Family Matters(Fumiko, closed)

[Fumiko Kurosaki]

Fumiko smiled softly at Kasumi as she took her place beside her. Watching her brother from the corner of her eye she was thankful that only her arm went around her waist and nothing else occurred. That was until she felt a gentle squeeze upon her butt to which she did not even flinch as to maintain appearances. She just made a mental note of it to get her payback later. Hearing Kasumi speak she knew the tone and knew she would have to say something to settle the situation before they blew up at one another.

"Kasumi.. I know we can trust my brother with the truth as he welcomed me to his home without any pretense. "

As she spoke she put her arm around Kasumi's neck and rested it on the other woman's shoulder. The smile upon her face broadened and she looked at Makoto her eyes easily betraying her unspoken words. She was in a little turmoil as she had never told her brother about her 'experiments' while living abroad, and how she had found herself and why it was she hated all the attention she had garnered growing up.

"Before you even ask me let me just straight out tell you Onii-san. Kasumi and I are a couple. She let me move in with her after her attack as I needed somewhere to stay that was not a hotel. Needless to say after I was injured we grew closer to one another..."

Her smile had faded a little as she spoke but she turned her head to Kasumi and spoke back up.

"Now I call Kasumi part of the family... Until today she was the only family I had... Now I have your family added to my own little family... It seems like fate has lined all of this up to happen at once."

As she spoke of her family she would hug Kasumi and squeeze her should gently as if seeking comfort in the embrace between them. She had bared it all to Makoto and now she waited for his judgement of her life choice at this moment.

[Makoto Kurosaki]

Lies flowed from the young woman's leaps, making Makoto chuckle a little in amusement. She was certainly an awful liar, although that was usually a good sign if you were determining one's character. He watched the young woman interact with his sister, deafening him with their silent screaming of the obvious truth. The veil cast by Kasumi to conceal it was a pathetic one, so he patiently waited for his sister to tear it down completely, as she had never been able or willing to engage in deception, especially when speaking to her only sibling. He nodded when his sister revealed his earlier actions, adding, "Kasumi-san, Fumiko-chan and I have reconciled for our past," his voice sincere and serious. Time would advance slowly, mending the family bonds, yet this girl seemed unaware of current events or her lack of a role in them.

Makoto's face remained impassive while Fumiko ripped the veil away, allowing the light to shine through the dimly lit corridors of her past. He immediately understood the connotation of her vague statement, sighing a little simply from the weight of the past returning to burden his shoulders again. If the two of them had walked forward together, how would the road have contoured and transformed for their reconstruction? The sins of the past could not be corrected, only recalled so they did not stain the present. Thinking of the beginning of the restoration, the older Kurosaki smiled and simply commented, "If you're waiting for condemnation, I'm afraid you'll be waiting for a very long time. I would caution you to protect her well, though. These are dangerous times." His smile wavered a little bit, feeling the darkness surrounding the city that had soaked even his sister's blood into its wretched core. Whatever happened, the two of them, along with this newly introduced entity, could survive and overcome it, the light of their righteousness shattering the plots of the damned.

His smile returned to full force, the mention of fate amusing him. Humanity carved out its own path, each individual turning at a different crossroads and making their journey to the destination they had earned. Still, it was interesting that these events had occurred within such a small time-frame, purely the result of coincidence, of course. Brown orbs glossed over the form of the woman whom he would be accompanying for a short portion of her journey. Just from first impressions, she appeared rather temperamental and foolish, while a quick examination of her reiatsu confirmed his suspicions that her powers were not yet awakened. Realizing that it would make things exciting, the noble successor spoke. "So this is the girl I'm going to train? When did you intend for us to begin, Fumiko-chan? I suggest immediately," said Makoto matter-of-factly. There was certainly plenty of work to be done for this girl, and he would start by improving her attitude. She had to learn respect prior to starting the lengthy and difficult path that faced her, understanding that her mentor was an honorable man, regardless of his previous errors that had fled from him, the tears of a loved one drowning them.

