Becoming who we were meant to be
11: Dancing with the moon
"This is a joke, right?"
The fact that Byakuya's eyes are closed doesn't hide the obvious irritation dominating his features. In fact, the angle of his eyebrow creates such a pronounced dent on his forehead that there's no way it isn't giving him a headache.
"Just choose one, Kurosaki."
Ichigo frowns as he takes a second look at the document, rolling his eyes not even ten seconds later. "I don't get why this has to be my decision, honestly, I couldn't care less," Ichigo's eyes switch back to Byakuya as he attempts shoving the document onto the man's chest. "Why don't you choose for me, if it is that important?"
Byakuya's eyes snap open only a second before they look like they're about to pop out of their sockets. The death-stare he gives Ichigo makes him shift uncomfortably in his chair, despite his best efforts not to do so.
"Fine," Ichigo groans in defeat and brings the sheet of paper back onto his desk, scowling as he starts studying it, this time more carefully.
Even though he tries, he can't stop his mind from focusing on this bitter thought; he didn't get to choose his vice-captain, but this, he gets to choose. Has to choose, even.
Talk about throwing logic out the window.
Ichigo, as quickly as he can in fear of pissing off Byakuya even more than he already has, reads the first header; Division 14: Official Insignia and signification. The three offered choices include 'Lavender: Devotion', 'Geranium: Strength & Determination' and lastly 'Heather: We will protect'. Listed below are the corresponding colors associated with the three insignias, respectively being azure, ruby red, and ivory white.
It's just paper work and nothing more, Ichigo tells himself. It doesn't serve any purpose other than to look pretty and inspirational on paper.
Still, one of those three options catches his attention.
"The Heather," he says as he indicates his decision on the document and adds his signature at the bottom, officialising it. He folds it once more, places it back in the envelope and hands it over to the first division messenger-slash-soldier (Ichigo honestly isn't sure which it is, but for all he knows, it could be both).
The smaller man bows as he takes hold of the envelope once again, then looks over at Byakuya for confirmation. The man closes his eyes once more and nods once. "Take these to the first division."
"Yes, Kuchiki-taichou." He bows down even lower and retreats.
It doesn't take long for Byakuya to turn around as well. "Since my assistance is no longer required, I'll be taking my leave as well."
"Alright, but w-" Ichigo calls out after the captain and stops as soon as he notices that the man is already long gone. He sighs and passes a hand through his burnt orange hair, ruffling it a little.
"What now," he mumbles to himself, pensive as he shoves his hands in his shihakusho pants pockets.
"Now we start your training," a distinctive female voice calls out from the doorway and Ichigo's head snaps back up to see Rukia standing at the entrance of his office, arms-crossed over her chest and tiny smirk in place.
"Jesus christ," Ichigo chokes out with wide eyes. "When did you get here?! Nearly gave me a heart attack."
"Wow, easy grandpa," Rukia scoffs, unimpressed. "We better start before you go senile."
"What the hell are you even talking about?" Ichigo inquires, frown growing steadily on his forehead.
"Your training," she answers like it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Ukitake-taichou put me in charge of making sure your spiritual power and fighting skills got back on the right track. And since we're kind of in a rush with your schedule, best not to waste any time." Her smirk appeared once more as she raised an eyebrow, all too subtle. "So, what do you say old man?"
Turns out going back to fighting when you've been taking it easy for nearly six years isn't as effortless as one might think.
Definitely not like riding a bike, Ichigo can't help but think as his ass hits the green ground once more and a loud 'oof' leaves his mouth without his consent, embarrassing him even further.
"When was the last time you practiced your kido, Ichigo?" Rukia yells from where she is standing, a few meters away.
He gets back up with a groan, shaking the dust off his uniform. "Oh, I don't know, maybe a million years ago?" The frustration in his voice is obvious and he squints his eyes in the bright sunlight to make out Rukia's figure in the distance, and answers with another yell. "You know it's always been my weakness."
Rukia's hands are on her hips and it seems like she's chewing her bottom lip, as if in thoughts. "Hm, I suppose we'll have to work on that."
Ichigo fights back a roll of his eyes. "How about for today, we focus on something I don't completely suck ass at?"
Rukia remains silent for a few seconds, once again in her own thoughts. She then nods. "Alright. How about close-range combat?"
Ichigo grins and nods back at her, feet already moving into defensive position. "You're on."
It seems to take hours before either one of them moves, and when they do, he doesn't even realize who initiated it. Rukia swings her katana left and right with force, way more force than he remembers her using in the past. Although she physically does not look like she changed a single bit, she surely did not skip arm-day at the gym over the last years.
