Thank you for waiting for the next update! Just as a reminder of what happened last time, Ichigo has joined the fight, the girl who takes over Ren reveals herself as Zena, and Toshiro has been getting unusual headaches before he collapsed. And a Feather has shown up at the worst possible time! What will Ren and Ichigo do?
Chapter 7
Shackles
"Shiro!" Ren gasped, grabbing Toshiro's body as soon as it began to fall. Ren slid onto her knees from the weight of Toshiro's body. "Shiro, wake up! Shiro!" Remembering how Toshiro might have a fever, Ren moved a hand to his head. Even though she wasn't touching his head, she felt the heat from it when her hand was just inches from his forehead. Looking at his face, Ren saw that Toshiro was clearly unconscious, his face was flushed and he was breathing heavily. "Ichigo! Shiro's got a fever!"
"What? Now? But one of these things has just appeared!"
"Forget about that Feather for now!" Ren said firmly. She decided that Toshiro had to be moved to a safer place. The Feather would have to wait. Besides, it just wasn't in her nature to abandon a friend. "Only three things matter right now; Shiro, Shiro and Shiro!"
"Huh?" Ichigo said, confused.
"Three things, Ichigo! Helping Shiro, protecting Shiro, and getting Shiro the hell out of here!" Ren saw behind her a cart belonging to the caretaker. It had several tools inside it, including axes and garden rakes. Surely, one of them could be used as a weapon. "Grab something from there! I'll carry Shiro."
"Right." Ichigo nodded, quickly running to the cart. Ren looked back at the Feather. It hadn't even reacted. Ren wondered whether the Feather was blind. If so, then that would explain the blanker look in its eyes. Still thinking about this, Ren proceeded to move Toshiro behind her, pulled his arms on her shoulders, and stood up so that she was carrying Toshiro on her back.
"Man, he's light." She muttered to herself. "Ichigo, you ready?"
"Just a second…How's a crowbar?" Ichigo asked.
"That'll do for now."
"Don't you have any swords?"
"You need a licence for one of them. A licence that I don't have." Ren turned back to the Feather, who was still staring at her blankly.
"What's wrong?"
"I just…I just have a bad feeling about that Feather. It hasn't moved or anything." Ren looked back to Ichigo, who was now holding a large crow bar. "Anywho, we need to get moving. I've kinda got my hands full, so you'll have to block any attacks. All I can do is dodging. Okay?"
"Fine."
"Okay. Let's go!" As soon as Ren said this, the Feather growled. It pounced forward and landed in front of Ren.
"Damn…" Ichigo cursed, clutching the crowbar.
It moved… Ren thought. But, why now? Unless… Ren narrowed her eyes at the Feather. Unless it really is blind. Maybe, it's relying on sound to attack. Ren glanced down on the ground at a black and white round football left behind by one of the sixth formers. She felt an idea come to mind. Ren kicked the ball to the left, where it hit a drain pipe so hard, it snapped. The Feather heard the snap, and turned its head towards it. Ren looked to Ichigo and pointed at the exit with her head. It was in the black gate surrounding the school, and the entrance was wide open. Quietly, Ren slowly walked around the Feather, and still kept it up when she was behind the Feather.
"What are you doing?" Ichigo whispered, following Ren.
"That Feather is blind. It uses sound to track our movements, so we're getting out of here while it's distracted."
"Where do we go?"
"It's gotta be somewhere nobody can get hurt, just in case anything happens. I got it! The lido!"
"An open air pool?"
"Yeah. It's not open in winter. And it's on the edge of town. About ten minutes away. It's perfect!"
"Alright." Ichigo agreed. "Just lead the way." At this point, Ichigo and Ren were already outside the gate. They turned around and looked back at the Feather. It was still staring at the drain pipe the football broke.
"Better shut the gate." Ichigo nodded. He pushed the gate towards the latch. However, just before it hit the latch, it let out a loud creaking noise. Ren grimaced at the sound. The Feather immediately turned towards the sound, growled, and jumped high into the air. After several seconds, it landed on all fours in front of Ren and Ichigo, making them stagger backwards away from it.
"Oh…" Ichigo started.
"Crappers." Ren finished. "What do we do?" Ren asked Ichigo.
"You fought these things! You should know!"
"There are limits to what I know!"
"Then you take care of it!"
