Hi!! I've written lots of one-shots before for Hitsugaya on the other site that I was on before this one. I guess it wouldn't hurt to take a break from Frozen Memories to write this. Well, my friend "shadow.knight" asked me to do this for her since her birthday is coming up and all. Well hey, enjoy it "shadow.knight!"
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or it's character's. Credit belongs to Tite Kubo.
He was her rival.
They had met about two years after Hinamori Momo had left Junrinan for the Shinigami Academy. They couldn't really forget it now, could they?
The sun had been beating down on the streets of Junrinan in summer. Harumi didn't have any money. Like usual. She'd always use it to buy candy, which she knew was good, but she also knew she should be saving up for water. The river water in the forest was disgusting. The young girl had walked around lazily looking casual, searching for an unsuspecting person selling water. At last, towards the end of the day, she had found a sleeping vendor. She had quickly and slyly stole a large jug of water, just as the man began to stir. Taking off at top speed, she raced down an alley before she could be suspected.
She hadn't slowed down at all, and just as she had begun to turn the corner to another street, she bumped into a boy. His eyes widened in surprise as the jug of water dropped between them and soaked both Harumi and him in cold water.
"No!!" Harumi's little voice screamed in anger. The boy had looked up to meet the angry eyes of a girl around his age. Her eyes were a deep shade of purple, and her jet black hair hung down loosely around her waist. The boy's teal eyes glared at little Harumi, who was probably an inch shorter than himself. His silver-white hair was spiked in different direction, yet to be done growing.
"Watch it, stupid," he had said. The little girl had balled up her fists in fury.
"Me?! You'rethe one that made me drop my water, jerk!!" Harumi had screeched. The boy covered his ears with his small hands.
"Shut up, stupid, you're going to make me go deaf," he had retorted.
"My name's not 'stupid,' jerk! It's Harumi Takahashi!"
"And my name's not 'jerk!' It's Hitsugaya Toshiro."
And that's how they had met.
After the whole "water incident" they began to see more of each other. Harumi and Toshiro were always competing to be better than the other. Once, they had a watermelon-eating-contest. Of course, Toshiro had beaten Harumi by a long shot. Another time, they had a contest to see who was the better swimmer. Toshiro would have drowned if it wasn't for Harumi. Yet, after he had thanked her, she teased him about not being able to swim.
Meaningless things, like rock skipping and tree climbing were always of great importance. Harumi could run faster than Toshiro, but he could pin Harumi to the floor in a matter of minutes. Toshiro could jump farther and higher than Harumi any day, but she could climb up to the top of highest tree way faster than Toshiro could.
They had entered the academy at the same time, which is about the time that Toshiro had stopped teasing her about being shorter than him. They both knew that Toshiro would always be taller than Harumi. This was something Harumi couldn't win, but a girl could dream. Still, they had the same grades, and both were at the top of the class. This didn't stop the fact that Hitsugaya was still a quicker learner, so he had learned Shikai first, soon followed by Bankai. Harumi had learned Shikai a few months after Toshiro had, and eventually learned Bankai, too.
Toshiro became a captain, so he demanded to be called Captain Hitsugaya. Harumi could have been a captain too, but she kept her Bankai a secret. Hitsugaya was the only one that knew about her Bankai. Instead, she stuck with being a lieutenant. They kept contact, more mature now, and an occasional smile between them was always in order.
They were still rivals though.
(Continued)
Harumi hadn't seen Toshiro, scratch that, Captain Hitsugayain quite a few months. She tried to remember to think of him as a captain, but it was so hard sometimes because they had grown up together. Today though, her captain, Ukitake Jushiro, had asked her to bring him a private letter in person. She was dying to know what it said and was even tempted to open it, but she didn't think she'd be able to close it again and still make it look like it never was opened. She sighed in frustration.
Arriving at the tenth division office, she knocked, hoping he was there.
