Of Strawberries and Snapshots
By ElemenTalia
Beta'd by ElemenTalia, Queen Caira
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach in any way
Summary: Fifty snapshots of the female Shinigami Ichigo's life. No Pairing, unless you pretend there are some.
# 1 Ponderings
Rukia propped her head against her hands, watching the other girl from underneath her eyelashes. "Hey, Ichigo?"
She didn't pause. "Yeah?"
"Why do you think Aizen betrayed Soul Society." The scribbling of pen against paper stopped, and she almost seemed to hesitate in her answer. "Maybe, because he realized that he could never be as strong and free as he wanted to be, if he stayed under the control of the Council."
She frowned slightly. "Then why haven't you betrayed Soul Society?"
She turned and looked at her with a smile. "Because you, Rukia, Renji, Byakuya, and all the other shinigami are still loyal to Soul Society. Besides. Soul Society hasn't betrayed me."
# 2 Mercy
As she sped away from the room containing the fallen Dordonii, holding Nel Tu tightly under her arm, she couldn't help but wonder how merciful she was really being, leaving the Espada to his comrades. And as she heard the last warning he gave her, she decided that she didn't care. Orihime was more important.
# 3 Water balloons
Ichigo glared at him, hand hovering over the badge that would change her into a shinigami, water dripped down her long, carrot-colored hair. "What was that for?" She asked heatedly.
Urahara's eyes curved happily, and Ichigo realized, belatedly, that the water had soaked through her white shirt, and that the shirt was now see-through. "You seemed as if you needed to cool down, Ichigo-chan!"
She turned crimson with rage. The badge hit her chest.
# 4 Superhero
A drunk Renji snickered, as he waved his bottle in the air, slopping sake everywhere. Ichigo scowled darkly, hating the fact that she were there, and hating the fact that she was now soaked. "Hey Ichigo, you know with how many girls you've saved lately, you could be considered a superhero?"
She gaped at him. "Why would I want to be a tight-wearing idiot with a weird trigger phrase? Besides that, are you trying to insinuate something?"
# 5 Children
As she dodged another strike from a huge ninja, and his bakkouto, Ichigo cursed at herself. "First it was Nel, and now it's Lurichiyo! What is it with me attracting children? I may be a girl, but that doesn't mean I like them!"
# 6 School
Ichigo groaned as she heard Rukia's cell phone beep again. As she grabbed Rukia's arm, and raced out the door before the teacher could grab them, a thought ran through her head. Why did hallows always have to attack during school hours?
Isshen was going to kill her if she got a bad grade.
# 7 Childhood
As Rukia opened the door leading to the room holding her brother, Renji, and Ichigo, blaring laughter assaulted her ears. She peeked in, to see a howling Ichigo holding a familiar looking photo album. Her eyes were drawn to a smirking Byakuya, who held up a familiar picture.
"Renji! How could you show them that album!" She lunged forward, trying to hide the embarrassing pictures that had been taken before and during her time with Renji in the Academy. "You swore that you had burnt them all!"
"I lied"
# 8 Zoo
Urahara smirked. "Maa, maa! No need to be so noisy! You're like a bunch of animals in the zoo. You know you don't need to compete for Byakuya and Renji's attention, Ichigo, I'm not going to steal them from you." A foot promptly cut off the rest of his words, and Urahara smirked as he slammed into the back wall. Ichigo blushed crimson, and started shouting in the background. There was nothing between the three, but it was so much fun to tease them.
# 9 Rain
Zangetsu stood, quietly, staring up at the sky, rain pounding against his face. How he hated the rain. And how he hated Aizen, Ichimaru, and Grimmjow for causing it to appear.
# 10 Insinuating
Ichigo clenched her hand into a fist, and her voice remained reasonably steady. "Are you trying to insinuate something, Renji?"
Sweating profusely, Renji decided that while pride was important, keeping his hide attached was even more so. "Of course not."
Her eyes narrowed darkly. "Good. Because for a moment I could have sworn that you said that I had a crush on your emotionally constipated captain, and that vertically challenged icicle, otherwise known as Byakuya, and Toushiro. And then," her voice became even more deadly, "I could have sworn that you said that I am Pms-ing." She shot him one last glare, before growling, and turning around.
As he watched the enraged female stomp away, Renji mentally patted himself on the back. Now to inform the Women's Shinigami Association that the rumors of a love triangle between Hitsugaya, Byakuya, and Ichigo were indeed, false.