"How can I fight, dumbass? I'm giving somebody a frikkin' piggy back ride, for crying out loud!" As Ichigo and Ren argued, the Feather's eyes glowed yellow, and two bullets of yellow light shot out. Immediately, Ichigo jumped in front of Ren, and with a huge swing of the crowbar, hit them back to the Feather, which ducked down.
"Let's just keep moving. Which way?" Ichigo asked, ignoring his smoking crowbar.
"This way." Ren ran down the street to her right, Ichigo following close behind. The Feather heard their footsteps, and proceeded to chase them.
"It's following us!" Ichigo yelled, looking over his shoulder at the Feather.
"For an emotionless monster it sure is persistent!" Ren exclaimed. An idea came to her head in that instant. "Ichigo, hit that dumpster." Ren indicated a metal dumpster on their right just coming into view. "That'll keep it busy.
"Right!" Ichigo hit the dumpster with the crowbar so hard, it dented. A large, metallic boom rang out, prompting the Feather to skid to a stop by the dumpster. Ichigo and Ren stopped running, staring at the Feather.
"Okay…slowly walk." Ichigo and Ren turned around and slowly walked away from the Feather. It didn't react. "Walk…Walk…Walk…" After a couple of minutes, Ichigo and Ren turned the corner, and the Feather was several metres away. Definitely not in hearing distance. "Okay, now run!" Ichigo and Ren broke off into a run once again. The Feather didn't even react. In that moment, Dixie teleported in a flash of yellow light beside the Feather.
"You fool!" Dixie yelled at the Feather. "They're getting away!" The Feather turned its head to Dixie. "Why did I have to have the damn blind one?" Dixie cursed to herself. "Go after them! They went right! Oh, you don't know directions. Argh! Follow my footsteps!" Dixie jumped up onto a building in one leap and ran alongside them, the Feather following her.
I'm going to make sure that they don't live. Dixie thought, grinning to herself. Especially that girl.
…
"Okay…Which way?" Ren muttered to herself, staring at a fork of three roads, while Ichigo stood impatiently behind her.
"Would you hurry up and pick one?"
"Don't rush me! I'm trying to remember! It's been a while, alright? Now, the middle one leads to the town centre…or was that the road on the right?"
"You grew up here, and you don't know which way to go?" Ichigo exclaimed.
"Well, excuse me for having no sense of direction!" Ren yelled. "Ah, screw it. I'll just follow my instincts. Um…left!"
"Mine say right."
"MY instincts, Ichigo. Not yours."
"How about we split up and-"
"Still got Shiro on my back." Ren reminded Ichigo.
"How is he?" Ichigo asked.
"I dunno." Ren looked behind her at Toshiro, whose head was resting on her shoulder. "He still looks like he has a fever. Could you check?" Ichigo placed a hand on Toshiro's forehead.
"He feels really warm. And he still hasn't woken up."
"We'll check on him again when we get there. For now, let's go." Ren trotted down the path on her right. Grumbling about how indecisive Ren can be, Ichigo followed her.
"Um…shouldn't we be going a little faster?" Ichigo asked.
"Come on, Ichigo. We've got a huge lead on that Feather. Considering the fact that it's blind, we'll be fine as long as we're real quiet." Ren said dismissively.
"But still…"
"Hm?" Ren looked at Ichigo over her shoulder as they walked.
"Where is everybody?"
"Yeah, you're right." Ren looked left and right. The shops were open. Cars were parked. Yet, there was not a single human being in sight. Ren could even faintly hear music playing in the shops. "Ichigo, what does your watch say?"
"Ten past three." Ichigo answered.
"So it's not a time stop." Ren concluded. "Could these guys be using some kind of magic that takes humans away from here?"
"I thought they wanted the humans dead."
"Yeah. Before I met Shiro, the Feathers showed up out of nowhere in crowded places, and then they'd disappear after a couple seconds. Now, nobody seems to be around when we have confrontations like this." Ren's eyes stared blankly ahead of her as she thought. "I wonder why?" Suddenly, the Caramelldansen song erupted from Ren's blazer pocket. "Gack!" Ren stopped walking, staring at her pocket. "My phone!"
"Isn't that…" Ichigo started.
"Yes, so what if I have Caramelldansen on my phone? If my phone goes off, I want to know it's mine." Ren said quickly. "Now, Ichigo, can you get that?"
