Things Will Work Out After All
Title: Things Will Work Out After All
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Fandom: Bleach
Rating: PG
Characters: Kenpachi/Unohana, with appearances by Isane & Yachiru
Warnings: None
Spoiler: None, though it’s set after the end of the Winter War.
Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me. They all belong to Tite Kubo. If they belonged to me…well, things would be quite a bit different.
Author's Notes: Sequel to "Don't Make Promises You Can't Keep." Also, a pimp:
Anyone whose interested in writing/reading apocalpytic Bleach fic, please leave a comment at that community. Even if you're not, please comment anyway? There's a bunch of us who would like to.
---
There was a timid knock at the door to her office, and Unohana looked up, bestowing her Lieutenant with a smile. “Isane. Please come in,” she said warmly.
Isane came in and shut the door behind her. “Captain, Captain Kenpachi is asking for you. He says he still hurts.”
She nodded. “Then I’ll go see to him. Thank you for letting me know,” she said as she stood up.
“Um…Captain? May I ask you a question?” Isane asked.
“Yes,” she said.
“What kind of relationship do you have with Captain Kenpachi? Every time he gets hurt he asks for you specifically, and even if you’re busy you take care of him. Am I…I was wondering…do you care for him?” Isane was bright red as she asked, not looking at her Captain but instead looking at the floor. Because she was looking at the floor she did not see the shocked expression on Unohana’s face; only when she looked up and locked eyes with her Captain did she, and then her eyes widened. “Oh! Captain Unohana, it’s not my place to ask, I’m so sorry.”
Unohana thought for a moment, and then smiled slightly. “My relationship with Captain Kenpachi is…complicated,” she said. “But…well, you have already guessed that it is more than friendly, haven’t you?”
“Yes, Captain,” she said. “I have thought so for a little while, and then I overheard 3rd Seat Ikkaku talking to 5th Seat Yumichika as they were leaving Captain Kenpachi’s room together, and…”
“So they know,” she said with a sigh, her smile fading.
“Yes, Captain. But I don’t think Captain Kenpachi told them. It sounded like Lieutenant Kusajika…I mean, Yachiru-chan, had found out, and she told them.”
“It can’t be helped now. I appreciate his young Lieutenant but I don’t know how quiet she can stay. If someone’s got candy…” She looked at her Lieutenant. “I suppose I should go speak with Zaraki now. Could you see to it that we’re not disturbed?”
Isane nodded. “Yes, Captain.”
Unohana’s smile returned slightly as she and Isane left her office. Maybe it would not be so bad if word got out, she thought. Maybe things would be all right, in the end. She stayed quiet as she and her Lieutenant drifted down the hallways in the relief center until they got to Kenpachi’s room. “Please stay outside the door.” And then her smile widened slightly. “And try not to eavesdrop too much.”
Isane blushed, but noted that her Captain was teasing her. “Yes, Captain.”
Unohana opened the door to the darkened room and sat next to Kenpachi’s bed. “Retsu,” he said when he saw her.
“They know?” she asked, reaching over for his hand.
“Yeah. Yachiru’s kind of got a big mouth. I told ‘em not to tell anyone, so…”
“My Lieutenant overheard Ikkaku and Yumichika talking as they left your room yesterday, and she added things up. She knows as well.” She sighed and shut her eyes. “I doubt we’ll be able to keep so many people quiet.”
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
“Perhaps this was a good thing,” she said thoughtfully. “I care about you, more than I have cared about anyone in a long time. And while I’ve been content to let things stay a secret, perhaps it was not the best choice in the long term. If people are to know about our relationship, I’d rather have them know because we told them.”
“You don’t want to keep this hidden anymore?” he asked, attempting to sit up but failing. He managed to prop himself up on his elbows for a moment before crashing back onto the bed.
“Zaraki, you should know better than to try and sit up with those wounds,” she said with a sigh as one of the wounds re-opened and blood soaked the bandage.
“You’re changin’ the subject,” he said, watching her get fresh bandages. “You don’t care if people know?”
“No, I do care if they know,” she said, coming over to him and beginning to undo the soiled bandages. “But not for the reasons you might think.”
“Then why?” he asked, letting her go to work on him.
“I’ve been here a long time, probably since before you even thought about becoming a shinigami,” she replied. “My place…well, I’m held in high esteem by almost everyone here. You are not, not for the same reasons. I don’t want people making comparisons, saying you are striving towards something more important than yourself.”
“You are more important than me,” he said quietly. “Least to me, anyway.”
She stopped what she was doing and looked at him. “You are one of the most important people in my life, Zaraki. That’s why I wouldn’t let you make that promise yesterday. If you promised not to die and then you died anyway I would be heartbroken, and I would hate you, and I don’t want to hate you.”
