Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach... but I guess I own Saya...
Shunsui lay on the tiled roof that covered the eighth division offices. As he stared up at the starry sky he replayed Saya's fight in his mind over and over. Where had she learned to fight like that? Ikkaku didn't even fight with that style and he was the one who had trained her before she entered the academy.
Saya-chan, it's been so long since I've thought about your past, so long since I've wondered where you come from. How is it that no one has claimed you in these twenty years? Where could are you from?
Shunsui let out an audible sigh as he stood up and put his pink haori back around him before he jumped off of the roof and headed towards the gate that led to rukongai. He decided he should start with his father, since he was the one who found Saya so many years ago. Knowing he wouldn't be satisfied with just a written letter, Shunsui decided to go and pay late-night visit to his father. Shunsui felt confused about Saya. He loved and cared for her very much, as most older brothers do for their younger siblings. But what he saw today really bothered him. Saya's usual happy and polite demeanor had been replaced by something akin to a merciless slayer. Shunsui was sure had she not been using a bamboo practice sword, she would have easily decaptitated her fellow classmate. The discerning captain was also taken back by how intent Saya was on humiliating Kenta before delivering her final blow. Thinking back on the fight, Shunsui counted at least two dozen opportunities Saya had to land a "deadly blow" but opted to prolong the fight, and then finally reducing him to one of the most humiliating and submissive states known to warriors on the battlfield.
Saya has done that before. I wonder how many times? Her moves were quick, precise, and even graceful. Had she not been fighting with Morimoto, one would have thought Saya was performing a complicated dance. The way she behaved today, that's not the Saya I know. She always seemed slightly unsure of her abilities; earlier today she was nothing but confidence, bordering on arrogance really. Who did she mean by "we?" "We have given you enough time." Surely Saya wasn't referring to only herself?
By this time, Shunsui was knocking on his father's door, still entranced in his own thoughts.
"Kyouraku-sama! What a surprise, we weren't expecting you." One of the servants said when he answered the door."
"Think nothing of it. I felt the urgent need to speak with my father. Could you point me in his direction?" Shunsui said politely.
"Hai, Kyouraku-sama, you're father is in his study."
"Thank you." Shunsui walked the familiar path to his father's personal study. He stood outside of the door smiling to himself and thinking back to times when he was younger. Usually when Shunsui stood outside of these doors, it was because he had gotten into some sort of trouble and had needed "a stern talking to" as his father liked to put it. Countless hours were spent behind those doors being lectured at in his younger years, before he had entered the academy. He was rather amused by the fact that he was going to have yet another serious conversation with his father in that study. Even though Shunsui was happy that he wasn't the topic of conversation this time around, he didn't look forward to the one he was going to have with his father.
Shunsui knocked and heard the friendly voice of his father on the other side.
"Shunsui, my son! What a surprise! I'm glad to see you but what brings you here? It isn't often you visit your father unannounced."
Shunsui gave him a smile and sat his straw hat on a small table near the door. "How about we discuss the reason I've come so unexpectedly over a nice cup of sake?"
"Haha, that is so like you, Shunsui. But, I did just pick up this bottle in town, nicely aged."
"Sounds lovely." Shunsui said as he sat himself in one of the chairs as his father poured them both a cup.
"How is Saya? Is she enjoying the academy? I still haven't gotten used to her not being here. She was here everyday for twenty years; I rather enjoyed her presence in the household."
"Hmm, Saya is actually the reason I came to visit." Shunsui said while taking a cup from his father.
"Is she alright?" Daisuke asked, his tone turning into that of a worried father's.
"Yes, Imouto is actually very well. It's just that she had a rather interesting sparring match with a classmate today."
"Oh? What was so interesting about it?"
"Well…" Shunsui started but wasn't sure how much detail he should give his father. He was already uneasy about her joining the shinigami academy. The last thing Shunsui wanted was to cause him to worry more. But he also needed to know what was going on with his daughter. "Her fighting style was rather unique. During her training sessions with Kaien and Ikkaku, she never fought the way she did today. I can't put one particular style on it. Part shinigami, part assassin, maybe someone from the stealth force? I just don't know. It was like she transformed into a completely different person. Someone with a cold and ruthless nature, not the sweet Saya we are familiar with. But what I saw today got me to thinking…"
"I know where you're going with this, Shunsui; but no one ever claimed her. No one from the noble or aristocratic families claimed to know her. We tried to find out anything we could about her, but we never got very far. There was never anything that we could find and with her memory gone, she wasn't able to give us any clues either. The only thing she had was the necklace with her name. Did Saya really fight like that? An assassin you said? What else did she do?"
