Title: Lily and Thistle

Author: paws_bells

Characters/Pairing: Sarugaki Hiyori and Hirako Shinji

Type: One-shot Collection (InComplete)

Genre: Romance/Humor

Word Count: 5518

Rating: T (Contains content not suitable for children)

Disclaimer: Bleach belongs to Kubo Tite.

Summary: 'Say Please'-verse. The language of flowers. The devoted and passionate Lily. The brave and loyal Thistle. A bouquet of love. One-shot series.

Created on: 20/12/13

Completed on: 10/01/14

Chapter Last Revised on: 15/07/18

Pre-Series Interlude: How 'ta Train Yer Girlfriend – Part II

When he put it like this, it was impossible for her to misinterpret his intentions anymore.

Hiyori's mouth opened, closed, and then opened again, as if she was struggling for the right words to say but just could not find them. In the end, she looked away from him, studiously avoiding his gaze, not sure how to respond to his blatant declaration.

She was precious to him, he had said. He had missed her and wanted to be with her, he had said. The petite blonde did not know why, but hearing him speak of such things (and also mean them) instantly made her earlier discontentment disappear. She still felt thoroughly awkward, but it was next to impossible to remain genuinely pissed at him now, and once more, she was left feeling at a loss as the dynamics of their relationship was swiftly evolving into something else – something more.

Shinji reached out and moved her, and Hiyori started in surprise.

"What are ya-" she started out only for him to interrupt.

"Since my touch is so detestable 'ta ya, then allow me 'ta remove myself from yer immediate presence," he retorted coolly, and she squinted at him in disbelief. Was he mad at her? It wouldn't be surprising if he was – since he came to visit her, she had been nothing but violent and downright disagreeable towards him, and while beating up the baldy was something that she used to do often in the past, it didn't feel right to keep doing the same now.

After all, the baldy was now 'her' baldy, and that suddenly made a world of difference.

He was hers, she thought with abrupt awareness, and with this transparent understanding, Hiyori realized that she wanted the same thing he did too, only that as usual, she was so clumsy with her interpersonal relationships that she was making a right mess out of it again like always. While she was still eyeing him in obvious bewilderment, her…l-lover started to lift her bodily off of him, and Hiyori quickly snapped back to her senses.

Slapping his hands away before he could get her off him, she awkwardly mumbled, "…I never said that I don't like ya."

Pausing in his action of prying her off (she was suddenly sticking to him like a stubborn barnacle), he peered at her closely, studying her embarrassed body language and the way she was still trying so hard to avoid meeting his eyes, her cheeks red and jumpy nervousness evident in her very demeanor. She could be so exasperating sometimes, but no matter what she did, he could never seem to stay annoyed at her for very long…and this time was no exception. The reinstated Gobantai Taichou raised his hand and caught her chin between his fingers, tilting her face downwards so that she would have to look at him, regardless of her reluctance. His dark golden eyes were centered steadily on her.

"Then tell me properly," he told her. "I wanna hear the words."

Unable to break eye contact with him, she scowled at him, flustered. "D-Don't push yer luck, dumbass!" she sputtered. "I-"

"-I missed ya too," he cut in, interrupting her before she could go on an angry spiel. "It's really easy 'ta say, so repeat after me."

Hiyori hesitated, her throat moving slightly as she swallowed hard. "I-I-" Her voice cracked with nervousness before it occurred to her that she didn't have to be.

The waifish blonde's eyes flashed, and she very quickly lost her temper anew. "I DON'T WANNA," she bellowed, smooshing her small hand right in his face and shoving his head into the mattress with pique as she did so. "QUIT TELLIN' ME WHAT 'TA DO, AND DON'T KEEP STARIN' AT ME, YA DAMN PERV. YER MAKIN' ME FEEL WEIRD."

The weight of his gaze on her made her feel oddly jittery and skittish, and she was very aware of him at the moment. If only she could make him stop looking at her or something-

The idea stuck in her head, and suddenly, Hiyori knew just what to do to regain some semblance of control over this situation. Reaching over to grab a cutesy neck pillow that Mashiro had given to her recently, she proceeded to slap it right over his head, covering his stupid looking face so that he would stop making her so nervous. Shinji grunted in surprise when his vision went dark; he had been about to ask exactly what she meant she yelled that he made her 'feel weird,' though now he wondered if she was just trying to smother the life out of him instead.