"Fine." Ichigo sighed, getting frustrated with Ren's personality. "Which pocket?" Ichigo asked, in front of Ren.
"Left pocket. No, not your left, my left. Hey, don't put your hand there! Girls don't have pockets there! The blazer! The blazer!"
"Is this it?" Ichigo asked, holding a phone in front of Ren's face. It was a grey phone with a touch screen, and Ichigo was holding it up by a charm that was a green bell with a face of a frog.
"Yeah. Press the green button." Ichigo did as he was told and held it to Ren's ear. "Hello? Mom? What is it?... Yeah…Uh huh…Uh huh…mm hmm…uh huh…Ichigo? What're you-I mean yeah. He's right here with me…Yes, I got him enrolled…Okay…Wait, we have another spare room?...But what if Grandma visits? Look, Mom, I'm kinda busy right now. Can we have a chat later?... I can't tell you Mom. I'm just busy…Yes, it is school work."
"…" Ichigo glanced away with narrow eyes, impatient. Meanwhile, Dixie landed without a sound on the rooftop of a building, looking down on her foes.
There they are!
"Hn?" Dixie narrowed her eyes, spotting Toshiro on Ren's back.
What's up with him? She thought. Did he faint or something? No. That can't be it. His aura feels like it's all over the place. It feels…Her eyes widened. It feels as though there was something else inside of him! Well, then…Dixie smirked, raising a hand up ready to make a move. Time to see what it is. She snapped her fingers.
"No, Mom. We finished the school pantomime ages ago." Ren continued.
BOOM!
"Wah!" Ren and Ichigo were whisked off their feet when the road behind them suddenly exploded. Ren landed on her front, and Toshiro fell off her back a few inches away. Ichigo skidded onto one knee, glaring at the cloud of dust.
"Are you alright?" Ichigo asked.
"Yeah. And so's my phone." Ren picked up her phone and brought it back to her ear. "See, Mom? I'm busy. Explosion? That was…building work." Ren lied. The Feather stepped out of the cloud, growling angrily at Ichigo and Ren, who were speechless.
"It found us." Ichigo growled, reaching to his right and grabbing the crowbar he dropped.
"Call you back, Mom." Ren said, hanging up and putting her phone away without looking away from the Feather.
"So I finally found you." Dixie jumped down from the building and in front of the Feather, a hand on her hip. "You stole my scarf."
"Research." Ren said.
"What's up with him?" Dixie demanded, pointing at the body of Toshiro.
"Dunno. And it's not like I'd tell you anyway. You're an enemy."
"Yes, that is true. But, before, I served under you as a loyal servant. How it feels good to be liberated."
"Servant?" Ren blinked. "Okay, I know I had cleaners and babysitters, but I'm pretty sure they weren't you."
"Not the time, Ren. Not the time." Ichigo muttered.
"You don't understand. Not yet anyway. The answers will come in good time, Ren. Or, should I say…" Dixie smirked wickedly. "Zena?"
"Zena?" Ren repeated.
"That's right." Dixie confirmed. "See, the reason why the mistress has taken a liking to you is-"
"Xena's here?" Ren exclaimed, beaming. "Omigod, omigod, omigod! I've always wanted to see someone cosplay as her! Where is she? Hey, Xena! Xena!"
"What planet are you from?" Ichigo yelled, exasperated.
"Earth." Ren answered simply.
"You know what, never mind." Ichigo shook his head, standing up.
"And who are you?" Dixie asked rudely.
"Ichigo Kurosaki." Ichigo answered, stopping himself from saying 'Substitute Soul Reaper'. That would be drawing attention to himself; the kind of attention he could do without. "Look, um…Dixie, is it? We don't have time to play with you, so why don't you go back to your gymnastics class." A vein throbbed on Dixie's forehead after Ichigo said this.
"Oh, you are a dead man! Feather, destroy them!"
"Chotto matte!" Ren yelled, pointing a palm at her.
"Ha?" Dixie raised an eyebrow.
"Ichigo, gimme the crowbar. You're carrying Shiro now." Ren said in a hushed voice, placing Toshiro's arm around her shoulders. She managed to partially lift him off the ground. When did Toshiro get this heavy?
"But-"
"Don't argue with me. Just do it!"
