Alrighty, so reality is beating me over the head with a stick right now, so All in Shade will probably be reduced to one update a week. I'll try to make them worth it though. : ) This one has been a long time in the works, so hope you like it.
And unless I get reviews, next chapter is officially a filler! MWAHAHAHHAAHAHA! *evil genius glare*
Ch.10
Ichigo Kurosaki was not happy.
As he stepped through the door of the Kurosaki home, he could not help but to be highly upset. As he walked home for the first time in two days, points and stares followed him to his door. They came from windows, garages, doors and cars from nearly every house on the street. As used as he was to his neighbors being callous, antisocial towards their seemingly dysfunctional family or even outright rude, the stares were worse. The family directly across the street had been coming out to get in their car and upon sight of the tall redhead, hurried back inside, shielding their son from sight.
Isshin closed the door behind Ichigo uncharacteristically quickly, not slamming it, but locking it securely and drawing the blinds on the window beside it.
"Come in son, sit down," Isshin said gruffly.
Ichigo was getting more disturbed by the minute. What is going on? Why is everyone acting so strangely? And what's with dad? He didn't even attack me. Maybe now that we know he's a Shinigami he'll act differently. To his surprise, Uryu Ishida and Yasutora Sado and Tessai Tsukabishi were sitting around his table. Ichigo was not surprised to see Karin standing nearby, pretending to be helping Yuzu in the kitchen, but really just listening in. He did a double take when he noticed that both of his twin sisters heads rose over the bottom of the wall cabinets. He had to remind himself that their birthday was coming up in just a few days time and they would be thirteen. Karin's dark hair rose just a little over her docile twin's brown locks and she made it obvious when she reached up to pull a can from the top shelf that Yuzu was struggling with.
Ichigo turned his attention to his gathered friends and acquaintances. "So, Uryu, Chad, whats up?"
Neither looked as if they bore good news.
"Apparently," Uryu volunteered, pushing his round glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Someone managed to fail in repairing all of the damage your foolish fight caused to the neighborhood."
Ichigo's eyes bulged at this, surprised. "Tessai, I thought you were with Jinta and Ururu! You didn't finish?"
The former Kido Captain withered under Ichigo's irate glare. "You see, Ururu is a sensitive girl," he began babbling. "And when Jinta began making fun of her, she became very distraught. Caught up in the moment, I attempted to comfort her and accidentally let go of the time stasis field. Then someone came home, and we were forced to flee." By now, the man was twiddling his fingers guiltily and Ichigo's glare had developed a prominent twitch in his left eye.
Chad regarded the man across the table from him with an expression as close as a stone could come to exasperation. Uryu merely sighed. "Now, Mr. Arisawa is demanding compensation for his ruined garage."
"What?" Ichigo looked at his father, guilt rising in his stomach. "No wonder he's acting like this. Dad, how is that going to affect the clinic?"
Isshin looked up gravely. "Well, to be honest Ichigo it probably means we won't have the funds to help several patients. In other words, you are indirectly responsible for their swift and inevitable deaths."
It was as if someone had dropped a Menos Grande right on Ichigos back. The world seemed to darken and Ichigo went pale. "Geez dad! You didn't have to say it like that!"
Isshin punched him hard in the shoulder. "I'm just kidding! We'll pull the money from funding the stupid women's cardiology league. They don't do anything but drink wine and complain about their husbands anyway."
"The point," Uryu said, his voice icy. "Is that someone gave them the impression that a certain bright orange haired boy did the actual damage. You are now, Ichigo on the country's suspected terrorist list. You can thank your ridiculous attack for causing- and I quote- "explosion-like damage and irreparable harm to materials normally considered damage-proof."
"Ridiculous attack?" Ichigo retorted, ignoring the rest of Uryu's statement. "What's ridiculous is your little star-bow!"
"Its not a star, it's a pentacle!"
