A/N: For the IchiRuki FC at BA :) Happy 4th birthday! (and early happy birthday to you too, Ichigo!)

Ichigo felt consciousness slowly returning like being pulled from a pleasant dream.

In the dream, he lay on a bed of flowers on a grassy hill under the night sky, the milky light of the full moon washing over him like a blanket. A soft cool breeze caressed his skin and playfully ruffled his orange spikes.

He could feel a peaceful smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he delved in the dreamed up atmosphere. But the pull of consciousness continued to tug at his mind, urging him to depart from his dreamland and open his eyes. He didn't want to leave the warm pool of sleep, but alas, he managed to open one bleary eye.

And awoke to see his dream looking down at him.

Or at least, that was his first impression. Underneath him he felt his head comfortably nestled on something warm and soft, and as he looked up he saw the midnight black contrasting against the milky white. And something as soft as a breeze ran over the tufts of hair on his forehead.

"Ichigo…" her unusually soft voice called, her deep indigo irises looking down at him, laced with worry.

"Yo." he answered, feeling a lopsided grin come over his features as he looked up at the concerned face of the woman.

Almost immediately, he saw her delicate eyebrows furrow and her eyes narrow slightly. The slender fingers brushing his hair ceased their movement as she looked down almost disapprovingly. He felt his own eyebrows creasing in response. "What?"

"You idiot." Rukia muttered above him. Ichigo didn't say anything and instead opted to wait for her to explain exactly why he was an idiot…this time around.

But after a few more moments of silence with Rukia only shaking her head slightly and shifting her gaze away, he started to sit up to question her. "Rukia, wh-" his words were cut off by a sharp intake of breath and a wince, his face contorting in pain as his hand went to his midsection, from where the burst of pain had erupted.

"Ichigo!" Rukia exclaimed, instantly returning her worried gaze to him. Her dainty hands came around him to settle over his chest and gently -but firmly- push him back down to lay on his back. His head once again landed on the warm and soft bed, which he now realized was the raven-haired woman's lap. "Stay down!" she scolded hotly, though her eyes lost their hardness after only a second. "I'm not finished healing your wounds yet." she finished in a softer tone.

Rukia was silent then, and her hands moved from Ichigo's chest down to his abdomen, a pale green glow forming underneath her palms and covering his injured stomach. The cool light immediately began to soothe the pain, and he felt himself begin to relax once more. He looked up and saw a look of concentration on Rukia's features, a tiny bead of sweat rolling down the side of her face as she worked.

"I'm sorry it's taking so long." she mumbled after a minute of silence, not meeting his eyes. "I'll take you to Inoue's as soon as you're well enough to move. She'll have you back to normal."

"I like it when you do it." he blurted out unexpectedly. He felt heat rising to his cheeks as he stumbled over his next words. "I mean, y-you're pretty good at that kido stuff. You're doing just fine…"

Ichigo looked up just in time to catch the tiny smile appear on her face, only for it to fall a second later. He struggled to shift on her lap in order to face her better without having to sit up or strain his slowly closing wound.

"What's wrong?" he asked, in a tone that left no room for question. He knew something was bothering her, and he wouldn't be dismissed.

Rukia's violets flashed to his amber orbs and for a moment her eyebrows etched just a tiny bit closer.

"You almost got killed today." she stated quietly after a pause.

Ichigo didn't blink. "I almost get killed every day." he said in a tone as casual as if he were speaking about the weather. This seemed to displease his female counterpart.

"And there's your problem!" Rukia said, her voice staying just below a yell. "You act as if this, as if your life is nothing! Just something you can throw away! It's…it's so infuriating!" She was clearly angry, her glare meeting his gaze with intensity.

Ichigo swallowed, not having expected the outburst. "I didn't mean it like that." he offered.

Rukia looked away from him once again, her hands shifting ever so slightly on their position over his abdomen. "I know…" she finally said. "But sometimes, it's like you just don't care what happens to you, Ichigo! I know you're strong…But you're not invincible. What if you were to die? What then?" her voice was a mixture of anger and frustration, though Ichigo could begin to surmise that she wasn't really angry at him.

"If I die…" he started hesitantly. "Then I guess I'd just go to Soul Society and live out the rest of my life there."

Rukia's eyes seemed to sadden at his words. "Ichigo, you're still so young. You still have so much to live for before you go to the Soul Society…"

"Heh, listen to you. Anyone might think you're so much older than me by hearing you talk." He commented with a scoff.

