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Seireitei Gakuen Drama - 瀞霊廷 学園ドラマ
TheCherryOnTop
Chapter 10
My Sweet White Strawberry
...
So hey, how is everything?
Today is December 6th.
You understand what that means, right?
The dance is today!
..And yeah, I'm still going with Renji.
I mean, it's Ichigo's own fault for not asking me before.
Besides, Renji's my best friend in the whole world!
...
...
...
BLAH.
English is so boring. We're supposed to be reading our literature selection right now, but the story is a complete yawn. It's not in first person, it's not romantic or horror, it's just b o r i n g.
I glance over at Ichigo, who's busy reading something else, since's he's done.
Smarto.
Oh yes, school is only half day today because the dance is tonight.
(...and yes, our school is too cheap to give us the whole day off.)
...
I wanna draw rabbits.
...
With orange hair.
...
School's out!
Stupid Kurotsuchi-sensei, making me stay and clean the class afterwards.
I finish wiping the board, tossing out the gross-io rags, and pick up my bookbag.
"Rukia."
I jump, and then turn to face Ichigo.
"Ichigo, don't sneak up on me like that!"
"Sorry."
We stare at each other for a few minutes.
"...Well, what is it?"
"Oh." Ichigo ran his fingers through his hair, "Well, I-"
My phone rang.
"Oh, hold on!" I flip open my phone (It's Momo), "Moshi-moshi Momo-channn~!...Yeah, I'm at school, why-...Oh my GOD I forgot!...Ok, ok hold on, I'm coming!...Yeah, bye."
I shut my phone and grab my bag, shoving stuff into it, and then throwing it over my shoulder.
"Rukia-"
"Ichigo, I really can't talk right now! I'm soooo late; Momo's going to kill me!" I grab his shirt, yank him down, and give him a fast kiss. "Tell me later, mmkay? Love you!" and promptly race down the hallway, praying I won't trip on a dust particle or something.
I am so late.
...
...
"I bet it was destiny." I turn, observing myself in the mirror, and decide I agree with Momo's words.
"What was destiny, Momo-chan?" Orihime sits very still as Tatsuki pins her hair up neatly, and then plugs in the curling iron.
"It was destiny for Rukia's ugly dress to burn, and destiny for her to go shopping again later and find this sexy piece of hotness." Tatsuki answered, grinning as she did.
I turn in a full circle, ignoring her comment about the first dress being ugly, doing so very carefully because this dress is long, and grin back. "Do you think Ichigo will like it?"
-Because really-
I'm in love with this dress!
I'm here at Momo's house, along with Tatsuki and Orihime, getting ready for the dance tonight. We went shopping a couple days back to get myself another dress, and I must admit now that I'm kind of glad my first one burned because, hell, this dress is hot.
(And I'm getting ready here instead of my own house because I learned from last year that if you get ready for such an occasion at your own house then you also have to be ready to have a camera in your face. Hisana-nii loves taking pictures of what she calls "precious moments".)
Back to important stuff- The Dress. It's light green, and very straight, so it gives off the illusion of me being a few centimeters taller. It's strapless, and at the waist it bunches up on the left side of my hip, into a neat bundle, and from there, it opens on the side into a slit. The dress itself is ankle-length.
Momo giggles softly, "I bet he will."
(Remember Momo and Orihime were the only ones who knew about me and Ichigo. Tatsuki knows because Tatsuki rocks and also because I let Orihime tell her.)
I run my fingers through my hair, thinking of how I should wear it, as Orihime says, "I just wish you were going too, Tatsuki-chan."
Tatsuki picks up the curling iron to start doing Orihime's hair, "I would, but I have to go to that competition next week and sensei wants me to come in every evening for practice. But, I'll try to see if I can leave early today or something."
The annual Fall Dance was created by the head of Seireitei Gakuen as a "welcome back" gift for the students. And every year, our lovely social chair Rangiku Matsumoto always does the cliché yet fascinating act of mixing alcohol into the punch. And as usual, our chaperones, Zaraki-sensei and Kyoraku-sensei, don't give a damn because that just means the punch will taste better.
(Oh, but this year it's called the Winter Dance because of all the setbacks we had.)
...
...
...
I arrive at the school auditorium at exactly 8:00, along with Renji, meeting up with the others.
