A slimy tongue awoke Mr. Takuya from his night's rest under the basketball hoop. Surprised, Mr. Takuya was awake within a couple of minutes and knew immediately why he had been disturbed. Tanuki was hungry and didn't mind letting Mr. Takuya know this. Most days Mr. Takuya gets up much earlier and is able to feed Tanuki at a more desirable hour. Last night however, Mr. Takuya had a difficult time getting to sleep. Loud noises and bright lights bothered him so much when trying to fall asleep, and Tanuki was equally as restless.

He didn't particularly enjoy them, carnivals, because he lacked sleep and his business always suffered. The carnival had been set up in the middle of town, so no matter where he was, Mr. Takuya could hear the constant characteristic sounds, which always escapes carnivals. He never understood why people would pick fried and unnatural carnival food over his delicious, fresh red bean cakes and sweet potatoes. Excluding the goodies he sold on his cart, Mr. Takuya had a very strict, self-enforced diet. Nothing fried or processed. All natural and fresh ingredients made him happiest especially fruits and vegetables. Despite his dislike towards carnivals, Mr. Takuya decided Tanuki and he would explore the grounds for the day. He knew this would make Tanuki happy, and he felt he owned him the treat. He also decided to try and sell his own cart treats during the carnival. Mr. Takuya worried the carnival owners might become angry with him, but Mr. Takuya wanted to take the chance.

Tanuki and Mr. Takuya walked to the carnival together but as soon as they got inside, Tanuki ran off, excited by the new sights and smells. A bit disappointed by the loss of his companion, Mr. Takuya hoped no one would take notice of him and his non-carnival related cart. The red umbrella made its way around the big ferris wheel, the driver invisible to those at the very top. He avoided the haunted house, for scary things...scared Mr. Takuya. The small dragon roller coaster looked inviting to Mr. Takuya, but he was unsure about what to do with his cart. Leaving it alone, unattended certainly wasn't an option. Continuing his circle he ran into Tanuki. The creature was following a small yellow blob with excited interest. Mr. Takuya fell into step behind Tanuki and soon realized the walking yellow blob was a girl, eating something.

"Ah. Food. Tanuki always want food", thought Mr. Takuya to himself. It was true though, Tanuki was always hungry. His thoughts had distracted Mr. Takuya, so he didn't notice that the girl had stopped walking and was petting Tanuki. When the girl took notice of Mr. Takuya, she looked him over multiple times, making Mr. Takuya quite nervous. As the looks continued however, his nerves went away. Something in her eyes made him relax. A friendly yet cautious twinkle.

"Hi. My name's Kaiya. Kaiya Hamura. I've seen your cart before, it sure seems good". She looked at Mr. Takuya again.

"Is he with you too? Never seen a badger in real life before, I like him. Never could imagine having something like him a pet before".

"Tanuki is good friend. Likes lot of food", Mr. Takuya finally responded.

"Oh yeah? Can I give him a bit of this? Its just a pretzel..."

Mr. Takuya nodded. He liked this girl. She seemed nonthreatening. He was always more comfortable around kids. He felt like a kid on most days...

"Red bean cake?" Mr. Takuya took two off his cart for himself and offered the other to the Kaiya.

"Sure. I don't think I've ever had one of these before, but it sounds good".

Together the three loners sat along side the ferris wheel, munching on their snacks in joint silence. Although it was still early in the evening, the sky had darken and a rainless lightening storm started, providing entertainment to the trio.