standard disclaimers apply

well i decided not to go with the masaki story as i feel this chapter gives her enough lip service, so in saying that, i do feel iffy on this chapter but i hope you enjoy it and it only gets better :)

Chapter 11

The car was approaching the final minutes of this nights long drive. Its headlamps lit up the orange lines of the bends carved out of rock cliffs, and the long white lines of the open stretches, flanked on either side by marshland and empty beach. Rukia was dozing. Uryu drove in silence, focused on the road and deep in his own thoughts.

Ichigo took this moment of peace to remove the letter unobtrusively from his pocket. It was the letter he had placed there along with the heavy keys from the writing desk in his apartment.

When he opened the envelope, a waft of fragrance escaped, laden with memories. It was a blend of the two perfumes his mother used to concoct in a big yellow crystal flask with a tarnished silver stopper. The smell released his own memories of her. He removed the letter and carefully unfolded it.

My darling Ichigo,

If you are reading these words, it means you've finally made up your mind to set out for Rukongai. How I'd love to know how old you are right now.

You're holding the keys to the house where we spent such wonderful years together. I knew you wouldn't go there right away, that you'd wait until you felt ready to wake the old place up.

Soon you'll be pushing open the front door. I can still hear it creak. Every room you wake will stir memories. You'll open up the shutters one by one, letting in the sunlight that I shall miss so much. And of course you'll go to the rose garden. Perhaps by now they would have run wild.

You should also go to my study. Make yourself comfortable there. In the closet you'll find my small black suitcase. Open it if you wish, if you have the strength. Inside you'll find notebooks full of the pages I wrote to you everyday of your childhood.

Your life is before you. You alone are master of it. Be worthy of "all the things I loved about you."

Your mother, Masaki.

Discreetly he returned the letter to his pocket.

Ichigo gave Uryu directions from the passenger seat. It had been more than twenty years since he'd been here, yet nothing had changed; he recognized the smell of the place even in the dead of night. Ichigo saw the cypress that stood herald at the turn onto the dirt road, potholed by winter rains and baked by summer suns. As they rounded a bend, Ichigo could make out the ornate, green wrought-iron gate that protected the property from the tourists.

"here we are," said Ichigo.

"got the keys?"

"I'll open the gate and let you through." Ichigo got out of the car and inhaled the fresh, cold sea air. "you go on down to the house and wait for me, I'll walk."

"is she coming with you or staying in the car?"

Ichigo leaned in the window. "Rukia," he called gently.

"you go on alone, I think that's best for the moment," she said.

"you just got lucky, she's staying with you," Ichigo told Uryu with a grin.

The car pulled away, trailing dust. Ichigo stood there quietly for a long time, taking in the dark landscape. Broad strips of ocher-colored soil were bordered by umbrella and silver pines that Isshin had planted when Ichigo was a boy and now towered above him. The ground was strewn with pine needles, and in the distance he could hear the ocean. The house looked intact, although the surrounding shrubbery was overgrown. He could just make out the peeling blue wooden fence that enclosed the rose garden off to the left of the house.

When he got to the house, he realized that it seemed smaller than he'd remembered. It needed a good paint job, and several closed shutters were hanging precariously, but the roof looked solid. His father had taken good care of it.

Uryu had parked by the wide front porch and was waiting for Ichigo beside the car. "you took your time getting here!"

"more than twenty years!"

"So? What now?" asked Uryu.

Ichigo told Uryu they would first need to put Rukia's body in his mothers study on the ground floor. Ichigo slipped the key in the lock and unhesitatingly turned it the wrong way, which was the right way to open it. Some lessons become automatic, even when not repeated for years. The click of the latch prompted instant recognition, as if he had heard it just the day before. He walked into the hallway and opened the first door on the left. Without thinking, he flipped on the light switch, deliberately ignoring his surroundings. There would be time enough to rediscover this place, and to show it to Rukia, but first they needed to deal with her body.

Suddenly Uryu craned his head through the door. "how come there's still electricity here?"

"I called the company on Friday and asked them to reconnect us. Same for the water in case you're worried. C'mon, Uryu, lets move her right away." Ichigo led Uryu back out of the house to the car.

Rukia stayed with her body as they carried the stretcher up the stairs and wheeled it into Masaki's study. They shifted it onto the sofa bed.