[Fujihara Kasumi]

Frowning uncertainly as Fumiko declared him trustworthy, she prepared herself for the truth to be unleashed, watching Makoto with a suspicious glare and barely acknowledging his words of reassurance. She didn’t even meet her lovers smile as she looked to her, merely nodding along as their story was recounted. In all honesty she didn’t give a damn who knew the truth about their relationship, realizing that whilst it may garner some disapproval from the ignorant you simply could not choose who you fell in love with. Resisting the urge to brazenly kiss the older woman, she squeezed her a little and leaned her head on her shoulder.

“Of course I’ll look after her. I’ve sworn to guard her with my life, I’ll never let anyone hurt her again.” Her words were stern, spoken with a carefully measured volume of venom, but already her opinion of the man was softening. It was clear even to her that they had resolved their issues and her petulance would do nothing but drive them apart again. But still, she had to regard him with a certain amount of disdain befitting of an absentee brother. His next words hit her like a surprise attack.

“You’re gonna train me?! No way, Fumi-chan and I have it covered, we’ll be just fine. I’m not sure our training styles are compatible anyway.” Doing her best to protest she realized that they had probably decided this before she had arrived, so it would mostly be in vain. From the look in his eye he would relish the opportunity to knock her down a few notches, but she would resist him every step of the way. Desperately she looked up to Fumiko with her best puppy dog expression, silently begging her to change her mind.

[Fumiko Kurosaki]

Fumiko let out a held breath as Makoto spoke. His lack of condemnation of her life choices made her release it and smile with her heart open. Hearing her brother then ask her about training Kasumi she would nod and hug Kasumi a little tighter. Then came Kasumi's retort which made Fumiko giggle a little as she awaited her turn to speak. As Kasumi ended she spoke up.

"Kasumi I am needing to do something incredibly dangerous... There is a power within myself and Makoto that came from a combination of our father and how we unlocked our shinigami powers. It needs to be reeled in and tamed otherwise it can and will overwhelm us and drive us into insanity... And in order to do so may leave me laid up for days or weeks. So while I am in this state I have asked my brother to assist you in training... But first things first I need to help you unlock your talents... However we can do that."

Fumiko spoke out what she had to deal with as plain as she could. She hoped that Kasumi would at least listen to her. Raising her head from looking down at Kasumi she looked directly at Makoto and nodded to her brother and his wife. It had taken a long time yet now Fumiko felt whole, felt like she belonged.

[Makoto Kurosaki]

Laughter escaped the mouth of the older Kurosaki. Who did this girl think she was fooling? To him, it was painfully obvious that she disliked him and did not enjoy the idea of being trained by him, even though her sentiments were entirely irrelevant. Whether she hated him or not, he and his sister were the only ones who could help her in unlocking and controlling her latent abilities. The only other faction capable of doing this was those damnable Quincy and they could not be allowed to take in someone spiritually aware. They were already annoying enough, preventing the true protectors of Karakura Town from carrying out their duties, disrupting the balance of the souls while maintaining their arrogant belief that the destruction of the Hollow was up to them. Ignoring the young woman's protests, Makoto said, "The training shall begin tomorrow morning at the underground facility beneath Urahara's shop.", his tone indicating that it was not a request.

He smiled at his sister, relishing the thought of their reconciliation. Who was he to judge her choices after treating her so terribly for years? It did not matter, though. The past was dead, the condemnation and bitterness lying in its grave, rotting away as love and affection broke it down to be swallowed up by the earth. Now, there was a storm on its way, threatening to obscure the sun, the clouds suffocating it and the biting rain drenching any who cannot escape. Family must stick together, forever and always, but also must rally to one another's aid when it is most necessary. He would stand by his sister to overcome the tempest, protecting even this impolite one along the way, and sail into peaceful waters once it was all said and done. Nodding to his sister as an appropriate farewell, Makoto took his wife by the hand and returned inside to his wonderful family. Not even the prospect of training this one could dampen his spirits now. Tomorrow would be a clear and beautiful day; he just knew it.

