Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. None of the characters are mine except Haruma Kikyo, Haruma Minami and their family.

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Title: Intertwined

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Chapter One: First Omen

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The sky was menacing and an overcast of dark gray and purple layers of thick clouds rolled around the sky, showing no sign of departing. A torrential blanket of rain and mist enclosed over the majestic buildings of Seireitei, creating a vast natural depression within its inhabitants. Every other color seemed to retreat under the fierce glare of the heavenly gray vapor, and now the whole place was filled with a monotone of white, black and gray. An aura of unease ran through every shinigami, as their worried eyes looked up uncertainly at the unpromising weather.

There had never been a storm as big as this one before. Seldom typhoons came by Seireitei, and most lingered only in the outskirts of Rukongai. Not one storm had developed to become this big, for Soul Society's spiritual energy usually kept the weather at bay.

But now everyone looked up the sky with worried eyes. Not all were superstitious, but the sudden change in weather was enough to be called a bad omen.

Something was going to happen. The mourning sound of rain beating against the hard asphalt and marble roads echoed relentlessly all throughout Seireitei. The same message was heard.

A tall man looked out from the window of his massive manor, and stared at the sky with the same impassive expression he wore for the last fifty years. His long, elegant, ebony locks hung delicately on his shoulders, as his dark gray eyes reflected the unpredictability of the storm. His mint green scarf, a scarf made from silk more expensive than a person's life, hung limply over his white captain's haori, due to all the moisture it had accumulated from the heavy mist.

Kuchiki Byakuya stared impassively at the dark sky, although if one could have been given the chance to stand beside him, one would see the hint of anxiety and unease in his steel gray orbs.

He had sensed it too.

Something was about to happen.

Soon.

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Bright, golden rays peeked through the lavender cotton curtains that hung delicately on dark brown mahogany wood. The light from the early morning sun shone against the intricate embroidery of jasmines and kikyos (Chinese bellflowers), as the mint green stems and leaves crawled around in elegant curves and patterns.

A bird perched momentarily on the windowsill, peeking through the curtains to gaze upon a sleeping figure on a sky blue bed, covered by a purple blanket that was embroidered with bright yellow sunflowers. Long, silky black locks scattered around the pillow, forming an ebony nest, and long, slender fingers gently gripped the hem of the embroidered blanket.

The figure shifted and the bird flew away in surprise. A pair of drowsy eyes reluctantly opened, her pure violet pupils gazing dreamily at the empty ceiling for a moment, before finally snapping out of her reverie. A loud yawn escaped her lips, and as she sat up to stretch her stiff arms, her gaze fell upon her bright yellow alarm clock, that was ticking silently on the top of her wooden night table.

As soon as she saw the numbers corresponding to exactly what time it was, her slightly dazed purple eyes widened in pure alarm.

"I'm late!" she shrieked wildly, roughly throwing aside her blanket and jumped out of the bed in haste. She scampered towards the bathroom, quickly removing her clothes and taking a ten-minute shower. As soon as she had brushed her teeth, she ran back to her room and dug out her crumpled new school uniform that was buried under the chaotic state of her closet.

She rushed to the mirror and grudgingly combed through the stubborn knots on her long, raven colored hair. As soon as she was satisfied, she carefully tied a thick violet silk ribbon around her head, making it act like a headband. She checked her reflection once again, and a pleased grin appeared on her slightly pale, pink lips.

"All right!" she cheered out loud. "Today is going to be a great day!"

A knock interrupted her self-comforting monologue. "Kikyo? Hurry up and eat breakfast! You'll be late on your first day of school!"

Kikyo almost dropped the brush she was holding, and she immediately took the school bag she had vigilantly prepared the night before. She opened the door and met the annoyed frown of her elder sister.

"Good morning Minami onee-chan!" Kikyo chirped livelily. Minami continued to look at her with an annoyed stare. " Hurry up and eat," she ordered. "Your school starts in fifteen minutes. My god, you never change Kikyo."

"I would make it," Kikyo replied, determination flowing out of her voice. "I'd even be there, five minutes earlier."

Minami rolled her eyes. "Well then, instead of creating impossible goals, why don't you get going? You're wasting your time."

