This is a side story to one of my other stories, Protecting What's Precious. It was originally meant to be a one shot, but in the end I guess it's going to be about three chapters long.

My Beta didn't look this one over for me so please excuse any errors there might be.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach!

Chapter 1: Rukia

Sometimes it only takes a moment for your world to change forever. A single event can alter the choices and decisions of everyone involved, and something that may have led to nothing becomes the most important thing to ever happen to you. Fate has always brought people into my life in the most surprising ways, so I guess the fact that my one true love only realizes we were meant to be in the middle of a battle just goes to show how a-typical our relationship is. Even so, that was the wonderful day that I started down a path I never imagined or hoped to ever be on, and I know I'll never regret it.

Rukia

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"This is lame, Rukia," Ichigo Kurosaki complained to his closest friend, Rukia Kuchiki, as they picked there way through the rubble of what used to be the North 23rd Rukon district. They were helping to search for survivors after an impromptu battle between some of the remaining Arrancar and Captain Kenpachi Zaraki had leveled the area. It had been four years since the Winter War had started and it was hopefully now nearing its end, but until everything was ready for their last siege against Hueco Mundo everyone was simply preparing for the battle to come. Rukia knew that Ichigo was impatient for everything to start so that they could defeat Aizen and the last remaining Arrancar forces. She knew that he longed to insure everyone's safety from their plans, but the waiting was what was making him irritable. His impatience had turned him into a nuisance, so the other Captains had asked him and Rukia to take care of this task to help keep him occupied until they were ready to begin. Rukia stopped walking and turned to glare angrily at him. He had stopped a few paces behind her with a very annoyed expression on his face, obviously refusing to budge another step. "We should be preparing to end this stupid war with the others instead of wandering around through some deserted ruins. They've sweeped this place four times already! Don't you think they've found everyone by now?"

Why do I care so much for this impatient idiot? Rukia thought in annoyance as she let out a noisy sigh.. She knew where her heart belonged, but at times like these she questioned her sanity in choosing Ichigo. He was still stubborn and they often fought about every little thing, but then again, maybe that was why she loved him. He always made her feel at ease and she never felt any urge to hide who she truly was when she was with him. She had often thought about confessing her feelings to him, but she knew that Ichigo's wasn't ready for her yet. He was still a lot younger than her, and in the span of a few short years his life had been turned completely upside down because of events she had set into motion when they had met. She didn't want to burden him with anything else until he was ready, so she could wait, and hopefully the day that he would be ready for her would come soon. I just hope he gets less irritating or else I might accidentally kill him before I can confess anything to him.

"Would you just shut up and quit complaining already!" she snapped impatiently as she glared angrily up at him, he was so insanely tall compared to her that her only hope of ever arguing with him face to face was if she cut his legs off at the knees with her Zanpakutou. She placed her hand unconsciously on the hilt of her sword, as she seriously contemplated doing it because although she loved him, they had been having this argument for the past half an hour and she was at her limit with his attitude. "Orders are orders, and the Captains are perfectly capable of completing the plans against Aizen without you. Besides, the last team found a couple of people still trapped in the ruins so it's very likely that there may still be some people here."

"Whatever, Rukia," he snapped back as he bent closer towards her small frame so he could argue directly into her face. "I still feel that we're wasting our time out here. We should be getting ready for the battle somehow instead of wandering around here."

"If that's the case you idiot, then you should have kept your mouth shut! It's your fault that we're out here instead of preparing with the others because you were threatening to storm Hueco Mundo with or without everyone's help!" Rukia retorted back as she stretched herself as far as her small frame would allow so that she could practically bite his nose off as she spoke. "But I'll say this slowly so that even an idiot like you can understand! There... really... may... be... people... here... so... SHUT UP AND HELP ME LOOK FOR THEM ALREADY!!!!"

She emphasized her words by making a graceful leap into the air and then bashing him with all her strength on the top of his head. She often hit him when he frustrated her because she felt that the only way she could ever make him understand any sense was by ramming it into his stubborn skull. Rukia glared at his crumpled form for a few seconds before she turned on her heels and started to walk away.

"Hurry up, Ichigo," she said casually, as if she hadn't just given him brain damage by hitting him so hard. "It looks like it's about to rain and I'd like to get this done before anythi...."