"Alright, alright." Ichigo got down beside Ren and took Toshiro off her shoulders, and stood up, carrying Toshiro's small body in his arms. Ren stood up to face Dixie.
"Sorry, but we have to be going now." Ren bowed politely at Dixie. "Thank you for your time, Pixie."
"Oh, you're not going anywhere."
"Look! A distraction!" Ren yelled, pointing behind Dixie.
"What?" Dixie looked behind her.
"Leg it." Ren ran past Ichigo, who followed suit with a dumbfounded expression on his face, both at Ren's weird plan, and the fact that Dixie fell for it.
"Hey, hold on a…" Dixie started, turning back around, but she found that Ichigo and Ren were nowhere to be found. "That biiiiiiiiitch!"
…
"We made it!" Ren yelled triumphantly, raising her arms in the air. The open air pool was surrounded by four yellow walls, with small towers at each corner, there were some sun loungers piled up in various places, but some were still laid out around the edge of the pool, which had the water drained, so only a dirty bottom with rims of green chlorine lines could be seen on the inside. "We should be safe here." Relieved, Ren threw the crowbar on the ground, and Ichigo kicked a door open so that he could enter the pool area.
"Ren, how did you know that plan would work?" Ichigo asked, staggering through the door so that he wouldn't drop Toshiro.
"I didn't." Ren said. "It's one of my stupid ideas."
"But she fell for it."
"I know!" Ren exclaimed, amazed. "I use that stupid plan almost every day, and they always fall for it. Even a teacher fell for it. A teacher!"
"You don't say." Ichigo muttered, laying Toshiro down on a sun lounger.
"Yeah. It's like saying that they will get cancer if their hand is bigger than their face."
"…" Ichigo looked down at the hand by his side. Slowly, he brought the hand up to his face.
"Ha-ha-ha! If this were a better time, you'd have a red nose right now!" Ren laughed.
"Grrr." Ichigo growled, clenching his fist. He just could not understand how Toshiro could stand her. "Just check on Toshiro. I'll keep guard." With that, Ichigo wandered off while grumbling under his breath, picking up the crowbar in the process.
"Shiro?" Ren said quietly, standing by the sun lounger Toshiro lay on. She knelt down beside it and looked closer at Toshiro. His face was a little more flushed, and she could see beads of sweat on his forehead, and a couple of times, Toshiro winced. "Um…Let's see…" Ren fiddled in her blazer pockets, trying to find something to help. "Phone, no. Pen, no. Another pen, no. Student card, no. Purse, no. Oh, there's my lip balm! Ah, this'll do!" Ren pulled out a white handkerchief with a small, white lace lining. Concern on her face, she gently wiped at Toshiro's damp forehead with the handkerchief. Almost as if in response, Toshiro's eyes opened half way. "Shiro!" Ren gasped, pulling her handkerchief away. "Did I wake you up?"
"Nah." Toshiro answered, his voice quieter and weaker than before. It didn't carry the same firm tone that Ren had become used to. Instead, it seemed much more vulnerable. "Where are we?"
"At the lido. We were attacked by a Feather and you passed out, so Ichigo and I carried you here."
"I see. I'm sorry."
"What are you apologising for?" Ren said, half laughing. "You're not a burden on us or anything like that, in case that's what you're thinking."
"How did you…"
"Lucky guess." Ren shrugged. "That aside, how are you feeling?"
"To be honest, I feel like crap."
"…" Ren smiled happily at Toshiro's bluntness. "Well, the fact that you're awake is good. It means that you must be getting better." Ren placed a hand on Toshiro's forehead. "Hmmm…You do feel warm." Ren began to move her hand away, but Toshiro placed his hand on top of hers. "Sh-Shiro?"
"Could you…keep it there?" Toshiro asked. "Your hand is cold. It feels…nice."
"…" Ren felt her cheeks turn pink in a light blush. "Okay, you're acting kinda weird now, Shiro."
"Ren! How is he?" Ichigo yelled.
"He's awake!" Ren yelled back, relieved how Ichigo unintentionally saved her.
"Well, it's good to have you back with us, Toshiro."
"That's Captain Hitsugaya." Toshiro corrected under his breath.
"He can't fight in that condition. So, it's up to us."
"No worries!" Ren said airily. "We've got a lead of a couple miles ahead of Pixie and the Feather."
