A Day to Wander (Open)

Long sleeves, short sleeves, sleeveless. Kasumi couldn’t figure out what to pick until she had tried on all of them. In the end, the sleeveless uniform still fitted her the best. With a pastel blue scarf to match her bright eyes, she left the store after having paid for both the fabric and the future work. They would bring the uniform once it was done, and she felt quite excited about the inside being lined with icy colored silk. Soft and smooth to the skin, she hadn’t thought about upgrading her clothing before, but after seeing Hazuki again it had appeared to be time to do just that.

While she wasn’t into the whole fashion thing, or the hitting on every passerby, she still wanted to look good. Besides, meeting so many people would certainly leave a public image of her, aside from the one she already had, and Kasumi didn’t want hear rumors about her looking like a hobo. She had an image to uphold, hence, she had order a new pair of tabi and waraji, too.

’I doubt that many care about what you’re wearing to be honest. Most will want to know that you’re a capable fighter, not what color you’ll be wearing next season.’

It seemed that the Spirit thought her worries to be rather silly. She couldn’t blame her for that, Vör always looked majestic – she probably simply didn’t understand.

’Understand what? The worries of a teenage girl?’

Kasumi ignored it. Nothing about her age had to do with the new clothes. Besides, she might be young, but she had been through enough to understand some things other, older, souls still didn’t.

Rolling her eyes to herself she proceeded to make her way down the street. People were getting all types of things, and it made her glad to be able to walk among them without feeling odd. Perhaps she never should have felt any different. No matter what rank she had, she was still herself. Acting in another way would simply turn her into someone she didn’t want to be. Her rule could be unlike the others’, and that was fine.

Hence, she got herself an ice-cream. One ball of green apple and two grape-flavored ones. Munching on it with the help of a little spoon, she continued down the same path from before. There was still some time before today’s next appointment, and she hoped to enjoy the bit of free time she had. Last time it was a tea party, if one could call it that, today it was ice-cream. The little joys of life.

Turning, she blinked when the sun briefly blinded her. Then, she felt how something soft bumped into her shoulder. The ice-cream moved, then dropped. Peering at whoever she had walked into, Kasumi gasped when the top bit which consisted out of apple ice-cream fell onto the Shinigami’s hip.

“Oh my, apologies for that.” The Captain said, eyes still studying the damaged clothes. Bits of pastel green were smeared over the black fabric. It would have to get washed.

Not knowing what to do, she smiled kindly before adding. “Would you want some ice-cream too?” Gesturing at the nearby shop with the wooden spoon still in her hand, Kasumi chuckled lightly. “I can’t quite offer to wash your uniform, but I can send you a new one.”


559

Happy to see the Shinigami agreeing to her invitation, Kasumi smiled widely before turning around. The sleeveless haori moved with her, framing her in the crispy white. It’s when she found out that she, selfishly enough, was happy that the ice hadn’t landed on the pristine fabric. It would have looked quite foolishly, and silliness was no longer something she wanted to be associated with too often.

“It’s right there, do you already have a flavor in mind?” She wanted to know, throwing a sideways glance at the other woman.

They were pretty much the same height. It wasn’t often she saw females as tall as her and Nagisa, it was encouraging to know that they weren’t the only ones. That way she didn’t have to feel as if her growth spurt had turned her into a giantess. At least she was thinly stretched; had she been heavily built she would have probably been unable to touch sweet any longer. That would have been a sad day for the young Commander.

“If you prefer something else than an ice-cream, feel free to let me know, I think that I’m getting somewhat hungry myself. An ice-cream doesn’t always solve that, if I have to be honest.” Kasumi admitted with a sly grin. The remains of her ice were soon dumped into a nearby trash can. There was no need trying to piece together the half-melted bits of grapes. She would either get herself a new one, or they might end up having something savory instead.

“There is a nice place with really good grilled fish, if you like that. Then,” she turned a little, trying to see if they were where she thought them to be. When she confirmed that the second place she had in mind wasn’t too far off, she continued. “another spot makes some delicious dumplings and has some of the best side-dishes I’ve had in a while.”

