Just a note that there will be no update in December, due to NaNo + holidays + work deadlines that must be kept. Regular updates will resume in January.

We're almost done, tbh. I'm getting pretty close to writing the end, and suspect that DE will wrap up before next July.


Kaito sighed and slid the door closed behind him, scrubbing at his face as he stepped off the porch and strode towards the garden. He hoped the teens would listen to him, hoped they wouldn't decide to try and help, hoped they kept his warnings in mind…

(*We cannot control what they do,*) Zangetsu reminded him gently. (*We can only warm them and hope that their sense will prevail.*)

(*That's not exactly reassuring,*) Kaito grumbled as he stepped onto the path and glanced around, looking for a place to sit; Hanataro would undoubtedly be following him shortly, so… it was best to wait where his friend could find him.

(*It's not like Kaito and I took orders well in our before, you know?*) Ichigo said with a snort, elbowing Zangetsu's side and then ducking back with a laugh when Zangetsu tried to retaliate. He settled once he was out of reach, presence turning sober-pensive-quiet as he added, (*I think it'll be okay, though… I don't think they'll go after him right now.*)

(*Not after watching me begin to panic while discussing it, hmm?*) Kaito asked with a huff, then shook his head. (*No, don't answer that. It doesn't matter. If it keeps them from trying to be 'heroic', it's fine. I'll remind them I'm not helpless later.*)

(*They know you aren't,*) Ichigo said with confidence, then shrugged in response to Kaito's disbelief. (*Trust me, that's not why they're being protective.*)

Kaito considered Ichigo's words for a moment, trying to put himself in the teens' position in an attempt to figure out what the hell his friend was getting at, but… nothing quite added up. Kurosaki was probably just being his typical overprotective self, but Ishida too?

(Had he really changed the boy so much?)

(If someone had told him to avoid Kurotsuchi because the man potentially experimented on Quincy, he'd have charged out to challenge the Captain immediately.)

(Had he… had he actually managed to temper Ishida's reactions…?)

Kaito shook his head to clear it; now wasn't the time to consider how much he'd influenced his past self. (*I don't need anyone fighting my battles for me,*) Kaito said firmly, bitterly, even as he finally found a bench and sat down with a sigh. He squeezed his eyes shut and slumped forward, burying his face in his hands and giving himself a moment to breathe. (*This isn't some… some grand adventure. I don't want them trying to deal with him when they'll only get hurt.*)

(*Hey, hey, it'll be okay,*) Ichigo soothed as he slipped closer, wriggling in around Zangetsu to drape reassurance-confidence-strength over Kaito like a blanket. (*They'll probably stay out of trouble.*)

(*Probably,*) Kaito repeated back in exasperation, then swallowed and pressed the heels of his hands into his cheekbones. (*Sorry, sorry, never mind,*) he murmured. (*I'll just… hope you're right about that.*)

Warmth-care-concern brushed gently across his awareness, the touch drawing him from his conversation enough to sense Hanataro's approaching reiatsu; a few seconds later he could hear the crunch of gravel announcing his friend's arrival.

"A-Alright…?" Hanataro asked as he settled on the bench next to Kaito and leaned into his side.

Kaito grimaced and pulled his hands away from his face, scrubbing any traitorous traces of moisture from his cheeks as he did. "I will be," he reassured. "It's… that's just not a topic I enjoy talking about. Especially with people like them."

Hanataro cast a considering glance up at him, then looked back at the garden in front of them. "Th-they won't g-go after him, I m-made them pr-promise."

"They're the sort who would try to get around the spirit of a promise without breaking the letter," Kaito warned, knowing that was exactly what he had done in order to follow Ichigo into Hueco Mundo last time. Whether or not Ishida decided to do the same thing here was yet to be seen, but… he hoped it would take some time for the teens to come up with a way around any promise they'd made.

(Like forever.)

(That would be good.)

"Th-then we'll… we'll keep an eye out t-together," Hanataro promised, then rose to his feet and turned to face Kaito, holding out a hand in invitation. "C-come on, K-Kaito-san s-said he'd like to… uhm, I-I mean, w-we can go ex-explore the g-gardens a bit?"

