Sorry for the very late update...==
It's been a busy month for me...
Common tests, inhumane assignments and damn prep time ==
Well, this chapter turns out to be way longer than I've expected. ==a
But nvm, just enjoy the story =p
Disclaimer: I do not own bleach in any way; Tite Kubo does. Hail him. xD
'Really, I won't ever understand what human think. Why'd they do such a thing for a complete stranger? Even that it's her last wish, she's still a stranger, you know? I mean, if she's your acquaintance, it's very logical to act that way. But for a complete stranger? Just…how stupid are human beings?' thought the turquoise eyed one as he lumbered aimlessly on a dark, ordinary road. On his left was a colossal, luxurious looking mansion – a mansion that even no ordinary rich man was able to afford – while on his right was a row of bushes.
Distracting his contemplation was a soft purr from one of the bushes. Being his usual self, a cold shinigami, the white haired midget, nonchalantly, walked past the culprit's hideout, ignoring the sound that was calling for him.
Again, the purr could be heard. Although this time, the culprit revealed itself. Standing feebly before the turquoise eyed Hitsugaya was a cat. It was no ordinary cat though; it was the cat. It was the white cat with a black, diamond-shaped birthmark on its forehead that they – he himself and his first and only human friend – were searching for. Unsure of what he saw, the midget approached the poor purring cat before then scrutinizing it.
"Y-you…finally!" he said enthusiastically as he was now assured that it was him, "Where the hell did you go you stupid cat! We've been searching for you – oh well, at least now she could – "
Upon realizing the feeling he had – the feeling that he would never felt if only he did not meet the raven haired one – Hitsugaya suddenly halted. 'W-why is this feeling…' the thoughts entered his mind as his cold turquoise eyes filled with confusion and regrets, 'Why do I feel this way just because I manage to find this damn cat? Why…the first thing that came across my mind was…her? Just…why, dammit, why?'
"Meow~" the purr, once again, distracted the white haired midget.
"You…if only I didn't find – no, if only you didn't find me," mumbled the 10th division's captain as his pathetic looking turquoise eyes laid on the white cat before him. Unexpectedly though, listening to Shiro-chan's soft purrs actually calmed his down. The thoughts gradually vanished from the midget's mind, replaced by an unexplainable peaceful feeling. Being calm enough, Hitsugaya sighed before then continued, "Well, panicking over such a trivial matter is obviously not my style."
There was a brief pause as the two pair of turquoise eyes met. "Now that you've done a good job in finding me, I'll take you home, 'kay?" uttered the shinigami with a contented smile painted on his now emotional face. With a purr of agreement, the white haired midget lifted his new "friend" and held it carefully with his right hand. And thus, with Shiro-chan rested on his right hand, Hitsugaya Toshiro walked nonchalantly towards the park where he left the raven haired one earlier.
"I wonder how her reaction will be. Ah, I should apologize to her…"
###
"Who…are you?" replied the raven haired one, showing her back to the white haired midget
"…what?"
"Who are you?" she repeated, "I don't know such a selfish person that won't even search for a cat like you."
Surprised by his friend's somehow amusing reaction, the turquoise eyed youngster, trying his best not to laugh, replied, "S-so…you are mad, huh?"
"Don't talk to me! I don't want to talk with a stupid midget that even dares to leave a girl alone at this time of day."
"Hmm…I'm getting curious who that idiot, heartless midget is," uttered Hitsugaya nonchalantly.
Could not take it anymore, the raven haired one turned her body and half-yelled, "W-what? He's y – "
"Oi, Shiro, don't be such a lazy cat, will you?" interfered the turquoise eyed one. A huge grin was painted on his face, "Just come here already. You don't want to make this little princess over here angry right?"
"Meow~" replied the white furred cat, Shiro, as he walked nonchalantly, slowly revealing his white fur. Bathed in moonlight, the white cat purred cheerfully, ignoring the speechless princess utterly. A second later, the cat continued his journey towards his savior.
"Good cat," mumbled the white haired midget who was now patting Shiro-chan's head. His unusual childish smile made the raven haired one even more wordless.
It took Hinamori thirty seconds to finally understand the situation. "W-what? Is that…Shiro-chan?" the raven haired one doubtfully said as she rubbed her hazel eyes, "T-that is Shiro-chan right?" She then rushed towards the two friends as she kept talking, "Thanks God! I've been searching for you all this time, you know!"
However, before she could reach her destination, the raven haired girl stopped, flabbergasted by the cat's reaction. The white haired one, on the contrary, once again, tried his best not to laugh. Unfortunately, this time was an epic failure. The hazel eyed one bowed in shame as the burst of laughter mercilessly broke the tranquility. The cat, however, sat innocently on his "hiding place", behind his savior.
"Ahahahahah! Man, I could die from this! Ahaha – ugh, m-my stomach hu – ahahahah!" he mercilessly laughed. "You've been searching for him all this time and even got all excited by just seeing him," he continued, "a-and, in spite of all this things, he hides behind me instead. Sucks to be you huh?"
"M-mou!" pouted the raven haired one. Her face was as red as the cherry blossom. "You're so mean, Hitsugaya-kun! I hate you!"
