Undertones
By: WhisperedSilvers
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Let it go don't be so scared
Find the love you lost again
Let the chaos disappear
Don't you know I'm always here for you?
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fall a little deeper
It started like this:
Captain Hitsugaya, for once in his life, cannot believe, that his Lieutenant, had the self-control and patience to remain silent as the SWA meeting took place. He looked at her, with a face full of disbelief and surprise. She winked at him and poured him another cup of tea. Yachiru grabbed the box of dango sitting in the cupboard above the sink and placed it on the table.
Nemu, out of nowhere, pulled out a whiteboard, handed a marker to Yachiru and Unohana. The pink-haired lieutenant took her time drawing a Chappy-inspired Rukia on the board and Unohana drew a web and a graph using the very, many emotions of the little Kuchiki.
The SWA was a mix of bizarre and terror.
"Now Ruki-san," Unohana pointed the chibi drawing that Yachiru so graciously provided to mirror the little Kuchiki, "Is a noble. Noble clans have different types of protocol, traditions and clan laws. Even though Rukia is adopted, she is still forced to abide by those laws."
"She gets some leeway because her brother is heir," Kiyone added in helpfully.
"But not enough," Soi-Fon snorted.
Matsumoto nodded in agreement.
"To establish a courtship with Rukia you must seek her approval?"
Hitsugaya blinked and asked with mild discomfort, "Verbally?"
"Yes," Nemu nodded, "It would be highly efficient for you to acquire her consent and her brother's. That, coupled with your suit should leave happy prospects."
"Ask Captain Kuchiki first," Soi-Fon said, "If her brother denies your suit, then take it up with Rukia, because her acceptance is the only one that matters."
"Because you're a Captain, you're exempted from most of their laws," Unohana explained.
"Most, being the keyword here," Nanao pushed her glasses upwards, "You still court her for at least six months before proposing. Then, once the marriage is officiated, you have a year to produce an heir. You are exempted from clan politics unless it directly involves Rukia. Your child will be groomed to take over the clan once he comes of age—"
Isane cut off Nanao with a hysterical giggle, "We can talk about marriage once you succeed in courting her," she couldn't help but notice the dark look filtering over teal eyes once he heard the word heir, and she finished, "Rukia isn't like most women."
"She's spent most of her life being prey," Kiyone said, "If you want to be with her, you can't make her feel like she's being hunted. Chances are she will lash out and bite your head off."
"Take Ichigo for example," Rangiku decided to jump in, she ignored his dark look and continued, "She's super comfortable with him. He doesn't treat her like she's some noble or a subordinate," she smiled, "He treats her like an equal. Also, he gets a kick out of making her angry."
Nemu said dryly, "They make each other angry."
"They like making each other angry," Nanao corrected.
"Are you telling me," Hitsugaya's lip curled with disgust, "To be more like the substitute?"
Soi-Fon snorted, "No. We're telling you to treat her like an equal."
"And bring her lots of sweets!" Yachiru chimed in, "Icchi makes fun of her all the time and tells her drawings to suck, but he makes it up by buying gifts and bringing her food!"
He nodded in acceptance.
"You have to give her some space," Isane started off, "She needs to process everything afterward, but when you're with her, you have to be in her space. Don't allow her to overthink because you're going to get nowhere with her."
"How is that even possible?" he frowned, "Be in her space without being in her space."
"The prey aspect, Captain Hitsugaya," Unohana wrote equal on the board, "She is not to be hunted."
"Pursued?"
Soi-Fon smirked, "Same word, different meaning."
"Meaning?" Hitsugaya deadpanned.
"Meaning that pursued often ends with capture," Kiyone broke it down, "Hunted means death for the prey."
"Remember you want her to feel safe," Nanao said.
"Safe does not equal hunted," Nemu offered.
"Furthermore," Unohana scribbled a few lines on the board, "Outings. You want to show Rukia-san that you are not ashamed to be with her—I am told that you have been doing this already so we can skip the basics," she highlighted a word, "Work. Rukia-san is a shinigami and you are a shinigami, therefore work mixes with pleasure. Most people would not try to mix these two, but you have a different case."
