Flowers in the Storm (Tamashi, Open)

It was slightly cloudy, but thoroughly cold day in the Seireitai as a young shinigami by the name of Lin strolled around. It was just around 2 in the afternoon, and Lin had finished work around 12:30. The typically golden sun was hidden behind gray clouds with silver linings, as it's rare rays glinted off of orange tinted roof tiles and the large stone pathways. Numerous cream colored buildings lined the way, all were used for either bars or small shops. The area was nice and quiet, though it contained a rather proper amount of chatter. It was perfect for Lin, not too loud and busy, yet not dead of activity. Lin had just returned from a small trip in the Rukon mountains, as she liked to collect and dry herbs for her office. More than often Lin would use the more suitable herbs for teas and such beverages, while using the others simply for fragrance.

On Lin's arm was a large woven basket. Despite it's appearence, it was rather easy for her to carry. In the basket was five glass jars, with cork tops emblazoned with a star on top of each cork. At the bottom of three glass jars were paper labels, signifying were to place each herb she collected. She currently had the chamomile, meadowsweet, and ephedra. She picked chamomile for tea flavoring, meadowsweet to soothe her post-drunken headaches, and ephedra for filtering any alcohol left in her blood. Lin had favored chamomile the most, due to it's enchanting scent and how it made tea seem much more delicious. The bright yellow and white of the chamomile was lovely next to the fluffy, pure white of the meadowsweet and the large green stalks of the ephedra. She'd dry both the chamomile and meadowsweet, then chop up the ephedra into smaller pieces and dry them. Also in her woven basket, was a very large amount of white poppies. They symbolized oblivion, along with symbolizing the 9th Division.

She picked these each week, setting them in numerous amethysty vases around the 9th Division barracks. It definitely made the place smell sweeter, and added a lovely charm in Lin's opinion. The other two glass jars in the basket were filled with honey tea that Lin prepared, one full to the brim and the other half full. Lin's cherry blossom pink lips curved upwards into a soft smile, the wind fiddling with her dark magenta flower kimono, though it was hidden by a thin white apron. The tips of her pink-crimson hair thrashed around a small bit, most of it was kept high up in the same yellow cloth her mother used to wear. Lin's emerald green eyes peered over the activity, and smiled once more, feeling right at home. Her blue and black katana, and it's sheath hung off of the top of her other arm. The last thing sitting in the basket, leaning on it's side in between the flowers and the jars, was a small, elegant violin, along with it's slender bow. The violin was a deep chestnut brown, mixed with a dramatic velvet red. The strings were perfectly in tune, and glistened like grass blades after a light rain. It was soft and smooth, an ideal instrument.

And on the back, Lin's full name was etched into it, in a rather graceful script. The price was a bit high for Lin, but she was won over in the end by the sheer beauty it. And even though she played it well, she had lended her previous instrument to someone who disappeared in the phenomenon, and had never returned. She never got back the instrument. Lin flinched abruptly as a few drops of rain hit her bare, tanned shoulder. She quickly raced to an empty bench under the shelters of a building. Lin was slightly relieved it wasn't crowded. In fact, there were no people by the bench at all. Lin was even more happy, as she enjoyed the rain. As it started to hit heavily, Lin knew she couldn't walk through this without getting a cold. She kinda didn't mind though, the scenery was beautiful and Lin was done with work for the day. She curled up on the bench, setting the basket down on the ground. Her eyes spotted a mass of other figures sitting on the opposite benches underneath another building.

Tamashi walked around seireitei, no longer in uniform, as he was off duty, for a bit. He wore a simple black skintight shirt, open fronted red shirt and grey dress pants. He had just gotten off duty a few moments before, and had intended on heading into the mountains for a little training, alone, when he ended up in a pleasantly crowded street. He smiled lightly at all the passing people, and saw a girl up ahead with what appeared to be a basket in one hand.

Tamashi wondered what was in it, his curiosity nearly getting the better of him when he was slammed to the side roughly by some, apparently drunken man. He was about to ask him what his problem was when he seemed to realize that he had the wrong man and let Tamashi go. Tamashi decided not to pursue the issue and move on, when the rain started to fall. He looked up and stood still, people around him running for cover.

He slowly continued to walk, enjoying the rain on his skin, He then noticed the girl from earlier sitting on a bench by her self and he decided to go introduce himself. He walked over to her and sat next to her on the bench, moving a soaked strand of his grey hair out of his eyes, and smiled at her. "Hi, My name's Tamashi, what's yours?" He asked, in his odd way, fully grown voice, with the pronouncing abilities of a child. He smiled kindly at her, not seeming to care about his soaked clothing, or soaked Zan, which hung over his left shoulder, down to his right hip.

Lin's right hand fiddled with the woven handle of the basket, picking away at any snapped strands. Her left hand just sat across her waist, her posture very relaxed and lazy. It was that kinda day, a very relaxed one. There was no stress in the Seireitai, and the rain only furthered the mellow feeling that seemed to envelop the emotions of the shinigami. Lin cringed slightly as a watery mist was blown in her direction, signaling that it was only the beginning of harsh winds and a possibly fearsome rainfall. In other words, a severe storm. Lin still didn't care. She absolutely enjoyed storms, rain, any sort of change from simple sunshine. Lin didn't hate the sun........just sometimes it was much more harsh then people percieved it to be. Just like the rain. People despised rain, but loved sunshine. Lin always thought the sunny heat was much more troublesome than the soothing rain.

