Good morning readers. Honestly, this two weeks thing is killing me; makes me feel like I'm letting you all down or something. But, on the up side, school is going pretty good, grades are up there, and, though hard to believe, already getting ready for midterms coming up in a few weeks. Fuuuunnnnn…
Anyway, real quick before we jump into anything, a thought crossed my mind about the possibility of 'hiring', or 'recruiting' an assistant writer. What I mean by that, is I'm considering the idea of having another writer help out with the story. I'm only mentioning this for right now to ask you all what your thoughts are on this. Yay? Nay? I'm not gonna put up a poll for it, just toss me a PM, or make a comment in the reviews with your answer. If the vote passes, then I'll put out the kind of writer I'm looking for.
Got one review, so I'll answer that real quick before we head into 'Spades's' Banter'.
GirlyGuest99.99: Hey, thanks for the congrats and I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. Things will pick up for Nel and Tim in the near future, so if just a confession made you squeal, what's coming up will likely make you faint, lol.
Ok, on to the banter. So, it's good to hear from ya again bro, it's getting kind of lonely around here to be honest, lol. So, you want to raise an army after me huh? Well, bring it on my friend, more souls for me to feed on. Anyway, I see you gave me a 7 this time, so I guess I'm still doing good for now, (meaning the world isn't ending yet lol). Gotta be honest with ya, I'm sitting here reading your banter post and I'm a bit confused with the second half of it. Hoping you'll hit me up with an elaboration on what you meant. So, let me move on to your questions…
1: I'm gonna assume your buddy is Tetsuzaemon, but if the two were to duke it out again, I would say that the win would likely go to Tim. Don't get me wrong, Iba is a beast in his own right, but as stated before, Tim's fighting methods are just difficult to fight against.
2: Well, seeing how it is not possible for a soul reaper to retire willingly, unless a fight or otherwise leaves that individual unable to continue duties, retirement is not likely. But if you're wondering if something might happen that will cause Tim or Nel to no longer be able to fight, can't tell ya. Sorry.
3: Uh…yes? I really have no clue, cause this question just fried a few dozen brain cells bro, lol. I'm sitting here like…Huh?
4: Not a bad guess with the demonic ability, and I'll be honest with ya that that was one of the first thoughts that crossed my mind as a possible Shikai when I fist started this story. But, no. As much as I'm sure some of you all would get a kick out of an evil Tim, that's not gonna happen.
5: No, can't say I have. But then again, names and me are mortal enemies. I can't remember a person's name even if my life literally depended on it.
6: I can't really say. He doesn't drink as far as we know (I make him enjoy a drink here or there in this story), and he doesn't strike me as the kind of guy who spoils himself with possessions. So, and this is just my guess, I think he likely donates his earnings towards his squad. He just strikes me as that kind of guy.
(Next two are switched around for explanation reasons.)
8: I can't really say I'm sick of it, more like…a bit flabbergasted at how much you love the guy, lol. I mean, he was just to be a quick supporting character to be honest, but even though he only got…2 chapters?...of spotlight, you just fell in love with him.
7: Don't worry, Albert is fine. As much as I'd like to give you a spotlight or two to the guy, I really can't just tear away from the storyline for a quick appearance. Honestly can't remember if I mentioned this or not, but whether or not Albert makes another appearance in this story, I can guarantee that he will in the follow-up, which takes place after the Winter War.
Alright, I've yacked enough for now, and made you wait too long, so here's the next chapter. Enjoy.
(I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTORS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)
Chapter 33
(A Day on the Town)
Las Noches, Present
A steady and rapid sound of tapping echoed through one of the large palace rooms of the Arrancar's fortress of Las Noches. In the room were three women, one of average height, and the other two a bit on the short side.
The tallest one, with dark skin and green eyes, was standing next to the doorway to the room's balcony that overlooked a small portion of the east side of Las Noches, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and head leaned back.
The middle-sized woman, who had chin-length black hair, and interestingly, two different colored eyes, was sitting at the six-seat, rectangular table; her upper body was hunched over the furniture with her arm outstretched and her fingers tapping on the table in sequence.
The last one, and the shortest of the three, was sitting on the wide couch near the dark-skinned woman with her legs tucked underneath her. Her long, olive-colored hair was pulled in front of her over the right shoulder as she stared out of the open doorway to the balcony.
The dull, but persistent tapping of the black-haired woman's fingers continued to echo in the room nonstop, and it was very quickly tugging on the last of the taller woman's nerves. As the tapping went on, she folded her arms tighter and tighter.
Finally, it was too much. The dark-skinned woman growled loudly and snapped her head to the shorter woman.
"Damn it, Apacci! Knock it off with your tapping! It's starting to drive me insane!" she demanded.
Apacci lifted her head and turned to her with bared teeth. "Oh, shut up, Mila Rose! It's boring as hell in here, and we can't do anything until mistress Harribel comes back from that damn meeting!" she shot back.
Mila Rose pushed herself off the wall and stood straight with fists balled at the sitting woman. "Then find something else to entertain yourself than annoy me!"
The shorter woman scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Why would I do that? Annoying you is about the 'only' thing there is to do here." She mocked.
"Keep doing it, and 'see' what happens, idiot!" Mila Rose mocked back.
Apacci was on her feet in an instant, her own fists balled while glaring back at the taller woman. "What the hell did you call me, you damn cow?!"
As she normally tended to do, the third woman was holding the sleeve of her shirt in front of her face, only exposing her eyes from behind, as she turned to look at the two arguing women with a calm face.
"Must you two always bicker so much? It really is so unappealing for two ladies to fight with one another over trivial things. So unbecoming of lady Harribel's fracción. And besides Apacci, Mila Rose is right; your continuous tapping is quite vexing. Almost as much as her snoring." She stated in a quiet voice.
The other two women snapped their heads to her. "Shut up, Sung-Sun!" Mila Rose yelled back.
"Yeah! No one asked for your opinion, so stay out of it!" Apacci followed.
Before Sung-Sun could respond, they heard a knocking sound come from the door. The 'calm' woman turned to it with a raised brow.
"Come in." she answered, causing Apacci to growl.
"Why don't you ask who it is first, instead of just 'inviting' random people into lady Harribel's room?!" the black-haired woman growled.
Sung-Sun rolled her eyes to the woman as the door opened. "Because it is quite obvious who it is, Apacci. All of the Espada are in the meeting with Lord Aizen, leaving only the fracción. And who among them would want to come see us besides, Lilynette?" she observed.
Apacci instantly turned her head back to the door to see that is was, indeed, the small girl who was at the door. The girl closed the door behind her before waving at the three women in front of her.
"Morning guys, whatcha doing?" she asked in a cheerful voice.
Sung-Sun again turned her eyes back to her two comrades. "Attempting to end a fight before it starts, it would seem."
Mila Rose and Apacci snapped back to her. "Shut up!" they yelled in unison.
The former then turned to the small Arrancar. "What do you want, Lilynette? Looking for Stark again?" she inquired.
Lilynette shook her head. "No, he actually went to the meeting on time today."
"That's surprising." Apacci and Mila Rose mumbled in unison.
The small Arrancar snickered gleefully. "I know, right? Anyways, I'm actually here to talk with you guys about something." She corrected.
Apacci scoffed and sat back down with her arms crossed. "Whatever, just spit it out already." She demanded.
Sung-Sun turned her head to her. "Must you be so rude, Apacci? At least now you have something to do."
The black-haired woman glared at her. "I wasn't talking to you, Sung-Sun! So be quiet!"
Lilynette chuckled under her breath. Although she would never say it in front of them, she always found the arguing of the Tres Espada's fracción to be very amusing. Just a single word, or even an odd look, would set them off, which was something that the small Arrancar would do on occasion just for entertainment.
She was actually highly tempted at that moment to make the three of them argue even more, but with what she had to discuss with them at the moment, it was better to let them calm down instead.
"Actually, I'm hoping we can keep this between the four of us." She informed, causing the three other women to look at her with mixed faces.
Sung-Sun was looking at her with a raised brow. "Oh? Then this should be interesting. What is it?" she questioned.
Lilynette sighed with slumped shoulders. "I was…hoping to talk to you guys about…Lady Nelliel."
The women's expressions instantly soured. "What the hell do you want to talk about that traitor for?" Apacci demanded sternly.
Mila Rose nodded. "I agree. There should be nothing to discuss about her, besides the worst death we can give her." She added; earning, surprisingly, a nod of agreement from Apacci.
Lilynette sighed again. "Guys…I know this is going to sound stupid, but…I think that…she might actually be innocent." She informed.
Their eyes went wide. "Excuse me?! Did you just fucking say you think she's innocent?!" Apacci sneered.
Sung-Sun looked at the seething woman. "Now now Apacci, calm down. Let's at least hear what Lilynette has to say." She placated.
Mila Rose glared at her. "I don't think so, Sung-Sun. We 'all' saw that video that Aizen showed us, even you, and it 'clearly' shows the woman killing her 'own' fracción. She's obviously guilty, and we have nothing to talk about when it comes to her."
Lilynette shook her head sternly. "I don't think so guys, I think she was tricked."
