Log; Complete

[fishcake-dreams.livejournal.com]

When; January 4th, 7pm
Rating; G for Giraffe (& think Disney movie, people!)
Characters; Isane {fishcake_dreams} & Kaku {rankyaku_raffe}
Summary; Somehow Isane and Kaku get set up to go on a date by Jyabura. Cue embarassment and awkward attempts and the like~
Log;

Kaku had been staring at the clock in Jyabura's apartment since five o'clock, eagerly and nervously anticpating the arrival of seven pm. He'd made contact with that woman earlier in the day, requesting that they perhaps meet at the carousel. The red-headed agent had been hoping to get a tour of the city from Jyabura, but instead, he listened to the wolf-man talk of how much he loathed being in the city and the various events that had occured since his arrival.

Giving himself more than enough time, Kaku left the flat Jyabura and he now share, and headed towards the meeting place he and Isane agreed to. He was quite early still, it was around ten to still. He glance over to the disturbing carousel, feeling rather uneasy, just by looking at it. It was bad enough he was nervous about meeting this strange woman Jyabura set him up with... He sigh and remove his cap, scratching the back of his head. "Not too much longer now..."

To say that Isane was nervous would be an extreme understatement. She had been pacing about the apartment since lunch, wringing her hands and fretting, until her Captain had finally told her to sit, or she would surely go bad watching her walk back and forth across the living room. It was with trepidation that the healer set foot outside the residence, glancing about before making her way to the carousel. Not only did she have almost no experience in such things as this, but... she'd been warned.

Sanji had told her Kaku was... a bad person. Which she thought he would know, they were from the same world, but... he had been nice to her. And she supposed if those of her world were giving second chances to Arrancar, to Aizen Sousuke, then she could take this chance. And if worse came to worse, she was not a vice captain merely for her healing skills. Unohana had suggested she not wear her standard uniform, so Isane had switched to something casual, a simple blouse and long skirt, which only served to accentuate, (though she tried to hide it), her six foot, one inch height. So, not knowing what to expect, the shinigami turned the corner and caught sight of the carousel, eyes casting about nervously for sight of the man she was meeting.

Kaku idly play with the large zipper of his high-necked, black jacket.He felt a bit surreal suddenly, realizing he was clad in nothing but black. Black, high-neck jacket, black blazer overtop it... Black dress pants, black shoes... black baseball cap. He should really have borrowed some of Jyabura's clothes... Although, the wolf's style was vastly different from his own. Kaku just liked to cover up. His back was turned to the approaching woman for a moment, before he turn around and see her slowly approaching. A smile cross his lips, but suddenly growing rather self-concious... What was this woman to think of him? He was really a strange one to look at; well over six feet tall, skinny as a rail, lanky as could be... And his nose! She said over the comments in his journal there was nothing wrong with it; but seeing it in person was a whole other story. All too long, squared at the end... He look down at the ground, hunching his shoulders a bit before tipping his cap to cover his eyes. Back home, he was unusual, but few people really paid notice... Here, there were people from so many different worlds; he must have looked like a complete freak of nature.

The first thing Isane noticed was the height. Even though she hated it when Aizen told her she put way too much thought into her own, she knew it to be true. She was the tallest woman in the Gotei 13 ranks, and she was quite embarrassed about that fact. So as she got closer and she was able to compare, as she always did subconsciously, a smile began growing on her face. He was taller than her! By more than just an inch, too!

She noticed the nose second, and honestly, it gave her pause. The shinigami had never seen anything like it. But not being a particular stand out in the looks department, (that was her opinion, at least), she didn't put much stock in physical features. And the height... well that more than compensated in her mind for anything else. Looking at his clothes almost made her wish she'd worn her uniform. Isane's walk had turned into more of a sidle until she drew close enough to speak at a normal volume. "Hello..." She said with a small smile, trying not to be too nervous, though she was.

Kaku pull his cap off, bowing his head a little bit to greet her, revealing his short, firey orange hair. "And a hello to you too," Kaku said, smile across his face as his bright eyes met hers. He put his cap back on his head, giving a slight nervous chuckle, "Only my second day here and I already have a date... Wish I was this much of a charmer on the Grand Line... Sorry. That was... probably one of the dumbest things I could have said right now... I'm... a bit nervous." He gave her a bit of a sheepish smile. "You're a lot prettier in person than those little icons lead me to believe too..."

