Song: Once Upon a December, Liz Callaway
I do not own Bleach, characters or locations.
~4th squad barracks~
"So how much did her mark change?" Renji had visited his sister a few times while she was unconscious.
"Not at all actually. Which makes me think it might not be exposure to Hollows, but use of Hollow powers that causes it to digress." Orihime had been relieved when she saw Rini's seal still at the same place as when she first checked. "She's awake if you want to visit." Inoue left the Fukutaichou and his sister alone to have some privacy.
"Hey Rini. You doing okay?" He walked into the small room where Rini sat staring out the window lost in her thought.
~Blood's thoughts~
"Hello!" The sound of her voice echoed in the empty space. All around her was a cavern that she had found herself in often when she meditated. "Is anybody here?!"
Her own voice returned her question to her. The echoing was starting to get creepy, and annoying.
"I'm here." Came a different voice, but in a whisper.
"Where are you?! Why can't I see you?!" Blood felt a pain in her chest. She put her hand where she felt the pain, but felt only skin.
She found a pool of water in the cave and saw that her Hollow hole was gone. She looked at it curiously, then saw that her usual white outfit was now black. She felt stupid having not seen her arm gloves change earlier. "I look like a shinigami." She laughed at her own comment.
"That's because you are one. Rini-sama. You just don't remember." The voice sounded even more distant.
"Where are you?! Who am I?!" She heard no reply and sank to the cold cavern floor. "What am I?"
~reality~
"You okay, or just going too deep into your own mind?" Renji had grabbed a chair and was sitting beside Blood's bed.
"Just a bit of self reflection." Blood opened her top to see if her hole was still there. It was, but it seemed smaller to her. "What are you doing here?" She was told by Isane that he had visited her quite often While she was unconscious.
"I came to visit you, Rini. After all you are my sister." Renji was having a hard time seeing his sister as a Hollow, but he was glad she wasn't their enemy.
"I told you, my name is Blood not Rini. And I'm not even sure if you are my brother." Aizen had told Blood that her brother was hotheaded and dumb like a monkey.
"Well we are. Even if you don't remember it." Renji felt like he was having his heart torn out. 'This is worse than when I thought she was dead.'
"Well I don't. So don't get too familiar with calling me Onee-chan, or anything." Blood was also feeling pain but she didn't know why.
"Am I interrupting something?" Ukitake walked into the room with flowers in his hand.
Blood turned away from Renji not wanting to show the emotions that were on her face. "No. Abarai-Fukutaichou was just leaving." Her voice almost caught when she used Renji's last name.
Renji felt a stab of pain at his twin's words. "I'll be back again tomorrow." He got up and left. He didn't try to hide the tears that were threatening to spill from his eyes.
Ukitake had seen the Fukutaichou's tears. "You know he is your brother, don't you?" He changed the flowers in the vase on her bedside table with the ones he brought.
Blood curled into a ball. "This hole is where my heart once was. I'm not suppose to have one, but why can I still feel it breaking." Tears fell down her face.
Seeing blood cry caused Jushiro to sit on her bed and hold her while she cried. "It's not that you don't have one. It's just lost at the moment. You still have one." He kissed her forehead and held her while she cried.
Blood began to sing from her sadness. She had found that so etimes she just couldn't stop herself from singing.
Dancing bears, painted wings
Things I almost remember
And a song someone sings
Once upon a December
Someone holds me safe and warm
Horses prancing through a silver storm
Figures dancing gracefully
Across my memory
( singing aaaahhh with the melody )
Someone holds me safe and warm
Horses prance through a silver storm
Figures dancing gracefully
Across my memory
Far away, long ago
Glowing dim as an ember
Things my heart used to know
Once upon a December
Someone holds me safe and warm
Horses prance through a silver storm
Figures dancing gracefully
Across my memory
Far away, long ago
Glowing dim as an ember
Things my heart used to know
Things it yearns to remember
And a song someone sings
Once upon a December
"Taichou?" Isane was on her way to check on Rini when she saw Orihime leaning on the wall outside Rini's room. She could see tears streaming down her Taichou's face. "What's wrong?"
Orihime looked at her Fukutaichou and smiled. "It's nothing. Just a memory of the distant past." She pushed her self off the wall and walked back towards her office.
Isane followed after her Taichou. "I didn't think you were affected by her powers." Orihime just smiled on, not willing to admit that she had, had a pair of wireless earbuds in during that meeting and had completely ignored mostly everything that was said.
~Hueco Mondo~
"I'm bored. When can we go kill shinigami?" Hawk had been attacking a pillar for the last week in frustration.
"You think you're strong enough to take them on? If I remember correctly you didn't stand a chance against a single Taichou." Souri teased her blue haired comrade.
"None of us stood any sort of chance." Shank lounged on a fallen pillar.
"But we've trained and gotten stronger. I want to test my strength." Hawk wanted to show the stupid blond Taichou just how powerful he was.
"No one is going anywhere with out orders from Aizen-sama." Mist walked into the room with her clipboard. "And we just got the okay to attack. We're going to use the girl that Shinchi-sama brought with him."
"I told you. That is a shamed name. My proper family name is Chike." Itachi walk into the room dragging a girl by the arm. "Here's your bait." He threw the girl at one of the Espada.
"My apologies Chike-sama." Mist bowed to Itachi. "Thank you for allowing us to use the girl."
"It's necessary. My plan will not work if she disappears." Aizen stepped out of the shadow beside Itachi. "And this plan will not fail, because Moth is also going with you. He's in charge."
"Great. The silent non-fighting one is in charge." Hawk complained not noticing Moth behind him.
