No one hadn't said anything on their way back to Urahara´s. Hitsugaya and Byakuya walked up in the front, and seemed to discuss something. Renji - while carrying Rukia - walked behind them and behind him came Sado, Inoue and Ishida. Ichigo had purposely fallen behind. Sometimes he checked the gigai he was carrying, it hasn't changed at all.
Soon they arrived at Urahara´s. As expected he was already outside welcoming them inside.
"Come on inside, others are waiting", Urahara said with serious tune and then looked at Rukia.
"Abarai, follow me", Urahara just said and started to lead Renji away, but then he suddenly stopped and turned around to look at Ichigo.
"Bye to way Kurosaki, you shouldn't leave your body just lying around, something might happen to it", he said to Ichigo. Ichigo lifted his face and looked at Urahara.
"Don't worry, I told Yoruichi to pick it up it's here and one more thing..." Urahara said and walked to Ichigo.
"Could you hand her gigai?" Urahara asked and held out his hand. Ichigo didn't resist, he gave him her gigai and then followed the others out of the room.
Soon all of them arrived to a room and went inside. Ichigo was clearly surprised by the amount of people which had arrived. Including, Hitsugaya, Byakuya and Renji; there were also Ukitake, Kyoraku, Yumichika, Ikkaku, Matsumoto and of course Yoruichi.
"Captain!" Matsumoto yelled immediately when she saw her captain.
"Lower your voice, Matsumoto!" Hitsugaya said angry, but his voice wasn't as sharp as usually. Hitsugaya walked other said of the room, and soon Matsumoto came and sat next to him.
"Are you alright?" Matsumoto asked worried.
"Idiot, of course. The sealing just took more out of me than I thought", Hitsugaya said and his voice sounded very tired.
Ichigo glanced at Hitsugaya very confused but decided to let it slide and sat on the floor. Everyone else did the same. After a while Urahara and Renji joined them.
"How is she?" Ukitake asked and looked worried at Urahara.
"She's sleeping, I think the seal holds", Urahara said and glanced at Hitsugaya, which was leaning on the wall.
"That's good", Ukitake said and sighed out of relief. Then Urahara and Renji sat on the floor.
For a while everyone just sat there quietly, until Ichigo opened his mouth.
"So..." He started and everyone turned to look at each other.
"What's going on here? Who was that guy?" Ichigo asked and he looked at everyone in the room.
"Takumi Rikuo", Hitsugaya suddenly said and opened his eyes. Ichigo turned to look at him.
"He was once part of 13th Protection Squads. He was the third seat in the 12th squad. He was one of the top researchers...until that incident..." Hitsugaya said and everyone in the room lowered their heads.
"What happened?" Ichigo asked and Hitsugaya lifted his face to look at him.
"About 30 years ago something went terribly wrong. One of his experiments went berserk and it almost destroyed entire Soul Society", Hitsugaya said dramatically.
"What kind of experiment it was?" Ishida asked suddenly. Hitsugaya glance at Ishida and then the people around him.
"To be honest we don't know", Ukitake suddenly said. Ichigo and others were like someone had just hit them with rock.
"What do you..." Ichigo tried to ask but Byakuya.
"Exactly what we just said, don't make us repeat ourselves, Kurosaki", Byakuya said firmly and just when Ichigo was about to say something to him, Ukitake stopped him.
"Well, Rikuo was quite secretive about his experiments, not even his Captain knew anything about his work - not that he was even interested. He didn't even record them anywhere", Ukitake explained and Ichigo looked at him.
"But I still don't get it", Ichigo suddenly said and everyone looked at him.
"How is any of this related to Rukia?"
"That's..." Ukitake started.
"That's because the most relevant piece of his experiment is sealed within me", a voice suddenly said and everyone turned to look at that way.
Rukia was leaning on the door and looking at everyone, she was still in her adult form.
"Kuchiki!" Ukitake yelled.
"Hey! Rukia you shouldn't be up!" Renji said and got ready to stand up, but Rukia stopped him.
