The first thing he did was go to the Relief Station. He asked the girl at the counter the whereabouts of Captain Unohana. The girl pointed the direction and Shane headed off. To his mild surprise, the captain was in her quarters. Shane stood outside and politely knocked on the door. "Come in," a pleasant voice replied.
Shane opened the door and went inside. Captain Unohana was at her desk, Lieutenant Kotetsu standing behnd her. Shane stopped several paces in front of the desk and bowed politely and said, "Please pardon my intrusion Captain."
"What is it this time Lieutenant Akiyama?" Unohana asked. Shane stood up and said, "I wish to apologize for my behavior yesterday. I realize it was very rude to barge into your private quarters unannounced. And I am sorry for the way I handled the situation. At the time, I wasn't thinking properly."
Captain Unohana smiled. "I understand. Your apology is accepted Lieutenant Akiyama. But don't let it happen again. You might have to come here for treatment." Although her face was pleasant, her last words carried a heavy threat that made Shane feel about one millimeter tall. "Yes, I understand," he managed to say.
Captain Unohana grew serious and her voice was sad. "Olivia is to be laid to rest today. I'm sure she would appreciate it if you were there."
Shane nodded. "Would it be too much trouble to go to her room and gather her things?"
"You wish to keep mementos?" Unohana asked. Shane shrugged. "Mostly her flower collection. Some of them are very rare and require a lot of attention." Unohana nodded in agreement. "Yes, I agree. You may go to her room and collect some of her things."
Shane bowed again. "Thank you ma'am." He turned and left.
"Is that really the same guy that came here yesterday?" Lieutenant Kotetsu remarked after Shane had gone.
"Grief and sadness affect people differently," Unohana explained.
Shane stood outside Olivia's room. He wanted to go inside, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He knew that if he opened the door, he would find nothing there. And that was the part that bothered him the most.
"I just don't get it," Shane said to himself. "Why is it so hard to just open the door?"
"Is is because you are afraid of what you will find?" someone asked. Shane turned his head to see Rukia approach. She put her hand on his shoulder and offered a smile. "If you don't open the door, you'll live your whole life wondering what could have been."
Without taking his eyes off Rukia, Shane pushed the door open. The afternoon sun blazed brilliantly through the windows. Shane put his hand up to shield his eyes.
"Oh! I never new Olivia kept flowers!" Rukia said with awe and dashed into the room like a little kid. Shane stepped in the room and looked around. Everything was in its place, as if waiting for Olivia to come back. Rukia was poking curiously through the many plants in the window. "They're so pretty!" She came across several that hadn't bloomed yet and frowned. "Hey Shane, is something wrong with these flowers?" Rukia asked.
"Which ones?" Shane asked. He looked over Rukia's shoulder and saw which ones she was pointing at. "There's nothing wrong with those flowers," Shane said, smiling. "Those are special flowers that only bloom at night."
"Flowers that bloom at night?" Rukia asked. She frowned and gently poked at the flowers with her finger. "Sounds kinda backwards to me. Why wouldn't flowers want to see the sunshine?"
"Well, if I were a flower I'd bloom at night," Shane said, standing up. "I happen to like the night time."
"Why? Because your Soul Slayer is named after the moon?" Rukia chided.
"You want to see a moon?" Shane asked. He turned around, bent over and pretended to pull his pants down. "Look Rukia, it's a full moon!"
"Idiot! What are you doing?" Rukia shouted, turning bright red. Shane couldn't help but laugh. "Well since you're here, mind helping me take these to my room?"
Shane and Rukia carefully put Olivia's plants in boxes and carried them back to the 13th Squad barracks. The trip was spent in silence, neither sure what to say. When they arrived at Shane's room, Shane opened the door and put the boxes on the floor to sort through later. They stood in the middle of the room, silence hanging over them.
"When did you get back?" Rukia asked.
"Yesterday afternoon," Shane replied.
"I must have just missed you then," Rukia said. "You didn't see anything, did you?"
Shane shook his head. "I barely remember making the trip back from the Real World. Everything is like a blur."
"I heard what happened from Captain Ukitake," Rukia said. "It's not your fault you know."
Shane nodded his head. "I know. I'm not blaming myself for what happened." He clenched his fists till his knuckles turned white. "I wish..." He sighed and relaxed his hands. "I'll always have that memory," he said. Rukia watched him for a moment. "You don't have to keep it all inside," she said. "It's okay to show emotion and to be sad."
Silence settled between the two friends and Rukia was sure Shane would be okay. As she turned to leave, Shane called after her, "When are you going after Orihime?"
Rukia stopped and turned to face Shane. Her eyes were cold and narrow. "Are you going to try and stop me?" she threatened.
Shane shrugged. "No," he said, very non-chalont. "Have a good trip and don't die."
