A month, it had been an entire month since Raven had died, an entire month that Ichigo had lost the love of his life. 'no she is still alive!' he yelled in his head, everyone said she was gone but he knew that she was alive, in his heart and no its not because of love it was because of the bond they had. He could still feel her soul reaching out to his as it had always done, it told him that she was somewhere and he was determined to find her "Ichigo?" the Orangette stopped and looked over to Rukia
"What are you doing here Rukia, it's my turn to patrol"
"I'm worried about you" she looked at the floor before returning her gaze back to him "Your searching for her aren't you" it was more of a statement than a question but he still nodded with narrowed eyes, she sighed "You have to give up Ichigo she is gone-"
"NO SHE IS NOT!" he screamed "I know she is alive and I am going to find her! I will go to the ends of the earth if I have to!"
"I understand Ichigo she was my best friend and I have known her for hundreds of years but I know that her body disintegrating is something that she cannot survive, no one can survive that"
"I know you wouldn't understand, no one does but I am not giving up on her like you all have!" he turned around and raced away
"ICHIGO!" Rukia screamed after him but it fell on deaf ears
"Let him go Rukia" Rukia turned around to look at Renji "he is going through the same thing everyone is but he is taking it harder" he brought an arms up to touch Rukia's shoulder "Besides Byakuya is acting the same way" the raven knew Renji was right, sure he attended the funeral in the world of the living with all the other Soul Reapers but he didn't believe in it, she remembered what the conversation she had with her brother about Raven
Flash back
All the Soul Reapers had returned to the Soul Society after they had paid their respects to Raven, Rukia had followed her older brother into his room. There he sat on his bed with an even blanker expression he usually carried on his face "B-brother? Are you ok?" she asked softly but got no reply in return, she took slow steps towards the Captain "You know everyone else is upset about Raven aswell, I never thought that she would die like that-"
"She is not dead" came Byakuya's simple reply
"W-what?" she asked in shock
"I know she is not dead" he brought a hand up to his chest "In here"
"Byakya-"
"Enough, you must return to the world of the living" with that he stood and left without another word
End flash back
She did not understand how both Ichigo and Byakuya thought she was alive but she did not question them until now "Come on now Rukia lets head to Urahara's shop" Rukia sighed but nodded and followed the blood haired reaper
O0O
Axel sat on the edge of his bed, his hands were laying on either side of his slumped body, both lifeless just like his eyes. He did not know what to do with himself anymore, after Mimi's death he was hollow, his heart was but a shadow of its former self but he stayed alive and happy for Raven but now…now she is gone and he no longer knew why he is living anymore.
A knock on his door stopped his darkened thoughts, with a sigh he rose from his bed and dragged himself towards his door "Hello Axel" Orihime spoke softly, of course it was Orihime-its always Orihime
"Hey Orihime, come inside" he replied with a dead voice, the Orangette frowned when her boyfriend turned around and walked to his couch
It was when they were both seated that Orihime decided to speak "So how are you dealing with everything lately?"
"As best as I can" he bluntly replied
"Please Axel" Orihime pleaded "Please talk to me, bottling everything up will not help" Axel sighed but knew she was right
"I just…When Mimi died my only reason for not becoming dark and hollow was Raven but now that she's gone…" he trailed off
"Do you really think she is gone" he looked at her with confusion "I don't know how to explain it but I feel this…tugging right here" she pointed to her chest where her heart lay "I feel like she is not dead but lost, do you feel it too" Axel closed his eyes and focused on his heart
"Yeah its…weird, like its telling me that Raven should be dead but she's not" he replied slowly
"See, there is no reason to feel so down in the dumps" Orihime spoke with her usual sweet and calming voice "Remember that I'm here for you if you need me" she grabbed his hand and held it tenderly
Now he knew the reason why he was still living, it was Orihime, she was the reason he was not lost in the darkness and despair to the point where he could never return. She was his light, the sun to his moon, the life to his death. She was the love of his life and he was hers "You don't know how much you affect me Orihime" said girl tilted her head
"What do you mean?"
