Utter Destruction

"Mm well we could get some buns or dumplings to eat then, how about we do that and then we can head towards the watermill? There's an area near it close to the river that's good for relaxing. Better scenery than a clinic room and less noisy than a restaurant too."

Sitting near rivers or ponds were more pleasant. She said she was okay with her cloak but it still seemed like a more preferable option, if they were able to talk and get to know each other better in a more relaxing environment it would be easier.

"Mhm...that sounds nice." Mia smiled brightly inside her hood, pulling it down to cover her face more out of habit than any real need to. Reaching out, she grabbed the edge of Kaimu's sleeve and held it gently, looking down. He knew the area much better than she did, she hadn't even noticed the windmill so she would follow him.

Kaimu led her out of the clinic, unable to help but smile when she grabbed the edge of his sleeve. He'd picked Kuroshi up, placing the sword back on his hip where it usually sat and led them on; the spirit making fun the entire walk to their chosen eating establishment.

The place wasn't as crowded as usual, but he still thought the river would be preferable...at least there it would be quieter and if Kuroshi ticked him off to much he could use the river as a threat.

When they were given the food, nicely organized in a bag he turned to Mia and smiled. "The river's not far from here, but if we can eat on the way too. Here." Reaching into the bag, he took out one of the buns, since it'd be easier to eat while walking, and offered it to her.

If Hono knew her complaints were shared by Kuroshi, she might have felt a bit better. She too talked the whole way, mostly complaining about the quality of food they would get from such a lame hobo dad. Mia just smiled and ignored it, following Kaimu like a little baby chick.

She waited patiently if a bit nervously for them to get their food to go but with him around she felt safe enough to not flinch every time someone walked by too close. As he held the bag and reached inside, she smiled and accepted the bun with a nod. Mia...was unable to speak right now. There was too many people and even for Kaimu she couldn't sound her voice or lower her hood. Biting into the bun, she sighed with relief. It wasn't sweet! It was a meat bun. How nice... She chewed quietly, watching with careful eyes the people around her under her hood.

"Is it alright?" He asked, speaking of the food since he wasn't exactly sure of her preferences. He'd gotten meat buns since they'd be more filling and it was best to eat something like that around this time of day.

The streets became less crowded as they walked, more grassland and less buildings packed side by side from each other as they became more spread out. The river was nearby and could be seen ahead along with the watermill, he led them over towards the area, a nice, shaded area near a couple of trees; the flowing river just ahead. "This spot should be good, the shade will make the sun more tolerable."

"M-Mhm. Its really good." Mia nodded as the crowds disappeared, her voice finding its way back again as she finished her first bun. She could eat a few more...but wanted to wait until they got to the windmill at least. It would be easier to eat there without the cloak...

Smiling as she caught sight of the windmill, she breathed a sigh of relief at the lack of people nearby. Her hood came down as they neared the shaded place, a warm smile still on her face as she unhooked the cloak and dropped it next to the trees. However she realized one thing missing from a lunch. Drinks! Frowning, she bent down and concentrated as she rooted around in her cloak... Before pulling out a rather modern cooler and setting it down. "I thought I had that in here... S-Sorry."

She gave a sheepish grin as she knelt in the shade, not minding her white kimono like clothing getting on the grass.

Kaimu was surprised when Mia had somehow managed to pull a container from her cloak. How...How in the world had that fit in there!? Had she had the research and development division whip that thing up?

"I-It's fine. I can't believe I forgot about drinks though aha..." He replied with a rather sheepish chuckle.

"D-Don't worry...I have some!" Mia lifted the lid of the container and showed off her collection of modern world drinks. They came in cans and she wasn't sure if he knew how to use them, but she rather liked soda.

Smiling, she patted the ground next to her, pulling out a can and popping it open. "Like this! Its not hard, sorry these are more modern... I didn't know if you've been to the living world lately or not. L-Lakshmi could probably take you so I didn't want to assume you had no idea."

"Aha well, a...a friend took me to the the human world a while back ago. It's really changed a lot...I could hardly believe it." He replied, picking up one of the drinks and opening it as Mia had. "I wasn't there for that long though, only a day but it was fun to see all of what I could."

It'd been before he'd met Lakshimi, and he'd been pretty determined to keep that little trip a secret...since he'd gone with an arrancar. He'd been told they had a truce but he'd been unsure about talking about it and played it off as if he hadn't gone. It had been a fun trip though and Elly was probably the most pleasant arrancar he'd ever met, even if he didn't know that many to begin with; he'd mostly assumed wrongly...since they were hollows but it'd been nice to meet a kind one.

"I got to try drinks like this there, though this one's a different kind. This one is still very good though!" He smiled.

