Working Man Blues[Helle, Natasha]

Director Helle had returned. Word of mouth shed light on the woman's identity, which was, quite frankly, relatively unknown to Natasha. She had zero knowledge and inkling of who the woman was and how she operated outside of her title.

Research wasn't particularly helpful, either, but she supposed that left her with no other option than to eventually cross paths with the woman. Honestly, considering what happened in her absence, her impression of the woman was rather low.

There was no heavy desire to react with the same excitement as everyone else quite yet, but there was overwhelming curiosity. And so, she simply bided her time, politely requesting her company through a message, traversing a relatively serene parklike area, occupying her time with athletic strides across a long path of cobblestone.

"Children. Children. Please let's leave the Director to her business. I'm sure she has a lot of work to attend to."

Obviously stressed and worried, a woman paced back and forth, watching helplessly as the playground in the park floating in the air. The laughter of children is palpable as they floated through the sky around their floating kingdom. On the ground, Helle stood before her meanderings, watching the children beside their teacher. Her emerald eyes have a soft glow as her small smile appreciated the atmosphere before her.

The teacher may be correct in guessing that she has business to attend to, but giving the youth of her city a moment of her time to grant them a bit of fun hardly harms anything. Their joy is her joy after all, but she's far too old to partake in their juvenile antics. She'd not fit on the slide after all.

"Oh?"

Well, wasn't that an adorable scene to warm one's heart? Her prolonged pace along the cobblestone path allowed her to locate Helle in the distance, noting the group of exuberant children floating through the air.

Forming a veil of reishi to wipe away her perspiration, Natasha approached the woman without a moment's hesitation. Hazel irises observed the tall form, a model's frame, and well-endowed features that would likely elicit the prolonged gaze of many men.

On one hand, she didn't know if she was encroaching on Helle's time. On the other, her curiosity wouldn't vanish until she got a proper read on this blonde lass. Extending a hand forward, Natasha offered a bright smile to introduce herself. There were a myriad of perceptions swimming through Natasha's head, but hospitality was a southern constant, a polite approach equally so.

"Howdy there, Sugar. I ain't interruptin' yer peace, am I? I've been dyin' to meet ya for some time. Name's Natasha Miller. Coordinator of our esteemed sternritter division."

"Natasha Miller? You were the one requesting an audience, correct?"

Helle continued entertaining the kids while she spoke, seamlessly multitasking. However, she kept her eyes forward to watch for any mishaps. Children have a tendency to get into trouble without proper supervision. It's actually amazing how easy it is for a child to get into something they shouldn't.

"As you can see, I'm doing nothing more than enjoying the afternoon. If you wish for a conversation, let's."

"Darn tootin'. I ain't fixin' to impede too much on yer hours of respite, sweetheart, but'm curious about a few things."

Natasha observed the woman with curiosity as she continued to engage the children while hosting a conversation. It was mighty impressive, eliciting a faint smile in her bubbly features as she created a pair of reishi bubbles through the air, each floating idly through the air to engage the children a step further. Of course, she was well aware of what she came here for, and that was answers. Whether she received those answers around children or somewhere on a bench was largely inconsequential.

"Guess I might as well ask ma' first question, then, hun. Where've you been all this time? As a former soldier in the army, I pride myself on knowin' my higher-ups the moment I join a squadron. Been difficult to do that with you bein' absent. Hell, I thought you were almost mythical after a while."

"Is it?" Helle asked. "I always found supervision a bit mythical in general."

Though, simply feeling charismatic, Helle did consider her answer carefully. Many have questioned her absence, but the Director has yet to actually reveal the depths of her disappearance. It is best she does not start now for privacy sake, so that left her with the simple lame answer she's shared around the block.

"I was on a mandatory vacation. It's best to not get into details, but a situation had left me unavailable for a long while. I am sure you already know of it before I took my leave."

She didn't enjoy reliving the past, but that'd be too ironic for her to earnestly find annoying.

"Of course it is. We've had this lovely leader I haven't seen in god knows how long. I've been waitin' to sit down with ya for eons, my mythical director. "

Natasha exchanged a quip with equal charisma in her voice. From her point of view, it appeared there was no explanation the woman had that she would find satisfying, let alone anything pertinent to her curiosity. Classified info, perhaps? Or was it the type of stuff a simple coordinator wasn't allowed to know?

Either way, it didn't particularly bother her, at least not visibly, as she relaxed against a bench, watching a golden retriever dashing around the bench they sat on. Reaching down a hand to softly pet its head before its owner caught up, Natasha took a moment to ponder her next question.

"As far as knowin' about anything before ya left, though, I don't recall any info bein' passed along on my end, but, then again, I was busy myself during that particular period. Coordinator work was mighty busy for me round' that time, I reckon."

Mythical? That term is somewhat correct, for reasons that aren't exactly available to the public. What's strange is that a Coordinator was not made aware of why she had been gone. Well, it's not entirely important right now, and it's something that's best left in the past. That left their conversation a bit bland though. Helle does not have anything pressing to relate and Natasha simply wanted to hang out. That left the air free for whatever.

"Mmm... Then, allow me to ask a question. How has the Sternritter been? I could ask a regular member, but a Coordinator would know exactly where to place her subordinates."

At this point, Helle had let the kids down from their adventure, her focus now entirely on Natasha, even taking a seat next to the fellow blonde.

"Sure, sweetheart. I'll be your huckleberry."

Content with her current position on the bench, ruffling the dog's fur for a few more moments until it passed along elsewhere, Natasha momentarily pondered the current members of the division. Some of them were fairly new, while others might as well be veterans at this point. For what it was worth, they were incredibly versatile in terms of their overall prowess across the board. The division was stocked full of members. For a vanguard, it was the best she could ask for at the moment.

"Since your absence, we've had quite the influx of members pourin' on in. Hell, one of the newer administrators sure did come out of retirement after he saw our forces take a beatin' in the battle with that fallen hero they call "Ichigo Kurosaki." I'm mighty sure you're already familiar with individuals like Alastair and Litotto. Their respective talents speak for themselves. The new kids comin' in aren't half-bad options to rely on, either. For a returning director, I'd reckon there's a lot to pick from in terms of choosing who goes where."

It was a surprise that no one took her position while she was away. Was it the potential that she may return that kept her spot safe? None could have fathomed that she'd return just as powerful as before her incident. Maybe none had been as qualified to lead the Sternritter. She couldn't help but ponder such things from time to time, and the suggestion of reorganization made her remember all her mental stress all over again. For now, she'd rather keep things as they are until she's adequately made sure of everyone's capability.

"That is good to hear. More numbers are good..." Though, she seemed pensive about things.

"Hopefully, we'll get things moving in the right directions soon. There has been a lot of setbacks lately."

Eyes towards the ground, she tapped her lap.