"You have to feel the joy." Gwen Ryuunami, Lieutenant of the Thirteenth Division of the Gotei Thirteen, Journeywoman Gatekeeper of the Strand, Celestial Dragon of the Water, strode up and down the line of shinigami and humans she was training. "I've divided my classes up by core type, every single one of you has a Matsuri type Soul Core, it means you get stronger with emotional stimuli, just like me and Morgan."
Morgan smiled, a younger vizard and 5th division Third Seat under Gwen's father Takato Aramaki, Tamer of Guilmon and Captain of the 5th division, she was blonde haired, green eyed like Gwen, and wild of body language and eye.
"I have tied to my waist, a sash, whomever of you can take it from me in battle, will get a whole chocolate cheesecake."
"WOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Exclaimed Konohamaru from his spot at the back of the line. "This is way better than Kakashi's bell exercise!"
"I'm sorry Gwen, I'll have to interrupt your favorite training exercise." Stein grinned, leaning on the crystal scythe
that Gatekeepers who served the Shinigami often carried instead of a keyblade. "I have a mission for you."
"Oh bummer."
"I'll take over." Morgan said pleasantly.
"Oooh no, I need you too. Sorry kidlets, spar for a bit and try not to kill each other."
"I'm not a KID." Annie Walker, a new recruit to the Gatekeeper department of supernatural investigation, or DSI, growled. "I'm a full grown agent of the CIA."
"I must protest as well." Olivier Milla Armstrong, the Leader of the Northern Wall of Briggs, pointed her rapier squarely at Stein's nose. His cigarette twitched in his mouth. "Apologize for calling me a CHILD."
Stein laughed. "Olivier, ask your brother Alex what I put him through when he was first recruited to the Gatekeepers. He will tell you not to point sharp objects at me, lest their holder find themselves being dissected. Hmmm, I wonder what makes him so strong... perhaps some genetic protien in the muscles." He turned his screw.
The woman glowered. "I have my eye on you mister Mad Scientist. If you bring a scalpel anywhere near me I will break your fingers." Olivier growled, turning and storming away, dragging her sword on the cobblestones. "I'm going to go put those eleventh division thugs through their own dojo window. I could use some exercise and some entertainment. Besides that, Kenpachi is mildly interesting."
"figures she'd go for Kenpachi." Cho chang muttered. "He's exactly on the outside what she is on the inside." She mounted her broom. "Going for a fly before I go home. Finals are nearly over and I have a spare hour or two." And she was gone.
Annie sighed, "I suppose I can go bug Gideon for some case files to study. I don't quite get profiling as much as I get spying." She sighed, striding off to find the former BAU special agent and DSI director.
Konohamaru sighed in disgust. "Thanks a lot you old Geezer!" He growled. "I was gonna beat all the grownups and have a WHOLE chocolate cake all to myself."
Stein twirled his scalpel between his fingers. Konohamaru yelped like he'd been kicked, pulled out his keyblade, sliced open a portal to Konohagakure, and went running. "NARUUUTOOOO! SAVE ME FROM THE SCARY SCREW MAN!"
"That was a little over the top." Gwen complained. "Did you have an office quickie with my father? I smell peanut butter. That means one thing, contact trace from guilmon to Takato to you."
Stein took a drag on his cigarette and blew a couple of smoke rings out. "Yes, but I have a mission for the two of you. So speculations on my sex life will have to wait."
Morgan grinned. "Oh?" She arched an eyebrow Spock style.
"I'll explain when we get there." Stein turned the corner into the main work building of what the Soul Society called jokingly "Ryoka Row." It contained the barracks for young refugees, multiple workshops and practice dojos and yards, equipment rooms, foundries, and even kitchens. This quarter of Seireitei had once been abandoned. Now it thrived with Gatekeepers, interdimensional peace keepers who had served the higher Gods, the Deii, for thousands of years.
Sweeping changes were taking the Gatekeepers, and the Shinigami as well. The shinigami were finding others of their kind, long lost to time, and learning the benefits that trade with different Ryoka of different dimensions could bring. Case in point the SWAT armors now being produced from Magicverse Dragonhide. The Ministry of magic had authorized limited trade with other worlds in some of their rarer and more valuable products. But dragon hide was the most in demand.
Maybe the members of human Law enforcement now teaching Gatekeepers and each other how to catch criminals when supernatural phenomena were involved were a sign of greater contact to come with the wider world. Gwen could hear Olivia Benson's voice droning from a lecture room who's door was open, as well as hear the avid scribbling of pens, brushes, and quills. "Many many times, the law doesn't catch up with the times. Historically the gatekeepers have tried to balance divine law with earthly law, and its up to your individual consciences how to make the two coexist. The answers aren't always going to be easy. But nothing worthwhile ever is."
Gwen sighed, thinking of her gravestone that didn't have a body under it. Answers never were, with any luck, when her mortal body died and she took her place as Captain of 9th as Yamamoto was so keen to have her do, it could be put in that grave. But if not, Gwen wanted her ashes scattered over the Pokemon World's Mount Coronet.
Change, never came easy. Stein mused. But there were things he wanted to tell Shinigami-sama that he'd been forbidden to. This... this was a first step. Gwen and Morgan had been chosen for their bravado and their warm hearts, something he could never do. He wanted to make a mystery for his students that they'd never forget, that even if they failed their evaluations, that they'd still have a mystery to mull over when they were old and gray.
And with any luck, Shibusen, and its leader Shinigami-sama, could join the wider multiverse. That was Stein's hope.
When they got there Stein's desk chair was turned with its back to the door. Gwen blinked.
Urahara spun the chair back around, holding his fan in front of his face. In the room with him were 8 costumes on mannequins, and along with her and Morgan Gwen counted Ichigo, Renji, Rukia, Byakuya, Soifon and Rangiku. Yoruichi was twining herself slyly between Soifon's legs. "oooh my little bee, you're going to be /dashing/ in what Urahara's made up for you. Sooooooo sexy and hot." Yoruichi drawled, purring happily.
Soifon had a blush growing in her cheeks. "Slinky yellow and black spandex doesn't strike me as being stylish. Don't /think/ I don't know that you're buttering me up right now."
Morgan snickered hugely, blushing slightly with a hint of blood showing in one nostril. /Soifon in spandex./ Morgan's inner hollow drooled.
/Yeah... spandex./ Morgan said dazedly.
/FOCUS BOTH OF YOU!/ Morgan's zanpakuto, Morrigan, roared.
"What in Hell's will are you staring at me for with that blush?" Soifon demanded. "And is that a /nose bleed/ threatening? Lewd vizard mongrel!"
"I'm sure no matter what you wear ma'am, you'll have the enemy so stunned by your beauty that they will never see your two hit kill shikai coming for their gonads, er... ma'am." Morgan blushed. "Any admiration I have is only admiration for your strength, not your other assets." She looked away at the ground, scuffing her feet.
"Oh Soifon, you were young once too weren't you?" Yoruichi asked. "ooooh Yoruichi-sama." she mocked.
"I suppose." Soifon smirked at Morgan's sheepishness.
Gwen rolled her eyes. Morgan liked ballsy domineering women and well endowed, heavily muscled men. Gwen was married, and had children, with two women, Major Motoko Kusanagi and her former boss, the enigmatic ancient Zoidian, ZP. Yeah, woman having kids with another woman, Gatekeepers could create some very strange things.
"Aherm..." Stein sighed. "You're all going to go in disguise to my world, each of these costumes were designed by Uryu, and programmed with special protection by me and Urahara. You may become invisible, inaudible, imperceptible, meaning you can't be sensed with soul perception, you may hide your status as a shinigami, and it automatically hides the distinguishing characteristics of your soul and your reiatsu from soul perception."
