as years pass | kyoraku shunsui

seventeen - 'ladies night'

For one reason or another, Shuriken had never been the best at making friends with other females. During her academy years, she assumed that it had been due to the fact that she spent almost all of her free time with only Shunsui and/or Jushiro, but upon graduating, she'd just never found a need for expanding her friendship circle. Most females that she came into contact with were either members of her own division (who were typically too afraid of her to say much), other high-ranking members of the Gotei 13 (who she never had time to communicate with), or lovers that Shunsui had brought around for some reason or another (and who, in turn, she was never too fond of).

Truthfully, Shuriken wasn't used to spending time with other ladies. Most of her time in the office was spent with Yamamoto, Sasakibe, and/or Taro, and outside of the office she currently gravitated towards Urahara or Jushiro. Previously, she'd rather enjoyed Lisa's companionship; however, it seemed like those days had now passed due to Shuriken and Shunsui's falling out. That, she believed, was a damn shame.

However, after the incident following the most recent tea ceremony, Urahara had made a suggestion that Shuriken had found to be quite refreshing. He'd even been kind enough to ask her about it ahead of time so that she couldn't use the excuse of having to do something work related.

"Ah, there you are, Shuriken! I've got to say, you're showing up later than I had expected."

The sight that Shuriken was met with as she walked into one of the small restaurants on the outskirts of the Seriete was one that partially surprised her. Though she had expected to spend the day with Captain Shihoin and her favorite guard, Shuriken had not imagined that they would have arrived before her. It seemed that Shuriken and Shihoin had shared the same thought.

Shihoin, on top of that, wasn't dressed in her usual Gotei 13 appropriate garb. Similarly to Shuriken, Shihoin had exchanged her typical attire for a far more comfortable, relaxed kimono that was far more casual than professional. However, the detail stitched into the seams of Shihoin's robes was considerably more impressive than what Shuriken wore.

Then again, Shuriken also wasn't the current leader of one of the four great noble families of the Soul Society. Not that such petty, materialistic differences meant anything to Shuriken anyway.

"I'm still twenty minutes ahead of schedule, captain. If anything, I've got to say that seeing you so early is the surprise."

Though Shuriken's gaze was on Shihoin, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the way that the smallest woman of the group's face seemed to twitch in aggravation. When she began speaking, Shuriken looked down at her with hidden amusement.

"How dare you speak to Lady Yoruichi in such a way?! I expected more from the Captain-Commander's daughter!"

"Really? I suppose you expected me to be a carbon copy of the old man, huh? I hate to break it to you, but we're not as similar as you might think," Shuriken responded cooly. She shared a brief, entertained glance with Shihoin, one that the tiny, fierce female seemed to completely miss. "What's your name, kid?"

"I am not a child!" The woman protested proudly. Her brows were furrowed, her lips pursed, and her eyes glared up at Shuriken with a rough tenacity that Shuriken respected. "My name is Soi Fon and I have dedicated my life to serving Lady Yoruichi! That includes protecting her from such troublesome Soul Reapers as yourself, Miss Natazaki, who refuse to show her the respect she deserves!"

Soi Fon stood her ground, even after a few silent moments had passed. When Shuriken and Shihoin simultaneously erupted into laughter, Soi Fon could only stare up at Shihoin in a mixture of horror and embarrassment.

"Lighten up, Soi Fon!" Shihoin grinned as she placed a hand atop the smaller gal's head, ruffling her short hair in the process. "You haven't got to be so uptight all the time. Shuri's just giving you a hard time!"