"Hey, hey, are you sure? I'm the one who find this cat, you know?" teased the white haired midget. Again, a huge grin was painted on his face. It looked like that teasing his human friend had become a new hobby of his.
"Eh? T-that's…" replied Hinamori. There was a brief pause before the raven haired one continued her speech, "S-still, you're so mean! Besides, I'm quite sure that you didn't search for Shiro-chan. You must've heard his purr from the bushes while you're walking right? Then you would ignore it before then coming back and checked the bushes or something like that…"
"Ah…what an amazing story-making ability," Hitsugaya mumbled as he sweat-dropped, "So amazing that it even resembles the real events…"
"…w-what? Did I say something strange?" inquired the raven haired one. Her hazel eyes were now filled with suspicion.
"N-nothing! Ahaha…" the white midget frantically replied. Trying to change the topic, he then uttered, "By the way, shouldn't we taking him back to the old lady?"
"Ah, you're right! Hmm…let's do it tomorrow then!" uttered the female one innocently.
Struck by the female's words, the white haired one protested, "What? Tomorrow? But…why? I mean, we find him already right? It's also not that late yet…"
"Well…t-that's…"
"Hmm?"
"That's…I-I won't accept the fact that Shiro-chan's scared of me! How come he likes you very much while he is scared of a cute, innocent girl like me? I can't lose like this!" she protested as she pointed her index finger at the white cat. As the response, the white cat, petrified by the raven haired one, feebly purred and came back to his hiding place.
"Ah…"
"Ahahahah! O-of course he's scared of you! Just look at the way you act…man, can't get enough of this," Hitsugaya argued as he, again, laughed…inhumanely.
"L-let's get going," mumbled the raven haired one. Her face was now as red as a boiled crab.
"Y-Yes ma'am! Pfft..."
###
Walking side by side was the two new friends; between them was the white cat. The two teenagers were chatting happily until something popped up in the girl's head, "Say, Hitsugaya-kun, where's your house. You don't have to walk me home, you know…"
"H-House? Now that you mention it…" the white haired midget mumbled.
"Hmm? What's wrong?"
"Well, how should I put it…" again, the midget mumbled. There was a brief silence as the turquoise eyed one began contemplating, stopping his steps. The other teenager, as the result, did the same thing and stared at the contemplating one, waiting passionately for the four words that the midget was going to say.
"I don't have one."
"Oh…I see…you don't have one, huh? Must've been tough on you all this time…" uttered the raven haired one.
"Well, not really," he replied indifferently. Once again, silence fell upon them.
This time though, the raven haired one, after nearly a minute, finally broke the reticence with her doubtful-sounded voice, "N-nice joke you've got there…"
"Well thank you. It was not a joke though…" said the midget. His usual emotionless countenance did not show even a slightest emotion.
"Y-you mean…you really don't have one?" asked Hinamori once more, ensuring that she was not misunderstanding her friend's words.
"…can't you understand those four simple words? I – w-whoa!" shouted the startled midget as he saw the hazel eyed one's weird, yet comical sympathetic face the moment he faced her. "H-hey, you okay? Ah, I know…something's wrong with your face muscle, right?" he sniggered.
"M-mou! Stop picking on me Hitsu-kun…"
"Hmm? Hitsu-kun? Who gives you permission to shorten my name like that, Hina-chan?" protested Hitsugaya as he stressed the last word.
"Well, umm…your name is pretty long. See, Hitsugaya's got four syllables…"
"The same goes to yours," interrupted the midget.
Ignoring the turquoise eyed one, Hinamori sank into her own thought. Seeing this, Hitsugaya broke the silence, "O-oi, do you hear me?"
Unfortunately, there was no response from the female one; she was already in her own world by then. With a rather stern look on her face and her left hand hanging on her chin, the raven haired one ignored every single thing that the midget said.
Suddenly though, as if she had just had an enlightenment, the raven haired one yelled enthusiastically, "How about Shiro-chan?"
"Huh? What? What about Shiro?" asked the confused midget.
"Yosh, it's settled then, I'll call you Shiro-chan from now on!" she continued blissfully, like before, ignoring the threatening aura emitted by not-so-tall Shiro-chan.
"…you'll call me what?"
"Shiro-chan," Hinamori briefly replied with a huge contented smile on her innocent face.
"Say it once again and you'll be sorry for the rest of your life, Bed-wetter Momo," threated the white haired midget as he, again, stressed the two last words.
"M-Mou! I-I only wet my bed until –" protested the hazel eyed one.
"Ah, looks like I hit the bull's eye," teased Hitsugaya. A huge, mischievous grin emerged on his face. "Now...what should I do with this little secret of yours, Bed-wetter Momo?" again, he teased.
"A-Ahh…S-Shiro-chan you meanie!" sobbed the reddened hazel eyed one as tears began to flood her beautiful eyes.
"Just kidding, just kidding," the turquoise eyed one laughed. Sighing, he continued, "I never know that teasing you'll be this fun."
"M-mou…" she mumbled as he averted her eyes towards the midget beside her. After staring at him for a second, she continued, "I knew it…"
"Hmm?"