She was awoken from her inner rant about weather when a figure ran towards her bench. She noted that he possessed a zanpaktou, yet was wearing casual clothes, signifying he was out on free time like Lin was. She directed a sweet smile his way when he sat down and introduced himself. "Nice to meet you, Tamashi. I'm Lin Amakei." Lin murmured, her voice soft and kind. Her eyes scanned over the boy, noticing that he was practically drenched in the winter rain. She bit her lip, thinking the boy might catch a cold. It was already cold enough if you weren't drenched with water, the cool winds had to make that worst. A look of slight worry popped up on Lin's face, though a slight smile pulled at the corner of her lip, remembering she had a jar of hot tea in the basket. Lin quickly grabbed the basket, sitting it on her folded legs.

She checked each one for the full jar of tea, finally taking both that one and the half full jar out. She carefully set the basket back down on the ground, and looked back to Tamashi with a smile. "Seeing as your soaked in that freezing rain, you might as well take some tea. Wouldn't want you freezing out in the middle of Seireitai." Lin reasoned, holding the jar towards Tamashi. She looked back to down to her own jar, snapping the corked top off of the lid. She took a few sips, though she wasn't too cold. Lin decided to talk to the boy, as it would be a bit before the rain would slow. "Which division are you from? I'm a 3rd seat, from the 9th Division." Lin asked Tamashi. She picked up most of the white poppies, gently organizing them to where the stems were grouped together. With one hand, Lin yanked the yellow ribbon from her hair, letting her dark pink hair tumble down across her skin. She tied the white poppies altogether with the yellow ribbon, forming a cozy bouquet. Lin carefully set it back in the basket, so the flowers wouldn't get crushed or wilt.

Tamashi Sat next to Lin, and nodded as she said nice to meet you. "Very nice to meet you, Miss Lin." He smiled an innocent childish smile at her. He saw her bite her lip and tilted his head, wondering what was wrong. He blinked once before speaking. "What the matter Miss. Lin, Something troubling you?" He asked, with the sincerity of a child.

As Lin rummaged through her basket Tamashi got a clear look as to what was in it, and he smiled, as it was full of flowers, and two jars of tea which Lin pulled out. As she handed one over to him Tamashi smiled, bowing his head in thanks as she spoke. When she finished he began to speak. "thank you for the tea Miss. Lin, it was very thoughtful of you." He pulled the top off and too a deep drink of it, a small shiver going through his body, showing how cold he truly was.

Tamashi lowered the jar from his mouth as she asked him his division, and told him hers. "I'm a third seat too, second division." He smiled at her again as he took a smaller sip of his tea. He watched her take the white poppies out of the basket and pull out her ribbon, and watched as her pink hair fell down her back, slightly entranced by it. He noticed her put the flowers away and he smiled again.

"Pretty flowers you have there Miss. Lin, where did you get them?" He asked sweetly as a child, his face full of warmth and curiosity.

Lin giggled as the boy thanked her for. "Oh it's no problem. But thank you." Lin replied, noticing the almost child-like, courteous natureof Tamashi. It intrigued her, as most the shinigami had this irritating way of being overtly respectful and distant. Though she did know some who weren't as uptight, like Captain Hisagi and Lt. Kaori. She yawned, her right hand tracing over the the violin.

She quickly sat up, smoothing down her kimono and softly twirling a strand of her hair. She beamed a smile at Tamashi after hearing he was another 3rd seat in the 2nd Division. "Wow.....2nd Division. Their the stealth division, right?" Lin gasped, full of amazement. The 2nd Division always astounded her, as she was aware they were a very stealthy and secretive group. The previous captain, Sui Feng, had scared her a bit though. The entire Seireitai knew Sui Feng to be a very strict captain, Lin didn't even seen the captain smile while she visited the 2nd division.

Though, everyone also knew her to be a very good captain. And Lin also had some knowledge of the previous captain before Sui Feng, Yoruichi Shihoin. Of course, unlike Sui feng, Lin had never seen Yoruichi Shihoin. She was still living in the Rukon during those years. Of course, the surrent captain, Tenrai, was very good too. Just, she hadn't seen much of the captain. Lin actually heard he was on a mission in Karakura, which would explain why she didn't see the man around the Seireitei. Lin grinned happily once Tamashi asked where she got the flowers.

"The Rukon mountains. The white poppies pretty much flood the mountain and the surrounding hills, and I usually go every week to pick flowers." Lin explained to him. Her pleasant expression was replaced with a wince of pain and surprise. The wind had kicked up a few pebbles, and one hit her hand with quite a bit of force. Not enough to cause a serious injury, but enough to cause a small bruise. She looked up at the skys, her eyes full of mystery. It was worse, much worse, then Lin had estimated. She loved a good storm, but not to the point where she got hit by rocks. She quickly looked at Tamashi, her eyes flashing to a large two paneled door next to them.

"I think we should go inside. It should pass soon, storms like this never last to long.....I hope..." Lin mumbled, her eyes wandering to the area where the pebble hit. She stood up, smiling slightly at Tamashi. Lin leaned down, quickly placing her bottle into the basket. She picked up the basket, and walked over to the door. Lin attempted to open the door, but frowned as it seemed locked. Lin sighed, as she didn't resort to breaking and entering places closed off to the public, but she, like many other people, did not like getting struck by rocks. So she pried the door open, using only a small amount of her strength to do so.

