Cat-astrophe in Training [NDE, JT]

[Catty Noir ♦]

The sun was entirely too bright. Whoever allowed daytime to be so horrendously sunny was the worst person alive. There weren't enough clouds in the sky to cover up the excess light, and it didn't help that it was fairly late in the morning. In fact, it was almost afternoon. With a yawn, Catty shut off the melodic sound coming from her phone that acted as her alarm and rolled over, staring at the gun who had spent the night in her bedroom with her. After blinking a few times to try to force the sleepiness away, she found it simply wasn't going to work so easily and instead got herself up. Walking to the bathroom was enough of a challenge since it was cold, but she knew she was going to be busy today.

Colt had agreed to start training the Bount on a few things he knew about. One of those things was how to shoot a gun, which made sense seeing as he was one. As for everything else, she really had no idea. She was interested to see what he could possibly show her given the fact that he did not share the Bount blood. Twisting the knobs on both sides of the sink, Catty attempted to adjust the water temperature to be fairly warm so that she didn't torture herself with cold water and grabbed a washcloth. She had to wake up. She was so sluggish in the mornings and was still trying to get her act together after moving here from Paris.

"Is there anything you require in the mornings?"

Catty shouted in Colt's direction as she finished washing her face and brushing her teeth, careful not to even make an attempt to speak with the toothbrush in her mouth. This really was odd. She didn't even know how she got into such a situation but it happened so quickly, and then next thing she knew, Colt was in her pocket and she was bringing him home. She had to admit she felt a bit weird about it. Sure, he was a gun, but as far as she knew, he was also male. Did that mean she had a man in her apartment? For all intents and purposes, that really didn't matter in this scenario, but the thought crossed her mind anyway. He was a guy. In her apartment.

"There is a range not too far from here that the landlady told me about. Spiritual beings use it as practice grounds. I'm going to take you there, if that works with you?"

[Colt]

Colt let out a soft noise similar to a Yawn as Catty finally woke up. Truth be told, he DID rest sometimes. Not out of necessity but by choice. Having powered down more or less, retreating his awareness to just his pill and drifting off. When the sun had gone up, he'd been somewhat awake, but now with Catty there, he could refocus, taking a moment to take in the surroundings and get his mind back on track. She certainly seemed to be a morning person. rather than skulking around looking for coffee, she went right to cleaning herself up and brushing her teeth.

Heh. Perfect.

It was during this time that he got in a little practice of her own. Focusing as he worked his magic. Congealing thin strands of Reishi in from the air. And slowly spreading them out, reaching out and pulling himself off the nightstand like little rappel lines. Forming a steady plane of reishi beneath himself so he didn't just clatter to the floor between the nightstand and the bed. Until he was squarely in the bed itself, smack dab in the center and waiting for her when she finally emerged. A good demonstration, and a little something to get her brain working so early in the morning.

"Prime idea sweetcheeks. But I think we got a little introductory things to work on first. We're not just gonna jump straight to you trying to fire me. Some basics are in order. But we can get into that once you're all washed up." He called out to her as he began planning a little. Thinking as he considered the situation. Alright. Well, he was going to need to do a little groundwork first. Potentially a LOT of groundwork. But what was important was that they hit the key points. But more than that, he might have to put her in a little bit of danger.

As ready as she was after all, she WAS new to this whole thing. And for a moment, he paused. He wasn't the greatest at sensing spiritual energy. He could barely sense and see spirits. Which WOULD make this a little on the rough side. Hmmm. He might have to find himself something...temporary to slip into. A field trip perhaps? The range certainly wouldn't be sufficient. No, he needed to go somewhere more ....varied. He thought for a few moments, before his mind did snare on an idea. Wait a minute. He didn't need anything fancy. There were plenty of .... suitable-ish vessels around. ...He was getting a much better idea~

"Before we get into guns. Theres some other stuff we'll be going over first. We're gonna go... for a walk~"

[Catty Noir ♦]

Catty's ear twitched as she thought she heard something in her bedroom as she cleaned herself up for the morning, but ultimately ignored it at the moment. She had started washing her face, enjoying the feeling of warmth against her skin as the water washed away all of the impurities. She may not have liked mornings, but she did particularly enjoy grooming. At risk of making poor Colt wait a little too long for her, she took it upon herself to put on a bit of makeup. She did this most mornings, especially if she knew she was going to be spending some time out in public. She enjoyed looking nice.