And not to forget how, after that, he had to go the Men's Shinigami Association to inform them to stay away from Ichigo for the next week.
# 11 Gentleness
Her eyes were gentle, even as her face was set. "Come on, Orihime. Let's go get some ice cream" The other girl sniffed, and nodded her head in acceptance. Ichigo wiped away the tears. "Forget about Hueco Mundo for a while, and lets just enjoy ourselves."
# 12 Strawberry
She glared, crimson, at Ichimaru Gin as he held out a bowl of strawberries. "Come on now, Ichigo, let's forget about fighting and just enjoy some strawberries."
Exhausted as she was, her eyes twitched, and she summoned the last dregs of her energy to attack. She had now found a reason as to why she should kill Ichimaru. "Die!"
The fox-like male pouted. "Aw, so I guess I can't see if you taste like strawberries?"
Suddenly, she was energized and ready to go for another round. "Bankai!"
# 13 Clouds
As she stared at the clouds passing slowly above her, her mind wandered over the various Shinigami customs that she was unaware of. Byakuya's powerful baritone suddenly rang out, and Ichigo tilted her head back to see him. "What are you doing, Kurosaki-san?"
Ichigo smirked slightly. "I'm cloud watching, what does it look like Byakuya?"
The other frowned, darkly, and Ichigo had to hide the shiver of fear that suddenly shook her body. "Why are you doing so on top of my house?"
"Because I want to?"
# 14 Food
Ichigo sighed as she looked, bored, over the mass of what appeared to easily be over a hundred Hollow. She turned her head towards Kenpachi, and his little lieutenant. "Hey, Kenpachi, whoever kills the most gets a get-out-of-Orihime's-dinner-free pass."
Kenpachi snorted. "Is she that bad?"
Ichigo stared at him blandly as the first wave attacked. "You have no idea."
# 15 Magnetism
She stared, drooling, as the waiter passed by. Unohana, Shunsui, and Yamamoto shared equally amused glances as they watched Ichigo's eyes follow every movement the carried strawberries made. Renji, who was sitting next to her, was not so silent in his amusement, laughed.
"Hey, you know what they say, those of the same kind stick together. I guess this mean's the rumors are true, you really are a strawberry."
Unohana sighed as she prepared her healing kido for the fight that would inevitably start up, and that would inevitably end with a beaten Renji.
# 16 Puberty
Ichigo cursed herself, her newly arrived hormones, and the fool who decided that the male shinigami should hold a contest for the position of the most handsome shinigami male of the year, as she fought to keep from blushing. But, most importantly, she cursed puberty, and how she was noticing how hot each male was as they stretched their muscles, and lifted weights. Stupid hormones.
# 17 Dancing
Rukia watched. The other twirled around, the cares that seemed to strain the other's eyes constantly, forgotten and tossed aside. As the snow drifted slowly down to the earth, she danced, blade cutting the air itself. Rukia felt herself suddenly gasp for breath, as the other leapt high into the air, blade whistling. Blood fell to the ground before dissolving, the dance coming to an end.
Ichigo turned around, Zangetsu over her shoulder. She paused at the look on the other female's face. "What?"
Rukia shook her head in shock. She may have the most beautiful of zanbatou of Soul Society, but, easily, Ichigo was the most beautiful of all fighters.
# 18 Deserted Island
She stared at the male opposite of her. "What?" He continued to grin. "Of course I wouldn't want to be stranded on a deserted island with you! I'd rather be trapped there with a hyper Yachiru!"
"Ah! Ichigo-chan! You're so cruel!"
"Don't call me Ichigo-chan, you pervert! Go pester Nanao!"
"Ichigo, how could you? Don't send him over to me!"
"Aw… Nanao-chan… So cold!"
# 19 Pets
As she looked at the four mod-souls at her feet, Ichigo couldn't help but sigh. She seemed to be attracting more pets every day. The only thing that could make it worse would be for Rukia to get a bunny, and her dad to get a dog. That would make it worse.
She turned around, hearing footsteps on the staircase. Rukia opened the door, carrying something white in her arms. She held it out. "Look Ichigo! I got a bunny! Isn't it cute." She paused. "Ichigo, why are you looking at me like that?"
