you say all you want is a kiss goodnight

The revelations were growing more disturbing by the day. Not only had three months unearthed very little in the vein of potential ways off the island, the phenomena which took over Darrow in any number of ways, from fog to the reawakened, were also making Rukia more uneasy by the minute. Some people might have been accustomed to the idea of there being multiple verses functioning in any number of ways, but to Rukia, there was only her world. There was only the balance that she'd learned of her whole life, the divide between the living and the dead, a cycle which tossed about but rarely tipped.

Darrow changed everything.

While able to keep a straight eye for most of it, sometimes Rukia found herself needing an anchor. Today was one of those days, Rukia making her way over to the town park and stretching her muscles out, testing out a few basic forms in her tank and capris. To anyone watching as she passed through the basic hakuda moves, it was pretty clear that Rukia had some level of experience.

But no one would have been able to mistake her for someone with decades of it. She kept her moves casual, hoping to slip under people's radar, because this was a time for thinking. Not explanations.

there's something due any day

Truth be told, Rukia doesn't care overly much for birthdays. It's not the concept that she has a problem with — if anything, it's a nice sentiment to have one day in the year to celebrate oneself and one's birth, to take a step back and reflect upon everything that life has given. But, well — with most things that are meant to mark the passage of time, Rukia just finds herself a touch more hesitant. Time can be cruel, after all. Another year passed can just serve as another reminder of all that's missing, all that's been lost. When it comes to the past, for all that Rukia remembers it in almost excruciating detail, she doesn't always want to sit and give it too much thought.

It's the same force that has her looking after the length of her hair pretty regularly, making sure to keep it trim, avoiding the otherwise inevitable day of looking into the mirror and thinking: when did it get so long?

But in Darrow, there's little else to obsess about. Little else to focus on. In spite of the Hollows that have started turning up to keep Rukia and Ichigo busy, it's still nothing compared to the tumult that both of them knew in their world prior to crossing over planes. So when Rukia remembers Ichigo's approaching birthday, she starts thinking.

He could use a celebration.

She asks for the day off, which is almost a shame, because toy stores see plenty of sales on Saturdays. There are a few stores that she stops by. The music store, for a nice pair of noise-cancelling headphones and a few digital tracks by some indie group. The bakery, for a strawberry cake — an unexpected turn to a housewares store for chopsticks, since apparently the bakery doesn't have any, imagine that — and finally, the nearest ice cream parlor for chocolate ice cream.

And by the time she's set it all out on his kitchen counter, save for the ice cream, Rukia can't help thinking that she'll punch Ichigo if he doesn't like it.

...although she's not quite sure why it matters to her at all.

don't stop, don't stop, don't stop giving me things

The thing about trying to root out spirits before they become Hollows is that it's akin to combing through sand. The world is a place that looks calm from a distance, the actions of any given person most likely falling into a regular pattern that never varies by much. Ghosts tend to be earth-bound, tend to cling to those parts of their lives which remained constant before, and the ability to blend in is as seamless as the chains are strong. Sometimes, Rukia has to literally walk through a building before a ghost rears its head.

Naturally, scanning across the whole of Darrow becomes a near impossibility, and the howls of Hollows are starting to surface with greater frequency, each feeling like a failure to Rukia. Each spirit that falls prey to its inner emptiness is a spirit in pain, and every spirit in pain becomes a danger to the living.

Rukia does her best to quickly find them all, but it isn't always easy, nor is it always perfect. And that's what has her by the beach tonight, having chased a Hollow to the ocean in hopes of avoiding damage done to private property. The Hollow is no great threat, taking up the shape of a snake with an almost reptilian bone-like mask covering its face, but the streams of poison that it shoots from its teeth are enough to wear through her robes, Rukia hissing in pain as she raises her sword, preparing to try and strike again.