Banjo And Kazooie (Elyss/Hannah)

"...A Hollow," Elyss muttered, her voice dropped to a hiss of a whisper. "My Zanpakuto was a Hollow. The woman who had took me in had infected me."

Hannah wanted something raw, a bit of Elyss' true thoughts on the matter. Well, if this is how things are going to be, then it really is no use. The blind woman should hear it all, starting with the core of every supernatural problem Elyss had to endure.

"She took me in, gave me a place to live, and taught me to always believe in myself, but in the end it feels like she was just teaching me what to do when she decided to go against the world. She wasn't someone who wanted me to follow her like a good daughter. I guess she taught me well, but I wish it wasn't at the expanse of her own life. Just up and gone one day, without even a letter or anyway to find her body."

With a sigh, Elyss shook her head, putting her hands on her own hips. She's never really talked deeply about Ulv. It was never something to bring up to anyone, not Abalia, not Alex, not even Hvit. She had related that she was sad about it at the time, even blamed everyone else for it happening, but she did nothing to help either. In the end, she even challenged Ulv and her decision to help Algos. In the end, Ulv died for nothing, with no friends or family beside her.

"No one should have to learn their daughter was killed in an alleyway. No one should have to lose their mother without any trace of her. Tenmarin taught me that this world isn't pretty, and if I keep hiding behind closed doors I'll miss every opportunity to do what's right. I've already made my peace with her being gone. If anything, it was like I finally got a chance to say goodbye to my mom and Ulv."

Eyes drifting now, a morbid pit had settled in her stomach. She doesn't feel like crying. She's shed enough tears for the dead. All she wants to do is get better because she knows that she'd be disappointing everyone if she shriveled up. The only tears that are allowed to fall are those of the people who lives would have been lost without her.

Hannah would silently listen, and relate. It sucked, to have your parents taken from you so suddenly. Was it better for them to just go, with no warning or reason? Or to be faced with them, to be faced with their killer, and be snatched away before you could enact your own justice? However, this question was not answered, as Elyss went on to say that the woman who raised her after she came to the Soul Society, was none other than Lady Auber.

"Ahh" Hannah would comment. It explained a lot. The legendary Inferno Vizard Queen tutoring Elyss. A woman of unstoppable passion, and hope, and victory. A beacon of the future, who pioneered a multi-cultured city filled with every race in the multi-verse, protected by her sheer ballsy machismo. And world-shaking power, of course. A bulwark to everyone, against the dark.

And then she stood for the wrong person, and everything fell apart. A stunning commentary on society and the value of friendship. No wonder Elyss was so fucked up.

"So instead of introvertism and self-exclusion from society, you just grab it by the neck and throttle it. From what I hear, Lady Auber was the best and worst person you could have ever met. Nobody came out unscathed from meeting her, nobody could manage to keep their own hearts broken in her presence. Not even the damned Demon Princess. She blazed like the sun, and that made people want to be her. Even her own words would not stop aspirations. How could they? She looked so great. Made it look so easy"

Hannah would turn her gaze back down to Elyss.

"But you are not her. You are Elyss. And you need to start deciding who that is. Don't be firm and hard because that is how she is. She wouldn't want that. She would want you to be who you are, whoever that is"

"Eh. I don't think we were that different from the beginning. Maybe that's why we met. I saw the extremity of what my path brought, so I think I have a tempered idea of what to do and not do."

Hannah's concerns are swell, but she's a little too late on giving Elyss advice, but at least the redhead is at a point of her life that she'd listen. If a few years earlier, Hannah's words would have fell on deaf ears. However, Elyss is still Elyss, so her face scrunched up at certain words.

"The Demon Princess? I'm bold, but not insane. I don't think Ulv made a dent in that woman. She simply up and vanished after Ulv died, like the rest of the demons. Talk about a waste of time, but anyway. Thanks for caring though."

"Exactly. You are not insane. But a psychological profiling of Ulv's actions implies that she was. A derangement that drove her towards her goals, regardless of the outcome, regardless of the cost, regardless of what she is going to lose for this one person. Some say she didn't care, but there is a postulated hypothesis that she couldn't care. That she was psychologically incapable of weighing the pros and cons"

Hannah would shake her head to get out of the mindset. It was a fascinating study, but Elyss probably didn't want to hear it.

"So don't try to mimic her. Because you can't. All you can do is spend your life trying, and failing. Instead, open yourself to your friends. Laugh with them, cry with them, console with them. Be there with and for them. Don't just harden up and try to ride it out

"I still feel like you're flirting with me," Elyss grumbled, trying to detract the conversation by bringing up something left field. It's better than talking about Ulv or any of that stuff. Ulv's been gone for a while now. No point beating the dead further than they've beaten themselves. Friend talk isn't going to change anything right now anyway.

"If ya want something to eat, we can head to my place. Hono left some lunch."

"If being told to emotionally open up and stop emulating the actual psychopath that was Ulv is flirting, then you really need to get out more" Hannah would reply. Not one to be bamboozled like Elyss was trying, she kept on target for Elyss.

Or at least, she tried. Because when Hono was mentioned, Hannah gave a coy grin.

"Ohh? A cute new girlfriend making you lunch back at home? You really have come up in the world, huh?"

"Eh..."

A look of disbelief flashed across Elyss' face. Really? The mention that someone cooked her something is what distracted this woman from the philosophy? It's almost incredulous. However, Elyss isn't going to say anything because she'd rather Hannah tease her than continue badgering her.

"Are you coming or not?"

"Will your girlfriend not get jealous if you bring home another woman? Will she not feel embarrassed when you come through the door, see her in nothing but an apron, and then oops, another person there as well?"

Hannah's grin made it clear that she was having a great deal of fun, as she held out her hand for Elyss to take, and guide her towards the new home.

Her brow twitched. Okay. Maybe the worrying about her mental state is better actually, but there's no winning here. Hono'll probably be curious, but Elyss doubts the woman will get that bad about Elyss bringing someone home. The redhead's not entirely sure about Hono yet. They've only had one little date, in a way, after Elyss had told Hono she has no courting skills. The woman shouldn't even be in her house in all honesty.

"Let's go," She grumbled, taking Hannah's hand. The idea of flinging the woman to the Seventh barracks filled her head, but let's not do that. Elyss wouldn't want to hurt Hannah.

Taking Elyss' hand, Hannah would gently walk beside, smiling all the while. This was going to be a lot of fun.

"So, do you buy her dresses? Shoes? Pretty hair-dye?" Hannah asked, her tone civil but her whole vibe a teasing one that was indulging in the madness of Elyss' silence. Hannah didn't want to actually annoy Elyss too much, but a bit was ok.