He can’t say that he didn’t expect such a reaction, but to think that it was most foul, well… He supposed he had a long way to go before he could reach Sojiro’s expertise in java. For now, he practically snatched the cup away from him, so he could dispose of the liquid before he could drink more of it. 

     “Sorry about that,” he muttered as he poured it down the drain, trying to get rid of any trace of it.

     “I tried to do my own recipe, and I guess it just didn’t work out. Guess I’ll just have to do what Sojiro taught me next time.” 

When the cup was so suddenly taken from his hands, all Yusuke could do was blink in surprise. That’s when Yusuke realized that he was probably coming off too honestly. He had the tendency to miss out on social cues and was trying to work on that but he always seemed to get the point when it was already too late, or miss out on it entirely. It was just difficult not to have such a strong reaction when he was hit with such a pungent taste.

⚜ ━━━━━━━━━

Her celadon lingered upon the white canvas of his sketchbook, the lines of gray simply captivating her attention for the sheer moments that followed her question. Art truly was the mystery that she longed to learn about; she knew about the art of hard work when it came to the process of cleaning and restoring, but…creating was often something she never visited—unless it came about sewing or cooking.

When his voice permeated the air, she lifted her attention from the sketches to his face, avoiding the eyes out of respect. ❝ …I see, that is quite alright; I do enjoy the process from start to finish in all honesty. There is something captivating about the way that one’s mind expands upon the idea that started within their mind to the canvas—ah, but…you knew this already, hmhm—my apologies. ❞

A slight pause followed when he introduced himself, her body bowing forward in greeting. ❝ A pleasure to meet you, Kitagawa-Kun; I am Toujou Kirumi, a maid from Yasogami High School. If there is anything you may require while I am present, do not be afraid to inquire. ❞

━━━━━━━━━ 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒸𝓇𝑒𝑒𝒹 𝑜𝒻 𝒶 𝓈𝓉𝓊𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝒾𝒹.

Is that so? Very well then- I see that you have a discerning eye for the difficulty of the creative process. I do appreciate the consideration you have for an artist, it is not often to cross paths with an individual who will appreciate all aspects of art for what it is, so there is no need to apologize.

[ It was nice for Yusuke to have a conversation like this with someone. He didn’t get the chance to talk about art that much, with a peer around his age since, most people at school avoided speaking with him in the first place. ]

@kitsugawa

     It wasn’t necessarily abnormal for Yugi to find his eyes wandering while on the subway, but today, he found himself doing it a bit more than usual. It was to the point where he was being a bit self conscious about it, if he were going to be honest, offering apologetic smiles towards anyone he met eyes with before embarrassingly looking in a different direction in search of something else to focus on. Perhaps it was the fact that he’d forgotten his deck at home today that was making him so nervous. He supposed it was a bit silly, but having his cards with him always made him feel more confident. He tried not to think about it as he ran his gaze up and down the aisles.

After a while, violet eyes found themselves trained on one thing in particular, watching with childish wonder as a boy who seemed to be around his own age drew in his sketchbook. His hands moved so fluidly and without hesitation as lines joined together to make something bigger. It was inspiring, really. Eventually, Yugi came to the same fate as he always did, eyes locking with the stranger’s, but instead of hurriedly looking away as he had before, he gave him a timid smile. 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. Your drawing is just… It’s really good!”

“Good?” [ How naive. These were mere sketches that were having their quality significantly ruined by the jerking of the bumpy train ride. Yusuke supposed that the boy wasn’t an artist himself, or perhaps was just merely being kind. Well that didn’t have to be true- there was something appealing about free-flowing and careless art. It gave off a sense of childish innocence even. ]

[ It’s not like Yusuke thought his art was bad or anything- he just had a habit of being critical of all his work in order to prevent himself from stagnating in his growth and becoming too comfortable. Yusuke needed to step back sometimes and learn to just appreciate his work for what it was sometimes. ]

I’m starting to... feel a sense of regret-

Akira, I do not mean to be rude but this is... most foul......

⚜ ━━━━━━━━━ @kitsugawa

❝ An artist, correct? I have never truly been one myself, fufu, but I do enjoy the process from start to finish, if I am permitted to watch. ❞

━━━━━━━━━ 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒸𝓇𝑒𝑒𝒹 𝑜𝒻 𝒶 𝓈𝓉𝓊𝒹𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝒾𝒹.

[ Yusuke looked up at the girl who spoke to him and gave a gentle smile, along with a nod, in response to her. He could always appreciate those who were not solely interested in the finish product, but also the process behind the making of an art piece. It was one thing to enjoy the final work, but not many people took into consideration the amount of hard work and creativity it took for an artist to create what they do. ]

Main verse changed ( v; the phantoms ---> v; never lose your smile )

v; never lose your smile: takes place after the final battle, and the end of the phantom thieves.

v; the phantoms: takes place any time after stealing Madarame's Treasure.

v; aspiring artist: takes place during high school any time before Yusuke joins the phantom thieves.

