"And then little Miss Aiko comes over and says 'Hello Miss Keiko…how was your day?' And Miss Keiko says 'Very nice, why thank you Miss Aiko.'"

Little Rukia Kuchiki smiled and laughed happily as she played with her dolls. Her finger touched her chin and her eyes looked to the ceiling as she tried to think of a new game to play. But, when nothing entered her mind, she continued her game, the same little game she played every day. She always played with her dolls. It was part of her "schedule."

"Rukia, come up. It's time for your story."

"Okay Momma!" Rukia smiled as she rose from the living room floor and neatly put her dolls away before running up the white carpeted stairs to where her mother's voice was. She opened the door to her room and sat on her fluffy bed next to her mother. Rukia's violet eyes danced around the familiar room. The pink walls and pink rug never seemed to change. Even her dolls stared at her in the same peculiar way as they always did. But Rukia did not think much of it, because that was how her life always was.

"Will you read me the story, Mommy?"

"Of course, I'll read you your favorite…"

Her mother began to read her a story about a girl who eventually grew up and became a happy young woman with no troubles and hardships. She stayed in her house, did what she was told, and became successful and cheerful. It was the perfect story, the story her mother read her every day.

"Now see, Rukia, if you do these things, you will be perfectly happy too. Nothing bad will happen to you and you'll live a wonderful life. Don't you want that?"

"Yes Mommy! I wanna be happy just like you! " Rukia smiled as she hugged her mother. Her mother smiled squeezed her tightly.

"I love you, Rukia…you're a wonderful girl…and it's almost time for my little girl to have her nap…I'll go get your things…"

Her mother stood up and walked out of her daughter's room as Rukia laid on her bed and stared at the top of her canopy. She has always been with her mother with no memory of anyone else, always living together in their little white house with its little red roof. To her, she had the greatest mother in the world that always loved her. But her mother just had one important rule.

Never open the shades.

'The world is a very bad place that nice little girls shouldn't see,' her mother would say. Whenever Rukia asked her mother about the outside world, her mother would shake her head and repeat those words. Rukia was not that interested with outside anyway, for she was happy with her mother in their house. But then, she heard a strange noise coming from outside her bedroom.

Rukia got up from her bed and walked over to the window. She swallowed twice before her small hand pulled on the white shade string. The blinds flew up in a flash and light filtered into the room. She squinted her eyes as she looked out the window, the sunlight blinding her at first. The first thing her eyes fell on was a small orange blob in the middle of the road. She held her breath as she watched it move towards her. Rukia realized it had a face as big brown eyes stared up at her.

"H-Hello?" Her small voice escaped from the windowsill. The thing she called 'it' kept staring at her intently. However, 'it' was an orange haired boy.

"Hi! I haven't seen you before. What're you doing up there?!"

Rukia quickly looked to see if her mother was coming before she answered, "This is my room. M-My mom said it's dangerous outside!"

The boy's eyes stayed on her as he grinned, "Well, she's wrong! There's nothing bad down here where I am!"

"No…Momma wouldn't lie. She's right because she loves me."

"Well, come out and see!" Violet curiosity continued to stare at brown confidence, and there was a long silence.

"Will you ever come out?"

"O-One day…I want to…," Rukia replied quietly. The boy grinned.

"Then I'll wait for you to come down from that room! What's your name?"

"Oh, I'm-"

"RUKIA!!!!"

Rukia turned from the window when she heard the shriek of her mother, who ran over and quickly tried to pull her daughter away from the window.

"Mommy, I'm talking to the 'it'!"

"GET AWAY FROM THE WINDOW RUKIA!!!"

Rukia's face twisted in fear as her mother dragged her away from the windowsill. She fell onto the ground as her mother closed and locked the window. Rukia whimpered and began to cry as she curled up into a ball on the floor. She had never, ever heard her mother scream before.

"Why Rukia? I've told you so many times! Why did you open the window?!"

"I-I don't understand Mommy!" Rukia finally stood up, warm tears rolling down her small, pale face. She shook as she talked; she has never been angry before. "Why can't I open the window?! Why can't I go outside and see everything?! The 'it' said it'd wait for me! Why, Momma?!"

Her mother, tears in her eyes, quickly ran over and hugged her daughter. Rukia started crying again against her mother's chest.

"I'm so sorry, Rukia. But nothing good will come from going outside…I learned the hard way…I'm just trying to protect you, Rukia. I'm so sorry…but I promise you, I'm doing something right."

Rukia nodded through her mother's embrace. "O-Okay Momma…I'm sorry…I…I won't go outside anymore…I'm so sorry, don't be mad at me Momma…"

And they stayed like that in the darkness of her room for a while longer.


"Rukia…"

The name came easily off six year-old Ichigo Kurosaki's lips, "Rukia…"

For a while, Ichigo stood on the curb and repeated the name over and over again, thinking of what he should so with it. After a few minutes, a grin showed itself on his rosy face.

"I'm gonna come up there and get you one day, Rukia!" Ichigo began to yell from the street. No one could hear him and he knew that. It was his way of declaring it to himself. "I'm gonna bring you down here and show you everything!"

"Ichigo…what are you doing standing there, we have to keep moving…"

He grinned as he saw his kind-eyed mother came walking towards him. "You used a lot of energy at the dojo, you must be tired. Come on, let's go home for dinner."

Ichigo took his mother's hand, "I just met the cutest girl Mommy…but her momma won't let her out of her room…"

His mother frowned, "I know dear…the Kuchiki family…it's actually very sad…"

Ichigo looked up at his mother, "But one day…I'm gonna go take her from her room and bring her down with me! Just like the people in the books you read me Momma…I'll save her from a dragon too!"

His mother smiled, "Yes…please do that Ichigo…I bet Kuchiki-chan would really like that…"

Then, Ichigo's smile turned into a frown as he bowed his head, "But…Momma, can I save people? Do you really think I can save her, Momma?" Ichigo sighed. His mother stopped and walked in front of him, kneeling down to hold his head in her hands.

"Ichigo…you're a protector…you can do anything."

Ichigo's lips spread out into an even bigger smile as they continued to walk down the road together. But before the Kuchiki house was out of sight, Ichigo turned around one more time to look.

"I'll save you…I promise, Rukia…"


And the story begins...

I like where this is going. It's my first sorta AU so I hope everything works out. I have a couple things in mind for this story and pray that it will be long, continuous and successful!