Karakura Town, a small town full of life. Here humans lived in peace without knowing about the Hollow's that was around them everyday and the Shinigami's, the Death Gods. Their job was to protect other people without powers from the Hollow's so they wouldn't be eaten up.

Kurosaki Ichigo was one of them.

"Rukia! Where the hell is she? That baka…" Ichigo was mumbling for himself while he was walking around town, searching for Kuchiki Rukia, another Death God.

"Man, I have been trying to find her all day! She can't just disappear like that! And her reiatsu she has hid of course… Just to make it harder for me to find her!"

Suddenly something flew by next to him and landed on the ground just in front of him. It was a black cat with yellow eyes that looked straight up at him.

"Yoruichi, what are you doing here?"

Yoruichi, as the cats name was, smiled. "What I am doing here? You should know that Ichigo, we are searching for the same thing."

"Do you mean that you also search for Rukia? Why, I thought I was the only one."

Yoruichi shook her head. "Not any longer. Urahara wants to talk with both you and Rukia, and that as fast as possible."

"What does he wants now? Always it is something new going on!" Ichigo sighed. "Is it really that important that he sends you to search for Rukia?"

"I am afraid so. Don't look at me that way, Ichigo! You know Urahara!" Yoruichi turned around and began to walk away from Ichigo.

"Hey, wait for me!" Ichigo ran after Yoruichi that by now seemed to have felt something because she was now running.

"Hurry, Ichigo! I think I just felt Rukia's reiatsu!"


Meanwhile by the beach the Shinigami Kuchiki Rukia stood and watched out at the sun and the boats that floated on the see far away from where she stood. She knew that if she wanted to she could easily get there by some help from her Shinigami powers.

But she didn't.

Lately she had felt that she had begun to get some strange feelings for Kurosaki Ichigo, the Shinigami that had take her powers from her one year ago, today.

She remembered it like it was yesterday. How she had been on a mission to Karakura Town to take care of some Hollow's. She had thought that she had felt a Hollow near Ichigo's house, but when she came there the only thing she met was a young boy that kicked her in the back and asked her who she was. Of course she had got chocked over the fact that he actually could see her but she soon founded out why.

She had explained to Ichigo why she was there and where she came from. (She had actually got so pissed of at him that she had used Kidoh, (a high-level spell), and told him that he should be happy she wouldn't kill him because that wasn't her mission.)

He hadn't believed her before his younger sister, Yuzu, came in to the room and begged him to save his other sister before she fainted. She had ran downstairs to fight the Hollow when Ichigo had followed her downstairs and stood up, which should have been impossible for a normal human to do. Ichigo had screamed and break the Kidoh with his own powers and ran out to the Hollow, trying to make it drop his younger sister, Karin.

Of course she had to protect Ichigo when the Hollow was about to attack him, he wasn't a Shinigami like her and wouldn't stand a change. She still felt the feeling when the Hollow had closed its teeth's against her shoulder and side. How it had roared and shook its head with her blood on its teeth's.

She had crawled away and leaned against a lamppost, asking Ichigo if he wanted to save his family. He had asked if it was a way, and if it was he wanted to do it.

She had told him how to do it, and he had done exactly as she told him to do. She had suddenly sat there without powers; she had felt so… empty. Like something was missing inside her.

She still remembered how Ichigo had looked at her and said "Give me the sword, Shinigami", how she had answered "It's not "Shinigami", I am Kuchiki Rukia", and then Ichigo's voice when he looked her deep into the eyes, told her his name and stabbed the sword into his heart.

"I am Kurosaki Ichigo."


Rukia sighed deep and looked down at the ground, lost in thoughts. That day, when Ichigo had looked her in the eyes, she had felt so warm and... safe. Like she never had to be afraid anymore because she knew that Ichigo would be there, protecting her from all evil.

"Ichigo…" She whispered and closed her eyes. She thought she heard him answer.

"Rukia, why are you here? I have search for you the whole day." Ichigo laid his hand on her shoulder gently while he looked a little worried at Rukia.

Rukia opened her eyes and turned her head so her nose almost got touched by Ichigo's. She felt how her cheeks got red but for some reason she couldn't turn away her head. Instead she looked deep into Ichigo's eyes and there it was, the same feeling she had felt one year earlier.

'What is happening to me…? I am just looking into his eyes but for some reason it feels like I am in heaven… Like I always will get protect by this young man, by Kurosaki Ichigo…' Rukia thought and felt how a smile got seen in her face.

