#maybe Yuuko had a store budget that took care of that

[completeoveranalysis]

[7]

OK OK OK LET’S BREAK IT DOWN

There is so much just in this that I love entirely. 

Firstly that, like she mentions, Watanuki sees cooking as something SO important that he’ll go through all the effort of teaching her for no, uh, 'tangible' price. Including all the effort he’s already gone through over the past month. 

Because Watanuki sees it as something “vital” - like, the food itself sure, but mostly because teaching her how to cook is essentially teaching her how to grow her own personality and craft herself into someone that she actually likes. And he’ll do it because he genuinely cares, but also there is no tangible price that could ever really cover that. 

And that branches into the Yuuko of it all. I think this might be the first time we see Watanuki with his own customer and setting his own Mystical Price that will balance out all the effort he puts into it. And like, I’m not sure that Watanuki has the same restrictions that Yuuko had when it comes to her store - I’m sure we’ll see later, and I’m sure we’ll see if that was externally or internally imposed. If there was any outside consequence that helped dictate the threat of an imbalanced price or if it was entirely just Yuuko herself knowing how the universe works and working so hard to make sure it all worked out ok. If it’s that last one, then we can assume that Watanuki has inherited some of that concern from her and knows how to work out a price that has the same effect. 

And so Watanuki sets the price of the terrible tasting Omusubi. WHICH is loaded with emotional weight - because even though it's monetarily worthless, it’s the price of someone KNOWING exactly what kind of person she is, which was her greatest fear. And so, the price of fixing that fear is facing that fear - whic means that Watanuki tasting the Omusubi and knowing more about her is the direct step towards a future where that is no longer her fear. It’s the process she needs to take to grow a personality that she herself likes. 

It’s both a practical and spiritual price that already matches both ends of the deal. Asking for money on top of that would actually be too much. 

In which my only concluding thought is where does Watanuki gets the money for ingredients in the first place? But shh.