Quiet Times and Dedications [Open]

[Miya Okari]

Miya had anticipated that her greeting might cause Akatsuki to fall but had expected that Hanako would catch her or that at worst, she would fall to the ground herself. Instead, Akatsuki fell onto the equally distracted Hanako and dragged them both to the ground. Miya winced as they fell together, feeling a brief pang of guilt at the unexpected chaos her distraction had caused, and quickly approached the two.

"I'm so sorry, are you two alright?" she quickly apologised, extending a hand to each of them to help them up. "I saw you were training but I thought alittle distraction would be mostly harmless," she explained herself. Hopefully the two of them were both unharmed and weren't inclined to hold a grudge. She didn't like to linger on past events but others didn't necessarily feel the same way, and it would be bothersome to have her classmates resenting her over a simple accident like this. Maybe she could invite them out somewhere later on to give them a chance to smooth things over if they seemed upset. Or even if they weren't upset and just seemed like they'd appreciate a good time. In truth, Miya didn't need that much of an excuse to go out and she wasn't likely to change her behaviour too drastically over an incident like this one.

"Yeah, I've got some free time between classes," Miya confirmed. "Not enough time to get up to anything really fun though, so I figured I'd take the chance to explore some parts of the Seireitei I don't usually go, see if there's anything interesting to be found. And there was, though admittedly you two weren't exactly what I was expecting to stumble across," she chuckled, though her humour faded somewhat as she noticed the way Hanako was cautiously rotating her shoulder. Just some tenderness after the fall, or a more serious injury? Miya had plenty of experience with the kinds of bruises and sprains one could pick up from a fall in training, but she had never learned much about how to deal with them in others. Tenjiro-ojisama and the other trainers took care of any injuries serious enough to impact training, and anything less was to be powered through.

[Akatsuki Yoshitsune]

"Yeah... I'm fine," she groans as she works to get herself back to her feet. Brushing off the dirt from her clothes and setting her hair back behind her as she looked over at Miya. Tilting her head a bit as she felt curious.  Steadying herself as she rested her hands behind her back as she calmed herself from the bit of startle she had.  "It's okay.  I was just getting advice on how to improve my balance while working on my arm strength." She managed to say softly with a small smile, trying to shrug off her embarrassment from falling over like she did.  Her blue eyes shifted their gaze from Miya to Hanako and back to Miya a bit nervously.

"Well, uhmm...  We weren't doing anything really that important.  So, hanging out would be a nice distraction from things.  Right, Hanako-senpai?" she asked in her soft tone as she looked over at Hanako, hoping that she would agree to help her in expanding friendships since she was too nervous to do so herself.  Her hands behind her were busy fidgeting with her fingers as a tactile response of trying to feel things out.  In a way, it almost seemed like her gaze at Hanako was pleading her to agree as she subconsciously shifted closer to Hanako. 

[Hanako Nozawa]

Hanako was happy to take the offered hand and an assist to stand up again, and in seconds, all was right in the world. She was -largely- unhurt. Akatsuki was fine. Even their newly arrived classmate was cute as a button, so there would be no complaints from her! Still, she spent a few more seconds testing her shoulder before she was satisfied that it was, indeed, alright, and listened to the other two women speak with a soft look of discomfort; a look of discomfort which quickly turned back to a soft grin in time.

"Right," she agreed with Akatsuki. It didn't escape her that her kouhai had nudged a little closer to her, and she glanced over to spot the pleading eyes that practically made her melt on the spot. As her grin widened to a conniving smile, she wrapped her near arm around Akatsuki's shoulders and pulled her in until they were pressed against one another, side by side. "I'm sure there's something three gorgeous girls can do to pass the time~" She chuckled in her throat around a playfully lilting voice, no doubt a parade of debauchery marching through her thoughts at the moment. Her eyes swiveled towards Miya, simultaneously searching for signs as she was sending signals that she was, in fact, not joking.

Alas, they truly didn't have the time.

"Failing that, we could always play a game." Her tone changed without warning, as did her expression adopt a much more innocent look than she had been wearing before. "I was helping Tsuki-chan with her balance. Would you care to join us, Miya-chan?"

[Miya Okari]

"Glad to hear it," Miya said with a smile as Akatsuki confirmed she was fine, and Hanako seemed similarly unhurt. She hummed with empathy as Akatsuki explained the purpose of her exercise, knowing that it could be difficult to work on physical strength for those unsuited to it. And Akatsuki was even smaller than she was. Her good mood was further buoyed as Akatsuki invited her to hang out with them, suggesting there truly were no hard feelings, though she couldn't help but bark with laughter at Hanako's blatant proposition.

"Like I said, I don't have time for anything really fun. I don't know about you, but I'd want to take my time with that," she chuckled, amused to have met somebody who made her look positively restrained. She did take the opportunity to eye up her classamtes more carefully. They were both definitely attractive, with the honed physiques that would be expected of shinigami in training. Akatsuki was cute, albeit a little more petite than Miya's usual preferences, and Hanako struck quite the impressive figure. And she had fascinating eyes, Miya noted as she caught Hanako's searching gaze and raised an eyebrow in challenge before deliberately raking her gaze up and down the other girl's body. Just because she didn't have time right then didn't mean something couldn't be arranged later.

