[ Lacies ] Initial Encounter

After they had stared at the shop window for a few minutes, Kotoe's sensitive ears picked up on something. "Did you hear that?"

"What?" Ranmaru turned his head slightly to try and pick up on what Kotoe had heard. "Sounds like a kid crying."

"Hmm." Kotoe returned his attention to the shop.

"That's it? You don't want to do anything about it?"

"I just wanted to make sure I wasn't hearing things, that's all."

"Sheesh, you're as unfeeling as ever, aren't you? Come on! It wouldn't be very idol-like to ignore someone who needs help."

"I think you're confusing idols with superheroes..."

Ranmaru grinned. "What's the difference?" 

But Kotoe had no comeback for that, so the two of them—Ranmaru excitedly and Kotoe begrudgingly—made their way to the source of the noise. They were a little surprised to discover another Lacie. While Lacies weren't exactly rare, they were uncommon enough that it was easy for Kotoe and Ranmaru to pass several days without running into one outside of work. Kotoe stared down at the crying bear and frowned. What's all this fuss about? Shouldn't this kid know that crying in the middle of a crowded street isn't going to get him anywhere? he thought. He would have liked nothing more than to ignore the other Lacie and go on with his day. Unfortunately for Kotoe, his partner was the meddling type.

"Hey! Whatcha doin’ crying like that? You lost or something, kid?" Ranmaru asked in a booming voice.

Kotoe squinted at the crying bear child, but couldn't help feigning politeness. "That's too bad. Do you know where you last saw them? We can call the police for you."

Ranmaru, however, fixated on the bandages. "Hey... You know bandaids aren't going to help, right? You need to stitch yourself up or those tears will always be there."

"!" Kotoe had wanted to end the conversation quickly and painlessly, but here was Ranmaru pulling the conversation along. He shot Ranmaru a death glare, which the blue fox chose to ignore.

"Why don't you come back with us? We can help patch you up and then figure out where to find your owner."

Kotoe sighed. "Just because people use them doesn't mean that we can use them. We aren't people, you know." Without warning, he reached out and ripped one of Teddy's bandages off. "If you leave it like this, nothing will happen, see?" The rip was still there, with bits of fluff portruding from Teddy's "skin".

Ranmaru tilted his head thoughtfully. "Maybe getting him mended should be our top priority. There's a mender at the office, right?" He was referring, of course, to their talent agency. It being specifically for Lacie idols, there was an entire team of people working there that helped with Lacie upkeep and health.

Kotoe, however, had been looking forward to their break. "I don't want to go back to the office yet. We still have an hour left." And this kid is nothing to us were the words he left unsaid. Ranmaru could read his partner's mood well enough--he simply didn't care right now.

With a big grin, he reached down and took Teddy by the hand, then pulled him in the direction of their talent agency office. "For now, let's get you mended! You won't get very far if you're all wounded and stuff."