Author's Note: I do not own Bleach or its characters. This is AU.


Of My Own

Orihime vigorously illustrated her point with her hands, causing her friends to laugh. She smiled and laughed as well before reaching over to take Ishida's hand in her own. Yoruichi smiled behind her newspaper. She and Kisuke were seated across the street at a little outdoor café. Next to her, Kisuke sighed. He was not watching the scene across the way. She frowned a little at her friend.

"What's wrong?"

"Them." He gestured to a young pair at the other end of the café who were clearly having a fight. "I don't know if we can wait any longer with them. I know you had another pair in mind, but I'm worried about them."

Momo Hinamori threw down her napkin and stalked out of the café. Yoruichi frowned. Aizen had truly damaged the young woman who had been his teaching assistant. She hadn't known she had even been involved in the whole mess until it was too late. Momo had managed to survive, but she was currently on academic probation, and her world had been pretty much been shattered. And one of the biggest causalities had been her friendship with Toushiro Hitsugaya, a young genius who was the current head of the math department.

Yoruichi nodded, watching a morose Hitsugaya stare at his food. "You're right. Let's get to work."