Regret Evanescent
*Flashback*
Toshiro strode into the infirmary with an air of barely contained anger. He had heard the questions being asked about Sayuri and he was not going to stand for it any longer.
"What do you think you're doing?" he shouted angrily into the chamber, his voice echoing off its walls.
Soul Reapers from his division that had been guarding Sayuri were speaking softly amongst themselves and had suddenly stopped speaking to turn towards Toshiro in silence.
"We're just discussing a matter of great importance," one of the soul reapers replied with caution and fear in his voice.
"No, you were not discussing a matter of utmost importance," Toshiro said, his voice low and taut with rage. "You were talking about her. My fiancée."
The two soul reapers exchanged glances, each feeling uncomfortable under Toshiro's scrutiny.
"We were just curious," one of the soul reapers explained, his voice carrying an air of contrition.
"Curious?" Toshiro asked angrily. "Didn't you expect me to be curious too? Did you expect that I would simply accept everything you said without questioning?"
His subordinates remained silent, not daring to speak in the presence of Toshiro's fury.
"I know you all mean well," Toshiro stated with an increasingly soft voice, as though his anger had dissipated somewhat. "However, I must ask that none of you speak about her in such an accusatory fashion; this kind of gossip will not be tolerated by me. Am I making myself clear?"
The soul reapers nodded their heads together as they extended their sincerest regrets for what had taken place.
"Now if you will excuse me, I must go." Toshiro turned and strided into the infirmary leaving his subordinates staring speechlessly behind him.
Toshiro entered her room, discovering her lying peacefully on the bed.
His heart quickly filled up with emotion as he looked at her for just a moment longer before moving forward to get his stuff together and leave.
As he approached, he slowly kneeled by the bedside, taking care to take her hand while gently taking in all they had seen during their fight against the Hollows. Bandages covered her forearm, evidence of the battle they had been involved with.
Toshiro gently stroked her hand as tears ran down his face as he imagined what horrors had befallen her. He felt powerless to protect her.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered, his voice rising with emotion. "I should have taken better measures to protect you.
He kissed her hand tenderly before standing, his resolve reigniting: from now on he would do whatever was necessary to ensure that she was safe from harm - no matter the cost.
"He whirled around to face the soul reapers guards who still stood gathered in the doorway, his eyes flashing with anger.
" "If anyone dares to speak of her again in such a way, they will have to answer to me," Toshiro warned with his voice resonating with an audacity far beyond his years.
The soul reapers nodded in understanding, their expressions conveying respect and admiration for Toshiro's courage and loyalty.
Toshiro hesitated a moment, his words filling the air around them with their weight. With one last look towards Sayuri he turned and left for the day, his heart heavy with sorrow yet his spirit burning with renewed strength.
•• ━━━━━ ••✾•• ━━━━━ •••• ━━━━━ ••✾••
The room was silent; the only sound being that of Sayuri breathing softly. The other captains bowed their heads in silent prayer for Toshiro and Sayuri before leaving the infirmary without further incident or disruptions to them both.
As night fell, Toshiro still sat in the infirmary with his hand still cupping Sayuri's face and his eyes closed in silent grief. He was quiet and alone.
Kaien had assured them it would be an easy mission and was confident nothing too drastic would go amiss; he assured them no one would get hurt and that their mission would be successful.
Sayuri woke to find herself in an unfamiliar environment. Surrounded by walls she couldn't reach, and an impossibly high ceiling, she felt disoriented, forgetful of how she got here - everything felt surreal as though she had only just entered a dream world.
She was startled awake by an audible gasp and saw Toshiro standing in the corner of her room, looking down upon her with both relief and fear on his face - it appeared that in just days while She had been unconscious, he had aged significantly.
Sayuri asked in her faint voice. "Where am I?"
He spoke softly, his voice full of emotion. "Kaien... he..." his words faded away as his eyes gazed away without completion of his sentence.
Sayuri struggled to sit up, but her body felt too heavy. Finally managing to do so; when she looked down, she saw that a large bandage covered her stomach - her eyes widening in shock as she let out an alarmed cry and looked back up to Toshiro with fearful eyes.
"What... what happened?" she demanded in a trembling voice.
Toshiro hesitated before responding. "The hollows... they were too powerful, overwhelming us. Kaien sacrificed himself to save us; in turn we managed to escape but lost part of ourselves in the process.
Sayuri's breath caught in her throat as she realized what her fiancée had said, they had lost their child. Tears began pouring down her face as she attempted to comprehend its magnitude.
Toshiro moved closer and held her close, his arms protectingly wrapping around her as she sobbed uncontrollably. All he could do was be there for her in their grief and comfort her as best he could.
Once her tears had stopped falling, Sayuri blinked open her eyes. She took in all the unfamiliar sights and sounds in the room before turning back towards Toshiro for support.
"Thank you," she softly replied, "for being here."
He nodded; his eyes still filled with sadness. "Always," he replied.
Sayuri smiled weakly, while they sat silently together taking comfort in each other's presence. While each had experienced significant losses within themselves, at least they still had one another.
The two sat together for a long time until eventually, Sayuri drifted off to sleep. When she awoke, Toshiro was still there, keeping vigil by her side. They said nothing to each other, but the presence of the other was enough.
