ShiKai CH.24: The setting sun
Night turns to day
And I still have these questions.
Bridges will break
Should I go forward or backwards.
Night turns to day,
And I still get no answers
Just a whisper, a whisper, a whisper, a whisper
Just a whisper, a whisper, a whisper, a whisper
-A Whisper, Coldplay
~Karakura Town, five days later~
'...The flowers Takara was talking about, are over there.'
The teacher's voice went on, the dull scratch of pens filled his ears.
'Moonlils. They only blossom beneath the light of the full moon, though often it is erroneously stated that it is during the blue moon so hence--once in a rare blue moon. But that is folly. The Blue moon occurs over the Northlands, never over Tsukikage. They are pretty aren't they?'
"...saki. Kurosaki!"
He glanced up.
"Class is over. Didn't you hear the bell ring?" The teacher said gently, seeing the confusion in his eyes. At the door, Orihime and Chad waited; concern written all over her face.
~Assiah, Tsukikage Castle~
"He'll be waiting to take us to Las Noches at this point in Arcadia." Her finger landed on the name beside a patch of land surrounded by trees; a Park. Kagami straightened, his eyes on the map, but his words were to her, "Kurosaki asked about you yesterday."
"Hn?"
"He barged into Inoue's apartment when Hitsugaya-mini-Taichou was telling me about the acquittal Ukitake and Kyoraku-Taichous were having written up for me. Without it, if you recall, I'm prohibited from entering the living world and by proxy Seireitei."
Kei moved to the keyboard, glancing up at the display on the screen.
"Anyway, he goes over there and cuts in with--is Kei there? Hitsugaya elbows him out of the way, apologizing to me profusely. I tell him it's not necessary and inform the kid you aren't as a fact even in Tsukikage at the time. Surveying or something. And let me tell you...he looked really disappointed--hey, are you even listening to me?"
"Uh huh."
"Well, what did I just say?"
"Confirmation that everything is going exactly the way I wanted it to. What? Did you expect me to say something different?" Kei turned to him, a lack of interest in her manner that Kagami found slightly maddening. "That boy is falling in love with you and all you can say is everything's going the way you want it?!"
Kei thought a moment then nodded agreement, "yes, that sounds about right."
He made a noiseless snarling gesture at her back.
"I was thinking Ichigo might make a nice Third Division Captain to Takara as Lieutenant." She went on, oblivious to his indignation on the absent sub's behalf. "I was even considering a brief visit to Karakura to broach the subject to him. In the upcoming war, it would be sheer folly to present a lacking front with a Captain-less Division. I myself am much too occupied with my own responsibilities to keep a firm rein on them. Let alone you or Atari. So, yes...I think I should go post haste as soon as--"
"Hold on," Kagami backtracked; Kei waited.
"Am I to understand you're planning on offering the vacant Captaincy rank to a kid in his teens--who need I mention is also still living and most likely would not want to leave his family behind?!"
"Is there a problem with that?" Kei innocently asked in rhetorical fashion.
The water wielder sputtered a few inarticulate curses in English then simmered down somewhat, pinching at the bridge of his nose, "alright, I can only assume you must have some sort of ulterior motive for taking such a risky course. Now, what is it?"
"His Hollow."
"What!?"
"His hollow is an unforeseen hindrance I had heretofore not thought of." She explained patiently, "Hollows as you well know--like with Ren how it was in the beginning, are very unpredictable. It would be almost impossible to predict the movements or trouble it could cause, unlike with a human or Shinigami, their judgments are often impaired by emotions or feelings. A Hollow isn't so much ruled by the viewpoints of its host, more like it makes its own." Kei sighed and rubbed her forehead with tired fingers, "I met his Hollow and it saved me..."
"Saved you?" He sounded incredulous.
"Yes. As you know, I sustained some injuries that day when the seal broke on the Cazadores. I misjudged the depth to the wound I was given and was easily taken into Ichigo's mindscape by his Hollow. I have to admit...I was frightened. I was utterly at its mercy and little or none that it has..."
"What's the matter, Queen? You look huuurt. Has the bad Horse hurt you so badly?"
"The Hollow stabbed me when I demanded it take me back. Then I fell off the building trying to get away from it."
Kagami's expression became troubled, "and it still rescued you?!"
Kei smiled faintly, "mm hm. Imagine my surprise if you will, at seeing Ichigo's double coming after me. It didn't apologize nor did it do anything other than admit it loved me when I asked. Ichigo came not long afterwards, fully contrite and well-- you know the rest. So now do you see why I wish to have Ichigo as the third candidate for the Captaincy?"
"...So Takara can fight him and..."
"Cut the darkness from his soul. Precisely."
~Karakura Town, Kurosaki clinic~
"Ichi-nii? He's upstairs," Yuzu glanced toward the rest of the house, cooking spoon in hand, "should I get him?"
"Uh--no! No, that's alright," Renji said quickly, dropping to her eye-level, "I actually wanted to ask you girls about him. Without," he shot Karin who lurked, glaring at him in the background, "him knowing about it, 'kay? "
"Okay," Yuzu opened the door wider, "please, come in."
Once they were seated in the tiny living room, Renji rubbed his hands together nervously, casting a glance to the back, making sure there was no berry eavesdroppers hanging around. "I was just wondering how he is--I mean you know, around you guys?"
Karin harrumphed and leaned back; it was Yuzu who spoke up, "well, lately he's been..." she struggled, a frown puckering her small brow, "not finishing his dinner. Says he's not hungry and pushes the plate away only half-eaten. Dad commented something silly once and Ichi-nii looked like he took offense..." she trailed off uncertainly.
