The Glass Zanpaktou: A Bleach Cinderella

Author's Note: Yeah, an update in two weeks!~ I'm so proud of myself *pats back* I really want to write chapters fast so you guys can read it A.S.A.P! I'm a bit proud of this chapter because we get to go into our little peach's mind and see how she views things now that she has a plan ;) Thnkx to all those who favourited and reviewed especially to the reviewers: Aurelia Artemee, forbiddenlovex, Koatan, Mymomomo, and Reader-Favs.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. But if Kubo is ever wanting an accomplice and editor for those 'much needed fluff moments' I'm happy to oblige! ^_^

Momo was exhausted. It was late afternoon and the sun was beating poorly on her back. She had to wear a long, bulky cloak to avoid any one recognizing her but she still got strange looks from passerby. There was no end to the different turns and roads in Seireitei- and they all looked the same; Momo found herself going around in circles.

The princess had left soon after she had heard her father's conversation, eager to get a head start. Taking the dark cloak, she locked her room and made her way into her garden. It was a difficult task to climb over the wall but she somehow managed by using the tree branches as support. And with that she had set out.

The raven haired girl couldn't help feel a little excited, and dare she say it, rebellious-even though there was the foreboding thought that she wouldn't be able to find this mysterious boy. As Princess of Seireitei, Momo was forbidden to go out. Whenever she asked why her father's eyes hardened and he curtly repeated what he said-not willing to go on. Momo assumed that she could be kidnapped or something of that sort; it was probably dangerous outside and she came to fear the world outside her stone walls a bit.

But, was she ever wrong.

After she climbed over Momo quickly made her way past the noble houses that surrounded the walls and moved towards outskirts. The palace was the epicenter of the Seireitei kingdom and therefore Momo had to venture out towards the furthest ends to find him. She figured that the boy was probably a commoner and not a noble because her father had a difficult time finding him amongst the whole kingdom.

As she passed the houses she quickly noticed that they were becoming smaller and simpler than the elaborate ones she was used to. Also the small clumps of people grew into huge crowds that Momo couldn't help but feel swallowed up in. Little things caught her eyes as she noticed groups of children playing or clusters of women talking animatedly; they were all like family. She felt a pang of hurt as she continued to look at what she had before but lost.

Shaking her head, she continued on. Momo was amazed at the many different stalls that were opened and the little trinkets they sold. Some of them gleamed in the light and shone different colours. When came to peer closer, she felt apprehensive stares as shop owners eyed her hooded, figure. She quickly bowed and made her way through.

Many times she stopped to ask random citizens about the whereabouts of a 'white haired boy with emerald eyes' but came to a dead end when they either shook their heads or their eyes hardened and they looked away.

As more people shook their heads and gave her cold responses she wondered who this boy was that people seemed to be wary of. Was he some sort of criminal; thug? Suddenly dread started to form at the pit of her stomach. Momo shook the doubt away and pressed on. If she didn't find him she could never bring him back to father and would be forced to marry-which is definitely not going to happen.

Adamant, Momo continued to search, asking people. But now, her will was wavering. It was afternoon and she had managed to find herself in a market place. Momo felt a little light headed and dizzy as she looked around in the phalanx of people. Everything seemed to meld together and her vision was soon losing focus. Desperately she turned her head for anything.

Suddenly out of nowhere, she spotted white. They boy! Was it actually him? Eagerly she followed it like a lighthouse through storm as she pushed herself past all the people. Momo stopped herself when she saw a plump, tall man chase after him. Why was he running away? But, what baffled her more was how the crowd acted indifferent. Was it something they were used to?

Momo hastily caught up to the boy who had turned the corner and would have missed him had she not been following his every move. The other man had continued to run into the throng of people. Quietly Momo crept into the alley and hid in the shadows as she watched the boy lean against the wall and catch a breath. He was panting hard and Momo suddenly felt a little bad for him. After a lion plushie had followed him and started shouting and yelling at the boy. But, he took it all in.

She followed him to a wooden shop with shoji screen doors and saw a little blond girl jump on him. The serious façade he had before fell and Momo's eyes widened when she saw him smile a little. That little girl must mean a lot to him, she thought. He ruffled her hair and the little girl playfully fought with him; they were like siblings. Momo smiled wistfully at the pair.

The lion plushie had entered the scene when he flung himself on the boy. The boy angrily peeled him off his face and Momo gasped at his threat to 'twist his stuffing'. After they had gone in, the boy was finally outside, alone.

