1555/Two Strong Flavors

Two Strong Flavors
Date of Scene:	19 May 2024
Location:	Nounamu Sweets
Synopsis:	After an eventful time in the Gardens, Taro wanders around sampling what Tokyo has to offer for snacks. Nounamu Sweets is his last stop of the evening. Chiyo meets Taro, and uses him as a guinea pig for a new flavored mochi.
Cast of Characters:	Taro Yamada, Chiyo Sakai

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Taro Yamada has posed:
What a week. What a day! Schoolwork and studying, then going out to a park and having to fight a yokai in human form... He'd gained some information on the mahou he may have to eat later, and some information on what his competion FOR the eating was, and had stuffed his face with strawberries from a destroyed cart. He'd wandered the grounds a bit, but eventually the various mahou had gone their own ways and so had he. He'd found an arcade near a takoyaki stand and treated himself to a round of Pacman and some octopus fresh off the grill, and then set to wandering the streets again when he was bored and his stomach was rumbling again.

Maybe it was silly that he had some free time and spare money and was spending it playing around and eating, but he'd rarely had the opportunity before he'd joined Obsideon. He had to work for his supper, and that meant cheap ingredients and jobs that would look the the other way for someone with a forged ID that looked underage. It was kind of...nice. Go where he wanted, eat what he wanted, do what he wanted.

He wanders past Nounamu Sweets, stops, then turns around and goes back. Leans forward and squints to read the chalkboard standee. Checks the hours - he's here late, but no so late that him showing up is going to be a pain for whoever's working the counter.

Taro Yamada pushes open the door to the sweet shop; he's tall and thin and pale, looking stretched like taffy, and his long bangs are messy enough to almost hide his eyes. His THURSDAY THE TWELTH t-shirt with a picture of Jason Friday the 13th and a shopping cart is smudged with dirt he couldn't scrub all the way out in the arcade bathroom from helping fight the electricity creature at the park.

"Is the cafe part still open?" he asks without preamble.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Inside the lights were a cozy warm glow. Not the bright white-ish blue lights of many more mainstream stores, but a soft white like one might expect when walking into a livingroom or cozy diner. The only brighter lighting was in the cases that showed an array of various sweets on display so that their delicate colors could be seen all the better.

Behind the counter is an older man working on molding and forming still steaming-hot mochi around various fillings and then deftly working them into floral shapes with pinches of fingertips, old wooden tools, or even scissors. A bit of food coloring here and there is added to create the final touch on them.

He seems rather firmly distracted by his work however. It's a younger girl who seems around the age to go to the local school that looks up from her own task to flash a welcoming smile at Taro's entrance. "Yes, of course! We have two free teas on offer. Green tea, and a honey citron," she explains with a gesture to a side table bearing two old but well cared for coffee urns of the sort you pull the knob for to pour out the liquid within. Cups are set nearby for ready use.

"And we have various wagashi and sweets to choose from. I do apologize, we're currently out of any of our chocolate offerings. We're working hard to restock soon though!"

While this is all explained she steps to the side of the counters so that she can properly greet Taro. Her hands are dusted off on the pink apron that bore a candy sprinkle pattern. The rest of her attire is simple: Black slacks, and a white button up shirt with the sleeves rolled to her elbows. A cloth that hangs from the ties of her apron is grasped so she can walk over quickly to sweep it over the already-clean tabletop just to ensure no dust had gathered in the last half hour.

"If you're not sure what you may like, Ojiisan-" Was she calling HIM an Ojiisan? "Or I can make suggestions based on what flavors you typically enjoy." Oh. No, she was clearly meaning the man behind the counter.

Taro Yamada has posed:
The smell of sugar and rice in the air, the heat from the kitchens, the sound of mochi being stretched and folded - long held tension in Taro's shoulders falls, and falls further when the girl at the counter calls him ojisan. There's even a smile on his thin lips as he approaches the counter, looking over the treats under the glass hungrily.

"It's fine there's no chocolate. I prefer traditional flavors," Taro says. It's not that he dislikes chocolate, but - it's so western, isn't it? When he'd worked at a wagashi shop for some of the best years of his long life, he'd doubled down on traditional flavorings, kusamochi and sakura petals and mung bean. Trying to preserve the past that had slipped more and more through his fingers...

