...
"Hide away all the things you want from everybody else and they become yours."
-Riruka Dokugamine
"Ichigo..." My voice came out raspy and echoed, like I was speaking through some sort of weirdly warped intercom system.
Ichigo simply continued to focus on his Substitute Shinigami badge, not caring that the more he allowed the dark energy to surround it, the more pain I felt. It was a pain that I couldn't even begin to define or explain- It was pain without reason.
"Just a little more," he said through his teeth, growling under the strain of producing his Fullbring for the first time. He couldn't even begin to grasp just how dangerous this was- It was only me and him, together, no other Fullbringers to protect him from himself. To protect me from himself.
"Ichigo-"
"I've almost got it!" he persisted. His eyebrows knit together in concentration as the four prongs of dark energy elongated, fading in an out like a dying lightbulb as the energy struggled to surround its host. It almost resembled a Swastika, but I didn't have very much time to ponder such things. "I got it, Horo." he said at last, breathing in a sigh of relief as the black energy continued to grow. "I got-"
"Ichigo, stop it!"
And then my body disappeared all together, along with my voice, though I could still hear it carry over the rooftops of Karakura Town.
How the hell had it come to this?
[... weeks previously... ]
The sun was shining, the air was warm, the sky was cloudless... And everything was stupid.
Currently, I was sitting on a small hospital bed in the back of a clinic. The stark white sheets on which I now sat crumpled rather loudly, which made me all the more uncomfortable when shifting positions. That wasn't too much of a problem, though, considering that two enormous cuts ran down almost the entirety of my right arm, causing me to feel a shitload of pain whenever I decided to move. My eyes raked over the wound angrily, and I silently willed it to just go away and be healed already so that I could get out of here. Unfortunately, I was not blessed with the power of spontaneous healing capabilities. So, basically, I was shit out of luck.
How, exactly, had I gotten into this situation? Simple, really. For whatever reason, this town was absolutely crawling with Hollows. I wasn't too sure what that said about Karakura Town- Maybe it was some sort of weird reservoir of some seriously intense spiritual energy. Who knew? All speculations aside, the fact remained that I was now living in a hotbed for some serious spiritual activity; Hollows included. It wasn't odd for them to be drawn here- If I really thought about it, it made sense. What I didn't understand was how the people who lived here continued to do so as peacefully and carefree as they did. Since I had arrived in Karakura Town, I'd seen no evidence to suggest that there was someone out there able to destroy these things. I sighed.
That being said, I had spent the majority of my time here job hunting and kicking some serious Hollow ass. Or, at least trying to, as the case may have been. I stared bitterly at my mangled arm once more- Damn those bitter spirits and their hunger for souls.
"Good morning!" A ridiculously jovial voice broke through my flustered thoughts.
"Oh, yeah?" I muttered, sitting up with a wince as pain shot through my arm with every small movement I made. "Who says?"
The man who had spoken chuckled to himself, his shoulders bobbing up and down as he shook his head amusedly at my less than upbeat attitude. His eyes raked over his clipboard, and he tapped his chin thoughtfully with his pen as he looked at the form that I had hastily scribbled with my left hand upon my arrival at four thirty that very morning. It had been much too early to have been business hours, and I was fairly certain that I had woken up both him and his family, but that certainly hadn't stopped him from taking me in once he saw my bleeding arm. Through the walls of the clinic I could hear his children cooking themselves breakfast, despite the fact that it was only five now and they didn't have to go to school for at least another hour and a half. I'd say that I felt guilty, but the throbbing pains in my arm canceled out any contrition that I may have felt had the situation been more normal.
"Well, Miss... Shirosaki," As he spoke my name his eyebrows knitted together in interest. "... Do you mind telling me how you hurt your arm?"
"I broke into a zoo," I stated blatantly, not blinking as I said it.
Perhaps being a compulsive liar wasn't one of my better qualities, but for me it always was rather enjoyable. People quickly began to question whether I was telling the truth or lying and, consequentially, they could become very flustered. The whole process was pretty entertaining, despite what people said about lying being wrong. The doctor simply laughed, scribbling something on my intake form before continuing.
