Family Reunion? [Private/Ibiki]

"So you guys did know I was here! Good, I was underestimating your defenses a bit, in all honesty--though I still think you guys could do more than just a notification system. No worries~, I'm sure Shadin won't mind if I work on some projects to help you guys out there."

Despite her brazen words, Yuel was still speaking with earnest intentions, and normally even the usually crass human wouldn't be as blunt as this, but for obvious reasons, the girl that never drank alcohol before seemed to have a low tolerance to its inhibiting effects. It hadn't been long since she took her few sips, but already it seemed to be affecting her. Which is also why her more amiable tendencies and inclination to solve her problems with progressive solutions--such as suggesting making something for the Gotei's defenses which she still definitely underestimated--came out so quickly. Yuel treated the inevitably threats with some seriousness, after all, and Soul Society was sure to become a target. For unknown reasons, the blonde felt some sort of need to protect it, a feeling yet to be explored in light of having rarely ever been in this realm.

"Hmm~? Hooky? Haha, no-no, I really di--*burp*--did come here on accident, though I'm sure old-man Shadin wouldn't mind me missing for a little bit, ehehe~~."

As Yuel's speech began to slur--though still clearly spoken and understood--she reached for the horned woman's sake disk, once more pleading with her eyes to have another taste. The effects of the alcohol also served to damper the girl's tastebuds, or at least the memory of how bitter the sake tasted, such that she seemed more eager to have another sip. Unsurprisingly, Yuel evidently really liked the experience of drinking. In a way, it made her feel a bit more unhinged, optimistically speaking.

"Ehhh, really? Me too~! There's never a coincidence in the world. Everything happens for a reason, I think. Not because of fate, or something silly like that; I'm a woman of science! I call it probability and causality~!"

Yuel pumped her fist in the air with a triumphant, proud pose in response to the ginger's comment about not believing in random encounters. The Duulheim truly did believe that in a world as vast and spiritually influenced as theirs, a coincidence was just lazy thinking and excuses. That was something only someone like James Caldwell would believe.

"Ne, ne, you and I, we sure do think alike, huh? Great minds, and all that--fufufufu~. Speaking of, you never did introduce yourself; I'd do one myself, but it seems you already know me, ehe~."

Evidently, Yuel was in a really good mood. Maybe it was the atmosphere, and the alcohol was definitely a massive factor, but the longing to be in Soul Society was real. She didn't realise it until she finally came here, but Yuel really was excited to learn about the realm. Maybe this little horned girl was right--something in Soul Society was waiting for her, and it would serve to complete her. That'd surely be an extravagant story; already, Yuel was thinking of how she might tell this story to Shadin and her mates back in Karakura. Of course, Yuel didn't miss the shinigami attentively scanning her all the while, but the girl wrote it off as them being precautionary. Which, in a way, served to improve her impression of the organisation, that even in what she perceived to be a jolly atmosphere, they were still astute.

"Err, my energy? Mmm... sure? I don't have much to spare, me being as weak as I am and all, but if you can manage to sample it, go ahead."

Speaking of her weakness, that sense of powerless, was a bit of a sensitive subject for Yuel, especially when it came to her energy levels. Though she's more or less decided on improving herself through machinery and equipment than spiritual growth, the girl still yearned to attain some sort of superlative power. The initial feeling of wonder and glee when she first saw Azure demonstrate his awesome powers lit a burning desire in her heart, and knowing that desire wouldn't be realised offered some pain. Thus, despite her jolly temperament, this sudden change in subject served to put her in a bit more of a solemn mood, her more serious speech pattern reflecting this.

"Mm, I don't think you'll get much from it, though; I have this thing that I call the 'Keter Particle', a sort of metaphysical particle embedded into my entire being. It makes it really difficult to gather any data from analysing my body or soul. I believe it's one of the core reasons I have moments like this, where I suddenly appear in Soul Society. Though I'm glad about it this time around, most of the time it's a bit of an inconvenience, in a lot of ways."

"Just a few changes, that's all, mostly additions but they should all be improvements!"


Telling Yuel to ask the research department was like telling her to "go ahead"; as far as Yuel was concerned, this was permission, and immediately she felt rejuvenated. Though the girl wondered on what authority the girl was speaking at, she placed some faith in what she said, and--though cocky--Yuel felt absolutely confident that they'd take her offer to help out. Free help from an ally is free help, after all; maybe if it were someone else, they might have some ulterior motives to be so hands-on with helping the Gotei develop and improve their defenses, but this was Yuel Duulheim.

In spite of her earlier gleeful tone at the mention of their research department, Yuel was quick as ever to switch speaking patterns, especially with the discussion of different topics. She used different manners of speech to most appropriately suit the tone of the discussion, with something like "fate" and its origins being a serious enough subject to speak more enunciated and firmly. Which was odd, considering this implied a level of implicit understanding towards the flow of a conversation, and in spite of that Yuel constantly did things her own way, in her own flow, and seemingly without consideration for her conversational partner a lot of the time.

"No-no, I'm a firm believer of logic and reason. Fate has this intonation of mysticism, and as far as I'm concerned is the poor man's lazy alternative to causality and probability. Those that believe their destiny is dictated by some higher power has also assented all control over their path in life, and that's a despicable thing. Pull up your bootstraps, common man! The future is seized through competence, effort, and opportunity!"

