149/Yukata and shared trauma.

Yukata and shared trauma.
Date of Scene:	24 July 2023
Location:	Cafeteria Plaza
Synopsis:	A late morning, early afternoon in the RHA cafeteria. Coffee, pancakes, egg goo awful and festival plans!
Cast of Characters:	Naru Osaka, Coco Kiumi, Amanda Faust, Rashmi Terios, Koharu Itamae, Mio Morita

---

Naru Osaka has posed:
Sure it's between terms, but that doesn't mean that the dorms and cafeteria at RHA is empty. If anything, it rather means that the cafteria is busy more steadily, as people are keeping their own schedule, rather than it being an all fired rush before and after class times and dead during lectures. There's still breakfast food available for those who didn't get up at the crack of stupid while on mid-term break.

Naru has taken over a chunk of table with a sketchbook, her pencils, a breakfast pastry she's been very slowly nibbling on, and a coffee. Almost finished, more's the tragedy, but there's free refills and she's making EXCELLENT use of that benefit.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
It has only been 4 days since the end of the first midterm and the atmosphere at the school was already much more relaxed now that the anxiety brought by exams was over. Students are taking it easy around this time, and many of them are currently staying at the cafeteria.

This was the case for Coco too, who currently nibbling a croissant at a table. Set next to her there is also a mocha latte, the beverage Mio introduced her to. Every once in a while she sets the croissant down to take a sip.

The reason she is taking her time with breakfast is a set of papers she copied from the library, detailing the traditions and events of Tokyo. In Coco's sight in particular there are the Sumida River Fireworks, set to take place this coming weekend. It apparently started being celebrated as remembrance of the victims of an old famine and the event consisted of setting fireworks for its duration, admiring them in these traditional clothes called yukata.

'Hmmm, fireworks are nice, I wonder if people are starting to set groups with which to attend. I should ask Cho about it later. I also should find a way to procure one of these yukata.'

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru reaches for her coffee and ... the cup is empty. A tragedy that cannot stand, clearly. Naru is perfectly capable of standing, however, and does so. She's clearly wholly unconcerned about walking away from her sketchbook and her danish as she moves up to the buffet to pour herself another cup. Her pencils are unlikely to run away without her.

Hopefully. One never knows around this place.

Her return trip back to her seat takes her past Coco's table and she is clearly bad at keeping to herself. She glances down at the various papers and fliers and things on the table and smiles. "The fireworks ARE a lot of fun. If you've never been, I really do recommend them."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
At the sound of someone addressing her, Coco averts her head from the pages, turning it to the rather short girl. "Oh, really? Have you been there a lot? This would be my first time. I am quite new to Tokyo and to Japan in general. Frankly, I'm sort of conscious about messing up some cultural norms", she tell Naru with a nervous smile."

That's why I have been looking up what the event is about in detail. Wouldn't want to ruin my first festival here, you know." Coco gestures at her seat in front of her.

"That chair is free, if you want to sit here. I am waiting for anybody", the mermaid tells her with a smile. By Coco's intentions, if the girl takes her up on the offer, she can introduce herself. 'She seems rather friendly', Coco thinks, betting on the readheaded girl to accept her offer.

Naru Osaka has posed:
There's a delighted giggle from Naru. "It's full of tourists, so pretty much as long as you're not doing something blatently illegal, you should be fine." She sips from her coffee and then sets it down to park it at the offered empty chair.

"I've lived in Tokyo all of my life. The festivals are so huge, they pretty much can't be all that uptight about cultural anything. Go with the flow and its easy enough."

Naru gestures to her spot not far away. "Let me grab my things, and I'll come join you. I'm Naru Osaka, by the way. Usagi's roommate."

The introduction is offered casually, with the assumption that everyone knows Usagi. Naru is stepping away almost as she speaks to collect up her pencils and sketchbook and bag.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"That's a relief, I was already worrying, as I am sure you could tell." Of course, Coco is hardly planning to do anything illegal, unless turning into an idol and singing songs out of nowhere counts as disturbance of public peace."

'I really hope people won't be attacked during the festival though. It's supposed to be a happy event, not one of chaos and confusion.' Something tells her that's exactly why they would consider that date, however. A big gathering like that is a perfect time for attacks to happen, with lots of mayhem to follow.

"Looks like all I have to do is get myself a yukata then. I already have a group of friends whom I can ask, including my roommate. What about you? Do you intend to go? Oh, I am Coco, by the way. Nice to meet you."

