Thanks so much for your support guys. It makes me think that this story isn't a total disaster :P Anyway, I think I actually like this chapter, so I hope you do too :)
Las Noches was rapidly crumbling around them. The dust clouds that had been falling on them before had magnified into baseball sized chunks. But they couldn't leave. Not yet. They still didn't have Hoshi.
"But we have no idea where the kid is!" Ichigo protested. Hitsugaya shot him the deadliest glare he could muster.
"And did that stop you when it was Inoue who was kidnapped?" he barked. That shut Ichigo up.
"But taicho, we're running out of time," Matsumoto pointed out. "This building is going to collapse." As if in response, a sharp rift knocked them all off their feet.
"Toushiro!" Ichigo cried. "Do something and do it fast!"
"Leave it to me," Karin stated firmly. She reached out and took Hitsugaya's hand. He tried vainly to force his blush down. Now was not the time.
"Karin what…?" he began, but she cut him off.
"Just in case," she replied. She closed her eyes and focused all her energy on Hoshi. She thought about his bright face, his chocolate eyes, his innocent smile. She imagined him lost and alone in this rapidly deteriorating building.
"Hoshi!" she called out to him in her mind. "Where are you?!" And, for the second time that day, Hitsugaya was hit with the sensation that the air around him was suffocating him. Like there was more than the falling rocks and shaking floor that was keeping him from moving properly. Hitsugaya squeezed Karin's hand tightly, grateful that she was still beside him.
"What the hell is going on?" Ichigo shouted, but no one bothered to answer him.
"He responded to my magneto," Karin said. "He's this way." She yanked Hitsugaya's hand and he followed her as best he could through the veritable earthquake, Matsumoto and Ichigo following as best they could.
"This is ridiculous," Karin noted. She waved her hand above her head, illusioning the building back into place. The shaking ceased and the crumbling boulders stopped plummeting from the ceiling.
"We have to hurry," she insisted, pulling Hitsugaya along at an even faster pace. "This building is way too big for me to hold it forever." They hurried down the winding hallways, blindly following Karin, who seemed to know exactly where she was going, as her magneto drew her towards Hoshi.
"Will someone please tell me what's happening?" Ichigo moaned.
"Not now Ichi-nii," Karin brushed him off impatiently. Her energy was quickly waning from all the illusions she was trying to hold at once. The magneto required a lot more concentration to maintain than she thought it would, coupled with the fact that it made it harder to move due to the dense air it created. She still had to keep Hitsugaya and Matsumoto's injuries in check, and holding up Las Noches was no small feat. Hitsugaya could tell that she was struggling. She had sweat running down her cheeks and a strained look on her face. Her speed slowly began to slacken as it became harder and harder for her to run. But Hitsugaya knew how important it was that she remained alert and conscious, at least until they found Hoshi and were back in Karakura. She was the only thing holding them all together. Literally.
"Karin," he said. "Let me carry you." She groaned.
"I've already been carried once today, do I really have to do it again?"
"You barely have the strength to stand while holding all those illusions. Let me share some of your burden." Karin looked at him. She didn't know if it was because of the magneto or not, but his eyes were so full of affection and sincerity that she almost wanted to kiss him again, right then and there.
"Ok," she agreed. Hitsugaya lifted her onto his back, ignoring the strangled cry that came from Ichigo as he did so.
"Now we can shunpo," Hitsugaya shouted back to prevent Ichigo from slicing him in half. "Where to Karin?" She pointed around a corner.
"That way."
"Follow me everyone," Hitsugaya ordered, and with that, they were off, the shunpo helping tremendously. Hitsugaya tried as hard as he could to focus on the task at hand rather than the fact that Karin was flush against his back, with her arms wrapped tightly around him and her warm breath flowing sensually across his already very alert neck. The magneto wasn't helping his heightened hormones either. He was almost about to lose it completely, when Karin finally yelled,
"Here! He's in that room." The group skidded to a halt. Karin jumped off of Hitsugaya's shoulders as he burst through the door. Hoshi was lying on a bed in the center of the room, flanked by two Arrancar guards.
"Sorry, but we can't let you pass," they stated arrogantly. "We're under orders from…" but who gave the orders was lost as, in unison, Hitsugaya and Ichigo swung and pierced them through the middle. They were dead before they hit the ground.
"Pathetic guards," Hitsugaya mumbled. "Aizen, you stupid freak. You can't even find someone descent to guard your son."
