Okay, so I've had this story buried in my files for weeks and now I finally decided to finish it and post it. So a few months ago I had this dream about someone being tortured. (Don't ask who or why I'm not sure myself) So I decided to take that dream and turn it into a HitsuMatsu story. Of course this story was inspired by BlackAngel576's 'Soothes The Soul' Chapter 22 Come A Little Closer. Thank you BlackAngel576! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: No matter how much I want to, I don't own Bleach or it's characters.
Nightmare
It was damp. Cold and damp. Water dripped from the ceilings and landed in puddles that grew bigger with each passing hour. It was dark except for one small light that lit the corner. That and the newly lit fire in the chimney just a few feet away.
He didn't know what to make of these surroundings, until he heard the sounds.
The only sounds that could be heard, was the blood curdling screams from a woman and laughter from a man.
He felt as if his heart shattered into a million pieces when he looked in the corner to see his own wife, chained to the walls by her wrists and ankles.
She was being tortured, right before his own eyes. Nothing pained him more than to see her in agony.
But he couldn't do anything. He was frozen, he couldn't move, at all. He felt like he was tied to a chair, and he probably was. But he couldn't tell. He was too busy watching his own wife, wishing she was dead.
Her shinigami uniform, torn and drenched in blood, was so bad it looked ready to slip off her body. Her hair, tangled and sticking to her face, covered her eyes as she leaned forward. It was a painful position for her arms, and she barely had any strength.
If she were to stop standing, she'd just dangle by her wrists. He could see her face, and he felt as if his heart was ripped out. She was obviously crying, and her cheeks which were usually rosy were pale and cut, with blood trickling down her cheek, mixed with the tears.
He could see the other, a tall and slim man, a few feet away in front of the fire.
He moved away from the fire with a metal bar in his hand, with the tip glowing bright red. Watching him go near her with it, he felt his eyes widen with realization.
She let out another strained, and deafening scream as he ran the scorching hot tip across her stomach, slowly. She threw her head back and screamed louder as it lingered in one spot for a few seconds before leaving her skin.
Her eyes were dead, and empty, with nothing but pain filling them. It hurt to stare at them.
How could he just stand there and watch this?! What was wrong with him?! He had to do something!
Before he could actually try and move, he heard the slim man speak. "Sorry about this Ran-Chan. But you should've been a good girl and shouldn't have betrayed me." It was clear to him now that it was Ichimaru! Ichimaru Gin, who was torturing his Rangiku.
The more painful thing that he could see was her lifting her head in his direction with her sad teary eyes that drowned him.
"Why Toshiro? Why did you let him do this to me?" She whispered before the metal bar slashed through her, body and soul.
With a flash, his eyes opened wide and he shot up. His forehead was drenched in sweat, making his hair stick to it. His breathing was heavy and heaving, his eyes wide.
He felt incredibly hot despite being in the middle of winter. He was an ice user and yet he was burning hot. He immediately shot his gaze over to his right and saw his wife, Rangiku, sleeping safe and soundly, with her back to him.
She was calm and peacefully sleeping. Not a hair was out of place, she was perfectly fine. "It was just a nightmare, just a nightmare." He whispered over and over again. It may have been a nightmare, but it felt so real.
Like he really was in a chamber, and really watching Ichimaru hurt her like that. He could still see it. The image wouldn't go away. It just kept pushing it's way back into his vision.
He had to look away from Rangiku, because looking at her made him remember that look she gave him before his agonizing nightmare ended.
But she was right, whether it was a dream or not, how could he let Ichimaru do that to her?
His eyes grew sad as he thought about the last few moments of his dream. He looked back down at Rangiku who was turning to her other side, where she snuggled closer to his side. His expression softened. Even asleep, she had the habit of snuggling him to where he would once again be suffocated by her world famous assets. Although it was harder to do so now that he was taller, just about as tall as Ukitake, but still taller than her.
Carefully removing her arms, he slid out of bed. She groaned and fidgeted around a little but remained asleep as he crept out of the bed.
