dream
Zabimaru was in bankai form, and Kiba stood in the middle of his coils. Nothing surrounded them but darkness, and the only light was the reiatsu steadily pulsing between the joints of the giant skeletal snake.
And for some reason, he was wearing that stupid Sparta outfit, complete with cape, underwear and fake beard.
"What is it now, fuck?" He scratched the side of his head, red hair loose over his shoulders.
Zabimaru lifted his head, opening his mouth wide; inside flickered images of people and places.
A building with the number 6 on the front of it.
A battered hut, that looked barely capable of keeping out the cold.
A sad-looking little girl and a boy with red hair sweeping the yard in front of a store, while a dark-haired man watched. Another man in a green and white striped hat bent down to offer a dish of milk to a black cat.
And in a field, with the sun shining brightly overhead; a bald man holding a spear stood next to a dark-haired man with an orange collar. Blood perched on the shoulders of a giant man with spiked hair. Hakuteiken and Kazahana stood together. A white-haired man stood with a man with a pink robe. A buxom blond stood with a surly looking boy with white hair.
Toushi stood with a girl with orange hair and a sunny smile, a boy with dark hair and glasses, and a taller boy whose dark hair covered one eye.
The images stopped; Zabimaru closed his mouth. "We fell."
Kiba sobered; that's right. The fire. He'd saved some people, recovered his bankai...then died. Shit.
"Yeah, you did. It was pretty over the top, even for you." Bastet appeared, sitting cross-legged in mid-air before him, wearing a long white dress and a crooked grin. "Nice underwear."
His face flooded with color, and he looked away, grumbling. Of all the people to show up.
"Kiba," she said, her voice surprisingly gentle. He turned back in surprise to see her looking at him wry affection. "Time to come back. Did you forget who's waiting for you?"
His face firmed, resolve filling him. "Never."
Bastet's grin hardened, growing more challenging. "Then--"
She was interrupted by an imperious bark he'd know anywhere. "Then wake up, fool!" Kazahana appeared in the air next to Bastet, her only clothing a replica of Zabimaru that wound around her body, covering the bare minimum necessary for decency.
"What the fuck are you wearing?!?" he yelped, trying to keep his eyes from her long, bare legs.
She rolled her eyes. "Irrelevant," she snapped, shooting forward to plant a small foot in his jaw.
The blow knocked him backwards and he landed on his ass, opening his mouth to retort. But as his eyes caught Kazahana's, her anguished, expectant expression caused his irritation to immediately die.
"Wake up, fool," she whispered.