"What is it?" came his familiar voice. Harumi smiled at the warmth it brought her. She knew she liked him. A lot. Too much for her own good, but she wouldn't risk anything now. Or ever.
"Lieutenant of the thirteenth division, Harumi-" she was cut off by his voice during her 'greeting.'
"Come in, Harumi," he had interrupted her right after he heard her name. Why? He wouldn't say.
Harumi slid the door open quickly, stepping into his neat office. Hitsugaya watched her come towards him and bow slightly. She pulled the envelope out her shihakusho, handing it to Hitsugaya. He took it from Harumi and looked at it quickly, not bothering to open it yet.
"Captain Ukitake asked me to deliver this to you in person, Toshi- I mean Captain Hitsugaya," Harumi corrected herself before he could scold her. She bowed, turning to leave.
"Hey, wait a second," he ordered, glaring at her. Harumi's heart pounded when she looked at his teal eyes. He stared back, his eyes softening up a little.
"Why haven't you come to see me, Harumi? Aren't we friends?" he asked. Harumi felt heat rising to her cheeks but calmed herself down before replying.
"Well, you just seem so busy all the time, so I didn't want to burden you," Harumi explained nervously.
"You don't burden me, stupid," Hitsugaya answered in a teasing voice. Harumi's heart stopped pounding as she scowled at him from the old nickname. She doesn't burden me, I enjoy her company. A lot…Hitsugaya thought to himself. He smirked at Harumi's childish glare.
"Maybe I should try harder," she retorted as she crossed her arms and pouted. Hitsugaya rolled his eyes in response.
"You're such a child," Hitsugaya stated as he opened the envelope.
"Oh, you're just jealous of my youth, old man," Harumi replied. Hitsugaya unfolded the letter and looked up at Harumi.
"Shut up, Shortie, I have to read this letter," Hitsugaya ordered. Harumi huffed and glared daggers at the snowy-haired captain, but he pretended not to notice. The young lieutenant walked over to his couch and plopped down loudly with a heavy sigh, trying to be a burden. She closed her eyes and smiled, seeing as Hitsugaya was behind her. Her grin widened, thinking about how she'd be coming in here more, trying to be a nuisance. But that wasn't what made her smile. Just the fact that she'd be spending more time with Toshiro made her heart light with joy.
Hitsugaya read through the letter once. Twice. Three times; just to be sure. He knew that the other captains had been talking about this, but he didn't think he'd be lucky enough to have been chosen. He gave a sly smile, looking over to Harumi, who was staring at the ceiling. She seemed content.
"Hey, Shortie! Come with me," Hitsugaya ordered. Harumi put on herpouting face again, getting up with a sigh of annoyance at the old nickname. She raised an eyebrow in curiosity, following Hitsugaya without a word.
Wonder where he's taking me…Harumi pondered as they left the office.
(Continued)
"Ready?" Hitsugaya asked suddenly. He drew his sword from its sheath, the sheath vanishing as it always did. He took his stance while Harumi stood there dumbfounded, not knowing what the heck he was talking about. They were at the training grounds, much to Harumi's surprise. It was cool outside, and she had been enjoying their silent walk, basking in each other's presence. Well, she had been enjoying it, until he pulled out his sword and she became worried that the wanted to behead her.
"Okay, no Bankai, no Shikai. You can use flash step, hand-to-hand combat, and of course, sword fighting. No kidou, and don't try to kill me, we're just sparring," Hitsugaya apparently laid out some rules for her to follow. As the word 'sparring' ran through her mind, Hitsugaya was suddenly in front of her, about to strike down on her. Harumi used flash step to escape the blow, unsheathing her own sword easily. The sheath fell to the ground, and Harumi blocked another attack. They pushed on each other's blades, trying to break the defenses.
