Hotaru Tokugawa- Shinigami ♥ (approved)

Shinigami Application
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Name: Hotaru Tokugawa.
Alias/Nicknames: Haru.

Age Two hundred and fifty-nine.
Visual Age: Nineteen.

Zanpakutō's Name: Kiyohinote.
Division: Fifth Division.
Rank: Captain.
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Personality:

Surprisingly Bright: Hotaru is rather intelligent, despite her normal behaviour. She thinks quickly, and can tell you what an entire meeting or book was about, from memory.

Clumsy: In short, she falls a lot. She’s been known to trip on a doorway, fling papers into the air, drop something on her head, and fall into someone else.

At the same time.

Polite (and yet not.): She talks with titles, but even if she doesn’t know the person, she will call them “-kun” or “-chan”. She doesn’t mean anything by it, she is just overly familiar and trusting for her own good.

Reader: She reads a lot, and usually has a novel of some sort tucked under her arm or into her robe. She specifically like poetry, mysteries, and romances. She can read while walking, and won’t bump into anyone.

Nightmares: Hotaru is plagued by the site of her best friend bursting into a concentration of ashes. An event that occurred while she was still residing in the Rukongai. The reoccurrences have lessen and now she only has the nightmare a couple of times a month.


Birthday: The fifteenth day of the tenth month of Seventeen fifty one.

Birthplace: Kyoto, Japan.

Natural Race: Japanese. (?)

Family/Relatives: None.
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Likes: Men, art, poetry, sake, music, food, sleeping, flowers, butterflies, cats, pretty scenery, books.
Dislikes: Jerks, arrogance, chocolate, dogs (In all sense of the word.).
Hobbies: Reading, writing, making nicknames, trying to do work.
Favorite Food: Octopus!
Favorite Music Really any, but she likes soft music more so then other genres.

Special Skill: She fights adequately, and specializes in hand to hand.
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Appearance



Outfit:

Hotaru’s robes have only one sleeve. The other shoulder is much like a tank top strap. It synchs around her waist with a large white belt. And it’s a skirt instead of pants. Her captains jacket has it’s sleeves though, and falls to about knee length.

Height: 167.5 cm.
Weight: 140 lbs.
Blood Type: O.
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Story


History:

Born in Kyoto Japan, a young girl named Hotaru was the youngest of three. She grew up quickly, maturing as her father raised her by himself, her mother having died giving birth to her.

Hotaru's father, Koutaro, owned a local dojo that taught the local children and any adult willing to try the way of karate. Koutaro also taught his children so that they one day replace him as Shishou. Hotaru fought well, dispite her small size that she got from her mother. She was intellegent, able to trick her opponents into a false sense of security with an act of a innocent girl, then beat them into the ground with what her father taught her.

Then, one day a horrible event occured. Her brother Kazito died suddenly from heart failure. Hotaru had just turned thirteen, and though it was a shock, she didn't cry. At the funeral she remembered back to the night of Kazito's death. He had been competing in a serious fight for the state championship. The opponent had accidentally hit him illegally, his hand slipped when Kazito tried to block. Instead of hitting him in the middle of his chest, the mans hand skimmed over Kazito's arm and slammed into the rib just over his heart, breaking it off and into Kazito's heart. At the hospital later that night, after Kazito had collapsed, the doctor had told them that the instant the rib had pierced his heart, his heart froze. and he died with out feeling most of the pain...and that sadly there was nothing that could have been done.

Kazito was buried in the dojo's private cemetery at a public service for all who wanted to come. Many fellow students of Kazito's collage came in groups, their eyes rimmed with red and their voices hearse. One girl in general caught her eye, a young woman she had only met a few times. The girl had been Kazito's fiiance, she still wore the wing on her hand.

Hotaru walked up to her, one hand clasped on the taller girls skirt as Hotaru looked up at her. As she did she suddenly felt a familiar presense. She glanced to the side and Kazito was standing there, smiling sadly at the ground. Hotaru looked emotionlessly at Kazito, who glanced at her. "Can you see me?" he asked quietly.

Hotaru merely nodded and Kazito blinked, a tear running down his cheek, "Can you tell Mizuko-chan something for me?" Again Hotaru nodded and he bent down, whispering in her ear.

A moment later she looked back up at Mizuko, who was sniffing loudly, "Mizuko-san. Kazito says that he loves you and that he's sorry. He says that you need to move on as soon as you can, to find a healthy man you can love as your own. He says you can keep the ring, even though it was mothers. He said he'll miss you."

