Groceries and Delinquents

[leekspins]

[OPEN - Running Errands]

Orihime's short, chestnut hair swung lightly at the edge of her jawline as she walked. Clasped in both hands was a sack of her week's groceries, an assortment of inexpensive vegetables, a box of butter, a quart of milk, and a sack of rice. Nothing too fancy. There was a second smaller sack behind that one containing a few spools of thread in black, white, and light brown. Her long khaki shirt brushed at her shins, a simple pair of brown flats on her feet. There was nothing all that extraordinary about her at first glance, as she walked with her head down and an absent, faraway smile on her face. Her long-sleeved turtleneck shirt had the collar rolled down, the fit snug but modest.

There was still a little dusting of powdered sugar on her top, and a smudge of chocolate batter on her cheek, but either she didn't notice or didn't care. She'd worked hard at the bakery today, just as she always did now that summer vacation had started. She'd need the extra money for the upcoming school year, but for now, it needed to be spent on other things.

Like paying the deposit on her new apartment, since her last one had a giant hole blown through the wall, as well as the heavy fee she'd had to dole out for breaking her lease in order to live somewhere with all of its walls and bathroom in tact. Still, at least her brother's picture hadn't been damaged, and that was all that really mattered.

As she walked, her gaze was caught by something gleaming in a shop window, and she stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. She stared. Then she drifted forward, as if caught in a magnetic beam until she almost had her nose pressed against the glass.

Wow... A limited edition signed photograph of the great Pokemon Trainer and celebrated idol, Rise Kujikawa! And next to that... "OH! That's a rare one!" This time she did push a hand against the glass, her eyes wide as she spotted the trading card featuring Haruka Tenoh and her Rhyhorn. Was that signed too? She couldn't tell from the glare of the window, no matter how she squinted. She ached to rush right in and buy either one, but her wallet ached far more. With a resigned sigh, her shoulders wilted and she dropped her head, before forcefully pulling herself away. Maybe someday. After she finished school, and saved up enough money to open her own cake shop, she might be able to splurge on something nice like that.

For now, she just wanted to get home and roll herself into a hot bath, and cook an 'interesting' meal.

-------------------

CLOSED TO RYUKO


There was a time when walking home in the dark used to make Orihime nervous. She'd walk faster, take smaller side roads at a sprint if there wasn't anyone else around, and nervously clutch her keys in her pocket.

She'd since learned that it didn't matter what time of day it was; she was still going to be bullied even if it was broad daylight. When she first heard a familiar harsh voice bark her name, Orihime flinched, dread flooding through her entire body. She held her groceries a little tighter and forced herself to stand still, even though every instinct inside of her screamed that she should run. Running was a mistake. That was something she'd learned four years ago when they'd punched her in the stomach until she lay gasping on the floor in a puddle of her own vomit.

Nervously she cast a glance to her left and right, hoping to see anyone else nearby that might speak out if they saw anything violent, but all she saw were the piles of construction supplies and lumber behind the chain link fence. She waited, swallowing hard, and trying to squash her anger and fear. She had to be calm. She had to be quiet.

It didn't take the quartet long to reach her. The chain link fence rattled noisily as Orihime stumbled into it, roughly shoved back by the older girls. She'd encountered them many, many times before. They were the reason her hair was short. They were the reason she tried to leave school very early, or failing that, very late. She'd even tried changing up her route home, but all of these solutions were temporary. Eventually they found her, bruised her, and humiliated her, over and over again. Orihime had hoped they'd be too busy at the beach during summer vacation to bother her, but she was wrong.

"I told you, the color of your hair pisses me off!" the older girl loudly declared, and spat on the ground. "You still haven't dyed it? What an arrogant brat."

Orihime didn't deny it. She kept her head down, avoiding eye contact, and clutched at the fence as if it were a dear friend silently supporting her. Another girl seized her by the front of her shirt, forcing her to put her back against the fence and face her bullies.

"How should we punish her this time?"

The leader took a drag on her cigarette, tapping the ash, and smiled. "Push up her sleeve."