He nodded just a bit as she went back to changing his bandages. “Didn’t know you felt that way.”
She looked at him and her eyes narrowed. “How did you think I felt, Zaraki? It’s been a year now. Did you think I thought this was something not worth my time, worth my love?”
“No, I didn’t think that. You just never said any different,” he said. He started to push himself up again and this time she pushed him back down with a little more force than she had intended. He let out a rush of breath and her eyes widened.
“I didn’t mean to push you so hard,” she said. “I apologize.”
He shrugged slightly. “My fault for tryin’ to get up.” He waited until she’d finished changing the bandages before reaching over for her hand. She linked her fingers in his. “So…you love me?”
She nodded slowly. “Yes. Didn’t you know that?”
He shook his head. “You never said anything.” He tugged a bit and she sat next to him on the bed instead of sitting in a chair next to it. “Yachiru like the idea of us.”
She smiled. “She does, does she?”
“Yeah,” he said with a grin. “She said you make me happy like fighting makes me happy. And she’s right.”
“So, you do care about me?” she asked.
“I love you,” he replied. “That’s more than just carin’ about you.”
She smiled brightly at him, and then leaned in and kissed him softly. “That makes me very happy.”
“Thought it would,” he said. “Stay here with me tonight?”
She nodded. “I will.”
“Next to me?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” He shut his eyes again. “I’ll try and get some more rest before you come back. Then we can talk like we usually do.”
“I’d like that,” she said. She held his hand until he was asleep again, then reluctantly let go and left the room. She looked at Isane, who had been joined at the door by Yachiru. Both of them looked expectedly at Unohana. “Yes?”
“So, you and Ken-chan…” Yachiru asked.
“We’re in a relationship, yes.” Unohana said with a smile.
“Good,” Yachiru said with a grin of her own. “Me and Isane, we’re going to get something to eat. She said she’s got candy. Want to come?”
Unohana shook her head. “No, I have paperwork to do before I come back here tonight. Isane, could you make sure Yachiru is settled in for the night tonight?”
“Yes, Captain,” she said with a nod.
“You two go on, and try not to eat too much candy,” Unohana said with a smile. The two girls left immediately, and Unohana walked back to her office with a smile on her face and an unfamiliar bounce in her step. Things were going to be just fine, she thought to herself.
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Fandom: Bleach
Rating: PG
Characters: Kenpachi/Unohana, with appearances by Isane & Yachiru
Warnings: None
Spoiler: None, though it’s set after the end of the Winter War.
Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me. They all belong to Tite Kubo. If they belonged to me…well, things would be quite a bit different.
Author's Notes: Sequel to "Don't Make Promises You Can't Keep." Also, a pimp:
Anyone whose interested in writing/reading apocalpytic Bleach fic, please leave a comment at that community. Even if you're not, please comment anyway? There's a bunch of us who would like to.
---
There was a timid knock at the door to her office, and Unohana looked up, bestowing her Lieutenant with a smile. “Isane. Please come in,” she said warmly.
Isane came in and shut the door behind her. “Captain, Captain Kenpachi is asking for you. He says he still hurts.”
She nodded. “Then I’ll go see to him. Thank you for letting me know,” she said as she stood up.
“Um…Captain? May I ask you a question?” Isane asked.
“Yes,” she said.
“What kind of relationship do you have with Captain Kenpachi? Every time he gets hurt he asks for you specifically, and even if you’re busy you take care of him. Am I…I was wondering…do you care for him?” Isane was bright red as she asked, not looking at her Captain but instead looking at the floor. Because she was looking at the floor she did not see the shocked expression on Unohana’s face; only when she looked up and locked eyes with her Captain did she, and then her eyes widened. “Oh! Captain Unohana, it’s not my place to ask, I’m so sorry.”
Unohana thought for a moment, and then smiled slightly. “My relationship with Captain Kenpachi is…complicated,” she said. “But…well, you have already guessed that it is more than friendly, haven’t you?”
“Yes, Captain,” she said. “I have thought so for a little while, and then I overheard 3rd Seat Ikkaku talking to 5th Seat Yumichika as they were leaving Captain Kenpachi’s room together, and…”
“So they know,” she said with a sigh, her smile fading.
“Yes, Captain. But I don’t think Captain Kenpachi told them. It sounded like Lieutenant Kusajika…I mean, Yachiru-chan, had found out, and she told them.”
“It can’t be helped now. I appreciate his young Lieutenant but I don’t know how quiet she can stay. If someone’s got candy…” She looked at her Lieutenant. “I suppose I should go speak with Zaraki now. Could you see to it that we’re not disturbed?”
