Chapter 4 is now up! Sorry for the long time people! (: My comp was having... er... issues you could say... ^_^" It really pissed me off, truth be told.
Anyways, here's ch. 4. Hope you like it! :)
Disclaimer: I don't own.
Aizen entered the tea room, his face a blank slate. At the sudden noise, both Kisuke and Minako had jumped in surprise, accidently dropping their cups. As the sake pooled around their feet, Minako quickly rose to her feet, unable to look at her father's face. Kisuke slowly rose to his feet, sneaking a glance at Minako, who seemed unable to raise her eyes from the floor.
"I was… about to leave," Kisuke announced aloud, unsure of exactly who he was talking to, whether it be Aizen or Minako.
"That is for the best, I believe, Urahara-sanseke," Aizen answered coolly.
"I… will clean this up," Minako stuttered out, and she quickly walked out of the room, leaving Kisuke and Aizen alone.
"Let me show you out," Aizen said quietly to Kisuke.
"I can see myself out, Aizen-taicho," Kisuke answered dutifully. "I believe I know the way around your house."
"… Of course, forgive me."
Minako sighed sadly as she passed by her father's study room, seeing the light still on. She stood outside, awkwardly wandering if she could persuade him to go to bed. The instant the thought entered it, she snuffed it, sure that he was angry with her for allowing Kisuke into the house. She wondered if Aizen had seen them so close… She sighed again and readied to walk away, but his voice stopped her in her tracks.
"Minako-chan? If you could, please come in."
She wanted to tell him that she couldn't, that she was busy… but she couldn't say no to that voice. Not to that warm, kind, father-like voice… Not only had she betrayed his trust, she had betrayed him.
"Yes, otou-san?" she asked quietly, sliding the shoji door open, tense. "Is there something you need? Tea? Warm milk?"
"No, it's fine," he reassured her, smiling. "I'm going to bed soon anyways. I just wanted to let you know something."
She cowered inwardly. This was where he was going to yell at her for allowing Kisuke to be in the house.
"I'm going out on patrol with the group that's going out early in the morning tomorrow, so I won't be here for breakfast," Aizen smiled kindly. "So don't wake up so early to make me breakfast, okay?"
This shocked her.
"H-Hai!" she stuttered.
"Now go to bed," he said warmly. "I don't like it when I see bags under your eyes."
"Of course, otou-san," she murmured. Though I know you won't fall asleep till the first rays of light hit your window… but by then, you'll have to leave.
Minako woke up to the sudden feeling of loss. Her eyes slowly opened to reveal sad green orbs. She instinctively searched the house for Aizen's reiatsu, but found no presence of him. That's when she remembered that he would be out for some time patrolling… Perhaps this is where she would have to separate from him. She couldn't live in his house if he hated someone close to her, like Kisuke. Hate was a strong word, but she knew that Aizen disliked Kisuke, though he would never directly say it, nor would he ever explain his dislike. Kisuke… she loved him. That was as far as it went. How she loved him, she wasn't so sure herself. She loved him as a friend, for sure, but farther? She wasn't sure… Yoruichi had once said something about love and Kisuke, but she had been to busy with training to even understand. Before talking to Yamamoto, perhaps she'd go visit the 2nd Division HQ…
Minako walked slowly with no care in the world, conflicting emotions in her head, and dull throb of pain in her chest. She had never truly experienced the pain in her chest, so she couldn't identify what was causing it, though she was sure that it wasn't any health related issue. The confusion in her head though was too much for her, rattling around her head. It was hard for her to think, but outwardly, she showed no other emotion aside from her usual smile, though if you looked closely, you would be able to see a slight tinge of sadness, though Minako would refuse to admit she was slightly sad.
She had never thought to look too closely to her feeling and emotions to those around her, especially if it was feeling of love and attachment. It wasn't that she saw herself above others, it was that she didn't want to get hurt, and she didn't want others to get hurt. But Kisuke… he was another story. She would admit that they had always done everything together since she first got to the Gotei 13, and that he saved her the first day she had entered Soul Society, but even so, the confusion in her head didn't allow her to discern her feelings for him: did she love him as a man or did she love him as just a friend? She could not allow herself to think about how Kisuke felt about her, not yet, because there was no use and no possible way for her to do so if she didn't clear her mind.
She stopped walking as she appeared in front of the large doors that were open, revealing a stretching Yoruichi, her amber eyes glowing in the morning sunlight flooding in.