"What was it--do you remember?" Renji pressed.
"I think dad said he was lovesick over a girl. But Ichi-nii's not like that! He's not interested in girls!"
"He didn't deny it though...did he?" Karin muttered.
~*~
He was such an idiot!
If he had wanted to see her, he could've just...
Ichigo closed his eyes to the familiar surroundings of his room.
The late afternoon of Karakura, melded into the dark night surrounding Tsukikage. Light flickered from the fireplace, casting a dull gleam on the embroidery of the Haori draped over the chair. He glimpsed her retreating back, going into the next room.
A stone bathroom. A sunken tub took up one half, the whoosh of the running water suddenly audible to him. But then--
Her kimono fell into a puddled heap on the floor revealing a smooth expanse of fine unmarked skin only broken by the strapless row of black that soon was discarded. Her bra...
Ichigo began to panic. He had never dreamed of coming upon her when she was--
Undressing! He groaned. Her short hakama falling as well to join the kimono. Now she was only clad in panties and leaning up to adjust the spout sticking out of the wall. Inwardly he cursed, his breath becoming short. Look away! He had to--
He shut his eyes to her panties sliding off and was back in his room. Only perverts like Hat'n'clogs would've watched it all, he told himself, attempting to get his breathing under control. And Kurosaki Ichigo was no pervert! But still...no!
Inwardly arguing with himself for a time, he decided to try once more. His lids fluttered shut...
The water made gentle ripples, silvery in the cloud of steam curling around her bare shoulders. Ichigo felt his cheeks blaze but got closer anyway. Kei leaned on the side of the tub, her arms pillowing her head on the raised edge. She looked weary, he thought, seeing her eyes close and a soft yawn escape her sealed lips. Her hand dipped into the water and splashed some over her skin, the trickles ran down her back sinuously.
"...orra." She murmured softly. He sank to his knees near the tub, eyes on her face. She seemed...sad? "What is it?" he asked-ne-demanded. But of course she couldn't hear him.
'... thinking of him, wielder?'
The voice startled him. It came from beyond the open doorway, he immediately discerned its source as being the violet-black flames in the fireplace. Familiar. Wasn't that--
'You know such pining does not suit you--'
"Oh, shut up! You know nothing about it!" Kei grumbled, shifting back against the other wall, her arms draped along the sides. The water swooshed with her movements settling once more around her bosom. Ichigo modestly-of course, had averted his gaze slightly seeing her move at first but now looked back, trying not to stare to heavily at the shadow between the curve of her breasts
'Oh, I don't do I...? Then tell me that your heart doesn't race in his presence, that you're not fighting breathlessness--'
"Shut it."
'But then again I suppose I understand some of the need for reticence on your part. Any sort of relationship with him would be breaking all social and class taboos.'
Are we really all that different? Ichigo wondered.
"I know," her eyes closed as if in a drowse and for a short nerve-wracking while, he suspected just that. She had fallen asleep in the tub--but no, after a time, her lids fluttered, the intensity of her lilac gaze hadn't been diminished by time apart nor its effect on him. He blushed crimson before realizing with some disappointment she had not seen him as her steady gaze straight at him originally denoted. "But how can I possibly remedy that? I can't ask him to change who he is for my sake if it were at all feasible. So, what am I do?!"
My Hollow...he cursed its existence. If it wasn't there, then Kei wouldn't be...
'I don't know.' The fire admitted, crackling softly in thoughtfulness. For a time both were quiet, lost in their own musings, the silence pierced occasionally by the splish-splash of droplets cascading from her cupped palms. The room was filled with the scent of vanilla and roses with an undertone of fresh lavender in the sachet floating by her.
Ichigo inhaled deeply, wondering why he felt so... strange.
'Lavender,' commented the bird, 'to ease sleeplessness. Have you been having trouble getting rest, wielder?'
He was surprised to see the not-unappealing blush coloring her cheeks. "You mean you didn't know? I thought for sure you'd have been the first to notice."
Both knew what insomnia connoted other than a body in sore need of respite from the duties and attentions demanded on them every waking moment.
"I rest, but when I do...I dream. And that's much worse." She covered her face with her hands, fingers digging into her scalp at the fringes of her hairline. "In my dreams, he's there and everything is the way it was...but when I wake up, I'm alone!"
"Kei...I didn't know," he murmured, pained at the anguish he heard in her voice. "I'm sorry I didn't know you felt this way--but...but I'll come and see you as soon as I possibly can! Maybe tomorrow after school--oh hell with it! First thing tomorrow, I swear it..." he saw with a sinking futilely that it had had no effect on her. Can't hear me. He slammed his fist down, no pain corresponded with his hand meeting the stone floor. He had never felt so helpless before and never been made more angry by it.
'But you slept well that time in his arms.' Interposed the bird.
Her head rose, "he kept my nightmares away. It was strange though...how contented I felt with him lying against me, one arm around my body..." she smiled, "I suppose some would say it's one of the symptoms of falling in love?"
He didn't notice the hint of contempt in her voice, nor anything else for that matter. Distantly in the background, he heard his name being called. It was Yuzu. Dinner was ready.
His dad was busy and would leave him in peace for a while.
Tomorrow...he would go see her.
Ichigo opened his eyes slowly to the dim light of the setting sun filtering in through his window.
He wanted-no-needed to see her. No matter what the others said or thought.
It was clear that they both needed it.
...needed each other.
~To be continued~
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