Lin swiftly and tightly closed the door behind them. She turned around, only to be shocked by a peculiar sight. Large barrels of sake were stacked around them, in a maze formation. They had a single path in front of them, that spilt into two more paths, which split into more. There would obviously be dead ends. If Lin was in a rush, she would just bust her way through the place, but she had found a very interesting puzzle lying in front of her instead. She turned to Tamashi, the basket still resting on her arm. "I may just be insane.....but this looks like much more fun than sitting in a violent storm and sipping tea, no?" Lin said with a very mischevious smile.

Tamashi was enjoying Lin's presence and their conversation. He smiled warmly at her, and listened intently when she spoke. when asked if the second division was the stealth division he nodded. "Yeppers." He smiled afterwards, letting her go on with her questions, or comments.

Tamashi looked at the flowers again, imagining the environment from which they came, the hills covered in the little white flowers, and imaging Lin going up there every week to pick them, an image of Lin in her kimono leaning over, picking a bunch of flowers smiling, before brushing a loose strand of her hair behind her ear popped into Tamashi's mind, causing him to blush for some odd reason. He looked at Lin and the image returned, causing him to both blush and smile brightly.

As the wind picked up and pebbles were launched Tamashi became slightly worried, he enjoyed walking in the rain, but not when he was in danger of being taken with the storm. He noticed that Lin had been hit and he stood in front of her, blocking her from any more, a smile on his face, as he took one to the back of the knee. When Lin suggested finding shelter Tamashi nodded, and watched as she broke into a building, following her inside afterwards.

Inside he saw all the barrels and his mouth dropped. He never thought that any of these buildings could hold this much of anything. He must have gasped slightly, because he had heard a noise, and it hadn't been Lin. He pretended he hadn't done that, blushing slightly, again for some reason he didn't know.

As Lin said she may be insane Tamashi's first instinct was to contradict her, but as she finished he just smiled, and nodded. "I suppose so Miss. Lin, but that really depends on your definition of fun. I mean what's in all these anyway?" He asked, his innocent mind not knowing what sake was. He looked over at Lin, waiting for her to explain to him what the contents of the barrels was.

Lin's eyes swept back and forth, finally landing on Tamashi. She had somewhat noticed him blushing earlier on, but decided not to ask him about it out of being polite. Lin had also felt very flattered by the fact that the boy shielded her from any more of the pebbles. "Thanks, for blocking any of those pebbles. You didn't have to do that...." Lin mentioned, casting a shy but affectionate smile at him. She sighed, sweeping her bangs to the side, then heard Tamashi's small gasp. She chuckled quietly. "Bit overwhelming isn't it?" Lin asked, grinning. The place had to be huge, and she wondered why it contained so many barrels of sake. It was probably a storage to ferment sake, and most likely was shared by a few popular bars within' the Seireitai. It was obviously locked to keep any thieves out. And lastly, the barrels were probably arranged as such to deterr any drunks from breaking into the sake.

Lin chuckled, thinking that this odd arrangement could turn even the most commited drunk from getting into the sake. She nodded at Tamashi's statement, as he was very right. in just happened to have a very odd sense of what was fun and what wasn't, and massive Shinigami sized puzzels were definitely fun in Lin's mind. She then blinked after hearing his question. "Sake. Lots and lots of sake." Lin explained. She looked at him again, confused slightly. "You....you do know what sake is, right?" Lin questioned, thoroughly mystefied with the boy's innocence. She walked over to a barrel that was stacked upon another, flicking her finger gently to see if was indeed full and not just a ton of empty bottles. She sighed, no noise echoed back to confirm Lin's hopes of it being empty. She turned back to Tamashi.

"Sake, is a very potent drink for those who can tolerate it." Lin stated, slightly smiling, as Lin herself happened to be a person with a good tolerancy of sake. She walked forward to the end of the straight path, only to see it split into two paths, one going left and one going right. Her face turned to look at Tamashi. "Do you wanna lead, or should I?" Lin asked cautiously, one hand on her slender hip and one hand running through her hair. Lin wasn't to good with directions, or anything involving navigation for that matter. There were a select few situations, like how to get to the 9th and the 3rd Divisions, and how to get to her quarters at night. The only other exception was when she was completely drunk, she could amazingly find her way through most of Seireitei.

Tamashi rubbed the back of his knee where the pebble had hit him, and smiled innocently at Lin. "I know, I wanted to do it Miss. Lin." He watched her sweep her hair and again was entranced by it. He was staring at her hair when she commented on his gasp, causing him to feel slightly embarrassed. He nodded though in answer, and looked around again at all the barrels, and shivered, as he was still soaked from the rain outside.

Tamashi clutched his shoulders and huddled slightly, trying to keep as much warmth within his body as possible. He heard her tell him what was in the barrels and was about to ask what Sake was, when Lin asked him if he knew. "No I don't know what Sake is Miss Lin." He replied, sounding very much like a child. He watched her walk up to the barrel and flick it, and he heard no sound, except for a very fain sloshing sound. He instantly took a great gulp of his tea, warming him up again a bit, though he was still freezing.

As Lin explained what Sake was Tamashi stared at one of the barrels, and saw through the wood of it, noting the colour, and the amount of the liquid within. He then turned his X-ray vision on Lin and gasped, forgetting that it was on, and closed his eyes, but not after seeing her naked body. He covered his eyes with his hands and cowered on the ground, shivering like crazy. His face beat red. He stayed like this as Lin began to walk away.

Tamashi peeked through his finger at Lin, no longer seeing through her clothing, though he could still perfectly picture her in his mind, causing him to once again shield his face from her. When she asked him if he wanted to lead, or if she should he removed his hands and stood up, shaking from both cold and embarrassment. He ran forward and took the lead, choosing the left path.