As Naru goes back to grab her things, Coco takes advantage of the break in the conversation to drink a bit more of her mocha latte. "Are you an artist?" she asks as she sneaks a peek at the sketches the other girl brought with her. "I don't know Usagi. What is she like?" Coco inquires at Naru's mention of her roommate.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"It's really not something to stress about. It's a giant tourist festival. The fireworks will be amazing and it will be crowded like crazy, and normal levels of 'too many humans' chaos." Naru explains as she brings her sketchbook back to the table to sit with Coco.

Naru gets her pencils arranged again, settling with her sketchbook. "Yes, I am an artist. Textiles more often than not, but sketches are eternal for all art forms." She pauses a moment and then adds. "And apparently I can't submit textile work for the clay unit in art class." She laughs. "But sketches are eternal."

Naru shakes her head at the mention of going to the festival. "No, not this year. I'm going to go spend some time with my mother. Still in Tokyo, but just not here, or at the festival. I've been a few times though, so I am not /that/ sad about missing it. It's noisy and chaotic, and you don't have to wear a yukata, but it's fun if you do." She nods her head at the introduction. "Nice to meet you Coco."

Amanda Faust has posed:
    It may be summer, but Radiant Heart Academy is Amanda's home now.

    She's been back to the old apartment a few times to pick up things she might want that she forgot, but she's not sure how quickly she'll lose access to it when the rent isn't paid at the end of the month. It's not like Mallory can show up to talk to the landlord...

    Last week's paycheck didn't come. And delving into that side of her life has unearthed some concerning things. For the time being, her work e-mail and her old logins for school systems still work, but... There have been no emails or calls about 'why didn't you come in', Mallory Faust is *missing* from the website that lists all of the staff, and when she asked a coworker about him they had no idea who she was talking about.

    But really... This life is infinitely more interesting. Kyubey seemed to almost not understand the question when she asked if there was ever an end to this contract. It would seem whatever magical forces she's gotten herself involved with don't have the concept of 'retirement', so this is for life. Which she's fine with! If she feels differently in a few decades, well, Future Amanda with more experience, wisdom, and magic skill will be better-positioned to solve it than her, so for now she should just work on being Present Amanda.

    Mmmmm, breakfast food. Amanda's wearing... a red jersey-knit pullover and school uniform slacks. They've turned on the air conditioning inside now, right?? Seeing Naru and Coco, she sits down near them with a plate of pancakes drenched in syrup and a glass of cool orange juice.

    Amy greets them with a smile. "Hi girls! What's this about a festival?"

    She begins cutting the pancakes into little squares with her knife and fork and getting them soaked in the little pool of syrup.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
It's not often one feels the urge to *go to school* during the summer. But in all honesty, Radiant Heart Academy has been a source of mystery and wonder for Rashmi's entire childhood, and now that classes and homework isn't around to get in the way, it's time to give the grounds a good exploring.

*After* breakfast, that is. Exploring on an empty stomach is a bad idea.

And anyway it's a good chance to see if any of the resident students were people she met yesterday!

Which is how Rashmi finds the cafeteria plaza, taking off her big floppy sun-hat and heading up to the breakfast counter, curious to see if non-resident students need to pay...

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Koharu Itamae has made a new concoction in her dorm room and sneaked on down to the cafeteria with the glass tray and has it covered with a towel. She whistles and sneaks over to the breakfast counter...places the glass try there and then with a flourish unveils her newest culinary creation.

"BEHOLD, EGG SOUFFLE!" she says dramatically!

Are eggs supposed to be grey? and also bubbling? No. no they are not.

And this one is definatly bubbling and looks inedible. and grey. And if it could talk, it would probably utter 'killl meeee'. Luckily, it isn't talking. So that much is lucky.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco takes 30 seconds to look at Naru's sketches. "I would like to see one of your complete artworks one of these days, I really like what you have here."At Naru's assertion that she is going to spend it with her mother, Coco replies she hopes they have a good time together.

Just then, Amy joins them at the table, her red hair substantially increasing the colour's presence at their table. "Hello, Amy. Naru and I were discussing the Sumida River Fireworks that's supposed to occur this saturday. I was thinking about having to get a yukata", Coco says pointing out at the stack of paper on the table with information about the festival, as well as various yukata patterns.

"Naru however is telling me it's not necessary, rather it's more fun if you have them. So I am thinking about going to shop for one later. Are you in?"

Rashmi Terios has posed:
As Koharu approaches the breakfast counter, Rashmi smiles brightly, about to greet the other student. When she puts down the tray, Rashmi switches to 'oh that's interesting we can bond over food!'

Then Koharu lifts the cloche.

Oh no.

Oooooh no.

So for about the same amount of time that Coco spends looking through Naru's artworks, Rashmi spends frozen in absolute horror, the smile on her face growing ever wider as she tries to conceal her reaction to this... souffle youma? Is that a thing? It's probably a thing.