Once her explanation was done, she came to a stop next to the ice-cream store with its colorful windows and little chibi figures glued to the side of the entrance. Now that they were here it was time to make a choice, and she let it up to the stranger to do so. Aside from that, she figured that it would be a good opportunity to ask for the Shinigami’s name – considering they were about to grab a bite together.

“I’m Shinoda Kasumi, and you are?”


406/965

Accepting the hand, Kasumi firmly shook it. While she had grown used to bows, she could still remember the little scenario where one of the Fifths members had been mad at her for bowing instead of saluting Nagisa – the former Captain of the Fifth. And while Kasumi’s adventure, and the time as both its lieutenant and Captain – which only lasted a day – were short, the lieutenancy might have been slightly over a week, she still remembered that those from the Fifth preferred the other type of greeting.

“Nice to meet you, too.” The white-haired Shinigami echoed while taking notice of the interesting gloves Hanako was wearing. They appeared to be quite heavy, and Kasumi thought to have felt cold metal when shaking the woman’s hand. Wondering why she thought it to be necessary to wear something like that, she didn’t ask her about them just yet. There would still be plenty of time to do that in just a couple of moments. When Hanako’s noisy stomach confirmed that they would indeed be eating something heavier than ice-cream, Kasumi grinned almost mischievously.

“Good, it’s on me.” She nodded, then followed Hanako into the direction of the dumplings place. The wooden building was already visible, so she figured that the other Shinigami would find it without too much trouble – and that she did. Soon both of the women were inside, getting brought to a booth before being offered a menu. The cushions around the table were very comfortable to sit on, and Kas lazily detached Vör in order to prevent the sword from poking her in the side with its hilt while she was eating.

With careful motions she detached the white, leathery sheath with the sword in it, and then placed it next to her on one of the larger pillows. Now that she was ready, the young Shinigami took the soft, warm and lemon-scented towel which was rolled up on a small plate in front of her, and gently washed her hands with it.

“Have they been slacking off regarding the meals, again?” She half-joked, watching Hanako closely while sitting across of her. The soft towel felt good on her hand, and she almost didn’t want to let go of it when the waitress returned to take the used ones away and give the pair of Shinigami some water.

“I know that the Third always pays quite some attention to their members’ diet, but every division should do so. Perhaps I’ll have to look into that a little closer.” Adding the last bit more to herself than to anyone else, she thanked the waitress before asking for some apple juice. It’s then that her blue eyes returned to Hanako again, wondering what she wanted to drink. While there was always tea after the food, should they want there to be any, Kasumi liked to have something to drink during her meal.

Once they were left alone, she let her curiosity be victorious and asked: “Have you been a part of the Fifth for long? I assume that you’re a part of the Fifth, or am I wrong?”


517/1482

Somewhat amused by the fact that Hanako chose to clean her gloves before taking them off entirely, Kasumi kept her gaze on the rather interesting piece of garment. This time, she was ready to ask about them, but it seemed that fate wasn’t on her side. Instead, she listened to the bits and pieces of conversation around her, until it was her turn to speak up once again.

“Yes, I am.” She smiled, widely.

Now that she thought about it, Kasumi herself had never seen the Captain Commander who came before Kiriko. So, in a way, this might not be too surprising. At the same time.. well, if the woman had been patrolling the world of the living, or simply too busy with her assignments in general to be paying attention to the ever-changing leadership of the Fifth. Altogether, she could believe that one wouldn’t recognize her. In her short time of raising to power, Kasumi hadn’t been able to make a too much of a name for herself. Some, small, circles were more than just familiar with her, others, on the other hand, had no knowledge of her whatsoever.

“The Captain of the First,” she added after a moment. Some people weren’t good at reading, and she really couldn’t blame those coming from the Rukongai for being unable to – though, she could imagine that the Academy learned them to read and write. She wasn’t sure because she hadn’t encountered souls like that during her time in class.

“I’ve been the Lieutenant of the Fifth, but very briefly. It was right after the invasion of the King, too. So, I can imagine that in the turmoil of the rebuilding and all that, my name wasn’t the first thing the people of the Fifth had thought about.” Sharing the information with a light voice, she didn’t want to make the woman uncomfortable for any unnecessary reasons. It’s why the arrival of their drinks was a welcomed break from the conversation.