"Humans on Stein's world have an unusually high level of spiritual ability. They can /see/ a person's soul, and identify a person as being a shinigami. Which is unusual, on their world Shinigami are quite rare. Only two are publicly known, though some vestige of as many as seven others could still be out there." Urahara opened the file and sighed. "Ah, here it is, multiple entries from 800 years ago, dug up by Master Gatekeeper Nico Robin, Archeologist, and her former Apprentice Nami some years ago." Urahara sighed. "We need to see if Shinigami-sama, and his organization are people that we can trust and forge an alliance with, to do this we need some solid intelligence. For now, you'll be disguising yourselves as superheroes and you'll have cover IDs using special gigai. The superhero guise gives you more than ample motivation to want to interfere if saaaaay, a student were to encounter an arrancar and mistake it for a Kisshin's egg."
"You mean Aizen's arrancars are there?"
"An advanced guard, a fraccion by the name of Marorin Delacroix Queso." Stein sighed. "Spirit and I tried to take him on, but... that boy has some nasty nasty tricks up his sleeve. Water type illusions, which is why we're sending Gwen. I'm hoping she can break his water type ressurecion by taking away the water he uses for illusions somehow."
Gwen blushed. "I've never been up against water illusions. So I don't know how I'll perform but..."
Urahara chuckled. "I doubt you'll be able to use them if you haven't yet, but you may be able to break them. After all, breaking something doesn't require proficiency, only enough understanding to destroy."
"Destruction is what I do best."
"Yes Ryuunami, we all know you do that best." Byakuya snickered. Renji giggled.
"At least my Kido is better than that of /your/ lieutenant." Gwen snickered. "Tell me Renji, are you as small between your legs as that last Shakkaho?"
"Only Ichigo is allowed to know." Ichigo blushed furiously.
Rukia laughed. "ooooh I love what you gave me Stein. I'll truly look like an ice queen."
"I have a gift for each of you." Stein opened a case at the back of the room. "These crystal scythes were the weapons of choice of shinigami and their servants in ages past, given as a gift for distinguished service." Stein gave each Shinigami one of the crystal scythes like the one he used for a gatekey when he wasn't with Spirit. "These weapons predate zanpakuto or magic weapons."
"Where's Spirit by the way?"
"Finishing up his divorce with Kami." Stein replied. "We'll be keeping an eye out for you while you're there, but if we see you in your costumes, you haven't done your jobs right." Stein smirked. "i'm giving each of you a clue to give to the Students you'll be haunting... er... evaluating..." He handed files to each of them in turn. "How you reveal it, is up to you. Upon request from Dumbledore, I've hidden the Deathly Hallows somewhere on my world. These clues will lead the students in question to all three artifacts in the trio and explain their creator."
Gwen grinned as she opened the file she had been handed. "Death the Kid, son of Shinigami-sama."
"He's got the most resources, but the clue I've set you is to hint that other shinigami exist out there."
"So this stone of ressurection listed in the file is shinigami make?" Soifon asked coldly.
"Oh yes, Shinigami-sama's grandfather, Kid's great grandfather, created it. And it doesn't do what its name implies by the way. It only allows you to converse with the Shades of those who have already been reincarnated."
Soifon nodded. "I don't believe any shinigami would create something to violate the cycle of life and death unless they were traitors in some fashion." Soifon said, clearly satisfied. "But talking to the Shades is an accepted practice, so the ancient records say."
"One more secret of our people lost." Byakuya scowled.
Gwen rolled her eyes, overly upright nobles sometimes both amused and irritated her. "Do we get a dry run of these?"
"Take an hour or two to get used to the costumes." Urahara agreed. "Then depart."
Gwen ended up sitting on the roof of the Gallows Manor and listening as Kid showed his new friends, Maka Albarn, Soul Eater, Blackstar and Tsubaki around his house. "And this painting is perfectly symmetrical, a wonderful..." Gwen tuned out any mention of symmetry. She'd already figured out that Kid was OCD. It mattered absolutely zilch to her, it was a /barrier/ for him to overcome, not an exclusionary criterion. If they denied Kid the chance to be tapped as a gatekeeper, they'd have to deny arrancar!Light, arrancar!Misa, Mello, Olivier, Sai, Wrath, Greed, Envy and anyone else who had ever shown signs of disturbing psychological or psychotic behavior. Kid was obsessive compulsive, there were worse things to be.
Kid was getting frustrated at his new friends for not being interested in or getting "Symmetry." Gwen chuckled. Gwen's costume was uncomfortable, and instead of sitting on the roof she shifted her position to standing on the air outside Kid's window.
The costume was a long midnight blue shroud with a hood that tapered into what looked like two horns. The mask was a chinese dragon skull, the jaw rigged to move with her own jaw and equipped with a voice changer. The shoes were elfin make from the Middle Earth world, so were the gloves, both enormous mithril affairs sharp as actual dragon talons and modeled after the real thing. If she left tracks, they'd be genuine dragon prints.
Gwen waited until Liz and Patti left with Maka and Tsubaki for some girl time. Blackstar and Soul had gone off to practice their physical combat moves. Gwen waited, and watched, as Kid opened the window to admit the hot Nevada air as the sun went down.
Gwen waited as Kid lay back on his bed and slowly, slowly began to fall asleep in the fading light. She landed nimbly on the windowsill, then landed to the floor with a clink Kid couldn't hear.
Gwen carefully twisted three knobs on her right glove. She became visible, audible, and perceptible vaguely to any in the room as a shinigami. She flicked her fingers and the lights went out in the room, Kid was drowsily asleep as the sun set outside, somewhat vaguely aware. He was in that... odd twilight place between sleep and alertness.
Gwen bent close to Kid's ear, the stance one of grace despite the heavy costume she wore. "Death the Kid, there is so much more in heaven and earth than what you know, look beyond the Symmetry, and see the GLORY of the wider world. Reclaim your people, you and your father have sooooo much to learn."
Kid sat up bolt upright, reaching to try and smack Gwen. Gwen chuckled, flash stepping out of the way. "Too slow little reaper. But then again, you are a child, I would not expect you to be fast. You're good, flash god you are not."
"Who are you?" Kid demanded.
"My name is Mirai, and I come from a land far, far, far beyond. Home for me is wherever my Soul is standing. And my Family are those who make my Soul /sing!/" Gwen raised her head, jaw of the mask open in a silent croon. "Come and find us Kid! COME AND FIND THE REST OF YOUR PEOPLE!" And Gwen disappeared with flash step, then from sight, then sound, and then from soul perception.
Kid growled, "Liz, patti!" Oh wait, they were gone. Having a large group of new friends certainly had its downsides. "Damn." Kid ran to the window, looking out beyond as mist appeared where Gwen had stood a few seconds before. The mist formed into a dragon, which turned its head to look at Kid, then flew straight at the window, freezing onto the wall a symbol from the file. A winged skull and crossed keys, very old, very distinctive, with a phoenix clutching the skull in its talons, wings and tail wrapped around it.
Beneath this symbol, words froze themselves into the wall.
"Warm yourself by the fire son, and the morning will come soon
Take me from this world, save me, what if we all die young?"
Kid ran outside and looked at the symbol, then immediately summoned the hologram of his father, enabling communication with him up in the deathroom. "Father, are there any more shinigami other than you and me?"
"not that I am aware of. Two enormous supernatural wars wiped most of us out."
"I think I was just visited by one, a female, she was dressed in a midnight blue shroud much like yours, but her skull, gloves and shoes were modeled after a chinese dragon. She introduced herself as Mirai and she said that she comes from a land far far away. She /also/ said that home for her is where her soul is standing, and family are those who make her soul sing. Does this sound familiar?"
Shinigami-sama scratched his head. "not at all, where is she now?"
"Ran out when I tried to question her further. She said she wanted me to come and find her and... someone else. And I'm assuming this frozen into the wall immediately following her exit is her doing." Kid gestured to the wall. "I recognize the lines as being from a rock band I'm rather fond of, but I don't know the symbol."
Shinigami-sama peered. "oooooh, this was my Grandfather's symbol. Your great grandfather Kid. He disappeared some centuries ago. But he was an ingenius creator of spiritual artifacts. Not on the same caliber as Eibon was, but close to it." He scratched his head.
