The Rain before the Sunshine Volume 1 (Bleach FanFiction)

We All Need a Friend to Lean on

            ~It's not the critic who counts

Not the man who points out how the strong man struggles,

Or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.

The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena.

                    -Theodore Roosevelt

She did not dwell on the things that just happened and dove right into her training.

She continued the same way she had trained the day before. Their progression steadily grew, and when night hit, she had successfully gotten Pak on her right arm. Panting she lifted her furred arm in front of her.

"We did it," she muttered, grinning from ear to ear.

"We did."

It felt great to feel his presence in her arm again, to feel the fur over her skin, to feel the cool claws.

She then tried to attack, not hesitating.

She threw out her arm as if she was throwing a whip," Rip Pak," she breathed.

The three strings or teeth came out, but they flew into the ground, digging into the dirt instead of the tree which was what she was aiming at instead.

Her aim was off, but she could use him, and that was more than she could ask for right now. She was going to have to practice a lot more but now that she knew she could do it, she could then turn to work on her muscles and aim. She pulled Pak back and caught the blade in her right hand, grinning as the familiar sensation.

She called that a success and returned to her room. She was shocked to find the boys already there, setting up for dinner like they had the night before.

"I was just about to go get you," Ayasegawa said, a strange note in his tone, sounding as if he did not like that she had been alone instead of with him.

"I was finally able to get Pak completely on my Right arm, so i called it a night and headed over to celebrate my tiny success," she defended, setting her sword against the wall in the corner next to her desk.

'Yachiru wanted us to get you dinner earlier than yesterday so she could take you to the bath house," Ayasegawa said as he headed for her door to leave," so i will go get your dinner now and when you are done eating that you should go to Yachiru right away."

Carrin lifted her hand to stop him but before she could mutter a word, he was gone. Carrin felt her shoulders sag," you two really are doing too much, i could have went to get some myself since i was done."

"Let him do what he wants, if he did not really want to do it, he would not have bothered," Ikkaku said, sounding quite calm versus his normal glare at everything and grumble.

Carrin flopped into a cushion, her shoulders sagging in defeat," I'm sorry," she said, feeling compelled to say it.

Ikkaku sat cross legged across from her, placing his elbow on the table noisily, his normal face returning as he looked at her through narrow eyes,"what the hell are you apologizing for?"

Carrin scrubbed her face with her hand, she was never good at this kind of thing, but she needed to get it off her chest," I know I told Ayasegawa that I would not, but I can't help but push everyone away. I know you are helping, and that you care, but all of this is new to me, it's hard for me to just sit around and let others take care of me. I was raised to be independant, but all of a sudden everyone wants to help me and wants me to lean on them, but it's just not that easy. I don't think I will ever not fight you two, or argue, or complain. I just had to tell you I'm sorry, and I really do appreciate you two for everything."