At his parting offer, Yue shook her head with a smile. There was nothing of significance, not now. In her mind lingered doubts, thoughts and shadows of memories that served her no purpose in helping her calm her state of mind. Most of those were thanks to Osamu but not all were entirely unsettling, some only making her realize things she should’ve already known a long time ago, namely her engagement. Even though it was barely five minutes from their last conversation about the marriage, Yue found herself wishing with all her heart she’d simply wake up and realize it had never happened. However, that was rationally impossible and Yue knew she’d have no such luck. With her blue-green eyes filled with an equal amount of warmth and sincerity, she finally spoke. “Not at the moment. I have to return the question to you, though. Do you?” Osamu had given her a month’s worth of things to think about, but surely he had something on his mind as well. She admired the way he'd so efficiently separated his personal and professional sides and yet still managed to be kind to her, someone who'd shot him down countless times during their meeting. It truly did make her respect for his personal self skyrocket to high extremes that few had been able to reach. If only he'd displayed that side more often, Yue doubted she'd have been as guarded as she was.

Osamu gave a slight chuckle at her question, stepping back he patted her on the shoulder slightly as he withdrew his hand, it had been there long enough. He was smiling, not as broadly as before but it was still genuine. “Not for the moment. I’m confident we will have a great deal more to discuss at other times. But those are for other days. Besides you have given me plenty to chew over.” He could think of a thousand things he would like to talk to her about, but none of it was right for this moment. The mere fact she asked though, meant a great deal to him and he would not soon forget the side of Yue that had been exposed today. “For now, I will leave you to your thoughts and your preparations for the battle tomorrow.” 

Yue nodded in response, certain that they'd have a lot to talk about in the future. There was apprehension, understandably, but also curiosity, which mildly surprised her. "Fair enough. Thank you for hearing me out though, that was nice of you. I hope I can return the favour in the near future." It was unnerving, knowing that she'd let him get past despite having her guard up but it didn't bother her much. Osamu was kind-hearted and thoughtful, as he'd displayed today, and Yue didn't feel the least bit bothered by future visits from the man. 

Clapping his gloved hands together, in a way that made Monty leap up as if he were summoned, Osamu then rubbed his gloved palms together enthusiastically. A slightly different grin appeared on his face now, one that was excited at the prospect of the hunt. “Tomorrow will be a good day. I am confident of our victory and though we will, of course, suffer casualties, we will gain far more than we lose and I believe our casualties will be comparatively light. Meaningful progress at last, going on the offensive again with good honest soldiering. I have missed it.” He wasn’t insane. He was not one of those mad men that loved battle and death for their sakes alone but he did enjoy the command role of his job and he did enjoy the opportunity to put his swordsmanship to use. What was obvious though was the fact that what he really looked forward to about tomorrow was the fact they were beginning the slow process of taking the city back. The honesty of a fight against hollows also appealed to him, as compared to the dirty politics of the soul society he was getting increasingly sucked into. He didn’t enjoy that but he did it because he had to. A fight, was a welcome palate cleanser for him. 

Yue smiled and drew her hands out of her sleeves, dropping them back at her sides for a moment. "It's been far too long since I hacked away at Hollows. It's going to be refreshing tomorrow. I just hope we don't lose too many men, they don't deserve to die and work so hard..." The prospect of seeing her comrades dead made her heart wrench but she knew it was an unavoidable part of any battle. She just hoped it wasn't too much. The less the better. The actual battle, though, Yue could already feel it would be exciting. After all, bashing dummy after dummy into dust only went so far in allowing her to expand her techniques. She also wanted to see what Shunko's altered technique would do to the Hollow with the new Kido spell she'd partly devised herself - dummies only exploded on contant, littering the area with wooden splinters and cotton stuffing. It would be a break from the Gotei's repetitive duties and most of all the arguments and sneaky fighting. Yue didn't feel much towards the ambitious side of Osamu and preferred to avoid it as much as possible; what she'd seen today had given her a new perspective towards the man. She hoped he'd keep it, even if in private; it was much more pleasant.