Orihime's here with Ulquiorra, as a couple of course. Momo's here, and according to her, she came single, but we all know the only reason she's here single is because Toshiro wouldn't let any other guys near her.
(Controlling prick.)
I don't see Ichigo here...I don't think he's coming today...
There's loud, slow, romantic music playing for the people who are dancing, and we all look up to see Shinji in the booth playing DJ. Well, the role suits him pretty well.
I wave hi to Rangiku-san, who looks really gorgeous in a dark red dress, along with Gin.
"Hi, Rukia-chan! I love your dress!" Rangiku-san hugs me tightly before holding me back to look at me, "You look hot!"
"Thank you."
I wasn't sure what to do with my hair, so I just pinned it up and held it up with a white rose. Just before we left, Momo gave me this really adorable necklace. It's a white strawberry that is studded with diamonds on a gold chain. I have a couple of really thin gold bracelets on, and that's about it. I also have a white and gold clutch, which I stole- I mean, borrowed- from Hisana-nii.
I look around to see where Renji's gone (he's talking to Ikkaku-san) and drag myself over.
When I park myself next to Renji, Yumichika-kun's eyes get all wide.
"Rukia-chan?" He grips my arms, turning my in a full circle carefully. "You look absolutely stunning!"
"Thank you."
"HIME-CHAAANNNNNNN~!" I glance over in time to see Chizuru attack Orihime from behind.
I stifle my giggles when Ulquiorra wordlessly pulls her off and drags Orihime away. Chizuru tries to follow, so Ulquiorra places his hand directly on her face to keep her from following.
"Hey Rukia, is Ichigo coming?" Ikkaku snaps me out of my trance. "Do you know?"
I shake my head, honestly. I don't know if he's coming.
Around then, I spy Ulquiorra and Orihime dancing out on the floor.
(Wonder where Chizuru went?)
That looks like fun.
"Renji!" I grab his sleeve and pull it gently, "Let's dance!"
"Alright." Renji says easily, grabbing my hand and taking me out on the floor just in time as Nickelback's "Far Away" starts.
I shut my eyes as Renji moves us, obviously, because I'm too short and too small to be able to control anything.
(I wonder what it's like to dance with Ichigo.)
As we turn, I open my eyes and notice Chizuru standing on the side, gripping a cup of punch in her hands, annoyed look on her face. It takes me a moment to realize who's standing next to her...
Momo?
I stop the dance ("Hold on a sec, Renji...") and go over to the punch table, tapping Momo's shoulder.
"Go away, Toshiro."
"Momo, it's-"
"Don't talk to me."
"Momo-"
"I said to go away, Toshiro! I'm mad at you!"
"Momo, it's Rukia!" I grab her shoulders and turn her around.
She blinks at me for a moment and then smiles. "Oh."
"What's up, why are you made at Toshiro?"
Momo's smile drops into a frown, "Because he acts like my freaking dad! I can't even go on a date without him going all mother hen on me! I mean, you know Kenji Yamashita, that guy in Class 14? He was gonna ask me out! And Toshiro just goes and ruin it, like I'm a pencil that he tried to borrow without asking!"
"You know...his overprotectiveness is kind hot."
"Rukia!"
"I know, I know! Well, why don't you go dance with someone right now? I doubt Toshiro can stop you here."
Momo's face was thoughtful, "You're right...(spots random guy) Hey, you! Are you single?"
"Oh, Hinamori-san!" the guy waved at her, "You recognize me, right? My name's Kenji. From class 14."
Momo's face get's an evil look, "Oh! I know that. Say, wanna dance?"
Kenji's face brightened, "Sure!"
As Momo dragged him out on the dance floor, I noticed Toshiro lurking in the shadows, hands stuffed in his pocket, cold glare on his face.
He looks kind of scary. All you see are these gigantic buggy teal eyes staring at Momo.
Maybe I should go and bother him for a bit. Maybe call him bean-sized, or-
"Rukia!"
I glance over from Lurker Toshiro to see Renji.
"What's up?"
I turn to face him directly, but Renji blocks my view, "Yeah Renji, let's go dance-"
"N-No, let's just get punch!" Renji nervously takes a cup and fills it up.
I squint at him, "Renji, you know the punch is spiked, right?"
"Heheh yeah of course!"