“Thank y-” The Captain started out when her eyes widened.

One glass of apple juice – check. The cranberry one, whoever, was about twice in size of the first one, both vertically and horizontally. Kasumi could swear that there was at least one liter of the juice in there, and if it wasn’t for the fact that she was wearing a haori, she would have laughed quite hard. Instead, she chuckled, somewhat confused, but far from annoyed. If nothing else, this reminded her about her own love for pancakes. She had made piles of it, forced others to bake them – or buy them – and eat them with her, too.

“So,” she took the opportunity to lead the conversation into the direction she wanted. By now, Kasumi was somewhat used to pushing through whenever she had her eyes on something. “what’s up with the gloves. They don’t look ordinary. Is there a story behind the metallic bits?”

Briefly pausing to point out the dishes she wanted, Kasumi then turned her attention toward Hanako once again. It was interesting to meet people, to learn about them and see what had them ticking, what went on inside of their minds – what they wanted and stood for. Every Shinigami was a little stone building the society they lived in, and she wanted to make sure that none of them were cracking.


555/ 2037

Something about this story sounded so familiar. It almost felt like she was listening to her younger self. Not too long ago Kasumi had been stubbornly removing her Academy uniform’s sleeves, partly because she disliked warmth, but mainly because she definitely didn’t want to look like everyone else did. Being different in a mass was something most wanted to unconsciously achieve. Instead of being just average one wanted to be better than others, stronger, smarter, faster or more creative – there was always something one could excel at as long as enough effort was put into it.

Lightly brushing the hilt of her sword, she heard Vör remind her of how she had wanted to be like the others. Admittedly, there was also a time where she had tried to hide her skills, her knowledge and the fact that she was somewhat different from those around her. Though, that period hadn’t been for long. She had realized too quickly that it was better that way, even if back then her acceptance of it hadn’t been for the right reasons.

Tracing the gloves with her gaze, she too looked for anything that might be off with the glove. In her eyes, the piece of garment was rather extraordinary – she wondered what the metal felt like while wearing. Probably cool to the skin, she concluded before letting go of Vör. The sword was chilly, if not icy. It always felt soothing to Kasumi – not that she was nervous right now. Seeking contact with her Spirit, she had grown used to running her fingers over the sword from time to time. A habit, one she hadn’t been aware of until she had started to take it off more often.

“Training your Hakuda would probably do you more good than the gloves. If you want to, I could recommend you a couple of people who’re proficient at it.” Keeping a couple of names in mind, she continued while placing her fingers around the glass of juice. “Still, the gloves have a nice touch.” And show some sewing skills which Kasumi did not possess.

“Well, I like to be around people, see what they’re doing, what they think, what they need. While the core of being a Shinigami and what we do remains the same no matter who’s wearing this haori, there are plenty of other paths to take regarding business which surrounds our primary duty.” With that being said, she took a sip from the juice. The appetizers were already there; some shumai, miso glazed eggplants and some other things she had no knowledge of because Hanako was the one to have ordered them.

“Oh, right on time.” The words escaped her before the waitress was close enough to hear them, and Kasumi mentally slapped herself for talking so much already. Perhaps it would be better to let the other woman tell a little more about herself.

“Is there something you specialize at in the Fifth? Or have you been mainly doing patrolling?”

Her left eyebrow rose curiously. Eyes glittered briefly. "And what type of technique was that just now?"



515/2552

The food was as delicious as it always was. Every bite was savored and enjoyed. A piece of the eggplant disappeared between Kasumi’s lips when Hanako put down her chopsticks. Intrigued by the technique called ‘Soul Stitching’, she too put down her chopsticks in order to devote all of her attention to the one sitting across of her. The latter was already explaining how the stitching worked, and happily performed a little show to help Kasumi understand its workings.

With the chopstick quickly making its way toward its other half, Kasumi found herself smiling. In a way it reminded her both of Bakudō and Shunkō. A technique which bound things in a very interesting manner while at the same time being very versatile.