"I'd be happy to join you two though. I'm pretty sure you two are looking to join Squad Two or the Onmitsukido as well, right? So we might wind up working together for a long time in the future," she said. "A pity so much of the job involves staying unseen, but at least we'd likely have plenty of opportunities to get to know each other better," she added, letting the implications speak for themselves. It did occur to her that Akatsuki seemed a touch more reserved, to say the least, and might not appreciate such blatant flirtation, but there was no point worrying about that now. If she seemed uncomfortable with it, Miya would just have to look for a chance to talk to Hanako alone later on.

[Akatsuki Yoshitsune]

She seemed a bit confused at what Hanako was meaning by her tone, but she had a feeling that it involved that felt somewhere along Hanako's intentions. She couldn't place it yet, but she smiled as Hanako agreed to all three of them hanging out together.  When hearing Miya mention something about taking her time about something, she glanced at Miya with a head tilt as she was visibly curious about what she meant by that.  But, ignoring that for now, she nodded happily in response to her question. "Yeah, that's right!" she spoke up cheerfully. "Honestly, I don't mind the idea of staying unseen, professionally speaking.  However, I would certainly like to.. uhm.. get to know everyone better.." She glanced down nervously, trying to not seem like she's being presumptuous in her intentions.

"Uhmmm.. What did you mean by 'taking your time'?" She asked curiously as she felt curious enough to ask.  Her gaze shifting between Hanako and Miya as she was hoping one of them would elaborate about the intentions she had a gut feeling about. 

[Hanako Nozawa]

"I knew I liked you." Hanako chuckled in her throat, vocally agreeing with Miya's insistence that if any fun were to be had, they take their time with it. Who could ever disagree with something so unabashedly and obviously true, after all? Why, to rush would be a sin against nature itself, and no fun for anyone. That said, they could always skip their next class or two, or three, to make it happen; though the wait could be fun in and of itself, too~

Hanako turned her attention to Akatsuki without removing her arm from the shorter woman, still smiling and listening to every word that was shared between the three of them. Another chuckle escaped her at the implications of what Akatsuki had said, carrying with it words she hadn't take the time to properly consider yet, "All good things to those who wait, Tsuki-chan~ I can fill you in this evening in the bath." Perhaps she had laid the innuendo on a little thick, but playing with Akatsuki was so much fun, she couldn't help herself! That innocence of hers was so cute! Of course, that didn't stop her from imagining the sort of explanation she wanted to give, though now would be a good time to follow her own advice.

"I've been personally welcomed to the Nibantai by Shihoin-taichou, in fact." Hanako moved along, following after the conversation with a small brag as she smiled as wide as her mouth would allow. "If you join, too, then I'm sure we can have a lot more fun in the future, Miya-chan~" She played with her words as she spoke, looking Miya in the eye all the while. She wasn't sure how intimately the Onmitsukidō and the Nibantai worked together, but surely, belonging to the same division would only help them to stay close.

[Miya Okari]

Miya grinned fondly at Akatsuki's innocent agreement that she'd like to get to know them, as well as Hanako's distinctly less innocent approval. Though Akatsuki's follow up question left her momentarily flummoxed. Should she just come right out and explain what she meant? No, that might just make Akatsuki uncomfortable. Best to tone down the flirtation for now. "I was just saying that there's no point trying to rush something that's meant to be fun. There's nothing worse than getting into something really fun, only for it to come to an abrupt end before you can finish," she said. Alright, so it wasn't entirely free of innuendo, but it was subtle enough that Akatsuki shouldn't have any reason to look for hidden meanings. Especially when contrasted with Hanako's shameless response.

Thoughts of potential double entendres quickly fled her mind at what Hanako said next, however. "Y-you were welcomed by Shihoin-sama herself?" she squeaked, a stab of envy piercing through her. "That's wonderful, a wonderful honour. V-very, very wonderful," she stammered. Though she was happy to fulfil the role assigned to her by her clan and join the Onmitsukido, her one regret had been that it would mean she would likely be an extra step removed from Shihoin-sama, who would be more directly involved in Squad Two itself. Which, in hindsight, may have been the reason why she was assigned to joing the Onmituskido, given that the mere mention of the Shihoin head had reduced her to a stammering mess.

[Akatsuki Yoshitsune]

She gave Hanako a clueless nod of her head, figuring she'd explain it more later.  Hearing the conversation that was going on as she looked between the two of them, she tried to follow along on things.  "So, there's a very good chance we'll all be working together then at times, right?" she interjected as she was still trying to learn the workings of the squad she was applying for.  Feeling like she should try to direct things in a way that would be great for everyone, she tried to think quickly.  "Well, I know we don't have too much longer until the later classes.  So, if you both want, we can start heading towards class and we can stop along the way so I can get changed back into my proper uniform." She offered lightly as she seemed in thought before speaking up again. 

