Ok, so I've finally published another story. And this one took a surprisingly short time to write. So yeah. Oh and by the way, the song is from Sky Sailing – Blue and Red. Listen to it, it's really good. Did anyone noticed that blue and red were the color of Gin's and Rangiku's eyes?
Warning : Character death. Major spoilers for chapter 415 of the manga.
Disclaimer : I could only wish I owned Bleach. *sighs*
Blue and Red
If anybody had asked Rangiku what she expected, it was certainly not this. She expected to die, disappear, her soul to be broken up and blown away by the wind. Not healing in an alarmingly fast rate, and her reiatsu completely undetectable, which was what was happening now.
She held up her right hand and scrutinized the frail silver bracelet encircled around her wrist. It glinted brightly in the sun as she did another fruitless attempt of taking it off. It must've been this. This strange bracelet had the power to hide one's reiatsu completely, all the while restoring the health of it's wearer. Slick.
Abandoning her attempts to open the bracelet, she closed her eyes and searched for one, particular spiritual pressure. The one that belonged to a certain, silver-haired man. The man she thought she knew.
Her eyes flew open as she found a tiny flicker of his feeble spiritual pressure.
Oh satellite above [Where are you?]
So many things I have to tell you of
[Please come back soon]
As she raced towards where he lay, images flew through her mind. The very first day she met him, a little boy with a strange smile and a strange name, his small, grubby hands clutching persimmons to his chest. The day they were declared as Shinigami Academy students, his thin arms surprisingly strong as he hugged her so tightly it hurts. Their secret dates on the roof at lunch breaks during academy days.
And the day when he left, when her heart broke to pieces beyond repair as she pressed Haineko to his neck.
You went through an open door
Or a hole in the floor
You vanished and I can't see you anymore
Rangiku skidded to a hat. Lying on the debris and the rubble of the recent battle there was Gin, broken and defeated. His robes were torn across his chest where Aizen's sword had ruthlessly cut him, leaving a huge and deep gash. Blood was everywhere, tainting his pure white robes and splattered across his face.
Rangiku froze, her brain dead as a searing pain at seeing him like this clawed tat her chest. She forced her legs to move, to get closer to him. He was, remarkably, conscious, despite his dangerously low reiatsu. Gin's wide mocking grin was absent, and his bright crimson irises visible, staring but not seeing the sky. She dropped to her knees beside him, and he turned his head towards her, smiling weakly.
"Hiya, Ran."
Dreams never die when we sleep
Leave the open sky and the deep
Shades over head of blue and red
Even though he was in a situation between life and death, Rangiku noticed that he seemed to be emanating a strong, happy feeling as he drank in the sight of her. She didn't know what to say or do, heck, she didn't even know how she was feeling at the moment, so she just stayed sitting beside him as he continued to stare at her.
"I see that bracelet's workin' then," he commented, eyeing her wrist. Rangiku nodded absentmindedly, not taking her eyes off his face. His ruby red eyes bore into her bright blue ones, as if he could see right inside. And before she knew it, she had whispered the question she had in her mind for quite a long time.
"Who are you, Gin?"
He gave a little shrug. "I am me."
And there, she believed once again that he was the same man as the boy who had offered her dried persimmons a long, long time ago.
Is this the edge?
Will you come back again?
Very, very gently (she knew that the slightest wrong move could cause him great pain) she lifted his head and placed it on her lap. He seemed to like it there, a long, contented sigh escaped his mouth and he closed his eyes. Without conscious thought, Rangiku's slender fingers stroked his silvery hair, and a small smile stole his lips.
Rangiku knew this man had hurt her so bad, more often than not made her cry herself to sleep, but still, she couldn't help but feel what she had always felt for him.
I searched beyond the clouds
[Are you there?]
I walked sadly onward through the crowds
[Alone somewhere]
One of his arms went up and twirled itself within her strawberry-blonde hair, lazily entwining his long fingers into the orange locks. His spiritual pressure was descending fast, yet he had forbid her to use any healing Kido or call anyone for help.
Together they monitored the battle that raged on elsewhere. A violent reiatsu spiked up uncontrollably – Ichigo's – and Aizen's followed shortly. The battle continued for what felt like forever, until they felt Ichigo's lash out viciously, and Aizen's crumbled, disappearing quickly.
"So the boy made it, eh?" Gin said, more to himself. "Well, at least I can rest in peace now," he said merrily. Rangiku's head turned towards him slowly, while he looked back at her with a calm but tired look in his eyes.
Everybody else would be rejoicing in the downfall of Sosuke Aizen, but Rangiku certainly wasn't, at least not yet. To her now, the grief and loss that would surely come shortly made her lungs burn, making it hard to breath.
He stared at her troubled face peacefully.
I saw beyond the blur
To right where you were
And I beheld a sight so pure
"Can't we find another way?" she choked out, and he shook his head sadly.
"I'm the bad guy, remember? And the bad guys always lose, don't they?" he reasoned.
"You're not bad," she insisted. "You were never bad. It was because of me, I – "
And then realization struck her. If only she was never attacked by those men years and years ago, Gin would never sought revenge on Aizen, everything would be different. He'll never have to die. A great wave of remorse washed over her as she thought over these things, and the tears spilled.
"Ssh, calm down Ran-chan. This was never your fault," he cooed, wiping away her tears. And she calmed down. She didn't want his last memory of her to be her blotchy, crying face. He smiled.
"You'll always be my girl," he whispered.
He stared at the sky and sighed, never drawing in another breath.
Dreams never die when we sleep
Leave the open sky and the deep
Shades over head of blue and red
Is this the edge?
Will you come back again?
Ok, there we go. Did anyone need tissues? Hm, guess not. Wow, that was pretty short, don't you think? Well, what's your opinion? Reviews greatly appreciated. Oh and if enough people asked for a sequel, I might even write one. 8-
Adam Young is number one. Owl City and Sky Sailing had me going nuts. Did anybody else agree with me?