So.. Friggin'.. Boring.. [Pvt/Chandre]

Chandre stretched her arms up in the air with a yawn, happy to finally get out of her class. She had just taken a class on divergent evolutionary theory, which she thought was at least a little interesting, but she knew there were a lot of gaps in the professors’ lesson. Still, on the whole she enjoyed the lecture, and meandered from the university with the rest of the students. Despite being a soul eating monster, nobody really batted an eye at Chandre because she had come to the class looking like a twenty something young woman. Chandre actually found it pretty fun to ‘play a role’ for a while, and in this instance she had been playing the part of ‘Candy Bartlette’ the foreign exchange student from Quebec. The body was pretty as far as Chandre could tell, 5’5”, long, strawberry blond hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion. She also accessorized with a Naruki university sweater wrapped around her trim waist, accompanying a plaid skirt, red tank top and loose fitting leather jacket. She felt all ‘edgy’ and generally played as Candy with a bit of a punk rock attitude, which was a nice departure from her usual demure mannerism. Aside from all of the usual things, she had also been very aware of her rietsu, keeping as tight a lido n it as possible to avoid the wandering eyes of Shinigami or even vaguely aware humans. She had been going to the university classes for a few months now, mostly trying to expand her knowledge of standard biology so she could apply it to her inventions. Despite having made biological ‘machines’ far and above what normal human science could conceive, she wanted to make sure she wasn’t skipping over any avenues obvious to humans, but escaping her own experience.

She was on her way to a study group with a few of her classmates, which was more just her playing her part than anything else, but regardless she wanted to get there on time. There was a young man she was ‘working on’ and she was pretty sure she was going to get a date pretty soon, so it wouldn’t do to be late. As she was passing by an ally way, she could feel the rietsu of one of her weaker siblings, a low power hollow just romping around. She didn’t generally give such things much attention, but this time she felt something… off. She meandered down the ally, trying to put her finger on what exactly she was feeling, what was going on that was just at the tip of her senses. When she rounded the corner, she found a hollow, large and stupid looking, just a mongrel looking for a meal which was common enough. However, Chandre was very excited to see a young woman standing defiantly in front of the hollow, looking up with an almost bored expression.

Elle c’est! She whispered, very excited to have finally found a spiritually aware human that could fully see spirits, and from the looks of her, has some means of dealing with the myriad dangers spirits present. Chandre had of course encountered spiritually aware humans before, but nothing terribly interesting, a man or woman here and there that could hear her or see some smudgy outline. They hadn’t been very interesting subjects at all, not enough of… whatever it was that allowed humans to interact with rietsu. Chandre wanted to see what this girl would do, what could she do? She had heard stories of humans who could lift busses, fire energy beams, summon lightning, what was it?! The suspense was killing her! Then she felt it, another hollow, stronger, but it was clearly trying to hide, its rietsu was supressed so much that Chandre could barely feel it between the girl and the lummox before her. She saw it soon after sensing it, coming up from behind the girl, camouflage melting away from it as it appeared from the brick walls like a chameleon. Zut! Chandre cursed, running out from around the corner, summoning one of her Vetruvian homme creations as she ran, using sonido to finish closing the gap before punching the chameleon like hollow in the mask, the porcelain cracking under her fist. She came skidding to a stop just in time to see her Vetruvian Homme (which she had hurriedly modelled after a very large knight) steam rolled the large dumb hollow. The sounds of bones crunching echoed through the ally way as the two hollows were dealt with by Chandre’s creation, herself more interested in the young woman.

Es-tu blesse? Chandre asked, looking the girl over quickly to see if she had been damaged at all. She then realized that not everybody in Japan spoke French, which was a grave injustice to be sure, but something she had to take into consideration. Ah, j’regrette, are you hurt at all? She asked again, hoping the girl was still in good condition.

