Disclaimer: Bleach, Hitsugaya Toushirou, and all other Bleach Characters and setting etc. belong to (c) Tite Kubo.
Sakurada Ayumi and 'You Had Me At 'I Hate You'' plotline belongs to me, user 1504103 on FanfictionDOTnet (:
ARRIGHT, so I took out the confession. If you haven't noticed that, please go (SORT YOUR LIFE OUT) read the previous chapter. Yup.
Note: I alsooooo re-wrote chapter one. HAAHAHA. yes. I suck like that. But I don't swallow like that! 8D *awkward silence* Okok. Enough with my mentally challenged 14 year old self.
Read on!
-X-
"S-Sakurada Tai-cho?" A member knocked on her door tenderly, barely making any noise. Her voice was so quiet, that you had to be within a meter or so to hear her.
"..."
"T-tai-cho? Th-this is Hanazono Yu-Yukari of... the N-Ninth Division..." she tried again, attempting a louder voice, but failing dejectedly.
"..."
"T-tai-cho!" she squeaked, her face a picture of fluster.
"Huh?" Ayumi snapped out of her trance, noticing the shaky riatsu (breaking down) outside her door. "Who is it?"
"H-Hanazono Yuk-kari. I-I have some sh-sheets that... need your a-a-approval," she sputtered from outside her door.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Come on in!" Ayumi said, embarrassed at her own obliviousness to a member outside her door.
"It's a-alright, T-Tai-cho. Is... th-there s-s-something... wrong?" She was a short girl, perhaps 4'7" in height. Hmm... A short little girl. Such a cutie. She'd look better with Toushirou than m- Ayumi blushed before she could stop herself. She promised herself she wasn't going to jump on that train.
"No, Nothing's wrong..."
"Ah!" Yukari bowed, flustered out of control. "I-I'm s-sorry for being n-n-nosy, S-S-Sakurada Tai-cho! I-I shouldn't ask about your b-business..."
Ayumi sweatdropped. "No, it's fine, Hanazako-san!"
"I-It's H-Hanazono, Tai-cho..." she corrected, putting the documents on her Captain's desk.
"...Sorry, Hanazono-san..."
"No, I'm sorry!" She bowed again, sweating hysterically. Ayumi gulped at how horrible she was handling the situation.
"Hanazono-san, must my presence alarm you so? I won't bite." Ayumi gave a nervous smile, which caused her subordinate to blush.
"H-Hai... Tai-cho... I'll be... going, now." Yukari (swooned) blushed, bowing as Ayumi nodded in consent. She turned around, sighing when she opened her door to gasp.
"H-H-H-H-Hitsugaya T-T-Tai-chooo!" Yukari exclaimed, before collapsing on her knees. Ayumi shot up in her desk.
Just in time, Toushirou caught her under her arms. "Are you okay?"
"I'm f-fine!" Yukari yelled shaking his grasp off her (rudely), blushing furiously as she ran past him back into the Ninth Division's headquarters.
Toushirou blinked confusedly at the strange, red-faced girl before turning back to Ayumi. She rolled her eyes and gave him a stern look that read 'don't ask'.
"So what brings you to my humble office, Hitsugaya Tai-cho?" she inquired, a smirk playing on her lips.
"Actually... Matsumoto said you wanted to talk to me," he shrugged, fighting off the habitual urge to scratch his neck awkwardly. He raised a brow when Ayumi blushed crimson and coughed, lacing her fingers together above her desk.
"Is that all she said?"
"... What else was she supposed to tell-"
"No!" She shot up in her desk, knocking a penholder off balance. She grabbed it before it fell. Hand still on the penholder, she forced out a twitching grin, fighting to keep her composure under the circumstances. "I was wondering if... if you were feeling okay..."
He blinked again, eyebrows furrowing in befuddlement. "... I feel fine, Sakurada Tai-cho. Thank you for... caring."
"Yeah, well, you know me!" she laughed nervously. "I love to care!"
Toushirou cocked his head slightly to the side, utterly perplexed. "Are you... healthy, Sakurada Tai-cho?"
