Her 'Knight-in-no-armor'
As Dark stayed in the Soul Society, he slowly began to realize something that started to bother him. It wasn't that he didn't like the Special Ops, or being a Soul Reaper and well respected…it was the fact that he was slowly beginning to change in ways he couldn't understand. The one thing he quickly noticed was that he tried his best to keep Soifon's opinion of him in high regard.
Dark couldn't figure out why he was so concerned with her opinion; after all, he didn't care less about what Riku had thought of him after that little 'accident'. So why was it that he didn't want to displease the Commander? He certainly got along better with her than he did the last 'Commander', Satoshi Hikari! She didn't constantly attempt to arrest him; quite the contrary, she went out of her way to make sure he didn't get arrested for being a ryoka!
As for her assistant captain, well, he couldn't care less about what the man thought of him. He personally thought the man was a complete idiot, not to mention a slacker. (Marechiyo certainly hadn't tried to change that!)
It wasn't until he ran into his other half that he realized the truth.
"Hey, bro! How've ya been?"
"Hey Krad…how's the eleventh division?"
"I love it. I can fight everyone and not get into trouble…in fact; their opinion of me goes up every time I break into a fight! Can you believe our luck?" said Krad happily.
"Sounds great… By the way, do you make fun of the fourth division like everyone else in your company?" asked Dark.
"Not really…seeing as how they patch up the idiots I send to them so we can fight again," shrugged Krad.
"You do remember who's in the Fourth Company, don't you?"
"Not off the top of my head. What's this about?"
"Remember that Soul Reaper who saved Satoshi from that virus the 12th captain gave him?"
"I vaguely remember that incident."
"Well it seems Hana-chan has to deal with the guys in your group teasing him. He isn't the only one either; I've noticed a lot of your comrades taunting the guys in the Medical Ops and calling them weak."
"I haven't been paying attention actually. So Hana-chan's in the fourth company?" said Krad, changing the subject.
"Yup."
"How is he?"
"He seems pretty lonely. It looks like the others are still giving him a hard time."
"Where is the fourth division anyway?"
"Why don't we go see him now? I'm sure he'll appreciate the company. And there's something else I want to ask you."
"Shoot."
"When this little headache with Rukia is over, are you going back with the others?"
"I haven't even thought about it. Why do you ask? Unless…"
"I'm not going back to the human world. At least, not for a while," said Dark.
"Does this have anything to do with Hanatoro?" asked Krad.
"No…it's just that I enjoy my life here more than I do back home. All we ever do is sleep when we're in the human world. But here, we get to have fun!" Dark pointed out.
"…"
"Why don't we go see Hana-chan," said Dark, changing the subject back.
"Lead the way bro," said Krad, relieved.
"All right, did you break into another fight again, Dark-san?" said the third seat of the fourth division, annoyed.
"Nah…we just came to see Hanatoro. Is he here?" asked Krad.
"His shift's about to end. Who should I say is here?"
"Krad and Dark. He'll remember us," said Dark.
5 minutes later…
"Hi, Dark! Hello again, Krad-san," said Hanatoro nervously. (He's always nervous around people from the 11th company.)
"You can call me Krad…I don't particularly enjoy the honorifics," said Krad.
"Is this guy from the eleventh company bothering you, Yamada-san?" asked Unohana, noticing Krad's uniform.
"No, Unohana-taicho, he's a friend," said Hanatoro quickly.
"Feh…the 4th and 11th companies can never get along!" snorted the third seat.
"Just because I'm from a division that enjoys fighting doesn't mean I can't get along with someone who heals others," retorted Krad, annoyed.
"Well this is a rarity…an eleventh company and a fourth company Shinigami becoming friends. I don't think that's happened since the Seireitei was first created," said Unohana with a laugh.
"I don't understand why the others dislike you so much. You don't seem that bothersome to me," said Krad.
"It's because we don't have strong fighting skills…" mumbled Hanatoro.
"Hey, why don't we go get something to eat? It'll be my treat," said Dark.
"Okay…" said Hanatoro quietly. They left to get a bite to eat; Dark noticed Hanatoro was still a little nervous around Krad.
"Hana-chan, just because he joined Zaraki's group doesn't mean he's changed," said Dark
"I know…but it's hard to forget he's part of the group who dislikes mine the most," said Hanatoro. (As if on cue, two of the seat members in the eleventh happen to pass by them!)
"Hey, Psycho Blond! You do know there's a fourth division lackey tagging along, right?" joked Ikkaku.
"His name is Hanatoro, and he isn't a lackey!" growled Krad annoyed.
"Don't tell me you're sticking up for this wimp!" said Ikkaku shocked.
"I am."
"Everyone knows the fourth company is full of weaklings! So why are you defending him?!" said Ikkaku.
"Because he happens to be a friend of mine. And I think it would be wise not to call him weak…unless you want to take that up with me," said Krad, a hint of violence in his tone. This got Ikkaku to back off pretty quick!
"You do know that everyone will be on you if you stick up for his lot, right?" said Yumichika.
"You do remember what happened the last time someone pissed me off by making fun of my hair color, right?" countered Krad.
"True…see you at the barracks for dinner, Krad," said Yumichika.
"Until then."
"Thanks…" mumbled Hanatoro.
"What're friends for? Just because you can't fight like us doesn't necessarily make you weak. Remember that mirror we gave you before?"
