Chapter Twenty,"Demons of the Heart"

"Where are we?"

Ichigo took in the overwhelming view. Clear blue skies, overabundant forests, stretches of wildflowers and the sounds of twittering birds surrounded him completely. As his feet guided him over the slight dirt path, his eyes found Haruka reaching a red armchair situated in the middle of nature tangled in vines and dotted with pale flowers. She jumped into her chair, pulling her legs under her body, and stared directly at him.

"My dimension," she piped. "This would be the equivalent to your inner world." She turned her attention to the cluster of trees. "My zanpakutō spirit still lingers here, but I don't quite remember her name."

"Your zanpakutō spirit?" he questioned, coming to a halt.

"I used to be a shinigami too." Haruka smiled at his confusion, finding it endearing. "I can still use my shikai and bankai, but I don't. I think it's unfair to her that she can be wielded with a severed bond, not knowing if I am its original owner. I leave her at peace because that is the best I can do for her. Of course, this world didn't quite look like this. At one point, I just remembered it collapsing and I couldn't find her. I was terrified. I thought I died…" She lowered her gaze minutely, questioning her words. "I think I did die."

Haruka fixed her eyes on him again, abandoning the broken thought. "So it must be odd to be without Zangetsu at your side."

"How do you—?" he started, looking to her quizzically.

"—Ageha's ability is to see." She clapped her hands together and he watched something appear between them. She held violet cards covered in runes and separated them so they faced him. Turned right side up, the depictions of each Arcana appeared. "I am the keeper of these cards, I can use them too. Forgive me for looking into your past; I thought it necessary to understand your abilities before attempting to give them back."

"You use them all?" Her apology barely reached his ears as his gaze fixed itself to the colorful deck in her hands.

"No, I imposed limitations. I can only be one card at a time and I can't switch at will," she explained. "I need forty-eight hours before I can become another."

"What can you do?"

Haruka smiled. "Nothing. I just explained my ability to you."

"Why are you telling me?"

"I peeked into your past to research and record your abilities, I thought it an even trade to tell you a bit about mine," she admitted. "I bind the Cycle, I command it. My ability allows me to be either Death or Priestess at will. I can be whoever I want."

Ichigo noticed something moving in the distance and turned his attention to a small figure skimping across the field of flowers, leaving behind a cloud of gold speckled dust and new blooms. "Is that…?"

Haruka had risen from her seat, eyes following the small girl until she vanished beyond the sea of trees. "Yes, that's her."

He wondered, if only for a second, if her zanpakutō fled because she was scared of her mistress.

She breathed audibly, breaking the sudden silence. "I think I should start by giving you the details," she started, appearing before him in a cloud of black smoke. "The first is simple, you need to trust me. If I say jump, you have to jump even if you think it's crazy or that you're going to be killed—just jump. That being said, you should follow all my orders."

"Easy enough," he said with a shrug, trying hard not to imagine the extremity of this procession after Nagata and Touma's warning. "Anything else?"

"Put out your hand."

"Why?"

"Do it." She held out hers. "Come on."

Ichigo dropped his hand over hers and watched her turn it. She dug into her pocket to produce a crystallized, blood red peony without a stem or leaves to support the flower, and placed it atop his palm.

"This is extra because I know you have a lot of questions," she said quietly. "My entire life is recorded there from the moment I was a child in Soul Society, to my training as a shinigami and rise into the ranks, to the creation of the Arcana curse and every life I lived after that. How it works: think about a moment and it'll take you there."

Ichigo stared down at the crystallized flower. "Why are you giving this to me?"

"I don't know. I just think it's the right thing to do." Haruka left his side, wandering away with her eyes fixed to the sky. She stopped halfway to her seat. "Another thing, before I forget, you have to promise you won't take my side. Even if staying by my side is the right thing to do, you need to remember your promise and not take my side." She struggled with the urge to face him directly. "And that no matter how this war ends, you'll accept it. Nothing done differently can change the outcome. Being guilty or innocent won't matter in the end because everything will be set right."

Ichigo wanted to ask about the outcome and stared at the red flower in his hands. If he thought about it, would he get an answer? He wanted to try, but instead of doing so, he stuffed it into his sweater pocket. He already imagined it in his head—the ending—and it never quite ended well for the Arcana considering their track record. Haruka might be destined to die again. Some big event might force her into sacrificing her life for the sake of her Arcana. The idea unsettled him for various reasons, a few he understood came naturally and another set he felt were of a completely different nature.