# 20 Risk
Ulquiorra shook his head, blood dripping from his hand as he created another cero. "Why do you keep fighting? You are clearly the lesser fighter, yet you continue to battle."
As sweat dripped down her face, mingling with blood, Ichigo couldn't help but smirk. Orihime, Chad, Rukia, Renji, Ishida, and Nel were worth the risk. She leapt forward, Zangetsu held high above her head. "Getsuga Tensho!"
# 21 Fear
As Karin fell, Ichigo could only see her mother's corpse falling to the rain-soaked ground. She froze for a minute, before lunging forward. "Karin!" Fear beat throughout her breast. No. Not again, she had only just gotten over her mother's death. She couldn't loose Karin, Yuzu, and her old man all at once.
# 22 Death
As the sword pierced her body, time seemed to freeze. An icy burning lit where the blade was at, and suddenly spread throughout her body. Ichigo through her head back and screamed as she almost exploded with power.
As the transformation was complete, she turned to the monster holding her sister. She was Death, and the master of life. Nothing would take her family away from her!
# 23 Hate
Her eyes narrowed. "I hate you, Urahara! Prepare to die!" The shopkeeper laughed as he summoned Benihime.
"Now, now, Ichigo. It wasn't that bad. You are a shinigami now." The shadows caused by his hat hid the twinkling of mischief in his eyes.
Ichigo was almost wordless with rage, and Urahara was forced to wonder if she was going to froth at the mouth. "You threw me in a pit, and almost made me into a hollow! Die!"
# 24 Love
Ichigo scowled darkly as pink hearts, chocolates, and ribbons fell from her locker. She shook her head. "I hate Valentines day. Aside from the chocolate, it's not worth much."
Orihime, beside her, giggled. "Oh, it's not that bad Ichigo. Or is it just that bad because the rumors of you being in love with someone are true?"
The other girl yelped. "Orihime! Of course not!"
# 25 Insects
She yelped and viciously beheaded a roach-like hollow, scuttling backwards as its body twitched. "Why did it have to be insects? Why couldn't our next batch of hollows have looked like a frog, or a tiger or something, why did it have to be an insect?"
Rukia smirked slightly. "What, you afraid of a little bug?" She was forced to duck quickly as Zangetsu cut through the air where her head had previously been.
# 26 Glass
Shunsui cradled the broken warrior in his arms, a pitying look upon his face. Few could fight in a war and not be scarred, and fewer could fight and not dream of their deepest, darkest, memories each night they rested from battle. It was only a pity that the deepest, darkest memory of Ichigo was the death of her mother, and the very realistic fear that she could fail, and her family, friends, and home would be destroyed.
He shared a look with his lieutenant, Nanao, the only other person in the tent. It was sad when in the throes of their dreams, even the strongest of warriors could become as brittle as glass.
# 27 Embarrassing
She could do nothing but sit at her desk, hiding her burning face in her hands, as the undercover shinigami went wild in her classroom. Again. She felt gentle hands tap her shoulder, and she looked up to find Hitsugaya and Orihime looking at her with a touch of worry in their eyes. She shook her head slightly. "Just kill me now, Toushiro. My reputation is permanently tarnished."
Toushiro shook his head in amusement as she buried her head once again in embarrassment.
# 28 Soul
As she stood within the center of her soul, Ichigo decided that she was strange. Strange enough, at least, to have a sideways soul; a male zanpakutou, whereas she was female; and an evil twin hollow dwelling within her mind. Yes. She decided as she unconsciously dodged another of the hollows strikes. Her soul really was strange.
# 29 Comfort
On the anniversary of her mothers' murder, wanting to be alone, Ichigo hid in Ukitake's office. Hiding from family and friends and other well wishers, Ichigo couldn't help but soak in the comfort that Ukitake, the kind fatherly figure that he was, somehow understood how she felt. And she couldn't help but soak in the comfort that Zangetsu understood, and that with his help, she would have the power to make sure that nothing like her mother's death would ever happened to anyone close to her again.
And somehow, it is that simple fact that comforted her more then Ukitake, Orihime, Chad, Ishida, or her family ever could have.
# 30 Irritation
When in a burst of irritation she told Ikkaku to leave her alone, the male silenced her by telling her that she couldn't save Orihime by sulking, and she definitely couldn't save her by just lying around wasting time.
To thank him, she gave him ten minutes before she released her Bankai and beat the living tar out of him.
