Hi everyone, lately, I've taken up watching old bleach episodes and reading Bleach fanfic, so I thought I'd take up a side project as I try to get some inspiration back for Teen Titans and start my unique take on Bleach. As always, it will be similar to the canon, but will deviate in regards to origins and slightly with powers. This will also be the first fic that I write that has elements of romance involved. Please forgive me if it seems a little unrealistic or too fast. I present to you: my first Bleach fanfic.
Chapter 1: Prologue
Rukia
Sasaki Rukia was an extra bright student. At age 10, she was the youngest person in 6th grade. She had skipped right over kindergarten and had flown right into first grade. At 4"8 1/2', she was slightly shorter than average, petite, and could easily blend into a crowd of middle school students. It was her amethyst eyes that drew people's attention. Clear and dark, her eyes sparkled in the light like two dark mirrors. Her face was round with a slightly angled chin, giving her a chibi style look. Her hair was shoulder length, with a single long bang going down the middle of her face. Considered attractive by the boys, at first, Rukia dealt with whistling and flirting almost every day. That is until she broke a boy's jaw for being too forward.
Soon, Rukia gained her reputation as the toughest girl in school. As a result, Rukia had a small group of friends whom she wasn't overly close with. Instead, she preferred to read manga or doodle her beloved Chappy bunnies in her notebook. Despite her tough outward appearance she longed for company but was never successful in keeping friends. With only a dead sister and no parents to keep her conscience company, she with a set of loving but distant relatives. Little did she know, but those relatives would soon be some of the only comforts in her life.
Ichigo
10 year old Ichigo was a lonely, moody student with vibrant orange hair and absolutely no friends. He had a permanent scowl etched into his face. To him, it seemed the world had wronged him and it deserved no reprieve. Every day, as he went to school with a permanent scowl on his face, he lashed out at anyone who tried to comfort or pity him. Anyone who approached him with the words "I'm sorry" immediately got a punch to the face and a kick to the shins. Anyone who offered a soothing has was met by a punch to the gut and a kick to the face. After his old friends tried to comfort him a few times, they quickly learned their lesson and stayed away from the moody boy. Unsurprisingly, old bullies also backed off. At only 10 years old, Ichigo had experienced more pain than the average adult usually did.
At age 9, he was the happiest boy in the world, clinging to his mother like glue. His eyes shined and glowed in the presence of his mother and while he didn't have many friends, the ones he did have he kept extremely close. Every week, his mother and he would go out to get ice cream or shop for toys. He would also spend every minute he could talking and playing with his mother outside. That all changed on a stormy night.
Rukia
It was the middle of the year when she started feeling sick all the time. She constantly ran fevers and lost her appetite.
Ichigo Flashback (9th Birthday)
As heavy rain from a thunderstorm pelted the ground, an eerie fog hugged the river shore. It was Ichigo's 9th birthday, and he was walking back from the candy store, hand in hand with my mom. Through the fog, he saw a strange girl with short black hair and pale eyes sitting by the river.
"Hey!" he called out.
"Hey!" he tried once more, but to no avail. The girl simply ignored him and continued to stare at the turbulent waters of the rapid river. Suddenly, as the girl stood and started walking toward the river. She stopped and crouched, as if she were about to jump in. Panicking, Ichigo leapt toward the river in order to fulfill his duty, his namesake - one who protects.
Sensing the danger, Masaki, Ichigo's mother, ran after her son to shield him from the veiled threat. As she ran into the fog, she could hear Ichigo calling out to her in vain to stop. With a scream and a spattering of blood, Kurosaki Masaki dissappeared from this plane of existence. The trauma of seeing his mother murdered in front of his eyes left Ichigo physically and emotionally exhausted. Before closing his eyes, Ichigo saw the world in front of him change. Everything became blindingly clear before his vision faded to white, then black.
Ichigo Flashback (3 days after 9th Birthday)
When Ichigo woke up, he found himself in a pure white wonderland.
"Is this heaven?" he thought to himself.
"Take it easy son. You've been out for 3 days. I found you spattered with blood and unconscious by the river." said a familiar voice. Opening his eyes fully, Ichigo looked up to see his father giving him a gentle smile. Unaccustomed to his father's uncharacteristic kindness, Ichigo tried to leap back and raise his arm to deflect any incoming kicks from his father, only to find a mess of jumbled tubes sticking out of his body.
"Relax son. I don't prey on the weak." Kurosaki Isshin said. Still finding his situation hard to believe, he kept his arms raised and ready to use. His father only shook his head and left Ichigo some time to reflect on his life. As Isshin left the room he carefully hid a pair of blood-red eyes in the freezer.
Rukia
It didn't make any sense! She had always been the toughest girl in the school. Nothing stood in her way of becoming the smartest, most charismatic girl Japan would ever see. However, her blood test results indicated otherwise. A big fat positive test threw a wrench into her life, whatever was left of it that is. It seemed that would all change in a Tokyo park.
Ichigo
Nothing seemed better than to take his martial arts classes and his schoolwork more seriously. Mom would want him to at least maintain his grades. It seemed the only way he could release his stress and anger was through fighting. Whether it happened in an alley, a school locker room, or a hallway, he would always come home in bloody rags. Isshin never said a single word and instead helped Ichigo by patching him up and replacing his bloody clothes. It seemed his fate would change in a Tokyo park.
Rukia and Ichigo
Both kids were on family vacations. Rukia was on the last vacation of her life before leukemia ended it while Ichigo went to escape the Hell that was Karakura town. The bright sites and lights of Tokyo unfortunately did nothing to alleviate their pain. Instead, they reminded them of fake glee and and empty happiness.
Rukia
Rukia was on her way back from a toy store when she never noticed the skinny kid of average height with the strangest orange hair.
Ichigo
Ichigo was on his way back from a reluctant family gathering when following his impulse, decided to find a park bench to wallow in his pool of misery. Lost in his thoughts, he never saw the sickly looking girl with shoulder-length black hair and entrancing amethyst eyes.
BAM!
Rukia and Ichigo
When they got up, they simultaneously glared at each other.
All right. Guess that's it for now. I hope you enjoyed the extended prologue! If someone can guess what the eyes are, please send me a private message. For the first person who does guess, I'll try to incorporate one of their ideas into this story.
'Til next time
-Johnsmythe58