Have you been sleeping well? If you haven't, you can take a nap in the staff breakroom later after you done eating. We got a bed your size. Your fur might be thick, but having a bed to sleep in would be better I say. Retaining some of the old normalcy. Although I wouldn't say it's exactly... normal situation."

[Ophelia]

"Yeah, at least from what I've seen." Ophelia confirmed, in regards to how digimon aged. "I guess it's a little bit more consistent for digimon who are, well, newly born? But digimon who've been reborn tend to vary a lot." She mused out loud with a shrug of one of her shoulders. It didn't immediately register to her, however, that she might need to explain the concept of digimon rebirth to Toki. "Like - this is my first life, and though I've been growing a bit faster than my siblings, we're otherwise growing at about the same speed, I think."

Toki becoming flustered under Ophelia's positivity, however, would make the Spadamon grin brightly. "Like hell I am - you're cool!" She responded, her tail swishing eagerly. "I've never seen a Rookie your size before, and fighting with you's fun!"

The mention of Goldenview would have the little lioness perk curiously, though. "I don't think I've been out there yet - what's it like?" She asked. Really, she tended to stick around the city itself - there was already plenty there for her to explore, after all!

Valt soon would offer Toki some words of comfort, though - and though Ophelia would initially be quiet to listen to her teacher's words, she'd soon smile to the Angoramon and add in support "Fuck yeah - we've got your back, if you need it! We all gotta look out for each other, in the big city, yeah?"

The question of something to drink would be met with a shake of Ophelia's head, though. "Just water's good, V."

Once the Vmon had walked away with their orders though, Ophelia would turn her attention to Toki - smiling brightly. "See? 's all good here, Toki!" She'd chirp, unable to help a slight purr of contentedness. "Even if you've got some weird shit on your shoulders, you're not alone in dealing with it."

[Toki Akiyama]

He listed to Valt intently, large hands clasped together nervously. "Six years? So...this isn't entirely new? I'm honestly kind of amazed I haven't heard anything remotely resembling Digimon before then..." He said, deep in thought. He sighed a little "Thank you...I'll be sure to take you up on that offer. Yes, it's been...a new experience to say the least. One that's equal parts scary and...amazing in its own strange ways."

He smiled softly "I appreciate your advice, Valt, thank you. And um...yeah, any kind of fruit juice would be good...if you've got strawberry lemonade for the season that'd be great too." He said, opening up a little bit. "I'll probably take a little bit of time to rest up after dinner, yeah...I definitely need a good night's sleep in a bed after all of htis."

"Reborn...first life...that's just wild to me. Humans get one life and that's it...no do overs. Well there are plenty of cultures who believe in reincarnation...but this is still very different." He smiled at Ophelia's praise "Okay okay, thanks." He said with a chuckle "I'm glad I can be fun company. As for Goldenview, it's a pretty quiet place. A lot quieter than the city that's for sure. My family lives there and they run a karate dojo. They're a little more detached from the technological boom the city's undergoing, but they're not completely technophobic."

All was good...he for sure wasn't alone. He'd be a fool to think otherwise. There was a lot he still had to get done but he'd get there in due time. He sighed in contentment "Thanks...really just...thanks. This is something that certainly doesn't happen to everyone, so I might as well push through it the best I can, right? Everyone I've met since has been so supportive of me...I really need to just rip off this bandage and go talk to my parents soon and explain everything."

He then looked around and spoke softly to Ophelia and Valt. "...just...be careful of a Digimon named Percival. Humanoid, long black hair and bright blue eyes. They're the ones responsible for this."

[taiyou]

Angoramon... is tall yeah. He never seen this Digimon before in his original server, or perhaps it's because he haven't really traveled to all corner of said Digital World's server. But even then, that's least of his concern right now. "Well, to be fair, I wasn't here six years ago. I came from Japan," he explained. "Unfortunately... let's just say there have been an unfortunate incident that caused me to lost about... 98% of my actual power. As much as we have allies, we also have so many enemies. With heavy heart, we decided to move here while looking for explanation of our sudden power loss. Plus... It's seem digital activity spikes higher in this city... it's why we decided to come here. We don't know how much of the two Digital World lines up in its law and features, so you can say despite being veteran, we're all in new waters that we have no idea how it worked. We don't even know if we could enter the Digital World server of this place."

Valt nodded. "Lemon strawberry it is? We got some yeah. Lemme place order of that for ya."

When Valt returned, he wasn't alone. The chef from before also came carrying the orders. "Woah, fluffy..." Ryouta muttered. As expected, both the Digimon and human are quite heavily scarred, but there's just a gentle aura around Ryouta that makes him looks more like a youthful teen than an actual adult who graduated from a cooking school.

"Oh, um, nevermind that. Anyway, your order. Cordon Bleu, supersized." it was indeed a cordon bleu that have been cut into several portions, accompanied with french fries and a heap of healthy salad on the side. On the sauce bowl is a white, creamy sauce that seems to smell kind of mushroomy too. "Please do eat it while it's still warm. If you need any rice, that's also free, but I don't know if people over here eats cordon bleu with rice or not..." he chuckled. But even after he said that, the chef lingered for a bit, as if trying to form what he'll say next carefully.