As she was finishing up a few touches here and there, she overheard Colt's voice as he told her to essentially be patient. She rolled her eyes. Yes, being patient was probably for the best. She didn't know the first thing about guns or his kind of spiritual entity. She wanted to learn more about both things with the hopes of protecting herself in the future. She'd thought about this just shortly before, but she knew she didn't have much time with Colt in the long run. He wasn't going to want to stay with her, and he had no reason to do such a thing. So she figured she'd try to be friends with him as best as she could and then let him go.

"Well, if we cannot learn about that just yet, then what do you suggest-"

Catty paused as she glanced outside of the bathroom, staring at the bed that had Colt lying exactly where she had not left him. Her eyebrow raised as she looked at the side table where he had been, then at the bed, then back at the side table, with that motion repeating a few more times before she finally furrowed her brows together and squinted her eyes with suspicion. He wasn't there before. He didn't have legs. He clearly had no way of moving himself off the nightstand and yet he figured out a way to do that. With a hum, she went back to what she was doing and finished her lashes before twisting the top back on the small mascara bottle and putting it away.

"I'm going to ignore the ghost who moved you."

All done! Catty turned around, exited the bathroom once her clothes were changed, picked up Cold, and gently slid him into the kangaroo pouch of the black hoodie she decided to wear with some black leggings and white Converse sneakers. She knew he would sit a bit heavily inside, so she was going to have to hold him in her hand from time to time to alleviate the suspicion that she was carrying a gun. That way, no one would question her. Choosing to skip out on breakfast, Catty listened as Colt made the suggestion to go for a walk instead of doing anything else first and obliged. She would simply allow him to guide her wherever he was wanting to go.

"Oui, mon petit ami. Then lead the way."

[Colt]

Colt snorted softly as he watched Catty's little comical back and forth with where he'd been. "See? This is why you need my help. There's plenty of tricks you can manage as a spiritual person. As a matter of fact I'll be teaching you plenty of them. But first there's going to need to be a bit of push." He pointed out calmly. All of this while she ...ahem. changed. Which was a pretty good show, not gonna lie. And so he did pause a little as she swapped into her proper outfit. Not gonna bother her while she was changing.

And once she WAS all changed up, he cleared his throat. "Yeano. Don't ignore. ASK. The spiritual world is FULL of secrets. And guess what? Most spiritual beings? Don't know jack shit. Sure they have like, an idea. But you ask them about anything outside their area of specialization and theyre shit. You gotta think outside the box. Ask questions." He insisted, perking up a bit as he was picked up and slid into that pocket. Of course he fell quiet as they headed out.

The gentyle hand keeping him firmly in place was pretty rad. As she essentially was keeping him firmly pressed to her navel to keep him from bouncing around too much. Nice. Still, once they managed to make their way outside, he waited until they were a fair way from the apartment and a bit down one of the streets and away from others before he spoke up again."Alright mon Belle. Lesson one. You're above the rules. Not entirely, but they don't apply if you need to fight for your life."

The explanation came as they were coming across a ...VERY nice car. The outside of some big business building. There was a Nice little Murcielago parked outside. "Alright. I'm gonna ask you to follow my directions exactly. We don't wanna arouse suspicion. So walk up next to that car. Take me out of your pocket. Rest me against the handle of the car. Turn around, and then sit on the handle. We need you to keep me against the door handle without it looking like you're doing anything to it."

[Catty Noir ♦]

He had some points. Catty was entirely too distracted by the fact that he'd moved on his own to really consider what it would mean to ignore the spiritual world and not ask questions. He was right, too. She knew other beings existed, but as far as what they could do, that was beyond her. She had her little world of Bount things going on and that was pretty much it despite the fact that she was aware of the existence of people like Shinigami and Hollows. The intricacies, though, were what caught her. Very evidently so, actually. Colt seemed to have more knowledge about these things than she did, or that's what she chose to believe. She felt like he'd be a good resource for her.

