#toshiro gets stronger just to protect Momo I just...

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

Rays! Not sure if you’ve talked about this already, but it’s always a great time to talk about HitsuHina. This time HitsuHina and music! I love how in the Bleach Musicals, there’s so much HitsuHina (and GinRan) content! Especially in the last of the original musicals/cast Bleach Code:003. I mean Bengara Koushi is a given (an actual love duet between HitsuHina and GinRan) and is almost always sung in all the versions, but I also love how in Code 003 Hitsugaya and Renji sing about their childhood friends in Hajimari no Hi (Those Beginning Days). When Hitsugaya sings about how his heart was enclosed in ice, and how Hinamori gave her days and was like a spring breeze, it’s just so sweet (especially with how he goes back to calling her Bedwetter Momo since he was miffed she didn’t like his glasses, li’l bit of KiraHina there too when Kira was jealous of Hanatarou with Hinamori). “This Light I See” is also obviously a HH song, but I was intrigued with some interpretations that “Momoiro no Hana” could be one too! See in the beginning, Momo sings about being in front of someone she wants to protect (so I’m assuming she’s talking about Aizen), but later on she sings about how she “dimly watches over someone’s valiant back” and how “the scattered flower petals fall on that person’s courageous back” which makes me think she’s singing about Hitsugaya now. My personal interpretation was always how the strong rainstorm referred to Aizen while the frozen winds referred to Hitsugaya, but while the scattered flower petals could refer to her (being that her name and zanpakuto’s name refer to flowers), it could also refer to Hitsugaya’s bankai. I personally think that the line “dimly watching your valiant back” refers to when she nearly died after being stabbed by Aizen and Hitsugaya was in front of her raging against the former. What do you think?

It's outrageous that this has been in my inbox for as long as it has and I have yet to answer it. For that, I deeply apologize! >_<

All of what you said is top-notch! As it's been a long time since I last saw the musicals, I'll just give my thoughts on the character songs. This will probably end up becoming more an appreciation post for the songs rather than an analysis, as you've pretty much covered that part, but here we go!

There's something I want acknowledge upfront: like any piece of media in a language that's foreign to the listen/viewer, it can hard to know about the nuances in said language. The translator for Momoiro no Hana even acknowledges that some of the lyrics may not be as literal as they were translated. Because of this, I'm giving my interpretation as an English speaker looking at the translated lyrics. If anyone can tell me any nuances they see in the Japanese lyrics that might be key to understanding the songs, please feel free to share.

With that said, let's get to it!

This Light I See

Ah, this one takes me back. I come back and listen to it every now and then, particularly for writing fics. I wholeheartedly agree that This Light I See is a hitsuhina song, but I can also understand some saying it's actually about Hyourinmaru too.

Throughout the song, Toshiro is reflecting on a figure who 'believes in everyone' but is also lonely. He also brings up an 'unwavering light', and how it both inspires him to be stronger while also expressing, pleading, for it comfort him in his confusion. He also refers to this light as being 'lonely', calling it a 'lonely light' in the second chorus. He also asks for different things based on the quality he gives the light:

1st Chorus:

I'm believing this light I see Unwavering light, Please guide me as I call out to you

2nd Chorus:

I'm believing this light I see Lonely light, Please embrace me in my confusion

For the first chorus is retty straight forward: the unwavering light is strong and steady, and is thus able to act as a guide to Toshiro when he calls out to it.

In the second chorus, has asks the lonely like to 'embrace [him] in his ] confusion'. First off, loneliness needs company, so hence wanting to embrace the light. But what is this confusion? Is it about what to do with his powers (we'll get more into that below) or about the situation he's in right now (Momo heartbroken by Aizen's betrayal, Toshiro going through his own turmoil and angry at the effect Aizen had on Momo)? I'd love to know your and anyone else's thoughts on this.

There's also lyrics pertaining to his inner workings, with verses such as:

The cold night breeze gets caught in my eyes As meaningless memories flow over me Shouting harsh words to the sky I still have the taste of blood on my tongue

Gradually believing in a daily life founded only on strength I know that this time the only thing I win is emptiness From my tiny heart I laugh aloud Please let me get a little stronger

I'll go over these verses first before diving into whether he is speaking about Hyourinmaru or Momo. The first verse expresses Toshiro being ponderous, but also frustrated, shouting 'harsh words to the sky' while having 'the taste of blood on [his] tongue'. For me, it suggests a battle he recently engaged in and his anger (rage, even) at having lost.

'Meaningless memories' is a hard one honestly, because I remember I had this out-there interpretation once that it was him recalling memories of Aizen (ie remember memories of the Aizen he once knew, before he revealed his entire persona to have been fake, hence any memories of him become 'meaningless') and combined with the fresh loss to the traitor, it enrages him. I'd love to know your thoughts or anyone else's thoughts on what it could mean.

The second speaks to his view on himself, at how he believes himself to be weak and wants desperately to get stronger. Him winning emptiness could again express his loss to Aizen, but I'm think it's that he's saying he isn't strong enough, that the strength he wants and needs just isn't here, or maybe it's both. Him laughing aloud is his way of trying to show external this [perceived] lack of strength doesn't affect him, but the next lyric betrays this by showing on the inside he pleads to get stronger. It could also be a reference to chapter 224, where Toshiro teases Momo and tries to take her mind off Aizen, deflecting away from how he truly feels upon seeing her.

Now, Momo is undoubtedly mentioned in this song (we'll get to the lyrics pertaining to her in a minute), but I've seen a few people say the song is actually about Toshiro and relationship with Hyourinmaru. For the Hyourinmaru argument, we have the fact that he came to Toshiro as a piercing like in his dreams. He is often seen as a guide for Toshiro, as the being who tried to guide him towards his potential and powers. With Toshiro asking the 'unwavering light' to 'guide [Toshiro] as [he calls] out to [the unwavering light]', it's easy to see this as Hyourinmaru. There's aslo the fact that this song is about Toshiro himself, and Hyourinmaru is a manifestation of Toshiro's soul, intrinsically connected to him and who he is.

Now on to the Momo argument. Without a doubt, Toshiro states again and again throughout the song that he wants to protect her; but what do the lyrics have to say about Momo (or at least, how Toshiro views Momo here)?:

'The one who had a habit of saying "Believe in everyone" Is saddened from the depths of her heart Having power that should protect her can hurt her What should I do with these hands?

When I had a habit of saying "I'll live alone" She smiled at me with a lonely looking smile Having power to understand her can forsake her What should I do with these hands?

For the first verse, Toshiro reflects on who Momo is as a person, and how her once happy-go-lucky attitude towards others has been replaced by sadness, to the point that it's to heart now. He laments that having the power to protect her also has the potential to harm her, speaking of the enormity of Hyourinmaru's powers (and acting as foreshadowing maybe?? Or a self fulfilling prophecy??). Here his intention is clear: he wants to protect her, but he fear harming her further with that same power.

Then there's the second verse, and oh boy! Again Toshiro tries to hide how he truly feels, saying 'I'll live alone' to hide his loneliness and the low self esteem he's harboured sine the children and residents in the Junrinan treated him differently. Momo's lonely looking smile could be a show of her own loneliness, or of mayeb feeling rejected by Toshiro when says he'll 'live alone'. However, I personally think Toshiro doesn't realise it, but Momo can see through his bravado; she can see he is a lonely boy who is trying to appear tougher than he actually is, and her lonely smile is a reflection of sympathy or empathy for him.

Now what about having the power to understand her? I admit, I don't really know for this one and I'd love to know anyone's thoughts on it. If I had to take a guess, it's his worry that if he understood her, he might somehow harm her further.

Then there's the lyric that gets repeated in both verses: What do I do with these hands? Toshiro has always been a practical person. He has a lot of emotions running through him, and his emotional immaturity makes it that his temper flies off the handle and he has a hard time expressing himself for most of the series. Because of this, I wouldn't feel surprised if he struggles to comfort or show his others through words (though he definitely has his moments, thank you for pointing this out @troius). As a result, he likely shows his care for Momo by vowing to protect her, using the powers he has and through more practical means. When Toshiro is wondering what to do with his hands, I think he's unsure about how be can protect her, how he can show he cares with harming her somehow.

To him, her physical protection guarantees her mental and emotional protection. He knows how to fight, and he lacks the confidence to console her through words, so he will use these powers, as deadly as they may be and with the potential to harm her, to protect her and understand her.

Another thing to note is, the song is structured as such:

Verse about Toshiro's internal workings and how he's feeling Verse about Momo Unwavering light chorus Verse about Toshiro's internal workings and how he's feeling Verse about Momo (where he mentions her lonely looking smile) Lonely light chorus Chant about releasing his powers and believing in the light Final chorus featuring the unwavering and lonely lights

It's with this structure in we could make the argument that the song is about both Hyourinmaru and Momo. In various materials they are connected in certain ways. On track 8 of the drama CD, Toshiro learns the name of his zanpakuto because of his wish to protect Momo. He strengthened Hyourinmaru to better protect Momo. Heck, we even have this lyric which basically says Momo is the key to unleashing his powers:

The weakest part of me releases the most powerful prayer Up to the place where the heavens end

The weakest part of me releases the most powerful emotions To the place before the darkness

I mean, there aren't many character that release Toshiro's 'most powerful emotions', and the instants we have seen of this are with Momo, soooo...

There's also the fact Toshiro frets that Hyourinmaru's power, his power, can harm her. In the end, without him knowing, it does. But what does he do in response to harming her with Hyourinmaru's power? He reaffirms his will to protect her, trains to have better control of his bankai and strengthen it, and the Completed form is now a thing. The weakest part of him ended up releasing the most powerful prayer indeed.

Momoiro no Hana

I must admit, I rarely go back and listen to Momoiro no Hana. It almost feels sacrilegious as a Momo fan, but I don't know, I don't think the song is my cup of tea. But we're not here to discuss tastes in music!

I very much agree with your interpretation of the song, but I'll elaborate on why.

Momo's song is her incarnate; it can be a heartbreaker to read, but there's hope there and a will to overcome things that harm her. We see moments of her self sacrificing nature and caring for other before herself:

[I'll] Tenderly and graciously bloom with pride With a smile as high as the sky Even if I get all the power And lose it while I protect

Here she is likely referring to Aizen, as [if I'm not mistaken] at the time this song came out, she was still in deep denial about her ex-captain's truly self, so she would still want to protect him, or at least the image she has of him. However, there's also just enough evidence in the manga to show that when push comes to shove, Momo would've protected Aizen from danger.

But there's also this vow to herself that she will get stronger:

Tenderly and graciously blooming with pride With a smile as high as the sky I will always be one step in front of you Because I want to protect you

I want to bloom without fail Even in those overly rainy days Even in those frozen windy days The pink flower petals sway

Throughout the song, Momo goes from saying that the petals 'fall' or 'scatter' to saying they 'sway' indicating that aren't getting caught in the wind of being forced away from the flower. It shows strength and resilience, that she's learning to stand on her own and not get caught up in the turmoil she is going through.

Then there's her use of rain and frozen winds. I definitely see her has being the flower (related to her zanpakuto name and also because she says she wants to 'bloom without fail'), the rain is Aizen (also based on his zanpakuto name Kyoka Suigetsu, 'Mirror Flower, Water Moon'), and the frozen winds is Toshiro (because, you know, ice-type zanpakuto and just him in general). The petals are where it gets interesting, because as you said, we can interpret this as being either Momo and her getting caught up in the turmoil around her, or Toshiro because of his bankai. I peronally think it's used for both at different.

The lyrics I always come back to are these ones:

Inside the strong rainstorm Inside the frozen winds I dimly watch your valiant back The scattered flower petals pass forth

Amidst the strong rainstorm Amidst the frozen winds The scattered flower petals fall on Your courageous back

Since I first read these lyrics, chapter 170 always comes to mind. In this moment, Momo is dying, and all she can do is 'dimly watch' as Toshiro confronts Aizen, his back facing her. Toshiro's bankai has also been translated as 'Crimson Lotus' (so, ya know, petals), and his transformation involved frozen winds. What I find interesting is the petals at first 'pass forth', but in the second verse, they 'fall on' someone. I remember another my out-there takes on this being Momo is giving Toshiro her support, seeing that he too is going hard times and believes in him.

Some commonalities?

What I find fascinating is that both songs start with Toshiro and Momo reflecting on memories, and they aren't really happy ones:

This Light I See: The cold night breeze gets caught in my eyes / As meaningless memories flow over me

Momoiro no Hana: In that quiet moment I remember the times / Wonderful times, regretful times

It shows both of them are reflective, thinking about the past and and as we see the songs go on, trying to come to terms with the present. Both of their songs reveal their weaknesses, and their determination to get stronger.

These songs are about what it means to be stronger and what it takes from them to overcome their trials. Throughout, Toshiro talks about an 'unwavering light', while Momo talks about wanting to 'bloom without fail'. However, Toshiro also brings up a 'lonely light' while Momo mentions 'looking at the sky all alone' and 'scattered petals', showing the moments of turmoil in their journeys to become stronger.

We've also got them both having similar moments involving the sky:

This Light I See: Shouting harsh words to the sky / I still have the taste of blood on my tongue

Momoiro no Hana: Looking up at the sky all alone / Feeling my heart break It shows their reactions to the trauma that's happened to them: Toshiro got angry, Momo was heartbroken.

And that's all I have to say on the songs. I'd love to know other people's interpretations of either song, or just your thoughts in general about the songs.

Thanks for sending this in!

[neko-bri]

Hii!! Just want to say that I love your blog and that you are a sweetie! If I can ask, I would like to see your personal headcanons about hitsuhina or Hitsugaya (or both of them XD) , as I'm a huge fan from their bound Xxx

Hii!!!! OMG just fkfhfkfkfkw this ask message made me smile! Thank you so much for sending this!!! I just...am crying so bad! I thank you anon-san!!! I love your blog too!! I am sure of it since you love hitsuhina too!!! < 333 they are one of my favorite ships ever!! * 3 * I want to write more drabbles of these two precious babies of ours! < 333 I am sorry if this was late!! ; a ; you are so precious!! We all can be friends with our love for hitsuhina!! < 333 I did find my old headcanons too from my old momo rp tumblr as well! * 3 * I may have made this too long with some headcanons. sorry sorry!!

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Momo headcanon -- [ Growth ] For Momo as a headcanon I did have a few but one of them was I thought about how Momo looked at herself after Aizen's betrayal and her admiration for him was shattered. I thought that she wanted to become stronger with experience of that pain over what happened. To grow into someone who is mature and want to gain more experience but to also keep moving forward with time to gain new experiences. She is thankful for being able to look at herself with happiness and even the sadness, she could learn and cope with her feelings to learn to grow up. Her feelings for Aizen slowly diminish and her heart is set on new goals for growing stronger. As she met her new captain she wanted to share that strength to learn to be stronger so she can find the strength to never feel that again. Her Captain Hirako shares the pain of being betrayed and used like a pawn. Knowing Momo's pain and Toshiro knowing that Momo went through all that. His strength to protect Momo is what he strives for. I just thought Momo want to keep going and look back as a strength to see how far she has come. She is healing with time slowly but, will also open the door for her heart to trust again with all the bad experiences she faced and pain. She is such a strong woman to heal and also learn to walk forward.

