World Tree MUSH

Today Miwa had been invited to perform at the Aether House, an orphanage for both children and pokemon which also serves as a base for the Aether Foundation, so occasionally some scientists will be doing work there. She invited any of her friends who might want to come watch if they'd like as well. Currently the stage was set, with a large gathering of children and pokemon gathered before it, and a few of the adults of the house, including it's 'headmaster' an Oranguru, a purple and white pokemon resembling an orangutan, with a golden star-like marking in the center of it's forehead, and it holds a fan created from green leaves woven together with it's own purple fur. 

 As the show is ready to begin, Miwa's voice can be heard before she appears, as she rises in a bubble through a trap door in the stage. She bursts the bubble and bows to the audience as they all cheer, a happy smile beaming off her face. As the cheering dies down she greets the gathered crowd. "I am so happy to be here to put on a show for all of you. This is honestly something I've wanted to do for a long time. But enough talking, shall we get this started?" She asks with a grin as the cheers resume.

Bewul figured that, in order to help his friend seem a bit less... on edge around humans, something like visiting Miwa's home world might help. He is a bit uncertain on how the whole 'pokemon trainer' thing worked, but otherwise, most people there seemed fine with unusual critters of any sort wandering around, as long as they didn't try to attack or cause trouble!. It helped that Bewul looked a bit cute as it stood, trying to encourage and guide Rez towards that location, constantly reassuring him that everything was fine.

     While Rez has had some personal experience with pokemon battling recently and all that it details, he hasn't spoken to Bewul about it. The idea of visiting the World of pokemon once more doesn't immediately put him off, but his wariness is thick enough for Bewul to have something of which to target at trying to put the lion at ease. Rez has not fully grasped the concept of multiple worlds yet, however, despite what simple attempts have been made to try to explain such a thing. This is due to the fact that he has not encountered anything far outside of his little box of knowledge and experience yet. 

     There are pokemon far larger than Bancho Leomon, but the unease of the unknown in dealing with humans directly seems justification enough for him to go to this outing with Bewul in his larger form. Seven and a half feet of lion person walks along behind his Digital Acquaintance to look over this performance and all of those that are gathered. The brim of his cap provides some shadow over his eyes as they peer in bright blue brilliance over the gathered adult humans, pokemon, and...children. Normal looking children and not dressed up in uniform. A faint smile forms on his muzzle; it would seem the children have his focus slightly more than the performer on stage.

Miwa spotted Bewul among the crowd, and somewhat surprised that he was the only one she had invited who came, seems everyone is just busy. In any case, it would appear that he brought a friend, another digimon she guessed, and an interesting looking one at that, seemed like some sort of were-lion. In any case, she couldn't exactly say hi to them, but she did offer a discrete wave of her flipper. The children indeed are briefly distracted by Bewul, and more so, Rez, with some looking curious and some appearing a little scared. 

 However it's just a moment later, as a girl on the right of the stage begins playing an oval shaped ukulele, that Miwa begins to sing once more, though now with words, rather than the gentle hum she used to control her bubble earlier. 

 "Somewhere over the rainbow"

 "Way up high" 

 "And the dreams that you dream of" 

 "Once in a lullaby"

 In between lines of the sing, Miwa creates several balloons of water. Bewul has seen Miwa do this before, but this time there is a new trick, they come in several different colors, blue, pink, green, red, yellow, orange, and purple. By the time she starts the next verse of the song, there are dozens of colored orbs of water floating above the crowd, seeming to dance along with the music. The children are now transfixed on Miwa and her dancing rainbow water balloons. 

 "Somewhere over the rainbow" 

 "Bluebirds fly" 

 "And the dreams that you dream of" 

 "Dreams really do come true"

    Luke is more focused on making sure that poor Rez is... well... ok, than the concert for the most part, goign as far as reaching and hugging the huge lion mand with one arm and offering him some odd round pastries, and making sure to offer waves and grins to the nearby kids, doing his best to keep things nice and calm for everyone!. "See Rez? nothing to worry about." he offers, smiling gently and finally turning to the 'stage'. "Let's just enjoy the music." he tries. "She is very good."

     Normal kids, just like Suki, don't worry him. The longer he is present, the less guarded he seems to be. He's not dense, either. He knows good singing when he hears it. "I can tell. It must take a lot of training." Moreover, the use of such abilities for a purpose other than fighting is...interesting. Creative? He's not sure /exactly/ what to make of it, but it has half of his attention. His gaze sweeps back over the children from time to time, though, and is actually a bit distracted enough from the offered pastries. 

     The lion looks down at Bewul and the offered food, focused fully pulled away for the moment, and holds out his hand in order to accept some of the tasty things. As he nomfs away, however, his gaze is drawn to one child of the group that might be having a hard time seeing due to some height differences. He's torn between choices; after all, some of the humans seem just as unsure about him as he does them. Still, he hazards the opportunity to step closer, slowly as to not disrupt the show, and kneels down to make an offer for the child to have a seat instead on his shoulder for a better view. He whispers this, though, and smiles more broadly.

    Bewul smiles to Rez, wagging his tail faster and faster as the big lion man seems to relax, "See?" he asks, nomfing a big round tasty delicacy of the region called Masalada, and also struggling a bit to see the show, darn short gabumons. He is more than pleased when Rez slips out to try to pick up the kid to get a better view, and makes sure to follow around. He almost wishes he would evolve and get a better view but... given the number of little kids around, that might not be smart... scary fox and everything. He finally focuses on the display, cheering to Miwa and clapping.

Miwa smiles brightly as she watches the crowd, hearing Bewul's cheering and seeing that the orphan kids and pokemon seem to really be enjoying her performance. It really warms her heart as they begin singing along with her. The child that Rez approaches is at first very timid as he looks up at the seven foot tall strange beast. "Umm... what kind of pokemon are you?" He asks fearfully, certainly having never heard of such a creature. When Rez talks though, the kid blinks. "You can talk!? Are you a friend of Miwa's?" He looks back at Miwa for a moment, then back at Rez, considering the offer of sitting on his shoulder, and finally agrees. Now up higher, he reaches out to poke at one of the water balloons, it doesn't pop, just sort of ripples and floats away a bit. The boy smiles and happily watches from his new vantage point. 

 The song continues, now with dozens of tiny voices joining the chorus of the Primarina Pop Star. 

 "Someday, I wish upon a star" 

 "Wake up where the clouds are far behind me" 

 "Where trouble melts like lemon drops" 

 "High above the chimney top" 

 "That's where you'll find me" 

 In between verses Miwa uses a Dazzling Gleam attack, forming a white light up in the sky which after a moment shoots rainbow colored rays in all directions, causing the water balloons to sparkle in it's light. 

 "Somewhere over the rainbow" 

 "Bluebirds fly" 

 "And the dreams that you dare to" 

 "Oh why, oh why can't I?"

     While some might find sitting seven feet higher a bit precarious, there's no doubt that the gangster-styled Leomon is a sturdy creature. A large hand gently settles against the youth's legs for a bit more stability. Rez shifts to the side just enough to make sure he himself is not in the way of anyone's view. In fact, he turns his head to look over at Bewul and holds out his free hand...in case he wants a lift up onto his other shoulder. He has two, after all. 

     While the poor lion may not understand much about human customs, he at least has an appreciation for the happiness of young human children. While he may be sorely tempted to focus on the tasty foods, amazingly he seems, at present, to be able to think with his heart instead of his stomach. With at least one passenger on-board with seating for two, Rez turns his eyes and ears back to the display on hand. His gaze might follow a balloon or two, especially as the new sparkling display creates a colorful show, but his ears seem to focus on the singing around him. 

     Rez doesn't know the words, but he seems content to be a part of the group anyway.

Bewul is quick to take the offered hand, smiilng to the big lion man and finally settling on that shoulder, offering a nod to the kid near him, "Hi." he saysr quietly, holding out another bit of food for the lion to eat, before focusing on the very pretty display from his friend, wagging faster as the song progressed. "Glad we decided to come over."

