Hey guys! I'm back with another one of these "The First Life" one shots! This one was requested by, and dedicated to, ichiruki45! I have to say, that I know Hyourinmaru wouldn't live during the time period, and Japan probably wasn't like England, but that's what the story is going to be like. Fits my ideas more. So it's a bit AU. And also, he doesn't have teal hair until later. I do not own Bleach. Hope you enjoy!
Ryu Hyourinmaru was a good student, not the best, but he was wise beyond his years. During class, he was fairly quiet, never interupting, or volunteering to answer oral questions. But that didn't mean he wasn't paying attention. He listened to every word the teacher, or his fellow students, said. All though he held little to no interest in whatever they were talking about, he knew he needed to know it. And he knew his mother would test him on it too.
Hyourinmaru's mother was a more than wealthy, aristocratic, single mother. She was the image of society. Dealing with banks, going to formal dinners, attending soiree's all the same. But as delicate as the woman seemed, she held an iron grasp on those around her. Especially her son. Everyday he would come home from school, and she would ask him what he learned. It was mandatory that the boy would give her at least two detailed paragraphs about what was now etched into his mind.
Today wasn't supposed to be any different, it was a normal Wednesday, and Hyourinmaru was adjusting his tie as he prepared to leave. He stopped to look into the mirror, and saw his mother standing behind him, cold eyes watching him like a hawk.
"Good morning, Mother." The boy greeted his guardian politely.
"Good morning, Ryu." The woman said. " I just want to let you know that since I wasn't home yesterday, today when you get home from school, you will give me five paragraphs about what you learned in the past two days."
"Yes, Mother." He replied obediantly as he looked down at her. He wasn't much taller, his grey eyes meeting with the higher half of the woman's forehead.
"Good. Now be off." She commanded as she walked away down the hall. Hyourinmaru's eyes followed his mother for a moment, a bit of longing in them, but he banished that away quickly and left his home. The boy always wondered about how he felt towards his mother, he knew that most would have come to loathe the woman by now, after 17 years of a cold, and sometimes cruel, enviorment with her. But he couldn't seem to find this feeling in his heart. Prehaps because his mother, was in fact, his mother. Maybe you really couldn't hate those who you share blood with. But, there was lack of another feeling. Love. Though Hyourinmaru had never felt the boiling anger of hate towards his mom, he never fealt the secure feeling of love either.
Soon, the boy arrived in front of the collage he attended. As he walked up to the door, he saw that he had beaten a young lady to it. Being the gentleman that he was, he stood back and opened the door for her. It was then that he laid eyes on her.
A delicate mouth with pearly teeth smiled at him kindly. Black hair looked like silk that was pulled into a ponytail. And tops of crystal blue eyes met bangs of the black hair that contrasted greatly with the alabaster skin. The lips on the girl were painted a very pale pink, and she looked like a porcelin doll.
"Thank you sir." The girl bowed her head lightly before walking inside the building. Hyourinmaru followed after her, slowing down so it looked like he hadn't rushed to her side.
"Hello. My name is Ryu Hyourinmaru." He said as he held out his hand. Both he and the girl had stopped so they could see each other.
The girl seemed to stifle a chuckle before she also made a formal greeting. "Hello. I am Shikiko Jukino." It was clear she was staring at the handsome boy in front of her. He ran a quick hand through his coal colored hair without taking his slate eyes away from hers.
"You are new here, correct?" He asked, trying to keep the conversation up as they walked.
"Correct. Maybe you can help me."
"Of course. Anything for a young lady as beautiful as yourself."
This caused the girl to blush. Her thick black lashes fluttered and the boy she had just met couldn't help but stare. "Well, it seems I've forgotton what room I'm supposed to go to. But I do remember the teacher's name." Hyourinmaru just nodded, signalling for her to continue. "Mr. Kusaji."
A grin spread on Hyourinmaru's face. "What luck. It seems we'll be in the same class."
The school day was almost over, not much longer to go before all the students would be filing out the door, hastily trying to make their way home so they could do homework quickly and then continue on with their social events.