# 31 Ceiling
Ichigo thought she was injured too much when she woke up and guessed that she was at Urahara's before opening her eyes. She knew she was injured too much when she opened her eyes, saw the ceiling, and knew that her guess was correct.
# 32 Freedom
When she first met Rukia, the girl was immediately blacklisted when she used a kido to bind Ichigo. This was forgiven when Rukia turned Ichigo into a shinigami, and gave her the power to protect her family.
When Byakuya injured Ichigo, and took his sister back to soul society to face punishment, he was, of course, blacklisted. This, like his sister's mark, was erased when he turned around and saved both Ichigo, Renji, and Rukia.
However, Ishida was highly amused when Soul Society used a binding kido to hold Ichigo, and, were, of course, blacklisted and consistently pranked and tricked. When they asked him why Ichigo acted the way she did towards Rukia and Byakuya, rather then the cold shoulder she turned to the rest of the shinigami, they are surprised by his answer.
"Ichigo values her freedom above everything but her family. Not only does she value her freedom, but she values those who understand how important freedom and family are." At this point he had adjusted her glasses, and they had flashed darkly. "Not only have you taken away her freedom, but you have taken away her family. Thus, she is, of course, not going to forgive you until you prove to her that you value both qualities, and release her."
After that, it only took two hours to release her and let her go as a substitute shinigami.
# 33 Innocence
When Orihime's innocence was proven, Ichigo was, non-surprisingly, overjoyed. She allowed this joy to twist their way into her conversations with Soul Society.
"Ha! Take that you bigoted idiots! And you didn't want to rescue her, and I told you that she was innocent! And who's the idiot now, fools!"
# 34 Sun
Once, while attending a party celebrating the defeat of Aizen, Ichigo was told by a drunk that she was like the sun, shining bright enough to light the whole world with her protection and power. Said drunk was promptly punched and thrown out the window, which prompted an enjoyable bar fight.
# 35 Moon
A month after being told that she was like the sun, Ichigo finally decided that if she were the sun, that Chad, who was forever being dragged into fights, was the moon. When she told this to Rukia and the teasing started, she was thankful that she had not mentioned that Byakuya was as beautiful as the moon, and that Urahara, who was as mysterious as the moon, was just as hot. As was Renji, but he was only a dog snapping at the moon, so he didn't count.
# 36 Stars
Unlike the month it took her to decide that Chad was the moon, she decided after a mere two days that her family, Ishida, Orihime and Rukia were stars. Stars, she decided, glowed with their own bright light, and as long as you knew the seasons, stayed constant true companions. Ichigo only counted herself lucky that she was good with astronomy.
# 37 Loyalty
Old man Yamamoto was a powerful, intelligent leader who led hundreds, yet even he couldn't help but wonder what it was about Ichigo that made even enemies become loyal to her. And, as he sighed staring at a stack of paperwork, he couldn't help but wonder how he and the shinigami he commanded came to rely on, and trust the deputy shinigami as much as they did.
She did, after all, cause trouble whenever she was involved with something.
# 38 Pain
Orihime sobbed, hands hovering over the gold shield that healed the wounded Ichigo. Tears dripped down her face, leaving dark splotches on the pavement underneath her petite body. "Why do you have to fight, I don't like to see you hurt, Ichigo!"
Ichigo's voice, raspy from the pain, forced Orihime to listen. "I know, Orihime. I know it hurts you to see me in pain, but…" She coughed, blood flying from her mouth, and Orihime flinched. "It's selfish, I know, but it's better for me to hurt, and you be safe, then for you to die, and for me to know that I wasn't strong enough to protect you."
# 39 Power
As Ichimaru Gin summoned his sword, he couldn't help but feel that under Aizen's leadership, his strength was wasted, and how he should have never doubted the strength of the female in front of him. As she charges him, he can't help but notice how cute she was, and how he wished he were on her side.
# 40 Battle
When Ichigo battled Ulquiorra, she couldn't help but be swept up in the beating of her blood, and the clashing of their blades. And, when she won, she couldn't help but grin broadly as she fell backwards, unconscious from blood-loss.
# 41 Kiss
Her first kiss is stolen, and nothing like what Ichigo expected. Not romantic in the slightest, it was more a mashing of lips then anything else. Still, she was a female, and almost killed Renji despite his stuttered apologies, and the fact that she had to fight Byakuya, Hitsugaya, and Kenpachi to get to him. Even so, it took Yamamoto, Shunsui, Ukitake, Soi Fon, and Ikkaku to pull her off of the unconscious Renji before she gave up.
