Episode 1: Lost images

Red blazing fire.

There was fire everywhere.

With every step she took, she could feel the air around her becoming thicker and hotter. Her lungs were screaming for relief and the fresh air she desired passionately seemed miles away. Mindlessly running through the hallway did not help her scorched lungs. Her burning throat, along with the scarcity of oxygen made her wheeze.

She turned at the curb of the wide hallway and saw the door, the door that would free her of the scalding fire and air, the door she longed for. She cursed to the high heavens, oh how far it was! And with the vast amount of smoke that she had inhaled, she barely had enough confidence in herself to know that she would make it. Yet, she still ran. She knew that she had to get out immediately.

Her tiny childlike feet padded quickly and loudly on the floorboards. She did her best to avoid the burning walls and furniture but somehow, the fire seemed to be inching its way towards her every second.

Soon, her running turned into jogging.

Her jogging turned into walking.

Her walking turned into crawling.

Then, her crawling stopped, and she collapsed onto the ground.

The exit seemed so far away.

It appeared closer now, but she had no energy left within her to push herself off the ground and continue crawling. The flames around her tiny lying form licked her skin and she screamed in pain.

"SAVE ME!" she cried out in desperation. Despite her sore throat and lack of energy, her consciousness still called out for help. She screamed once more at the burning pain on her arms and legs and soon, she could feel her hot dry eyes closing. Before she slipped into unconsciousness, one unanswered question lingered in her mind.

Where are you...

Onee-chan?

Rukia screamed and thrashed on her bed. Her body shot up, and her eyes snapped open. Her heart was beating loudly against her chest and she could hear the sound of her labored pants in the quiet room.

She warily looked at her surroundings and found herself in her bedroom and not in the fire. The blanket that she had used was tangled around her legs and her pillow was thrown on the ground abandoned. Her forehead and chest was damp from perspiration and her throat felt achingly dry. She swallowed her saliva to help her aching throat, but it was of no use. Deciding that she should go and get a drink, she shakily got up and made her way out of the lavender room and into the kitchen.

She has been getting nightmares like this since last four nights. Every night, the terrifying dreams seemed to be getting more intense and vivid. The confusing thing about it was that it all revolved around someone, someone that appeared so close, yet so distant. In her dreams, she would always be a child and her child self would be constantly thinking of her sister. But in reality, she knew that she had no sister. She only had a brother whom she loved dearly.

Once arriving in the kitchen, she grabbed a chair from the rectangular table in the middle of the room and placed it against the baby blue counter. Rukia took a cup from the cabinet and quickly drank after filling it with water.

Rukia's attention quickly drifted towards the phone which had started ringing. She gulped down the remaining liquid and placed it in the sink. She made her way to the counter and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" she croaked. She cleared her throat and tried again; "Hello?"

"You sound horrible," the woman from the other side giggled. Rukia rolled her eyes.

"Of course I sound horrible. I just woke up and it's," she walked to the living room and glanced at the clock on the wall, "one in the morning."

"Oh, well sorry if I woke you up, Rukia. I just needed to tell you that boss needs you to cover for Nelliel's shift."

"It's okay, Orihime," she laid down on her couch, "It wasn't you that woke me up anyway."

"Are those nightmares bothering you again?" Orihime asked in concern.

Rukia sighed and slid her right arm over her closed eyes. "Yeah..." she murmured, "I don't know what to do. I don't want to be spending most of my nights having those nightmares. It's bad enough that I have to get up early for work."

"Maybe you should ask Urahara-san for a day off. They say that stress can cause nightmares and if you take a day off of work, it should help calm you down."

"Hmm," Rukia paused. "I guess so. Thanks for the suggestion, Orihime."

"Any time Rukia! And since you need more relaxation, I'll just tell Urahara-san that I'll work double shift."

Rukia chuckled. "That's so kind of you but I think I can handle going to work right now. I don't think I'll be falling asleep again anytime soon."

"Scared that you'll have that nightmare again?"

"Hey, what happened to Nel anyway?" Rukia asked, and changed the subject, not wanting to continue conversing about the disturbing nightmares. Just thinking about it made her stomach churn. Orihime noticed and played along, somewhat regretting her previous comment.

