Hey there everyone! Hope I didn't take too long with this chapter. Glad you've all been liking the story so far and thanks for all the reviews!
It took me weeks to actually finish the last few pages because of my terrible mood. Not only did I have to take three finals on my birthday, but I missed the surprise birthday party my friends set up for me because of it! Worst. Birthday. Ever. But at least I'm 17 now, which is technically an adult in the state of Michigan ^_^
Anyways! Enough of my rambling! Here is chapter 6 of Anathema!
Special Thanks to KazeNoSakura for her advice and proofreading.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. (And did you guys read that last chapter?! Did not see that coming!)
Droplets of sweat began to roll down my face under the overbearing sun. But it didn't bother me. I barely noticed anything other than the field around me. This was it. The score was 4-4 and I had the ball in front of me. The senior was close by, but he wasn't anywhere near fast enough to catch up to me. Those idiots should have known they didn't have a chance of beating me, Karin Kurosaki, in soccer. I'm just that good. We were going to win the match and the field would be ours.
I took the briefest second to look at sidelines. Somehow word got out about the match and a lot of kids from the two high schools were here. Probably just so they can brag their school is better depending on who won. There were even some adults who were just passing by and stopped to watch. My family was also here, which I could do without. I didn't even tell them about the match. And as predicted, Dad was embarrassing me more than usual.
"Go Karin! Beat those boys as if they were your delinquent brother!"
"Hey! What the hell is that suppose to mean?!"
I ignored my family and focused back to the ball and the up coming net. Besides, there was really only one person that I had secretly hoped would come. But I didn't see him.
"Karin! Pay attention!" one of my teammates called. I looked up just in time to see the senior picking up his pace, heading towards me.
I sprinted faster while keeping the ball in my control, now only feet away from the net. With one powerful kick the ball went flying through the air towards the goalie. Everyone was holding their breath. The senior goalie dove for the ball, only to have it graze his finger tips and shoot into the net, giving us our winning goal. The kids from our school – and Goat Chin – began to cheer while the others simply started to leave slightly disappointed.
Oh yeah, I was the shit! The other freshmen began to cheer along with me while the seniors shot their heated glares at us. Like I cared if they were mad, they were getting their asses off our field. The head senior walked up to me with a scowl that could rival Ichigo's.
The freshmen scurried behind me as though I was the shield that would protect them from the wrath of the upperclassman. "We made a deal. We won so we get the field whenever we want." I stated proudly. "So you can leave now."
He gritted his teeth. His friends soon walked up behind him, all standing over us intimidating my team. I sighed. They weren't any help when it came to standing up to anyone. "If you think we're going to leave just because you won a stupid soccer match then you're dumber than I thought." he retorted.
I took a step forward. "A deals a deal. Get lost."
He took a step forward as well. "Make me."
I blinked my eyes in shock when I saw Ichigo standing next to me. Where he came from, I
had no idea but he looked pissed. "Back off." he grounded out darkly. "Are you such a wuss you have to pick fights with a girl?"
I sighed again. I'm starting to suspect no one thinks I can take care of myself anymore. Its either Ichigo or Toushiro popping up to save or defend me. It's getting more annoying by the day.
The senior and his friends took a good look at Ichigo and then started to back away. Since we've been in Seireitei, Ichigo had gotten quite the reputation as the guy you don't want to pick a fight with. He gets into a lot of fights because of his hair color.
The senior sneered at me momentarily. "Now you got Kurosaki protecting you? You some kind of tramp?" Ew! What the hell?! Didn't he know Ichigo was my brother? That's just wrong. "Kurosaki and Hitsugaya won't always be around and you better watch out when they aren't!" he finished.
Crap, this idiot was totally blowing my cover! He and the rest of the upperclassmen started to leave the field with much of their pride crushed. Ichigo turned to me with his notorious scowl. My team quickly took off, leaving me to deal with my brother. They were scared of everything! I definitely couldn't make a gang with chickens like them.
"You've been hanging out with Toushiro Hitsugaya?" he asked angrily, his fists still clenched.