Isane blushed heavily at the compliment, bowing a little in return, trying to compose herself. No... well, her friends told her stuff like that, but this was different! Really different! She finally managed to find her voice. "It wasn't stupid." She murmured, shifting her feet awkwardly.

"The Grandline?" She asked, voice still soft, hesitant. "I've heard a few people mention that... your brother, and Mr. Sanji. It's from your world, right?" She had to admit being curious. She'd heard all sorts of things from other worlds, but rarely had an opportunity to ask about them.

Kaku nodded, allowing himself to pay no mind to Sanji's name being mentioned. He remembered the blonde from the train quite well... but no time for that right now. "Yes, it's the place I live and was born, back from my world. Well, I was born in a part of it; the Grandline is massive..." told her, before looking to her inquisitively. "What's the world you're like from...? If... you don't mind my asking, of course." He was rather curious about where she was from; she definitely wasn't from the Grandline... Perhaps she was from a land where people walked upside-down? Or maybe a world where animals ruled over people? Her journal name DID have something to do with fish; did fish live on the land?! So many questions in his mind right now...

Isane smiled. That sounded very intriguing! Thinking about her world she smiled even broader, though her hands still fiddled shyly behind her back. "My world? Well... um," This was always the hard part to explain. "See, I'm... dead." She ended up laughing nervously. "I'm a shinigami, we live in Soul Society... and we fight Hollows and take care of human souls when they die."

Kaku took a moment to absorb that information... In her world, that must be normal, so, he shouldn't be shocked! He gave her a smile; how interesting... a Shinigami, a Death God. "You know, that's kind of interesting... I'm sort of part of something like that... uh, hence my attire..." he said, scratching the back of his head. "I'm an agent for the World Government; kind of like the hidden faction for them... We keep everything running smoothly." Don't release too much information. Although, it was highly unlikely she'd be someone he'd be assigned to exterminate... "The faction is like my family, I've been with the government since I was a child...We look out for each other and such; which is why I refer to Jyabura as my brother. He isn't really biologically related to me... but, who really says your family is who you share blood with?" he said, smiling.

Isane couldn't help but smile back. "My sister serves in the Gotei 13 with me." Thinking of Kiyone gave her a tinge of worry, but also calmed her. "It's always good to have family, blood related or not." She shrugged slightly, taking more comfort in the fact that she was having to look up for once. "Sort of like... the 2nd division's Secret forces!" Isane suddenly mentioned, pointing up with one finger, the compartive she could come up for her own world. It was a tad random but... Isane was not the most level-headed woman when she wasn't involved in healing.

Kaku liked this woman. He liked her a lot. "I guess no matter what world you come from, every one of us take comfort in being with our family," he said. Shame... nothing about chaotic-neutral monster fish rulers in her world... He was more disappointed by that than he should have been. "Gotei 13... Your group's name is more interesting than mine. We're just CP9. Enough about that for now though... " he said, bending his knees a bit, to be face-to face with her. "I'm pretty sure there's a pretty lady right here who wanted to see a giraffe?"

Isane clapped her hands together in front of her mouth, nodding quickly. She didn't quite believe it, well, she was sure it would be possible, after all, different worlds worked differently, but she definitely wanted to see it with her own eyes. The vice captain realized her actions may have come off a bit childish, that was the last thing she wanted, she was usually more level-headed, but... all she could do was nod, still coloring slightly at the compliments.

Kaku stood upright and took a few long strides backwards. "I'm still a bit new at it, so, I flail around a little when I transform... Just don't wanna accidentally kick you or anything," he said, now several feet away from the woman. He close his eyes, wondering now if he could even transform here... Deep breath, eyes open. His neck began to grow, arms and legs stretching out lankier than before. His stomach rounded, nose stretch out further and form into a snout. His pale skin turned a yellow-brown and turning to fur. Brown spots appeared, his fingers turn to hooves. Ears grew out, horns sprouted... His body twitched and writhed, trying to gain it's bearings, moving from bipedial to quadruped. The whole process happened in under thirty seconds... The whole process was just bizarre. Kaku stand before the woman, a complete giraffe... The clothes he was wearing grew with him too; so he was, really, a rather elegantly dressed giraffe.

Isane blinked, covering her mouth open in awe with her hands. Her neck steadily craned upwards, watching the transformation silently. When it was complete she couldn't help but draw closer, upper body swaying as she strained to look all about. "That's..." She began, still amazed. "... really cute!" Isane managed to squeak out. The woman had always had a soft spot for animals, and this moment was no exception, though she was also quite aware there was a man in there... so to speak.

