DISCLAIMER: If I owned Bleach, Kenpachi would get a heck of a lot more screen/page time! Instead, I'm stuck with Ben, Jess, and Nick who aren't my own creation. I based them off of people I know.

I woke up feeling stiff. My face felt like it was on fire. I struggled to remember what happened.

My mask. My mask tried to take over. My life was in danger, so my mask had reacted. Soifon had tried to kill me. I was lucky she had underestimated me so much, or she would have succeeded. I couldn't remember what happened after that. Where was I now? Had I managed to get my mask off?

I raised my hand to touch my face only to find that my wrist was tied down.

My eyes shot open and I jerked forward trying to sit up, finding that my torso was locked down too. I couldn't move. I clamped my eyes shut again to focus on flaring my reiatsu as my panic began to rise. I fought and struggled, but the binds just wouldn't break. I could hear numerous voices shouting and darting about as different reiatsus flared and fluctuated. I could feel some of them trying to use bakudo to keep me from escaping.

I opened my eyes again to see the frightened faces of Fourth Division shinigami. The sleeves of their shinigami robes were tied back and they had on rubber doctor gloves that almost reached up to their shoulders.

"Please calm down," came a woman's voice. This was one that I knew well. It was definitely Unohana's voice. "You are here as our patient, not as our prisoner. We have you tied down for your own safety as much as ours," She stated calmly. She walked forward into my field of vision. Everything about her radiated peace and kindness, and I couldn't help but notice that her very presence calmed all of the other shinigami down completely. That did nothing to calm me in the slightest. The flow of her reiatsu was smooth and the tone was soft and melodic. I was still on edge.

"My safety?"'

"We did not want you to panic and start attacking or run away as you just attempted. You are not yet fully healed and you could harm yourself or be harmed in your efforts." I didn't miss that. I wasn't sure if it was a threat or a warning, but she was deffinately telling me that I wouldn't be walking out of here in one piece if I didn't shut up and do things her way. "Please rest for now. I was just coming to check up on your progress." I relaxed showing her I would comply. She took a few steps toward me, but stopped dead in her tracks when I tensed up again.

"Where is my zanpakutō?" I tried in vain to keep the sudden panic out of my voice. I hated showing weakness and I would push through any pain without crying, but I had gone through so much to get him back that I was starting to lose it. I couldn't hear him. I couldn't feel his reiatsu either. Her face softened in what seemed to be understanding and compassion as she relaxed and approached me again. I tried to untense, but her new expression unnerved me. I didn't want pity, I wanted my zanpakutō.

"Your zanpakutō is safe. You cannot sense its reiatsu because it is locked in a barrier."

"Where? What kind of barrier?"

"It's just over there on your right." I turned my head to see a normal wooden table. On top was a transparent orange box with my sword lying inside. I finally relaxed my muscles, but still stayed alert. He was able to sense motives much better than I was, though I couldn't for the life of me understand why. Without his monologue rambling through my head, I felt lost. I had come to rely on his intuition in order to determine how I would react to others. In fact, this was the first time I had ever been completely cut off from him since first hearing his voice.

"Why is he locked in a barrier if I'm bound like this? I'm in no position to attack at all, much less with my sword."

"Your zanpakutō was……uncooperative. In all my years, I have never seen a zanpakutō with such independent power. The reiatsu alone was strong enough to lash out and damage a few of my healers and several unlucky pieces of furniture and a wall."

"Damage?"

"Don't worry, it was nothing serious. Though, even after members of the kidō corps placed the barrier around your sword, it continued to struggle." She got a strange look on her face as she began to check my wounds with her glowing green hands. "It was not until I began healing you that it calmed down."

"So he sensed me even through the barrier. Not completely, I'm sure, but he must have sensed your reiatsu healing mine," I said more to myself. "He must feel as lost without me as I feel without him," I mumbled the last part under my breath. He helps me so much that I forgot how much I help him. He perceives the would through me. Without me, he can barely sense reiatsu well enough to tell apart a hollow from a lost soul. It was so easy to forget how important the bond between shinigami and zanpakutō really is; one is never complete without the other.

