<div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/a5/4a/d0/a54ad0c78fe6f6ed9893fe8a6eb846e1.jpg)</div><strong>NAME:</strong>Date Toshiro<br/><strong>DAY:</strong>June 15th, 2021, 11:00AM<br/><strong>LOCATION:</strong>City Streets, Tolme's Menswear Clothing Shop<br/><strong>TAGGING:</strong>Kevin | Mentions: Mallory, Azmodiel and Riko Tetsuda<br/><strong>EXTRA:</strong>Greeting the owner of Tolme's, and dodging questions.<br/><strong>WEARING:</strong>Toshiro is currently wearing a cream colored graphic t-shirt (https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2292/0133/products/B_wander_640x.jpg?v=1571609586), dark cerulean cargo shorts and running shoes, a Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters' insignia ball cap, and a pair of over-ear headphones with a stark white frame around his neck. A canvas messenger bag is slung over his shoulder, its surface almost entirely consisting of patches and buttons from an assortment of cartoons, movies, bands, and video games.<br/><hr/>Not having heard any mention of his presence being undesirable for Kevin, Toshiro took the optimistic view that this was probably due to the younger man vastly enjoying the researcher's company. He doubted that the soldier in front of him was doing anything other than answering directly with his vague but tantalizingly mysterious answer that he had some place to go, but Toshiro wasn't about to ruin the surprise for himself by asking immediately. Instead however he tried to guess at why the usually spartan Kevin had suddenly developed an interest in shopping. Scratching his chin lightly in consideration the occasionally observant Toshiro floated a statement casually to measure the response, “It's Mal's birthday soon isn't it?”<br/><br/>Toshiro couldn't help but laugh lightly at Kevin's statement regarding his unusual retail reconnoitering. “For you specifically? Yeah it's weird. Most of these stores don't have a single knife or MRE in sight.” Pulling a pair of cold water bottles from a thermal compartment in his messenger bag to fight the sun's increasingly oppressive summer presence, he offered a mischievous smile as held one up towards Kevin in a  gesture of offering before continuing thoughtfully, “It's not a bad thing though, you could stand to be less boring. As to what your parents might think, eh... I wouldn't worry about it. I mean I've told your dad to his face more than once he needs to broaden his view of the world a bit, but I don't think he ever took it the right way.” Tilting his head from side to side in consideration he added reluctantly, “I mean it probably didn't help that I lead the conversation by sticking my finger in his face and calling him a jack booted fascist fuckwit, but I had a pretty good reason for it at the time.”<br/><br/>Again Kevin took the researcher by surprise as he interrupted Toshiro's admiration of a quaint white framed flower cart that stood in stark contrast with it's vividly colored offerings, with the soldier's question regarding the cost and benefits of building attachments with others. Paying for the bouquet he was about to ruin by removing a single yellow rose, Toshiro took a card from the short tan skinned man peddling the assortment of floral delights and thanked him before turning back to Kevin, “That's almost a good question Soldier, but I think it's built around a bad assumption.” Taking in a lengthy sniff of the rose's rich aroma, he continued as the pair continued their journey to wherever Kevin was leading them, “The way I see it, becoming close to people doesn't just make you better or more vulnerable, it does both, although depending on the person, it'll make you more one thing than the other.”<br/><br/>Idly spinning the flower in his hand for a moment, Toshiro added with less certainty than usual, “At times it's hard to say if the benefits outweigh the costs.” After a moment of silence he shook the momentary doldrums from his mind before adding, “Then again, if you do care about someone, isn't it worth paying the price of being more vulnerable if it means making their life better?” This question seemed far from rhetorical with the largely uncertain tone that presented it. Trying not to linger on a subject that hit so near to home, Toshiro once again attempted to redirect the conversation with a happy and nonchalant, “So, are we just browsing or did you have a place in mind?”