"O-oh, um... aheh... this looks... like... food....?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I expect at some point I'll end up having to do an end of school year show." Naru replies with a smile to Coco and a nod. "I think all the art students do as part of our grade." Because nothing says awkward like the angsty art of a whole class full of teenagers.

Naru corrals her stuff a little closer to ensure there's room for anyone who wishes to join the table she and Coco are sitting at. She leans a little towards Amy's plate of pancakes. "That smells good." She comments with a smile.

At the counter, all students can eat, if there's a charge, they don't seem concerned about handing Rashmi a plate.

Naru turns her head at the dramatic unveiling of random extra food and considers the grey eggs. "What's it flavoured with?" She asks Koharu, optimisticly.

Mio Morita has posed:
The rather exhausted Mio Morita slept in this morning. She didn't need to go to class so that wasn't a thing. She was just worn out after last night's coffee exited her system. Idly she got out of bed and threw on a pink t-shirt with a bunny on it and a skirt. She got herself ready and opted to make her way to the cafeteria.

Quietly Mio walks into the Cafeteria and goes to find food. What she finds is Pancakes! She gets a short stack of them and a little bit of sausage to go with them. She tops the pancakes with strawberry jelly and looks for a place to sit down. Her attention goes to her friends: Amy, Coco, and Naru. She goes to join them at their table. "Hey everybody. Good morning... I think its morning? Is it morning or is it afternoon?" She shrugs. "Never mind, it doesn't matter! I got PANCAKES!" She cheers over the breakfast cakes.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Egg souffle? Ashley can't eat eggs, that would be cannibalism!</joke>

    Ashley looks at the food. She looks at the chef. "...Sorry, I don't like eggs. I swear I'm not a picky eater, but eggs and coleslaw are the two things I just don't like the taste of. ...And grapefruit juice, I guess. And brussels sprouts if they're cooked wrong." She looks thoughtful. "...Actually a lot of things if they're cooked wrong." Come to think of it, if she's adding drinks to the list, alchohol stronger than beer also applies, but a teenager shouldn't say that.

    Darn, this girl looks kinda stylish though! Amy looks at Koharu's nails, and then at her own, short and unpainted. She never thought about trying nail polish before. It's girly but like, it'd be okay to try in this body.

    And then Mio is here! "It's afternoon. Welcome to sleeping in!" She smiles and offers a high-five, "Pancake buddies!"

Koharu Itamae has posed:
The food burbles and lets out steam as Koharu answers. "Just salt and a little pepper!" she says. No way. She's lying. Or she's just that bad at cooking. "I'm certain it tastes delicious!" she says as she makes a chefs kiss into the air.

Spoiler Alert: It tastes worse than it looks, probably.

"I worked all morning on it to have it done in time for breakfast, you should try some." she says to Rashmi with a smile.

A confident smile!

Come on Rashmi. Try some.

She's staring and right there.

'Killl meeee' the souffle says not-at-all because it can't talk, but somehow conveys this.

She looks at Amy. And shrugs. "Not everyone likes eggs, but mine are the best!"

BURBLE

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Lying is wrong.

Breaking someone's spirit with honesty is wrong.

These eggs are wrong.

What to do, what to do?

==<< FLASHBACK >>==

First-grader Rashmi wondered why her Papi scowled like that, as he devised the latest Challenge Curry for the Korma Chameleon. Usually he was never so happy as when he was in the kitchen, but today... And so, she asked.

"Well darlin'," her Papi drawled, "There comes a point where too much spicy... well, it ruins food. You can't taste anything but hot."

===<< PRESENT DAY... >>==

"....One moment!" Rashmi chirps, and desperately searches the condiments counter. Paprika, togarashi, bonito... YES! POWEDERED CHILES!

Dashing back to the breakfast counter with her prize, she picks up a knife and hesitantly cuts off a portion -- oh god the smell is worse when you open it up -- and transfers it to a bowl. And begins shaking chili powder on top.

And shaking. And shaking some more.

Mio Morita has posed:
Mio sits down by Amy and smiles. She high fives her and quickly starts in on her pancakes. "Mmmm Soo good. I love good pancakes!" She quickly spreads around her strawberry jam all over the top pancake then starts putting some underneath on the second pancake. "Oh my this is so good. I love pancakes with jam. Don't you?" She smiles happily.