"Yes, I'm fine," she grinned sheepishly, bringing the penholder to her chest. "Why do you ask?"
"... Well," he cleared his throat awkwardly in the still silence of the room. "I guess that's all you wanted to ask me."
"Absolutely..."
"I'll take my leave, then. Goodbye, Sakurada Tai-cho," he bowed his head, turning to close the door.
"Yeah... Bye- Oh: No, wait, Hitsugaya!" she cried out. He glanced up expectantly from the half closed doors and waited for her to speak. "Don't... believe everything Matsumoto says. Especially if its about me."
He took a breath and shook his head. All this confusion was getting the better of him. "Of course. Take care, Sakurada."
"You, too..." As soon as he was out of sight, and his reiatsu returned to his office, Ayumi let out a disgruntled groan. "MATSUMOTO RANGIKUUU!"
"Yes, Sakurada Tai-cho?" the woman chirped happily, outside Ayumi's door.
"Get your traitorous ass in here this instant!" Rangiku squeaked in fright, opening the door cautiously.
"You called, Sakurada Tai-cho?"
"Rangiku-chan, stop it now!" Ayumi lost her cool, going into informal speech and slammed down her penholder. "Did you really have to go and call him in here? Do you have any idea how awkward and weird it was for him to come in here, thinking that I had something to say... but I had nothing to say, Rangiku! Nothing!"
"Ooh, I'm sorry, Ayumi-chan! I just thought you'd appreciate my efforts..."
"Of trying to set me up with your captain?" Ayumi growled, hand clutching her forehead in anger.
"Oh, but I do think you guys look so well together! Haven't you noticed Tai-cho's affections for you yet? Do you think he'd get up from his busybody workaholic ass for anybody?"
"No. But it just so happens that this somebody is next door to him. Of course he would get up!" Ayumi retorted.
Rangiku tisked her, shaking her head. "Not if you know him. Hitsugaya Tai-cho doesn't get up for me, or any of his members, or even the other captains! He just stays planted at his desk like a weed all the time! The only cases are Hinamori and Genryuusai—"
"Then set him up with them!"
"...Ayumi, you can't possibly be asking me to set Toushirou up with Yamamoto Tai-cho, can you?" Ayumi growled at Rangiku's mocking 'serious' inquiry.
"Hinamori. Momo's plenty fine. They've got the whole past together! The childhood! The experience and the history! They're perfect, and I'm sure with his personality, he'd be willing to die for that girl. Why is it me? We don't have any chemistry or anything!" Ayumi bawled, completely disbelieving. "For all I know, Toushirou'd rather be with Byakuya than with me!"
"That's exactly what he's making you think, Ayumi-chan! I didn't think you would give into my Tai-cho so easily! This better not ignite into a S-M(1) relationship!"
"... Rangiku, seriously?"
"Of course!" she twittered, hands on hips. "In fact, that little brat is probably madly head over heals in love!"
"Who is head over heals in love?" came the voice behind the duo. Ayumi's jaw dropped and she hid her face in her arms, hoping to cover the growing blush on her face. It was Rangiku's fault she was like this when he was around! She wasn't even attracted to him that way! He looked like he was nine!
"Tai-cho!" Rangiku jumped up in fright. Toushirou squinted his eyes at the two suspiciously flustered woman.
"What's going on? You're both so loud that I can hear you from my office. I heard my name... and then something about someone falling in love."
"Uhh... We were just talking about... you know, girl... stuff." Ayumi gulped, hoping her lie would pass. It only caused Toushirou's suspicions to rise at Ayumi's pauses.
"Why did I hear my name, then?"
"Actually, we were uh.. Talking about... Ayumi! She's fallen in love!" Ayumi dropped her jaw.
"WHAT?" she snapped.
"We were just talking about, er... who might be, you know, noticing her massive love panic attacks! Haven't you been noticing how she's so edgy and jumpy lately? It's because her mind is always full of thought of him~" Rangiku mended carefully. Toushirou blinked, watching as Ayumi whacked her fore head on her office desk multiple times. Rangiku scooted over in an attempt to block his view.
"She... doesn't look so okay."