"W-what?" Mizuko gasped, tears pouring from her eyes again. She knelt down and pulled Hotaru onto a warm hug, and from over Mizuko's shoulder, she watched her brother stand there in the rain, smiling at her. She smiled back, one small tear running from her eyes as black blurred in front of her vision, and then he was gone. A black butterfly flying into the sky.
***********
At the age of seventeen, Hotaru had come to peace with the fact that she could see ghosts, but sometimes they got on her nerves. "Heello there~" one purred at her and she glared death at him until he went away sulking.

It was one of those days, the one where the rain has no breaks and the day where you forgot your umbrella had haven't a ride home because you missed the last train.

So you have to walk home.
In the rain.
For twelve blocks.

She sighs, "Fuck...." she muttered before setting off.

Hotaru half ran, half walked home as several ghosts passed her on her way, she hated this part of town. Ever since that building collapsed there were almost a hundred ghosts floating around. But there was one she liked, he was a small boy. He was quiet and polite. He talked to Hotaru on the way to her place, holding her hand. She hadn't seen him for more than three weeks now though, and it worried her.

She entered the ruins of the building for a moment, looking around. "Has anyone seen that little boy lately?" she asked to the empty air. A old woman drifted forwards, "Oh it's you dear. That little boy is no longer here sadly...."

Hotaru looked down at her hand, where she carried a small cardboard airplane she was going to give him, "I see. Thank you anyway Oba-san."

"I'm sorry you brought that toy again for no reason dear, terribly sorry." The old woman smiled sadly.

"It's fine. It was just sitting in my trunk anyway...I..I have to get home. I'll come see you another day." Hotaru turned quickly, practically running for the open door way.

She burst into the street at full speed, the airplane in her fist. She was running down the wet sidewalk, desperate to get out of this rain already when she noticed something that made her blood freeze. She was suddenly changing directions, running towards a small boy in the middle of the street.

No…

She reached him just as the carriage boar down on them. Hotaru watched, as if outside her body, as she shoved the boy out of the way of the incoming carriage, then turn, having not enough time to move herself before the horses slammed into her, sending her tumbling under foot.

Pain flashed though her mind and blood poured from her lips as their hooves crashed down on her ribs, breaking them. One drove itself into her lungs, which started to fill with blood immediately Then they crashed down upon her skull. She felt the bone shatter, and the slick blood starting to flow. The hooves came down once more, this time the back of her head cracked open, spilling blood, hair, and flesh onto the cobblestones. And then suddenly she was laying on the ground alone, the horses and carriage gone, the boy had run away. All was silent except the sound of pouring rain and Hotaru’s breathing. Blood pooling around her face, her breath coming in gasps as blood filled her lungs. She started to tremble, tears pouring from her eyes as the rain continued on, drenching her where she lay. She watched as the rain continued to pour down on her, pouring over her face, washing away her life’s blood. She clenched a fist over her chest as her vision darkened, scared of what was to come. She breathed once more, and then her heart stopped it’s frantic beating, and her eyes closed in a horrible, and yet peaceful passing.

***********
”Hey! Wake up stupid! You can’t just sleep in the middle of the road y’know!” Hotaru opened her eyes to see and girl with a babyish face grinning down at her. Hotaru looked at her confused, her mind felt…..fuzzy…. The girl grinned impishly and backed away slightly to stand in front of Hotaru, who immediately realized she was lying in the middle of a busy street…in some sort of robe. She leapt up instantly, ”Holy crap!” she yelled, looking around in shock. ”Where the hell am I?!” The girl started laughing, grinning from ear to ear.

Hotaru frowned at her, ”What?”

The girl stopped laughing, wiping at her eyes. ”Your just….precious. I love you already.” the girl jumped closer to Hotaru happily hooked her arm in hers, ”Let’s go see the others, I’ll explain on the way.”

The Soul Society, a large area. A place for the spirits of those who passed on from the world of the living. Left here with almost no memories of who they once were, only minor facts. Your name, and that’s it. Die here, and you will just go back there, to live a new life without memories. There was a place called the Seireitei, that the Rukongai circles, and there lies those who possess special abilities, and they are called Shinigami.


Her name was Hotaru, and she was dead, but yet alive. It confused her as the girl explained, weaving through facts and rumors, some true some not. She listened closely as the girl talked, then paused in her step.


The girl turned and looked at her frowning, ”What’s wrong?”

”How….how do you know all of this?” Hotaru asked slowly.

The girl simply grinned, ”My brother was a Shinigami!”

”Was…?”

The girls smile slipped slightly, ”He…died…last year…”

Hotaru blushed, ashamed for asking. ”S-sorry!”

The girl smiled sadly. ”It’s fine.”

Hotaru realized something, ”Say…I don’t know your name.”

