One and one and one is three.
Karakura Town, College Town, Karakura High School
10:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
Nothing in this world is absolute. The Earth is constantly spinning on its axis, and one can never stand in the same place she did the day before, because she's standing in a new space that she's never touched, and only by running a million miles can she reach that place she once was. Perhaps this was the same with relationships as well?
It was when Uryu's looks became strange that Kinkajou became worried. He would glance at her from the side, his eyes would linger there until Kinkajou felt his gaze burning against the side of her head, and when she would look back at him quizzically, he would quickly glance away. Puzzled, Kinkajou turned her gaze back to the board, though this didn't necessarily mean that Ms. Ochi had her attention.
Behind her, Ichigo watched the back of her head, his narrowed eyes flickering between her and Uryu. Despite his limited ability where spiritual pressure was involved, he could feel the tension charging the air better than anyone. It was so thick that when Ichigo's Substitute pass went off in the middle of class, Kinkajou immediately leaped up before Ichigo could even process what had just happened.
"Ms. Ochi, can you excuse me for a few moments?" She bowed quickly and strode quickly to the doorway without waiting for an answer. "Merci!"
"Make it quick, Karata!" Ms. Ochi called after her before turning back to the board and resuming the lesson.
Ichigo shifted slightly in his seat and looked at Kinkajou's empty seat. The moron forgot to take the pass with her. Ichigo sighed and then glanced at Uryu. The Quincy didn't look back, but he looked as stiff as a board, as if aware that Ichigo's gaze was broodingly contemplative against his back. When he glanced at Chad, Ichigo noticed that he was frowning slightly, his dark gaze fixated on Uryu. Orihime was gazing out the window as if lost in thought. When Tatsuki glanced back at Ichigo, he saw uneasiness in her brown gaze.
What the hell is going on?
It was when Uryu's looks became strange that Kinkajou became worried. He would glance at her from the side, his eyes would linger there until Kinkajou felt his gaze burning against the side of her head, and when she would look back at him quizzically, he would quickly glance away. Puzzled, Kinkajou turned her gaze back to the board, though this didn't necessarily mean that Ms. Ochi had her attention.
Behind her, Ichigo watched the back of her head, his narrowed eyes flickering between her and Uryu. Despite his limited ability where spiritual pressure was involved, he could feel the tension charging the air better than anyone. It was so thick that when Ichigo's Substitute pass went off in the middle of class, Kinkajou immediately leaped up before Ichigo could even process what had just happened.
"Ms. Ochi, can you excuse me for a few moments?" She bowed quickly and strode quickly to the doorway without waiting for an answer. "Merci!"
"Make it quick, Karata!" Ms. Ochi called after her before turning back to the board and resuming the lesson.
Ichigo shifted slightly in his seat and looked at Kinkajou's empty seat. The moron forgot to take the pass with her. Ichigo sighed and then glanced at Uryu. The Quincy didn't look back, but he looked as stiff as a board, as if aware that Ichigo's gaze was broodingly contemplative against his back. When he glanced at Chad, Ichigo noticed that he was frowning slightly, his dark gaze fixated on Uryu. Orihime was gazing out the window as if lost in thought. When Tatsuki glanced back at Ichigo, he saw uneasiness in her brown gaze.
What the hell is going on?
That was the question he asked Uryu just after class let out for lunch. While Chad and the others filed up to the roof, Ichigo cornered Uryu in a deserted hallway.
"What's going on around here?" Ichigo growled out, his hand fisted in the clean white fabric of Uryu's shirt collar. "You're acting weird."
"Weird, Kurosaki?" Uryu slapped his hand away. "I'm afraid I don't follow you."
Ichigo stepped back stiffly and allowed Uryu to peel himself from the wall. "There's something going on between you and Kinkajou," he stated simply. To hell with this beating around the bush business.
Uryu raised an eyebrow, but the rest of his face was completely expressionless. "Like what?" he asked coolly.
"That's what I'm trying to figure out."
"You're acting stranger than usual, Kurosaki. Are you still asleep?"
Ichigo really wasn't in the mood for Uryu's I-am-holier-than-thou attitude just then. "You know what I'm talking about! Quit skipping around my questions and answer me!"
"Unfortunately, I don't see your point." Uryu pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with one finger. "But you're free to enlighten me."
"Dammit, Ishida!" Ichigo snapped, torn between punching the wall and knocking Uryu's lights out. "You-!"
"Ichi-nii~!" Kinkajou popped her head around the corner, having just returned from her Hollow-exterminating mission. "Ah! There you are! I could find anyone so I figured you let out for lunch. What's-"
"Where the hell have you been?!" Ichigo snapped at her.
Kinkajou's eyes widened in alarm. "I just-"
"Forget it!" Ichigo gave Uryu one last glare before turning and stalking off, in a thoroughly bad mood.
After he'd gone, Kinkajou glanced at Uryu, bewildered. "What's his problem?"
Uryu returned her gaze this time, and there was something genuinely sad in those blue eyes. "I have no idea" was all he said before he, too, turned and left, leaving Kinkajou behind with her own eyes full of hurt.
"What's going on around here?" Ichigo growled out, his hand fisted in the clean white fabric of Uryu's shirt collar. "You're acting weird."
"Weird, Kurosaki?" Uryu slapped his hand away. "I'm afraid I don't follow you."
Ichigo stepped back stiffly and allowed Uryu to peel himself from the wall. "There's something going on between you and Kinkajou," he stated simply. To hell with this beating around the bush business.
Uryu raised an eyebrow, but the rest of his face was completely expressionless. "Like what?" he asked coolly.
"That's what I'm trying to figure out."
"You're acting stranger than usual, Kurosaki. Are you still asleep?"
Ichigo really wasn't in the mood for Uryu's I-am-holier-than-thou attitude just then. "You know what I'm talking about! Quit skipping around my questions and answer me!"
"Unfortunately, I don't see your point." Uryu pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with one finger. "But you're free to enlighten me."
"Dammit, Ishida!" Ichigo snapped, torn between punching the wall and knocking Uryu's lights out. "You-!"
"Ichi-nii~!" Kinkajou popped her head around the corner, having just returned from her Hollow-exterminating mission. "Ah! There you are! I could find anyone so I figured you let out for lunch. What's-"
"Where the hell have you been?!" Ichigo snapped at her.
Kinkajou's eyes widened in alarm. "I just-"
"Forget it!" Ichigo gave Uryu one last glare before turning and stalking off, in a thoroughly bad mood.
After he'd gone, Kinkajou glanced at Uryu, bewildered. "What's his problem?"
Uryu returned her gaze this time, and there was something genuinely sad in those blue eyes. "I have no idea" was all he said before he, too, turned and left, leaving Kinkajou behind with her own eyes full of hurt.
It was just when class let out that Ichigo pulled Kinkajou aside and stooped to whisper into her ear: "Meet me at the river at five-thirty, all right?"
Kinkajou furrowed her brow. "Um, sure." She glanced up at him, and he held her gaze for a few moments. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but then he shook his head and left her there.
Sighing, Kinkajou watched the rest of the class filter out, all of them oblivious to the storm of mixed emotions swirling in her gut. Suddenly, the aspect of going home didn't appeal to her at all, especially if she was just going to be stuck with a stony, bad-tempered Ichigo. She glanced over the room for Uryu, but he was gone too. Kinkajou felt a lump form in her throat. She hadn't done anything wrong, so what was Ichigo's deal? And Uryu - he couldn't look her in the eyes without getting that strained expression on his face. She sighed again as she stood by the window, looking out at the azure piece of sky beyond.
"Kinkajou?"
She nearly shrieked when a soft hand laid itself on her shoulder. Kinkajou spun around and met Orihime's gaze, soft and sad and gray like puppy eyes.
"Is there something wrong?" Orihime asked quietly, and the worry in her eyes somehow made Kinkajou feel even worse.
"Ah, no. I dunno." Kinkajou tried to sound nonchalant, but she wasn't sure if she was very successful. "It'll be all right. I'll figure it out."
Orihime smiled softly, but she didn't seem convinced. "That's good! I was really worried, because everyone was acting weird and all and I couldn't figure out why."
"It'll all blow over soon," Kinkajou reassured her. God willing, she added silently to herself.
"Okay!" Orihime gave a quick, deep bow. "Sorry if I bothered you!"
"Don't worry about it." Kinkajou forced a smile, but she felt genuinely content. She didn't really want to admit it, at least not aloud, but she secretly liked it when people worried about her. It must have come from some girly strand of DNA.
And somehow, as she watched Orihime's burnt orange head whisk out the door, knowing this made her feel more worthless than she had before.
Kinkajou furrowed her brow. "Um, sure." She glanced up at him, and he held her gaze for a few moments. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but then he shook his head and left her there.