Orihime struggled despite her earlier resolve, but they grabbed her by the hair and shoved her up against the fence again. They restrained her as she flailed, and pushed up the sleeve of her shirt to bare her arm. No. Stop! she wanted to scream, but she held her tongue. Her eyes widened with fear as they kept her secure, while the leader brought the burning cigarette closer to Orihime's exposed skin.

Suddenly the sharp heat broke Orihime's silence, and she bleated in pain. One of them slapped her across the face.

"Don't be such a wimp!"

Comments

[actsmagnificent]

"She's more into theater now."

So says a voice from behind Orihime, casual but amused. Something accompanying this voice buzzes in reply, a crackly, electric sound.

The person standing behind her, should she turn around, looks an awful lot like the person on that trading card. And while she may not have a Rhyhorn with her, she does have one long leg swung over some kind of two-wheeled vehicle. With a rather mischievous face. (Hence the buzzing.)

Professional Rhyhorn aren't allowed on the streets, and Haruka's non-pro Rhyhorn are too unreliable. Thus, behold. The Rotomcycle.

[leekspins]

"Really? That sounds fun." She smiled a little, one hand releasing the double grip on the groceries to rub the back of her neck as she turned around.

And blinked.

There was no need to snap her head around and look at the card before staring back at Haruka, except for the sake of comedy. (Which is why she did it.) It didn't take too long for her face to turn red with embarrassment. It was probably annoying, seeing some teenager gawking at an old trading card with her face on it.

"A-ah ha ha! Sorry! I'm not a crazy fan, I promise! I won't ask for an autograph or write long letters about how we can be best friends or chase after you on your...your, er..."

The longer she looked at the Rotomcycle, the more her flustered mind became consumed with curiosity instead. "What is it? It's kind of cool..."

[actsmagnificent]

Haruka just grins and rests a hand on her handlebars. She nods at the girl's groceries. "Did you need a ride?"

And the bike revs of its own accord. Broken Möbius the Rotom has finally accepted that he is not a Pidgey (after being raised from an egg by a Pidgeot). He may never get to fly super high up in the sky with Trainer on his back, but he gets to zip Trainer around inside this thing instead! Not a bad life.

[leekspins]

"WHAT!"

Orihime's hands jerked up as if attached to springs, and both bags of groceries and sewing supplies dropped to the ground. Not only was she meeting a celebrity she'd idolized for the last couple of years, but she was really nice! She took a quick half-step forward before stopping herself, glancing guiltily down both sides of the street. But if anyone else saw her, they'd tell her she was showing off, or warn her not to get a big head just because she hung out with someone cool for a change.

"Th...that's okay," she made herself say, smiling sheepishly as she dropped to one knee and grabbed one of the spools of thread threatening to escape and roll into the sewer drain. "If I don't walk, I won't get any exercise, and then I'll get incredibly fat, ha ha!" It was a lousy excuse. She really wanted to say yes, more than anything! But how could she possibly explain her need to stay unnoticed?

"But that's really nice of you. This has been a really happy day for me, thank you."

[actsmagnificent]

"You don't have to hold back." Haruka pats the seat and smiles, waiting patiently while the girl gathers her things. "Come on. Those must be heavy. I'd be remiss if I didn't do something for a fan, Skitty."

Skitty.

The word hangs in the air, suspended in a cloud of glitter and rose petals. It doesn't seem to be an imposition in the slightest for her to do this for the other girl.

[leekspins]

Orihime blinked. Several times. Few could resist the lure of someone who was truly blessed with natural, raw charisma. For a moment she just knelt there, frozen with indecision and longing. If she said no again, she would really regret the missed opportunity. If she said yes, she would regret being punched in the stomach.

But if she weighed the two carefully, wouldn't it be worth it...?

It would absolutely be worth it. Twice!

"O-Okay!" She would do it. Darn the consequences, too! Her heart was pounding with excitement, and she hastily stuffed her belongings back in her bags before she raced toward the Rotomcycle, her cheeks flushed, brown eyes shining with the thrill of ADVENTURE. She circled the open seat for a moment before figuring out the best way to sit while wearing her long skirt. "Thank you!"