"You never talk about our ancestors father."
"no, but thats because I don't know all of them. Not beyond Ojiisama." Shinigami-sama sighed. "I would very much like to know who our ancestors were Kid. Soooo much of our people's past is missing from the record beyond temple murals and cave paintings." He frowned. "If you and your friends can find out something about our people's past not in the archives, I'll give you all an extra credit grade. I'm stuck here Kid, but I do want to know about our people."
Something glinting at the foot of the frozen message caught Kid's eye. "What's this?" He picked it up, holding it up to the moon light.
It was a carved Obsidian mirror, with ornate carvings and some kind of language on it. "Father, what's this?"
Shinigami-sama inspected the object, and Kid felt his father's wavelength become hushed in awe. "When my parents were married, my grandfather, your great grandfather, made a series of obsidian mirrors as a wedding present. But after they died, grandfather claimed them from my father's personal effects. He said that someday, he'd give them to me."
Kid smiled a small smile. "I'd like to study this a little bit, I'll bring it by tomorrow morning."
"Of course Kid, consider it part of your extra credit project."
Kid smiled, extremely smug, as he carried the mirror inside. He was excited, this was almost more interesting than symmetry.
Across the city, Morgan watched over Maka and Soul's apartment, standing on the air in her costume outside the living room window. Soul was practicing on a keyboard. Morgan smiled when she realized he was playing a variation on "simple and clean" by Utada Hikaru.
Morgan decided to seriously fuck with Soul's head. So she turned the dial on the bracelet on her wrist and began to sing along with the music he was playing.
"When you walk away
You don't hear me say
"Please, oh baby, don't go"
Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight
It's hard to let it go
Hold me
Whatever lies beyond this morning
Is a little later on
Regardless of warnings
The future doesn't scare me at all
Nothing's like before..."
Morgan had a /very/ good voice. When she went to Pern, she sang at gathers a /lot./ Of course, modern music was all the rage on Pern. She played for other Gatekeepers, many others in the gatekeepers learned to sing, or to read music, and quite a few learned the Pernese drum language. But few could do it well.
Soul grinned stupidly, peering at the window. "Hey Maka did you hear something?"
Morgan grinned, continuing to sing the bridge and chorus even after Soul had stopped playing. Her voice rose and fell across the scales like a songbird. Soul and Maka went to the window, and Morgan moved a little ways back.
When she reached the end of the song, Morgan beamed. "oye, shark face, are ya gonna throw me another tune or am I gonna be piping solo tonight?" She demanded with a smirk.
"WHO are you?" Maka demanded, leaning out the window.
"Who me? I'm the little voice in your head that mocks you. Oh wait, I can't be, because your soul doesn't sing the way /he/ does."
"What do you mean my soul doesn't sing?" Maka asked, cocking her head curiously but clearly annoyed with Morgan's roundabout answer.
"Everything in the universe has a song as its heartbeat. People who are musically inclined are more in tune with their environment. Even though I can sense your soul loud and clear, it doesn't sing the way the soul of someone /truely/ at one with their surroundings and their own nature does. You poor misguided girl, your weapon has it more together than you do. How can you possibly not hear the music of the universe?" Morgan asked airily.
"I don't even understand what you mean! Are you talking about some kind of Soul Perception?"
"She's talking about Zen I think. The way whomever this invisible voice thinks, the universe sings to her when she attunes herself to it, and so do souls." Soul explained.
Morgan chuckled. "Exactly, I percieve souls as a song, its not soul perception per say, just a feeling I get. But I don't get anything from you, your soul doesn't sing a single note." Morgan twisted the dial that would make her visible and leaned in to face Maka, a warm smile on her face.
Morgan's hair had been dyed red, her face painted and a crow mask pulled over it. Contacts in her green eyes made them appear an unearthly blue. Her outfit was modeled after a crow. Morgan concentrated on exuding all the warmth and friendliness she could, and the Meister leaned closer.
Maka felt the warmth that Morgan exuded, it drew her in like a moth to the flames but she hesitated. "Um... I still don't know your name."
"My name is Morrigan. I was named for an old Celtic grim reaper a veeerrry long time ago."
"I thought Morrigan was a witch?" Maka blinked.
"Thats Morgana, Mabaa's predecessor. People often confuse the two." Morgan flicked her fingers, painted with glittery black makeup modeled after a crow's feathers, in a dismissive fashion. "I'm my own lady, I don't let the reputation of a witch hundreds of years old get in the way of the image I want to create. When I'm out for artistic expression I go for it, no holds barred, and yes, this costume is a way of artistic expression."
"So Morrigan is a stage name." Soul mused.
"Haiiiii, guilty as charged." Morgan giggled. She turned so she was hanging upside down above their door. "Well, in all honesty its not just a matter of self expression. I have a position to maintain under the makeup and the mask. I'd love to attend Shibusen as a Meister, but I have professional obligations elsewhere that keep me from joining." She beams. "Sooooo to satisfy my itch I dress in a flashy disguise and come bug unwitting Meisters and Weapons during the day."
"Don't you have a weapon though?"
"My cousin Shadow is a katana. He helps me when I need him. But he was busy tonight, besides, I have to /share/ him with my other cousin Nightrunner." Morgan yawned. "I don't want to share a partner with someone, I want my own weapon partner."
"Its too bad you can't attend." Maka pouted. "Can you at least give me your real name? Or maybe what profession you're in?"
"Business." Morgan chimed. "Thats all you're allowed to know." Soul just laughed.
"What about your /name/ besides Morrigan?" Maka pressed.
"Hmmmm..." Morgan pursed her lips thoughtfully. Then she sang. "We are the long forgotten sons, and daughters that, don't belong to anyone, we are the looooong forgotten sons, we work to fix the work that you've undooooneee. Don't fall, I see lights in the distance, they're not far away..."
Maka glared at Morgan irritably, "Maka... CHOP!" Morgan found herself bashed in the head by a copy of Twilight. She clattered to the ground. BAM! The window slammed shut. "Ouch... she can't take mockery well can she?"
Morgan sighed, getting up and dusting herself off, she drew the insignia Stein had told her to draw, then added in greek and roman characters. "Apocrypha of the Shinigami, Winged Lions and Scythes." Then she placed a mirror made from obsidian at the base of the inscription.
Ichigo and Rukia slipped into Blackstar and Tsubaki's apartment, through their bedroom windows. Ichigo checked the bed, as far as he could tell Tsubaki was asleep. He moved across the room to place an ornately carved Obsidian mirror on her desk.
Ichigo's costume was that of a tall, black lion. Urahara had been very proud when he'd given it to Ichigo, saying that he had the soul of a lion and he couldn't think of a more fitting costume. Rukia was dressed as a yuki onna, something that made sode no shirayuki endlessly proud. The zanpakuto kept trying to coach Rukia in how to act like a proper Yuki onna, and Rukia was proud of herself when she got sode no shirayuki's tips correctly.
Suddenly Ichigo felt a blade at his throat from behind. "Don't move." A girl's voice warned, "I've changed my arms into scythes and chains, if you move, I'll take your head off."
Ichigo froze, eyes closing as he relaxed in the girl's grip. That must be Tsubaki Nakatsukasa.
"What are you doing here?"
"Is your will to protect as a weapon solid?" Ichigo asked, the voice changer in his lion mask making his voice very gravely and deep.
"What the hell kind of question is that from a burgler?" Tsubaki demanded, tense, and clueless.
"Look on your desk..." Ichigo growled. "I didn't take something, I left something behind."
"What did you leave?"
"I'll answer that question if you answer mine. Is your will to protect as a weapon as hard as the steel held to my throat? Is your soul solid as your weapon form?"
"Yes." Tsubaki said coldly, "answer my question." she was starting to get angry now. This wasn't like her, but something about this figure in a lion mask felt odd to her. She couldn't put her finger on it, almost like his soul wavelength was being muffled somehow.
