I Have A Bad Feeling About This (Doku/Ashaiya)

Well, Ash had a point, maybe his second affinity was out there somewhere, he just needed to find an item he was interested in, perhaps one of his nerdy objects or something Nanaly would give him. It was hard to pinpoint an exact item, that’s the thing with fullbringers, you didn’t get to pick. You were just given it…

“You seem to like fighting far more than me. I dunno. I’m a fighter, I prefer simple bartending” Truth be told, Doku hated the high life, preferring simple things such as working, and wasting his days away doing nerd stuff in his room.

Hearing that Ashaiya’s inspiration came from superheroes made her act the way she did honestly made a little sparkle appear in his eye. His favorite heroes! “Honestly, that sense of justice is the most impressive thing about you, most people don’t care about others like that. I’ve grown up caring for people, my sister, you know?”

The bar was in a bit of bad shape, the outside was a bit older, and the interior wasn’t much better. Things were torn and some holes in the floor and roof. That being said, the bar had a certain charm to it, straight ahead was a staircase leading to a door.

“My apartment is just upstairs. But feel free to let me know if you want any drinks or anything to make your stay a little better!” He chuckled, pointing to the stairs, letting her go up if she wanted.

“Success? Well my regulars keep me afloat, I’m not like, swimming in money or anything like that!” He rubbed his neck. “But… I get by!”

“I suppose I do enjoy a good fight although it’s as much about protecting people as it is about getting the blood pumping.” The brunette replied, scratching her head as she tried to explain her philosophy properly. “My teacher taught me to try and remain impassive when fighting but that’s easy for her to say. I don’t find it as easy to switch my emotions off as she does.” The fact that she’d had a face of thunder during their encounter with the thugs was a sure sign of that.

“Better to use our powers for others rather than ourselves, right?” She’d go on to say. “I admit that when I first gained my Fullbring, I was a little more selfish about the reasons why I wanted it but I guess I kind of grew up after a while. Meeting my Master changed all of that and she helped me stay grounded. I don’t think you’re all that different though, as you were as quick as me to stop those men just now.”

Having a look around the bar as they entered, it did have some of that old rugged charm. It clearly had seen better days but Ashaiya didn’t comment on that, knowing that Doku was obviously doing his best to keep the place running as best he can. What he said at the end about how business was going was certainly proof of that. “Well, at least you're swimming instead of sinking.” She’d reply cheerfully.

When he mentioned about a drink, she’d hop up onto a bar stool rather than heading upstairs just yet. “Sure. I assume that you make your own drinks so let me try one of them.” She was curious although the brunette wasn’t sure if she’d come to regret it or not. Alcohol and her didn’t always mix.

The brunette’s answer caused the purple-haired man to lightly chuckle, her energy was infectious. “I try to kill any Hollow I come across if they’re dangerous. Guess that’s the Quincy instinct inside of me” Hearing her little speak about emotions. “I know it’s cliche, but emotions are a REALLY powerful thing. When my mom died, I was a wreck. Same when my sister moved out.” He hated to admit it, but he was soft, a very emotional guy. “I dunno though. Lacking emotions sounds… terrible”


“That’s true…” Thinking about his fullbring briefly. “Hell, If I wanted I could rob a bank. If I wanted to. But… I just couldn’t do that…” He shook his head, despite his bar and the people who were regulars, he couldn’t bring himself to exploit others for gain. “I'd feel bad if I didn’t do anything!”

Doku eventually dropped his stuff on the counter, his keys and wallet, and such. The bar was closed a few minutes ago, so it was just the two of them. He wasn’t planning on opening up the bar this late, since he had a guest over.

“Oh, of course, I’ll make something! What kinda host would I be if I didn’t offer you a drink!” Soon enough, Doku walked around to the other side of the bar, where he’d grabbed a few bottles from the shelf, he figured since Ash was the shy type she likely wasn’t used to strong liquor, so he started with a margarita, making her a simple strawberry one. Getting a margarita glass he would start mixing, finishing it with a tiny straw and a sugar rim.