"Sorry, can't help but to listen the part what you said before... You are, until recently... a human aren't you?" Ryouta asked. "Valt have told me a bit, but... if you need a help to talk to your parents about your current condition, I could help you on that front. I mean, I'm a human who have been involved with Digimon for so long that I could positively say they steered my formative teenage years to where I am right now... But still, I didn't chose that life so to say. I didn't jump in willingly. It chose me. It forces me to stay in. During those times, I wished I have allies that just unrelated to that side of the world, so they could back me up if something goes south. Ideally that would be my parents and siblings.

Unfortunately back then I couldn't tell my parents, not until halfway of that six years and by then it caused some... justified concerns and very harsh knee jerk reactions. So, how to say... if you need someone to help you to break it in to your parents, I can help you. It's better to say it sooner than later, especially because mental health is very important in our side of the business, if you get what I mean. But only do it when you're ready."

Percival? "A named Digimon," Valt mused, rubbing his chin. "Ophi, I forgot to ask, but is it common for Digimon of this part to have names?"

[Ophelia]

Ophelia wouldn't comment too much on Valt and Toki's discussions, regarding their mutual experiences. A lot of Valt's side was stuff she knew already, having been his student for some time now - whereas she wasn't really sure what to say to Toki's own experiences, given that she was born and raised a digimon.

What she would respond to though, was the question of entering the Digital World. "I mean... I've been hearing lots about digimon coming here - but I haven't heard anything about anyone... Being able to find a way back." She murmured, scratching her cheek a little. "But there oughta be some way, right? We just haven't found it yet!" Else, that'd be a good number of digimon stranded in a whole other world - and a majority of them didn't come here on purpose....

That Toki would be taking a nap after dinner would put a smile on Ophi's face, the young cub visibly eager. "Hell yeah! We can snuggle while we sleep off the good food!" She'd chirp, her tail swishing side to side eagerly. There wasn't any better way to end the night than with a cuddlebuddy and a full stomach, if you asked her!

The talk about Goldenview would make her curious, however. Particularly in that it was quieter - and that there also was apparently a karate dojo! That had her ears perking visibly, her tail twitching. "Oh - karate is a fighting style some humans like using, right?" She asked, her intrigue clear. "Is that the sort of style you were using when we were sparing earlier?"

Then came the cordon bleus - with Ryouta in tow! "Hey Ryuu!" Ophelia would greet him - grinning brightly. "This is Toki!"

As far as the food went though Ophelia, safe to say, was instantly ready to tear right into her meal with plenty of zeal. She at least had the table manners to know how to properly use utensils and to not make a mess - but if Toki didn't yet understand the ferocious appetite that some digimon could have, then he was going to learn today!

Her fork would hang out of her mouth as the subject of Toki wanting to talk to his parents about all of this came up - and her tail would swish a little. "Maybe I could also come with?" She asked, after swallowing a mouthful of food. "I could help you talk to them too! And maybe once you guys have it all talked out, you all could teach me karate-stuff too?" Of course, there was the question of how she'd help Toki, but... Maybe she could provide moral support! That was always good, right?

(But also, she couldn't help but look forward to the idea of learning new fighting styles.)

Though, then came the mention of Percival. A humanoid digimon with black hair and blue eyes... She'd nod a little at this - filing away the information for later, as she nibbled a little on her fries. Maybe she could ask the other patrons, if they'd seen anyone like that?

At Valt's question, she'd be quiet initially to mull it over, but... "... It's kinda rare, I guess? My family all have names - so it's something I kinda was used to growing up. But it ain't weird, either. Most other digimon I've met just never saw as much point to giving themselves names, except for individuality or just cause it's cool." She'd explain, tapping a claw on the table. "I think a couple digimon who've found human partners gave themselves names, or were given names by their human partners, though. So maybe some digimon will start picking up names as they make friends with humans?" She shrugged a shoulder. It made sense to her, at the very least.

[Toki Akiyama]

"Japan? So this really isn't a localized thing...Digimon have been around for that long in other parts of the world, huh...? I'm surprised there isn't more information in that case...people must be trying really hard to keep them on a need to know basis. Not that I can really blame them. I can understand the secrecy here." There were different servers? Did that mean that one place's Digital World was completely different from another's? This was fascinating...

His face lit up happily as they did indeed have strawberry lemonade. It was his favorite drink. He did blush slightly from Ryouta's reaction to him, scratching at his cheek bashfully. Everything looked delicious. He bowed his head before he began to eat. The flavors were perfect and the meat was cooked to perfection. It was the first real meal he's had in a while. He listened as Ryouta offered to help him break the news to his parents. "I...wow. I didn't really expect this kind of support...y-yeah...I think I'd like the help. It'd be easier to explain with people more experienced in all this than I am."

