Fidelity (Open)

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Spring. The bright yellow orb in the bright blue horizon now hangs in the sky more often, and the lazy white clouds dissipate slowly in the hot, sticky atmosphere of Karkura Town. Winter spots, such as snow puddles and cold temperatures lurk around, but then die blissfully, with good riddance, in either the short green stalks of the healthy grass, or through sifting, eroding cracks of cement sidewalks. Insects and other warm-weather folk poke their heads out in the air once more, bees painting invisible trails in the sky for their friends to follow, while birds humbly cooing their songs while perched on aging tree bark. All in all, it's a welcome sight for all, even for the old folk, that with pruning skin, pale at even the sight of a daffodil, or for the easily-grouchy, the warm colors somehow spilling into their own soul.

It had been at least one month, in anniversary, since he had been in this town, and already, he had seen the many colors of the spring, and other above characteristics of a lazy, quiet spring Sunday. His legs, which are rather slim and petite for a teenager boy, hang over the edge of a concrete siding, the school uniform hugging it softly as wrinkles softly dance in the wind's soft waves of air. Trailing slowly over his relaxed body, one would see a white, short-sleeved, collar button shirt also hug his upper torso, small ripples in the light cloth, and then a thin red sweatshirt over that as well. The hood stretches slightly over a head of black hair, the coal strands touching the lower section of his neck. Finally, within that upstretched hood, and behind a strand or so of black hair, you would see a pair of soft green eyes, which has an eyelid lazily hang down over the orbs, as if they were magnetized to the bottom. They study, with a hint of interest, to the seemingly endless wave of buildings in the setting horizon, their rooftops silhouetted in the setting sun.

His position on the wall shifts, now at the sound of a whistling course, coming from behind the hunched body. Turning, and his body pivoting to the side as well, he sees the shimmer of a transparent, but noticeable figure in the light blue sky. At first, it's bleak, and seems to cause a slight pit in the teenager's stomach to grow, but almost immediately, a bright voice shatters those nerves, a girl's ecstatic welcome being heard,

"Sempaii!~"[/i]

It's cheerful, and seems to carry a childish ring to it, the constricting sound of string barely being heard as well. The teenager, or apparently 'Sempai', smiles slightly, his black head of hair tilting to the side as he watches the girl float in the air peacefully. Her strands of light purple hair, held in neatly by strands of folded ribbon, blow behind her figure, as does the thin, transparent fingers that seem to dangle peacefully in the atmosphere. A bright pink tutu, accosted with matching, long-laced slippers, bounces around her thin, small frame. More laces are tied around her clear, ghastly tan thigh, and a a set of wrapped white bandages cover her upper torso.

"Semmppaaiiii!~ There's another one!"[/i]

This causes 'Sempai' to blink, this time with slight caution, and a worried expression spilling into his light green crescent bulbs, like milk into a cup. His hands begin to tighten, the smile slightly disseminating from his lips, and the wave of uneasiness settling into the bottomless gut. Still looking to the girl, who has now settled gracefully on the electrical lines only feet away, tilts her head to mirror his own. Pursing her lips for a moment, and offering a goofy, inquisitive grin, she asks,

"Sempai? Why is your head like that?"

Now looking to the girl, who stands at least seven inches below his body frame, the teenager brings his head back to calmly look down, a hint of worry still held in his eyes. The girl, whose ghastly appearance seems to falter from it's cheerful nature, draws a sigh from her lips, then gently takes off into the air towards the 'Sempai' in a graceful leap. Her legs, which are abnormally long for a girl as young as she was, outstretch to effortlessly form a straight arc, the right leg forward, pointed, as if pulling herself for the building's roof railing, like a child grasping towards a toy from afar. Landing her toe against the tip of the metal railing, despite it's round shape, the girl brings her hands to the sides, as if she was to sail into the sky. Her ballerina abilities only make the teenager smile slightly, though, he doesn't look up to her straightened pose. His eyes only trail down, thinking of a question as it slips from his lips,

"Hana...where did you see them?"

What he referred to as 'them', was mysterious, hulking black figures that had been appearing lately in Karakura Town. It had been at least three days since either one had seen the odd, grotesque figures. Each seemed to have it's own significant characteristic, but they all had the forbidding, corpse-black skin, long, gigantic fingers that could possibly pierce into your body, compared to a knife going through jell-o. Ed had only seen these figures twice, but Hana was almost too familiar with these creatures, but only referred to them as 'It'. She blinked, the smile slightly fading as she bows her head to think for a moment, then raise as she pointed her finger to the left, down towards downtown, and towards a shop that the boy is unfamiliar with.

