I don't own Bleach or KHR

35. Things go down hill

It had been two weeks since they arrived at the Vongola Manor. It took a while to get adjusted to the time difference, but it was okay. Rukia felt more relaxed than she should have, considering the fact that they were so close to Kuchiki manor. Rukia looked around the large living room they were in. Nel was coloring in a sketchbook that she had given to her.

'It's a quiet morning, huh?' Rukia thought.

"Why didn't you go with the guys to train?" Orihime asked.

'I really didn't feel like it.'

"You're getting lazy, Rukia."

'No I'm not!' she protested.

"Alight, I'm kidding. Can't you take a joke?"

'Not when you pick on me all the time.'

Rukia looked over at Kyoko, Haru, and Chrome who were having a conversation. During these two years, Chrome had started to open up a little, she talked to people more often. But she was still shy when it came to talking to any of the boys. Kyoko approached Rukia with a smile on her face.

"Rukia-chan, would you like to go shopping with us?"

"Who's going to take you guys into the city?"

"Don't worry about that. Come on Rukia-chan, it'll be fun!"

Rukia thought about it for a minute. In the two weeks that had passed, she was the only one who hadn't really been to the city. The only times she had gone were when she went with everyone to a cake shop. She was afraid that something bad would happen while in the city, and avoided it in order to prevent an incident from happening. But her worries seemed to have disappeared today. Besides, she couldn't say no to Kyoko; her smile made it impossible to do that.

"Alright I'll go, but we need to take Nel with us."

"Okay! Get ready, we're leaving in ten minutes."

Everyone left the room and Rukia could help it but to sigh at what she was about to do.

"Rukia are you sure you can do this?"

"I don't know Orihime, I just don't know."

x-x

During the entire car ride, Rukia started out the window, looking at the meadows and small hills of the countryside. She completely ignored the conversation that was going on around her. She felt a tug on her sleeve. She looked down to see Nel glancing up at her.

"Onee-chan, are you alright?" Nel asked

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Rukia tried her best to put a smile, but judging from Nel's expression, it wasn't working.

"Onee-chan needs to cheer up." She grinned.

"Rukia-chan we're almost to the city." Kyoko announced. And sure enough, they could see the buildings in the city peeking over the top of the hill as they drove. Chrome sat quietly, while Kyoko, Haru, and Nel watched in awe. With every mile, they got closer to their destination in the large city.

x-x

As soon as they arrived to the city, the car parked close to the shopping district. Rukia told the chauffeur to pick them up in about two hours.

"Well, let's go shopping. Where to first?" Rukia asked.

"I don't know Rukia-chan, let's go to the first store we see, kay?" Haru said

They spotted a boutique not too far from them Kyoko, Nel, and Haru walked ahead of Rukia and Chrome. They entered the boutique; Rukia heard the sound of a bell that was tied to the door as they walked in.

"Welcome," the shopkeeper said in Italian. "I hope you find what you're looking for. Let me know if you need any help."

Kyoko and Haru had blank looks on their faces; only Rukia and Chrome could understand the shopkeeper.

"She told us to call her if we need any help." Rukia said, Kyoko and Haru nodding in understanding. Rukia sat down in one of the chairs next to the door as Kyoko, Haru and Nel tried on various outfits.

"Come on Rukia, you should try something on, too." Kyoko insisted.

"No, I'm fine. Thank you."

"Nonsense, Rukia! Come on." Haru said. With that, Kyoko and Haru grabbed one of Rukia's arms and dragged her into one of the changing rooms. Chrome was silently watching in the background, taking small steps towards the door hoping to escape before they caught her.

"Not so fast, Chrome-chan!" Kyoko stood behind her, the evil glint in her eye made Chrome shudder in fear. Sighing in defeat, she let herself be dragged by Kyoko, silently wishing that she could run away.

x-x

"I am not coming out!" Rukia shouted from the dressing room.

"Don't be silly, Rukia-chan! All of us worked hard to find the perfect clothes for you."

"NO, it's embarrassing!"

"Come on out Rukia-chan, or we'll drag you out." Kyoko said gently, although to Rukia it sounded like a threat.

"I don't care. I won't leave this dressing room."

Rukia could hear a foot tapping impatiently, what she did not notice was someone creeping up behind her. The person roughly pushed her out of the dressing room and out into the open. Rukia stumbled a bit before regaining her balance, horrified that she was now exposed to the world.

"That looks so cute on you, Rukia-chan!" Haru complimented, Rukia quickly hid behind the curtains.

"Now, now Rukia-chan, don't be shy!"