He looked at Ophelia when she talked about eventually finding a way back "When you do find a way back...well...I'd love to see it. I want to know more. Everything I can." He said. As he ate, he thought about how to answer her question. "It's strange...these techniques just sort of naturally came to me, but they seem to be inspired by my training as a martial artist...so in a sense yes, it was the style I was using..."

As he ate, the two of them discussed Digimon with names. "Is it really so strange to have individual names? What happens when two Digimon of the same species meet? Does it ever get confusing?" He asked, hoping it wasn't a strange or insensitive question.

[taiyou]

"The fact that you can't come in and go as you please makes me wonder what's the law is in this land," Valt mused. "You can cross to this side, but not the other way around...? .......Come to think of it, do you still remember about what happened before you crossed? Or have you heard anything about human world from any Digimon from the other side? I'm quite curious..."

"That's correct," Ryouta answered Toki's question about the other world. "I mean, if there's a common knowledge about it, I think it would cause certain level of chaos. I don't know how much the government know though... We... kinda always steered clear from government due to perceived fear that... if we come close to them they might do morally reprehensible stuff to us or our Digimon... or even both and no one would know about it.

Either way... the fact that there are Digimons here, and the fact that humans began having contact with them means that our decision to come here was not wrong. Perhaps we can understand more about what happened to us if we get more involved with the Digital Incident of this side of the world. However... maybe Valt already told you but we're pretty much down in dumps power wise."

Ryouta brought his hand closer to his face and call forth a bit of Digisoul. Silverish flame like-aura flickers around his hand. The embers that it let out looked blocky like how data would. "...Back in the past I could coat my entire body with this, you know? But now, meh," he shrugged.

Is it strange? "Hmmm, rather than strange, more like, think of it like this," Valt began "say that an isolated society in where the populace names themselves in Anglo-Saxon names suddenly have someone who have names that came from asian origin. Yet that person is local. The analogy is like that. Digimons doesn't generally have personal names unless named, or somehow have tradition of naming themselves. The latter is usually isolated cases. So let's just say that it's 2% of the whole population. Thing is... from where did they get this habit of naming themselves if they haven't been in contact of humans?"

"Hence the strangeness," Ryouta concluded. "Because it either means that they have been here long enough to find naming themselves to be something they'd like to do, or that they knew about this side more than their peer. Either way, 98% of it means they're big players or sort. The 2% would mean that it's probably some sort of tradition, but... I'm leaning on big player."

[Ophelia]

At the question of what Ophelia remembered about crossing over, the Spadamon nodded. "Before I crossed over, I had stopped at some little village or whatever. 'Mons were talking about some weird gap in the air - one you could see and hear shit through. Another place, with you humans, and cars passing by. A lot of them were scared about checking it out, I think...? But I figured it'd be fine if I went through, with a couple other 'mons." She explained, leaning back in her seat a bit as she idly nibbled on a piece of cordon bleu, on the end of her fork.

"When we came through, it was like... Right outside the city, we fell down a little ways. We were at the foot of some old electronic billboard. But when we looked back, at where we fell from... There gap was gone." Like the door had closed behind them, or had been one-way to begin with. Scratching her cheek, she'd remark "But I've heard like... I guess a fuckton of ways that digimon have ended up here? Some fall asleep or pass out and wake up here, others walk through a door and end up somewhere they're not supposed to... It's not one single thing, and it's weird as hell, if you ask me."

Toki expressed interest in seeing the Digital World though, which made the young Spadamon blink, before grinning brightly. "Oh hell yeah!" She agreed without hesitation, her tail swishing. "We could go exploring together, maybe tag-team and wrestle someone like a big ol Greymon!" A lot of the digimon she'd seen were primarily Rookies - with maybe a handful of Champions here and there, but certainly none big enough to really pose a proper exciting fight. Honestly, Ophelia couldn't help but wonder why...

Though after a second, a thought would pop in Ophelia's head - as she glanced to Valt and Ryouta. "Hey, hey V- Ryuu- Maybe Toki could join, next time we spar and train a bunch?" She asked the duo, grinning brightly - her eagerness clear. "It'd be fun as hell!"

But the subject of names was certainly a curious one - and at the mention of strangeness, Ophelia shrugged a shoulder. "It ain't too weird, just not common. We don't really need proper names to tell each other apart - from my personal experience, we sometimes use titles or a notable detail about them to convey who we're talking about. But otherwise, we know other digimon by their signal." She spoke - tapping her fork on the plate as she thought to herself. "Like. We got what humans could call a 'sixth sense' or someshit for one another I guess? Even if I couldn't see, hear, or smell you and whatnot... I know you're right there next to me. And I know it's you, and not some other random fucker. I can sense your signal."

Sure, sometimes signals got muddled with one another in gatherings of digimon - she certainly would have a hard time picking out one signal from the other customers around them. But in this close of proximity, she could recognize and 'read' Toki's signal and Valt's signal without issue.