Reawakening [Closed]

News travels fast throughout the Seireitei, and within two days of the actual event transpiring, pretty much everybody was aware of the fact that the Captain of the Fourth Division was in some kind of coma--with no Lieutenant to fill her shoes while she was out of touch with the world, there was a pretty gaping power vacuum about to shift the way things worked in the Fourth. Well, there would be, if it weren't for the fact that the Fourth Division was filled with the caretakers and the medics of the Gotei 13, not soldiers or politicians. Essentially, the Division ran as it did, though a lot more worse for wear and strained to capacity--there was a small band of Shinigami completely devoted to maintaining the continued survival of their Captain. This, in turn, put a lot of stress on the remaining Divisions to try and remain as casualty-free as possible, leading to missions with more Shinigami present, which, as a result, strained their resources too. Try as they might to deny it, even those who spoke of the Fourth Division as nothing more than pansies and weaklings could not deny the importance of this Division to maintaining the full capacity of the Gotei 13. As a result of all of this, many different healers with different Zanpakutō and the like were brought in to see if they could work out exactly what was wrong with the Captain, but they just couldn't work it out. Every one of them gave up within minutes, unable to see past the emptiness of the Captain, their vision clouded by sadness and a belief that she was not long for this world. This lead to no small amount of despair worming its way into the Fourth--and yet it had been but a week since she'd fallen into this coma, and nobody was looking to give up.

Now at the beginning of this, I mentioned that "pretty much everybody" was aware of the Captain's status. One of these more unaware people was within the Fourth Division itself, and blissfully ignorant of the goings-on within her own Division. Even as a sixth seat, Oshino Rei had pretty much only been doing little jobs here and there--she had actually been sick for most of the week, and as such had not really been allowed to deal with any of the patients. Her keep had been essentially earned by people bringing in little trinkets for her to tinker with and repair--one of these trinkets was sitting on her desk right now, with a few small binding Kidō keeping them in their place. She'd been feeling a lot better and was certain that she was recovered, but had taken one extra day to be certain. Her room was small and boring, and everything had been taken apart with her mind over and over again. She knew exactly where that one crack in her desk was and how she could've fixed it, if it weren't for the fact that she couldn't directly access it with anything that wasn't Kidō. She was just finishing up this job, at which point she would report to the Captain that she was feeling better. Captain Hayashi was good when it came to sick leave.

The knock on her door came a few minutes after she had finished working on the device, and she figured it was the person coming to collect. She was good at being on time, but he was about a minute late. She chuckled at the thought and got up from her desk, packing up the item and shivering slightly--she had seen its inner workings, she had no need to know exactly what it did--before opening the door to the rather sheepish-looking Shinigami. She gave him her best smile and handed it over to him, to which she received a question.

"So... O-Oshino-san... What do you have p-planned for the rest of the day?" Rei blinked. It was about eight in the morning, but she realized that now she was better, she actually had to do things. She tilted her head to the side, not really noticing his demeanor.

"Uhhh," She blinked a couple of times, tapping her chin, "Honestly, not much. I should probably go and report back to Captain Hayashi that I'm feeling better, so that I can go and get right back into working!" As if to show her readiness, she pumped her arms up and down with a satisfied grin.

"Wait, what? You hadn't heard?" Rei raised an eyebrow, "Captain Hayashi is currently comatose. Nobody knows how or why, just that she's completely used her energy stocks and can't naturally regenerate for some reason!" Rei's face blanched.

"G-guess I've found something I need to do then." Her expression now serious, she closed her door behind her, pushing her way past the blushing Shinigami (who for some reason, breathed in heavily) and leaving her room behind--locked, of course. Her footsteps were quick and heavy as she continued to move through people who all greeted her with 'hello' as she passed, not really noticing the look on her face or in her eyes. "What happened..." She whispered to herself, her voice shaking a bit as she finally made her way into the Hospital, opening the doors and stepping inside, "Where's the Captain?" One of the more... frustrating medics approached her with a tittering tone.

"She's safe from the likes of you. Go away. You can't help her." She raised an eyebrow and turned towards him, folding her arms.

"I'm sorry? What was that?"

