A/N: I was more organised this week so I didn't have to post at 11 at night. ^^ This week was very relaxing because all my exams were over~ Hooray for me =P We aren't doing any work in class so I get to work on my fanfic even during school hours. I just love the end of the year.
Btw, have you seen Harry Potter yet? I have! =D All I can say is... It's totally awesome!
Chapter 10 – Visitors
"I can't believe you two skipped the last 2 periods," Satsuki huffed, walking backwards so that she was facing Rukia and Ichigo.
"You skipped the second last period," Ichigo pointed out.
Satsuki crossed her arms, "That was because I was in pain and had to rest in the sick bay."
Well, guess what? Rukia was in pain too and needed time away from you, you ignorant girl! Ichigo wanted to shout at Satsuki.
"Is your headache gone now?" Rukia asked Satsuki. Rukia had skilfully applied make-up to cover up her red nose and puffy eyes.
"I can manage," Satsuki replied and started staring at Orihime.
The long-haired girl was humming happily to herself and twirling around. Every time she bumped into someone, she would laugh and apologise to the stranger, unbothered by the fact that other people were thinking she was a retard.
"What are you so happy about?" Satsuki asked curiously, walking up to Orihime.
Orihime didn't answer; instead, she grabbed Satsuki's hands and continued to spin around, forcing Satsuki to do so too. Orihime kept on dancing until they reached a bench. Satsuki sat down on the seat heavily and held her head, groaning.
"Oh my, I completely forgot about your headache. I'm so sorry!" Orihime said, "I'm just sooooo happy!"
"I can tell," Satsuki muttered, still clutching her head.
Rukia came to them and sat down next to Satsuki. "Ulquiorra Cifer and my elder brother are coming to the Human World today." Rukia said happily.
Satsuki looked at the boys and realised they already knew about the news, "How come only I don't know about the news?"
"Because you're deaf," Ichigo said matter-of-factly.
Satsuki ignored him and said to Rukia, "We must hold a party to welcome them!"
"I don't think they are the type to party…" Rukia said hesitantly. "Ulquiorra was the 4th Espada.
"Oh, that Espada, didn't you say he was an em-" Rukia quickly covered Satsuki's mouth and said, "We should have a feast instead of a party."
"Yea, we can hold it at our house." Satsuki said excitedly, "We can have a BBQ. Let's go to the shops now!" She stood up but after a second, sat back down again, holding her head and groaning.
"Uh… Maybe we should go to the shops. You go home and rest," Rukia said, patting Satsuki's shoulder.
Satsuki mumbled in agreement and said goodbye to the others, her tone apologetic. Rukia watched Satsuki walk away and turned to Orihime and the others, "Where should we go first?"
...
About an hour later, Rukia and the teenagers stepped out of the grocery shop. They had already visited five shops in that time and everyone was tired from the shopping.
Rukia and Orihime, who were leading the group, held nothing but their school bags. The boys, however, held four bags of groceries each.
"Why do we need so much food?" Ichigo complained.
"It's a feast, duh," Rukia rolled her eyes.
"There are going to be a lot of leftovers," Ishida observed.
"Then we can keep eating at Rukia's place until the food's all gone," Orihime replied, somehow still in high spirits. She looked around for a while and suddenly pointed at another shop. "We completely forgot about drinks. Let's go, Rukia." Orihime started dragging Rukia toward the convenience store.
Seeing the two girls pile battle after bottle of soft drink into the shopping basket, all three of the boys groaned in unison. It was going to be a long afternoon.
...
Satsuki opened her eyes and sat up. After a few seconds, she realised she was in a dark place. There were no lights, but she can somehow still see. Satsuki stood up slowly. How the hell did I get here? Satsuki thought. Did I sleep so long that its night already?
She continued to look around, but it looked nothing like her bedroom. There was no furniture, no walls, no ceiling. Only a vast space filled with pure darkness.