Rukia looked at Ichigo. "now make sure the IV's running freely, check my pulse to make sure its not racing, then leave me alone here for a while. I need to get used to my surroundings."

Uryu unloaded the rest of the supplies, and Ichigo helped him arrange them in the kitchen.

When Uryu had finished bringing everything in, he said, "Well buddy, I'd love to stay for your housewarming party with your comatose ghost, but I better hit the road right away if I want to get at least half a day in the office. Think we might find a way to make me a cup of fuel before I take off?"

Ichigo opened the kitchen cabinet and took out a small espresso maker and set it on the stove. He found an old, unopened can of coffee in the cupboard and measured it into the cup, then filled the top section with coffee.

Ichigo bent down and turned the tap on the butane tank under the sink. Then he turned the knob on the left of the stove top to turn on the burner itself.

"you think there's still gas in that bottle?" asked Uryu.

"my old man would never have left the house with an empty tank still in the kitchen, and I bet you there are at least two more full ones in the garage."

Soon Ichigo set two cups on the wooden tabletop and poured out the fragrant coffee. "give it a moment."

"why?"

"because you'll burn yourself, and anyway you have to inhale it first. Let the aroma flood your nostrils."

"cut the crap about the coffee. You're driving me mad. I cant believe it, 'let the aroma flood your nostrils'?"

Uryu raised the cup to his lips, then instantly spat his tiny sip of hot coffee back into his cup.

Just then Rukia came and stood behind Ichigo and whispered in his ear, "I like this place. I feel good here, its soothing."

"I'm glad you like it."

"I cant wait to see the grounds."

"I cant wait to show you everything."

"are you okay there, pal?" Uryu interrupted.

"sorry," Ichigo said, "I was talking to Rukia."

"if you find my presence intrusive, just pretend I'm not here," Uryu said sarcastically.

With a slightly mischievous look in her eye, Rukia whispered to Ichigo that she longed to be alone with him.

Uryu, waiting testily for Ichigo to turn his attention from Rukia back to him, broke in, "do you still need me? Because if not, I'm heading out now. You know your little talks with ghostie make me feel uncomfortable."

"why don't you try being more open-minded?"

"you want me to be more open-minded - me, they guy who stole an ambulance to help you lift a body from a hospital one fine Sunday night, the guy who's now drinking coffee hours from home without having slept a wink. You've got a lot of nerve!"

"I'm sorry Uryu. You know that's not what I meant. And I am grateful to you, more grateful than I can ever express. I truly hope someday I'll be able to return the favor."

Ichigo was worried that his friend might be too tired to tackle the return drive. But Uryu reassured him: thanks to that coffee, he was good for at least another twenty hours non-stop before the sandman would come anywhere near him.

"Now, its all right for me to leave you and the ghost and the corpse all here alone, without a car, in a deserted house in the middle of the night?" Uryu asked.

"there should be a vintage Ford station wagon in the garage, and old fashioned woody."

"when was the last time anyone drove it?"

"I guess its been a while."

"and you think it will start?"

"it'll be okay as soon as I recharge the battery," Ichigo said as he walked out to the car with Uryu. "don't worry about me."

"of course I'll worry about you. If these were normal circumstances and I was leaving you alone in this house, I'd be terrified of the idea of ghosts. But you, you bring your own!"

"Go on."

Uryu started the car and lowered his window. "you're sure you'll be all right?"

"I'll be fine."

"okay, then I'm off."

"Uryu?"

"Yes?"

"I mean it, thanks for everything."

"it was nothing."

"it was a hell of a lot, you took all those risks for me without knowing the whole picture, all out of loyalty and friendship. It was a great hell of a lot, and I know it."

"I know you know. Okay, I'm out of here - before we start getting sentimental. Take good care of yourself and keep me posted at the office."

Ichigo promised and watched until his car's taillights faded from view.

Rukia came out and stood beside him. "how long has it been since your mother died?"

"a long time."

"and you've never been back here?"

"Never. You're not the only ghost in my life," he said gently.

"it's difficult for you, isn't it, being back here?"

"that's not quite the word; lets say its important to me to be here."

"and you did this for me?"

"I did it because it was time to try."

"to try what?"

"I forgot you had such a stubborn streak." he paused. "to open a little black suitcase."