____________________________ [Momo's headcanon] Hair cut || Headcanon

A new start. New life was beginning the day of all the heartache. The long hair had symbolized the time with a distant past. So long forgotten. Back then it also meant forgetting the love that was forged from becomming a fukutaichou  within fifth division along with a dearest love that has for long betrayed deep within this very soul. Symbolize of change the brunette had thought about how hair change and the appearance over starting over. A new light had shown on her with the hair clip given from a very special friend dear to her own heart. Not mentioning the name—-she had thought of moving past all the pain and everything that caused the cheerful shinigami to frown. Fresh start on how childish, naive, and foolish the very girl thought change was in order.

A new light has shine upon me… That is why I wish to change, to become a better person. This is my time to shine. _______________________________________________ [Momo Headcanon ] Trust

—-ღ Trust has many ways of words through your mouth. It can be a trust that no longer alive. Or this trust has been broken by a deep wound to the heart. That trust…had always effected the brunette when a sword by her admirater had broke her in half. That pain lived through her each day. Still remembering the way he use to smile at her, teach her things, show her how to become stronger. Those days—-were now gone with that trust completely destroyed. After her coma; the trust that normally would be able to surround the ones easily. Had been slightly putting Momo in fear. Fear to approach others or even to love. If she ever found it again; it take her time to slowly sooth the wound that was gravely wounded by the one who she once trusted… Hinamori had troubles giving that trust to the ones who use to be near her. Or new ones. Once she opened her heart; fear began to consume her between being used again like a tool. That is what eats her alive each day until finally breaking into million pieces.

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Hitsuhina [Bonds] [Headcanon]

—-ღ Bonds… This word meant a lot to the brunette who created many bonds with her friends. One of them was a child along side her which she never forget. That person had kept at her side since day one. Hinamori still remains beside him even after everything. Blaming herself for what little thing wasn’t her fault. Her childhood friend, Shiro-chan still forgives her and continue to do so. How Hinamori could not understand his reasoning in forgiveness. It was something she always want to keep their bonds strong. Holding hand in, hand they will fight against anything that would try to break them apart. Never again would she wish to point her blade at someone who never gave up on her. He was the most important person to her. Still remaining as her precious friend that never will die out. For his forgiveness that made her smile to herself in the mirror. It was something she will never mistaken from his words. His words that helped her through so much. She will keep a good grip on his hand and forever keeping the bond that the two have created.

Never again will let it break apart…

[aeondeug]

like if kubo had done this with i dunno. fucking. toshiro or something. i would be like bullshit. toshiro wouldn’t have that. toshiro would not do this. toshiro does like one thing and that one thing is to go IF I CANNOT GET STRONGER I CANNOT PROTECT MOMO HGMFDHFHGHFFF MATSUMOTO STOP BEING A FUCK.

urahara and yoruichi though i’m just like yeah that makes sense. what else do you got in there?

[thefandomsurfer]

My top anime couples

Before I start my list heres some honorable mentions because I love them almost as mush as the people in my list! I cant bare to leave them out >,<

Honerable mentions:

Taiga and ryuuji

Momo and Toshiro

Hinata and Naruto

Ulqiuhime

Kousei and Tsubaki

Gajeel and Levy

Ed and Winry

Now on to my list!

10.  Kousei and Kaori

What can I say? While I do love some of that childhood friend action I cant help but see a certain spark for these two. She helped him when no one else could and kept pushing him to be happy. And when the time came when she needed a push he did. This ended tragically but The mark she left on him will forever be there and he will always love her. 

9.  Hikaru and Haruhi

This might be because Im a huge twin fan or that I find Tamaki kinda annoying but I almost shipped this since day one. I cant see Haruhi with Tamaki sense all she seemed was annoyed by him the ENTIRE time. Now she was also annoyed by Hikaru as well but they had a lot of tender moments. She can tell the twins apart, they had a date that ended in comfort, they spend a lot more time together as a whole then she and Tamaki. But I will still ship it even with how it ended and always will.

8. Sakura and Naruto

Naruto and Sakura have actual history together and make a wonderful team. They share the same pain of losing a teammate and have seen each other at their worse. He loved her for most of the series and I feel like she had a deeper, not to mention healthier, bond with Naruto then she did with Sasuke. These two didnt end up together, i know, but I still ship it. I just like their dynamic much more and think they deserved each other after all they went through together.

7. Hiyori and Yato

These two have a undeniably strong bond. He needs someone as light and kind as her to guide him and remind him of who he wants to be. They bicker at times and joke around other times. But they both want to protect one another. She will do whatever she can to keep him with her and he will go to the ends of the earth to keep her safe. He wants to keep her as safe as possible and almost cut her ties with him but Hiyori wants to stay with him even though she could be in danger because of it. This is one of the strongest relationships in this list and will stay one of my favorites for years to come,

6.  Shizuo and Vorona

Shizuo and Vorona are adorable. Im sorry But they just are. I know this is a hated ship but honestly? I dont care. Its cute-Its even developed. They have a chemistry that others with Shizuo dont have. And they bring out the best in each other. Vorona-While she still kills im assuming-Has gained the courage to confront her father and Shizuo stopped trying to kill Izaya-The person he hates the most-To get her not to kill him because he doesnt want blood to stain her hands. They are seen together a lot and its just so cute to see the two act the way they do together.

5. Kyo and Tohru

They do so much for each other without even trying. He lets her know its okay to tell others how you feel and she helps tame him when he gets out of control. They accept each other for every thing they are and do it with a smile. I love their moments together they are also so much more heartfelt and tender because of how brash Kyo normally is. You know when he says something it means so much and that he also takes what she says to him to heart.

4. Inuyasha and Kagome

Another extremely deep bond is that of Inuyasha and Kagome. They are constantly at each others necks arguing about one thing or another. But they are also the only ones aloud to do that. They save each other and do anything possible to make the other happy. Inuyasha even going as far as trying to send Kagome away to keep her from the pain he brought her. She didnt want to leave his side so she came back and continued to do so. They have been a favorite couple of mine for so long and will continue to be forever I think.

3. Natsu and Lucy

Now these two constantly comfort each other. Weither its a back hug or forehead touch they are always together. Witch makes their moments all the more sentimental. They have their funny moments as well as sad moments but in the end they come back together and help each other. Shes in need of saving?-Hes their to help his princess-He needs to calm his temper?-She’ll help her Dragon find his state of mind. They are truely unforgettable together.

2. Maka and Soul

He’d do anything to protect her, she wishes to get stronger to protect him-Theyd do anything for each other. They are bound to each others souls and understand each other much more then anybody else.They bicker more then Inuyasha and Kagome but they also have a deeper bond to each other. Shes the meister hes her weapon. Without one another thay are incomplete.  I dont think anyone could ever rival the deepness of their affection to each other in my mind.

1. Ichigo and Rukia

These two will forever be my favorite of OTPs. They, just like number 2, 4, and 7, Have an incredibly deep bond and It will stay that way forever it seems. She dried the rain in his soul and he brought hope into her world when it was thrown into chaos. Their bond goes beyond that of love almost like they are soulmates. They understand each other more then anyone else and often prove it when one of them needs cheering up. Rukia is not afraid to slap Ichigo around when he needs it and knows just what to say to get him to be himself again. They are with no doubt my Favorite coulpe in anime so far.

[glitterphuck]

As We Are

*These characters belong to Tite Kubo*

Momo Hinamori x Izuru Kira

*Rated M*

A calm and gentle breeze that has now become standard for the inhabitants of the seiretei, thanks to the efforts of the gotei 13 and especially Ichigo Kurosaki, swept past Momo Hinamori, lifting her shoulder length hair into her line of sight and rustling the fabric of her uniform as she looked down on some of her fellow shinagami from where she sat a few rooftops away, quitely observing her friends and superiors alike drink and playfully banter amongst themselves. It was usually like this now that Yhwach had been eradicated completely, and after witnessing and fighting against the power of the quincys most everyone became strong enough to protect themselves against such brutal, awful power. Which left the entire soul society fairly untouchable, these days it was rare to run into an enemy that could compare to one of the gotei's captain level officers. Evil, more powerful and twisted will always rise again, that was certain, but for now it remained easy, quiet. Quiet enough to get lost in your grief and thoughts on the past. Her friends keep her grounded for the most part but there are some times when she will catch a flash of unimaginable, crushing sadness flit across her dear friend Rangiku's strikingly beautiful features, when she had too much to drink and certainly too much alone time. She recoginized it because she wore it too, carried it on her shoulders and let it consume her when she was particularly weak, like right now. That's the reason momo had gone to the roof in the first place. There were a certain few that if you caught alone you could tell how wracked with unsolved trauma they were, one certainly being Rangiku. It was no secret that she loved Gin Ichimaru, he had died years ago by Aizen's hand and has undoubtely not recovered yet, and maybe never would.

The gotei suffered many tragic losses and even though over 10 years had passed momo wasn't sure that she'd ever completely be able to forget how important she felt thinking she was a vital part of her previous captains life, her absolute devotion to the traitor during his time as her squad leader, she gripped her elbows tight and was curling in on herself, ready to crumble, as she let out a shaky breath and knew with a certainty that was concrete, she would never let go of the bloody memories he inflicted upon her in the form of being ran through by his blade, the first time as he held her tight, patted her head gently, and murmured comforting words, the second and even more shocking being when he used Kyoka Suigetsu's ability to trade his body with hers and watched as her closest friend stabbed her through the chest in his place. The betrayal he inflicted upon everyone in the soul society was unforgiveable and she only saw the man as a traitor now, but knowing that he is alive and trapped in the deepest, darkest place Head Captain Shunsui could find never failed to rattle her system and make her stomach clench unpleasantly. Momo felt her eyes well with tears and tightened her already bruising grip on her arms as if she could forcefully hold herself together instead of bursting at the seams like she wanted to. 'This is getting me nowhere...' Momo thought sourly, scolding herself for having such thoughts. Aizen no longer has anyone in his slimy grip, that is the truth, yet she can't shake these feelings. No matter how strong she made her body, kido, or swordmanship through ruthless training with Captain Hirako, Toshiro, and even Nanao, her mind wouldn't catch up. It was unbearably frustrating but she was always told that everything takes time, and that seemed to be the truth considering how often she feels her friends suffocating in their own relentless barrage of despair. Her hold on her arms loosened and she sighed deeply, leaning back with her hands behind her, nails pressing rather harshly into the rooftop under her tired, small form. Her bleary, dark chocolate eyes slid shut and she allowed herself a long moment of several calming breaths, doing her best to bury the anguish and honestly succeding somewhat before a familiar spiritual pressure spiked behind her, knocking her out of her hazy, tortured mind. "What are you doing up here? People left hours ago." It was Izuru Kira, a long time friend of hers who coincidentally shares her pain of a captain who went against the Soul Society, Gin Ichimaru. Momo quickly stood and wiped at her eyes before meeting the taller man's questioning look. "Oh, Izuru-kun! I was just lost in thought...I didn't realize it had gotten so late." Izuru surprised her by taking a seat and patting the spot beside him, he always was a good friend and constantly showed her great kindness, so she took the spot without hesitation, glancing up at him after she was settled. His hair had been cut recently, something more similar to how he used to wear it in their academy days. It showed off piercing dark blue eyes that were as keen as they were mesmerizing, and strong features, she always thought he was handsome but now with some years on him, no longer fresh faced and aloof like when they first met so many years ago, but strong, scarred, experienced, lean muscle and slim limbs traded for a stronger, broader physique, sitting so close was nearly unnerving and it sent her blood rushing faster. A thin blonde brow arched and he gave her a ghost of a smile, "For hours? Must be some serious thoughts," he half joked. "Anything I can help with?"

Momo sat up straighter, gripped the front of her shihakusho in a nervous gesture and could feel herself wanting to open up to him, she did, but she also knew what dredging up the past was like because it followed her at all times like an always impending storm cloud, ready to rain at any moment, drenching her and throwing her back into the dark thoughts and the memory of steel searing with frightful ease through her thin, soft body.

Momo's dark eyes shot wide at the feel of a large, warm hand closing over her shoulder and giving a soft, concerned squeeze, her pulse thrummed again and she turned her shocked expression more open, a sad smile gracing her small but full lips. "Izuru-kun, I don't mind telling you...but I'm not sure it's something you'd be willing to talk about." Her gently curved mouth turned more sincere, genuinely worried for the man's feelings and not willing to push any unwanted conversation onto him. His hand gave one more gentle press, causing a warm tingle to dance down her arm, and then she watched as he removed it and let it drop back to his side. His fingers twitched and she distantly wondered if he felt the same thing...and kind of hoped he did. 'What in the world is going on with me?' Momo asked herself, still feeling a heavy warmth on her shoulder.

Izuru looked out into the dark sky and tipped his head slightly forward, a quick, harsh breath passing his lips as a huffed, insincere laugh. "So you're thinking of the past, then? We live extraordinarily long lives, Momo, 10 years is hardly much for us, it's not wrong to still feel betrayed. I know that I do." He turned his gaze toward her, eyes bright with something she wasn't sure has shone in them before, it felt intense and magnetic so she moved her focus to his chin, eying his strong jaw and a little further down to the man's thickly muscled neck and shoulders. A light blush dusted her cheeks and she decided that maybe not looking at Izuru was the better option. Why was she suddenly feeling like this? Momo then remembered that he had already tried to talk to her twice and she was so busy oogling him that she didn't reply, how embarrassing! "Ah, that's actually very helpful, it makes me not feel so weak to hear it that way, Izuru-kun." Momo placed her hands in her lap and kept her eyes glued on them, slightly afraid of the new feeling Izuru was giving her. She was no fool, she knew it was attraction...but why? And an even better question, why does the man beside her seem to be raidating heat and why the hell does he smell so good? She was also certain the look he was giving her earlier matched how she was feeling internally.

