She beamed up at Attie, which turned to confusion at the prey comment. There was something oddly familiar with the way it matched with that of animalistic nature. Trying to push past the thousand and one questions that instantly sprang to her lips, Akira joined Attie in glancing around. "This way!" she said with such confidence, it left no room for doubt.

"Akira is fox, so good nose." The foxling seemed proud of this fact as she walked hand in hand with Attie. No one seemed to notice them as they moved through the crowds. While she didn't exactly remember where she last saw that pet shop, she had a knack for following her nose. It had yet to lead her astray. True to her word, she found the store with cages of all sizes, each of them containing all sorts of creatures. Rabbits, frogs, cats and dogs, snakes and mice, owls and songbirds, lizards and moles, there were so many different species in the shop.

They ranged from normal to magical, helpful to naughty. Of course, there wasn't anything bigger than a wolf in any one cage. Larger animals were sold elsewhere. Akira ran up to the glass aquarium of rainbow-colored fish, pressing her nose against the glass. She watched the school swim around the various decorations, their scales sparkling spectacularly with every ray of light they caught. Excitedly, she looked back at Attie. "You want something? I buy."

Attie smiled and held onto Akira's hand. She knew herself how accurate the sense of smell was when finding a location or a person. Nobody seemed to pay them any mind as they ran around the town, looking for the place. It didn't take them long before they were standing outside the store. As they entered, Attie couldn't help but wonder what kind of animals would be in the shop. Some people considered things like dogs normal animals to keep around but others considered dragons to be pets. However when she saw all the animals, she realized that it was mostly filled with normal creatures. 

As Akira was looking at the fish, Attie had a look at the birds. There were doves, crows, and even parrots! She couldn't help but wonder at their beautiful feathers. Although she had traveled a lot, she still had yet to see such colorful winged creatures before. Her eyes then went to the rabbits and frogs. The rabbits were kept in cages while the frogs had their own tanks. There were also lizards and moles, a combination of animals that she didn't think many would want as pets and yet, here they were. Suddenly, she heard Akira ask her if she wanted anything. At one point, she didn't want to make Akira bad by saying no but at the other point, she didn't feel right having a kid using money on her. Then an idea hit her.

"How about we get each other something?" Attie suggested, "And lets make it a surprise. I like all kinds of different animals so whatever I end up with, I'll be happy. What do you think?"

The good thing was that none of these animals were especially big, so the payment for the creatures wouldn't be too much. Attie also enjoyed having friends and animals were just another form of friends. 

At first, Akira thought that Attie would deny her offer. Not that it would make her upset, some people just don’t feel comfortable with people spending money on them. But the older girl gave a suggestion, a counteroffer which made the kitsune beam with delight. ”Okay! Akira same.”

As her gaze drifted from the face of her friend towards all the hopeful animals, Akira began to wonder which animal would be best suited for a traveler. Dogs and wolves would be protective, maybe even help in the hunt for food when supplies run low. Cats may be too fickle to be suited for constant travel but can be very sweet and playful. She was careful not to spend too much time at any one cage, in case Attie would glance over at her.

The choice came down to two creatures and it was a difficult choice. Akira was torn between selfish comparability and thoughtful gift. When she glanced at the squirrels, they couldn’t care less as they ignored the shop. However, the pleading eyes the fox gave her nearly broke Akira’s heart as if the fox read her mind. She made her purchase and snuck out of the shop, waiting just outside with the fox that would soon be Attie’s. ”You’ll like her… Ya, adventures too. Keep her safe. Keep company. Make her smile.” Akira giggled as the fox leaped into her lap and began licking her face. ”Ya! Like that!”

Attie was relieved when the child accepted her offer. She let Akira look around the shop while Attie went to the other side, partially to avoid spoiling the gift that Akira was planning. There were many options of pets to choose from. It seemed that Akira traveled often so a smaller pet would work best. Her eyes drifted from pet to pet, but few of them caught her attention. The pet for Akira had to be special. Dogs and cats were fine but she wanted to get her friend a pet that would let allow her to slow down and appreciate life. A pet that would last a long time. Attie knew how hard it was to lose an animal family member who was close to her. She didn't want to give a pet to Akira, only to have it die the minute that she became an adult. It would break the girl's heart too much. 

Suddenly, Attie spotted a small box with a tortoise inside. The tortoise had a little food bowl and a little bed. It was five inches long and seemed to be in good health. After waiting for Akira to finish shopping and sneaking outside, Attie picked up the box and went to the shopkeeper. She asked a variety of questions about the tortoise and how it was as a pet. Tortoises were slow to move but most simply picked it up and placed it in their backpacks. The tortoise was only two years old and they could live up to 125 years. This type of tortoise was adapt to a variety of different weathers. Attie guessed that Akira traveled a lot so she wanted to ensure that the pet would be able to travel with her. 

She decided to go with the tortoise and paid for it. Heading out of the shop, Attie was careful to hide the box with the turtle. She sat down next to Akira and smiled at the beautiful fox that Akira had bought. The fox had beautiful fur and gorgeous eyes. The animal appeared to be extremely friendly, as it was still licking the girl's face. Attie hoped that Akira wouldn't be disappointed by the slower moving pet. Attie placed to box down and pulled out the tortoise to place in front of Akira. 

"This is a tortoise." Attie stated with a smile, "Even though he moves slowly, he is very friendly and you can put him in your backpack when you have to travel. He is durable too, with that shell of his." 

The tortoise moved slowly towards Akira and eventually made his way to her lap. The little tortoise didn't have the energy to get up into her lap, so it instead rested his head on her leg and closed his eyes. Attie took this chance and handed Akira a small piece of parchment. 

"These are the instructions for taking care of a tortoise." Attie explained, "Since most people don't know what tortoises are, the instructions come with the pet."