Chandre was a little surprised by the young woman’s non-chalant mannerism when it came to the situation. Surely this girl didn’t come across people who gave monsters a left hook every other Tuesday, because if so, Chandre felt like she aught to start stalking this girl. As she spoke Chandre noted the charred clothes and blackened ground, clearly this girls abilities managed some extreme heat, but it was curious that she didn’t have some means of guarding herself from it. Every single spiritual creature she knew, heck, most normal everyday living creatures she knew had some means of protecting themselves from their own defense mechanisms. Still, her abilities definitely deserved further investigation. She remembered a flash of light as she struck the chameleon hollow, and could swear the other hollow had managed to take a swat at the girl. She turned to look at her Vetruvian Homme, who was holding onto the two hollows, awaiting further orders.

Vous revenez avec eux au bibliotheque mon enfant. Je voudrais voir eux plus tard. She said, hoping to be able to examine the hollows that attacked the girl to see if she could establish some more about the abilities used. Her Vetruvian Homme nodded slightly before heafting the two creatures to its shoulders and lumbering off into the alleyway back towards the Karakura University where Chandre housed her lab. She was briefly curious how her Vetruvian Homme would manage to get the two things through the door, but figured they’d be pliable enough with all of the various broken bones.

When she turned back to look at Akahito’s hands, the girl had already started walking off down some stairs, apparently back to wherever home was. Chandre was a little dumbfounded by the lack of manners honestly, she ate souls for three square meals a day and still managed a ‘goodbye, it was nice to meet you’ when she had to leave. She gave a bit of a chuckle, wondering if she had been playing her teenaged persona a little too politely, but remembered that ‘Candy’ was supposed to be Canadian, so it all worked out. Still, manners or not, Chandre couldn’t let this girl just ‘wander off’ with so many questions unanswered. She used Sonido to appear in front of Akahito, walking backwards down the stairs to keep pace with the girl.

Tch, sorry mon amie, I can’t forget about this, first time I’ve ever met a spiritually powered young lady like yourself. She said with a smile, taking a quick look at the young girls hands and the slight drips of blood leaving a trail behind her. That looks painful, I have something that could help if you want. Chandre said, reaching into her jacket and pulling out a small jar that looked like it was for hand cream. Technically speaking, Chandre had reached into her ribcage, but seeing things like that tended to freak people out, so a bit of sleight of hand usually did the trick. It’ll close up the skin for about twelve hours before dissolving, but by then you should have healed a little bit on your own. She said, opening up the jar to reveal the off white paste inside. Chandre had only ever really used this stuff when making her biological machines, but stitching together two pieces of skin for a little bit seemed well within its abilities. My name is Chandre by the way, people around here know me as Candy though. You often torch your clothes and fingers? she asked bluntly, being a little too excited about the situation to apply much tact.

Chandre wasn't actually one hundred percent sure what the little girl had said when she had hurried on over, sounded German, but it was clearly surprise. Did this young lady not have much experience with high speed techniques? A quick feel for her rietsu showed she wasn't particularly mature as far as spiritual entities went, so it was possible she wasn't equipped to achieve speeds like sonido. It actually made Chandre stop for a moment to consider how normal she considered moving so quickly, pretty much everybody she knew could do it. Perspective was a curious thing.

Alright... Bea-chan? Chandre said with a bit of uncertainty, honorifics generally something she didn't actually use or consider often (her current human classmates constantly joked about it with her). Why would you get used to hurting yourself? She asked, putting her jar of cream back in her jacket. Beatrice carried bandages with her, so getting hurt like she had just now seemed like a very regular occurrence. It made sense of course, the less evolved and intellectually stunted of her species tended to zone in on higher rietsu signatures like blood in a pool of sharks, so it stood to reason Beatrice was a constantly considered lunch item. Still, if she was so consistently acosted, why wouldn't she try and mitigate her self injuring nature? Was it a matter of control, unavoidable, or could she shield herself with some... alternative means? Chandre needed more data, but the puzzle was certainly interesting! How does your power work? Where did you get them? She asked, hoping she wasn't being too pushy, she just got very excited when an interesting puzzle came along.