In a small airy voice Momo suddenly asked, "What helps you? How do you cope?" Izuru gave another small but genuinely more sincere laugh, "I don't think I have been coping." She felt him shift beside her, getting closer, so she looked up, into the eyes of a man she knew for sure she was attracted to and swallowed hard. When Izuru spoke next her cheeks flared and a shudder wracked her lithe frame because his voice dropped to a low, heated tone, rasping as if his throat was raw, "But maybe we could help each other, Momo?" She turned to fully face him, pink mouth slightly agape and she spoke without much thought, "Think so?" Her voice sounded high and shaky but she leaned forward anyway, intrigued and warm all over from his alarmingly molten words. Izuru's hand lifted slowly toward Momo's face, ready to lean in close and breathe in her sweet scent, learn how she tastes, but he gave her time to ask him to stop if she wanted him to, or to pull away, but she didn't. His hand reached her jaw and he caressed the soft skin gently before cupping the back of her neck and drawing her in close enough that she could feel his breath on her lips, temptingly close. Momo's already hooded eyes slid completely shut so Izuru wasted no more time and closed the last few scant inches between them and claimed her lips in an increasingly scorching kiss, she was pleasantly shocked and melted further into the blonde man, gripping the front of his uniform tight to keep him close. He moved his mouth against hers slower, and moved his hand to the base of her skull to grab ahold of silky brown tresses and tilt her head at a better angle for him to kiss her deeper, swiping his tongue across her bottom lip and gently pulling it with his teeth. A soft groan escaped Momo and she opened her mouth for him, sliding her arms around his broad shoulders now as their tongues touched hesitantly at first, sliding against the other. Izuru dropped his other hand to her hip and swiftly hauled her into his lap, a renewed heat filling his belly as Momo's soft pilable body settled against his, her hands reaching up to tangle in the man's blonde locks tightly. Izuru broke the kiss, panting. "Do you want this?" The heated tone was back and Momo's toes curled against her sandles. In a voice she didn't recognize as her own, too breathy and pleading to her ears an immediate, "Yes, oh god Izuru-kun, please." His impossibly blue eyes flashed dangerously and he used the hand still in her hair to tip her head back and lay kisses down the colum of her slender throat, sucking harshly enough at her pulse point to see an already blooming bruise, momo shivered at that and rocked her hips against his, hard. The hand on her generously curved hip tightened and he groaned into her neck, pressing back up against her and the friction was maddening, "Fuck," a rumbled sound from the back of his throat, "You are exactly what I needed, Momo." She couldn't help but to nod her head in agreement before pulling at the sash around her waist, a bright blush spread across her face, contrasting beautifully with her dark hair and the glossy eyed look she was giving Izuru. 'I want you now, Izuru-kun," she ground harshly against him again and shrugged the now loose fabric away from her shoulders, and then in an enormously husky voice, "Please." Izuru discarded his own shinigami robes with the help of the petite woman in his arms and then licked a scorching trail over her collarbone and slipping a large hand into the front of her underwear, almost immediately finding her sensitive nub and rubbing his thumb against it in soft, teasing strokes. Momo opened her mouth to tell him to hurry, to just screw her but Izuru silenced her would be pleas with a deep kiss, savoring her whimpers and tasting the sugary sweetness that is just undoubtedly, Momo.

Izuru burned hot at her eagerness while he slipped one long finger into her wet heat, kissing her harder in appreciation of how ready she was for him so after several slow, deep thrusts he added another finger and sped up his pace. Momo broke away from his lips, panting and beautifully red, chewing harshly on her bottom lip, moaning his name in choked, shaky segments. He only thrusted his fingers harder for it, able to feel how close she already was to coming undone around his hand and not able to deny her anything he inserted a third finger to make sure she was more than ready to take him. A few moments and several deep thrusts later Momo grabbed tightly onto Izuru's shoulders and shuddered against him, moaning high and long while he murmured naughty praise into her ear and kissed whatever skin he could reach.

After gathering her wits she sat up in izuru's lap straighter, fixing him with a loving but lustful look before diving her hand past his underwear to pull his erection free, Izuru shivered and his hot breath puffed against her cheek and ear. This time it was Momo to speak up, "Are you sure?" Izuru almost had the urge to laugh but instead he fixed her with a heated stare and did nothing else but firmly nod his head, not really trusting his voice at the moment. Momo placed one delicate hand on his shoulder to steady herself and used the other to line his erection up with her slick, hot entrance. She slowly lowered herself down and once he was completely buried in her tight heat she and Izuru both groaned and his hands went right to her hips, already feeling dizzy from the intense feeling of momo in his arms, and wrapped around his cock. Momo lifted her hips and cried out as she found a steady rythym for them, Izuru clenched his teeth and ground up into the beautiful woman above him everytime she came down on his erection, the friction had the both of them trembling and hissing with pleasure, momo being more vocal with high keens and rough groans against Izuru's heated flesh. He guided her movements with his hands on her hips and watched as her small but perfectly rounded breasts moved with the now fast paced, rough movement of their hips. Izuru leaned forward and took a puckered pink nipple into his mouth, wanting to draw more noise from Momo, he could never have enough of her now. Blinding pleasure was building in the pit of his belly suddenly and he wanted Momo there too, wanted her just as much out of her mind as he was, so he slid a hand between them and slicked his fingers against her clit in fast, harsh strokes and wrapped his other arm completely around her middle, pulling her impossibly tight against his firm, rigidly muscled body while he only fucked her harder, made her cry out louder. She lasted through a few more seconds of the deliciously brutal pounding before she went taut and gripped at Izuru for dear life, chanting his name as if he wasn't right there, buried to the hilt in her body. That was it for him, then. He only held her tighter to his chest and spent himself inside of her, stroking a soothing hand down her back.

They stayed like that for several long minutes before Izuru spoke up, "Momo?" She found his gaze and gave an adorable satisfied smile, "Hmmm?" He couldn't help but smile back, bright and genuine. "I think we can make eachother happy, if you're willing to give me a chance." Momo snuggled into him again, resting her damp forehead against his muscled form. "More than willing, Izuru-kun. I...I really want to be with you."

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

Petrichor

Hitsuhina Week 2022: Day 3: Summer Rain / Flying

Rating: T / Teen for violence and a few swears

Setting: some time between chapter 686 and the New Breathes from Hell one shot.

Synopsis: Toshiro is forced to transform into the Hyourinmaru's Completed Form when a battle to protect a town in the World of Living from Huge Hollows turns dire, and Momo comes to understand the magnitude of her friend's powers.

AN: Okay, so as far as I’m aware it hasn’t been confirmed whether or not the wings Toshiro has while in the Completed Form actually give him the ability to fly (or if they’re there just for show). For the sake of this fic, they can and do.

Also:

I don’t know much about construction sites, but recently I walked past one that partly inspired this fic. The cylinders referred to in this fic is sections of a smokestack – you’ll know it when you see it.

Shikai Hyoketsu refers to the ability Hitsugaya has to freeze all four elements in front of him when an opponent has taken four steps after he has transformed into Hyourinmaru's Completed Form.

For those not aware, 'Petrichor' refers to the earthy scent after the rain lands on dry dirt; apparently it's stronger after a long period of warm, dry weather.

Finally, I'm not trying to make a running trend of including gifs in my fics, I swear (feel like I'm taking a page out of @pinkhairedlily's book, who always finds beautiful images and gifs to use in her fics) but I saw this one and thought it was fitting for this fic.

Hope you enjoy it!

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The humidity in the air evaporates, and the frigid cold that settles in causes Momo to bolt upright.

This is bad. The situation is so dire he transformed.

Her throbbing ankle draws her attention downward; she has a deep graze all along one side of her foot and ends midway up her shin. Something feels strained or pulled in her foot. Her blood either stains uniform or it’s washed away by the now chilling rain, running down in bright red rivulets into the mud.

When she’d tried to land after being flung away by a Huge Hollow, she’d stuck her leg out behind her to try and land, but her foot gave way and skidded in the dirt until she came to a stop.

With gritted teeth, forces herself to stand, trying to keep her leg as straight as possible while stabbing Tobiume into the ground for leverage. She tries not to focus on the internal worried cries of her zanpakuto, she barely has the time to reassure her.

 “Lieutenant!”

Her seventeenth seat, Tomoko Suzuki, is backing from the clearing towards her, not turning away from the Huge Hollow they were battling against. The Hollow stands tall on two legs, its head the same height as the trees that surround them, and its shadow now falls over them as it stalks forward. Two of its over-long arms clutch the trunks of two trees as it leans forward. Its focus isn’t on Suzuki anymore, but on Momo.

She lets go of Tobiume, clasps both hands together, and raises them at the Hollow as yellow energy engulfs them. “Bakudo Four: Hainawa!”

The crackling rope flies from her arms and wraps itself around the Hollow’s torso. She cringes when only three of the four limbs became entangled in the kido, but she still turns to Suzuki.

“Suzuki-san, now!” she orders.

Without question, Suzuki releases her zanpakuto while lunging forward. She slashes at the Hollow’s legs, and with a wail it falls to its knees. She has no time to strike again when its one free limb swings at her. She just barely manages to dodge it by flash-stepping backwards.

“How long does the numbing last?” Momo asks.

“A minute,” Suzuki replies, now at her side. “But this isn’t a regular Hollow, so I don’t know.” She clutches Momo’s underarm, helping her to stand, and starts scanning the area. “How bad is your injury? We have to get you to…”

Momo frowns at her officer, who is staring wide eyed over her shoulder. She follows her gaze and gasps. She and Hirako had cast a long range concealment kido that covered the area in an invisible dome. It made it that the residents of the nearby town were none the wiser to the battle taking place. It must be weakening, because in the far distance there are a few humans standing at the edge of the forest, looking in. If they come any closer –

A howl brings their attention back to the Huge Hollow. It breaks free of Hainawa, the yellow energy ripped into disintegrating shreds as the Hollow falls forward and lands on its two lower arms.

“Shit!” Suzuki curses when its legs start to twitch make into motion. “Not even thirty seconds!”

Momo pulls Tobiume out of the ground and aims. “Snap, Tobiume!”

The fireball that shoots out collides with the Huge Hollow’s head, causing it to fling back and stumble a few steps away. Knowing it won’t be enough, Momo uses her free hand to starts drawing the symbols for Genki. Red energy emits from her fingertips as she chants “Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini! Look upon yourself with horror and then claw --!”

With a roar The Hollow suddenly rises to its feet and charges at them, jaws wide and arms raised for attack. Momo shouts when Suzuki goes to meet it head on, about to order her to fall back.

Something blue and white falls behind it, and with it comes the sound of a blade stabbing through flesh. The tip of a zanpakuto shoots out from its collarbone. The Huge Hollows halts, eyes wide and its mouth agape. It doesn’t move, doesn’t even breathe, as if paralyzed in fear.

Suzuki skids to a stop, watching on with the same shock and bewilderment as Momo. Without warning, ice crackles and rapidly spreads out, covering the entire Hollow and the ground it stands on. No, the Hollow isn’t being covered in ice; the green and grey colours of its skin and yellow in its eyes have completely disappeared. It is frozen through to the bone.

The zanpakuto withdraws, and the sound it makes is as it were being drawn out of something solid rather than pulpy and living. Within seconds, cracks web from the blade had stabbed through, and the Hollow breaks into chunks.

Even before the last of the ice cracks apart, Momo knows who landed on the ground behind the remains of the Hollow. She clings to a nearby tree with a pained grunt, and it’s only when she looks up again that she sees Toshiro is rushing to her.

She fumbles out his name without realising as he nears. She’s seen him in Hyourinmaru’s Completed Form before – after Gerard had been defeated and he and Byakuya came to look for her and Shinji – but it still stuns her. Unlike that time, the ice that encases his arms and legs continue up underneath his shihakuso, his haori comes to just above his knee, and the sleeves remain almost the same length but the hakama come up mid-shin. He’s caked in dirt, his haori and drooping hair barely white, and there’s a chunk of mud hanging on his brow. Her concern for the latter must show, because he uses a clean patch of his uniform to wipe away the mud smeared on his face and neck. If it weren’t for their current situation, she might have found it funny how shrunk and dirty his uniform looks.

Face now relatively clean, he looks over, lips parting to say something but his eyes narrow at her ankle. He bends over to inspect it. “How bad is it?” he asks, his voice a few octaves deeper.

She tentatively flexes her foot back and it’s all the answer she needs. “Not good. I don’t know if I’ve sprained it, but I don’t think I can walk on it.”

He curses under his breath. “You won’t be able to flash-step with it.”

He looks back into the clearing, where several Shinigami are battling numerous Huge Hollows less than a yard away from them. It’s then she notices what he left in his wake: at least seven Huge Hollows were frozen through and broken apart just like the one he’d just taken down; some were in chunks, others had a part of them still standing. She knows one can get caught up in the heat of battle, but how hadn’t she noticed him fighting behind the Huge Hollow that was attacking her?

Now that she looks beyond the ice and through the sheets of rain, she recognizes a few of her division members, two of them rushing to the next clearing while one them finishes off a Hollow, cutting it through the mask. He too rushes to the adjacent clearing, dodging a Hollow’s fist along the way. The Hollow pursues, and it’s not the only one following them. Shinigami all across the battlefield are retreating with Huge Hollows following close behind.

Momo’s brows furrow. “What’s going on?”

 Ice begins to form above Toshiro’s shoulder blades, drawing in some of the falling rain to become part of a set of wide, dragon-like wings. “There’s no time to explain it all, but everyone needs to head to the construction site right now.” Toshiro turns his attention back to her. “I’ll take you back.”

Momo goes to ask how, but then he holds out his arms. “What about Hyourinmaru? You can’t sheath your zanpakuto while you’re like this.”

“It’ll be fine, I can hold onto him while carrying you.” He turns to Suzuki, who up until this point had been slow to join them and only stared on in muted shock. "Do you have any injuries that'd prevent you from flash-stepping?"

She shakes her head.

“You know where the site is from here?”

She nods.

“Head there, you’ll meet up with the others. There will be a lot of Hollows, but it’s part of a plan. I wouldn't advise flash-stepping on the ground, it's too densely packed back there. Move through the trees if you can."

“Y-Yes, sir.” Then she looks to Momo, as if seeking approval for this set of orders.

It’s only then Momo notices that one of Suzuki’s glasses lenses are cracked, there’s the faint bruise forming on her temple just beneath a smudge of mud, and a shallow graze along her jaw. Considering this is her first mission facing Huge Hollows, she’s relatively unscathed compared to some of the other officers who had fought these types of Hollows before.

Momo gives a wobbly smile. “You’ve done well, Suzuki-san. Get going.”

Her seventeenth seat nods, then takes off in a sprint and leaps into a nearby tree.

Momo commands Tobiume back to her sealed state and sheathes her at her hip. “Before we get going, I’ll need to stop the bleeding.”

“We don’t have time.” Even as he says this, Toshiro looks conflicted.

Momo goes to reach into her shihakusho for the spare bandage she keeps on her for battles, but stops when Toshiro squats down, hand raised over her wound. “It’s only a temporary measure. You can break it off easily.”

Momo already knows what he intends to do, and seeing the urgency in their situation, she nods her consent. A small brush of cold encases her ankle and there’s a burst of cold that pierces beneath her skin. She clenches her teeth together but it does nothing to stop her strained grunt and instinctively shuddering away from him. She glances down; a very thin layer of ice encases the wound, so thin it’s almost barely perceptible, but it did stop her bleeding.

Before she can turn back to Toshiro, his arm comes around her shoulder and he's bent over with his opposite arm coming under her knees. She tries and fails to prevent a wince from coming out when he carefully lifts her. For her part she wraps her arms around his neck, trying to find something to hold on to that wasn’t the ice encasing his shoulders and the back of his neck, or the wings she only now just realised were not actually connected to him but instead floating a few inches away from his shoulders. She ends up grabbing on to the back of his haori.

