THIS MARRIED LIFE
CHAPTER SEVEN: Missing
Thanks to everyone who reviewed!
Warnings: This fic has spoilers up to the most current manga chapter, (currently 197, I think)
Author's Notes: Supposed to be doing work but ended up writing this chapter. Teehee, I think I've mastered procrastination. I've made some minor alterations to chapter 6. Thanks to Bizoitnott for informing me that Vastorodes are the strongest form of Menos, not Arankaru. Also, I forgot to add a reference in the previous chapter to Decorgal, which I have now added.
Juban: White cotton top and skirt, worn as undergarments for the kimono.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any part of Bleach, anime or manga.
Objects and furniture came crashing down with a tremendous thud as Hinamori threw them down while racing to the door. Her kimono was a great disadvantage to her in times like these and even though she had mastered shunpo, she was still disadvantaged in the fact that the Vastorode no doubt had the skill to fast walk too. However, her plans to create obstacles in his path seemed futile as the hollow casually evaded them, but at least she had reached the door with the Vastorode a few metres behind her. At least in that she had the advantage.
As soon as she was out the door with clear space in front of her, Hinamori ran as fast as she could; only looking over her shoulder to make sure that it was following her.
It seemed as though she was running forever. Her head ached from the icy wind, and her breathing became heavily laboured. She came to a sudden halt as she was forced to stop for air, her knees bent against her will and she fell. Panting heavily, Hinamori scanned her surroundings. There were a lot of trees. Where am I? She was lost, and if it were not for the current situation she was in, she would have laughed at herself.
Quickly sensing that time was running out before the demon caught up with her, she quickly lifted herself up but fell back down again as her foot stepped on her kimono. Hinamori gave a quick glance behind her and silently thanked the heavens for the fog. She hastily unfastened her obi and removed the kimono robe. The frostiness of the atmosphere hit her full force and she shivered in her juban. Nonetheless, she felt much lighter and the loss of the kimono would allow her more flexibility and motion.
She got up and looked around. The fog, I can't see anything in the fog. He could be anywhere now. Hinamori closed her eyes and tried to detect even the slightest hint of spiritual energy. None, her eyes slowly opened and looked around. There's no point in running, I can't see anything. It'd be better if I faced him but… Her hands moved to where her soul slayer was usually kept, and she froze. There's someone behind me.
Without warning, Hinamori spun around and placed her hands in front of her.
"Hadou sanjuuichi," she chanted loudly, grateful that she was able to use the kidou chant without reciting the whole thing, "shakkahou!" The fireball shot forth and an explosion was heard, it had hit something. Hinamori was positive it was not Kaemon. That was reckless, I gave my position away. She began to run again but only ran a few metres further before she came to an abrupt stop. The mist had started clearing, slowly but unmistakably revealing a figure down her path. Her brown eyes narrowed to focus on the figure, logic screamed at her to run, but it was not in her nature to do so.
Hinamori blinked, and in that instant, the figure disappeared. Oh no! She froze when she felt a gush of warm air on her neck.
"What are you looking at, Hinamori-fukutaichou?" the husky voice sent chills down her spine. The Vastorode-Kaemon caught her wrist and twisted her around harshly to face him, their faces only inches apart.
Hinamori's face contorted in horror when she saw his demonic face, and she struggled forcefully to become free. But it was all futile; the Vastorode was too strong for her. A gasp escaped her lips and her eyes widened in fear when she witnessed the murderous intent in his eyes that accompanied the demonic smirk.
The curl of his lips slowly became a smile as he tightened his grip on her wrist. He seemed to be enjoying the expressions of fear and pain that undoubtedly flashed across her face every time he increased his death-like grip.
Snap. Hinamori let out a bloodcurdling scream as she felt her bone break. Tears escaped her eyes from the pain, but she held her glare. A splash of amusement crossed his face as he observed a blue flame of defiance ignite in her eyes.
He slammed her against a nearby tree then tossed her to the ground.
"Demon arts doesn't work on me," he remarked tauntingly as he looked at her writhing form on the ground, his gaze moved to the sky as he held his arms up above him and closed his eyes, "I'm a Vastorode!"
Hinamori clutched her bloody hand and sat up against the trunk of a nearby tree. Her brows furrowed as she watched Kaemon in his insanity.
He lowered his head again and opened his eyes slowly to meet hers. Hinamori shuddered at the sight. His eyes had darkened dangerously, a bitter expression clouded his already demonic face as he slowly approached her.
"You," he spat out, "you contaminate my host's body, because of you, I cannot yet reach my full potential." The hatred in his eyes bored down into hers and immobilized her. His body began to shake and soon insane chuckles was emanating from him.
"No, not now," Hinamori stared at him in confusion, who was he talking to? The Vastorode-Kaemon was now clutching his head as though he was in severe pain. Hinamori took the chance to escape. She clutched her bleeding wrist and ran, ignoring the immense pain throbbing though her.
A bridge came into view and relief flooded through her, this is near Ukitake-taichou's division headquarters! If she followed the path, somehow it'd take her to the thirteenth division.
