Karakura Days and Nights
by Ulquiorra9000
Chapter 21: A Prayer for Health and Fortune (hey, this feels pretty good!)
Ichigo was respectfully mute as he and Grimmjow dug into their breakfast the next morning, and judging by the quiet, the rain had finally stopped. Well, the Mitsurashi Inn wasn't entirely quiet; through the walls, Grimmjow could hear Bambietta's loud chattering and Cang Du fussing at her to shut up for once.
Some things didn't change.
Cang Du had sent a group text to the Karakura archery club to be on standby and wait for news from Ryuken Ishida, so until then, Ichigo lounged and switched on the TV. The first thing that came up was some cooking show, so Ichigo hastily flipped the channel to a soccer game.
Grimmjow, meanwhile, slid open the wooden door that led to the porch. The sun was just barely poking out from behind a large gray cloud, and though the air was humid, at least things were clearing up. "Think it'll be dry enough to resume the match by midafternoon?" Grimmjow asked.
Ichigo nodded. "I don't think Cang Du can hold in his burning passion any longer than that."
"Got a point there." Grimmjow slid the door back shut and checked his phone for updates not on the competition, but his dad. Nothing so far; he'd have to trust Takeshi and his insurance company to handle things for now.
Still, Grimmjow felt a horrible pressure in his throat just picturing it. The family didn't have a lot of savings; where to from here? Did Grimmjow want to know?
This is nuts...
A text message popped onto the screen. From Halibel: Hey, Grimmjow... it's been a quiet morning, hasn't it? My family's staying at the Yamakura Inn, and there's a wonderful Shinto shrine nearby. How would you like to meet me there? Do you have time to spare?
He sure as hell did. He typed in: Sure, babe. I'll get a map of this place and I'll see you there.
Then Grimmjow set aside his phone just as a team scored on the TV. "I'm goin' on a quick trip," he said. He scooped up his student uniform and retreated to the bathroom to change into it. "See you later."
Ichigo waved a hand to show that he heard.
*o*o*o*o*
There were a few families out and about as Grimmjow hiked across Kagoshima Park's cobblestone paths, over hills and through clusters or gorgeous blossom trees as the weather continued to clear up. He traced his finger along a path on his map to keep a steady course, and before long, he found himself at what was probably the park's biggest shrine.
A huge, red-painted torii gate stood over the pathway, and just past it sat the shrine itself, majestic with its sloped roof and characters written in white paint on its walls. There was already a small crowd of chattering guests, some praying, others taking pictures. A tour guide tried to keep everyone in line and make sure nothing got damaged (this place looked pretty old, after all).
"Morning, hon," came a warm voice. Halibel broke from the crowd and joined Grimmjow under the torii gate, all smiles. Today, she wore a blue jacket and knee-length skinny jeans and sneakers, good clothes for moving around in.
Grimmjow managed a watery smile. "Good morning to you, too. Glad the rain stopped." He berated himself inside. This was no time to chat about the freaking weather!
"Yeah. I hope it stays clear for your archery," Halibel said, shielding her eyes as the sun finally emerged from behind that cloud. "At any rate... did you sleep well? Was this your first time staying at a ryokan?"
"Sure was," Grimmjow admitted. "It's totally fancy in there. I could do this all the time..."
Halibel giggled. "I know what you mean. In fact, I..." Her face fell as she leaned closer, her sea-green eyes studying her boyfriend's face. "What's the matter?"
Grimmjow blinked. "Uh, n-nothing..."
Halibel gently took Grimmjow's upper arms in her hands and steered him further from the crowd. "I've learned to read you," she told him. "I can tell you're upset. Do you want to talk about it?"
"I..." Grimmjow froze. This was such a great place, and he didn't want to weigh down on the trip... but it was hard to say no to that face. He swallowed. "I got news from my dad last night. He... he got let go from his job. It's a small firm; they had to replace him, y'know, for money reasons..." His voice trailed off as a cold feeling sank into his guts.
"Oh." Halibel nodded slightly, then wrapped her arms around him in a tight, warm hug, resting her chin on his shoulder. "I'm sorry to hear that. Really, I am."
Grimmjow made funny sputtering noises. "I... but... it's not your fault...?"
"I understand if you need some time alone to process this," Halibel said quietly into his ear.
"N-no, I... did some processing last night. I think." Grimmjow fought for his words, then realized something. He hugged Halibel back, keeping her close. He didn't care who was watching. "Besides, I don't have to bealone. I mean, I've got you."
"I suppose you do," Halibel said warmly into Grimmjow's shoulder. "Thank you. Just stay strong, okay? I know you can do it."
"I'll have to try, won't I?"
Halibel broke away from him and put her hands on her hips, glancing over her shoulder at the shrine. "Look, um... if you like, I mean, if..."
"Go ahead."
"How about a prayer?" Halibel offered with a timid smile. "I understand if you're not a very religious person, but it can make you feel better, and more connected to our history. I've visited a few Shinto shrines with my family before, and I always feel better after it."