"Is that so?" he replied. Something about his tone of voice told me that he knew that something was up- And I don't mean that he knew I was lying. "Was that a dare?"
"Sure." I said, sensing that he was now humoring me. It was as if he knew exactly what I had been doing an hour or so prior to my appearing on the doorstep of Kurosaki Clinic- But there was no way this guy could know about Hollows... "The bastards owe me twenty bucks," He laughed yet again, setting down his clipboard on my bedside table and pulling up a stool.
"I'm afraid that won't cover the cost of fixing up this arm,"
"Bummer."
I winced as he disinfected the scratches. I bit my lip, doing my best to hold in any noises that may have indicated my discomfort, even as he began the stitches. I sighed tiredly, knowing that I'd need quite a few- These weren't little cat scratches, after all. They were marks left by one seriously pissed off Hollow.
It hadn't been a particularly strong one- I was used to fighting off Hollows, especially since I had been in this town for almost a week, now. Since my arrival, I'd encountered almost too many Hollows to list, but nothing out of the ordinary. This morning's Hollow had been no different- Just a dumb, hungry animal out looking for something to snack on. And to be totally honest, I'd had it completely under control- That is, until its friend or its kid or its whatever had shown up and distracted me. And I'd paid the price with a hefty slice to my right arm.
I pursed my lips, once again holding back a small 'eep' of discomfort as the doctor cut through the end of the thread that was now holding my skin together. After setting down his needles and scissors, he cracked his knuckles, leaning back to admire his handiwork before checking off a few more boxes on my intake forms. I opened my mouth to say thank you and be on my way, but before I could get so much as a word out a boy about my age waltzed into the room, looking as tired as he was grouchy.
"Dad," he yawned, stretching his arms over his head as he spoke. "There's breakfast on the- Oh, my bad, I thought you'd left already."
He was tall- Almost a good foot or so taller than I was, by the looks of things. His hair was the most ridiculous orange color that I had ever seen in my life, though it seemed to fit with his lithe and muscled body just fine. I had to admit, he was a fairly good-looking guy, but I sure as hell wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of letting him know it. I stared him straight in the eyes, which were a warm hazel color; I had meant it as a gesture to show him that he wasn't at all unordinary, but it failed miserably when I felt my cheeks start to heat up when he didn't look away as I had expected, and instead met my gaze head on. I averted my eyes quickly.
"What's up with you?" he muttered, running his fingers through his hair. I frowned. Was it really any of his business?
"I was cow tipping and I cut myself on some barbed wire," I replied, even though he shouldn't really have been asking in the first place. "Last time I'm visiting a farm."
"... Do we even have cows around here?"
"I thought you said you broke into a zoo?"
It was all I could do to keep from busting out laughing right then and there. They certainly were an odd father-son duo, and I had to say that the two looked absolutely nothing alike. The father was heavily built, whereas the son was tall and thin, though no less muscular. I averted my eyes from him quickly once again, earning myself a strange sort of glower from the orange haired boy.
"Why don't you offer some breakfast to our guest?" the doctor said suddenly. Me and the boy now wore identical masks of disbelief. "She's been through quite an ordeal- A break in to a zoo and cow tipping all in one night!"
"I don't think-"
"She's not a guest, she's a patient." Ichigo replied crassly, glaring at his father, who pouted. I made a face- That was the first time I'd ever seen a grown man pout.
"Ichigo, my son, don't be so cruel!"
I couldn't help it- I laughed. Not only was this doctor without a doubt the most ridiculous doctor that I had ever met in my whole life, but he had actually gone and named his only son Ichigo, of all things. If my memory served me correctly, Ichigo meant strawberry, and I don't think I'd ever seen a "strawberry" scowl so much in my entire life.
"What's so funny?" Ichigo muttered, folding his arms across his chest and glaring at me.
"Nothing, I just think your name suits you really well," I replied mockingly. Ichigo's scowl deepened as his father muttered something about hormonal teenagers and mood swings.
"Oh yeah?" he snapped back, picking up my charts from the bedside table as he spoke. "Well, so does yours..."