As they made their way outside and Catty continued to follow her Mod Soul friend's direction, she looked around at the city before her and couldn't help but smile. It was so interesting how they had no idea what was going on behind the scenes. Even in Paris, where it was so crowded, no one really understood that there was more to this world than they could see. Paris had significantly fewer spiritual beings since, despite being a large city, it just simply wasn't a spiritual hub the way Japan was. It still had a good plenty of people like her, but not nearly the volume as here. She wondered if she'd be able to make other friends and learn about them, too.

"Alright mon Belle. Lesson one. You're above the rules. Not entirely, but they don't apply if you need to fight for your life."

"Interesting. If you are implying I could commit a crime and get away with it, then you have my attention."

She spoke in a hushed tone so Colt would be able to hear her but intentionally tried to keep her voice away from others, should anyone be close by. The two of them approached a sports car that Catty recognized to be a breed of Lamborghini, immediately catching her eyes and making her practically drool over its beauty. She was a coder by trade since that was what she went to school for and worked as, but she appreciated beauty no matter what form. Sometimes, true Italian engineering could whisk her away easier than any person could. But Colt continued talking, giving her very strict instructions on what to do, immediately yanking her mind back to when Kevin leaned against the door. So Colt had been the one who opened it back then.

"I cannot help but appreciate such a thing, mon cher. I do not mind the excitement."

She turned around and did her best to look tired. She was in workout clothes, so it wasn't as if anyone would think she was a thief. It was a bit chilly, so the hoodie made sense, and she was in leggings. Her hope was that people would assume she just got back from running and was taking a break. After sliding Colt gently outside of the kangaroo pouch as she turned, she held him behind her back with both hands, using her arms to create somewhat of a barrier so no one would be able to see easily behind her. Closing her eyes and humming to herself, she felt around with her fingers until Colt was right on top of the door handle. He was likely going to open it somehow if that time with Kevin meant anything. She'd just have to make sure they were both inconspicuous.

[Colt]

Colt couldn't help but smirk just a little. Pleased to see that she seemed to be taking his words to heart. Good. If she was going to be his sidekick, then she'd have to get used to this kinda stuff. "Humans without powers get away with crime all the time. I'm in a gun. How many dens of sin do you think I've been carried around? How many people do you think used me to shoot someone? How many of them do you think got caught? Humans perform all kinds of crimes without anyone knowing that it happened. For individuals such as us, who have abilities beyond what a normal human can do, our capacity for Crime is off the charts~" He snickered.

Truth be told, he'd have been impressed if Catty drew that particular line. Indeed, he had instructed Kevin to do something very similar. Or rather, they had done it so often, that Kevin knew to do it on instinct. But of course, the major difference was that Catty had an advantage. Kevin was a skinny kinda guy. He didn't really have the trunk to keep Colt in place without slipping. So he had to keep his hand behind his back. Which of course was suspicious. Catty however, had a means of getting around that.

Once she got him into position, all she had to do was remove her hands, cross them over her chest. And there wouldn't be a single thing that would give away what was happening. And Colt, briefly, was treated to an experience of security. BEing able to work WITHOUT the fear of being caught. Yes yes, he was ALSO being sat on by a beautiful woman. But he could reflect on that later. He was so used to having to work with idiots or those not suited for his purposes. Working under pressure was the worst. But with Catty's posterior being as big as it was and soft as it was, the 'Lock' that kept him in place conformed to his own shape. Thus there was no need for any hands to hold him there.

He could work in peace.

Focusing, he however did not perform the same function he had on the door. After all, he was here to teach her. He'd get into the technique he'd used before some other time. Perhaps he'd even help her develop something similar with her own powers. But for now? He was going to show her something new. He burrowed out of his frame. Sliding out of the section of the chamber that he was usually housed in. He very slowly spread his roots into the frame of the door. And once he had control of it. "Don't move. Don't turn around."

CLICK.

Before slowly withdrawing back into the gun. Once he was safely inside his old body, he sighed and cleared his throat. "You're going to turn around, and reach into your pocket. Pull out the keys to your apartment, and pretend to unlock the door. Don't make a show of it. Act casual. Same pace you would use to open your apartment door. You own this car. Act like it. Open the door. Get in. And then put me up against the ignition." He instructed her calmly. ONce again, as much as he might have enjoyed staying where he was, they had a job to do.

