A/N:
Gosh, a million thanks to
Alucard180 , Goddess of Night Eternal faith , Alienes , krispydonuts , yoyogigi125 , halfdemonfan , Somerlia , nypsy , cookies18 , foxylove18 , Simply-Ai , smexianime , The-Konoha-Shadow , ChaosChronicler, Aastha
And, I'm sorry, but I didn't mean to offend anyone at all with my opinion on OCs. Everyone is entitled to their own view, but I'm sorry if you still feel angry.
Update was so terribly late because I was depressed. And lonely. And busy. And ill.
XxXxXx
BLEACH: REDONE
CHAPTER 4 :
Hold On
"Is that all?"
Orihime flipped open her hollow tracking device. "Yes, that was the last one, Kurosaki-kun. You've really gotten better at this!"
Ichigo wiped the sweat from his brow. "Yeah, well, at least nobody got hurt this time."
"Don't be so modest! It's only your second day, and you're already able to take them out with a slice or two!" She pumped her fist in the air. "It's all the result of my superb training!"
Ichigo sighed. "Sorry to say, Inoue, but your training was lame."
"Ehh? But Kurosaki-kun's swordsmanship skills were the result of my-"
"What does swinging around a baseball bat have to do with swordsmanship?"
Ichigo and Orihime were on the pavement, and midnight was closing in on them. Orihime flipped open her cellphone/ hollow tracker and checked the time. She yawned. "I'm sleepy. Can we go back?"
It had been two days since Orihime arrived at his school. Ichigo had been subjected to so called 'training' of whose objective he failed to see.
His first time facing a hollow, he had simply listened to Orihime's instructions which she yelled at him the whole time. But now, he was slowly starting to get the knack of it.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
XxXx Next Morning XxXxXxXx
"Ah! Inoue-san, I wasn't expecting you til this evening!"
Orihime smiled at Urahara. It was a very bright morning at Karakura, and Orihime thought how well the Urahara shop fit right in, even though it was run by former Soul Reaper.
She had thought to check in with Urahara before leaving for school, inspite of her knowing that her things would probably only arrive much later that day.
The day she had lost her powers, and had to start residing in Urahara's Gigai, he had told her he would contact a friend of her's in Soul Society, to send in necessary things she would require during her stay in the Human World. She had written down the address and name, and the rest was taken care of by Urahara himself.
"Well, you sure are lucky! Your things arrived a few moments ago,"
Orihime froze. "S-so, does that mean he's-?" She looked around
Urahara put an end to her misery. "Ah, your friend left already. Didn't even stop to meet his father, imagine that!"
"Oh...so that's it..." She tried to sound disappointed, but the blonde shop owner noticed the relief in her eyes. He put on his brightest- and creepiest – smile and waved his fan around. "Ah, young love! There was a time when I, too-" Right at that moment, a black cat pounced on top of him, cutting him off. There was a flurry of paws. The cat jumped off and walked away haughtily, and Urahara's hat was a raggedy mess at his feet.
He stared at it in resignation. "Not very nice, Yoruichi," He picked it up and examined it from all angles. Putting it back on, he said, "I do believe you killed my hat."
He turned back to Orihime, who was eyeing the retreating Yoruichi with fear.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ FLASHBACK _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
She woke up.
She was falling. A dark abyss...as far as she could see.
Her fall was smooth, so smooth she was afraid it would last forever. There was no wind.
There were no wounds on her body. Her skin was white and unmarked. She was wearing a plain black kimono.
She thought she was dead.
Somehow, she felt relieved.
She had thought that just before the end, there would be tremendous pain.
But she had been wrong.
All right, there had been pain. But not even half as much as she had been expecting.
She would like to have thought that she died in battle, but the truth was she had covered in a corner, unable to do anything but watch.
A jolt ran through her body as she remebered Ichigo- no, Kurosaki-kun. What had happened to him?
Was he...dead?
A feeling of doom hit her. Her stomach flipped. Even in midair, she doubled up, hands wrapped around her frame. She thought she would throw up, then and there.
She wished she were dead.
Oh wait, she was dead.
But she could think.
She didn't want to think.
His face kept appearing in her head, over and over. Haunting her.
"Come on, Orihime. Let's give your idea a try!"
Taunting her.
That one line playing again and again, like a broken record. His orange hair, grim smile, all stuck in her head.
She had killed him.
She tried closing her eyes.
It didn't help. It was as though his face was glued on her inner eyelids.
She reached up and plugged her ears with her fingers.
His voice didn't go away. It resounded within her head, louder than ever.