He had made it out and tiptoed out of the bedroom. The house was quiet, it was probably somewhere around 2:00 in the morning. The only sound he heard was the crickets outside, and the light snores coming from the bedroom he was walking by.
He decided to take a peek inside. The door creaked slightly as he slowly opened it, and walked inside the room. Inside he could see his and Rangiku's daughter. Sleeping snugly in her bed.
Hitsugaya Yukihime.
He walked over to her bed and knelt down by her, and watched her sleep. The girl was only 19 months old. He ran a hand through her short wavy hair that sprawled over the pillow.
There were several traits in which Yukihime inherited from her parents.
She inherited Toshiro's white hair, her hair always did seem a shade brighter for some reason, though it was always hard to tell. She inherited Rangiku's icy blue eyes, and also Rangiku's laziness. She slept almost all day.
In a lot of ways she was more like Rangiku than Toshiro. Like when she laughed. She had the bubbliest giggle Toshiro had ever heard. It could only come from Rangiku's side.
He didn't mind that she was like Rangiku. As long as she didn't inherit Rangiku's previous drinking habit or work ethic he was fine with her just the way she is.
He smiled when Yukihime snuggled into his hand. She mumbled something and sighed. His smile grew wider when he heard the word 'daddy' somewhere in those mumbles. He remembered daddy was her first word.
He carefully removed his hand.
He leaned forward and kissed her forehead before standing up and walking back to the door. Standing outside the door, he took one last look at Yukihime before sliding the door closed.
He walked the rest of the way down the hall and slid the back door open. He closed it as he stepped outside and entered the courtyard. He sat cross-legged on the wooden steps and stared up at the full moon.
It was freezing cold, but he felt completely cool. He never did feel cold like normal people. He sighed as he watched the clouds above slowly float over him.
He had to think things straight. It was only a nightmare, it meant nothing. Just because it was something he was always afraid of, doesn't mean it'll come true. Besides, Ichimaru was long dead. He killed Ichimaru himself.
The Winter War was long over, and Aizen, Ichimaru, and Tosen were long gone. Out of this world, no longer a threat.
So Ichimaru is dead and will never hurt Rangiku like that. He'll never hurt her at all ever again.
So why was he so afraid? Why was he acting this way towards a dream that could never come true? It could never happen, he always protected Rangiku. Yuki too.
But then again, it still could happen. It could be the same scenario but a different person. It was clear to him now that he was afraid because it could still happen. Even if it wasn't Ichimaru doing it.
His eyes darted from the moon to the ground, trying to stay awake. He was just afraid to go back to sleep. Afraid to see that vision again. If he were to see that again he felt he wouldn't be able to open his eyes again. Because nothing would hurt him more than to see his wife or his child in agony.
It was the first time he had ever had a dream like that, but he was sure it wouldn't be the last time, surely it would haunt him.
He also couldn't help but wonder where Yukihime was in the dream. Was she already gone? He shuddered. No! Yukihime wasn't involved in it! He was sure that the dream was set in the time during the Hueco Mundo war. Because Gin was in there.
Why was he acting this way? It was only a nightmare. Only a nightmare. It would go away and he'd forget all about it. Someday.
He sighed, his breath coming out in a misty puff. He was sleepy. But his fear of going back to sleep was more dominant than his desire to go back to sleep.
I just can't understand why I had a dream like that... He thought. Everything's been so peaceful and fun lately... Why did I have to see that?
It wasn't so much as the fact it was Ichimaru doing it, it was just the sight of Rangiku like that. All chained up, and bleeding everywhere... It near tore his heart out.
He sighed once again. He can't stay up forever. Sooner or later he'll see it again.
"Toshiro?" A sweet voice snapped him out of his thoughts and his head shot to the side. Rangiku was standing in the doorway she was wearing her white sleeping kimono. Funny, he didn't even hear the door open.
"Rangiku. I thought you were asleep?" He said with his eyebrows raised. "I was until I felt an empty space next to me and a gloomy aroma radiating out here." She smirked when he snorted and turned away. "What gloomy aroma?" He asked.
"The one that's floating over your adorable head right now." She said and walked up and sat down behind him. "So explain why it's there." She said in his ear, the warmth sending shivers down his body.
