Oh— [Yes, yes, he'll accept this food swap to dump the potatoes into the water. No idea how long these are supposed to be in the water, either - but to be fair, they don't have a timer anyway, so they'll just have to watch. This meal may be kind of mushy in the end.
But back to the really cool name—] What's wrong with sounding tough? If you sound too cute, no one's gonna take you seriously.
[Food is food!! But here, let Ochako get serious for a moment and give him a mini lesson:]
But if you sound too tough, then you're not approachable! You want people to come to your agency! Plus other heroes won't want to work with you if you have a bad image, and that means you won't be picked for any joint missions.
[Those are where the big money is, but she'll just. Keep that fact to herself.]
You don't have to, but sometimes it's better to work together. Different quirks can help with different things! And if it's a really important mission, like the last one I— [Actually, that's... still a pretty sensitive subject, so once her brain catches up to her mouth she cuts that sentence right off. She'll just casually wave that topic aside, thanks.] A-Anyway, you can do it all alone, if you really want to. It's just a lot harder that way!
[Hmm, that's suspect... but he's not going to pry, both because it's fun garden afternoon and because his prying is more like sledgehammering, subtlety is dead, the whole nine yards. But he frowns, briefly, before shrugging.]
I'm not really a teams guy. You and Nanjo're all right, but it's usually just me and Josuke, y'know?
[Fun garden afternoon, you say? This looks suspiciously like the lobster dinner thread, but... hmm. You learn something new every day.
Also, wow, she's "all right." What a blessing.]
If you were both from the place I'm from, then you could form a permanent team. Lots of professional heroes are doing that now! You two could even pick a theme, and then your names and costumes could match.
For real? That's more like it! Do you get a team name, too? [He will make a list in the vain hope Josuke shows up one day to be bombarded by Hero Team Names...]
[Aw, he's actually excited about this idea? Now she's even more into it, because it's doubly cute. Honestly, his Tough Thug façade crumbled away, like, five threads ago... he should just embrace it at this point...]
Yeah! But you have to keep the theme in mind when you pick it, because everything has to go together. That way everyone remembers who you two are! Do you have any ideas?
[No... never... it's a lifestyle choice!! One he's terminally bad at, but details - he's committed to the bit, here. Mostly. Now let him think for a moment, since the best he can come up with right now is "two kewl dudes," and that's, you know. That's not kewl at all.]
Nope! [okay] Josuke's gonna worry about that more than me, anyway.
[In his mind, they're already a hero team... also he lied, he has One Idea:]
[She should have seen this coming from a mile away, but Ochako, the eternal optimist, did not. It takes a great deal of self-restraint not to sputter all over him.]
I don't think so, but that's kind of— [Hmm, how should she word this?] People might think that you're greedy? You'd have to think of a really good backstory.
[What is wrong with being excited about money, answer him this...]
Josuke's greedy and a slave to his stupid brands, [they are best friends for real] but I'm just broke. That's good enough, yeah? "I want money" sounds good to me. I'll stand in front so Josuke doesn't mouth off about his allowance.
[That spoiled little...!! Josuke can almost do no wrong, but god, if Okuyasu had a nickel for every time Josuke blew all his money on complete nonessentials, he could probably stop ribbing him about it. One boy sucks at finances, one keeps judging him for it, now that's a backstory.]
[One day she will tell him about her own motivation for becoming a hero. Greedy, yet wholesome.]
There's nothing wrong with wanting money! [She holds her hands up in front of her, giving him that universal gesture for, "It's cool, I'm totally not judging you." How can she make this idea work for him? HMM.] You two could be super popular if you went after the villains who rob people. They're all over the place! And you could even tie that back to your theme if you two dressed up like accountants or s-somethi—
[That's too much, because now she's picturing Salaryman Okuyasu! With Iida-like glasses! Excuse her as she turns to the side and tries not to burst into laughter.]
[Money... is good. And that's super specific, but if it gets them that sweet hero paycheck, sure. You know, as if this is possible and going to happen—]
Hey, I'm good at that stuff! [Accounting stuff. Not dressing like one, no, he'd look weird crammed into a suit-- Now he's leaning to the side to get a look at her face, eyebrow raised. Ochako...] You don't think I can pull it off? Huh?
[He can always count on Ochako to 1) make things as ridiculous as possible and 2) promptly laugh about them. But even though seeing him lean over like that is pretty darn silly, she can't handle someone—especially a friend—thinking that she's seriously making fun of them. That's such an anti-Ochako thing to do!
So she'll just be straightening back up, thank you, and shaking her head.]
That's not what I meant! You can do anything that you want to do, Okuyasu! I'm sure that you'd be great!
[HHM... hmm! This is acceptable; he reaches over and... ruffles her hair, twice, for sassing. There, punishment is served - he straightens up again in turn with a short hum.]
