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Post by Captain Byakuya Kuchiki on May 21, 2015 18:05:51 GMT -6
With steady eyes, Byakuya regarded the couple before him. The look in his lieutenant’s eyes held confience and a bright spark of challenge. Rukia …. deeply reminded him of Hisana when he had taken her as his wife. A radiant bloom, her inner beauty shining from her eyes. He had never seen that look on her face. He closed his eyes and turned around. “Abarai,” he called out. “Yes, Sir?” “Do not forget that you have an increase in your duties until I find a replacement for Officer Nagano.” He started to walk towards Ukitake’s office until the warm voice of Rukia called to him. “Nii-sama!” His head turned. Tears were pooling in her eyes. “Thank you, Nii-sama.” Her hands clasped onto Renji’s arm. The noble turned back around, a glimmer of a smile forming on his lips. “You’re welcome," he whispered, in reply as he continued on his way. |
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Post by Lt. Rukia Kuchiki on Oct 21, 2024 18:59:05 GMT -6
Bleach Unrated: REBOOTEDCurrent Arc: The ChaosEpisode 554 "Working in the Evening": Rukia sat at her desk as the night wore on, chewing at the end of her ink brush as she puzzled over the problem in the numbers before her. She knew something was wrong, but for some reason the reason was eluding her. She huffed and let her brush fall, wondering if Sentaro and Kiyone fighting over the solution would clear her mind. But then she remembered that they were gone. And another voice whispered in her head. She shook her head with narrowed eyes, refusing to let it take root in her head tonight. She set document aside and picked up another. She had told herself that she would get this stack complete tonight. And she had time… Here, she had time that was hers. “Rukia?” Rukia jolted upright at the sight of her captain in her doorway. “Captain?” |
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Post by Captain Juushiro Ukitake on Oct 21, 2024 19:03:20 GMT -6
Juushiro walked into the room and indicated the window with a gentle smile. “Did you lose track of time, Rukia? It’s very late for you to be sitting here working on figures.” He took a seat on the other side of her desk. “Though you have always been diligent in your work, rarely letting anyone find fault in it, you do need to consider your health. And we all need to rest more than we are now.”
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Post by Lt. Rukia Kuchiki on Oct 21, 2024 19:06:13 GMT -6
Rukia looked down at the woven bracelet on her wrist from Renji then back to her kind captain. She smirked. “I did lose track of time, but that’s okay. I’ve been sleeping more the last couple nights, and if I don’t get home, this pile of work is going to haunt me in my sleep. Because Kiyone and Sentaro would steal it and fight over it all morning."
She placed her ink-stained fingers on the nearest page. “If they were here.”
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Post by Captain Juushiro Ukitake on Oct 21, 2024 19:08:57 GMT -6
Juushiro blinked, surprised at the stout reply, and then chuckled, reaching over to set a hand on her forehead. “Yes, they would, most certainly at this day of the week.” He lowered his hand as he continued. “Their discussions were often the first noises of the day for this side of the division.”
Rukia scoffed. “Only you would call those squabbles discussions, sir.” She rubbed at her eyes to hide the dampness.
“Maybe,” Juushiro murmured, closing his own for a moment, “but they put so much work into it. I admit I was loathe to scold them for it.”
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Post by Lt. Rukia Kuchiki on Oct 21, 2024 19:12:17 GMT -6
“I think we all were,” Rukia added, voice tight. She smirked to overcome the emotions. “Well for a limited timeframe. I’m sure all of us besides you have taken on that task, and sometimes we’d get even more headaches after banging their heads together.”
Juushiro nodded, his green eyes soft with amusement. “Perhaps.” He held out his hand. “Give me a handful of the paperwork. We can both work on these so they will rest in peace.”
Rukia started to obey before remembering and narrowing her eyes. “But you’ve been sick!" She withheld the stack. "If you start coughing, sir, we’ll all start panicking. You’ve been out most of the day, too. You can't overdo it!"