" Shooting all those weak arrows instead of one big useful one! What, do you try and tickle the Menos to death?"
Chad opened his mouth as if to say something to interrupt the feuding friends, but thought better of it and closed it again with a heavy sigh.
"Oh, tickle them do i?" Uryu snapped, rising from his seat, fists balled. "Well, that's quite ineffective. Why don't I just try to kill them all off with the sheer wasted Reiatsu I give off every second of the day, at least then they wont be able to surprise attack me!"
"Well at least I've got energy of my own to waste, Quincy, instead of leeching everyone else's all the time!"
"Why not let me make some sort of efficient use of it? Should we not use solar panels because the Sun gets sensitive?"
Ichigo's eye twitched. "You watch your mouth! I am not sensitive!"
"That's just stupid!" Uryu yelled back. "You can't watch your mouth its impossible, you blockheaded Shinigami!"
Ichigo's expression dropped from hotheaded to snide in a fraction of a second. "You should be able to watch quite a lot with those thick glasses of yours…" he muttured.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"
***
Rukia heard the maelstrom of testosterone manifesting itself through the two boys and sighed to herself. It was usually frustrating to the extreme to deal with Ichigo and his attitude, she knew, but she let Uryu have at it this time. He was asking for it. She had other things on her mind. She scrubbed the bathroom sink one last time, determined to be a help to at least Yuzu before she retired to the room that had been unofficially hers since the attack of the Bounts on Karakura.
She tugged at the uncomfortable flesh of the gigai she wore, lying down and pulling covers over her slight frame even though it was midday. Normally she would have gone downstairs and broke up Ichigo's miniature war with the Quincy, but her thoughts plagued her consciousness and she had to address them. Since the day she had staggered to his door, Jushiro's things wrapped tightly in a sackcloth, Rukia had felt strangely indebted to Ichigo. Time and time again, though he'd saved her life, she never felt as if he were doing anything more than he wanted to. But this time, she had asked something of him. she had asked him to protect her. She had asked him to believe her.
She still didn't remember the act of killing Captain Ukitake. Maybe her mind was blocking that from her subconsciously. It mattered little, because Kisuke firmly believed it, and had taken precautions to isolate Rukia from any of the other Captains at every moment possible. He probably didn't know if she noticed, but it took more than a calm demeanor and a paper fan to fool a Kuchiki.
A Kuchiki. Rukia sighed heavily. How will I ever repay Nii-san for his kindness to me if all I bring him is tragedy?
Byakuya's calculating eyes floated into her mind and she felt a small tear trickle down her cheek. Her lonesome brother was the last person she wanted to bother, but she continued to bring shame to the Kuchiki house. She knew it wasn't her fault that Kisuke had implanted the Hogyoku into her soul, but all the same, to anyone who wasn't privy to the details, a Kuchiki had nearly been executed for high treason. That was what mattered. And now all anyone would know is that a Kuchiki had murdered one of the most respected Captains in all of Soul Society. The Kuchiki that Byakuya had so graciously and selflessly taken under his own wing.
She felt the tear melt into the pillow beneath her head and a tiny sob escaped her.
"Hey, Shorty." Came a familiar voice from the door. "What's wrong with you?"
Rukia jerked upright. brushing the trail of moisture from her face as slyly as she could. She hadn't even heard Ichigo stop arguing. And when did he get upstairs? And,
"Why are you in my room, Strawberry?!" she yelled as angrily as she could.
"WA- HEY!" Ichigo protested, taken aback by her hostility. "I came up to check on you! Yuzu said you were cleaning up!"
"I was, Ichigo! I finished and I was trying to take a nap, so beat it before I beat you!" Rukia was shaken.
She had never let anyone see her weakness before. Never let anyone see her cry, just like Byakuya. She had to be a Kuchiki like Nii-sama, or he would never forgive her.