"By taking her thoughts and beliefs into consideration, while simultaneously offering those suggestions to other captains and the head-captain, you have displayed your appreciation for her mind and feelings," Nemu prompted robotically.
"I see," Hitsugaya took in that information like one would when regenerating reiatsu.
"Safety, consideration and devotion are all very important when it comes to courting," Unohana lecture, her eyebrows furrowed as she started filling in the web, "Now we need to focus on the details…"
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Open up and let me in
Show the bruises on your skin
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If there was one thing Hitsugaya hated more than waiting, it was waiting in an obscure room alone. The windows, sheeted with rice paper and the tatami mat was warm against his skin. It took all his self-control to not blast the rice-paper with his shinsei sainou. Some air would be nice, he thought bitterly.
Patience, he breathed in, is to be practiced.
According to his research – by research, he means the SWA – the start of a courtship, began with a declaration. A verbal declaration, Soi-Fon was adamant about that.
"She can't read your mind," she snorted, "Tell her what you want."
"Captain Hitsugaya," Byakuya's voice broke his thoughts, he slid the door shut and took a seat behind the short table, "I would like to say that your audience is unexpected," he narrowed charcoal orbs, "But I can't."
Hitsugaya raised his brows and asked curiously, "You were expecting me?"
He tilted his head, "Eventually," he placed a brush onto the desk and pulled out a sheet of paper, "This is about Rukia, right Captain Hitsugaya?
Hitsugaya nodded and straightened his shoulders, "I am here to offer my suit."
Byakuya dropped the calligraphy brush he just picked up.
Hyronimaru rumbled in amusement.
"Your suit?" Byakuya narrowed his eyes, "Suit in what?"
He sighed exasperatedly, "Courtship, Captain Kuchiki. I am here to offer my suit to court Rukia," he paused, "As well as your blessing."
The Kuchiki heir stared at Hitsugaya for a long moment. He rested his hands on the points of his knees and considered the prospect in front of him. A courtship?
"What did you think I was planning on doing?" Hitsugaya inquired curiously.
Byakuya did not realize he spoke aloud.
"Where were you during the army invasion?" he asked suddenly, reiatsu crackling like lightning.
"Fighting the zenpo," Hitsugaya frowned at the non-sequitur, "I tried to keep Rukia within arm's length, but she got separated from me once the kumons started ripping out of the ground."
Byakuya's eyes sharpened, "You saw a flash."
That was a trap, Hyronimaru chided him.
He would have to be careful. Hitsugaya considered his thoughts before explaining, "Even if I did, I would've come after her anyway because our zanpakutos and our element ice has brought us together. Rukia," he paused, "Is my equal. On all counts."
"And Hinamori?"
"A friend," he said automatically, "Nothing more and nothing less."
"Why should I give you my approval?"
"Because you will have your heir," Hitsugaya answered simply, he ignored the way Captain Kuchiki's nose flared at that, "And I believe, I could make Rukia happy," he corrected himself, "We could make each other happy."
Byakuya inclined his head, "Very well."
That's how that went.
Above all, what Byakuya respected the most – besides power and glory – was honesty. Hitsugaya pulled no punches. He had answered his questions efficiently, there was any smokescreen for him to hide behind and more importantly, there were no games being played. Contrary to belief, Rukia's happiness he ranked above honor and if Captain Hitsugaya can guarantee and ensure her happiness that he had to be content with that.
Unfortunately, Captain Hitsugaya was not intimidated nor scared of him. Which for all contents and purposes, served no advantage over the snowy-haired dragon.
Rukia was his pride and joy, and if Hitsugaya ever hurt her, the Seireitei would never find the pieces.
Byakuya dismissed Captain Hitsugaya's presence from his compound, but somehow his presence filled the atmosphere. He would have to offer a boon to the council to keep their pristine, wrinkled noses out of his and his sister's business.
