The train ride from Shinagawa back to Leblanc was quiet, but the atmosphere was peaceful as opposed to tense. While Ryuji and Futaba needed to remove their headsets before hopping on the train, leaving them blind to Akira's Shinigami form, Ryuji still made a valiant attempt at including Akira in his increasingly embellished retellings of the night's adventures. Futaba, meanwhile, poked at the spot the Substitute Shinigami was standing in, and both of them shuddered as after a moment of resistance, her finger went through his knee as if he was simply vapours in the wind.

"Freaky." She stated, the first words out of her in a while.

The girl spent most of the trip huddled by Ryuji's side, headphones on, but as they grew closer to Yongen-Jaya some of the tension in her shoulders loosened. A smile crossed Futaba's lips as she bobbed her head to some tune - everyone was content to give her the space she needed, and happily bantered with each other instead. As they trundled closer to Yongen-Jaya, Akira sent Sojiro a quick text – Leblanc would be closed by the time they arrived, so hopefully the barista wouldn't mind it if he had some friends over for dinner. If Sojiro said no, Akira would just sneak his pals in anyway, but he'd prefer to get his guardian's blessing. Sojiro was gruff, but ultimately was fairly reasonable considering the circumstances, and the teenager would prefer not to disrupt their stable equilibrium.

Luckily, Sojiro simply asked 'how many?', before returning a 'got it' when Akira said five.

When they arrived back in Yogen-Jaya, Akira ran around to the cafe's back before phasing through the building's wall with a shudder – it was no wonder Rukia said most Shinigami avoided doing that when possible. Slipping back into his human body, he jumped out of the window and hurried back to his friends. They marched in Leblanc together, and Akira caught sight of Sojiro standing behind the counter, drying a cup.

He raised an idle brow as Akira entered. "Evening." Then, though, his eyes landed on his daughter, and Sojiro's head snapped up like lightning. "Futaba?!"

She cringed, hiding behind the others, before quickly stammering out a greeting. "H-h-h-h-hi!"

A pair of stormy grey eyes drilled down into Akira, and he promptly remembered that the only times Sojiro had ever been genuinely mad at him always involved his daughter. Shoving up his glasses, Akira quickly thought of a good excuse for her presence – he wouldn't want Sojiro thinking he was dragging Futaba into anything untoward.

"She's friends with Ryuji, apparently." He settled on in the end.

Thankfully, that seemed to stop Sojiro's fury in its tracks. The gruff man's jaw dropped slightly as he gave Akira an owlish blink. "… Really?"

Humming, Futaba grabbed Ryuji's hand and gave it a swing. "Yeah! We met… doing video game stuff! On the internet!"

"Uh, yeah! I love games!" Ryuji beamed, and while it probably wasn't a lie, Akira suspected they were on two very different levels of gamer.

Thankfully, Sojiro clearly didn't know enough about the medium to pick apart how obviously fake their cover story was. His shoulders relaxed, and his expression softened in the way it only did in Futaba's presence. "… Well, I'll leave you kids to it, then. Here." He gestured, and Akira's brows rose as he saw five plates of Leblanc curry spread out over the counter. "Dinner is on the house just this once, okay?"

"Thank you, Boss." Akira grinned, something warm and fuzzy fizzling in his chest.

Sojiro's gesture was touching - he hadn't known Futaba was in Akira's little band, and yet had prepared food for them all anyway. At the same though, something melancholy panged within Akira. How many years had it been since his parents had done something like this for him, if ever?

(How long had it been since he'd actually had friends worth doing something like this with?)

Akira shook his head, dismissing the bleak thoughts. Sojiro had shown him an unexpected yet welcome kindness, and he was going to embrace it.

"Alright!" Ryuji crowed, jumping in the air, completely oblivious to Akira's thoughts. "You're the best!"

"Thank you, Boss!" Ann chimed.

Rukia, meanwhile, gave Sojiro a polite bow. "Thank you for the meal, Sakura-san."

He waved her off, an affectionate smile crossing his face. "There's no need to be so formal, Kuchiki-chan. You're doing me a favour by keeping an eye on this kid. Now, don't stay up too late, okay? That includes you, Futaba."

"Yes, Sojiro." Futaba droned, clearly having heard him say that a million times (and most likely, she'd ignored it all those other times too).

He shook his head in affectionate disapproval, before giving the group of kids a casual wave and departing. As soon as Sojiro left, everyone's attention snapped straight back to Futaba. She wilted under their gazes, and Akira sighed.

"Why don't we have dinner first?" He suggested. "I don't know about you, but I could do with a warm meal."

"Tell me about it." Ann shuddered. "Shinagawa is so cold this time of year – oh!" She perked up as she took a bite. "This is delicious!"

"I concur." Rukia nodded. "A traditional curry, but with a modern twist. Is that a hint of apple I'm tasting?"

Futaba blushed slightly, pushing her fingers together. "S-Sojiro's curry is the best, isn't it? Mum helped him come up with the recipe ages ago… it tastes like good memories, doesn't it?"

As the sweet yet spicy flavour crossed his tongue, the perfect level of warmth, Akira nodded in agreement. There was something nostalgic about the flavour, even if he'd never eaten anything quite like it before he'd come to Tokyo.

Rukia looked away from her dish and examined Futaba quizzically. "Why do you call Sakura-san that? By his first name, I mean."

"Oh." Futaba blinked. "I'm adopted."

