She did not know what to think of this newest Hunter. He had arrived only recently and yet had been the source of no small amount of oddities.
It was readily apparent from the moment he first entered the Dream that he had at least some level of insight. He had no problem perceiving her as she was: a doll. One that moved and spoke and provided whatever aid she could to Hunters like him. And the way he looked at her… there had been others before him who possessed the ability to see her and they all had varying responses but his gaze was different. Curious yet always knowing. Cold yet somehow still compassionate. Sometimes, it felt as though he somehow understood more about herself than even she did.
While on the topic of his gaze, his eyes were rather peculiar as well. Well… his eye to be more precise. The left eye was covered by a thick band of cloth that wrapped around his head. His right eye, however, was a color she had never seen before in a human. It was a pale white, so lightly colored she might've assumed he lacked irises were it not for the bold black ring that marked its border. That empty yet ever watchful and occasionally empathetic orb would have sent chills down her spine whenever it was directed at her had she been made of flesh and blood instead of delicate porcelain. It may have been her imagination, but at times it seemed to shimmer if caught in the proper light.
His clothes were unfamiliar to her; an unsurprising fact, really. Most of the Hunters who still lived were foreigners to Yharnam. Those who had been born in the city had largely died off… or worse succumbed to the very plague they sought to purge. There simply wasn't enough left in the city to form a large enough force to fight back the beasts and as such many came from far away lands, for one reason or another, to join the infamous hunt. Still, his attire was very distinctive in appearance. His dark blue trousers were the most ordinary part of his attire while his black and silver buckled boots seemed to imply his origins from some manner of wealth. His hands were covered by thin brown gloves and his coat…
Well, that was the most identifiable part of his ensemble. It was layered with the thick inner layer being made of a coarse, black leather while the outer layer comprised of a thinner blue cloth that appeared to be artistically torn towards the bottom. It stretched down past his knees and hung loosely like a cape. The second to the uppermost button was the only one of many to be fastened revealing much of his heavily scarred and bandaged torso.
He stood in the small garden just outside the workshop's side door staring off into the vast, empty distance of the dream with an unusual expression. It was an odd mix of solemn recollection and intrigued wonder. And then his gaze traveled upwards. She couldn't clearly see his one exposed eye. Her position and the shadow of the ever-present moon obscured it. But she could see his lips as they curled into a slight frown. It wasn't angry or sorrowful, rather it was the sort of thing one might see on a face deep in thought.
The Doll felt something odd as she stared at that seemingly young, pale face of his. She realized she wanted to know more about him. Not as a Hunter but as an individual. Such a thing… the Doll couldn't recall feeling anything quite like it before. Certainly not in response to all the other Hunters that she had aided before. As such, rather than wait until the Good Hunter was finished with… whatever it was he was doing at that moment, she ascended the sloping path through the garden to meet him.
If he noticed her approach, he did not react immediately. It wasn't until she was a mere few paces from him that he turned his head to face her. That pale white eye of his fixated its gaze at her. Or… so she had thought at first as it appeared he was actually observing something behind and over her shoulder. Curious as to what had drawn his attention, she looked over her shoulder as well but was perplexed when she saw… nothing. The Doll tilted her head quizzically and returned her focus back to the Hunter. By then, he had turned his body fully and his attention now clearly pointed at her.
Good Hunter… the Doll wondered, Just what is it that you see with that peculiar eye of yours.
"Is there something you need from me?" the Good Hunter asked.
The Doll knew what she wanted but knew not how to get it. She mused over her dilemma for a moment, thinking how best to procure more information from the Hunter. Alas, she realized she hadn't the faintest clue as to where to begin. This foreign curiosity that plagued her was entirely new and as such, she had no knowledge as to what she should do with it. But as she stared into that alluring Hunter's eye, she decided that perhaps she could think over the problem in her own time once the Hunter inevitably returned to The Hunt.
"Good Hunter, might I join your company? I merely wish to be by your side for the time being."
The Good Hunter seemed surprised at her response but not offended. That familiar, musing frown of his returned for just a moment before shifting into one of wry amusement. "If that is what you desire, then so be it."
And so she crossed the small distance between them, standing by his side, shoulder to shoulder. They shared a brief, final curious glance at one another before they turned to stare into the vast abyss surrounding them.
Together.
Author's Notes: Just a simple one-shot this time around. As much as I love the world of Bloodborne, I don't know if I could write a full fic within it. Not to mention I've got plenty of unfinished fics to work on in the meantime. For the most part, I wrote this as a means of practicing my atmospheric and internal monologuing writing skills. If any of you would like to see more of this sort of thing, just let me know and I'll happily oblige.