He called for an impromptu meeting once Rukia sent out for training. The elders complained for at least twenty minutes. Twenty minutes of insults, protests, and critics for his irrational, ill-timed, hasty and vague announcement. Byakuya had years and years to exercise patience, self-control and most importantly; tolerance.
But nothing and no one would ever expect Byakuya to slam his fist on the long table and demand, "Silence!"
The elders, wrinkled and petulant in their stance, looked at him with shock. Silence filled the conference room, Renji winced in the background at his Captain's crackling reiatsu, it was almost like knives scraping the walls and piercing the skin. If he could melt into the walls, he would, because there was nothing in this realm that would make him, willingly, stay in this room.
Captain Kuchiki straightened his shoulders, ink-colored eyes burned with irritation and contempt. "I have received an offer of courtship for Rukia."
Renji stiffened.
"If all should go well, Rukia will be married by the end of next year or the following year in the spring."
The conference room exploded. Demands for explanations, prospects and the worthiness of said suitor. One lady, Renji believed her name was Yumi, exclaimed across the table, "And why a year or two for this courtship? Do you believe that Rukia is not feminine or fit enough to marry on such—"
Renji internally gagged, hearing old ladies speak about his childhood friend's sex life and intimacy made him want to hurl. He couldn't imagine his Captain's thoughts on this. On second thought, the redhead rubbed his hand down the side of his face, he didn't want to know.
"I called a meeting as a courtesy," Byakuya said indifferently, "This is not a privilege nor is it mandatory. Rukia has a prospect suitor who exceeds my expectations, standards, and morals. He has acceptable attributes and meets the requirements should he enter our clan. You will not," his eyes narrowed, "Interfere in this matter again. You will not manipulate this outcome. You will not push your friends, extended family or neighbors onto her for the sake of your comfort. This will be the first and last time I will discuss this matter with you. If and when I bring this matter up again, it will be the calls for a wedding."
Renji stared at the back of the room.
"Dismissed."
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Tell me what you dream about
I lose you in my sleep, somehow
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"In the event of a zenpo army, what would be your first instinct?" Hitsugaya asked when they reached the Kobaruto no Taki. The sunbeams fractured against the foliage and the bounce of the leaves.
"Other than to check my surroundings?" Rukia asked amethyst orbs considered the angles of the clearing, "It would be to minimize the damage."
"By keeping the zenpo in one area," he nodded, following her line of thought, and stood beneath the tree, "It's highly unrealistic, but the best chance of survival and keeping causalities to a minimum."
"I thought so too," she mused, "However, by restricting the movements of one zenpo would minimize the amount of damage, versus the zenpo having free-range."
"Quick, efficient and deadly," Hitsugaya approved.
Rukia rolled her eyes, "Obviously."
He grinned in response.
If Rukia was surprised by Hitsugaya's new change in attitude she said nothing. She noticed in the last few days, he had been more open and thoughtful in both his speech and emotions. She also noticed that he always touched her. It wasn't weird or inappropriate touching either. It was a brush on the hand, a tug on a loose strand of hair, a tug on the elbow, and caress on the back.
Sometimes it was his eyes.
Those aqua-colored eyes dipped in sapphire and tints in emerald. She didn't know how color, so cold could burn so easily.
He touched her with nothing but the weight of his eyes.
"How is Hinamori-san?" Rukia asked suddenly and averted her gaze to the reishi fall.
Raising a snowy brow, he answered, "Fine, I guess. Captain Unohana is giving her routine treatments and checkups. I visit her once a week."
She turned back to look at him and frowned, "Why so little?"
Hitsugaya shrugged, "Momo and I, we don't have the relationship we once had. Sometimes I can't talk to her without her looking back into the past."
"Aren't you childhood friends?"
"Yes?"
