Well I was right in thinking that I would need to push back the deadline, but for a different reason. My laptop's keyboard got liquid spilled on it and it fried so now I have a wireless laptop to write on. Chances are I'll finish posting all of the updated chapters before Halloween, and then I can start from there. I hope I can keep up with updating this story and my Kaidoh story but things just keep happening to delay me.
"Shishi! I'm home!" Izumi called when she walked through the front door. The lion cub in question was lying dejectedly in the living room. "I had a surprisingly good day today."
"Congratulations," he said blankly.
"... Shishi, are you alright?" she asked worriedly as she sat down next to him. He barely moved when she almost crushed his tail.
He sighed wistfully. "The girl I've been telling you about, she stopped by here while you were at work. She told me she'll be gone for a few weeks."
"Oh, poor thing! Come here!" she cried as she pulled him into a death hug. He tried to use his paws to force his way out but her hold was too strong. She smoothed the fur on his back lovingly, unaware of his escape attempts. "She'll be back, don't worry about it."
Shishi groaned. "I...need...air!" he managed to cough out.
"Oh. Gomen!" Izumi smiled sheepishly and set him back down on the couch. "But really, things will work out. Trust me."
He sighed again but nodded. Then he turned his eyes suspiciously to Izumi.
"So, what's got you in such a good mood?"
"Nothing!" she answered as a tell-tale blush was yet again spreading over her cheeks.
He snorted. "Right, and Idid comercials for Friskies. Something happened with Urahara, didn't it?"
"...Iie."
He gave her an expectant look as he moved to sit right on her lap. "So, what happened?"
Izumi tried not to look at Shishi but his piercing eyes make her crack. "Stop looking at me like that!" she whined, covering her face with her hands. She peeked out between two fingers, hoping he stopped staring, but his chocolate eyes were blinking up at her.
"Tell me."
"Fine! Well, Yoruichi left the Shoten yesterday and before she did she broke up with Urahara. He was all sad and stuff and wouldn't come out of his room all day. But I went down into the training room thing to practice and he was there. We stayed down there and talked for a while until it was dinner time. ... I kinda fell once we got out of the room and he caught me but Tessai, Ururu, and Jinta came in and saw me in his arms and it was really awkward but then we had dinner and Urahara and I continued talking and then outside I started walking home but he stopped me and said that I helped him feel better after Yoruichi broke up with him and we hugged and it was so WEIRD!" She finally took a breath and looked down at Shishi.
He blinked up at her blue face. "I'm sorry, I lost you after 'fine.' What did you say?"
"GAH!" Izumi face-faulted.
"Alright, so I think I've got it now. That's very interesting..." Shishi said slyly.
"Shut up, furball, it doesn't mean anything."
"Riiiight. If you thought it meant nothing you wouldn't be so happy about it." On that note Shishi hopped off the couch and walked into the bedroom. Izumi nonchalantly kicked off one of her shoes and send it sliding down the hallway into her room. Right after it disappeared from view a resounding thunk sounded and Shishi yowled.
"Ah, music to my ears."
Izumi layed down on the couch for a moment and closed her eyes. Everything that had happened in the past weeks had made her exhausted. I need a vacation! At least now I get to start training with my katana... Damn thing. Maybe it'll get more comfortable to use. Oh! I almost forgot! She sat up and reached her hand under the couch. She withdrew the the small boxed from under the couch and took each out. The four stones and their different colored strings were hanging from her finger in front of her face.
"I wonder if any of them will realize what they are... If anybody it'll be Urahara. He must have heard of it at least." She carefully set them on the table. Each one had the kanji for protection carved on them, which Izumi decided to add about a week prior.
"I'll give them the pendants tomorrow. For now I think I'll just relax and watch some television. I'm behind on the news anyway," she said as she turned on the TV and layed back down.
Almost immediately, Izumi fell into a deep sleep. She didn't get the opportunity to see the news reporting something in town was causing buildings to randomly blow up or get destroyed. Something she would have felt if she wasn't so tired.
A loud, eerie moan woke Izumi up in the middle of the night. She jolted up and looked around. Nothing was in sight but she could sense that something was happening in another part of Karakura. There was a hollow.
"Nani? I haven't felt any around for a few days. "
She stood and tied her katana around her waist. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on where the energy was coming from. Once she found it she took off out the door, using her speed and strength to get there as fast as possible. Before she got too close, Izumi reached back and grabbed her katana handle. She poured her energy inside until she had just enough to maintain a decent speed without being detected.
As she got closer and closer to her destination, she started noticing two sources of spiritual pressure. Because one was far greater than the other she assumed it was a shinigami and an apprentice or a student training to become one. Imagine her surprise when she arrived on the rooftop of the neighboring building and saw the great power was radiating from a seemingly normal boy with bright orange hair. Izumi's eyes widened in recognition. I know that kid! I ran into him like a month ago! Where was all of this energy then?