"..." He didn't know exactly how to answer. "Let me guess, you had a nightmare, right?" He raised his eyebrows again and turned towards her. "How'd you know?" He asked.
"I can see it. All the signs are here. Getting up in the middle of the night. A sad look on your face. Spacing out over a passing thought. You aren't exactly one who does these things you know." She explained.
He didn't answer again. "You wanna tell me about it?" She asked. He looked down at the ground in front of him. The wind brushed by them and it made Rangiku shiver. Toshiro felt her shiver and turned wrap his arms around her and bring her to his chest. He held her close, with his chin resting on top of her head. She in turn wrapped her arms around his waist.
"That bad huh?" She asked. Again he didn't answer, just concentrated on keeping her warm. He felt more calm with her in his arms. He sighed heavily. She always was the only one who could make him feel better just by being there.
"I watched him hurt you." He finally said after what felt like hours to him. She raised her head to look into his sad eyes staring down at her.
"Who?" She asked. He hesitated to answer. "Ichimaru...." Now she understood why he was so upset. She didn't care whether she was cold or not, she wiggled out of his arms and brought him close to lay his head in her lap as she leaned onto a wooden beam.
"I saw you in some kind of chamber. It was dark and cold and you were chained against the wall, bleeding everywhere... I watched him. I watched him torture you. It was... maddening. Watching him hurt you and listening to your screams." He didn't want to say anymore, it was too hard.
"Shh. It's okay." She soothed as she stroked his hair. Slowly but surely it was lulling him back to sleep but he refused to let sleep overcome him.
"You're afraid to go back to sleep aren't you?" She asked. She felt him nod.
"I'm afraid to see that again. I don't want to." He mumbled into her lap. "We all have nightmares Toshiro. I do too sometimes. Some dreams are good while others are bad. It's just a dream, it's not real. Was this the first time you had it?" She asked, still stroking his hair.
She felt him nod again. "Silly, for all you know it could just be a one-time nightmare. You may never have it again. You never know. Nightmares are never good but they're apart of life. In fact every day I do paperwork is a nightmare." She smiled when she felt him shake which signaled he was laughing.
"So you have nothing to be scared of. Even if you have the dream again, you know there's no way it could happen. You watch me 24/7. You'd never let someone do that to me." She had a point.
"You can't even go through a captains' meeting without Nanao there with me. And you're always with me, your always protecting me so nobody can touch me. But even if you weren't there to watch me, I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. You just gotta face facts. Nothing will happen, the nightmare is just a figment of your imagination. You gotta know that it's not real and that it can't hurt you. That's what I tell Yuki when she has a bad dream." She said gently.
He knew she was right, and felt a lot better about it now. It's just a dream, it's not real. She was right. He smiled.
"Now, do you think you can go to sleep?" She asked. He nodded. "Then come on. I have to get up early you know, Yukihime wants to go play with Kentaro." Toshiro frowned. Nanao and Shunsui's son. Kyouraku Kentaro. He was about two months older than Yukihime.
The boy himself was a very well-behaved and smart kid. Took mostly after his mother. But what he didn't like about the boy was how he liked to hug Yukihime so much. Every two minutes he'd hug her. Rangiku thought it was cute, but Toshiro thought it was just the first stage of becoming a womanizer like his father.
Rangiku told him he was just being too over-protective. His little girl was going to be a beauty and all the guys were going to have their eyes on her, and he had to get used to that. Just like he did when they had their eyes on Rangiku. She laughed so hard when he denied ever being upset over that. She could tell he was lying. His face gave him away.
"He's a good boy and you know it. He's just very affectionate. Now if he starts hugging her in a bad way, then you can be angry." She giggled when she caught sight of the frown still on his face.
"Besides, I think Yuki has a crush on him." She added. He frowned deeper. "You're so cute when you're angry." She giggled and pinched his cheek. He lightly smacked her hand away and sat up. He glared at her.
"Am not. And I'm not angry. I just think she's too young to think that way about a boy." He grumbled. "You can never be too young to think about your feelings towards a boy. Are you telling me you never had a crush on a girl when you were little? Like a certain Kira Momo that lived with you when you were children?" She asked with a teasing smile.