"I knew it, you're not a cold person after all…" she uttered as she smiled cheerfully.
"S-shut up!" the midget replied, turning his head from the raven haired one. Trying to get rid of the red shade on his face, Hitsugaya shut his mouth completely, causing another silence to fall upon them.
"…say, Shiro-chan," Hinamori finally uttered, "do you…want to stay in my house?"
"Huh?"
"I-I mean, you don't have any place to stay right? A-and you aren't a bad person, too. So – ah! D-don't think something naughty!" the raven haired one explained frantically. Her face was completely red.
"…really, what're you thinking. Even if you're the last girl on earth, I'd prefer not to have that kind of relationship at all. Got it, Bed-wetter Momo?" the turquoise eyed one coldly replied.
"M-mou…I-it's settled then! You'll be staying with me and my grandmother from now on! Hehe…" Hinamori uttered cheerfully as she jogged and turned her body, facing Hitsugaya with a gleeful smile on her face.
"O-oi! I haven't said yes, you know. Besides, won't your grandmother get angry? I mean, you don't even discuss this no laughing matter at all…"
"Daijobu, I'm sure that she'll be okay with it," replied the raven haired one without any doubt on her. Again, too many times to be counted, another silence fell upon them. This time, the white haired one was contemplating about the most important decision he was about to make – the turning point of his entire life – as the raven haired one silently fixed her beautiful hazel eyes at him, watching every single thing he did – even the slightest change of expression, waiting enthusiastically for his answer.
"…I-I have no other choice the," he finally decided, "Please take a good care of me."
"Sure."
###
"Shiro-chaan!" called the usual cheerful voice of the raven haired one's, disrupting the absolute peace of the star-roofed night as well as the white haired one's contemplation. As the result of either the volume or the nickname itself which successfully enraged the calm, indifferent white haired one, Hitsugaya Toshiro turned towards the girl furiously, ready to release his uncontainable anger.
"You – "
"Here, have some," uttered the raven haired one with an innocent yet peaceful smile on her face as she shoved a can of hot milk tea on the white midget's chest, "This will warm your body."
In an instant, the anger that he was feeling just a while ago was replaced by an unexplainable joy. Being dumbfounded, all that the white haired midget did was just shyly accepted the warm can.
"Ah, it's already this late..." uttered the raven haired one. She then continued as she giggled, "Don't stay up all night 'kay?"
"Uhm," briefly replied the white haired one indifferently without even looked at Hinamori. With a can of warm milk tea on his right hand rested on his chest, he closed his eyes and lied on the red colored roof as the raven haired one climbed down, leaving him alone under the starry black canvas.
"It seems that you're having a good time, Shiro-chan," called the owner of the soft yet dignified voice. Standing nobly behind Hitsugaya was the white haired middle-aged shinigami, the voice owner, Ukitake Jyuushiro.
Startled, the white haired teenager opened his closed turquoise eyes and frantically sprang off the roof. "Y-you," grumbled the teenager as he finally recognized the owner of the voice, "Don't scare me like that, will you?"
"Sorry, sorry. I never think that you'll be startled just by that," apologized the white haired man.
After several seconds of absolute silence, the turquoise eyed one finally opened his mouth, "So, what brings you here, Jyuu-san Bantai Taichou-san?"
"Oh, that's right," mumbled the middle-aged man as he nudged his clenched right hand on his left one before than taking something out of his white haori. He then read the piece of paper he held on his right hand, "We want to inform you, Hitsugaya Toshiro, the captain of the 10th division, regarding the next month's target…"
"Ah, I see...today is the last day of this month, isn't it?" Hitsugaya mumbled.
"Looks like there's only one target for the following month…" uttered the white haired man.
"Just continue, will you?" retorted the midget coldly.
"Roger," sighed the middle-aged man before then continued, "First target, the time of death is tomorrow at twelve. The target's name is…Hinamori Momo. Please be punctual and do the soul burial as soon as possible. That's all."
The midget was petrified upon hearing the name; he did not move nor say a word and yet, his heart cried, hoping that it was a nightmare and that he would wake up soon.
"Hmm? Something wrong, Hitsugaya-taichou?" inquired the white haired man. However, the midget kept silent, still hoping that all he heard just now was not true. Several seconds passed before the green eyed one finally uttered as he unsheathed his katana, "Well, I'll be taking my leave then."
With one rotational movement of the katana, a traditional slide door appeared out of nowhere. The door then slowly opened, revealing a black winged butterfly. Fluttering its pair of black wings, the butterfly headed gracefully towards the white haired man. He then, guided by the butterfly, walked into the slide door as he said, "Well then, see you later, Shiro-chan."
In an instant, both the slide door and the man disappeared, leaving the petrified white haired teenager alone. He then, finally, with his turquoise eyes widened in disbelief, mumbled, "Hinamori…Momo?"
Translation
Daijobu - It's okay
Jyuu-san Bantai Taichou - The captain of the thirteenth squad
My deepest apology for the late update (again) xD
Hope you enjoy the chapter...
The prologue is more or less finished. So, starting the next chapter, the fun part begins. ;)
Stay tuned and see you later =p