He hoists her a little higher, angling his right arm in such a way that he holds her using his elbow and upper arm rather than his forearm and hand, allowing him to still hold Hyourinmaru upright. It also makes it that she’s closer to the side of his face. Again, if not for the situation and his injuries, she’d probably laugh at how he’s carrying her…or maybe blush, or both.

“This okay?” he asks without looking at her. There’s something resolute about him, but she isn’t sure if it’s regarding the situation ahead of them or to not turn his head and accidentally knock his head into hers.

“Y-Yeah,” she confirms. “It’s fine like this.”

It’s then she notices the thin sheen of ice covering cuts and abrasions on his temple, cheek, and jaw, and the  beads of rain that are frozen on the edge his jawline and collarbones. It’s no wonder there’s ice on his face; he’s freezing, and she has to raise her reiatsu just to not shiver. It reminds her of the air around them, how cold it’d become.

That’s when it hits her. The air wouldn’t have just changed here, but also in the town. And that meant… “Wait!”

Toshiro completely stops, eyes wide in alarm. He glances at her leg.

She shakes her head and points to the edge of the forest, where the humans still are. They’d gotten a few steps closer, with one of them shouting over their shoulder to the other. It’s faint, but she can make out “…sounds like howling…”

“What should we do about them?” she asks. “They might…”

“When we get to the site, this battle will be over quickly. During clean up, recast the spell with Hirako.” He tilts his head upwards. "Speaking of, that concealment kido you cast earlier, how high is it?"

"It's designed to conceal aerial objects that are three yards up from the ground."

Toshiro thinks for a moment, tilts his head to the sky and gives his wings a flap. It only then it dawns on Momo what he intends to do. “W-Wait, we’re not going to fly, are we?”

She leans her head back just in time as he gives her a bewildered look. “How else did you think we’d get there? I can’t flash-step through the trees while carrying you.”

Momo holds on to him a little tighter. “A-All right then.”

If she didn’t know him as well as she did, she would mistake the determination that hardens his eyes for anger. “I won’t let you fall.”

How did his voice get even deeper? Something about it made his words seem like a solemn vow, one that couldn’t be broken by any force in the Soul Society or World of the Living. She presses her lips together, but nods.

With that, he strides to the edge of the clearing. As he nears, his walk turns into a run, and just as the world around them is becoming a blur, he kicks off.

They’re airborne in less than five seconds. Momo shuts her eyes and muffles her yelp into his shoulder as frigid air thrashes around them, whipping loose strands of hair around her face. The rain has lessened, but the drops that pelt down on them are freezing. Her heart pounds against her chest and in her ears.

She trusts him. That thought alone is enough to make her open her eyes and lift her head back. At first, she’s mesmerized by his wings, watching them alternate between flapping and soaring. How he ever learned how to fly is beyond her, but he makes it look like the most natural and easiest thing in the world. But then she looks down and is suddenly out of breath. “Oh my--!”

“Did no one ever tell you to not look down?” Toshiro yells over the wind.

She can’t tell if he’s teasing her or chastising her, but either way she glowers at him, “I don’t exactly go flying every day, Shiro-chan!”

He’s about to retort back when a chorus of howls comes from below. Hollows are everywhere, chasing after Shinigami who as all running the same direction. Some with projectile-based shikai stop to attack the Hollows gaining on their comrades before continuing their retreat. If she could free one hand right now without the risk of upsetting their balance, Momo could shoot kido down upon the Hollows as well.

“Maybe now would be a good time to tell me your plan!” she advises. “Why is everyone retreating?”

Toshiro’s eyes narrow. “I’m going to use Shikai Hyoketsu.”

She tenses. She hadn’t seen the power up close, but he’d explained it to her. However, seeing the hordes of Hollows below, she can understand why he would think to use it.

“I can’t predict how far it will reach,” he continues, “but at the construction site, there’s a place for everyone to hide in.”

Momo thinks for a moment, trying to remember what was at the site. There’s a crane and a few other vehicles, an massive incomplete factory building held up by steel frames and covered in some parts by tarp, various beams and pipes lay stacked up around -- She gasps when she realises. “Those long cylinders?”

He nods. “It’d say get into the structure, but it’s not enclosed. At least with those pipes everyone can gather in the middle, away from the ends.”

“But what about the surrounding trees? Won’t they be caught up in your attack? If the humans notice some of the trees are gone…”

“I’m going to try and keep my power concentrated in just one area.” He glances at her. “Truth is, this is all a risk, but the battle wasn’t turning in our favor.”

She couldn’t argue with that. Even before she’d been knocked away the Huge Hollow, she could tell the injured had outnumbered those still able to fight. This battle had been hard on him too; the fact he’d transformed was evidence enough of that, but maybe it’s just as well he had.

Despite the elements thrashing against her right now and the pain flaring up in her ankle, she manages a stable, sincere smile. “You’ve been training in this form a lot, right? Before, you didn't want others touching you while you're like this in case you froze them, but you've clearly trained enough for that to not be a problem anymore. If you think you can do it, I’m sure you’ll be able to!”

His lips part at that, but nothing comes out. He looks away when a shadow of a smirk forms on his lips. He says something, but with the roaring wind and rain, she can barely hear him. “Always the same, even in times like this.”

The site comes into view. Huge Hollows are cramming large clearing in front of it, some even crushing tree trunks in their wake. They’re only being held back by a line of eight Shinigami standing in front of the tall fence surrounding the site – five using their shikai abilities, and two others trying to maintain a barrier kido cast all around the site that is on the verge of dissipating. She senses before she spots Shinji at the front of the line, using Sakanade to disorientate the Hollows. He aims his attack at a group of Hollows trying to get around the side, and they’re sent fumbling back to the rest of the horde after he shoots a Hado spell at them. Those not part of the line are leaping over the fence and sprinting to the cylinders to get inside one of them.

When Toshiro tightens his hold on her, Momo knows what’s coming next.

“As soon as you’re on the ground, I’m going to the front,” he warns as her world starts to dip downwards.

She grunts in acknowledgement and loops her arms tighter around him. Bringing his wings closer to his back, the descent is fast. Momo presses her lips together to stop from screaming – more from the pain in her ankle than from fright. Her skin burns from the cold and she’s forced to squint her eyes.

Shinji’s head whips up to them, and as soon as he sees them, he yells orders up and down the line. One of the Shinigami breaks away from the line and looks up at them as he rushes to the cylinders – Higuchi, Fifth Division’s seventh seat, Momo realises.

Toshiro angles himself to land, feet out first and wings flaring back. Momo involuntarily closes her eyes and tucks her head into Toshiro. Before she knows it however, the rush of air has stopped and everything is still. They’ve landed.

She lifts her head and gasps for air, only just realising she’d been holding her breath the entire descent.

“You all right?” Toshiro asks.

She starts to answer, but her voice gets caught in throat. To her left not even a yard away, the Huge Hollows are being held off, and to her right Shinigami, many injured, are being helped into the two cylinders.

Higuchi is rushing to them, calling out to her. She nods at Toshiro, who takes it as a sign to lower her to the ground. He tilts her, gingerly putting her feet towards the ground. Momo touches her good foot to the mud and keeps the other hovering. She grimaces when she straightens and holds her arm out to her subordinate. Toshiro doesn’t let her go until Higuchi is completely supporting her.

She’s about to wish Toshiro luck and tell him to stay safe, but he’s gone in a flash-step.

“Suzuki-san told us it was bad,” Higuchi says while taking her to the cylinders. “Don’t worry, Lieutenant, we’ll get it healed now.”

It’s then Momo thinks to look down at her ankle. The ice had broken apart, and what few shards remained were becoming slushy with the rain that pelted down on them.

Only a few steps from the cylinder, she makes out silhouettes of officers gathered in the middle of it in a line. Their hushed voices echo out, most speaking rapidly and over one another.

She startles when Shinji flash-steps in front of her. “Captain!”

He barely glances at her, instead twisting around, half stepping into the cylinder and yelling down it, “Oi, we’ve got a sprained ankle down here!”

“I actually don’t know if it's sprained, sir.”

He leans to her and whispers, “You want to get this thing healed or not?”

“There might be worst injuries that need to be attended to.”

“Nah, from what they told me at the front, aside from you the worst has been Yamazaki with a broken arm, but he’s got one of Fourth Division with him, and Furakawa had a head injury but that’s been healed up.” He gets into the cylinder and holds out his hands. “Now come on, I’ll help ya in.”

Higuchi holds on to Momo as she plants her good foot inside. The cylinder is wide enough for most to stay standing – if she could jump, she still wouldn’t be able to quite reach the top. With a hand on one of the curved wall, she shuffles in two steps, and then Shinji takes over, bending over slightly and slinging her arm over his shoulders. After Momo thanks him, Higuchi rushes off to the other cylinder.

Now that she’s out of the rain, she realizes just how sodden she is. Her uniform is stuck to her, and the loose strands of hair – somehow miraculously managing to mostly stay in a bun – are stuck to her neck and forehead. At the first jitter that quakes through her, she raises her reiatsu higher.

“Getting toasty,” Shinji teases. “Good thing too, maybe you can dry everyone off in here.”

If she weren’t in pain, Momo isn’t sure whether she’d laugh or voice the indignant quip Tobiume says in her mind.

Hasty footsteps echo up the pipe, along with even more hasty apologies along the way. Momo almost manages a grin; it’s been a while since she last saw Hanataro.

Shinji lowers her to sit a several meters away from the pipe’s entrance. By the time he straightens, Hanataro has reached them. “Captain Hirako, you’re hurt –”

“Got the patient right here,” Shinji says while jerking his chin at Momo.

Hanataro hesitates for a second, then kneels down at Momo’s side. “Lieutenant Hinamori,” he says in way of greeting.

“It’s good to see you, Yamada-kun,” Momo says.

Only a little light makes it towards the middle, but it’s enough for him to examine her leg. “I don’t think it’s sprained, but it’s definitely a deep wound. How did you get it?”

As Momo explains, the Shinigami she’d seen on the frontline flash-step past. Shinji, who had sat behind Hanataro, goes rigid. “Shit, he must be about to start.” Down the cylinder he shouts, “Suzuki, Kobe, set up the kido now!”

Momo watches Suzuki’s silhouette hurry down to one end while Kobe comes up to her end. Both of them are trying to avoid stepping on the legs of all the officers who try to make way for them.

Her attention is brought back to Hanatro when raises his hands over her wound. “This may hurt at first, but only for a few seconds.”

With a short chant, the teal glow comes over her injury. She hisses when pain shoots up from her ankle and all the way up her leg, but just as Hantaro said, it dulls away almost just as quickly. In its place is the usual tingling that came with these spells that mellows into a calm pulsing sensation. Both she and Shinji watch the raw red patch over itself, and then her skin gradually knitting back together.

At the sound of a kido being cast, Momo looks from end of the cylinder to other. Kobe and Suzuki each back away from the orange barrier they’d cast. Both go back to where they’d been sitting, with Kobe giving Momo sympathetic look along the way.

“Hitsugaya told me what his power does,” Shinji says when she looks to him for an explanation. “Thought it’d best to be cautious. Matsumoto should’ve done the same in hers too.”

Now that pain and urgency don’t have a hold on her, she can sense Rangiku in the cylinder next to theirs. Her reiatsu is stable, she mustn’t have been injured – or at least, not severely.

In faint light and the teal glow of the healing kido on her end, she finally notices the wounds of nearby Shinigami. There are two more glows down the line, one in front of Yamazaki and another in front of an officer she didn’t recognize.

Closer by though, her captain has a long scratch that stretches from the middle of his forehead to dangerously close to his temple. The dried blood dripped from that end and down the side of his face. Like everyone, mud is smeared on his face, neck, and uniform. Behind him, an officer she didn’t recognize held his leg with two bandaged arms, and behind him was another who was completely caked in mud from head to toe, her wide eyes looking at the Shinigami to her left – Yumi Takagaki, Fifth Division’s thirteenth seat - who tries to shirk off her concerns for a gash on her forearm. It takes a moment for Momo to recognise the mud caked officer as Narita, eleventh seat from Tenth Division.

She knew they were in bad shape, but with the exception of a few, it seems most had an injury of some description. She’s thankful Shinji and Toshiro decided not to bring any unseated officers who hadn’t experienced combat before, this would have been too much for them to handle. She didn’t want to put them through what she, Izuru, and Renji experienced as Academy students.

She remembers the horror of that day with a furrowed brow, from their senior being impaled on a Huge Hollow’s limb to thinking she and her friends were all doomed, and she had been the cause of it. Aizen and Gin briefly come to mind, but unlike before, she doesn’t cringe at the thought of them.

“Almost done,” Hanataro says, bringing her out of her memories. “You should be able to walk for-”

At the flare of ice-cold reiatsu, everyone hushes. Shinji twists his head over his shoulder, as if he can see through the cylinder to where Toshiro stands. “Had no idea he could raise it that big,” he mutters. “If he ain’t careful, he’s gonna freeze the whole damn forest.”

“He can do it.”

Shinji blinks at Momo’s determined look. “Huh?”

“I didn’t see this ability up close, but if he thinks he concentrate his power to just one area, he can.”

Shinji doesn’t look convinced as he resumes looking over his shoulder. “Sure hope you’re right. Right now, I’m thinking we’re gonna need to replant some trees, maybe even rebuild this site after he’s done.” With a tense smirk, he adds, “I’m sure Hiyori and the others know where we can hire an extra crane and forklift.”

 Momo allows a weak chuckle, knowing he’s trying to lighten the situation. “We won’t need it. I know he can –”

A chill permeates through the concrete and settles on everyone’s skin.

Hanataro stops the kido and tilts his head upward. Without having to glace down, Momo knows he’s healed her completely; but he doesn’t move to heal Shinji or anyone else. Everyone is completely still, as if they have been frozen by Toshiro’s power. They’re listening to the Hollows, how some of their roars turn shrill, and their stomping footsteps are starting to head away from the site.

The kido at each end flickers, and beyond them, as the rain continues to fall, a sliver of sunlight cuts across the mud.

And then, all sound ceases.

It’s a few seconds later when a downpour of hail hits something metallic in the distance, and then a crackling sound, the same as when water suddenly turns into ice. In the circle they can see to the outside world, the trees aren’t frozen, and neither is the ground. The sunlight grows a fraction bigger, coming over the now stabilised kido and making it a brighter shade of orange.

“Is it over?” someone asks.

When no one answers, Momo reaches her senses out. Toshiro’s reiatsu flickers, but something doesn’t feel right. Rangiku must have sensed it too, because she comes rushing past Momo’s end of the cylinder, heading towards her captain.

Momo starts to stand, using the curved wall for support, but Shinji stops her when he grabs her shoulder.

“The heck you doing?” he demands.