Have to say, this was getting really old. What made him think I would listen to him anyway? I clearly expressed that I was going to do whatever I want with whoever I want... I probably shouldn't say that out loud seeing as it's impossible for that to come out right. I glared at Ichigo and then decided to try a different approach than what I've been doing these past two months. "Yes, I have. And until I get a reason why I shouldn't, I will continue to hangout with him." I declared sternly. "You say it's for my own good but I don't see how if he's the one who keeps saving my ass every five minutes."
Ichigo looked confused at that last part and I remembered I hadn't told him about half the things that went on between me and Toushiro. The pool, the fair, and various other encounters. Oh well. I wasn't going to get into that at the moment.
Rukia walked over with a cautious expression and spoke lowly. I almost missed what she was saying. "Ichigo, she doesn't understand the situation. Maybe we should just tell her?"
Yes! Tell me! Please tell me what's going on so I can stop feeling like the family idiot!
Ichigo looked from Rukia to me. He seemed to be considering it which was a big difference than usual. Normally he would just ignore whatever my response was. He thought for a few seconds, contemplating on what he was going to do. I wanted to say something but couldn't. I was afraid I would mess up my chance of getting any clarity on the subject that always escaped my grasp. Ichigo looked as though he was about to speak when Dad literally came out of nowhere and placed a hand on his shoulder. It was only a second, but I knew it was something that held many words. He gave Ichigo a stern look as if warning him of something and then walked away without even sparing me a glance. Ichigo looked back to me, sighed, and walked away. "Never mind."
Dammit all to freaking hell!
That did not just happen. Please tell me that didn't just happen. I was utterly silenced by my rage, not even able to form words to respond to that. I just stared in a mixture of defeat, anger, and confusion. He was so close to telling me and then Dad comes along and completely intervenes. Not only were Ichigo and Rukia hiding something, but it looked like Dad was in on it too! It was obvious he was warning Ichigo not to say anything to me about whatever the hell they know that I don't. That makes me and Yuzu the only ones who know next to nothing.
Unless Yuzu knows something and isn't telling me. She doesn't know, right?
Ichigo and the others began to walk away from the now abandoned soccer field. I reluctantly began to follow the source of my frustration. My head was turned down and I didn't bother saying anything to Ichigo, Rukia, or Dad. A bunch of jerks who liked watching me squirm. Why wouldn't they just tell me something if they could see I knew something was up? They were the ones making this more complicated than what it needed to be.
While dragging my feet something white caught my attention out the corner of my eye. "I'll see you guys at home." I called to the others in front of me already heading home. I turned away and dashed to the other side of the field, waiting for them to leave the area.
Leaning against the side of the fence that circled the soccer field was Toushiro. Apparently he had seen what just happened because he looked quite amused. "What are you doing here?" I asked when I reached him.
"I just wanted to see your match." he said offhandedly.
I raised an eyebrow at him. "Since when would you take your precious time out the day to watch a soccer match? I'm sure someone like you has more important things to do."
"Right, your soccer match isn't important in the least when it comes to me." I felt my eye twitch. "But I have a lot of free time, so I figured I'd come and watch."
"How generous of you." I replied, my words coated in sarcasm. His eyes were scanning the area intensely as if he was looking for someone. "What's wrong?"
He snapped his eyes to me. "Nothing."
I placed my hands on my hips. "Are you going to answer my questions yet?" I had almost forgotten about the deal me and Toushiro made, but Ichigo's little irritation had me thinking about it.
Toushiro hesitated for a moment. "No." he said blandly.
"Fine." I said angrily as I glared at him and turned around to walk away. He grabbed my wrist to stop me from leaving.
"Not yet." he said, almost looking guilty. Dammit, now he was making me feel guilty for being impatient. This is so backwards.
He must have noticed my reaction because he then smirked at me. "What's with the pout?" he jeered while leaning closer to me. "It's kind of cute on you." he said softly, his lips almost touching mine. I could feel his soothing cool breath on my skin.
Without warning he abruptly pulled away and dropped my wrist like it was on fire. He stiffly turned around as if he was scared something was behind him ready to attack. I looked past him and not a second later Hinamori came walking around the corner across the street and headed straight to us. That was close. It was strange though, like Toushiro knew she was coming or something.
She walked over to us eying me warily but not angrily as she usually did. In fact, she seemed kind of distracted like Toushiro was.
"What is it Momo?" he asked with a tinge of concern. Did something happen that I didn't know about? They were acting weird.