"Just stay there and don't freakin' move!" she snapped irritably at him, pinching his wrist and eliciting a small yelp from him when he reached up in an attempt to remove the item that was obscuring his vision as well as the upper half of his face.

"What are ya doin'?" he asked in bewilderment, jumping slightly when she dug her bony knees into his sides in a warning gesture. He stilled reluctantly, submitting to her demand.

The level of trust he had in her was evident in the way he laid tamely under her while effectively blindfolded, his movements limited and his throat exposed. It was not a position that any seasoned warrior worth their salt would willingly put themselves in, but Shinji knew Hiyori better than he did the back of his own hand, and beyond the initial surprise of her action, he settled under her, more curious to find out what she was trying to accomplish than genuinely worried.

She did not do anything at all for a while, neither did she speak, and it appeared to him as though she was simply sitting on him and spacing out. After a bit of the strangely tensed silence, he ventured somewhat warily, for Hiyori and silence never bode well for him. "What's wrong, brat?"

He felt her fidget and shift over him.

"Shut up," she mumbled, her voice sounding closer, and he assumed that she had leaned forward for some reason or another. "Don't move," she warned grumpily again, and he stilled exasperatedly once more.

"I swear; yer such a 'lil weirdo," he muttered in response, though he quickly shut up when he felt something soft and warm brush hesitantly against his jaw. Her breath puffed lightly against his skin, and her skittishness was obvious in the way she swiftly pulled away after that impulsive peck.

It had taken Hiyori a surprising amount of gumption to duck down and kiss this dumbass, even though he was lying quite harmlessly under her and she had also effectively made him stop staring at her with those infuriating, knowing eyes of his. Even though he could not see her right now, the petite blonde's face was completely bright red, and turning even more so by the second as she stared at his mouth. Her second kiss was technically yet another failed attempt – she had aimed for his lips but ended up chickening out midway and kissing his jaw instead, and the female Vizard was getting frustrated by her own timid pussyfooting around the situation.

Her eyes filled with stubborn resolve – she wasn't about to let this stupid issue get the better of her. The young woman decisively grabbed the baldy's face between her hands and bent down once more, intending to get this done and over with once and for all.

This time, she was careful not to repeat her earlier mistake of violently smashing their faces together, making effort to be gentle just like he had demonstrated. This time, she met her lips with his softly, and even though it was a chaste exchange, the feel of his mouth pressed against hers immediately made her feel all funny and squirmy and warm inside. Hiyori pulled back slightly once again and licked her lips curiously; it did not take her long to decide that she kind of enjoyed the sensation of kissing. Shinji's lips were surprisingly soft and he tasted faintly of tea that he must have recently had, and since he was lying back and passively allowing her to investigate this whole kissing thing on her own terms, she did not feel threatened or as embarrassed, and her inquisitive nature promptly took over.

The smaller blonde leaned back in and brushed her mouth against Shinji's once more, this time slower and even more deliberate, her lips clinging to his as she moved them experimentally against his. The warm feeling inside of her grew further, and her heart started to race. This kissing thing actually felt really good, she thought rather dazedly to herself, and when her significant other could no longer take her unconsciously teasing actions anymore and proceeded to respond to her tentative ministrations, Hiyori quickly learned that kissing became even better when your partner was participating in the act as well.

It was as if the floodgates had really opened up then, and the pigtailed female abandoned all of her earlier reservations and threw herself wholeheartedly into the pleasurable act. She was suddenly ardent and enthusiastic, and Shinji groaned when she pressed in and attacked his mouth with all of the fervent, untried passion that she could muster in that small body of hers. Her inexperience was evident in the awkward way she pressed her mouth to his, but her guileless eagerness in exploring this new intimacy with him was intoxicating as hell, and his control was quickly being eroded by her innocent urges. She seemed to have forgotten about her initial reluctance to be close to him, and was now straddling his hips firmly, her lithe, slender form all but plastered against his lean, lanky physique from chest to loin.

Shinji curled his arms around the tiny waist of the small, tempestuous woman currently stretched out on top of him, and he half expected her to protest his action in her usual angry, violent manner, but that was hardly the case, to his surprise. If anything, the petite female just wiggled closer to him, and he growled softly when her tongue darted out with inquisitive boldness to swipe against the corner of his mouth. He still could not see anything at all thanks to the small pillow that she had slapped over the upper planes of his face, but since its purpose of covering his sight made her more willing to interact with him, he was all for it for now, at least until she had gotten more used to the notion of kissing him.

