"Please, Inoue-sama. I beg you, go get some rest. Everyone will survive until morning. If you keep this up- you won't. I can finish up," the only remaining healer pleaded.
"Hai... I guess you are right." Orihime wished they wouldn't address her that way, but she no longer had the energy to care. She recalled her faeries back into her hairpins and thanked them mentally for their help. She felt awful for overworking Ayame and Shun'o. The rest of the faeries helped any way they could. Tsubaki ran messages for her and arranged a steady stream of patients for her. Baigon and Hinagiku carried bandages to people who weren't in critical condition. Lily flew around keeping tabs on everyone's condition.
"You haven't been getting much sleep the past week have you?" she heard from behind her. Orihime turned around to see the 8th squad's fukutaicho, glaring at her.
"Hehe... Well, there has been a lot to do," she replied nervously.
"Get some rest, a full night's rest." Orihime just stared at Nanao and suppressed a giggle as the fukutaicho adjusted her glasses in a manner that reminded her of Ishida-kun. "That is an order, Inoue-san. A healer of your caliber should know that they need to take care of themselves as well as their patients."
Orihime gave Nanao an irritated look. "It is hard enough to fall asleep without having to fret about whether or not unhealed patients will make it through the night."
"I understand that, and I apologize for our lack of healers, but I can tell that you've been overusing those energy pills. Unohana-taichou should have explained why you can't overuse them. You should avoid using them altogether if possible. One is allowable and two in one day is for extreme emergencies only. They do give you a bit of extra energy, but they also allow your soul to dip into its vital reserves. More than two is downright dangerous!"
"Hai, Hai, I understand, Ise-san." Orihime brushed her off and gave her a quick mock-salute before dragging herself to wherever everyone was supposed to sleep for the night. 'She must be the one running the camp tonight. She gets so carried away when she doesn't have her captain's personality to counterbalance her own,' she thought to herself.
Orhime wandered around a bit trying to find where she could find something soft to pass out on. It felt good to stretch her legs after several hours of healing. She finally managed to stumble across the large room full of sleeping people. "Where can I get a futon, blanket, and pillow?" She mumbled to the person on guard duty, her eyes beginning to droop.
"Ah! Inoue-sama!" he exclaimed, bolting upright out of his chair to bow to her. "Gomenasai... We've already laid out all the futons and pillows we have. You're going to have to find someone to share a bed with tonight. There are some blankets over in the corner," the guard explained as he pointed in the direction of the blankets.
Orihime looked at him pleadingly, "But I don't think I know any of the people here..."
"Ahh... I'm sorry Inoue-sama. We only have about half of the futons with us and more than half the group. There are several people sharing already..."
She sighed, "It's alright, I understand. It has been one hell of a day, ne?"
The guard looked down at the floor solemnly, "Hai... We lost so many. Two attacks in one day as well as the group getting split to repair the bridge. I can't imagine what the losses would have been like without you here, Inoue-sama." He looked up at her and gave her a weak smile. "I'm sure you'll have no problem finding someone to share a bed with. Most all of us owe you our lives in some way or another."
"I try my best. I need to find a bed before I pass out though. I do believe I overdid it a bit today," she said with a small giggle. "Oyasuminasai," she gave him a small bow before walking past him.
The guard quickly bowed deeply, "Oyasuminasai, Inoue-sama."
Orihime stood for a minute trying to find Rukia amongst the sea of sleeping people. 'I wonder what it would be like to sail across them on a boat.' She entered a daze for a moment, picturing the scene. At first it was a happy, bright, and sunny day on a sailboat, floating above all the sleeping people. She wore a white sailing outfit and was sitting on the side of the boat gazing out over the edge at all the people. The sun was beautiful as it sank into a sunset. Stars came out as it got darker and the moon was shining down, but when she turned to look back to the people below- the scene had turned into something more gruesome. The people were hanging onto whatever they could find and they were freezing in the water. Several bodies were floating lifelessly in the water amongst the people clutching onto floating chunks of ship. She quickly shook her head in an attempt to erase the image from her mind.
