Good morning, Starveil City.

Starveil City, the site of calamity that spawned armies of demons and horrors hellbent on taking over and destroying the world.

Around its end, the many survivors were celebrating the catastrophe's conclusion. Shortly afterwards, the gravity of the situation set in as the lasting effects were felt, with citizen casualties suffered in the near hundreds. Buildings wrecked and destroyed by the hordes of demons and the actions of the city's heroes. Many living in fear of another demonic invasion, or some other similar threat. Starveil was a long way from returning to normal, but the threat was subdued for the time being.

And then, with time, the threat and damages completely faded.

Days after, the morning sky was bright as ever. The rising sun's bright rays reflected off the adjacent sea, city traffic as bountiful as ever. The majority of Starveil, even with catastrophe, didn't live in fear. No, they had hope for the future. Life going on as normal, the city returning back onto its feet.

And with that, Starveil's protectors and saviors, the Heroes of Starveil, return back to their daily lives on this beautiful day, awaiting the next sign of danger and ready to act at a moment's notice.

Following her massive fight against the massive force, news spread as a mysterious flying girl made waves after her finishing blow. Her fists symbols of triumph, the girl soaring through the air and obliterating an unholy demon. Identity unknown, news teams unable to get clear footage of the fight, this hero without a costume has saved Starveil.

This is Giichi Hasegawa. Half dragon, half human. Giichi was cozily lying in her bed. A single queen-sized bed with modest blue sheets, head resting against a thick white and blue striped pillow. Out like a light, she slept off the fatigue of yesterday and- ends up waking up without need of an alarm clock, as she usually did.

"... aaah." Giichi lets out a content yawn, stretching her arms at the modest little calendar hanging on her wall.

Saturday.

Giichi crawls out of bed and rummages through her closet, putting on a fresh set of clothes. Her usual outfit was a shirt she didn't know the name of, this one frilly white top that showed off her shoulders and had a brown string wrapped around the top. Going well with her dark-brown tank top underneath, black shorts that went halfway down her thigh, and white socks.

She steps out of the bedroom once dressed, letting out a deep sigh. Sniffing her breath, as usual, Giichi... picks up a little bit of the usual morning breath.

Immediate problem with an immediate solution. Time to brush her pearly whites.

Entering the bathroom, she looks into the mirror as she spreads the toothpaste on her toothbrush. Right before her eyes, a hairbrush floats into the air and starts to brush Giichi's hair on its own.

"Oh. Morning to you too, Rosemary," Giichi speaks into the mirror, smiling. Even if she can't see or hear the entity made out of her breath, she knows about Rosemary and knows its helpful nature. In the time it takes Giichi to clean her mouth, the gas ties her hair into her classic and iconic pigtail hairstyle.

It was handy, just pretty nice to have a second set of hands to do what she never learned.

Giichi holds her hands in a sort of bowl gesture underneath the running water, collecting as much as she could before rinsing her mouth of the foamy toothpaste. She stares at the mirror and grins widely. Minty fresh, clean and spotless.

"Hehe."

With teeth as fresh as a forest, Giichi walks over to her refrigerator, sheepishly looking for breakfast. All her fridge had was a single yogurt cup, a carton of orange juice, and sliced cheese.

"... hm. Guess I need to go grocery shopping today..." Giichi tells herself, picking up the yogurt cup. "This'll have to do."

With the cup in hand, Giichi leaves through her front door and embarks on her grocery trip. Basking in the sunlight, the dragon girl starts each day by stretching her arms out and staring out into the beautiful industrial setting before her.

Even as the city undergoes reconstruction, life was as bustling as ever. The rustle and bustle of people walking along and driving their cars in a famously crowded, daily traffic. The variety of busy windows belonging to hotels and company buildings, almost showing all the active work and life behind them. Dogs and cats and birds and such, a harmony of urban American life.

Ahh.

Giichi closes her door and locks up, staring at the engraved numbers in her door. "208". At the very end of the second floor's "balcony hallway", alongside 7 other apartments. She pockets the key and walks along.

First, she stops at Apartment 207, the D'Errico Twins' place of residence. Happily knocking on it to greet the twins with a bright smile. "Riiiise and shine!"

The door slowly opens, and Papaya is on the other side to greet her. Hair an absolute mess, her eyes squinted shut, she waves to Giichi with an exhausted and groggy look on her face. "M... Morning, Giichi... morning, Rosemary..."

Giichi looks for a while, her smile briefly fading. "O-Oh, sorry, did I wake you up...? I didn't realize you two were-"

"Oh, nonono," Papaya responds, opening the door more and gesturing to the absolute mess in the apartment. "You didn't, Peri and I just haven't gotten a single wink of sleep since last night. We've been awake for the last fifteen hours, just kinda... stuff."

