A/N: First I would like to thank anyone who has put this story or it's author on their lists, thank you so much for your support guys. =)

And now to the chapter. This chapter was quite difficult to write. I wasn't sure whether to include some parts or leave others out and before I knew I had ended up with this. It's quite a fair bit longer than the other chapters but hopefully it's worth it. Anyways, I'll let you guys be the judges of that. ;)

Please R and R! =D

Memories

Chapter 13 - The Exams

The dancing lessons sort of became part of their everyday lives. They danced one or two hours each day either learning the new dances, as in Byakuya's case, or simply relearning most of them, as it was with Ari. Neither mentioned anything about them and neither talked about that very first dancing lesson. They both decided to pointedly ignore it.

Which of course irked Tsukiko and Aika to no end. But even they could see that if the two most stubborn people in the Soul Society weren't willing to talk about it or even mention it then they most certainly would be unable to do anything about it. And that called forth a great deal of grumbling from both of them. And since Byakuya was sadly present for a lot of these rants at the start he quickly found out how to escape the two females. Something they most definitely did not appreciate.

Walking to his residence beside Ari Byakuya reflected on the past few weeks. He and Ari practically told each other everything by now. Which was relieving. He hadn't even told Ichiro as much as he had told Ari, something which constantly surprised him. And he somehow knew that the same went for her. By now they had ceased to constantly fight over every miniature thing, although they still argued in fair amounts. Most of it was simply teasing by now though. They could even simply walk in a comfortable silence next to each other like they were doing now. To him it was still a constant wonder. Who would have thought that Aurora Ukitake was so easy to be around.

He and Grimmjow got on relatively well too. And Captain Ukitake was immeasurably kind. At times Byakuya wished that his grandfather would take several pages out of Jushiro's book and apply them to his own running of the Squad 6 barracks and family. The Ukitake's were a loving family, constantly teasing each other and laughing. There was an equality and openness to them that Byakuya had never seen before. He felt truly priveleged to become included in their circle of close friends. And the Squad 13 barracks were open and liberating, something was always going on. Lately he found himself on those grounds more and more often.

But while the partnership with Ari was going well his friendship with Ichiro was going downhill. His friend simply couldn't understand how Byakuya even talked to Ari. That she was one of the most intelligent people he knew didn't seem to phase Ichiro. The girl was a demon in his eyes and nothing seemed to be able to change that. Ayane seemed to be a great influence on that opinion though. No matter what Byakuya said or tried to say, Ichiro blatantly ignored any critique of his partner. And these differences in opinion caused the void that had been starting to grow between the two friends to grow larger and larger.

The partnership between Ayane and Ichiro didn't seem to be going to well either though. Ayane still flirted with every other guy that she met. And she flirted nearly viciously with him. He gave her the cold shoulder each time though, he was starting to despise her and how she treated those around herself. In the course of the past few weeks she had had at least two known boyfriends and who knew how many secret ones. And each time Ichiro saw her with some other guy, his face became contorted in pain and jealousy. Byakuya truly didn't know why Ichiro continued to try and fool himself. As Ari had stated at one point, the guy was probably too far gone into love to even try and think logically about the whole situation.

And Ari's friend, Hinode, was still floating around partnerless. And while she wanted a partner, as was only natural, she seemed perfectly happy that she wouldn't have to take part in the half-year qualification exams. Ari and himself were taking part in them this year. It went without saying that you had to have a permanent partner to do them, how else would you have the necessary trust in your partner otherwise.

What both of them found humorous though was the fact that most people still thought that they despised one another and were constantly fighting. He knew that most people didn't understand why either of them had quit. Ichiro belonged to that number, along with Ayane and Hinode. And his teachers were in a deep despair over the situation. Secretly the two of them laughed about it. They couldn't wait to see their faces when they aced this exam. And they would ace it, there was no way in hell that they would fail.

And so the day of the exam came. Due to complications with the venue the ball had been put on the same day...

