I would like to thank everyone for taking the time to read and/or review. Hope you enjoy it!
SmileRen; Thank you! I kept that bit from the original.
Luafua; Thank you. I'd probably freak out if I ever ran into a talking animal haha.
16; Thanks! It's close, I was looking around and found it on a site called Zerochan.
Eternal Cat Moon; I'm glad your enjoying it. This one took a little longer sorry!
Cbstormx; I'm so glad you like her!
EmpressSaix; It's okay! Hope you had a nice trip.
Sorry this one took so long Grand Theft Auto and Attack on Titan are extremely distracting.
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"Pops, what the hell is going on?"
Pops smiled awkwardly patting the swivel chair across from him while James dug out his old military gear so he could add more spirit traps.
"What the hell is a spirit trap?"
"It's a trap made from specialized wire blessed by a priest. Only people with spiritual awareness and spirits themselves can get caught by it."
"No shit?" Pops handed me a length of the coiled wire. It had a strange white sheen to it and felt remarkably light in my hands. "That's cool."
"I'll get to it in a moment but first you need to take your medication."
I was prescribed antibiotics, painkillers, and burn ointment. I swallowed them easily enough and let pops redress the minor burns on my leg as I tended to the one on my hand.
"Karissa, I know you're tired so I'll try to keep it short but there is a lot to cover." Pops said. "First, James and I can both see spirits just as well as you. Your mother could too."
"I understand mom being able to see them but not you two." I said comparing the metallic wire to the metal my guns were made from. They looked close enough in type.
"There is quite a few people in the world who have the ability to see them. Death is a little more common in the military as you can probably figure. Hollows and other creatures can sense this gradually creating more and more spiritually aware people."
"As you know, Hollows target those with higher spiritual presence. Military members were killed by them forcing the higher ups to partner with scientists to help figure out how to fight these monsters before they do more damage."
He paused making sure I understood everything. It made sense but I wonder if the Shinigami's knew about this. Rukia didn't even notice any traps or spiritual pressure from either of them.
"What did you mean other creatures?"
"Vengeful spirits. Other humans with strange spiritual powers like Shamans or Quincys. We need to talk about your Quincy classmate as well."
"I was drafted into the science side of this organization designed to combat the Hollows. James on the actual fighting side. They learned how to create awareness in people who normally would have never seen a spirit otherwise. These practices have gone on for many centuries and in different cultures."
"I figured you would be able to see them but I didn't think you would develop actual abilities. Those guns we had made for you would have wounded a Hollow enough for you to get away."
"Why didn't you say anything sooner?"
"For a while, I didn't think you actually could see anything." He smiled sheepishly. "I was hoping that was the case. Dealing with the supernatural is extremely dangerous."
"I'll be careful." I smiled flipping through the notes Pops had on the subject. "I promise."
Pops sighed morosely he didn't want me involved.
"About your classmate. He was dumb enough to summon the Hollow assault today by using Hollow bait."
"That little shit!" I hissed vowing to get him back for every scratch on me and my friends. "What the fuck was he thinking?!"
"He's a Quincy, a nearly extinct form of exorcist. They have a… rivalry with the Shinigami. He was having a pissing contest with Ichigo." James said putting his bag back into it's locker. "They managed to take down a Menos Grande. It's like the Godzilla of Hollows."
"Impressive." Pops commented flippantly. "Karissa fought a huge one and smaller ones with minor assistance."
"Who are you bragging to?" James asked scratching the back of his head. "I taught her to fight."
"I'm all for stroking my ego but what the fuck was up with that cat?" This was definitely the most important question I'll ever ask.
"That cat was most likely a human or powerful spirit, like the Shinigami, who has the ability to shape shift."
"Whaaaat? That's cool as hell!" I gawked finding the section on known shape shifters. There was a couple registered from a small Native American reserve in Utah.
"Not really." James shrugged. "They are generally unhinged."
"Just my type of person." I laughed. "Do you guys interact with the Shinigami?"
"No." Pops said quickly. "You mustn't mention anything about this discussion to them. The Shinigami are the reason Quincys are a shattered race. Many lives will be lost if the two decide to clash."
"I'm not saying you should avoid your friends I'm just urging you to proceed with caution."
"Yes sir." I yawned getting up and kissing them both on the cheek. "I'm going to bed now. I might have more questions later but I'm tired enough to sleep on that chair."