"what are you talking about?"

"undiscovered memories."

"you have a lot of them here?"

"this was my mother's home and mine too for a while."

"did your mother die suddenly?"

"No, she died of cancer; she knew all about it ahead of time. But for me it was very sudden. Come on, I'll show you around."

The two of them went down the front steps, and Ichigo lead Rukia to the ocean. They sat on the rocks at the waters edge, shaded by a straggling, windblown cypress.

"if you knew how many hours I spent sitting here with her. We often came down to watch the sunset. Lots of people gather on the beaches in the evening just to watch the show. Every night it's different. Because of differences in the temperature of the ocean, the air, and a host of other factors. The color of the sky at sunset never repeats itself."

"did you live here long?"

"until I was ten. That's when she died."

"tonight you'll show me the sunset."

"in this neck of the woods, it's a must," he said with a smile.

Behind them, the house was beginning to reflect the early-morning light. The façade was a little wind-beaten on the seaward-facing side, but overall the house had stood up well over the years. From the outside, no one would have believed it had been sleeping for so long.

"the house is in pretty good shape given that its been empty for so long," said Rukia.

"my dad maintained the upkeep of the house till a few years ago, which is funny because he was never much of a repairman. But my parents loved each other so much." Ichigo explained that they just had to look at each other to know what the other was thinking. They seemed to be two halves of a perfect whole.

"where's your dad now?"

Isshin Kurosaki currently lived in America with Ichigo's younger twin sisters, as Karin, the older twin, was offered a sports scholarship at a great university and Yuzu didn't want to be separated from her. So, Isshin moved the family, excluding Ichigo, who at that time had just started up an architectural firm with Uryu.

As if with one mind, they both rose and crossed back toward the house. Ichigo abruptly left the path, went to the blue wooden gate, and opened it slowly.

"Now for the jewel in the crown - Masaki's kingdom of roses!"

Masaki was crazy about her roses. They were the only subject on which he had ever seen her squabble with Isshin. "mom knew every flower personally. If you dared cut just one of them she would realize at once." Ichigo remembered during one torrential downpour, his mom and dad had got up in the dead of night, raced to the garage, and hauled out a tarpaulin that was easily thirty feet across and a hundred feet long. Working with feverish haste, Isshin had fastened three sides of the tarpaulin to heavy posts. As for the fourth side, they had held it up at arm's length, one standing on a step ladder, the other perched on a tall tennis umpires chair. They had spent the night shaking this giant umbrella whenever it became weighed down with rain. The storm had lasted more than three hours.

"I'm convinced they would have been less excited if the house had caught fire. Next morning they looked like two human shipwrecks." but they had saved the rose garden.

They spent a good part of the day discovering and rediscovering the house's surroundings. Ichigo pointed out a tree with the carvings he had made on its bark, and he showed Rukia where he had broken his collarbone, falling from a pine.

The day passed serenely, with Rukia learning all the details of Ichigo's childhood. As sunset approached, they returned to the ocean's edge, sat on a boulder, and gazed at the sight people flocked from far and wide to behold.

When night fell, they retreated to the house, and Ichigo gave Rukia's body a sponge bath. Then he ate a light supper, and they settled down by the fire he had made in the little living room.

"well now, what about this little black suitcase?"

"nothing escapes you, does it?"

"I listen, that's all."

"it's a case that belonged to mom. She kept all her letters and souvenirs in it. In fact, I believe the case must contain everything that mattered in her life."

"what do you mean, 'I believe'?"

The case was a great mystery, he told her. Opening it was strictly forbidden. "and believe me, I'd never have risked it!"

"where's it now?"

"in the study next door."

"and you never came back to open it. I cant believe it!"

He had never wanted to rush this moment. He told himself he would be fully grown-up, and ready to understand what he might find inside. Seeing Rukia's skeptical frown, he confessed, "Okay, the fact is I was always to scared to open it."

"scared of what?"

"I don't know, scared it would change my image of her."

"go and get it!"

Ichigo did not move. Rukia insisted: there was no reason to be afraid. If Masaki had packed her whole life into a case, it was so that her son might one day know who she was. "the risk of loving is loving faults as much as strengths - they go together. What are you afraid of - passing judgment on your mother? You don't have the soul of a judge. You cant ignore what's in the suitcase: you'd be breaking her rules….she left it to you so that you could learn all about her, to prolong what life didn't allow her to. So that you could really know her, not just as a child but with the eyes and heart of a man."