"A friend? You have more connections than Lakshmi? No wonder you are so safe!" Mia smiled, glad her father had friends to keep him safe. It...would be awful to find him hunted. She wouldn't be able to, and what about those she cared for? If Hideki or Masa... what if they found out about him?

Smiling shyly, she was pleased he had enjoyed it. It was almost like a second home sometimes, she enjoyed it far too much. "I-I spend...or did until recently... spent most of my free time in the living world Its...safer than rukon. I-I don't like being out here unless I have to."

Memories of adults, people screaming... yelling at her. Wanting her gone and throwing things. It was all tied to memories of places like this. His pleasure at the drink though made her smile even as she rifled in the bag for another bun. "Mm, I have a bunch of kinds...if you want to try them... W-What did you do in the human world?"

"Hmm, I was able to ride a bus and I saw the mall. In the food court I was able to try pizza." He answered, thinking back on the trip, leaving out the spa trip for the better; he thought so at least. "There were all sorts of different stores in that building, the area was so packed with people too..."

"Oooh! I never do those things, there's too many people around those like you said." Mia's voice was much calmer tan before and she smiled brightly, speaking in between eating buns. Even with the pretty sights nearby she kept looking at Kaimu every once in a while. "Its nice you got to experience some of it at atleast."

"Mm, I had a lot of fun." He smiled brightly. "What kinds of things do you normally do there?"

Mia had said before recently she spent a lot of her spare time there, so there had to be a few things she found quite enjoyable there for her to keep going back. Plus, he was interested in knowing and getting to know her better like she was with him.

"B-Bookstores...and game stores...and arcades..." Mia blushed slightly, not knowing if Kaimu knew what games were or not. But she'd feel bad explaining again like she had before and he was smiling so brightly, she didn't want to dim it again. "I-I buy fabric sometimes too, for sewing. And other things like that..."

She hadn't gone much lately though... which was a shame. She needed more fabric.

"I noticed an area in the mall that read 'arcade' though it was only a glance so I didn't get to see much of it before we reached the food court. I do remember lots of lights though." They hadn't been giant, mostly small, flashy ones through the windows and even the windows had been tinted so it was harder to notice. "It sounds interesting though, I'm guessing games have changed a lot in the human world as well though." He chuckled.

The only games he knew of were obviously old fashioned and ones that involve other people, games mostly kids play but he had a feeling Mia wasn't talking about those types of games.

"You can sew? I'll bet that comes in handy, I can only repair small rips and it doesn't always turn out looking well." He wasn't a professional in that department by far...

"Y-Yeah... the video games in there make lots of lights and are easier to see in the dark." Mia reached up and ruffled her hair nervously, looking away as she nodded. "M-Mhm. They...um... really have. L-Like this? Its a video game, portable one I mean."

Reaching into the cloak sitting there, she pulled out her vita and set it on her lap. Feeling a bit proud of his pleasure at her skill, she nodded more. "I-I made the...clothes I am wearing. E-Except for the cloak. Its really handy... I made Masa and Zomi costumes too... D-Do you need anything fixed? I can."

"Woow~! You made your clothes, that's amazing!? They're very nicely made." He hadn't expected to hear that, it was surprising. "Ahaa, I don't really carry too much clothing, a few yukatas but that's about it...carrying too many around gets tiring. They're all fine for now, not any noticeable damages as far as I know..."

His belongings he carried with him were being kept at a local inn he'd stopped by before he'd gone to the clinic. It wasn't much, about two spare yukatas in case of an emergency and tools to keep Kuroshi well-kept. He always left the bag at an inn or wherever he was staying though when he was out walking and wandering the districts.

Mia turned bright red at Kaimu's tone and compliments. It... was nice to hear that and how...excited her sounded. She looked down and tugged at the cloth shyly, wanting to hide her face and deciding she could with her hair. Pulling it across her mouth, she touched the soft locks to her lips.

"That makes sense... If you ever need new things or something you really like fixed though, please let me know. I can help..." Unsure of things, she giggled lightly as her voice was a bit muffled by her hair. "I-I have less time lately, but I can still do things. S-Since I started...da...ting..."

Her voice cut off and she bent over. How...could she explain she liked to go spend a lot of her free time with Masa or Zomi, his adopted sister? It...would be weird telling him about the other important person in her life. Other than Captain.

Date...ing?

Kaimu kept his smile, though on the inside he was ultimately shouting at himself...and Kuroshi who was laughing at his wielder's internal struggle. She was an adult, of course it was perfectly reasonable for her to be dating at her age...obviously. He was happy, he really was; in what little time he knew her he could see she at least a fraction of how shy she was so it must have been difficult to talk with others, the fact that she had people and friends and more she could be around was great; he had no right to feel a sudden twinge of 'over-protective dad' feelings for the daughter he'd just met! No right at all!