She wanted to end her very existence.
She wished the fall would come to an end, and she would crash, destroying her spirit body and thus removing her essence from the world.
NO!
Why?
He was an innocent!
Why should he pay for my mistakes?
The emotions she felt tumbled over one another. Regret. Anger. Sadness. Frustration.
But there was one that stood above all others.
The most powerful one.
The one that would always emerge victorious.
Love.
The Love of trying to protect someone.
The Love of trying your best, against all odds.
The Love of not giving up.
Love.
And this love gave her power.
Orihime was angry that she could do nothing, while the boy fought to his death.
She wouldn't die.
She simply couldn't die, she had to get back out there and save Ichigo.
She simply had to.
There was no other option.
There was nobody else who could do it!
She threw her head back and screamed.
.
..
..
..
..
..
..
She opened her eyes
"It's not right for an attractive young lady to lie on the road at this time of the night."
A blonde man stood in front of her, looking down at her and smiling. His eyes were mostly hooded by the shade of his hat, and he wore traditional wooden sandals.
A larger, more muscular male kneeled next to her, wearing an apron. He wore glasses and had dreadlocks.
Orihime was still on the sidewalk, but she had been propped up against a wall, so she was half sitting up.
Her head hurt a bit, but the pain was rapidly fading.
She looked down at herself.
Her wounds had been bandaged up.
A sense of releif warmed her body. She had narrowly escaped death.
"How do you feel?"
She opened her mouth, to thank him, to ask him who he was, but the words were stuck in her throat. Instead, she heard herself saying something else.
"KUROSAKI-KUN!"
She looked around wildly, but the night was calm, The hollow nowhere to be seen. Ichigo lay a little further away, still clad in his Soul Reaper robes, the sword next to his body. His eyes were closed. She couldn't tell if he was breathing. A feeling of dread came over her.
Urahara chuckled. "Now, now, Inoue-san, don't get too impatient. Kurosaki-san is just fine." He glanced at the wreckage done to the house. "Can't quite say the same about his house, though."
The releif that came over her was tremendous. "Thank..goodness..." A confused look crossed her face. "Um, thank you for saving me, and everything, but how-?"
"The thing is, Inoue-san, you were on the brink of death just now. Even though I put your soul into one my very own specially-designed gigai, it's possible anytime for you to have a relapse. And, correct me if I'm wrong, but-" He leaned in close, a knowing smile on his face. "You're not exactly...healthy, are you?"
She looked away. Even as her gaze fell upon the unconcious Ichigo, her mind was whirring with thoughts and worries. How much did this strange man know? Was it really that easy to tell?
She turned to Urahara, who still had that smile on his face. "I-" she started, but was again interruted. "In fact, you shouldn't even be alive right now! A human with health conditions such as yours should have died before completing a decade! Being born a Soul Reaper saved you! But I think," He moved his fan to cover most of his face, leaving only his eyes. "You know that, don't you, Inoue-san?"
She couldn't say anything. She thought she felt a tear, but it was hard to tell.
Urahara turned away, facing the wreckage that was Ichigo's house once more. He spoke, without looking at her. "The Gigai you're in right now, is infused with Spirit Particles.A lot of Spirit Particles. You should be fine for a while."
Orihime understood. Her own Spirit Energy had been lost to another, but she was not devoid of it altogether.
"We can save that talk for later, right, Inoue-san?" Urahara looked as though he didn't care much for her questions. "Get some rest."
"H-how do you know my name?" And, as an afterthought, "How can you see me?"
Urahara grinned and waved his fan around. "Now, now, what did I just say? This isn't the time for any of that!"
"H-huh? But-"
Interrupting her, he said, "I'm so very sorry, Inoue-san, but we have to taken care of this mess!"
Soon, after an hour of healing, replacing memories, putting everyone to bed, Urahara took Orihime back to his shop. They talked until she fell asleep.
The rest is history.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _FLASHBACK END_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
"Coming back to the subject..." Urahara said, making Orihime revert her eyes from the strange cat and back to him. "Your things are inside. I'll ask Tessai to send them over sometime today."
"No! That's really not necessary! I couldn't possibly impose on you and Tessai-san anymore! I'll take them home myself!" Orihime protested.
"No problem at all, Inoue-san. In fact, Tessai's been itching to do some grunt work lately, so it should be okay," Urahara replied. "But, you should have that Substitute Soul Reper of yours at hand to help you move the furniture into place! As your temporary doctor, I forbid you to overexert yourself at any cost!"