Apacci rolled her eyes. "Yeah, sure she was. And just 'how' do you think that's the case, Lilynette?"
The girl shrugged her shoulders. "Aizen must have used one of his illusions."
Mila Rose narrowed her eyes at the small Arrancar. "You better watch what you say, Lilynette. You know Lord Aizen sees and hears everything around here. And you also know that his illusions can't fool cameras. She 'obviously' killed Pesche and Dondochakka. Or do you think the cameras are lying too?"
Lilynette dropped her head. "I can't deny that Pesche and Dondochakka were killed by Nelliel's hands, Mila Rose. But what if she was tricked into doing it?" she said, then lifted her head back. "We all know that Pesche and Dondochakka were very loyal to Nelliel, not Aizen. You know without any doubt that they would have followed her, regardless of what she was doing. They may have tried to talk her out of something, but they 'still' would have done what she asked. You all know this. And even if they didn't, she would have 'never' harmed them."
The taller woman sighed. "I'll admit that she was kind to everyone, especially us. And that she cared a lot for her fracción, just like Lady Harribel does. But regardless, she killed her two fracción, and turned against us. Didn't you hear the report from Ulquiorra? She fought against the Espada, twice. She 'helped' the soul reapers, Lilynette. Even 'if' she was tricked, she is still a traitor to the Arrancar. I know the two of you were very close, but she is gone now. So I strongly suggest you get that in your head and drop the matter before Lord Aizen finds out." Mila Rose warned.
The girl dropped her head again and nodded. "Yeah, I guess I'll see you guys later then." She said in a defeated voice.
The tiny Arrancar then turned and walked back to the door, leaving the room and closing it behind her. Sung-Sun turned to face her two comrades who were staring at the door, both with agitated looks on their faces.
"You know, she did have a point." She stated, gaining their attention.
"Don't you start too, Sung-Sun. She's just upset that her best friend and 'sister' is gone." Apacci warned.
Sung-Sun rose a brow at the two of them. "Do you not find this whole thing a little…off? You two know that she is right, that Pesche and Dondochakka would have sided with her. That she would simply kill the both of them, knowing that they would follow her, I actually find that to be a bit odd. Surely you two must feel that something is missing?" she questioned.
Mila Rose sighed heavily. "It doesn't matter what we feel, Sung-Sun. Our loyalty is to Lady Harribel, and her loyalty is to Lord Aizen. And besides, she sided with the soul reapers, so that makes her an enemy, regardless of what happened. Lilynette needs to just forget her and worry about doing her job as a fracción. Now just drop it."
"Agreed." Apacci followed, then folder her arms on the table and rested her head in the space they created.
Sung-Sun watched the two Arrancars for a moment, then turned to the door with a narrowed gaze.
"I doubt that will happen." She thought.
Northeast Side of Karakura Town, Midday
Timothy flashed into existence on the rooftop of the shopping mall he had taken Nel to days before; followed almost immediately by Renji, where the younger Lieutenant walked up to the older.
"Nothing?" Timothy inquired.
Renji sighed and closed his eyes as he shook his head. "Not a thing. I checked just about every inch of the area, and I haven't found a single thing out of place. You?" he returned.
The younger man shrugged his shoulders. "Pretty much the same for me. I think I'm starting to have doubts about that Ulquiorra guy's mission. Maybe he wasn't part of it, or maybe he was just an observer."
Abarai nodded. "That's true, but we haven't checked towards the center of town yet, so we shouldn't count out our original thoughts just yet. I was about to get started, but I thought I'd check with you first."
Timothy rubbed the short hair of his chin and hummed in thought. "Sounds good to me, but what do you say we catch something to eat first? There's a place nearby that serves some pretty good barbeque."
His peer rose an amused brow at him. "How do you plan to eat there without our gigais? Yours is back at Kisuke's, and mine's at Chad's place. It would take close to twenty or thirty minutes to grab em and get back here. I doubt Captain Hitsugaya would be very happy about us taking time off just for barbeque."
The blonde man rose a brow of his own in return. "So? That's an easy fix. We checked our areas, and now we're jumping into our gigais to talk to the humans about anything odd. We just so happened to pass by the place and grab something quick to eat." He stated with a grin.
Renji thought about it for a second, then grinned back. "Yeah, asking the humans some questions is a great idea, Tim."
"Is that so?" a third voice questioned.
The two Lieutenants flinched before snapping their heads towards the voice to see Toshiro standing a few yards away with his arms crossed, clearly annoyed.
Timothy rolled his eyes with a scoff. "Oh, come on, Captain. Both of our outer areas are done, and I thought we could grab something to eat before moving towards the center of town. An hour isn't going to kill us. If anything, you should join us. Hell, I'll even pay for you guys. Ever had barbeque?"
The Captain furrowed his brows a bit. "No, I haven't. And that's besides the point. We have a job to do, and spending an hour to retrieve your gigais just to eat is not going to get it done."
Timothy sighed with slumped shoulders. "Captain, I want to find out what the Espada was up to just as much as you do, but seeing as we've been at this almost non-stop for a day and a half, I think an hour break to just sit, relax, and clear our heads will do a lot of good." He pressed.
Renji turned to the shorter officer. "He's got a point, Captain. Besides, we can also discuss our search patterns for the deeper parts of the city." He added.
Toshiro moaned loudly in annoyance. "Fine. Contact the others, and tell them to meet up back here in their gigais. And since Tim was so kind to offer, he'll be fronting the bill…for 'all' of us."
Timothy's eyes went wide. "Hey, I said I'd pay for 'yours' Captain, not 'everyone's'!" he defended.
The Captain rose a brow. "If I remember correctly, you said you would for us 'guys', you never said how many. Thank you for the offer, Lieutenant." He stated, then flashed away.
Renji turned to his friend, who now had his head dropped. "He had a point as well, Tim."
Timothy glared at the man. "You're supposed to be 'helping' me, you traitor."
The red-haired man walked over to him and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Tim, I'll always help you, except when it comes to free food. You're on your own on that one." He said with a wide smile.
The younger man growled. "I hate you." He hissed.
"I thought you hated me and Kisuke?" Kitsune teased.
"Don't you dare start with your stupid games, Kit. You're already grounded from ice cream, you wanna add alcohol to the list?" he threatened.
The spirit snarled back. "Damn you! Conniving bastard!"
"Ha! You've got balls to call 'me' conniving, you damn fox." He said aloud.
Renji rose a brow and crossed his arms. "Let me guess, Kit acting her normal self again?" he observed.
Timothy turned his head slowly to give the man a cold gaze. "Is that a rhetorical question, or are you actually expecting an answer? I can't really tell." He mocked.
The older man threw his hand to the air. "Forget I asked. Anyway, I better get back and get my gigai. See ya in a few." He said, then vanished as well.
Timothy sighed and shook his head. "Idiot." He mumbled, then shunpoed away.
Urahara Shop, Present
"Ow! Damn you, you stupid, useless, evil tool!" Nel hissed as she held the index finger of her right hand.
After hitting her own finger, rather than the nail, for the tenth time, the woman was starting to go well beyond angry. She had already nearly thrown the accursed tool through the nearby window twice, and thrown it off the roof once, forcing her to climb back down to retrieve it.
She had been up on the shop's roof for close to four hours now, and the only work the poor woman had to show for it was several broken shingles from missing with the hammer, and well over a few dozen crooked ones.
The woman placed her sore finger in her mouth and began sucking on it to help alleviate the pain, not that it was doing much good. She had hit that same finger three times now, while hitting her thumb five times, and the back of her hand twice.
Basically, her entire hand was throbbing.
"Damn that Kisuke. Stupid fox. Stupid roof." She ranted on with her finger in her mouth.
After a moment, she removed her hand and grabbed another nail from the box next to her, growling in slight pain as she did. She picked up one of the nails and positioned it where she had last attempted to hammer one in.
Picking up the hammer with her other hand, she held it resting on top of the nail head. Lifting it up and lowering it down a few times to make sure her aim was right, she reared the tool back and brought it back down on the metal object.
"Nel?" a voice called.
The voice distracted her just enough that it threw her aim off, right on top of her hand again. Her whole body tensed at the flash of pain as she gritted her teeth tightly, before quickly yelling out loudly in pain as she held her hand again.
"Damn it! Again?!" she yelled, then glared at the owner of the voice. "What do you want, Tim?!"
The Lieutenant stood in the empty lot, his shoulders slumped, and a very confused look on his face. He stared at her for a moment, then tilted his head to the side.
"What the hell are you doing? Why are you up there working on the roof?" he questioned.
Nel gritted her teeth tighter with a growl. "What the hell does it look like, Tim?! I'm fixing all the damage that you and Kit caused!" she answered.
Timothy continued to stare at her unmoving. "…And…who told you to do that?"
She furrowed her brows evilly. "Who the hell do you think?!"
His eyes widened for a split second, then narrowed as he turned to the front door. "Kisuke!" he hissed in a low voice.
"…He made 'Nel' fix it?! What the hell is wrong with that man?!" Kitsune yelled in his head.
He growled lowly before walking towards the door. "I 'very' strongly suggest you keep that mouth of yours shut, Kit! Afterall, it was your mouth that caused all this! Like always!" he pointed out.
