Dreams

The walls were drenched in blood, dark red marring pale grey. I barely had time to wonder why I was in a concrete room of all places, no door or windows in sight, before I noticed I wasn’t alone. In the center of this strange fortress was a couch and on the couch, a woman - a beautiful, breath-taking woman at that. I took a moment to admire the casual way she sat, as if the world revolved around her and she knew it. She left little room on the couch for me, though, but that was fine. I didn’t mind standing.

“Mmm, so Kisuke-san’s finally decided to pay me a visit.” She smiled coyly, shifting to kneel on the couch and inch closer to my side of the room. “I never thought I’d see the day when Kisuke-san trusted himself enough to meet me.”

I bit my lip, confusion obvious. “Who are you?” I could make her out better now in the dull lighting, my eyes finally adjusting. Her crimson hair flowed down her back like a waterfall stained scarlet and her eyes, a warm reddish brown, reminded me vaguely of changing leaves as they bored into my own. I felt odd under that stare of hers, as if she knew everything about me and wouldn’t be above using it for her own reasons. Perhaps I was over-thinking the matter completely.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” she taunted, smirking in a manner reminiscent of my self. “You’re still a loooooong way off from hearing my name, dearest Kisuke-san.”

“What?” I furrowed my brow in thought, trying to remember something that was escaping me. What was it I was forgetting? Nothing made sense here. I remember … going to bed. Yes. After class. Class? What class was that? Kidou … right, it was kidou! But then that means …

“Yes, you’re dreaming, Kisuke-san. Jeez, you’re slower than I thought you’d be.”

I directed a glower her way, still trying to figure out how she played into all this. I’m forgetting something, I know I am … What am I? Who am I? That was easy. I was Urahara Kisuke, shinigami-in-training. Shinigami … shinigami use …

“Any daaaay now would be nice,” the woman, whoever she was, teased pitilessly. This was just getting annoying. If the woman wanted me to come up with some form of a rational opinion, that needed time! Especially since this was a dream and my mind even now refused to process that. She acted like I was supposed to know everything about everything. Of course, I liked to believe I did, but I didn’t. Not everything, at least. Perhaps most everything was a more accurate term …

“You’re … my zanpakutou?”

“Bingo! We got ourselves a winner!” She clapped her hands merrily, smiling a self-satisfied smile. “Now, what can I do for you, dearest?”

My confusion only grew. “What do you mean? I don’t need anything from you … not now, at least. This doesn’t make any sense. I thought …”

“You thought that a zanpakutou only appears before its wielder in a time of need, correct?” I nodded apprehensively. “You thought wrong, then.” She inspected her nails for a moment, then turned her relentless gaze back to me. “How boring you are. I would have assumed you’d be more amusing, what being like me and all.”

“Why did you choose now to appear?” I demanded. “Are you just here to insult me?”

She stood with such grace and poise I almost envied her for it. “I didn’t choose anything, Kisuke-san. You are the one that choose to finally meet me. So, tell me, before you fell asleep … what was on your mind?” She had walked closer now, fingers curling to hold my chin in place as she pinned me back against the bloody wall I had been standing in front of. I bit down harder on my lip, eyes flickering with despise. Why was there so much blood? Why was my soul, my zanpakutou like this?

It was simple, though: it reflected what made me, well, me. It reflected, in all actuality, my contempt for myself. However, I couldn’t quite understand why I was here. What had happened? There had to be some kind of reason I was here, there just had to be. Now what was it?

“Silly, silly, Kisuke-san. Why don’t you just ask me?” I attempted to turn my head away, tired of looking at her, but her grip on my chin didn’t waver. She kept me in place, and she was barely even applying any physical pressure. “I think you knoooow why you’re here, anyway, you just can’t comprehend it.”

I humored her. “Then, do tell. Why am I here?”

“Because of him.” Unexpectedly, I felt as if the bottom had fallen out of my stomach with that simple, unpretentious answer. It wasn’t hard for me to guess who she was talking about, at any rate. It was obvious where this was headed.

“What do you mean, ‘because of him’? This has nothing to do with him,” I bit out with a glare.

“You realize it, don’t you? He was what was on your mind when you fell asleep. After three whole years, it finally hit you how much he means to you. It scared you, didn’t it? You wanted someone to tell you it’s all right to love him, it’s all right to want more than he can possibly give. That’s why you came to me.”

This was ridiculous. Her accusations were both unnecessary and unwanted. I had already known. “So?”

“You want my answer, huh?” I raised an eyebrow expectantly. She raised one to mirror my own. “Fine, I’ll tell you since you want to know so badly. Give it up, Kisuke-san. I may not be able to see into the future, but I know a lost cause when I see it.”

“That’s … not what I wanted to hear.”

“I know.” She released her hold on me, and I sank to floor without her support. Blood smeared down my back with the movement, but I hardly cared. It was only a dream, right? Then why did I have the feeling this woman, whoever she was, spoke the truth?