Osamu was glad that Yue felt similarly about the upcoming battle to him, had his enthusiasm deterred her or driven her away he would have kicked himself. But, happily, it turned out she shared his eagerness. True she was a bit more worried about the loss of life than he was but from their recent discussions that was to be expected. She had a good heart, but one that was perhaps slightly too soft. Osamu never liked loosing men and he detested wasting them but he seemed to cope with the notion better than her. In his mind it was one of the things that made him a good Captain. “Don’t worry.” He said. “The plan is sound, we will lose few men tomorrow and the sacrifices of those we do lose will not be in vein.” He was serious, but reassuring as he said those words, he did not treat death lightly. But, he did not let it get the better of him, as was demonstrated when he looked at her and smiled saying with good humour. “I simply won’t permit it.” Her exposed hands did not elude Osamu, he wagered it had some significance, a symbol of comfort or trust perhaps? Perhaps not? But the way she hid them most of the time implied some meaning. Only time would tell if he was right but for now he allowed himself to be comforted by the sight. 

Yue's eyes dropped towards the dog, wondering if it'd try to bite her if she touched it. "Can I pet him?" It didn't drive her off as much as it did before, though it was still a foreign animal she had no experience with.

Osamu smiled broadly when Yue asked if she could pet Monty, considering her apprehension of the beast at the start of this meeting it was rapid and encouraging progress. Not just when it came to her relationship with the dog but for her in general, or so Osamu thought. Regardless Osamu looked down at Monty and pointed at him firmly, saying “Sit.” In an equally firm yet gentle and kind tone. The dog was well trained and though he may have been a bit wild when he wasn’t given commands he obeyed Osamu instantly. The grey scruffy beast promptly sat on its hind quarters, panting slightly and wagging it’s tail. “Stay.” Osamu said in just the same tones before looking up at Yue, smiling and saying in a less authoritarian fashion. “Of course you can pet him. He is a good judge of character and he would have let you anyway. I just told him to sit to make it easier for you. Otherwise he might have gotten carried away and tried to lick your hand or something like that.” He gave a slight chuckle at the image, a chuckle that increased slightly as his mind’s eye envisaged the graceful, elegant Yue, forced to the ground by a great slobbering dog, licking her face and climbing all over her. Still, even Monty at his most enthusiastic was deeply unlikely to do that to someone he had only just met. 
 
If Yue did reach out to touch the obedient creature she would find him warm to the touch, his head bobbing up and down slightly in time with his breathing. His breath would be slightly warm and certainly moist whilst his coat would be surprisingly soft despite its coarse appearance. For the moment though the dog just looked up between the two Captains expectantly, awaiting another command. 

There was no need for her to bend down or kneel to pet the dog; even while sitting, Monty's head was level with her waist. While the dog's size was definitely unnerving, he hadn't attacked her yet and Yue doubted Osamu would let it to seeing as how it couldn't hurt her much if she reacted fast enough, and that was a given. But it made up for everything with its size and Yue's imaginary threatening aura. Nevertheless, she placed her hand somewhere between its neck and head as far away from its mouth as possible, albeit lightly at first. Its fur felt soft to the touch, much softer than she'd originally thought it to be and radiating heat. It was much more... alive than it seemed, as absurd as it sounded. It felt almost human and she set her other hand on his head, closer to its ears. Its head moved along with its breathing and Yue lowered her hand to its neck, the other soon joining it in a sort of embrace around the animal. Of course, she didn't dare to get any closer, wary of his teeth but she felt the urge to tighten her arms around its neck in a hug of sorts. It felt so soft, not as wild as she'd imagined. "He's so soft, I like him." 

Yue had the dog’s full attention now, it was looking up at her with his big wet eyes, he was panting slightly more and his tail had gone from a gentle wag to a little happy flurry. Monty enjoyed new people and new friends almost as much as he liked old ones and just like people he enjoyed affection, unlike people he didn’t bother hide it so much. But, despite how happy he was the dog sat there, obeying Osamu’s command to stay. The mischievous side of Osamu was tempted to abuse this position and have the hound leap up and jump on Yue, but as amusing as the image would have been he didn’t have the heart to do it. Instead he just stood there in silence for a few moments, letting Yue acclimatise. After a while he said gently and with a warm smile. “You can get closer if you like, he doesn’t mind. Feel free to stroke him, he loves it and he will just sit there and lap it up. Talk to him if you want, in nice warm tones like you were speaking to a child. If you are feeling bold you can tickle him a bit, the belly, neck and behind the ears are his favourite places. But rule number one with dogs is never let them know if you are nervous, it makes them nervous and they can’t control their nerves as well as us. Don’t worry though. Monty is one of the best trained dogs you are ever likely to meet. Even if you are nervous around him he won’t react so long as he is under my command. But remember it for other dogs.”

