Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Where Cherry Blossoms Fall ❯ Chapter Five ( Chapter 5 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Where Cherry Blossoms Fall
Chapter Five:

His heart was racing. In an instant he knew the familiar curve of her face. Knew the grace of her delicate form. All the anticipation riding on this encounter crested suddenly; the man felt its tangible pull.
It was her. His Hisana.
Fifty years. Byakuya felt an errant tear fall down his cheek. With practiced austerity, the man wiped it away without losing her silhouette in the crowd. Fifty years since he'd seen his young bride.
This was the moment which would decide his whole future, which path would be his to take. Byakuya had never felt fear until this day.
And then...
And then, in a tender moment his eyes found hers and it was...kismet. Even from this distance Byakuya's heart soared. It was as if these last fifty years had disappeared. All the heartbreak, all the sorrow, the loneliness; the gentle caress of her gaze washed it all away.
It was in those violet eyes that he saw his future. He was home. He found himself lost in her gaze.
So then why had the man fled while she was distracted?
Byakuya Kuchiki leaned back against the trunk of an elm tree, cradling his head in two shaky hands. He'd panicked. Perhaps he didn't deserve this second chance after all. To be a coward was to be without love. It was the worst dishonor he could bestow.
Above him a few crows judged his plight with their cackling laughter. The man shot a jet of reiatsu at them and watched the birds scatter off into a stretch of perfect sky. It was the same seamless blue which had captivated him all those long years ago. The day he'd first met Hisana. Byakuya fondly remembered the youthful innocence he once held.
That man of the past had no problem pursuing the woman of his dreams. How Byakuya envied him. It was a time before the devastation of loss.
Then again, he hadn't known the pleasures of love, either.
The captain closed his eyes. Although brief, he wouldn't trade those five years with Hisana for anything, even if it meant never having to lose her, never having to feel despair. He regretted nothing. If only for a day, a moment, he'd feel her in his arms again.
She was worth any pain.
Sighing, Byakuya collected himself and stood. Even with his new-found confidence he still didn't know what he'd do once confronted with her. Tell her the truth and she'd despise him. Tell her nothing and he'd despise himself.
The man looked up to that crystalline sky again. Infinity stretched out before him. The world was open to be tamed.

Sakura bowed to a small group of patrons walking past the purification house and out toward the Torii gates.
"Have a safe journey home."
No one responded. No one ever did.
"Thank you for coming."
The sun had begun to set over the mountain, dipping the world into crisp orange paint under black trees and peaked roofs. The heat of the day began to fade with the addition of a cool evening breeze. Soon the shrine grounds would be clear, she knew, as worshippers made their long trek back to Karakura Town.
Soon she'd be alone to clean up. The other Miko Uncle Tetsuno had hired lived off-site and were decidedly part time; never coming in on weekends, never working late hours due to school, never helping out with anything besides the souvenir shop.
Even that had fallen on Sakura today when Chisa cut out early to be with her boyfriend and Kumiko left complaining of a headache.
But something seemed off.
The pain in her hip throbbed at the memory of it. Lost time. Waking in the tea house.
It felt wrong to have no recollection of how she ended up in that place. According to Kumiko, Sakura hadn't been seen by her or Chisa for about two hours before the woman just "showed up" to check on the souvenir booth. They figured she was off cleaning something or being odd. Kumiko, always the superstitious one, was careful not to make contact with Sakura in the cramped space.
"See ya," the taller woman called as she dashed out, leaving a bewildered Sakura behind.
"Bye," Sakura said mostly to herself. Kumiko had already disappeared into the night.
Alone the woman watched the long rows of lanterns come on across the courtyard. At one time they'd been lit by candle, but Uncle Tetsuno would have none of that now. Was it sacrilege to have their ancestor's lamps wired for electricity? Sakura wanted to say yes but it wasn't in her nature to judge.
Sighing, she dutifully took up station amongst the rows of charms, ornamental bamboo cups, painted fans with the Hisakawa kanji stamped on, and little wooden ema boards. Listlessly she flipped one board over to look at its blank side. If she wrote a wish on it, would her prayers be answered?
It was silly but, taking up a length of pen and dipping it quickly into the inkwell set up for customers, Sakura began to write.
...and never again feel alone.
A shadow fell over her just as pen lifted off wood. Her hands quickly scrambled the board away, thrown beneath the shoddy counter of their souvenir shop.
"Welcome, may I help you?"
The woman looked up, ready for business. Her eyes widened in surprise as the face she'd seen before was mere inches away.
His eyes were heathered charcoal in the amber light. Silver glinted from the strange hair ornaments adorning his face. As the sunset at last drained beneath the tree-lined curve of Karakura Town, the man spoke.
"Yes, I am sure you can."
Converting /tmp/php59rhZe to /dev/stdout