“We have to check on Hit – Captain Hitsugaya. Something’s not right.”

“Matsumoto’s got him. He was like this after fighting the Quincy too, remember? His reiatsu was all over the place.”

“And he was exhausted afterwards. He could barely stand. We need to help him. If Rangiku-san is out there, then surely that means-”

“Just wait a second!” Then, seeing that they had the entire audience of the cylinder, he leans in closers and says more quietly. “Look, he might’ve told you what his power can do, but he mightn’t have gotten all them. I know you’re friends, but until Matsumoto gives the signal, we’re not moving. If something’s gone wrong, you really think he wants you to get caught up in it?” He nods to her ankle. “Besides, is that even healed enough for you to walk on?”

“It is,” Hanataro confirms, who both of them somehow forgot was there. “Lieutenant Hinamori, you should be able to walk and run on that for a short distance without support. We can completely heal it once we get back to the Seireitei.”

She’s certain that everything is over, but Shinji could also be right. Rather than show her resignation, bows her head to Hanataro. “Thank you, Yamada-kun.”

“You’re welcome,” he says, smiling. “Now, we should look at healing you, Captain Hirako.”

“I’m fine, go heal Takagaki.”

But he’s already raising hand to the captain’s head. “This shouldn’t take a moment. As is, Imada-san has just finished with Yamazaki-san, so she can heal Takagaki-san.”

Shinji blinks at him with a furrowed brow. “Since when did you get so confident speaking to a captain like that?”

As if breaking the illusion, Hanataro stumbles out, “I-I meant no offense, Captain!”

“None taken. Just nice to see ya taking charge,” Shinji says with a chuckle.

Momo is about to chastise her captain for upsetting Hanataro, but then Rangiku flash-steps into view.

“Sir,” she says without looking away from her fellow lieutenant.

“Safe to come out?” Shinji shouts to Rangiku, his raised voice getting everyone’s attention.

Rangiku gives a thumbs up, but her smile is forced. It’s all Momo needs to push herself to stand. Something is definitely wrong.

“Rangiku-san just gave the all clear,” she calls out. “Suzuki-san, you can take down the barrier at your end. I’ll take it down on this end.”

After Rangiku runs to the other cylinder, Momo speedily walks to the barrier.

“Oi!” Shinji calls out, but with Hanataro healing him, he can’t move to stop her. She doesn’t look back at him as he cautions with a resigned sigh, “Watch yourself, all right? I’ll be out in a minute.”

“I will, sir.” It takes her only a few seconds to diffuse the barrier, and she gingerly steps her once injured foot out on to the mud.

In the slice of sunlight that comes down from a split in the clouds, everything glitters – the now gently falling rain, the drops of water clinging to the trees, grass, and construction site, and the puddles scattered all across the mud. It’s surreal, and for a second Momo forgets where exactly she is.

In the corner of her eye, officers are stepping out of the other cylinder, either helping the injured come out or suddenly coming to a stop when they turn to face the north, mouths agape and saying something in awe.

She follows their gazes, and the breath stutters in her lungs. The frozen Huge Hollows tower high over the construction fence, most contorted in similar poses – mouths and eyes wide and their limbs raised high or stretched out. She can’t tell if they’re out of panic or rage or a combination of both.

The sun beams through some of them, and it reminds her they’re completely frozen through, devoid of colour and life, like horrifying ice sculptures. There’s so many of them, rows upon rows of them, as far as the eye can see. In the back of her mind, she notes that as far as she can tell, not a single tree or any part of the construction site is frozen.

She shivers, but she’s certain it’s not from the cold or rain. It’s scale of it all; they were facing so many Hollows, and Toshiro had vanquished them all in a matter of seconds.

She’s taken out of her shock when Rangiku’s rushed footsteps come up behind her. Just as Momo twists around to look at her, to ask where Toshiro is, Rangiku comes to a stop. Tenth Division’s fourth seat, Kenichi Hanae, had been running with her, but now halts next to her.

“Lieutenant?” he asks, voice on the edge of breathlessness.

Rangiku doesn’t answer, instead she stares at Momo’s ankle. Her shoulders rise and fall as she pants, her breath faintly fogging in the air.

“Rangiku-san? Are you all right?” Momo asks, reaching out to her.

After a beat, she returns her gaze to meet Momo’s. “I’m fine, what about you? I heard from one of your officers you were injured.”

“I was, but Yamada-kun healed my leg. It’s okay for me to move around”

“And has Captain Hirako given you any orders?”

“No, but we’ll likely need to recast the concealment kido. Earlier, I saw some humans approaching the battle.”

“How far away were they?”

“They weren’t close, but I think they could hear something.”

Rangiku frowns at the ground, once again going into thought. “Then, if you can, I need help with my Captain. It shouldn’t take too long, I just need help carrying him here.”

The urgency in Rangiku’s eyes makes Momo nod without a second thought. “What happened? Is Hitsuga – Captain Hitsugaya alright?”

“I’ll tell you along the way.” Then, to Hanae. “Kenichi-san, change of plans. Tell Captain Hirako that Hinamori and I have gone to help Captain Hitsugaya, then instruct him and the others about cutting down the Hollows. Also, assemble one team to check on the concealment kido and another team to check that there aren’t any other openings to Hueco Mundo in the surrounding areas. If we need more help with the Captain, I’ll come looking for you.”

“Yes, Lieutenant.”

After Hanae rushes off, Rangiku looks to Momo and jerks her chin to the right. “Come on.”

She is quick to follow Rangiku, trying to keep her feet on patches of grass to avoid the mud. Behind her, Hanae shouts orders to those still able to fight to start cutting down the frozen Hollows.

The officers vanish from view when she and Rangiku run to the right and down in between a piles of various equipment and materials. Fallen hail crunches beneath their feet and the further they get away from the others, the colder it becomes. Momo can sense Toshiro’s reiatsu a short distance away; it rises and falls in calm waves, but there’s something strange about it she can’t describe.

“The Captain will be fine,” Rangiku reassures without looking back at her, “as you can tell, Shikai Hyoketsu worked. The only thing is, he’s in a bad way. He’s shivering.”

Momo blinks. Unless from fear or disgust, she’s never seen Toshiro shiver. “Why’s that?”

“He thinks it’s because he had to concentrate his power to an area rather than just release it in it's entirety, it took a toll on him.”

“Then, shouldn’t we get Yamada-kun or one of the Fourth Division officers? They can restore his energy and heal any injuries he has!”

“We will, but right now we need to move him closer to the others while he’s like this. He got worse after he transformed back, now he can’t move and can barely speak.”

They jump up on to one of a high stack covered in tarp and hail. Momo holds in a groan when her ankle gives a slight pinch when she lands on the tarp, but she keeps pace with Rangiku.

“I can’t carry him while he’s this cold,” the lieutenant continues as they jump across the piles, “it’s why I originally had Kenichi-san come with me. He has a fire-type zanpakuto, I thought his reiatsu might help.”

“But my reiatsu is bigger,” Momo concludes for her. “Mine can reach a higher temperature and greater range.”

“Well, yes, and…” Rangiku looks over at her, her lips curling into a smirk. “I think seeing a familiar face will help too.”

“W-What does that mean?!”

“Oh, you know!”

Momo doesn’t have time to retort, because Toshiro is just ahead, and she knows this without having to sense his reiatsu. One the stacks has a ring of ice encasing most of it, with jagged spikes pointing in all directions. She senses him behind it, low on the ground.

They jump back on the concrete and hail, landing near where the front line of Shinigami had been, but Momo is taken aback up the thin mist swirling around their feet. Rangiku makes a sharp turn to the right, not missing a step as she rushes to Toshiro, who sits against the ice-covered stack several meters away.

Momo's feet drag to a stop when she sees her childhood friend. The growing sunlight haloes around his completely hunched over. His head droops low, his eyes are hooded, Hyourinmaru lies out of his grasp by his side, and his skin glistens with ice and rain. Aside from the shivers quaking in his limbs, he looks as lifeless as a rag doll. The mist circles around him, distilled when Rangiku runs through it and kneels at his side. Their breaths come out in thick puffs, and Rangiku is shivering so much she rubs her hands over her arms.

As she approaches, Momo conjures up whatever she has in her to raise her reiatsu even higher. The effect on her is immediate, with her uniform and hair going from wet to damp. The rain that hits her doesn’t last long, clinging to her skin for several seconds before evaporating.

Toshiro stirs as she nears, and not even ten feet away from him, she hears him mutter her name. He tries and fails to raise his head.

“Never knew you could get yours that high,” Rangiku says. “The Captain will warm up in no time”

Momo smiles disconcertedly. “I’ll do my best, but I don’t know how long I can hold this for.”

However, at the sight of red dripping down Toshiro’s cheek, Momo stops. The thinner patches of ice on his skin have started to melt, and that meant…

Momo points to his face. “The ice covering his wounds…”

Rangiku uses a clean patch of her scarf to wipe away the small rivulets of red. “It can’t be helped. As far as I can tell, he’s not severely injured, just has some cuts and bruising. Right, Captain?”

Toshiro murmurs a sound of agreement. It makes Momo’s heart throb; she’s never seen him in such a state. She comes closer and kneels at his side. If not for her reiatsu, she’s certain the cold radiating off of him would’ve frozen the remaining rain on her skin to beads of ice. “I’m here, Hitsugaya-kun.”

He makes a slurred, startled sound when she tentatively touches the back of his hand. She clenches her teeth together, trying to ignore the piercing cold that shoot through the tips of her fingers. She concentrates her reiatsu through her palm, and the remanents of the ice encasing his arm and the beads of rain slowly dry away. His skin warms up a few degrees.

Momo pulls her hand back and reaches over grab Toshiro’s right shoulder. She gently pulls him into her, and brings up her other arm around his front, hugging his side into her. She can’t prevent a wince coming out, but she endures the freezing cold, waiting for the ice melt his hair and uniform to dry, and his temperature to rise. To her right, the ice covering the tarp is melting, slowly breaking apart and trickling down to the concrete beneath their feet.

Toshiro head lolls on to her shoulder, but he otherwise stays limp. He slurs out something and tries to widen his eyes, and Momo tilts her head. She’s not certain, but she thought it was an apology.

“D-Did you say s-something?” she stutters out.

Then, unknowingly – because surely, she thinks, he would never do this when he is more conscious – he closes his eyes and nestles closer to her, his hair now tickling the side of her neck.

Rangiku watches on with a confused grin. “…This isn’t what I had in mind, but I think it’s working.”

 Momo can only respond with an embarrassed smile, and she wishes the rising temperature and color in her face was due to her reiatsu. I hope he doesn’t remember this later...or that Rangiku-san tells him!

As they wait, Momo notices just how tired Rangiku looks herself. She managed to avoid getting most of her uniform muddied, but her hair is frizzy at the ends, and there’s a bandage wrapped around her forearm. She leans against the stack, still smiling but she’s stuck in deep though at her lap. Momo knows if she weren’t concentrating on warming up Toshiro she’d appear the same.

She then looks to her left, at the Hollows frozen less than twenty steps away from them. Unlike the ones she saw before, most of them were not trying to run away or showed any sign of panic. Most are looming high over the fence, facing the ice-covered stack. She can imagine Toshiro standing on top of the tarp, facing the hordes of them without hesitation. Some were getting ready to attack, limbs pulled back to hit him, others crouching down to leap at him or springing forward, one limb still in contact with the ground while the other was bent mid run. The ones that would’ve been closest to him have their jaws unnaturally wide open, leaning over the fence with their limbs lunging out to him. One looked like he had gotten dangerously close to swiping her childhood friend, it’s clawed hand only a few meters from where he's stood.

She shakes her head, trying not to think about it and instead focus on the task at hand. She takes in and lets out several deep breaths to calm herself. With each breath, a new scent comes to her, one that had been hidden beneath the smell of blood and the sour odors Hollows gave off. It’s that sweet, earthly scent that only comes with the rain. She lets it fill her lungs, even closes her eyes for a moment to focus on it.

“You did it,” she whispers to him. “I knew you could do it. The Shinigami and the humans in the nearby town, everyone is safe because of you.”

He says and does nothing, and she wonders if he even heard her.

It’s a minute later when his temperature begins to rise, and a few more after that when he moves his legs. Taking it as a sign they are ready to move him, Momo slowly pulls away and puts his back against the tarp.

With a nod to Rangiku, they each take one of his arms and hold it across their shoulders. He groans as they ease him to stand, but he raises his head and move his feet. They support him as he bends down to pick up Hyourinmaru and sheath him across his back.

Save for Rangiku reporting on how each of Tenth Division’s officers were, nothing is said on the way back to the others. Fatigue sets in when they're halfway back, and Momo struggles to keep her reiatsu high. It sputters, like a fire struggling against a gust of wind.

Momo looks to her fellow lieutenant. "Rangiku-san, I don't think i can keep this up."

"It's okay, we're nearly back. Lower your reiatsu if you need to."

With a long exhale, Momo's pressure ebbs away to a manageable level. Though Toshiro had warmed up, some of the cold still lingers, and she and Rangiku both shudder for a moment in the absence of her reiatsu.

Momo's mind wonders in the silence, and she once again thinks about the magnitude of her friend’s powers. She knows he isn’t a fan of Hyourinmaru’s Completed Form, but she wonders how he feels about having an ability like Shikai Hyoketsu. She remembers the awe and hints of fear in the officers' eyes when they looked upon the frozen Hollows. It occurs to her that if she didn’t know him, she’d likely be slightly terrified of him after seeing that. How could a anyone have such power? What drove him to achieve these abilities with his bankai?

It makes her wonder if the children in the Junrinan somehow knew about his then-untapped power, that they could sense it before she did. She’d never been ignorant of his potential, had sensed a flicker of it almost as soon as she first met him, but never would have thought it would lead to something like this.

She comes out her musings when there's a loud crack in the distance. It's followed by several others, and over the stacks of equipment and materials they pass in between, the frozen Hollows are collapsing. In between the ice breaking, the shouting of the Shinigami echoes around the area.

Perhaps motivated by their voices, Toshiro's footsteps become more purposeful and his gaze less hazy. Momo doesn't realize how worried she was until a glimmer of relief flutters through her chest at seeing him more conscious. He's determined, steadfast gaze always looking ahead, his feet never faltering for a second.

This is why she could never fear him, no matter what powers he wields. He fights for others, reaches out a helping hand when needed, and never gives up. He's in the state he is now because he didn't want anyone to get caught up in his powers or to cause more damage to the area.

Knowing they are almost back with the Shinigami, Momo says to Toshiro, "I didn't thank you for saving me and Suzuki-san before. If you hadn't arrived, I think we would've been worse off."

"It was nothing" he says, voice raspy. "I should've gotten there quicker though."

She recalls the narrowed gaze he gave her ankle. "My ankle is fine now. Like I said, it could've been worse." A little lie, as she now becomes aware of the slight pinch it has with every steps she takes; she overdid it. She thinks to end it there, but then, for good measure and to make sure he truly knows, she adds "Besides, in the end, you saved the day for everyone."