"That way, Sempai..."

~*~

In a matter of minutes, or at least to Hana, as she ran in front of the boy with ecstatic, boundless energy. Both could see the hulking, disgusting figure of the hollow in the distance, it's mask a horrendously solemn white, painted with solid red in streaks of dashes and lines. The gut in his stomach once again tightens, his fists matching it with slight trembling. The hollow's form, which had been walking calmly on the sidewalk, one leg on the cement material, the other slopped over the boiling asphalt, and the monstrous hands sashaying back and forth, froze in it's walk. Twitching, then looking back to the two, a devilish nature then surrounds it, hissing darkly,

"Food..."

Hana looks down to her 'Sempai', who returns the look with a nerve-wracked drip in the light green pupils. Still running forward, and keeping his head slightly bowed, the teenager's hands start to envelop in light blue energy, and slowly begins to enlarge in a bout of spiritual, powerful energy. He then flips his head forward, bringing the red hood over his head of black hair, and the legs pushing off the ground as he rises into the air, his right fist raising above his head as his concentrated energy peaks, and the monster looks up to screech. With a barely audible yell, at least over the monster's, the boy swings his arm against It's head, and watches as the fist connects against the white, serene mask. It connects.

A bright flash of blue light fills the air, streaks of the omniscent energy shards flying into the air around the boy's figure. His fist seems to drag slowly across It's head, it screeching in pain. Blood, which is thick and colored by a ghastly black, almost immediately seeps from the mask cracks. The boy's blunt, simple attack manages to send It sprawling off to the side, and the boy to hover in the air, but only for a second as gravity grabs his ankles, and drags him down to the asphalt. Landing ungracefully on the rounds of his feet, the boy's legs shake slightly, his fists still enveloped in the blue energy, and the hood still placed over a now shaky, nerve-wracked face. Although the boy has fought only one of these beasts before (he had only spotted the other one), his attack had managed to send It back in his tracks.

But, It quickly rises, it's trembling, slithering fingers pushing it's corpse, black body up. The mask leers back to the boy, the hideous, large figure looming over as the legs straighten, as does the figure. It stretches 'his' legs upward, now standing far above the boy, and only increasing the height differentiation even more. Now looking up to the monster, and staring through the thin slits of mask eyes with a seemingly determined expression. Now, It raises his hand over the mask, over the head, to howl hideously, as if to let the boy know the attack was to come. Then, with a mighty swing, It brings an outstretched hand attack to the boy, who, in his rigid stance, forms a triangle, by connecting his two hands together. Watching, in slow motion, as It's hand closes in, he yells out,

"Uxe!"

Then, like water spilling into a glass, blue energy seeps from is fingers, to the large hands that his arms hold up in a slight trembling effort. In a matter of seconds, the boy's hands shimmer in a flash of blue light, then, quickly, they dart in more formations. His left trails to it's side, then the right to it's own, both forming lines in a symmetrical, rectangle shape. The fingers trail, neatly, the shape of the large quadilateral, a pair of light green eyes focusing on completing the shape. Soon, the figure is complete, and the boy sees his chance.

"Bu!"

With a nod, then flipping his hands back, the boy yells out this word, and tighten his hands into a fist. The rectangle is filled with a wave of blue light, it solidfying in only a few mere milli-seconds, and forming in the nick of time. Following the energy wall formation, It's hand comes down, connecting against the wall with a large vibration, and the attack blasting agains the barrier with full force and aplomb. Yelling in frusturation, It then swings his other arm down, this time faster then the other attack, and unfortuantly taking the boy by surprise. He manages to turn, and spot the attack as it breaks the air with pressure and force. With his left hand pulling out, and still enveloped in blue spirit energy, the boy manages to clip the hand near the top, but not stop it as the other fingers catch the boy. Now, the boy is sent sprawling, his body being pushed backwards with powerful force, and the fingers sweeping back like a broom across a wooden surface.

His teeth grit, the hand attack blasting into the side of his body with tremendous strength that knocks wind out of his chest. The legs twist, as does the arms as his body hits the asphalt, and roll across the black surface for a moment that seems to last forever in the human's eyes. Pain erupts in his chest, and he grunts as the rolling comes to a stop, and the hand manage to stop the attack rebound. Looking up to It, who, triumphantly, laughs in the human's tumble. Suddenly,

"Ed!"