This was it, she thought. She could finally confront him. She quietly walked from behind him and was about to tap his shoulder when he suddenly turned around. She whimpered as he grabbed her wrist and pulled her down on the ground.

When she lifted her head, Momo froze and all she could hear was her heartbeat pounding in her ears.

Oh my… Momo was speechless. When she had heard her father talk of a 'white haired boy with emerald eyes' she hadn't really given much thought to how different he would look. But he was…handsome.

Now looking closer to him instead from afar Momo could see that his eyes were like emerald pools. She just couldn't tear her eyes away from them. The boy had striking white hair that spiked out but looked as if you touched it, it could possibly be like cotton. He was like a prince in one of her story book tales; but he was glaring at her and it seemed like she was frozen in place, unable to speak.

"Who the hell are you and why were you spying on us?" he growled menacingly.

Momo's eyes widened as she found she couldn't speak. Desperately she tried to reply but all she could do was form the words; her voice had fled from the scene, again.

"Answer me damnit!" he yelled at her. Momo cowered as he tightened his grip on her wrist. "If you have no answer, leave. Now."

Momo froze. No, that couldn't happen! All her hard work will be gone and then-

"W-Wait!" Somehow her voice came back and she quickly lifted her hood up. Maybe if he saw who she was then he would understand her situation. When it fell, they boy pulled back slightly and Momo didn't know if it made it any worse.

She grabbed his hands, hoping not to let him go until he heard what she had to say.

"P-please, I need your help."

He continued to stare at her with a bewildered look; eyes wide with a face frozen in shock. If the situation had not been so dire she might have laughed.

"Ok…you're shocked…that is understandable," Momo nervously stated. "Do not worry…I am not going to do anything bad to you, well unless you deserve it because you are guilty. But we will see what we can do…" Momo quietly trailed off as the boy in front of her snapped out of his haze and glared at her.

"What?" he sneered. Momo gulped as he moved closer. "Why exactly would I be guilty? What have I done to you so wrongly that you have the audacity to accuse me of?"

Obviously, this wasn't exactly the best approach. Momo straightened up and looked straight into the boy's eyes but ended up moving her gaze somewhere else. "Well…it is not something that you may have done on purpose. Perhaps it is a misunderstanding but I believe that you have something that belongs to my father." Momo continued when she saw the boy raise his eyebrow. "The Rei seal?" she clarified.

"Listen, whoever you are. I don't know you or your father. So don't go accusing me of a crime I didn't do or else." He narrowed his cold, steel-like eyes.

"You…do not know who I am?" Momo asked hesitantly. Surely he had to know who she was.

The white haired boy scoffed as he crossed his arms. "Why should I?"

Momo's mouth dropped. This ignorant boy did not know who she was. She of all the people he did not know. Momo was always used to people recognizing and showing their respect to her but this…this was foreign.

"You're just some random whiny girl."

This boy had no respect.

"Excuse me! But-"

"You're excused."

"That is not what I meant!" Momo yelled. The boy's eyes widened when she glared at him. "I am not just a random girl! And even if I was, this is not how you treat a proper lady!"

He tilted his head and smirked at her, his eyes were taunting her. "Didn't you just say you were a girl? How can you be a lady then?"

"That is not the point! You have absolutely no manners at all! Is this how you treat everyone?" She huffed when he still stared at her with that smirk on his face. "That is probably why you were chased after; you probably stole something!"

He suddenly stopped smirking and his eyes narrowed down on her. She saw his shoulders shake and before she knew it, he had pushed her against the wall. Momo felt dizzy as the world spun and she fought to remain focus. His face was close to hers and she could see him grimace as he clenched his teeth and managed to stand up. Momo looked up into his eyes and shuddered when she saw just a cold dark blue green.

"Stop assuming things you don't know," he growled. "Or else you'll regret it. Even though he spoke quietly, she could hear the cold, menace in his voice. Momo felt cold shivers along her spine. How could he be so rude one second and then cold in another? Momo thought. He wasn't like this before when he was that little girl…

Momo tried to muster enough strength and glared at him. "I-I'm not scared…of you." She gulped. "I know how…you really are. You would not…hurt me."

He tightened his grip and pushed her harder against the wall; the stone rubbed roughly against her back. "You're bluffing."

Momo shook her head and looked away from his gaze. "No. I am not. I have seen how you act around that little girl." He grew quiet as he lowered his head.

"Shut up," he quietly whispered; all the malice gone now. "You don't know anything about her." He looked at her but this time Momo saw that his eyes were pleading. "Just leave."

