Today, Toshiro and Ichigo are going out for walk in snow when they come across unexpected but familiar face.

Enjoy!

Empathy by HeukYa Ch.4

"Oi, Toshiro, ready yet??"

"It's Hitsugaya taichou to you!"

Hitsugaya came out of the room with the usual reply and usual scowl, which by now, Ichigo got too familiar with to be affected by them to Hitsugaya's infuriation. Not that it did before, anyway. Hitsugaya was putting his shoes on when he felt an element ofsurprise coming from Ichigo. He frowned and looked at Ichigo to find orange-haired boy staring at him.

Scratch that. Gawking at him.

"What are you staring at?"

"Huh? No… It's just… I still can't get used to seeing you in normal clothes, you know? Got used to seeing you in yukata these weeks but…"

Hitsugaya scowled. It had already been a few weeks since he came to the human world but he had spent most of the time asleep or reading novels, staying indoors. He hadn't completely recovered from his physical injuries and the drained reiryouku constantly tired him out, immobilising him however much he wanted to move.

Ichigo didn't really mind it as he had afair amount of school work to catch up, he had missed more than he would have liked with his shinigami duties. But today, it had snowed for the first time this year so they had decided to go out for awalk, ignoring the frosty temperature.

Given the length of Hitsugaya's stay in the human world, he was given quite a few sets of modern clothes although until now, he hadn't had the chance to wear any of them. Hitsugaya was now wearing grey jeans and a black sweater which made his snow-white hair stand out even more than usual. The eyes still hadn't found the cerulean colour yet but Ichigo was getting used to the white orbs, finding them rather pretty.

"Is that all you gonna wear? It's way below zero outside."

Hitsugaya was about to snap at Ichigo that he wasn't stupid when he soon felt genuine concern coming from him. It was still bizarre, this empathy, even though it had been weeks. He managed to stop himself before the words came out. It was rather difficult to be harsh on people when you could actually feel their worries.

"Try mastering Hyourinmaru."

"Ah. Well, fine but I'll take extra scarf just in case. If that gigai is set at normal human level, who knows, you might even catch cold."

Hitsugaya crossed his arms and cocked an eyebrow. Shinigamis catching a cold has never been heard of. How would you, if you were originally just a soul? Nevertheless he didn't say anything. He wasn't showing it but Hitsugaya was rather excited about going out today. The snow had been calling out to him since the morning, it was natural attraction that came with Hyourinmaru.

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"You seemed to be doing alright, you haven't screamed at me again since the first day."

"Your emotions have always been more or less calm. Except when you get stuck on homework."

Ichigo just huffed when he saw Toshiro smirking. They were at a small park near the flat, which was pretty much empty because of the frigid weather. The lake in the middle of the park was frozen and hidden under the thin cover of snow. Thankfully, there wasn't much wind; at this time of year, winds could get very sharp and feel like daggers against your skin.

"Yeah, well, I can't help getting annoyed if I can't solve one problem over half an hour."

Then Ichigo stopped as something struck him. Oh, don't tell me that…

"Hey… Are you empathic when you are sleeping as well?"

"It's not like I can turn it on and off whenever I want to but I presume I don't acknowledge them while I'm asleep unless they are strong."

Hitsugaya felt some sort of relief flowing through him and eyed Ichigo suspiciously. The stay so far had been very relaxing and comfortable for his mind. Almost too much compared to what he thought it would be like.

"Why are you relieved? What have you been up to when I was sleeping?"

"Nothing! And I'm not relieved about anything. Damnit, this empathy thing is annoying."

Hitsugaya's white eyes still had suspicion in them but Ichigo just ignored it and started walking bit faster. He had indeed been letting out a small sigh of relief in his mind when Toshiro picked it up.

For some reason, he had gotten into a habit of staring at Toshiro's sleeping face whenever he got stuck in his work. At first, he had only been trying to take his eyes off the work for a while, hoping it would help to think of a new solution. Toshiro was almost always asleep on those times, facing Ichigo on his side, his quiet regular breathing the only sound in the silent room. The prodigy's serene face always soothed his mind and made him smile a little with its innocence.

