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Tomoro Tenma would never let it be said he was against doing his part. Just that certain chores that others considered simple sometimes confused him at points. For example, Tomoro understood that Glowing Dawn needed toilet paper, but he didn't understand why the local pharmacy that doubled as a convenience store needed a whole aisle of the stuff.
"Which one do we even get?" he asked while scratching the back of his head.
"Two-ply is preferred," Chiropmon answered from the bag slung under Tomoro's arm.
"I know, but which?"
Tomoro backtracked his thoughts. He understood the need for the supply of a basic necessity. What confused him was all the different logos and price tags for a material that all ended up in the same place at the end of the day. It felt like a corporate scheme to trick the average person into spending more money than they should have to.
Tomoro sighed. "How did I get stuck with this job?"
"Tomoro is incompatible with other chores," Chiropmon explained.
"Yeah, yeah…" Tomoro examined the shelves in front of him one more time. "I guess we could get the cheapest one."
"Or you could get the one with the cutest mascot," a new voice chimed in.
At their left, Hitomi Shinomiya approached, shopping basket clasped in both hands in front of her. She smiled brightly, the abundance of choice around them clearly not giving her an existential crisis.
"Hey, Hitomi," Tomoro said as he chose the cheapest pack, stuffing it into one of the baskets at his feet with rest of the supplies he had gathered. "Whatcha up to?"
"Same as you, I bet." Hitomi took another step forward and leaned in ever so slightly.
"Proximity detected," Chiropmon warned.
Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "No Gekkomon today?"
"Kyo wanted us to swap," Tomoro explained. "Said things can go south pretty quick and we need to be adaptable in an emergency."
Tomoro hadn't felt the need to argue against Kyo's request. The rest of Glowing Dawn's digimon weren't as high maintenance as his own partner, and this felt almost doubly so for Chiropmon. The little Rookie was more than content playing the part of a plushie, so long as they could poke their head out of Tomoro's bag and observe their surroundings.
"That makes sense, I suppose," Hitomi said with a shrug.
"I guess…" Tomoro hefted up his shopping baskets, not having much else to say on the matter.
He moved straight to one of the cashiers at the front, only really pausing when the total was rung up. As far as the final price was concerned, Tomoro knew Makoto would be indifferent and Kyo's only concern would be that he got everything they needed, but Reina would scrutinize. He was already mentally preparing himself for when she demanded a receipt to make sure he hadn't gone over-budget.
"You heading home?" Tomoro asked as they stepped outside. He stopped in place to adjust his grip on the bags he was carrying.
"Soon enough," Hitomi answered, rocking back and forth on her heels. "There's an ice cream stand around the corner I like to stop by on the way."
Tomoro nodded. "Well, have fun."
"Twitch detected," Chiropmon spoke up with an urgency usually reserved for the bounties they chased. "Irritation increasing."
Tomoro did a quick double-take, finding that Hitomi had, in fact, stopped smiling while her leaving her eyes locked on him. He backtracked his thoughts again, trying to trace what had happened to upset her.
"Or maybe we'll tag along too?" Tomoro suggested, taking a shot in the dark.
"I'd be fine with that!" Hitomi's eyes lit up again as she grabbed onto his forearm and tugged him along.
"Pupils dilating. Tensions subsiding," Chiropmon relayed calmly.
Tomoro glanced at Hitomi and then down at the digimon. "What was that about?"
"Data unavailable," Chiropmon said after a noticeable pause.
Tomoro sighed. "You gonna want a cone too?"
"Digimon do not gain sustenance from human food."
"That wasn't a no."
Chiropmon paused again. "Strawberry would be acceptable."
Tomoro held himself back from laughing, though let himself smile. Today had simple and relaxing enough, to the point where he actually felt a little disappointed.
Makoto Kuonji would never let it be said that he didn't know how to be discreet. In many cases, discretion was more often than not involved in missions assigned to him and his partner. Of course, when Chiropmon was swapped out for Glowing Dawn's largest and second most indiscreet digimon, it made trips to the hardware store a bit more challenging.
"So how much does that come to?" Makoto asked, hoping to distract the cashier. He pushed forward his prospective purchases, which included tools and circuit breakers needed for repairs on their homes recently short-circuited electrical panel.
"What kind of cat is that?" The cashier simply looked past Makoto, eyes wide and nervous.
"Woof," Cougarmon said apathetically.
"They're a…" Makoto hesitated as he presented his Sapotama for payment. "...service animal. I just forgot their vest."
The cashier completed the transaction, though without taking his eyes off Cougarmon. Feeling they had outstayed their welcome, Makoto accepted the plastic bag presented to him and immediately stepped out of the store. While the shopping district was not empty by any means, it was less cramped and gave them room to move about without attracting as much attention, assuming they did not draw it to them.
"You don't have to come into the stores with me, Cougarmon," Makoto suggested, trying to sound polite.
"I'm supposed to look after you today," Cougarmon replied, keeping his voice calm and his eyes pointed forward.
"I don't recall Kyo specifying that."
"No, but it's what he would want."