As hesitant as she was to get closer to the dog, Yue liked Monty's fur enough to partly ignore her fear of Osamu unexpectedly deciding to sic the dog on her. However, at his tone, all doubt concerning the dog evaporated and she drew herself closer, tightening her arms. True to Osamu's word, Monty hadn't moved the entire time, even when Yue circled her arms around his neck in an embrace. His heartbeat was comforting, chest rising and falling steadily enough to relax her. But she didn't dare pet it more than that, lest it decided to suddenly spring up. However, Osamu had trained the dog well, and he hadn't budged. Its tail swished at a fast pace, prompting Yue to loosen her arms and instead pet its head, gazing at the dog with wonder akin to a child's curiosity. Moments later, she tore her eyes away from Monty and smiled at Osamu, straightening her posture somewhat. "He's so sweet, I'm glad he listens to you as much as he does. You're lucky you have such a nice dog." Her hands still hadn't left Monty's head and neck, running down the length of his neck and up again. Osamu truly was lucky to have him, she supposed, and he deserved him too. It hadn't slipped her notice to see how much he cared about his dog and how happy it made him, and it in turn made Yue smile, though mostly directed at Osamu and the dog than herself.

Osamu just smiled and kept on smiling as Yue got more comfortable with Monty and when she embraced him more fully he could barely contain his grin, despite being a dog man he was smiling like a Cheshire cat. He was tempted to get stuck in and hug the dog as well, simultaneously. But again, he resisted his urge and just let Yue have her moment. After a little while Osamu said with a joking and obviously teasing tone. “Careful now. You will make me jealous and a man who envies his dog is a sad man indeed.” He gave a little chuckle, just to confirm that it was all in jest as he stepped closer to his dog and put one hand on the back of Monty’s neck, half stroking him half scratching him and saying gently. “Good boy.” Osamu could tell from the look in Monty’s eye he wanted to lick Yue’s hand but the well-disciplined dog just sat there. 
 
When Yue commented on how sweet the dog was and how lucky Osamu was to have him Osamu nodded his head and gave a little hum of agreement. “I would have gone mad without him, well, madder.” He gave another small laugh before looking Yue in the eye and saying. “I got him a hundred years ago now, it’s a good job the life of a dog is so prolonged here as well. Rescued him when he was a new born pup on the day the hollows showed up. He was just running around barking and whimpering, looking for his mother. Fortunately for him he was in the same building as a bunch of people I was rescuing and I just couldn’t leave him behind. Would you believe he fitted in one of my pouches that day? He’s been with me ever since. He had any number of chances to run away but he won’t go.” As a little gesture of thanks and affection to the dog he went about petting him a tad more vigorously with both hands. Meanwhile Osamu went silent for a few moments as his mind replayed the story in vivid detail. 
 
But he broke the silence when he said in chipper tones. “Do you have any pets? I imagine you as more of a cat person, graceful, elegant and all that. Maybe an exotic bird.” He imagined the answer would be no but he had to check. He thought Yue should have one, it would probably do her a bit of good to have a companion who was just there whenever you needed them, even if they didn’t provide quite the level of company as a human would.

It still felt slightly weird petting a living, breathing animal after so long, nor could she let go of his fur. Her hands remained on Monty’s neck while she listened to Osamu’s story of obtaining the dog. When he mentioned the part about Monty fitting in one of his pouched, Yue looked appropriately incredulous as her eyes dropped back to the dog, whose head was well above her midsection. It was amazing to think how it could’ve grown that large but it was understandable, having been over a hundred year ago. And still, Yue was astounded by Monty’s obedience and wrapped her arms around him once more. “I think he was meant to find you.” Her tone was now softer and had a slightly wistful edge to it. All too soon, she let go of the dog and straightened once more. 