"I'm fine, the seal should hold", Rukia said and glanced at Hitsugaya, which nodded. Then Rukia walked inside and sat next to Ichigo.
"Rukia..." Ichigo whispered and Rukia looked at him, with apologizing smile.
"Kuchiki, what did you mean by that the most relevant piece of experiment is sealed in you?" Ishida asked and Rukia looked at him for a second and then everyone around her.
"As it sounds, Ishida", Rukia said and then held out her right hand.
"30 years ago, when his experiment went berserk; the only choice we had; was to seal it away, within a person", Rukia said and suddenly weird marks appeared in her right hand, and they continued to spread until they were all around her. Everyone - except captains - looked very shocked.
"Rukia...", Ichigo could only say, when he saw the marks.
"The sealing takes away a massive amount of reiatsu and it requires great Kidou skills. Almost all of my reiatsu was sucked away by that time, but it returned and every other mark disappeared. Only these remained, luckily they are usually invisible, but I can make them appear and disappear with my reiatsu." And the moment she said that, the marks in her hands disappeared and she put her hand down.
"But...why you? Kuchiki?" Inoue asked with a small voice.
"I was probably the only available", Rukia simply answered. And all the captains seemed a little bit guilty. Rukia noticed that and was little bit amused.
"Don't look guilty, I was the one who decided this", Rukia said.
"Still, Kuchiki it wasn't an easy sealing process", Kyoraku said and glanced at Rukia under his hat. Before Rukia could answer, Ichigo took part in the conversation.
"So, does everyone, besides us, know the situation?" Ichigo asked, meaning himself, Sado, Ishida and Inoue.
"All the captains in this room were part of the sealing process", Hitsugaya suddenly said. Ichigo was shocked by the sudden reveal and looked around him, there were four captains in the room. Then he looked at Rukia, who was sitting next to him.
"If it took four captains to just seal it, then how Rukia is able to withstand it like that", Ichigo thought to himself; as he looked at Rukia. Then, when Hitsugaya started to speak again, Ichigo turned his face towards him.
"Everyone else was just briefly informed of the situation before we arrived and of course we heard about Rukia´s situation from Urahara, so of course he and Yoruichi also know about the situation. So basically, yes you four are the only ones who doesn't know about the situation", Hitsugaya said with firmly voice. Just when Ichigo was about to say something, Ishida interrupted him.
"So, does that mean that this Rikuo person is right now after the thing sealed inside Rukia?" Ishida asked and turned to look at Rukia.
"We believe so, but we don't exactly know why he needs it", Ukitake said and glanced at Rukia.
"He needs it to complete his experiment", Rukia just said and everyone turned to look at her.
"Since it has come to this I might as well tell you everything about his experiment", she said and this time every last person in the room looked surprised.
"Kuchiki, you..." Ukitake started but he was interrupted by Hitsugaya.
"You knew all along what his experiment was all about, didn't you?" Hitsugaya asked and looked at Rukia. Rukia just nodded.
"If that's true then why didn't you ever tell anyone?" Renji said, taking part of the conversation for the first time.
"I thought it was best to keep it as a secret", Rukia said and she squeezed her other arm.
"But since he has come back, I don't have any other choice", she said strongly.
"Kuchiki, was his experiment really so bad that it was worth to hide this long?" Hitsugaya asked and Rukia turned to look at him.
"I can't decide that by myself, why don't you decide it after you hear what it is", Rukia said and then looked everyone around her.
"So Kuchiki, what he was inventing?" Kyoraku asked and lifted his hat. For a while was completely quiet and Rukia just stared in front of her. Then she suddenly lifted her face and looked people around her.
"He was inventing...no, I supposed I should say that he invented a..." Rukia said and kept a small pause.
"Time Machine"
Everyone were quiet for a long time, they were all shocked by Rukias words. No one knew what to say, they just stared at Rukia, whom was just sitting there like nothing hadn't even happened.
Hitsugaya was the first one to speak up; and his voice was filled with disbelieve.
"Ti-time machine?" He repeated and Rukia turned her face to look at him.