"Goodnight." They said in tandem beginning to talk about the days events with each other.
"Karissa."
I paused.
That wasn't Pops or James' voice. The voice sounded like it came from inside me. I felt it more than I heard it.
"Holy shit. Those doctors gave me some wicked drugs." I snorted deciding to ignore the voice and go to bed.
"Karissa."
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"Whyyyyy are we going to go to school so early?" Keigo yawned rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
It was five o'clock in the morning.
"For revenge." I smirked showing him the contents of my backpack. "Sweet, sweet revenge."
"Oooohh." He snickered handing me the bag in his hands that contained the sandwich and snacks I asked for. "Who is our victim this time?"
"Ishida." I said sending a swift text message to the schools' maintenance man. "I feel like he deserves some aggravation in his life."
"Alright~" Keigo chirped lifting the duct tape out of my back pack. "What are we doing?"
"Is it going to be messy?" Kondo Tatsumi, the maintenance man, asked joining us in the hallway.
"Not really." I said talking the slip of paper containing Uryu's locker combination from him. "Here's your payment."
"Thanks kiddos!" He took the snacks gratefully. He would have give us the combination even without the bribe. "Have fun!"
"How in the world did you manage to get the maintenance man to help us?" Keigo asked astounded as we began to wrap all of Uryu's belonging in layers of gift wrap, duct tape, and saran wrap.
"Remember when I got into that big fight around the first month of school?" I asked switching out all his sewing string with multicolored dental floss.
"With the 3-B boys?"
"Yep." I started to step up the air horn on the door of the locker so when he opened it he be greeted with it. "They were fucking with Kondo and I was in a bad mood so I took over the fight for him. We've been buddies ever since."
"Huh, why didn't you say anything earlier?"
"Never had an reason to." I shrugged taping the last scavenger hunt clue to his triple wrapped calculator. "I'll hide the top half, you do the bottom?"
"Sounds like a plan." He nodded gathering his things. "Meet me at the Mcdonalds?"
"Yep~"
Kondo Tatsumi is an older man, well into his sixties. He made poor decisions in his youth like trying to start a gang with a few schoolmates. Together, they committed petty crimes, dropped out of high school, and were disowned by their families.
Another gang, that was much more extreme than them, planted a bomb in their hangout area killing two of his friends and maiming the rest himself included.
He suffered second and third degree burns to his face and hands which he now mostly covers with a surgical mask. A piece of shrapnel tore through his kneecap giving him a pronounced limp. He is also missing the tips of his fingers and the pinky on his left hand is completely missing.
After recovering in the hospital, Kondo was sentenced to fifteen years in jail for his crimes during his time in managed to get his GED and learn basic electrician skills.
He was unemployed for two years after getting out until our principal took pity on him and needed an apprentice for the soon to be retiring maintenance man.
Back when school started, a group of boys decided to show off how 'cool' they were by belittling Kondo on his appearance, job, and life. I had been pissed off by another student that day and saw an opportunity to vent.
Kondo obviously wanted to hit or yell back but if he did he risked losing his job and jail time so I gladly did the deed for him. He didn't stop the fight or tell anyone what had happened. Neither did the students because admitting they lost to a girl would damage their reputations.
After that incident, we talked a little bit and found we had common interests in comic books and music. We traded different albums and things. Eventually, we traded phone numbers.
That was the start of our beautiful friendship, He gave me the passcode to the vending machines so I could get free snacks and drinks if I pleased and I promised to take care of any students who gave him grief.
In the end, we triple wrapped every item in his locker, attached an air horn inside, took his small items and scattered them around the campus so he'd have to play along with our scavenger hunt.
We left his books inside his book bag hoping he doesn't noticed they were wrapped up until he got to class. Switched out his sewing kit with dental floss and toothpicks.
I also set up a layer of party poppers under his seat so when he sits down they will explode for good measure.
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"Maaaaake way!" Keigo shouted using himself as a battering ram. "Injured woman coming through. Get to class nerds!"
I snorted amused my his antics and the annoyed reactions of the students and staff.
"Outta the way, Hercules!" Keigo barked at Tatsuki.
She swatted at him in annoyance letting out a surprised gasp when he dodged it smoothly. Keigo gloated over his skills earning a swift kick to the shins by her.
"How was that tough guy?"
"Oh my gosh! Karissa-Chan what happened?" Orihime asked softly touching the bandage on my cheek.