But Ichigo's reaction took her completely by surprise. His voice was not the normal hardhearted Ichigo she was used to talking to. If anything it was warm, compassionate. Loving. "Look, Shorty, I'm not here to fight you. I know we're probably not that close, ya know? You and Renji are probably way closer, but, if you need to talk about anything that's going on, I'm here, and I wont tell anybody. Promise."
And that broke her. It broke all the walls that she had built to be strong enough to keep everyone at bay, because everyone failed her. Everyone left her. Everyone except Ichigo. He always protected her, no matter what it cost him. He always defended her, no matter what her crime. She believed him when he promised her because he had a history that told her it meant everything to him to keep it.
"Ichi-" she gulped, hesitantly putting her hand on top of his. She always felt tiny next to him, and the fact that her whole hand no more than covered the back of his palm did nothing to help that. "Ichigo, I know I'm not the easiest person to get along with, but thank you for always being there for me."
Ichigo sat in shock. He knew he had some sort of feelings for Rukia, but he had no idea what they were, what they meant or how to express them. So when he told her he would listen if she had something on her mind, he didn't expect this reaction at all. If anything, he expected a swift kick in the rear for insinuating that she was weak, but this was completely different. The normally aggressive girl was...trying to hold his hand?
Neither Ichigo, nor his body had any idea how to react. His face began to turn red and his heart was pounding so loud he imagined her thinking drums were playing in the background. Rukia's hand sat lightly on top of his own, but he felt as if it weighed a ton. He didn't dare break the contact. The only times he could recall Rukia touching him in any way short of outright violence was when he was already beaten to a pulp. Slowly but surely, her fingers toyed with the edge of his hand, wrapping themselves comfortably around his hand as she looked away.
Her eyes betraying the unease she felt, she could not look up to meet his anymore. Then the bright haired boy did something that surprised even him. His fingers closed into a gentle fist, squeezing the tips of her tiny fingers ever so slightly in reassurance.
"Hey," his voice was hoarse, as if he needed to drink a gallon of water.
She looked up. Surprise and expectance glistened in her auburn eyes, as if his next words would define her world.
Ichigo cleared his throat and met her eyes with his own. "I-"
"ICHIGOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"
Isshin's fist hammered into the back of the younger Kurosaki's head and his face became a mask of surprise and pain.
"DAD! What the hell! Cant you see we're talking!"
"Talking? Is that like young-people parlance for doing the nasty these days?" The ridiculous question was this time directed at his raven haired daughter.
Karin sighed. "Geez dad, you really have to work on your timing. Cant you just leave Ichigo alone for a while?"
Ichigo felt a surge of gratitude towards his level headed sister. He met her annoyed eyes and then even she surprised him. Karin winked.
"Gah!" Ichigo choked out. "What did you guys think was going on up here?! Dad, you cant just go barging into Rukia's room like that! And Karin, I thought you understood me!"
Isshin turned to Karin, "What is he talking about? You UNDERSTAND him? how didja manage that my sweet brilliant daughter? Oh resonance of Masaki's wonderful empath- OOOF!"
His sentence ended abruptly with an amazing flying kick from the girl. "Sweet? Did you call me sweet dad? I'm not Yuzu, okay, she's the sweet one, I'm the tough one, got it?"
Isshin could only nod from the floor. "Mmm-hmm..."
Karin folded her arms across her chest, looking scornfully at the man. "Cant even tell his own twin daughters apart and we have different colored hair... Oh, and Ichigo, I do understand you. Maybe a little better than you do."
She turned and dragged Isshin's immobilized body back downstairs, his grunts of pain accenting his trip down the stairs for them.
Finally alone again, Ichigo turned back to Rukia, who's mouth was slightly open, surprised by the sudden exchange.
"You were saying something," she prompted.
"Uhhh....yeh...." Ichigo rubbed his head where his father had hit him. "Wanna go to the movies?"
"The...movies?" Rukia squinted in confusion.
