Children of Izanami: Contention

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Arrest
"--in other news, the local librarian Aoi Taijiri was arrested yesterday on charges of espionage for a group that has been rumored to have appeared within Yūrei's capital city--"

Such was the news reporter on-screen of the Kurosaki's television, delivering his daily drawl of international news. Of course, not only would this be something within the Kurosaki home or within the capital city, but all around the civilization it would be broadcasted. Some would take it with a grain of salt, others would pay it with some interest and attention. There would be few, including Megami Kurosaki, that would pay it special interest and devotion.

And she was paying it her full attention - in the worst way.

She had dropped her remote, sinking within her chair as the reporter continued to blare off what had happened. She put her hands on her face, her elbows resting on her knees. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, willing to shut it out and deny it as a simple fabrication. But it was all true. Just a moment before she had left, Aoi had been arrested and apprehended by law enforcement, the library searched thoroughly. She could pick up words of the cameras being taken down and the library itself on temporary shut-down, but ther than that, her ears were deaf.

"What am I going to do....?" She asked bitterly to herself.

Miharu had just entered the room, carrying what looked like a stack of very heavy books. She hadn't heard the news, but she did hear what he mother had said.

"What are you going to do about what?" Miharu asked curiously.

Megami simply lifted her finger to point at the screen, the reporter still talking.

"--and according to interviews with the local police, they have revealed that the librarian has been making communications in secret using her own personal computer lab within the library. However, officials have re-assured the populace that network systems are under control and there is no danger of retaliatory hacking."

"Aoi, the library girl, was arrested for espionage...." Megami summed up, face still held in her hands.

"The sweet girl who always helps you out?" Miharu said, indignantly. "What are the police doing arresting someone like her? There are real criminals out there!"

It was a question that should've already been answered by the news reporter, who was now switching topics. "According to last night, we now have direct confirmation of a fierce gun battle between law enforcement and an unknown group confirmed to be of Arrancar origin. Several officers were killed, more are in critical condition and within the hospital. The attack was successfully halted, thanks to the efforts of Avaron Setsuko and her faithful police troopers." As he was speaking, there were pictures of the aftermath of the battle waged. Both corpses of dead police officers and what appeared to be hooded, white figures could be seen sprawled on the ground, along with several weapons as well.

Miharu looked at the screen with wide-eyes. "What in Hell's name...?" She blinked, trying to make sure she wasn't seeing things. "The police actually managed this...?" She had always been under the impression the law enforcement here was in competent.

"That's why the government chose them...." Megami muttered, lowering her arms back to the armrests on the chair. She leaned against its back, closing her eyes and letting out a sigh. "Guess the soldiers have a reason to hold such a bitter rivalry towards them. There were no military forces involved in that particular fight. It was all done by the police."

"Back on subject though, what about Aoi?" Miharu asked. "Are you going to try and bail her out or something? There's no way she can be guilty of being involved with the bad guys."

"I am honestly not sure." Megami said miserably. "I really want to do something stupid at this point, but I know we'll all just get in more trouble if we do. The police have understanding of what they're doing, but I just don't want to believe Aoi was...." She trailed off.

"Which is why I believe they are incompetent." Miharu said, frowning. "They probably arrested Aoi so they could make it look like they're doing something." She started to walk upstairs with the books, calling down. "That's just what I think though."

"Yeah...." Megami muttered to herself, closing her eyes. She pushed herself out of the chair. "I'm going to question Kenta about this personally, figure out what's going on...." She walked over to the TV, turning it off. Then, after shrugging her shoulders, she turned around and exited her room. Hopefully, Kenta would not happen to be busy or one of the many officers in the hospital after what had happened.

"Wonder what Rukia thinks of this particular situation...." She muttered to herself, exiting the door and shutting it behind her.

Suspicion
Half of the entire forest was now destroyed. Covered in ice, multiple trees frozen, others frozen and destroyed. At the center of all this destruction was Rukia Kuchiki. She was currently in her Bankai state, but it was deactivating, the ice wings crumbling around her, her sword returning to it's sealed state as she sheathed it. She looked over the destroyed forest area. With the move she had just performed, her spiritual energy could have been felt even by a spiritually aware monkey.

"It's finally ready."

"Rukia!"

It was within that moment, Megami's spiritual presence could be felt within the area. She appeared a good distance away, jogging towards the Kuchiki.

Rukia turned, surprise to hear someone calling her name. "Megami? Is something wrong?" It was hard to believe Megami would come looking for her if something wasn't wrong, especially given the current circumstances.

"Did you see the news?!" Megami allowed herself to stop at a certain distance away. "Aoi's been charged of espionage under the loyalty of Red Sun and has been arrested! Not to mention there was an attack on the city's coast by cultist Arrancar!"