"Some jerks tried to get rough." I smirked rolling my shoulder. "I showed them who's boss though."
"You guys have bruises and cuts too." Keigo pointed out poking one of the larger ones on Tatsuki's arm.
"We went hiking and I ended up slipping down the side of the cliff a little ways. Tatsuki-Chan had to come save me."
"Maybe you should take dancing lessons or something to help you become more coordinated before you break something." I suggested.
"Oh I have! I ended up giving my teacher a broken nose so I had to quit."
"That teach-"
A loud ring sound cut off everyone's conversation before a locker slammed loudly. I giggled watching Uryu turn a lovely shade of red before slowly opening his locker once more.
He ripped the air horn off the door shifting uncomfortably as a few students stared and laughed. He frowned reading the scavenger hunt list before sighing, grabbing his bag, and making his way to the cafeteria for his first clue.
"I wonder who could be behind that." Ichigo said dryly.
"Probably a genius." I said smiling before glaring at a couple of kids who made off with my air horn. I was hoping to get it back for future pranks.
"Why are all of you injured?" Mizuiro asked.
"We have the worlds clumsiest friends." Keigo said nudging Rukia with her elbow. "Ain't that right, Rukia-Chan~"
"Yeah. Human pranks are funny." Rukia said blandly looking incredibly distracted by her own thoughts.
"What do you mean by human pranks, Rukia-Chan?" Keigo asked cocking his head to the side.
"Karissa."
The voice was much louder this time. It wasn't one voice it was two male voices speaking as one.
I glanced around wondering if the voice really was in my head. No one seemed to notice anything out of the ordinary.
I happened to catch my reflection in the window and for a split second there was two men standing beside me. I couldn't make out any distinguishing features and I couldn't sense anyone abnormal in the vicinity.
"Alright kids get in here!" Oichi-Sensei barked sliding the class door open.
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"Ishida?" Sensei asked surprised as the normally punctual student walked through the door more than thirty minutes late wrapped in bandages. "Why are you injured?"
"I fell from the stairs." He explained pushing up his glasses after he bowed to the teacher. "I also had some… trouble with my locker."
"That's what you get asshat." I scowled at him. He noticed and seemed rather surprised by it. I ran a finger across my neck intensifying my glare.
Uryu sat down and the poppers went of startling him and a few others. Most just laughed as he groaned rubbing the bridge of his nose in frustration.
"I must be cursed." Oichi-sensei sighed rubbing her eyes. "All my students show up injured."
My classmates began to gossip amongst themselves coming up with many amusing ways Uryu became injured. One of them even suggested he was part some sort of after school fight club ran by Ichigo and I.
"Is it true Evans-San?" Michiru asked quietly glancing over to Uryu making sure he couldn't hear. She had an irrational fear of him and Ichigo.
Michiru used to be shy around me until and Orihime forced her to be around me back in middle school.
"Don't be ridiculous." Ryo said. She has always been very aloof girl, more interested in books than people. Super smart and one of the best runners on the track and field team. "It's just a coincidence."
"Enough chitter chatter class!" Oichi-Sensei snapped clapping her hands loudly to reign the students back in. "
I lifted my textbook so it covered my grinning face as I watched Uryu pull out his saran wrapped textbook. He ripped it off glaring as a layer of duct tape was revealed.
Oh sweet karma.
I spent the rest of the class giggling and watching Uryu find everything he owned sabotaged.
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"Well. I'm just going to have them run through disassembly and reassembly. So you're free to go home." James said handing me my paycheck.
"Sweet~" I grinned giving it a kiss. Momma needs a new pair of shoes! "Good luck guys!"
"Thanks Karissa-San!"
"Please tell him to be gentle on us!"
I snorted walking out the door, sliding my paycheck into my wallet for safe keeping. I sent Keigo at text letting him know we are going out on the town Friday night.
"Suppress your Reiatsu!"
I jumped at the alarmed tone of the voice but did so anyway. That's when I felt a large gathering of Reiatsu.
Quickly, I pulled out my guns and carefully made my way closer. I moved quietly through the park-like median keeping low.
A slender regal looking man stood beside Rukia, who seemed extremely distraught, watching a bloodied Ichigo fight a red haired man. Uryu laid limp in a pool of his own blood.
I frowned shoving a couple painkillers in my mouth, chewing them so they would absorb quicker. I'm not in the best shape to be fighting these Shinigami but I can't just sit by and
do nothing.
