Return of the Sparkle Wizards (JT, Asuka & Hibiki)

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

Hibiki had heard Asuka’s plea for dessert, but he didn’t actually know how to make anything that fell into that category. I mean, there was one recipe that he knew, but that was pudding. Problem: Hibiki had, for some reason, developed a horrible aversion to that food. Oh, wait, it wasn’t just some mysterious reason at all. It was Raygin Sakubara. That insufferable little man, quite literally given his ability to chibify himself, had once ruined all of Hibiki’s socks by filling them with pudding. Ever since that day, the medic simply couldn’t force himself to eat the stuff. He considered Raygin a good friend still, but there were simply some things he could never forgive him for. Ruining pudding was the chief offense.

In the end, he hadn’t initially made any desert. He had instead invited Asuka to speak up if she still wanted more food after the meal proper had been consumed. He could probably figure something out, as there had been plenty of cookbooks in her kitchen. Despite the initial appearance of it, it was quite well stocked. But for the time being, he hadn’t spent the energy on it. Linner had come about, and Asuka had asked about the fancy dressing with a childlike wonder. ”It’s actually pretty simple. It’s just oil, wine vinegar, and some flavoring. I used raspberry juice for this one.” More modesty from the medic. Who was he and what had he done with Hibiki?

When she thanked him for the food, he was of course prompt to reply. ”You’re quite welcome Asuka. I appreciate you letting me use your kitchen.” Yeah, he could have been making more dick jokes or whatever, but when he sat at a linner table, especially after having just cooked, it seemed to make him more formal for some reason. Oh well, there was no real harm in that. When he was like this, he was a gentleman first, and a flirt second. It’s not like he was being rude or anything. This gentlemanly attitude wasn’t too unusual for him, but it did take some restraint. Then Asuka had taken her first bite and burst out with her bubbly excitement.

Somehow her sheer energy had caught him off guard again. Maybe he was just a bit tired from cooking, but he simply hadn’t expected it. As always, he offered her a reply. ”You flatter me. I’m happy to try and teach you, but I promise this is nowhere near my speciality in life.” More modesty? How? How was he controlling himself so well? It was a mystery to him as well. It seemed both of them were rather hungry though, as the rest of the meal passed without a whole lot of dialogue. Hibiki did note that Asuka had largely ignored her salad though. That simply wouldn’t do. Vegetables were an important part of a balanced diet, even if they weren’t exciting.

He raised an eyebrow at the Segunda Espada and asked her, ”You’re planning to eat the salad aren’t you? Gotta eat your veggies.” Of course he knew that would probably get some kind of protest, even if it was just the look on her face. In that moment he had been acting more like a scolding parent that anything else, but he had an ace in the hole. With all the smoldering embers he could muster, Hibiki dropped his voice half an octave and winnked at the Arrancar. ”Doctor’s orders.” Regardless of whether or not it had any effect, he followed it up with the bit that was sure to work.

Right away he was back to his usual self though. In a far more carefree tone he joked with her. ”Besides, if you don’t eat your greens, I won’t make you any dessert.” Sure enough, after he had asked, she began to work on the salad. For his treachery he got asked a real tough question though. She wanted to know why he sought power. ”Mmm… That’s a bit of a long answer that would require my life story for the whole truth. The short version is that I want the power to help people. I don’t fancy watching people die, and as I am now, I’m mostly powerless to save anyone. “

As was always the case, Hibiki was aware of his limitations. He had been strong before, and he had been weak before. He knew what the depths of his powers could do, and the truth was that without him, Soul Society had a body count that was increasing faster than anyone could deal with it. Sure, there were others in Squad Four, but aside from Amaya, none in history could match him in his prime. He continued to explain his reasons to Asuka, ”I don’t care about being a hero or anything like that. It’s just my duty as a doctor to try to save as many people as I can, and my weakness makes it hard to fulfill that.”

HIstory was something that he didn’t really touch on at all, and even if Asuka prodded him, no matter how fast he had fallen for her, he wouldn’t budge on that one yet. His history. His loss. That was a topic for a time when they knew each other far better than they did now. It was the kind of thing that he would only talk about to those that he trusted with his life. While he thought highly of the Segunda Espada, he knew that what he felt was mostly lust, not trust. It’s not that he didn’t trust her at all, but he knew better than to let his dick cloud his judgment on such a touchy subject.

Soon enough the meal was truly completed. Hibiki stood up and gathered both his dishes and Asuka’s own. As he went to grab her dishes, he leaned in close to her ear and gently told her that, ”I do believe you have earned some desert… but whatever should I make?” Whatever could he make? The possibilities were nearly endless, given how many cookbooks he had access to. ”Though perhaps now would be a good time for a lesson?” He stopped to ponder for a minute. He had offered to teach her, even though he didn’t think much of his skills. Yeah, why not. What did he have to lose? Maybe his sanity, given the mess that he had found earlier.

”Yeah, I think that will do. Come with me.” It was an invitation, not an order, but he knew she’d follow. She had been eager to learn after all. He brought their dishes into the kitchen and began to wash them up. ”Go ahead and pick out a recipe, and we can go from there.” He’d wait for her to find something in the cookbook while he finished up the cleanup from linner. Once she had told him her choice, he read through whatever she had picked out before offering his acceptance of her choice. ”That will do nicely.” What it was didn’t actually matter. He was sure that basically anything in the dessert category would be plenty tasty anyway.

For him, this wasn’t about the desert. This was his chance to make a move. ”Let’s go ahead and get started. First let’s get out all the ingredients...” and of course he did just that. For the rest of the steps though, there was a different approach. ”From here on out, I’m not touching any of the food. You’re going to make it all, but I’ll guide you along the way.” Together they would work through the recipe. Hibiki issued instructions when it was simple things like “get out a cutting board.” When it was time for something more advanced though, that’s where his plan kicked in.

Whether it was something like cutting up something into little bits, or cracking some eggs, Hibiki helped her through the movements. He stood right behind her. His head peeked over her shoulder. His hands wrapped around hers. For each of the steps that he could get away with it, he moved her hands through the proper way to do it, all the while purring encouragement into her ear. There was a ”Good job.” here and a ”Just like that.” there. Every time she got through a step, he was sure to reinforce it with compliments. Though it was, in truth, a mundane activity, but he had taken it from mundane to intimate without it being overtly sexual.

After quite a bit of work, the recipe would be done. Of course a bit of a mess had been made, but the dessert of Asuka’s choice had been made flawlessly. Hibiki had, by not giving her a chance to mess up, ensured that she made something just as well as if he had made it himself. Satisfied with a job well done, he was sure to praise his student one more time. ”That’s my girl. I knew you had it in you.” Rather than pushing his advantage any farther than he needed to at that moment, he backed off when their treat was done. Given he had called her “my” girl, and just been all over her, he dared not risk more without obvious signs she wanted it.

Back at a normal conversational distance, he yawned and stretched out his arms. His tone had returned back to the usual playful one that he’d used for most of the time, rather than the more sultry one used for all his instructions to Asuka while they cooked. ”Man, I’m beat from all that cooking though. Think we can go eat this some place a bit more relaxed than the dining room?” And just like that, he’d given her all the opportunity she needed. Asuka was free to dictate the pace now. By choosing where to take him, she could either tell him to bugger off, or give him hints that he was welcome to proceed. All that was left was to see how comfortable she felt with him after all that.

[Deleted]

Yuck veggies. When he explained everything behind the dressing it made her fascinated. She’d never heard of dressing like that. Rather, she knew of all the unhealthy dressings and not the seemingly healthy ones. Still, Asuka was reluctant. Salads really weren’t her jam and as yummy as the dressing sounded, she wasn’t entirely convinced into having one. “Did you toss my salad, Hibiki? I heard it’s really good to have your salad tossed!” She asked curious as a kitten, eyes wide and innocent. Truly she didn’t understand the meaning behind it. “Does it taste better when you do it? Why do people say that?” Asuka had seen cooking shows and chefs on T.V do super cool spinny tricks and stuff with fire. Was this one of those special chef tactics? Gosh, she hoped so!

At the prospect of teaching her how to make something scrumptious, Asuka couldn’t help but grin excitedly. Finally! Something other than Cereal and Lemonade! “Oh! Thanks a bunch! I could really use your help! Aha! I’ve burnt water before.” It was true. She has burnt water before. It doesn’t smell very good. It actually smells a little like her cookies when she’s done baking them. Or like the rest of her kitchen when she done baking or cooking anything. Burnt. At one point, Asuka did tell herself that it would only get better from here on out but it’s been a long while since then and she only gotten a smidge better.

”You’re planning to eat the salad aren’t you? Gotta eat your veggies.” Asuka looked at Hibiki with childlike defiance and she pushed the plate further away from her. “Make me.” she grinned mischievously. Like a kid who was prepared to just say no to anything good for them, Asuka kept her salad at arm’s reach, her hand unmoving as she looked at him. As if there was anyway he was going to make her eat her salad! She didn’t just largely ignore his salad. She just completely removed it from her queue of things to eat. She completely and totally ignored his salad. He had a snowball’s chance in hell of getting her to eat her salad!

”Doctor’s orders.”

Asuka nearly melted at the look on his face and the tension in her arm from keeping the salad apart slowly started to relax. Her grin had faded entirely and her face would reveal minor shock at his words. The good kind. She looked at him half serious and half playfully before she slowly brought the plate towards her and picked up her fork. Granted, it was two but it was how he said it. How was he not on T.V? Seriously.. It made it impossible for her to protest. “Okay.” She said shyly as she started on her salad which honestly wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be.

”Mmm… That’s a bit of a long answer that would require my life story for the whole truth. The short version is that I want the power to help people. I don’t fancy watching people die, and as I am now, I’m mostly powerless to save anyone.“ She worked on her salad slowly as he spoke, nodding. Asuka could relate to that. She was weak once herself. She knew what it was like to feel lower than dirt and to constantly be under someone’s shoe. The Segunda wasn’t always the Segunda. Similarly, Sparkle Wizards will become Captain Pixi Wizards when they get super strong. They usually saved lots of people and he wanted to do good! Asuka could get behind that 100%.

She smiled as he spoke admirably of his duty to save as many people as he could. Though, she would disagree with a teensy minor thing. Asuka would hold her tongue for the time being, letting him speak on strength and wanting to help. Part of her was slightly worried he’d get super mad at her for disagreeing with him and Asuka herself knew first hand what it looked, sounded and felt like to disagree with someone. Although Hibiki didn’t quite give her those vibes, she would wait a bit before speaking on the subject.

She’d finished her meal in its entirety and just as she would get up to get the dishes, he’d beaten her to it. ”I do believe you have earned some desert… but whatever should I make?” Halfway out of her seat she was met with his amazing suggestions in her ear which caused a shiver to go up her spine. She liked how he sounded. She liked his ideas. “I know.” she smiled playfully, her own tone matching his. Somewhat telling the truth. She did finish her salad. “I have lots of ideas and books.” she looked to her kitchen. Asuka thought that Hibiki would be the one doing desert. Imagine her surprise when he spoke of giving her a lesson. “W-What?! For realsies? O-Okay! You’re on teach! er.. Doc. Aha~!” Oh boy, oh boy! Something that wasn’t her usual cereal and lemonade!

