AN: How's it going everyone? Long time, no see!

So it's been a while since I last did any Hitsuhina writing, but that doesn't mean I haven't lost interest in them, I still love them 3 To be honest, this is an old oneshot, done for a deviantART contest not too long ago. As always, I apologise in advance for any OOCness (out of character).

Disclaimer: I own this laptop, these uni textbooks, these three highlighter, these drawings on my wall, this USB, this lamp, and this packet of jellybeans, Tite Kubo owns BLEACH.

The Ice Heart

"Shiro-chan! Are you in?"

Hinamori gingerly knocked on the door again. She frowned when he didn't answer. 'I'm sure Rangiku-san said he'd be here…'

"Ah, Hina-chan!"

Hinamori blinked in confusion when she saw Rangiku at the desk doingpaper work. Hinamori looked at her as if the woman were the most confusing kido she had ever learnt. Somehow, Rangiku plus paperwork didn't make much sense to the young lieutenant.

Rangiku tilted her head to the side. "Is something wrong?"

Hinamori was knocked out of her phase and quickly regain posture. "Ah, sorry Rangiku-san, it's just…forgive me but I'm not used to seeing you working at your desk."

The tenth division lieutenant laughed at that. "Well at least I can pull that off!" She then pulled out a cup and a bottle of sake. She winked at her friend. "It's secret, don't tell the captain. I'm supposed to be working, but who wants to work when you have this little friend here?!" She hugged the sake bottle close to her chest, as if it were her long lost lover. She spoke in a childish voice, as if speaking to her child. "Who's a good little friend? That's right, you are! Yes you are! YES YOU ARE!"

Hinamori blinked in confusion. 'Is she drunk already?' She looked around the room, expecting her childhood friend to pop in at any moment and 'lecture' his lieutenant. When she had fully looked around the room she turned back to Rangiku, walking from the doorway to her desk and said "Where is Hitsugaya-kun?"

Rangiku turned her affections away from the sake bottle and looked to Hinamori again. "Oh, he went to go finish some sculptures for the next issue of the Sereitei News Magazine. He's been on that long hiatus and he thought it was about time he got back to making more sculptures." She raises an eyebrow "Though I find it odd he's been in that room for a long time. I haven't seen much of him these past three days."

"Yes, that's why I came here" Hinamori said with a faint smile "I was concerned something had happened to him."

Rangiku smiled at that. "Taicho's lucky to have you, as you're lucky to have him…" She propped her head up on her hand, looking distant all of a sudden. Hinamori presumed she was thinking of the person who she had lost…The person who had a similar connection that Hinamori and Hitsugaya shared with each other to her.

Not like seeing her friend troubled, she quickly spoke up. "I'll go see him then." She smiled whole-heartedly "Thank you for telling me, Rangiku-san." She took her leave.

Rangiku smiled in return, though that distant look was still in her eyes. "Take care!"

Realising she had been standing outside the door for long enough, Hinamori focused on the sliding door in front of her. She knocked again. "Shiro-chan?"

'Maybe he's not responding because I'm calling him by his nickname…' "Hitsugaya-kun?" She paused. "Hitsugaya-taicho?!"

It felt strange to say that title, but she called it out once again. "Hitsugaya-taicho? Are you going to answer the door?"

She waited to hear a response. When none came, she fidgeted uncomfortably, feeling awkward for standing outside in the hallway. The door was unlocked. If he didn't want anyone to come in, wouldn't he have locked the door?

"I'm coming in, Hitsugaya-kun!"

She slid the door open slowly, seeing if he would come dashing out. She only half opened the door when the cold temperature pierced her skin. She bowed her head and shivered. "It's so cold in here!" She stepped in, closing the door behind her. She clutched her arms, attempting to keep them warm, and raised her head.

She gasped at the sights around her.

Light from high windows bouced off and pierced through the glassy structures that stood all around the room. They took on different shapes and sizes, meant for different purposes and functions. The icy sculptures were unbelievable.

She slowly treaded further into the wide cold room, gazing at the ice sculptures as she went. She marveled at the detail that was etched into them, the figures some of them represented and the way the light shone through them and created odd reflections, some with small rainbows. These were natural beauties, much better seen by ones eye than through the camera lenses that they were taken with to publish in the Sereitei News Magazine.

The fifth divison lieutenant recognized some of the sculptures, but was surprised when she didn't see any she knew from years ago. She knew if the tenth division captain wanted to keep these in top condition, he had to make the room cold.

She turned her head away from a magnificent chair made of ice to the sculpture in front of her.

Her eyes widened.

The light shone through the large sculptures, making it glow eerily.

It had such a level of detail that Hinamori couldn't comprehend all of it at once. She stepped back, staring wide eyed and in shock at the statue in front of her. She breathed "Incredible..."