"F-follow me, M-miss. Lin." He stammered as he moved past her, his vision once again altering, again making him see through her clothes, causing him to again drop and cover his eyes. "I'm s-so sorry, Miss. L-Lin. I d-didn't mean to peak." He cowered on the ground at her feet, waiting for her to hit him.

Lin looked left and right, biting her lip again as she had no idea which one to choose. If Lin chose the left, it would probably be right. If she chose right, it would probably be left. She had that type of luck, though she didn't have much of a choice on what to do. It was already wild outside, and yet they were faced with a massive sake-barrel maze. A relieved smile appeared on her face as she watched Tamashi lead, briefly catching a glance at his shockingly crimson red face. She giggled.

"Damn, Tama-chan....you looked as if you've just seen someone naked!" Lin exclaimed, her childish giggle evolving into a full out laugh. Lin smiled, absolutely breathless, when she heard his next remark. Her expression rapidly switched from one of pure amusement, to utter confusion. "What do you mean peak, Tamashi? I don't see why your sorry.....there's nothing to peek at in here. Unless you tryin' to peek into the sake. Must be more curious than I thought you were...." Lin murmured with a barely audible chuckle, attempting to catch up with the seemingly embarassed boy.

Lin blinked in shock, quickly stopping in her tracks so she wouldn't fall. Her mind wondered why the boy was cowering at her feet. She didn't know what to do. She kneeled down, gently putting a hand to his arm. But, since he was soaked rain, she wasn't surprised when his body felt so chilly. Just, she didn't expect to be this cold. It was like he was carved from ice.

Lin looked around in her basket for something to help, as the only thing she had given him was warm tea. She couldn't find anything, just the flowers, herbs, and her violin. Lin then remembered that she put a fresh sheet on the bottom of the basket, as if she didn't, the stemms would always get lodged in the weaving wood. She removed the items of the basket rather quickly, setting them on the floor along the wall. It was a bit of a narrow path, but thankfully Tamashi had chosen the correct route, and it turned right up ahead.

She frowned, noticing that his undershirt was thin, therefore it couldn't be affecting him as much as the red jacket that was likely to be carrying the brunt of the icy water. "Here, sit up...I think it would be wise if you took the jacket off.....it's not too cold in here. Actually...it's kinda hot..." Lin noted, looking up at the venting in the room.

She wondered if someone had turned up to heat, maybe to suit the fermenting process of the sake. Lin re-focused her attention on Tamashi. Lin gently pulled the soaked jacket off of him, quickly replacing it with the dry, yet thin large cloth. Lin made sure to surround the bare skin, as even the warmest air could have an effect on cold drenched skin. She huffed impatiently, as it was getting a bit too hot for Lin, and it would take the nearly frozen Tamashi a while to notice the hot environment. In fact,

Lin was a bit happy that it was hot, as if was cold in here like it was outside it wouldn't help. Lin rolled up the sleeves of her purple kimono to where it sat just just below her shoulders. She looked back to the yellow cloth tied around the stems, softly tearing it away. She wrapped her hair in a loose ponytail, brushing it to where it sat curled beautifully around her shoulder.

Lin placed the bottles and other items in to the basket, cautiously setting Tamashi's jacket in front of the violin. Lin stood up, offering a helping hand to Tamashi. She smiled sheepishly at him. "I know the cloth doesn't help much, put it has to be much better than that jacket...." She said to him, briefly glancing forward. They only had one way to go, and since Tamashi had picked the right path, she'd might as well let him lead once again.

Tamashi stayed on the ground, cowering at Lin's feet, and he looked up at her, for some reason his eyes again altering their vision and he buried his head in his arms. Tamashi heard her giggle as he had walked past, probably at his face, which was undoubtedly red. When he heard her first remark he had stopped in his tracks temporarily before moving on, pausing for less than a second.

He cowered at her feet, because he had seen someone naked, her. "M-miss. Lin, I did peak. I p-peaked at you." He commented after she said something about peaking on the sake, which he had actually. He looked up at her, his vision normal, when she put her hand on his shoulder. When she began to look through the basket he wondered whether she was looking for something to discipline him with.

Tamashi was surprised when Lin told him to sit up. commenting on the temperature, and saying that he should take off his jacket which he did. He lay it on the ground, and felt slightly warmer, but was still very cold, and was still shivering. Tamashi felt the cloth being wrapped around him and he looked up at Lin. "Miss Lin..."

Tamashi watched as she pulled up her sleeves and again placed her hair into a ponytail, and continued to stare at her hair, captivated by it for some reason. He huddled himself under the sheet, gratitude and humiliation welling up in him. Gratitude for the kindness, and humiliation for what he had done to Lin.

Tamashi watched as she took his jacket and added it into the basket with everything else. He then looked at her extended hand and used it to stand. He listened to Lin's statement about the cloth, and Tamashi could feel his eye filling up with tears, and he hugged Lin tightly, his eyes shut, tears streaming out of them. "Thank you Miss. Lin for everything you've done, even with what I did, which is unforgivable. I should never have peaked at Miss. Lin, and I promise I hadn't meant to, honest I only wanted to see what the Sake looked like, and maybe try a little. But I never meant to peak at Miss. Lin's body." His face was buried into her shoulder, and his tears were pouring out into her.

Tamashi quickly pulled away, rubbing his arm over his eyes, brushing away his tears. He hadn't wanted to get Lin as soaked as he was, but he felt too bad to move on, so he stood still, looking down at the floor, shivering under the sheet, which in spots was already soaked through.