Chandre listened to her as she told her story, and as most answers did, Chandre found more questions had been raised. For one, Chandre had to wonder if this was happening on a daily basis and she was scorching her fingers like this, how did she not have nerve damage? Maybe that’s what she considered ‘getting used’ to it, her fingers getting so damaged that she literally can’t feel it anymore. While an effective means of not feeling pain from your own powers, it really was a poor method in the long run. Then there was the mention of using electricity and ions to make heat, which reminded Chandre of her own experience with electrical heating (it ended poorly). Then she remembered a paper one of her classmates had mentioned, something about using electricity to start up a fusion reactor, which generated plasma by electrically heating ions. Perhaps this fiery cloak wasn’t actually fire, it could be super-heated plasma! This girl could very well be shrouding herself in a luminescent swath cut from the sun. That was definitely something to investigate. Then there was the mention of an impromptu spiritual heart transplant, which really caught Chandre’s attention. For one, there was very scarcely instances where her species ever considered somebody else more important than themselves, so self-sacrifice just seemed so foreign a concept. It was very touching that her friend would give their own life to save hers, if she could actually cry, there may be a tear trickling down her face at the poetry of it. There was also the very strange occurrence of the girl suddenly producing fire like abilities right afterwards. Could abilities be transferred in such a manner? It was the first time that Chandre had ever heard of such a thing, but she remembered anecdotal stories of people getting transplants from a musician and suddenly finding themselves able to play a violin without prior training and the like. Still, it would be immensely educational to open this girl’s chest up and take a look, but that would have to be for later in the best of circumstances.

You know, if the fire is what’s hurting you, it could be a sort of spiritual organ rejection. Like, your body finds these powers foreign, so it’s fighting them instead of adapting. She postulated, wondering if there was such a thing, again, opening questions she’d have to perform surgery to answer. Do you practice at all? You know, opening up your powers in a controlled, no stress environment to get a feel for it? Flex, see what you can do? She asked, curious if it was possible that she could use her force of will to rectify her problem. So many things were possible in the spiritual domain with the proper application of personal control. It took a lot of practice for me to be able to control my powers the way I do now. Now I can do all sorts of stuff instead of tripping over my own feet. She said, remember having actually tripped over her own feet several times before she had managed to wrangle her shapeshifting powers under control. Regardez She said as she took her hat off and shook her hair up, the strawberry blond locks changing hue and length, becoming a deep punkish blue, shaved short on one side and jaw line length on her other. Apprecie, non?

Chandre didn't think her theory on spiritual rejection was that far afield, spiritual rejection didn't mean physical rejection. It could have very well been the spiritual nature of the transplant that was allowing her heart to keep beating at all. It was fairly unlikely that whoever had performed her impromptu heart surgery was the same blood type, but even so, spiritual energy was probably the only thing keeping her alive. Either way, it wasn't particularly important at this point, she may have a chance to find out with closer study.

Who is this Ellis person? Chandre asked, having heard the name twice at this point. Whoever she was, clearly well trusted by the young miss Beatrice since she shared the secret of her powers. She also wasn't all that impressive when it came to training this young lady if the results were to be believed. You know, I'm a pretty powerful shapeshifter, and if you don't mind, I may be able to help you, if you'll trust me just a bit. Chandre said, holding her hands out for Beatrice to grab hold. I can protect you if you will allow me. She said, hoping that the girl would take her up on her offer. Chandre could tell that the young human was by far weaker by her rietsu, and hoped that her own power was enough to resist the excessive heat. If this worked, she would be able to study these powers up close.

Chandre had heard of the Jade Dragon Casino, but had never gone personally. She wasn't much of a gambler in any respect, never saw the appeal honestly, and a resort really didn't do much for a person who could basically 'run' to fiji on a whim. Still, she had heard rumours through the grape vine that the head of the illustrious building was a spiritually aware individual, guess she could call that rumour confirmed. If this Ellis woman was half as interesting as Beatrice, Chandre may have to reconsider making a trip over to the casino some time.

While Chandre made a mental note to go take a look at the casino, she had work to do in the here and now. She was happy that Beatrice had accepted her offer, the girl really was so sweet and trusting for the rather gruff exterior she put on. Chandre just wanted to hug her, but she held off on that for a moment.

