IC: Color My World

[orphean]

[Cooking with Masamune is always an adventure. Always. But this time, he's definitely out doing himself. Returning to the kitchen after going to find a towel to clean up the counter... well, she definitely didn't expect to see the sight in front of her.]

[Minako is left, standing in disbelief at what is going on in this kitchen right now. She's not one to lose her cool, at least - but it won't stop her from questioning what she's seeing. She realizes she's been doing a lot of that lately...]

Are you -- You're really chopping an onion with six knives, aren't you.

Comments

[dragonizing]

[ he raises a curious eyebrow at her "boys" comment. now she was really toeing the line. ... well, it wasn't like he was completely innocent, personally, but he still hadn't quite planned for a retort like that.

he lifts himself off his side of the counter for a moment, and walks over to her. ]

Boy? [ once he's done repeating that, he stops his walking. ] That's playing with fire, Arisato Minako.

[orphean]

[She closes her eyes for a moment, looking almost peaceful, zen-like. Playing with fire isn't always so bad, is it? She thinks of her Personas; the ones that bore strength in Agi skills always did have a special spark to them. Maybe that was part of her. Wasn't that natural? Orpheus was her first, the one she connected with the most and fire was certainly a strength.]

[When she opens her eyes, she can't help but let out a giggle, raising a hand to her mouth and hunching her shoulders slightly.] It really wouldn't matter much if I had an immunity to it, would it, Date Masamune?

[It's hard for her to resist the snarky commentary. He makes it too easy, and even if she knows that he knows nothing about her Persona skills; how at will, she would be able to shift her strengths and weaknesses, it's hard to turn down an opportunity like that. Most of the fun was getting him riled up in some way, regardless.]

[dragonizing]

[ he almost laughs. she's got her responses, he'll give her that. some of the things she says makes him curious--she's got strange ways of wording things that make him wonder, but she leaves things interesting enough that he can leave those on the backburner.

he puts his hand on the counter space beside her, gives her the grin he reserves for when he's interested. ]

Don't think you've seen anything like this dragon's flames. [ though she wouldn't be surprised if she'd seen similar things--still, he doesn't have a doubt that he can match up to whatever she's done. ]

[orphean]

[Her gaze darts for a moment, taking notice of where his hand is. She's a little surprised, though she's careful not to let it show; that would be like admitting defeat. Somewhere along the way, it became a competitive battle of wit; biting words, because they both could handle it]

[Minako's hand drops into her lap, her gaze growing just a bit more serious. Only a bit though - her lips still have that upward curve that prove that she's not giving in quite yet.] That's a pretty confident statement. [Giggle.] But how will I know unless you try to prove it?

[dragonizing]

[ she meets his blow again. she would almost remind him of sanada yukimura, in her persistence, stubbornness, unwillingness to give--but this was a completely different type of battle, and she was a completely different type of person.

he leans in just a bit, and this time he laughs. ]

Hah. Where I'm from, that's a declaration of war. [ though he thinks that's a challenge in any person's world. well, if they were cool enough anyway. ] And the One-Eyed Dragon doesn't back down from those.

[orphean]

I'd be worried if you didn't catch that, you know. [She stifles a bit of a laugh. It was refreshing to have someone who called her on her blows - or at least, did so in a way that wasn't laced with complete and utter shock.]

Someone has to keep you on your toes, right? And since I'm right here...

[dragonizing]

I've gone my life catching things like that. So easy.

[ he continues the lean. invasion of personal space or not, masamune doesn't seem to mind. when it came to battles, this kind of distance was customary. ]

Here, huh? [ and then he stops, quite close to her.

... and draws back from the leaning, smirk still playful and interest and present.

when it came to these things there was more than one way to play, he found. ]

And someone's got to keep you on yours.

[orphean]

[She's not really surprised. In fact, she expects a reaction like this out of him. There's no ridding her of the smirk now; her eyes are gleaming, enjoying the challenge.]

Well, Masamune-kun. [She returns the gesture once he's pulled away, leaning in close. There's a giggle, airy. Almost weightless and definitely holding a plethora of emotions not displayed otherwise.]

[She likes Masamune. He's different from the others she knows -- her friends from home didn't tend to indulge her at all. They either gave in to her sometimes strange whims, but would be questioning. And if it wasn't that, there was a straightforwardness that she appreciated. She liked honesty. But she also liked games; she liked that Masamune didn't just bear everything so directly. It was interesting - it made her wonder if this was anything similar to how others perceived her.]

[After a pause that was just long enough - enough to put a certain tension in the air without weighing it down - she pulls back. A wide grin crosses her lips and she splays her hands on the counter, casual.]

Why do you think I keep you around?

[dragonizing]

[ he doesn't pull back when minako returns his teasing--in fact he's completely still through it, meeting her eyes with his own.

her question doesn't baffle him. in fact, he can think of a couple of answers right off the bat. there were playful fights, challenges--he had things to teach her and, though he'd never admit it, she had things to teach him. he wasn't easy or boring, and neither was she. when he bit, she bit back. though not literally.

oh. ]

The same reasons I keep you around.

[orphean]

Because you need to learn how to cook? Sorry to break it to you, Masamune-kun, but I already know how to do that!

[Now she's just being downright facetious about it. Of course it wasn't directly that -- honestly, what they could learn from one another seemed to be far beyond what they'd originally set out to do.]

[But he did leave himself wide open for that one, so she has to make the jab.]

[dragonizing]

... Hah!

[ minako, you just keep pulling the punches don't you? and masamune doesn't mind at all that she's playing along with that, because when have they ever expected an easy conversation?

he grins. ]

Nice, Arisato.

[orphean]

[It's part of what makes things so unique between them, and definitely something she enjoys. She doesn't say anything, considering his lack of retort something of a victory. She pumps her fist into the air, laughing heartily.]

I'd say I won this round, huh?

[dragonizing]

[ now he's not going to go that far. saying she won would be admitting defeat, and he was stubborn enough to keep fighting regardless.

. . . though he'll admit her cheer is somewhat amusing to see. ]

Hey, don't go getting ahead of yourself. [ ... maybe a little bit too amusing, to him. ]

[orphean]

You say that like you've still got a trick up your sleeve. [She lowers her arm, returning to the position she'd been sitting in just a few moments before. Her smile remains, but her eyes narrow a bit as she leans forward again - not as far as she did before, but close enough.]

[dragonizing]

[ he just chuckles and also leans forward a little bit. he doesn't really need to move very far to get close, though, given she's covering half the distance.

he mimics her expression, though his smile is more of a feral grin. ]

What do you think?

[orphean]

[She tilts her head to the side, a slight nuance in her position. Her expression softens a bit, though is still sharp. It's willing, but retains a competitive edge. She's not one to lose.]

I think you need some action to back up all that big talking.