Disclaimer; Don't own Bleach, 'nuff said.
The first time was secluded, a moment of weakness. Falling into the comforting embrace of something she'd never known before. Building herself up, rising.
A sense of having found strength.
Energy.
Flash of light, tighter grip. A gasp.
The gentle caress of one who had stood beside her for so long.
A word on her lips she'd never thought of uttering so, a word to bring strength and weakness and pain and protection all at once.
Everything fell away in an instant, leaving her shaking, hands reaching desperate for the last fallen petal.
The second time was deliberate. Demanding. Forceful and commanding.
Pulling that strength forward. Accepting the embrace and teasing touches, the rush of power.
The word more than a slip of the tongue, more than merely escaping her. The word, chosen.
She shook anyway when it was over and her skin had cooled.
Times fell away to this one. So often her grip had shaken, but it held firm.
The caress was simple fire, gasoline blood setting her alight with force, fear, power.
Words fell away into the flames, into the burning that was need and hatred and wanting and dependance and adoration and pain, betrayal, suffering.
No teasing touches greeted her with the snapping of restraints, a torturous snare, forcing her forward with feet and body suddenly filled with grace in the face of agony.
In the face of fear and love.
She collapsed into dying, flickering light, weight heavy, self-destructive. Unready. No arms to catch her where they'd held before.
But she had proven.
Ragged gasps for air as a solitary hollow creapt closer to the near-dead vice captain. Her illusion had been shattered, lined the area with dust and glass, hollow, arrancar remains, reiatsu traces, scorched earth. Face down.
Rain, freezing.
And shelter in the form of three vice captains, one sword out, one bowed, one already in action.
Idiot for rushing in, relief for being okay, a shaky smile and helping her to her feet. Grasp renewed as forces amassed.
One flash step, then another. A glance, sadness - a simple apology in the form of a goodbye shift of the eyes.
The words tumbled out of her mouth in the same clumsy manner they had done before, stirring her hidden grace into action one more time in the war torn landscape she might have known.
Bankai. Tobiume -