Clashing Steel

“It’s just a scratch.”

Her pitiful protest would go unheeded however which simply annoyed her more than anything. However, this sorrowful routine she is being forced to go through is all but the redhead’s fault. If Elyss had shown more care during her patrol, none of this would have proved necessary. It was her fault that she had gotten jumped by a group of Hollows, but it was also her duty to make sure that the young child that had run out of the forest had made it back home safely. She never did learn why he was out there, but such information was never needed for her to jump right into the thick of things. Her reward for it however? Well, she’s having to sit and get her armed wrapped. It’s not her only wound, but it’s the severist. Calling it just a scratch just goes to show how careless she is about her own health.

At least she didn’t have to travel all the way to the medical building and was allowed to stay around the Seventh Division. The operating table is just a simple crate that she decided to sit on while her body is looked over. It’s been a while since she had returned to the Gotei, and since then, she had done nothing but work herself. The difference from last time though is that she’s actually taking breaks. They’re not much, but a trip to the springs here and a little extra time off to catch up on sleep there, goes a long way. Some may question why she’s back to her old antics of working so hard anyway after it had caused problems last time. She doesn’t really give them a direct answer and just leaves it as vague as possible. The fact she had caused problems before is the reason that she’s working the way she is now. She has to make it up to everyone, carry her own weight. Her Zanpakuto was taken from her. She’s not strong enough for it. The only way to get strong enough is to keep working.

It’s a cycle that she can’t break, but she won’t let it, no. She won’t let it keep her burdened down. Her eyes would move to the Shinigami besides her as he finishes wrapping her arm. He soon takes his leave, but she’d remain sitting on the crate, lost in thought and thinking about what to do next. She doesn’t have patrol duty for the rest of the night after she was ambushed. Maybe someone else requires assistance with a task. Though, they’d probably just tell her to go rest. Everyone already knows how hard she works for no apparent reason. Some had taken advantage of it in the past, but the Seventh Division has become her family, and they care about her more than she likes. They already know not to let her openly push herself. How annoying. But, now, she’s just stuck on what to do with what remains of her day. Just her on this dumb crate, kicking her legs.

“One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight nine, ten.”

Starting from her pinky, Elyss had started counting her fingers over and over, returning to her pinky every time she reached her thumb. Ah, she’s at thirty now. 31, 32, 33, 34. And then some weirdo had to come along and ruin her concentration by calling out her name. Eh? Raising her eyes from her hand, she’d come to look at this new jackass who thought it okay to mess up her little counting session. She had half the mind to tell him to fuck off and bother someone else just because she was so engrossed in her counting. However, her face remained as stoic as always as her eyes showed no interest or disinterest, just a blank stare. Oh wait. Is she supposed to know this guy? He’s speaking to her like their colleagues or something, but she can’t recall his face at all.

“Cut the Miss stuff. It’s just Elyss. Who are you and what do ya want?”

She’s straight to the point, ignorant enough to not even attempt to feel out the man in any form or fashion. She sees no need to, but her attitude would have probably lightened a tidbit if she did. Her eyes would fall back down to her fingers, preparing to count and listen while doing so, but there came another voice that’d pierce through her mind like an iron stake being hammered into a railroad track. A small twist of her head, and Arkin’s literally standing right there. Great. Now the big oaf is coming to distract her. Her face still doesn't show her annoyance, but her eyes did narrow slightly. Her eyes would fall back to her fingers. Where was she again? 35? 36? 37?

And then, there’s another. Her eyes shot up to stare at this new woman who also has two kids with her. What? Oh great, now Ulv and the demon spawn just flashed into her mind. Looking back down to her fingers, she’d try to remember where she had stopped, but it would seem she can’t remember the last number. Great. Fucking great. Well, guess her little moment of peace was ruined. She had hated it anyway, but she had tried to make the most out of it. What did it bring her? Just annoyance. Yeah. That’s it. Funnily enough, she just looks perfectly uncaring about the situation still, the only indication of peeved state being a single twitch of her eye.

“A party all of a sudden, huh?”

She doesn’t reward Chidori’s curiosity with a real answer and begins scratching at her bandaged arm, pulling on the bandages and loosening some. Probably the only other indication of how unsettling the situation just became for her. She’s definitely an antisocial person when it comes to idle talk.

Did she hear that correctly? For a moment, her mute expression would falter, her eyes widening with surprise. But, in the next moment, her expression had returned to normal, blank and seemingly uncaring. Finding this situation somewhat unbelievable, her eyes would move away from the man and towards Arkin. Of course, the big oaf would prove useless as he had vanished to resume his medical treatment. It seems that the other woman had decided to take her leave with him. That just leaves her alone with this man.

So, y'all finally think me mentally sound or something, or am I going to be put on a leash, chained and all that crap to ensure my safety and the safety of others?”

She speaks in a matter of fact tone, no humor or sarcasm in her voice. As her eyes would move back to the man, her curiosity would grow. He has to be someone with that authority, yeah? Though, why him and not the Captain herself? Well, curiosity did kill the cat, and Elyss had put herself into enough deadly situations to warrant a bit of caution. Yet, her ignorance is astonishing, for, even now, she doesn’t utilize the most basic of techniques to discover this man’s identity. Instead, she goes about it in a more classical manner, one that’ll probably cause the man a bit of exasperation.

”Ya never did answer me on who you are. Expecting me to guess or something?”

“Oh. That’s who you are.”

Her understanding of the situation mattered little. The only thing here that she should focus on is the fact that she’s about to be thrusted into some sort of test. If she were to voice her honest opinion, she would have stated how accustomed she has become to using only her fists. However, to simply turn down what is to come seemed cowardly. Even if Tenmarin would prove as troublesome as before, hasn’t all she’s gone through, both physically and mentally, be for naught if she doesn’t gain full utility of herself? She dreads this situation, but it’s an eventuality that she knew was unavoidable.

“You should really work on hiding your emotions. Ya might scare someone.”

Her bleak gaze would linger in his fury, embracing it in a way. Though, expecting anything but her usual poker face would leave one disappointed. How many times has she stared into the raging sea now? She seems to have made a habit of pissing off things that could kill her, not like she cares. Jumping off of the crate she had found a suitable seat, she’d simply moved past Murasaki’s Zanpakuto, moving herself a few feet away before tilting her head back towards him over her shoulder.

“Well, let’s go. Might as well get this over with.”