Ch. 2
Watchful green eyes bore into Renji's back as the two figures retreated. They were far enough away that they did not hear the loud snapping and the low muttered curses that followed. Finally looking away from the landscape, he looked down at his bleeding hand. Clutched in his fist was a large, broken branch from the tree he was perched up in, hidden away from sight.
Toshirou cursed again, dropping the branch. He did not move until it smashed into the ground below. He sighed and jumped out of the tree, landing as gracefully as a cat, even though the drop had to be at least 30 feet high. As Toshirou walked in the direction of Orihime's house, he wondered why he had let Rangiku get under his skin like that.
Normally he was cautious of the scheming inner workings of her mind and shut them down without effort, but tonight… He sighed again and knocked the heel of his hand against his forehead. That, coupled with the fact that he couldn't seem to pull himself together made him even angrier.
"You are so stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid," he muttered to himself. There was a rustling of clothing directly behind Toshirou that made him quit chiding himself and spin around quickly to locate who was sneaking up behind him.
"Toshirou?" a little girl called to him as she stepped out of the bushes. She had a soccer ball under one arm and was wearing boyish clothes and a red cap. Ichigo's sister.
"Karin? Isn't it a little late for you to be out by yourself?" Toshirou asked.
"Our game of soccer ran longer than expected, but my house is right around the corner so I'm not worried about it. Besides, I'd like to see anyone or anything mess with me!" Karin replied with a smirk.
Toshiro let out a sigh and repressed the urge to roll his eyes. "Regardless, I'll walk you home. I'm sure Ichigo would try and kill me if anything happened to you and I could have prevented it."
Karin just scowled and shrugged noncommittally and kept walking towards her house. Toshiro quickly fell into step with Karin, walking unhurriedly beside her. As they walked, Toshiro noticed that she was a lot like Ichigo, with almost the same temperament but Karin wasn't quite as serious as her older brother, nor carried such a heavy burden. Human siblings and their likeness always intrigued Toshiro as he was an only child.
"Toshiro… your hand, it's bleeding. What happened?" Karin asked, pulling him from his internal musings. He noticed that they were only several paces away from Karin's home.
He looked down at his hand, clenching it into a fist. "This is nothing, don't worry about it," he replied.
"It looks pretty bad. You should come inside so I can clean and bandage it," Karin said with a concerned look on her face.
"Fine," Toshiro answered with a sigh and a scowl. Knowing Karin was just as stubborn as Ichigo, he knew it best not to argue and to go willingly.
They entered the clinic and Karin started doctoring him up in a comfortable silence. Her movements were quick and calculated, making it obvious that she was used to doing this kind of thing. Soon she was done and Toshiro gave his thanks and let himself out, with Karin waving goodbye to him. He started walking back towards Orihime's house, lost in his own thoughts once again.
Toshiro had managed to escape from Rangiku's drunken clutches, seizing the opportunity to sneak away while she was preoccupied with Yoruichi and Kisuke, trying to wrestle them into a closet for 7 minutes in heaven. Toshiro had slipped out unnoticed and decided to follow Ai to make sure she got home alright and to confront her about that silly game. He had almost reached her when he noticed Renji and cowardly hid himself in that damn tree. Slipping into Orihime's house unnoticed, he lay down where she had provided him a makeshift bed. With his mind full of questions and self loathing, he drifted off to sleep.
