Anju had decided that she would be staying, "home," as Hanabi went out with her friends. She just didn't quite feel ready to meet the others, especially after a run-in with Zahro and Kayn. Anju just didn't feel like it was the right time to meet them, especially with how Zahro knew she had been eavesdropping on them, it still didn't make sense to her. Last night that scene played in her head countlessly, and she still felt like it wasn't her breathing that gave her away.
She walked into the colossal sized kitchen pouring herself what the Humans call, "milk." Which had multiple forms, Hanabi had shown her several variations of milk and each one was delicious and delectable! Her favorite so far was Vanilla Almond Milk. Another thing she learned was that Humans . . . they mature very fast. Anju was about six hundred and fifty-two years old. Whereas Hanabi was twenty-one, Zahro was twenty-four and his brother was sixteen. Hanabi had guessed Anju was twenty-two, which Anju decided she would just go along with her guess.
"It is interesting how little of a life-span they have, and how they can vary," Anju spoke to herself as she sipped on her Almond Milk. "I wonder if they're upset about how little time they have." She pondered.

"Hai'yo!" Hanabi shouted happily as she waved at her friends.
They were at a local coffee shop called, "Kremé & Beans."
"Hey, Hana!" A red-headed woman with a very sultry voice yelled back.
"Cordelia! It's been forever!" Hanabi chuckled, as she approached their usual spot.
Their spot had seats outside the coffee-shop centered around a tree with a few umbrellas decked around as well. The red-headed woman was a little smaller in the chest department than Hanabi, only slightly and had crimson red-hair up in a high-ponytail that curled in the back. She was about five feet and eight and a half inches tall. With a dark but tan complexion. She had amber brown eyes.
"Nice to see you today, Hanabi. You didn't swing by yesterday after class, figured you were upset." Zahro stated, but then continued to ask. "So are you, you know, okay?"
Kayn smirked and nudged his brother with his foot under the table in a teasing manner.
"Oh, yes! I was fine, I just went on a walk to let some steam out, you know it was my anniversary of when I decided to leave my parents house, and move out here. So I went to the forest outside of Tatesunobi's border." Hanabi informed the group, before asking a question. "Wait a minute . . . where is Tatsu?"
Kayn gave a wiseass grin, "He said he couldn't make it, till later. Something about not being perfect."
Cordelia sighed, "Kayn, hush. You haven't a clue about what he meant by that. You know he cares about how his hair is styled."
The group engaged in their usual conversation with some of them drinking variations of coffee and tea products. As they usually did every day around four in the afternoon.
"So, Hana. Who is that girl who was outside your estate last night." Kayn asked, before explaining how they ran into Anju, "We. Honestly, we were on our nightly walk routine, and we happened to take a break outside your house, because, we debated on if we should check on you since you never came yesterday."
Hanabi giggled, "Wow you guys are so sweet!"
Zahro huffed, "We were just checking on a friend."
Cordelia smirked as she let out a little chuckle, she had a feeling Zahro had feelings for Hanabi. Kayn, as well, took any opportunity to tease his older brother. Which of course got under Zahro's skin and infuriate him with the sheer amount that the group liked to provoke him.
Hanabi smiled as she explained the mysterious girl outside her estate, "Anju. Anju is her name! She's super sweet, a little on the shy side and a tad odd as she's from a smaller village that doesn't even practice modern schooling. They are more so trained to fight. She means no harm though, and she's an interesting girl, she's a little older than me though, but younger than you Zahro. Oh! Also! She's just a year older than you Cordelia!" Hanabi went into a spiral of talking about her newly acquainted friend back at home, "She's amazing! I absolutely adore and love hanging out around her! It's only been officially a day of getting to know her but I hope she opens up a little more about herself. I can tell there's more to her and she's a misunderstood soul. Someone that has been through a lot of pain."
Cordelia had her input on the situation, "So let me get this straight, you met a girl about a day ago and you invite her to stay with you?"
Hanabi laughed nervously," I mean - . . . aha... I just, I trust her. She seemed authentic.
Cordelia gave Hanabi a stern glare, almost as if she was going into "mom," mode. "Hana! Where did you meet her again? Outside the forest, right?" Cordelia began to dissect what all they had been talking about, and why she hadn't shown up yesterday. "That woman is why you didn't show up yesterday, isn't it? Because you decided to bring her home and be this sort of hero."
Just as Hanabi was going to rebuttal a short man with platinum-blonde hair that was styled going up like a wave(a quiff) and swept over to the side of his head, completely out of his eyesight. Which let his sky-blue eyes shine. He had a few of the waves with a pastel cotton candy blue in his hair, but just enough to compliment his beautiful natural blonde hair. He was about five feet and seven inches.
"Yo gang!~" He grinned, "I know I know, I look good and I'm fashionably late." He proceeded to mock the group, "You're all probably thinking, "damn Tatsu! You look good," I'm right aren't I?" He smirked looking over at Zahro.
Zahro rolled his eyes, and Cordelia shook her head no.
"Heyyy, Tatsu my man! Looking fly as always!" Kayn high-fived Tatsu. He always tried his best to encourage the cocky and flashy man. "How's it going?"
"Goin' good!" Tatsu exclaimed.

