Lethal Hornet, Timid Healer
Disclaimer:
I don't own the rights to anything related to the anime Bleach
The rights to that anime belong to…other people…
Chapter 1: Ambush
Beep…
Beep…
Beep…
That was all she could hear in this pitch black world. Its monotony made her feel sick.
Beep…
Beep…
Beep…
She tried moving her hands only to have them twitch slightly as they recognized what felt like cloth. She tried moving her arms and legs, but they felt weighed down as if they were made iron. She even tried wiggling her toes, feeling some satisfaction and relief as she felt them move slightly.
"Where am I," she asked herself, her eyes still exposed to utter darkness, "Am I…dead?"
The thought frightened her somewhat, though she found it ironic that a being of death would fear death. Pausing for a moment, she attempted to gather her memory.
"I was…on a mission…" she slowly began, "And then…I was ambushed by a hollow…no it was a…"
Beep, beep, beep…
The monotonous sound increased its pace as the word "Arrancar" suddenly flashed into her mind, her fists balling up as she linked the word to public enemy number 1: Sosuke Aizen, the man who betrayed the Soul Society. A frustrated growl escaped her as she remembered the carnage Aizen's lackey created.
"Damn it," she yelled, "I should never have let my guard down…"
She paused for a moment as someone's yelping filled her ears, followed by a "thunk" sound when a chair suddenly made contact with the floor. She could hear the scurrying of footsteps, one set, followed by the opening and closing of a door.
"Someone else was here…" she thought to herself, coming back to wondering where 'here' is. She attempted to shift around on the surface she was laying on, feeling more cloth underneath her, "This is obviously a bed…"
The word 'bed' created several unpleasant scenarios in her mind. "A bed…I could be…" she shuddered, as a feeling of vulnerability came over her.
"Don't worry…"
She heard a muffled voice, obviously female, reassure someone before she heard the sound of a door opening.
"Are you awake, Soifon?"
"That voice…" Soifon thought to herself as she slowly forced her eyes open, spotting Captain Unohana. She stared at the Captain for a moment, before examining her surroundings, and pieced together that she was being hospitalized. Her attention returned to Unohana again and she caught sight of the bluish-black haired boy standing behind her.
He timidly glanced up at the 2nd Squad Captain, locking eyes with her briefly, before quickly turning his sights to the white floor and fidgeting his fingers.
"I'm glad to see you're okay," Unohana smiled with relief.
"I feel terrible…" Soifon replied, attempting to sit up only to have a pain surge throughout her body that caused her to drop back onto her bed.
"Hanataro…" Unohana began, catching the boy's attention, "Would you kindly allow me to speak with Captain Soifon in private?"
Hanataro nodded slightly before quietly exiting the room, leaving the two captains alone.
"…Am I…the only one…" Soifon sadly asked, receiving a nod from the Captain. Soifon clenched her fists as she looked away from Unohana, "…And the Arrancar…"
"It escaped and completely avoided detection after it attacked your group. The 5th Squad members who found your group couldn't detect even the slightest trace of its spiritual pressure," Unohana answered, sensing the anger building up in her colleague.
"Damn it…Why didn't I see it coming…" Soifon growled, once again attempting to sit up only to meet with the same results as the first time. "When I find that…ugh…"
"There's no point in blaming yourself for something like this," Unohana informed the injured Captain as she approached her bedside, gently placing her hand on the woman's shoulder. "And you should focus more on recovering, rather than revenge."
"But…" Soifon tried to argue only to receive one of Unohana's 'looks,' calming her down, "F-fine…"
"Good," Unohana smiled triumphantly. "Now, make sure to get plenty of rest and try not to move around too much, otherwise you'll end up reopening your wounds," she added before heading towards the exit.
"W-wait, Captain Unohana," Soifon called out, "…How long will I be here for?"
"Until I say so," Unohana smiled, receiving a somewhat distressed look from Soifon, "But don't worry, I'm sure Hanataro will be able to help you pass some time."
"Hanataro?"
"Yes, the boy who was with me just a few minutes ago," Unohana replied as she headed out of the room, "He'll be your caretaker from now on."
Soifon quietly watched as the door closed behind the Captain and forced herself to sit up. "Hanataro…Caretaker…" Soifon mumbled, frowning, "I don't need a caretaker…It's not like I'm some defenseless chi-"
"Oh, and one more thing," Unohana rang as she poked her head into Soifon's room, causing the 2nd Squad Captain to nearly jump out of her skin, "If you try to escape before I give you the 'okay'…"
"I-I won't…" Soifon replied, not wanting Unohana to finish her sentence.
"That's good," Unohana smiled before finally leaving.
Soifon waited for a few seconds before letting out a relieved sigh. She knew, as well as all the other Captains of the Gotei 13, that while Unohana is 99% of the time a kind and gentle person, she wasn't in anyway someone to be trifled with. "She is one scary woman…" she muttered, glancing at her bandaged arms.
But that is one of the reasons Soifon admires her.
