Chapter 4

New Routine

Two weeks had passed by in the blink of an eye for Yusuke. Work was quick and he'd be done with deliveries before the Sun went down. During that time, he was met with a rather pleasant new experience.

"I'm back." Yusuke had taken to saying that a lot lately.

"Welcome home." Ingrid had called over from the kitchen.

Yusuke found it strange how easily Ingrid had taken to adapting to life in his home. The both of them knew it was temporary. The cause for this situation was forced. Yet, neither seemed to question going with the flow that much. Yusuke just thought that it was nice not to have a cold and dark home when he got back.

"Dinner's ready. Why don't you go wash up?" Ingrid ushered him off.

When he returned, she had made a meal Yusuke hadn't seen in a while. A full Japanese menu was set in front of him.

"Looks delicious." Yusuke took one bite of the salmon and grinned. "Tastes delicious too."

"I'm glad." Ingrid then partook in the meal. "Maybe I can buy some more ingredients if I took up a job."

"Then we'll have to split the chores." Yusuke shrugged.

The two laughed but there was a tense awkwardness present. They knew this arrangement was temporary. Nobody knew if Ingrid still had assailants hunting her down. Yusuke wasn't fond of his past nor the Supernatural Realm. By most standards, they shouldn't have gotten along. Anyone with common sense would've told Yusuke to kick Ingrid out.

Yet, Yusuke couldn't bring himself to do it. He had to wonder. Was he so lonely that he was willing to let anyone live with him?

"So, we're out of groceries. Think you could spare some change?" Ingrid asked. "I'm gonna make a run right now."

"Sure. I'll go with you, actually. I wanna splurge a little with my first summer paycheck of the year." Yusuke knew he should've saved every pence he could but today was a special day for him. "That reminds me."

Yusuke handed Ingrid some money.

"Huh?"

"Here's your cut for doing all the housework."

"I can't take this!" Ingrid shoved the money back into his hands. "You're already sheltering me!"

Yusuke had to admit…this was a minor test. He'd wanted to see how Ingrid would react to money. The fact that she immediately thrust the payment back to him told him all he wanted to know. That made him want her to have it all the more.

"I don't like making people work for free for me. Just take it and buy something for yourself. Besides, if you do decide to go off on your own, you can always fund your travels. £200 isn't that much." Yusuke lied. £200 was a sizeable chunk of his check but what good would any less do for anyone?

If she ran off £200 could shrink or inflate depending on where she went. Besides, he pitied her. If her story was true, she was all alone. Just imagining her alone in the wild with nothing to her name was sad to him, especially since she didn't seem to have asked to be in this situation.

Ingrid sighed in defeat.

"Thank you." She reluctantly pocketed the money.

"Good. Dinner was delicious. It tasted like my Mom's cooking. Thank you." Yusuke took his dishes to the sink to wash them. He was rather reluctant, despite his ludicrous reason for it. He wished he could savor the taste just a bit more.

After Yusuke ate, he accompanied Ingrid to go shopping. During that time, he continued to observe her. She continued to behave as if nothing was wrong, as if she were a normal girl. He listened to every word she spoke and nothing seemed odd.

Yusuke had to catch himself. Since when was he so paranoid all of a sudden? He scratched his head in annoyance. Perhaps Urahara's personality was starting to rub off on him.

Still…he couldn't help but feel that there was something off about Ingrid. She was the first Quincy he'd ever met but he just knew that there was something about her. Something was just urging him to keep his distance.

"What should we have for dinner tomorrow?" Ingrid's question broke him out of his thoughts.

"Huh?" Yusuke looked at her in a lost stupor.

"Hey, I was talking for 5 whole minutes, y'know." Ingrid flicked him on the forehead playfully. Her lips broke into a grin.

Yusuke had to admit it; she looked so beautiful up close. Her curves could rival Yoruichi's. When he thought about it, her chest was even larger. Her sapphire-blue eyes had a stronger glimmer to them now that she could relax. Her pale skin contrasted well with her black silky hair; not like when it was dirty and matted with debris and blood.

Yusuke wondered if this was how she normally looked before her life forced her on the run.

"Sorry. I was just thinking." Yusuke sheepishly chuckled.

Ingrid turned around with a sigh.

Now that the topic of food came up, Yusuke had a new question.

"What do you like to eat? Let's have what you like for once."

"Then how about Korean BBQ?"

"Sure." Yusuke was happy to oblige. He never bought it much since it was so much for just one person.