"I can't guarantee it," he said quickly. "I'm not going to leave you behind."

Haruka laughed. "That's what I like about you Kuro—"

"It's Ichigo."

She turned, strands of golden hair obscuring the amazement in her expression. "Ichigo."

His stomach flipped in response as a slight blush settled in his cheeks.

"I should explain my actions to you then," she said, striding to him with a change in disposition. Her tone was crisp and serious, her eyes firm with determination. "I'm going to have to bring out the worst in you, to bring out the best."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Your Hollow," she answered, cutting straight to the point. "That cluster of dark energy living inside of you is, thanks to it and because of it, why I can have easier access."

Ichigo felt a newfound sense of dread. "What?"

"The part of you that you hate the most is the sole link to your powers," she explained. "I need to draw him out."

"Draw him out…?" he repeated slowly.

"Draw him out," she affirmed, "until he is present and standing before me as you are."

Flashbacks of his fight against Ulquiorra filled his mind. He recalled the voice calling to him and the sudden surge of malignant energy that took over him, leaving him shut away inside impenetrable darkness. He had conquered the Hollow somehow, but even so, his friends had been hurt in some way and now he was faced with the same predicament. Haruka could have just finished explaining everything by adding that she wanted to exchange numbers with his Hollow and get on with it.

Haruka raised her hand as he formed a protest. "Before you object understand that you won't be able to hurt me," she said quickly. "I brought you to my dimension for the spacious environment and lack of human life, but also because the only rule here is not to kill the queen. If you try—well, you shouldn't try, I don't recommend it."

Ichigo's eyebrows rose. "…Okay."

"I'm going to put up a barrier around you and reinforce it as your Hollow gains strength, understand?"

"What do I have to do?"

"Just sit and wait. You won't feel anything at first."

"And what about you?" he asked, curious.

Haruka clapped both hand together making the violet tarot cards disappear. "I'm going to keep you company."

Ichigo looked around the glittering blades of grass and mass of wildflowers inwardly asking himself if it was fine to sit down without warning. He shot an inquiring look at Haruka, stared a bit longer than he expected and was caught doing so. It irritated him how easily she made eye contact. He remembered her before she awakened to all her power, the awkward teenager that almost never looked him in the eyes before averting them. He convinced himself day in and out that she was the same girl, a bit talkative and excessive—spoiled as always—except she was healthy, at no risk of dying, and her manner of speaking changed, though her ideas hadn't. The similarities were present. Everything was still there and he couldn't help the pressure of his chest decreasing with every new discovery.

"Sit anywhere."

He blinked, nodded, and plopped down without a second thought.

Haruka took a seat directly in front of him, uttered a single word beneath her breath and watched as solid light shot up all around him. The light created a transparent square around him. It covered more ground behind him; he was merely sitting by the edge of a colossal box. He reached out to touch it, felt it cold and powerful in his hands, but felt nothing besides that.

"Particles of my energy are floating inside the barrier with you," Haruka explained. "You won't feel it until your body absorbs enough of them to wake your Hollow."

Together they waited in silence. He crossed his legs and tried to keep his mind from rushing when a thought occurred to him.

"You said humans can sense the Arcana better than anyone."

"Ordinary humans, yes," she answered. "The difference is the energy they're sensing. Our power is split into two mediums, the clash between our shinigami origins and the curse and black energy."

"Black energy?"

"It is the strongest energy in all worlds; consider it the original power before it branched off into red energy (Shinigami), white energy (Quincy), and gray energy (Hollow)." Haruka reached into her satchel and tugged out a heavy book. "A long, long time ago the Spirit King asked for my services." She started flipping through the book, scanning the pages absently. "There were a lot of rumors about me during that time. The Captain-Commander expected me to be promoted into the king's army, just like my older brothers, and everyone else suspected it was only a matter of time before it happened. They said I had a gift, but I only knew how to think."

Ichigo listened intently.

Haruka's eyes flickered to his. "I didn't quite get it at first, the reason why he asked me, specifically, for a favor. I was promoted to enter his dimension and was immediately versed in the functions of all energy. I think it was around that time that I started suspecting something was being asked of me without my knowledge, perhaps it's what he wanted. When the black energy was handed to me, I already knew what the king wanted. He only said it to ascertain his desires in creating a strong army, stronger than those in Soul Society, and far beyond the strength of his Zero Division."

"Why did he pick you?"

"Think about the members of the Arcana, consider them well and maybe then you might understand it." Haruka gestured to the pocket that held her crystallized peony. "Ask it about everyone and see them through my eyes."

