[Bleachitp:Reborn] Mortal World IV

[Kasanip]

Sayaka

Sayaka was not participating in the argument. Instead, she was standing silently thinking with a gloomy expression.
The argument of Ken and Kaito continued. Sayaka didn't care. She did notice of course that Ken's promise was very quickly broken.

Sora said he would take the blame. And this surprised Sayaka. She did not know him that well. But it was valiant.
Unfortunately it would not work, Sayaka gloomily thought. Valeria's comment was more cheerful, and Sayaka made a small smile.
Quickly it returned to a tired gloom. But a sharp expression for a moment.
"It is a choice that was made. There must be choices made and accepted."
Sayaka flinched when Hasunaga approaches. Why doesn't this teacher have class? She wonders.

To be reprimanded by a teacher and principal? Already she was being punished by her father.
It cannot become worse, is an optimistic feeling.

[KnightDisciple]

"Amazing. You kids managed to coordinate yourselves to kill a bunch of Hollows, but you can't put your differences aside for something as simple as detention. I am a little disappointed."

"Well, we can't exactly punch the principal to make the detentions go away, Hasunaga-sensei."

Kaito's voice was frustrated, but his expression was more one that seemed a bit exhausted already.

"As a group, you're supposed to stick together. It's great that each of you had your own ideas for how to get yourselves out of this mess, but you're not doing anyone a favor by letting your troubles come between you."

"Sometimes personalities don't mesh well, Hasunaga-sensei. Fact of life, especially teenage life."

[Kuroimaken]

"Actually, you can, but I wouldn't recommend it. It would land you bigger trouble than you already have on your hands."

Hasunaga noted, and sighed deeply. No smoking in school grounds, he reminded himself again.

"With that said, Kaito-kun - and this will pain me a lot more than it will pain you to say - the fact you so easily acknowledged right now is something you've been hiding behind the recent attacks on your family. Don't use your family as an excuse for your frustration. It doesn't become you. I understand you and Ken don't get along that well on principle - he's a sports guy and you're a book guy, and as tiring a cliche as that is in school dramas, the fact is the two of you don't think alike. But it's up to you to be the mature side of the conversation and back down first, otherwise you're just as bad as you accuse him of being.

Not that that excuses you, Ken. But your own lesson is best left to teach in private. But make no mistake." And with that, Hasunaga's open eye glinted with a hint of maliciousness. "It WILL be taught."

He turned to the other kids.

"Sayaka-san." He walked up to the girl and gently patted her shoulder. "Good work. You've been trying really hard, haven't you? I understand you must be feeling overwhelmed right now, but I'll try to reward you for your efforts later."

Next was Rex.

"Irons-kun. For someone who has come from so far away, you've not once mentioned that fact as something to be proud or ashamed of. As far as I'm concerned, you're already half-Japanese. You will have your own trials ahead, I'm sure, but as long as you can keep that spirit of unity you've just shown, you should be just fine."

Valeria.

"Valeria-san. I'm sure there must be a lot going through your mind right now, but remember there are always those willing to listen if you need to talk to someone. Just don't lose yourself in your thoughts, okay?"

Kina.

"Yoshimoto-san. You need not be ashamed of your actions or your thoughts. You're a braver young girl than you realize, and in time you will know how to trust yourself more. And while that doesn't happen, trust me. Believe in the me that believes in you."

Sora.

"I'm actually pleasantly surprised with you. That selfless side you've shown just now - why have you been keeping it in for so long?"

And finally, Nakahiro.

"Wada-kun. You've been keeping a cool head through this, which is a very good thing. You're clearly the one who tries to make the best choices in any given situations. But don't forget to put heart into them too. There will be times when the right choices will be the ones defying all logic."

He then looked at all the kids together.

"I will be bailing you kids out this one time. You all have your own things to worry about, and you won't be a good team until you've taken care of them.

Any questions?"

[KnightDisciple]

"Why are you helping? I got the impression from before you didn't really care about what happened to us. I mean, you didn't come along to help or anything. You just stood there watching us. Now you suddenly feel responsible?"

He gave a laugh that sounded a bit sad and frustrated in equal measures.

"And you suddenly care about how well we get along? What brought the change of heart on? It's okay to help us after our families are out of imminent danger?"