"Don't tell me you still don't know. All those books you read?" Ichigo waved his hand around the room to prove his point, littered as it was with pop culture books and magazines.
She shrugged helplessly and he merely sighed. "Fine. I'll take you to the movies. Get dressed Shorty."
Ichigo stood and walked out of her room without another word, completely missing the look of adoration aimed squarely at his back.
***
Rukia slammed her door shut as soon as he was in his room and turned her back to the door. Her heart was racing now. She knew well what the movies were, at least in theory, as well as what it meant for a guy to ask a girl to go with him. She was admittedly a little confused because of the circumstances and because it was Ichigo himself that had asked her, but she would not let that stop her from being prepared.
Running to the closet and stripping her body of the Chappy the Rabbit pajamas she wore, she picked out the cutest outfit she could find. A brand new sundress that she thought was simply beautiful, with its white fabric and various colors of patterns and designs. She covered it slightly with an understated blue jacket and a pair of formal shoes. Turning back towards the pile of magazines and books, she dug into it, searching out the magazine that detailed proper female actions on first dates.
Rukia buried herself in the pile until her hands found the proper issue. She flipped through the pages, putting various items and trinkets into her purse. Finally finished, she reached into her drawer and withdrew a small piece of plastic and tossed it in too, remembering one book in which a smart woman never left for a date without it. She had no idea what a two square inch plastic wrapper had to do with any sort of lifestyles, but she was willing to stake her entire collection of 17 magazines that she'd regret not bringing it if she needed it.
Finally finished, she burst out of her door and almost ran smack into Yuzu. "Oh, hey, Rukia. You look nice! I just wanted to ask you if you were going out with Ichigo, 'cause Karin thinks so..."
Rukia wondered what "Going out meant for a brief second before it dawned on her that they meant dating. "What- no! I mean, we're going to the moving, but that's just because I've never been and-"
"The...moving?" Karin said, eyes squinting with confusion. "Do you mean the movies?"
"Heh heh. Yeah, that," Rukia laughed nervously. "Is that important?"
Karin gasped, her features a conflagration of exuberant realization and excitement. "ICHI-NII IS GOING ON A DATE!!!!!" she shrieked, bolting back down the stairs to tell her twin. "ICHI-NII is GOING ON A DATE!!!"
Rukia sighed, her last shred of dignity gone as Ichigo stuck his head out of his door, just a few feet away from the despondent shinigami.
"HEY! SHADDAP DOWN THERE! ITS NOT A DATE!"
Rukia noticed the bare skin of his shoulder beyond the cracked door and realized he didnt yet have a shirt on. Though she had seen him without a shirt many times before, as he had a habit of losing certain garments during battle, this time it presented a slight pleasure to her to get a view of his lean, muscular body.
She peeked through the cracked door and after just a brief moment, Ichigo retreated, slamming the door. Rukia waded downstairs into the cacophony of sound that was the excited conversation of Yuzu and Karin. The former's high pitched voice was hardly drowned out by Karin's annoyed yelling. "Ichi-nii has been going out with girls for forever, Yuzu, you just didn't know it!"
Rukia overheard that and for some reason, a cloud fell over her mood. Where she had previously been ecstatic just to be going, she was now apprehensive.
He's been going with other girls? She thought self consciously. What if they were better at going to the movies than I am? Will he notice?
Ichigo descended the stairs behind her and she turned around, surprised. "Oh, you're ready?"
The annoyed look on his face told her everything she needed to know and she stepped away, headed for the door, only to find Uryu leaning against it with a cocky smirk alighting his features.
"So, my expectations prove right once again," he said. "You, Rukia Kuchiki, are now dating our boy Ichigo?"
"Baka! I'm not 'dating' him, we're going to the moving as friends!" her frustration starting to rival Ichigo's,
She pushed past the smirking Quincy. "You all are impossible."
"Well, if you're just going as friends, you wouldn't mind if Sado and I come along, would you?"
"Would I...mind?" Rukia thought about it.
