"This is the address... Remember she might have moved house, if she has we'll just have to hope we see her walking around." Kyoraku said.
Mayuri just rolled his eyes like he didn't really care. They were both in the world of the living, to be precise in England. Lilly was right, she did come from a really rough area. Although it was in the middle of the day the weather was really bad, it looked like it was going to rain any second with the dark grey clouds gathering around, blocking out the sun. The streets were dark and dirty, rubbish in the streets and the cars were as bad as the houses, all the windows smashed and the doors dent. There were a bunch of young men wearing hoodies, covering their faces all watching Mayuri and Kyoraku. Those two definitely did not fit in well with the area, as they were both wearing gigais they thought they should wear what British people wear... Suits... Posh, expensive looking suits. Kyoraku didn't have his crazy hat on, his blazer was light grey with thin dark grey stripes going down and he wore matching trousers. He wore a white shirt and a light pink tie to add some colour. He wore smart black shoes and his long dark hair tied back. Mayuri who was the one who created both of their gigais so he could create his appearance anyway he wanted, but he kept his appearance the same as his natural look. He kept his honey eyes and dark blue hair as well as his dark skin; the only thing that wasn't his natural look was that he had ears. He wore a plain black suit and a white shirt with a dark purple tie; he had black matching shoes the same as Kyoraku's. They both looked incredibly smart and stood out in the rough streets.
"This dump is where she lived for fourteen years? She definitely was better off living on the streets!" Mayuri hissed.
"Shush, we have to be polite if we wanna' know what her life was like here." Kyoraku replied.
"She pretty much told us it was shit..." Mayuri said, shrugging his shoulders.
They walked past a waist high wall which was crumbling and moulding, at the end of the wall was a dark grey wooden gate which was hanging of the hinge. They walk in through the broken gate, standing on a small patch of yellow long grass covered in rubbish. They look up at the house to see a small worn down building, the bricks were decomposing and the upstairs double window was smashed, there was a bit of cardboard covering up the hole. Kyoraku knocks on the white, dirty, worn out door.
"Say... Is that your normal look under that paint? You look familiar..." Kyoraku asked.
"You'll never know for definite..." Mayuri grinned.
Yes that's what he normally looks like. He was hoping that i'd think he wouldn't have his gigai look like his normal self so he thought he'd wear his normal look... Strange seeing him with... Ears... He looks just like the guy leaving Lilly's house when me, Jushiro, Nanao and Rukia went to visit her...
The door opened revealing an old woman, her hair was dirty, blonde and messy like she hadn't washed or brushed it for weeks. She wore a lot of make-up, her face was very orange and she wore a lot of eyeliner which was smudged. Her eyes although we're very small, she had the same colour eyes as Lilly. She had big, purple bags under her eyes. She was wearing a long pink dressing gown even though it was in the middle of the day and pink fluffy slippers. She was smoking and acted like she was drunk and appeared like she had taken drugs.
"Whaddya' want?" She asked, rubbing her nose.
Mayuri gave the woman a cold look, he really didn't like the look of her, and in fact he HATED her. Then again Mayuri hates 99% of the people he meets and knows. Kyoraku could see Mayuri's lip snarl slightly so he thought he'd say something before Mayuri opened his mouth.
"Yes hello, is your name Rose Hayter?" Kyoraku asked.
"Please honey... I haven't been called Hayter for over eleven years." She replied.
"So... Your daughter is Lilly correct?"
"... Yes... What of it?" She said, crossing her arms.
She was getting slightly annoyed; she obviously didn't like Lilly much or want to talk about her.
"Could we perhaps come in? We have something to tell you..." Kyoraku asked.
