"Where did you go last night?" I ducked under a spear Goka launched, then looked at him.
"To talk to Tori. She's like the daughter I've only recently started thinking about wanting." we both turned red, and I swatted the next one away.
"Not that... uh... I don't think that could exactly happen between us..." he barely nodded in agreement, and I looked at my feet. It had been two weeks since the first time I caught Tori in a meeting, and I'd gone to every one since.
"Is that where you go every night?" I looked at him, hands on my hips.
"Are you saying I'm cheating on you?" I questioned in the most offended tone I could muster. He turned bright scarlet.
"No, no, no, no, no, no. Never that." he walked over and put his hands on my hips. I looked at him, incredulously.
"I was just asking, because you disappear every night."
"Yes, I go to see her every night. We talk." something we discussed one time in a meeting went through my mind. They wondered if we could simply discourage him from the attack. Of course, this left only me.
"Okay, this is kind of random, but why are you planning this whole attack on Soul Society? Is this like, revenge for a lover lost?" I fake gasped, "That would make such an amazing story! What did she look like? What happened? Did a Shinigami kill her? Do you know which Shinigami? What was her name? Was this her dream?" he flicked my forehead, and I grinned. He opened his mouth to reply, but the red light of death bathed the room, and he dropped his hands from my hips.
"Stay in here, Katsu. And I mean it. If someone else catches you outside the room while we're in crisis mode, I don't know what they'll do to you." I nodded, and he left quickly. Waiting, I wondered exactly what the crisis was this time. Last time, it was me. What could possibly go wrong that was as bad as me?
"Shinigami infiltrator heading toward the training room." I blinked. That's where I was. I started freaking out quietly. I spun around, looking for something to hide behind. The metal desk caught my eye, and I started running. If it was someone I knew, they could blow my cover completely. Two feet from the side of the desk, and my world went completely black.
oOo
Renji slid into the room he guessed the alarm system meant was the training room. It was entirely bare, walls watered down red. On the far right of the room, was a metal desk. He squinted slightly.
"Katsu?" he started running, but ten feet away, somebody flashed in front of her limp body.
"Not another step, Lieutenant." Renji stared at the man, wondering if he'd fought him before or something. He looked very familiar. Then he smirked.
"Right. I remember now. You're Goka."
"You're not touching Katsu." he glanced behind the Hollow at her, laying motionless on the floor. Then he scowled, remembering her brief description of how he made her feel.
"Why is she important to you?"
"Because I love her?" Renji closed his eyes.
"You Hollow are so dense."
"Don't be so quick to judge." Renji stood up straight, staring Goka in the eyes.
"Katsu's judgements don't count. She's more inclined to see the best of people, and bring out that best. She doesn't see that side of you that murders your comrades when you lose a little bit of control. She never saw the side of you that ate other human souls. You've only shown her your best side."
"You seem to know all about us. I know nothing of your relationship." they sat in silence for a few moments, only the wailing of the alarm filling the gap between the two. They were complete opposite sides of the spectrum, but they had one thing in common. They both loved the girl on the floor. And both wanted to see her safe.
oOo
My eyes flickered open to hushed arguing. All I could really see were feet. I winced as my head raged at me. Sitting up slightly, I only had seconds to see the oncoming Shinigami, that thankfully I didn't know, stop by me, and insert his blade through my belly button, square on. And, I screamed.
"You ruined my fucking perfect belly button!" I screeched. He looked at me, astounded.
"Do you seriously only care about your belly button?" I laid back against the floor, took a deep breath, and pulled the blade out, then pulled myself to my feet, bracing myself against the pain.
"You just gave a very angry twenty year old girl, a weapon. You better run." he took a step back, and I flashed at him.
"You're human?" he questioned, trying to maintain the distance. I was closing in.
"No dip!"
"Then you're the girl we're trying to save!"
"You stabbed me you bastard! I don't care which side you're on! You fucking stabbed me!" pain sliced through my ribs, and I slammed to a halt, hanging on someones blade.
"Hollow filth." the voice muttered, pulling the sword out. I staggered backward, and sank to my knees.
"What, is it kill Katsu day? Jesus Christ." I coughed, covering my mouth with my hand. When it came away speckled red, I got worried.