Curiously, Ichigo reached into his pocket and drew the flower out, holding it flat against his palm. He shot her a look of complete uncertainty and she stared back firmly.

"Everyone had a trait dangerous to Soul Society," she said quietly. "We say we were chosen by the card, but the Spirit King placed the burdens on each of us." She noticed his expression, brooding and calculative; expecting more to understand better not knowing that doing so would only increase the burden. "I forgot to thank you for the sweater."

Ichigo blinked, a disappointed shadow streaked his features, as his eyes swept over the black hoodie she was wearing, a bit too baggy for her frame. "No problem."

"I actually needed it."

"What for?"

"I wanted it long before you claimed it."

Ichigo cracked a smile. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I thought you deserved something nice since Nagata just buys dirty t-shirts and Touma dresses like a drugged up rockstar. I felt bad…and I also wanted the pink neon hoodie in case Arisawa-senpai had her eye on it." She leaned forward slightly. "Don't tell her."

"Tatsuki's glad you took the pink sweater, trust me."

Haruka giggled. "Good. I wouldn't want her mad at me."

That suddenly reminded him. "What is Tatsuki doing with Nagata anyway?"

"Nagata needs to come in contact with Strength. Arisawa-senpai is a diversion."

"Why can't you just talk to your brother?"

Her eyes hardened. "Not my brother."

"What?"

"Well, long story short my young twin brother just so happens to be Judgment, my older brother Yamato, he came after Enishi."

"Judgment?"

"I'll explain better later. Enishi needs to talk to the real Strength."

"You know who it is?"

"I know who everyone is. I even know who the next Magician is."

"Next Magician?" questioned Ichigo. "But didn't Nagata kill—"

"Enishi mistook Yurie as the Original Magician, who is actually a member of the Sixth Cycle. As irked as I was for Yurie's death, it worked for a better purpose. The Original Magician was female, contrary to all claims of masculinity."

"Female…do I—?"

"I met her, she's quite nice," she interjected quickly.

Ichigo bowed his head as he ran a hand over her his hair, knowing not to chase answers she wouldn't give. "What's up with Ichimaru and Grimmjow?"

"Oh? That," started Haruka. "I haven't quite figured it out, it's most likely a malfunction in the curse (it's a bit old), but I assume it's because they were already awakened into the Fifth Cycle before they died again. Instead of disappearing completely, they were nurtured off my reserve and reappeared in the Human World as children with all prior knowledge instilled."

"Sucks for them," he grumbled.

"They can turn back, not at will, but if we were at the peak of our strength, they would be able to go back to normal."

"Is there anyone else I know or care about?" He stressed it out a bit, wondering if she would understand his concern enough to give him answers and not riddles like Nagata.

"Two of our Fourth Cycle members are actually the Originals and you are acquainted, I believe," she answered. "I think if they were ever in peril you would try to help them, but I wouldn't label it as care, just a desire to be heroic."

"Heroic?"

"It's a good thing!" she said defensively. "I wish I could be heroic, but I only get on everyone's nerves."

"Hey! Don't think like that," he snapped. "You don't get on my nerves."

Haruka smiled weakly. "I understand they all react that way for a reason so I try not holding it against them."

"They're idiots!" he continued loudly, touching the glass. He wanted to grab her and shake her until she got it through her skull that they were all idiots for thinking she's annoying. He bet they were simply annoyed at either Nagata or Touma and took it out on Haruka because she presented herself as an easy victim. "You shouldn't care what they think about you either!"

She stared at him timidly, taken aback by his forcefulness. "…But I'm supposed to be the leader and I can't do it. They all think I'm stupid and easy to manipulate." True emotion registered in her eyes and he felt it, though fleeting, the shred of sorrow she kept hidden. "Everyone thinks Enishi has been making all the decisions for me, that I'm his puppet, but I'm not. We never agreed on anything growing up or through the years."

She paused fretfully, surprised to see he was listening to her, and continued softly. "We're too different beings. He can't manipulate me. Even if I explain this, nobody really understands because they just make decisions from what they've seen in memories."

"Nagata made you the leader, didn't he?"

She nodded wordlessly.

"That's worth something," he said strongly. "Someone like Nagata wouldn't give his freedom to a person he didn't trust."

"Enishi should have been the leader," she went on, urgently. "He deserved it. Everything would be different if he had and I wouldn't have to—"

"Have to what?"

Haruka breathed deeply, averting her eyes. She unconsciously built a wall between him and her emotions. "It hurts being at the center."

