.Coffee, Report, Hunting and a New Voice [Sentience Quest]

.Coffee

Being single. It's.. Well it's not as bad as I thought it would be. It was a mutual break up and I got to keep Little Ghost. Or more that I think Ghost is a tom cat with a liking for an owner with breasts he can cuddle into. I love the cat and don't mind taking him in. Its odd. I think going to the past made Jyn and I realize we should be friends. I mean I miss him a bit, but I didn't cry when we broke it off. More like.. I'm glad it was mutual. I like him as a friend and I think it would devestate me if we couldn't be at least that. Maybe sometime in the future we can try again at a relationship when our lives aren't so busy. Maybe.. Hell I might find someone before then. Kami knows I've had to put down several guys gently, only because they are friends of mine. Seriously. Its like I have 'Take me I'm single' pasted on my forehead. I roll my eyes. Men.

I yawn a bit as I arrive at the cafe, the sun barely up. I ease the keys into the lock and open the door, dropping the keys back into my purse. The cafe is silent and I shut the door behind me, the bell twinkling gently. I stop and lean back against the door, smacking my head back against it in frustration. Open here then head to the office to turn in my recent hunting report. And to.. I make a face. To Yukina of all fucking people. Seriously. Why does it have to be her? She and I.. Well we don't exactly see eye to eye. Never have. We both bitch fight every time we are in the same room together. Not pretty and it can get nearly violent. And somehow I can't resist trying to fight her. Damn woman. I take a deep breath and calm my mind. No use working myself up when I got shit to do this morning in order for the store to be customer ready.

I note the owner not around and roll my eyes. As if he would be here this early in the morning. He's probably snoring upstairs. Bastard. One of these days I'm going to kick his lazy ass out of bed and make him open. But right now.. I like my job and honestly I don't want him to fire me for real. Our joking around in the store is playful, even if I hit him sometimes. I walk behind the counter and log into the register computer and then move to the back as it begins to boot up. I set my purse in a locker and lock it up, keeping only the keys for various things on my wrist. I grab my apron next and slip it on. I tie it securely, my hands moving and tie up my long hair next. I wonder if I should cut it. Nah. I love it too much to cut it. I step over to the stereo and turn it on, listening as the music starts up. I grin as I hear one of my favorite Berryz song, Dakishimete, begin to play.

I return to the front of the cafe and begin turning on all the machines, letting them warm up before I begin to test each one. I have to make sure they are working perfectly in order for our drinks to be the best around. This takes me about fifteen minutes and I move to the register. I unlock the cash tray and recount them, making sure each has one hundred within them. I slip them into the registers and type into the computers what I put in. With that done I head into the seating area and begin pulling down chairs just as Ayaka knocks on the door. I smile and let her in. She goes to clock in and get her apron while I continue with setting up the chairs. I step outside to set them up next. The day is warm but with a nice breeze. I smile a bit. Maybe today won't be so bad.

wc: 703

.Report

I card my hand through my auburn tresses, having let them down when I left the cafe. An eight hour shift with non stop work. Doing a five am to one pm can wear some people down. I'm use to it. Plus I tend to be able to work a full day and as long as I get a bit of sleep I can do the same the next day. I'm just frustrated. If I had one more stuck up bitch ask me to remake her latte because it didn't have enough foam, I was gonna shove Jogoku through her. I feel a hum of agreement from him, the tattoo circling my breasts warming faintly. I stretch, just now stepping off the subway. I feel a hand on my rear and I turn and punch the jerk. He falls and I walk away, people asking him what happened. Another thing to add to my foul mood. Lovely. I make my way up the stairs and walk into the sunlight, the sounds of the Metro surrounding me. I tuck my hands into the pockets of my baggy, black khakis. Paired with a black tank top I look a bit like a skater chick. Not that I care. I'm comfortable in this and I'm only turning in my report. Plus Yukina dresses worse than me.

I walk a couple of blocks and then cross the street. I enter the building and wave to the receptionist, the male someone I have flirted with in the past to get what I want. "Afternoon," I greet then walk past him. Its odd. Never thought I would work here. I get a bit more lee way. Sorta. Kinda like a freelance hunter, but I report my findings. But they are beginning to put more things on me. I guess I'll be a regular grunt soon enough. Again its fine. I don't mind. Long as I'm not stuck at a desk doing paper work I'm good. I'm a fighter not a desk junkie. I yawn and hop onto the elevator, taking it to Yukina's level. I lean back against the wall, bored and alot calmer. This place tends to do that to me.

I blink as it reaches my level and I step off, passing a couple of people I don't know. I don't greet them and simply walk down to Yukina's office. I stop at the door and I can hear her cursing about something. Great. I'll try and make this quick then if she is in a foal mood also. I knock then enter. She pauses from the paperwork in front of her and looks up at me, blinking.

"Oh. It's you."

I frown and arch a brow. "Well hello to you also, Miss Sunshine," I quip, walking up to her desk and pulling the report from my messenger bag. I hold it out to her and she eyes it, frowning.