Sighing, Kinkajou watched the rest of the class filter out, all of them oblivious to the storm of mixed emotions swirling in her gut. Suddenly, the aspect of going home didn't appeal to her at all, especially if she was just going to be stuck with a stony, bad-tempered Ichigo. She glanced over the room for Uryu, but he was gone too. Kinkajou felt a lump form in her throat. She hadn't done anything wrong, so what was Ichigo's deal? And Uryu - he couldn't look her in the eyes without getting that strained expression on his face. She sighed again as she stood by the window, looking out at the azure piece of sky beyond.
"Kinkajou?"
She nearly shrieked when a soft hand laid itself on her shoulder. Kinkajou spun around and met Orihime's gaze, soft and sad and gray like puppy eyes.
"Is there something wrong?" Orihime asked quietly, and the worry in her eyes somehow made Kinkajou feel even worse.
"Ah, no. I dunno." Kinkajou tried to sound nonchalant, but she wasn't sure if she was very successful. "It'll be all right. I'll figure it out."
Orihime smiled softly, but she didn't seem convinced. "That's good! I was really worried, because everyone was acting weird and all and I couldn't figure out why."
"It'll all blow over soon," Kinkajou reassured her. God willing, she added silently to herself.
"Okay!" Orihime gave a quick, deep bow. "Sorry if I bothered you!"
"Don't worry about it." Kinkajou forced a smile, but she felt genuinely content. She didn't really want to admit it, at least not aloud, but she secretly liked it when people worried about her. It must have come from some girly strand of DNA.
And somehow, as she watched Orihime's burnt orange head whisk out the door, knowing this made her feel more worthless than she had before.
Karakura Town, Karakura Old Town
4:46 p.m.
4:46 p.m.
"Things are so weird now, Fang," she said aloud, plopping down beside that rusty old dumpster in that abandoned alleyway. "I don't know what to do about it anymore."
The dumpster didn't speak. Kinkajou frowned at it, at the corpse that should have been inside its bed of jumbled trash bags. "I miss you," she said aloud, and she buried her face against the side of the dumpster, finding cold rust where she was expecting there to be warm, comforting flesh. "I miss you so much." She choked on those last words, and the first of those wretched tears stung at her eyes. She wanted to hear Fang's voice. She wanted him to hold her again. She wanted him to tell he what to do, to say that everything was all right, because when Fang says that everything is all right, everything is all right, even if nothing in the world is right, and you're weak and cold and starving on a street corner and you only have one arm-
Why am I like this? Kinkajou pressed her fists against her eyelids, crushing those tears mercilessly against the deep green surface of her irises. I'm so helpless! As soon as Ichigo stops looking at me, I fall apart! When did I get this weak?! Tell me, Fang...!
"Well, what do we have here?"
Kinkajou looked up in surprise. There were four of them in all, yakuza, big and tall, and she didn't recognize any of their faces. While she had been busy coiling herself in a mental fetal position, they had surrounded her.
"Looks like someone dropped their chick."
"Finders keepers."
"Don't mess with me," Kinkajou growled, slowly getting to her feet. Her entire body was tensed, like a wildcat on the brink of a pounce. "I'm in a very bad mood."
The tallest one, the one with longish black hair and a relatively handsome face that Kinkajou assumed to be the leader of the group, looked her over with dark eyes and let out a low whistle. "Damn! You really are the Alley Cat! You sure didn't look like it all curled up by that dumpster like a sick kitten! Just where the hell've you been all this time?"
"None of your damn business," she snarled. She didn't feel like her usual banter; she just wanted to skip to the part where she kicked their asses and left. "I've already told you I'm in a foul mood, and I'm not gonna mess around with you today. You better let me by, or I'll kill every last one of you."
"I'd be more afraid of a songbird," the guy told her, grinning scuzzily. Kinkajou curled her lip as he and his cohorts stepped closer to her, boxing her against the brick wall behind her. "Wherever you've been, you sure have gotten soft. The real Alley Cat would've heard us coming a mile away and thrashed our asses until we was crying for our mothers." The guy's fist met the wall a hairsbreadth from Kinkajou's face, and he leaned in close to her surprised eyes. His foul breath billowed into her face as he whispered, "Where'd she go?"
Kinkajou froze like a startled rabbit, not at his proximity, but at what he had said. Where did she go?
That was what Kinkajou wanted to know too.
"I don't really care whose chick you are now, Kitten. For the next hour, you're gonna be our chick," the guy told her, and as the others chuckled oafishly behind him, Kinkajou broke out of her reverie.
She snapped her knee into the guy's stomach hard and sharp. As he doubled over, she leaped atop his shoulders and bounded onto the dumpster, jumping straight over the heads of the bewildered gangsters. She bypassed them as they tried in vain to catch her, not quite in the mood to set anyone on fire (though the mental image did make her smile a bit). This smile faltered when she felt that dull thud in her chest and then disappeared entirely when a fountain of blood erupted from her mouth. Kinkajou tumbled head over heels onto the asphalt, still retching up blood. Dammit! Why now?!
Blood was still running down her chin when a pair of rough hands grabbed her by the hair and yanked her to her feet. Another yakuza took her arms and held them firmly behind her back. Kinkajou growled deep in her throat and tried to struggle away, but they held her fast. Her legs were trembling so badly that she couldn't even move them. Damn!
The first guy, flanked by the other two yakuza, stalked up before Kinkajou with his hands in his pockets. He looked almost bored. "Looks like someone's broke you already, kitty cat," he drawled. "That's a shame." He trailed one of his fingers through the crimson staining her lips.
Kinkajou took a snap at the finger, but he moved it quickly away and made a tutting sound. "Get the hell away from me!" she snarled, trying again to kick at her restraints. But her legs only gave the weakest little twitch, as though a fly had landed on them.
The guy didn't bother wasting any more daylight with words, so he reached forward and began roughly unbuttoning the top of Kinkajou's blouse. Simultaneously, the two men restraining Kinkajou flew forward onto the ground with startled cries.
The guy jerked away from Kinkajou as though she had become white-hot. "Who the hell are you?" he demanded furiously, glaring past Kinkajou at the person behind her.
Kinkajou's breath grew hyper-alert in her chest as a pair of strong, familiar arms wrapped around her shoulders from behind and pulled her against the person's chest. At first, she thought it was Ichigo, but then she saw a single lock of black hair in the corner of her eye.
"Back off," Uryu Ishida growled, his voice low and dangerous. "She's mine."
Kinkajou suddenly felt dizzy, and this was not due to blood loss.
The guy's eyes narrowed, flickering up and down Uryu's tall and lanky frame as an alpha wolf might size up a challenger. "Yeah? And just what do you think you can do to me, Nancy boy?" The other four yakuza swelled up behind him, scowling furiously.
Uryu narrowed his eyes, and his grip tightened on her shoulders. "Would you like to try me?" His voice dropped even lower, and the way it tickled Kinkajou's ear made a chill shoot down her spine.
The guy narrowed his gaze as well, and the two boys stared each other down in silence. The other yakuza began to look uneasy, as did Kinkajou. Uryu wasn't like Ichigo. Sure, he was strong enough to face down five Hollows without breaking a sweat, but five yakuza? His strength didn't extend too far physically, and all of the guys were taller and bigger than he was. She didn't know why he was just standing there doing some kind of primitive I-am-more-dominant-than-thee male thing instead of just picking her up and running. Maybe that was his plan. But somehow, Kinkajou doubted it.
She didn't have time to ponder what good she would be in a full-blown fight, because the guy made a scoffing sound and curled his lip derisively. "Tch! As if. Like I'm gonna waste my time for some broken merchandise. I'm outta here." The guy turned, barked a sharp "Come on!" to his posse, and they all went around the corner silently and disappeared into the shadows.
As soon as they'd gone, Uryu let Kinkajou go. "Are you all right?" he said stiffly, his formal tone feeling a bit like a slap to the face.
"I'm fine," Kinkajou told him. She wobbled slightly as she turned around, but she gave him a broad grin. "I would've kicked their butts if I hadn't gone and retched again."
"Retching, huh? Is that what you're calling it now?" Uryu reached into the breast pocket of his shirt and pulled out a handkerchief, clean and crisp and white like a spirit ribbon, and began dabbing as the blood on her chin.
Kinkajou felt her face redden. "Um..."
"Don't worry. It's clean," Uryu reassured her, misinterpreting her flustered noise as a sound of polite disgust. Kinkajou fell silent and let Uryu clean her up, his scent making her feel dizzier than she already was. Ichigo had a masculine scent, like salt and sun and sweat, but Uryu smelled like clean linen, a soft breeze, warmth. When Uryu moved down to wipe the blood from the hollow of her throat, Kinkajou nearly gasped, a tingle of something unfamiliar running down her spine.
Uryu, seeming oblivious to Kinkajou's reaction, finished his task, rolled up the handkerchief, and tossed it onto the dumpster. "You'll have to wash your uniform when you get home. There's not much I can do about it here."
"Oh, um..." Kinkajou said dazedly. He was still too close for her to think properly.
Uryu's eyebrows drew together. "They didn't hurt you, did they?" he asked, his voice softening with concern.
