Author's note: I've recently looked back on this after having it sit for nearly a year. I've found some things that I'm not happy with and therefore am going to rewrite it starting after Chapter 1. I have edited Chapter 1 but it is 99% the exact same as it was before. I promise to keep the same tone and basic story, but there were many holes that I felt needed filling and simply editing chapters and reposting them was not going to work. Please be patient as I will be working to get all the previous chapters redone and new ones going after that. Thanks for reading.
Bleach
Inner Demons
By: Toushirou Nakeru
Chapter One
Rainy Day
She slowly opened her eyes. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light of the room she could hear the sound of rain against the roof. She moved her arms and began to sit herself up, but as her head left the pillow everything began to spin. She allowed her head to return the large, soft pillow allowing the waves of nausea to subside.
"Where are I?" she asked herself, her mind still clouded and hazy. "This isn't my closet. This is a bed... this is… Ichigo's bed."
The thought slowly dawned her like the morning sun. She was in Ichigo's room. There was no doubt in her mind as she timidly looked out from behind part of the pillow. She could see the doors to Ichigo's closet… her closet. She could see Kon snoozing inside on some of the blankets she used for her own pillows.
"Where's Ichigo?" She asked herself as she once again tried to sit up. "Why am I in his bed?"
She fought with the dizziness and nausea from before. She closed her eyes as she slowly swung her feet around to the side of the bed. She opened her eyes as she began to lift herself up off the bed. She stumbled toward the desk as her body was too weak to support itself, barely catching herself before falling to the hardwood floor.
"Why do I feel so weak?" she asked herself as she slowly moved across the room. "Where is Ichigo?"
She opened the door slowly and walked toward the stairs using the wall as support. She stepped down the hardwood steps one at a time, being careful not to slip or lose her balance on the creaking surfaces as she descended. She knew she wasn't strong enough to catch herself if she fell.
As she stepped off the last step onto the first floor of the Kurosaki household she could barely hear the sound of the television from the living room over the sound of the droplets of water upon the roof. She slowly walked toward the noise, both her hands against the wall as she could feel her strength continuing to waver.
"Ichigo..." she said to herself as she saw the tips of his bright orange hair. "Ichigo…"
She moved toward the couch where he was laying. She could see his hair just above the arm rest. She allowed her right hand to leave the wall and reach toward the couch and then her left hand reached for the back of the couch. She could feel her legs giving out as she stumbled forward.
She grabbed the couch before her knees hit the floor, but not without shifting it several inches in front of her. As she pulled herself up she tried to look over the back of the couch to see if she had awakened the Substitute Soul Reaper. Just as she saw his body shift she heard a quiet, sleepy voice.
"You're awake."
"Is that him?" she asked herself, her mind still hazy.
"You should be in bed?" the voice said full of concern.
"It IS him…" she said to herself as she gazed upon him sprawled out in front of her.
"You should be in bed," he said as he rose up from the couch and maneuvered around it to her side. "You're still too weak to be up moving around."
"I'm fine," she said trying to straighten her body.
She could feel his arms against the back and the back of her legs, "You are going back to bed, got it?"
"I said I'm fine, Baka…" she replied as defiantly as she could while felt her feet left the floor.
She could barely sense his body against hers as carried her up the stairs and back into his room. He slowly set her on the bed and pulled the blankets over her small, weakened body. As he rested his hand against her forehead she looked up to him with glossy eyes.
"Why did you bring me back up here?" she asked the confusion very apparent in her voice.
She thought she saw a hint of a smile cross his face, "You're sick, Baka. Remember?"
"No…" she replied quietly.
He removed his hand from her forehead and sat on the bed next to her, "You went out during a rain storm and I found you unconscious. I had to carry you back here because you were so weak you couldn't even move your head."
"Where is everyone?" she asked as she closed her eyes.
She could feel his hand resting on top of hers, "They went to a medical seminar in the city. You should remember that. I was supposed to go with them, but seeing as you had to be an idiot and get yourself sick I stayed behind to make sure you got better."
"Why did you… stay behind?" her voice now sounded distant.
The orange-haired teen turned to look out the window on the other side of his bed, "Someone had to take care of you. Yuzu and Karin are too young to stay home and take care of someone by themselves, and my Dad had his heart set on going. Besides, I didn't really want to be around Goat-chin when he makes a fool of himself in front of all those people anyway."
Ichigo watched as Rukia turned onto her side with her back facing him. She pulled the pillow in towards herself, cuddling it in the fetal position. He couldn't help but let a smile cross his face.
"It's a good thing that no one is around…" he thought to himself.
He thought too soon.
"You can smile, Ichigo!" an annoying, familiar voice called out from within the closet.
Ichigo turned to see Kon standing in the closet with his arms at his sides, "I knew you could!"
Ichigo flew across the room, his fist planting square in the lion plushie's face, "You bastard! You'll wake her up with yelling like that!!!"
"Ouch, that hurt!" Kon snapped as his fabric face separated from Ichigo's fist. "You baka! Stop hitting me!"
Ichigo snatched up the plushie and quickly slipped out of the dimly lit room. He closed the door behind him, careful not to wake up Rukia. He quickly ran down the stairs and into the living room, pitching the lion into the couch at high speed.
"What the hell was that for?!?" Kon called out as he rubbed the back of his head with his plushie paw.
Ichigo slumped down on the couch, "She needs to rest. With you screaming like that she'll never get any!"
"But you were smiling!" Kon pointed out defensively.
Ichigo planted his fist in the plushie's gut, "Was not, annoying freak."
"Yes you…" Kon began as he held his paws in front of his gut.
Ichigo did not let the small toy finish. He smacked Kon on the back so hard that is sent him flying into the wall.
"You bastard…" Kon said as he picked himself off the floor.
Ichigo interlocked his hands and rested them behind his head, "You're the bastard. You were supposed to make sure she stayed asleep and didn't get out of bed."
"I can't help it that it's boring in your room!" Kon shouted from behind the television.
Ichigo let out a deep breath, "Whatever, germ infested Plushie. At least she didn't get hurt."
"I would never let anything happen to Nee-san!" the plushie squeaked.
Ichigo didn't hear what Kon said. He was too busy looking back at the stairs that led to his room. "I hope she starts getting better soon. She doesn't even remember what happened."
"Did you even hear what I said!?!" Kon yelled from behind the television.
Ichigo got off the couch and kicked Kon as he walked into the kitchen, "I told you to keep quiet, you tattered Fuzz Ball."
Rukia shifted as the two argued downstairs. She opened her eyes just enough to make out the rain sliding down the window, "Thank you… Ichigo."