"What I left for you is a clue to an ancient mystery. One I'm certain Shibusen has the resources to solve."
"And why are you giving this clue to a student?"
"Who says you're the only person getting one?" Ichigo smirked behind his mask.
Tsubaki sighed, releasing Ichigo. "GET OUT. And don't sneak in in the middle of the night again. You scared me!" At that scolding, Ichigo chuckled. "Scaring an assassin is not a good thing you know."
He turned and walked to the window. Then he hesitated and turned around. "My name is Raion." And then he was gone. Being Japanese, Tsubaki wondered what kind of parents would name their kid Raion, the name /meant/ lion, it was a literal katakanization of the english word. Then remembered asking Soul the same question when /they/ met. "Of course, its an assumed name, like students sometimes change their name." Tsubaki frowned.
A loud cry of "YAHOOOO! Please be my girl Yuki?" Blackstar begged from the other room.
"NO CHANCE YOU PERVERT, JUST TAKE THE DAMNED CLUE ALREADY AND STOP HUGGING ME!"
Tsubaki ran to her Meister's room. A black mirror with carvings on it similar to hers was sitting on Blackstar's desk. Blackstar was hugging a woman in pale, sparkling white makeup with short black hair. She had snapping eerie blue eyes and was wearing a beautiful white formal kimono decorated with a snow design. She carried a sword at her belt and had a fan in her hand.
Blackstar had Rukia in an iron grip and was begging her to go on a date with him. Rukia was struggling to get out of his grip until... BAM! She kicked Blackstar across the room, dropping her fan in her haste to run. " YOU DUMB PERVERT! YOU SHOULDNT LAY HANDS ON A LADY WHEN I ALREADY SAID NO!" Rukia stood outside the window. "NEXT TIME I SAY DONT TOUCH ME I MEAN DONT TOUCH ME!"
Blackstar lay there, blushing furiously with a dumb grin on his face. "What a woman, oooooh Yuki, I will make you miiiiiiine." Blackstar swooned.
Tsubaki groaned, then hurried to the window bowing to "Yuki" "I'm terribly sorry, when Blackstar gets like this its hard for him to contain himself."
Ichigo sniggered, growling through the voice changer in his mask. "So I herd you lieek Yuuuukiii." He teased.
"RAION YOU IDIOT." Rukia grabbed Ichigo by the collar, leaving him choking through the mask, dragging him away.
"What's got you so steamed?" Ichigo asked when they were a safe distance away.
"He just looks at me ONCE and tackles me and starts groping me. I mean, when I went into your window you never did that!"
"Yeah well, I'm glad I didn't or you'd probably have given me brain damage instead of shinigami powers." Ichigo frowned. "Lets go." He began to walk across the skies of Death city, and Rukia stood and followed him. Sode no Shirayuki amused herself by releasing soft, puffy mist beneath their steps.
Ox and Kim were teaming up on a lesson, an enormous rhino kisshin with a seriously thick hide, a lot of brawn and a bad attitude. The Kisshin brought a massive grey hand with leathery skin and thick stumpy fingers down in a swat to try and flatten Kim.
"Chire..." a deep bass voice said softly. "Senbonzakura Kageyoshi."
A blast of cherry blossom like blades tipped the rhino kisshin straight over. "Sting all enemies to death, Suzumebachi!" A strident female alto voice yelled. Flash, stab stab!
It happened so fast that Ox could barely track their attack. The kisshin imploded. The flower petals wooshed by them, surrounding the two Meister's and their weapons. One of them reached out to gently stroke Kim's cheek. "Daijoubu...?" The bass voice asked. Ox's Japanese was slightly rusty, but he stammered. "G... g... genki desu..."
"H... hai..." Kim blushed slightly. "Genki desu."
"Good." The female voice said stubbornly. "Children should not go looking to kill monsters, what on Earth is Shinigami-sama thinking opening a school to teach children to fight such things?"
The cherry blossoms formed a hole, and through it Ox and Kim could see two figures arguing. One was a woman in an outfit of yellow and black spandex and wearing a beautiful crown of enamel glass and copper. The other was a tall, proud man in a samurai costume and mask, his hair in a topknot and some kind of silver bar shaped hairpiece in his hair.
"Now now, Queen Bee, this is a foreign land, with foreign customs." The samurai said softly in his deep bass voice.
"That is no excuse Sakuyaken." The woman growled. "We must be away, there are other things to do this night."
The cherry petals threw themselves skyward all at once. As they crossed between Ox and Kim, Havar and Jackie, they obscured Byakuya and Soifon's discrete exit.
Left with the kisshin's egg soul they'd been hunting, Ox looked down, realizing two carved obsidian mirrors had been left for them. "Hmmm? What are these? This looks kind of like Japanese kanji, but... it looks /ancient/."
"Thats Shinigami-sama's seal, we should bring it to him before class tomorrow."
Renji ran over the rooftops to find an apartment on the north side of town. Inside lay his target, Kilik Rung. He grinned and took in a deep lungful of air, and bellowed through the amplifier and voice changer in his mask. "IS YOUR SOUL STERN ENOUGH TO DEFEND YOUR PRIDE? WELL MEISTER?"
Kilik heard the bellow and ran to the window. His eyes met golden yellow orbs in an enormous nue mask. It was a nue costume, Kilik had learned about them in school in his supernatural monsters class. There was the snake tail, a skeleton with a red mane, moving independantly of the costume's wearer. The mask was a baboon skull who's jaw moved up and down with the words of the speaker.
"DEFEND YOUR PRIDE MEISTER! ITS A WILD WORLD OUT THERE! STAND STOUT AS A BABOON'S BONE!" Renji bellowed.
Fire and Thunder squealed in delight, running to the window and pointing to Renji.
"Who inquires as to the sturdiness of my Soul?" Kilik demanded down.
"I am the Baboon King! Nuekage! I test the souls of young Meisters and Weapons to see how stout their determination is! You made a vow to defend! How strong is your will to fullfill it?"
"I will fight to my last breath." Kilik replied. "Until my back breaks and I bleed out." His face was determined and extremely fired up.
"Good man!" Renji exclaimed, bobbing up and down in a baboon like way. "I will return to challenge your resolve later, I have something for you, a puzzle piece of sorts. Bring it to Shinigami-sama in the morning, it was made by his grandfather!"
"I will treat it as I would my own grandfather's work." Kilik said solemnly as he, Fire and Thunder hurried down to their apartment building door to meet Renji.
Kilik looked up, and saw the feral red eyes under Renji's mask and faint whisps of red hair. Fire and Thunder squealed at the sight of Renji and tackled his legs, hugging him at about knee level. "OOF!" Renji exclaimed as he went down.
Kilik blinked when he saw Fire and Thunder's reaction. "Er... Nuekage-san, they only act that giddy for a shinigami... er..."
"some mysteries are best, if they take longer to solve." Renji beamed, handing over the mirror made of obsidian and smiling as he disappeared with flash step.
That night, far north of town, Shinigami-sama was monitoring an odd patch of mist via his mirror. The mirror couldn't penetrate it, but magic wasn't being used. Every so often flashes of light and the odd animal sound would issue from within.
But within, the zone of mist was alive with animal shaped hollows. And in the center of them, sitting on the edge of the bluff the zone enveloped, was a gray arrancar with rubbery dolphin like skin and an uncanny grin. He was singing in a happy alto voice. (1)
Nozoite minai ka fushigi sugiru sekai wo
Annai suru yo, bokura no halloween
Kore ga halloween, tanoshii halloween
Kabocha ga himei wo ageru
Kore ga halloween
Machijuu sawaguu
trick or treat minna ga shinu hi made
Around Marorin Delacroix Queso, the animal hollows hissed and howled and bounced around, dancing with him, two and three headed dogs, enormous skeletal cats and winged horses, crab hollows with over a hundred eyes, fish hollows that floated in the air and twisted around him elegantly, snake hollows that snapped poisonous fangs and hissed. It was a terrifying array of animals, even wolf hollows, eagle hollows, all of them either ancient greek, roman or egyptian holy animals and animals of the zodiac signs.