"You're the one who was trying to kill me! 'You' caused all that damage! Don't blame this one on me!" she defended.
"Shut it!" he demanded as he slid the door open. "Kisuke!" he yelled inside.
As if on cue, the shop owner stuck his head out from around the corner of the kitchen. "You rang?" he inquired with a smile.
Timothy thrusted a finger up to the ceiling. "What the fuck do you think you're doing making Nel fix your damn roof?! I 'told' you that I would fix it this evening after the search was over for the day!"
Kisuke fully came out from around the corner and stood there waving his fan at himself. "Ah, but miss Nel is my assistant, right? So, I thought I would have her work on the roof as her job for the day." He answered in a cheeky voice.
The Lieutenant dropped his hand to his side in a fist. "I don't give two shits if she's helping you out or not, you don't make a woman climb the fucking roof when you or Tessai can do it! Especially when, again, I said 'I' would do it! Get her off that damn roof, you damn fool! Now!" he demanded.
The shop owner dropped his hand with a sigh. "You need to calm down, Tim. I gave her something that would be simple to do so she can get used to working like a human would. There's not really much else she can do inside, and it's not like she can leave the shop for employment somewhere else, right? What if she was attacked? You think it wise for her to leave her gigai while outside now that the soul society is paying very close attention to the area?"
Timothy rose a brow at him. "But did it 'have' to be the roof? Are you seriously telling me that you have no other jobs that she could handle outside?" he questioned.
"Jinta and Ururu take care of the daily cleaning, so besides the roof repair, not really. She's a former Espada, Tim; don't you think that she can handle something simple as roof repair?" Kisuke returned.
The Lieutenant's other brow rose as he gestured outside with his thumb. "I don't know, why don't you go outside and take a look and see for yourself?"
Urahara then rose a brow himself, and began walking towards the door. The two men walked out to the empty lot and turned around to look at the roof, where Kisuke's eyes went wide at the sight of the Arrancar's repair job.
Nearly all of the, so far, replaced shingles were either crooked or deformed, there were small patches of the underlying wood exposed, and the large sign that, originally, read 'Urahara Shop', was now put back together and read 'Uraha Shop'; the whole sign canted heavily to the right.
Timothy folded his arms and side-glanced the shop owner. "Still think it's a good idea to have Nel fix your roof, Kisuke?" he pressed.
Kisuke rolled his eyes to him. "Point taken." He said, then returned to Nel. "That's fine, miss Nel. Tim here will take the rest from there." He yelled out.
The woman glared at him. "What's wrong, Kisuke? You don't like my work?" she challenged in a very dangerous tone.
An evil, yet brilliant idea came to Timothy's mind, where he turned to her and grinned. "I think it looks great, Nel. You're doing a nice job. In fact, it looks so good that I think you should replace the whole thing." He yelled back.
The shop owner's eyes became saucers at the thought of the what state his roof would be in if he allowed that. The man swallowed hard and offered a very weak smile at the woman.
"No no, that won't be necessary, miss Nel. You did a fine job, I just think Tim here should take care of the rest; seeing as how he and Kit were the ones who caused the damage in the first place." He offered.
The Lieutenant turned back to him. "Are you sure? I'm sure Nel wouldn't mind giving your roof an overhaul, Kisuke. I'd even make sure she pays 'careful' attention to the area above your room." He said in a tone loud enough for her to hear.
Nel caught on to what he was implying and nodded with a 'smile'. "No, I don't mind at all, Kisuke. I mean, I am staying here, so the least I can do is make sure your shop is in 'perfect' shape." She added.
Kisuke quickly waved her off with his fan. "Please, that's not necessary, miss Nel. It looks just fine as it is. Thank you so much for your hard work." He said rather quickly.
Timothy and Nel exchanged knowing grins at each other. "Well, I guess it's his loss then, Nel. Since you've got nothing else to do right now, you wanna join me and the others for lunch?" he offered.
The woman smiled and nodded. "I'd like that. I'll be down in just a minute, Tim." she returned.
He nodded back and turned to the still stunned shop owner. "Look Kisuke, I'm sorry about your roof, but just because I can't get to fixing it right away, doesn't mean you pawn it off on Nel. I get that you were having her learn a new skill, but have her do something that doesn't involve someone else's mistakes. Alright?"
Kisuke glanced at him and continued waving his fan. "As I had told miss Nel, she is also to blame for the damage to my roof, Tim. While it's true that you and Kit are responsible for the actual damage, miss Nel brought the cause of the damage on by telling you where to find Kit. So all three of you are responsible. And while we're on the subject, you do realize that you owe me a substantial amount of money for the damages Kit and miss Nel have caused so far, right?" he said with a grin.
Timothy's face dropped instantly. "Don't remind me. I still haven't been payed yet, so I'm still stuck with using the squad's mission budget. You'll get your damn money, Kisuke. I always pay my dues, just ask Kit. Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta go get my gigai so I can meet back with the others." He concluded, then turned to leave.
The shop owner waved his fan at him. "One more thing, Tim. If you don't mind, you think you could pick up a few things while you are out? Nothing big, just some things for the shop." He inquired.
The Lieutenant scoffed lightly. "Yeah, sure."
Kisuke smiled widely. "Perfect! Here's the list, Tim." he said, holding out a small piece of paper to the man.
Timothy accepted it and gave it a quick glance before raising a brow in confusion. "Kisuke…you do realize that if I get this, that it's not going to be a good day later…right?" he questioned, now side-glancing the shop owner.
"Well, then I suggest you keep a close eye on your two female companions." He advised.
The Lieutenant shook his head with a sigh. "Easier said than done." He mumbled to himself.
He then turned to see Nel walking up to them, carrying his gigai on her back. "Here you go, Tim. I'm ready to leave when you are." She stated, setting the faux body down into a sitting position next to him.
"Thanks, Nel." He returned with a smile.
The man kneeled down and pulled himself inside the body as Nel turned to Kisuke. "Are you sure you do not want me to finish your roof, Kisuke?" she asked with a low, and threatening voice.
Urahara began to sweat as he shied away from her a bit. "Oh yes, I'm sure miss Nel. Thank you so much for your…hard work." He assured, hesitantly.
She squinted at him slightly. "Very well. If there is anything else you would like some help with, please let me know, Kisuke." She 'insisted'.
The shop owner swallowed the lump in his throat as he fanned himself even faster. "Of course! I'll be sure to let you know if anything comes up, miss Nel!" he said rather quickly.
Timothy then stood up and rotated his shoulder a few times. "Why wait for him to ask, Nel? If you see something that needs 'work' done to it, just do it." He pressed, making the shop owner sweat even more.
He simply couldn't believe that the two of them had somehow managed to turn the tables on him. And now he was finding himself to be very fearful for the wellbeing of his beloved shop.
"Please, that is 'really' not necessary, Tim. Now, if you will excuse me, I have some…things to take care of. Enjoy your get-together you two." He said, then swiftly walked back inside the shop.
After he was out of sight, Timothy snickered while Nel chuckled. Kitsune on the other hand, couldn't help but raise a brow at her partner's behavior.
"Wow…You really are conniving, Tim. I starting to feel bad for Kisuke now." She admitted.
He scoffed at her. "You should, seeing as how you're the one who started all this. Did you at least learn your lesson last night?" he questioned.
The spirit growled back. "Leave me alone. It was just a stupid joke, Tim. You know, ha ha?"
"The only 'ha ha' I'll be giving is when you finally learn your lesson. Now be quiet." He instructed.
Nel chuckled at him. "I'm sure I know what she's saying right now, so I won't ask. Are you ready?"
Timothy moaned, but nodded. "Yeah, we should get going. The Captain didn't even like the idea about lunch in the first place, and being late is only going to make him that much more annoyed. Not to mention the fact that you're coming too."
The woman nodded lightly as they began to walk. "I know he still doesn't trust me that much, but he doesn't seem to mind me being around anymore." She observed.
"Well, after saving his ass from that fracción, he'd be stupid to not trust you at least a little. But, I guess we'll see how far that trust is when we all sit down to eat." He returned with a hand gesture.
She nodded again. "I guess. So where are we going this time? That steak place again?" she inquired.
Timothy chuckled at her question. "No, we're going somewhere else that I think you'll like. Once we're done, I guess you can join up with Renji and help him out with the search again. You two seem to be getting along much better than when you first met."
Nel hummed in thought a moment. "Yes, he and I have gotten a lot closer to each other. To be honest, it still feels a bit strange that I'm a friend to a bunch of soul reapers. But I'm actually glad that I am though. Everyone, especially you Tim, has helped me so much, and shown me that not everything is as it seems. I'm glad that I saved you that day in the park."
The Lieutenant gave a breathy laugh. "Yeah, me too, for obvious reasons. And the Captain will eventually come to trust you, he just needs more time is all. But right now, I think he's far more concerned about the difference in power between us and the Espada. The training you did with him this morning really worried him, I can tell."