Kikyo stuck out her tongue to her sister and grinned as another scowl appeared on her pale face. Kikyo had always thought it was strange why she and her sister didn't look alike. Minami had short, shaggy tangerine hair, and bright emerald eyes that always seemed to darken eerily whenever she was angry. Her skin was slightly more tanned than hers but still pale.

Kikyo ran down the stairs and almost stumbled upon her mother.

"Kikyo, don't run down the stairs, you might fall," her mother scolded. "Here, I already packed your obentou. Hurry up and eat your breakfast."

Kikyo grabbed two pieces of toast and kissed her mother goodbye on the cheek. She scampered towards the door and almost tripped on the welcome mat.

"A born klutz as always," she heard her sister comment before the door closed behind her. Kikyo frowned. Even if she hated it whenever Minami teased her, she hated it more whenever she herself knew that her sister was right. She was a klutz. She couldn't play volleyball without endangering both herself and her teammates.

The sun was warm against her skin as she hurried through the streets. She constantly checked the time, her speed growing parallel to her anxiety. She did not want to be late on her first day of school. She had always considered that as an omen, ever since she had been late on her first day during junior high, and the whole year ended up with bad luck. She didn't want the same thing to happen on her freshman year too.

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Kurosaki Ichigo leaned casually against the window ledge, staring at the clear, blue sky with the usual frown on his tanned face. Chocolate brown eyes glared momentarily at a passing cloud, and long, calloused fingers ran through his messy, ginger locks.

He had woken up that morning with a strange feeling of uneasiness. He couldn't understand why he was so restless, why his body was anticipating something to happen. The weather was fair and everyone was acting the way they should be. He could not sense any hollows or arrancar nearby, and there had been no disruptions among the souls he had seen that morning.

So why am I so restless? He mentally asked himself.

He would have asked Rukia if Soul Society had detected any imposing threat in the human world, but Rukia was back in Seireitei to report about Karakura town's status and she would not be back in three days.

He checked his watch. There were only five minutes left before classes started.

As he was leaving the window, he spotted a feminine figure running towards the building in desperate haste. Ichigo couldn't see her face but as soon as he set eyes on her figure, a uneasy knot twitched in his stomach. He frowned as he continued staring after the girl until she disappeared into the school building.

Who was that? He asked no one.

The bell rung and Ichigo reluctantly returned to his seat, his mind still on the girl he had seen. Ichigo didn't know why but he sensed something special within that girl… and something familiar.

The door opened and the teacher came in.

"Class, we have a new transfer student from Tokyo," the teacher announced. A sudden uproar of whispers and murmurs emerged from the class. Everyone was curious on who the new student was. All except Ichigo. He stared at the teacher with a bored expression, hoping that the introduction wouldn't be to long and they can proceed to the lesson. He wanted the day to end quickly.

"Come in," the teacher called to the other side of the door. Ichigo turned his head and kept his gaze on the window. The memory of the running girl was still disturbing his mind. The door slid open and a significant volume of gasps was enough to catch Ichigo's interest and he turned his head to see the new transfer student himself.

Chocolate pupils constricted as his eyes widened in immeasurable shock.

W-what on earth–?

"Good morning, I'm Haruma Kikyo. Nice to meet all of you," Kikyo said as she bowed her head in respectful greeting. She looked around and found everyone looking at her with outmost curiosity and a tinted blush crept up her cheeks. As the teacher wrote her name on the board, the students started muttering and whispering among themselves, keeping their curious and anticipating gaze on her. Kikyo studied their faces and was relieved that none of them looked too mean. She had bad experiences with bullies and it was often her older sister, Minami, who would fight for her. She had tried to learn karate just for self-defense, but after a broken arm, ten injured classmates, and one traumatized partner, she quit.

That was when her eyes fell upon Kurosaki Ichigo.

He was staring at her like the others, but his expression was completely different. He was staring at her with a completely shocked and disbelieving expression as if she was some monster he had never seen before. Kikyo shifted uncomfortably, and looked down on the floor, a furious blush appearing on her face.

Why did he have to stare at me that way?

"Haruma-san, kindly take that seat over there," the teacher instructed, pointing at the empty seat beside Ichigo. Kikyo stiffened as she saw the seat, and tried her best to avert her eyes away from the boy who had been staring at her in a strange way. She walked reluctantly towards her desk, almost tripping over someone's eraser on the way, and earning a few giggles and snickers too.

