Undertones
By: WhisperedSilvers
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I'm not Snow White, but I'm lost inside this forest
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wet and wild
Her Captain was a strange one, Rangiku was sure of. She didn't know what she had walked in on, but she needed to set the stage—her entertainment would be the hottest gossip in Soul Society—she could just imagine the rumors. It was simply enjoyable.
Rukia Kuchiki—her infamous cool and collected façade—much like her brother's—was cracking. She should have expected it, really. She knew that sweet little girl had an ocean worth of difference between her and her clan; because she was blushing and she was so very flustered that Rangiku felt a small sliver of sympathy.
Her Captain was pushing his limits—he wanted to see how far he could take his—whatever the hell he was doing. Really Rangiku should have been shocked at this different personality that he was exuding, but she wasn't. Because she knew her Captain and it took someone—a very special someone to provoke and create a reaction like that. She didn't think it would be Rukia.
"Rukia, it's jasmine tea." She paused for a moment, "How do you take your tea?"
Rukia looked at Rangiku, grateful for the distraction. Hitsugaya was still sitting next to her, he was still so very close to her and his lieutenant took his seat and now was facing the opposite of them.
Ignorance was bliss, right?
"Just some sugar," Rukia replied, mentally counting the grains of the rice ball in her hand. Fifty-three, fifty-four, fifty-five—
"That's such a pretty rice-ball, Rukia," Rangiku cooed at the pretty pink onigiri, it was pastel pink and tied tightly with seaweed. "Where'd you get these rice-balls Captain? I've never seen such rice like this."
Hitsugaya leaned toward the table, with meticulous movements he placed his elbows on his knees and grabbed a pastel green rice-ball, "I ordered them from a stall in Junrinan. Granny used to take Momo and I there."
Matsumoto hmm'd in acknowledgement. Rukia was slightly surprised at how he casually he revealed his personal information. It was as if he didn't care for giving out such information, she knew that his lieutenant was very close to him—despite his hostile temper and icy comments. But close, nonetheless.
But she was here and she really didn't know him, so why—why would he give that information out freely?
Perhaps she was overthinking things. Rukia gritted her teeth, her amethyst orbs frosted slightly, she seemed to be acting on her emotions which was not her intention—the ice Captain seemed to bring the unrefined sides out of her—these feelings that she tried so desperately to bury inside herself.
It's like he wanted to see the edges of her personality.
She wouldn't let him get so close—no she couldn't afford for him to get so close.
"Rukia," Rangiku handed her a cup of jasmine, the scent immediately calming her thoughts. She nodded in thanks before slowly sipping the hot beverage, enjoying the way the liquid seemed to seep into her nerves, like liquid velvet.
"Would you like the tamagoyaki or the miso and fish?" Rangiku added in after a quick sip of her tea, her hands brushing against the omelets that were next to the anpan. They looked so good.
"The miso and fish," She replied quickly, ignoring the way Hitsugaya turned slightly towards her, his eyes boring onto the side of her face.
"You prefer the boring miso and fish over the omelet?" Matsumoto asked surprised, "They are quite bland, Rukia."
Rukia nodded, "I prefer traditional foods rather than fancy dishes."
Blue eyes blinked before slyly flickering over to her Captain's stature, his eyes were so curious, as he looked at Rukia, with his head tilted softly and the corners of his mouth twitching.
"I would think that Captain Kuchiki would have you eating fancy dishes and rare cuisines," Hitsugaya commented lightly, he was wondering if she would take the bait.
But Rukia would do not go down without fight. No, she wouldn't. Calmly she sipped her tea, grabbed a pink rice-ball, bit into the rice, her neatly refined etiquette firmly in place as she bit into the rice, chewing swiftly and neatly as she actually could. She swallowed thoughtfully, before replying quietly, "It's a matter of personal preference, sir."
Hitsugaya smirked and Rangiku had to swallow a shriek. There were only a handful of times she could recall seeing him act like this—it was a shred of happiness and the lieutenant nearly had to bite her lip from smiling.
Rukia did not like that smirk. Absolutely not. It felt like he had her backed into a trap. Like he was the predator and he was playing with his prey.
"So you prefer things that were more traditional than things that are modern?"
It took a second for Rukia to decipher the double meaning and when she did her eyes widened fractionally.
"I didn't say that," She replied slowly, she tried to rake her brain for a response, but it was if all her thought processes came to a stop, "I prefer traditional foods rather than fancy dishes."
"Why?"
This time Rukia couldn't ignore him. She turned her to face him and nearly yelped in shock at close he was sitting next to her. His teal eyes were burning and she could've sworn she saw a flash of silver in them.
"What do you mean why?" Rukia asked not fully understanding the question, she could've sworn Rangiku leaned closer to see their interaction, but she couldn't find the will to care.
Hitsugaya leaned into the couch, his tea cradled in between his hands and he looked so casual, the dark-haired woman had to blink a few times to remember to breathe, "Is there a specific reasoning to why you like more traditional items rather than modern items?"
Rukia's tone was calm when she replied, "I like traditional food because," She paused for a moment, before deciding to add in a small detail, "I'm used to it."