The woman stopped walking and lowered her head, causing him to stop as well and turn to her. "He should be worried, Tim." she stated, then looked up at him. "As much as I don't want to say it, the Espada are far more powerful than even a Captain. Even without his limiter, he would be very hard-pressed to defeat one. I can't just outright tell him that he is no match for an Espada alone, it would be insulting to him. And with my particular situation, the last thing I want to do is insult him. That is the main reason why I wanted to train with him, to 'show' him just how outmatched he would be." She enlightened.
Timothy sighed before walking up to her and resting a hand on her shoulder. "Nel, anyone would be upset for being doubted; but I know the Captain would rather be doubted than outright defeated. He'll take what you've shown him and use it to better himself and his men. I mean, he did allow you to train with the others, right?"
She nodded slightly. "He did, although I could tell he was very hesitant about it. I honestly don't blame him, as I am sure the thought of me still working with Aizen is still on his mind. I know that it will take a bit more time to convince him otherwise, but with Ulquiorra and Grimmjow showing up like they did, I'm not sure that we have that time. Grimmjow always does whatever he wants, but Ulquiorra 'always' has a purpose behind anything he does. If he was here, there was a reason for it." She assured firmly.
He nodded back. "That's why we're going through so much trouble searching the city to find out what that purpose was, Nel. Whatever it was, we'll find it. Now, let's hurry up and meet with the others. The Captain is already making me pay for everyone's meals, and I don't want to see what he'll do if we're late." He lightly moaned.
Nel rose a brow at him in puzzlement. "He's making you pay for everyone? Isn't that a little…wrong?" she questioned.
The man sighed as he turned to continue walking. "Personally, I don't really mind buying lunch for everyone once in a while, but I would rather do it on my own accord than to be told to do so. It just sucks that I'm still using the squad's mission budget for now. I'm surprised I haven't gotten an inquiry or anything from the Captain yet. But we really need to get going; we're already late as it is now." He insisted.
She nodded and rejoined him at the side as they continued walking at a brisk pace. They continued down the narrow street for a short while, and it wasn't until they turned onto a two-way road that he turned to her again.
"Have you chatted with Gamuza today, or are you two still trying to settle differences?" he inquired.
The woman lowered her head a little bit with a low sigh. "I spoke with her today, actually. She still has her…thoughts about you and my situation with the others. I'm afraid it may be a while before she and I will be able to talk like we used to." She fretted.
He tilted his head. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
Nel raised her head back to him with a shake. "I don't think so. I think the best thing would be not to do, or say anything that might upset her for right now. You have to remember Tim, that Gamuza is my instincts, my primal self before I became an Arrancar. It's natural for her to hate and despise you and the others, especially our…relationship." She said as she turned her head.
Timothy turned back front, then stepped closer to her and wrapped an arm around her waist with a sigh. The action slightly surprised the teal-haired woman, causing her to turn back to him to see a saddened look on his face.
"I understand what you're saying, Nel. Gamuza made it blatantly obvious that she hated us being together when I finally managed to calm her down a bit. I'm trying my hardest to show her that I'm not trying to take you away; but just like you and Captain Hitsugaya, I have to show her that she can trust me. It'll probably take longer for me to get her trust, than you getting the Captain's." he pointed.
She nodded in agreeance. "I think you may be right, Tim. Gamuza can be calm when she wants to, but she is very stubborn on certain things."
Timothy's face then dropped. "Like someone else I know. At least she's not perverted like the demon in 'my' head is. It would probably give me nightmares to imagine a perverted Gamuza." He offered.
Her face fell as well. "I really don't want to imagine that either." She admitted.
The hollow spirit rose a brow. "Excuse me? And just what is that supposed to mean?" she questioned dangerously.
Nel sighed heavily as she shook her head. "It wasn't supposed to mean anything, Gamuza. You've seen how bad Kit is yourself; do you really want to picture yourself as a hollow version of her?" she returned.
Her head was silent for a while until the spirit sighed back. "…Good point. I seriously have no idea how the brat can handle that stupid fox." She commented.
The teal-haired woman chuckled inwardly. "Neither do I, Gamuza."
"Nel?" Timothy called.
She snapped back to reality and turned her head to him, seeing a curious look on his face. "Yes?"
His face didn't change when he spoke again. "Talking with Gamuza?" he inquired.
Nel gave him a weak smile and nodded. "Yes, we were just discussing something that I think we both agreed on."
He smiled back and turned to the front. "That's good. At least she's not trying to kill me right now. Anyway, you feel like going to that arcade place later after our search is over for the day?" he offered.
The woman gave him a slight smirk while glancing at him from the side. "Are you offering to do one of those date things with me again?" she suggested.
He simply smirked back. "Maybe."
She then turned to him and smiled warmly. "I'd like that, but I already…promised Rangiku that I would go shopping with her and Orihime. Sorry Tim." she said in a defeated tone.
Timothy rose a questioning brow at her. "Judging by your voice, I guess it's safe to assume that means she backed you into a corner and forced you to go again?" he observed.
Nel's face dropped as she turned back front and tilted her head. "Well…not exactly…"
Flashback, Two Hours Prior
Nel walked through the front door of the shop, her thumb stuck in her mouth as she gently sucked on it after hitting it with the hammer. Her index finger was already red, and the back of her hand had a pronounced red spot from where she had struck them earlier as well.
"I can't believe he's making 'me' fix that roof of his. Stupid Kisuke." She mumbled to herself as she entered the kitchen.
Reaching up to the cupboard and retrieving a small glass, she proceeded to the fridge and pulled out a carton of milk; filling the glass to the brim before putting the beverage away and grabbing the glass to sit at the dining room table.
She sat down with a huff and began drinking from the glass, before a cheerful voice broke the silence in the room.
"Hey Nel! How you doing this morning?" a female voice spoke out.
Nel set the glass down and turned to the owner of the voice with a small smile. "Good morning, Rangiku. I'm…fine. Thank you for asking. And how about yourself?" she returned.
The Lieutenant sat down across from her and leaned back against the wall with a relaxing sigh. "I'm beat. All this running around and looking for what that Espada guy was up to is so boring. Not to mention the Captain won't stop checking in on me every ten minutes." She complained.
The Arrancar chuckled at her. "Probably trying to keep you from taking off and going shopping again." She observed.
Rangiku opened her eyes to the teal-haired woman and rose a brow. "Hey, it's not that often that I get to come to the world of the living, and this is where all the best shopping is. It's only natural that I would try to take every opportunity to get the clothes I want, right?"
Nel simply shrugged her shoulders. "I guess?" she offered.
A light bulb then went off in the busty Lieutenant's head, causing her to smirk. "I know, you should go out shopping with me and Orihime later, Nel." She said in a cheerful voice.
The other woman started to sweat a bit, remembering the last time she went shopping with the Lieutenant. Reaching back and rubbing the back of her head, Nel hummed lowly in thought.
"I'm…not so sure…that's a good idea, Rangiku. You remember what happened last time. And besides, I don't have any money, and I've made Tim pay for far too much as it is already. I can't do that to him." She pointed out.
Rangiku only waved her off with her hand. "Details, details. You don't have to worry about paying for anything, Nel. I'll take care of it, you can just pay me back some other time." She said, dropping her hand to her lap.
Nel lowered her head a bit and moaned. "But still, I would rather not have a repeat of what happened last time, Rangiku. Tim was very upset after what you and Yoruichi said in the store, and I had to talk to him and calm him down afterwards, with Orihime's help."
The Lieutenant smirked even more when she noticed a very faint, almost unnoticeable, blush form on Nel's cheeks at the mention of his name. She then leaned forward and propped her head up with her hands, her elbows resting on the table.
"Speaking of which, how are you two lovebirds getting along? You two sleeping together yet?" she asked with a flash of her brows.
The redness in Nel's cheeks grew even redder as she backed away from the woman. "N…No! We are 'not' sleeping together! Don't start teasing me as well, Rangiku!" she pleaded.
The woman chuckled lightly. "I'm not trying to do anything Nel, I was just asking a simple question. So, how far 'have' you two gone then? Has he gone all 'lovey dovey' with you?" she pressed harder.
Nel turned her head away as she closed her eyes with a frown. "W…Well…he has…" she started, but froze.
Rangiku waited for her to finish, but after a few seconds rose a brow. "Go on…Has what? You can tell me, it's just the two of us here, you know."
The Arrancar grew even redder before taking a deep breath. "Well…we've…kissed." She said in a very low voice.
The Lieutenant moved her right hand to cup her ear. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch that Nel." She said with a grin.
Nel growled lowly before turning back to her with a frown. "We've kissed. Happy?" she asked in a growl.
Rangiku smiled before leaning back and crossing her arms. "Well, good for you, Nel! I was starting to think that it would be an eternal stalemate between you two! So, who kissed who?" she asked further.
The teal-haired woman dropped her head with a hint of a smile as she remembered the day her and Timothy first went shopping; when she had him laying down on a bench with his head resting in her lap.
She remembered how she had admitted her feelings to him, and how she worried about what he thought about her being a hollow. She smiled even more as she remembered him leaning up and pressing his lips to hers, telling her he didn't care what she was, only 'who' she was.