Orihime giggled at his mock-concern. Urahara was the only person aware of the condition she was in, and it was nice for somebody to care. She bowed and turned to leave, but remembered something. "Um...Urahara-san...my friend, he didn't leave a...a note, did he?"
Urahara's eyes widened. "Oh, I almost forgot!" He whipped out a folded piece of paper from inside his sleeve. "Good thing you asked, Inoue-san!" He held it out to her, and she slowly reached out and took it. She could feel Urahara's eyes on her, so she quickly stuffed it into her school bag. She deifinately wouldn't read it in front of him. She bowed and walked away.
..
..
..
..
..
Later...
Urahara sneezed. He was rubbing hs nose when Tessai walked past. "Oh no, owner- did you catch a cold?" he asked.
Urahara waved him away. "No, no! A pretty girl somewhere must be talking about me!"
"This is as cliche as cliche gets..." Tessai muttered.
"Did you say something?"
"No! Owner, this is not good!" Glinting, he said, "I have an excellent medicine that works on colds!"
"M-medicine?" Urahara asked hesistently.
Tessai offerred a tray laden with a glass of water and a (mysterious) orange box labelled 'stomach'.
Urahara took a good look at Tessai's 'medicine'.
And the expiry date.
"This expired two years ago!"
"It works while you sleep!"
"No, no, no! That's not the problem!"
"Say Aaa.."
"Aaaaaaa..No, wait- what?"
Urahara's moaning from the bathroom could be heard all over the shop that night.
"So you did mean to kill me!"
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
When Ichigo woke up that morning, he wondered if Orihime was still inside his closet.
He slowly got up. It was time for school, and he wondered if they would walk to school together. . . that would definately attract eyeballs. Not that he wanted to, of course...
He knocked on the closet door. He expected a reply, or at least some sound of movement, but there was none. He slowly slid the door open, almost afraid to peek inside. What if Orihime was the type to unconsiously remove her pajamas in her sleep?
Highly improbably, he knew, but it seemed like something a shojo manga heroine would do. And right now, he couldn't figure out if the manga his life had suddenly turned into was shojo or shonen...
He shook his head, attempting to cleanse his thoughts, and slid the door all the way.
Rather than finding a sleeping girl, or even a half-naked one- the closet was empty, except for a folded blanket and a pillow.
Huh, this was a surprise. When had she woken up? He felt like an idiot for not noticing.
Ichigo stared at the empty closet, anger slowly boiling up. Where the hell-? It wasn't any of his business, but she was the one staying in his closet. She couldn't just go around doing whatever!
He slammed the door close.
"Stupid..." What did he care? She could go and do whatever she wanted to, it was none of his business at all.
He got ready for school and headed downstairs.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Orihime entered the classroom barely a second before the bell rang. She headed sraight to her desk and sat down.
Ichigo turned to look at her, expecting at least a giddy smile from the auburn-haired girl, but she didn't seem to notice. He snorted and turned to textbook for comfort.
For the rest of the period, Ichigo concentrated on the book on his desk, determindedly not sparing so much as a glance at his auburn-haired classmate. However, he couldn't stop himself from noticing the piece of paper in her hand, which she kept twirling around in her fingers. From time to time she would unfold it, read it closely, sigh and fold it up again. She looked thoroughly depressed. What was wrong with her?
Ichigo couldn't help noticing all this, even though he barely even looked her way throughout class. "Hindsight," he thought to himself. "STUPID F#$%^& hindsight."
At break, when he could have talked to Orihime, she was swept up in a group of girls.
He watched as she chatted animatedly with Tatsuki as they walked away. She was sighing no more.
"I-CHI-GO!" Keigo jumped onto him. Mizuiro and Chad gathered around.
Keigo threw his arm around Ichigo and pulled him close. "Staring at the lovely Inoue-san, hmm?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Ichigo muttered. "Lay off."
Keigo waggled his finger at him. "I've been watching you look at her since morning! Don't you try to deny anything!" He pushed Ichigo away and pointed accusingly at him. "You want to talk to her, don't you?"
Ichigo thought for a moment, while Keigo stared at him intentedly. Ichigo sighed. "If you get down to it, I do want to talk to her..."
Keigo's eyes glimmered with happiness, as he clasped his hands together and spun around in ectasy.
"FINALLY! The time has come for Ichigo to accept his urges! Don't be shy, my friend! There is an ocean of fish to choose from!"
"Fish?"
"Yes! And even if you get rejected, just chase after a different one!"
"You idiot, Keigo! That's not-"
Keigo slapped his hand over Ichigo's mouth, and ignoring his muffled protests, dragged him to the window.