She took another look around the room not noticing anyone familiar until she saw a familiar spiky orange off in a far corner of the room, away from the others. 'Maybe Kurosaki-kun knows where Rukia is...' She went to grab a blanket and tip toed over to him as quietly as possible.
Orihime knelt down and poked Ichigo in the shoulder. His orange hair caught the moonlight coming in from the window as he buried his head deeper into his pillow mumbling something incoherent. Orihime smiled weakly, 'He looks so cute when he's sleeping. I hate to wake him...' She softly shook his shoulder and whispered, "Kurosaki-kun." Still no reply. "Kurosaki-kuuun."
"Hanase, watermelons..." he murmured.
She clamped her hand over her mouth and tried to suppress a giggle. 'Is he having a nightmare about watermelons? I wonder what watermelon aliens would look like...' She moved closer to his ear so she wouldn't wake anyone else. She shook him gently and spoke a little louder, "Kurosaki-kuuuuun."
He sat up in a jolt, eyes wide, "Nani! You can't- Inoue? What's going on, are we under attack again?" He started looking around for Zangetsu; interrupted when he heard her start to laugh. He stared at her, stupefied, as she fell back onto the floor trying to suppress another fit of giggles, only half succeeding.
"I don't know… You seemed to think…we were getting attacked…by watermelons," she managed to say between fits of laughter; tears running down her face.
Ichigo scowled, looked away and blushed in embarrassment. "So then why did you wake me up?"
Inoue wiped her tears and managed to calm her laughter. "There aren't enough futons for everyone so I was wondering if you knew where Rukia was so I could share with her," she explained. "I don't really know anyone else in this group..."
He lay back down and pulled the covers back over himself. "Uhh... She and Renji got assigned to the group on the other side of the river. You didn't notice?"
"Oh," she said as her face fell slightly. "I guess I've been kinda busy, ne?"
"Yea," he said quietly. "You must be beat, you look like you're about to pass out."
"Hehehe. I feel like it too..." She gazed serenely out the window for a moment. The moon looked so beautiful tonight. "I almost feel like I could float away and swim around in the night sky along with all the little green men-"
"How many of those pills have you taken today?" he asked her, his eyes already starting to droop again.
"Oh... One this afternoon," she said, putting a finger up to her chin to ponder. "And two tonight, I think."
He sighed, "Just… come here." He scooted over and lifting up his blanket. "You're hallucinating from sleep deprivation. There's not a lot of room but at least we can keep warm."
Her cheeks felt as if they were burning when she saw his bare chest and toned abs. He was sleeping in only his hakama. She bit her lip and quickly tore her eyes away and she stared intensely at the hands that were now fidgeting in her lap. "Demo-"
"No demo's. Hurry up and get in, sleepyhead. You're letting all the warm out. It's cold and I want to get back to sleep... Unless you'd rather share a bed with some random person you don't know," he muttered.
"No..." she admitted as she looked back up to his eyes; they were glimmering a beautiful golden brown in the moonlight.
"Then come 'ere," he growled. She squeaked as he grabbed her around the waist with one arm and dragged her under the covers. He pulled her down and turned her so her back was resting against his chest. "See. Much better…" he drawled sleepily as he adjusted his pillow so they could share. He noticed the extra blanket she had brought with her and exclaimed, "Yosh! Another blanket! It's so damn cold tonight..." He reached over, threw it across them both, and then settled back down. "Mmmm." He snuggled up against her, put his arm around her waist and pulled her a little closer still. "So warm," he murmured next to her ear, already starting to drift off again.
Orihime was still frozen in shock. Warm? She was on fire. Maybe she had passed out and was already dreaming. There was no way this was actually happening. The shock wore off after a minute and she began to relax and simply bask in the moment. The feeling of him, flush against her. His arm wrapped around her, holding her close. The feel of his warm reiatsu was quickly lulling her to sleep. "Kurosaki-kun?" she murmured.
Barely awake, he only managed a simple, "Hmm?" as he nuzzled into her neck.
A shiver trickled down her spine as she felt his breath on her neck, but she already felt like she was floating. Drifting off as sleep was claiming her. "Arigatou..."
