Characters: Nanao, Rangiku, Gin
Summary: Companionship found under the hydrangea bush. The sequel to 'Social Research'.
Pairings: mentioned GinRan
Warnings/Spoilers: None
Timeline: Pre-manga
Author's Note: Here is the sequel to Social Research. Also, this is my one hundredth Bleach oneshot.
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

When frustrated and upset, there is a large hydrangea bush on the Eighth division grounds that Nanao likes to take shelter under. Which is a euphemism for "hide under so no one can see I'm crying". She first discovered it after Lisa left.

Truth be told, Nanao's certain she shouldn't be so upset that a peer has stolen her journal of observations. She can always just go find another journal and start another study. Start over afresh. That shouldn't be too hard, but having something stolen from her, anything, always hurts enough to make her seek the comfort of the hydrangea bush.

A pale, powder blue petal falls to the sweet green grass. Nanao, clutching her knees to her chest, sees it fall, and plucks it up in small, pale fingers with bitten nails—I really need to stop doing that. She stares at it intently for a moment, before very calmly and collectedly ripping the petal into several tiny pieces.

"I'm not sure why you're abusing innocent little flowers." A hatefully familiar voice intrudes upon Nanao's solitude. The blonde girl from that morning huddles down beside Nanao under the hydrangea bush. "But I get the impression that you're here a lot."

Nanao glares sourly at her—the taller girl seems inordinately relieved that Nanao's face is dry—as she sits down. "What are you doing here?"

The fair-haired girl chooses not to answer Nanao's question. Instead, she herself plucks up one of the fallen petals herself and, instead of tearing it, just rubs it, smooth and satiny, between two fingers. "So…" Her voice is strangely neutral. "That journal really did just have surveillance of daily life. No sexual escapades or…questionable activity."

"I could have told you that." If Nanao's surliness exceeds the bounds of what is considered polite, then she doesn't care; the other girl has it coming. "You didn't have to commit grand larceny to figure that out."

"Give it a rest." Now it's the blonde who's glaring. "It's not a crime to be curious." Falling back on the inquisitive gleam in pale blue eyes, she asks, "Why do you do that, anyway?"

Nanao shrugs halfheartedly, feeling the anger seep away from her. It's really too much of an effort to stay angry over something like this. "Yadomaru-fukutaicho taught me how when she was…still here," she finishes lamely. "She said it was important to understanding human interactions and relationships." As explanation: "Yadomaru-fukutaicho was an amateur sociologist in her spare time."

"Sure." The way the blonde's eyebrows have arched gives Nanao the impression that she doesn't entirely believe her, and Nanao supposes she can be forgiven for that. Lisa was well-known for being "curious" on many matters.

After a moment of awkward silence, in which Nanao sears the blonde with blue-violet eyes and hopes she will leave, it's the girl who stole Nanao's journal who starts to speak again. "I'm Matsumoto Rangiku. Gin told me your name was Nanao?" Winking conspiratorially, she whispers, "You're not the only one who watches people."

Nanao isn't sure about how she feels about this girl calling her by her given name, any more than being sure about how she feels about the fact that the lieutenant of the Fifth division—a boy not much older than her—apparently knows her name without ever having met her, but she's sure that the girl won't stop if she asks her to. "Yes, my name's Nanao." Pointedly, she questions, "Are you going to give me back my journal?"

Matsumoto winces and smiles nervously. "You see, about that…"

"Yes?" Nanao's voice become's dangerously quiet.

"Yeah… Gin took it. He said it was stolen property and that he was confiscating it. You're probably not going to get it back any time soon."

A sharp groan splits the air. "Well that's just perfect."

Matsumoto's apologetic laugh sounds for all the world like one of the more raucous birdsongs Nanao's heard over the years. "You know, it was actually kind of cool reading that thing. You're really thorough, you know that?"

Nanao feels flattered, despite herself, smiling slightly. "Thanks. I've always been curious about human interactions." She blinks shyly. "Most people, when they find out about this, they just think I'm weird or that I'm eavesdropping on them."

Matsumoto leans back on the balls of her hands and mutters gloomily, "Trust me. Compared to Gin, you're not weird at all."

"When do you think I'll get my journal back?"

She only grimaces. "That depends. Gin will take it to Aizen-taicho, and your notebook will most likely be processed and examined to be sure that it doesn't contain seditious material or anything like that. Because they know it's yours, they'll probably get it back to you as soon as they can." Matsumoto stares at Nanao. "You did write your name in it, didn't you?"

Nanao flinches. "Umm…no…"

The way Matsumoto's face scrunches up almost suggests physical pain. "Then there's no telling when it'll get back to you."

"Not necessarily." A new voice enters their conversation, sounding from just outside the hydrangea bush, light and cheery.

Nanao gasps in elation when she sees a hand protruding into the hydrangea bush, holding a small black leather-bound notebook out to her.

"Oh, thank you!"

The girls emerge crawling out of the hydrangea bush, Nanao tucking her journal away into the folds of her kosode. Ichimaru Gin, lieutenant of the Fifth division and a young boy no bigger than Matsumoto flashes his normal painted-on smile at the dark-haired girl while Matsumoto mouths the word 'Thanks' over Nanao's head.

Gin nods briefly to Matsumoto before directing a "Keep up the good work" at Nanao and walking off.

This has thrown Nanao for a loop; she turns, bewildered, to Matsumoto for guidance. "What did Ichimaru-fukutaicho mean by that?"

Matsumoto only laughs brightly. "I think Gin is under the impression that he's found a kindred spirit. He's done you a huge favor, not taking that to Aizen-taicho."

"Yeah, I know."

Then, Matsumoto makes a surprising offer. "Nanao? The next time you whip out that notebook of yours, come find me. I can put names to some of those numbers. I'm in the Tenth division."

Nanao stares at her, dumbstruck for a moment—no one ever wants to help her at this—before she smiles and answers, "Sure."