Hana's voice interrupts the shrill laugh of It, who twitches 'his' head back to see the girl cup her hands in the yell, and look to him with a look that easily shows her fear of injury. Now looking to see It distracted, but only for a moment, the boy, known as Ed, digs his feet against the asphalt, raises his fists forward again, and pushes through his slight pain to run forward. With his clenched hands behind him, and the thin body drawn forward in attack pose, Ed focuses intently on the monster's open chest, which practically begs to be punched. Raising his hands, left intercrossed with the right, the American sprints towards It, and takes to the air in a slight hop. He brings his arms forward in a rush of blue light, and the red hood flaps energetically in the rushing wind, the connected fists managing to connect against It's chest. The powerful attack catches It by surprise, who howls in pain as again he is sent back. His arms flail next to him, and his body twists toward the ground, the black corpse sent dragging against the asphalt.

Landing on his back, as again with a ungraceful mount, Ed groans in slight pain as he watches It land against the ground, then roll across in a cloud of dust. The giant body is motion-less for a moment, and the American rises slowly, his left side evident in injury. Looking to see Hana, who is relieved in her 'Sempai''s recovery, nod with a smile, the American turns to watch It slowly, and reluctantly, rise to full stature again. His roar is sounded again, and the figure stands above Ed once more, both waiting for the other to strike.



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[Nike.]

ooc||Sorry if it gets lame towards the middle and end, but I felt I had to try and match your post length... As you might be able to tell, I got tired D: |

She was at her assigned place, manning the cash register behind the counter, with striking white hair overshadowing equally striking scarlet eyes. A long-sleeved red shirt hugged her frame, overlapping short gray cargo shorts and black bike shorts extending from underneath. A long white scarf was wrapped around her neck, and black converse sneakers were worn on her feet with low-cut black socks barely visible from within. Overall, she was quite an intimidating figure, observing her surroundings with an air of apathy cold disinterest. A black apron concealed the front of the entire outfit. It was emblazoned with the café's logo in white, and a name tag reading “KANON” in big bold letters was pinned to the top left. The place was rather popular among Karakura's youth, making a name for itself by selling an assortment of caffeinated drinks and sweets. However, on this particular day, the imposing figure standing behind the counter with arms crossed and eyebrow thingyed was driving away business. Those who were sitting at the tables and chairs set up within the confines of the café found the situation quite awkward and were eerily silent, save sounds of eating and drinking.

“Ano, Kanon-san,” began her manager in a haughty tone. She tapped Kanon's shoulder with the slightest touch, as if she might contract some disease simply through physical contact with the temporary cashier. The white-haired girl turned with an unamused gaze. Don't touch me. The manager looked her up an down with a disapproving gaze and continued, sarcasm heavily laced among her words, “You've been working so hard. Perhaps you should take a break! Go outside! Get some fresh air! Leave!” d**n... This girl with her cutesy appearance and arrogant attitude made Kanon sick. What should she do? Slap her? Punch her? Run her through with her sword? No, she would rather keep this job; it payed fairly well... for a part time teenage worker. Food was necessary for this body, and attaining the bare necessities required money in this stupid mortal realm. Yes, even Kanon sometimes missed the convenience of life as a shinigami in Soul Society. And so, much to the relief of the customers, she tore off the apron and left through the back door, slamming it decisively on the way out.

The remains of the cold season were disappearing quickly, replaced by singing birds and budding flowers heralding the the coming of spring. Signs of life gradually resurfaced, splashing the blank white canvas that was winter with a brilliant myriad of color and light. It was like a great festival for the earth, condemning and driving away the cold, desolate winter and celebrating the warmth that would, no doubt, follow. Kanon took in the spectacle with indifferent eyes. She could care less what season it was.

She bought a small cup of bubble tea – she wouldn't usually waste money like this, but decided that it would be an exception. After all, she had to humble herself every day to earn that money. Ugh. Just thinking of that manager made her irritated. Still bearing a composed exterior, she used the thick straw (made explicitly for sucking up the “bubbles” in the drink) to stir the contents of the clear plastic cup, watching as the little tapioca balls at the bottom (yes, those are the bubbles) shifted in response. She paid little attention to where she was going. It was all rather indirect, going wherever her feet took her. Her life was like that – transient... pointless; it was a life aimless meandering. Everything was so variable. Nothing was solid. She despised it. She detested having no purpose, having no drive. Stupid shinigami. Why did they have to erect a barrier in the first place? Was this temporary peace not another form of procrastination? In the meantime, Kanon was tired. The number of hollow had decreased dramatically since fifty years ago and, truth be told, she was restless. She wanted to fight. She wanted turmoil.

