Crossroads (Kanako, Sabriel)

A brief trip to buy books had been just the ticket for the rather tender Arrancar and Sabriel had managed to psych herself up enough to travel on her own to do so. She had ended up in Greece of all places but she had no real qualms, as despite the potential risk of her being discovered, the chance to simply travel somewhere different had eventually won the day. Most of her days just recently had been spent in the lovely abode that belonged to Arianda, a woman who she had come to be so close to and had been crucial in helping Sabriel overcome her period of doubt. The worst days were behind her thankfully but she had not come out completely unscathed. She just did not quite feel the same.

Taking a rest outside one of the many restaurants that littered the beautiful town, the Arrancar would be flicking through the pages of the first book that she had bought that day. An avid reader to put it mildly, her eyes would almost zoom across the page as she devoured the information. It had been so long since she had been able to lose herself in a good book, so long since the endless worries had faded away to give her peace. In truth, it had not been all that drawn out over a period of time but when one was lost in their own misery, even a day could last a lifetime. Sabriel was simply thankful that was not how she felt now.

Normally, Sabriel would have simply flicked her gaze towards the woman and tried to figure her out but so out of sorts was she that the Arrancar jumped a touch instead. It was thoroughly embarrassing and the dark haired woman mentally sighed with frustration at her own tender form. Yet, she could never truly be safe in the human world at that point, not with the invasion still in fairly recent memory. One day, she might just have to pay the piper on that, as humans liked to say. Still, as she relaxed and looked over the woman, she soon realised that today was likely not going to be that day.

The golden eyed woman definitely appeared to be a fellow Arrancar and an awfully tall one at that. She must have been in the eight feet range and certainly towered over Sabriel. Yet, the shorter woman did not feel much in the way of ill intent in the taller and so she saw no reason to do anything other than be civil, remembering her usually oh so keen manners. In a different time, she might have replied with a far more sultry response but as it was, her tone was merely cordial although she did offer a smile.

“If I can help you, I will. What topic are you interested in?”

Intrigued by the answer given, Sabriel would briefly muse to herself as she pondered about the genres that the woman asked about. Fantasy and romance more often than not were entwined in the dark haired woman’s opinion and many of her personal favourites contained a fair amount of both. Not all of them were particularly suited for everyone, given the purple eyed Arrancar’s rather adult tastes but she had read a fair few more mainstream ones too and her collection was fairly large by now. Her library back home was constantly growing and she treasured it more than almost anything. With manuscripts and novels from across the centuries and beyond.

Sabriel had to admit that she had not expected such an answer from the golden eyed woman, instead having thought that maybe she was more of an action orientated genre kind of reader. It appeared not and the smaller Arrancar was certainly unashamed of admitting to herself when she was wrong. Still, the woman before her was certainly striking and Sabriel was most certainly thankful that she was not on her bad side.

“Hmm. Well, there are plenty of series out there if you wish for a bit of both.” Sabriel replied, trying to whittle down what could end up being a rather long list. “Is there an author in particular that you like? That could help a little more.”

After a moment, she would add with a smile. “I am Sabriel, by the way, Sabriel Ventress.”

It truly did seem that beneath the golden eyed woman’s rather intimidating appearance, there was a far more humble soul. Sabriel felt rather comfortable around Kanako and if there had been any initial hesitation on her part then it had most certainly faded away by now. Her relationship with her fellow Arrancar was such an unusual one, as it seemed that the lavender eyed woman lacked the aggressiveness that many of her kind possessed. Lover rather than a fighter was how humans described her and she supposed it was true. Yes, she had been an aggressor during that blasted invasion but looking back on it now, Sabriel could not help but think that the woman on that battlefield had been someone else.

Now that the polite introductions had taken place, Sabriel would try and figure out how to help Kanako with her search for a book. It sounded as if the tall Arrancar was at somewhat of a loss when it came to exactly what she wanted, which made it rather difficult for the lavender eyed woman to make a suggestion. Still, she would try her best and after thinking about it for a moment, would rummage around inside her bag and withdraw a red covered paperback.

“I am not sure if this will suffice but I have read many of her other novels and she certainly knows how to mix fantasy with romance.” Sabriel would reply, handing the book over to Kanako without any hesitation at all. On the front would be an image of a female, red haired mage, creating fire with her bare hands. “She is fond of making rather strong minded heroines and more often than not, they tend to prefer their own gender rather than the other.”

Gently taking the book back and placing it back in her bag, Sabriel would smile and reply to her new found friend. “Oh, I am sure that I could suggest a great many novels that might capture your interest but perhaps it might be easier if we look around as you asked instead. I only gave a brief once over to this shop in question, as eager as I was to start reading as soon as I caught sight of the book I handed to you. Once I find a novel that I dearly want to read, that is all I focus on until I am done.”

Chuckling, she would stand up, take her bag and then cheerfully lead the way into the shop. Sabriel could understand why Kanako might feel uncomfortable in such places and so the lavender eyed woman would do her utmost to make sure that nothing amiss happened. She had honestly never met an Arrancar quite like the gentle giant beside her and while perhaps in her earlier days, Sabriel might have tried to make a pass or at least some witty banter with Kanako, she just did not seem to find that form of play as appealing anymore. It was a strange feeling and the Arrancar of Lust mused to herself briefly but deep down, she reckoned that she knew why. Much had changed over recent months and the most important one had been Arianda’s entrance into her life. She was not one hundred percent sure, being somewhat alien to her new found feelings still but Sabriel was an intelligent being and could put two and two together.

“I am sure that I found it somewhere around here…” She mused aloud, her gaze briefly turning as she searched for the familiar novel, before asking Kanako. “It is not often that I find another Arrancar who enjoys a good book. How did you come to take an interest in them if I might ask?”