This morning, Hyourinmaru hadn't imaigined today being any different from the others. He imaigined life would continue as usual, listen to what people said in class, talk with his friends, then leave. But today had been a bit different.
Instead of paying attention in class, the boy had found himself drifting off into daydreams. Or he would find himself staring at Miss Jukino and sketching on his paper. He did speak to his friends, but he also introduced them to Shikiko, and spoke with her some more. And now, he found himself idle in the doorway of his professer's classroom, waiting for Shikiko to finish speaking with Mr. Kusaji. Finally, when she did do as he was waiting for, she walked towards him and they found themselves walking with eachother yet again.
"I really wish I could stay longer, but my parents want me home so I can tell them how my day went." She flashed him a kind smile and said "Goodbye Hyourinmaru-Kun!"
"Good day Miss Junkino." The boy bid his farewell as well as the girl started to race off, but she doubled back and stopped right in front of the boy. She took him off guard with this, and only surprised him further by kissing him on the cheek before racing off again. Hyourinmaru stopped in his tracks and touched his cheek, a light pink blush flooding his cheeks.
Ryu's walk home was filled with more daydreams, just as the majority of his day has been. His suitcase swung back and forth, and his step now had a spring to it. His mouth was even complimented by a small smile, his slate eyes held a new glitter. The pale skinned boy soon realized how close to home he was, at the moment, he was standing at the beginning of the bridge that held it's path over the river that cut the town in half. He stood there, arms crossed, leaning on the cobble stone walls of the bridge. He looked down at the water, it looked as cold as it must have been. Today had been a fairly cold winter day, the chill in the air hinted at the fact it was going to be very cold tonight.
The boys thought flowed easily through his head as he watched the water flowing beneath him. He discovered he still couldn't pry his thoughts from Shikiko, and he felt some emotion start to trickle into these thoughts, and a warm feeling pooled in his heart. He touched his chest and automatically knew what this foreign emotion was. It was love. This was the emotion he had never felt before.
But, Hyourinmaru was a man of logic, preferring to only think of things in ways he could explain himself. But this, he couldn't explain this. He had only met the porcelin doll-like girl today. How could he know he loves her? Besides, how could she love him, a man she had only known for the span of several hours. Yet, a voice in the boy's head told him she felt the same, and that he was correct in the assumption of the new emotion he was feeling. Still, the boy just stared down at the water, pondering this.
It hadn't been long before Hyourinmaru realized he had lost track of the time, and the sun was already halfway hidden behind the rolling green horizon. He surpressed a groan that he wanted to let out, and instead, fixed his tie and resumed his walk home. It must have been another five minutes before he was at his own doorstep, but it had taken the sun the same amount of time to completely dissapear from sight. Hyourinmaru sighed, he didn't enjoy the fact it got dark so early, it didn't bother him too much, but he still wasn't a fan of the fact. It wasn't before he was even two feet into the foyer with the door shut, that his mother appeared in front of him, screaming.
"Where have you been? Do you see how late it is? What were you thinking? If it gets out that my son was wandering around the streets at night, do you know what could happen to my reputation?" From the number of slurs, the high pitched tip of her voice, and the number of foul words she had thrown in there that Hyourinmaru tuned out, he could concur that his mother was far more than drunk.
"My apologies Mother. I got sidetracked on the way here." He said, taking a ashamed sound into his voice.
"Sidetracked?" The woman sneered like 'sidetracked' was the most disgusting word in the world to her. "You got sidetracked? By what?"
"Just my thoughts." Hyourinmaru answered solemnly.
"Your thoughts? Pfft. You don't have to think! I paid to get you in to an amazing school specifically so you wouldn't have to think! All you have to do is keep your mouth shut and listen!" She barked, a sharpness in her voice now.
"I can assure you Mother, I don't speak unless spoken to." The glazed over look in her eyes displayed the rage and ignorance of a savage that was just insulted. She glared at her son, and then said in a quiet demand.
"I want those five paragraphs. Now." She stared at her son with an intense gaze. Hyourinmaru was lost for words. He hadn't paid attention today, and for some reason, he couldn't even remember yesterday. He started stuttering, trying to muster up at least a few sentences that would buy him time.