With Unohana's gentle care, it took Renji a month to heal, and even longer for Ichigo to forgive him. Privately, she still hasn't.
# 42 Tsunami
When she received her second kiss, also stolen, she felt as though she were swept up in a raging tsunami, a tsunami that threatened to either destroy her, or to swallow her heart into it's depths. It didn't stop her from beating Byakuya up though.
# 43 Aura
As the Ichigo charged, her power encompassing her body in a dazzling mix of crimson, ebony, and white, and her sword howling in blood-lust, Grimmjow couldn't help but wonder if it was too late to change sides.
# 44 Armageddon
When Ishida asked Ichigo for Orihime's hand in marriage, it seemed as if the wold was ending. When she was informed that, no, Ishida was not joking, and that Ichigo was only being asked because she was the closest thing to be a sister to Orihime that there was, she was understandably shocked.
However, Ishida was not happy when Ichigo felt it prudent to race to the Head Captain Yamamoto office, scaring all the Captains into thinking that there was another attack on Soul Society, to make sure that hell hadn't frozen and that there weren't little skeletons throwing snowballs at each other.
When she had finally gotten over her shock, and after Yamamoto had told her that it wasn't snowing in hell, she had promptly spent the next hour almost dying of laughter. Finally, she somehow found the strength to stop laughing, and inform Ishida, that, yes, he had permission to marry Orihime, and that if he hurt her, Zangetsu was going to rip him apart.
# 45 Soft
Byakuya couldn't help but notice how emotionally soft Chad, and Orihime awere, even after the war. And he couldn't help but wonder whether it was their friendship with Ichigo that kept them pure, or the belief they shared in Ichigo's strength and will to protect them.
# 46 Rivalry
As Ichigo, Renji, Byakuya, Kenpachi, and the whole of the eleventh division went at it in a free-for-all, Orihime couldn't help but mention how nice it was that Ichigo had found so many people to play with. The strange look's she received was worth it when the Eleventh Division caused a dog-pile when they heard it.
Even so, the derision received was easily ignored when she quietly remembered how sad Ichigo seemed back before she met Rukia and became a shinigami, and how happy she was now that she was strong enough to defend her family.
When told, Rukia was forced to agree, when she remembered how Ichigo's constant battles with her rivals seemed to make her even stronger then possible for a mere mortal.
# 47 Science
As Ichigo smirked at Chad, and received a slight smile in return, Ukitake couldn't seem to ignore the fact that Ichigo had gotten communication with her large silent friend down to a science.
# 48 Pranks
A vividly pink Toushiro screamed after a shunpo-ing Ichigo, Yachiru, and Matsumoto, enraged. Finally, after racing past stunned shinigami, and after going a fair distance to safety, the trio collapsed on the ground in laughter.
Matsumoto wiped away a tear. "So, who should we prank next?" Her query sent the other two into fresh howls.
# 49 Music
When Ichigo was showered with punk rock CDs on her birthday from her class, she couldn't help but silently vow revenge on Kon and his strange music preferences, and the fact that he played them while in her body.
# 50 Contentment
Ichigo smiled from her position on the floor, snuggled up between Orihime, and Chad. Ishida was lying on the couch above them, and Nel, Rukia, Karin, and Yuzu were lying on the floor in front of them. Renji, Urahara, and Yoruichi were sitting on one couch, and Yachiru and Kenpachi dominated the third one.
The group was ragged at best, and downright beaten at worse, but they were together. They may have gone through, much, they might have almost lost each other several times, and they may have barely survived the war, but they did. And they were here, safe, and sharing in as camaraderie that only guarding each other in battle can bring. Life was as it should be, and they were content.
Rukia's cell-phone interrupted the peace, and there was a sudden shouting over who should be the one to kill the low-level hollows.
A smile again touched Ichigo's face before she joined in on the fighting, volunteering Renji for the duty. Okay. So things were normal. At least they were content with how things were.
Author Notes
I'd like it noted that I tried to keep true to Ichigo's personality, but I decided that I wanted a female Ichigo. When I realized that, I decided that women react differently to situations then men, and so her personality would be different. I don't know, I tried to keep her as true as I could.