While he's able to keep up with her strength-wise, their respective speeds are not even close to being comparable. Rukia jumps, kneels, turns and hits with barely any sound and so incredibly fast his eyes have trouble keeping up with her movements. He manages to block her attacks but can't bring himself to swing a single one of his own; all of his focus is left on his defense and defense alone.
Eventually Rukia's katana comes dangerously close to his cheekbone and he widens his eyes, making him lose his focus and allowing Rukia to administer a hit to his stomach using the hilt of her weapon. Ichigo's breath gets stuck in his throat as the blow sends him flying backwards. He is however able to catch his balance in time and breaks with both feet onto the ground in a kneeling position, dust flying behind him.
He takes a short second to recompose himself then lifts up his head and shoots a stare at his opponent. A teeth-showing smirk makes its way onto his lips as his eyes narrow and focus on her, and her alone.
She smirks back and repositions herself before they both run forward, swords colliding with a loud metallic sound. Rukia swings her katana forward suddenly, forcing Ichigo to dodge it by bending his back, and he retorts with a swing of his own, directed at her feet. She jumps before he can even register it and bounces off Zangetsu and into the air as Ichigo is left with wide, perplexed eyes.
It doesn't even take a second however for her to make her presence known by landing straight onto his shoulders, katana at his neck.
"Dead." She says and her breath tingles his ear, shocking him for a moment before his mind is back in the game.
He quickly drops Zangetsu and raises his right hand to grab the back of her shihakusho uniform, and at that moment thanks god he is stronger than her because the momentum allows him to drag her off his shoulders with the intent of throwing her onto the ground. Rukia flips herself off and uses her forearm to brace her weight on the ground, then flips herself gracefully back up, not even losing control once.
Ichigo did however, manage to get rid of her sword in the process.
With both their weapons lying still on the ground, Ichigo quickly takes advantage of the situation and sprints forward, reaching for Zangetsu when a small foot kicks his wrist away from his zanpakuto, then kicks his ankle so hard he only has a split second to widen his eyes before his legs swing involuntarily in the air and he falls on his back, hard. A surprised huff escapes from the shock of the fall and before he can do anything else, Rukia is straddling him, katana somehow back in hand and pointing straight at his throat.
"Dead. Again." She murmurs in between pants as she looks down on him, straight into his eyes and a hint of a smile on her face.
His chest rises and falls faster than hers as he's left a panting and sweating mess beneath her. He swallows and attempts catching his breath before answering back.
"Rematch?"
"Left! Right! Right! Down!"
Karin's hand-to-hand combat teacher screams at the top of her lungs at the two students currently fist-fighting. She directs her complete attention onto the woman's instructions and analyzes people's mistakes as much as she can before her turn arrives. She swallows, more from apprehension than anything else. The fighting style is very similar to that jiu-jitsu class she took when she was younger, and hopefully, mixed in with a few moves Urahara taught her, she'll be able to handle herself.
"Kurosaki! You're up. I know a few teachers are going easy on you but don't expect me to pull the same curtesy."
Karin nods. That woman seems tougher than anyone she's ever met but it's nothing Karin can't take. If anything, she prefers to be treated fairly.
"Oishi, you're up against Kurosaki." Tako-sensei called out to another student. The guy blinks for a good five seconds before nodding his head; somehow he looks surprised. Karin hesitates but only for a brief moment as she doesn't want to let it show. So far only pairs of girls or boys had fought as opponents. Making her the first girl to be fighting against the opposite gender.
Students in the training room turn quiet as soon as the guy's name is called out. Probably noticing what Karin has just noticed, they repeatedly turn their heads back and forth between the two. Curiosity overpowering the room, people glue their eyes to Karin as she starts walking towards the fighting mat.
She arrives face to face with that Oishi guy and instantly notices that he's taller than her by at least a head. She mentally lists what she believes to be his weak points; she'll have to adapt her fighting style accordingly.
Now that he's much closer, the guy's eyes are uncertain, as if he isn't sure if he should take it easy on her or go all out. Karin grins from the corner of her mouth, making him raise a surprised eyebrow.
"Please, don't go easy on me, either."
She hears a few people murmuring around them. Oishi blinks a few times and shoots a side glance over to Tako-sensei, who is standing tall in the corner of the room, arms-crossed. The guy turns back to Karin, and nods.
They both bow down, establishing equal grounds, before they are once again facing each other, hands curling into fists and feet moving into a defensive position. The mediator, a meter or two away, raises a hand before cutting in through the air, announcing the start of the fight.
"Ready, fight!"
Karin expects him to attack first, however he doesn't. Instead he seems to be analyzing the way her feet move and the way her body moves. Too bad, since she's doing the same thing with him.