The kid still didn't have a clue what kind of 'pokemon' these were, or where they came from, but seemed content that they were nice. When Bewul offered Rez more food, he reached for a malasada himself, looking at Bewul. "May I please?" He asks in a pitiful yet polite tone. 

 All the while, Miwa's song continues. 

 "Well, I see trees of green and red roses too" 

 "I'll watch them bloom for me and you" 

 "And I think to myself" 

 "What a wonderful world" 

 "Well, I see skies of blue and I see clouds of white" 

 "And the brightness of day" 

 "I like the dark" 

 "And I think to myself what a wonderful world" 

 "The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky" 

 "And also on the faces of people passing by" 

 "I see friends shaking hands saying How do you do?" 

 "They're really saying I, I love you" 

 "I hear babies cry and I watch them grow" 

 "They'll learn much more then we'll know" 

 "And I think to myself what a wonderful world" 

 "Someday I wish upon a star" 

 "Wake up where the clouds are far behind me" 

 "Where trouble melts like lemon drops" 

 "High above the chimney top" 

 "That's where you'll find me" 

 Finally, for the end of the song, Miwa gathers all of the water balloons into a loose sphere high above the stage. She then fires a Moonblast into the balloons, bursting them and scattering them into water vapor, which creates an actual rainbow over the area. 

 "Oh, somewhere over the rainbow" 

 "Way up high 

 "And the dreams that you dare to" 

 "Why oh, why can't I?" With the song finished, Miwa takes a bow and comes down from the stage, greeting all the children as they cheer and crowd around her. One of the adults brings over a large box, and Miwa begins handing out little Primarina plushies to each of the children.

     The pillar of lion standing there doesn't mind the transactions of food going on between the kid and the Gabumon, even if it involves food passing by in front of his face. The worst that could happen is that somebody's hand gets tickled by the stalk of grass sticking from the side of the Bancho Leomon's muzzle. The child's curiosities are not ignored; rather, Rez is unable to fully explain or answer, so he leaves the question stand for now until somebody else is able to answer instead. 

     Rez's mouth opens at the finale, with the misting of water and a rainbow, leaving him somewhat transfixed. Honestly, he's never experienced anything quite like it, so it's mesmerizing enough to keep him fully distracted from the foodstuffs. "Wow. Impressive," he comments softly, then blinks a few times before realizing it's all over and the children are getting gifts. Of course, with one of the little people on his shoulder...he has to drop to one knee for that.

    Bewul quickly offers the kid one of the snacks, trying to avoid tempting Rez too much really, and offering the lion another one afterwards, wagging rapidly still, one hand holding onto the lion's head. He barely has time to finish chewing away his final masalada before the song is over!. He tries to clap rapidly, and helps the kid down to get said 'toy' before Miwa runs out, cheering loudly at Miwa. "That's Miwa, she is a really good singer." he says with a broad grin.

Fortunately there was one for each child, so no reason to worry about running out before each of them got one. As Rez and Bewul come closer, the children disperse a little, and Miwa is able to approach, giving the last plushie to the little boy, who beams at Miwa. "Thank you! Your friends are really nice miss Miwa." Says the boy, to which Miwa laughs and grins a little. "How did you know they were my friends?" She asks, and the boy responds. "Because they can talk, like you!" At this Miwa just smiles at the innocence of the answer. "Well, they are my friends, but they are not pokemon, like me, they are a different sort of creature from another world, called digimon." The boy then looks back at Rez and Bewul, in awe. "Oh, well nice to meet you, and thank you again!" He says as he gets down from Rez's shoulder and hugs Miwa before moving to join the rest of the children. 

 Miwa herself turns toward the gathered children, smiling broadly at them. "I hope you all enjoyed my song. If you're all really good, then someday I'll come back and sing for you again, ok?" The kids all cheer as Miwa waves to them, and finally turns back to Bewul and Rez again while the children begin playing around the grounds of the Aether House. "Well, that was great, makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside."

     The lion stays lowered, taking a knee as he is, throughout this exchange and the departure of the children. It was brief, but pleasant enough. "Miwa," says the taller of the two digimon. "Hajimemashite-" he begins to say, then stops himself suddenly. Habits. Suki said it was the proper thing to say. "It is...good to meet you," Rez clarifies looking about as awkward as he likely sounds. The whole digimon/pokemon thing still confuses him. "You both know each other." It's not so much a question, but seeks to find some confirmation. It's not that the big guy is dumb. He's just...a bit lost.

    Bewul offers Rez another hug, smiling warmly and waving to the happy kid as he slips away, before greeting the pokemon singer with a hug of her own, wagging still, "Miwa, this is Rez, he is a friend of mine, seems to be trying to get used to... well, things, especially people." he begins, realizing it was an awkward explanation, "And I figure visiting this world and meetign you and seeing the concert might help, would you mind spending a bit of time with him?, I need to take care of something." he does not say what that 'something' might be, but chances are it is just doing a provision run to the closest big masalada place and buy a whole bunch to take home, or other things.

Miwa hugs Bewul back, then nods and smiles as Bewul introduces his friend, and Rez greets her kindly himself. She blinks as he asks her to spend some time with him, and that he needs to take care of something, which she guessed meant it was going to just be her and Rez. "Um, sure, why not? Good luck with whatever it is you have to do." She offers before turning her attention fully upon Rez. "So, did you like my little performance? I'm free for the rest of the day, so we can do whatever you want. There's beaches, lots of water, places to shop, even volcanoes to climb if you're so inclined. Or we can just take it easy and head back to my grotto."

     The big lion gives a bit of a thoughtful frown as Bewul departs to take care of errands. It's likely for the best; any trip to get food involving Rez probably would be potentially expensive. This leaves him kneeling there, coat draped over his shoulders, turning his gaze back to Miwa once the Gabumon has fully departed. "You make the humans happy -- the little ones -- and this is something you do often? It was...well practiced." Apparently, that's what passes as a compliment. At least, it's meant as one. 

     He looks down to the pastry thing that was given to him when food was passed out from Bewul to the kid. "This is good, too. Did you make these for the humans? I am impressed. They...were all saying the same things with you. They must really like you."

It's clear from the questions that Rez asks, Bewul wasn't kidding about Rez getting used to things, and Miwa presumes he meant things outside the digital world. She takes it in stride though and gives a nod before voicing a more complete answer. "This is the first time I've performed mostly for children, but I've been a performer all my life, or at least since I was very young, I can't remember a time before my musical theater days. If you're trying to say I did a good job though, thank you. I have been trying to improve my solo act as of late."

 Then as Rez looks down at the pastry and asks if she made it, she laughs. "Oh, I don't know anything about cooking. I think a those were probably made at a bakery in town. They're an Alolan specialty."

     "Oh. I understand." He says as much, but that doesn't mean it's necessarily true. The lion stares at the masalada in his hand, then just...eats it. He's a big guy so he, well, has a big mouth that can fit a lot of food. It's like a magic trick: Ta da! It vanished. With food matters out of the way, he begins to speak, which in and of itself is the point of his next question, "Why did the child assume we knew each other again?" The ability to speak seems as intrinsic to being as eating, so the correlation doesn't exactly click. 

     Rez rises from his kneeling position to assume his full height once more. Normally digimon wouldn't be in their more powerful forms so freely without a reason. Normally. There are exceptions, and it would seem that this fellow is one of them. "It is cute. Sometimes humans can be silly."

Miwa watches as Rez does a disappearing trick on the malasada, and mentally shudders a bit at how big this guy's appetite probably is. When he asks about why the child assumed they knew each other because of talking, she can't help but chuckle and shake her head. "It's because he thought you were pokemon, and most pokemon don't talk, I'm a rather rare exception to the rule. However, it is my belief that most pokemon could learn to talk if they wanted to, at least the more intelligent species that can at least understand speech, but for whatever reason, most don't. I wanted to learn to speak because I wanted to be able to sing with words for greater expression. But yes, humans can indeed be pretty silly sometimes." She agrees, now craning her neck to look up at Rez now that he's standing at full height.

