[lonewolf]

He shrugged a little, nodding. "<Fair. But something to consider is that quirks are like muscles. I don't get it too much, if I'm being honest, but some eggheads that have three braincells to rub together explain that the more it's used the stronger it can get. Maybe it's something you could look into?>" It was well outside of Mark's understanding, but it was also why students often trained on their own time, too. At least, so he thought. He didn't keep up with them outside of his classes.

He tilted his head a little at the offer. He had no intent on using his quirk on her. That was the last thing that either of them needed. But he couldn't help but reach out and take her hand, a few callouses present as he looked down in thought. After a moment or two he made a small laugh, making eye contact with her. "<Pink's a good color on you.~>" He didn't actually know, but following it up with a wink made the sell that much more believable. He'd let her hand go, setting it on the table between them. "<The future is hard. It's possibly because it's constantly being built. It's easier to see the past.>"

Kokoro,

[Kokoro]

She acted clueless at his quirk advice. ''<Really? Is that another thing they teach you in hero school? But it'd be no good if I used my quirk too much, since I'm just a civilian. ~>'' She smiled innocently. ''<Unless of course, I'm getting permission from a licensed hero? No one could pass up an opportunity like that.>'' She teased, making it clear that she was just joking around by giving him a wink.

She looked at him expectantly as she extended a hand. When he took hers she looked him in the eyes. ''<Your hand is soft, Mark.>'' It wasn't simply flattery to disarm him. Well, it was, but she was also speaking truthfully. After all the best lie was to be truthful. It left her feeling much less guilty about her encounters with others too, so it was a win-win for her overall. ''<What's it say, am I gonna die tomorrow?>'' She chuckled, not intending to mock him, but the whole process felt a bit like having her fortune read. ''<Pink?>'' She felt a faint blush on her cheeks. ''<Oh my, are you going to see me wearing pink? ~>'' She grinned, putting her hands up to her face. ''<I didn't know it was a perverted quirk.>'' She teased, ''<or maybe I'm the pervert here.>''

The future was harder to read, huh...

''<I suppose you can learn a lot from the past too.>'' She shrugged and took a sip from her cup. How much of the past could he see, and had he taken a peek into hers? If he did there was a very real chance that he now knew what kind of person she was. To ease the tension she waved her hand elegantly. ''<I can my quirk for a party trick, just don't arrest me. ~>'' As he fingers danced in the air, suddenly a small white cloud manifested, but only for a split second.

lonewolf

[lonewolf]

<"Or it could be both,>" he says, taking a sip of water. "<I'm certainly curious what was foretold.~>" He'd pause as their first plates were brought by; his plate had a bunch of steak chunks that he immediately slipped into the grill in the table. As he looked back up the clouds caught his attention, an eyebrow raising. "<Well, that's interesting! I thought you said you could jump higher?>" He set the plate back on the table, grinning at her. "<And like I said, I don't have much control over the quirk. The past is easier to see, the future is muddled, and overall it's just a pain to use the quirk. It's why I don't base any of my work on it.>"

He leaned back a little, appraising her. Kokoro was odd. She was quite attractive, but there was also an air of mystery about her...like she was leading him on with one thing and holding others close to her chest. Her jokes about learning more about her quirk, plus the fact she was a traveler and did odd jobs, made him think that there was more to her than what she stated. It was likely, if things escalated, that he'd have to do a brief flip of her memories...though he could only see a short glimpse, perhaps it'd give him some insight.

But then again, if he did that, he'd suck out all the fun out of any future interactions. What was the point in that?

"<Where are you staying at? Do you have a regular apartment, or just a room for rent for the time being?>"

Kokoro,

[Kokoro]

Her own plate had a mixture of meats and vegetables, some of the stuff she would occasionally forage for and had gotten used to eating out in the wild. ''<Right?>'' She grinned with a head tilt, picking up some of her food with chopsticks to put on the grill. As the food sizzled away she nodded her head to affirm what she had previously said. ''<That's right. That's all it does, but I can make these things too.>'' She waved her hand and made a little cloud appear again, vanishing instantly. ''<I see. That must be a pain indeed.>'' She flipped some of her food so it could grill on the other side. She had met many quirks like that before, the kinds that offered little to no control. Perhaps she could count herself lucky that one, her quirk was relatively simple and low risk so long as she wasn't stupid and two, that attaining control of it was about as hard as staying fit and working out. ''<Do you ever wish you had been born with a different quirk? I think about that sometimes.>'' It was an innocuous question, but also one that could tell a lot about a person. ''<For instance, wouldn't life be different if we were born with mutation type quirks?>''