The girl smiled, ”It’s Sana ."


***********



Hotaru soon figured out that people age slower here, as she looked at Sana closely one morning. She had asked how old she was years ago, and had been shocked to hear that Sana was old enough to be her mother, but to her, Sana appeared to be only twelve at the oldest. She looked at herself often in broken mirrors or any water surfaces but couldn’t tell any differences in her features.

Time passed quickly in the Rukon, with everyone busy with their daily lives and the children and older ones running around, stealing anything they needed or could run away with.

And recently there had been a rumor going around that someone from their sector was going to go into the academy, and another one in the northern sector too. Hotaru wanted to go watch but the boys had thought it was a great time to steal for the little one’s while the adults were all fawning over the shinigami-to-be. So she stayed and helped.

Several of the kids she lived with had disappeared, and no one knew where they were. But Hotaru told them that either they had died and gone to the world of the living again, or would wonder back to the camp eventually.

They never did.

***********

She counted in her head as she stood in front of the camp. It had been roughly ninty-four years since she had been found laying in the street. Give or take some, it was hard to judge time in the Rukongai…..

She looked up as Sana exited their tent, the smaller girl immediately grinned, and Hotaru returned the grin with interest. ”So where to today Sana-chan?” She had recently adapted titles into her speech, wanting to let her friends now that she truly cared for them with the indearments.

Sana shrugged, ”Wanna check the market?”

”Sure.”

They started off, walking in comfortable silence as they pushed through the crowded streets with ease. Sana looked at Hotaru briefly, before turning her head away. Out of the corner of her eye Hotaru spotted her bite her lip. She stopped at the opening of an alley, pulling Sana in with her. ”Is something wrong Sana-chan?”

Sana looked at her feet slightly uncomfortably, ”Uh well….It’s none of my business…but Haru…’ She said slowly, calling Hotaru by her nickname made so many years ago. She looked up at her suddenly, ”H-have you been having trouble sleeping? I-I mean, I noticed you tossing and turning a lot in the night for a while now….and…uhh…last night you woke up and walked outside….and well I’m worried about you!” She finished in a rush.

Hotaru smiled, patting the shorter girls head, ”To be truthful, I have been. I’ve been having….weird dreams…..I guess you could say.” Hotaru didn’t know how to quite explain it. She kept having a recurring dream lately, and it last night it had both shocked and frightened her. And when she woke up bathed in sweat, she needed some cool air.

Sana looked at her closely, and Hotaru say something flash through her eyes, but it was gone so fast Hotaru wondered if it ever was really there. ”…what kind of dreams?

Hotaru tilted her head to the side, thinking. She closed her eyes and the dream came to her in such clarity that it would have been shocking if it wasn’t somehow calming. ”I’m always on a fiery path. And blurry shapes call out to me. I can only hear a couple words though, and it starts to bug me. I yell back at it and I always get the same answer. It says ’Learn my name and all will be clear.’ but….last night….the shape….suddenly became clear….”[/b] Hotaru opened her eyes to look at Sana’s white face, ”Sana…their…[I]dragons…..” she whispered, frightened from the memory.

Sana looked at her and smiled at her warmly, ”It’s prolly just a nightmare, c’mon, we have shit to grab.”

Hotaru grinned and they raced out of the alley together, deep into the crowds of the Rukongai.


***********

Hotaru grunted as she dropped a jar of candy onto the floor of the meeting hall, Sana beside her. The children all chattered excitedly, and the older kids all grinned approvingly. Their leader walked up to them, patting them both on the back. ”Well done ladies, now!” he turned to address the mass amount of bodies crammed into the scabby room, ”Okay! We’ll ALL be sharing this got it?! You!” he randomly pointed at one of his more trusted “officers”. A young boy with black hair that fell into his eyes. ”Divide it up among the youngin’s first! Then the older one’s!”

The boy nodded and he and several others rushed forward to start spliting it up.

Their leader turned once more to Hotaru and Sana, who were smiling at some of the children. ”So where did you get this from?”

Hotaru grinned, ”That old geezer down by the troughs had left his stand unattended for a moment. We nicked it while he was in the can.”

The leader laughed and clapped them on the back again, ”Good job!”

Sana and Hotaru smiled, ”Thanks!”

He turned away to help and the girl shied away to the back of the room, watching the children all line up, and the helpers hand them each a handful of candy on a napkin.

Hotaru sighed, leaning up against the cool wooden wall, “Man, my back and arms hurt from carrying that stupid jar.”

Sana laughed, ”I know right, it weighed like, TWENTY POUNDS!”

Hotaru laughed with her, her shoulders and wrists stiff. ”Agreed. Lets NEVER find jars full of rock candy ever again.”