Shinji drew her lower lip between his own and gently suckled, and she squirmed against him as a ragged little sigh escaped her. She seemed to be enjoying his attentions so far, and she was also a quick learner, mimicking everything that he was doing to her, nipping hungrily at his mouth and licking at the seam of his lips, wordlessly begging him for more of this exhilarating and pleasurable experience.

"Open yer mouth," he coaxed huskily, and when she did so after a moment's pause, he slipped his tongue in, slowly exploring her oral cavity and running his pierced appendage along her teeth and the inside of her cheeks. She was startled by the sensation of his tongue, but luckily for him, she did not react to his intrusion by biting down. Hiyori had always thought that it would be gross and disgusting to have someone else's body part moving around inside of her mouth, but now that Shinji was teaching her how to kiss him, the golden-haired female was learning how good it felt to be so intimately connected to him.

The way his tongue stroked hers sensually sent shivers down her spine even as a strange heat unfurled within her, and she started to tremble, her limbs going strangely weak, a tiny whimper emitting from her throat when he continued to rub his lips erotically against hers, occasionally nibbling at her mouth. The little sensual sounds of pleasure she let out made his blood heat up, and the last straw came when she broke away slightly from their kiss and mumbled almost bewilderedly. "Ya make me feel…really good."

She wasn't trying to praise him – it was more like she didn't quite understand how he was able to do that and make her go all limp with pleasure with just his masculine presence and that mouth of his. Shinji was very pleased with her mutter though, and before she knew it, he had swiftly reversed their positions, rolling her under him and shaking away the small pillow that had obscured his sight. The tiny blonde started slightly in surprise, and his eyes darkened as he finally got his first good look of her thoroughly kissed appearance.

Those catlike eyes of hers were wide and slightly dazed, her freckled cheeks flushed with passion, and her lips were red and slightly puffy from his kisses. She looked incredibly tempting to him, and the way her gaze focused intently on his mouth nearly made him groan aloud. Caging her in with his body, he leaned down and kissed her again, and much to his delight, she instinctively reached up to meet him midway, her arms curling around his neck, her mouth already parting to grant him entrance.

And then she was kissing him back eagerly, not content to remain passive, tongue darting out to explore him with unbound curiosity and desire. She melded her body to his, driven by the instinctive urge to be as close to him as possible, and he hummed with pleasure at the way she arched against him like a lithe little cat, her mouth sucking at his, the slick muscle of her tongue rubbing sinuously against its mate with sweet, persuasive hunger. She was driving him to a complete distraction with her ardent responses, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to restraint himself and not do more than just kiss her.

Her legs were wrapped around him and she was clinging to him in a passion dazed stupor. The smaller blonde appeared drugged by her lover's kisses – she had no idea that he could make her feel so good and she wanted more.

Shinji pulled away from her reluctantly, much to her growl of discontentment. The pigtailed female did not want to part with her baldy, though the larger male resolutely set his foot down and quickly separated himself from that enticing mouth of hers. To keep her from taking matters into her own hand and pushing for more, he stretched out on top of her and pinned her down with his weight, much to her disgruntled grunt. He buried his face into the side of her neck instead, trying to keep his passion in check. This brat was being way too tempting for his own peace of mind, and if he did not control himself, he was going to end up doing something that she wasn't ready for.

She wiggled under him, and he distracted them both by softly kissing the patch of skin along her jawline, right below her ear. She emitted the sweetest little mew of pleasure, and that was how he learned that she was very sensitive there. He was suddenly filled with the urge to find out where else she was sensitive at, and Shinji groaned again, quickly dragging his mouth away from her neck and thumping his forehead on her shoulder instead, his breathing slightly quick. He was in a hell of his own making, and she stirred and prodded him rather unabashedly when he did not move.

"S-Shinji…d-dumbass," she stuttered, her voice husky and a bit ragged as she turned her head and looked at him. "Who told ya 'ta stop…?"

It really did not help his quickly eroding sense of self control one bit that she was still so damn innocent when it came to this – the little idiot; was she even aware of what she was asking for?

Shinji pushed himself up at last and moved off of the smaller female, rolling over to sit beside her instead. He glanced at her, but not for long because she still looked too delectable for her own good.

"Yer gonna kiss yer virgin bride status goodbye if ya keep pushin' me," he muttered warningly, his drawl low and rich. It made her shiver, and her eyes slowly widened as she realized his meaning. Her face turned bright red, and she scrabbled to sit up as well, suddenly wary of him. Good, he thought with grim amusement, she should be more self-aware.

