Girls' Week Out [Hiroe, Cala, Hana]

Morning came early for Hana on this day. She had been planning this vacation for a few weeks now, and even made sure that Cala knew she was coming and who with. It would likely be a surprise to Hiroe though. When Hana and Hiroe last talked, she told her about a luxurious spa in the Rukon. That wasn't where Hana was taking her. Instead, Hiroe was finally going to get to see the World of the Living, like she had been wanting for quite a long time. Hana hoped this trip would motivate Hiroe to keep going and allow herself to get to know Cala more. Two birds, one stone.

Hana popped out of bed, beating the alarm, and began her morning routine. When it was time to pick the outfit, she came up with something more fun than the regular school girl uniform she normally wore when in her gigai. Once ready, she had to wait a couple of hours before the meeting time came. She may have been a little excited, but it would all be worth it. There was a selfish reason in all of this too. Hana didn't have many friends, and this was her chance to create bonds like she read about in her books. For once, a friendship would be real, not in her head.

When the time came, just a bit before noon, Hana made her way to the area she told Hiroe she'd meet her. She couldn't just let he know where they were going over the phone. She wanted to see her face when they arrived at the senkaimon. And, if everything went well, she and Hiroe would be able to hang out with Cala for at least three days. Then, Hana would be back on patrol. For now, though, it was vacation time! Hana was only there a few minutes early, and saw Hiroe as she arrived. Hana hurried her pace and jogged over. "Hey! I assume you are ready to go?"

Surprisingly, compared to the last time, Hiroe was in high spirits. A few days ago, she'd displayed something between maintaining a happy expression while keeping her more negative thoughts away. Now? She was making her way towards the location Hana had agreed upon, a bright smile spread across her lips. Hana was really secretive about where they were going. Hiroe's imagination wondered. She had been quite vocal about the luxurious spa. Could that be it? Well, she wouldn't know until she found out. And so, Hiroe would continue walking towards the area they agreed to meet up, sporting a stylish dress and pants combo she'd weaved together a few days before. Sort of an inspired look from that outfit she'd seen Hana wearing during their little reunion. Fiddling around with a pair of the best glasses she could find in the rukongai, Hiroe made her way toward Hana, happily waving her hand as she approached her friend.

"Yup. All set~ Excited, too. I'm genuinely curious to see what you have in store..."

"Perfect!" Hana said and took Hiroe's hand, excitedly leading her along until they came to one of the senkaimons. Hana wasn't sure whether Hiroe had seen one before, but she held out an arm to present it to her. "Ta-da!" Hana said with a big smile. "You and I are going to meet up with a friend and vacation in Karakura Town! You, my friend, are finally heading to the World of the Living!"

Hana gave Hiroe a moment to react and joined in on any celebration that Hiroe would display. Once they calmed down, Hana pulled a notepad out of her bag. "I was sure to check on current events. There is a festival of some sort being put on as a fundraiser for a sports team tomorrow. They're promising different foods, games, and even a fireworks show at the end. I also have us checked in at a nice hotel, one that gives us access to a rather nice spa, similar to the one I told you about before, but no hot springs. Disappointing, but they have other things to make up for it. The most important event, however, is introducing you to Cala. I met her at the end of my last patrol. She's truly a dear. I'm sure you'll get along wondrously."

"Time to go?" Hana said. Once Hiroe confirmed, Hana signaled those running the senkaimon. It was already all programed, so they opened it up quickly. Hana began stepping through, holding out a hand for Hiroe to hold if she was nervous about going through a senkaimon. After some walking, they made it through the other side, landing in an alleyway near one of the main streets. "Cala will meet us near the hotel, so we can check in. After that, we'll figure out where to go next."

To say Hiroe was over the moon would've been a severe understatement. Her eyes shot wide like saucers, golden orbs beaming with happiness. If she were so capable, she'd be having a cartoonish reaction simply gazing into the Senkaimon! Without hesitation, HIroe is already rushing into Hana, hugging her so tightly that one might have thought she wanted to squeeze the life out of her! She had always heard stories of earth, had always talked about it with her peers in class, and now... she was going to be spending a vacation down there! After gathering herself and coming off of that elated high, Hiroe is listening to Hana as she divulges the gameplan, giddily grinning from ear to ear. Festivals. Food. Fireworks... and what's this? Another friend to tagalong? Hiroe can no longer wait. Hana's prepared to go, and so she reaches out to grab her hand as they step through the Senkaimon.

The short-lived trek would be forever ingrained in her memory. It was so cool walking through one of these for the first time! Within moments, they had arrived. Her eyes are already darting between anything she can catch a glimpse of. Birds. Civilians. Humans, yes humans! Maintaining some modicum of composure, Hiroe clears her throat turning towards Hana.

