Please don't hate me for starting a new story without finishing the old one first. Inspiration struck and I just had to write this. Before you get into this story, I want you to know that you will get a little glimpse inside my mind. It is terriblly dark and you might agree with my mother on the matter that I need a psychologist. Although, it won't get that dark because as I had said before, this is just a glimpse. I realized that Tensa Zangetsu and Hollow Ichigo are two very under loved characters. I changed Hollow Ichigo's name to Ronin because I couldn't call him Hollow Ichigo through the whole story. From what I have researched, Ronin means a samurai without a master. If I'm wrong, please correct me. I don't know, I originally named him Shiro, but that wasn't original. Then I changed his name to Shun, but Senbonzakura11 told me to change it after I told her its meaning. Happy Senbonzakura11? Well, please enjoy my story. Oh, and I don't own Bleach. If I did, we would see WAY more of Hollow Ichigo and Tensa Zangetsu. Oh, one more thing, as you read, you're probably like, "Why are they flying bellow the clouds?" My answer to that is that the are landing soon. And it's also my story and I can do whatever I want. And another thing, Ronin has a normal tongue, white teeth, yellow eyes, the whites of his eyes are white, and he doesn't talk in that weird voice. So basically, everyone is human. This will not be a yaoi fic.
CHAPTER 1: The Move
Tensa Zangetsu stared longingly outside the rain splattered window. He touched it gently, testing its temperature. It was freezing. What else was to be expected at such a high altitude in the middle of a storm? The weather raged in the exact way that Tensa's emotions did.
He and his younger brother, Ronin, were on a plane to London, England to search for their missing brother. This loss was especially hard for Ronin considering that Ichigo was his twin. Tensa, being the eighteen year old that he is, could afford the expenses necessary to support them moving to London from Japan. Their father, Isshin Kurosaki, approved of their little journey since he himself could not leave their younger sisters, Yuzu and Karin, alone by themselves. Isshin knew that Tensa and Ronin needed to do this for themselves, not just Ichigo.
Ronin sat next to Tensa on the plane. Tensa looked over at his somber form. He lightly ran his fingers through Ronin's white hair in a comforting manor. Ronin looked over to him, his face bearing a paler complexion than usual. He leaned his forehead against Tensa's shoulder. Tensa held him tightly against his chest. When Ronin looked up from his embrace, a tear was running down his cheek.
"Don't worry," Tensa comforted, "We'll find him. I'm sure of it."
Ronin sniffled and wiped his eyes. "Yeah. Probably." He leaned back in his chair and began searching his carry-on for his iPod.
"It's really sad that the only color I ever see on your face is when your eyes are puffy red from crying," Tensa joked.
Ronin jutted out his lower lip in a pout. "Shut up." His hand emerged from his bag with his silver iPod. He placed the buds in his ears and zoned out.
Tensa Zangetsu returned his attention to the window. The rain always made him nervous, but he couldn't help but to fixate on it. He had always associated the rain with the troubles of the heart. Maybe the clouds were mourning, much like himself, although it probably wasn't for the same reason.
"Attention, passengers," the pilot called on the overhead speakers. "We are beginning our descend into London. Please fasten your seatbelts and place your tray tables in the upright position. We warn you that it may get a little bumpy due to turbulence."
Ronin didn't hear, causing Tensa to nudge his arm. He opened his eyes and buckled his seatbelt after Tensa buckled his own. Both packed up what they had taken out of their carry-ons so that they would be ready to leave as soon as the plane landed. Other passengers murmured to each other and did the same. The flight attendants in the aisle walked in to the back quarters behind a curtain.
The airplane's descent was indeed bumpy. A couple of passengers gave shrill shrieks. Some people wobbled back and forth. A few suitcases fell from the ledge over the passengers. This caused more panic for the people who shrieked at the brief bout of turbulence.
After about a minute, the plane touched-down safely. The passengers took their sweet time while exiting. The twosome grabbed their luggage along with their carry-ons. They exited the plane and into the terminal. People buzzed around them, either looking for the bathroom or for their other suitcases on the luggage rack.
"Welcome to London," Ronin said flatly.
"Whoop-dee-doo," Tensa said in an equally flat manor.
They made their way over to the revolving luggage rack. Their luggage was easy to recognize due to the luggage tags that their father had insisted upon. Ronin and Tensa grabbed the last bit of suit cases and left the airport in search of the bus stop. Unfortunately for them, the bus left as soon as they got outside.
"Damn it!" Ronin cursed angrily.
