This story is called "East" because it's based on the beautiful book "East" by Edith Pattou. I've read it twice now, so I thought, hey, why not make an IchiRuki story on it? If you have a chance to, read the book. It's really stunning.

Summary: Rukia is an adventurous girl with a stubborn personality, much to her mother's dismay. Despite the fact that her family's poor, Rukia has many dreams and wishes. However, when a young man offers luxury and health in exchange for Rukia, she agrees in excitement. Secrets about her birth uncover and surprising feelings arise during her time with the man.

Disclaimer: ...I don't own Bleach.


East

Based on the book "East" By Edith Pattou


Prologue: Lonely Child

A cold wind brushed by along with tiny snowflakes, the white flakes tingling the pale cheeks of a shivering child. Enchanted by the swirling flakes around her, she slowly reached up with one small hand and touched the tips of a snowflake. Stunned by the sudden feeling of wet and cold, she quickly brought back her hand in alarm. After deciding that this strange object caused no harm, she cupped both her hands together and watched in amazement as little flakes fell into them. Giggling, she closed her eyes and danced around freely; letting more of the flakes fall onto her everywhere. Her mother would scold her later, but right now, she didn't mind. The giggles soon turned to laughter as she fell back onto the soft ground of snow. Opening her eyes, the child gazed up at the cloudless sky. It was truly a wonderful day. She loved the feeling and sight of the snow, even though it was cold. Oh what an enchanting season this was.

Longing for more fun, the girl climbed onto a short brick wall which was now all covered with snow and walked slowly on it. She enjoyed being up high while others were afraid of heights. She certainly was not, though she was a child. The feeling of being above, so free and wild made her happy. She felt like a bird, being able to see everything from high above. She didn't understand as to why anyone could be so afraid of this wondrous feeling.

Then something odd caught her sharp eyes.

Not too far away from where she was, there was a boy who appeared to be about her age. His bold hair colour stood out in the wintery scene, amber coloured eyes looking curiously at her. And yet, there was a feeling of sadness and longing coming from him.

Thrilled that there would be someone else that she could play with, the raven-haired girl called out excitedly, "Hello! Would you like to play with me?"

Stunned by the loudness of her voice, the boy was confused as to what he should say. He made no movement, only simply staring at her, as if waiting to see what she would do next.

Feeling impatient for his reply, the girl jumped off the wall, landing with a soft thud and began to run up to him, when a sudden voice called out, "Rukia! Where are you?"

The girl, whose name was Rukia, recognized that the worried voice belonged to her mother. She paused and looked behind, seeing a bit of her mother's black hair sticking out in the distance. Rukia looked back to say farewell to the boy, but much to her disappointment, he had disappeared.

Saddened by this, Rukia walked back to her mother, who was now using her gentle hands to wipe the snow off her daughter's pale face.

"Rukia, what were you thinking, running off like that? Do you realize how cold it is outside? You had me so worried!" Rukia's mother kneeled down, so that she was at eye-level with her, and stared, waiting for some sort of reply.

Ignoring her mother's words, Rukia told her, "Momma, I met this weird boy earlier."

Tilting her head to the side, Rukia's mother raised an eyebrow. "Really? What was his name?"

Rukia frowned, thinking about how she had only saw him for a few minutes before he was gone. "I don't know…He ran away before I asked."

Hisana smiled at her daughter and stood up, holding onto Rukia's small hand. "Maybe you'll see him another time. Let's go home, shall we, Rukia?"

Rukia happily nodded and followed her mother home, while telling her about the day's events. The snow continued to fall gently around them, creating a land of white. Behind them far away, were two eyes that watched in sadness as the mother and daughter walked on home, hand in hand.


Thank you for reading this short little prologue!