[AMB] Animal Ambassador #1 [ Douma ]

‘Make sure to observe Douma closely. He was chosen to be an ambassador for his species. Take note of everything he does, alright?’

Yone’s words still rang inside Ike’s mind as he absentmindedly tapped his sketchbook. He began scribbling down small doodles of Douma, ensuring the snow leopard’s portraits were worthy of him. “Observe Douma… How exactly? I can’t even see him,” the Renamon mumbled under his breath, squinting through the exhibit’s glass with a snarl, “That task is impossible.”

“Hey, Ike! Can I help you with something?”

Ike jumped in surprise, dropping his pen and paper at the sudden voice. He clutched his heart, feeling his tail twitch anxiously before he turned around to see who startled him. “Lyra, you scared me,” he laughed, leaning down to pick up his things from the floor.

Lyra took a step back, grinning sheepishly while he scratched the back of his neck, “I’m sorry, Ike. I didn’t realize you were in the zone like that.” The wyverian followed suit and picked up whatever items Ike scattered around, frowning when he saw a doodle of Douma on a sheet of paper. “You’re drawing Douma, I see?” He asked, handing the fox-like humanoid the sheet, “Maybe I can help you get a better picture of him. What is it for?”

“Oh, yeah,” Ike took the paper from Lyra with a smile, staring at it before he put it inside his sketchbook, “Yone told me to observe Douma. Someone chose him to be an ambassador for his species.” The Renamon’s eyes sparked curiously, watching the wyverian closely. He tilted his head to the side when the other hummed in thought, feeling anxious all of a sudden. Was that something Lyra disliked? Did he not want Douma to be a chosen ambassador? “Unless it is-”

“Douma is a poor choice but alright,” Lyra interrupted him, causing their gazes to lock once more, “Let me get inside the exhibit. You wait here.”

Ike followed the wyverian, watching him swipe his access card against the terminal before the door opened. Once Lyra walked through it, the sensor on the other side forced it shut again. All the Renamon could do was now to observe everything through the glass and wait. He held his sketchbook up, ready to scribble and doodle any notes and small sketches down if he had to.

Surprisingly, he didn’t have to wait long. A smile crossed his snout when he saw the snow leopard running after Lyra, pawing at the wyverian gently. It seemed to be a simple game of tag. In his typical fashion, Ike began to write things down, his gaze darting between the frolicking duo and his paper.

Douma playfully chased after Lyra, growling and chuffing whenever he almost caught the wyverian. He took a small leap and tackled his caretaker, causing them both to tumble across the snowy floor of the Aurora Aegis exhibit. The snow leopard pinned Lyra to the ground, licking his face with a mischievous grin, “I got you, Lyra!” He rubbed his chin against the other, purring softly before plopping down onto him, “I won’t let you go.” His ears flicked when he heard someone giggle from behind the glass, prompting Douma to stare at Ike. 

“Douma, get off me,” Lyra laughed, gently stroking the snow leopard’s fur. He tried to get the feline’s attention but the cat’s eyes were trained on his co-worker. “Ike is here to observe you. You’re chosen to be an ambassador, so you better act like a proper snow leopard and not a cub.”

That certainly got through Douma’s thick skull. He shot up immediately, releasing his caretaker from his grasp while he kept staring at Ike. His ears flicked as he forced his gaze back toward Lyra. He pawed at the wyverian, growling softly. There was a certain curiosity and insecurity in his growls, a clear sign that he had no clue what to do.

Lyra gently caressed the big cat’s head, scratching behind his ears, “Try to show off how majestic you are, hm? Or you could get closer to the glass there and show Ike your pretty eyes.” The wyverian pointed toward Ike, who had no clue what they were talking about. A grin crossed Lyra’s face at the confused expression from the glass window, giving the Renamon a thumbs up.

Of course, Douma didn’t hesitate and jogged over to where Lyra was pointing. He got onto his hand legs, placing his paws on the glass. His nose touched the surface, letting out a curious chuff before he gave Ike a toothy grin. As expected, the Renamon moved a few meters away from him, surprise clearly present in his eyes. Douma then rubbed his head against the glass, licking his muzzle with soft purrs.

“You're definitely not shy but curious for a snow leopard,” Ike chuckled, rolling his eyes when he noticed Lyra having a laugh further behind. He placed his palm on the glass, giving it a short tap before pointing over to Lyra, “Douma, give him a scare. Show me how fierce a snow leopard can be.”

“Good idea!” Douma giggled, snapping his gaze away from the Renamon to stare at Lyra instead. Without a warning, he ran toward the wyverian, jumping at him with open paws. The two of them tumbled across the ground again, falling off a small makeshift cliff. His tail lashed as he pinned Lyra down, standing proud above his prey, “You won’t escape me now, Lyra!”

“Note taken,” Lyra chuckled beneath Douma’s paws, accepting his fate with a sigh, “Never play tricks on Ike again.”

While everything went down, Ike laughed to himself, making sure to sketch and scribble down everything for the ambassador’s judges. Douma put on a nice enough display - now it was up for him to put it into words. Perhaps he could lend a camera from the souvenir shop to take a proper picture of the snow leopard instead of the drawings he did? Well, that was a future Ike problem. For now, he had to report back to Yone and bring his findings to him.