Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ It Felt Like Drowning ❯ 1 ( Chapter 1 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: c2t2 
Rukia considers the past
Anime/Manga: Bleach Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Comedy / Drama / Romance | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 11.25.2012 | Pages: 1 | Words: 700 | Visits: 184 | Status: Work In Progress
Rukia considers the past
Anime/Manga: Bleach Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Comedy / Drama / Romance | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 11.25.2012 | Pages: 1 | Words: 700 | Visits: 184 | Status: Work In Progress
Title: It Felt Like Drowning
Author: c2t2Part 1.1
Summary: Renji, Rukia, Ichigo. This is their story; told in layers.
Standard disclaimer: I do not own Bleach and do not make money.
5 Important Notes:
1. Chapters are not in chronological order. They are in the order that makes sense. There will be two story arcs.
2. “Overlapping streams of consciousness” is the best term I’ve got for the style of arc 1. Each repetition of the past reveals a different layer of meaning. Arc 2 contains (as close as I get to) lemons. I finally feel like a true fanfic writer!
3. The ship was going to be RukiRen, but Ichigo jumped in, and who am I to dismantle my OT3? The fic contains various combinations of all three.
4. The fic’s set post-series, and is canon-compliant up until the present (chapter 510 or so), but obviously I can’t guarantee it will stay that way since the series is ongoing.
5. The whole thing is written, and I will update once a week
Arc 1
Chapter 1: Rukia considers the past
“I couldn’t sleep when we first entered the Academy. Renji, the big oaf, can sleep anywhere, but I hated being alone in bed. It was cold, and even if he snores like a boar with a busted snout, Renji is always warm.”
Inoue’s eyes grew huge, “You and Renji-san are together? I knew it!” Her smile was dazzling.
Rukia realized her mistake and backpedaled, “No! No, not like that! We grew up together with dozens of us crammed into one room. The only way we could all fit was by practically stacking.”
“Oh. Well, why not?” Inoue’s eyes were wide and sad. Rukia detected a hint of something below the surface. Orihime was a little too involved in this matter, even for her, but Rukia did not pry. They were each entitled to their secrets.
“It’s... complicated.”
It really wasn’t. But Rukia wasn’t going to tell Inoue, sweet, gentle Inoue, what life in Rukongai was like.
The street children in Inuzuri rarely lived long. About forty of them slept in the one-room hovel, but during the day they broke into smaller groups. Those groups became even closer than kin. One of the strictest rules in Inuzuri gangs was that no one form a romance within one’s group. It would have felt incestuous to begin with, and survival depended on unity and cooperation. Distraction usually meant someone’s death.
Following the rules hadn’t saved their friends. She tried not to think about it.
They’d all had... well, experiments – Rukia wouldn’t profane the term “lovers” by applying it to essentially artless fumblings against an alley wall – anyway, none of the other kids would think twice when somebody snuck out in the middle of the night. Rukia herself had been profoundly underwhelmed by the whole experience and decided it wasn’t worth the trouble.
Wondering if the fault lay in the dirty street urchin she barely knew, Rukia had tried again when she and Renji had entered the Academy. But the results were again disappointing.
After the adoption, Rukia gave up completely. Nobility had a different set of rules in their empty, elaborate courtship rituals. Rukia knew to count her blessings where she found them. Even as a child, she had been fortunate.
As bad as Inuzuri had been, it could have been even worse. At least in the 78th the adults only tried to kill you if they noticed you. In the 79th district the people acted more like injured and ill-tempered animals. In the 80th, the “Zaraki” of childhood nightmares and whispered stories, the residents were not people at all, but blood-crazed demons who craved violence and fed on pain.
Few shinigami knew what life was like beyond the glittering mansions of Seireitei. The dark secrets shared between survivors made “romance” shallow and absurd.
Author: c2t2Part 1.1
Summary: Renji, Rukia, Ichigo. This is their story; told in layers.
Standard disclaimer: I do not own Bleach and do not make money.
5 Important Notes:
1. Chapters are not in chronological order. They are in the order that makes sense. There will be two story arcs.
2. “Overlapping streams of consciousness” is the best term I’ve got for the style of arc 1. Each repetition of the past reveals a different layer of meaning. Arc 2 contains (as close as I get to) lemons. I finally feel like a true fanfic writer!
3. The ship was going to be RukiRen, but Ichigo jumped in, and who am I to dismantle my OT3? The fic contains various combinations of all three.
4. The fic’s set post-series, and is canon-compliant up until the present (chapter 510 or so), but obviously I can’t guarantee it will stay that way since the series is ongoing.
5. The whole thing is written, and I will update once a week
Arc 1
Chapter 1: Rukia considers the past
“I couldn’t sleep when we first entered the Academy. Renji, the big oaf, can sleep anywhere, but I hated being alone in bed. It was cold, and even if he snores like a boar with a busted snout, Renji is always warm.”
Inoue’s eyes grew huge, “You and Renji-san are together? I knew it!” Her smile was dazzling.
Rukia realized her mistake and backpedaled, “No! No, not like that! We grew up together with dozens of us crammed into one room. The only way we could all fit was by practically stacking.”
“Oh. Well, why not?” Inoue’s eyes were wide and sad. Rukia detected a hint of something below the surface. Orihime was a little too involved in this matter, even for her, but Rukia did not pry. They were each entitled to their secrets.
“It’s... complicated.”
It really wasn’t. But Rukia wasn’t going to tell Inoue, sweet, gentle Inoue, what life in Rukongai was like.
The street children in Inuzuri rarely lived long. About forty of them slept in the one-room hovel, but during the day they broke into smaller groups. Those groups became even closer than kin. One of the strictest rules in Inuzuri gangs was that no one form a romance within one’s group. It would have felt incestuous to begin with, and survival depended on unity and cooperation. Distraction usually meant someone’s death.
Following the rules hadn’t saved their friends. She tried not to think about it.
They’d all had... well, experiments – Rukia wouldn’t profane the term “lovers” by applying it to essentially artless fumblings against an alley wall – anyway, none of the other kids would think twice when somebody snuck out in the middle of the night. Rukia herself had been profoundly underwhelmed by the whole experience and decided it wasn’t worth the trouble.
Wondering if the fault lay in the dirty street urchin she barely knew, Rukia had tried again when she and Renji had entered the Academy. But the results were again disappointing.
After the adoption, Rukia gave up completely. Nobility had a different set of rules in their empty, elaborate courtship rituals. Rukia knew to count her blessings where she found them. Even as a child, she had been fortunate.
As bad as Inuzuri had been, it could have been even worse. At least in the 78th the adults only tried to kill you if they noticed you. In the 79th district the people acted more like injured and ill-tempered animals. In the 80th, the “Zaraki” of childhood nightmares and whispered stories, the residents were not people at all, but blood-crazed demons who craved violence and fed on pain.
Few shinigami knew what life was like beyond the glittering mansions of Seireitei. The dark secrets shared between survivors made “romance” shallow and absurd.