Kaito gave Hanataro a crooked smile and took his friend's hand as he stood up. "You can show me the spots you like best," Kaito suggested, suspecting that Hanataro had originally intended to say something along those lines given one of their previous conversations. "I'd like to just… have a chance to relax for a while."

Hanataro smile, warm-shy-kind, and tugged Kaito after him down the path. "O-of course," he agreed shyly, reiatsu so pleased-content-warm that Kaito couldn't resist tugging it even closer. That earned him a fond look but nothing else, so he didn't exactly feel bad for wrapping it around his senses until Hanataro was all he could sense.

(This.)

(He needed this.)

They walked slowly, taking a turn that Unohana hadn't led them down the day before and then meandering down the new path as Kaito took it all in.

Trees arched overhead, their limbs twined together to form a living lattice that shaded the path, and Kaito could spot more than a few tiny, unripe fruits amongst the branches. There didn't seem to be anything supporting or holding the tree limbs in place either; had the Shinigami truly spent the time to train trees into one great, interlinked shelter?

Hanataro noticed his gaze and looked up with a smile. "I-it's, uhm… easier to p-pick fruit if it's… if th-the tree is gr-grown a certain w-way. A-and it l-looks nice."

"Huh," Kaito murmured, glancing to the side to take in how the limbs that weren't over the path were carefully arranged as well, almost like giant bonsai trees.

(Then again, Shinigami lived such long lives, especially the powerful ones…)

(Why wouldn't some of them spend time shaping great trees to their liking?)

Hanataro chuckled and nodded towards the large, beautiful trees just beyond those lining the path. "W-we don't train all of them, but… e-even those are tended c-carefully. A-and we don't, uhm… most o-of our fruit c-comes from the Rukongai. These are just… b-because we c-can" he trailed off and gestured vaguely around them, as if trying to encompass the whole garden.

Kaito considered the unripe fruit overhead and let his mind wander as Hanataro guided him down the path. The whole garden seemed to be built around the idea of 'because we can'; they could have created a utilitarian space for just whatever they needed for their medicines, but instead… instead everything was arranged to be beautiful as well.

(He… he liked it…)

(It was nice.)

The reishi in the garden felt cleaner too, felt of strength-growth-harmony more than anywhere he'd ever been before. He had no idea if that was the result of the garden or of how it was being tended, but walking amongst the quiet peace felt like a weight was slipping from his shoulders with every step.

"I like it out here," Kaito murmured as hey turned down a smaller side path, leaving behind the latticework of trees and stepping into the sunlight again.

"G-good," Hanataro said firmly, then grinned up at him and let go of his hand. "C-come on, K-Kaito-san will like this next place."

Kaito blinked as Hanataro stepped off the stone path they were following and ducked under the artful cascade of willow branches, disappearing from sight almost like an apparition. "Hanataro?" he asked in confusion as he stepped off the path and ducked under the tree as well, wondering where Hanataro was leading him.

Hanataro's bright-cheerful-happy laughter made him smile, and he followed the sound of it to the other side of the tree, moving from the deep shade of the willow to the bright sunlight beyond where Hanataro was waiting for him.

"Th-there's all s-sorts of secret paths," Hanataro told him with a grin and a small nod at the ground. "Y-you just have t-to know, uhm… know h-how to look!"

Kaito frowned and glanced down, taking in the area until he finally spotted the small, widely spaced stepping stones that led out from under the tree and past them, deeper into the garden. "Secret paths, huh?" he murmured as he stepped closer, making sure to keep to the stones as much as possible, now that he knew they were there. "I'm sure I'll enjoy wherever you lead us."

Color dusted Hanataro's cheeks and his smile turned shyer at Kaito's words. "I-if K-Kaito-san s-says s-so!" he mumbled as he abruptly turned away and started down the path, gesturing for Kaito to follow him.

Kaito froze, staring after his friend as he tried to understand what he's said to prompt that reaction.

(He'd just said the truth, after all.)

(Why was Hanataro blushing?)