"Horo." I said, finishing his sentence. "Shirosaki Horo."
Ichigo made a face, double checking my charts as if to make sure that I was telling the truth. Not that I blamed him- Clearly he'd already picked up on the fact that I had a terrible habit of lying through my teeth. As his eyes continued to roam over my charts I stood up from the bed, picking up my now ruined jacket that lay on top of the sheets before making my way around Ichigo as his father handed me a bill in an envelope.
"Buh-bye," I chirped as Ichigo turned around, eyeing me strangely as I exited the clinic. "Berry Boy."
The doors slid shut behind me, leaving a scowling Ichigo and a very whiny Mr. Kurosaki behind me as I continued walking. I sniffed the air, looking upwards towards the now bright morning sky as I headed in the direction of my apartment complex. It smelled like Hollows, but I didn't really have much time to think about it. After all, I was starting school today, and by the looks of things, I was already going to be late.
I was standing in the middle of the street, my eyes fixed on the enormous monster in front of me. Had the thing been human, I was sure that we would have at least been exchanging witty banter of some sort to keep me occupied while it sized me up. Of course, being an oozing Hollow, we did no such thing. I sighed heavily, frowning deeply as the monster continued to assess the situation to the best of its ability.
The Hollow roared maliciously, finally seeming to have made up its mind to fight instead of flee. Focussing my still tired eyes on the masked monster in front of me, I waited with baited breath as the worm-like creature drew closer. A little bit closer... I thought to myself, steeling my legs for any unexpected impact. The pain in my arm had slowly subsided since earlier that morning, though it still stung horribly every time I made a sudden movement. The Hollow drew closer, squealing maliciously as it waved its tentacle like arms hungrily in my direction.
"Sorry, ugly," I muttered to myself, balling my hands into fists, exposing the twin cross knuckle tattoos that adorned the middle fingers of my right and left hands. "You're not getting my soul."
No sooner had I said this, a bright blue arrow went whizzing past my ear much too close for comfort. I flinched, watching as a tendril of my dark, wavy hair fell the ground. The arrow missed the Hollow by mere centimeters. The creature growled angrily, looking for the owner of the arrow, who had just distracted him from eating me. Mimicking the Hollow's actions I, too, glanced around for the source of the attack; Whoever it was, they needed a serious lesson in aiming their weapon. I stared bitterly at my lost hair, which now law scattered on the ground, and made a mental note to yell at whoever it was when, if ever, I figured out who they were.
"Get away from the girl," said a voice, and my eyes narrowed curiously. It was a man's voice. "Hollow."
The monster screamed angrily, ducking as yet another arrow went shooting past the two of us. I glowered- Apparently, I had been wrong about this town having no protectors. Not that it made this mystery person any less of an obnoxious prick; Clearly, I was still bitter about the loss of some of my precious hair.
I followed the Hollow's gaze as it roared in the direction of the voice, and I scowled as my eyes landed on a tall boy with dark hair and glasses. His expression was serious, his hard eyes peering over his glasses to stare at the two of us as he pulled by the string of his bow for another shot. It wasn't like any sort of bow I'd ever seen before- In fact, it looked pretty much like something straight out of a really bad video game. Another second passed and the bow released his arrow, this time hitting his mark, and the Hollow vanished with a scream as it shattered into a thousand bloody pieces. The boy paused and his bow vanished.
"You should leave," he said calmly. I rolled my eyes. Whoever this guy was, he certainly enjoyed playing the hero-type.
Another scream drew both our attention as another Hollow sprung up to my left- Before my 'savior' had any time to rematerialize that special bow of his, I had crossed my fists in front of me, once again baring my tattoos to my new opponent. I smirked, imagining the archer's surprised expression as my familiar dark energy surrounded my body. An enormous crackling noise, almost like the sound of burning wood, filled my ears then as the dark energy subsided, leaving me standing in the exact place that I had been.
The two cross tattoos on my fingers were now devoid of ink, only the outline remaining, and I now held in my hands a matching pair of black and silver pistols. Chains attached to the pistols extended up my arms before becoming enveloped with in the cloak of dark energy that now covered my body. My fists were still crossed over one another, my pistols turned on their sides and pointed straight at the advancing Hollow.