That was all the information she was going to give him, she turned her head to face Matsumoto before finishing the rest of her rice-ball and moving onto the fish. It was steamed with lemon and wild-grass. She muttered her thanks before grabbing a pair of chopsticks and plopping the piece meat into her mouth.
She closed her eyes and chewed slowly.
"How does it taste?" Rangiku asked curiously, her mouth quirked at the edges.
Rukia opened her eyes and replied with a deadpanned tone, "Like fish."
The blonde pouted, "Does it taste bad? Because that anpan is calling my name."
The dark-haired woman offered her plate to her, "Try a piece."
If Rangiku was surprised of the little Kuchiki offering her some of her food, she didn't show it. From her particular experience with her clan, they weren't exactly the most pleasant people that believed in the issue of compassion. But here Rukia was graciously offering her some of her own food.
Without faltering she swiped a chunk of fish and stuffed it comically into her mouth, her eyes thoughtful before they crinkled at the edges, "It doesn't taste bad," Her mouth twisted into a grimace.
"It's plain."
Rukia nodded, "It doesn't have anything fancy in it, but when you pair it with the soup," She paused to grab the spoon in the small bowl of miso next to her fish and sipped the broth, "It balances the plainness of the fish."
"I see." Rangiku hmm'd in acknowledgement at this newfound piece of information. "I still want the anpan though!"
Rukia's lip curled in amusement, exposing the very small hint of a smile. She grabbed another bite of the fish before chewing.
"What are your plans today, Captain?" The blonde asked snacking on the sweet anpan, the flaky crust dancing on her taste buds.
"I'm taking Kuchiki to the *Kobaruto no Taki after breakfast—"
"You can take her there?" Matsumoto cut him off in surprise, her eyebrow raised in incredulity.
Hitsugaya glared, "Yes, I can."
"But Captain, that place is, well—" She paused trying to pick the correct word, "It's secluded."
"And?"
"Well, that place is only meant for Captains and Lieutenants!" She exclaimed before wincing at her careless words, "No offense Rukia, but I don't—"
Hitsugaya spoke coolly, his irritation coating his words, "Kuchiki is coming with me and that's final, Matsumoto."
"What exactly is the Kobaruto no Taki?" Rukia inserted curiously, indirectly saving Hitsugaya's lieutenant from an earful.
"Well," Rangiku started, grateful to the smaller shinigami from saving her from her Captain's wrath, "It's outside of the Rukon District."
Her eyebrows furrowed, "But isn't the land outside of the Soul Society uncharted?"
"Yes, that's what makes it more hazardous."
Hitsugaya scowled, "Matsumoto—" It was warning, "She will be under my protection." He looked at his lieutenant with barely controlled rage, "Do you doubt your Captain?"
Rangiku visibly blanched, her hands up in defense, "Now Captain—"
"I don't need your protection," Rukia interrupted their argument. She didn't want to be the cause of such a dispute, nor did she want to be a burden. The way Hitsugaya flickered his eyes to look at her shouldn't have her heart twisting in her chest.
"You don't need or you don't want?" He cocked a snowy eyebrow, his mouth twisted into a mocking smile.
Rukia allowed the anger to slide through her body like an icy coil before calmly answering with a faint bite in her tone, "Both."
He sighed in scorn, "Unfortunately," Hitsugaya clicked his teeth together, his teal eyes darkening into cerulean, "That is not something you get to decide."
Rukia bit the inside of her cheek, but let the subject drop. She grabbed her cup and sipped the last of her now, cold tea.
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I'm not red riding hood
But I think the wolves have got me
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Kobaruto no Taki was a few hours journey. After leaving the outskirts of the Soul Society, the vegetation had grown immensely and it was wilder. The brush was thick in a narrow strip; mountains and the beginning of a desert seemed to be from after the mountain range. The air was thick with humidity and when Rukia inhaled she could feel the thin layer of water coat her lungs. The forestry was dense, with vines and wildflowers clouding the barely visible dirt path that was heavily speckled with moss.
Rukia quietly wondered if it was acceptable for a Captain to take this much time off from his duties. Based on observation, she knew that the Captain of the Tenth division had a slight sadistic streak, even though it was severely concealed—she was able to pick up slight twists in his mannerisms, mostly because of her communications with her very stoic brother. She pondered on whether or not he had his lieutenant pull for most of his paperwork, or if he punished her in some sort of way.
Rukia's foot slipped underneath the root of an oak tree and the branch from the willow tree that was adjacent to the oak nearly slapped her in the face. Inwardly cursing, she ducked quickly before leaping towards a flat surface on the path.
"You're quite clumsy." Hitsugaya stated breaking the silence, he watched slide to a stop, violet eyes snapping towards him.
"Not really." She replied quickly, her hand stroking her sash of her zanpakuto.
"So that slip was just my imagination?"
"Precisely."
Was that a muffled laugh she just heard? She didn't even know that the Captain could laugh until last night, but that was booming laughter. This was more of snicker, but what did he exactly find funny?
"I didn't know you have a sense of humor, Kuchiki." Hitsugaya's tone was laced with mirth; he ran hand threw his snowy fringe before raising an eyebrow at her.
"There are a lot of things you don't know about me, Captain Hitsugaya." She replied casually, her feet searching for the harder parts of the road.