"Hoshi!" Karin said with relief, running forward to embrace the boy. "Thank goodness you're safe." But as she held him, her fatigue finally consumed her, and she fell to her knees, breathing heavily. Las Noches started to shake once more. Hitsugaya felt a jerk in his leg as the healing illusion he was under weakened. Matsumoto gasped, and her hand flew to her stomach as her wound too began to reopen. But she bravely stepped forward and took the baby from Karin, allowing Ichigo to scoop up his exhausted sister.
"Taicho!" Matsumoto said urgently, and Hitsugaya nodded. As quickly as he could, he began to form the seals necessary to open a gate out of Hueco Mondo and back to Karakura. The pain in his leg and stomach increased steadily, and he could hear Matsumoto's breathing become more labored, indicating the pain she was in. Las Noches shook more violently and an enormous chunk of ceiling broke off, missing crushing them by inches. Finally, Hitsugaya formed the last seal. He held out his hands and a wide, deathly black gate opened in front of him.
"Come on!" he directed. The party didn't need to be told twice. They barreled into the gate, which sealed the second they were through. Hitsugaya did his best to ignore the pain in his leg as he ran through the severed world.
"We're almost there," he thought encouragingly. "We're almost…" And then he knew no more.
oooooooooooooooo
Hitsugaya awoke on a soft futon having no idea where he was or how long he had been asleep. His stomach and leg were covered in bandages, but he didn't feel much pain from them anymore. Dazzling sunlight streamed in through the window and Hitsugaya could see frost delicately spider webbed across the glass.
"We made it back huh?" he thought in relief. Suddenly he remembered.
"Hoshi!" he cried, bolting upright. The rapid movement caused a sharp pain in his stomach, but luckily, his wound didn't reopen. He heard a baby cry in the next room and the door slid open to reveal Karin, Ichigo, Matsumoto, and Urahara all seated around a low table. Hoshi was in Karin's arms, and she was cradling him gently.
"Ah, you're awake Hitsugaya taicho," Urahara said brightly.
"Taicho!" Matsumoto squealed, waving fervently at him. "This baby is sooooooo cute! EEEEEE, how did you not tell me about him?! Did you know, he smiles at everything?" Hitsugaya nodded, exceedingly grateful that everyone had made it out of there alive and safe. He climbed out of his futon and joined them.
"What happened?" he asked. "The last thing I remember is fainting in the severed world."
"Yeah you did," Ichigo groaned. "I had to carry your sorry arse out of there you know." He rubbed his sore shoulder for emphasis. "And I was carrying Karin on top of it. I wasn't exactly uninjured either mind you. I brought you all back here and Tessai healed you right up." Hitsugaya scoffed at the thought of Ichigo slinging his conscious body unceremoniously across his shoulder. The thought was horribly demeaning.
"Thanks," he said grudgingly. He looked over at Karin, but she was pointedly avoiding his gaze. It was then that he remembered. Sure she had come to save him, and had cooperated with him during the fight, but now that they weren't on the brink of death, he had to deal with the fact that she clearly hadn't forgiven him for the things he said to her before he left. Not that he blamed her. But he couldn't leave it as it was. He had to apologize.
"Karin," he said. "Can we talk?" Karin snubbed him. Despite everything that had happened in Hueco Mondo, she was still angry at him. But there was so much pleading in his voice that she found herself melting ever so slightly. She sighed.
"Fine," she replied coolly. She got up, handed Hoshi to Matsumoto, and put her coat on.
"Oi, where are you two going?" Ichigo asked protectively.
"Outside," Karin replied nonchalantly. "Why, are you still worried about me Ichi-nii?" Ichigo sat back in a huff. Sure, he had heard the whole story about Karin becoming an illusionist while Hitsugaya was recovering, but he was still an overprotective older brother.
"Just don't do anything stupid," he warned. Karin rolled her eyes and headed outside. Feeling a little like a sick puppy, Hitsugaya followed.
The sun was high in the sky, reflecting blindingly off the pure white snow, and making it difficult for Hitsugaya to open his eyes all the way. He and Karin walked away from the shop to avoid being overheard by unscrupulous eavesdroppers. When they thought they were far enough out of earshot, Karin stopped and Hitsugaya turned to face her.
"Karin," he began. "I…"
SMACK! Hitsugaya was momentarily stunned by her slap, but it wasn't entirely unexpected.