"Onee-chan looks great!"

Rukia was wearing a blue sleeveless dress shirt with ruffles at the collar, sleeves that were connected by a blue strap with the cuffs unbuttoned, making the ruffles puff out. It also had a bow on the back of the shirt with the ends hanging to her ankles. Blue shorts with striped knee-length socks, and brown ankle-length boots with yellow laces completed the outfit.

"It's too childish." Rukia complained

"No, it suits you perfectly!"

Kyoko had in her hands a blue fedora matching the color of the shirt. She handed the hat over to Rukia.

"Put it on." Kyoko suggested. Rukia had no choice in the matter anyway; she put on the hat, frowning because it made her look like a painter.

"How do I look?"

"Like an artist! Now all you need is a sketchbook and a charcoal pencil and you'll be all set." Haru replied.

"Right! Let's check on Chrome-chan, okay?" Rukia suggested.

"But that looks so great on you, Rukia." Orihime complimented.

'Shut up.'

Rukia and the others went to check up on Chrome, she was still in the dressing room.

"Chrome-chan are you ready?"

"U-um, sure." Chrome steeped out of the dressing room timidly. She was wearing a translucent white shirt with short sleeves over a gray dress that stopped three inches above her knees. She shifted nervously where she stood.

"Something is missing..." Haru commented.

Kyoko turned to look around in the coat racks, searching for the right thing that would fit Chrome's outfit. Nel went along with Kyoko and started to search for something as well. Rukia and Chrome looked at each other and shook their heads, not knowing how they got into this situation.

Kyoko and Haru made their way to the register, gathering a couple of outfits for themselves and Nel. Rukia was about to enter the dressing room to change when Haru grabbed her hand, preventing her from entering the sanctuary that the dressing room provided.

"Sorry Rukia-chan, Chrome-chan. We already paid for those outfits. I'm afraid that you will have to wear them for the rest of the day."

"But…" Rukia thought about it for a minute. "Hey wait a minute! Where did you get the money to pay for all this?"

"Reborn-chan gave us these debit cards and a pin number. He told us we could spend the money in the account however we wanted." Kyoko answered.

'It just means that Tsuna and the rest of us will have to pay Reborn back later on.' Rukia thought in her head frantically.

"Cheer up Rukia! It just means that you got free clothes for now." Orihime reasoned.

'They're not free Orihime, I will have to pay for it later on.'

"Oh Rukia, stop picking at the little details."

Rukia let out a small sigh and gave up for the time being. Now she would have to walk the streets wearing...well, this. She mentally cringed at the clothing she had on, wishing that she could burn the outfit and dance around the ashes. Unfortunately she couldn't do that. Thinking of Kyoko and Haru's sad faces made her feel hollow inside.

"Kuchiki-san, we're leaving." Chrome said shyly, breaking Rukia out of her thoughts.

"Chrome-chan, please call me Rukia."

"Ok," she blushed from embarrassment, "...Rukia-san."

"Well, that's a start." She looked out the window; Kyoko, Haru, and Nel were waiting outside. "Let's go before they leave without us."

With that, Chrome and Rukia said their goodbyes to the shopkeeper. They left the boutique with the sound of the bell on the door behind them.

x-x

Renji was back in his office reading a report, on the verge of falling asleep. His boss would kill him if he found him sleeping on the job, but he didn't really care at that moment. A soft knock came on the oak door.

"Come in," he said without looking up. Ichigo entered the room and sat in one of the comfortable chairs.

"Renji, want to go out for ice cream?"

Renji stopped reading the report in his hands and looked at his friend as if he grown two heads.

"What are you talking about, you moron? What are you, five?"

"Hey, I am trying to relive some of my memories, unlike you." Ichigo snapped.

"What did you say?!" Renji stood up from his chair, he was starting to get annoyed.

"You heard me!" Ichigo stood up as well, glaring at Renji. They glared at each other for a minute until Renji sat down and slouched on his chair.

"Arguing with each other is just not the same anymore, huh?" Ichigo asked after a minute of silence.

"Yeah, Rukia always scolded us for arguing and Grimmjow would just laugh like the idiot he is."

"And Orihime would just smile warmly and try to calm everyone down." Ichigo added.

Renji just looked at his desk, seeing files that were easily forgotten. He couldn't do his work anymore. He felt that Rukia was alive and closer that he thought, his gut told him that. He wanted to believe that, but it was getting harder and harder to believe every day.