Kinkajou shook her head vehemently, attempting to clear the haze in her mind. "No, no, no, I'm fine, really! You don't have anything to worry about!"
"Knowing you, there's always something to worry about," he sighed. His tone was curt, but his eyes were light and fond.
Kinkajou's eyes grew round. "Hey, I remember Ichigo saying the same thing not too long ago!" she commented.
By the way Uryu's eyes immediately darkened, Kinkajou realized that this was not the ting to say. He turned, adjusted his glasses, and said quietly, "You should go on home before you get yourself into trouble again."
"I can't yet," sighed Kinkajou. "I have to run by the river first."
Uryu's eyes widened. "The river?"
Kinkajou tilted her head to the side. "Yeah, Ichigo told me to meet him there at five-thirty. Why?"
Uryu deflated slightly, as if something had stunned him quite suddenly. "He told me to do the same thing."
Kinkajou made a small noise of surprise. "Wow, both of us? What a coincidence!" she laughed. But she could tell by the way Uryu's eyes narrowed that he didn't think it was a coincidence any more than she did. "So why don't we go there together?" she suggested.
Uryu blinked and opened his mouth as if to protest, but then he thought better of it and shrugged. "Fine with me," he murmured.
"Okay then!" Kinkajou spun on her heels, took a step forward, stopped, and then whirled back around so suddenly that Uryu started. "Oh yeah! I forgot! Thanks for helping me out back there! You really saved my butt just then!" She bowed deeply before straightening up and grinning broadly at him.
Uryu quickly brought a hand up to adjust his glasses, simultaneously hiding his reddening face as he murmured, "It was nothing. Don't mention it."
Kinkajou giggled, finding this rare, flustered face of Uryu to be highly amusing. She suddenly took his hand, and Uryu jumped as though he had been static-shocked. "Come on!" she told him, treating him to another wide grin before running off down the alleyway, taking him in tow. "We're gonna be late!"
Uryu allowed himself to be dragged along, in too much of a daze to protest.
The dumpster didn't speak. Kinkajou frowned at it, at the corpse that should have been inside its bed of jumbled trash bags. "I miss you," she said aloud, and she buried her face against the side of the dumpster, finding cold rust where she was expecting there to be warm, comforting flesh. "I miss you so much." She choked on those last words, and the first of those wretched tears stung at her eyes. She wanted to hear Fang's voice. She wanted him to hold her again. She wanted him to tell he what to do, to say that everything was all right, because when Fang says that everything is all right, everything is all right, even if nothing in the world is right, and you're weak and cold and starving on a street corner and you only have one arm-
Why am I like this? Kinkajou pressed her fists against her eyelids, crushing those tears mercilessly against the deep green surface of her irises. I'm so helpless! As soon as Ichigo stops looking at me, I fall apart! When did I get this weak?! Tell me, Fang...!
"Well, what do we have here?"
Kinkajou looked up in surprise. There were four of them in all, yakuza, big and tall, and she didn't recognize any of their faces. While she had been busy coiling herself in a mental fetal position, they had surrounded her.
"Looks like someone dropped their chick."
"Finders keepers."
"Don't mess with me," Kinkajou growled, slowly getting to her feet. Her entire body was tensed, like a wildcat on the brink of a pounce. "I'm in a very bad mood."
The tallest one, the one with longish black hair and a relatively handsome face that Kinkajou assumed to be the leader of the group, looked her over with dark eyes and let out a low whistle. "Damn! You really are the Alley Cat! You sure didn't look like it all curled up by that dumpster like a sick kitten! Just where the hell've you been all this time?"
"None of your damn business," she snarled. She didn't feel like her usual banter; she just wanted to skip to the part where she kicked their asses and left. "I've already told you I'm in a foul mood, and I'm not gonna mess around with you today. You better let me by, or I'll kill every last one of you."
"I'd be more afraid of a songbird," the guy told her, grinning scuzzily. Kinkajou curled her lip as he and his cohorts stepped closer to her, boxing her against the brick wall behind her. "Wherever you've been, you sure have gotten soft. The real Alley Cat would've heard us coming a mile away and thrashed our asses until we was crying for our mothers." The guy's fist met the wall a hairsbreadth from Kinkajou's face, and he leaned in close to her surprised eyes. His foul breath billowed into her face as he whispered, "Where'd she go?"
Kinkajou froze like a startled rabbit, not at his proximity, but at what he had said. Where did she go?
That was what Kinkajou wanted to know too.
"I don't really care whose chick you are now, Kitten. For the next hour, you're gonna be our chick," the guy told her, and as the others chuckled oafishly behind him, Kinkajou broke out of her reverie.
She snapped her knee into the guy's stomach hard and sharp. As he doubled over, she leaped atop his shoulders and bounded onto the dumpster, jumping straight over the heads of the bewildered gangsters. She bypassed them as they tried in vain to catch her, not quite in the mood to set anyone on fire (though the mental image did make her smile a bit). This smile faltered when she felt that dull thud in her chest and then disappeared entirely when a fountain of blood erupted from her mouth. Kinkajou tumbled head over heels onto the asphalt, still retching up blood. Dammit! Why now?!
Blood was still running down her chin when a pair of rough hands grabbed her by the hair and yanked her to her feet. Another yakuza took her arms and held them firmly behind her back. Kinkajou growled deep in her throat and tried to struggle away, but they held her fast. Her legs were trembling so badly that she couldn't even move them. Damn!
The first guy, flanked by the other two yakuza, stalked up before Kinkajou with his hands in his pockets. He looked almost bored. "Looks like someone's broke you already, kitty cat," he drawled. "That's a shame." He trailed one of his fingers through the crimson staining her lips.
Kinkajou took a snap at the finger, but he moved it quickly away and made a tutting sound. "Get the hell away from me!" she snarled, trying again to kick at her restraints. But her legs only gave the weakest little twitch, as though a fly had landed on them.
The guy didn't bother wasting any more daylight with words, so he reached forward and began roughly unbuttoning the top of Kinkajou's blouse. Simultaneously, the two men restraining Kinkajou flew forward onto the ground with startled cries.
The guy jerked away from Kinkajou as though she had become white-hot. "Who the hell are you?" he demanded furiously, glaring past Kinkajou at the person behind her.
Kinkajou's breath grew hyper-alert in her chest as a pair of strong, familiar arms wrapped around her shoulders from behind and pulled her against the person's chest. At first, she thought it was Ichigo, but then she saw a single lock of black hair in the corner of her eye.
"Back off," Uryu Ishida growled, his voice low and dangerous. "She's mine."
Kinkajou suddenly felt dizzy, and this was not due to blood loss.
The guy's eyes narrowed, flickering up and down Uryu's tall and lanky frame as an alpha wolf might size up a challenger. "Yeah? And just what do you think you can do to me, Nancy boy?" The other four yakuza swelled up behind him, scowling furiously.
Uryu narrowed his eyes, and his grip tightened on her shoulders. "Would you like to try me?" His voice dropped even lower, and the way it tickled Kinkajou's ear made a chill shoot down her spine.
The guy narrowed his gaze as well, and the two boys stared each other down in silence. The other yakuza began to look uneasy, as did Kinkajou. Uryu wasn't like Ichigo. Sure, he was strong enough to face down five Hollows without breaking a sweat, but five yakuza? His strength didn't extend too far physically, and all of the guys were taller and bigger than he was. She didn't know why he was just standing there doing some kind of primitive I-am-more-dominant-than-thee male thing instead of just picking her up and running. Maybe that was his plan. But somehow, Kinkajou doubted it.
She didn't have time to ponder what good she would be in a full-blown fight, because the guy made a scoffing sound and curled his lip derisively. "Tch! As if. Like I'm gonna waste my time for some broken merchandise. I'm outta here." The guy turned, barked a sharp "Come on!" to his posse, and they all went around the corner silently and disappeared into the shadows.
As soon as they'd gone, Uryu let Kinkajou go. "Are you all right?" he said stiffly, his formal tone feeling a bit like a slap to the face.
"I'm fine," Kinkajou told him. She wobbled slightly as she turned around, but she gave him a broad grin. "I would've kicked their butts if I hadn't gone and retched again."
"Retching, huh? Is that what you're calling it now?" Uryu reached into the breast pocket of his shirt and pulled out a handkerchief, clean and crisp and white like a spirit ribbon, and began dabbing as the blood on her chin.
Kinkajou felt her face redden. "Um..."
"Don't worry. It's clean," Uryu reassured her, misinterpreting her flustered noise as a sound of polite disgust. Kinkajou fell silent and let Uryu clean her up, his scent making her feel dizzier than she already was. Ichigo had a masculine scent, like salt and sun and sweat, but Uryu smelled like clean linen, a soft breeze, warmth. When Uryu moved down to wipe the blood from the hollow of her throat, Kinkajou nearly gasped, a tingle of something unfamiliar running down her spine.
Uryu, seeming oblivious to Kinkajou's reaction, finished his task, rolled up the handkerchief, and tossed it onto the dumpster. "You'll have to wash your uniform when you get home. There's not much I can do about it here."
