Looking over the party crowd, Barnaby feels a tinge of boredom as he stands there by himself. He was diligent in greeting his sponsors and made a point to say a few words to the other heros that he bumped into at the party, but he's never been a particularly social fellow and feels somewhat out of his element. He's brought out of his thoughts by a slight bump against his shoulder. Glancing to his left, he sees that it's Kotetsu.
"Here, you were looking lonesome, so I thought I'd bring you some punch," Kotetsu says, his hand reaching out with a glass.
"Oh, thank you," Barnaby replies, taking the drink.
"You know we don't have to stay here," Kotetsu speaks again, glancing towards him. "We can just ditch the party and go do something else."
"No, we ought to stay; it's a part of our job, after all, and we need to show appreciation to the sponsors," Barnaby replies, though internally, nothing sounds better then Kotetsu's suggestion.
"Please, none of this is any actual work," Kotetsu replies. "We're just standing around."
"Regardless, it's important that we stay." Barnaby looks to Kotetsu, and when their eyes meet, Kotetsu lets out a sigh in defeat.
"So be it," he replies. He takes a sip of the punch he brought, his face wrinkling at its taste. "They added too much sugar to this drink, it's way too sweet."
"Are you sure it's too sweet, or is it that your old age is finally starting to affect even your taste?" Barnaby teases.
"Oh don't get started on that," Kotetsu replies in a huff, "I'm not that old. And why don't you go and take a taste then?"
Barnaby gives his drink a dubious look, but downs some of it; he feels immediate regret as his nose wrinkles from its overpowering sweetness.
"Ha, see!" Kotetsu lurches off the wall, spinning to fully face Barnaby. "'My old age,' pah! It's too sweet for you too!"
"Don't make such a scene over juice," Barnaby scoffs; he resists openly smiling, but his eyes betray a certain warmth as he looks on towards Kotetsu.
The rest of the party goes smoothly; having Kotetsu with him made Barnaby a bit more sociable, though Kotetsu still did more of the heavy lifting in the various conversations for the both of them. When the party finally comes to an end, Barnaby feels a little relief at being able to leave; admittedly the other heroes have started to grow on him. The pair leave together, neither having to ask the other which way they are heading, as they're both heading to the same place--Barnaby's home. Ever since the confrontation with Jake, the two of them found themselves in each other's presence outside of work more and more to the point it just felt natural for them to be together.
"Would you like to get some drinks on the way back?" Barnaby asks; he can see his breath billow around his mouth as he speaks due to the cold. He can feel a shiver run down his spine.