[actsmagnificent]

Grinning, Haruka waits calmly for her passenger to find the best possible seating arrangement before passing her a helmet. "Where are we headed?" she asks, also waiting for Orihime to get the helmet in place - safety first.

It might also be observed that there's nowhere for a passenger to hang on in transit except to the driver. Just an unspoken truth, mind you. Perhaps it's unimportant.

[guitar_case_vagabond]

Well, ain't that just a thing to see.

The route through this construction zone was a pretty handy shortcut that Ryuko took fairly often but it had always been pretty much deserted every other time. It looked like fate had different plans for today as she came across this scene.

Now, Ryuko had a pretty checkered past herself when it came to being a delinquent shithead. She'd closed in on some poor loser in a dead end more than once but when she was there she handled things herself, one-on-one, with said loser having every chance to fight back and she didn't go further than she needed to. In fact, she'd taught a lesson to a few of her own guys who didn't follow those rules. That was just how it was done in Caldera.

So something like this got her blood boiling.

"Oi!" Her shout was punctuated by a rock being pitched directly into the leader's back. Not with her full strength but definitely enough to hurt like a sonuvabitch. Anybody turning would find Ryuko standing there, one hand in her jacket pocket and the other tossing a second rock up and down. "So, this is how Union bullies do things, huh? Tch, so much for standards."

[leekspins]

"OW!" The cigarette dropped harmlessly to the sidewalk as the leader clutched the back of her head, and whirled to glower malevolently in Ryuko's direction. "What the hell? Erin you dumb bitch, you were supposed to be on lookout!"

"I didn't see her, Veronica, geez!"

Orihime stared at Ryuko, desperately wanting to believe that this might be the intervention she'd been praying for all of these years, but too leery and alarmed at what would probably happen next. Ryuko was just one person. Even if Orihime joined in, they were still very much outnumbered. She gave her head a faint, imperceptible shake, trying to warn the girl to keep her distance.

"Keep holding onto her," Veronica growled. "We're not done playing yet." She stooped to pick up the rock that hit her and pitched it right back at Ryuko. "Mind your own business, or we'll do even worse to you!"

[guitar_case_vagabond]

Ryuko was already walking forward, ignoring Ronikers there chewing out her fellow thugs. Ignoring the scared girl's shake of her head. She even ignored the rock bouncing right off her forehead with a dull thock. Didn't miss a step or even blink as it clattered to the ground harmlessly behind her. Her own rock flying up and dropping back down into her hand with an easy rhythm.

Double resistance, bitch.

"Oh, you will, huh? Okay, then." She came to a stop and caught her rock one last time, closing her fist around it. "So go ahead and do 'even worse' to me. I'll stand right here while all four of you take your best shot to try and drop me."

PAFF! And that was the sound of the rock in her hand bursting into dust.

"Then I'll take my turn. How's that sound?"

[leekspins]

Five pairs of eyes boggled at Ryuko, their expressions comically similar for several seconds before the intimidating display set in. Orihime was starting to look hopeful. Two of the girls shrank back, shooting nervous glances at Veronica. The third might have been starting to fangirl a little just because Ryuko looked so cool.

Veronica, however, was angry. Not only was her authority being questioned, but there was a legitimate chance that this was someone she couldn't pin down under her thumb.

"You're a cocky little piece of shit, aren't you?" she narrowed her eyes and spat at Ryuko's shoes.

Erin, one of the nervous pair, was holding onto Orihime's arm more out of fear than a need to keep restraining her. "Wait a minute, Veronica, she might be an Enlightened."

"So?"

The two nervous girls shared an uneasy glance. That was a rhetorical 'so' right? Surely they didn't need to explain why it wasn't a good idea to mess with a person who clearly had some sort of supernatural ability.

Veronica wrestled out of her jacket and threw it in the face of the starstruck girl, cracking her knuckles. "You put on a good show, I'll give you that. But you still don't stand a chance!" she snarled, her fist making a violent jab toward Ryuko's throat.