The statue was almost tall enough to reach the ceiling, and blocked a window. In the of the ice sculpture center was Hyourinmaru, curving upwards to the sky, and his large jaws wide open in a silent howl at the young lieutenant who stared into his great, narrowed eyes. Just under him was his master, his sword raised and his head bowed. He was frozen in time, looking as if he were leaping into the heavens, about to call upon his zanpukto's power and wield it to victory.

She could only stare. Her mind was slowly wielding from the awe and shock that ran through her. She unconsciously took steps forward, ever so slowly. Her voice found itself "How do you do it, Hitsugaya-kun?" She grinned, talking as if he were I the room with her. "Have you finished this one recently? If not, why haven't you shown anyone yet? This is really-!"

And before she knew it, she was stumbling towards the sculpture. She lost her footing, slipping on a piece of melting ice, and was sent tumbling and stumbling towards the great sculpture. The ice surface stung for only a moment as she fell backwards, hitting the floor with a loud 'thump'. Too busy trying to figure out what happened, she didn't see the sculpture come tumbling down.

She saw the great sculpture about to her crush her.

She did the only she could and flash stepped out of the way with yelp.

There was a loud, 'thunk' and the sound of shattering glass.

Pieces of ice flew everywhere like daggers.

One struck Hinamori's cheek, grazing it and cutting into the skin.

She winced, quickly ducking her head as more ice darted around her.

Moments passed, the sound of hailing stopped. The lieutenant dared to lift her head, taking a chance at being cut by more ice. To her relief, everything had settled down, and now the remains of the statue…

The shock of what she did finally settled in.

She shuffled back as she looked in horror at the scene around her. Shattered ice everywhere, a light hazy settling around her, and the statue, that once stood tall and proudly, was now in pieces. She had caused this. She shook her head in disbelief "No…"

The door slammed open. She quickly turned her head to see the owner of the ice sculptures.

"What's going on?! Who's in…?!" He trailed off as he took in the scene. His turquoise eyes scanned the ice shards individually, the realization hitting him like a powerful reiatsu. He had heard the smash and crash sounds. He rushed here, expecting Matsumoto or one of her drunken friends to be in here, with a look of horror as he opened the door, or trying to cover up what they did. He expected one of his minor sculptures to have shattered. He looked around the room, seeing that every minor sculpture was intact. He made sure every sculture was in place, trying to figure which one was missing.

The light haze died down as his eyes eventually reached the back of the room. They widened further upon bot seeing the statue that once occupied the space there. He let out a quiet and quick gasp as he put two and two together.

These ice shards, there were that statue.

The statue he had worked for days on, wanting it to be perfect, his sole creation that would stand as a testament to his legacy, his history, his captaincy, a personal treasure that no one would lay their eyes on. Unlike the others, this one was taller, much bigger in scale. It had far more detail in it than any of his other sculptures. He wanted everything perfect, and it was for that reason he had redone it over and over again. There were even times when he was so close to finishing. But then he made a mistake, and he started over again, more determined to get it right next time.

And now it was gone.

It was shattered, like the tiny fraction of his heart that had worked so hard to bring it to life, and had finally perfected the piece.

He brought his eyes down, about to reflect on this defeated emotion, but they were caught by a pair of wide, scared brown eyes. He had to do a double take. He gazed upon the person who had caused this destruction in disbelief. "H-Hinamori?"

The said girl jumped upon hearing her name spoken by him. The guilt drenched her, and her expression crumbled. "H-Hitsugaya-kun…" She hid her face in her hands, shame and guilt striking her actions and mind quicker than a flash-step. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!"

He was dumbfounded, unable to utter any words. He found it hard to comprehend that the person who was in front of him was the one who had caused this. The person who he cared for the most had destroyed his work, and sat amongst the ruins. Despite the shame she obviously felt, he felt the frustration and irony creep into his system. He was shocked when a scream for her to leave started to build up in his throat.

How long had he worked to perfect this sculpture?! She couldn't possible understand…She had ruined his most heartfelt work, the one he put his hard efforts into perfecting…

And yet none of it matter anymore when he saw the blood drench through her fingers. His eyes widened seeing the tiny flow of blood stream in between her fingers. He rushed to her, feel a somewhat ashamed of his thoughts about her before. His frown deepened once he crouched down in front of her. He took hold of her hands forced them away from her face.

She gasped when her hands left her face and she looked at him with wide, tear-brimmed eyes. His eyes instantly saw the source of the blood. A long, deep cut on her cheek, angling dangerously close to her right eye. He focused back on her eyes, some of his concerned and ashamed feeling leaking through his own eyes. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

Hinamori was clearly shocked. She had expected him to be enraged, telling her to get out. Instead, she saw hints of concern in his eyes, edging away at the ice. Her cheek stung, and she only just realized that it hurt. She winced and tugged her hand away from Hitsugaya's grasp. Her fingers lightly touched the scratch, closing her eye as she did so. She flinched when she pressed too hard into the wound, and looked down at her hand as she pulled away on reflex, seeing a line of blood on her finger tips, and then the small pool of it in her palm.

