Failure to Communicate What am I gonna do? Soi found herself repeating that question in her head throughtout the entirety of the next day of school, at least when she wasn't trying to ignore the ridiculous rumors about her sempai. She answered problems in class, ate her lunch alone, and walked home by herself just like she had before, but now it occured to her just how empty her solitude had made her feel. But then Yoruichi had come into her life, and now it seemed like she was gone just as quickly. ...Come on, she told herself as she plodded along on the sidewalk. You were right after all. She was nothing but trouble. Just forget about her. That was the absolute truth, but even so the love she had for Yoruichi, that she'd kept buried deep down, hadn't come close to fading; in fact they seemed to burn brighter within her than before. It confused Soi, this juxtaposition of reality and idealism she had whenever it came to the matter of the upperclassman, always believing in the best about her even though all the evidence pointed elsewhere. Had she been blinded by these feelings, from seeing who Yoruichi really was all this time? But more importantly, did she still want to be with someone she knew had this darkness inside her? ...Do I really feel that way about her? ---------- "Well, you're looking worse for the wear." Gin looked up from his half-eaten breakfast of eggs and sausage to find a rather unwelcome face framed by a mop of blonde hair standing in the doorway to his room, moving out of the way as his nurse exited silently. "Well...ta whaddaeye owe th' pleasure o' ya company, Urahara?" "Oh, not much," the teen answered as he walked over to the bedside wall and, without bothering to ask, pulled the chair in the corner of the room toward the hospital room bed, sitting on it so that he was straddling the wooden back. "...Feelin' any better?" Gin gave a snort at Kisuke's feigned concern, but otherwise did nothing to indicate he found his presence any more tolerable than a few moments ago. "Well actually, I can't say that I'm in a very good place right now-- gettin' yer arm broken for no reason does that to ya. I think I may have ta let the police see what they can do about yer friend..." "Ah. If that's the case, then I'll cut the friendly conversation," Kisuke interrupted with a grin, adjusting his hat so that he could make eye-contact with his peer. "...I've got a bit of a favor to ask you." Gin stared at the blonde for a moment before making another 'feh' sound, then twisted himself so that he could look Yoruichi's friend in the eye without putting pressure on his cast-encased right arm. "An' wha' makes ya think that I'd wanna do a favor fer you? Did Yoruichi send ya ta finish me off or somethin'?" he asked with a clear tone of skepticism. "...Because I know you had nothing to do with it." In an instant the taunting smile disappeared from Gin's face, and he was silent while Kisuke continued stoically. "I've seen what you and your little followers do for fun, and I know for a fact that something as big as sexual assault isn't your bag. A couple 'freelancers,' perhaps?" Ichimaru and Urahara stared at one another quietly, as if each was challenging the validity of the other's character. Finally Gin gave a slight nod, and the blonde interpreted correctly when he stood up long enough to slide the yellowed plastic curtain around the perimeter of the bed. "I'm not gonna force your hand. You do what you want," Kisuke said calmly. "...But if anyone besides Yoruichi knows about that tattoo of yours it won't be long before you start recuperating in a jail cell." "Whaddaya suggestin'?" Gin asked in a subdued voice, though it still carried a hint of defiance to it. "Don't file any charges against Yoruichi, and I want you to tell me everything you know about last week. I'll make sure you don't get in trouble for this." "Hmm...Not much to tell," the silver-haired teen responded with a shrug. "...I actually don't see any a' those guys too much, so I can't think of why they'd up an' do that." "Is there ANYTHING you could think of? Something unusual that happened?" Ichimaru searched his memory for only a moment before he had an epiphany, the meeting with Aizen suddenly coming back. "Well, actually..." ---------- Soi listened quietly into the reciever as the procession of tones and silence occured for the third time, hoping that she could get a chance to speak now. It continued for a moment until the click of the reciever at the other end sounded, and even though not a word was said the freshman knew she was being listened to. "...Yoruichi-san? Listen, I really need to talk to you about all th--" Within moments she was hung up on again, and while the Chinese girl wanted to keep trying she placed the reciever back on the hook slowly. She sighed, leaning against the kitchen counter to stare out the window at the dimming twilight. It was over, she understood, but she couldn't say she hadn't tried. ...No, Soi thought to herself as her fists clenched in determination. She wouldn't let it end like this. Not after Yoruichi had become such a big part of her life. With a spark of understanding now flaring up within her she ran to the closet door, barely realizing that her father was working late again, grabbing her coat and heading out the front door, shutting it gracelessly behind her. She fought with the tired-looking but warm jean jacket her mother had left her for a moment before she succeeded in getting both arms in the sleeves, then took off for Yoruichi's house at a run even though she knew it would only shave about five minutes off the half-hour jog. ---------- "...No way." "Come on, Hinamori-chan," Kisuke implored as he followed the tiny girl, fighting his way through the crowd of students as they left the building for the rest of the afternoon. He'd decided to wait until school let out to approach her, especially since what he wanted to talk to her about involved something of a rather personal nature. "...I need you to help me out here! Just listen for a minute and--" "For the last time, there's nothing between Sosuke and me!" "...So, you DO call him by his first name, eh?" Hinamori instantly clapped a hand over her mouth when she realized she had basically just confessed to the truth, and though she didn't like being nearly trampled in the halls by students, all the noise had at least kept anyone from understanding what they were talking about. "...Look, it's really none of your business, is it? I've had enough trouble ever since Yoruichi blabbed in class a few weeks ago anyway!" "Momo..." Kisuke said quietly, leaning in slightly to better be heard over the clamor. "...Yoruichi was expelled because your boyfriend set her up." The class representative for 4-E blinked, stared for just a minute before recoiling from the blonde with a look of scornful disbelief on her features. "Th-that's ridiculous! I know Sosuke-- he wouldn't do that to anyone! He's a good man and he's always treated me with respect..." "That may be the case," Urahara admitted with a slight shrug, "...but it doesn't change the fact that the possibility's getting more likely as I think about it. Momo," he implored gently. "...If you ARE close to him, I need you to help me." "...I'll talk to you later," Hinamori said simply as she walked away, her plum blossom-decorated backpack swaying gently on her single shoulder while Kisuke sighed in defeat. He was going to have to do this the hard way after all. ---------- She would never be so rude as to knock more than twice, but tonight seemed to be an exception: Soi was pounding away at the painted wooden door to Yoruichi's house with the brass knocker, her eyebrows narrowing in frustration when no one came. "Yoruichi-san, I KNOW you're there!" she finally yelled, hoping she could be heard through the barrier. "Please come out, I don't want you ignoring m--" she stopped on a dime as the door finally swung ajar slightly, revealing half of the dark upperclassman's body while the other was concealed behind the entrance. "...What?" The older girl asked stoically, the first words she'd spoken to Soi in the last two days. For a moment Soi forgot herself; it didn't seem like Yoruichi was angry but it also didn't feel as though she was ecstatic about the freshman's presence. She instantly regretted this, wanted to forget the whole thing and just run away, but even so she spoke up. "I-I...I was wondering if I could come in?" she asked shyly, and Yoruichi cocked an eyebrow at the contrast between her demure request and the boisterous racket she'd been raising a second ago. The two girls stared each other down, Yoruichi's silent entreaty for solitude doing nothing to deter the resolute look in Soi's eyes. Finally she stepped aside, giving a sigh that made her sound a bit like a tired old woman. "...If you want to," Yoruichi said coldly, and despite her slight hesitation Soi slipped her shoes off and went inside.
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