There was a time when Asuka did try getting creative. Instead of using milk in her cereal, she did actually use lemonade. That was a complete mistake. It was just a terrible combination and Asuka swore she’d never do it again. She did try to get creative with other foods sometimes. Peanut butter and jelly had turned into a frosting and candy corn sandwich and that was pretty bad. There was the time she tried to also use soda in her cereal. The difference was one was definitely worse than the other but both had made the almighty Segunda cry tears of disgust and frustration.

She followed him into the kitchen and stood there awkwardly and awaited his instructions. He’d let her know from the get go what they were doing and that he wasn’t touching any food. Naturally, Asuka was scared. “W-What if I mess up again? I don’t wanna make burnt gluten-free cookies again!” She gulped nervously but he said he’d guide her. It should be fine right? Asuka would stand and lean forward on her counter, elbows propped up in front of a dessert cookbook. Slowly, she’d flip through it, contemplating on what to make. It was up to her to make the best damn decision! Dessert was important! Every now and then she glanced at Hibiki as he did the dishes. Asuka already knew that she’d like everything. What about something Hibiki would like?

In the end, Asuka had decided to go with a simple chocolate cake with frosting. Everyone liked that! She didn’t know what Hibiki liked personally and she hoped that she’d find out later on so she could attempt to make it for him. Surprise him even. Would he like that? Did he like surprises? Gosh she sure hoped so! Oh but what if it scared him and got a heart attack and he fell on her kitchen floor and then she had to call the ambulance but then she had to try to CPR and she couldn’t do both and dropped the phone and then he wakes up and starts coughing and the people from the ambulance country called her a liar because he’s fine?! That would be so awkward to explain, aha! “Hibiki, do you get scared easily!? You like surprises right?” She had to ask. Just in briefcase.

As instructed, she brought out the ingredients and got the necessary tools. Everything else? Well. Hibiki was hands on with everything. Literally. He’d moved behind her and Asuka tensed up initially at the feeling of him being there, her back straightening and her arms locking purely out of nervousness. “E-Eh?”, she squeaked when his hands guided hers. She found herself taking notice of all kinds of things. Things that had nothing to do with cooking. How hot she suddenly felt. How big his hands were. How diligently he moved when it came to working with the ingredients. His voice. Asuka suddenly felt as though she was going to have a hard time learning about baking.

Asuka tried dammit. She tried her damndest to concentrate but the entire time her face was as red as red velvet and she felt incredibly hot and flush. “H-Hibiki..?” she called out for him softly, slightly turning around to look at the taller male. If he cared to look down, he’d see one very flustered and pink Segunda who blinked up at him, wide eyed and curious. Gosh, he looked even better up close. “U-Uhm..” Asuka wanted to say something but nothing would leave her mouth. There were just moments where she’d end up staring at him and then she would quickly retreat.

As the poor girl struggled to understand what was going on. At points it just felt hard to breathe and Hibiki would easily be able to feel her hands trembling beneath his. It wasn’t a scared tremble. It was purely nerves and the desire to do well. To make the Doctor/Chef/Movie Star proud. Her face betrayed her entirely though. It left her wishing that she hadn’t opted for a ponytail today. It was nerves for the first few minutes and then she’d settled in somewhat. He’d feel her body relax against his, her back somewhat pressed against his chest.

Though, that was her body moving on its own. Her heart was racing a million miles a minute and Asuka didn’t know what the fuck was going on. Just that she kinda-maybe-sorta-not-really-but-really-and-I-mean-REALLY liked it. “H-How am I doing..?” She managed to ask. Though her voice came out in a rough whisper and upon hearing herself, Asuka swore that she could pass out because she knew what it sounded like. When she gulped, it felt like she’d swallowed something hard and god, it was so hard to concentrate. What were they even making again? Brownies? Cookies? Ah. Chocolate cake. That’s it.

For every ‘good job’, he’d hear a “Mm?” and for every ‘just like that.’ would be a “Yeah?”. Every time he’d leaned in to pay Asuka a word of encouragement, she found herself moving on her own with her head tilting towards his gently, pressing against him just a teensy bit. It was dizzying being like this. Dizzying and it was impossible to concentrate. She’d never been so close like this to someone before. Asuka was more than aware what Hibiki was doing and yet, she would not stop him. Regardless of how nervous, red and hot she was, Asuka didn’t feel like stopping him. Vocalizing that would be impossible to the girl at the moment.

”That’s my girl. I knew you had it in you.” H-H-His girl? When he’d start to separate himself, Asuka’s fingers gently tugged on them, keeping them captive for a moment longer. It was if she didn’t want him to leave so quickly and deliberately slowed him down. Though, she’d relinquish them and when he’d stepped back, Asuka kept her back turned to him and tried her damndest to collect her nerves before finally summoning the courage to face him. She felt the sudden need to occupy her hands and so she’d slowly shove her hands into the back pockets of her jeans.

”Man, I’m beat from all that cooking though. Think we can go eat this some place a bit more relaxed than the dining room?”

Before Asuka could even think about answering, she just looked at him as if in a daze and when her eyes finally met his, she just looked at him almost confused. Like Asuka.exe just stopped working. “S-Somewhere.. relaxing..?” Asuka’s face was beet red and she gingerly tucked some of her hair behind her ear in attempt for some air. Her eyes were focused on her staircase for the tiniest of moments but when she caught herself, she blinked a few times and brought herself back to reality. “How does the living room sound?”

Before he could say anything else she quickly skittered off to the cozy living room. She had a dark coffee-colored, cozy couch which felt like you were sitting on actual clouds. It was soft and sometimes, Asuka fell asleep there because of how nice it felt. All the dessert and drinks had been brought the coffee table and at the sight of the wonderful chocolate frosted cake, she eagerly helped herself and cut out a slice for Hibiki, handing it to him. “Y’know Hibiki, earlier you said that you were powerless and that you wanted to help people” She glanced at him for a moment, smiling. Perhaps he would be interested in hearing her own story.

“I was like that too. Aha.” Asuka had taken a seat just in front of her coffee table as she was passing him whatever he needed to snack on her brand spankin’ new masterpiece! “I wanted to help and I wasn’t powerful. I was weak and I got picked on a lot by Kuroi and the other fraccion.” She relaxed back into the chair and sighed at the memory. “I want to do lots of good things back then and I tried real hard. It didn’t stop me. No matter how much crap I got for it” She stared at her cake idly. “I guess what I’m trying to say is.. You have power in you too Hibiki. Your strength is from within and that you can always help people no matter how powerless you feel.” She pointed in the direction of wherever his heart would be and continued, “As long as you have it in you to keep saving people and helping them, you’re not without strength or power. You’ll grow lots. Aha~” She took a bite out of her chocolate cake and smiled cheerfully, “Don’t let it get you down. You have it in ya~! I'll help you every step of the way!I’m rootin’ for ya!”

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

Hibiki couldn’t help but find himself continunely amused by the childlike wonder with which Asuka saw the world. She truly was innocent and pure in a lot of ways. But she was no child. She simply didn’t know of some things, and hadn’t assumed their more adult nature. When she asked him if he’d tossed her salad, he nearly choked on his. After he regained his composure, he had answered her calmly enough with a simple ”I did no such thing. Just a simple mix. The phase isn’t always about salad… and I’ll tell you about it when you’re older,” he winked at her. Oh Bless. She was a God only knows how old otherworldly powerhouse, and yet she had been passed by the flow of time in some ways.

But he didn’t dwell on that topic for too long. He made his way through linner and paid close attention to how Asuka reacted to all of his words. Yes, he was cautious, but only inasmuch as he needed to be. The Segunda Espada followed the doctors orders and ate her salad, even if it wasn’t tossed. At the end of linner, she was still receptive to him. She was of course excited by the prospect of dessert, and just as eager to learn as he had hoped. Everything had gone exactly as he had hoped it might have up to that point. That was good for sure, as it meant he hadn’t misjudged her.

And he had acted on his instinct, though not so overtly. His actions had been to share his talents with her, and to reassure her that everything would be okay. She’d asked about the possibility of failure, and the medic had replied without missing a beat. ”If you make a mistake, I’ll help you fix it. Don’t worry too much, and just follow my lead.” That was his plan to be sure. He didn’t intend to let the possibility of failure even exist. As long as he guided her along carefully, there was no way that the outcome could be that bad. Sure, he was no expert baker, but if they had a recipe then he was sure they would manage.

As he stood at the sink and washed up the dishes, the doctor couldn’t help but let his eyes wander away from the menial task. Throughout their day together, Hibiki had done everything in his power to treat Asuka with the utmost respect and dignity. He didn’t belittle her nor objectify her, and had been attracted to her primarily for her personality. That said, when he caught her with her elbows propped up on the counter as she read through the cookbook, he couldn’t help but appreciate the way that pose helped her hips back. Lest he be accused of staring, he forced himself to not look for too long. He was polite, but he was also a man. His will simply hadn’t been strong enough to ignore that sight entirely.

Regardless, it was something more than just “ooh, nice butt.” It was a deeper attraction than that by far. What he felt in that moment wasn’t merely lust, but complaceny. In that moment he wanted nothing more than to experience days like this for as long as he lived. It was the simple joy of coexisting with someone you were attracted to. Though his eyes had first looked for less than pure reasons, what they saw was glimpse of domestic life with someone he could respect as a partner, not just a fling. This was, to be frank, a new sensation for him. His life had been full of one night stands, but very few relationships that lasted more than a couple of weeks.

The more time that he spent around Asuka, the more that he wanted something deeper. Yeah, part of him wanted to just grab her by the waist and make love to her right then and there, but that was the subtle voice in that back of his head, not the thoughts at the front. No, what he felt was a desire to cherish and protect moments like these. It was truly strange to him. They barely knew each other, and yet this moment felt like something he had experienced a hundred times already. It was so cozy. So comfortable. So right. Now more than ever, he felt that he had to be careful. He felt that he couldn’t afford to screw this one up.

Soon enough he was dragged out of his thoughts by the ever random questions of Asuka. He had been asked by the Arrancar if he liked surprises, and if he got scared easily. A dangerous question to be sure, but he answered truthfully after only a slight hesitation. ”I do get scared sometimes, yes. I can handle jump scares and the like just fine, but if I’m not sure I can save someone, or if I’m worried about upsetting someone I care about, that’s the kind of thing that gets me scared. As for surprises, it really depends on what I’m being surprised with I suppose. I’d enjoy being surprised to find a winning lottery ticket, but wouldn’t want to be surprised by a rock hitting me in the head.”

After that question, they had gotten started, and Hibiki had gone back to paying extra close attention to the reactions of the Segunda Espada. From his place behind her he had a good view of all the subtle movements made, and all the reactions she had. At first, she had been quite clearly nervous, and even a bit startled, but she didn’t push him away. Her face was flushed red and her hands trembled beneath his. Every bit of the way he cooed praise and calming words into her ear. When they were idle between steps, his hands lightly traced patterns on the back of hers or gave them a gentle squeeze. It took awhile, but eventually she began to relax.