"She humiliated her classmate, granted he did attack her pride; but her reaction was uncalled for."
Daisuke frowned slightly at hearing the vague answer that Shunsui had given him. He didn't frown at the fact that it was so indistinct; it was that Saya had behaved poorly. "Did she apologize for it?"
"Hai. It took her a little while to do so, but she did in the end."
"That's good at least." Daisuke said, wondering how his amiable daughter could act out in such a manner.
"Father, is there anything that you remember from the night you found her? Did she have any specialized clothing on? Did you see anyone suspicious around? Any clues would be useful."
"She was completely blacked out and covered with blood when I found her. No one was around and she wore a normal looking kimono."
"Hhmmm…" Shunsui took a long sip of his sake and let it roll around on his tongue. This may prove to be more difficult than I originally had anticipated.
"Shunsui, are you going to try and find out where she's from?"
"I think she deserves to know. Lately, she's been having memories come back to her; and not all of them good. She dreamt about the night that she was attacked. All she said was that she felt like the person who attacked her was someone that she deeply trusted. She didn't know who it was though. But it frightened her bad enough; Saya clung to me for the rest of the night and was always afraid of her opponent during any sword fighting exercises. Well, with today being the exception."
Daisuke frowned then looked at Shunsui with a very serious face. "I don't like hearing these sorts of things about my daughter. I'm sure her attack had to be a traumatic experience for her. I'm glad that some memories are coming back to her, but to be honest, I always hoped that night would never be remembered." Daisuke sighed a little as he took a sip from his cup. "Shunsui, I gave up looking for her past a long time ago. She is our family now. She is my daughter. If she was connected to someone they would have claimed her long ago. Don't you think?"
"Father, I love Saya very much and have felt like she was my Imouto since the day I met her. But I think we need to figure out what happened to her that night and why. What if it was not some random attack like we have believed for so long? Anyway, I need to get back, it's late. I'm sure an old man like you needs his beauty sleep." Shunsui drank the rest of his sake in one gulp, then stood up and started towards the door.
"Shunsui," Daisuke said while still sitting. He didn't look at his son but Shunsui knew there was a serious look plastered on his face. It was evident from the tone of voice he used. "There is something I'm keeping from you. I've never told anyone this, but your sister, the night that I found her there was one thing she said a few times. She was completely out of it though, delirious from her injuries and blood loss."
Shunsui turned to look at his father who was still sitting in his chair with his back turned towards his son.
"She said, 'Oto-san (father) please! Oto-san! Oto-san!' I never knew what she meant by it. She kept calling out for his help. But when no father came for her, I figured he was probably dead. Being a father myself, hearing her say that broke my heart."
Shunsui's face softened and turned into a smile when he heard what his father said. He turned and opened the door to let himself out, "Thank you, Father. I think that will help."
"Oh and Shunsui, tell Saya that I love her and miss her."
"Will do." With that Shunsui left his father's manor and started back to the Sereitei. Who is this Oto-san that Saya was calling out for? Is he alive or dead like father thinks? So many questions, but will I find any answers to them? Hmmm… I wonder how long has it been since I've paid Soifon-taicho a visit? I'm sure she would love to see me first thing in the morning.
Around 3:00 p.m. the next day, Shunsui finally started out for the second division. He had already been late arriving to work that morning because he had decided it was a good day to sleep in. Then he took lunch shortly after arriving, as it was time to eat. After that he decided it was time for his midday nap. But now it was late afternoon, and time to visit Soifon-taicho in her division was becoming short. He smiled to himself as he sauntered his way over to talk to the petite taicho with the hefty attitude.
It seems most likely that Saya was in the stealth force. They cover their faces so they wouldn't be easily recognizable to anyone who would see them in the rare occasion that they take off their masks. When Saya was found, it was around the time of a lot of disruption within the protection squads. Losing a regular member of a squad might not have been given any great attention because of everything else going on at that time.
