Small Disturbance [JT, PG-13 - Arantima And Gracie]

[Arantima Kawada]

[CTP]

Arantima walked slowly towards the Senakimon, a Black butterfly resting on his shoulder. He looks around to see there are very few others heading out on missions. He Re-plays the missive in his head over and over again Go investigate a large disturbance in London, something there is creating ripples but there is no sign of Hollow attacks.. We are sending you as you have a low Spiritual foot print and won't attract much attention. He walks with a gentle gait and nods to the Kido corps members who are currently operating the gate, handing them his missive.

He watches as they open the Senkaimon and his butterfly takes flight from his shoulder to guide him through. He enters the light and is engulfed in the power and radiance that is the way of passage through the Senkaimon and before he can even blink he is stepping into the human world. He takes his hood off as he blows the Butterfly a kiss goodbye when it heads back into the Closing Senkaimon gate and the rain begins to fall around him and he scoffs gently speaking aloud to himself "Well now, how fitting.. Even this world weeps with sorrow at my presence".

He looks around before setting a hand on the hilt of his Zanpakuto, letting out another soft scoff as he heads towards the location of the last known "disturbance", some sort of park it seemed. As he walked through the world of the living he marveled at how different it had become since he had been alive so many many years ago during the time of Kublai khan. I wonder if they still drink Airaig.. I do so miss the flavor of its heady oversweet mixture..

Arantima reaches the Gate to the park and looks around, hand on the hilt of his Sword as if ready to fight. As he enters the park he doesn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary however.. He does see something that cannot be possible, a Walking Cat doll. This Doll is rather adorable of course but it is still a doll that shouldn't be able to walk around on its own, and whats more being close to this doll is physically intense. He walks up to the doll and gets down into a squat, resting on the front of his feet "Excuse me.. Little Cat, But can you understand me? And if you can what are you exactly?"

[Gracie]

-Training for 15 TTP, the rest CTP-

"Hey, where did everybody go!?", cried out a small, high-pitched voice from the top of a nearby jungle gym, the bright eyes of a stuffed cat peeking down at the world below, darting back and forth to try and find where all the children that had been playing here moments ago. Through nearly two weeks of aimless wandering and sheer dumb luck, Gracie the Mod Soul had found herself safely arriving in London from Dover. It hadn't even been an hour since she entered the city limits and already she was causing quite a stir, scaring away a park full of children and parents, though she didn't really understand the impact she had on them.

In her mind, Gracie was just your average little kitty cat. She liked to chase fish and birds and bugs, like a cat. She liked to climb tall things, even if she wasn't very good at it, like a cat. She loved to be pet and hugged and snuggled, like every GOOD cat did. And she liked to run around and sing songs and play games and ask people if they had seen her friend Wynne: you know, totally normal cat stuff. So despite all the times people had run away from her screaming, it not once ever entered her furry little noggin that Gracie had caused any of it, and it certainly didn't happen this time either.

After running to the playground and climbing to the top so that she could have some fun playing with all the kids, Gracie was a little disappointed to see that everyone had to go home all at the same time. Only a little though. The pouty frown that resided on her face as she cried out an "Okay! Bye Bye!", was soon quickly replaced with her usual elated smile as Gracie tossed herself into the nearest swirly slide with an eager "Wheeeeeeeeeeee!" She was laughing and squealing the whole way down, and weighing so little, ramped off the end of the slide and flew through the air a little ways before plopping down into a soft patch of grass.

The pure adrenaline and excitement had the cat erupting into a fit of loud happy giggles, and you wouldn't even had known that moments ago she was even a little bit sad about being all alone in a park. She was quick to hop to her stubby little doll feet and waddled around back to the stairs of the jungle gym, having to jump and scramble up the steps that were nearly as tall as she was just so she could do it over again. But if a lack of playmates couldn't put a damper on Gracie's fun, then the weather most certainly could.

A distant roar of thunder rumbling drew Gracie's attention skyward after she had flung herself down the slide a second time, causing her to watch the lumpy gray sky quizzically. "What was that?", she wondered to herself. "Where'd the blue go? And the big shiny sun?" Living inside the bedroom of a little girl all her life, Gracie understood little about the concept of Weather, and all the days she had been away from home had been clear skies without a cloud in sight, though it seemed Gracie's luck was about to change, as she was in for quite the nasty surprise.