Just then they were stopped short by a powerful reiatsu that suddenly beat down on them like the unforgiving sun in the desert.

"Ichigo Kurosaki!"

Rukia looked up in fear and saw a familiar blue haired figure suspended in the air above them. He was dressed in his tattered white Arrancar uniform and she could see the sky behind him through the hole in his stomach. He sneered hungrily at them as he stood above them with his hands casually in his pockets.

"Grimmjow!" Rukia shouted as she drew her Zanpakutou, Sode no Shirayuki, in preparation for battle. "What are you doing here?"

She may as well have been yelling at the rocks around her instead of him because he didn't even glance in her direction. All of Grimmjow's attention was focused on Ichigo, and she was certain that he was here to kill him. He had held an insane obsession with Ichigo ever since he had defeated him at the beginning of the war. The fact that Ichigo had also saved his life right after seemed to have fueled his need to beat him even more. Grimmjow had returned the favor by saving them from an ambush that some of the Arrancar had planned, but after that he had said that his debt was paid and his only goal from now on would be to defeat Ichigo with his own two hands. She turned slightly to shout a warning to Ichigo, but Grimmjow suddenly disappeared from his spot in the sky and materialized right in front of her.

Damn! This is bad, was her final thought before Grimmjow backhanded her out of his way.

"Move, you little worm, I'm not interested in you," he growled as she flew backwards from the blow. He had moved his arm in an almost offhanded manner, his blow seeming to lack any visible force behind it, but Rukia still flew through several walls that had managed to remain standing after the initial destruction of the area. She had already increased the flow of her reiatsu to protect herself from his attack, but despite that fact, Rukia still felt several ribs snap as she spiraled helplessly through the solid walls. Through it all, she was dimly aware of Ichigo shouting her name, but it stopped and was replaced by the sounds of battle.

Ichigo..., she thought dazedly as she struggled through her pain so that she could get up and see what was happening. She finally managed to force herself upright by using Sode no Shirayuki to help her stand. He ribs ached with every movement she made, but she finally stood and looked up in time to see Ichigo get slammed into the ground by Grimmjow.

"Ichigo!" Rukia cried out as a cloud of dust and debris rose in a huge cloud that obstructed her view, she couldn't tell if he was ok or not. It had taken her awhile to realize the extent of her feelings for him, but she had known for awhile that in her heart, there was no one more important to her in the world. He was her strength that kept her from ever giving up; he was the hope that always saved her; and he was the courage that made her believe that all things in life were possible. Her heart stopped at the thought of him being seriously hurt or even dead, and she was just about to shunpo to his side when there was an explosion of power where he had landed.

"Bankai!"

The dust that obscured him whirled violently around and was blasted away by an explosion of black reiatsu. Ichigo stood tall in the middle of it as the thick haze surrounding him blew away with the release of his Bankai, Tensa Zangetsu. He glared angrily up at Grimmjow, and then suddenly he disappeared from Rukia's sight as he used shunpo to clash with Grimmjow in the sky.

"You're not fighting me seriously yet Ichigo Kurosaki!" Grimmjow shouted at him as Rukia watched in horror as he grabbed Tensa Zangetsu bare-handed to stop Ichigo's attack. "Hurry up and release all your power! I won't be satisfied unless I beat you at your full strength!"

With that, Grimmjow flung Ichigo toward another pile of rubble by his sword. Ichigo managed to regain his footing and slow his momentum so that he didn't crash into the ground again, but before he could fully recover, Grimmjow used sonido to appear right behind him, grab him by his head and slam him hard into a nearby wall.

"Hurry up and fight me for real already!"

Rukia couldn't take it anymore. She refused to simply stand there when the man she loved was getting beaten into a pulp. She knew the reasons why Ichigo was hesitating to use all of his strength and she knew that if she didn't do something his hesitation might get him killed. First of all, she knew that Ichigo remembered that Grimmjow had saved them once and he was reluctant to attack someone who had rescued them before, but she knew that even though Grimmjow had his own twisted code of honor, he wouldn't hesitate to kill them. Secondly, she knew that Ichigo was still afraid of losing himself when he used hollowfication. He had lost control before and had attacked his own comrades. He never said anything, but Rukia knew that he was always worried about losing control and becoming a mindless killing machine every time he used it. Even though he had no faith in himself Rukia believed in him. She knew that he had gained control of his inner hollow and that he would never let it take him completely over again. She had to snap him out of his indecision and fear before he got himself killed.

