I keep on singing Sweeney Todd tunes…is that a good or bad thing? Maybe I should pull out a razor and call it my friend or something. Or have a random epiphany and run up to people asking if they need a shave or something? Does anyone know how to make meat pies out of human flesh?!?!? XD

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, but if I did, I would make Ichigo learn how NOT to use bankai in every fight.

Chapter 8

Kiri

Dinner passed as it normally would, except for the random comments of why Yukino's clothes were wet around her chest. Luckily, she wasn't wearing a white shirt, but still, it was a bit awkward. Actually, it was so awkward that Yukino couldn't think of any sort of reply to the question at all. She couldn't spill the beans, and say that Kisuke just got out of the shower, and he decided to embrace her when half naked and still wet. Nor could she say that she 'accidentally' fell in a puddle of water when she was inside all day.

But, without actually answering the question, she left dinner early saying that she wasn't that hungry that evening. No one stopped her, even though Tessai seemed to be staring at Kisuke questionably who was just sipping some tea while staring at himself in the polished floor.

Jinta and Ururu on the other hand didn't seem that suspicious about Yukino, as they both (mostly Jinta) were fighting over the rice bowl. From the looks of things everything was normal; Kisuke was admiring his beautiful new shave in the floor, Jinta making inhuman noises as he fought for the bowl while Ururu was, well, Ururu. Tessai using his evil eye daggers of death towards Kisuke, and flashing them at Yukino who would slightly make a high pitched noise and turn the other way, leaving the room completely.

"Normal…it was almost a normal dinner right?"

Yukino leaned against the wall closest to the shouten entrance as a minute or two passed since she left the dinner table. Her arms crossed across her chest, feeling the slight cold of the wet clothing again. It was almost dry, but now it just kept on reminding her of Kisuke. Kisuke's wet hair, Kisuke's toned chest, Kisuke's slight aroma of lavender soap, Kisuke's slippery warm back. All these thoughts overwhelmed her so much that her stomach felt like butterflies were playing Mortal Kombat while doing Dance Dance Revolution.

Her moment of sweet memories did not last long as she saw light spread slightly across the hallway to her right. The door to the kitchen was reopened from the inside, and out stepped one foot. A small foot that seemed to belong to Ururu, who passed Yukino with a hello and smile slightly spreading across her gloomy face. Jinta soon followed, only he just ran down the hall, not even noticing that he almost stepped on Yukino's foot in the process.

"Whoa…that was a little too close." At her surprise, she jolted up her foot, holding it into the air with her arms. She could never be too careful, but as we all know, almost everything Yukino does, backfires somehow.

Yukino stood still with her leg up, balancing quite well on her one foot. In all of the commotion she forgot to actually put her foot down, but it would be too late now, as a black figure suddenly fell from the ceiling. Yukino didn't recognize the black coat of Yoruichi, so that pretty much left her in another shocked state…on the floor…again.

"Ah, second time today, Yukino. You are a natural klutz."

Yukino's head wobbled to the side, as she sat in the weirdest position on the floor. Her one leg was still being held slightly in the air with her arms, and her other one, was straightened out all the way to her side. It looked as if she was part of some yoga class, but yet a painful, falling down on your bum yoga class. Actually, I wouldn't even consider it in the yoga column of the columns of exercises.

"Hm, I guess you found out about my other knock out blow earlier today, hn?"

Yoruichi nodded to her question, "You also had a very pleasing wake up call."

Yukino stared at Yoruichi with concern, as her statement as she felt embarrassment fall over her. "Wake up call? Yoruichi…you saw…"

Yukino paused in mid sentence as she seemed she wasn't capable of getting the rest of her words out. Yoruichi seemed to spread a smile across her face in amusement, as if she was getting entertainment out of the conversation.

"Yukino, you might as well assume that I saw everything. You can get quite a view up in those ceiling planks."

She chuckled, and Yukino slightly looked up to see that the ceiling boards were basically something that any cat would want to climb on. The problem was that Yoruichi was smarter than most cats, seeing how she was actually a human at that. But, Yukino accepted the fact that well sooner or later Yoruichi was going to find out, and she was a bit glad she did they way she did.

"Yoruichi…are you mad at me about Kisuke still? You know…"

"Mad?" Yoruichi's expression became questionable as she opened her eyes, as she stared at Yukino. "Oh, you must be speaking of that day. Yukino, you are an interesting character indeed. I am not mad, nor would I ever be…"

Yukino listened with great intent of knowing that Yoruichi was going to be even closer to her as a friend. To her, being friendly with everyone always seemed to be best for her, since the ones who didn't seem to get along with her…always seemed to throw her off balance for a lack of better words.