YES I WOULD MIND! I WANT MY OWN TIME TO SPEND WITH HIM! YOU CANT COME!
"No...." she squeaked out in a small voice.
"HA!" exclaimed the triumphant Quincy. "I have got to see how this is going to turn out."
"You are NOT coming, Uryu!" Ichigo exclaimed, finally catching up to Rukia. Chad stepped out of the door behind him, his massive frame nearly obscuring the portal he had just stepped through.
"I want to go to the movies," He said in a rare volunteering of information. "There's this new movie..." His friends all stared at him as his voice trailed off, all of them surprised by his surge of speech. "So i want to see it."
"Why's he being so talkative, Ichigo?"
"I dunno, maybe your Quincy powers did something to his head."
"Im not used to Chad talking so much, but has he grown since I left? He seems bigger."
"Maybe you just got shorter."
A fist connected with Ichigo's chin. "Maybe YOU just got DUMBER!"
"Sorry," the wounded shinigami croaked, rubbing his jaw. "Some way to treat someone who's taking you out."
Rukia's mood changed instantly. "Well, a certain lady would like a certain person who's taking her out to show her where the movies happen."
Ichigo stepped away, laughing quietly to himself at her lack of understanding waving to his friends as he led Rukia toward the theaters. They took a dozen steps, Ichigo wincing as he passed Mr. Arisawa's ruined garage before he turned around, his humor having mutated into annoyance.
"Are you two really going to follow us all the way there?!"
Uryu's voice was calm as he replied, snickering all the while. "We're coming with, Ichigo, didn't you hear?"
Chad just nodded his agreement, the hint of a smile on his unreadable face about as prominent as a grey speckle on an otherwise bland rock.
Ichigo didnt notice. "Whatever." he waved his hand carelessly. "Do what you want, just keep your sewing quiet in there, will ya Ishida?"
Only a well timed grab of Uryu's collar kept the Quincy from attacking at Ichigo's flippant remark. After he calmed, Chad let him go and the four friends set out to the theater.
***
When they arrived, Rukia stood in awe of the massive building. "Is this all the theater?"
Ichigo's amused smile told her otherwise before he even spoke. "Nah, this is the entire mall. The theater is inside."
"Show me!" Rukia exclaimed, giddy for a reason she could not fathom. She stepped closer to him and he smirked, putting his arm over her shoulder. They approached the theater proper and Ichigo showed her the panel of movies to choose from.
"What do you want to see?" he asked, gesturing towards her options.
Her eyes immediately lit on a suitable topic. "That one!"
Ichigo's face was priceless. Contorted to something between annoyance, surprise and exasperation, Rukia couldn't help but laugh.
She put on her best pouty eyes and her lip began to quiver. "Please, Ichigo?"
"Alright, fine!" he agreed. "Turn it off."
***
Sosuke Sagura had seen a lot of strange things in his two years as a ticket window salesman. It wasn't the greatest job, but it got him some extra money for his pocket and kept his mother off his back about being a delinquent. It even helped him meet a nice girl once in a while. Most of his days were boring and uneventful, however. So when the toughest kid at his high school appeared at his window and coughed something about, "," his jaw, understandably, hit the desk.
The unmistakable, orange haired boy took the tickets to the children's movie almost grudgingly, as if not wanting to part with the equivalent cash. When Sosuke managed to pry the bills from his fingers, Ichigo looked as if the legions of hell had just rung his doorbell.
Seeing Ichigo Kurosaki at work was a rare sight for the second year student, but seeing him buying tickets to the children's movie would provide him with a story that would make his friends envious.
His delight compounded when Uryu Ishida, the smartest boy in school, stepped up next. "Two tickets to whatever Kurosaki is going to see."
***
Chad looked up at the board. No doubt Ichigo was being dragged along to see GO GO Happy Rabbit World. Chad shuddered.
"Two tickets to whatever Kurosaki is going to see."
