Blurry

/

You could be my someone

You could be my scene

You know that I'll protect you

From all of the obscene

/

She shouldn't have even been there. That was the truth. She wasn't even the closest, but when she sensed that an Arrancar had made an appearance, she just had to go. She had to help. But her desire to help only ended up hindering him.

/

Whenever she was around, he couldn't fully concentrate. There would always be some part of his mind—sometimes small, and sometimes he was so consumed that he could barely focus—that kept wandering back to her. It was even worse when they were battling together. If she wasn't safe in his peripherals, he could never truly pay attention. At any and every opportunity, he would swing his head around, and his heart would pound just a little bit faster until he could see her.

This time, it was even worse.

This was a friggin' Arrancar. Granted, it wasn't an Espada, but it was still challenge enough for lieutenants, and something that an unseated officer definitely shouldn't be tangling with. And boy, was this one a doozy. Not only was it a big sucker that kept waving its huge, meaty arms around, but it also kept lashing out at them with barbed whips. No one had been hit yet, but if they were, it was sure gonna hurt like hell.

He glanced over his shoulder, looking in the direction she had been the last time she stepped out of his gaze.

"Renji!"

His head shot up at the warning shout. Coming at him was one of the Arrancar's massive fists. He neatly dodged it, and winced as the building beside him lost its top half. That definitely would have stung.

"Thanks for the head's up, Rangiku!" he called back.

The buxom lieutenant smiled, and then proceeded to lash out with her Haineko. Elsewhere, he could hear Captain Hitsugaya grunting with exertion. The Arrancar roared and turned away from Renji to face its attacker. He used the momentary lull in his fighting to check for her again.

She was on the outskirts of the battle, a little higher up in the air than the rest of them, probably taking a breather. Good. She was out of danger for the moment. Just as he turned back to the Arrancar, he heard Rangiku cry out in pain. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the lieutenant get clipped by one of the enemy's swinging fists. She went flying backwards, but skidded to a stop mid-air. From the looks of things, she wasn't injured.

However, the Arrancar's attention was no longer focused on the lieutenant. Its rage-filled gaze was now resting on the other female Shinigami – who wasn't paying attention. She was looking anxiously at Rangiku, making sure she wasn't hurt; she didn't see the barbed whips headed her way.

"Rukia!"

/

She looked up at her name, and saw the attacked coming at her. Immediately, her stomach dropped. There was no way she would be able to dodge this. Her eyes widened as the straps came at her …

And suddenly, there was someone in front of her. Renji. He was facing her, his back to the enemy. What was he—?

They locked eyes just as the barbs hooked into his flesh. She saw the agony creep onto his face, and something wet splattered across her cheek. Ice poured into her veins. It felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her. Everything seemed to go quiet, and she could hear all to well the sound of his skin tearing as the hooks raked through his back.

Before anyone else could react, one of the Arrancar's fists came crashing down on Renji, sending him hurtling into the ground. A small, choked gasp slipped out of her. She didn't know what to do.

"Rukia." It was Captain Hitsugaya. "Get Renji to safety. We can handle this on our own."

She nodded dumbly, and hurried to the ground. She vaguely heard Rangiku on her soul phone, calling for assistance from Squad Four. As soon as her waraji touched the grass, dread bubbled up inside her. She could see Renji's limp form, lying face down, a few feet away, and though she desperately wanted to run to his side, she was terrified of what would greet her. That hit … was it hard enough to …?

No, she could see him breathing now. She rushed over to him and kneeled beside him. As she reached out to shake him, her breath caught in her throat. His back was ripped to shreds and covered in blood. He stirred as he sensed her presence, but she couldn't bring herself to speak. She just couldn't take her eyes off his back.

Come on, snap out of it. You need to get him out of here.

"Renji?" she ventured cautiously.

He grunted in reply.

"We need to get some place safe. I need to get you up."

"Whatever you need." His voice was weak, but he was trying to hide it. Before she could reach down to help him, he was already struggling to his feet. She was impressed: he made it halfway to his feet before he gave in to the pain, and collapsed to his knees.

Rukia grabbed his left arm and draped it over her shoulders. "Don't be an idiot. Let me help."

He chuckled. "Aren't I a little tall for you?"

Trying to lighten the mood with humour. How typical. She laughed anyway, because it was true. She was standing up, and he was kneeling, but he was just barely shorter than her.

"I can manage."

With her help, he managed to get to his feet. However, he was slumping, and they couldn't go more than a few steps before he stumbled. Rukia tried wrapping her right arm around him, in an attempt to offer more support. As she touched his injured back, he tensed, and made a small, pained noise.

"I'm sorry," she apologized meekly, feeling completely helpless. She wanted to help him, but she just ended up hurting him instead.

"'S alright," he murmured. "Do what you have to do."

And so they staggered forward under the moonlight. It began to rain.