Chapter 2: Sode no Shirayuki
Snow drifted slowly to the ground. Everywhere it was white, not one splash of any other color in sight. Although, if you dug into a large clump of snow to the left, you would find a gray stone wall. And within that gray stone wall was a cave. And standing at the entrance of the cave, was the prettiest woman you had ever met. Moonlight radiated off of her, her silky white hair practically glowing. Her white robes only added to this, and only her blue eyes served as a fact that she was not completely camouflaged into the snow.
As she watched the snow, she sighed softly. This was a sure sign that Rukia was not feeling altogether happy. Why did her wielder never confront her if she was unhappy? Sode no Shirayuki would do anything to cheer Rukia up. But she knew her wielder well enough to know that Rukia never went to her. No, instead Rukia would go to Zabimaru's wielder, or even the Substitute Shinigami. Sode no Shirayuki almost laughed as she remembered impaling the boy's heart, and tasting his soul. She had almost gone into him, Rukia had practically gifted her to him.
Sode no Shirayuki shook her head, trying to rid herself of such thoughts of Rukia betraying her. As ignorant as Rukia was of her zanpakuto, she knew she would never go as far as to leave Sode no Shirayuki. Rukia was a wonderful, loyal, brave Shinigami, and Sode no Shirayuki had been with her all the way since the academy. No, Rukia would never leave her.
But still… Sode no Shirayuki didn't like it when it snowed. Rukia's inner world always had snow covering the ground and the hills, but when it snowed, the entire place became gloomy. When it snowed, it meant that Rukia was feeling sad. And if she was sad, than the world was sad, and so was Sode no Shirayuki.
"Rukia," The beautiful zanpakuto murmured quietly, "why are you sad? Please tell me." But, of course, there was no reply.
A surge of anger welled up in her. She never tells me anything! Sode no Shirayuki thought furiously. But then the anger left, and she felt ashamed of herself for feeling mad. Rukia was hard to understand, but Sode no Shirayuki knew her perfectly. Rukia was wary of whom she could trust, but she would put her life in the Substitute Shinigami's hands. That was the only part of her that Sode no Shirayuki could not figure out.
For the briefest of moments, when Sode no Shirayuki had been stabbed through the Substitute Shinigami, she had met Zangetsu. She had seen a man who looked to be at least in his fifties, wearing a black cloak and dark glasses. She had seen him, and he had seen her. He had nodded, as if saying thank you, and then disappeared. She knew he was Zangetsu- Rukia had told her of him in one of her few visits here. At that time, Sode no Shirayuki had not told her of her short meeting with him, but instead smiled and nodded silently.
Sode no Shirayuki frowned at that memory, but ignored it and stretched out her hand, holding it outside of her shelter. Two snowflakes landed on it, but melted almost instantly. She smiled with relief and walked outside of the cave, gazing up at the sky. The snow was letting up. Rukia was okay again. "I'm happy you're okay, Rukia."
Again, there was no reply. She wasn't expecting one, anyway. Sode no Shirayuki knelt down, and scooped up some snow in her hands, patting it firmly until it became a rough spherical shape. She looked proudly at her snowball, and then threw it up into the air. It sailed up about five feet above her head, and right when gravity should have taken over, it froze in mid-air. Sode no Shirayuki stared at her hand raised above her, clenched tightly in a fist. Then, with a gentle smile, she slowly spread out her fingers until her hand was flat, and the snowball burst into a million snowflakes. Sode no Shirayuki did, after all, have to keep in practice, considering how little times she was called upon.
Once the snowflakes had all settled back onto the ground, Sode no Shirayuki continued on. She honestly had no particular place she had in mind, but she kept on walking anyways. She enjoyed the silence in Rukia's inner world. There was almost nothing, except for the softly howling wind and the crunch of the snow underneath her feet. No plants survived in this icy world, only large white mountains and hills. And everything was such a blinding white, any other person would have to make his or hers way eyes closed. Except for Rukia, of course.
A loud cracking noise disturbed Sode no Shirayuki from her thoughts. She lifted her head, gazing at the mountain above her. Narrowing her eyes, she made out a falling chunk of ice, threatening to land on her lest she move. But she didn't budge. Instead, she held up a hand and furled it into a fist. The ice chunk immediately stopped, suspended in the air. Sode no Shirayuki then flicked her wrist away, and the ice flew to the side, crashing to the ground a good mile away.
"That is an interesting trick." A voice said coolly.
Sode no Shirayuki froze, her body tensing instinctively. The voice had come from behind her, but she had heard no footsteps. She closed her eyes and breathed out slowly, forcing herself to stay calm. When she opened her eyes, she said, "Do you think so? I practice often."
"I can assume that."
She turned around, facing the man. The first thing she saw was the shadowed eyes he bore, drilling their gaze into her. He had a thick jacket with a fur collar, firmly zipped up. His hands were buried deep in his pockets, and a hood covered his head, only revealing his pale face. Although deeply suspicious, Sode no Shirayuki smiled in what she hoped was a kind and welcome way and said, "Hello. I'm afraid I wasn't expecting any visitors, so I'm quite unprepared for your arrival."
