Fade to Black: I'm Still Here!

Day 2, Reaching the Sky

Guys, I know I have a lot of Fics. 4. Please remember that I'll come back to write them as it comes. I've decided that I'll have no more than 4 incomplete fics, so if you've noticed some hanging in the balance, then just wait! I promise I'll get on them as soon as possible!

Ichigo's wristwatch disturbed his peaceful sleep at exactly four in the morning. He'd expected it too, but in his unconscious state, he had no idea when it might jolt him awake, and thus jumped a bit when it beeped. He shut it off automatically, praying Rukia hadn't heard. The small lion plushy was sleeping on the floor next to his bed, and for noise sake, Ichigo tapped him gently, whispering "Kon….Kon!" but kept his hand over the mouth so he couldn't make some ridiculous comment. Instead, he opened his eyes and flailed a moment or two before remembering what he'd been asked to do the night before. He made a superior face, and Ichigo let him go.

"What's with this, Ichigo!" he asked, quietly. "I was sleeping and dreaming of Nee-san…"

"Be quiet, you perverted plushy!" He ordered, taking the soul candy out of the small thing. The doll dropped to the floor, a lifeless toy once again, and Ichigo swallowed the tasteless candy. His own soul separated from his body noiselessly, and Kon managed to catch himself before falling forward from the force of the split. "Ok, you can sleep." Ichigo explained, opening the window as quietly as possible. "You probably won't have to go to school, either. Just make sure no one knows it's you and not me."

"Gotcha…" Kon agreed, flopping down onto his bed. "Oi, get going already." He commanded, showing that he could pull of the order for now. "Where are you goin, anyway?"

"Tell you later." Ichigo promised, hopping out the window. 15 places to check in 4 hours. If he used Shunpo, this wouldn't be a problem, and who knows? He might not have to check every single place. He did, however, feel a bit of guilt about tricking Rukia like this—but she'd probably send him to the 4th division on basis that he was mentally unstable. Who goes out at 4 A.M. to look for high places? Suicidal people, maybe. Insane people? And if no one could remember this person that he was starting to vaguely picture, who would believe him when he said he was solving a puzzle?

"I would."

"You've only got until noon, Ichigo! Please, hurry!"

Ichigo listened to her for a second before realizing his shunpo had escaped him for a moment, and he was doing a pencil dive straight down. He caught himself, though, and continued on his way. Only until noon? When had that come into play? Ichigo continued using Shunpo and checked the most probable places first, starting with the Karakura bridge. It was the tallest thing around, and quite possibly the closest. He jumped up onto the highest pillar that supported the rest of the bridge, and looked down at everything. He could see the streets nearby, a few buildings beyond that. Nothing truly special. This must've not been a place he needed to find.

"Ichigo, this world… so many people… I'd rather sacrifice myself than watch this world die, Ichigo!"

"I'd rather sacrifice myself than let you die, Ichigo."

Ichigo was sitting on the pillar, overlooking the water when that came back to him. What had happened at that moment? Sacrificing herself? For the world? This had to be fake- he'd remember something this huge. He finally decided that if this was something he'd truly forgotten, and was now contacting him, why couldn't she just tell him her name and what had happened? Give him the locations? Why these riddles? There was only one way to find out—

"Who are you?" he said softly to himself, mostly. He didn't want anyone to overhear, even if they weren't spiritually aware enough to comprehend his words.

"Good question."

"With an answer?" Ichigo retorted louder, feeling that he wasn't having a one sided conversation here.

"I hope so! This is the last place you saw me, Ichigo. The last place your mind even vaguely came close to my name."

Ichigo was coming up blank. Nothing special had come up here, no one unique drifted into his thoughts. Ichigo sat there for a moment longer, hoping something else would come back, but it remained a silent morning with just the lazy river drifting by, a piece of trash here and there. Time to move on to place #2.

Ichigo used Flash Step to get back down to the ground, and checked through his mental list of high places. The one Rukia had mentioned, the Karakura Towers, rang out much more loudly than most of the others, so he decided that would be his next stop. Unfortunately, as he'd arrived, nothing had happened- no flash back, no voice, just the annoyed sigh of an overworked businessman heading home at four thirty in the morning. He looked around from the top of the building, nothing special appeared. It was just a blurry city under a white moon, people moving around here and there. He couldn't even imagine what it would be like at a busy hour—confusing, jumbled. Ichigo jumped down from the perch back to the street, going to the 3rd place his mind brought up. The Ferris Wheel was a sure bet, since that was what he'd been looking at when she'd contacted him about thr 3 locations in the first place. He checked the time on the nearby clock tower—5 in the morning. Only 3 hours left until school started, 7 until noon. Plenty of time.