Lin sighed, her eyes glancing over the contents of the basket to make sure everything was in it's place. She blinked when Tamashi hugged her, not expecting it, but she smiled anyways. Lin hugged him back, not minding the wet, cold temperature. It was actually a welcomed surprise, as the heat was getting to her. She patted Tamashi on the head, looking down at him.

"It's not a problem Tamashi. And why are you crying?" Lin asked, unsure if her attempts to console the poor boy were in vain. She was once again confused as he mentioned that he peeked at her body. She looked down, even more confused when she saw that all the revealing areas of her body were covered up. Lin looked back to Tamashi, once again hearing him apologize about peeking. She decided the only way she'd actually help console the boy was to ask him a very important question.

"Tamashi, if i'm all covered up.....then how did you peek at me?" She questioned, her voice more confused than angry. She patted Tamashi once again as she stood up, waiting for him to answer as she strode over to the barrels in front of them. Lin set her basket down behind her She attempted to nudge them slightly, but nothing happened. Lin pushed harder against the full barrels, this time they moved a bit. She turned a corner, pushing another few. Lin jumped up, trying to see how far from the other exit they were. She gasped, as they were a bit closer than Lin expected to be. If she could just push a few more barrels they would be able to get to the door.

She tried pushing again, but yelped, slipping in a puddle of sake. Lin caught herself just in time, eyes widening as she saw that her face was dangerously close to the edge of a barrel. She walked back over to Tamashi, picking up her basket along the way. Lin kneeled down, sitting next to him. "We're closer then I expected....If we get out of this maze, than we can find a place to get you some dry clothes. My living quarters are around here, and I have some towels and such there. but first, we have to get out of here..." Lin explained to Tamashi, sitting and relaxing for a few minutes.

Tamashi hung his head and swallowed the growing lump in his throat. He was preparing to explain to her his unique ability. "You see, for a while now I have had this ability, that allows me to see through things, and I was looking through the barrels, and accidentally looked at you, causing me to see through your clothes, and.. and..." He cut off, unable to continue. He felt so ashamed of himself, that he couldn't continue to walk forward with Lin, knowing he didn't deserve her kindness.

He was about to move away, and leave through the way they had come, but Lin had just jumped onto one of the barrels, and Tamashi was concerned for her safety, his concerns only being verified when she nearly fell face first into one of the barrels. "Miss.Lin! Please, be careful." He said, as she righted herself.

As Lin explained to Tamashi that they were almost out, and that she wanted him to go to her living quarters to dry off Tamashi stared hard at her, before breaking out into a tearful smile. He bent down to Lin, who was sitting and hugged her again. His gratitude again being extraordinary. He didn't let go of her this time.

Lin looked on and listened to Tamashi, hearing him explain his ability. When he got to the last part, Lin's cheeks went from paled peach to a thouroughly deep red. She didn't know what to say. He had x-ray vision, while amazing, had just caused the boy to see her body completely naked. She blushed even deeper while thinking about it. She wasn't sure if she was more angry, or embarassed, or just plain awkward. She was never good at dealing with pecurliar situations, especially when it called for Lin's anger. Naturally, she wasn't the most angry person, she could be, but she wasn't good at it.

That was partially the reason she never ventured into the 2nd or 6th Division. Both needed the shinigami to be harsh and demanding on most occasions. Lin bashfully looked at Tamashi and back to the wall. She cleared her throat. "Ehh.....well....ummm.....do ya...ya know, have any....control...over this...ability?" Lin asked him, staring at the wall, still a dark red. She then remembered how many times the boy had apologized about peeking, and how terribly he was crying about looking at Lin with his ability in effect. She sighed, knowing that he hadn't meant to look at her. Lin couldn't rewind time, or pretend it didn't happen. She stared at Tamashi. "Just...don't do it...again, ok? You might....wanna try and ya know....train it." Lin said, unsure if her words made sense to the boy.

She blushed again as she looked into Tamashi ashamed eyes. Lin bit her lip, feeling bad for lecturing him yet knowing that it wasn't very proper for her to condone what had happened. Lin squeeked as the boy hugged her tightly, wondering if her suggestion to go and find him so suitable clothes was much more appreciated by the boy than Lin thought. She smiled slightly, returning his hug. Lin was still pretty embarassed that her body had been fully seen, but she managed to focus on other things. She stood up, looking at Tamashi and to the barrels. "I guess we should get going.....your not gonna be getting much warner with that cloth." Lin murmured to him, her smile genuine yet shy. Her basket was sitting around the next corner. Lin walked forward at a rather brisk pace.

She didn't notice the small puddle that she nearly slipped on before. Unfortunatly, this time, the puddle succeeded. Lin fell forward into the barrel of sake. She didn't break it, but she quickly stood up. Turning around to face Tamashi. She didn't sense the large gash on her forehead, the blood slowly dripping from it. Lin thought it was just a small bruise, nothing bad. She didn't notice til' a drop of blood fell on the ground, raising her hand to touch the wound. She cringed in pain, rubbing the blood between her fingers. Lin stared at Tamashi. "Well, I have bandages at home...." Lin mumbled, not sure what to say. She abruptly turned around, picking up the basket. She didn't have anything in there to help. She let out a soft smile anyways, never the girl to give into being upset.

Tamashi could tell that he had made Lin feel uncomfortable, but she had asked him. He stared at his feet, waiting for her to get angry, as it was the only reasonable reaction to the news he had just delivered. He looked up just in time to see her look to him then back to the wall. He heard her speak and was silent, not understanding why she wasn't mad. He gulped again and nodded.