She looked down at the grill, smiling as she put her grilled food back on her plate. ''<Well, as long as I'd get to enjoy moments like this I guess it wouldn't matter to me.>'' Not that her quirk was that special anyway. Uncommon perhaps, but she wasn't as sought after as say, healers. All sides, heroes, vigilantes or villains wanted those. ''<Just a hotel room for tonight.>'' She said, holding up a small piece of meat and blowing on it. ''<I don't have a home.>'' She smiled cheekily before popping the piece of meat in her mouth, only speaking again once she had finished chewing and swallowing. ''<You could say I'm a minimalist.>'' She shuffled some of her food around, getting ready to eat some mushrooms next.

''<How about you? I bet you live here in the city, close to work.>''

lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Ah, yes. Do you ever wish you were born different? "<I don't know any kid that would love to shoot laser beams from their eyes or have the tail of a lizard. I wasn't one of those kids, though.>" It wasn't something he was going to get into. While the smile remained, his thoughts drifted to nights on the road, dealing with his father, the constant changing of schools, and the like. It got old.

Back to her quirk, though. If she was showing off those clouds, he had some doubts about her ability to 'jump good'. Unless the clouds aided her in that...but that was speculation on his side. He'd have to witness it in person to make a judgement.

"<I can relate to the minimalist thing. Only home I really have is the Caddy, so anything that can't fit in the trunk normally gets donated or trashed once it's reached it's maximum use.>" The steak bits, he had to admit, were pretty good. Had a strange pineapple flavor he wasn't expecting. That said, her question...part of him didn't want to answer, but it'd look weird if he was just living out of the car and using on-campus facilities. "<I got a small apartment while I'm here, though. Someplace to crash after a day's work.>" His eyes flicked over her again, thoughts wandering briefly before he found his focus. "<What do you intend to do for tomorrow night, then?>"

Kokoro,

[Kokoro]

''<Yeah.>'' Really neither of them were. Otherwise their conversation about this fleeting topic might have turned out differently. ''<It's a thought.>'' She mused while sipping her tea. She wasn't all too interested in talking about what-ifs. Now his answer to her question about his place of residence was much more intriguing. She had taken him for the usual city dweller. Someone who had traveled, sure, but he lived in Tokyo. He had probably lived in big cities his whole life and was comfortable that way, just like she was comfortable being a traveler herself. ''<Really?>'' She asked excitedly, though still as laidback as usual. ''<We have more in common than I thought, Mark.>'' What a fun thought. She had something in common with a hero. They were all just humans after all, weren't they?

She turned her attention back to some of her own food, preferring to eat while it was still warm. ''<Makes sense. When you're working in the same place it's much easier to live around that place too.>'' It wasn't like she was a stranger to it either. She had contacts in China and had stayed with friends and strangers all around the world while on her journey. Sure, sometimes she would have to camp in the woods, but oftentimes it was much more preferable to just talk to some friendly strangers and stay with them instead. ''<Tomorrow?>'' She chewed on his question, giving it a little bit of thought before smiling. ''<I'll figure something out. Usually I meet a friendly stranger, or I contact some of my old friends.>'' She looked away briefly to put more food on her place before teasing him with a grin. ''<Why, are you worried about little old me?>''

lonewolf

[lonewolf]

He shrugged a little, giving her a little grin. "<Well, we do live in dangerous time. Kinda hard for me not to worry about a beautiful lady out there in the cold, cruel world. Especially in this line of work.~>" This was another half truth. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't worried, but the amount wasn't super high on the list. She was clearly someone who was used to taking care of herself and having only herself to rely on. If he were being perfectly honest with himself, she'd be the perfect person to settle for. If he had any desire to do that. Something he wasn't exactly fond of was providing for someone's every little need...which is why he normally bullied his classes.

Despite that, he also knew what it was like to live out on the open road. It wasn't exactly the most forgiving way to live life. "<Do miss it, though. I might take some time off one of these days and go up and down the country. Japan might not be home, but it's still got a level of beauty that I haven't experienced yet. Tokyo's full of urbanites and people that don't understand how things are outside the city, it'd be nice to get away from that for a change. Downside to that is I'd have to get someone to take care of my fish.>" Fish that he clearly didn't have. She didn't have to know that, though. Yet. Though it did leave a small lingering invitation should she want it.