The two were quick to buy groceries for dinner before stopping by Yusuke's favorite Indian shop to eat. Despite their dinner menu planned, a Soul Reaper and a Quincy's appetite wouldn't be sated so easily.

"Hi, Katherine." Yusuke waved as he entered. "Table for two, please."

"Welcome." Katherine paused when she noticed Ingrid.

The two held a gaze before they averted.

"Same as usual, Yusuke?"

"Yep." Yusuke nodded.

"I'll have the Coconut Korma, please." Ingrid folded her menu and handed it to Katherine.

Yusuke turned toward Rahul. The older man gasped and pointed at Ingrid.

"You're girlfriend." He mouthed.

Yusuke's cheeks turned pink as he fervently shook his head. Rahul's shoulders slumped in disappointment.

"So, I'm guessing you're close to the people here."

"Yeah. I've been coming here for the past 2 years. When I'm feeling lazy, I just eat here." Yusuke nodded.

"Say, is Katherine your girlfriend?" Ingrid asked.

"N-No. She's a friend." Yusuke blushed yet again.

Ingrid merely chuckled playfully.

"You'd better hurry or someone's gonna snatch a pretty lady like her away."

"I really don't think anyone would be interested in dating me. Have you seen me? I'm as bland as water." Yusuke bitterly pursed his lips.

"And what makes you say that?" Ingrid's smirk shifted to curiosity.

"When I lived in America, girls I liked looked at me like I was a living dumpster. One of them even said I was a slant-eyed fish." Yusuke's response caused her jaw to drop.

"That's so mean!" Ingrid gasped. "Wait, so is that why you don't talk like a British guy? How long were you in America?"

"I lived in Japan till I turned 5. I moved to America till I was 15. Then I moved here."

"And in that time, you've been rejected several times, huh?"

"Eh, kids are jerks. Not like I care anymore. I'm too busy to think about dating." Yusuke shrugged.

"Why's that?"

"Gotta work to save up for college. I'm honestly kinda lost with what I wanna do so in case I switch around majors, I'd rather have the money for it." Yusuke had already tried so many hobbies to see what he liked doing. He was nowhere.

It was vexing. He just couldn't figure himself out. Most people his age had already figured out what he wanted to do or at least had stuff they wanted to try. He was practically a blank slate.

"I don't think that's bad." Ingrid had seen the look in his eye and spoke up.

"What do you mean?"

"Not knowing what you wanna do. It means you get to learn all sorts of things till you figure it out." Ingrid swirled the water in her glass as if she were trying to divulge her future.

"What's your plan once everything calms down? Go back home to Germany?"

"Huh?" Ingrid looked mystified.

"Your name and all the food you cooked is cluing me in. Correct me if I'm wrong."

"To be honest, I don't think I wanna go back to Germany."

"What about school plans?" Yusuke asked.

"Oh, I plan to finish. I also wanna go to college. But, my ultimate goal is to open up a bakery. I enjoy cooking and baking and I'd love nothing more than to make a life out of it." Ingrid smiled when she smelled the naan reach their table.

"Enjoy." Katherina grinned at Yusuke before casting Ingrid a look that he just couldn't read.

Ingrid merely looked at her, perplexed.

Yusuke recalled his uncle telling him not to get in between women when they were having eye conversations. He just kept his eyes on his plate as he ate.

It was relieving to know that Ingrid didn't look to him for an explanation since he didn't know what was up either.

When the two exited the restaurant, they were met with an eerie sight.

Not a single person was in sight. Well, actually…

"Hold on, Osushi!" Someone was screaming.

Yusuke took a close look at who it was. He sighed in slight apprehension. It was a blonde teen that went to his school: Balgo Parks. Yusuke wasn't sure how to feel about the guy. The first time he saw him, he was a bypassing witness to the harassment he put another girl through. He was even going to call the cops on him until said girl kicked Balgo into a wall.

As for what was currently happening, Balgo was chasing a dog that was being carried away by a…dragon? Yusuke looked closer and figured it couldn't be one. The creature was so oddly shaped.

"Come on, Ninny!" The girl named Noel from before was flying through the sky atop a dragon, followed by another girl riding a dragon.

As for that girl, Yusuke now recognized her as Ninny Spangcole, a famous singer. There was no way he would mistake her petite frame and blonde hair since she was on TV so much.

"Uh…Do I wanna ask what's going on?" Ingrid sighed.

"Honestly, I don't know what's going on, either. Let's just pretend we don't see them." Yusuke took her by the hand to speed walk away.

The moment they got on his moped, a screeching howl echoed nearby.

