A/N: This is just some drabbles of what I like to imagine happened between chapters 477 and 478, because it seems like Kubo skipped over some details xD So call this Chapter 477.5 hehe!
The battle was over, that much was obvious.
Renji stood alongside his captain, watching somberly as Ichigo delivered the final blow as everyone had expected he would. In mere moments, he and all the others who had come to help the young substitute would be heading back to the Soul Society and the incident would be filed away and forgotten under stacks of paperwork. Still, Renji felt an odd sense that something was lacking; something that would prevent him from truly putting the events behind him.
It wasn't until he felt a small flicker of a vaguely familiar spiritual pressure that it occurred to him what that something might be.
With a quick glance towards his superior ensuring that he wouldn't be missed, and another glance to confirm that Rukia was too engrossed in the final moments of the battle to notice him, he flash-stepped away from the clearing where they all stood and into the woods. Though the spiritual pressure was weak, it didn't take him long to pinpoint its location and come face to face with the woman that he had thought he'd never see again.
"You…" Her coffee-colored eyes widened as she saw him appear. Her clothes were torn in places, and she looked pretty battered herself; her precious boots looked tattered as well. But she was very much alive.
"Abarai Renji." he spoke, looking at her scoldingly. "At least remember my name."
-x-
Rukia didn't have time to think.
One second she stood beside Renji and the captains, watching a battle that had long become completely one-sided end, and the next she was feeling pure, unadulterated terror stab through her as she saw a half dead man move with a speed that seemed impossible even to her shinigami eyes, coming up behind an unguarded and unsuspecting Ichigo…
Her feet seemed to move of their own accord as she reacted automatically. Her heart was pounding in her ribcage as she raced to stand between Ichigo and the man's blade. It all happened too fast for her to process anything beside the sound of Ichigo screaming behind her, and the killing intent plainly visible in the other man's eyes as his blade swung down.
Then it all went black.
-x-
"Abarai…" Jackie repeated his name slowly, as if tasting it on her full lips. "I remember."
Renji scoffed, folding his arms over his broad chest as he glared lightly at the woman. "Then use it, don't just call me 'you'."
"Hn…" she looked away without properly responding. Renji was about to call her out on this, when he noticed her wince and sway on her feet. He forgot whatever he was going to say and was reaching out to steady her immediately, only then taking note that she was probably more badly hurt than she let on.
"Hey, you okay?" he asked. "That was a pretty nasty explosion back there, you sure you should be up and around like this?"
"I'm fine." Jackie said sternly, shrugging off his helping hands with an indecipherable expression.
Renji looked at her skeptically, his instincts pushing him to argue further and just carry her despite her protests, but the resolve that he saw in her eyes a moment later stilled him. She struggled to straighten up, and when she did, she met his eyes with a pair of burning dark orbs.
"I was looking for you." she said.
-x-
When the world came back into focus, it seemed oddly tilted. It took Rukia a moment to realize that, for the second time that day, she had passed out.
"Rukia."
She whirled her head at the sound of the familiar voice, and soon found herself looking into a pair of caramel-colored eyes. "Ichigo…" Another heartbeat passed before she remembered what had happened before she'd blacked out.
Ichigo had won.
Tsukishima had appeared behind him.
He'd brought his sword down…
"Are you hurt?" she sat up abruptly, scanning the orange-haired male for any sign of visible injury. She started to relax when she noticed that he was back in his human body, with no apparent damage.
"You idiot," he frowned at her. "What are you worrying about me for?" His voice was hard, but his eyes were vulnerable as he looked at her. There were a number of emotions swirling in his amber orbs, some of which she couldn't name exactly, but they were gone as he averted his gaze.
She opened her mouth to ask what the matter was, but in that moment the shoji door closing them off from the rest of the world slid open and revealed a shaggy blond shopkeeper wearing a striped green hat.
"Oh, Kuchiki-san." Urahara exclaimed. "You're awake, I see!"
-x-
"Huh?" Renji blinked in confusion. "Looking for me?"
He saw Jackie's fists tighten at her sides, her eyes never wavering from his. Despite her weakened state, everything from her posture to her gaze spoke only of strength and determination. He found himself rapidly admiring the woman he barely knew.