Her face was already as red as a ripe tomato when she reached her seat, and as she stole a curious glance on Ichigo's direction, she found him still staring at her in the same, shocked and disbelieving way.

Ichigo couldn't believe what he was seeing. As soon as Kikyo entered the classroom, his heart dangerously skipped a beat. He couldn't believe it. The hair color, the eye color, the shape of her face, and the shape of her eyes… all of them were exactly similar to Rukia's.

The hair was only longer, the eyebrows a bit thinner and she was slightly taller but all in all Kikyo looked like Rukia's elder twin sister. Ichigo knew that his classmates also noticed, though none of them could point out the devastating similarity between the two.

He knew that Kikyo had noticed him, but he could not bring himself to change the shocked expression on his face. If he hadn't known that Rukia was in Soul Society at that moment, he would have presumed that Kikyo was Rukia and she was only playing a trick on him.

All throughout that class Ichigo continued staring at her, and Kikyo was feeling very annoyed to the point that she was almost on the verge of tears. Why was he looking at me like that? I didn't do anything to him, and I'm very sure that we hadn't met before. So why? Why was he staring at me as if he was recognizing me from some unpleasant event?

Kikyo tilted her head away from Ichigo, and used her long hair to create a curtain between her face and Ichigo's. She was feeling very self-conscious at the moment and found it very hard to even breathe. Everyone else had stopped paying attention to her, but the orange-haired boy beside her was still staring at her. Kikyo imagined herself slamming her hand on Ichigo's desk and demanding to know what the hell was his problem. But she knew herself better, and knew that if ever she attempted doing such a thing, she might suddenly burst out crying. It was an irritating feature but it seemed to her that her anger was hardwired to her tear ducts, making her cry as soon as her mind registers that she was angry.

Time crawled by, or it seemed to be, for Kikyo. Maybe it was because the subject was relatively boring or because she was waiting for Ichigo to remove his strange gaze on her. But he never did.

As soon as the bell rang, signaling the end of the class, Kikyo stood up and rushed out of the room, muttering a lame excuse to go to the bathroom.

Kikyo entered the restroom and locked herself in the silent sanctuary of one of the cubicles. She sat on the covered toilet seat, and stared blankly at the white door of the cubicle for a few moments before she started to cry.

The tears flowed freely out of her indigo eyes, and occasional whimpers resounded all throughout the washroom. Kikyo couldn't believe how pathetic she looked, but she just couldn't help herself. It was her first day and the first thing she sees is some guy staring at her as if she was the most horrifying thing he had ever seen. Kikyo knew that she wasn't one of those who were extraordinarily pretty but she knew that her beauty was still something acceptable. It wasn't so average but it wasn't special either. She had a clear complexion and a healthy demeanor that was normal for girls her age. She did have somehow small breasts but she didn't look as revolting or shocking as to justify the look the ginger-haired boy gave her.

"Hello?" a voice broke through her thoughts.

Kikyo hastily wiped away her tears with the back of her hand and stopped a few more impending whimpers from escaping her throat.

"Hey, are you okay?" The voice asked again.

"Yes, I'm fine," Kikyo managed to reply, but her voice was hoarse and broken, completely betraying her emotions. She cursed silently to herself.

"No, you're definitely not fine," the voice retorted and loudly banged the door of the cubicle.

"Don't do that Tatsuki-chan, you might frighten her," another softer, gentler voice intervened. "Um, the person in the cubicle, you're Haruma-san, right?"

"Yes," Kikyo muttered in reply. She hesitantly opened the door of her cubicle and peeked out "Um, who are you two?" In front of her were two girls, probably freshmen, looking at her with concerned faces. One girl was slightly shorter than the other, with short-cropped black hair that was pointing at different directions. She was standing in a rather masculine way, and had a bit of a flat chest. The other girl was her complete opposite. She was tall, with long flowing orange hair and cute, crystal-like hairclips on the sides of her head. She had a soft and gentle expression with deep gray eyes. She had quite big breasts that made Kikyo a bit envious.

"I'm Inoue Orihime, nice to meet you. We're in the same class by the way," Inoue said, extending her hand and gently shook Kikyo's hand.

"I'm Tatsuki. I won't bother telling you my last name 'cuz I don't want you to call me by my last name," Tatsuki replied, grinning as she gently patted Kikyo's shoulder.

