Chapter 8
Soi Fon continued to silently fume for the next couple of minutes grumbling wondering how bad she was going to punish the rest of the squad for gambling on her. She had just started planning as 3 fingers suddenly found their way under her chin and started scratching it lightly. The motion was soothing for the pissed of Soi who leaned back and looked up to the owner of the fingers. Yoruichi of course.
"What are you doing?" Soi asked whit a sigh, not really complaining about the scratching.
"Well this always calms me down, and you looked like you could need some calming down." Yoruichi smiled and moved her fingers to under Soi's cheek, scratching lightly making Soi sigh and let her head fall into Yoruichi's arms as she continued to scratch.
"You should lay off your squad Soi, you know how it is, they are bored, have been since the war ended, and whit you like this, they get a little change in their regular routine and ends up betting." Soi huffed, but didn't say anything. Yoruichi smiled.
"Soi I am not asking you to let them go scot free, but be nice to them huh? They are just humans." Yoruichi smiled and upped her ante, drawing her fingers up behind Soi's ears. Although they hadn't changed yet, Soi had gotten a bit move sensitive to touches and the scratches made Soi Fon melt in Yoruichi's arms.
"Ok, ok you win" Soi groaned in pleasure. "Just please don't stop."
"That's my little bee" Yoruichi said whit a small smile. "But unfortunally you have a squad to punish am I right?"
Soi sighed but nodded and rose from her seat and headed out the door Yoruichi smiling softly at her back and the black tail that where calmly swinging back and forth like right before a sneak attack.
***
Soi walked out and up to a small podium in front of the squad who had been working ever since their captain shoot them all a nasty look as she walked in to talk whit Fuji. She had been up long enough to place her hands behind her back when everyone was in their place in front of her. She quickly looked over at Fuji who stood out from the rest of them, too bad for her that Suzumebachi showed the mark even through clothes. She quickly shot the rest of her squad a glare making a few of them gulp.
"3rd seat Fuji here is a very good example of what will happen to all of you if I ever find you openly betting about me. I know I can't stop all betting, but I will not condone you to openly do it, is that clear?"
Short shouts of hai, sir and ma´am made her nod, glad they understood her demands.
"As for the betting that has already been done, as I can't force you to take back the money I will punish you for it. All of you will do 50 push ups, doggies, sit ups and high knee lifts every day for the next week, be glad my former teacher convinced me to take it easy on you, now get too it."
And whit that Soi Fon walked inside her office again to find Yoruichi looking at her paperwork.
"You really put a lot of work into these" Yoruichi said as Soi Fon took of her haori and hung it up, as she was more or less finished for the day. Soi Fon nodded, not thrusting her voice to work around her beautiful goddess. Yoruichi smiled and stood up, laying down the paperwork and walked over to Soi Fon, who once again cursed herself for blushing so hard.
Yoruichi smiled. "Your face are more or less covered in black fur now by the way, how are you doing?"
Soi looked to a mirror on the wall showing her now black fur covered face. She sighed. "I just wish Unohana could come whit those aspirin soon."
A small laughter was heard as Soi and Yoruichi turned to see Unohana standing in the doorway.
"Strange Unohana said whit a small smile. Usually when I or any of the 4th squad officers come to the 2nd, you usually hide."
Yoruichi smiled mischievously towards Soi Fon. "Still having a doctor's fright then little bee? I guess some things never change."
"No" Unohana said whit a smile. "Wich reminds me that the semi annual health check is coming up, I should ready the chains."
Soi Fon cringed as Yoruichi laughed. Unohana gave Soi Fon a glass whit some pills.
"For your headache, 1 before you go to bed, and be sure to drink a lot of water."
Soi nodded, knowing she would be reprimanded if she didn't do as Unohana said. Unohana nodded and turned to the door.
"Then I bid you farewell Soi Fon taicho, and have a good night's sleep."
Soi Fon nodded once. "Hai Unohana taicho, the same to you."
******
Soi woke the next day as she usually did around 4 o'clock. She yawned and stretched and dragged a hand through her bangs as she walked over to her bathroom to start her day.
Yoruichi, now once again in cat form, had registered that Soi Fon had woken up but continued to drowse; she had no intention to wake up just yet. And yet, when Soi screamed 5 seconds later, the goddess of flash lived up to her name and had woken up, turned into a human, dragged on a bathrobe and run to Soi's side.
"What happened?" She asked groggily as she looked at Soi.
Soi turned around showing Yoruichi her face. Yoruichi blinked, and tried her best not to laugh. Soi's face had more or less become a panther's face. White whiskers sprouted out from the root of her nose and over her now concealed eyebrows. Her face had been drawn out to a complete muzzle, and her nose was now pitch black and triangular shaped. Her mouth, still appeared a bit human, whit the exception of the two sharp fangs that stood out like on a vampire. Her eyes where still grey, but the pupils had started to narrow like on a cat.
