Masochism (Amaranta/Ryo)

"I know."

Amaranta ceased her catlike antics, her words accompanied with a booming peal of laughter. Of course, Ryo wouldn't have to suffer at the mercy of the sun-kissed arrancar's gloating voice ringing in her ears for long. After the joy of overwhelming the woman's system died down, she relented in her merciless assault, setting the woman down as she ruffled her head, tilting her head to the side.

What became abundantly clear is that she won't achieve any form of conversation if she continued to antagonize the woman. With that in mind, she simply assumed a seat atop a rock spire a pace or so away from her. There are so many curiosities in her head that she can't quite figure out which to pursue first. Selecting the first to enter her mind, she cocked her head to the side with a grin.

"Anyway, you ever decide on my offer? It's still on the table you know, Ry-Ry."

"Training and sparring with yours truly. Now my pride's truly wounded. How could you forget me like that?"

Feigning a defeated frown, Amaranta shrugged her shoulders before her faux sadness was replaced by mild amusement. She wasn't exactly surprised. Ryo certainly struck her as a woman with a full-steam-ahead mentality. Additionally, she presented the offer at the tail end of their conversation. Of course, she'd forget. At any rate, she reclined against the boulder after reminding the woman of her words.

"Do you do this often? Travel from place to place? One minute I saw you in a village, and now you're in the heart of Africa."

"Ha? Why do I have to call? If you wanted to accept the offer, isn't half of the onus on you to give me a phone call, too?"

Cocking her head to the side quizzically, Amaranta simply left her question where it was as she listened to her reason for traveling around. She found that her reasoning was simple enough. In some ways, it resembled her way of life here. Well, everything except that part about saving others. What was it with the selfless heroism in others? There were a few who shared this similar frame of mind, and it bothered her to no end that she had yet to discern why that was.

"Haha! Well now, I guess I can relate to all of that. Of course, you lost me at the part about saving new people. What do you stand to gain from that...?"

"Mm..."

Though it wasn't exactly characteristic behavior, Amaranta remained relatively silent as she listened to the woman speak, furrowing her eyebrows as she explained her reasoning behind fighting in the name of a good cause. On a fundamental level, she, too, knew what it felt like to be helpless. After all, that's why she set out on her ambitious path as hollow, incessantly consuming souls until she grew strong enough to evolve. But the idea of rescuing others never crossed her mind when she became an Arrancar.

Where would that have left her? Had she bothered to pursue helping her kind? To some degree, she thought it was worthwhile to encourage and train those who fell short, but what about those who simply couldn't measure up? Their fate was obvious. They would be devoured. Humans, of course, were different. She recognized that. Fragile creatures. Individuals who valued helping their fellow man... most of the time. Running a hand through her hair, she chuckled softly as she gazed down at Ryo.

"Hehe... Well, aren't you just the protagonist at heart? Thought I was listening to the main character out of a Shounen Manga. That said, I'm a little curious... Has there ever been a time you regretted choosing this path? World ain't all sunshine and rainbows, you know. Choosing the role of savior means you could die at any moment... and no one would ever remember you or thank you for it. Doesn't that frighten you?"

"Sheesh... you ran into one of those, huh?"

Hollows were terrifying creatures by default. Therefore, as a hollow herself, she was intimately aware of the cruelty they could exact on their targets before they devoured them whole. Most of her hunts had always been efficient and ruthless. Up until now, she never possessed the skill to toy with her meal before she consumed it. To some degree, the redhead's words only provoked her curiosity. Shouldn't she be accustomed to hating them all equally? Or was she the type who trusted others on a case-by-case basis? Any of these thoughts were relevant questions to ask, certainly, but as always, she chose the one that sated her curiosity the most.

"Do you hate hollows because of that? If so, how do you feel about me?"

A simple inquiry, really. At least, that's what she told herself.