~.~.~.~.~

"We're number twenty-five." Ari looked up at Byakuya and he nodded. They had both arrived early so that they could view the running order in peace and quiet. They were near the start and that pleased them. Byakuya had been told by his grandfather most explicitly that he were to arrive at least five hours before the ball to get ready, something that he had originally been quite annoyed about.

And yet both were apprehensive about their exam. They had spent the past three weeks planning the exam as well as fighting strategies. That didn't change the fact though that they really didn't know what was coming up in the exam and whether their plans would work out. One could never really be sure they guessed. That didn't help to calm their nerves though. It wasn't as if they they'd show anyone else the state of their minds though. That would be insulting to their images and the reputations they had built up. They smirked at each other, knowing full well how the other was feeling. The past few weeks had after all helped them in understanding each other quite well.

Grimmjow grimaced from the stands. When Ari had left that morning Jushiro had insisted that the two of them come along as well to watch her, waking him up quite unpleasantly. He hadn't thought that he would have to go. After all, he didn't have a permanent partner yet. Yet he knew that if he said that he had 'forgotten' about Ari and Byakuya and their exam then he would be forced to do something like clean the barrack toilets for the next few weeks. No thanks. And thus here they were, attempting to make themselves comfortable in the stands. He somehow had the feeling that this would be a long day for all of them. And to top it off he would have to go to that horrible ball later on. Sadly it was compulsory for all students, not just for those with partners.

Looking down at his younger brother Jushiro smiled. Grimmjow wasn't happy about being here, he knew that much. He was looking forward to it though. As he looked over at Ari and Byakuya he saw them smirk at each other. He shook his head as he attempted to make himself more comfortable. Those two never failed to amaze him. Byakuya and Ari had both bloomed due to their partnership as far as he could see. Yes, they did butt heads on nearly every occasion and yes, they did still argue a lot. But he could also see what most couldn't, even Grimmjow hadn't seen it yet. Those two were so different that they fit together perfectly. Like hot and cold and north and south those two matched. They worked together well and complimented each other's skills.

He had once secretly watched one of their joint training sessions. Once you got over Ari's tendancy to hit the poor guy when he didn't listen to what she had to say it had actually become quite interesting to analyse their different skills. And being a captain of one of the thirteen court guard squads he was quite capable to do so.

Neither got reiled up in a fight. They both had an 'icy' mask that they always wore when fighting, never showing their emotions or intentions. Apart from when they fought each other. Then nothing stopped them from showing any opinion they had of the other. Both were also very perceptive. They knew exactly what to say and when to say it to annoy and prod any enemy that they were fighting against. He didn't know how the two of them did it, but somehow they always managed to sound scathing when they were fighting someone else.

But what had definitely surprised him the most at the time was their ability to communicate without saying anything. If he went left then she went right. If she was coming from above then he would distract the enemy so that she could deal the finishing blow. Yes, they would argue about it but they would argue about it afterwards. During their fighting they were an entity, one unit. He wasn't sure how they managed to do it or when they had developed this understanding. But one thing was certain, attempting to partner these two with anyone else after this would be futile, they were too synchronised now to do that.

This would certainly be an interesting fight.

Ichiro scowled over at Byakuya and Aurora. He didn't know why but them being together rubbed him the wrong way. And not just because Ayane hated Aurora with a passion. Byakuya was changing before his very eyes and he didn't know how to tell his friend this. He had the feeling that his friend was slipping further and further away from him and it frightened him. Byakuya and he had always been friends as long as he could remember and he didn't want that to change. He wasn't even sure why Byakuya even stayed with that girl as a partner, as far as he and anyone else could see, those two were constantly fighting over one thing or the other. It made no sense what-so-ever.

Looking at the schedule that hung in front of them he noticed with a groan that he and Ayane would be right before Byakuya and Aurora. He wasn't in the mood for this at all. He wasn't in the mood to listen to Ayane go on and on about how bad it had to be for Byakuya to be partnered with Aurora. He was honestly tired of it. Yet somehow he couldn't back out of their partnership. With a painful twist of his heart he had realised that he was still in love with her. And yet she still continued going out with other guys. It was breaking him down, tearing him up. But he couldn't stop himself from wanting to be near her. Unrequited love sure hurt a lot he thought as he stared at the mute forms of Aurora and Byakuya.

