Who's that I see walkin' in these woods
Why, it's Little Red Riding Hood
Hey there Little Red Riding Hood
You sure are looking good
You're everything a big bad wolf could want
He had been watching her for months, his mouth watering at the sight of her. He would watch as she left the safety of the village, basket in hand, and would follow her as she wandered the woods looking for plants and berries. She would hum to herself as she wandered, never going too far away from the village walls for the rumors of the forest dangers had been passed down to every generation. When the sun would start to sink low in the sky, and shadows starting creeping forward from every angle, she would retreat back to the village as fast as she could. But she never noticed him lurking in the shadows, watching every move she made with rapt attention.
"Soon, Akane. Soon." The man whispered, slinking back into the shadows as night fell and the girl hurried back into the village.
As dawn broke over the mountains and painted the sky in hues of gold and pinks, the residents of the village of Seireitei began to stir in their homes. In a small home near the village center a girl began to stir as sunlight slipped through the windows and landed on her pale face. Eyes the color of amethyst opened slowly, a small frown on her face. Sitting up, Akane stretched before going to wash her face, the cold water shocking her awake. After pulling her long, red curls back into a clip she left the house to begin her day. Women were not allowed to do manual labor, that was left up to the men of the village and while most of the women had husbands or sons to provide for them and their daughters, Akane wasn't so lucky. She worked in the village bakery for a girl named Orihime Inoue, who had inherited the business from her father. She was a pretty girl with odd tastes, but had a knack for baking.
"Good morning, Akane!" Inoue chirped as the older girl walked into the bakery, the smell of the baking bread hitting her like a brick.
"Good morning, Inoue." Akane greeted, putting on her apron before placing the finished breads on the counter.
Customers began pouring into the small shop as soon as the shutters were pulled back and the door opened. Greetings of 'Good morning!' and 'What a lovely day!' filled the shop as the villagers came and left with their goods, Inoue and Akane rushing back and forth to fill orders with smiles on their faces. When the shop cleared out the two girls were granted a small reprieve and able to catch their breath before a dark haired man entered the shop.
"Good morning ladies." He greeted, a charming smile plastered to his face.
"Good morning Sir Aizen!" Inoue greeted, a large smile on her pretty face.
Aizen Sosuke was a tall man, with dark hair and sharp dark eyes. He was tall with broad shoulders and turned the heads of most, if not all, the women and won their hearts with his silver tongue and sugary words. He was a very rich man in the village, having made his fortune years ago in the city, and came here for what he called 'a quiet life'. As Inoue chatted to the handsome man, Akane stood off to the side, her skin getting a prickling feeling. Sosuke Aizen made her uncomfortable, there was no doubt about it.
"If it's okay Inoue, I'm going to head out for the day. I promised Grandmother I would stop by before it got dark." Akane spoke softly, picking up a basket of breads and some cheese.
"Oh! Of course Akane! I will see you tomorrow. Tell Grandmother I said 'Hello'!" The other girl spoke, taking her eyes away from Sosuke, the man of her dreams.
Before she could get out the door, the silky voice of Sosuke stopped her in her tracks.
"I'll walk with you Akane, I must head in that direction anyway." He spoke, his voice slithering over her skin like a snake.
Before she could decline, Sosuke swept her out of the shop and began towards the West Gate. Akane didn't question how he knew that was the gate she needed to go out of to get to her Grandmother's house for she figured everyone in the village knew she headed there almost every day. Sosuke Aizen spoke to her in his most alluring voice, not noticing how uncomfortable the girl looked.
"You know Akane, you're very beautiful." He stated, brushing a strand of hair out of her face as they waited for a cart to pass them by. "Your eyes would drive even a wolf mad."
Before she could give her thanks, for her Grandmother always taught her to be polite, the door to Unohana Retsu's medical clinic opened and out stepped Abarai Renji and Kurosaki Ichigo; her closest friends and two of the woodsmen.
"Hello Renji, Ichigo!" Akane called, running up to the two men.
She couldn't deny the sigh of relief she felt bubbling up in her throat at the sight of her two friends, and even though her Grandmother taught her to be polite she also taught her to follow her gut.
"What are you two doing here? Bothering Retsu again Renji?" She teased embracing her two friends with hugs.
"Of course not!" Renji denied, his face almost as red as his hair.
"Jushiro collapsed on the site, so we brought him here just to be safe." Ichigo explained, wrapping an arm around the shorter woman's shoulder when he noticed Sosuke watching her.
"Akane, why is Aizen watching you? Is there something going on with you two?" Renji questioned, following his friends eyes only to be met with the steely stare of the older man.
"No," She whispered, turning away from his gaze. "He came into the bakery and offered to escort me to Grandmothers."
Her eyes were downcast and she was biting her lip, the discomfort she felt visible on her face. Grunting, Ichigo held the girl closer and raised his voice towards the older man.
"Hey, Aizen! We'll escort her from here, carry on with whatever it is you're doing." He called before pulling her away with Renji following closely behind.
"You know Little Red, you really need to tell him to get lost." Renji stated as they neared the gate.
Nodding her head Akane sighed, shifting her basket on her arm. "I know, it's just Grandmother always said to be polite."
"Yeah but he's a creep." Ichigo stated laughing.
As they exited the village laughing, both boys stopped at the path that lead to the wood cutting site.
"This is where we must leave you fair lady." Renji stated in a sweeping bow, kissing the other redheads hand.
"Well here." Akane started, hanging over some bread and cheese for the two to snack on. "Please be safe."
With hugs goodbye the group went their separate ways, the boys laughing about something as they ate and Akane humming to herself as she looked around for some flowers to bring her Grandmother.