[Kuroimaken]

"What a blockheaded way of thinking, Kaito-kun. Would you rather I swept in and saved the lot of you single-handedly? That I had been quietly watching from the shadows 'just in case'?

That wouldn't be very trusting of me, would it?"

Hasunaga looked his student straight in the eye.

"What I don't care for is the lot of you actively going out to hunt Hollows. That's dangerous enough to do as a well-oiled group, much less as a ragtag bunch that can't hold it together. But I see that I won't be able to talk all of you out of this now that you've seen what the spirit world is like, so the least I SHOULD do is make sure you can face it well enough to know when to run and when to fight.

You all did well this time, but if you don't come together next time will be very different. One of you could get seriously injured or even die.

I don't want that on my conscience. It's selfish and I admit that.

While you were out being heroes, I was making sure I had a good excuse to bail you out."

[strawberryman]

Valeria looks up at Hasunaga's speech and after a few moments, makes a nervous nod. She begins to lighten up a bit, too...

"We have our reasons for not getting involved, Kaito-kun."

Hibiki walks up after Hasunaga. "There are things you do not know about the world, like the fact that our involvement could put everyone in greater risk than you already were. We could have helped and made things much easier, but in doing so we could draw even more powerful entities." He gives the boy a striking glance.

"I shall have you know, I was watching the entire time, and were it not for a promise I made, I would have come. Because we are responsible."

[Wahrheit]

"Thanks, Hasunaga-sa- uh, -sensei. Pardon my skepticism, though, but how can you get all of us off the hook at once? That's gotta be a da-, uh, a really good excuse."

[KnightDisciple]

Kaito wilts under the one-two-punch of the lecture, before sinking back against the wall and sliding down it until he's sitting on the floor. He runs a hand through his hair as he takes several deep, slow breaths, clearly working to stay calm.

His friends might almost be amazed that the only outward expression of his current emotional state is a couple of pencils on a nearby empty desk rattling around for a few moments before Kaito clenches a hand, and even that stops.

"I just don't want to lose my family..."

[Kuroimaken]

"Do not underestimate the pull a teacher has in a school, Irons-kun. There are a great deal of things a teacher can actually do without notifying the principal.

Hibiki-sensei, good of you to come." He noted to his colleague. "Your help would be greatly appreciated if you have the time."

As he notices Kaito's wilting, Hasunaga crouches beside him and says, "Last I checked your family was perfectly alright. But you weren't the only one who protected them, were you? Give credit where credit is due, Kaito-kun."

[Wahrheit]

Rex crouches next to Kaito, looking worried. "You've got people watching your back, uh... Watanabe-san. I can't talk for any of the others, but I'll help out you an' yours whenever ya need."

[Kayne650]

Unlike the other teachers, Mayumi actually had classes to teach, so she could not go and offer encouraging words. However, she did have one hell of a sneezing fit when Ren and Reene mentioned her name, though it barely broke the flow of her lecture at all. She simply barreled right along about cell division or whatever it was her lecture was about today.

[KnightDisciple]

Kaito groaned in frustration.

"I never said anyone here didn't help! But just because everyone helped, doesn't mean I'm bosom buddies with everyone! That's not how real life works!

And I'm sorry if I come off as cranky, but gee, between my house getting shot up, my parents getting taken by Hollows, having to fight those Hollows, and then topping it off with Val's dad coming by Mr. Reiji's place, giving me the Evil Eye, and having some weird conversation with Mr. Reiji, I think I have a right to be at least a little on edge still!"

[Kuroimaken]

"You're doing it again, Kaito-kun.

Just stop for a moment. Take a deep breath, and look at your schoolmates.

Now tell me. How many complete and total strangers have you met that would help you in a time of need, with potentially lethal consequences, without so much as hesitating or having a second thought?

If those aren't friends, what are they?

Now stop and put yourself in their shoes. How would you feel if you helped someone rescue their loved ones and that someone told you that just because you did that doesn't mean you're friends?

At the very least, that's ungrateful of you. Don't you agree?"

[strawberryman]

Valeria blinks. She was aware her father was a particularly intimidating man at times, with his scar and business-like demeanor, but rarely did he act such towards his daughter. The more pressing question was what he had to do with Kaito and his parents, and the mysterious Reiji.