"Sounds good to me~! I'll let you lead the way. I'm trying to contain my excitement so bad, but I'm failing horribly," she humored, walking alongside her companion.

In contrast to Hiroe, to say Cala was nervously excited would have been exactly, completely correct. When Hana had contacted them, the first person to ever reach out to THEM first, Cala's tummy had done backflips in joy. The very simple act of knowing that a friend reached out to them, came to them, made it known they weren't..... alone.... Cala clutched their stomach softly through their new clothes and drooped their head sheepishly. Oh, right, their new clothes! Cala had absolutely no idea how to have a "girl's night" so they had taken the opportunity to prepare by asking Arianda-Oneesan for help. Which resulted in a rather drastic change of outfit, some light lip gloss, and just enough dolling to make them look like they cared about the event of not only going out to explore with Hana, but also meeting a new potential friend who was having her first time in the Living World!

Cala couldn't really remember their first time in the Living World but comparing their experiences with it and Hueco Mundo now.... they much preferred it. It was where they were meeting the other two, after all, and a place they were going on a vacation! Cala vaguely understood what a vacation was, and even their other self wished them to have fun, which was a good sign. So it was that Cala's head spun as they tried to remember everything Hana had planned out, the only real thing they remembered being the hotel to meet her at, their long skirt swishing and gently brushing their pale legs in a way that their usual shrine maiden attire did not. The top hugging their chest and sides in ways that made them feel just a tiny bit more self-conscious about... well... themselves.

Suddenly feeling their face heat up Cala shook their head, set their thin shoulders, and waited in front of the hotel Hana had told them about with a small pink purse clasped in their hands in front of them, shoulders softly raising up together in a nervous shrug that never ceased. A few passerby gazing at Cala in a manner that made them feel.... uncomfortable. Made them shuffle their feet, made them want to hide really, but instead all they did was idly toy with the silver sunflower zipper on the purse. The bag itself, while pink, boasted silver flower-like vines that created texture over the strap before coming to a neat little silver sunflower that acted as the actual zipper pull for the purse. Cala liked it, it was simple, efficient, but also cute and nice without being gaudy.

Smiling a little Cala would remind themselves to keep an eye out for Hana and her friend, looking back and forth with wide lavender eyes until, eventually, they spotted them and smiled more. Hana looked wonderful, though also in a different outfit than when Cala last saw her, and her friend looked to be having the time of her life. The starry-eyed look on Hiroe's face made Cala smile earnestly, a genuine smile, and Cala sighed quietly as they were.... happy. They felt like they really needed this right now and as they shook their head to clear their thoughts they blinked at the purple ends of their usually raven hair before remembering that they and Ari had put in a temporary dye just for the occasion to make their hair pop more and bring out their lavender eyes. Cala wasn't sure if it worked or not, but then again, Cala didn't know anything about fashion to begin with.

As Hana and Hiroe approached Cala's shoulders relaxed and they gave a tiny, sheepish wave to Hana.

"Hi Hana umm..."

Turning to Hiroe Cala gave a tiny bow and tucked their hair back behind their left ear. Doing their best to introduce themselves.

"... h-hi I'm Cala. It's nice to meet you!~"

Seeing Hiroe that happy was proof enough that this trip would be worth it. Hana returned Hiroe's elation-hug and let her calm. Soon, they were off and even sooner were in the world of the living. Hana got her bearings while Hiroe looked around. The two walked toward the hotel, where Cala should be meeting up with them, though Hana made sure to explain what little she could as they journeyed. The hotel came into view and Hana began focusing on finding Cala. She recognized her friend immediately; that sheepish nature was definitely Cala! Hana pointed Cala out to Hiroe and they made their way over. When Cala waved, Hana waved back.

"Hello again! You look wonderful! I love the outfit," Hana said and then turned to introduce Hiroe, "Cala, this is my friend Hiroe. We went to school together. She's going to be a shinigami, like me. I'm hoping she'll even be in my Division. Hiroe, this is Cala. She's the first friend I met here. Some guy bumped me, causing me to drop a smoothie all over her. In a way, I owe him, since that started our friendship."

Once the two were acquainted, Hana led them inside the hotel and checked in. She got the key and led them up to their room through the elevator. The hotel was a few stories tall and they went all the way to the top, the elevator looking over the city. The room they got was a large suit, one where each had their own room and bathroom, but was connected by a large lounge area and kitchen in the middle.

"Oh good. This is nice. I was worried the pictures were staged."