"She was getting really pale and light headed and then vomited in the lady's restroom. Urahara-san was worried about her so he sent her home," Orihime muttered, "Poor Nel..."

Rukia nodded her head in sympathy. Nelliel worked with her and Orihime at Shiroi Tsuki, one of the few restaurants in the Tokyo Plaza Hotel that was open 24/7. She had originally met the green haired woman at the market while she was shopping for groceries. Rukia was just about to leave the market with her groceries in her hand but stopped when Nelliel ran up to her and gave her the change that she had forgotten to take from the cashier.

"So, I'll be there in half an hour?"

"That's fine. Be safe on your way to the restaurant, okay?"

"Yeah."

"Alright then, bye."

"Bye."

Rukia hung up and walked back to the kitchen and placed the wireless telephone back in its charger. She left the kitchen and made her way to her room to change. Even though she worked at one of the fanciest restaurant in the city, the uniform that she wore was very simple. It consisted of black slacks, a red polo and a small black apron with pockets that held her tips and a mini-notepad.

When she was done changing, she grabbed her bag and walked back outside to the living room. Since she barely had any money to afford car, she was going to have to ride the bus instead. Walking to work would be far too dangerous, especially since it was quite dark.

She opened her door and locked it before stepping outside. Her skin felt the cool night air and she could see the pale moon shining high in the sky. Since she lived on the fifth floor of the apartment, she could see the view of the city perfectly fine. With the city's bright lights and urban atmosphere, she could hardly see the sky clearly, though.

Such a shame... she really liked looking at the stars. Back in her hometown, Karakura, she would see them every night from her bedroom window. The sky was always clear there and it was such a sight to see, and she always found herself falling asleep around midnight because of this beautiful distraction.

Rukia lowered her eyes and began to make her way down the long flight of stairs. She sighed wearily while descending the steps. It seemed living on the fifth floor can both have its advantages and disadvantages.

Rukia opened the door of the restaurant and the chiming of the customer bell was nearly swallowed by the noise of customers chatting away happily. A mixture of food, perfume and cologne hit her face as she gracefully dodged bustling employees who were juggling plates of food and dirty dishes.

Shiroi Tsuki was busy for a reason. With dozens of two-seated tables that were always packed, the gigantic chandeliers that hung on the bright beige ceiling and the breathtaking view of Tokyo from the foot-to-ceiling windows, it was a perfect romantic spot. And for those who weren't there for romantic dates, the mouthwatering dishes and friendly employees always brought people from any age back here again and again.

Rukia struggled with her knot as she walked through the restaurant. When she caught sight of Orihime cleaning one of the tables, she walked up to her and tapped her shoulder.

Orihime turned around quickly, alarmed. But when she saw that it was only Rukia, her features visibly relaxed.

"I'm glad you arrived in one piece," Orihime said cheerfully.

"So am I," Rukia replied, still struggling to tie her apron. Giving up, she sighed.

"Can you help me out with this thing?" Rukia asked with a disgruntled huff.

"Sure. Let's go to the restroom," she giggled, taking Rukias hand and leading her to the restroom. Orihime noted Rukias shaking hands and curiously glanced behind her to see if she was okay.

"Rukia-chan, your hands are shaking. And it's shivering too... Are you okay?" Orihime asked when they were finally inside the restroom. She took her place behind Rukia and began to tie the knot.

Rukia looked at her hands. She hadn't even noticed it was shivering, she was not even feeling cold. A moment ago, it looked and felt fine.

"It was just really cold outside and I forgot to stuff a jacket in my bag," she lied for the lack of explanation.

"Ohh..." Orihime finished tying the knot and took a step back, admiring her work. "Now, you should get going. After Nel's incident, it's been kinda crazy in here."

Rukia nodded her head and began speed walking to the employee room to put her bag in her locker, ducking and sidestepping waitresses and waiters along the way. When she arrived, she grabbed her mini notepad and a pen from her bag before puting into the locker. She closed the locker and quickly walked back out.

"Waitress," a customer called. Rukia walked to the direction of the customer and began her usual job.