He looks down at the wagashi some more, pondering, then nods to himself. "What are three of them you find representative of your shop's style? I don't like matcha flavoring, but I'm not picky otherwise."

He'll eat almost anything - but there was something appealing about eating a passion project, something that had a chef's whole heart and soul baked into it....

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Three? That was more than most people asked for certainly. Chiyo turns to regard the case a moment, but only a moment, as her gaze skims over the familiar offerings. "Strawberry daifuku, most definitely," is her first suggestion as she gestures toward the one that was shaped like a rose. "Sakura Mochi -- It's almost out of season so a good time to grab one before they're gone for the year, and..." Here she pauses, considering long and hard.

Those were the traditional seasonal flavors that were always popular. They were working on incorporating 'newer' flavors with the old style though to keep modern, and entice younger people as well as those who enjoy the traditional. The third takes a moment. "And I find the lemon mint very refreshing. I know not everyone enjoys mint though." At least it wasn't choco mint. That she saved for icecream.

"It's a newer flavor we're trying out. The pineapple lollipops that I made last fall went over very well though, so we're taking a chance on it," she explains with a bit of a proud smile. The lollipops in question are still on display along the top of the shelves, individually wrapped in cellophane and ribbons. They look like gemstones dusted with edible silver glitter.

Taro Yamada has posed:
He nods. He's not sick of strawberry yet, even after stuffing himself - besides, the grilled strawberries he'd had at the park had a basalmic vinegar glaze, which would give them a different flavor profile to the earthiness of strawberry daifuku. And it was almost past sakuramochi season - now was the time to strike!

He blinks at the mention of lemon mint, considers, double checks the prices, nods. "I don't know if I'll like the lemon-mint or not, but I suppose I'll find out. Can I have all three for the cafe? I'll be out of your hair 15 minutes before closing."

He looks through his pockets and pulls out a wallet with Sanrio's Bad-Badzmaru on it and flicks through it before finding a credit card.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"Of course! It's no problem at all, take your time," Chiyo encourages as she moves back behind the counter. With deft movements she dons a pair of gloves, picks up a tray, and then ducks down to begin arranging the artful daifuku onto the tray.

It's offered over with a smile. "If you could tell me your thoughts on the lemon mint, it really would be doing me a favor."

With that she informs him of the price--which is not adding up to the same price that is listed on the signs. It's less by at least ten percent.

Taro Yamada has posed:
"Of course," Taro says as he takes the tray -

And he doesn't school the surprise on his face at the reduced price, but he accepts it. Common sense overwhelms pride - he WAS on a budget, and he's got mud all over his school uniform so he'll need to spend the next day cleaning - he was lucky it was a Sunday so he could scrub it properly.

He takes the tray over to the table closest to the counter, then gets himself the honey citron tea - he knows that green tea is more traditional, cutting the sweetness with bitterness, but he still cna't bring himself to drink matcha unless he has to.

His aunt had kept a bottle of instant matcha tea in the cupboard and drank it religiously, had him serve it to his mother every day. He'd shared it with his mother at her insistance - and had choked down the grassy flavor because it made her smile. It was.... unfortunately nostolgic. And still tasted like grass.

The strawberry daifuku, however, is beautifully made, the mochi a perfect pink and carved into a rose with delicate petals. "Itadekimasu," he says, clapping his hands together before taking the cafe chopsticks and delicately picking up the daifuku, smelling it before he eats - there's a faint smell of strawberry, too. It must be incredibly fresh.

He pops it into his mouth and his eyes sink shut. The balance between the sweet-sour of the strawberry and the sweet-earthy of the red bean paste is perfectly balanced, and the mochi soaked in both flavors and helped them meld. The remains of the fruity aroma made it all the sweeter.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai notices the surprise easily. It wasn't the first time she's caught someone with that expression, and her grin deepens exponentially. "Student discount," she explains with a small gesture toward the muddied uniform he was wearing so casually. "Besides, it looks like you could use a treat. I hope you enjoy it!"

The strawberry was extremely fresh. It always was, and they picked only the ones that were going to last a day or two wrapped in the warm mochi before it had a chance to cool. It's juicy, and ripe, and the sweet bean paste around it really did help keep it fresh.

The Sakura mochi was the traditional oblong shape wrapped in a leaf. In a way the shape itself resembled the cherry blossom, and the less-worked mochi for this one was hard to mold into shapes to begin with.