"So I slept the morning away and its afternoon? Well that's cool. I didn't mean to sleep so long. I guess yesterday was just a bit exhausted. The trip to Clover Tower was all a little overwhelming. Still I'd like to go back sometime soon. That mall was really cool." She smiles and stuffs her face with a few pieces of pancake.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"Hello, Mio", Coco happily greets the new arrival. "Still recovering from being on a Monday?", she asks, noting her friend's confusion over it being morning or afternoon. Coco looks at her modest croissant, now feeling weird for being the odd one out with both Amy and Mio having pancakes and Naru expressing interest over them.

'Maybe I should go for some too...?' she thinks, looking at the breakfast counter, in a weird case of peer (stomach?) pressure. Her own body certainly didn't mind mind the thought of pancakes, after all.

She makes a quick stop to the breakfast counter, noticing a few students gathered around eggs(?). 'That's prime Terribad transformation bait', she thinks, having a flashback to the one time she met that kind of youma. She really doesn't have the mechanics clear, does she?

Coco quickly walks back to the table with her own stack of pancakes and syrup, before addressing Mio with the offer she made to Amy.

"Mio, later on I am going to buy a yukata for the upcoming festival of the Sumida River Fireworks, do you want to come with me?", she asks nervously. 'She probably already has her own yukata, what am I asking her for?' she thinks.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I'm not much of a sweets person." Naru explains to Mio. "Brownies notwithstanding, so I usually send my pancakes more savoury than sweet with jam." She sips at her coffee. Her breakfast danish is still half there, so she's not much of a food person in general, sweet or not. "Clearly you were tired, if you slept all morning." She smiles to Mio.

The excitement over by the 'souffle' is enough to have Naru get quiet and just watch that. Mercifully, they are far enough away to not be in the splash zone, nor to (yet) have the smell of whatever that is. She watches Rashmi 'season' the souffle wiht enough something to ensure nothing original is coming out alive and then starts to giggle softly.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Pancakes... with jam? "Huh, I haven't really tried that much, but sometimes I've put strawberries or blueberries on them... I'll try that next time!" Amy replies with a smile.

    Clover tower... gods, the last couple of days were nuts. Thinking about that puts a more solemn expression on her face. They need to find a Witch soon... well, at least she has plenty of free time to do so, now! And without classes, she'll be better able to travel farther if needed.

    The redhead giggles at Coco's joke about 'recovering from being'. She shrugs, "I mean... how much can you even eat, right? You can always try pancakes next time." Heck, this is the first time she's eaten pancakes since she suddenly had a lot less body to feed, she'll probably end up with some left over.

    Her interest is piqued by the offer! "A yukata? Uhhh... I don't know anything about them, maybe you three can help me pick one...?"

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Oh those eggs smell horrible and they're awful. Like, Dark Souls boss music starts playing when you pick up the spoon to get some into a bowl. They're that awful.

She looks over hopefully. Then Rashmi starts dousing the eggs in spices and she still watches hopefully.

Even with all the spice? That mouthfeel is going to be horrible. Like somehow an oil slick being solid. It's inedible food and Rashmi's going to try to eat it anyways, like a trooper.

"Let me know how they taste!" she says, hopefully, squeezing her hands in front of her, brimming with confidence.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Hhhhhooooooowwwwwww did you cook them...?" Rashmi says, stretching out the moment before she has to put the chili-covered wobble monster into her mouth as long as possible.

While waiting for the answer, she gathers rice, bread, yogurt... not pudding though, she's enough of a veteran of cooking catastrophes -- oh that poor, poor line-cook and his poor, poor run-in with her father's standards -- and an entire bowl of umeboshi and picked ginger.

But the boss cannot be put off forever, and with a spoon she scoops up the entire slice of souffle. If she can manage to one-shot the monster, she won't have to try more.

"...I-ita...dakimaaaaasu..."

*HOMF*

Her eyes stare into the middle distance, mouth refusing to even attempt to chew. Spices *sizzle* on her tongue, but her body is, for the moment at least, in utter rebellion.

Is this truly how it ends...?

Mio Morita has posed:
"Oh Yukatas! That will be fun. I can't wait to find out what mine will look like. Its always fun to wear one." Mio smiles and then accidentally drops some jam on her top. "Oh crud!" She grabs a napkin and tries to clean up the mess on her top. She frowns over the whole thing. "I didn't wanna get my top dirty! I guess I will need to change my top before going shopping."

She stands up and walks up to the beverage line. She gets herself some coffee and comes back. Sugar and cream quickly go into the cup and she starts sipping it. "Mmm thats better." She giggles. "I like sweet stuff. I can't help it!"

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy looks at Mio's drink. "Do teenagers usually drink coffee now? I-I mean, here in Japan?"

