damned_institute | Day 29: Cafeteria, Brunch

Hitsugaya left the chapel no less frustrated than before. The head doctor once again had chosen not to hide his face, yet promised he would be making an appearance at some time in the near future. He didn't like being patient, but there wasn't much choice. Either the head doctor would show his face, or he wouldn't. Renji had already seen him, and knew how to find him. That was enough.

The thought of eating made him slightly nauseous as usual, but he knew he needed to get his strength up. He could either be weak and try to force his way through brunch without eating anything, or he could be smart and actually give himself something to eat. And there was rice. Rice and fruit. He took a heaping pile of rice, and grabbed as much watermelon as he could fit on his plate, then proceeded to an empty table. He scanned the room, watching for Momo. He wasn't exactly looking forward to their conversation, knowing how she'd acted yesterday; however, he knew he had to speak to her, and there was a good chance that she would show more restraint now that the drugs were out of her system.

Thoughtfully he consumed his rice and waited.

[free at the moment, pester if you wish]

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Rukia smiled a little, still stroking Ururu's hair. She didn't personally like Urahara Kisuke all that much - he had used her to hide the Hougyoku, after all - but Ururu's obvious affection made her wonder what she saw in him that he didn't normally show others. He was obviously a father-figure to the little girl, and a good one if her devotion was any indication.

"See?" she said, giving Ururu a little squeeze. "We'll work together, here, and he'll do what he has to do to until you can see him again. Since when does Urahara let anyone outsmart him, hm?" Granted, it seemed that Aizen had tricked even Urahara, but that was a special case.

Ururu nodded, which was easy to do, because it sounded easy. And maybe it was easy, because everyone here seemed to be willing to work together. Orihime had said she'd stay with Ururu too, and now Rukia was saying the same. And of course Kisuke-san would work hard too, wouldn't he? Kisuke-san always worked very hard, when people weren't looking.

"Okay." Ururu's voice was soft, but with a note of hope that hadn't been there before. Kisuke-san was gone, but no one had said he was dead, and the Shinigami would know best of all. That alone meant there was still hope.

Hope was a good thing.

"I was supposed to be on a team last night." Ururu paused, looking down slightly. "But I didn't make it to the meeting place in time. Do you think they'll be mad?"

"No," Rukia said, shaking her head. "I don't think anyone's plans went according to schedule last night, so don't worry about it. Just make sure to look on the bulletin board today, to see if any of those people wrote anything."

Leaning back a little, Rukia tilted her head to look at Ururu. "Now, let's eat, before our food gets cold!" Rukia wasn't all that hungry, and had to look at her own tray to remember what she had picked out, but Ururu needed her strength.

Rukia paused, thinking, then asked, "Do you want me to ask Captain Hitsugaya about assigning you to a team tonight? Or maybe you could help the healers?" Rukia didn't really know what Ururu was capable of, but she was just a child, and should be removed from danger as much as possible.

Ururu was glad to hear that no one was likely to be mad, even if things did get really messed up the night before. She was feeling better in other ways too, so much that her hamburger didn't seem quite as unappetizing, and so she took a bite.

It was a little cold already. But it was still good, and soon Ururu began to eat in earnest. She was really hungry, more than she had realized before.

When Rukia asked about what Ururu wanted to do, and if she wanted to be with the healers, Ururu shook her head quickly. The girl knew her purpose, what she was best at, and that's how she would help everyone. "I want to fight. I'm good at it, even if I'm not as strong." Ururu could still switch, and even if no one had told her exactly what had happened, Fai said she was impressive. That meant she had done good, even if she was hurt when she woke up. "I can't use kidou, so it's better if I fight."

Rukia took a few bites of scrambled eggs, then moved onto the rice. It was a small comfort, even if it wasn't sticky rice like she was used to.

Listening as Ururu spoke, Rukia's eyebrows furrowed. "Do you have a weapon?" she asked. Having seen Ururu fight Hollows with one of Urahara's canon-like weapons, she knew the girl could fight, but to what extent...?

Ururu shook her head in reply to the question. "No. But I don't need one to fight." And it was true. Even if her pants were really uncomfortable, Ururu was just as good fighting unarmed as she was using her canon. As far as she was concerned, the issue was settled. She knew her strength, and she knew she could fight without getting hurt too much.

At least until she passed out. Ururu could remember a few seconds before something had hit her the night before. It wasn't for long, but just enough for her to know that she was tired, too tired to stay awake.

She chewed her hamburger thoughtfully. She wanted to tell Rukia, but if she did, would she still be able to help?

Rukia looked at Ururu thoughtfully. She obviously believed in her own words, and she did keep company with Urahara; who knew what strange skills she might have?

"How did you learn to fight?" Rukia asked conversationally. Ururu seemed a little... not defensive, but maybe as close as the sweet little girl could get to defensive. Maybe this way Rukia could find out more about her abilities without seeming to challenge her. "I trained at the Shinigami Academy. Did Urahara ever tell you about it?"

"Kisuke-san taught me." How to punch, how to kick. Everything that hadn't come instinctively, the refining of skills to best utilize her strength had all come from Kisuke-san. Also, how to use her canon to blow up things. That was pretty fun, Ururu thought. Maybe she could find her canon one night, and use that to really help.

Ururu nodded at mention of the Academy. "Kisuke-san talked about it to Ichigo-san." Ururu remembered, because it was one of those times Ichigo had been grumbling, and Kisuke-san thought it was funny. "He said that Ichigo-san was really lucky, because regular Shinigami had to go to school for a long time to learn everything he was learning, and none of them had such a good teacher."

Rukia had never really seen Urahara do much of anything other than whack Ichigo with his cane-like zanpakutou and 'fufufu' about whatever he found amusing, but she had no doubts that he was an amazing warrior. He had been a Captain, after all, and powerful enough to be on par with Yoruichi. So Rukia simply nodded slowly at Ururu's answer, looking suitably impressed.

She tried not to react at the mention of Ichigo, but it was hard. She still couldn't shake the feeling that it was all her fault; his being involved with the Shinigami, Hollows, the Arrancar, and now this place...

Guiding her thoughts away from that, and toward the subject of the Academy, Rukia managed a small smile in between bites of rice. "I suppose he may have been right, there," she said, "Though I think Ichigo is a special case."

Day 29: Cafeteria, Brunch

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