"Hi, Ren." Dixie said, jumping over a tower and landing on the other side of the empty pool.
"Hi, Pixie." Ren said quickly. "There's no way she can-" Ren was silent for a moment, processing what she just said. "Wait a…" Ren turned around, and was met with the smug face of Dixie.
"So…what was it you were saying?" She asked, placing a hand on her hip.
"Damn…" Ichigo stood in a fighting stance, ready for an attack.
"SON OF A-" Ren yelled.
…
"Huh?" Steph looked up and out a window of the school cafeteria, her fork just inches from her open mouth.
"What's up?" Tom asked, his mouth full of curry.
"Nothing. I just got the feeling that Ren was really pissed about something." Steph turned back to her lasagne on her plate. "I wonder why?"
"I'm sure it's nothing."
…
"AND A BUCKET OF DOG DOO!" Ren yelled. Silence came over the lido after the outburst. Ichigo and Toshiro were staring at Ren with wide eyes, amazed. Even Dixie was at a loss for words.
"That's a lot of swear words." Ichigo muttered. Toshiro nodded in agreement.
"Are you done?" Dixie asked.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm done." Ren said breathlessly. "How'd you find us?"
"Simple. I followed the charms you're holding."
"Eh? These?" Ren asked, pulling out a small, maroon draw string bag.
"Yes. It's child's play following cores. And it seems as though they're all purified."
"You mean when they turn to gold?" Ren pocketed the bag again.
"Precisely. Now, they are of no use to us."
"Oh, I get it. So, if they're silver, then they are just Feathers, but when they're purified, they can't be used again." Ren tapped her fist on her palm. "Yeah. That totally makes sense. Oh, but speaking of Feather, where's that blind one?"
"Behind you." Dixie said with a shrug.
"Wait, wha-" Before Ren could finish, there was a flash of light behind her, and a beam of light hit her on her back, making Ren stagger a couple of steps before she fell over on her front. The Feather landed in the pit of the swimming pool, its eyes still glowing yellow.
"Ren!" Toshiro yelled, sitting up, but the strain made him loose balance and fall off the sun lounger.
Dammit. This is NOT the time! Toshiro thought, frustrated. He watched as the smoke on Ren's back cleared, and saw that it had burnt a hole in her school blouse, but other than that, she was fine.
"Yeow, that was hot!" Ren exclaimed, sitting up on the ground. Toshiro confirmed his observation. With Ren's energy, she'd get back up even if she'd lost a bucketful of blood. "Ah, you fell off, Shiro!" Ren stood up and went to Toshiro, turning her back on Dixie.
"Don't ignore me!" Dixie yelled. "Hold on a minute…" Dixie narrowed her eyes at Ren. More specifically, she was staring at her unharmed back. She couldn't help but feel there was something there. Something crucial. On closer inspection, her eyes widened. On Ren's back, there were two, light brown, tear drop shape markings on her shoulder blades. "Hey. What is that on your back?"
"Um…My bra?" Ren answered, looking over her shoulder at Dixie.
"No. I meant those markings."
"Oh, them? They're birthmarks. And I'd appreciate it if you don't stare." Ren said with a hint of annoyance in her voice.
"She has them." Dixie said to herself. "They are the very same markings that Zena had on her back. This can't be a coincidence."
"You're talking to yourself? That's not good. It's the first sign of madness."
"Oh, really?" Dixie smirked, amused. "Then what's the second sign?"
"Growing hair on your palms."
"What? That's ridiculous." Dixie said, looking at her palm.
"AHAHAHAHA!" Ren laughed. "The third sign is looking for hair on your palms! Pixie is insane!"
"Rrrr..." Dixie growled, clenching her hand into a fist. "That's it! You're gonna die!" The Feather's eyes glowed yellow again, and shot two more yellow bullets at Ren.
"Whoa!" Ren jumped away from the blast, just as they destroyed the edge of the pool that she was standing on moments before. She skidded across the ground a few metres away. "That was close." The Feather jumped out of the pool, landing on the edge with a crash that didn't destroy the ground, it growled and stood still, listening for any noise that would show where Ren was.
