Breaking in the Haori

W-Were people staring at her?!

Mia tugged at a long face framing strand of black hair as she walked down the hallway of Division Six. Merely a day before she had been assigned here as its Captain, panicked and freaked out, before promptly freaking out and then... doing things with this Haori.

N-No need to think of that! Instead think of the sweet scarf that was wrapped around her neck, or about the light snow falling outside of the windows... Or about the fact that she was getting bowed to and people were talking, some smiling and some looking nervous. There were a few curious looks as well, but most kept their distance for now. Especially the very few venomous glares she got that made her raise her head higher.

Even amidst all this, she wasn't used to any sort of attention so it was like being dropped into a feeding frenzy of killer whales or something in the arctic.

She had armor at least, the ice blue scarf Masaru had given her as a promotion present, the pretty obi that Shizue had bequeathed to her this morning as her own promotion present after Masaru left for his duties, her hair pulled back into a loose but fancy ponytail at the base of her neck while leaving a few waist length strands free on either side, and a new shinigami uniform that fit her way better than her old ones. Even the Haori itself was a form of protection... Clothes made the person after all.

There was a difference between what image she should project and what she shouldn't, and well she had to learn to look like this. Even if inside she quailed...

Especially as she now had to meet with someone who had recently been her peer, though not a well known peer, who she was now the boss of...

Rapping the back of her knuckles on the Lieutenant's office door, she hoped Narue Ueno was in as she fought off the urge to flee all the way home.

Wooow~

Sixth was so different from First, Narue could easily tell that and it was only the first day... She'd spent all of yesterday getting her new room set up. She had to get it just right, after all! Her bed, her sewing supplies, her scrolls, her books... There was so much!

She'd finished though, and was well prepared for today! Today was the day Nezo-taicho was meant to be in as well!

That would be the first thing she'd need to do, go and greet her new captain~!

Sixth was different, but...it wasn't a bad different. She'd been in First for years...lots and lots of years, it'd been like a home to her, but duty called! It was because of the Seireitei she could even have a home, so if they needed her in a new division then they'd hear no objections from her.

This was an opportunity really... New division... It meant new friends! She would be sure to make them, maybe she could even keep up her old scary story time tradition that she'd done in First? Whenever there were new recruits what way to loosen the nervousness than getting spooked with one another in good fun? It was a way of strengthening bonds...sort of...

Narue walked down the halls, a bit of a bounce to her step as she looked around, holding Hato-kun firmly in her arms as one hand moved to tease the single, blue bead that decorated one lock of her hair.

For now, she was headed back to her office, she'd been at the Captain's office just before but...it didn't seem like Nezo-taicho was in yet...so she'd head back to her room for no- Eh?

That was... Ouuu!

"Nezo-taicho?" There was a person at her door! Knocking? The characters for Six were on the back of the person's haori, which was a dead give away to their identity, and Narue couldn't help but smile. "Aaa~! It is you!"

They'd been lieutenant's before, Nezo one of them...but she was a captain now! It was only right to call her by her proper title!

Mia was used to Sixth, she had visited it so much when Masaru had run it. Why was it so intimidating and scary now?!

Fidgeting outside of the office, this really shouldn't be that hard but it was ingrained in her deeply to be so nervous... Years and years of this, of being ignored and unnoticed and in the past few months...

Spotlights, hundreds of them on her. Watching, always...

Now there wasn't even escape at work if the stares were to be expected...

They knew her but now...the power balance had changed. How would they all react? This position was like waving it everyone's faces that she was to be Masaru's bride some day...

Ueno... please show up before...

A voice sounded from behind her, but Mia didn't turn around immediately as she didn't recognize her own name spoken like that. However the voice was familiar and she blinked before turning slowly, a cheetah caught in the headlights.

If her mild panic showed in her eyes, it was quickly stifled as she gave a weak smile. "A-Ah! Ueno-san. I-I was just...l-looking for you."