This may seem... weird. Just stay calm and hopefully, everything goes well. She said with a smile as she started to focus on her Vetruvian Homme ability, but using it in a slightly different manner than usual. It took more concentration than her usual fair, but that was to be expected as she had never made a form fitting living creature before. Chandre let her wax like flesh run from her hands to coat Beatrice's, the viscous fluid running up the young womans' arms and rounding her shoulders to meet at her back forming a sort of 'coat' that was skin tight. On her right shoulder formed a little hole about the size of her palm, a small candle flame alight in it. Chandre let go, the 'coat' looking like it was made of small dark green scales, perhaps a nodd to the 'Jade dragon' mentioned earlier.

That should be enough to protect your hands and arms. For a while anyway. Chandre said as she took a step back, knowing that her Vetruvian Homme creatures have managed to absorb quite a bit of harm over the years. They adapted well to injury as well, so whatever power the girl uses would be quickly adapted to. The only down side is that she had to make one of her more powerful summons, which didn't last as long as her weaker ones. The other down side was that while Chandre could hide her rietsu fairly well, using her powers like that usually sent out a pretty clear sense of what kind of rietsu she had. If this girl had been paying attention, she may realize that Chandre wasn't exactly as human as she seemed. A risk she was hoping would pay off. Perhaps she was a gambler after all. Why don't you try lighting up?

Chandre was always happy to receive a compliment, tickled that Beatrice seemed to enjoy her little creation quite a bit. Her creations so rarely got the recognition they deserved in Chandre’s eyes and it was very refreshing to hear some accolades. She watched as Beatrice flexed her hands and got used to the fit, though on the inside she was hurriedly trying to wrestle her rietsu back down. She didn’t know if Beatrice had noticed, or even if the girl could sense anything (her knowledge of spiritually aware humans was pretty limited), but felt it better to be on the safe side. She grew a little concerned when Beatrice gave her an… odd look. She looked a bit perplexed, possibly worried and concerned, which put Chandre on edge. If Beatrice called Chandre out on being a hollow, there would be little other recourse than to fight the young woman. Now, it should be noted that while Chandre could handle herself in a fight, she tried to avoid combat wherever possible, and the thought of injuring such an interesting person weighed pretty heavily on her heart. She was pretty sure that’s what was being weighed on anyway, she had one in her body somewhere.

When Beatrice made mention of Chandre being a ‘fullbringer too’ the lady hollow had no idea what to think. She actually stopped a moment to take a look at Beatrice’s rietsu, see what was going on in there. It felt… similar to a hollow, but it was hard to tell. The girl was spiritually pretty weak, it was hard to discern the nuances of her soul, but there was definitely something Hollow-esque in there. It was lighter feeling almost, hard to describe, like trying to tell the difference between two different flavours of the same food. Regardless, it seemed like a pretty logical jump, and if her earlier attitude about hollows was any indicator Chandre would get a lot further in their conversation if her species remained a secret.

Oui, what did you think I was? Know many shapeshifter do you? She said with a jovial tone as if Beatrice was being a little silly. It seemed to go over pretty well though since she proceeded to activate her ability and enshroud herself in flame and lightning. Belle She muttered, getting her first full view of the fullbringer at full steam and having the chance to enjoy the view. She looked to her creation, the light reflecting brilliantly off the emerald scales, the flames licking it’s dragon like skin to little effect. There seemed to be a little charring in spots, but it could have very well just been soot from the burning air or the girl’s clothes. Every once in a while Chandre could see a little flick of flame touch and scorch the trim of Beatrice’s shirt or jacket, and while her Vetruvian Homme seemed to be faring well, she wanted to make sure that Beatrice was okay too. Are you feeling alright? Anything burning? She asked, curious if her little quick fix was working.

Chandre was glad to see that her Vetruvian Homme was doing its job well, keeping the girl safe from herself. She had been worried that the cloak of fire would be able to pierce the dragon like skin with its heat if not the actual flames. She was also glad that Beatrice seemed content to believe that Chandre wasn't anything other than a curious and helpful member of her particular breed of spiritual creature. So far, everything was going pretty damn well! Chandre even had a little time to examine the effects of this blazing shroud as it charred the ground.

