Author's note:

Thank you to everyone who has read the prologue of my first fanfic, to those who have added Lady Kuchiki to their story alert/favourite story, and especially to those who have given me reviews! They were a great encouragement to me! Especially since this is my first story!

I am proud to say that after days of pondering, I now finally have a logical plot in mind! I can't wait to continue writing and sharing with you my fantasy of Hisana's story and her relationship with Byakuya!

I must apologize, however, that the story seems to be progressing slowly. I had wanted to keep away from adding too many details, but I just got too carried away in this chapter! So yeah, Hisana is still in the real world by the end of this chapter but I promise we will get to see her in Soul Society soon!

Let me know what you think about this chapter! :)

(And if there are any grammar/spelling mistakes... please please let me know!)

Currently playing:

(Still playing --) Nothing can be explained - Bleach OST

Never Meant to Belong - Bleach OST

Lady Kuchiki

Chapter 1
Limbo

Unkept, neglected, the charming garden built next to the lake burst out of its refined beauty. It had gone wild, overgrown, as nature took its course, creeping its way through, suffocating the last remaining cries of those who struggled against its crushing hands. The dainty pastel pink and purple were overstepped by striking red and black and any sort of scandalous colour one could think of. Nothing much is left of the paradise that had once been taken care of by such loving, meticulous hands. It was brutal. The crimson stains on the stone ground could attest to that. A swing, dangling by rusting chains, hung limply. Its head bowed in grief, lamenting in its breathless, creaky voice for the good old times.

Yet the ghost of its past charm remained. Pastel green and pink and yellow. The golden stitches bordering the soft silk glimmered softly in the twilight sun.

--

"Nee... nee.. chan.. nee..."

Hisana, lying on her side, frowned slightly from the bundle that was fidgeting on her bosom. Her hands were still clutching tightly to it. She slowly opened her eyes, one hand pushing herself up to sitting position.

Rukia was in her arms, stretching her tiny arms as she gave her big morning yawns. Hisana touched Rukia's cheeks gently.

What am I doing here? Hisana wondered as she took in her surroundings. It was dark and snowing lightly. A little further down in front of her, she could see the lake, still and inky black.

She felt like she had slept for a long time. In fact, she could not remember what she had been doing before she fell asleep. The lights in the garden were not lit... and it was strange that none of the servants came looking for her, or to take her back, like they usually would when she had fallen asleep reading in the pavilion by the pond behind the mansion.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying hard to remember something. Anything!

Gushes of wind. Falling. Hisana frowned.

She looked at Rukia, and then proceeded to rewrap the pink shawl that was coming loose. As she unwrapped Rukia, she caught sight of a chain lying on her sister's chest. She tried to take it up, but as she pulled Rukia yelped and started wailing. Startled, Hisana quickly picked up Rukia and began gently rocking her sister to calm her down. "Sorry baby Rukia. Don't cry now baby. " She whispered, wiping the tears off Rukia's face with her handkerchief. She moved her eyes down to where the chain was and examined it. She ran a finger gently along the chain, till it reached the very end where it rested on Rukia's chest. Hisana gasped. The chain was not on Rukia. It was coming out from Rukia! What is happening?

Wait! Where are Father and Mama? She closed her eyes and tried hard to think. Sakura trees. Rukia. Rukia was crying. And Mama.. Mama was crying too. The cottage. Her uncle. Her eyes opened suddenly as memories started flowing into her.

There was a peasant revolt. They were running away. Father stayed back to hold them back. Her uncle... her uncle met them at the cottage. He had plotted this.

And Rukia. Rukia was going to die. She had tried to save Rukia. But the next thing she knew, they were both falling... and then... and then... there was nothing.

Am I dead? She wondered.

And why is it snowing? Isn't it supposed to be spring?

When Rukia's sobs had died down, she rewrapped her in her pink shawl and then stood up. I will go home. She decided. Nothing is making sense right now. Besides, she thought as she looked down at Rukia, Rukia will get a cold if she stays out in this weather.

"Let's go home now, shall we, Rukia?" She smiled down reassuringly at the baby and playfully brushed her nose with her finger tip. Rukia hiccuped, blinking curiously at her sister. Hisana held the baby up and gave her a kiss on the forehead. The sisters' eyes met. Rukia giggled. Hisana's face softened. And then with great courage and determination, she headed towards the woods.