     "They don't talk? That's terrible. They can't even call for help when strangers attack them?" The lion mouths on that stalk of grass in deep thought on the matter. It would seem, by the wording of the question, that he knows something about pokemon battling and catching. He doesn't look entirely pleased about it, either. 

     Actually, with the way his thick arms cross over his bare chest and the way his gaze moves to wander around the surroundings, the more stoic he appears. He doesn't have to have a breeze tussling his white mane and shoulder-draped gakuran to complete the image, but it certainly helps when it happens. "And then try to catch them in those small traps? ...has that ever happened to you, too?" ...too? There's a lot one can infer from that word usage and tone of voice.

"Well, they don't talk like you or I, or the humans, but they do have their own language, and often call for help from other pokemon." Miwa is quick to answer about the whole not being able to call for help concept. But then Rez gets more specific, obviously speaking of trainers catching pokemon, and catching them in pokeballs. Miwa blinks a bit, and wonders who Rez has been hanging out with. 

 "Well, yes, that does happen, and I do have mixed feelings about keeping pokemon confined to pokeballs... Some trainers do keep their pokemon out in the open, but I can see how that might be cumbersome when you have several with you at all times... As for me, I wasn't caught, I was bred by humans, and raised among them from the moment I hatched. I do have a pokeball, but even when I was with my 'trainer' he always let me stay outside of it unless it was required for travel."

     "I cannot approve of such imprisonment. To want to train and become stronger, yes." Rez gestures with a hand as he speaks. This is what it's like when Worlds collide. "But friends and companions and those to help train you should always be a choice made, not a decision forced. It is..." The large digimon's face twitches ever so briefly with a quick flash of teeth in distaste. "Dishonorable. Unfair." 

     The sway of the lion's tail bumps against the tail of the gakuran with a light jingle of the rings hanging from the edge. A thought occurs to him and his gaze lowers to the Primarina. "Are there those like you around able to help these others that are wrongfully caught? Freedom...is precious." He holds out for a positive reply, or so the look in his eyes may tell, although they border on potential sadness if not. It's fairly emotional, yet very subtle, for such a big tough-looking critter.

Miwa simply nods to what Rez says about how he feels about the concept of pokemon who are supposed to be friends and companions of pokemon trainers, being confined as such into pokeballs, though he does seem to also agree with the sentiment of training to grow stronger. She frowns a bit and shakes her head. "You know, in a way I agree with you. Having been raised mostly free from such confinement, and now being on my own, where my old pokeball serves as nothing more than an ornament in my home and a lock to prevent another trainer from capturing me, the virtues of staying out of pokeballs has merit. But pokemon training and the use of pokeballs are deeply connected to the cultrue of the entire world, going back many many years." 

 "They do serve to provide some protection while inside, for example allowing a trainer to carry an ice type pokemon through a scorching desert or even volcanic area without causing the pokemon discomfort. Pokemon are also sort of suspended while inside, in that even weeks inside feel like no time as passed to the pokemon upon release. So it's not quite the same as being locked in a cage. Also like I said, many trainers keep their pokemon out of their pokeballs when the situation allows for it."

     It isn't accurate to say the color drains from Rez's face at the description of being inside a pokeball, but it's certainly an equivalent. "That isn't how I would describe it," he says after a long pause. "I suppose it's true that I do not understand much about Human culture, but just because something is tradition doesn't mean that it's always right, does it?" PArt of what he says is heartfelt, part rings slightly hollow, as if there's something deeper behind it all that remains unspoken. 

     "Gomen'nasai," he apologizes suddenly. "Forgive me for speaking out of turn." He gives a little bow of his head. "Bewul would not be happy to hear of such unpleasant things said." He opens his arms, spreading them wide, and tries to change the subject, even if abruptly so. "What do you do when you are not practicing your entertainment?"

Miwa again nods. "I'm happy to be free from my pokeball, and free to do whatever I choose, and I do agree it would be nice if all pokemon had that opportunity, but I don't see a way of making that happen on my own, and as it is, most trainers do love their pokemon, and like I said before, allow them out in the open quite often. It's a complicated situation, I must admit." She says before happily taking the change in subject. "Well, I guess practicing my abilities is sort of an extension of practicing for entertainment, though I do use such powers for actual battling too. Otherwise, I usually enjoy relaxing on the beach, swimming, traveling between the different islands, shopping, and meeting new people as well as hanging out with old friends. What do you like to do?"

     The Bancho Leomon goes quiet for a bit too long and likely borders on the edge of awkwardness as he seems to stare hard at nothing in particular when the question is turned around on him. "I enjoy eating," he replies in a very simple answer. So simple, in fact, that some might wonder why it takes so long to say as much. Thankfully, however, he adds, "I also enjoy finding a nice quiet spot to sit and think. I...enjoy training and becoming stronger." None of those things are hobbies or livelihoods. He reaches up to scratch behind one of his ears as the awkward silence threatens to resume. He doesn't appear to be a very complicated individual for all the potentially strong opinions he has about things. "Do...you and Bewul train together?"

Miwa almost giggles as after that long awkward pause, Rez just responds that he likes to eat, but she manages to restrain herself. When he adds a few more things to the list, sounding like a list of things a lone warrior would enjoy, she nods, and thinks about what to say during the next awkward pause. Then Rez asks if she trains with Bewul, which is easier to answer, so she nods again and says. "Oh yes, I've trained with Bewul multiple times, and with some of his friends a few times too, we even battled some digimon that were trying to invade his home once. Would you like to train with me?" She asks with a bright smile. "I like training too."

     The lion's full blue gaze seem to brighten up and go steely at the same time, intensifying with a sudden burst of vividness in sharp contrast to his otherwise unflappable demeanor, as the movement of his head lifts the brim of his cap and sends a band of light across his eyes. He lifts a hand and clenches it into a fist at the same time with a ruffle of his gakuran and a jingle of the chain attached to its left side. "Mochiron hai!" It is such a strong statement that it might startle anybody nearby even if they don't understand. In the human Physical World counterpart to the Digital World, Rez spent a lot of time with a Japanese family that was both modern and traditional; he picked up many words and phrases over that time. "I will train with you, Miwa, as I would train with Bewul or any that present such a challenge."

Miwa grins at Rez's enthusiastic answer, though she hopes she isn't getting in over her head. "Alright, if you want to train now, then we should probably not do so right in front of the Aether House. There's a small beach to the south which is usually pretty empty, we can spar there and not have to worry about hurting anyone." She offers before waving for Rez to follow and beginning to walk to the south, heading toward the aforementioned beach, you can almost hear the surf from here.

     The beast man turns on his heels with a billowing flutter of his coat that settles into a sway behind him with each step. "Will Bewul know where to find us?" asks Rez as his barefooted footfalls pad against the ground with a click of nails in each step following the Primarina's path. "Perhaps he will be interested in joining us. Perhaps...he will bring food." 

     It's no lie; the tall lion likely gets a lot of looks from people. Surely people expect a creature like him to be a pokemon of some sort, but he's going to be something that most will have never seen. Unlike the cuteness one like Gabumon offers, it's a very different thing to see such an imposing figure dressed in such a way to walk the streets no matter the Region. Rez is not made of stone, however. Any lasting stares will probably be met with one of his own -- more out of returned curiosity than sternness -- but such actions could have mixed results.

    Bewul's little shopping spree takes him several minutes, but at least the nice folks at Aether foundation can point him in the direction his friends went!. Thus, a gabumon carrying a few bags waddles towards the nearby beach, offering waves to curious people glancing at him. He is a bit winded as he seems to catch up with them, once again, grumbling at having to stay cute, at least with kids around.

