A New Generation: A ZoroMiku Story

42: A Visit From Friends

Miku

"Miku, you should really eat something," Zorome sounded a bit irritated as he shoved the bowl of porridge he'd made closer to her. "You haven't eaten a whole lot and, uh, yeah. C'mon, Miku, this stuff's good! I put lots of that brown sugar stuff in it. Y'know, that stuff Futoshi said was really yummy!"

Miku stared blankly at the bowl of food. "Meh," Her shoulders lifted and fell in a shrug. "I'm not really in the mood to eat right now..."

Zorome seemed irritated by her response. "Miku, you have to eat something!"

"Ugh, stop bossing me around!" Miku snapped, though secretly she was warmed by how he was trying to care for her and make sure that she ate well and did things that would help her recover. He was truly a good person when he tried to be. "Fine, fine, I'll eat it. Just...give it here." She sighed and he passed her the bowl.

The porridge tasted alright, at least, and she managed to eat a fair amount of it before handing him the bowl and announcing that she was done with her food. "I'm good now. I don't think I can eat more right now." 

"Okay," Zorome put the bowl on her nightstand and sat on the edge of her bed. "I dunno how to care for sick people, honestly. It seems more like a girl thing, I guess."

"Don't be stupid," Miku rolled her eyes. "Anyone can care for a sick person! It's easy! Also, I'm not sick, I'm just bruised up now!" She pointed out. Sometimes Zorome could be a little thick-headed. She still loved him regardless. It made him hilarious at times and it kept her entertained. 

Zorome glared at her. She giggled. Ruffling him like that was amusing. It made her way feel better to have him to banter with while she recovered. She wasn't exactly sure if she could've handled being by herself and was secretly endlessly grateful to him for staying at her side throughout the whole ordeal. She was thankful more than words could say, especially because she would've likely been dead had he not found her and fought Hyaku. She owed him her life. She wanted him to know that she cared but she didn't know how to do it without throwing her pride to the side or without making things awkward. 

A knock on the door made both of them jump. Miku awkwardly turned her head to the side, embarrassed that she'd been startled so easily in front of Zorome by a simple knock at the door. He, too, seemed to feel embarrassed because he cleared his throat, rubbed the back of his head, and hopped up to go answer the door. 

"Oh!" Zorome sounded delighted. From her angle on the bed, Miku couldn't see who was at the door, as he was standing in the way of her view. "Miku, it's our friends! Goro and the others are here to visit us!" He turned back to the door and motioned for them to come inside. "Come in! Come!"

Zorome

Zorome was practically bouncing on his heels and fizzing with energy as his friends filed into the little house. "Hi! Welcome!" He was excited beyond words. This was the best thing he could've hoped for, for both him and Miku. 

"We heard about what happened," Kokoro said softly as she walked into the house. Her hands were pressed against her chest and she looked concerned. "Is everyone okay?" She asked.

"I guess so," Zorome said. "But Miku's been kinda down..."

Miku hopped out of bed and ran over to Kokoro. The two of them embraced each other for a moment. 

"I'm okay," Miku told her. "But I'm a bit worried. I don't want Hyaku to be released."

"What?" Goro stiffened. "They're considering releasing him?"

"Yup," Zorome rolled his eyes. "Stupid, right?! I can't believe people are dumb enough to give him a chance to get out! Do they want him to go around killing people?" 

Mitsuru was the last to walk in and closed the door behind him politely as he entered. Ai was riding on his back, though he crouched and let his daughter scramble away from him. She immediately began poking around the small home. 

"I think they're doing it because of an old tradition," Mitsuru said thoughtfully. "I read in a book recently that they used to have a system put in place whenever people acted up. They'd imprison them first but a fair trial was always required, even if people saw what the person did."

"That's bullshit," Zorome muttered. "Why would people come up with something so stupid? Just lock the idiots up and that's it, no need for trials and crap like that."

"I guess it was to try to hear out the other person," Ichigo said. "Sometimes people would lie about what they saw or in other cases there were no witnesses. But don't worry, most people who did wrong got punished. I've been studying old traditions like this with Ikuno and Naomi for a while." 

Goro sighed. "When I got back from my travels I was pretty hyped about the school. I'm sorry you've had to go through so much trouble."

"It's...whatever," Miku sighed.

"Yeah," Zorome agreed. "We're just glad you got there in time to help us...though I'm sure I would've been over to overpower that numbskull eventually!"

The girls all giggled, much to Zorome's irritation, and he huffed and crossed his arms. 

"Would you mind if we stayed here for a few nights?" Ichigo asked. "We want to stay with you guys for a bit to make sure you're okay."

"Of course!" Zorome said immediately, feeling a powerful surge of excitement.

"I mean, it'll be a tight fit but we'll be happy to have you!" Miku smiled as she spoke. This made Zorome happy. She'd been so miserable ever since the attack and he was glad that the arrival of her friends was making her feel better. It was almost like she needed that to boost her confidence. Both of them needed that for their morale.