Yuel raised her chin up proudly, confident in the reasoning of her words. She may not be fully grown, but the girl certainly thought her beliefs were wise beyond her years. That raised chin only leveled once Ibiki mentioned her name. Rather, the fact that she was the Captain Commander of the Gotei and head of the Suika; the horned ginger never mentioned her given name, but just as Ibiki could discern who Yuel was, Yuel put two and two together and finally recognised the woman. Now she knew why this woman talked about having "her goons do this and that" and generally spoke with a sense of authority. Such that, now knowing who she was talking to, Yuel quickly offered a more formal greeting, a tinge of nervousness in hand. She did a deep and respectful bow having now come to the realisation of their difference in status.

"O-ou, m-moshi moshi, Suika-dono thank you for having memynameisYuelDuulheimoftheYayjuu."

That same nervousness--and Yuel's natural idiosyncrasies and peculiar sense of vocabulary--served to botch her introduction, failing to use proper greeting words, odd honorifics, and at the end trail off her voice whilst speaking faster and rushing to the end. Only then did the girl remember that it was the Captain Commander who gave her permission to visit the Research Department of the Gotei, and with this in mind she felt there was total allowance to work with them, not just "visit". With this realisation, Yuel sprung her body up to a proper stature, that air of nervousness completely gone from her body. What was replaced was an aura of jubilation as Yuel's future prospects seemed bright. With this, Yuel had access to the research departments of three different organisations. Just the thought of all the possibilities had her nearly salivating.

"Thank you very much, Suika-dono! This Hooky Pa--Duulheim surely won't disappoint any expectations!"

Yuel offered another bow in thanks, this one quick and excited. Excited enough for the girl to not realise Ibiki extracting some energy from her, though even if she focused Yuel wouldn't recognise this interaction; she was basically spiritually powerless, after all. Only when her bow completed and she picked her head up did Yuel notice the orange mists, questions forming in her mind that through some deductions she quickly answered herself. Not wanting to interfere with the process, and also having the itching desire to sneeze, Yuel held herself still and waited to provide a resounding "HACHUU!" after all the mist exited her nose.

"Mmm, I bent by body ithn't qui--*sniffle*--buuh, I meant my body isn't quite 'unique' so much as enigmatic. There's something in it that--"

Yuel paused to take note that Ibiki was getting more comfortable and followed suit, sitting on the floor just beside the shinigami with her legs apple-sauce crossed. The girl took a seat and remembered the gourd she always kept on her hip that her grandmother gifted her. This thought was accompanied by the sudden transition of Yuel's appearance to her younger years, which offered a striking resemblance to Ibiki in many ways. From their rather wild vibrant yellow-orange hair, diminutive stature, or even their gourds. Though she never really established why, the Duulheim was always fond of this appearance, her messy relaxed kimono, tiger skin, and gourd on hip; none of it ever seemed to have significant meaning, but the girl thought this attire was "cool". Unfortunately, as Yuel rose in position and status, the need to look more professional came about, so outside of in the comfort of her own home, there wasn't many opportunities for her to wear this.

"does things like this. It's not a stable interaction, and presumably not controllable. I'm sort of like a singularity in space-time; it's hard to explain, honestly."

This sudden change of appearance was naturally due to the Keter Particle and its tendency to have Yuel travel throughout time and space, and on occasion switch her body at a given time with a body of hers from the past, future, or alternative present. It was a frequent enough circumstance that, provided no memories of her changed or none of these changes interfered with what she was doing, Yuel just ignored the changes. In the process, due to having switched bodies the alcohol and latent spiritual energy faded away, hence her speech pattern now more clear and enunciated. Furthermore, when she heard Ibiki suggest their relation, the much more aware Yuel offered a look that harbored doubt, but deep curiosity as to what could've put the Suika under this impression.

"Again, I'm not really too fond of using the term "fate"; even if we were sisters, I'm sure there'd be something more than just "it was meant to be" that might've drawn us together; nonetheless, what makes you think we could be related?"

Having mentioned their relation, Yuel started considering all these physical similarities the two had, and maybe some other commonalities they had on other matters. Yuel's physical appearance offered a striking resemblance to Ibiki's sister from her youth--the one always incubated in the labs of the Research Department for reasons her parents may or may not have discussed with her. It was around the time Ibiki was probably just barely a toddler, the growing body hooked up to various equipments and tubes, suggesting that the machinery was her lifeline. Ibiki might've started to remember these times, and since becoming a captain and further ascending in status and position, the Suika may have further looked into the matters of the sister she would never grow up with.

Thus, once the grey-eyed youth left and Ibiki spoke up with confirmation on this, Yuel's eyes widened in confusion, though not necessarily surprise.

"Uh, I'm not quite sure how that's possible, though? I'm definitely human, through and through, born to a human male and human female, with human parents of their own. As for how we... move forward from here?"

Yuel paused for a moment, thinking of what was to happen next; usually, she'd prefer to try and establish the fact when faced with a predicament, but this wasn't necessarily a predicament? It could be, though; there are a lot of implications and things to discuss with this sort of thing established. Enough that, though Yuel continued to unceasingly make calculations, her sober mind started looking for external methods. Like getting drunk again.

"I guess we could start with some more sake? And questions, ask a lot of questions."