I step over slightly, and Renji shifts with me to block my view from the rest of the party again.
"So then why would you drink i-"
"Hello, Rukia-chan."
...
No.
Freaking.
No.
Because right there, in front of my eyes, lo and behold, is Senna Wa(ta)nnabe.
Arm in arm with Ichigo.
My Ichigo.
I stare at them for a moment, and then turn to Renji.
"Gimme that cup."
Instead, Renji holds it away from me.
Bastard. You don't tell me to drink it and then not give it to me.
I take a deep breath, taking control of myself before I do something really horrible to Renji (and Senna), and turn back to face Wa(ta)nnabe, squinting at Ichigo as I do. "...Hi."
What the hell does he think he's doing?
Does he not realize what he's done?
...Of course not, because I, being the smart one, never told him about my arguments over him with Senna!
Senna smiles oh-so-evilly and pulls on Ichigo's arm (she's going to rip his delicate arm off!) and chides, "I'm sure you've met my date, Kurosaki-kun?"
I have to do something. Something. Anything. I can feel desperation building up.
So I decide to do something that I know Byakuya-nii would hate, something I hope I will not regret.
I sidestep Ichigo, grabbing onto his other arm. The one that's Senna's not killing.
When I do, Ichigo looks right down at me. I grip his tie carefully, pulling him down slightly so that we're just inches away from a kiss and stare into his eyes.
"Actually no, I haven't." I say softly, just loud enough for Senna to here.
I resist the urge to smirk when Ichigo actually pulls his arm away from Senna, his hand touching my strawberry necklace. I shiver when his fingertips brush against my skin.
I suddenly tear myself away from Ichigo (because he deserves it!) when I feel Senna's intense glare on my back. We glare at each other for a few moment, and then Renji comes up behind Ichigo and puts him in a lock, slipping his arms underneath Ichigo's.
"Hey, what-"
"Don't get involved." Renji says ubruptly, dragging Ichigo away.
(Note: Thank Renji later.)
As soon as Ichigo is gone, Senna takes a step forward.
"You think you're so damn clever, don't you? Clinging onto him like some sort of a leech-"
I raise an eyebrow, "Who's clinging like a leech? Maybe I got it from you."
"You little slut, how dare you press yourself against him like that; isn't it clear that Ichigo doesn't want a girl who's flatter then a ten year old boy?"
I growl angrily at this, because goddammit, I'm a 30 B. I am not as flat as a ten year old boy!
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me." Senna tucks her hair behind her ear, "Ichigo would never make a mistake like that."
I pick up my cup of punch, taking a sip, before walking up to Senna, "Look in the mirror and you'll see the biggest mistake ever."
I don't know what made me do it.
I don't know what made me think of doing it.
I don't know how I gathered the nerve to do it.
But when I dumped my cup of punch on her head, I felt badass.
Senna gasps, running her fingers through her hair, while the fruitiness runs down her hair, which is now sticky with hawaiin fruit punch, and then let's out a screech and lunges at me.
I squeak, then tackle her back to the ground.
"Back off of Ichigo!" Senna screams, trying (and failing) to pin me to the ground.
"You back off, Ichigo doesn't want your mono!" I scream back, kicking her in the shin.
"OW! -What the hell? I don't have mono!"
"Hmmph, well that's not what Karin told me!"
"Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight!" I can hear Keigo chanting in the background, and I notice there's a small circle around us watching and screaming random things.
Sheesh, they should be trying to break us up, not encouraging us to kill each other.
I hear Orihime's frantic voice from behind me somewhere, "Rukia-chan, Senna-chan, please stop fighting! You could get hurt and-"
"Ugh!" Senna grabs onto my dress and I squeal as she yanks me down with her, "Stay out of this, you orange haired, baby faced, big-boobed brat!"
Orihime's face is frozen, "H-Huh?"
"WHAT!" I screech, standing straight back up, "HOW DARE YOU TALK TO HER LIKE THAT?"
I hear Ulquiorra in the back, "Come along, woman."
"B-But I-"
"It is in your best interest not to get involved-"
"A FIGHT? WHERE, WHERE?" Ikkaku pokes his head into the crowd, "MOVE IT, YOU MAGGOTS!...Oh shit, Rukia-chan! HEY GUYS, RUKIA KUCHIKI'S A SECRET BAD GIRL!"