'Damned if he finds out though. I don't even know when or why I started doing that. Actually I guess I know why but…'

Hitsugaya stared at the back of Ichigo, following him afew steps behind. What the hell was that about? Then there was flash of that feeling again. The same one he felt when he had dinner on the first day. He still hadn't been able to recognise what it was. Just when he was getting lost in his thoughts, something cold softly landed on his cheek.

"…It's snowing again."

Ichigo stopped and turned around when he heard Toshiro whispering, only to be mesmerised at the sight. Hitsugaya was facing the sky with his eyes closed, letting the snow gently land on his face. His black clothes made him stand out from the snow-covered street and the white hair seemed to glow with the snow. The small but genuine smile on his face showed how content he was to be in this place at this moment. Ichigo didn't even notice the boy's name slipping out between his lips.

"…Toshiro…"

It had been along time since Hitsugaya had felt natural snow. Although they had seasons in Seireitei, it didn't snow often and even when it did, he had been too busy with his duty as a captain to have any spare time. He could feel himself relaxing as if he was in his inner world with Hyourinmaru. And just when he was about to lose himself in the now, something pulled him back, making him open his eyes a little.

Suddenly, that feeling was back again, this time lingering a little longer than usual. He just slowly lowered his head and stared at Kurosaki, himself a little dazed with the tingling sensations from the snow.

They were standing only afew steps apart from each other but for Ichigo, it felt like the distance was much longer than that. The time seemed to have stopped and he felt as if he was witnessing something he shouldn't but he could not take his eyes off the scene in front of him.

It was like there was a magic spell casted on them. There was no one on the street and the only sound was the almost undetectable sound of snow falling on the ground. Both of the boys' eyes were glazed and fixed on each other yet their feet seemed to be rooted on the ground, only the white snow and icy winds witnessing the moment.

Hitsugaya felt his heartbeat getting faster but he knew it was not his own.

Or was it?

Kurosaki was standing in the snow in a white parka that seemed to blend in with the background, his orange hair shockingly standing out. His hazelnut eyes had something Hitsugaya couldn't quite interpret and even though his empathy was picking up Kurosaki's emotions, his hazed mind couldn't analyze it properly.

It definitely wasn't anything negative. Rather, he felt something fluttering in his chest.

Then abruptly, the spell was broken. Something started to seep in Hitsugaya's mind, something he instantly knew he would not like it. All the sensation he had felt from the magical moment was disappearing fast to the back of his mind, as he tried to get away from the sadness and guilt that were gradually overwhelming him.

"Kurosaki?"

Ichigo snapped out of his trance when he heard a familiar but unexpected voice from behind to find Ishida. The Quincy seemed to have been outside for a while, his navy hair was already wet from the snow and he was looking paler than usual.

"Ishida? What the hell are you doing in this weather? You live nowhere near here."

"I was just… Hitsugaya taichou?"

Ichigo spun around when Ishida looked behind him with confusion in his eyes. Just a few seconds ago, Toshiro was enjoying the snow but now he was looking positively sick. The white eyes were now tightly shut and his skin had turned ghostly pallid. His hands were clenched tightly on either side as he bit down his lip.

"Toshiro!!"

"…Don't…"

Hitsugaya had barely said the word when his knees gave away. Ichigo was instantly next to him, holding him up. He frowned, Toshiro was completely taut, the tense muscles clearly palpable under the thin black sweater. Ishida looked at them with stunned surprise for few seconds then understanding dawned on his face.

"I'm… I'm sorry, Kurosaki. I need to leave here now. You better go back, too."

"Huh?"

"I'll explain later!! Get him back inside and don't panic around him!"