...Stuttering first impression...great...

"Aha~! I was just looking for you too, great coincidence~! Thouuugh, since we were both moved here I guess it's not a coincidence... It'd make since for us to meet up first and foremost... Hmmmm...." Narue answering before her words trailed off as she brought her hand up to her chin as if she were in thought.

It only took a moment though before she flashed another smile to Mia, "Well, we found each other! So no more looking~! It's best for us to talk a bit, we didn't really get to overall when it came to lieutenant's meetings... If you want we can go to my room, it's a lot homier there so it'd be easier to relax, and I can make tea!"

She was terrible at cooking, but...she at least knew how to make decent tea!

It sounded like a good plan to her... She knew little about her captain, but she did know a bit that she was shy... plus, this had been a really big promotion so it'd be best to ease into it!

It seemed Ueno-san was prepared for her to be all flighty or else she didn't mind. Mia was notoriously shy, especially during Lieutenant's meetings so...it was possible it was a mix of both?

Listening to Ueno speak though, Mia nodded very slightly as a tiny smile appeared on her lips. She was being quiet, but that was nothing new around people she barely knew and the newly minted Captain was pushed beyond her ability to properly deal yet.

Even thoughts of Masaru and not disappointing him were not as helpful as she'd thought so far.

In the moment that Mia was fully prepared to run into her office and lock it, preparing for the inevitable disappointed look on Masaru's face... the Lieutenant gave a rather sweet and endearing offer. The growing panic faded once more and she gave another shy nod. "Y-Yes please... W-We should...t-talk..."

Quietly in her room with tea would be good... Mia had some sweets she'd made in her office, where she'd left them in the fridge, along with a few cookie types. "Th-There's... some...snacks in my office I brought..."

For bribing... But it could go with tea she felt.

"Alright, we'll go there then!" To her room! It was a good place for relaxing, and since her new captain was shy, and exceptionally nervous right now, a nice, relaxing place was definitely the best place for her to be right now!

She was smiling, at least, but it'd be a lot better for her if she was somewhere where she could relax a bit more.

The sound of snacks definitely caught Narue's attention, "Uwaaa~! That sounds good! I'm...ahaha, not the best cook, actually, I'm terrible at it! I can make tea though no problem!"

Being honest and blunt about it, she gave a laugh and motioned Mia to come along. "We can get the snacks first and then get going!"

Snacks and tea~!

Mia smiled softly and nodded, silent once more as her hand lifted up to pull her scarf up over her chin and mouth shyly. Of all the things he could have gotten her, this was the best idea...

It was like a mini-cloak almost, she could hide in it if need be...

Ueno-san was excited for snacks though and Mia gave a quiet giggle before following her new Lieutenant off. "I-Its okay... W-We...cook a lot..."

She didn't mind that Ueno-san was a bad cook and tried to express that, but wasn't sure she succeeded as her eyes trained on the floor. Just...hide in her scarf for now... The Captain's Office was just down the hall so it didn't take them long before they reached it. She'd left the door open for now and inside on the desk were several types of cookies in a basket. The nearby cooling device had several types of more traditional sweets though and she headed for that first to pull out the mochi and daifuku...

"Hehe, It sounds fun~ I've practiced, and tried to get better but hehe... Oh well~" No skin off her bones~! She could always help fund stores for snacks and restaurants for fully cooked food! Simple as that, as she was a well known customer of plenty of establishments when it came to food~!

Narue continued to walk along with Mia towards the woman's new office, a happy air about her as she continued to walk with that little bounce in her step from before.

Upon reaching the office, a awed noise escaped her as she saw the basket on the desk, and she followed Mia as she stepped inside. Aaa~! So many snacks! She hadn't even seen the sweets from the cooling device.

"Uwaaa~! These look so good!"

Mia nodded thoughtfully, wondering how to respond to that. It seemed sad to not be able to cook to her, cooking being something she adored and was so stress relieving...