"You know us girls! We get so crazy when we're in love! She's just embarrassed that I told you about her secret, that's all!" Ayumi harshly whispered Matsumoto's name in an attempt to tell her to shut up, but Rangiku used a waving hand to shush her. "But whoops! The cat's out of the bag! You heard us talking! You won't leak this out, will you? Ayumi would be so devastated!"
Toushirou blinked, tilting his head to see Ayumi's crestfallen expression; her face smushed against her desk. "I... don't see the problem. Is she keeping his relationship with him a secret? Why doesn't she want anyone knowing?"
Something that sounded like a defeated sob escaped from Ayumi's mutilated, squashed face, but Rangiku ignored it and answered for her. "Er... Well, the thing is, the guy she's in love with doesn't know that she loves him! Ayumi's so caught up in her girly head, she doesn't know hot to tell him the burning passion she feels for him!"
Another sob broke out from Ayumi, except louder and on a deeper level of despair. Toushirou winced. "I... see... Who is she in love with again?"
"Isn't it so convenient, Tai-cho? Ayumi just so happens to be in love with y—"
"AAAAAHHHHH!" Ayumi shouted, covering up Rangiku's last words. She jumped from her desk and slapped a hand over her traitorous friend. "Uh... see, that's a secret. It's... too confidential, Hitsugaya. You wouldn't understand..."
Rangiku sighed through Ayumi's fingers, rolling her eyes and face palming. Toushirou furrowed his eyebrows and desperately wanted to ask what was wrong. Was it him, or was he desperately not seeing something?
"It's a girl thing," Ayumi ended pathetically. She searched his scrunched up, confused expression for any signs: belief? Confusion? Realization? Did he see through Rangiku's skillfully improvised lie? A part of her begged for him to see through it, and another part of her wanted him to believe the lie. Better than him knowing what they were really talking about.
But... Was this worse?
The white head nodded, closing his eyes in concentration and crossed his arms over his chest. It made sense. Perhaps this was what Ayumi wanted to ask him about in the morning: whether she was too 'obvious' or not, or if he was expecting anything. He surely wasn't: the thought of Ayumi in love had never once crossed his mind... So that was the reason she was such a stuttering mess back then... "I understand. I'll keep your secret."
"Really, Tai-cho? Because actually-!" Ayumi growled and slapped her hand harder onto Rangiku's mouth, covering her eyes, too, for more vulnerability of the senses. Toushirou sighed in defeat and stepped back.
"If you ever feel the need to talk to me about it, I'll be in my office. Matsumoto, you better be back at your desk with a pile of finished documents in an hour," he said, bowing his head again and exiting the premises. He sighed, shaking his head outside her office and hurried to his office, where he would hopefully have a less of a cloud muddling his baffled genius mind.
"I. Cannot. Believe you!" Ayumi cried, burying her head in her arms again, plopping down in her seat. Rangiku scratched her head innocently, her face apologetic and nervous.
"Well... That went better than I thought it would," she squeaked, making it sound like a question. Ayumi glared up at her, making Rangiku laugh more sheepishly. Man, could the girl put on a scary glaring face.
"This is great, Ayumi-chan! At this rate, Toushirou's in on it, yet he's not! Oh, I can see it now! You'll scurry to him, leaping to be in his arms, and you'll be sobbing your girly, broken hearted feelings to him! He'll try his best to comfort you, and when you finally tell him that you love him? He'll be so overwhelmed with the depth of your feelings! He'll know you inside and out! And all those times you were crying over your confusion and love ache? It was all for him! He'll be so touched, and then... BAM! His rapid pounding heart is all like, 'Oh wow, I'm such a jerk. All this time I've been causing her so much pain!' and then it'll hit him: After all the connecting and bonding he's done with you, he realizes that he's in love with you, too! And then while you're about to get on a plane to another country, he chases after you, stealing onto the plane, and he grabs you from behind and confesses his love! And then you guys have a hot make out session in public, and everyone's clapping! Oh, this is so juicy!" Rangiku pranced around Ayumi's office, a very happy camper.