Once she had accepted what was happening, he watched her as she adjusted from the tense posture she had started with. Her shoulders relaxed a bit. Her legs stopped locking up and her knees were allowed to bend. She let her back drift into him. Once more he found himself awash in a sea of bliss. It wasn’t the physical contact that made him so happy, but the mutual trust. It was a closeness that he had never before experienced. Somehow it felt more intimate than even the most perverse acts he had performed. He wanted more, but he controlled himself. This was enough. He was happy, and he didn’t want to press too hard, too fast.

“H-How am I doing..?” She had asked him. As always, she was met with encouragement. His lips were so close to her that the Segunda would swear she felt them brush her ear. ”You’re doing perfect. Keep it up.” Every time he leaned in to give her praise, she seemed to lean in a bit more. Their cheeks brushed against each other time and again. No matter how much he yearned for more, he forced himself to do no more. Even as they grew closer, both emotionally and physically, he wanted to let her control the pace as much as he could. Respect for her wishes was tantamount, and she was clearly unused to such affections. He didn’t want to rush her.

Alas, eventually the cake was done, and he no longer had an excuse to be where he was. He went to pull his hands away and felt a slight tug as Asuka tried to stop him. That caught him off guard. Shit. He thought he had been the one who had been in control, but in that one moment the tables had flipped completely. He froze up and didn’t move for several seconds, letting himself stay there until he could think again. Though it had taken a moment, he gave the Arrancar’s hands one final, gentle squeeze and pulled away. God it had been so tempting to just pull her into an embrace right there, but he could tell that she was acting on instinct alone.

Instead he had asked her for somewhere less formal to eat. A chance to reset. A chance to let her dictate what she was comfortable with. He didn’t miss the quick glance towards the stairs as she played with her hair, and he could only imagine what was upstairs. It was at that moment that he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that their feelings were mutual. Had it been more than just that tiniest fraction of a moment, he would have pressed for it right there, but he took it for what it was. An acknowledgment of desire in the back of her mind. That was enough. It was far too early for such things in a proper romance anyway.

Within a second her true answer had come out, and she had asked him “How does the living room sound?” Once more he replied without a single missed beat. ”Perfect.” That had been the answer he’d wanted. He followed at a leisurely pace as she led the way to a dark brown sofa in the next room. Without any thought as to the other seats in the room, Hibiki sat down beside Asuka, to her left, on that couch, but he kept his hands to himself. For the time being, he enjoyed the cake they had made together as he listened to the Arrancar speak of power. She made some good points, and he didn’t actually disagree with her, even though his earlier words might have made her think otherwise.

With his cake finished, he replied to her. ”I appreciate that Asuka. I know that I can make a difference, and I’m glad to have someone as amazing as you believe in me. But for everyone I can save, there are still those that I cannot as I am now. That’s why I want to be stronger. I know it’s foolish, but I want to save them all. I want a world without war. Without violence. Without strife, chaos, and death. A world where Shinigami and Arrancar don’t hate each other just for what they are. It’s a childish dream, I know, but it’s my dream. I may never attain it, but if I grow stronger I can bring reality closer to my dreams by saving more people.”

He set down his plate and utensils on the coffee table, made sure she had done the same, and could no longer keep his hands where they belonged. The doctor turned to face Asuka on the couch. His right arm snuck over her shoulders. His left hand gently grabbed her cheek and pulled her to look him in the eyes. ”I want the power to make a world where how I feel for you doesn’t scare me so much.” He couldn’t stop himself. It was impossible. His face was only inches away from her when he said that, and those few inches weren’t enough. The gap was closed and his lips brushed against hers.

It was a slow, tender kiss that he placed on her lips. He was gentle and soft, with every movement making it clear that if she wanted him to stop, he would. But it seemed that as soon as he had begun, he had pulled away. Sweet Lord in Heaven that had been hard to do. Though he had stopped, he had not gone far. For several moments he lingered there, with his lips barely apart from hers. He would not force her to do any more, but if Asuka desired more, he offered no resistance at all. Whether she pursued or not, he knew that he had to draw a line somewhere.

Every last drop of his willpower was dredged up, and he eventually managed to pull his face and hand away, though his right arm still rested across her shoulders unless she removed it or made it clear she was uncomfortable with him after that move. He didn’t want to, but he forced himself to change the topic back to something else she had said. ”You said you would help me with my growth, Asuka. You already have, but I’m an impatient man.” Were she not so innocent… hell, after what he had just pulled she probably followed the double entendre just fine, but this time he did genuinely mean the tame option.

”I can’t wait forever to be strong. If you’ll allow me, I’d like to go get my sword, and go for another round now that I know I don’t have to worry about hurting you.”

[Deleted]

He could read her. Asuka could see that Hibiki could read her to a T. She’d watch his eyes and where they roved and focused on and there was that nagging instinct that he knew what she knew. Despite all of that, Asuka herself didn’t want to acknowledge it. She’d mostly been in a state of disbelief since they’d started baking. She was nervous, but not scared. It was exciting, but not dizzying. It was new but Asuka wasn’t ready to admit to herself that she was enjoying this a little too much.

You never could have too much fun, right? That sounded like the opposite of a problem. Hibiki was lots of fun. So, that meant, she could never have too much of him… riiiight? ”God, Asuka. What are you thinking..?!” The last time something this quick happened, she ended up married and alone. Now, she was divorced and alone. A larger part of Asuka screamed at her to be cautious but with a natural charm as his, how could she not entertain the idea?

Though, there was more than just charm and good looks. Asuka always had the ability to see the good in others. That feeling would only amplify as he spoke more on his wishes to make a difference. To do amazing things for people who need it. To save people and protect them from harm. His own interests aligned with her own and Asuka could easily see herself fighting on the sidelines along with him… If it was allowed of course. Las Noches and Seireitei weren’t exactly the most accepting of one another.

That never stopped her before though. Asuka didn’t see why it should stop her this time? Granted, Shinsei was strong enough to turn everyone into dust and they had no choice but to accept their reality. Eventually, people came around and it wasn’t like he came over a terrible amount anyway. It was the way of life in Las Noches; you must submit to the stronger one until you yourself can rise to the top. No one else knew what that felt like but her. No one else worked as hard as she did and Asuka had every intention of showing it in the right circumstances.

He sat to her left and Asuka would fully turn to him as he spoke, snuggling and leaning up against the back of her chair. She liked hearing him speak about what he wanted to do. To hear his ideals and dreams. His wishes and goals. Asuka wanted to hear more!! More about him and more about the stuff he liked. She wanted to hear it all! She’d smile as he spoke before taking a bite of her cake. He was super cool and his dreams of wanting a better world was something she was excited for.

“Then you gotta focus on that. The whole time. No matter how easy it seems to do the wrong thing, don’t do it.” She nodded, looking at him as determined as ever. Temptation was something Asuka was more than familiar with but the pure of heart and soul Segunda Espada had managed to to resist as much of it as she could. Would Hibiki do the same? Asuka imagined that it would be a whole lot easier in Soul Society. “I know we don’t know each other a whole lot and stuff but when you say stuff like that it makes me wanna believe in you! Aha~! I’ll be cheering you on every step of the way~!” She chirped excitedly, and looked at him with hopeful eyes, eager to see where his journey takes him.

“Of course, don’t forget to take a cookie break everyone once in a while. Aha.” She teased. Cookie breaks were important. All work and no play was just no fun at all! Stuff like that turned people into a huge meanie and they got all grumpy and stuff. They were the people the poured milk in their bowls before cereal. They were the pizza burns on the roof of the world’s mouth! They were the Kurois of the world. They just needed to lighten up a little! It was important to enjoy life and have an appreciation for the smaller things. All appearances aside, Asuka didn’t have a whole lot but she did love the little things that happened in her life everyday.

“Nuh-Uh! I don’t think it’s childish at all. Our dreams are our own. We should be allowed to pursue them as long as we’re not hurting others.” She spoke as she worked on the last of her cake, happily. “I like your dreams. Aha~! My dreams always have cupcakes in them.” She’d lick the bits of frosting off her finger and lips contentedly before looking to Hibiki who’d just finished his slice. Mirroring his earlier actions, Asuka set her plate and fork off onto the coffee table, feeling completely satisfied with her newest creation that she already forgot how to make. She forgot because of Hibiki reasons. It wasn’t her fault!

“..Does that mean I can ask him how to do it again..?”, she thought, sheepishly. The idea of asking him back to her place to help her bake a cake again suddenly made her blush. T-That was inappropriate. It was completely out of nowhere but her thoughts bounced just about everywhere and moved at million miles a minute. Bad! She pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind as she tried to focus on their conversation. However, Hibiki would completely flip that on her.

She felt Hibiki’s arm snake around her shoulder and she would be corralled towards him without any resistance at all. The feeling of him moving her closer nearly made the mighty Segunda melt right there and all she could do was stare helplessly at him before quickly looking away. All Asuka could utter was a small squeak of surprise at the action. The sudden closeness caused her to blush hard and red and her entire body felt incredibly hot. Still, Asuka still wouldn’t resist.

“H-Hibiki..?” she finally managed to whisper to him. Her muscles were tense at first and then they weren’t and she moved along with him. On instinct, hands found their way to the larger male’s shoulders and gradually slipped to his chest, just laying there and taking note of the sort of build he had, which.. admittedly was kinda shameful on her part but she didn’t feel guilty. Gosh! He really was a super hot TV actor. Oh gosh. He really WAS a super hot TV actor. Asuka suddenly felt even more nervous and just like before her hands trembled slightly.

”G-Get it together, Asuka!” she mentally scolded herself as if she were trying to will the nerves away. Her attention would be pulled from her hands to his eyes; her own emerald pair meeting his ruby pair. Were his eyes always that red? That striking in color? ”I want the power to make a world where how I feel for you doesn’t scare me so much.” She somewhat leaned into the hand guiding her cheek and continued to look on at him curiously while her heart was racing at least a thousand beats per minute.

Of course, she knew but her mind was mostly blank at the sudden turn this all had taken. This all started with a simple desire to recruit some fraccion and make some friends. Then it turned into training which then turned into a steamy baking lesson and now… Would she complain? Not a chance. He moved his face closer and she could smell the chocolate off of his breath and the tip of her nose brushing against his. Asuka’s breathing got more labored and her fingers gently wrapped around his shirt and she moved just a centimeter closer to him. “..How do you feel for me?”, she asked in a low, soft voice.

It happened in a blink of an eye. Is this what they mean when they say you have chemistry with someone? It didn’t mean just having class with that person right? What did it matter..? Her gaze fell to his lips and he’d feel the gentle pressure of her lips against his. Asuka felt so hot that she swore she could pass out right there. In the back of her mind, she was scared this was happening all to quickly but before she could think further on it, it was over.

He lingered there and Asuka took the initiative to reciprocate just one last time, only she moved slower and much more carefully. Her gaze flittered between his eyes and his lips. She was gauging his reaction and before waiting too long, she pressed her lips to his again. Just like his own, hers was quick but affectionate and it took every bit of courage. He finally pulled away and Asuka let go of his shirt, folding her hands in her lap and looking away nervously with cheeks as red as apples.