"Yeah…I have it with me wherever I go," said Hanatoro.
"Well, if you get picked on by my division again, you can use that to show me who it was. All you have to do is let the mirror reflect their image and I'll do the rest," said Krad.
"Okay."
When they returned to the fourth division, Hanatoro had to leave. It seems there was a routine patrol and he was on it, since it involved all seat members. He said goodbye, and they split up shortly after that. Dark returned to the compound, and a thought occurred to him. Whenever he thought of the captain, he felt like he had to protect her.
"Aw crap…I should've realized it sooner!" he muttered. When night fell, he went stargazing again; and yet again Yoruichi joined him. (They had a routine…whenever he went stargazing Yoruichi would show up and take a nap on his coat. It provided the perfect cover for the feline, since his fur matched the color of his coat.)
"So, what have you decided? Will you remain here or leave with the others?" asked Yoruichi, who decided to break the silence.
"Stay. And there are two reasons…the main one being that I can't stand people making fun of my friend Hana-chan," said Dark.
"Who's that?"
"Hana-chan is my nickname for a fourth division boy named Yamada Hanatoro. I call him Hana-chan for short," explained Dark.
"And what's the other?"
"Heh…did you know back in the old days, when Krad and I were still young, they used to have this weird practice for 'knights'?"
"What?" said Yoruichi confused. (Dark changed the subject for a reason.)
"The humans called it the Dark Ages…and here's something I never could understand. The knights had this little practice where they would carry a woman's colors into battle, as a way to protect their honor…or something. The thing is, even though they did whatever they could to get in the woman's favor, they could never have her. I never could figure out what that was about."
"What's your point?"
"Well…whenever I'm around the captain, it sorta feels like that. Don't ask me why, 'cause I still haven't figured it out myself."
"So basically you'd do anything to stay in her favor, even though she can never return your feelings for her? Seems pointless if you ask me…but then again humans are strange creatures…" said Yoruichi.
"That is a major understatement," chuckled Dark. (Unbeknownst to them, someone overheard their conversation…and his name was Marechiyo!)
Soifon approached Dark the next day…and she was a bit annoyed.
"What's up, captain?" asked Dark.
"The fat idiot tells me you were talking to a cat last night. And that it actually talked back."
"What's the problem? I know a bird who can speak human, and it never bothered anyone. Besides, it's not my fault the fur ball has some sort of sixth sense for when I go stargazing!" said Dark nervously.
"That may be, but there is a wanted fugitive from the Seireitei who disappeared over a hundred years ago who had a tendency to turn into a black cat. Her name is Yoruichi Shihouin, and I have a score to settle with her," growled Soifon. Dark's eyes widened a bit in amusement before he chuckles about something.
"What is so amusing?!"
"Nothing…other than the fact that I have no idea what the cat's name is. I just call him fur ball since he hasn't told me his name," chuckled Dark.
"So the feline is a male? If you do find out that cat's name, you better tell me," said Soifon annoyed. (Uh-oh…Marechiyo is in trouble! He-he-he…) She left to go repay her assistant captain for wasting her time.
-----
Dark waited for her to get out of his visual sight before he whispered, "You can get up now, fur ball!"
"Har-har. Why didn't you tell her the truth?" asked Yoruichi.
"Because the last thing I want to see first thing in the morning is a cat fight between you and the captain…if you'll excuse the bad pun," joked Dark.
"Surprised to find out I'm a girl?"
"Not really…girls seem to like cats more than we do. So what happened between you and the captain?"
"I'd rather not talk about it. Are you coming out again tonight?"
"If the clouds don't mess up the view, you bet!"
"Later…" said Yoruichi, walking away. (She knew he'd ask the captain about what happened.)
-----
"So why are you after this Yoruichi person?" asked Dark during lunch.
"Why are you asking me now?! I'm trying to eat here!" griped Soifon.
"Let me put it this way…if I knew more about why you're after this Yoruichi woman, I might be able to convince that fur ball to tell me his name."
"Will you leave me alone?"
"You can't avoid the past forever, captain. If I can't find out from you then I'll be forced to ask around. I'd rather know the truth from you rather than hear gossip," said Dark.
"I'll tell you after lunch in my office, alright?!" said Soifon irritably.
"Okay."
An hour later…
"I'll tell you what happened on one condition. You must never let anyone know what I'm about to tell you under pain of death," said Soifon, with a look that said she wasn't bluffing.
"Standard 'this doesn't leave the room or else' scenario, eh?"
"Unless you want to deal with the First Captain and his sword, yes!"
"In that case, I think it might be wiser to prevent certain nosy idiots from listening in…" said Dark as he shot a black feather into all four corners of the room with a hushed spell. The room suddenly became deathly silent…though they could still hear a certain assistant captain's cursing right outside the door.
"How'd you know…?"
"He's a nosy twit who doesn't know how to mind his own business. Besides, unlike most people I can sense someone's spiritual energy even when they're doing their best to conceal it."
"I'm glad you can. You might as well sit down because this will take a while…" said Soifon.
It took over two hours, but in the end Dark finally understood why Soifon wanted to find Yoruichi so badly. A betrayal of the heart rarely heals over time. He was very tempted to tell her that Yoruichi would be with him that night, but he thought the better of it. He needed to hear both sides of the story before he meddled in her affairs.