"Shut up, Ikkaku!" I screech, trying to keep my balance before Senna pushes me into the table.
Around then, I feel two arms on my shoulders, gripping me firmly and holding me from attacking Senna again.
"Hey, what-"
"Rukia, calm down." Renji's smooth, calm voice echoed in my ears. I felt myself go limp.
I notice Sado on the other side, holding Senna in a firm grip. Zaraki-sensei made his way through the crowd, "Alright alright, move it. There's nothing to see here, you little worms."
"Oi, you two, listen up. I really don't give a damn what you do, you can eat each other's brains out for all I care. But if you do that here I'm going to be held responsible, so quit it."
Both Senna and I stood, Sado and Renji still gripping onto us, "Yes, Sensei."
While everyone cleared up, I noticed the music that was playing.
Brooke Valentine's "Girlfight" -the remix.
I turned around to face the DJ's soundroom, which was above the auditorium, and glared at Shinji, the DJ.
Shinji waved at me.
I shook my fist at him.
(Note: Kill Shinji later. Better yet, tell Hiyori to kill him later. Having connections with Shihoin-sensei really helps.)
You see, Hiyori is in Yuzu and Karin's class. She's had a crush on Shinji for the longest time but she never says anything about it. I mean, she's just a 6th grader, and he's a senior.
The age gap is so big, its cute yet wierd.
Also, I personally know Hiyori because she's Shihoin-sensei's boyfriend's half sister.
Shihoin-sensei's boyfriend, Urahara Kisuke, runs a cute little shop downtown. Hiyori is his half sister- they both have the same mom, and you can tell because they both have the blonde hair.
Anyways.
I stood at the punch table, filling my cup over and over. Everytime I did, Renji would take it from me, and I would take a new one and fill it up again.
"Rukia, come on, you know the punch is spiked. You shouldn't drink it." Renji placed a hand on my shoulder, which I shrugged off.
"Well, I want to drink it, so why can't I?" I took another cup and filled it, this time properly moving when Renji's hand shot out to confiscate it from me. I took the whole thing down in one satisfying gulp. "You're not my mom, Renji. I can do what I want."
Renji sighed softly, and I suddenly felt bad.
I mean, I drag him here, get into a fight, and then put him through this bs.
I sighed, put my cup down and turned to face him, "Listen Renji, I'm really sorry about this. It was supposed to be fun, but I had to go and freak out and-"
"Rukia," Renji put his hands on my shoulders, "It's ok."
"But I-"
"It's ok. I'm serious. Just getting to come here with you is enough." Renji let go of my shoulder, awkwardly scratching his head, face pink.
"Renji..."
"Oi, Renji! C'mere a sec!"
Renji and I both looked behind him to see Ikkaku waving him to come over. Several other guys- Yumichika, Izuru, Toshiro, and Kusaka stood with him.
Renji looked at them, and then back at me. I sighed, "Go, Renji."
"But you-"
"It's ok." I smiled, turning him around and giving him a gentle push. "Go on, I'm not going anywhere. Where am I gonna go?"
Renji stumbled forward a little, then nodded and walked off. I turned back to the punch table to wallow in self-pity.
Stupid Ichigo. What was he thinking bringing that girl here?
And her! How dare she make fun of Orihime like that!
And how dare she attach herself to Ichigo's delicate arm!
And how dare she-
"Rukia-chann~!" Chizuru's vibrant voice brought me back from la la land, and I turned slightly as she slipped her arm in mine.
"You look absolutely gorgeous in that dress, my little angel. Stunning. The pale green color and the gentle ripples in the fabric make me want to just ravish you!" Chizuru said boldly, and I decided to take it as a compliment, because hell, usually Chizuru only said stuff like that to Orihime.
"Thank you."
Chizuru's arm wrapped around my shoulders, "Alright, tell me what's up."
"Huh?"
Chizuru pulled me in front of her, hands on my shoulders, "I know and adore the feminine mind, Rukia-chan, and I can tell when a lady is in distress." she let go of my shoulders and grabbed my hands instead, "So tell me what's wrong. You can tell me anything, love. I'm here for you."
I took a deep breath. Should I tell her?
Why not? So many people already witnessed my fight with Senna. And Chizuru might be able to help me, since she's been fighting for an unrequited love for years.