Sana giggled, ”Agreed. Though I like how the children are getting along now.”

Hotaru nodded, watching the little ones sit in big circles and trade candies with each other. For once there wasn’t any scrape going on.

Sana sighed, ”I wish this kind of peace would stay forever… her voice monotone and sorrowful.

Hotaru looked at her, slightly shocked, ”What do you mean Sana-chan?”

Sana looked away quickly, “Nothing. Never mind.” She started over to the line for candy and left Hotaru against the wall.

Hotaru watched her walk away, concern for her best friend, and curiosity of why she was acting so weird crossed her mind. She closed her eyes and stepped out of the room onto the evening streets, unnoticed.

***********

Roughly Ninty years later, Starting in a dream…

The place was ablaze with light. As far as the eye could see the sky was a mixture of clouds and fire. Hotaru stood upon a large cliff of molten rock, embers of glowing black and purple shining though the crusted surface. She looked around her in amazement. This place felt…somehow like home to her. The clouds thundered but no rain fell. Instead it felt as if the heat around her was intensifying in concentration. And Hotaru turned as she felt a rush of hot air from behind her, to come face to face with the monster of her dreams.

A dark dragon with a mixture of black and purple scales looked at her, its gaze wasn’t threatening, more…..intuitive….

She looked at it for a long moment before lowering herself in a curtsy. She felt this somehow right, like this huge figure was something she were to respect and still fear, but not to cower from.

It looked at her shortly before opening its great maw, revealing row after row of long, dagger like fangs. ”So, are you finally ready to hear my name? it rumbled it it’s duel voices. The voices were odd. They belonged to the same person, but at the same time, they were of different contrasts with the other. The main voice was that of a man, his tone sneering and of annoyance. While the other was female, soft and compassionate.

Hotaru nodded slowly and the dragon stepped towards her, lowering its head to look at her closely for a moment before raising it’s head to it’s fullest height again.

It’s mouth opened again, and this time the voices joined together to speak it’s name plainly, as if it was obvious.

”Kiyohinote.”

----

Hotaru jerked awake to screams and cries fore help. The heat that had been around her in the dream had intensified, and Hotaru leaped to her feet.

The camp was on fire.

She looked around her in horror, the flames eating though material and people. Consuming all it could take a hold of.

She looked down at her flaming hands in horror as she watched people fall in front of her and Sana’s tent, screaming as the flames ate into their flesh and killed them slowly. Tears started to fall as more and more fell.

My fault…..

She looked around desperately for Sana, and spotted her standing in the middle of the ruckus, completely unharmed. She raised her gaze to Hotaru’s tear streaked and horrified face.

”It’s your fault.” Sana spoke plainly, looking at her with no regret, no guilt at the words she had uttered to her best friend.

Hotaru stumbled forwards and grasped her friends arm, ”What do you mean?!”

Sana sneered, her face blackening. ”It’s your fault this happened. You and that power of yours. It’s all your fault!!” she yelled before suddenly bursting into a blast of black soot.

Hotaru stood frozen, staring agape at the spot were her friend had just stood. Where now the only thing left was a few flecks of soot, the rest gone in the wood.

She fell as the world, her home collapsed around her.

She cried for her comrades. She cried for the children.
She cried for her best friend, who had died by her hand.

But most of all, she cried for her lost innocence.

***********
They found her there, laying in the ashes of the fallen camp and the ashes of the dead. They only took one look at her and shook their heads.

They came ‘too late‘, is what they muttered to each other. And ‘what a shame it had to end like this.’

“They”….The Shinigami.

They knew nothing.

Nothing of the horror she had witnessed.

And nothing of the shattering of her heart.

Sana was dead.

And it was her fault.

It was all her fault.

She let them lift her into their arms, and let them carry her away.

She didn’t care anymore. She just wanted it to stop.

She wanted to stop.

**********
She took the lessons they offered her.

She took them so there would be no “next time”.

She sparred frequently, and found out she favored hand to hand combat.

The first thing had enjoyed since that night.

But still, she trained only so she could learn to control “it”.

She crossed swords once more.

**********

She was placed in the Second Division, the trainers, teachers, and some Captains that visited the Academy a lot thought it best for her. They thought it was a good fit.
She went through general guard duty, messenger, and other small tasks.

She heard the Sotaicho and her Captain talking one night from outside of the barracks on night when all the Shinigami were to be in their quarters. Hotaru had stayed behind to
help clean, ad was only now on her way home.

”There is one child in your Division I’d like to talk to you about…The girl named Hotaru.” The Sotaicho sighed.

