Fresh Faces

[Scarlet]

Today was the first day back to work. The realization when she’d woken up was enough that Hikari had no choice but to sigh. She’d been out of work for just about three weeks now due to the injury that she’d sustained while facing off against the Hollow that was infesting the temple in Kyoto. The injuries that she suffered at the hands of that Hollow had taken a while to heal completely. So long in fact that Hikari had started to believe that perhaps there was something specific she would have to do in order to close the wounds.

Thankfully it seemed that the five holes in her shoulder had just taken a longer amount of time than normal. It was something good to know going forward, any potential wound that she was going to suffer from a Hollow may take much longer to heal than something natural. Although she wasn’t really sure why or how the fact she knew now was enough for her. Getting the full range of motion back with her right arm felt incredible as well. It made cutting wood after waking up much easier even if her left had gotten stronger recently.

Either way though she was in a good mood despite returning to work. She wasn’t sure how her manager was going to take her returning after such a long leave, not the other girls, but getting some money would be nice. She hadn’t gone through all her savings, but enough of it that she had started to dread all her choices. That in and of itself made getting into the maid unfurling so much easier now. Getting onto the floor and beginning to walk around was easy although finding a custom in her zone right away was a surprise especially given they were female.

“Welcome to the cafe. Do you need a moment or are you ready to order?”

[Blair Aldaine ❅]

A yawn escaped poor Blair's lips as she came to realize it was a freaking Wednesday. She had so been looking forward to the Friday she thought it was and desperately clung to that momentary belief that she was going to be off for two days. Unfortunately, this realization of hers destroyed any hope she had for relaxing for the rest of the day as she came to understand her circumstance. She was stuck. It was lunch time. She was tired, bored, and seriously wanted to go home. Despite stepping away from daily duties for a little while, she found herself unable to wake up any appropriate amount and slapped her cheeks a couple of times in an attempt to be more alert.

Wandering down the streets, the young blonde wondered what she could possibly have for food. She looked around, groaning and tapping her cheek with her index finger before becoming too frustrated to keep up with making a decision for herself. She wished so badly that someone could just tell her what to do all the time, knowing that this was unreasonable, but wanting for it to be the case anyway. She missed the freedom she had when she was a child and all of the responsibilities she got to ignore since her parents handled most things. Well, that, and the time she spent with her sister. Remina was probably long gone by now.

The search for her older sister had been called off years ago after it was revealed that she wasn't even missing. Their parents, ever-disappointed in the actions their eldest took, ultimately found that it was best to simply let things go. Blair could never understand how parents could possibly be so dismissive, but when she thought back on how they were as adults, she realized quickly that they were both significantly stronger than she was. Maybe it was easy for them to look at things logically, realize their daughter was a villain, and come to the conclusion that severing the relationship was the only choice they had.

But not for Blair.

To this day, she searched. She had this crazy idea that Remina was out there being brain-washed into becoming this evil demon of a Fullbringer, only to come to see how her own little sister had developed the same way. The girl had practiced a bit over the years since the first time her powers were unleashed, only to be sealed forever until they were properly trained out of her once again. Now, she could manipulate the souls of things in ways she never noticed anyone could before. Though it wasn't too shocking, Blair actually had very little experience with other Fullbringers. So the fact that she could do little tricks and use what seemed like mild amount of telekinesis was fascinating.

At this point, as well, she was able to transform the bracelet she wore on her wrist every single day. A quick glance down at it reminded her of when she was younger. It was a gift all those years ago. But the strange belt that wrapped around her hand made her question exactly what she was capable of when she did transform the bracelet, and she simply didn't know what to do with it. After a quick sigh, she looked up, silencing her inner thoughts and finding herself upon the front door of a café. Slowly, she entered and sat down. She'd rather not disturb anyone who was there, but she did definitely want a drink and a small snack.

“Welcome to the cafe. Do you need a moment or are you ready to order?”

Blair tilted her head after taking a look at the menu. She crossed her legs, noticing how the fabric of her black leggings moved beneath her denim shorts. The hoodie she wore was a light pink color with a cartoonish picture of an adorable cream Pomeranian on the front above the kangaroo pouch. She sported some white Converse sneakers that had grown dirty over time. It was a little warm out for the hoodie, but it had been cool that morning. Blair didn't feel the need to change out of it just yet.