"That's alright. It is my fault entirely for coming here without an invitation." The man replied calmly.
"I don't think we have met before." Sode no Shirayuki said, keeping her friendly tone while she readied the snow around her to attack, should it be needed. "I am Sode no Shirayuki. Might I ask your name?"
"I am Muramasa, a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The man's face remained blank as he spoke.
"To you as well." Sode no Shirayuki said. "Would it be too much of a bother for you to answer if I asked you why you were here?"
"Not at all." Muramasa replied. "Shall I answer, then?"
"Please do."
The man didn't speak for at least five seconds, as though debating on how he should answer. Finally, he said, "It has come to my occurrence, that you zanpakuto are nothing more than mere weapons for your wielders, the Shinigami. They call on your powers whenever they feel like it, and expect you to do their bidding as they please. And do they ever thank you once you have exerted your powers to help them? No. They instead seal you back to wait until they need you again." Muramasa paused. "Is that any way to show gratitude to the ones who did all the fighting?"
Sode no Shirayuki narrowed her eyes. How dare this man say that the Shinigami felt no compassion for their zanpakuto? However little times Rukia spoke to her, she knew Rukia cared for her. "You still have not told me why you are here," She said icily.
The man frowned at her cold tone, but continued on. "I am here to free you from your wielder's grasp. If you join me, you will never feel the abandonment and loneliness you have received again. If you join me, together we can rule over the Shinigami, and make them pay."
That made her snap. Sode no Shirayuki widened her eyes with horror, and then fury, her blue eyes blazing. "You talk nothing but foolishness! Rukia has never made me feel abandoned, and I know she never will. I am not imprisoned here; this is my home, and the freest place I know. And I have no intention of ruling over the Shinigami- they are the wielder for a reason." She lifted her hands, and a wave of snow rose behind her at her call. "Leave! And never come back with such ridiculous propositions."
Muramasa had not flinched at the sight of the looming snow wall shadowing over him. "You say this Rukia has always treated you as a friend?"
"The very best." Sode no Shirayuki spat. "I know she would never let me down, nor I her. You cannot make me turn against her with a few simple words- nothing in the world would make me betray her."
"My, my. Aren't you the loyal one?"
"Any zanpakuto would say the same."
"Are you so sure of that?" Muramasa said slowly.
"Absolutely." Sode no Shirayuki insisted.
Muramasa didn't say anything for a while. He blinked calmly, as though completely unaware of Sode no Shirayuki's obvious anger. He shifted a little, snuggling his body deeper into the warm coat before stating, "Then perhaps you can tell me why Rangiku Matsumoto's zanpakuto, Haineko, is currently resting in the room I had created for you zanpakuto. She was more than willing to come with me."
"Haineko was hardly what you could call loyal." Sode no Shirayuki replied, although she felt a twinge of alarm as she realized that one zanpakuto had already rebelled.
"Have you ever met her?"
"To be honest, no. But to go against your own wielder is catastrophic. It's horrible. She has taken Matsumoto's trust and shredded it to pieces." Sode no Shirayuki felt a prick of pity for the strawberry-blonde Shinigami. She imagined the lieutenant calling and calling to her zanpakuto, but never receiving an answer.
"In defense of Haineko, her wielder was never exactly the kindest of Shinigami." Muramasa said.
"Are you saying you know about all of us and our respective Shinigami?" Sode no Shirayuki almost laughed as she spoke. There was absolutely no way he could; she had never met him before in her life!
But, much to her horror, Muramasa replied, "As I said to Haineko: I know much more than you would expect."
Fear began to rise within her, and fear turned into rage. Sode no Shirayuki snarled, her once-pretty face becoming almost demonic. "I will never betray Rukia!" With a cry, she flicked her arms, and the snow wave behind her crashed down into Muramasa.
A rumbling noise filled the air as the avalanche continued, until it slowly subsided, and finally stopped. Sode no Shirayuki relaxed her arms, allowing them to flop unceremoniously to her sides. She panted heavily, staring at the mass of snow in front of her. All of her anger had been released in that attack, and now all she felt was a sick triumphant feeling.
"Well, so much for you." She muttered, gulping to catch her breath.
"I can see you are exhausted," A familiar deep voice rang out. "But I regret to inform you that I am still very much alive." And with that said, the man appeared, literally out of nowhere. He took his hands out of his pockets, revealing the scarily long fingernails, and began brushing flecks of snow off of his jacket.
Sode no Shirayuki gaped. That was all she could do. Her mouth hung open, but not a word came out of it. How had this man survived her attack? On everyone else she had released her second dance on, all of them had perished. Who was this strange man? What was he?
Muramasa calmly cleared his throat, and then went on as though nothing had happened. "You told me just a few moments ago that you would never betray Rukia. Your loyalty is admirable, but allow me to ask you this. Are you certain that Rukia has never betrayed you?"