[Catty Noir ♦]

He was right. Even back in Paris, crimes were committed that no one could ever figure out. Catty hated them at the time, and still did hate them, because she felt like they were using their abilities for the wrong reasons. She couldn't ever admit that she genuinely wanted to be a criminal because that wasn't true. It was more that she wanted to test her limits, and the easiest way to do that would be to do a few things that might be considered a little bit illegal here and there. She was able to convince herself relatively quickly that as long as it didn't hurt anybody, she just couldn't find the energy to care. She was going to do something if it benefited her either way.

But, again, she followed his instructions and simply crossed her arms over her chest, leaning her head back and then side to side. She ran her fingers through her hair with her eyes closed, both pretending and very much not pretending to comb out her hair a little bit. She'd chosen to wear it down today which meant, especially with its length, it had a tendency of getting tangled near the ends. After brushing it over to one side and smoothing the ends out, she flipped it back behind her head where it landed a bit between her and the car. It was too long to completely slide behind her back since she was leaning and she couldn't adjust herself since Colt was being squished up between her body and the vehicle.

She didn't react to Colt's instructions to not move or turn around and instead yawned a bit, reaching into her pocket to grab her phone and use the camera as a mirror. Bright sapphire-blue eyes looked back at her as she studied the oddly slit pupils she inherited from her parents. She knew not if other Bount had eyes like hers and always assumed it was a standard for her kind, but she also had to admit she didn't think much on it aside from a passing thought here and there whenever she looked at herself. With a slight scowl, she noticed her bangs had gotten messed up from the wind and she combed them out with her fingers, as well, putting them back where they belonged right as she heard something click.

"You're going to turn around, and reach into your pocket. Pull out the keys to your apartment, and pretend to unlock the door. Don't make a show of it. Act casual. Same pace you would use to open your apartment door. You own this car. Act like it. Open the door. Get in. And then put me up against the ignition."

As he spoke, she pretended to see a notification on her phone that surprised her just before she smiled. While nothing was actually on the phone screen, anyone who was potentially watching wouldn't have known that. She put her phone back in her little bag that she brought with her that was sadly too small to carry Colt, prompting her to put him in her hoodie's kangaroo pouch earlier. Then she pulled out her set of keys despite none of them matching the car and clicked on the fob a couple of times, calmly facing the car before opening the door. Catty sat in the seat and did her best to not make a face at exactly how far down her butt went, failing to acknowledge the fact that this was a real car and not some random prop.

She had gently taken Colt back in her hand when she swapped her phone for her keys and slid him back into the hoodie's pouch, but took him back out after she sat. With the door now shut, she felt more comfortable speaking. "Though this is a bit outside of my comfort zone, I am going to trust you. Just do not get me arrested... My parents will never let me live it down." Catty sighed and rolled her eyes, picking Colt back up and pressing him against the ignition. It hadn't taken him long to unlock the car door, but she didn't ask exactly how he'd done it. She was busy watching him this time where she could keep an eye on him.

[Colt]

Heh, well what do you know? She followed directions pretty well. He was further pleased as the soft brace for his frame was promptly removed and he was briefly tucked into her hoodie. Ah, right, cold air again. Still, he relaxed as she slipped into the car. An impressive level of casualness in the way she was doing this. Still, with not much more complications, they were comfortably seated inside THEIR car, and soon he was pushed up into the ignition. A sly smile in his mind and his heart as she expressed her precaution about getting caught.

"Heh, just you sit back and relax." He assured her, as he promptly burrowed out of the colt and into the ignition. It didn't take long for him to bury himself into the central controls of the vehicle. Spreading his roots throughout the entirety of the vehicle and promptly taking a moment to slowly take it over. Rather than simply making an adjustment or two, he instead focused on something much better: Turning the Entire car into a suitable body. After a few tweaks here and there, she'd notice the car rev up, and the electrinics tinging on, before hie voicve promptly projected from the dashboard radio.