Soifon's ears perked up at the timid sound of two knocks on her door. "…Come in…" she called out, prompting the door to slowly open as the boy from before stuck his head in, "Oh…It's you…Do you need anything?"
"A-actually…I was wondering if you needed anything, Captain Soifon…" he timidly answered, trying not to look directly at her. "Th-that's all…"
"No…" Soifon bluntly replied, stunning the boy. She paused for a moment and locked eyes with him, "You're Hanataro, aren't you?"
Hanataro nodded slightly, "Yes…Captain Unohana assigned me to overlook your recovery and-"
"I don't need a babysitter," Soifon mumbled loud enough for him to hear, "And I…"
Soifon and Hanataro, judging by the look on his face, felt an uncomfortable amount of spiritual pressure fill the room, followed by Unohana's third appearance.
"Hanataro, I'll need you to help out with a few Squad 11 members in the western ward. But don't forget to check on Captain Soifon after you're done."
"Yes, Ma'am," Hanataro nodded as he exited the room.
"Oh, and Soifon," Unohana began as soon as Hanataro was out of hearing range, "Hanataro will be dispensing medicine to you on an hourly basis, so you two play nice."
Soifon watched as the Captain once again took her leave and let out a small sigh.
"This should be a fun vacation…"
-An hour later-
Soifon was silently lying on her side, contemplating what she'd do when she found the Arrancar who killed her subordinates and left her for dead.
"One thing's for sure…" Soifon grumbled, "That Arrancar isn't going to be walking awa-"
Knock…knock…
Soifon let out a small sigh, refusing to give Hanataro permission to enter in hopes that he would go away. That obviously didn't work as he quietly entered the room anyways.
"C-Captain Soifon," he timidly whispered. She pretended to be asleep and closed her eyes, mentally wishing for the boy to leave. Instead of heeding her wish, he tip-toed closer and watched her 'sleep'.
Soifon actually felt a little violated, but that violation was replaced by a prideful rage when, unfortunately for him, Soifon heard Hanataro mumble: "She's so…cute…" The Captain's eyes shot open and she immediately sat up to glare at the boy, causing him to jump nearly ten feet in the air.
"Cute? What do you think is 'cute'?"
"N-nothing, I-I didn't say anything, honest," Hanataro exclaimed, waving his hands in front of him, "I was just…just…just coming t-to give you your medicine…"
He then pulled a vial with a skull on it from his uniform, to prove his point. A wary look appeared on Soifon's face as she looked the vial over. "Are you sure that stuff's okay to drink," she questioned the boy as he pulled out a spoon.
"Oh, it's safe to drink, otherwise Captain Unohana wouldn't have told me to give it to you," Hanataro answered, relaxing a bit.
He carefully poured some of the light red liquid into the spoon and attempted to raise it to Soifon's face. "I'll do it myself…" she stated in an irritated tone. She attempted to move her pain stricken arms to grab the spoon, but they refused to listen and remained at her sides. "…Then again…I guess it couldn't hurt to let you do this once," she mumbled, a bit sheepishly.
Hanataro smiled slightly, only to wipe it away at the threat of Soifon's glare. He gently raised the spoon to Soifon's lips. She hesitated for a moment and she glanced up at the healer while asking again whether or not he was sure the 'medicine' was safe. He nodded and she finally took the spoon's contents into her mouth.
The medicine was sweet, a really good sweet, though she didn't let that fact register on her face. "…Are we done here…" she bluntly asked, saddening Hanataro, "Because if we are…"
Hanataro nodded slightly before taking his leave, "W-would you like me to turn the lights off?"
"No…"
He didn't say anything and respectfully left the captain's presence.
Soifon sighed as she lied back down on her bed and pulled her covers closer to her. It wasn't that she didn't like Hanataro; it's just that she hated the vulnerability she felt as a result of the condition she was in.
Also, to have someone of a lower rank look after her the way Hanataro is assigned to do added to her feeling of vulnerability.
"But that medicine was good…" she mumbled before licking her lips.
-About one month later-
Over the few weeks she had been in the hospital, Soifon had developed an acquaintanceship with Hanataro, though the boy was still very shy in her presence. He had, however, become a tad bit more comfortable with her as time passed.
In fact, when it was time for her to leave Soifon almost didn't want to go, though she wasn't sure why.
"But…" Soifon thought aloud as she slammed down a big red stamp on yet another document before placing it aside and reaching for a new one. "Someone has to deal with all this paper work and I certainly can't trust Omaeda to do it…"
She paused for a moment and slowly examined the paper in her hand, placing the red stamp aside. "…Ugh, another delivery error…This is for Unohana's squad, not mine…" she sighed, "I should hurry and send this to her."
Soifon paused for another moment and smirked slightly.
"I should deliver this to her personally," she thought as she moved from her work desk and exited her room, "It will get to her faster that way…"
She reflexively smiled as she locked the door behind her and tucked its key safely in her pocket. "Besides, I should probably check to see how Taro's doing…"