Kaku bend his knees to bring himself closer to the ground so he could lay down. He dip his neck down, batting his long, orange eyelashes. "Do you really like it?" he asked, giving a bit of a smile on his equine lips. When he first got his power, nobody liked it... except him. Everyone just roared with laughter, called him stupid, told him it was probably the worst transformation they'd seen. "I've always liked giraffes... I was really glad when I got to transform into one."

"Yeah..." Isane edged a little closer, still nervous, but slowly opening up to this whole thing. It... wasn't bad. In fact, it might be... fun. Yes, fun. And he really was quite nice, despite what Sanji had told her he'd done. "Can I..." She fiddled her hands, blushing again. "... p-pet you?" She worried the request might seem silly, but... he did look soft. And it's not like he was a man right now... he was a giraffe right now. That made it perfectly okay.\

Kaku chuckled a little. "Of course! What sort of giraffe would I be if I didn't appriciate a pet here and there?" he asked. He shook his large head a little bit, ears flopping a little bit as he did so. "mm, it feels good to be a giraffe again. I haven't had this power for very long, but it just feels right, you know?"

"Mmm." Isane made a small murmur of assent. She had Itegumo on her. She had to admit, though she'd kept the sword sheath behind her the entire time, not wanting to seem as if she was expecting something bad to happen. She just... well, it was what he was talking about. Itegumo was part of her, right. The vice captain shyly reached out to lay her palm on the giraffe's fur, slowly petting. It was course rubbed one way, soft the other. Feeling a little brave, she couldn't help reach up to caress one of the flopping ears. "I know." She finally said, though her hand didn't leave. "I mean..." She shifted her hip a little, revealing Itegumo's sheath behind her. "We shinigami have our zanpakutou, our power. Without him, I'm incomplete."

Kaku reach out with his long, black tongue and let the tip of it flick against Isane's cheek. More of a grateful gesture than anything, in this form, he loved to have his ears rubbed. "My power came from... well, a banana. As... odd as that must sound," Kaku said, with a bit of a smile. "Mm... I haven't had many people pet me while in this form... I'm really glad you asked."

"A banana?" Isane asked, puzzled, thought she stopped to laugh at the lick. It tickled. "Really?" That did seem sort of silly. Smiling, she continued petting, long fingers alternating between rubs and scratches. "You're really cute, though, anyone should want to pet you!"

Kaku move his head to press it into the crook of Isane's arm. "Thank you... Nobody's ever told me that before..." Kaku felt warm inside; a very happy, joyous feeling... The kind he got back when he built ships on the docks of Water 7... It was rare for him to recieve praise or a compliment in the cold walls of Enies Lobby. This was nice.

Isane couldn't help smiling gently... she was having fun. And he was nice... oh, but... he wasn't always a giraffe! She colored slightly at the thought of what she’d said. Not that it wasn't true when he was human too, but... but this was so embarrassing!! Trying to conceal her nervousness, Isane let Kaku settle, petting the ridge over his eyes. "Our zanpakutou are given to us, well... they choose us, more like it." She tried to stop herself from thinking such nerve-wracking thoughts. "Itegumo picked me, and we work, well, we fight together." The sword could materialize, but, like its wielder, was a tad shy.

"I didn't chose to transform; I was told by my director to eat the fruit, so I did... I can't disobey a direct order. I can't swim anymore, but that's okay. I like being a giraffe," he said. That was a lie. If he could go back and have disobeyed that order, he would have. Cursed the rest of his life like this all for just a little bit more power... He closed his eyes and just enjoyed the way Isane stroke his fur. "Your sword's sheath looks very nice... When I return to human form, I'd love to see it out of the sheath, if I may. I used to have a few swords I used. They didn't seem to come with me though when I woke up here... A shame, really... Because I'd love to spar with someone."


Isane's gaze softened, detecting the emotion underlying that statement. But she didn't want to pry, it really wasn't her place. "Giraffes are very sweet." She finally said. "And of course you may see him." Itegumo expressed doubt in her mind, but the shinigami shushed his softly. "I'm sure you could get a sword here, and I know lots of people like to spar." Isane shrugged a little. "I'd offer, but even though I'm a vice-captain, it's more due to my kidou and healing than anything else."

Kaku's black tongue darted out lick Isane's cheek once more. "I've never seen a healer before," he said, "The only healers I've ever seen in my world are just doctors; they don't really have any supernatural healing powers... You're a very interesting person, or... rather, Shinigami... Isane." He moved his head away from her, "I can go back to human form now, if you want."

