Dribbles & Drabbles
I recently took requests for ficlets in my journal; since they are so short, I'm archiving them all in one entry.
Sorted by fandom:
Bleach
Ishida for fieryfaerie86
---
Ishida narrowed his eyes as he silently studied his target, brow furrowing in concentration. He wet his lips and took a deep breath.
"Ishida-kun, no one expects you to do the impossible." Orihime gave him a light touch on the shoulder. "Just do your best."
He gave a chuckle. "It's hardly impossible for someone of my talents," he said airily. Ishida took a deep breath and slid the glasses up on his nose, then picked up needle and thread. Kurosaki Karin glared at him from beneath her baseball cap, a scowl etched deeply across her face as she sat amidst swatches of colorful material. A smile of anticipation crept to his face. Creating an adorable party dress for Yuzu had been a snap, but this would be a rare challenge indeed.
Kira + Renji; captaincy for lucindathemaid
---
They hadn't even graduated the Academy yet, but they were already making plans.
Renji gave an exaggerated yawn, stretching wide and popping his neck with a soft crack. "If you had your choice right now," he began in a careless tone, "what division would you join?"
Kira sipped his sake as he mulled over the question. "I haven't given it much thought yet." He flipped some hair from his face with the back of a hand; it was getting long, but he didn't feel like cutting it. "You?"
"The Eleventh," Renji replied without hesitation. "They're totally the best, right? The most elite." Grinning, he reached to pour himself a drink.
Kira made a noncommittal noise. "Hinamori-kun is definitely aiming for the Fifth."
Renji flapped a hand. "Like that's news. I'm asking about you."
Kira shrugged, and downed the rest of his drink.
"That's your problem," Renji began, pointing a finger sharply at his friend. "You need more ambition." Kira chuckled and quirked an eyebrow. Renji scowled. "I'm serious! At this rate, I'm sure to become a captain before you even become a seated officer."
Kira quickly brought a hand to his mouth, covering a cough that sounded suspiciously like laughter.
Renji slammed his drink to the table. "That's it! This is a bet now!"
"A bet?"
"To see who becomes a captain first! Loser has to buy drinks. Forever."
Kira schooled his features into a solemn expression. "All right. I accept."
To seal the bargain, they both had another drink.
Inuyasha
Sango/Kikyou; anxiety for numisma
---
Sango silently watches Kikyou as she works over Miroku, drawing the shouki from his body and into her own. The miko's hands are quick and skillful, but Sango feels her belly twist when she sees the way the shouki clouds the pale fingers. She thinks Kikyou's movements are growing slower; the steady hands gaining the slightest bit of shakiness as she continues. For a moment, Sango thinks if she could, she would like to draw those fingers to her lips and kiss the tips of them, and pull all the pain and the poison into her own body. She thinks she could bear it. She feels as though she already is.
Kagome/Inuyasha; sunrise for haro
---
She wakes in the dim light before morning, ashamed at having dozed off after promising to sit up with him. She turns to offer an apology, but to her astonishment, finds him sleeping peacefully. With a quiet reverence that borders on awe, she watches while the first rays of sunlight creep up to touch him, the black of his hair melting into dazzling white.
Kanna; afterword for reiku_toukijin
---
Long after all the others have faded to dust and passed out of memory, Kanna remains. If she bothered to ponder why that was, she might suppose that it is because things of substance must always inevitably fade, but nothingness can never become less than what it is. She's the only one left who knows the story now. Not just that story, but this one, and this too, and any other she happens to see in her mirror.
She knows them all, but she tells no one. No one ever asks.
Jakotsu/Bankotsu; heat for abarero
---
Jakotsu lounged on his back, his yukata draped so loosely on his body it gave only the barest semblance of modesty. "Mou, it's too hot," he sighed, weakly flapping a wilting paper fan in a vain attempt to cool off. Bankotsu could only nod as he felt the sweat slide down his back. The heat was making him dozy. This wouldn't do. Standing, he began to shuck his armor and outer clothing. In a moment, he was down to his fundoshi. Jakotsu propped himself up on an elbow, eyebrow arched. "Oo-aniki, what are you--?" His question was cut short as he found himself quickly scooped up and slung over a shoulder.
Bankotsu looked back at him with a grin. "We're going swimming."
Kikyou + Kagura; "fancy meeting you here" for the_firefly
---
Kikyou finds the afterlife just the same as when she left it: a bar--dimly lit, half-empty, near silent save for the occasional clink of ice in glasses. However, she's surprised to see someone has taken her spot. "Excuse me," she says. "You're sitting on my chair."
"I didn't see your name on it."