Huh. Akira supposed that made sense. Sojiro had mentioned something about Futaba not having the greatest past, and while he didn't know much about the foster care system, even Akira knew it wasn't particularly great. It would also explain why there wasn't hide nor hair of a Mrs Sakura – she'd never existed in the first place. Would Rukia even know anything about adoption? He frowned. Her mannerisms were fairly old-fashioned, and adoption and foster care were fairly taboo in Japan even in modern times. Futaba's thoughts seemed to trail along the same lines, and she narrowed her eyes.

"… Are you going to have a problem with that?" The girl was probably aiming for intimidating, but the tremble in her voice made her come off more nervous than anything else.

Rukia waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, no, not at all. The majority of families in the Soul Society are ones of choice – most souls can't have children, after all. Admittedly, there can be some stigma against it among certain groups, but the average spirit wouldn't blink an eye."

Futaba scratched her chin. "Huh, guess that makes sense. Historically speaking, there'd be a lot of dead babies to go around, too."

Akira barely resisted wincing. Tact isn't Futaba's strong point, is it?

Rukia also seemed entirely caught off guard by that statement, and eventually decided to do them all a favour by ignoring it. The Shinigami instead looked away, something wistful entering her voice. "… You and Sakura-san seem close. Together, you feel more like a family than many of the blood ones I know."

Akira's thoughts drifted back to his parents – to a mother who cared more about the acceptance of her neighbours than the happiness of her family, and a father who barely bothered to speak a word to either of them unless they were interrupting his vaunted privacy. Neither of them had contacted him since he'd arrived in Tokyo, not that he had expected them to. He'd contemplated calling them once, before realising it was pointless. For a moment, Akira felt a flash of jealousy towards Futaba, but it passed as quickly as a shooting star. As close as she was with Sojiro, underneath that surface lay a history of pain Akira couldn't even fathom. As distant as he was with his biological parents, he wouldn't want them dead, for one.

Futaba shrugged, swinging her legs. "S-Sojiro acts like a grouch, but he's just a big softie, honestly."

Given he'd made them all an impromptu dinner, Akira couldn't help but agree with that statement. The conversation changed topics from there, moving on to more light-hearted things while the Phantoms finished their meal. As time went on, the tension knotting Futaba's spine slowly seemed to loosen, and after he collected everyone's dishes, Akira decided it was time for them to get down to business.

"So, how did you find out about the Phantoms, anyway?" Akira asked, sipping on a glass of water.

Futaba shuffled awkwardly, not meeting his eyes. "I… uh… sortofbuggedtheatticwhenyouarrived."

… What the fuck.

Rukia looked at Futaba, eyes shining in utter glee. "You put bugs in Akira's attic?"

"Not those sorts of bugs." Akira sighed, adjusting his glasses.

Out of all the things Futaba could have possibly said, that wasn't at the bottom of his list, primarily since he didn't even realise it was an option. How did Futaba do that? Why did Futaba do that? Why was that an idea that had even occurred to her?"

Ryuji wrinkled his brow, thoughts clearly going in the same direction. "But why? I mean, it's his bedroom… ain't that just asking to overhear something you really didn't want to?"

Ann rubbed her chin. "I mean... unless that was the point? Creepy, but…"

"H-hey!" Futaba pouted. "It's nothing like that! It's just, uh, I sort of… uh… wanted to get to know you without… talking to you?" At Akira's dumbfounded expression, she stomped her foot. "S-speaking to people is scary! My charm stat is in the dumps!" Futaba snapped her fingers. "Plus, for all I knew, you were some stinky crime boy! I didn't want to get murdered and shoved in a basement somewhere!"

"Technically speaking, Akira does commit crimes." Rukia commented. "Though I don't think he has a basement…"

"Yeah, but he does cool crimes!" Futaba leapt to his defence. "That's different! I do those too!"

Akira massaged his forehead, brain beginning to ache. He felt like he hadn't just opened a can of worms, but had dumped them into a bathtub and decided to have a swim. Still, he guessed the fact Futaba did it because she wanted to become friends was sweet of her, in an incredibly unorthodox way.

"Actually…" Ann interrupted, glancing in his direction. "What is the deal with your criminal record, anyway? You're really not the sort of guy who'd attack someone for no reason."

"No sweat if you don't want to share it, dude." Ryuji raised his hands. "We've all got shit we'd rather not talk about."

"Perhaps we can have this discussion later." Rukia shrugged. "I'm far more interested in Futaba's crimes at the moment."

"… I might have wiretapped Leblanc. And stole Akira's phone. And then wiretapped it too."

The vague memory of Futaba hugging him one evening came to his mind, and Akira couldn't help but pout. She'd played him from the start, hadn't she? It would explain how she knew about the Phantoms, too – he'd been pretty sure they hadn't discussed that in Leblanc.

Seeing everyone's uncomfortable frowns, Futaba coughed. "… But that doesn't matter! I was expecting you to talk about video games or hot women, not your ghost-hunting side job! Now that was a doozy to overhear." The petite girl snapped her fingers. "I knew mum's research was on to something, but it all suddenly made sense now!"

Akira leant forward, his mixed feelings towards Futaba's activities fading in light of his curiosity.

Ryuji too seemed intrigued. "Your mum… you mentioned she was the one who designed your spirit-sensing stuff, yeah?"

Futaba nodded. "… Have you ever heard of Cognitive Psience?"

Silence greeted her question, along with several headshakes.