No, Yusuke. They can solve their own problems. Stay out of trouble. He impatiently tapped his foot. He immediately began driving away but the as soon as he got a mile in…

Boom! Yusuke had to grind to a halt.

"Oh, for the love of-!" He growled. "Why? Why can't trouble just leave us alone?!"

"Sorry 'bout that." Balgo groaned in pain. He gripped his arm, barely moving it.

Yusuke immediately ran over to look at it. The moment Balgo moved it, he yelped and held his forearm.

"You might've broken your arm." Yusuke glared at him threateningly. "Don't you say a word of this to anyone. If anybody asks, you saw nothing, you got me?"

"U-Uh, yeah, sure, mhm!" Balgo shrunk back in fright.

Yusuke immediately began healing him with Kido.

"What?!" Balgo gasped.

Yusuke noticed the little dog in Balgo's hands staring at him. The two held their gazes. Yusuke couldn't explain why but the little creature was giving him an odd feeling.

After several minutes, Yusuke took out a medical kit from his moped and began bandaging Balgo's arm.

"You keep a sling and bandages with you?" Ingrid sounded incredulous and impressed.

"Never hurts to be ready. There, you should be able okay after another day or two. Now you should get going and again, don't you dare mention a word of this to anyone." Yusuke got back on his moped and drove away without looking back.

"Thank you!" Balgo called out to him.

As gruff as he seemed to him, Yusuke couldn't help but wave back.

"I can't tell if you're sweet or sour." Ingrid giggled.

"It's not like I wanna be mean. I just don't want him attracting attention to us. If Wing Bind gets involved, Soul Society might get drawn in."

"Wing Bind?"

"They're Soul Society's Western Branch. They control the Dragon population here and exterminate homicidal ones called Dark Dragons. They're not into the afterlife affairs that Japan's Soul Society does."

"You know an awful lot for a guy who doesn't wanna be involved in all this." Ingrid poked his cheek.

"My family drilled it into my head. They were so paranoid that they shoved it all into my brain in case I got wrapped up in all this."

"And yet, you still keep tabs on everything…" Ingrid deadpanned.

"I just wanna know enough to avoid trouble. Just cus I don't wanna use my powers, doesn't mean I should be complacent."

"I see. Well, hopefully, that guy heeds your warning."

Yusuke could only hope so. However, he recalled that Balgo hadn't been to school in a while. Was it because of this Wing Bind business?

Ingrid's head snapped toward the ruckus echoing from the distance.

"Do you really think they'll be okay?"

"I hope so. Otherwise…" Yusuke sighed. He really had to keep his promise of staying out of trouble.

When the duo got home, Yusuke's thoughts still remained on the incident with Balgo. What was the story behind him?

"Shall I put the food in the fridge?"

"Yeah, please do. I'm gonna be in the Study for a while."

Yusuke's curiosity was getting the better of him. When he came into contact with Balgo, he felt something. The sensation about him was familiar yet it shouldn't have been. He'd never met the guy before going to the same school as him.

Yusuke sifted through all the research books that his family left behind before coming across one about Dragons.

Dragons can leave traces of their essence on people. This essence is known as Dragotoxins. Those humans become known as Dragonclad. A law was passed in 1609 that detained or executed anyone who had excess Dragotoxins contaminating them. The reason for this is because high concentrations of Dragotoxins attract Dark Dragons.

Yusuke turned the page to read about said Dark Dragons.

Dark Dragons are Dragons that have absorbed excess negative emotions from their environment. They often go on rampages and seek to harm and devour humans, specifically ones that carry high amounts of Dragotoxins. They've been designated as kill-on-site by Wing Bind due to their strong homicidal drive. Their high intelligence adds to their danger.

Yusuke began to ponder. If Balgo was contaminated with Dragotoxins, then perhaps they were the cause for that strange feeling he was getting. If that was the case, then the person who was at the scene of his parents' murder was also a Dragonclad or a Dragon. He had felt that energy permeating from their corpses but he didn't know it at the time.

Yusuke grit his teeth in frustration. Just thinking about the incident riled up his usually calm emotions. He took a deep breath to try and calm himself.

No, this wasn't a time or place to get angry. Nothing would come of it. Instead, he needed to focus. He'd been telling himself this a lot lately. Now that he wasn't being stifled by whatever it was that was messing with his personality and mind, he could think a little more clearly. It was suspicious. Ever since he'd re-established his connection with Ransha, some snippets of memories of training, studying, and even some emotional thoughts had been resurfacing within him. What could have caused this? Or was this coincidence? Yusuke had no idea what to think.