"You know what? Screw work! Let's go get ice cream." Renji said

Ichigo smiled and stood from his chair. They both left the office, closing the door behind them.

x-x

After lunch, Rukia and the girls started walking through the streets, still having about a half an hour before they had to meet up with the chauffeur. Rukia had a nostalgic feeling from the old days: the car rides through the city, the walk on the Rose Garden, and the ice cream...

"Rukia, we should get some ice cream before going back!" Orihime suggested.

'Huh? Why?'

"Just for old times, kay?"

"Anyone up for ice cream? I heard there is a good creamery around here."

"That sounds like a great idea, Rukia-chan!" Kyoko said, she looked down and saw Nel jump up and down, obviously approving the idea.

"It is pretty hot outside." Haru added, Chrome stayed silent but nodded in agreement.

"Then it's settled! It's right around the corner." Rukia said.

The girls arrived at a small shop next to a big park with a small pond. The place looked a little run down, but to Rukia it looked the same as always.

'It wasn't changed at all, has it?'

"The thing that I remember most is the blackmail photo you used on Renji." Orihime giggled.

'Oh yeah! I remember that!'

"What ever happened to that photo?"

'I gave it to Rangiku. She was the one who made it, after all.'

"She made the photo!?"

'Well, she is one of those types of fangirls.'

Rukia quickly snapped out of the conversation that she was having with Orihime. Kyoko and the others looked at Rukia with concerned, but said nothing. As they entered the shop, Rukia encountered something that she wasn't expecting. There, standing at the counter, were two men she recognized; one with bright red hair, and the other with vibrant orange hair. The red-haired one gaped at her in disbelief.

"Rukia!?" the man asked.

Rukia looked straight ahead at the two figures in front of her. She didn't know if she should be scared, or cry of happiness. The man with the red flame hair took a step forward, making Rukia take a step back. The man with orange hair just looked at Rukia, shocked, and pale as if he'd seen a ghost.

Rukia broke out of her trance.

"Kyoko-chan, take Haru-chan and Nel and go back home. Chrome and I will catch up later." She whispered to Kyoko. Kyoko had a confused look on her face, but quickly understood the situation. Rukia grabbed Chrome's hand and started running. With both men running after her, they veered around a corner.

x-x

Renji's first thoughts when he saw Rukia were happy ones. He was thankful to his gut for telling him the truth, but Rukia seemed shocked and ran away from them. Which left the question; where had Rukia been all those years, and why was she running away?

Ichigo was following in pursuit of Rukia and his answers to all his questions regarding the others. Soon, however, they lost sight of Rukia and the girl who was running with her.

"Damn it, where did they go?!" Ichigo asked while catching his breath.

"Don't know, we have to keep looking until we find her." Renji looked around trying to spot where Rukia had gone. "She finally came back and what does she do? She runs away!"

Renji couldn't help but to feel angry and frustrated. Ichigo wasn't any better either, they both couldn't believe that Rukia had been right in front of them. There were many questions going through their heads at once, but the two most important questions on their minds were: where was she all this time? And why had she run away from them just now? Renji felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, stopping their search.

"Hello?" He answered.

"Renji, why are you not in your office finishing the reports?" A cold voice said over the line. Renji quickly recognized that voice.

"Boss, I…"

"I do not want to hear any excuses. Come back to the Manor at once."

"Yes, sir." He grumbled as he hung up, looking at the streets filled with people in the marketplace. He was so close to finding out about Rukia and the others. Sometimes it sucked to be the right-hand man.

"What's wrong Renji? What did our boss want?"

"He wants us to go back to the manor." They started to go back to the ice cream shop where they had parked their car. "One thing Ichigo, we can't tell anyone about this."

"Why not?"

"We don't know what made Rukia run away. If we tell our boss that we saw her, she will be captured and punished."

"Right." Ichigo let out a small sigh, wishing to talk to his dear friend soon.

x-x

Rukia felt scared, unable to stop running. Her worse fears had come true. What was worse was that the ones who found her were none other than Ichigo and Renji. Fleeing into the outdoor market, where there were lots of people, she finally gave them the slip.

"Rukia-san, who were they?" Chrome asked while trying to catch their breath.

"Sorry for dragging you into this, Chrome-chan. Those were people I knew before I ran away." They finally reached a bench and sat tiredly, Rukia looked at Chrome and saw concern in her eye.

"I...used to have a crush on one of them."

"Who?"

"The one with the red hair; his name is Renji. But, he just treated me as a friend, nothing more. So I kept those feelings inside me. Actually, you're the first person I've told..."

"I never knew, Rukia." Orihime chimed in sadly.

"But now my heart belongs to Takeshi, and it's going to stay that way."