The lemon mint was the odd one out. It was shaped like a tulip. Simple, sleek, and smelled of citrus. A gentle pale yellow. Inside the filling was a gellee in which was mixed candied bits of lemon peel, and small flecks of mint leaf. No syrups or flavorings to make it too much. The lemon is the most pervasive flavor--tart, but with a hint of sweetness, and the mint would leave a cooling tingle on the tongue. Gentle, and not overwhelming.

Whether it was liked though? That's hard to say, and it's obvious that Chiyo is watching Taro's work through the three treats curious to his reactions to each.

Taro Yamada has posed:
"Oh! You attend Radiant Heart too?" Taro asks. "I only just joined last month and I've been too busy catching up to really. Talk to anyone."

Math he could do just fine, he'd had to living on his own. But it turned out his knowledge of kanji had lagged severely - he could recognize but not WRITE the more complciated ones half the time - and he kept on getting caught during history because he did not remember things happening the way it was written. "You won't believe the day I've had."

...He won't talk if she doesn't want to, but she seems amenable, and it sounds. Nice. To talk.

"The strawberry daifuku is as good as advertised," he declares as he takes a sip of the tea - sweet but not overly so, and a good palatte cleanser with its briskness. "I'd eat this even if you just had it in a pink ball - the ingredients are all really fresh and strike a nice balance with each other - but the rose petals look realistic and appealing, and I'm impressed at how thin you've gotten them."

Trying to recreate what he remembered from working wagashi was... a work in progress. He had the flavors down, he was sure, but recreating the artistry after spending a lot of time whittling meant he kept on misjudging how hard to cut.

And now, the sakuramochi. He takes a deep breath after he unwraps the pickled sakura leaf. "The aroma for the daifuku and the sakuramochi are both excellent," he comments, picking up the pink delicacy, and puts it in his mouth.

The pickled sakura leaf's flavor had infused the rice thoroughly, creating salty-sour to balance the sweet-earthy of the red bean paste inside. There was a good balance of both rice and paste, too, creating a pleasant mouthfeel that was neither too dry nor too damp.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai was more than willing to talk, easily so. She does tend to a few things while talking though. Her hands don't remain idle as she sweeps the cloth over the countertop, tucks away any trays, and generally helps to make it easier to close. She wasn't doing it in an effort to rush him out though--Just busy work that needed done to begin with.

"Yes, I do! I'm Chiyo Sakai, Grade 11. It's my second year at the school," she explains with a smile. "I only just started living in the dorms this year though. It's close enough I can still come by to help Ojiisan with the shop several times a week."

"Ojiisan made those. I can make the roses, but it takes me longer so I generally only do smaller batches, or when we need some extra." Which meant she knew how to make the decorative mochi, too, and not just sell them.

"What happened to you, anyway? If you feel like sharing."

Taro Yamada has posed:
"Taro Yamada, Grade 10," he says, nodding to her. "I just joined and live in the dorms. I got a scholarship.'

...From Obsideon, he's pretty sure, since Fuyuko-sensei arranged it, but a scholarship and a room are a scholarship and a room. He'll take them both! "I have a part time job and I'm catching up after changing schools," more like skipping schools, "So I haven't had time to socialize."

Which, true. Fuyuko-sensei won't teach him any of her moves unless his grades are good so he is doing. So much study. This kills the Taro.

"They're classically done," Taro says. "Sakuramochi are a lot simpler in presentation, but that means that every detail has to land. I usually had them Kansei-style," and he shows her the rounded version with his hands, "with a little more added color, but the flavor is really good at showing the bredth of the ingredients."

He takes another sip of tea, then picks up the yellow tulip. "I was visiting the gardens and one of the booths had an electrical fire," he lies easily. He's glossed over hundreds of weird supernatural incidents in his life. "I got pulled into the effort to put it out. Had to drop into the dirt when one of the machines exploded." his poor uniform...

He takes a bite of the tulip. How DOES it taste?

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai blinks in surprise at hearing about an electrical fire. At the gardens. Then again those poor gardens had the worst luck it seemed. A little cringe comes as she nods slowly. "Oh, wow, that sounds really dangerous! You really do need a treat then. I think I'd have to get an entire plate after something like that to calm my nerves."