She started to panic. "Hello?" She said hesitantly. Her voice seemed unnaturally loud in this eerily quiet place and her voice echoed. She walked forward tentatively; scared she might trip on something.
She kept on walking for about five minutes, but the scenery still didn't change. She sat back down and closed her eyes, covering her face with her shaking hands. This has got to be a dream.
A few moments later, Satsuki felt a light tap on her shoulder. "Rukia," she asked hopefully and looked up.
To her disappointment, the person who tapped her shoulder wasn't Rukia. Instead, it was a girl with long, black hair and wore a black kimono.
"You're the girl who appeared in the bathroom," Satsuki realised.
The girl nodded, and then her mouth started moving a mile an hour.
"I can't hear you," the same thing is happening again. As much as Satsuki wanted to, she couldn't hear a single sound come from the girl's mouth.
Satsuki stood up and she saw that the girl was more than a head taller than her. She must be at least 2 metres tall, Satsuki thought in awe.
"I've got an idea; why don't you write on a piece of paper or something."
The girl shook her head and held out her hands. She had long, pale fingers with abnormally black fingernails. Her fingernails were also unnaturally sharp and sent a chill down Satsuki's back. She could easily imagine this girl defacing a girl in a catfight.
"No paper or pen handy… I'm not surprised; this place is as bare as a bone." Satsuki kept on looking at her surroundings. She still doesn't get why she can see without any lights.
The girl stared at Satsuki, deep in thought, but somehow Satsuki didn't mind. Even though this was only the second time they have met, Satsuki felt a sense of familiarity toward her.
The girl started speaking again and Satsuki heard her name being called. At first, she thought the girl was the one saying her name. But then she quickly realised she wasn't. The girl's lips were moving too fast and didn't seem to form the word 'Satsuki.' The voice was coming from somewhere else.
Satsuki did a 360, but still couldn't find the source of the sound. She took a step forward, in case the person saying her name was farther away. But before she could take another step, she was suddenly grabbed by the shoulder from behind.
"What," Satsuki said in surprise and looked behind her to see the mysterious girl shake her head frantically. As she did so, drops of tears fell from her eyes. 'Stay,' the girl kept on mouthing and Satsuki saw that the girl's tears were gone, replaced by a determined expression.
Satsuki felt her shoulders being shook violently, but it wasn't the girl shaking her. What the hell if happening? Satsuki thought wildly to herself.
The girl and the surrounding environment slowly faded away and were replaced by the view of the white ceiling of her bedroom. Satsuki slowly sat up. She was back inside her bed, she realised. I knew it; it was a dream after all. Satsuki thought happily to herself.
She looked to her left side and out the window, the sky was dyed a bright pink by the setting sun. Her clock, which was on her bedside table, informed her that it was currently 5:38 in the afternoon.
Better start preparing for the feast, Rukia and the others would probably be here any minute now, Satsuki thought and rubbed her eyes. She removed the covers and climbed off her bed. She turned around to make her bed and, to her utter surprise, saw a girl sitting on top of her desk.
The girl had layered shoulder-length hair that was violet-coloured and had baby-pink eyes. She wore a strapless, white dress that reached just past her knees with white slip on shoes. Her attires were all black-trimmed. On her head was a white pair of teeth that acted like a headband.
"Hello, Satsuki Hime-sama," Leila drawled and gave Satsuki a cold smile.
...
What are you staring at, Orihime?" Rukia asked as she took the house keys out.
"I think I just saw a flash of violet in Satsuki's room," she replied.
Rukia laughed softly as she unlocked the door, "Satsuki doesn't own anything violet. You must be seeing things."
Orihime frowned but soon cheered up again as Rukia led them past the living room and into the kitchen.
Rukia motioned to the boys to put the groceries on the kitchen bench-top.
"You seriously owe me one," Ichigo said to Rukia as her put the bags down and flexed his arms.
"You should be thankful that I'm cooking for you," Rukia said without looking at him.
"You're not cooking. We are having a BBQ."
"Well I am preparing the ingredients, aren't I?"