Miwa was about to try and make some sort of arrow in the ground to point the way for Bewul, when he comes to join them. She waves and smiles happily, and fortunately she isn't the fastest walker so Bewul should have ample opportunity to catch his breath. With a sniff, she smells something tasty in at least one of Bewul's bags. "Hey Bewul, glad you could make it back, and it appears you brought food as your friend Rez had hoped. We were heading down to the beach to train, whould you care to join us? I'm honestly curious to see how strong your new friend is."

     Rez is entirely unused to a lot of human settings and has certainly had no exposure to human islander culture. At one point in walking along, perhaps Miwa or Bewul realize that the larger of the three has ceased following for a moment. Perhaps not yet, but they will soon. Distracted in watching humans doing human things, the big cat falls behind, and without fully watching where he's going in following behind...he steps out in front of a car crossing a street. 

     Nothing dangerous happens. There is a screech followed by somebody laying on the horn. This has the exact opposite effect than what is intended, though, as the Leomon turns to stare down this machine with a human trapped inside of it. Now, Rez has seen the cars about only as much insofar as his time spent this very day in this meeting, but up until that very moment he never took note of people being inside them. Rez simply stares. "Do you need help getting free?" he asks, since, clearly, humans around here have an obsession with trapping things. Two plus two equals...

    Bewul approaches the group, and is happy to place the bags down, "I will only say... he is likely the strongest person I met if... my feeling about him is right, might be stronger than Daipenmon..." he mumbles, before the sound of a carhorn gets his attention. He rushes to Rez's side, tasty food left by Miwa's side, and tries his best to get his friend's attention, "No, he is fine! that is... a method of transportation!" he tries. He is no car expert or anything by any means, but... seen a few, and trains!, "They are just machines to carry people." he says, even as he reached to grab Rez's hand (or tail) to stop the big lion from trying to 'rescue' the driver or passengers.

Miwa blinks as she hears the horn, and suddenly Bewul drops the bags at her side and rushes over to rescue the poor driver from Rez. She resists the urge to face-flipper, but does chuckle softly. "I guess we really need to keep an eye on him in new types of places..." She says to herself, likely out of earshot of Bewul and Rez. Otherwise she just waits and guards the bags, making sure they didn't tip over and spill their contents or anything.

     The large lion may get dirty looks and 'oh, come on' even as he is lead away by the tail off of the street where the car can pass by and continue on its way. On the bright side, at least the car didn't actually hit Rez. The damage to the car could have been pretty severe! Crisis averted, even amidst some confusion, leaving the Bancho Leomon to stick a bit closer to the group now. 

     Indignantly, the big cat crosses his arms and twitches his tail. "It's not my fault that I don't speak whatever language that was supposed to be," he states, meaning the varied repetition of the car horn. "I asked a simple question." It's best to just move on. "I don't understand Humans." Obviously. "But I do understand the love for training. Will you be joining us, Bewul? I met a Human in the woods near your home that showed me a picture of a Fangmon and called it by your name."

    Bewul is just glad Rez is not upset at him, "It's fine... I think it's just a noise the machine does." he says softly, "I don't know what that means either." he offers with a little grin, rubbing the back of his head. Still, crisis averted!, and the small digimon tries to cheer up his friend. 

    The mention of Fangmon gets a nod, "Yeah, I think I told you I can manage to evolve twice, that's my evolution!" he says, making a motion at the odd fur coat he has, "I can't quite hold my Ultimate form for too long, but I am able to stay as a Fangmon for a long while, if I want to."

    hey make it back to Miwa's side, his tail twitching a bit more. "Maybe I'll try, just don't expect much from me."

Miwa smiles as the pair of digimon join her once more and the trio continue moving toward the beach. It's already starting to get rather sandy in the soil, and the salty sea air is in full swing. "I'm looking forward to seeing how I do, I've been practicing a lot. I feel like I'm getting stronger every day." She proclaims proudly. "I don't know that I asked before, how have you been Bewul? It's been a while since we've seen each other."

     At least Rez manages to keep his focus on things going on in front of the group rather than off to the side. This likely includes any beach activities humans and pokemon are up to. But, his arms are still crossed. He listens to the other two talk as he strolls along with a notably lowered pace than his average in this form. But, that's okay, because it likely makes him look all the more 'cool' as the sea breeze blows his pure white mane and sends his gakuran waving in the air a bit behind him.

Soon they arrive at the beach, and while there are indeed a few people there to potentially distract Rez, a couple adults sunbathing, and a couple of children swimming in the shallows, there is also plenty of open space on the other side of the beach where they can 'train' without getting in anyone's way. Miwa heads for the open area, but makes sure to watch Rez to be sure he follows. "Alright, here we are. So, shall we have a little spar to test each other?"

     Sandy footprints, vague but telling, mark the passage of the tall lion as he wanders over to the unoccupied area. "Mm," he grunts with a nod of his head in affirmation. Wandering over to a spot, Rez stands tall and ready. His feet are lightly spread apart (about his shoulders' width) and his wrist-wrapped fists are held at the ready fairly casually. At a glance, any intelligent fighter can tell he's geared up for brawling and grappling, at the least. His hands are probably the most dangerous parts of him to avoid, but he's not limited to just the use of his hands... 

     "Show me what you've got." Rez then spreads his arms open to expose his scarred chest in gesture. "Warm-up or hard first strike, your choice."

Miwa takes a moment to study Rez as he gets into position and goes into his ready stance, it would appear that he was an up close fighter, which wasn't terribly surprising given his burley appearance, but she was the opposite, and would have to try and keep him at bay. She would start off with somewhat of a warmup attack, though one that had the potential of slowing Rez down, which would work in her favor. She brings forth the water power within her as her pink nose glows a bluish white, and suddenly a stream of countless bubbles come streaming toward Rez from in front of her nose, moving with incredible speed, and definitely striking with more force than one would expect from bubbles if they do make their mark.

     The Bancho Leomon makes no effort to move out of the way. Indeed, he stands there and soaks the attack as it is made. He merely shifts his footing to provide support against the force of the stream of bubbles. Whether or not this slows Rez down in the process is hard to gauge as he doesn't move from his spot. "Good, but you need to hit harder than that," he comments as the dampness from the popped bubbles drips from his form while he takes two slow steps...to the side. "I'm not going to stand still for you anymore, unless I choose differently!" 

     Maybe the passive approach is meant to throw off the opponent, or maybe he's offering honest advice; either way, he's done standing still. He leaves his spot, but not to run forward -- instead, the beast leaps high into the air, the sun briefly providing an angelic glow to his white mane, as he prepares to bring a fist down atop his opponent's position.

Her Bubblebeam does little more than make Rez a little damp, though Miwa wasn't terribly surprised, it was worth a shot though. As her opponent leaps high into the air, she feels like he's almost asking her to dodge his attack, and she does quickly push off with her tail and move a bit out of the way of his projected path. However she doesn't just stand there and wait for Rez to land either. She steps up the power considerably and uses her signature move, Sparkling Aria, singing a bit as she forms a large orb of energized water, it's surface tension much greater than normal meaning it wouldn't burst as easily and would hit more like a hardened balloon of water, which it more or less was. She suddenly raises the pitch of her voice, sending the orb soaring toward Rez.

     At first, the digimon makes contact with the ground. He lands hard and his fist impacts with the sand of the beach to send a spray of the powder into the air from the force projected into the ground. Shortly thereafter, however, that harder hit he asked for strikes him from the side and sends him rolling. Rez sits up once he comes to a stop and laughs rather merrily. That was a very solid hit on him and he's...having fun because of it? "Totemo yoi!" He's in no hurry to get up to his feet and, as such, he offers no immediate attack, either. "But can you keep it up?" He's a tough 'mon, but defense against what the Pokemon League classifies as Special-category moves is not his specialty. Nonetheless, he's -- wait for it -- testing the waters.