"Hoh, man. That Feather sure looks big." Ren said to herself, standing on her toes to look at the Feather. It heard her voice, and turned around to Ren, beginning to advance towards her. "Uuuu, what do I do?" Ren whined, tapping her heels together three times in a nervous tick. After Ren tapped her feet together, she felt her feet become hot. Her hands were feeling hot too. Why was that?
"Ren! You're on fire!"
"Huh?" Ren looked at her feet after Ichigo yelled. "Holy crap!" Sure enough, her ankles were surrounded by an orange fire, as were her wrists, and it seemed do decorate her as though they were bracelets. "What in the..." Ren balanced on one foot to look at her left leg from all different angles. It was fire, but it didn't feel like it was burning. She placed her foot back on the ground, but as soon as she did, the ground briefly rumbled and circular cracks appeared around her foot. "What the heck's going on here?"
That fire...Dixie thought. That ability is just like...
"..." Ren glanced from her wrists to her ankles several times. She soon looked up at the Feather that was directly in front of her, and she narrowed her eyes with a determined smirk, clenching her hands into fists. "BOOM, HEADSHOT!" She yelled, punching the Feather under its chin. It flew up a couple metres into the air and onto its back, kicking its legs like a turtle on its back. "Aaaaand...up!" Ren kicked the Feather up into the air by several metres, before she joined it by jumping up high. "Falcon Kick!" Ren back flipped in the air, kicking the Feather back down into the ground, where it dented the centre of the pool with a crater. "Yes!" Ren expected to fall back onto the ground, but she remained where she was. "What the..." Ren stamped her foot a couple of times. Vibrations travelled out from her feet. "Look at me! I'm walking on air!" Ren yelled happily, jumping from one foot to another. "In your face, Snowman!"
"Rrrr..." The Feather growled, slowly climbing back onto its feet.
"Oh, yeah. The Feather." Ren stopped hopping, clenching her hands back into fists. "What else can these things do?" Ren wondered. As if on command, the fire around her right wrist glowed even brighter, and some of it travelled to her right palm to make a fireball. "Ho ho! Awesome!" Ren grinned down at the Feather. "One more reference...IMMA FIRIN' MA LAZER!" With that, Ren threw the fireball down to the Feather, and in one instant, it collided with the Feather, making it instantly explode into ashes. There was a glint of metal inside the ash cloud, and the charm flew up into the air into Ren's open palm, where it turned gold on contact. "Sweet."
"She did it." Ichigo said, still a little dumbfounded.
"I did it!" Ren yelled happily, throwing her fists up in the air. "Um...how do I get down?" Ren tried jumping, but she was still in the air. "Can anybody help me? I'd even settle for help from Pixie!"
Amazing! Dixie thought, shocked. In such a short time, she knew how to use the basics of the Fire Shackles, and defeated a Feather all by herself. That means she'll soon be able to control the rest of the Elemental Shackles, and eventually...she'll be able to wield all of the elements without the Shackles. Either she's a genius, or incredibly lucky.
"Get me down!" Ren whined. Slowly, she began to lower towards the ground. "Ah, there we go." Ren landed gently on the ground. "Now, to turn these off. I know!" Ren tapped her heels together three times. The fire around her ankles and wrists disappeared. "There." She quickly turned her attention to Toshiro. "Shiro. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." Toshiro answered, kneeling on the ground with one arm on a sun lounger for support.
"Lemme help." Ren went to Toshiro's left side and hooked his arm around her shoulders, helping him to sit up.
"Thanks." Toshiro muttered, grateful for her help. "By the way, how did you do that?"
"You mean that fiery thing? I tapped my heels three times, and they just...appeared. Weird, huh?"
"They are called Fire Shackles." Dixie interjected, overhearing their conversation. She began to walk around the pool edge towards the three of them, while Ichigo stood his guard with the crowbar in hand. "They are one of the Elemental Shackles; abilities exclusive only to the people of Zena's home world. Zena was lucky enough to be able to wield all of the Elemental Shackles, and before long, she didn't need the shackles in order to control the elements. The fact that you, a human, can summon the Shackles only confirms the mistress' thoughts; you are, without a doubt, linked to Zena. Therefore, you will get in the way of our plans." By now, Dixie was in front of them. "And therefore, you must be eliminated."
"Not on my watch!" Ichigo swung the crow bar down on Dixie as hard as he could, but she caught hold of it with one hand without showing any effort, much to Ichigo's shock.
