[Spirit Class 7] Mai Fujino

» Name: Fujino, Mai [Family, Given]
» Age: 112
» Birthday: September 12th
» Gender: Female
» Orientation: Straight. Mostly.

» Association:
Gotei United, Second Division

» Friends and Enemies
Kaminari Hatakeyama, Friend
Rio Shiohin, Friend

» Appearance Written:
Mai’s most notable feature at a glance is her hair, a cascade of periwinkle nearly reaching the ground that twirls in on itself without becoming entangled. One would be forgiven for not noticing that however, as her shining smile and exuberant energy have a tendency to grab people’s attention even more than her physical appearance. She is of average height with plenty of curves, though between her personality and energy she comes off more cute than sexy. She has inquisitive bright blue eyes that seem to want to take in the whole world.

» Appearance Image:


» Height:
5’4”

» Weight:
127lbs


» Personality:
Mai is a burst of energy and sunshine in just about any room she enters. Perpetually outgoing and bubbly, she is the kind of person who finds wonder and joy in the everyday and she seeks to share that happiness with those around her. She socializes easily, and makes friends as easily as she breathes. She is the kind to go out of her way to try and cheer up someone who is having a bad day, and is the first to pitch in with a problem. If she can’t help, she may know someone who can. If she doesn’t, she will try her best all the same.

Because of this bubbly energy and a tendency for her attention to seemingly wander, it is easy for people to assume the woman to be a bit air-headed and lackadaisical. Beneath all of that cheer and extroverted energy however is a driven young woman with sights set on the horizon. Mai seeks mastery over her capabilities, and to one day demonstrate her capability and skill by capturing the captaincy of the Kido Corps of the Gotei. Her bubbly energy and wandering attention hides a sharp intellect that can be quite formidable when focused. That same bubbly energy and outgoing attitude disguises a competitive streak that crops up in the woman.

For all her drive and energy, she does not exactly do the best job at fighting the air-head allegations. Her attention does wander with her interest, and she tends to jump topic when that happens. She tends to be decisive, for good or ill, and pursues any course of action that sits well with her own assessments with a vigor. Her own interest and drive can also sometimes give her tunnel vision where she will lose track of time working on some project or another. She is quick with an enthusiastic apology, and it is admittedly hard to stay angry at a face like that.

» Likes:
Sweets, spicy food, cool nights, dinners with friends, hard training, crossword puzzles

» Dislikes:
Sour food, horror movies, arrogance without compassion, long and mundane tasks


[This is a condensed history; a more flushed out one will be provided in Character Timelines here(to be added later)]
Mai Fujino was an ordinary if peculiar girl who lived through dangerous times, and who died during them. She was one of those unfortunate casualties of World War III, her life claimed with the rest of the city she lived in. Fortunately she does not remember the time of her death; the best she has are hazy emotions and vague senses of a noise like thunder, the feeling of shock, and a blinding light. Then she was in the Soul Society. He afterlife started off normal enough, sent to one of the closer Rukon districts; as was her way she made friends easily and settled in simply enough. A rising sensation heralded the end of that simple time though; hunger, and with it a rising sense of pressure that followed the young woman who brought so much energy and joy with her.

It did not take the Shinigami long to find her.

Mai was inducted into the Shinō Academy in the year of 2037, and she found it very much what it said it was on the tin; a school. She had always excelled at school, and she showed great promise as her lessons began. She got along easily with most of the students, the teachers, just about anyone. She took to the studies at first with a fervor; Mai is a great fan of learning, and once a subject has her attention she will consume everything she can about that subject with a zeal that verges on the frightening. This, however, is a double-edged sword and proved to be a speed bump for the young woman; once a subject had lost her interest it was terribly hard for her to muster much care for it again. Her initially promising performance dropped to decidedly mediocre, with few exceptions. Mai also had little interest at the time in showing off; this proved to be a slight mistake as it ended up costing Mai much time. Instead of the typical six years the Shinō Academy usually takes, Mai ended up staying at the Academy for eight years.

Her time at the Academy came to an end when she had reason to show where all of her zeal and study had gone. Mai had become fascinated with Kidō and rather than investing in her other studies so she might graduate, or demonstrating just how much study and practice she had put into the subject, Mai had simply enjoyed the access to the materials on the subject the Academy offered. She peppered her peers and instructors with esoteric questions and continued working on things on her own. She saw no point in bothering anyone else with what she was doing. That all changed when a younger noble student thought to get some easy clout by mocking Mai for her apparent lack of talent. Mai corrected this error in assessment on his part by taking him (and a small crowd) to one of the kidō practicing fields and proceeding to lay waste to it by performing a Hyapporankan. She was quite apologetic when later a professor approached her, as she had not meant to damage the wall behind the training dummies.