"What?" She had expected something to be wrong, but two things, let alone an attack, she hadn't been expecting. "No, I haven't seen the news at all. I've been out here, training." That would explain the now destroyed surroundings. "First things first, why was Aoi arrested? Did the questions you went to ask make her guilty?"

"No...." Megami quickly shook her head. "They found out through chat logs. According to them, she was communicating directly with other Red Sun agents within the city and was one of the coordinators for the assault on the coasthead."

"So they needed a scapegoat." It wasn't a question, it was an accusation. "How much damage was done to the coast? Any casualties on our side?"

Did everyone have some sort of grudge against the police?

Megami flinched slightly at the tone Rukia took, but did not allow herself to comment on it. "Several officers were killed in the line of duty." She explained. "Several more were wounded and taken to the hospital for treatment..."

"And the Arrancar?"

"The soldiers that participated directly in the attack were all killed and accounted for. However, at least two leaders have escaped."

Rukia frowned. "More problems to add to our list it seems." She looked at Megami. "My question is, what are you going to do about your librarian friend?"

"What can I do?" Megami shrugged her shoulders helplessly. "I don't really have enough information on the situation at hand. Therefore, I'm not in a position to blame any side for any wrong doing. Aoi's my friend, but the police would have to have some logical reason for arresting her, after all."

Rukia frowned. "I think that's being optimistic. I'm not speaking out against the law enforcement here, but something about this just doesn't sit well with me."

"C'mon...." Megami put on a weak smile, her expression one of reassurance. "This isn't Seiten-sama's group we're dealing with anymore. That force was replaced long ago by the rebellion, who've been nothing more than honest and true. I think you're just being too negative about this..."

"Sorry. That's honestly not like me." Still, there was that nagging feeling she couldn't ignore...

"This situation's making us all tense, I suppose.... anyway...." Megami's expression faded into a more contemplative look. "That's all I stopped by for. I'm heading to the police office in order to question them personally about Aoi's arrest. Hopefully, I'll get more information than I did out of that news thing...."

"Alright." Rukia said. "I'd go with you, but I need to reverse the damage I did to this area before I leave. I hope you get decent answers."

"Yeah....me too...."

With that being said, Megami turned and walked off, disappearing as quickly as she had came.

Tensions
It wasn't often that Kenta got to enjoy sitting at his home, especially with what happened in the night before.

He was sitting in front of his TV screen with a small glass of champagne in one hand, half-lidded eyes analyzing the news as it relayed information about Aoi Taijiri's arrest as well as the battle against the Ahijados forces. His other arm was in a cast, having taken a blade straight through the bone courtesy of a cult member. He lifted the glass to his lips, quickly emptying the contents before setting the empty glass onto the armrest. His mind calculated the casualties - a little more than half of the police force involved in the fight, including himself, had been killed or wounded. The display of force by the Ahijados would definitely stir up distress within Yuurei itself among the populace. The captain had made it her own duty to inform the King of the happenings and to begin the evacuation process. In a few days, civilians would be moved en masse, and in three days the information given by the Soul Society Shinigami would be understood.

'''KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!'''

His ears perked up at the sound of knocking at his front door. Slowly, he stood up, walking over to it and grabbing the knob. As he opened it, his eyes widened slightly at the sight. "Ah....Kurosaki-san." He noted, eyeing a rather solemn Megami Kurosaki as she stood. Her eyes were looking directly at him, almost as if she was accusing him of something. However, he remained calm under the stare, maintaining a casual attitude. "What can I do you for?"

"We need to talk." Megami spoke. "It concerns Aoi...."

A brief silence for a moment. Then, Kenta allowed himself to nod in acknowledgement, stepping aside for her to enter. "Of course. Have a seat in the living room; I'll be right back." Then he turned and walked off, leaving her to step into the room and look around. It was clear that he certainly was no rich folk. Despite his serious and by the book nature, he lived like someone of the middle class. The furnishes, decor, furniture, and other items that made up the body of the house made that fact clear as crystal. Shutting the door behind her, she walked into the living room with a somewhat unsure gait, sitting down on the couch. Even though Kenta had willingly invited her in, she still felt somewhat uncomfortable to be in someone else's home.

Fortunately, Kenta was quick to come back. He stepped into the den, handing her a folder filled with a few papers. "Before you begin, I'd like you to take note of these. They're chat logs that we had managed to find during our daily checks of Yūrei's network." He took a seat in a chair near the couch, looking on as Megami opened up the folder and inspected the papers. "It's information relating to the attack last night, detailing exact locations, potential targets of opportinity, what have you..."

"But....why are you showing me this?" Megami questioned, eyebrow contorted in confusion.

"Because I knew you came here to defend her case."