From the door of the kitchen, the owner of the restaurant looked at the busy dining room with pride. And to think that this was the booming business he had just started with a few friends a few months ago! It looked like someone had donated all their money to ensure the fancy atmosphere.

The visitor bell chimed. Kisuke Urahara shifted his gaze to the new customers and immediately stiffened.

Rukia, who had just finished taking her current customer's order, was about to turn her head to greet the new arrivals but stopped when she felt a sudden painful sensation in her head. It felt like someone was pounding on her brain with a hammer.

Tha-thump

Tha-thump

Tha-thump

Her pulse rate increased and she leaned on a table for support. She placed a hand on her forehead and gently massaged it to make the pain go away. An image flashed and just as quickly as it had appeared, it disappeared. She stopped her slow circular motions and froze.

"Erm, miss? Are you alright?" the customer on the table asked. Rukia couldn't even hear the man. She had shut all sounds from the real world out completely and was left in her thoughts. Her eyes were wide open as she stared at the ground with both shock and amazement.

She could see several images appearing and fading away. The first image she saw was of seven gigantic castles, all lined up in a half circle. There was a fountain in the middle with a statue of an angel holding a vase upside down in the centre. The fountain was surrounded by a small hedge with lavender flowers. The seven shiro, a kind female voice said to her faintly. The second vision she had was that of a woman. She had gentle lavender eyes, of a little darker shade, and raven hair with several of its strands hanging in the middle of her pale face. Her pale and petite form was crouching down and she was smiling softly. She looked like Rukia but Rukia knew that there was no way that it was her. She was so much like her, yet so entirely different.

Someone touched her shoulder and she jumped, and the visions stopped at the same time. She snapped her head up at the person that had touched her.

"AHH, KUCHIKI-CHAAAAN. NOT YOU TOO! My poor employees seem to be getting sick lately," Urahara noted, pouting. He then smiled, "Go into the kitchen. I wouldn't want you to go through the same thing that little Nel went through."

Numbly, she nodded her head and made an attempt to make her way through the crowd that had formed around her. With so many people surrounding her, it was difficult for her to find her way. She could have told them to move, but at that moment, she just couldn't find her voice. She was still trying to figure out an explanation for what had happened and so far, she had no answers. It was all too strange and inexplicable. The weird dreams, the sudden drop of her body temperature, the images, and the voice... It was all nerve racking and the more she thought about it, the dizzier she felt.

Orihime saw Rukia and noticed her pale face. Rukia began to gag and that was when Orihime stepped in and gently grabbed her arm to help her on her way to the kitchen.

Kisuke stared at Rukia and Orihime's retreating forms before turning his head to face the newcomers. The first man had spiky copper hair and deep auburn eyes and he scowled. He wore a dark gray long-sleeved crew neck and dark denim jeans. His eyes were fixed on the kitchen door. The second man had death black hair that reached his shoulders and sharp emerald eyes and his face formed a solemn frown. He wore a black sweater with hoodies and jeans. He had his hands in the pocket of his sweater and his eyes were also staring at the now closed kitchen door.

"Ichigo-kun! Ulquiorra-kun!" Kisuke greeted, continuing his typical happy-go-lucky facade, "What brings you two here?"

A/N: Welcome my lovely readers! Here, is the start of "Crimson Skies." From here on out, there shall be fluff. Fluff so fluffy, you're going to want to scream into the heavens, cry your eyeballs out and pee your pants.

YOU HAVE ALL BEEN WARNED.

Also, please keep in mind that this is a supernatural fanfic. So there will be some mythological creatures like you know... vampires...DUN DUN DUUUN! :3

Special thanks to my beta, Tensai-Teki Kuroneko. Give her some love you guys! She worked really hard to fix my poorly written chapter! I also would recommend for you all to read her stories. They're super cute and it made me have butterflys in my tummy :'3

And if anyone's curious about what Shiroi Tsuki means, it means White Moon in Japanese. I'd originally thought of naming the restaurant Benehime but because I loved the name that Kubo gave for Rukia so much, I just couldn't ignore it.

Next episode shall be out soon! In the mean time, tell me what you think :)

~ Streaks of moonlight