Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of the characters of this anime, the names of the locations, etc. They belong to Kubo Tite. I also do not own any of the inserted poetry, quotes or song lyrics. They belong to their rightful owners. I do, however, own, the quotes that are left without an author's name and the OC.
Genre: Action/Adventure, Drama, Humor(I am just hoping :D).
N/A: The story may contain graphic violence and other themes that might not be suitable for underage. I will try to keep it moderate, however.
Pairing: Hitsugaya T. X OC, high chances of other pairings, involving main characters.
I apologize for future grammatical mistakes. Although I improved in writing since my last – and only- story posted here, which I cancelled, there still may be present grammatical errors.
Enjoy and please review.
_ Prologue_
A good question is how it started, not how it ended.
"It was of the size of an eagle, but its eyes were as mild and tender as those of the eagle are fierce and threatening. Its beak was the colour of a rose, and seemed to resemble, in some measure, the beautiful mouth of Formosante. Its neck resembled all the colours of the rainbow, but more brilliant and lively. A thousand shades of gold glistened on its plumage. Its feet seemed a mixture of purple and silver; and the tail ofthose beautiful birds which were afterwards fixed to the car of Juno, did not come near the beauty of its tail."Voltaire.
Red and golden leaves
Swirl, caught in a dance as the
Dragon unfurls. An
essence of light and candor,
unbound by earthen
ashes as he rises to
the topmost branches
before he leaves and
all the trees will be but bare. Jess C. Scott.
It was indeed a beautiful autumn day outside. It would only take one pleasant day like this to convince anyone that finds autumn melancholic, to change his opinion entirely. She, who usually curses the idea of another autumn arriving, is amplifying the pain in her rheumatic bones, reminding her sourly that she was not young anymore, would completely change her idea about this ever so described gloomy season. But she didn't regret aging either, having spent a happy life and having witnessed many people wouldn't dream of witnessing.
She stepped out of the house, and was greeted by the chilly breeze, of the incoming night. It was still early; there was still plenty of time left to do until she'll have to gather all the hens and pullets and make them re-enter in the yard, delimitated by the white yard, which every time she gazes at, reminds her that it needs to be repainted. She glanced at the soup boiling on the oven, and the roasting turkey, which she set with a couple of minutes before.
She decided to take a small pause, to rest her aching back, before getting back to work. She never disappointed anyone that ate from her food, and she won't stop now. Although she was warned, she won't need to tire herself out with any kind of preparations because her guests will bring everything, she couldn't resist. Just because she was old, didn't mean she couldn't cook anymore.
She let out a heavy sigh as she sat down in the wooden swing chair, and felt a relief when the support on her legs was lifted. Her legs had been aching a lot lately, and she knew it was because of the autumn. It was still pleasant outside, and for now she was just going to enjoy the last traces of summer left behind, before they'll be whipped away by the new season.
She breathed in the fresh air, an advantage of living in the middle of a forest. She had grown so used to the warm climate of the tropical environment she lived a few years back, that it made it difficult for her to get used to all four seasons again. But it was a peaceful location, for an old woman like her to live. It didn't matter to her. Spending the rest of her days telling tall tales to her grandchildren, watching them grow wide and excited at every word coming out of her mouth, makes her heart swell with happiness and pride that she is such a fortunate woman.
And there are her beloved adopted children. She never asks them to visit her, but they still do, although she always tells them to stop doing it, because they are young and have better things to do. They made a habit of visiting her at least one time on the month, but most of the time they come even two or three times, especially the ones that live in the same world as her. They come their children come, to find peace and to spend quality time, taking a break from their chaotic lives.
The house is traditional, with only two floors, and a smaller number of rooms than the number of guests that come there. She had a small farm, and a plantation of tree fruits spreading on several hectares behind the house. She has a small garden with all kinds of vegetables that offer her natural resources, aside from being a loved hobby. The range on which her property spreads on is quite generous but completely safe. It's not as if she's going to fear a few bears, after living in a mansion populated by a large variety of animals, and after seeing what she saw during her life.
She watched down the hill, at the pond, where pair of two children, no older than ten, were busy competing with each other on who'll catch first a fish to have her cook for them, and later praise themselves to their parents. She chuckled softly at the two. The boy was trying to show the girl that he was much better than her at fishing, simply because he is a boy and she is a girl, and also because he was born first, thus making him the older brother. Not very far from the kids, there was a black dog, standing still and watching them with hawk eyes, making sure none of them would get in trouble. Anyone who'd look at the dog, would consider it strange and fascinating with how much protectiveness the dog is taking care of the two children.
The girl eventually got annoyed at her brother underestimating her because of her gender, and stomped away, heading up back to the hill, where her grandmother was sitting.
"H...Hey! Where are you going? Don't be a coward.'' The boy yelled after her.
The girl stopped before she turned around and stomped a foot in the ground in annoyance. "I am not a coward! You're being stupid. I don't want to catch a fish anymore. This isn't fun. You're not letting me reach for any of it!''
