Faith
He whirled through a world of white; wind and snow and cold. Fell towards the earth at a tremendous speed, only to rise again into the blue sky.
The wind pushed at him like it thought it could move him; he stood firm. This was his element. He would not be beaten by it.
A sense at the back of his mind told him to move. He did, jumping high into the air, narrowly avoiding the blue ice that had just hit the ground behind him.
He turned in midair to face the dragon hovering just behind him. Then moved again, lightning quick, as that tail swung at him again.
His breath came in short puffs. He wasn't at his best right now – the evidence several shallow cuts that the flying ice shards had inflicted upon him. His energy wasn't at its peak, and he was breathing harder than usual. But he'd be damned if that was going to stop him from winning.
He dodged another barrage of ice slivers, landing less gracefully than he would have liked, then had to bring his sword up to block as that damned tail swung at him once again. The blow pushed him back further than he liked. He growled, and then shoved back at the dragon, giving him enough space to leap out of the way.
The dragon echoed his growl. Have you had enough yet, little one?
No, he answered in his mind, keeping a close watch on the dragon for any sudden moves. I'm not any stronger yet.
The ice creature shifted, and he tensed. An odd noise echoed through the icy world, and he sensed that the dragon was amused. There is such a thing as too alert, little one.
I need to be alert to protect them. With that, the captain jumped again, forcing the dragon to create an ice shield to protect himself. Then it shifted and morphed, changing into an ice cage that trapped the small captain on the ground. The dragon leaned close, coming face to face with the captain.
Why do you push yourself so? You are already strong, little one. You don't need to be any stronger to protect your friends.
"Then why couldn't I save her from Aizen?"
The question echoed in the silent space. Neither the boy, nor the dragon had an answer.
Now let me out. I want to continue.
No. Hyorinmaru growled. You have done enough for now. Go back. You don't need strength, you need faith. Faith that you are strong enough. Faith that your friends are strong too. Now GO!
With that, the dragon growled again, loud and strong, and pushed the captain out of his inner world, back into the waking one.
Left alone once again, Hyorinmaru pondered the Captain of the tenth. And wondered, not for the first time, how he was stuck with such a stubborn child.
A/N - Wooo! My first fan-fic. Hope its okay. It's my interpretation of the relationship between toshiro and hyorinmaru. Kind of. I thought that this might be how toshiro went about getting stronger; fighting hyorinmaru. And, maybe, what hyorinmaru occasionally thinks of the stubborn little captain. I know I didn't once refer to toshiro by name either. Its kind of how I write.
Anyway, I hope everyone enjoyed this little snapshot. Please review. I'd love to hear what everything thinks of it!
KM