”You said you would help me with my growth, Asuka. You already have, but I’m an impatient man.” For a moment, Asuka couldn’t quite tell if he meant it the way he said it. She opened her mouth to protest. She turned to him with pleading eyes but then the wheels started turning in her head. It then clicked that maybe he didn’t mean it that way? Her suspicions would only be confirmed by his next statement. ”I can’t wait forever to be strong. If you’ll allow me, I’d like to go get my sword, and go for another round now that I know I don’t have to worry about hurting you.” O-Oh! Oh god! Her mind was so dirty how could she think like that! Would he be ashamed of her for it!? Gosh she hoped not!

His query would be met with a cheery smile and a nod. “Of course you can. Aha~ Meet me in the back, just like last time.” She winked at him and gathered the plates and utensils, taking them to the kitchen and washing them before moving to her backyard. It was dark now. It had to have been what… eight? All her snake buddies were coiled up somewhere and out of the grass and moved onto lawn chairs where they could rest comfortably. Snakes deserved beds too y’know!

Asuka would turn on various lights. Some small like fairy lights, some a little larger. Her pool was even illuminated. Her backyard was lit up beautifully and Asuka would sigh happily, eager for his return. Asuka thought about upping the intensity just a teensy bit this time around. She would wait around for him, idly playing around with a soccer ball and trying to kick it like a pro. Though she missed and instead, she’d slip and fall on her back. Asuka really hoped he would and just wouldn’t straight up leave like he did because once was kinda already too much and it made her extra upset. The thought of it made her nervous but she’d remain hopeful.

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

The more that Hibiki listened to Asuka speak, the more that a hitherto unknown feeling washed over him. Her idle chatter in the dining room had caused him to swell up with an emotion much more powerful than the simple lust he was used to feeling. No matter how unusused to the feeling he was, and no matter how weird it was to admit it, he knew that what he was felt was love. Sweet baby Jesus this was unlike him. Normally it was the other way around. People fell head over heels in love with him. That was like his whole thing. Well, that and healing, and fashion… but that’s not the point right now okay?

Point was that for the first time he could remember, he listened to someone else talk, and every word he heard out of them was, well, he didn’t want to say they were perfect. Asuka was super weird about a lot of things, so that was definitely a stretch. How to describe it… He felt like her words were what he needed to hear. When he had doubts, she had reassurance. When he had cynicism, she had innocence. They were opposites in some ways, and close to identical in others It was truly a bizarre experience for him, and one he honestly had some trouble accepting. It was all just so foreign to him. He never really caught feelings, but here he was.

Truth be told, just simple conversation with her there in the dining room had scared him. Not because she could kill him, but because she could do something far worse. She could reject him. He had felt something resembling love once or twice before, or at least that was what he thought. But this… this was something he had never felt before. He had never been afraid of the power that someone had over his heart. This was a very new, and very scary scenario for him. If he messed this up, he wasn’t just going to lose a chance at getting laid, he was going to lose something so much more than that.

Those thoughts fluttered in and out of his mind as he spoke with Asuka, and they eventually moved on to the Kitchen. There he pushed the fear to the back of his mind, and let his desires control him a bit. He taught her, yes, and he guided her, yes, but no, he did not take advantage of her there. He avoided any purposefully lewd acts, despite their physical proximity. That was the voice of fear in his head. That was something that was new. Were they anyone else, he probably would have been naked with chocolate frosting all over him before he left the kitchen. But that wasn’t what had happened at all. He had restrained his usual ways.

But then they had made it into the living room. The fact that they’d made it that far and he hadn’t tried anything more than handholding, lewd though that was, was a testament to how afraid he was of fucking this up. She was so supportive. So kind. So innocent. He couldn’t rush something like this, but he couldn’t hold himself back anymore. Once the cake had been consumed, he made his move. He answered Asuka’s question not with words, but with action. His heart beat a thousand times in that minute as his chest swelled with anxiety until the moment that she returned the kiss back to him. He had seen all the signs of this going right, but that was the moment he could finally be sure that the feelings were mutual.

Restraint had never been his strong suit, but he exercised some more of it in that moment. When she kissed him back it took every last ounce of willpower that he had left in his body to hold back. Within each and every fiber of his being he was consumed with desire. The taste of chocolate on her lips. The slight hesitation that she had shown. The kindness that was within her. He had never wanted anything or anyone more than he wanted her. Right there and then, Hibiki wanted nothing more than to push her over onto the couch and keep on going. But he didn’t. He pulled himself back, and forced himself to think of a different topic. He forced himself to think of their training.

Part of him was frustrated. He may be her equal in some respects, perhaps character. He may be her better in others, like cooking. But he was so pathetically weak compared to her. Asuka was the Segunda Espada. It never left his mind that she could kill him on a whim, merely be forgetting to hold back her power. His desires had begun to express themselves not just in an annoyance with the fact that his pants were still on, but in annoyances with any way in which he might be inadequate. When he looked at Asuka, it wasn’t just an urge to make love that he felt, but an urge to be the person she deserved.

He looked at her and was forced to confront another thing that he wasn’t used to. The fear of failure had vanished with their tender kiss, but it had been replaced by a new fear. What if he wasn’t good enough for her? What if one day she woke up and realized that he was weak, and was beneath her. What if he just wasn’t good enough to stand beside her? The Espada were a hierarchy driven by power, and unless there was some new Primera that no one had heard of, the apparent disappearance of Adalo meant that she was the strongest of them. Surely she would eventually recognize him for his weakness and discard him unless he grew stronger quickly.

Of course none of that was even remotely rational. Asuka was not a stereotypical member of her race. If anything she was the antithesis to most of it. She didn’t seem to care about power or strength, but friendship and kindness. But rational wasn’t what Hibiki was right then. He had been thrust into a new world where his thoughts were dictated by an emotion that he couldn’t even hope to control. It wasn’t all bad though. This fear, though it was truly fear, pushed him towards greater heights. He wanted to prove himself worthy to Asuka. He wanted to be not just her lover, but her equal. Her partner. Lord in heaven he was head over heels in love with this woman.

But he recognized all of that. He knew that his decisions were being steered by his emotions, and he didn’t really care a whole lot. He needed to train. He needed to be stronger. If not just for Asuka, for the sake of doing good in the world. His dreams were not forgotten just because of his feelings for her. If he was strong then he could help people. If he was strong then he could save people. He didn’t need to regain all of his power right away, but as he was in that moment he had a long way to go until he even vaguely resembled his previous power.

Before he left, he reassured her. ”I’ll be gone for just a little bit. I’ll be back soon I promise.” With Asuka’s blessing, he returned to Soul Society and went to retrieve his zanpakuto. It was, truth be told, mostly ornamental. He couldn’t call out for it and feel its power, even though he knew Hitsu’s name. He had wanted to go get it not because it would give him any kind of advantage in their battle, but because it symbolized his resolve in this moment. Their earlier match, yeah, he had tried his best, but there was always something different about a spar when you held cold, hard steel in your hands. At that point it felt far less like a spar, and far more like a battle. Hopefully this small difference would let things be a bit more serious.

He had, somehow, pushed Asuka a bit in their last match, but he knew that he was the one that needed to be pushed. The Segunda Espada was already plenty stronger than he was, so he wasn’t honestly worried about her getting any more powerful. No, he was unashamedly being selfish about this request for a second round of sparring. He had no delusions about actually “winning” a round with her, and fully expected, wanted even, to be pushed to his limits by her. He knew that fighting strong foes was always one of the best ways to get stronger, and there were few people alive stronger than Asuka. He was aware that this request was mostly for his own benefit, and he was fine with that, given that Asuka hadn’t objected. That was a big part of it though. Had she said no, he definitely wouldn’t have forced it.

While in Soul Society, Hibiki had a little bit of time to think about the situation that he had found himself in while he went to retrieve his weapon. Surely if anyone found out that he was in love with the Segunda Espada, that alone would be grounds for a court martial. If it got out that… shit. What were they even? They had kissed. They weren’t fuck buddies. She wasn’t a one night stand. Could he call her a girlfriend yet? A partner? Fuuuuck. What was he supposed to refer to her as? He had no idea whatsoever as to what was appropriate in this situation. For all his experience seduction, he was horribly inexperienced at romance.

As he made his way to the Squad Four barracks those two types of thoughts raged back and forth in his head. Happy, warm, wonderful thoughts about Asuka were intermixed with his fears of not being good enough for her and his fears of someone finding out and sending him to a stockade. Asuka, Asuka, wherefore art thou Asuka. Dare Hibiki deny Soul Society and refuse the name Shinigami? Dare Asuka deny Sonken Kouhai and be with a Shinigami that couldn’t stand up to the leader of Las Noches? At that moment, it was mostly fear that dominated him, but the beacon of hope that was Asuka’s warmth helped to stave it off enough that he knew he’d make it through somehow.

Eventually he returned from Soul Society with his zanpakuto on his waist. He honestly wasn’t sure that he’d ever benefit from drawing it, at least without being able to release it, but that didn’t matter. ”I’m back! Sorry for making you wait Asuka.” He had called out to her. By the time he was back, it was well into what could be called night. Asuka had turned on some lights around the area, which he appreciated. Hibiki didn’t have night vision or anything after all. He took in the scene and steeled himself. No matter how beautiful she was, no matter how innocent she seemed, he had to take this training seriously.

”Before we begin this second round Asuka, I want to be clear on a few things.” he began. ”I know you’re far stronger than I am, and I don’t want you to think that’s a problem. I want to train with you because you’re stronger than me. I want to be pushed to the limits of what I can do, and be forced to go beyond those limits. I know you’re strong enough to help me drag out my latent power, and that’s why I’m asking you to take this not as just a friendly spar, but as a battle that will force me to be better than I am right now.”

With those words spoken, he drew his zanpakuto from its sheath and held it in what he thought was a basic Kendo stance. His form was quite honestly abysmal, but it was the thought that counted, right? ”Well then, let’s begin!” Once Asuka had given an indication that she was ready and understood what he had asked for, then he charged at the Segunda Espada. His blade came down in an overhead slash that would threaten to cleave the Arrancar in two, were it not for the shoddy footwork and grip that it was executed with, or the vast difference in spiritual power between them. But, as was often the case with his fighting style, the sword swing was no more than a facade.

Swords, at least those wielded by Hibiki, would likely never deal significant damage to anyone. He was well aware that he was no Okusa, and only pretended to use that method of fighting. Instead, on his left hand, the lower of the two, his index finger was extended out and pointed right towards Asuka’s neck. Without a single word, a bolt of lightning leapt from his finger and arced towards his newfound love. Were she somehow unable to defend against it, and if her hierro was still inactive, then the bolt would blast right through her, just as one had gone through her shoulder earlier in the day. That said, Hibiki didn’t expect to deal any lasting damage, even if he did somehow land a hit.

((At this point I think it’s been long enough to recover reiatsu because baking a cake takes like hours.))

Reiatsu: 475/500
-25 for Byakurai

[Deleted]

”I’ll be gone for just a little bit. I’ll be back soon I promise.”