He made it to the giant attraction, passing by quite a few drunks that had stayed in the park much longer than they'd probably meant to. No one was operating anything, all the lights turned off, but the wheel stood tall amongst everything else in the area. It was certainly the highest peak around here.

When he reached the top, which wasn't hard in his Shinigami form, he saw the entire town from far above, a light flickering here or there, but every building illuminated against the just rising sun. It was spectacular, in a word. Ichigo sat there for a moment, just enjoying the height and the breeze- it was truly a wonderful spot.

"I never got to go here. Remember that? I wanted to so badly…"

Ichigo was struck by the voice once again, the grinding tone making his head ache. Why hadn't she been able to? What happened? "Why didn't you…?" he began to ask, seemingly talking to air.

"I didn't get the chance… but it's ok! I met you, and we played such a nice game of tag down in the -"

Her words fizzled out, but Ichigo knew what she meant, surprisingly.

"In the plaza." He finished for her. "It wasn't tag, baka! You kept running away from me!" he exclaimed, smiling at the memory, "And you called it 'tag' because you were having fun, not me!" He laughed just a bit. He didn't remember who it was he was with, when it was, or really what he was talking about. It was just there—he knew that that was what she wanted to say.

"Yes! The Plaza!"

The voice was smoother now, and sounded positively elated. "That's all three, Ichigo!"

"Great." He muttered a bit. "Now what? You're obviously someone I knew… from when I was younger?" he inquired, wondering if he'd played tag with this girl, how old he was.

"You were younger than you are now, but not by as much as you think."

"Just tell me your name!" He begged her, still sitting in the small compartment as time passed by much more rapidly than he perceived it. Ichigo sighed and leaned back, taking a glance to his right, where an empty seat was positioned.

"You know my name."

She was sitting right there, next to him, barely an outline against the rising sun.

Her eyes were a fiery orange,

Her hair was a dark lavender,

Loosely draped around a brown schoolgirl uniform.

"…!" Ichigo's eyes widened. He knew her—really knew her. "You're…" The name, there was a name… it belonged to her—she was a person—why did he have to tell himself that? He was contradicting something he'd heard, maybe? "Gah! What's your name!" he asked himself, smacking his head.

"Don't worry about it."

She was fading away slowly,

"…I can give you another hint."

Her eyes were softer than they had been a moment before,

"No! I know your name!" Ichigo insisted as she blended with the light around her. "I'll figure it out by tonight!" he assured, soon looking at an empty seat.

"You made a promise to me that you never have made before. You swore on something unbreakable."

"I didn't want a hint!" Ichigo complained, secretly grateful.

"You're still stubborn."

"Hmph." He grumbled as the lights began to flicker on. That's early—they didn't open the park until 11, and he hadn't been here for more than 30 minutes, tops. Ichigo stood up and was surprisingly stiff—from the height, maybe? He looked down and was astounded to see how many people were flocking around the attraction, and the even more unsettling feeling—he was descending. He swiftly jumped off of the thing and landed in an area that wasn't flocked with people, running towards the school. It had to be 11 if the park was open—where had the time gone?

That morning, Kon, residing in Ichigo's body, hadn't had any trouble fooling Isshin, Karin, and Yuzu, but Rukia asked him if he had a fever constantly. Kon had been trying to act like Ichigo all morning, but since he'd never had to keep it from Rukia or the others, it was much harder. He'd been trying to keep his talking to a bare minimum and his actions as careless as Ichigo's, but Rukia knew something was off with him.

Kon, despite his previous mindset, had been expected to go to school for Ichigo also. Fortunately, they didn't have a test that day, so Kon didn't have a chance to bomb Ichigo's grades. Thirty minutes until lunch, Ichigo showed up outside the window, barely. He positioned himself so only Kon could see, and if Inoue was looking that way, she might have caught a glimpse. He quickly darted out of sight, deciding to switch at lunch—that'd be the easiest time, right as Kon was walking back to the table with his lunch. It would only take a second, and no one would notice him if he did it in cogneto.

The bell rang, and Kon managed to keep an Ichigo scowl on all the way until the end of the hallway, at which point Ichigo intercepted him using Shunpo and ended up spitting out the soul candy. "I'm getting better at that." He noted to himself, holding the small thing in his palm. Kon hadn't waited for the others, so none of them had seen it, but Tatsuki did happen to see his soul a moment earlier.

"Was Ichigo out Hollow hunting?" Tatsuki asked Rukia as they walked together.

"No. Why?" Rukia replied, looking at the slightly taller girl.

"Oh. I just saw him coming back. I just thought…"

"He was just in class." Rukia explained, thinking back on his behavior. "I need to talk to him. He's acting awfully strange, don't you think?"

