oculos--deus - Tumblr blog

[oculos--deus]

Have a transparent Kyoko for all your needs. I spent too much time cleaning this image to just use it myself like one time, so go ahead!

[oculos--deus]

smokingandhorny:

He was a little surprised that she had never tried a gigai before when even most of the lower, unranked officers had been out in one at least once. He supposed though that her job required her to be stationed in the division itself quite a lot and perhaps none of the sensors in the human world had ever broken on her watch. It seemed a string of unfortunate luck since going to the human world was an experience and one that even Akon regarded as mandatory. It served as an eye opener to what they were trying to keep balances and knowing what was there helped keep things within a context when objectivity was too cold. 

“I’m rarely assigned work in the human world, so when I do go it’s on my own time.” There was only ever one reason why he went to the human world and it was for a refill of the cigarettes he now couldn’t live without. Once he had figured out the right chemical balance in the lighter, he didn’t need to keep buying new ones but instead mix his own fluid - some of which he kept at room temperature at the back of his lab, split between a few test tubes. “The cigarettes I buy are common enough to be bought at most stores in the human world, but I go to the same one every time. The owner recognises me now although I’m still not sure he trusts me in his shop.” Akon was more than used to his appearance putting people off but he was well aware the owner was watching Akon closely through the monitor he had under his desk that displayed the camera feed. Still, the last time he was there, the owner asked for Akon’s name which was surely a step in a more pleasant direction. 

“If there are ever any faults to fix in the human world you should volunteer - fix it without a gigai of course…” The sensors the Twelfth had in the human world were often imperceptible to the human eye - like shinigami themselves. “Although you could always wait a while until the joints from the rats have been pulled - the gigai’s will be much smoother after the joints have been upgraded.” Taking the two gigais he had been working on back to the rack, he pulled another two down and returned to his desk, having the backs of the heads ring with a dull thud off the wooden bench. 

“If you start to go frequently, I can make custom gigais to your measurements rather than the general ones.” A favour he had been doing for more of the higher ranking officers and captains over his career since they were the ones who really required the finer, smoother movements than the others who complained for the sake of it. Despite Akon thinking it of a favour to others he did actually enjoy it. He was ambitious when it came to how perfect he could get a gigai and the custom ones gave him the chance to better himself in the details. “They do take far longer though.” He muttered quietly into the wires of the mannequin in front of him as if not to disturb he thread he was cutting.

It wasn’t lack of desire that kept Shizu from visiting the World of the Living. Far from it. Everything she heard from her fellow recruits made it sound like a world of color, technology, wonder. Curiosity burned her thoughts so incessantly she even sneaked peeks at the cameras they had set up there, ever watchful of the humans whose realm they guarded. Yet it wasn’t as if she had the means to visit before becoming a Shinigami. Then after she was accepted to the academy, it was classes, graduation, induction to the twelfth, training, promotions to new departments. “Someday...” she sighed, prying off the face plate of the first gigai. 

“You go all the way to the human world for your cigarettes?” That was quite the journey. Up until now, it was almost difficult to picture him anywhere outside work. From the way most people talked about him, he was often consumed by his projects, rarely seen socializing in the break rooms or common areas in the barracks. And to a shop that didn’t even treat him well! Shizu cut the wires in the socket, concentrating on clipping them out of the way before she spoke again, “Are they that much better than the ones here?” 

His voice was low, not so distracting that she couldn’t focus on threading the eye while he offered a bit of well meaning advice. Pausing, she wiped her palms on her coat. “Hm...That’s not a bad idea...” Sensors broke there as often as they did here. “Though, I don’t know if they trust me enough yet,” she went on, with a small laugh. “They haven’t really given me much to work on besides cameras.” Not that she was going to complain. Tinkering with things never felt like work. Anything was better than deliveries. “But maybe after this project!” Finishing up the other eye, she pressed the face back into position and lugged it back to the finished rack. At this point she might as well give up trying to match his speed. Oh well. 

“I’m not sure how I’d feel about the rats’ joints being in the gigai...” she murmured, more to herself than him. On the one hand she knew the procedure was harmless, and it was the most efficient use of their resources. On the other, though, she played with those rats. And now part of them was going to be inside the body she used. Eugh. She repressed a shudder. 