Futaba didn't look at all surprised by that, and began to explain. "Well, the cognition part is basically about how people perceive the world. Like those theories about how colours actually look different for each person, hence why we all have different favourites. Mum was more interested in the 'psy' part of the equation though. Her initial theory was that everyone has their own cognitive mindscape, like an inner world of sorts."

Rukia took in a sharp breath, and Akira gave her a curious look. It was clear Futaba's words had meant something to her, but he had no idea what.

Futaba continued, paying them no heed. "Her research was initially about seeing if it was possible to influence these inner worlds and what effect that would have on people's cognition. It was then that she discovered psionic energy, however. People who emitted more of it tended to be more perceptive than usual. Normally it was just stuff like being able to pick up other people's emotions more easily, but sometimes it manifested in freakier ways, like premonitions or seeing things others couldn't."

A lightbulb flashed in Akira's mind. "When Ryuji and I were about to be attacked by that Hollow, I felt a sense of trepidation beforehand."

Ann gasped in understanding. "Just before I was attacked by that Hollow, Shujin felt unusually creepy."

Rukia nodded, a faintly sick pallor to her skin. "… Yes, Hollow Reiatsu has a distinctly sinister bent, and the concept of seeing things normal humans cannot is self-explanatory. Still, the fact that spiritually-unaware humans have discovered the existence of Reiryoku…"

"If it makes you feel better, they went down the psychic powers route instead of the ghost powers one." Futaba shrugged, unrepentant. "As her research team continued their studies, they found that psionic energy wasn't just tied to people, but locations too."

Futaba's mother must have been a genius. Akira's lips pursed into a fine line. Even if she had jumped to the wrong conclusion about the nature of her discovery, the fact that someone with no spiritual powers or pre-existing knowledge of the other world had uncovered so much…

"Still, that wasn't enough for her sponsors." Futaba's expression turned gloomy, and her shoulders sagged. "They didn't just want to know that psionic energy existed. They wanted to harness it. Mum started to look into it – that's how I made your bat – but one day… an experiment went wrong. Really, really wrong. The whole facility got destroyed. There were no survivors."

A horrified silence filled the room.

"Futaba…" Ann's hand rose to her mouth, and she made an aborted motion to reach out to the younger girl, before thinking better of it. "That's just… that's awful. I'm so, so sorry."

An idea occurred to him. "Is that why you want to join the Phantoms? So we can find out the truth of your mother's death?"

Futaba hesitated for a moment, before shaking her head. "Not exactly. Accidents happen – it's not like they tried to cover it up." She shuddered, curling in on herself. "Her research, though? That's another matter. After she died, all these men in dark suits came into our home, and took everything." Futaba pointed to her sports bag. "All this stuff? It's based on what I remember from her notes. B-but that's not where it ends! Everything even vaguely related to Cognitive Psience was completely zapped, everywhere!" A passionate anger burned in her voice – Akira had never seen her this animated before. "Other researchers who weren't involved with the lab were either fired or threatened until they abandoned their work… books were seized and banned… they even scrubbed every trace of it off the internet! Do you know how hard it is to do that?!"

Rukia pursed her lips, expression troubled. "Truthfully… I cannot help but think that might be for the best. If the existence of the Soul Society was discovered, it would only lead to pandemonium."

Akira could barely comprehend the idea. If knowledge about spirits and the afterlife became widespread… It would completely change humanity as they knew it. Ryuji looked pretty stumped, but Ann shuddered, arms prickling with goosebumps.

"Rukia's right." The blonde's lips thinned. "Japan's not particularly religious, but some of the other countries I've been to… it'd be the powder keg for war."

Akira shifted, nervous about how Futaba would react to the criticism, but thankfully she took it in stride. "Well, you're not wrong. Even I think there's some shit man just does not need to know. Still, most people aren't going to jump to the whole ghost-magic thing – there are far more mundane explanations for it. Plus, think of the potential!" She shoved up her glasses. "How many disasters and deaths do Hollow attacks cause, for one? If anyone could predict Hollow entry points, we'd cut those numbers down to single digits! Your stuff isn't bad, but it had nothing on my sensors!"

"I… suppose that's true." Rukia reluctantly admitted, gazing at the ground. "Sensing technology based in the World of the Living would mean you wouldn't have to account for time dilation variables, for one. That would make them fifty per cent more accurate alone..."

"Bingo." Futaba snapped her fingers. "Though, you're going to have to tell me more about that time dilation stuff later – that sounds fascinating. Anyway, that's just the tip of the surface. We could use Reiatsu for clean energy, medicine… it could change the world, for the better." The redhead gnawed her lip. "It's… not really like I'm expecting to achieve all that, but… mum's research was so important to her. I don't want it to fade into obscurity like it never existed – even if I can't give it the fame it deserves, I don't want her life's work to be in vain. I want to finish her studies – to help people with it, just like she wanted to." Taking in a deep breath, Futaba looked Akira dead in the eyes. Despite the tremble in her hands, her expression was resolute, and there was no hesitation in her voice. "That's why I want to join the Phantoms. You all know so much more about psionic energy than mum ever did. With your guidance, my research would advance in leaps and bounds, and I wouldn't accidentally stumble into anything I shouldn't!"

The room grew quiet, as they all contemplated her words. While Akira agreed with Ann and Rukia that delving too deep into the spiritual world would only lead to disaster, it seemed half the reason Futaba wanted their aid was to avert that. Plus, her and Ryuji's Hollow fighting debut was the smoothest of all of ours by far...