~.~.~.~.~

"And now we have group number twenty-four, Ayane Fukuda and Ichiro Hara." Aoi called into the microphone that the Academy had helped to set up. She felt apprehensive about the next two matches. Ayane Fukuda was a well-known personality in the Academy, everyone just had to know her, even the teachers. But not because she was an outstanding student. She was good, yes, but her boy-hopping and heart breaking tendancies were just as well-known.

When she and Ichiro had finally settled as partners a lot of the teachers had hoped that she would not continue with her wiles as she had before. Sadly, their hopes were not fullfilled. She continued exactly as she had before, to their great dismay.

And Byakuya Kuchiki paired with Aurora Ukitake was going to be more than just interesting. For many students and teachers it was going to be the highlight of this half-years exams. Everyone knew how stubborn both parties were and as far as everyone could see those two either spent their time arguing with one another or playing mute as they were now.

Aoi sighed in discontentment. Who knew that being a teacher could be so hard?

~.~.~.~.~

Ichiro breathed heavily as he dodged the spear that came towards him. When he and Ayane had entered the exam they had thought that they wouldn't have to fight anything but hollows. They were obviously wrong. Each match was different to the ones before. When he and Ayane had watched the previous matches, with not a lot or even the required amount of concentration to be honest, they had noticed that.

Somehow he and Ayane had gotten seperated. Both of them were now fighting their own seperate enemies. Quickly dodging the next attack he brought his sword slashing through his enemies stomach. The person quickly disintegrated into clouds of dust and he straightened up to look around and saw Ayane finishing off her enemy. That was the last of them. They had passed! He whooped in happiness and she briefly smiled a genuine smile before smirking in her self-satisfied manner. They had truly passed the exam!

As they made their way off the battle grounds the realisation of what had come to pass began to settle in. As well as the pain from the battle that they had just had. The long gash on his arm was bleeding profusely. The cuts and bruises on his legs and lower back were stinging like hell.

As he passed by Byakuya who was waiting his own turn his friend patted him on the shoulder with a wide grin on his face. Ichiro allowed the discrepencies from the past few weeks fall away as he grinned back at his friend. He had never thought that he would get this far. Yes, he had hoped for it of course, but actually reaching it made his heart sing in joy. He was partnered with Ayane, he had passed his exam and he was back on good terms with Byakuya. He didn't think that it could get any better than it was today.

~.~.~.~.~

Byakuya grinned at his friend. He had watched the whole battle intensely, willing for Ichiro to pass. And his friend had. He turned and grinned at Ari and she smiled back. She knew how happy he was about Ichiro's success. He still cared about his friend despite the distance that had evolved them during the past few weeks. She somehow knew that from this point on they would be the friends that they had been before. For some inexplicable reason that made her extremely happy.

Both of them turned their attention as they heard their names and number called out. A hush fell over the crowd. This was the match that they had been waiting for. Looking up at the crowd in the stands Ari saw her brothers sitting there and they both grinned and waved at them. Grimmjow gave her a thumbs-up and she laughed and waved back. Both of them made their way towards the gate and entered the arena.

Quickly they looked around each other, taking in everything. Every moment, every whisper of the wind, every sound. Their eyes flew over the surrounding landscape, recording every tiny and seemingly insignificant detail. Not a single sound passed between them. They didn't need to say anything. They knew exactly what the other was thinking.

Then the first hollow came. It was closest to Ari and she chopped it down with a quick slash of her sword. The next one appeared between the two of them, attempting to seperate them and disrupt any possible teamwork. Byakuya plunged his sword into this one. Both of them vanished in clouds of dust.

They breathed in quickly, letting the silence settle over the clearing once more. Her ears twitched as she heard the crowds hold their breath. The heavy sense of suspense hung the air, suffocating all of them.