They're less than fifteen feet away from regrouping with the other officers when Toshiro suddenly leans in and whispers into her ear. "Thank you."

Why is she so touched? It's not like he gave his gratitude and thanks rarely. Was it because of how croaky his voice is or the fact he whispered to her rather than spoke aloud? She turns her head to him, almost bumping her nose into his.

He has that expression again, where the frown in brow is softened and his eyes are unreadable, brimming with an emotion she has no name for. It's like he's seeing her, but not just in the present, but in the past. There's an affection behind it, as if he fondly remembers her from long ago and appreciates her in the present at the same time.

Her heart flutters, and despite her best efforts, she can't fumble out anything more than, "You're welcome." It strikes her then she has no idea what exactly he thanked her for. It must have been for carrying him back, but why does she get the impression it's not just for that?

"What're you two whispering about?"

Rangiku's teasing question breaks the atmosphere around them, like popping a bubble. Toshiro levels her with a glare so fierce it's a miracle it didn't deter her from laughing, and Momo flounders in trying to dismiss any allusions she had.

They round the corner, and their small argument stops when Tenth Division officers rush over to them. Toshiro straightens as they come to a stop.

Shinji, forehead now healed, spins on his heel to them when the officers call out to them. Despite the stern frown he levels at Momo, there's a hint of a smirk on his lips; it's a look that says, I'll let it slide this time, but we're going to talk about it later. All she offers in response is a rueful shrug of her free shoulder.

What little fear had been in some of the officers' expression is gone, and there is only concern and relief that their captain is back with them. As Momo hands Toshiro over to Kenichi, she knows if he didn't believe her before, seeing everyone gathered around him now would convince him. Everyone is safe because of you. The Shinigami and the humans in the nearby town.

She goes with her captain to the nearest edge of the concealment kido. Along the way, more clouds slowly part and the sun peaks through in the gaps, bringing back the humidity.

The continues rain, now glittering as it washes away the mud and remnants of blood from everyone. Along with the intensified petrichor scent, it's a soothing, much needed balm after the chaos of today.

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

Can I be extremely predictable and just ask for Hitsugaya and Hinamori LOL. 🧠- MBTI headcanon; 💜- Crossover non-ship relationship I like; 🛌- Sleep headcanon

I am so sorry it's taken me this long to get back to you!! This post just kept getting bigger and bigger so I had to really cut it down. Also decided to include gifs because otherwise it's just a wall of text.

🧠- MBTI headcanon

I didn't take any of the tests for this one, I just read the descriptions for each type of personality. I don't think all of these fit 100% but I thought were the closest to

Toshiro: ISFJ

This to me felt like a no-brainer based on most of the descriptions I found.

He's an introvert through and through. Although he was isolated and mistreated by others in the Junrinan, even if neither of these were a factor he would still be an introvert, having few friends or close relationships. The few relationships he does have are strong and steeped in history, namely Momo, Rangiku, Hyourinmaru, and Granny. Granny, whether she is his biological grandmother or not, raised him and cared for him, and ultimately was happy to see him finally go his own way; he felt guilt for this initially, but you can tell he loves her and would be absolutely grateful for everything she has done for him. His bond with Rangiku began when she set him on the path to becoming a Shinigami, effectively saving his Granny and helping Toshiro find a place to belong, and they make one of the most effect Captain-Lieutenant teams in the whole Seireitei. Hyourinmaru haunted him in dreams but through training he came to know him, became not just the weapon he wielded but also the companion in battle, one he expressed great pain for when he lost him. Momo was his first friend (aside from maybe Jidanbo) who accepted him for who he was, came back to visit him while going to the Academy, and still calls him by a nickname that signifies their childhood and history together; he has a strong will to protect her and ensure she is happy, willing to abandon his captain rank to avenge her and achieving the matured form from the training he did to become stronger for her.

He's a very analytic and observant person, as seen in Soul Society arc. Although he was ultimately off about the culprit and the great conspiracy, it's honestly amazing he figured out as much as he did. He knew Gin was involved, knew who Momo was likely going to confront, figured out the reason why Momo was ordered to kill him by her deceased captain, and knew something was definitely up with Rukia's execution. He also saw the connection between others, like between Rangiku and Gin, even if he doesn't know the full nature of their relationship. He noticed that Momo was still off kilter when she appeared on the TV and noticed her hair grew and that she had a new goal when they were younger.

Oddly enough, I think his analytical and observant traits feed into his ice sculpting. He doesn't strike me as someone who sculpts because he has a creative flair, but he does need an outlet for the small bit of creativity he does have. He focuses on the form and detail of sculpture rather than making it something fancy or out-there...if that makes sense. He's prone to carving things with either a practical use (i.e chairs/thrones, tables, etc) or things he has observed the form of and wants to see how he can replicate it in ice (eg. flowers, animals, the human form, etc). He's fascinated by the form of something rather than the aesthetics of it I guess. He will use these sculpture as gifts from time to time though (as seen in the filler episode where he gives a small sculpture and BBS where he made ice roses for Momo on White Day).

He definitely thinks deadlines should be upheld to unth degree and he abides by structure, order and consistant routines, and only makes rare exceptions if they are needed. He pays attention to the details and facts over abstract or metaphorical concepts - a person you looks at the details of a picture rather than the broader picture if you will. He's a perfectionist, sometimes to a fault (I'm thinking when he trained in the caves until he was 'strong enough to protect Momo', which I can see leading to a mentality of 'I'm not worthy yet of seeing her until I'm strong enough' and believing physical protection will lead to her emotional protection and thus improve her wellbeing). This in part could be because of his 'tensai' status, or it could be he got the status because of his perfectionism (chicken or the egg scenario I guess).

He's also law abiding generally, has set of strong values, and has a strong sense of duty to the Seireitei. I think this is part comes from his desire to be seen as a captain first and not a child. I can sort seeing him coming to the conclusion that an adult (and to a greater extent a captain) has a strong work ethic, guiding and strong principles and values, and does not rush to emotions when things don't work in their favour. It's one of the reasons why I headcanon that he looks to Byakuya as a kinda of role model, as the person he wants to be.

However, Toshiro is actually a very emotional person. He puts on a stoic front, but beneath is a person who is still emotionally immature and feels deeply. Certain triggers make him quick to anger or annoy, such as being referred to as a child, not being referred to by his title, and general laziness. Every principle and value he stands for and his attention to detail and facts will go flying out the window if someone close to him is danger or harmed. For those he's close to he'll do anything to protect them and ensure their wellbeing, even if it means abandoning the principles he normally stands by. He'll change his sense of duty from one to the Seireitei to one about those he cares about, ensuring they're safe and happy, even if it's at the cost of himself or causes confliction within him about his sense duty and his care for the person

Related to this is the fact he's a private person, rarely speaking about his personal life or feelings, and having a tendency to put up a stoic, cold front. I would think because either 1) he doesn't completely know how to or 2) he doesn't want to worry those he cares about. He would rather do something practical for the betterment of those he cares about and his division rather than talk about how he feels. That being said, he has his limits and can explode when it's too much for him in high stress situations. If not in stressful situation though, I think he would eventually divulge his thoughts and feelings with someone he's close to, but it'd be done in a halting way, where he's trying to out into words how he really feels. People like Momo, Rangiku, and Granny are patient though and they'll sit with him until he can articulate how he feels. He has gotten better over the course of the series, with him ending the main story smiling freely in front of individuals he doesn't consider close friends (with the exception of Rangiku). He also doesn't know how to react to acts of kindness directed him, whether it's doing something for him (Rangiku saving him from being crushed in The Diamonddust Rebellion) or giving him a gift (when Jushiro gives him candies or Momo giving him Valentine's Day chocolate). His default reaction seems to be getting flustered or being confused or shocked.

Momo: INFJ

I'm a bit surprised I'm going with this one, but it feels the most right for Momo.

She has a large circle of friends and was shown to be extroverted for most of her life; she even made friends with Toshiro, who was very introverted and not too trusting of others. However, I think it's only just over the line, in that I think she'd be 55% introverted, 45% extroverted. She definitely makes a lot of friends and likes to talk with people, but also needs time to be by herself to unwind and recharge. There are just days where she doesn't really feel like talking, not because she feels down or angry, but just that she has no real need to. On days like this she's happy to be just working on paperwork or in her room reading a book or drawing for most of the day.

She's also an empathetic individual, which we see in her reactions to 1) Renji's injuries and 2) strangely enough, when she sees how far everyone is going to injury and immobilize Gerard (I've also found this moment interesting, because her concern is brushed off but in the end she's actually proven right when Gerard becomes gigantic because of all the damage that was inflicted upon him...getting off topic here).

I headcanon that since she was young she has been an advocate of sorts. She wants to help Souls cross over, be a helping hand to them in a time that is undoubtedly scary for them. She also stuck by Toshiro, who was isolated and mistreated as a child by most Junrinan residents; she had to have seen how he was treated and I can imagine her telling the other kids in the street off for ignoring or ganging up on him. This comes into play again for her when she stands up to Byakuya on Renji's behalf, finding the captain's reaction to his lieutenant's injured condition appalling. It really says something that she would go as far as to argue with Byakuya, Byakuya, for her friend. However, on a sadder note, I imagine her experiences with Aizen make her a bit more weary with her empathy. She doesn't shut off completely, but she takes her time getting to know someone before she jumps into deeper conversions or feel deeply for their struggles.

She thinks deadlines are important and should be upheld, and may be hard on herself if she ever misses them (which is rare in her case...I mean this is the same person who was trying to work from her recovery bed after Aizen's defection and her division insisted that she rest). She also loves routine, and usually sticks to the same one on any given day. She's mostly felixble about changing parts of her routine or evolving it over time, but if it's a sudden change she will likely voice her concerns.

I don't think Momo is rigid across all aspects of her life. I think when it comes to following the rules or backing her beliefs/values, she will stand by them, but she is also open to hearing other perspectives and if a desperate situation calls for it or she's in a volatile state she will go against the rules. Also, not many of the sources I looked at mentioned creativity for this personality type, but Momo is definitely a creative person. From her drawing to creating her own arrangements in Ikebana, she definitely has a creative flair.

She's emotional, and can be become vulnerable when in a stressful state. You only have to read the scene where she goes after Gin in a rage and then rages against Izuru when he defends his captain to see this:

There's other moments like when she defends Renji, trying to enact her deceased captain's last wish, apologising to Toshiro as soon as she could, being brought down by the trauma she went through and thinking everyone was moving on without her, and her determination to help Kyouraku and getting annoyed when Shinji chose not to.

After graduating from the Academy and prior to Aizen's defection, I could see her not being easily anger and actually tampering her emotions down, not wanting to change her captain's view of her or go against him. I can even see Renji, Toshiro, and Izuru noticing this, thinking she isn't as expressive as she used to be. Of course this is unhealthy, and it's one of the reason I LOVE her dynamic with Shinji. It's like night and day! She expresses shock and annoyance when Shinji chooses to not help Kyouraku, is nervous in the background when he has a yelling match with Hiyori, and points out how flippant he can be when uses his authority to make orders. She can freely express herself more now then she used to, both with her captain and her friends.

💜- Crossover non-ship relationship I like

This is a weird one as I'm not really a fan of crossovers, but if I had to choose....

Momo: I reckon she would get along with a few characters from Fruits Basket, assuming that either Momo is alive or in gigai that is. I can definitely see her and Tohru Honda getting along, having a love for baking and being two people who tend to care about others before themselves. I can see Tohru consoling Momo about her trauma too if they ever became really good friends, much like Rin and her trauma, and Momo recognises the inner strength Tohru has that keeps her going through the grief of losing her mother and discovering the darkest parts of the Sohma curse.

Toshiro: I honestly couldn't think of one, sorry. However, as a crack crossover friendship, this going to be completely outside of the box and weird but...his Rock musical counterpart. I just find his Rock musical counterpart to be more expressive and zanny - I mean understandable why, it's theater, and musical theater at that! Must admit I have imagined the cast of BLEACH turning up to the musical having the same reactions that the Gaang from Avatar the Last Airbender had to seeing their adventures portrayed:

🛌- Sleep headcanon

Toshiro: before Aizen's betrayal, Toshiro had a regulated sleep cycle that he maintained since childhood. He would got to bed only a few hours after sunset, wake up with the sun, and have a nap in the afternoon if needed. In part I wonder if this is because of his belief that enough sleep will help him grow up...Anyhow, after everything that happened with Fake Karakura Town, his sleep cycle got upended by nightmares. They were of what he'd done against Momo and Aizen's manipulations. He didn't sleep well during his recovery in fourth division either, often wide awake with thoughts about what happened and worrying how Momo was doing. He became concerned for Rangiku too when he noticed her melancholy but wasn't in the headspace to approach her about it. His sleep started to get better the more he trained, tiring himself out at times to the point where he didn't have much time to think. After reconciling with Momo and speaking with Rangiku, his sleep gets better. The Quincy war disrupted it again, this time because of the loss of Hyourinmaru. After the war though it got better again and he was able to get make into his normal rhythm. He's still plagued by the occasional nightmare about things that happened during Aizen's betrayal and the Quincy War, but he wakes up knowing everything is okay now, that he can rest easier.

Momo: I have a similar headcanon to the one above for her, so I'll go with something different. She naturally sleeps on her side. She can't sleep on her back or stomach, both are uncomfortable for her. She unconsciously prefers her left side, but has no trouble sleeping on her right either.

Sorry again for only getting back to you now, but thank you for sending this in!! :D

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

After reading the Bleach chapter I'm so scared for Hitsugaya!! Kubo better not kill him in the new arc

I'm currently writing up my thoughts on the chapter, but I had to answer this after it hit me how tragic Toshiro's fate will be if the Hell problem isn't solved.

Toshiro, a born prodigy with one of the most powerful zanpaukto as part of his spirit, gained his powers for Momo sake. She witnessed him learning his zanpakuto's name, a sign he was gaining control over his power and was truly a prodigy. Then years later he rose up the ranks to third seat and became a captain because he was the only one who could take Isshin's place, no one else was close to achieving bankai. After being manipulated into harming Momo, he threw himself into training less than ten days after recovering [from the injuries Aizen inflicted on him], fueled by his wish to protect her. He gained incredible powers because of this, now able to neutralize most threats and truly protect her.

And now you're telling me that his fate when he dies - after all the hard work he put into captain, all of the blood, sweat, and tears he shed over the course of the main story from battles and from becoming stronger for Momo- is for him to go to Hell!?

The only hope I have right now is based on how the chapter ended, the new arc will be focused on how to solve this problem somehow. In the meantime, I both do and don't think Kubo would have it in him to kill off Toshiro; he's way too popular of a character (just look at what happened when Kubo killed off Byakuya and then brought him back, we all got the impression he brought him back only because of the backlash from fans).

This is why the new arc can't get here soon enough!

