Days Gone By | Getting To Be The Hero | In The Rain | Moving On
Title: Days Gone By
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Unohana-centric, Mayuri/Unohana
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: She often wondered what his childhood was like.
Authors Notes: For laerkstrein, who wanted Unohana/Retsu with the prompt “childhood.”
She had often wondered what type of childhood would produce a man like Mayuri. She assumed it was not a typical childhood. She often thought he had been left to his own devices, or else had disturbed people so much even back then that they gave him wide berth. Perhaps he had been picked on, teased. Perhaps humiliated? That was a possibility.
Whatever his background was, she knew that it had not been like her own. Oh, she had not had the glorious happy childhood most people pictured, far from it. She had parents that she needed to support because they had been older when they had her. There had been scavenging for the food she needed that her parents had not and simply couldn't afford. There were times she had been cold and hungry and curled up in the tightest ball she could form, as if this would protect her, keep her warm and sated.
But there had been love, there had always been love. And perhaps that was the key difference between her and the man she had great if slightly disturbing (but only by others esteem, never by hers) attraction to. And while it might be too late to make those fundamental changes in him, she would at the very least try and inflict some positive changes in him by showing that she loved him despite everything, or perhaps because of everything, and no matter what he did, said or thought she was not going to give up on him...whether he liked it or not.
-
Title: Getting To Be The Hero
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Kon-centric, mentions of Ichigo and Orihime
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: She recognized him as the hero he was.
Authors Notes: For amorphic, who wanted Kon fic with the prompt “That's right, the hero always arrives late!”
It was hard being an adventurous soul trapped in a lion's body. How he yearned for adventure! His very being was tied into the feelings he felt when he had the chance to escape the monotony of his existence, the moments when he was in Ichigo's body and having an adventure of his own while Ichigo was doing the boring stuff.
And today was such an occasion! He'd heard Orihime shriek and off he went. It wasn't the playful shriek she usually had, so he knew something was wrong. He ran as fast as Ichigo's legs would get him to her. Faster, faster, up the hill...
And he was too late, because Ichigo was there in full shinigami regalia. But he was fighting the Hollow. Could he...could he actually get her away? He could. He could! So he ran up to her, grabbed her arm, and pulled her out of harm's way before the Hollow leveled the telephone pole she had been next to. The way it fell, it would have killed her!
Of course, she was worried about her beloved Kurosaki-kun, and he even felt a little jealous, but then she turned and smiled at him and thanked him. By name, even! And he didn't care if Ichigo saw, he was going to float right on down the street, happy that she had seen him as the hero he truly was.
--
Title: In The Rain
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Ichigo/Orihime
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers, but set after the whole current arc with Tsukishima.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: He wondered if it was too late.
Authors Notes: For kathy20121, who wanted Ichigo/Orihime fic with the prompt “Is it too late to remind you how we were?”
He's standing outside her window in the pouring rain. In this new apartment she's on the ground floor, which was always something that made his nightly entrances and exits easier. And she would always leave the drapes pulled open just in case he wanted to check on her, make sure she was safe. He always wanted to make sure she was safe.
She had accused him of smothering her, though. It had been years since Hueco Mundo, since she learned the skills to protect herself. By all rights, she didn't need him to stand such heavy guard. And she had never complained before tonight. But...he had an irrational need to make sure she was safe. He couldn't sleep without checking on her at least once during a patrol.
Tonight, though, the drapes were drawn shut, and he could see the light on. He could go up, knock on the window, apologize profusely...but he didn't think he was doing anything wrong. And it wasn't fair to apologize for something he wasn't going to stop doing. Maybe he could lessen it? Maybe. He could at least try. Perhaps a promise would suffice for an apology. He took two steps to the window and knocked. And waited. And waited. And waited. There was no reply.
He sighed, and turned to leave, only to see her standing there, umbrella over her head, looking at him. He would talk to her, tell her how he felt, about the need to make sure he was protecting her. And then maybe they could get back to how they had been. He opened his mouth to speak, but she shook her head, instead stepping up to him and pulling the umbrella over his head and kissing him softly. Everything was going to be okay, he thought as he kissed her back. They could make it work.
-
Title: Moving On
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Hitsugaya & Hinamori
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers, but set after the Deicide arc.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: It was simple steps that gave him hope.
Authors Notes: For thiscanbegin, who wanted Hitsugaya/Hinamori fic with the prompt “that's when you forget yourself for a moment or two.”
It has been many years since the Winter War. It had taken her a year to be in the same room with him, another year to let him touch her, and another year after that before she could speak to him. He had taken each step forward with cautious hope, and hadn't pushed, hadn't begged, hadn't pleaded. He let her take her time, adjust to him again, and move forward from there.
It's a day when she brings him a slice of watermelon that he realizes she's comfortable again. He fingers brush his as she hands him the slice. She smiles easily at him, and even laughs once or twice. He's waited so long for this moment, for her to be her old self around him, that he forgets about the Winter War, about her blood on his hands, on his sword. They slip back into being Shiro-chan and Bedwetter Momo, only older and wiser and far more scarred.
And when he smiles back at her, and laughs at the story she's telling, he feels that they've overcome the final hurdle, and now they can move on, and this time, this time, he can sleep soundly in the evening, replacing the horrific dreams with this wonderful memory of simple bliss.
