FaddedFox
"Comparison is the thief of joy."
Naomi frowned when someone called out to them and turned to face the stranger. Who was this guy? They didn't usually have anyone in the guild come up to them randomly in the hallway. Was this person even from the guild? Her eyes wandered over the stranger. He just seemed a regular traveler. She didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but if he was another bounty hunter or something, he'd know how to disguise things as necessary. Just because she didn't see a weapon didn't mean he wasn't armed. And dangerous. She'd never seen him before.
Todd squirmed a little in her arms and she looked down at the fox. He seemed just as curious as she was. Then again, the fox hadn't met anyone outside of the crew yet so this was a new experience. The fox stretched as far as he could go to get a better visual of the stranger. Was he scanning him like an x-ray machine? That could be helpful in locating weapons on people in the future, if that was something the AI had decided to pick up on. She'd have to investigate it later. For now, she just kept a good hold on the AI so it didn't get out of her arms. She would not be happy if he got lost or destroyed by something.
It seemed 'Larandus' was looking for Ancasta. That information made her feel uneasy. An-an? Ancasta never mentioned this person. She was closed off, but if there was something important they needed to know, she'd tell them, wouldn't she? Like who this stranger was? Was this man actually a friend or was he looking for Ancasta for other reasons? She didn't trust him. It seemed the more cynical crew was beginning to rub off on her. And Hayate appeared to agree with that vibe as he lied about Ancasta's whereabouts. She said nothing during the exchange and watched the stranger walk away warily. She had a bad feeling about this.
Naomi looked to Hayate once the man was finally gone. "No. I have never seen him before and I don't remember Ancasta ever mentioning him. We for sure need to tell her about this though, let her decide if she actually trusts that guy." She turned her attention to Todd then. "Hey Todd, were you scanning him?"
"Yes." Todd paused a moment and wagged his tail. "Not sick!" he beamed proudly.
Naomi blinked at him confused a moment before she laughed. "Looks like he scanned vitals. I got to be careful now! If you focus on all that medical stuff, Arien might steal you away from me!" she mused.
"Steal away?" Todd asked and tilted his head to the side.
"Ah, I was trying to joke. A joke is something said to be funny, to make people laugh." Oh boy, she forgot how much she'd have to explain with every new concept. "Arien is a doctor and the information you gathered is helpful to what he does. He wouldn't actually steal you. Stealing means he'd take you away without permission. You don't have to worry about that. No one will take you away from me," she promised and hugged the fox close. The AI wagged his tail and tried to mimic the gesture.
"What's laugh? Why laugh?" the fox countered.
Made sense that the AI would focus on the concept completely alien to it. Joking, laughing, joy, all of that would be something the AI wouldn't really grasp or understand. She could try and explain it in simple terms but there was so much context to something emotional. "Laughing makes people happy. Joy is something... it makes people feel good. It releases chemicals in the body to make people happy and can bring people closer. It is a large concept, just like other emotions. That is something we'll have to take a lot of time to really delve into and for you to study personally. It is not something simple, though sometimes it sounds like it. It's a good and nice thing."
Todd tilted his head from side to side as it internalized her words and made a new compartment with the information. Naomi was sure the fox would investigate it on its own as its mind developed and experiences increased.
Naomi turned her attention back to Hayate then. "Might as well go the board then, get that over with. Then we can send the info to Ancosta, along with the note about this rando looking for her."