As the tiny gray cat sat on the ground and stared up the sky trying to figure out what was wrong with it, a single droplet of water fell and splashed on her face, sending a jolt through her system and causing her to freeze. "W-Was that..." The cold seeping sensation crawling through the fibers that made up her 'skin' told her yes, but Gracie hoped it just couldn't be true. But then more droplets came and pelted the ground around her and Gracie hopped to her feet in alarm. "WAAAAATEEEEEEER!!!!", Gracie screamed in a panic as the rain started to come down harder and harder still.

She didn't even notice the strange man that entered the park soon after and she ran about squealing and screaming in horror at the wetness that threatened her, and refused to stop even as she found cover underneath a metal picnic table. Only once she realized had she found a dry safe haven under the table did Gracie finally start to settle down, the reiatsu that had flared up instinctively in her panic quickly dissipating as well. "Phew, safe from the water...", she heaved in relief, and plopped down to lay on her belly, poor soggy tail draped and dripping behind her, as she began to pout.

"Why does the sky have to cry when I was having so much fun? That's not fair!" If Gracie could cry, she might have started to tear up a little bit herself, but she lacked the tear ducts to do so. It was then that she was distracted by that strange man that had entered the par as he made his way over to the picnic table and kneeled down to look at Gracie underneath it, regarding her with a question as his hand rested on the hilt of his sword. Was this another one of those 'knight' guys? Gracie had liked the last one she met, so when she thought that, a smile crawled back to her face as she wiggled her way a little closer to say hello, still laying and drawing on her belly like the silly little girl she mentally was.

As Gracie crawled over to the hooded figure, he had addressed her as cat and then asked if she could understand him, and then what she was, which made her blink and stare blankly at him for a good minute as she tried to process that. Maybe she really couldn't understand him all that well? Because if he said what she thought he did, he had already answered his own question: She was a cat. Duh. "I think so", she finally answered about understanding him, head tilted slightly to the side as she continued to smile at him, and then stretched out a tiny paw towards his hand like she wanted to touch it.

"My name is Gracie, and I'm a cat!", she introduced herself happily enough, even if it didn't really answer his other question, but a cat is what Gracie honestly believed she was. "What's your name, mister? Are you a 'knight', too?", she remembered not to barrage this guy with questions like she had the last one, but she did scoot back a little further under the table and motion an invitation for him to squeeze under as well. "The sky is crying, mister. You're gonna get all wet and icky if you stay like that!"

[Arantima Kawada]

Arantima Smiled down to the cat and looked around at the rain that was falling around them, looking up to the sky and holding his hand up to touch the falling rain before leaning down and smacking his head on the edge of the table. His whole body shakes with the pain of the impact but he doesnt seem too phased by it as he shuffles down to come join the odd Cat that can stand on two legs. He immediately wondered at the reasons that a Cat could be moving around like this, much less talking.

She could be some form of shape changer... Though if she was, why woulkd she be a cat? Should could also be some sort of.. No. Mod souls aren't.. He looks her up and down a moment before reaching to poke Gracie, But right before his finger connects he feels the pressure building up along his finger, pulling it back gently as he tilts his head towards the side "You know, I quite like the rain.. It is Cool and Soothing, And keeps me from having to take too many baths. I bet you don't like Baths do you?"

He looks down at the wet ground outside the shelter of the table, that he only just barely fits under as he is 5 foot 5 inches. "My Name is Arantima.. And What do you mean by a knight? I Am a Shinigami, A Soul Reaper. I protect lost Souls and take them to the soul society, keeping them safe and defeating Hollows that threaten them." He looks over to Gracie once more as his mind works over this dilemma.

He knows of Mod souls, but he has never met or interacted with one.. He also doesn't know much about them other than that they exist and that they can give creatures and people strange abilities. He smiles to Gracie and sighs gently "If you truly are a Cat Gracie, you are truly a Special one. but.. I believe That you may be more than just a plain cat. You may be the reason I was sent out here to investigate. That's not a bad thing at all, I was afraid I might be hunting a Hollow."

He Smiles warmly to her before nodding his head once looking back out to the rain as he takes out his Zanpakuto and rests it across his lap in a Ceremonial style. His Breathing settles down as he finally allows himself the luxury of relaxing. He looks over to Gracie once more with that warm smile just waiting on a reply "I Must be Honest with her.. Even if it seems it might shatter her world as she knows it.. its better for her to know.