Eventually Karin spots a thin opening and decides to strike first, closing the distance between them in a matter of steps before throwing her elbow at the guy's face. He easily dodges the hit with a quick circular movement of his head before attacking back. He hits with both of his palms, pushing Karin's shoulders away with such force she nearly loses balance. She manages to fall back into position and with a silent grit of her teeth, waits for Oishi to strike again.
He throws a punch to her abdomen which she sees coming early enough to successfully block it with both of her forearms, then quickly uses her advantage to throw another fist up in the air, aiming for his jaw. Oishi blocks it with ease, surprising Karin and making her bounce a few steps back in order to regain composure. He doesn't waste time in following her and starts throwing in faster hits, to her knee, neck and shoulder, which she somehow all manages to block.
But her guard is already faltering. She's panting slightly between parted lips, whereas this guy is nowhere near losing stamina.
When he grabs her arm and sends her flying onto the ground, the shock is evident on Karin's face as Oishi approaches fast, clearly about to win this battle if she doesn't quickly get up.
Perhaps the hesitation lingering on his facial features is what gives her an edge but somehow Karin succeeds in getting back on her feet. Taking a large breath in, she brings her complete attention to the details of Oishi's movements and focuses on them. He throws in a strong punch but this one is slower than the others and Karin is able to dodge it with a fast squat.
She's already growing too tired. It's now or never.
As soon as Oishi's hit misses her, Karin uses the momentum of her squat to push back on her legs; using the ground and strength to push herself up, momentarily jumping high in the air. With the last burst of strength she has, Karin brings her right leg back before swinging it forward, foot coming into contact with Oishi's head, hard, so hard a circle of pure blue energy leaves her body as she screams and sends Oishi flying backwards, arms covering his head in an attempt to block her attack.
Silence is heavier than ever when Karin's feet fall back onto the ground and Oishi slowly lowers his arms to stare at her, eyes wide with surprise.
"Kurosaki!" The teacher yells suddenly, making Karin jump and forcing her to break eye contact with Oishi. The woman throws her notepad on the floor in anger and points an accusing finger towards her. "This is a martial arts class! Did I ever say you were allowed to use kido?!"
Karin's mouth hangs open, her eyes lowering to look at her opened palms, speechless.
"I-I'm… I apologize, Tako-sensei. I didn't mean to use it, I don't know how it-" Karin struggles as she tries to explain, but everyone's stare is fixated on her; some seem angry, some envious, the majority just…shocked.
The teacher's infuriated glare seems to lower in intensity ever so slightly before she tears her eyes away from Karin and turns around.
"Class dismissed," she calls out to the rest of the students in the training room. "Kurosaki, my office."
Exiting Tako-sensei's office, Karin lets out a heavy sigh. After seeing the look people gave her when she got called into the teacher's office, she for sure thought she was in some kind of trouble. Turns out it mainly consisted of Tako staring at her through narrowed eyes as she rested her chin in her joined hands and asking her genuinely curious questions such as where and when she had learned to use her spiritual energy like that.
In reality, it seemed her teacher showed interest rather than actual anger to the skills Karin had subconsciously used during the fight.
To be honest, Karin wasn't sure how to feel about that. Nor did she know how to feel about the spiritual energy she had materialized with a kick, and without even trying.
Now if that was a good thing or not, she wasn't sure of. Not yet anyway.
Perhaps that would have to be a problem for another day, she tells herself with a second sigh, thinking about the pile of textbooks waiting in her room and nearly begging to be read.
Amaze-balls.
"Kurosaki-san, is it?"
Karin looks up at the source of the feminine voice and sees a girl she believes was in her hand-to-hand combat class this morning. She's a little taller than her, has long blonde hair that's been tied in a low side ponytail and looks at her with confident, large brown eyes.
"Uh, yeah?"
The girl's lips curve into an amused sort of smile. "I hope Tako didn't give you too much shit. She looked reeeaaaal mad in there, even though, between you and me, she usually respects people that stand out the most."
Karin blinks in surprise. Somehow this wasn't where she was expecting this conversation to go. "Oh, uh…actually yeah, she was alright. I guess in the end she decided to let it go."
"Hmm. That's what I thought," the girl hums in response, still amused. "Listen don't worry I'm not gonna bug you about how you did what you did, and I'm also not gonna ask about your family." She rolls her eyes with a chuckle. "God, you must be going crazy with the gossips around here."
Karin hears herself huff out an automatic chuckle. "Nah, I don't even know what you're talking about." She jokes sarcastically.
The girl's laugh is interrupted by the shrill sound of a distant whistle. She turns her head towards the direction of the noise and rolls her eyes in what seems to be annoyance.