"Well...did you see Senna here?"
Chizuru nodded. "Senna Watanabe? Yes, I saw her. I must say, yellow is really her color-"
"We got into a fight."
Chizuru gasped. "A...a verbal fight, right? Not a- like a cat-"
"Yeah, a catfight." I stuck my leg out carefully from the slit in the side of my dress to show Chizuru the bigass bruise I got after Senna shoved me into the table, "See?"
Chizuru gasped again, "Oh, no. No, no, no. My poor sweet angel, does it hurt?" with those words, she placed both hands on my face, looking at me with the most sincere upset look ever.
I swear, if Chizuru was a guy, I would so date her.
(If you haven't noticed, her personal nickname for me is 'angel'. Orihime's nickname is 'princess' which makes more sense then 'angel'.)
"I'm ok."
"Thank kami." Chizuru let go of my face (that sounds funny) and folded her arms across her chest, "So, what were you two fighting over?"
I took another deep breath.
"It was..."
"It was?" Chizuru gave me that scary look, through her glasses, reminding me of Hisana when I ate cookies before dinner when I was like, 4.
"Well I.."
"You what?"
"It was over Ichigo."
Chizuru stared at me, eyes wide in shock.
Slowly, she took off her glasses, folded them, and hooked them onto the collar of her dress.
"Alright, angel," she leaned against the table, "Tell me everything."
...
By the time I was done telling her my story, Chizuru was sitting on the punch table nodding firmly to everything I said.
In the middle of our conversation, Renji tried to butt in, but luckily Chizuru scared him away.
"And then he- he- he brought her here! And he didn't even tell me!" I half sobbed, half growled, and Chizuru nodded sympathetically and handed me my 6th cup of alcolohic punch.
"Drink it all, now. Good girl."
I dumped the whole thing in my mouth and handed her my empty cup for her to fill again, "What am I supposed to do?"
Chizuru's eyes narrowed, "Well, to put it simple, this means war, angel. You've gotta fight for him, if you really want him. You wanna be Ichigo's angel?"
For some reason, I felt stunned at that.
"Ichigo's what?"
Chizuru smiled at me, holding my shoulders again, "My little angel is finally growing up and becoming someone else's angel. I am so proud of you!"
Major Hisana-nii moment.
"Now!" Chizuru pointed at the auditorium stage, "We're gonna get our lovers back!"
"Wait, what?"
She grabbed my shoulders (AGAIN!) and pulled me close, "Ulquiorra thinks he can take my hime away from me! Well, I won't have any of that. I had her first. I'll admit that Ichigo had you first, and that's why I'm letting you go, but hime is mine, dammit!" Chizuru straightened her dress, "So, Rukia-chan. Do you know the best way to get attention at a dance like this?"
"Umm...I don't know?"
Chizuru sighed. "See? That's why I call you an angel. Because you're so innocent, so naive, so precious!"
I blinked.
What?
"No, my dear sweet Rukia-chan,the best way to get attention at a dance..." Chizuru pointed at the auditorium stage again, "Is to dance."
I froze, "Wait, what?"
"Think about it, Rukia-chan. You can dance, or we can get start another fight with Senna, right here, right now, and settle this. You understand, don't you? The latter is not an option."
"W-Wait, I can't dance in this dress!"
Chizuru waved her hand. "So you can use the costumes Rangiku-san ordered for that dance routine you and Hime made up last year!"
"Wait, the school uniform ones-"
"Yeah, those are perfect!"
"No, those are too freaking racy!"
"The racier the better! You'll look like a total sex kitten out there, Ichigo's eyes will never dare to leave you-"
"Chizuru, no!"
"Rukia-chan, stop worrying about it! You're with me, remember?" Chizuru turned, grinning, and winked at me. "Everything's gonna be perfect."
Being drunk-ish and not in my right mind as I was, I shut up and let Chizuru drag me upstairs to the soundroom.
When she busted down the door, Shinji freaked out, whipping around and pulling his headphones down off his ears, "Hey, hey! What're you-"
" 'Sup, Hirako?" Chizuru wandered over to Shinji, parking herself next to him and then promptly slapping his butt. "Your ass is looking fine tonight."
Shinji rolled his eyes and took a step away from Chizuru, face coloring every so slightly.