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Oh god it's somehow worse and you can taste it through the spices a little, just how awful this tastes. Like a bad oil slick, like it feels like. Luckily the spices mostly do their job and stop the full-on-taste being present. Just swallow it and maybe Rashmi will live.

Koharu looms forward and watches intently with wide eyes. "So...h-how is it?" she asks, looking hopeful.

You have Died?, Rashmi?

Swallow it. End this Torment!

Mio Morita has posed:
Mio takes a long sip of her coffee. "Yeah why wouldn't we? I know Naru drinks coffee sometimes, Right Naru?" She asks curiously. She could swear that she saw Naru drinking coffee a few days prior.

She then dives back into her pancakes, devouring them like they are going out of style. "MMmm These are so good." She grabs a napkin and wipes her mouth. "Oh, right. Yes I will totally come along. I'm pretty sure my dad will give me the money to get one since its for a holiday and all."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
And-a one, and-a two, and-a... nope try it again.

Ek... do... tee-- nope nope nope.

Ichi, ni, sa-- still no.

Jan.... ken... PON!

Finally, finally, the eggs slither down her throat and immediately cancel all plans for campus exploration today. Possibly for the week. They are, however, now Future Rashmi's problem, and the spice-and-horrible-scented cloud she exhales is colored with deep, deep relief.

"Di--" She pauses to cough for a few moments, then rallies and tries to attempt to speak around a mouthful of pickled ginger. Yes, an actual mouthful. "...Wfre doze.... um.... fentury eggfs yoo ufed?"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"It's totally personal preference. I like coffee, Usagi hates the stuff." Naru comments on Amy's question about coffee. She's only half listening to that conversation as she watches the Egg Drama.

The coffee cup in question is lifted for a toast to Mio and then a sip. "Are you still alive over there? I feel as if I should be calling out encouragement, or offering some milk." Naru calls over to Rashmi, while trying not to giggle at Rashmi's pain.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
At Amy's request, Coco shrugs. "Well, I am new to Japan myself, so I can't help you there, besides a simple aesthetic approach."

She takes the time to cut a triangle off of her pancakes before addressing Amy's comment. "I have had a single crossaint before you all came, I will be fine. And I can easily burn the calories."

Coco agrees with Mio's statement as she disagrees about Amy on coffee. "I don't see what's wrong with us having coffee. I don't take it often, but I have had no issues with drinking it on the occasion it happens", says Coco.

Then, with a nod towards Mio as she comments her love of sweet stuff, she adds "Besides, I am changing that habit now that Mio has introduced me to mocha lattes. They are great: thanks for the suggestion, Mio."

Clasping her hands, Coco says "Thanks a lot for agreeing to come. We are going to have lots of fun, I can already see it! Are you all ok with going shopping for yukatas after this?", she asks Amy and Mio.

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Koharu waits for a reply and she gets it, though it's a mouthful of an answer. "Huh?" she asks as she tries to translate 'full mouth' which she seems used to translating through. "Nooo. I used normal farm fresh eggs! Grade A!" she insists. "I bought them last night just fine!" she says dramatically. Those eggs tasted at least a century out of date for sure. Maybe she didn't read an expiration date? Or. maybe. Maybe she's just that bad at cooking.

"Thank you for trying them! I'm sure they where delicious and edible!" she insists. At least one of those words should be true of any food and it's 'Edible'.

She takes her tray and walks on over to Naru's table with the others. "WHO Else wants to try some!"

The eggs wibble wobble and let out more trapped steam. Burble bobble.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy has no idea what's happening with the eggs. She assumes no one would really eat something so terrible, so it must only look bad. Still, eggs aren't her thing.

And I can easily burn the calories.
    Amy freezes with her mouth open and a forkful of pancake about to go in. She's eaten about half of a big fluffy heavily-syruped pancake so far. Is... this something she should be worrying about?

    Magic handed her a body that's in shape, but...

    The mental image of being made fun of as the ugly fat girl plays in her mind, and she sets the fork back down on her plate, staring at nothing thoughtfully.

    Even beyond the teasing. The thought of *being* the ugly fat girl, just picturing herself that way, sticking out around her new friends, makes her mind recoil like it touched a hot stove.

    She looks down at her plate of one and a half big, amazingly fluffy, buttered, wonderfully maple-sweet cut-up pancakes. They taste so good.

Who ELSE wants to try some?

    "Maybe I should go on a diet..." Amy mutters, pushing her plate away and crossing her forearms on the table and resting her chin on them.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Yukatas? "Oh, uh, yeah!" Yes, a distraction from food! "Sounds good!"

