Massive thank you to UtauMuse, Levi365 and the Guest who left me comments for my last chapter :D
Sorry its been a hot minute! I've been working for 12 days straight and I've had wisdom tooth issues and car issues and so much going on hahaha
Hopefully this chapter was worth the wait :D
༻❁༺
Hisana knew she was pushing her luck. The fire, thicker than fog, was clouding her vision. Her breathing apparatus had already cracked and she could barely see through the glass.
But she could hear the child screaming for help.
Her chances of survival, if she continued, were treacherously low, but it was hard to care about numbers and statistics when a voice was calling out to you, begging you to help them. Hisana raised her axe and chopped at the charred wood of the apartment door. It pierced the timber with a crunch and she yanked it back again, getting ready for the next blow. She continued until she had created a sizeable opening for her lithe body to fit through.
She was panting heavily, and in the precious few minutes it had taken to chop her way through the door, the voice that had been screaming had gone quiet.
In a state of near panic, Hisana tried to push her way through the opening, but part of the ceiling had collapsed against the door, making the space tighter. The wide brim of her mask couldn't fit through the opening. Desperate to make sure she wasn't too late, Hisana pulled the mask off. It was against every rule she'd ever been taught, but she had to know the fate of the tiny soul still trapped in the room.
She stuck her head through the opening she'd created and shouted out.
Her ears strained against the wild roaring and creaking of the building, but she heard someone call faintly back to her. It was the only incentive that Hisana needed. She had to be fast, she'd need to return to her mask or, ideally, get out the building. If she could get the child to a window, they could signal to the ground below for a life net.
With practiced ease, she lifted her body up against the doorframe and slid through the tiny crack she'd made in the door.
༻❁༺
Hisana woke with a start. Her entire body felt like it was on fire. She rolled over and groaned, there was no relief from the heat and when she tossed back the covers on her bunk, she lay in a puddle of her own sweat.
'Been a while,' she mumbled to herself, rubbing a hand across her face as she sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, 'since I had that dream.'
She had no doubt in her mind that her dreams were remnants of her previous life. Other souls often spoke about reliving parts of their previous lives in their dreams, but hers always seemed to be the day she died. Hisana wished she could get the same dream her peers did. They'd dream of random day outings, their kid's graduations or some other normal event.
Hisana seemed to be the only freshman she knew, who was plagued with dreams of the day she died.
It was as if her body was trying to call some significance to it.
Hisana had not shared her dreams with anyone, not even Toki. In truth, she was ashamed. She wished she could re-live the scenes longer so she could find out what happened to the little girl she'd been trying to save.
'Are you awake already?' Toki asked, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. The deep breaths of the other women in their barracks were even and quiet, but the encroaching sunlight through the dusty window at the back of the building told her it was only a matter of time before the alarms went off.
'Excited,' Hisana lied smoothly. Toki fixed her with a bleary stare before yawning widely.
'Only you would be excited about extra lessons,' she scoffed.
Almost a year had passed since they'd joined the academy and despite her previous apprehension about lessons, Hisana had found her calling. She wasn't great at Hakuda or Zanjutsu but she had excelled in Kido.
There was something about memorising incredibly complex incantations and spells that Hisana loved. For once she wasn't reliant on the strength of her physical body to be able to overthrow an opponent, but rather her mind.
It had been hard to put the books down, she'd learned every spell she could in a short amount of time. Eventually her Instructors had scratched their heads and told her there was nothing more that she could learn at the academy, but Onabara-san had promised to find her a tutor. Someone inside the Seireitei, who excelled in Kido, would be willing to give her advanced lessons. He'd told her on the Friday that the person would be meeting her on Monday morning at 6 am sharp.
Hisana climbed down the wooden ladders of her bed to the floor and tried to hide her shaky legs from view of Toki. The other woman wasn't watching her though as she gathered up a towel and change of uniform, she was too busy yawning widely once more.
'Go back to sleep,' Hisana said softly, gazing reproachfully at her.
'Can't,' Toki said with her eyes closed, half asleep where she sat, 'gotta support you. Gotta be a good friend.'
Hisana chuckled, 'you can be a supportive friend in your dreams.'