"...Matsumoto, I thought maybe you were just a bit crazy, but now I know: you're downright delusional," Ayumi retorted bluntly. Rangiku deadpanned, imaginary black panels falling down the side of her face.
"Just you wait, Sakurada Tai-cho!" Rangiku chirped, stepping outside, hands on the handles of her door.
"In a few decades, your last name's gonna be Hitsugaya!" With her final words said, and her point straightly across, Rangiku exited the room with a flourish, leaving a speechless, jaw dropped Ayumi to seethe with rage.
-X-
If anyone had walked into Ayumi's office at that moment, they would have found her forehead making contact with her desk in a very 'intimate' way.
And that's exactly what Shuuhei saw as he opened the door to his Captain's office after knocking once.
"...Tai-cho?"
"WHAT? Oh! Hee-" Ayumi stuttered as she blushed, her forehead red. "Hisagi-s-san..."
"...Is there a problem?" Shuuhei blurted, a bit concerned for his new Captain's Sanity.
"No, no problem..." Ayumi replied after gaining her composure again. "Yes, what do you need, Hisagi?"
"I'm here to drop of the finished main articles of the Seireitei News," he said and Ayumi nodded. He handed them to her and stayed standing there.
"... Is there anything else?" Ayumi pressed. Shuuhei hesitated before slowly speaking again.
"Unohana Tai-cho has requested me to tell you there's a SWA meeting going on right now and she wants you to attend..."
Ayumi burst out into booming laughter, making Shuuhai stiffen. "OH MY GOSH, I forgot that I used to be the President of that place before I left! Crap, there are probably people who want to kill me there."
When she stood up, she noticed Hisagi's eyes on the floor, his eyes unfocused. Ayumi knew that look anywhere. "Come on, O'toole, whatcha hiding?"
He flushed a bit. "Actually, it's... it's a tradition for all Ninth Division members to wear a shihakushou without sleeves. You don't have to if you don't want to, but I thought you'd like to know."
Ayumi raised a brow. "That's all? All I have to do is wear a sleeveless shihakushou! That's what you were nervous about?"
Shuuhei looked up at her abruptly, relieved. "No, Tai-cho, I was just afraid that you wouldn't want to and since everyone in the division does so, I was concerned that—"
"No worries! Didn't you know that a huntdred years ago when I was a captain my uniform was sleeveless? Guess not, you probably weren't seated yet back then. Well, I have to go to the meeting so I'll catch you later. You're such a cutie, Shuuhei!" She laughed, walking out of the room. Shuuhei blinked in confusion: did she just call him a 'cutie'?
He shrugged: at least she handled it well.
-X-
Opening the doors to the Shinigami Women's Association within the Kuchiki Estate. She opened the door and acknowledged everyone, saying hello to Retsu, Yachiru, Isane, Kotetsu, Yoruichi, Rangi—YORUICHI?
Ayumi raised an eyebrow. "Yoruichi, what are you doing here?"
"Yo, Ayu-chi," Yoruichi waved, leaning back on a chair. "I heard you accepted the offer of Captain and decided to come over. I'm just here to visit you."
Soi Fon, who was seated directly next to Yoruichi flushed white, looking away from Ayumi. She sighed: at least if they were sitting with each other, it means they had cleared things up. It was alright if she was still mad at her, but—
"I owe you an apology, Sakurada Tai-cho." The words took her by surprise, but a wave of relief washed over. Before Ayumi could say anything, Soi Fon spoke again, hands strapped tightly to her side as she stared at the ground.
"I was mistaken... and mislead to think you convinced Yoruichi-sama to go with you and Kisuke Urahara. "
Ayumi's eyebrows rose. "You thought... I forced Yoruichi?"
"You were always near Yourichi-sama, and sometimes I thought you were..." she didn't finished that sentence, but Ayumi got her basic drift. Soi Fon had been jealous and wrong. "I was much obliged to believe you were a big influence for Yoruichi's leave, and thus brought me to anger with you."
"Ha," Yoruichi walked over, an arm slumped lazily over Soi Fon's shoulder. "This silly girl thought you pushed me over the edge and threatened me with our vow of friendship. Then she got even more mad when she knew she couldn't whip your ass like she wanted to because it'd probably end with her on the ground!"