With a screech the next three appeared and they nodded to one another. Right now they would have to concentrate on taking them down individually. Should more challenging ones appear they would band together once more. Each took off their own direction, slaying the hollows as they came. Yet they never lost track of the other, always keeping them there at the corner of their eyes. They could still hear the other's laboured breathing. The sounds of swords and claws clashing, the sound of their swift movements as they eliminated the hollows rang throughout the arena, silencing any other sound from the audience.

No one dared to move. No one dared to interrupt them by cheering or talking. Even whispering seemed to be taboo.

Ayane simply confined herself to glaring at her self-proclaimed rival, attempting to wound her with the power of hate.

Twenty minutes later both of them stood in the centre of the meadow back-to-back, staring out across the empty meadow. Nothing was moving. Yet they both felt a sense of apprehension. The main part of the test was still coming. It had seemed nearly too simply until now. Not easy, but simple. He had a slash on his leg that was beginning to hinder his movements and she had several cuts on her hand that made holding her sword difficult. She closed her eyes in an attempt to seek out any sort of energy form. He knew that she was rewarded when he heard her sharp intake in breath.

Something was coming. And it was coming fast.

Hibiki smirked from the sidelines. He felt like he had outdone himself this time. Those two had been doing incredibly well so far. Nearly too well if he might add so himself. They appeared to be working flawlessly and yet they were known to argue at least once every five minutes. He wanted to uproot them, shatter whatever teamwork they might have grudgingly worked out.

Both of them concentrated their eyes on the rustling bushes in front of them. Out walked the forms of Ichiro and Ayane. The real ones sucked in their breaths from the sidelines. Why was it appearing as if they were in the arena? Aoi looked at Hibiki in confusion. What did the tactical professor have in mind for those two? He was known for his mind games amongst the older students but was he really going to attempt that spell here?

Byakuya looked down at Ari, waiting silently for some kind of sign for her. The crowds and onlookers shifted uncomfortably as they watched the two on the viewing screen spell that had been set up. What was going on? What was he waiting for?

Unbeknownst to them, Ari's eyes drastically changed colours, shifting through all the colours on the known spectrum and many more. Byakuya tried to keep the wonder out of his eyes, he had only seen her do this a couple of times before. It still astonished him each and every time how she managed it. She had confided in him that she possessed powers beyond those of a soul reaper due to an accident many years prior. He knew that he was the only one apart from Grimmjow and maybe Jushiro who knew this. Hinode might know that her friend possessed strange powers but not much more beyond that. And since Ari had told him willingly, he was also able to see her powers while she was concealing them.

She looked up at him, her eyes returning to their normal deep, turquoise blue. The two bright orbs shone brightly, the after effects of her powers still present. The gold in them seemed to be shining more than ever and for a brief second he was mesmerised. He pulled himself back to reality and the situation at hand promptly.

She shook her head nearly indeterminably at him and it was all the answer he needed. These weren't the real Ayane and Ichiro, they were simply fakes, spells. Nothing more to it. Thus they could deal with them according to their prior discussed tactics. They wouldn't have to hold back.

They gave each other a quick, short nod and surged forward, catching the two figures off guard. Nobody had expected them to actually attack their classmates. Shock reverberated throughout the stands. Ayane shook in indignation. Nobody could attack her like that. Nobody. Especially not Aurora. With an angry snarl she ran forward through the gates, despite Ichiro's calls that she should get back. Angry himself Ichiro ran after her, intent on stopping both Byakuya and his partner. He couldn't care less about Aurora.

Ari and Byakuya allowed themselves a brief smile before pushing forward again, winning the obvious upper hand and crushing the two imposters into a corner. This was the final part of the test, the part to see how strong their partnership truly was. It was this that they had been training relentlessly for, not for the hollows or even the exam. It was a test to test their partnership and trust. And they were intent on winning and passing it.

"So now you two are friends?" The fake Ayane asked with a smirk on her face.