"He kissed me." She finally said in a low tone. She raised her head back up to the Lieutenant to see her eyes slightly widened as she closed her own with a warm smile. "I finally told him how I felt about him, and how I wanted to try and have a relationship with him. But I was still fearful that he might not want to, because I'm a hollow. That's when he kissed me, and told me he didn't care what I was, but only who I was." She said as a lone tear ran down her face.
Rangiku stared at her for a moment, then smiled just as warmly. "Well well, I'm surprised he managed to find the guts to make his move. Judging by the kind of guy he is, I was under the assumption that it would be 'you' who kissed first. I'm happy for you, Nel. So, I guess that means you two are officially together then?"
Nel opened her eyes and nodded. "Yes, in a way, I guess. I am still unsure about a lot of things on this subject, but Tim said that he would wait before we moved further, until I get a better understanding on these matters. Actually, if you don't mind, could I…could I ask you for some help regarding this? Orihime has been helping me out a lot, but…I'm hoping to get a second opinion on things. Afterall, I can't really ask Yoruichi…at least not without her endless teasing." She added with a dropped face.
The busty Lieutenant gave her a toothy grin. "Of course! I'd be more than happy to give you a hand, Nel! So, why don't you join me and Orihime, and the three of us can have our little 'talk' about all this? While we're at it…" She paused and leaned over the table closer to the Arrancar, speaking in a very low voice that only she could hear. "…we can pick up something nice and juicy for you to wear for him." She hinted.
The woman across from her leaned back away from her and gulped. "Um…what did…you have…in mind?" she hesitantly asked, her cheeks turning red again.
Rangiku simply grinned more as she shook a finger at her. "Nah uh, you're just gonna have to wait and see for yourself. All I can tell you, is that it'll be something that he'll 'never' forget."
Nel began to sweat as many possible scenarios, all of them dangerous to her humanity, began to flood through her head.
Flashback End
Nel sighed heavily as her head lowered a bit. "Let's just say that…she was very 'persuasive'. Sorry Tim."
Timothy sighed as well and waved her off gently. "Don't be. In truth, even though the damn woman is quite annoying, I'm glad you and her became friends. It shows that she's not judging you for what you are, and has chosen to see you for who you are. Orihime as well. I noticed that she's also very fond of you, Nel." He stated.
The woman raised her head back to him with a smile. "Yes, I'm very fond of her as well. She's a very sweet girl, and very caring. Like you, she has been very helpful in my adjustment to being here, as well as helping me with understanding my…feelings towards you." She admitted with a small blush.
The man held her a bit tighter around the waist before leaning over and giving her a quick kiss on the forehead, causing her to widen her eyes a bit. He gave her a warm smile with a light chuckle.
"I'm glad she's helping you out, Nel. But remember what I said, we'll only take this as far as you're willing to go. I am more than content with waiting until you have a full understanding about all of this. So you can take your time to learn everything you need to." He assured.
Nel smiled back and nodded before kissing him back on his own head. "Thank you, Tim. I just hope I don't have to make you wait too long."
He nodded as well. "For you, I'll wait as long as it takes, Nel." He stated, then held her a bit tighter as he turned back front.
20 Minutes Later
Timothy sat down with a relaxing breath before taking a quick glance at the menu that laid before him. The others were about to do the same, but the man swiftly waved them off as he set the menu down.
"No need guys, I've got the perfect thing for all of us." He stated, earning nods from a few of them.
It was only a minute later that the waitress walked up to their large table, her pen and notepad already out to receive their orders. Timothy glanced at her and held up a finger.
"One brisket platter…" he started, then raised a second finger. "…and one rib platter." He added, then dropped his hand. "Eight sweet teas, and one bottle of sake." He finally concluded.
The woman took a moment to write everything down, before smiling and collecting the menus from everyone. Once she had all of the menus in hand, she gave a quick bow.
"Yes sir, I'll have your drinks in just a moment." She informed, then left.
Timothy then turned back to the group. The table that they were sitting at put four of them on each side; with Timothy, Nel, Rukia, and Ikkaku on one side, and Renji, Toshiro, Rangiku, and Yumichika on the other.
Toshiro was currently sitting directly across from Nel and looking at her with cautious eyes. She leaned back just a tiny bit, but still kept her composure as she stared back at him. Everyone's eyes shifted between the two for a few minutes, until Timothy sighed and crossed his arms.
"Do you have a problem with Nel being here, Captain?" he questioned, gaining the short man's attention.
"Not necessarily, though I do wonder why you brought her. I was hoping we could discuss this without her being present." He stated calmly.
Timothy closed his eyes and sighed again. "Do you really think it would have mattered? Either way, she would have found everything out in the end." The Lieutenant pointed out.
The Captain crossed his arms as well with a raised brow. "Did you consider the possibility that there are things she should not hear, seeing how I still do not trust her fully?" he returned.
The Lieutenant was about to reply, until a hand rested on his leg, causing him to turn to the teal-haired woman next to him. "It's fine, Tim. If it is something important, I can leave." She offered.
Timothy then turned back to the Captain and shook his head slightly. "No, it's fine Nel. Whether Captain Hitsugaya wants to accept it or not, you're a part of the group, and are entitled to hear what he has to say as well."
Rukia quickly leaned forward with a deathly glare pointed at him. "Tim!" she called.
The man sighed heavily as he dropped his arms and rubbed his temples. "Look Captain, I get that you still don't trust Nel yet, but even 'if' she was trying to trick us or whatever, what harm could she possibly do? You do remember that she did save your life, right?"
Toshiro nodded, then looked at the woman. "I do, and I am thankful for that. But she still has a ways to go before she can fully earn my trust. As I have said before, I have nothing against you Nel, but considering…past circumstances, you will have to forgive me for taking my time in ensuring that you are someone that I can trust. I'm sorry." He admitted.
Nel shook her head at him quickly. "You don't need to be, Captain. I fully understand how you feel. I was almost the same way with Tim at first, but he has earned my trust, and I must do the same with you." She reassured.
Renji turned to the Captain with a firm stare. "What can it hurt to let her sit in on this, Captain? She 'is' helping us with the search afterall, right?" he defended.
The Captain side-glanced him with an agitated look on his face. "That is besides the point, Renji."
Timothy finally sighed and stood up, using a hand under Nel's arm to gesture for her to do the same. When she finally did, Timothy pulled out several bills and tossed them on the table before turning to leave with Nel in tow.
Toshiro turned back to him with a raised brow. "Where do you think you're going, Tim?" he questioned.
The man simply glanced over his shoulder with a neutral face. "I'm heading back to the shop with Nel, Captain. If the information you have to put out is too important for Nel, who is a member of the team, to hear, then it's too important for me to hear. That should be enough to cover the cost of the food. See you guys later." He said, then turned and started walking away.
A tick mark appeared on the Captain's forehead, then he growled lowly and shook his head. "Fine. She can stay." He informed, causing the Lieutenant and Arrancar to stop and turn back to him. The Captain raised his head back to them with a firm glare. "But it's on your head, Lieutenant. Now please, return to your seat." He instructed.
Timothy nodded, then did as told; both of them sitting back down with a relieved sigh. "Thank you, Captain." He said.
Toshiro closed his eyes and took a long breath. "Don't thank me, I am only allowing this because what I have to say is important for you to hear, and I realize that you would tell her regardless." He admitted.
The younger man nodded in agreeance, while Nel lowered her head. "I know you don't trust me, Captain, and I am doing everything I can to show you that I mean no harm." She stated.
Timothy placed a hand on her shoulder while Toshiro gave her a firm, but calm look. "I understand that, but once you hear what I have to say, you will fully understand why I am still hesitant to trust you."
Renji rose a brow at him. "What do you mean, Captain? Did something happen?" he inquired.
Toshiro nodded firmly before crossing his arms on the table and leaning forward a bit. "It would seem that there are a few collaborators within Squad 12 that are loyal to Aizen." He stated, getting surprised looks from everyone.
Rangiku quickly turned to him, giving him a worried look. "Is that why our seal removal request didn't go through, Captain?"
The small Captain nodded. "Yes. While I was retrieving my gigai from miss Inoue's apartment, I received a call from the Head Captain. Apparently, members of the stealth force have apprehended two lower ranking members of Squad 12; more specifically, members who worked in the communications department." He alerted.
Timothy narrowed his gaze and crossed his arms. "So that answers the question as to why the request never made it to the head Captain like you said. One of them must have been the person Rangiku talked to, and never sent the message through the channels." He observed.
Toshiro nodded again. "And that is what worries me. We have only found two of them, and it is a very safe guess that there would be more; and not just in Squad 12, but in the other squads as well. Due to the breach in security, Captain Kurotsuchi has been forced to lock down Squad 12, while Captain Sui-Fēng and the stealth force search everything. Needless to say, standard communications have been cut off until they can confirm if the security of the transmissions have been compromised or not. So, until further notice, the video screen in miss Inoue's apartment is the only means of communication we have, considering that it is a direct link only."
Ikkaku rose a brow at the man. "So…does that mean one of us needs to be there at all times in case someone tries to contact us?"
The Captain glanced at him. "Yes, we will have to work in shifts and stand by in case someone attempts to reach us. Our communicators still work when talking to one another, but we cannot use them to reach the soul society. If a message comes through, that person is to contact myself, or one of the Lieutenants." He instructed, earning nods from everyone.