The talk of the traditional wagashi, as well as the familiar hand gestures he makes causes her eyebrows to jump up. A quick, easy smile settles over her features as she considers. DID he know how to or was he just assuming? "You've made wagashi before? The round are more traditional, yes," she agrees with a nod, "But we wanted to make it a bit more easily recognizable as coming from our shop. I'm glad you like it!"

Now she holds her breath though, watching as he tries out the tulip. The mochi is a smooth chewy bite. The gelee in the center is far softer so that it acts like a fruity version of a truffle with a tougher outside, and soft inside. The gelee melts quickly with just the warmth of the tongue, and the candied lemon peel inside gives more texture. The mint comes last after the tart-then-sweet lemon. It refreshes the pallate so that the next bite is the lemon all over again as if it were the first bite.

Taro Yamada has posed:
"Someone else beat me to the fire extinguishers, but I did find the insulated gloves to help get the generators off," Taro sighs. "I've spent the entire afternoon wandering around. It's... Is it strange? I could have gotten burned," or fully died since he was out of henshin, "but all I can think about is how I could do more if I was stronger."

....A whole new world had opened for him here. He was no longer the strongest entity in the city. It was strange and scary and exhilerating, seeing the mountain he'd have to climb to become the strongest in Japan. To find a power so great that he'd never be scared or hungry again.

He pauses to slowly taste the mochi; he hadn't expected a gelee inside but something a little more solid, but as the flavors rush back and forth, he feels his mind open.

"Lemon and mint are both strong flavors so I was concerned one would overpower the other, but the construction sets up a nice back and forth," he says. "I'm usually neutral on mint since it's so overpowering, but this does a good job of balancing the flavors without muddling them. The lemon peel is a nice touch, too. I would probably order something purely citrus flavored next time since I'd prefer something that enhances the citrus rather than setting up this back and forth, but it's well done," he decides, looking up.

And then looks sheepish. "I worked part time at a wagashi shop for a while before I moved here. It's been a few years, but the old dog is good at old tricks.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Chiyo Sakai hms softly. The feedback was good, not ideal, but sometimes things just didn't work out. That was part of trying a trial run of a new item before fully committing to it. "I can try some with just the lemon then. I admit I'm a mint fan, but it's not really for everyone." A somewhat apologetic smile is flashed at this since it was her idea to try such a flavor combination after all.

Given he was done with the plate she steps over to take it from him giving a half-bow of thanks. "Thank you for your thoughts on it. I'll work to improve it for the future."

She stands again to regard him with a soft smile. "I don't think wanting to be able to help is a bad thing at all. That's a dififcult situation to begin with so it's not as if you could prepare yourself for it. Just being there, and trying to help though, is pretty admirable. How often is it people just stand and stare, or run away when there's trouble? Staying and helping even in a small way is both important, and impressive."

Taro Yamada has posed:
"I don't think it's a bad combination, it's just not right for me," Taro says. "You should find a mint lover, see how they feel about the lemon. That's a better audience to target. The candied lemon peel is really good, though."

For as much as he's a carnivore, there's something about a really good fresh fruit...Or maybe it's just being back in here with the nostolgic smells and sounds, the ojisan working in the kitchen.

"They stand and stare a lot. It's a line, knowing when you're too weak to do anything and fleeing is the best thing, or deciding that the risk is worth it to make this YOUR world. I can only change this world if I do it with my own hands, but how do I get strong enough to do it?"

Be the strongest in Japan... He's been climbing for so long. He'll reach that peak in the end. And then - he doesn't know what will happen then, but surely then he can rest.

Taro smiles wryly. "If I don't see you at school, you'll see me back here eventually. I have to try those pinapple sweets next time."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"A bundle of sticks." The remark is simple, yet one that Chiyo had heard time and again and felt to be true. "A single stick might be useful, but ultimately it's just a single stick. A bundle of sticks is going to be far stronger. Although," she chuckles softly, "People aren't sticks. Everyone has areas where they're strong, and others where they may not be. If we can find friends that help fill those gaps though? I think that ultimately makes us all stronger, together."

"But that's also philosophy perhaps." Slightly shrugging she flashes a grin. "You'd be welcome any time. It's always nice to have someone to chat with that understands wagashi some. Though I may see you at school sometime too. Thank you for stopping by!"