Makoto held back his response, though mostly due to being distracted by the hobby shop they were walking past. Pausing to inspect the display in the front window, Makoto's eyes zeroed in on a pair of familiar action figures. One red and one blue, they were a pair of costumed superheroes from a show that aired few years back, where said heroes would protect their city from an assortment of monsters using a variety of gadgets and giant robots.
These action figures also represented Makoto's last happy memories of his childhood home before he was forced to leave. Memories of Sunday mornings sitting in front of the family television set with his twin brother, watching weekly adventures unfold before them. For the first time since reuniting with Tsukasa, he wondered how many old toys and memories his brother had held onto.
"What are those?" Cougarmon inspected the window display.
Makoto shook his head free of the flashback. "Just toys."
Cougarmon looked from Makoto to the display again. "You gonna buy them?"
Makoto took a step back from the window. "It's not really in our budget."
Cougarmon tilted his head, not looking back at him. "Kyo said the last bounty paid pretty well."
Makoto paused to consider. Using the Glowing Dawn communal fund was not an option, but each of them also held onto their own share when bounty profits were divvied up. More on his mind was that this toy would be a gift, and there was no certainty on how it would be received.
"Maybe I'll get one," Makoto said, taking a step back towards the store. "For my brother."
"Aren't they a matching set?" Cougarmon questioned.
"They are…"
Makoto hesitated again. While he and Tsukasa were maintaining more regular contact, there did still seem to be some kind of barrier between them. A gift was one thing, but maybe an olive branch would be more effective.
"I guess it can't hurt," Makoto conceded, remembering the blue hero had always been his own favorite.
Makoto stepped into the store, almost not thinking twice about Cougarmon following him inside.
"What is that?" the cashier shouted on seeing them.
"Bork," was Cougarmon's halfhearted reply.
Makoto sighed, reminded that stealth and discretion were not strengths his entire team shared.
Reina Sakuya would never let it be said she couldn't be patient. Said patience just had its limits, and she was certain that anyone would be pushed past their breaking point if they were forced to shop for groceries while in the company of Gekkomon.
"There's still room in the basket, ya know!" Gekkomon perked up, tongue latching onto some a box of some sugary snack that they decidedly did not need.
For what was far from the first time that day, Reina reached out, intercepting Gekkomon's tongue with one hand and prying the box free with her other. Reflexively, she yanked the digimon forward.
"For the last time, stop it!" Reina hissed, before pausing to look over her shoulder. This aisle was empty, but the store was also small and cramped enough that they could likely be heard by anyone in the vicinity. She released the digimon's tongue and let it snap back into his head.
"Come on," Gekkomon piped up indignantly. "Tomoro would buy me some, ya know."
Reina raised an eyebrow. "No, he wouldn't."
Gekkomon raised a hand to respond, then exhaled. "Nah, you're right. One time he tried to telling me the reason I was so hungry was because I wasn't actually hungry at all. Called it inverse archaeology."
"You mean reverse psychology?"
"That's what I said."
Gekkomon cut himself off to sniff the air around them. Not to smell the food itself, but something else seemed like it caught his attention. Reina checked her surroundings, though didn't have to perform an extensive search.
"Get out of the way!" someone shouted near the front of the store.
Reina crept closer, finding a standoff between the store's manager and a masked figure at the main entrance. The latter held a bag stuffed with groceries in one hand and nervously waved around a handgun in the other.
"Put everything back!" the manager demanded, firmly gesturing at the bag with the wooden baseball bat in her hand.
"Look, I'm not looking to hurt anyone!" the shoplifter shot back. "Just move!"
The manager took a step closer despite the threat, though was stopped when a trio of throwing stars knocked the bat from her hands. All eyes darted to an opposite corner, a gray owl digimon wearing a purple ninja outfit standing there with a pile of groceries at their feet.
A memory shook loose from the back of Reina's mind of the bounties that had been on display the last time they were at Maki's. A shoplifter spotted coordinating with a Falcomon, not worth more than a few thousand credits. Clearly amateurs, as their plan must have not accounted for any employees wanting to fight back.
"They're gonna hurt someone, ya know," Gekkomon whispered.
Reina nodded. "Go for the gun on my mark."
"Hey!" Reina snatched a can off the shelf to her right, pitching it at the shoplifter. He turned just in the time for the can to collide with the center of his face.
As the hand with the gun flailed in the air, Gekkomon snapped to a nearby shelf, tongue lashing forward to yank the firearm from the robber's hand. Either due to it being a fake or just dumb luck, the weapon didn't go off.
More throwing stars flew through air, forcing Gekkomon to leap from aisle to aisle to dodge. Reina ducked back in the her current aisle, rounding a corner so the Falcomon was in her sights. She charged, though the avian dashed just a bit faster. They shoulder-checked her, knocking her down.
"SWING TACKLE!"
Spinning with an almost unrealistic amount of momentum, Gekkomon blindsided Falcomon, crashing into the side of the avian digimon's head. Falcomon collapsed into the nearest shelf, tipping it over and causing every subsequent aisles to topple over like dominoes.
This gave Reina a clear view of the shoplifter, having decided that now was the time to turn-tail and run. With Falcomon subdued, Gekkomon perked back up.