Upon entering her office, Soifon looked anything but pleased with the uninvited Kyouraku standing before her.
"Ne, Soifon-taicho, what is with that look? Pretty women like you shouldn't scowl, it does nothing for your beauty." Shunsui could see the outline of a vein start to form on her forehead.
"Can I help you, Kyouraku-taicho?"
"Yes, I have a few questions I'm hoping you can answer."
"Very well."
"I was wondering if any members of your squad went missing approximately twenty years ago?"
Soifon lifted her brow. Twenty years ago was when…
"Not that I know of, besides the obvious. There was a lot of confusion at that time, but I never heard any reports of any squad member that had gone missing."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Why are you asking?" Soifon asked, her already short patience clearly waning.
"My sister, Saya, fought in a very interesting manner yesterday with one of her classmates. She reminded me of someone who might have been trained in the second squad."
Soifon's curiousity was peaked by this statement. As far as she knew, she had never seen Saya before Shunsui had brought her to the second division several months ago. Until that time, she had never seen her face or felt her spiritual pressure.
"You see, Soifon-taicho, I was thinking that perhaps she might have been in your guard. The stealth squad always covers their faces and maybe the reason she wasn't recognized was because you had never…"
But Shunsui found himself cut off by the small woman. "No, Kyouraku-taicho. Even though the stealth squad covers their identity in public, we all know each other's faces. It is to signify the trust and bond between the members. I would have seen Saya's face had she been a member of the stealth squad and would have recognized her then. Furthermore, if a squad member goes missing a thorough investigation is held in order to ascertain what the cause was for their disappearance. I know that no inquiry was performed twenty years ago. I'm sorry I cannot help you." She finished.
Shunsui looked at Siofon with a small smile on his face, "No, Soifon-san, you already helped me. Thank you."
Shunsui left the division with a mixture of feelings. One, he had been able to ascertain that Saya was not a part of the stealth force. On the other hand, he did not seem any closer to uncovering her true identity.
Hmmm… perhaps the public archives should be my next venture. I won't be able to go through all of those records by myself though. I'll need some reinforcement. And who better to help me than my good friend, Ukitake? Shunsui thought to himself as a smile made its way onto his face. He's just as curious about Saya as I am. He'll want to know what's going on as well. Even if he wasn't interested, he won't say no to his best friend.
"Juuuuuuuuushirooooooo!" Shunsui sang as he stepped inside his friend's offices.
Juushiro looked up from his work with a slight smile on his face, happy for the distraction that was presenting itself. Little did he know the distraction planned on giving him extra work.
"What can I help you with Shunsui?"
"Saya." Shunsui said wearing a smile.
Juushiro raised an eyebrow. "How did you know that she came to visit me last night? I thought no one had seen. She needs to be more careful."
Shunsui's smile turned into a smirk. "I didn't know that she was here last night, you just told me. It seems like you're the one who needs to be more careful, Juushiro. What was she doing here anyway?"
Juushiro turned a light shade of pink. He cleared his throat a little before speaking. "She was feeling bad about what happened between her and Morimoto-san. She also was having a hard time thinking that you were disappointed in her. I just tried to cheer her up a little bit. Anyway, how can I help you with Saya?" Juushiro said, hoping that Shunsui wouldn't want to ask too many more questions about Saya's visit.
"Well, I want to find out where's she from." Shunsui said with a light sort of tone about him, going back to that sing-song sort of voice from when he first stepped in.
"I figured as much. What have you found out so far?"
"Well my father said that she was calling out for her Oto-san when he found her and that she's not from the second division stealth squad." Shunsui said.
Juushiro waited a few moments. "And?"
"Well, that's all for today. I have a feeling just asking around isn't going to get us very far." Shunsui said while he started examining his fingernails.
Juushiro just watched his friend in amusement. Shunsui looked up at him with a pouty sort of face.
"You're not being much fun, Juushiro."
"I'm just waiting to hear what you have to say is all, Shunsui. I'm sure whatever it is has the possibility of two outcomes. One, I'll be spending my time looking through dusty old archives. Or two, I'll be spending my time getting us out of whatever trouble you get us into."
Shunsui had a delighted smirk on his face after Juushiro had finished his statement.
"You know me too well, Juushiro."
