nysalogs | june catch-all

[It's an infiltration mission, so why is she nervous?

If anything, this should be easier than the other tasks she's carried out for Cree in the past. Their disguises should - in theory - be sound, and all they have to do is act as though they belong. People are surprisingly willing to believe things they shouldn't went something that looks right is in front of them.

Maybe it's the ~~polyjuice~~ potion. Makeup is one thing, but physically taking on another's appearance is something else entirely. At the very least, she's not in this alone - Yusuke is here with her, which gives her courage, and Cain seems very capable.

They can do this.

Banishing the butterflies from her stomach as they group together one last time before they come out of hiding, Haru holds up her vial of potion.]

A toast, before we start — to a successful mission!

To a successful mission.

[ Cain grins at her, lifting his own vial of potion and giving it a careful clink against the one she's holding up. She's a friend of Yusuke's, which is enough for him to trust her — but learning that she's also in possession of the unique brand of skills that Yusuke and his friend Akira possess has Cain's curiosity in overdrive, even if he's managed to rein himself in, at least until they've accomplished their mission.

Still. He fully intends to find out just how it is that a bunch of high schoolers have come to be so adept at breaking and entering.

For now, he turns expectantly to Yusuke. Waiting. Yep. There's not a chance that he's going to let Yusuke get out of also giving the toast with them. ]

[ It's been a while since their last, full-on attempt at burglary, only the odd quest or two now and again to whet their thieving skills. And the plot ahead of them is complex for a team that's never worked in full together—maybe even for one that has.

Still, he raises his glass and helps clink the three vials together with a delicate chime. A veritable set of musketeers, only with more dubious intentions, Milady, and some ill-gotten potions. A winning recipe, he thinks, speaking coolly. ]

To our imminent victory.

[ He sips the concoction once, regrets stopping to taste it, and quickly swallows down the rest with a grimace. It's only after that he peeks over his glass to see how the other two do.

...Because of course he's nervous in his own, inscrutable way, but there's something to be said about the human body morphing from one shape to another. He's not going to miss it over something as dumb as nerves. ]

[Transforming into another person is a grotesque thing. Haru tries not to think about it overmuch as she knocks back the potion - this isn't like the Metaverse, where their clothing transformed in the blink of an eye. But it's just as necessary.

Transforming into Evras won't give her the power of a Phantom Thief - but it will grant her the opportunity to walk into the Institute and make her way to places she wouldn't otherwise be able to access. So like it or not, she has to put up with it.

The grimace on her face isn't just because of the taste of the potion. Physical transformations - they're not easy. He's taller than her, and so as her frame lengthens to account for the different in height, Haru learns firsthand what it means to have growing pains. Her bones are sore and achey, her muscles feel almost uncomfortably stretched - but the bloom of pain lessens to a dull ache as her insides rearrange themselves to match.

Her facial features - those are next. She sucks in a breath as those shift and change. His nose is different from hers. It cracks and re-sets itself, and she clenches her eyes shut against the pain. Her skin becomes more weathered; her hair, already short to begin with, becomes shorter still, disappearing back into her skull.

Once it's over, it is Evras who stands in front of them, not Haru Okumura. She slowly opens her eyes and takes a breath, looking out at the other two.]

[ Cain has his own transformation to contend with, just as gruesome. But once it's over, he's a bit disgruntled to find that he's gained a few inches. Why exactly is everyone so much taller than he is? And he's gained a few more assets to go with his new, shapely figure — Lysa stands in his place. Cain takes a moment to brush newly-long hair out of his face and takes a step. Huh. That new center of gravity is certainly going to take some getting used to.

He winks at his fellow conspirators. The expression looks decidedly odd on Lysa's normally disapproving face. ]

Guess this makes a better disguise than a hood and a mask, right?

[ It's not pleasant. Feeling his flesh warp around his bones is something out of a horror novel, but if he doesn't focus on his jaw grinding into realignment too much, teeth shrinking to fit his mouth, he can close his eyes and ride it out.