That caused Megami's eyes to widen slightly. But Kenta seemed to pay no heed as he continued to speak, his hands lowered and folded while his elbows rested on his thighs. "I understand it's a tough time having to deal with one of your friends committing a crime such as Taijiri had done...." He said calmly. "But the police are not unjust in their movements. You may think of us negatively for doing our job, label us with names that we may or may not deserve.... but it's our duty to protect the interests of the city, no matter what the cost."

"But what would make you think that I thought negatively about the police?" Megami questioned him, clearly dumbfounded. "I don't blame anyone for what happened..."

"It's little hints like what you and Rukia gave me...." The police officer muttered, slowly getting out of his chair and walking towards the nearest wall, only to lean his back against it and fold his arms across his chest - as best as he could with. "It is exactly why I feared allowing the Kurosaki family to get involved within this scenario. After seeing how we work, it's quite obvious that you as well as your family, despite all these years, still hold resentment for the law enforcement. That was highly apparent in the Takahashi incident, where the Major and his squadmates were sent to Hueco Mundo during the hunt for Diosa. Prior to that meeting, Ahatake openly threatened and abritrarily acted during the midst of an important meeting between him and your Majesty. That clearly speaks to me that he in particular has no problem in challenging the society we have set."

"Hold on!" Megami immediately stood up, a somewhat indignant look on his face. "My husband can be unorthodox at times, but he's certainly not a traitor!"

"That's what you said with Taijiri, and look what happened."

Had Kenta's voice gotten colder? Involuntarily, the red-head took a step back, surprised at his tone. However, she was unnerved by the narrowed-eye stare he was giving her, a matching frown on his face. Any sympathy or feelings he would've had towards the matter had been swept away, replaced by the loneliness of cold logic. She looked away, unable to hold his stare for much longer. At that moment, a tense silence swept the room once more, the only sound within the house an overhead fan rotating slowly above their heads.

Kenta spoke again.

"Sometimes things happen for a reason." He stated simply, lowering his head and causing his bangs to overshadow his eyes. "We all understand how valuable you've been to us during the recent incidents that we've had. But now, things are different. The commander has ordered a strict "minimal civilian involvement" policy to be enforced, and that includes the likes of the Kurosaki. Rukia, however, chose to defy that order and ignore authority. I'm not going to sit here and just let the rules be broken little by little...." He pushed himself off of the wall, walking towards Megami, causing her to snap her head towards him in surprise. "I'm going to tell you this. This isn't your war anymore. It's the war of the ones who were with this society since the beginning of its creation, the ones who fought with their very lives and put their loyalty to it. So I ask for your sake that you continue to live your life instead of throwing it away to interfere in our affairs."

Megami remained silent.

"I'll be informing the commander of this little development concerning the policy. I have my job to do, after all...in the meantime...." He turned around, walking off. "Why don't you do your family a favor and give them my advice. It would be good for all of us...."

"He said what!?" Miharu's face was red with anger, her cheeks puffed again. "He thinks we have a grudge against the law enforcement?" Megami had come back to tell her daughter and Daiyaku the news. Needless to say, Miharu was less than pleased with what she heard.

"I think he's right, at least about some of us." Daiyaku said, trying to get her to sit. "Ahatake himself is no fan of them, and Miharu, you've stated you find the police at least to be incompetent."

Megami looked away, an eyebrow raised in contemplation. "He does hold a point... and, honestly, considering how much fighting potential we've shown while we were living in this society, it would seem somewhat normal to be wary of our loyalties considering recent actions. Not to mention, threatening a high-ranking official in front of a government leader doesn't exactly relieve that tension." She added sagely.

"But the king trusts Tō-san." Was Miharu's response. "Or I think he does. If the King trusts us, why shouldn't the police?"

"The King has a passion for democracy and open voice. He trusts us because we had helped him and the city out in its greatest time of need." Megami said. "But the police, even knowing that fact, still have their duty to root out threats to the peace. Any sign of disdain or distrust towards authority can be taken as one of the beginning signs for criminal activity. It's just the natural way that the civil guard acts."

"I want to go slap some sense into them..." Miharu said, frowning. "They're just making me dislike them more..."

"I don't think they care." Daiyaku told her, sighing. "So, Megami, what now? Do we actually take his advice?"

"Like I said, the feelings toward us would be considered natural at this point." The red-haired woman said, directing her gaze back towards the two younger people. "Unless we want to agitate these moments, I suggest we stay clear of any more investigation into this matter. Got it?"

"Of course." Daiyaku replied politely. His tone was perfectly innocent, his smile equally so. A vein throbbed in Miharu's forehead. "Fine..."

"Good. Now, that's all I needed you for. You can leave now...."

Daiyaku got up and motioned for Miharu to follow him, which she did, albeit reluctantly.