Kyoufu no machi
Hibiku himei
suteki na halloween
beddo ni kakureri ore wo miro
Surudoi kiba ni maka na me
Kaidan ni kakureru ore wo miro
Hebi no yubi ni kaminoke kumo
Kore ga halloween, tanoshii halloween
Halloween
Halloween
Halloween
Halloween
Marorin began to conduct, and the animal hollows stomped and howled and keened in time with him, adding a bizzare, feral harmony with Marorin's song.
Halloween town, kono machi wa
Pumpkin song ni daikassai
Halloween town, kono machi wa
Minna ga kyoufu wo daikangei
toori no kado wo magatte goran
wakuwaku shichauze nanika ga
suki da ze!
halloween!
akakuro nebaneba!
kowai darou? ara zenzen yo!
noroi no kotoba tonaeru dake de
Yamiyo no tsuski ni noru wa
kyoufu no koe hibiku himei
suteki na halloween
atashi wa piero yo, okao na hen
ikinari araware sugu kieru
senaki ga tsumetaku kanjiru kai?
boku da yo kurokami yurasu kaze
oresama tsukiyo ni utsura kage
Kyoufu no yume nara omakase da
Kore ga halloween tanoshii halloween
Halloween
halloween
halloween
halloween
halloween
halloween
acchi mo kocchimo kowain da
sou ja nai to tsumaranai
sore ga minna no shigoto sa halloween
Halloween town, kono machi wa
Minna ga kyufu wo daikangei
Suteki na jack ni odokasaretara
Tachimachi shinzou tomaru yo
suki da ze! halloween minna de gyaa!
taisetsu na otoko no otoori da
eiyuu Jack warera no ou
minna hakushu de tataero
kyou wa halloween, tanoshii halloween
halloween halloween halloween halloween
halloween town kono machi wa
pumpkin song ni daikassai
la la la lala la la la lala
la la la lala la la la lala
la la la lala la la la lala
As the song ended, Marorin threw his head back and laughed insanely, the sound having a touch of orca or dolphin noise in it and his teeth were definately cetusian (sp?). Marorin's cackling of insane delight was interrupted by a small black hole opening behind him, a communications garganta, Zephly's special creation.
"Having fun my darling?"
"Oh yes, these minions you have supplied me may have come from animal souls, but they have superb sense of timing and they love music. I have them wrapped around my finger."
"I don't quite care about the rest, but if Cerby and Veela come back shredded I'll have your hide. I'm quite fond of multi headed dogs and those two are my personal work animals. They provide pack muscle, hair for clothing, and plenty of intimidation. I'll be very, very angry if you come back without them."
"Haaaaiii, don't worry about me, I'm always very good with your familiars." Marorin beamed.
"Very good." a note floated through the garganta to Marorin, who caught it neatly. "Wait for three days, then give this to Spirit Albarn."
"What is it?"
"A threat to his daughter's life, I'm going to test them by throwing them into a tizzy. Threatening a deathscythe's daughter should do the trick."
That night Gwen's dreams were consumed with nightmares. "hoooold me, whatever lies beyond this morning, is a little bit along." "you shinigami are so predictable. I love using your soft hearts against you." VWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM, the blinding flash of a cero blast. "Regardless of warnings, the future doesn't scare me at aaaallll..." Jubilife City burned beneath her dragon wings. Gwen raised her head, keening in anguish, a dragon death knell usually only uttered by the Pernese dragons. Pokemon screaming in fear, human souls fleeing before the hollows. "Nothing's like before..."
She sat up straight in bed with a shriek, she'd spent the night in Stein's lab with the door locked and barriered by ice. "Ryuunami-san, you're going to be late."
"And you're a stalker." Gwen snarled at Spirit. She'd crashed at Stein's place the night before. "Over the Hill Scythe. Are you here to fret, whine and whimper about your daughter like a bratty teenage girl?"
"No, I wanted to warn you that Kami is still in town, hasn't left yet, she'll be gone by tonight but with her soul perception."
"So I have to wear that fucking suit all day."
"Shinigami-sama can't know that you're here yet. If worst came to worst and you were found then there wouldn't be much of a trust issue because you're a shinigami, but neither of us want to push that."
"Good, get out so that I can get dressed and have some GOOD coffee ready, I don't care if its in a beaker as long as its clean." Gwen growled.
Spirit left, and about two hours later, Gwen was following Kid, invisible, down the halls of Shibusen towards the Deathroom. "Hey Kid." Soul waved cheerfully. He, Maka, Blackstar, Tsubaki, Ox, Havar, Kim, Jackie, Kilik, Fire and Thunder had all arrived more or less simultaneously at the entrance.
"you got one too?" Kim asked, blinking in surprise.
"Yeah, some girl singing in a crow costume left it leaning against the wall outside our apartment." Soul yawned. "have to say, she had some singing voice on her."
"How odd, a shinigami I've never seen before left the one at the mansion, Father offered me extra credit if I could solve the puzzle they're putting out. He thinks they have secrets to our people's past."
"I think the one that left my mirror was a shinigami too. Fire and Thunder only react /that/ way to Shinigami-sama." Kilik put in. "But it looked and felt nothing like him."
"What way?" Kid demanded.
THUD! Fire and Thunder tackled his legs and hugged him. "Like that. When Fire and Thunder first met Shinigami-sama they ran right over to him and clung to that springy leg of his. The old man said its because they're nature shamens, that meeting a new shinigami they've never met before makes them happy."
"Oh." Kid looked down at Fire and Thunder, who were snuggling his legs. He hesitated, then reached down and tousled their hair for a moment before prying them off. They ran back over to Kilik and hid behind him, looking out at Kid with huge, cute looking eyes.
"So each of these mirrors contains a message right?" Maka inspected hers. "Maybe if we put them in the right order..."
"I'll leave this to you guys, if you need a BIG man to beat some answers out of these weird visitors let me know, but puzzles are too boring for the man who's Bigger than God!" Blackstar declared.
"You mean you're too impatient to try and solve them." Ox said slyly.
"What's that supposed to mean? I'm a big guy, I'll leave puzzles to you little people." Blackstar beamed hugely and snorted steam out of his nose.
"I'll help you if you want Kid." Maka and Ox said at once.
Spirit smiled and let them in, holding the door open long enough for Gwen to slip in behind them.
"I like puzzles." Maka was saying as they came in. "Besides, the history of the shinigami is a puzzle worth finding out don't you think?"
"Especially if it raises our GRADES." Tsubaki glared at Blackstar. "its too bad such a big man can't get a big grade."
"You're not resenting my bigness are you Tsubaki?"
"No Blackstar, but I wish you'd show a bit more interest in your school work that /doesn't/ involve fighting." Tsubaki sighed. "I know there's more in you than what you show everyone, but you NEVER let anyone know!"
"An assasin NEVER shows his true nature!" Blackstar declared.
"Forget it Tsubaki, you can't win with him, its like you're not even speaking." Maka sighed.
Ox frowned at the picture on his mirror. "Hey Kim, line your mirror up with mine."
"Sure." They held them together. "Oh SHIT!"
"What is it?"
"If you put my mirror next to Kim's, it shows the four horsemen of the apocalypse!" Ox declared. "Look!"
"Its monotone, how can you tell?" Kid asked.
"Because, in the book of revelation where the horsemen are shown, it says what weapons each one carried. The white horseman was the antichrist, and he carried a bow and a crown. The red horseman represents war in the form of civil war and civil unrest, and he carried a sword. The black horseman symbolizes famine and economic instability and carries a scales. And the pale horseman is supposedly "death" and carries a scythe, but its unsure whether John of Patmos meant a shinigami or some more powerful essence of Death." Ox replied.
"Essence of Death?" Soul looked nervous.
