Bleached: Ep. 25
Disclaimer: No matter how many times we write Bleach fan-fic, we still do not own a scrap of it! Airi and Zezuri, however, remain ours.
Note: Happy 4th! (If anyone really care) -Airi
Hanataro's main reason for entering Airi's room was actually to clean the floors, which he was now in the process of doing. Like Isane, he feared the arrancar girl even though he knew she was presently harmless. But, he thought, if she was once a human, how did she become an arrancar? The only was as for as he knew was for a human sould to become a hollow and then an arrancar. Zezuri, he was certain, didn't know this, so what had happened? "Um…" he started.
Airi cast her gaze on the shinigami, "What?"
"I-I know this might be rude of me f-for asking, b-but, how did you b-become an a-arrancar?" Hanataro braced himself expecting a harsh response from the wounded arrancar.
Airi's gaze intensified as if she were staring though Hanataro into the past. "It's really a blur in my mind," she stated, "I was in Aizen's office, because he called me there. Tosen and Gin, I think his name was, grabbed me and Aizen slammed some box-thing into me," Airi put a hand to where her hollow hole was.
"W-what happened then?"
"I don't remember much more other than a ton of pain, because I passed out soon after that. I woke up some time later back in my cell."
Hanataro stared at the mask fragments in Airi's hair, her story sounded true enough, but these were dangerous times, only just over a month ago had Aizen faked his own death, almost flawlessly too. Soul Society was still in a state of panic and disorder.
--
Unohana and Zezuri returned later in the evening. Zezuri rushed to Airi's room, "They're torturing him!" she cried after Airi asked what had happened. "He was barely alive when I got there, they, they used poison!" Zezuri sobbed uncontrollably into the sleeve of her kimono; she wasn't allowed into Airi's room other than the doorway.
"You were able to heal him, right?"
Zezuri nodded, "But… what if they do it again?"
Airi had no response, she'd used up the one shred of optimism she'd had.
"I'm really worried, Airi," Zezuri said choking back more tears.
Airi was worried too, after all Grimmjow was something of an ally or a friend to her and she was aware that he meant a lot more to Zezuri. "Grimmjow's a tough one, he can gang in there, somehow." Airi hoped what she said was true.
Unohana suddenly appeared in the doorway behind Zezuri, announcing that she'd like to speak with Airi again.
--
Zezuri left, heading down the hallway, wiping the tears from her face. The sleeves of her blue kimono were getting quite wet by now. She hadn't been paying attention to the hall in front of her when she almost walked into Renji.
"Watch were you're going, you could get hurt if you aren't careful," he gently admonished, "Hey, what're you crying about now?" The red haired shinigami was getting used to Zezuri's tears, but still wished he could do something for her.
"They're hurting Grimmjow," she spoke between sobs.
Renji put an arm around her waist and gently picked her up, "We've got to get back before the captain gets mad," he explained as he carried her back to sixth division.
--
"I've talked to Soi-Fon and she's given me permission to keep you here instead of the second division prison," Retsu Unohana told her captive.
This was good news for Airi, but what of Grimmjow? Was there any hope in his future?
"However, should we, after more interrogation, decide you are too dangerous to contain, I'm afraid I cannot promise you anything."
Never mind, thought Airi, I'm still in the same position, just a different prison.
"Unohana, may we enter?" a vaguely familiar voice came from the doorway.
"Yes, Hitsugaya, Matsumoto, you don't have to ask."
Two more shinigami entered the room. One was a tall woman with vibrant orange hair. She wore her uniform so that it exposed more of her chest than Airi would have dared let show.
The sight of the other shinigami sent sparks flying across Airi's body. She knew he meant no harm, but some natural reflexes had taken over. Before her now stood Toshiro Hitsugaya, the last person she could remember fighting.
"So, it's really true. If she was any normal arrancar she would of attack at anytime by now, but she hasn't…" Toshiro thought out loud.
"Are you really saying that you're sure she was human?" Rangiku asked, unsure.
"That's what I heard… is that true?" he asked Airi.
"Yeah… but it's… getting hard to remember that I was," Airi responded.
"If you stay in this state for much longer, all human qualities will be lost, or so I have reason to believe," Toshiro stated.
--
Meanwhile, Renji and Zezuri had returned to sixth division. Zezuri wasn't crying but still depressed.
"Hey, um… you should get some fresh air, how about we eat dinner outside?" Renji asked scratching the back of his head.
The two sat on the porch by the courtyard watching the fireflies start glowing as the sun slowly set. Momo, the girl shinigami from earlier showed up and joined them on the porch. The group of three commented on the weather and everything but the arrancars. Then, two more shinigami joined the gathering.
"Are we having a party?" Matsumoto inquired as and Hitsugaya showed up in sixth division's courtyard.
"Toshiro!" gladly exclaimed Momo.
"It's Captain Hitsugaya!"
"What are you two doing here?" Renji asked.
"I was checking in on Momo," the short captain stated.
Momo blushed slightly and looked away. It hadn't been that long since she had recovered from Aizen's attack. While her physical wounds were mostly healed, Hitsugaya worried about his older sister's mental state.
While Renji and Hitsugaya discussed related topics, Matsumoto approached Zezuri, "So, you must be Zezuri. I'm Matsumoto Rangiku, lieutenant of tenth division," Rangiku introduced herself.
"Um… hello." Zezuri replied with a half smile.
"We actually just came here after visiting fourth division," Matsumoto started up a conversation, like always.
Zezuri looked at the woman who was speaking to her.
"Your friend Airi, she's losing herself to her hollow part." Zezuri's eyes went wide; she hadn't realized Airi had been fighting herself on the inside.
"What will happen to her?" she asked.
"We don't know; she's the first human we've known of to go hollow as she did. I suspect she'll lose the battle; after all she didn't look like she cared too much about being locked up. I'd bet she already knows what'll happen when the hollow takes over."
"What?"
"We will have no choice but to destroy her."
"I-isn't there anything we can do?"
Matsumoto shook her head sadly. "It's amazing she's resisted for this long."
Zezuri's eyes filled up with tears. "Now, now, no time for tears tonight, we can worry about it tomorrow. Your friend still has some fight left in her," Rangiku, despite her revealing appearance, had a calming voice. She patted Zezuri on the head. "Well, if this is a party, where's the sake!?" Rangiku exclaimed suddenly with a grin.
"S-sake!?" Zezuri exclaimed nervously.
"Matsumoto, I'm afraid we don't have any," said Renji.
"What?!" You can't have a party without sake!"
"This isn't a party."
"Then what is it?"
"Dinner. On the porch."
Matsumoto eventually calmed down and decided she didn't need the sake after all.
--
Isane brought some food to Airi's room shortly after the tenth captain and lieutenant departed. "Hanataro told Unohana and I what you said… about being human," the silver haired shinigami said as she set the tray down on a table by the bed.
"So that's how they knew," Airi commented.
"I didn't think it was possible for a human to be turned into a hollow without being a spirit first," Isane was attempting to be friendly, after all she felt sorry for the girl she was now helping sit up. Previous to this, Unohana and Isane had been discussing Airi's condition.
"It doesn't look like she's going to fight the hollow part for much longer," The captain had said.
"Why not?"
"She's been through so much. Remember she was kidnapped, tortured and the captured again. Airi's running out of hope."
Isane knew quite well that a major factor in a patient's recovery was their attitude. Maybe she could restore some of Airi's lost hope by being friendlier.
Thanks for reading! See ya next time!