But then other people had other hobbies and their own way of relaxing. If Ueno-san was happy as she was, then that was all that mattered. And Happy seemed to be the Lieutenant's default. In a way it reminded her of her father, which was relaxing.

Only minorly, but that was just to be expected. Ueno-san was not her father for sure...

As she pulled out a box of mochi and a box of daifuku, she turned bright red and wished her hands weren't full with the small containers of treats so she could hide in her scarf. "Th-Thank you... P-Please...lead the way..."

She hoped her new members wouldn't find it remiss of her to go off and have tea with the new Lieutenant. There was a lot to get used to... Lots of work to do if Masaru's late nights were any indication of what was in store for her.

"Welcome~" Narue answered, the brightness in her smile never fading as Mia gathered what she needed and told her to lead the way. "If you want, I can carry some of it! It's not a problem!"

Saying that, she went about tying Hato-kun's wings around her neck, much like how she did when she had to deal with things that needed carrying with both of her hands as the plush hanged off from her neck almost like a backpack that just couldn't carry anything but the stuffing inside of it.

"There, hands are empty now." Mia's hands were quite full, so helping her was no problem at all! It's what she was here for, even if this was just an ordeal of carrying lots of snacks.

After this they could get going!

Mia looked from Ueno-san, to the cookies, back to Ueno-san... The woman was putting her stuffed bird around her neck so there was that...

It was cute... She'd have to ask later about it.

Right now the cookies, some of them at least, were needing to be carried since her own arms were full. "S-Some...cookies please... T-The rest can stay..."

For anyone that wanted them. It was important, she felt, to learn about her new Lieutenant and get used to things first. Most of the Division knew what to do already so she wouldn't want to get in their way.

She could follow Ueno-san once the woman had the cookies she'd want, giving her a small smile before her eyes trained on the floor. Being a Captain was a pain...

"Alright!" With that said, Narue took some of the cookies from Mia to carry them herself, the new captain was fine carrying the rest and while Narue felt she could carry more she didn't want to push the woman, even if this was just carrying snacks.

Once all the cookies she'd be carrying were in her arms she offered another smile, hopefully one that could brighten Mia's mood even just a smidgen with reassurance before she began walking again.

Down the halls and towards her room; she'd set it up much like how it'd been at first, a low table sat in the middle of the more...living-room-esque area with a few shelves for things such as her scrolls and books, some of the plushies she'd made also sat on the shelves for cute decor.

Her room where she slept though was almost overrun with her craft-work and stuff, as well as books that'd been opened and read...or some she was currently in the process of reading.

"Here we are~!" She announced after awhile, sliding open the door before bringing the snacks over to the table where they could sit.

Along with the shelves, and plushies, and such, there was an area where a few new fabrics, and such sat. She'd gone shopping for supplies just before the move and so she hadn't really found a place for all of that yet.

"Sorry, might be a little messy...hehe, just before the move I'd gone shopping for stuff." Narue explained, "I'll get the tea started too, you can sit down if you'd like to relax!"

Getting the tea started was important! And so the lieutenant went over to the small kitchen area where that could all be prepared.

Mia followed Ueno-san, the smile helping a bit, enough so that her eyes lifted up a bit so she could confirm the layout of the division for herself. She'd honestly never been into the barracks sections, there was no reason to with Masaru living in the mansion. Even when they'd just been friends her visits really were mostly to his office and the basic areas most people went.

This was new and it was at least something she could focus on.

It didn't take them long though before Mia was following Ueno-san into her rooms, her eyes taking in the size and how filled it was with sewing supplies. She immediately relaxed, a soft smile coming across her face as she followed Ueno-san to the table and set the snacks she was carrying down. "It...looks...comfy..."

Very comfy, the mild mess just making her feel more at ease than anything. She gave a nod to her new Lieutenant before sitting very carefully by the table and pulling up her scarf to hide her smile. It was interesting to see how much sewing and crafting items there were, she wanted to look at the materials or the plushies more indepth but held herself back. "Thank you..."