"Great. More fuckin' paperwork."

"Like I give a shit," I say in a deadpan voice. She scowls and I can tell she is itching to pull one of her guns on me. My eyes dare her to. My blade will be at her throat if she does. Jigoku is itching for it. But I ignore it. I honestly want to get back to the apartment and pick up my new weapon and go hunting. Its such a beautifully craft peice of art. Yeah. In my eyes its art. I could never make anything like that. I wait for her to do something. She just snatches me report then leans back in her chair and flips through it. Its really odd to see her doing this non fighting kind of work. But she's a Captain. She has to work like this because of new duties. Still odd though.

"Not bad. I got you on patrol tonight in the Commons. Just kill any scum demons you find there," she says and my shoulders slump a bit. Wait. I have more work to do? Goddammit. I wanted to go out and hunt tonight without thinking of writing another stupid report. I sigh and nod.

"Fine," I grumble and she lifts her eyes from the papers in her hands to smirk at me and I glare. Damn bitch was making a mission on purpose to get revenge. While she may have to read a report.. She didn't have to write it at least. Kami I want to kick her!

wc: 742

.Hunting

So the best way to spend my friday night... Not doing this shit. I had to cancel club hopping thanks to that bitch Yukina. She knew I would have plans since I'm single. Son of a bitch. I really wanted to go and party for once. While dating Jyn I didn't go out because I would spend my free time doing things with him. I huff a bit, walking along the crumbling sidewalk in the Lower Commons, arms crossed lightly under my breasts. My new naginata is slung across my back with a simple cloth holster I picked up from sensei after I recieved the weapon. The tattoos of my other weapons are warm, both my blades wanting to fight, but tonight I want to test out the new one. Hmm.. I wonder what I should name it. I also have to go see the old man in the woods and get my new baby tattooed on me. Bit awkward to walk around with it on my back.

I pause under the fading light of a broken street lamp. My eyes flick along the nearly empty street. I look down at the Div12 tank top I snatched from Yukina. Its not bad. Also it insures I don't have to answer any questions if I run into someone else on patrol. I bite the inside of my cheek lightly. Hmm. I wonder how out of shape I am. I need to step my game back up. Maybe Yukina sensed I want to get stronger and is giving me missions. Again. I don't mind. I just hate writing those lame as reports of the things I find. Pain in the ass and a waste of time when I could just tell her. But then that's how things work. THey have to be documented and such. Reminds me of having to look at the quarterly reports for Kyro Corp. I shudder a bit. I thought my brain had melted in my skull by the time I finished.

I stiffen as I catch a movement from the corner of my eye. Slowly I turn toward it and wait for it again. A snarl erupts from behind me. How in the hell? I remain still, listening to the sound of the creature's paws on the sidewalk, its talons clicking with each movement. A deep breath and I reach back tugging the naginata free as I then whip around just as the beast leaps upon me. I jam the staff between the on coming jaws and I taken down to the ground, bracing the beast away from me. "Mother fucker," I hiss. That had stung. I'm so gonna have little bruises from the gravel I landed on. I bend my arms, pulling the snarling beast closer. I look into its beady eyes and I smirk in a feral manner. Time for blood. I then shove up roughly and the canine creature is thrown into the air. I flip back onto my feet and watch the demon turn midair and then it lands on its feet, facing me. I arch a brow. Well shit.. I think this one might be a bit smarter than many I have faced here.

I take in its appearance. Its compact, no bigger than a large dog breed. Its form is bony, hardly any fat, its all corded muscle. Its made for speedy attacks on its prey. Its head though kind of creeps me out. Its just a canine skull with a pair of glowing aqua orbs in the eye sockets. And.. Are those bony spines on its back? Great. Man's best friend from hell. This thing looks alot meaner than the other hellhounds I have faced though. I shift one leg back a fraction, the slender staff held lightly in my hands as I wait to see what it will do or if it wants me to attack first.

It makes an unearthly snarling sound, but doesn't make any moves just yet. Its watching me with those glowing eyes. They make me shiver. Don't know why. But I feel a chill from those eyes. I decide to make the first move. The staff is spun with my hands, gaining a good momentum. The canine steps back as a faint whirling sound begins to be heard as I gain some speed. I then lunge, activating the lower blade as I slash up from the ground sharply. It leaps back and I keep my rhythm with the staff, the blade coming back as I slash down ward now. A yelp and I know I nicked the damn thing. It growls at me and then charge and I can see a faint nick in its skull-like head. My hands cease the twirling and separate as I thrust as the lunging demon and bash the ebony weapon right between its open jaws. I hear a crack and the demon falls back. I shudder in disgust as I see the lower half of it jaw now hanging from one side only. Well. THank Kami I didn't eat before hunting. Cause.. Eww...