"I know," He agreed, his teal eyes caught hers and Rukia didn't realize she was holding her breath, "But isn't that what makes things so much more interesting?"
Something inside her stilled, "What do you mean?"
"Curiosity is, in great, and generous minds, the first passion and the last." Hitsugaya claimed, his eyes left hers and he used shunpo to flash over the small hill near the edge of the brush.
Rukia blinked slowly.
No, she wouldn't think of this now, she wouldn't question his choice of his words—no, not now, she'd tuck this conversation in the farthest section in the back of her mind. She would deal with it later; she had no time to deal with his cryptic words. She had other things to concentrate on.
With just the slightest tint of hesitation, she used shunpo to catch up with the Tenth Division's Captain and nearly gasped in surprise.
It was a clearing. With unblemished water, rippling into sparkling shades of blue. The waterfall gurgling with white ripples and pooling into what looked like a lake. It looked deep and she was sure that if she stood in the water she could see every single pore on her legs. The hill that she used shunpo over covered the clearing, giving it the illusion of it having a higher incline.
The grass was green, sage green and it looked so healthy that she wanted to touch the blades of the vegetation—just to feel how soft it was.
The willow tree towards the left of the clearing teased the water with its branches, the trees swaying with the slightest hint of silver from the wind, she felt so peaceful.
Without knowing Rukia felt her lips turn into small smile, "This is incredible."
"I thought you would like it." Hitsugaya replied, the corner of his lips twitched at the serene pool, he raised his arms to cross behind his head, "Kobaruto no Taki is swimming with reishi, which is why I contemplated this place to be a good training ground."
He tilted his head slightly to glance at her and was slightly surprised to see the trace of a smile, "Captains and Lieutenants are the only officers that are permitted to be here, mostly because their spiritual pressures are significantly higher than those of their squad." The sun beamed lightly against his tanned skin, "Your spiritual pressure is equivalent to a lieutenant's."
Rukia walked towards the lake and crouched. The back of her tank top riding up, showing the slightest silver of skin. She heard his comment on the level of her spiritual pressure, but she didn't comment.
Despite having the same amount of spiritual pressure as a lieutenant's, it still didn't change the fact that she isn't a lieutenant. Her hand danced in the cool water, her hand visible in the liquid. Reishi swam up to her hand, glowing in a silvery, ethereal light. "Can the temperature change?"
"Yes," He crouched next to her and she stiffened—she could feel the heat radiating off of his skin and she really needed to think. "But that's a lesson for another time."
Uncomfortable with his proximity, she stood up quickly and crossed her arms under her chest defensively, "Then what are we going to do today Captain?"
Hitsugaya stood up as well and placed his zanpakuto against the tree near the lake. "Today we are going to work on our shinsei sainou."
"How?" Rukia raised an eyebrow in question.
Hitsugaya was suddenly in front of her and before she could even blink—his hand pressed into her stomach and she released a choked breath, her body landing into the water unceremoniously. Within seconds she broke the surface, sputtering and looking at the man with snow-hair in incredulity.
Amused he was and then he smirked, "Well—first, you have to get in the water."
She nearly growled. Just because he was Captain did not mean she would let him walk all over her, absolutely not. Her temper snapped. Summoning her reiatsu into her hand she twisted her fingers, into what looked like a spiral. An ice rope formed and like a leech it grabbed onto his foot, and it coiled around his appendage like a snake.
Hitsugaya's eyes widened, he couldn't break the rope because it was made from her reiatsu and his zanpakuto was back by the tree—she yanked and he fell into the water.
Quickly she released her reiatsu, the energy dispersing into her body like warm water.
He broke the surface quickly, water clotting into his grey eyelashes, his snowy hair, a darker gray. His eyebrows furrowed in irritation, ready to spit fire, "Kuchiki—"
"Why didn't you break the rope?"
"It was made from your reiatsu, therefore I can't break it."
"But aren't our reiatsus compatible?" Rukia asked, she decided to stand on the water, reiatsu pouring into her feet, droplets rolling off her hair in streams, her clothes stuck to her like a second skin and she hadn't realized her zanpakuto was still on her sash.
Swiftly she removed her sword and placed against the tree, Hitsugaya already waiting for her on the top of the water.
"That might be true, but there is a difference between our reiatsus. Simply put, your reiatsu is not mine."
Rukia accepted that. She brushed the wet locks from her face, the strands of hair plastering to her pale skin. "But did you have to push me into the water?"
He smirked, "I couldn't resist."
"Such self-control, Captain."
"Are you baiting me, Kuchiki?"
"Of course not," Rukia almost laughed at his incredulous expression, her switching her faces and her personality so quickly it was giving him whiplash.
"Show me your ice needles." Hitsugaya changed the subject quite fast; he stood there with his wet, slick back silver hair and his eyes calculating.
"My what?"
He sighed exasperated, "Your ice needles, the technique you were practicing two nights before."
Rukia's lips thinned. She didn't think he would remember. She didn't have any idea how to correct that technique and she wasn't sure what she was doing wrong, "I don't have much control over that technique."
"I know. I saw how pathetic your spears were." He was baiting her and it was working.
She grimaced, she couldn't tell if she was being scolded or not. His body language was something she could pick up on, it was similar to her Nii-sama's, but he was so much more different from her brother.