Hiroe finds it difficult to hold down her excitement with each second. They traverse the city, making their way toward their next location. Within moments, Hana spots Cala in the distance and Hiroe is being pulled along with her friend to finally meet this new girlfriend she'd been talking about. As they approach, Hiroe is impressed by Cala's lovely appearance. She looks sheepish and uncertain, but that appearance and the dress? It's impressive. After Hana introduces them, Hiroe turns to face her completely, beaming with excitement as she bowed before her.

"Pleased to meet you, Cala. Hana mentioned you just a few moments ago. You look really nice! I love the touch to your hair, too."

After introductions, Hiroe is walking alongside the women as they traverse the steps in the hotel. When they arrive, Hiroe is treated to yet another sight that exceeds anything she could've imagined. These were hardly things she'd seen before. To be honest, it was a really big culture shock. It was worlds apart from her home in the Rukongai.

Cala knew all but nothing about fashion, all but nothing about what looked good or bad, but even they could feel a warm feeling tingling in the pit of their tummy as both Hana and Hiroe complimented them. A tiny, genuine, happy smile graced Cala's delicate features. One only highlighted by the gentle flush to their cheeks at their new friends approving of their and, well, mostly Ariadna's efforts really. It seems only right that Cala should return the compliments and certainly they both looked wonderful! All but rocking on their feet in happiness Cala would nod their head and cross their arms under their chest sheepishly.

"A-Ahh..... thank you. You look very nice too H-Hana-chan and Hiroe-chan I really like your glasses, they bring out your eyes a lot which are really pretty!"

Cala softly touched their dyed portion of their hair on the side as they thought of Hiroe liking it, twirling it around a finger briefly as they joined in following Hana up to their suite. If Hana was relieved and Hiroe was shocked then Cala was, well, the closest they had been to ecstatic in a while. They had never really seen anything like this except for maybe Ari's house but... having something like Ari's house just... open to stay in?? Cala's lavender eyes were wide with wonder as they sheepishly shuffled around the place. Taking in the art and decorations left around with true appreciation before marveling at the common area and how big it was!

Oh!

Startling slightly Cala hurried over to Hana in tiny steps, pulling their purse around in front of them, and pursing their lips in worry.

"G-Geez Hana-chan I-I almost forgot. I-I wanted to thank you for inviting me s-so I got you something!"

Digging around in their admittedly sparse purse Cala retrieve a gift card for a nice smoothie place in Karakura and sheepishly presented it to Hana with a small bow.

"S-So... thank you a lot.~"

Cala didn't quite meet Hana's eyes while giving her the gift card as, truthfully, Cala needed a vacation just like this more than they could ever put into words. Things had been.... stressful lately for this half of themselves and getting to have fun with two new friends was almost like a dream come true for them as well.

Hana was happy with the room, the privacy it would allow, and the nice hangout area that connected them all. One of the more impressive parts was the balcony that Hana had no interest in going on. Instead, she stayed behind the glass door and looked over what she could see of the city. Beautiful! The sunset there was going to be amazing. Her attention was caught when Cala came over.

"Yes, Cala?" Hana said with a kind smile.

Hana took a look at the gift card. There was a moment of confusion when she thought about it. She hadn't seen many of these, but did ask about them last time she was here. It was like free money, or represented money to buy things a specific places. She knew what this thing was. Right! It took a moment to remember. Hana's smile widened and she pulled out her wallet to slide the card in.

"Yes! That's perfect!" Hana said, strangely excited. "Hiroe, have you ever experienced a smoothie? I know they are in the Soul Society, but Mom and Dad never let me eat anything that wasn't prepared by our staff, so I found out what they were last time I came here. I Am. Addicted! We have to get some at some point while we're here, and thanks to Cala, we can go to a smoothie specialist!"

"Ahh!" Hana hugged Cala, but made sure it wasn't too tight. "Thank you so much!"

"Flattery will get you everywhere with me, Cala. I'm glad you like the added touch."

Hiroe was warming up to Cala relatively quickly. Her compliments were received with equal warmth as a joyful giggle danced from her lips. What woman didn't enjoy a good compliment on their appearance? All things considered, Cala was making a good impression. She only hoped she was doing the same in return. Hiroe cast her gaze toward Hana in response to her inquiry. Smoothies? She couldn't recall a time she'd tasted one honestly. Living in the Rukongai, she'd only been able to eat whatever you could imagine a middle to lower class soul might be able acquire. Basic ingredients. Vegetables. Your standard drink... and whatever they served at the academy. Actually, if she compared the two, the academy food was undeniably superior. Whatever this smoothie is, Hana has already piqued her interests.

"I've never had a smoothie before. The more you mention, the more I want to try it~! In fact, I'd like to see as much as I can here. The food, the sights, the festival... all of it. I... I really appreciate this, Hana. I mean it."

And like that, she's approaching the two from behind and the two girl hug now becomes a three girl hug. A group hug.