"Katsu!" I glanced back at Renji, eyes wide. He'snotdead? He lurched toward me, but a hand gripped my neck and lifted me up.
"Katsu Kita?" I nodded at the black haired man. He pushed me toward Renji.
"Take her. Let's go." I stumbled backward, and my foot caught the edge of a tile. As I tilted backwards, I felt the familiar, smaller, arms wrap around my waist. And then we were in Goka's room. He set me down on the bed.
"How do you feel?"
"Awful." I coughed again. He clenched his teeth.
"I need you to try to hold it together. You can stop this now. You have the power to freeze the entire compound. I need you to do that." I put my head in my hands, trying to figure out what was currently going on, while my mind kept shouting, He'salive! He'salive! He'sreallystillalive!
"Katsu?"
"Goka, you can't expect me to do anything! I can't get caught in the fighting between you and Renji. I just can't. You can't ask me to choose sides this time." he grit his teeth, and I knew he was pissed that I still had feelings for Renji at all. I hadn't stopped loving him. I'd thought he was dead. There's a difference. Goka pulled out his sword, with the red in it, and twirled it in a circle in front of me.
"Hipnotizar, Zorro." the entire room turned white, and I shut my eyes against it, then blacked out again.
oOo
Goka didn't like using his resurrection. At all. But right now, he needed her power, and if she couldn't give it to him, he would force her. He looked her in her eyes, now dulled to a dim green.
He cringed at the lifeless look about her.
"I need you to freeze everybody in this place, except for us. You and me." he whispered quietly. She closed her eyes, and muttered, "Freeze." the alarm stopped wailing, and he took her hand, pulling her up off the bed and leading her out to the training room. Her eyes glanced boredly over the room, then the lively green returned, and she glanced at Goka, then yanked out of his grip.
"What the hell!" she took a few steps away, and his heart sank.
"Katsu-"
"Do not Katsu me! You were... ugh. Don't. Just don't. You'll only make this worse."
"I didn't-"
"Goka!" she closed the distance, gripping his scarf.
"You were using me. You didn't let it be my choice. If both people want to use me, then neither can. That's how it goes. I can't be the deciding factor against which of the people I love dies."
"I-" she stood up on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his lips, effectively cutting him off.
"I can't sit between you. And I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish that I hadn't come home that night to see Shougo get killed. I never would've seen Ichiro and Abarai, and maybe some of this could have been delayed, maybe even never happen. So, I'm sorry, but..." she trailed off, then whispered, "Freeze."
oOo
A Jupiter sized mass of emotions was whirling around inside my head and heart, but at the moment, I knew that I couldn't stay here for now. So, I turned on my heel, and limped over to the second guy who stabbed me, who I think is Byakuya Kuchiki, and tapped his shoulder. He watched me as I walked, tapping the other guy, then pausing in front of Renji.
"I almost want to leave you here. See how you and Goka react to eachother." I closed my eyes and tapped him, and he smacked me. I started laughing.
"That's how you treat me after three weeks? Alright then. I'll just freeze you again."
"Don't. You. Dare." I grinned.
"Who else am I unfreezing?"
"Tori." Byakuya responded. I walked out of the room, then paused.
"Why am I moving? I want Tori." she flashed in front of me, and I tapped her forehead. Her fist continued moving, and she nailed me in the gut. I doubled over and stumbled backward, running straight into Renji. He spun me around, and pulled up my shirt to just below my bra.
"Captain, we need to get her to the Infirmary soon." I flicked him and pulled my shirt down.
"You have no right to be looking down there, perv." he turned bright red, and I laughed.
"Chill. I'm kidding."
"You worry me." I just grinned at him. Byakuya flashed off, and I spun behind Renji, then wrapped my arms around his neck. He pulled me up onto his back, and Tori followed Byakuya, Renji bringing up the rear. Once outside, I unfroze everyone else. We dashed through a gate, then slowed to a walk. Resting my head in the crevice between his neck and shoulder, I closed my eyes.
"Don't fall asleep on me."
"You're not going to keep me awake." I shifted slightly trying to keep things from rubbing up against the wounds. It wasn't working, and my entire abdomen still felt like it was on fire, somebody holding a lighter or a lit match to it.
"Katsu, please..."
"I'm in pain. Could ya let me try and fight with that instead of you?" he fell silent, and I sighed.
