Hey, all! Soooo, explanation time?

My username is different now! And the summary for the story has changed to reflect my writing improvement, heh. Hopefully I'll be continuing this, but the updates will probably be pretty sporadic.

This chapter apparently has been written for a while and I forgot that I finished it? XD I gave it a few edits and such, but this is my old style of writing. Although my current style is definitely similar, you'll almost certainly notice changes next chapter!

Regardless, though, enjoy! And to everyone who's stuck around this long, thank you! 3

Komamura couldn't visit Wonderweiss's room in the clinic every day, no matter how hard he tried to make time. He hoped that by visiting as often as possible, the boy would get a little more used to him and not be as uneasy or scared. The most he could manage was a few times a week, if even that much.

It seemed like the days he picked were always the worst for Wonderweiss.

Today was one of those days, it appeared. By the time he got there, the boy was already crying and distressed. He was virtually screaming, flailing his arms as much as he could (which, to be honest, wasn't that much), and what the captain could see of his face was pink from crying so hard.

Atsuko had his hand and was trying to calm him down, but she looked frazzled too. It looked like she hadn't gotten too much sleep, and she was trying to comfort him but it didn't look like it was working. "Please, Wonderweiss, honey," she was saying, looking like she was going to burst into tears as well. "I know it hurts and you don't want me to leave, but I have to. Captain Komamura will be here soon – you like it when he sits with you, don't you?"

He just continued to wail. "Naaaaaaaaah gaaaaaaaah!" he screamed, hanging onto her coat and burying his face in her stomach. "Aaaaaaaaah waaaaaaaahhhn aaaah oooh ohhhhhhh whooooooaaaaaaaa!"

She sighed, putting her arms around him. "I know, I know you want me. But Wonderweiss, sweetie, you can't always have what you want. And right now you can't have me. I'm sorry, but I have other patients that are in pain like you and I need to go make them feel better, too."

Komamura just watched the scene, but he wished he didn't have to. It was horrible that Atsuko did want to be with him, and he wanted her there, but she knew she had to leave. She knew it would make him upset, but she also knew it had to be done. He had to learn, and unfortunately some things had no easy way to be learned.

While she was trying to get Wonderweiss off of her, Atsuko looked up and her eyes met Komamura's. She smiled a little, and relief shone through her weary face. She patted Wonderweiss's back. "Look, Wonder! Look, Captain Komamura's here! Aren't you happy he's here? Come on now, you want to enjoy the time with him, right? You can't do that if you're crying." She continued rubbing his back, gesturing Komamura over with her head while mouthing, Please help!

Komamura walked over, leaving the door open so Atsuko could "beat a hasty retreat", as it were. He sat down on the floor, as that was the only way he could be at eye level with the boy. He still wasn't really, but it was close enough that he was at least being paid attention to instead of ignored. "Hello, Wonderweiss. You're minding Atsuko, aren't you?" He reached over and warily brushed a finger over that bandage on his cheek, the one Atsuko had touched when she'd introduced them.

Wonderweiss had at least stopped screaming when Komamura came into the room, but now he whimpered and shook his head, craning his neck away from the captain. "Ihhhhhh haaaaaaaaaahhhh," he complained, shooting a pout at the other.

Komamura raised his hands in surrender, then put them back in his lap. "Ah, I should have realized. My apologies."

Wonderweiss still didn't look too happy, but he settled with babbling grumpily and looking down at the floor. He didn't usually fire any remarks back at people; he wasn't a particularly hostile child, honestly. There were random outbursts of violence from him, typically when he was frustrated or confused, and even then they were short-lived. (Now he could see what Atsuko was talking about, that his mind worked differently.)

Atsuko smiled. "Alright! There we go, Captain Komamura will stay with you, Wonderweiss." She leaned down and quickly pressed her lips against the top of his head. "I will be back, I promise. Just try to calm down and enjoy time with him, okay? I'll see you soon, honey."

With that she ruffled his hair, patted Komamura's arm with a smile, and walked out of the room, shutting the door and letting the curtain fall around them.

Komamura looked over at Wonderweiss. Tears were still running down his face, and he still looked upset. The captain's eyes fell upon the nearly full bag of morphine attached to the IV line that was running into the boy's arm. "So that's why you're hurting, hmm?" he muttered, reaching up to brush Wonderweiss's blonde bangs out of his amethyst eyes. "She had to refill it. Does it sting going in?"

Wonderweiss nodded, stiffly, as if he was trying not to move any part of his body; like he was in pain all over. And all things considered, he probably was, actually. "Y... aaaaaahhh." He blinked a few times, and then closed his eyes.

"Hmm. Would you like to sleep?"

Another nod. "Uhhhhhhh." Then he opened one eye, looking lazily up at Komamura as if he were expecting something.

Komamura raised an eyebrow. "What? Do you need something?"

Wonderweiss raised one hand in the general direction of the table in the corner, then wiggled his fingers a little. "Baaaahhhhh-ooooohhhh-hooooo," he said simply, as if this explained everything. He winced in pain almost instantly, squeezing his eyes shut. "Aaaaaaaooowwwww…"

Trying to figure out what he meant, the captain looked over at the table and noticed a rather thick book on it. "Oh… the book?" He reached over and grabbed it, seeing that it was a collection of human fairytales. "You want me to read to you?"