It irritated her at how easily he could get under her skin. Rukia concentrated on the humidity in the air; she swiped her hand sideways, the vapor thinning into needles, ice needles. Exhaling, she flicked her wrist back and the ice needles flew—it didn't even reach a foot before it flopped onto the lake.
Mortification colored her cheeks, the needles floated on the lake like ice cubes. This was so embarrassing; she couldn't even look at him. Her cheeks were hot and her hands shook as she lowered them back to her sides.
"You aren't emitting correctly," Hitsugaya commented, his hands shoved into his lightly damp pants. He walked towards her, "Again." He commanded.
Rukia raised her hands again, gathering the humidity in prickles, reiatsu faintly glowing at her fingertips, she snapped her wrist back and she felt hands on her hips. She nearly froze at the unexpected movements; his hands arched her hips up, just a bit, she could feel the callouses of his fingers graze the small sliver of skin her tank top that revealed, no thanks to the water.
"Release," He demanded, his voice right next to her ear. He was so close she could feel the heat radiate off of him, she swallowed—she was too hyperaware of him.
Her fingers unlocked, her wrist flicking forward, the needles flying in a silver flash, turning a tree into sawdust. It was exhilarating to watch how much damage her attack created, but it was the matter of the fact that she couldn't focus on that specific accomplishment—because his hands were still on her hips.
Biting the inside of her cheek, she forced her limbs to move, she twisted on her heel and took a step back, his hands slid of her hips and she could still feel the imprint of his hand on her person. Crossing her arms under her chest, she bit harder on the flesh and asked coolly, "How did you know," She struggled to pick words, "To do that?"
It was a weak question, she knew that, but her mind was jumbled and everything was in turmoil—but she needed answers.
Hitsugaya's teal eyes flickered to her hips and then slowly, deliberately back to her face, "Your speed, your agility and your accuracy are all correct." He took a step closer to her, "The problem lay in your stance."
Rukia didn't know what made her take step back, but she did it anyway. She eyes him warily; this man was dangerous, "My stance?"
He hmm'd in acknowledgement, her retreat didn't seem to deter him, instead it made him walk closer to her—she wondered why the hell he was backing her up.
She didn't like the feeling of being hunted, so now she stood her ground.
"Align your hips with your elbows and the power of your attack should be much stronger."
Her eyebrow ticked, "All because my hips were a few degrees out of alignment?"
Hitsugaya smirked, "Yes."
"That's all?" Rukia sounded incredulous.
Again, "Yes."
"So why didn't you just tell me?" She couldn't stop the words from flying out of her mouth even if she tried.
"I think a demonstration would be more prudent, would it not?" He raised a mocking eyebrow; his pink lips twitched curiously under the white sun, he continued, "It worked, did it not?"
Rukia's eyebrow twitched.
He was just so annoying.
She huffed and crossed her arms under chest, if he wanted to play that way—then she wouldn't back down. If he wanted to play a game, then she would give him a run for his money.
Rukia Kuchiki is not a woman to be trifled with.
"Well then Captain," She deliberately curled her tongue around the word of her superior, changing the tone and his eyes narrowed, "Let's test your non-existent talent, shall we?"
It was silent. The gurgling water bubbled from the waterfall almost silently into the spring. The trees shivered from the wind and Rukia was waiting to see his next move.
Hitsugaya's eyebrows raised and his jaw twitched.
The slight movement in his jaw made Rukia's lips curl into a slight smirk.
Make your move, Hitsugaya.
He tilted his head to the side, the thick whipcords of his neck clearly visible during this movement, his eyes were dangerous and his teeth gleamed white, "You shouldn't bait me, Kuchiki."
She smiled. Rukia actually smiled. It wasn't a gentle, full of laughter—happy smile. No, this smile was menacing, malicious and calculating. "Oh, and why is that?"
Hitsugaya's grin was feral when he moved, "I play for keeps."
Rukia was expecting him to come at her hard and fast. She used shunpo to move into the air, flicking her fingers up the water swirled around her in ice shackles, the limb of ice blocked his foot, shattering the ice into flurries. She couldn't maneuver the ice as fast as she wanted, but it was enough to create a personal defense against his blows.
Hitsugaya's fist dug into the ice, creating quite a large hole, he slammed his foot into the ice shattering the pillar, and he dropped back to find an opening.
She couldn't keep regenerating the ice like this if he kept coming at her like lightening; she dropped the ice tentacles and used shunpo behind him. Slicing the atmosphere, water coated her hand and she threw her fist at his face.
Hitsugaya predicted her movements, but he didn't expect her to use the humidity in the atmosphere to turn her hand into a blade. He almost didn't catch her blade, the weight of her blow, steamed his shoes, he slid back willing for his feet to come to a complete stop.
Teal eyes locked onto furious violet, and then he smirked. Her eyes widened at the tilt of his lips, he inhaled before opening his mouth—released a cold shock of ice that slammed into her chest, knocking her back harshly—she skidded to a clumsy halt.
It was a chain of reactions. The blast of ice caused the water to freeze into a slippery slope, it cracked in mere seconds, and the pressure and fissures from the waterfall itself was enough to break to the sheet of ice.