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"You are.... welcome?" Rashmi says, still carefully avoiding quality judgments, if only because those are such puppy-dog eyes. "Little bit um... under-seasoned though? Papi always tells me to taste what you're cooking before you serve it? It helped me a lot balancing curries. I um... need to... sit down. Th... thanks again..." And gathering up her plates, she flees to the first table with people she recognizes in it. "H-hi Coco-chan, Amy-chan, Naru-chan... Please help."

And with that she just starts monching down sour pickled plums and soapy pickled ginger, as through rallying troops to slay the dragon in her stomach.

Mio Morita has posed:
Mio nods to Coco, "I should be free to go. Hopefully we don't get sidetracked. These past few days were really crazy with the sidetracking." She is of course referring to the Youma and the Terribad fights. "At least there were benefits." She giggles.

Idly she finishes off her short stack of pancakes. Then she takes a long sip of her coffee before diving into her few pieces of sausage. "Ahh. I am getting full. I will have to do walk off this later."

Then Koharu appears with the egg dish. She looks at it curiously. "I umm... I don't think..." Then she sees them wibble wobble and exhale something that looks straight out of the depths of hades. She looks down at her sausage. "I think I can't eat anymore." She starts looking a little green.

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru watches the doom approach on a lovely plate directed by Koharu's hand. She smiles gently and glances breifly to Rashmi. And then back to the eggs. And then seems to come to some sort of internal decision.

"Sure, I'll try a little bit. Just a little bit though, I'm pretty full." She gestures to her half eaten danish by way of explination as to why she only wants a tiny taste. Just a nibble really.

Naru just quietly slides her coffee over to Rashmi in offer. That'll kill what's left of her palate, if the spices didnt' already.

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Koharu dishes out Naru a small portion of the eggs. They wibble and wobble and don't fall down. They're delightfully grey for no good reason! It also ruins the appetite of at least one person! The egg creature desires to be devoured! Eat it Naru! Eat it, kill it, give it satisfaction in death.

"Here you go!" she says delightfully!

She looks on hopefully.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Rice bread yogurt pickles -- oh good coffee. Everything a growing student needs to fight the twin horrors of too much spice and a cook with more enthusiasm than skill. When she finally looks up, she frowns in puzzlement at Amy pushing away her plate. "...Wait... diet? Why would you want to do that?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco has to thank her lucky star her weaknesses are terrible music, not terrible smells because otherwise the assault that's quickly approaching their table would have forced the yellow pearl to already begin spawning her successor. Having had a croissant and pancakes, Coco pulls the same excuse as Mio. "I am also full. I have already had a croissant and a stack of pancakes. Thanks for the offer, though. Maybe another time."

Coco notices Amy's downcast mood and she is about to say something when the redhead reacts to her comment about yukatas, perking up just like that. As Mio too confirms she is available, Coco smiles with a nod of assent. "Perfect, then we can go to the place here", she says, tapping an address on the papers she had placed on the table earlier, though they are mostly concealed among all the plates. "Unless you know a better place, of course, Mio", she feels the need to specify.

At Rashmi's request of help, Coco quickly makes up an excuse on the spot to save her from the noggxious menace, not at all original though. "Rashmi doesn't have time either. She has already agreed to shop for yukatas with us."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Hunh." Naru accepts the grey goo and questions many choices that have brought her to this point.

Sometimes being a nice person is really hard.

"Are you looking for suggestions?" Naru asks of Koharu, not just because consent is important, but because it's another pause before she actually eats the woogly thing. "And its okay if you're not." It's probably not actually okay, suggestions might really help, but it's polite to ask.

Naru doesn't take any longer to talk herself out of it, she just pops the bit of egg in her mouth and with barely more than half a chew, swallows it as quickly as she can. More like a pill than a dish to be savoured.

"Wow. That's.. unique." Naru blinks, her eyes widened a little as even that brief moment upon her taste buds takes hold. She reaches over to steal her coffee back to Rashmi, if there's any left.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy blinks at Rashmi. "I-I don't wanna get fat." And THEN she smells it. She tries to waft the smell away with her hand. "What IS that?!" She has to stand from the table and back away. She grabs her orange juice, steps OUT of the nauseating area, and downs the drink quickly. "I'll, uh, meet up with you there." She pulls her phone from her slacks pocket. "What time?"

Mio Morita has posed:
Mio slides her coffee over to Naru, just in case. Some things should not be that shade of grey. Eggs are one of them. She still looks sick. "I think I need to find the bathroom..." She stands and takes off running covering her mouth.

A few minutes later she exits the bathroom. She looks less green now thankfully. "Yeah, I can go to get a yukata. I should have the yen for it. I can't wait. I umm..." She pauses. She didn't smell it before but now, how she wished she could pinch her nose. "Umm I think I need to go outside for a little bit. Excuse me!" She exits the Cafeteria and stands outside, gasping for fresh air.

