Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.
So... since my other story seems to have become quite boring to you, people, I've decided to start another one. Now, this one will have spoilers, you'll see. One question, will it bother you too much if the king was say Yamamoto? It's kind of weird since Matsumoto doesn't carry that name and she's supposed to be his daughter... But then again, it's fanfiction, very historically un-agreeable. More adventure in future chapters. This one is mainly fluff. Tell me whether it's good and you'd like me to continue it. But I don't appreciate flamers. It's very rude. -nod, nod- Oh, and would you like it to be T-rated or M-rated. If you know what I mean. -wink-
P.S. A moment of self-advertising: check out my new HitsuMatsu video in youtube with the song "Requiem For A Dream". The link to my youtube profile is... in my fanfiction profile. ^^
"We are here, father," Matsumoto announced as she entered the hall, her fiancé's hand possessively on the small of her back "There was something you wanted to speak with us about?"
The king nodded with agreement, then stood up and started to make his way towards the two.
"There are just a few weeks left till the wedding, my dear betrotheds! It is only natural, that I would like to discuss a few matters with you considering that event." he placed one hand on the crook of his daughter's neck and one on his future son-in-law's arm and smiled "Let's take a walk."
Without so much as a murmur of consent, the couple let the old men lead them out of the hall and down the corridors, a small retinue of personal guards immediately joining them on a respectable distance behind them. The dialog started right away between the two men, Matsumoto's participation obviously not so necessary and since she wasn't all that eager to talk anyway, she just supported and agreed from time to time, her thoughts drifting constantly in another direction. In her mind the ridiculously bright colors of the castle's walls and the orotund decoration was nothing but intrusive and obnoxious. She imagined softer tinctures. Like white, and silver, and blue, and teal. She imagined delicacy in the trimming in ways that didn't restrict the eye, but literally provided your sight freedom and expanse. But of course no one would agree...
...At least not aloud.
"Rangiku," a voice called and her head snapped up "what's wron'?"
"It's nothing, Gin, I just got a little bit distracted." she said, wrapping her arm around his.
"Speaking of distractions... Rangiku... Where is that boy? That personal guard of yours? I can't see him." the king boomed, glancing over his shoulder. Matsumoto frowned, her lips pursing involuntarily.
"He is wounded, father, he's still recovering." she reminded, trying hard not to growl. She felt Gin's other hand rub her shoulder soothingly "Which reminds me" she continued, stopping dead on her tracks and gently releasing her arm of her fiancé's hold "I have something to do. If you'll please excuse me..."
"I thought you were never going to come." Hitsugaya murmured, sitting up in his bed as Matsumoto walked in, closing the door behind her. The thin blanket slid down his body, revealing his bandaged chest and shoulder.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't get away." she whispered, quickly making her way to his side and reaching with one hand to touch his face. He caught her wrist before her fingertips could brush against his pale skin and frowned.
"Or you didn't want to."
"Toushiro, don't..."
"Sooner or later..."
"Not now. You're hurt. Just... not today..." she gazed at his eyes intently, pleading him silently to let it go, this once. He let his pale eyelids close slowly, then sighed and nodded.
"Fine..."
Matsumoto exhaled softly with relieve and smiled.
"So how are you feeling?"
"Better. I'll be up and about in no time. I'm not letting some minor scratches get the best of me. I'm a man, and a warrior, after all." he replied, making a quite fragile attempt to smirk. Matsumoto allowed a small laugh to escape her lips.
"Oh, Toushiro... It seems like yesterday when you couldn't reach above my chest... Look at you now!" she shook her head, her smile growing wider "Somehow, for no more than a year or two you've managed to change things exactly the other way around! Sometimes I do miss my cute little midget, you know..."
"I was a man, and a warrior back than, too." Hitsugaya pointed out, but there was a grin tugging on his lips as well "Besides, I wasn't short, it was you who were huge for your age."
Matsumoto experienced a moment of mute indignation at those words. Which Hitsugaya enjoyed very much, one might add.
"I wasn't huge for my AGE!" she almost shrieked, causing Toushiro a nice laughter outburst "I was perfectly normal! And don't forget I'm older than you!"
"So is Hinamori. But does she look even near your size? I don't think so."
Matsumoto pursed her lips, her eyes narrowing in preparation for another explosion, then suddenly she seemed to slump back down, inhaling deeply before letting a big nice smirk spread across her face.
"Oh? So you actually mind these?" she asked, raising a brow as she rather plainly gestured towards her bosom.
Pause.
Hitsugaya's face softened and he reached with one hand to brush a lock of red hair away from her eyes.
"You're perfect. Always have been." he whispered, his fingertips resting on her cheekbone a little bit longer.
Matsumoto bit down on her lower lip for a moment, looking up at his eyes. Then she whined softly, pouting.
"When are they letting you go?" she pressured. He smirked in response.
"I don't know. But I can sneak out tonight."
Gin laughed a good, generous laugh at Kira's words, succeeding in startling the poor companion quite cruelly.
"So wha' if there's somethin' fishy goin' on with my bride and the brat?" Ichimaru asked turning around to face the puzzled blond, who was at that moment serving tea on the small table in the middle of the room "Whateva she's doin' she's doin' it ta hurt me."