"So you are actually going out." The fake Ichiro looked faintly disgusted if not condescending. Neither allowed themselves to be affected. They fought on, no matter what insult or comment was thrown their way. They couldn't let those two affect them. If they did then the imposters would have won the battle without a second thought.

Further and further back Ari and Byakuya pressed the two spells, injuring them greatly but never managing to deal the finishing blow. The imposters were faster and had better reaction times than the real ones, making it increasingly difficult for the already tired teenagers.

After five minutes of relentless attack Ari and Byakuya finally had them where they wanted them. But just as they were about to finish them off a battle scream filled the air behind them and Ari was just able to dodge the sword that came at her. Her side was slightly nicked by the blade but she ignored the small wound in favour of retreat. Byakuya's eyes filled with anger as he jumped back with her in unision, subtly steadying her as they came to a halt several metres back. Who had attacked them now?

In the confusion the two imposters vanished, seeking cover in the thicket surrounding them. The real Ayane and Ichiro had survived and both of them looked livid.

"You bitch!" Ayane screamed. Ari mentally winced. Ayane had always had a particularily annoying voice when she got agitated. It ceased to appear melodic and beautiful and simply represented the screech of a banshee. Byakuya saw Ari's powers working in her eyes and he knew those two were the real ones. Drat, now they couldn't kill them.

"Hibiki, what the hell is going on?" Aoi turned to her subordinate in slight panic, worry creasing her brow.

"I don't know." Hibiki had worry and panic, along with a for once healthy dose of fear, planted on his face. "I've lost track of the spells. I don't know which of them is real and which of them is not! It could even be a combination of any!"

Mika swallowed hard. This was bad, really bad. If they weren't able to tell them apart then how in heaven's name were those two supposed to? How had Ayane and Ichiro even gotten in in the first place?

"How dare you attack me?" Ayane screeched again, lunging forward. Byakuya intercepted the attack, knocking her arm aside. His expression was cold as ice. He wouldn't tolerate anyone attacking his partner like that. Especially not from Ayane.

Ari fended off an attack from Ichiro from behind, ignoring the hate that stood in his eyes. She knew why it was present but she also knew that she could show no mercy. These two were the real ones and they were enraged. The expressionless and icy masks on her and Byakuya's faces were probably only serving to rile them up even more. Deciding to proceed with the rest of their plan both shot back insulting comments, making the two nearly howl in rage. Ari kept a smirk to herself and so did Byakuya. Once you lost your cool in a battle you made mistakes. That was what they were counting on and it was working.

Byakuya caught Ari's eye and they knew what to do. She pretended to lunge forward, barely missing Ichiro's arm. A gleam appeared in Ichiro's eyes. She had made a mistake! He took his chance and proceeded to ram his own sword forward. She stumbled back, seemingly falling as Byakuya allowed Ayane to come perilously close to him. Ari did a backflip and landed on Byakuya's back. Everyone held their breaths. Those two were done for it now. Both Ayane and Ichiro had the upper hand, their was no way that they could come out of this alive or at the very least unscathed.

Ari smiled and Grimmjow felt a shiver go down his back. Crap. They had planned this. The two spawns of the devil had actually planned this and whatever it was it was working. He had seen that expression on his sister's face way too many times to not know what was going to happen next. He repressed the urge to call out for Ayane and Ichiro to run. Those two had already lost the moment they had decided to attack Byakuya and Ari in earnest.

Jushiro groaned. Please dear God, he prayed, don't let Ayane and Ichiro die.

Ari planted her hand on Byakuya's back as he crouched low. She did a perfect twist around hitting both Ayane and Ichiro square in their faces with her feet. Those two had come too close in their belief that they had won. They had underestimated them and now they would see the full effects of exactly that.

Vaulting herself off of Byakuya she landed on Ichiro's stomach, the action making the poor guy cough up some bile. She had been careful not to hit any organs. The sudden pressure on his stomach made the air rush out and he lost his grip on his sword. She kicked it away, her own sword pressed closely against his neck.

The force of Ari's kick made Ayane fly against a tree and suddenly Byakuya was in front of her, his own sword pressed against her neck, his other hand taking away hers. They were cornered and trapped. Fear played throughout their eyes.

