Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, or any of the Bleach characters used in this fic. They all belong to Tite Kubo: the genius behind the captivating manga that started it all. I only own any of my original characters that I choose to include, as well as any of my own original plot ideas.
Reason
Prompt: You gave me reason to love...
A/N: Companion piece to "Faces Lie."
She had bought into his ruse far too easily, having allowed herself to believe in the veil he'd placed before her. He had left her behind, as he had done so many times before, apologizing for his mistakes like a child. So long had she spent hating him, wishing that she had never loved him, hoping that he would suffer. Much to her dismay and misfortune, her last wish had indeed come true, and, only at the end, at his end, had she realized that he still had a heart.
In his last fleeting moments, she had seen through everything: His heart had always belonged to her.
All that remained of him now were memories and a small memorial that she had erected in the woods behind the Third Division. It was her secret to keep, as a tribute to his memory, just as he had kept his adoration hidden from her. Even with him gone, she loved and hated him all the same. He had lied to her so many times, only to turn around and play the hero at the end. He was a damned fool, as she had constantly reminded herself.
With that solid fact present, he had still been everything. She had been alone in the world before he came along. Lost, lonely, and on the brink of death. But it had been his companionship, love, and devotion that had swept away her hatred for the world. Until he came, she had been nothing. She had been left, without a family, to die alone.
Since his death, she had decided upon a ritual for the shrine: Each morning, well before dawn, she would bring a single dried persimmon to the site. And, each day she returned, the persimmon from the day before had vanished.
But today, on the anniversary of their meeting, did she bring a word.
"Faces Lie, but the heart breaks the illusion. And you, you gave me reason to love again..."
The little poem at the end was just written on the spot.