She paused for a few seconds; she nodded and let them in. They both walked in and the smell of dirt and urine stung their noses. They stood in what appeared to be her living room; there was a brown, worn out sofa with a matching single chair to the left of the sofa. There was an old TV in the corner of the room. In the middle of the room is a glass table which is covered in dirt and fingerprints. Mayuri sat on the single chair with his leg crossed on top of his knee, his hands on the arms of the chair, whilst Kyoraku sat on the end of the sofa closest to Mayuri, sitting slightly towards Rose with his arm on the back of the sofa and his other hand resting on his lap. Rose shut the door and sat on the end of the sofa leaving the middle seat empty; she crossed her legs and leaned her elbow on the arm of the sofa with her head resting on her arm with a cigarette in her other hand.
"So what has the bitch done now?" She asked, smoking.
"It's nothing like that... We've been working and living with Lilly for the past few months." Kyoraku replied, stunned she could say something like that.
"Oh so she's with you? Where do you live then 'cos she needs to go to jail!" She snapped.
Mayuri's lip snarled again, he was going to say something he shouldn't so Kyoraku interrupted his thoughts and ignored what Rose just said.
"The truth is, we're here to find out more about her. Could you tell us why she ran away, what she was like? Where bouts her father is? If you could answer our questions we'd be grateful and we could perhaps explain why we're here much clearer." Kyoraku asked.
She rolled her eyes smoking her cigarette and picking up her alcoholic drink from the table. She didn't offer the men anything to drink, not that they wanted a drink from her anyway.
"Do you know what it's like to be a woman whose new husband wouldn't touch her?" She asked.
The men just looked at her, waiting for her excuse as a useless mother.
"It's an awful feeling; all men are like that... See a younger girl who's showing off their body makes the men act like dogs. My new husband for a whole two days got bored and saw that slut of a daughter showing off her figure whilst she was having a shower, so like what most men would've done in his place had sex with her. Do you know how crappy that made me feel? He was more attracted to his step-daughter than his new wife!" She snapped.
She was genuinely upset, upset that her husband raped her fourteen year old daughter. They both didn't feel sorry for her, they both wanted to kill her themselves, no wonder why Lilly ran away.
"So you're upset that your husband raped your daughter?" Mayuri asked, snarling.
He was tapping his finger on the arm of the chair, and his foot was shaking. He literally wanted to kill her. Kyoraku felt the same but had to stay calm, Lilly had asked him to go find out about her past so he would understand where she grew up.
"That what she told you? Ha attention seeking cow..." She replied.
Mayuri began gritting his teeth, his lip snarling revealing his teeth.
"The cow ran away that night when she told me that 'he raped her'. Good riddance that girl was always moaning about something, and her school never stopped complaining about her. 'Lilly hit this girl, Lilly hit that girl, Lilly didn't come into school today, we caught Lilly bunking'. It's SO annoying I was relieved when she left. I didn't even tell the police that she ran off, it was only because the school was 'concerned' that they contacted the police. She ran away just like what her poxy dad did over ten years ago... So c'mon I've answered all your bloody questions, if there's nothing else i'd like it if you left now." She said, coldly.
"I'm going to enjoy seeing your reaction when I tell you the following facts." Mayuri snarled.
"Don't you dare..." Kyoraku snapped.
"Your daughter Lilly. She's dead." Mayuri said, casually.
"What!" Rose gasped.
"Mayuri..." Kyoraku said, sternly.
"Those who kill should be killed..." Rose replied, coldly.
Mayuri gritted his teeth and stood up; he walked over to Rose and stood in front of her.
"Yes, she was tortured for ten days and died just one day after her eighteenth birthday. Sad enough having a long and painful death, but here's another thing to get your head around. She was pregnant with MY CHILD! AND YOU SIT HERE AND YOU SHOW NO FEELINGS OF LOVE TOWARDS YOUR OWN CHILD... Its people like you that there is a reason why hell exists... If I were alone, so no one would hold me back... I would make sure that you suffered exactly how she did just over a week ago..." Mayuri shouted.
He was bending over her with his face touching hers shouting at her. He was extremely angry and at any second he was going to kill her. Mayuri didn't realise he was being a hypocrite, he's not exactly parent of the year himself.
