An AU Bleach fanfic featuring Rukia Kuchiki/Toshiro Hitsugaya. Written for a fanfiction commission request.
Rukia is a wealthy girl living in a small town that worships a powerful deity, the Ice Dragon. When the townspeople force Rukia into being a sacrifice to appease the Ice Dragon's wrath, she is exiled into the dragon's forest where she stumbles upon the Ice Dragon's castle. Much to her surprise, the Ice Dragon isn't as vicious as he seems; not to mention he's actually a handsome young man named Toshiro Hitsugaya!
RukiaxHitsugaya/ AU/ Rated M for violence, dark themes, and possible lemon in future chapters
The kiss of the last autumn breeze signified the beginning of winter as the final maple leaf fell from a tree branch. It was going to be another harsh winter; even colder than last year, the weather reporter had said. Rukia, however, had never particularly minded the cold weather and was looking forward to it. The fresh smell of pine always relaxed her nerves and the refreshing taste of hot chocolate on a cold winter's night made the chilly season all the more enjoyable.
Ah, yes, she had definitely been looking forward to the winter months all year long. What other time of the year could she wear her adorable bunny ear muffs? Or her fluffy pink sweater featuring her favorite cartoon mascot, Chappy? In just a few weeks, her beautiful home in Karakura Town would be shimmering with snow and made into a beautiful Winter Wonderland as the trees of the forest surrounding her town would be glistening with icicles. If she could just be a little more patient, she would soon be able to make snowmen and have snowball fights with her classmates.
"Good morning, Kuchiki-san! How are you on this lovely day?"
A chipper voice tore the raven haired girl from her happy thoughts as she turned her head to see who was calling out to her. "Oh, hello there, Orihime. Sorry, I guess I was lost in my own thoughts," Rukia replied to the orange haired girl skipping beside her. She had been so caught up in her own thoughts that she hadn't even noticed her classmate approach her as she made her way towards the school.
Rukia had lived in Karakura Town her whole life and had rarely traveled outside of it. It was a quaint little town where everyone knew everyone. Every neighbor got along well and the crime rate was practically nonexistent. Her town was located far in the mountains and due to its vast distance from any main city, it was the perfect vacation spot for tourists looking for an escape from their busy lives. Although she was curious about life beyond her happy little hometown, Rukia never really had a desire to leave this place.
"Did you do last night's homework? I stayed up all night trying to finish it," Orihime whimpered lightly before letting out a long, exaggerated yawn. Rukia simply nodded in response as she strode alongside her friend, "With graduation right around the corner, we can't afford to make any slip-ups."
The redhead nodded vigorously in excitement, practically throwing her arms up in the air to convey her happiness. "Ohhhhhhhh yeah! We're FINALLY about to graduate!" Orihime was a bright and animated girl who always wore her heart on her sleeve. She was almost the complete opposite of the quiet and reserved Rukia Kuchiki. Despite the stark contrast of their personalities, the two of them had grown quite close over the years after being enrolled in the same school since elementary school.
"Oh, I can't wait to graduate! I'm thinking about applying to some colleges in Tokyo and Osaka. I want to finally move to a big city where I can spread my wings! What about you? Where do you think you'll apply for college?" The cheerful Orihime continued as a huge, goofy smile stretched across her attractive face.
The shorter girl turned her attention away from her friend for a moment as she bit her lower lip in thought. With her grades, she could have easily gotten into any college of her choosing. There were so many prestigious universities in Tokyo that her teachers had tried talking her into applying for but Rukia had politely declined their suggestions. Sure, attending a big, fancy college would have been nice but she had a duty as the daughter of the Kuchiki family that required her attention.
"I actually don't think I'm going to be attending college," Rukia finally answered after a moment of silence. Her friend's shocked expression was enough to make Rukia let out a short laugh before continuing. "My older brother wants me to take over the family business alongside him. Ever since my mother and father passed away two years ago, I think he's had a rough time trying to manage everything on his own. Instead of going to college, I would like to help him run the Kuchiki Inn."
Orihime's face immediately changed from an expression of astonishment into a look of sympathy and understanding once she realized that Rukia was forcing herself to smile. Rukia's parents had passed away in a tragic car accident nearly two years ago, leaving their entire fortune and business to Rukia and her older brother, Byakuya. The Kuchiki's had made a fancy name for themselves over the years for running Karakura Town's most distinguished inn. The Kuchiki Inn was a hotspot for tourists and the high-quality service that the inn provided had made quite an impression on wealthy visitors. Byakuya Kuchiki was the current owner of the inn but Rukia was itching to graduate soon so she, too, could help carry on their parents' dreams of hosting a luxurious vacation getaway for treasured guests. Once she finished school, she'd be able to dedicate all her time and energy to helping her brother instead of only being able to offer her assistance after school and on the weekends.