Ichigo smiled back and laid his arm around Rukia's shoulder. "What are you smiling at, Rukia? You're blushing too; don't tell me you begin to get sick?"

"No worries, Ichigo. I just feel so happy. Why are you here? Did you get worried for me? Don't you know I can take care of myself?" Rukia blinked and boxed her free arm into Ichigo's chest in a playful way.

"Haha, I know you can, Rukia. But it is wrong to worry? I have never heard it is, anyway." Ichigo laughed and messed Rukia's hair a little.

Yoruichi stood behind Ichigo and Rukia and when she looked at Rukia's smiling face she understood that Rukia had more then friendly feelings for Ichigo, which wasn't so strange if you thought about how much things they had been through together.

"Hey you guys, sorry to interrupt but we got to go. Urahara is waiting."

Rukia stopped laughing and looked down at Yoruichi. "Oh, hello Yoruichi, I didn't know you were here. Urahara you say? What does he want us now then?"

"He will tell you that when you come there." Yoruichi smiled secretly and turned around.

"Yeah, let us go now, Rukia." Ichigo hadn't loose the grab around Rukia's shoulder. "It's probably something important. Best to not let him wait any longer."


The Urahara Shop laid in darkness and everything was quiet around the shop. Rukia thought it was kinda strange, Urahara only leaved the shop like this if he was out.

"He don't seem to be home", Rukia walked to the door and looked in to the window. She thought she saw something move in there and without thinking she opened the door.

She heard a big crash, saw how the lights turned on and heard how many voices at the same time screamed "Congratulations, Rukia!" before a big text appeared in front of her face with the text "Congratulations for being a human for a year!" and an Urahara smiley that made a V with his fingers and a Urahara smile in its face.

Urahara himself jumped out from a corner with his fan waving in the air and a big smile. "Kuchiki, there you are! Congrats, I can't believe it have been a year already since you came here! The time sure goes fast, doesn't it?"

Rukia stirred at Urahara and felt how Ichigo stood next to her, hugging her from behind. "Yeah, it sure does." He said. "Congrats Rukia, I have to say that I am really happy that we still have you here with us. I have never in my life have so fun as I have had with you this year. Please, tell me that you don't leave us for a while."

"Baka, who shall look after you if I leave?" Rukia said and smiled while she looked up at Ichigo's smiling and beautiful face. "Not Urahara anyway, if you let him watch over you everything will turn out very wrong and crazy. Not like when I am here, then everything is under control and calm, right Ichigo?"

Urahara looked surprised at Rukia. "What?! But Kuchiki, now you are mean! I am not that good to cause trouble, am I?"

"Oh, you should only know, Urahara!" Ichigo laughed and gave Urahara a blink.

Urahara smiled and waved with his fan. "Ah, now I understand", he said and hid his face in the fan.

Ichigo took Rukia's hand and took her to the backside of the store where he begged her to sit down; he had something he wanted to tell her.

Self Ichigo stood up and looked like he didn't know what he should do. Rukia knew that when he looked like that he really had something important to tell, but what it was this time she had no idea about. She knew it was best to let Ichigo say it himself when he had enough courage to do so.

"Rukia, this isn't easy for me to tell you, and I know that you probably will be chocked and… maybe little angry but…" Ichigo sighed and sat down in front of Rukia so he could look her in the eyes when he told her what he was about to tell.

"I have felt that for some time now… I have begun to get some strange feelings towards you, not friendship ones… They are more like…"

"Love feelings?" Rukia interrupted and looked at Ichigo.

Ichigo's eyes got big and he stirred at Rukia. "Yes… but how did you…? I mean… do you also…?"

"Yes Ichigo, I have also had those kinds of feelings towards you for a while now. I haven't have courage enough to tell you, I wanted to be sure about them first before I told you about them. Maybe you have seen on me that I have been a little strange around you lately?" Rukia was very surprised that her voice didn't get stuck when she told Ichigo about her feelings towards him.

Ichigo sat quiet and just watched Rukia for many minutes. At last he took her hand gently in his own and bent forward slowly against her and kissed her cheek before he turned a little more to the right and kissed her lips.

Rukia at first just sat still when she felt Ichigo's lips against her owns, but when she felt that Ichigo was about to take his lips away from hers, she bent forward and kissed him while she closed her eyes and just enjoyed the feeling that filled her when their lips connected.

Rukia knew that from this day things would never be the same between her and Ichigo ever again, but who cared about that when they both knew that they had found their lover.

Kurosaki Ichigo and Kuchiki Rukia's lives would never bee the same again, but from this day on they would never be alone.

They had found each other.