Hibiki chimes in after Hasunaga. "If not friends, do please acknowledge them as allies. The forces you all are resolved to face are a much greater target for this frustration than inward, and while you do not need to be best of friends, can you not respect them as comrades?"

[KnightDisciple]

"You're doing it again, Kaito-kun.

Just stop for a moment. Take a deep breath, and look at your schoolmates.

Now tell me. How many complete and total strangers have you met that would help you in a time of need, with potentially lethal consequences, without so much as hesitating or having a second thought?

If those aren't friends, what are they?

Now stop and put yourself in their shoes. How would you feel if you helped someone rescue their loved ones and that someone told you that just because you did that doesn't mean you're friends?

At the very least, that's ungrateful of you. Don't you agree?"

"That's not what I base my friendships on. Teammates, maybe, but I'm sorry if how I go about forging friendships is different than how you define it. It takes trust, trust in more than just a fight. It takes having some common ground. It takes not having personalities that get on like sodium and dihydrogen monoxide. So no, you're not going to guilt me about this. Again. He's a teammate. A fellow soldier. But that doesn't mean we're automatically friends. Not with how I define things like this. I mean, I'm sorry, but I still barely know some of these people!"

He stands up suddenly and starts walking for the door.

"I need some air."

[Kuroimaken]

"Perfectly good window right over there." Hasunaga helpfully points. And then sighs. "I think 'polishing' Kaito-kun will still take a while, Hibiki-sensei. He needs to be less uptight about things like this, but it's not like we can force him."

[nothingclever]

Ken walked over to Kaito as he started to leave. Oh geez, this sucks, but I might as well get it over with. Why couldn't he just stay silent a little longer? He was easier to approach and more pitiable when he was slumped over and quiet. "Please stay a moment." Ken gave Kaito one of his rare strained looks. It didn't mean he felt it was a huge pain or chore to say what he was about to say. It meant he just didn't think there was any chance what he was about to say was going to go over well. "I'm sorry you think I'm such a loser Kaito. I'm sorry I've acted like a loser, a jerk, whatever you'd call me. I don't know what to say. I promised my friends that I'd improve myself and I promise you I'll do the same. I'm sorry I don't seem to care enough or at all to you. I do care about things. I feel bad about what happened to you and your parents. I really do. I'm sorry we always end up at odds with each other. I'm sorry all I'm doing is saying I'm sorry. I don't know what else to do right now. I had planned on apologizing to you since yesterday night. I'm not just saying this because there's a crowd here to impress. I don't expect you to believe that I'm sincere and I don't expect you to care about what I say. I'm just using my words to say I'm sorry now and I'll try to do so with my actions later when opportunities present themselves." Ken looked around at the rest of the room before returning to Kaito. "I apologize to all of you too for bothering you."

[KnightDisciple]

Kaito walks out the office door, and a fair bit down the hall, before he stops and leans against the wall, taking several deep breaths to calm himself again. Nothing rattles around mysteriously this time; it seems the young boy is at least keeping a tighter and tighter reign on his powers.

But right now, he just needs to not be around the others. He doesn't even really care what it "looks like" right now.

'You're right, Ken. I don't believe you. Maybe if I had evidence you actually felt emotions, real genuine emotions, I'd believe you. But you have yet to display anything genuine. I can't trust someone like that. Even if everyone else can, I can't.'

He growled in frustration. Why was Hasunaga trying to force something that wouldn't work?

[Wahrheit]

Rex stood, shrugged, and leaned against the wall to await the inevitable. "We tried."

[strawberryman]

"Perfectly good window right over there." Hasunaga helpfully points. And then sighs. "I think 'polishing' Kaito-kun will still take a while, Hibiki-sensei. He needs to be less uptight about things like this, but it's not like we can force him."

Hibiki frowns. "...Indeed. He's fairly strong-willed. For better or worse." With that, he crosses his arms.

...Reminds me of someone, really.

"...I think that there may be a better place to talk this out, too." He looks to his surroundings. "Who knows who may be listening in."

Meanwhile, Valeria shyly and stealthily approaches Hasunaga to her best ability, and gives a light cough to announce her presence.

[Kuroimaken]

"That shouldn't be a problem, really. The one person I suspect who could be listening in to this would have intervened by now if it were a big deal." Hasunaga shrugged.