[Fujihara Kasumi]

“No! If you’re going to get hurt, I want to be there with you! I couldn’t leave you alone when you’re injured and vulnerable…” Kasumi gushed stubbornly, shaking herself free from Fumiko’s grasp. “Don’t let yourself get hurt on purpose… Can’t you beat this thing without forcing yourself into danger?” She folded her arms with a pout, unwilling to recognise how childish she was being. After being dependant and self-sufficient for so long it was infuriating having her future decided by external forces, even if they were doing it out of concern for her well-being.

She threw up her hands in exasperation as Makoto said his final piece and left them with a meagre nod as a farewell before she could protest. What the hell had just happened? Who was Urahara? How the hell did he obtain an underground training facility?! With a sarcastic wave to the family of her companion, she handed Fumiko her helmet and took her hand to pull her back towards her bike.

“Well that was, uh, interesting. I don’t really have to go meet him tomorrow do I?” Taking up her spare helmet (a glimmering cherry red with a grey frosted visor) she held it in her hands contemplatively as she realized how futile her resistance was. It felt like she had been drawn into a tumultuous storm, one that she could no longer escape and though she didn’t want to lose Fumiko in the swells, she wondered how long she could stay afloat before it became too much and she sunk into the murky depths. Shaking her head with an anxious glance to her companion, she pulled on the helmet and jumped onto the bike, kick-starting the engine to life and waited to feel Fumi-chan clutch her from behind. Maybe now that Makoto had been forgiven, there wouldn’t be a place for her any more. What if she moves out?! Her stomach churned at the thought. She was almost looking forward to the training now, perhaps it would help take her mind off of these dark things. And maybe she would finally be able to access her hidden power so she could fulfil her sincere promise to Fumiko.

[Fumiko Kurosaki]

Hearing Kasumi's words about wishing to be at her side should she get injured Fumiko kept her eyes on her. Taking a deep breath she cleared her mind and spoke as her brother turned to head inside.

"Be safe Onii-san. Now Kasumi I will be fine. There will be several skilled healers close by. And they shall be there to assist in a moments notice. So I will be in good hands. Please do not worry about me while I train as to draw your own powers out you cannot worry of me."

Fumiko smiled as her brother spoke his final peace before heading back inside with his wife. She gave the two of them a slight bow of respect and watched them head inside. As they did she felt the unease coming from Kasumi and she would put her arm back around her as they walked over to the motorcycle. Hearing Kasumi ask her about Urahara and whether or not she had to actually go there Fumiko frowned a little.

"Yes, but the thing is I will be there at your side Kasumi. I will not be that far away as my own training will not begin for a few days..."

Catching the helmet she bundled up her long hair into the helmet as she heard Kasumi start up the motorcycle. A smile was on her face as she walked over and got onto the motorcycle. Wrapping her arms around Kasumi's waist she interlocked her hands about Kasumi's belly button. Placing her head into the middle of Kasumi's upper back she spoke over the din of the bike.

"Let us head home Kasumi... I think a nice long hot shower is in our future would you agree with me?"

[Hirato Murano]

Makoto returned inside his home, glancing back for a moment at the sight of his sister with the younger woman. He was certainly very concerned about her well-being, even more so now that she to look after a weak girl. There would be a time when Fumiko's lover would be in danger and in turn, endanger his sister, the call of love making him willingly take the path to death. However, when that happened, he'd support her and stave off the hungry shadows. After all this time of alienation, he would not let anything take his sister away from him. It was his duty as her older brother to protect her, no matter the personal cost, no matter what victory took. She was family and they had to stick together, persevering through the long night and all its machinations to reach the beautiful morning.

For now, he had to guard his wife and children and make sure nothing could reach them before venturing in the sun's early luminescence to set the young woman on the path she must take. Makoto wondered whether she would recognize that it was the only one she could take at this point, the time for turning back having passed long ago. The phantoms had to be brought out into the light and vanquished; although he did not have a very good opinion of Kasumi, he did realize that she was permanently linked to his sister now and they did need all the help they could get to face off the gathering darkness. He kissed his wife good-night and tucked his children into bed, looking forward to teaching the young woman in matters of respect as well as spiritual powers, his mind drifting into the warm embrace of sleep.

(End Thread)