"I see, I hope they're kind though I think it's safe to assume they are?" He asked, his voice showing none of the previous mental arguing he'd just done with himself...though by now he was quite tempted to toss Kuroshi in the pond. That laughter was getting quite annoying...

"V-Very very nice. Masa is really sweet and gentle, he's almost as shy as me... O-Oh! You...um... Masaru Shirakawa, he um is my boyfriend a-and the head of the family if you...remember them... He let me name his koi. I-It was silly they had no names." Mia flushed bright red as she realized this was kind of something important to tell her father, while she also rambled more than a bit.

She noticed nothing the matter with Kaimu's reaction at all, completely unaware of even the slightest twinges he might have inside. She was looking at him with a rather embarrassed smile. "S-Sorry. I...am normally utterly alone, o-or was. Its tough getting used to speaking to others. He was someone who helped me... and then... he um liked me too... and...so..."

"So Mamoru's son really is the head now?" He'd only hear things but hadn't been sure of their authenticity though with Mia's words it was now confirmed. "That's good to hear though, I never knew him and I only vaguely knew his father...since I wasn't in the Sixth. It's good to know he's kind though, you deserve the nicest after all!"

A light chuckle escaped him, his smile softening as Mia continued before he leaned over to pat her head again. "It's alright, no apologies needed. It's good you made friends and more, being alone...is really frustrating at times..."

Mia's eyes and face darkened momentarily as she heard Masa's father's name. She couldn't remember if she had or not before this, but... it meant protect didn't it? She frowned and nodded, unable to trust herself to not be a bit more upset at that person. Getting back just enough happiness though at Kaimu's words, she could smile again.

"He really is the nicest. He...has a little sister he adopted from the Rukon. She's so cute..." Mia blushed again as she thought of the adorable little friend she had made. She enjoyed the sensation of hair pattings, her eyes closing. "Mm, but if you stay close and let me know... I'll make sure you aren't alone tons either! I'll come visit lots. Maybe if Lakshmi has time.... Oh! I never... thought about this..."

"I don't know what to do Masa and this Dad. Him and Lakshmi are friends, they both were very special to the Former Soutaicho... B-But... I...you trusted Lakshmi and were friends so..." Instantly torn, not wanting to keep this from her boyfriend and trusting him with things...but this was something different. Kaimu's happiness and not getting arrested hinged on who was told and could be trusted. Mia would never do anything to hurt him, in fact she would protect him with everything in her now.

But she would do the same for Masaru. If it came down to it...She didn't want there to be any issues, though now that she knew about Kaimu they were just waiting in the corners.

"I'll be sure to stick around, promise!"

He understood what she was trying to say...She didn't want to keep something like this from Masaru and he could see why. Something like this had to be...well thought out though in order for someone...not to freak out.

"If you're worried about telling him, I think...Hmm, it's best not to mention my status probably until someone knows me...see that I'm not a threat, especially someone honor-bound as I know the Shirakawa Clan is."

Meeting shinigami...he couldn't say he was all that comfortable with the idea but Mia didn't want to keep this from Masaru, he could see that and that she was struggling about saying anything. If Shirakawa was as nice as she said he was...then maybe there wouldn't be a problem...?

Mia smiled warmly and then...dove for a hug again. She was so happy! She had a happy nice father who wanted her and was willing to stay... it was so wonderful and despite not being used to touches she just...wanted to hug him in thanks.

Kaimu's words made her pull back just slightly from her hug, sighing a bit. "Hm, so I would have to bring him out here and not tell him? I-I...springing such a thing on him... He is truly honor-bound, he didn't do a thing other than blush when we fell asleep in his bed. It...was nice. I...think as long as he knew at least that it was just desertion and not something else, and that you are a kind and nice person... A-And Lakshmi and Captain Norma! They can vouch for your character too. Norma's a senior Captain and Lakshmi is one of the strongest in the Seireitei like Masa is. T-Their thoughts would be good too! Unbiased at least..."

Mia's smile was bright and warm. It would turn out fine... Masa was a really kind person too.

Unable to help it, Kaimu's smile brightened at the hug before he hugged back.

"Ah, well...you could mention that you found your father and you wanted him to meet me and...bring him here and then later he can be told about...the situation." He tried to explain...at least, he thought that would be the best scenario for things, though the 'meet the parents' thing could be...rather stressful.

B-...Bed...though...

No. No, just shut up. Don't think. Grown adult, she's a grown adult. Kaimu, shut up.

'So bothered, keke...'

'One more word and it's buried in the mud along side the river for you...'