She didn't reply, but stared at him for awhile. She looked like she wanted to yell at him but was completely silent. I found the silence uncomfortable and odd. They were just staring at each other without saying anything. Somehow I became the third wheel.
"Alright then." Toushiro finally said. I wasn't sure who he was saying that to though, no one had said anything. He turned to me and apologized. "Sorry, I'll see you later."
"Yeah, okay." I said awkwardly. Not much I could say at this point.
He began to walk in the direction of where Hinamori had just come from. She glanced at me once more, but her expression was blank. She had stopped giving me glares for the past few days but I didn't know why. We never talked or settled our differences. Maybe this was her way of making a truce? She turned around and followed Toushiro back around the corner and out of view.
I sighed and started to walk my way home. Lately my days had been such a pain in the ass. It's like my life had become a huge game of 'Confuse the hell out of Karin' and everyone wanted to play. Of course I wasn't even a player in this game. No, I was the little plastic piece that sat in the middle of the board, going to whoever won. And just like a board game, everything seemed to keep going in circles around me.
The street was oddly empty for how early it was. It wasn't even dark out yet. I was walking sluggishly until I saw a black cat sitting in the middle of the sidewalk up ahead. It was odd that it didn't bother running off as I got near it. I couldn't help but stop in front of the fearless feline. I saw something shine in its mouth for a brief second and noticed a black and white key chain attached to the object. Funny, it kind of looked like my soccer key chain that was on my house key...
My eyes widened and I felt my pocket. Empty.
The cat stole my keys!
I carefully walked closer to the black cat. "Here kitty." I tried to coax it. "Come to Karin."
The cat stayed unmoving, but somehow I got the feeling it was looking at me like I was stupid. "Come here, I won't hurt you." I continued. It then stood up and began to lightly run away. "No! You stupid furball!" I yelled after it.
Once it was across the street it stopped and looked back at me. Did it hear me or something? Freaky. I started to jog over to the cat and it began to run away again. This was why I was a dog person. When it got too far ahead of me, it stopped again and waited for me to catch up. I wonder if I should really be following an animal around town? And more importantly one that is suspiciously smart and appears to want me to follow it. If the damned thing didn't have my key, I wouldn't have even bothered to give it a second glance.
I was glad no one else was around. That way no one would see me strangle that thing's neck – again, not a cat person – once I caught up to it got my keys back. It finally stopped again, in front of a small candy store. It sat waiting for me to come close like it did before, but instead of running off once I got near like last time, it went into the store's open door. Well at least I could corner it in the store.
I walked in and noticed that might be easier said than done. There were no lights in the store and the only reason anything was visible was the diminishing sunlight from outside. I walked around looking for the black cat when a voice called my attention.
"May I help you?" a bored voice asked. It was a man wearing an ugly white and green striped hat. He was also wearing some old green robe-thing and clogs. Someone needs to get with the times.
"Have you seen a black cat around here?" I asked.
The man looked as if he was trying to remember something from years ago. The cat ran in here just a few seconds ago, if he didn't see it then he just needs to say so. He then pulled a fan out of thin air and covered the lower half of his face with it when he spoke again. "Why yes actually, the black cat is a friend of mine." Yeah, I think I should probably leave now. "I asked it to bring you here." I wonder if I could make it to the door if I run.
I looked over to the door to see if I had any chance of escaping. "Oh don't be nervous." he said. "I just wanted to meet Ichigo's younger sister. You are the one who is involved with Toushiro Hitsugaya, am I right?"
Involved? As if I knew what to call it. I glared at him and spoke carefully. "What do you know about Ichigo and Toushiro?"
"A lot more than you." he said seriously. "It's quite dangerous to be around Toushiro and his friends... but it appears it's far too late to do anything about it."
Do what about what? Looks like this guy is a new player to the game, and he's catching up to Ichigo and Toushiro who are currently tied for the lead.
The black cat walked from behind the counter with my keys still in its mouth. It dropped the keys on the floor and left to the back of the shop. I quickly grabbed my keys and headed for the door. I was getting out of this place before I get my head chopped off or something equally unpleasant.
The shop keeper chimed his last words right before I walked through the door. "See you soon."
Yeah right. I wasn't coming back here again. Ever.
