Zenshu

They'd spent nearly three hours at the small restaurant, trying a variety of menu items. Eventually the staff had been kind enough to offer small, sample pieces at a lower price, something that had come as a shock to Zenshu. He'd had no qualms paying the full price, but he had to admit that it had been nice to receive the smaller portions, allowing them to taste test more as the night went on. When they had eventually left, he'd made a promise to the shop owner to return, noting the enjoyment that they'd found in each and every dish. "It really was a nice place, wasn't it Kagay? We shoul

Kagay's expression appeared almost confused to Zenshu as he'd muttered the statement. As much as he'd like to think that the fox was confused, or perhaps even hurt, at the concept of them not having known each other forever, Zenshu knew there was likely another answer to the companion's expression. A reaction which told him that the fox didn't quite feel the same, in a way. Not that Zenshu blamed it - he was aware that it was still just a digital creation; something that was a part of Cardinal, and thus was capable of telling apart the amount of time they'd spent together - perhaps far better

They'd settled into a booth in a nearby restaurant once they had reached the sixth floor. One that offered a collection of local foods, varying between land-based meats, seafoods, and vegetables grown somewhere on the floor. Zenshu had made the decision to head down to the small village of Krycim, knowing that their home floor had nothing to offer in means of edibles and goods. The location had been one that he had stumbled across some time ago, and he'd been meaning to try it out. "Today seems like the best possible day to come here, right Kagay? I mean, it's not often we go out to eat,

Zenshu and Kagay's celebration didn't last overtly long, with the fox eventually calming enough to contain it's bouncing. Zenshu wondered if there was anything more to focus on with the fox's training, but his thoughts were interrupted as a confirmation of the quest's completion appeared before him. Almost in surprise, Zenshu had cleared away the message, glancing towards Kagay with a soft smile in his eyes, and a large grin on his face. "Well, looks like we completed the quest. We can pick out your actual skill in a bit...for now, why don't we take some time to truly celebrate this succe

The smile split across his face as he paused, pushing the seconds further and further out. It didn't take long for the agitation to show in the fox's small movements; the way Kagay's eyes narrowed slightly, the curl of the very corner of it's lip, even the small twitching of it's tail. Zenshu was careful not to press it too far, clasping his hands together suddenly and continuing where he had left off with a cheerful tone. "...you found everything, perfectly. I'm so proud of you, Kagay! You did an amazing job! I mean, really, I know you found it all a while ago, and were just making secondary.

The trick had worked, to a degree, as Kagay had begun racing around the room in search of the hidden pieces. Zenshu found himself once more trying not to laugh as the small fox frantically ran, grabbed, and deposited piece after piece before him, as if suddenly believing there was a time limit associated with it's chance of success. He'd almost raised his voice to stop the fox, before realising that it may be more beneficial to allow it to search in earnest, considering that it had relaxed and taken it's time before. Perhaps it's not a bad thing to have both sides of the coin practiced..

He'd managed to completely organise everything he owned before Kagay had found the next piece, something that had both caused him concern, as well as a bit of comfort. It was clear that the small fox was taking it's time to complete the task it had been given, and Zenshu had an odd feeling that it was a measure of respect that the fox was showing. Or at least, something that he could apply the idea of respect towards; an ideal that made it seem like the fox was being considerate and thorough. "Still...you don't need to take all night to find the items that I hid. I mean, unless you're rea

Kagay had spent the better part of a half hour sniffing the remainder of the shop, bringing no further items to Zenshu as it seemed to check every area. For a while, Zenshu had watched in amazement and curiosity at the thoroughness that the fox was taking, but as time slowly dragged on, he found himself becoming restless. He knew that he couldn't leave the area - that would signify something disastrous for the fox's training regime, he knew, but he also found that he was unable to simply watch any further. In order to attempt to compromise, Zenshu opened up his menu and began sorting thro

He settled into a seated position as Kagay began moving around the room, it's nose poking into various areas as it began it's search. Zenshu watched with curiosity as Kagay moved passed a number of the items that he had placed, clearly having spotted them and yet leaving them untouched for a time being. He focused on his own breathing, careful not to let slip any signs of recognition as the fox came close, or encountered one of the items - not wanting to corrupt or affect the training in any negative way. Moments had passed, with Zenshu watching in a passive, interested way, before Kagay

He'd checked numerous times to ensure that Kagay had entered the closet as directed, surprised to find that the fox had done so willingly. Somehow, whether it was his own mistrust or due to the simple thought that the fox would be worried about the consequences of such an action, Zenshu had thought that it would put up more of a fight regarding being delegated to the closet. Instead, it had waited diligently as Zenshu had moved around the small shop, placing the treasures in various hiding places as quickly and quietly as he could. He doubted that it was going to stop the fox for anything more

He'd hit the end of the list without any response from the fox, and Zenshu found himself staring between the menu before him, and the creature to his side. Seconds slowly passed into a full minute, and while the fox remained staring at him, he had eventually been forced to give up and repeat the list. It hadn't taken long before Kagay had given it's squeak of approval towards the second skill on the list - one which Zenshu had originally passed over as being less than important, all things considered. "Hunting...huh. I hadn't really considered that one, but now that you point it out...ye

"Alright, Kagayaku-kun, here's the thing. We need to decide what it is you're going to focus on for training. There's a few options here...well, actually, more than a few, but I want to know what it is you think would be best. We're a team here, which means we need to work on this together as a team. That means that you get some input into this decision too!" Zenshu spun the menu so that the small fox could look at it, before wondering if the creature could even read. A few seconds of silence passed, before he sighed in sudden realisation of what he'd just done. "Right, my bad...I forgot that

"I guess we should really figure out what it is you and I are going to work on together, shouldn't we?" Zenshu leaned forwards towards the small fox siting nearby, folding his hands slightly in front of him as he spoke. He'd been putting off the conversation for some time now, preferring instead to focus on the fun tricks and commands that they'd been working on during the past hour or two, but he knew that he would eventually have to decide upon their final purpose in the entire training regime. "As much fun as it is to work on all of this...well, the entire point of this training is to event

The training regime had been going impressively well, so much so that Zenshu quickly found himself without anything more to focus on. He'd decided to give the two of them a small break, pulling out a collection of salted meats, cheeses and bread slices to consume for a makeshift luncheon. Kagay had somehow seemed happier as the training had progressed, a sign that Zen hadn't ignored, but hadn't truly had an answer for when he'd originally considered it. As he'd sat and munched on his lunch pieces, watching the small fox with the questions burning in his mind, he'd come to the realisation that

Something seemed to click within the mind of Kagay, and almost instantly it slammed it's rear end into the ground, wagging the tail behind it like a dog as it waited for it's reward. Caught by surprise, Zen was a few seconds delayed on tossing the meat into the reach of the fox, smiling broadly as he realised the success that he'd just had with the training attempt. The fox chewed for a few moments before swallowing the piece, and looking up expectantly for more of the meats - which it could likely smell on the counter behind Zen. "Oh, awesome! You managed that! Well done, Kagay! Well don