A silent protest worked its way through the giant's apparently broken vocal chords and he felt a surprisingly strong grip on the front of his shirt.
"Come on, Sado," Uryu said, clutching the tickets in his free hand as if squeezing them tighter could make them evaporate. "If I have to go through with this, so do you."
"But-" Chad began, compelled forward by the determined archer.
His eyes looked longingly at Mission Impossible IV, its poster hung tantalizingly in the entrance to the individual theaters, all explosions and plot twists and mind-bending gadgets. He loved mission impossible, loved the over-the-top action and the unhinged baddies. He loved the amazing gadgets and feats of daring and courage. Loved the way Tom Cruise never lost his cool.
Finding his voice, he spoke up. "I don't want to see this," He finally said.
Then he realized he was already sitting in the theater, three rows behind a very content looking Rukia and a not-so-content Ichigo.
Chad sighed, cursing his own silence.
***
Orihime Inoue was alone. This wasn't a new phenomenon. In fact, she was quite used to it.
–and when Kurosaki-kun sees the bad guys he goes all super-mask-evil-fighting-Kurosaki-kun! That way he will always win and the city of Tokyo is saved!
She sat idly at her desk, daydreaming instead of doing her homework, as usual. The days and nights at her apartment were always lonely, bringing with them a sense of melancholy that would have broken a lesser person. Her loneliness often overlooked and forgotten even by her friends, she had developed ways of coping.
But today would be different.
While she sat, imagining the hours away, a subtle knock alerted her to an unexpected arrival.
She poked her head out from her room, staring at the door. She waited for a second knock to confirm that her imagination hadn't gotten too carried away before peeking through to see her visitor. Through the peephole, a tuft of unkempt hair signaled that it was indeed a friend.
Orihime opened the door and threw a bear hug around the girl. Tatsuki Arisawa nearly fell over in surprise as the bubbly girl dragged her inside.
"Tatsuki!" she exclaimed. "I've missed you soooo much lately! You won't believe what I've been working on! Come look!"
Without waiting for a word of confirmation or greeting, Orihime pulled her into her room. "Taa-daaa!"
She spread her arms wide, presenting a wall of pictures, cutouts and hand drawn images. It was a veritable collage of all of Orihime's friends, hopes and memories.
Tatsuki was taken aback. She was moved nearly to tears to see that the girl that she had spared less and less time for in between her martial arts classes and training; the girl that had once saved her life from a creature she could barely see, much less understand; had featured her prominently in the pictures that defined her life to this point, the cutouts of yearbooks that contained her most vivid memories and the hand-drawings that betrayed her most fervent wishes and deepest fears.
"Orihime…" was all she could murmur, as she wrapped her arms around her best friend.
"Do you like it?" Orihime asked nervously.
"Like it? I love it."
A brilliant smile lit Orihime's features and she broke the hug, flopping back onto her bed. She lay spread eagled and began to talk, not to herself this time, but to a friend who was completely willing to sit and listen. Tatsuki watched her as she babbled on about how she had made the collage, when she found time to do it and whether or not Ichigo would like it too. The girl had no shortage of energy or vibrancy, and the hairpin her brother had given her so long ago seemed to shine brighter with every word, as if it drew light from her very mood.
Tatsuki had seen that hairpin so many times before, she never really paid attention to it, but this time, she felt as if she couldn't take her eyes from it. She nodded in agreement to some question or other Orihime proposed and waited for the girl to engross herself in her own voice before continuing to examine the trinket.
"'Hime," Tatsuki finally interrupted.
"Huh?" the girl stopped talking immediately, looking up at her friend.
That's weird, the thing looks like it stopped glowing now…
"Is there something different about the hairpin your brother gave you? It seems…different."
Orihime smiled broadly. "Oh, Tatsuki, you noticed? When did you find out? Is that why you came over? I didn't think you remembered from when you were attacked, but I guess you kinda do don't you?"