Koharu Itamae has posed:
'Living Oil Slick' is still the texture and taste. Did she make this under a car garage? Still, she looms forward and sits down as close to Naru as she can get. "Sure, suggestions are welcome! How can I become so much better than I am right now." she says with wide eyes. Wide, innocent eyes.

"Is..is it good?" she asks as Naru flails for her coffee back.

It smells hideous. It's god awful!

Rashmi Terios has posed:
Wait, yukatas? ...What conversation did she miss?

It's more the confusion than anything else that keeps Rashmi from having more than a mouth-clearing sip of the coffee -- and thank you Naru for choosing a dark roast -- and returning to her heat-busters. 'I don't want to get fat' has her tilting her head to one side, like a dog hearing a new noise. "But like... *some pancakes* won't get you fa-- ah. I understand."

Because clearly Amy is faking having self-image issues to get away from the eggs. That is *exactly* how that works, and probably what Rashmi should have done. But that would have been a lie, and lying is wrong.

"...Okay so why are we getting yukatas?" she murmurs to Coco.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Hunh." Naru manages as she reaches for whatever coffee comes back close enough. She thought she was prepared for it.

She was unprepared for All of That.

Naru ends up sipping from Mio's coffee, it's closer. And again. Coffee, don't fail me now.

"I don't think it's to my taste." Naru hazards back to Koharu carefully. "Did you use natto in it?" Cause that /would/ explain some of the texture issues. To the credit of Naru's stomach, she doesn't (yet) look like she's dying. Much.

Amanda Faust has posed:
Some pancakes won't-- "Pastries are the *worst*. So many calories. And I splurged on that muffin yesterday." Amy elaborates.

    Self-image issues? Amy has a *subscription*.

    Mio runs for the bathroom. "...I should get going too. See you at the yukata place!" She holds her breath while she retrieves her plate, although on her way to scoop the food into the trash she DOES eat one more forkful before hurrying out of the cafeteria.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco looks at Rashmi with an apologetic expression. "Sorry for this: we were discussing yukatas in preparation for the festival of the Sumida River Fireworks this Saturday and that was the first excuse on my mind."

She looks at Amy and Mio. "I was thinking of going about an hour from now, give or take. Time to go back and prepare and then head to the shop." She says that just in time before her friends leave for a breath of fresh air and the bathroom respectively.

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Koharu seems confused! Why is everyone leaving? Did she come at a bad time? Or are they just done?

Still, she huhs as Natto is suggested. "No. It's just eggs and a little cheese and whipped up to become fluffy as heck!" she smiles.

So it's just bad cooking. Ah. "If it isn't to your taste, that's fine!" she says. She doesn't understand it's polite talk for 'it sucks' right now.

"Maybe you wanna try my tuna casserole next time!? They're very good!"

And not youma. Probably.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I would love to see your techniques sometime." Naru comments to Koharu. Because there is no way that some eggs and cheese should end up looking like that, so now Naru has to see how its done.

Culinary magic, used for evil.

"I'm Naru Osaka, by the way." She introduces herself to Koharu. "I don't think we've met before." She gives a shake of her head at the offer of tuna casserole. "No thanks, I'm mostly a vegetarian." Tuna might often be something she makes an exception for, but not /that/ potential tuna casserole.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Oh no that's fine," Rashmi says with a weak smile. "I was just curious as to the why, that sounds like a fun time!" It's not a bad excuse if it fills out the itinerary after all, right?

Catching Naru's conversation with Koharu, Rashmi turns a wibbly smile upon her tormentor. Her *nemesis.* "I'm Rashmi Terios, by the way," she says. Koharu *must know her name.* "How are you with curries? I know a great place in Pikarigaoka Ward, if you like sometime?"

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Koharu huhs? "Oh. I'm. Koharu Itamae." she says. "I cook! I like cooking a lot and sharing my food and and..." she just melts talking about it. She's really passionate about this it seems despite the quality of her cooking.

"-sorry, I'm just really wild about cooking." she says. Sighing some. When a place is brought up, she huhs?

"Yeah?" she asks. She taps her chin and thinks. "No I don't think I know of any curry houses in that area. Where is it?" she asks.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco exchanges the smile with Rashmi. "Alright, this is the shop we are going to", she says, glad it wasn't a burden and giving Rashmi a strip from her papers she tore out just now. "We will see each other in an hour then". Happily waving at Rashmi, she heads for the cafeteria's door and goes to prepare for the outing.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I can tell you are very passionate about cooking." Naru smiles, a little falteringly, to Koharu. "That much is very very clear."

