Rukia realized then how silly they must seem. If an outsider were observing the interaction, he would surely think that Rukia and Hanatarou were mad, and Ichimaru simply humoring them.

She had resolved herself to sit just as Hanatarou stood, and between the two of them they almost upset her tray. She thought briefly that picking up spilled food would have been less awkward than facing Ichimaru. All the same, she forced her knees to bend, and sat rather stiffly in the seat next to Hanatarou. Maybe she was crazy.

Casting about for something to say, Rukia's mind was quickly drawn back to the two folders still tucked into the waist band of her pants, and the file room where she had gotten them the previous night. "W-what are your names?" she asked suddenly. "The names that the nurses call you."