Her hand ran along the red, wooden rails of the bridge for support as she scurried across the bridge. A sudden flash of yellowish white light came at her from behind and hit her on the leg, causing her to loose balance. Hinamori was flung over the bridge from the impact and she hit the water, head first. Everything became black.
Hitsugaya yawned and gently placed his brush down next to the finished paper. He had just solved a slight dilemma that had arisen in the tenth division and had just finished his report on it. Someone had attacked a member of his division, leaving her severely injured. As her superior, Hitsugaya had to investigate the possible suspects and evaluate the event. The problem was that no one, not even the victim, knew who had attacked her. Thus not much was known about the issue at hand – the culprit or culprits, and their reason for attacking; whether it was personal or meant for something else.
Hitsugaya groaned inwardly. It was way too late to see Hinamori now.
Loud and fast paced footsteps pounded towards his door. An instant later, a heavily panting shinigami flung open the door. Hitsugaya was about to make a snide remark about protocol when approaching captains but decided against it when he saw the state of panic the shinigami was in. He recognised her as the third seat officer of the fifth division, Hikaru Mika.
"Sorry for the interruption, Hitsugaya-taichou, is Hinamori-fukutaichou here?" her voice was shaky and uneven, very different from her usual calm and soft voice.
"No, she isn't. She should be sleeping by now," he informed her, "what's happened? I'll handle it." Hikaru took a deep breath in as she realised that she has a serious situation on her hands.
"What am I going to do? I have to inform taichou," she discussed with herself. A flash of annoyance appeared in Hitsugaya's eyes.
"Hikaru!" The poor girl shot up straight at the stern voice of the tenth division captain.
"Hai!" Hitsugaya raised his eyebrow in expectation of an explanation, he folded his arms and gave her a "don't let me repeat myself" glare. Hikaru sweat dropped but grew serious.
"Hitsugaya-taichou, please remain calm," she started, the tenth division captain's reaction to even the slightest mishaps concerning Hinamori was well known throughout Seireitai. Panic overtook Hitsugaya when he heard the implications of her words.
"Hinamori, did something happen to Hinamori?" His voice didn't waver but it was strong and demanding. Hikaru faltered a little under the captain's intense stare.
"An emergency report was just delivered to me by a member of my division since the captain was unavailable. There's been a disruption in Hinamori-fukutaichou's room. She…" Hikaru was in mid sentence when Hitsugaya brushed past her.
An expression of shock mixed with worry took over Hitsugaya's normally impassive one. The door was flung so hard that it had flown off it's slides. The inside wasn't any better either. Hitsugaya stepped through the overturned furniture and broken objects and eventually arrived at her bedroom. His eyes scattered around the room and widened when he noticed her zanpakuto lying on it's stand. A shinigami approached him from behind.
"Ano, Hitsugaya-taichou…" He started sheepishly.
"Find her," the captain's voice came out soft but the command was clear. He clenched his fist, and spun around to face the shinigami.
"Find her!" he bellowed.
"Yes sir!" The shinigami squealed before scurrying off to relay the command.
"Taichou!" Matsumoto panted as she hung on the door frame, "I came as soon as I heard." Hitsugaya walked past her with not so much as a glance.
"Come, Matsumoto," he ordered. Hinamori, where are you?
Hitsugaya stopped suddenly. Robes? He bent down to examine it, recognition dawned across his features. These are!
"Hinamori was here," he stated, passing the kimono to Matsumoto as he stood up and looked around. Matsumoto took the kimono and stood up as well, observing her surroundings. A gasp escaped her lips. Hitsugaya spun around to face her.
"What?" He asked, "What is it?" Matsumoto pointed to a spot behind him and he quickly followed it.
He bent down and touched the dark red substance, playing the liquid between his fingers.
"It's blood," he stated in a deceptively calm voice.
Hitsugaya suddenly stood up, causing Matsumoto to stumble backwards in surprise.
"Taichou?"
Hitsugaya remained silent, his expression contemplative.
"Hinamori's spiritual pressure, it's faint but I can feel it!" He quickly ran off in the direction with Matsumoto following him closely.
They landed on the bridge and briefly examined the debris from the damage. A gasp escaped Hitsugaya as he stared out onto the glassy surface of the water. Without hesitation, he leapt off the bridge and landed on the water's surface and ran towards the floating heap.
Matsumoto's eyes widened when she noticed that Hinamori was floating, her hands gripped the rail of the bridge.
"Hinamori, Hinamori!" Hitsugaya called out to her in panic as he bent down and scooped her out of the water. He shook her a little.
"Oi, Hinamori!" he called out, louder and firmer this time. A torrent of relief washed over him as she half opened her eyes and looked at him.
"Shiro-chan," she whispered before lapsing into unconsciousness once again.
Hinamori slowly came to; murmurs of concern filled her ears, along with the familiar smell of antiseptics and bandages. She lifted a hand to caress her forehead, and slowly opened her eyes.
"She's waking up"
"Shhh! Don't make too much noise, it'd disturb her"
"Will you guys just be quiet!"