[Gracie]

Arantima might not have reacted very much to hitting his head off the end of the metal picnic table, but Gracie sure did. When the dull metal thump rung out in the air, a tiny gasp could be heard soon after as the little cat jumped, covering her mouth with one paw and grabbing at one of her ears with the other. Her tiny little eyebrows curved into a look of painful sympathy as she watched Arantima crawl under the table afterwards. "Are you okay!? That sounded like a bad ouchie. Wynne would have cried" The level of concern in Gracie's voice hinted towards the fact that she didn't like to see people hurting or crying, especially this Wynne that she spoke of.

The soul reaper didn't seem to be hurting all that much, though he did reach a hand out to Gracie that she made an effort to grab. It was a response rooted in instinct mostly. She saw a hand of someone that might have needed her comfort and the default reaction was to reach out for it and offer help, but just as Arantima's fingers were about to meet Gracie's tiny plush paws, he pulled back. It does nothing to offend Gracie however. Instead, she feels satisfied that her new acquaintance is indeed okay, and sits upright across from him.

She tried to mimic how he crossed his legs so he could actually fit under the table, but with Gracie's legs being so short and stubby she couldn't replicate the position and so instead left them free to kick in front of her as she stared at Arantima's face. She couldn't copy his posture, but she was at least copying his facial gestures, as when the soul reaper tilted his head to try and get a better look at her, Gracie mirrored the action, a curious smile painted on her face the whole time.

"Oh, so it's called 'Rain'? okay!" For not liking water very much, she seemed awfully chipper at learning what to call it when it fell from the sky. Then again, it wasn't that Gracie dislike water itself; it could be quite pretty at times, she just didn't like it on her. " Getting wet is icky! It makes everything all heavy and its too easy too get dirty. I think it looks pretty, though!", Gracie explained, her tone as happy-go-lucky as ever. "Baths are okay for people, but kitties stay clean so we don't have to take one. Thats what Wynne taught me!"

The next few minutes of conversation, however, quickly dissolved int a mass of confusion for the young cat. There was a lot of terminology being thrown around that might sound basic for some, but to her it may as well have been gibberish. But for starts, she had to learn how to even say his name! " Artie... Arenti..... Timmy... is it okay if I call you Timmy? I'm sorry" In the end she wasn't able to pronounce it correctly. Being so used to western English names, it couldn't be helped, but Gracie would keep practicing and trying.

"This one time, I went to a castle and it was really, really neat! I got to meet a knight and he had a sword and was really nice and everything. He told me stories about how he used to kill dragons and stuff and got 'lost in time', or something... I don't really know, but it was fun! I liked him.", Gracie told her story explaining the knight that she had met once, and then began to ask Arantima her own questions about his story. "Timmy, what's a soul? and a soul reaper, whats that and why are they called shini- shiniwins? And Hollows! What're Hollows? Are they like dragons if you have to protect 'souls' from them? ...Are you sure you're not a knight?"

At being told that she was special, Gracie seemed to grow a little bit bashful. Sure, Wynne had told her that all the time, and she knew that most cats couldn't talk like she did, so she had just assumed that was the same kind of special that Tima was speaking of as well. It didn't make a lot of sense that he would have mistaken her presence for a hollow, but Gracie was just simply too naive and mentally young to understand. "You were looking for me? How'd you know where to find me?" Despite her immense confusion, that air of happiness never left, nor did Gracie's smile. She had lots and lots of questions to be answered, but that was what she was going to start with for now.

[Arantima Kawada]

Arantima smiled the entire time as Gracie Tried to keep up with the conversation. Her inability to pronounce his name didn't bother him much at all "Timmy is perfectly Fine with me Gracie. There are worse names to be called after all." He smiles warmly and nods to her before he thinks for a good long while about the questions she had asked him. If she was indeed a mod soul then she wasn't aware of it, and if she wasn't.. would it be such a good idea to tell her about it?

He listens to her story about the time she went to a castle with interest. Knowing where this little cat had been and what she has experienced would help him make his decision with more ease.. or so he hoped. When she mentioned dragons and knights in this context he was a bit more understanding of why she may have called him a knight before. The questions that followed however would be tricky to answer easily. "A soul.. A Soul is what makes every creature and person in the world unique. Each soul is unique in its personality and drive.. The soul survives even after a body dies." He pauses a moment before looking over to Gracie.