Kokoro,

[Kokoro]

''<I'm touched.>'' She grinned right back, ''<We've only just met, but to have someone as handsome as yourself notice me is flattering. Maybe I've still got it. ~>'' She stirred her tea quietly. If only he hadn't been involved in hero work getting to know him would have been so much easier. Not that she was going to spill every little secret, but she imagined a hero took much more issue with her true nature than a civilian would. ''<You've helped me so much already, but I was wondering if I could ask you something.>'' She ate a couple more mushrooms and vegetables to let her question hang in the air for him.

Looking back at him she smiled, curious how he was going to answer this one. ''<In your own opinion, what's the most powerful quirk you have come across? I assume someone in your line of work has seen a lot of exciting things.>'' This way she could probe him without giving away too much of her own agenda. Was she coming on strong? Absolutely, but she was also flirting and just making conversation. It didn't matter if he lied either. She was having a good time and probably wouldn't forget this night for a while. Her only hope now was that she wasn't going to bump into him in the middle of work, swords by her side and everything. She was capable and she believed in herself, but she would rather not go toe-to-toe with a professional hero in her vigilante guise, that was just asking for trouble.

lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Mark couldn't help but smirk as he finished up his plate. "<Believe me, you got it.~>" And he meant it, too. Whether or not she was humoring him was another issue, but he didn't mind. He had a goal for the evening, and he intended to carry it out.

He tilted his head as she wondered her question, and shrugged a little. "<Go for it!>" Surely the question itself was harmless, right?

Right?

Ha, no. The question had some form of motive behind it, he just knew that. While he didn't go on the defensive, he did close up a little as he set his elbows on the table. "<I don't claim to be an academic, but I do know that 'power' is really subjective,>" he says, thinking as he tries to figure out a way to placate her without potentially exposing any of his students. 'Powerful' was certainly vague: she was looking for something specific. He was smart enough to know she was looking for something, but not enough to know what. Was she on a revenge bender? Vigilantism was illegal, but that didn't stop vigilante's from popping up. And if she was one, he felt a little bad. He liked her. "<I've seen some quirks that are powerful, but to me intent is much more potent. You can have a quirk that controls clouds, which by itself is impressive and could be seen as powerful, but it's less dangerous than the person that can fling molten lava. Anyone can do the latter with a crucible and a slingshot.>" He thought a moment. "<The most dangerous quirk, though. I knew someone once that could disrupt the flow of bodily fluids within the body with a look. Did a lot of damage training, lotta people got hurt...>" It was vague, but it was clear he had experience with it based on his expression. Something that hit close to home.

Kokoro

[Kokoro]

It was true that she had ulterior motives, but there was some genuine happiness and need for social interaction thrown in there too. Even as she was on her journey and had a specific mission she made sure to enjoy her date with Mark to the fullest. Not only was he fun to talk to, but he had a good taste in food and he was complimenting her. What's not to love about it? After she asked her question she took the time to finish her plate while he mulled it over.

She nodded at what he said. ''<What someone considers 'power' is rather telling about their character don't you think?>'' She was both interested in what he had seen because he had such an exciting job, but also probing. What was power to Mark Browning? A gun quirk? Fire quirk? Gravity quirk? Or perhaps a time quirk? Maybe his answer would surprise her and be something totally different, either way she was going to come out of it learning something. ''<With a look? How scary, usually quirks that powerful are relegated to touch.>'' To avoid being suspicious she would offer her own perspective too. Sure, she was probing and looking for information, but it didn't hurt to give up a little bit of herself too. That way, it felt like a more fair exchange. She didn't have much to hide either. If he got suspicious of her that would be a shame, but she also hadn't committed any crimes since returning to Japan. ''<In my case...>'' She put her hands together. ''<I'd say it's a hivemind quirk.>'' She obviously needed to elaborate and she was happy to do so. ''<Say someone could make a perfect clone of themself, and that clone shares every memory, emotion and thought as the original. For all intents and purposes, you cannot tell the difference between the original or the clones. Quirks like that exist too.>'' She figured she would give an exciting answer, something she had actually seen, while hiding something that was crucial to her mission. Namely, the rumor that someone had a quirk that allowed them to extract quirks from others, and that this person was somewhere in Japan.

lonewolf

[lonewolf]

This conversation was certainly strange, but at least he wasn't debating the merits of chipmunk insurance with some girl...boy...what was that catbug...? Either way, as suspicious as Kokoro was, this was a better use of his time. "<You would think,>" he says, finishing his plate and setting it aside.