"So, what about our search in town?" Renji asked.
Toshiro turned to him and nodded. "We will continue the search, until we have covered every inch. Everyone is to head in the general direction of where they were searching before, and simply work your way in. Kuchiki will take the first communications watch at miss Inoue's apartment. Nel…" he paused, looking at her and getting her full attention. "…now's a chance to try and prove yourself. Do you recall Aizen saying anything about inside personnel within the soul society?"
The woman shook her head slowly at him. "I'm sorry, but Aizen never really told the Espada much of anything about his plans, or any measures he took regarding it. If there are any more of your people who are loyal to him, I am not aware of them. All I can offer you is that, knowing Aizen, those two within your Squad 12 are more than likely not the only ones he has hidden. If I had to guess Captain, I would assume that if he had anymore people loyal to him, they would likely be placed somewhere where they would be easily overlooked, but still in a position to cause damage when needed." She offered.
The man nodded firmly. "I would have to agree. And that brings me to a question that has dawned on me recently. You are capable of opening a garganta to just about anywhere you please, correct?" he questioned, earning a nod back. "Then tell me, if you are so willing to help us defeat Aizen, why have you not offered to use that so that we can attack him directly?" he challenged.
Nel narrowed her gaze at him. "Simple Captain, because it is suicide. My garganta can only accommodate so many individuals at a time; and unlike your precipice world, where time is heavily compressed while inside, it is not the same for a garganta. Time flows normally inside. This means that, even if I made several trips with as many people as I can safely transport, it would take several minutes between trips. The moment my garganta opens in Hueco Mundo, Aizen and the Espada would be aware of it, and would very quickly respond to it. The first group to arrive would be dead before the next could possibly arrive." She warned.
Toshiro furrowed his brows in agitation. "I see. That does make sense. Is it possible to track where another Espada's garganta has been opened?"
She shook her head slowly. "After a garganta has closed, it leaves behind some residual spiritual pressure, and you can use that to determine a rough area of where the exit was placed. However, that residual pressure fades quickly, and can only be sensed if you are at the location of where the entrance was made. Seeing as how we have no idea where Ulquiorra's initial garganta was opened, if it was even here in the world of the living, there is no way to tell where he went. Even if we did, the residual pressure is long gone by now."
Timothy then turned to the Captain with a raised brow. "Can't the soul society track gargantas?" he inquired.
Toshiro shook his head. "Not fully, we can only track, and determine the point of where they were opened. And seeing as how the soul society was not actively looking for any sudden appearances, we don't know where they had entered the world of the living at. And even if the soul society 'was' tracking for any appearances, it is safe to assume that the two individuals working with Aizen could have covered it up."
"You know, this could all be just a ruse, like we thought at first." Ikkaku stated. "The guy may not have even had a mission, and the whole thing was just to keep us running around like idiots and focused on something else." He pointed out.
Rukia held her chin in hand with a hum. "That's true. Aizen could be trying to keep us distracted while he is actually up to something else."
"I doubt that." Nel said suddenly, gaining everyone's attention. "Aizen sacrificed five Arrancar for whatever it is he had Ulquiorra do. There are many different ways he could have led you all around without having to do so. In my opinion, I believe that Ulquiorra 'did' have a specific mission, one that Aizen thought was well worth losing five of his stronger Arrancar for."
Timothy nodded. "I agree. There 'has' to be something that we're missing here. We've already covered nearly eighty percent of the city and have found nothing. The only areas we haven't checked yet are the entertainment and business districts, and I don't know what mission the guy could have around those areas."
The Captain sighed heavily as he dropped his head. "The only thing we can do is keep looking. Once we have finished here, I want everyone to continue your search. Kuchiki, if you receive anything from the soul society, you are to inform us immediately." He ordered.
The woman nodded firmly. "Yes Captain."
"Here you are." A female voice sounded next to Timothy.
Everyone turned to see the waitress, along with another, holding two large plates and their drinks. The original waitress set the two plates on the table, while the other walked around and set the glasses down in front of everyone.
Once they were done, they stood side by side and gave them a quick bow. "Please enjoy." She stated, then left with her companion.
Everyone stared at the food with wide eyes, mouths dripping, while Timothy chuckled inwardly. Renji then took a moment to look around and noticed that something was missing.
"Where're the utensils?" he inquired.
Timothy chuckled a bit louder and reached out to grab a small length of ribs. "You don't need em. Just use your fingers, Renji. That the true way to eat barbeque." He informed, then took a bit bite out of his food.
The redhead simply shrugged and grabbed some of the brisket, followed by everyone else. Taking a second to eye the food over, Renji bit down on the slab of meat, his eyes going wide as the savory, and very tender substance hit his tongue.
"Holy shit this is good!" he said through a full mouth, quickly swallowing and taking another bite.
"Yes, very!" Nel followed after taking a bite of her ribs.
"It's not bad." Toshiro added, successfully hiding his enjoyment from his face.
Timothy looked at him and grinned when he saw a large glop of barbeque sauce on the short man's cheeks. He then cleared his throat, getting his attention, and scratched his cheek.
"You've got some sauce on ya, Captain." He informed with a smile.
The Captain's eyes widened, then he rubbed his face with his thumb, holding it up to see that the Lieutenant was telling the truth. His cheeks reddened a bit from embarrassment before Rangiku turned to him with a napkin.
"Aw, would you like me to clean it up for you, Captain?" she cooed with a smile.
Toshiro quickly rolled his eyes to her in anger. "Touch me, and I'll make 'you' pay for everything." He warned.
Everyone at the table, minus the Captain, burst out in laughter. "You sure you don't want some help, Captain? I'm sure if you ask nicely, one of the waitresses can bring you a bib." Timothy teased.
The Captain's head snapped to him with an angry glare. "What was that, Lieutenant?!" he hissed.
Nel clapped her hands together next to her head with a wide smile. "Aw, he looks so cute. Doesn't he, Rangiku?" she furthered.
The busty Lieutenant quickly nodded. "He sure does, but so do you, Nel." She said as she pointed at the Arrancar's mouth.
The teal-haired woman's smile dropped before turning to Timothy to see him nod. Her cheeks went red as well when she wiped her own mouth to see that she also had sauce on her face. She quickly started wiping it off fully and glared at Timothy.
"Why didn't you tell me?!" she growled.
He simply shrugged a shoulder. "Cause you looked so 'cute'." He mocked, then took a bite of his food.
Her face dropped to a scowl as she slapped him on the shoulder. "I did not! Don't be mean, Tim!" she said in a whine.
The Lieutenant rolled his eyes and swallowed his food before answering. "I wasn't being mean, Nel. You can't really complain about being called cute when you just said the same thing to the Captain."
"He's got a point." Toshiro added, making the woman turn to him with a glare.
"Oh, be quiet Captain." She shot back, then returned to Timothy. "And you, how can you eat that without getting that stuff on your face as well?" she questioned.
Timothy gave her a smirk. "Practice. Lots of practice."
Nel puffed her cheeks out with a huff. "No fair." She mumbled, then returned to her food.
"Still, it is pretty good though." Renji commented, getting nods from Ikkaku and Rangiku.
"Yeah, it's too bad they don't have something like this in the soul society." The 3rd seat complained.
Timothy shrugged a shoulder at him. "Well, if you ever get tired of being a soul reaper, you could always start up your own restaurant." He teased.
Renji and Rukia deadpanned. "Yeah…one can only imagine the kind of customers that would show up at a restaurant owned by someone who's always looking for a fight." He mumbled, getting a nod from the short woman in agreeance.
Ikkaku immediately jerked his head to the redhead. "What was that, you damn pineapple?!" he growled, sauce on his face.
The Lieutenant returned the glare with a snarl. "What the hell did you call me, cueball?!" he returned.
"You heard me! You wanna take this outside?!" the 3rd third yelled back.
"Awful quick to get your ass handed to ya, ain't ya?!"
"Ha! Like you could lay a single scratch on me!"
Yumichika sighed heavily with closed eyes. "Really now, must you two make such fools of yourselves? In case you haven't noticed, the entire restaurant is now staring at you two." He pointed calmly.
The two officers immediately stopped their growls, widening their eyes before looking around to see that, indeed, the entire establishment, customers and employees, were staring at the two men like they were crazy.
A tick mark appeared on the Captain's head as he growled lowly. "Morons." He said in a low voice.
Renji and Ikkaku slowly slid back down into their seats while looking down at their plates in embarrassment. Nel's lips were twitching as she tried her hardest not to laugh, while Timothy snickered with Kitsune.
Ikkaku turned to the man with an evil glare. "Something funny, shortstuff?!" he hissed in a low voice.
Nel and Rukia snorted from almost losing their battles with laughter, causing Timothy to glare at them. "I 'dare' you to laugh at that." He challenged evilly.
It proved too much, and the two women, along with the others, minus Toshiro of course, burst out in laughing fits. What made it even worse, was that Kitsune, and even 'Johnny', were both laughing as well. This caused a tick mark to appear on Timothy's forehead as he growled.
"Ha ha ha, laugh it up. Idiots." He droned.
Toshiro sighed as he started rubbing his temples furiously. "I couldn't possibly agree more."