"It hurts?" he asked, confused.

The blue eyes sifting through blades of grass blinked until they misted. "We should concentrate on your Hollow," she said quickly, putting on a smile. "How are you feeling?"

"The same," replied Ichigo, not having sensed a thing, but he wouldn't be deterred from the subject. "What hurts?"

Haruka looked at him effervescently. "Can we go to the pool—?"

"Stop changing the subject—"

"Please," she said urgently. "Can you please take me?"

His emotions festered. "I'll take you, but you can't just stop there—"

The smile curving her lips faltered as she resigned to answer. "If I could turn off my emotions, I would, just to feel that state in which nothing matters, where I can't feel anything, where I am separate from the world and nothing could reach me. I would do it—detach myself completely, shut myself somewhere where no one could ever find me and never come back."

He searched her expression helplessly, for the slightest hint of a joke, but found nothing. It was hard to acknowledge someone felt that way—to cut themselves off from the world to avoid emotion. He questioned it reasonably because it wasn't in his capabilities to understand with mere mention.

"Why?"

"Carrying all the weight, being in the center is difficult. I am willing to do it so that nobody else has to, but the recklessness, the deaths, the internal wars, all the ache and the sadness, everything that every one of them feels, I just can't stand it." Her voice was broken, clear but littered with tiny rifts of sadness. "I just want to stop them from suffering because nobody deserved this. None of us asked for this life, this was forced on us."

The crystallized flower jerked into movement and glowed brightly as it started to spin over his open palm. He nearly dropped it in shock, but clapped a hand over to make sure it stayed in the center. His eyes found Haruka sitting behind the barrier she erected with her head bowed as if in shame.

"What's this doing?"

"You might have activated it," she whispered. "But the question you're asking it to show doesn't exist in the memories."

"Why not?" he asked quickly.

"If I deny everything I have just finished telling you, it doesn't exist."

"You omitted them?"

"No, I convinced my brain that it never felt it and so it never registered in my memory." Haruka got to her feet, his eyes followed her ready to question her reason for standing, and she staggered backward as she started stepping away. "Your Hollow is a lot stronger than I anticipated."

Ichigo felt something in his chest, a strange sensation without an ounce of pain. He patted over the fabric of his shirt, but found nothing different. Haruka continued teetering away, her knees buckled underneath her weight.

"Haruka!" he called, getting onto his knees. "What's wrong?"

She waved her hand dismissively. "I don't think I was ready after—"

Without warning, she fell onto her side unconscious.

Ichigo bolted to his feet, knocking on the barrier hard. "Haruka!" He hit the invisible wall harder each time. "Hey! Haruka! What's wrong? Haruka!"

This time, he felt the same sensation a bit stronger rippling through his veins as though something foreign had slipped into his bloodstream. Ichigo patted his chest, what the hell's going on? His eyes flashed to Haruka and his vision suddenly split. He blinked, straining to focus as his body grew heavier and strange.

His head went fuzzy. He fought against the strangeness and vertigo, forcing a fist to the barrier. As his knuckles tapped the powerful force behind the wall, the strength of his legs started to debilitate and the function of his lungs turned to revoke whatever air he inhaled. Ichigo hit the ground hard on his hands and knees, wheezing painfully.

He coughed violently. "Haruka!"

Ichigo's eyes widened.

That—

It wasn't his voice. He felt his heart jerk wildly as the trepidation sunk in.

"Haruka!"

As strange as the thought seemed in his mind, but it felt as though his soul was being ripped in two before the extremity of the pain rendered him unconscious.

It proved difficult to avoid fidgeting as Keigo stood in the middle of nowhere with Touma prowling the surrounding area in search of life beyond the barren wasteland. As far as he knew, the gaudy redhead had been asked to give him lessons in how to Dodge.

Tatsuki left with Nagata toward the nearest bus stop. No information was provided as to where they were headed, not even Tatsuki knew anything. He tried asking, but Nagata ended the questioning by asking him to mind his own business. Whenever Nagata asked something of anyone, it would be smart for anyone to follow it.

"Ready?"

Keigo returned to his senses and found Touma standing a few feet away. "For what?"

"To Dodge," replied Touma.

"Is that actually possible?" The idea intrigued him to the point in which he imagined how he could use it to move from the wasteland back to his bedroom away from these scary people and into complete safety. "Can I really go from place to place?"

"From continent to continent, best way to travel and it's free," said Touma with a smirk. "I lived in Sweden up until now and before that the States. We can travel from here to Rome in a blink of an eye. Our speed is one of the few advantages we have, but I'm not training you, that's Enishi's job."