Moth didn't say anything. Hawk didn't know why his other comrades were looking worried, but he suspected it had something to do with the feeling of being watched he had.
~Soul Society~
An alarm was going off throughout all of the squad buildings. All of the Taichous and Fukutaichous met up on the Soukyoku hill.
"Squads 3, 6, and 9 will keep civilians and Hollows from meeting with each other. And get the weaker souls far away from the battle." Three pairs broke from the group to set their squads into position. "Squads 2, 7, and 13 will stop any strangling Hollows from straying to far. Make sure no Espada get past you." Three more left the group. "Squads 4 and 5 heal any injured and keep squad four members from being injured." Only three people left. Inoue stayed behind having something to tell the Soutaichou. "What is it Inoue Taichou?"
Orihime spoke plainly knowing the situation. "Abarai-san was nowhere to be found before the alarm went off, and she used her power, and I did not have an opportunity to see how much her mark changed."
"That's worry some. Hitsugaya-Taichou, take Awazaki-san and have your squad search for Abarai-san. " Hitsugaya nodded and headed off with Matsumoto. Kyoraku guessed that Karin would go with him. "Inoue-Taichou, take Yuzu Kurosaki with you." Orihime nodded and headed off to meet with her squad. Squad 11 and 8. You will be the main attack force." Kenpachi smiled at his orders.
The newly appointed Taichou of 8th squad was hesitant. "You'll do fine Yakamoto-Taichou." Yakamoto Tamaki had been a member of 5th squad during Aizen's betrayal, but had shown loyalty to the Gotei 13 instead of loyalty to his traitorous Taichou. He had helped to keep his squad going during the time the Hinamori-Fukutaichou had been unable too. The new Taichou nodded to the Soutaichou at his words of comfort and left to gather his squad.
"Nanao you stay here to keep an eye on the defences. I'll be-" He was stopped by a hand on his chest.
"I won't always accept being left behind." She looked at her husband showing worry on her face. "Be back soon. There's still lots of paperwork for you to do." She kissed him before heading back to her office.
"Hollow and Visored Squad, you're with me." Shinji and Stark left to gather their small squads. "Now the war begins." Kyoraku looked towards the forest outside the walls were he could feel a large mass of Hollows gathering.
~forest outside the wall~
"Do we really need all these weaklings?" Chat wasn't to pleased to see so many weak Hollows massed around them.
"Moth said they where necessary. Otherwise we wouldn't attract the shinigami's attention." Souri was wondering where there leader had gone.
"I'm sure Moth-sama knows what he's doing." Mist stood with her clipboard.
"What are we waiting for anyway?" Chat wanted to find Snake and show the traitor how bad of an idea it was to interrupt his playtime.
"Don't worry. Our target is already on it's way here." Mist pushed her glasses up. "I'll be off. I have a mission to accomplish." Aizen had told her to meet up with their spy that was in Soul Society. "Make sure you keep those in your ears." She spotted Hawk taking one of his earplugs out and examining it several times.
"Why do we need these?" Hawk didn't like the feel of them. None of them did.
"Their suppose to make us immune to Blood's Voice. Although I don't know why she would use it against us." Shank didn't really know how they had gotten the earplugs. He suspected the spy smuggled them to Aizen. 'Who do we have in the Gotei 13 other than Blood?'
~Blood~
'Where are you?' She knew the voice in her head was worried.
'You should not look for me Rini-sama.' The voice was small, but not distant.
'You know who I am. I'm going to find you.' Blood was determined to find out she was.
'You do not need to. You just need to summon me.' Sensing her master's confusion she explained. 'I am your zanpakutou. You just need to summon me to your side using my name.'
'Your name?' Blood was confused even more.
"You shouldn't distract yourself to easily." Blood turned to see a brown haired man hidden by a shadow.
"What do you want?" She growled at the man.
"Nothing. Just glad we found you before Aizen did." Stark walked out from under the tree. He shot off different coloured Ceros in a pattern. Others from his squad and members from the Visored squad showed up shortly after. "Now let's head back to where Kyoraku-Soutaichou is."
"I can't. I need to find Shinouta." She surprised herself by knowing the voice's name. She felt a sharp pain in her chest and on her neck. She couldn't hide the pain from showing on her face, but she brushed off any assistance that was offered. "I have to find her, or I might never get this close again." She headed toward a clearing seeing a familiar sight. "This was when I first came here. I wonder who used to live in that house?" She stared at the ruins across the clearing.
"That would have been my poor little niece and her two children." They all looked at a figure who's hair looked like dried blood. "I should remember. I was the one that killed her and destroyed her house, but I never found her children."
"So you were responsible." Kyoraku walked into the clearing behind the group of shinigami. "I know two people who would love to kill you for that."
"I'm sure you do, Soutaichou." Itachi didn't think both children had survived. He knew one did, because the Soukyoku hadn't disappeared. "Why are you making such a face?" He spotted the loathing on Blood's face. "I thought you had no memories."
"We'll see about that. Resonate! Shinouta!" A heavy Reiatsu wrapped around Blood.
'I am at your service, Rini-sama.' Shinouta formed into a scythe with a curved blade that was as long as Rini's height with a spike on both ends of the staff. The blades and staff were pure black that flashed red in the light.
"I'll be taking my vengeance for what you did to my mother." Rini suppressed her Reiatsu. Her outfit had stayed the same, but inverted its colors and added a red belt, and ties on her neck and wrists. She rushed towards her great uncle.
Kyoraku held his arm up to stop Hitsugaya from moving. "This is her fight. Take your squad and go help eliminate Hollows."
Hitsugaya nodded and left to collect his squad. Kyoraku turned his attention back to the two red heads battling in front of him.
Rini's back! Please give feedback.