"Mostly, though sometimes it does activate on it's own, usually when my emotions are out of control." He saw her red face and waited for her to scold him now that she knew he did in fact have some control over it, but didn't expect the reaction he got from her. he told him to not do it again, which he nodded quickly to, and to train it, which he again nodded in agreement at.

When he hugged her he wondered what she thought of it, and then he released her. He then nodded at her suggestion to continue on, and followed her. "Well if it makes you feel any better you're very pretty Miss. Lin, very pretty."

"MISS. LIN!" Tamashi shouted as she fell face first into one of the barrels and he ran forward to help her. She managed to get up before he had gotten there to help her, but she didn't seem to notice the massive gash on her forehead, which made Tamashi stop in his tracks, the blood pouring out of it reflecting in his eyes. He couldn't bear to see the Lin, who had shown him so much kindness hurt. He ran up to her, as she moved on, and grabbed at her arm. He followed her, trying to do his best now to protect her, and prevent her from being hurt anymore.

"Don't worry Miss. Lin, I'll protect you."

Lin nodded quickly at Tamashi's explanation of his powers, frowning when a few more droplets of blood fell upon the floor, some getting on her left hand. She wondered if his emotions triggered the x-ray ability, and if so......what emotions was Tamashi feeling. She blushed again at that thought, as it led to her thinking about the embarassment of being seen naked. Lin looked back up at Tamashi, both smiling shyly and blushing a deep red at his comment. "Uhhhmmm....thanks Tamashi. That's....that's really...nice of you...to say.." Lin stuttered, flattered and shy.

She sighed, wiping her hand against her forehead, forgetting that the gash was there. Lin winced again, sighing sadly as she looked at the book of her hand. It was pretty much coated in blood, while the blood around her gash was smeared. She saw the look in Tamashi's eyes, seeing much shock and surprise in them. Lin blinked as Tamashi grabbed her arm, softly smiling at him as he told Lin not to worry, and that he would protect her. "I think you're the one who doesn't need to worry, Tama-kun. We can protect each other, no?" She mentioned with a playful giggle, her voice sounding sweet, as if Lin didn't even have a gash on her head in the first place.

Of course, she was aware of it and the immense pain, but she was able to mask it with her other emotions. Lin had the odd ability, to be kinda happy even when she was injured. It had a very good effect on others, calming and peaceful. It's why Lin fit into the 9th Division and the 3rd Division well. Those factors allowed her to sympathize and care for others, including the beatiful black butterfly that delivered messages around Seireitai. That, and her clumsiness was much to overwhelming in the other divisions. Her eyes wandered to the large trail of fabric behind Tamashi, realizing it was her white sheet. She noticed it was very soaked from absorbing much of the rain in his clothes, and smiled slightly. Lin gently unwrapped the soaked cloth from around

Tamashi's body, as it probably wasn't helping right now. She wiped up the blood on her hand, clearing any sign of it. Lin then swiped gently across her forehead, making sure not to irritate her wound while attempting to clean up any of the blood Lin finally scrubbed any of the dryed blood streaks away, leaving a slight red mark in their place. She turned around, staring at Tamashi. Lin pointed up at her gash with the blood coated left hand. "How bad is it? And be honest, Tama-kun." Lin asked him, hoping that it wasn't too bad. She quickly ripped off a long strip of white cloth, wrapping it carefully around her head and the wound to block any more blood from flowing.

Tamashi notice Lin blush and smiled lightly, relizing that he caused it, and for some reason he found it slightly amusing. Tamashi heard her stuttered thanks and smiled more warmly. "Your welcome Miss. Lin, I said nothing but the truth." He said kindly, his face slightly red, for he wasn't the most open person ever, he was still quite shy when it came to the opposite gender.

Tamashi continued to monitor Lin's injury, and watched her smear it across her forehead, and he winced with her. wondering how much it really hurt her. He nodded when she replied to his statement of protecting her and walked with her still, holding her sleeve as they went.

When she removed the sheet from him Tamashi shivered slightly, still cold, though not by quite as much. He watched Lin use it to clean the blood off of her hand, and around the wound, which was quite bad. He checked it out more throughly when she asked him to tell her how bad it was. He cleared his throat before he answered. "Well, it doesn't look to deep, but it's kinda long, going over both eyes, I'm surprised no blood spilled into them. We should probably get to your place quickly, so that it can be properly treated." He said as he urged her onward, pulling on her sleeve.

Lin sighed softly, accepting his opinion. At least she knew how it looked, and how much she'd need to treat it over the next few days. She, like any sane person, hated injuries, especially when she got them from stupid situations. Lin knew she could've avoided that puddle of sake if she just paid attention, but no, Lin's short attention span managed to grip her mind. She began to turn the corner, smiling slightly at Tamashi. Lin was aware that the boy was a very caring person, something she appreciated more than he would ever know. And yet, Lin would blush everytime she thought about. She pondered unrelentlessly on this thought, but awakened from her stupor a few minutes after.

Lin flashed a thrilled smile at Tamashi, as they had finally found the door. She quickly walked forward, grasping the small handle and pulling gently. A soft, cool breeze hit them as the door swung open, the rain now a very light shower. The sky was now a entrancing violet and pink, the sunset on the horizen. Darkened clouds were far away, probably passing over the Rukon now. In their place was bluish clouds, showing that it was now dusk. She scratched her head, peering at Tamashi. "I suppose we were in there for longer then I thought we were.....but, now it's so nice out. My place is probably within' walking distance, and since it's very lovely right now, I think it would be much more pleasant if we walked, no?" Lin murmured softly to Tamashi, a small grin on her face. The violet sky and orange sunset had a breathtaking effect on Lin, her hair being tinted a purple-pink color and her skin lit with a peachy glow.