Now that Rez has made it in closer to her, Miwa decides to switch things up a bit and try a more physical attack. It was certainly an area she wanted to work on in hopes of reducing her weakness to close quarters fighting. "I'm just getting started!" Miwa answers with a grin, her tail quickly becoming surrounded by a light blue aura with water swirling around her flippers, she then balances on her front flippers and aims a strike of her Aqua Tail attack at Rez's chest. Her physical strength wasn't as high as her special attack ability, but this was still a powerful move, and should pack a decent punch, or kick as the case may be.

     Rez is only just in the process of starting to get up. The Primarina can no doubt feel the power behind the blow as it makes contact with the lion man's scarred chest. It even makes quite the sound that just might echo down the beach to where those few others are. Unlike the blow from just before, this one /barely/ even seems to affect the brawler at all. Ultimately, it's just not very effective against him despite hitting dead-on and with full force. "I like the effort you put into it," he says genuinely as he brings a hand about not in a punch, but in a swat, to punish any hesitation or let-down guard as a result of scoring an otherwise great hit.

Miwa feels a bit of sting in her tail as her attack connects, feeling like she just kicked her tail against a brick wall. Of course, this attack also leaves her off balance, with a bit of recovery time needed after the attack, so Rez's swat knocks her tail back, putting her off balance and causing her to fall rather clumsily into the sand. She gets up moments later, sputtering a bit. She quickly readies another attack though, this time forming a bright, pinkish white sphere of light near her mouth. It grows to the size of a beach ball before she fires it at Rez, this attack is of the special variety, and slightly more powerful than her earlier Sparkling Aria, but it's only a small difference, might not be noticeable.

     The time it takes Miwa to recover from the stiff slap is more than enough for the lion to rise to his feet and he has enough time to react...this time. So, does he sidestep it to dodge? No. Does he tank it full-on? No. He draws his right fist back, channeling the essence of his fighting spirit into it, and meets that ball of light with a fully-powered no-holding-back swing. "Flash Bancho Punch!!" he roars with bared teeth, sending more sounds of fighting across the beach and over the waves; his fist glows, illuminated by the compressed air from the sheer force, just before contact is made with that ball of light...!

Of all the things Miwa would have expected Rez to do in response to her charging up that Moonblast attack, winding up and punching it was certainly not one of them. Amazingly, the blast doesn't just explode on contact with the lion digimon's fist, instead it actually splits in two and the now smaller twin orbs fly past Rez on either side before finally exploding in the air about fifteen yards behind him. Miwa blinks a moment, then shakes her head. "Bewul wasn't kidding when he said you were strong. Alright then, I'm not holding back, here goes!" She warns as she draws upon the water elemental power within her, and after a brief moment, an extremely powerful jet of water erupts from Miwa's mouth. This blast has tremendous pressure, likely enough to cut through steel if properly focused.

     "Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" laughs the Bancho Leomon as Miwa realizes that the sparring match should be taken seriously. Every match should be! Rez makes a great personal trainer for practicing physical moves, but when the stops start getting pulled it's easy to tell that, along with the power of such attacks ramping up, so too do the combatants get worked up. And that there is the magical moment, when in the fray, where battle starts to really feel /good/. 

     No holding back, then, the beam of water suddenly jetting his way proves to be a potential danger. It might be enough to cut through steel if focused properly, but is focused steel enough to cut through it? A sudden arc of light and the hum of metal glints in the sunlight as the digimon pulls something free to attempt to counter the powerful liquid stream: a tanto! His sword, Otokodama, might be a Japanese short sword in design, but it's a short sword for somebody his size. His feet dig into the sand to brace against the force as he uses his signature blade to block and deflect the water...while pushing closer with a straining snarl. 

     If the water pressure is what works to hold him back, what would happen if it's increased? What would happen if it suddenly ceased?

Miwa is shocked as he blocks her hydro pump with a sword, and is pushing through it, like it was just an inconvenience. Thinking quickly, she tries to decide on her best option before her water reserves run out. If she stops the attack, Rez might just run her right over. So instead she quickly shifts to Ice Beam, feeling a burning sensation in the pit of her stomach as she pushed herself to chill the water coming out of her mouth to the point where it would freeze as it hits Rez or anything nearby.

     Rez does his best to pull away the moment he realizes that which he deflects is growing frigid like a snap frost. He spins around as his sword is pushed by the frozen force and the shift of his position to pull away makes it harder to support. His eyes widen in the follow-up as he realizes his left hand and half of his sword is encased in ice while icy splatters cling to his chest, pants, and gakuran. 

     He drops to one knee in a half-crouch and looks pumped-up and ready to pounce! ...up to the point where he doesn't. He stands up casually. "Good work. I wasn't expecting that." He regards his ice-covered hand and blade with a bit of curiosity, but then brings his right hand swiftly over to impact with the crystalline structure in an attempt to shatter it. "Have you had enough yet?" Rez asks of Miwa as if he had done more than just made contact with but a single slap the entire fight. For as much effort as he put into things, there is enough to hint that he was also holding back for the sake of having a fun fight. That said, the nonphysical blows have drained him a bit and he's going to need to eat. Eat a lot. Soon.

While it was true Rez hadn't done much to her physically, Miwa was starting to feel tired, as Rez had really succeeded in pushing the primarina to her limits. She nods. "I could probably go on a little longer, but lets take a break, Sound good?" She asks as she takes a moment to catch her breath. "You are really strong, were you holding back? Or is this the real you?" She asks curiously. "Either way, I think I can grow a lot training with you."

     "This was a friendly match. If I really wanted to hurt you, do you think I would have opened myself up to so much abuse? Baka janai no?" The lion brushes off as much of the ice as he can with his right hand while his left hand rests his blade over his left shoulder. Honestly, he's armed with a sword. If he meant business, it likely wouldn't have been the last thing in the scrap to be used. "Ha ha ha. Pushing yourself to your limit is good, but you have to start pushing beyond. Little by little. And that's exactly why I wanted to feel what you had to offer. That makes me stronger, too." Even if he is super hungry now. His tail sways slowly, relaxedly.

    Decided to wait on the sidelines it seems, letting the two just... spar without having to deal with him in the way, and admits he might be glad he stayed out of the fight, simply looking surprised at what the pair did in that short spar. "I think I made the smart choice to wait." he mumbles, before shaking his head and approaching his friends, carrying his snacks and offering them. "Then again maybe I should have tried anyway." he says, even as he hands Rez a bag of Malasadas.

Miwa nods to Rez and smiles warmly. "I have no doubt that if you really wanted to hurt me, that I'd have one heck of a fight on my... flippers." She says with a chuckle. "I usually start out slow when I'm sparring a new opponent, while I learn how strong they are. I'd like to have a rematch with you sometime, knowing I can pretty much go all out with you. I also know not to even try using more physically focused attacks on you. My special attacks are stronger anyway, but I have a feeling you would be able to stand up to even the strongest physically focused Pokemon." Miwa offers her take as she walks over to Bewul and takes a few malasadas for herself, making sure she got some before Rez ate them all.

     "Knowing what to use to defeat an opponent is not the same as training and honing what you know," replies Rez as he brushes some sand from his pants. "You should take advantage of the fact you can safely use your full power with some attacks against me. Not all fights are fights fought to win." A large hand reaches out with his free hand to take what is offered to him; he's not going to say no! "The same goes for you, Bewul. Besides, I make a pretty good target dummy and I'm easier to hit if I stand still, ha ha ha ha ha!" The big guy finds his own joke funny, at least.

    Bewul hands a sweet drink to Miwa and wags his tail as he hears the advice, "Oh, I am aware of that fact, I still don't think I can actually do much against you, Rez." he says with a grin. "I can't even use my strongest shape for long, and don't think I'd get much from it." he says, "Still, I would not mind trying sometime." he finally admits. The talk about how strong pokemon are from Miwa gets a curious glance from him, "I wonder how strong pokemon can get."

"Sometimes it's nice to practice being able to hit a moving target though, since most of the time in a real battle, your opponent isn't going to just stand there and let you attack them." Miwa comments before taking the offered drink from Bewul and sipping at it between bites of malasada. Bewul's comment about not being able to retain his strongest shape for very long gets her curious though, so she asks a question of her own before answering his. 

