AN: Hey everybody! So this fic is one that just came to me this morning, and I had to post it to see what you guys thought. It's pretty different from what I normally write, so I thought it might be a nice change to try it out. Anyway, this story is an IchixRuki, but for the first part, its kinda gloomy and focuses mainly on Ichigo and Byakuya. Hope you guys enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

The two of us, with our backs turned against each other, don't have a place to call our own

We can't even hear the sound of the pouring rain

We walk with our backs turned against each other

The two of us, to that place

Our footsteps disappear one after the other…

I won't leave you

I don't want to leave you

But your footsteps are getting erased by the waves, one after the other…

Undecided

Waves crashed rhythmically against the beach as the sun rose over the horizon, casting pale morning light across the landscape. Ichigo stared out at the place where the sky and ocean met, a gentle breeze blowing his unruly orange hair. The calls of several seagulls sounded in the distance, their voices ripping through the peace of dawn.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" Ichigo asked, not taking his eyes off the distant water.

There was no answer to his question, and silence pervaded the sandy beach he was sitting on.

"We used to come here all the time, remember?" His question was left hanging in the air, again receiving no answer.

Ichigo watched as the edge of the sun rose over the horizon, its dull light reflecting off the sea. A strong gust of wind blew from across the water, ruffling his clothes and hair, sending mist into his face.

"It feels like just yesterday that we came out here with the others; Ishida, Tatsuki, Inoue, Chad, Keigo, and Mizuiro. They all miss you too…Rukia." Again his statement was met only with the noises of the birds and waves.

Ichigo sighed. "Why did you have to leave, Rukia? Were we not good enough for you anymore? Or was there something else?"

Ichigo pulled his knees up, resting his elbows on them and placing his chin on his forearms. He sat in silence for several minutes, just watching the sun pull itself higher in the sky. Ichigo stayed like that for over an hour, just watching the water and listening to the waves, neither moving nor speaking.

"No matter how long you sit there, Kurosaki, she's not coming back."

Ichigo turned his head to see a black haired teen standing there watching him. The sun glinted off his glasses as he walked forward, a white lily held in his hand.

"I know that," Ichigo said as his friend placed the white flower next to the wooden post at his side.

The post was just a small, white memorial, with the words 'In Memory of Kuchiki Rukia' carved down the side. A small picture was set against it in the sand. Although it was fading, the image of a pale, smiling girl with raven hair and large, violet eyes was still visible.

The black haired teen looked over at his friend, sympathy evident in his eyes. Before the accident, he had rarely seen Ichigo like this, but since that day, he had changed. He lost his attitude and withdrew into himself, talking to people only if addressed directly or staring off into space in the middle of a conversation. The teen sighed and pushed his glasses up, walking over to sit next to Ichigo.

"Everyone else went to her grave. They were worried about you, so I said I would come and check to see if you were out here."

"Sorry," Ichigo said, "Can I ask you a question, Ishida?"

Uryuu's eyes lit up in surprise. "What?"

"Do you think there is any way…"

Uryuu sighed and pushed his glasses up again, the look of sympathy returning to his eyes.

"It's been a year, Kurosaki. I don't think there is any way that she made it. They looked for survivors for weeks. If she had made it, they would have found her," he sighed.

Ichigo nodded slightly. He looked over at the waves sweeping the sand flat, erasing all traces of the foot prints and patterns in the sand.

"Ichigo!"

Ichigo jumped in surprise at the sound of the voice. He knew the voice all too well, and he began to search the beach frantically with his eyes. When his eyes finally fell on the source of the voice, he felt his heart race with an unfamiliar feeling of joy.

"Rukia…" She was running through the wet sand, splashing the water as the waves washed in. She had on a simple blue summer dress and her hair was tied back in a ponytail, her loose bang still hanging between her violet eyes.

"What?"

Ichigo's joy faltered as he recognized the second, agitated voice, and turned his head to see himself standing near the water's edge, watching Rukia. Ichigo moved his eyes back to Rukia as she quickly ducked down, scooping up water in her hand and splashing it in the other Ichigo's face, making him splutter and widen his eyes in surprise.

"Why you little…" The other Ichigo began running after Rukia, a playful glint in his eyes.