She lifts a coffee cup, hers or Mio's, she's rather lost track right now, in salute to her fellow victim. "Pleasure to meet you, Rashmi." She considers a moment and then asks "Korma-chameleon? I might have gotten the name a little wrong."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"See you then!" Rashmi says, waving after Coco's retreating back, then turns her attention back to meal and conversation.

"Nope that's the one!" she chirps, after swallowing an entire mouthful of rice to take some of the awful away. "It's my parents' shop, so..." Pausing, she digs into her bookbag, and comes up with a flyer to hand to Koharu. "First-time customer discount with that, and honestly? I would *definitely* recommend the rose chom-chom if you like sweets. And it's definitely a pleasure to meet you properly too, Naru-chan! I've seen you in Debate Club, but I don't actually think we've talked more than in passing."

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Koharu obtains a flyer. She looks at it and squints. "Oh!" she says, and folds up the flyer and stuffs it into her blouse pocket. "Alright, I'll visit! Maybe I'll bring some sweets for them to try! I bake excellently." she insists.

'Noooooooooo!' goes the chorus of viewers.

"I make good tarts! With fruit!" inset, godawful looking puffed up target that's oozing something vaugely cherry smelling, probably. It's only a comical inset, you can't actually see it or smell it silly. But you can imagine it.

"I'm in cooking club, but everyone seems to give me lots of space. I wonder why!"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Send my compliments to your parents, Rashmi, the food really is excelelnt." Naru smiles brightly and she nods. "We've been more like ships passing than having met properly, but I'm glad we have now."

Naru takes custody of her own coffee again, tucking her pencils away as it seems she's too distracted to do any more sketching this afternoon.

"Baking, hmm?" She smiles carefully to Koharu. "Do you ever collaborate in cooking club?" She asks of Koharu. "You know, cook with someone else. Share techniques and see how other people do things?"

Perhaps to make them edible, that would be a start.

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"...I wonder how the school feels about clubs bringing in guest lecturers?" Rashmi murmurs. "Well that's probably something best brought up by a club member, not me..." Clearing her throat -- oh why, there's still taste clinging there -- she beams at Naru, bobbing her head. "I'll pass that along too! We grow all the spices in-house, Papi had to get a permit to build a greenhouse onto the roof. And I mean Koharu-chan if you *want* to bring food you could, but like... with smaller restaurants it's kiiiiind of like walking into a dojo and challenging someone to a fight, y'know?"

Koharu Itamae has posed:
Koharu sighs. "I guess you're right but I like bringing gifts, too!" she says with wide eyes. "I just really like sharing my food" she says, as she eyes Naru. "Well I try, but everyone just politely says they're already helping someone else, but I never see them helping someone else! Weird that." she says, scratching her head. "Hey! I should go back to my dorm and try to make this again, but maybe I need..more cheese.."

No amount of extra cheese can fix this.

"I'll be sure to drop by the curry place soon!" she says as she takes her tray and vamooses away. She passes someone. They sniff the air and then suddenly hold their mouths and run for the bathroom, too.

Naru Osaka has posed:
Naru watches Koharu leave, waving after her. And then there's a quiet that descends over the table, as if a force of chaos has left.

Naru is very familiar with this sensation.

A deep breath, and a little bit of a sigh and another drink of her coffee. That mug is empty now.

"That's really awesome, Rashmi." Naru pulls out the normal conversation that threaded thorugh things. "That's incredible gardening on top of delicious food."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"It's how they met," Rashmi chuckles, shrugging... And looking over her shoulder, juuuuust to make sure the eggs are gone. Once Koharu's exit is final, she lunges for the bread, stuffing her face as full as it can safely get, and taking a minute to choke it all down. "Aaaaaaugh what. *What.* What."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I.. have no idea." Naru agrees on that incoherent sound. Utter sympathy.

Naru reaches for a bit of bread to try and off set some of her own touchy stomach after those eggs. "I got /nothing/ on how someone can make eggs look like that."

Rashmi Terios has posed:
"Papi says that passion is the most important part of cooking professionally," Rashmi hedges, very clearly trying to see the best in everyone... even after that demonstration. "...But I'm thinking maybe tasting your cooking is *more* important, now. I'll have to *warn him.*"

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Passion is important." Naru agrees with a laugh. One of those laughs that just speaks to the absurdity of it all.

"I just make muffins." Naru comments with a shrug and a chuckle. "And people are willing to eat a second one, and I'm willing to eat them too. I expect they aren't awful!" She tucks her sketchbook into her bag. "Thank you for the shared trauma." She grins brightly, teasing.