"Ah…okay….Nice to meet you Tatsuki-san…Orihime-san…" Kikyo managed to stutter in reply. She was still not over her crying dilemma.

"Why were you crying, Kikyo?" Tatsuki suddenly asked, catching Kikyo off-guard. She didn't know how to explain her situation, and she was, further more embarrassed at how shallow the issue seemed at that moment. She fondled with the tails of her purple ribbon that peeked out of the ebony curtains of her rave-colored hair.

"I-I…it's nothing important really…" Kikyo stammered, blushing in embarrassment. "I-I… Maybe it's just because this is my first day in this school and anxiety got the better of me and...y-yeah, I guess that's the reason." Kikyo laughed nervously, her clammy fingers twisting the tails of her ribbon into indefinable knots.

There was a moment of silence in the bathroom and Kikyo avoided eye contact with any of the two girls, keeping her anxious eyes on untangling the knots she had created before. She wasn't comfortable on talking about herself in front of people she barely knew about therefore she presumed it was better to lie.

"Eh…" Tatsuki suddenly mused. "You're really a bad liar, Kikyo."

The fingers playing nervously with the ribbon suddenly froze, petrified by Tatsuki's unexpected assumption. But Kikyo couldn't help but agree. The truth syndrome seemed to be ingrained in her system, and whenever she was forced to lie, she was always caught. Her whole family had always reminded her of that, and so she would only lie, if there were no other way.

"W-what are you saying? I-"

"I don't care for the reason behind your lies, but I assure you that you could trust us. Tell me if there was someone who bullied you and I'd beat the crap out of him!" Tatsuki interrupted, staring at Kikyo with serious, maroon eyes.

Kikyo opened her mouth, and then closed it again, deciding against her decision to lie again. A few tears managed to escape the loosening harbors of her eyes, and her throat tightened as the familiar sensation of crying descended upon her muscles and tissues.

Inoue stepped forward, taking Kikyo into her arms. Kikyo started sobbing as soon as she felt Inoue gently pat her back. "B-Because…he….he…"

"Who's he?" Tatsuki pressed on. Inoue gave her a warning look, telling her not to force Kikyo.

"That guy…sitting beside me in class…he had bright orange hair…" Kikyo continued, sobbing silently on Inoue's blouse.

"What the hell did Ichigo do to you?!" Tatsuki almost screamed.

"Tatsuki-chan!" Inoue hissed, looking warily at Kikyo's sobbing figure. "Don't scare her."

"He…he was staring at me ever since I entered the classroom that morning… he was looking at me with a completely shocked expression as if he was seeing a monster or something…I couldn't understand him but he never took that stare away from me the whole time the class was going on… I thought I was going to cry then and there…" Kikyo choked out the last few words, and diluted her sobs into muffled whimpers. She moved away from Inoue and wiped the moist on her cheeks with a handkerchief.

"Eh, that bastard was looking at you that way huh? I'm going to punch some sense into him later!" Tatsuki growled, massaging her fists threateningly.

"Oh no! Don't! I don't want anyone getting hurt because of me!" Kikyo groaned. "Please!" she pleaded, seeing that Tatsuki wasn't going to listen to her pleas.

"Why do you think Kurosaki-kun was staring at her that way Tatsuki-chan?" Inoue asked, looking perplexed. She knew that Ichigo wasn't the kind of person who would normally do such things.

"Hmm," Tatsuki mused, as she scratched her head and furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. Then, her gaze fell upon Kikyo, whose eyes were still a bit red because of all the crying she had done. She stared at her intensely, and leaned towards her face a bit too quickly, making Kikyo stagger back.

"Um…" Kikyo whispered nervously, as she took another step back. "Er…w-what's wrong?"

"I got it!" Tatsuki suddenly exclaimed, surprising Kikyo and making her slide against one of the slippery tiles in the washroom. Good thing Tatsuki caught her on time before she hit the floor. "You look so much like that Kuchiki chick Ichigo's always with, so maybe you just freaked him out a bit when you entered the classroom!"

"Like Kuchiki-san?" Inoue asked, and took a closer look at Kikyo. Tatsuki was right, Kikyo did look a lot like Rukia. Only a few differences in the height and hair length, but the face, the eyes, and the nose….almost everything was completely identical. "Haruma-san, are you somehow Kuchiki Rukia's relative?"