The two jumped back, coming forth again as their blades met with sparks. Again, they pushed on the blades, but to no avail. Jumping at each other again, they didn't leap away again, but struck at each other with only about a yard between them. Sparks fell to the ground as their blades collided with each other's again and again, relentless and eager. Harumi took a chance to drop her defense and used flash step to get behind Hitsugaya, and landed a kick on his lower back, which sent him flying forward. Even though the kick had force, it did almost nothing to Hitsugaya as he landed coolly with ease. Taking up the stance again, he smiled slyly. His expression sent butterflies into Harumi's stomach, her heart beating faster than it had been beating before.
"You've been practicing; I'm impressed," Hitsugaya commented. Harumi nodded and smiled back evilly.
"I might've worked on my abilities a little," she replied. They leaped forward once again, their blades meeting in shower of sparks. They clashed their zanpaku-to a number of times more before Harumi used flash step to get around him again. He was prepared this time, but when he turned around she was already behind him.
She was circling around him, coming at him from different angles, meetinghis blade with her own many times, repeating this process a lot before she broke her pattern and finally caught him off guard. She stood behind him with her sword's blade inches from his neck and her hand grasping his arm behind him.
"Tch. Beginner's luck," he mumbled as Harumi let him go. Hitsugaya sheathed his sword again, Harumi doing the same. Hitsugaya concealed his eagerness with a serious look, where as Harumi could not hide it.
"I could still beat you in a real battle," Hitsugaya commented. Harumi smirked.
"I bet I can still run faster than you," she stated. Hitsugaya smiled maliciously in return.
"I bet I can still pin you down and make you cry 'Mercy!'" the snowy haired captain sneered. Harumi's eyes twinkled in excitement.
"Oh yeah? Bring it!" Harumi commanded childishly. Hitsugaya obliged.
The two circled each other, looking for any holes in the defense. They both charged each other at the same time, grasping each other's shoulders, trying to stagger the other and pin them down. Harumi couldn't sway Hitsugaya, but he managed to flip her over and make her land on her stomach with an 'Oof!' Hitsugaya placed his knee on the small of her back, rendering her into submission. He pulled her arms backwards in a painful gesture.
"Say it," he warned.
"Yeah, right!" Hitsugaya pulled harder.
"Harumi…" his voice was teasing in a threatening way. He jerked on her arms.
"O-Ow! Mercy! Mercy!" she squealed. Hitsugaya laughed and let her arms go. Harumi sighed in defeat.
"Okay, you got me. This time!"
"You want to go again?" he asked in a mocking tone. Harumi shook her head vigorously, while Hitsugaya smiled. He quickly turned her over, staring down at the young girl. She blushed a deep shade of red while he examined her. His hand came up to caress her cheek.
"You're going to be a captain," he stated proudly. His eyes swirled with different emotions. Harumi's heart felt like it was going to jump out of her chest, from both him on top of her like that, and the news she had just learned of. Her? A captain? She hadn't expected it. Hitsugaya didn't look at her as he played with her hair.
"Tosh- Captain Hitsugaya, wha-" she began to say, but he suddenly looked at her sternly.
"No. Don't call me that, it doesn't sound right, coming from you. Just Toshiro, okay?" he ordered. Harumi nodded nervously, blushing from her neck to the top of her head. Was he doing what she thought he was doing? Or was she just dreaming? He leaned down, his face inches from hers. His heart was beating too; he didn't want to be rejected.
"I don't know why I've resisted so long, Harumi," Hitsugaya's voice was passionate and sweet. Much like the kiss he delivered when he closed the distance between their lips. His eyes closed, and after a second of shock, Harumi automatically kissed him back, her hands reaching for his soft, white-silver hair. Hitsugaya's hand brushed her cheeks gently, ecstatic that she had responded so quickly with just as much passion. Perfect.
After they eventually pulled away, she gazed into his deep, emerald eyes. The emotions she had seen earlier were still there. Awe, endearment, happiness, and so much more, combining into one emotion. An emotion she would see quite often. He was no longer Captain Hitsugaya, but just Toshiro.
Her Toshiro.