"I am just looking out for Kisuke's well being. Just hoping you aren't making any effigies of him, just to mock him behind his back or anything."

Yoruichi giggled at her sentence, only to wonder if anyone really would make something like that of Kisuke. I mean, he had the reputation to have one, but it was just a wonder who would do such a thing. (Even though it could be humorous.) But, knowing Yukino for who she was, that would be way out of her character. Besides, she was too clumsy to even get one started. She probably end up killing herself somehow.

Yukino smiled a tad as she saw Yoruichi getting ready to move down the hallway towards the kitchen, where her dinner of milk was waiting most likely on the kitchen floor. She didn't want her to leave, but knowing that Yoruichi would probably get testy with her if she stopped her on her way to food might leave her regretting it in the first place.

"See you later then, Yukino. I will be watching every once in a while."

It seemed that she smiled, but Yukino was not sure from the distance. Yoruichi happily pranced into the kitchen, and as she did, Yukino directed her attention onto getting upon her feet again. It was easier then it was getting onto the ground, but more painful. She could feel areas all over herself where she knew bruises would be forming, and she sighed at her lack of balance. It was like a curse that she could not get rid of no matter how many ways she tried.

"I wonder if they have one of those group meetings for klutzes."

Smiling at her own joke, she was now standing straight up again, only to be greeted by yet another.

"Hello, there." It was Kisuke, waving merrily as if he saw nothing previous to the conversation between Yoruichi and Yukino. "You alright there? You seemed to have taken another fall…"

Kisuke leaned forward a bit, checking at Yukino's flesh only to see some red marks from her uncomfortable 'yoga' position that would no doubt go away in the next minute or two. Noticing nothing out of the ordinary from her fall, he grinned, showing all of his teeth, which slightly shinned in the dimmed lighting.

"Well, you seem alright for the moment. Shall we discuss outside?"

Yukino nodded toward his question, slightly in confusion as she totally forgot what she promised to do earlier today. Remembering now, she felt a bit anxious about what kind of questions she would be getting, knowing Kisuke would ask some personal ones with his personality. But, there wasn't much to explain. I mean, everything about her was self explanatory in a sense, that anyone can pretty much read her like a book just by seeing her appearance from a 10-foot distance. It was probably such a trait that it made her appear boring and predictable, but she couldn't change that. It was just something that was always with her, and stuck to her like glue.

There was a back porch like structure in the back that had a railing on the far end away from the doorway. Yukino stepped forward onto the polished wax flooring, now slightly remembering waxing this before. It was peaceful, and as she stood there a slight cold breeze blew in her face.

"Please, sit down, Yukino. We are going to be here a while. We have a lot to talk about."

"We do? But, I thought that," she sat down with a thump, and as she did, she regretting that as she began to rub her bottom, "you pretty much knew everything about me. I am a very predictable person."

Kisuke slightly chuckled at her statement about herself, "True, you may be predictable, but being predictable doesn't mean I know absolutely everything about you. I can't tell someone's personal life just by looking at them. It takes time and questioning."

"So basically, you are going to interrogate me like a criminal?" She slightly grimaced at the thought, knowing that interrogation always seemed to require a bright light and some Sean Connery-ish detective look a like.

"No, nothing like that. You see, I will ask you a question, and then you answer. Truthfully. Then, you ask me something, and I will answer truthfully. Basically, we could just keep on doing this all night, so why not start now? I have nothing planned anyway, and I am sure you aren't going on some expedition either. So, do you want to go first, my little bird?"

Yukino nodded, and right off the bat she thought of a question, "Why the hell do you call me your 'little bird'?"

"Truthfully?" He became wide eyed at the question, and went into a small period of thought. At one point, he chuckled and looked straight into Yukino's eyes with such a look that she swore her heart skipped a beat. "You know, I truthfully don't know. I thought that it would be cute, knowing that you are sort of a little fledging. Can get out of the nest, but yet can't survive on her own. Don't take that as an insult though. I find it cute."

Blushing at the answer, she glanced away a bit in embarrassment, "My, I always get embarrassed…I am such a loser."

Kisuke did not reply to her, but only slightly sat a little closer to her, as if he was going to say something really intimate to her. His hand slightly pushed the door closed; making it even a bit more suspicious that he was making a move on her. Another cold breeze grazed over the two, and as it did, Kisuke looked over to her, opening his mouth to ask away.

"Who are you?"

Yukino looked at him with a look of confusion and another expression that seemed to imply that he already knew. "What kind of question is that? I am Yukino, you know…"

"Shh…" He put up his finger, in that gesture that always goes along with the sound that went through his lips. "What I mean is, not who you are, but who you were. What and who happened in the Soul Society before you appeared here with me. Tell me about friends, life, and family, anything possible so I can know you better."