"I wanted to thank you properly." she declared. "What you did for me…"
"Save it." He cut her off with a lazy wave of his hand. "I only did what any decent guy would have done, don't go getting any ideas." He paused, looking at her mildly surprised expression before going on. "If you really want to thank me, then don't go wasting this chance you got. You may not have been saved by the right people before, so here's your chance to make something better of your power."
Jackie gaped at him like he'd said the most shocking thing, but then her expression relaxed and her features softened. "Right…" She looked down at her feet, and her face became unreadable for a moment before she looked back up at him with a smile. "I will."
-x-
"Urahara?" Rukia looked at the shopkeeper, then took in her surroundings for the first time. She recognized the shop's interior at once. "Why am I-?"
"Kurosaki-san carried you here after you passed out." The man explained understandingly. "Sado-kun, Inoue-san and that fullbringer girl are all here recovering as well."
Rukia looked from Urahara to Ichigo, before she felt understanding dawning on her. "…Riruka?"
Ichigo was looking away still. "Yeah, she seemed to come out of nowhere. She saved us."
She thought back and remembered jumping in front of Ichigo, and seeing Tsukishima's sword coming straight to her… She looked down at herself and found no sign of injury.
"Ah," Urahara nodded, smiling as he watched her begin to understand. "That girl had some very peculiar abilities, right Kuchiki-san?"
She brought a hand up to her chest almost subconsciously, as if feeling the memory of it opening to let the human girl out. "Hn." she looked back up at Urahara. "Is she alright?"
"She will be." he reassured her, though his gaze was shadowed by the brim of his hat as he spoke. "At any rate, I just came to inform Kurosaki-san that Inoue-san and Sado-kun are awake now." he moved his attention to Ichigo now. "It seems they don't remember a thing." he said a little too cheerfully.
Ichigo didn't seem to be paying attention. His eyes were still fixed on some invisible spot on the wall. "Good…" he muttered halfheartedly.
"Okay well, now that my job is done, I'll leave the two of you alone." Urahara chirped. Rukia turned to glare at him for his tone, but he had left before she could.
She turned back to the distraught Ichigo. "Ichi-?"
He interrupted before she could finish calling his name.
"You saved me again."
-x-
Renji felt himself smiling back at Jackie. Despite her strong features, he couldn't help but notice how gentle she looked when she smiled. The thought left him feeling slightly unsettled for some reason, and he ended up clearing his throat awkwardly and looking away before he spoke again.
"Anyway, I should be the one thanking you."
Her black eyebrows creased in confusion as he said this. "Wh-?"
"In the end, you were the one who saved me." he shrugged, willing himself to appear nonchalant. "I guess I'm the one who has to thank you." he finished, and he finally turned back to her with a full-on smirk.
Jackie blinked, before cracking another smile and surprising him with a chuckle. "Let's call it even then, Abarai."
He grinned at that. "Actually, just 'Renji' is fine."
Her eyes twinkled and her smile never wavered as she spoke. "Renji."
He turned away then, reluctantly remembering that his captain wouldn't be happy if he had disappeared while everyone was returning. But before she started to flash-step away, he turned to look over his shoulder one last time.
"Hey," he called to her. "You should smile more often, by the way."
He saw her nod. "So long then." she bid him goodbye.
He hesitated before saying, "Later…" Then he spoke slowly, testing the way the word felt before giving a final smile. "Jackie."
-x-
Rukia stared at Ichigo unblinkingly. "What are you talking about?" she questioned. "You said so yourself, it was Riruka who saved us both. Fool." she added the last part for good measure.
Ichigo didn't seem fazed. "I wasn't talking about that… Well, I was, but… Not entirely." He fumbled for words, and soon he had started scratching that spot on the back of his head that seemed to itch much too frequently. "I…"
She decided to take pity on him. "I'm glad you're okay, Ichigo."
She didn't say anything else, only looked at him with a calm smile. There were many things that she would have wanted to say and didn't know how, or simply couldn't bring herself to voice yet, and in Ichigo's eyes she could see just as many unsaid words reflected; but for that moment, it was all they needed.
Ichigo scoffed before smirking slightly, and spoke only once more before they fell into a comfortable silence that made it seem like they'd never been apart.
"I'm glad you're okay too."