Down below, in the school grounds, the girls of their class could be seen heading toward a tree with their lunch- Orihime among them.
Keigo pointed at them. "Now, Ichigo, go and ask her out!"
"Huh?" Ichigo broke free of Keigo's hold and looked. "In front of everyone?" he asked, ignoring the fact that Keigo was under the wrong impression.
"You bet! Chicks dig it when guys do that! Now, go!" Keigo gave Ichigo a shove towards the window.
"Hey! I'm not gonna jump from here, you idiot! Do you wanna kill me?"
"Just go!"
Ichigo sighed and walked out of the classroom, leaving Keigo heartbroken. What did his friends think he was gonna do, anyway? He just wanted to talk to Inoue about this morning, not..c-confess, or anything, right?
His face grew red.
He made a quick detour and went to the washroom to wash his face. As the droplets fell from his face to the sink, his eyes closed and, after a few long breaths, his resolve strengthened. He straightened up, wiped his face and left.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
"I just don't get it."
"Get what, Michiru?"
Michiru pointed at Orihime, who was happily eating her lunch, which was a loaf of bread with wasabi and read bean paste. "How can she eat so much and not be the size of a blimp?"
"It's obvious, isn't it?" Ryo flipped her black hair and snorted. "All that nutrition goes straight to her breasts."
Tatsuki rolled her eyes and turned to Orihime."So, Orihime, how're you liking school so far?"
Orihime smiled at her. "I love it! Everybody is so nice!"
"I think most of the guys in our class have taken a liking to you." Michiru said. "They're always staring when you go by."
"I WON'T LET THEM HAVE HER!" Chizuru popped out of nowhere and hugged Orihime tightly. "My precious Hime! You belong to me, you and your lovely-"
Tatsuki punched her. "Get lost, you lesbian."
"Ahh! How mean, Arisawa! You-"
Everybody laughed as they continued their battle. The sun was shining, the sky was a clear blue.
Birds chirped and leaves fluttered. Orihime found herself forgetting her troubles.
But inside, she kept asking herself- just how long was this going to last?
"Oi, Inoue."
The girls fell silent as the chatter qickly died away.
Ichigo stood there, his hand on the back of his neck and the other in his pocket. He looked away awkwardly. "I need to talk to you?" He mean to say it firmly, but it came out as a question. When she made no move to stand up, he cleared his throat. "Alone?"
Orihime smiled at him. "Sure,"
He simply turned away and started walking back towards the building. She had to jog a little to catch up with him. "Kurosaki-kun...is something wrong?'
He kept walking and didn't answer.
"Kurosaki-kun?"
They were inside the school building now, and nobody else was around. He finally turned to her. "What happened this morning?"
"This morning?" She thought for a moment. "I almost forgot, my things arrived at Urahara-san's place!"
"You went to that guy?"
"Yup! Where else could I have gone? Anyway, after school today, we need to-"
Ichigo banged his fist into the wall. "Shut up, Inoue."
She did.
He continued. "Don't do that..without telling me."
"You were sleeping-"
"I don't care. Wake me up."
"I didn't think Kurosaki-kun would care."
"That's right, I don't. But don't think that you can run off whenever."
Orihime pouted. "Can I go now, Kurosaki-kun?"
"What the hell is wrong?" He blurted that one out without thinking too much.
Orihime stared at him in surprise. "Is something wrong with Kurosaki-kun?"
Ichigo looked down. He was exhausted. "Never mind..."
How could he make her tell him what was wrong with her?
..
..
..
..
..
..
Ichigo stands with his head raised, looking at the night sky. Orihime is sitting, her chin propped on her knees. It was late in the evening, and they had just finished hollow-hunting...or 'rounding up the dirty socks' as Orihime put it. They were currently taking a rest on somebody's roof.
He sneeks furtive glances at her, waiting for the right moment. After a moment on heated inner debating, he finally gathers the courage to open his mouth, but-
"Kurosaki-kun?"
He falls down, anime style. "Yes, Inoue?"
She looks at him worredly. "Is something wrong? You've been looking frustrated since morning.." She paused and giggled suddenly. "But then again, Kurosaki-kun always looks angry, even when nothing is wrong, so maybe this is also normal?"
Fucking perfect. She probably thinks I need anger management classes now.
"It's not," He said, more harshly than he intended to.
Orihime bit her lip and looked away. She tried smiling, but regret was clear on her face. "O-of course, Kurosaki-kun wouldn't want to tell me. . . I'm sorry..."