 "Is there no way you can train yourself to be able to stay in your strongest form for longer? What causes you to change back?" She aks before thinking a moment about Bewul's question about the strength of Pokemon. Eventually she says, "Well, I've never met any of the strongest Pokemon, but I've read legends of some that were so powerful they could have destroyed the world, and of others still that can somehow control time itself."

     The big lion knows nothing of pokemon or the extent of whatever power they might have, but he does know a thing or two about...Digivolution. After all, the big guy has been in this powerful form the whole time. However, things are a little more complicated on his end. He sticks his tanto casually into the sand and digs into the bag with his left hand to produce one of the island pastries and puts the whole thing in his mouth. If he's eating, he doesn't have to answer, right? 

     So, unprompted in conversation and allowing Bewul the chance to answer what is asked of him, Rez stands there chewing while allowing his gaze to wander. He peers down along the beach and squints. The trees around here look so strange! So distracted is he that the second malasada he grabs is simply held before his mouth.

    The Gabumon nods, "Yeah, hitting a target is nice but aiming is good too." he says, "Or being able to move and attack, that's what you mean, right Miwa?" he asks with a grin, chewing on a snack and listening to Miwa's question. "Well, to keep it simple... I am just not strong enough I guess, it takes me a lot of energy... I just have to keep practicing basically, if I use too much energy I am forced to return to a weaker shape." he replies. "I guess that is not a thing for pokemon.". He blinks at teh talk of legendary powers, gasping, "That does sound... powerful." he mumbles, glancing back at the distracted Rez, "Are you ok?" he asks, noticing he is not making that Malasada dissapear just yet.

Miwa nods to Bewul. "Yeah, being able to move while attacking is great, though maybe there are situations where that is impossible. But, being able to aim at and hit a moving target is tricky also until you get a feel for it." She offers her own insight, then moves on to the concept of evolutionary forms that are temporary. "Well, it's not something I can do, but I once heard someone mention a thing called Mega Evolution. If I understand it correctly, it's a special form above a pokemon's normal final stage of evolution, but it only lasts till the end of a battle, or the defeat of the mega evolved pokemon." She then turns back to Rez as she feels he's being unusually quiet, and sees him just holding a malasada and gazing off into the scenery. "Something wrong Rez?"

     There's a bit of latency there -- the Leomon jerks his head to the side and downward to face those speaking to him as his attention is grabbed finally, but in so doing bumps the pastry with his muzzle. It dislodges altogether, goes into a tumble, and the lion quickly tries to grab the food item once more. Each fumble slows the fall, but the malasada remains in a tumble. Just when it seems it's going to meet the sand, the large digimon comes crashing down onto his knees and, at the very last moment with barely any space to spare between the malasada and the ground, it halts. How dramatic! The big guy is hunched forward: he caught it with his teeth! Disaster narrowly averted.

    Bewul nods to Miwa at the talk of Mega evolution, "That does sound similar." he says, smiling and chewing on a Malasada of his own, before focusing fully on Rez. He was about to speak again, when the drama with the delicious snack happens, "You are fast." he praises his friend, especially considering it was caught with the lion's mouth!. "What happened?" he asks, after giving the digilion time to put that delicious thing in a safe spot.

Miwa almost tries to intervene and try to catch Rez's fallen malasada herself, when he suddenly lunges down and catches it in his teeth. "Impressive reflexes." She comments with a smile, clapping her flippers a little. She also wonders what got Rez so transfixed, but since Bewul already asked, she doesn't feel the need to echo him, she just sips more of her drink, having already eaten her fill of malasada.

     The real question is: would Rez have been so fast to recover the dropped item if it /wasn't/ food? Nevertheless, it remains held in those teeth for only a brief while longer -- time spent looking to Bewul and Miwa in turn in what might make a great photo otherwise -- before it disappears completely never to be seen again. 

     Slowly, the white-maned digimon stands up and takes the time to brush more sand off of himself before pointing off in the direction of something that caught his eye. However, it's no longer there and one might imagine the quizzical look on his face as a more tangible question mark as his eyes dart around trying to find what he saw. He grunts in question and looks somewhat confused. 

     "What? Where- Where did it go?"

Bewul chuckles a bit more, and takes some more snacks, this time a cookie of some sort!. "Glad you caught it." he says with a grin, finding that lion with food stuck in it's maw kind of cute. He quickly turns around to the direction his friend points at, tilting his head, "What are we looking at?" he muses.

Miwa finishes her drink and sets the cup down, feeling very content now that her belly is full. She looks to Rez though and follows his gaze to... apparently nothing, but Rez seems to think something was there before. "Where did what go? Was it a pokemon, or something else?" She asks before realizing that Rez may not be able to properly answer that question, particularly if it's a pokemon that doesn't look like an animal. Still, she looks around and listens for anything out of the ordinary.

     Rez's confusion turns to embarrassment. He scans about a moment longer, finding nothing, before finally giving up. "Hunger must be getting to me after such training," he offers, muzzles wrinkled in unsure expression, before his brow droops. All he can do at that point is offer a broad-shouldered shrug before digging a hand back into the bag. "So," he says, perhaps trying to shift the focus of conversation away from whatever strange thing he saw. "Pokemon train out here often? What about the Humans?"

    Bewul gives Rez the rest of the snacks, "Better eat up then." he offers with a smile, "I noticed you seem to need a lot of food." he adds, patting the feline's side, "Seeing you two spar makes me want to do something." he mumbles, stretching, "I don't think you ever saw me evolve, did you Rez?" he says softly, even if the topic of humans and training does get his attention.

Miwa lays back in the warm sand now, looking like she could just take a nap there, but she is following the conversation still, and Rez's comment about training makes her wonder what exactly he means. "Well, wild pokemon don't really train, well, maybe some really aggressive ones do spar with each other, but most just... live, finding food, forming family groups, and that sort of thing. Humans train their pokemon in many places, or do you mean, humans training to be stronger themselves, some do that too, I've heard of dojos where humans train along side fighting type pokemon, trying to become as strong as they can be. As for evolutions, I wish I could show you my other stages, but pokemon don't work that way, with the exception of mega evolution, when we evolve, it's permanent."

     It's true. Rez requires a lot of food -- especially as Bancho Leomon -- and he gets hungry quickly, and that leads to being miserable and cranky. "There was a Human in the Digital World that seemed to enjoy training, and meditating; the same one that showed me a picture of you digivolved." Again, there's a disconnect that Rez has regarding Humans from different Worlds. "But I haven't seen you do so." In fact, it goes the other way around, too. Bewul has likely not seen Rez as Liollmon yet. With a steady supply of food and ways to train and learn, such degeneration has been relatively rare. Rez pauses and looks between Miwa and Bewul before speaking to the Gabumon regarding such a change, "Do you need help?"

    Bewul smiles and nods as he hears what Miwa says, stretching a bit, and movign to sit next to Rez, leaning onto the big cat. "I am a bit curious about that." he says softly, "To be honest.". he is not quite sure who that 'human' with a picture of him was. In any case, he chuckles, "I don't think there is much to do beyond training." he says, licking his nose once and rubbing the back of his head. "I mean I want to learn how to control it better, but at least I can evolve once without much trouble, I just don't do it often because... I have been told it is a bit scary... that form I mean."

Miwa nods to Bewul's sentiment about his other form being scary. "Yeah, I don't find it scary, but then, I know you, and if I'm honest, I did find your fangmon form somewhat scary, or at least, intimidating, when I first saw it. In any case, I'm with Rez, if we can help you in any way to more easily retain your stronger forms for longer, I'm happy to lend any aid I can. You're a good friend Bewul, but this world tree has some not so nice people and places, the stronger you are, the better."