“Let me know what you think about this margarita! I started you with something light, not sure what kinda booze you like, but I feel like everyone likes margaritas!”

“If we don’t stop them then who knows what they might do.” Ashaiya replied with a slight shrug. “I feel sorry for the people that they used to be but they’re still threats to people.” As he spoke about emotions, she’d soon enough add. “Yeah, I struggled horribly when I lost my parents and even though we weren’t all that close, the pain stays with you regardless. My Master taught me to try and use it for the right reasons but I don’t think I’ll ever be as calm as she is.”

In regard to what they could do with their fullbring, she’d add. “I know what you mean. Considering the pain that we’ve both felt in our lives, it would’ve been easy for us to have taken a darker path but we’d have just been making life worse for others, spreading our pain to them. I could never do such a thing and I’m glad that’s the same for you too. Power and responsibility seem to go hand in hand.”

Settled on the stool, she’d watch as he went about making her a drink. He definitely seemed to know what he was doing and in what seemed like no time he had a lovely one in front of her. It smelled heavenly too and the brunette didn’t waste any time in taking a sip. The taste was even better than the smell and a smile crossed her features as the strawberry flavoured delight tickled her taste buds.

“It’s lovely.” She’d reply, her brown eyes lighting up with joy. “You certainly know how to mix a good drink.”

She mentally cringed after saying that. Could she have stated anything more obvious?

The Quincy would find himself thinking about what Ashiya said, there were countless things those delinquents could have done. That was the scary thing about criminals, they were unpredictable. “Those kinds of people are strange, sometimes the people I kick out get violent, and they cry. One time a gun got pulled” He chuckled a bit, probably to a normal person that would sound crazy, but both he and Ash were special, so it wasn’t nearly as threatening to them.

“With great power, comes great responsibility!” Doku would speak with his chest, putting his hands on his hips much like a superhero pose! The cringe would slowly set in as he returned to a normal formation with a slight tent of pink on his face. “Glad you’re friendly, I’d hate to get on your bad side and fight against that blade of yours~” A very soft chuckle escaped.

As the drink was presented the bartender did what he usually did, watching her first sip carefully to gauge her reaction. Doing his job for a while gave him the skill to see what people's opinions from their expressions. The smile was reassuring, with no cringing, which meant it wasn’t too sour, or sweet and the alcohol was perfectly missed.

“Glad you enjoy it~ It’s on me tonight.” His sense of being a gentleman was going full force. “Isn’t the man supposed to pay for that kind of thing? That’s what my mom always told me at least!” Though… there was a difference when you were the one running the place.

Raising an eyebrow as he spoke about the people who frequented his bar, Ashaiya would reply dryly. “Don’t tell me that you have a backroom or something where all the gangsters talk business?” It was meant as a joke but could probably have been missed due to her tone. From the outside, his bar did kind of look a little shady, not that she’d have said that to him. She supposed that he had to survive somehow though and knew him well enough to know that he had a good heart. “I hope you give the trouble makers a good seeing to.”

The brunette didn’t quite know what to make of his superhero pose and quote, thinking for a moment that maybe he was making fun of her. Yet, as soon as he started blushing, she figured that wasn’t the case and pondered that maybe he’d just spoken without thinking. She decided to go with that, not wanting to make things awkward with her friend and instead replying to his comment about her. “Mmm. A few people have been on the wrong end of my blade and ended up lightly toasted. Never anyone who didn’t deserve it though.”

As he mentioned paying for her drink, she’d smile and respond with. “Thank you. I’m sure that your mum is incredibly proud of the man you’ve become.” Ashaiya hoped that her parents would feel the same way about her but given the difficulties, she wasn’t so sure.

The Quincy would slowly point to the back corner, with a dimly lit round booth. “There’s that booth over there, typically no one goes there unless they’re doing… bad deeds!” He didn’t want to get super specific in what they did, it was better not to get into that. He just served the drinks… “I try, but a lot of time I can’t afford to kick them out. But I avoid doing anything illegal. Makes me feel yucky!” It felt weird to say the word yucky as a grown man, but it was true, it made him feel less than stellar, and he wasn’t sure how to say it.

