All afternoon, Valissa could have been found upstairs hiding behind the door of the room she had woken up in. It wasn't as though the young woman was attempting any try at being rude. That wasn't it at all, but after the story she had been told, both her mind and body required a bit of time alone in order to really comprehend what was going on with her life. It was really just a plot to a bad movie. All of these people had to of been actors of some kind.

Was she being punked, or was this really the way of her life. Silly thought this was.

Valissa knew that no joke could bring someone through that much torture for so many years. It wouldn't be humane, or possible. No. This wasn't any joke. This was the way that her life was now. Valissa was no human being, and she was no ghoul. She was a combination of the two, but far worse. What would someone see her as? A creature like her was said to possess the real ability to blend in with regular society. She couldn't help but wonder how that would be possible for the likes of her when this was the first real day she had seen the sunlight.

A rush of questions boiled within her mind. Valissa had to know what would happen next. For many years now she had lived under that same stone roof. Behind bars. Day after day would be the same thing. She'd be fed pieces of meat, water, and left alone to stare at a wall. Only her imagination served as entertainment, but she knew what each day would bring. Now she was left to suffer in a spot where each day would bring on something new and possibly terrifying. She wouldn't know how to cope. How to reason with any new development. It didn't matter how many times the Manager said that he would be here to assist her, Valissa had no hope for her survival in this world. Now that all of this was real, she felt scared and alone.

That was until a knock sounded from the other side of the door.

Valissa didn't let any sound of entry approval leave her lips, but the one beyond the barrier decided that they would enter anyway. Her eyes caught sight of silver hair at first. Valissa had wrapped her arms around her knee; pulling them closer in towards her chest while the other entered the space. She had the lights off. Scared. Wrapped up in her fetal position over on the furthest end of the sofa. Kaneki took her position as a sign to stay at a polite distance, which she appreciated. Instead of trying to take a seat along the couch beside her, he claimed a spot to himself in one of the chairs opposite to her.

"I'm sure you feel very isolated right now," he told her – tone calming in nature as was his expression. He gave forth a light smile before continuing a moment later. "Not too long ago I had been in a similar position. Not completely positive what my place in the world was. What I was supposed to do. Believe me, it's hard not having the answers to these questions." Almost as if he had read her mind previous to coming into this room, and then Kaneki shared with her a short version of his own story – explaining how he had been in an accident and when he awoke, he had become part of the Ghoul's world. He informed her that this place, Anteiku had helped guide him onto a right path. How he had strayed from that path. "I've made mistakes, but I've learned from them. The best part though is that I have these guys here to help me. To continue picking me up when I feel I've hit rock bottom. That's what we're going to do for you now too. We are going to work all together to help make sure that you feel comfortable in this world because honestly, there is nothing to go back to for you."

That was really what she had been hoping to hear despite all her fears through this whole mess. There were no cells to go back to and cower in the corner – not that she would want to do that sort of thing anyway. Valissa always knew that she had been meant for more than that world. For being a worthless scrap pf flesh, and now that an opportunity had arrived, she was too frightened to accept it. I can do this, she would repeat in her mind. Holding onto any shred of hope that she had left, but again, there was nothing to run back to. Even if she felt like she wanted to run, there was nowhere else to go. Nowhere but this coffee shop and all those that worked within the establishment. Whether or not she actually wanted to accept it, Valissa knew that this was her only means of survival.

The young woman finally made a motion and uncurled herself. Her legs stretched out so that the pads of her feet reached the floor below. "You really don't mind someone like me being around?" Valissa had to ask. For obvious reasons. Devils, which is what she was, didn't feast on humans to keep their systems running. They ate Ghouls.

Kaneki shook his head at her, and by his calming demeanor, she knew he didn't have any inkling of fear. "We're a group of Ghouls running a coffee shop that caters to both our kind and humans. Of course the other half isn't aware of what we are, but we made due living in our peace. I have no doubt that the Master will figure out a way to satisfy your hunger when it comes into play. Until that happens, we have a job to discuss."

A moment after those words left his mouth, the young man stood up from his chair and said to meet him downstairs in the shop. Valissa didn't know what he was going on about – a job, but what kind? She had only been recently released from her captivity. Valissa had figured that they would surely allow her some time to get used to the idea of being out, but it appeared as though this wasn't going to be the case.

After a bit of looking around, she found a black sweater to weak over her shoulders – hearing that it was a bit chillier out this afternoon than it had been the day previous. Valissa didn't want to be cold. Now that she had the proper attire for a Fall afternoon, and shoes on her feet, the young woman slipped herself out through the door and followed her previous directions down towards the main area of the coffee shop.

The door opened and that scent hit her right away – freshly ground beans. The dark roast his her nose. Smelled wonderful.

"Would you like a cup?"

Her eyes turned towards the left behind the counter finding that the voice had come from a taller fellow, glasses, a golden tone to his hair. Valissa hadn't seen him earlier. Even if he had been around, her eyes were focusing on far too many things to really recall his face. She moved around towards the front of the counter. Without her having even giving him an answer, the man prepared her a mug anyway. "Careful. It's hot."

Of course she already knew that. The steam giving way off the liquid was a sure sign of that. "Thanks," she replied through a mumbled tone of voice. Still trying to grow used to the idea of being around other people.

The man leaned forward on the counter – coming close. Other patrons were in the shop, so he was doing this as to give their conversation some privacy. "Names Nishiki. Not every day we get a smoking girl like you in here. You'll be working with us, yeah?"

"That's enough, Nishiki."

Kaneki exited through the same door Valissa just had not too long ago. He wore regular attire – black pants and a tan jacket. The two of them were going somewhere. She knew that much. "I'm taking Valissa out for a while. Don't trach the place while we're gone." This comment brought a rather foul mouth from Nishiki. Language she really wasn't used to hearing.

Valissa followed Kaneki out towards the door but before exiting, he stopped. "Here," he said. Out of his pocket he pulled a pair of glasses with tinted lenses. Kaneki shared the fact that her eyes were still abnormal, and this would help hide her Devilish nature. Humanity had enough to worry about with Ghouls. Now Devils were being thrown back into the mix.

Side by side, Valissa and Kaneki exited the shop and began a journey down the sidewalk. Destination unknown. She had wanted to ask about where they were heading, but figured that it could wait considering the fact that there were already far too many other things catching her eyes – things she had never seen before. Trees. Planes. Other people going about their days. Cars. All of it was just so much to handle. She found herself hanging onto his arm – making sure not to fall behind while her eyes paid attention to everything else but where she was going. This was to be expected when someone was remained captive for a majority of their life. The best part had to be the feeling of the sun hitting her pasty white skin. The heat of those rays warmed her to the very core.

"You shouldn't be nervous about this," he said. They stopped at a cross walk and waited casually while a few cars passed the road before them. "This was the Master's idea. I won't disclose all the information to you right now." It would wait. Valissa was fine being out of the loop right now because she felt that she would really be able to trust these people. She's had enough distrusting for her life, so it was time to open up and let this journey take her wherever it was meant to go which apparently ended up being to a place the locals refer to as a park. She wasn't exactly sure why she had been brought there, but then some familiar faces caught her attention.

Those men with the suit cases….

As soon as they caught sight of her, the one with stitches in his face and along his arm came rushing at her – gleaming smile from ear to ear. If she recalled his name, it was Juuzou. "Oooh! It's you! It's you! All out and about just like a normal person! Good for you!" Valissa stared at him at first – not knowing how to exactly respond, but then she smiled.

The other suited man came over as well, introducing himself as Yukinori Shinohara. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Please, come had a seat with us. There's something we'd like to talk to you about.