"She's safe from the likes of you. You heard me. Leave, Oshino. Take your poisonous Zanpakutō with you." She bit her bottom lip and her right eye twitched, but she shook her head. This bitch wasn't worth it. Instead, Rei simply walked past her, looking for the next person to ask about the Captain's location. Someone else would be more helpful, sure. "Aren't you going to take me apart from the inside, Oshino?! Come on, turn my heart into a bomb! I know you can do it!" She sighed. People didn't understand. They'd never understand. That callous piece of shit deserved nothing more than to be booted for her words.

Eventually, she was shown to the Captain's room with strict instructions that she was to do nothing, as she was clearly not a good enough doctor to be able to help. She was the sixth seat, Godsdamnit! Just because some of the best-known doctors in the land couldn't help the Captain didn't mean that Rei couldn't! She stepped into the room and turned an even paler shade of white, seeing the body laying on the bed in the middle--there were a few Shinigami surrounding her, but they were mostly there to keep track of her vitals. One of them turned and leered slightly at her. Ugh. She hated the people here sometimes. All uppity because of what she could--well, couldn't--do. Her eyes scanned the room for any friendly faces, and one or two popped up. She gravitated towards them, looking down at Captain Hayashi with a forlorn expression. She was so peaceful, almost as if she were asleep--for a long-ass time. Rei sighed softly and stepped a little bit closer to the body, feeling a hand push her back from it as she did so. "Screw you. I'm doing what I can to help," She felt the gazes of the many on her and bit her tongue further, instead speaking the words and pulling the scroll from her hip, "Reveal existence, Kaitai Gyosha." The scroll opened up and revealed its multi-faceted sheets, spreading out into a mantle above her. Her eyes took on a slightly different appearance, and she reached out to place her fingers on Midori's forehead. She would start from there and go down, looking for any possible problems and fixing what she could.

Every so often she would stop, noticing a lack of oxygen there and redirecting some of the flow, or noticing a blockage there and opening it up. They were small things, but they would contribute to a faster recovery if Midori ever woke up. Her every effort was on the small things that most healers in the Fourth Division missed, but in her periphery she noticed that people were leaving to gather security. She'd refused to follow directions--of course they wanted her thrown out. She continued her work, finding things here and there, until she eventually reached her Captain's Soul Sleep--and what a mess that was. The connection between the Hakusui and Saketsu was broken, which meant that even if she gathered enough Reiryoku to come back up, she would never be able to use it. She must have started eating into her own life force... Rei bit her bottom lip. No wonder nobody could work out what was going on. It was so easy to miss. She sighed to herself and started to sweat, before chanting quietly and slowly beginning to use Kaidō to its fullest. She had to repair the tube to allow things to flow--but it wouldn't flow on its own. She'd have to put in some of her own energy. Too much, and she'd overload the comatose Captain and potentially do more damage. Too little, and well, nothing would start. It was small, it was touchy, and it was exactly what Rei was trained to do. Working quietly and carefully, with as much speed as she could muster--but as much precision and care as she could with the time she had--she started to repair what she could see. First, she brought the pieces of the flow together, attaching them and repairing the link. It would go back to normal once Midori's energy started flowing again, but for now it would have to do with this. She was no expert at it, after all. After this, she placed her hand on the Soul Sleep and closed her eyes, channeling her energy through Kaidō into Midori's body. It was a delicate balance, and one that she should not be distracted while do--"GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF OF THE CAPTAIN YOU DAMAGING WHORE." She bit her bottom lip. Hard. Fuck.

Rough hands grabbed her from behind as she started to get pulled away from the Captain, but she couldn't just let it be done here. She was almost at the tipping point, at the balance that she needed. The pulling was getting stronger and stronger, but Rei held her ground--as did her supporters within the room. The life-threatening Tug-o'-War would have killed Midori if it weren't for them. The last of the energy needed went into the Soul Sleep, and Rei finally allowed herself to be pulled back from Midori, her Zanpakutō resealing, and her shoulders slumping. Her eyes were downcast, and she didn't even see it happen.