Takeshi and his ex-wife had been pretty down-to-earth people and it carried over to their son, but heck, it sounded like a great offer... Grimmjow nodded. "Let's try it out."
They passed under the torii gate together and worked their way through the small crowd, finding themselves right at the shrine in all its glory. Grimmjow stood there, unsure where to start. "Um..."
"Here." Halibel pointed at a collections box. "You can put in any amount as an offering."
"Sure." Grimmjow popped out his wallet and put in a 500 yen coin.
Halibel smiled. "Okay, the next step is to ring the bell once."
Grimmjow obeyed, and he savored the rich, full sound of the bell's toll. After that, he followed Halibel's directions and bowed twice, then muttered his prayer to whatever kami was listening. He prayed for Takeshi's swift recovery and fortune, and good luck for the whole family. They'd sure need it, and though Grimmjow wasn't much of a Shinto man, he put all his concentration into it. He clapped his hands once on cue, bowed one more time, and stepped away.
"There you go," Halibel said kindly, hands back on her hips. "how do you feel?"
"I, uh..." Grimmjow looked at his open hands as though expecting magic powder on them. "It felt... kinda good. I mean, it let me get all this off my chest, and have a little hope. Like you told me to do." He managed another smile, a more genuine one this time.
Halibel took one of Grimmjow's hands in hers and squeezed. "Just remember that feeling, okay? Anytime you feel down, or overwhelmed... it works for me, at least. I wanted you to feel it, too."
"Thanks, babe. This was a pretty cool trip after all."
They set off along the cobblestone path together, passing under the torii gate once again. "So, you've seen other shrines?" Grimmjow asked.
"A few," Halibel said fondly. She kept Grimmjow's right hand in her left with a gentle but possessive grip. "When I was fourteen, my parents took me to see the Kasuga-taisha shrine in Nara Prefecture. It was amazing! You get there by walking on a path that goes through a deer park, and inside, there's a bunch of lanterns made of bronze, and the buildings were simply beautiful..."
Halibel's reminesces of family trips went on for a while, and Grimmjow took in every word as the weather kept clearing up overhead and a light breeze picked up. Finally, things were starting to feel right again!
He didn't go back to the Mitsurashi Inn until Cang Du forwarded a text from Ryuken announcing that the archery meet was about to resume.
*o*o*o*o*
The students of Shinagara high school didn't miss a beat. Once the meet resumed, they let loose with their mad archery skills, showing those target dummies no mercy. Grimmjow and Ichigo stood side by side, doin' whatever they could to keep up. Karakura's team kept falling behind, but to heck with it, just doing something, feeling the weight of the drawstring, and seeing arrows thud into the target cheered Grimmjow up a little.
The next field had a series of stylized practice dummies with targets painted on them, everything from a bear to a good-luck cat to a giant bumblebee to a cartoony samurai and a pirate with a wide-brimmed straw hat. Somehow, one of Ichigo's arrows went off-target and pierced the straw-hat pirate right under its left eye.
"Oh, damn," Grimmjow said lightly. "That poor pirate's gonna have a scar for the rest of his life!"
"Eh, he'll tough it out," Ichigo said with a quick grin.
Cang Du unleashed his own archery prowess and even got his own "Robin Hood", splitting one of his own arrows on a target of am upright monkey that wore an orange shaolin monk robe. Grimmjow tried to do that too, but alas, his aim wasn't that good. At least he met the average score of the Shinagara students, but once the final scored rolled in, the deal was closed.
"The scores have been tallied. Shinagara high school is the winner," Ryuken announced, and the families and friends of Shinagara's team cheered in the bleachers while Bazz-B gave Cang Du a smug look.
"Hey, at least you guys put in a good effort," Bazz-B told Cang Du.
Cang Du shrugged, his face as impassive as ever. "We certainly did. It was a good match."
"Told you we're the best!" Giselle added, pointing her index finger as a #1.
"The very best," Bazz-B added. "Too bad we're seniors, Cang Du, or we could do this again next year, and I could kick your butt again -"
There was a sudden flash of movement. Uryu stormed right over and seized the collar of Bazz-B's uniform, shoving his face close to the other's. "You better knock it off right now!" Uryu snarled, "or I'm going to -"
"Let him go, Uryu," Ryuken said coldly, wrenching his son off of Bazz-B. His glasses' panes flashed in the sunlight. "Don't cause an incident."
"Right. I understand." Uryu was still flushed and clearly furious, drawing away from his dad. Bambietta, though, had other ideas.
"Yeah! You tell 'em!" she hollered, wrapping Uryu in a tight hug and sticking her tongue out at Bazz-B. "Shinagara is for punks and freaks!"
A few people laughed as Cang Du's face soured. "I can't believe this is my team," he muttered.
Despite Karakura's loss, the bus ride back home felt much cheerier than the ride here, at least for Grimmjow. Funny how things worked out that way!