Yeah, yeah... Don't freak out about it, it's no big deal.
[...]
Two guys dressed like accountants fighting crime is pretty dumb-looking, though, that's a pretty good point.
[Is hair-ruffling a thing now?? It must be a sign of true friendship, so she isn't about to complain about it; she just reaches up to readjust her ponytail as soon as his hand is out of the way. All in all, it's a small price to pay to keep the peace!]
It wouldn't be that bad. I've seen stranger costumes. [Okay, the ponytail has been secured, so now she's shooing him to the side so that she can check on her half of the meal.] You get to design your own, so some people go a little crazy.
[Grabbing the spoon that's definitely nearby, she gives the potatoes a quick poke before carefully scooping one out of the water. Hmm. She wants... to eat it, but that would be rude.]
[She's short! He can't help it!! So yes, hair ruffling is definitely a thing now, he's 2 for 2 and counting. But he raises his hands in defeat as she shoos him away, turning his attention to the other pot that definitely doesn't have a lobster he killed in it.]
You haven't seen Josuke. [Shame that he doesn't have more pictures... With one hand he lifts the pot lid to look inside abd with the other sort of gestures above his hair.] He's got hair up to here, right, and there's no way he's gonna do it up differently just for the costume.
[It would look... even dumber. He looks at the potato, now. Hm.]
[One of her teachers styles his hair like a cockatiel, so like? When she glances up to see how high he's holding his hand, she just gives him a little shrug before honing back in on her potato. Weird hair is a Thing in every world, apparently.]
It could work! He'd stand out, and that's always important.
[There's a silver lining to every cloud. He should be used to this by now. But her potato looks sufficiently cool, and so, after one last moment of hesitation—because eating out of the pot is rude—she plucks the piece off the spoon and pops it into her mouth. And chews. And considers. And—]
's good! [Yeah, she's using her free hand to grab his arm and give him an excited shake. Get pumped about potatoes!!!] Okuyasu! It tastes normal!
[As expected, but this is the first non-sweet thing she's eaten that doesn't taste like dirt? Let her live.]
[Josuke is so sensitive about his hair... that's the real handicap. Okuyasu shrugs right back, agreeing that he'd stand out (ha ha stand), but - he's just very extra. Okuyasu would do anything for him except pay, but he's so goddamn extra.
That said - potatoes!! He's very attentively watching her taste test, as this is the moment of truth for the weird purple spuds... and her excitable shaking just adds to the real, honest to god thrill of normal potatoes. This feeling of potato-based joy will not last, because there are like 200 of them, but for now--]
Hell yeah! Get me one! [They could just drain the pot, but the sampling is a critical part of junior cooking time.] I gotta eat something real...
[Draining the water would take too much time. Ochako understands this, and so she promptly lets go of him in order to fish another piece of potato out of the pot. She's even considerate enough to fan it a bit in an (unsuccessful) attempt to cool it down.]
Okay, okay! [Of course she holds the spoon over his way, her other hand hovering underneath it just in case. Grab the tater. Share in this moment of triumph.] But don't burn yourself—it's hot!
[It's so sad that the cause of her pure, unbridled joy is a potato, but... it is what it is.]
[They are of one mind when it comes to food and food alone—very fortunate. He pokes at the potato piece, wincing when it is, in fact, very hot - a foolproof investigation by Okuyasu.]
Wish they weren't purple... [Still, food is food. He's going for it, picking up the piece and popping it in his mouth before he has time to burn his fingers on it. Mouth: a worthy sacrifice for a little burn.
Hmm, hmm...] It is normal! Think of all the purple fries we can make!
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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Oh— [Yes, yes, he'll accept this food swap to dump the potatoes into the water. No idea how long these are supposed to be in the water, either - but to be fair, they don't have a timer anyway, so they'll just have to watch. This meal may be kind of mushy in the end.
But back to the really cool name—] What's wrong with sounding tough? If you sound too cute, no one's gonna take you seriously.
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But if you sound too tough, then you're not approachable! You want people to come to your agency! Plus other heroes won't want to work with you if you have a bad image, and that means you won't be picked for any joint missions.
[Those are where the big money is, but she'll just. Keep that fact to herself.]
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It's sounding less cool now, if it's just working... I gotta join a team or something?
[Is this now just sentai heroes irl?? Not nearly as exciting as cool vigilantes!]
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You don't have to, but sometimes it's better to work together. Different quirks can help with different things! And if it's a really important mission, like the last one I— [Actually, that's... still a pretty sensitive subject, so once her brain catches up to her mouth she cuts that sentence right off. She'll just casually wave that topic aside, thanks.] A-Anyway, you can do it all alone, if you really want to. It's just a lot harder that way!