Smiling slightly at Osamu’s description of her, Yue bit back a laugh at the thought of owning a parrot. “I don’t, sadly. There are no domestic animals allowed in our houses. I would like a cat, though, they’re so cute.” The thought of hugging a cat made her smile wider, her mind going back to the single time she’d hugged a cat and nearly suffocated it, warranting a couple of scratches in return. Over time, it had calmed down under her gentle touch and proved as a pretty good, entertaining pet, sleeping on her midsection whenever she slept with the other kids in Hayano’s house. Until it was stampeded on and killed by a gang of children looking to entertain themselves. “The only one I had was around… two hundred years ago? It died. Can’t say I was much of a pet owner when I was four.” Owning a dog for a hundred years was an admirable feat, however, and it showed in her sunny smile as she petted Monty’s head. The dog was growing on her at a rapid pace and she didn’t mind all that much. “You’re incredibly lucky.” 

Osamu gave a slight surprised spurt, half laugh, half cough, when Yue suggested he was meant to find Monty. “That sounds dangerously like fate to me.” Osamu loathed the concept of fate, it made everything pointless and utterly futile, at least in his mind. It rid everything of goodness, virtue, greatness or tragedy, it tore away all purpose and value and left nothing but a gnawing, unfillable void. If this was a world governed by fate he would sooner not live in it. But he pushed that deeply unpleasant notion aside for a few moments, reassuring himself that he really was in control, before looking up at Yue and smiling. Though her words had unnerved him her soft wistful tone did calm him down somewhat. 

Osamu's distress didn't escae Yue as she gave him a slightly comforting look, as much as she could manage. It was hard to understand why a man like Osamu would fear fate so much, seeing as he had himself rooted in so deeply into nearly, in control. Insread of giving him a curious look like she inwardly wanted to, Yue instead said, "Fate or not, no matter what brought you together, here you are. Dwelling on the reason isn't really productive, he's here for you now, right?" Her tone went back to a soothing one almost immediately, her words laced with comfort. It was hard to tell why she was reassuring Osamu but Yue knew she didn't like others in distress and thereby gave him as much comfort as words would allow.

Her story about not having any pets, chiefly because she was not allowed to made Osamu perk an eyebrow. “Not allowed? You are a captain, not some small child!” Whilst his tone was not angry or irritated it was incredulous and Osamu was at risk of becoming incensed. Pausing he calmed himself down and decided to offer a slightly more constructive solution. “You could keep a cat at your office, your divisional building. Your family don’t own it. Its state property not theirs. I imagine you spend more of your time there any way.” He shook his head though when she said she was not much of a pet owner. “Maybe not when you were four, but now. I can see it, you would be good at it, nurturing, taking care of things, warmth, affection..” Osamu was aware he was perhaps straying a tad too far down this line and a silent alarm bell rang in his head as he realised he was drifting slowly into describing the attributes of a mother rather than a pet owner, indeed his tongue was ready to continue with the stream of similarly themed compliments but thankfully his brain engaged the brakes at the last moment. Stumbling only ever so slightly over his words Osamu said. “Well, yes. Needless to say I think a cat would suit you down to the ground, might ease the stress. I hear the mere act of stroking is a great relaxant and even as a dog man I must admit a cat’s purr is a beautiful sound.” 

Yue's tranquil and rather comforting demeanor didn't fade at his words, not even at his compliments. She offered him a radiant smile in a way of thanking him and spoke, "That sounds very appealing, but I don't even know where to get a cat from. I don't suppose they roam in other Divisions or in the streets, do they?" She was genuinely curious at the point, evan having a half-mind to go looking for the animal herself. It would undoubtedly be wonderful to have a cat nestling on her lap while she attempted paperwork but admittedly, she really wasn't in the office much either, as the growing stacks of paperwork suggested. She was more involved hands-on in covert operations that required the utmost secrecy, and thus she wasn't seen around most of the time. "Stroking Monty is relaxing, I must admit. His fur is so soft, it's nice for stroking. And that's true, I'm almost afraid that if I get a cat, it might just lull me to sleep." The last statement was accompanied by a light laugh at the mental image of herself passed out in her office, huddling a cat. That happened at times, minus the cat.