The next day I ended up sleeping in way longer than what I had planned. But it didn't bother me, it was a Saturday after all. I walked downstairs where everyone else was. Ichigo and Dad were fighting over the remote control while Rukia was reading and Yuzu was attempting to watch the TV even though the channels kept changing.
I walked to the guys, punched Goat Chin in the face, kicked Ichigo in the shin and took the remote. "Here you go Yuzu." I tossed it to her.
"Thanks. How did you sleep last night?" she asked while turning the channel to a cooking show.
"Great." I said while plopping down next to her. By 'great' I meant I didn't have any weird dream last night. I've come to suspect they are all connected, and are all of the same person who I don't think is supposed to be me. But that's all I could really tell from the dreams. That, and that they all seem to be taking place a really long time ago. I still don't know what they're about because of how hard it was to remember them after I woke up. I don't think they're normal dreams though, but then again, I know nothing about what a normal dream should be.
"Do you know any bookstores around here?" I asked whoever was listening. Yuzu shook her head but Rukia looked up from her book.
She thought for a moment. "I know a place that has all kinds of books, but it's not really a bookstore." she said. "It's the candy stop near the soccer field."
I looked at her incredulously. "Are you talking about the place with that weirdo in the ugly hat and clogs?"
Rukia, Ichigo and even Dad looked at me with shock. "You know Urahara?" Ichigo asked.
Urahara. That was the name Rukia had used when Ichigo came back with blood all over his shirt. He said something about Urahara being on vacation. I guess he was back now. This would explain how the guy knew Ichigo though, and I think it's safe to say he is somehow wrapped up in what's going on with Toushiro and Ichigo.
"No, not really. I just stepped inside his store for a few minutes."
Ichigo studied my words cautiously. "Did he say anything to you?"
"No." I decided I wouldn't mention anything he said. Their reactions were enough confirmation that this Urahara guy was a part of something that they didn't want me to know about. If they were going to keep secrets from me, then I was going to do the same.
After a while I went out to look for some books. More specifically books that had any kind of information on dreams and stuff like that. I don't really believe in that kind of stuff, but it was worth a look. I ended up just going to the library across town seeing as I had no plans to go back to the crazy candy shop. Freaks in clogs and klepto black cats weren't my thing.
After a few hours of looking through Seireitei's giant ass library, I found only two books that were about dream interpretation or Oneirology as the stuffy librarian had called it. I didn't care what it was called as long as it could help.
I was walking home for quite awhile because of how far away the library was from the house. But the whole time I was walking, I kept getting the feeling someone was following. I was only half way home but at least it was still light out. This past week, the news has been saying that people shouldn't be out after dark by themselves. People have been getting attacked while walking outside at night, but none of them could remember what it was that attacked them. They didn't even know if it was an animal or a person.
The streets were empty again like they were yesterday. Karakura always had people walking around no matter what time it was, but here all the people drove everywhere they went. Like it would kill them to walk every once in a while.
By now I was off the streets and walking through the sidewalks between the houses. Now I was positive that someone or something was following me. There was a light stepping sound a few feet behind me. Every time I looked back, there was nothing there and the sound momentarily stopped until I turned around again. My eyes swept the area for something I could use as a weapon. This thing obviously didn't know who it was messing with.
Near the corner of the sidewalk was a tall brick wall that looked like it was still being worked on. I smiled as an idea came to mind. I hastened my pace and hurriedly turned the corner. I set my books down and grabbed one of the bricks that had yet to be added to the wall. I waited against the wall for my pursuer to show itself. The footsteps sped up and grew louder and closer. I held the brick up over my head and readied myself.
I was suddenly blinded by a bright light and I instinctively threw the brick as hard as I could towards the source of the light. I heard it make contact with something.
"Goddammit! What the hell?!" I heard a guy yell. I blinked a few times and focused on who I just hit. It was Ikkaku Madarame. Well I guess the sun reflecting off his head explained the light.
"Smooth." came a mocking voice. Yumichika Ayasegawa walked into view behind Ikkaku.
What were two of the Spectacular Six doing following me? I looked at Ikkaku with shock. He straightened up without even a stumble as if I didn't just hit him over the head with a freaking brick! He moved his hand from his head to reveal not so much as a scratch. The brick that was now on the ground was broken completely in half. How in the fu-
"What's your problem?! Who throws bricks at people's head?!" Ikkaku yelled at me angrily.