"... What a slut..." She replied, coldly.
She tried to push his skinny framed body away from her but he quickly dug his nails into her shoulders. Kyoraku stood up and tried to pull Mayuri off, as he pulled him up Mayuri also pulled Rose up. Her shoulders started bleeding. Kyoraku stood up behind Mayuri, still grabbing on to him hoping he would let go of her.
"GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE!" She screamed.
"Rose..." Kyoraku said softly.
"I hope you burn in hell..." He said in a dark manner.
Mayuri was breathing really hard through his nostrils. He was filled with anger and pulled his nails out from her skin, her shoulders started bleeding quite badly even though she was wearing a thick dressing gown. He then punched her in the face and she landed on the sofa, she is unconscious on the sofa and Mayuri lunges to attack but Kyoraku locks Mayuri's arm with his own arms and drags him to the door whilst Mayuri is kicking his legs to attack her. Kyoraku kicks the door down and pushes Mayuri outside; just as he regains his balance Kyoraku pushes him out the gate and down the street, past the gang of boys. At the end of the run down street was a similar crumbling wall so Kyoraku grabbed Mayuri and forced him to sit on the wall, still gripping his blazer and leaning over to Mayuri's height, he was so close to Mayuri's face that they were almost touching.
"You need to calm the hell down!" Kyoraku shouted.
"...I'm going to kill that bitch..." Mayuri said, quietly.
Kyoraku then looked at him in his eyes; he could see them beginning to fill with tears. He let go of him and sat next to him, he noticed the group of boys left the area and couldn't see them anywhere. It was just the two of them in the filthy, empty street.
"...Why... Why did she leave?" Mayuri asked.
He gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into a fist; he looked down hiding his face from Kyoraku. Kyoraku sat quietly in hope that Mayuri was going to open up his feelings.
"She was here one minute... Gone the next... I should've protected her..." Mayuri said, quietly.
"You shouldn't feel guilty... There was nothing you could've done." Kyoraku replied.
"THERE WERE UNARMED SOULS!" Mayuri shouted.
"I've been a soul reaper for over one hundred years and you would've thought I could've killed four measly souls. I couldn't protect her... I couldn't even protect my own unborn child. I promised her I was going to be a good father and would always love her..." He said, gripping his hair.
His tears trickled down his cheeks, he tried his hardest to hide his face from Kyoraku so he wouldn't see him cry but Kyoraku witnessed something he never thought he would. Mayuri Kurotsuchi crying. Mayuri hid in face in his hands.
"It's the little things I miss..." Mayuri said, in his hands.
He lifted his head up, still not facing Kyoraku although he could feel his eyes staring at him. Right now he didn't care he was ruining his pride, crying was the one thing a soul reaper should never do. To them, showing emotion is a sign of weakness, but right now Mayuri just wanted someone to hear him. He continued talking.
"I miss the way she would... Laugh at me insulting people. The way she would smile every time i'd come home from work. How she kissed me. Her beautiful eyes. I miss even when she'd get angry, shouting and storming off; I always thought she was just as cute as when she smiles. I liked how she was quite feisty and we found the same things funny..." He said with a small smile, remembering all the happy times they shared.
"... I miss waking up every morning seeing her asleep so peacefully... I just want her back... I'd do anything to have her back... I would die for her... I would bare the pain she suffered before she died, just so she could come back to me... I feel useless, like nothing else matters... I thought my purpose as a soul was to experiment and research, but I realised my true purpose was to share my life with her... And now... There's nothing..." He said, quietly.
He was crying even more, he wiped his eyes hoping Kyoraku didn't see him crying.
"...You know... Lilly once told me its fine to cry... I quote; 'Crying isn't a sign of weakness. It's a sign that you've stayed strong for so long'. You've stayed strong for her for a long time, the whole time she was captured you stayed strong for her to bring her back. So I envy you for staying strong this whole time." Kyoraku said, placing his hand on Mayuri's shoulder.