Then leaving confused Ichigo with Toshiro shaking in his arms, Ishida took off and ran in the direction he just came from. Ichigo stared at Ishida's disappearing form until he was startled by Toshiro's hands gripping his arms. Toshiro was trying to pull away but it was obvious from the sweating and fast breathing that he wasn't well. Ichigo just held Toshiro more tightly and spoke quietly.

"Toshiro…… We need to go back."

Hitsugaya gave up and only nodded. What was going on with that Quincy? How could he harbour such sadness, such guilt, such anger? He had gotten used to the serenity of his mind these few weeks that the sudden empathic feed of strong negative emotions was like a slap in the face out of blue. At least the Quincy had quick thinking.

As the distance between them and Ishida grew, Toshiro could feel the darkness in his mind retreating very slowly, but his body was still reacting to it. They had barely got inside home when Toshiro suddenly ran into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

"Toshiro!!"

"Don't come!!"

Ichigo stopped dead in his tracks. The tone just now was different from the everyday 'It's Hitsugaya taichou!' shout. He knew Toshiro hadn't locked the door but he stood outside and waited, ready to go in if he heard anything worrying. He felt his heart beating away madly and took few deep breaths. It wouldn't do to panic right now.

Hitsugaya was throwing up everything he had eaten for breakfast that day. The migraine was back, making him grunt involuntarily and his vision was getting blurry. It was getting difficult to tell whether it was better to simply pass out or stay awake. When there was nothing else to come up, Hitsugaya stood up on his shaky legs and cleaned out his mouth. He looked up at the mirror and scowled at the sight that greeted him.

'I'm doing badly way too often these days… Damn arrancars…'

His white hair had lost some of the spikes, wet with melted snow, and his face was horribly pale. The white eyes were looking back at him blankly and he could feel his hands getting clammy. Histuagaya slid back down on the floor and leaned against the bath tub. He strained so much to get back to the flat that now he didn't have any energy left. Just when he felt his eyelids closing down, soft knocks came from the door.

"Toshiro, I'm coming in."

Ichigo had heard the tap going off and assumed Toshiro was now finished. When he didn't get any reply, he slowly opened the door to find Toshiro on the floor, looking exhausted and sweaty.

"Hey."

"Mm."

"Bed might be bit more comfortable than bathroom floor."

Hitsugaya scoffed at the attempted joke. Using the tub as leverage, he managed to stand up but he almost lost his balance. Ichigo put an arm around his shoulder, holding him up. When Toshiro looked up, Ichigo just gently pushed Toshiro along with him.

"Don't say anything, just let me help you this time. Okay?"

Hitsugaya just nodded. He was too drained to say anything anyway and he could feel the earnest worries and guilt from Ichigo. When they got to the bedroom, Toshiro got into the bed without bothering to change his clothes. As Ichigo pulled the blanket over him, Toshiro turned on his side with his back on Ichigo and closed his eyes.

"I'll be in the living room."

"Kurosaki."

"……….Yeah?"

"It's not your fault."

Ichigo didn't say anything. It obviously wasn't what he had intended but he couldn't stop feeling like it was his fault. He had not expected to see the others as they all lived in different areas and Toshiro had never sensed any of them while at home. He just tucked the blanket under Toshiro's chin and turned to leave when he heard Toshiro again, this time a little muffled.

"I'm glad we went out and this isn't the worst I had. I shouldn't be trying to comfort you here anyway. Don't make me depressed as well."

Ichigo looked at the boy's back for awhile, surprised, and then smiled.

"Go to sleep, kid."

This time, there was no reply from Toshiro. Ichigo turned the light off and closed the door. He would return later to check on him but maybe for now, it would be better if he put as much distance as he could between the boy and himself.

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Ichigo startled out of his sleep when thephone started to ring. When had he fallen asleep anyway? He had taken a hot shower and last thing he remembered was reading the book Toshiro had left opened on the table. He quickly picked up the phone before it could wake up the snoozing boy in his room.

"Moshi moshi." (AN: 'Hello' on the phone in Japanese)

It's me.

"Ishida. What the hell was that about today?"

