Disclaimer: Bleach and all related characters, settings and plot are the brainchild of Kubo Tite. I receive no monetary benefit from this work.
Safety was a feeling long forgotten to her. But here, in his arms, in the darkness, she felt safe. She could feel his chest rising and falling as he breathed, she could feel the heat coming off his body as he tightened his grip on her.
She rested her head against him, her long hair fanning out across him. She could feel her large, grey eyes beginning to close. In his arms, she was safe, she was warm. Lying here in the darkness like this, she felt... whole. Like a great burden had been lifted from her shoulders.
Two halves of the same soul, perhaps? That was how it felt... to her, at least. Unless they were touching in some way, she felt incomplete.
But, for now, she felt content. Warm. And, at long last, whole.
He didn't know contentedness. Every second of every day, even if he had something great, he wanted more, bigger, better things.
But not now. Not in this particular moment.
Holding the tiny girl in his arms, this is what he could hear her breathing, could feel the expansion of her lungs against his body with the action. The sweet scent of her bright hair caught his attention; it smelled like strawberries.
He wanted to keep her like this forever. This was perfect. This was what he'd strived for all along. To love and be loved.
Contentedness. If this was it, it was relaxing. Unknown.
But still perfect.