"I was here before. I only left for a little while."
The woman swivels back to face her, leaving a swirling trail of cigarette smoke in her wake. When she sees Kikyou, one eyebrow arches almost comically. "Well," Kagura says, "it's the miko."
"I see you've taken up smoking," Kikyou says mildly.
Kagura shrugs, and waves a hand at the stool opposite her at the small, round table. "It's not like it can kill me."
"I suppose not." Kikyou pauses a moment, then accepts the empty seat. "I'll get the first round."
Mai-HiME/Otome
Shizuru/Natsuki; secret for the_firefly
---
Natsuki tells herself that it's good Shizuru is there for her. Shizuru is a person she can show her weaknesses to, knowing they'll be kept safe under lock and key. Natsuki loves how free she feels when she spends time with the older girl. She just doesn't want anyone else to know. They might get the wrong idea, after all...
Shizuru, on the other hand, will never let Natsuki know how much she loves being the secret the younger girl keeps from everyone, even herself.
Natsuki + Nao; headache/curse for the_firefly
---
Natsuki sat at her desk, resting her head against the edge of her palm.
"If you glare much harder," Nao said with a smirk in her voice, "you'll burn a hole right through the top of your desk."
Natsuki didn't bother to look up. "Not now."
Nao tapped a finger against her chin. "Hmm. This is more serious than a simple headache, isn't it? Let's see...are you hung-over?"
"I'm really not in the mood, Nao," Natsuki warned, moving her glare from the teak desktop to the younger Otome.
"Aha!" Nao said with a crow of triumph. "It's the female curse!"
Suikoden
Viktor/Flik; forward for sonkikyo
---
Viktor adjusted his grip on his sword. "You know, this was a really bad idea."
"Hmm. You've mentioned that." Flik squinted, trying to take a quick count of the enemy forces that surrounded them on all sides.
Viktor shrugged and raised his weapon. "Just sayin'."
An unspoken signal passed between the two, and they charged forward as one, swords swinging.
Tengaar/Hix; apple for sonkikyo
---
"Tengaar-" Hix began to voice his protest, but was cut off.
"This is an important training ritual." Tengaar raised a finger, but refrained from wagging it at him. A large green apple was balanced precariously atop her head, and the slightest movement sent it rolling from side to side. "Accuracy is very important, you know."
"I know." Hix winced. "That's why I think I should practice with just the apple first."
Sorted by fandom:
Bleach
Ishida for fieryfaerie86
---
Ishida narrowed his eyes as he silently studied his target, brow furrowing in concentration. He wet his lips and took a deep breath.
"Ishida-kun, no one expects you to do the impossible." Orihime gave him a light touch on the shoulder. "Just do your best."
He gave a chuckle. "It's hardly impossible for someone of my talents," he said airily. Ishida took a deep breath and slid the glasses up on his nose, then picked up needle and thread. Kurosaki Karin glared at him from beneath her baseball cap, a scowl etched deeply across her face as she sat amidst swatches of colorful material. A smile of anticipation crept to his face. Creating an adorable party dress for Yuzu had been a snap, but this would be a rare challenge indeed.
Kira + Renji; captaincy for lucindathemaid
---
They hadn't even graduated the Academy yet, but they were already making plans.
Renji gave an exaggerated yawn, stretching wide and popping his neck with a soft crack. "If you had your choice right now," he began in a careless tone, "what division would you join?"
Kira sipped his sake as he mulled over the question. "I haven't given it much thought yet." He flipped some hair from his face with the back of a hand; it was getting long, but he didn't feel like cutting it. "You?"
"The Eleventh," Renji replied without hesitation. "They're totally the best, right? The most elite." Grinning, he reached to pour himself a drink.
Kira made a noncommittal noise. "Hinamori-kun is definitely aiming for the Fifth."
Renji flapped a hand. "Like that's news. I'm asking about you."
Kira shrugged, and downed the rest of his drink.
"That's your problem," Renji began, pointing a finger sharply at his friend. "You need more ambition." Kira chuckled and quirked an eyebrow. Renji scowled. "I'm serious! At this rate, I'm sure to become a captain before you even become a seated officer."
Kira quickly brought a hand to his mouth, covering a cough that sounded suspiciously like laughter.
Renji slammed his drink to the table. "That's it! This is a bet now!"
"A bet?"
"To see who becomes a captain first! Loser has to buy drinks. Forever."
Kira schooled his features into a solemn expression. "All right. I accept."
To seal the bargain, they both had another drink.