"When a person dies, their Soul stays behind because it doesn't know where to go. Soul reapers find these souls and help them find peace by showing them the way to the soul society. Soul reapers are Called Shinigami, because that is the word for Gods of Death, as we are known in some cultures." He looks down at her once again with a smile and reaches to pet her little head gently, a surge of energy runs through his arm as his spiritual pressure is engulfed by Gracies. He doesn't remove his hand however even though he knows that he is pushing his limits.

"I Was Looking For.. Not specifically you, but it turned out to be you in the end. There was a disturbance around the area that was rather large, and I had to find out what it was. Kind of like.. when the wind Rustles the trees, only there isn't any wind blowing so you want to find out what did that ok?" He smiles again to her before removing his hand and looking around out into the rain a moment.

"To answer your last question Gracie.. Hollows are a lot like dragons. They eat the souls that are lost and waiting to be helped. But some times a lost soul can get so lost and scared that they become a hollow.. It is sad when that happens. But Soul reapers do their best to find as many souls as we can. And I believe you are a Special Soul, not lost at all but stronger than other ones. Meant to help us Find and protect the lost souls." He smiles to her and puts a hand on the hilt of his sword and looking down to her to gauge her reaction to that statement.

[Gracie]

As Arantima started with his explanation, Gracie leaned forward in anticipation, her still wet tail twitching from side to side behind her as little droplets of water fell from it on occasion. Even her large ears were strained as she gave the shinigami her undivided attention, eager to learn about all the weird things she didn't understand. With her feline body and focused, unblinking gaze however, Gracie looked more like she was ready to playfully pounce the man than to sit down for a spiritual study session.

As he began to speak on the subject of souls, Gracie looked down at herself as he did so, patting her stuffed paw to her chest as if looking for something. Tima had said all living creatures, all people and animals had souls, and she was trying to find hers. It was something that made you unique, made you special, but from what Gracie had seen, everyone had lots of little things about them that were special, so how was a soul different? "Um, so... souls are on the inside? Like your feelings? Everybody has feelings, though, some of them are the same for everyone, too. Like being happy, or sad... Hmmm..."

As Gracie sat there tugging on the tiny pink bow tied around her neck lost in thought, trying to figure out all this soul business, she seemed uncharacteristically calm and contemplative. Usually, she was just content to run around and play games and not think too much at all, but now hear she was sitting still and trying her best to learn some rather abstract and complex subject matter. Gracie went quiet for a minute or so, leaning forward even farther so that her whole little body threatened to topple over, before hopping up as if she had an epiphany.

That care-free little smile was back on her face as she held her arms up and out in a victory pose. " I get it! I get it! Everybody has lots of little things about them that make them special, but a soul isn't one of them, its all of the little things, right, Timmy? You're soul is just you, but on the inside!" She looked to Arantima with large, expectant eyes, hoping she had the answer right. There really wasn't any other way she could think of to look at it, and although her answer was extremely simplified, it wasn't as if she had it completely wrong after all.

The concept of shinigami and hollows came much easier to Gracie, what with it not being so different from all the stories she had heard of heroes and monsters. "So shinigummies ARE like knights, just that they help souls instead of people. They beat up the bad guys and take the souls someplace safe, like a castle! Cool!", she had messed up the word 'shinigami' again, but calling them shinigummy was pretty darn close. Gracie giggled happily as the soul reaper reached out to pet her head, putting her hands to her cheeks and leaning forward into his palm slightly.

She loved to be pet and hugged, it always left her feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. " You're nice, Timmy. I like you!", she smiled up at him as her plushie paws reached up to grab his thumb and pinky, holding them only momentarily before he pulled his hand away and continued to teach her about the world of spirits that she had forgotten completely about long, long ago. First he clarified that he wasn't really looking for Gracie, however. Arantima didn't really know what he was looking for at all, only that there was... something. It still confused Gracie a good deal though: how was it that she was causing a disturbance? She didn't shake any trees or branches today.

Her head tilted to the side as she stared at the profile of Arantima's face while he watched the rain fall. Maybe Gracie wasn't what he was supposed to be looking for after all? It wasn't like Gracie would be the one to know, anyways. That was a shinigami's job. Regardless, Gracie was happy that she got to meet him. She had been running around alone for a while now, and although she had run into a few people she was happy to call friends now, she always had to say her goodbyes to them after only a short time. This quest to find Wynne was awfully lonely at times.