"I think I'm ready. I wanted a large iced chai to start, and do you have those cute little chocolate croissant pastries?"

She formed her index fingers and thumbs into a semi-rectangular shape to be somewhat similar to how the croissants were made. She was tired but pretty hungry by this point, so she hoped she'd be able to eat in silence. She was normally fairly bubbly and friendly, she thought, but not today. Not when it wasn't even a Friday like she had wished all morning. Plus, she didn't even have any company! That sucked! She looked around the café for a moment, noticing how it seemed like every girl was either in a group or with some dude. What the heck! Where were her friends??? Oh, right. She mentally sighed at the reminder she told herself about not having friends. She hated feeling so off.

[Scarlet]

Hikari wasn’t really sure why, but the female customer sitting by herself, the only customer alone in the shop, gave her a feeling. The sort of feeling that Hikari learned pretty early on meant she likely wouldn’t get along with her. Hikari couldn’t figure out why she was getting that feeling though, the outfit she was wearing didn’t have anything wrong with it. In fact her own maid uniform was more of a problem yet she knew there was no way around wearing it. So why did she like this one right away?

Hikari was ready to write down the order having a small white note pad in her hands, she didn’t need to write anything down though as the order was very simple and easy to remember. At the moment the shop wasn’t packed and Hikari only had one other table in her section with customers. She knew though that table would be leaving soon as they’d already finished everything they’d ordered and now we’re just talking to one another. Either way getting the order to the back would only take a couple seconds.

“Yes, we carry them, how many would you like?”

Once she got her answer Hikari wouldn’t waste any time turning so she could get to work. Still though for some reason something felt off that she couldn’t explain. The girl seemed human, everyone in the shop had looked at her even briefly so she wasn’t a spirit. She didn’t have a sword nor a black uniform so she wasn’t a Shinigami. Hikari continued to ponder although it was more like stress about the situation. It’d only take about two minutes to get back to the table. Placing the cup on a small tray in front of the customer followed by the croissant.

“Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like miss.”

[Blair Aldaine ❅]

Thankfully they carried one of her favorite treats. She felt somewhat guilty eating them since she hadn't worked out all day, and getting into fitness again recently because of her newly-found powers made her question her eating habits. Still, she was young. She could afford to snack all day. It wasn't like she was slowly approaching thirty, waiting until the day she was no longer considered a kid. Yet. That thought on its own was horrible enough! She didn't like remembering the whole aging process. She'd heard rumors here and there throughout the most recent months that people like her could age slower. Was that really possible?

"How many? Oh, lord. Ummm... like, two? Is that okay?"

No response was necessary as the waitress finalized Blair's order and went off to prepare it. The lack of communication was a massive red flag for the young girl. She pouted a bit, wondering if it was something she said or if this was simply how people were now. It wasn't as if the waitress was being rude or anything, but she certainly didn't exactly push for any effort in conversation. Before she turned away to get the food ready, her name tag clearly showed that her name was Hikari. At least Blair could be a little bit more friendly, or at least try to be, while she was here. It wasn't every day that she tried to strike up a conversation with a cafe employee, but today could be the first.

Once Hikari returned, Blair tried to reach outside of her shell and say a few words, hoping they might be well-received. As she lifted her cup, noting at how the sides of it cooled her hands thanks to the chilled liquid inside, she considered her words. "Uh, are you super busy right now?"

Right, because that totally wasn't awkward enough. Blair panicked. Was she busy?! Of course she was busy! She was working! What an idiot. That was the dumbest question she could have possibly asked. With a wide-eyed stare and an uncomfortable smile, the blonde waved herself off and asked the waitress to just ignore her. It's like she had absolutely zero social skills. Where the heck did she ever learn how to make friends? Oh, right. She didn't have any. This was twice now that she had to be blasted with the harsh realization of how lonely she was at times. Even high school didn't make it easier on her.