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

I posted 1,707 times in 2021

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#the fact toshiro only came by because he heard she was at her division to deliver documents

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

After reading the Bleach chapter I'm so scared for Hitsugaya!! Kubo better not kill him in the new arc

I'm currently writing up my thoughts on the chapter, but I had to answer this after it hit me how tragic Toshiro's fate will be if the Hell problem isn't solved.

Toshiro, a born prodigy with one of the most powerful zanpaukto as part of his spirit, gained his powers for Momo sake. She witnessed him learning his zanpakuto's name, a sign he was gaining control over his power and was truly a prodigy. Then years later he rose up the ranks to third seat and became a captain because he was the only one who could take Isshin's place, no one else was close to achieving bankai. After being manipulated into harming Momo, he threw himself into training less than ten days after recovering [from the injuries Aizen inflicted on him], fueled by his wish to protect her. He gained incredible powers because of this, now able to neutralize most threats and truly protect her.

And now you're telling me that his fate when he dies - after all the hard work he put into captain, all of the blood, sweat, and tears he shed over the course of the main story from battles and from becoming stronger for Momo- is for him to go to Hell!?

The only hope I have right now is based on how the chapter ended, the new arc will be focused on how to solve this problem somehow. In the meantime, I both do and don't think Kubo would have it in him to kill off Toshiro; he's way too popular of a character (just look at what happened when Kubo killed off Byakuya and then brought him back, we all got the impression he brought him back only because of the backlash from fans).

This is why the new arc can't get here soon enough!

36 notes • Posted 2021-08-10 10:40:58 GMT

#4

It's Been a While

Two Weeks of Hitsuhina - Gift Exchange

Rating: K+ /General

Setting: several months after the end of the war against the Quincy.

Synopsis: Focused on rebuilding the Soul Society since the war against the Quincy ended, Momo and Toshiro haven't seen each other for several months. That changes when Momo finds out Toshiro is sick and starts visiting him for over the course of a week while he recovers.

AN: @crimsonxblaze, I am terribly sorry this is very late!! My life just became crazy and in between all the chaos I was writing this. It ended up being 9,000+ words!

You requested fluff so my first thought was one of them getting sick and the other coming to visit them/take of them. Seeing as I’ve already written a fic where Momo is sick, I figured it was Toshiro’s turn. You also requested no heavy angst, and the angst I wrote here isn’t what I consider heavy, but I promise it has fluffy moments and a fluffy ending (hopefully helped in some way by the angsty bits)!

As for the setting of this fic: I imagine that after the Quincy war everyone would be exhausted and a bit on edge; they’d had a war against a former captain they thought they knew, and then not even two years later they have to face another powerful enemy that not only transformed the Seireitei, but also damaged or demolished a significant portion of the Soul Society. I also imagine that it would give Momo and Toshiro time to reflect on the past two and a half years, on everything they went through and had to put aside to focus on the threat at hand. It’s because of this I must admit I’m a little nervous with the characterized of this one, but I’ll let you be the judge.

I sincerely hope you and everyone else enjoys this!

________________________________________

“You okay to take these to the tenth division?”

Momo finishes signing her name on the report before stretching her arms up towards the ceiling, working out the strains. As if right on cue, she yawns.

“What’s wrong, Captain?” she asks when Shinji frowns at her.

“When was the last time you had a break?” he says.

“…A while ago, why?”

“Maybe you should take one.”

She raises both eyebrows. “You know we can’t, not while we have to oversee all these repairs.”

“Not long breaks, no, but you could take a few days off. You just look tired is all, I can see bags starting to form.”

Unconsciously, Momo raises a hand and touches the underside of her eye. She manages a rueful smile. “I have been staying up to finish these plans and reports for the last few days.”

Shinji groans. “What’ve I told ya? If it ain’t gonna kill ya or hurt ya, you can finish it the next morning. Besides, you’ll start showing me up in front of our division.”

The last comment is a tease, but Momo frowns. “It’s not my intention. We’ve got to keep on top of this, otherwise we’ll lose track of where the reconstruction is happening and the well-being of the Souls in the districts.”

“I know that, but it shouldn’t kill us.” He sighs. “Don’t stay up late anymore, okay? I’m not gonna force you take a break if you don’t want to, but just…think about it. Captain Commander Kyouraku is more relaxed than old man Yama, I'm pretty sure he'd allow it.”

It’s been nonstop since the war against the Quincy came to an end. Every division had to help with the rebuilding effort. It didn’t hit her how much damage had been caused until all the damage and casualty reports for every district they oversaw started coming in. It’s only been six months since the war came to an end and the reconstruction began, and she’s exhausted. She can’t afford to go on a break though, not when there was still so much to be done for the Souls without a home or the new ones coming to the Soul Society to no roof over their heads.

“All right, I'll think about it.” She gestures to the documents in his hand. “In the mean time, are those the joint reconstruction plans?”

Although not completely satisfied with her answer, Shinji decides to move on. “For the north districts twenty through to twenty-five.”

She nods, remembering what was discussed at the last captain-lieutenants’ meeting. At the time, she’d barely hid her smile when she heard her division and the tenth division would be working together to repair areas of the Rukongai in two weeks time. Although she’d seen him at these meetings and briefly said ‘hello’ to him, it’s been several months since Momo last spoke with Toshiro. They’d of course need to focus on the repairs first, but it’ll be nice to work alongside him for up to two months.

She doesn’t hide her smile now as she stands up and wraps her scarf around her neck - they're nearing the end of autumn and the temperatures are dropping lower and lower everyday. She can feel a skip in her step coming along as she crosses over to her captain’s desk. “Okay, I’ll take them over for Hitsu…I mean, for Captain Hitsugaya to sign off on.”

Shinji blinks, realizing something. “Oh, that’s right, you wouldn’t know. Hitsugaya is going to be out of action for the week, he’s off sick.”

Momo’s eyes widen. “What?”

“Learned about it at the captain’s meeting this morning. Matsumoto is taking over captain duties until he recovers. Captain Kotetsu’s orders were that he rest up, especially his voice…seeing as he’s prone to yelling, ya know?”

See the full post

36 notes • Posted 2021-08-03 15:43:55 GMT

#3

For the character meme: 21 for Byakuya, Shinji, Matsumoto, Renji, Kira, Shunsui and 5th and 10th squad. How do you think they'd react if they found out Hitsugaya and Hinamori got together?

Character ask meme

I hope you don't mind anon, but I've gotta use gifs for this, I just have to! If you'd prefer my full written thoughts feel free to send me another ask, I'm happy to do that. In the meantime:

Rangiku:

Shinji:

See the full post

69 notes • Posted 2021-10-27 13:26:52 GMT

#2

I'M UTTERLY SPEECHLESS AND SHAKING. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY, I'M SO STUNNED. I'LL USE GIFS BECAUSE I HONESTLY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY RIGHT NOW

Hearing 'Number One' start to play:

When Toshiro appeared:

See the full post

110 notes • Posted 2021-12-18 09:52:00 GMT

#1

WAIT, DOES THIS MEAN GIN AND ALL THE OTHER DEAD ESPADA ARE ALSO IN HELL?

Now I can't stop think about whether or not they're going to appear in the new arc!

138 notes • Posted 2021-08-10 09:46:18 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

23, 43, 46, 47, 50! for OTP meme :D

OTP meme

23. Who is better with kids?

Momo - she takes up any chance to babysit Ichika and/or Kazui with anyone. She can easily interact with children of all ages. Toshiro doesn’t mind children, but he struggles more with younger children then he does older children. With the former, it can take him a while to open up to them, but once he does he doesn’t mind keeping them occupied (so long as it doesn’t interfere with a mission or task he’s set for himself). Decades later when he’s an adult he’s more protective of children and doesn’t want them to see the harshness of the world.

43. What is the first thing that changes when they realize they have feelings for the other?

For Toshiro it’s complicated. He likely realised his feelings for Momo had shifted during the Soul Society arc, but it’s not until after the Quincy’s defeat he starts to understand the nature of them. She used to be a close friends, but now she meant something more to him. After the Winter War, he trained in the caves to become stronger, so that in his eyes he becomes worthy enough to not only protect Momo but see her and stand by her side again. With a perfected bankai, he’s able to face her, and his feelings become apparent. On one hand, nearly losing her more than once has made him want to spend as much as he can with her outside of his duties, but on the other, he feels he has no right to be with her after everything he did or failed to do (even after reconciling when she fully recovered). He has to come to terms with this and Rangiku would probably help him if he ever opens up about it. He tries to not let this stop him from being in Momo presence though.

For Momo, she realises much later (I’m thinking maybe a few years after the ten year timeskip). When she does realise her feelings, she struggles not to blush or make eye contact with Toshiro whenever she has to go see him. Of course this only leads to Toshiro getting concerned - “Oi, Hinamori, are you paying attention? Are you all right? Have you not been sleeping?“ - and this only makes her more flustered. Eventually she tells Rangiku, who is absolutely ecstatic and wants to help (maybe even get Shinji in on it). Momo decides to not confess her feelings right away due her still dealing with what happened with Aizen. She no longer admires or is blinded by him, but the trauma is something she still deals with whenever it rears it’s ugly head. She wants to find ways to cope before she jumps into a relationship and also work to improve her division with her new captain.

Feelings are confessed many years later when they’re in either their very late teens or at the start of their young adult years (I could see it taking them a long time to confess, because I think how Shinigami perceive years is different to how humans perceive them, so a few decades isn’t much to them). When the time comes, Momo is overwhelmed but happy to hear Toshiro loves her the same way she loves him. She goes to hug but stops when he just stares at her, stunned. Toshiro can’t believe it, basically has a system crash before he responds. Even though at this point he has come to mostly forgive himself for what he did and failed to do, he still can’t believe that Momo would want to be with him. There’s also all the effects of the stigmatization he went through as a child affecting. Momo reassures him however, saying they are stronger together than when they are apart, and that they can move forward together.

46. Who initiates kisses?

Momo, she always seems like she’d be more open about affection while Toshiro would be shy and slower initiate.

47. Who says I love you first? How did it happen?

Ah, so many scenarios. In most I’ve imagined it’d be Momo who says I love you first - again I imagine her being more open about her feelings. I also see it happening not along after they start dating - at this point they’ve known their feelings for each other are romantic but are deeper then that of crushes. It happens to casually drop it into a conversation they have where even Momo doesn’t realise she’s said it  (probably something like “Well, of course I won’t mind Hitsugaya-kun, it’s one of the reason I love you. Just don’t work to the point of exhaustion, okay?” But then she sees Toshiro reaction and realises what she said; his reaction is probably something like this:

He can’t believe she just said it out of the blue! But Momo isn’t embarrassed by it though, just surprised she said it so casually. Then she realises she can be relaxed around Toshiro, that her feelings for him are easy and make her happy. Toshiro struggles to express his feelings, but as the years go by, he eventually gathers the courage to say ‘I love you‘ without feeling embarrassed about it. However, he’ll always prefer to show his love through actions rather then words - in the past words have meant not as much as actions.

50. Who gets overwhelmed by small acts of kindness?

They both do but in different ways. I see Toshiro going out of his way to do small and big things for Momo - he’s someone who’s action often speak louder than his words. Momo expressing her thanks and smiling whenever Toshiro does a small act for her, maybe gets a bit teary eyed if it’s something deeply personal to her (like if Toshiro got her a book she wanted for years but could never find or makes her a tea without her asking whether she’s having a stressful day or not).

Meanwhile Toshiro will look calm on the outside - maybe give Momo a small smile and say thanks- but on the inside he’s freaking out. How do I repay her back for this? Do I even deserve this? I mean, this girl would probably be bringing him batches of cookies and sweets, bringing him tea even when he doesn’t ask for it, looking out for books he’d enjoy, and just wants to spend time with him, whether that’s going on long walks or offering her lap as a pillow for his naps, it makes him wonder how he got so lucky and what he can do for her in return (despite her insistence that he doesn’t need to do anything because he’s stubborn like that).

Thanks for sending these in!

[neko-bri]

Drabble ~ Memories of Snow ||HitsuHina||

A blanket of white covered the entire Seireitei, within inside the walls of the Soul Society in the fourth division barracks. There was someone sitting there, on the bed awake and alert. Her eyes didn’t have black lines underneath them due to her shredding tears down her face. Feeling guilty with distant memories of the past. Surrounding her mind with twisted dark memories as well, along with the good memories.

It was clear to her that these memories haunt her. The ones she remembered from her deepest part of her heart. The betrayal..the one that struck her heart through her chest. The man she thought---she could trust. He was not the one she clings to, adore so much that she worked so hard to get her position. These thoughts clouded her mind, hence her still sitting on the bed watching outside the large window. Inside the room where she would see the snowflakes falling down onto the already covered with the fluffy white snow.

How she wished to turn back time, to fix her mistakes with ever thinking her childhood best friend was the one who killed him. The man she wish to forget.. The one who hurt her so much that the other part of her memory was after the battle. Vaguely she could see someone behind her; his eyes were widen with agony and pain. Teal orbs shook with his hands shaking, holding onto her as she asked him those words. ‘Shiro-chan...why?’ That when she remembered this memory so very well.

Knowing that her wounds did heal, on her chest there was  a reminder of that. Lightlly touching her chest, the part that hurt her the most is that how weak she was. To be so easily used against everyone and even putting Shiro-chan through that... He must have been so in pain. Of course he was! Tears wouldn’t stop falling, her happiest times were before the betrayal. Speaking to Toshiro about Aizen, he always would listen sometimes question why he was so great. Still...she knew the one who cared for her the most was never far away.

He was always there...always protecting her and, caring for her. It was---so obvious to her. However, she was blinded by Aizen’s love to see it. Although knowing he always wanted to protect her. That is why she wanted to get stronger for his sake and her own. Not realizing that someone walked into her room, his demeanor was quiet with making no sounds to alert Momo.

Seeing she was staring outside the window, looking at the snowflakes fall, he wondered if she was in a daze. Knowing this his movement would quietly, ever moving softly till both feet were inches from the bed. His white front bangs hang down in front of his face, eyes narrowed a little when seeing something was falling. He could hear soft whimpers from Momo. She was crying it seemed and he felt his eyes look full of pain.

Hinamori’s skin looked pale to the Captain of tenth division, along with being her childhood friend since their younger days. Hence he was quite worried for her. Although he had a feeling that she was blaming herself for all that happened. Teal irises would look down at the vase, seeing the flowers brought to her were lilies. They were the color of purple, in his eyes they reflected the flowers. Taking in a deep breath, his chest would rise then lower before he turned his head to face Hinamori’s back. Moving his right hand, gently so his fingers would touch her back ever so slightly.

Jumping the brunette made a loud sound, causing Toshiro to look surprised in his expression. Perhaps a different approach would have been wise. Turning her body slowly, once her chocolate eyes noticed him. “S-Shiro-chan?!” Hinamori yelled, in a surprise----confused tone. Why would he be here? Of course when she was gazing out to the snow. This brought back memories when they use to play in it together as children. Along with their Grandmother watching over them as they weren’t really hers. However, she took them in without a second thought.