"I couldn't help but notice," Unohana said, pulling me out of my thoughts. I turned my attention back to her, noticing that she never took her eyes off of my wounds. "You keep calling your zanpakutō 'him' or 'he'."

"Oh." I wasn't sure how to respond to that. Didn't other shinigami talk about their swords that way? "What else would I call him?" She didn't answer right away.

"How do you know that he is a he?"

"Because I've spoken with him. I've seen him. He even told me that he's a he."

"He told you?"

"I asked." Then I stopped. How was I supposed to tell her that I knew that some shinigami had female zanpakutō that they thought were male? I wasn't supposed to know this kind of thing.

"I see. How long have you been able to talk with him?"

"For a long time." I answered quickly, glad that she had changed the subject. "I've been alone for a long time and his voice was the only thing that kept me sane. For a while I thought that I was hearing him because I had already gone insane." It was strange how easy it was to speak to Unohana about things that I never thought about saying to another being. Maybe I was just high on pain medication, but it was so easy to trust her. I could hear echoes of his voice telling me to be careful and watch what I said to her. Still, if there was one person in Soul Society who I could trust this kind of information with, it was Unohana.

Then she asked me something that caught me off totally guard.

"You are Nick and Ben's friend, right? You were with them for a while after you all died in that accident?"

"I- y-yes, how-?"

"They have told us quite a bit. So you became a shinigami after they did?"

"Yes. They both became shinigami while we traveled together. Eventually we got split up and I was on my own for a little while before I changed too. That's why I thought I had gone mad when I first heard his voice. He told me to do things that were stupid and dangerous. It was all for a reason, of course, but I was still sure that I had gone nuts. I was so close to becoming a hollow that I was confused and disoriented about what was real and what wasn't."

"Is that how you got your…"

"Mask? No, not exactly. That came much later, and I'm glad for that. It gave me a chance to learn the difference between his voice and its voice."

"So how soon after you became a shinigami did you first hear it-his voice?"

"You won't believe me," I told her with a small grin. It felt good to talk to another being that wasn't inside my head. She just smiled at me encouragingly. I sighed. "The first time I heard my zanpakutō's voice with total clarity was before I became a shinigami. I heard whispers of his voice before the accident." Her face was pure shock. I sat staring at her trying to gauge her reaction.

"It's not possible for a living human to hear the voice of a zanpakutō. And for you to have heard his voice even after the accident is just- you hadn't been sent to Soul Society. You were still just a-"

"Good morning, Unohana-taicho, how is the subject doing?" I suppressed a shudder at this voice. I turned to see Kurotsuchi Mayuri. "Ah! So it is awake! That is good news, very good news. Well then, shall we take it to my labs now? I have a number of tests planned and I've been anxious to get started."

"I'm sorry, Kurotsuchi-taicho, but Yamamoto-sotaicho's orders are clear." I could not express the relief that washed through me when she recovered from what I told her and turned to her fellow captain. "She is to be brought to the Captains' Meeting Hall as soon as I release her. However, she is not yet ready to be released. She would not be able to bear standing in the presence of three vice captains for more than a few seconds in her current condition, much less the entire assembly the Captain-Commander has called. I will inform all of those involved when she is well enough. Now if you will excuse me, I need to tend to her wounds." I stared incredulously at Unohana. She was my hero. She shut Kurotsuchi down faster than he could blink!

"Very well then, I will leave you to your work." His eyes flashed to me. "I'm sure it's only a matter of time before your patient become mine." The glint in his eye sent chills up my spine. I did my best to hold my ground as I stared straight back at him. His intrigue only seemed to increase as he turned and left. She smiled at his retreating back.

"Unohana-taicho," I frowned, "I don't feel that weak."