[Scarlet]

Although the order wasn’t really for all that Hikari understood, the girl in front of her was on the tiny side so it didn’t make much sense for her to order a full course especially of sweats. It didn’t take more than a minute for Hikari to move over to the back area giving out the order for the table. All of the other tables in her section were empty now and when she turned around once more she could see that most of them in the shop were the same. It was at the end of the rush which meant for the next hour of two there wouldn’t be much traffic. Normally this meant that everyone would get to cleaning or could take a small unofficial break.

Since she had this girl in her section though that meant she couldn’t relax even for the moment she had to keep up the professional appeal of a shop that many would find tasteless, stupid. Either way it wouldn’t take more than another minute or so for the drink to be placed up on the counter. Bringing it over in her left hand while her right held onto the she of the white plate with the croissant on it. Hikari didn’t think anything about the situation other than it was the norm as she placed down the girls order. So it came as quite a surprise when she asked her something further.

“No, at the moment I’m free, why is there something I can help you with?”

Hikari falling both into the category of a nice person and someone white aggressive felt quite irritated that she’d even ask if she were busy. Of course she wasn’t, couldn’t she see the entire place was empty now besides her. Beyond cleaning there really wasn’t anything else for her to do now. Dealing with the other maids in the cafe was already more of a hassle than she wanted so just getting through her shift was now her goal. What this girl wanted though she couldn’t tell.

[Blair Aldaine ❅]

Help? Did she really need help? Not exactly, but she also wasn't sure why she was trying to talk to this girl in the first place. She just had a weird feeling like she needed to. Blair's cheeks burned with embarrassment, unsure of how to answer properly without looking like an idiot. She took a deep breath, let it out slowly, clenched her fists a bit under the table, and attempted to play nice. After all, she was doing her best to break some of the nervousness she felt around strangers. This girl was certainly intimidating in her own way, so this would be an excellent way to practice.

"Well, do you want a seat?"

The likelihood of her agreeing was small. Blair knew this. But with borderline no one else around, she hoped maybe she could convince this girl to give her a chance. She didn't know what all went in to working at a place like this, so she had no way of knowing what kind of free time existed, but it was worth a shot. If not Hikari, maybe someone else wouldn't mind striking up a conversation. Blair had just grown tired of being alone all the time, and she figured it was a good move on her part to speak up every now and then. Just not knowing how her question would be received was enough to make her sick to her stomach with nerves, though.

[Scarlet]

This was certainly strange, why was this customer asking her to have a seat? Hikari hadn’t really worked in the cafe for all that long, especially since she had only just started back up after her injury had finally healed. That damned Hollow had managed to claw up her right shoulder enough that her arm had been limited for more than two months. Hikari had allowed that injury to fester, not physically like one would expect, no it built up her anger towards Hollows with that one specifically. She knew if she got the chance she’d cut that one to pieces without hesitation.

She stopped and thought about whether sitting down with this girl would look good after being gone for so long. It was puzzling though, if anything she’d expect a guy to ask her this with some cheesy pick up line or something. She wasn’t really all that sure why, but either way there wasn’t anyone else in the section and the customer was making a request. So Hikari sat down across from her customer. She’d make a point to listen for the food, but beyond that she wasn’t sure what to discuss.

“Is something wrong? You look worried.”

[Blair Aldaine ❅]

"Worried? No, not worried. Maybe just nervous."

Nervous was a better word anyway. She'd been feeling nervous this entire time. She knew she was stupid for even asking Hikari to sit down but the fact that she did made Blair feel even more nervous than before. All she wanted was to try to work up the courage to actually talk to someone for once. Breaking out of this insane shell felt impossible, and now even more so because she was out in public and very unsure of how people felt about that. Was anyone actually paying attention? No, probably not, but she felt like they were. She was growing more stressed and knew Hikari would most likely be thinking that Blair was just some awkward person. Well, she was. But not the way Hikari may think.

"I guess I can just come out and say it. I'm not used to coming to places by myself and it's just this one uncomfortable thing I have to do every day to try to get myself to snap out of it. So I started feeling self-conscious, asked you to sit down, and now I feel even more self-conscious. If you have better things to do then I totally get it. Y'know, like your job. But, I mean, if you have the time, then maybe just tell your boss I asked you for a favor?"