Rukia's eyes were wide and she shivered, it was a thin sheet of ice dusting her shirt and it burnt her fingers.
"You didn't think I could just heal with my mouth, did you?" Hitsugaya clicked his teeth in mock disappointment.
Violet orbs narrowed, she kicked her foot up, concentrating the reiatsu into her calf, and a forest of ice spikes spouted up, he used shunpo and was suddenly behind her. She shifted her weight quickly, the spikes coming behind her in defensive slide.
Hitsugaya hissed, he didn't expect her to be so conscious of his presence when he felt the spikes nick his skin. Rukia heard the painful inhale and she nearly grinned.
He was trying to get close to her, because she was using long-range attacks, if he got just close enough, he would have the upper hand. When she uses long-ranged attacks, she leaves her upper body unguarded and that was a mistake—a deadly mistake.
He would show her that.
Hitsugaya had to distract her, just enough—just to let her guard down, even if it was for a few seconds.
Rukia coiled ice into a whip and caught his leg. She snapped her hand back and swung him backwards. The snow-haired Captain pushed his weight forward and used the weight of his body to maneuver his mouth to the ice—exhaling sharply onto her ice and snapping it into pieces.
She fought like her brother, he concluded. Always cool, calm, and collected. Analyzing their opponent's movements, their strategies, their attacks and calculating a counter-attack. Always looking for a weakness to exploit, but his weakness was clear as day. His shinsei sainou was limited and not very developed. So what was she looking for?
To throw Rukia off guard, Hitsugaya had to do the unpredictable.
Teal eyes glimmered in revelation.
Hitsugaya cut off the reiatsu pooling at his feet and sank into the water.
Rukia blinked and her mouth parted in surprise. Water splashing onto her drying clothes, bubbles frothing against the water.
What?
She couldn't see him. She looked at the floor; even beneath the surface she couldn't see him. She couldn't even sense his reiatsu. Where the hell was he? Rukia did not like this—she did not like this at all. She felt vulnerable, he could be anywhere and she didn't know what to do!
A hand grabbed onto her ankle and she yelped. The appendage pulled her down slightly, her ankle deep into the water and Hitsugaya surged up, water flying into droplets, splattering onto the lake—he was so very close to her that his hair brushed her chin, until he was towering over her and Rukia moved her arms across her chest in defense, but he was faster.
He shoved a fist into her stomach, she flew back, her back slamming against the willow tree and she coughed blood. She couldn't describe the look on his face; it was morphed between anger and triumph. The dark-haired woman wiped the blood from the corner of the mouth, fury heady in her system.
Rukia was breathing heavily, she grabbed onto the bark of the slightly bruised tree and stood up. She didn't even blink before she charged at him, ice spiraling into sharp pillars, her target locked onto the ice-captain. Hitsugaya fell back into the water again, but she refused to give him the advantage—she leapt towards him, missing him by mere inches.
Muttering a soft curse, she couldn't sense him again. How was she supposed to expect the unexpected?
Again, his hand grabbed onto her ankle, but she was ready for him—she didn't think that he would try the same move twice—she crouched low and grabbed him by the wrist—twisting the appendage slightly until he broke for air—she pushed him back into the water—Rukia went in after him.
The swarm of bubbles that arose from the rough treatment of the surface, for a blind moment, she couldn't see. She blinked rapidly and found Hitsugaya, not even a foot away from him, in a haze of red—she lunged towards him.
He actually managed to hit her, in her stomach! Really, she shouldn't have been surprised. But to make her cough blood and bruise—her brother would be furious!
Rukia hadn't expected for Hitsugaya to be so rough, yes he was a Captain, but she didn't think that he would push her to her limits and actually hurt her. Not even Renji, Ichigo and even Captain Ukitake would deliberately hurt like this. It was actually kind of fun—he didn't hold back and he respected her enough to come at her at full force.
Her fingers moved as if to form ice needles, the needles formed in jagged silver lines and floated to the top and Rukia nearly swallowed a lungful of water. She couldn't use her shinsei sainou in water; the ice would float! She cursed at her stupidity.
Hitsugaya raised an eyebrow.
What will you do now?
A current slammed into her side and her hair flew into her face, covering her ice for a second, her body moving against her will, to the left and she whimpered when the current slammed into her bruise.
She didn't have a choice.
Rukia opened her mouth and quickly recited the spell, holding her hand up, swallowing water into her lungs, she thanked all the Gods for finally having not to do the incantation, "Hadō, number thirty-one: Shakkaho!"
The words were garbled and nearly muted, but a red flare appeared from her hand and Hitsugaya's eyes widened, apparently shunpo could be used underwater because he was suddenly in front of her. He grabbed her hand with the red flare and raised it, the red fire cannon blasting above their heads.
Hitsugaya snaked his arm across her waist and pulled her above the surface—both of them gasping for air. Rukia coughed, the water may taste good but she did not like them in her lungs.
"Are you insane?" Hitsugaya sputtered, "Using Hadō underwater, inhaling the water—were you trying to kill yourself?"
Rukia glared at him, all manners and regulation seemed to be thrown out the window, when he actually decided to strike her, "I was thinking that it would work." She moved the wet pieces of hair that plastered onto the back of her neck, "And it did."