“A custom gigai?” Instinctively she wanted to tell him no, that it was too much trouble...oh, but the notion was so tempting. “Maybe once I know my way around it a little better.” There was no point in having a fancy gigai if she didn’t know what she was doing or where she was going, after all. Prying off yet another generic face panel, she set about digging for the wires. “Don’t worry, I’m never in any rush.” Which may have seemed contrary to her demeanor, but everywhere she’d ever gotten required a fair amount of hard-work. There wasn’t any doubt in her mind she’d get there in her own time. 

Star Pupil

[oculos--deus]

smokingandhorny:

“Guess we’ll see.” He mused as he watched the rats investigate the new wheel before the ladder and spiral. They seemed to be as enamoured by the toys as they had been by Shizu herself at the start. Maybe it was a ‘Himura’ thing where her family were just skilled with animals… his brow dipped slightly as his thoughts returned briefly to her lineage. Thankfully, with her back turned to him, she couldn’t see the thoughtful expression plaguing him but her comment on the effectiveness of the toys brought him out from his thoughts.

“Well, they didn’t have anything much before so it’s definitely an improvement.” He shrugged with a small smile. He didn’t mean to seem like he was neglecting his rats but it did feel like she was treating them better than he ever had the inclination to. Even still, he had yet to name them whereas their female counterparts had been named for at least a week and were already reacting to their name apparently. He sighed quietly, trying to excuse himself from the tinge of guilt by attributing his inattention to being busy with work. 

“Do you have the same toys for your set?” He wouldn’t imagine she would give him the whole set of toys that her grandfather made, but at the same time, he almost wanted to doubt that someone could have made such high-level toys in batches - especially for someone who lived in the rukongai and would have done this work by hand. 

Crossing her arms, Shizu gave a satisfied hum as she surveyed her happy customers. Her rats hadn’t chewed through their toys immediately, so there was no reason to think Akon’s would. But she couldn’t help the small bit of worry. Seeing them play with the trinkets helped set her mind at ease.

“Mostly the same! I have a wheel, too, and the spiral. My ladder is a little longer, I wanted to try to have it attach to the top of the spiral and go across the top of the cage. I would have done the same for yours, but we ran out of time...” The trip to and from her Grandfather’s took the better part of the day, which always forced her to leave early for work the next week. 

“So far mine haven’t done too much damage to the toys but let me know if they break something or get bored.” Creating them didn’t take much time or materials; the real challenge was thinking up designs. Not many people kept pet rats in Soul Society. Or if they did, she didn’t know of them. Either way, rat supplies was few and far in between. They were going to have to be resourceful when it came to their new charges. 

[oculos--deus]

smokingandhorny:

He nodded as she spoke, listening intently to hear how ex-experiments were doing. He had no fears for them, he knew they would be in perfect health if she gave them even half as much care as he had seen her do in his own labs. Her personal assessment of them seemed to be absolutely routine; tired for the first few hours and perking up after that. The removal of the joints had gone better than he could have hoped and it was already clear that the joints themselves were of the highest standard the gotei had yet to see.

“Toys?” He mused to himself, his eyes trailing up to the side as he thought on it. He hadn’t thought about getting a stimulant for the rats but she made a good point - they were restless. Only within the last few hours had he really noticed it but they were getting anxious and small spats had formed between them. “If you find any, let me know - I should probably invest in some myself.” Gaze falling onto the tank to his left now, his lips pursed thoughtfully, wondering why he never thought of bringing in a stimulant before.

Shizu’s positive tone lifted him from his wandering mind, even a small smile touched his lips at the idea of her already named the rats - something else he never thought to do, but maybe it was time for it. Shifting his weight to the other foot as he leaned his back against the work surface that ran around the entire lab, he couldn’t help but ask the burning question, but his breathe to do so was interrupted.

“Oh- fine, too-” He lead a hand to his left side, directing her to see for herself as one groomed itself in the furthest corner from hem while the other two seemed to be having a small argument. With a quick frown and a short sigh, Akon had dipped his hand in the tank to pull one away from the fight. “They’re getting a bit agitated but I think you were right about getting them something to play with.” The small bandaged rat in his hand had calmed and was happily running tiny paws over it’s nameless face.

“What did you name them then?” His mind flickered to generic pet names; daisy, bubbles, squeak - names he would assume the Elevenths’ lieutenant might have come up but with his gaze falling back to his own set of rats, he knew he had to do better than that. Really, he hoped he could maybe even get some pointers from Shizu’s names.