Inuyasha
Sango/Kikyou; anxiety for numisma
---
Sango silently watches Kikyou as she works over Miroku, drawing the shouki from his body and into her own. The miko's hands are quick and skillful, but Sango feels her belly twist when she sees the way the shouki clouds the pale fingers. She thinks Kikyou's movements are growing slower; the steady hands gaining the slightest bit of shakiness as she continues. For a moment, Sango thinks if she could, she would like to draw those fingers to her lips and kiss the tips of them, and pull all the pain and the poison into her own body. She thinks she could bear it. She feels as though she already is.
Kagome/Inuyasha; sunrise for haro
---
She wakes in the dim light before morning, ashamed at having dozed off after promising to sit up with him. She turns to offer an apology, but to her astonishment, finds him sleeping peacefully. With a quiet reverence that borders on awe, she watches while the first rays of sunlight creep up to touch him, the black of his hair melting into dazzling white.
Kanna; afterword for reiku_toukijin
---
Long after all the others have faded to dust and passed out of memory, Kanna remains. If she bothered to ponder why that was, she might suppose that it is because things of substance must always inevitably fade, but nothingness can never become less than what it is. She's the only one left who knows the story now. Not just that story, but this one, and this too, and any other she happens to see in her mirror.
She knows them all, but she tells no one. No one ever asks.
Jakotsu/Bankotsu; heat for abarero
---
Jakotsu lounged on his back, his yukata draped so loosely on his body it gave only the barest semblance of modesty. "Mou, it's too hot," he sighed, weakly flapping a wilting paper fan in a vain attempt to cool off. Bankotsu could only nod as he felt the sweat slide down his back. The heat was making him dozy. This wouldn't do. Standing, he began to shuck his armor and outer clothing. In a moment, he was down to his fundoshi. Jakotsu propped himself up on an elbow, eyebrow arched. "Oo-aniki, what are you--?" His question was cut short as he found himself quickly scooped up and slung over a shoulder.
Bankotsu looked back at him with a grin. "We're going swimming."
Kikyou + Kagura; "fancy meeting you here" for the_firefly
---
Kikyou finds the afterlife just the same as when she left it: a bar--dimly lit, half-empty, near silent save for the occasional clink of ice in glasses. However, she's surprised to see someone has taken her spot. "Excuse me," she says. "You're sitting on my chair."
"I didn't see your name on it."
"I was here before. I only left for a little while."
The woman swivels back to face her, leaving a swirling trail of cigarette smoke in her wake. When she sees Kikyou, one eyebrow arches almost comically. "Well," Kagura says, "it's the miko."
"I see you've taken up smoking," Kikyou says mildly.
Kagura shrugs, and waves a hand at the stool opposite her at the small, round table. "It's not like it can kill me."
"I suppose not." Kikyou pauses a moment, then accepts the empty seat. "I'll get the first round."
Mai-HiME/Otome
Shizuru/Natsuki; secret for the_firefly
---
Natsuki tells herself that it's good Shizuru is there for her. Shizuru is a person she can show her weaknesses to, knowing they'll be kept safe under lock and key. Natsuki loves how free she feels when she spends time with the older girl. She just doesn't want anyone else to know. They might get the wrong idea, after all...
Shizuru, on the other hand, will never let Natsuki know how much she loves being the secret the younger girl keeps from everyone, even herself.
Natsuki + Nao; headache/curse for the_firefly
---
Natsuki sat at her desk, resting her head against the edge of her palm.
"If you glare much harder," Nao said with a smirk in her voice, "you'll burn a hole right through the top of your desk."
Natsuki didn't bother to look up. "Not now."
Nao tapped a finger against her chin. "Hmm. This is more serious than a simple headache, isn't it? Let's see...are you hung-over?"
"I'm really not in the mood, Nao," Natsuki warned, moving her glare from the teak desktop to the younger Otome.
"Aha!" Nao said with a crow of triumph. "It's the female curse!"
Suikoden
Viktor/Flik; forward for sonkikyo
---
Viktor adjusted his grip on his sword. "You know, this was a really bad idea."
"Hmm. You've mentioned that." Flik squinted, trying to take a quick count of the enemy forces that surrounded them on all sides.
Viktor shrugged and raised his weapon. "Just sayin'."
An unspoken signal passed between the two, and they charged forward as one, swords swinging.
Tengaar/Hix; apple for sonkikyo
---
"Tengaar-" Hix began to voice his protest, but was cut off.
"This is an important training ritual." Tengaar raised a finger, but refrained from wagging it at him. A large green apple was balanced precariously atop her head, and the slightest movement sent it rolling from side to side. "Accuracy is very important, you know."
"I know." Hix winced. "That's why I think I should practice with just the apple first."