Present Day:
Phoenix looked up from the busy streets as she stopped in front of a building, taking in the large letters at its top: CCG. She had run here two years ago and had never looked back. She had been working at Anteiku, a small café, also a ghoul haven. The 20th ward was much quieter and safer, but there were rules to follow, more HUMANE rules. She walked up to the building and entered, making her way to the front desk, "I'm here to meet with Chairman Washuu." The young woman behind the desk nodded, "What's your name, miss?" Phoenix tucked her black hair behind her ears, "Phoenix." The young woman smiled and stood up, telling the other young woman to 'man the desk.'
As she entered the man's office, the woman who had escorted her left, closing the door behind her. She tilted her head, taking in the view from the top room of the CCG. Chairman Washuu walked out of a room in the back and smiled, "Good morning! I hear you have quite an offer to deliver me." Phoenix approached him, now at a round table, and took the seat he offered her. "I do, chairman. I want you to listen to my offer and my terms before you take any drastic action. Do we have a deal?" He arched an eyebrow, more intrigued than when he walked out to see the young woman. The man nodded and Phoenix continued, "I am a ghoul. I have no quarrels with your agency and I have come here in hopes of a…alliance." The man leaned back in his chair, observing her closely, "You're brave enough to come here alone?" Her smiled seeped venom, "I'm not without my wiles." The man chuckled and she continued, "I have many ways that I can benefit you. I will follow your rules and do whatever you ask of me. The one thing that I ask in return; my history and lack of humanity remains a secret. I want to blend in more than anything and I do not want anyone to have access to my medical history; people like to talk."
Chairman Washuu stood, walking over to her side of the table and leaned against it, "I still don't understand this decision. You've gone under the radar this long, why seek us out?" Phoenix shook her head, "Uh-Uh, chairman, remember my terms?" The older man nodded in response. Phoenix stood up and released the rest of her waist length hair from its messy bun, holding the black hair chopsticks in her hand, "These are quinque steel. I have a demonstration for you." She grabbed his hand and moved quickly; he never felt a thing. In the palm of his hand was a two inch cut, mildly deep. She sliced her palm and made a fist above his hand, squeezing a few droplets of blood onto his wound. He watched as his wound sealed, no trace of it ever existing. He looked at Phoenix in bewilderment, "Like a phoenix, rising from the ashes…" She nodded and wiped her hair accessories with a tissue before fashioning another messy bun, "Do we have a deal?" The color of her hair turned pale blonde and her grey irises turned blue, "I can be anyone you need me to be."
The man drove to an offsite facility: Cochlea. It was the prison in which they kept the ghouls they were able to capture. Phoenix had agreed to be tested at the secret facility in order to let the chairman rate her abilities in action. She looked down at her combat boots before adjusting her black pencil skirt, then straightening her pale pink button down shirt. When the car stopped, Chairman Washuu got out of the car, opening her door for her, "I have our top investigator meeting us here to also test your ability to fight and blend in; the ghouls refer to him as the Reaper." Phoenix got out, following him into the building, "I don't even need a kagune to fight, I TRY to avoid it at all costs. I have learned to do significant damage without it." She wasn't exaggerating. The 19 year old woman had become a honed fighting tool, surpassing many friend and foe.
Chairman Washuu led her to a quinque steel room and took his place a few levels up in a safer room with a good view, in order to watch the display that was about to take place. She had asked the chairman to spare two of his strongest inmates, SS rated ghouls, at the same time. The man was nervous to oblige but had no choice.
The first inmate didn't even have time to react before Phoenix appeared behind him, arms through his chest, splitting him in half. Blood rained over her as it spurted out of the body. She watched it hit the floor before obliterating the skull with her boot. Her charcoal hair turned crimson along with her irises and she slowly approached the other ghoul who stood there in horror. His kakugan activated and he released his rinkaku. Phoenix smiled, "My turn," and released the 'butterfly wings' from her back. She stopped and looked in the Chairman's direction, before returning her gaze to her next victim. Her kagune expanding and she formed a sphere of flame around her body as the ghoul charged at her. He immediately screamed upon hitting her barrier, falling back, engulfed in flames. She extended her right koukaku, spearing the ghoul in the chest. Within minutes his body turned to ash. She pulled her kagune back into her, her hair returning to black and eyes to grey.
There was a familiar scent in the air and she froze, faltering momentarily, before regaining her composure. The chairman's voice came through the speakers in the room, "The Reaper is here. No kagune, if you would, though I greatly enjoyed the demonstration." She had agreed to fight his reaper, yet she was starting to regret it. She was not ready to face the person who stood on the other side of that door. When the door opened to reveal the face on the other side, her heart nearly dropped, though her face remains unchanged. The tall man with white hair and glasses walked into the room, carrying a brief case as the door closed behind him. They were on opposite sides of the room and she said monotonously, "Hello, Kishou." He adjusted his frames, "Xhexanna," and released his quinque IXA, "Sister."
