All Falls Away [Igen, Rangiku]

What the everliving fuck?

Waking in the Sawachika family estate, he didn't know what to expect. He figured he'd get up, and then get to work with officer work. Now that all of the upper seated members had been healed, he could focus on his work as Third Seat. He gave a fond farewell to the Sawachika he ran into on the way out. Some of them had a weird look on their face, but he was in a rush so he'd have to check on them later. But on his way out, a messenger showed up and handed him something. A message to all members of the gotei, it was important enough for it to be directly conveyed to the officers?

Fearing the worst, Igen wound up reading the message quickly, but it took several rerreads to fully grasp what was there. And in that moment, he promptly took his leave of the estate, heading back to his office. Wondering if this was a joke.

At first he didn't know what was going on. There were... people milling about. Some getting things together. But ... So many of them were just ... leaving. It wasn't just him. Several copies of the message were in peoples hands, others dropped on the ground. Some had formed groups and were talking excitedly and anxiously, others just sortof ... sat around. A few more continued to stride with purpose. Possibly just... continuing to do what they had been doing, because they decided to process things after they'd finished with their tasks.

He blinked a few times and looked down at the scroll in his hands, furrowing his brows as he ... focused. The feeling of loss clung to him. But it was...frankly familiar to him since the other day. And after several seconds.. he turned and headed out to the Rukongai at a brisk pace. No doubt many would notice the flash and bob of that pink braid as Igen headed off. Intent on where he was going.

It was hard to keep himself focused with how many .... people he was walking past. Shinigami. Ex shinigami now he supposed. What even was going to happen with the balance? He gripped his hand tightly and shut his eyes, his jaw clenched. No, the balance would not be left in the dust. He took a slow, steady breath and continued to stride. He just ... needed some time. Kyo was right. He still had barely got any rest. He was going to take some time.. and then he was going to find whoever he could to get things... handled.

It was then that he spotted someone familiar in the crowd. He blinked a few times and promptly broke into a run. "Lie-....Matusmoto!" He shouted after the woman as he promptly caught up with the woman, waiting for her to turn around before he slowed to a stop and gave a sheepish smile.


"You uh... got plans for the evening?" He asked with a chuckle, nodding to a nearby tavern. He didn't even know what to say, but .. he had to talk to someone about all this. And she was as good a place to start as any. He could use a familiar face right now.

MMph?!

Igen stumbled a bit as he was promptly reeled into the woman's arms, thankfully Rangiku was one of few women he didn't have to bend down too much f- oh welp, never mine, he was pulled right into her chest. He sighed a bit and chuckled, relaxing a bit and gently hugging her back, ignoring the burning of his face. " I dunno about okay but yea. I ... I know this is all confusing. But I'm glad to see you." He sighed, closing his eyes and squeezing her for a moment before pausing, his mind... raced. Kyo was still at the hospital. He'd have to check on him.... no.. once he was rested. His head was still a fogged out blur. He had something in mind but... was that even a proper thought?

Was he perhaps just.... in shock?

He wouldn't know. And he didn't want to ... rush into any rash decisions. He needed to ... rest. He needed to relax. He needed to clear his head and come at this without any impediments, nor the fucking... work binge he'd just been off. Ugh he was still so wiped out from that. He gently reached up to touch Rangiku's shoulder so that he could stand back up properly and look her in the eyes.

"I...I got a lot going on in my head. The gotei can't.... I mean. Our... WORK. Even if the Gotei is gone. The shinigami can't just dissolve. The balance.... ugh... ahahaha./ So much stuff still needs to be handled. The nobles are probably going to step in... But...I don't know. I got a lot of ... THINGS. But I need to think this through." He noted softly, before smiling and nodding to the tavern."So. I'm going to get... absolutely plastered. I'm going to sleep for ... most of the morning tomorrow. And then, I'm going to figure this out." He noted with a nod of his head.

Igen blinked for a moment and chuckled before shaking his head. "No I ... if I go back right now, I'm ... I'm going to get sucked into work. And YOU." He promptly poked her in the collarbone. "Are still not supposed to be on full duty. You may not be on medical restriction, but I ALSO know you were working your ass off with broken ribs and barely slept. So we're BOTH going to get some rest." He stated firmly, closing his eyes and focusing. "I already got chewed out by a friend of mine... and I have a feeling we're maybe going to need him." He sighed and rubbed the back of his head.

"So no. I ... my old place is actually pretty close to here. We'll go to my place, its nothing fancy, but its comfy. And I do have some booze stored up." He chuckled with a grin. This was no time to be laughing, but in this moment, he felt a bit ...swept up in Rangiku's sudden energy. This shit was fucked, but they needed to keep focused.

He promptly started to head towards his place. He couldn't go spending money on booze, they might need it... they would need... fuck theyd need so much stuff. and how would they support the people who stuck with them? thoughts for later. It didn't take long, it was a comfy little shack on the edge of the village. A nice open stretch of grass, and then a forest. Though it was so unkempt it was practically like a jungle. Giving a smile over his shoulder he opened his arms wide.

"Casa del Igen. Uh... its been a few days since I've been here. So uh... it's a little untidy." He explained as he led her inside. The place certainly was cosy. A bit more open and breezy. It definitely had that 'outter rukongai denizen' minimalism to it. All the same, he'd make his way over to a container near the kitchen and start to rummage through it. After a few seconds, he stood back up and sighed, offering a smile as her set three bottles and a small gourd on the counter. "got a preference? Sake? Rum? Mead? Oh... actually... I think I refilled these ... yea okay this is mostly Mead. So uh... Mead or rum?"

He sighed and nodded his head. "I mean yea. I actually uh, spent a lot of my life in the outter rukongai. Technically my adopted family was closer in, but I went out there to hang out, picked up a lot of uh.. decor tips I guess. I thought it was cool. Still is." He grinned proudly as he poured some mead for the both of them, taking a sip of the thick sweet stuff and sighing. closing his eyes before looking back to the woman as it seemed she was going over her own situation.

"Were you from the rukongai? I mean, I guess you never really had much of a .. noble vibe. But still, I didn't think you'd have been from out here." He chuckled as he handed her her glass and then made his way over to the couch and settled down, it was a nice little L shaped thing. A design he'd emulated from his home in the closer districts where they had stuff from the world of the living. It certainly had seen a lot of use. He took a longer gulp this time before sighing and closing his eyes, letting the buzz settle in before he turned to look at his Lieutenant. Resisting the urge to think about work. Stop it, you need to rest. "And I thought my girl problems were gonna be my biggest thing to ignore today..." He chuckled, sighing before taking another sip.

"So what made you decide to become a shinigami? Not something a lot of people this far out think to do."