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"Lieutenant Abarai, you are summoned to the Living World to make sure that that substitute Shinigami is doing okay," Kuchiki Byakuya ordered as he looked over the papers on his desk.

His lieutenant was just barely waking up from his nap on the couch. Usually, Byakuya didn't allow such behavior in his office, but today had been a trying day for all of Seireitei. The Bount had just been eliminated from the city and the Ryoka had returned to the living world. Renji had been running around none stop for the past few days trying to help.

"Yes Captain Kuchiki," Renji bowed then picked up his zanpakto and walked out of the room.

Renji silently cursed Byakuya for sending him on such a useless mission. He had just seen Ichigo and the other Ryoka the other day when they were sent through the gate back to the living world. He growled as he opened the gate and walked through, arriving outside of the Kurosaki clinic. He shifted into his Gigai and knocked on the door.

"Oh hello Abarai-san, come in," Yuzu opened the door and Renji smiled at her and walked past her. "Dad, Abarai-san is here, where's Ichigo?"

"He went out with Rukia-san," Isshin came in and shook Renji's hand. "He should be back soon. You know where his room is, go make yourself comfortable."

"Thank you, Kurosaki-san," Renji nodded and walked upstairs. He froze when he saw Ichigo on the bed with those irritating mod souls around him. "Out with Rukia my ass, Ichigo you lazy butt!"

"Ichigo is out with Rukia and the others, I'm Kon."

"Hn, the irritating mod soul that usually parades as a plushie," Renji snorted as he jumped out of his gigai and jumped out the window. He ran down the streets where he felt Ichigo's Reiryoku flare and as he dashed down a side street, he ran into someone and fell.

"Ow, what was that?" a feminine voice whimpered and he sat up quickly and saw a young human woman sitting up as well and rubbed her head. "Oi, watch where you going you baka!"

"What…?" Renji blinked in surprise as this human glared at him.

"You're dressed funny for a teenager," she muttered as she stood up, "Just like Ichigo-san when I see him sneak out sometimes and that girl who's always with him. Damn idiot who think they can run around carrying swords as if they are masters." Then she ran past Renji and down the way he had come.

Renji sat there surprised, staring at the place she had been a few minutes ago. 'She could see me…and she ran into me. That isn't normal for humans, I didn't even sense a strong Reiryoku from her…"

"Oi, Renji-san what are you doing here and sitting in the middle of the streets for?" a familiar voice snapped as a fist slammed into his head.

"Some human ran into me…" Renji spoke as he stood up. "She could see me as well and mentioned that she could see you two when you're in Shinigami form."

"Must be Zezu, she's always staring at me during class as if she knows. Did this girl have blond hair and seem extremely short?" Ichigo mused.

"Yes."

"Yep that had to be Zezu. She's barely an inch taller than Rukia. She came over from America when she was 8, been my neighbor ever since. Very quiet usually unless she's pissed," Ichigo shrugged as they headed back to Ichigo's house. "I wondered if she could see us since she lives so close and may have caught some of my extra Reiryoku. Guess your run in with her proved that. So why are you here?"

"Byakuya-sama sent me to check up on you and the others. I think he got irritated when I fell asleep in his office this afternoon," Renji chuckled.

"Probably," Ichigo laughed.

"I..Ichigo-san…?" a quiet voice came from around the corner by Ichigo's house and Renji saw a flash of blond hair. "Why are you dressed so weird…?"

"Hello Zezu-san, I was just finishing a job. Rukia and Renji help me out there. Come out will ya? There's no need to hide," Ichigo smiled.

"Are you sure that is okay?" Rukia hissed.

"She doesn't know the truth and I hope it stays that way," Ichigo whispered back as the blond girl came into view then he raised his voice. "Why are you out so late? I know you don't work graveyard shifts at the grocery store."

"I was coming back from a friend's house," she whispered as she clasped her hands and looked down. "I'm sorry for running into you and yelling at you ginger."

Renji's face turned red with anger but Rukia elbowed him in the side and he forced himself to calm down. "My name is Abarai Renji but you can call me Renji."

"I am Tsunichi Zezu, some call me Zee," she bowed slightly.

"Zezu! Where the HELL are you?" a man screamed into the streets and Renji saw the girl flinch. "Get your worthless ass home now!"

"Sorry about dad, he's drunk all the time. I need to go," she bowed and Renji caught sight of scratches against her neck as if someone had clawed her then she turned and ran down the streets.

"Think he's the one abusing her?" Rukia spoke quietly.

"I wouldn't doubt it if he's talking to her like that and is drunk all the time," Ichigo sighed as they jumped into his bedroom window. "She's always coming to school injured, new scrapes and bruises each day."

"Damn, I feel sorry for her," Renji sighed as he slid into his gigai and laid on the ground.

Rukia went into her gigai and climbed into the modified bed in Ichigo's closet while the orange haired kid, pulled the mod soul pill out of his body and stuffed it into the plushie before sliding into his body and laying on his bed. Kon complained for a few minutes before jumping onto Ichigo's pillow next to him and they all fell asleep.

In the morning, Karin came into the room waking up the teenagers, saying breakfast was ready and Ichigo was going to be late for school if he didn't hurry up. Ichigo dressed quickly then Rukia came out of the closet wearing a school uniform as well and she jumped out the window as Ichigo ran downstairs. Renji pulled himself to his feet and followed quickly when his stomach started growling, reminding him that he never ate lunch or dinner yesterday.