(*A bit of kindness goes a long way,*) Zangetsu said, amusement-fondness-warmth brushing against Kaito's senses. (*Don't worry too much about it, you'll figure it out in time.*)

He huffed at Zangetsu's non-answer and grumbled, (*This better not come back to bite me,*) as he hurried after Hanataro. (*Ichigo?*)

(*Hey, don't look at me, I have no ideas either,*) Ichigo answered with a shrug. (*Though if Zangetsu says it's fine and we'll figure it out later, then it's probably fine.*)

(*Thank you for the vote of confidence,*) Zangetsu deadpanned, sending Ichigo into a fit of sputtered explanations and Shiro into gales of laughter that rang through Kaito's head.

Kaito rolled his eyes at their antics and tucked his hands in his sleeves, slowing his pace as he finally caught up with Hanataro. When his friend shot him a curious look, he just wrinkled his nose and said, "My spirits are poking fun at each other. It's distracting."

Hanataro giggled. "K-Kaito-san's head m-must be loud, e-especially with Sh-Shiro-san in there."

"Shiro's a loudmouth who's more bark than bite," Kaito told Hanataro airily, ignoring Shiro's offended yelp with glee. "But yes, he certainly makes everything lively at times."

"Lively," Hanataro repeated with an edge of disbelief, giving Kaito a dry look. "I s-suppose that's uhm… one w-way to put it."

Kaito hummed and let his grip on Hanataro's reiatsu relax enough that he could reach out to check for any nearby reiatsu presences. When he found none nearby, he quietly admitted, "I wouldn't have made it this far without him, so I certainly don't mind."

(*Now yer jes' makin' it weird!*) Shiro protested, giving Kaito a mental shove. (*Was jes' lookin' out fer myself,*) he muttered, sullen-embarrassed-awkward. (*Yer survival means my survival.*)

(*But it still matters to me,*) Kaito told Shiro seriously, shoving gratitude-appreciation-care at him as proof.

Shiro sputtered and retreated deeper, all awkward, offended pride and squirming embarrassment with a tiny spark of disbelief-warmth-hope tucked away beneath it all.

Kaito snorted at the reaction, amused by how easy it was to embarrass Shiro and send him packing, then shrugged when Hanataro gave him a curious look and said, "He doesn't take compliments well."

Hanataro's look morphed into one of sharp consideration-appraisal-realization before fading into a soft smile. "I s-see," was all he said however, leaving Kaito uncertain as to what conclusion his friend had drawn from his words.

Not knowing how to ask, Kaito let the subject drop in favor of the garden around them, marveling at the way it was slowly changing to something wilder than the careful cultivation around the main paths; plants spilled across the ground, a riot of greens that covered the dark soil until none of it could be seen, and some even crept over the stepping stones, threatening to swallow the thin path whole. Bushes grew large and shaggy, and the trees stretched wide-wide-wide to shade entire sections of ground cover that thrived in their shadows.

He could even spot a few bird nests in the trees, and a tiny squirrel shrieked at them from a branch as they passed underneath, hopping from branch to branch to follow them down the path.

It was almost like a little slice of wilderness had been transported into the heart of Seireitei.

(He loved it.)

(It was perfect.)

As they walked further, the bright-burbling-peaceful sound of running water reached his ears and he paused in surprise, craning his head to try and spot the source; he'd almost thought this garden didn't have any water features, since he hadn't seen evidence of any in the other areas he'd visited. That it was here, tucked away along a hidden path…

Kaito hurried his steps to catch back up with Hanataro and poked curiosity-interest-confusion through their twined reiatsu in question.

Hanataro laughed softly and flashed Kaito a shy smile as he said, "Y-you can f-find it others ways. It's a, uhm… it c-circles a-about half the… half the garden." He paused his words to lead them beneath another tree, then declared, "But, I… I like this part best," as they came out from under the tree into a sun-dappled clearing.

The breath caught in Kaito's throat as he looked around, taking in the private little area with wide eyes.

A small stream, just wide enough to need a single stepping stone in the middle, tumbled over a short waterfall near one edge of the clearing and then cut a shallow path through the center of the area; the water burbled over a bed of rounded rocks, kicking up tiny droplets that sparkled like diamonds on the mossy boarder, and then turned quiet and smooth as its bed deepened towards the edge of the clearing.

