Disclaimer: I hold no connections to the ownership of anything in this fic. Nothing. Zilch. Nada. Okay?
Note: Any and all translations will be at the bottom of this fic. Italics are emphasised words. Bit of Ichigo and related persons bashing – Tatsuki's a dragon-child (see Vathara's ATLA fic, 'Embers' – yes this is shameless promoting of her fic, it's awesome, and where I got some of this idea of Tatsuki really being a dragon from. Also, Darling Drusilla's Tatsuki Vampire Slayer', 'The Silent God' and rogue-angle82's 'Valkyrie' are also inspiration – IF YOU CAN RECOGNISE ANYTHING, I DON'T OWN IT.
Drabble For Tatsuki
A is for Afterthought:
The martial artist avoided Ichigo and his group of friends when he arrived back from fetching Orihime. She stayed away, because she couldn't go through the pain of being tossed aside again. When she was harassed by some rogue Shinigami a few weeks later, she was saved by Ichigo. When he tried talking to her, she ignored him. When he was persistent, she spun around, a dangerous snarl on her face as fire flashed in her eyes. "You didn't tell me when you had the chance, Kurosaki-sama." Her voice was scathing, and Ichigo fell back several paces, despair blossoming in his chest. "You made it quite clear to me when you chose to ignore our so-called friendship, in favour of being recruited to Rukia's wills. You declared yourself enemy number one, when you decided that I wasn't even worthy of an afterthought to you."
B is for Battle:
Blood pumped through her veins as the dragoness sliced through her opponent, their blood flying from her steel edged battle gloves. A sinister grin adorned her lips, an equally insane light in her eyes as her blood sang in the midst of battle.
C is for Coward:
Tatsuki glared at the traitor in front of her, as he tried to defend his actions. "I. Owe. You. NOTHING!" she hissed, steam escaping her mouth as her inner fire roared its displeasure. Mere seconds later, the place were there once was a gutless fool who had sold her out to the Shinigami, was a steaming puddle of acid. She walked away – she had no time for traitorous cowards.
D is for Dragon:
Tatsuki was the perfect definition of a dragon. Instead of needing a knight to free the princess from the dreaded lizard-like beast, this dragon kicked arse with martials arts,her claws, her temper and words, her fiery breath, and her protectiveness of her charges and possessions legendary. Yes, indeed, Tatsuki was the perfect definition of a dragon. The hording of her treasures and friends spoke volumes of that.
E is for Ether:
Several times Tatsuki had been asked to explain the concept of 'Ether' by Maria and Martin, her hatchling Dragon cubs. Several times she had attempted, but her young charges had been left confused. Finally, she told them, "The stars, the Heavens, and the Powers-That-Be, are made of Ether. It is the life force of the universe. A never ending battery for life, that makes you gaze at it in awe and wonder at its mystery. Ether is the source of our power, and the source of new life, like a newborn babe." Her charges never asked the question of that again, too focused on asking her about babies and where they came from after that.
F is for Flight: (Featuring Guest Star – Grimmjow!)
Grimmjow paused and looked out the window to his left. Yep, he wasn't imagining it. The strawberry had just flown passed, courtesy of Tatsuki Airlines. Sticking his head out the window, he showed the fuming woman a large card with the number '10' on it. She laughed and went about her day, a skip in her step. Grimmjow was just glad she hadn't deemed it necessary to send him on a one-way flight because of his actions a month or so ago. Her punches hurt. Kurosaki, however, he felt no sympathy for whatsoever.
G is for Guilt:
"They're guilty, ma'am. No doubt about it." Maccus informed his commander as he showed her the files on their current prisoners. Tatsuki sighed as she looked through the evidence before her. "Captain Turner." She called. A young man with a scar clearly visible on his chest, shown through his shirt arrived at her call.
"How may I be of service, Miss?" he asked her, quirking a brow at her prisoners. Tatsuki struggle to keep a straight face, as he glared vengeful fury at the Shinigami before the assembled crew. "May we have the use of your brig, Captain, until we reach land?" she asked. Captain Turner's grin was terrifying. She almost felt sorry for them. Almost. They were, after all, guilty.
H is for Honour:
If you asked a Shinigami what Honour was, they would reply that it was your social status and credit. If you asked a human, it would change to your reputation and business ethic. You wouldn't get anything out of a Hollow, but the Espada believed that to be honourable; you had to pay back any and all debts. Tatsuki's answer was a lot simpler compared to everyone else's, yet it was also more complicated. To her, Honour was being truthful to friends and family, always doing your best, protecting those who needed it; paying back debts…the list went on. Her definition of Honour was that it was Life.
I is for Instinct:
Tatsuki's instinct was something to be feared, the world of both Hollows and Shinigami quickly learned. It didn't matter if she could see you or not, but if you didn't pass her test – and only Grimmjow did, after he'd worked very hard so that he had earned tolerance (and even that was hard, he had tried to kill her once after all) –you would be left in a pile of misery. Shinigami would return to Soul Society and beg not to be assigned Karakura Town, any and all Hollows were destroyed, and Aizen once tried to hurt her…She killed any and all things that made him male, stopped them from reappearing, and liquefied him with her bare hands. Everyone stayed away from her grasp after that. Her instincts were terrifying.