Toshiro’s hand would lower to his side once more, a gentle expression changed on his face after seeing she was herself. At least from the outside, inside he knew she had a lot of doubt about herself and fears. Her hands in front of her chest, eyes looking away from him, bangs of her hair falling in front of the brunette’s peach skin. Trying to cover her tears with the rubbing of her hands against her eyes. It was all a cover up----to try and focus on not what’s inside. He knew, he knew all too well what she was doing. Not worry her best friend who been there...

“Hinamori, I thought I told you..to call me Hitsugaya-Taichou. Not ‘Shiro-chan’.” He addressed her about the matter quickly. Hinamori remembered their last encounter before the war. It was just like this time except he was in the world of the living to help Kurosaki Ichigo and his friends against the arrancars. Very vividly she could remember. It was like yesterday and yet..there were things she wish to forget. Like ever pointing her blade at him, knowing he would not blame her. Never would he say ‘that is your fault, Hinamori!’ Really...

Her chocolate orbs would look into his teal eyes, staring with the thoughts in her mind and his. Knowing full well that he came here to see her, to check up on her. After the war with Aizen she has been in here recovering. It was recently that Unohana-Taichou told him that Hinamori was awake and alert with no life threatening wounds.

Thankful he decided to come see her after all his paperwork was finished. Watching Momo who would look straight at him with her chocolate tired eyes. Well---by tired he would assume crying her eyes out over all the thoughts. There was a chair next to the bed, moving to place his bottom against the chair. Teal irises would look down away from Hinamori. Trying to not make her feel uncomfortable. Knowing deep down he just wanted to see that bright smile. The smile she always gave to him. Damn you Aizen...! Even after we beat you...still your mind twisted with hers. Now she feels like her body is so weak. He thought to himself, not realizing that Momo touched his hands.

A gasp left his lips, staring at Momo who was full of worry within her chocolate eyes. “Shiro-chan! Why do you look so upset? A-Are you okay?!” Her voice was shouting; this time she got worried about him. “I am fine, Hinamori. However...how are you feeling?” He tried to change the subject so she wouldn’t press on any further.

Shaking her head the brunette noticed, tears fell down both her cheeks. Knowing all along he was still upset at himself----upset that he put his sword through her chest, feeling that anger at Aizen for what he did. Tricking them to the point if Kurosaki’s voice didn’t roar that day....she could have been dead. “Shiro-chan, please...don’t lie and tell me. W-What is bothering you? Could it be about Aizen?” Toshiro’s eyes widen, keeping his voice silent and listened. “OR! Is it...is it...that you feel guilty for....” The memories came back into her mind over hearing his voice call out her name slowly. “When your sword pierced into my chest?” She would finish the question; this would hurt Toshiro to the point he looked away from her. His other hand squeezed into a fist.

“Hinamori...its nothing for you to worry about.” He would tell her softly, Momo came closer to his face which made him back up a bit. “H-Hinamori? Don’t worry I am fine!” He yelled, a light crimson would shade on his cheeks with her getting closer. A soft giggle left her lips, then it burst into full on laughter. Seeing his reaction he may have been hiding it. Momo was no different so she would speak out to him.

“Remember those old days we use to play in the snow, Shiro-chan?” Toshiro white eyebrow would twitch, “You said it again...Hinamori I told you, its HItsugaya-Taichou!” He complained once again, ignoring it as always Hinamori would wait till he answered. Her expression completely changed from before. It is true----she still blames herself. Although the happier memories of their times together brought her joy.

Toshiro relaxes from Momo’s question before; he did have that memory with HInamori. Although it was so long ago, thinking back within his mind he could remember seeing Hinamori’s smiling face. Just like now----she was happy.

His other hand released the squeeze into a fist, feeling now Hinamori let his other hand go, in that attempt he would let her hand go as giving her the choice to grab it again. His cheeks still blushing red, Why did he remember it? Why is it that her every action...cause him to feel embarrassed around her? It is true...he did have feelings for her. Knowing Hinamori’s feelings was one sided.

Speaking again the brunette thought about the past, it was quite a fond experience. Knowing this past memory it was not the only memory. Together they would compete against one another. Who could build the fastest snowman?

Memory of the flashback started when they were little children, both were very young around the age five. Dressed in their little kimono’s, wearing pants underneath since they were short, along with gloves and boots. Momo’s kimono was a light yellow, with pink flowers on her kimono while Toshiro’s was green. He was rolling the snow into a big round shape. Next to him, Hinamori was doing the same----her ball was getting bigger by the second.

“Now...you two don’t play too long I made you some hot warm tea.” The elderly woman being the GrandMother who watched over the two of them, spoke slowly but, gently. Turning their small bodies around, they both said in unison. ‘Okay!’

“I won’t lose to you, Shiro-chan!” Momo yelled with confidence, right back at her Toshiro spoke. “I won’t either, bed-wetter, Hinamori.” He teased knowing she was embarrassed by such a title. Cheeks puffed out, rolling her snowball out of his little comment. This meant war! Momo rolling her ball, until it got big enough in moving to get another ball rolling for the middle section. Toshiro had moved at a fast pace, both of them rolling their snowballs until their speed was too fast in running into each other.

Snow went flying everywhere, the snowballs they did create caused Hinamori’s body to be covered in it. Alarmed Toshiro rushed over to Hinamori, digging her body out of the snow where he had some of the white snow in his hair and on his body. Quickly he was able to find her, seeing her body was shivering from all the cold snow. It didn’t bother him at the least----yet knowing her thin, frail body it was bothering her.

“Grandma! Hinamori...she’s..freezing!” He yelled at his Grandma, alerting her when she already prepared a hot warm bath for them both. Picking up Hinamori in his arms, he would run over to step inside the shack. Seeing there was a warm bath already for them.

“Go on ahead, Toshiro. You may join Hinamori in a bath together.” Toshiro’s Grandma spoke when Toshiro looked at Hinamori with a sigh, he would get help from his Grandma to take a bath with HInamori. Being like close friends---it did bother him that he took a bath since Hinamori was smiling in her sleep.

How did that happen? He almost lost Hinamori there...although how did she roll the snowball in the wrong direction? Did she lose focus? Well...he was glad HInamori is alright. A small smile appeared on his facial expression, looking at Hinamori who woke up with a smile on her face. “Shiro-chan, let’s do that again! I had so much fun today.” She said with a cheerful voice. “Absolutely not!!” He yelled with concern. She almost well, only a few inches of snow on her. If it was like a tall snow falling on her...there no way he could have dig her out.

“Shiro-chan, please! I promise to be careful next time..I just got carried away is all.” She mumbled softly, looking like a child who got her toy taken away. Hinamori’s cheeks would puff out, in return he felt bad for saying no. It was Hinamori’s face that made him have to say yes.

“F-Fine! If you hurt yourself again...I will have no choice but to rescue you!” His finger pointed at HInamori, seeing her smile was brightening up the room. His cheeks shade dark red, as they took the bath. It was warm, very soothing and he helped wash Hinamori’s hair. Slowly thinking about what he could do to protect her. Hoping she doesn’t have another nightmare like before.

What can he do to keep her from being scared? This made him wonder if this snowman they could do together instead of competing. Not that he minds of course. It just----he wants to do something that make her happy.

They took their bath together, Grandma found some towels so she helped dry both of their bodies off carefully before getting the two of them to have some soup she made. Knowing they couldn’t taste it---however it felt like they were a family even though they aren’t related.

After dinner the soup was so good that the two of them felt tired; after the long day of playing in the snow. Having a competetion along with taking a bath. The next day Toshiro had asked Hinamori to help him make a snowman. She accepted with no regrets. Both of them laughing; creating something together that was a perfect snowman.

“Look, Shiro-chan!! Look at it the snowman we should name it.” Hinamori cheerfully said, pointing at the snowman they both made. Toshiro rubbed the back of his head. “Why do we have to? I should just call it snowman.” He said, his usual cold tone. Shaking her head, she though to call it ‘Lil Shiro’ so she made him hair hair and his same eyes. “I shall call it Lil’ Shiro!” Momo said out loud, making Toshiro embarrassed over the fact she said that.

Watching Hinamori right now, he could feel his heart racing a bit. The bright smile she showed; her breathing normal and not crying like those nights when she wake up in the middle of the night. A nightmare---he was glad to see this smile. The smile he adored, the smile he always will want to see. Never again wanting to see her cry or in pain. Even being hurt by him or by Aizen. None of that! He will protect her and will do absolutely everything to end that pain!

The flashback memory was fading away as Momo and Toshiro remembered together. Keeping them both silent during the time, although Hinamori did bring it up.

“Why did you bring that up, Hinamori? Would it be because of the snow?” His eyes shifted up to the window, seeing the snow has not stopped falling onto the ground. Looking at the window as well, her eyes were full of warmth, seeing the snow it did bring her back to those days they played in the snow. “I...did remember it before you came in but, I just had..other thoughts.”

Turning her head slightly, looking at Toshiro in his eyes she wanted to say something. Say the words she never could when they were alone or at least----after the last time they saw each other. Knowing she had pain in her life due to someone using her as a tool. That is why she will never let that happen again. Even so, her feelings, her thoughts. The happiness she felt was with Toshiro. He was the one who gave her life and gave her meaning so she had to say it.

“Thank you, Shiro-chan! Thank you for always believing in me after all that happened. I feel like I am lucky to have you...I am sorry for everything! I am sorry for hurting you and hurting all those around me. I-I just...” Hinamori broke down in tears, flooding tears falling down her cheeks. Trying to stop it, her hands would raise to her face. “I...I...!”

Watching her break down in tears, he could not take this! Hinamori don’t you realize how much you mean to me? I never blamed you for anything...all this fault pinned on you is not what you should be thinking! Baka... Toshiro was thinking inside his head over how he felt. Knowing that everything she done isn’t wrong. That is why he cared for her so much...

Suddenly his arms would wrap around Hinamori’s body, hearing Hinamori stopped crying he would gently sit on the bed with her. His arms wrapped around her back, slowly putting his hands up against her back. His hands rubbed up and down her back, trying to calm her down from the tears from falling. Hinamori was in shock due to the embrace, not expecting it her only thought is to grab onto the back of his haori. Tears were falling down her cheeks, hearing her sobbing for so long that Toshiro just did what he could and it was minutes later she stopped crying.

“T-Thank you...Shiro-chan. I am sorry I cried like that...I don’t know what came over me.” Her words were slow, yet she was just happy that Toshiro was here to let her cry out those tears. This has happened before when they were younger. Crying her eyes out about a nightmare. He just listened and rubbed her back like before. This time he did it out of concern for her to hold everything back. This time-----he will not let her blame herself.

“Hinamori...stop blaming yourself..I never blamed you and I won’t ever blame you! Do you understand? I will not let anything bad happen to you, nor will I let someone hurt you again! I care about you so much that I will fight for you. Anything in my power---to make you smile again.” His grip on her back was tighter, pulling her small body against his chest gently. In her eyes she could see his pain, the pain of watching her own body fall apart and soul in the deepest part of her.

“Shiro-chan...” The only words she could muster, fingers gripped onto his Haori still holding on with all the strength she had. Toshiro would look her in the eyes, moving his finger gently to wipe her tears away carefully. “Don’t you dare blame yourself, Hinamori..I will not have you think that way. I know it is hard to smile but, I will be by your side. I will not leave..” His head would lightly touch her shoulder, staying there he could feel Hinamori’s heart was racing even more.

It is true she knew it to be true...he never blame her, he always has been someone she cared as Aizen’s love was not real. It was twisted and...how much she wanted to say this. It was her feelings for him that----she will say it now.

“Shiro-chan, can you look at me?” Hinamori was calming down with his words; when he lifted his head slowly. Teal eyes full of worry, seeing Hinamori’s strong-willed expression he had looked shocked. In those strong expression, seeing her cheeks blush red. “Shiro-chan...I...” Her words would pause, expression would turn to a soft-happy smile.

“Shiro-chan, I love you~ I love you so much...thank you for looking after me..I am so thankful to have you in my life. You are the one who always stayed by my side. The one I want...to be by your side as well. I will trust in you and, do not worry. I am fine now because of you.” Her words were shocking Toshiro he never thought to hear these words. His cheeks shade a darker crimson color; releasing his hold on Hinamori.

Holding her hands together with his, they both would stare into each other eyes before he gave her the best answer she could receive. His lips slowly press against her gently. Both of them shocked, Hinamori lips returned after a few seconds passed. Their lips gently pressed against each other with accepting their feelings that been held back for so long. Pulling away from Hinamori’s lips, his hands still holding onto hers in a gentle hold. Hinamori was staring at Toshiro, her cheeks full crimson and feeling her heart was at peace. Someone---actually showed her the love she did want with Aizen. But now---it was with someone who was there always.

“I love you too, Hinamori...”

He says with compassion, they remained in that room with holding hands with one another. Hinamori smile was cheerful, still holding onto his hands. Only to turn to sit on the edge of the bed while watching the snow fall. Remembering all their moments up to this point. It was a new turn, a new page. Their love----will always shine and their bond will never break. No matter what comes between them. Forever----they will be together.

[rays-of-fire-and-ice]

I know I’ve said this so many times...

...but this scene will always get to me. Just look at the confusion, pain and disorientation in Momo’s eyes, and the absolute shock and horror in Toshiro’s, which is snapped the moment Momo asks him so weakly ‘Shiro-chan…Why?’ Why did you do this? Why are things like this? At the time, she doesn’t know of course that Toshiro was manipulated and we may never know at what point Aizen traded places with her.

Regardless, the scene is made all the more heartbreaking by the fact she uses his nickname. It’s not just a term of endearment that Toshiro constantly tried to correct her on; it’s their past together, a symbol of their bond and how much weight it holds for both of them. Also, on a side note, if you’re watching the English dub, you may notice that when Aizen stabs her, she also asks him ‘why’. Even though it wasn’t intended by the translators at the time, for me that just adds more weight to this scene.

But I think the moment she asked him ‘why’ is when it fully hits him (and for me personally as a fan and reader). This is Momo, the one person he was willing to give his capataincy up for just to avenge and to abandon his principles [of swinging one’s blade out of duty rather then hatred] for; the one person he forgave instantly; the one person outside of his Grandmother that accepted him for who he was as a child and wasn’t fearful of him,and above all else, the one person he swore to protect no matter what is dying in his arms. His reason for becoming stronger (and dare I say one of his reasons to live in a world that once treated him so harshly) is in his arms slowly fading away because of him.

But then I get even more emotional when I think that about what happens after this: even after all of this, not only did Toshiro find the strength to press on (only ten days after Aizen’s defeat) and not lose his will to protect Momo and become stronger for her, but if chapter 659 is any indication, their bond is well and truly intact. They chose to move on and stay by each other’s side despite the tragedy that is in their past. I love them and their bond so much, it’s incredible!