4 Hours Later
"We're back." A voice called out.
Kisuke to look up from his small pile of bills and invoices with a calculator in hand, to see Timothy and Nel walk through the front door with defeated looks on their faces. The two of them walked up to the table and plopped down on the cushion seats across from him, Timothy setting the plastic bag of things Kisuke asked of him on the table.
"Judging by the looks on your faces, I assume that means you haven't found anything." He observed.
Timothy moaned loudly as he dropped his head back against the wall, and Nel shook her own with it hung low.
"No. We searched the entire city, and nobody found a single thing, Kisuke." She informed.
Kisuke set the calculator down and folded his arms into his sleeves. "I see. You know the possibility that that he really didn't have a mission is still in the air, right?"
Timothy sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I really I have no idea what to think right now, Kisuke. I'm almost inclined to agree with that, but Nel did say that Ulquiorra is not the kind of person to do something without a purpose, and I believe her." This caused Nel to smile just a bit, but it went unnoticed. "And besides…" he continued as he lowered his head to look at the shop owner. "…I just can't get the thought out of my head that we're all missing something, something blatantly obvious."
Nel raised her head to him with calming eyes. "Tim, maybe you should rest a bit, it might even clear your head enough for you to figure it out." She offered.
He smiled warmly, but shook his head. "No, that's pretty much all I've been doing lately is resting. Thanks though."
Kisuke then pulled out his fan and started fanning himself. "Actually, I believe miss Nel is correct, Tim. At the very least you should sit down and relax for a while. I'll have Tessai make up some fresh tea for you two. However…" He paused and turned to Nel, getting her attention. "…if you don't mind miss Nel, I was hoping you and I could discuss something in private."
The woman nodded at him before turning back to Timothy and resting a hand on his. "It's nothing Tim, promise. I'll be right back." She said, then leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
His face reddened, but only for a brief instant before vanishing with a warm smile. "Alright. I'll be right here."
She nodded and stood up, following the shop keeper into the kitchen. Timothy's eyes followed their movements until they were out of sight, then leaned back and closed his eyes as he took a deep, and relaxing breath.
Although he had kissed the teal-haired Arrancar a few times himself, it still got to him a little bit when she kissed him. But now that he had a few seconds to sit and think clearly, it made him a bit happier inside to see that Nel was getting much more comfortable at returning affections.
The man smiled a bit while thinking about her, his mind slowly drifting off into a light snooze.
Nel followed Kisuke past the kitchen and into the main part of his 'laboratory' before they stopped, where the man turned to face her with a serious expression on his face. The woman began to sweat as she stood in front of the man's gaze.
"Please exit your gigai, miss Nel." He instructed calmly.
He then lifted his cane and pressed the bottom of it to her head. Her spiritual body was immediately ejected from the faux before, where it fell limply to the floor in front of them. Nel stared at the shop owner with shock in her eyes.
"What is it, Kisuke? Why do you need me out of my gigai?" she questioned.
Kisuke's expression didn't change as he continued. "I am sorry to ask this of you miss Nel, but I need you and Gamuza to switch out for a moment."
Her eyes went wide in absolute shock. "What?!"
The man closed his eyes and lowered his head a bit. "There are a few questions I have for her, and I need to ask them directly. Considering that she was able to take over before, it proves that she can temporarily inhabit your body at any time, as long as you allow it." He informed.
Nel began to sweat even more, fearing that if she did as he asked, she may not be able to regain control again. The woman was actually starting to sweat. "You know she can hear you, Kisuke; so why do you need me to have her take over? Why can't I just tell you what she says?"
He returned his gaze to her with an understanding look in his face. "I understand your hesitance to do this miss Nel, but I can assure you that, at the moment, your mind is the most dominant between you and Gamuza. Meaning: that if you so wish, you can force her back inside and resume control. And as I said, I have some questions for her, and they need to be asked directly. However, I cannot force you, and I'm only making a request." He stated calmly.
The woman lowered her head in thought, but finally sighed and nodded. "Alright. So what do I need to do?"
"Gamuza, gently push and try to assume control, and you miss Nel, just relax and allow her to do so." he instructed.
Nel nodded, then took a deep breath and relaxed her mind. Silence filled the room as the two stood there quietly. But the quiet quickly ended when the woman flinched a bit, then raised her head back and opened her eyes, giving the shop owner a deathly glare.
"What do you want, soul reaper?" 'Nel' asked in a cold voice.
Kisuke raised his brow. "I assume that miss Nel can still hear us, correct?" he asked in a suggestive tone, one that the spirit didn't miss.
She raised a brow as well before closing her eyes for a brief instant, then reopening them and crossing her arms. "Not anymore, although I'm sure you can imagine that she is freaking out right now. Now what do you want? And don't try to play your stupid mind games with me, Urahara." She warned.
The man nodded firmly. "Very well. Now, I need you to be honest with me Gamuza, when did you first notice these changes?" he questioned.
Gamuza closed her eyes and sighed. "I can't really tell you that one, cause I don't know. I didn't catch anything until my fight with the brat, when my Justa Subsónica failed to kill him. That's when I got suspicious, and Nel's visit yesterday confirmed it. But what you should be more worried about is her mask."
Kisuke rose a brow in curiosity. "Care to elaborate?"
The spirit opened her eyes and gave him a, surprisingly, concerning stare. "She told you about the missing part of her mask, we discovered that yesterday." She said, getting a nod to continue. "The last time she visited her inner world, which was only three days prior, her mask was in perfect condition."
The man's eyes widened. "I'm sorry, but are you saying the much of her mask disappeared in a matter of only three days?"
Gamuza nodded firmly. "I am, and I'm sure it won't be long until she notices that, even a day later, it is worse." She informed lowly.
Kisuke's face went stern as well. "How worse?"
Gamuza raised her left hand and touched it to the leftmost tooth of her mask. "This tooth is now missing. I caught it just as we were switching out." She said, and returned her hand. "Don't you dare dodge around my question Urahara, how bad is it? How much time does she have left before…" she choked, then narrowed her gaze.
"Before she becomes a human spirit?" he filled in, getting a firm nod back. The man sighed heavily and shook his head. "I can't say, this is progressing much faster than I had anticipated. Originally, I was under the assumption that the damage was over the course of a few weeks; but now that you tell me that this happened in the span of only a few 'days', it wouldn't surprise me if her mask vanished entirely in the next couple of weeks." He stated solemnly.
The spirit closed her eyes and emitted a low, and animalistic growl. "And you're positive that you have no idea what could happen to us after…whatever it is, is finished? You're sure that there's nothing that you could have possibly missed?"
Kisuke shook his head slowly. "I'm sorry, but as I said, nothing like this has ever happened before, nor should even be possible. Tell me, you and miss Nel, even though you are both a part of the same soul, each have different spiritual pressures, correct?" he inquired, getting a nod. "One moment."
The man turned and walked over to a distant desk, opening a drawer, and began fishing around inside. Gamuza watched him cautiously for a moment, until he grabbed something inside and started walking back.
When he returned, he held out a small, green orb to her. "If you don't mind Gamuza, I'd like you to place a small amount of your spirit energy into this device. I'll do the same thing with miss Nel when you two switch back, and I'll place both samples into my computer. I'll then gather another set of examples from the two of you tomorrow, and compare the results to look for any differences. Hopefully, even the slightest change may be able to help figure something out."
Gamuza nodded, then took the small device from him. Closing her eyes, she forced a miniscule amount of her energy into the orb, the object suddenly starting to glow with a blueish hue. When she finished, the glowing faded, and she handed the device back to him.
"Thank you. Before you two switch back, there is one more thing I would like to ask you, Gamuza." He started.
The spirit narrowed her eyes. "What is it?"
Kisuke waited a moment to pick his next set of words very carefully, knowing that something said the wrong way would very easily infuriate the spirit.
"You do realize that, if Tim and miss Nel's relationship keeps progressing, the two of them could possibly end up bonding to each other…right?" he asked calmly.
Gamuza's eyes immediately gained a deathly look in them. "What about it? And I 'strongly' recommend that you choose your words 'very' carefully, Urahara."
Kisuke pocketed the small device and pulled out his fan, but before he had a chance to open it, the spirit snatched it from him and snapped it in two with one hand; just like how a school student would snap a pencil.
"I want to see your face 'fully' when you answer me, Urahara. What. About. It?" She asked as she dropped the pieces and began to emit her spiritual pressure on him.
The shop owner's gaze followed the broken pieces as they fell to the floor, returning it to her once the last piece hit the ground. Needless to say, the man was unaffected…except for the bout of sadness at seeing his fan broken on the floor.
The man sighed in defeat with slumped shoulders. "Alright, alright. I ask this, because I'm concerned about you."
Gamuza rose a dangerous brow. "What are you getting at? Spill it, Urahara." She demanded.
Kisuke's face then went stern. "What I mean, is that I'm concerned as to whether or not you will try to interfere with their lives."
The spirit rolled her eyes at him. "I have already told you that. As long as the brat keeps his word, and does not bring harm, either physically, mentally, or emotionally, to Nelliel, I will not touch him. But if you are asking if I will be satisfied with them being together, don't count on it. I am a hollow, and I will always view you all as potential enemies."
