Hi. I came up with this idea after reading a fairy tale. See if you can guess which one I read :) It's a bit sudden, but I suddenly got the inspiration for this and didn't stop typing until 2:30 in the morning. The first chapter is more of a prologue, actually. Enjoy.

Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo. If I owned it, IchiRuki would happen :'(

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Bring! Brrrrring! The ringing of the sleek, black cell phone lying on the equally dark smooth surface of mahogany wood cut into the formerly peaceful silence. The dark-haired man reluctantly reached out his arm and picked the small rectangle of plastic and metal up with one elegant, long-fingered (and manicured) hand.

Slowly, slowly, he raised it to his ear and pressed the 'talk' button.

"Hello, Mr. Kurenai. We apologise if this phone call is an inconvenience, we know your very tight schedule hardly leaves room to take calls." Said the smooth, practiced, honeyed voice. "We regret to inform you of your daughter's condition." The tall man sucked in a breath. Here it was.

Outwardly, his expressions radiated utmost calm and lack of any form of feeling. Inside, there was a veritable storm of emotion.

Kurenai Seiichiro dreaded the words that came next; "Our complete analysis shows that unfortunately, your daughter is predicted to be unlikely to live until 20 years of age." The dark-haired man felt like he had been sucker-punched.

Not live until 20? Preposterous! It shouldn't be. Even sooner than her… than Kaguya.

If only by thinking her name, he felt a sting of loss. And pain. He would stop it. He had been unable to save his dear wife, and he refused to let his beloved daughter succumb to the same fate.

The women born in Kaguya's side of the family carried the sickness in their blood. About the time when puberty started, the symptoms of the sickness would begin to show.

Although Seiichiro and Kaguya had known about this before they married, they had still chosen to have a child regardless. They had hoped, prayed that maybe good fortune would befall them and their daughter whom they had named Rukia would be spared of the same fate.

And then, Kaguya had passed away. Leaving Seiichiro broken and in mourning. He had not had long to feel the loss of his wife before a new issue came up. Rukia had begun to show the symptoms. It was a surprisingly early age, the girl was only 6 years old.

Immediately, Seiichiro had been roused from his state of near-numbness.

He had taken 6 year old Rukia to the hospital and the girl had undergone various tests for weeks on end.

They'd monitored her diet, her blood sugar levels, carbon levels, fat levels, amount of water, done urine tests, there were too many to count.

Finally. Finally, now, Seiichiro had heard the results of the testing. And they weren't to his liking at all.

"Is there a way that the progress of the sickness can be extinguished, or at least delayed?" the man demanded.

"Unfortunately, it is impossible to completely halt the progression of the sickness," recited the voice. Seiichiro narrowed his eyes.

"However, there is a way to slow the degradation of your daughter's condition."

"What is it?" the dark-haired man inquired.

"It will be mandatory for her to remain in the hospital at all times, where the hospital staff will constantly monitor her condition and she will take a series of medicines and injections that will be able to delay the sickness for a while." The voice replied.

"Fine." Seiichiro said. "Have this treatment used on her until a permanent solution is found."

"Yes, sir." Said the voice. "The hospital will comply with your decision. And now, about the costs…"

The young girl, hidden behind the thick oaken door had heard ever word that had transpired, through a clear-cut glass pressed to her ear from the door. The child's indigo-blue eyes were widened in shock.

Her father was going to send her away? Why? She had only just gotten back! She had been looking forward to some quality fun time with her dad after weeks of confusion.

Plus, where was mom? Hadn't dad noticed that mom was gone? Maybe her mom was playing hide-and-seek, but she surely had to have been found by now! Where was she? And why was dad so quiet now? Why was he sad? She wanted to know.

Maybe she could comfort him, but only if she was sent away, then how could she make her dad feel better? It wouldn't work! Her mom was still gone, dad was upset, and she was being sent somewhere away from home.

She didn't understand at all, although she loved and trusted her father very much, she could not understand why.

Why? I don't want to go…

This chapter was a bit short. Usually, I type at least 1000 words per chapter :( I promise the next chapter will be longer.

Yup, I used OCs for Rukia's family in this fic. Don't hate me for it. Also, I apologize beforehand because I KNOW that I update infrequently. Sorry about that.

Anyways, hope ya liked it (the fic) :)