Wonderweiss nodded eagerly, folding his hands back in his lap despite the pain, and smiling with his lips closed. "Mmmmmm!"

"Alright, ah..." Komamura opened it up to the page of contents. "Do you have a favorite?"

"Yaaaaaaah!" Seeming to forget about the pain for a moment, Wonderweiss grabbed the book from him and flipped several pages, nearly to the back of the book. Then he handed it back, grinning and showing his two front teeth. "Hiiiiiiiiiih wuuuuuuuhhhh!"

"This one, okay then." Komamura took the book, looking at the page Wonderweiss had turned it to. "'The Ugly Duckling'? Okay... shall we start?"

Wonderweiss smiled again, settling into the bed and adjusting the covers. He then nodded, squeezing the little stuffed animal – a frog – Atsuko had given him.

"Alright... err... let's start then." He glanced down at the first page and began to read, softly at first. "Once upon a time, there was a family of ducks living in a pond. The youngest of the ducklings, whose egg had been found near the tall grasses, had just hatched, and his family crowded around to see if this last duckling was the most lovely yet."

He was about to turn the page when Wonderweiss's hand shot out and grabbed his wrist. When he looked up, the boy was pouting. "What?"

"Paaaaaaaaaaaaahhh chaaaaaaaaaaaah," he whined, yanking the captain's wrist over and over.

"What do you mean, p…? … Oh. Oh, you wanted to see the picture? Sorry about that… here you go." He held up the book, letting Wonderweiss stare at the picture for about ten seconds. "Alright?"

He nodded and grinned his little two-toothed grin, then settled back into the bed, making a motion with his hand for the captain to go on.

Komamura couldn't help but smile as he turned the page. It was both amazing and a good thing that the boy could enjoy something so simple. The best things in life were usually the simplest, after all. "Alright, let's see... the duckling's shell broke, and out of it tumbled the most fuzzy, entirely unattractive, and just all-around ugly duckling any of them had ever seen. 'Where am I?' he asked. His voice was barely a squeak. 'Who are you?'" He did try his best to do a different, more descriptive voice, but it just wasn't something he was used to. Still, he held up the book to show Wonderweiss the picture before turning the page and continuing the story.

"... And so now the little duckling was all grown up, but thanks to his new family, he knew he wasn't a duck at all. He was a beautiful swan, and lived happily ever after with all the other swans at the lake. The end."

Komamura held up the book to show Wonderweiss, somewhat relieved that he was finally done with the story, though he had enjoyed reading. But when he held it up, he saw that the blonde was already fast asleep, buried deep in the covers, mouth open and snoring slightly. Still clutching that gift from Atsuko, that stuffed frog, like it was his last connection to life.

He had to smile at the image of the sleeping boy. To think that he'd helped ease the pain a little and send him off to an imaginary place where he was probably happier and in a lot less agony, that felt good.

He stood up, placing the book back in its original position on top of the table. It had been a nice story, after all... it discouraged bullying because of physical differences, at least, so that should be one thing he wouldn't have to worry about when he brought Wonderweiss home. It was his favorite story, and he was attached to the captain, so it was unlikely that he would ever ridicule someone for their appearance.

In fact, he thought with a sigh, the child would probably be on the receiving end of any harassment. Though there were a few noticeable improvements in his speech, he was still far from capable of being understood by most people. He and Atsuko had begun deciphering his babbles and odd syllables out of necessity – in reality, though, it was like listening to an infant trying to speak. Anyone outside of the Soul Society, upon being confronted with it, was likelier to walk away than attempt a conversation.

"We'll have to work on that then," he muttered, carefully smoothing Wonderweiss's hair down. "Next time I visit, we can work on your words."

"Captain?" When he turned to look, he saw Atsuko's chestnut head poking into the room. She blinked at him, then walked inside. "You're still here? I thought you would have left by now. It's been an hour since you got here."

"Has it?" A quick glance up at the clock proved her right. "Oh... so it has, then. Forgive me, I wasn't aware of... well, time flies when..." He couldn't think up a proper excuse to explain why he hadn't been watching the time, and he got the sense that all he was doing was embarrassing himself. "... I'll show myself out."

"No, hey, wait." She grabbed his wrist before he could go out the door, grinning at him. "Hehe, first of all, your ears drooped, and... I just have to tell you, it was kind of cute. Um, second of all... you know I didn't mean it like that! I... actually meant it the opposite way. Not many of his visitors stay very long. It's great that you two are starting to bond."

"Oh..." He pulled his hands back and clasped them behind his back. "Well... I didn't exactly plan on staying this long. It was just... he was in such pain when I first came. And he wanted me to read him a story from this book." He gestured to the table. "He's asleep now. I figured, you know... anything to lessen the pain."

"Aww." She reached over, across him, to grab the book. "Yeah, I remember I got this for him, thinking I could use it to teach him to read, but then I ended up more reading to him than anything else. I don't think teaching him technical skills would stick right now, just since he's hurting so bad... but he's got to have something to do. Keep his mind off the pain." She flipped through the pages, smiling. "So did he want you to read Cinderella? That's his favorite – wants me to read it every time."