Tensa sighed, "As if we really need this."
Another person walked up to the same bus stop they were at. She was young, perhaps eighteen or nineteen, and carried a black umbrella. It wasn't the collapsible kind that most people carried around for convenience, but one of the straight and long variety, a classic style. The stranger clutched her umbrella tightly with her black laced, fingerless gloves. Her blonde hair was in spiraled pigtails that worked well with her heart shaped face. The black trench coat she wore was relatively dry and reached just passed her knees. She smiled over to Tensa and Ronin.
"Can I be of assistance?" she asked.
"Excuse me?" Tensa asked in return.
"I said, 'Can I be of assistance?'" she repeated in her British accent. "You two look as if you just missed your bus."
"Yeah, we did," Tensa answered.
"There is another bus stop over there. You're bus will leave in precisely…" the stranger trailed off before she checked her watch, "…nine minutes and twenty seven seconds. Pleases allow me to walk you."
"Uh, sure. Thank you," agreed Tensa.
The party of three walked in the direction to the right of the bus stop. The mysterious girl opened her umbrella for the three of them to travel under. Rain fell lightly around them. Tensa was thankful for the shelter because just the smell of the rain made him nervous. He didn't like to have anything to do with it, for it brought on unexplained waves of anxiety.
A small whiff of the stranger's perfumes put him at ease. There was just something calming about vanilla and cinnamon. It was amazing how her sent still reached him due to the fact that the top of her head was just under his nose. He wondered if Ronin could smell it too.
"Where are you two from?" the girl asked, breaking the growing silence.
"Japan," Tensa answered.
"I can tell," she said. "Although, your English is pretty good."
"Thank you, that means a lot," Tensa said. He was glad to know that the months it took him to learn the language had evidently paid off.
They approached the bus stop. It was vacant except for a mother and her three-year-old son. His mitten-covered hand held hers tightly. From what Tensa could tell, he was cute, even with his beanie almost swallowing his head. The mother was also relatively good looking for a woman who has had a child. She didn't really tempt him in that way, she was much to old for him, but kudos to her for keeping in shape.
"Are you also taking this bus?" Ronin asked, surprising Tensa. Ronin was never particularly fond of strangers.
"Yes, actually," she answered. "Although, I'll be getting off before you."
"How do you know where we're going?" questioned Tensa.
"Intuition," she replied.
"Hmm," was all Tensa said.
Where did this girl come from? How had she known about all the things she talked about? Was it a coincidence? No, there was no such thing as coincidence in this world, only fate. Something in Tensa's gut told him that this is definitely not the last time they will see this mysterious stranger.
No one spoke until the bus arrived. A couple more people waited with them at the bus stop. The group waited patiently while a few of the people riding the bus got off. Tensa, Ronin, and the girl boarded the bus. It was mostly empty and they sat down along the same side as the bus driver.
There was little conversation among the other passengers on the bus. Rain began to pour on the streets, causing some drivers to swerve occasionally. When one swerved into the bus's lane, the bus driver honked his horn like the crabby old man he looked like. The driver of the Mini Cooper responded by honking back with irritability. Eventually, the bus driver changed lanes.
"You boys are awfully quiet," the stranger noticed.
"Oh," Tensa said. "I don't really have anything to say."
"Tell me about yourselves. What brings you to London?"
"Well-" Tensa started before he was cut off.
"No, let the white boy answer."
Ronin looked at her curiously. He scowled at the white boy comment. "Well, something came up. Family matters."
"Ah, I do hope everything will be alright. Just remember, you know your brother better than anyone."
"Wait," Tensa asked. "How did you know it was our brother?"
The bus pulled over to pick up and drop off people. "Oh look, this is my stop." She stood up and moved over to the door.
"Wait, answer my question."
The girl looked back at him and smiled. "Cheerio." She leapt off the last step, leaving Tensa and Ronin baffled.
"Who was that girl?" Ronin asked incredulously.
"I have no idea," Tensa said, equally stunned.
He sat back down next to Ronin. "Well, that was interesting."
"I don't like that girl," Ronin said. "Something wasn't right."
"Yeah, I will admit that there was something definitely peculiar about her."
The bus started back up again, carrying with it the new riders. An elderly couple had stepped on. They looked especially cold because old people were more susceptible to the cold than young people. Tensa hoped that their clothes were warm enough. He always had sympathy towards old people after seeing so many in his father's clinic.
