DISCLAIMER - See chapter one
I know! My fics are all trailing, I'm just having trouble finding the time and desire to write right now, and a couple of fics have come to a block where I just can't think how to move forward, but I am going to try getting this fic going. Enjoy ;-)
"I really don't think I can do this!" Orihime said with a blush as she looked over her script, all of the students remaining in the classroom this break. Sensei had given them special permission to remain inside the school to practise if they chose, and since the main characters needed to learn their lines they had gathered together.
"Just pretend to be me." Tatsuki encouraged with a wink as she sat on the desk in front of Orihime's, the redhead smiling uncomfortably as she looked at the lines again. It seemed she wasn't making much headway. Ulquiorra, on the other hand, was already completely familiar with his lines; all he had to do was learn how to act, and that isn't something you can learn from books…
"Do you think I'll make a good princess?" Miaka asked with a smile as she looked at Ulquiorra, who hummed lightly as he looked up at her, getting to his feet to appraise her appearance.
"You have the stereotypical thin and full figure, the innocent beauty, and soft hair and light scent. Your voice is light, but strong, and you have flowing movements. You shall fulfil the role aptly." He replied as he turned his back on her to review his script once more, though he was sure he had already memorized the lines. Unsure whether to feel complimented or not Miaka stared at his back unsatisfied, Tatsuki grinning as she read her own lines.
"Why don't you read out some lines?" She suggested as she looked at Ulquiorra, who flicked through his script to his first set of lines and turned to Miaka,
"My first scene is with you." He said, the human flicking through to her script and looking over the lines. "Tatsuki, would you narrate?" Ulquiorra asked, the sporty teen nodding as she skipped to his page and looked over the scene.
"Okay! In the forest Aurora, now approaching her sixteenth year, walked through the forest, where she has been living quietly with her nanny. One day, as she skipped her way home from the village, she saw a man; a man she had never seen before." She read, watching Miaka and Ulquiorra gazing at their scripts, Miaka's cheeks flushing as she cleared her throat.
"Who is he that stands so boldly by the lake; and such a fine white horse he has! Surely he is not from the village!" Miaka read, in a voice that told them she had clearly acted before. The character wasn't perfect, but she was acting as opposed to reading the lines. Ulquiorra nodded as he looked at his lines,
"Hark the sound of footsteps. Who goes there beyond the trees?" He asked simply, his voice dull as it would be if he were reading a text book. Somehow I knew this would happen…Tatsuki thought in despair as she sighed out loud, Ulquiorra turning to her with a raised eyebrow.
"Don't just read the words! Live them! Pretend it's happening right now!" Tatsuki exclaimed, slumping back against the desk in exasperation. Ulquiorra raised his eyebrow for a moment before reading the lines again, "That's a little better…You need to work on it." The sporty girl said with a slight smile, not noticing her redheaded friend leave her desk.
"Ah! Kurosaki-kun! Please help me!" Orihime said as she hurried over to the redhead, who was on his own for a change while Rukia sat with Mizuiro and Keigo to help with their lines. Looking up Ichigo raised an eyebrow as Orihime gave him a despairing look and clutched her script to her chest,
"What's up?" He asked in concern as she looked down at him,
"I need to be scary! I don't know what to do!" She exclaimed as she handed him the script, his hazel eyes running over it before he handed it back. Ichigo leaned back in his chair feeling perplexed as the girl sat down beside him,
"But what can I do?" Ichigo asked, Orihime fiddling with the script as she eyed the older boy,
"Ano…You used to scare me…so I thought maybe you could teach me how." She confessed, Ichigo's chair clattering forward as he stopped leaning back, his hazel eyes slightly wide as he looked at Orihime, who wore a sheepish smile.
"I scared you? Really?" He asked in amazement as she nodded apologetically. Scaring her, which had never been his intention, was one thing; teaching her to be scary was quite another. How can I teach something I never even knew I was doing? "Sorry…I'm not sure how I can…I think you should just try to be as serious as you can." Ichigo advised weakly, but the redhead clearly valued his advice, practising on keeping her face serious.
"Is this okay?" She asked, looking at him unsmiling, the Vizard nodding in response,
"Sure, now just scowl slightly, only a little, too much and it'll be over the top." He warned, Orihime nodding as she furrowed her brow. Ichigo nodded his satisfaction before pulling her gently to her feet. "I'll just shift you a little…" He trailed off as he eased her back straight and tilted her chin so that she faced upwards slightly and looked down her nose. "There…it may not be scary, but it is serious." He said as he finished.
"Thanks." Orihime said as she maintained the pose and lifted her script, looking over her lines. "Ano…Why was I not invited to bless this child? I shall bestow upon her this gift! That at the age of sixteen she shall be pricked by the spindle of a spinning wheel and die!" Orihime read, trying to sound evil at first, but then giving up and reading normally. Sitting in his seat Ichigo watched with a somewhat dubious expression,
"Well…after a few more rehearsals…" He trailed off sheepishly, secretly thinking that there was no hope. Orihime just wasn't meant to be mean; everything in her looks and nature insisted otherwise. He'd never seen her angry, so he couldn't tell her to draw on previous experience because it wouldn't surprise him if she had none.