The boy looked guilty, as the girl turned around and resumed running the rest of distance back to the house. Her twin brother didn't seem to be interested in catching fish anymore, and rushed after her a few seconds later, with his pants rolled up at his knees, and shoes taken off, so he won't get them wet. His sister had done the same, but she had taken off only her shoes, seeing as her dress reached at a perfect length, that it didn't get wet while they stood on near the shore of the pond, harassing the koi.
The dog rushed back as well, following closely the boy.
They both got down on her side, of the softly swaying wooden bench-swing. She smiled at them. "Ay, kids. Stop harassing the poor fish or they might try to get revenge on you.''
"You mean they'd bite us?'' the boy asked with childish innocence, feeling confused because from what he remembered fish didn't have any teeth.
His sister rolled her eyes. "Fish don't bite you idiot.''
"How do you even know?''
"Because I do. I'm much smarter than you.'' She said as a matter of fact. Almost instantly the shier sibling turned red, his pink cheeks in contrast with his sandy-coloured hair. His dark blue eyes widened at the statement of his sister, which he clearly thought absurd.
"'Not true!''
"Yes it is!''
"No it isn't!''
"Yes it is!''
"Now, now, you two shouldn't fight. You're brother and sister.''
"So, what? Our godfather and godmother fight all the time. And they're adults.'' She swore these kids hardly acted like their parents do. Although, their mother can be a smartass, a trait she had gained after hanging out to much with her best friend, she is nowhere as defensive as her daughter. And she doubts it she got it from her father either. The boy seems, however to have taken some of the shy traits from both of his parents, and the desire to appear cool, despite his clumsy and gullible self.
True enough, their godfather and godmother did argued a lot, sometimes acting more childish even than their children, who had without doubt had taken after their unique and wild personalities.
"Smartasses.'' The little girl grinned at her grandmother. Her long raven hair was pulled back into a high ponytail, while light brown eyes stared up with knowledge not matter children would hold at such a young age.
"Grandma, would you tell us that story again?'' the boy asked and said woman smiled. She somehow expected it. The dog, named Sam, which proved out to be a difficult name to reach, after the kids kept on fighting on how naming him, settled himself at their feet.
"Again? You heard it hundreds of times by now.''
"Yeah, but we want to hear it again. Something new. You told us about the great battle, and how in the end the bad lost to the good. And that everyone lived happily ever after.'' The girl argued, while her brother eagerly agreed with her. "But you never told us so much about what kind of people were the main characters. Was the villain always so bad? And who really were the good guys?'' the girl finished, giving a few examples of what they'd like to hear about.
"I see. So you want to hear new?''
"Yes, please, please, grandma!'' the boy begged loudly.
"Well, then, let's start with the beginning this time. You like dragons don't you?''
"Dragons are the best.'' The boy affirmed no place for doubts in his statement.
The woman smiled once again. The dog shifted, making a slight nasal sound. "That's good. But this story isn't all about dragons. It involves both normal people and people with great power. The beginning of beginning...it was an awfully long time ago, but I'll start by telling how the life changed for a regular person. A regular person just like you.''
"Why?'' the girl questioned, displeased. "I don't want to hear about a regular person. I want to hear about the main character. And I want to hear how the main character defeated the villain.''
"Tsk, tsk...'' she patted the girl's head. "We'll get there eventually. Have patience. You said you wanted to hear the beginning. And as any beginning it's never as thrilling as the main part.''
"I want to hear it, grandma.'' The boy said, their eyes drawn completely on the woman.
"Well it all started in a town...'' she was interrupted by the boy almost immediately. "Like Karakura town?'' he asked, blue eyes almost glowing with curiosity.
"Yes.'' The woman smiled. "A town just like Karakura.''
The girl elbowed her smaller brother who whined in return. "Stop interrupting her, baka!'' They glared at each other for a second, before they returned to intensely gaze at their grandmother.
"As I was saying, it all started in a town just like Karakura. There was this girl, who was considered very strange by other people. She used to get often in trouble, but not because she wanted to. She believed strongly in her princi-'' she stopped, hesitating, knowing her two listeners might not know what the interrupted word might've meant. "She believed strongly in her... ideas, you could say. Despite herself, she always ended up in some kind of trouble which used to exasperate her aunt and uncle.''
"Why her aunt and uncle? What about her parents?'' the girl interrupted this time, narrowing her eyes at the woman.
"Patience, dear, patience.'' The woman said in response before she continued. "As I was saying, she used to get in trouble. She didn't have any friends, and she couldn't really get along with anyone. She was and quiet and preferred to stay alone rather than...''
Let her come to you...
The end is naught
But the real beginning
resist
and your soul will know
Unrest
let her find you
and you both will soar
beyond the deepest nights
beyond unconquered depths.
She's pain and joy
intertwined
tears and dreams
personified
She's never spoken
and yet you've known her -
who can understand
the meaning of her being?
Whosoever unlocks the
mystery
has sealed the fate of forbidden
certainty
hence
proceed
and fly away!
Your heart's yearnings
to be fulfilled;
Your spirit's cries
to rest in sanctity. Jess C. Scott.