Okay, so this season may be OOC, but I've been absent in the Bleach community for some time now and have lost my touch for writing these characters. However, I refuse to leave a story unfinished, so I present to you this addition.
Fall: Bonfire
"Heartfelt cheers pushing our backs…"
"Ichigo, what's a schmore?"
Ichigo looked over the brim of the book he was reading, an incredulous look on his face.
"A what?" he asked.
Rukia huffed. "A samoah," she repeated, articulating it differently this time. "Inoue said it's a kind of food."
Rukia pictured a light bulb lighting up above Ichigo's head by the look that lit up his face.
"It's pronounced s'more, Rukia," he said with a chuckle.
"Well how was I supposed to know?" she defended. "I don't know what it is!"
"It's a kind of dessert," he explained. "You take two crackers, a piece of chocolate and a marshmallow and make a sandwich out of it."
"Marshmallow…" Rukia mumbled. "Those are the white things you put in hot chocolate, right?"
Ichigo nodded his affirmation. "Why do you ask?"
"Inoue said she was happy it's finally autumn so she can make s'mores again," she said. "Can you only make them in the fall?"
"Not necessarily. People just usually make them this time of year because you make them over a fire. They're great for bonfires."
"What kind of fire is that?"
Ichigo sweat-dropped.
XxX
"Great idea about the bonfire, Ichigo!" Keigo exclaimed as they worked to make a large pile of wood. "It's a great way to ring in the season!"
"Don't be impressed, Keigo," Ishida spoke up. "He's just trying to show off to Rukia."
"Shut your mouth, Ishida," Ichigo glared, a blush tinting his cheeks.
A few minutes later the boys had assembled a great amount of wood encircled by smooth round stones.
"I'll go get the matches," Keigo said. "Ishida, you go get the stuff for the s'mores and Ichigo you go get the girls and we'll get this party started!"
"Fire's ready to be lit, you all," Ichigo announced upon walking inside Keigo's house.
"Great!" Inoue lit up. "We're making s'mores right?"
"Ishida's getting the stuff," Ichigo replied.
"I'll go help him! I brought some bean paste to put on them too!"
As Inoue skipped into the kitchen, Ichigo leaned over to Rukia.
"Do not let her put that stuff on your s'mores," he whispered.
"Will do," she quipped.
They walked back outside to see Keigo prodding the fire and Mizuiro throwing wads of newspaper into it. The four were soon joined by Ishida, Inoue, Tatsuki and Chad who was carrying a load of blankets.
Ichigo spread a blanket out beside the fire before prompting Rukia to sit. Taking her place by the fire, she grabbed a nearby stick and stuck it into the fire.
"Is the fire supposed to be this big?" she asked.
"Yeah," Ichigo responded. "That's the point of a bonfire; they're huge."
"So what's the deal with these s'mores?"
"You're just full of questions tonight, aren't you?" Ichigo questioned with a smirk.
Rukia matched his with her own. "Isn't that the point of tonight? To show me new things?"
"Yeah, but don't question everything, just enjoy it as it comes."
"But we're not doing anything," Rukia pointed out as she looked around the fire.
It was true; everyone was just sitting around talking at the moment.
"Well, typically bonfires are a type of gathering. It's like a smaller version of the Summer Festival," he explained. "You socialize as well as make s'mores."
Rukia gave Ichigo a look. "You humans sure have some weird traditions."
"Shut up," he playfully nudged her. "You'll like it. It's not as silly as the Easter Bunny, I promise."
"That's just bizarre."
Ichigo just chuckled again and shook his head. "Keigo!" he hollered, catching the boy's attention. "Pass me the ingredients for the s'mores, will ya?"
"We'll just skip the socializing and skip right to the good part then, okay?" he addressed her.
Rukia smiled. Ichigo handed her the bag of marshmallows and set the box of crackers between them. He then handed her a wire coat hanger which had been bent to form a straight line.
"What do I do with this?" Rukia asked, holding the offending object out in front of her.
"You put the marshmallow on it," he said, demonstrating. "Then you hold it over the fire."
Rukia followed his example and stuck her wire over the fire. Soon, the marshmallow was on fire.
"Ichigo! It's on fire!" she exclaimed, waving it around and causing their friends to laugh.
"Well don't shake it!" he yelled. "It'll fly off and hurt someone!"
Ichigo blew out the fire to leave a black, crispy wad of sugar. He huffed.
"Try again." He handed her another one.
He let his sit over the fire for a brief moment before pulling it back. It was a golden brown.
"Now that's a perfectly roasted marshmallow," he gloated, waving it in Rukia's face.
"Show off…"
In the end, Ichigo ended up roasting Rukia's marshmallow to avoid another fire and so they could move on to the next step faster.
"Once you have your marshmallow done," he pulled two crackers out of the box before reaching for a Hershey bar, "break off some chocolate and put it on a cracker."
He watched Rukia pull this step off with no trouble.
"Then, place the marshmallow on top of the chocolate, place the top cracker on top, apply some pressure and slide the hanger out."
Rukia, of course, ended up breaking her cracker.
"This is hard!" she whined. "You didn't tell me there was work involved!"
"It's not work once you get the hang of it," Ichigo replied. "It still tastes the same."
"That's it?" Rukia asked, giving it the once-over.
"It's not supposed to be a grandeur meal or anything," he sighed. "Just shut up and eat it."
Rukia did so and immediately her eyes lit up.
"This is amazing!" she said, taking another bite of it.
Ichigo watched her as he ate his own, relishing in her joy and amusement. It was the same as the night of the festival. He had truly missed her innocence. Tough, Shinigami Rukia was pleasant to be around, but child-like Rukia was better. She wasn't putting on a front, didn't have any weight on her shoulders, she was just being herself.
"Ichigo, I just got marshmallow in my hair!"
Her stupid, stupid self.