When Tima called Gracie special again, she listened more closely this time as he explained that she was much more than just some talking cat. She could be more. "Stronger? I'm strong? But I'm just a little kitty, Timmy. Wynne is stronger than me." Technically, it was true. Physically, Gracie was pretty pathetic; even children were more capable than her. She didn't yet know that there were more ways to be strong. She didn't yet know just the kind of pressure that she exuded or the effect that it could have if utilized.

" But! But, if you say so Timmy, it must be true! I wanna be strong and help people, too! I wanna protect Wynne from more than just bad dreams!", the tiny kitten hopped to her feet suddenly, eyes shining and ears twitching with determination. She didn't fight; she didn't like hurting anything, either, not even someone's feelings. But Gracie wanted more than anything to protect Wynne and to be there to support her friends, no matter what. She'd do anything, learn anything, to be able to be like what Arantima described the shinigami as. "Will you teach me how to protect, Timmy? Please, Please, Please?"

[Arantima Kawada]

"Um, so... souls are on the inside? Like your feelings? Everybody has feelings, though, some of them are the same for everyone, too. Like being happy, or sad... Hmmm..." The Words of Gracies Rang out in his ears even as she said them. She was so adorably Naive about the world around her and yet she sat there.. Capable of destroying him without much effort if she had the mind to.    I get it! I get it! Everybody has lots of little things about them that make them special, but a soul isn't one of them, its all of the little things, right, Timmy? You're soul is just you, but on the inside!

He could not help but smile at her Simple but, remarkably Accurate explanation of what souls were. He Smiled warmly to her and nodded as he clapped softly for her when she finished. "A Simple way of putting it but it most definitely does work. We all have souls, So it isn't a soul that makes someone unique or special.. It is what that soul is capable of doing.. of becoming." He nods to her a moment more before nodding to her Explanation about Shinig... Gummies? Ahh well it would have to do.

"Very much like a Castle. Though there is more to the Seireitei than that.. Soul society to make it easier to say. there is a large central compound where the Reapers Live and train, and then outside of that you have the Rukongai, or the Rukon district Where the souls live. It's a very big place" He Smiles down to her and reaches to poke gently at one of her little doll like paws with a chuckle "I am growing Fond of you as well Gracie."

He Looks down at her a moment when she says that she can't be strong because she is just a kitty with a sad look and a sorry smile, He smiles a lot with Gracie around, its adorable. "Strength isn't all about who can hit who the hardest.. Sometimes its about Energy. And You have a lot of energy, So much in-fact that I can safely put money on the chance that if a Hollow were to try and eat your soul they would probably explode." He nods with a matter of fact motion before looking out towards the rain a moment.

He looked over at her and was still wary of touching her with too much force put behind it, just incase. His mind was still hopeful that it was indeed just Gracie that was there and there wasn't some sort of Hollow lurking about, if there was he would likely Have to rely on Seki and Byakurai.. if there was a Spiritual reading that was registering high enough to send out a scout for it was likely going to be spiritually strong enough that if his blade hit the creature it wouldn't be pretty for him.

He looks down at Gracie when she asks him to teach her how to protect and he smiles warmly, seeing that same desire he has reflected in this little kitty before himself. He had to think, As mod Souls all have differing abilities.. He was also very very bad at sensing things spiritually. He looked out into the rain a moment before smiling and nodding "I am not the best teacher in the world. but I will do my best hmm?" He Moves out back in to the rain and stands, Holding his sword back handed so the blade runs back up along his arm as he lets his arm rest down at his side.

"The First.. And Easiest thing That I think you might already understand is conviction, the Strong and unmovable desire to help those that need it no matter what that means. The desire to help protect the innocent even in exchange for your own health." He Says it flatly, almost sternly but not aggressively,just stating the point to her that protecting others can mean that you get hurt in stead of them. He Smiles down to her, Knowing that Gracie will probably be more than ok with this.

"Shinigami.. Soul reapers use these swords.." He Holds his zanpakuto out horizontally now in-front of himself "To Fight and protect souls.. But They use other means as well when the sword is not enough." He Drops his arm back into a resting position and brings his right hand up in single handed prayer fashion "The Spiritual strength of any soul can be put forward into an attack, but only those with truly tremendous souls can create an actual effect. Now watch."

