Bleach: Hinamori Momo/Kuchiki Rukia - Paradigm Shift
Title: Paradigm Shift
Author: Only_Dani
Word Count: 1529
Rating: PG
Characters: Kuchiki Rukia/Hinamori Momo
Prompt: Kuchiki Rukia / Hinamori Momo: Your silhouette against the moon
Warnings: Post war, spoilers for a few characters
Author's Notes: Onesided Rukia/Momo or maybe pre-slash, depending on how you look at it. Rukia visits Momo in the 4th division after the war.
This is my first time posting here, so I hope you like, and if I set this up incorrectly (either the tags or the info stating what the story is) please let me know so I can fix it. My secondary note is that this is unbeta'd, so if there are any mistakes please forgive me or let me know so I can fix them :)
***
It’s a celebration tonight. Bright lights are set up along the rooflines of many Division headquarters, a few Shinigami that know how to play instruments have set up an impromptu band and everyone who is able enough are lining the streets of Seireitei.
The war has been won and everyone is drunk and enjoying themselves. Renji is laughing and singing loudly with a bandaged Ikkaku, and Nii-sama is drinking with a boisterous Kenpachi, who keeps trying to force drinks on my annoyed noble brother. It makes me smile seeing them together. They seemed to have made friends during the war, although I’m not quite sure how yet.
The night is beautiful, and I want to join in the fun. The war has been long and tough and so very hard on everyone. It’s good that people are able to smile again.
I will join in, but there’s something I want to do first. There’s a face that keeps floating into the forefront of my mind. It isn’t Ichigo, although I’m still worried for him. He’s kept in one of Division 4’s private rooms and his father is most assuredly there right now. He hasn’t left his side for a moment, singing him ridiculous songs and telling jokes to Ichigo’s comatose body.
I slip away to the 4th division. It’s a lot quieter here, and there’s only one or two shinigami keeping post, making sure the sick and wounded are taken care of. Even they are in good spirits tonight.
As I walk down the hall, Hitsugaya Taichou comes out of a room looking tired and sad.
“Are you here to see her?” He asks.
“Yes. How is she?”
He sighs and rubs the space between his brows with two fingers. “It’s going to take a long time. She needs friends right now, I think.”
I nod and squeeze his bandaged hand before passing him by. When I knock on the door her voice beckoning me in is small and so very sweet.
After the war there were too many people for the 4th division to keep to single rooms. When I had been here, I had shared a room with Momo. At the time she was rarely awake, kept alive through medicine, kido, bandages and Unohana’s stubborn inability to lose someone under her care. She was barely even alive. The wound Aizen had given her was so very close to her heart, and maybe it had pierced it, too. But not with his zanpakuto. It’s a wound that can’t be fixed with medicine.
It’s a lucky thing she’s still alive.
I don’t know what I was expecting, maybe for the wires and tubes to still be hooked up to Momo with machines on each side of the bed, making many beeping noises to keep her alive. There’s none of that any longer and it makes me sigh in relief. She’s sitting up in her bed, wearing a light blue yukata, her face turned towards the open window, the faraway sounds of celebrating coming through. There are still many bandages. They run around her chest, almost up to her neck, and even her hands are bandaged a little.
Now that I’m here, I don’t really know what to say. The silence stretches uncomfortably until Momo turns and smiles at me.
“I’m glad you came.”
There’s suddenly a lump in my throat that’s so big I can barely get words out. I smile and nod, kick my feet a little at invisible specks of dirt on the floor. It never used to be hard talking to her. We used to talk for hours. We used to laugh at nothing just for the sheer delight of being happy together. But that was before. Now, the silence feels like some kind of gap that has sprung up between us and I’m not sure if I know how to bridge it.
“Are your shoes really so interesting?”
I look up from the floor, and Momo seems amused. For a moment, it’s the Momo I remember, the one that helped me become a better shinigami, the one who teased me at SWA meetings with her sharp wit and adorable smile. In a flash the awkwardness is gone, and I chuckle.