"I'm glad; hopefully you can take a nice breather here, the tea should help too!" Narue answered, looking over to Mia from the kitchen area as she continued with tea preparations. "Welcome, welcome~ It's not a problem, if you see a book or anything else you'd like to look at feel free! I don't mind, there's lots of stuff just lying around still I haven't organized yet."

She'd meant to get the messier parts of her rooms cleaned, but that was impossible to do all in such a short amount of time since her move. Lots and lots to pick up... Uwaa~ It all seemed like a lot, but...she'd get it done eventually!

For now she continued with tea, and luckily that wasn't something that took super long to prepare. She'd be done in just a bit from the looks of things!

Mia shook her head firmly, trying to fight off Ueno-san's words about having a breather. She had barely done anything today, so there was nothing to breathe about... She'd just met with some of the seated officers and reintroduced herself! Other than looking around...

Mia couldn't voice any of this, her voice having disappeared for a bit as she gave a mute nod. Even with her new Lieutenants permission though she didn't feel secure enough to look at too many things or even try to pick anything up... The books were a bit interesting though, less than the sewing items but...

Pulling her scarf up more, the new Captain looked at the sweets on the table and kept her other hand on her lap. It...she had been given permission but she couldn't do much right now in the way of attempting to push boundaries. She'd just...wait.

It seemed like the captain was content to sit, and that was fine! Narue could understand, even with permission she'd hesitate before looking at someone else's stuff too, it'd just been an open offer she wouldn't have minded!

Oh well, no need to worry about that...as the tea was finished!

With a pleased giggle, she gathered everything they'd need onto a tray and moved over to the table where Mia sat as she seated herself. "Here! All ready, hopefully it's good, I made sure to be careful while making it and give it my all~!"

"A-Ah! Y-You didn't...have to...Ueno-san..." As the woman returned and spoke, Mia shook her head softly with a small blush on her cheeks. One hand waved in the air, the other continued to hold her scarf up.

She stopped her panicked waving after a moment though, smelling the tea and letting a soft smile show just a bit as she lowered the scarf to reach forward. Used to serving others tea now, she immediately began to as she reached for the hot pot without any hesitance...

Before pulling her hand back and blushing. "S-Sorry Ueno-san... Thank you for tea... I-I am just...used to doing so now..."

That was her hostess' set! How rude...

Hrmm?

At Mia's hesitance, Narue tilted her head some; she'd been about to take the tea as if to serve it, but...had stopped. She could have done it, but having seen Mia reaching for it she figured maybe the woman would have felt more comfortable doing it herself. "It's alright! It's really alright, if you wanna pour it it's not a problem!"

She guessed Mia was getting used to it because of her relation to the new Soutaicho... He was nobility after all, and since they were together it would likely mean the captain would need to learn those noble things like this...

"Welcome though." She smiled, having heard Mia thank her for the tea. If Mia refused to pour the tea though, that also wasn't a problem, she could do it no problem if the captain thought best!

"A-Ah...are you sure?" Mia would feel better to serve it, blinking as her hand went right back out to the tea pot. Even if Ueno-san wasn't sure, the new captain was already taking over doing so. A small smile formed on her lips as she lifted the tea pot with no regards to how hot it might be, before pouring them both a glass. There were holders to use for such things, but Mia never did due to her powers.

Setting the pot back down carefully, she pulled the cup to her with a small smile before gesturing towards the sweets. "P-Please...eat up... I-I made a lot... I wasn't sure what to do, so... I um...stress baked last night."

Until Masaru had drug her from the kitchen, practically over his shoulder... At least she'd been working on the mochi treats then instead of the cookies... She'd made so many... she'd used up all the sugar and baking flour in the entire mansion...

"Mhm!" Narue answered, sitting quietly as Mia then poured their tea; her eyes shifted to the sweets sitting around, looking at all the delicious looking things her captain had made. Aaa~ It all looked good!