"Oh," Ayumi said stupidly, feeling a bit awkward. It was still weird for her to have people praise her, and she didn't have any major self-esteem problems but just many many expectations on herself. "I'm sorry that I made it seem that way. I hope you know that I meant nothing of the sort."
"Yes, I do." Soi Fon sighed, a look of nervousness and remorse in her eye and Ayumi grinned cheekily. "I'm sorry for treating you so coldly 'til now. It was indecent of me."
"Apology accepted! I want to say I'm sorry too, while we're at it. I... didn't really like you either, and I never tried to clear it up with you. I should have tried. To be honest, I thought you were mad at me for the simple fact that I left with Urahara..."
She flushed pink, just a tint. She was so much more vulnerable here, in the presence of Yoruichi. It was like... reuniting with her master collapsed her entire wall of attitude towards other people. "That's what I was covering it up with..."
"Oh," came again.
"Well, I hope you two are good now," Rangiku smirked, patting the two of them on the back. "Because there's an actual purpose to why we call Ayumi here today!"
"And... why is that?"
"You seriously need to work on your 'look', hun." Rangiku flicked Ayumi's ponytail with a finger and sighed.
"Why? What's wrong with the way I dress? This is the shinigami standard!"
Rangiku shook her head at her, flashing her a wink before rolling out a white board. On it were Chibi drawings of all the Captains (except a certain three) on it.
"Look! Each and every single one of the Captains has a distinct standout about them!" She smacked a pointer on the board.
"Yamamoto Genryuusai Tai-cho – His zampakuto's hidden in a Cane and have you seen how long his eyebrows are?" Ayumi raised a brow: was that meant as a compliment or insult? She wasn't sure. "He's got a beard that touches the floor, and he ties a black ribbon around it in a criss-cross design! He is the oldest Captain in the Gotei 13, he has battle scars all over his forehead, and he never wears his haori: only drapes it over his shoulders."
"Captain Soi Fon! She's wearing a sleeveless haori and she has a yellow obe tied around her waist! She wears the Commander-in-chief uniform of the Onmitsukido, which has no sleeves and doesn't cover the back, and she wears long black arm bands! While everyone else wears the shinigami sandals with tabi, she wears tradition Chinese shoes with ordinary white socks! Not to mention her hair is short here, but she has two long braids that are bound in white cloth that end in a gold ring!" Rangiku pointed out each detail specifically on the life-size Soi Fon, who blinked incredulously at every point.
Ayumi was beginning to see where this was going...
"Retsu Unohana Tai-cho," Isane explained, referring to her very own captain. "Also uses an obi instead of a normal sash, and her hair is always worn as a large braid in front. Also, many shinigami carry their zampakuto on their sash, like you do, but Unohana Tai-cho has a large string that is attached to the sheath of her Zampakuto so that she carries it over her shoulder... Or sometimes, I carry it."
"The oh-so-cool and handsome Kuchiki Tai-cho keeps his black hair in a white kenseikan that symbolizes his nobility as a Kuchiki! He has a white scarf made of freakin' silver-white, windflower light silk, which is a family heirloom handed down to every Kuchiki Head, that's enough to buy ten mansions in the Seireitei! Also, He has a fingerless white tekkou that covers the back of his hands."
"Rangiku... Where do you get all this information?"
"Guilty of stalking! By the end of this, you're going to get my point! Next is Sajin—"
"Okay, Okay! I get it!" Ayumi shook her head and Yoruichi laughed loudly at her misery.
"And then there's you!" Rangiku pointed directly at the brunette, making her stiffen. "Your hair is a the average black colour, and you always wear it in a boring ponytail, you're not very tall, the way you dress is standard, standard, standard shinigami, and the only thing that defines you appearance wise is your child-like face that never seems to age, and you're not even that young! Fifteen in human years makes you legally able to have sex!"
"... Wow, gee, thanks," Ayumi sighed, scratching her head in humiliation. She knew she wasn't anything appearance wise, but she hadn't known she was that bad...