Mayuri nodded, still not looking at him. He wiped his cheeks and eyes dry, Kyoraku pulled his hand away and started searching in his pockets. Mayuri looked in the corner of his eyes, watching to see what he was doing. He then pulled out an envelope and put it in front of Mayuri's eyes. It had Mayuri's name written upon it, he looked at Kyoraku then back the letter and gently took it off him, and his hands were shaking slightly.
"Remember at the funeral when Retsu said she wanted to talk to me? When I went to go see her she, told me that Lilly did leave you a letter. However there was a condition for you to receive it. You had to open up your true emotions; it's not good to bottle things up so Lilly asked Retsu to tell me. Retsu gave me the letter and I had to wait 'til you revealed your true emotions." Kyoraku explained.
Mayuri just nodded. He was too stunned to say anything. He stared at the envelope, and then opened it and Kyoraku stood up.
"I'm going to walk around for a while so you can read the letter in peace." Kyoraku said.
"I don't mind you staying..." Mayuri replied, quietly.
He wants me to stay... Maybe he just doesn't want to be alone.
He sat back down next to him; he didn't stare at the letter trying to figure out what it said. He didn't want to annoy Mayuri and it could have something personal written just for him. To his surprise Mayuri started reading it out loud.
"To Mayuri, I'm pleased to know that you have opened up your emotions to someone. It's not good to bottle up your feelings, as I know from experience. I know you don't like people telling you to do things but could I ask for a small favour? I want you to find a girl, who will laugh at your jokes, enjoy your strange hobbies and loves you for your amazing personality as much as I do. I want you to fall in love with her and I want you to take her to posh restaurants, treat her like a princess, marry her and raise a family with her. I want you to be happy. Not really a small favour but hey, it would mean ever so much to me. But I want you to know that I will always love you. Lots of love, Lilly. P.S. Please cut Nemu some slack, she's a lovely girl." Mayuri read, his eyes filling up again.
My eyes are stinging slightly, it's not my place to cry, and Mayuri should be the one crying not me.
Kyoraku rubbed his eyes, whilst Mayuri continued to stare at the letter.
"I ain't ever going to find anyone like you Lilly..." Mayuri whispered.
Kyoraku heard what he had said, so he stood up and Mayuri looked up at him.
"C'mon, let's go back to the soul society." Kyoraku said.
Mayuri nodded and stood up, they both began walking, looking for a suitable place to return to the soul society. Kyoraku couldn't help but see a younger version of himself in Mayuri. When Sophie passed away he reacted just like Mayuri... He showed no emotion, took up excessive drinking, even smoking for a little while and turned his full attention back to the ladies. Although Kyoraku shared his feelings with his best friend Ukitake, he couldn't help but envy Mayuri... Under his creepy, scary, monster-like appearance and personality. He was still human... A human who fell in love, who's heart has been broken and has been struggling to come to terms with the death of a loved one like any normal human. He was jealous that someone like Mayuri could actually open up his emotions, that took some real guts for him to do that. He knew Mayuri had a long and painful journey, but he was going to get through it... Just like how Shunsui Kyoraku did...
Yes that's the end. I didn't want to make a long story, this was just meant to help explain what Lilly's relationship was like with Kyoraku. That's why this short story was mainly about Kyoraku and Sophie/Lilly. I couldn't really leave Mayuri out of the story but I didn't want to focus on him. I wanted to include Lilly's life before the soul society for a reason. You may find it sad or disgusting or disturbing but I wanted to explain that this sort of thing does happen. Every single child's worst nightmares all came true for her, not only did her dad leave her at a young age which that alone would stress out a child, but she was also raped by her step dad and her mum doesn't love her. So I wanted to... Prove that these things do happen to children everyday! On that note I would like to say I hope you enjoyed my story/stories. Oh and I doubt I'm going to make a sequel with anything to do with Lilly. (Unless someone gives me an incredible good idea).