Searching to Pay: A meeting in the park [andrew]

The wind shifted as the woman entered the park, her red hair flowing behind her. Her eyes looked up, a soft yawn escaping her lips as she searched for the moon in the sky. After only a few moments, she brought her eyes back down, picking up her pace as she moved deeper in to the park. The night air sure felt nice as it flowed around her, but she couldn’t stay still right now. She could imagine Miaka coming home and finding the note she had left, what might be the last words her sister heard from her. It was in this letter that she had explained to Miaka why she had left, her need to go to the vizard corps and make payment for her crimes. If this payment meant her life, then that was what would happen, though Sherri didn’t like it. A shiver rand up her spine as she walked deeper, a feeling of dread within her awakening. Would the people here kill her on the spot? She had been a member of the monsuta before finding her true family after all. She hadn’t even handed in her resignation to the monsuta, and while the monsuta had probably given up on finding her, they probably didn’t share that information with their enemies. If the people here still thought she was a member of the monsuta… they might kill her on the spot. It was a horrible thought, one Sherri didn’t want to think about, and she pushed it out of her head as she walked over to a bench, sitting down on it with a soft sigh.

“Was this really a smart idea… I don’t know anymore, Mastiv.”

Andrew had been walking through the park in a calm mood. He had been taking time off to work on some projects, especially when it came to sharpening his kidou skills. But even then he still had been thinking about ideas what to do next. As he continued to walk, he felt a presence he didn't feel for a long time. He followed the direction until he had found Sherri again, and he was actually very confused with her: she seemed to just be sitting there. Not only that, what was more confusing to him was that she seemed to be much more sane this time around. It almost was like she had completely flipped a switch and went from Mr. Hyde to Dr. Jekyll once again. But for all that he knew, it could easily be some kind of trap. He remembered how aggressive she was and knew all too well about the nature of her fire element. He walked up to her carefully, looking her over to see if what he was seeing was legitimate before asking the simple question,"Are we sane today?" It seemed like a strange question, but after facing her in battle he almost expected for her to switch back into speedster mode complete with her hollow mask on.

Sherri smelled him in the air before she saw him, noticing his presence simply by those flames of his as he approached. A soft sigh escaped her lips as he neared her, closing her eyes as she leaned back on the bench. He took a while once he got close to her, she could sense his eyes looking over her as she sat there. Finally he stopped, asking if she was in her right mind today. Yawning, she opened her eyes slowly before answering the question of his.

“If I wasn’t sane, you would have been attacked long before you reached this bench.”

She let out a small groan before she continued, looking a bit frustrated.

“Honestly, he is such a pain, always going on like this. ‘His flames smell so good, kill him, eat his flames!’ That little bastard started acting up ever since I first smelled you, sheesh. Couldn’t he just shut up and behave himself, he knows I won’t do it so why go on about it…”

Sighing, after her long complaint Sherri looked up at the man before her, a soft smile playing on her face.

“Well, I didn’t think I would be seeing you again. Is there something I can do for you?”

She thought back to her memories of the time that the two of them had met. That was a fairly long time ago, before she had recovered her memories, back when she had still been under the corrupting influences that Miaka’s flames held at bay. It was a time when she was still with Tora Lionus and the Monsuta, back when she called that man father. She had attacked this man when she had noticed his flames, and she had been quite ferocious. She only hoped that she could make up for the wrongs she had done him on that day. Looking up, she asked him something on her mind.

“I never managed to catch your name last time we met, mind letting me know what to call you?”

"Forgive me if I am not just a tad skeptical. You did try to bake me in my own skin the last fight we had."

Andrew continued to maintain a skeptical look on his face. Almost expecting her to snap quickly into battle and try to tear his eyes out. He started to listen to her intently, apparently it was the inner hollow that was the driving force in keeping her trying to set him on fire. Naturally he couldn't be able to judge, especially when he thought about his own inner hollow and how it always tried to kill him in the past. But now the hollow seemed to be much more silent whether it was because of conformity or it was trapped in its own head he couldn't be sure of. He never does know when it came to his inner hollow.

He had been lost in his thoughts for a little bit of time before shaking his head. "No I didn't need anything, I was just surprised when I felt your presence once again. To be honest I never thought I would actually see you in a calm state. Anyway, since now we can actually be able to introduce ourselves, my name is Andrew Takahashi and I am a lieutenant colonel in the vizard corp." He seemed to be much more relaxed now that she seemed to be talking normally so he thought that it could be safe.

Sherri listened to man’s responses, looking down at her lap when he mentioned their previous meeting. When he mentioned he was from the vizard corp, and a lieutenant at that, she clasped her hands in front of her keeping her head down. A look of sadness spread across her face, and when she spoke her voice was soft, though loud enough that Andrew could hear her.