Futaba clearly misinterpreted the silence, and a desperate edge entered her voice. "A-and it's not like you're going to get nothing out of the deal! I know you probably don't really want to hang out with me, t-that's fine, but! My sensors are better than yours! I can deal with pesky human-world problems like security cameras and the like! I-I can be useful, I swear!"

"Futaba…" Akira sighed, pity welling in his chest. Slowly, cautiously, he reached out to her, and when he received no objections, he rested a hand on her shoulder. "You don't need to be useful to hang out with us."

"Look, I think I would like to get to know you more before we let you join the Phantoms, but… I'm more than happy to give you a chance." A soft smile donned Ann's features. "Nobody deserves to feel alone."

Ryuji shot the girl a thumbs up. "You definitely need to get better at respecting people's privacy, but you did me a big favour. We're cool."

Rukia mulled things over, rubbing her chin. "Truthfully, I have a lot of reservations about humans meddling in spiritual affairs, but I suppose if you're going to do it anyway, it would be better if you had some oversight."

"R-really?" Futaba's eyes were wide, and Akira could catch the tell-tale glimmer of tears in them. "Y-y-you all mean that?"

Instead of answering, Akira gave her a hug. Ann's eyes sparkled as she followed suit, and Ryuji shrugged, before sauntering over and joining in. Rukia looked at them in confusion for a moment, but tentatively, wrapped her arms around the group as Futaba began sniffing into his shoulder.

Akira had no idea how long they stood there, holding their newest team member, but eventually, Futaba's sobs died down, and Akira gave her a grin. "… Want to hear the story about how I got arrested?"

…..

Goro marched down the hallway, his footsteps echoing in the silent hall like church bells. Normally, a government building like this would be full of life – secretaries taking phone calls, salarymen complaining about their wives, and hapless interns flitting around like drones. Tonight though, the office was empty. Shido Masayoshi ran a tight ship, and insubordination was poorly tolerated. If he wanted privacy, he got it.

As Goro approached Shido's office, he adjusted his gloves. While they did meet face-to-face occasionally, most of his correspondence with his employer was over the phone. Whatever Shido wanted to speak to him about, it was important. Knocking at the door, Goro waited. Normally, Shido would let him stew for a bit – the man loved his ridiculous power plays, after all – but today, Shido responded almost immediately. The teen detective entered the room, Shido not even bothering to turn around to face him. With his neatly shaven head (a pathetic disguise for his premature balding), and hawklike eyes, the politician would have cut an imposing figure if Goro hadn't known what a loathsome worm he was. Sitting primly at his desk, the arrogant prick's sunglasses rested on the table as he glared into a monitor as if it had personally wronged him.

"The Phantoms." Shido stated bluntly, and clicked his mouse. "They have the same powers you do, don't they?"

Goro watched idly as the Madarame exhibit's security footage played before him. While Shido probably couldn't see much more than red words spontaneously appearing on a blank wall, Goro was greeted with the sight of a bunch of teenagers sitting on each other's shoulders with all the grace of a dead walrus.

"… Not quite." The detective sighed. "They're not going to 'vanish' anyone anytime soon, but they are using spiritual powers to commit their mischief."

A lesser man would have cursed, but Shido merely steepled his fingers. "Can you eliminate them?"

Goro frowned, rubbing his chin. He'd need to meet them in person to gauge their Reiatsu properly, but despite their advantage in numbers, Goro was confident he'd have the advantage in strength.

"With ease, but I'm not sure if that's a good idea." At Shido's piercing glare, he elaborated. "If I harm the Shinigami – who will presumably protect his comrades – there's a possibility Soul Society will investigate. While they care little about human affairs, they will interfere if they discover my existence."

Shido leant back in his chair, lips curled in a sneer. "Well? Then what should we do with them - just sit back and let them run amok? The tomfoolery with Kamoshida was ignorable, but Madarame was a sponsor of mine. They cannot cause any more harm to my operation."

Goro contemplated the facts. As much as the Phantoms intrigued him, he'd happily kill them all if they got in the way of his revenge. At the same time, he wasn't lying to Shido. Attacking them now would only capture the Soul Society's attention. "Shinigami normally only stay in our world from one to three months. Assuming he arrived shortly before the Kamoshida incident, he should return back to the Soul Society sometime in July."

"And if they continue without him?"

Goro stifled his annoyance at the brusque reply. Let me finish my statement, you dick. "Then that means we simply have three teenagers to deal with. Easy enough for me to eliminate, but… this could be an opportunity to wrap up some loose ends."

Interest sparkled in Shido's eyes, and despite himself, Goro felt his heart skip a beat.

"Go on." The sharply dressed man nodded.

"As you noted, there are numerous similarities between the Vanishing Incidents and the Phantoms' actions." Goro began to pace, as the thoughts slotted into his mind. "I don't think it would take much of a push to make the public suspect they are one and the same."

They would be the perfect scapegoat for his own crimes.

A malicious grin crossed Shido's face. "Yes… that idea has potential. We can manipulate the media – make them appear as if they are heroes. While my opposition flocks to their side, you and I will stand against them." Shido snapped his hand firmly shut as if he was crushing a bug. "Then, when their 'true' nature is exposed, the public will realise we are the ones who stood for truth and justice, even as our weak-willed rivals fell prey to their pretty lies."