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Unohana-centric, Mayuri/Unohana
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: She often wondered what his childhood was like.
Authors Notes: For laerkstrein, who wanted Unohana/Retsu with the prompt “childhood.”
She had often wondered what type of childhood would produce a man like Mayuri. She assumed it was not a typical childhood. She often thought he had been left to his own devices, or else had disturbed people so much even back then that they gave him wide berth. Perhaps he had been picked on, teased. Perhaps humiliated? That was a possibility.
Whatever his background was, she knew that it had not been like her own. Oh, she had not had the glorious happy childhood most people pictured, far from it. She had parents that she needed to support because they had been older when they had her. There had been scavenging for the food she needed that her parents had not and simply couldn't afford. There were times she had been cold and hungry and curled up in the tightest ball she could form, as if this would protect her, keep her warm and sated.
But there had been love, there had always been love. And perhaps that was the key difference between her and the man she had great if slightly disturbing (but only by others esteem, never by hers) attraction to. And while it might be too late to make those fundamental changes in him, she would at the very least try and inflict some positive changes in him by showing that she loved him despite everything, or perhaps because of everything, and no matter what he did, said or thought she was not going to give up on him...whether he liked it or not.
-
Title: Getting To Be The Hero
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Kon-centric, mentions of Ichigo and Orihime
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: She recognized him as the hero he was.
Authors Notes: For amorphic, who wanted Kon fic with the prompt “That's right, the hero always arrives late!”
It was hard being an adventurous soul trapped in a lion's body. How he yearned for adventure! His very being was tied into the feelings he felt when he had the chance to escape the monotony of his existence, the moments when he was in Ichigo's body and having an adventure of his own while Ichigo was doing the boring stuff.
And today was such an occasion! He'd heard Orihime shriek and off he went. It wasn't the playful shriek she usually had, so he knew something was wrong. He ran as fast as Ichigo's legs would get him to her. Faster, faster, up the hill...
And he was too late, because Ichigo was there in full shinigami regalia. But he was fighting the Hollow. Could he...could he actually get her away? He could. He could! So he ran up to her, grabbed her arm, and pulled her out of harm's way before the Hollow leveled the telephone pole she had been next to. The way it fell, it would have killed her!
Of course, she was worried about her beloved Kurosaki-kun, and he even felt a little jealous, but then she turned and smiled at him and thanked him. By name, even! And he didn't care if Ichigo saw, he was going to float right on down the street, happy that she had seen him as the hero he truly was.
--
Title: In The Rain
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Ichigo/Orihime
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers, but set after the whole current arc with Tsukishima.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: He wondered if it was too late.
Authors Notes: For kathy20121, who wanted Ichigo/Orihime fic with the prompt “Is it too late to remind you how we were?”
He's standing outside her window in the pouring rain. In this new apartment she's on the ground floor, which was always something that made his nightly entrances and exits easier. And she would always leave the drapes pulled open just in case he wanted to check on her, make sure she was safe. He always wanted to make sure she was safe.
She had accused him of smothering her, though. It had been years since Hueco Mundo, since she learned the skills to protect herself. By all rights, she didn't need him to stand such heavy guard. And she had never complained before tonight. But...he had an irrational need to make sure she was safe. He couldn't sleep without checking on her at least once during a patrol.
Tonight, though, the drapes were drawn shut, and he could see the light on. He could go up, knock on the window, apologize profusely...but he didn't think he was doing anything wrong. And it wasn't fair to apologize for something he wasn't going to stop doing. Maybe he could lessen it? Maybe. He could at least try. Perhaps a promise would suffice for an apology. He took two steps to the window and knocked. And waited. And waited. And waited. There was no reply.
He sighed, and turned to leave, only to see her standing there, umbrella over her head, looking at him. He would talk to her, tell her how he felt, about the need to make sure he was protecting her. And then maybe they could get back to how they had been. He opened his mouth to speak, but she shook her head, instead stepping up to him and pulling the umbrella over his head and kissing him softly. Everything was going to be okay, he thought as he kissed her back. They could make it work.
-
Title: Moving On
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Hitsugaya & Hinamori
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): No spoilers, but set after the Deicide arc.
Warnings (if applicable): None.
Summary: It was simple steps that gave him hope.
Authors Notes: For thiscanbegin, who wanted Hitsugaya/Hinamori fic with the prompt “that's when you forget yourself for a moment or two.”
It has been many years since the Winter War. It had taken her a year to be in the same room with him, another year to let him touch her, and another year after that before she could speak to him. He had taken each step forward with cautious hope, and hadn't pushed, hadn't begged, hadn't pleaded. He let her take her time, adjust to him again, and move forward from there.
It's a day when she brings him a slice of watermelon that he realizes she's comfortable again. He fingers brush his as she hands him the slice. She smiles easily at him, and even laughs once or twice. He's waited so long for this moment, for her to be her old self around him, that he forgets about the Winter War, about her blood on his hands, on his sword. They slip back into being Shiro-chan and Bedwetter Momo, only older and wiser and far more scarred.
And when he smiles back at her, and laughs at the story she's telling, he feels that they've overcome the final hurdle, and now they can move on, and this time, this time, he can sleep soundly in the evening, replacing the horrific dreams with this wonderful memory of simple bliss.