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Post by Captain Juushiro Ukitake on Oct 21, 2024 19:33:50 GMT -6
"Rukia," Juushiro interrupted her, tone patient but a stern note underlying it now, "calm down. It's alright."
She stopped.
"Before working today, I was stuck on bedrest for days to make sure that cold didn't escalate," he continued, smiling at her again. "I barely lifted a finger for those days, besides turning pages in my books, to be safe. Retsu- I mean, Isane is still sending someone to check on me daily even if it was a small cold because she would rather fuss instead of me getting worse during this trepidatious time. I'm not over-extending myself."
He chuckled as Rukia started to flush at being caught worrying and waved his fingers in front of her for the papers.
"I wouldn't have offered if I felt tired, even for old times' sake."
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Post by Lt. Rukia Kuchiki on Oct 21, 2024 19:38:00 GMT -6
Rukia flushed more and surrendered the stack, belatedly realizing the document with the frustrating math problem was at the top. She fumbled for a response. “I wasn’t doubting you, Captain. It was reflex.”
Her captain shook his head, already picking up another brush from her desk. “Don’t worry about it, Rukia. We’re all on edge at this time, and right now, I think a little assistance here is more important than heading home.” He started to read.
Rukia looked to her own work. She nodded to herself and picked up the next paper. The tension in her figure melted away as the minutes ticked on in his presence. Enough so that her curiosity got the better of her.
“Captain, can I ask a question?”
Juushiro looked up. “Of course, Rukia. What is it?”
“Is it true that the cra- I mean Captain Kurotsuchi of Division 12 went to the Living World?”
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Post by Captain Juushiro Ukitake on Oct 21, 2024 19:40:22 GMT -6
Her captain chuckled once more. “So it would seem. It really is the talk if you linger anywhere. But I don’t think it’s a matter you need to worry about. He’s fighting a losing battle there and will learn it soon enough.” He nodded to her papers.
Rukia returned to work. “Of course, sir. I just want Ichigo and Kita-san to get a break. Urahara can handle himself, I’m sure, but those two think of everyone else but themselves too much.”
Juushiro looked up at his lieutenant with an indulgent twinkle in his eye. “Yes, and they’re not alone in that.” Rukia’s head remained bent at work. He continued speaking as he made marks on the paperwork. “It’s vital that we look after each other as much as possible at this time. It’s more important than getting the Gotei back in shape. That will happen on its own given time. However, in caring for each other, we will cover each others’ weaknesses and continue to recover from this ordeal instead of falling backwards because of fear or insecurity. We have a long road ahead of us, but it is made easier with the company of others.”
He paused and then added. “If you wish to check on your friends in Karakura, I think that can be arranged in the next week or so. It might even be expedient to talk to Ichigo.”
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Post by Lt. Rukia Kuchiki on Oct 21, 2024 19:44:25 GMT -6
Rukia glanced up but her captain fell silent again. It wouldn’t be the first time he had sent her somewhere without her knowing all the details, one of the most notable times being when she had been sent to patrol Karakura in order to recover from Kaien’s death. She doubted even he understood what that would lead to, but it cemented her trust in him when she looked back on the day — even more than when he did his part in arranging for her to rescue Orihime and when he had been one of those to risk their lives to prevent her execution. Her eyes turned back to papers in front of them, not really seeing them. A lump formed in her throat as she recalled all the losses before them, and yet Kaien’s enduring lesson warmed the emptiness left behind more today than other days. That those they had lost remained inside their hearts. She had thought she understood those words before now — when she accepted living instead of searching for her own death. And when his radiant words broke the Espada’s hypnotism over her. But now, as Rukia fingered the bracelet on her wrist, she wondered if each trial would bring with it another layer to those words she held so dear. She chose to live because Ichigo reminded her to cherish life, as Kaien would wish, but maybe she needed more than that this time. But what did she want? Perhaps that answer would give her more strength, and until then, maybe the search would keep the whispers at bay. Those in the darkness and those in the shadows of her brother’s shoulders. “Captain, I have a request.” - END RP - "Reaching Out for A Friend" |
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