It was dark and overgrown, very much unlike what Hisana had remembered of it. How come the lamps aren't lit? Where are the guards that usually patrol around this area? There was a clinking noise as she walked. She looked down and saw, faintly glimmering in the moonlight, a chain protruding from her chest. She frowned and put her hand where it came out, and tugged gently. For a second, a sharp pain shot through her body. She gasped and winced. Trembling, she let go of the chain.

What had happened to her? Had she really died?

She regained her grip on the bundle in her arms and hurried along the path, determined to go back home quickly so that she could understand what was going on.

The snow stopped and the ground was layered thinly with snow, shimmering faintly. Hisana could here the creaking sound of the snow under her feet as she rapidly made her way through.

She had reached the junction, where, she recalled sadly, her mother and her had been cornered by the rebels. She continued walking forward in the direction towards the mansion. She tried her best to stay on the path, but as the woods were so overgrown, and the snow had smothered traces of a once existing path that she had once known well, she soon lost track of where she was. It should not take her a long time to reach home from the junction. She told herself. Yet, after having walked for about twenty minutes, there was still no sight of any opening and the woods only got thicker and thicker. Hisana decided however, not to let the confusion and fear overwhelm her, and walked hurriedly forward.

Finally, she saw an opening in front of her and made a run towards it. It was one of those shacks that scattered around the woods, where guards used to keep watch. There were no lights through the windows, however. In the pale moonlight, she saw that the door was slightly ajar. For a moment, she felt chills running down her spine. She could feel a sinister presence looming in front of her, forming an invisible barrier around the shack.

Little Rukia sneezed. Hisana snapped out of her trance and looked down at her baby sister. She frowned. She hoped that Rukia was not coming down with a cold. She touched Rukia's tiny hand. Strange. She could not feel anything. In fact, now that she thought about it, she had not felt cold at all, despite the fact that it must be winter now, and she was still dressed in her spring clothes.

She made her way towards the shack, regardless, and pushed open the door. As soon as she took a step in, she started feeling again the same ominous dread and terror. In the centre of the shack, a rope was hanging down, and a chair was lying on the floor to the side, as if pushed over. Before Hisana could react to the sight in front of her, suddenly, at the corner of her eye, Hisana saw a figure slip by, and she heard a swishing of silk. Her blood froze. Had she wandered into the haunted shack, where just three years ago her aunt had hung herself? Her aunt, the wife of the same uncle who had plotted the revolt. The wife whom they said was mentally-ill. Who had once, allegedly, almost stabbed a dagger into her uncle's chest in his sleep. She had been quite a beauty when he brought her back to the mansion after their marriage. The last Hisana saw of her, she remembered, was a worn, haggard woman whose eyes no longer had the shine that marked a living soul.

Hisana swallowed and proceeded to take a step back. She felt a cold breath on her neck as she hit against something soft and silky. She screamed and scampered forward further into the shack. She turned around against good sense and her blood froze. Against the moonlight, she could see a figure with long flowing hair, dark red kimono, and a mask with brows and the holes for eyes tilted upwards, giving her a grotesquely mournful look.

Hisana instinctively turned Rukia's face towards her chest, hoping that her sister had not caught sight of the creature in front of them. She felt as if she had lost command of her feet as they were stuck to the ground, terror paralyzing her. She wanted to run to the nearest window and escape, but all she could do was stare wide-eyed in apprehension.

The creature opened its mouth, and gave a bloodcurdling shriek. Rukia cried and started to bawl and struggle wildly. Hisana tightened her grip on her sister, trying to keep her from slipping from her arms. The creature started flowing towards her, her white bony hands stretched out in front trying to reach Hisana.

Hisana moved back, her eyes still on the creature's mask, transfixed.

"Auntie?" She whispered.

The creature gave a dry, hollow groan.

Hisana felt the wall behind her. She made a dash for the window but before she reached it, the creature had swiftly slipped in front of her, inches away. Hisana screamed.

The creature reached out a hand and suddenly stroked Hisana's cheek. Hisana shivered and took a few steps back.

Her eyes were fixed on the creature's eyes. She felt herself being sucked towards the creature.

She was suddenly in a brightly lit room.

"Please Hiroshi-sama... please... don't hit me anymore..." Her aunt was on her knees, her voice hoarse, begging frantically. Her hands were clutching the hem of her uncle Shi's robes. Her aunt's eye was blue-black and her left cheek was swollen. Her robe was torn with vertical marks, exposing the raw red of her flesh. Hisana shivered at the sight. Her normally good-natured uncle kicked her hard on her chin, sending her flying against the wall. Her aunt collapsed like a ragged doll. Hiroshi moved towards her, his eyes cold and apathetic, undoing his sash...