"That's impossible!" Ikkaku yelled, speaking for the first time in the whole conversation.
"What do you mean by that, 3rd seat Madarame?" Rukia asked looking at Ikkaku with questioning face. Ikkaku´s face turned completely red.
"What do I...listen Kuchiki! Inventing something like that...is just..." Ikkaku said and tried to come up with the right words.
"Impossible? And yet you have the proof right in front of you", Rukia said and held out both of her hands. Everyone's faces turned to look at her.
"Kuchiki, do you mean that..." Ukitake started.
"Yes, the body I currently have is because of the effect of the time machine", Rukia said with a serious tune.
Once again everyone became quiet but after a while Hitsugaya opened his mouth again.
"Hey Kuchiki", he suddenly said and everyone turned to look at him.
"Even if it's a time machine, but why did it to that to your body", Hitsugaya asked and pointed at her body.
"And not; for an example, sent you somewhere in the past or future."
"That's a very good question, Captain Hitsugaya", Rukia said and lifted her finger. Just when she was about to continue she suddenly started coughing and she had to put both of her hands in front of her mouth.
"Rukia!"
"Kuchiki!" Everyone yelled together and Ichigo leaned down to her.
"I'm fine", Rukia said and tried to look reassuring, but she didn't fool anyone.
"No, you're not! You should be resting, we can finish this talk later", Ichigo said and looked at Rukia.
"No, we can't. This proves that I'm running out of time", Rukia said with a low tune.
"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked, but Rukia completely ignored him.
"Since it has come to this, I will have to be quick. The answer to your question, Captain Hitsugaya, is that the time machine is not complete", Rukia said and everyone looked at her very confused.
"What do you mean?" Hitsugaya asked.
"Thirty years ago, he did finish the experiment and was successfully able to create a time machine, but then an unintended event occurred..." Rukia said and looked to the ground.
"It went berserk, right?" Kyoraku suddenly said and glanced at Rukia.
"Yes, and because of that the most important part of his experiment was sealed away", Rukia said and earned again everyone's shocked faces turn to her. She looked a while as the message sank in to her friends.
"That's correct, that part is sealed inside of me. And without it he can't use the time machine. Well not it's at least it's complete form", Rukia said. Everyone looked really shocked of the news.
"Hey Kuchiki?" Ishida suddenly spoke up and Rukia turned to look at him.
"How come you know so much about this experiment and this Rikuo person?" He asked and Ichigo turned to look at Rukia also.
"That's because..." Rukia started but then she suddenly started to cough again.
"Rukia!" Ichigo yelled and put his hand on Rukia´s back; then he noticed that she was shaking.
"It seems I have reached my limit", Rukia tried to say, with shaking voice.
"Limit? What do you mean? Rukia!" Ichigo tried to ask, but then suddenly Rukia started to glow. Ichigo watched as her arms and legs got smaller and smaller, until Rukia had turned back to that little girl. The clothes Rukia was wearing were all too big for the small Rukia and Ichigo lifted her up; at the same time wrapping her to the clothes.
Then he lifted his face from Rukia to look at the shinigami around him. None of them seemed to be surprised of the sudden change.
"What happened to her?" Ichigo asked.
"Her time just run out", Hitsugaya said and lifted his hand to look at it.
"What does that mean?" Ichigo asked with demanding voice. Hitsugaya lifted his face to look at Ichigo.
"That body was only temporary. She was able to maintain it by fusing with her zankpaktou", Hitsugaya said.
"By fusing..." Ichigo said with shocked voice and looked down at Rukia. Then he noticed that next to her was lying, her zankpaktou.
"Is that even possible?" Ishida asked.
"Yes, but its forbidden act", Hitsugaya said.
"Why?" Ichigo asked. Hitsugaya leaned back on the wall and closed his eyes. Then he pulled out his zankpaktou and held it out, at the same time opening his eyes.
"Our zankpaktous are part of us. We value them more than our own lives, but that's not all; zankpaktou´s are mostly controlled by their instincts. Without our hearts completing them, they are just a mindless killing machines", Hitsugaya said.