Yumichika snickered a remark. "Too bad you had no hair to cushion the blow."
Ikkaku continued to glare at me waiting for my reply. "Well?"
"Me?" I asked offended. "You were the ones following me like some creepers! Who the hell goes around following 15 year old girls and has the nerve to get mad when you get hit for it!"
"She has a point." Yumichika directed at Ikkaku.
Ikkaku grunted. "She's still crazy."
"Drop dead." I retorted and walked away without looking back at them, not even caring to hear their reason for stalking me around town. It's a good thing no one from school saw that. I would've been condemned for talking to anyone from the S.S. like that, not just Toushiro.
They didn't follow me for the rest of the evening after that. I got home right when the street lights were coming on. I walked into the house tired and ready for some dinner. "Hey Karin." Ichigo greeted while he walked down from upstairs. He was oddly cheery. Rukia followed behind him with her hair a little messed up and looking as happy as him...
Oh God! I could have went through the whole day without knowing that! I need brain bleach!
"So did you get any books from the library?" Rukia asked.
My eyes widened. "Crap!" I turned around about to run out the front door.
"Hold on." Ichigo stopped me. "What are you doing?"
"I left my books on the sidewalk when I found Ikkaku and Yumichika following..." I stopped when my brain caught up with the words I was saying.
Ichigo looked at me with a mix of anger and concern. "They were following you?"
"Uh..." Nice Karin, why don't you just tell him when you're on your next period while you're at it. I took a step towards the door. "I have to get the books."
"You're not going back outside, its already dark out." he said calming himself down.
I looked out the window and he was right. It was too dark for me to be walking across town looking for some books in the dark. I let out a huge sigh. I was going to have to pay for those.
Despite my heavy breathing, I could hear every little thing around me. Every single twig snap, every flutter of the birds' wings flapping, and every footstep the men who followed not far behind me took. I'd run for hours, losing some of them, only to have more catch my trail. It was bothersome but even more dangerous. Over the years, these men have been gathering together and plotting ways they could 'destroy the indestructible' so they could feel safe at night. A child's dream.
And yet now it seems much more reachable. They have discovered not only ways to harm us, but ways to kill us.
Even after the hours of running I only now began to feel the fatigue in my legs. I stopped to rest with my back against a large tree. Blood had stained my shirt and was still seeping through. I put my hand to my side and slowly pulled out a thin wooden arrow. Normally it wouldn't have been able to penetrate my skin was it not for the pure silver that was attached to the head of the arrow. I was feeling incredibly lightheaded and weak, something that was foreign to me. It was a result of the silver.
The footsteps continued to get closer and closer and I felt a slight hopelessness. I looked up to the sky, and though there was a moon out it was far from full. But I knew I couldn't give up. Not yet. Not when I had the others to think about. I hadn't seen them in years, having left them under the notion that I would be able to help them quicker. In turn it had the opposite outcome.
I forced myself off the tree just in time to see the three men approach me, all armed with crossbows. One took in my appearance and scoffed in disappointment. "This is the beast we have been called on to exterminate?"
"More like an infant beast." said another.
The anger began build up inside me, but I stayed still. There wasn't much I could do in the situation I was in. So I remained calm and silent. The breeze briefly picked up and in it was a familiar scent. I couldn't contain my joy and let a small smile appear on my face. They were here.
"Karin." a voice interrupted my dreaming, making me jump. It was Yuzu waking me up. I looked around for a second, only to remember I was in the car with Dad, Yuzu, and Rukia. We were driving back from a family picnic that Dad forced us to go on. I still don't know how Ichigo was able to convince Dad not to make him go.
I adjusted myself in my seat and yawned with annoyance. I had another one of those weird dreams, but this time I didn't get to finish it. For some reason, that bugged me more than just seeing the whole thing. But I guess it doesn't really matter, it's not like I know what the hell these dreams are about anyway.
"You fell asleep." Yuzu informed me.
"Did I really?" I asked with much sarcasm. She just rolled her eyes and turned away. I looked to Rukia who was in the passenger seat and whispered to her. "How did Ichigo get out of the picnic?"
