Why Is Your Hair Blue? [Ehefra, Kaede]

Ehefra couldn't help but smile a little to herself at the girl's reaction to the bat. Really the simplest of things for her, and the girl really DID seem to be super psyched. It made her smile all the wider, certainly it helped her feel a little less shitty about having to limp around with her bum ankle. It was nice feelin like a hero again. Or ...some variation of that. And she had to admit it was still a little...weird listening to the way this woman spoke. Not just about herself, but in general. But it wasn't ....TOO surprising. She'd seen the poorer sections of society. Even outside of the wastelands in Malaysia, there were still poorer areas where people could trample over eachother, frankly saving hollows the trouble. She was aware of it. But it was still strange to see in such a stark example.

And when they finally came to the spot, Ehefra stared and looked down the alleyway. There was no doubt about it. There weren't any doorways up into apartment buildings. There was no way to ...misconceive what it was Kaede had for a dwelling. One glance down the alley, and seeing the tents and such strewn back there. And Ehefra immediately understood. And she .......was torn. She was homeless?

Not that she was surprised people could still be homeless. She'd seen PLENTY of them. But it was strange to see it in ...well... a woman with the guts to go marching right up to a hollow with a bat. That kind of determination wasn't something you saw in some random bum. That was the determination to DO something that usually came with marketable skills. But here she was.... in some alleyway. Talking about how Ehefra should give up on her. And ....that promptly solved the rest f the riddle.

She didn't know this woman. But she knew someone drowning in self doubt when she saw them. Or ..perhaps not self doubt. But ...sinking self worth. She looked at the alley, and then looked back to Kaede with .... an uncertain expression. And in some way....she saw herself in the woman. Saw her own .... sinking words on her own lips, mirrored in this blue-haired punkette. The same tone of voice that the woman gave that little murmur,.... was the same voice she'd heard from her own mouth..confiding in Natasha or Ira.

She was quiet for several moments as she ..... considered what to do. The SMART thing to do, would be to give the woman some assurance. Maybe direct her to local services which would help her get on her feet. Point the woman in the right direction. Be a good sumaritan.

But she couldn't do that. She couldn't be satisfied with just....turning the girl away, in the direction of someone else to help. Something felt too.....personal about this. It wasn't. But .....no....it WAS personal. Even if it the situation inherently itself wasn't personal. Seeing ....what she did in Kaede's expression. That defeated tone. That'd sealed the deal.

"I ... see...." She trailed off. Then turning to Look at KAede closely and ...furrow her brows. The gears turning in her head. She couldn't help herself. even if some part of her really didn't LIKE Kaede. Some ..foreign...western blue bitch. That ....prejudicial part of her she'd worked so hard on suppressing and ...crunching down into a corner of her mind. It gave a pathetic protest in her line of thoughts before she promptly ignored it and put on a smile.

[color=steelblue["Well. It does kinda suck having to carry shit with this ankle..."[/color] She murmured, looking off to the side, then back to Kaede. "And you know. I'm staying at a hotel while I'm in town. I hardly live here. But well, they pulled the fuckin rug on me. Insisted they only had the penthouse open. Damn place is a little big for just one gal, tch, the place is supposed to be for three people, they said I could double up if I was travelling with someone. ." She paused and .... cleared her throat. This was a little ridiculous. But ...well...the part of her that was driven to help wasn't exactly rational to begin with.

"Why don't you come stay with me? Least while I'm in town."

Ehefra couldn't help but give a bit of a sheepish smile as Kaede commented about her mannerism. "I may have heard that once or twice." She conceded, folding her arms over her chest and then raising a brow slightly. She looked around. "Yea. Well...." There were any number of reasons this was probably a bad idea. This woman could be some kinda mugger. Or this could be some kind of act. And frankly, it really wasn't her JOB to go doing stuff like this.

But she wanted to do it. So, there it was.

"You're right. It's not exactly anything I'm gonna benefit from. But I don't mind having a roommate while I'm here. You were willing to risk your life fighting a hollow." She shrugged and put on a calm smile. "That's enough to justify a couple days of room and board in my book." There were a few other things she had in mind. Mainly ....curiosity she supposed. After all, the woman had been no match for that one hollow, but there was still potential there. AFter all, it was the Vandenreich's duty to enforce the realm more or less these days.

Sure, she'd be in the area for a while. But if she could better prepare this woman to handle hollows when she wasn't around, that was far more value wasn't it? And the fact that such a thing would be a fairly profitable skill and might help get this woman off the streets was a nice potential bonus.