"Wha- What are you doing? Ichigo?" The other Ichigo picked up Rukia in his, walking her out to the deeper water.

"No…Don't you dare! Ichigo!" Rukia's words were lost ask the other Ichigo dunked her under water, pulling her out a second later.

"Y-you… idiot!" Rukia yelled, but a playful smile was present on her face.

"Oi, would you two quit flirting and get over here? We're gonna start eating without you!"

Ichigo turned to looked at the new voice and saw all of his friends sitting on the beach, a little picnic area set up on the sand. Tatsuki had been the one who had spoken, her short black hair waving in the breeze.

"We are not flirting!" Both Rukia and the other Ichigo yelled.

Ichigo watched the whole scene unfold, his eyes tearing up slightly as he watched a distant memory being replayed before his eyes. The entire time he watched, Uryuu watched his friend. Upon seeing that his eyes had become glazed and distant, he stood, looking down at Ichigo for a few moments before turning and walking away, never once being noticed by his companion.

Chapter One

In Pace Requiescat

Byakuya walked through the door slowly, entering the dimly lit room and sliding the door closed behind him. He walked over to a large cabinet on the other side of the room and opened the doors, revealing two pictures and a place to burn incenses. The picture on the right was of a young girl with shoulder length black hair and large, violet eyes. She had a single loose bang hanging between her eyes and a slight smile on her face. The picture to the left was almost an exact copy of the first, but the woman looked older and sickly.

Byakuya lit the incense and gazed at the picture of the younger woman. His cold, grey eyes softened slightly. Since she had died, he had moved away from Karakura and to Tokyo. He had no reason to remain in Karakura since both his wife and sister were dead, and he had not wanted to stay in a town with such bad memories. At that moment, the door of the room slid open, making Byakuya turn his head towards the man now standing there.

"What is the meaning of this interruption?" he asked coldly, making the man shrink back slightly.

"Excuse me, Kuchiki-sama. This was delivered for you."

Byakuya walked over to the man and took what was in his hands. His eyes narrowed and he scowled as he saw what it was.

"Who sent it?"

"We do not know, Kuchiki-sama. It had neither a name nor return address."

Byakuya looked back down at the object, his scowl deepening. It was a mounted butterfly in a dark wooden frame with a dark blue felt backing. The butterfly was a solid black swallowtail with small, red markings on the bottom of its wings. Below the butterfly was a small brass tag that gave its species: Papilio protenor.

"Turn it over," Byakuya demanded.

The man complied and flipped the frame over. The back was just a simple paper back like on most frames, but in the bottom right corner was a small drawing. It was a crude picture of what looked to be a rabbit, but it had long black hair, grey eyes and a small frown, just like Byakuya.

"I want this dusted for prints as soon as possible. Bring it to me with the results."

The man bowed and hurried out of the room with the butterfly. Byakuya turned to look back at the pictures of his wife and sister one more time before walking swiftly out of the room. He continued on down the halls until he came to a room that had remained untouched since he arrived in Tokyo. When he had moved, Byakuya had ordered that his sister's room be moved and set up exactly the way it had been in Karakura. Down to the smallest detail, the room had been replicated in his new home, only to be ignored for almost a year.

He opened the door and walked in, looking around the room a moment. A layer of dust had formed on the furniture and the curtains were drawn, making the room look extremely dreary. Byakuya walked over to the bedside table and picked up a small notebook, reading the name on the front: Kuchiki Rukia. The softness returned to his eyes as he read it, but he didn't let it keep him from what he was doing. He opened the note book and flipped through the pages. On every page, there was at least on doodle of a rabbit, similar to the one on the back of the frame.

Byakuya closed the notebook and set it back down, turning to look at the bookshelf on the far side of the room. He walked over to it and began looking through the books for a small black book he had given Rukia for tenth birthday. When he found it, he pulled it off the shelf. It was a book of different types of butterflies, with their species name and pictures. When Rukia was little, she had always liked the butterflies around the flowers in the gardens, so Byakuya had given her this book. She had looked through it countless times before marking a page and declaring that it held her favorite butterfly. Byakuya found the page and stared at the name and picture.

It was a black Papilio protenor.