Her face, as always, was an open book. She couldn’t help the smile that pulled at her lips watching the rats scurry through their tank, nor could she hide the flicker of concern when two of them began to fight. Though it seemed par for the course. Akon separated them without any trouble, and she watched its grooming for a few seconds before glancing up. 

“I’ll see what I can find.” She was planning on going home for the weekend. Her grandfather’s shop was always littered with spare blocks of wood. Between the two of them, she was sure they could make something that would keep the rats entertained. “And I’ll be sure to bring something for them along, too. I’d hate for their siblings to have more fun.” That would hardly be fair, would it?

“Hm? Oh...” He wanted to know the names. From the moment he said she could keep them, Shizu knew she wanted to go with some sort of theme so they could all match. It was only a matter of deciding which one. She thought they sounded cute, but there’d been no one to ask for a second opinion. Hopefully they wouldn’t sound too silly when she said them out loud. “I decided to name them all after fruits!”

“The one who always picks fights is Yuzu.” Since she had such a sour personality. “The biggest one is Suika.” That was easy. “And Ichigo is the sweetest!” She was her favorite, though Shizu wouldn’t be admitting to that any time soon. 

“Have you thought about naming yours...?” If he was going to be keeping them, it would be a nice thing to do -- but she could understand why he might be adverse. Sometimes it was best not to get attached to things in the Twelfth Division. Experiments went awry every day. Then when they went right, they could still be taken away and disposed of after they ran their course. “If anything it might help you differentiate them from each other, if you ever do more research with them.”

[oculos--deus]

When your office turns into a mess without you realizing it

[oculos--deus]

IN-CHARACTER WORD ASSOCIATION! READ THE WORD THEN TYPE THE FIRST WORD THAT COMES TO YOUR CHARACTER’S MIND.

tagged by: @smokingandhorny

ROUGH: Time

HIDE: Mistakes

FOOLISH: Me

SAD: Failure

HATE: Hurt

LIGHT: Afternoon

DARK: Basement

MOTHER: Gone

FATHER: Gone

CHILD: Cute

MARRIAGE: Sweet 

LOVE: Hopeful

SOFT: Grass

PET: Rat

DREAM: Crazy

DIVORCE: Broken

WATER: Home

LOUD: Offices

ANNOUNCEMENT: Stress 

POWER: Authority

FIGHT: Flight

SMACK: Hand

WHITE: Coat

SICK: Sneeze

KISS: Wish

HUG: Warm

HURT: Conflict

HAPPY: Days

tagging: Anyone who wants to!

[oculos--deus]

It wasn’t much -- she knew that. But it was better than nothing. Now that they had things to climb and explore, maybe they would play with each other instead of bickering while he was trying to work. Shizu beamed at the praise for her grandfather. He’d be pleased to hear that. 

“Sure!” She picked up the toys, careful not to drop any as he passed the one he was holding, and made her way over to the cage. There was a chorus of squeaks when she lifted the top away and reached in to take out the metal wheel. As soon as she replaced it the rats surrounded it, sniffing at the new curiosity. Unsurprisingly one or two of them nibbled on the edges. After their interest was satisfied, though, they seemed content to leave it alone. “He said he put a finish on it. The same he uses for his furniture. Maybe that will keep them from chewing too much?” Hopefully it wouldn’t make them sick if they did. Could hollows even get sick??

She pondered the question as she shifted over to the top of the cage. Her Grandfather had been kind enough to leave rope segments on the top of the toys so she could tie it to the mesh that covered the underside of the lid. Once they were secure, she gave a light tug to make sure they wouldn’t come off before she placed it back where it belonged. They were scrambling over everything without a moment’s pause.

“I think they like it,” she said, laughing when one fell from the bridge into the sawdust below. 

Not from someone in the twelfth? His brow raised in surprise, he didn’t often get deliveries from other divisions at this time, and certainly not packages. He listened intently as he watched her fingers pull away at the packaging, revealing the hand crafted toys from her… grandfather. He didn’t know many people who were descendants - apart from the Sixths’ captain and Nemu… sort of… so hearing that she had a grandfather was definitely intriguing, but not something he would ask about right now. Wondering about her family tree had left him in silence as she commented on her grandfathers secret-keeping ability which he didn’t mind - no one in the Rukongai is probably aware there are rats in Hueco Mundo and therefore probably wouldn’t believe anyone if they told them there was.