"Oh, um..." Kinkajou said dazedly. He was still too close for her to think properly.
Uryu's eyebrows drew together. "They didn't hurt you, did they?" he asked, his voice softening with concern.
Kinkajou shook her head vehemently, attempting to clear the haze in her mind. "No, no, no, I'm fine, really! You don't have anything to worry about!"
"Knowing you, there's always something to worry about," he sighed. His tone was curt, but his eyes were light and fond.
Kinkajou's eyes grew round. "Hey, I remember Ichigo saying the same thing not too long ago!" she commented.
By the way Uryu's eyes immediately darkened, Kinkajou realized that this was not the ting to say. He turned, adjusted his glasses, and said quietly, "You should go on home before you get yourself into trouble again."
"I can't yet," sighed Kinkajou. "I have to run by the river first."
Uryu's eyes widened. "The river?"
Kinkajou tilted her head to the side. "Yeah, Ichigo told me to meet him there at five-thirty. Why?"
Uryu deflated slightly, as if something had stunned him quite suddenly. "He told me to do the same thing."
Kinkajou made a small noise of surprise. "Wow, both of us? What a coincidence!" she laughed. But she could tell by the way Uryu's eyes narrowed that he didn't think it was a coincidence any more than she did. "So why don't we go there together?" she suggested.
Uryu blinked and opened his mouth as if to protest, but then he thought better of it and shrugged. "Fine with me," he murmured.
"Okay then!" Kinkajou spun on her heels, took a step forward, stopped, and then whirled back around so suddenly that Uryu started. "Oh yeah! I forgot! Thanks for helping me out back there! You really saved my butt just then!" She bowed deeply before straightening up and grinning broadly at him.
Uryu quickly brought a hand up to adjust his glasses, simultaneously hiding his reddening face as he murmured, "It was nothing. Don't mention it."
Kinkajou giggled, finding this rare, flustered face of Uryu to be highly amusing. She suddenly took his hand, and Uryu jumped as though he had been static-shocked. "Come on!" she told him, treating him to another wide grin before running off down the alleyway, taking him in tow. "We're gonna be late!"
Uryu allowed himself to be dragged along, in too much of a daze to protest.
Karakura Town, Karakura Old Town, Karasu River
5:56 p.m.
5:56 p.m.
"Does he think that we have nothing better to do than to sit around and wait for him all afternoon?" Uryu asked irritably, reclining back on his hands and looking up at the darkening sky. The sun was starting to dip below the horizon, but Ichigo hadn't shown up yet.
Kinkajou was sitting beside Uryu in the grass, and she cast a sideways glance at him. He looked irked, of course; having to wait for Ichigo of all people wasn't the way he wanted to spend his ideal afternoon doing in the slightest. But there was something else on his face, too, something Kinkajou couldn't read: anxiety? Fear? Worry? But why would Uryu be worried about Ichigo? He certainly wouldn't be afraid. Perhaps she was over-thinking things. Perhaps she was the one that was nervous, not Uryu.
Apparently, Kinkajou's facial expression had changed drastically during her silent musing, because after a moment, Uryu sat up and gave her a sidelong glance. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked hesitantly. "You've been acting off all day today. Did those thugs hurt you?"
"Hm?" Kinkajou blinked, refocusing on his pale, worried face. "No, I'm fine, really! Don't worry about it!"
Uryu sighed and bowed his head, massaging his temples with one hand, though this was to hide the slightest smile that had fallen onto his lips. "I always worry about you. I honestly wonder how you've survived this long."
Kinkajou was offended by this. "A little blood never hurt anyone!" she exclaimed, misunderstanding Uryu's statement. "Sure, I had another attack and all, but that's nothing compared to that delightful little week we have every mo- Oh! I'm sorry! You really didn't want to know that, did you?" When she noticed that Uryu had a rather odd look on his face, Kinkajou babbled on, "I'm sorry! I just talk a lot whenever I'm nervous, that's all-"
"You're nervous?" Uryu asked, looking amused despite himself.
Kinkajou stopped talking immediately, blinked at him a moment, and then her face flushed a bright red. "What? N-No, I'm not nervous! Non, non, non, je ne suis pas nerveux du tout!" she twittered, then she caught sight of his little smirk and fell silent.
Still red-faced, she looked out at the river. It was becoming harder to discern the horizon from the dark crimson mess of sky and water. Ichigo would have said that the river looked like blood. He wouldn't specify whose, but Kinkajou wouldn't need to hear a name to know.
"So what does the river look like to you, Uryu?" Kinkajou asked.
"Pardon?" Uryu glanced at her, one eyebrow raised.
"The river," Kinkajou repeated. "What does it remind you of right now?"
Uryu looked back at the river, his blue gaze thoughtful. "Well... I guess it makes me think of a spirit thread. It's smooth and red, and it flows like a giant ribbon."
Kinkajou was quiet for a moment. "I think that the river is a lot like the sky. When the sky's blue, the river's blue. When the sky's red, the river's red. And when the sky's black, the river's black. Sometimes, you can't even tell where one stops and the other starts. And the same river is different every time you go to it, because its flowed since you last saw it, and now it has new things that weren't there last time. It's like the sky, because the wind's always blowing, and the clouds are always in a different pattern every time you look."
"That's pretty deep," Uryu commented after a few seconds. "So why did you ask?"
"People see things different ways. And we have different ways of describing stuff." Kinkajou glanced at him, and they held one another's gaze for a few moments. "You've got something on your mind. I can tell. So just say whatever comes to mind. I think I'll understand."
Uryu blinked at her, eyes wide, before glancing away, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Since when were you my counselor?" he asked churlishly.
"Since when were you the one that had to save my ass?" Kinkajou countered playfully.
"You were in trouble. It's not like I could have left you there and let it happen."
"Can't leave a damsel in distress, huh? You're just like Ichigo."
"I'm nothing like Ichigo. It offends me enough to just be in the same school as him."
"You to have a lot in common!"
"Like what?"
"Well, you've got me!" Kinkajou said brightly.
Uryu gaped at her, his face going red. "W-What makes you say that?" he stammered.
Kinkajou grew thoughtful. "I dunno."
"So you just blurt out whatever's on the tip of your tongue no matter how weird it is?"
"Pretty much. Why, is that weird?"
Uryu looked at her blankly for the longest time, as though he were finding it hard to comprehend what she had just said. Then he lowered his head, and his shoulders started to shake. Alarmed, Kinkajou leaned towards him and tried to look up into his face, which was hidden behind his hair. Was he having some sort of fit?
It took Kinkajou several moments to realize that he was laughing. Uryu Ishida was laughing.
He had brought one hand up to his mouth in an attempt to stifle it, but to no avail. Tears of mirth were gathering like dew in the corners of his eyes, and he was having difficulty in remaining upright. His laughter was soft but contagious, and though Kinkajou wasn't quite sure what he was laughing at, she joined in anyway. They leaned against one another, laughing and laughing for the longest time, and when they finally stopped, Kinkajou asked breathlessly, "Why are we laughing?"
This question set Uryu off again almost immediately, and he nearly doubled over with laughter. This time, Kinkajou didn't join him; she just watched, observed something rare and something... surprisingly beautiful. She had never seen him like this before, this Uryu that hid behind an icy veneer and peeked out only rarely, when he felt safe enough around someone to open up, just a little bit. Kinkajou liked this version of Uryu, and she was glad to have caught a glimpse of it, however fleeting a glimpse it is.
When he finally straightened up again, he tried to speak. "Ah... Kink... That- That-" He broke off again, too breathless to speak.
"You should really laugh more," Kinkajou advised him genuinely, giving him a little smile. "You look beautiful when you do."
Uryu flushed a rather interesting shade of dark red. The color reminded Kinkajou of an especially ripe tomato, but she spared Uryu this observation."Men don't like being called beautiful, Kinkajou," he stammered, looking away quickly.
"So?" Kinkajou crossed her arms and stuck her tongue out at him. "Doesn't mean you aren't beautiful."
Uryu didn't respond. He remained silent for a few moments, and when he spoke, he was hesitant. "Well... I... I'm not very good at this, so I really don't know what to say."
"Just say whatever you think!" Kinkajou told him. "I promise I won't slap you or anything if it's something perverted."
Uryu only cracked a tiny smile at this. He seemed lost, like a small child. Kinkajou felt something turn over inside her as she looked at him. A chunk of black hair had fallen into his eyes, and she leaned in to brush it away. Rather, that had been her initial objective at the time. She nor Uryu had been expecting her to press her mouth softly against his.
Her lips were gentle and almost shy. Uryu had never thought of Kinkajou as shy before. She was fire, like heat and ferocity and hunger and burning lust. But now she was a candle, quiet, flickering, barely there. He could taste it, though: that yearning, that lust, the way she held herself back as a starving man must pace himself and slowly eat the meal before him. Uryu liked the taste, but he wanted more of it, so he tilted his head slightly to the side and returned the kiss, deeper, faster. He pulled her closer to him, and Kinkajou made a small sound and wrapped her arms around his neck. Both of them knew that no, they shouldn't be doing this, especially not where just anyone (namely Ichigo) could see them, but neither had the ability or the know-how or the desire to stop now that they had gotten started.
