Chapter 8: Meet the Neighbors

*Sorry for the long wait, but school comes first, and now I'm done for the summer. I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy. We're going to get through this, one step at a time together.

Please review. Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, just the OCs.*


Naoko yawned and stuffed a slice of bacon in her mouth, humming in delight at the smoky-tasting meat. The food almost made up for being awake at an obscene hour. Eight o'clock was far too early to rise, in her opinion. She listened to the others while focusing on eating and not falling asleep in her food.

"So, what now?" Ichigo asked.

Uryu rubbed the bridge of his nose and then sipped his tea. Mornings were as difficult for him as for Naoko. "I'm not sure. I would like to explore the house some more and maybe the town."

Renji put his two cents in, "This might not be a vacation, but since we're here and nothing's going on yet, we could use this time to relax."

"Before shit hits the fan?" Naoko asked around a mouthful of food.

"Exactly."

As if she had personally asked for trouble, the group soon heard arguing voices just beyond the dining room. Matsuro could be heard along with two other noticeably accented voices.

"Look, our Head Captain sent us here and—"

"I don't care who sent or for what purpose. You do not enter a person's home like this."

"Then perhaps you should take better care in locking your doors."

"Angie…"

Naoko caught two scents that were distinctly Soul Reaper. She and the others rose from the table and to the entry hall, where Matsuro was engaged with two people in uniform.

They turned to see a young man and woman walking up to them in uniform and wearing swords. The young man wore a friendly smile that reached his warm golden hazel eyes. Dark, dusty red hair in soft short spikes capped his head. A bright red military jacket accented with gold buttons, piping and fringed shoulder epaulets, and black pants constituted his uniform. An arming sword with a gold flat pommel and crossguard hung at his hip in a tan scabbard.

The woman beside was his near opposite. A stoic expression set over her features with cyan eyes betraying but disinterest. Her golden blonde hair was arranged into a pair of thick corkscrew pigtails with a few strands curled to frame her face. The man's lieutenant, which Naoko presumed she was, wore a somber calf-length black dress, mantle, and boots. The only color on her person was a matching red sash with gold fringes tied around her waist. A poinsettia, embroidered in gold thread, could be seen on the sash ends. She wore a similar sword, but with a black pommel and crossguard and a maroon scabbard.

"Who are you?" Uryu asked, with his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

The captain (?) held his hands up in a placating manner, "Easy there, we're friends, not enemies here. I'm Captain Oliver Twitterson of the Eighth Company of the European Court Guard. The lovely lady here is my second-in-command, Lieutenant Angelica Rosenberg."

Rosenberg gave a light curtsey, "Head Captain Victoria Mary Elizabeth Glyndower assigned us the task of welcoming you, our Eastern brothers and sisters-at-arms, to our lands. She also asked us to see that you are comfortable and enjoy your time here."

The group slowly relaxed once they saw these newcomers did not mean them harm. Naoko looked them up and down, huh, so this is what European Soul Reapers look like. I wonder what they look like in America.

Technically being the leader of the group, Ichigo cleared his throat and introduced each person, "Nice to meet you. I'm Captain Ichigo Kurosaki of Squad Thirteen, my lieutenant Rukia Kuchiki, Lieutenant Renji Abarai of the Sixth, and Lieutenant Nemu Kurotsuchi of the Twelfth. These two are Quincies, Naoko, and Uryu Ishida."

Twitterson nodded in approval, "Yeah, that sounds about right. A captain, four lieutenants, and two Quincies. Sorry for barging in like this, but like Angelica said, the Head Captain wanted us to welcome you."

"And now you have, so, by all means, leave," Matsuro cut in with a firm edge to his polite sounding request.

"What? But we just got here?"

"Wait a minute, sir, we came here not only to help Naoko and Uryu but also to establish a relationship and gain a better understanding with western Soul Reapers," Rukia intervened.