It’s a normal statement to many. To Asuka it was something else entirely. What if he didn't come back? Before Shinsei, she never would have worried about stuff like that. She was fine before him. During even.. Sometimes. This should be nothing!! It was just a short errand after all. What was the big deal anyway? But, also, what if he doesn’t come back? It scared her immensely. Here she finally got unexpectedly close to someone and there was this idea of them kinda going poof. She didn’t want that.

What was wrong with her? Why did she have to worry about stuff like this? It’s no big deal. It’s no big deal. Why are you freaking out? Asuka actually felt incredibly stupid for feeling this way. It’s just that.. Shinsei always left for years and years. Some of them, she wouldn’t hear from him. She got lucky if she saw him. It was always a treat. Though, it left her wondering if he felt the same way. Did he like seeing her? She knew he was busy but was he that busy? Did he not… Oh..

Maybe he’d fallen out of love with her. Oh.. Oh no. Not this again. No, no, no. Asuka felt her chest tighten and she kicked a soccer ball that was laying around to distract herself. She can’t be thinking about this! Not now and definitely not ever. Not unless she wanted to make herself cry which would be even dumber. Gosh. Imagine Hibiki coming back to see her face all wet and stained with hot tears? The Segunda shook her head and paced back and forth in the grass as she waited for him.

Fear was what she felt. An incredible sense of fear that if she grew close to someone, they would fall out of love and leave her. Even if Hibiki didn’t love her or she didn’t love him, she liked him. She wanted to be around him and she was terrified that for whatever reason, he would up and disappear. That she would years and year without seeing him. It was like that for anyone she cared about. Asuka was fearful of many things but somehow, this preceded everything else. She knew her heart wouldn’t be able to take it if it went that way again.

Somehow in the span of a few hours, she’d managed to feel this way. Uneasiness. Fear. Excitement. Love. Lust. Happiness. Sadness. Today sure was a hell of a rollercoaster. For every up, there was a down and for every turn and loop made Asuka held on for dear life, helpless on this ride. They did kiss. Maybe he did feel that way about her? It all happened so fast that Asuka wasn’t entirely sure how to process it. Was it real? It felt real. Hibiki felt real to her at least. Still, she was plagued with the immense pain and resentment of her failed marriage.

One day, Asuka knew she was going to have to sit Hibiki down and explain to him why exactly she was single. She would have to be as transparent as possible with him about all of it. It was only right… right? That’s what couples did. They did it on T.V. too. All the good ones were super honest and upfront and then things should be as sweet as peach cobble or pie~! Asuka knew it failed but if there’s anything she could do to make things run smooth for the two of them she’d do it.

Part of her did wonder if it was because she was an Arrancar. Asuka couldn’t help it that she was. It was just what she was born as. What she was destined to be. It was what she was meant to be. She was born to be a hollow and evolve into an arrancar. She was born to be a fraccion and to be come the Noveno Espada. She was born to climb the ranks from Noveno to Sexta to Segunda. She couldn’t help but feel entitled to it. It was fate in her eyes. Did he disappear because of that? Because of what she was? She couldn’t help that…

Asuka never thought about the differences between Arrancar and Sparkle Wizards. It showed itself in hints before when she lived with the kind Kasumi’Oji but nothing quite as bad. It slowly started to sink into her that the fault lay with her. What if it was because of what she was? But that didn’t make any sense. She was trying to become a human. That was their promise after all. Five more missions and we can become humans and live an actual life together. It was supposed to end like a fairytale and it didn’t. She was already preparing to give up her life for him. That shouldn’t be it..

The haunting thoughts would take her in circles every time. Every time she had this conversation with herself it never ended well. It ended in tears and confusion and bitterness. It’s worse when you know that’s not what you are. Asuka knew she shouldn’t be crying and confused. It happened. No amount of thinking and talking was ever going to help her come to a conclusion. It would only bring her more heartbreak and despair. Asuka knew she shouldn’t feel bitter. It’s not who she is. He felt that way. It wasn’t his fault. Was it hers?

She stared up at the sky for a moment and closed her eyes. Was it alright to keep going like this? Asuka knew that no one bothered with her in terms of Shinsei because he was in the Zero Division. He was too powerful to put up with and in Soul Society’s good graces. Hibiki couldn’t man handle anyone yet but she wondered if she’d get the same leniency. “Who cares..” Also, she just didn’t give a fuck if anyone liked it or not. She liked it. Did he?

”I’m back! Sorry for making you wait Asuka.”

And just like that, she was snapped back into reality. He actually came back! Wait… Of course he did! Duh. He said he was. The worry washing away from her face would soon be replaced with joy. Boy, that sure wasn’t any fun just now. In the pits of her stomach she felt uneasy. Happy he’s came back but man.. she felt crazy for even taking her mind back to the place. She really had to stop. The Segunda would mask it to the best of her ability and bounce excitedly the way she always does. “It’s ok~! Aha! Didja get your zanpakuto?”

It seemed he had stuff to say and Asuka would nod happily. “Uhuuuh~” She looked at him excitedly, emerald eyes wide and bright as ever as he spoke. Gosh, Hibiki was so cool! He sounded so super cool giving that explanation! Just like a hero in a story! The cheery girl was brimming with joy and she’d nod again. Something in that zany brain of hers would click and slowly, she’d give him a quiet smile. “I see..” She looked between him and his zanpakuto and her smile would turn coy. “So what you’re saying is..” She took another step back away from him and winked. “You want me to be rough with ya?” There was a slightly mischievous glint in her eye and on his cue, she would focus on him intensely.

She brought her right palm above her head, letting his overhead slash collide against her hierro before grasping it firmly. Hibiki was a magical sparkle wizard kinda guy. Every action he’d done up to this point was accompanied with a magical spell either before or after. Here was the sword slash.. so where was the kido? Was that coming up next too? It was only a matter of time before that would come up right? Asuka guessed he might do somethin’ like that cause of earlier.

“In normal cases, you definitely shouldn't catch blades with your hand but if you can, then go for it~!” She’d seen Kuroi do quick, effective moves. He didn’t really waste time with being flashy and so Asuka would be the same. Quick effective blows for Hibiki! Just like Kuroi used on her! That was how she learned after all and hopefully, Hibiki would learn that too. Yup. Yup. Yup! Maybe. She didn’t know! Asuka wasn’t much of a planner. She very much a ‘live in the moment’ kinda gal. Oh! There it is! His left hand! Was he gonna use Sho again? No thank you! Not again!

When he brought his fingers up, Asuka stepped inside of his arm span. She didn’t let go of his blade and instead kept it high above her head which kept his arm up and occupied. She figured he’d use sho again just like he did tons of times before and figured sidestepping and dodging it would be the correct solution to that. Imagine her surprise when she saw a bolt of lightning whirr just past her hair as she did so. The neck was a difficult place to target. Not as big at the other body parts.

Well, that coulda been scary if she didn’t her hierro on. “Yikes!” Her eyes widened. She was still focused on Hibiki but she saw it from the corner of her eye. It was that lightning spell from last time. The one that tore through her shoulder and made him freak out. Thunder and lightning very, very frightening! She slid her hand down to his own hand, her own grip on top of his and pulled it across his chest in an attempt to make any of his future attacks against her awkward to make for the moment. She’d grab at his Byakurai hand and squeeze them hard and keep them captive.

Asuka would slam her own foot down hard on his. She’d force just a little bit of pain on him so that he could comply with her next move. Part of her felt bad but that was how she learned. She remembered with Kuroi that small painful moves came first before the big nasty ones and recovering from any bit of damage and steeling yourself to avoid what came next was key. In lots of battles, it was important. Asuka only hoped that he’d see that it was important too. So.. She hoped he’d forgive her for what she was about to do. Unless… he could stop her~! Stop! In the naaame of love!

She held him captive while he’d cringe in pain after her stomp and turned and walked backwards, taking the Sparkle Wizard along for the slow ride. “You should let me know if you want me to use my High Speed Regeneration or my Hierro by the way, aha~” Yet despite having his sword hand in hers, she was still being extra friendly and accommodating. “Right now, I’ve got Hierro on but I have no problem doin’ the ol’ switcheroo~ Aha!” If Hibiki wished she’d make the change. Anything he wanted, she was his genie in a bottle! “I’m pretty flexible.” She grinned playfully. Intentional. Purely intentional.

Hibiki would notice where Asuka was pull him and as she could feel herself getting closer, he’d hear the squelching of water beneath her sneakers. At that sound, she quickened her pace and spun, throwing him into the pool. She knew he said that he didn’t want her to hold back and she wanted to abide by those wishes. However, she couldn’t fully. As much as he wanted Kuroi treatment, she wouldn’t give it to him 100%. There were special circumstances that allowed her to survive his training and she didn’t have access to any of that here.

So, she would settle on getting him wet. He was very much free to stop her on the way or turn the tables if possible. Asuka mainly wanted to see if he could do anything to retaliate. If he could, that’s great. He’d be able to adapt and adapting was what she wanted him to get out of his out of anything else. Rather than beating him senseless, Asuka did want to try and teach Hibiki what she knew. If he couldn’t get out, then he was going for a rough swim. She’d point to the steps where he could walk out with a giggle and walked back. She motioned for him to come at her again with her fingers, slowly walking backwards away from the pool.

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

Man, Hibiki was really gonna have a rough time focusing during this second spar. He had wanted to break away before things got too heated too quickly. His hope had been that some time in Soul Society while he retrieved his blade would have been enough to help him calm down, but they say that distance makes the pants tighter hearts grow fonder for a reason. No sooner had he returned , and said his bit, then did he find himself struggling to remember why he was doing what he was doing. He was doing okay for naught but a few few moments when he heard those tantalizing few words slither from her mouth.

“You want me to be rough with ya?”

He couldn’t help himself. Not even a little bit. Without even thinking about it, his response came out. ”You know it. I’d be real disappointed if I made it out of here without scratches all over my back.” At this point, he wasn’t even really trying to hide his intentions, nor his desire. He knew the feelings were mutual. He knew she was into him. He just didn’t know how fast he could move. That was the only thing that caused him to hold back on that front. By that point though, his restraint was only physical. He was dangerously close to just calling the whole training round off, but he forced himself to focus.

”Well then, let’s begin!”

He darted in for his opening salvo, and he found that one very important detail had changed since their earlier match. Before, Asuka had had Hierro inactive, and had instead used her high speed regeneration. With his lack of energy sensing talent as he was then, Hibiki couldn’t tell that that had changed. Even with Asuka’s warning, he hadn’t actually expected his blade to stop right in her hand like that. Then again, he had expected her to draw her own blade to parry him, so not hitting wasn’t a surprise, it was just how she achieved it that made him realize that he had made a costly assumption. Even if she hadn’t dodged the Byakurai it would have done nothing, but dodge it she did.

