PART FOUR

The brisk wind fluffing her neatly coiffed hair hadn't gotten stronger but the temperature had dropped. She hadn't prepared for such an occasion, so as she hobbled up the street on cold feet, hiding her hands in her sleeves, she almost regretted going out. Little packages hung on both arms, souvenirs from her day and the unique little shops she'd visited. There were a few more books for her collection, or possibly for the library's collection if they turned out to be poor books.

As she approached her home, her eyes drifted up and she sighed.

The place was lit up like a lantern in winter. It looked like all her lights were on. That meant she had an intruder, though she used the term lightly. Her "intruder" was probably someone quite familiar to her. Two names immediately came to mind: Matsumoto Rangiku and Kyouraku Shunsui. Both of them were brassy enough to make themselves at home when she was not there.

Eager to see what madness had descended at her house, hoping against hope that no one had authorized a party without her permission, her feet quickened. She slid open her front door with haste and sighed with relief when she heard silence.

Taking a moment, she discarded her sandals by the door turning them to face outward as was proper and stood. The paper packages on her arm crinkled as she moved, heading deeper into the house. Her sitting room was the closest. Instead of disaster she met a quiet, what was it, a miracle?

"Captain Kyouraku?"

He was sitting with his back to her at her table. Nothing was out of place, the place smelled like it had when she'd left it, and it was warm inside. Was he asleep?

Turning, he surprised her by not being bleary eyed or grinning wolfishly and in his movement she saw the table was set for two. Belatedly, she realized she smelled coffee. Didn't he dislike coffee? Something about it being too strong for his tastes and bitter.

"Nanao-chan is home!" he declared.

It was all he did. He didn't rise from the floor and bear hug her, he just sat and waited. She came around, taking a closer look at the table set-up, discarding her packages by the wall. It was her tea set which she wasn't sure was entirely appropriate for serving coffee. Then there was the first thing she wondered, which was how had he made coffee. She went through the meticulous process of grinding her beans in her own grinder and steaming the coffee through her high-end coffeemaker.

She sat. "What is this?"

"Our celebration," he answered, rather soberly. "Today is Setsubun!"

"What does that have to do with coffee and how long, exactly, have you been here?" Nanao took another look at her tea-pot with its yellow daffodil print. It had been a gift one year from her Captain. His reasoning that year had been simple. He'd thought the strong stem and petals of the daffodil reminded him of her.

"Have some coffee," he answered instead, taking a moment to pour the dark, steaming liquid into her cup. Being helpful he also lifted a spoon to add some sugar. More of it than she wanted and she was forced to still his helpful hand with her own, surprising him. Her touching him voluntarily without violence was a rarity. He returned the sugar to the table and dipped the spoon into her cup. Idly, she stirred it.

"Isn't today one of the days that you like to go out with your friends? It's a legitimate holiday; you'd have even more revelers." She looked him over. His straw hat was missing entirely and he was dressed down considerably. His pink kimono was folded into a neat rectangle at the right side of him and atop of it his Captain's robe had met the same fate. It all seemed so uncharacteristically formal.

"Hmmm," he tapped his lip. "I hadn't considered that. But I've been trying to spend a holiday with my Nanao-chan for months and she doesn't like big parties."

Her Captain sat in front of her with his uniform straight and even and not even gaping wide over his chest like he normally did. What a change. Of course, his messy tail of curls was hanging over one shoulder and he was unshaven but he appeared to be perfectly sober. It was impossible for him to have been drinking the coffee, she knew he disliked it. Back to her original theory: had he been sleeping?

Worse, she wasn't sure what exactly he meant by "spend a holiday" with her. Did he think she was sitting alone at home every festival that came around and felt compelled to rescue her from his perceived loneliness? The thought annoyed her.

"Captain, while I appreciate the sentiment I think you would much rather enjoy your holiday doing something else. Especially since I know-" she was distracted by him uncovering a bowl she hadn't paid much attention to. Now it revealed a toasted selection of red bean pastries, he offered one by holding out the bowl. Resigned, she accepted, plucking one from the dish.

It was her bowl. There was no way he'd cooked?!

"I went out to the market to get a few things. I remembered you liked these."

Nanao was speechless. "So what did you want to do, exactly?"

Fighting his good intentions was going to be fruitless. She raised her cup and sipped her coffee and pinched away a grimace.

It was instant coffee.

He leaned back, supporting his weight with one palm pressed against the floor. "Not sure. All the things I could think of that would be fun, you wouldn't want to do. So, I ended up going to get coffee and sweet buns hoping you'd like them. Couldn't think of much else."

How could she scold him for that? Better question, how could she get him to go out and enjoy the holiday with other people and not stay here bored out of his mind with her? "I appreciate the effort, Sir, but I still think-"

"Don't call me that," he interrupted again. "'Sir', or 'Captain' or anything else that denotes authority. Today I'm having coffee with my friend Nanao-chan."

She sipped her coffee again. At least it was sweet. Nibbling her sesame bun, she dropped her eyes to the table. It was easier than looking at him.

"I got you a present."

"You're not supposed to exchange presents at Setsubun," she answered automatically.

"You won't even look?"

It was his favorite "disappointed" voice. Deciding to just go along with it, she looked up and immediately wasn't sure if she should have.