"Oh, please. You honestly think you can hurt me with this little thing? That's insulting." Dixie taunted. With a smirk, she tightened her grip, and the crowbar instantly bent in her grasp.
"B-But...But that's solid steel." Ren stammered.
"That's not the best part." Still holding onto the crowbar, Dixie raised her arm above her head and Ichigo followed suit, not letting go of the crowbar, and Dixie began to swing him above her head before letting go, causing Ichigo to go flying to the other end of the lido. He crashed into a tall, metal storage box for foam toys and sun loungers, which proceeded to fall on top of him, trapping Ichigo inside the metal cage.
"Ichigo!" Ren yelled.
"Relax, he's fine." Dixie said dismissively. She turned back to Ren and Toshiro. "I cannot say the same for you, though."
"..." Quick as a flash, Toshiro pointed his right palm at Dixie.
"Oh?"
"Hado thirty one: Shakkaho!" Toshiro yelled. Instantly, a red energy ball shot out of his hand and straight at Dixie, where it exploded in smoke that had occasional red flashes of light. "Gah!" Toshiro fell forwards after his attack, planting both hands on the ground so that he wouldn't fall over, but even then, one arm gave out underneath him.
"Shiro!"
What the hell? Toshiro thought, breathless. I don't usually get this exhausted after casting a Kido spell. Is it because of this fever I have?
"What was that?" Dixie's voice said in the smoke. With one wave of her arm, the smoke disappeared, and Dixie revealed that she was unharmed. "Was that supposed to hurt?"
"It didn't work?" Ren gasped.
"As if something that weak is going to work on me. It must be that little fever you have. Something is interfering, so you are weak, and not worth my time. But, for the mistress' orders, I shall eliminate you." After Dixie said this, Ren stood up and stood in a protective stance in front of Toshiro. "Move it, girlie."
"Look, I'm the one you really want, right?" Ren asked, a determined look in her eyes. "If so, then that's fine. You can have me. But I won't let you hurt my friend."
Ren...Toshiro thought, looking up at Ren.
"Alright." Dixie shrugged.
"Eh?" Ren said, a dumbfounded look on her face. "I thought you would need more persuading."
"Nope. I wanted you dead from the start!" Dixie then proceeded to slap Ren so hard she fell onto the ground, her cheek bright red.
"Ren, run! Don't worry about me! I'll figure something out! Just run!" Toshiro yelled, trying to at least save Ren. Ren responded by sitting up on her hand and knees.
"No..."
"!" Toshiro's eyes widened at her one word.
"I'm going to enjoy this!" Dixie then proceeded to kick Ren across the pool side, and Toshiro could only watch as Dixie mercilessly beat Ren with a barrage of punches and kicks that were so strong, Ren was literally hovering in the air. With one final kick, Ren was sent flying and landed next to Toshiro. She was covered with bruises, and there was a little blood coming from grazes on her head and another trickle from her mouth.
"Ren! Are you okay?" Toshiro asked frantically, filled with worry.
"Yup. Doesn't hurt." Ren coughed, and Toshiro flinched as he saw blood escape from her mouth. "Okay, I'm lying."
"Get out of here! Run!"
"I said no."
"Why?" Toshiro asked, managing to sit up on his knees with what little strength he had left. "Why won't you save yourself?"
"Because..." Ren started. However, Dixie walked up behind her and, grabbing a fistful of her blonde hair, lifted her onto her knees. "Because if I abandon a friend in need..." Ren smiled at Toshiro her usual smile. "Then I have no right to call myself their friend."
"!" Toshiro stared at Ren, speechless. Is this Ren's nature? Would she seriously go this far just for him? For her friends? Couldn't she be selfish just this once? Unable to look at Ren anymore, Toshiro turned away. "You idiot, Ren." Toshiro said quietly.
"Right, then." Dixie let go of Ren's hair and let her drop back onto the ground. But she didn't stop there. Dixie proceeded to raise a foot up, and she brought it down onto her back, making Ren cough up more blood, much to Toshiro's horror. Ren's eyes blanked out, and she fell unconscious. With a smirk, Dixie raised her foot again.
"Stop it! You've done enough already!"
"Shut up!" Dixie kicked Toshiro across the face, knocking him onto the ground. "Know you're place, brat. You should be grateful that this bitch is willing to give up her life for you."
