Chapter 2: Friends and Family

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Rin stared carefully at her reflection in the mirror. "The day's finally come, huh?" she said to nobody in particular.

She was Rin Kuchiki, the daughter to Byakuya and Hisana Kuchiki. And now at 15 years old, about to enter her first year at the Shin'ou Academy.

The now-teen princess was dressed in the traditional female uniform of Shin'ou Academy. It was similar to the wear that she usually saw her father in, except in a different colour scheme. A red undershirt, a white shirt, and red skirt reaching all the way to her ankles. The red, she thought, suited her nicely. Her long black hair was tied into flanking twin-tails by a pair of black ribbons.

There was a knock on her bamboo door, followed by the sound of it sliding open. Only the people closest to her dared to be so "impolite" to a girl of her lineage, but it still surprised Rin to see her mother standing in the doorwar smiling. "Mom! You should be resting!" Rin said with some alarm.

The weak woman smiled. "Apologies. But I can't but help to want to see my daughter all grown up." Hisana began to approach her, but Rin was quick to meet her mother halfway and help. Hisana's health seemed to only grow worse with every passing day. Sometimes, Rin morbidly wondered if her mother would have already passed by now if it weren't for Rin's presence "giving her the will to hang on", as Hisana put it.

Helping her mother be seated at the edge of her bed, the two of them looked into their reflections in the mirror positioned across them. "You've grown so much in 15 years." Her mother noted, in her weak voice. Their appearances could be as different as night and day sometimes, but their purple eyes marked them as mother and daughter. It was comforting, as sometimes Rin felt like her eyes should be blue instead.

Rin gave the smallest of smiles. "Yeah. And you'll see me grow even more in these next few years."

Hisana closed her eyes. "I'm sure you will." The unsaid but I won't get to see it hurt the younger Kuchiki.

Her mother eyed Rin's hair. "I see you're wearing the ribbons I gave you." She noted. "But won't your Father be opposed to it?"

Rin shrugged. "He'll make a ruckus, but he dotes on me too much to actually do anything." She told, making Hisana chuckle. Of course, this family's idea of 'doting' is far different from most. Byakuya kept his nigh-emotionless cool even with his daughter.

"I suppose that's true." The two of them talked some more about various things, but Rin could tell that her mother's mind was drifting with every minute. Looking forlonly into the mirror...

"Mom." Rin suddenly called out, as she realised that she couldn't stand seeing her mother like that. Slightly startled, Hisana blinked at her daughter. "Yes?"

Rin now felt regretful at doing something without thinking it through. But she couldn't back out now; Plus, she was all too reminded of her mother's mortality every time she saw her. Who knows how long she has left? "Mom. I... have an aunt, don't I?"

Hisana's startled expression turned into shock. "How did you...?" she asked with surprise. She and Byakuya had kept her search for Rukia hidden from their little girl, after all. However, Hisana soon simply gave a sigh and a tired smile. "Well, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised. You're a smart girl, after all."

That kind of praise didn't feel so great in this situation. She couldn't glean that much from eavesdropping on her parents' conversations and taking a peek at her father's documents.

"But yes, I do have a little sister. Your aunt." Hisana confirmed, closing her eyes in remembrance. "I had to abandon her to survive, and I've regretted it ever since. I'm sorry we didn't tell you. As it stands, I'm unworthy to be her sister. Even if we do find her, I can't ever show myself."

Hearing that brought Rin irrational emotions. That kind of crack between family, that kind of secrecy between sisters...! For the briefest moment, a vision of a purple-haired girl appeared on Rin's mind before the young girl reached out to hold her mother's hand.

"You deserve to be my mother." She started, looking into Hisana's eyes. "You deserve to be father's wife. You deserve family. If anything, what's unsure is if your sister deserves you." She told as her hold on her mother's hand tightened.

"So please, live on until we can make sure of that...!"

A moment of silence passed after that plea. Hisana was much less able at holding back tears than Rin did.

"...Yes, of course." Hisana weakly responded, smiling. "I'll try my hardest."

X

"Rin."

After helping her mother head back to a proper bed, Rin headed out to the estate's courtyard. As soon as she stepped into the centre of the courtyard, she heard her father call out to her. Followed immediately by the distinct sound of Shunpo, Rin guessing her father has now appeared behind her.

As usual, she was spotted long before she could spot him. There was no way she could beat such a senior Shinigami's skills... yet. Calmly, Rin turned around to face the stoic nobleman and Captain. "Good morning, Father."

Immediately, his eyes was drawn to her hair. "That's an inappropiate style for your standing as the scion of the Kuchiki." As both she and her mother predicted, he was already on it.

For her part, Rin gave a small respectful bow and a smile. "But, dear Father. I have gone through every page of the Academy's and the clan's rulebook both, and I have found no instance explicitly prohibiting this hairstyle." As if for emphasis, she ended her sentence with a flick of a twintail.

"Rules are one thing, tradition is another." Byakuya asserted. "Someone of your standing wearing something like that is unheard of."

"Well, not all clans care so much about outward appearance." She started, trying to not shudder as she remembered her meeting with the Omaeda clan. "In my humble opinion, father, it is more prestigious to break away tradition and set new norms than be held down by old ones."