"Anything to know me better…?" She let out a sigh, and looked back in her head on the life she once had. As thoughts came to her, she spoke of her original in a scattered way, going from friends and then to jobs and then suddenly back to friends again. She explained that in the Soul Society her life was as normal as could be, and she was just a simple girl that lived in the rukon for quite sometime, until she had the determination to go and become a soul reaper.

"Did you have anything determine you to become one?" Kisuke interrupted her, but she soon began to speak again. "Well, there was one thing that I can think of. There once was a boy who I was good friends with who was accepted into the soul academy. Sadly, though he wanted to go so bad, he wanted me to come with, and he begged and begged for the soul academy to accept me. As probably already know, they were regretting every letting me in there for well, I was always the worst in the classes when they did accept me. Sometimes teachers would talk behind my back about how why they even accepted me in the first place. It was quite depressing really."

She paused for a bit, and continued, "I was pretty much…a loser. The only one I could look up to was my friend that I knew from the rukon. He became a part of 11th company before I even became an official soul reaper in 4th company. I repeated many classes, but when I finally passed, they even had a hard time picking a company for me. Well, you know where they sent me, which is defiantly something that I can't be proud of, knowing the reputation of 4th company in the first place."

"It sounds as if this friend of yours didn't think much about what you wanted?"

"Not really. I mean, everyone says we should end up together, or we will. He has said many times to me that he has deep feelings for me, but I have no reply to it. He is just a friend that I accept as a friend and nothing else."

There was a silence, and Kisuke noticed Yukino slowly thinking of her past experiences with her friend. From her facial expression, they weren't the most positive experiences, and they were most likely deep situations that she rather not talk about.

"Well, to get your mind off of that, ask me something. Anything at all."

Yukino looked up at Kisuke, wondering what she would ask the willing Kisuke. "Why do you keep me here?"

Kisuke looked slightly toward the sky, noticing a snowflake beginning to fall. It gracefully landed onto the waxed flooring, and at the contact it immediately melted into water. "I keep you here, for I believe you are something special. I have told you about my hat many times before, but just from instinct I could tell that something was unique about you. And well, I kept you here for you appeal to me. I have formed feelings for you, you could say."

He paused for a bit, and soon chuckled, "That sounded really corny didn't it?"

Yukino smiled and nodded, "Corny, but yet so sweet, Kisuke."

Yet again she blushed, but she ignored it as she moved closer to Kisuke; just enough that she could cuddle up to his side. Kisuke slightly moved his arm, and put it around her shoulders, which then lead to him slightly stroking her arm with the tips of his fingers.

"Do you want to stop now?"

Even though it wasn't even a complete hour of conversation, Yukino felt jumbled up in the head. Fatigue went through her body, and she sighed as a reply. "I never mentioned his name did I?"

"Who's name?"

Yukino slowly moved a bit closer to his warm side as a breeze blew against her; making her shiver a bit. "You remember, the boy I spoke of?"

Kisuke nodded to her, as he remembered now. "As I recall, you never did. Nor did you ever describe him to me."

"Well, to describe him to you, he is just a big hot head. Well, a very tall and serious looking hot head, now that is. He never use to be so strict back in the rukon, but things change. His name though, is Kyosuke."

"Kyosuke, eh? Sounds like a name meant for him."

Yukino nodded, but let her mind wonder away from the subject as she slowly closed her eyes. Her body relaxed as she felt tired from the day, and her breathing became slow and easy. There was no thought in her mind, leaving her in sleeping state in a matter of seconds. Kisuke only smiled when he saw her relaxed face against his chest.

Took me long enough…but I did it. This chapter was harder then I thought it would be to write, but, I am glad I got it done. I don't know how long it will be again until I update. (Maybe two weeks from now.) I am pretty busy right now. I have had a lot of testing going on lately, and I have been reading a lot as well. I haven't been on the computer much, for I am glued to my Sweeney Todd book that I got over the weekend. Hehe, it is way different then the musical, but I like it…lots! (anything Sweeney Todd I like…wtf?)

Translation

Kiri - mist

I chose this for a title, for it is the name of one of my favorite songs called Kiri by Monoral. If you have ever seen Ergo Proxy, then you have heard it for it is the opening theme.

Thanks Goes to All My Reviewers.

Till next time, toodles!!!

(P.S. This chapter seems rushed to me…but I can't jazz it up anymore than it already is. Sorry for the horrible chapter. Next chapter should be better…)