"Hadou 33, Soukatsui!"

Rukia cast her kidou and a blazing ball of blue energy hurtled towards Grimmjow. It was right on target, but Grimmjow leaped back and the shot flew past him and exploded on the ground a few feet away. She didn't actually think she would hit him with such a simple attack. She only wanted to distract him long enough so that she could release her Zanpakutou.

"Mai… Sode no Shirayuki!"

Rukia's Zanpakutou transformed instantly into its beautiful snow white form, its long pure white ribbon flowed gracefully around her. She immediately pierced the ground three times, each strike creating a brilliant white fountain of snow to emerge from the ground. She drew her sword back to her side and pointed it towards Grimmjow as he turned to glare angrily at her for interfering with his battle with Ichigo.

"Tsugi no Mai… Hakuren!"

A huge blast of snow erupted from her sword and encased Grimmjow in a mountain of ice. She knew from experience that this was only temporary, but she only needed enough time to wake Ichigo's fighting spirit. She quickly used shunpo to go to his side so that she could yell at him. She knew him better than he knew himself and she knew exactly what she had to say to him.

"Stand up, Ichigo! What are you doing by playing around like this?!?" she shouted at him, her voice at its most bossiest. Her connection to him was deeper and truer than anything else in the world and the words she knew he needed to hear flowed effortlessly from her lips. "The Ichigo I know isn't a coward who's afraid of himself. He wouldn't hesitate to use all his strength to defeat his enemies. Stop fooling around, Ichigo! Are you a man or aren't you?!? Or do you want to get yourself killed?!?"

"Would you shut up, you annoying little munchkin, I know what I'm doing!"

Ichigo stood up slowly. He was breathing hard and was bleeding from the side of his head, but she could see a look of determination set in his eyes as he glared at her. The Ichigo that would not accept defeat stared back at her and she had a moment to feel her relief flood her before she heard the sound of ice shattering and felt a hand clamp roughly on to her.

"You're seriously starting to annoy me," Grimmjow snapped angrily as he grabbed the top of her head and flung her hard into a nearby wall. "If you want to die so badly, just wait till I'm done with Ichigo and I'll gladly kill you too."

When she hit the wall she could swear that every bone in her body must have broken, but she remained conscious despite the new wave of pain that flooded her. Despite her condition she felt Ichigo's reiatsu change and she knew that he had donned his hollow mask, but by the strength of it she knew he had not released its final form. Her speech apparently hadn't given him enough confidence to release all his power, but hopefully this form would be enough. She heard Grimmjow give an insanely gleeful laugh.

"Finally!" he shouted in satisfaction. Rukia was worried. She knew that this wasn't Ichigo at his most powerful, and she knew that Grimmjow had witnessed his ultimate hollowfication. Ichigo had defeated him once in this guise, but four years had passed since then and she was sure that Grimmjow had only gotten stronger. She raised her head in time to see Grimmjow draw his sword. He had been fighting bare handed the whole time before this. "Kishire, Pantera!"

Rukia raised her arm to protect herself as a whirlwind of power blasted forth and whipped dust and debris in her direction. When it finally cleared, she blinked to clear her vision and saw Grimmjow's panther like Ressureccion form staring eagerly at Ichigo.

"You're finally starting to get serious, Ichigo!" Grimmjow shouted as he rushed Ichigo with blinding speed. "Now hurry up and release the rest of your power! You know I won't take anything less than beating you at your full strength!"

The two of them were moving so quickly that Rukia could only catch glimpses of them when they paused to realign their strikes against each other. They finally slowed down enough for Rukia to be able to follow what was going on, and she stared, transfixed by the battle playing out before her.

Ichigo let loose with his Getsuga Tenshou and carved a huge slice in the land, but Grimmjow easily moved out of the way with cat-like agility. He then counterattacked with a mighty roar that sent shockwaves blasting towards Ichigo and caused the remaining structures in its way to be blasted apart. Ichigo swiftly used shunpo to come around behind him and released another Getsuga Tenshou at point blank range behind him. This one hit Grimmjow and now it was his turn to be smashed into the unforgiving earth.