Isane nodded. “Yes, Captain.”
Unohana’s smile returned slightly as she and Isane left her office. Maybe it would not be so bad if word got out, she thought. Maybe things would be all right, in the end. She stayed quiet as she and her Lieutenant drifted down the hallways in the relief center until they got to Kenpachi’s room. “Please stay outside the door.” And then her smile widened slightly. “And try not to eavesdrop too much.”
Isane blushed, but noted that her Captain was teasing her. “Yes, Captain.”
Unohana opened the door to the darkened room and sat next to Kenpachi’s bed. “Retsu,” he said when he saw her.
“They know?” she asked, reaching over for his hand.
“Yeah. Yachiru’s kind of got a big mouth. I told ‘em not to tell anyone, so…”
“My Lieutenant overheard Ikkaku and Yumichika talking as they left your room yesterday, and she added things up. She knows as well.” She sighed and shut her eyes. “I doubt we’ll be able to keep so many people quiet.”
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
“Perhaps this was a good thing,” she said thoughtfully. “I care about you, more than I have cared about anyone in a long time. And while I’ve been content to let things stay a secret, perhaps it was not the best choice in the long term. If people are to know about our relationship, I’d rather have them know because we told them.”
“You don’t want to keep this hidden anymore?” he asked, attempting to sit up but failing. He managed to prop himself up on his elbows for a moment before crashing back onto the bed.
“Zaraki, you should know better than to try and sit up with those wounds,” she said with a sigh as one of the wounds re-opened and blood soaked the bandage.
“You’re changin’ the subject,” he said, watching her get fresh bandages. “You don’t care if people know?”
“No, I do care if they know,” she said, coming over to him and beginning to undo the soiled bandages. “But not for the reasons you might think.”
“Then why?” he asked, letting her go to work on him.
“I’ve been here a long time, probably since before you even thought about becoming a shinigami,” she replied. “My place…well, I’m held in high esteem by almost everyone here. You are not, not for the same reasons. I don’t want people making comparisons, saying you are striving towards something more important than yourself.”
“You are more important than me,” he said quietly. “Least to me, anyway.”
She stopped what she was doing and looked at him. “You are one of the most important people in my life, Zaraki. That’s why I wouldn’t let you make that promise yesterday. If you promised not to die and then you died anyway I would be heartbroken, and I would hate you, and I don’t want to hate you.”
He nodded just a bit as she went back to changing his bandages. “Didn’t know you felt that way.”
She looked at him and her eyes narrowed. “How did you think I felt, Zaraki? It’s been a year now. Did you think I thought this was something not worth my time, worth my love?”
“No, I didn’t think that. You just never said any different,” he said. He started to push himself up again and this time she pushed him back down with a little more force than she had intended. He let out a rush of breath and her eyes widened.
“I didn’t mean to push you so hard,” she said. “I apologize.”
He shrugged slightly. “My fault for tryin’ to get up.” He waited until she’d finished changing the bandages before reaching over for her hand. She linked her fingers in his. “So…you love me?”
She nodded slowly. “Yes. Didn’t you know that?”
He shook his head. “You never said anything.” He tugged a bit and she sat next to him on the bed instead of sitting in a chair next to it. “Yachiru like the idea of us.”
She smiled. “She does, does she?”
“Yeah,” he said with a grin. “She said you make me happy like fighting makes me happy. And she’s right.”
“So, you do care about me?” she asked.
“I love you,” he replied. “That’s more than just carin’ about you.”
She smiled brightly at him, and then leaned in and kissed him softly. “That makes me very happy.”
“Thought it would,” he said. “Stay here with me tonight?”
She nodded. “I will.”
“Next to me?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” He shut his eyes again. “I’ll try and get some more rest before you come back. Then we can talk like we usually do.”
“I’d like that,” she said. She held his hand until he was asleep again, then reluctantly let go and left the room. She looked at Isane, who had been joined at the door by Yachiru. Both of them looked expectedly at Unohana. “Yes?”
“So, you and Ken-chan…” Yachiru asked.
“We’re in a relationship, yes.” Unohana said with a smile.
“Good,” Yachiru said with a grin of her own. “Me and Isane, we’re going to get something to eat. She said she’s got candy. Want to come?”
Unohana shook her head. “No, I have paperwork to do before I come back here tonight. Isane, could you make sure Yachiru is settled in for the night tonight?”
“Yes, Captain,” she said with a nod.
“You two go on, and try not to eat too much candy,” Unohana said with a smile. The two girls left immediately, and Unohana walked back to her office with a smile on her face and an unfamiliar bounce in her step. Things were going to be just fine, she thought to herself.