Her zanpakuto, thrust through her belt, swung in synchrony with her gait. Though one might think it would be the most outstanding element of her outfit, many people neglected to notice it, and those that did just gave her right side a wide berth. However, she was vaguely aware of some law prohibiting ownership (or something like that) of such bladed weapons in this country. Putting a hand on the sword's sheath and rubbing it gently with her thumb, she contemplated leaving it at home more often in the future. It was unlikely that she would need it, with the hollow shortage and all. God... She worked hard at the café, and her reward was in yen. She had worked hard to attain her powers, and she should have been payed in hollows to fight, but her rewards had, unfortunately, been scarce for the past fifty years. Tch. And yet... she could feel the barrier weakening. Perhaps things would pick up soon.

Speaking of hollows, zanpakuto, and the like...
Kanon's wandering had brought her by Urahara's shop. She remembered it well from the previous time she had spent in Karakura. It seemed Urahara's son had taken over, but the shop still looked the same. Perhaps he would have something of use – like an item that would make carrying around a zanpakuto in the mortal realm a bit more convenient for the vizard. She adjusted her course and, with a more purposeful step, strode toward the familiar building. As Kanon neared the door, she spotted a white piece of paper taped to it. Upon closer inspection, it proved to be a note that read, “Out to lunch. Be back later.” There was a rough sketch of Urahara's grinning mug in the bottom right hand corner. Hmph. How typical. She returned to the street, mumbling something about how far back from the road the place was, and began to walk once again. It was so like the old Urahara. She didn't even know either of them well, but the similarities were—

Her thoughts were abruptly cut off. Instead, Kanon's gaze had fallen upon the form of a dark, hulking figure in the distance – a hollow making its way toward her. Now, it wasn't headed for her, per say. At this point, she was able to conceal her reiatsu to the point where low-level hollows were unable to even recognize her presence. More or less, it was headed in her direction. Despite all those thoughts about boredom, she did not quicken her step, but instead continued to walk forward at a languid pace, sipping her bubble tea. Hollows of this level failed to excite her anymore unless they came en mass. Maybe what she was truly missing was strong hollows, arrancar, and the like. Well, perhaps she would have a little fun with this one. Kanon placed the remaining bubble tea on a brick fence nearby and turned to face the dark mass. Her left hand grasped the hilt of her zanpakuto, and she began to draw and run forward, but stopped suddenly as it abruptly turned away.

Something had caught its eye. A young human – was it a boy or girl? – was engaging the thing in combat. d**n. That kid had stolen her prey. But the human had gotten there first, after all. She retrieved her beverage and resumed walking. Tch. How irritating. And yet, despite her inner aggravation, with that flat stare and heavy gait, it appeared as if she really could care less whether they were fighting or not, and continued forward toward the hollow and human. On the other hand, the people around her began to scream and panic as buildings were damaged of their own accord and chunks of asphalt and brick began to fly in every direction. This phenomenon was enough to scare them off, for all fled the scene save Kanon, who was slowly walking along the sidewalk as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening.

It wasn't the first time that she'd seen a human with spiritual powers, and she found their variety of techniques mildly amusing. Those hands seemed to be the source of this kid's powers – how interesting. She continued to walk, sipping her drink occasionally, until she was fairly close to the scene of combat. Just as she was about to pass by, a young female spirit provided an opening for the human, who was able to knock the hollow to the ground. One of its dark limbs snapped back toward the Kanon (unintentionally, of course). She easily dodged as it came down, but the quick movement caused her right hand to lose its grip on the plastic cup, slick with condensation, and the bubble tea fell to the ground and was crushed. f**k. That thing had been expensive, and she had payed for it with her hard-earned money. She turned to the unsuspecting hollow who had, in the meantime, righted itself.

“Oi, what the hell is wrong with you?” she articulated in a low, serious tone. The hollow turned, confused. “I worked my a** off earning that money.”

Kanon could feel herself losing control. Why was she getting so riled up over such a trivial thing? Right. Her countenance significantly calmed. Right. She would just watch this hollow be killed. Using shunpo, Kanon moved so that she was now facing the hollow and the spirit girl stood in front of her, helplessly looking on. She leaned up against a light post, arms crossed and cold eyes directed at the hollow's masked visage.

Right.

After all, it wasn't as if she had anything better to do.