Of Fire and Ice (Solo)

It had been a tough week. Kasumi hadn't slept a wink and he could feel his brain rotting and his body decaying even as he trudged his way to his dorm and to his bed, flopping down face first in the soft pillow and sighing wistfully. He was asleep as soon as the last wisp of the sigh escaped his slightly parted lips. The odd combination of the feel of heat and cold at the same time awoke him. At first, he kept his eyes closed, and then there was a flare of blue from one side and a flash of red from the other. As the flashes seemed to intensify, water splashed over Kasumi's form. With a sputter, he arose, anger etched on his features as he looked around and found himself in a familiar landscape he had seen in his dreams since arriving in Rukongai; He was in an arctic landscape, with craters littering the ground. Within these craters lay pools of boiling fire, spitting and hissing, constantly releasing steady streams of thick water vapor. Without warning, spikes of seemingly condensed flame rose through the icy ground and

"Back down. We know who this boy is. Kill him, and we're both done for." said a heavy, commanding voice, though it had a coolness to it that Kasumi couldn't place. As his vision cleared of the dripping water, the image of two largely contrasting figures appeared, though at first he thought he was hallucinating. Never had he seen such beings of wonder, yet such frightening, contrasting visages of beauty and grace, all rolled into one. One being was of fire, and he hovered above one of the larger craters, one of his clawed hands held out at him. As the being clenched his fist and lowered his arm, the flame spikes disappeared. Kasumi then looked at the other being, seemingly the personage of ice, which was crouched before him, tail swinging about. This had been the one that had spoken, Kasumi knew. He smiled wryly, his mind whirring. This had to be a dream, he knew, because this couldn't be what he thought.

Spoiler:

"You are here uninvited, boy. What is it you want?" asked the fire-clad one. It had a snarl in its deep voice, and Kasumi shook ever so slightly from the terror it actually spiked in him.

"I-I uh- Um..." Kasumi stuttered, utterly bewildered, his thoughts having been wiped away by the resonance the voice had seemed to strike within him.

"OUT WITH IT!" snarled the heated being. Kasumi actually fell back this time, his eyes widened in terror as the flaming creature took a step forward. He swallowed hard before he tried speaking again.

"I want to know why I'm here in the first place. Where is here in the first place. And who or what are you things?" Kasumi asked, scratching at his head of white hair.

"Oh, but you know who we are, you just don't know you know yet. As for where you are, you are in our domain. You are within yourself, and we-"

"Don't tell him anymore!" interrupted the Blaze, which is what Kasumi decided to call the crueler personage, "He must find out on his own if he wishes to know."

Kasumi was confused for a moment as his mind worked over the statement, then it hit him, "You're my Zanpakutou!" he cried, elation clear on his face. There was a harsh laugh and a dismissive sniff as the kinder personage, whom Kasumi mentally dubbed Snow, replied,

"We are not yours yet. You have yet to even hear our name, therefore, you are not ready. Now, sleep, young one. We will meet again, soon enough."

Kasumi sat bolt upright in bed, a film of cold sweat covering his skin. He grimaced and peeled off the layers of clothing and found a pair of cotton shorts he'd brought with him to Seireitei when he was accepted to the Academy. He sighed as he lay back in bed, his mind wandering over the possibilities of his Zanpakutou and what their appearance could symbolize for him. Eventually, he drifted off to sleep again, this time undisturbed and peacefully, for the first time in a while.