     Tail swaying behind him, the beast man frowns in thought. "If anybody comes around that has a problem with how you look, they don't have to stay." There's plenty of beach, it seems. "But, if you feel that strongly about it, we can try to find a more private place instead." Rez is clearly indifferent. It's not like they are bothering anybody, but Humans are strange sometimes. Well, from what exposure he's had with them so far. "I imagine Miwa here knows plenty of places." Oh, right, he still has snacks to eat. Were any of these supposed to be saved for later that have been handed off to the lion? Nomf omf nom.

    The small digimon looks around, just to make sure there are no kids looking at them, ears twitching a bit at hte mention of how... Miwa found his change a bit unsettling, but he slowly takes a few steps away from the pair and tries to focus.

    There is a pause as he closes his eyes and there is a bright flash of light, and... presto!, where a fuzzy gabumon was standing, now there is a fangmon!... well, something like it at least... it looks as if someoen took that creature and traced the outlines of it with a very... blocky brush size, a very low rez, black and white image of himself... he somehow manages to look '2d'!, "There we go, how do I look?" he asks, not bothering to look at himself.

Miwa nods to Bewul, feeling it was fine if he changed, the beach was pretty empty for the most part anyways. She watches him transform, having seen him do so before, but this time, something is definitely different. "Um, Bewul? Is this a new form you haven't shown me before? Or did something go horribly wrong somehow? You look..." She sits up and moves her head around to view him from different angles. "You look like a piece of black and white block art on clear paper..."

     Rez is distracted with snacks throughout the process of Bewul's changing. It isn't until Miwa says something about it that he looks down and over and promptly laughs despite having a mouth full. A moment to swallow, then he's back to laughing again. "Hey, that's pretty neat! Not as 'scary' as I thought you meant, but the picture I saw really didn't look anything like this." He holds out a tasty tidbit in the palm of his hand. "Try to take this from me! I want to see." The Primarina might be confused, but the Leomon is amused greatly.

    Bewul... well it's hard to really read his expressions like this, but sounds confused as Miwa speaks, "Huh?" he mumbles, 'walking' towards Rez and at the tidbit, one limb raising to try to grab the snack. There is a distinct lack of.. let's say, animation, as if he was less moving and more just... shifting drawings. He finally notices his paw as it reached for the snack adn he yelps in panic, "Oh no... not again.", followed by a grumble, glancing between the two.

Miwa watches Rez tease Bewul, and frowns a bit, feeling bad for Bewul in his current shape. Then Bewul notices how he looks and mentions this has happened before, and it seems to not be a good realization. "What happened Bewul, is there any way we can help you?"

     The big lion isn't trying to be mean-spirited or anything. He was genuinely curious how it would all work out. However, Bewul's reaction and apparent annoyance leaves him questioning if he's the only one with data issues. "Bewul is fine," assures the Bancho Leomon. "I am surprised that it isn't on purpose, though. I am going to assume that you will remain this way until you change again?" Rez eats the snack himself and reaches over in order to pat Bewul atop the head.

    Against all odds, the patting works, even if it looks as if... the creature should be paper thin. In any case, Bewul grumbles as he looks at himself, the motions looking odd to the others, "I'll be fine, just need a moment to adjust... at least it happened while we are in a quiet spot." he says, sitting down slowly and trying to relax, breathing deeply. "I'll be fine, it's just... embarassing." he mumbles.

    Bewul chuckles a bit at the mention of 'on purpose' never considered that option. It takes him a moment, "Maybe if I sit down and relax for a moment.".

Miwa is relieved to hear that this was just something that happens sometimes, and that apparently a digimon could intentionally take such a form. Now curiosity gets the better of her, and she reaches out with one of her flippers to gently poke Bewul, curious what he would feel like in this two dimensional form. "What's it feel like to be in that form? I can't help but wonder how your body even functions, being so thin."

     "It only appears that he's thin and what do appearances mean? He's still the same data." That clears everything up, right? The Leomon walks around Bewul and crouches down beside him before allowing his knees to touch sand. "Let me help." Just how is the big fellow going to help? His eyes close, hands settling upon his thighs, while lowering the volume of his voice while maintaining some clarity to what is spoken. 

     "Close your eyes. Ignore the smells of the beach and the water and the city. Simply listen. Listen to the things around you and find one thing. Focus on that one thing and nothing else. And then, as you focus on it, realize that what you are is the same as always and what you are will always be. What you hear is heard by you and only you can know how it sounds. Only you can know how you hear it. And what you are to hear it may change, but is always you. Be you." 

     Rez goes silent and may be doing exactly as he has spoken. He's very good at meditation techniques and he's willing to do his best to offer a means to better focus on a sense of self, a realization of data, and what that data means and means to be compared to the world around.

The cheeks of the flat... pixelated fox seem to blush a bit as he is petted. The sensation is odd... it FEELS like fur where the flipper pokes him, yet he still looks like he was a flat, almost featureless paper cutout. "It feels a bit odd... but not bad... hard to explain." he replies, his snout bobbing up and down in a nod when Rez tries to help explaining. 

    The 'flat' black and white fox sits up neatly, breathing slowly and closing his eyes, one ear twitching as he tries to follow the instructions from the bigger pokemon. He inhales and exhales, tail giving a faint twitch, both ears splaying as he focuses more and more in the instructions.

    A few more moments pass, and Miwa might wonder if it works, when suddenly... the flat fox seems to 'pop' out to it's normal, slinky, russet and black leather belt glory, still breathing slowly, completely still.

Miwa blinks in surprise as she feels fur against her flipper despite that she can't see it. She isn't sure what to say for a bit, though she is glad to hear Bewul isn't in pain or anything serious like that. She remains quiet when Bewul meditates, trying not to get in the way of Rez helping him, though after a bit she wonders if anything is going to happen, and then suddenly Bewul is back to his normal digivolved form, and she breaths a sigh of relief. "Well, you digimon are full of surprises. Welcome back to the land of three dimensions Bewul." She says with a chuckle.

     The Bancho Leomon continues to remain very much silent with closed eyes throughout the process after his basic instructions are given. The only movement made, aside from his wind-swept mane, is the light mouthing upon the stalk of grass sticking from his mouth. It isn't until Miwa says something that one of his rounded ears swivels and he cracks open a single eye just a tiny bit. Just enough to take a peek. And, matching that, the tiniest little smile curls the corners of his leonine mouth.

    The fox opens one eye, and glances at his own snout, before finally letting out a sigh of relief, slumping somewhat and wagging his long tail slowly, "That's good... thank you for your help, Rez." the slinky vulpine says, raising one of those paws and gingerly patting the apparently still meditating lion on one leg, "That was embarassing." he says softly, before letting out a chuckle.

Miwa looks around the beach a bit now, pondering a bit. It seems that while they were focused on each other, the humans that were further down the beach left, and they now had the whole beach to themselves. She smiles and looks back at her digimon friends. "Well, looks like we're alone now. What would you two like to do now that we're all evolved? We could go for a swim, continue relaxing here on the beach and make some sand castles or something maybe, or have a three way battle royale, just to toss out a few ideas."

     The lion slaps his hands against his cloth-covered thighs and then laughs a bit. "If you two want to challenge each other, go ahead. I want food first." Didn't he just eat? Of course, Rez can be distracted from food, but when left to his own thoughts they all eventually lead to one thing: food. 
     Pushing up from the sand back onto his feet, his large hands brush at the sand on his knees before looking Bewul over, and then Miwa, and then simply boisterously laughs. Well, somebody is certainly feeling jolly about the whole deal. "Looking good, Bewul! Small victories, big prizes: you get to choose!"

The fox stretches, long claws digging into the sand as he moved in almost feline fashion, shaking his fur, "This feels better." he says with a grin, before glancing back at Miwa, "I can go higher still, but if I do, I can only linger like that for a short while." he explains, smiling and moving closer to brush against the big water type's side, "Well, maybe try that battle, but I feel, I might need to evolve, and both of us have to team up against Rez to make it even close to a challenge against him." he says with a chuckle, "Still, a bit of sparring can be fun, afterwards, we can play with the sand adn eat some more."