Ichigo was shocked by his words and turned to look at the Zangetsu which was lying on the ground next to him.
"But without them, we shinigami would just be hearts without instincts", Hitsugaya said and smiled a little. Every shinigami around him looked at their zankpaktous and touched them.
"But how does this have anything to do with Kuchiki?" Ishida asked.
"That's because; the moment Kuchiki fused with her zankpaktou she gave in to her instincts", Urahara suddenly said.
"And I'm sure every one of you realized what happened, didn't you?" Urahara asked. Everyone turned almost white as they remembered how crazy and violent Rukia had become, the moment she had turned back to her usual form.
"Yes, she lost her heart and gave in to her instincts and feelings. And the most strongest feeling right at the moment; was to kill Rikuo", Urahara said and looked at Rukia. Even though he had seen Rukia got really angry couple of times; he had never seen her get so furious.
Everyone looked at sleeping Rukia and thought the same thing. They also knew that once she would wake up she wouldn't remember any of this. She would just be a small and terrified girl, who didn't remember anything about herself.
As he looked at the sleeping Rukia, Ichigo had a mind burning question which he needed an answer, but what he didn't know; did he have the courage to ask it or have the will to endure the answer, but he knew that he had to ask it. Then he raised face from Rukia and looked everyone around her, he had very serious face.
Somehow they knew what he was going to ask them, and they hated that they had to answer to him like this.
"She…Rukia…she's going to die, isn't she?" Ichigo asked and squeezed Rukia more tightly in his arms. None of the sninigamis answered, they just kept looking at each other; deciding who would answer him. Finally Hitsugaya sighed and closed his eyes; once he opened them he had a crushing, ice cold stare.
"Yes, Kurosaki Ichigo, she is dying. Unless we find a way to reverse the effect of the device", Hitsugaya said and his voice was as cold as ice.
Inoue took deep breath and her hands flew to her mouth, she tried to hold the tears from falling. Ishida put his hand on Inoue´s shoulder and squeezed his other hand. Sado just lowered his face and his hair covered his face completely.
Ichigo didn't do anything he just stared in front of him. When he finally came to he lowered his face to look at the small Rukia sleeping in his arms.
"So…" Ichigo started with a quiet voice. Everyone turned their faces to Ichigo.
"If we're able find this Rikuo person and make him tell how to turn Rukia back to normal; she will be saved?" Ichigo asked but didn't lift his face.
The captains looked each other and tried to thought what they should answer the boy.
"Of course!" Urahara said with his optimistic voice. Everyone turned to look at him.
"With the device he is holding, we can easily turn Kuchiki back to normal", he said very cheerfully.
"I see", Ichigo said quietly, and then he suddenly stood up. Grabbing his and Rukias zankpatou the same time.
"I'm going home; she should really get some good sleep. After all the things she went through", Ichigo said and started to walk to the door.
"Kurosaki", Hitsugaya said with demanding voice; which stopped Ichigo.
"He will surely come after Rukia again, so be careful."
Ichigo was quiet for a while before he finally answered.
"If he comes; I will beat the hell out of him and force him to turn Rukia back to normal", he said with serious voice and then left the room; leaving everyone in the room looking after him.
Ichigo looked out Rukia´s gigai and finally found it, in the room where she had earlier been sleeping. The gigai hadn´t changed at all, it was still the same small body. Ichigo put Rukia slowly back in to the gigai; she took deep breath when the soul attached itself to the gigai, but she didn´t wake up. Ichigo then lifted her carefully up and put her in his back. Then he started to walk away and left the Urahara residence.
Ichigo walked quietly in the streets, he didn´t want to use shunpo; in case it might wake Rukia up. Once in a while he turned his head to look at the small girl at his back. She was sleeping very peacefully; Ichigo could feel her body as it slowly breath in and out. Then he suddenly stopped and looked at the sky, it was full moon tonight, he felt great need to wake Rukia up.
Including first snow, Rukia also loved the full moons. Ichigo had never realized to ask why she was so desperate to always see the full moon. Then he started to remember a day when he had realized how much the full moon meant to her...
