Settle For Nothing [closed/Shinpei]

The shinigami would not weasel his way out of this one. His stern stare never left the womanizer as he dismissed his date, not exactly in the smooth manner many women would have expected of Shinpei. He was probably like every other man of his creed, rotten on the inside despite the sweet aroma they tried so hard to exude.

And when he began grasping at straws, or so Hanbei believed, maybe he was just trying to taunt Hanbei further, Hanbei’s eyebrows furrowed, unsure of whether he was serious or not. Magdela could sport fair cleavage, but hardly enough to be remembered as ‘the one with big tits.’

Maybe he doesn’t-

No, he’s playing you the fool. It’s bait, rather good bait too. He might be more snake than I am. Stop being one of the many women he’s sweetened and stick to your guns.

Sabi was ruthless as always when it came to anything regarding his ex-lover.

Matching Shinpei’s cool and collected as he adjusted his zanpakuto’s, Hanbei shook his head, shrugging off the jab about her not missing her boyfriend. But his use of the word slut did finally set him off. A step back placed his right foot on the edge of the fountain, which he pushed himself off of into the air to leap at Shinpei. The arm extending his zanpakuto fully rotated once to add to the momentum, ready to lock blades as he put all of his strength into a single swing downwards at the bridge of the glasses on the nose of his rival. The kopis was quick to strike, but lacked the weight of most other zanpakutos, something it shed once released, but that wasn’t required just yet. Shinpei’s blade looked like it would be a standard katana, although one could never really tell until it has been drawn.

“The irony of you tossing out the word slut.” He spat. “I’m not her boyfriend, but I should be. I’m just the bitter ex that she can’t seem to get rid of. I can assure you, I’ve been trying to get my mind off it for decades.”

It was hypocritical for him to have even come here. How long had he been fading himself on the coin of Clan Abazu? Months of liquor and whores, and not enough good fights had only reinforced the subconscious self-loathing he had been containing. He shouldn’t been calling out some guy on some shit that was half as repugnant as the state the ‘vacationing’ shinigami had kept himself in. It was more like an extended spring break at this point, the closest brothels in the surrounding Rukongai knowing him by name for making offers to the most attractive of their employees to be a temporary concubine, until he bored of them of course.

WC- 466/1191. GP- 9/23.

“You can’t dismiss me, I’m not a student or servant. I came here on my own volition, and I will stay and take my leave when I choose to, I will not be swayed by your poltroon words.”

From the simplicity and precision of Shinpei’s actions, Hanbei was quick to understand his skill in zanjutsu. Although hardly a complex attack, it had been shrugged aside like the attack of someone who had picked up a sword for the first time. As Shinpei talked and sheathed his zanpakuto, he lowered his own as well.

Water under the bridge. He found the use of the idiom ironic, considering that bridge had been burned, rebuilt, and burned again many times. It was a predictable sequence between Hanbei and Magdela, both willing to move mountains to make the other one happy, but always focusing on the few choices neither was willing to budge on. Perhaps they were willing to budge, but after their first breakup over one of these choices, it had become an unspoken competition of who would hold out the longest. They loved arguing, they did it well. Maybe other couples took out their frustrations by making love, or calming themselves separately, or food, or any other outlet, but these two preferred heated words, feeling it showed how passionate they were of each other. Sometimes lines were crossed, sometimes it led to the bedroom, but more often than not, it ended with both shinigami smiling stupidly at how silly the argument had become.

“It would rather be silly to be embarrassed for loving someone I think. Have you ever loved someone Shinpei Minamoto? Perhaps your suave air is the result of a broken heart? Maybe not, I really wouldn’t know. But that is what it is to love someone, to be hurt by their actions, to love them regardless of how they might hurt you. Love is insanity, it rusts the most righteous man’s morals, and damns even the truest of convictions. I accept it if that makes my crazy and damned. But my word does it hurt. It kills what little sleep I already get, it takes up too much of my thoughts, and more than a fair share of my worries. I’m hurt the same way she would be if she knew about some of the things I’ve done to try and move on from her.”

The guilt in his heart had unburied itself once again. He grimaced, knowing how much alcohol it would take to quell, but perhaps there was another way.

“You know as well as I do how this should end. I can tell you’re quite good with a blade, so your hesitation sure as shit isn’t for your own welfare. Draw, I will not have my fight denied because of underestimation of my ability or your laziness. Kill with our heart Sabi Shokan.”

The kopis erupted sand, elongating and rusting into its regular khopesh. Having done this action hundreds of times before, Hanbei was quick to notice how much more sand than normal had come with the release.

Someone’s in a good mood.

If we leave without my sand and his blood mixing, you won’t be finding me so agreeable. Let me show him how unpleasant being so numb can be.

He loved hearing this much drive in his zanpakuto spirit’s remarks. They were often in each other’s favor, but it had been some time since such perfect alignment between the two. In fact, it was well before today, stretching all the way back to before being beaten senseless on a beach, then left for dead in the land of Hollows, then tortured and humiliated, and finally rescued, just to return to his miserable days as a shinigami, and now not even that much even, just a paid thug. It had been well before he had ever needed to worry about the name Ipos.

WC- 648/1839. GP- 12/35.

“Poltroon just so happens to be one of my favorite words actually. You’re one to talk if you’re going to toss out ‘maiden’ like it’s still relevant outside of fantasy novels. And-“ he shrugged, half of his mouth twisting sheepishly, “-I know she’s not a maiden.”

He doubted many shinigami were virgins, decades without sex was almost unheard of on Earth, and even though death eliminated the biological urge to bump uglies, sexuality was still innate amongst people. He may as well had been a virgin twice over considering how long been between coupling with Magdela and the various women he was sampling now.

He almost groaned at Shinpei’s play on words. Love was indeed a hassle, but one had to feel it to truly understand why it was so consuming and addictive, much like being indoctrinated into a cult. He loved the way it hurt, like the pain before you burst a zit, or the relief of letting a wound breathe after tearing off a scab or bandage.

It’s funny how he doesn’t think I’ve accepted her actions. This is how I accept it, otherwise I’d be nursing a triple back in a shit hole in the Rukongai. Physical therapy over substance therapy.

As Shinpei set his footing, he began letting more sand pour from his zanpakuto, keen on putting up a screen as soon as the Minamoto closed in to strike. He anticipated a flash step with the draw to beat Hanbei to his counter, which would be a slash downwards. That would allow the sand to fall at the strikers face, possibly blinding him to allow a quick riposte after the maneuver.

He didn’t even see the draw.

The force seemed to explode against his khopesh as he swung down, scattering all sand from the blade as the wielder was flung back. The wall of the establishment a dozen meters behind stopped him, but not without sustaining an impaction in the ambiguous shape of a person. Hanbei grunted as he pushed himself from it, still surprised at the sheer speed and power of the draw. He shook off a few pebbles and slight hint of dust and renewed Sabi Shokan’s generation of sand.

“Sorry to hear that, I’m a bit of a kill joy you see. Never played well with the other boys in the school yard. Found the girls much better company as you do, although for different reasons I imagine.”

A pillar of sand had solidified from his hilt, completely hiding the blade within from sight. He launched himself from the vertical divot, hacking at Shinpei, hoping to catch him off guard at some point by concealing the true dimensions of his buried zanpakuto. The khopesh had many curves, and catching one unprepared would allow Hanbei to push the blade wide for an easy opening.

WC- 470/2309. GP- 9/44.