Author's note: I do not own Bleach or its characters. This is AU. I am not very familiar with the Bleach anime, and Katen Kyokotsu's personality is based on the manga and my own suppositions.

Festival Night

As a rule, Nanao did not tend to make much of a fuss over her birthday. She treated herself to her favorite foods and attended the festival, and perhaps bought herself some sort of treat or trinket. That was it. So spending her morning with a cup of tea at hand and researching the swords was not really a burden. In fact, Nanao quite enjoyed it for the most part. She would be happier if she could actually find some answers about the blades. Still, when she put the work away for lunch, Nanao was relaxed and in a good mood.

After going out to lunch, Nanao dealt with her normal household chores like laundry and some minor cleaning. Then she made her preparations for the festival. Out of her closet came the box that held her yukata. It was a new one since last year Rangiku had somehow managed to get the two of them covered in yakisoba sauce. While Nanao had managed to get her old yukata clean, the smell had never really disappeared. So instead of the navy blue yukata pattern with fireworks, this year Nanao's was black patterned with pink and white cherry blossoms.

It didn't take her long to dress and find her geta. It took Nanao longer to scrounge up the purse she wanted, her wallet, and her keys. Normally she was much more organized than this, but the last few days had been odd to say the least. As she was about to head out the door, Nanao paused, staring at the swords. She had the completely ridiculous urge to bring at least the shorter sword with her. Not only was that against protocol for museum artifacts, but it was probably also illegal to carry around something like that. Still, the urge was there, and Nanao even found her fingers wandering towards the sword.

With a sharp shake of her head, Nanao snatched her hand back. Sticking the sword in her obi and going out was a bad idea. Still shaking her head, Nanao stepped out the door and locked it behind her. For the next few hours, she wasn't going to worry about work or those swords. She was just going to have a good time and enjoy her birthday.

If Katen Kyokotsu could have sighed, he would have. He did not like the girl going out and leaving him behind. For a number of reasons. He was sick being stuck here for one thing, and she could be a target for another. The girl was one of the brightest souls he'd come across in years, and she would draw both shinigami and their enemies. Plus there was the fact that her recent association with him would show to others who could see her power. She would make a nice juicy target, and she wouldn't even know. He had a very bad feeling about this.

Nanao nibbled at her odongo was she made her way from booth to booth. It was a beautiful summer night, and Nanao was having a lovely time. She had succumbed to temptation already and bought herself two pretty hair clips as well as a little carved comb that had caught her eye. She'd made a dinner out of stall food, everything from yakitori to crepes. She'd played a handful of games, and Nanao had even written a wish out on a slip of paper and tied it to a bamboo pole.

It was a lovely evening overall, and Nanao enjoyed herself. It wasn't until she finally began heading home that Nanao got the sense that she was being watched. She felt in her purse for her keys and picked up her own pace. If it came to a fight, Nanao could hold her own against one, maybe two opponents, and she could scream loud enough to wake the dead, but she would prefer to avoid that. Upon reaching her front door, Nanao unlocked and opened it just enough so she could slip in. Then she quickly shut it and threw the locks.

Slipping off her sandals, Nanao crossed the room, scooping up the shorter sword as she went. She tucked it in her obi as she made her way to the kitchen. She really needed a cup of tea. Her fingers rest on the blade's hilt as she fixed herself a cup of Lady Grey tea. Then she took the tea ad sat down in her living room. She needed to see if she could put the pieces of this puzzle together.