"Oh, okay!" Isane smiled, stepping back, though she had to admit, she was nervous again. It was a whole lot easier being comfortable with this when Kaku was a giraffe. But... she could have said no, she knew she could have. Yet, at the same time, the vice captain had said yes, mostly because she was... curious. All her friends seemed to be... well, they were more sad than anything else, but then again those were Arrancar they were messing with, but still! It made her wonder, what it was like. "S-so did you maybe want me to show you around, you're new, after all?" The shinigami asked, watching carefully. That transformation really was something.

Kaku's transformation back to a human was a bit more graceful than going into giraffe form. His body slowly started to shrink, fur disappearing, hooves turning to hands again. He rose up onto two legs, which turned back into human ones as his body proportioned itself out. He flicked his tail as it slowly shrunk and wiggle his floppy giraffe ears a little bit, before the tail vanished and his ears returned to being human. The brown spots on his skin stay for a moment, before slowly fading. His clothes had shrunk too, back to fitting his human body perfect once again. He smile, opening his mouth to talk, but his long giraffe tongue flopped out from behind his lips, and halfway down his chest. It back to normal size and back inside his mouth in a matter of seconds. "...Well, that was a bit gross. I'm never quite sure when I'm finished..." he said, giving the woman a sheepish grin.

Isane covered her mouth with her hands… she didn’t really think it would be polite to let him know she was laughing. “It’s fine.” She managed to say, still quite enjoying not having to do any looking down. “So…” She shrugged, fingers anxiously running down the binding of Itegumo’s sheath, which reminded her. “Oh, did you want to see Itegumo?” She asked, untying the binds that held the sword at her waist and proffering the weapon. Thankfully, unlike some other shinigami’s zanpakutou, Itegumo was not averse to being handled by people other than Isane. She’d know some zanpakutous to actually reject such contact.

"I'd love to, if I'm permitted to," Kaku said. "Just for a moment though... I know most swords disapprove of being handled by someone other than their master -- and I can assume a zanpakutou would be the same. What's his name, again? Itegumo?"

“Itegumo, yes.” Isane held the sheath out, smiling. Talking about subjects like these, comfortable ones, helped settle her nerves. “He’s my partner, well, all the time. All shinigami have zanpakutou, and they all have different shapes, names, personalities, and strengths.”

Kaku gingerly took hold of the sheath, letting his fingers run along the casing. He took hold of the hilt, pulling the sword just slightly from the sheath to examine the blade. "Mm... This is a fine sword indeed. I can tell just but holding the sheath alone. I do not question his strength one bit," he said. Not wanting to particularly anger whatever spirit lurked inside Isane's sword, he put him back inside the sheath, handing him back carefully. "Thank you for allowing me the honor of holding him for a moment... Or rather, Thank you for allowing me to hold you, Itegumo," he said, now speaking to the sword. "I suppose I should thank him, after all."

Isane gave a nod of assent. It was very polite for him to thank the zanpakutou, after all, they were cognitive when they wished, aware as well, and appreciated politeness as much as anyone. Tying the sheath and blade back to her waist, she realized that this was the hard part. “Ah… is there… anything you wanted to do?” Despite asking, the woman didn’t have any idea how this was supposed to go, besides what her friends told her. She didn’t talk to others much about this kind of thing, and between Rangiku, her sister, and the other vices, well… she wasn’t even sure what to think, she just really hoped this ended up nothing like what Rangiku described.

"Well, I wouldn't mind a bit of a tour. I mean... I've been around it once today, but I'm still having a bit of trouble adjusting..." he said, smiling warmly at her. "Are you up to showing me around a bit? I mean... I essentially only know where my apartment and the carousel are..."

“Oh, okay!” Isane tried to think of the places she’d been. “I think I can do that.” Now… where to go, where to go. She turned about in a circle, glancing about. There were the apartments, there was the carousel right here… what other places did people talk about a lot. “Well… a lot of people go to Automatica, but that’s more of a nightclub… and people like Café Juliet, too, that’s a good place for when you’re feeling like eating out.” She ended up pointing in the direction of the café, nodding to herself. … She didn’t get out much.

Kaku reached over, taking the woman's hand in his own, flashing another bright smile. "Well... Do you feel like eating out?" he asked her.