Of course Asuka was not done with a simple dodge and block. There was a counter as well. She grabbed his hand, and pinned it to his chest. Still, Hibiki couldn’t actually find his focus. ”Hand holding! How lewd!” he gasped with a clearly faked sense of shock. And then the Segunda Espada, still in the midst of her attack sequence, stomped on his foot. With a very not faked yelp, he cried out, ”YEEEOOOWWCH! It was a bad joke okay? I get it!” But still the Arrancar was not done. Within a few short moments, Hibiki found himself dragged over towards the pool. It had only taken seconds, but it felt like an eternity.

They say that when you’re about to die, time slows down. Everything moves real slow, and you can react to things you couldn’t normally react to. When you’re about to die, the world is slow enough that you remember things taking minutes that lasted a fraction of a second. Yeah, that wasn’t what happened here. Hibiki was still, despite the pain in his foot, completely unable to focus. Some small part of him was yelling at himself. He needed to pay attention. He needed to break out of the hold he was in. He needed to somehow escape before Asuka could complete this attack. Whatever she was going to do to him, it was probably going to be painful.

But he couldn’t think about that in that moment. Not even a little bit. Instead his mind was full of thoughts of Asuka rather than of her actions in their spar. No, his mind drifted to some other athletic activities he’d much rather do with her, and that definitely didn’t include kicking around the soccer ball a few feet away. No matter how hard he tried, he was like a kid in a candy store. But not just any candy store. A wonka store straight out of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He was in a world surrounded by things that people would fight for, and he had eyes for only one: the wonka bar with the golden ticket Asuka.

Really though, his lack of focus wasn’t something that he was able to remedy. Rather than thinking of a way out, he instead found himself just enjoying those moments of closeness with his new love. Yeah, that’s what this was for sure. He couldn’t even pretend to deny it at this point. He was literally ignoring the risk of imminent injury just to bask in her radiant glow. At this distance, even her scent was intoxicating to him. Though it could easily be that his senses had betrayed him, at that moment Asuka smelled like a mishmash of everything sweet and desirable he had ever eaten. He’d saved the bestest tastiest thing to eat for last though, but even just her scent was enough to drive him towards the edge of his sanity.

And that’s when the cold water hit him. In an instant, he was out of time to be distracted. The clock ran out, time’s up, over, sploosh! He was snapped back to reality Oh there went gravity. Oh there went Hibiki. He fell. He’s so wet, but he won’t drown that easy. No. Really though, he’d been thrown into the pool and it finally snapped him out of his daydream. The definitely not movie star pulled himself out of the pool, and looked at the outfit he had on. He was still dressed as if he were a doctor in the world of the living after all, except now he was sopping wet. That simply wouldn’t do.

”Well I can’t rightly fight like this now can I?” So Hibiki did the obvious and practical thing. The sopping wet white shirt already revealed basically everything anyway, but all the extra water weight was uncomfortable. His sword was sheathed away, and doctor’s coat was discarded in a heap on the the ground near the pool unceremoniously. The shirt, however, he had a bit more fun. By trade he was still a tailor just as much as a Shinigami, and so he could manage a bit of fun. His eyes locked on Asuka’s own, he teased her a bit as he slowly removed the waterlogged dress shirt and tie without looking down to see what he was doing. ”I’ll be ready for you soon~.”

Though he had truly done it because of reasons for the spar, he couldn’t even pretend to deny that these actions served a dual purpose. Now Hibiki wasn’t what you’d call ripped or anything. No, slender would be more accurate. He was lean and tone, but he was no muscle bound goon. If the Segunda Espada somehow hadn’t figured that out before, then she surely would know it after his shirt hit the ground in a pile on top of his coat and tie. ”Ah. Much better!” So now he was all ready, but the problem was that so was Asuka. Luckily her earlier offer had been heard by the healer’s subconscious.

”If you wouldn’t mind switching back to the regeneration, that might actually give me a chance.” He ran a hand along the back of his head, as he forced a laugh. ”I don’t think I can actually do anything while you’ve got Hierro on given how much stronger you are than I am, and I think that one exchange was enough for me to get that lesson.” Whether she actually did deactivate it or not ultimately wouldn’t actually matter a ton. He still had no illusion of actually winning the fight or anything like that. Really, the issue was that against her Hierro, even his best tricks with something like Sho would prove to be completely ineffective.

What wouldn’t though? Seriously. What could he actually do against this level of strength? On another day, against someone else, he’d find that his answer would be “just get stronger.” or “just tap into your old power.” But that willpower just wasn’t there today. His mind was too focused on other things. If someone came along and kidnapped Asuka right now, then maybe he could tap into some of that old juju, but he simply couldn’t motivate himself to try to grievously injure her in the same way that he would an enemy. She was an Arrancar, yes, but she was his Arrancar. She wasn’t an enemy. She didn’t deserve his killing intent. He just couldn’t do it.

So if he couldn’t make an impact through raw power, then what about strategy? If she deactivated her Hierro, which was the assumption he honestly had to operate under, then what could he do to actually make something happen? He had a handful of ideas. None of them were that great, but he had to try something that wasn’t just “throw more power at it.” It would be a lot easier if he had access to his release, or some more powerful kido, but for the time being he had to make do with just Sho, Byakurai, Shunpo, and his sword. That was all that he had in his arsenal as he was in that moment, and he had to do something with it.

Thankfully he had decades of experience with Kido. Even if his practical skills weren’t up to snuff, his memories of his old exploits were still there. After a tense few moments, be it from the impending violence or his recent shirtlessness, he redrew his blade and charged at the Segunda Espada once more, and once more he tried what appeared to be exactly the same attack. Another overhead slash. Hell, it was even paired with the same Kido! So what made this one different? Well the devil is always in the details, and he was hopeful that these changes would make all the difference. Besides, he was playing on her memory of the last attack. Perhaps she would think he was doing exactly the same thing, and respond the same way?

Of course the attack was different through. His sword swing was the same, but the Kido was used in a different way. Only a moment before impact, his plan would be realized. His hands actually released the grip on the sword ever so slightly, so that his index finger could be angled to point up at his blade. It was at his own sword that the Byakurai was cast. In truth, the blade was never anything but a trap. If Asuka tried to parry or otherwise stop his Zanpakuto from descending, then she’d get a healthy little jolt of electricity. Of course this Hado wasn’t designed for this purpose, so it wouldn’t even be as potent as if he’d used Tsuzuri Raiden, but it might give him the small opening that he needed.

Whether that first part worked or not, and whether Asuka moved or not, he wasn’t done. The next step was a fast one. Ten times faster than normal even! A single step of Shunpo off of Air Ground had propelled Hibiki behind Asuka, even if she had moved to dodge his sword swing. From there he launched a pair of Sho, one from each of his hands, at the back of her knees. The goal was to buckle her legs, which might give him the chance for an actual serious strike. He wouldn’t give her a moment to try to recover, as his entire sequence relied on trying to snowball a little advantage into a larger one.

The moment that his Sho were launched, Hibiki transitioned right into the final attack of his sequence. He wasn’t sure if it would all work, and he honestly expected Asuka to probably just turn around, completely unaffected, and prevent his final blow from connecting, but he had to try right? His hands both raised up, each with a fresh blade of lightning crackling off them as he cast another pair of Byakurai. Each Hado was held out in a continuous stream of lightning, capped at just over two feet in length. They were much the same as a sword, except a bit more sparky, and a lot less metal-y. If he wasn’t stopped somehow, and if his plan actually somehow went perfectly, and if Asuka had actually deactivated Hierro, then those twin blades of lightning might just cut her arms off.

No way it would actually work, but at least he gave it everything he had… and boy did he. Sink or swim, he had already broken a sweat for sure. In one fell swoop, that was just under 40% of his reiatsu capacity used. The sequence lasted only a few seconds, especially things to mental incantation, but the sheer amount of techniques he had spammed definitely took a toll on his spiritually weakened reserves. In his prime that would have been nothing, but as he was on that day, he hoped that sequence did something worth doing, because there wasn’t a whole lot left in his tank after he finished it.

Reiatsu: 300/500
-25 for first Byakurai
-50 for Shunpo
-50 for dual sho
-50 for dual byakurai

[Deleted]

Asuka tried to bite back a mischievous smile when she asked her question and tilted her head as she looked at him. She knew she was being just a teensy bit forward. It’d been a while since she’d been like this and her worries took a very temporary backseat as she focused on the Sparkle Wizard before her. She always remembered Shinsei being the most forward and how much fun that was. She also knew that she could be whenever she wanted.. sorta kinda. Asuka didn’t consider herself quite as smooth as either but dammit if she crushed on someone it just kinda blurted out! It was just harmless flirting right..?

”You know it. I’d be real disappointed if I made it out of here without scratches all over my back.”

Her eyes widened and her face suddenly looked fairly flushed as she looked at him. The smaller female would laugh nervously at his comment. Yeah, totally harmless. It wasn’t like her mind was going any places past the backyard. Not here. Not right there. Not pinned up against the tree farther behind them. Not against the side of this house. Not in the jacuzzi. Not on those nice comfy lounge chairs over there by the pool. “Stop. Concentrate. He needs your help.” She shook her head, ridding herself of ‘backyard thoughts’ and brought herself back down to reality.

The Segunda couldn’t help but giggle as he playfully reprimanded her about holding his hand captive and pinning it to his chest. Of course, he wasn’t going to like her stomping on his foot and that was totes fair. That would be pretty painful. “I liked it ahaha~!” Asuka loved all kinds of jokes. Even the worst ones. Even the ones where the chicken is crossing the road! Gosh she loved those ones especially! She always wondered what kind of adventure the Chicken would go on after it crossed the road. There always a different reason every day it crossed the road! It never got old to her!

She pulled him close. Yanking him to her and slightly pressed up against him as she pulled him towards his watery grave. Asuka watched his face expectantly and her grip on his wrists loosened slightly as she’d give him the opportunity to make his move. Any move he wanted… Any day now! She offered him a curious look as she watched him. He seemed lost… but it was a happy kind of lost! Like you went into a candy story or a chocolate factory like that one guy had on T.V!

Gosh! That was her favoritest movie! He had a whole chocolate candy factory all to himself and he made all kinds of sweets! If Asuka ever saw one, she knew that she would easily eat one of everything! Do that and maybe go for seconds! Or thirds! Or fourths! Never fifths. People who went for fifths were just being plain ol’ greedy and that was unhos.. unhospita… unhospit… uhh.. unhospital? Yeah! They weren’t being very hospital and manners were important in a place as cool as a chocolate factory!

Hibiki looked especially good up close. If she wasn’t so focused on training and trying to teach him, she might have said something right there. They were sparring. He wanted to be strong to protect all the people he loved and considered close to him. He wanted to help people. She had to help him get there. How could she not?! He was noble and kind and helpful and cool and fun and cute and really cute and even cuter than really cute. Gosh his eyes were like pretty rubies! Did she notice that before?

She nearly hesitated as she spun and threw him into the pool. It was just a fraction of a second just like before. Fleeting but all too telling. Hibiki was smart. She knew that. He’d pick up on it. “Focus..” she whispered to him as she stared up at him before she finally threw him into the pool, giggling at his circumstances. She watched him amusedly, tucking a tuft of teal hair behind her ears as she watched the now wet Sparkle Wizard pull himself out of her pool.

