Held by the Hours [Koga/Hana]

The night had passed, but another was quickly approaching, and Koga still hadn’t woken up. Kaminari had placed him under a form of kaido that kept him sleeping peacefully while his body healed. If he were awake, he’d be in unbearable pain. It turned out his injuries were far worse than just the burns. Kaminari said that he’d likely been in a fight before coming to help her against Akira. That realization left a pit in Hana’s stomach, and she couldn’t bring herself to leave his side.

With dinner approaching, Hana had already turned one offer for food away. She didn’t think she could keep it down. They weren’t in a hospital building, but a large tent, divided by paper walls. Koga laid on a raised stretcher, not a bed. Too much had been destroyed and a lot of resources had already been used, so this was the best they could do for him. Hana sat on a small cushion, her zanpakuto placed next to her, and her head laying on the edge of Koga’s stretcher, close to falling sleep.

'Please... wake up, Koga...'

Feeling the stretcher shift beneath her, Hana barely reacted, dismissing it as Koga moving in his sleep again—just like the last ten false alarms. But the moment she heard his voice, her eyes snapped open, and she lifted her head. Koga was finally awake. Hana gasped, her hands hovering over his shoulders, but she froze, afraid to touch him. Her fingers trembled as she hovered over his arms, his hands, his chest... She couldn’t find a safe place to make contact and eventually gave up.

"Koga..." she said, sniffling. "You were badly hurt: broken bones, charred skin... Third Seat Hatakeyama has worked tirelessly to heal your wounds." Overwhelmed with relief, she covered her face with her hands. "You finally woke up..."

"Yes, a friend of mine, Josh... he carried both of us to a medical station after we were hit," Hana said, her voice trembling. "I was so terrified you were going to die..." She drew in a shaky breath, not expecting Koga to pull her closer. Despite him choosing to embrace her, she hesitated to return it, afraid of hurting him. She rested her cheek gently against his chest, careful not to press too hard. After a few moments, she looked up, offering him a weak smile, though sadness lingered in her eyes. "I'm only safe because of you and Josh," she whispered, her gaze dropping to the floor. “If you two had not taken that hit, I would be dead.”

"Please, do not ever do something so reckless again, Koga!" Hana shouted at him, her worry and desperation bubbling to the surface in that moment.