And maybe that would be enough of an excuse to keep this poor girl out of trouble. She was nice enough to listen to what Blair wanted but who knew how long that would last since she still had to actually work. Blair was just a customer. She could have chosen literally anyone but figured Hikari would be the easiest person to ask. When that ended up still making her embarrassed, she started grasping at straws. She didn't even know if she was making sense anymore but she felt that explaining herself was the best way to go. At least then Hikari would have some amount of understanding for what was going on and might figure out that this girl was just incredibly shy.

"Not in a weird way, obviously! Just say I'm having a bad day or something. I wouldn't say it's been great anyway. I mean, it hasn't been bad, but I just... feel like I'm being watched all the time. And I always think that I can overcome that fear if I do other scary things."

Being watched was likely not totally wrong. Hollows were everywhere and normal people couldn't see them. Other spiritual beings, some invisible to normal people still, were also lurking around and there was no way she was the only person who knew about it. Bringing it up would be really hard, so that wasn't an option. But maybe she could kind of say the right thing here and there to make Hikari figure it out on her own? It was at least a method of trying to see if someone was like her or not. Who knew? Maybe she really was the only one.

[Scarlet]

Hikari knew there were quite a few people that had problems when it came to speaking in public, but to be on the level that she was starting to assume this girl was on, it made her question why or how she’d gotten this bad. What had she been through that made her this nervous just to talk to someone new? It didn’t make any sense to Hikari, but she wasn’t going to stoop so low as to become a bully. That’s when Hikari got the explanation and just couldn’t even imagine having to go through her daily life that stressed about something so simple.

“You really need to take a breath. Let everything just wash off you. It’s not healthy to be so stressed. If you want someone to talk with I’m fine for a few minutes. I’m curious though, what do you think is watching you all the time?”

Hikari knew that something like that was actually possible, she could be feeling the gaze of a Hollow, but that didn’t make sense either. Why would a Hollow constantly have her in view yet never make the attack on her? That wasn’t something she’d heard a Hollow do, not anything she’d seen from one. They always were more savage and just attacked anything that moved in the hopes of swallowing it right away. She'd come across more than a dozen already and the majority of them were so hungry they couldn't even think properly anymore so how could one be stalking her?

[Blair Aldaine ❅]

"I couldn't tell you even if I tried. You might not believe me anyway."

Truthfully, part of what drew Blair to this place may have been some familiar feeling radiating out of Hikari the same way it did for herself. She didn't realize it at first, being so out of practice, but the longer she stayed around this waitress the more she realized it was a fact. This was a startling thing for her to come to terms with because it meant Hikari might know something about this strange world that Blair recently became a part of. So if all else failed, maybe coming clean would actually work rather than trying to hide who or what she was. She may not have a lot of exposure to this hidden world around her, but she knew she had to start somewhere.

"Actually," she said, beginning with a sigh. "That's not entirely true. You might believe me. I've always been a bit better than normal people at things like sports and stuff, and lately I've found that I can sense things that other regular humans can't. On top of that, I have this... ability. And I think you might know exactly what I mean."

She was grasping at straws to some extent because it was possible that Hikari didn't know this about herself, but there was always the option that she actually did. Blair could luck out in that case, no longer looking like a total weirdo and instead like a Fullbringer who was trying to find others of her own kind. She'd only met one, and that person taught her a few things about what she could do, so as soon as she realized there were others like her, she chose to go and find some. Perhaps it would give her an opportunity to form relationships with them in such a way that it helped her feel a bit less alone.

"Not that I'm trying to pry, but it's just that I can feel something about you, too. You're also different."

[Scarlet]

This girl really was isolated in herself even now making it known plainly that she was willing to talk with her, she couldn’t bring herself to leave the shell she was trapped in. It was quite infuriating to Hikari knowing that the only way to make things like this better was to make that first big jump out of the comfort zone. She was about to say as much although in as nice a way as she could when Blair started to speak once again and then unleashed what she had been keeping bottled up. Hikari hadn’t really been expecting it although she picked up on what Blair was saying right away. It was surprising to find another girl like her, around her age even, when she honestly had only come across Shinigami for the most part.