[guitar_case_vagabond]

"Uh huh. That's me alright." She cast a glance downward when Ronnie's spit just missed her sneakers. Lucky for her. Her shoes were duster and worn out but that kinda shit just isn't the kind of thing she could let slide. She was already gonna have to make sure this chick regretted her choices today but the rest were just followers, she could go a little easy on them. She might even let that one giving her starry eyes go all together if she apologized enough.

She let the rock dust drop out of her hands, dusted her palm off on her jacket and, true to her word, stood in place when Verner came in for her swing. Her fist struck dead on and she would have quickly found that Ryuko's neck had all the give of a steel post.

"One." She counted off in an almost bored tone. She looked to the rest of the group. "Who's next? Or do the rest of ya wanna pass?"

[leekspins]

"What the..." Veronica pulled back her hand, her brow beetled heavily as she stared at Ryuko. Then her expression darkened.

"You're a freak."

The others looked uncertain, not sure if they should respond to Ryuko's question or wait for Veronica's answer. Veronica glowered at Ryuko, then turned her back on her.

"You're just a disgusting little freak. You want to hang out with this worthless loser? Go ahead." She grabbed Orihime by the front of her shirt, pulling her out of the grasp of her cronies, and gave the girl a shove in Ryuko's direction.

Orihime stumbled, disbelieving her eyes and ears. She'd never seen Veronica back down from anyone before, not even teachers and policemen.

Veronica pointed at her. "Wipe that idiotic look off of your face. You're off the hook today because I decided it. But only for today." She gave her head a jerk toward the others, urging them to follow her. "We're outta here. I'm in a real bad mood now."

[senpaidol]

Rise, meanwhile, hears her name and hangs back for a minute...but can't help but be overwhelmed by curiosity.

"Hey, they're not putting out new merchandise, are they...?" she says. Forgive the immediate closeness of the idol/actress/trainer, Orihime, she has no sense of personal space even around strangers. "They are! When did I even sign that..."

[leekspins]

Orihime jumped, her heart startled up into her throat. She came back down with a sheepish smile, a hand clutched against her chest. "A-ah ha ha, that scared me...!"

For a second she thought it might be Veronica or one of her cronies.

But no. But wait a minute. BUT WHAT WAS THIS? Orihime's head tipped. This girl looked and awful lot...like...

............

Orihime's finger rose as she pointed mutely at the card, all the while staring at Rise inquisitively. Was that her?

[senpaidol]

Oh boy. Rise puts on a professional smile and gives an unprofessional little wave. "Hi, yeah, that's me. Sorry for sneaking up on you like that, it just caught my eye at the same time it did yours..."

[leekspins]

"Really? Wow... It's okay, it's a nice surprise!" She was starting to recover from her shock, and it showed in the relief of her smile. Rise seemed like a nice person if she was able to chat casually with a fan on the street like this. It did a lot to help Orihime relax.

Holding her groceries in front of her, she bowed politely. "Orihime Inoue," she introduced herself. It was only fair, since she already knew Rise's name. "Are you going to buy it?"

It was a joke, really, though it might be hard to tell with that seemingly innocent sunny smile.

[senpaidol]

"I might...," Rise says, going back to staring at the card again. "And then go tell the A.C.E. Studio guys that I haven't been getting use-of-image checks."

Unless this was the Theater's doing somehow, but it didn't seem like Haruka's style.

"Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Orihime. Guess you're a fan from way back, huh?"

[leekspins]

"You haven't?" Orihime blinked. She thought a star got royalties from all sales involving their talent, since it was definitely Rise's face and performances that shook money out of people's wallets. "That's terrible! I'm sorry."

Now she felt kind of bad that she'd even been tempted to buy the card.

But she brightened again at the question, giving one cheerful and confident nod. "Mm! You always look like you're having so much fun performing on stage. And I heard you're a really good Pokemon trainer now too. You probably go on all kinds of exciting adventures!"