He eventually blinks to old company in new bodies, almost forgetting who's who until 'Lysa' makes himself obvious. Cain's brevity is welcome though, and it's easier for him then to hum in agreement; Yusuke turns his hands over as though testing them out, watching his new musculature in fascination as he drums his fingers in the air.

But as much as he'd like to make an anatomy study out of this... they should probably get to work. He crosses his arms, his usual coolness translating well enough to Ashti's severity. ]

An image is one thing. Reflecting their personalities may be more difficult...

[ No one would use a potion this drastic for an easy task, though. Aas far as three, high-profile Olympians traveling together goes, ]

You two are supposed to be in some sort of rivalry, are you not?

[A rivalry - right.

Haru had almost forgotten. Though she's already returning Cain's wink with a smile, she rearranges her - Evras's? - features into what she hopes is a stern expression. Though they're not exactly in the open just yet, someone glancing their way and happening to see Evras and Lysa smiling at each other would probably be incredibly concerned.]

We are— oh!

[...her, uh. Her voice. It's so much deeper than she expected. Give her a moment to recover...]

Should we go separately, then? Or - perhaps you should walk between us, as if to make sure we don't begin arguing.

That's right, a terrible rivalry.

[ The smile lingers on Cain's face for another minute before he composes himself. It's a strange transformation, not as drastic, but still visible, the mirth fading away, even his — Lysa's — posture changing, until the cocky way he usually carries himself is nowhere to be seen. Instead, there's nothing but Lysa's straight-backed, disapproving haughtier to be found, and she looks at "Evras" down her nose, only barely refraining from a sneer. ]

Ashti between us would be best. I don't think we should split up any sooner than we need to.

[ Meanwhile, 'being' Ashti is an easy enough adjustment. Tall, broad-shouldered, and a deep enough register to her voice that it doesn't sound that odd to him—if the real deal were here, he'd let her know she has an exquisite bone structure.

But as it stands, he's supposed to play at babysitter, taking on post between them with a gentle pull at both their elbows to drag them along. Onwards then. ]

Fine by me.

[ They're bound to turn some heads by nature of who they are, but as long as they stay in character... wandering eyes should go right back to work. Theoretically. He's never done much with the Guard, but how hard could it be? ]

Evras— [ aka their esteemed Haru making a permanent grouchy face ] You'll help Lysa back into her old office, won't you?

[The grouch is not quite real.

It's somewhat of a struggle for her to keep the grumpy look on her face - honestly, she knows it's Yusuke pulling her and Cain along by the elbows, and that's funny enough on its own. But also, just picturing what others must be seeing (and the look on the people their impersonating's faces, should they ever see it) makes her want to laugh, too.

But it's fine. She manages to keep a grouchy, haughty expression on her face, and makes a deliberate point of only addressing "Ashti," not Lysa.

And for the sake of whoever might be near enough to overhear them-]

I suppose, since it seems she is incapable of doing so herself.

[ Cain's having just as much of an internal struggle. Haru's too good of an actress, sounding just like Evras truly would, perhaps even with a bit more snobbish disdain than the true Evras might. If that's even possible... the depths of the rivalry between Lysa and Evras after their falling out have turned truly legendary, as he's found out during his research for this mission, and it's hard to say if they can truly overplay their hand.

Which is why he turns his head up with a haughty sniff, tossing his red hair over a shoulder, pressing his lips firmly together — as much to keep a laugh from spilling out as to show Lysa's anger for Evras's rudeness. ]

Oh, yes, the place certainly has taken a downturn since I left. [ He also addresses his words solely to "Ashti," pointedly ignoring what "Evras" has said. ] It's a wonder that you still call what gets done here science.

[Hmph. Well, "Evras" certainly can't allow that - with a toss of "his" head, "he" addresses "Ashti" again, though the words are most certainly directed at "Lysa".

God, too many quotation marks in this tag.]

Oh, hmm. I do wonder if our dear Lysa will be equipped to move back into her old position - all that fiddling around with herbs that she does is so outdated. Will she be able to get caught back up?

I do hope she isn't stuck in the past.

june catch-all

a quest with cain and yusuke

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