Runa sighed and swept her bangs away from her face. It was a warm summer’s night as she sat on the rooftop of the 10th squad barracks, looking up at the stars. She wished she had made a better impression of herself that morning. She had been introduced to her taicho and fukutaicho, Toshiro Hitsugaya and Rangiku Matsumoto. Rangiku had promptly hugged her, exclaiming how wonderful it was to have such a very young and talented new member and pushed her along where the rest of the 10th squad was waiting outside. Not expecting such a large welcome, she had blushed profusely, fiddling on with the hilt of her zanpaktou while the group of shinigami looked at her expectantly. All she managed to stammer out was “Umm, err, hello. I’m Runa Kirameki, y-yoroshiku…” Thankfully, Matsumoto filled the rest of her introduction for her before Toshiro dismissed everyone. After that, Matsumoto gave her a quick tour of the rest of Sereitei while shinigami from other squads looked curiously at her.
How far she had come, she had started out as a human with her older brother Kaito. For all her human life, she and her brother had been able to see strange things and spiritual beings. After their death from a car accident, they had woken to see the severed chain of life upon their chests. And then they were attacked by a giant hollow and she had watched Kaito eaten by the hideous creature when he tried to protect her. Then the shinigami stepped in, arriving in their black kimonos, disposed of the hollow and performed the Soul Burial on her. During her arrival at Rukongai, she had already set in her heart to become a shinigami. It seemed only a little while ago that she was accepted into the Shinigami’s Academy. She quickly progressed in all her classes, excelling in kido and combat. Soon she was the youngest shinigami in the advanced class.
~ Yuni