Her head was pounding with pain, and the voices weren't doing much to help it. She took a moment to prepare herself for the blinding light, but when she opened her eyes, she found herself in the shadows of four figures towering over her. Matsumoto, Kira, Renji and, of course, Hitsugaya.
"Daijoubu?" (Are you okay?) asked Matsumoto, concerned. Hinamori swallowed, her mouth felt so dry and her lips stung.
"Water," she requested weakly, "Can I have some water please?" As soon as the question left her mouth, a cup of hot water was held in front of her. She accepted the cup gratefully from Hitsugaya and looked up at him as she took a sip. Worry clouded his eyes; it was so intense that Hinamori chuckled a little.
"Shiro-chan, so serious," she said with a small smile. Hitsugaya was taken aback.
"Of course he is, you almost died! And all this time, not knowing what happened to you and where you were," defended Matsumoto.
"Huh?" She looked around and observed the concerned faces. What does she mean that I almost died, and that they didn't know where I was and what happened to me? A look of absolute confusion took over Hinamori's delicate features. "What happened?"
"That's what we're supposed to asking you!" exclaimed Renji.
"Hinamori, do you remember what happened?" Hitsugaya asked gently. Hinamori looked at him, what happened…, her head hurt so much. She moved her hands to clutch it only to let out a squeal of pain. Warm tears rushed from her eyes as she clutched her wrist in pain.
"Hinamori! Quick, someone get Unohana!" Hitsugaya commanded to a nearby fourth division shinigami. Hinamori bit her lower lip, as though the action would refrain her wrist from hurting.
"I don't remember," Gosh her head hurt, "I don't remember what happened." She shook her head as she replied. Matsumoto placed her hands on Hinamori's shoulder.
"It's okay," she comforted.
After Unohana had tended to Hinamori, she allowed the guest to stay a further ten minutes before they left.
"So, what is the last thing you remember Hinamori?" Asked Renji. Hinamori thought for a moment.
"Umm, it has been a week since we have defeated Aizen-taichou," she recounted. She watched, somewhat amused, at the widened stares of everyone in the room, even Hitsugaya. She tugged on his sleeve.
"Hitsugaya-kun, why is everyone looking at me like that?" she asked in confusion. Hitsugaya remained silent and stared at her, how do you explain to someone that they've just lost almost a century and a half's worth of memories?
Hitsugaya sighed exasperatedly as he left the recuperation room. You spend way too much time in there then you should Hinamori, he thought ironically as he massaged his forehead.
"Taichou," Matsumoto called out.
"Yes?"
"You've realised that this is the second time today that someone who was attacked doesn't remember what happened, right?" Matsumoto asked. Hitsugaya turned to face her.
"Yes, and the fight started in Hinamori's room, meaning that whoever attacked her was after her. But why? If the two attacks are connected, what are the reasons behind the attacks? I'm guessing the two are interrelated, it is possible that the attacker's goal was Hinamori and used the other as a diversion," And I fell for it. Hitsugaya rubbed his forehead harder. He looked at Matsumoto, determination filled his eyes.
"But why were they after Hinamori?" Matsumoto asked.
"I don't know," Hitsugaya admitted bitterly, but when I find out who they are, it won't matter why.
The next morning dawned, and Hinamori slowly drifted awake. She blinked a few times to adjust to the sun's light and shifted comfortably. She massaged her head and sat up as much as she could when something glittering caught her eye. She looked down to find the source of the glittering rays on her finger, and she examined the ring curiously. What is this? It's beautiful.
A slight knock on the door snapped her out of her reverie and she looked up to see Hitsugaya walk in. She smiled.
"Hitsugaya-kun," she greeted sweetly. Hitsugaya gave her a rare half smile before turning to close the door. He walked up to her and stood beside the bed. A strong feeling of love surged through her when she caught his eye, and she quickly blinked it away in confusion. I can't think of Shiro-chan that way! Or could it be that I…
"So," she began, trying to avoid eye contact with him as much as possible, "it's been a hundred and forty years or so since Aizen has been defeated." Hitsugaya nodded.
"Can you," she hesitated, "can you tell me everything that's happened in that time?" Hitsugaya took a deep breath and pulled a chair to sit beside her.
"Well, after Aizen's defeat," he started. She examined him as he talked, watched his every expression, noticed his every gesture and heard every emotion that only she could hear from his voice, his tone. There was something wrong, perhaps it was the flicker of sadness in his eyes, or was it worry? She didn't know, but she was determined to find out. She listened attentively as Hitsugaya patiently explained to her what she could not remember. It was a trip down memory lane for him, but for her, it was something entirely foreign – as if he was telling her a story about someone else. Hitsugaya took another deep breath and continued on.
End of Chapter 7
Next chapter: Memories
Like how Intertiatic asked, questions regarding Ichigo's family and friends will be revealed. If you have any specific questions regarding to the years before this fic started, just drop me a line in a review.
Reviews would be wonderful. For the people that review, you know who you are, thanks heaps for your reviews.