social_linked | Being a Wild Card is Wild Hard

Personas, shadows and superheroes...it all became part of her life so suddenly that she was practically spinning in place as it zoomed past her. And you know what? It was awesome. It was like her magical girl animes! Except in real life! Young Madoka was even lucky enough to have a special power they called the Wild Card. She didn't understand all of it, but basically it was a reward for making all kinds of friends! And there are so many cool people part of the team already that she figured she'd get the benefits in no time.

Of course, this came with the added energy to go out and try to better herself. She has to be the very best she can be to be of help to the team! That meant studying harder, spending more time with her friends, maybe jobs and extracurricular activities to boost her faith, her courage and...

...And goodness gracious, this is all exhausting. This schedule's a lot more busy and she doesn't have the stamina for it all just yet. As such, the girl seems visibly tired as she strolls into HQ and faceplants onto the couch after dropping her bookbag off beside the entrance. She makes a sound that resembles tired grumbling, but it's kinda hard to make out through the pillow.

"I didn't know having superpowers was so tiring..."

Okay, that one came in loud and clear.

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A few seconds pass, then comes a response. Not in words, but in the sound of a cup being set on the coffee table in front of the couch. It's a mug of coffee.

"Here. This'll help."

It's Minato's special blend: a dark, rich roast balanced with a decent helping of sugar. And also hot sauce.

If nothing else, it'll sure as hell wake her up.

It takes Madoka a few seconds before she can properly sit up on the couch, rubbing her eyes and eyeing the coffee. The hot sauce isn't nearly as noticeable as the coffee's natural aroma, something that gets a curious smile out of the girl.

"Ooh...I've only tried coffee a few times before. Dad really likes it."

Of course, she doesn't notice anything right away, that first sip going down easily. Wait for it...

Yeah, sorry if she drops the coffee once the realization and hot sauce settle in, the young wild card giving a surprised squeal as she fans her mouth.

"It's so hot! I need water!"

As if he was expecting that reaction, Minato simply leans forward across the table and catches the cup, putting it back down on the table.

"It's the best thing to wake you up."

Probably not what she meant by 'tired' but oh well. He goes ahead and gets up to grab a bottle of water for her, casually tossing it across the room from the mini-fridge. Because of course they have a mini-fridge.

Of course they have a mini-fridge. That means the bottle of water Madoka fidgets with as she tries to not drop it is nice and cool. Eventually, she catches it and chugs half the bottle down quickly, breathing a sigh of relief.

That wasn't very nice, Minato-kun...but it did work, so...thank you."

She is definitely awake now. However, she does not want to rely on that concoction very often.

"Hey...you're a wild card too, right? When you learned what it meant, did you try and better yourself, too? Like you had a lot of expectations to meet?"

"It's an acquired taste."

>You downed the strange concoction and lived to tell the tale. Your Courage increased! ♪

Minato comes back to the couch, sits down, picks up the mug, and downs the rest of the coffee. No sense in letting that go to waste.

"Something like that, yeah. At first, I only did it reluctantly. Didn't really care about actually making friends and forming bonds for anything other than the power they gave. It was stressful, but after a while, after I discovered that helping people and being friends could actually make a difference in their lives, just being with them was what drove me forward. Getting more powerful wasn't even a factor."

"...Practically, though, get a planner. Start writing stuff down, and don't forget to take some time just for yourself."

"A planner! Right!" Somehow, Madoka hadn't considered that. Even though she probably should've; it's the most logical answer and one her mom may be proud of, too.

Of course, the rest of what he has to say settles into her mind as well. The power is a nice benefit, sure, but she hadn't considered it too much. Largely due to not experimenting too much with the Velvet Room's capabilities. Maybe she should try fighting some more shadows and finding a few personas...

"It does feel nice helping people, even if it's pretty tiring. I found a job helping animals at a shelter; they're all so cute and friendly! But I didn't know people could be so mean to innocent animals before..."

"If they made it easy, everybody'd be a big damn hero."

It was a day off, and he'd taken it upon himself to refill the fridge as well as prepare something cool for anyone taking a break from their rounds. He'd been cooking up some form of soba noodles for the last couple of hours to a great deal of success.

"...You too tired to eat?"

Madoka slowly sits up on the couch, hugging the pillow as she looks over her shoulder. Seeing Kanji around always put a smile on her face. He was always such a nice guy and she loves his crafting classes.

"Whoa...have you been cooking all this time? You're so thoughtful, senpai!"

"Yeah, well, some of ya burn water... least I can do is work up stuff that keeps me goin'! 'Specially in this heat. I got matcha and I got plum, so don't worry if the noodles're pink n' green."

He was assembling it now, arranged and neat stacks on the platter. With the veggies and the grilled salmon fronting it, there was enough healthy fats and protein to keep anybody burning through the night.

Kanji thought better than to call her over, though. He had no issue finishing up this one and heading over to place it on the coffee table before Madoka's crash couch with the chopsticks.

Her eyes practically follow that bowl as it's brought to her, looking all but in love with the dish itself. One can practically see the sparkles in her eyes.

"Whoa...it looks delicious! And smells delicious, too! Thank you!"

The meal is enough to start lifting her spirits, bowing in gratitude. The vibrant colors with the fish itself looked all the more enticing, but despite that hunger, manners come first!

"Would you like to join me, senpai? Maybe you need a break, too, if you've been cooking for everyone."

"I..." He looked to the door.

"Yeah, sure. I dunno if people're comin' in the next ten minutes, so let's do it!" He got up to fix his own meal.

"But don't wait for me! Y'gotta have it while the salmon's still piping!"

Being a Wild Card is Wild Hard

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