"Its in the books for the advanced classes." Kid said dully as they walked under the guillotines, nearing the end of them. "According to the texts I read, Shinigami are simply the administrators of Death. We protect its cycle, but we don't actually take lives. That is reserved for a force usually referred to as the /Essence/ of Death, a pure energy with no mind or weak sentience but with a definate physical form. This Essence is neuter, neither male nor female, and immortal, wheras even shinigami can die if we are injured fast enough and badly enough."
"Hmmmm." Maka leaned over Ox and Kim's shoulder.
"If you put the mirrors in the right order they'll reveal a mural and a story." Shinigami-sama sighed as they entered. "Good morning students, you're here because of the mysterious visitors our city had last night. One confirmed shinigami among them, and to inspect these mirrors. They were made by my grandfather. When my parents died, my grandfather claimed them among their estate, but he disappeared without a trace, no body, no sign he was dead, just disappeared into thin air." Shinigami-sama sighed. "The mural has some kind of story to it, but my grandfather said I'd only be able to read the writing when the right time came."
/Sounds kind of familiar./ Kid thought dully to himself. /There's a lot of things I can't learn until the right time comes." "Lets see if this is the right time then." He laid all the mirrors out in a circle and stood in the center, then surveyed them. "Hmmm..." He carefully started arranging them into the right order. "A perfectly symmetrical circle, now let me see..."
He blinked. "I can read it, its a story in an extremely ancient Japanese dialect. A long time ago, the Shinigami were a prosperous wandering tribe. They had humans and witches as their vassels... wait witches were their vassels?"
"There's more to our enemies than you know, and its in the higher level advanced classes. Take a course in graduate studies when you're old enough and you'll get an explanation. Go on..." Shinigami-sama told him.
"Okay... it says one day a member of the tribe betrayed them and unleashed the four horsemen of the apocalypse. All but a few of the tribe were slain, and only a few of their followers remained. The witches hid the remaining shinigami with magic, while the Head Death, Loki the fifth, what a horrible name by the way, planned their counter attack. They created three weapons to fight the horsemen, who were too powerful to reseal in a direct attack." Kid frowned, turning a bit to read more.
"Loki V created the Elder Wand, also known as the Death Stick, a powerful magical instrument that would rebel in the hands of a witch, but sing in the hands of a Grim Reaper. Forever after as a magical wood, Elder would favor the hands of a reaper over the hands of a bonefied witch. Loki V also created the Cloak of Death, a shroud that would completely hide one from sight, sound, and sense. More complete than even a witch's soul protect, a person hiding beneath it would even be able to hide from the eyes of the Grim Reapers themselves. Finally, Loki V created the Stone of Mediumship, later mistaken for an instrument of ressurection, this stone enabled him to speak with any person who had died, even if their soul had been reincarnated, their memory and image would appear. This meant that the knowledge of his forebears would be able to help him reseal the Horsemen."
"With the knowledge and magic tools in hand, and a scythe of crystal, Loki V removed the heads of the four horsemen and their mounts, then their feet. These were sealed in separate sarcophagi and expelled to the Shrine of Ammet's Stomach. Here the God Anubis, oh dear not him again, wards off intrusion into the shrine so that they may never be released again."
The mirrors began to glow, and when Kid turned them over, a location appeared on one of them. "oh my."
"I think we got a clue, maybe if we go to the place shown on the mirror it will lead us to these items."
"My grandfather's seal was the old mask I used to wear, with two scythes' crossed, but his personal symbol was a bird. He loved the phoenix especially." Shinigami-sama sighed. "Anywho, you all have got to go to class. I suggest you use the Gallows for working on this rather than the library. Don't know who might be sneaking around."
Gwen had to suppress a giggle.
She followed Kid out of the Deathroom, turning to look back at the glowing mirrors. "I think once we go to the first place in the image, the next mirror will show its clue." Kid mused. "It reminds me a lot of a clock, only with eight points instead of twelve."
Maka sighed. "I suppose it can't be helped, still with your OCD I figured you'd probably be uncomfortable with strangers in the house, I mean we just met."
"hey Soul." Kilik pulled his video recorder out of his bag. "Check this out." he pushed play.
"Ooooooh SOUUUULLL!"
"BLACKSTARRRRR!"
"SOUUUULLLL!"
"BLACKSTAAARRRRR!"
"It sounds like the two of you are having SEX!" Kilik howled with laughter.
"Shut up." Soul growled.
"Maka!" Spirit called after them. "I forgot to give you these. Tickets to a concert tonight. The Howling Dragons, they're a rookie band and the lead singer is the daughter of one of my old classmates. I figured you'd want to check them out. They're playing tonight." He handed Maka and Soul, then each of the others in their new little "group" a ticket.
"Not bad, this is the nightclub where I go to perform sometimes, they like to take rookie talent." Soul grinned.
"You perform?" Kilik asked.
"To the right audience, I'm picky about who I'll play for, right Maka?"
"Yeah, Soul's family are all big musicians, but he doesn't like them very much and he didn't want to be one of them."
"Anyway, this new band is staying at Stein's place. So why don't you come by to greet them?" Spirit asked. "Please Maka? This is their first tour, and it would mean a lot to me if you could make them feel welcome here in Death City."
"Okay, ooookaaaay!"
Gwen left early, quickly finding the rendezvous point with Ichigo, Morgan, Rukia and Renji. The group quickly gave their bodies (Morgan, Gwen and Ichigo) over to Urahara to be cared for and received special modified untracable gigai. It was a disguise. Gwen read her dossier. Amy Selene, Lead singer for the Howling Dragons.
Morgan, Gwen, Ichigo, Rukia and Renji tended to perform at Pernese gathers, or sing kareoke for officer contests. They had some of the best voices. "Byakuya will be playing the part of your manager, Tetsuo Yamada. And Soifon will be your body guard."
Gwen nodded, reading over the dossier. It was very similar to her own history. So this meant it would be easier to keep straight. She memorized it quickly then handed it back to Urahara. "Now you need to walk up the road as a group. Byakuya and Soifon are already in place, they're getting some sleep according to Stein's story, they took a separate flight in the middle of the night."
Morgan sighed, she looked up to Soifon, but the woman was very bristly and hard to get close to. Yoruichi had commented that Morgan acted towards Soifon the way Soifon had to Yoruichi. Being guarded by her however, was always a boring prospect. "Now when you get close, you're going to be walking the rest of the way. You've been rehearsing "We Are" by Ana Johnsson so use that. When your com crystals register Stein's presence in ear shot they'll chirp. You start singing then."
Gwen sighed. "Right, form a line across the road." She told the others. "Ichigo I want you in the middle."
"Not you?"
"You and Rukia are the head honchos of our little group here."
"Gotcha." Ichigo chuckled.
Maka was waiting and staying as far away from her father as possible. Soul was with her, so were Kid, Liz and Patti. Suddenly Stein lifted his head. "They're here."
A trio of female voices echoed on the hot Nevada afternoon. Their voices were anguished, soulful and determined.
See the devil on the doorstep now (my oh my)
Telling everybody oh just how to live their lives
Sliding down the information highway
Buying in just like a bunch of fools
Time is ticking and we can't go back (my oh my)
What about the world today
What about the place that we call home
We've never been so many
And we've never been so alone
Maka caught sight of the five of them, a boy with this rich, rich reddish brown hair, about ear length and spikey, was in the center of the group, carrying a backpack and a giant sized scroll. A thin, willowy blonde with short hair and pale, ice blue eyes stood to his right, carrying a backpack shaped like a rabbit and she had a rabbit on her t-shirt too. Come to think of it, all the ornaments on her outfit were rabbit like or had rabbit images. And she was cuddling a stuffed toy rabbit to boot. A long haired boy in his late teens with roguish brown eyes and deep mahogany colored hair and a /wild/ expression on his face was dressed in surprisingly hippie like attire and he had tiger stripe shaped tattoos across his face and body. On his forehead was tattooed the Kanji for "Tiger." The reddish brown haired boy turned to look at the bunny loving girl with almost brotherly pride. And then he turned to the other boy, grinning a stupid daredevil grin as the two of them reached for each other's hands and clasped them.