"Don't you want to have that same relationship with her again?" Rukia wondered, she motioned her hand in a blasé movement, "Renji and I didn't speak for a long time. Every time we talked he harbored a deep-set of anger towards me. I can't even remember why now, but the latter had a lot to do with Ichigo and the execution," she leaned against the tree, "But look at us now."
"There is a small difference," Hitsugaya added after a short moment of contemplation.
"Which is?"
"You wanted your relationship with Abarai to go back to the way it was," he emphasized, "That does not apply for me."
Rukia furrowed her brows, "Did you not want to have that relationship you had when you were younger."
"No," Hitsugaya answered honestly, "Our relationship was always a power struggle. One leaving the other, one getting promoted over the other and Hinamori liked to patronize me when she was ready. Almost as if I was some stupid kid, who didn't know right from wrong."
"But you're a Captain," she pointed out, "And Hinamori-san was—is a Lieutenant."
"She got promoted to Lieutenant first, but I became Captain once Captain Shiba left."
Rukia's eyes sharpened, "Captain Shiba?"
"You probably wouldn't know him," Hitsugaya offered, "He was Lieutenant Shiba's uncle."
"I think I was still in the Academy," she said thoughtfully.
"Probably," he shook his head, memories leaving his head like a wet blanket, and continued, "I don't want to go back to those days. Momo didn't give me the respect that I worked for. Bled for. She didn't respect my work or my authority, but she had no choice once I became Captain. Part of me always thought she resented me for excelling so quickly. Still, once out of higher company, she would go back to treating me like a kid."
"Did you ever tell her this?" she asked curiously.
"A week after she woke up," Hitsugaya revealed, "She still didn't get it, but I didn't push it because she had just woken up. I told her again, just before I made Captain, it never clicked for her."
"And you're okay with just letting this go?"
"I'm fine remaining her friend," he said firmly, "I will always be her friend, but our relationship will never be the same. I don't want it to be the same. We aren't the same people anymore," he closed his eyes for a moment, "Everything has changed."
"You need to establish that you are interested, that you only want her and there is no other person you want to think other than her," Rangiku had told him once they left the room. "It's important. Hinamori maybe your friend, but you need to prove that she will be your friend and only your friend."
"That's quite mature," Rukia didn't realize she spoke aloud, violet orbs glittered like salt against the sunlight, "Why hold on to what you have to let go of? I don't think anyone has been the same for the last five years."
"War is a strange thing," Hitsugaya contemplated.
"Stranger company," she laughed, "I remember when I had to fight the Espada. He transformed into Kaien."
The snow-captain blinked at the intimacy Rukia held for Lieutenant Shiba and asked, "What happened – Espada number nine right? – there was no report. You had a considerable amount of injuries according to Captain Unohana."
And so Rukia spun the tale of Aaroniero Arruruerie.
Hitsugaya, spread across the grass, with the shades of leaf and sunlight peeking through the branches, sighed with a certain lilt of fondness, "Rukia, you are so much stronger than you give yourself credit for."
Rukia turned away from him, flushed lightly at his compliment and cleared her throat, "Maybe."
He rolled teal orbs and retorted, "Not maybe, but yes. I don't think I can go up a reanimated Matsumoto and come out unscathed."
"Scared?" she chuckled.
"Immensely," Hitsugaya replied dryly, "Strength doesn't have to be just physical. There are other aspects of it, some might say they are more important than others."
"You've given this a lot of thought," Rukia pointed out.
"I had quite a bit of time since the fall of Aizen," Hitsugaya pointed out.
"Doing more reading?"
"Of course,"
"Find things you have in common with her," Isane told him, "Once you establish mutual likes, hobbies, and activities, it'll be easier to connect."
"I can connect with her just fine," he retorted hotly.
"Yeah, but how much work-stuff and training can you talk about?" Soi-Fon interjected.
"Speaking of which," Hitsugaya sat up abruptly, his hair taking on a hint of jade.
"Reading?" Rukia inquired.
"No," he shook his head, "Something else. Black ice, remember?"
Amethyst eyes widened, "You figured it out?"