He looked over to Ronin, who was staring out the window behind them. His face was blank, showing no emotion. Tensa figure that he was just trying to deal with the fact that Ichigo was missing. Ronin would be enrolled in Ichigo's school. He was always in the shadow of Ichigo in the way that Ronin's grades weren't high enough to qualify for the student exchange program. He had always been a delinquent of some sorts, and Ichigo had always been looked at as the 'good' twin. This frustrated Ronin to no end. Tensa had always tried to make it a point to tell Ronin he had the same potential as Ichigo.
Ichigo was reported missing by the family he was staying with when they claimed he didn't come home. His classmates said that they didn't know anything about this and were completely baffled. Now one expected this because they said that Ichigo was a good kid and never got into any trouble. Classmates were only able to tell the police that he stayed after school to help a teacher and walked home alone.
"Hey," Tensa said. Ronin looked at him. "How are you doing?"
"Okay, I guess," responded Ronin like an angry teenager.
"Come here," said Tensa, knowing Ronin wasn't telling him everything. He began running his hand through Ronin's hair. He always did this when Ronin was upset to comfort him about a detention or failing one of his tests. Doing so reminded Ronin that Tensa still cared and would always be there for him.
Ronin came closer and rested his head in the crook of Tensa's arm. If pain and loss stabbed Tensa like a dirty knife, then they must have been gutting Ronin. Tensa didn't know exactly what it felt like to lose your twin, it was probably a thousand times more difficult than what he was going through. Being there for Ronin was the only thing Tensa could think of to do. He would be there for him till the end, and maybe even after that.
"We'll get through this," Tensa coaxed. "The next stop will be a short walk from our apartment, okay. We'll unpack, turn on our heater, get over our jet lag, and then I'll find us something hot to eat. Sound good?"
"Yeah," Ronin said into his arm.
The bus stopped and pulled over to the curb. Tensa shook Ronin lightly. He looked up and the both of them stood from their seats. They gathered their luggage, trying not to bump in to anyone on their way off the bus. People moved aside, letting them slide passed. Several other passengers followed them off the bus.
"Home sweet home," Tensa said as he stared at the array of apartments in muted colors. They all stood around five stories high. All of them had several steps leading up to their large black doors. They both wandered over to the light brown one where their new home awaited.
The two of them entered their apartment lobby. It had blue carpeting, and white walls. There was an occasional plant scattered every few feet. A young woman with glasses and a long, black braid sat at the front desk. She was going through papers, probably looking at rent and utilities bills. She seemed intimidating, but Tensa walked up to her without any hesitation.
"Hello, I'm Tensa Kurosaki. I'm moving in today."
"Oh, it's you," she said. Tensa looked down at her nameplate pinned to her black blazer that completed her pantsuit. It read Lisa Yadomaru. "You're apartment is on the fourth floor, room seven. Let me just see some identification."
"Sure," Tensa responded, reaching into his bag and pulling it out.
"Okay, looks good. Here are your keys."
Tensa gave her a small smile. "Thank you," he said as she placed them in his open hand.
He felt a wave of excitement and nervousness as he and Ronin stepped into the elevator. Tensa was unsure of how to feel. Now they officially lived in London, not in Karakura town, and had a new life. No one knew anything about them and they could basically start over. It would be good for Ronin because he wouldn't have to live in Ichigo's shadow anymore. He could be his own person, and hopefully, Tensa thought, not get in to anymore trouble.
Ronin pushed the '4' button on the elevator. The doors closed soon after and the elevator began moving upward. After a few moments, the elevator stopped on their floor. The hallway carpeting was the same as the lobby, but the walls were beige. The doors of the apartments were all brown and made of wood. They traveled down the hall until they found the door marked '7'. Tensa turned the key in the knob and it opened with ease.
The apartment was fully furnished, but with few items. Boxes were scattered across the living room, unmoved from where the movers put them. Tensa and Ronin entered the apartment, completely exhausted. They left their suitcases next to the couch.
"I'm beat," Ronin announced. "I'm going to put the sheets and covers on my bed and take a nap.
"I think I'll do the same," agreed Tensa.
Ronin walked down the mini hallway and claimed the bedroom on the left. Tensa lay down on the couch, thinking to himself that he would just lay down for a little bit before he started to unpack. He closed his eyes, loving the way the cream couch supported his aching back. Moments later, he drifted off to sleep.
Okay, I know this seems a bit yaoi-ish, but the genre is Hurt/Comfort. I'm serious, there will be, like, no yaoi after this chapter. Please let me know what you think or if you have any questions. Reviews are greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my story.