“They must be, I guess,” I pause, bight my lip and take a step closer. “How are you feeling?” It’s a silly question, one she’s heard a million times, I’m sure. I got enough of those when I was in 4th division from Unohana Taichou, the orderlies, friends, even Renji and Nii-sama.
She shrugs, it’s a graceful lift of delicate shoulders. Her hair is down, almost to the middle of her back, and it looks like dark chocolate in the dim grey-blue light. She looks pale and tired. Dark smudges are under Momo’s eyes and she looks so very small in the bed she’s in. Fragile. Like thin porcelain. Like one good shake could shatter her into a million pieces.
“I’ll be alright. Although it hurts a little… here.” She presses a hand to her chest and looks out the window again. I know that’s where she was stabbed, but I don’t think she’s talking about the wound.
“It hurts a lot before the healing is finished.”
Momo dips her head, and it looks like she’s curling into herself. Her voice is small and brittle when she speaks again. “I’m worried this pain will never go away.”
How could anyone want to hurt this woman? My hands clench into fists and it takes a lot of effort to rest them loosely at my sides again. I take a few more steps and sit at the edge of her bed. “Some wounds take longer to heal than others.”
Momo lifts her head in a nod and takes a shaky breath. Her eyes look a little wet, but there are no tears. She has gone through so much. I wonder if I could ever be as strong as her.
“I’m sorry, Rukia. I’m not very good company tonight.”
I want to tell her she’s being ridiculous. I don’t want to be anywhere else. But sometimes things don’t come out right when I say them. So instead, I take her hand, rough and calloused from decades of zanpakuto training and place it in my lap.
“It’s ok.”
I can hear Hirako-san laughing loudly at something, and both of us turn towards the sound. “I’m glad everyone is having so much fun. I heard that lights were put up?”
“They’re all over Seireitei,” I confirm. The drape moves with the cool breeze, and the silvery light of the moon spills across Momo’s features. The weary pinch in the lines around her mouth and the smudges under her eyes disappear. Her skin shines, her eyes glitter like gems and I can’t breathe for the space of two heartbeats. She’s transformed in that moment into someone more breathtaking than I’ve ever seen before. “They look beautiful.” I manage to whisper.
“I wish I could see it.”
“I could bring you out, just for a little while?” She shakes her head and gestures towards the bandages on her chest.
“I’m still a little weak, and Unohana Taichou said I should stay in bed for a few more days. But it’s nice to know how much fun everyone is having.”
“Yes, it is.”
The silence between us grows, but it’s not uncomfortable this time. We sit for a while just listening to the outside world with her hand in my lap and the moon on her face. Her hands are almost as small as mine are, clean and neat. Even though the entire 4th division smells like a living world hospital, Momo still smells like herself, like sweet fruit and summer afternoons.
Would it really be so bad for me to stay just to get a little more of that?
There’s a knock at the door, and we both turn towards it. “Hinamori-san? It’s time for your sleeping draught -Oh! Rukia-san, it’s good to see you.” Yamada Hanataro sticks his head into the room and smiles widely, and I return it warmly.
“Hello Yamada-san, it’s good to see you, too.” I look from him back to Momo. The curtain has moved back into place, and it looks like she hasn’t slept in a long time. “I should probably go.”
“Ok,” When I get up to leave she grasps my hand and holds it close to her. “Will you come again?” Her face is so open and sweet. Hopeful. How could I ever say no to that face?
“Every day, if you’d like?”
She nods and smiles once more, relief evident in the set of her shoulders. “I’d like that. Very much.”
My heart swells just a little, and I can’t quite keep the tender smile from my face. “Until tomorrow, then. Good night.”
Maybe she isn’t like she used to be. She’s been through a lot. We all have. But she isn’t broken. Never broken. When I leave, it’s with a smile, and hope warms me from the inside like warm tea never could.