"P-Pervert!" she yelled rather squeakily at him, her freckled cheeks rosy and flustered even as she scooted a small distance away, looking like an outraged maiden. "What the hell do ya think yer sayin'?"

He was visibly exasperated by her response.

"It takes two hands 'ta clap, brat," he retorted, and she looked chagrinned by his reply, unable to refute his words. It was the truth that she had been rather…enthusiastic. She was visibly embarrassed by this entire situation and suddenly found it quite difficult to look him in the eye once again. Almost against her will though, her attention drifted to land on his mouth once more, and it was impossible not to detect her interest – she could be so easy to read sometimes, and right now was one of those times.

Shinji's eyes darkened slightly, and he waited for her to lift her gaze and look at him. When she did, the petite female's face flushed further at that expression on his face – she was starting to comprehend this intoxicating, electrifying tension between them, and even though a part of her was largely unsure and cautious of this feeling, the rest of her could not help but to be drawn to him all the same.

"…If ya keep lookin' at me like that, I won't be able 'ta guarantee what happens next," he told her frankly, and the subtle purr in his soft tone made something inside of her quiver. Hiyori bit her lips and then she shook her head, trying her best to regain her composure.

"Don't threaten me, shithead!" she barked at him, her little fang glinting as she spoke. "I was just curious, that's all! I don't wanna kiss ya any more-"

Before she could even finish, he leaned over and brushed his mouth against hers, cutting the rest of her impetuous words off. She gave in to the gentle contact, instinctively going limp against him like earlier, her brashness fizzing right out of her as his lips clung softly to hers and he kissed all of her protests away. She was such a responsive little thing, and no matter how she blustered and denied her attraction to him, her innate receptiveness towards him spoke for itself. Masculine satisfaction unfurled through him as she grudgingly relaxed and started to kiss him back despite her previous declaration to do otherwise, though this time, he was careful not to prolong the pleasurable contact.

He didn't quite trust himself around her now that their unconventional relationship had taken a more physically intimate turn; he had wanted her for such a long time already, and his self-control was tenuous at most whenever it came to her.

Pulling away reluctantly after he was reasonably certain that he had quelled most of her temper, he looked down at her (once again) dazed features and slowly smiled. "Ya were sayin'?"

Immediately, the soft, dreamy look in her ochre eyes vanished and she scowled fiercely at him, her face reddening with displeasure at his smug, cocky manner. She also wasted no time pulling her small fist back and boxing him rather painfully in the face, and as he rocked backwards, clutching at his sore, throbbing nose, she yelled at him. "Don't ya dare kiss me when I'm still speakin', ya asshole-!"

…Okay, so perhaps it wasn't his smartest idea to interrupt her rant thusly, but it also wasn't as if he could simply leave her little challenge to him unheeded. Won't kiss him anymore, would she? Obviously he had to take that notion out of her head before it really stuck in there, because it was a fact that he had every intention to do more than just kiss her when the moment was finally right. That moment was obviously not right now, of course – right now, she was still whaling quite enthusiastically on him, and at last, Shinji ended up subduing her by pinning her down on the bed once more, and stuck under his lean, rangy form, she growled at him, her face flushed with indignation at being restrained so easily.

"Shithead!" she snapped warningly, struggling futilely but to no avail. She was well and truly caught by him, her limbs all accounted for and kept in check; knowing her as well as he did, he was extremely careful not to give her any leeway or opportunity to strike out at him in underhanded ways – he had no wish to suffer a debilitating blow right between the legs again, thank you very much.

"I'm gonna kiss ya again if ya don't calm down," he deadpanned, and she hissed at him, looking like a ruffled little cat whose fur had been rubbed the wrong way. It was cute. He leaned in as if to make good on his promise, and her eyes widened, her small, pink tongue darting out to lick her lips with telling, nervous anticipation, and-

He tickled her instead.

Long, narrow fingers danced lightly along her sides, and she could not control the reaction of her body as she burst into involuntary laughter. "H-Hage-! Pfffthahahahaha-! What the hell are ya- hahahahaha- doin'?! S-Stop it- snerk-" She was all but howling as snorts of mirth escaped her mouth, her slight body curling instinctively into itself as it tried to move away from those devilish digits of his.

