Stoicism And Whimsy. An Unusual Mix. (Diana, Sabriel)

After giving the black skirt a break during the visit to Karakura Central Diana had returned to her usual casual outfit of purple t-shirt, black skirt with pockets, white thighhigh stockings, and black tennis shoes for her tour of Tokyo. She had decided to extend her visit to Japan for one more day, but it was the last day she could afford to stay in the country without risking financial difficulty. Despite that concern looming over her head Diana had gotten quite a bit out of her first time abroad... she had met Doku, Meninas, and Stella and had learned a lot about the Vandenreich, which was the main reason for traveling here to begin with. Diana needed to go over everything she had learned before choosing whether to join the organization or not, but any detailed analysis of that issue could wait until she got back to America.

For today Diana would take some time to tour Tokyo at her own pace. She was not interested in being led around by a tour guide... the blonde wanted to go her own way and see the famous city on her own terms. She had found Doku's bar by venturing off the beaten path and getting directions from friendly locals, so there was no telling what else she would find by going down a road the average tourist did not think to travel. Diana would have to be careful, though. She was on foreign soil and did not know her way around the city, so if she got into trouble she might not be able to get out of it on her own.

Easily standing apart from the crowd with her long blonde hair and purple t-shirt, Diana calmly and carefully walked down the busy city streets with no set destination in mind. She casually looked around the city at the colorful signs and glanced at the bustling streets filled with people from all walks of life. Diana had not even reached any of the famous sites yet and she was already feeling like this excursion was time well spent. That feeling persisted until she accidentally stepped into the path of a young woman who was slightly taller than her boasting long black hair and striking purple eyes plus an outfit that was best described as "eye-catching."

In all honesty it was a dangerously revealing outfit that Diana would not be caught dead in, but she did not dare say that.

Making eye contact with the stranger, Diana spoke to her.

"Hello there. I apologize for stepping into your path." Diana calmly greeted the taller young woman.

Part of Diana had expected to be verbally ripped into for the mistake, but as it turned out the other young woman was a forgiving sort. The blonde let the matter drop and focused on the person, who had introduced themselves as "Sabriel" and stated that they were an Arrancar. That explained the odd pressure that the dark-haired young woman gave off... it was a strong one that even a novice Quincy like her could feel. Diana thought back to what her parents had told her about Arrancar and remembered that those individuals were essentially Hollows who had managed to evolve beyond what they started out as.

Diana detested Hollows with all of her being but had no problem with Arrancars because Hollows were responsible for the tragedy that had defined her young adult life. Diana was also not a believer in guilt by association because of the connection between Hollows and Arrancars, so unless members of the second race intentionally antagonized her in some way such as attacking her without provocation or attacking innocent people the blonde would not engage in aggressive behavior towards them. Right now Sabriel seemed to be uninterested in conflict of any sort... instead she seemed interested in something else, but Diana could not discern what that was. Right now that was no cause for concern, so the conversation would continue.

"We share a favorite color." Diana told Sabriel that she liked purple as well. It had always been the blonde's favorite color ever since she was a child; perhaps that was because purple was a stark contrast to the monotonous greens and browns of the woods surrounding her home. At any rate it was nice to know that she was far from the only person who had an appreciation for the color. To keep the conversation going in a positive direction Diana needed to introduce herself.

"My name is Diana." Diana gave her name to Sabriel.

Diana heard Sabriel list three aspects of the blonde she found to be the most appealing and did not give a reply right away because of how surprised she was to hear such praise, especially the remark about her face. The Quincy made eye contact with the Arrancar and noticed that the latter had her eyes fixed on the blonde in a manner that signaled Diana had her undivided attention. No woman had ever looked at her the way Sabriel did and Diana was not used to that sort of attention. She was able to stay calm for the time being, but if the other young woman kept interacting with the blonde in the manner she was currently using the Quincy might actually blush before the conversation was over.

"I appreciate the compliments, Sabriel." Diana said in her usual calm manner that betrayed almost nothing of her mental state. Despite how calm it had been delivered the response was not an empty platitude given just to keep the conversation going. Diana sincerely appreciated the compliments because she did not go out of her way to dress up or use beauty aids to look attractive and it seemed that someone had taken notice of how she looked naturally.

Moving on from that subject before she blushed, Diana instead focused on answering why she was out and about in Tokyo.

"I am exploring a city I have read about only in school textbooks, Sabriel. This is my first visit to Tokyo and it is like nothing I have ever seen before." Diana answered truthfully. She had given away the facts that she was not a native of Japan and that she did not have much life experience yet, but it could not be helped. Three other people already knew those facts about Diana and Sabriel would become the fourth person to know them.

For the moment Diana continued to weather Sabriel's gaze with ease. However, the blonde noticed a hint of something on the Arrancar's face besides interest in her words, something that hinted the other young woman possibly wanted more than just a friendly chat. The blonde was a bit curious as to how things would play out, but that curiosity did nothing to impede the progress or flow of the conversation. Nothing on Diana's face betrayed how she felt... she continued to act and speak normally so that she did not make Sabriel wait too long for a response to her question concerning her place of origin. That was a simple question with a simple answer.

"I am not from Japan, Sabriel. I am from America." Diana confirmed what Sabriel suspected. It was no big secret that the blonde was not from around here and she was not going to even try to pretend otherwise. She doubted that Sabriel would hold her status as a foreigner against her because the Arrancar appeared to be an open-minded sort who would talk with anyone who caught her interest. Diana hoped that the other young woman did not mind how her voice sounded because it might sound like the blonde was just going through the motions of a conversation without really caring about what was being said. That could not be further from the truth, but anyone who was expecting the Quincy to show emotion on her face or on her voice would probably draw the conclusion that Diana was not very interested in talking to anyone any longer than she had to.

"I come from the American South. I was born in the state of Georgia." Diana named both the region of America she called home and her home state. Hopefully the Arrancar would not think less of the Quincy because of where she came from. Diana had omitted the fact that she was of rural extraction because that admission had made more than a few people think that she was not very smart and thus needed to be talked to like a child in order to be understood. Her hair color certainly did not do her any favors when it came to perceptions about her intelligence, but her chagrin over the unfortunate combination of her rural origins and hair color remained concealed from view. Deciding to ask a question of her own, Diana did not take long to ask something of Sabriel.

"Do you travel often, Sabriel?" Diana asked a simple question of the Arrancar. She probably could have asked a better question, but the blonde was more than a little curious about Sabriel. Despite the latter's questionable choice of attire the dark-haired young woman had an air of sophistication... Sabriel also looked and sounded like she had seen a lot more of the world than Diana had. Maybe the Arrancar would be willing to answer the question and perhaps even elaborate on her travels. That was strictly up to Sabriel, though.