Carefully arranged plants traced swooping patterns across the clearing, moss delineating each design, which guided the eye across the landscape. The path they'd been following meandered through the pattern and ended at a shallow grotto made of artistically stacked stones, the shape of it softened by moss growing in every available nook and cranny. Vines cascaded down over the entrance of the grotto, shielding the inside from view and making the whole thing look… private.

"It's beautiful," Kaito murmured when he finally found his voice. He took a careful step into the clearing, trying to memorize everything around him, then blinked when Hanataro's warm-strong-careful hand caught his. "Hanataro…?"

"I… I'm g-glad K-Kaito-san likes it," Hanataro said, reiatsu practically shimmering with emotions, far too many for Kaito to put a name to any of them but all of them so good, so happy

(He did that.)

(He made Hanataro feel so happy)

(How…?)

Kaito swallowed back his questions — now wasn't the time! — and smiled at his friend. "I do."

Hanataro smiled back, then tugged lightly on his hand and started leading him across the clearing towards the grotto. "Th-this is, uhm… I like to… come here wh-when things are… wh-when everything's just too much."

"I can see why. It's… peaceful here."

"Y-yes. Not… not many people kn-know about it," Hanataro admitted softly as he brushed aside the hanging vines and stepped into the shade of the grotto.

Unlike the one Unohana had led him to, this one was exactly what it seemed: a small, shaded cave with a single bench at the back, small plants growing everywhere, a tiny waterfall down one wall, and not much else. It didn't go anywhere, didn't contain shadowy beds that stretched on and on into the darkness, and generally looked more like a place to relax than a place to grow special plants.

(It was almost much cooler inside the grotto than it was outside of it.)

(Truly the perfect place to relax on a warm summer day.)

Hanataro settled on the bench and Kaito gratefully dropped to sit next to his friend, stretching out his legs and leaning back against the moss-covered wall behind him. Out here, it was hard to remember all his worries — all his fears — for both himself and the teens.

It felt as if they were suspended in time, as if nothing could touch them — as if nothing could hurt them — while they were here.

(He truly wished that were true.)

(But… maybe he could pretend, just for a little while.)

"Hanataro…?" Kaito murmured into the comfortable silence that had settled, continuing when Hanataro made a questioning noise, "Thank you. For… for showing me this, and for earlier, with the teens. And all the other times, too. Just… thank you."

Hanataro squeaked and ducked his head, reiatsu rippling with embarrassment-pleasure-happiness as he said, "It— it's n-n-n-no pr-problem."

Kaito huffed in amusement and nudged Hanataro with his shoulder. "I still appreciate it. You didn't have to."

"I… I did, th-though!" Hanataro exclaimed, glancing up at Kaito with a tiny frown. "N-not b-because of… i-it might n-not have b-been my d-duty, but… but K-Kaito-san w-was g-going to s-save Kuchiki-san, a-and then… and then we b-became friends!" He ducked his head again and ran a hand through his hair, voice coming more hesitant than ever when he asked, "W-we're… w-we're fr-friends, r-right?"

"We are," Kaito said firmly, hands twitching uselessly in his lap; was he supposed to reach out? Was there some set of actions he was supposed to do to reassure Hanataro? He wasn't… he wasn't used to being the one certain about a friendship, and—

Hanataro laughed softly and leaned into Kaito's side, head coming to rest against his shoulder. "K-Kaito-san th-thinks too much," he said fondly. "I-if Kaito-san says we are, th-then… then we're fr-friends a-and that's that."

Kaito snorted at Hanataro's sudden confidence and shot him a small, amused smile. "I suppose it is." He hesitated a moment, debating his next words, then gathered his confidence and blurted out, "Thank you for being my friend."

"O-of course." Hanataro hummed and wriggled beneath Kaito's arm, finally settling down when his body was pressed against Kaito's side and his head was tucked against Kaito's chest.

"Falling asleep on me?" Kaito asked in amusement, trying not to think too hard about where to put his arm and instead just… folding it around Hanataro to hold his friend in place.

