Week of Love: New Worlds
Title: New Worlds
Rating: T
Contains: mild angst.
Six times Nanao Ise stepped into a new world alone, and one time she didn’t.
I
The night that Nanao Ise arrived in the Soul Society, she arrived to a new world that was cold and rainy. Fortunately an elderly couple had agreed to let her sleep in a corner of their shack, sheltered from the roving bands that frequented the more remote districts at night. As she lay huddled, listening to the night sounds, she wondered why anyone would ever want to come to a world like this. In this world, cold, hunger and loneliness were the only constants.
II
The day that Nanao entered the Shinigami Academy she felt like she stepped into another world, one with clean floors, clean clothes and meals three times a day. Yet in this world too, Nanao Ise was different. By far the youngest in her class, and the youngest to be admitted to the Academy to date, she found that here, like in Rukongai, life was lonely. But she was grateful. While other students, mostly from upper class or merchant families complained about the restrictions, Nanao had never felt so free since coming to the Soul Society.
III
From the first moment she set foot in her new division, Nanao could never shake the impression that something was wrong. She was proud, of course; proud to have come this far, proud to have earned her right to stay and proud to finely have carved out a place for herself in this forbidding world. Nanao was no fool. She knew that others had not been so lucky. So, she had set about trying to become the model recruit, but while she excelled, the 9th never felt like home.
IV
The day that Nanao Ise transferred to the 8th Division, she was furious. She had been walking home from an advanced kido clinic offered at the 5th when a brawl had broken out. As a responsible member of her division, she had done her best to make her colleagues see reason, but the result was a disaster. In the end she had been implicated along with the rest for disturbing the peace. Everyone else had been assigned to various punishment duties, but only Nanao got transferred. It wasn’t until later that she found out that her transfer paperwork had been started days earlier and, even more curiously, the brawling incident had never appeared on her record. After she had had a chance to cool off, she reflected that the 8th might not be such a bad place after all.
V
The first time she attended a Vice Captain’s meeting, Nanao was terrified. In the months after Vice Captain Yadomaru’s disappearance, Nanao had naturally stepped into the administrative role of Vice Captain, never dreaming that her Captain would actually promote her to the position. The meeting almost ended in disaster when the other Vice Captains had almost refused to let her in. Thankfully Kaien Shiba, Vice Captain of the 13th Division, had come to her rescue. As she sat around the table with her new colleagues, she had resolved that from now on, people would take her more seriously.
VI
The first big test of Nanao’s leadership ability came with her first mission to the Living World. Most Vice Captains had frequent Living World experience, but Nanao had been promoted early. While proud of her achievement, she still felt some trepidation as she stepped through the gate into a new and unforgiving world. Her Captain had told her she would be a success, but Nanao wondered how he could be so sure. After all, she had pointed out, there is nothing particularly intimidating about a group of Shinigami recruits led by one small girl. Captain Kyouraku had adjusted his hat and looked down at her. “On the contrary, Nanao-chan,” he said, his voice soft but implacable. “You are very scary when you want to be.”
VII
The morning that Vice Captain Nanao Ise married Captain Shunsui Kyouraku was a frenzy of activity. The preceding weeks had been so full of colors, cloth, lipstick and future in-laws that Nanao had found herself wondering if they were not better off eloping. But, as they emerged from the shrine, Nanao realized that this was the first time she would be stepping into a new world not alone.