Some of the other male shinigami gazed at her while walking by, though most were just eager to get to their barracks for the night. Some of them stared at her bloody makeshift bandage. She kneeled down looking into a puddle of water. She gasped as she saw the bandage, already soaked with blood. Lin removed the bandage carefully, observing the messy gash. Her fingertips traced along it, wincing at the stinging that accompanied it. She retied the bandage around her head, standing back up with a half-hearted smile. "It looks pretty horrid....stupid barrel." Lin mumbled, beginning to walk towards her place with Tamashi. The sunset cast a skinny, distorted shadow of Lin. She looked at Tamashi. "I might have some tea at my place, though i'm not sure. But at least you can change into something dry, and I can patch up this cut." Lin said to him with another chilidish giggle.

Tamashi walked with Lin until they found the door. He smiled as she opened it revealing that dusk had arrived. He nodded at her statement about walking and followed her again, a happy smile on his face. He looked over at Lin, and saw her bathed in the orangey-pink light of the sunset, and he couldn't look away. He was entranced by her, and e followed her staring at her, a content smile on his face.

Tamashi saw the other males look at her and smirked. He knew he wasn't anything to really look at, most of the other males around them were better looking, but he was a caring person, which he knew a lot of girls liked. He smirked again, sticking out his tongue at someone.

He stopped behind Lin as she stopped and examined her wound in a puddle. And as she walked away, again leading the way to her house Tamashi followed. When she spoke his listened and nodded. "Even if there is no tea, if I have your company everything is fine." He said with a smile, letting her continue to lead the way to her home.

Lin yawned, looking around the misted dusk of the Seireitei. Shinigami were scurrying around, some going to their homes and others going to stores and restaurants. The soft lamps slowly lit up one by one, mixing with the natural light of the sunset. It was very gorgeous, the sunet provided more color while while the lamps provided calm illumination. She smiled at Tamashi. "That's nice of you to say, Tamashi." Lin murmured just loud enough for him to hear. He really was a very polite and calm guy, she was kinda surprised she hadn't met him before. Lin chuckled, pointing over to her place. "There it is!" She exclaimed. It looked exactly like the other places, though there was one small difference. A blue colored mat, reading "Welcome." was placed in front of the door. Lin walked forward, twisting the handle of the of the door until she heard a small click. She thrust the door open, her eyes peering into her place. It was pretty dark, as she had blown out all the lamps she lit in the morning before going on her expedition. She snatched a book of matches from a small wooden table by the door, slipping of her shoes.

She quickly struck a match, the flame a eerie glow on her features. Lin put the match up to each candle and lamp, lighting up the race rather fast. she looked back to Tamashi as she snuffed out the match, slipping it with the rest of them. "You can sit on the sofa, i'll go ahead and find you something decent." Lin said to him, kinda unsure what he would wear. She did have a rather masculine outfit that accidently ended up in a pile of towels that she was borrowing from the 4th Division. It probably was for patients, but she never returned out, or used it for that matter. Lin thought for a few seconds trying to remember where she placed it. She walked over to the closet in a brisk fashion, peeking up to the top shelf. Like she somewhat predicted, it was there. Lin snatched it from the self, along with a towel and walked back to Tamashi. She handed them the towel and clothes, grinning.

"Uhhhhh....you can go change over there. I'm gonna go clean this wound and find a normal bandage." Lin explained with a shy giggle. She unwrapped the strip of cloth, ditching it in a small trash bin. Her place was relatively small, a bathroom, bedroom, small living room, and even smaller kitchen area. Lin walked back to the bathroom, taking a bandage out from a small pack of things. She rinsed the cut with some water, bearing through the slightly stinging pain. She patted it dry and placed the bandage over it, walking to the small kitchen. She smiled, delighted to find that she had kept a pot of tea brewing over the slow burning fire. Lin set two cups down on a tray, pouring the tea into each one. She carefully walked back, setting it on the small wooden table. Lin sighed with relief, sitting down on the couch. Things were finally calming down.

Tamashi followed Lin, smiling at her as they went. when they arrived at her home he slowly followed her in. He stepped inside and removed his soaked shoes, and walked in proper looking around, a small smile adorning his features. He saw pick up a match, then noticed all the lamps and candles, as she began to light them.

Tamashi sat on the couch as he was told, and examined the room move closely. It seemed cosy, and the perfect size for one person to live in comfortably. He smiled at Lin as she went to go find him something to change into. when she returned with the towel and change of clothing he moved over to one corner and smirked over at Lin. "No peaking, i know I'm not one to talk, but still."

He hung the towel off of two corners and stood behind it, removing his drenched clothing and slipping into the new ones Lin had given him. He lowered the towel, which had miraculously stayed up while he was changing, and he held up his wet clothing and the towel to Lin. "Where do you want me to put these?" he asked looking over at her on the couch, noticing the new bandage on her forehead, as well as the two teacups on the table.

Lin snickered as Tamashi told her not to peeking. "Me? Peeking? Pfft, look who's throwin' stones in glass houses!" Lin joked, her voice full of amusement and playfulness. She chuckled, as Lin being one of the most shy and skittish people, would even think of peeking. at someone while they were nude. Lin quickly hopped up from the small couch as Tamashi came back with the wet clothes.