"What an excellent idea." Goro laughed, a perfectly fake noise he had honed over the years. "With that strategy, you'll win the election for sure."

Shido merely snorted. "Of course it's an excellent idea – I came up with it. I have your next mission."

Goro straightened his spine, intrigued.

"I have a contact at Shujin." Shido elaborated. "I will arrange things so the second years you suspect are at the TV station during your next interview. Verify their identities, and confirm their Reiatsu levels."

"Your wish is my command, sir."

His new task wasn't quite as entertaining as striking down a target, but nonetheless, it would be interesting enough.

…..

One of the few things Rukia truly missed about the Soul Society was the stars. Something about Tokyo seemed to smother the sky, leaving it in constant inky darkness. She was sure there was some scientific reason why, but she found herself not caring, in the way it was hard to care about anything much at all when trapped in the subliminal state of a sleepless night. Rukia had spent the evening tossing and turning, before eventually giving up and perching herself down on the windowsill of the Takamaki's guest room. Ann had been adamant about her leaving her closet, and while part of Rukia missed the cosiness – wide spaces always reminded her too much of the crypt that was the Kuchiki Mansion – having her own room had its perks.

A temperate breeze flowed through the open window, and the sounds of the city buzzed faintly in the background. While Rukia would normally find such a thing soothing, that evening it only helped agitate her already distracted mood.

Stretching out her palm, she silently attempted to form a Shakkahō, only to summon a faint wisp of fire that quickly petered out and died. Her frown deepened. Rukia was halfway through her assignment, and her Shinigami powers showed no sign of returning. No, that wasn't right – if anything, they were getting weaker. It was a sheer miracle Akira had a knack for Kaidō and Ann had asked to learn Kidō when she did. A Shinigami with so little Reirokyu they couldn't cast a Shakkahō was barely a Shinigami at all.

The revelation made Rukia feel nothing but numbness. It felt good aiding the Phantoms – Akira's close-knit group of friends shared a camaraderie she hadn't been part of since she fell out with Renji (a nastier part of her mind said since Kaien died). In the small hours of the night though, when she was left alone with her thoughts, all the misery and pain came rushing back. If the Phantoms had any idea who or what she was, she doubted they would continue to welcome her with open arms. Yet, Rukia lacked the courage to tell them about her sins.

You truly are pathetic, aren't you?

For a split second, she considered speaking with Sode no Shirayuki, but dismissed the thought. She hadn't bothered to communicate with her Zanpakutō years, so why start now?

Rukia doubted she would be able to even if she wanted to, anyway.

Sleep did not come for her that night.

…..

While Akira had told Rukia that Futaba had started talking to him during their shared meals, it took several days for the younger girl to contact the Phantoms as a whole again. The Shinigami was daydreaming in an English class when her phone buzzed, and she discreetly gave it a glance. Luckily, it wasn't the Soul Society – there had been a dearth of Hollows this week, much to her relief. Instead, Futaba had messaged the new Phantoms group chat. She'd made it herself, blabbering on about something called 'encryption', though Akira's explanation of the topic had gone well over Rukia's head.

Alibaba: hey. we need a team meeting – gotta get you lot connected to alibaba HQ

Alibaba: are you free tonight?

Unsurprisingly, Ryuji immediately responded with an affirmative. It seemed Rukia wasn't the only person distracted that day.

Skull: yeah, sounds good. was planning on a run, but i can do that whenevs

Ann: sure! can't stay too late though; i've got a photoshoot in the evening.

Akira: Can do.

Rukia: Akira, Ann, I expect this from Ryuji, but shouldn't you two be paying attention to your lessons?

Ann: it's english hahaha. i could do this in my sleep ;)

Alibaba: says she who is also on her phone during school

Rukia: I'll let you know that I am over a century old, and have witnessed things you could not even comprehend.

Rukia: Also, I need to monitor my phone in case it's Soul Society.

Alibaba: damn youre a grandma

Skull: LMAO WRECKT

Alibaba: hmm, while we're all here, you lot need codenames. no point using my super-secret chat server if you're gonna plaster your actual details all over it

Akira: I'll be Joker, because I'm hilarious.

Alibaba: LOL

Ann: hmm… i'm not sure. any suggestions? please no fire puns.

Joker: Oh. All out of ideas then, sorry.

Skull: what about blonde?

Alibaba: skull, codenames are meant to be obscure, not actual descriptions of yourself

Skull: oh. ginger then?

Ann: … absolutely not.

Ann: what about panther? cute, yet also ferocious.

Alibaba: sounds good! i'll update your deets

Alibaba: rukia, any ideas?

Rukia stilled. Even to this day, she found it mildly surreal that the Phantoms wholeheartedly viewed her as one of them. Her Zanpakutō spirit must have still been on her mind, as a word immediately popped into her head.

Rukia: Snow.

Alibaba: alright then! that's the whole crew sorted. now, be there, or be square!

Alibaba: also, skull, start paying attention to your class. youre not smart enough to get away with it.

Skull: oi! why are you singling out me? akira's not listening either!

Alibaba: …

Skull: uh, i mean joker

Alibaba: that is exactly why I'm singling you out

Alibaba: peace

…..

"Mwehehe, welcome to my humble abode!" While Futaba's smile was still a bit shaky, she hadn't reverted to the trembling mess she'd been when she first met the group.

A gentle smile crossed Akira's face, and he gave a nod. "Happy to be here."