"What…?" Sode no Shirayuki's voice sounded as though her throat had been rubbed with sandpaper. She coughed loudly, swallowed, and then tried again. "What are you talking about? Of course she's never betrayed me, and she never will. Of that I am certain."
"Oh really? Because, if I can recall, Rukia did indeed betray you. She gave you away."
"What do you mean?" Sode no Shirayuki demanded. "She's never given me away; I have no idea what you're talking about. Stop spewing such nonsense about zanpakuto reigning, and stop telling such lies about Rukia betraying me. I have no time for this; so please leave."
"Quite a few months ago, I think maybe even a year, you and Rukia were assigned to the World of the Living. Is that correct?" When the zanpakuto nodded, Muramasa continued. "There, you encountered a boy with strange spiritual powers. His reiatsu lured a Hollow in, and it attacked his family. And then it attacked Rukia."
Sode no Shirayuki drew in a sharp gasp as she realized where this was heading.
"Rukia never called on to your powers. The Hollow was fairly weak- you could've destroyed it even without the use of your first dance. But Rukia never called your name. She never even tried. Instead, she gave you away to the boy. The boy whom she'd met only an hour ago. Tell me, is this what you consider friendship and trust?"
She tried to speak, but her mouth had gone dry. It was true. Rukia had betrayed her. She had given her away to a complete stranger, without even trying to kill the Hollow. "She… no. I can't believe it. But… she really… she really did."
Muramasa nodded. "In the end, Rukia wasn't the wonderful Shinigami you thought you knew. She didn't trust your powers enough to kill a Hollow as weak as that one. She didn't trust you enough. So… now are you willing to take revenge on her for the wrong she has done upon you?"
Sode no Shirayuki still couldn't speak clearly, and it took a while for her to reply. But slowly, a smile appeared on her face. Not a warm, kind smile. But a smile that thirsted for vengeance. "I… yes. I will join you, Muramasa. Rukia will deserve what is coming to her."
The man nodded. "Good. Now then, allow me to take you to where Haineko currently is." He stretched out his hand, and his fingernails brushed against Sode no Shirayuki's face. His nail were cold and sharp, and as soon as they left her skin, a blinding light flashed before her. The world around her began to spin, and she felt a dizzying feeling coming up. When at last it stopped, she was panting once again.
"Down these stairs." Muramasa instructed.
She turned, and followed dazedly followed him down, one hand pressed against her forehead. She stumbled down the stairs quite ungracefully, and stopped at the bottom with a sudden halt. Taking her hand off of her head, she glanced around, trying to adjust her eyes to the dim light. It was completely quiet, the silence being enough to rival the one in her own world, but then a loud voice broke the stillness.
"You're back already? That was really fast." Out of the shadows came what seemed like a fusion between a cat and a woman. She was shorter than Sode no Shirayuki, and had brown hair on her head, but along with that she had ears, a tail, and pink-furred hips. She eyed Sode no Shirayuki warily. "So is that the so-called most beautiful zanpakuto?"
Muramasa took of his hood and shook his head to clear it of the specks of snow that had fallen on it. "Be polite, Haineko. Sode no Shirayuki still seems to be in quite a daze."
"You're Haineko?" Sode no Shirayuki approached her. "You're the one who went against your own partner."
The cat-human hybrid scoffed. "Speak for yourself, Ms. Pretty. You're here too, aren't you? What happened to your beloved Shinigami?"
Sode no Shirayuki blinked, and then looked away. "She betrayed me. I still can't believe it, but she did."
Haineko cocked her head to one side, one of her cat ears twitching. "She did?" Her voice seemed slightly gentler, but still had a demanding tone to it. "What'd she do that was so bad?"
"She gave me away. To a complete stranger." Sode no Shirayuki replied softly. The truth seemed more believable now. Rukia, the one whom she placed all her trust in, had went against her. She'd given her away, and the Substitute Shinigami came to being. "And now… I want revenge."
The cat zanpakuto looked a bit happier when she added the last part. "Do you now?" She grinned in a friendly way. "You know, Shirayuki, you just might be okay."
"Pardon, but my name is Sode no Shirayuki. Not simply… Shirayuki."
"Yeah, well that's your problem."
Muramasa coughed lightly. "I'm glad to see that you two are getting along. Would you mind if I took a short leave?"
"Ah? Where're you going now?" Haineko asked, peering past her new friend. Sode no Shirayuki also turned around to glance at the man.
"Now I believe I will take a visit to the black mountains." Muramasa replied as he began to climb back up the stairs. "Haineko, please take care of Sode no Shirayuki. I'm quite sure you two will make good friends. But for now, I am going to see the dark demon Kazeshini." And with that said, he disappeared out of sight, and a loud pop signaled that he was gone.
Haineko blinked, and then shrugged it off with a grin. "He never sticks around for long. Oh well, I'm gonna go take a nap. See ya round, Shirayuki." She then turned to scamper off to a large rock, and promptly jumped up, curled up, and fell asleep.
"Kazeshini?" Sode no Shirayuki said with a frown. "What in the world would he want with that devil?"