"I'll just set them on the table. There's some lemon tea on the table, if ya want any." Lin said, smiling politely. She used one very small shunpo over to her closte and grabbed two more towels. And she used one more going back to the living room. Balancing the wet clothes in one hand and dry towels in another, she sat the towels down on the flat surface, unfolding them Lin set the wet clothes onto the dry towels, unfolding them also so that the towels would absorb some of the water. She returned to the couch, calmly sitting down Lin sighed, looking around.

"Ehhh.....it's such a boring little place.....Maybe I should paint it....." Lin said to herself quietly, different colors flashing through her mind. Blue? Nah. Maybe red or orange. Her focus strayed from the wall and over to Tamashi. Lin's eyes glanced at his briefly, before noticing he had three odd scars on his cheek. "How'd you get your scars.........." Lin whispered quietly, somewhat fascinated and troubled. Without thinking of what she was doing, her right hand raised to his face, her soft fingertips brushing against the scars. She gasped directly after she did this, her hand dropping back to her lap. Lin blushed slightly as she looked at the floor. "Ummm.........sorry....." Lin mumbled, a bit embarassed.

Tamashi smirked at Lin's reply. He then did as she said and placed his wet clothes on the table. He sat down next to her on the couch and smiled contently. Watching her shunpo around the place. He smiled at her as she put his clothes onto towels, hopefully helping them to dry off. Thank you for all of this Miss. Lin."

Tamashi looked around as Lin spoke about her place, and how it maybe could use a paint job. He shrugged as he looked. "I think it's a nice little cosy place." He said smiling kindly at Lin. Tamashi noticed Lin's eyes on his and he smiled at her, a large warm smile. which died slightly as she spoke of his scars. He was momentarily lost deep in thought. "I don't remember..." he said staring down at his lap, jumping slightly when he felt her fingers on his scar.

When she apologized for touching him he smiled at her. "It's all right Miss. Lin, you didn't do anything wrong." He said as he brushed his own hand across her cheek. He pulls his own hand away, and looks away from Lin.

Lin yawned as her eyes peered to the wooden blinds by the door. The glow of the lamp lights peeked in, mixed with the darkness of the early night. She smiled, her eyelids slightly lowering
slowly. Lin sipped the rest of her tea, setting it carefully back on the bamboo. She blushed deeply as Tamashi's hand grazed her cheek, smiling softly at him. She curled up on the couch, bringing her knees up to her chest. Her head rested on the pillow, looking up at Tamashi. Lin huffed as the stiff pillow jabbed into her back, removing it from the couch and tossing it at the other side of the room.

Her eyes wandered to Tamashi and back to the other side of the couch. A very small smile pulled at the corner of her lips, choosing to lean on Tamashi. Lin blushed slightly, hoping she didn't make him uncomfortable, but her blush faded away. She looked up at Tamashi again, nodding at his remark. "I suppose it is rather cozy.......just a bit boring. The plain brown is so....unpleasant..." Lin murmured softly, struggling to find a word for the aggravating color. Lin's eyelids began to feel heavier and heavier, a result of the eventful day. She had never let anyone get this close to her, she hadn't even let anyone in her small place since before the phenomenon. Lin didn't know why, but she felt unusually safe around the boy.

She yawned once more, obviously tired and exhausted. She wondered if Tamashi waas tired, or if was just a result of her ridiculous work and sleep schedule. It was only 7 p.m. and the sun had just set. She heard a voice speak in the back of her mind. "Looks like someone is getting rather comfy...." Blitzkrieg noted, followed by a small snicker. She hissed back at the disembodied voice of her zanpaktou spirit, always the wise ass he was. "Hush, I don't wanna deal with your snarky-ness right now. Shoo, go take a nap or somethin'." Lin mumbled back, trying to get the voice to shut up. [i]"Snarky-ness isn't word. And no, I will not go take a nap." He responded. Lin groaned, giving up. She continued to lean on Tamashi.

Tamashi watched Lin as she got comfortable, tossing aside the pillow in favor of... him. He mentally shrugged and smiled down at her. "I suppose brown is rather dull isn't it." He said softly as he smiled. Tamashi could tell just by looking at her that Lin was getting tired. He wondered if she wanted him to go, so that she could get some rest.

"Miss. Lin, if you want I can go, so you can sleep. i can tell your tired." He offered, looking down at her. he heard her groan, wondering if that was a yes. He smiled lightly down at her, and rested one of his arms around her, deciding against moving. "Or if your comfortable enough you can use me to sleep on, I don't mind." He said, a slight redness coming over his cheeks.

Lin smiled softly as she peered up at Tamashi. "Very much. I prefer orange and green and sometimes blue......they're such bright colors. But brown is....plain." Lin's eyelids blinked slower than before, her eyes glazed over. She could no longer deny her exhaustion, as much as she wanted to. Her eyes flashed up to Tamashi as her expression switched from sleepy comfort to shock. Lin kinda didn't want Tamashi to go, as he had just got to her place. She yawned briefly and started speaking. "I am tired....but i don't want you to go. Though you can go if you want to go you can....It's not gonna get anymore interestin'..." Lin mumbled with a small giggle. She resisted the urge to keep him with her, which put her even deeper into her sleepy state of being. Lin yawned, hugging Tamashi as she fell asleep. She really didn't want to fall asleep, but it was much to late for her to fully wake up.

(Sorry, it's kinda short >.<)