"ALWAYS trust Colt, mon Belle." And with that, he promptly peeled away from the curb, and then drove down the street. THANKFULLY, he'd been around enough cars, and seen enough humans drive to remain inconspicuous. Catty would find herself unable to actually manage the controls, as Colt was taking things over manually. Everything from the drive train, the engine, the dashboard. Even the seat that Catty was in, adjusted itself slightly as Colt adjusted to his new frame.

"First lesson. I am a mod soul. Technically speaking, I'm a pill that can possess any suitable body to get around. We have a nifty little trick where we can inhabit inanimate objects." CLU-CLUNK! The sound of the car shifting into second gear as the engine revved and the car started speeding up to get onto the highway. And a smiling >:3 showed up on the car dashboard clock. "We're gonna be going out on the open road. I've got a friend. USed me to rob a bank so he owes me. HE knows a thing or two about stolen cars. We can reset the on-board system, replace the plates, tires, and make a few more adjustments. Once he's done with it, there wont be anything to indicate that it's not ours~"

"You're a natural bye the way. In addition to teaching you some spiritual stuff, If you don't mind having a partner. We could also make some sweet cash snagging cars." He pointed out calmly. Casually of course, making sure not to implicate any sort of pressure. After all, she WAS just some gal off the street, and a well meaning one. And while he DID have a proclivity for organized crime, he also wasn't going to just shoehorn her into his ilicit activities. At least not without her permission.

[Catty Noir ♦]

Colt's movements made Catty unnaturally curious as she watched, seeing his pill leave the gun somehow and instead insert itself into the car. A small smile formed on her face as she leaned in closer to get a better look, wondering how he was able to do all of this by himself. Something about the gun felt limp, though she couldn't really explain why, but it did. Placing the gun into the glovebox, she decided to simply scoot the thought that she had essentially discarded his body out of her mind and continue to try to learn from him. What she didn't expect was for the car to start on its own, and that made her feel some butterflies of nervousness and excitement.

"ALWAYS trust Colt, mon Belle."

She blinked and fastened her seatbelt, giving it a firm tug to make sure she was secured properly. Before she knew it, Colt had expertly commanded the car to leave its spot against the curb and take off into the road. Catty noticed the wheel turn on its own and the peddles being pressed as if a ghost were in control, so she was tempted to try to touch something just to see if she could. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to but thought back to when Colt had emptied himself so that there was no risk of accidentally going off inside the apartment and found herself shocked. He really must be totally owning this car. He isn't just maneuvering with it. He became this thing.

"First lesson. I am a mod soul. Technically speaking, I'm a pill that can possess any suitable body to get around. We have a nifty little trick where we can inhabit inanimate objects."

"Ah, oui. So you truly did become the vehicle, as I was thinking. C'est très impressionnant!" She grinned back at the face she saw on the dashboard.

As Catty listened to her gun-turned-Lamborghini friend, she found herself a bit intrigued by his offer. A partner... but for theft? Is that something I wish to get involved in? She wasn't sure. She certainly hadn't been raised that way and knew that she would be breaking the law, but there was a part of her who saw a benefit in this, too. She could make money for herself and her family even if they didn't totally need it, but there would be extra cash flow. So long as she wasn't really hurting anyone, she found that she didn't really mind the thought of it. Besides, if someone was rich enough to buy something like this in the first place, they're rich enough to buy a replacement.

It didn't take very long to convince her, honestly. There had been rumors of some Bount syndicate that she was going to look into anyway since she felt that they'd be able to help train her and bring her more strength, so if this was something that could lead her to them, then she was all for it. The only other Bount that she knew of in this entire country was Luke, so the exposure would be welcome. She'd be able to see exactly what it was she'd have to work on to grow and develop herself further. Perhaps that would be of some use to Colt, too. She didn't want to agree to help him and then disappoint him, anyway.

"Alright, mon petit ami. If you can be patient with me, then I will learn from you. I think being partners may be good for both of us."

[Colt]

Colt felt... a RUSH. Chuckling a bit to himself as he sped up just a little. Staying in the speed limit, but definitely getting a feel for himself as he adjusted a few things here and there. The mirrors. The Windows. The seat beneath Catty. "Whew! Well I'm glad you're on board. And don't worry. We won't be doing anything murderous or shit. I've had enough of being used for that shit. But mnoney would be damn nice. And sadly I don't got the skills for a nine to five." HE hummed as they drove through the city and started to head out to the outskirts.