"P-please, I really need your help-"

He pulled away from her and started to walk away before he fell to the ground on one knee. Immediately she ran to him as he tried and failed to get up. She placed her hands on his shoulders but he just swatted them away.

"Didn't I tell you to go away you whiny girl?" he hissed.

"You did. And I am not going to," she replied frankly.

"Why?"

In truth, Momo didn't really understand why she ran to him in the first place. He didn't really treat her very nicely. But, somewhere it pained her to see him in pain. Not that he was special or anything-just that Momo didn't like to see people in misery.

"Well, because I am going to help you." The boy was about to retort back but she beat him to it. "And I can see you are in pain so there is no point in lying about it."

He scoffed. "I wasn't going to say that."

Momo let out a little smile before she pulled his left leg into her lap, abruptly. He began to protest before she looked at him with a confident look. "Don't worry. I know how to treat injuries like this."

Slowly she started moving her hands around his calf, gently pressing down in circular movements. Momo could feel the boy relax a bit before she started edging towards his ankle. The princess watched his face tense up and he closed his eyes as he winced. She kept her eyes on him while she began to rub his ankle. Instantly he began to relax. The boy looked at her with an eyebrow raised and asked, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Momo quickly averted her eyes and felt her cheeks go hot. "I—it is not like. I have to watch your facial expressions to see if you're pained."

"Oh."

They sat in silence while she massaged his ankle. Momo kept her gaze focused on his face but she couldn't help but notice that he averted her gaze; he seemed to focus on any spot that wasn't her. Momo dismissed it and continued to press her fingers down slowly towards his calf.

"Thank you."

Momo's eyes widened. It was so soft that Momo almost didn't catch it—almost. The boy's face was slightly pink and his eyes were downcast. Momo could tell that he was embarrassed just by a simple phrase of gratitude. It was sort of…cute.

She smiled at him; a first real one since she had met the boy. "You're welcome."

Silence stretched on. Momo was almost done and it looked like her work had helps since the red bruise was now lighter. Maybe now would be a good time to ask again….

"Would you be reconsidering in helping me—?"

"Is that how you think this is?" He whispered. Momo watched as he tilted his head up and looked at her but this time his eyes were back to the cold steel.

His voice grew louder as he glared at Momo. "Do you think that if you help me I will have to help you? How many times do I have to tell you that I don't know what you're talking about! Stop assuming things you don't know and taking advantage of people!"

Momo looked at him with incredulity. She couldn't believe. Frustrated she shouted back, "What if I was actually helping because I wanted to! Have you ever thought of that?" Not wanting to stand for this any longer Momo pushed his leg off her lap and got up, leaving him clutching his ankle. At the moment, Momo didn't care that she did that because she was furious. How could he think that? "I did really want to help you, not for some shallow reason to get you to help me!"

Momo was on the verge of tears and was about to run away when something pulled her arm. She looked down and saw that the boy was holding onto her hand. What shocked her most was that his eyes were looking up at her with such a sincere look she lost her breath. The boy actually looked…sorry.

"Look…um, I didn't mean to…to shout at you." He sighed. "That was my fault."

Momo's face flushed cherry red and quickly pulled away her hand. Before she knew it she was running away further and further until she was sure that the boy was not staring at her retreating figure.

The princess collapsed against a wall as she tried to catch her breath. She was panting hard and she felt a dizzy spell take over her vision. She slumped down to the ground and put the hand that the boy held to her chest; it was still warm and it could feel her heart thumping like a humming bird.

She had never experienced something like this. No one in the kingdom had ever looked at her with such sincerity or spoke to her with such attitude. Momo was always used to the continuous platitudes usually reserved for royalty but this was new.

That boy broke the invisible wall that separated her from everyone. He was rude, insensitive, and cold…but, he also had a caring side-which he showed all to Momo. When he saw her crying his eyes turned to sadness and it made Momo's heart race. Why was her heart beating so fast for some stranger?

Who exactly was this boy?

Author's Note: What is our peach feeling? Who knows-maybe its a crush? *gasps* I do have to remind that this is a fairy tale fic and you know how fairy tales are with the whole cliche 'love at first sight' dilemma. I try though to stretch it out a teensy bit but it is a Cinderella story ^_^ By the way, if anyone has any comments about the whole 'first meeting' plz tell me cause I want to know if it was smooth or...rough around the edges. -_-

Chapter 4 is in the making and hopefully I can make it before the two weeks are up! Plz review! PCE