2.
Title: Diamond
Rating: K
Pairing/Characters: (Urahara)/Yoruichi, Yoruichi's mother
Word Count: 293
Warnings: Sappy angst.
Summary: Diamonds and exiled Shinigami, 'nough said.
A/N: Obviously, I was in a damper of a mood. And for some reason I can't get the idea outta my head that Yoruichi has a complicated relationship with her mother.
His diamond in the ruff, he'd called her upon confession. Her heart pounded rhythmically, almost bursting forth through her ribcage at such a description; as for most of her life she had always been described with such euphemisms as 'rough', 'unashamed', and most thoroughly 'uncompromising', but never in a complimenting manner. Since her childhood, her mother had deigned her unfit to one day rein as head of her clan, but here her childhood friend had called her a diamond. A shimmering jewel left in the arid dust to sparkle until someone of worth found her. Thankfully, her complexion hid her blush well, though it didn't help the stinging of her eyes as tears threatened to spill.
The two Shinigami were exiles now. Diamonds left to collect dirt and debris as they were lost from their proverbial owner. They were no longer wanted by the likes of Sereitei. She was sure her mother would froth at the mouth upon hearing of her daughter's betrayal, of her daughter stripping herself of the glitz and glamour the woman had so carefully sprinkled in her eyes and blinded her to the truth. The truth that being the daughter of the most highly esteemed family of Sereitei, as well as the Executive Leader of the most demanding militia, was not nearly as special as everyone made it out to be. She had been simply following her orders, leading herself down a path she had never wished to take, until one day a young boy with straw-colored hair sought to change her outlook and in turn shattered almost every view she'd been spoon fed since birth.
She owed this to him, for he had unlocked her heart and set her soul soaring, shining like a diamond in the sun.