The bartender backed up just a bit, still bright red, the man would find himself relieved that the woman didn’t comment on his cringe behavior. “Glad we’re friends. Though I am a pretty good sharp shooter~” He quickly summoned his revolver, before twirling it around on his finger, before it disappeared just as soon as it appeared.

Pouring himself a drink he took a sip of vodka from a small glass, his face heating up as Ashiya mentioned his mom. “T-I’m sure she would. I got a lot of stuff I need to deal with personally, but I’m sure she’s watching me and is proud of who I am” A bit cliche, but it was just how Doku was.

“And I’m sure your parents and master are proud of the woman you turned out to me! I gotta be honest, that sense of justice is… impressive”

The Fullbringer was rather concerned to hear that evil doers did actually visit his bar in order to conduct business and naturally she felt a tinge of worry regarding Doku’s safety. Of course he could look after herself, that much she’d seen but he was her friend, one of the very few that she had and she couldn’t help but feel a touch protective. The fact that he was unable to kick them out didn’t help matters but she could why he had to serve them. He had bills to pay, after all, like everyone did. “A wicked situation but I understand why you can’t kick them out. I hope you always keep an eye on them though, as you can never turn your back on such people.”

“I’m glad that we’re friends too. Even now I don’t have many, no matter how hard I try.” She sounded almost resigned to her fate when it came to such things but the brunette guessed that she was just kind of dull. Everyone she met seemed to be so open and full of life, while she always tended to vanish into the background. “I’ve no doubt about your gun skills and I bet you’re quick on the draw.”

A smile would cross her face as he spoke about his mother. “I’ve no doubt about it. You’ve done so much to help your sister, after all, not to mention the fact that you run this place single handedly.”

When he turned the compliment onto her though, the brown eyes of the Fullbringer lost a little of their sparkle. “I’m sure my Master is but my parents? I don’t know. We didn’t get on very well.”

The bartender awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, lightly chuckling when the less-than-savory people might be around the bar. “Of course, I don’t let them leave my sight” He laughed, pointing up to a small security camera in the corner. “Plus, I’m sure they won’t do anything stupid. After all, I’m just a simple bartender, without me they wouldn’t have a place to drink” He chuckled. Evildoers did love a nice bar to congregate, something out of the general public’s eyes. Yatagaruasu was perfect in that area, run-down, and a place a normal person wouldn’t step foot in.

Complimenting his skills was still weird to Doku, he was always insecure about his powers and skills in general so it was still new to him. The man smiled and nodded as Ash spoke. “I’ll make sure to show yah sometime”

“Oh? Can I… ask about your parents?” He paused, understanding how out of line that might have sounded, he was just giving a cliche response, he didn’t expect that. “Sorry - if it’s a sour spot”

Glancing at the camera as Doku pointed it out, Ashaiya would reply. “Well, that’s a relief. The last thing you need is a group of crooks planning a bank robbery or something over there.” It was in jest up to a point but the brunette was so untrusting of more dubious people that it wouldn’t have surprised her if the local gangsters would do such a thing. She’d certainly come across a few in her short time travelling and more than one had ended up having an unfortunate meeting with her blade. While most of the time it was Hollows that she went after, the young woman had no issue with dealing with human criminals too.

As he spoke about his skills in reply to her compliment, Ashaiya would softly smile. “I look forward to seeing you in action. I confess our little encounter with the thugs today has made me all the more curious.” Honestly, she knew so few people with powers such as theirs that learning anything would be useful. Fullbringers were so versatile, after all, a fact that her Master had made sure to make sure she’d always remember. Each one was unique.

When he mentioned her parents, her smile would fade away and briefly she looked rather uncertain as to where she wished to speak. In the end though, she’d sigh and give him a brief version. “My parents weren’t very loving. My father was always a business oriented man and he barely seemed to respond to my mother or I. My mother was rather sickly a lot of the time and I think that strained things between us all. Each of us kept to ourselves and buried ourselves into our work and hobbies. It wasn’t healthy or wise and I was pretty reclusive growing up.”