He paused to begin sensing the area around them. A bit of a hum escaping him as he considered, and sensed the tingle of hollows off in the distance. No, that was a bit too extreme. "One of the biggest factors in growing as a spiritual being is going to be about testing yourself. Pushing your limits." He pointed out, and slowly started to accellerate as they got on the open road. Not too fast, but definitely getting up there. A slow smile in his heart forming. "Once we get this car all fixed up. We probably don't wanna steal too many cars. We can see about maybe making some money off races."

He adjusted the mirror, so that Carry could find herself looking into her own eyes. A sortof means of telling her that this was something to focus on. "If you can trust me. I think we could do lots of stuff together. I like ya, Belle. And if I'm being honest. You're one of the first people who'se handled me so well. So uh..partners in crime aside. How do you feel about me putting in my application for best friend?" He ventured with a grin. The windshield wipers bobbing up a few times, as if to emulare him wiggling his eyebrows.

[Catty Noir ♦]

Was it weird to feel so relaxed in a car? Catty found herself looking out the window, taking in the sights as they exited the city and went off into the wild. She agreed with Colt's thought about money, though she'd recently earned quite a good bit of it by participating in some random bet that her landlady encouraged her to do. It certainly helped her feel less poor, that was for sure. She didn't have much money to start. It was basically all just a bit of funds that her parents had given her as a gift before she moved. She ended up betting the entirety of it and winning back a massive pot. That was what gave her a taste of this life.

A taste that she started to feel more and more comfortable with as time went on. Maybe it was a secret desire she felt that she wasn't aware of yet, maybe it was something more deep and meaningful than that. Even she didn't know, but she did trust Colt and she wanted to be able to work with him more even if it meant doing some questionable things. If no one found out and nobody got hurt, then it was fine, right? Besides, Catty heard Colt say something that she agreed with entirely. She had to start pushing her limits more. She'd be able to figure out how best to strengthen herself that way.

"If you are able to possess anything, then I have no doubt we can make a good living off of things like this. It will be just fine, mon ami."

Catty saw the rearview mirror move out the corner of her eye and looked up, noticing her bright blue eyes staring back, almost as if the eyes belonged to Colt instead even though she knew they were her own. Despite being in the form of a car, Colt still had such a human-like personality to him. He wasn't just a pill. He was a person. This made Catty smile, and that same smile grew exponentially when Colt continued his short speech. Blushing and watching the windshield wipers move after he asked to be her best friend, Catty glanced up to the left at nothing in particular and tried to avoid anything that would even remotely hint at matching her gaze with his, wherever it may be.

"I think that can be arranged. I do not have any friends here yet, and we do seem to get along quite well. I hope you will be patient with me for now."

A best friend, huh? It had been so long since she had one of those. She had very close friends who she loved to pieces, but no one who she could really name specifically as a 'best friend.' In fact, it had been since college, if she remembered correctly. Commiserating over their degrees had a tendency to bring people together and she absolutely was very exhausted because of it. Constant studying, zero social time, fear of failing - everything that could possibly make life hard and then also bond people together. After graduation, it all vanished so quickly. They may keep in touch, but it wasn't the same.

If he was really willing to be her companion, then Catty wasn't going to complain. Colt was an interesting person even if he was an inanimate object most of the time. Well, 'inanimate,' but still animated. Like a zombie. This was going to take some getting used to. He did say he could borrow bodies or burrow into the dead to have a body of his own, but the thought of that was just too gross for the Bount to bear. She would rather buy a sex doll or maybe give him a stuffed animal to inhabit. If he could bring a car to life, surely he'd be able to control something like that where he'd actually have a body.

Nevertheless, she tried to get that thought out of her mind for now. "Ah, I meant to ask. Where are we going? How shall I be testing my limits today? You know, I have trained for years. I am quite strong already. I hope you do not underestimate me."

[Colt]

Colt couldn't help but smile just a little at Catty's compliance. Good, that would serve her well if they were gonna hang out more often. No less the confidence she put in her own abiltiies also added to the enjoyment. the soft CLICK as he locked the doors and slowly began to speed up, the hum of the engine growing Louder and LOUDER. It was auspicious indeed that Catty was happy dealing with this sort of low crime situation. Making money would be the primary concern. But past that? Well.

