The Fox-Faced Snake

“Heya ~ Lookin’ a lil lost.  Maybe I could help ya with somethin’?” He had been roaming around the city with thoughts of trying to find something to do to keep him entertained.  He had recently became bored with sitting back and watching.  Waiting wasn’t a strong point at the moment, and that may stir from some restlessness.  Recent events had the shinigami quite active and now one poor soul had to deal with him and what could be some silly games to amuse himself.

Now something was familiar here, but he couldn’t quite place a finger on it.  It had been ages from what he could gather with a jumbled memory, but he wasn’t quite certain as to why.  Granted he was use to meeting so many faces that it was easy for him to have a sense of deja vu.  Either way, he wouldn’t get anywhere just lurking about like this. 

“Oh! Wedding—CONGRATS!” He may not have gotten married, so, “to whoever got married!” That’s a nice one, it leaves things open. If he got married he’ll say and all that. She’s happy for him and/or THEM who ever got married! “I’m ALSO very glad you’re back. It’s nice to have more familiar face here, you know?” Though maybe Gin would have loved to go back home? MM, maybe not? 

“I’ve been staying very busy actually. I was thinking of adding more items onto the menu for my cafe, but also thought about opening a Dojang.” Opening one would surely help her keep in shape and allow her to continue her training!

“Just a fish an’ spider is all ~ Fish is one o’ my besties, though.  Good lil’ Sushi-chan too good fer the world, yknow?  Most find it hard t’ believe I got a good friend like ‘er, but here we are ~ Me bein’ in the weddin’ and holdin’ the ring.  Gotta admit that such trust put on me is pretty heart-warmin’.”  A bit of a ramble there, but he would lift a hand to wave off the thoughts as he looked to move on from that.

At least he’s taking responsibility for this lonely-heartwarming note of conversation this has spiraled into. Quite unexpected. 

Being a longer, picking things up along the way….makes your shoulders heavy. He knows it. He knows. But he’s stubborn like that, even now. Even the moments his shoulders don’t weigh on him at every moment. 

“Better write this down on the calendar…the day Gin made some sense and didn’t sound like a deranged dog.”

That’s a compliment. Truly. 

Badou gives a sigh…a different kind of weight lifted from his heart. It’s a little easier, that warm, gentle weight of those who were here, those who still are. They’ll leave…it’ll hurt. It always hurts, it always will. But. But…

“Yeah, yeah. You came here to be annoying and played us both. Honestly about time you were useful.”

“Deranged dog?  Well, I won’t deny too much there.  Yer the first t’ call me a dog, though.”  Snake, fox-faced, bastard, and a lot more names that weren’t very friendly has been used to call him out.  Then again, he wasn’t around a lot of people for these insults, so maybe he had been called a dog behind his back.  Hard to say, and it wouldn’t be too surprising to say the least.

    —  ★. That night she had almost died to her own dagger, the one that was meant to take his. She remembered now that he had wanted to talk about it them but she had denied him of that. If there was one thing she was absolutely great at, it was making a mess of her emotions. It was horrifying to recall everything she’d experience and done. Perhaps it was time make a change. Just as she had been cast away by her father, she’d done exactly the same. With Gin, she could at least finally have that talk. Whether or not she could do it at this moment would be found out shortly. 

     He was rambling, possibly because he too wasn’t used to these sort of things. In a way it helped her relax. Hearing him praise also patched a bit of her pride. Still it was odd hearing him attempt to cheer her up even if he was expressing the truth. Another truth was with her constantly chasing him down, it had helped build her tracking skills as well as heightened her other senses. Would she thank him for that? No, not when he had to pull stupid pranks to provoke her temper but she’d silently appreciate the attention and outcome. At some point she’d ask him about the Onmitsukido and even more about his world. What she knew about him outside his death and Rangiku was a mystery. 

     Feeling the warmth of his hand upon her own, she almost flinched. The gentle touch wasn’t something she was used to, at least not from him. More than anything, she was surprised by the comfort it gave her. Memories of the times they’ve kissed and held each other close filled her mind, along with the urge to do it again. Sighing lightly, she let all the anger disperse. Deep down everything he told her, she’d already known. She just wanted to hear it, to get a feel of where he still stood despite the years of her absence. Finally she believed him when he said he missed her, that she was special to him. 

     “I.. don’t even know how to respond to any of that,” she admitted, cracking a half smile. “First off though, you really need to stop the kitten thing.” Leaning into him, she wrapped her other arm around his neck, a leg hiking up to press against his thigh. “Secondly, I’m already pretty terrible and happy endings don’t sound nearly as fun.” 