"Is that…really what you want to do, Kuchiki-san?" Orihime asked softly, searching for any signs of reluctance upon Rukia's face. When her question was met with a warm and comforting smile from Rukia, Orihime figured it would be best to not pry any further. Rukia was a secretive girl and rarely conveyed her concerns to her friends. Although she was well-liked amongst her classmates for her witty sense of humor and her quirky personality, it was very rare to see Rukia come to them for aid if she had any personal problems. Even after the loss of her parents, Rukia still never showed that she was suffering from the raging storm within her heart. She had simply continued going to school and pretended that nothing had ever happened. If someone had asked her about her parents, she would quickly change the subject or direct their attention elsewhere.
Once again, Rukia found it best to change the subject as she pointed her finger in the direction of the school gates. "Hey, look, isn't that Ichigo over there? I think he's looking in this direction." In seconds, Orihime's cheeks began to flare up as she frantically began combing her fingers through her bright, orange locks, trying to tame the strands that had been tussled by the heavy blow of the wind. "R-Really?! Where?!"
Rukia simply laughed at her friend's amusing reaction. It was quite fun teasing the ditzy girl about her crush on their fellow classmate, Ichigo Kurosaki, and her responses never failed to bring a smile to her face. Orihime's shoulders quickly slumped forward when she realized that Ichigo was nowhere in sight and that she had gotten herself into a frenzy for no reason.
"Kuchiki-saaaaaaaaaaaaan! That wasn't very nice! How would you like it if I teased you about your crush?" the busty girl whined as she folded her arms over her chest in a pouty manner.
Rukia glanced over her shoulder at Orihime, amethyst eyes sparkling in mild amusement, "Well, that would never happen so I guess I don't have to worry about it."
"Oh?" Orihime asked, cocking her head to the side as she looked at her friend in bewilderment. "And why is that?"
"Because I have no desire to get a crush on anybody." With that being said, Rukia dropped the conversation as she made her way towards her first class.
The funny thing about seniors in high school was that even though they were so close to graduating and being done with high school forever, it was hard for them to keep pressing on and remain diligent with their studies through their final month. Naturally, Rukia always made time to study for the upcoming final exams but it was just so hard to give the teacher her undivided attention as he lectured about historical events. While doodling pictures of cute rabbits and baby chicks in her notebook, she found her mind wandering back towards the conversation she and her friend, Orihime, had shared that morning on their way to school.
"Is that…really what you want to do, Kuchiki-san?"
That question kept repeating itself over and over in her mind. Of course that's what she wanted to do! Nothing would make her happier than to remain in this peaceful town and work alongside her beloved older brother as head of the Kuchiki Inn. She knew that was what her parents had always wanted her to do so it was only fitting that she carried on that dream and did her best as a respectable member of the Kuchiki family. If she chose to follow in her parents' footsteps, she would have never have any financial woes and she could live a tranquil, comfortable life in Karakura Town for as long as she lived.
Nothing would make her happier than that…right?
Rukia propped her elbow on her desk as she leaned her chin into the palm of her hand. Her violet eyes wandered from the adorable doodles in her notebook towards the gray sky outside her classroom's window. Tiny drops of snow began to fall from the sky, bathing the atmosphere in a soft veil of white powder.
"That's strange," Rukia thought to herself as she watched the falling snow, "I thought that the weatherman said it wasn't going to snow just yet."
The weather was very unpredictable in her town but winter had just started and it wasn't nearly cold enough for snowfall yet. Apparently everyone else in her history class had been wondering the same thing as they all erupted into a loud chatter.
"Snow?! Why is it snowing?!" one guy blurted out.
"It wasn't anywhere near this cold this morning! I only brought a light sweater today," another girl whimpered out.
"Did someone piss off the Ice Dragon again?!" chuckled out a voice that Rukia would have recognized from anywhere.
