Staring down wide eyed at her blood soaked hands, Kumikos breath came out short and hard, panic rising up her throat. The pain filled cry tore out of her throat as her eyes landed past her hands to the mutilated corpse below her
"sota?" She whispered at the corpse, as if expecting him to jump up with that silly grin of his. One big prank. Except there was no joke in the way his leg was mostly severed off his body, clinging on at an odd angle by a few inches of jaggard skin. Nothing humorous in the caved in hole in his skull. Nothing funny about the wide eyed glassy stare left behind in stead of his once mischievous gaze.
Backing up away from the nightmare of remains of her friends body, Kumiko hastened her retreat before tripping over something on the Forrest floor. Groaning she knelt up. Looking around to see what what tripped her, only for her eyes to fall at the massacre of her two other friends
"kenji.... A-Asana?" Trembled from her lips, she adverted her eyes quickly, neither were in any Better Condition than Sota.
A branch snapped somewhere to her right, head snapped in that direction, hairs on the back of her neck standing tall
the shadows of the Forrest seemed to move and bend, changing their very existence in-front of her eyes. Too scared to blink incase she missed something . That's when she noticed one of the shadows open their blood red eyes, focused on her still form.
run a voice deep inside whispered to her
although she couldn't place the voice, it washed over her with a sense of familiarity
RUN NOW! The same voice commanded, startling Kumiko out of her horror filled daze. She got to her feet as ran as quickly as she could. The same thought running through her head
"I've got to get home, I've got to get home" tears streaming down her face as the last images she had of her friends flashed before her mind, bloody, broken, twisted. Dead. They were all dead
a demonic growl sounded too close to her ear as she slammed into the hard form of the reason for this nightmare
"kage" she breathed, trembling in-front of the man she once called friend
he lifted his zanpakuto "twist the mind, Akairo hikage akuma." The deep voice uttered before a flash of crimson consumed kumikos vision
*
A panicked scream ripped from kumikos throat, jolting up right in bed, panting heavily. Her heart hammering in her chest she looked down at her clean hands, still feeling the phantom sticky residue long since washed away. getting shakily out of bed, she made her way to her bathroom, still warm from the bath she enjoyed hours previously. Scooping cold water into her cupped hands and splashing it on her tear stained face did little in the way of helping her shift the flashes of her friends murdered body's. Their glassy eyed stares looking through her still etched into her vision. After shuddering a sigh, knowing sleep would escape her for the few hours left for the night, Kumiko decided to get dressed and make her way outside
bundled up warm, she made her way onto the roof of her home, sitting against the smooth tiles she raised her knees to hug them with both arms, staring out in the distance at the rapidly approaching sun rise.
I'm sorry she thought to her missing friends I'm so so sorry
*
The sun has risen over the soul society, basking it in its warm forgiving glow. Kumiko still sat on her roof was basking in its healing warmth, not yet finding the determination to move. Guilt swept through her body, survivors guilt really was difficult to deal with. She allowed herself another ten minutes of grieving before she would start her day
just another ten minutes
*
back in her home, fighting with her curly hair that just didn't want to do anything she asked of it today, Kumiko heard a rhythmic knock on her door
"come on in Kiske! " she shouted towards the door, still trying to wrangle her hair into a somewhat decent hair style, before giving up and deciding to go for a messy bun.
Urahara poked his hat covered head through the now opened door "how did you know it was me?" He asked with a grin
Kumiko spared him a side glance while picking out bits of hair from her bun to frame her face
"really?" She asked " I could hear your silly clogs clip clopping all the way from down the street " She laughed at the indigent look he shot her
"Someone clearly woke up this morning with the intent of breaking herats" he replied walking over to where she sat hand on his heart in an exaggerated display of hurt. Once in front of her mirror he caught her eyes in the reflection, took note of the red puffy appearance he's not previously seen
had she been crying?
Urahara stood directly behind her, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. Keeping her gaze in the mirror. "miko-san? Have you..? Are you alright? " he asked softly.
Kumiko closed her eyes briefly, soaking up the warm protective feeling seeping through his hand into her shoulder. Twisting around in her chair, she opened her eyes to look into his questioning grey ones . "I'm fine" She said standing up, patting his chest softly as she walked past him to grab her zanpakuto, needing the feel of it on her hip today.
"miko-chan". Urahara started, but was cut off by her turning around with a big smile, the smile he was used to.
"honestly. I'm fine, it was just a nightmare. I'm not ready to talk about it in the harsh light of day though, okay? Not yet". She trailed off meekly, begging him to understand. And understood he did. With his own share of trauma and loss he's experienced over the past how many years? Yeah. He understands
with a deep sigh, the smile back on her face she bouncily walked over to her temporary captain, linking her arm with his, leading him out of the house. " so what are we doing today captain?"
*
"so you're like, incredibly smart then? That's what your telling me" Kumiko asked fascinated looking around Uraharas "work shop" at all his completed, failed and 'work in progress' gadgets and inventions. Gently stroking her finger across a few that don't look like they might explode. That wasn't many of them, she realised.
Crazy bastard is going to blow himself up one day, she thought to herself
rubbing the back of his head, slight blush on his cheeks he replied, waving his hand dismissively at her "no no not at all! I just like to put things together and see what happens"
"I'm not buying that, kiske. You're like some super smart mad scientist, who's being strangely humble, by the way. It's doing nothing for your bad boy image you know?" Kumiko continued the conversation, eyes going from one invention to the next
"I have a bad boy image?" Gobsmacked would be the closest word to describe the look on his face. "Since when?!" He inquired
Kumiko through back her head with a laugh. Finally turning around to face the mad scientist
"not only are you a bad ass powerful captain, of the goeti 13, was 3rd Seat of the 2nd Division and Detention Unit Corps Commander, but you're also crazy smart and can invent just about anything you can dream up? What part of that says "cute boy next door"" Kumiko laughed, "face it Kiske, you're a bad boy"
*
Kiske kept Kumiko busy all day, showing her around his personal workshop, or "mad scientists lab" as she began calling it . Getting her involved with some paperwork and filling expected of the 7th squad. Every squad really, as far as Urahara was aware only captains Kenpachi and kyoraku got away with very little paperwork.
Understandable kiskes amused thoughts began to flow. shunsui is chronically allergic to work and I'm not all together convinced zaraki knows how to write
The heavy work load was doing what was intended, he hasn't seen a sad look grace Miko's face since this morning. Something he isn't in a hurry to see again. He glanced over to her, currently bent over the desk. Scribbling away furiously, lightly biting her lip in concentration, and then to the clock showing 18:45. With a small sigh he stood up and stretched his body, grunting slightly and the many cracks and pops coming from his spine from being sat too stiff for too long
his dramatic display caught the eyes of Kumiko, eyes raked across his body briefly before settling on his eyes, where a twinkle of mischief had appeared
"well miko-san, work hours are officially over; care to join me for some dinner?" He asked sweetly, I'm not ready for her to be left alone yet
"just dinner?" She asked hesitantly " I'm not sure I'm ready for another night of drinking with you yet, my hangover had a hangover"
Urahara laughed, putting his paperwork away, looked over his shoulder and smiled " just dinner" he agreed " maybe one or two sake to go with it" he continued. Noticing her eyebrows raised. "A bottle maybe , no more than two. I promise I wont let us drink more than two bottles each " Her gentle laugh stoped him from continuing
"come on miko, let's go get some food, I know this great place that does the best ramen" urahara said, cocking his arm out for Kumiko to link hers through it "and if you're really good and eat all your dinner, next door is the place I got your hangover donut from"
Urahara chuckled happily and the excited look she gave him
