Pseudo Familiarity [Private: Shuten/Lerna]

Yes… Shuten did like headpats in a sense. She would never fully admit it, but telling someone that patting her on the head was fine basically was admitting it fully. However, the hug Shuten had given to Lerna wasn’t allowed to continue for too long. Shuten still knew that this woman, no matter how much she looked like Magnolia, was not Magnolia. She didn’t want to let her feelings of her past love to color a relationship with a different, if identical looking, person.

After a period in which Shuten hugged Lerna honestly, and also squeezed her gently, Shuten finally pulled away from Magnolia, controlling her breathing as the Suika turned away; towards her sake gourd. After pouring a hefty amount of Sake in her dish, and downing the entire dish casually, Shuten let out a soft sigh. She turned to Lerna and gave her a gentle smile, and a very obvious lack of inebriation. Suika had their benefits, and a very strong alcohol tolerance was one of them.

“I’m just glad to be able to help, Lerna. And I’m sorry about the hug… I should’ve asked, but… Well, I think we both needed it, if that’s not too much for me to presume.”

Shuten let out another small sigh, carefully putting her sake dish away, before she once more moved to be closer to Lerna again. Well, closer than she would be by her Gourd.

“Just tell me the next time you could use some help, okay? I’d be more than glad to help out some if I can.”

Truly, Shuten was likely losing her composure a bit. But, Sake was a wonderful thing to drink while she collected herself. Not to mention, swilling just a little bit on the sake within that large gourd of hers, not the one attached to her Zanpakuto, certainly helped Shuten calm her nerves; the pleasant flavors were enough to send tingles of pleasure down her being. This was enough to distract her body somewhat and help her relax. Reflecting on those same flavors that still lingered in her mouth was rather distracting as well, which was her own fault. Soon, however, Shuten was returned to Earth with a slight bump, blinking as she turned her head to fully face Lerna.

The question was perhaps a little confusing, if not for how Shuten was partially lost in thought, but Shuten could answer it easily enough. After all, she was once lieutenant and captain of her division.

“Division five, Covert Operations. The modern stealth force, essentially. I’m the fourth seat. And it’s no trouble, Lerna. I’m glad to help somewhat, where I can and if I can.”

"I suppose you could say it's fun, in a sense. Albeit, I don't think I have any very interesting stories at this point... that aren't classified. Regardless, it's nice enough."

Shuten smiled a tiny bit, before she took a small swig of sake from her sake dish, enjoying the pleasant aromas and flavors that gently assailed her senses. However, she soon turned herself to what Lerna said second, uncertain how to answer. Truthfully, she did like it in the Covert ops, but she honestly had no clue what she wanted to do with herself. A recent stagnancy had certainly left her uncertain, confused, and very lost in terms of life. Sure, a talk with her big sister helped, but she still had many issues to contend with; most of which was a lonely heart.

Regardless, Shuten gave Lerna a small smile and a noncommittal jerk of the head.

"Yeah, I do like it in the Covert Ops. It's nice to have my old Captain back, Yuuto. He still needs someone to remind him not to overwork himself, so it's nice to see he hasn't changed too much... Otherwise, I'm not too sure what I want to do with myself. I've considered travelling the world of the living, but I don't think I can do that anytime soon."