"Just sleep... Hime," he whispered in a sleepy daze.
'It was so warm... It was freezing last night. Something smells... like... flowers? Huh?' Ichigo slowly opened his eyes and leaned his head back to look up toward the window. 'Looks like it's going to be a nice day today.'
"I don't want red bean paste... on my strawberry..."
'What the hell?' Ichigo snapped his head down. His eyes went wide in shock as he saw Orihime lying halfway on his chest; belatedly noticed his arm wrapped around her, holding her there. "Whaaa?"
"Needs wasabi..."
His eyebrows popped up in amusement. 'Wait, wasn't she talking about strawberries a second ago? Wasabi strawberries? I knew she has a weird sense of taste but-'
"Mmmm... Wasabi strawberry pancakes..." she murmured against his bare chest, snuggling into it more. Ichigo couldn't help but grin a little. Inoue was so warm and looked so cute. 'Wait. Cute? What the hell? Wait a minute, more importantly why is she sleeping on me?'
Come on, King. Don't play stupid. You remember.
Shut up! I just woke up, give me a minute.
ZANNNNN! WHY DO WE HAVE TO HAVE SUCH A BAKA AS KING! the hollow whined.
Emotions have never been his strong suit, the zanpakutou tried to explain.
King's not good at nuthin'! Name one thing he's good at!
Tensa Zangetsu sighed before retorting, Beating your ass?
TEME! Come 'ere you lil' prick! I liked you better as a silent old man! Get off that damn pole and say that to my fuckin' face, I DARE YA!
SHUT THE FUCK UP! It's too early in the morning for this shit...
Ichigo glared up at the ceiling. 'Kami help me... I must be one crazy bastard to end up with these two freaks inside my head.' He felt the hollow laugh within his inner world.
He tried to remember what exactly happened last night. 'I was having some crazy ass dream about watermelons attacking us at the beach and nabbing the people with their vines; when Inoue woke me up... She asked where Rukia was... I told her to just sleep with me... but, It's so fuzzy after that...' He looked back down at the girl lying across his chest, frowning slightly. 'She still looks so worn out. Probably spent the whole night healing again. She must not have woken me up until about 2 or 3 in the morning. I fell asleep around 9 last night, right after we made it to camp... It looks like she hasn't slept in days,' he thought with a frown.
Ichigo continued to lie there for a while, staring at the ceiling, perfectly content to simply enjoy being alone, comfortable, and warm with Inoue, feeling her breath on his chest while she slept. He was happy she agreed to share a futon with him instead of someone else. He couldn't pin down exactly what he was feeling. He just felt so warm and content with her there. She was always there for him, no matter the circumstances. Ichigo looked down at her and wondered what ever possessed her to get involved with all of this craziness. She could be at home, sleeping in her own bed, leading a normal life. There was nothing concretely tying her into this war. He chuckled softly as he realized that she would never let her friends go off and fight a war without her there to protect them in any way she could. Four humans fighting against the odds in a great war of the afterlife...
They lay there quietly until Orihime started to move around and mumble. "Don't go... Please." Ichigo wondered what she was dreaming about now. "Don't want... alone..." He looked down at her as she started shaking slightly.
"Inoue, wake up. You're having a bad dream." Ichigo shook her a little. "Inoue. Come on, wake up." He repeated it a little louder, but she just mumbled, "No... Don't leave me... Please." and holds onto him even tighter. "Inoue, I'm right here, it's just a nightmare." He tried to pry her off his chest, but she had a death grip on him. "Orihime, wake up!"
She jerked awake, staring at the blurry chest in front of her. "Huh?" Blinking her eyes a few times, she looked down and noticed her grip around Ichigo. She flushed red and let go.
"Shhh, I'm sorry I woke you, but you were having a nightmare."
Orihime glanced up at him with wide eyes. "Eeeh? I'm sorry!" She tried to move away from him but he wasn't letting her move.
"Don't apologize, just go back to sleep," he said softly.
"But... it's already light out."
