First fic, feedback appreciated, don't own Bleach
"Oi, Renji," Ichigo laid on the floor exhausted on the ground, sweat dripping down his brow. His gaze on the foliage that shaded him from the blistering sun.
"What?" Renji, equally exhausted, sat on a rock not to far off.
"Why is Rukia always up in a damn tree?"
"Hell if I know," Renji scoffed at such a dumb question. "Maybe she feels better about being short when she's way up high in a tree."
Ichigo thought about this and after minutes of silence he spoke, "Man, you really are as stupid as you look."
"You're the idiot for asking stupid questions." Renji didn't even bother yelling or getting annoyed. They were both drained from training. He leaned back and started thinking about Rukia and trees. "That crazy girl used to say she always slept better up there. She's a weirdo like that."
Again, Ichigo took his time to slowly think about Rukia sleeping in trees, while Renji inevitably reminisced about Rukia.
Ever since Renji met Rukia in the 78th, she had always been an expert climber. Countless times his eyes saw her climb quickly and nimbly up a tree to hide from people chasing her (so what if she stole their water?), to sleep, to watch the world around her as she lay hidden behind gnarly branches, to pretend she was unreachable. Unreachable from what? Who knew. She did the same even after leaving Rugonkai and entering the Shinigami Academy, even after joining the 13th Division as a Kuchiki. Renji always knew that if Rukia went missing, to find her you needed to look up.
Renji, who knew her best, even developed a very accurate Rukia tracking system. If she was upset, you needed to search for the tallest tree and hope you're a good climber. Rukia could climb high. If she was in a good mood, she wouldn't climb too high or go too far. Rather she chose trees in sunny locations, preferably by a park or a soft rolling hill. If she wanted to rest, she always chose trees with long and very thick braches. Rukia told him they made the perfect nook for a nap. Renji kept his tracking system a well-kept secret.
Ichigo, who knew her well but hadn't known her nearly as long, thought about something slightly different. Where did she prefer sleeping? In a tree or in his closet?
"By the way Renji."
"Hm?"
"I totally won that round."
"The hell you did."
Thanx 4 reading