"Wow Soi looking good" Yoruichi said whit a small smile.
Soi just whined as she turned to the mirror then suddenly blinked. "Do you smell that?" She asked.
Yoruichi smiled. "Not in human form no, remember, your sense of smell is better whit your new nose. So what do you smell?"
"I don't know" Soi said sniffing slightly into the air. "It's sort of pleasing and disturbing at the same time. Like a kilo of dirty socks, dipped in perfume."
Yoruichi smiled. "Ah that, that would be the smell of fear and respect, I guess some of the shinigami on guard duty is doing their best not to wake you up as he or she does his duty."
Soi blinked. "You don't say?" She sighed. "Ah I should get ready for the day; I need to wake up Omaeda. The oaf has probably forgotten that I will enforce the waking up at 5 o'clock punishment."
*****
The rest of squad two usually got their buts out of bed around 5 o'clock; none of them needed or wanted an angry look from their taicho, one she always gave "the slackers" as she liked to call them.
The only ones who got away with sleeping in late where the last ones on patrol who needed some sleep after having been awake for about 4 hours. The other where Omaeda, who only got away from the nasty looks because he once again had paid himself out of the danger zone.
But Soi had come prepared and had the night before sent a letter to Omaeda's parents who sat on all the family gold, explaining that unless she made Omaeda go through this for at least a year he was very likely to die, of either hearth failure or a minor hollow attack. So in plain speaking, Omaeda was now going to be treated as any normal squad 2 shinigami.
Oh how she loved being a taicho. She smiled as she stood over Omaeda's sleeping form. She took out a huge pot she had borrowed from the 2nd squad kitchen, placed it over his snoring face and banged it loud enough to wake up the entire 2nd, 3rd and 4th squad… well it would have if she hadn't placed a soundproof kido spell on the room.
It did wake Omaeda up though and effectively. He sat up whit a scream… a large girly scream, and looked over at Soi Fon who had a dangerous flesh eating smile on her face.
"T-t-taicho, what are you doing here?"
"Forgotten already Omaeda? I'm punishing you for betting on me, now I will give you 10 minute to get in your clothes, I will meet you in the training grounds. You had better not be late."
And whit that Soi Fon turned and shunpoo'ed towards the training grounds.
******
Omaeda arrived at the training grounds a bit panicked in the look as he panted and sat down in exhaustion. Soi Fon shaked her head.
"You are pathetic you know that?" She asked. "You are a lieutenant of the 2nd squad. That means that you should be the 2nd strongest in the squad only after me. But you are not, are you? Even an unseated member of the 4th could beat your ass do you realize that?"
Omaeda frowned, partly because he knew she was telling him the truth and also because he could swear he heard a small part of compassion in her voice. Soi shaked her head.
"At the rate this is going Omaeda you will end up dead, one way or the other. But I will give you a choice. I have talked whit your parents, so as of right now, no money can save your butt out of being treated as an equal of the others in the squad. So you can agree to do this my way, and be like a fuku taicho should be by the end of the year, or you can turn in your badge and retire to the rank you had before you became the lieutenant."
Omaeda blinked. "I did not have a rank before…" He saw Soi's lifted eyebrow and small smile. "Ah, retiring in other words."
Soi took out a huge leaflet and threw it to the ground in front of where Omaeda was on his knees still a bit out of breath. "I wake up everyday at 4 o'clock Omaeda, I use 3 minutes to get ready, and the morning assembly isn't before 5 o'clock. Do you know what I use the 57 minutes in between to do?"
"I'm guessing training taicho?"
"Hai, training. That leaflet in front of you is a list of what I do every morning. By the end of the year you will be doing to, even if it will be the death of me… or for that sake you."
Omaeda took the leaflet and quickly looked through it. "You do all this everyday… in 57 minutes?"
"Well technically 50, I need to shower quickly before meeting the troops. She turned to Omaeda. So what will it be Omaeda? Hard work or giving up?"
Omaeda sighed. He knew this betting business was going to come back and haunt him. "How long do I have to decide?" He asked.
"To right here and now Omaeda. You have to decide whether you feel like this squad and its shinigami is worth working your ass off to be a part of. I am proud of my squad, down to every single member, except for you. And Omaeda that is not because I don't approve the way you got the badge, it's because what you do whit your power. So if you want to continue bossing people around you should at least earn the right to have that badge the right way."
Omaeda sighed and looked to the ground. He where silent for about 10 seconds, the only sound coming from two people breathing as well as the soft sound of a tail thrashing.
"All right… what do I have to do?"
Soi smiled, that motivation speech worked every time.
"We start whit the basics" she said her eyes gleaming, making Omaeda wonder what the hell he had done to deserve this punishment.