[faithfulflame]

Orihime's not alone in standing there, staring at the various odds and ends in the memorabilia shop. In fact, there's quite a lot of staring going on from the Xatu that's perched on the window ledge, beak pressed against the glass. Her eyes are fixed on that same trading card of Haruka Tenoh, and the Pokemon's wings ruffle periodically. She's trying to figure out just why Trainer's friend is stuck on paper when the noise of the girl touching the window startles Ravi.

Her head turns and she blinks, wide-eyed and awkward at Orihime.

Xatu?

[leekspins]

"Heh?"

Orihime stared blankly at the Pokemon with a vacant little smile. She seemed just as surprised to find herself facing a Xatu as the Pokemon was to find itself facing a dorky little fangirl.

Then she beamed. She liked Pokemon. In all honesty, she found them to be much easier to chatter at than people, for they didn't seem to care about things like money, status, looks, popularity... They were simply who they were and they seemed content to look at Orihime the same way. Sometimes she could swear she understood what they were trying to say, though she assumed that was due to the communication talent of the Pokemon themselves; she had no idea she was an Enlightened.

"You like trading cards too?" It was nice to have something in common. Her expression warmed almost immediately as she straightened, facing the window once more. "I've got a lot of the common ones at home. I was lucky, someone threw away all their extras! They're a little beat up, but they're still fun to look at." Orihime grinned, hitching her shoulders. "Do you have a Trainer?"

[faithfulflame]

Ravi blinked owlishly at Orihime, her head canting to one side in curiosity. She trilled a little at the first question, bobbing her head up and down in reply. She did like trading cards, because they had all sorts of things on them. What confused her was when they were people that she knew.

The second question, though, got a different sort of answer as Rei Hino stepped out from behind the corner and into view. Ravi's eyes darted towards her trainer and she crowed, gesturing one feathered appendage towards the priestess.

"She does, yes. I'm sorry if she's disturbing you, too. She's always drawn to these memorabilia shops for some reason," Rei said as she approached with a nod of her head. As she neared, her eyes noticed the card and she huffed a laugh. "Staring at Haruka-san again, Ravi? You know you can just go over to the theater and see her whenever."

[leekspins]

"Really?!" Orihime lit up at the Pokemon's response. Now they were trading card buddies! "That's great! I've always wondered what it would be like to be that famous, haven't you? I've even practiced my trading card pose..."

But before she got to demonstrate just what that pose was, she straightened quickly at Rei's appearance, feeling a little self-conscious. Oh, of course a Trainer would be nearby. And she has such pretty hair! Ahhh, she wished she could grow it that long!

Quickly she raised her hands and waved her palms. "No no, she isn't disturbing me at all! We were talking about trading cards." Well. Orihime was talking, anyway. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything!" That was embarrassing...

At Rei's words, Orihime paused, regarding the girl curiously. "You've met her before? Is she nice?"

[faithfulflame]

Ravi quirked her head to the side, and like all Xatu she simply stared at Orihime. It's a quirk of the species, and that's simply that. Rei, utterly unbothered, waves off the girl's concern. "Not at all. We were just out, and she took off. She does that sometimes."

It's not like the councilman's daughter couldn't find her, even if she was lost, too. Ravi and she had a psychic bond, and a strong link. She crooked a finger and the Xatu flaps over to perch on her head, getting a bemused huff.

"Haruka-san? She's alright. A little but cryptic, but kinder than most"

[leekspins]

"Ha ha! She's really cute." She didn't have any Pokemon of her own, but she thought it might be nice to adopt one someday. It was just a matter of finding one who had the same culinary tastes that Orihime did, since they'd be exposed to a lot of desserts and weird meals.

For a moment Orihime debated on introducing herself. It was just a random run-in on the street, and she didn't want to hold them up if they had errands to run. But it also seemed rude not to. Well, it couldn't hurt! Orihime bowed politely at the waist.

"I'm happy to meet you both. Orihime Inoue." She straightened with a wry little smile, twisting the handles of her shopping bags almost shyly. "So...do you visit the theater often? Or do you work there?" It seemed like they made regular stops if Rei discussed it so casually.