When at last they parted (more for air than anything else), Uryu looked down at Kinkajou in blank shock. Her eyes were wide, her cheeks flushed, her lips swollen. Now that that rush of passion - or lust, it was hard for Uryu to tell - was over, he felt a sudden and unmistakable jolt of guilt. Of all the things he could have done just then, he had kissed Kinkajou. His classmate Kinkajou. His ally Kinkajou. Ichigo's girlfriend Kinkajou.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly, starting to move away from her, but he fell still when her hand touched his shoulder. Blushing furiously, Uryu watched as Kinkajou laid her head in his lap, looking up at him through half-lidded eyes.
"Lemme stay like this..." Kinkajou told him hazily, "... jus'... a li'l longer..." And with that, she fell fast asleep.
Uryu watched her for a moment, still in a daze. She was warm like fire, too; her warmth was so comforting and lulling that he also dropped off to sleep just after the sun sank below the horizon. And he had never slept quite as good as he did then.
Kinkajou was sitting beside Uryu in the grass, and she cast a sideways glance at him. He looked irked, of course; having to wait for Ichigo of all people wasn't the way he wanted to spend his ideal afternoon doing in the slightest. But there was something else on his face, too, something Kinkajou couldn't read: anxiety? Fear? Worry? But why would Uryu be worried about Ichigo? He certainly wouldn't be afraid. Perhaps she was over-thinking things. Perhaps she was the one that was nervous, not Uryu.
Apparently, Kinkajou's facial expression had changed drastically during her silent musing, because after a moment, Uryu sat up and gave her a sidelong glance. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked hesitantly. "You've been acting off all day today. Did those thugs hurt you?"
"Hm?" Kinkajou blinked, refocusing on his pale, worried face. "No, I'm fine, really! Don't worry about it!"
Uryu sighed and bowed his head, massaging his temples with one hand, though this was to hide the slightest smile that had fallen onto his lips. "I always worry about you. I honestly wonder how you've survived this long."
Kinkajou was offended by this. "A little blood never hurt anyone!" she exclaimed, misunderstanding Uryu's statement. "Sure, I had another attack and all, but that's nothing compared to that delightful little week we have every mo- Oh! I'm sorry! You really didn't want to know that, did you?" When she noticed that Uryu had a rather odd look on his face, Kinkajou babbled on, "I'm sorry! I just talk a lot whenever I'm nervous, that's all-"
"You're nervous?" Uryu asked, looking amused despite himself.
Kinkajou stopped talking immediately, blinked at him a moment, and then her face flushed a bright red. "What? N-No, I'm not nervous! Non, non, non, je ne suis pas nerveux du tout!" she twittered, then she caught sight of his little smirk and fell silent.
Still red-faced, she looked out at the river. It was becoming harder to discern the horizon from the dark crimson mess of sky and water. Ichigo would have said that the river looked like blood. He wouldn't specify whose, but Kinkajou wouldn't need to hear a name to know.
"So what does the river look like to you, Uryu?" Kinkajou asked.
"Pardon?" Uryu glanced at her, one eyebrow raised.
"The river," Kinkajou repeated. "What does it remind you of right now?"
Uryu looked back at the river, his blue gaze thoughtful. "Well... I guess it makes me think of a spirit thread. It's smooth and red, and it flows like a giant ribbon."
Kinkajou was quiet for a moment. "I think that the river is a lot like the sky. When the sky's blue, the river's blue. When the sky's red, the river's red. And when the sky's black, the river's black. Sometimes, you can't even tell where one stops and the other starts. And the same river is different every time you go to it, because its flowed since you last saw it, and now it has new things that weren't there last time. It's like the sky, because the wind's always blowing, and the clouds are always in a different pattern every time you look."
"That's pretty deep," Uryu commented after a few seconds. "So why did you ask?"
"People see things different ways. And we have different ways of describing stuff." Kinkajou glanced at him, and they held one another's gaze for a few moments. "You've got something on your mind. I can tell. So just say whatever comes to mind. I think I'll understand."
Uryu blinked at her, eyes wide, before glancing away, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Since when were you my counselor?" he asked churlishly.
"Since when were you the one that had to save my ass?" Kinkajou countered playfully.
"You were in trouble. It's not like I could have left you there and let it happen."
"Can't leave a damsel in distress, huh? You're just like Ichigo."
"I'm nothing like Ichigo. It offends me enough to just be in the same school as him."
"You to have a lot in common!"
"Like what?"
"Well, you've got me!" Kinkajou said brightly.
Uryu gaped at her, his face going red. "W-What makes you say that?" he stammered.
Kinkajou grew thoughtful. "I dunno."
"So you just blurt out whatever's on the tip of your tongue no matter how weird it is?"
"Pretty much. Why, is that weird?"
Uryu looked at her blankly for the longest time, as though he were finding it hard to comprehend what she had just said. Then he lowered his head, and his shoulders started to shake. Alarmed, Kinkajou leaned towards him and tried to look up into his face, which was hidden behind his hair. Was he having some sort of fit?
It took Kinkajou several moments to realize that he was laughing. Uryu Ishida was laughing.
He had brought one hand up to his mouth in an attempt to stifle it, but to no avail. Tears of mirth were gathering like dew in the corners of his eyes, and he was having difficulty in remaining upright. His laughter was soft but contagious, and though Kinkajou wasn't quite sure what he was laughing at, she joined in anyway. They leaned against one another, laughing and laughing for the longest time, and when they finally stopped, Kinkajou asked breathlessly, "Why are we laughing?"
This question set Uryu off again almost immediately, and he nearly doubled over with laughter. This time, Kinkajou didn't join him; she just watched, observed something rare and something... surprisingly beautiful. She had never seen him like this before, this Uryu that hid behind an icy veneer and peeked out only rarely, when he felt safe enough around someone to open up, just a little bit. Kinkajou liked this version of Uryu, and she was glad to have caught a glimpse of it, however fleeting a glimpse it is.
When he finally straightened up again, he tried to speak. "Ah... Kink... That- That-" He broke off again, too breathless to speak.
"You should really laugh more," Kinkajou advised him genuinely, giving him a little smile. "You look beautiful when you do."
Uryu flushed a rather interesting shade of dark red. The color reminded Kinkajou of an especially ripe tomato, but she spared Uryu this observation."Men don't like being called beautiful, Kinkajou," he stammered, looking away quickly.
"So?" Kinkajou crossed her arms and stuck her tongue out at him. "Doesn't mean you aren't beautiful."
Uryu didn't respond. He remained silent for a few moments, and when he spoke, he was hesitant. "Well... I... I'm not very good at this, so I really don't know what to say."
"Just say whatever you think!" Kinkajou told him. "I promise I won't slap you or anything if it's something perverted."
Uryu only cracked a tiny smile at this. He seemed lost, like a small child. Kinkajou felt something turn over inside her as she looked at him. A chunk of black hair had fallen into his eyes, and she leaned in to brush it away. Rather, that had been her initial objective at the time. She nor Uryu had been expecting her to press her mouth softly against his.
Her lips were gentle and almost shy. Uryu had never thought of Kinkajou as shy before. She was fire, like heat and ferocity and hunger and burning lust. But now she was a candle, quiet, flickering, barely there. He could taste it, though: that yearning, that lust, the way she held herself back as a starving man must pace himself and slowly eat the meal before him. Uryu liked the taste, but he wanted more of it, so he tilted his head slightly to the side and returned the kiss, deeper, faster. He pulled her closer to him, and Kinkajou made a small sound and wrapped her arms around his neck. Both of them knew that no, they shouldn't be doing this, especially not where just anyone (namely Ichigo) could see them, but neither had the ability or the know-how or the desire to stop now that they had gotten started.
When at last they parted (more for air than anything else), Uryu looked down at Kinkajou in blank shock. Her eyes were wide, her cheeks flushed, her lips swollen. Now that that rush of passion - or lust, it was hard for Uryu to tell - was over, he felt a sudden and unmistakable jolt of guilt. Of all the things he could have done just then, he had kissed Kinkajou. His classmate Kinkajou. His ally Kinkajou. Ichigo's girlfriend Kinkajou.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly, starting to move away from her, but he fell still when her hand touched his shoulder. Blushing furiously, Uryu watched as Kinkajou laid her head in his lap, looking up at him through half-lidded eyes.
"Lemme stay like this..." Kinkajou told him hazily, "... jus'... a li'l longer..." And with that, she fell fast asleep.
Uryu watched her for a moment, still in a daze. She was warm like fire, too; her warmth was so comforting and lulling that he also dropped off to sleep just after the sun sank below the horizon. And he had never slept quite as good as he did then.
When Uryu and Kinkajou woke the following day, it was morning. It was also rather late in the morning, so the two of them had to make haste in getting to school on time. They had no time to eat nor change their uniforms. They exchanged only a few necessary words, but the rest of the time, they were abnormally quiet.