"Captain...?" was the last thing I heard before I forced myself into sleep.
oOo
Someone's hands on my stomach, near my belly button, woke me up.
"Who the hell is touching my stomach?" chuckling ensued.
"Don't worry, Ms. Kita. You're in the infirmary right now. We're healing your wounds." a kind, womanly voice said.
"Can I stretch, or with that interrupt something?"
"Stretch." I clasped my hands together above my head, and tried to make them go as far as they could. My back arched, and I sighed. Then someone flicked my hands. I opened my eyes and glanced up.
"You totally just killed my stretch, asshole." Renji chuckled, and I flicked his hand back.
"Okay, we're done here. Just take it easy." I nodded, and she left. Sitting up, I faced Renji.
"So what is my fate?" I questioned, touching my belly button. It was much smaller than before. I think. Renji scowled slightly.
"We don't know yet. The captains are still in a meeting." a red and black butterfly fluttered in, and I watched it land on his finger. Her brought it to his ear, and his scowl deepened.
"And now I have to go. I'll be back as soon as the meeting is out." he flashed off, and I rolled my eyes. If they were going to kill me or something, they could just tell me instead of debating forever.
I jumped off the bed and wandered around my small room. There was not a single thing for me to do. So what did I do? Well, there is this curtain rod that spans the room, in case you need two rooms. I pushed the entire curtain to one side, jumped up, gripping the rod, and started doing pull ups.
I didn't last too long, but after a break, I started again. By the time Renji came back in, my arms killed.
"How long have you been doing that?" he questioned, grabbing me by the waist and pulling me down.
"The entire time, basically."
"You're stupid."
"I know. So what's the verdict, Lieutenant?" he scowled.
"We're taking you back to your apartment, and watching from a distance." I sighed.
"I just can't win, can I? Alrighty, let's go."
"I... I'm not going." I looked at him, confused.
"I got promoted. You're staying under the jurisdiction of Squad Six." I blinked.
"That's great! So you're a captain now? Do you get to wear the haori now and stuff? What squad are you in charge of now?" he gripped my shoulders.
"Do you even care that I'm not going to be there?" I rolled my eyes.
"Yeah. But I'm used to loss at this point. The glass is half full. So... have fun being a captain? I hope you're happy in your new status." I paused, "Man you'll look spiffy in that haori. 'Hello, I'm Captain Abarai.'" I stuck my tongue out at him, and he pulled me into him, pressing a kiss to my lips. I smiled against his lips as his hands moved up to my neck. After a few more seconds, I pulled away and rested my forehead against his, eyes still closed.
"I will miss you, like I did those two weeks, and those otherthree weeks, but we live in different worlds. It doesn't matter how much I miss you, and crave you. Because there will probably be very few times when we'll see each other after this, if we see each other again at all. You'll fall in love with someone who'll live as long as you here, instead of dying, while you still look the same. I'll die an old cat lady, living in the same apartment. I'll have twenty seven cats. One of them will have unreasonably short legs. Another one will have no tail. And one will have a battle scar across it's eyes."
"You sound pretty decided about these cats."
"I had a long time to think about it while I thought you were dead." I took a deep breath.
"So we need to either say goodbye now, or not say goodbye at all."
"We're not saying goodbye."
"So we're just going to hope and pray that we'll see each other one more time, and then I'll get to be heartbroken, and you'll move on?" he chuckled.
"You make me sound like the bad guy."
"You're supposed to be strong. Now, I believe that butterfly is calling you." I said, eyeing the butterfly. He pulled me back into a one armed embrace while he listening to the message.
"Actually, it's calling you. Time to go home." I let go, and he did too, then took my hand, and shunpoed to the whatever gate. He let go, and I walked forward, looking at the armored convoy that was going to be watching me. Well, in my mind, that's what they looked like. In reality, it was seven black clad people, from head to toe, plus one dark haired man that reminded me a little of Ichigo. He had the hair. But he at a blue stripe tattoo across his left cheek and over the bridge of his nose. Three scars went from his hairline to his jaw on the right side, and there was a 69 tattooed below the blue line. Renji whispered something to him, and he nodded, then looked at me.
"Whenever you're ready." I shook my head, laughing quietly.
"Ready." the doors creaked open, and I shot through after the man with the tats.