Already, she was trying to hide herself. Why wouldn't she? The other woman had her arm raised into the air, hand poised to deal as many hits to the errant sixth seat as she could. Her pudgy, rage-enveloped face was preparing to spit more curses down upon Oshino Rei, due to the mere fact that Rei was doing something that she supposedly couldn't do. The fact that she was doing this for the sake of the Captain was being absolutely ignored, as was the fact that the bitch didn't know that had she tried any harder to fuck up, she might've actually gotten the Captain killed. 'course, that would have only been Rei's fault for even trying in the first place, wouldn't it? Rei leered back at the woman, thinking of all of the nasty things she could say to her in response, but knowing that uttering a single word against her would make her case that much worse. Essentially, she was silenced and watching her life sink away from her as this bitch screamed bloody murder in her face.

"IF I EVER," a loud, yet still weak voice resounded--and it was not Rei's own. Instead, she barely recognized it as the voice of her Captain, "EVER HEAR YOU SPEAKING TO ANOTHER MEMBER OF THE GOTEI IN THE MANNER I JUST HEARD YOU SPEAK, I WILL PERSONALLY THROW YOU INTO THE MAGGOTS NEST FOR THE REST OF THE PRISONERS TO FEED ON! IS THAT UNDERSTOOD!?" Chills travelled down the entirety of Rei's spine as she heard the anger of the Captain spread throughout the room. This Captain who had never been known to be angry at all, who spent a lot of her time in goofy little smiles and daydreams--and the rest of it in serious, quiet 'work-mode'--had never really been seen as raging or angry. Had she connected something wrong? Was the Captain feeling pain? Rei's entire world started to crumble around her, and she noticed the bitch slide down the wall to land on the ground. Rei rubbed her temples and straightened herself up, preparing for the trouble that she was definitely about to be in.

"A-And that... goes for the rest of you... I never want to hear any of you insulting another squad member, ever. Playful banter, slight rivalry, and some criticism is okay... but if I ever hear anyone speak the way this one just did... Your punishment will be severe. This was your warning." Rei nodded and saluted her Captain as she should. Now, if she got out right about now, then someone else could take credit for waking the Captain up, and this entire debacle could be done and dusted, right? Right. Rei let a frustrated breath leave her throat and started to move, when she felt someone--one of the people on her side--lightly grab her arm and pull her back in, whispering into her ear that she should stay and take responsibility for the good work she'd done. She gave that person a scathing glance, but remained anyway. It was necessary, she was sure. She'd be told that she did good work, and then return to her day job as a sixth seat. She didn't really have any ambitions; her pay grade was nice, and she kept just enough out of the spotlight to not have to worry about anything.

"Now... Who is the one who woke me?" She blinked and stared as Midori's eyes turned towards her. Rei instinctively felt her face turn a bright red and took a step back. She closed one eye and gave it a second or so more to hope that the Captain wasn't looking at her. When she didn't look away, Rei let out a breath. "If you'd like to be specific, Captain, the one who woke you up is laying on the ground over there," she motioned with her shoulder, "But I suppose that the one who enabled you to do so... was me." She bit her bottom lip and sighed softly, waiting for the reactions of the rest. Her Shikai was still floating around her back, the rainbow-colored scroll lightly humming with energy. Waiting for any reactions, she suddenly spurted out into more words, "I don't know how they couldn't see it. Your... energy was cut off from its source. You must have done something that took some of your own life force for that to happen. I only saw it because... I'm good at seeing the little things. I also opened up a few other blockages in your system that may not have had any bearing in the first place--but they'll definitely give you a better recovery..." She felt all eyes on her--some were happy, some were confused, others were skeptical. She just wanted to hide in a hole forever.

Most people would not have noticed it, but every single part of Rei's body was shaking terribly at that moment. The Captain was speaking directly to her. She was thanking her for her work. She was being... nice. Happy. And yet she also felt the glares. People who, for lack of a better term, were jealous that she had been the one to wake the Captain up. It was a fool's errand, trying to convince these people that she had done it with the best of intentions. There was just no point to it. Rubbing her temples, Rei looked back around the room one last time, before resting her eyes on the Captain who had sat back down on the bed, "It seems that many of the Fourth Division members have a lot to learn... Tell me... Is that your shikai?" She motioned up towards the scroll behind Rei's back, and the woman made a quiet noise. She'd forgotten to turn it off, it seemed. She sighed and looked back towards the Captain, giving her a weak smile and a nod, "Y-yes. It lets me... see the small things in someone's body... and repair them individually. People seem to have a misconception that I can make their hearts explode with small Kidō bombs. That would be true if my Zanpakutō weren't bound by the Hippocratic Oath. Can't actually willingly harm people with it." She sighed, shaking her head and looking over the Captain. Her eyes were on any lingering injuries that she may have had, which seemed few and far between. Good.