"Yoruichi…?" Minako called out uncertainly, leaning inside, but making sure not to take a step in.
Yoruichi's eyes flickered to the doorway, and grinned. "Minako-chan! Is that you over there? What are you doing? Get on over here!"
Minako laughed slightly before relaxing completely, and entered casually, looking around the room, thankful it was empty. "You caught me," she shrugged, smiling. "What will the Head of the Punishment Force do to me now?"
They both laughed.
"I'll make you sit down with me so we can chat," Yoruichi laughed, patting the empty chair beside her.
"Oh dear, that's so scary!" Minako giggled, plopping down in the chair without ceremony.
There was a slight pause.
"What's wrong, Minako-chan?" Yoruichi asked quietly, gazing out into the morning sky. She glanced to the young girl beside her, looking around 10, but seeming to have the world's pain in her eyes.
"… How do you know if you love someone?"
Yoruichi took a moment to mull over the question, then turned to look fully at the young nobleman's daughter, appreciating her beauty. Yoruichi may have been beautiful, but she would always admit and perhaps flaunt Minako's own great beauty. In her eyes, Minako was a goddess, her posture always so perfect, not too tall, but not too short, her body perfectly petite, not too big or too thin. She had curves in all the right places, but even so, her smile, her eyes, and her personality were the most beautiful. Her light pink lips would always be curved into a small, knowing smile, as if there was nothing that could ruin her day. Her emerald eyes would always be glowing with happiness. She never asked for more than she was offered, and to top that, she never asked for anything period. She was a selfless person and very generous when giving. She was kind and warm. She was the sun, her beams of light radiating off of her, hitting those around her, warming them. She was intelligent and sensitive to those around her.
Even now, as the rays of sunlight hit her face, it made her beautiful pale skin glow, and Yoruichi had to keep reminding herself that the innocent girl before her was not an angel or a goddess, but a soul that had feelings and could experience pain and confusion. The smile was gone, replaced by insecurity, the shining orbs of emerald dull, replaced by uncertainty.
"When you look into their eyes…" Yoruichi started quietly.
Minako turned to look attentively at the flash master.
"You're heart doesn't beat fast, but it beats calmly, because you feel safe with that person. You trust them not to break your heart. You won't be over exaggerating or be over the top when you're around them, but you'll be more at peace."
Yoruichi smiled warmly at the girl beside her, who's eye's widened slightly.
"Trust me, you'll know when you're in love with someone. And I'll be there to kick their ass if they hurt you."
"I… see," Minako nodded, as she fumbled for her words. "I see! Yoruichi, thank you! I see what you mean!"
Yoruichi chuckled to herself as she watched the young girl get up from her seat and run out of the door, nearly slipping on the smooth surface of the floor.
"Yare, yare, Kisuke, you're gonna get the surprise of your life… that you never thought you'd get."
Minako ran the whole way to the other end of the 2nd Division HQ, nearly slipping at least 10 times on the smooth wooden floor. On the 10th trip, she cursed and wondered why she hadn't thought to wear sandals. She rolled her eyes as she realized that she hadn't really given her personal appearance much personal thought when she realized that she had to speak with Yoruichi about 'love.' She looked down to smack forehead as she saw what she was wearing. She wore a thin, white, summer yukata, with a white sash. Though it was totally passable as wearable clothing in public, it was still odd to see a shinigami running around in something other than a uniform. Then she chided herself for even considering herself a shinigami, for one thing, she hadn't graduated from the academy, nor was she part of a squad.
She grumbled and threw a small fit as she picked herself up from the floor since she fell and gave a sigh. She walked on, not watching where she was going, and bumped into someone. Before she could fall (once again), warm, strong, and steady arms wrapped around her waist and caught her, pulling her against them. Minako sharply looked up to tell the man to get their hands off of her, but seeing amused brown eyes with tufts of blond hair falling in front of them made her mouth dry.
"Ki-Kisuke!" Minako stuttered, flushing a pretty pink. She instinctively had put her hands on his chest, and tried to get out of his hold, but this seemed to amuse him even more.
"You know, Minako-chan, you look very cute this morning," Kisuke chirped, seeming to not notice the girl's feeble attempt to get out of his arms. At this statement, she froze and blushed deeper.
"Kisuke!" she whined. "Let me go!"
"But if I let you go, then you'll have to leave," he pouted. "And I don't want you to leave!"
"Okay, so if I promise I won't leave, will you let me go?" she sighed, rolling her eyes. He nodded enthusiastically. She smiled softly as he let her go, taking a step back.