Izumi sat in the shadow and watched what was playing out, despite wanting desperately to help. She saw a rather large hollow with short legs and long, powerful arms holding a young girl it its hand and howling at the boy. It pushed the girl against the wall of the house and dropped her. Something flashed and she noticed there was a shinigami there. That was the source of the lower level of energy. It was a woman, appearing in her teens. She was much shorter than the boy and was brandishing her sealed zanpakutou. Probably has her energy sealed. One of Soul Society's stupider ideas, in my opinion.
Suddenly the boy ran out in front of the hollow, took a fighting stance, and began yelling at it. Don't be stupid, boy! Let the shinigami handle it! He continued to lure it towards attacking him instead of the little girl, and the hollow seemed to be taking the bait. The hollow lunged at him and Izumi almost sprang forward to shield him, but the other shinigami had already done so. The hollow's teeth were buried deep in her shoulder and blood was gushing out of the wound. She'd managed to wound it enough that it retreated but she was seriously weakened and collapsed against the wall.
Oh this isn't good. Izumi thought to herself. She strained to hear what the two were saying but only managed to hear something about the shinigami's zanpakutou. Suddenly the hollow began charging again. The boy grabbed the hilt of the shinigami's sword and plunged it into his chest. Izumi froze and looked on in horror. What the hell? Bright light surrounded the two and as it cleared Izumi noticed that the boy was now wearing the shinigami's shihakusho and had a zanpakutou nearly as tall as he was. Whoa... that's big. He effortlessly dispatched the hollow and collapsed.
Izumi stuck around and watched the female shinigami, now in a pure white outfit, picking up the boy and his sister and taking them back into the house. Once she was sure there was no more danger and that everything would be taken care of, she ran back home.
"Should I go tell Urahara?" she asked herself on the way. After all, he seemed to be the only other shinigami in the area. "No, I guess not. Everything's calmed down by now. I'll tell him tomorrow then."
She rubbed her eyes and went back into her house, hoping for a decent night's sleep.
A very tired Izumi slowly stumbled into the Shoten the next morning. She hadn't been able to sleep the rest of the night and all of the exhaustion from the past month hit her at once. Dark circles shadowed her eyes as she looked on through lowered lids. She managed to walk inside without any trouble but tripped over one of the shelves once she closed the door.
"Kuso," she cursed quietly and rolled into a little ball to move her limbs away from other sources of pain. Within minutes, she was dead asleep.
Hearing the noise, Ururu came into the front of the store. Her eyes widened when she saw Izumi on the floor.
"Tessai! Come quick!" she cried and ran to Izumi. Tessai soon joined her and looked Izumi over for any signs of injury. Ururu looked up at him with teary eyes. He placed a large, comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry Ururu. Izumi is all right, she's just asleep. Could you go get Urahara-san for me, please?" he asked her. She nodded and ran off to get Urahara. Tessai scooped up Izumi's small body and carried her into the back of the store.
Urahara slowly walked into the hallway a little while later, hiding a yawn with his fan and waving off Ururu who was trying to explain what had happened. "But Urahara-san -"
"Calm down, Ururu. Whatever it is, it can..." He stopped mid-sentence when he noticed Tessai placing an unconscious Izumi onto a mat in the main room. His eyes widened and he quickly walked over to them.
"Izumi? What happened?" he asked Tessai. Ururu sighed quietly to herself and Tessai explained that Izumi was only asleep. Urahara let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.
"Take her into my room and lay her on the bed please. Could you take care of anyone that comes in the store today? And Ururu, could you and Jinta quietly resume your chores? I want to make sure Izumi's okay when she wakes up." The two nodded and went off to do what they were told. Urahara watched intently as Tessai carry Izumi into his room.
Izumi groaned and rolled over on her bed, snuggling her face into the soft pillow. Mmm, bed. Wait... bed? I was on the couch wasn't I? She lazily opened her eyes and took in her surrounding. They were completely unfamiliar to her. Okay, definitely not my bedroom... or my living room. She sat up and scanned the room, alert for any clue of where she was. Everything was a forest green. And it smelled like...
"Urahara? Kami-sama, how did I get here?" Izumi asked herself in a panic, realizing whose room she was in.
"Oh good, you're awake."
Her eyes flicked over to the door and she saw Urahara leaning against the frame. His eyes were sparkling in the dim light between the lowered flap of his hat and the fan he held over his lower face.
"Heh, Ohayou Urahara... Uhm, how did I get in your bed?" she questioned sheepishly.
He smirked, a devilish glint in his eyes. That's never good... "You don't remember? I'm hurt." She swallowed hard, unsure of what to think and fearing the worst. His smirk widened.
"It was an... eventful night for both of us. Would you like me to remind you?" he said in a husky voice, slowly approaching the bed with a predatory look on his face. Izumi paled and tried to retreat. She paused with a thoughtful look on her face.
Wait a minute... It dawned on her what had really happened the previous night and her face changed from realization to urgency to horror, finally ending with blood-lust. Urahara scrambled backwards as Izumi's spiritual pressure began to spike and a deep blue aura surrounded her body.