You keep watching from your picket fence
You keep talking but it makes no sense
You say we're not responsible
But we are, we are
You wash your hands and come out clean
Fail to recognise the enemies within
You say we're not responsible
But we are, we are, we are, we are
The other two girls in the group moved slowly, and deliberately. One of them had a walking stick with her, the end carved like a skeletal dragon with bells hanging from its mouth and tail. She was wearing an aqua blouse, jeans and heavy steel toed workboots. Her hair was long and flaming red and her body tall and slightly on the busty side. She had slitted blue contacts in, or Maka thought they were contacts. The girl lifted her head on the refrain, singing to the sky almost as if she were performing a lament, but with a defiance that Maka had never heard put into music by anyone other than Soul. She was /feral./
Standing next to her was a girl with long, brilliant black hair as shiny as a raven's wing and a dull, depressed look in her soft hazel gray eyes. Maka felt an /intense/ feeling of anguish from this last girl's soul. A weight, intense and powerful.
One step forward making two steps back (my oh my)
Riding piggy on the bad boys back for life
Lining up for the grand illusion
No answers for no questions asked
Lining up for the execution
Without knowing why
That last bit was sung by the black haired girl as she looked over at the red head. The redhead smiled kindly back, just this small sad smile to meet the black haired girl's expression of anguish. The redhead handed over her stick to the black haired girl, who smiled bitterly and leaned on it as they walked.
You keep watching from your picket fence
You keep talking but it makes no sense
You say we're not responsible
But we are, we are
You wash your hands and come out clean
Fail to recognise the enemies within
You say we're not responsible
But we are, we are, we are, we are
The brown spikey haired boy sang the refrain this time, his back squared resolutely. There was this look in his eyes, some months later Maka would recognize the look in those eyes as Ichigo Kurosaki, the feral soul with the orange hair and the grumpy odd form of charisma.
It's all about power then
Take control
Breaking the rule
Breaking the soul
They suck us dry till there's nothing left
My oh my, my oh my
What about the world today
What about the place that we call home
We' ve never been so many
And we've never been so alone...
The rabbit loving girl and the black haired girl locked eyes, as if they agreed with each other, and the black haired girl raised her head and keened the next two words. The merry look in her eyes, someday Maka would know her as Rukia Kuchiki, the adopted daughter of the Kuchiki shinigami clan.
So alone
You keep watching from your picket fence
You keep talking but it makes no sense
You say we're not responsible
But we are, we are
You wash your hands and come out clean
Fail to recognise the enemies within
You say we're not responsible
But we are, we are, we are, we are
It's all about power then (we are)
Take control (we are)
Breaking the rule (we are, we are)
Breaking the soul (we are)
They suck us dry till there's nothing left (we are, we are)
My oh my, my oh my
We are
We are (its all )
We are
We are, we are (take control)
We are
We are
It's all about power
Then take control
That last bit was with an amazing interplay of harmony between them, as if they could all anticipate each other's moves. The black haired girl and the red head appeared to be completely consumed by the music and the harmony between them. Maka could feel their souls shuddering in the pleasure they derived from the music. Two kindred hearts full of anguish, yet rejoicing in music and comforting each other with their melody. And she felt a... a protectiveness of the other three towards those two.
"Name's Amy." the red head said in a dull, laid back tone. "This is Karana." The black haired, doleful girl. "Thalia." the bunny loving girl. "Usagi." The brown haired boy with the spikey hair. "And Kaguro. We're the Howling Dragons."
She laid eyes on Spirit. "And I remember /you/ mister Over the Hill Pervert Scythe. I'd hug you but you'd probably try to cop a feel."
"I... Spirit loves Maka and Mama." Spirit whimpered.
"I heard ya got whipped, first by a vengeful wife, and then by a teeny weeny dwarf of a Kisshin's egg with wiggly pointed ears like an elf." Gwen chastized. "You'd better not expect us to do your dirty work for you Over the Hill Scythe. You may have been friends and flings with my father but..."
"Wait, father as in a boy?" Maka rounded on Spirit. "YOU CHEATED WITH MEN TOO?"
"No no no no no." Amy aka Gwen threw her head back and laughed a belly laugh. Thalia, aka Rukia covered her mouth to hide her giggling. Ichigo in his guise of Usagi rolled his eyes and muttered something about his own dingbat dad and a poster. Renji aka Kaguro snickered. And Morgan, aka Karana, scowled angrily. "Before he was with your mother sweetie, waaaay back when they were teens. Spirit had a raging crush on my father, but when he married your mother, /my/ father insisted he wasn't going to enable Spirit's bad habits and booted him out of their sometimes bed."
"Yeah well." Spirit gulped under Maka's withering glare. "WHAT? I bat for both teams, whats your problem?" Maka pulled a book out of her school bag, brandishing it at him as he cringed.
Soul looked over at Morgan as she slumped again. Gwen had taken a similar posture. "Sup with you two?"
"Lack of sleep." Gwen replied. "Nightmares on my part. Karana?"
"A soul older than its body, aged by trauma and feeling the burden of the world, often scoffs at the world's ways, and its nightmares are the fallacies and hypocrasies of a world long since gone mad." Morgan replied dully. "I haven't been sleeping well, nightmares about a fox."
"Karana is the doleful sort, you'd think she'd be dressing emo but she seems to prefer denim and leather."
"Heh, Emo clothes for girls are too fragile. The beating I put them through I'd destroy them." Morgan replied. "I may not be a meister, but I'm a helluva good shot, and a dab hand with a hammer and nails." She chuckled.
"Cool, Soul here is a musician too so I figured I'd bring him along, and then Kid is Shinigami-sama's son."
"Shinigami-sama huh, well we're pretty big fans of him, right ladies?" Gwen asked. "Hell, we even use animal skull masks in our stage costumes."
"Why not use regular skull masks, there's plenty of them in costume stores."
"out of respect." Gwen chuckled. "Bah, so unlike my little sister back home." she sighed as she peered at Kid.
"So wait, does your father's wife allow papa to sleep with him?" Maka asked suspiciously.
"She's dead, suicided." Gwen said coldly. "Please try not to bring it up."
"Oh." Maka was taken aback by the sudden change in tone. "Alright." She smiled softly.
Gwen sighed, smiling sadly down at Maka. "you're lucky both your parents are still among the living. My sister was a baby when momma went."
Spirit gently touseled Gwen's hair. "Stop that."
"Stop what?"
"You treat me and Karana like surrogate daughters whenever you come crash on papa's house because your /real/ wife and daughter rejected you. Why not solve the issues you have with your daughter instead of doting on us." She crossed her arms over her chest irritably and glaring at Spirit. "Over the Hill Scythe."
"Why do you call me that?" Spirit slumped.
"Because I've only met two men more perverted than you. Miroku's only excuse is that he has a fatal curse. Master Roshi has none and he's an old geezer."
"Thats not fair! Roshi is da man!" Spirit whined. "You should see his skin mag collection."
"MAKAAAAA CHOP!" Maka bashed spirit in the head with webster's dictionary, smiling evilly. "Pervert."
Gwen whispered in her ear. "Karana and I call him "pervert scythe" sometimes."
Maka rolled her eyes. "So what has he done behind me and mama's back?"
"Uh well, he'd come to my father's place crying about how cold you two were and how scared of his ex wife he was." Gwen sighed in disgust. "I told him if he doesn't go home and talk it out, then any issues he has with his family are entirely his fault."
Maka smirked in approval. "He keeps trying to woo women, and you mentioned a Miroku and a Roshi..."