"What do I owe to this pleasure in the morning though? Yoruichi-san is all the way on that side of the headquarters!" He pointed to the other side with emphasis.
"I already said hi to her," Minako giggled. "Besides, I'm not here to see her really… I came here to see you."
It was silent for a moment. Kisuke's brown eyes never left her emerald ones, a thoughtful look flashing through his eyes. "Perhaps we should take this conversation to another place?"
She nodded understandingly. "Of course."
Kisuke watched Minako, his eyes never leaving her, drinking in the sight of the beautiful girl as she sipped her tea gracefully, each movement made by her seeming to be a dance.
"More tea?" she asked him, her eyes opening to catch him staring at her. He nodded silently. She reached for the kettle and poured him the tea, not spilling a drop of tea on the table. The tea came out in a single stream of liquid, and steam came from the tip.
"What brings you here, Minako-chan?" Kisuke asked calmly, accepting his cup of tea.
"I needed to tell you something," Minako whispered softly, drinking her tea.
Kisuke raised an eyebrow, signaling for her to continue.
"I…"
They both jumped as the alarm started to ring.
"Hollows have been sighted in the Sereitei! I repeat, hollows have been sighted in the Sereitei! All squads assemble at their assigned meeting points! I repeat, all squads assemble at their assigned meeting points!"
Suddenly, large spiritual pressure spread across the whole Sereitei, and let hell loose. Minako's eyes widened as the air was knocked out of her. She was forced to the floor, but with heavy panting, she forced herself upright to see that Kisuke had no trouble standing, and it looked like he was hardly affected.
"Minako-chan, I think it's best if you head back to the 5th Squad. I can't—" He stopped when he saw that Minako was having enough trouble breathing as she struggled to stand up. "Minako-chan!" He was by her side instantly. The door slammed open to reveal Yoruichi, who gave once glance to Minako before nodding at Kisuke.
"Take care of her Kisuke, and then come to the assigned spot, alright?" she asked.
"Yeah," Kisuke muttered. "Come on, Minako-chan. Into my arms," he whispered soothingly into the girl's ear.
"N-no…" she breathed. "Go… you have to… go… I can… take care of… myself…"
"What's wrong?" he asked quietly, grabbing her chin to make her look at him. "You're not normally like this. You should be able to handle this much reiatsu."
"I… let my guard down…" she explained weakly, a semblance of a smile flickering across her face. "I can't… just go! I… need to gather myself… hurry!"
Kisuke refused to move. "I will not leave until you're ready to be moved."
An odd look came to her face before she nodded slowly. She closed her eyes, and she controlled her heavy breathing. The air around them shifted and slowly, but surely, the rigid posture of Minako straightened out and smoothed itself, her breathing becoming calm. She opened her eyes, and spoke normally. "I'm ready."
Her eyes widened. She didn't think it'd ever come to this. How could it come this? How could she choose... between keeping her Bankai a secret or saving the ones she loved? The high-level Gillian raised its beady eyes to hers and snickered.
"Die, bitch!" it screeched. Her eyes widened. Her shikai form had already been released, yet this arrancar had more in store for her. She chanced a glance over to where the rest of the battle was taking place. She had joined up with the 5th division because the gods somewhere in heaven laughed at her. She grimaced when she saw that everyone was busy with their own fight and that no one would be able to help her… She shook her head roughly. Since when had she gotten so weak that she depended on others to help her!
"Cero!"
A gasp escaped from her as she watched the green cero fly towards her. She shut her eyes tightly and grasped the hilt of her katana so tight that her knuckles turned white. Then it was like she had entered a place with all white…
"Nagareboshi! [falling star]"
The individual bubbles that had once been the blade of hers, started to glow brightly. They grew brighter and brighter, but then exploded lightly, giving way to star-shaped sparkles. They clustered together and pushed against the cero. With a grunt, she pushed forward with her body, her left hand tightly clasped around her right wrist, her katana's bladeless hilt in her right hand. A bead of sweat fell down her chin but she pushed forward.
In the end, it was her effort that won out. As the cero flew sideways, she raised her hilt, the star shaped cluster following her movement, and swung downwards. The arrancar barely dodged it, and the cluster fell rock-hard onto the paved ground, creating a well sized crater. But it was those few seconds that gave enough time for Aizen to appear in front of her and cut down the enemy.