Cordelia proceeded to talk to Hanabi as if the others weren't there. "Hana, I get it you're lonely. You could've easily invited one of us over. I know yesterday was hard for you! Come on- don't you think that's stupid to pick up some forest freak? I'm your best friend! I would've gladly stayed with you if you were that lonely."
Hanabi gave Cordelia a menacing look before exploding and going off on Cordelia, "You don't know Anju-"
Cordelia intercepted, asking, "and what makes you think you do!?"
Hanabi stood up and slammed her hands on the table getting in Cordelia's face, "I know she's a good person! She was someone in need and I had the resources to help her! You may be my closest friend, but you sure as hell don't trust me like we're friends." With that Hanabi stumped off, "If you really claim to be my best friend, you'd have trusted my judgment."
Tatsu nervously chuckled at the group before running after Hanabi. "Wait up, Hana!"
Zahro and Kayn both got up and followed Cordelia who also had stormed off from the scene.
"Leave me alone Tatsu." Hanabi snapped back at her friend.
Tatsu frowned, "Hey . . . don't be like that." He sighed, "I was once the new kid in town, I'm the youngest in the group! I've only recently turned nineteen! Well besides Kayn. If they hadn't trust your judgment I wouldn't be apart of the group, you were the only one at school that talked to me."
Hanabi huffed, "I don't wanna hear anyone right now."
Tatsu snapped back, "Well I don't care. You're gonna listen-"
Just then the two heard a ferocious and tumultuous roar. Followed by Cordelia's scream.
Tatsu took off running back in the direction they had just left. The sun had nearly set, only the light bouncing off the clouds provided light in the streets, but the night was almost here. Just as Tatsu had arrived he saw a huge black monster on all four coming from Zahro's back. The black figure was a beast, it had to be at least Zahro's size in height and in length, the most distinguishing feature on this beast was the hole he could see on its back and what looked like a mask of a devil.
"Where is Kayn..." Tatsu whispered to himself, "Shit."
Tatsu ran at the beast from behind before jumping up and slamming the right heel of his foot into the beast's face.
"HAH!" He yelled, "Don't touch, them!"
Tatsu landed on his feet and looked back at Zahro and Cordelia on the ground. Zahro was comforting the red-head.
"Zahro! Get up we gotta hide!" Tatsu yelled at both of them. "Cordelia you too!"
Just as he did the beast was getting back up from his fall.

"There's no way." Anju gasped, "That was a hollow's roar."
With that Anju bursts out the front doors to the Murano Estate. She ran towards the entryway to the forest leading outside Tatesunobi. On her way, she saw Hanabi running towards the sound as well.
"Shit." Anju cursed to herself, "Damned girl is gonna get herself killed.

"What is that monster!" Tatsu yelled
Just as the monster almost jumped on Zahro Tatsu jumped at the giant man and held him down on the ground as the Hollow crashed into a few trees. Cordelia turned around to the boy, furious.
"I can't see it, but I can hear it growling! What's going on!?" She screamed at them anxiously.
"Hey, guys!" Hanabi yelled, crying. "ARE YOU OKAY?" She asked, them before explaining herself, "I'm sorry for getting mad and running off! I didn't mean any of it!"
Zahro had stood up and dusted himself off, before looking back and noticing the monster was gone. Cordelia hugged Hanabi crying with her friend. Meanwhile, Tatsu stood close to Zahro almost like a bodyguard.
"Zahro! Are you ok?" Tatsu asked looking up at the man with pleading eyes.
Zahro grinned slightly before putting on his usual cool face. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks, Tatsu."
"Cordelia! Lets head home, all of us should head to my place for the night!" Hanabi suggested.
"I am all for that." Cordelia sniffled, before smiling at Hanabi, happy to just see her friend is ok.
Zahro nodded, and Tatsu was just happy to follow Zahro. So the four of them began to walk back to the estate.

"Damned beast!" Anju yelled as she tackled the wolf-like hollow into another sector of the forest.
Her outfit was roughened up and her hollow hole near her belly button reopened. Her ring was off and stashed away, the same as the necklace. She also has a lock of hair pinned across her forehead with her hollow mask fragments that resemble pins with emerald jewels on both sides of her head. with a band going into her hair like a hairband. Her face was cold; emotionless.
"Grraawworrr." The hollow seemed like it was trying to communicate with the Arrancar woman. "Kehehekeh." The hollow began to smile creepily revealing two rows of sharp teeth, "The Crimson Chained Queen?"
Anju gritted her teeth, "Shut your dirty mouth!" She had unsheathed two kama blades that were connected by a chain.
"YOU knOW WE're LOoking FOR YOu in HUECO!" The hollow's voice was very distorted and shaky.
Anju raised her right arm in front of her and her left arm behind her holding the Kamas out and curved towards her body, the butt of the blades/or the curve facing her enemy. As she got into a stance with her right footing planted strongly in front with her right arm and her left footing strongly planted mocking her left arm. The hollow got into its own stance as it bent over and got ready to pounce.
"What a marvelous sight . . . a hollow and Arrancar about to battle it out to death?" A figure standing in one of the huge trees, his face hidden by the shadows cast by the giant tree.
It seemed Anju found herself in a battle to protect Hanabi and her friends, but also in a situation where she must protect her physical identity from this mysterious person. How will she handle it? Will the newly titled Anju, Crimson Chained Queen soak her chains in blood once more? Or will she break free from the chains holding her to her past?