Fortunately, they made it to class just before the bell rang. Unfortunately, the room went abuzz with whispering upon their arrival. Just what was Ichigo's girlfriend doing with Uryu Ishida that caused both of them to be so late? Ichigo himself didn't say a word, neither to the rumors nor to the pair in particular, choosing to have his face completely expressionless as Kinkajou and Uryu sat down. Ms. Ochi wasn't in the mood for idle chitchat, so Kinkajou didn't have to respond to anything either for the rest of class.
Though when the lunch bell rang, the questions came like a tidal wave.
"So, Kinkajou, how come you came in with Ishida this morning?" Mahana asked, hanging over Kinkajou's desk anxiously.
"Yes, is something happening?" Chizuru put in, looking a little too interested.
"Um, n-no..."
"Did you spend the night with him?" Orihime asked, innocent and wide-eyed.
Kinkajou flinched. She knew what version of "spending the night" Orihime meant, and she could take an educated guess at which version the others were thinking of. Granted, Kinkajou had spent the night with him (in the truest sense of the word), she hadn't in either of those respects. So she shook her head.
"No, we just bumped into each other this morning," she lied easily. "He was running late, and I'd overslept."
The girls looked rather unhappy that this story was so unriveting. "But I thought you always came to school with Ichigo?" Mahana tried again.
"He didn't bother waking me up." Kinkajou frowned at the person in question, where his back was turned to her as he talked to Keigo and Mizuiro. At any rate, she was relatively pissed at him. Where had he been yesterday? If he had shown up when he said he was going to, none of this would have happened.
She wouldn't have kissed Uryu either.
Dammit! Don't start thinking about that! But she did start thinking about it, about what had happened at the river the day before, and she felt something in her chest start to throb painfully. Stop thinking about him! It was a one-time thing! That's it! She wasn't going to think about the way he had protected her yesterday, the way his breath ruffled the sensitive skin of her ear as he told the thugs that Kinkajou was his.
Stop. You're not gonna think about him anymore. Uryu Ishida is a friend. You're with Ichigo. You haven't stopped loving Ichigo. Right?
Truthfully, she was too afraid to ask herself that question outright. She was too afraid that he had just become a friend, or worse, just her Warrior, someone she protected because she had to, not because she loved him enough to throw her life down for him without a thought.
If she felt this kind of fear, did it mean that it was already over?
Stop thinking about it! Kinkajou clenched her eyes shut against the tears that were gathering behind.
"Kinkajou?"
Kinkajou opened her eyes and looked up. Michiru was looking down at her with worried gray eyes. "Are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine!" Kinkajou told her, managing to conjure up only a half-hearted smile in her defense. "I'm still kinda half-asleep, that's all. Were you saying something?"
"Well, I was wondering what was on your uniform," Michiru said, pointing to Kinkajou's front. "Is it blood?"
Kinkajou blanched slightly, glancing down at the red stain on the front of her blouse that had dried into a crusty burgundy blotch. Damn. I can't tell them that I throw up blood. They'd wanna know why, and I sure as hell don't know...
"It sort of looks like dried ketchup," Orihime put in quickly.
Kinkajou gave her an appreciative glance and went on, "Yeah, I was trying to use one of those ketchup tubes yesterday and it exploded on me. It was kinda funny, actually. I guess I forgot to change."
"They keep spare uniforms in the nurse's office," Ryo told her, flipping a page in her book.
"I should probably go get one," Kinkajou said sheepishly, scratching the back of her head with a laugh. When she looked over at Ichigo's desk, he was already gone. She sighed.
Orihime had been watching Kinkajou closely the whole time. "Hey, Kinkajou! Would you like me to take you to the nurse's office to get you a uniform?" she offered with a smile.
Kinkajou blinked. "Oh, sure." She gave Orihime a smile in return, but she couldn't make it real.
Fortunately, they made it to class just before the bell rang. Unfortunately, the room went abuzz with whispering upon their arrival. Just what was Ichigo's girlfriend doing with Uryu Ishida that caused both of them to be so late? Ichigo himself didn't say a word, neither to the rumors nor to the pair in particular, choosing to have his face completely expressionless as Kinkajou and Uryu sat down. Ms. Ochi wasn't in the mood for idle chitchat, so Kinkajou didn't have to respond to anything either for the rest of class.
Though when the lunch bell rang, the questions came like a tidal wave.
"So, Kinkajou, how come you came in with Ishida this morning?" Mahana asked, hanging over Kinkajou's desk anxiously.
"Yes, is something happening?" Chizuru put in, looking a little too interested.
"Um, n-no..."
"Did you spend the night with him?" Orihime asked, innocent and wide-eyed.
Kinkajou flinched. She knew what version of "spending the night" Orihime meant, and she could take an educated guess at which version the others were thinking of. Granted, Kinkajou had spent the night with him (in the truest sense of the word), she hadn't in either of those respects. So she shook her head.
"No, we just bumped into each other this morning," she lied easily. "He was running late, and I'd overslept."
The girls looked rather unhappy that this story was so unriveting. "But I thought you always came to school with Ichigo?" Mahana tried again.
"He didn't bother waking me up." Kinkajou frowned at the person in question, where his back was turned to her as he talked to Keigo and Mizuiro. At any rate, she was relatively pissed at him. Where had he been yesterday? If he had shown up when he said he was going to, none of this would have happened.
She wouldn't have kissed Uryu either.
Dammit! Don't start thinking about that! But she did start thinking about it, about what had happened at the river the day before, and she felt something in her chest start to throb painfully. Stop thinking about him! It was a one-time thing! That's it! She wasn't going to think about the way he had protected her yesterday, the way his breath ruffled the sensitive skin of her ear as he told the thugs that Kinkajou was his.
Stop. You're not gonna think about him anymore. Uryu Ishida is a friend. You're with Ichigo. You haven't stopped loving Ichigo. Right?
Truthfully, she was too afraid to ask herself that question outright. She was too afraid that he had just become a friend, or worse, just her Warrior, someone she protected because she had to, not because she loved him enough to throw her life down for him without a thought.
If she felt this kind of fear, did it mean that it was already over?
Stop thinking about it! Kinkajou clenched her eyes shut against the tears that were gathering behind.
"Kinkajou?"
Kinkajou opened her eyes and looked up. Michiru was looking down at her with worried gray eyes. "Are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine!" Kinkajou told her, managing to conjure up only a half-hearted smile in her defense. "I'm still kinda half-asleep, that's all. Were you saying something?"
"Well, I was wondering what was on your uniform," Michiru said, pointing to Kinkajou's front. "Is it blood?"
Kinkajou blanched slightly, glancing down at the red stain on the front of her blouse that had dried into a crusty burgundy blotch. Damn. I can't tell them that I throw up blood. They'd wanna know why, and I sure as hell don't know...
"It sort of looks like dried ketchup," Orihime put in quickly.
Kinkajou gave her an appreciative glance and went on, "Yeah, I was trying to use one of those ketchup tubes yesterday and it exploded on me. It was kinda funny, actually. I guess I forgot to change."
"They keep spare uniforms in the nurse's office," Ryo told her, flipping a page in her book.
"I should probably go get one," Kinkajou said sheepishly, scratching the back of her head with a laugh. When she looked over at Ichigo's desk, he was already gone. She sighed.
Orihime had been watching Kinkajou closely the whole time. "Hey, Kinkajou! Would you like me to take you to the nurse's office to get you a uniform?" she offered with a smile.
Kinkajou blinked. "Oh, sure." She gave Orihime a smile in return, but she couldn't make it real.
It was abnormally quiet up on the rooftop during lunch. Ichigo and Uryu didn't speak at all. Chad never really talked anyway, and Mizuiro was bright enough to sense the mood and remain quiet. Only Keigo didn't have sense enough to keep his trap shut.
"Dude, it feels like a morgue up here! Someone needs to say something! I'm about to die!" he complained loudly.
Ichigo scowled irritably. He figured that punching Keigo off the roof wasn't really that bad of an idea, even if he would get in trouble for it.
"And Kinkajou's not even up here, so it's gonna be awkward and quiet the whole time! Where did she goooo?" Keigo whined.
Uryu twitched irritably. He figured that stabbing Keigo in the neck with one of his sewing needles wasn't really that bad of an idea, even if he would get in trouble for it.
"Keigo," Chad said quietly. "You talk too much."
"No, you don't talk enough! You're all too quiet! It's creepy! There's something going on here that I don't know about, and no one's letting me in on it!"
"That's because it's none of your business."
"Why not?!"
"Because apparently it has nothing to so with you, Mr. Asano," Mizuiro said calmly, poking the straw into his juice box.
"I told you to stop calling me that! You're weirder than the rest of them!"
"What makes you say that, Mr. Asano?"
"Stop calling me that! You know, you-"
The pair went on and on, and Chad glanced over at Ichigo and Uryu, who were eating in complete silence. "Is there something going on between you two that I should know about?" he asked quietly.