Keigo's eyes bulged. "Nagata is training me?" he shouted. "Do I even need to be trained?"

"Nagi doesn't want any sitting ducks."

"Why can't she train me instead?"

"No!" snapped Touma, freaking out. "You want nothing to do with her in any form of training, she's a horrible instructor!"

"But she's supposed to be the nice one!"

"I'm the nice one; she's just as bad as Enishi!" He caught himself mid-sentence. "Scratch that, even Enishi is scared of her. She's worse than he is."

Keigo felt his fear of the Housen siblings reach new heights.

"Okay, we should start." Touma clapped his hands together and circled around him. "The basics: dodging requires little concentration when used freely, always have something to focus on, and never question anything mid-dodge. It really is as easy as blinking."

"So how do you do it?"

"You just do it," deadpanned Touma.

"But that doesn't tell me anything!" cried Keigo.

"…But I just told you everything," replied Touma. "Let me reiterate: you need little to no concentration, a focus, and no use for excessive thoughts."

"That doesn't tell me anything!" he repeated dramatically, waving his arms.

Touma rubbed the back of his head quizzically. "Well, I never did have to learn it. It came natural because I already knew how to shunpo and I guess it's the same function, 'cept the execution is different and dodging can make a big mess."

"So how do you shunpo?" he tried.

"…You just do."

Touma shrugged.

"Why aren't you any help?" blurted Keigo, deflated.

"I was never a great teacher," he admitted. "No patience for the profession and ignored most details. That and I spent so many years as a kid that I hate them now."

Keigo resigned to the idea that today was going to be an unproductive day with a great huff. He had hopes of journeying to safety, away from them.

Touma folded his arms over his chest and glanced in his direction. "We can go to a bar and pick up chicks."

Keigo's eyes bugged out of his sockets. "What?"

He gestured for him to follow. "Drinks are on me."

"Cool!"

"Where are we going?" asked Tatsuki, aloud.

It proved difficult to keep up with Nagata's stride, no matter how fast Tatsuki walked (or even if she jogged). The crowded sidewalk didn't help either, as she felt jostled the further in she went. Someone always knocked her out of the right direction and she had to once again, search over a sea of strangers for the back of Nagata's blond head. It helped that he towered over everyone. She came to appreciate that the closer they came to an emptier area.

"My place," he called back, throwing a fleeting look over his shoulder.

"I didn't think you have a house," admitted Tatsuki, breaking away from the crowd when she crossed into the next street.

Nagata scoffed, turning around to notice her lagging behind him and stomped toward her. He grabbed her firmly by the arm and rushed her ahead of him. "I'm not a fucking bum, you know! I live somewhere."

Tatsuki frowned, jerking her arm out of his grip. "Are you just dropping in on your parents?"

"My parents are dead," he answered, "'sides how old do you think I am? I taught at your high school for shit's sake. I was your teacher!"

"You don't look old enough," she said pointedly.

"I'm not," he admitted. "Twenty."

"What?"

"I'm twenty," he repeated forcefully.

"Oh."

Tatsuki continued after him, trying to recognize the area, but couldn't. They were in Japan, but not in an area she recognized. She wondered how far he had taken them by dodging, but they were somewhere near the sea. She could smell it in the air and it seemed chillier outside.

"Where is this?" she asked suddenly.

"Okinawa, I think, considering the dialect." Nagata shrugged. "Haven't thought of asking the locals. Haven't actually been here since I bought the place…"

"Are you from a well to do family like Wakatsuki?"

He whipped out a black credit card. "Nope, I've got one of these and it has all the money I've made since I was alive."

"…You mean twenty years?" she said awkwardly.

"Haven't you been listening?" snapped Nagata, shooting her a glare. "You've been hanging with us for weeks, what's wrong with you?"

"Not by choice!" she barked.

"You should be happy we didn't have to steal you from Nagisa's psycho twin! He practically traumatized that boy of yours."

"He's not mine!" she argued. "And you shouldn't have picked me up at all!"

"Nagisa would've killed me if I let another one of you die!"

"She's practically harmless!"

"She broke my arm and three ribs—how's that harmless?" he shot back, jerking around to face her while managing to walk backwards.

"You would've killed Touma if she hadn't done it."

"Are you honestly choosing sides?"

"I already did. And stop shouting at me, you're not my father."

Nagata bristled and turned back around. "Fuck you!"