"I mean you just have this effect on me, you bring me out of the darkness and light up my world" Orihime blushed "I haven't said it in a long time but…I love you Orihime"
"I-I love you too Axel" he smiled at his girlfriend and cupped her cheek with his hand, they both brought their faces closer to each other until their lips met in a tender loving kiss. No this was not one of passion or lust, no this kiss was of pure love, a kiss that showed two souls coming together as one.
"Can you stay, please" Axel whispered against her lips, she smiled and nodded
"Always" she took his hand once more and let him to his bed, she laid him down and pulled the covers over him before crawling in on the other side, his arms automatically wrapped around her form and pulled her against his chest "Go to sleep Axel and you will feel better in the morning"
"I feel better already now that you are here in my arms" Orihime giggled softly and placed a soft kiss on his chin before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep, soon followed by her boyfriend
0o0o0o0
Chad sat on a park bench simply looking at the park before him, he hadn't mutter a single sound since that day. He remembered the screams of pure agony that left Ichigo's mouth when Raven disappeared, it could make even the most strongest of men cower in fear. You could hear the pain through his voice, you could hear his soul shattering as he lost the only love he ever had. The tanned man missed the happy, cheerful girl he had met in primary school, she always managed to make everyone smile but now-now no one smiled. "Oh hey there mister Sato" he turned his gazed towards the sweet voice, there stood Elizabeth with a small but sweet smile "do you mind if I sit with you" the man nodded but said nothing "I noticed how everyone had someone who comforted them or to comfort but you didn't so I thought I could be that person" she asked for Chad
"Why?" he muttered after days of not speaking
"Because everyone needs a shoulder to cry on and an ear to tell something to, of course I know that you don't cry so I will just be here to listen if you want to speak" Chad nodded but said nothing but Elizabeth did not care, she would be here for him even if they said nothing.
"The light is gone" he muttered after a long period of silence
"The light?"
"Yeah…the light"
"Just because the original source of the light is gone doesn't necessarily mean that the light is gone forever" She replied, referring to Raven "It just means that you have to find a new source"
"The source is not gone, just the light" Lizzy frowned
"What do you mean?"
"I feel it" he pointed to his chest "here"
"I…don't have that feeling, I didn't know her as well as the rest of you but it doesn't mean that I don't feel sad that she is gone" she gave him a small smile, for the rest of the night neither spoke. Elizabeth simply held Chad's hand and squeezed it every now and again so he knew that she was here for him.
0o0
Tatsuki forgot how much time had passed, she didn't really care as she beat the living shit out of the punching bag. Her anger did not dissipate no matter how hard she hit the punching bag, it festered like an infected wound "You know if you keep hitting the shit out of that punching bag it won't break" she whipped around to see a teen with blue hair leaning against the door
"Oh it's you" she muttered
"Ouch, I do have a name you know"
"Yeah I know Ryu" he shook his head before walking over to her "What are you doing here"
"Well I was walking around the school when I heard sounds coming from here, found out it was you and decided to watch you murder the bag"
"Being a stalker much?"
"No just making sure you were ok" he replied "Perhaps a movable target would be better to let your anger out"
"I don't want to hurt you" he chuckled
"You don't want to hurt me but you still will" he replied as he got into a stance waited for her to attack "hit me with your best shot" she shrugged and swung with all her might, Ryu brought his arm up and it took the brunt of the attack "Come on let your anger out or I'm doing this for nothing" Tatsuki growled and attack him viciously, each time she hit and each time she blocked his attack a bit of her anger seeped out. "Are you ok now" Ryu spoke between pants
"Yeah" she breathed out "How did you know Raven?" she asked as she sat on the floor
"I met her when we were kids, our cousin Mimi was coming to our house and she brought Axel and Raven over" he replied as he sat beside her "We all hit it off and became friends"
"I miss her" she whispered sadly
Ryu smiled and nudged her side "Hey, don't think about her death, think about all the good things and experiences we shared with her"
"Yeah I guess we should" and for the rest of the night, the two joked about all the things they did with their late friend
0o0
Alexis sat on her couch reading a book, she had just put Kira to bed after consoling her for the night. She tried not to let her emotions of sadness surface but with each passing moment that became harder. A knock on her door disrupted her deep thinking, she sighed heavily and headed to her door. "And why, may I ask would you be coming to my house at 10 o'clock at night Ishida"
"I came to see how you are" he replied as he pushed his glasses back into place
"As you can see I am fairing perfectly well so you may leave now" she waited for him to leave but he did not "I told you I am fine"
"And I know you are lying"
"How could you possibly know that"
"Because that look in your eyes is exactly the same look I have seen in everyone's eyes as of late" she sighed knowing there was no point in keeping up with this charade
"Fine you may come inside" she stepped aside and watched the Uryuu walked inside and sat on her couch "I feel as though everything has gone to hell lately" she commented as she sat down beside the Quincy
"That is what happens when a friend is lost" he replied back "And with this war raging on all tensions are growing out of control"
"Raven was one of the best chances we had of winning this war but now…" she trailed off
"We will have to make do with the recourse we have now, there is nothing we can do"
"Yes I suppose you are right" she replied stiffly "How…how are you dealing with all of this?"
