The Anime Lover's Must Read: One-Shot Collection

Favors ~Hisagi/Kensei One-Shot~

"Let's just keep it this way, alright?"

"I wouldn't want anything else. But you do understand that that kind of thing isn't possible anymore."

"Wish it was."

"And the same goes for me."

Words exchanged between the two echoed in the fields that they currently lay in. A crisp bright blue sky above and luscious green grass below, the place was a calming escape from reality. Reality was full of faults and sad things, but here, reality didn't seem to exist. It truly was their tiny, happy paradise. With her head on his chest and his arms behind his head, they could afford to be with each other.

He was going to be assigned to that mission. To discover why Shinigami were disappearing, leaving only their clothes behind. Though most said it was just a Hollow, there were rumors floating around that it could be something more than that. She refused to believe it, despite the feelings inside her, nagging her to realize that it was true. She couldn't hang to fantasies forever, no matter how much she truly wanted too. It simply couldn't be done; she knew the harsh reality of what could happen. Shinigami could and would eventually die. It came in the job description.

"You understand, right? That we won't be able to be together now," Words she wished had never escaped past those lips of his. But she nodded, regardless, hand tightening its grasp on his shirt with mixed emotions. He felt the movement and closed his eyes. He had expected her reactions, expected every damn last one of them. Though she was never one for tears, she would cry her eyes out and scream for him not to do this. She would react the same as if he would tell her he was leaving her. But he wasn't, it was just a dangerous mission, where everyone who had been sent to investigate would die in the end. He didn't know if he would, and prayed he wouldn't.

"I do. Are you sure you have too? Can't you just make a different Captain do it?" She knew that would be horrible to do; they didn't do anything wrong. And here she was suggesting to push the mission on some other poor soul who probably didn't deserve it. She felt despicable, like a truly bad person for saying that, but she didn't want him to go. She couldn't let him go.

"I have to go, no matter what," He said to her, almost coldly, though he regretted speaking to her like that when he felt his chest become damp with tears. He opened his eyes, suddenly remembering something from earlier that week. "I want to know... Could you do me one last favor before I leave?"

"What is it?" Her voice sounded broken and a little desperate, as if the world was crashing around them and she had lost all hope of surviving the disaster. Which, she had in this case. "What do you want me to do?"

"I saved a boy once, in the outskirts of the Soul Society. He looks like he might become an amazing Shinigami one day... I want you to find him and stick with him. Got it?" He asked, recalling the boy's name. "He said his name was Shuuhei, Hisagi. It's not a common name, so he shouldn't be hard to find."

"Hai, I will find him..." She lifted her head and claimed his lips, not breaking away until she felt like she would faint due to the lack of oxygen in her system. He had placed a hand on her cheek, which she leaned into. The feeling of his skin was calming, so relaxing... Did it really have to disappear? Reopening her closed eyes, she gazed down at him. "As the last favor between the two of us, I will... Kensei."

He only smiled a little back at her, ignoring the tears that fell from her eyes onto his cheeks. "Arigatou..."

~~~=o=~~~

That was last conversation between the two of them. He had disappeared that night, along with several others, ranks including a few other Captains and Vice Captains, had also vanished. That was just about 100 years ago. It was old news, in the past, done and over with. But she couldn't make herself move on; it was too painful for her. She couldn't abandon Kensei, even though he was gone. And she knew she shouldn’t dwell in the past; he wouldn't have wanted that.