Seventh Star

A Bleach Reimagining

The unmistakable flash of orange caught her attention before anything else, through the crowds and the decorations with their bright streamers rustling like giggled wishes.

Orihime stood up quickly, dropping the small bag of bread crumbs to the ground in her hurry to gain Kurosaki’s attention.  The crumbs scattered over the cement, kicked by the solitary step she took before cloud of magpies descended around her, shrieking and lunging for the bread.  For just a moment she could still catch glimpses of his turned back through the tangle of slick feathers.  Just before the black wall closed about her he turned, his gaze searching out the cause of the commotion.

Their eyes met.

Ichigo.

And then the very air became a kind of darkness, allowing only a swath, a river of pin-pointed light through before her.  She reached forward, unsure of what she sought, but knowing her life meant nothing if she could not touch the other side, could not hold onto . . .

Altair.

She saw him now, his strong face illuminated by the ebb and flow of the stars between them.  He held his hand out as far over the Amanogawa as was able.

The darkness thinned, becoming a twist of beaks and claws spanning the river, connecting his side to hers.  She lifted her foot to run across to her love, but he called across to her.

“Vega!  Let me come to you lest the bridge prove unsafe!”

So she waited as he made his way over the flapping, cawing path, every moment exploding in her breast as if brought closer to Heaven itself.

But when Altair had gained two-thirds of the distance Vega discerned a rumbling overhead and felt a distinct cloying wetness spread through the air.  Rain.  Knowing the birds would fall from the sky should it pour down on them Vega lifted the hem of her garment and began to run toward Altair, not caring that they might both be lost in the vastness of space and cloud.  At least the would be lost together.

Altair also noticed the threat of thunder and had increased his speed, no longer heeding the dangers in stepping too heavily.

Fingers and hearts flew forward, stretched, shoved, pushed, lurched ahead.  No more than the tiniest bits of existence spread between them, but they were enough. The first drop of moisture splattered against the backs of their hands, their skin a breath from touching.

Magpies broke away beneath each of them, peeling back onto themselves like the curling pages of books.  Vega tried to heave herself across the gap, threw her body at Altair, but the churning tide slammed her backward, dazing her.  Altair’s orange hair was the last thing she saw before falling into nothingness.

“Inoue!  Inoue, are you all right?”

Orihime opened her eyes, seeing the blurry outline of a face close to her own.  The features sharpened into those of Ichigo.  She raised herself up on her forearms and searched the ground around her.  The magpies had disappeared.

“I don’t think I’m hurt, Kurosaki, thank you.”

“Well, let’s get you off the hard ground then,” he said, and offered his hand.  Orihime began to accepted, her small palm fitting into his grasp perfectly and he helped he up.

“I’m glad I ran into you, Inoue.  I thought maybe we could write down our Tanabata wishes together and then check out the festival afterward.”

Orihime looked down at her hand still clasped with Ichigo’s and smiled.

Tanabata.  The evening of the seventh.

“Yes, Kurosaki.  I’d like that very much.”

*Please note all characters within this short are the property of Tite Kubo and belong to the Bleach universe..  This short was written for the express purpose of supporting the Third Annual Ichigo x Orihime Tanabata Festival.  No profit is being made from this project.

*P.S.  Also?  Kara better feel loved because she knows I don’t typically do fan-fic.