     Lips curled with smugness as she pulled him closer until their lips were inches away. “Thirdly, you’ve just let your guard down and now I got you where I want you,”  softly she whispered before taking what belonged to her. No poison, no tricks, no anger, just an intense passion and desire. Only Katarina was capable of going from rage to lust. Anyone who knew her knew that she was unpredictable when it came to anything. 

“That’s fine.  Sometimes, yer not needin’ words t’ express a thought.  Action tends t’ be a much more louder tune,” and it went without saying that a lot of people had no words for the snake.  If he was to be honest, he almost had no idea what to say about any of this.  He never had prepped for this kind of reunion.  In a way, he had given up on ever seeing Katarina.  He figured he was doomed to see the duplicates that lacked her flair.  A repetitive nightmare that he would continue to cut through even if he was aware that each cut he created was just a loss of his own sanity.  Now?  He had no reason to worry about that.

His kitten was back, after all.

“Heh.  Ain’t gonna stop.  Oughta know better than that,” he spoke before finding himself in a matter that wasn’t involving blades and blood.  She was awfully close with arms and a leg around him.  A rare moment as far as he remembered to not see Katarina being fueled by rage.  Around him, anyway.  Instead, it was something far away from the spectrum of rage.  A bit of a smile cracked as lips were so close, and her words spoke a bit of what she had on her mind.  No happy endings?  He doubted that, highly.  Granted that they could never have a proper happy ending in this city, they could at least live a very peculiar fairy tale.  One that wasn’t meant for kids, surely.

“Don’t got to be hearin’ it from someone who’s giving me snake eyes.”

“……………!!!!”

“………!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU——”

     —  ★. Every survival instinct went off as he held his blade up, the words spoken slowly like a countdown. Immediately she knew that she needed to move and she did, leaping to the dagger she had previously thrown at him. Despite that, blood slide from her cheek, the liquid indicating that the attack had already gone off even before she reacted. She knew that he was insanely powerful but for her to be completely at his mercy wasn’t something she ever wanted to acknowledge. For her to ever measure up to that, she’d have to sacrifice everything, surrendering to outside power that would not be hers. That made her feel sick to her stomach. 

     Taking in what destruction he induced, she felt her body grow numb. Any other person would have buckled in fear but for Katarina, her pride kept her from falling. For a moment there was only silence as she reached up to wipe the blood from her cheek, gazing emotionlessly at the crimson upon her fingers. Then she started laughing, her fingers curling into her palm, the nails digging into flesh. Emotions of all kinds rose up in her; from disgust to awe, hatred from admiration. He’d done exactly what she had asked him to do but somehow deep down, she knew he was still holding back. She’d only arrived to this city but here she was already dipping into a life threatening game. 

     She turned to finally meet his gaze, a snarl twisting her face. “I hate you so much.” Despite the words, there was a lack of true acid. They both knew her feelings towards him was far more complex than something as simple as hate. Slowly she walked to him, unflinchingly, a fire in her viridescent hues. How much further could she push closer to the edge? With her lips now curling into a bitter smirk, it was obvious she was crazy enough to find out. “That night when you allowed me to shove the blade into your chest, it must have tickled you funny knowing you let it happen but I still failed.” Those memories had been locked away, even before she had returned, but with everything pouring in without mercy, she gave into it once again. 

     Reaching out, her hand met his cheek, the dried blood making the contact rough. “Was it pity that kept you from killing me? Because of my lack of strength?” Anger burned beneath the words softly spoken. “Now that I’m back, you can finally wrap up what was left unsettled, so why did you purposely avoid harming me outside of a fucking scratch?” 

“Aaaah.  That night?  That night was quite an experiment t’ say the least.  Either ya would go through with it or not.  I hadn’t really accounted you t’ go half way so that was surprisin’,” a hand subconsciously moved to where a scar was left from that fateful evening.  Quite a fun night to say the very least, and he questioned whether or not he’d make it out of that alive.  He was thankful for that much.  Be quite a blow to his pride-- Not that he should talk about pride considering.