Futaba beamed, and Rukia felt a wave of fond nostalgia. Kindness came easily to the boy – while he was far more placid than Kaien ever was even on a good day, they both possessed a sense of empathy that drew people towards them like moths to a flame. It was a rare virtue in the human world, let alone amongst the nobles of the Soul Society.

The girl ushered them all in, and Rukia examined the Sakura residence with curiosity. It probably would have fit right in amongst the houses in the upper districts of the Rukongai - most nobles would have scoffed at it, but your average seated officer would be right at home. In terms of what she knew about human world housing, she would have placed it firmly as middle class. Compared to the large, faux-European style of the Takamakis' apartment it was unremarkable, but even though it had no artwork adorning the walls, or plush carpets and stylish furniture, it had something Ann's home lacked – a heart.

(In a way, the Takamakis' apartment reminded her a bit of the Kuchiki Mansion. It wasn't nearly that bad, but it was still far too large a house for a single girl. Even the frequent phone calls Ann shared with her parents never managed to hide the fact that it was always just a tad too quiet. In hindsight, it should have been obvious Ann would be more than happy to let Rukia stay there.)

Futaba's room was on the first floor, and easily identified by the bold yellow tape plastered all over it warning people to keep out. Perhaps the garish colour is to drive away predators? Rukia pondered. She learned new and fascinating things about mankind every day. As the Phantoms entered, it became rapidly apparent Futaba lived in an absolute dumpster. Scattered papers littered the floor, and large bags of trash were dumped willy-nilly all over the place. The second thing Rukia noticed was the setup on Futaba's desk. It took her a few seconds to realise it was a computing rig – it had far more screens and peripheral devices than anything at Shujin did – and when she did, Rukia felt a bubble of intrigue. She wasn't entirely unfamiliar with such technology, but it was smaller and more streamlined than any of the bulky things she'd seen during her singular visit to the 12th.

Rukia rested her hands on her hips. Humans truly can be amazingly innovative, can't they?

The others, meanwhile, still seemed to be distracted by all the mess.

"… Huh. I guess Sojiro's hoarding tendency is a Sakura family trait." Akira pushed up his glasses, and Ryuji suppressed a snort.

Futaba swatted his arm, but there was no force behind it (not that she could have done any damage even if there was). "Oi. Watch it."

"I am Joker, after all." Akira gestured, a smile prying up his lips. "It's in my nature."

Futaba ignored him, and instead strolled to Rukia's side. "Impressive, huh? I bet you don't get sick rigs like this in the Soul Society!"

"It's certainly got fewer tentacles." Rukia nodded.

She wasn't exactly sure why her statement set Futaba off, but the girl pulled one hell of a face. "Sorry, gonna need a moment to process that."

"Why the fuck would a computer have tentacles?" Ryuji scrunched his nose.

Ann sighed, pinching her brow. "… Let's stop asking questions we don't want to know the answer to."

"… Anyway! Back to the point – here!" Futaba hopped onto her chair and typed away.

In the central monitor, a monochrome map of the Shibuya area appeared, split into various grids. The occasional splotch of colour dotted the map, including a cluster of orange in the city's west.

"I've been doing some refinements to my psi- uh, Reiatsu monitoring systems. I've shuffled the beacons a bit so we're got full coverage of the city. If we need to broaden our borders, we can - I've got a few spare ones - but I thought this'd do for now."

Akira leant forward and pointed at the orange smear. "Is that us?"

"Yep!" Futaba popped the 'p'. "Good eye, Joker!"

"What about the yellow smudges?" Ann asked, tilting her head quizzically.

Futaba rubbed her nose. "Wholes, maybe, or normies with a bit of extra spiritual oomph. Might be worth looking at if you want to go on a Whole-hunt, but it's probably just a lot of spurious data."

Rukia nodded, Futaba's words lining up with the few conversations she'd overheard about the difficulties in using sensors to locate Wholes. There was a reason Shinigami patrolled the streets as opposed to just relying on technology or their Reiatsu sensing capabilities.

"To summarise, the bigger and brighter equals stronger and fuckier." Futaba concluded.

Goodness. For one so timid, she's as vulgar as the 11th. Of course, if Rukia was going to place her in any Division, Futaba would go straight to the 12th. Or maybe not, if she's got a gripe with tentacles.

"I've been crunching some data, and I've set up a bot to alert me if any suspected Hollow-holes are forming." Futaba continued. "If my numbers are correct, I should be able to give you a twenty-minute to a half-hour warning before any pop through."

"That would be nice." Akira sighed, rubbing his brow. "The whole plus-or-minus however many minutes thing can be tedious at times."

A chuckle escaped Futaba's lips. "That's not even all! Here!" She pulled up another map of Shibuya, this one dotted with trails of white and red. "I've been doing some calcs, and I think it's possible to determine a Hollow's approximate Reiatsu level before they've even emerged. That way, we'll know it's just a Joker-job, or if the whole gang needs to get involved!"

The other three Phantoms lit up at that, but as they chattered away, Rukia was lost in thoughts. Hmm… that reminds me… the situation with Akira's body was tenuous enough, but now that Ryuji can assist us in fights, I'll need to do something about it sooner rather than later.

"Does your program have any other functions?" Rukia asked, dismissing her prior thoughts. An idea was forming at the back of her mind, but she would need more details before she decided to commit to it.