"If I were you," she said in an eerily quiet voice," I'd run. Fast."
He dove out of the room and Izumi could hear his sandals clicking down the hallway. She snorted and rubbed her face. "Baka. I swear one day I'm going to kill him." A glance out of the window told her that it was late in the afternoon and she could smell Tessai's cooking from down the hall.
She rose gingerly and walked out of the room. The first people she ran into in the hallway were Ururu and Jinta. Jinta was being a devil again, pulling Ururu's bangs as the poor little girl pleaded for him to let go.
Izumi walked over without the two noticing and swiftly kicked Jinta's legs out from under him. He let go of Ururu's bangs in surprise and fell to the floor in a heap. Izumi placed her foot on his stomach before he could jump back up and pressed down slightly. "Next time, pick on someone who's willing to fight back. Now apologize to Ururu."
He mumbled something under his breath but Izumi began to put more weight on her foot. "Can't hear you!" she sang.
"Gomen." he finally choked out. Izumi removed her foot and picked him up by his shirt. She dropped Jinta to his feet.
"Good. Now go do something more productive." He left, muttering under his breath and shooting nasty looks back at her. Izumi smiled and turned to Ururu. "Are you all right, Ururu-chan?"
She just stared up at Izumi with her big, blue eyes. Tears began flowing down her sad face and she latched onto Izumi's middle in a hug. "Izu-chan! I thought you were hurt this morning! I'm so glad you're okay!" she mumbled into Izumi's shirt.
Izumi embraced the girl back and smiled sadly. Poor girl! I feel so bad now... A thought occurred to her and she grabbed one of the pendants she'd put in her cloak the night before. She pulled Ururu back and held it out to her. The black stone shined in the light, accenting the silver kanji engraved into the middle. This particular one had a dark blue cord, matching Ururu's hair.
"Here. I made this a few weeks ago and I want you to have one. It's a pendant for protection. Consider it an apology for making you worry."
Ururu stopped crying and slowly took the necklace. She turned it over in her hands a few times and smiled up at Izumi. "Arigatou Izu-chan! I love it." Izumi took it from her and put it around Ururu's neck for her. "There. I made one for everyone here. Oh, could you give this one to Jinta?" She produced another one with a fire red cord and gave it to the little girl. She nodded and embraced Izumi quickly.
"Gomen nasai but I have to get back to work," she said quietly.
"Of course. I'll see you later Ururu-chan!"
Izumi smiled to herself as she walked into the kitchen. She tried to stifle a snicker when she saw Tessai's giant figure covered in flour. The apron he wore underneath it was barely visible underneath the layer of powder. He heard her laughing and smiled.
"Ah, Izumi-san! Glad to see you up. Are you feeling all right?" he asked kindly.
"I'm fine, Tessai, thank you. I was just exhausted. I haven't been sleeping much."
He tutted at her in a motherly way and continued stirring whatever he was cooking in a large pot on the stove. "You've got everyone here worried about you, you know. When we found you asleep in the store, it was scary. Urahara-sam refused to leave you once we moved you into his room. We all wanted to make sure you weren't hurt."
Izumi blushed lightly, embarrassed that she'd caused such a fuss, but smiled at the giant man and hugged him from behind. "Thank you, Tessai." She pulled back and grimaced at the sticky goop that was now stuck to her arms from his apron.
"So, what can I do for you?" he asked.
Once Izumi had wiped away all of the gunk, she pulled out another pendant from her pocket and held it out to him by it's charcoal string. When he saw it he immediately stopped what he was doing to examine it closer. She dropped it into his outstretched hand.
"Is this what I think it is?" he asked incredulously after a few moments of close inspection. She nodded slowly.
He remained silent as he continued to examine it. "How did you get this?" he finally said.
"My backyard is full of it, actually. I didn't know what it was until just a few years ago." She pulled the sheath from around her shoulder and unsheathed her katana a bit to show the dark blue core. " My father taught me to make weapons and I decided to fashion this with the stone in it. I had a special chisel of sekki-seki to chip the pieces off."
He nodded and slipped the chain around his neck as she returned her weapon to her shoulder. He tucked the pendant under his shirt and looked closely at the girl. "You don't need to go through that much trouble for us. We're tough," he said, thumping his chest to demonstrate his sturdiness.
She smiled up at him. "I know, but I have so much of it and I can't think of a better use that to keep those I care about safe. I gave pendants to Ururu and Jinta, too." She turned to leave the kitchen to give away her final pendant.
"Have you given one to Urahara-san?"
"Nani?" She turned and he was looking at her knowingly.
"You said you want to use them to protect those you care about. Have you given one to him yet?"
She was taken aback by his question and struggled to find the right words. She decided to not argue with his comment. "Not yet," she finally said. "I'm about to though. Do you know where he is?"
"Hai, he's down in the training room. He said that when you're ready to come down."
Izumi groaned. "Is there no end to the constant training?" With a heavy sigh she walked down the hallway to the trap door, preparing herself for Kami-sama knows what.