"Yeah…maybe." She replied with a nervous giggle, clearly feeling as unconvinced as Ichigo under the surface.
"Oh no!" A feminine voice cried in alarm, her voice ringing through the almost empty halls of the Fourth Squad barracks. Hanataro's eyes widened as he stepped round the corner to find a girl falling on him, luckily a relatively light one. He got a light scent of cotton candy as his arms wrapped around her, long blonde hair falling across his shoulder as she clutched him in alarm,
"Whoa! Are you alright?" He asked in concern as he put her on her feet, surprising himself with his newfound dexterity, well, maybe not 'found,' hard earned might be more accurate…He corrected, trying not to feel too smug. As he and the girl separated he got his first look at her face, and he had to admit she was quite cute with her long blonde hair, freckles and glasses.
"Yes; thank you so much! I'm such a klutz!" She apologised, apparently quite frustrated with herself as she balled her fists and glared at the wall. Hanataro stifled a chuckle and smiled warmly at the lower ranking girl, who had been cleaning the walls from the New Year celebrations. Fourth Squad always cleaned the building from top to bottom after the holidays to make way for the new year.
"It's alright, just be careful in future, you might get hurt." He said kindly, the blonde girl flushing slightly and stammering before climbing back up her ladder under Hanataro's gentle eye. "I don't think I've seen you before." Hanataro said conversationally as he watched the girl, who was a head shorter than him, reach up with her cloth to continue cleaning the wooden surface.
"Oh, I just transferred in recently. I was in Fifth Squad for a while, and since we have no Taicho it wasn't noticed that my abilities were more suited to this squad until a few weeks ago." She replied sheepishly, looking down at him with a bright expression. Her eyes were a light shade of hazel that reminded him somewhat of Yachiru's, though they didn't have quite the same sparkle.
"Oh, pleased to meet you. I'm Hana." He began,
"Yamada Hanataro, Seventh Seat, I know; your name's on the duty roster." She replied with a smile, standing on tiptoe to reach the very top of the wall. Hanataro steadied the ladder as it began to shake and tip up lightly from the uneven distribution of weight.
"Careful!" Hanataro sighed as he looked up at her, the girl wavering slightly on one foot. "I think you need a taller ladder." The older medic teased as he looked up at the young blonde, who blushed a little as she put her foot down. She seemed a little uncomfortable for a few moments, not turning to look at him as she clutched the cloth before her.
"Actually…I knew that, but when I asked for the taller ladder the guy there just scoffed and said this one was good enough for me." She replied, Hanataro sighing in frustration, and I thought I was the only one who got bullied around here…though I'm a little different now…people don't approach me as much…
"Come with me." Hanataro ordered, holding her hand firmly to help her down. Once her feet were safely on the wooden floor he led the way down the corridor, the girl following nervously. She could tell something had changed; he was straight backed, square shouldered and strong as he walked forward with purpose.
"Where are we going?" The young girl asked as he turned the corner and approached the distribution section, where supplies were handed out and catalogued. At the desk sat a young boy, who looked a little older than Hanataro, his short dark hair mussed as he leaned his head on one hand and looked up boredly.
"Is this the man who was on duty?" Hanataro asked as he looked over his shoulder with sharp brown eyes, the usual carefree nature gone from his eyes. The blonde nodded wordlessly as the medic at the desk looked between them with a slight frown, sitting up a little straighter as he recognised the higher ranking medic. "You! Name!" Hanataro demanded, the boy in the seat going rigid at the sharp tone.
"Kawada Tohru." He replied dutifully, almost jumping to his feet at the hard stare he was receiving.
"How tall is this girl Kawada?" Hanataro demanded as he stepped aside, the girl shivering slightly as Kawada looked at her with a bewildered expression. "Well?" Hanataro snapped impatiently,
"Uh! I don't know, five-one?" He suggested weakly, Hanataro straightening up from where he had been leaning on the desk.
"And how tall are these walls?" Hanataro asked as he stepped beside the desk and tapped the wooden wall lightly, Kawada following his gaze with a puzzled look.
"About twelve feet." He estimated as he stood and looked at the ceiling.
"Exactly…Why did you give a woman, who is just over five feet tall, a ladder that only elevated four feet? With full arm extension she can just about reach eleven and a half foot! At great risk to herself and those around her! What's your excuse Kawada?" Hanataro demanded harshly, shouting so aggressively that the dark haired medic fell back in his chair stammering. "I don't want excuses! You will treat all colleagues with the respect they deserve and you will not put my subordinates at risk! Is that clear?" Hanataro demanded, the volume of his reproach bringing a few onlookers, including Unohana, who put her head out of her office.
"Y-yes sir!" Kawada stammered in response.