Hisana turned her eyes away in disbelief and shame.

Is this her aunt's memory? She wondered.

Is she a monster now, because... because of all the suffering that she has gone through? She felt breathless and there was a pain in her lungs. She felt herself suddenly overcome with hatred and rage, so much emotion that it was tearing her head apart. She dropped down Rukia and put her hands to the sides of her head, squeezing her eyes shut as if to squeeze those feelings away. She moaned from the pain and fell onto the floor, struggling to keep herself sane from the agony that was riping her apart.

--

"There it is Vice-Captain!" Shiba Kaien nodded in response as he shunpo-ed towards the shack with his squad's third seats, Kotetsu Kiyone and Kotsubaki Sentaro. An eerie green light was glowing from the shack. Kaien pulled out his zanpakuto. Within milliseconds he had burst the shack apart and cut off the glowing green chain from which the hollow was sucking a girl's soul. The girl slumped forward.

"Kotetsu! Kotsubaki! Go tend to the soul and try to help her recover as much spirit energy as possible!" He shouted as he dodged the outstretched hand of the hollow.

She sure is damn fast. He thought to himself. But not fast enough!

He smirked as he shunpo-ed around to the back of the hollow and slashed her. The hollow screamed and withered as it dissipated. Behind the swirl of spirit particles, Kaien could make out the face of a woman. She was tranquil and had a slight smile on her face as she drifted up towards a channel of light in the sky. Kaien smiled. He put away his zanpakuto and turned towards where his third seats were.

"How is she doing?" He called out to them.

"She seems to be rather weak." Sentaro replied. "But her soul, thank God, is not seriously damaged. She should be fine after..."

"Receiving soul energy transfer at the 4th division!" Kiyone shouted, interrupting her partner.

Sentaro growled. "That was what I was going to tell the Vice-Captain, you copy cat!"

Kiyone glared at Sentaro and was just about to retort when Kaien pulled the two of them apart.

"Baka! Would you cut it out already?" He glowered at the two of them. His scowl scary enough to make them shrink back.

"Gomen Vice-Captain!" They said in a small voice in unison, looking down at their feet with an embarrassed blush on their faces.

Kaien approached the girl. Her face was pasty and her lips were purple. She was trembling incessantly, sweat dripping down from her forehead.

He frowned. "Given her condition I suppose we won't be able to give her a soul burial. We would need to call for the 4th division to give her a special transfer to soul society." He put a hand on her forehead and started transferring his spirit energy over, hoping to keep the soul alive.

"I'll give them a call now vice-captain!" Kiyone put up her hand enthusiastically.

"Vice-captain let me do it!!" Sentaro went down on his knees, bowing all the way down to the floor dramatically.

Before Kaien could say anything, a loud wail broke the silence of the night. Kaien furrowed his brow. Not another hollow I hope. Kiyone and Sentaro pulled out their zanpakutos.

The wail was coming from where the shack was. Kaien nodded. Kiyone and Sentaro ran over, ready to battle.

"Wait!" Kiyone gasped. She picked up the pink bundle on the floor and gently rocked the baby girl.

"It's another soul." She called out to Kaien while holding the pink bundle protectively away from Sentaro's prying eyes.

Sentaro looked over her shoulders to try to catch a glimpse of the baby as Kiyone walked back towards where Kaien was.

Kaien felt a movement of soul energy and looked down at the girl. Her face had recovered some colour and her eyes fluttered. Their eyes met for a brief moment.

"Rukia..." The girl whispered hoarsely before closing her eyes again, slipping away from consciousness.

"Operator... operator. Connect me to 4th division please." Kaien had whipped out his walkie-talkie.

"4th division. This is Shiba Kaien, vice captain of the 13th divison. Please send a special transfer squad over a.s.a.p. I repeat, special soul transfer needed..."

Note: Okay, I hope you guys weren't rolling your eyes at the walkie-talkie. I thought it would be a little out of context (historical context) had Kaien whipped out a mobile phone, since the story is set in the mid 1800s. I am not sure if walkie-talkies were in use then but it is at least an older version of a mobile phone, thus more relevant to the time frame of the story. Also, we can perhaps assume that Soul Society is a few decades in front of the real world in terms of technological development? :)