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Disclaimer: See previous chapter
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Byakuya's POV
Immediately after entering the building, I could feel the heat radiate off the walls. I squinted my eyes against the harsh smoke, straining to see anything recognizable. This was absurd. The building clearly was no more. Was this inevitable? Was Rukia even alive?
She was. Some how I knew. Rukia was strong and a Kuchiki. He wouldn't stop no matter what. But nonetheless, I would find her. I promised Hisana I would protect Rukia with my life, and nothing would stop me from keeping my promise.
Ichigo's POV
Hell. Hell on earth. I not only was running for my life, but Rukia's as well. I kept glancing down at her still form, making sure her chest was still moving up and down. I knew she had a concussion and the thought of her injuries causing serious damage scared me. I was scared.
My body was aching, my lungs burning as I ran through the clouds of smoke and ash that was quickly accumulating. The skin on the bottom of my feet ached. I was pretty sure that some of it had been scraped off with pieces of glass embedded deep inside. The skin on my back was feeling accessibly hot from the fire that was quickly advancing behind us. I coughed but pressed on, protecting Rukia as best as I could from the hell that we were currently in.
Finally, I reached the bottom of the stairs, but I was faced with another problem. How the hell do I open the door! I turned around and using my back, pushed against the door, hoping that it would open.
It didn't.
Something must be blocking it from the other side. I pushed and threw myself at the door.
I began yelling, desperate for any help, "Help! We're trapped!Help us!" The smoke was getting to my eyes and making them water. I looked down to Rukia and saw that she, too, was having trouble. Her breathing was labored and her beautiful pale skin was ashen and covered in soot. "Help us!" I slammed my back up against the door before it finally began to budge.
The fact that it moved gave me a spur of adrenaline as I began slamming my body with even more purpose. Rukia's body thrashing back and forth in my arms with each time I threw my back against the metal door.
Finally the door trudged open slowly and I heard a deep voice demand, "Get moving." My eyes widened and the shock of seeing Byakuya Kuchiki stopped me in my tracks. "Did you not hear what I said. Mo—" His gray eyes landed on the helpless girl I clutched in my arms. His mouth set in a firm line and I could feel how livid he was. The waves of anger that rolled off the dignified man were almost hotter than the raging inferno behind us.
"What are you doing?" Byakuya commanded and it seemed it took every fiber of his being to not yell.
"Help her, please!" I screamed in heartbreak as Rukia lay, limp. He ripped her out of my arms. "No—" I choked out as her weight left. That wasn't what I meant or wanted.
"Let her go," he ordered. "You are not good enough to protect her and it clearly shows." He turned and hurriedly walked out. I growled after him and clutched my side where my rib throbbed even worse now.
"Dammit, Byakuya! She is…" I paused. She was what? Better in my arms? Safer?
"What do you believe? That she would be safer with you? The fact of the matter is that she is in this condition which proves that you can not keep her safe, so leave, leave this building and forget about her, you are not worthy of my sister." He continued his way out of the building.
I fell to my knees, the adrenaline draining out of my body as I felt colder the further away Rukia was from me. My vision blurred and I could feel every break, ache, and pain in my body. From my broken rib, to the tiny piece of glass that was imbedded in my shoulder blade.
I became cold, my thoughts no longer clear as I looked around me. The air was heavy with smoke, which was thick and black, the ground littered in debris, fires, and various dead bodies. I saw something in my line of vision, running, coming towards me.
The next thing I knew, I was being caught by a woman who had pale skin and icy blue eyes. Her pale lavender hair was pulled back into a low messy bun, although some pieces were in her face and it was starting to get covered in soot—making it appear gray, but to my failing eyes, it looked quite black.
"Rukia?" I asked, my voice raspy.
"No, my name is Sode no Shirayuki. I'm here to help you," her voice was warm and soothing. She turned her head and it was then that I realized she wore a small oxygen mask and a medium sized tank of oxygen strapped to her back. She reached behind her and pulled out a separate mask and stretched it to my face. "Here, this will help you breath." She turned once more before yelling, "Zangetsu! I need help over here!" I didn't know who she was talking to but I realized the smell and burst of fresh air that was rushed to my lungs.
In no time, a man who wore a uniform similar to the woman's, ran towards us. He had shoulder length black wavy hair tied in a pony tail at the nape of his neck. They started a conversation, but the sound never reached my slowly failing ears. I closed my eyes, relishing in the cool, clean oxygen that my lungs greedily sucked in. I vaguely felt hands lift me and carry me away, my body painfully thrashing much like Rukia's did when I was carrying her.
Finally…finally, I was outside. The fact only made itself present to me because of the crisp air and cool wind that soothed my skin.
I thought I heard my name being called, but everything was slowly beginning to slip away from me.
Is this how mom felt when she died?
I closed my eyes happily letting the darkness encase me in it's numbing nothingness.
Isshin's POV
"Someone's coming out!" Omaeda shouted from where his face was pressed up into the ground from my hand. "Look, look!" he desperately tried to get through to me. "It's bound to be your son! So get off!"
I released him and stood up from the ground. It wasn't Ichigo that came out, but Byakuya carrying someone with dark hair. I looked past him to the open door, waiting for that unmistakeable orange hair. When it didn't come, I grew worried.
"Byakuya!" I bellowed. "Where's Ichigo? Where's my son!"
Byakuya didn't respond, but strides past me as if I didn't exist and took Rukia over to an ambulance where a paramedic by the name of Isane, who already helped countless others, took her and placed her on a stretcher. I ran over to them and threw my hand on Byakuya's shoulder and harshly spun him around to face me.
"He is alive," Byakuya answered. "I could not control how fast he kept up."
My grip on his clothing tightened. "Where is he?"
His eyes moved over the top of my head. "Your son is there."
I turned to see a tall man and an equally tall woman running out of the building. In the arms of the older man lay a younger man who was dirtied and injured, but with the striking orange hair that could only belong to one person.
Ichigo.
All thoughts of the prick Byakuya left in my mind vanished as I ran to where they had my son, but no matter how fast I ran it seemed I couldn't get there fast enough.
"Someone get us a damn stretcher!" The woman yelled as she pulled off her oxygen mask. The closer I got the more I saw. Ichigo was covered in soot, burns etched on his skin as well as cuts and most likely bruises. His eyes were closed and an oxygen mask was on his face.
When I approached them they had finally received the much needed stretcher. The sight of seeing my son being pulled away on a stretcher clenched my heart painfully. The paramedics quickly loaded Ichigo in the back of an ambulance and I pushed my way through bystanders and officers.
"Let me through!" I shouted above everyone. "That's my son!" A path cleared and a paramedic nodded to an officer. I jumped up in the back beside Ichigo and they shut the doors. Seconds later, we were rushing to the hospital.
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A/N: How was that? Short, I know, but I wanted to post something, anything, for you to read! I've come to realize that this story is going to go far beyond 10 chapters, so, yay to that! If you all would be so thoughtful to leave a review, THAT WOULD BE FLIPPING AMAZING!