When Yue patted Monty’s head again the creature, in a rare breach of discipline, let out a single happy bark. There was not threat or menace behind it and he was obviously a very happy dog, as shown by the yet faster wagging of his tail. Osamu felt the need to translate the dogs bark for Yue. “He’s very happy, he’s just letting it out. Secretly I think he wants to give you a bit of a lick. But he won’t. He’s a well behaved boy.” Osamu could have stood there forever, playing with his dog and passing the time with Yue, but the pair did not have forever, sadly. “As much as I hate to say it I think we had both best get back to our troops. War leaves us sadly to little time for moments like these.” 

At Monty's bark, Yue flinched back and retracted her hand, lacing it back with the other one underneath her sleeves. At Osamu's explanation, however, she soon relaxed and gave Monty one last pat. It was about time for them to go their separate ways, Yue decided at Osamu's following words, as her Division still needed her presence quite often. Her Lieutenant was more than capable for handling undercover operations but he had his own squad to oversee, in addition to four more Yue thought she'd best be getting back soon. "I agree, Iwakura-san. I do hope we win tomorrow's battle with minimal casualties." Keen on getting her troops debriefed and allowing them ample last-minute training and tactics, Yue briefly thought over the possibility of borrowing a couple of tacticians from the compound. If anyone could knock down casualties to the bare minimum, it was them. 

With a respectful bow, Yue took several steps back and turned towards the gates leading out of the courtyard. Her hand came up in a wave as she spoke, "See you at the battlefield." Her body flickered for a split second and she was gone, out of the 10th Division in a matter of seconds despite several obstacles and the dimming daylight barring her way and vision. All the way on the other side of Seireiteitei stood the 2nd Division, a large but mostly inconspicuous complex of barracks often renovated by her family for efficiency's sake. It now held many extra buildings and underground chambers, maximising the space necessary for the 2nd's operations. Even in daylight, the massive walls and discreetly hidden agents revealed nothing. It took her a minute or so to reach the barracks but as she slowed down and stepped through the waiting gates, Yue suddenly started, as if woken from a dream. As the gates slowly ground shut behind her, Yue realized her huge, irreparable mistake. 

Osamu did not bow as Yue had done, he was the type of person only to do that in a formal setting and this meeting had long since stopped being that. So, instead he just cast her a crooked smile and waved idly waved as she left. Just before she vanished though he called out to her.

"Be careful tomorrow. Watch your back. I won't hurt you or the men of your division but I can't guarantee my men won't. They are angry, afraid and they see enemies everywhere right now. If anyone is going to turn on them it's the second, or so they think. They might just strike first to save their own lives. I'll reign them in but they have minds of thier own and Kuroda has made an enemy of them all. It's a mess right now, just get your men out of the way of my men as soon as possible." 

When she was gone he found himself unable to return to his work instantly, his mind was too busy churning over the various events of the meeting. Whilst his brain sorted it all out he idly kept on playing with Monty, tossing a stick about, playing tug of war with the stick, racing the dog around the courtyard and so on. 
 
After about ten or fifteen minutes he was done with his ruminations and gently led his dog back into the divisional building, winding through the checkpoints and corridors, reinforced doors and the windowless high security areas until he eventually reached his office. Once there Monty went and lay down in his basket for a short rest whilst Osamu set about some of his paper work. Still though, his mind was half on Yue and the various issues that had crept up because of this meeting. Yue’s slip, her revelation about her origins, did not escape Osamu’s notice. Indeed it had been very important in the meeting and without it Yue would not have been as successful as she was. But he did not focus on that too much now because he wasn’t going to use that information, certainly not against Yue, not unless she gave him serious provocation. He had always despised the class structure and was encouraging of those who broke away from their place in society determined by birth whilst simultaneously disliking, or even outright opposing, those who depended on birth rights. 
 
He would not leak this information to hurt Yue because it would be against some of his most fundamental principles. Even if his morality was comfortable with it he would still not have leaked against Yue because of her specifically. Osamu wanted her close and leaking against her was a sure fire way to drive her away. So, putting the issue to one side, he continued with his work.