Tatsuki withered under the barrage of questions. "Uhhh…." Smiling helplessly, the girl just shrugged.
"Well, no matter! I'll tell you. My hairpins are the Shun-Shun-Rikka!" she exclaimed. "There's Tsubaki, and Lily and…"
Tatsuki stared at her this time, disbelieving. She had named her hairpins? And what was a Shun-Shun-Rikka anyways? She really had to get this girl to go out more.
"And when I'm in trouble, I just call out… Santen Kesshun! I reject! And they protect me from whatever's going on. Well…unless what's attacking me is too powerful. Then usually Kurosaki-kun will protect me. He's gotta be the strongest person I've ever seen! And when he puts on his evil mask, he goes POW! POW! Take that Grimmjow!"
Tatsuki stared, scratching her head. What the hell is she talking about? She couldn't help but feel as if she were being granted a private audience to her friend's inner thoughts. Either way, she was glad she came over. Something told her that Orihime needed someone to talk to every once in a while, even if she might have kept talking if Tatsuki leapt headfirst from the window.
"So, Hime," the other girl interrupted again, "I say we go out somewhere today. I hear the carnival by the peir is great this time of year!"
Looking as if Christmas had come early, Orihime nodded enthusiastically.
"Oh, boy, I love the carnival!" she exclaimed. "So many things to do, and funny animals…"
Tatsuki smiled and pulled her friend easily to her feet. She walked to the bedroom door when suddenly a cold feeling overcame her, as if her feet had just been drenched in ice water. Orihime obviously felt it too, as she leapt forward, her bubbly personality replaced with a grim determination.
"What the-" Tatsuki managed. Then, right before her eyes, the air began to shimmer, as if it was being pulled at roughly by some invisible force. The space in the center of her living room began to rip apart. Tatsuki stared as the fabric of space-time in her dimension was torn open right before her eyes. Orihime merely raised her hands defensively, not appearing shocked in the slightest.
"Tatsuki," Orihime said tersely. "Run!"
"To where?" She countered, raising her fists instinctively.
The girls watched as the garganta opened in the room, its black maw absorbing furnishings, decorations and light. As the table was nearly engulfed, split right down the middle by the portal to a place Orihime could only describe as hell, a foot extended through, clad in white with a matching shoe. The design was as familiar and haunting to Orihime as one could be. But it was followed by an arm, wrapped in black cloth. An almost cape-like jacket, like the one Ichigo wore as a Shinigami. At the waist, a sword hung, its hilt as bleak and white as the landscape from whence its owner came.
Finally, the face of the intruder emerged. Orihime watched as the long, messy brown hair gave way to a sinister visage. The eyes were narrow, haunting, all red sclera and yellow pupil. The long, crooked nose that hung between them, still partially covered by a bleach white hollow's mask only seemed to accent that. The mouth was curved upward in a terrible approximation of a smile, as if a wolf suddenly found a hapless deer infinitely amusing.
Orihime took in her breath, instantly recognizing the signs of an Arrancar. "Santen Kesshun! I reject!"
Instantly, the tri-link shield appeared before her, blocking the passage of the creature as soon as the Garganta behind him closed.
An amused chuckle was all her response garnered.
"Well, well, well."
Tatsuki saw blurs. She had clearly seen a massive, black hole appear in Orihime's living room. As if that wasn't bad enough, now an invisible creature was in the room and it was talking. She heard its words clear as day. The voice was like acid in her veins. She took in Orihime's shield, a triangle of glowing light. And in her hair, the clip had broken off on four of its points.
Gasping, Tatsuki mumbled, "Shun-Shun-Rikka…"
The man turned his head toward her as if noticing her for the first time. "Oh, what have we here? My, my, you must have some level of Spiritual energy to be conscious right now."
Orihime gasped, surprised Tatsuki was being addressed by this invisible man. "Who are you?" she demanded, steeling her voice as much as possible. Oh Kurosaki-kun, you'd better get here soon!