"That's because you aren't. I thought that perhaps a little exaggeration would not hurt the situation. I have no intention to throw you to the wolves, if I can avoid it. I will have no choice if Yamamoto-sotaicho says that you are to be subject to Kurotsuchi-taicho's research, but if we do not feel the need to extract answers from you, then I don't believe that will happen."

"Answer questions truthfully; I can do that."

"Now then, about your zanpakutō……"

"I………I would rather explain it to everyone at once, if it's all the same to you, Unohana-taicho. It's a long story."

"Very well. There is, however, something important I am supposed to inform you of."

"Oh?" What could it be? I already knew a lot. I knew more than I should, in all honesty, not that she was aware.

"There are a number of us who are aware of the existence of 'Bleach'."

"Huh?" I blinked. Didn't they already know about that? I mean, I know that they wash their clothes with washing machines and stuff. "Okay…" It didn't even make sense. What did that have to do with me?

"I think you misunderstand. What I mean to say is that we are aware of the story that you call "Bleach". Ben and Nick have informed us of it and now we are aware of the knowledge that you three have of us and of Soul Society."

…

……

………

…………

"WHAT!" I tried to sit up again. It still didn't work. Unohana jumped at my sudden outburst and several nearby reiatsus flared cautiously.

"Please calm dow-"

"THOSE IDIOTS! DON'T THEY KNOW ANYTHING!" Rule #1 for paradox avoidance: NEVER tell the people of the universe that they are characters in a book, TV show, comic book, movie, video game, etc. What do they do? They tell the whole freaking Bleach world about everything!

"Calm yourself down, Jessica, please! If you are worried about our knowledge of these facts, then please relax. Only the captains and vice captains have been informed of this, and we are only aware that you know a great deal about us. We do not know anything from those stories other than what we ourselves have learned or experienced." I slowly stopped struggling and laid back.

"Still…" I hadn't relaxed. I laid there tense. I was going to beat the snot out of those two. No, that would be far too lenient. I would beat the living snot out of them!

"Please just relax and let me finish looking over you. We can speak of this more later. For now, I need you to let me do my job and heal you." I laid there resigned and felt every muscle in my body unwind. I was in no position to argue, least of all with Unohana. She was the one member of Squad Four that had nearly every member of oh-so-tough-and-manly Squad Eleven scared shitless.

I closed my eyes as I began to hear her reiatsu fluctuate and ripple. I could feel little spirit particles move around my wounds as she closed and healed them. I grimaced to myself as I thought about what I had been failing to comprehend. After discovering my natural skill with kidō, and even more so after I was separated from Ben and Nick, I tried to learn the art of healing. I picked up several of the attack spells easily enough, and even managed a few defense spells with little difficulty, but I never even got close to understanding the mechanics of the healing spells. Maybe I would get a chance to learn. While I despise using kidō in battle, knowing the mechanics was invaluable. Just knowing kidō lets me control my reiatsu more easily, and therefor the parasite too. I learned shun-po from kidō, and then there's the issue of balance. My sword and I were like Yin and Yang. We existed in harmony with each other and were at our best when we were in perfect balance. I took our 'physical' form as the shinigami and he took the 'spiritual' form as the zanpakutō, but I was the one with the kidō skill and he was the sparring master. He told me flat out at one point that I would never be able to use him and his techniques perfectly if I didn't first perfect my own techniques. Unfortunately, that meant kidō. Although, given my sword's characteristics, being able to heal myself immediately after a battle might very well save my life one day. I would just have to suck it up and learn as much kidō as I could as quickly as possible.

"I understand that you wish to hold all questions until your, er, interrogation," Unohana's voice interrupted, "but I would like to ask you about your………mask."

"What about it?" What could she possibly want to know that couldn't wait?

"I was wondering if there is anything that you can tell me about it that would help me heal you?"

Oh.

"I don't know what to tell you. I never figured out how to use any healing spells, so I don't know what sort of information would help you."