Uryu didn't speak. Ichigo hesitated for a few seconds before saying, "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."
Chad watched Ichigo for a moment, his dark eyes scrutinizing him solemnly. "You're not a very good liar, Ichigo. You never have been, and you never will be. But if there's something you don't want to tell me, I won't pry." And he went back to eating without another word.
Ichigo suddenly lost his appetite. He stood, brushed a few stray crumbs off his pants, and headed for the door. Mizuiro stopped arguing with Keigo long enough to glance back at Ichigo. "Are you going somewhere? Lunch is almost over."
"To the bathroom," Ichigo lied. "I'll be back in a moment."
As he opened the door, Ichigo could almost feel the sharp blue gaze burning through the back of his shirt. So he wasn't surprised when he only got fifteen feet down the hallway before a cold, long-fingered Quincy hand gripped his shoulder.
"Why weren't you there yesterday?" Uryu asked, getting straight to the point. His eyes were narrowed blue slits, and he looked as though he would have wanted nothing more than to strangle Ichigo, or at the very least shoot an arrow through his eye. But he controlled his anger well; only the slight twitching of his upper lip betrayed his irritation.
"I had things to do," Ichigo said brusquely, glancing back with equally narrowed eyes. He tried to brush past him, but Uryu's grip tightened, and it made Ichigo wince slightly.
Uryu regarded him silently for a moment, and then it dawned on him. "You set us up."
"I wouldn't know about that," Ichigo replied, completely deadpan.
"You don't trust her." Uryu felt cold outrage creep into his gut.
"For good reason." Ichigo's eyes were cold, colder than Uryu could ever remember seeing them. "She goes to the river alone with you, and she doesn't come home. Are you telling me that's a coincidence?"
"That's exactly what it is!" snapped Uryu, stung. "We fell asleep waiting for you, and we didn't wake up until this morning! That's all it was!" He was starting to yell; at that point; at that point, Uryu didn't care who heard him.
"You expect me to believe that?" Ichigo's voice was starting to rise too. "Just how stupid do I look to you?"
"You're an idiot, Kurosaki! We have nothing to hide from you! If you were expecting something from that little stunt you pulled yesterday, then I apologize for not living up to your expectations!"
"If you don't have anything to hide, then why are the two of you tiptoeing around me like a couple of little mice?"
"You've not exactly been forthcoming yourself! It's like walking on eggshells around you right now. You're acting like a brooding child!"
"It's because no one'll tell me the truth, dammit!"
"I am telling you the truth, you idiot! Should I beat it through your skull so you can understand it better?!"
"Don't threaten me!"
"So I can sit around and let you threaten Kinkajou and me?!"
"I'm not!"
"It sounds a lot like it to me!"
Ichigo punched the wall, hard. "Dammit, Uryu!" he snarled. "Stop hiding this stuff from me! I have as much a right to know what's going on as anyone else!"
"As do I!" Uryu crossed his arms in front of his chest and glared at him.
Ichigo sucked in a deep breath and glared down at the floor in an attempt to control his anger. "Tell me what happened yesterday."
"If you had been there yesterday, I wouldn't have to."
"I wasn't. Tell me anyway."
Uryu made an exasperated sound. "Do we have to go through this again?"
"No, because you're gonna tell me what really happened."
"I already have! Weren't you-"
"That's a lie."
Uryu stopped cold, staring at Ichigo's face with wide eyes. His eyes were narrowed, his face set in stone, and though he had stopped yelling, this only served to make his anger all the more frightening. But Uryu certainly wasn't afraid of Ichigo. Not in the slightest.
And yet he felt a bit of a tremor when he looked into those slitted mahogany eyes.
"I'm not as stupid as you think I am. If it had all happened the way you said it did, then Kinkajou wouldn't be so drawn and timid. She'd be laughing and bragging about her night with her sexy nerd just to piss me off. That's the way she is. And you never get mad this easy. You'd be talking circles around me and making me mad." Ichigo folded his arms across his own chest and stared directly into Uryu's, amber into blue. "So stop lying. Just tell me what happened."
Uryu's throat was dry. He tried to swallow, but he couldn't. Nor could he look Ichigo in the eyes. So he stared at the wall instead. "We stayed at the river the whole night. She fell asleep at about sundown. We kissed. That's all." Uryu knew his cheeks were flaring, but he knew there wasn't much he could do about it.
"And that's all I needed to know." With that, Ichigo walked past Uryu, back towards the rooftop. Uryu stood very still, looking blankly at the spot where he had been, and then he jolted into life, running after Ichigo and grabbing one of his shoulders.
"Don't you get angry with Kinkajou!" Uryu growled to him. "It was my fault. Get mad at me! If you lay one hand on her-"
"I'm not mad at her." Ichigo shrugged Uryu's hand away, and when he looked back at him, his facial expression was unreadable. "I'd never hit Kinkajou. Not like that. I'm not a wife-beater or anything. And I'm not mad at you either. Just forget that it ever happened." This time when Ichigo left, Uryu didn't follow him. He just stared at Ichigo's retreating back, his mind numb.
And, as the bell rang for lunch to end, Uryu thought that Ichigo's eyes had seemed... sad.
"Dude, it feels like a morgue up here! Someone needs to say something! I'm about to die!" he complained loudly.
Ichigo scowled irritably. He figured that punching Keigo off the roof wasn't really that bad of an idea, even if he would get in trouble for it.
"And Kinkajou's not even up here, so it's gonna be awkward and quiet the whole time! Where did she goooo?" Keigo whined.
Uryu twitched irritably. He figured that stabbing Keigo in the neck with one of his sewing needles wasn't really that bad of an idea, even if he would get in trouble for it.
"Keigo," Chad said quietly. "You talk too much."
"No, you don't talk enough! You're all too quiet! It's creepy! There's something going on here that I don't know about, and no one's letting me in on it!"
"That's because it's none of your business."
"Why not?!"
"Because apparently it has nothing to so with you, Mr. Asano," Mizuiro said calmly, poking the straw into his juice box.
"I told you to stop calling me that! You're weirder than the rest of them!"
"What makes you say that, Mr. Asano?"
"Stop calling me that! You know, you-"
The pair went on and on, and Chad glanced over at Ichigo and Uryu, who were eating in complete silence. "Is there something going on between you two that I should know about?" he asked quietly.
Uryu didn't speak. Ichigo hesitated for a few seconds before saying, "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."
Chad watched Ichigo for a moment, his dark eyes scrutinizing him solemnly. "You're not a very good liar, Ichigo. You never have been, and you never will be. But if there's something you don't want to tell me, I won't pry." And he went back to eating without another word.
Ichigo suddenly lost his appetite. He stood, brushed a few stray crumbs off his pants, and headed for the door. Mizuiro stopped arguing with Keigo long enough to glance back at Ichigo. "Are you going somewhere? Lunch is almost over."
"To the bathroom," Ichigo lied. "I'll be back in a moment."
As he opened the door, Ichigo could almost feel the sharp blue gaze burning through the back of his shirt. So he wasn't surprised when he only got fifteen feet down the hallway before a cold, long-fingered Quincy hand gripped his shoulder.
"Why weren't you there yesterday?" Uryu asked, getting straight to the point. His eyes were narrowed blue slits, and he looked as though he would have wanted nothing more than to strangle Ichigo, or at the very least shoot an arrow through his eye. But he controlled his anger well; only the slight twitching of his upper lip betrayed his irritation.
"I had things to do," Ichigo said brusquely, glancing back with equally narrowed eyes. He tried to brush past him, but Uryu's grip tightened, and it made Ichigo wince slightly.
Uryu regarded him silently for a moment, and then it dawned on him. "You set us up."
"I wouldn't know about that," Ichigo replied, completely deadpan.
"You don't trust her." Uryu felt cold outrage creep into his gut.
"For good reason." Ichigo's eyes were cold, colder than Uryu could ever remember seeing them. "She goes to the river alone with you, and she doesn't come home. Are you telling me that's a coincidence?"
"That's exactly what it is!" snapped Uryu, stung. "We fell asleep waiting for you, and we didn't wake up until this morning! That's all it was!" He was starting to yell; at that point; at that point, Uryu didn't care who heard him.
"You expect me to believe that?" Ichigo's voice was starting to rise too. "Just how stupid do I look to you?"
"You're an idiot, Kurosaki! We have nothing to hide from you! If you were expecting something from that little stunt you pulled yesterday, then I apologize for not living up to your expectations!"
"If you don't have anything to hide, then why are the two of you tiptoeing around me like a couple of little mice?"
"You've not exactly been forthcoming yourself! It's like walking on eggshells around you right now. You're acting like a brooding child!"
"It's because no one'll tell me the truth, dammit!"
"I am telling you the truth, you idiot! Should I beat it through your skull so you can understand it better?!"
"Don't threaten me!"
"So I can sit around and let you threaten Kinkajou and me?!"
"I'm not!"
"It sounds a lot like it to me!"