"Well, uh, we were, erm, studying, uh..." He tried to think, but suddenly, his mother's hand whipped him in the cheek. He stumbled back, his own cool hand to his burning cheek. When he pulled his hand away, he saw the blood on it, and knew right away, that his mother had left scratches on his face. His eyes simply glazed over themselves, in a kind of calm resolve that Ryu always kept on him. The happy glitter that had made a home in his slate eyes, was now kicked out and replaced with a stoical look. He knew it had been coming, he always knew when it was coming. For at least 15 years now, Hyourinmaru could remember being physically abused when he upset his mother. He never tried to stop her, it was never more than her hands, and, at the worst, a belt.
"You little brat!" She spit. "I pay for you to get an education, and you don't even pay attention. You're a shame! And what possessed you to ignore your classes? Huh? Your thoughts?"
"No. Well, in a way. You see Mother, there's this girl, and-" That was all he said before his mother fisted his shirt and sent him stumbling backwards. He wouldn't of moved if he had seen it coming, but he had been avoiding her eyes. Either way, he ended up stumbling and his mother came right behind him.
"A girl!" She shreiked. "So, who is this little-" she used a very impolite word to describe an unfaithful woman. "Huh?"
"Mother! She is nothing of the sort!" Hyourinmaru yelled. The fact that he raised his voice sent his mother into a fit of fury and she struck at him mercilessly, not even giving him the chance to stand. Soon, she seemed to decided her fist weren't punishing enough and she needed something that would do more damage. Unfortunatley for Hyourinmaru, the fire poker in the set of fire tools seemed to catch the drunk woman's eye. She grabbed it, and raised it over her head. In the second she had gone to pick the weapon up, Hyourinmaru had gotten to his feet. And he caught the wrought iron stick with his hand just before it hit him. He had to admit, his mother looked stronger than she was, and the fire poker looked heavier also.
"You little brat! You disobey me and now you refuse to take punishment!" She slurred and exerted more pressure into the hit. Hyourinmaru could easily push the woman down, but he never wanted to hurt his mother. No matter how much she'd try to hurt him. But, he got preoccupied with thinking for a moment and his mother pulled the rod back away from him. And she swung.
The pain in his face didn't even register in Hyourinmaru's face until a minute after he had been struck. He felt the diagonal line stretching from his eyebrow to his cheek. And the blood dripped into his eye, causing him to make an unearthly yowling sound as he tried to keep the blood from blinding him. But, in his painful confusion, his mother struck him again with the poker, making an identical mark, causing a bleeding X-formation mark on the boy's face.
He yelled out in pain, and he pushed past his mother, running straight for the door. Feeling the blood pouring down his face. Tasting the coppery tang in his mouth. Smelling the same red substance around him. Seeing the snowflakes dance around him, spinning in endless circles, like his mind. And hearing his mother screaming at him as she chased him.
Under normal circumstances, Hyourinmaru knew he would be able to outrun his pursuer, but, all the blood he was losing couldn't be made up for with any amount of adrenaline. Soon, he got to the same bridge he had stopped at earlier that day, he stopped at it's peek and looked down at the icy river. Ice had already started forming around the sides of the water, and the water itself moved much slower, barely having a current.
The thumping pulse in his ears prevented Hyourinmaru from hearing the sound of footsteps behind him. Abruptly, a whole new pain crawled throughout his head. The pain of a wrought iron, heavy, fire poker, being smashed over his head with all the strength the woman, called his mother, had. Everything seemed to take on a hue of red, but the red hue then changed to blue. And the sensation of falling spread throughout what was left of Hyourinmaru's senses.
The last thing Ryu Hyourinmaru could remember, was being plunged into the icy depths of the same river he had seen so many times. He was dead before he even reached the river bed. The last sight in his mind, the moon being distorted by the surface of the water he died in. That was the first life of Hyourinmaru.
Well? What did ya' think? A bit cruel, I know. But, it's what I thought of. Like I said earlier, it's pretty AU. Anyways, thanks for reading! Please review! And remember, I take request!