"At the cost of what?" He sneered, "The lack of your already limited air?"
"Well I couldn't exactly use my shinsei sainou, because ice floats," Her ears burnt at the reminder of her stupidity, "I had to use the next best thing."
"You could've come at me with Hakuda."
"I don't think tackling you underwater was the best option." She replied dryly.
There was a slight change in the atmosphere and then a pause.
"Really?"
Hitsugaya tackled Rukia back into the water before she even had a chance to blink. His hands under her shoulder blades, pushing her roughly under and she struggled—pulling her knees against her chest and with both feet kicked him against his sternum.
He flew back a few feet, the resistance of the water cushioning the blow, she didn't hesitate, she tackled him, small hands gripping his biceps and she threw her weight against him, trying to shove him deeper into the depths of the lake. The pressure ringing in her ears and then he grabbed her by her waist, flipping her over him—her grip on his person gone.
Her hair was flying everywhere and she suddenly realized why the Captain ordered her to wear clothing that was easy to take off—if she was wearing her standard shinigami outfit, the dense clothing would have been so heavy and thick with water that it would have weighed her down—drowning her even.
They were dancing. Dancing in the water, curling and twisting in the currents and Rukia was smiling—because this was fun.
Hitsugaya grabbed her wrists and pinned them behind her back. Pulling her closer to him, Rukia shoved her feet between his legs, sliding backwards and he pulled her wrists firmly and forced her back upwards—the quick tug made her cough, sharp teal eyes caught the small movement and he yanked both of them up.
They broke the surface gasping for air.
"I thought you said you couldn't use your shinsei sainou," Rukia questioned, her breaths coming in short gasps.
"I can't." Hitsugaya inhaled sharply, before proceeding to remove his hands from her shoulders—he couldn't.
Ice covered her shoulders, glittering under the sun in mint blue, his hands stuck on her bony shoulders—frozen.
Hitsugaya's eyes widened, "How—"
Rukia's quick movements cut his words short. She grabbed his forearms and ripped his hands that were frozen to her shoulders—the rough movement caused the ice to shatter and the mesh that covered her arms to break.
She rolled her shoulders, amethyst orbs narrowed in accusation. "How did you do that?"
He blinked slowly, before shrugging his shoulders, "I don't know."
Rukia looked at him incredulity. "You don't know?"
He glared at her.
"Well, what were you thinking of?"
Hitsugaya furrowed his eyebrows. What was he thinking of? He was thinking that she looked stunning under the water, with her hair swimming in the currents and how her skin looked like it was silver—he was thinking that when he grabbed her and how she coughed at how rough his movements were that he needed to bring her back to the surface so she could breathe—he was frightened and felt so anxious—
"You."
Rukia blurted out, "What?"
Hitsugaya looked at her, his teal orbs brightening and it was as if he saw something he wasn't sure he should have. He responded slowly, "I was thinking of you… and how I needed to get you back to the surface—to breathe."
She stared at him.
Something flashed in Rukia's eyes and she pursed her lips. She had a theory, but she wasn't sure if it would work—she didn't want to compare Hitsugaya to Ichigo, but something inside her felt that she could compare the two situations and fashion a reasonable conclusion. But how would he take it? The question is should she tell him or should she just do?
Hitsugaya looked at her curiously, "What?"
Rukia gnawed at her bottom lip and teal eyes followed the movement, "I have a theory,"
He raised an eyebrow, "But?"
Amethyst orbs calculated the angle of the waterfall, would her muscles be able to withstand the pressure? She could cycle her reiatsu towards her shoulders, the snow-haired captain would be able to handle that amount of abuse, but would she? She would have to try of course, because this might just work.
"I don't know if I would be able to handle it," Rukia answered more to herself than to him, she didn't realize what she said till a few seconds later, and her eyes widened. She looked at him, to see his lips curling into a smirk.
"Oh?"
Now she had to test her theory.
Rukia's eyebrow twitched, she cooled her ire before standing up and walking on the surface of the water towards the waterfall, silently motioning the captain to follow her. Ever-so-curious the Captain was hot on her heels and that made her walk faster, the rushing of the gurgling waterfall was louder and made the atmosphere seem smaller than it originally was.
She stopped at the line where the water began to fall.
"Just follow your instincts," Rukia stated, her arms crossed under her chest.
"Are you going to teach me something, Kuchiki?" His tone was mocking, but laced with apprehension.
She found no shame in saying, "Yes," Her violet orbs twinkled and Hitsugaya did not like that look on her face; scheming. "Just don't think—do."
Rukia grabbed Hitsugaya's arms and pulled him under the pouring water of the waterfall and she coiled reiatsu into her shoulders—her muscles straining underneath the pressure waterfall.
Hitsugaya's eyes widened, this was dangerous and he didn't know nor care what she was doing, but he had to get her out of here, water collected onto his snowy eyelashes and his jaw clenched before he snarled, "Are you out of your mind, Kuchiki!"
His hands grabbed hers and began to push her back—Rukia followed suit and retaliated the same way. Now they were pushing against each other while the waterfall pounded with continuous strength.