The lieutenant looked back to the captain, not sure how to react. Seeing the guilt in her eyes made him lose consciousness over his actions, and soon his hand was cupping her injured cheek. She made a surprised sound at his action "…S-Shiro-chan?"

He murmured a kido under his breath, a small, golden radius illuminated from his hand on to his childhood friend's cheek. Hinamori straightened when she felt the light on her cheek, having gotten use to the cold temperatures of the room. It was comforting though, she half closed her eyes, unconsciously leaning into his hand further, letting a tear fall. Hitsugaya noticed, but did nothing. He concentrated on the kido, knowing it would take longer to heal her than any of the fourth squad member's kido.

Silence stood between them for long moments, until the captain spoke in a soft voice. "It's Hitsugaya-taicho…" He opened his eyes, looking at her directly and continuing softly "What were you doing in here?"

Hinamori fully opened her eyes, but didn't lean away from his hand. Shame passed over her features. "I'm so sorry, Hitsugaya-taicho…I didn't mean to come in here without permission. Rangiku-san told me you'd be in here. I-I haven't seen you in a while, and I just wanted to see if you were alright." Her eyes shifted to the ice shards all around them. "That sculpture, it's shattered now…I'm so sorry." She leaned away from his hand, her cut not fully healed.

She reached for two ice shards, holding them in her hands. She compared them, then looked around took hold of another one. She put the newly found shard and the first shard she found together. They fitted together and she put them aside.

Hitsugaya looked on in confusing, his kido gone and the frown turning into a raised eyebrow. "What're you doing?"

Hinamori didn't look back at him, continuing to search for another piece to fit with one she had in her hand. "I'll put it back together. Even if it takes all night I'll put it back together!"

"You can't, idiot!" He wiped his bloodied hand on his kosode before grabbing on to her shoulder. "It's impossible to piece it back together. Stop before you cut yourself again!"

Hinamori did as he asked and stopped when he said the last sentence. She turned to him, confused but determined. "I can't. I can't forgive myself for shattering your sculpture if I don't at least try!" Her expression softened, her situation become clear to her. "You're angry, aren't you? I ruined your sculpture." A faint smile made its way to her lips, turning into a fully but sad one. "It was beautiful. I'm surprised you haven't had it photographed and published in your column in the Sereitei News Magazine. How long…did it take you to make?"

Hitsugaya turned his head away, looking at the ice shards again, identifying some of the pieces and where they had belonged in the sculpture. "I am angry, that true...but it's okay." He stood up, letting go of her shoulder. "I'll just have to start over again…You don't have to apologise for anything, I wasn't your fault."

Hinamori was stunned. She felt a strange sense of relief fill her, soothing her, but not completely. She looked down at her hands, at the pieces and shards of ice.

Her eyes widened.

A mild frown creased her eyebrows.

A mild blush soon followed.

She breathed in deeply and let it out in a quiet sigh. That sense of relief pulsated out of her system, and a new courage replaced it.

The lieutenant stood, turning to him, her hands still full with ice. "Hitsugaya-kun…Could you hold your hands out like this?"

He frowned. "What?"

Hinamori's expression became one of determination. "I've got something for you, and I want you to have…In fact, I've wanted you to have it for a while…"

This only further confused the captain. However, he couldn't resist that determined look in her eyes, and eventually gave in with a sigh. He held his hands out just like hers, his palms facing upward and the sides fused together with fingers slightly curled in. "Whatever, bed-wetter…"

With a sweet smile, she emptied her hands of the ice, pouring the shards and piece into his hands. "Please accept my gift."

He looked down at his palms with a frown, then back to her. He was shocked when he saw she wasn't there. He looked behind himself to see the door was open. 'She's getting good with her flashsteps…' he thought.

He looked back down to his palms, trying to understand what she meant. Why did she want to give him pieces of ice? What had she been meaning to give him for a while?

The confusion froze when he realized.

His eyes widened and the frown was gone.

His heart skipped a beat.

He refused to believe what he just thought.

As if to prove himself wrong, he froze the shards in his hands, melding them together. He held the newly formed shape of ice in one hand, disbelief running through him.

Hinamori sat her desk, brush in hand as she began to write out her paperwork. She smiled as she reflected back on the situation from before. The blush rose in her cheeks. 'My heart gets broken so easily, I wish I could be stronger…but then you always repair it for me, don't you Shiro-chan?

The shape the ice took was of a heart.

'I've got something for you, and I want you to have…In fact, I've wanted you to have it for a while…Though, I think you've had it now for longer then either of us have realised. You might've had my heart sine the beginning.'

Hope you enjoyed, and sorry for any spelling mistakes I missed ^^; I'm hoping to update 'The Last 24 Hours' soon, but that'll depend on my new busy university life...but I definitely haven't given up writing it :)

Reviews and comments are greatly appreciated :D

Thanks for reading and keep writing!

-Warrayfinson