”Well I can’t rightly fight like this now can I?” There it was again. That light laughter that sounded like chimes colliding with one another on a windy day echoed throughout the backyard. Asuka shook her head and covered her mouth with her fingers. “Nuh-uh aha~! I'lll ge-” He should probably do something about that, shouldn’t he? She stepped closer to him and stopped mid sentence, ready to offer and get him a towel or a dry shirt but stopped mid way and looked on at him in stunned silence. It was as if someone had pressed pause on her.

His eyes locked with hers and for a moment, Asuka found herself unable to look away. As if there wasn’t anything else important in that moment. He threw his fancy General Hospital coat off first. Then he sheathed his sword. However, what came after that was something that felt too wrong to deny. One hand moved to the back of Her eyes fell as he worked his tie and she’d look back at him. “I could help you with that.” She bit the inside of her cheek in an attempt to stop herself from smiling nervously.

Asuka’s smile fell when he got to his shirt. He worked at it slowly and instinctively, she took another step forward towards him before stopping, reminding herself that this was training. She stuffed her hands in her back pockets and her eyes couldn’t help but rove and wander just a little lower towards exposed skin and her face only grew redder and redder with every second he dragged on. It almost didn’t even feel like seconds. It felt like minutes. Hours. More hours! Did it get hotter out here? She swore it must’ve been a hundred degrees!

“..T-Take your time.” She stammered embarrassedly as she realized she might’ve been staring a little too hard. Yet, she didn’t look away. She watched beads of water roll off his stomach and eyes would be back to locking one again. The look on her face would be clear as day to the blondie. It was Asuka that was holding herself back now. It even took a bit of her strength of will to do anything else but respond. Eventually, she forced herself to look away until she heard the tell tale sound of wet clothing hitting the floor.

She looked back to him and couldn’t help but stare for a while with face still as red as a cherry. The suddenly shy Segunda bat her eyelashes at him and nodded slightly. He looked really good and it made her so incredibly nervous. It was silly! It wasn’t like she’s never seen a guy without a shirt! It wasn’t Asuka’s first rodeo! She’s been down that road and yet she felt timid around him. But like.. the good kind? Maybe it was the chocolate cake!? The compliments. The linner. The cooking. The dessert. The after dessert. This.

“C-Course I can! M-Me? Strong? Oh…uh… I um… Y-Yeah!” She was a stumbling mess but she wasn’t looking away either. She couldn’t even if she tried in that moment. She didn’t want to. “Ye… Yeah me Segunda. Strong. Mhm. Mhm!” she gulped. The poor arrancar was helpless against the wiles of this sparkle wizard. Was it an enchantment!? Was it magic!? W-Was it witchcraft?! While ‘yes’ was an appropriate and accurate answer for all three, Asuka was entirely fine with it. Happily dazed and lost, she just nodded, complying with his wishes.

Asuka was back on High Speed Regeneration and to show it, she would… Oh that’s right!! “Wait one itty bitty second, Hibiki!” She darted back into her house at top speed and within moments she came running out with a whip that had a kodachi blade attached at the butt of the hilt. She only had one though. One was all she needed for this kinda. The other was just gonna be way too much and that would be showing off. Nobody liked a show off, right?! They were just all kinds of rude.

The chord unravelled and dropped to the ground and she cracked it just once and moved slightly closer to the good looking doctor in front of her. “Hey.” She greeted him with that charming Segunda smile and winked waiting there for a few moments before breaking out into silly laughter. “Aha~ Just kidding! I won’t use it.. But I do wanna show you something.” She spoke while she held the blade up to her forearm and cut a thin cut into it. Asuka looked to him, nodding that she did what he asked and smiled happily. She winced slightly at the sensation but Hibiki would see the wound seal up immediately and she’d toss her zanpakuto off onto a lawn chair nearby the pool.

Asuka, unlike Hibiki, didn’t have as much experience with kido and magical spells. All she knew was what she saw on Harry Potter, Burn the Witch and Hocus Pocus. All great, top quality Disney movies if you ask her~! That was really her experience with magic. Asuka merely assumed that it was all the same with Sparkle Wizards. Their profession was literally in their race name after all! After seeing it, she was sure that Hibiki was gonna keep using his magical spells.. as he should! If you got it, flaunt it! Right~!?

Thought, that meant that she was likely accustomed to his little tricks. She’d seen him use the one that pushes her and the other which was a bolt of lightning which was just a smidge scarier than the other. Asuka waited on Hibiki to make his move, allowing him to go again. Emerald eyes fell to his zanpakuto for a moment but also to his other hand which she remembered had the lightning bolt last time. He was probably gonna do stuff like that again and use those same magical spells.

It would only be natural for Hibiki to fight in a roundabout way. Realistically, he couldn’t do much to make the Segunda budge so she knew she would have to pay especially close attention to him and his hands. The last time he had distracted her with her blade so whatever he was going to do, it wasn’t going to be upfront. It was going to be hidden amongst all the flashy stuff he did beforehand. That’s what she guessed. Smoke and mirrors… Smoke and mirrors..

Asuka only hoped she would be right on the money. She was somewhat treating it like a real fight. It was like a slight refresher for the Segunda who hadn’t fought a ton since her fight in the throne room. She watched him draw his zanpakuto and he rose his blade in the same manner as he did before. Was he really trying that again? Fool her once, shame on you! Fool her twice, shame on her! She wasn’t falling for that again. No sir. No thank you! Asuka getting the heck outta dodge with that one!

She quickly glanced at the lower hand and decided she was going to start there. He nearly got her with last time and it was little messy. This time it was better to dodge. “Not this time. Sorry.” She really thought that he was going to fire the Byakurai from his lower hand so she quickly side stepped to the outside of it and to what she thought was safety. Though he wasn’t done. Asuka wasn’t going to go on the offensive just yet. There would be a time for that. He used Shunpo and he was gone.

Where did he come from? Where did he go? Where did you come from Cotton-eye Joe? Based on previous experience, he was likely behind her. Obviously, if he wasn’t in her line of sight he had to have been. Most people went for the back including herself. It was the best way to deal with anyone in combat if they had the chance to. As soon as he was gone, Asuka merely turned her head rather than her body, glancing at him from the corners of her eyes, curious to see what he’d do.

He was behind her like she thought but in the air. He looked so confident. Sure of himself. Hibiki was focused and she could see the desire he had to just do something. Part of Asuka was torn. Did she allow it or did she deal with it? Would allowing it be a disservice to him? Would he see it as charity? Asuka was worried about that thought alone but that’s what it would’ve been. At the same time, would being a hard ass like Kuroi scare him off? She didn’t want that either…

Rather than compromise and insult his honor and his determination, Asuka decided on dealing with it. He cast the Sho at her legs and Asuka indeed feel her legs buckle. Both of them. However, instead of just trying to stabilize herself, she purposefully fell to the ground. With her knees buckling she just used the momentum to fall backwards and looked up at him. Was he doing what she did earlier? Creating an opening? This was a whole lot better than trying to stop her from throwing him into the pool! She couldn’t help but smile a little as she felt the kido collide with her legs.

Though, if this was true, that meant that he had something else up his sleeve. If this was the shoving magic spell then the lightning bolt was gonna show up sooner or later. More than likely sooner now that he had cast Sho on her and Asuka was now on the ground. He’d taken a liking to it seeing as he couldn’t actually hurt her and she had HSR active. Unfortunately for Hibiki, she wasn’t in the position he wanted her in to achieve what he wanted 100%.

His byakurai did slice into her but just the tops of her shoulders. There’d be a fairly deep cut as he’d cast it immediately after his sho and on her way down, she’d feel the lightning cut through. However, it wasn’t enough to get her arms off and Hibiki would likely see that. Asuka could see that with more training, Hibiki would be a hell of an opponent for her one day. It was a scary thought but also, not so scary. He wanted to do good things and save people and bad guys need a scary opponent like Hibiki. She’d help him get there. For now, he’d gotten her but it was her turn now. The pain was minimal and it wasn’t anything she couldn’t tough through.

The moment she felt her back against the plush grass, hands quickly snapped out and reached out for his ankles and grasped them tightly. She yanked hard with full strength, pulling Hibiki’s legs out from under him and forcing him to fall backwards like she did a moment ago. If successful, on his way down, Asuka would let go, roll over and quickly crawl over the wet shinigami’s body. Her hand would snap out and seize his free hand, pull it and him back towards her and across his chest. Her face was just inches from his own.

“I think I’d be in lots of trouble if you were captain, Hibiki.” her voice was low and her grip on his wrist tightened. While normally she would be nervous with this kind of interaction, she was focused. In that headspace of a fighter. If he looked to her shoulders, he’d see the wounds closing up. While one hand kept his empty hand away and across his chest, her other hand would reach around to his back. He’d feel nails press against his back, raking down and hard and it would likely be painful. “But you’re not yet! So... I totally can’t let you leave here disappointed. Aha.” The Segunda teased, looking him in the eyes. When she was done, she’d quickly push him back and scramble away and to her feet.

“You’re getting there. I know I'm not the easiest opponent Hibiki. I'm sorry.” She commented looking torn and slightly down. Asuka hoped she wasn’t raining on his parade by not taking his attacks. She didn’t want to take it easy on her and she had a little more insight as to why Kuroi was so rough with her. He’d believed in her back then and to take it easy on her would give her a false sense of hope. Even if he was despair, he wouldn’t have made much sense for him. He wanted to see her soar and maybe being tough was the way to go. While she wouldn’t be half the monster he was, she would definitely be rough with him.

“Again?”

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

Hibiki knew full well what he was doing when the man began to derobe. Yeah, sure, he would actually fight better without wearing a wet blanket, but that was never really the point. It would only have been a minor hindrance. No, the point was that he didn’t really want to be fighting. His mind couldn’t stay focused on the training. Not even a little bit. At that moment he didn’t want to be strong. He wanted Asuka. This was just more setup. More teasing. More… of an invitation. The healer never really had any intention of winning a fight against Asuka, but he had every intention of giving her a show worth watching.

And watch she did. Asuka’s eyes practically burned a hole through Hibiki with how often he caught her staring. All that really did was raise his confidence a bit higher though. His smile grew a bit wider. His focus on the battle shrank as other things did the opposite. He didn’t want to train. He wanted to take the beautiful woman in front of him. The woman that was into him, just as much as he was into her. He wished he was strong enough that he didn’t need to focus on anything else… but his brain nagged at him. He needed to train. He needed to get stronger. He needed the power to achieve his goals.

He forced himself to return his brain to combat, aided by the fact that Asuka had to dart off to grab something. It give him some time to cool his head a little bit, but not all that much. Especially because she returned promptly, with a whip. It should suffice to say that this was a bit unexpected. They’d kissed once and she had already broken out the kinky stuff? Even for Hibiki that was a bit fast. But just as his brain started to stabilize again, she hit him with a “Hey.” He wanted to be all cool and seductive back at her in that moment, but damn he just couldn’t manage it.