"Well, people tend to do that when they've been friends for a few dozen centuries." Ukitake said jokingly. "But no seriously, which is it?"
"Well, I haven't thought up of any scheme…"
Thank goodness, Juushiro thought to himself.
"… So I guess it's the archives."
Juushiro sighed in apprehension at the anticipation of the tedious task that lay before him. "Where should we start?"
Shunsui shrugged a little, "Missing persons resports?"
"Alright, but you owe me some umeboshi-ochazuke."
"Of course." Shunsui said with a smile. It was Juushiro's favorite thing to eat and Shunsui had seen him eat large amounts of it many occasions, especially back in their academy days when it was served in abundance in the mess hall. Shunsui also knew that Saya absolutely detested the snack made out of left over rice andpickled sour plums, which were soaked in hot tea. The face she made when she had first tried it was priceless and she immediately spit it out and downed some green tea to rid herself of the taste. Shunsui wanted to be there the first time Juushiro offered her some, just to see how she would handle the situation.
The two captains left the thirteenth division and started on their way towards the Hall of Records, which was located near the first division. It was that building that held information on any report, claim, or incident that occurred in the Sereitei and, surprisingly, most of Rukongai. Any information not in the Hall of Records, meaning it was top secret and not open to the public, was kept in the Restricted Information Branch located within Central 46. Most likely, any information to be found on Saya, would be located within the Hall of Records.
Juushiro was busy thinking about what Shunsui had told him. Saya was calling out to her oto-san? Calling for help? I guess it's natural that a young girl would cry out to her father for aid. But something about it doesn't seem quite right. Why has no father ever come for her then? Perhaps he is dead?
His thoughts were interrupted when his and Shunsui's paths crossed with Aizen and Gin's.
"Good day, Aizen-taicho, Ichimaru-fukutaicho." Juushiro said with a slight bow to the men.
"Good day to you both as well." Aizen said back. "It looks like you two are headed somewhere important. I didn't miss a message about an emergency meeting or anything, did I?"
"No, we're just on our way to the public archives." Shunsui answered.
"Oh? What for, if you don't mind my asking that is." Aizen said.
"Not at all, Aizen-san. I'm having Juushiro here help me with some research. I'm trying to find out more about my sister." Shunsui answered.
"Oh yes. Her style of fighting was quite interesting, to say the least. I didn't quite know what to think of it myself. Has she ever fought like that before? It seemed quite advanced for someone at her level." Aizen said, appearing a little confused about what he had witnessed yesterday.
"That's the thing, she's never fought like that before. So in order to satiate my curiosity, I'm trying to find out what I can about Saya's past."
"Well, good luck. I'm sure you'll come up with something." Aizen said as he smiled and then gave them another quick bow. "Please let me know if Gin or I could be of any use to you." He said as he began to walk off.
Once out of earshot, Ichimaru decided to speak to his captain. "It seems like big brotha' is all curious 'bout Saya-chan's past with that little stunt she pulled yes'taday. What do ya think, Taicho?" Gin said with his smile.
"It's only natural to be curious about one's family member when they can perform like that. But I seriously doubt they'll find out anything they don't already know." Aizen said with his smirk. "It's nothing to worry about."
Shunsui and Juushiro looked up at the walls and mountains of record books, folders, reports, and miscellaneous information before them. The sight would be considered awe-worthy if one didn't have the daunting task of looking through all the papers it held. The two friends looked at each other with raised brows.
"Are you sure you haven't thought of some scheme to find out where she's from, Shunsui?" Juushiro asked again while looking at a particularly musty stack of books. He was starting to think that some ridiculous ruse might be better than all the reading, searching, and paper cuts that lay before him.
"Nope." Shunsui said quickly and in his light tone. "I thought that you would be just as curious as I am, Juushiro? Are you not intrigued by Saya's past? You watched her train more than I and I'm willing to bet all of next month's sake ration that you never saw her move like that before."
"I am curious, Shunsui. And you're right; she never fought in that style before. In fact, she spent more time being afraid of Ikkaku-san's sword. But have we not seen the style before? It seems vaguely familiar, doesn't it?"
"I can't place it." Shunsui said, "But perhaps from a long time ago. When you've lived as long as we, Juushiro, the memories start to go fuzzy."