It was one of those days; when Rukia had yet to got her powers back and she and he were working together to kill Hollows. It was the night before the menos grande appeared and before Rukia had been taken back to Soul Society. About a week before all of that happened.
They were coming back from killling a hollow, it was almost at the middle of the night. Ichigo remembered as he walked up front and Rukia was following him; doing something with her cellphone, again.
"I can´t believe I have to get up in the middle of the night to kill these things. Don´t they ever sleep Rukia?" Ichigo complained to Rukia.
"Rukia?" He asked again when she didn´t answer to him. Then he realized that she had stopped walking.
"Rukia, are you listening to me?" Ichigo asked very frustrated voice; and turned around at the same time.
When he turned around he realized that Rukia was staring at the sky she had been enchanted or something like that. Ichigo walked right in front of Rukia and started to wave his hand in front of her face. Then Rukia seemed to realize that Ichigo was talking to him.
"What now?" Rukia asked and her voice didn´t sound as bitchy as it usually did when Ichigo did something that would annoy her.
"Nothing, I was just making sure that you weren´t sleepwalking", Ichigo said and lifted both of his shoulders.
"What? Did you say something to me then?" Rukia asked and she really seemed to have hard time staying on the subject. Ichigo noticed and sighed.
"What is it Rukia you seem very distracted tonight. Is something wrong?" Ichigo asked.
"Wrong? No, why would anything be wrong?" Rukia asked but her voice was extremely uninterested of the subject they were discussing. Ichigo sighed and got ready to turn around to continue walking when suddenly a bright light came from the sky. Ichigo looked up and saw that the full moon was up.
"Hey Rukia, did..." Ichigo said and turned around, then he realized that Rukia ran right past him at great speed.
"Oi! Rukia!" Ichigo yelled as he rushed after her.
They ran like forever, even though Ichigo knew he could catch her in no time; he didn´t want in fact he was curious were Rukia was rushing at such a rush. They ran to a hill which was about few miles away from Ichigo´s house. There Rukis stopped and turned to look at the sky again. This time Ichigo realized that Rukia was staring at the moon. Ichigo was really surprised of the sudden change in Rukia; it was like Rukia was staring the love of her life. In fact for Ichigo it was quiet funny and he couldn´t help himself but to laugh. That caught Rukia´s attention and she glared at Ichigo.
"What´s so funny, if I may ask?" Rukia said quite irritated.
"Nothing, I´m sorry", Ichigo said and stopped laughing. Rukia lifted her other eyebrow but let it be.
"Isn´t it beautiful", Rukia suddenly said and Ichigo started at her.
"The moon", she added.
"Oh, yeah I guess", Ichigo said and scratched the back of his head. He couldn´t quite make out the sudden change of personality.
"When I came to this town, at that night it was also full moon", Rukia said with quiet voice. Ichigo stared at Rukia, suddenly her face had become so sad that Ichigo wanted to ask her what was wrong.
"Let´s get back", Rukia suddenly said and started to walk away. Ichigo just stayed where he was staring after her.
"Rukia, I really can´t make out of you. It seems that you are hiding something from me and I really can´t make out what", Ichigo said to himself and glanced at the moon, hoping it would give him the answer; but soon he left to follow Rukia.
Ichigo returned back from his memories and lowered his face, so that his hair covered his face.
"Why did it turn out like this, Rukia?" Ichigo asked, without expecting an answer.
"It's not fair Rukia…that you have to carry all the sins of this world…" Ichigo said and small water tips started to drop to the ground. After a while of standing he finally lifted his face and continue to walk away.
Soon he got home; he jumped inside from his window. He put Rukia in the closet and covered her with blankets. Then he left the closet door open and went to sit on his bed. For a long time he just kept on staring at her; until he suddenly got up and walked to the closet. He put his hand on her head and pet it.
"Don´t worry Rukia, I won´t let anything get to you", he said with strong and determined voice.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or its characters
Sorry it took me sooo long to write this chapter. I have been so busy in my school, with exam and all. But hope you like this chapter:D