With her talent now revealed Mai was quickly snatched up by the Kidō Corps, which was perfect; she had been planning on applying to them anyway once she had graduated. She settled quickly and naturally into the Kidō Corps, easily making yet more friends and advancing in her knowledge of kidō if little else. She simply found a natural joy in working with kidō; not only with known kidō, but in how it functioned and how it could be altered. She also began to get practical knowledge of how to use kidō in combat, as the threats the Soul Society faced necessitated greater cooperation between the Corp and the Gotei. Mai enjoyed making trips to the World of the Living, even under such dire circumstances. She enjoyed fighting monsters less, but it was good work. Worth doing.

As things progressed, Mai felt a new drive begin to move her. A quiet call, similar to her calling for kidō. While some in the Kidō Corps did not have their Shikai, and some didn’t even carry a zanpakutou, Mai felt this call. So she began the search for her Zanpakutou Spirit. In typical fashion however, Mai did not conduct this search in the typical manner. Most found their zanpakutou spirits through extensive training in actually wielding their blades, or else found them in the heat of battle when the danger forced the spirit’s hand lest it meet its own destruction. Mai instead took to this take by employing what she knew best; energy control. To be clear, there was certainly training with her zanpakutou as it was still a useful tool for a Shinigami to know how to use. Instead of relying on that though, Mai used her control over energy and began to try and ‘corner’ the spirit within herself during meditation.

Even once Mai managed to create a connection with this method however the spirit proved elusive and enigmatic. Mai however was persistent, insistent even that they would talk. Though it took Mai ten years to develop this method of connecting to the spirit, she did finally manage to draw forth the Spirit in her Inner World and talk with it. She convinced it with the simple honesty one should expect from Mai; she wanted its help. She wanted to do more, to help more, to do great things and she was sure that the spirit was meant to go on that journey with her. The spirit’s name was Zoubenkyō.

The relative quiet that Mai knew would come to an end soon after; a little more than a decade later, and the Demons came to Soul Society. There was a great deal of fighting that followed, and the course of history would be altered. Mai played her own small part in that history, a footnote if that to be fair. She was there with the other members of the Kidō Corps, trying to push back the invasion that had come to destroy their homes. She wielded magic and her Zanpakutou in equal measure, and did her best to save her friends and those around her. In the aftermath, the Soul Society needed to rebuild. It needed to solidify. The Kidō Corps was absorbed into the Gotei, and the Gotei’s shape changed to something new; the Gotei United.

Hopefully, it would be better at stopping what came before.

Mai followed many of the former Kidō Corps members in joining the Second Division, where she remains to the present day. She continues to expand her study of kidō, her zanpakutou, and her fellow Shinigami as she seeks yet greater heights. She has her eyes set on one day attaining the rank of Captain of the Second Division, more as a personal challenge than a craving for the power such a position brings. She faces that challenge with a smile, terrifying optimism, and relentless drive...even if said drive is going in four directions at once.


» Sharp Intellect, Keen Perception
While often viewed as a flaw in her social interactions, Mai’s sharp senses that drag her attention are a boon when danger is present. Beyond simple sharp eyesight and keen hearing Mai possesses a knack for detecting energy in use. Coupled with a keen mind that tends to consume anything that catches her interest, Mai proves to be quick thinking problem solver. Her intellect most often is demonstrated in terms of that problem solving and lateral thinking instead of typical book smarts.

» Honed Reflexes
While not anywhere near the levels of some of the best in Soul Society, Mai’s reflexes are a step above what most would assume from the woman at a glance. She has trained to be able to let her body move with her instincts and reflexes, letting her cover allies easier or adapt her Kidō to various situations.

» Bound Body, Boundless Energy
Mai’s physical capabilities are nothing much to write home about, barely passing average for Shinigami at large. She is not particularly strong nor fast, and isn’t (normally) able to take much of a hit. What she lacks in these capabilities though she makes up for in seemingly limitless energy to just keep on going and trying things. She is an energetic person, and seems to possess an endurance for sustained activity that her otherwise unimpressive physical capabilities belie.