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I'm not really a teams guy. You and Nanjo're all right, but it's usually just me and Josuke, y'know?
no subject
Also, wow, she's "all right." What a blessing.]
If you were both from the place I'm from, then you could form a permanent team. Lots of professional heroes are doing that now! You two could even pick a theme, and then your names and costumes could match.
[She's way too into this idea. It sounds Cute.]
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ANYWAY... this idea sounds great.]
For real? That's more like it! Do you get a team name, too? [He will make a list in the vain hope Josuke shows up one day to be bombarded by Hero Team Names...]
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Yeah! But you have to keep the theme in mind when you pick it, because everything has to go together. That way everyone remembers who you two are! Do you have any ideas?
[And that's how they get that advertising $$$.]
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Nope! [okay] Josuke's gonna worry about that more than me, anyway.
[In his mind, they're already a hero team... also he lied, he has One Idea:]
Did somebody already pick cash as their theme?
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I don't think so, but that's kind of— [Hmm, how should she word this?] People might think that you're greedy? You'd have to think of a really good backstory.
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Josuke's greedy and a slave to his stupid brands, [they are best friends for real] but I'm just broke. That's good enough, yeah? "I want money" sounds good to me. I'll stand in front so Josuke doesn't mouth off about his allowance.
[That spoiled little...!! Josuke can almost do no wrong, but god, if Okuyasu had a nickel for every time Josuke blew all his money on complete nonessentials, he could probably stop ribbing him about it. One boy sucks at finances, one keeps judging him for it, now that's a backstory.]
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There's nothing wrong with wanting money! [She holds her hands up in front of her, giving him that universal gesture for, "It's cool, I'm totally not judging you." How can she make this idea work for him? HMM.] You two could be super popular if you went after the villains who rob people. They're all over the place! And you could even tie that back to your theme if you two dressed up like accountants or s-somethi—
[That's too much, because now she's picturing Salaryman Okuyasu! With Iida-like glasses! Excuse her as she turns to the side and tries not to burst into laughter.]
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Hey, I'm good at that stuff! [Accounting stuff. Not dressing like one, no, he'd look weird crammed into a suit-- Now he's leaning to the side to get a look at her face, eyebrow raised. Ochako...] You don't think I can pull it off? Huh?
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So she'll just be straightening back up, thank you, and shaking her head.]
That's not what I meant! You can do anything that you want to do, Okuyasu! I'm sure that you'd be great!
[Take this support and shush.]
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Yeah, yeah... Don't freak out about it, it's no big deal.
[...]
Two guys dressed like accountants fighting crime is pretty dumb-looking, though, that's a pretty good point.
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It wouldn't be that bad. I've seen stranger costumes. [Okay, the ponytail has been secured, so now she's shooing him to the side so that she can check on her half of the meal.] You get to design your own, so some people go a little crazy.
[Grabbing the spoon that's definitely nearby, she gives the potatoes a quick poke before carefully scooping one out of the water. Hmm. She wants... to eat it, but that would be rude.]
Do they look done to you?
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You haven't seen Josuke. [Shame that he doesn't have more pictures... With one hand he lifts the pot lid to look inside abd with the other sort of gestures above his hair.] He's got hair up to here, right, and there's no way he's gonna do it up differently just for the costume.
[It would look... even dumber. He looks at the potato, now. Hm.]
Dunno? Just try it. [food is meant to be eaten?!]
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It could work! He'd stand out, and that's always important.
[There's a silver lining to every cloud. He should be used to this by now. But her potato looks sufficiently cool, and so, after one last moment of hesitation—because eating out of the pot is rude—she plucks the piece off the spoon and pops it into her mouth. And chews. And considers. And—]
's good! [Yeah, she's using her free hand to grab his arm and give him an excited shake. Get pumped about potatoes!!!] Okuyasu! It tastes normal!
[As expected, but this is the first non-sweet thing she's eaten that doesn't taste like dirt? Let her live.]
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That said - potatoes!! He's very attentively watching her taste test, as this is the moment of truth for the weird purple spuds... and her excitable shaking just adds to the real, honest to god thrill of normal potatoes. This feeling of potato-based joy will not last, because there are like 200 of them, but for now--]
Hell yeah! Get me one! [They could just drain the pot, but the sampling is a critical part of junior cooking time.] I gotta eat something real...
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Okay, okay! [Of course she holds the spoon over his way, her other hand hovering underneath it just in case. Grab the tater. Share in this moment of triumph.] But don't burn yourself—it's hot!
[It's so sad that the cause of her pure, unbridled joy is a potato, but... it is what it is.]
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Wish they weren't purple... [Still, food is food. He's going for it, picking up the piece and popping it in his mouth before he has time to burn his fingers on it. Mouth: a worthy sacrifice for a little burn.
Hmm, hmm...] It is normal! Think of all the purple fries we can make!