The Bath house

[Aizen Teresaga]

The soft click of her black stiletto boot heels signaled the Guardian's arrival. The sleeveless Uniform reflected silver stitching that vaguely resembled clouds, the folded collar bearing the insignia of St. Anne's Royal Crest. The deep navy blue contrasted well with the silver threading, white piping lining the hemming. Blue Sapphire buttons sparkled as brightly as Raven's pride to wear it, an intricate silver badge attached by chain dangled across her chest. The black leggings sculpted her calves for ease of move. Her long ebony hair braided, draped like a rope over her left shoulder. The sleeveless white surcoat billowed around her form, a short sword's scabbard strapped to the back of her waist by a Black and Silver Sash buckle. The hilt favored her right side--as the Truth so often did--and had stayed well within her reach for the duration of her travels. St. Anne was no longer in need of her services; she had served the Imperfect Angel, and sojourned to the other side of the spectrum and into the world of Demons. The veil of bangs obscuring her line of vision would flutter as her own aura swirled in a breeze of her own creation. All at once, the very attire she wore seemed to pulsate and glow, unraveling and dispersing in a glaring flash of light that would quickly dim as she Willed her ability to Exquip; in her uniform's place, a soft, plush white towel wrapped around her form.

She had long-since mastered the use of being able to Equip and Exquip. She had been granted a Soul-Sealing by a Shaman, a rendition of her own physical body housing the Soul that was disconnected from her true physique. It remained a perfect replica, and Raven was pleased that it was just as natural, down to the long, jagged scar that traveled from her left wrist to the peak of her shoulder. In this world, she was classified as a Hyoujin, a Panther Demon. She retained the sinewy grace of her cat-like lithe; the pupils of her irises dilated as she dipped the tips of her right foot's toe into the warm water, slipping in soundlessly. She had traveled a long ways from her new home by invitation. By design, Raven felt honor-bound to receive the invitation in with enthusiasm. She was excused from her militaristic duties, and even dismissed at he claims of her "work-a-holicism."

Exuding a soft sigh, Raven leaned back against the bath's edge. Steam wafted in the air, a comforting haze that dampened her bangs as the particles swirled. Once upon a time she coexisted with those particles, a symbiotic relationship that most Youkai here seemed to possess. She was certainly jealous; it was her birth right! The thick lashes half-descended over hazel eyes, the faded green irises dotted with flecks of golden brown. Cat-like pupils narrowed as she stared for the ceiling. Banter and chattered seemed mindless to her, her thoughts elsewhere as she chose to remain in her own paradigm. This tournament would raise the stakes, by far. She had worked hard as handicapped as she were, and this would only serve to test the limits of her new-found abilities. Could she do it? It had been a long day, and the night was only just beginning. She would have to recover fast if she wanted to be in peak form for the events to come.

Ego si relapsus resurgo.

The lids of her eyes fell shut as Raven sank, lungs filling to their limit with air as she slowly disappeared under the water's surface, consumed in the peaceful silence of her cardinal element, allowing it's soothing heat to envelop her fully, soothing and mending; the tired, weary pain from her journey ebbed and faded away.