A worthy ideal if it wasn't in the context of wearing twintails.

Her father stayed quiet, which told her that she had the edge. Time for an emotional appeal.

"Besides," she added. Her hand moved up to brush her fingers against the black ribbons that tied her hair. "These are mother's... is it wrong of me to wear something my mother gifted me?"

That was enough. Byakuya sighed. "Very well. I trust that you'll perfectly match the expectations of an heiress in other respects."

"Of course." She readily agreed, turning around. "I should get going now, however."

"Wait."

She halted at that word, and heard her father approach behind her. Then, the strangest thing.

Byakuya Kuchiki started patting her on the head.

No, that's not quite right.

He didn't seem to know how much strength to use. So to be more accurate, he was grabbing her head and mashing it around.

That's only to be expected, she supposed.

After all, that's the first time he'd ever patted her head.

"Take care, Rin."

Despite that, the girl couldn't help but smile. "Of course, Father. I'll see you soon."

X

Rin walked through the halls of Shin'o Academy with the air and grace befitting of noble heiress. Everywhere she walked, she was met with awe from the blue-blood students that already knew who she was, and still stunned even thoise who did not. The former were quick to ingratiate themselves with the Kuchiki heiress, bowing as she walked past and ready to satisfy her needs.

Which was all annoying, because it was antithetical to some of her primary goals in attending the academy: to make friends.

It's not even like she was aiming for some sort of Nakama-level undying friendship.

It was her vanity… no, her conviction, that she must be number-one both academically and physically. If she was to be a student, she wanted to be the best, otherwise she would dishonor the Kuchiki name. So that's why she aimed to be a perfect student, flawless in all aspects.

But at the same time, she also had a dangerous role as a borderline princess, so she shouldn't associate with others too much. It would only harm them in the end, which she wanted to avoid. So inevitably, she expected a shallow social life.

But the kind of relationships she would forge with her peers here would not even reach that.

...At the least, she was hoping for at least one person she could have "friend or foe" relationship with; a friendly and casual rivalry. The image of a strong-headed brown-haired girl briefly came to mind.

Sighing, she managed to get away from the watchful bands and escape to a secluded balcony. Looking out and down to the seemingly-endless expanse of wastes that was Rokungai.

Rin closed her eyes. Her memories of her past life were faint, and they grew more vague with every year. There was only so much that she could recall.

But there was one scene that she could always vividly remember.

"If there's an afterlife after this, I'll promise I'll do all I can to find you."

"...I wonder how long it'll take until I find him again." She quietly asked herself. Strangely, it was never a metter of if but when. Like their promised reunion was destined to occur.

Rin shook her head, before turning to get back to class.

Just like that, her first year in Shin'ou Academy went like a breeze.

X

It was deathly quiet. Shirou stared intensely at the scene in front of him.

Three unmarked graves.

"Damn!" he heard Renji curse behind him, breaking the silence. "Damn, damn, damn...! How could this happen?!" Renji kneeled down and punched the earth.

Rukia, for her part, laid a hand on Renji's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. "Calm down, Renji. It's not your fault—"

"—Like hell! You and Shirou have been warning us for years now...!"

That was true. He had been warning the group that their repeated transgressions could earn them dangerous enemies, but even he ultimately never tried to stop their actions and instead aided them.

It was only supposed to be a typical quick run for water and food, but they were lured into an ambush. They had earned the ire of a local gang, and where years before they'd have been shown leniency as kids, they weren't children anymore. They were on the verge of adulthood.

And despite Shirou's best attempts, he failed to protect them all.

He failed to save them.

Tightening his fists, Shirou immediately began to step away from them, walking... towards the City of Shinigami far in the horizon.

"S-Shirou?" "Oi, where are you going?" He heard the two of them call out behind him.

Shirou turned back to face them. "I'm going to become a Shinigami." he declared.

"I was too weak to save everyone. I need to get stronger. The only way that's possible is to become a Shinigami." He elaborated. Then turning back around to continue walking—

Suddenly, he felt a foot connecting with the back of his head. He was sent flying into a shrub.

He'd recognize Rukia's kick from anywhere.

The strength that picked him off the ground was certainly Renji's. Shirou came face to face with a very irate redhead, and before he could say anything, the other boy punched him in the face.

Not that he really had much to say. "Ouch." He winced, rubbing his bruise.

"Idiot. You think you're the only one here who feels like that?" Rukia asked, crossing her arms.

"I'm so angry. Angry at those thugs, angry at the world... and most of all, at myself." Renji added. "Fuck if I'll ever let something like that happen again. We're coming with you."

Shirou blinked. "But, what about the rest of the group...?"

Rukia gave a bitter smile. "The loss affected everyone. Our... family, isn't going to stay together much longer no matter what, I think."

Shirou could only stay quiet at that. This was precisely the reason he had to get stronger.

How could he become a Hero of Justice if he couldn't even save his family of orphans?

Shirou got back up onto his feet, leading the remains of his family to those faraway white walls.

"Then, let's go. We'll become" –Heroes of Justice –"Shinigami, together."

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