Chapter Text
"Rock on with these sparkling gazes!"
"Oh my god, I thought this was just a costumed persona."
"I've come to take you on a date!"
"So we're doing the whole thing evidently. Fantastic."
"Coming out of nowhere... stunningly cute and catlike!" Shiretoko Tomoko bounced over to her date, waving her hands excitedly. "Wild Wild Pussycats: No Longer Single Formation!"
Tatsuma Ryuuko let out an exhausted sigh as she regarded her green-haired companion for the evening. Taking Tomoko’s hands in hers, she squeezed them gently as she leaned in toward the grown woman who had made an entire career out of dressing up as a cat-themed magical girl. "You're lucky that you're cute, Shiretoko Tomoko. You know that, right? Like, before we go any further, I need you to comprehend with every fiber of your being how far the fact that you're cute is getting you at this exact moment."
After considering that for a few seconds, Tomoko shrugged nonchalantly. “I kinda assumed the fact that you have a catgirl fetish is most of the reason that I’d gotten this far. Was I wrong? I mean, I’m not arguing against the fact that I’m cute… I’d like to think that I’m very cute. But yeah. Thought it was because you’re kinda nyaasexual.”
Blushing darkly, Ryuuko yanked her hands out of Tomoko’s so that she could bury her face in them. While strictly speaking, the woman wasn’t wrong… she didn’t need to say it so frankly. Peeking between two of her fingers, she smiled awkwardly at the smugly grinning verdette. “So. Moving on. How was your week? Did you and your teammates have any interesting incidents this week?”
“We did, though!” Tomoko bounced in place excitedly, waiting until Ryuuko lowered her hands so that she could take one in her own. “People just can’t stop getting lost near our mountain, and we leap into action to bring them home. Search is just so, so invaluable for that. It really makes me feel useful.”
Ryuuko nodded slowly as she began leading Tomoko toward the restaurant where they’d be eating for the evening. She'd gone a bit overboard, but it was a place where she felt comfortable relaxing and the food was amazing. Hopefully Tomoko would enjoy the experience as much as she did. “You have an extraordinary quirk, Tomoko, and don’t let anyone ever try to convince you otherwise.”
Her words made the verdette reach up and rub the back of her head sheepishly. “I mean, it’s no Dragon but it gets me by.” Tomoko looking over at Ryuuko and grinned playfully. “Speaking of which, can you like… transform partway?” The blonde eyed her companion curiously and Tomoko shrugged. “I mean, if I’m going to have a dragon girlfriend, I kinda feel like it’s not inappropriate to expect more dragon out of this situation? Like… I want some tail. I want some claws pricking against the back of my hand when we hold hands. Dragon me, ma’am.”
Ryuuko threw her head back and laughed at that, giving Tomoko’s hand a squeeze. “First of all, you’re getting ahead of yourself. You do not have a dragon girlfriend yet. You have a dragon willing to go on a date with you. You need to earn girlfriend status. That being said…” Ryuuko stared down at their joined hands and took a deep breath. It had actually taken her well into her adolescence to transform herself from a dragon girl into a completely human form that conformed to societal beauty standards. Peeling that back took conscious effort at this point, but if Tomoko really wanted it… why not relax a little and let her metaphorical hair down? Her fingers elongated slightly, gaining an extra joint, even as her nails elongated into wickedly sharp claws. “Better?”
Raising their hands, Tomoko studied Ryuuko’s transformed digits curiously before grinning wickedly at the woman. “Remind me to have you reverse that before we get to third base. Because I’m adventurous enough but damn.”
“Third base?” Ryuuko debated pulling out her phone to look up what Tomoko was referring to but decided that based on the way the verdette was grinning at her? She probably didn’t want to know. They reached the front door of the restaurant and Ryuuko held it open for her date. “Shall we?”
“We shall.” Tomoko curtsied, drawing Ryuuko’s attention to her companion’s outfit for the first time. And then the blonde groaned softly. Tomoko had decided to wear a sundress with the design of her hero costume printed on it. Presumably some sort of merchandise that the team offered for sale. Ryuuko preferred not to advertise her day job when she was off duty. Tomoko evidently felt otherwise. The verdette looked around curiously before perking up slightly. "Oh my god, this is even more luxurious than I imagined. Also, a massive number of bonus points to you for remembering that I like teppanyaki."
Ryuuko grinned as the maître d’ bowed to them and immediately led them toward the distinguished lookin cypress counter. They were the only patrons of the restaurant at the moment, which suited Ryuuko just fine. The staff's conduct was always exemplary. Fellow diners... sometimes less so. "Remember? Tomoko, you told me last week not a year ago. When we were discussing possible first date ideas. Which was the entire reason we had the discussion. Of course I picked teppanyaki.”
Ducking her head, Tomoko blushed faintly. “Sorry. I’m just not used to being spoiled like this. I mean, Azabudai Teppanyaki Nakamura has a reputation. Like, this place is the pinnacle of teppanyaki restaurants. And it is not cheap.”
After debating with herself for a moment, Ryuuko decided to chance being a bit forward and pressed a kiss to Tomoko's cheek. "Not to brag or anything, but you are dating the number nine hero."
"Dating?" Tomoko raised an eyebrow as she looked over at Ryuuko. "What happened to me just being on a date with you? Wasn't that, like, literally sixty seconds ago?"
Ryuuko offered a smug little grin as she pulled her hand out of Tomoko's, reaching up to scratch her claws gently through the woman's green hair. "I'm willing to keep an open mind." Tomoko leaned into the touch and then pouted faintly as Ryuuko pulled away to be the chivalrous one and pull out her companion's seat for her. "I made reservations for two for the premium omakase. I hope that's okay with you?"
In the act of sitting down, Tomoko promptly missed her seat and hit the floor with a loud thump. Nobody was rude enough to look, but she still blushed as she forced herself to her feet and leaned in toward Ryuuko. "Ma'am. Ma'am. That is like, a hundred and thirty-four thousand yen per person. I... what?"
Gently guiding Tomoko down into her seat, Ryuuko circled around and took her own seat beside the verdette in front of the pure copper teppan hotplate that adorned the tabletop. "Ma'am. I am a dragon. I appreciate the finer things in life. If we're going to be dating, you're going to have to get used to that." Picking up her napkin, she placed it in her lap and then smiled at Tomoko. "Prepare for an experience."
"Miss Tatsuma!" The sixth generation of Nakamuras to own the restaurant, one Nakamura Hanaya, bustled out from the kitchen and bowed respectfully to the blonde. "Shall we be making a masterpiece together again this evening?"
Looking over at Tomoko, Ryuuko smiled before pursing her lips and exhaling a thin stream of flames. "That we shall, Nakamura. That we shall. I am ready to do my part when you are, as always."
Tomoko stared at Ryuuko with wide, adoring eyes. "Dragon girlfriend."