tampered | Log; COMPLETE

When; October 28th, Afternoon
Rating; PG
Characters; Senna

memoryrosary and Ukitake Jyuushirou

floating_bamboo
Summary; Senna's Homecoming.
Log;

The wind was different today. It was cool and soft, almost as if there was a calming breath within it, trying to heal the damage that had been done over the past week. The young woman smiled to herself, albeit wistfully, as she looked up towards the trees, and down the narrow path that would lead her back home. As the temple came into view, she could not help but feel the pang of relief that had struck her heart, and began to bleed out through her body. Her eyes burned slightly, as tears sprung up within in them, threatening to flood her cheeks at any moment.

I'm home.

These words struck her deeper than anything else could. She'd made it back. She'd survived. She never thought she'd ever see this place again, never come back to it, never have her feet upon the soft ground...that the flames that engulfed her the night previous would have devoured her body and soul, and no-one'd ever hear from her again---but..here she was, in front of the Temple, a little sore, but alright. She...was home. Slipping into the gates, she once again looked upon the place that she'd resided, and come to love...and felt her balance weaken. She fell to her knees upon the stone path, the tears finally breaking the levy of her eyes, and spilling into a deluge over her cheeks.

I'm home.

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He was exhausted. Five days of non-stop battle with only little rest and few moments of actual peace had drained all of his power. He had stood in the front lines, defending the temple and the people in it; people he called friends.
The battle against Kuchiki Byakuya had drained him even more, and now that the war was over, he finally felt at ease. The temple was almost serene, the marks from the battles forgotten for now,injuries ignored and the terrible struggle finished.

It was over.

Jyuushirou had not been in the City for a long time, but this month had been terrible for everyone; both physically and emotionally. A voice back in his head kept reminding him that he was only lucky that he had not pushed himself too far and collapsed again.

Only lucky. Nothing else.

Sighing, he looked out over the temple area, brushing some of his silver hair behind an ear. His brown eyes widened a bit as he saw a familiar form coming up the stone path, and relief washed over him at when he recognized who it was. It was Senna; she was safe.
However, the young woman fell to her knees on the stone path, and the sound of her tears made the captain's heart ache. Carefully, he left his place by a stone pillar and walked over to her, the captain's haori fanning out around him as he crouched in front of her. He gently put a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her.

"Senna-san..."

The hand upon her shoulder was warm. It picked her up from the trance of relief and sorrow she'd dove into, bringing her back to the surface of reality. The voice echoed into her, making the tears come harder and faster, as the girl realized who it was before her--the image, blurred through the prismatic surface the tears had placed before her eyes. She reached out, arms wrapping around the chest of him infront of her, head buried into it next, the sobs shaking her form.

"Ukitake-san...noUkitake-taichou..."

She clung to him, letting the tears fall. She'd gotten back to them--to those who she loved. She remembered the moment before she'd fallen into unconsciousness--seeing all their faces before her; and uttering a last prayer within her heart that she'd get to see them all again. When she'd woken up at that strange man's house--and he'd told her he'd saved her, that she'd be fine--she hadn't believed him at first; thought that she'd been dreaming. Slowly, she'd began to realize it wasn't unreal, and that he had saved her--but now, as she wept in the arms of one of her loved ones, it had finally completely proved itself to be true.

He was a little surprised as she clung to him, her head against his chest, tears wetting his kosode. Putting his arms around her, he tried to give her some comfort, some strength. He didn't know what she had gone through, but as always, he'd help.
He'd care; he'd fight for her, for any of his people, his children. Yet it had been a long time since someone cried their heart out in his arms; he was still a captain, and though he loved his subordinates dearly, there had always been some kind of barrier of respect and sometimes even fear between them.

"Senna-san..." Jyuushirou said softly, letting her cry as he held her. It usually felt better after crying, and he recognized the tears as coming more from relief then sorrow. "It's over. You're home now."

The way she had said his name had touched him deeply, and he smiled softly down at the small shinigami, the small amount of reiatsu he still had left after these days of battle rippling like soft waves - trying to calm her, not harm.

The girl took in a deep breath, the gentle aura that was now around her serving to calm the tears that were currently holding sway over her. The shivering ceased, as the weeping slowed, and finally stopped. Amber-hued eyes began to look up toward the face of the kindly captain, face following their lead. Violet hair fell into said face as this occurred, having no ribbon to hold it any longer in place.

"...I'm home now. It's over." She repeated his words, like some grateful parrot, as if repeating them would make the reality that much more stable, and intransient--so it would have no chance of slipping away. She sighed softly, looking down once more at herself. Her shihakoushou had been lost in the fire, along with her ribbon; and the light blue fabric of the yukata Dante had given her to wear seemed foreign to her, the uniform's familiarity almost like a fallen friend she sorely missed.

Gradually, she pulled back, taking her hands from around the captain's chest, and beginning to speak.

"..So much has happened...and now, so much has to be repaired.."

Ever so gently, he let go of her, standing slowly and holding out his hand to help her to her feet. His brown eyes studied her silently, his expression full of concern and some hints of sadness. She did not deserve to go through things like this... none of them did. A mere curse for these deities left deep scars in the people of the City, and he feared that some of them were irreversible.

Jyuushirou then gave her a smile, bright and calm, to reassure her that everything was okay.

"So much has happened, Senna-san, but it will heal; we'll fix everything together, all of us. Okay?" The tired captain chuckled a little. "I'm very proud of you, Senna-san. You are a very strong young woman."

Senna allowed herself a small smile at this, the man's words feeling like a healing salve upon her soul. She began to feel inspired, that maybe everything would be able to go back to some sense of normalcy...and this would all be put to rest behind them.

She remembered, her smile growing a little bigger, that at first she'd been afraid of him. That she'd only remembered when he had come with the others from Soul Society to detain her, and take her with them to be locked away. Over the weeks she had spent here, he had become a dear friend to her--almost like a father infact; and it seemed silly and faraway now that she'd ever felt otherwise.

"...I'm glad..you think that, Ukitake-taichou...thank you." She finally found her voice again, quiet as it was, but beginning to regain its normal strength. "It means a lot to me. I thought...I'd caused too much trouble for anyone to be proud..."

He smiled again, shaking his head softly at her words. "No, it would take far more then a bit of headstrong actions to make me not proud. You did what you had to do; I respect that."

Looking up at the temple, he chuckled slightly and then looked back at Senna, putting his hands inside his sleeves, crossing his arms as he did. Slowly, he began to walk back, waiting for her to follow. Some tea would calm her a little, and they could talk more.

Senna nodded at his words. It gave her a lot more hope, his reassurance, that everything would go back to the way it was. It would just take a bit of time.

Watching him walk back towards the temple a little, she got to her feet, and began to follow him. It would be warmer and more comfortable inside, and she knew that all she wanted to do at the moment was rest; and have a peaceful afternoon. Something in her knew that was all that he wanted as well; seeing as he had been almost as swept up as she in the torrent of last week's events, even if he hadn't wanted to be.

He walked calmly, letting her catch up. As she did, he gently put a hand on her shoulder to further reassure her that everything would be alright. Smiling a little, Jyuushirou looked forward to have some tea and try to put everything that had happened behind them.

Even though, for some, it might take time.

Reaching the room he shared with Shunsui, he slid the door open and removed his waraji.
He longed to sit down for a moment, without the need to get up again and protect people.

The madness was finally over, and everyone needed rest.

Log; COMPLETE

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