Rukia wouldn't lie; he was stronger than her, much, much stronger than her—physically. But she was cycling her reiatsu into her shoulders, just to withstand the pressure of the water, but it didn't help the sting of the flat whips of the water. Her hair was soaking, plastering to her skin, her eyelashes clotting with water, blurring her sight—she could see, but barely. Her pants were heavy, soaked with liquid and it weighed her down—
Just a little more.
"Cease immediately, Kuchiki!" Hitsugaya thundered, his teal eyes were glowing azure and his grip on her palms tightened.
"Didn't you want to learn?" Rukia gasped, she pushed him a bit more, tilting the side of her foot forward, she lunged, pushing her weight forward.
Hitsugaya snapped, "RUKIA!"
It was the shock of hearing him say her first name that made her pause her cycle of reiatsu; she fell under the surface yelping as she hit water. She surged below at least fifty meters, coughing and sputtering as water quickly filled her body, before she felt ice coil around her torso, pulling her forward, so quickly that the water was starting to clot in her nose—she saw black spots appear and she was out of the water and on the grass with a very, very furious Captain on top of her.
Rukia coughed and spluttered—desperately trying to get the water out of her lungs. Hitsugaya helped her sit up, with one arm around her chest and the other pounded onto her back.
She sighed when she could finally breathe again.
"You idiot," He spat fury and fire coating his voice, the worry still clouding his eyes, "What the hell were you trying to pull—"
Rukia cut him off, motioning at the ice that snaked around her torso and she spoke, her voice still shaky, "Look."
His eyes narrowed, his jaw twitched and his fist clenched—hating the fact that she did cut him off—his eyes flickered downwards and widened.
Ice—his ice, coiled around her body, the way a dragon would possess their prey. The end of the ice, near her neck was Hyorinmaru's head and the tail flicked at the curve of her hip.
"It's an ice rope." She said, trying to twist her body, wanting the ice to crack, "Your powers work the way Ichigo's does."
Hitsugaya's eyes snapped to hers, eyebrows furrowing and his teeth barred. The substitute soul reaper and his power were alike? How disgraceful. "My power is nothing like that substitute, Kuchiki."
She rolled her eyes, despite herself, "Ichigo's powers comes from his desire to protect." She pointedly looked at his iceman-ship. "Yours works the same way."
He blinked at that statement.
"Tell me you didn't feel panic when I went under," Rukia demanded boldly, she couldn't help but feel a silver of irony when she said this. It reminded of her of last night when he spoke of her Hakuren.
"Of course, I did." If his answer surprised her, she didn't show it, but the slightest twitch at the corner of her mouth was all the answer he needed.
"Then you summoned your shinsei sainou and pulled me from underneath."
Hitsugaya looked at her in what looked like amazement. It was surprising enough that she managed to manipulate his actions and thoughts with quick words and subtle body language, but it was even more impressive that she had understood how his reiatsu reacts and converses with hers. She toyed with his feelings to elicit a reaction out of him and ultimately bring out is shinsei sainou.
Teal eyes glittered with silent approval; this woman was dangerous.
"Will you please remove your ice, Captain?" She inquired with a quirk of a brow, his ice was still around her, and like a vice and it was putting force on the bruise on her stomach—where his fist implanted it's mark on.
Hitsugaya lifted his hand and flicked his fingers, the ice cracking into shards of glass. Rukia exhaled in relief.
"Lunch?"
She blinked.
"Sorry?" She asked in confusion, her eyes flickered towards his face. He changed the subject so fast; she didn't understand just where he was going with this.
He tried again, "Are you hungry?
Rukia frowned; he wanted to spend more time with her?
"I… suppose."
Hitsugaya deliberately turned his head away from her and looked at the sun. He calculated the time in his head before turning back to look at her again, "It's a yes or a no, Kuchiki."
The question that was burning on her tongue was to ask him, if he suddenly forgotten her name? But that thought was completely inappropriate and she crushed that thought in the confines of her mind. Last night was different, he didn't give her a choice, but today he was. The question was if she said no, if she said no—would they continue to spar and pretend that this near-death experience didn't happen? Would he want to test his shinsei sainou and learn how to summon it or would he want to go their separate ways? She couldn't understand him and that perhaps was her greatest frustration.
His angle, she couldn't comprehend and conceivably there were many things she didn't understand about him. Was it appropriate to have lunch with another's Captain or was it inappropriate to be seen with Captain for an unholy amount of time?
These were questions she didn't have the answer to.
He was purposefully keeping her in the loop.
But then that flash kept coming back. She was seeing Kei—her beautiful little boy and wondered about the future. If it were really a vision of the future—would it really be so bad? But she would give in so easily because it wasn't confirmed and because it wasn't confirmed—she wouldn't initiate anything.
But the thing that confused her the most was why would Captain Hitsugaya keep her within this distance? If she was pushing, he was pulling and it didn't make any sense!
He hadn't seen a Menos—that, she was sure of, so why was he so interested in keeping her in his circle of affairs?
This caused her to go back to the question he originally asked.
Yes or no?
Was she ready to give him up or was she curious to see how this will play out?
When she answered it wasn't her brain that made the decision for her, no, it was her heart—the very same heart that Kaien entrusted her with.
Rukia swallowed, "Sure," She sat up quickly, and she used a sigh to cover her wince, her abdominal muscles irritating her bruise when she contracted the tissue. "But I get to choose where."