Her petite form shook and heaved under him as she attempted to squirm frantically away from him, but the gales of hilarity that spilled from her made him chuckle in return, and even though she at last managed to free one arm to haphazardly smack him on the head with, he did not mind her attack all that much and pressed in to steal a kiss from her laughing lips. He also stopped tickling her, but by now, she was sufficiently distracted by him, her earlier aggravated demeanor fading away as she finally quieted and gave into the gentle persuasions of his mouth this time, her eyes fluttering shut and her arm curling around his neck, her hand splayed against the back of his head as she submitted to his intimate ministration.

This time, he made sure to convey his affection to her through his tender contact, making it so completely unmistakable that she could not ignore it even if she tried. She shivered gently under him, surrendering to his demonstrative display, a tiny, content sigh escaping her as she lost herself to the wonder of his kiss once more. The tip of his pierced tongue ran lightly against the seam of her mouth and he appeared content just to caress his lips with hers, a low croon of pleasure reverberating from his chest as he did so. She suckled and licked softly at his flesh in return, calming under his now soothing presence, and by the time he pulled away, their pulses quickening just a bit more than before, their respective gazes dark with quiet passion and desire for each other, her earlier displeasure with him was no more. Her prickly defenses had been stripped from her, leaving in its place a strangely vulnerable young woman with large, glimmering eyes that were glowing softly with affection for her significant other, her expression revealing the words that she flatly refused to say.

His intent stare seemed to make her feel even more out of sorts, and the petite female ducked her burning face into the crook of his shoulder, attempting to hide her tender feelings from his all too perceptive sight, her fingers clenching into the lapels of his haori.

Shinji would not have any of that, and he moved to cage her head between his forearms, maneuvering them both such that she had no choice but to face him straight on. Her freckled cheeks glowed as she peeked up at him with a rare, beguiling mixture of shyness and unsureness, and he thought that she looked utterly beautiful like this.

"Be honest, Hiyori," he spoke up then, his tone rich and quietly intimate. "Did ya miss me?"

Her eyes widened slightly at his question. It was at the tip of her tongue to immediately burst out in a flurry of denials, and she looked like she was about to lash out angrily at him when, quite abruptly, she grew silent instead.

"Hiyori?" he pressed, and it took great effort for her to look up at him and maintain eye contact.

"Y-Yeah, so what if I missed yer dumbass self, happy now?!"

He smiled very slightly at her embarrassed, stuttering reply.

"Yes. Very."

Omake

Short moments later, when they had both settled down from their demonstrative affections and Shinji was content that he had lavished enough attention on the petite but gruff female who held his heart, the fine-haired blonde rolled onto his side beside her on the bed and reached his hand into his shihakusho, extracting something from the inner pockets of his uniform. Upon closer inspection, it was a pair of cell phones - more specifically, a pair of denreishinki. They were identical models, the clamshell type, and one was pink whereas the other was blue.

They were couple phones.

Hiyori, who looked a bit sleepy and wasn't paying much attention to him, came wide awake at the sight of the communication devices. The petite blonde sputtered and turned bright red as he revealed his present to her, looking pleased with himself as he did so.

"Ya said that ya missed me - now ya can get ahold of me anytime ya want. I asked Kisuke 'ta modify this pair of phones - they'll connect no matter what realms we're in."

So this was why he kept asking her if she had missed him. It was all so that he could give this to her.

Hiyori did not know what to say. "T-This does not make me happy at all, ya dumbass!" the pigtailed female responded dishonestly, when she secretly adored this sort of cute stuff. The fact that Shinji remained unfazed by her bluster was indication of how well he knew her, and the male merely swept up an eyebrow.

"S'that so? Then ya don't want one of these limited edition products?" He deliberated a deep sigh before continuing. "I s'pose I can give the pink one 'ta Momo, then. Her phone's spoiled, and she'd be delighted 'ta receive it-"

She punched him on the head before he could even finish, promptly dropping all of her standoffish demeanor. "DON'T YA EVEN DARE," she barked fiercely at him even as she snatched the phones out of his hands, immediately rolling to her side with them for safekeeping, her back turned to him. She proceeded to ignore him, curiously (and with badly concealed eagerness) flicking open the phone covers to take a look at their interface instead even as he ruefully nursed the 'love tap' that she had just given him.

"Ya could just show yer appreciation in more normal, lovin' ways, ya know," he muttered exasperatedly from behind her, though to give him credit where it was due, he was already so used to her physical demonstrations (the more painful and less enjoyable kind) that he could take it unflinchingly and recover just as swiftly. The fine-haired blonde took advantage of the smaller female's fascinated preoccupation with the phones to move up closer to her - some people really never learned, or perhaps his pain aversion sense was already damaged and rendered ineffective from the all too frequent abuse by his significant other.