It was a very thoughtful thing for Shizu and her grandfather to do and as he lifted the wheel to inspect, he was impressed by the craftsmanship. It wasn’t easy for craftsmanship to impress Akon. The last time he was truly impressed was when he got to examine Kuchiki Rukia’s gigai from Urahara and although a wheel for a rat isn’t exactly on the same level as Urahara’s gigai’s, Akon could tell there was a deep skill involved. Placing the wheel back down in the wrappings, he picked up the spiral, turning it between his fingers as it underwent examination from his keen eye, but just as he had expected - it was as perfect as the wheel. 

“These are very well crafted - I just hope the rats don’t eat their way through them.” They were made of wood and Akon wouldn’t like to see such precision go to waste. “Give your grandfather my thanks, I can appreciate the skill in these even if my rats won’t.” Letting a thumb slide over the smoothly polished wood, he felt reluctant to put them in the cage with the rats… but it was what they were made for. “Do you want to…?” His gaze motioned towards the rats who had all come to the closest corner of their cage, their interest clearly piqued as if they knew they were being talked about. “It’s your gift to them after all.”

[oculos--deus]

@smokingandhorny

It had been a generally uneventful day from start until almost-finish and even his usual tinkering wasn’t holding his attention for long. It was quarter to five when Rin turned up, talking about nothing really important either, just budgets and budget cuts and for that, he was quickly chased. Just as Akon was wandering to the door to pick up an order form that wasn’t urgent just to give Rin something to do to get out his way, a familiar face just about ran into him.

“Himura-san-” His eyes glanced up the corridor behind her, wondering if she had been getting chased off something considering the speed she was going at. Before he could ask if she was alright or if anything was the matter, she motioned to the tightly wrapped package in her arms, and asked for his time. He glanced back to Rin who was peeking with interest into Shizu’s arms before Akon distracted him with a wave of the form and the direction to give it to Torue. Rin left, but not without another glance to the package.

Once Rin was a few paces down the hall, Akon stepped out the way of the door, letting Shizu follow him back towards his desk. “I didn’t think you were still doing deliveries, Himura-san, I hope you’re not getting abused by your former supervisors.” He was well aware of how terrible an attitude the staff in deliveries had, but he didn’t think they would have went as far as to continue to lord over someone not under their power any more.

Mentally she patted herself on the back. She hadn’t even noticed Rin in the hallway with them. No doubt Akon would have been annoyed with her if she went around mentioning the rats in the company of their fellow officers. Smiling, she followed him inside. 

“Wha--? Oh! It’s not a delivery,” she laughed.  “Well. I guess it is. But not from anyone in the twelfth.” Setting the packages down, she picked up the largest first. “I went and visited my grandfather this weekend and I mentioned the rats. I hope that’s okay. He lives in the Rukongai so I didn’t think it would matter -- not that he would tell anyone,” she added, glancing up sheepishly. “Anyway...I asked if he could make some toys for us. And he did!” While she spoke, her fingers were busy unwrapping the delicate twine around the bundle. When the paper fell away, there was a wheel. It was carved from wood and sanded smooth. “I thought this one might be less squeaky than the one you have.”  Reaching for the other package, she opened it as well, revealing a spiraling structure they could hang from the top of the cage for the rats to climb, and something resembling a small rope ladder they could also hang up. Laying them side by side across his desk, she turned to him.

“What do you think?”

[oculos--deus]

Bold what applies to your muse.

PLACE IN SOCIETY

financial: wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty.

medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged.

class or caste: upper / middle / working / slave / unsure.

education: qualified / unqualified / studying.

criminal record: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no.

FAMILY

married - happily / married - unhappily / engaged or betrothed / partnered / single / divorced / separated / widowed.

has a child or children / has no children / wants children.  

close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased.

orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parent(s)

TRAITS + TENDENCIES

extroverted / introverted / in between.

disorganized / organized / in between.

close minded / open-minded / in between.

calm / anxious / in between.

disagreeable / agreeable / in between.

cautious / reckless / in between.

patient / impatient / in between.

outspoken / reserved / in between.

leader / follower / in between.

empathetic / unempathetic / in between.

optimistic / pessimistic / in between.

traditional / modern / in between.

hard-working / lazy / in between

cultured / un-cultured / in between / unknown.

loyal / disloyal / unknown.

faithful / unfaithful / unknown.