"I know you're a lesbian, Honsho, so quit trying to- wait. You're here with Rukia...don't tell me you guys came to the dance together." Shinji said with a disgusted face.
Chizuru rolled her eyes, folding her arms across her chest, staring at Shinji through her glasses, eyes narrowed.
(And if you're like me you know how scary that look is, especially coming from Chizuru.)
"Enough with the bullshit, Hirako. You know her brother would go crazy if we started dating."
Shinji's face relaxed, and he leaned against the table slightly, eyes narrowing slightly, "So, what's up?"
"I have a request."
"Oh, really?" Shinji raised an eyebrow, "What is it?"
"Pick a song for Rukia to dance to."
"Chizuru!" I cried, but she whipped around and placed one finger on my lips, shutting me up.
"Quiet, Rukia-chan. I'm handling this." Chizuru turned to Shinji, "Anything is ok, but I prefer Lady Gaga-"
"Chizuru!"
"Enough!" Chizuru grabbed my hand, "Rukia, go find Rangiku and tell her you need 2 sets. I'm going to text her and tell her you're coming." Chizuru turned to Shinji. "And you watch for my thumbs up, I'll be down there. Be ready. I've got to go get someone."
...
...
...
"Don't worry, I'll help with it." Rangiku told me when she handed me my costume.
I can't believe I'm doing this.
"I don't think I should do this. I mean, we haven't done that routine since the end of last year, and-"
"Kuchiki!" Rangiku patted my cheek, "Don't worry; you're my student! You'll do great!"
"But Orihime won't even be with me-"
"Who said I won't be there?"
...WHAT.
I whipped around (accidently ripping Rangiku's hand away from my bow-tie, oops) to find Orihime standing there, smiling brightly, all ready in her own uniform.
I wanna cry.
"Orihime..."
Orihime's smile got even bigger. "C'mon Rukia, let's dance. It'll be fun, just like Rangiku-san said!"
Right then, Chizuru came in.
"Alright you two, get on sta- Oh, my!" Chizuru gasped, pulling her hands to cover her mouth, "You two look so amazing! Drool-worthy, sensual, perfect! (clasps hands) Rangiku-san, you are a genius!"
Rangiku chuckled, leaning back in her chair, "Well, they are my prodigy."
(Byakuya-nii would die if he heard her call me that.)
(Scratch that. Byakuya-nii would die if he saw what I'm wearing.)
"Anyways. It's time, go get on stage! Curtain call awaites you!" Chizuru wiped away an invisible tear, "Go get them, my little stars!"
"Ay ay, captain!" Orihime saluted her, then grabbed my hand. "Let's go, Rukia!"
I took a deep breath.
Time to die.
"Alright."
...
As soon as we stepped onto the stage, I wanted to go back.
"I can't do it!"
"You have to do it!" Rangiku's grip on me was killer as I tried (unsuccesfully) to make a run for it.
"But I can't!"
"You can!"
"No I-"
Around then, the slow song that had been playing- Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis- suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
"Hey, everyone! It's me, Shinji!"
Lots of loud screams and yells came from the crowd outside, cheering Shinji on to continue.
On hearing Shinji's voice on the mic, Rangiku let me go.
"That's my cue to leave, girls. Have fun!" (runs off)
I take a few deep breaths and listen to Shinji's voice on the mic, the closed curtains almost mocking me.
'we're gonna open...and then you're gonna be embarrassed...and Senna will win...and Ichigo will never want to see you again...'
RAWR.
"Rukia, are you alright? You just growled."
Um.
"Oh, sorry. I didn't know I did that out loud."
"So tonight, we have a very special treat from two hot ladies you all know and love! Dancing to The Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi", Orihime Inoue and Rukia Kuchiki!"
The curtains open.
Music starts.
I look at Orihime, who smiles back at me.
I know what to do.
...Ok not really, but I'll try.
_
-TBC-
_
The Dress. The epic dress Rukia wore to the dance is totally and completely inspired by "Ichiruki: milestones" by ~Lucelentquark on Deviantart. I like, completely fell in love with that dress when I saw it.
The whole crazy dress-up-and-dance-live idea was inspired by "Paparazzi" by ~Wandering-Heartbeat on Deviantart. And obviously, Bleach's 10th opening- Shoujo S. XD