» Hakuda:
Mai’s ability with Hakuda is strangely split; as far as the actual physical side of Hakuda as a combat form, Mai has been generally lacking. She did not rely on Hakuda as a combat form often, and did not pursue its advancement to any great degree. He physical forms when she has employed Hakuda have been unpolished and sloppy. However, where it comes to energy control and direction from the body Mai has shown immense natural talent and skill. Mai is good at moving energy, she has ample time spent learning to control and direct the flow of energy from her work with Kidō and finds it a natural transition when it comes to directing that energy from the body. While her physical form may be lacking, she can compensate with energy to make up the destructive power needed. With the creation and advancement of Hanten mahō however, she has begun more serious and active training to bring her skills up to par and beyond.

» Hoho:
Mai has a passing familiarity with Hoho skills in general, but has not placed any particular emphasis on her development where they were concerned. She can pull off Shunpo just fine, though her control can end up dodgy where fine control can be concerned. As far as large movements for breaking combat and such though she is passable if average.

» Kidō:
Mai’s area of expertise, without question. Mai’s mind just has a knack for understanding Kidō, breaking apart how it works and how to make it work better. It forms the foundation of her combat style, regardless of which style she is using (more on that to come). She has devoted the majority of her time as a Shinigami to advancing her understanding of Kidō, arguably to the determent of her other skills and physical conditioning. She was scouted from the Shinigami academy for the old Kidō Corps before the transition from the Gotei Thirteen to present, and followed its members as they became the new Second Division. She has developed, learned, or intuited several different Kidō modification skills (detailed below) as well as a means for entirely changing her fighting style.

» Delayed Cast Incantation
In a sense the inverse of the Spoken-After Incantation, modifying a Kidō with this ability allows the user to fully prepare the spell but mentally set a delay on when the Kidō actually takes effect. This can be down either by simply holding the spell in the user’s hands, or by placing the energy into a space from which the Kidō will fire after the appropriate delay. A Kidō can be delayed by anywhere from one to three posts before it is discharged from the location/caster. While this ability can be combined with Incantation Abandonment, incurring all of the usual penalties therein, it cannot be combined with Spoken-After Incantation.

» Echoing Incantation
In a sense a lesser version of Two-Fold Incantation, Echoing Incantation allows the user to effectively cast two of the same Kidō at the same time though with lessened effect. In addition to any penalties already taken (such as from Incantation Abandonment), casting a Kidō with this ability cuts its potency by an additional fifteen percent. The ‘echoed’ Kidō further has its potency cut by thirty percent of the first’s potency.
So if for example Mai is casting a Shakkahō at Advanced Level Kidō with both Echoing and Incantation Abandonment it would break down as such; Shakkahō[100% Potency] – Incantation Abandonment [-25% Potency] – Echoing(primary) [-15% Potency] = 60% Potency Shakkahō for the primary cast, 39% Potency Shakkahō for the ‘Echoed’ cast.

» Hanten Mahō (反転魔法) [Inverted Magic]
Description
The main technique that Mai has been developing in one form or another for the last two decades, Hanten mahō or Inverted Magic serves as the linchpin of her combat style as she moves forward. The theory of it is simple; when normally casting a Kidō spell, one takes the energy and forms it with their mind, motions, and incantation. With the Kidō so formed, the energy is expelled in the form of the spell; Hanten mahō stop short of that release step, instead cycling the energy back into and through the user’s body. The end result of this is an increase of physical power to the detriment of Mai’s Kidō capabilities, turning her from the equivalent of a ‘mage’ to the equivalent of a ‘brawler’.

Effect
Hanten Mahō possesses two primary effects; first, upon activation and for the duration of the ability Mai boosts her Physical General Skills [Durability, Speed, and Strength] by 300%.

The second effect is the ability to ‘imbue’ herself with a kidō; this is in fact the only method by which she can utilize kidō while the ability is active. She is only able to imbue herself with a single kidō at a time, and the effects of this imbue lasts for five posts. The effects of this imbue depend upon which kind of kidō was selected, as detailed below. Mai is only able to imbue 3 kidō into Hanten Mahō over the course of the ability’s use, regardless of the duration between imbues. Mai is able to override a previously imbued kidō, losing the duration of the previous selection. The initial Imbue, as well as changing the selected kidō are mental actions that do not require incantations. As such the imbued kidō is not subject to adjustments, positive or negative, from modifiers to kidō augmentations.