They soon were speeding off toward the outskirts, and Catty would likely hear them. The soft, distant roars of hollows in the distance. As the scenery shifted to low forests as they headed out closer to the mountains, she'd probably sense them too. The far-off crackle of their spiritual energy. Well, far off for just a moment. Before suddenly she'd sense a few of them nearby. Subtly. Almost easily missed. But if her ES was on point, she'd likely pick up on a few of them roving through the forest itself, at least until the scenery suddenly shifted. A massive section of partially developed land.

Roads. Streets. A few parking lots, and other flattened out land. Abandoned for the time being, no doubt because of what else was sensed nearby. A few hollows that were in the general area, and were slowly turning their attention to the pair. No doubt construction had been attempted, but after the hollows had rolled in, they'd had to stop. No doubt this was a common thing now. With all of the conflict and fighting that went on in karakura, it was just inevitable that normal people would become spiritually aware.

"One part of it will be stuff like this. I actually got a tip that there's sitautions like this. Haunted areas that even normal humans have gotten privy to. The construction company that was in this area gave up. But well. There's a few people who'd really like to use the land if it could be cleared out first. A bit of ...reputable money gain mixed in with some training." He explained with a calm smile. All the while, those creatures were slowly beginning to circle and close in.

Colt paying close attention as they did. Curious to see how Catty reacted to actual threats.

[Catty Noir ♦]

This wasn't something Catty wanted to take for granted. As she looked out the window of the car, resting her elbow on top of the armrest inside the door, she couldn't help but feel excited somehow. She wasn't used to adventures like this because her parents never took her on any. They never had any reason to, so of course it wasn't going to be an expectation. Still, how could she not find some enjoyment out of this? Colt was an exceptional partner when it came to this stuff, too. Maybe it was because he could control the entire car himself so Catty didn't have to worry about a thing, or maybe it was because he was so nice to her that it made her feel comfortable with him.

Suddenly, something caught her attention. She picked up on a strange feeling that led her to look out all the windows as she searched for what could possibly be causing it. She couldn't see much on her own due to the trees and everything blocking her view, and the sensation she was getting wasn't strong enough to give her any major bits of information aside from what these things could potentially be. She wasn't capable of picking out every single detail about everybody, but the signatures she could pick up on made her pause. Soon enough, though, her view changed as they reached some partially-developed land. Catty, raining her brow, looked at the dashboard as if Colt would be able to see her.

"I see. Mon cher, I cannot say I can offer you much beyond my strength right now. Since I cannot summon a Doll yet, would this not be particularly dangerous for us both?"

Even if they could get paid, she didn't want to leave the car. The safety she felt with Colt made her want to just stay put and not put too much pressure on herself. Actually, she was worried. Catty didn't have a single ability to her name outside of being able to punch decently hard, and if the rumors were true, there were others who were exceptionally better at that than she was. She felt herself cower back a bit, concerned for her own safety for the first time in a very long while. But there was another side of this, too. She still wanted to impress Colt. Catty didn't want him to think of her as weak and useless, but she certainly felt that way right now.

"You are the one who can actually cause damage. Would normal bullets hurt these creatures? I still cannot use a gun very well, so I fear the only thing I could do for you is point you in the direction you'd need to go. Right now, that is the only idea I have."

Catty reached for the glovebox and opened it once again, pulling out the lifeless piece of equipment that used to house her friend. Staring at it, she wondered if she would be able to use something like this on her own. As in, without him. She wasn't very familiar with weapons of any kind and typically only used hand-to-hand in order to fight, though even those fights were restricted to being against normal humans. She found herself holding back as she got older so that she wouldn't cause much damage beyond what was necessary to win something like a competition. So when presented with the opportunity to learn how to use a weapon, she supposed she needed to take it.