Both of them closed them, sure that they knew what was going to happen next. The sudden release of pressure made them spring their eyes open. Ari and Byakuya had spun around and planted their swords in the stomachs of two people who looked exactly alike them. Spitting images in fact. Both had their hands raised with swords in their hands. Ari and Byakuya slashed through them, their bodies dissappearing in clouds of dust.

Hibiki sagged against the wall in relief. The spells had been destroyed. He promised himself not to mess with those kinds of things again. Well, maybe not never again but most certainly not in the near future, like, the next few weeks.

Ari and Byakuya simultaneously let out a sigh of relief, their fatique starting to show on their faces. They put their swords away and smiled at each other. Suddenly Ari broke out into a grin and Byakuya grinned back. The crowds suddenly seemed to unfreeze from their shock and the two of them began to make their way to the exit, towards the cheering spectators.

"We definitely need to refine that technique." Ari muttered as she elbowed him affectionately. She couldn't believe that it had gone so well. It had all been a theory, nothing more and nothing less. It had just been a plan. And that plan had worked out perfectly, better than she could ever have imagined it.

"We do, although that kick was pretty forceful for a midget." Byakuya smirked.

"Idiot, I may be small but I can still kick." She retorted, amusement written over her whole face though.

"Just saying, just saying." Byakuya threw up his hands as if surrendering and chuckled at her pretense of a miffed expression. Both broke out into laughter though, the happiness of having completed their task settling in.

"What do you mean it needs refining?" Ayane got up, anger lighting up her whole face. Ichiro still felt speechless. They had actually planned something? And something this elaborate to top it off?

"Well, we have to reduce our injuries." Ari said as if it was obvious. Both were bleeding profusely in several places, nothing too serious though.

"You mean you planned this?" Ichiro managed to grind out, anger at his friend starting to fill him up too.

"Well... yeah... We had the plan." Byakuya began.

"And we knew that those two were imposters, spells. We knew that they weren't the real you." Ari pointed to the spot where up until a few minutes ago, exact copies of them had stood.

"So we were doing everything according to our plan until you two popped up." Byakuya shrugged indifferently.

"So we just had to try some untested theories to get you two cornered. We riled you up because we needed you to crack and make a mistake. And you did." Ari really did look as if she couldn't care less at the moment. "Once we had you cornered we knew those two were bound to try and attack us from behind. We were pretty sure that they thought that we didn't know the difference."

"So it was all just a matter of time. We just had to wait until we had you cornered and they were drawn out." Byakuya cocked his head to the side. Ayane and Ichiro were looking at them like two gaping koi fish.

"But you didn't even talk once." Ayane spluttered. They couldn't have that good teamwork. They hated one another!

"We didn't have to." Ari shrugged. She had thought that it had appeared pretty obvious.

"But you hate each other!" Ichiro exclaimed in exasperation, not able to hold it in anymore.

Ari and Byakuya snorted. "We don't hate each other." Ari looked highly amused. Byakuya just shook his head in agreement. He still preferred to remain quiet most of the time around others.

"But... but... you always fight!" Ayane was feeling desperate by now. How could they not hate one another?

"We argue." Ari said.

"We don't fight." Byakuya retorted.

"We are two very different individuals. Discrepencies are bound to come up." Ari shrugged uncaringly as she looked at Ayane's dumbstruck expression with mild interest. She had never seen Ayane lost for words. Never.

When neither Ayane nor Ichiro said anything for several seconds Ari and Byakuya turned to each other once more and shrugged.

"I guess people see what they want to see." Ari said, obviously pondering the thought quite extensively.

"I guess they do." Byakuya said in agreement as he turned back briefly to look at his friend before turning back to Ari and continuing to discuss the various tactics they had employed throughout. Leaving the two behind them they made their way towards the exit, towards a crowd that hadn't heard what they had just discussed because of their loud shouts and talking, towards the people who continued to believe that the two of them hated one another.