Ah- Ryuji! What splendid timing you have. As a dear friend of mine who beyond a rough exterior is quite caring, would you care to assist me with but a small favor, that I am sure will come at no major expense for you?

[ Flattery. The first sign of something fishy going on. Had it not been for Yusuke tactlessly asking for a favor outright, it would’ve still been obvious that he wanted something from his fellow peer. ]

Mishima wasn’t expecting Yusuke to rest a hand on his shoulder. The action startled him far more than it should have, his body tensing before slowly easing as his tired eyes looked towards Yusuke. 

Mishima was being comforted. 

He had fully expected to simply be blown off of thought a nuisance for pouring so much of his troubles out on accident. Suffering in silence was what he did best. Don’t say a word or you’ll get teased. Don’t act like it effects you or the bullying will get worse. Don’t acknowledge it or else it will just hurt more. 

Yusuke’s words even struck Mishima’s heart. It hurt to be told such things, why did it hurt to be told kind words? It was so weird…it felt like his emotions weren’t in sync at all… He wanted to deny the kindness but at the same time he just wanted to accept it. 

“…………………………….”

He turned his gaze away for a few moments as he tried to recollect himself.  Mishima didn’t know he’d been the only one to say anything, but even with that knowledge he hadn’t said the truth because he was brave…It was because he was so tired. Because he had thought nothing would change.  Sakamoto already knew how bad Kamoshida could get so it wasn’t as if the information had been news…Just a confirmation of something already known.  And then the information about Suzui…The confrontation with Kamoshida…

… But it had changed…hadn’t it..?  The Phantom Thieves…Akira and Sakamoto… “Could someone like me, actually do anything to help?” 

So many timed he’d say how he would help the Phantom thieves and how he’d be useful. But they were the ones that could actually help people. All Mishima could do was boost their popularity and give them requests.  Could he actually help someone if they needed it? 

If he saw someone one day show up with the very same bruises he did…what would he do? 

[ Of course Yusuke didn’t expect there to be an immediate change in Mishima’s mood upon hearing his words. The lingering doubt, the feeling of incompetence- it’s only natural for emotions so strong to just simply vanish, even if what Yusuke said was true. All Yusuke could really do for the other boy was to continue to encourage him when he was having a difficult time to see the reality. ]

     “Don’t worry about that.” Akira pushed Yusuke’s empty wallet back into the artist’s chest and shot him a confident grin — though it was not without kindness. “I’m paying, obviously. I got some money set aside for food every week anyway, so I’m happy to share some of it with a starving artist in need. Besides, if you don’t eat, how are you supposed to get energy to fight Shadows?”

[ Did Akira just say that he would buy Yusuke a meal? He had always known that Akira had a kind soul and heart, but it shined especially bright at this very moment. ]

What a saintly act of generosity! I am incapable of expressing how truly grateful I am to receive such an offer. I will be forever in your debt, my dear friend, and will willingly take a bullet for you at any time, without a hint of hesitation.

[ That was... a bit of an extreme reaction to someone treating him to a single meal, but it wasn’t much of a surprise coming from Yusuke. With all the theatrics Yusuke put on, one could’ve easily assumed that he was a drama kid or something. Well to be fair this was about food after all. To Yusuke, food was the next best thing to art and his friends. ]

While I find that a most agreeable proposition , Akira-

@kitsugawa liked for a starter

For his friends, Akira would do anything for them. Whether it be taking an otherwise fatal blow for them in the metaverse, or listening to them and giving them the courage to face their problems head on, he would have done it all; no questions asked if they asked him.

Which was why when Yusuke asked him to be a model for his next artwork, he had agreed, even if it meant posing in rather ridiculous and awkward poses. 

❝Is this pose good enough?❞

[ Yusuke tilted his head as he used his hands to help frame a composition. He was forever grateful that his friend Akira would come along on his artistic endeavors. Yusuke was looking for something unique- something awe inspiring to draw, so to have such a cooperative model available for his use was like a gift from the gods. ]

Hmm... Please lift your arm up slightly. Now tilt your head to the left precisely 15 degrees- and stick your leg out a tad more. Yes- that’s it! Perfect! Stay exactly like that, this will only take a moment.

[ The artist began to work away on his sketchbook, glancing up at Akira every now and again. He seemed to be incredibly invested in what he was drawing, as if this bizarre pose was exactly what he’s been looking for all this time. ]

[ When he finally stopped drawing, Yusuke held it out at an arms length to get a better view of his handy work before giving it a satisfied nod. He turned his sketchbook to face Akira, revealing a picture that... looked completely different from how Akira had been posed. How on earth did Yusuke get this from that? It wasn’t always easy to understand the inner workings of an artist- more specifically, of Yusuke. ]