"Crap, 'gotta go." As she starts walking away she points an encouraging finger at Karin. "One last thing though; don't be too hard on yourself about that fight with Oishi. He's actually the best first year in hand-to-hand combat, and you actually managed to keep up with him. That's pretty impressive."
Karin's surprised eyes stay wide open as the girl flashes her a final thumbs up. "See ya around, Kurosaki-san!"
After she runs off, Karin's stupor lasts for a good minute until she's able to blink and resume her way down the hallway. She snorts to herself.
Finally, a normal fucking person in this place.
"I don't think I could move a muscle, even if I wanted to."
Ichigo is lying on his back at the top of a small hill, tall grass grazing and tickling his skin with every brisk of warm, soft wind. His body resembles that of a ragdoll and he feels so drained he could probably fall asleep any moment and stay asleep for a week and a half.
Rukia scoffs next to him. "I didn't think you were that badly out of shape."
"Yeah, well," he instantly replies. "Embarrassingly enough, I was. Although you didn't let that stop you from going all out on me."
A flower petal flies by with the breeze; the surroundings quiet now that the sun is nearly fast asleep, and so are the birds. "If you think that was me going all out, you're dangerously mistaken, grandpa."
Ichigo attempts an annoyed frown at the sound of the new nickname but cannot hide the amusement from coming out of his throat with a laugh. He stares at the grey sky with its hues of blue and purple, and sighs.
"I seriously missed this though," he murmurs then.
Rukia arches an eyebrow, but doesn't move from her comfortable spot in the grass. "What? Me kicking your ass?"
Ichigo rolls his eyes and throws a weak punch at Rukia's shoulder. "Not particularly, no," he scoffs. "I missed fighting, and even though it used to be a pain in the ass, I also missed training."
Rukia doesn't add anything as she falls silent. Ichigo even thinks she might be asleep, even though that would be so unlike her, until he sees her eyelashes move in a blink from his peripheral vision.
"Honestly, I've been immersed in this world for so much of my life now, I don't know what it would be like not to be able to have it anymore," her voice is quieter than he expected. "As unconventional of a life as it is, I can't imagine it being stripped away from me."
"Yeah," he hums in a quiet response. Even though his body is more tired than it has been in years, his mind is occupied somewhere else, pulling for him to focus on it. "I mean I haven't lived it as permanently as you have, but I can tell you losing it…it fucking sucked."
Rukia listens to his words, repeats them in her head a few times. She shifts a little when a small, white butterfly quietly lands on her covered toe.
"Even as a human?" she asks and Ichigo instantly hears the genuine concern in her voice. He smiles.
"Even as a human."
The comfortable silence takes over once more. Ichigo's eyes are lost somewhere far up; somewhere only he can see. The wind feels like a lullaby, swinging peacefully around him. He inhales and exhales when a smile makes its way onto his lips without him noticing.
Training again when he hasn't done so in years feels…surreal. Like swimming back to a place where you belong, where you can just feel it in your bones. His blood circulating in his veins as if revitalized with energy and his reiatsu beating in his heart as if it had been dormant and was now finally waking up, thanking him for allowing it to flow back with strength.
If every other day of his life was to be like this one, he would most likely die a happy man.
"What are you thinking about?" Rukia asks suddenly, her soft voice piercing through the silence and becoming one with it.
Ichigo's head turns on the side where he can really, carefully look at Rukia. Her eyes are half-lidded, as if slowly falling asleep, hands lying flat on her abdomen.
He moves a hand to the ground and pushes himself on one of his elbows, his face above Rukias' looking straight into her eyes.
She opens hers quickly as if surprised, and blink at him. "What?" she asks, a frown right around the corner.
Before her frown can appear, he slowly moves his face down, closing the distance between them inch by inch. If he ever expected her to jump to her feet and punch him straight in the nose, he was wrong. Because Rukia stays perfectly immobile; not daring to move a muscle. Even when he closes his eyes and stays still, feeling her breath on his cheeks, she mimics his movements.
Only when he becomes so indescribably close that he feels her lips part with a breath, and then he's kissing her.
She feels soft, full and simple. He doesn't move his hands from the ground, and neither does she. He doesn't push it; just simply enjoys the way their lips linger in a contact that feels like the most natural thing in the world. His lips rest on hers for a while before he moves and recaptures the kiss for a longer, deeper one.
When he backs away and opens his eyes he notices the slight pigments coloring her cheeks and feels a similar warmth on his own face.
Rukia opens her dark blue eyes a second later. "Why now?" she asks simply.
Still hovering above her, Ichigo shrugs slightly without breaking eye contact. "Felt like it was time." Rukia's lips break into a smile at his words, and he doesn't even try to stop his from doing the same thing.
"Idiot."