“Well Andrew, I’m Sherri Yazaki. I’m actually glad I met you to be honest… I wanted to ask someone a question for a while, and it seems like I’ll get my chance tonight. That’s if you don’t mind of course.”

She sighed, going silent for a few minutes before continuing to talk to Andrew, her innermost worry spilling out from inside her. She hadn’t spoken to her siblings about it, afraid of their reaction, especially Tsui. Her older brother had already shown he would kill her for her usage of the yazaki flames. Thus she now spilled this worry out towards the man she had tried to kill, hoping that he might have some advice for her.

“Is it possible for me to right the wrongs I have committed? Can I even be forgiven, or have I done too much to be able to redeem myself? I… I’ve killed people, hurt others, done other horrible things… sometimes because I enjoyed it, others because I was told to…”

Tears streamed down her face as she thought about the horrendous things she had done while employed by the monsuta. Her body shivered, what she had done disgusted her, she hated what she had been while under the corrupting influence of her inner hollow. She had endured this thought while with her siblings, knowing that if she left Miaka’s side for even a second she would not be able to control herself. Training to achieve her bankai had allowed her to absorb Miaka’s flames in to her own sword, giving the benefit of those flames to her constantly. Thus she had come here, seeking out someone who could help her figure out whether there was hope for her left or not.

Nice to have a name to the face, and said face isn't trying to cut off mine.

He tilted his head in curiosity, though he didn't say anything he did look like he wanted to hear what she wanted to say. Whatever was on her mind, it was clear that it was something that had been there for a long time. He waited for her to speak, wondering what she was going to say before asking a question that he knew all too well: the issue of redemption. Redemption was something that he knew all too well, but his redemption was due to being unprepared for what was going to come instead of any misdeeds. But he had always believed that redemption could happen. It was one of the strongest beliefs that had only been forged stronger after the inner hollow came out the second time. Even with his mask he still was loyal with helping out the living while defending the living world from the hollows and arrancar.

He saw her shed tears, and almost by instinct he held Sherri's hand as he spoke with a kind voice. "I believe redemption is possible. I can see that you do desire to change and if you like I can be able to help out." He had wanted to try his best to help her, and since they were both flame elements he believed that he could be able to give her a better shot at training.

Sherri felt his hand grasp at hers and she looked at him as he spoke, a look of strange disbelief. After all she had done there was still the possibility of redemption out there? She couldn’t believe what she was hearing, the tears continuing to flow down her face as she began to speak.

“R-Really? Can I truly be forgiven for what I’ve done? I… I didn’t think it was possible… What do I have to do? What is required of me?”

She just looked up at him for a few moments before flinging herself against him, wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug. Tears continued to flow down her face, but these were tears of relief and happiness, not tears of sadness and pain. She would finally be able to atone for her sins, it seemed like she had been waiting for an eternity just for this moment. Her mouth formed in to a soft smile and she began to speak softly to Andrew once again.

“Thank you Andrew… Thank you so much…”

She released him from her hug, backing up a bit. Her face was a bit flushed, and she looked away slightly before talking again.

“I… I hope I didn’t offend you with my reaction… I just feel so relieved… I didn’t think it was possible to be forgiven…”

She sat back down on the bench, her thoughts racing. She felt so relaxed, like someone had just removed shackles that had been binding her in the darkness. Deep in her heart though, Sherri knew she still had to crawl out from the pit of evil she had gotten herself in to. She was not free just yet, and she had to do whatever she could to free redeem herself for what she had done. Looking up at Andrew, this time her face was set with determination, she was ready to do whatever she needed to in order to redeem herself.

“What should I do Andrew? What must I do to redeem myself?”

"For starters whatever has happened, happened. We cannot change the past, but what we can do is learn from it. That way we can make sure that what happened before doesn't happen again."

He remembered that all too well, especially with his own memories. He knew all too well about all the things he had done that had made him what he was not just as a chef but also a shinigami and a vizard. If he had not learned from any of the mistakes he had made from the minor to some of the more dangerous ones that he had made then he would have easily been someone completely different. He was surprised by the hug, but almost by instinct he had hugged her back. Even though he was surprised, he still wanted to give her a hug. He wanted to show Sherri that he wanted to help her out. "Well, I think the best way to do this is to do a clean slate. What you did before is all in the past. From this point on we start completely fresh." He then extended his hand out to her as he smiled. "So, it's nice to meet you Sherri. My name is Andrew Takahashi." It might seem a little bit random, but there was a method behind it all. He wanted her to see that things even if there was a past that he was willing to keep it in the past.