Rukia sharply turned her head to the guy sitting beside her, eyes narrowing to slits as she glared at the spiky-haired male beside her. "Shut up, Ichigo. That isn't funny," Rukia hissed as she watched him let out a low chuckle from where he sat. Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia had been neighbors ever since they were small children and to say that they were close friends would have been an understatement. They were close, all right. Close enough for Ichigo to get on Rukia's nerves each and every time he opened his mouth to say something snarky.
"Oh, pleeeeeeeeease, Rukia. Everyone knows that the Ice Dragon is just a myth! It's just a stupid superstition that the elders of the town came up with to scare all the little boys and girls of Karakura Town. Everyone knows that," Ichigo scoffed as he leaned back in his seat.
"That's not true! You don't know if he's real or not!" the irritated girl snapped back as she stretched out her foot to roughly kick at the legs of Ichigo's seat, knocking his chair right out from underneath him. The orange haired boy toppled over and crashed down to the hard floor with a heavy thud.
A few of their classmates chuckled at their bickering as Ichigo quickly leapt to his feet, raising his voice at Rukia as he towered over her. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?! Who cares if the damned Ice Dragon is real?! If he is, I bet he's nothing more than a wimpy worm that crawls around in the girl's locker room to get a sneak peak at them while they change!"
Rukia fumed in her seat as she clenched her fists tightly, resisting the urge to clobber his cheek with her knuckles and wipe that smug look right off his face. However, the teacher quickly slammed his hands down on his desk which made the classroom fall into a dead silence.
"Ichigo Kurosaki! Rukia Kuchiki! That's enough! If I hear one more word out of either of you then you get detention!" the teacher yelled at the top of his lungs to the point that his cheeks began to turn purple.
Ichigo grumbled a few things under his breath before he slouched back down in his seat. After giving Rukia one final glare for knocking his chair over, he finally dropped the subject as the teacher began lecturing once again.
"Damn it, I didn't mean to get so worked up like that… Why do I even care what he thinks about the Ice Dragon?" the petite girl wondered to herself as she slid her eyes away from Ichigo to stare out the window once again. The snow was beginning to fall harder than it had been only moments ago and now the entire courtyard of the school was covered in a blanket of white frost.
The Ice Dragon was a prominent figure in Karakura Town's history. When she was younger, Rukia's parents had often told her fanciful stories about the dragon's existence. According to the legends, the Ice Dragon was a powerful deity that protected the residents of Karakura Town. He was also supposedly responsible for bringing winter to the town and the duration of wintertime solely depended on the dragon's will. The dragon, allegedly peaceful by nature, helped preserve the natural order of the seasons as long as no one in the town evoked his wrath. However, if the townspeople did not follow the dragon's commands then the town as a whole would be punished by forcing to endure a long, unrelenting winter or terrible, catastrophic storms.
According to the stories passed down from generation to generation, the townspeople have angered the Ice Dragon many times in the past. Approximately one hundred and fifty years ago, the townspeople refused to comply with the dragon's commands. In response, the dragon destroyed most of their village by creating a treacherous snow storm that covered people's homes in layers of ice and snow. Many people died from the tenacious storm and those that survived suffered from long-lasting trauma. If that incident wasn't bad enough, roughly fifty years after the first snow storm occurred, the town had another major incident.
Another snow storm had wreaked havoc upon Karakura Town and due to the town's location high up in the mountains, a horrible avalanche occurred near the town's borders. Residents were stranded in Karakura Town and couldn't escape the turmoil of the snowstorm for several long days. Food was scarce and many people died of starvation or illness during that time.
For many winters to come, there had been numerous grave occurrences that the townsfolk blamed on the Ice Dragon's wrath. Although a lot of the instances could have been blamed on the town's location in the harsh, alpine environment, many of the town's residents found themselves believing in the Ice Dragon. Even to this day, there were still many shrines dedicated to the Ice Dragon and the town often held festivals celebrating the Ice Dragon as a mighty and powerful God. He was a major part of Karakura Town's history and culture. It had always irked Rukia to hear others badmouth him, whether he was simply a mythological creature or not.
Her mother had always believed in the Ice Dragon. Her mother was the one to read her the exciting stories about the Ice Dragon and had always reminded Rukia to be cautious during the winter so as to not accidentally anger the dragon. The dragon could be kept content as long as his people provided his temples with offerings and sent celebratory prayers of thanks in his honor. It didn't seem to take much to keep the Ice Dragon happy but there were a few legends that claimed that he, in all actuality, required a human sacrifice every year to keep him satisfied.