A hivemind quirk, huh? He began to think on that...and then his brain went to place it shouldn't have. "<That would be a bit dangerous,>" he says, thinking of all the ways he could utilize something like that. "<It would definitely make it hard to pin a crime to someone with it. They could easily formulate an alibi, and multiple forms of backup plans while also maintaining their crime spree. That'd also cause all kinds of problems nailing a crime to the original...assuming it's the original that's in safety.>" He leans back, thinking. "<Man, that'd be a headache.>"

The waitress comes back around, and he offers payment for the two of them. "<I take it you've encountered something like that before?>"

Kokoro,

[Kokoro]

She liked watching him work through her question. Not just because she was actually searching for information, but also because she had taken quite a liking to this hero teacher already. It would be a shame if they crossed paths one day. As a rule of thumb she didn't want to cut down anyone that wasn't a villain or downright evil, but that didn't mean she didn't engage in other minor crimes. Nothing that risked innocent lives, but definitely things that could land her in jail if a hero caught her in the act. Such an outcome wouldn't be ideal though. Even if the one arresting her was handsome. ''<Wouldn't it?>'' She agreed, smiling as she tilted her head a bit to one side.

She reached for her wallet when the waitress came back. ''<You're too kind, Mark. I can pay for myself, I'm not that broke.>'' She giggled. She wanted to pay for herself so she didn't owe him anything, but if he insisted on paying she wasn't going to fight him on it. ''<Something like that, yes. I saw it with my own eyes. Compared to that my quirk is more like a simple party trick.>'' She said it with a blissful smile, not intending to be self-deprecating in the slightest. Looking at the nearest window she stretched her arms as it slowly grew darker outside. ''<Where did the time go? I can't remember the last time I had such a good conversation.>'' She looked back at Mark and slowly stood up. ''<Where are you off to next?>''

lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Mark held up a hand as he handed the waitress his card, smiling. "<First one's on me. It's the gentlemanly thing to do. We can talk about next time, though,>" he says, giving her a wink.

The fact that she saw something like that was scary, though. It was pretty hard to imagine a bunch of clones running amuck causing who knows what damages they were causing. Not to mention how that could compound, or even if the main mind was caught. "<I can just hope that whoever has that quirk didn't use it nefariously...or even at all.>" Unlikely, but it was something he couldn't help but think about.

He stood up with her once the bill was paid, looking over at her as he tilted his head. "<Well, I was going to base that on what you were doing after this,>" he says, giving her a smile. "<Could stay out a little longer, or if you want me to can always walk you back to your place. Up to you, though.~>"

Kokoro

[Kokoro]

She chuckled when he mentioned a next time. ''<Next time? Could it be that you're asking me out, Mark?>'' She teased, returning the wink. She wouldn't mind seeing him again, so long as she could keep her criminal double life secret from him. Who knew how much someone like him could derail her plans if he found out why she had really returned to Japan.

''<Right? It's food for thought.>'' She smiled, knowing full well that this Hivemind was using their powers to do terrible things. Normally she would be opposed to them, and maybe even fight back against them, but it just so happened that they were in high standing with another criminal she was trying to reach. For the sake of her goal, she couldn't let one petty criminal get in her way.

''<What I'm doing?'' She asked cluelessly. Thankfully she didn't have any plans tonight, heck, most of her Tokyo contacts didn't even know she had made it to Japan yet. ''<There's no safer way to see the city after dark than being accompanied by a hero, right? Do you drink?>'' This way she got to spend more time with him, and also didn't have to worry about going back to the hotel and getting her swords first if things did go wrong. Win-win.

lonewolf

[lonewolf]

He smirked, deciding to take the lead. "<I might know a few places. C'mon, I'll show you one I'm fond of 'round here.>"

Was he asking her out on a date? Maybe. He didn't anticipate this working out in the long term; it never did. But something for a few nights wasn't all that bad, he figured. "<We can talk about some kind of arrangement if you want. I wouldn't mind it in the slightest.>"

Kokoro