Tatsuki rolled her eyes.

They continued down an empty street until he turned into a cluster of apartment complexes. He led them straight through a path splitting both ends and exited into a dirt path between the apartment buildings and a row of houses. He stopped in front of a plain white house and kicked open the back fence.

He turned to Tatsuki. "After you."

Tatsuki pushed past him with a huff.

She was surprised to see Nagata open the backdoor with a key, but wasn't surprised to acknowledge the lack of furniture.

"Stay here," he ordered, running up the staircase beside the backdoor.

Tatsuki wandered further past the hall and entered a larger room flooded with light from the windows. Beyond it was another hall and the doorway to a sparkling, unused kitchen. The sound of Nagata's boots thudding down the staircase reigned in her urge to explore. She caught him moving past her with a black backpack. He dropped it on the floor after pulling out a rolled up poster.

"Nagisa briefed everyone that needed to be talked to; my job is making contact with Strength."

"I thought you already knew Wakatsuki's brother."

"No, that lying twat is actually Yamato," remarked Nagata. "He's Judgment, an Original, and our other brother."

"You have another brother?"

"Why don't you listen to a thing I say?"

"Nobody listens to you," she scoffed, hearing him cluck his tongue. "So are you in disagreement or something?"

"Long story short, Yamato made a contract with our superior and betrayed us."

"That doesn't explain anything."

"Wakatsuki didn't kill Nagisa in the First Cycle, it was Yamato. We've only got a grudge on Hiko because he's killed us multiple times over since then." He shook his head. "Yamato is complete trash. Never trust a thing that comes outta his mouth. He's gonna try to recruit you sooner or later and might convince you if you don't have your memories."

Her eyebrows rose. "What difference would it make?"

"The mere sight of him will repulse you if you did."

Tatsuki shrugged it off and stared at the poster in his hand. "So where is the real Strength?"

"Soul Society."

"Aren't you supposed to be a shinigami to get in there?" she asked in disbelief.

"I technically am."

"…And?"

He stared at her oddly. "And what?"

"You usually have a follow up."

Nagata glared, unrolled the poster to a geographically correct rendition of Soul Society, of Seireitei surrounded by Rukongai. "We're going to break in."

"So why am I going?"

"Nagisa decided I needed someone to keep me on check."

Tatsuki stared at him long and hard before cracking a smile. "I'm your babysitter?"

"I'm only telling you the plan once, so listen up."

He was avoiding the question. Tatsuki laughed silently as he started explaining how they would manage breaking into Soul Society, dubbed as nearly impenetrable without raising anyone's suspicions. He called it the Dual Card Movement, but she called it crazy.

"That's never going to work," she decided. "You're going to get yourself killed."

Nagata smirked. "And that's where you come into the plan."

Ichigo slowly regained consciousness. Something feathery soft caressed his face as a soft murmuring reached his ears. He opened his eyes to a cast of dark shadows and a slight weight on his chest. In that same instant, he realized it was Haruka seated on his torso, bent over with her face close to his. He jerked upward quickly, headbutting her in the process.

Haruka yelped as she flopped over onto the grass with both hands covering her face. "That hurt!"

"Shit!" Ichigo got onto a seat and reached over for her shoulders. "I'm sorry. It's a reflex."

She shook her head, rubbing her forehead. "I was just healing the damages and extracting energy."

"What happened to you? You fainted!"

"I don't have enough power to support a transformation," she admitted, noticing the confusion register in his expression. "Sorry. The explanation is too complicated."

Ichigo peered into her face, noticing the large red mark on her forehead. "Is your…?" he started, pointing at her forehead curiously. "Is it—?"

"You have a hard head," she said with a laugh.

He settled into his seat. "Sorry."

Ichigo took in the surrounding area. They were in the same evergreen area and he caught sight of the fleeting zanpakutō spirit wandering from various patches of flowers. It took on the form of a pixie-like child with flowing white hair and skin of the same shade with a slight glow. Her silvery eyes caught him staring and she ran away, leaving a trail of gold dust in her wake.

"Don't glare at her," advised Haruka, "she's terrified of you already."

"Why?"

"I have been her only guest in many centuries."

"You haven't brought your brothers?"

"Why would I do that?" she remarked, insulted.

"Why not?"

"I won't make the same mistake Ageha made in inviting them into his world. Touma alone can keep calm, but with Enishi's horrid influence, it's a complete disaster. They quite literally turned everything upside down and hung the books from the ceiling. I don't need them to traumatize her."