He Closes his eyes and Softly begins to speak the incantation "Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini... Look upon yourself with horror and then SEIZE YOUR OWN THROAT! BAKUDO NUMBER 8! SEKI" He Starts very soft, Just a casual speaking voice before the words grow louder and louder, more agressive until he is shouting loud enough to shake the air around himself. When he is finishing the incantation he thrusts his left hand up in a defensive way like one would hold a shield before a Glowing Golden Round shield erupts from his wrist.

He Holds the shield up for a moment before he begins to speak from behind it "I Will not be able to teach you how to Cast this kido, But Hopefully I can teach you how to take your own Spirit and use it in a way you are comfortable with." He Drops his arm back down, And While it does take a good twenty seconds for it to fade the shield does disperse in a shower of Golden Lightning sparks that fall uselessly down to the ground and dance for a moment before sparking out.

[Gracie]

'Put money on the chance?' The heck did that mean? Gracie's ears flicked curiously, listening to the shinigami explain the strength of the spirit beyond physical prowess when that little phrase popped up. Her head tilted slightly to the side and she put listening on slight pause to try and figure it out. With her childlike mentality, Money wasn't a concept Gracie was very interested in or familiar with, and gambling even less so. Judging by the way Arantima used it in the sentence, however, it seemed to mean the same thing as 'I'm pretty sure.'

Gracie gave a quick nod of her head. Okay! So he was pretty sure that if a hollow tried to eat her-- wait, did he just say 'explode'? What!? "WHAAAAA!?", Gracie was blown away by that information, quite literally, as she seemed to forget how to even stand properly for a split second and fell flat on her face. She could hardly wrap her head around the idea that she make things blow up, especially if they were supposed to be large terrifying monsters that tried to eat people, er, souls. "No way! I blow them up!? Like a 'Poof!' smoke cloud and they're just gone!? I don't know how to do that!"

It took the little cat a minute or two to finally calm down from that seemingly impossible revelation before she finally picked her jaw off the floor, and Arantima agreed to help teach her how to tap into her soul's strength so she could learn how to protect the people she cared for. Then she could be Wynne's personal superhero! The idea both entertained and motivated Gracie greatly, as she was practically bouncing with anticipation as she waited for Timmy to get up and teach her something. "Me too! I'll try hard!", she clapped her paws happily as she stated her reply to the shinigami saying he would do his best.

As Gracie moved to follow after Tima, she hesitated when he stepped out into the rain, peeking up at the gray sky as it continued to pelt the earth with water. She had gotten so worked up, she nearly forgotten about the less-than-cat-friendly weather. A tiny pout formed on Gracie's plush features; she had just finished dripping off from getting stuck in the rain in the first place, did they have to go back out into it to learn? It seemed it couldn't be helped. Taking a deep breath and holding it, you'd think Gracie was getting ready to jump into the ocean instead of stepping out into the rain. It was taking a lot of willpower on her part to do this, though. She HATED being wet.

Putting on a brave face, her cheeks puffed and ears and tail stiff as she held her arms out with determination, Gracie took that first step out into the rain, and immediately deflated. As the water pelted her coat and seeped into her fabric flesh, she stuck it out and refused to crawl back under the table, but it was obvious she was miserable. The breath she had been holding came out as a high-pitched whine as her ears and tail became immediately so bogged down that she couldn't pick them up anymore. "OKAY, I'M READY TO LEARN NOW", despite being able to hear Arantima quite clearly, she felt compelled to shout in the rain as if it were the loudest thing in the world.

Her legs started trembling as she felt the water building up in them, and holding her arms up like she had been was becoming increasingly difficult, but Gracie didn't give up. She just found out she could poof hollows away with kitty super powers, and she wanted to learn how to use them! No rain was going to stop her! Arantima opened up the lesson by first explaining the necessity of conviction. Given how she was forcing herself to stand in the rain and trying to be as happy about it as was possible for a cat, all so she could learn to protect Wynne, Gracie was pretty convinced she had that. So Conviction, Check. What was next?

Gracie watched on in both confusion and awe as Arantima began to chant some sort of magical spell, growing louder and louder until his voice boomed over the rain itself. What the heck was he saying? Gracie had no idea. There were way too many big words, something about doggies? It didn't much matter what was being said though when a giant glowy shield made of magic and lightning erupts into existence in front of him! "WHOA!! COOOOOOL!!!", the mod soul had no idea what she was expecting to happen, but that was better than whatever she thought.