J is for Justice:
In any dispute, Tatsuki was Judge, Jury and Executioner. You don't mess with that, no matter who you are. Just so happens that the Shinigami, Aizen and his cronies and Kurosaki's group didn't quite get the memo. Grimmjow winced as he watched her liquefy his old boss with her bare hands, a gleam of insanity in her eyes as she watched the man responsible for the Winter War die. Turning to him, she was walking away when Urahara blocked her way. The light disappeared from her eyes, making them appear to be a void with no end. "Move." She commanded, for that was the only name for the tone of her voice. The annoying shotten keeper laughed irritatingly at her, fan in front of his face as he said, "Maa, maa, Arisawa-chan! I didn't know - !" he was silenced when Tatsuki slammed a clawed hand into his throat, cutting off valuable oxygen. "Damn straight you didn't know, you son-of-a-bitch." Grimmjow shuddered. The Dragon's voice was terrifying as she snarled at him, the icy aura being emitted practically freezing the poor fool to the spot. "I am Justice. I am Judge, Jury and Executioner, and if you don't leave me the fuck alone, I will be yours. Understand?" she dropped him to the ground and left. It was just another day for the woman whose words equalled the Law.
K is for Kill:
Tatsuki stared at the large crowd in front of her house, silently fuming. "I am going to kill the mother-fucking-son-of-a-bitch that created Valentines' Day!" she snarled, nails that were quickly becoming claws drawing blood from her fists. She spent the rest of the day holed up inside her room, imagining various ways to kill the creator of her hated holiday, all of which would make him suffer.
L is for Life:
To Dragon's, Life was sacred. They passed their respects and wishes of wellbeing for any spirits to the dead. Any enemies were put to death swiftly and mercifully. The only time the Dragons' broke this creed of theirs, was when their hatchlings were in danger, hurt, or if the foe truly deserved to suffer. The Science Division of Soul Society was going to find that out the hard way, a certain Spanish giant mused to himself, watching as she interrogated the one they called Kurotsuchi, who had just suggested to the Sou-Taicho that she and her Clan be studied to identify if they were a threat. Come morning, he would regret that.
M is for Medusa (reference to Heather Dale's song):
Tatsuki hummed a song to herself, walking through the graveyard plot belonging to her Clan. She smiled as she reached a particular section, trailing her fingers over the headstones as she walked on. She laughed to herself as her hatchlings called her in for dinner. "My garden's full of pretty men, who couldn't stay away." She murmured to herself, as she remembered the men she'd killed for trying to kill her or her clan.
N is for Nothing:
Tatsuki was watching the two friends she would have stood beside no matter the consequences. Her brother-in-arms and Clan-mate raised an eyebrow. "Whatchalookin' at, Tsuki-chan?" he teased her, tugging at her braided hair. She shook him off, giving him a look asking the levels of his immaturity, as she stood. "Nothing, Nate. I was looking at nothing." She said, as the two walked away. She ignored the small voice quivering in her mind that said, 'she was nothing to them'.
O is for Opponent (aka, when Tatsuki met Renji):
Tatsuki raised a sceptical brow at the scrawny looking teen before her. He was dressed in civilian clothes, as opposed to the martial arts clothes her fellow students were wearing. He didn't look like much, but then neither did she. She analysed him, searching for anything that may give away any clues to his abilities. Her eyes narrowed at the scornful snort the newcomer gave when the instructor paired him up with her. She had been willing to have him as a sparring partner, a fellow student. But with that dismissing snort, he became her punching bag, her enemy, her opponent. He never even saw her coming.
P is for Prey (aka Ichigo Kurosaki):
The assistant instructor at the martial arts dojo stalked through the halls. Students hurried out of her way, stampeding into classrooms, bathrooms (there were several amusing screams when girls or guys were pushed or pushed into the wrong room), down stairs and flattened themselves to the wall in an attempt to not be caught in the path of destruction. Her face was hard as stone as she searched for her prey.
Q is for Quit:
It was quiet when Ichigo went looking with his friends to find Tatsuki. He'd already found Keigo and Mizuiro and explained to them what had really happened, to Rukia's eternal disapproval. Finding Tatsuki was proving to be harder than he'd thought. She wasn't in her usual places of the dojo, home, park or the rare mall excursion. When a little girl ran up to him and presented him with a small note from Tatsuki, he took it, trepidation mounting as he unfolded the paper. The two words tore a hole in his chest. He could vaguely hear the people around him as his Hollow said, 'I fucking told you to be careful with her, you bastard! I fucking told you so!' For written on the paper, in Tatsuki's handwriting, were the words;
'I QUIT.'