Seeing how skittish the spirit was in his presence, he could only imagine her reaction to both Nagata and Touma.

"She has the coolest ears, but I still wish she were a zombie," sighed Haruka.

Ichigo half nodded before realizing what she said. "What?"

"Eat my brains," mumbled Haruka absently, then turned to him, reminded of a certain development. "I got to the final level."

"Congratulations," he replied awkwardly.

Haruka dug into the satchel at her side and pulled out her PSP. "I brought it with me in case something like this happened."

"Something like this?" he questioned.

"Power outage." She switched on her game and picked up where she had left off. The sound of inhuman groaning reached his ears mixed, in perfect sync, with the deep tone of creepy music. "Good thing I came prepared."

"We're stuck here?" he snapped.

"In Layman's terms, yes—nooo! I forgot to charge it!" cried Haruka waving her PSP around madly before the screen went black. "Ichigo!"

"Why are you shouting at me for?" he retorted in his confusion.

"Do something!"

"I can't!"

Haruka tossed it back into the satchel and jumped onto her feet. "I'm going to go toss myself into the pond."

Ichigo scrambled onto his feet, following after her. "Don't!"

He hadn't even realized the pond until she tried to jump into it. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her away from the edge. Haruka struggled little as she was set aside.

"How long are we going to be here?"

Haruka stuffed her hands into her hoodie's pockets and her face lifted toward the sky. "I never thought about it."

"Why wouldn't you think about it?"

"'Cause I assumed I was strong enough to slip in and out without a hitch, but I was never the best at these sort of things."

"What sort of things?"

"…Intuition," she said with a nod.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, eyeing her strangely.

"I never suspected you may not be ready to regain your shinigami powers," she admitted. "I only assumed it would be simple with how long it's been since Aizen was imprisoned and the lackluster life you've been leading."

"Thanks for reminding me," he grumbled.

"I could try to transfer my powers to you similarly to how you got them in the first place, but there's a big chance I could skewer you to death rather than help you. That and my power could essentially become venom that may lead to a painful death."

"You've given this a lot of thought."

"I am still essentially feeding you my energy, to strengthen your Hollow and all—different methods same results."

"Any other options."

"I could make you The Fool," she said quickly. "It's easier. With time, your shinigami powers will heal under the constant exposure to the Arcana energy, and you'll have the same ability as me. The problem is the memories."

"How long would we be talking?"

"For you, I'd give it an entire year considering the amount of strength you gave up. We don't have an entire year to spare and you wouldn't really be able to fight against us because I gave a permanent ban."

Ichigo and Haruka continued discussing methods, each grislier than the last and some impossible. Eventually, they grew tired of standing around doing nothing that they settled back into adjacent seats over the soft earth and switched the conversation. They talked about returning to Karakura Town and starting up at school again (though for one reason or the next, he knew he may not even go back to school at all if the Arcana planned to become a problem to Soul Society).

"What do you plan to do?" he asked when they reached the topic of his graduation.

"Since I'm not terminally ill and I can swim freely now, I'm not sure there's anything I want to do."

"College?"

"Have you seen my grades?" she asked, amazed. "I'm surprised I got into high school."

"You can't be that bad."

"I'm that bad," she deadpanned. "I think I'll just hire a non-shinigami maid and get married."

"And you need a maid for that?"

"I can't cook or work a machine."

"You had four previous lives and you never learned?"

"En-chan did all the work; he cooks, cleans, and does laundry—the perfect housewife," she admitted sourly. "The egomaniac made me lazy."

"You sure that's not just you?" he asked drearily.

Haruka glowered. "I can learn."

"Why haven't you?"

"'Cause everyone just takes care of me."

"You should stop relying on everyone and grow up."

"Hey, you can't judge me if you can't do any of those things either," she argued.

"I can!"

"Liar! I heard your sister takes care of everything at your house!" She twisted around with both hands wrist deep into his sweater's pockets. He frowned at her. "Don't make that face at me."

"I can take care of myself, you know," he said heatedly.

"Yet Touma has been cooking for you and En-chan has been washing your clothes," she accused. "I've only ever seen you pour milk! And it was once! Once!"

"Which is what they're doing for you!"

"But they're my brothers; they have to take care of me."

"You're sixteen, carry your own weight," he rebuked.

"Only when you carry yours!" she snapped and shoved him, without warning, into the pond.

Ichigo didn't expect the pond to be deep until his entire body was submerged into the water. He jerked into a seat and sputtered, pushing his hands over his head. "Haruka!"