"Dammit, why are you apologizing?" He was almost angry at her foolishness. He sighed. "The thing is, Inoue," He was rushing through his words now, determined to let it all out. "If..if you have something on your mind, and it's troubling you, then..you could tell me."
Orihime's eyes widened, and she stared at Ichigo as though she was seeing him for the first time. She really hadn't thought he would notice...
Ichigo reddened under her intense gaze. He cleared his throat. "So, even if I can't help- even if I can't do anything. . . .If you need somebody to listen, then. . . .I'll be there."
Orihime was speechless.
"So!" He turned around and pointed down at her. "Spit it out already!"
She looked down, and shifted uncomfortably. Ichigo sat down next to her and waited. Finally, after a few moments, she spoke.
"I'm homesick."
Ichigo turned to look at her. She was looking at the sky, he head thrown back as she spoke.
"My friend came to the human world to drop off my things this morning, and he didn't stop to meet me or anything." She sighed. "I think he's angry."
"Why would he be angry? You didn't do anything wrong, did you?" Ichigo blurted out.
Orihime bit her lip."He just worries too much, I think..."
They sat in silence for a while. Ichigo spoke first.
"Hey...what's your family like?"
Orihime smiled. "I lived with my brother for a long time...he was a really high ranking Soul Reaper, and I wanted to become just like him, so I joined the academy."
"You used to live with him?"
"Yup. He died some time after I graduated."
Ichigo didn't know what to say. He was incapable of comforting anyone, he knew that better than anyone else. So, he said what he wanted to. Something he wanted to tell her.
"When my mom died, I didn't go to school for days," He said, looking right at her. "I went to the spot where I had last seen her alive, and wandered around, just hoping, somehow..."
"I trained." He turned to look at her when she said that. Her eyes were shining with tears, but she was smiling. "It was all I did. It was all I could do."
"Because I knew he was watching over me...I wanted him to feel proud," Her voice was barely a whisper. She lowered her head and lapsed into silence.
They sat there, the two of them, each understanding the other's loss as much as their own.
Suddenly, Orihime shifted, and placed her head against Ichigo's left shoulder.
"Hey, what-" He stopped when he noticed her cheeks were wet with tears and her eyes closed.
She gripped his left arm with both of her hands. Taking a deep breath, she snuggled closer to him. "I'm sorry...but please, just for a little while..."
Ichigo relaxed and closed his eyes. If it gave her even a little comfort, then...it was alright.
XxXxXxXxXxXx
The folded paper lay scrunched up in some corner of her school bag.
Orihime
Don't kill yourself.
XxXxXxXxX
..
..
..
..
..
..
Don't be kind to me.
Please, don't reach out to me with your hands.
I'm not worthy of your help.
Your calloused palms will ache, if you help me up.
When I'm gone, don't be upset.
I don't want you to regret meeting me.
Saving me.
Potecting me.
A tear slid down her cheek.
Even so...please, just let me hold on...a little while longer.
..
..
..
..
..
XxXxXxXx
Comforting each other in their own way- two people, completely different but brought together through a number of bizarre events... Maybe this is fate?
A/N : Hey guys!
REVIEW
or
I'll
update
...s...l...o...w...l...y...
Haha.
The second last part(in bold) was the note her 'friend' left with Urahara. And the last part(in italics) was Orihme thinking as she lay in Ichigo's arms...kyaa how romantic :)
I think everybody would have figured out who Orihime's 'friend' is...those who didn't, did nobody read the sword description carefully enough? Xx
I've rekindled my romance with shoujo manga lately- which is probably the main reason for this disastrously late update. Forgive me, but I can't keep away from it...I read the whole Ouran Host Club series, which is surprisingly good. I used to think it was overrated. :'( My bad.
And started Kare Kano.
And took up Otomen again.
And started Ruroni Kenshin, even though it's shonen.
And FINALLY read NANA.
Recently, I've started thinking how cool a Fruits Basket and Bleach crossover would be..
For those of you who haven't read fruits basket - - must read for shojo manga fans. I got down to reading it REALLY late, and I really regret that... I used to think the summary was ultra-cheesy, so there couldn't possibly be a plot...but turns out, I was dead wrong. I mean, the art sucked for the first 7-8 volumes, but it got a lot better. Same goes for the plot, which got amazing around the 9th volume...and there are 23 volumes in total, so-plenty of room for the good parts.
So, I was thinking, Cut the bleach characters and paste them into the Furuba situations..Orihime would be Tohru, Kyo would be Ichigo, Yuki would be...Ishida? dunno. It's an interesting idea.
But that's all it is, an IDEA.
Blah.
Won't go any further than that.