"Good. Now get six foot ladder please." The Seventh Seat ordered politely, his aggression seemingly gone, though his sharp eyes warned Kawada otherwise. Without a word of objection he quickly retrieved the required ladder, even offering to carry it down the hall for the young lady and bring the other one back. "Very well, but if I hear about any other 'incidents' I will be taking disciplinary action." Hanataro replied with a warning voice, making it clear that bullying would not be tolerated.
"Thank you Yamada-san!" The blonde girl said happily as she tugged the older boy's sleeve while Kawada retrieved the ladder. Hanataro smiled as he looked down at her,
"Don't mention it, ano…" He trailed off, the girl before him blushing brightly,
"Sorry! Yui, Nagato Yui." She replied, heading off down the hall with Kawada once he returned. Hanataro watched them go with a smile before feeling a light touch on his shoulder, turning to see Unohana with her usual warm smile.
"That was very kind of you Hanataro-kun, though a little loud." She added kindly, the Seventh Seat blushing brightly at the compliment-come-reprimand. "Perhaps you'd like to do me a small favour?" Unohana asked politely, the younger medic looking confused before following the older woman towards her office.
"Um, I'd be happy to help, but are you sure? I mean…the other seated officers are all much better…" He trailed off bashfully as they entered the office, So he doesn't realise his strength yet…A little longer and he'll be above Third Seat level. Unohana thought, letting none of her thoughts show in her expression as she moved behind her desk.
"Please take a seat." She said invitingly, the young medic sitting down comfortably, apparently at ease. This was by no means the first time he had been in the large office, which Unohana usually shared with Kotetsu. There was a low table and cushions along with tea making facilities on one side with Kotetsu's desk opposite by the door. Unohana's desk was opposite the door with bookcases lined up beside it. "Eleventh Squad have requested a medic to accompany two of its members on a mission in the Human World." She began,
"Would that be Ikkaku-san and Yumichika-san?" The young medic asked, reaching out to examine the long leaves of the plant on Unohana's desk, which seemed to be in perfect health. He wouldn't expect anything less from his captain.
"Indeed. They've been sent to keep the level of Hollow down, and it is felt that a medic would be useful." She replied lightly, the young medic almost smiling at the thought of seeing his trainers again. They had stopped for Christmas, but he wasn't finished yet by any stretch of the imagination. He was determined to improve his Shikai, in fact he had even heard that there was a way to change the form of your Zanpakuto with your emotions, not that I want Hisagomaru to change! He's perfect the way he is, but the Shikai could definitely use a little tweaking…
"I'll go." Hanataro replied quickly, the older woman smiling at his enthusiasm.
"I thought you might. You're to leave immediately." She added gently.
Ulquiorra sighed as he lowered his script to his desk once again. It was now lunchtime and even his infinite patience was running out as he looked over his lines again and again. No matter how he said them he was getting nowhere; apparently knowing the lines wasn't enough. His green eyes stared at the lines that he had read over a dozen times, Miaka and Tatsuki sighing their own frustration.
"I thought you had a photographic memory." Orihime said brightly as she peered over his shoulder at his highlighted lines. Lowering the script Ulquiorra lowered the script slightly to look up at the redhead, her warm grey eyes meeting his and causing his skin to heat slightly,
"I do." He replied simply as he looked away, knowing his cheeks would redden if he kept looking at her.
"Then don't use the script!" Tatsuki sighed in frustration, Ulquiorra raising an eyebrow as he dropped the papers to his desk. This is going to take forever! And we only have two months! "Huh? Ulquiorra…is something wrong?" The sporty teen asked as she noticed Ulquiorra's green eyes shift to look at the window before he got to his feet and walked across the room as if in a trance.
This feeling…A feeling of familiarity…nostalgia…but why? Why now? He wondered as an unfamiliar tingling sensation ran through him. There was nothing special as he looked out of the window, nothing special at all, but he could feel it. Something was there, somewhere in the town, something he had seen, felt or touched before. Something that makes me complete…
"Hey!" Tatsuki's voice interrupted, a text book hitting the side of his head hard. Clapping a hand over the now throbbing area, Ulquiorra turned to the ebony haired girl with a dazed and confused look. Surveying the room Ulquiorra noticed various worried and curious eyes upon him, particularly Orihime's concerned grey orbs. "You went totally out of it! I've been calling you for the past five minutes! Are you okay?" Tatsuki asked with her own uncharacteristic edge of worry,
"I am, however I fail to see how throwing a text book was supposed to help if I weren't." Ulquiorra replied as he leaned down and retrieved the book before returning to his desk. It was a large four hundred paged book, which would have sent many other students to the nurse's office. Tatsuki looked sheepish and shrugged apologetically as she took up her script once more,
"Well, when you put it that way…Shall we get back to rehearsing?" She said, effectively changing the subject as Ulquiorra nodded his agreement and took his seat. Following Tatsuki's advise he left his script closed on the desk as he turned to Miaka and waited for her to begin her lines, unable to shake the feeling in the back of his mind that he was missing something important.