A Fluffy Truce
Chapter 1
The Problem
The sun shined brightly in the sky above, not a cloud to disturb it's warm gaze over Karakura Town. Despite the inviting weather, not many people were out and about. On one lonely street, one figure sought to disturb this peace as he stomped angrily on the pavement, fuming silently to himself.
Ichigo Kurosaki walked at a quick pace, his anger guiding his steps, his frustration propelling him forward. He reached up with both his hands, grabbing at his hair, wanting something, anything to take his anger out on. Eventually, he stopped, propping himself against the nearby wall, sinking to the ground.
The orange-haired teen leaned his head against the wall, gazing into the blue heavens above. His mind racing at a million miles an hour, trying to figure out his situation. Nothing made sense, nothing. Ichigo's hand clenched into a fist, and brought it down on the wall behind him.
"Damnit!", he shouted at the top of his lungs. Birds took flight near by, and a creature, most likely a cat, scampered off from a near by trash bin. Ichigo didn't look at it; he just leaned forward, resting his now fevered head in his hands.
"Honestly, what is her problem? What could have made her that upset? Damn evil leprechaun.", Ichigo spoke to no one in particular. His mind raced back to moments before, to when the problems started.
Ichigo had been standing in his room, looking to a small hand mirror he had borrowed from his sisters. His father, Isshin, had taken Yuzu and Karin out for a celebratory dinner for reasons Ichigo didn't know. Kon was out somewhere, who knew where, and who really cared? Rukia had found a perch on Ichigo's bed, choosing to spend her time meddling with her Soul Pager, the device clicking constantly away in her nimble hands.
The young Soul Reaper tugged at a few strands of his orange locks, the spikes shifting naturally as he moved them. He angled the mirror a little bit to get a look at the back better, and his eyes grew with what he saw.
Ichigo laid the mirror down for a minute, looking over at the only other occupant in the room.
"Hey, Rukia. Do you think my hair is getting long? Particularly in the back?" He turned, allowing his partner to see better.
Rukia stopped clicking for a moment and glanced up, then turned her attention back to her Soul Pager before answering. "Yeah, it is kind of. Might want to be careful, people might think you're a weirdo."
Ichigo had to use all his will power to resist lobbing the mirror at her head. Instead, he brought the mirror back up, gazing at his hair. He ran his hair through his locks, thinking out some ideas. It had been suggested to him by some of his classmates to try changing his hair up. As an acceptable idea came to him, he turned his attention once more to the young Kuchiki, who seemed to be clicking away even more furiously than ever.
"Hey, what do you think if I dyed my hair black?" he asked calmly.
The clicking and tapping stopped immediately, Rukia's gaze shifting to the man in the center of the room. Her eyes showed hints of surprise, and even, just maybe anger. "Black? Dye it black?" Her eyes gazed over his hair, the image of Ichigo with the new hair coming into her mind. Rukia's eyes grew wider as an image of another man rose to her attention, someone else with black hair, and a kind smile.
Ichigo was gazing once more into the mirror while this was going on across the room. "Yeah, Keigo said I should try dying my hair, that way my orange hair wouldn't get me in trouble so much. I'm thinking it's not such a bad idea, and black does suit me."
Finally looking up from the mirror, Ichigo immediately sensed something was wrong. Rukia was now longer looking at him or her Soul pager, but was staring out the window. He caught her reflection in the glass and could see her eyes had gone dark, her mouth forming into a tight line as she spoke.
"Oh, is that so?" Her face did not change at all, her reflection showing nothing but a slight flicker. Anger, maybe?
Not sure how to proceed spoke cautiously and as calmly as could be. "Yeah, I like the colour. Plus, it would match my Soul Reaper attire better than my orange."
Before another word could slip from his mouth, an intense force of spiritual pressure slammed into him, forcing Ichigo down onto his knees. He tried to lift his head, but could barely look above the top of the bed. Ichigo struggled to his feet, but was grabbed by the front of his shirt and forced to his feet before he could.
Anger. That was all he saw in the eyes of the one holding him. Pure, unfiltered, rage. Even when she was without her powers, Rukia could have easily taken down a dozen Hollows with that glare. Ichigo could do nothing but gape in shock.
"Hey! Rukia! What's goin-?", was all he could manage to get out before Rukia shouted at him.
"Silence! Is that all it is, hmmm? Just cause it will look good? Do you think I'm an idiot?", she yelled into his face.
"What? This is about my hair? Rukia, what is-?"
"I said quiet! I know very well what you're doing, and I want you to know, it's not funny." Rukia's eyes peered into his, examining him, trying to find a weakness.
"I have no idea what you're talking abo-!" Another wave of pressure slammed into him before he could finish, making him flinch.
"DON'T YOU LIE TO ME! Who told you? Renji? Captain Ukitake? WHO?" She shook him, trying to force answers that weren't coming.
Ichigo stammered, trying to clear his thoughts. "W-what? T-t-t-told me what? I have no ide-!"
"Get out!"
The teenage boy didn't know what to say. He wasn't even sure he had heard her right. "Rukia. What do you-?"
"I said, GET OUT!" The shorter girl dragged him by his shirt to the door, opening it before flinging him out on his rump. Ichigo banged his head against the wall opposite, making a dull "thump!". He winced in pain as he looked back at her.
"Hey, Rukia! You can't be serious! Is my hair that important to you?", Ichigo pleaded to her.
Rukia looked at him, her face a mask of anger and rage, but something else, too. Sadness? Regret? "You know it's not that. You know it's more than that. Don't even think about coming back until you man up and find a way to apologize." With a final glance, she slammed the door, the number "15" sign that always hung on it falling to the floor. Before the door fully closed, Ichigo caught something in Rukia's eye that he had only seen once, before her brother had taken her back to the Soul Society: a tear.