Hmm, the ground is already black and coated in soot. I wish I had a thermometer.[/i] She thought to herself, wondering what heats the flames were reaching. At the moment she was standing at the very edge of the blaze, which seemed to crackle a good one to two meters around the girl. She could feel the heat, it was intense, but the rietsu was untamed, wild, and while it was ferocious in it's chaos, it was also weak. Well, it was weak enough, she thought, that she wouldn't have to worry about it hurting her... too much anyway. She tentatively put her hand forward, the flames licking her finger tips, but there wasn't really any pain of note. It was hot, but like grabbing a cup of tea that was just a little too warm to be comfortable. Chandre smiled happily as she plunged her hand into the blue flames without worry, orange whisps of fire dancing around her hand.

There is something that I would like to see, if you think you can. She said, bringing her hand back and pulling out a notebook from her class. She pulled a piece of paper from the little book and bunched it up in her hand, holding it tightly as she dropped her bag and books at the edge of the flame. She stepped in fully though, the clothes and hair blowing around in the wild flames as she stepped closer to Beatrice. I want to see if you can not burn this piece of paper. Try and push the flames away from your hand. Chandre said, holding her hand out for Beatrice to take the little crumpled up piece of paper.

Chandre had to admit that she was a little touched by the concern her new friend showed for her well being. Among humans, it was considered a rather normal trait, empathy for your fellow man and all, but among her species it was a very rare circumstance that concern be shown for a peer without a personal motive. Even Chandre rarely batted an eye if one of her ‘people’ was being mercilessly butchered around her, it was sort of par for the course. She wondered briefly if she had been jaded, but the start reality of it was that souls were very rarely destroyed, and even those she could count as friends would never truly die. Unless a Quincy got to them. Those guys suck.

As for the little experiment in Beatrice controlling her abilities, trying to preserve the little sheet of paper, that didn’t go too well. Either Beatrice was correct and her abilities were well and solidly beyond her ability to control, or it was some sort of mental block. Neither possibility were easily handled, though Chandre couldn’t help but wonder about some invasive surgeries that could rectify both issues. Fortunately for the little fullbringer, Chandre was growing quite fond of her, even beyond the curiosity that initially brought her attention forward. Now she wanted to help for a few reasons, to see the progression of a ‘fullbringer’ and study her more deeply, and to just, well, to help a friend. They were rare and delicate things, friendships, and while this one was built on a lie Chandre still cherished it.

Hmmm, if everything burns, you should probably turn this off soon. My little ‘display aid’ will come apart before long, and I don’t want you hurting yourself. Chandre said, running her hands down Beatrice’s scale covered arms. The flames and bolts of electricity dancing around them were starting to score charred gouges in the jade green armour, and even her more powerful Vetruvian Homme creations could only take a beating like this for so long. When Beatrice mentioned that her abilities were ugly, Chandre was actually completely shocked, completely taken aback by the idea. Que? Ugly? She asked, pulling Beatrice in with a gentle hug, holding the girl to her chest as if she may run away. You are a star, you are the heart of a fire, you are light and warmth and brilliance! I stand at the centre of an inferno, and I cannot describe the beauty of it! Chandre said, ever word of it true, and even her mind was ablaze with thoughts on how to make an art instillation where anybody could see the inside of a fire. She let Beatrice go, stooping low and moving her finger along the ground to pick up some soot that even now glowed in the still raging pyre they stood in. A thing is not ugly because it does what is in its nature. You are a fire mon enfant, you are beautiful and pure. If you make ash, it is because it is in your nature, and a fair price to coming too close to such glory. Chandre said, hoping to perk Beatrice up a little. However, in the interest of not hurting yourself, why don’t I make something for you that’s a little more permanent, and perhaps a little more discrete, to keep you safe from your flames? Chandre offered. She didn’t often make her ‘art’ for others, but working on commissions could be fun.