Miwa blinks at Bewul a bit as he suggest evolving and also teaming up with her just to give Rez any semblance of a challenge. She then chuckles a bit and looks back at Rez with a grin. "You really that strong? I'm glad we're not enemies if that's the case. Anyways, if that's the case, maybe we should follow Rez's suggestion and let him eat while he watches us spar with each other. It has been a while since we did that Bewul, and I'm guessing we've both gotten stronger since then. What do you think, you up for that?"

     When asked about his strength, Rez simply looks to Miwa with a mildly neutral smile yet says nothing. Truthfully, he doesn't have an answer to the question. He has yet to have anything truly test his limits since his freedom and he has not gone into any sort of detail concerning the experiences had before that point. How do you explain that your strength was artificially tailored through a man wanting to use your image as a mascot to sell products using technology derived from your code? 
     "I look forward to seeing you two have a go at it, then. I've already seen some of what she can do." Felt it, too. That ice was impressive. "I have yet to see what -you- can do, however," voices Rez to Bewul before looking to Miwa. "Care to help him demonstrate?" Not enough so far to distract him from thoughts of more food, he does glance to the side along the beach toward the direction of the city proper. They have food-getting places, right?

The fox opens his snout wide for a yawn.. it is quite... the impressive muzzle, stretching again and shaking once again, as if dislodging something. He listens to Miwa's comments, "Actually, not that much stronger." he says with a chuckle, "But still, quite happy to give that a shot, hopefully I can give you a good fight.". He seems to blush again as Rez asks for a demonstration of his strength, "I am more of a quick type, quick with my paws and snatching things and jumping." he says, "My evolution is more combat based, big, bulky and strong." he explains. "Still, will be happy to do my best!" he says. The fox gets up and walks a bit, just to avoid dragging Rez into the display, and casually juggles a couple seashells with one paw. The motions are quick, hard to really track. "I'm ready."

Miwa nods to Bewul and sings a scale of tones a few times to warm up her vocal cords. Like Rez, she would fight Bewul on dry land, as she'd rather push herself in learning how to deal with fighting out of the comfort of the water where she has a decided advantage over most opponents, knowing most fights she winds up in that aren't friendly spars like this, are probably going to be on land, so she may as well learn to deal with it. She stretches a bit and then nods to Bewul, feeling that she's ready to begin. "Why don't you start things off this time Bewul."

     Now, of course, Rez can move faster than he looks, but it's nothing compared to actual digital evolutions and training designed to focus on speed. That said, he's not too worried about being in the middle of anything that happens. Even if he gets hit with friendly fire, the lion is confident he can withstand it. At the very least, the preparation for more sparring helps draw the Leomon's eye in. "No excuses. Give me a good show!" Wait, don't you eat popcorn while watching shows? Rez remembers something about that. "Hmm. I wonder what it tastes like," he says to himself.

    The fox stops playing with the shells, planting all four paws on the ground, and gives Miwa a moment to warm up, even if he twitches as he tries to calm down. As soon as he hears Miwa give the go signal, the battle starts!. The fox's eyes seem to narrow, as he tenses and his form seems to vanish from the spot, appearing behind Miwa an instant later, one might think it was a teleport, but a keen eye might see pawprints and flying sand running around the side of the 'arena', showing he actually rushed through the sand. "Blast Coffin!" he barks, his long muzzle opening wide as a black energy 'fireball' comes from his snout, trying to tag his opponent on the back. He seems to be breathing a bit heavily.

Even after Bewul mentions his digivolution is made for speed, Miwa isn't quite expecting just how fast he moves. She guesses he must have been holding back the last time they sparred. In the blink of an eye, he is behind her, and before she can react, she feels a ball of energy burning into her back. She clenches her teeth in pain and tries to swat at Bewul with an Aqua Tail attack, her tail becoming surrounded with a vortex water before she slams her tail toward Bewul with all the physical strength she could muster.

    Seems that burst of speed was something he didn't do normally, panting slightly as the attack lands, and... seems to just cause the seal to attack harder!. He tries to jump back from the empowered tail slap, but misjudges the reach of the move and ends up slapped right on the side, the light, lanky fox sent flying a few feet before landing on his paws, shaking again and whimpering. "Blast coffin!" he tries again, trying to press on with his attacks before Miwa can adjust and attack properly."

Miwa doesn't waste any time, knowing she's pretty much a sitting duck if she stays sitting on her tail in the sand, particularly with how fast Bewul is. She quickly forms a large water balloon which she perches herself atop as it quickly rises into the air in response to her voice which is raised in volume. She just manages to avoid Bewul's second attack as it passes harmlessly beneath her, and she responds with Hydro Pump, a powerful jet of water surging from her mouth, aimed at Bewul.

    The tall fox was not going to wait idly for Miwa to attack, at least this time he knew what to expect while he saw the large pokemon take 'flight' so fast and dodge the modest dark energy blast. Of course, just because he knew to expect a ranged attackd oes not mean he is able to handle it well!. Seems he was a bit over confident, it can't be as bad as it looks like?, he never saw Miwa use that move in any case!. Whatever the reason, he once again is too slow to move aside, adn given he was so light, it pushes him a fair bit and down to the sand, letting out a loud, long whine from his spot on the ground. "Should... dodge faster." he mumbles.

Miwa actually winces in empathy as her attack scores what looks like a direct hit on Bewul. Since he doesn't respond with another attack and she doesn't quite make out his mumble, she looks down at where he lies after taking the hit of her Hydro Pump. "Are you alright Bewul?" She asks with concern. Rez may notice, and perhaps Bewul too, that her guard is down a bit too due to her being more concerned with if Bewul is hurt or not, so if Bewul were to suddenly recover and launch a counter attack, it would likely catch her by surprise.

Bewul seems a bit sluggish to get up, shaking his head, "I am ok, I just... bah, I need more fighting practice." he says, chuckling a bit, "That hurts quite a bit." he explains softly, standing on all fours again and taking a few steps closer to the seal pokemon, wincing as he uses one of his hind legs, "I think I need a small break... sorry."

     "You gave it your best, even if you were caught unprepared," says Rez as he watches with arms crossed, solemn as ever. "Learn from the battle, no matter how short it may be. Sparring is one thing, but when it comes to a real fight with somebody...the battle is usually won or lost within seconds." He nods sagely at this in order to emphasize the importance. Easy for him to say!

Miwa frowns as she sees Bewul's apparent pain when putting pressure on one of his legs. "Sorry, I didn't think I'd hurt you that badly." She does nod at Rez's statement about how real fights were much more serious, and often over fast, though sometimes they can drag on if the fight is evenly matched. In any case, they had talked earlier about getting something to eat after this, and maybe it was time for something a little more substantial. "Lets call it here and go get some dinner in town. You can ride on my balloon if you need, seems like I hurt your leg..." She offers as she brings her giant water balloon down to the ground and forms a few smaller ones into a sort of stairway to make it easier for Bewul to get up.

Bewul does his best to dispel the worries, "I'll be fine, no worries, just a bit sore." he says, "You did great!, I was just careless." he replies, "I need to be more careful about dodging, but I am not built for long battles I believe." he says with a chuckle, "I appreciate that, normally I'd just return to my normal shape, but trying to get used to be in this form as long as I can, it helps me with my next evolution too." he says softly. He is grateful for the assistance to the large bubble, and carefully sits on it, "This is neat."

     Fetching his sword from the sand with his left hand, the Bancho Leomon rests the blade on his left shoulder and waits to follow along. Hopefully he won't get too distracted by human things again. So much of this human world has so many things he knows absolutely nothing about (to the point of even being suspicious, at times) and, well, he hasn't fully grasped the whole multiple worlds issue, either. "Yes, train your endurance. Ultimately, it is all usually about outlasting your opponent. When you think you absolutely cannot last any longer, you can still push a little more. Just be sure to eat plenty afterward." The lion's stone face cracks into more loud laughter. "I know I would!"