BELIEFS

monotheist / polytheist / atheist  / agnostic.

belief in ghosts or spirits: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care.

belief in an afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care.

belief in reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care.

belief in aliens: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care.

religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious.

philosophical: yes / no.

OPINIONS

pro-suicide / anti-suicide / doesn’t know or on the fence.

pro-euthanasia / anti-euthanasia / doesn’t know or on the fence.

pro-choice / anti-abortion /  doesn’t know or on the fence.

pro-marriage / anti-marriage / doesn’t know or on the fence.

pro-death penalty / anti-death penalty / doesn’t know or on the fence.

pro-drug legislation / anti-drug legislation / doesn’t know or on the fence.

pro-murder / anti-murder / doesn’t know or on the fence

pro-cannibalism / anti-cannibalism / doesn’t know or on the fence.

left wing / right ring / middle / doesn’t know or on the fence.

SEXUALITY + ROMANTIC INCLINATION

allosexual / asexual spectrum / ?

alloromantic / aromantic spectrum 

sex repulsed  / sex neutral / sex favourable

romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favourable.

sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious.

potential sexual partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all.

potential romantic partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all.

ABILITIES

combat skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none.

literacy skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

artistic skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

technical skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none.

HABITS

drinking alcohol: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

smoking: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

other narcotics: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

medicinal drugs: never / sometimes  / frequently / to excess.

indulgent food: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

splurge spending: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

gambling: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

[oculos--deus]

Pulls on a jacket because it’s getting chilly.

[oculos--deus]

[oculos--deus]

“Mhmm.” She thought better to keep them at home. As much as she would have liked the company at the office, it would have welcomed far too many questions and curious glances. Holding her palm out, Shizu took the food from him and let it fall into recesses of her deepest coat pocket.

“I think they’re doing fine,” she said, patting her clothes to make sure she looked natural before she smiled back up at him. “At first they were quiet....they didn’t really move around much. But I figured the surgery might have worn them out a bit.” The first night all they did was lie around as she looked on, concerned. Though it didn’t take more than a day for them to start sniffing out their new surroundings and making a ruckus. “I’m probably going to have to find to find them some toys. They seem a little restless now.”

“I’ve given them all names, too! One of them has already started responding to it--...or at least, she turned when I said it.” Shizu liked to think she was making a little bit of progress there. They weren’t stupid creatures, after all; they could be taught simple tricks. Those would have to come later, though. “How are yours doing?”

Friday had been swift as most of it had been filled with recording results from different experiments and then finding himself with a golden hour to himself before the official end to the day. Working on something that was still technically work, but with the surge of productivity, positivity and pride over scratching gentle with the sharpest, thinnest scalpel he had to absolutely perfect the joints that had been recently harvested from the Hueco Mundo rats, it hardly felt like work. In fact, he had been so engrossed with creating the slightest hint of a concave centre on the top of the joint for the respective limbs to fit, he didn’t notice the knock at the door. His name on a familiar voice, however, brought him out of his trance. 

His eyes flicked to the door as he sat up out of the poor posture he had gradually adopted over the course of the previous hour as he recognised the tall blonde hovering by the door. “Himura-san- yes-” Standing from his desk, he pocketed the scalpel for later and wandered into the store cupboard to the left behind his desk. 

“You’ll need…” Quietly talking to himself as he picked enough balls from the larger container into a smaller bag to do her for a week, he stepped out of his storeroom and placed the bag on the scale on one of the work surfaces. “I just need to make sure it’s not too much - if you over feed them they might get ideas about absorbing the others.” If fed enough to be kept placid it would make it an easier recovery on the rats and keep distress to a minimum for Shizu if she woke up to find one far larger rat than a series of smaller ones. “That’ll be fine.” Muttering more to the scale than to Himura, he twisted the top of the bag round his finger, tying it in a loose knot before handing it to her. 

“Are your rats at your barracks? Maybe put these in your pocket or amongst other things - the less attention the better.” Not that it was a terrible secret but the attention that could be drawn was something he could do without and so far he had been able to trust Shizu with the rats and everything that had come with them. “How are they? Recovering?” 

[oculos--deus]

{ Psa ;;

Outofcharacter: As of now this blog is no longer affiliated. I’m going to be doing a little bit of cleanup over the next few days -- editing pages, following new people, etc, before I kick start things again. Thanks for the patience and sorry for any confusion \o/

[oculos--deus]

It was the end of the week, and Shizu found her gaze straying to the clock more and more frequently. Akon had told her to come by today and pick up the reishi balls for her rats. Just in time, too -- they’d all shared the last one the night before. As soon as her shift was over she’d make her way downstairs. Eventually the hour hand clicked past six, and she threw her coat aside.