Ehefra watched as the woman went about collecting her things. It wasn't a bad setup. She'd made a lot of little camps like this. Sometimes with more things, sometimes with less. It was familiar in a way she wasn't really used to. Things that reminded her of those days. But well.... a lot had happened. Those memories, they weren't as painful as they used to be, and she couldn't help but smile as she noticed the glimmer of excitement in the way she conducted herself. Once the woman had all of her things together, Ehefra gave her a little nod and started to lead the way back to her hotel.

"There really aren't any internal parts. Beeps himself is just a sortof thick cube of energy. The actual guts of how he functions is ... a sort of ...spirit programming. That's my special ability." she explained with an idle smile. She paused, looking over toward the blue-haired wman and tilting her head. Hmmm. She turned her attention back to the road a head of them as they made their way through the city, continuing to answer the woman's questions, if any, regarding her little helper. However, as they finally came to the entrance to her Hotel, she paused and glanced at her.

"Bye the way. I don't think you mentioned your name. What should I call you?"

Ehefra raised a brow and smiled, a little chuckle escaping her as she noted the burgeoning curiosity within the girl. She smiled, knowing all too well that spark of craving knowledge. Making her way up to her hotel room, she spoke briefly with the receptionist to inform them that she had someone else who would be in her room. They seemed uncertain, but there was no wavering in Ehefra's voice. She was firm and sure. The woman nodded along and the pair of them would make their way to the elevator as Kaede spoke.

"Kaede. Nice name. And ..heh. It's pretty complicated. It's a matter of manipulating spiritual particles that are free-floating in the air, and making them do what you want. Uh... programming is a lot more ......difficult. But it's all a little complicated one way or another. Though... it does come with a price..." She added, folding her arms as she closed her eyes. "The sensitivity to spirit energy has adverse effects. It makes you very weak to hollows especially. Even a simple bite can kill you if your health is compromised, or if a particularly strong hollow reiryoku gets in you." She noted lightly, sighing before looking up at the ceiling of the elevator, and giving a sheepish smile. "But hey. There's plenty of other types of spiritual powers you can delve into."

Ding.

She perked up, smiling a bit as the elevator stopped and the doors slid open. Ehefra promptly made her way down the halway immediately before them and promptly unlocked the door and gestured inside. "aaaand ere we are. A penthouse suite. Honestly more than I usually get for a damn room. But well. The Hotel decided to jerk me around and I was too tired to argue." She murmured, shrugging her shoulders. It was fairly large to say the least, Not too fancy though. Thank goodness.

Ehefra raised a brow, looking over her shoulder at the woman before waving a hand. "Well, there's always becoming a substitute shinigami. The Gotei has gotten pretty progressive with who they want in. You weren't too bad back there. You at least probably have some spiritual potential, I can sense that easy enough. There's also probably a buncha ... dark...whatever stuff to gain abilities. However." She turned and looked squarely at Kaede.

"None of that is necessary if you want strength. Even what I can do is merely an extension. As a Quincy I draw my power from the external. I admit....I kinda wish... that I hadn't." She let her gaze drift off to the distance. Thinking..... about all the people she poisoned with hope in Malaysia. It made her shudder, before she pushed those thoughts away. "But, you are entirely capable of simply learning to harness your internal spirit energy. In all honesty... we quincy sortof ...cheat. We just take in energy rather than cultivating our own. But you don't NEED anything special to learn to use your own energy. Your soul is a weapon asd much as those that I create are. It's just a matter of learning how to use it. Some people find out through martial arts. Some through meditation. and so on." She noted simply enough. What a world if she'd just been a martial artist instead of a quincy. Hm.

That said, she did smile a little to herself as she spotted Kaede heading right for the bathroom. Remembering herself doing something similar after roughing it outdoors for several years. Though, that sudden and earnest thanks had her ....surprised. And she gave a sheepish smile back. "You're welcome." She noted quietly, and once Kaede had vanished into the bathroom she sighed. Pausing as she considered the situation.

She didn't know what she was doing. This was Malaysia all over again. She'd tried to pivor hard into alternative sources of power. She couldn't train another quincy. Help one that already existed? Sure. But ....she didn't think she had it in her to take on that kind of responsibility again. She sighed and rubbed her eyes slowly, rolling her shoulder a bit before collapsing onto her couch, putting her feet up on the back of it and outright just lounging all across it as she took a moment to just rest and elevate her ankle. God she hated this stupid fucking cane.