“Oh, I’m pretty sure that you will get better with it in time. As long as you practice it, this Soul Stitching should grow into a dangerous technique.” Picking up her chopsticks, she took another bite of her food while thinking about what she had seen. It had her wondering about how to make it go through a medium without trying to ‘glue’ that same medium to whatever was charged with Hanako’s reiryoku first.

“Training in Kidō should probably help you with controlling the flow of your energy, and concentration in general.” The Captain remarked after finishing her shumai. If it wasn’t for the next line of dumplings coming up, she might have gone deeper on the subject, but the brief moment of interruption had her shelf this part of conversation for later.

“Going back to the Hakuda bit, I can imagine that Victoria’s training would be hard. She has a certain type of attitude when dealing with those she’s supposed to teach, but I think that it would be good regardless of it being heavy.” Pausing, she dipped one of the remaining eggplants in some soy sauce, then continued with the food waiting between her chopsticks. “In fact, it’s good because it’s going to be hard. As it’ll push you closer to the limit, it’ll make you stronger.”

A moment later Kasumi was onto the next dish; radish and soy sauce were added, some wasabi provided the needed sharpness and kept the younger Shinigami quiet for a couple of long moments. She enjoyed the food, and watched Hanako eat her part. The restaurant was as tranquil as it had been when the two had entered. Voices softly echoed from various boots, but never seemed to come over aggressively. Everyone enjoyed their food with bits of conversations adding to the flavor of whatever dish they had ordered.

“Have you ever tried to infuse something.. less solid. Water, for example?” She curiously asked, eyes drifting from the little plate with sauce to the bigger one with the pork filled dumplings. Small rings of spring onions had been dropped over the pieces decorating them lovingly.


476/3028

Not everyone liked to be pushed to, and perhaps even beyond, their limit. If one had asked Kasumi, at the very start of her life as a Shinigami, about getting herself into a dangerous situation on purpose, one that held quite some pain, then she might have refused. Only encounters like the one she’s had with Nagisa at the lake were the ‘right’ amount of pain and breaking, and even then she had been lucky for Seryu to have found her unconscious body.

Conflict, fighting and various types of hurt moved one forward, but perhaps only when the individual had already reached that edge on their own. The jump required a push, frequently a quite violent one, but Hanako had time to get there on her own pace. That’s why Kasumi dropped the topic about Hakuda without any further probing into the woman’s mind.

Instead, she silently chewed on her food while listening to the explanation regarding the soul stitching. In a way it made sense that only solid objects were influenced, but at the same time, Kasumi sort of assumed that the ability could be refined. Whatever matter reiryoku could penetrate, it should yield to Hanako’s will if the latter was strong enough.

“I see.” She nodded, took another bite of her food and then raised her eyebrows in light surprise at the question thrown at her. Taking some time to finish the food she chewed on, Kasumi then briefly hummed while forming an answer.

“Well, while I wouldn’t call it anything unique considering many others practice the technique. Shunkō would be what lies close to my heart. At the same time, it’s not an ability, like I’ve said, it’s a technique and can be learned by anyone with some competence in reiryoku manipulation.” Adding a soft sigh, as if she was thinking of the past, Kasumi finished the dish in front of her without any further hesitation.

“Say, Hanako,” she suddenly wanted to know. “what do you think about the Quincy?” placing down her chopsticks, she picked up her glass again. Tiny drops rolled down the side of it; condensation.

“Do you deem them dangerous?” Kasumi asked, knowing that the order of fighting, and even killing, Quincy if they were caught mass killing souls was still standing. The balance was the most important thing, when you looked at the bigger picture that is. However, it was still formed by the tiny pieces which consisted out of their daily lives.


411/3439

While she didn’t fully agree on the hatred toward every other race, she did think that Hanako had a good idea about what the Quincy were about and what their general issue was. Should there be too many of them or they became too strong, then the balance would be endangered. Hence, she wanted for the Shinigami to watch them closely and keep the mortals in check. As long as the situation was critical enough, and had only to do with one soul, death wasn’t necessary. However, when packs of Hollow-breeds were destroyed for training, well, she had been a part of it to some extent and could see now that it was wrong.

Slightly leaning back she thought about what the Arrancar meant. There really wasn’t a lot she could say. By now there was hardly any difference between what she and the Captain Commander in her had in mind when it came to the various races.