"Just give it time. When I was his age I could be pretty stubborn too. But maybe my method isn't suited to do this." the old teacher looked at Hibiki.

Then he looked at Ken. "If what you said to him was indeed true, then he'll eventually come to accept it. In the meantime, you'll have to work harder if you want to change the way people think about you. If you ask me, you're trying too hard to get people to notice you. But again... this is a lesson for another time."

[Terry576]

Sora.

"I'm actually pleasantly surprised with you. That selfless side you've shown just now - why have you been keeping it in for so long?"

Sora flushed and muttered something, scribbling in his sketchbook.

See onii-chan! Teacher-san totally agrees with me! You're like super awesome!

Ugh. He needed to stop listening to the voice in his head.

But I'm such a supercool voice nii-chan!

[nothingclever]

"What I said is true and I will work harder. I don't really want any attention, at least not any more than I already have. I just want the two people that sit next to me in class to keep being my friends." That couldn't be farther from the truth (the wanting to be noticed assumption). Plus Gurren Lagann is a bad anime and he should feel bad for liking and quoting it as an adult and simply as a human being. Ken follows Kaito out the door. He approaches him with a perplexed expression. "I'm sorry I seem so creepy. Kina told me yesterday that she was bothered by my lack of noticeable emotion and you made it clear multiple times when we were at the warehouse that you were bothered by it too. The thing is, really, I feel like I'm kind of dead inside. I just don't feel things the way other people do and I don't express myself the way they do either. It doesn't help that I pride myself on my stoicism. Still, when I'm around my two best buds I feel more alive. Don't the feelings I express when I'm around them seem genuine? I've noticed you watching and rolling your eyes at me here and there while I talk to Sayaka and Kina. You may think I'm a bad guy, but don't you think that when I smile and laugh with them I'm being real?"

[KnightDisciple]

Kaito glares at Ken and speaks over him before he finishes.

"How was my leaving the room not a clear message I want to be left alone right now."

He then turns and walks further down the hall.

[Draken]

Reene hears a commotion outside her office.

"Excuse me, the two of you."

She proceeds to the door, and opens it without much cerimony. It is an interesting scene. Two teachers standing there and Watanabe gone.

"Hasunaga, Hibiki. What are you two doing here and where are Watanabe and Go?"

There is an unusual mix of anger and frustration in the principal's voice, the kind she usually reserves for Beck Williams.

[Kuroimaken]

"I'm here to clear up a terrible misconception regarding the students' absence yesterday. Watanabe and Go weren't feeling that well so I sent them to the infirmary for the moment. I can't speak for Hibiki-sensei, however." Hasunaga replied with a slight cough.

[Shades of Gray]

[Day 20, small hours, Eirene's apartment]

In turn, Mihail spends more time observing Eirene and her reactions than what's playing on the screen. As such, the movie goes past him, pretty much. When it ends, he glances around the apartment, looking for a clock, though judging from the runtime, he estimates it to be around 5 AM. <"Well, that was... entertaining">, he mumbles. <"Should we watch another one? You seem quite... perky.">

<Sure. One of the many benefits of working at a café is that I have a good supply of coffee after nights, well, mornings like these.> Eirene fishes out another DVD, an older romance-drama movie. <Say, don't you have work tomorrow?>

[Frozen_Feet]

<"I take it you mean 'today'. Yes... in about... one and a half hours or so">, Mihail replies and yawns. Then he notices the disk she's holding. <"Casablanca? Isn't this only our first date?">, he teases.

[nothingclever]

Kaito glares at Ken and speaks over him before he finishes.

"How was my leaving the room not a clear message I want to be left alone right now."

He then turns and walks further down the hall.

Ken stands where he is and finishes what he has to say as Kaito continues to walk away. He refused to let himself just be cut off when he was making a real effort to be nice to him and explain himself. Then he quickly walks back to the group in the waiting room.

[strawberryman]

"I'm here to clear up a terrible misconception regarding the students' absence yesterday. Watanabe and Go weren't feeling that well so I sent them to the infirmary for the moment. I can't speak for Hibiki-sensei, however." Hasunaga replied with a slight cough.

"I am here to corroborate Hasunaga-sensei's story." Hibiki replies, completely lacking in any tone.

Valeria sighs, and waits to prompt Hasunaga again...