"Anything at all that you can tell me would be helpful."

"Um...well, it's kind of like a parasite. It lives off of me and my reiatsu. Because of that, I use it to help control my reiatsu and my kidō and to increase my strength and speed. That's about all there is to it. It doesn't make me heal any faster or slower, to the best of my knowledge."

"I see. Thank you. You may rest now."

"Unohana-taicho, I have a request."

"Yes?"

"Could you please remove the barrier?"

"The barrier?"

"Yes, the one around my zanpakutō. I have no intention of fighting or anything, but it feels strange to be so cut off from him."

She paused.

"Yes, I will remove the barrier for you." I could hear the slight hesitance in her voice. I would have to be careful to not give Unohana or any of the other Captains, for that matter, any more reason to not trust me.

As soon as I felt the barrier dissipate, pain crashed through me. I gritted my teeth so as to keep as silent as possible as I writhed on the bed.

"What's wrong?" asked a highly alarmed Unohana.

"J-jerk……i-it's hi-im………" I ground out through my clenched teeth.

'WHAT IS GOING ON?'

'You just zapped every nerve in my body.'

'I'm sure you deserved it for something.'

'Thanks.' I spat sarcastically. 'You scared the crap out of Unohana.'

'Unohana? You mean the healer from the Fourth Division?'

'Yes, she's been taking care of me.'

'That would explain somethings.'

'Things? What things?'

"Are you alright? What happened?"

"I'm fine, Unohana-taicho. Removing the barrier caused a small reaction from him. It's nothing, though. It won't happen again." She grimaced slightly but began her work again.

'What things?' I pressed.

'They bound you and then locked me in a barrier when I began to fight. I could feel that I wasn't making much of an impact on the barrier on my own, but then I felt a strange sensation.'

'What kind of sensation?'

'I do not know how to describe it. It put me at ease, though. I can only assume that it was Unohana healing you that I felt.'

'I guessed as much. She said that you calmed down when she started healing me. So here's a question for you: I couldn't feel anything from you when you were in that barrier, so how come you could feel me?'

'I do not know. It may have had something to do with the fact that I was still conscious.'

'Hey! I had to deal with Soifon, the parasite, and Yamamoto's reiatsu all within thirty seconds! You're lucky we aren't dead!'

'If you insist.' That was his language for 'I'm tired of arguing with you. I'm right, now shut your face.' As much as I wanted to keep fighting, I held my tongue and brought up something else.

'Unohana started asking me some questions about you.'

'What kind of questions?'

'She asked my why I call you 'him' or 'he' and not 'it' or something.'

'What did you tell her?'

'I told her the truth. That it's because you're a guy. What else was I supposed to tell her?'

'I do not know, I just do not like telling them everything.'

'Look, I know how you feel, really I do, but we have to. Either we tell them now, or we get put under Kurotsuchi's microscope and they find out his way.' I felt him shudder.

'I suppose this is preferable. What else have you told her?'

'Not much. She told me that she already knows about my connection to Ben and Nick, and she knows about Bleach. I told her when I first heard your voice, and I told her about the mask, but I think that's it.'

'You told her you heard me?'

'Yeah, why not?'

'How many souls do you know of were able to hear their zanpakutō's voice before they became shinigami? Even Hitsugaya didn't hear Hyorinmaru's voice, and he is a child prodigy.'

'Yeah, but, um, I also mentioned the real first time I heard you.'

'Before the accident?'

'Yeah. She was more than a little shocked. But, it'll be easier to just be honest. Aizen is already after my hide, I don't need the Goutei 13 after me too.'

'I suppose I do not have much choice in the matter, now that you have your mind made up. I will help you where I can, but do not expect me to be happy with all of this.'

'When are you ever happy?'

'I can think of a few instances.'

'Any that don't involve mass destruction?'

Silence. Meaning a great big resounding "NO!" from him. I chuckled to myself.