They ate quickly and Renji ran with Ichigo to the school, knowing he was probably staying a few weeks. He didn't want to sit at Ichigo's house or Urahara's shop while he stayed. Byakuya would send for him when he required him back in Seireitei.

They dashed into Ichigo's first hour as the bell rang and Renji heard a few giggles and saw Orohime and Rukia sitting next to each other, laughing behind their hands. Renji rolled his eyes at them and looked around, seeing Zezu sitting in the very back, head propped in a bandaged hand as she looked out the window. Renji sat next to her in the only empty desk and the only change he caught from her was a slightly flinch when the chair squeaked.

"Zezu-san, are you okay?" a girl in front of the blond turned around and asked. "You seem even more beaten today than usual, was it him?"

"I got home late from your place. Let's just say he wasn't in the greatest moods," Renji heard Zezu whisper. That was enough for Renji to confirm that she was being abused at home.

"Class let's get started, Abarai-san has come back and will be visiting our school for the next few weeks, am I correct Abarai-san?" the teacher spoke.

"Yes," Renji replied and the girl in front of Zezu squeaked in surprise. "I'll be here until my uncle calls me back home."

The class pulled out their textbooks and the teacher started lecturing on the government. Renji looked around the class and almost laughed seeing Rukia draw her cartoon bunnies. Then his eyes trailed to Zezu who was drawing in a sketchbook that was on top of her open textbook and he frowned when He noticed that it started to look like him sitting on the ground. Then he realized she was drawing how she saw him last night after she accidentally ran into him, knocking both of them over in the streets.

He watched quietly as she transformed the doodle into a great picture for only being in graphite pencil. She seemed oblivious to what was happening around the class and when the teacher started walking down the isle to Renji's left, he poked her and motioned to the teacher and she closed her sketchbook and slid it into her back calmly as if it had never been out. The teacher asked her a question which she answered easily then she propped her head in her bandaged hand and looked out the window, waiting for the hour to be over.

"Renji-San, I want thank you for warning me that Adley-sempai was walking down the isle. I didn't even see her until you poked me. She would have taken my sketchbook away for sure and call my dad," she didn't look up at him as she stood besides him in the lunch line.

"Don't worry about it Zezu-San, I didn't want to cause you anymore trouble than I did last night for making you late," renji padded her shoulder then grabbed his food.

He waited for her and they walked over to where Ichigo and the gang waited then they walked up to the roof to eat. Zezu moved to a corner of the roof and renji saw her pull her blazer sleeve up, revealing a bandaged forearm and a little bit of blood showed through.

"You should get that looked at," Renji spoke as he came and sat next to her.

"It doesn't bother me," she whispered pulling the sleeve back down and picking at her food.

"How long has this been happening with your father?"

She looked at him for a second then looked back at her food. "It started three years ago when my mom died. Dad said that she was picked up by some unseen force then thrown into a building a mile away, killing her instantly, but it's not true. A monster killed her."

"What kind of monster?"

"You probably think I'm crazy, don't you?" she laughed sadly and looked over the school courtyard.

"I won't laugh and I don't think that," renji spoke determinedly, hoping that she wasn't talking about a hollow.

"Promise not to tell anyone?" she looked back at him and he nodded. "These monsters I have been able to see since before I can remember, they were always there. Their bodies were distorted and dark some like snakes, others like rabid animals. There was a hole in their chest that went all the way through. Their faces were hidden by a white mask which was probably a good thing," she whispered and pulled out her sketchbook and turned to the beginning. "All the drawings in here are of those things, I've seen many throughout my life."

Renji looked at the book and saw hollows on every page. Each looked like a portrait as if the hollows had posed for her but he knew better than that. She probably had a photographic memory. He came to the picture of him and the sketchbook was snatched out of his hands and he saw her stuff it into her bag, her face a light pink.

"You are an amazing artist. Ichigo come over here!" renji called.

"What are you doing, you promised?" Zezu hissed.

"Trust me, show him the pictures," renji spoke.

"What's up ginger?" ichigo came over.

"Renji-San told me to show you these," Zezu stammered, reluctantly handing him her sketchbook.

"Why are you holding a book full of hollows?" Rukia came over and looked at the book as the other ryoka came over and they surrounded Ichigo. "Ichigo, look its the fisher hollow that killed your mom. Where did you get this?"

"They're my drawings," Zezu spoke standing up. "I'm not crazy, am I? Those things are real right?"

"Yes," Rukia spoke putting a hand on zezu's shoulder. "We should tell her since she is able to see them, Ichigo, she deserves that at least."

"Zezu, did you draw the one that killed your mother?" Renji spoke and there were several gasps. Zezu nodded and grabbed her sketchbook and turned to a drawing that took two pages that was at the back of the book then turned it so everyone could look at it. She looked at their faces and was surprised to see annoyance.

"Fishebone D," Rukia snorted. "We killed him some time ago."

"I know, I remember waking up to hearing that hollow attacking your house Ichigo-San. I'm glad he is gone," she whispered as she closed her book. Then she shoved her stuff in her bag and sat down and picked at her food.

For the rest of the lunch hour, they talked to Zezu about the unseen. They told her about shinigami, bounts, hollows, soul society, and the arrancar and Hueco Mundo. They told her about their experiences and how they met. Renji stayed silent and watched Zezu as she seemed to absorb what she was being told. She'd ask questions here and there until lunch was over. Then they all walked to fourth hour together.

"Excuse me Fujiyama-sama, but Tsunichi-san's father has come to pick her up," an office aid came into the classroom and Renji saw Zezu pale and start to shake as she stood and walked out of the classroom.