Giichi looks over Papaya's shoulder to see Peritzal on the couch, her eyes having that usual blank and dead look in them as she stares into the tablet. Hair as unkempt as always, she really gave off a look of "fifteen hours".

"Huh... what are you two working on this time?" Giichi curiously asks.

"Well, Peri's a bit of daily monitoring for portals, anomalies and such... and, well," Papaya begins to explain, before pointing to the scrap metal on the coffee table. "I'm disassembling a toaster."

Giichi blinks at the metal. "Oh..." A slightly sad look forms on her face at this news. "I liked your toaster. It was good at toasting bread... how are you going to get your toasted bread now, Papaya?"

"Ehhhh, we're fiiiine." Papaya just gives a waving off gesture to Giichi, grinning brightly. "If we ever do require toast, we'll just come over and borrow yours, 'kay?"

"... mhmm!" Giichi responds, nodding with a cheerful look. "Totally come over for toast sometime! In fact, I'm going grocery shopping right now! Do you need me to get anything?"

"Oh!" Papaya smiles. "I mean, if you're going, like, right this instant, could you get me some tacos, too? I got the money for it, of course~"

"Ooh, yeah, tacos!" Giichi exclaims, smiling and giving a thumbs up. "I'll get some on the way back! Crunchy, right?"

Immediate head shaking. "Soft, please. Every time we get crunchy, the bits just- crumble awkwardly and spill on the first bite, remember...?"

Giichi- blinks a couple of times. "Right- I keep forgetting that... alright, soft it is! With root beer and extra spicy sauce?"

"Yep! Sounds good~" Papaya responds with a grin, before walking deeper into the apartment to get the taco money. As she rummages for the cash, she looks over her shoulder to her sister. "Got anything you're in the mood for, Peri?"

"Purchase a 12V lithium ion battery," Peritzal responds, lying on her side and continuing to fiddle with her tablet.

"... food, Peritzal, food," Papaya responds as she steps out the doorway.

"I know what I said," Peritzal responds, reaching for the tube of apple paste on the coffee table. "12V, please."

Papaya... chuckles, looking back forward. "Let's... amount that to a milkshake and a burrito, then," she says, handing Giichi the dollar bills. "Well, see ya and stay safe, Giichi!"

"You too!" Giichi exclaims, turning away and heading to the apartment stairway. Leaving the twins to do their smart people work as she does her... Giichi work.

Off on her own little adventure to get food and groceries, accompanied by the busy traffic passing her, she was contently just traversing the city at her own pace. Home, sweet home, as she considered it, Giichi loved every bit of the city before her. Every sidewalk crack a memory, painted by the tree leaves and colorful food wrappers, all of it was a cheerful delight for her.

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As she walks, a taxi pulls up next to her, window rolling down to reveal an old man. One that was in uniform, his thick beard and mustache on display as he looks to the two. "Well, howdy there, Giichi!"

Giichi looks over, glances to see the man wearing a black hat with a red brim, and immediately recognizes the old man as Quade. "Oh! Mr. McMurphy!" she calls out.

"Parker, Giichi," the old man responds, tipping his hat. "Coverin' for Parker again."

"Ah, right," Giichi responds, sticking her tongue out in a goofy way. "I keep forgetting!"

"Heh." The old man, Quade, just nods, unlocking the doors. "Need a lift somewhere? I'm down to give ya a ride, if you'd like!"

Giichi shakes her head. "No, no, I don't wanna be too much of a bother. Just heading to the grocery store right down the street!"

"Oh? Well, having a car to carry the groceries would be a mighty fine help. What groceries are ya gettin'?" Quade asks.

"Mmm- maybe the usual. Instant noodles, a buncha microwaved dinners, some orange juice and bagels, and a pack of butter!" Giichi answers.

Quade blinks a few times, staring forward as he starts to drive forward. "... is- that really it?"

Giichi nods. "Well, y'know that I don't cook, Mr. Parker... simple food's the best! And I can carry it all pretty fine!"

"U... uhuh." He just takes a moment of silence before continuing to speak. "Well, as always, you're welcome to let me know if ya ever feel like learnin'. I'll be happy to teach ya sometime. 'Till then, try getting the steak dinners. There's a sale for every three of them, you get a free one."

"Alright! Sounds like a plan, Mr. Parker! Until then, see you!" Giichi exclaims, waving Quade off energetically before she then turns to the backdoor of the car. "And see ya too, Nyx!"

Quade blinks for a few moments at this. Giichi, pointing out that Nyx was- likely in the car as well. "Wait... Nyx?" Taking a moment to look over his shoulder and stare into the back seat. Knowing that she could hide in shadows as if the dark was just a liquid to her, he was now on guard- as Nyx had a... tendency... to hide herself near him and follow after.

Giichi covers her mouth suddenly, having outed Nyx. "O-Oops...! I mean- uh- not, not Nyx. See ya, not Nyx!"