"I don't know… the stunt with the flag yesterday was pretty outlandish." Tatsuki noted, not being affected by the flash that eliminated human's memories because she was protected by her own Reiatsu.

"He asked my for a list of high places yesterday." Rukia filled her in. "Odd."

"Yeah. There he is!" Tatsuki informed Rukia, pointing to the tall orange haired teen who was walking towards the stairs that led up to the roof.

"Thanks—I'll go talk to him." Rukia promised, trotting off.

Ichigo, on the other side of this, had slipped Kon into his pocket and was going to sit on top of the roof in wait of his friends. If he'd made a promise to this girl, he'd remember it. He remembered ever single time he'd sworn something, promised someone, because he held them close to his heart, defending his words with solid actions. This girl with purple hair, orange eyes… It hurt him not to know her name.

Ichigo let his legs hang over the side of the roof, his lunch off to the side, and enjoyed what he could see from here—30 feet above the rest.

"When you're up high, everything that's down below… so confusing and muddled… becomes crystal clear."

She had told him that—why she liked high places.

"Ichigo, we need to talk." Rukia said to him from behind. She noticed his untouched lunch, and his unusual dethatched manner.

He turned around to her, swiveling his head, "What, are you breaking up with me?" he joked, knowing they were never together.

"No, baka… This is serious." She told him, sitting on the side opposite his lunch. "You need anything?"

"…no." he replied curtly, picking up a water bottle he'd gotten with lunch. "I wonder if I can toss this into that window." He said out loud, looking at the open window 2 stories down and trying to change the topic away from himself.

"Did you find all your high places?" she inquired, trying to keep it general.

"Yeah, actually." Ichigo replied, taking a sip of his water. "I'm surprised you remembered." He admitted, figuring that the one second conversation had slipped her mind. Rukia was about to say something when Ichigo interrupted, "You know anyone with dark purple hair?" he asked, trying to catch her off guard it she did really know.

"Yoruichi." Rukia replied before getting back to the main topic, "Nothin' in that big head of yours bothering you?"

Ichigo sighed. "No. There is nothing wrong with my head." It seemed she wasn't going to divert the conversation, so he was just going to end it there. He stood up, nudged his lunch her way with his foot, and walked on.

"Tatsuki saw you Hollow hunting." Rukia continued, regardless of his absence.

"Yeah. I went Hollow hunting. Preformed some Konso." Ichigo lied. Perfect cover up, as far as that went. "Kon was me for the morning."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Rukia inquired, suspicious. "And wow. Kon's gotten better."

"Didn't think I needed your permission to go Hollow Hunting." Ichigo replied, trying to get away.

"Well, it would've been nice to know." She suggested, shrugging.

"I'll tell you next time, then." He promised, descending the stairs. His mind was muddle as it was, and he certainly didn't want Rukia to be breathing down his neck the entire time. She'd gotten so touchy lately… Maybe because they were such good friends, and he was a preoccupied with something else that was taking his mind off of other things making him seem a little odd. He quickly directed his mind back onto the thing that was troubling him—

The purple haired girl with the brown school uniform. A school a ways away had that uniform, but there's no way that's where she was. If he'd made a promise to her, he had to remember it. He wouldn't have promised her anything he couldn't do, so it had to be something rational, like staying with her or maybe protecting her.

"I swore I'd protect her! I swore on my soul!"

There- A short memory, his own voice, swearing on something unbreakable. This girl—who the heck was she? He was sitting in class now, having unconsciously carried himself back to homeroom awaiting classes again.

"Do you know, Ichigo? My name?"

"…No…" he grumbled, putting his head on his desk. "Just tell me!" He was very grateful no one was around to hear him—it would've been awkward.

"I'm just memories, Ichigo. I can't be any more than what I was unless I have help."

"Than what you were?" He asked, much more quietly. "What were you?" Nothing responded, and Ichigo kept his head down. This was crazy—but he'd promised to know her name by the end of the day, and he wasn't going to break that promise. Ichigo stood up and left the room in his Soul Reaper garb, switching out with Kon again, who wasn't pleased. He turned around and had the compulsion to ask, "…you wouldn't happen to remember a girl with purple hair… and orange eyes?"

"…" Kon seemed to think for a moment, moving Ichigo's limbs. "Nope."

"…" Ichigo looked down for a moment before reaching into his own school uniform pocket,

"HEY!" Kon yelled, trying to force Ichigo away. "GET OUT OF MY PANTS!"

"They're my pants, first of all…" Ichigo explained, coming up with the ribbon, "And really? Gotta say it like that?"

Kon felt violated, "Yes, because you were digging through my pockets!"