That seemed to mollify Matsuro, "I suppose I cannot argue too much if this really is a peaceful, diplomatic mission." He looked at Naoko and Uryu, "Though if anyone were to object…"

"Rukia's right, this is part of why we came here." Naoko smiled, "It would be cool to see how another Soul Society operates, though."

Matsuro spluttered at that and looked to Uryu for help which he nodded sadly as if to say yes she really is like this.

Her suggestion also caught the British captain and lieutenant off-guard. Twitterson blinked, "Wait a tic, you actually want to come with?"

Naoko nodded with a smile and hands on her hips, "Yeah," she glanced at the others, "it'll be fun."

"Well, as long as we don't have to fight anybody or get arrested for just being there," Ichigo rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess we'll go. Uryu, you coming too?"

The Quincy sighed and adjusted his glasses, "I suppose I must. I shudder at the thought of what sort of damage you and Renji would cause," he shoots a dry glance at his sister, "or what sort of mischief you would get into."

Twitterson clapped his hands together, "Well, alright then. Hold onto to your swords, folks, because we're going to show you how we do things this side of the globe."


Stepping into the Inner City was like stepping into a history textbook, albeit a European one. Statuesque brick and stone buildings with slanted roofs towered over them. Pinnacle towers adorned some of the buildings and flags of different colors flew at the very tip of the rooftops. Wide gray cobblestone roads ran between the buildings, keeps, and manses. People garbed in black dresses or tunics and pants milled about the streets going about their daily business.

"Stick close, don't want to get lost. We'll be heading for the First Division, the Head Captain will want to meet you," Twitterson explained cheerfully.

Thin layers of frost, gleaming patches of ice, and meager piles of snow dotted the scene, a sign that spring was loosening winter's hold. Naoko pulled her blazer closer against the still nippy breeze and felt grateful she had the foresight to wear pants instead of a skirt. Beside her, Uryu wore a white overcoat and a pageboy cap. The others wore their uniforms, but with the addition of warm dark-colored cloaks.

Looking at each massive building they passed, Renji asked, "How do you tell which Division is which?"

"The heralds up there," Rosenberg answered and pointed to the colored flags adorning a passing keep. An orange flag trimmed in copper with a matching copper eight-petalled flower in the center. The roman numeral for five was engraved above the entryway. "That's the Fifth Division run by Captain Bazyli Kucharski. He became captain after its former captain was transferred to your Court Guard."

"You mean Captain Harumi? That was his Division?" Naoko asked.

The lieutenant spared a glance at the Quincy, "Yes, you know of him?"

"He's friends with our mother, and he helped fight against Aizen."

Twitterson skidded to a halt, "Wait, is your mum a Soul Reaper?"

"It's a complicated story," Uryu said. "She was a Quincy when she was alive and became a Soul Reaper after her death."

"Doesn't sound complicated," the captain replied, "unusual for sure, though."

The details are what make it complicated, Naoko thought dryly.

Their path took them to a large gray stone gate with a numeral one engraved above the door and flanked by a pair of sky-blue banners trimmed in white with a white and red rose in their center. Beyond the courtyard stood a castle that sprawled outward as much as it climbed upward as if trying to overtake the land and sky. Towers of different heights and sizes jutted upward, flags atop their conical roofs waved in the breeze.

The interior was as stony as the outside, a far different cry from the wood and paper that constructed the inside of the buildings back in Seireitei. Wall sconces and chandlers held flickering candles that glowed brightly as electric lightbulbs making Naoko idly wonder if they were powered by kidō. In a single file with Twitterson at the front and Rosenberg at the rear, they ascended a spiraling staircase. Upon reaching their floor, they stepped into a hall with walls lined with tapestries, banners, and paintings.

"This is her personal solar, she should be joining us shortly," Rosenberg informed as they were led into a spacious circular room.

A bright fire crackled in the hearth spreading warmth and light throughout the room. Thick rugs in various shades of blue covered most of the wooden flooring with a long table and cushioned chairs arranged atop them. Neatly packed bookshelves overtook two of the walls and a wide window on another. Naoko spied a large canvas above the fireplace, it depicted a spring lake with a woman and unicorn at the water's edge.