She hadn't even noticed the other woman picking up the pot without a holder, she'd been so focused on sweets, and such. "'Kaaay~! Aha~ It all looks really good, I've...said that before, but I mean it! Mm... I'll eat...this first!"

Saying that, she picked up one of the cookies, figuring they were the best place to start since cookies were a nice start to any snacking! Without any hesitation she took a bite, and Narue was certainly pleased with the result.

"Aaaa~ It is really good!"

Mia's smile grew as her new Lieutenant looked at each of the sweets, attempting to figure out what wanted first as the Captain brought the tea cup to her lips. She sipped it, smiling at the taste and enjoying it. It was a nice blend, delicious and a bit sweet. Not that she minded minorly sweet things, she'd just not add sugar to it.

Ueno-san seemed rather intent on her sweets... "Y-You take them really seriously...huh?"

That bought another smile to her lips as she looked away, blushing softly at the compliments. Still there was a pleased air about her even if she was quiet for now. Someone enjoying her sweets was always a good thing.

"The tea...is really good... Thank you..."

"Hehe, they're just really good to me...but I like lots of other types of foods too!" Narue explained before taking another bite from one of the cookies she'd picked up. Yup! They were definitely really good!

The compliments towards her tea had the lieutenant smiling happily, though that smile hadn't faded in the slightest just yet.

"Thank you! I'm glad you like it...and welcome, too!" It was nice to receive compliments, and it was also nice to give them when warranted. Good tea, good sweets!

Ueno-san's enjoyment made her so happy that Mia just blushed and looked away. The cookies weren't that good... Just...normal cookies. Ueno-san might have died to taste Masaru's, his were better...

Glad her compliments were heard, Mia couldn't force herself to speak up or ask questions about things just yet. It was just... Hard. Really hard. A new person, a new position... Not having her cloak? All of it added up to her becoming very withdrawn and shy.

Why had she even been promoted?! Who thought this was a good idea?!

Apparently a few had... And Masaru wouldn't have left without her in this position...

Mia wanted to roll around and whine over the unfairness but she just sighed softly and sipped her tea.

After finishing off another cookie, Narue went to sip her own tea as the two sat around for a bit. She didn't mind the silence, but she assumed Mia was still somewhat nervous... This promotion had been really sudden.

"I hear Sixth is...like a family, the shinigami here... I haven't ever really visited here much other than just delivering papers, but from what I hear this place is pretty great." She stated, musing a bit as she let her thoughts speak for the moment. "First was too, but it was because of shinigami that I was able to have a home and meet all my friends, so...the promotion was sudden, but I felt like I owed it to them for giving me all of that...plus, it's not like...I'll never see my friends from First again, I can visit them lots on days off, and I'm sure I'll make lots of new friends here!"

Mia sipped her tea, wondering what she could do or say to make things less awkward. Was it awkward? A lot of people found silences awkward, Mia didn't want that with her new Lieutenant... At least Ueno-san was eating the sweets, even though the thought of her, the Library Ghost, having a Lieutenant sent panicked thoughts through her.

They were promptly pushed aside as Ueno-san commented, causing Mia to smile softly and look up. She gave her a tiny nod. "Th-They...are very friendly... I-I don't...want to let them down... Th-They used to...accept me...even when I was just...visiting too. So I am sure... they will...you as well..."

What she said about visiting first though made Mia look down, softly clutching the tea cup whil eshe couldn't admit to being half as optimistic as the young woman though. "I-I'm glad... You have... a lot... to look forward to... I-I...think... I hope I can...get used to it here. I-I...loved the library. It...everyone was fine-not entirely like family... but...it was interesting and... Cap-I mean Hideki, he made me... a little hiding area just off of my office..."

It...wasn't the people so much as the actual Division itself, and her old Captain, she'd miss. Even though Craig had cried the most out of everyone.