[Colt]

Colt couldn't help but chuckle softly at that and smiled. "Oh Catty. That's why you're gonna stay inside the car." The locks clicked into place. "These hollows are chumps. Barely even a threat. But we're still gonna be on the safe side. YOU are gonna take my wheel and man the pedals. You're gonna drive me right into them, and then I'm gonna take them out." He noted, flashing a wide grin as he began to help her, slim little threads of reishi gently guiding her hands and feet to the proper places. All whilst the hollows slowly started to approach. A few of them clacking their teeth, drooling onto the ground as they prowled towards them.

After all, they were mindless beasts. Probably fresh hollows. They were simply scavenging. Honestly a normal human could probably deal with them if they could SEE them. But Colt wanted to instill a sense of prowess within the woman. "Hollows are all about what you can find to deal with them. IF you aren't strong enough, find a weapon. If you can't find a weapon, MAKE one. All of these things I'll teach you. But first, You're gonna use the most immediately available weapon: ME~ Drive into em, and I'll take car eof the rest." He encouraged her.

Of course Catty was pretty much safe. The exterior of the car was pretty tough, and Colt himself was apt enough to protect them as necessary. What he needed was for HER to act. It didn't matter if she was actually in danger. Nor if she was more or less going to be using him to do all the heavy lifting. None of that matter. Because first and foremost he needed to instil the single most important instinct inside of her: The Will to Act. It didn't matter how strong she was, if she couldn't push herself to fight, to attack, then that would already put her on the backfoot. Training, techniques. None of that was as important as the sheer pyshcological tempering to attack.

Sure, the training could help her win, and survive. But being weak wasn't the end of things. After all, even a skilled opponent could be caught off guard. It didn't matter if you could kill them. So long as you put yourself into action, that's all that mattered. He'd seen it happen countless times. Guys who for all intents and purposes were weak. Pathetic. Even emaciated. But that WILL to DO something suddenly, without provocation. To be the FIRST to strike. That put them above the rest. Those were the ones that lived when there was little to no chance they should have.

[Catty Noir ♦]

Catty placed the gun back in the glovebox and rolled her eyes, careful to maintain her smile so that Colt would know she wasn't genuinely upset about it. He had a point. She needed to stay safe and avoid major conflict since she was still so weak compared to the rest of the spiritual world. If he wanted her assistance in the form of driving, though, he'd better be prepared. She had a few secrets up her sleeve that she knew he had no idea about, and this was one of them. Her parents made her she knew how to drive every type of car imaginable, meaning she was able to handle manual and automatic transmissions, as well as the silly paddle shifters on most sports cars, including this one.

"Alright then. But don't try to take back control while I'm driving because it will get a bit... crazy."

A smile crept up on her face as she listened to Colt explain that he was to be used as a weapon. Simple enough, and something she'd need to remember for whenever he wasn't around. Hollows may not be able to be seen by normal humans, but that didn't mean they weren't felt. They were still physical beings for the most part, evidently capable of phasing through whatever it was they wanted to or even materialize enough to cause fairly significant damage. Catty knew about the kind of devastation these creatures could inflict upon the general public without much effort at all. So if that were the case, then perhaps something spiritually charged, like this Murcielago that housed Colt's pill, would be able to handle them.

Keeping both hands on the wheel, she extended her fingers out to reach the paddles and touched both feet to the peddles below. Since a clutch didn't exist in this car, both feet being on the gas and break peddles would be enough. Catty shifted the gears once, hit the gas, then pressed the break gently as she turned the wheel in one sharp motion, causing the car to turn and drift. The beasts were off to the side a bit, but that wasn't a huge deal since the land around them was relatively flat and barren aside from a few abandoned construction projects. She'd have to do a bit of smart driving to avoid those, but she could still afford to have some fun.

She shifted again and instead kept her foot on the gas to make the car move forward once the drift had gotten her to a proper position. Now driving off to the left, she saw a group of Hollows hanging around one of the abandoned buildings that looked as if it was mostly concrete and bare bones. Approaching the building, Catty drifted again and laughed out as adrenaline began building inside of her. There were maybe three Hollows all grouped together, something that the Bount was too busy having fun to question much at all. In what felt like only a matter of seconds, she hit the gas once more and drove straight beside the building, ignoring the twinge she felt in her gut as she choked the guilt down and slammed the front of the car into two of them. Depending on what Colt was able to do, Catty would repeat this action of drifting and driving until she was able to move on to another Hollow.