Hadō
When imbuing a Hadō spell, Mai’s attacks takes on the ‘primary property’ of the kidō being selected. For example, if she were to imbue herself with Shakkahō her attacks would take on a fiery aspect and threaten fire damage against those hit. She would still need to actually damage the target.

Bakudō
When imbuing a Bakudō spell, Mai’s attacks threaten to place a limited weaker version of the kidō at roughly 25% of the normal potency; subsequent attacks will strengthen this effect. These effects remain for the duration of the imbue and/or for three posts after the specifically imbued kido ends. If she were to select Geki, each attack would begin to slow and restrain the target.

Kekkai
When imbuing a Kekkai (Barrier) spell, Mai simply increases her durability by 100% on top of Hanten Mahō’s normal boost. She retains no extra effects native to the barrier kidō used.

Restrictions
While the effect of Hanten Mahō is indeed quite powerful, it does not come free of charge.

First; Hanten Mahō is a Kidō-like ability and this interferes with Mai’s ability to use Kidō while it is active. The only way for Mai to utilize kidō while Hanten Mahō is active is the above imbues.

Second; the act of churning energy through the body like this causes a dissonance of sorts. While the ability is active Mai is a formidable physical combatant, but once the ability has been deactivated there is a window of time in which Mai is unable to enter Hanten Mahō again. Currently Mai is unable to reactivate Hanten Mahō for five posts after leaving the state. During this cooldown period this dissonance reduces the potency of any Kidō she employs by 50%.

Third; Hanten Mahō constantly consumes energy while it is active. The greater the exertion Mai performs while using the ability, the more energy is drained. Depending on what actions Mai takes, this can either be a non-issue or a ticking clock on the ability and her ability to function in a combat scenario.

Four: Hanten Mahō is incompatible with similar abilities that derive from manipulating energy through the body, such as Shunko, and their abilities cannot be access while it is active. The ability boosts from Hanten Mahō do not stack with the baseline release bonuses of a Zanpakutō, though the Zanpakutō may still be released and its abilities utilized.

» Zanjutsu:
Mai competence with Zanjutsu follows a similar trajectory to Hakuda. She has spent more time, admittedly, practicing with her blade than her hands to use in combat. In terms of swordsmanship she is dead average at best. However, her connection to her Zanpakuto spirit is quite strong. Small wonder for the outgoing woman one might suppose; she has formed this connection to the point she has unlocked her Shikai.


» Zanpakutō Name:
Zoubenkyō (三面鏡) [Three-Faced Mirror]

» Zanpakutō Spirit:

» Zanpakutō Spirit Personality:
Zoubenkyō tends to be stoic and enigmatic, though Mai detects a certain amount of affection at least for her. Zoubenkyō refers to itself as “they,” and they tend to approach most situations with cold logic and calculation. They rarely speak to Mai in times of calm and peace, though they have reached out on occasion to attempt to help Mai with various projects she has been working on at the time. They seem to agree with Mai’s will for advancement, though they hold much of themselves back from their wielder for the time being.

» Inner World:

» Sealed Zanpakutō Appearance:
Zoubenkyō’s sealed form is rather unassuming, a normal zanpakutou in appearance with a wrap the same color as Mai’s hair.


» Shikai Release Phrase:
“Cast back their gaze,”

» Shikai Appearance:

Once Zoubenkyō is released, Mai is flanked by three of the above blades. Each blade stands five feet tall, and two feet wide at their widest point.

» Shikai Abilities:
Telekinetic Control
The three blades that comprise Zoubenkyō float and move independently of one another at Mai’s mental command, able to be brought to bare against enemies within range. This control however is limited in its range; Mai loses the ability to control the blades if they venture further than thirty feet from her, and her control of them can only be regained if the blade gets back within thirty feet of Mai.


» Bankai Name: [What is your zanpakutō's release phrase?]

» Bankai Release Action: [Does your shinigami do any physical action to release their bankai? Feel free to remove this if not.]

» Bankai Appearance: [What does your shinigami's bankai look like?]

» Bankai Abilities: [What abilities does your shinigami gain in bankai?]



General Skills
» Durability: Grade D
» Speed: Grade D
» Strength: Grade D
» Soul: Grade B

Will Skills
» Willpower: Beginner
» Deduction: Adept
» Focus: Beginner

Shinigami Skills
» Hakuda: Adept
» Hoho: Beginner
» Kidō: Elite
» Zanjutsu: Adept