For now, he would help Ingrid recover before letting her be on her way.

After that…

Yusuke laughed. He still felt reluctant about being drawn back into the Supernatural in full force. A part of him just wanted to live a normal life like now, minus trouble finding him. It was peaceful and quiet. Yet, this new clue was like a chain. It was wrangling around him, urging him closer to resume his hunt for the truth behind his parents' murders.

Mom…Dad…am I an unfilial son for not going on a vengeful rampage? What would you say to me if you were here? Auntie, Uncle…were you the ones who tampered with me? Yusuke spun in his chair.

What was he to do?

A week went by and it was Friday again. Ingrid was found in the kitchen just as Yusuke entered to get ready for work. She smiled at him in delight as she opened the oven. She looked proudly at the baking sheet before excitedly showing off her creation.

"Here's breakfast: spinach puffs and an assortment of pastries."

Yusuke helped himself to said puffs and a cheese Danish. They were beyond delightful. Each flaky layer was overflowing with butter and yet tasted so light.

"Wow, you really were serious about opening a bakery." Yusuke marveled at the taste.

"It's been a while so I was worried about being rusty." Ingrid smiled sweetly as she studied his face.

Before he knew it, Yusuke had eaten 4 pastries.

"Sorry." He awkwardly cleared his throat.

"No, no, don't worry. I'm glad you're enjoying my food."

Yusuke looked at the clock. It was going to be time to leave.

"Alright, I should be a bit early today for the end of week workload. I left you some cash for groceries. Be careful on your way to the story." Yusuke reckoned that she would be safe since it had been nearly 3 weeks since she began living with him.

In that time, nobody and nothing had bothered her.

"I'll be careful." Ingrid waved at him as he closed the door.

Ingrid waited until traffic died down to make her way to the grocery store. She had to admit, these past 3 weeks were bliss to her. It had been an entire year since she'd had any peace. She had nearly found it foreign to her. It wasn't like camping in the woods where her only cover were leaves or whatever spare clothes her dwindling wardrobe gave her.

She had been bewildered by Yusuke's kindness. She was a total stranger and they were from opposing sides. Yet, he didn't judge her. He gave her a home and asked for little in return. It made her feel terrible. It felt like she was taking advantage of him. The fact that she didn't share all of her past made it worse.

Yes, everyone was entitled to their secrets but Ingrid felt that hers were too hazardous to stay secret forever.

To be frank, Ingrid found the idea of leaving this lifestyle and returning to being on the hunt and running away harrowing. She just wanted to have some normalcy back. She wanted to be a regular girl again. She wanted to go to school, got to college, and open up a bakery after getting her degree, preferably in business and finance.

Ingrid hated her heritage. If only she wasn't born of the Quincies, she wouldn't be an orphan. Just remembering the family she'd lost was like having a sword driven through her. It was cold yet the anger it sparked was blazing hot.

She had sworn to avenger family. She'd already eliminated everyone that she'd known that had had a hand in her family's murder within the past year that she'd spent on the run. She brushed the spots that were wounded the night she'd met Yusuke. That had been the night she destroyed her final lead. Yet, a part of her wanted to keep going, to keep destroying every Yhwach loyalist that was still out there.

Ingrid bit her lip. Whenever she thought about striding back out into the world for revenge, the image of Yusuke returned to her mind. Despite him sharing the same circumstances, he didn't seem to thirst for revenge the way she did. When she looked into his eyes, he just looked weary, as if he'd wrestled with that angry monster everyone had deep down. Ingrid didn't fully understand him.

He was so kind, despite being rather indecisive. He always respected her boundaries even if she could be fatal to him. Ever since they'd met, she had the feeling he was just as damaged as she was.

Maybe that was why they were both so ready to live together. They both needed someone to stabilize them and remind them of the nicer things in life. Maybe they'd both been close to the end of their ropes or just wanted to feel alive again. That was certainly a sentiment she'd given stock to.

Ingrid, what've you gotten yourself into? She sighed. She hadn't felt this conflicted in a long time.

She shelved these reflections and focused on shopping. By the time she was done, she'd realized that she'd forgotten her phone. She walked over to an alley that had a phone box. At least, she thought there was one there. She could've sworn she'd seen one here before and yet it was gone when she rounded the corner.

"I know I'm not crazy." Ingrid muttered.

The only thing that was in this seemingly abandoned lot was a bird. It flapped its wings helplessly on the ground. Ingrid walked over and gently lifted it in her hands.