"Who is… Kuchiki Rukia?" Kikyo inquired, bewildered at the unknown topic. She had never heard of someone named Kuchiki Rukia before. However… the two separate names seemed both vaguely familiar… something she had heard from some far away place…from some far away memory…

"Haruma-san?"

Kikyo blinked and looked back at Inoue with a confused look. "Er, what did you say?"

"Are you alright? You were suddenly staring at empty space and your eyes seemed a bit daze. Are you feeling dizzy?" Inoue asked, gazing intently at Kikyo with worried, gray orbs.

"I'm feeling well. I just don't know any person with the name Kuchiki Rukia. We have no relatives by that name," Kikyo replied, shaking her head,

"Oh. Well then, it might be just a coincidence that the two of you looked alike. Anyone would have thought you were twins or siblings," Inoue mused. "That must be why Kurosaki-kun reacted that way to you. He's a bit connected to Kuchiki-san, you know. And she's been skipping school often lately, so he's just a bit like missing her. I hope you don't take this against him."

Kikyo managed to smile and shook her head gently. "No, I understand. This is not his fault. It's only that, I'm a bit sensitive on how people look at me and maybe his stare was just a bit too much. It's my own shallowness that is at fault. Sorry for the inconvenience."

"Now, now, don't be too formal Kikyo! We're friends now, right?" Tatsuki chirped, placing an arm on Kikyo's shoulder and pulling her into an awkward one-hand hug. "Anyway, I'll have to remind that Ichigo about his manners. Staring at people whether they look like his girlfriend or not is definitely not polite!"

"Kuchiki-san is not Kurosaki-kun's girlfriend, Tatsuki-chan! You know how much Kurosaki-kun gets irritated whenever you spread rumors like that!" Inoue scolded. Tatsuki playfully stuck out her tongue. Then she grinned back at Kikyo.

"From now on, you're are friend alright? If someone bothers you, don't hesitate to tell me and I'll teach them all a lesson!"

Kikyo looked at them uncertainly for a moment, before flashing a relieved smile. A load seemed to be lifted from her shoulders as she gazed at the smiling and friendly faces of Tatsuki and Inoue. Now that she was somehow enlightened on the reason behind Kurosaki Ichigo's strange stare, Kikyo started to hope for a more enjoyable year with her newly made friends.

Everything will work out in the end, she happily thought.

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"Aizen-sama, for what reason did you summon me in your midst?" Ulquiorra inquired as he stood in the middle of Aizen's courtroom, which was buried deep within the center of Las Noches. Tall, flawless marble pillars stood together in straight columns, holding the almost invisible ceiling that was hidden by the darkness of the shadows accumulating on top. The floor, created from the finest white marble tiles absorbed every sound, disrupted footsteps and avoided noisy echoes.

A platform, about twenty feet from the ground stood in the center of the room, nesting a majestic stone throne where Sosuke Aizen, former fifth squad captain of the Gotei 13, resided.

"I called you for something I would like you to investigate," Aizen replied, staring at Ulquiorra through his dark, sinister eyes. "Something had moved into Karakura town, something with a potent amount of power that I would like to acquire. However, I could not fully observe such power while I remain here in Hueco Mundo, and so I leave you with that task."

"I understand. Whom should I monitor?" Ulquiorra asked. A small but menacing smile appeared on Aizen's pale lips, and he stared at the darkness with an amused expression on his dark eyes. "A girl, sixteen years old, with long, raven-colored hair and deep violet eyes. The name she is using is Haruma Kikyo. Find her and observe. Once she reveals any hint of inhuman power, bring her to me."

"As you wish, Aizen-sama."

As Ulquiorra disappeared from the room, a bigger, more evil smile twisted Aizen's features. He looked longingly at the eternal darkness that was suspended high above him, and a wild flame of excitement and anticipation grew restlessly in his eyes. If his hunch was correct, then there would be no need to use Karakura town to be able to open the dimension in where the King of Soul Society resided.

The key would already be in his clutches. And Soul Society would know nothing of his plans.

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A/N: this is my second fanfic on ByakuyaXHisanaXIchigo Pairing. The first one was Scatter your love and revive me once again.

I hope you like this story and I am looking forward to your reviews. If you spot any grammatical errors you wish to point out, it is all right to write it as a review. I'll hastily correct it as soon as I read your comment.

Read, review and enjoy!

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