Rukia just shrugged. "I'm not sure. He didn't tell me anything."
Dad had heard what we said. "Don't worry!" he shouted unnecessarily loud. "He won't get away next time!"
It was starting to get dark out. The sky was turning from orange to a purplish blue and a faded crescent moon was becoming visible. We were just now returning from the stupid family picnic because of how long it took us to drag Goat Chin out the park. He was such a man-child sometimes.
The car was stuck in a long traffic line that I assumed was probably caused by an accident somewhere. We weren't quite under a road bridge that was about 10 feet above us but it looked like there was even a lot of traffic up there too. I laid my head back against the seat. I just wanted to get home so I could have a peaceful and hopefully dreamless sleep.
Suddenly there was a loud thud on the roof of our car. Everyone looked up at the large dent that was just over our heads. "What was that?" Yuzu asked nervously.
Whatever fell on the roof started to move. It jumped off the car and without slowing down for a second it ran into the woods near the road. And in those two seconds I saw who it was.
"Dammit." Rukia cursed. "What's he thinking?"
Well I wasn't going to just sit here. I opened the car door and hopped out before pausing for a moment, confirming if I was going to go follow him. "Karin! Get back here now." Dad called to me. Had it been at another moment, his serious tone would have stopped me dead in my tracks.
I ran into the woods without a second thought. There were a bunch of questions circling my mind. All about him. I didn't know what it was, but I had a sick feeling in my stomach that something was terribly wrong.
And there he was. He was standing in a clearing, holding his left arm. I walked out from the trees towards him and he spun around. He looked shocked to see me and his eyes showed relief and fear at the same time.
"Toushiro, are you alright?" I asked as paced over to him. His breathing was very uneven and he looked pale. I then noticed the hand that was covering his left arm was bloody. There was blood all over his shirt and hands.
"What are you doing here?" he asked somewhat harshly.
"What happened?! Are you alright?" I panicked. He was bleeding from his arm and yet he was asking me stupid questions.
He seemed more frustrated that I was here and ignored me. I couldn't tell what happened to his arm but it was bleeding like crazy. He tore his sleeve off and inspected his arm. It was then I saw what happened to his arm. "Y-you were shot?!" I asked, my voice shaking. He didn't answer. "Toushiro, why would..." I couldn't find my words. Who would shoot him? What was going on?
"Karin, calm down." he told me more softly. He put his fingers in his wound and I cringed at the sight. He cursed under his breath but continued and then pulled out the bullet. When I saw the bullet though, it wasn't a normal lead one. It looked like it was silver or something.
His arm was still bleeding but it seemed to slow down. I picked up the cloth of his sleeve that he had tossed aside. "Let me see your arm." I told him, starting to regain my composure.
He looked at me hesitantly and didn't move. Did he think I would faint from seeing it or something? "I'm a nurse, remember? Let me see your arm." I repeated a little angry. He still didn't move so I grabbed his arm. But when I looked at it, the bleeding had completely stopped and the hole looked smaller. "How...?"
He pulled his arm away and looked at me seriously. "You need to get out of here."
"I'm not leaving you alone out here. You need to get your arm checked out." I told him sternly. "You can come to my dad's clinic." I offered.
"I'm fine." he assured me, while looking up at the purple sky.
I had to admit, he was looking better than just a few seconds ago. But I wasn't going to budge until I could be sure he was alright. And not only that, but how this all happened. I placed my hand on him, as though I was afraid he would just take off. "What happened?"
But instead of an answer, Toushiro pushed me behind him and stood facing the trees. I looked over his shoulder and I couldn't believe what I saw. Ichigo came from behind the trees with a large hand gun in his right hand. He was a few yards away from us but from where I stood, I could see the anger in his eyes.
"Get away from my sister!" he shouted. I heard a low growl that sounded like it came from Toushiro. If I hadn't known any better, I would have thought that it came from a dog.
I stepped from behind Toushiro. "Ichigo what are you doing?! Did you shoothim?" I asked in disbelief. I couldn't imagine Ichigo, my big brother, doing something like that.
He had his gun aimed right at Toushiro but was looking at me sadly. "Karin, get over here. You don't understand what's going on." he claimed.
