Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of its characters.
In the dark of the night, an auburn-haired girl dashed out of her village and entered the Dark Forest. She was so sick of how they treated her! She was the miko, yet they pampered her and stepped around her as though she were glass that would break any second.
Still in her tight, decorated kimono, her feet tripped over a root. She landed on her elbows, an uncharacteristic curse coming from her painted lips. "Goddammit!"
Orihime wiped away the sticky substance and the rest of her white makeup that only served to puff-up her face. I'm supposed to be the second most powerful person, but everyone just won't let me be! She screamed in her mind, power walking now since the kimono kept cinching her waist.
"Ah, yes…" She recalled. "I'm only second most powerful…"
The fact is she's not allowed out of her home. The village chiefs didn't want to risk the chance she would step outside and further her curiosity, resulting in an accidental entry into the Dark Forest. Where the most powerful person resided.
She heard in whispers and read in old texts about this mysterious person, a divine being almost like her – the God of Night. Though she was worshipped as the great and benevolent miko, the villagers all fear this god and guardian of their land. Nobody had ever personally seen him, but sometimes she could hear the beckoning whispers in her meditations. She had never reported to the chiefs since, to her, the voices were not scary at all.
Tonight was Hanami, and the first time she was allowed out of the house. Technically, she had reasoned with her guards and they had relented as the view on her balcony was terribly limited. After that, she had 'carelessly' evaded them and ran from the village, at first with the intention to get some air. But now that she was out here – in the open! – she just wanted to keep on going and not look back. She definitely didn't want to return; she was a prisoner, and prisoners do not willingly go back to their cages.
Stuck in deep thought, she didn't see the decline in the soil.
"—Ah!"
Her foot slipped further and she dropped to her buttocks. Luckily, the kimono was so thick that when she went sliding, her back remained unscathed.
Unfortunately, as she came to the bottom of the hill, her slippered feet went up a wooden column and she hit her backside on the damn thing. Orihime widened her eyes, but not because of the pain. "Darn… this is the secon – no – the third time I've cursed," she admitted to herself.
Deciding to go the whole way, she ungracefully ripped the bottom of her kimono before pulling herself up. "There, that's better…But now I feel somewhat bad, like I've done a naughty thing."
She pouted, then laughed out loud.
Tilting her head upwards, she let herself indulge in her new freedom. High above, the leaves of many tall, sentinel-like trees patched over the night sky like irresponsibly sown cloth. White, pinprick starlight reflected in her eyes, allowing her to better see her surroundings. It was then she noticed what the wooden column from before was. Or what it held.
It was a simple archway, bearing a sign that read 'Shrine of the Night God'. Behind it, was a great set of stone staircases, leading to an abandoned-looking shrine.
Just as Orihime saw this, her stomach growled. "Mou…where am I going to stay for the night?" She scolded herself. "I'm going to starve to death, but I also don't want to go back."
Thinking that going further was not going to help her problems, she sat down heavily on the first step just below the archway. She would sit here and rot away, she decided.
Suddenly, a wild gust blew in from her left, bringing her attention. The tree trunks were thin and sparse, and she could see clearly what it was that landed at the fringe of the forest, metres away. She sucked in a cautious breath. It can't be…
There, in his full glory and dark beauty, was the God of Night. His back was turned to her but just by making out the pale horns on his mane of dark hair and fur, his imperial pair of black wings framing above, and his slender form covered almost completely in the same material as the night sky, she knew it was him.
The god seem to admire the night view for an instant, his long tail stirring the dirt calmly, before he sensed her presence. Orihime watched him turn his head, gasping at, yet somehow already knowing the deep green glare of his eyes.
At the eye contact, he vanished.
Orihime couldn't believe it. She had sat up straight, curiosity controlling her movements as she had finally got a glimpse of the mysterious child behind the voices in her meditations. Yes, just as she is the newest reincarnation of the miko, he was the reincarnation of the God of Night…That was why she was not afraid of him.
She felt that, deep inside, he is just the same as her. Alone, trapped in an unwanted duty, without anyone to understand his pain…
"—Uwaa!" A sudden rustle behind her caused her to jump.
She turned around, her hair swinging so wildly that it took her awhile to focus on the figure standing there.
When her eyes cleared, she found herself staring straight into a set of amused eyes. The God of Night was in human form, wearing a patterned ceremonial robe, his hands folded inside opposite sleeves. He stood between two steps, looking down at her curiously. Then, one of his hands shifted and he drew out a round fruit, which he handed towards her.
Orihime stood shyly and switched glances between the object and his unwavering features. She reached for it and accepted the offering.
As she stared at the soft, ripe fruit, she barely realised that he had moved further up the stairs.
"Wait!" she called when she noticed. By that time, he was close to the shrine.
The god turned back, an eyebrow raised as though he was exasperated that she had not followed him. She giggled at this, giggled at her freedom, giggled at her surprising meeting with this supposed fearful god.
Without further ado, she too climbed the stairs, finally catching up to him and taking his outstretched hand.