She was so caught off guard that she even tumbled back and landed smack dab in a puddle, though Gracie was too awestruck, and already soaked, to really notice or care. As Timmy turns to speak towards her again, the golden shield dissolves away into sparks of twinkling light, and Gracie can't help herself from the display of very cat like behavior as she jumps to smack and try to grab at them. Arantima told her that he wouldn't be able to teach her how to make the glowy shield, but Gracie didn't much seem to be bothered. He knew magic for crying outloud! So what if she couldn't make a shield, he could probably show her how to make something else. "Can I learn magic!? I wanna do some magic! Please, Please, Please!"

[Arantima Kawada]

Arantima Smiled at Gracie warmly as she bravely walked out into the rain with him and watched him perform his kido. He marveled at her amazement and found it to be one of the best things he had experienced in several hundred long years. He Wasn't sure just how strong she was but he would show her what he could even if he had to struggle to keep up with her as he did so. He thought about how he would explain all of these things to her, what he would start with and then he recalled the first Spiritual Technique that they attempt to teach you at the Academy, the orb.

He looked down at Gracie as she was getting wetter and wetter before smirking and kneeling down "The First thing to know about training is that is it the path to helping others. and That is always the path that makes us question ourselves. Getting wet, getting dirty and sometimes even getting hurt and beat up. We have to be ready to take these things so that our friends can be Dry, Clean and have no more bruises or scrapes." He Taps Gracie on the shoulder just a bit too hard and his hand bounces off of Gracies body with a loud cracking sound.

He Shakes his hand out gingerly before rubbing his palm with a soft chuckle "That was a Slight Demonstration of what I mean by make the hollows explode. If they try to scratch you, your soul will get angry and instead of you getting scratched they will get scratched hard. If they try to eat you? Well, I imagine their Tummy's would get more than upset and they would have to spit you back out." He smiles and nods to her, settling down into his kneeling position a bit more and concentrating a moment, bringing his hand up level with Gracies face, Holding a Small apple sized orb of light, it isn't that bright at all but it is still shiny.

He Smiles to her and it winks back out after he lets her inspect it for a short while if she wishes to. "Anyone Can Do this with even the smallest amount of spiritual power." He Nods to her a moment and taps his lap "Sit here, and just breathe. Let your Mind wander for a moment until you find a Strong and confident thought, something that you will never let yourself get distracted from." He Figures that this should be easy, the way she spoke about her Friend Wynne was with a strength and conviction he hadn't seen in awhile. He smiles to her and waits for her to Either come to his lap or take a seat elsewhere if she decides to.

[Gracie]

Gracie's head whipped around in every direction when Arantima's hand bounced off her body with a jolt, a sound like a firecracker going off beside her head sending the kitten into a tizzy. "Ahhhhhh! What was that!?", she cried, rushing to Tima's leg with tiny steps, legs heavy and sloshing with water, as she hid behind it like a tiny child. She almost couldn't believe the man when he explained what happened, that she was the cause. Almost. Because it had happened and now the shinigummy was rubbing his hand in pain.

A pang of sadness hit Gracie as she stared up at Arantima with a pout. She didn't mean to hurt him. She didn't want to hurt her friends, but Timmy had said her soul got mad and hit him, but she didn't think he did anything that should have made her angry. It felt as if Tima had barely touched her at all; Wynne played with Gracie rougher than that most days and it had never happened before. Thank goodness, too, because Gracie didn't even want to think about Wynne being hurt at all, let alone being the thing making her hurt. Maybe it was because of the rain making her feel sad and yucky?

It was the only reason Gracie could think of. Normally, she was completely care-free, trusting and at ease, but being soaked by the rain made her tense and uncomfortable. Like she wanted to run away from it, but hadn't because Timmy said she had to be brave and face the things she didn't like to protect people. Maybe it was that yucky, tense feeling that made her hurt her new pal Timmy? Well, in that case, she was just gonna have to be extra happy around the things she didn't like so she didn't hurt people like Arantima, or especially Wynne. If they were mean hollows or bullies, then it was okay.

A ferocious(ly adorable) look crossed the features of Gracie's plush face as she made that commitment, puffing her body up with determination as she stared up at Tima who was preparing to show her a magic trick that she could try. Though with the rain constantly pelting down, it was hard for her to feel full of anything but water since she absorbed it like a sponge. Gracie flopped her paws over onto Timmy's knee as she stared intently at his hand as he held it at her level so she could see. She let loose an astonished gasp as suddenly a shiny, sparkly orb of light hovered over his palm, glittering softly in its faintly radiant beauty.