'How?'
'By getting enough sleep for the two of us,' Hisana walked past her friend's bunk as she slumped back down against the pillows causing the wooden bed frame to groan under the weight.
''kay.'
Smiling to herself, Hisana padded toward the large shared bathroom to wash and change. The last thing she wanted, was to turn up to her new tutor covered in sweat from a recurring nightmare.
She'd learned that there were very few souls adept in Kido. Most of the Kido Masters had been wiped out by the most recent war that had devastated the Soul Society. It made her curious who her tutor would be, they'd have to be a high seated officer to know enough Kido to be able to teach her, Hisana had come a long way studying Kido herself with the help of her tutors and was on track to becoming a Kido Expert in the next year or two.
Her teachers were all really proud, said they'd not seen someone that gifted in Kido since Lieutenant Hinamori had been in the academy.
Hisana tied her zanpakuto around her waist and made her way to the Academy. Onabara-san had told her to meet him in the training grounds where they usually practiced Kido, but hadn't told her who the instructor would be. Nervous and excited, Hisana made her way to the very spot she'd been told.
The morning light was groggy, the pale blue of the sky signalling that gentle period between the tail end of dawn and the heat of the full sun rise. It was Hisana's favourite time of the day. Wild kikyo and yoshi fragranced the air and as Hisana passed through the grounds, matsu and sugi tree's left a tang on the back of her tongue when she breathed them in.
She arrived early as always, to see an apprehensive Onabara-san pacing back and forward across the engawa of the small barracks located there. When he sensed her coming he glanced up and his face flooded with relief.
'You're early, thank goodness,' he said, forgoing the formality.
'Yes, Onabara-san,' Hisana said, bowing deeply and not forgetting her own.
'We have to talk,' he said. His voice sounded a notch higher than usual, as if something was causing him great anxiety. Hisana glanced curiously up into his dark brown eyes, she could see the panic on his face.
Hisana didn't wish to question him, nor push him, so merely inclined her head politely.
'Your tutor…'
Her heart sunk. They'd not shown up?
'Is of a higher rank than we'd expected when we put out the request,' he continued.
Hisana felt taken aback, that hadn't been the news she'd been gearing up for. She remained silent, watching him try and process his next words, she'd never seen the older man struggle this much before.
'I know you're one of our model students, and I know you won't step out of bounds, just- just be considerate at all times,' Onabara-san had started walking ahead of her, and Hisana followed politely a few steps behind him. He continued to talk, reminding her of proper etiquette but Hisana was only half listening as her brain jumped around all possible scenarios of who could have come.
When they'd initially put out the request, the Academy had told her to expect someone of fifth seat level to come. They only needed someone at an adequate level since Hisana wasn't quite ready to push for expert yet.
If they'd managed to get someone who was an expert, then they'd have to be at least Lieutenant level. Her mind whirled over all the Kido Experts she'd memorised by name, trying to imagine which one it would be. There was Lieutenant Hinamori of course, Lieutenant Kotetsu, Lieutenant Matsumoto, Lieutenant Ise, Lieutenant Kira… the rest were all at Captain level.
Her stomach twisted uncomfortably, trying to process who it was when she was lead to a shoji and adopted dogeza. The door was slid open for her and Hisana waited a respectful few moments with her head bowed, before introducing herself.
'My name is Hisana Inuzuri, and I am very grateful to you for coming to help me learn,' she waited for them to respond.
They waited a while, perhaps scrutinising her dogeza or taking time to consider their words.
'There is no need to be so formal.'
The voice was low, baritone, yet rung with command as if it had been shouted. It wasn't this that had caused Hisana's stomach to coil, it was the fact that, without even looking up, without having ever heard him speak, she knew exactly who that voice belonged too. Tentatively, Hisana raised her head, her assumption confirmed, as she stared back into the dark stormy eyes of Captain Byakuya Kuchiki.
༻❁༺
Remember if you wish to keep up to date with my work progress and chapter progress you can get my trello link at the bottom of my profile, or thelink to our Bleach fan fiction discord server too :D come bug me and say hello!
Reviews and shares are also appreciated :D