bridges08: drinking the tea of lepers

A life reborn, the young former Taicho's gaze fell upon the horizon of the new realm she had been brought. The young noblewoman had only rumors to go by, but the world before her was a view only a select few would ever see within several lifetimes. Expressing a solemn look, the woman breathed in a slow, deep breath before her attention was pulled from her thoughts. Following the leap of faith the others had made, Kawa had been brought here with silent instruction, perhaps merely to wait as those selected individuals ventured off into their subconscious to fend for themselves against the very trial Kawa herself had faced.

There was little interaction, save for a silent soul; it seemed there was little interaction with these God realm folks, though at the moment, Kawa preferred the treatment. The trial had been an exhausting ordeal, both physically and mentally. Having seemingly discarded her previous life simply to save her own from the infection and leaving everything she knew behind would have its psychological effects on anyone, and the normally calm and collected doctor had slowly felt her mask slipping away in the silent expression of those who had welcomed her to their realm. Her thoughts were jumbled, and it took a great deal of time to sort through all the new information she had been granted over the past twenty four hours.

Her time studying the skyline had been dedicated mostly to filtering through the surreal experiences she had faced, though one plaguing thought remained... everything she once knew would likely forever remain out of reach. While the woman would deny any form of emotional connection, she had enjoyed her life as a doctor of the fourth. Her family, though a hassle and pain, was still very much her kin.

This new path was... exhausting. And before she could truly figure it all out and sort through it all, a guiding soul came to awaken her from her thoughts. Nothing could have prepared her for what lay beyond the sliding doorway, and as the silent soul confirmed the woman's guess of where he wanted her to go with a simple nod, Kawa slid the door open and felt that mask shatter in a near instant.

"Mo-" A single syllable with a quiet breath, the young noblewoman's voice and thoughts were lost upon the elder woman sitting at the single table before her. Kawa felt as though she were back within the walls of the Seireitei, albeit for that brief, single moment. Her throat swelled and she blinked back her emotions and hastily attempted to rebuild her facade and deter any form of emotional response. Her body language failed her, however as trembling digits went back and forth in curling into a fist and stretching themselves out. "h-I see... that they brought you here too..."

It was exhausting... truly exhausting, yet she felt obligated to keep up the act. It didn't feel right to just give in to what her tightening chest wanted; to ask the woman if she was alright, to yell at her for leaving so suddenly, to ask her what had happened... why she had suddenly left. Her body looked weak, almost fragile; perhaps, even, more aged... or was it that it had been just that long since Kawa had seen her. And so, Kawa remained awkwardly standing in the doorway, her normally hyperactive mind a complete blank and unable to truly comprehend the situation placed before her...