Rukia was stunned. "That's not quite the reaction I was expecting," she stammered.
"Well what do you want me to do, lock you away in the Shrine of Penitence again?" Shane asked. "If you've made up your mind to go, then go. Tell Ichigo I said hello and he's still a bum." Rukia simply stared at Shane stupidly. Shane waved a hand in her face. "What are you still doing here? Why haven't you left yet?"
"But, I, that's..." Rukia sputtered. Shane turned her around and pushed her out the door. "Get going already! Sheesh! You're wasting time! Ichigo's probably already in Hueco Mundo getting himself into trouble," he said.
Still not completely comprehending what was happening, Rukia stumbled a few steps down the hall and turned to look back at Shane.
"Hurry up! Get out of here!" Shane shouted and threw his sandal at her. "Don't come back until your friends are safe. In fact, if you fail or die, don't bother coming back. I'll disown you and pretend like I never knew you!"
"Okay I get it already!" Rukia replied and threw his sandal back. She stormed off and Shane breathed a sigh of relief.
The second thing Shane did was take a hot bath. He lay back in the water and closed his eyes. Images and memories of Olivia flashed through his mind. I miss her so much, Shane thought to himself. He opened his eyes and sighed. After he had washed and dried himself, Shane went back to his room and put on a clean uniform. He adjusted himself in the mirror and when he was satisfied, he left the room. On second thought, Shane went back to his room and put his two swords on the display rack on his desk. He left the room a second time. After Shane had left the room, the twin swords began to pulsate with silver-colored energy. On the floor next to the desk, a forgotten sword emitted a faint blip of spiritual energy. The pulsing grew to a steady throbbing and the room was filled with a powerful aura, while the response from the other sword remained very faint.
Two figures appeared in the room. One wore silver colored ceremonial robes with blue embroidery, the other wore dark clothes covered in shadow. Silently, they called out to their fallen companion. At first, the response was faint, but the lone sword began to glow with a golden light and a light ringing sound filled the room. Greatly encouraged, the two persons urged the presence on. The room was filled with a golden light and a third spiritual presence was felt in the room.
"I am grateful," Light Tsukuyomi offered a bow. Dark Tsukuyomi's head nodded in agreement and asked, "So now what?"
There was silence for a moment before Light Tsukuyomi said, "Yes, we agree. Given these circumstances, that would be best."
"Don't get ahead of yourself," Dark Tsukuyomi cautioned. "We're still missing an important piece and you have to take into account who we're dealing with."
Silence.
"I have confidence he will be able to make this work," Light Tsukuyomi said.
"Me, not so much," Dark Tsukuyomi added. "We won't know until we find him."
Shane walked along the dirt path until he was far away from the Court of Pure Souls and Soukyoku Hill was a small mound on the horizon. The path widened into a large meadow. This was the Valley of Silence, where shinigami are buried. Small burial mounds with stone markers stretched as far as Shane could see. Feeling a bit lost, he began wandering though the grounds. Up ahead, he saw a small gathering of people. Shane made his way to the group and recognized Captain Unohana, her lieutenant, and several others from Squad 4. As he grew closer, the others opened a path and let him through. A lump formed in Shane's throat that quickly grew until he was unable to swallow.
Captain Unohana stood next to the small wooden coffin. Her face was sad and her eyes full of compassion. She quietly stepped aside and Shane took her place next to the coffin. Olivia's body had been cleaned up and the peaceful expression on her face suggested she was merely sleeping, her hands folded across her chest.
Captain Unohana stepped up next to Shane and said, "Her spirit has joined the path of spirits between here and the Real World where, in time, she will be born again as a human."
Shane nodded and sniffed. "Too bad she'll have no memory of this place, or me," he said sadly.
Unohana gently put her hand on his shoulder. "We'll leave you alone. When you are ready, let them know." Shane nodded and Unohana left with the rest of her party.
Shane knelt down beside the coffin and put his elbows on the lip. He folded his hands and rested his chin on his fingers. The afternoon sun was warm on his bare skin and a light breeze whispered through the valley.
"I don't know what to say," Shane croaked. His eyes became wet and he sniffed. "We were opposite in every way," he said. "You were the day and I was the night. You were the yang to my yin." Tears began to fall down his face as he reached out with a trembling hand to caress her face. Her skin was cool to the touch, devoid of any life or feeling.
"We had a lot of good times together. I'm not sorry for anything, and I have no regrets," Shane continued. He stood and dried his face with his sleeve. "I know you don't blame me for what happened, but I will carry that with me for the rest of my life." He bent over and kissed Olivia on the forehead. Shane stood up and tilted his head to the sky and called out in a loud voice, "Please don't forget me! Spirit of Olivia, if you can hear me, don't forget about me!"