For a few seconds, Ichigo considered what Rukia had just said. Keeping his eyes on her, he got up, went out to the study, and opened the closet. The little black case sat on the shelf in front of him. Taking a firm grip in its worn handle, he yanked. Returning to the living room, he sat down cross-legged next to Rukia.

Taking a deep breath, Ichigo snapped the locks and the lid sprung open. The case was stuffed with letters, photos, and memorabilia from Ichigo's past - a small airplane he'd carved out of rock salt to mark a long-gone Mother's Day, a modeling-clay ashtray, a seashell necklace, even the twins baby booties. On the very top of the case was a folded letter, stapled shut, on which Masaki had written ICHIGO in big letters. He took it and unsealed it.

Dearest Ichigo,

So, here you are in your house. Time heals all wounds, though it leaves us with a few scars. In this suitcase, you'll find all my memories, those I shared with you, those from my life before you, and those I was unable to tell you about because you were still a child. You will learn to see your mother with new eyes. I was your mother and I was also a woman, with fears, doubts, failures, regrets, and triumphs. Much of the advice I gave you came from my own mistakes. And I made a lot of them.

Parents are like mountains we spend our lives trying to climb. We don't realize that one day we ourselves will be those mountains.

There's nothing more complex than raising a child. You spend your whole life giving him or her what you think is best, yet knowing all the while that you are constantly mistaken. But for most parents it is all out of love, even though sometimes its impossible not to give way to a little selfishness. We're not saints, after all. On the day I shut this little case I was afraid of disappointing you. I left too soon for you to see me through more mature eyes. I don't know how old you will be when you read this letter. I see you as a handsome young man. God, how I wish I could have spent more years by your side. If you knew how empty I feel, thinking that I will never see you again open your eyes in the morning, never again hear the sound of your voice calling me. The thought hurts me more than the illness that is taking me so far away from you.

What I want to tell you is that I always loved your father. Isshin loved me the way every woman dreams of being loved at least once in their life. Your father is a fine man, but to me he was unique. No one looked at me the way he did, no one spoke to me the way he did; nothing could happen to me while I was by his side, and I feared nothing.

He understood all my needs, all my desires, and never ceased to fulfill them. His whole life was rooted in harmony, gentleness, the gift of giving, and he taught me about the gift of receiving.

There are many things I would have liked to share with you, but we didn't have enough time. You'll find all sorts of things in this bag of tricks I'm leaving you - photos of you, of your little sisters, your father, his letters (don't read them, they belong to me; I could never bring myself to part with them).

I tried my best, my love. I did the best this woman could do with all her virtues and defects. But I want you to know that you and the twins were my whole life, my whole reason for living, the best, most beautiful, most important thing that ever happened to me. I pray that you will experience the unique gift of having a child; it will help you understand many things.

My greatest pride will always be that I was your mom, and always shall be.

I love you.

Masaki.

He folded the letter and replaced it on top of the case's contents. Rukia saw that he was crying. She moved closer to him and collected his tears on the back of her forefinger. He looked up in surprise, all his pain washed away by the tenderness in her eyes. She let her finger drop to his chin. In turn, he laid his hand on her cheek, then around the nape of her neck, bringing her face close to his. As soon as their lips brushed lightly, she pulled away.

"why are you doing this for me, Ichigo?"

"because I love you."

He took her by the hand and led her outside the house.

"where are we going?" she asked.

"to the ocean."

"No. Here, now." she stepped in front of him and unbuttoned his shirt.

"but how did you - ? I thought you couldn't - ?"

"don't ask questions. I don't know how I did it."

She let his shirt slide down over his shoulders and ran her hands across his back. He felt at a loss - how do you undress a ghost? Rukia smiled, closed her eyes, and was instantly naked.

"I just have to think about a dress to suddenly be wearing it. If you only knew how much fun I've had…"

There on the porch, she wrapped herself around him and kissed him.

Rukia's soul was absorbed by this man's body and, in turn, entered into him, lasting the time of an embrace, like the magic of an eclipse.

The suitcase was open.

the next chapter i introduce urahara and yoruichi YAY!!!