The shop owner slowly shook his head. "I'm afraid you've misunderstood my question, Gamuza. Let me rephrase; if Tim and miss Nel decide to be together for the rest of their lives, which is quite likely with the way things are looking, they would want to spend their lives happily. So, my question is if you have any intention of disrupting that happiness?"
Gamuza glared at him as she fought the urge to strangle the annoying shop owner. "Are you implying that I would intentionally destroy Nelliel's happiness?" she asked in an icy tone.
Kisuke kept his firm, yet calm expression. "You did try to kill Tim, who is the primary source of miss Nel's happiness." He pointed out.
The spirit turned away from him with a heavy scoff, realizing that the man, much to her dismay, did have a point. As much as she absolutely hated to admit it, Timothy had indeed brought her partner a great deal of happiness in her life recently.
"I see your point. Fine, to answer your ridiculous question; no, I don't plan to interfere with their 'happiness'." She declared, then turned back to him. "But my statement still stands; even if they are…bonded…if the brat hurts Nelliel in any way, I will end him. Regardless of what Nelliel will think of me. Now, are we done here?"
Kisuke nodded slowly. "We are, though I would like to ask that you keep what we discussed here between the two of us. Miss Nel already has more than enough to worry about at the moment, and this would only cause her to worry more. I don't believe that it has any effect on her transformation, but I think it would be best to prevent as much stress as we can on her."
Gamuza nodded back. "I hate it, but I have to agree. So don't worry, I won't say anything to her about it. Just find a way to fix this, Urahara."
"I can't offer any promises, Gamuza. I recommend that you test out some of your abilities within your inner world and notify me of anything else you happen to notice that's different." He advised.
The woman rolled her eyes, but nodded. "Fine." She answered, then closed her eyes.
It was only a second later that she reopened her eyes and widened them before looking around frantically. She then looked at Kisuke, and let out a relaxing sigh.
"Are you alright…miss Nel?" Kisuke asked.
Nel nodded at him and took a deep breath. "Yes, I instantly grew worried when Gamuza cut me off. What happened Kisuke?" she asked in worry.
The man smiled sheepishly and rubbed his head. "Well…let's just say Gamuza wanted to add her two cents in while I was trying to gather a sample of her spirit energy. Needless to say…she's still quite upset about this whole ordeal." He half-lied.
The woman sighed again with slumped shoulders. "I see. I'm sorry about her behavior, Kisuke."
Kisuke quickly waved her off. "Nonsense. It's quite understandable how she would feel that way. And while we're on the subject…" He paused and withdrew another small orb from his shirt, holding it out to her. "If you would be so kind, would you mind placing some of your spirit energy into this? It's so I can run some tests to try and find a way to solve your little problem."
She took the device and did the same thing as Gamuza; pouring a small amount of her energy into the object before handing it back to Kisuke. The man took it and placed it back inside his shirt.
"Thank you. I believe that's everything I need for the moment, miss Nel. I'll be sure to inform you if I find anything." He comforted.
Nel smiled at him and nodded. "Thank you, Kisuke…for everything."
Again, the shop owner waved her off. "Please, I'm more than happy to help. Although…you do own me for a new fan…" he said as he pointed to the floor.
The woman rose her brows in confusion, then looked down to see his 'precious' fan in multiple pieces on the floor between them. Nel slapped a hand to her face with a low moan as she mumbled curses to her hollow spirit.
"Don't cry to me, Nelliel. The man should be happy it wasn't his pretty little neck. That fool annoys me to no end." The spirit returned.
"…Okay…fair point." Nel admitted.
Nel sighed again as she dropped her hand. "Fine, I'll pay for a new fan, Kisuke. If you'll excuse me, Rangiku should be here soon to pick me up."
Kisuke smirked at her. "And I'm sure you're more than happy to join her." He teased.
Her faced dropped instantly. "…Not really…" she mumbled, then turned and left the room with him.
When they returned to the dining room, they found Timothy with his arms crossed and resting his head against the wall and his eyes closed. As Nel sat down next to him, he opened a single eye and glanced at her.
"Everything alright?" he inquired in a sleepy voice.
Nel smiled warmly at him and nodded. "Yes, everything is fine. Kisuke just wanted to make sure that my reconnection with Gamuza didn't have any bad effects on me or her."
Timothy nodded back and closed his eye again. "I guess there weren't any, that's good. Rangiku called me a few minutes ago; her and Orihime just left her house and should be here in a minute. Try not to let the woman bully you into anything, Nel." He pleaded.
"Easier said than done." Nel said with a deadpanned expression.
"Tim…" Kisuke called.
Timothy opened his eyes to see the man looking into the bag he brought home and shifting things around. "Yeah?"
Kisuke looked up at him and raised a brow. "You seem to have forgotten something." He announced.
The Lieutenant shook his head slowly. "No, I didn't forget; I simply chose not to get the last one. You know damn well what would happen if I had gotten that, and 'I' would end up being the one paying for it…again. If you want it, 'you' go get it, and 'you' pay for the aftermath." He said in a demanding voice.
Nel was absolutely confused. "What did he want you to get, Tim?" she inquired.
The man pulled the list out of his shirt pocket and handed it to her. When she opened the slip of paper and read down the list, her eyes went wide and quickly shot back to him upon reaching the last item on the list.
"Why not?! You know I haven't had a chance to have it yet!" she whined, tears threatening to form in her eyes.
He slowly turned his head to her and raised a brow. "And I'm sorry about that. But still, I am not going to go buy more cookie dough ice cream only for you and Kit to go on another rampage."
"I hate you!" the spirit yelled in his head.
"Shut it!" he ordered, causing the spirit to huff and cross her arms.
"Evil bastard." She mumbled.
Timothy growled and shook his head while rubbing his temples. "Why me?"
"Nel!" a high-pitched voice yelled out from the front door.
Everyone turned to see Rangiku and Orihime walk in, both waving at them. Nel waved back while Kisuke nodded and Timothy moaned with annoyance.
"And the day just got worse." He whined. 'At least Nel's the one who has to deal with her.' He thought, then raised his head to the busty Lieutenant. "Rangiku, for the love of God, 'please'…no more exotic crap." He pleaded.
Rangiku rose a brow and crossed her arms. "Aw…and I thought you would love to see Nel wearing some nice clothes. What's wrong Tim, you don't like to see Nel wearing nice things?" she teased.
Timothy narrowed his gaze at her. "Nice things, yes; revealing things…" He quickly stopped when he realized the trap that he almost fell for, causing him to growl at her. "Nice try, Rangiku. I fell for that once, and I'm not falling for it again. You know 'exactly' what I meant, and you better adhere to it." He warned.
The woman tilted her head to the side and gave him an 'innocent' frown. "Huh? What do you mean, Tim? I'm just trying to help Nel look nice for you." She pouted.
The man rolled his eyes. "For God's sakes, Rangiku. Look, I'm tired and don't have the time, nor the energy to play your stupid games. Just…go do whatever and 'not' torture Nel." He said with a dismissive wave of his hand.
Nel and Orihime looked at each other and smiled before chuckling. "Don't worry Tim, I'll try to make sure she doesn't do anything…embarrassing." Orihime said, now turning a bit pink as she thought of the things she would 'likely' have to prevent.
Timothy rolled his head along the wall to her with a deadpanned expression. "I'd say thanks, but I think the better response in this situation would be 'good luck'." He moaned.
Just then, his and Rangiku's soul pagers started peeping, alerting them to a hollow attack. Rangiku was about to use a mod soul to leave her gigai, but Timothy stood up and stopped her.
"I got it, you girls go have fun." He said, then swallowed his own.
He left his faux body and began walking past the three women, only to be stopped by Nel. "Thanks Tim, and good luck." She offered with a smile.
Timothy smiled back and patted her shoulder a few times. "Again, I should be saying that to you." He returned, causing her face to drop.
"Save me." She whined with pleading eyes.
"Nope! For the next few hours, you belong to us, Nel!" Rangiku stated proudly, now pulling the teal-haired woman out the door by her arm.
Nel was still giving him her pleading eyes as the two of them disappeared from sight. Orihime walked up to him and smiled warmly.
"Don't worry, I'll keep Rangiku in check. Good luck." She said, then ran out the door after her friends.
Timothy's face dropped with slumped shoulders. "Why am I not convinced of that?" he moaned.
Alright, apparently Aizen, Tōsen, and Ichimaru weren't the only ones who turned traitor. I'm sure you can imagine that Kurotsuchi is fuming right now, and more than likely trashed a few desks in fury, lol.
Nel and Toshiro are starting to get a little closer, albeit a ways to go still, but getting there. And it seems that her unique situation with her soul-body is getting much worse. Wonder where that road is going to go… Well, toss a comment or two with your opinions.
So, I know we didn't get any action, and not too much humor, as this was mainly a plot development chapter. But I promise, things will start to pick up soon fellas, just got hang in there.
By the way, for those of you who love Kisuke, I'm sorry, I 'had' to do that to his shop, lmao.
Okay, gotta go for now. I'll see you all in a couple weeks fellas. Laters.
