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This story takes place within the final months of the 17 month period after Aizen's defeat, and before the Quincie's attack. It is also yuri and M rated for adult content.

Prologue

Sweater Weather by The Neighbourhood

Inseparable. They were probably the closest captain lieutenant duo in all of the Gotei 13. One was barely seen without the other somewhere nearby. Mentor and mentee with an almost mother daughter-ish bond. This was the relationship between Isane Kotetsu and her captain Retsu Unohana.

Isane could still remember the day she first met her captain. She was a much younger girl in the Shinigami Academy with her sister. A shy girl who was dissatisfied with her body, unconfident, and disillusioned with her lackluster performance in Hakuda and Zanjutsu. She could barely keep up with her younger and tinier sister's battle prowess and when it came time to graduate she was disappointed to be assigned to the Fourth Division. She spent her days moping around aimlessly, speaking to no one until one day the Captain noticed her. Captain Unohana sat down and spoke to Isane to get to know this unknown new recruit and like that her life had changed. The very sound of Unohana's voice was soothing to her and warm and Unohana saw something in Isane. She immediately took Isane under her wing and Isane soon felt at home.

Isane learned everything she knew about healing from her captain, and she learned fast. She rose through the ranks just as quickly until she became the healer and Shinigami we know her to be. The second best healer in all of Soul Society and the loyal lieutenant of the Fourth Division.

She admired her captain from the beginning too, and never truly felt comfortable around anyone but her or Kiyone. But when the hormonal surge that accompanies puberty came around her admiration grew into a serious crush.

She never fantasized about her captain sexually, she respected Unohana too much for that, nor did she think about her attraction to Unohana much, but she was in love without a shadow of doubt and abstractly wished she could someday be with her. To sleep beside her, kiss the soft smooth lips that conveyed her soft smooth voice, and be held in her loving arms. She accepted the idea that it could never happen as fact and was satisfied living her life out as is. Silent in her admiration.

Unohana, being deeply perceptive knew that Isane was crushing on her. She liked it and thought it was cute. She liked Isane's tender girlish innocence. And she knew that her attraction wasn't overtly sexual if at all. She did however occasionally catch Isane gazing upon her for a bit too long, but this just made her feel sexy, her attractiveness appreciated, so she didn't mind.

Now, given that Isane had only been attracted to one person in her entire life, she couldn't really be categorized as a lesbian. Unohana was definitely somewhat bisexual, having been involved with men and women in the past. But Rukia, Rukia was a total lesbian. Unfortunately she was a lesbian in denial. In trying to live up to her strict and partially self-imposed ideals she swore off love at a young age, determined to live out her life as a warrior loyaly serving the Gotei 13. And she strove to suppress her lesbianism so as to uphold the noble name of the very traditional Kuchiki family.

Rukia had developed quite the close friendship with Isane though and the lesbianism and desire for love that had lied buried within her for so long bubbled to the surface of her consciousness once again.

Unlike Isane's innocent longings, Rukia's were far more mature. See to Rukia, Isane was friggin sexy. She liked everything about Isane, her height, her messy silver hair with the subtle decorative strands on the side, the way she moved, the sound of her voice. Everything. She was infatuated with the girl and every moment she shared with Isane, her new closest friend, was both blissful and trying.

The two were spending more and more time together and consequently Isane was spending less of her free time with Unohana. To her own surprise Unohana actually became a little jealous. She wondered why she was jealous. Wondering if it was just because she got used to Isane's ever presence and just liked having her around or if it was it something more. Could it be that she missed the warmth of Isane's silent one sided love? Was the love completely one sided in the first place?

These were the questions Unohana was asking herself as she sat outside sipping tea in her garden while staring out into the peaceful night sky. Her lieutenant was out late for a Sunday, 9 o'clock and long past sundown, and she was almost certainly with Rukia. Unohana actually missed her. "What if I really do like my lieutenant?" she asked herself. Then she sighed, and sipped from her tea. The fabric of her robe keeping her warm in the cool night breeze.

. . .