"..." Quade sighs as he looks forward. He just ignores Nyx, and just focuses on Giichi for a bit before driving along. "Have a good rest'a your day, kiddo."

The taxi drives off, and Giichi watches as a shadowy silhouette forms on the other side of the backdoor's window, red eyes glaring straight at her with spite. Nyx was, indeed, in the back of the car.

Giichi just shakes her head with an energetic grin, turning around and walking forward- immediately accidentally bumping straight into someone's back.

"G-Gah! Watch where you're-!" the person shouts, looking over his shoulder and up at Giichi. The person immediately recognizes her. "Oh. Giichi."

Giichi looks to see the white haired prince, Caspian. His rainbow crown and scarf in full display, recognizing him after a few seconds. "Oh! Caspian!" Giichi exclaims, looking down at him. "Good to see you! How are you?"

Caspian takes a calming sigh as he looks at Giichi. Staring up at her through his visor, shaking his head with a sigh. "Doing alright, just... walking. Sorry for shouting at you."

"Ah, no, it's alright, I wasn't looking where I was going," Giichi responds, smiling at him. "Well- uhm- you look like you were heading the same way! If you're just walking- uhm, by any chance, do you want to come with me to the grocery store? We could hang out and stuff!"

Caspian shakes his head. "I'm not particularly interested, really. It's not exactly a-" Suddenly, the prince interrupts himself and glares at Giichi. "Okay, hold on, what do you mean by that?!"

Giichi tilts her head in confusion, her eyes widening a little. Caspian's sudden outburst bewildered her a little. "Huh? Uhm... I mean that we could hang out and get some-"

"No, Giichi, I'm not talking to-" Caspian responds, continuing to glare. A few seconds of silence pass before he shouts in argument. "N-no! I'm not 'challenged' by the process of buying people food, that's completely simple and mundane, the fact you're- ... okay, now that's a lie, you're just- okay, let me speak. Let me speak- oh my g-"

Giichi continues to stare in confusion as Caspian aggressively argues with the air. Then realizes that he was, indeed, arguing with the air. Rosemary. The two of them engaged in another one of their arguments, one that Giichi just feels uncomfortable about. "Ohhh. You're talking to- okay." She begins to walk off, not wanting to upset Caspian any further as she excuses herself. "Uhm, see you, Caspian, I'll- we'll talk to you some other time... okay?"

Caspian, holding a hand up to his forehead, visibly annoyed. "No, hold on. Screw it. I'm coming with JUST to prove a point..."

"You really don't have to-" Giichi responds, a little uncomfortable. Rosemary was just coercing him into coming along at this point, and she didn't- really want to force Caspian into coming along.

It was too late to stop Caspian, however. He was dead set on coming along, now. "Yes I do, Hasegawa. Yes, I do. Got to come along now." Very annoyed grumbles from the prince as he tucks his hands into his coat pockets. "... I'm helping you with the groceries regardless of what you say now, I am NOT letting her win the argument."

"W... Well, alright then, sure... uhm-" Giichi looks around for a moment. "Rosemary, can you- can you please be nice to him?"

A long pause of silence.

Giichi looks to Caspian. "... so, did she- did she say she would?"

"No, but she didn't really say anything," Caspian responds, shaking his head. "She's just silent. Take it as her being nice if you want."

"... that's- good..." Giichi responds, looking forward. She just clears her throat and keeps walking with Caspian. "... oh, and, uhm- afterwards, we're- also getting tacos for the D'Erricos, too. Papaya gave me enough to get her and Peritzal their breakfasts and lunch, and-"

"Hasegawa, next time, lead with that and I'd be 90% on board to begin with," Caspian immediately responds. "I am quite thirsty and it has been dry lately."

"... oh!" Giichi smiles widely, now that Caspian has an actual reason to want to come along. Caspian was biologically a cloud-person, so he exclusively only needs to drink water for sustenance. Grocery stores have a person pay for each bottle of water, while food places have drink dispensers and infinite refills until a person leaves. "Alright, well, sounds good! H-Hehe. Glad to have you along, officially...!"

Caspian gives a thumbs up. "Mhmm. For now, water under the bridge between me and Rosemary, okay?"

"W-Well, alright!" Giichi responds, smiling.

The pair continue to walk along, Giichi now accompanied by a friend as they walk along. The city continuing to be as busy as ever, while the pair were the only two currently walking on that sidewalk. A lovely day today.

"... so, we did one hell of a thing, huh?" Caspian asks, walking along with Giichi.

Giichi, stopping at a crosswalk, looks to Caspian. "Huh? What thing?"

Caspian looks off to the side, waiting alongside Giichi for the walk light. "The whole demon fight thing. Saving this city, taking out a bunch of demons."

"Oh. That..." Giichi just chuckles lightly. "Rosemary- was the one who carried the fight, in the end. I was just- awake for the beginning part, and didn't even do much..."