"Che, anyone can do that job."
Rukia turned and pointed a capsicum at Ichigo, "You prepare the ingredients, then."
"Don't mind if I do," Ichigo pulled out a cucumber and tapped it lightly on Rukia's head. Rukia responded by using her capsicum to flick the cucumber away. The two proceeded to have a mini sword…uh…vegetable fight.
Ishida stood in the doorway, staring at the two with raised eyebrows. He coughed loudly and the two turned to look at him. "The guests are here," Ishida said while trying not to laugh.
Orihime squealed happily and ran out of the kitchen and into the living room with Rukia following close behind with an anxious smile on her face.
The Senkaimon was just opening as Orihime and Rukia ran into the living room. Ulquiorra was the first to step out of the Senkaimon. He looked around, his hands deep in his pockets and his face devoid of emotion.
"Ulquiorra," Orihime squeaked. The black-haired boy turned to look at the hyperactive Orihime. She squealed again and threw herself at Ulquiorra, who smiled and patted Orihime's head. Ever since he and Orihime have started dating, he had been smiling more so Rukia and the others weren't the least bit surprised.
While Ulquiorra and Orihime were acting all lovey-dovey, Byakuya had stepped out of the Senkaimon and closed it.
Rukia bowed slightly to Byakuya when she saw him.
"Where is Satsuki?" His eyes flickered from side to side, searching.
"She is in her room resting," Rukia didn't seem offended by Byakuya's lack of enthusiasm toward seeing her again. "Nii-sama… Satsuki ha-"
"I told you not to make a habit of addressing her by her name," Byakuya said sharply.
"Sorry… Satsuki Nee-chan has forgotten about the ribbon you gave her," Rukia looked toward her brother's face, anticipating angry emotions from him.
"It's ok."
"What?" Rukia's eyes widened at her brother's lack of emotion.
"I said don't worry about it, don't make me repeat myself again," Byakuya said simply and walked past her to say something to Ulquiorra, who was still hugging Orihime.
Ichigo patted Rukia's shoulder, "You ok?" He asked worriedly.
Rukia brushed Ichigo's hand away and headed toward the stairs. "I'll live." Looks like the pink ribbon isn't as important as I thought, Rukia thought sadly.
...
"W…Who are you?" Satsuki asked the girl in front of her. This girl was in the images I keep seeing, Satsuki thought.
Leila kept on talking as if Satsuki hadn't said anything, "Life is boring without any challenges. I've spent the last month seeing my plan run smoothly, so smoothly that it drove me nuts. What happened to all the action? I snuck into the Human World two weeks ago, and you know what? I found your reiatsu!"
Satsuki stared at Leila. Who the hell was this girl and why is she saying all this stuff to me?
"I've been observing you these past few days and I have come to realise that even though you didn't die, you have lost your memories."
Ah, so she's a stalker and a lunatic… Satsuki moved away from Leila, feeling a bit uncomfortable.
"Oh, don't be like that. I came here today for a reason and that reason isn't to come scare you. I'm here to give you an opportunity."
"…Opportunity?"
"Yup, to remember," Leila laughed at Satsuki's bewilderment.
"Huh?"
"I'm giving you a chance to remember your memories, dummy, so that you can make my life more interesting once more. After all, you were the one who gave me these beautiful powers." Something fanned out behind Leila and Satsuki saw it was a set of white wings.
A wave of uncertainty washed over Satsuki as Leila slowly stepped toward her.
End note: There were many unexpected events in this chapter, right? Don't you think Orihime and Ulquiorra make a cute couple? I'm wondering if I should put in more couple scenes...
Heads up to those who care, I am going to update a bit earlier next week, maybe on Thursday or Friday, because I will be on a plane all day next Saturday and won't have time to update. To be perfectly honest, I'm still not sure if I will have access to the internet overseas. A whole month or so without internet... *Shudders*...
Anyway, please continue to support me and if you have any tips or ideas or anything, please tell me. =D