"Pretty!~", was the only word that managed to escape her mouth as her smile only widened even further and she immediately made attempts to try and grab to the light for herself. Sure, it wasn't as impressive or imposing as a shield of lightning, but this simple orb actually seemed to only enrapture Gracie with her little girl spirit even more so than the kido had with its simplicity and beauty. "I wanna try! I wanna try!" Gracie attempted to hoist herself up onto Tima's lap, but at this point, her body had retained so much rain water she could hardly keep her stuffed head from lolling to the side, let alone lift herself up to sit on the Shinigami's knee.

With a little nudge, however, she made it up just fine and sat down with a wet flop, her drenched body seeping water pretty much everywhere as she kicked her legs like a giddy child and smiled up at her friend as he explained what to do. He wasn't even three words away from finishing speaking when Gracie's body stilled, already latched onto that one singular thought that drove her entire existence. Her motivation for leaving home, for learning to talk, for learning to walk and even move, her reason for even being: it was all Wynne. And Gracie thought of her constantly, searched for her constantly. As Gracie sat there, thinking, focusing on drawing out the power of her soul, the faint echoing of a long forgotten voice echoed in her mind: "She is your reason for living...."

Gracie concentrated. She concentrated hard. She concentrated so hard, that her cheeks puffed up and it looked like the stitching on her head could pop open at any moment. She held her tiny paws together and tried to visualize a shiny ball of light just like Tima did. First, there was only a single flicker of light, followed by a few weak sparks. The cat was really focusing now, straining hard enough that her soaked ears yet again perked despite the weight of the water holding them down. And then it happened. The light flickered for a moment when it first formed as Gracie's concentration broke at the revelation that she just did magic, but the bright light shining from her paw did not fade as she hopped up and began frantically shaking her arm around. "I did it! I did it! Look Timmy, I made a shiny thing!", Gracie laughed and cheered as she danced in place on the shinigami's leg, shaking her orb frantically as if it were a sparkler

[Arantima Kawada]

He Smiles and watches the little.. Cat.. Thing. He looks at the creature more closely, his vision still not capable of determining if she is a real cat or if she is a plush doll. He Just smiles and tries to shield her from the Rain and looks down to her as she tries to summon a Spiritual orb. He Shields her a bit from the rain and looks around. His gaze trying to find a Reason for the disturbance being Reported to the Seireitei. His body is shuddering slightly from the temperature Dropping and the cold rain falling around them. And then he Feels it, a soft light emanating from the little Cat's claws.

His elation is unmatched and his excitement is building. He Claps Softly for the Little talking cat who Can create a Spiritual orb. He Looks at it good and hard, seeing that it outsizes his own and nodding slightly. He is extremely proud of this little friend he has made. He picks her up after letting her dance on his lap a bit, she is so wet, surprisingly so but he still holds her up and spins about slowly. He looks to her and gives her a gentle Hug, Squeezing some of the water out of her.

"That is perfect! That is exactly how you do it. And now that you can do that, You can Work with it.. Focus it into different things.  one of the kidou that we learn starts based on that orb but turns it red and fires it off like a bullet. " He puts her down back under the table so she is safe from the rain before sitting down next to her. "I think, you were the little disturbance My friends were talking about. But i don't think im going to report you. They might try and find you without me. So, You and me are going to be a little secret ok?"

He Chuckles and Gives her a Soft little rub and pat on her fluffy yet slightly squishy head. His smile is bright and caring and his eyes are smiling alongside his face. He is the Epitome of pride right now, Mirroring Gracie's excitement over learning Magic. His gaze kees tracking off to the side and back like he is looking for something and then he sees the Butterfly. A little black butterfly flits through the rain, coming closer and closer before landing on Arantima's shoulder. He looks at the Butterfly and nods after a few moments.

Aranitma looks down to gracie and reaches out to give her a scratch behind her ears "i Have to Head back to the soul society. But i will come back and see you some time soon.. Ok Gracie? until then i want you to keep training, And if you find Wynne Tell her that Arantima Says she is a very lucky little girl." He Smiles genuinely before drawing his sword and sinking it into the air to his left, Turning it and opening the Senkaimon gate.  He Steps inside the Gate, Waving to gracie just as the Rain stops his hand dissapears into the gate.

[Kyomei Kuchiki]

72 paragraphs
360 CTP to Arantima
15 TTP and 345 CTP to Gracie