A/N: Hello, it's Berry~ It's a new very sad HitsuRuki. If it is horrible, it's because it's my first attempt at this genre of HitsuRuki…. .

Rated: T....T+? I mean, there's character death and a dabble of a lime. Nothing much. And….yes death is here but it works out in the end… promise….

Disclaimer: I no own Bleach. I wish…

Kakera No Ai

{Shards of Love}

He was breaking his rules again.

He knew it. But he couldn't resist.

A corner of his mind scolded him for doing so. But as of now, it didn't matter as he pulled her into another passionate kiss. His callous but gentle hand pressed into her soft pale skin, as if he was trying to leave his marks on her. If it hurt, she didn't seem to care, for she pressed back with equal passion. Even though their moves were lustful, neither one made a loud sound. Too dangerous, too dangerous if they were found out… The only sounds were the brushing of lips and skin on skin; an occasional muted sigh or gasp. Gradually their movements slowed; their breathing rough and exhausted. The white-haired man pulled his lover close to his chest and caressed her hair, whispering, "I love you."

And the young woman wept.

Tenderly he wiped the tears off her beautiful face, murmuring comfortingly, "Don't cry, Love," while holding her tight. Her sobs subsided after some time, and the raven haired beauty raised her head to ask him the question that was evident on both of their minds. "Will we ever be together, Toushiro?"

"We will be. I promise. One day we will be together, for the rest of our lives." He vowed, the clench of his jaw showing his agitation that matched his lover's. The young woman nodded, her vividly violet eyes shining brightly with tears and love.

"I believe you," she said in a soft tone barely audible before laying her head on his muscular chest. Hitsugaya comfortably draped his arm over her form protectively, even possessively.

They met like forbidden lovers because they were. He was engaged to a woman totally infatuated with him, although he wanted nothing to do with her. She was the heiress to an equally powerful household as his own; Hinamori Momo. He did not have a smidge of affection for the girl, but it was an arranged marriage and there was nothing in his power he could do to stop it. But, oh, the number of times he'd tried. Time and time again, however, it was denied and denied.

Toushiro just couldn't marry this Hinamori Momo. The reason was simple; he already had a woman he loved. Kuchiki Rukia. Her name was like a song, a strain of the most heavenly music, and the name of the one person in the world he loved. She was an orphaned dancer in Rukongai; he'd met her for the first time on the streets. She was performing there on the littered street, but it couldn't have been any more beautiful on the most decorated stage, for it wasn't the clothes or music or background that made it beautiful, it was her. Her movements, her facial expression. Her eyes, oh god, he could get lost in them for all he cared. It didn't matter as long as he could look upon his fallen angel.

However, when his parents noticed him lingering around the street she performed on, they had been outraged to hear that their prodigious son of the Hitsugaya family was "spending his time gawking at lowlife whores." He had been forbidden to go there. Yet he hadn't listened, and now he was paying the price. He'd fallen in love with her, and she him; but they couldn't be together.

Toushiro had proposed to her by giving her an exquisite silver band with etchings of his family crest, the Blue Dragon, and she had accepted with tears of happiness. But when he informed his father that he was getting married to "commoner filth," as his father had put it, he had barely been restrained from sending out his guards to hunt Rukia down and kill her.

He had shed tears openly that night, begging his father for the life of his love. He knew that it was dangerous for them to meet, and had restrained himself for a long time. But then she found him, and his fears were erased with the tears she cried in rain; for they couldn't live without each other. The cruelty of fate was one to be reckoned. So, they met like this as often as they could, in a shabby inn in Rukongai. But it didn't matter to either one of them; they were together and that was all that mattered.

Hinamori Momo was an attractive woman, and very wealthy as well; however Hitsugaya despised her personality. She was indescribably haughty, haughty as an empress of the world, demanding, jealous, greedy, and undeniably childish. Only God knew how much she spent on clothes and other accessories. She wore a kimono once and never wore it again; and the same went for shoes and purses. But then did she donate those to charity? No, she kept them stored up with the dust in the vast basement areas of the Hinamori Manors. Also, she was just like a weasel, sniffing out gossip and suspicious on-goings.

Momo already knew that Hitsugaya had been known to love a dancer from the streets. And the more times he refused to go shopping with her because he was "busy," the more and more suspicious she became about the so-called "relationship of the past," as her father had told her. And she was going to find out for sure, because she had her loyal servants as spies everywhere in Rukongai. And as she'd suspected, he was sighted in Rukongai going into an Inn at night. In fact, she stood in front of the Inn right at that moment, in the breaking of the dawn, her brown eyes narrowed and her numerous bodyguards flanking her. She had a thickly embroidered kimono with pink, round peaches as the pattern on, for her name meant 'Peach." The dress was her "favorite for the day," and the dress worth about ten years of salary for a farmer would be shoved into a musty corner of the basement cellars.