"Shut up," she muttered in a grumbling fashion at him, otherwise ignoring him until he came up right behind her and reached over to steal the blue phone from her. Hiyori started to protest his action rather violently, but Shinji simply wrapped an arm around her middle and hauled her up against his chest, rolling onto his back and taking her with him such that she was sprawled on top of him.

The little spitfire was momentarily disoriented by the move, and once again, he took advantage of her distraction to lean in and kiss her – he was learning quickly that the best time to do so (without suffering too many repercussions) would be when she was unprepared. She did not resist his advances – no matter how she blustered, she enjoyed the intimate contact and color instantly suffused her features. However, before she could concentrate fully on and react to what he was doing, he broke away abruptly, activated the phone's camera function and swiftly snapped a picture of her flushed, passion dazed features.

The musical tone emitted from the device as the photo was taken roused Hiyori from her bewildered stupor, and then she realized what had just transpired.

Catlike ochre eyes immediately narrowed with outrage, and the petite woman twisted around to hit the Shinigami/Vizard. "THE HELL DO YA THINK YER DOIN'?!" she bellowed even as she tried her best to pummel him at that awkward angle. To her rising displeasure, he was completely unrepentant.

"Takin' yer picture," he deadpanned rather matter-of-factly, and by now, her face was bright red once more, though with anger. She quit hitting him and scrabbled for the phone in his hand instead, but much to her increasing chagrin, he kept it out of her reach, holding it away from her and also anchoring her to him such that her movements were limited. Hiyori yowled like an unhappy feline.

"DELETE THAT NOW!" she screeched, still straining determinedly to reach for the mobile appliance even though it was a futile endeavor. "YA DAMN ERO HAGE-!"

"Nah," he interrupted her in a drawl, peeking quickly at the picture that he had taken of her on his phone screen. "Ya look really cute there, so I'm gonna keep it."

Hiyori's face scrunched up in a mixture of anger and deep embarrassment. She appeared momentarily at a loss for words, and almost teasingly, Shinji continued.

"I think I'm gonna set it as my wallpaper." He was lying through his teeth, because there was no way in hell that he would actually place such a rare, vulnerable photo of her where it could be easily accessed by anyone who so much as accidentally chanced upon the phone. No, this soft, unguarded, tender side of her was only for him to know and appreciate, so it was going to end up in his private collection, of course. She had no way of knowing that though (both the little known existence of a 'private collection' and his true intention with her photo), and so her struggles against him became more frantic as a muffled explosion of fruitless frustration escaped her.

"DON'T YA FUCKIN' DARE," she bellowed at him again, increasingly flustered. "SHITHEAD!

His response was to slip his phone in front of her face again and swiftly snap another shot of her. She was momentarily blinded by the flash going off even as the annoying shutter sound trilled out again, and unladylike expletives spewed out of her mouth at his utter gall. This time, the image captured the very essence of the woman he loved, albeit not a very flattering portrait of it – furious, feisty, tomato faced, full blooded, eyes squinted into dangerous slits, passionate, mouth gaping open mid yell, energetic – well, Shinji had just found his perfect wallpaper. He immediately set it up as such, and within a speedy couple of clicks of the buttons, it was done.

Hiyori was not amused.

"HIRAKO SHINJI. YA LOUSY PIECE OF-"

She finally managed to break free from his restraints then, though instead of lunging for his phone, she threw her diminutive form at him and started to attack him with ferocious little growls instead, already too riled up to bother about the stupid pictures. That was how Shinji quickly found out that despite her currently invalid state, she still packed quite the punch (several dozen punches, in fact), and it also took next to forever to smooth over her ruffled feathers after that.

Still, according to the reinstated Shinigami Captain, it was a price he was willing to pay – she had been acting uncharacteristically morose and depressed as Lisa had noted in prior weeks, but with just one visit from him, all that moodiness had been miraculously wiped away. Hiyori was in surprisingly high spirits (for a grumpy, belligerent little thing like her) for the next few days after he left, and it didn't take long for the other female Vizard to notice why.

"…Is that Shinji's swollen and beat up face that I see on the background of your phone, Hiyori?"

::owari::

Questions That I Would Like To Answer Before You Ask:

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