"... Bang,"
With an earsplitting pop I pulled the triggers. My body was forced backwards with the force of the shot, but I managed to steady myself before I could fall back too far. The little dark bullets went spiraling through the air, unraveling themselves as they went. By the time they reached the Hollow, they had turned into a single, enormous mass of dark energy, cutting through the Hollow's mask and running down its middle, cutting the unlucky bastard clean in half. The creatures final scream still hung in the air, and I watched as the Hollow's body slowly disintegrated, releasing the tortured soul within as it finally crossed over.
My dark energy vanished with a whoosh, leaving me looking perfectly normal once again. The dark haired boy behind me was now looking over curiously, as if the harder he looked the more he would understand.
"You're welcome," I said stiffly, flexing my now stiff fingers, which popped as their joints were loosened once more. I had been using my powers more than usual since I had arrived in this town, and I was now realizing that it was slowly beginning to take a toll on my body.
The boy stiffened, pushing his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose, but he made no move to leave. Instead he continued to stare at me calculatingly, a look that I did not care for in the slightest. Just who was this guy, and why did he think it was cool to stare at me so much?
"I had it under control," he said at last. I snorted in response.
"Right," I replied. As I spoke I uncoiled my wavy raven locks from the tie that held it, shaking them behind me before putting them up into my usual low bun once again. "By the way, you owe me a chunk of hair."
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me, mystery man," I continued, but even as I spoke I turned on my heel to leave. I had no intentions to stay and chat with the weird guy who had just sliced through my precious hair, and frankly, he was pretty weird, even if something about him did seem oddly familiar in an unsettling sort of way. I faintly heard him mutter something to himself, but I couldn't quite make out the words, so I ignored him instead. It seemed that I was encountering more people than usual today, and to top it all off, they were some of the strangest people I'd ever met.
Karakura High wasn't too far off from where I had had my fight with the Hollow, and I soon found myself staring up at the concrete jungle of a school in awe. Judging by the size of the town itself, I had been expecting something much smaller. Clearly, I had been mistaken. Steeling myself for even more human contact than I had already had that day, I marched headlong into the school, careful to keep my expression from revealing just how uncomfortable I was around so many people.
I stared at the small slip of paper in my hands, carefully keeping my gaze away from the prying eyes around me as I walked to my classroom. It wasn't hard to find, which was a relief. Taking a deep breath, I slid open the door as slowly as possible, peering in through the small opening I had made to observe the classroom before I made my entrance. It was full to the brim with people- People with which I had little if any desire to associate myself with. However, I had already resigned myself to not skip out on my first day, and I soon found myself standing in front of the entire class, the teacher announcing that we had a new student.
I wrote my name out carefully on the chalkboard, feeling uncomfortably self conscious as the teacher asked the class to be nice to me since I was new. I often wondered if teacher's actually thought that such a tactic helped new students make friends- My guess was that it never did, but they insisted on doing it all the same. Finally having finished writing my name, I set the chalk down and turned to face the class.
"My name is Shirosaki Horo," I stated boldly, and possibly a little louder than necessary. "Please take-"
"You!"
I flinched, my eyes finding the source of the exclamation before gasping. It was that same orange haired boy from that morning- It was Kurosaki Ichigo. My dark chocolate brown eyes narrowed suspiciously as I met his surprised gaze head on.
"You," I breathed, both of our expressions now looking equally as displeased as the other's.
This was just my luck.
More will come soon, assuming that this chapter does fairly well. Please let me know what you think- Critique is more than welcome!
The idea for this story came to me after I decided to reread the current Bleach arc from the beginning- When I first read the Fullbring Arc, I didn't much care for the arc itself, much less its characters. But when I went back for a second try, they grew on me. I think the reason lots of people don't like it is because the manga has pretty much turned into one ridiculously short chapter after another where they basically talk for a few panels and then fight. But the characters themselves and the idea in general are actually pretty interesting and well thought out, I think, so I thought I'd try my hand at writing a fic that focusses on this arc.
Please let me know what you think!