"Hmm, well, it's still a beta feature, but here!" With a click, Futaba zoomed in on one of the yellow dots, showing a street view of what was probably a hapless Whole. "I'm thinking if I go real-time data mode, I might be able to sense when a Hollow's about to launch a charged attack!"

Rukia had absolutely no idea what she meant, but Ann's eyes lit up in understanding. "Futaba, that's amazing!"

A blush spread across the younger girl's cheeks and she hummed, swinging her legs. "That reminds me – I need to get you guys kitted out." Scrambling to the corner of her room, she rapidly opened her drawers, before withdrawing a handful of devices. "Here."

Rukia caught the object in her palms. It was an odd, loopy thing, coloured in green and black. Futaba tossed similar contraptions to Akira and Ann, but gave Ryuji one of her headsets instead.

Akira examined the object. "Earpieces?"

"Uh-huh! They're specially modified so they're compatible with spiritual forms! You can wear them in your ghost mode, and Ryuji and I'll be able to hear you guys too! Hold down the ridge at the top to transmit, or double-tap for continuous transmission."

Ann must have sensed Rukia's confusion, as she leant towards the smaller girl and whispered. "It's kinda like a portable communication Kidō, with no incantation required."

Oh, my. That would be useful. Despite her reservations towards the girl, Rukia found herself impressed. Futaba would be an absolute R&D menace once she passed to the Soul Society.

… Assuming she ever got through the Academy, that is. Even Ryuji had noticeably more Reiatsu, and he was barely above average by human standards.

"One last goody! Your phones, gimme!" Futaba wriggled her fingers, and the Phantoms exchanged a glance.

"… Uh, why?" Akira asked cautiously.

"Oh, nothing suss." She shrugged. "No bugs, I swear. You see, I, for the last few days, have been converting my wonderful Reiatsu-tracking platform into – drumroll please – an app!"

Ryuji's jaw dropped. "For real?!"

"Uh-huh! No beta features available, I'm sorry, but you'll get the same bot messages I do – not as good as IRL surveillance, but handy if I'm on the loo or something."

Wordlessly, Akira handed her his phone, and Ryuji and Ann barely hesitated before joining him. Still not one hundred per cent sure what Futaba was going on about, Rukia followed suit. When she passed the teenager her Denreishinki however, Futaba pulled an expression of disgust.

"Where did you get that, the nineteen eighties?" Futaba snarked.

"Hey!" Rukia pouted. "There's nothing wrong with my phone!"

Ryuji side-eyed her, hands in his pockets. "Rukia, that thing is twenty years old, minimum."

"So?" Rukia furrowed her brows. That was barely an eyeblink!

"… Yeah, even if I could put an app on this thing, it'd brick it the second you opened it. I don't even think this thing can get internet." Futaba whistled.

"Fine." Rukia huffed, crossing her arms. "If you're so insistent, I'll upgrade it."

Ugh. It was the final nail in the coffin – despite her reservations, it looked like Rukia would need to visit Urahara after all. She supposed it was inevitable, but that didn't mean she liked it.

"Oooh, phone shopping!" Ann squealed. "It's not that late – we could all go now!"

"N-n-n-n-now?!" Futaba squealed, jumping backwards.

Rukia interrupted before Ann could get her hopes up too high. "It's not just any phone – it's a Denreishinki, a communication device that can connect to the Soul Society. I'll need to go to a specialty store to get a new model."

Ann's shoulder's slumped, and she let out a forlorn groan. "My shopping trip…"

"Eh, that sounds boring, anyway." Ryuji shrugged, and at Ann's glare, quickly backpedalled. "But, uh, Ann has a point! Exams are ages away, and it's not even dark yet. We could just do some, y'know, non-supernatural chilling."

Akira rubbed his chin. "Hmm… I've got a TV in my room, but Sojiro's probably got too many customers at this hour…"

"A movie, huh." Futaba drummed a finger on her desk. "We could always just watch one here. Sojiro has way too nice a TV for someone who doesn't use it."

…..

While it was not the first television show Rukia had seen in the World of the Living (Ann had introduced her to the delight that was soap operas earlier that month), it was a different experience when you were crammed on a couch with your friends, sharing cheap snacks. Unlike the poetic tales of love and betrayal Rukia favoured, the point of this 'movie' seemed to be about showing how many people this one guy could kill. As the so-called hero shot someone in the chest, shot them in the leg, and then shot them in the face, Rukia tilted her head. The gratuitous gore was truly something. Perhaps the 11th would enjoy this form of entertainment?

By the time the movie finished, it was getting dark, and the Phantoms' slowly gathered their belongings in preparation for the trip home.

"Akira." Rukia interrupted as the boy put on his shoes. "Would you perchance be free tomorrow? I have an excursion I want to take you on."

… Namely, she wanted someone to make sure she was getting the right kind of phone.

He pursed his lips. "Mind waiting until the weekend? We've got our social studies trip then, and we'll probably have homework."

Ugh. The bane of her existence.

"Oh, fine, we'll go Sunday then." Rukia huffed, but she supposed it might be for the best. She'd hate to drag herself all the way to Karakura only to find Urahara wasn't even there.

It was then that the door swung open, and the older Sakura walked in.

"Futaba, I'm-" He caught sight of the teenagers in his hallway, and his voice cut off. "Oh. You lot are here."

"Y-y-yeah!" Futaba swayed, fiddling with her fingers nervously. "We, um, watched a movie!"

"Don't worry – we're heading off now. No need to cater." Akira gave him a nod.

