...i didn't intend for this to end this way, but my writing has a way of going off from my original ideas... i'll be working on another drabble, and hopefully i can get a fluffy RenRuki next time...
Star
"They say that when people die, they turn into stars. They stay in the skies so they can watch over their loved ones. And if the living ones are lonely, they can look up in the skies and know that they are just there, looking over them."
When Renji found Rukia, she was idly sitting by the garden of the 13th Division. The crescent moon above them was overshadowed by the passing cloud, causing an eerie halo amidst the darkened sky littered with shiny stars. The chilly evening wind made the leaves of the trees in the garden sway and if Rukia or Renji was affected by the cold, they didn't show it.
Renji stared at the back of Rukia for awhile, silently thinking of an answer. He thought of her shortened black hair and how he's still getting used to it. Despite the short hair or the badge on her arm, the person in front of him is still Rukia; the person he'd known for a long time, the person he'd almost died trying to save, the one person he'd consider to be a star.
"And where did you get that stupid idea?" Renji blurted. Rukia didn't look back and instead looked at the ground beneath her swaying feet. "People don't turn into stars when they die, you should know that. They turn into plusses and if they're consumed by their sorrow, they turn into hollows. We perform soul burial to the plusses and we deal with killing the hollows. Either way, people who die, will end up in Soul Society. If they're lucky, they can become Soul Reapers like us."
"You're right. It's just something I heard from the human world." Rukia stood up, dusting what little dirt she gathered by sitting. She fixed the lieutenant badge wrapped around her left arm, avoiding Renji's gaze.
Right. The human world. Of course.
"Look, I'm sure he misses you too." Renji tried not to stumble with his words. The last thing he needed to do was cause more sorrow for Rukia. But in all the things he could've said, it was the only thing he knew was right.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Rukia paused. She began walking towards Renji, but still refused to meet his eyes. "Come on, I don't want to be late for my first emergency Lieutenant meeting." Rukia's voice was stern and Renji cursed her insistence to mask her emotion, like it would work on him.
Renji could only follow her in silence, noticing the way her shoulder still sag a little, despite her effort of putting up a brave posture, acting like nothing was bothering her.
"I guess, some people do turn into stars. While others are left on the ground, staring up at them."