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Huh? Oh! Yes, thank you, Unohana-taicho. I apologize for him, by the way. His natural reflex is to be on the offensive. He simply reacted on impulse when he felt the barrier dissipate."

"Then why did I not feel anything? I could feel his reiatsu flare, but you seemed to be in excruciating agony."

"A small detail about my sword."

"Then I will be patient and wait for the official questioning." I nodded my thanks. "Speaking of which, I believe you are ready to be released, after a little bit more rest, of course." She smiled sweetly at me. "Try to get some rest. You will need it if you are going to stand before ten captains and twelve vice captains. Do not worry though, we will all be suppressing our reiatsus, so it should not be too difficult." I smiled at her as she left. I dropped my head back onto my pillow with a groan. There was no WAY I was going to make it out of this in one piece.

…

…

"Kitty-chan! Kitty-chan!" I heard a bubbly voice yelling to me through my hazy sleep. "Kitty-chan! Wake up!"

"Hn?" I groggily opened my eyes to see vibrant red ones staring right back.

"Kitty-chan, wake up! It's time to go to the meeting!"

"Kusajishi-fukotaicho asked if she could escort you to the Captains' Meeting Hall," Unohana explained. She tried to suppress the smirk/smile that played about her mouth, failing miserably.

"Come on, Kitty-chan! It's time to go! Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!" She shouted and pulled on my arm nearly ripping it out of the socket.

"I'm coming," I stood up to save myself at least some pain. I dully noticed that I was no longer bound to the bed.

"Let's go, Kitty-chan! I can't wait for you to meet every one! Ken-chan's excited!" Oh, joy… I groaned internally at the idea. The thought of having Bishamon ranting in my ear about how much fun a fight with Zaraki Kenpachi would be was just-

"Ah! W-wait!" I turned back to face the bed and the empty table next to it. "Wait! Where's-"

"Re-chan already has your sword. Now come on!" I noticed that she began to get very frustrated with me, so I gave up struggling and just let the little pinkette drag me through hallway after hallway.

"Um, Yachiru?"

"Yeah?"

"You're not mad at me?"

"Nope! Ben-nii and Niki have told me lots about you! I didn't know it was you till they told me last night! I'm so glad to meet you! We're gunna be best friends!"

I just smiled as she continued to babble and drag me through the the halls. I realized after a moment or two that Unohana was no where in sight.

"Uh………Yachiru, where are we?"

"We're going to the Meeting Hall, silly!"

"I know that, but where are we now?" I really did NOT need the Captains thinking I ran off because Yachiru got me lost.

"Hm………" She stopped suddenly almost causing me to trip over her. "I think we're in the Fourth Division still. Let's go………this way!" she pointed in a random direction. With that, she grabbed my hand again and began dragging me all over the place. After a while, I felt a slight tugging at my mind. I quickly reached out to the source trying to locate it.

'Where the hell are you? I'm stuck with Yachiru again! As much as I love the little pink-haired cutie, she's gunna get me lost and then the captains are gunna kill me!'

'Oh calm down. You are not that far from where we are now. I am sure you will figure something out.'

'I really hate you.'

Just then, I felt something grab the back of my collar. I jerked to a stop and my hand slipped out of Yachiru's.

"Well, well, what is this?" The voice was strong, but had a slow drawl to it. I knew the owner of the voice without even needing to look.

"What is it, Shunsui?" came another voice. I recognized this one too, but not as easily as the first. It was pretty easy to guess though, considering who he was with.

"I found a little stray wandering around." I glanced back at the Eighth Division and Thirteenth Division Captains. I gulped.

"Hello there, little one. Are you lost?" I jumped. Ukitake spoke so gently to me that it caught me seriously off guard. They didn't know who I was. I knew they could tell that I was far from comfortable being in their presence because I heard their reiatsus shrink in pressure and volume, and change to a more soothing tone.