Ichigo punched the wall, hard. "Dammit, Uryu!" he snarled. "Stop hiding this stuff from me! I have as much a right to know what's going on as anyone else!"
"As do I!" Uryu crossed his arms in front of his chest and glared at him.
Ichigo sucked in a deep breath and glared down at the floor in an attempt to control his anger. "Tell me what happened yesterday."
"If you had been there yesterday, I wouldn't have to."
"I wasn't. Tell me anyway."
Uryu made an exasperated sound. "Do we have to go through this again?"
"No, because you're gonna tell me what really happened."
"I already have! Weren't you-"
"That's a lie."
Uryu stopped cold, staring at Ichigo's face with wide eyes. His eyes were narrowed, his face set in stone, and though he had stopped yelling, this only served to make his anger all the more frightening. But Uryu certainly wasn't afraid of Ichigo. Not in the slightest.
And yet he felt a bit of a tremor when he looked into those slitted mahogany eyes.
"I'm not as stupid as you think I am. If it had all happened the way you said it did, then Kinkajou wouldn't be so drawn and timid. She'd be laughing and bragging about her night with her sexy nerd just to piss me off. That's the way she is. And you never get mad this easy. You'd be talking circles around me and making me mad." Ichigo folded his arms across his own chest and stared directly into Uryu's, amber into blue. "So stop lying. Just tell me what happened."
Uryu's throat was dry. He tried to swallow, but he couldn't. Nor could he look Ichigo in the eyes. So he stared at the wall instead. "We stayed at the river the whole night. She fell asleep at about sundown. We kissed. That's all." Uryu knew his cheeks were flaring, but he knew there wasn't much he could do about it.
"And that's all I needed to know." With that, Ichigo walked past Uryu, back towards the rooftop. Uryu stood very still, looking blankly at the spot where he had been, and then he jolted into life, running after Ichigo and grabbing one of his shoulders.
"Don't you get angry with Kinkajou!" Uryu growled to him. "It was my fault. Get mad at me! If you lay one hand on her-"
"I'm not mad at her." Ichigo shrugged Uryu's hand away, and when he looked back at him, his facial expression was unreadable. "I'd never hit Kinkajou. Not like that. I'm not a wife-beater or anything. And I'm not mad at you either. Just forget that it ever happened." This time when Ichigo left, Uryu didn't follow him. He just stared at Ichigo's retreating back, his mind numb.
And, as the bell rang for lunch to end, Uryu thought that Ichigo's eyes had seemed... sad.
"Ah! That feels so much better!" Kinkajou purred as she and Orihime stepped out of the nurse's office. She had that clean feeling that you get upon stepping out of the shower and into some clean clothes, and now that that wretched bloodstain was gone, she felt as though she could think clearly again.
Orihime smiled warmly at her, but after a moment, her face grew serious. Kinkajou felt her momentary happy glow ebb a bit as her own worries began to build back up, like the monster beneath the bed that never quite goes away, no matter how old you get.
"So is everything all right?" Orihime asked quietly as they made their way down the deserted hallway.
Kinkajou opened her mouth, prepared to reassure her, but as she looked into Orihime's worried gray eyes, she suddenly wanted nothing more than to confide in her. "I..." She bit her bottom lip, feeling a lump form in her throat. Unshed tears began to scratch at her eyes, and she blinked them impatiently away. "I... like Uryu. I like him a lot."
"Like a friend?" Orihime asked, tilting her head to the side.
Kinkajou shook her head. "Not like a friend."
Orihime's eyes were round and inquisitive. "And does he like you too?"
Kinkajou paused at this, her feet slowing to a stop. Did Uryu like her? He had protected her yesterday, but he had always been like that; he couldn't abandon a woman in peril. He had told the thugs that she was his, but it certainly didn't mean that he had feelings for her. When she had kissed him yesterday, he hadn't responded at first, but when he did... Was he doing that out of respect for her feelings? Perhaps.
But that didn't explain the look in his eyes, that passion she had never seen before in Uryu. So maybe...
"I think so," she said hesitantly.
"What about Ichigo?"
That was certainly the million-dollar question. "I..." Kinkajou bit her lip again, harder this time, so that she could taste the metallic tang of blood against her tongue. She couldn't finish her sentence. She didn't know what to say.
"You still like him, don't you?"
"Of course!" This time, Kinkajou didn't hesitate. "I don't know what I'd do without Ichigo. But I like Uryu too. It's like... I want both of them." Her cheeks flared at this, realizing how much of a brat she sounded like.
"Well, you can have them both!" Orihime told her, holding up a triumphant finger.
Kinkajou blinked. "Say what?"
Orihime's face glowed as though she had just had an epiphany. "You can have both of them! It's sorta like a sandwich! You can really like peanut butter, but you can also really like jelly too! And since you can't decide, you can just put both of them on the same sandwich!"
"A... sandwich?"
"Mm-hmm!" Orihime smiled at her. "I'm sure Ichigo and Uryu wouldn't mind sharing you!"
"Orihime, you're making me sound like a locker."
"Hmm?" Orihime tilted her head to the side.
Her facial expression made Kinkajou laugh out loud. Immediately, her thoughts went to Uryu, who had laughed like that not too long ago. She sobered at this and said, "Really, thanks, Orihime. Thank you so much."
"You're welcome!" Orihime beamed. Kinkajou found herself smiling weakly back. "Hey, so do you wanna eat lunch with us today? If we hurry, we'll still have some time left!"
Kinkajou blinked, her eyes widening in surprise at Orihime's proposition. "I'd love to," she said after a moment, giving her a smile. And this time, it was genuine.
Orihime smiled warmly at her, but after a moment, her face grew serious. Kinkajou felt her momentary happy glow ebb a bit as her own worries began to build back up, like the monster beneath the bed that never quite goes away, no matter how old you get.
"So is everything all right?" Orihime asked quietly as they made their way down the deserted hallway.
Kinkajou opened her mouth, prepared to reassure her, but as she looked into Orihime's worried gray eyes, she suddenly wanted nothing more than to confide in her. "I..." She bit her bottom lip, feeling a lump form in her throat. Unshed tears began to scratch at her eyes, and she blinked them impatiently away. "I... like Uryu. I like him a lot."
"Like a friend?" Orihime asked, tilting her head to the side.
Kinkajou shook her head. "Not like a friend."
Orihime's eyes were round and inquisitive. "And does he like you too?"
Kinkajou paused at this, her feet slowing to a stop. Did Uryu like her? He had protected her yesterday, but he had always been like that; he couldn't abandon a woman in peril. He had told the thugs that she was his, but it certainly didn't mean that he had feelings for her. When she had kissed him yesterday, he hadn't responded at first, but when he did... Was he doing that out of respect for her feelings? Perhaps.
But that didn't explain the look in his eyes, that passion she had never seen before in Uryu. So maybe...
"I think so," she said hesitantly.
"What about Ichigo?"
That was certainly the million-dollar question. "I..." Kinkajou bit her lip again, harder this time, so that she could taste the metallic tang of blood against her tongue. She couldn't finish her sentence. She didn't know what to say.
"You still like him, don't you?"
"Of course!" This time, Kinkajou didn't hesitate. "I don't know what I'd do without Ichigo. But I like Uryu too. It's like... I want both of them." Her cheeks flared at this, realizing how much of a brat she sounded like.
"Well, you can have them both!" Orihime told her, holding up a triumphant finger.
Kinkajou blinked. "Say what?"
Orihime's face glowed as though she had just had an epiphany. "You can have both of them! It's sorta like a sandwich! You can really like peanut butter, but you can also really like jelly too! And since you can't decide, you can just put both of them on the same sandwich!"
"A... sandwich?"
"Mm-hmm!" Orihime smiled at her. "I'm sure Ichigo and Uryu wouldn't mind sharing you!"
"Orihime, you're making me sound like a locker."
"Hmm?" Orihime tilted her head to the side.
Her facial expression made Kinkajou laugh out loud. Immediately, her thoughts went to Uryu, who had laughed like that not too long ago. She sobered at this and said, "Really, thanks, Orihime. Thank you so much."
"You're welcome!" Orihime beamed. Kinkajou found herself smiling weakly back. "Hey, so do you wanna eat lunch with us today? If we hurry, we'll still have some time left!"
Kinkajou blinked, her eyes widening in surprise at Orihime's proposition. "I'd love to," she said after a moment, giving her a smile. And this time, it was genuine.
Kinkajou walked home in complete silence. Ichigo was a few steps ahead of her, and he hadn't spoken to her since they had started walking. He had waited for her at the front gate as he always had, but he barely even acknowledged her when she finally did show up. Once again, Kinkajou began to feel that squirm of guilt in her gut, like something she had eaten at lunch hadn't fully digested (perhaps Orihime's peanut butter and jelly and chocolate icing natto buns). She knew for a fact that Ichigo would never hit her, but... she sort of wished that he would. She would take any kind of injustice to get her fired up again, anything but this silent and disappointed version of Ichigo.