Gumball Burner [Alastor, Moe]

The Earth Division barracks were a strange place, with less formal buildings and more a sea of huts or tents, but Moe thought their little outback environment was quite refreshing. Like they were a bunch of quaint little schoolboys and girls who were playing at being the warriors that the valiant men and women of the Death Division. But it was also the Division that Koizumi Shishiyuki was in, so she supposed it was a little more serious than they liked to let on. If nothing else, she'd been forced to respect them a little bit more by the Vice-Captain's actions, so that meant she was okay to snoop around.

Not that Moe was really doing much sneaking around, she hardly made any effort to conceal her presence. It wasn't in her blood to be so underhanded, and the idea of sticking to the shadows made her skin crawl. She'd simply had some free time so thought she might do a little exploring, and there was nothing too wrong with getting the lay of the land whilst she was here. Maybe even talk to a few of the locals, and see what they were all about.

"Hey, Gumball!"

It wasn't particularly subtle but he wasn't good at any of that stuff. Some of the other division members were talking about a shinigami that they didn't recognise wandering around the barracks and while no one was willing to go up to the lost kid, he had no qualms about taking the reigns on the situation.

Didn't need a short little thing like this causing problems, especially when someone pointed out that she looked like one of them fourth division members. Something about having seen a short little gumball looking girl around their barracks.

"You lost or something?"

No harm in pointing her in the right direction. What could one of those fourth division people want? Probably cause some trouble for the vice-captain after she gave them a solid whopping from what he heard.

Now that was something Moe wasn't used to being called, but she could see where the notion had come from. There was something about her that would stick to you if you let it, and she didn't exactly mind that all too much. Besides, a little trash talk was good for the soul.

"I ain't lost, Red, I just don't know what I'm lookin' for."

She was disappointed that nothing snappier came to mind upon turning to face her accuser, but she also didn't want to just stare at him for a few minutes and let something spicier brew. That would be unbecoming of a woman in her position, caught on the back foot.

"Take it you're from round here? I wouldn't mind a chaperone, if you're offerin'."

So she's lost, he got it. Too proud to admit otherwise and he'd been there before when he was younger so he'd cut the kid some slack and let her have this one.

"Do I look like a tour guide, squirt? You just want me to walk around holding your hand all day until you figure out what you're looking for, or something?"

He cocked his head to the side when he finished. Jeez, girls can be so demanding and this one wasn't even fully grown. He felt bad for whatever guy fell for this trick but at the same time he didn't want to leave a fourth division hooligan running amok in the division.

She might want some payback after Shishiyuki rocked their shit.

"Ya don't not look like one if that's what you're askin'. So unless you're about to tell me you ain't a local then maybe we can come to an arrangement."

Puffing out her chest, which did little to alleviate the difference in stature between the two of them, Moe attempted to look somewhat assertive rather than helpless. She turned away a little to give him an impression of a little indignance at his judging of her character by her size, but in truth, his help would be at least a little appreciated.

"One of your fellow Division members left some stuff behind when they came by the Fourth barracks earlier, I dropped by to return it or leave it somewhere they might find it. Get me to where I wanna go and I'll owe ya a drink, or some snacks if you'd rather. Deal?"

"Awfully considerate of you. I'd have just dumped it somewhere and called it their problem for forgetting it."

He wasn't a busy guy, more lazy than he had any right to be really, but he also wasn't the type to go out of his way for a stranger. A friend? Sure, but not some nameless individual. Wasn't like he had anything to prove or suck up to someone.

"Well, if you're going to make it worth my while. I guess that's fair."

It was a pretty decent deal. Not ideal since he could just be minding his own business between his responsibilities but this gave him a reason to put off something that was more work than he cared to deal with. Good cover, right?

"Ain’t much to consider really, spend most of my time protecting the other divisions out in the field so why not do my part at home too. I didn’t think it would be too hard to just leave it in the barracks for them to find, but this place is more like a maze.”

That Moe had secondary reasons for her actions beyond just her natural benevolence was certainly true, but it also wasn’t a lie. She did like helping people, and being the bigger woman in heart if not body.

“Right then, Mister, lead on. I’m Machihara Moe, by the way, in case you were wondering who you were dealing with.”

She beamed a goofy smile and gave Red her best impression of a formal bow. Got to be respectful to one’s juniors, after all.

"Is that how you say gumball in Japanese?"

He enjoyed using the fact he was a foreign looking guy to play ignorant, except for when people put together the fact he had red head substitute shinigami and the captain commander was dating a guy of similar description. That was real annoying.

"Alastor. Does it belong to a dude or a chick? Guess it would make it easier to narrow the search."

The substitute would at least get this done pretty prompt and work smarter rather than harder.

"Not quite, but I can teach ya seeing as you're so keen to get to know me."

The western sarcasm that Alastor had thought to wield against her had either flown a few metres over Moe's head or she had effortlessly turned the humour back on him without missing a beat. One of those options was much more likely given that she very much hadn't put together who he was in the grand scheme of things. Or maybe she had it all figured out and was yanking his chain about that too.

"Anyway, Mister Alastor, it was a woman that left it. Came over with a bunch of your lot a couple of days ago, kinda tall, blonde hair, liked to pick a scrap, and didn't mind getting in your face."

She wasn't going to say it, but she certainly thought that he looked like the type that would know her. Alastor clearly had an eye for the ladies given how confidently he'd come over to talk to her.

Hmm, he knew her about as well as he wanted. A lost kid with some sass to her, no more needed to be known as far as he was concerned. She was kind of like Murasaki's best friend without the gloom about her. This one knew how to smile at least.

"You telling me you remember all that but not her name? Doesn't sound like the kind of woman you'd lose track of with all those peculiar features."

A small jab needled like it meant to humble the pink punk but he has an idea of who she was talking about. Surely she meant Lerna, right? He couldn't imagine any other tall blondes with some attitude like that in the division.