"Aw, you're scaring the poor girl, Juushiro." My eyes darted to Kyoraku as he snickered. I must have looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"I seriously doubt that I am the one she is scared of," Ukitake said smirking as he eyed Kyoraku's straw hat and pink kimono that he wore on top of his Captain's Haori.

"I-I-"

"Yes, my dear?"

"Kitty-chan!" The three of us jumped nearly a foot in the air. "There you are! Why did you stop? We're gunna be la-OH! Ukki! Shun-Shun!"

"Hello, Yachiru. Is this a friend of yours?"

"This is Kitty-chan! She's really cool! She's my new best friend!"

"Really? Well then, it's nice to meet you." Ukitake and Kyoraku smiled kindly at me.

"Isn't she pretty? We're gunna go play and-"

"Um, Yachiru? I don't mean to interrupt, but I really don't want to be late for the meeting."

"Meeting?" the two captains asked in unison.

"Oh! That's right! We need to get to the Meeting Hall!"

"Yachiru, I don't think it's a good idea to bring your friend to the meeting."

"With all due respect, Kyoraku-taicho, I'm the subject of the meeting." Shock and realization dawned on their faces.

"Kitty-chan's special!" The bubbly girl continued to babble on about how she met me and what Ben and Nick had told her about me.

"We seem to have lost Unohana-taicho," I all but whispered to them. "Perhaps you could show us the way?" I gave them a sheepish smile, glad when they smiled back at me in understanding. Well, understanding and slight humor at my expense. Ukitake was trying to stifle a chuckle. emphasis on 'trying'.

"Of course. We're all going to the same place, so I don't see any reason why we can't all go together."

"Yay! Ukki and Shun-Shun are coming with us!" The two men smiled sweetly at the little girl and we all started off again. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the two old friends shared a look as we went on our merry way.

"Yachiru, would you like some candy?" Ukitake asked as he lengthened his stride. The change in his pace was so subtle that if I hadn't already been on my guard, it may have slipped my notice entirely.

"YAY! CANDY! CANDY!" Yachiru sang as she danced around the sickly captain. I immediately tensed when I felt a hand on my arm.

'Careful…' my other half muttered in the back of my mind.

"May I have a quick word with you?" Kyoraku whispered in my ear. Our pace slowed down a bit so that we now lagged a little behind the other two.

"How can I be of service, Kyoraku-taicho?" I tried my best to seem at ease, but it wasn't easy considering the fact that I had two wary captains right next to me and my security blanket was far beyond my reach at the moment.

"Unohana-taicho has told you that we are aware of the knowledge that Ben and Nick have of us and of all of Soul Society; the knowledge that you supposedly have too, yes?"

"Yes."

"Then I would suggest using this knowledge for your own sake."

"Sir?" I whispered back. I was completely baffled. What was he trying to get at?

"It is in your best interest if you don't try to manipulate Kusajishi-fukotaicho in any way. The repercussions will undoubtedly be far beyond what you could possibly hope to withstand."

"With all due respect, Captain, you're nuts if you think I would risk pissing off Kusajishi Yachiru and risk giving Zaraki Kenpachi an excuse to fight me. That is, assuming Soifon-taicho doesn't get to me first. I kinda get the feeling she doesn't like me," my voice dripped sarcasm. He just laughed.

"You're right," he chuckled. "It would seem you know how to keep your head at the very least."

"I have been on my own for a very long time, Captain. Now that I am finally released from my solitude, I don't wish to change that."

"It must have been difficult for you."

"Yes, it was. I ran into my fair share of……'creatures', but they would hardly count as 'company'."

"I can't wait to hear the full story. It must be quite a tale."

"You have no idea," I muttered.

…

…

We were the last to arrive. Unohana was outside the Meeting Hall waiting for us. Luckily, I reminded myself to not reach out and grab my sword from her once I was within arms reach of her.

"There you are. I was starting to worry that you and Kusajishi-fukotaicho got lost."

"Don't be silly, Re-chan! She won't get lost as long as she's with me!" she beamed.