Uryu came up beside her and gazed up at the painting, "We came here to learn more about our people, yet here we are having tea with foreign Soul Reapers."

"You didn't have to come. You could've stayed with Matsuro." He certainly didn't look happy to see us going here; instead, he looked worried. Do Quincies here distrust Soul Reapers for what they did to us in the East? Or is there more to it?

"Professional curiosity," he said while adjusting his glasses. "That and I wouldn't feel comfortable with you going alone and your penchant for fighting."

"Hey, fighting is how some people say hello. It can also be a great way to bond with someone."

Uryu shook his head, "Mother never should have let you train at the Eleventh."

Before Naoko could make a retort, the door opened and in stepped an older woman. Appearance-wise she looked no older than Unohana or their mother with her smooth face and red hair unmarred by any gray. They only giveaway to her age were her fathomless ocean blue eyes that held wisdom, knowledge, and power. She wore a long full skirt gown of cyan with a swirling pattern of pale blue brocade. Matching billowing sleeves split open at the elbow, revealing wrist length sleeves of plain color. Only a string of pearls graced her neck and a pair on her ears.

"Pardon my lateness. I am Head Captain Victoria Mary Elizabeth Glyndower, and I welcome you all to our Soul Society. Please be seated and make yourselves comfortable."

She waited for them to be seated before gliding over to a high-backed armchair at the head of the table. Dainty china teacups filled with fragrant black tea were placed before each of them.

"Now I know why you are here, acting as escorts for a pair of Quincies," her eyes slowly moved to Naoko and Uryu before turning them back. "But I would like to hear it from yourselves. It has been ages since we have had visitors from so far."

Ichigo politely sipped his tea, "It's as you said, ma'am. We're here to help our friends, Uryu and Naoko Ishida, learn more about their people."

"And that requires a captain and three lieutenants?" Her gentle tone belayed the calculating gleam in her eyes. "Do you fear they will learn something dangerous?"

"It's not that Head Captain," at least I hope not, Naoko spoke. "My brother and I were attacked by two Soul Reapers, we believe of foreign origin, a few weeks ago. We've…" She glanced at her brother, silently asking if she should reveal what they recently learned about their grandmother.

He picked up where she left off, "We've come here to learn more about our culture, and since we believe those Soul Reapers came from this Soul Society, it made sense to have help should we be attacked again."

She lifted her teacup and dropped her eyes to the liquid inside, "And yet despite the initial attack, you thought it wise to travel where your enemies may be? Why come all this way now? Was it the attack that prompted you or," her eyes rose up to them, "something else?"

Uryu swallowed; she knows something and is waiting for us to say it. Should we tell her the truth about our family? Did the Head Captain tell her? Is she working with those who attacked us? Wait… He remembered how Twitterson and Rosenberg found them. No, she already knows, and that's what she's waiting for us to confirm. She sent those two to find us and I'll bet she knew precisely where we'd be.

"It wasn't just the attack that led us here. My sister and I discovered that we descend from a royal line of Quincies through our late paternal grandmother. However, we only came to learn more about her—our family and get some questions answered. We have no intention to take up any royal titles or duties."

Glyndower's lips upturned slightly in subtle pleasure. Uryu relaxed a fraction, I was right. His eyes went to Twitterson and Rosenberg; neither looked surprised at the news, which meant they knew too. The others at the table looked at him with various levels of alarm at his reveal.

"I appreciate the honesty, young man. Head Captain Yamamoto informed me that your captain and lieutenants are also here as a cultural exchange between our two organizations. A tour could be arranged today if you would like, and I'm sure Captain Twitterson and Lieutenant Rosenberg would be delighted to give one."


*It feels good to be writing for fun again. Quick nerdy author's note: the flower belonging to this Fifth Division is the Adonis which means "recollection of life's pleasures" and this First Division is a white on red rose which means "Unity/Emblem of England". This Soul Society is a mix between late 17th-19th century Europe.

Please review and I'll post again May 22nd. *