When she reached his office she was surprised to find the door slightly open. Maybe because it was getting toward the evening? Still, she knocked just to be on the safe side before her head poked in. “Akon-san?” Slipping inside, she shut the door behind her before continuing. 

“I’m here for the reishi balls! Are they ready?”

[oculos--deus]

His voice drew her eyes across the lab, and her hands paused in prying the face plate off the gigai. She had a feeling Akon was an expert in many things. He was the third seat and the Vice President. How many years he’d been there exactly, she didn’t know, but she was willing to bet his track record was longer than most. The implied faith in her brought sheepish grin to her face, one that persisted even after she completed the wiring for the second body. That was two more down. How many now to go? Too many was her thought as she took another pair off the rack, almost dropping one as she brought it back to her work station. 

“You know, I haven’t gotten the chance to try one of these out yet...” She took a moment to examine its other features, lifting an arm by the wrist. “They told us about them in the academy, but I haven’t been assigned any work in the World of the Living.” Which was probably for the best, if she was being honest. Shizu might have been knowledgeable, but her combat skills weren’t anything special. Her adviser said she had the potential to become a ranked officer eventually -- if she worked hard enough. Though there were some in her class who had seats waiting for them after graduation.

“I bet you must be pretty familiar,” she continued as she gathered all the necessary parts for the next two eyes. In the silence she wondered what it felt like -- if it was heavy, if there was a physical pull on wearer. Akon mentioned Shinigami complaining about that. Maybe on one of her days off, she could manage to get leave and test one of them out for herself. 

Star Pupil

[oculos--deus]

You see these arms? *flexes* wii sports resort 

[oculos--deus]

smokingandhorny

The morning after the edible gift from Shizu, Akon was on the rounds through the different departments to pick up reports and results and eventually he made his way to the department of technology and surveillance. Pushing through the double doors with his shoulder, he weaved in and out tight groups of working officers who shuffled this way and that to let him pass.

Making his way over to the tall blond he could see from the other side of the department. Offering a quiet ‘good morning’ from her right he waved the pile of files he had in his hand slightly to signal what he was after. 

“Is your report ready?” Not that it was an option but it was a more polite way of demanding it. Taking the manilla slip from her, he sat in on the rest of the files in his arms. He paused for a moment as he thought to bring up the night before’s ‘thank you’.

“Your bento box was much appreciated, Himura-san, and it’s no trouble for giving you the rats, like I said - you were doing me the favour.” He gave her a small smile and a smaller nod, but he was being genuine, he appreciated the thought that went into the bento box and appreciated her taking half the rats.

Talking about the rats, he was reminded that one of the files in here contained the budget for more reishi balls - just the thing she would be after in a few days time anyway. “I’ll have more concentrated reishi balls for you by the end of the week, you can collect them then.” With a small smile and another nod, he stepped away, back to work. 

With as many cameras as there were in the Seireitei, maintenance was an almost daily affair. Shizu was bent over a list of her officers, scheduling which would be doing repairs where. As usual it, the eleventh division needed the most work. Around her the steady hum of conversation faded into the background the more absorbed she became in her task. Somehow, though, Akon’s low voice managed to break her concentration, and she stood with a small start.

“A-Akon-san! Good morning!”

Clutching her papers to her chest, she waited for her heartbeat to slow. It didn’t, though, not even after her initial surprise. Turning away, she began to sift through folders on her desk to hide the faint color that was brushing across her cheeks. Why did she feel so nervous? Maybe because she hadn’t seen him since she left him lunch yesterday. Part of her still wondered if it was really alright for her to do that. Clearing her throat, she placed the files he needed in his arms with a soft, “There you go.” Seeing that he was busy, she didn’t expect him to linger. But when he mentioned the bento box, the heat in her cheeks grew more prominent. 

“It was nothing really– I just want to say thank you,” she said. Yet despite her embarrassment, her lips began to curl upwards as she spoke. “I’m glad you liked it, though.” Nodding in response to his comments about the rats, her smile broke free completely. “I’ll see you then!” For a few moments she watched him go, until her work couldn’t be ignored any longer – even so, there was still the hint of a grin on her face as she turned to her schedule once again.