"I came across Captain Ukitake yesterday," Hitsugaya began scratching the back of his neck, "Reiatsu in theory, cannot mix."
"At all?"
He shook his head, "Reiatsu is spiritual pressure. It's energy. Energy moves, it doesn't stop and it can't stop. Mixing reiatsu with another person cannot be done because reiatsu, in itself, is catered to one person, not to others. Think of it as a fingerprint," he lifted his thumb, "It cannot be mimicked. However, people with abnormal reiatsu can mix their reiatsu, if those abnormal reiatsu is compatible."
"For example," Hitsugaya continued when he realized she was listening, intently, "If Matsumoto and I were to mix reiatsu it would repel because we aren't on the same wavelength."
He took her hand in his, interlocking their fingers, pressing palm to palm, he continued as he poured reiatsu into his hand, "But if we were to mix our reiatsu…"
Rukia pulled back her hand as soon as her spiritual pressure coated her hand.
Black ice spread across her palm like inked vines, ice smoking and threaded meshing in a net held them together.
"Black ice," Rukia stated a matter-of-factly.
"Try and melt it," Hitsugaya proposed.
She couldn't.
She stared at the smoking ice with disbelief painted on her face. The obsidian, smoky ice sat in between their hands like a mesh glove. Neither of them could feel the cold, but even when lowering her own body temperature, the ice did not budge.
"Black ice cannot melt," Hitsugaya explained.
"What about the first time we did it?" Rukia wondered incredulously.
"We didn't fully mix our reiatsu," he admitted, "I only poured a tiny bit out and lightly coiled the energy. It was just a thought I had, I didn't realize it was an actual thing."
"Wait so back to the Rangiku, what about the repellence?"
"It's actually quite simple. Instead of our reiatsu normally repelling, it's attracted to each other, hence' the indestructibility of the black ice," Hitsugaya concluded.
Rukia looked at the black ice wrapped around her hand like lace, she flicked her wrist, ice cracking like stone and watched the pieces fall to the ground. She couldn't melt it, but she could shatter it. Physical reaction, rather than chemical she noticed. The extent of black ice was also unknown, as well as unstudied. She can't remember even hearing about it, the limits it had and if it could be evolved.
"What are you thinking?" Hitsugaya asked after ten minutes of silence. It wasn't that he was uncomfortable with said silence, but it was a lot of information that he bombarded her with. He was just concerned, that and she kept staring at the black ice shards buried in the dirt.
"I'm thinking," Rukia inhaled, a smirk curling on those petal-pink lips of hers, "That we have a lot of training to catch up on."
He chuckled at her anticipation, it was almost cute. He replied teasingly, "Why do you think I brought you here?"
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Our bodies in motion, I am caught
Floating in your gravity
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"I don't understand why I have to sit with you like this," Rukia grumbled, nestling her shoulders into the broad of his chest. Her feet barely brushed the sides of his calves, hips flushed against his pelvis and head tucked underneath his chin.
"Physical contact will ensure passage," Hitsugaya told her, loving the scent of her hair; Tsubaki blossoms, with jasmine and almonds.
"And back to back didn't cut it?"
"This is more comfortable, isn't it?" he inquired impishly.
She rolled her eyes.
Hitsugaya laced his fingers with hers, thumbs running over the line of her knuckles, and murmured into her ear, "Focus."
Focus on him.
Focus on this.
Focus on us.
Meditating was not as easy as it sounds. It required a great amount of concentration and time. Blending the lines between reality and an inner sanctum took patience and a single-thought process. Following the sounds of his breathing, Rukia inhaled until they were sync, reiatsu spinning, and reiryoku strengthening, she felt the pull.
And down under they go.
When Rukia opened her eyes, Sode no Shirayuki smiled in front of her, her meadow always flurrying and the sky a burnt pink.
"Ready?"
She nodded, "I don't know if this will work."
Sode no Shirayuki affirmed her belief, "It will. When two compatible elemental users are in sync, the options are unlimited."