"If the dragon needs a sacrifice then he can just have Ichigo," Rukia nonchalantly mumbled to herself under her breath as she began sketching an image of the dragon onto her notebook. Many illustrations depicted the dragon to have sparkling ice crystals for skin and long, sharp icicles for wings. If he was indeed real then he would no doubt be a beautiful sight. Whether he was responsible for the brutal winter storms or not, Rukia was actually happy that Karakura Town had such a strong symbol representing their town. The Ice Dragon always had a discreet way of bringing people together, whether it was by celebrating him through extravagant festivals or by people sharing exciting tales of him by the campfire.
Ichigo was a fool. Of course the dragon was real! The dragon was real because he lived in the hearts of the town's citizens. Anyone who spoke ill of such an endearing symbol of their town's unity deserved to slip on an ice patch and fall on their ass!
The chiming of the bell awoke Rukia from her daydreaming state as it signaled the end of another school day. Each of the students began to gather their bags and head out of the classroom—all except Ichigo Kurosaki.
The taller male stood up from his desk to stand beside Rukia, an irritated scowl planted on his face as his chocolate eyes bored down at the girl below him. "Look, Rukia," Ichigo began as he shoved his hands in pockets, "about what I said earlier…"
She pretended to ignore him as she closed her notebook before stuffing it into her bag. When she didn't show any signs of acknowledging him, Ichigo quickly bowed his head in an apologetic manner. "I didn't mean to piss you off earlier. I know how important the Ice Dragon stories are to you. Hell, you've got the damned thing's statues plastered all over the Kuchiki Inn…"
"Are you apologizing for being such an insensitive jerk?" Rukia asked as she regarded him with a tiny smirk. Her words were met with a huffish growl before Ichigo lifted his head to lock gazes with her.
"You don't have to say it like that, but yeah, I guess I am apologizing for being an insensitive jerk. I remember your mom would always bring you and me to the Ice Dragon Winter Festival every year. You would always beg me to win you a dragon toy from one of the booths and you would tug at my hair until I won you something," the orange haired boy replied as the annoyance in his voice faded into a soft, lighthearted tone.
Ah, yes, those were such lovely memories. They had always had so much fun at the winter festival. There were always so many exciting booths full of all different kinds of foods while brightly colored lanterns decorated the pathways, illuminating the many lively activities the festival offered. The whole town would be filled with happy music and dancing individuals as they sang songs celebrating the Ice Dragon's good fortune. The festival had always brought nothing but joy to Rukia's life but she hadn't bothered visiting again since her parents' deaths…
As if he could hear her thoughts, Ichigo turned his face to look away from her as he stared down at his shoes. "Hey, Rukia, if you're not busy this weekend, would you like to come with me to the festival? I noticed you haven't gone these past two years. Maybe I could try winning you another dragon toy—"
His words were interrupted by Rukia abruptly pushing her chair back and standing up. "Sorry, Ichigo…I can't. Why don't you ask Orihime-chan instead?" she muttered before swinging her bag over her shoulder. She hastily pushed past him as she maneuvered her way towards the door.
"H-hey! Wait!" her childhood friend called back to her, a solemn look in his eyes as he watched her turn her back to him.
She didn't bother to stop as she closed the classroom door behind her. A bit of guilt rose in her chest at her sudden dismissal of his kindness but there was no way she could ever attend the festival again. There were just too many memories there. All it made her think about was her mother's smiling face and the fact that she would never be able to experience the warmth she felt from her mother's hand as they used to walk through the festival together, admiring all the beautiful decorations and colorful lanterns. The festival only served to be a painful reminder that she would never see her mother again. Ichigo had only been trying to be nice but he just didn't understand…
Tears were beginning to sting at the corners of her eyes but she fought against them, refusing to allow them to fall at a time like this. This was no time to having a pity party for herself. She needed to hurry back to the inn and begin making preparations for the massive influx of guests that would be staying at their inn during the upcoming weekend of the festival. Karakura Town was a popular tourist location and the Ice Dragon Winter Festival was a famous attraction that often drew in a big crowd during the winter season. Many rooms would need to be cleaned and the bath house would need extra care to accommodate the heavy flow of people.
As Rukia stepped into the courtyard of her school, many snowflakes began to kiss her soft skin. It was a little baffling to think it had grown this cold since the morning but such was the life of those living in the lofty regions of the mountains. Rukia pulled her pink sweater tighter around her slender body as she began to trudge through the snow, making her way to her family's inn.