The sudden streak of impudence was a wonder to her.
Hitsugaya conceded, "Of course," But thin the tilt of his pink lips had her on edge, he added in gently, "As long as I get to heal you."
Rukia's train of thought came to a screeching halt.
"What?" She squawked, her eyes wide with disbelief.
Hitsugaya ignored her squeal, amusing as it was; the bruise on her stomach was most concerning. He pushed her back onto the ground, his silvery locks damp, tilting at the edges, he ran his hair back, the slick-back hairstyle on his head shouldn't have had her blanking out, but it did.
She blink rapidly wondering if this really was happening, she protested loudly, "Captain Hitsugaya, this really isn't necessary—"
"Are you refusing medical attention from a Captain?" His tone had an underlying hint of a caution.
Rukia didn't register what she said, because right now panic was clouding her thoughts and running heady in her veins, "Yes!"
Hitsugaya's eyes hardened, he grabbed her wrists and pinned both appendages beside each cheek. His voice was firm and unyielding, "Enough Rukia."
Rukia immediately stiffened.
He was using her first name, again.
She didn't like this, but her limbs lay useless on the ground, so she swallowed and prayed to the Gods above that her heart didn't jump out of her chest.
He left her arms, eyes silently warning her not to move them. He grabbed the thin, soaking blue cotton of her tank top and lifted it up just where her bindings began—at the tips of her ribs. She swallowed thickly, not liking how much skin she was exposing to him.
Slowly, almost consciously he dragged the sides of his knuckles from the sides of her ribs, down the curve her waist to her jutting hipbone—Rukia knew from her short-lived experience with him—that Captain Hitsugaya did nothing without purpose and so she had to refrain herself from flushing in embarrassment.
Hitsugaya flinched when he saw three jagged scars run parallel on her stomach, his fingers itched to trace the rough skin, his tone was somber when he commanded hoarsely, "You will tell me about this one day."
She didn't say anything—the air in her lungs seemed non-existent.
The bruise colored a nasty purple and shades of unnecessary blue clouded underneath her navel, it was the size of his fist and Hitsugaya felt slightly apologetic.
He lowered his head to the bruise and Rukia inhaled sharply—her body coiling with reiatsu and tension. Suddenly as if noticing the slight change, he flickered his aqua-colored eyes upwards and looked directly into her dark lavender colored ones. He lowered his mouth, just barely brushing the skin, "Calm down. I'm not going to bite you."
Rukia voiced her thoughts aloud and she wondered quite frankly, where the hell did her self-control go, "With your mouth that close to me, I'm not exactly sure."
Um.
Hitsugaya masked his surprise with a quirk of a brow, he tilted his lips into smirk, his eyes half-lidded and Rukia's heart lodged into her throat, "I promise."
The snow-haired captain exhaled onto the bruise, the air sparkling in white and blue particles, gingerly the bruise began to retreat and recover healthy peach-colored skin. His lips brushed her skin as he moved lower over her stomach to the other splotches.
Rukia could not wrap her head around the picture of Captain Hitsugaya's mouth on her stomach. Even the statement itself sounded ridiculous. She nearly jumped when she felt his mouth move over her navel and tried to contain the giggle that wanted to slip out.
"See?" Hitsugaya drawled out, the bruise completely healed, he glanced back at her, his teal orbs dancing with mirth, "I didn't bite you."
Not yet.
She internally slapped herself; she replied dryly, "Apparently," She paused, why the hell his mouth was still on her stomach. "I thought you said you were done?"
"I didn't."
Rukia's tried to rake her brain for a reasonable conclusion, unfortunately she couldn't find any, and that just made her just a bit more bewildered than she originally was. "Then why are you still…?" She trailed off, not knowing how to finish that sentence.
"To do this," He began to heal her scars from Hueco Mundo, but Rukia stopped him with an icy snap of her voice.
"Stop." Hitsugaya tensed, halted all movements and he looked at her with interest. He sat up and he was slightly confused.
Her eyes hardened into ice and she narrowed them dangerously, she contracted her stomach, pulled down her damp shirt and pulled a mask of thin indifference—it pissed him off. He had finally gotten her to show him personality, the real Rukia Kuchiki—now she was locking her back into a cage—pulling her brother's façade on and it irritated him.
"Don't."
It was one word, but the ice-captain understood.
Rukia didn't want her scars healed and Hitsugaya wanted to see everything.
Character development though. Rukia's mask is cracking; slowly. The Kuchiki clan certainly conditioned her—big brother Byakuya certainly warms my heart. I love Rangiku though—she's amazing.
~Also, as you can see, Hitsugaya finally uses Rukia's first name to catch her attention—important note.
I hope I answered all your questions and if I didn't, perhaps future chapters will answer them.
"Curiosity is, in great and generous minds the first passion and the last." – Samuel Johnson.
Definitions:
*Kobaruto no taki: Cobalt Waterfall
Also, I started a new fic called Surge—it's much more darker and ambitious. It's different from most of my other projects because it isn't light-hearted. So if you want a different vibe, check it out! (Shameless promotion of new fanfiction~)
Note: Song- Natalia Kills: Wonderland.
Note2: You guys are so sweet on tumblr!
Please Review!