"We're not that old, Shunsui."
"Oh, Saya making you feel younger than you are again? Cradle robber." Shunsui said with a wink
"I am NOT robbing the cradle, Shunsui." Juushiro said while trying to act offended at his friend's comment, but he couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing. "Besides, you had better be careful with what you say and around whom," Juushiro said growing a little more serious as he scanned the area, "Captains and students aren't allowed to be involved. If someone were to hear your comments and report them, Saya would be in a lot of trouble, a lot more than me."
Shunsui smiled a little in amusement but knew his friend was right, "Alright, I'll watch myself now that she's in academy." He said in a low voice. "Let's begin, shall we?"
"Missing persons?" Juushiro asked.
"Missing persons." Shunsui repeated.
They wound their way through the hundreds of stacks and shelves and finally reached their destination.
"On the bright side, Juushiro, we'll only need to look at information from twenty years ago. I doubt anyone would wait longer than to file a missing person report."
Juushiro nodded as he walked up to the attendant at the counter.
"Hello, I am Ukitake-taicho of the thirteenth division and my colleague here is Kyouraku-taicho of the eighth division…"
"What can I help you with?" The older woman cut in. She was short, slightly chubby, and nothing but frumpy in her clothes. Her hair was rather curly and looked like a poodle-puff sitting atop her head. It was clearly dyed that hideous red color that actually matched the red tint she used on her lips. She looked rather bored, not to mention like taking a few moments to introduce oneself was a waste of time. The fact that she was chewing, with an open mouth, on mastiche resin and peering at Juushiro over her thick horn-rimmed glasses didn't seem to help either.
"We would like all the files from twenty years ago that reported a female as missing, between the ages of 16 and 25 in human years."
The woman cocked an eyebrow, "ALL of them?" She asked while smacking on the resin.
"Yes and thank you so much. We know it's a lot of trouble to pull you from your important duties to fetch us some files, but we really would appreciate your help. Besides, it gives us that much longer to be in the presence of your beauty and grace." Shunsui spoke up in an attempt to charm the older woman. He could feel an argument of some sort starting; most likely with the words, "That's a lot of files…"
This seemed to work though and the older, interesting looking woman began to shuffle around to locate the missing persons files.
"That was pretty smooth, Shunsui." Juushiro said while he wondered how many non-attractive women had been told by Shunsui that they were beautiful in order to get something he wanted. Too many to count, I'm sure. He thought to himself with a chuckle.
Shunsui smiled. "I know what you're thinking."
"What would that be?"
"Too many to count, Juushiro."
At that moment, a huge pile of file folders was slammed down in front of them. It had to be 3 feet tall and the two captains were wondering how such a small woman managed to carry it without the stack toppling over.
"Uh, thank you," Juushiro said, "We'll take these from here."
"Wait a minute there young man, these are just reports from the first six months. I'll still need to bring you the reports from the end of the year as well."
Juushiro and Shunsui exchanged anxious looks.
"When did your father find Saya, Shunsui?" Juushiro asked, hoping to narrow it down."
"In June, right in the middle of the year."
"I thought so. And we have no idea if she was missing before then, do we?"
"Nope. She could have been missing for months before father found her."
"So a report could have been filed during the first part of the year if she was missing before her attack, or during the second part of the year after her attack."
Shunsui nodded. "Excuse me ma'am, what is the average time frame that someone will file a missing persons report?"
"Well, some people do it within a week, and others wait months, but rarely anybody waits years to file a missing person claim. However, we do have this one man who has been filing a missing persons claim every month for 50 years. Poor old man, he said his son just disappeared one day and has been looking for him ever since."
Shunsui gave the woman a small smile, "Thank you. We'll take that other stack too." Then he turned his attention towards Juushiro, "We'll have to look through the entire year, a claim could have been filed at any time."
Juushiro nodded and picked up the first stack and took it over to a long wooden table with semi-comfortable looking seating. A few minutes later, Shunsui joined him with another stack that looked at least a foot taller than the first. Without saying a word to each other, the two friends took a folder from the top of each pile and flipped it open. Shunsui stole a quick glance at Juushiro who was already engrossed in the information he was reading.
Thank you, old friend. Shunsui thought as he looked back down at his own file.
