The pair had walked back to the newly-appointed tamer's unit.
Admittedly, it had taken a fair effort from the digimon to convince him to allow what was basically a stranger to come home with him. Eventually he had caved in and allowed it, mainly because he hadn't wanted to cause a scene in front of the group of strangers that had gathered after the little spectacle.
The tamer sat on the couch, whilst the digimon stood watching from the other side of the room, arms folded behind its back.
An increasingly awkward silence hung between man and digimon. He didn't really know what to say given the circumstances, and the digimon seemed content to remain silent.
He decided to start with the formalities.
"Uh... why don't you help yourself to a seat, Renamon."
He gestured to the chair opposite him.
"Thank you, but I am comfortable standing."
"Are you sure? You look kind of... uh... tense."
"I do not feel tense. This is how I normally stand."
"Oh, ok. Just... you look like a soldier on alert or something."
"I suppose that is somewhat accurate. My kind are renowned for our discipline. In some places we are known as Nightmare Soldiers."
"Nightmare... jeez, sounds like some kind of death squad or something. Anyway, if you're happy to stand then suit yourself."
Unsure what else to say, he instead pulled the magically-appeared-out-of-thin-air device from his pocket. Renamon had told him it was a 'digivice'. It was a similar colour to the digimon, being mainly yellow with white highlights around a central screen, and a purple strap at the top. A d-pad sat below the screen.
He held it up questioningly towards the digimon.
"So... this little gizmo means we're partners, huh?"
"Yes. The digivice confirms it. You are my tamer and I am your digimon."
"And... do I get a choice in the matter?"
The digimon frowned in confusion, as if it couldn't comprehend someone choosing not to become a tamer given the choice.
"It would be highly unusual for a tamer to reject this opportunity. Do you not consider me a suitable partner?"
"I-didn't-say-that!"
His response was quick and somewhat flustered, not wanting to offend someone with the strength to crush his hand.
Truth be told, if he had to become a tamer, this Renamon appeared much more manageable than some of the other digimon he had seen around town. It wasn't a 10-foot-tall behemoth, for starters. It also didn't have any gruesome spikes, pincers or other weapons that would likely invite trouble later on.
"I assure you I will strive to serve you to the best of my ability."
The digimon had stepped forward as it spoke. It was now staring at him intently with its piercing blue eyes, and the unusual black sclera only served to make the striking colour stand out more.
The tamer couldn't help but feel himself leaning back into the couch under the gaze.
"Uh... right..."
"Talk about intense. Am I getting guilt-tripped into becoming a digimon tamer? Damn, I really need to learn to say no."
"...so... how is this supposed to work?"
"The digivice provides a number of functions to assist in various situations. It would be wise to familiarise yourself with them."
"Right... and do I get an instruction manual?"
"I can instruct you in its use."
"Oh, have you used one before?"
"No, I have not had a tamer before. It seems during the partnering process, the digivice imparted this knowledge onto me."
The tamer stared dumbly for a moment.
"Uh... like directly into your brain? That's...kind of awesome."
"Indeed."
"Ok. So what's first then?"
"To begin, pressing any button will wake the device."
"Ok..."
He pressed the d-pad and the device came to life.
"...alright, this looks like a main menu."
"Good. The first option should say 'Digimon'. Select that please."
He did as asked and saw a number of options.
"Ok, so status, locate, summon... um, V-feed?"
"Short for 'visual feed'. It will allow you to see what I am seeing."
"Ok, that's totally awesome. How the hell does it do that?"
"It is quite simple. Digimon are essentially just programs. Since this digivice is intrinsically linked to me, it can interpret my data and display it in a form you can understand."
The tamer found it strange the way Renamon referred to itself like an object, but decided it best to leave the philosophy for another time.
"OK. What about the rest of these? I think I can guess what summon and locate do."
"Yes, they are straightforward. Locate will direct you to my position and summon will call me to yours."
"Hmm..."
He selected the locate function. The screen changed to show an arrow orbiting around the outer edge. Eventually it seemed to hone in on Renamon's position and stopped, pointing directly at the digimon. The number 1 appeared in the middle of the screen.
Renamon was standing about a metre away, so it seemed the digivice was accurate. He waved the digivice left and right, watching as the arrow moved around, tracking the digimon's position.