“Killin’ ya ain’t my goal.  Never was an’ never will be.  Only one person I really wanna kill, an’ the guy is immortal.  Now don’t get me wrong.  Don’t mean I’m soft.  The moment someone tries t’ mess with one of my favorites?  They’ll be dead in a blink.  Now havin’ someone comin’ after me, lookin’ t’ kill me?  A perfect assassin tryin’ t’ slay a snake?  May as well think of it as good trainin’ for ya.  Good trainin’, and it keeps me amused and rather active.  For a human?  You’re far better than a lotta shinigami I know.  You’d be good for the Onmitsukido back home.  Basically a crew of assassins, by the way,” a long spell of explanations on his half, yet he felt he didn’t answer much of anything there.  It was cruel to ramble on.  Maybe he needed to just shorten the deal.

He doesn’t take a deep breath– he just growls out, feels his blood pressure rise and bubble, ready to froth forth like some kid’s volcano science project–but freezes, stiffens, at the mention of their beloved Seras. Badou doesn’t want to show Gin the pain, the stricken look on his face as he talks of her.

Fondly, lovingly, with more sincerity than he’s ever heard Gin speak. It’s uncomfortable, it’s devastating, it warms something in his heart, he wants to run away from this conversation immediately. 

Instead he crosses his arms over his chest to stop from lighting a cigarette (surprise, surprise).  Robbed of his entire moon and stars, injured beyond recognition, dragged through hell and back only for the people he grew close to be ripped from his hands, too, eventually. Scar tissue piles on, nothing he’s ever let go of hasn’t come away with claw marks, anyway.

It’s an unending cycle that doesn’t seem to break any time soon.  Does he have a family here?  Well, he’s got this weirdo calling himself his dad. ‘Siblings’, rivals, workmates. Laughter and screams of rage and mediocre coffee and the lull of days that end with the sunset and a blanket of stars that look the same anywhere else. A network an info broker never knew he wanted…or needed.

“It isn’t always lonely,” he finally concedes. 

Now that was a surprise turnaround.  Gin had managed to fix the matter at hand and got the boy to even think.  Now this was a much more pleasant experience.  Not to mention having Badou open up even if it is just something silly like this conversation.  It was quite an amazing feat, and it all did steer from one little thing.  Something that Gin could admit even if he never seemed like one.

     —  ★. As expected, the dagger didn’t phase him. Not that she expected it to. His body wasn’t made like hers. She was human, him a spiritual being. To think she’d somehow gotten involved with someone so dangerous. One would believe it would be foolish to chase after a man not of the mortal realm but to her, there was no resisting. Besides by the time she knew about his origins, she’d already been ensnared by him. Truly was a frustrating circumstance. All she could continue to do was be herself, a woman who did what she wanted, how she wanted. 

     Making note of where the dagger had fallen, she returned her full attention to Gin. Her lips twitched, a smirk trying to form as he spoke. He was more honest with his thoughts than she was, that much was for certain. Perhaps it was because the memories had only just returned full force that she had to readjust to them. While he spent years with her existing only in his mind, she’d spent hers differently, no real name to what she felt back at her world. 

     “Well, well.. I guess I should say I’m honored you see things like that.” She hesitated to say more, choosing to once more play it cool. 

     Thankfully he made it easier to do with his change of subject. An eyebrow rose, curiosity glinting in her gaze. This was exactly what she wanted. To see it for her own eyes. Even if it would be something she would not be able to match as long as she remained human. What sort of power did he hide? As a Noxian, strength was everything and it definitely was a trait she found the most attracting in a person. Giving a sneer, she placed a hand over her hip, swaying it to the side. “So your blade’s sister, hm? Is that what you call it?” A minor adult joke, taunting him back. “Sure, why not? Give me a show, snake.” Despite how easy-going her words were, she prepared herself for the worst, her senses being heightened to the max. 

She was still looking to bite hard and tear away with her claws of those words.  A small chuckle left him as a hand moved to his head in disbelief.  He should had expected that, but a part of him hoped that he didn’t need to do this.  Not right away, anyway.  How much of this would harm him? or how much of it would hurt her?  These were very dangerous aspects he would need to watch out for.  What could he do?  He held his blade off to the side as he pointed the blade to the ground.  As it comes with the release, the blast of wind would emit from all sides of Gin with the release of the spiritual pressure in preparations for the release.

“If ya wanna show, then I’ll give a show.  Don’t blink.  Ya may miss it.... Bankai...”

“Kamishini no Yari...”

With the blade pointed forward, the entire blade would glow white before extending forward in a simple flash.  Buildings and objects in the blades way would be nothing but collateral at this point.  Of course, the weapon hadn’t pointed to her but he was careful enough to make sure he had it aimed right to graze her cheek.  Enough to show a point with the fastest zanpaktou in Soul Society.  It may also not help the case that the blade looks to extend  farther than the eye can see.  The dangerous bankai that Gin possessed ... A bankai that hid much more venom than one may know.