"I am older than you." Rukia reminded him.

"You certainly don't look it." he grinned to himself, seeing the slight twitch of her eyebrow.

After a moment, Rukia shook her head, smiling softly to herself. "There's no arguing with you."

Ichigo waited for her to say something else, and when she didn't, he took the chance to speak. "This feels sort of familiar." he observed. Then he looked up and found her deep violet eyes watching him curiously. "Doesn't it?"

"I suppose…it does." Rukia finally agreed, her eyes suddenly glazing over with some far-off memory.

It was Ichigo's turn to watch her with curiosity. "You wouldn't happen to know why that is, would you?"

Rukia looked slightly startled. In truth, she was surprised that he had been able to read her so easily. Biting back a slight grin, she looked down at the man she was currently healing. "Wouldn't you like to know." she said slyly.

Ichigo's responding smirk was unabashed. "Please share."

Rukia allowed herself to chuckle before sighing. "I held you like this once…It feels like a long time ago." she said, her mind remembering how his -back then more youthful- face had looked, peacefully asleep and innocent as she healed him after an intense and emotional battle. The rain had been pouring down back then, and she had been shielding him with her body as she bent over his still form. The thing she could remember most from that night, however, was the feeling in her chest. The unadulterated happiness that she felt with each wave of his weakened reiatsu, and each thump of his beating heart beneath her hands as she healed him. She had been so ecstatic, so grateful that he was alive.

A feeling, not all too different from the one she was experiencing now.

Unfortunately, it seemed all too often that the fool managed to put his life on the line. Whether it was to protect a stranger, a friend, his family, or -as was the case more often than she liked- herself. Back then, she recalled clearly, it had been his pride that he was protecting.

Ichigo watched quietly the whole time without so much as changing his expression. Rukia seemed to be caught in some deeply-etched memory. It seemed to vary from painful to almost happy with every flash of her eyes. The orange-haired man racked his brain to try and remember what she could possibly be thinking of, but came up empty-handed.

Rukia, seeing his lightly frustrated expression, decided to spare him. "It was back during the first months we spent together." she said. "Right after you defeated Grand Fisher."

Ichigo's face instantly darkened at the mention of his mother's killer, but it relaxed again almost as quickly. "I think I'd remember being…like this." he stammered slightly, referring to his position on her lap.

"You were unconscious." Rukia explained.

Ichigo considered this for a moment before a mischievous grin started to overtake his features. "Ah, so you took advantage of me in my moment of weakness."

Rukia looked flabbergasted. "I was healing your injuries!" she immediately jumped to her own defense.

"Right…With me on your lap." he said skeptically.

Rukia opened and closed her mouth a few times as she tried to come up with her flustered excuses. "You collapsed on top of me! It was the easiest way to-"

"Sure." Ichigo purposely stretched the word in a sarcastic manner. "I'm sure there was just no way take care of my injuries while I was on the ground…"

Rukia's face heated up more and more -whether it was from anger or embarrassment- the further he spoke. "Shut up! Just be grateful that I decided to heal you; I could have just left you there on the ground to die. Probably would have deserved it too for always rushing in like a fool and attacking without thinking…" she was rambling now, and Ichigo couldn't help but grin at her discomfort.

She stopped abruptly when she felt something warm cover her hand. She saw with a startled realization that Ichigo had laid his hand over hers and was now looking at her with warm brown eyes that made her breath catch.

"I guess it's a good thing that I always have you to heal me then."

Rukia was speechless before she brought back her free hand and lightly flicked him on the forehead. "That doesn't give you the right to act like a fool all the time." she scolded, though they both knew she wasn't really angry. Her eyes softened as she began to gently brush the soft orange spikes that fell over his forehead, a smile forming on her lips.

Ichigo's warm and calloused hand tightened over her much smaller one, giving her a playful squeeze as his eyes smiled up at hers.

"Just try not to get yourself killed, okay?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

"Will do." Ichigo smiled softly, answering her unspoken concern and giving her hand another, reassuring squeeze.

After that, the two stayed in comfortable silence, quietly enjoying each other's presence before…

"Rukia?"

"Mm?"

"I…" Ichigo started to say, trailing off uncertainly before letting his eyes drift closed and spoke before allowing himself to drift into a comfortable slumber, a smile still present on his face.

"…Thanks." he said finally.

Rukia looked mildly surprised for a moment but then she smiled in return, though he could not see it.

"Anytime, fool."