Welcome to Gaia! ::

Hekate stood in front of the mirror with her stomach twisted into a latticework of knots from the anxiety and apprehension she felt building up inside her.

Rarely did first introductions at Court meetings turn into anything beyond the hypothetical suggestion of teaming up at a later date. Typically after goodbyes were said and done, and both parties went their separate ways, there might be a chance encounter on the street when Destiny City was being threatened by some unknown entity.

Thinking back on it that bat definitely fit in with the unknown part of it all but at the end of the day, Hekate had assumed the idea of exploring Mirrorspace with Lenka to be a novel idea but likely not to happen. Sure she could have taken the initiative to reach out but work has been overwhelming with unscheduled emergency pet appointments that overtime had become mandatory several days these last few weeks.

Still, she had been surprised when Lenka had reached out to her to firm up plans and had already set up a meeting location.

Now- all she needed to do was take that leap of faith and step through the mirror. However there was that annoying voice in the back of her head whispering words of possible forgetfulness, or impatience with waiting that drove her to believe that Lenka might not be there when she arrived. Sure, she could stick around ten or so minutes in case the Senshi of Watermelon was running late, but-

“Ok, enough of this.” She patted both cheeks with open hands. “I’m working myself into a tizzy. It’ll be fine.” Hekate tried to convince herself before just closing her eyes, thinking of the place she wanted to be, and taking that leap of faith by stepping through the mirror.

Fortunately what greeted her on the other side was cause for a sigh of relief.

A familial signature, one that belonged to the Court and not some Agent or one of their Corrupts, and a beaming smile coming from the pink-haired young woman. “Hello,” she replied, feeling the knots in her stomach slowly untie themselves upon Lenka’s approach. “It’s nice to see you again Ms. Lenka.” Hekate greeted formally, as what her upbringing demanded of her.

“I have nothing else going on tonight so if you’d like to walk around gem searching for a bit, that’s ok by me.”

“My apologies, old habits die hard.” Lenka wasn’t the first one to ask her to drop the Ms. and likely wouldn’t be the last one either. “I hope you don’t think by my saying Ms. that I was calling you old though. Growing up my parents were strict when it came to speaking more formally. I meant nothing but respect when saying it.”

Much like the last time, Hekate approached the same cluster Lenka had found and broke a piece off for herself. It felt cool to the touch, not quite like ice, but more similar to a window in winter with condensation on the outside of it. With a swipe of her hand, she added this shard to the other four kept in her possession, tucked away in the subspace pocket where they lay in wait until she could start building her own area.

Hekate fell silent when Lenka shared how she became part of the Dark Mirror Court. “So it wasn’t your choice to be here then?” she asked cautiously not wanting to offend Lenka.

While Lenka recounted the events that led to her conscription into the Dark Mirror Court, Hekate felt the sting of regret lance through her.

Part of her wished to reach out and put a comforting hand on the woman’s shoulder but her arm remained still against her side thinking that the gesture might make Lenka feel more uncomfortable.
“I know of both our Prince and Princess. However, I’ve never spoken to either to have much insight into their personalities. How you’ve described Remarque seems to mirror what I’ve observed from the few meetings I’ve attended.” More personable, but for her- somehow unapproachable.

Honestly, everyone in the Court felt that way to her. At most meetings, she felt more like a passive observer than a part of anything significant; like one of the wraith companions they were paired with but with a different physical form.

“But it sounds like Jett is treating you well and taking care of you.” Hekate offered a small smile before turning to look back over her shoulder at the golden-framed mirror one last time before it fell out of view.

“I’m happy that you invited me to come along, It’s been close to two years, or more, since I last visited Mirrorspace.” The biggest downfall of being just a basic Dark Mirror Senshi is you’re not really welcome in the space meant for her and her kind without an invitation despite tenure. Ultimately that was likely what contributed the most to her lack of enthusiasm in powering up.

Lenka was fortunate to have a mentor in Remarque, a father figure of sorts to fill in the gaps of her missing family. Hekate had no such connections with anyone in the Court, let alone anyone she’d consider a friend. But those were hardly thoughts to give voice to when Lenka was being kind enough to extend an invitation to do something that shouldn’t end in bumps or bruises from evading the White Moon or their Knights with those menacing weapons.

“So, how long have you been collecting crystals for?” Hekate wondered as they continued toward Lenka’s realm.

“I’ve been aware of the crystals for a long while now.” She’d been there when they’d first appeared almost seven years ago. Back when the cracks in mirrorspace began to form and the group that gathered that day had stepped through the strange ornate silver mirror at the end of the corridor before the crumbling debris fell upon them.

“Unfortunately I haven’t had many opportunities to gather more myself,” Although it felt like a faded memory, she still had vague memories of being held hostage for nearly a week by Queen Altea and her crystal guards.

“This is honestly the first time I've been invited to see someone else's realm.” A soft smile settled upon her features as her gaze traveled across the small patch of grass. “I don’t see myself using the crystal I picked up earlier; if you want it-” Hekate offered the grey cluster they had collected earlier to help with Lenka’s current project.

Hekate wouldn’t have collected the green gem if it wasn’t for Lenka bringing her along, so of course she didn’t mind offering it to her since Lenka’s project was more immediate than her own.

Where there was once just a field of grass, now stood a stone well-like structure that filled and flowed with water. Never had she witnessed someone create something with the crystals before.

Hekate’s eyebrows rose, nearly vanishing behind her hood in surprise. Her own expression mimicked Lenka’s verbal response. “How did you?” She began to ask then rephrased her question. “When you did that- that…” not sure how to articulate the motion, Hekate repeated the same gesture Lenka did when she shoved the crystals together. “Did you have an image in mind of what you wanted it to be? Or did it just kind of happen on its own?”

A well of sorts was a neat idea to create, but she wondered if all would look like this one or if when she was finally to build her own island, would she be able to change the size or shape of it?

“Although I’m not sure what I’ll make I can’t imagine myself extending an invitation to anyone else to come visit.” Friends were a rare commodity to come by and not to say she had met people in other factions, but she was certain if she did they would not be able to come see it.

“I still have a long way to go though before I’ll be able to get started.” She was back down to three or so crystals now and nowhere closer to becoming a Super Senshi. Honestly, she wasn’t sure how to earn a high rank; becoming a member of the Dark Mirror Court didn’t exactly come with an instruction booklet.

Certainly energy gathering with wraiths was a contributing factor, and of course Hekate had done quite a bit of it in the past in the past. Moreso when she was trying to form a connection or bond with the creature that only could stare back at her with a blank expression. But seeing as it has now been over five years since her initial introduction into the war she couldn’t help but wonder if she’d simply been forgotten about or had been completely missing the mark.

“Until then though, I’d be happy to help you get more crystals to help make this place flourish.” It seemed Lenka had lofty goals for her island. Plus it would probably be safer to be here in Mirrorspace hunting gems instead of out on the streets in Destiny City gathering energy where White Moon Senshi are all too eager to engage in a fight.