A/N: Thank you for the lovely reviews.
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VIER
TIMELINE X + N
The three girls meandered through the night, the twins quietly conspiring between prodding Homura for information to flesh out their story. Finally satisfied with their cover, the twins led Homura to a quaint neighborhood clinic that was closed for the evening. Homura was confused until the girls coaxed her to go around the clinic to access the house to which it was attached, which was dark save for the downstairs. Yuzu fished out her keys as they approached the door.
"Homura, I apologize in advance for any shenanigans you experience in this building," drawled Karin. "I think the old man was dropped on his head as a baby or something."
Yuzu laughed awkwardly. "He can be... overwhelming, if you're not used to him."
"He's like a hyperactive puppy who lives to embarrass us."
Homura eyed the door warily as Yuzu opened it and entered. Karin waved for her to go next.
Yuzu cheerfully called out, "Daddy, we're ho—"
Karin and Homura peered around Yuzu to see what had made her stop mid-sentence.
"Oh, for the love of God," groaned Karin. "Where do you think you're going in that?!"
Homura was at a loss for words. Before her was a tall, burly man with spiky black hair and stubble not quite dense enough to be called a beard. He wore what she assumed were pajamas— a tight black t-shirt with a faded faux tuxedo printed on it in white and loose light blue pants with... lobsters. Lobster-print pants. Okay. A flashlight and a phone were jammed into his right hand. He stood on one foot. His left hand was in the process of pulling a plush Totoro slipper onto his other foot. The man stared at them stupidly for a moment. Then he dropped the phone, flashlight, and slipper, teared up, and loudly declared, "I was going to go looking for you! You were gone so long! I thought my darling daughters had been kidnapped!" The man launched himself at his daughters, arms wide for a hug.
Karin dodged inside his guard, planted her hand on her father's face, and redirected him toward a wall. "I texted you like fifteen minutes ago, Goat-Face," she groused.
The man pulled away from the wall and looked over his shoulder at Karin. Melodramatic tears dribbled down his pouting face. "Daddy was worried!"
"We're big girls now, Daddy," Yuzu chirped.
"You'll always be my babies!" the man wailed.
Yuzu giggled uncomfortably. Karin rolled her eyes and sighed. "Can you please behave like a rational adult in front of our friend?"
The man blinked away his tears in an instant and whirled away from the wall, seeming to notice the third girl for the first time. He gasped dramatically. "You brought home a friend!"
"That's what I just said."
Homura stepped forward and primly bowed. "I am Homura Akemi. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kurosaki."
The man casually bowed his head and waved. "It's a pleasure to meet you, too, Miss Akemi. The name's Isshin." He scratched his chin and eyed his daughters speculatively before looking back to Homura. "Do your parents know you're here this late?"
"I live by myself right now. My uncle is often away on business."
"I see." Isshin looked from one of the girls' faces to another. "Are you girls having a sleepover? It's a school night."
"Um, kind of," said Yuzu. "Can Homura stay with us for a night or two? Some bad things happened at her school and some weird things are happening in her city and she..." Yuzu trailed off and looked at Homura somewhat helplessly.
Playing the role assigned to her, Homura bowed her head slightly and looked at the floor. "I did not want to be there. And I did not want to be... alone."
Isshin frowned in concern. "Which school is this? And what kind of things? What city? Wait, how did you three meet?"
"I attend Mitakihara Middle School."
Isshin's eyebrows jumped toward his hairline. "Mitakihara?!"
"She moved up there this year," said Yuzu. "She used to go to a school in Tokyo. Karin and I met her on our class trip to the botanical gardens in sixth grade."
"We kept in touch on the internet," Karin continued. "She's been telling us about some freaky stuff going on in her town lately."
"What freaky stuff?" Isshin asked Homura.