Haruka slapped both hands over her mouth as she roared in laughter at the sight of him drenched to the bone.

"Haruka!" he shouted, furious. "You're acting like a brat!"

"I am a brat!" She stuck her tongue out at him and ran out of sight.

Ichigo got to his feet, struggling to follow her. "Where are you going?"

"Away from you!" she called back, coming to a halt near the entrance of the thick forest. "You shouted at me!"

"You threw me in the fucking pond!"

"You went against the laws of nature when you asked me to carry my own weight! Nobody asks me to carry my own weight!" She slipped into the white frondescence before he had a chance to rebuke, leaving but not before glaring at him.

"Haruka!"

Ichigo stumbled over the foreign terrain as he bounded toward the stretch of white bark trees. He bent under the looming branches and felt the slick of perspiration leave tracks on his forearms. The thin dirt path was lit by the breaks of sunlight overhead. As he ventured forward, it felt as though he entered a different world.

"Haruka!" he called, regretting the moment he shouted at her.

Even if she deserved it, he felt he shouldn't have done it. He long before had fallen into her stride and like everyone else, it accounted for the shame and sudden urge to apologize. Nobody should ever shout at her. She had that effect on people. Without requesting it, without needing it, he wanted to protect her, to save her.

To save her.

Lost in a sea of white and entangled branches, Ichigo paused in the center of bulging roots and a sparkling dirt path dotted with bright violet flowers. The smell of seawater reached him shortly. He searched the surrounding area once again.

Could he save her?

"Haruka!" he called, hearing nothing apart from the rustling of leaves. "You said you knew how everything ended."

The crunch of fallen maples sounded behind him. He found Haruka emerging from a stretch of darkness, staring at him with childish anger. "You know people that are blessed with the ability to see into the future have it so they can help others, not pour over the details."

His brow creased in confusion.

"It means you shouldn't be trying to change what is supposed to happen, unless it's going in the wrong direction we seldom intervene." His expression didn't change. "It's a warning. A warning. If I tell you you're going to want to change everything and if you try to change everything, I'm going to have to hurt you and I'd rather not."

"You wouldn't," he tested, feeling his defenses rise.

"Take the warning and don't change the future, okay?"

He neither nodded nor shook his head. He gave her silence.

Haruka sighed, sliding into a seat between the roots of a thick tree. "Everything ends as it's supposed to."

"And how's that?"

"No Arcana. How it was supposed to be?"

"Where does that leave you?"

She smiled bitterly. "I wonder too."

beta'd by: LULuckyTiger

x L i l i m:

Congratulations to ShatterTheHeavens for guessing Karin as the Original Magician. But everyone's got ruler of dragons for guessing Shinji (though his Arcana wasn't guessed) and Karin, and also for identifying a completely different character and their Arcana without so much as a clue (that's why I'm posting this chapter early). Sadly, no one guessed the Strength Arcana correctly, but it's fine, their identity is slated for reveal next chapter.

The thing I love about the chapter is that I can finally start building up the romance after so many chapters full of foundation. It makes you think, "Holy shit, Ichigo and Haruka are going to happen," or maybe that's just me. The sad part of it all is that its starting to sound like a tragedy and in a way, it is.

Can't wait for Haruka to meet Hollow!Ichigo. I think some of you might enjoy the dynamics.

Now, for Round Two, which should be easier than last chapters.

Vacancies include: Fool, Empress, Strength, Justice, Temperance, Tower, Moon, and Sun.

Character Clue [1] The Tower Arcana has a birthday early August and has a memorable appearance.

Character Clue [2] The Sun Arcana has something in common with Haruka and Arashi.

Character Clue [3] The Moon Arcana shares something with the Tower.

Character Clue: Final Chance [4] The Strength Arcana was born sometime in May.

Extra Clue: Three out of four are currently in Soul Society.

- Have fun! :)

The Prize: Regrettably, I don't have a chapter ready yet, but I have two different prizes to choose from. Whoever gets all three correct (1 - 3) can ask me to add a scene within the story of their creation (it can be anything, but it might not show up immediately as I am following an outline, and you will be credited for the idea) or request a spoiler. If anyone manages to get all 4 correct, you can ask for both prizes or two of one (add two scenes, get two spoilers).

If you don't have ideas for a scene, you can simply request something you want to see.

And that's that, good luck.

I'm open to suggestions for the final prize next chapter!

Thank you for reading. :) Many thanks to reality deviant, Nasha Rei-kun, ShatterTheHeavens, and ruler of dragons for the reviews!