R is for Rage:
A Dragon's rage was a terrible thing. You'd get a reference, but all the people who could tell you about it were….well, dead. There is a reason you don't find smart or wise people stealing from a Dragon. It got you killed. Yet nobody in Karakura town seemed to be smart or wise. This was proven when the forces of Shinigami, Vizard, Hollow and Espada/Arrancar moved their war to her territory. They would soon learn their lesson, the Dragoness mused, sharpening her blades.
S is for Shinigami:
The Shinigami assigned to Karakura Town learned the hard way to not interfere with the doings of the Arisawa Clan. Rukia was the first when she saw Tatsuki at the scene of a burning house, the sounds of a man screaming inside. In her hands were what would have been a gallon of gasoline and a lighter. The petite Shinigami was sent to the Kurosaki house with several broken bones, one of them a broken arm, and a blackened eye. The lesson on not to mess with the work of an angry Dragon, who has no regard or love for any Shinigami, didn't exactly sink in.
T is for Teach:
Tatsuki laughed as she watched the disaster unfold before her. Ichigo had thought to teach her a lesson in fighting, but somehow, a doppelganger that was an albino version of him appeared and started to slap the living daylights out of the orange haired Vizard. After a while, the doppelganger turned to her and kneeled. "If there's anythin' ya want done, call me." He said, pressing her knuckles to his lips in the mockery of a kiss, a deranged smirk on his face. Tatsuki smirked back at him, her eyes glinting with mischief. "You'll be the first to know if I want Kurosaki beaten up, I promise." She told him, laughing at the delighted response this produced. 'Well,' she thought as she walked away, her albino partner in crime staring at Kurosaki before slapping him again. 'That was certainly an unorthodox lesson from a strange teacher.'
U is for Unwanted:
Tatsuki slid to the floor leaning against the wall, crying unwanted tears. That stupid jerk! After everything they'd been through, she thought she'd always have a supportive shoulder in case she ever needed any help at all, no matter what kind. To find out she'd been discarded for Rukia and her circle hurt, but to make matters worse, she'd also taken Chad and Orihime along with Ichigo. 'No, Kurosaki,' she reminded herself. 'You don't know him remember?' A sob tore its way out of her chest and she curled in on herself, desperately clutching at her heart, as though to make the pain of being unwanted dissipate.
V is for Vengeance:
Tatsuki hummed to herself as she strode through the sands of Hueco Mundo. If anyone was within a five-mile radius, they would have died from the look on her face alone. As it was, they were all hiding. 'Rather smart of them,' she mused as she rounded a corner to find Aizen, Ichigo, Orihime, Rukia and several others. She dismissed them, noting their presence, and judging them as mere annoyances to be dealt with at a later date. She turned to Aizen. "You know," she stated, ignoring the questions directed at her. "You look pretty sturdy. Almost as though you'd make a good punching bag…let's find out shall we." She vanished from their sight, and proceeded to beat the ever-living-hell out of him. Oh, yes. Tatsuki Arisawa was back with a vengeance.
W is for War:
There was silence as Tatsuki wiped frosted cupcake off her face. "This means WAR!" She roared at Keigo and Mizuiro, before she snatched up a cupcake in each hand and threw it in their faces. She readied her weapons as Ichigo and the others stepped inside. She looked at Keigo and Mizuiro, before looking back at the newcomers. "OPEN FIRE!" Keigo and Mizuiro did as commanded, throwing their cupcakes to land smack in the faces of Ichigo and his gang.
X is for X-Ray:
Tatsuki scowled at the cast that held her broken arm. Another year of being the second strongest girl in Japan, just because of a stupid broken arm! She glowered at the X-Ray machine that stood in the corner of the room.
Y is for YOLO (You Only Live Once):
Tatsuki smirked as she skated down the pathway to the park, executing a spin mid-jump as she flew from the top to the bottom of the stairs. She tossed a kiss in the direction of the children that were openly pointing at her in awe of her stunt, before she tore off down the sidewalk. Skidding to a stop, she produced a can of spray paint. She tossed the can up and down, contemplating what to draw. A lightswitch was flicked on and she smirked. 'Well, You Only Live Once, after all." When Ichigo reappeared again, weeks later, he found the whole school was in uproar of the artist who had drawn a very detailed image of a group who looked very similar to Ichigo's, and a Dragon who looked ready to eat them. The picture went viral, and had been signed, 'YOLO'.
Z is for Zzzzz (i.e. sleep):
Tatsuki sleeping patterns were…odd, to say the least. When the storms came, she would sleep with the cat that always appeared when it rained. In the summer, she would toss and turn with the sheets kicked off the bed. Winter arrived and she would sleep buried in a ball, curled up like a cat. Autumn and Spring were alike in that they were the most peaceful times of the year. But the point is, Tatsuki is not a morning person. She is a woman who loves her bed very much. So when someone has the death wish of trying to get her out of bed, she proceeds to ignore them – this is ignored and progresses onto her beating her intruder away from her to head butt them. This part is much more effective, and she snuggles back into her covers, leaving Rukia to attempt to stem the blood from her bleeding nose. She was unsuccessful.