With a benevolent smile, you stepped towards your new home and put your hand over the doorknob. Glancing back at your Captain nervously, you took a deep breath and opened the door.

Or tried to.

"Taichou, It's locked!" you announced, crossing your arms over your chest. He was holding a key in his hand.

"I know," he answered, throwing you the keys. You stumbled to catch them, tripping over your own feet. Your face collided with the floor, and you instantly jerked back with a shout and sat down, holding your nose as you whined in pain.

"Taichou! Why--?! Ow, owow! Why didn't you tell me it was locked?!"

Amused, he shrugged.

"Because you didn't ask?" he replied, getting ready to pull you up.

"Shut up! You shouldn't have thrown them, either," you accused, pouting angrily. He pulled back his hand, and waited for you to get up yourself.

"That's no way to speak to your Captain," he corrected, and you stood up immediately.

"U-Uh... Sorry. Now can I please open the door?" you begged. He shrugged.

"I don't know, can you?" he retorted.

You huffed, unlocking and opening the door with vigour. The inside was fairly bland- a cupboard or two, a futon, a couch, and a teeny tiny kitchen.

"It's..."

"Plain?" he finished for you. You nodded slightly.

"I like it, though!" you exclaimed honestly.

"It's cosy, and.. plain, and.. homey? I like it."

"You've said that twice now," Toshiro informed you. You raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"No, I haven't."

"Yes, you have."

"Wait, said what twice now?"

He groaned.

"You said that you liked it twice."

"Really?"

"...Yes. Really."

"Oookay."

Your conversation went silent and after a moment more of staring at him you stepped into the kitchen, searching the cupboards for food.

"Any cup ramen in the Seireitei?" you asked lazily.

"I've never heard of it," he informed you bluntly. You gasped, and ran over to him.

"Are you okay, shiro-chan?!" you asked worriedly. "Cup ramen is the most important thing in the world!" you exclaimed, exaggerating on purpose then laughing at yourself a little.

"S-Shiro-chan..?" he stuttered, angrily glaring daggers at you. "What happened to the formalities? I am your Captain, and you shall address me as su-"

"Sorry! Sorry... I'm not used to being... so formal, in such a comfortable place," you answered, smiling brightly. It felt nice to be able to call a new place home, even if you were only going to be here for a short time.

He sighed, a scowl still evident on his face.

"Right..."

You walked over to the window, and peered out at some playing children. They were throwing stones onto squares drawn with chalk. Lost in thought, you started to chew your lip, a feeling of anxiety coming out of nowhere. Your feeling of homeliness wasn't very long lasting, because you suddenly realised how different it was to your real home, back in Karakura town. You searched the room, looking for similarities.

You had a bed at home, here you had a futon. Your kitchen was big, this one was tiny. Your floor was tiles, this was hardwood. Your couch was uncomfortable and scratchy, this one was.. was... comfortable?

You flopped onto the couch without hesitation.

Maybe some things were better off being different...

"Hold on, no TV?" you asked. Toshiro was unresponsive.

"You do know what a TV is, right?"

"Sort of. It's.. lights? Making up images?" You didn't reply.

"Am I wrong?" he asked, confused.

"Hmm.. Nope." you replied, popping the 'p'.

"Wait, nope as in 'wrong' or nope as in 'not wrong'?" he asked, seemingly interested to find out whether his current knowledge was accurate or not. You laughed at him, making him scowl.

"Humm... nope as in... not wrong?" you replied, already slightly confused. That was a habit you'd developed only since meeting your Captain. You were almost always lost in thought, with so many things rushing through your mind- whether they be about the soul society, the human world, or chainsaw bears. Yes, chainsaw bears.

You were known for an overactive imagination back at home.

Suddenly a realisation came over you, and tears threatened to flood out of your eyes.

"W-What am I going to do about Scott?" you croaked, looking Toshiro in the eyes pathetically. He glanced to the side, and you stared at him, waiting for an answer. You didn't get one.

"He has no family other than me!" you prompted.

"That's your little brother, right?" he asked. You nodded miserably.

"It's fine. He's with Urahara Kisuke," he informed you, giving you a reassuring nod. "You'll be able to visit him once you're strong enough." You had no idea who that even was, but...

"D-Does he know about...?" You couldn't bring yourself to say any more. My baby bro... first he loses his mother and father, then his big sis?

You sighed. This sucks.

"Yes." he answered diligently.

You buried your face into the couch.

"Mother... I'm sorry," you whispered sorrowfully, turning around and staring at the floor. Before you knew it, you were slowly drifting into a deep sleep.

Toshiro stood around uselessly, unsure. Do I wait around, or do I go?

Sighing, he grabbed a blanket and threw it over you, then walked over and sat on a chair patiently, waiting for you to wake up.

If I go now, she'd probably go wandering off... I'd better wait.

Toshiro glanced at you, deciding to walk back to his office. You would probably just walk over to the barracks when you woke up - he'd have to ask Matsumoto to wait there for you. He stood up, and began walking over to the door, when suddenly, something came to his attention. You were wearing a necklace. He stepped over to you, hovering his hands over it, then shook his head, as if he thought better of it.

"Was that there before...?" he pondered, studying it. The main necklace was made to look like some sort of gold or silver vine, and it had on it several pearl-gold beads. In the middle, there was a circular, flat, see-through gem, under which was a small "vine" leading down to a pearl coloured water droplet. http://i.imgur.com/lA7RLVQ.jpg

He stared at it for a while, puzzled.

"This wasn't here before... I'm sure of it," he mused. Shaking his head, he turned to the door.

Could it be..? No, that's impossible.

With a sigh, he stepped out of the door.

~