"Yeah..."
"Hm?" Dixie raised an eyebrow. Toshiro placed his hands on the ground, and forced himself up. His arms shook as he did so, but he managed to sit up on one knee before he could collapse, and he remained there to catch his breath. Getting up was more exhausting than he thought.
"Yeah..." He continued. "I am." Toshiro stood up, his hands on his knees to prevent himself from falling over again. "She can be a complete idiot sometimes, but...but she knows where her loyalties lie. That's why she is on the ground right now."
"So, are you going to stop me in that pathetic state?"
"I know I can't do much, but..." While he talked, Toshiro straightened up, but not without a small stagger. He turned his head to face Dixie. "I can at least try."
"But what can you do?" Dixie asked, folding her arms. "You're just a human. And your strange powers don't come through unless you're touching Ren. You're just throwing your life away."
"Believe me; people like me put their lives on the line every day." Toshiro retorted. "Uh..." Toshiro's vision suddenly became blurred, and he felt dizzy. He staggered, struggling to remain standing, but, no matter what, he had to stand up. Otherwise, Ren would be slaughtered by Dixie.
"And another thing. That fever you've got. It's preventing you from doing anything. In fact, you can barely even stand up." Dixie leaned forward to look at Toshiro's face. "All I have to do to defeat you is this." Dixie placed one of her fingers on the back of Toshiro's head and pushed him forwards, causing him to collapse on the ground, where he remained. He couldn't even bring himself to stand up again. He just felt so tired. Resigned, Toshiro closed his eyes.
"Pathetic." Dixie scoffed. "Now, where were we?" She wondered, turning back to Ren. "Oh, yes! I remember."
Damn... Toshiro thought. I can't move. My eyes won't open, either. I'm so pathetic right now. But...what about Ren? She's in danger. If I helped, I'd only be a burden. But...Even so...Even so, I... Toshiro's hand twitched, and it clenched into a fist. Toshiro felt a new strength run through him. A powerful strength. Stronger than anything he felt before. He didn't fight it. He let this power take him over.
"This is the end!" Dixie yelled with a manic grin, raising her foot up once again.
I WANT TO PROTECT HER!
"Die!" Dixie began to lower her foot, but before she could, a hand reached out and grabbed it. "Huh?" Dixie followed the hand towards the owner. It was Toshiro, who had stood up on one knee with shadows hiding his eyes. "God, you're persistent." Dixie attempted to remove her leg from his grip, but he refused to let go. "Let go of me!"
"Okay." Toshiro swung Dixie above his head, and threw her into the wall next to him, standing up in the process. As Dixie slammed into the wall, it dented with a huge crater that was so deep it almost went all the way through.
What the hell...? Dixie thought as she fell down onto the ground, the rubble from the wall littering around her. He couldn't even stand up before, so where did this power come from.
"Man, it's been a while." Toshiro moaned, placing a hand on his right shoulder and flexing it back. "What's with this body?" He looked around his surroundings. "Where is this place?"
Wait a second...Dixie sat up on all fours, glaring at Toshiro. That's not the brat.
"Hm?" Toshiro's attention was drawn to Ren. His eyes widened, and he immediately got down on one knee beside her, touching her shoulder.
"Hey, you." Dixie demanded, staggering back onto her feet. "Who are you?"
"Tell me..." Toshiro started. "Are you the one who did this to this girl?"
"Yeah. What about it?" Dixie asked, smirking.
"I see..." Toshiro said slowly, standing up with his back turned to Dixie. His hands clenched into fists.
"This aura..." Dixie said to herself. Her eyes widened. "Don't tell me...you're..."
"You are correct. I am not the owner of this body. But first, tell me your name." While he spoke, a blue smoke rose from his clenched fists.
"Dixie." She answered, trying to sound confident, but she could not stop her voice from shaking.
"Well then, Dixie..." Toshiro turned around to face Dixie, and her eyes widened. The aura had grown so that the smoke took up his arms up to the elbows, and it was so intense, his hair blew in an invisible breeze. But, what terrified Dixie the most was the enraged look on his face.
"I, the Heavenly Guardian Ryuki, will spare you no ounce of my fury!"
There you have it, guys! Toshiro's back in action! I mean, Ryuki! Stay tuned for the battle between Toshiro/Ryuki and Dixie! Oh, and Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!