"Your name is Rei, correct?" She nodded, "Rei Oshino, ma'am." Her arms were folded, and she watched the Captain with eyes that were both nervous and confident in their own ways. Rei wanted to prove to the Captain that she had the strength to do what she had just done, rather than being the sort to hide away her achievements. It was a difficult task, and proving to be almost too much for Rei's mind. She just wanted to run away and hide in a hole, as opposed to dealing with this. But no, she couldn't just do that. It would be the worst idea. "Tell me... How would you like to become the new Lieutenant of the Fourth Division?" You could have heard a pin drop in that room. The entire host of Shinigami went silent, all staring between Rei and the Captain, wondering if she was serious at this point. Rei heard a few whispers, most of them negative, but tried her best to hide the tears welling up from this. What the Captain was asking of her... "I know it may be hard at first, but I haven't had a Lieutenant in years... No one has been skilled enough to fulfill that role... until now." More whispers, some of them almost as if the speakers were taken aback. Rei reached up and wiped one of her eyes, sniffling slightly. Her Shikai vanished, appearing as a scroll in one of her hands. She put it away and looked up at the Captain, thinking for a second more. "So.. what do you say?" She could just say no. It wouldn't change anything... But that was the problem. She needed a change. This was the perfect change. "I..." She took in a deep breath.

"I would be honored, Captain."

"Sir, I feel that you should be made aware," The redheaded Third Seat raised an eyebrow, looking over the man carefully as he spoke. He had the garb of a Fourth Division member, who was clearly one step away from jumping up and around in joy. He had to wonder what the event was--for most of the week he had been silently continuing his duties, as well as ensuring that any loose ends related to the Lasciel Incident were tied up. Most of them were, though he had no confirmation on whether or not she had died. If she hadn't, well, she'd be after him soon enough. That alone was more than enough to keep him from going into a depressive stupor. "Sir?" The voice shook Dai out of his momentary contemplation, and he turned to look at the man with a blink, "Captain Hayashi has awoken, and asked for you. Taken me three hours to find ya, it has. Didn't expect you here." He blinked a few times and nodded, before shooing the man away with as much politeness as he could. Even when being given this news, the male didn't really change his expression, nor did he look particularly happy despite it. It took about three minutes after the man had left, before Dai's eyes widened slightly. "W-wait. Midori... woke up?!" He looked at where the man had been before, realizing now that he had told him to leave before really taking in the news itself; he had been expecting more bad news, if nothing else. A soft sigh left his lips and he shook his head, trying not to overreact to this situation. Whether or not Midori was awake was one thing--whether or not she would've been happy to see him was another. He needed to mentally prepare himself for this. He'd do that on the walk over.

About ten minutes later, he arrived at the Infirm Ward. People were rushing around, but the languidness that had been seeping through the Division was starting to fade. He noticed people seeming a lot happier, and a woman with almost gradient-like hair and a Lieutenant's armband giving orders and helping to heal more people. Strange; as far as he'd been aware, the Fourth Division had no Lieutenant. His own was quite vehement about how there was only one member representing the Fourth at any meeting--something about 'the laziness of those non-combat whoresons, and now the audacity that they had to not even send one'. His Lieutenant had received a fist to the face. Captain Araragi had waved it off with an understanding note.

Stepping through into the grounds, he noticed eyes fall on him. At first, it was but a few--though that number slowly grew until most, if not all, of the courtyard was looking directly at him. Some were glares, some were generally relieved expressions. One or two of them stepped up to him and lightly punched him on the shoulder, "Go get her, Tiger." He blinked at that one. Just how many people...? He shook his head, not really thinking about it now. There was far too much on his mind. He instead asked one of the people who didn't balk at his mere presence where the Captain was being kept, and received a relatively civil answer--well, until the screeching began. "She's not taking visitors!" He turned to see the source of the voice and his face went dull. The woman was, for lack of a better word, a bitch. He could see that from her movements and actions. A busybody who wanted nothing more than to order every single person around. He sighed and stepped past her, though he felt a hand grab his arm--"I've already had to save the Captain from the whore who would have killed her; I don't need the limp-dick asshole who almost got her killed in the first place visiting her too. Get the fuck out." He sighed, wrenching his arm from her grip and continuing to move, despite her constant insults and the like. She didn't move from her spot, instead yelling at him down the hall as he moved on.