“Yes I know what you mean, although I don’t know how you can tell. So does it feel like a Hollow is after you?”

Hikari knew this likely wasn’t the case when Blair just revealed that she was also a Fullbringer or at least something like one. Hikari, like Blair, was quite new to the spiritual world and didn’t know how many different species of reality there happened to be. Either way though it meant that Blair would be able to see a Hollow if it was stalking her. So could it be something else or was there a Hollow in Karakura that couldn't just control its hunger, but also keep itself from being seen? Hikari wasn’t sure what to make of that thought when it went against her experiences.

Shimada-sama had made it a point to not trust the shinigami and when she’d met him she’d faced off against demons from Hell as well. They’d been worse than the typical Hollow by a large margin, but she couldn’t believe a demon would be a stalker either. Despite what Shimada had told her most of the shinigami she’d met had been decent, so would they keep tabs on Blair? It didn’t seem reasonable when this girl barely had the confidence to leave her home. “Damn I’m not meant for mystery, so much better at just hacking things apart.” Hikari kept these thoughts to herself though knowing that her own negative opinion on the situation would probably make things worse for Blair.

[Blair Aldaine ❅]

“Yes I know what you mean, although I don’t know how you can tell. So does it feel like a Hollow is after you?”

"Wow, so you do get it. Not that I doubted you much, but when you get specific like that, it makes me feel better about all of this craziness."

Truthfully, it wasn't just Hollows. It was everything. The heightened sense of awareness had Blair on edge, and she didn't know how to make heads or tails of it. She had always been a rather awkward kid, and she didn't exactly grow out of that as she aged. This exact conversation was pretty much proof of that. While she was able to make small attempts to push her insecurities away, something about Hikari made Blair feel a bit uncomfortable. It wasn't anything specific that the girl was doing, but that's just how things were. With a sigh, Blair continued on, trying to make sense of her feelings.

"It's like the ability to sense these things has gotten stronger all of a sudden. I've always been able to see things that others can't, like your guest over at that table in the corner. They're not a normal person." Blair made a motion with her hand and pointed in the direction of the Quincy. "It makes you have a whole new outlook on life."

If Hikari really was the same, especially given how she didn't seem to flinch at all when Blair spoke about the spiritual world around them, then this conversation just got significantly easier. It was never as difficult to talk to people about the impossible when they also experience the impossible. Hikari was no exception to this, it seemed. The only thing Blair had to admit was that the waitress seemed a bit too serious. The petite blonde played with the ends of her hair a bit as she thought about how to say what she was going to say next, then ultimately decided it was better to just come out with it.

"How do you deal with it all? Can't you tell when your patrons aren't totally human?"

A bold question, but a fair one. Blair noticed tons of people these days whose Reiatsu signatures were not identical to hers, and some who were almost exactly the same. It was weird. She wondered if anyone else ever had these existential crises or if she was the only one? From her past, she knew that spiritual beings existed, but she never knew the full extent. It made her curious and she started researching for herself, only to find limited information. Either way, at least she was able to tell when someone was like her or not. She just hoped Hikari wouldn't judge her too harshly.

[Scarlet]

“Yeah I understand someone should really start making a t-shirt or wrist band. Hey, was that a Hollow? Would make figuring this stuff out a lot less complicated.”

Hikari was following along with what Blair was saying as she went through basically everything the same way that was being said, up to the point where Blair pointed and declared that someone else in the business wasn’t a typical human, but instead spiritual like the both of them. That’s when Hikari actually had to turn her head and look over at the Quincy not realizing anything different. “Are you sure? How can you tell they’re spiritual?” Hikari knew that most couldn’t be seen like she could by normal humans, but that didn’t help when telling if others like herself were spiritual. Was she missing something that was right in front of her again?

“No, not really. I’ve got very little to know talent for sensing or picking up the energy of others. At least that’s what I’ve been told. Most of the people that I come across either are trying to stop a Hollow like I do, or it’s obvious since they’re shinigami. Sounds pretty bland and boring, but I guess I’m just better suited to being up close and personal with the bad things that want to hurt people.” Hikari was trying to figure out what had Blair so freaked out, but at the same time she could understand getting afraid when thrown into something like this yet Blair hadn’t been thrown in randomly she grew up seeing it all.