I quickly stood in front of Toushiro, blocking him from Ichigo's aim. "Karin." Toushiro hissed. "Don't." I ignored him, Ichigo wouldn't shoot with me so close.
Sure enough, Ichigo quickly dropped his aim from our direction. It appeared he figured I wasn't going to listen to him so he directed his next words to Toushiro. "Why are you putting her through this? You knew what I was, right?"
Toushiro's voice was low and far darker than I've ever heard it before. "Eventually, but it was already too late when I figured it out."
What they were saying was confusing. What was Ichigo? I could only think of so many things connecting to how he got a gun, especially since they were illegal in Japan. And what did all of this have to do with Toushiro? Clearly this wasn't because I was hanging out with him.
"I don't get why you and your friends try to blend in." Ichigo said. "Is it because you're planning something?"
"What I do doesn't concern you, Kurosaki."
Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows even more. "Unfortunately for you, it does. It's my job to get rid of monsters like you. After I'm done with you, the rest of your friends are next." he then smiled a little, but it wasn't a content one. It was the kind of smile you gave when you were upset but didn't want anyone to know. "I do feel kind of bad though, I've never had to kill one as young as you."
"Ichigo, what are you talking about?" I called, having heard enough. "Do you hear yourself right now?! You're talking about killing people!"
"Stay out of this Karin." he told me, still not raising his voice at me like he was afraid it would hurt me.
Toushiro grabbed my shoulder and moved me to the side. Ichigo tensed but didn't yet raise his gun. "And what of you, Ichigo Kurosaki? Do you not think you're putting your family in danger with your occupation?" he asked, using what sounded like an older dialect.
"I keep them safe by wiping out your kind." he said while raising his gun to Toushiro. Toushiro gave me a look that told me not to get near him. His eyes were cold and I couldn't help the fear I felt that came with them.
I was standing in the middle of what had been bothering me these past few months and yet still knew nothing about what they were saying. If anything I was more confused than before. I wanted to say something, but couldn't. What could I say that would make them stop?
Toushiro sighed like he was bored with the situation. "As skilled as you are at such a young age, you are far over your head."
Ichigo scoffed. "And what makes you say that? You have no chance of getting away – tonight's not a full moon."
Full moon? What were they talking about? I looked at Toushiro who chuckled darkly. "There is still much a naïve child such as you has to learn."
He quickly backed away from me but didn't bother running away. Ichigo looked at him in confusion but kept his gun steady at Toushiro who was now standing far from both of us. I could only guess that Ichigo hadn't tried to shoot him yet because I was here. Toushiro kept his eyes locked with mine, and they looked deeply sad, regretful. He then closed his eyes and took a deep breath. What I saw next changed everything I thought I knew about reality.
Toushiro began to change. White fur spread across his skin and his nails and teeth grew long and pointed. His body grew bigger and fell forward to land on paw rather than hands. It was happening in only seconds and yet it seemed so much longer. His clothes were ripped from his body and there was no longer a boy standing there, but a large animal.
He looked just like a wolf, but much bigger, about the size of a horse. Snow white fur covered his body and he had a long tail traveling behind him. There wasn't a single spot on him that wasn't pure white. But his eyes remained the same luring teal they had been before. He stood rigidly still, his chest heaving, legs deeply grounded with his claws digging into the soil, his ears were set back and his teeth showed as he was growled lowly at Ichigo. I was frozen to where I was standing with my mouth agape and eyes wide.
Ichigo looked shocked, but not as shocked as me. His face turned to one of anger and he glared. He aimed his gun at Toushiro – or at least who I thought was still Toushiro – ready to shoot him. But instead, the wolf ran at Ichigo too fast for him to react and jumped high over his head. He didn't stop and kept running, disappearing into the woods without looking back. In just seconds it was as if he was never here.
My eyes stayed glued to where he had just vanished. I was forgetting to breathe and my legs were suddenly weak, unable to hold me up. After just seeing something I thought I'd never see, I did something I thought I'd never do. I fainted.
I know! That was a cruel cliffhanger, but I love them so. I would end every chapter with a cliffy if I could.
Most of you guys wanted the large quadruped, so here you go. Hope its what you guys pictured. The next chapter will have more HitsuKarin interaction in it, I promise!
Hope you guys liked this chapter! Tell me what you think! Luv ya!