She will be ok in the end. And I will be there for her, every step of the way.
~FIN~
Author: Only_Dani
Word Count: 1529
Rating: PG
Characters: Kuchiki Rukia/Hinamori Momo
Prompt: Kuchiki Rukia / Hinamori Momo: Your silhouette against the moon
Warnings: Post war, spoilers for a few characters
Author's Notes: Onesided Rukia/Momo or maybe pre-slash, depending on how you look at it. Rukia visits Momo in the 4th division after the war.
This is my first time posting here, so I hope you like, and if I set this up incorrectly (either the tags or the info stating what the story is) please let me know so I can fix it. My secondary note is that this is unbeta'd, so if there are any mistakes please forgive me or let me know so I can fix them :)
***
It’s a celebration tonight. Bright lights are set up along the rooflines of many Division headquarters, a few Shinigami that know how to play instruments have set up an impromptu band and everyone who is able enough are lining the streets of Seireitei.
The war has been won and everyone is drunk and enjoying themselves. Renji is laughing and singing loudly with a bandaged Ikkaku, and Nii-sama is drinking with a boisterous Kenpachi, who keeps trying to force drinks on my annoyed noble brother. It makes me smile seeing them together. They seemed to have made friends during the war, although I’m not quite sure how yet.
The night is beautiful, and I want to join in the fun. The war has been long and tough and so very hard on everyone. It’s good that people are able to smile again.
I will join in, but there’s something I want to do first. There’s a face that keeps floating into the forefront of my mind. It isn’t Ichigo, although I’m still worried for him. He’s kept in one of Division 4’s private rooms and his father is most assuredly there right now. He hasn’t left his side for a moment, singing him ridiculous songs and telling jokes to Ichigo’s comatose body.
I slip away to the 4th division. It’s a lot quieter here, and there’s only one or two shinigami keeping post, making sure the sick and wounded are taken care of. Even they are in good spirits tonight.
As I walk down the hall, Hitsugaya Taichou comes out of a room looking tired and sad.
“Are you here to see her?” He asks.
“Yes. How is she?”
He sighs and rubs the space between his brows with two fingers. “It’s going to take a long time. She needs friends right now, I think.”
I nod and squeeze his bandaged hand before passing him by. When I knock on the door her voice beckoning me in is small and so very sweet.
After the war there were too many people for the 4th division to keep to single rooms. When I had been here, I had shared a room with Momo. At the time she was rarely awake, kept alive through medicine, kido, bandages and Unohana’s stubborn inability to lose someone under her care. She was barely even alive. The wound Aizen had given her was so very close to her heart, and maybe it had pierced it, too. But not with his zanpakuto. It’s a wound that can’t be fixed with medicine.
It’s a lucky thing she’s still alive.
I don’t know what I was expecting, maybe for the wires and tubes to still be hooked up to Momo with machines on each side of the bed, making many beeping noises to keep her alive. There’s none of that any longer and it makes me sigh in relief. She’s sitting up in her bed, wearing a light blue yukata, her face turned towards the open window, the faraway sounds of celebrating coming through. There are still many bandages. They run around her chest, almost up to her neck, and even her hands are bandaged a little.
Now that I’m here, I don’t really know what to say. The silence stretches uncomfortably until Momo turns and smiles at me.
“I’m glad you came.”
There’s suddenly a lump in my throat that’s so big I can barely get words out. I smile and nod, kick my feet a little at invisible specks of dirt on the floor. It never used to be hard talking to her. We used to talk for hours. We used to laugh at nothing just for the sheer delight of being happy together. But that was before. Now, the silence feels like some kind of gap that has sprung up between us and I’m not sure if I know how to bridge it.
“Are your shoes really so interesting?”
I look up from the floor, and Momo seems amused. For a moment, it’s the Momo I remember, the one that helped me become a better shinigami, the one who teased me at SWA meetings with her sharp wit and adorable smile. In a flash the awkwardness is gone, and I chuckle.