Juushiro was unsure how much time had actually passed when looked up from the file he had just finished reading. He didn't know what number he was on, since he stopped counting once he hit 300. Meals had been eaten at the table they were sitting at and they mainly only rested during breaks to the bathroom. He looked around and noticed that no one was in the building, most likely it was the middle of the night and any sane person would be sleeping right now. His gaze fell on his friend in the pink kimono. Juushiro chuckled to himself when he saw Shunsui fast asleep and drooling on a stack of papers that acted as his pillow. It had been at least two days since they first started their "quest for information" as Shunsui had put it in an attempt to make report reading sound more interesting.
Juushiro squeezed his eyes shut and then blinked them several times in an attempt to chase away the heavy feeling his lids held. Ten more, he thought, then I'll call it a night. He reached for another file and flipped it open. Nope, not her. After going looking at so many, Juushiro was able to quickly spot the key points that would automatically rule someone out. For one, hair and eye color were always mentioned, if it said anything other than "blonde" Juushiro shut it and went to the next one. He was actually surprised by how many blondes had been reported missing, he didn't recall seeing that hair color much in the Sereitei or Rukongai. He picked up another one. Blonde hair, brown eyes, nope. It was the tenth one that actually had some information in it.
Person filing report: Kyouraku Daisuke
Name of Missing Person: Family name: unknown
Given name: Saya (?)
Reason for filing: I found a young girl on the street. She was unconscious and looked like she had been attacked badly. She has blonde hair, blue eyes, tall for a female. She wore a necklace with a charm that said "Saya." She has not woken up from her attack and therefore, we are not able to gain any information about her family.
Juushiro then turned his attention to the medical report that accompanied the report Kyouraku-sama had written.
General Overview and Findings: Physician responded to a summons by Lord Kyouraku. Kyouraku Daisuke-sama found a young girl unconscions in an alley by his home. He reported that she was lying in a pool of her own blood and was barely breathing when he came across her. Upon seeing her injuries and the fact that she was alive, he carried her to his house and called for immediate medical attention.
Cleaning and dressing the wounds took priority, but when the patient was felt to be out of any immediate danger, a thorough examination was completed. The patient is a young female, thought to be between the ages of 17-23 in human years, 550-820 in soul years. The patient had sustained severe wounds to the chest, abdomen, and cranium. The most severe wound was estimated to be approximately 2 milimeters to the left of her heart and the exit wound just below her left shoulder blade. The patient had a deep cut running from just below her sternum to her navel and finally a gash that ran from below her right 12th rib across and down to the left hip. The patient also sustained a blow to the right frontotemporal lobe. Scrapes and bruises on the right and left knees, palms of both hands. Lacerations found on the forearm and elbow of the right appendage, most likely caused by falling when attacked. She suffered a severe amount of blood loss due to her injuries. If she is able to gain consciousness, she will most likely experience memory loss due to her brain injury. Recovery process will most likely take years. No signs of sexual assault; hymen still present and no evidence of bruising or injury to pelvic region.
Name unknown at this time, but Kyouraku-sama has started calling her "Saya" because of a charm found on her necklace. Will follow up for medical care.
Dr. Suzuki.
Juushiro read over the summary of her injuries over and over, not quite sure what to think. He was appalled by the severity of the attack that Saya had sustained. The girl he knew was agreeable and good-natured. Surely she didn't deserve to be so brutally attacked, not that anyone deserved it. It shocked him when he realized that he had never stopped to think about how severe Saya's attack would have been to cause her to be unconscious for so long, and then to have such a serious memory loss. She's lucky to be alive by the sound of this report. The Physician wasn't even sure if she would wake up. I guess not many people would. Juushiro fixed his gaze back to Shunsui but his thoughts were still on Saya. She must be rather resilient to deal with all of this. She wakes up not knowing even herself, no biological family has ever laid claim to her and yet with the way she behaves you would think that nothing this hideous had ever happened to her.
"Shunsui, wake up. I've found something…. Shunsui!" Juushiro said as he swatted at his friend.
Shunsui snorted a little and rubbed his eyes, "Huh? Did you find something, Juushiro?" He sat up as Juushiro slid the report over to him. Shunsui's brow furrowed as he read through the information. He flipped through the a few more pages, but none of it provided them with new information. Shunsui frowned as he dropped the file back on the table. He just stared at it for a few minutes.