Rukia grabbed her zanpakuto's hand and they walked through the mountains together, "What are we looking for?"
"A door," she said simply, "This your inner world, until you find what you're searching for, what you're looking for—only then will a door show up."
"So we're just going to have to keep walking?" Rukia sighed and then had the desire to voice her thoughts, "What do you think about this? All this? The shinsei sainou? The black ice?" she paused, "Captain Hitsugaya."
"The shinsei sainou is natural," Sode no Shirayuki assured her, "It happens at different stages in a shinigami's life, some sooner than others, some later than others. The black ice part, I haven't seen anything like that before, perhaps Lord Hyorinmaru would have some insight on that. As for Captain Hitsugaya," she looked at her master very seriously, "You should consider him as a suitor. You never ran away from your feelings before, and you shouldn't start now."
"He makes me…nervous," Rukia admitted, "I was considering him as one, I mean after that whole invasion thing because he started to treat me different? But I didn't want to overstep when it came to Hinamori. I don't want to get caught in all of that."
"But he told you there was nothing there,"
"I know," she said softly, "I can't help but see that flash in my mind sometimes. The future always changes, doesn't it?"
Sode no Shirayuki thought about that for a moment, "I think the present always changes, but the future has the same outcome even if the paths aren't the same."
Rukia considered that for a moment, "What do you think I should do?"
"I think you shouldn't let the past or future worry you," her zanpakuto smiled, "One is set in stone and the other is unpredictable. You should focus on now and how you feel."
"Which is?" she pressed, needing—desiring advice.
Sode no Shirayuki laughed and tapped her cheek with her pointer finger, "Follow your instincts, Rukia. It has yet to fail you."
Rukia laughed.
A door appeared in front of her.
"You found what you were looking for," her zanpakuto said with approval, "Let's go."
Her master inhaled deeply, grabbed the knob and turned.
One step in, two steps forward.
"The sky is blue," Rukia commented with surprise.
Hitsugaya's inner world was nothing she could've imagined. The moon hung instead of the sun, with clear, blue, blue skies, not a cloud in sight, a valley with a stream following through the middle and evergreens bordering the edges. She noted that the air was cold, but the snow was untouched.
"We need to find them," Sode no Shirayuki interrupted her train of thought, "Though this place, is not at all what I expected."
"What did you expect?"
"Lord Hyronimaru is a dragon," she said and then pursed her lips, "Barren wastelands?"
"I'm a bit more imaginative than that," A new voice came from behind the duo, the women turned their heads to see the dragon and his master.
"I mean no offense, Lord Hyorinmaru," Sode no Shirayuki covered her mouth with her sleeve, a smile hidden behind the cloth, but the crinkle near her eyes gave her away.
Hyronimaru chuckled.
Hitsugaya bowed his head, "It is nice to see you again."
"You as well, Captain Hitsugaya," the lavender-haired lady greeted back, her hand slipped into Rukia's elbow, "Where should we start?"
"This way," Hyorinmaru pointed towards a clearing on the left and followed his master once he started the trek. The walk to the clearing took about ten minutes, the snow heavy and thick underneath her feet. There was traction in walking, almost as if she were stepping in something sticky, she held onto Sode no Shirayuki until they came to something that almost resembled a campsite.
"Your inner world is so," Rukia wrinkled her nose in amusement, "Forest-y."
"I don't even think that is a word," he chuckled.
"It should be," she sniffed, "So about this black ice business?"
Hyorinmaru raised a brow.
"What can we do?"
Rukia nodded as Hyorinmaru lectured about the basics of ice, the temperatures and the foundations of water itself. He said, "To use the black ice you must mix your reiatsu."
"But you have to establish physical contact," Sode no Shirayuki nodded following his line of thought.
"It's not like reiryoku where it's mental and spiritual," Hyronimaru added in, "You have to establish physical contact in order to use it. Think of reiatsu threads, once you yank on a ribbon the pieces of your spiritual pressure come together."