The woman stiffened immediately, caught completely off-guard. “W-wha-“ She tried to calm down. Honestly, she shouldn’t be so jumpy. It was just… just a date. Yes. With a man who was taller than her and very nice and… she stopped herself there. “Ah… if… you want to?” Isane wasn’t very decisive unless it came to her patients or other matters of serious business. She was hungry, but… oh, she didn’t know. But she made no attempt to extricate her hand, though she was sure if she did the blushing might leave her face.

"Well then, Café Juliet, here we come!" Kaku said, leading the woman towards the cafe. Kaku, honestly, wasn't all that hungry, seeing as he did spend the better half of the afternoon munching on cookies and sweets; but that didn't matter. He could at least treat her to dinner and get himself a coffee or something... Money was no issue, seeing as he's 'borrowed' Jyabura's wallet. Dinner, conversation, swords, giraffes -- this was what a date was all about!

“Okay…” Isane followed, sneaking a glance at the man out of the corner of her eyes, hidden by the fringe of gray-purple bangs. He really did seem like a nice man… at least now he did. She knew Aizen Sousuke had seemed like a nice man until… well, she thought everyone deserved a chance. And, she was ashamed to admit, it was really great not having to curtail the stride of her long legs.

----

Dinner was nice. Even nicer in Kaku's mind that Jyabura was the one unknowingly paying for it too. There weren't many awkward moments; just comfortable silences. As the two depart from the cafe, Kaku's hand found Isane's again. He smiled at her; he'd been doing that a lot. "I've really enjoyed this evening with you, Isane," Kaku said, as the two walk, "I do hope you've enjoyed yourself as well... And, would allow me the honour of walking you home."

“Thank you, Kaku.” Isane’s shoulders hunched a bit as she nodded. “That would be nice.” She’s been surprised she had been able to relax, dare she say enjoy herself? Everyone had told her to act like herself, so she had been natural, surprised the man hadn’t told her to calm down or stop fidgeting or anything… that had made it easier. And she found she didn’t mind her hand in his. It was… nice. Yes, that was the word. Nice. “I’m in building 5, apartment 54. This way.” The shinigami tugged on his hand a little, towards the direction of the right building.

Kaku walk with her, continuously glancing over at her. She was an attractive girl, even if she seemed like she'd never admit it. "I'm quite glad I've met someone like you, Isane, especially on just my second day..." he said. "I've really enjoyed tonight... I know I've already said that, but I really mean it. It was very nice meeting you, and meeting Itegumo. I do hope we can do this again sometime," he said, as they arrive in front of her building.

Blushing under the compliments, she certainly wasn’t used to getting them from men; Isane looked up, blinking, almost in shock. “R-really?” The very idea that he had enjoyed herself… wanted to do this again… ?

Kaku nodded, smiling still at her. "I'd really like to again... sometime... when you know, you're not busy or anything..." he said, in an innocent sort of way. "I just really like spending time with you, Isane..." His thumb stroke the woman's palm a little, before reluctantly letting go of her hand.

“I…” Oh, this was so embarrassing. Isane suddenly found the floor extremely interesting, shuffling her feet when she felt Itegumo tutting at her. “I think that would be nice…” She finally managed to say, voice very soft.

Kaku's smile widened considerably. "That's great! I mean... That's great!" Kaku was almost spastic with glee. He cleared his throat a little, regaining his composure, "I mean.... Sorry. It's just such a shock to me when a pretty girl says they want to see me again..."

Isane could help a small laugh. He was funny sometimes. And she’d learned over dinner to stop denying his compliments. “Well…” She looked reluctantly up the stairs to the apartment she shared with Unohana-taichou, taking some comfort in knowing the other woman wouldn’t pry if she asked her not to. “I suppose I’ll be going.” A small smile in his direction, shy. “T-thank you for taking me.”

"Yeah, I'll... I'll see you again though, right? You're not just saying that?" he asked, pouting in a cute, child-like way.

“Yes!” Isane immediately covered her mouth, shocked at how quickly that had come out. Struggling for something else to say, her hands wrung together, feeling awfully awkward all of a sudden.

"Wonderful... I hope to at least talk to you again soon," he said. In an instant, he'd moved in and given her a sweet peck on the cheek, his nose brushing against her. He step back and put his hands in his pockets, still smiling as he walked backwards. "Goodnight, Isane. See you again real soon; promise!"

Isane’s hand rose to her cheek, blushing furiously. But she smiled, nodding quickly. “Okay… goodnight…” She waved before turning to head up the stairs, waiting until she’d gotten into the apartment to let her legs collapse out from under her, heart racing. … That had been so… well… maybe it wasn’t as embarrassing as she thought.