"Say; "Tamashii no Kyōmei"."
"Prepare to die rookie!" The man shouted swinging his strange jointed sword at Ichigo.
"A weapon is only as good as it's strongest joint." I remembered Pops telling me when I was first learning to take care of guns.
I lifted my guns and fired hitting the sword on the joint causing it to fold in and miss it's target. Jumping from the bushes, I shoulder checked him before tearing his Zanpakutou from his hands.
"Tamashii no Kyōmei."
"Karissa get out of here!" Rukia cried out on the verge of tears. "Take them and leave! They are foes beyond either of you!"
"Who are you?" The red head asked.
"Are you deaf? Rukia just called me 'Karissa'." I sneered kicking the handle of his blade towards him.
"You should do what she said and leave, human." The red head sneered back.
"Was that supposed to be an insult?" I laughed kicking the Zanpakutou farther away as he lunged for it.
I was completely blown away by how fast he could move. Within a split second he had his Zanpakutou in his hands and was swinging at me. Ichigo's Zanpakutou intercepted and deflected the attack giving me a brief opening to let out a shot.
It grazed his right cheek taking off a chunk of his lower earlobe. The attack seemed to surprise the Shinigami into retreating momentarily.
"We've bound you to him." The voice stated. "To Ichigo that is. He needs the support."
"You can still move?"
"My friend showing up gave me a little more energy to try harder, ya know?" Ichigo grinned point his Zanpakutou at the red head. "It'll be over real quick now."
"Don't get cocky, kid." He snorted taking a fighting stance once more. "It'll be another two thousand years before you can be me!"
"Renji, finish up." The regal Shinigami ordered. "We've waste enough time already."
"Yes Captain!" Renji nodded launching his Zanpakutou at Ichigo.
I shot an inseam again making it go off course allowing Ichigo to get in a good slice. Ichigo's blade cracked through Renji's goggles and left a trail of blood running down his face.
"Good." I thought watching it run into his eyes. "If either of us manages to break his nose, we'll have the T zone."
The two Zanpakutou clashed once more and I used that as an opportunity to move. I made it look like I was going to swipe his legs out from under him.
He knocked Ichigo back so he could counter my kick only to have one of my guns slam into his nose effectively breaking it.
"Nice shot!" Ichigo praised making a brutal chop at Renji forcing him back once more.
"Thanks!" I grinned picking my gun back up. Ready to tag team him. "Shall we?"
"We sha-"
Ichigo's chest seemed to spilt apart on its own. The wound spurted and steamed in the air as he dropped his Zanpakutou and chased to his knees.
I gasped feeling a light tap on my shoulder before a power electric current ran through my body. All my muscles clenched painfully before I also collapsed.
I could vaguely hear Rukia screaming over the loud ringing echoing through my ears.
"I didn't even see him move!" I gasped only catching the slight swishing of his scarf and robes and the last bit of sheathing of his Zanpakutou.
A figure appeared between the three of us and the Shinigami. I could make out who it was by the silhouette created by light beaming through a magically appearing set of Shojo doors.
"James!" I croaked out.
"You okay, kiddo?" He asked kneeling beside me.
The Shinigami simply walked through the doors and disappeared into the night. Just like that, Rukia was gone, it started raining, and I have no idea what just happened.
"Yeah." I groaned annoyed by my muscles spasming. Getting tazed sucks. "I don't think I'm going to be walking for a while though."
"Good thing you're puny." He chuckled keeping a close eye on the other man who appeared and Tessai.
The other man was dressed in green, covered his face with a striped hat, and clopped around noisily in his clogs.
"I'll take care of Kurosaki!" He chirped happily handing me a slip of paper with a phone number on it. "Feel free to call my shop for updates on his condition!"
"What about Ishida?"
"I'm able to make it home on my own." He stated wriggling out of Tessai's grasp. "Good evening everyone."
"Get well soon, Karissa-Dono." Tessai said setting a small pouch filled with tea bags in my hands.
"Thanks." I muttered unhappily. The night turned out awful and I was in an absurd amount of pain.
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Disassembly and reassembly is taking a gun apart and put it back together. Normally you're timed and have to do them in various scenarios.
The T zone is the eyes, nose, and mouth. Damage the eyes, you ruin their sight. Damage the nose and mouth making it difficult to breathe. It's a technique used in karate and boxing.
I remember Byakuya using a lightning Kido once before so I figured I'd have him us it again.