Sode no Shirayuki interjected, "We can start off you with the ice fan."
Hyronimaru nodded, "Grab each other's right hand, coil your reiatsu and cut the ice flat. Then fling the ice shard."
Rukia grabbed Hitsugaya's hand, they looked at each other and drenched their palm in reiatsu. Black ice trickled up their arms, they cut the block of ice with their spiritual pressure and flung the disk.
The black ice splintered an evergreen in half, the angle all wrong, but the power behind it was immense.
"Remember black ice cannot melt," Sode no Shirayuki instructed, her fingers grasped an ice spear and tossed it at the disk embedded in one part of the wood, "So when you make your weapons, make sure it counts."
"Toushiro," Hyorinmaru called out, "You need to widen your stance in order to augment for Lady Rukia's height. Lady Rukia, you need to lift your shoulder higher."
Rukia nodded.
"Again."
Hyorinmaru proved to be just as brutal of an instructor as her Nii-sama, but she wouldn't tell him that. She wasn't sure if he'd take offense to it or maybe Hitsugaya would. The ice fan came to her easy enough, a rotating sphere that resembled a flattened ceros. The trick lay in the angle of throwing. If at a forty-five-degree angle, she would have to make up for her height with her speed, but it was difficult working with a partner. She had to depend on him to read her movements and her mood.
Opening herself up to him proved to be that much difficult, the only difference now was, she was willing to try. Rukia was willing to make this work with him, even though the thought of it terrified her, she couldn't imagine doing this with anyone else.
"Combining reiatsu is a trust issue," Sode no Shirayuki told them on their break, "It means that you're allowing yourself to be vulnerable to someone other than your zanpakuto. It is as deadly as it is weak. You have to open the pathways of your spiritual pressures, interweaving your essences and your souls."
"Our soul?" Hitsugaya asked startled.
"Reiatsu is a form of energy, you're sharing energy, it's a constant cycle of pushing and pulling. While your reiatsu is moving from one body to the other – which is how the black ice is formed – your souls co-exist within each other," Hyronimaru explained and crossed his arms, "In order for your black ice or combined shinsei sainou to be at its peak, you have to depend on each other. Trust each other. It is inescapable."
Rukia looked startled, but she understood the connection.
"Someone is approaching," Sode no Shirayuki said suddenly, snowdrops covered her hair as she turned to the west, "We will have to finish this lesson later."
"Who—" before Hitsugaya could finish his question, his inner world distorted right in front of him, on instinct, he grabbed Rukia's hand and held her close to him as the world faded to black.
When Hitsugaya opened his eyes, the sun had just begun to set and the familiar set of reiatsu was speeding towards him at an impressive rate. Rukia began to stir from his chest, her eye blinking lazily as she took in the gold of the sun and the blushing skies. She rubbed the corner of her eye and then yawned.
"Okay?" Hitsugaya pitched his voice softly, as not to startle her.
She nodded tiredly.
"Well, isn't this cozy," Rangiku used Flash steps to appear in front of them, a cheeky grin plastered on her face.
"Ugh," Renji made a noise between discontent and revulsion.
"What is it Matsumoto, Abarai," Hitsugaya asked irately, he just adjusted his grip on Rukia's shoulders, her feet tucked underneath his left knee and her back resting against his forearm as she sat up.
"Summons from Head-Captain Yamamoto," Renji explained, he moved his head towards the direction of the capital.
"The rotations have been decided," Rangiku added in.
"Both of us?" Rukia inquired with surprise.
Renji nodded, "It looks like we're going to Karakura Town."
Hitsugaya and Rukia looked at each other.
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Cause this is devotion, I am lost
You're the only one I see
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Footnote1: Surprise bitch – insert Emma Roberts meme – thought you'd seen the last of me, hm?
Footnote2: It's midnight here lol. Thank you so much for your continued support and reviews! It makes my day.
Footnote3: Songs used: Devotion by Ellie Goulding.
As always, please review.