"Of course, of course," the woman beamed back.

"Hello, Unohana-taicho." Ukitake nodded his head and Kyoraku tipped his hat. "We seemed to have run into your girls on our way over, so we thought we would escort them."

"How kind of you. Well, shall we?" Unohana took Yachiru's hand as the huge doors opened and led her inside. As I started forward, I noticed Ukitake coming up on my left side and Kyoraku on my right, both matching my strides. They were both completely at ease, but still ready for anything. These two had very comfortable auras. They were both relaxed and laid back, but they knew when to be serious.

I walked into the center of the room and stood there. Yamamoto-sotaicho stood directly in front of me with his vice captain Sasakibe Chojiro standing behind him. Between my and the Commander was a pedestal with a strange orb on top of it. Unohana handed my sword over to Sasakibe who placed him on the ground beside Yamamoto. Ukitake and Kyoraku took their own places in the line up. On my right was Soifon-taicho and Omaeda Marechiyo-fukotaicho of the Second Division, Unohana Retsu-taicho and Kotetsu Isane-fukotaicho of the Fourth Division, Kuchiki Byakuya-taicho and Abarai Renji-fukotaicho of the Sixth Division, Kyoraku Shunsui-taicho and Ise Nanao-fukotaicho of the Eighth Division, Hitsugaya Toshiro-taicho and Matsumoto Rangiku-fukotaicho of the Tenth Division, and Kurotsuchi Mayuri-taicho and Kurotsuchi Nemu-fukotaicho of the Twelfth Division. On my left was Kira Izuru-fukotaicho of the Third Division, Hinamori Momo-fukotaicho of the Fifth Division, Komamura Sajin-taicho and Iba Tetsuzaemon-fukotaicho of the Seventh Division, Shuhei Hisagi-fukotaicho of the Ninth Division, Zaraki Kenpachi-taicho and Kusajishi Yachiru-fukotaicho of the Eleventh Division (I tried my hardest to resist face-palming right there in front of everyone when Yachiru waved at me), and Ukitake Juushiro-taicho of the Thirteenth Division. Needless to say, I was a little more than stressed.

"Now that we are all present," came Yamamoto's booming voice, "this meeting can commence. Speak your name." Yamamoto's question felt so robotic. I assumed that all of the captains already knew this and whatever else I would tell them before I actually began my story. This was just to review the facts and open the floor up to the real questioning.

"My name is Hanashi Jessica. I go by Jess for short."

"What is your age?"

"I was 18 when I died. I have lost track of how much time has passed since then."

"What are you?" I grimaced internally. This was a trick question.

"I say that I am a shinigami. However, there is evidence that would lead most to argue against that claim."

"Why do you mention the evidence against your claim?"

"I wish to be entirely honest, Yamamoto-sotaicho. I do not wish to be an enemy of the Goutei 13."

"Such an act is as brave as it is foolish." I didn't react. I had a habit of doing things like that. I could hear my zanpakuto begging me to think before I speak. "And perhaps just as wise. Is it true that you remember your human life?"

"Yes, Sir. Many details have begun to fade from my memory over time, but I remember the basics."

"Do you remember how that life ended?"

"Yes, Sir. I was with Ben and Nick. We all died in the 'accident'."

"Accident?"

"We've come to call it that, though it was hardly such."

"Very well. I believe everyone here is anxious to hear your story. The orb before you is a device that will convey your story to us with ensured truth. Place your hands on it and go through the events in question in your mind." I nodded and took a deep breath. I don't think I had ever been this nervous before.

'Relax, girl, I will help you. I am your zanpakutō, I will help you in any way that I can.'

'Aw, you do care!'

'Do not push your luck.'

'Yessir!'

We did our best to tune out all of the Captains and Vice Captains and their reiatsus, so that all I could hear was a light buzzing noise. I put my hands on the crystal ball and began my story.

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Another Haiku

for you my darling readers

please rate and review

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