Envious Tides [Veralia/Catherine]

Veralia wasn't used to being probed, but it did beat lamenting in her angst earlier. Her eyes held Catherine's stare as she nodded and reflected on how she even became an Arrancar. At that moment, a slight sigh of irritation exhaled from her mouth. Not by anything Miss Reed did, but more so by her mind being filled with nothing but a burning sensation at the recollections of her evolution.

"Well, it wasn't pleasant changing. I barely remember much from my human life, but I think whatever sins I carried in my heart bled over into my life as a hollow. I could feel it burning in my body, and it took time for it to develop, but I knew I had to evolve."

Her voice was calm, but filled with bitterness; it was apparent she wasn't too happy with her past, but she continued speaking nonetheless.

"In Hueco Mundo, you fight through wins and losses, picking up whatever lessons you can along the way. Eventually, you reach a point where you just rip off that mask to gain this human-like form and some extra power."

As she held her arm up, blocking the sun from her view, she squinted slightly before lowering it and returning her gaze to Catherine.

"It still took time after becoming an Arrancar to tame my power, but the increase in strength, intelligence, and the change in my physical appearance was worth the pain."

Kay, that was a good start, the redhead nodding as she wrote details down. That seemed to be a common element in the transition - she'd only met one or two Arrancar who expressed some regret over transforming, not that she could understand missing being a stupid animal. The broad consensus so far seemed to be a preference to their current state. Made her really wonder why more hollows weren't Arrancar, but maybe it was just the case of not knowing you wanted something until you had it.

"Seems like a typical occurrence to it being a feeling rather than an active decision..." She'd mumble under her breath - though it didn't sound like a comment for Veralia she did expect some form of response, "You got any companions you left behind as a hollow? How'd you get on your feet as your new self?"

Veralia took a moment to recall her memories and reflect on her journeys as a hollow. After the memories started to flood to the surface, Veralia's eyes locked back to Catherine and nodded.

"I wouldn't say friends, but more like....associates. It's convenient to sometimes form packs when you are weaker as you can gather more resources, fight off threats and there is sometimes safety in numbers."

She rolled her shoulders, a gesture of slight discomfort, and let out a discontented sigh. Resting her right hand under her chin, Veralia gazed toward the calming waters of the ocean, her thoughts drifting as she continued.

"But no, not anyone I'd consider worth holding my breath for. It wasn't until I became an Arrancar that relationships started to be a feasible thing. It's probably not the same for all hollows though."

When she finished speaking, a chuckle escaped her as an amusing thought crossed her mind, prompting her to close her eyes as she entertained it.

"Almost sounds like you should be dumped in Hueco Mundo so you can view all this first-hand."

Her tone was light and teasing, suggesting that perhaps the best way to understand her world was to experience it directly, albeit the idea carried a hint of jest.