wc: 846
twc: 2291

.New Voice

THe tattoos are warm on my flesh, especially Jigoku's. He wants to fight. But I know how to use his blade better than any. I need to expand on my knowledge of other weapons more. I watch the demon try and work its broken jaw. Its making a weird sound that has me cringing. Then my eyes widen as I watch the canine slam its face down on the sidewalk and then it lifts itself, the jaw having been slammed back into place. Shit. My grip tightens on the naginata. This bitch is going to have to be put down hard so it doesn't try and get back up.I tilt my head from side to side, pleasure sliding down my spine as my neck cracks. I roll my shoulders next then relax my stance, looking for a weak spot on the beast. Its body looks like its skin might be tough to cut into. I haven't mastered the use of the naginata and its feels a bit awkward in my hands. But I can try to use some of my techniques. Though the application matter will have to be adjusted to the naginata difference in balance compared to my blades. Do I really have the time to be fucking around to figure out the proper rhythm? I think for but a moment as the canine snarls at me again, now a bit more wary. Ah hell. Why not? If I get a little banged up in the process.. Well that's half the fun in my opinion.

I'm gonna regret this somehow. Maybe. Yume might chew me out if I come home all bloody. Weak spot. Weak spot. The demon is crouching, preparing to attack again. I look at the skull-like head. I think that might be its weakest point. I nicked it and I cracked its jaw momentarily. Jigoku and Rei are muffled in the background. I know they want to help. But this is training. I need to better myself. I can't keep being repititious because then I only become weak. The more I push my body to learn new things the better chance I have for living in this fucked up world.

My stance is shifted, my feet placed in a manner to balance myself and the weight of the naginata. The demon is watching me. I decide not to wait anymore and I flick one blade out and begin to slash at the demon in rapid succession. It dodges and I yelp as it rushes me from the side and head butts me. THe wind gets knocked out of me and I crash right into the side of a crumbling building. I can taste blood in my mouth and I spit it out, my eyes flicking to the demon as it lets out a hyena-like crackle. I gasp for breath, refilling my lungs. I keep my back against the wall and watch as the demon paces in front of me, just out of my reach. Okay. So maybe I should begin berating myself for being stupid tonight. Nah. I'm just a stubborn bitch with a need for danger is all. I smirk at this and my confidence returns. I push off the wall and dash at the demon, naginata in one hand as I test out fighting with it. I have to be able to fight both with one hand and two with this weapon. I nearly lose my grip on it but I get in close to the demon, surprising the beast and I dash past it, slicing as I passed by. I fall to one knee, panting for breath and I turn my head to see as the head of the demon falls to the pavement and the body drops.

"Fuck.." I hiss and clutch my side, the naginata clattering to the asphalt. I got bitten before I got that fatal hit on it. I pull my hand back and wince at the flesh blood staining it. I take a calming breath and gingerly get to my feet, scooping up the naginata. I look at it and smile. "We just need a bit more practice.." I say to it warmily.

wc: 697

The demon’s last wishes are to live, but unfortunately the wound is fatal. It only lingers a few moments before becoming a carcass with its spirit returned and recycled into the cycle orchestrated by The Watchers. Fresh blood permeates into the blade along with the demon’s will to live, invoking something for the moment unseen. Something within the weapon from another realm, implanted by whatever ancient smith constructed it, is unlocked at that moment.

While Shiori is looking at the weapon, there is a bright flash that encompasses the area around her. When the light of the white flash dies down, she would find herself in another realm. She would be sea side, in a realm void of color, simply black and white. The skies above her would be tranquil with a lack of clouds in the clear sky; very fine gray sand would be at her feet. She would be the only one in this realm for the time being, though it looked like there was a city inland a bit beyond large fortified gates. The docks near the sea held large emptied odd shaped ships that resembled floating birds of some type.

After she’s given a moment or two to look about her surroundings; a shadowy figure would appear standing behind her. His shadow would be caste past her, clothing waving in a dark silhouette on the sandy ground. There would be a light giggle emitted from this figure, but it would vanish as soon as she turned around, and she would find herself back in her realm, suddenly, as if nothing had happened.

266

I gaze fondly at the naginata only to feel a sense of what seems like vertigo and my vision goes white. I can't even get out a yelp before I find my vision clearing. I blink, confused. I look around. The world is made up in shades of gray. Not a drop of color other than myself. I peer up and find the sky clear, calm. But I do not understand where I am. My eyes drift down and to the sea. My eyes move and see what looks to be ships, though their shapes are odd. My eyes follow the docks as best I can and I catch a glimpse of a city. I go to take a step, but something stops me.

I feel myself engulf in a shadow. My eyes look in front of me as it swallows my own. THe shadow's figure is tall and masculine. The giggle has me whipping around, but I am alne and back in the middle of the street in the lower commons. My heart is thundering in my ears and I feel light headed. What.. What had that been? Where had I been? I take a deep breath, seeking to calm my racing heart. I shake my head and then look down at the naginata in my hand. I shake my head again and make the blade tip retract. I then slip it back into its holster on my back. My side hurts and I wince as I start the trek home. Whatever that was... I want to go back.

wc:260
twc: 3248 + 266 = 3514

Updated