"Miroku is happily committed, but before that, he used to propose to /every/ woman he met that she have his child. But being cursed by a demon with the possibility of death at any moment will do that to someone. As for Roshi, his only excuse is that he's old. In fact, I actually searched his bedroom for viagra, found none. He's just like that. The proverbial foxy grandpa. Lets see, other perverted men I've met. Ummm, well Brock is a finicky pervert, and he has a mister mom instinct thats an awesome redeeming quality." She frowns. "I've met quite a few that weren't sexually perverted but had raunchy senses of humor. I think its the Y chromasome." She frowned. "Then there's Tony who enjoys putting other men down, and hitting on anything pretty and blonde." Far away, one Agent Dinozzo sneezed. "Funny thing, all the perverted types I've met were all too afraid of me to do anything."
They laughed.
Morgan smiled at Maka. "You're pretty, sharp tempered, and appearantly you love books too, is there anything else that makes you interesting?"
"Are you kidding? Maka's the coolest partner ever!" Soul grinned. "I can't wait to see your concert tonight, what kind of music do you do?"
"eeeh, a little rock, a little techno, a lot of jpop." Morgan beamed. "We do a lot of Rise against and skillet covers."
"Rise against huh?" Kid suddenly turned frosty, arching an eyebrow. He /had/ the album that that song written on his father's wall was from, he knew exactly where the quotes had come from.
"Yeah, you're a fan of them?"
"yes. Them and skillet." Kid replied cooly. "I don't mind emo rock if its good. I /hate/ metal."
Morgan laughed. "Only metal I've ever been able to tolerate is Disturbed."
"I hate them." Kid growled. "So disorderly."
Gwen chuckled. "I try to select music that will stir the soul, music that one can fight to. I may not be a Meister, but I've been in my share of brawls and I can control my wavelength. I'm not a pushover."
"Okay then, there's a big enough field in Stein's yard, I want to see you fight." Kid smirked.
"fine." Sighed Gwen.
They walked up into Stein's yard, and Gwen set down her bag. She was very good at fighting in a gigai, being mortal herself. She took her stance, a loose, low slung, wide footed stance. "Disgustingly lopsided." Kid took a stiff stance.
"And your stance looks like a constipated ballet dancer. " Gwen snapped. "Lets see what you do with it, because it looks like someone rammed a stick up your stripey ass."
"DONT MENTION THE STRIPES!" Kid yelled, charging her.
Gwen caught his blow and used it as leverage to send Kid flying back. "Basic rule of combat, if your opponent is choloric of temper, seek to agitate him. Once his anger overrules his reason you have an opening to take advantage."
Kid launched into a flying drop kick. "Just don't mention the STRIPES!"
"Or what?" Gwen smirked, she caught his feet in her hand and gripped the ankle, putting pressure on the achilles heel. Kid flailed, snatching at her feet to try and send her off balance. Too late, he found himself flung again. "Your stance is far too rigid, a tree that cannot bend with the wind falls over."
Kid seemed to focus on kicking moves, the next one was a low sweep. "Use your hands, you aren't carrying your weapon partners, there is no need to refrain from using your fists." She brought her knee up into Kid's chest, then brought her double fists down on his back. Far too many gatekeepers copied this slam from Vegeta. But it was very, very effective.
Kid wheezed and stumbled away from her blow, wiping the blood of a split lip on a kerchief he'd kept up his sleeve. "Try using that Kerchief for an improvised weapon." Gwen said suddenly.
"WHAT?" Kid demanded, shocked.
"Inmates can use almost any item as a weapon, even a toothbrush or a shoelace, a kerchief should be easy if you are swift and stealthy."
"no way, its got blood on it."
"So?"
"I don't like touching things with blood on them."
"Its only /your/ blood." Gwen pointed out. "You can't do it can you? Hemophobic?"
Kid refused to look at her. "Fine, but if this were a real fight and you didn't have your weapons, you'd have to improvise with whatever you had or die." She said cooly. "You're the heir to shinigami-sama, your /survival/ has priority over your fear." She glared at him coldly.
Kid seemed to wither under her glare, /clearly his OCD is a barrier./ "Its your move." Gwen's wavelength gave off a soft pulse of disappointment. Kid charged and brought his elbow up into it. She caught him bare handed, her feet skidding behind her from the force of his blow. She did a backflip, which caused him to dodge backwards, then leapt upwards in a Heavyarms style kick, silently thanking Trowa for their hours spent practicing when Aizen attacked his world. Kid dodged. "Why do you dodge?" she asked him. "Tactics or cowardice?"
"Excuse me?"
"Back home there's a bunch of blustering sword swinging men who would be booing the both of us for dodging. Its a natural reflex, something comes for your face and you duck. But if you can conquer that flight instinct, and block instead, you can counter attack instead of simply running." Gwen said calmly.
Kid understood, "Amy" was simply pointing out that blocking was more advantageous.
"Blocking is also intimidating if you're up against an amateur." Gwen added. "Think about it, buncha undisciplined thugs come at you and you catch their blows and fling them instead? You can often scare them off without using too much force. Simply because the block is a sign of you having more bluster, more determination." Gwen turned into a capoeira kick, yet another person she'd met on her travels, Ryuuzaki would love investigating this peculiar world with its smiling sun and laughing moon.
"you look almost bored. I hope I'm not dull."
"no, but i'm trying to show you the advantage of a loose stance. Flow like water, rather than standing like stone. Bend like a sapling, don't be rigid like an oak. Keep moving, keep charging, plunge heedlessly from the cliff and trust in your wings to carry you." Gwen charged headlong this time, leaping into the air and executing Major's signature drop kick.
BABOOM! The ground cratered under Kid's feet as he blocked the blow. "Be as the water, or the flame, not like the stone or the cloud. The cloud is too thin, too brittle and fickle. But water and flame, they are a fighter's elements. I can put a candle out with the wind of a machete."
The two circled, Kid skirting the crater he'd made.
"So Maka, that girl has special protections on her soul, can you see them?" Stein puffed out smoke from his cigarette.
Maka frowned. "Yes, I do, her soul's identifying features are covered up."
"Yes, but you can still feel her mood right?" Stein asked her.
"yes, she's calm and centered, and I feel... joy... fighting is fun for her?"
"Amy's entire band are skilled in some form of combat. Karana and Thalia are ranged specialists, they focus on manipulating their spirit energy. Usagi is a swordsman, but he's got a kick that some Meisters would envy. Kaguro is a brawler and a bit of a thug. And Amy is... well she's kind of a balenced fighter, but make no mistake, a superspeed technique like the one Kid can use? She can see every step. Her wavelength is so powerful that it /has/ to be restrained at all times and for her, fighting is a joyful activity in which hearts meet with each other and express themselves through motion."
Their fighting began to speed up, but Kid was getting winded. Gwen could tell. "I can't believe the force you can bring to bear." Kid panted.
Gwen laughed. "You're not so bad yourself. Death city is in good hands, but its clear you have a long way to go. I still aesthetically find your stance abominable."
"Ditto." Kid grunted. "So Asymmetrical."
"OOOOH, Asymmetriphobia! THATS IT!" Gwen squealed. "Thats why you hated my stance so much and didn't like me mentioning the stripes!"
"heh." Soul chuckled, yawning slightly. "So Maka, if you want to primp for the concert we'd better go."
"Yes, I want to check the mansion one more time before I go." Kid waved over his shoulder. "Nice sparring with you." Gwen could see that the sweat on his face had already dried and his complexion was back to normal. She chuckled.
Kid's mind was extremely agitated, that girl's strength wasn't normal even for a human. It reminded him of a seasoned meister, hell it reminded him of his own. "It was so odd." he said quietly as he looked at his hands.
"Kid?" Liz asked. "What's wrong?"
"It felt like I wasn't fighting a strong human, it felt like I was fighting another shinigami, older than me, but far younger than father." Kid frowned. "I'm... probably being paranoid after last night."
"Yeah, probably right."
1. He's singing the Japanese version of "this is halloween" from the nightmare before christmas. You can recognize it by the "Kore ga halloween" Kore ga means "this is" and by the references to Jack oh and the "Halloween town, kono machi wa."