"My pockets, again, and you could've just said that." Ichigo told him, looking at it closely. In small script it read, 'Yang's Souvenir Shop'. There's another thing to add to the mystery. This was hers—she'd been wearing it in the small flashback of the 'tag' that she was so fond of. Next place to check.

"…Ichigo, you've lost it." Kon declared, sitting down with a flourish.

"People are going to start thinking so if you don't shut up!" Ichigo informed him, plunking his head. "Act like me again." He commanded.

"I am not a dog! I am not your slave!" Kon yelled in response, sounding like someone from the riot act.

"… see ya." Ichigo responded curtly before leaving the abandoned Kon to sit and wait.

"Did you even eat lunch…?" he complained, clutching his rumbling stomach as Ichigo left.

Ichigo set off for this new destination, reaching the far away place within 5 minutes using his highly advanced Shunpo. He was already having a long day, having met this apparition and now going to learn more about it (hopefully) from a local shop. He didn't expect to have to talk to anyone, however, because he figured as soon as he got there, he'd remember something or other. That's how this had been going so far.

After a bit of scavenging, he actually located 'Yang's Souvenir Shop'. It was a quaint little store with knick knacks here and there, a pretty necklace hung on a rack for an outstanding price, a small 'Karakura Town' snow globe that replaced the snow with cherry blossoms. He couldn't help by think of Byakuya, but his thoughts quickly changed to something else—

"Wasn't you ribbon yellow?"

"…No."

"Where'd you get that red one?"

"…"

"You didn't…"

"What?"

"Senna! You can't go around taking stuff here! It's stealing!"

Senna.

Her name was Senna.

He'd kept his promise, and learned her name.

Senna.

"Ichigo! You know who I am!" She exclaimed happily, appearing in front of him once again.

"Senna." Ichigo replied, looking at her slightly more solid form.

"Do you… do you know where I'm from? How we met?"

"…" Ichigo thought back, unable to move his gaze from hers. "Let's get out of here." He told her, moving out of the way of a couple that were browsing the goods. Senna nodded in her translucent state and followed him out into the plaza, which had just been lit up for the afternoon. Time seemed to pass much more quickly when he was speaking to Senna.

"I can remember the night we were here." He admitted, looking up to the hanging lights above. "You tricked me with your Shunpo."

"I am pretty good!" she laughed with him, twirling once.

"So… are you here now? No more hints?"

She looked like she was about to answer with the final piece to the puzzle, but instead turned her head to stare off into the distance for a moment, her eyes brimming with fear, and then replied,

"Ichigo..." Senna admitted, fading away. "The blanks… they're all…" She said, seeming to step back from where she was and going right through a chair. "They're evolving, Ichigo…!" She told him, seeming to want to run.

"They want me dead!"

Ichigo stared at her as she backed up, eventually turning around and running. Ichigo shot after her, knowing that she was freaking out. The truth was, he didn't know what a blank was—he knew her name, they're time at this plaza, what she looked like, but nothing else. "What's a blank?" He asked, trying to keep up with her breakneck pace.

"You don't remember them!" she inquired, losing her color. "They're souls without memories! They're after me—"

Ichigo remembered white blobs, very very fuzzily in his mind. "Blanks." He remembered Urahara's lecture on them. "Right… They've… evolved?"

"I can't keep this, Ichigo!" She exclaimed, beginning to fade away completely. "You've got to remember where we met, ok? I can come back when you remember me!" She explained to him, seeming to take a leap and disappearing completely.

Ichigo stopped on the banks of the Karakura river, looking out after her. For some reason, this rang a bell also, her fading away.

"What does it say?"

Ichigo stared down at the clearly unmarked gravestone, Senna on his back, "…You're name's right there." He told her, lying. "Senna."

"..." Senna's eyes were bearing tears, "Thank you, Ichigo."

"N-no problem." He was choked up as well, her form beginning to fade into the autumn light.

"We'll see each other again, right?"

"Don't be stupid… Of course we will."

Ichigo returned to this time and moment, the water reflecting the waning moon. Time definitely was moving faster when he was remembering or talking to Senna—but it was worth it. He really remembered her now, and he wanted to see her again so badly. He'd really liked that girl—and they were going to see each other again, like he'd promised, no matter what was in the way.

Rukia was eating dinner with Karin, Yuzu, Isshin, and the being she knew to be Kon. He'd slipped up right before dinner, calling her' Ne- Rukia.' He'd shut up after that, facepalming, but Rukia told him it was ok. Ichigo had already told her he was going to inform her next time he went out Hollow Hunting, which meant there was no room for faulty excuses this time!

I know a lot of stuff happened in this chapter, but trust me, It's all going to be put back together. Senna's been trying to contact Ichigo for quite a while, and after him remembering that last moments they had together, I wouldn't be surprised if he does something a bit drastic…

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