Phoenix sat across from Arima in Chairman Washuu's office. They looked at him, straight faced, listening to him ramble on excitedly. Cuts and bruises adorned various parts of their bodies; their reunion not so pleasant. Chairman Washuu, who stood at the center of the table, leaned forward placing his palms down, "SSS Ghoul, according to your brother, wow!" Phoenix glared towards the young man seated before her, "I want nothing to do with Arima, he is no family of mine." Her brother leaned back in his chair, "I had no choice, Xhex-" She cut him off before he was able to finish her name, "Phoenix." The chairman chuckled before taking a seat between them, "Fine…fine. You two would make an unstoppable team, though! But, I will respect your wishes, at least so you don't kill each other." They both inaudibly sighed in relief. "That would be a great show, though!"
Phoenix hadn't seen Arima in over 6 years. Their parents had died and he ran off to join the CCG, leaving her in his dust. He had never tried to contact her after that. She fought hard and trained every day to become his equal; the brother that abandoned her, the brother she once looked up to with undying admiration. She had given up on finding answers long before she lived at HySy and they weren't even a whisper among her thoughts by the time she had left her home of two years.
She tuned back into the conversation in just enough time to hear the chairman tell her that she would be under the supervision of Shinohara, who was on his way to get her, along with his other underling. Until she was used to the CCG, she would remain within his sights, being called upon for significant tasks avoiding her kagune at all costs. The chairman looked innocent enough but Phoenix knew there was something she couldn't put her finger on that almost made her uneasy around him.
Her head whipped around as she heard the door open. A tall, muscular man stood in the doorway; a smaller androgynous person behind him. The three at the table stood to greet them. Chairman Washuu smiled, "Shinohara! This is Xhexanna…Xhexanna ARIMA." The young woman shook his hand, "Please, just call me Phoenix; I've shed that person far too long ago to even recognize the sound of that name." Shinohara nodded, smiling as he watched the young girl shoot a glance towards Arima, "Nice to meet you." He moved the other person to the front of him, "This is Juuzou Suzuya." Phoenix nodded and backed away from the door. Arima walked past the group, "We're done. I have business to attend to and a squad waiting for briefing," before disappearing from sight. Shinohara chuckled, "What's his deal?" They walked further into the office and closed the door. Chairman Washuu laughed, "A bit of sibling rivalry, I assume." The man's eyes went wide as he looked back to Phoenix, everything finally catching up to him, "Kishou Arima is your brother?!" The young woman rolled her eyes.
The three associates walked down the street towards a large condominium complex. Shinohara was talking and Phoenix was catching bits and pieces, entirely uninterested in forming a relationship with the duo. She didn't need friends, just somewhere to stay besides Anteiku or with Touka. They walked into the building and went to the 13th floor. When they stepped out of the elevator, the duo approached the door and Shinohara continued, "Juuzou will be your roommate. He can show you around and tell you anything you would like to know. I'm hoping that you can help…soothe the savage beast."
Soothe the savage beast.
She felt a tug at her heart strings as Uta's face flashed in her mind, and followed the men into the condo. Shinohara handed her a key before waving, "I will see you two tomorrow." After closing the door behind Shinohara, she turned to see Juuzou sitting on the couch, legs resting on the coffee table, sketch book in hand. This feeling felt all too familiar and she watched the strange white haired person on the sofa, looking up at her before returning to his sketch. Juuzou looked like a doll with red eyes and pale skin, various red stitching on his body. His hair clips that held his bangs back were XIII, along with the stitching in his lip; 13. His light button up rested beneath red and yellow suspenders that held up his black capri-like pants. She noticed that he was wearing red slippers. She sat beside him, placing her platform combat boots on the coffee table. She finally heard Juuzou speak, "What kind of name is Phoenix?"
His question startled her. She turned to face him, she was positive Juuzou was a boy even with his high voice, "What kind of name is Juuzou and why do you seem so…feminine?" He smirked, not the least bit insulted, "I picked it myself. Mama called me Rei, but after the CCG academy, Juuzou sounded better. My Mama was a ghoul and decided that altering me would keep me more beautiful." His last statement caught her by surprise, a recurring event with the young man, "Is that why you hate ghouls and chose to hunt them?" Juuzou now chuckled, "No, no, no way! I don't hate ghouls. The CCG rescued me from Mama during a raid, silly. I work for the CCG. It's my job to eradicate them." Phoenix hardened by his comment, "Are there ever nice ghouls?" Juuzou nodded, still drawing diligently, "Of course. But it's Juuzou's job to eliminate the ghouls." She knew that this was the way of the CCG. Even amongst humans she felt more at home than she had on the run as a ghoul, hiding from her past, unsure of her future. She couldn't believe that after everything Juuzou had endured, that he didn't loathe her kind. How could he talk about the subject so calmly, like it was just a mosquito bite in the summer time?
Phoenix walked into the kitchen, "Juuzou, would you like me to make dinner?" The young man's face lit up. She finally let a smile break, "I'll take that as a yes." She didn't know why she smiled; it was trivial. He was around her age and so childlike and innocent seeming. She couldn't help but smile at how happy he was about the thought of food. Maybe she had finally found someone with a past as heartbreaking as her own, if not more.