He eventually found the room and stepped in front of the door, taking in a deep breath. A few of the nurses walked past and giggled lightly, gossiping between themselves. Two guards were posted at either side of the way in, and simply nodded at his presence. The air felt stale and his heart beat rapidly. He raised a hand up to knock, and lowered it again. Is this even the right idea? He shook his head, trying to ignore those thoughts. His hand went up to knock once more, and rapped lightly on the door four times. If someone answered, he would open the door and step inside, looking somewhat haggard. Those who knew Dai would immediately see the bags under his eyes, the exhaustion in his movements. He was the picture of a man who had spent several sleepless nights doing god-knows-what.

"Come in," came the reply through the door, and Dai opened it wide.

She whimpered. She looked at him, gave him this look, and whimpered! Dai's heart melted at that moment, and he had no idea what to do with himself. She essentially jumped at him, crossing the small distance within a half-second and fell right into his arms, jumping up at him and latching herself to his body. He yelped and stepped back slightly, feeling her weight become too much for his tired frame. [color=#00cc99]"I'm so glad you're okay! I was scared that you might have gotten hur-..."[color] He fell backwards, landing on his ass and then his back, making a noise. He slid slightly into the hallway--to approving chuckles and words from the people patrolling, while the guards simply placed their hands on their weapons--and turned about as red as the hair on his head. He helped her up and tried to get to his feet, attempting to close the door behind them and hide the embarrassment that he'd just felt. He wasn't sure what to do! When they were both on their feet, he stumbled slightly and gave her a small smile. She blushed at him, and she could probably have seen just how tired he looked. "That was extremely impulsive... I am so sorry." She turned away from him, covering her face with her hands. Dai folded his arms and watched her for a couple of seconds, wondering what she was going to do next. It was a strange turn of events, really--from almost dead to this--that he really had no idea what he could say or do in this situation. He sighed and looked around the room, trying to find something to talk about--ooooh, a puppy poster--before hearing Midori turn back to him and looking over back at her. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay... I mean... I..." She turned away again, and Dai couldn't help but think her so damn cute.

Midori would then feel arms wrap around her, Dai pulling her into a light hug, smiling softly. "It's okay. I'm... okay." A bit tired, but nonetheless fine. He simply held onto her for about fifteen seconds, closing his eyes and wrapping her in his embrace. "Can we... sit down? I'm... not in my best state." He chuckled softly and led her over to the bed, taking a seat and patting it next to him. "There's... a few things to tell about the week. Nothing amazing and groundbreaking, but I think you'd like a small update of how things went while you were... asleep." He smiled weakly at her and yawned, stretching out. If she sat down beside him, he would start explaining the small vacuum of power inside the Fourth Division, and how he'd been making sure to tie up loose ends. He made sure to avoid mentioning how little he'd slept. He didn't want to worry her.

He wasn't entirely sure how long that embrace had lasted. When he had first wrapped his arms around her body, he had felt her lean into him, felt her return the hug. Her head rested on his shoulder, prompting a small smile from the male. His arms tightened further around her weakened figure, and he felt warm tears edge his eyes. They held this for several seconds more, Dai feeling tears of Midori's own touching his shoulder. She whispered in response, and they finally broke apart once they were certain that they had held for long enough. He motioned to sit down, and took his seat on the edge of her bed. She complied, sitting next to him--she sat with legs crossed and hands in her lap.

He began to explain things, but was interrupted by a hand touching his face. He looked over to see Midori running her hand along his cheek, thumb under his eyes. "There are only two things that I want to hear from you." He blinked a couple of times, tilting his head as she continued speaking, "I want to know whether Kaminari... the Head Captain, I mean... is okay. After that, I want to know exactly why you look so... drained. Have you not been sleeping?" He frowned lightly at that second question--he'd hoped it not turn up. He opened his mouth to answer her questions--both of her questions--before she placed her hands on her head. Was she in pain?