The healer was too busy enjoying the fact that this was his life now to come up with anything witty. All he managed was a warm smile and a returned ”Hey.” Clearly he wasn’t scared of the whip. Not in Asuka’s hands. Yeah, she could probably literally kill him with that, but he was like 200% sure that wasn’t why it was out. When she revealed that she wasn’t actually gonna use the whip, he actually lost a bit of his smile. Some fucked up part of him had been looking forward to it. Instead, she just revealed that her high speed regeneration was active again before she discarded the whip. That was enough to snap Hibiki back into combat mode for at least a moment.

Truth be told, Hibiki was flat out of tricks, and basically out of ability to focus. He launched into his combo, knowing full well that if he didn’t start it soon then he never would. His opening sword swing was, unsurprisingly, dodged by the Segunda Espada. She wasn’t that easy to trick. He did at least manage to get behind her, and he did manage to land both of the Sho. The outcome wasn’t quite what he expected though. Rather than dropping to just her knees, Asuka went all the way down. His Byakurai barely managed to graze her, rather than taking her entire arms off. Still though, it was enough for him to be happy with the outcome.

But he didn’t have too long to savor the success of his plan. Yeah, he’d managed to land some hits, but before he could say Uncle he was back on the ground. Shirtless. With an attractive woman on top of him. Was he supposed to be complaining? He felt like he was supposed to be avoiding this situation for some reason. What was he doing? Wasn’t he supposed to be trying to get harder or something? He couldn’t remember anymore. All he could remember was the taste of Asuka’s lips, the sugary scent of her body, the warmth of her touch. Everything related to combat was immediately removed from his mind. He barely even registered her praise.

He felt her nails dig into his back, and instinctively he arched his back with the movement. It hurt, but it was a good hurt. He had just enough pain tolerance to not let it bother him too much. Instead a hushed moan rumbled out from deep within him. He couldn’t control himself anymore. “ I totally can’t let you leave here disappointed. Aha.” With those words, any hope of getting combat to continue was completely gone. Asuka tried to push him back, but she’d find that Hibiki’s free arm had snaked around her and pulled her in even closer. He wasn’t about to let her get away. Not after she’d gone that far.

”Only way I’m leaving here disappointed is if you get back up right now.” Once more, he closed the gap between them and pressed his lips to hers. Before, he had been kind, and gentle. That amount of control was nowhere to be found this time. He had fallen to lust and desire. Every move he made was unrestrained, and filled with a selfish intent to enjoy himself fully. But he only let himself do this because he was confident that this wasn’t a one sided desire. Unless Asuka saw fit to stop him, then he would take her right then and there. He couldn’t stop himself. He didn’t want to stop himself.

All he wanted in that moment was her.

[Deleted]

Asuka thought she’d been the one in control for the most part. At least she thought she would be at the start of the day when she’d met a lonesome Sparkle Wizard at her lemonade stand. She was the Segunda after all. Here to kick butt and take names. Here to teach hot new doctors how to fight evil by moonlight and win love by daylight! She thought that at the very least, if she didn’t have control over how her cookies came out, she’d have control over everything else.

She didn’t. She had the very opposite. Asuka didn’t hate it one bit. It was a rollercoaster of many things and just like before, for every high, there was a low. Back and forth, her mind flickered between Hibiki and Shinsei. It was frustrating and it felt like there was tug of war going on in her heart. Everything was fun in the moment. It was amazing and being around him made her heart race just that much faster. But… that was like last time too, wasn’t it?

No, Hibiki was different. She tried to convince herself desperately. He was different. He was different. He was different No matter how much she tried to beat it into herself mentally, the pain of a failed marriage kept her hostage in so many frustrating ways. It haunted her no matter how hard she tried. No matter what she did. No matter how amazing today was and how happy Hibiki made her, the fear of being abandoned yet again terrified her.

What if she screwed this up too? What if she messes everything up again somehow and he just leaves her. She’d be alone again. Asuka didn’t want that. Still, she willed herself to forget about all that. To forget about the past and that she was in the present. She wanted to live in the now. She wanted to stay here and be with him. When she spoke those words about disappointing him, she was teasing and enjoying the feeling she gave him and the sound he made. She wasn’t thinking about anything else.

Just when she thought they’d go for round three, she was pulled back immediately before she could even think about finding her bearings. Reeled in and she enjoyed every second of it. Asuka felt a gasp catch in the back of her throat and her eyes widened at the sensation of his arm pulling her closer and onto his lap. Her nails hadn’t left his back and her face hovered even closer and her cheeks flushed and that red color on her face was as clear as day as her eyes searched his anxiously.

She remained silent as he kissed her and she took full initiative on deepening it and pressing herself closer to him. She wasn’t stopping him. Asuka didn’t want to. As her lips moved rhythmically with his, she happened to open her eyes and in the distance, she swore her eyes were playing tricks on her. She swore she saw Shinsei looking on like a ghost from Christmas past and she slowed down considerably feeling complete fear and shock. She blinked again and there was no one there. Just the shadowy darkness of the remainder of her backyard.

“S-Stop.” she whispered at first. She hated herself. Her mind was on two things at once and for the life of her, she couldn’t concentrate. She couldn’t give Hibiki the attention he deserved. “Stop. I can’t do this.” she said more firmly, breaking off the kiss and looking at him, her eyes downcast and sorrowful. “I-I’m so sorry, Hibiki.” she place a hand over her mouth half wishing she hadn’t said anything and feeling absolutely awful with herself. Why did she have to think about him? She wanted to forget him. She wanted to forget anything she had with him. Everything. Why did he have to ruin this?

Why did she have to ruin this?

Asuka was a torrent of emotions. “I’m so sorry. I can’t. I-I need time.” She spoke trying to keep her cool and remain as collected as possible though her voice cracked and fingers slipped just under her eyes, catching any runaway tears. She looked away from Hibiki. Looking anywhere but his face was the best option for the girl but she knew that at some point, she’d have to buck up and tell him the whole truth and nothin’ but the truth. However, now was not that time. Now was too fresh and too hard. Later, definitely.

She watched him expectantly, unsure of what to say precisely. She’d been torn on things she wanted to say and things she didn’t want to say because she didn’t know how. Words were hard and sentences were even harder. She barely had a grip on anything, she didn’t know where to begin other than, “I-I have lots to tell you one day, Hibiki.” she hoped he wouldn’t leave her forever and ever like Shinsei did. “If you still wanna hear me out and stuff, aha.” She looked at him briefly before being consumed by fear once again and looking away and gulping. She moved her hand over his. The one with the missing ring and looked at it for a while, hoping that perhaps he’d understand. “It’s just.. It’s really fresh. Y’know..?”

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

You could say a lot of nasty things about Kamikawa Hibiki and be correct. Womanizer? Sure. Flirt? Absolutely. You could call him all sorts of nasty things, especially related to his habits when it came to trying to get people naked. This was especially true before today. It was just a part of who he was. But despite all those nasty things you could say to him, there were just as many positive ones. He didn’t use alcohol or drugs to achieve that. No, Hibiki used his personality. His compassion. His understanding. The moment that he heard Asuka whisper “S-Stop.” against his lips, he immediately broke off the kiss. His desires were strong, but consent was not something that could be negotiated.

In that moment, he was terrified. He knew full well he had given in to desire. He knew that he was naught but a slave to lust as he lied there beneath Asuka. He had thought it had been the same for her. He had thought that her feelings for him had been identical. He’d been a fool. He’d pushed too hard, too fast. There was desire, yes, but there were plenty of other things as well. He had pushed his luck, and now he’d risked ruining it forever. Did Asuka hate him for what he’d done? Did she thing of him as just another fuckboi out to rip her pants off? He didn’t know anymore, and that left him scared to hear what she said next.

As he was then, the healer was frozen. After that first “stop” came another, more forceful one. “Stop. I can’t do this.” Some rational part of his brain went and told him that this meant it wasn’t his fault. That this was her saying she needed to move slower. Not that he was evil or she hated him or anything. However there was a much louder voice that screamed in his head that you fucked up big time loverboy. Those were the kind of words that people said when all the fun was over. He wasn’t worried about not getting laid or anything. No, this was so much worse than something so carnal.

Hibiki was truly and deeply afraid that he’d lost Asuka with that move. Her smile. Her innocence. Her joy. He was worried that his weakness, his compulsion to be with her, had cost her what he found himself desiring most. His thoughts were in a very dark place at that moment. They’d known each other for what, hours? Not even a day. He knew of her from when Amaya met her, but that didn’t really count. And yet, despite them knowing each other for such a short time, he couldn’t picture life without her in it anymore. The poor man was absolutely head over heels in love with her, and he’d gone and ruined it.

“I’m so sorry. I can’t. I-I need time.”

Oh thank God. That was a line that, though he was a bit ashamed to admit it, Hibiki had heard before. What it wasn’t though was “Fuck you you pig. Get your hands off me.” He couldn’t really picture Asuka saying something like that, but she could have said a lot of other things that effectively translated into “this is over.” But that wasn’t what she said. She said she needed time. He had moved too fast, yes, but she implied there was a future. The knot in his stomach untied just a bit. He was still in hot water, but the fear that he had ruined everything forever had subsided. There was still plenty of time to fix his mistakes.

He watched as Asuka grabbed his hand with hers. The one that had the slight tan line around where a ring once was. He knew why she was in pain. It had been selfish of him to move this fast. He knew that. And he knew what Asuka needed then. She needed not just time, but she needed to be understood. To be accepted as she was. He had pushed her to a place that she didn’t want to go, and that was something he would regret for quite a long time. The only way to make it up to her was to prove that he was in this for a relationship, and not just a quick fuck.

One of his hands gripped hers, and the other was still on her back. He pulled her into an embrace, but moved his head to go past hers. Though they were still on the ground, it was a calm, reassuring hug. The spark was gone for the moment. It wasn’t a romantic maneuver, but rather the kind of thing that would be given to a best friend after they’d had a really shitty day. He stroked the hair on the back of her head, and gently spoke into the Segunda Espada’s ear. ”No, Asuka, I’m the one who should be sorry.” Until Asuka indicated she wanted to move, he would hold her there, gently stroking the back of her head to try to calm her.

”I didn’t know how recent it was, and I didn’t want to push you past where you were ready to go.” He adjusted the grip he had on her hand, so that he could stroke over that spot on her ring finger. ”You must have a lot on your mind, and it doesn’t all need to be said today. However long you need, I’ll wait for you. I’ve never met someone else that made me feel how I do about you, and I want you to know that I’ll be there for you whenever you’re ready.” He wasn’t sure what else he could say to her. Clearly Asuka had a lot of things that she needed to work through.

It was frustrating though. Not because they had stopped, but because he didn’t know how to help more than that. He’d dealt with some situations like this when people had come to him professionally for counseling, but it was way different to deal with it yourself. What could he say? What could he do? He didn’t have the answers. All he could do was support her, but he didn’t know how. Though he stumbled through it, he tried to put his feelings into words. ”Until that day comes, just let me stay with you. When you’re ready, there’s plenty of things I’ll want to tell you about too… but if you’ll still have me, then we have the rest of our lives to wait until that day comes.”

[Deleted]

Unless I miscounted, and I'm not counting again, you two have 336 paragraphs.
1,680 CTP for ya'll.