“They must be, I guess,” I pause, bight my lip and take a step closer. “How are you feeling?” It’s a silly question, one she’s heard a million times, I’m sure. I got enough of those when I was in 4th division from Unohana Taichou, the orderlies, friends, even Renji and Nii-sama.
She shrugs, it’s a graceful lift of delicate shoulders. Her hair is down, almost to the middle of her back, and it looks like dark chocolate in the dim grey-blue light. She looks pale and tired. Dark smudges are under Momo’s eyes and she looks so very small in the bed she’s in. Fragile. Like thin porcelain. Like one good shake could shatter her into a million pieces.
“I’ll be alright. Although it hurts a little… here.” She presses a hand to her chest and looks out the window again. I know that’s where she was stabbed, but I don’t think she’s talking about the wound.
“It hurts a lot before the healing is finished.”
Momo dips her head, and it looks like she’s curling into herself. Her voice is small and brittle when she speaks again. “I’m worried this pain will never go away.”
How could anyone want to hurt this woman? My hands clench into fists and it takes a lot of effort to rest them loosely at my sides again. I take a few more steps and sit at the edge of her bed. “Some wounds take longer to heal than others.”
Momo lifts her head in a nod and takes a shaky breath. Her eyes look a little wet, but there are no tears. She has gone through so much. I wonder if I could ever be as strong as her.
“I’m sorry, Rukia. I’m not very good company tonight.”
I want to tell her she’s being ridiculous. I don’t want to be anywhere else. But sometimes things don’t come out right when I say them. So instead, I take her hand, rough and calloused from decades of zanpakuto training and place it in my lap.
“It’s ok.”
I can hear Hirako-san laughing loudly at something, and both of us turn towards the sound. “I’m glad everyone is having so much fun. I heard that lights were put up?”
“They’re all over Seireitei,” I confirm. The drape moves with the cool breeze, and the silvery light of the moon spills across Momo’s features. The weary pinch in the lines around her mouth and the smudges under her eyes disappear. Her skin shines, her eyes glitter like gems and I can’t breathe for the space of two heartbeats. She’s transformed in that moment into someone more breathtaking than I’ve ever seen before. “They look beautiful.” I manage to whisper.
“I wish I could see it.”
“I could bring you out, just for a little while?” She shakes her head and gestures towards the bandages on her chest.
“I’m still a little weak, and Unohana Taichou said I should stay in bed for a few more days. But it’s nice to know how much fun everyone is having.”
“Yes, it is.”
The silence between us grows, but it’s not uncomfortable this time. We sit for a while just listening to the outside world with her hand in my lap and the moon on her face. Her hands are almost as small as mine are, clean and neat. Even though the entire 4th division smells like a living world hospital, Momo still smells like herself, like sweet fruit and summer afternoons.
Would it really be so bad for me to stay just to get a little more of that?
There’s a knock at the door, and we both turn towards it. “Hinamori-san? It’s time for your sleeping draught -Oh! Rukia-san, it’s good to see you.” Yamada Hanataro sticks his head into the room and smiles widely, and I return it warmly.
“Hello Yamada-san, it’s good to see you, too.” I look from him back to Momo. The curtain has moved back into place, and it looks like she hasn’t slept in a long time. “I should probably go.”
“Ok,” When I get up to leave she grasps my hand and holds it close to her. “Will you come again?” Her face is so open and sweet. Hopeful. How could I ever say no to that face?
“Every day, if you’d like?”
She nods and smiles once more, relief evident in the set of her shoulders. “I’d like that. Very much.”
My heart swells just a little, and I can’t quite keep the tender smile from my face. “Until tomorrow, then. Good night.”
Maybe she isn’t like she used to be. She’s been through a lot. We all have. But she isn’t broken. Never broken. When I leave, it’s with a smile, and hope warms me from the inside like warm tea never could.
She will be ok in the end. And I will be there for her, every step of the way.
~FIN~