"You bastard!" she shouted. "You complete and utter bastard! How dare you go off on me like that?! You had no right to speak to me that way! And then leaving me behind on top of it! When you know how much I care about Hoshi too! You could have at least done me the decency of giving me a second chance! You're the worst!" She breathed heavily for a moment, her outburst having left her slightly winded. Hitsugaya waited patiently throughout her rant.
"Do you feel better now?" he asked, doing his best not to smile. He feared his life would come to an abrupt halt if he did so at that particular moment. Karin took a deep breath.
"Yeah, I do." Hitsugaya smirked.
"Good." He leaned forward and planted a kiss on her lips. He pulled back and Karin gaped at him.
"Is that all you have to say for yourself?" she demanded. Hitsugaya shrugged.
"Is there anything else that needs to be said?" He smiled briefly. "Look, I'm really really sorry for what I did. I was just so upset that Hoshi was gone that I wasn't really thinking properly. I should never have said those things to you and I…" but Karin cut him off by returning the favor and kissing him.
"That's enough," she said happily. "You don't need to apologize anymore." Hitsugaya grinned.
"Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" he asked. Karin smirked vindictively.
"Actually, there is." She leaned down and scooped up a handful of snow. "Catch!" she yelled, chucking the snowball at Hitsugaya's face. He blocked it, but it exploded all over him anyway.
"Oh, you are so going to regret that!" he challenged, picking up a hunk of snow and lobbing it at her. It hit her right in the face and she laughed heartily, despite the fact that her mouth was full of snow.
And so the snowball fight to end all snowball fights began. What do you expect when two masters of battle engage in one? What started out as a wild frenzy of throwing as much snow as physically possible rapidly turned into a rather un-gratuitous display of skills. Hitsugaya made a snowball, shunpoed around Karin, and shoved it down her back. In response, Karin illusioned the snow into a veritable tsunami, burying Hitsugaya completely. Not to be outdone, he used the same technique he had used in his battle against Uloqiorra, and infused the snow with his reiatsu, sending it flying at Karin in all directions and trapping her arms in legs in a frozen snare. He began to throw more snow at her while he had the chance, but Karin simply illusioned away the ice holding her and changed the direction of the flying snow in midair, causing it to pommel Hitsugaya instead. Charging forward, armed with a fresh snowball, Hitsugaya ran directly at her, but at the last second he slipped on a patch of ice and toppled forward, pinning Karin under him. They sank deep into the mound of snow they had landed in, hiding them away from the rest of the world. They were both startled to say the least, but neither of them made any attempt to get up.
Hitsugaya blushed at his current position, but joy at the moment overwhelmed his nervousness. He looked down at Karin. Her face was flushed, but from embarrassment, excitement, or cold he couldn't tell. Her expression was one Hitsugaya never in a million years expected to see. The smile on her face and the look in her eyes was soft, gentle, affectionate, and blissful. He decided that this was the time to show her exactly what she meant him. Reaching up a tentative hand, he placed it on her cheek. She was colder than he was, despite the fact that she was bundled up in winter wear while he was clad only in his shihakusho, and his hand almost felt like it was burning her face. But Karin seemed to enjoy the sensation. She closed her eyes and Hitsugaya slowly and carefully traced his fingers along her jaw, mouth, nose, eyes, and ears, mimicking exactly what she had done during that brief moment they had shared before the Espada had arrived. He knew she knew what it meant. That that moment had been more than just the effect of getting caught in the magneto. That it had been a true expression of his emotions. And now, when they were free of outside influences, they could do things properly.
He raised his hand to entwine his fingers in her hair, and as he did so, he leaned forward and captured her lips. Karin responded eagerly to the kiss, wrapping her arms around his waist and pulling him closer. They knew the war wasn't over. They knew that eventually, they would have to go back inside and explain to a suspicious Ichigo and an over-eager Matsumoto why they took so long. But at the moment, lost as they were in each other's embrace, they really couldn't have cared less.
It's not over yet, but I think the next chapter will be the last one. Sorry people, but there are other stories that I want to write and I'm really not so pleased with how this one turned out, although I'm liking it a little more now than I did at one point. It kind of ran away from me and the next thing I knew I had no idea what was going on, but I think I've finally managed to tie it all together. Besides, Aizen's dead so the threat is gone, Hitsugaya and Karin are together, and Hoshi is safe, so really, there's not a whole lot more that needs to happen. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter :)