Sojiro rubbed his chin, expression blank. "No worries. You kids stay safe, you here? People are saying there's been some weird crap going down in Shibuya." As the group walked past, Sojiro stretched out a hand and tapped Akira's shoulder. "Not you. I want a word."

Akira paused, before nodding, and waved his hand in farewell. As the rest of the Phantoms (sans Futaba, naturally) left, Ryuji and Ann broke out into some gentle bickering about the quality of the movie's CGI – not that Rukia knew or really cared what that was. She remained quiet, however, lost in thought. While she didn't trust Urahara one lick, he had done her a favour. She'd heard rumours of a rogue Shinigami in the Karakura area that would hand out mission tools and other services for a price, but that didn't mean she'd known how to find him once she found herself depowered. Rukia had wandered the town, lost, exhausted, and alone for what seemed like hours before he'd shown up, and offered her the help she needed. He definitely needed to own some type of sensing technology to track her down in that state, but it had still taken him some time – Futaba's program would have located her immediately.

Perhaps I should set up a meeting between the two of them. She pondered. Urahara knew a lot more about spiritual devices than Rukia ever would, and he'd more than benefit from getting Futaba's vaunted app. She'd be doing the girl a favour, and she wouldn't owe any more debts to the skeevy Shinigami…

"Rukia?" Ann turned around, noticing that her friend had stopped. "You coming?"

"… Actually, go on ahead." Rukia mused. "I want to talk to Futaba about something."

A frown formed on her face. "Are you sure? I don't mind waiting."

Rukia shook her head. "I don't think I'll be long – I'll meet you at the station."

The blonde paused for a moment but eventually relented. "… Alright, no worries. Have fun!"

"Later!" Ryuji chimed, and they both continued marching to the station, already resuming their argument.

Rukia turned back and swung open the door to the Sakura residence, ready to go to Futaba's room when a low voice caught her attention. Honing her senses, she identified Akira's Reiatsu. He's still here? Creeping into the house, she paused by the doorway to the living room. It was only slightly ajar, but she could still see the two men through the crack. Akira's back was to her so she couldn't gauge his expression, but Sojiro's was deadly serious.

Reaching outwards, the older man rested a hand on Akira's shoulders. "Look, just… be careful with her, yeah? Futaba… she's gone through a lot of hardship in her life. You can't get her hopes up and then dash them, okay? I don't think she could take it."

Akira was silent for a moment, and Rukia had no idea what was going through his mind. "She… she hasn't had many friends before, has she?"

Sojiro's voice turned into a sigh. "I remember Wakaba mentioning a girl she hung out with in middle school, but, well, with everything that happened… she hasn't had anyone but me in a long time."

"Wakaba?" Akira paused, head tipping to the side. "Is that Futaba's mother's name?"

"… Yeah." Rukia had never seen Sojiro look so worn down before. "I knew her long before Futaba was born. She marched to the beat of her own drum – Wakaba was sharp-witted, and a little stern… but she never let anything get her down." He let out a rueful chuckle. "She was a great woman. A genius – whenever something caught her eye, she'd study it until she knew everything about it. Futaba's much the same way, though she's a bit more whimsical in her interests."

It was clear Akira had picked up the grief in Sojiro's words. "… I'm sorry for your loss. She sounds like a good person."

Sojiro's shoulders drooped. "The world just isn't the same without her. After the accident, I didn't see Futaba for a long time. Her biological father was never in the picture, and when I met her again, it turned out Wakaba's relatives had made it damn clear they didn't want her either." Iron entered the older man's voice. "Futaba was in a hell of a state when I took her in. It took months before she even started to talk to me. She'd only just started to leave the house on her own again when you rocked up. I can't let all that progress be undone, you hear?"

Akira's fists were clenched tight, and the sheer resolution in his voice almost made her dizzy. "I won't hurt her. I swear it. I know what it's like to feel alone – Futaba deserves better than that."

A weight seemed to lift off Sojiro's back, and the smirk that crossed his face made him look a decade younger. "… Hah. You really mean it, don't you?"

"Of course." Akira nodded, his solemn tone turning into a laugh. "Ann would kick my ass if I messed up, trust me."

"Good." A smile crossed Sojiro's lips, as a light entered his eyes. "You know… I was expecting you to be a punk, but you're really not a bad kid, are you? I'm not sure how you've done it, but you've found yourself a good crew. Don't take them for granted, you hear me?"

"… Yeah. They're fantastic, aren't they?" The warmth in Akira's voice was palpable. A slyness then entered his tone, and Rukia could easily imagine his cheeky wink. "To be honest though, I can be a bit of a punk."

Sojiro let out an amused chortle, and Rukia couldn't take it anymore. Turning on her heel, she left without a word.

The thought of facing anyone at that moment repulsed her, so Rukia walked and walked until the streets of Yogen-Jaya faded into storefronts and office buildings lit up in a neon glow. Her phone buzzed – it was probably Ann – but Rukia ignored it. It wasn't until her feet began to sting that she slowed down and rested her back against a wall. Emotions whirled in her chest like a great, ugly beast clawing at the walls of its cage. While she knew it was stupid, trivial – Shinigami were above such petty things – for so many years, she wanted nothing more than to feel like she belonged. To have a proper family. To be loved. And while Rukia knew that she did not deserve any of it, seeing Futaba and now Akira getting everything she lacked…

Rukia knew she was being ridiculous, but it hurt.

… She'd talk to Futaba later.