“Have you figured out your abilities or are you worried more about what others might be able to do?”

[Blair Aldaine ❅]

Blair thought for a second before answering Hikari's question. "How can I tell, huh? I don't know. They have a weird feeling to them compared to regular people. I thought everybody could do that so it's interesting that my original thought was very wrong."

So not everybody was like her, at least in this way. Good to know. She looked down at her hands for a second as she thought back on what it was like growing up, having a Shinigami as a friend before she'd left as Blair grew older. She didn't realize at the time what Mitsuru was, but she was old enough now to understand. And as she began to discover that there was more to the world than just this surface, it became so much more fascinating, and so much more horrifying. Blair wasn't strong yet. At this point, she still hadn't developed her powers.

"Well, no. I haven't figured out how to use them properly. They came out a long, long time ago because of something I went through as a kid but I haven't had luck using them since. That's what originally made me suspicious about what I was. And... it wasn't exactly the best moment of my life. So right now, with the understanding that I'm very weak compared to a ton of people who exist in our world and beyond that, I've gotten paranoid about everything. I've heard rumors that there are those out there who wish to kill people like us solely based on what we are, and some who wish to kill for the sake of killing. How is that fair?"

Blair played with her side ponytail as she grew to be lost in thought. Her focus went away from Hikari and instead found its way back to the Quincy who was enjoying herself with her friends. Did they know? They were all normal people. Was it possible they understood what was going on? Had she ever told them? Did it matter? With a sigh, she turned her face to Hikari and gave her a small smile. Maybe she was wrong about this girl and she was actually a little friendlier than she let on. It's possible that Blair was still wrong in this thought, but at least she was civil at the surface.

"Well, I appreciate you listening to me about this stuff. Maybe I just needed someone to talk to about it all. It's not easy when you think you're the only one, learn you're actually not, and still don't really know how to move forward from here. Like, having these abilities is so liberating but what the heck am I supposed to do with them, right? I know I'm different. But it's like it doesn't feel as if it's enough. So I guess I'm a little bit less alone now."

[Scarlet]

“I’m not sure if it’s uncommon, but I can’t tell at all so look at the bright side, maybe you’ve got a special talent.”

Hikari listened to everything Blair had to say for the moment and while it was serious she couldn’t help the feeling that this was a good thing. The shy girl that struggled to speak at all wasn’t present right now. This was the longest that Hikari had heard her speak and it felt natural. “The world isn’t fair Blair. Well I guess none of them is better. I know it changes things, but knowing that you have power and others are going to come after you because of it. . well the way I see that is neutral I guess. I mean yeah dealing with hollows is scary at first but at least you have some sort of power to deal with them. You get to experience something that most people can only dream of, we’re basically superheroes.”

Hikari laughed a little bit after what she said knowing that it sounded quite silly. She really didn’t want Blair to dwell on the negative things which seemed to be something she did all the time. Although Hikari wasn’t the sort to always be bubbly and bright like a rainbow she wouldn’t let someone drown in sorrow either. “I’m not sure if you’ve tried but you can get stronger. I know I’m a lot stronger now than I was even just a few weeks ago. If you let your curiosity run wild I’m sure you’ll have nothing to stress about.”

“I understand what you mean. Although I’m not sure if it’s something you're interested in, if you want to try practicing these powers let me know. I’ve been practicing a lot lately and figured a few small things out. When it comes to using them though I guess I haven’t really thought about it. My father was a fireman and I wanted to be one as well. So I guess just instinctively I started to stop hollows from hurting others. I’m not saying you have to put yourself in danger though, but helping others in any way is always better than doing nothing. Even if they can be annoying and ungrateful.”

Hikari was glad that Blair had come in despite how strange and weird the interaction between them had started. She was certain now that Blair could be someone to call on in the future. Pulling out a small note pad of paper and a pen from the top edge of her uniform Hikari takes a moment to write down a short sequence of numbers. Placing it in front of Blair on the table. “Here, in case you ever feel you need to talk again or want to practice, hang out or are in trouble, give me a call.”