Caspian scoffs for a moment. "I don't know who needs to tell you this, but... Rosemary used your body to do all of that. You, inherently, are a major part of the victory. Just being your Giichi self as usual. For as long as I've known you, you idolized heroism and doing the good thing, and- you did, you did do good, and your body - AKA, you - saved lives that day."

Giichi bashfully smiles as Caspian was saying this. "Y-You're just- saying that..."

"No, seriously, Hasegawa," Caspian interrupts. "I genuinely- can't get that day out of my mind. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life. If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't be buying groceries, or getting tacos for the twins, or even just- walking and waiting at this." Pointing at the crosswalk. "You, inherently, are a hero. And... so is Rosemary, I guess, but you are deserving of my respect."

"... well- heh, nothing to it-" Giichi responds, looking to see the walk sign light up. It was safe to cross the road now, in theory. She starts to walk ahead, looking back at Caspian. "W-We all did, it, y'know? It was a group effort, and I- I guess I just-"

Giichi is then immediately interrupted as the sounds of screeching tires could be heard, and a car proceeds to ram straight into her body.

Caspian, not even reacting in time, seeing the car achieve impact as his jaw drops. "G-Giichi-!"

It was a red convertible going at 80 miles an hour in a 30 mile zone. A speeder, if you will. Reckless driving, the guy trying to run a red light. He was a tourist of Starveil, dressed in flashy cool guy clothes with slick blonde hair and a pair of sunglasses. There wasn't even an attempt to hit the brakes, he just flat out hit Giichi with a car.

And Giichi's body reacted accordingly.

Giichi, standing completely still as she was oblivious to the incoming car, remains standing. Not budging one inch. She didn't even mentally process she was hit by the car until several seconds later. Her draconic durability was a gift that left her completely unharmed by a speeding car, somehow. At worst, it was probably painful, but her body recovered rather easily.

The same could not be said about the car. When the car drove into her, Giichi remained unharmed as the car ends up splitting in half upon hitting her. The two halves of the car rolling along into the intersection, toppling over and stopping in the middle of it.

The driver, absolutely mortified as the sunglasses fall off of his face, mentally processing what just happened.

"..............." Caspian, staring at this, temporarily dumbfounded. "G... Giichi-"

Giichi looks back at Caspian, a worried look on her face. She started blaming herself for that, as she was the reason the car ended up being split in half. Starting to hyperventilate, puffs of red gas being exhaled in bursts from her mouth. "I- I didn't- I didn't even see the car coming! D-Do you think he's alright, Caspian?! I- I don't- I'm scared to check, what if he-"

"Hey, hey, Giichi, calm down-" Caspian calls out, as he takes a moment to look in the intersection, seeing the convertible's driver running away in absolute terror. The reckless driver seems alright, just too shaken to mentally deal with the girl who destroyed his car into halves. No other passengers, he was just a single driver. "He... seems alright, no injuries. Maybe he's in pain but- whatever, whatever, he's running. Better question is, are you- are you okay, Hasegawa?" Caspian asks. "T-Take deep breaths. Deep breaths, now..."

Giichi... follows Caspian's cue, starting to breathe heavily. Slowing and steadying, starting to calm down with her friend's help. "I-I'm okay, I'm okay-... I- I guess I'm doing better with being hit by cars...?" Giichi answers, uncertain. "I just- need to get better at seeing cars, I guess...? H- He really did just come out of nowhere, like-"

"Yeah, he- he did," Caspian responds, looking back at the car... and- seeing smoke coming from it. His eyes widening. "... uh- Giichi, I think it's- a good idea for us to go, come on," Caspian responds, walking past Giichi and gesturing her to follow.

"W-" Giichi looks to Caspian in shock, still antsy about what just happened. "But, Caspian, shouldn't we- or, I- stay around for the authorities and-"

Giichi is immediately cut off by the convertible exploding in the middle of the intersection, the car engulfing in a fiery blaze.

Caspian, looking at the explosion, his eyes covered and concealed by his black visor. If anyone could see his eyes right now, he'd have the most shocked and surprised look on his face. But he stares at the car's remains, seemingly unfazed.

Giichi, meanwhile, staring in absolute horror. It was lucky that no one- ended up in the explosion, but the bits of metal were- going everywhere. Pretty soon, her sense of responsibility was being outweighed by the absolute chaos that she couldn't have prevented, and she was becoming mentally unable to handle this incident of chaos.

"... s... so, we're going?" Giichi nervously asks, walking after Caspian.

"Y... Yes. That is best," Caspian responds, wanting to leave. "Let us be off. Immediately. Right now."

The pair continue to walk along, awkwardly just leaving behind the wreckage and the severely congested traffic trying to work around the car remains. They had to go get groceries. It was grocery-getting time. That was the thing they were going to do, now.