As the squad cheered with victory, Minako could only stare at her now unreleased zanpakuto. She had released a technique to Kihotenkyu's shikai that she had never known was possible!
"Minako-chan, are you alright?" Aizen's calm voice came from behind her.
"I… I'm fine… thank you," she whispered. She grimaced as she fell to her knees. Aizen's eyes widened and made a move towards her, but Kisuke beat him to it. Picking her up, he gently cradled her – afraid that any small movement would hurt her. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Kisuke," she reprimanded. "I can stand."
"I know, I know," Kisuke answered cheerfully. "But I don't want you to fall down every few seconds because you can hardly lift your weight now!"
She sighed, annoyed. Knowing that she couldn't change his decision, she was content with the knowledge that she could trust Kisuke. As Kisuke started walking away from the gathering crowd of injured soldiers, she didn't miss the way Aizen's eyes glowered at the man holding her.
Why was she running?
She could only run… Running was the only way she could survive.
Her feet wouldn't stop. She couldn't stop the pounding of her frantic heart. Her head was cleared of all logical thought – she could only hear her internal screaming.
Fear… the dark pressure that something was behind her – coming for her. It would swallow her whole… the fear… the blood-pounding fear…
"Otou-san!"
"Otou-san…!" Minako gasped, shooting up in bed. She grimaced when she noticed that she was sweating buckets. That nightmare… She shook her head to get rid of the thoughts. She shouldn't let her mind linger on such stuff… it was bad for her.
But she couldn't help it.
She had had that nightmare for about a week now, and she wondered if it was a bad omen of things to come. Glancing at her clock, she groaned when she saw that it was 5 in the morning. She hated waking up this early! Suddenly, she saw her lucky. She was off-duty today… which meant…
She smiled.
She made a decision. It was sudden, and she was sure it was hasty – it wasn't thought out fully.
"Shunsui-kun, you'll do it for me then?" Minako asked, her eyes hopeful. Shunsui smiled at the young, energetic girl.
"Of course I will," he promised. "But… I want you to at least reconsider it. You'll have a lot of responsibilities to do with. You'll have a whole squad to watch over. You'll have the whole Gotei 13 resting on your shoulders. You're only half a century old… Aren't you too young to be thinking about your future?"
"Are you saying I should live in the present…?" she asked the wise man that was surprisingly sober early this morning.
"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying, Minako-chan," he answered confidently.
"So I should be stuck the weak girl I am, depending on everyone around me to save me, or I should be happy with where I am now, weaker than I could be?" she questioned softly. "Or perhaps it's better that I live in the present with a man that hates the man I love? If I moved forward and could join the man I love, then why should I complain?"
"Minako-chan…" Shunsui sighed. Standing up, he patted her on the head. "I'm just worried for you. Perhaps you love him now, but love cannot always last forever. Who knows what consequences your actions will bring?"
She stood up.
"Then I will readily face those consequences and take them down, one by one."
She waited patiently. The taicho's meeting was going to end soon, and she was getting nervous. If the meeting went on any longer, she was certain that she'd chicken out….
The doors slammed open and the tired captains flooded out, some yawning, while others gave a cheer. Lieutenants reprimanded their captains' behavior, or joined in on the cheering. Minako giggled slightly when she saw Shunsui yawn and complain loudly about "Yama-jii," and when Lisa smacked him in the head. He caught her eyes and nodded his head towards Kisuke, who was exiting with Yoruichi, Hiyori and Soi Fon following quietly. Aizen wasn't too far off with Shinji.
She couldn't back out now.
She just couldn't.
Not when she came this far.
Her body unwillingly took a step back.
She wanted to run… she wanted to run and hide behind her otou-san…
"Who knows what consequences your actions will bring?"
She took another step back.
"… love cannot always last forever…"
Shunsui's eyes widened when he saw the girl waver. He took a step forward and loudly called out, "Hey! Minako-chan!" Her wide, fearful eyes turned to him. "Good-luck!" Her eyes widened and she grinned before nodding, and ran towards Kisuke.
She would move forward.
She would move past her fear.
She would proclaim her love.
… Even if everyone's attention was on her running figure.
…
"Urahara Kisuke!" …
"I love you!" …
And after she had uttered those words, she jumped onto him, wringing her arms around his neck as she hugged him, waiting for the words she hoped that wouldn't shatter her heart.
"I…"
There's my cliffy! ;) Sorry 'bout that! :D Review please! :) No flames allowed, or else I'll have to call the fire department! :D
This was done pretty quickly - srry.