"...seems to be working."
"Good. There is also a navigate function. However, I believe it will not work in this world."
"Meh, we got Google for that. And status? As in like... your status?"
"Yes, for example my power level. Digimon have a number of attributes that indicate how strong we are, such as attack, defense and speed. You can view these in the digivice."
"Ok. And what do I do with this information?"
"Primarily, it can assist in strategising... for battles."
He noticed the digimon hesitated before mentioning battles.
"Slightly uncomfortable topic, perhaps?"
He kept silent about it for now and tried to change the topic.
"Uh... what's this slot in the side for?"
"That is the card slot. You can swipe modification cards to give various advantages. Also primarily useful in battles."
"Oops, right back to battles."
"Oh, that's what those cards are for. I'd seen some people with them but didn't really understand what they were using them for."
"Yes, I understand they can provide significant advantages if used correctly. However, I have not felt the effects myself, not having had a tamer."
"Do I need to look into getting some? Sounds like they could be useful."
"Hmm… if you wish."
Whilst the digimon had remained impassive so far, there was a hint of disdain in those last words.
"Yeah, definitely no enthusiasm for battle."
"Maybe... later then. Anyway, when I asked how this would work, I was more meaning this whole digimon-tamer thing."
He pointed back and forth between himself and Renamon as he spoke.
"Of course. Are you familiar with the Digidestined?"
"Uh... vaguely. Some kids with digimon partners who supposedly saved the world, right?"
"It is slightly more complicated than that, but essentially, yes. Through some unknown circumstance, several children were partnered with digimon and tasked with defeating a great evil in the digital world. At face value, they should not have stood a chance. However, through their partnership, the tamers were able to bring out the true strength in their digimon partners, and they defeated the evil."
"Yeah, it's a great story... but hard to believe a bunch of kids saved the world though."
"Regardless of whether you believe it, the lesson of the story holds true. Digimon and humans can partner to grow stronger together. Since then, many more digimon have entered your world. Initially, it was thought that only those who were chosen could partner together. But this has since been disproven, with many new partnerships forming. It seems as long as both parties are willing, a partnership can form."
"But I didn't want to become a tamer. It just happened."
A sad look briefly crossed the digimon's face upon hearing the tamer's statement, but it quickly passed.
"Whilst you may not have been actively seeking a partnership, it seems you were also not opposed to the idea. And..."
The digimon now looked at him earnestly.
"...I hope that even if you were not intending to become a tamer, you will give this partnership a genuine chance. As your partner, I will serve you and assist in achieving your goals. In return, you will guide me and help me to grow stronger. The stronger our bond is, the stronger I will be. And the stronger I am, the better able I will be to serve you as your partner."
He wasn't sure if digimon knew about puppy dog eyes, but Renamon was certainly giving it a shot. Unfortunately, it didn't quite work when you had such piercing eyes, and instead the digimon just looked fierce.
"I... uh..."
"Am I really gonna take this on? Eh, can't be that hard, right? If some kids can manage..."
"...alright. But I don't like the way you say 'serve'. You make it sound almost like slavery."
"On the contrary, to become a partnered digimon is held as a great responsibility. Serving a tamer in helping to achieve their goals gives us purpose."
"So what, you'll just do whatever I ask?"
"Whatever you need, Tamer... if it is within my power."
"Yeah, that blind faith is exactly the problem."
The tamer imagined how easy it would be for a less... upstanding person to take advantage of such a partnership, particularly if all digimon were so devoted to their tamer. He voiced his concerns.
"That's a lot of faith to put in someone you just met. Doesn't that mean you could be manipulated into doing bad stuff?"
"I trust you will guide me down the right path, Tamer."
"Ok. Oh, by the way, I'm a bit short on cash, can you help me rob the bank tomorrow?"
"That… well…"
The digimon struggled to come up with a response, thrown off by being asked to do something obviously illegal straight away.
"...I'm just messing with you, Renamon."
"Oh, I see. I was not certain..."
"I have a... let's say unusual sense of humour. So, still think you're gonna do whatever I ask?"
The digimon pondered that question for a moment, before diplomatically choosing to remain silent.