"Um, I hope you don't mind me asking, but what do you mean?" Izuru blinked, frowning. Gin let a low chuckle escape his lips as he fixed his gaze at the view outside the window.
"Rangiku is in love with me and me only, Izuru. She does adore the boy, 's true, but dun be fooled, her feelings towards him end there. She jus' wants to get even with me cuz she knows about the other women that spend the night with me and her pride wouldn't let her swallow it easily."
Matsumoto purred and shivered when she felt slender fingers trace her naked spine. The sensation traveled up, the same digits brushing her hair back, revealing her neck and a pair of soft lips planted a gentle kiss there. The familiar hand abandoned her shoulders, sneaking around her waist long enough to pull her back against another warm body, then rested on her hip.
"You don't have to do the after-sex cuddling, you know." Matsumoto murmured, pulling back a little to look at Hitsugaya over her shoulder with raised brows. He examined her features for a moment, then sighed and retrieved his hands, sitting up and running a hand through his tussled snowy hair.
"Sorry. Won't do it again." he said, dangling his legs over the bed's side. Rangiku blinked, surprising by the sudden hurt she sensed in his voice.
"Are you mad?" she asked, examining his white, half-bandaged back.
"No..." he replied softly. Matsumoto sighed and sat up, reaching with both hands to rub his shoulder soothingly.
"Then why are you like that?" she asked, feeling his muscles tense under her gentle touch "I thought we discussed this. It's all just sex."
"Yes, yes. Just sex. Because you want to get back on Ichimaru. I know." he spat, his head snapping to a side so he could look at her using his peripheral sight "I can see the logic."
Matsumoto let go of him and pulled the blanket over her chest with exasperation.
"I am always nice to you, I treat you as an equal, never as my servant... And I came to see you today, didn't I? What more do you want?" she pressured.
"You came because I asked you to! And just to ask me for another one of these encounters!" he growled back, bending down to gather his clothes from where they were discarded on the floor.
"You agreed on this! You agreed that we had some fun together, no feelings involved!" Rangiku said as she got up from the other side of the bed, her body wrapped tightly in the blanket "I told you from the very start so there wouldn't be scenes like this after that: I love Gin. I'm just... mad at him right now."
Hitsugaya rolled his eyes and pulled his trousers up his hips.
"I do confess I agreed on this. But, Rangiku, you've been "mad" with him for months already! I was alright with your conditions months ago!"
Matsumoto frowned at him from the opposite side of the bed, her eyes darkening with anger:
"What is it to you how much time has passed since we made the deal? Just stick with it!" she snapped. Hitsugaya tightened his belt and let his arms drop by his sides, lifting his eyes to gaze at her blue orbs intensely.
"Can't you see, Rangiku? Can't you see that you won't be happy with him! He will never respect you, he'll never be completely honest with you and he'll never give you the love you need!"
"You don't fucking know!" she shouted.
"It's a set up marriage!"
"So I can't love him, is that what you are saying?"
"I'm saying you two wouldn't be marrying if it weren't for the war and your father didn't need a way to enter into an alliance with one of the sides in the war. For the country's sake. You know that!" Hitsugaya waited for her to say something and when that didn't happen, he sighed and continued more softly "You asked what it was to me how much time has passed since we agreed to this nonsense. Well, for that time I came to know you better. Better than anyone else, I believe..."
"It was only physical..." she answered but he shook his head.
"No... No, it wasn't. What about all those night we spent lying naked and talking? What about all the things we shared with each other? What about all the stories we told to one another? The dangers in which, threatened by enemies we fought side by side?"
"You don't know what you are talking about..."
"Rangiku..." he whispered and made a move to round the bed and come to her, but she shook her head violently, stepping back.
"Don't do this." she pleaded, her lips pursed tightly together. Hitsugaya paused for a moment, just gazing at her, then he sighed, closing his eyes for a moment.
"Rangiku, I'm in love with you." he said softly, but firmly, making her squeeze her eyes shut and look away. Her hands tightened their hold on the blanket around her body and she bit down on her lower lip, her shoulder visibly tense. The room suddenly felt very cold and unwelcome, the walls grey, the oxygen feeling like ice in her lungs. She could feel the floor under her feet, coarse and hard, the material covering her skin too rough and unpleasant it. These words were exactly what she had been fearing of.
"And I love Gin." she announced in the end, looking up to finally meet his eyes "This will never change. So let's just pretend that you didn't just say what you said and carry on like before. Nice and casual."
Hitsugaya's jaw clenched as he began gathering the rest of his clothes hastily. Matsumoto just watched him silently, not sure what to do or what to say. It all seemed so inevitable and hopeless. Nothing she came up with was nearly enough. It was just more hurtful. More heartless. More useless.
When he finally stood up and met her eyes, a ball of garment in his hand, she couldn't help it but wince to the look of anger and hurt that tainted his teal orbs. It was both horrible and amazing... How a look could be so fearful and heartbreaking at the same time.
"If you wish to lie to yourself, that's fine." he said, his voice barely above whisper, yet somehow radiating a storm of different, battling for superiority emotions "But I have no intention of witnessing this more than I'm obliged to because of the duties I must fulfill. I can't do this anymore..."
"Toushiro..."
"Your Highness." and with that he turned around and exited the room, closing the door behind him soundlessly.