He blushed. "That's different." "Is not!" "Yes it is, I was older that her at the time." "Not by much!" "How would you know?" "Momo told me." "And how would she know?" "It's a womans' intuition." "'Womans' intuition' my ass." "Are you denying that you liked Momo when you were kids?" "I'm not saying anything." "So you are denying it." "Am not!" "Shh!"
He was raising his voice too high. He was going to wake up Yukihime.
"Now lets stop arguing and denying things when you were little," He opened his mouth to protest but she put a finger to his mouth. "And go back to bed." Grumbling to himself he nodded and they stood up. She held his hand as they walked towards their bedroom.
As they walked by their daughter's room, they heard little moans and cries.
They stopped and decided to see what was wrong so they opened the door and peeked inside. Yukihime was tossing and turning and crying in her sleep.
They opened the door wider and stepped in. They walked over to her bed, Rangiku reached out and picked her up out of bed. Yukihime opened her eyes when her mother held her up.
"What's the matter Yuki?" Her mother asked gently. "B-Bad dweam." Yukihime cried, clutching onto Rangiku's shoulder. Rangiku turned to look at Toshiro. "See? Everyone has bad dreams." She said with a grin, Toshiro rolled his eyes.
"It's okay Yukihime. It was just a dream. We all have bad dreams. Your father does too." Rangiku soothed and couldn't help but laugh at Toshiro's face after she said that.
"Daddy has bad dweams too?" Yukihime asked as she lifted her head from Rangiku's shoulder. "Yup." Rangiku said. Yukihime looked at her father with an amazed look.
"But I thought daddy wasn't scared of nothing?" Yukihime asked. "Believe it or not, there are things the Great Hitsugaya Toshiro fears." Rangiku teased. Toshiro snorted. "Shut up." He murmured.
Yukihime began to giggle. "Daddy gets scared too!" There's another thing to add to the list of traits she inherited from Rangiku. Her love for teasing him.
"Alright that's enough laughing at my expense." He said with a scowl. "You know we're just teasing Toshiro." Rangiku laughed. She went to put Yukihime back into bed but she wouldn't let go.
"I don't wanna be alone." She said with little tears in her eyes. "Okay, then you can sleep with mommy and daddy." Rangiku said and they walked out of her room towards their bedroom.
"You don't have to worry though. You won't have to sleep in that room alone for long. Soon you'll have a roommate." Toshiro stopped dead in his tracks and looked at her with raised eyebrows. "Rangiku... are you..." She nodded, her face started glowing.
"I found out this morning. I would've told you earlier but it slipped my mind." She said. Funny, he didn't remember her having morning sickness. Although he had been getting up extra early recently so maybe he missed that part.
"Wha? Wha's that mean? Wha are we talking about?" Yukihime demanded. "Soon you're going to have a little brother. Or sister." Rangiku said. Yukihime's face lit up. "Really?!" She squealed.
"Yup." Rangiku nodded. "Yay! A wittle brother or sister! I can't wait!" She giggled. Toshiro smiled. "Neither can I." He murmured.
So with that they walked the rest of the way to Rangiku and Toshiro's bedroom. Rangiku set Yukihime down on the bed before climbing in bedside her, and Toshiro climbed in on the other side of Yukihime so she was between them.
Goodnight mommy, goodnight daddy." Yukihime said.
"Goodnight Yukihime." Her parents said and they both gave her a kiss on both her cheeks. She let out a small giggle. Then let out a big yawn before snuggling into the bed and going to sleep.
"Goodnight Toshiro." Rangiku whispered. "Night Rangiku." He murmured and not long after Rangiku fell asleep, he did too. Thinking he was the luckiest man in the world and that his life was a dream come true.
Well that was a long story. But it was fun to write. Except the beginning, I for one don't do torture scenes but it was better than it was originally. Believe me. I'm to have finally finished this and I hope you all enjoyed it. Thanks for reading and please REVIEW! Thanks again.
LATERZ! RedPearlVoice.