"Yea and you didn't get to sleep until some ungodly hour. When was the last time you slept a whole night?"
Moving past her mortification, she put her head back down on his shoulder and laid her arm across him again. He had such a spicy masculine scent that made her head spin. It reminded her of cinnamon. Orihime cleared her mind and tried to remember what she was supposed to be saying. "Ano... I've been sleeping a couple hours every night, but I keep having these terrible nightmares. Some nights I can't bring myself to close my eyes because I'm afraid of what's waiting for me."
"Inoue..."
His eyes were full of concern when she looked up at him, and it made her heart race. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She set her head back down on his shoulder and simply lost herself in the sensation. His immense reiatsu felt so comforting to her. The warmth of it invaded her senses and relaxed her like a hot sauna. Orihime was in heaven and intended to enjoy it while it lasted.
Ichigo really had no idea what to say but she seemed content being held. Her heart seemed to be slowing down and she seemed to relax a bit. Hopefully, she could go back to sleep soon. They lay there like that for what seemed like hours before she broke the silence, "I think that was the longest I've slept in about a month... Thank you, Kurosaki-kun. I think you kept the nightmares away. I wasn't really having a nightmare earlier. I just..."
He waited a few moments before urging her to continue, "What?"
She looked up at him for a moment before looking away again. "It's nothing..."
"Come on, you can tell me anything," he insisted.
"It's silly! Don't worry about it." Having his bare chest so close was doing nothing to help her contain her blush.
"If you don't want me to worry then just tell me," he reasoned.
"Demo..."
"No more demo's. Just tell me."
"Fine! I was dreaming that you got assigned a mission to go into Hueco Mundo," she said, trying to keep the embarrassment out of her voice.
"Huh?"
"I dreamt that everyone was sent to Hueco Mundo and I wasn't allowed to go with you. I was going to have to stay behind… all alone."
Ichigo shook his head. "That'd never happen. Seireitei can order whatever the hell they want, but I would never accept any order that left you alone by yourself. We may be allied with Soul Society, but they know that they can't just order us around against our will. I made that clear to them when this whole thing started. We would help, but we still get to make our own choices about how to help."
"Oh... I didn't think about that." She dared a quick peek at his face only to see him smiling down at her. "I really don't think I'll be able to get back to sleep though. Everyone else is already up. We should go get some breakfast."
He really didn't want to get up, but unfortunately his stomach was grumbling in agreement. He reluctantly nodded and let her get up. She gathered up and folded the blankets and left them on the futon. He picked up the shredded, bloody top half of his Shihakusho from the corner and threw it over his shoulder. Inoue caught a glimpse of it. "How... It's torn to pieces! I didn't heal you last night."
"The cuts weren't very deep. Once I came to, I wrapped myself up. You seemed busy.
"Well, I can't say that I wasn't busy, but it must have been painful. You know that stuff like that would only take me a second..."
"I didn't want to bother you. Don't worry about it. Let's go get some breakfast." He started walking towards the door. She dropped the subject and quickly fell into step beside him.
He looked over at her with a hint of amusement in his eyes. "By the way, do you really eat Strawberry pancakes with wasabi?"
"Eeehhh?"
Japanese for the chapter-
お休みなさい[Oyasuminasai] - Good night (formal)
離せ[Hanase] - Let (a person) go. UNHAND HER, FOUL BEAST!
何[Nan/Nani] - What?
でも[Demo] - but
よし[Yosh! (Yoshi but the i is often dropped)] - Good! Sweet!
死覇装[Shihakushou] - Soul reaper uniform
袴[Hakama] - pants portion
I hope you enjoyed this bit of fluff! ^_^ If you read the 2nd chapter before this was posted, I did some editing on it and added a couple things if you want to give it a quick reread. Merry Half-way-between-Christmas-and-New-Years-Eve Day! Probably going to take a little break after this writing and editing binge I've been on. My birthday is the 2nd and with New years eve coming up, so I'm going to be busy. Enjoy your 2 chapters and have a fun New Years Eve all! I'll try my best to update soon! See you next year!
Thanks for reading and I'd love to read your comments!