"As best as I can, I cannot talk to my father since he does not care about my problems so I have to deal with it myself"
"You don't have to deal with it alone" she said softly, she waited for Uryuu to look at her before continuing "Perhaps we could…deal with it together" she finished with a soft blush "I do not know what is wrong with me, I do not blush or feel nervous"
"Its fine, I think everyone's emotions have been going haywire but you are correct…we don't have to deal with it alone" he too had a light blush "I will like to share my grief, as long as it is shared with you"
"I would like that very much"
0o0
Raven sat on Ulquiorra's bed chatting with him until she stopped abruptly "Ravella?" Ulquiorra asked
"I feel…strange" she muttered
"How so"
"Like there is something here" she pointed to her chest "like there is so many different things pulling at my heart but I do not know why" she replied feeling confused
"Perhaps you are experiencing symptoms of exhaustion, you have been staying up for many nights on end just to talk to me" he replied, feeling a small amount of concern
"I talk to you because I like doing so…that and I hate the nightmares" he raised an eyebrow and waited for her to continue "Random images of fighting, death, screams of anger and pain, feelings of betrayal and pure rage, it happens every night and every night I wake up in a cold sweat and cannot get back to sleep"
"I am pleased that you use me as an excuse to stay away" Raven giggled and nudged his shoulder, he spoke with no emotion but she knew that was his version of sarcasm
"I don't mean to use you as a reason to stay up, I truly do like talking to you Ulquiorra, I like explaining the reason for things and I like getting to know you"
"As much as I like to do the same Lord Aizen does not need nor wants an exhausted and useless Espada so I suggest you get some rest" he stood from his bed but stopped when he felt a small hand grab his, he turned his head to look at Raven who eyes were covered by her hair
"I don't want to go to sleep alone…I don't understand the images that I see and that scares me, can I…can I sleep here with you" Ulquiorra merely stared at her for a few moment before nodded and pulling her up
"This will not be a regular occurrence" he replied as he pulled the sheets back and allowed Raven to crawl in to the side of the bed that was against the wall
"I promise it won't be" he grunted and crawled in beside her but not so close so he would be touching her, of course that did not go the way he planned due to Raven curling against his chest "Why are you so close to me woman"
"Comfort I guess, does this make you uncomfortable"
"Hmm" he did nothing so she assumed he was ok with this "close your eyes woman and go to sleep"
"yes sir" she chuckled softly before doing as he told her to, soon enough she had fallen into a dreamless sleep. Ulquiorra stayed awake, he did not sleep unless necessary but right now he didn't think he would be able to. He looked at Raven's hair as he focused on the feeling of her resting against his chest, it wasn't as uncomfortable as he thought it would be, he hated people touching him so why was this woman be any different? Why was he not pushing her away and ordering her to return to her room? He summarised that this must be a feeling that develops when you gain a friend, but then why is the area in which his heart should be thumping as if he had one. 'do I have a heart, is it hidden from me' he looked back down to the sleeping girls face 'perhaps this woman will be the key to finding out the use of this heart I supposedly possess'