Don't fear the Reaper

[Orihime Inoue]

When death came for Orihime, a final sensation of agony overcame her body, followed by an embrace of peace. She knew she gave everything she had to protect her friends while fighting until her last painful breathe, but it wasn't enough - it never is.

After death tore into her flesh, it gently swept her off her feet and carried her away. With the girl cradled against The Angel of Death's bust, it whispered, "Can you protect my people from the ground?" while rocking her softly. "No," her mind responded without sound, "I can't protect anyone".

Without warning, Orihime was sitting in a single-person rowboat, floating inside a sizeable pond. She found herself unable to move, with her arms sitting neatly on her lap, and her gaze never leaving the shore. There was a thick, coarse rope tied to a steak several feet past the shoreline, and fastened to the rowboat.

Erie silence encompassed the scenery around her that slowly nibbled away at her sanity. This place was unrecognizable, other than the glittering snow atop the overcast waters. It made her think of her place in the frosty pines, of the troll village, and it made her think of home.

Everything stayed the same in this pace, including the dreamy snow, except one thing. With every heavy blink of her eyes, she saw someone waiting on the waterfront. Orihime would see her brother, and he would just smile the warmest and loving smile with outstretched arms. Had she not already known her brother was dead, and not in this world, she would have rushed to him.

Orihime would see her friends, Sasuke and Victor on the beach. They were both masked, head to toe in blood that dripped from their body, and pooled at their feet. Both of their expressions were horrified, and they mouthed her name before disappearing. Seeing her friends in distress kept Orihime locked up and away from the shoreline.

The girl believed that her presence in this world was of no use to anyone. Sure she was able to help that spirit find some sort of rest, but what good was helping the dead if she can't seem to help the living. Aware of time passing by, the minutes went on with every falling snowflake, and Orihime stayed sitting on that boat.

[Orihime Inoue]

She had been sitting on the dinghy for so long, the world felt like it was repeating itself in an endless loop. This dream kept her frozen in place, with time passing her by with each snowfall. It was memorizing, and Orihime was entangled within its trance.


Why leave a familiar position? When the roots have been established in the foundation of a place, why abandon its comfort? For Orihime, this pleasant bliss was the paradise she was always looking for.

Perfect snowflakes danced around her, and the water she floated in stayed calm. In fact, the only ugly and uncomfortable thing about this place, was that she was plagued with images of her loved ones on the shoreline. Other than that, she could and would, stay here forever.

That was until the darkness came which started as a thunderstorm on the horizon. The storm came rumbling towards her, turning the once blue sky into something far more menacing. When the darkness was on top of her, nothing was visible except her, the boat attached to the shore, and the water she floated on.

As soon as the blackness consumed everything, Orihime noticed the once sparkling snowflakes had turned into what appeared to be blood. It quickly covered her, and turned the crystal clear pool into a literal bloodbath. Her beautiful dream world was now a nightmare that she could not wake from.

"What is happening?" She thought, reflecting for the first time in what felt like ages.

Without getting the chance to give it more attention, she saw the image of a troll, standing on the shoreline, where the other apparitions had stood prior. She had never seen him before, he was hooded, and his presence made the world feel cold and lonely. Orihime felt an overwhelming psychic energy about him as well, which made her heart heavy.

Before she could have another thought, the troll started to pull the rope, bringing her closer towards him. The girl's heart was racing as she found herself, face to face with a troll who couldn't have any possible way of seeing. His eye sockets were empty and his lips where tinged an uncomfortable blue. 

The troll quickly pulled out what looked like a claw, and knelt down close to her face. With icy, chapped lips, he whispered, "Time for Orihime to awaken." before plunging the claw deep into her chest.