“As long as the Quincy don’t mingle with our business, they should be fine.” She calmly stated. It was the truth. Of course she didn’t want to have to wage a war upon a whole race. History didn’t need to repeat itself. Though, it didn’t mean she wouldn’t should it become necessary.

“For the Arrancar, and the Hollow race in general, while it’s somewhat sad that they’ve become what they are, we’re here to help them pass on and defend others from their hunger.”

It wasn’t complicated, though, at times, it was harder because of the highly intellectual individuals there were among the Hollow. Some appeared so humanoid it was hard to imagine that they were anything else but a moved on soul. No wonder it had taken her so long to see past that facade. Of course, it had been naive of her to see only the best in people, to believe everyone had good intentions – age had changed that. Too many things were done on purpose. Most out of egoism.

“They are what they are, but that’s not an excuse for us to let them go.” She shrugged; perhaps it could be seen as unfair, not that it would change the reality. “The Quincy have it better, they can choose to live like other mortals do. The Hollow.. well, they don’t have the same options.”

Feeling quite full Kasumi didn’t bother to finish the bits of her food still on the plate. While she didn’t like to let any food linger, she really couldn’t eat any more of it. Pushing herself further and feeling sick later on didn’t make sense for her, hence, she took another sip from her juice and smiled.

“I guess that’s just how things go.” The natural order of things. They, the Shinigami, were simply a part of the cycle. An active part, one which had to make sure that nothing went awry.

Patiently waiting for Hanako to finish her meal as well, she then gestured toward one of the waitresses to bring the bill. Once that was dealt with, the Captain stood back up and reattached her blade to her side. One of the sides of her light blue scarf was thrown over her shoulder, and with that out of the way, Kasumi stretched a little. It had been a fine lunch; she would have plenty of energy to get through the rest of the day.

“While I should be slowly getting back to work, you can walk with me back to the Annex, if you want to.” Offering to continue their conversation on the road, she waited for the other Shinigami to either agree or decline. While the walk wasn’t a long one they could still cover some topics should they want to.


619/4058

Blindly accept what, she had wanted to ask but let the whisper go unnoticed. There were things one only seemed to understand and accept past a certain moment in their life, and everyone differed in when exactly that time came for them. Trying to convince Hanako that the main roads would never change because so was the way their worlds worked wouldn’t do much now. It was a good thing that Kasumi didn’t have to persuade her; whenever it became required she could simply command.

The thing she did comment on was the bill. “You didn’t have to hurry to pay for that when we were leaving, I was the one who was supposed to cover it.” Which was a bit too late to do now, but the Captain made a mental note to send a couple of rolls of some nice fabric to the woman. If she enjoyed sewing then she would probably find something interesting to spend it on. A shade of green, and some red and white as well. All of it should fit her, from what Kasumi had seen at least.

“My hobbies?” She wondered somewhat surprised. It’s been a long time since anyone had inquired her about that. Hobbies.. something so normal, something she should be very familiar with at her age. Except that the last time she had sat down and drawn it’s been.. back on the attic of that barrack in the Second which she claimed as her hideaway.

“Well, I used to draw and play violin, but it’s been quite a while. There hasn’t been much time to do anything of that sort nowadays.” Giving her fellow Shinigami a soft smile, she hoped that the other didn’t think that she was sad, because she wasn’t. Drawing and playing an instrument had become so irrelevant that she hadn’t even thought about those activities anymore.

“I do still enjoy a work-out from time to time, practicing Hakuda or playing around with Bakudō spells is an enjoyable way of spending time whenever I can afford it.” Meditating came to mind as well, but that was mostly to come to rest or talk to Vör whenever she felt somewhat worn out.

“By the way, your ability – the Soul Stitching – it brings things closer and then binds them, right?” Turning her head a bit, she made sure that they were still heading the right direction before looking back at Hanako. The bit where things stayed connected was what interested her. With the metal bits having been placed in the leather with the help of the ability, Kasumi was assuming that it was gluing bits together to a certain level. Even if liquids and gasses weren’t conquered by the Stitching, ..perhaps.. energy was?

“Have you ever tried to use it on Kidō?”


464/4522