“Be a shame if someone was walkin’, huh?  Guess I shoulda went off t’ a safer spot.  Kamishini no Yari is quite capable of cutting a city ‘n two,” he spoke as he raised the blade up, the weapon had already retracted before anyone could even blink.

“Better to have loved than lost or whatever? That’s bull. That’s what someone says to soothe someone after a break up, not something like this,” he hisses vehemently, his jaw clenched tight.

He’s lost too many people to– to not feel it every time he loses someone else, to not put up that brick wall between you and me and this bomb  to ensure he doesn’t get too close again. It’s too painful. 

“It’s all fun and games living in the now until you get yourself killed or get yourself so messed up you can’t even get outta bed.” 

And maybe he’s a coward, and maybe he doesn’t think anyone can fall for a jaded brat like him, and maybe he hasn’t had a crush since who knows when, and maybe he doesn’t want to put in the effort, and maybe he is actually busy,

“But I know better than that. And I know myself. And I don’t need it.”

Gin is not an annoying weed– he’s like a piece of dog crap you can’t scrape off of your shoe.

“So I don’t need you giving me any crap like you know any better, know me any better. Because you don’t.”

“Aaaaaaah, of all the buttons I press, seems like this is the big’un.  Whoops...”

Not that he was concerned or worried, but it was an interesting turnaround.  A little bit of a deeper look here, Gin began to wonder of a mysterious past that could have Badou like this.  How was he going to calm this matter?  Not like he was one use to defusing a situation.  Usually his defusing only brought more frustration.  This one was a trick, indeed.

“Take a breath, there.  I ain’t gonna say that at all.  Better to have loved than to never loved at all.  That’s the poetics of someone tryin’ to calm a desperate fella.  I see it as jus’ a simple change o’ things.  I mean, I can’t really say much considerin’ I’m actually dead.  Dead and left poor loved ones behind cus of selfish acts.  Yep, good ol’ Gin is quite a screw up, but he found some peace o’ mind here.  Seras ... Good ol’ Kuro-chan.  She was a change o’ pace, and tha’ slow down I never really had ‘n life.  She helped me appreciate livin’ just a bit more.  Sure, I do miss ‘er.  Always gonna, but that’s all there is to it.”  He spoke his tale even if it doesn’t really go heard.  Worth a shot in the end.

Ah yes lucky Badou. He narrows his eye at Gin and scoffs,

“What, you’re so pumped up from happy wedding vibes that you’re bugging me about this? Get your head outta your butt,” he sighs.

He can’t even bristle at it its just so. Out of sorts for Gin– and he’s known him a long time. Then again it’s so ridiculous that it almost fits– its just weird. Hands on his hips, he decides to just nip this in the bud–

“I don’t have the time, nor do I care enough, to start a relationship here. Especially when you could go home at any time, or they could.” He should know this…he should understand. “I’m not interested. Why don’t you go hook up with someone and quit trynna play cupid?”

“Now, now.  If I was tryin’ ta play cupid, I woulda had someone tag along wit’ me here.  I’m quite alone as ya can see,” he spoke as he motioned to the lack of presence around him.  Given that if he wanted to play cupid, Gin had a lot of research to pull just for that.  He hadn’t quite tailed Badou for awhile, and he didn’t have anyone to try and pull such information out.  Be an idea later on, though.

That voice! Where on Earth did he show up from!? Of course HE has to remember the nickname given to her by non other than himself. “G-GIN!” Her cheeks are red, of course, BUT no she will not let him have the upper hand this time! NOT TODAY! “YES, SIR.” She says, maybe a little too loud and a little too chipper just to prove her point, but hey, if it works then whatever! She clears her throat with a nod, “I’m always enjoying everyday the day.” So maybe she’s not as smooth as she’d like to be. 

Calming down at least, she can’t help but ask, “When did you get back? Or….you never left at all? What happened?” 

“I dunno.  I kinda don’t count the days.  If I count, it may make me think ‘bout lost time.  I’d hate t’ reflect,” he commented on that, not giving much of an answer.  Given, he wouldn’t even if he was actually counting the days.  More fun that way.  He did have to admit he was a little surprised for her to remember him completely.  The reaction?  Was absolutely priceless here.  Haven’t even done a thing, yet she was red and determined not for him to get to her.  That was the look she was giving.