An Unexpected Return

Prologue

By WarriorsLoverForever

Rukia ran through the thornbushes that snagged at her clothing, causing blood to stream down her skinny arms. She did not know what she was doing in the forest, or why she felt so petrified. All that her brain told her to do was to run. Her hair was a nest of leaves and branches. Pain flowed through her body from the places that the thorns had pierced her skin. Her eyes watered. She leaped over gnarled and twisted tree roots that branched throughout this unconquerable nature. The sky was unnaturally ink black, with no moon in sight, leaving Rukia to claw everywhere blindly, without any light to guide her.

"Ow!" Rukia tripped over a tree root and plummeted face-down into the prickly, rough ground. Her legs felt bruised and crippled. She attempted to stand up, only to collapse as soon as she tried to. There was no escape.

Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of her. She had long, flowing black hair that curled at the ends. Her eyes were as dark as the night sky, but still seemed brighter in contrast to the sky that loomed above them. Her lips were curled into a sweet, loving smile. Her face expression was soft and welcoming. In fact, she looked just like Rukia.

Was this really her? Was that Hisana? There was no mistake about it. Her presence said it all. Warmth seemed to spread throughout Rukia's body as she embraced the person whom she always had wanted to meet.

"Hisana..." Rukia smiled, but then winced at the pain of her wounds.

"It has been a long time, Rukia." Hisana grinned at her. Her smile was sweet, and her eyes were filled with passion and love. It brought Rukia so many beautiful memories. Yes, this was Hisana. But how could that even be possible?

Rukia shook her head and stared at the woman that awaited her in utter disbelief. "But...you're supposed to be dead! And where the hell am I? What am I doing here?" It didn't seem possible that the real Hisana had come to her at last. It made her heart flutter with nervousness and exhilaration.

She held out a hand to Rukia to help her up. She hesitated for a split second, and then took Hisana's hand. Shakily, she was able to regain her balance, and set her two feet on the ground.

"Hisana...I'm so glad to see you. There's so much I want to tell you. I can't wait to tell you all about it!" Tears streamed down Rukia's face.

Hisana hugged Rukia, and whispered in her ear, "How is Byakuya-sama?"

"He is fine, but I can tell that he misses you. I wish you were still here, with us. Things would have been better that way." Rukia admitted, as she looked down. "It doesn't seem fair that you had to leave us."

Hisana wiped the tears from Rukia's face. "It is okay. I'm just glad Byakuya-sama is taking good care of you, despite all of the pain I have burdened him.

The two sisters sat down on a log together.

"Hisana, how did you come here? Where am I?" Rukia looked at her whereabouts. There was nothing but trees for miles and miles, and no light seemed to exist in this strange world. It was strange to have such a cheerful reunion in such a scary place.

Hisana sighed, and stood up. "Before I can answer that question, let me show you something." She delicately took Rukia's hand and led her to a patch of bushes. Strangely, light seemed to be coming out of the bushes.

"Why is there light there? I thought no light existed here." Rukia stared at the yellow light filtering through the bushes in disbelief.

"Everything you see here is an illusion. Here is reality. Just crawl through these bushes. Follow me." Hisana fell on her knees and crawled through the bushes, and Rukia did the same, while wincing from the cuts that engulfed her legs.

As soon as they crawled into the light, the light grew brighter and brighter, engulfing the blackness that was around them. Rukia closed her eyes against the light, and when she opened them again, she found herself in a completely different place.

They were on a beautiful cliff. There were flowers on the smooth, soft grass. The sun was a golden mango in the sky as the two sisters walked to the edge of the cliff.

"Isn't the sunset quite elegant, Rukia?" Hisana murmured, as a faint smile crossed her lips.

Rukia nodded, admiring the color of the sky.

"So, Hisana, why did you bring me here?" Rukia inquired, still staring at the sun.

Suddenly, Hisana's soft smile turned into a wicked grin.

"I brought you here to kill you, of course."

Rukia's eyes widened. She whipped around to find Hisana pointing a sword at her neck.

"Hisana...please! I thought we were sisters! Do you have a grudge against me? Tell me!" Rukia yelped.

Hisana's grin grew even wider.

Then, she stabbed the sword into Rukia's chest.

"HISANA, NO!" Rukia screamed, as she shot up from her bed. Her breaths were shallow. Her face was coated with sweat. She wildly looked around and flailed her arms.

She opened her eyes to find herself in the Kuchiki Manor.

It was all just a dream... Rukia let out a sigh of relief. She never wanted to believe Hisana would betray her like that. Besides, she was dead. She had died a long time ago, just like Byakuya had said. There was no way Hisana would ever come back, or do such a horrid thing. Just thinking about it sent a shiver racing down her spine.

"Rukia! I heard your scream. What's going on here!" A red-haired soul reaper barged into the room, his Zanpakuto at the ready.

Rukia rubbed her eyes and jumped off of her bed. She never thought that anyone else actually heard that scream. She looked down, feeling guilty that she had set a false alarm.

"No, Renji, just a bad dream..." Her eyes seemed faraway, as she thought hard about the dream she had. Then, she shook her head and grinned. "Really, there's nothing to worry about. Sorry I disturbed you."

Renji tried to meet her gaze, but she immediately looked to the ground. He tried to read her expression, but her face was emotionless. Sighing, Renji sheathed Zabimaru and put it away.

Then, Captain Kuchiki entered the room. His gray eyes immediately hovered over Rukia. "Is something the matter?"

"Nii-sama, I'm fine," Rukia said, with a strange, sharp edge to her voice.

Byakuya's eyes narrowed in suspicion. For a second, Rukia thought Byakuya could read her mind, as if he knew about the terrible dream. Had he heard her call out Hisana's name when she had screamed? For a moment, Byakuya stared at her, as if he were about to say something. But then, the captain just nodded, his eyes holding her gaze, and finally turned away towards Renji's direction.

"Very well, then. We shall take our leave. Come, Lieutenant Abarai, I have some work for you." Byakuya glanced at Renji, who nodded and followed him out of Rukia's room. Their footsteps echoed across the corridor until they faded into the distance.

Rukia exhaled softly as she sat on her bed. Sunlight began filtering through the windows, dazzling her eyes. She immediately picked the stuffed bunny that laid on her bed and hugged it tightly. Tears streamed down her face as she shakily stood up.

"I miss you so much, Hisana. Maybe if you were still here, my whole destiny would be different. Perhaps some problems would be easier to bear. And maybe Byakuya will be happy again. All I ever wanted was a family. A family without any conflict, any boundaries. All of that, however, sounds like a silly dream..." Rukia whispered to herself as she wiped her tears with her sleeve. She forced herself to smile, and continued, "Even then, Hisana will always reside in my heart. A stupid dream won't change the fact that Hisana is my sister. She would never betray me..."

Would she?

Hope you can review! I promise I'll make the next chapter longer. Feel free to add any suggestions to help me improve, especially with this being my first fanfic. I'm always looking forward to improving my writing skills!