"Kaito-san i-is comfortable," Hanataro said firmly, then quickly covered a yawn with his hand. "O-oh… s-sorry. A-any… n-no one w-will… will b-bother us o-out here."

That did sound nice, Kaito had to admit as he double-checked that his pendant was active and then fed some reiatsu into Yoruichi's charm, reactivating the charm's stealth ability. When Hanataro stirred and sent question-concern-worry through their still-twined reiatsu, Kaito just shrugged and said, "Just making sure no one can find us because of me. I'd rather not tempt fate."

Hanataro chuckled softly and said, "Th-that does sound l-like a good i-idea."

"I thought so," Kaito agreed with a smile, then tipped his head back to rest it against the moss covered rock behind him. He breathed a sigh and closed his eyes, relaxing as best he could.

(This was just what he needed.)

(No chaos, no emergencies, just the two of them relaxing in peace.)

(Perfection.)

\\\

It was dark when Kaito blinked back into wakefulness, his body stiff and his feet and hands chilled by the cool air of the grotto. He grimaced and flexed his fingers, trying to ease the stiffness from them, then yelped when Hanataro's absolutely frigid hands slipped beneath his kimono and pressed against his chest. "Hanataro!"

Hanataro giggled and squirmed closer, slipping even more of his arms beneath Kaito's kimono as he did. "K-Kaito-san i-is warm!"

"Not anymore!" Kaito protested as he leaned to the side, trying to get away, to preserve what warmth he had left—

The two of them tumbled off the bench and onto the ice-cold stone floor with a thump, the impact driving the air from Kaito's lungs. He lay there for a moment in stunned silence, trying to regain his wits, then burst into laughter at the incongruity of it all, hearing Hanataro's laughter join his own.

(Him, defeated by cold hands and a hard stone floor!)

Hanataro flopped across Kaito's chest, his sharp chin digging into Kaito's sternum. "I-is Kaito-san a-alright?" he asked as soon as he'd gotten control of his laughter.

"Your chin is sharp, your hands are cold, and this floor is hard," Kaito complained playfully, making sure to allow Hanataro to feel his warmth-amusement-playfulness so his friend didn't take his words the wrong way. "I'll be fine, though. Didn't hit my head or anything."

"G— a-ah… good," Hanataro said around a yawn. "O-oh, sorry. We… we s-spent l-longer out h-here than I… than I expected."

Kaito stretched as best he could with Hanataro still pinning him down, then slumped back and stared up at the deep shadows concealing the ceiling. "We should probably head back."

"We sh-should," Hanataro agreed with a huff, then carefully pushed himself up and off of Kaito's chest. He shook out his uniform and then held out his hand to Kaito, helping him climb to his feet. "Dinner a-and then, uhm… a w-warm bath?"

"Sounds like a plan," Kaito agreed, brushing aside the fall of vines and then stepping out of the grotto and into the warm night air.

There was just enough moonlight to see the garden around them, and the sight took his breath away once again; the mix of silvery light and deep shadow turned the clearing into something out of a fairytale. The little stream sparkled like a river of stars, a galaxy trapped on earth, and a gentle breeze made the plants shimmer and sway, while the trees surrounding the clearing seemed almost impenetrable.

(It was like an entirely new world.)

(Beautiful)

Haataro's should brushed against his arm, and his friend smiled up at him when Kaito glanced down. "I l-love it out here a-at night," he murmured, gaze turning to sweep over the clearing. "It's a-almost m-magical."

"It really is." Kaito took a deep breath, enjoying the fresh-green-growing scent of the garden around them. "I almost don't want to leave."

"K-Kaito-san needs to eat," Hanataro said sternly, reiatsu warm-kind-firm as he nudged Kaito to take a step down the path. "A-and we'll b-both feel better a-after food a-and a warm bath."

Kaito huffed in amusement but didn't argue, letting Hanataro lead the way across the clearing and towards the towering trees on the other side.

Tomorrow was another day trapped in Soul Society, but…

This one certainly hadn't ended badly.

(He'd needed this.)

(He really had.)