"And after classes are over, maybe we can all meet up again and get something to eat?  I don't know about you two, but I could go for some barbeque beef." She chimed in as she was looking to make the most of their time hanging out together.  She looked between them both as if looking for their agreed approval on the idea, while giving them both a hopeful grin on her face.

[Hanako Nozawa]

"Yes, it is~" Hanako smiled ever wider as Miya stammered through her response. She didn't know what Miya knew of the captain that made her act so, other than the woman's undeniable beauty and grace, but all that aside, she was soaking in the short-lived admiration for all it was worth. It was quite the stroke to her ego, she might say. Another throaty chuckle escaped her before Akatsuki spoke up, and consequentially took the lead away from them both.

"Now, that does sound like a good idea." She nodded in agreement with a look towards Miya to see how she felt. "Barbeque, a nice wine, and a long, hot bath~" She put additional emphasis on the last item in her wish list for their evening, still smiling in Miya's direction to tantalize her further with the suggestion. Today had taken an interesting turn, and only after something as innocent as taking a while between classes! She was quite pleased with herself and her good fortune thus far.

"If we're going to make it in time for Tsuki-chan to change, then we'll need to get going," she suggested before gracefully spinning on the ball of her foot to point in the direction they were to walk. As she let her feet carry her away, she tried to keep the conversation going for its own sake, "What classes do you have left today? I still have to attend zanjutsu, so I'd like the bath before dinner." One hand fell back to rest lightly on the hilt of her zanpakutō as she spoke, inadvertently or intentionally drawing attention downward as she walked ahead of the other two.

[Miya Okari]

As much as part of Miya wanted to hear more about Captain Shihoin, it was probably for the best that ocnversation was moving towards topics she could manage to be coherent about."Barbeque sounds good," she agreed as she moved to follow behind Hanako, not that she was a picky eater. The only bad meal was a missed meal. Unfortunately, that was always a possibility in her life, as she remembered. "Though I might need to meet up with you a little later. I have some extra training with my family after classes," she mentioned. "But I don't think that will last long, it's more just a review to make sure I and the other trainees are keeping on top of things." It would probably be a somewhat intensive review, to be sure, but that meant there wouldn't be any more training for the rest of the day, which meant... "After that, I'm free all day. And all night, for that matter," she said with a grin.

""I've just got a kido class next, and then my family training which should take an hour or so," she commented on her own schedule, allowing her eyes to be drawn to Hanako's zanpakuto and from there to other areas. "So you'll probably have had a chance to get clean by the time I meet up with you, but then I can join the two of you for the wining and dining, and anything else that comes after," she said. The life of an Okari trainee may not have involved an abundance of free time, but she knew how to get the most out of what she had. A good meal with good company was far from a waste of a day even if nothing else developed from it, and she was pretty sure there would be developments.

[Akatsuki Yoshitsune]

Her face beamed a bit as she smiled and nodded excitedly before trailing after Hanako and Miya happily.  "Alright, so we've got a plan!  Let's meet up at the courtyard later today and go get dinner!  And a trip to the bath house sounds nice too..." she trailed off in thought as she tapped her chin with a finger thoughtfully as she walked, with her other arm behind her.  Taking a moment to look over at Miya as she pondered before glancing over to Hanako.  Taking a small breath to build her courage to finalize the plans with everyone present with her.  

"So, let's say about at around five o'clock?  That should give us all enough time to meet up after getting cleaned up and get changed into something more casual.  I'm pretty excited to hang out with you both!" she chirped up as she was trying to sound confident, even if her bashful nature cracked through in her voice.  Tilting her head some as her blue orbs carefully watched them, hoping her taking an initiative wouldn't upset either of them.

[Hanako Nozawa]

A gentle chuckle escaped Hanako's throat as Miya continued to match her own energy, all the while Akatsuki played innocent. She was having so much fun, it was almost a shame that they would have to part ways to attend their respective classes today. It was almost unbearable that she would have to wait until later this evening to play with the two again, though the thought of potentially taking the game further did help to stay her impatience.

"Five o'clock, it is~" She chuckled again, still thinking absolutely untoward thoughts of her two companions. As they walked, she naturally took point as what could be considered the group's leader. Her steps briefly became small hops when her thoughts excited her, and every so often, she would twirl on the ball of her foot again and proceed to walk backwards while enjoying their shared conversation. Was she showing off? Certainly. Was she doing so intentionally? Probably not.

Finally, the three of them would part ways to make it to their individual classes. Classes were what they were, and there was no getting around them if one wished to remain in the academy and eventually graduate to the Gotei proper. At least, she would have the thought of a nice bath and a wonderful meal to look forward to to help herself cope~

[Shizuka Sanamizu ✮]

Akatsuki: 24 paragraphs = 20% social bonus to any thread with Hanako or Miya.

Hanako: 34 paragraphs = 30% social bonus to any thread with Akatsuki or Miya.

Miya: 13 paragraphs = 10% social bonus to any thread with Akatsuki or Hanako.