Meanwhile, Hitsugaya rose, and kissing Rukia goodbye, pulled his clothes on and stepped out of the Inn, only to run into his dreaded wife-to-be. And he had a feeling that this meeting wasn't quite accidental. "Ahh, Toushi-chan!!!" Momo screeched out in an attempt to sound cute, and Hitsugaya inwardly cringed. She failed miserably, but she continued in the squeaking voice, "Why, what a coincidence? What brings you to an Inn in Rukongai? Been staying the night, darling?" although her tone sounded innocent, there was a hard underlying ring to her words. "You wouldn't have been meeting with that dirty little slut, have you?" she said in a tone nothing other than malicious. Utterly malicious. She suddenly heard and felt an absolutely cold voice and aura.

Hitsugaya had snapped, too angry and defensive of his Rukia to realize her intent. "Rukia…is not a slut, Hinamori." He gritted out, his eyes burning with an intense blue flame.

And Momo grinned so large that it practically crossed her face; her eyes hysterical. "I knew it!!! You were sneaking around with that bitch, weren't you?! I'll kill her!!!" she screamed, her face going red with fury, her grin going away to be replaced with a shouting pair of lips. "What do you see in that whore, Toushi-chan?!!" she shouted. "She's nothing! She isn't a human! She's an animal who just opened her legs for you!" She stamped her foot childishly before screaming and lunging at him, scratching at his face.

He guarded himself with his arms, but he hissed back at her, "She's a hundred thousand times better than you will ever be, Hinamori! You are nothing like her! Rukia may not be rich, but she is a hundred fucking billion times a better person than you! Don't you dare look down on her! She is the one I love and you will NEVER be able to win me over, not more a damn second!" He glared at her with eyes that could freeze over hell itself, his azure eyes blazing fury.

Suddenly, a pure voice that was laced thickly with distress ripped through the shouting and screaming. "Toushiro!!" Instantly, he froze and, his blood running cold, turned around to see Rukia, his one love, being dragged out of the Inn by Momo's guards, struggling like a wildcat.

"Rukia!!" he said in shock, and tried to rush over to her, only to be surrounded by her other guards. "Let me through!" he raged, trying to desperately push his was out. He thrust out his hand as far as it could, trying to meet Rukia's small hand stretched towards him. The look on her face made his heart ache as they pulled them further apart, his shouts and her screams unheard to the one person comfortably seated to watch the tragedy. Hinamori Momo.

When they were held down firmly and secured by the guards, Momo walked slowly towards Rukia, who was glaring defiantly at her, despite the trickle of blood running down the side of her head, acquired when she'd bit a man who immediately put the "scum into her place." When she reached her, Momo merely smiled gloatingly at the petite woman in front of her.

"Well, well, now it gets interesting," she smirked with a hysterical look on her face. "Neh, Toushi-chan?" she mocked, turning slightly to face him.

"Don't you touch her!!!" he raged, putting up another struggle to get free, only to be subdued.

"Well, bitch, beg for your life," Hinamori smiled maliciously, looking at Rukia. "Maybe I'll feel merciful today."

Rukia glared at her like Momo was nothing but a squashed bug. "Not to the likes of you," she said in a cold disdainful voice that was somewhat reminiscent of Hitsugaya's cold tone. "I'll never bow low to a messed up monster like you."

A flash of anger flitted across Hinamori's eyes, and she laughed before going back to her wobbly smirk. "A tough little whore. But no matter." She spoke to Toushiro without turning. "You said I could never replace her? Well, maybe I'll fix that," she hissed. She looked at the most heavily-clad guard, the leader of her body guards. "Kill her," she said simply, smiling.

"NO!" Hitsugaya screamed, his mind panicking. "Don't hurt her!"

"Yes, Hinamori-hime-sama!" said the guard, bowing his head. He drew a softly gleaming dagger and it shone in the bleary light of dawn.

"See, now, Toushi-chan? This is all your fault," Momo gloated, smirking. "Now your precious little dancer is going to die. How do you feel?"

Toushiro was frozen with fear; fear not for his life but for the only one that mattered to him. His butterfly. His teal eyes were as wide as they could be, and he felt his world start to crumble. "No, Hinamori! Don't! Please!" he shouted hoarsely.

"Too late…" Hinamori grinned as the man came closer to the violet eyed girl who had been thrashing but now was as collected as a queen, and it was evident in her eyes; she was at peace. They were filled with loving thoughts and memories of their time together, and a gentle smile graced her lips as she whispered to the wind the words Hitsugaya didn't even have to strain to hear them; he already knew the words by the shape and look of bliss on her porcelain-fair face.

"I love you."