"You okay?" Ingrid pitied the tiny creature as it weakly chirped.

All of a sudden, she felt something sinister rise up from the bird. Its wings morphed into bat-like ones. Its eyes turned white and something ripped out of its body.

"What?!" Ingrid hadn't seen anything like this before. A Dragon had rise out of the bird, leaving nothing but a lifeless corpse behind.

The Dragon was green with all the physical markings of one: fangs, claws, tail, leathery wings. It roared savagely at Ingrid, lunging down toward her.

Ingrid somersaulted out of the way. She ducked and weaved under and over its wings and tails. She took off the bracelet Urahara gave her and struck a mighty blow to its head. To her astonishment, her Blut (Blood) had activated. The familiar blue circuit-like angular lines were glowing across her limbs.

This was a great sign to her. She tried to form a bow in her hands to finish the job. The size of her bow left her baffled; it was barely the size of her hand. Still, it would have to do.

Ingrid fired an arrow at its skull, only for it to partially blow off part of its head. That wasn't enough to finish the creature.

"Damn." She ducked and cartwheeled out the way of its tail and took aim again. She scowled at the sight of her bow. Its form was dwindling; her powers were draining again.

At the same time, she could feel two presences racing toward her. She had to wrap this up now. She pooled all her remaining Spiritual Pressure into a properly-sized arrow and fired it through what remained of the Dragon that attacked her.

The headless corpse hit the ground with a resounding thud. Her work done, Ingrid took off. She slapped Urahara's bracelet back on and fled as quickly as she could.

Ingrid was more exhausted than she'd hoped to be. She reckoned she'd used up whatever strength she'd saved up with that little fight. It left her wondering what sort of creature it was that did this to her. She could recall the memory as if it happened yesterday.

It resembled a Hollow but seemed to be a mix of demon, dragon, and Hollow. If she thought about it, it was humanoid too. Of course, she didn't share this information with the others for fear that they would do something to her. However, she could trust Yusuke with this information, couldn't she?

Just before she arrived home, she made sure that no one followed her before entering. She was surprised to see that Yusuke was already home.

"Hey, Ingrid, I―" He trailed off when he saw how roughed up she looked. "Who attacked you?"

"Some kind of creature. It looked like a dragon. Don't worry. I made sure nobody followed me." Ingrid smiled at him.

Yusuke helped her sit and inspected the bruises on her arms.

"Hang on, Urahara left me some stuff for bruises." Yusuke went over to his medicine closet but getting supplies wasn't his only reason. He wanted to think by himself. He could recognize the sensation that Ingrid had around her. Yusuke's suspicions were now confirmed. That odd aura left behind at the scene of his parents' murders was that of a Dragon's.

For him, a person's Spiritual Pressure was like someone's voice that he could feel on his skin. Everyone's was unique to each other. The sensation that was clinging to Ingrid was off, foul, and similar to her own. He'd felt it once before but he couldn't remember where. It had to have been from when he was a child.

"So, did anyone spot you?" Yusuke asked when he returned.

"Not that I was aware. I even ran around to lose anyone that could've followed me." Ingrid shook her head.

"I see. So, your powers are back?" Yusuke asked.

Ingrid tried summon her bow from before but it was barely the size of her palm.

"Not really. It's even smaller than when I had to fight." She sighed.

Yusuke made no comment. He only applied some ointment to her wounds and patched them. He was worried but didn't want to voice his thoughts. He hoped that his aunt had left some gadgets behind that would ward off Dragons since he was clearly researching them.

To his relief, she'd left talismans meant to ward off Dragons, Hollows, and Soul Reapers in her office. He stuck them around the house to further enhance the protection. He only hoped it was all that was necessary.

Yusuke found it ominous that supernatural behavior climbed so much recently. Just a month and a half ago, Yusuke had felt intense disturbances from afar. There had been earthquakes that were left unexplained but the BBC had sworn that they didn't need to be worried about. He reckoned that wasn't the true story. If anything, there seemed to be more Dragon activity than Hollow activity.

If Dragons were going to start pursuing Ingrid then perhaps he needed to do some research. Now, he wasn't the best student nor was he a great scientist like his dad or Urahara but knowledge was power.

He spent the rest of the night speeding through books, trying to learn all that he could about Dragons, Wing Bind, and the history London had with them. Yusuke was honestly surprised his father and aunt had a substantial amount of data on the matter. It was striking to know just how little he'd been involved in everything.

Just what was the purpose for all this, exactly?