I didn't realise you will be at the park today.

"Well, yeah, same here. I didn't expect to see you guys on the street like that since none of you live near here."

How's Hitsugaya taichou?

"…Not all great. He's having a lie-down now."

…His empathy must've picked up… I'm sorry. I was thinking and didn't see you two until too late.

"Don't apologise, it's weird coming from you. So what was going on? Toshiro threw up as soon as we got home."

…I had been on theway back home from visiting my grandfather's grave, today was…

The Quincy didn't continue but Ichigo didn't have to hear it. Ichigo had sensed Ishida's frustration at having lost most of his spiritual power for awhile now. However it seemed that what little power he had left was enough for Toshiro to pick up. Heavy silence set in but Ishida broke it soon.

Anyway, tell Hitsugaya taichou I apologise.

"Mm."

Sorry.

"Stop apologising, you are freaking me out."

He heard Ishida laugh as he hung up. Ichigo stared at the phone then sighed. It wasn't anyone's fault, it was one of those things that just happen. He only hoped it didn't affect what little recovery Toshiro had achieved so far.

But it had been… a shame that Ishida turned up at that moment. He could still feel the butterflies when he thought about that time. What had happened? At that time, it felt like they were in their own world, just the two of them and the feelings that were there when they were looking at each other were indescribable.

Ichigo scratched his head and stood up. It's just because of snow and everything, nothing much, he told himself. A small voice called out to him, 'Is that all it was?' but Ichigo ignored it. Right now he couldn't tell what was happening but he would deal with it as it comes. He wasn't type to worry over something he didn't know.

By now, the snow had stopped outside and it was rather dark for this time of the day. It hadn't been long since Toshiro went to sleep but Ichigo decided he probably should check up on the young captain. The room was pitch black when he went in and fell back into darkness when Ichigo closed the door. He waited a little for his eyes to get used to the dark then sat on the floor next to the bed. Toshiro had turned around in his sleep and his face was calm.

'Guess he's doing alright now…'

These past few weeks, they had learnt quite a bit about each other. They saw new sides of each other and they compromised surprisingly well. Toshiro wasn't caught up with the captain's duties and Ichigo enjoyed his break from double responsibility of a student and a substitute shinigami, they were two people both off from their heavy duties for once.

And they were unexpectedly compatible, so to speak. Kurosaki wasn't as hot-headed as Hitsugaya thought and Hitsugaya wasn't as cocky as Kurosaki thought. Maybe Hitsugaya was just being polite as Ichigo was doing him a favour (whether he asked for it or not) but Hitsugaya's analytic and calm, frosty nature complimented Ichigo's fiery and reckless nature very nicely.

Ichigo gently placed his hand on Toshiro's forehead then ran his hand through now-dried, soft hair. The hair was astonishingly silky despite their gravity defying ability and when the hairs escaped his hand, he was about to rest his hand on top of the head when Toshiro stirred a little. He startled and quickly took his hands away.

'I really need to get hold of myself…'

He checked that Toshiro was back to sleep then stood up, smiling a little. When he was outside in the living room, he made a phone call.

"Ah, Yuzu? Can you cook up some good stuff for dinner? I'll come and pick it up in about an hour. For two people."

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Omake

HeukYa: H… Hi, guys…

Ichigo: (in Tensa Zangetsu) You dare hurt Toshiro again?

HeukYa: I'm sorry! I had to do it for the sake of the story! Toshiro, I'm sorry, I do love you!

Toshiro: (silent) …

HeukYa: …Ah?

Ichigo: He's still sleeping. He did say he'll come looking for you when he wakes up. (sniggers)

HeukYa: My life is threatened… yet again… (cries) People, please review, maybe I can fend off angry Toshiro and protect my life with your reviews!!

Ichigo: Oi, you haven't told them about next chapter!

HeukYa: Oh, yeah. …I think I'll write something nice… maybe Toshiro won't kill me if I did that… Nice surprise in store for our Shiro-chan!