"Let's head to bed Juushiro. I don't think there's anything more here. Thank you for your help."
"Shunsui, did you know how bad it was?" Juushiro asked.
Shunsui only shook his head. He got up and started walking towards the exit. Juushiro had a sad smile on his face as he watched his friend's back grow smaller the farther he got. It only makes sense he would be more upset by it than I am; he's her brother.
"Ojii-san! We don't want to wear this stupid headdress!" A young blonde-haired child complained to her grandfather.
"Now Saya, it is time that you learn to behave like one in your position should. We will not have our granddaughter gallivanting around like some heathen child. It is tradition that you wear it. We've already let you go far too long without it."
"But Ojii-san, it covers our face!"
"It is supposed to cover your face."
"But Ojii-saaaaaaaaaaaan… We don't…"
"ENOUGH! We will not hear of any more complaints. It is time you learn to behave and act as you should. When I ask you to do something, the correct answer is 'hai.' Don't give us that look, Saya; it is misplaced. Now it is time for your walking lessons, remember no slouching. Work hard and make us proud."
"Hai, Ojii-san."
Saya opened her eyes to a dim dorm room and stared out into the darkness.
"Hanryo?"
"Yes, Saya-sama?"
"Who was that man in my dream?"
"You don't know? That was your ojii-san. You called him that, did you not?"
"Yes but… why was he making me wear a headdress and learn to walk?"
"Your face is supposed to be covered at all times, Saya-sama. Starting at the age of five years in human time."
"Why?"
"It is better if no one knows your true identity, Saya-sama."
"I don't understand. Hundreds of people see my face everyday."
"It didn't use to be that way. It shouldn't be that way now."
"Hanryo… why are you not telling me what I want to know?"
"I am answering your questions, Saya-sama."
"You know what I mean! You are still keeping things from me! Tell me who that man was!"
"Your ojii-san."
"Hanryo!"
"I know what you want, Saya-sama. But it is as I said before; I cannot give you that information until you are strong enough to handle it. You cannot do anything about it at this point. You can't even hear my name."
Saya sighed and shut her eyes in an attempt to keep the tears trapped behind them, but to no avail. Her tears made their escape and ran down her face. She rolled over and buried her head in her pillow.
"I just want to know who I am."
"You are who you are Saya. Knowing the past does not change the person you are at this moment. Don't worry so much. You have people who love and protect you, be happy."
Saya didn't respond for the longest time. "Did I ever get used to the ugly headdress?"
"Hai, Saya-sama."
"Did I like it?"
"No, Saya-sama."
"Did I ever take it off, you know, when I wasn't supposed to?"
"Yes. There were occasions when you allowed your face to be seen when it should have been covered."
"Who did I let see my face?"
"… Your father and a former captain of the Gotei 13."
"My father wasn't allowed to see my face? That's odd. Who is he?"
"… You don't really know him, Saya."
Saya could tell by the way her zanpakuto answered her that he was hiding something. "Very well. What about the captain? Is it that blonde one I keep dreaming about?"
"Hai."
"Hmm… when will this start coming together for me, Hanryo?"
"When you get stronger, Saya-sama."
"I thought you'd say that. I think I might scream."
"You'd wake Hiami-san." Hanryo said in a sing-song voice.
Saya took a deep breath and seriously thought about screaming anyway, just to vent her frustration but decided against it.
"Go back to sleep Saya-sama. You have a full day ahead of you."
Author's Note: ...Okay, I was didn't like this chapter in its first draft and so I was sitting on it for awhile... but thanks to the help of firewaterearthwind and SorryCharlie, I was able to rewrite it to the point where I was satisfied enough with it to post. So I hope that you all enjoyed it! This was definitely a more Shunsui-centric chapter, and it was difficult to keep him in character for such a long period of time, but I hope I was semi-successful at least.
I would like to thank: DaydreamerMagby, Fefisgbf13, Germanbubbles, firewaterearthwind, rukia23, SheDevil85, Sorry Charlie, Kate 1221 (who posted a comment for the first chapter), and my cousin, whose email I posted XD. Again, I always try to respond to any reviews that are posted. I appreciate you taking the time to review, please take that time now :-).