"Dai... I'm sorry. I'm so, so, so sorry... I wasn't fast enough; I couldn't get there on time... I don't even remember what happened. I just remember seeing your eyes. You looked at me... And that look... It scared me." She didn't even get a chance to react, as she was pulled into another hug by Dai. "It's okay, it's okay. You saved my life. Honest, you did." He bit his bottom lip, holding onto her, "As for Kaminari, she's fine. A bit weak still, but nothing she won't recover from. Regarding myself..." He sighed quietly, wondering how to word this. Damn it all, Ito, you're no good at this!

"I haven't been sleeping much, no--maybe two hours a night, if I'm lucky. I've been worrying about so many things, that I haven't been able to keep myself going. But at least, with you back in the world of the wake, I should be able to rest a bit easier..." He chuckled quietly, and punctuated it with a loud yawn, as if to push his point further. He continued to hold onto Midori despite this, with a small smile on his face. "Come to think of it, I really am shattered. I also got yelled at in the lobby by someone." He laughed quietly, almost lifting Midori up and pulling her onto his lap, holding her there so that he could cuddle her completely.

"So everyone's okay then... You, Kaminari... those who went after her?" He nodded, "A couple of people had their prides a little shaken, but otherwising that, no lasting injuries. They didn't get the thing who did it, though. That'll have to be resolved. Later." He held on to her, closing his eyes. Her warmth was reassuring. He explained his worry to her, and he felt her shift to look up at him. He tried his best to look down at her, though the position was disadvantageous at best. "You've been worried? Before I fell out... I remember having to heal Kaminari, but you said she's fine, so..." He smiled lightly, "You were worried about me..." She almost sounded happy about that. He was no longer surprised. She giggled softly, and he nodded. "Of course I was. You've worried for me for so long, there was no way I couldn't not worry about you." She leaned up and pressed her nose against his, causing a light blush to reach his cheeks. The moment passed and she pulled away, no longer looking happy. "Who yelled at you?" He blinked. He honestly didn't really remember. It had all happened so quickly that he'd just moved on, ignoring her--what did it matter? She was a bitch, that was all there was too it. No point in worrying. "I swear to god, if it was that annoying little brat. I've had her yelling at everyone lately! Who the hell does she think she is? I woke up with her insulting my new Lieutenant. Sure, she wasn't my Lieutenant at that moment, but damn!" He blinked. That explained why it mattered. He sighed and shook his head, "I don't really remember what she looked like, but she was loud, abrasive and tried to stop me from getting to you. I just ignored her for the most part."

He looked back at her, just in time to see her body shudder from weakness. "If you're that tired... use my quarters?" The blush that had wormed its way into his cheeks deepened, and he looked down at her with slightly wide eyes. The tone of voice was enough to make him wonder, but no--there was no reason to think like that. He was too tired to think like that. The way she said it made it seem like an 'order', though it was probably closer to a request. He couldn't refuse such a cute face. Especially one that was asking in such a way. He watched her for a few seconds more before smiling softly and nodding, "I can probably..." "It'd be better than going all the way back to your Division..." Yeah, she was right. Better to be pragmatic in this situation. He opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by her head slumping into his chest. "I'm kind of tired too..." She fell asleep against his chest. Her breathing was light, and her body warm against his. He leaned back, holding her against him, and put his back down on the hospital bed. His lips touched against her forehead, as he whispered quietly to her--sleep came within a few seconds, and held onto him for the longest time.


A head poked through the door, quickly looking to check on the Captain. She had been told that the Third Seat of the Seventh had come in to visit, and she wanted to make sure that all was well. She hadn't heard anything as she'd approached, and nobody had responded to her knocking, so when Rei looked in, she was almost just not surprised. The pair were laying on the bed, sleeping and in each other's arms. Quietly, with as much stealth as she could muster, Rei crept into the room and took one of the blankets from a nearby closet. She flicked it outwards and placed it over the pair of resting Shinigami, smiling softly. She turned around, and before she left, looked back at the pair, adjusting the band on her right arm with a chuckle. "This was not how I saw today going, but thank you. Both of you." Oshino Rei turned around and left the room, closing the door behind her.