Homura clenched her fists in the folds of her skirt and grimly met his eyes. "A week ago, a classmate and over a dozen other people woke up in a warehouse in the middle of the night. The authorities suspect mass hallucination, but it is strange. A few days ago, a classmate went missing. Today my friend did not come to school. Now they say she is missing, and someone found the first missing girl's body in a hotel room. And now they are saying that a girl from the next grade up has been missing since before the 'hallucination' event." She twisted her skirt in white-knuckled hands. "It seems like someone is doing things to the girls at my school. I do not want to be next. And I do not want to see Madoka and Sayaka's empty seats." She glanced down and to the side as though embarrassed. "It sounds stupid now, but I wanted to get away so I just got on a train and rode. I recognized the name Karakura when they called out the stop and I got off."
Yuzu took over. "That's when she texted us for help. So we went to the train station and got her. And we talked for awhile and it got late."
"Sorry we didn't call you, Goat-Face, but she was really upset and we totally forgot," Karin offered with a shrug.
"So can she stay with us, Daddy? Please? It sounds so scary."
By then, Isshin's face had completely morphed into that of a seriously concerned parent, all silliness put aside. Rather like a mask, Homura thought. He frowned and stared hard at Homura. For her part, Homura allowed her own mask to slip slightly under his scrutiny, let him see the exhaustion and grief.
After a long pause, Isshin scratched his head and shifted slightly, still frowning. "Does anyone know you're here?" he asked Homura.
"No, sir."
After a moment he nodded. "You can stay as long as you call your school to report your absence in the morning. What you tell them is your business. I just don't want you to be reported missing, too. It would be cruel to your teachers and classmates and unhelpful for the police while they look for your friends."
"Yay! Thank you, Daddy!" Yuzu cheered. She threw herself at her father for a hug. The loud goofiness immediately returned.
"Ah, my little girls are such good friends! MASAKI, OUR DAUGHTERS ARE GROWING UP TO BE SUCH KIND YOUNG LADIES!" He started bawling as he swung a squealing Yuzu around. "DADDY'S SO PROUD!"
Homura and Karin stared, Homura uneasy and Karin bored but blushing slightly.
Yuzu soon whirled away from her father and clapped her hands together. "Homura! I'll make you something quick for dinner, then a big breakfast in the morning!"
Homura blinked at the sudden change of topic. "Thank you, but that will not be necessary."
Karin frowned. "You were on the train for hours. When's the last time you ate?"
Homura opened her mouth, paused, thought back, and frowned. "I do not know."
Yuzu's face became more determined. "You must be starving. I can give you leftovers while I whip up something else to fill you up."
"Please do not trouble yourself," Homura demurred. Then her stomach betrayed her with a quiet growl.
Yuzu's face turned fierce, eyes commanding. "I'm making you dinner and you are going to eat it. Do you understand?"
This would have made the old Homura stammer and blush and generally fumble in mortification as she rushed to obey. This Homura merely gaped silently for a moment before nodding slightly.
Yuzu's face instantly slid back into good cheer. Like father like daughter? Homura wondered. "Great! I'll get started!" She turned and trotted down the hall, humming happily and randomly saying ingredients aloud. Homura just blankly watched her go.
Karin patted Homura's shoulder. "Good call. She's all cute and nice but she can be the scariest of all of us sometimes."
"So much like her mother," sniffled Isshin, reminding the girls of his presence. "MASAKI, OUR— OOF!"
Karin withdrew her foot from her father's midsection. "Can you not start howling every five minutes, Goat-Face? Jeez."
"So much... like my cousin," wheezed Isshin.
Karin rolled her eyes, unimpressed. "Whatever. Come on, Homura, I'll reel in Yuzu and keep her from cooking you a midnight banquet. You must wanna sleep." She grabbed Homura's hand and half-dragged her down the hall.
What have I gotten myself into? Homura wondered numbly.
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A/N: Isshin is so fun to write.
In this continuity there is no Quincy invasion, but Isshin told Ichigo the backstory from Everything But the Rain. In this story I presume the girls know some of the shinigami stuff because at the end of the Xcution arc they are seen welcoming Ichigo back to the World of the Living. It's an anime-only thing but I like it and it's convenient.
This chapter was replaced with an edited version on November 1, 2019. Reviews with timestamps before that date refer to a slightly different version of the chapter.