Creeping Darkness [Murasaki, Urahara]

Kisuke was more than familiar with the new Captain-Commander of the Gotei. Kagayaku no Murasaki had been one of the few Shinigami to make the effort to liaise with him on matters concerning Earth, and for that alone, he had enjoyed her tenure as Captain of the Earth Division. Her replacement, well, he was a little more wary of that one. Regardless, Kisuke had been glad to see Murasaki stepping up when the time came. The lukewarm politics of her predecessor had never quite sat well with him, though he was far from brazen enough to make such an opinion known to anyone outside of his own thoughts.

Slipping through the winding streets of the Rukongai and the Seireitei was a pleasant reminder of the life that he had left behind, keeping to the shadows where he could just to avoid any undue attention. Though more eyes did eventually begin to fall upon him as he drew close to his destination until there was little point in even attempting to hide anymore. Not that he had been trying particularly hard to remain incognito, but the illusion that he had been might give them some small comfort.

There was a brief moment of tension as it seemed like the guards might not let him pass before a gentle bout of laughter tumbled from the shopkeeper's lips and he strolled on by without any further disturbance. Upon entering the Captain-Commander's quarters, he offered her a polite tip of his bucket hat as he too tried to maintain that air of informality even despite the situation. There was serious business to discuss, which was why he had come all this way and made all this unusual effort, but this was perhaps only the opening salvo in a prolonged engagement.

"Been a little while, Captain Murasaki, and I dare say you've been busy."

With a casual nod in the direction of the masu, he moved to pour himself a modest cup. It would be rude not to at least sample what she was offering, and perhaps it might just take the edge off that cold disposition that seemed to linger in the air.

Slowly filling his cup, careful not to spill any of the liquid even whilst listening to what Murasaki was opening the conversation with. Straight to the point, but in an honest enough way that he could appreciate her earnest nature. The Gotei were in more than one tight spot, she knew it as well as he did, and not having to dance around that little complexity made matters a little easier for both of them.

"Quite the changing on the guard that you have had to oversee since taking up the Commander's Haori, and the work is not yet done if your Vice-Captain was talking truly when she came to visit. Though I would not have minded hearing the news from you directly, I appreciate that time is a little sparse these days."

Kisuke was hardly going to outright regurgitate Erika's thinly-veiled offer as he did not wish to be so presumptive as to think that he was about to be called to action, but it would be equally remiss of him not to bring it up at the first port of call. He too sipped away at the freshly poured sake, musing now upon the real meat of the issue. Hell was a grand old point of contention, even before all of the recent changes, but now there was an opportunity being presented that allowed Murasaki to cement her place as the top dog. Doing what her forebearers had been denied for so long and seizing control once more of the home of the damned.

"Getting Hell under control is an easy thing to say, but I can assure you that it is anything but in reality. The landscape is shifting, recently even more so, but for years it has been a ticking bomb waiting to explode. Now you want to send your people in and try to pick through the wreckage. It's a gamble, but I want to do what I can to minimise exposure."

"Of course, I do miss the occasional visit but do give my regards to Alistair. Next time he is visiting Earth to go digging deep I wouldn't mind a little heads up."

Kisuke smiled at that, an unsubtle hint towards where this conversation was going. Placing down the cup, he steepled his fingers in front of him and let that settle for just a moment. She had been guarded about it too, but there was never going to be a situation in which he left without once more throwing down the gauntlet.

"I am more than happy to combine our efforts as something more than an innocent little consultancy, for this operation or perhaps even longer, but that comes with a price. I want access to a select item currently in the possession of the Research Division, and a choice cut of the spoils found in the wreckage of that hellscape. There are some things that no one should dabble with down there, better they disappear than fall into ill hands."

His smile remained, though Murasaki might notice that some of the prior playfulness had faded. He was driven by a desire to protect innocent lives, and this was certainly one path that would steer them in that direction. One spinning plate that he could control and counterbalance, even as near a dozen more continued to spin.

"You know, with an attitude like that you might just get something done around here. "

And there was all the confirmation that he needed, not that it had really been in doubt. They were down a research Captain, and there were few better candidates to replace her that had more experience than the original model. But arrogance was not a colour that suited him well, nor was this an easy request to answer when the cards were already on the table.

"I mean, naturally, I'm flattered, but my situation is a little different from that of Miss Masamune. I have responsibilities on Earth that another Captain would not have, things that could not be left to another to tend to nor would I want to let go. But I'm here because I wanted to help, so perhaps we can come to an arrangement?"

It could have easily been a joke, a little jest between two old souls, but neither of them was laughing at that moment. They were being sincere, even if they both wore easy smiles and sipped at sake, and that brought an uneasy tension to the air.

"As far as my interests go, I have no desire to keep my findings to myself. Whatever I learn will be shared with you, and then you can decide what to do with that knowledge. If you trust me enough to want me in the Gotei then I ask you to trust that my intentions are anything but malicious."

"Don't mistake my concerns for disinterest, I can certainly appreciate the optics of this decision just as much as you. So I'll take a post, wherever you think I will be most useful to you, and do what I can to help. But I think we both know that doing everything by the book is neither of our styles."

It was awkward for her to be put in this position, to have to choose between her principles and his abilities, so he was trying to be respectful. In reality, though, there was only one outcome to this course of action. They both knew it. She was still new to her position as Commander, so she needed people she could depend upon at her side. So Miss Gamukira's sudden leave of absence was far more of a blessing than it would have been to Abalia for just that reason.

"I never expected myself to seriously consider coming back, even after all this time, but you made me think about it. You've got a real chance here. So I owe it to myself to do the most I can to help facilitate that."

He certainly had not needed to add all that extra smoke, though it did ring true somewhere deep down. But if it helped ease her mind about this then he'd try to make it as comfortable as he could for her, and if a few words smoothed things over then there was nothing he had really lost.