"And who might you be?" the creature questioned. "What is this fabulous power you seem to be displaying?"
His finger extended, long and pale, to prod the borders of Orihime's shield. She grimaced, remembering the ease with which high-level hollows could punch through her shield. She hoped this one, at least didn't have the same ability.
But her fears were unwarranted. As the creature pushed against it, a tendril of smoke began to rise, a sizzling sound accompanying it. The man drew back, surprised. "What indeed…" he murmured.
Emboldened, Orihime spoke up again. "I don't care who you are! Get out! Leave my friends alone!"
The feral grin returned and the man disappeared right before Orihime's eyes. When he next spoke, it was as if a ghost were speaking from every direction at once. "But what would be the point in that. I believe this one will do…"
And suddenly, he reappeared, next to Orihime. His sword was drawn, and he stabbed it through Tatsuki's stomach, impaling her.
"NO!" Orihime cried as her oldest and best friend was ran through. "Tsubaki! Koten Zanshun!" she called out.
The little fairy charged, but the Arrancar swatted him away easily.
She watched helplessly as the creature lifted her in the air, holding her up on his sword as if a prize.
"Yes, she will do nicely."
***
Kisuke Urahara was not one to remain inobservant. As all the heroes of Karakura went about their various diversions, Kisuke instead stayed watchful, and he was glad he did. He felt a spike of Reiatsu, exactly like the one he had felt the week before. It was the fourth consecutive week he'd felt such a surge, and it didn't bode well that none of the other Shinigami, Quincy or other spiritually sensitive residents did not come ask him about it.
But this time, a sense of urgency overcame him. Discarding his gigai, he moved with the speed only an ex covert-ops agent could.
***
"Put her down!" Orihime yelled, her anger rising. He could not take Tatsuki from her! She did nothing to deserve this!
"Tsubaki!" she cried again. The tiny fairy attacked, screaming a war cry. The Arrancar swatted him again, but then recoiled in surprise. A hole was in the center of his hand exactly where he had contacted the sprite.
"HA!" Tsubaki taunted. "Finally, girl, you've got some spunk to you! Take that you scurvy Hollow! I'll hole you like Swiss cheese, just you wait-"
The arrancar fired a bala at Tsubaki in mid-gloat that blew him back into Orihime's arms. He lay in her cupped hands, dizzied by the blast.
Orihime felt empty in the pit of her stomach, looking at her best friend's limp form her efforts had no effect on the creature, and as usual, her position was to be caught alone, waiting for rescue.
Only this time, it wasn't her life on the line.
***
Ichigo paused in mid throw, holding the popcorn in his hand. That reiatsu again…
Rukia had paused as well.
"So you felt it this time?"
The shinigami looked at him quizzically. "This time? You've felt that before?"
"Yeah…"
"HEY, BE QUIET IN THE MOVIE! MY LITTLE GIRL IS TRYIN' TO ENJOY HERSELF!"
Ichigo ignored the man, concentrating. The surge of reiatsu faded as before, but it had seemed to be much stronger. Ichigo stood, just before feeling another surge of even more powerful and much more familiar energy. Kisuke…
Rukia tugged at his arm, imploring him to sit back down and he complied, letting the popcorn slip from his hand.
Kisuke will take care of it, he told himself.
Author's note: This update is the longest by far! 14 pages! 6100 words!
So, I've come across another fabulous fic. Hell Butterfly by Alliryan. Check it out if you have the time. Its absolutely marvelous, I promise.
The Mr. Arisawa mentioned is not Tatsuki's family, just some fictional character I made up without realizing I was reusing the name. I should probably be careful about that, but it doesn't really matter.
Sosuke Sagura is a nod to my other favorite anime Full Metal Panic! 100 AiS brownie points to anyone who got that before they read this.
See you next week, and don't forget to tell me what you think!