"Seriously, Ayumi, don't you have anything you can accessorize with? Like, I don't know; stuff you'd wear with a cute little dress?"
From the back of the room Yoruichi snorted loudly, laughing. "Ayumi wouldn't be caught dead in one."
"Actually, Sakurada Tai-cho," Retsu began, "Didn't you used to have that beautiful flower pin in your hair? I rather found it breathtaking."
Ayumi blushed, trying to think back to when she was a 'young, spry thing'. "Really?"
"Ayu-chi, that thing of yours was hot." Yoruichi leered. "I wanted it for myself, but you said it was a gift, so I kept my hands to myself."
"Hmm..." Ayumi grimaced. "I didn't bring that with me to the Human World..."
Yoruichi furrowed her brows. "You're right. You said you gave it back to the person before you left."
"Now," Rangiku began, "who gave you that pin, Captain Sakurada?"
Ayumi blushed crimson. "I am not asking for it back! That's so rude and lowly!"
"Aww! But the person intended for you to have it anyways~!"
Grumbling, Ayumi crossed her arms. "He probably gave it to his wife after I left. No way am I asking for it back."
Yoruichi smirked, getting up from her seat to stand in front of Ayumi. She took her by the hand and gave the rest of the girls a look that said 'We're going to have a private moment.' Once outside the room, they both looked at eachother and ruthlessly shunpo'd out of the building. They landed on a rooftop nearby, standing above the rest of the shinigami. Yoruichi looked over at Ayumi expectantly, smiling. "I'm really glad you're a Captain again, Ayu. Kisuke isn't here, but he's always wanted you to come back, too."
Ayumi closed her eyes. "I'll bet he did. During Ichigo's training, I could see him watching me so intently. It was like he was waiting, wanting me to say something."
"I was, too." Ayumi looked at Yoruichi in confusion. "When we decided on leaving, we considered leaving without you despite you wanting to go with us. But you have something that we don't."
"You have a love for this place. You never said anything, but we could tell: you missed it so much."
Ayumi chuckled – a sad laugh. "I guess... I still wasn't ready to be human again."
Yoruichi said nothing but her golden eyes hovered on her close friend. Someone else might not have caught up, but she knew Ayumi's scenario all too well.
'... human again.'
"I think it's time we gave this back to you," she said, handing Ayumi the bag on her shoulder. Ayumi blinked, taking it with utter care, unaware of what was in it. It was the same box Ayumi had handed to Kisuke Urahara hundreds of years ago when she resigned, with Light Blue characters '桜田' ('Sakurada') engraved in small print in the top right corner. Ayumi gulped, staring at the box, triggering a certain lump to form in her throat. Hey eyes widened, and a hitch caught in her throat. She forgot how to breath for a second.
"Yoruichi!" Her smirk widened when she saw Ayumi smiling.
"What? Did you seriously think I was going to let your recklessly summon Haneyari's Bankai without it? Stupid!"
"I-I told you to throw it into the ocean, though..."
"Like we would ever do that," Yoruichi retorted, rolling her eyes. "You think we would go and dump your precious Shinigami uniform? You know full well that it's no ordinary uniform."
Ayumi clutched it to her chest and walked over to give Yoruichi a hug, which she gladly gave. Yoruichi patted her back. "We always knew that if the opportunity arose, you'd come back. It's not about Pride or Vows anymore. You belong here. It was wrong to take you out of your environment."
"Thank you, Yoruichi, and give Kisuke my best, too. Give him a kiss on the cheek for me, ne?" Yoruichi rolled her eyes and waved it off.
"Besides, even those who don't know anything will start catching on soon. Just look at how much Byakuya's grown from a hundred years ago, Ayumi. He's probably already figured out what you are."
Ayumi groaned. "It's not that big of a deal anymore. I mean, it was, but I don't really see it setting me apart from everyone else."
The purple head grinned. "I'll go back first. Change into that before coming so you can shut up that big chested woman with your killer figure."
"I-!" She blushed, but Yoruichi had wiggled her eyebrows and flash stepped off. Ayumi sighed, wondering how on earth she was going to find her way to a place where she could change.
