Chapter one – The prisoner
She weeps.
Though it has been ten years now,
she weeps.
But she is not weeping because her heart is stabbed,
No, her heart was stabbed with the dagger of sorrow ten years ago,
The wounds have closed if not lost half of their sting.
She weeps of joy, even though the blinding light burns her eyes,
She is happy,
So happy,
To let the light burn,
To see the light again.
The red choker is on her neck,
And the cuffs are pulled tightly by the gruff guards beside her.
But she feels more freedom she had ever had before.
But the wounds of her heart start to open again with this freedom,
Though it feels so good to feel the air again,
Her being free,
Has a great price,
A price that is rather priceless.
She knows she shouldn't be free,
But,
She will try to prove herself wrong.
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Matsumoto walks in, rather quietly today.
The ice captain raises an eyebrow, spying on her curiously from above the pillars of paperwork on the desk, trying not to do anything that would disturb this rare moment.
Matsumoto feels hesitant.
'What is it Matsumoto? If you have something to say, spit it out.' He says with his annoyed tone.
Uh, oh, there I go pushing my luck again.
He braces himself for the outburst.
But Matsumoto is quiet.
Furrowing her brow and biting her lip, she just continued to sit, looking as if she had this life and death decision to make.
Something was up.
'What is it?' Hitsugaya asks genuinely now.
She finally speaks.
'Have you heard already?'
'About what?'
She turns to face her taicho, with a somber face.
'Mori, Azami has been released.'
Scrrrrriiiich!
The taicho jumps up out of his chair, shocked.
'M-mori?' He stutters.
'M-Mori, A-Az-zami?'
'Yes.' Matsumoto sighed.
'They were sending hell butterflies to notify everyone, but I requested to tell you, personally.'
Matsumoto eyed her taicho's reaction.
He was wide eyed, brows scrunched up together, the sweat glistening on the side of his face.
Matsumoto turned away and looked down solemnly.
This was his reaction, too, the day it all happened.
Mori. Mori Azami.
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There was a ceremony for Azami's release.
All the taichos and their squads lined up on the sides of the lane, like the viewers of a parade.
But they also acted as walls.
At the end was Yama-gi, waiting to perform the release.
The mood was somber even though the release was of a friend.
You'd think the freeing of your friend would have been celebratory.
The gong sounded.
BWANNNG!
BWANNNG!
And the drums conducted the beat.
Bomph!
Bomph!
ba-bomph!
The procession started.
Out of respect and formality, everyone locked their eyes on the ground.
You can only see the smooth, pale ground, but you could feel her as she came into range.
Her strange but incredible reiatsu burst into the air though it seemed fogged from the years in prison.
Mori Azami.
She marched solemnly to the beat of the drum, glowing in the morning sun with her white prisoner's kimono. She was staring straight ahead, the shadow over her grey-ocean eyes making her almost look dead.
Her hair was shiny and sleek, and the color of the night blue sky, with silvery shimmers here and there. It was cut a little bit above shoulder length and curled outward at the ends a little. Only one hip-long ribbon-like ponytail of hair was hanging on the back, left uncut. Her nose-length bangs were cut at an angle and parted to one side.
She continued to walk.
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Toshiro felt his skin crawl at the feel of this familiar reiatsu.
It was like speaking a language you haven't spoken in awhile; the words feel familiar but strange on your tongue.
He felt agitated and nervous,
confused whether he should be happy or fearful.
Mori Azami.
Azami.
Aza-chan.
A voice from his memories resounded at the name.
He felt his heart pang as the memories began to leak through, starting to erode holes in his heart.
Aza-chan.
He snuck a glance at Momo.
She had almost a crazed look, her feelings mixed up like his is, like maybe even how everyone else's is.
Fearful or joyful.
Grieved or revitalized.
Burdened or unburdened.
Maybe Momo had the worst of it.
Mo-chan
Aza-chan
Shiro-kun
He remembers how it once went.
Back in the day.
The reiatsu grew stronger and stronger as she became closer and closer to him.
The reiastu was so painfully familiar,
So painfully pleasant,
So painfully brought back.
It dug up all the memories and feelings he had excruciatingly locked out during the past years.
But now it melted away all the defenses he put up to keep it locked, and the painful and longing memories came back.
His heart jerked at the rush, wanting to break free and go over to her,
Aza-chan,
he missed her so much.
He thought he got over that but no,
The pain only seems stronger now.
He misses being
Shiro-kun
Mo-chan,
And Aza-chan,
So
Very
Much.
Hwwwwh!
The power of the reiatsu now took his breath away.
The shock made him jerk up, his eyes fixed on her in a reflex.
It was like being caught in a time warp.
Her dull grey eyes starting sparkling the silver ocean-grey he remembered.
She looks hit with full blast of this little reunion,
at first shocked,
then joyful,
then horrified.
She looked away ashamedly, and continued on her walk to her freedom.
Hitsugaya wonders how Momo will deal, if he himself couldn't control the hit.
He looks warily after her.
Momo looks like she's about to go insane,
More,
And
More,
And
More
Every inch Azami gets closer until…..
She passes by…
Momo looks like she can't hold it any longer….
Hang on Momo, hang on, Toshiro prays.
But she finally can't contain it, she just can't.
'Aiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiyhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!' She screams.
She closes her eyes, it was too much,
too much to hold,
too much emotions to hold.
She stumbles,
Hyperventilating,
'Azami!'
Momo cries out.
'Aza-aza….'
She sputters like a mad person.
'Aza-chan –' she murmurs quietly as her squad grabs hold of her and knocks her out.
Toshiro winces.
Azami's eyes darken, as she just continues to walk by without a reaction.
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'You, stand before me,' Yama-gi begins the release, 'Mori Azami.'
'Hai.' Azami replied, her voice soft and cold from ten speechless years.
'You have justified your crime of risking the peace and the safety of the Seireitei, which had most likely given you a sentence to death,'
Yama-gi continued,
A cloud hung over the squads, as they remembered what happened all those years ago.
Azami was still.
'But many have pleaded your case and you were sentenced to 200 years in prison on the suggestion of yourself. We hoped that the lack of stimulation will null out your dangerous capabilities. We hope we are correct, for now, after only ten years, we are giving you a chance,
We are releasing you.'
Pfffffffhh!
Air whooshed out of the red restraining collar, as it released its hold. The cuffs unlocked and fell with a thonk.
She slowly lifted her hands and spread them apart.
She rubbed her neck, for once in ten years being able to feel the skin there.
'We believe power can be limited and unlimited depending on a person's behalf. '
Yama-gi speaks again.
'We hope you work on to limit yours and put it under control.
If you fail to, then I'm afraid you will have runned out of chances.'
'What you did back ten years ago was not purposeful.'
'Hai it was not!' Azami finally speaks out.
...
But she starts to falter, 'W-why though?'
'Why risk Seireitei's safety for me? WHY?' Azumi cries.
Yama-gi is still, 'We have given you a second chance; you should do the same for yourself.'
Azami looks down, pacified.
'I will try my best.'
'This ceremony is concluded.'
Yama-gi closes off.