She heard her captain sigh, ”Yes that girl…I’ve been having some difficulty with her as you probably already know Sotaicho.”

”Yes I know. All the captains have noticed her behavior is rather…apathetic…in the least. But I want to know if you’re willing to let me transfer her to Squad Three, I think the Captain would be able to teach her a few things.”

Her captain didn’t answer for a moment but then sighed again, ”As you wish sir. Prehaps it will be a better experience for her.”

”All right, I’ll go talk to the third Captain then and get the correct paper work to hand over to you in the morning.” Sotaicho grunted, standing up.

Hotaru jerked away from the door and ran to the back of the building, hiding in the shadows. Her heart crashed in her chest loud enough that she was afraid the entire Seireitei could hear it. She waited a few moments then sprinted home, curious about her
fate tomorrow.

**********
She sat facing her new Captain, who was smiling calmly at her. She fidgeted nervously, her Zanpaktou at her side…she didn’t touch it very often, but at first meetings, to bring your respected weapon was mandatory, so Hotaru had no choice.

The captain poured tea for themselves and Hotaru before speaking, ”So, you were
transferred here because the Sotaicho believes I have something to teach you…”

”I know.” Hotaru answered softly.

The Captains smile widened slightly, ”Oh? Do you know? Tell me, how is that? I believe your previous captain told you nothing of the reason…”

Shit! Hotaru yelled mentally. She wasn’t supposed to know anything the Captains discussed, but since she had listened in yesterday she already knew why she was to be
transferred.

The Captain laughed at her wide eyed fear, ”Don’t worry about it. Sotaicho knew.”

”The…Sotaicho…..knew?” Hotaru whispered softly and the Captain smiled at her.

”Yes, he felt your reishi around the barracks, and knew you had been listening.”
The Captain paused, looking at her, ”Are you angered by his decision?”

Hotaru looked at the Captain, surprised. Then their question sunk in and she thought about it. But after a minute she shook her head, ”No. Should I be?”

The Captain smiled, ”I do not know. But I have noticed something about you Hotaru-
san.”

She cocked her head at the Captain, ”What?”

”You do not touch your Zanpaktou.”

Hotaru looked at the floor, uncomfortable again. ”I…I…I think I am afraid of it
Captain….”

The Captain sighed, ” A Zanpaktou is a curious incident. It is in the shape of a sword, and yet it its own person. And that “person” presents you with great powers, most which must be respected. Your sword Hotaru, seems to be waiting for something. Can you
think of what?”

Hotaru nodded, ”It’s waiting for me to accept it. It already told me so.”

The Captain nodded, ”Hotaru-san, there is something that you must figure out. It isn’t bad to fear your Zanpaktou, after all it is a powerful entity, but you must also respect it. A Zanpaktou is copy of your soul, and inside that sword is someone that’s just like you.”
Hotaru closed her eyes and thought that over, mulling over the Captains words.

“It is tr ue.”
She smiled as her sword spoke to her in its calming yet haunting voice.

Okay...


**********


Hotaru started to change, slowly opening her heart to her Zanpaktou, listening to the voices in her dreams more often. She also found out that they had human forms. One was indeed female, and called herself “Kiyo”, while the other was a man, who took the name

“Hinote.” She learned everything her Zanpaktou had to share, though Kiyohinote really wanted her to learn it herself, but they still taught her how to control their flames in condensed forms. They told her that the night she had heard their name was an accident, and that she had not been quite ready to control it. They apologized frequently until
Hotaru told them to stop, and that it wasn’t their fault.

She still thought it was hers after all.

The nightmare still comes now and again, waking her up with such force that she always bangs her head on the wall next to her futon.

But they helped calm her, always lurking in her subconscious.

She smiled for the first time to her comrades and it resulted in several shocked faces and
lots of cheering.

Her whole personality changed drastically, making her more like her old self from the
Rukon. She started reading, any novels she could get her hands on, even manuscripts.
She was happy for the first time in five years.

**********

Fifty-Three Years Later.

”I’d like to announce the position of Taicho for the Fifth Division goes to Hotaru Tokugawa.” The Sotaicho’s voice boomed, and the other Captains smiled at her. She wore her new captains jacket and spotted Kiyohinote on her hip.

A grin split her face as the Captains came to talk to her, all of them patting her on the back and congradulating her.

She had some so far.

Kiyohinote warmed slightly on her hip and Hotaru lowered a hand to touch it’s hilt.

“Cong ra ts.”


Hotaru laughed.

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Fighting Style: Combination attacks and Hand to Hand combat.
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((Oh god. That ending is sooooooooooooo cheesy. Sorrysorrysorry!! ><))

approved, good job

Thank you very much! ^__^