-X-
A knock came on the door of the Shinigami Women's Association and the door hesitantly clicked open. All the women turned her head to see the visitor.
"OOH! SEXY!" Rangiku purred, standing up to really admire it up close. Ayumi blushed a bit, not having thought about the word 'sexy' to describe the uniform before.
Basically speaking, it was an alteration of the Shinigami Shihakucho. It was a very low V-neck that revealed just a bit of her cleavage and didn't start overlapping until her belly button. The bottom of the V-neck had four black strings that were draped horizontally. Acting as some sort of 'background' for the black strings to stand out on was a white surface, which basically made it look like Ayumi was wearing a very low Tube Top underneath when actually, it was attached to the uniform. She had always been grateful it was there so it felt less revealing. She didn't mind showing some collar bone, but walking around half naked was an entirely different matter.
Her Hakama pants looked the same from the front, but if you took a look at the sides, there were two large slits – one on each side – quite similar to Chinese New Year Dresses with that gaps on the side, exposing her legs, however the very bottom hem of the pants were connecting.
"So this is what you used to wear as a Captain?" Isane remarked, smiling. Ayumi smiled back; a bit glad that the frowning Isane she saw the other day wasn't permanent.
"Yeah. I didn't think I'd ever put it on again. I told Yoruichi to throw it into the ocean, but she didn't. I'm glad she took my words as bullcrap this once." Yoruichi nodded her head, as if accepting Ayumi's gratitude.
"It's like we're back in the good ole' days, ain't it, seeing her like that, Unohana?"
Retsu agreed, smiling sweetly. "I wonder how the rest of the Captains will react when they see you in that."
"Wah! Ayu-Ayu is lookin' good!" Yachiru cheered.
"Gosh, this feels so weird!" Ayumi shook in her spot, twirling to make the Captain's haori flutter. "It's like being a Captain has finally hit me."
"Just wait until he sees you like this! He won't resist you!" Rangiku chirped, dashing off.
"...Who?" Isane repeated and Ayumi closed her dropped jaw.
"NO ONE!" then came Ayumi's nervous laugh.
"What's this all about?" Yoruichi's signature catty grin broke out. "Ayumi... are you going out with someone?"
"Yoruichi, really?"
"For all know, there could be some killer Shinigami who's won your heart in the time you've been here! Come on, spill the beans, who is it?"
"I'm not going out with anyone and certainly not with who Rangiku's trying to set me up with."
"... Rangiku's trying set Ayumi Sakurada up with someone?"
"Yes." Ayumi sighed, closing her eyes and clutching her head. "You know, I don't even like him like that!... What the-!"
Ayumi looked baffled before several tick marks popped up imaginarily on her head. She stomped out of the empty room and sprinted down the hall, calling out the names of the women whom had all gone sprinting after Rangiku.
-X-
(1) Sadist & Masochist – Well... here's a scenario: there's a person whipping, and a person being whipped. Both sides find a lot of pleasure in doing this. I'd rather not go into detail, so uh... Wikipedia or Google if you must?
ASDLFKJ. So yeah. Hi there. Again.
Did you like it? Not so much? COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY CONFUSED?
Well, stuff will happen, and stuff won't happen, so just stick with ittt. Who thinks they're catching onto me? Anyone? WELL YOU'RE NOT! AHAHAHAHA *stabbed*
...Craziness aside, I hope you enjoyed it! I had a lot of fun writing the first part, with the Toushirou, Rangiku and Ayumi in the same room ;D Plus, I think I delved deeper into the plot I'm planning to go with this.
What do you think? You want some Espada Arrancar action, or do you prefer the lighthearted, humorous love story? I mean, if we go with the Espada route, you get to see Grimmy and Ulquiorra (in their full hotness, bishie glory! *nosebleeds*), but you're fully aware of... those who will die in the story, then, right? Review your answer, please! The faster, the better because I'll know what you guys think and I can write the other chapters lickity split!
Having a biiiit of trouble staying on track with this, but I don't want every chapter to revolve completely around Ayumi and Touchirou, y'know? I really want to get some more depth into Ayumi's character. I hope you guys don't mind!