Thank goodness…, she thought with relief as she realized that he seemed to have the upper hand now although he hadn't released his full power. He had defeated Grimmjow once before in this form and it seemed that although four years had passed, it was still enough to defeat him. You better win or else I'll….

But before she could finish her thought Grimmjow suddenly burst out of the crater that his body had created when he was blasted into the ground by Ichigo, although he had been struck at point blank range, it didn't seem to have hurt him at all. He sped towards her, and before she had a chance to react he grabbed her by both of her wrists with one hand and lifted her off the ground. She struggled mightily against him, but he banged her hard against a wall and stunned her momentarily.

"Let her go, Grimmjow!" Ichigo roared at him as Grimmjow dangled her like a dead rabbit. Rukia tried to put her scrambled thoughts back together so that she could come up with a plan to free herself from his grasp. Although the blow was the main reason she felt confused, she was also disoriented because it seemed so out of character for Grimmjow to be taking a hostage of any sort when he was in the middle of a fight. He might have killed her for getting in his way, but he wouldn't have used her as a means to weaken Ichigo.

"Let's see if this will wake you up, Ichigo!" Grimmjow shouted, making his true intent evident as he crushed Rukia's hands in a vice like grip. She cried out involuntarily as she felt the bones in her hands break, but she soon realized that wasn't the worst thing to come. Grimmjow held her in front of him with one hand and with his other he shoved his claws deep into her. Rukia vision went white at the sudden pain and she started to lapse into unconsciousness. She was vaguely aware of Grimmjow flinging her body to the side, but her mind was already fading.

Am I dying? Rukia wondered as her body continued its journey to the ground. She felt no pain now and her body wouldn't respond to her anymore. Now that it seemed like her life was fading, everything seemed to be moving in slow motion and her descent to the ground seemed to take forever. As she fell, she had time to regret never telling Ichigo about her true feelings for him.

Out of everything, I think that is the one thing in my life I wish that I could have done before I died.

Rukia felt her body hit the ground and everything in her world went dark. As she floated in the darkness, she felt surprised as a strange feeling of peace came over her. When she had been about to die at her execution, before Ichigo had rescued her, she had spent many hours wondering what it would feel like when the end of her life finally came. She hadn't expected it to feel so calm and quiet, especially when her end had been so brutal.

I hope you win, Ichigo, and I hope you find happiness after everything is over. I only wish I could be there to find it with you…

After that, everything began to fade to black and disappear. Rukia was about to let herself go and sink into that deep dark abyss, but a desperate voice broke through her peace and jerked her back from the edge.

"Rukia!"

Ichigo…?

"Rukia, please don't die!"

Rukia swam back towards the edge of consciousness. Ichigo's need was able to reach her even though she had almost allowed herself to completely disappear. She could hear him chanting the same thing over and over again as he begged her to live. His need for her ignited her desire to live and she pulled herself out of the dark abyss of death. It was a difficult struggle because although falling into it had been easy, getting out was like trying to escape from quicksand. Death kept trying to suck her back into its grasp.

I can't leave him alone like this…

So she struggled back to him, and bit by bit she began to feel her body again. The first thing that hit her was the intense pain of all her injuries, but after the initial shock of it she could also feel Ichigo's arms wrapped around her and the wetness of his tears.

"Please, Rukia," he finally said as a heavy rain began to fall down upon them. Rukia wondered for a moment if she had mistaken the rain for his tears. "I love you… I need you…I promise to protect you next time so you better stay the hell with me! Please don't die!"

Rukia's eyes finally popped open in surprise to hear him say the words that she had waited so long to hear. Tears flowed out of her eyes and mixed with the rain falling from the sky. She could feel him shaking as he clutched her tightly to him, and she found the strength to respond to his pleas then. She slowly reached her blood stained hand up to him and gently cupped his cheek. He loosened his grip on her and stared at her in wide eyed amazement. She thought that she might have really felt tears earlier, but the heavy rain masked any that might have been falling.

"Stupid, Ichigo," she whispered as she struggled to maintain consciousness. She felt horrible right now, but at the same time her heart felt such an indescribable joy that she found that she could ignore her injuries for the moment. "You should make sure I'm dead before getting all emotional on me."

Thanks for reading!

The next chapter will basically be Ichigo's POV of this same battle. I hope you enjoyed it!

Reviews and suggestions are always appreciated!

Mele Kalikimaka me ka Hau'oli Makahiki Hou!