Toushiro began to fight violently, trying anything that might get him away from the guards and to save Rukia. "Rukia!" he called out desperately, trying to keep his vision on her all the while he tried to get free. He finally took down the last guard just as he saw the man drive his dagger into her heart. "STOP! NO!" he screamed, dashing towards the petite woman who had fallen to her knees, her breathing ragged and pained. "Rukia! Rukia!!" he shouted, tears pouring down his cheeks as she looked up at him with dulling violet eyes that once looked up at him, shining with love and life. And now…her eyes slowly grew darker, as he screamed her name senselessly. "Don't die! You'll be okay, please, please, don't go to sleep!" he begged, holding her tight against him, her blood staining his white haori. "Please!"

"T-Tou….Toushiro…" she gasped.

"I'm right here! You'll be fine, just please, don't die Rukia!"

She just smiled up at him.

"I'll…be waiting for the day we can be together," she whispered, her voice only a whisper. "Until then…goodbye…I love you…always."

"I love you too, and…" his face pained, he leaned over and kissed her cooling lips. "I always will." he choked on his tears. And he watched as her life quietly slipped away.

"Rukia? R-Rukia? Wake up…" No response, no pulse. "No...No…NO!" his voice pierced the sky like a wounded animal as he roared his rage and grief to the heavens. As if the Gods had heard him, a sudden thunderstorm rolled across the skies and lightning crashed down as a downpour started. The rain drenched the Hitsugaya and the lifeless body of Rukia.

Hinamori merely walked past him with an "I'll be waiting, Toushi-chan." He glared hatefully at her as she walked away, and when she was out of sight, he clenched the dagger that he had pulled out of Rukia's heart.

"We will be together, Rukia," he said in a firm whisper. "I love you," he said once more before he stabbed himself in the chest. He coughed up blood, the pain rushing through his head, but his face had the tenderest expression as he looked upon his butterfly. As his soul slipped into the next world, his body fell beside her corpse, his arm and body cradling her.

&&&&&&&&&&

"Taichou, listen, listen! I heard there is going to be a new recruit to the Gotei 13!~~~"

An annoyed white haired man glared at his perky vice. "Matsumoto, I'm working."

"Buut, Taichooouuuu~~" the busty strawberry blonde pulled a funny face, only resulting in a vein sticking out of the man. "I heard she'd special…pretty doll face, graceful, and and! She has an ice-snow type zanpukto~! Just like you, Taichou~"

This piqued his interest a bit, but he didn't show it.

"I bet Taichou wants to know her name!~" Matsumoto grinned.

"No I-" Toushiro started.

"Well I'm telling you anyways! Taichou is bad at lying~" said the woman cheerfully. Hitsugaya ground his teeth together. "Well, her name is Kuchiki Rukia! But I heard she's from Rukongai~" she chirped.

"Rukia…? Rukon—" he frowned. Something was bothering him. It—the names---sounded familiar. Very familiar. Where had he heard it?

"Agh, I have a headache now!" he growled. "I'm going for a walk."

"But, Taichou, what about the work-" Hitsugaya shunpo'ed out of the office.

He went to his usual secluded training spot, in the middle of the forest. Upon approaching it, however, he felt a strange yet oddly familiar reiatsu. He instantly hid behind a tree to watch.

"Some no Mai, Tsukishiro!" His eyes widened at what he saw. A small, black haired girl with a pure white katana. The attack sent a pillar of glittering ice straight up to the sky. Awed, he continued to watch as she performed more of her moves, or 'dances' as she called them. And, she seemed to move with her zanpukto, as if in a dance; her movements graceful, her gestures beautiful.

Something was too familiar about this girl.

He crept up silently on her, but when he was in close range, she whirled upon him and their eyes met.

Teal on violet.

Suddenly, words drifted into his mind. Rukia, my butterfly. My love. His eyes widened at the thought. What was that?!

In the case of the raven-haired shinigami, her whispered the first thing that entered her mind. "Toushiro…might we be together at last in this world..." A moment after, she realized what she said, and blushing profusely, began apologizing continuously.

But at her words, something stirred in Toshiro's soul. Together. One day…..promise…love you always…

He blinked at the bowing girl, and said in a careless tone, "Get up, you don't have to say sorry."

Surprised violet eyes widened and met his azure gaze for a moment that seemed like eternity. He studied her carefully. "You know…you are too familiar." And before she could protest, he pulled her to his chest in a quick but achingly familiar embrace. "And this feels just right," he breathed, brushing his lips on her forehead. Rukia stammered and blushed, but being crushed to him felt like second nature, the curves of her body too familiar to Hitsugaya.

"Might we be together in this world at last," he repeated before pulling her into a kiss that seemed to make the past memories of another world flash by.

A/N: Ehhh, crappy ending. Sorry! Maybe I'm too sleep deprived.

And technically, it's a one-shot. Uh, right? ._.

Well….was it good? Bad? Let me know by clicking the review button! No flamers, please, but constructive criticisms are more than loved~

Until next time~!

Love, Berry~