"I need another boost, ya know!"
Reina nodded as she grabbed hold of Gekkomon's center mass and took aim.
"Hey, where ya goin'?" Reina hurled the reptilian Rookie forward, leading to him crashing into the back of the shoplifter's head, knocking him to the ground.
"Jackpot!" Reina cheered as she watched Gekkomon subdue their bounty. Not as big a payout as their last one, though enough that she started doing the math in her head on how it would bring them in the green for the day's errands.
"Ahem!" The store manager suddenly appeared at her side, gesturing at the mess around them.
A twitch came to Reina's left eye as she adjusted her math to account for damages. Gekkomon had gladly followed her lead, whereas Pristimon probably would have suggested an approach with more finesse, and for good reason.
Kyo Sawashiro would never let it be said that he made decisions arbitrarily. He couldn't, not when his choices affected seven other individuals. So he tried to be deliberate, providing what he could and imparting what lessons he had to give for what he couldn't do himself.
Thankfully, not every day was an emotionally charged life lesson. Some days were as simple completing regular chores. Not that he sat idly by, of course, as said chores were assigned. On this occasion, he had ended up with the task of cleaning Glowing Dawn's home, currently rounding things out with the kitchen.
"How are things looking up there?" Kyo asked his partner for the day.
"Dust free," Pristimon answered confidently from one the higher shelves.
"Then how about a reward for hard work?" Kyo was already pouring two cups of tea.
"They'll call you a saint one day, Kyo." Pristimon gently touched down on the counter in question, setting aside her dust rag to pick of her cup.
"We'll see about that." Kyo quickly took his first sip. Looking back, he didn't think it was possible for any scale to tip that far in his favor.
"How do you think the others are doing?" Pristimon asked, after a deep inhale of the tea's aroma.
"They're probably on their way back by now."
Pristimon lowered her cup slightly, arching an eyebrow. "So what's the real reason you had us swap today?"
Kyo found his attention drawn back to her teacup. The fancy cup, the one Pristimon insisted made the tea smell better. He supposed that was the point, the smaller things he felt obligated to know about each member of his family.
"Just like I said," Kyo simplified. "Doesn't hurt to be adaptable."
In his eyes, Glowing Dawn wasn't four Cleaner pairs living under the same roof. They were eight members of a family, a family Kyo would spend the rest of his life earning if he had to. That meant time getting to know each individual, and how best to support them.
The answer seemed to satisfy Pristimon, at least while attention was drawn to her actual partner coming through the front door. Her enthusiasm waned, however, a disgruntled Reina drawing closer to them with groceries in her hands. For his part, Kyo's eyes gravitated to Gekkomon, who followed closely behind with an open box of cookies in his hands and a Pabumon riding atop his head.
"Are you alright, Reina?" Pristimon asked, taking a step closer to the edge of the counter.
"Just perfect," Reina answered through her teeth.
"We're back," Tomoro's voice cut in, Reina's attention instantly snapping to him.
She set her bags down and presented an open hand to him. "Receipt. Now."
Tomoro rolled his eyes. "Can I at least get inside first?"
"Chop, chop!" Reina hastily snapped her fingers. "Time is money."
Tomoro handed over his Sapotama. "Are you gonna do this to Makoto?"
"Makoto doesn't spend money on things we don't need."
"When have I ever done that?"
Reina gestured downwards. "That box of cookies Gekkomon is demolishing."
"They're good, ya know!" The Rookie gave an oblivious thumbs up.
"You bought those!" Tomoro jabbed an accusing finger forward.
Reina raised an eyebrow. "For Gekkomon."
"So take it out of his share!"
"I get a share?" Gekkomon asked with a confused look on his face.
"Everyone gets an eighth," Kyo offered.
"What's an eighth again?"
"Twelve-point-five percent," Chiropmon explained.
"Half of a half of a half," Pristimon clarified.
"Oh…" Gekkomon scratched his chin, though it was a tossup as to whether he actually understood.
By this point, Chiropmon wrestled free of Tomoro's bag, over to the approaching Makoto. Kyo noted a pair of boxes in the boy's hands, separate from the bag from the hardware store.
"How long have they been arguing?" Makoto asked, after taking a wide berth around Reina and Tomoro.
Kyo shrugged. "Not that long."
Makoto nodded before moving away again. "I'm just going to run to my room and then begin those repairs."
"I'll get dinner started in the meantime." Kyo turned to his own partner, gently scratching him behind the ear. "How were your errands?"
"Uneventful," Cougarmon answered with a shrug. "Makoto's a good kid."
"What's this extra charge for ice cream?" Reina snapped before Kyo could say anything further. She shoved the sapotama in her hand back in its owner's face.
"You know, I don't even care anymore," Tomoro groaned halfheartedly.
"Are you doing that inverse archaeology thing again?" Gekkomon chimed in.
"Reverse psychology!" Tomoro and Reina snapped back simultaneously.
"Reina…" Pristimon sighed.
Kyo broke away, not bothering to hold back the smile he felt forming on his face. Hearing his family in the background helped him concentrate.