Chrome smiled at how honest she was with her. To tell her something like this made her feel a little special. Being with Rukia and the others was like having the family she never really had.

"My parents never really wanted me," Chrome began. "I was always alone, and when I got into an accident, my parent didn't want to save me. Until I met Mukuro-sama, I really felt alone."

"Well you're not alone." Rukia placed her hand over Chrome's. "Now you have us, and we're going to look after you." Chrome smiled a little.

"Let's go back." Rukia said, having finally caught her breath.

x-x

On the way back to the car, Rukia felt like Chrome had opened up a bit more to her, and that was an accomplishment. She hoped to someday make Chrome come out of her shell, but she needed to take things one step at a time.

"Nagi?" a voice called from behind them.

They both turned around to saw a woman in her late thirties. She had black hair held up in a bun. Her blue eyes were the same shape as Chrome's but otherwise looked nothing like her purple ones. She was wearing a blue blouse and an ankle length skirt.

"Isn't Chrome's real name Nagi?"

'Yeah...wait, this couldn't be?!'

"Nagi, is that you?" the woman asked again. Chrome didn't say anything, only looked at the stroller the woman was pushing, with a baby nestled inside, sound asleep. Rukia quickly got the picture; Chrome felt sad that they had another child when they didn't care about her.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but I think you have mistaken her for someone else." Rukia said, looking at the woman with a cold glare. "I don't think that my friend had such a horrible mother like yourself."

The woman stood speechless, Chrome looked at her with a shocked look on her face.

"R-Rukia what are you saying?"

"Come on Chrome-chan, let's go home." Rukia took Chrome's hand and quickly left the woman behind. As they reached the spot where they would meet up with the chauffeur, Chrome had a sad look on her face. Rukia felt bad, but also she sort of knew the pain that she was going through.

"I'm sorry Chrome-chan but…but that woman doesn't deserve you as her daughter." They stopped in their tracks and Chrome let her tears fall. "As long as you're in our family Chrome, you won't feel alone."

Chrome gave Rukia a hug, letting her chin rest on Rukia's shoulders. Rukia couldn't say anything else. Knowing from experience that the best way to clean the heart from sadness was to cry until she couldn't anymore, she just let Chrome be..

Soon after, Chrome let go of Rukia with her head hung down. She had a very uncharacteristic smirk on her face. Rukia was a little shocked.

"Chrome-chan?" Rukia asked.

"Kufufufu," she laughed in a deep male voice. Rukia felt a cold, dark aura coming from her friend. "Ora, ora. Calm down young Kuchiki."

"Who are you, and what did you do to Chrome-chan!?"

"I'm surprised that you don't recognize me?" Mist started to engulf Rukia and her surroundings, making it hard to see. When the mist blew away, Chrome was gone. In her place was a man with a hairstyle similar to Chrome's and eyes with two colors: one red with the number six in kanji and one blue.

"Mu-mukuro!?" Rukia took her fighting stance, shocked at how the situation had turned.

"I'm glad you remember me. I came to say thank you."

"Huh?" Rukia lowered her guard just slightly, looking at the illusionist with a confused expression.

'Well, that's unexpected...'

"You said it, Rukia." Orihime agreed.

"And who are you, Miss Spirit?" Mukuro asked.

Orihime appeared next to Rukia with a shocked look on her face.

"Now don't act so surprised. I'm the one who walked the six paths, after all."

"But, you can see me?"

"Of course."

"Can Chrome-san see me?"

"My dear little Chrome still has a lot to learn before she can see spirits. But what about you, Miss Spirit? What are you doing with the young Kuchiki?" Mukuro asked.

"I am here to help her, and to guide her."

"You need to pass on soon, Miss spirit."

"Not until Rukia is freed from the Kuchiki family." Orihime insisted.

"Well, suit yourself."

Rukia, who had kept quiet during the conversation, looked at Mukuro with concern.

"Wait." she began, only to be cut off as mist started to swirl again.

"Keep an eye on my dear little Chrome." Mist surrounded Mukuro, making it hard to see for Rukia. When the mist disappeared, Chrome stood there with a confused look on her face.

"Mukuro-sama says that it's getting late and we should be going back."

"Yeah, Kyoko-san and Haru-san are going to worry."

"All right. Let's go back." Rukia agreed, deciding to dismiss Mukuro's appearance for the time being. She had enough to worry about as it was.

x-x

After calling for a ride to pick them up and return to the manor, Rukia saw that everyone was there waiting for her; they seemed worried.

"What's wrong with everyone?" Rukia asked.

"So, did you talk to those idiots?" Grimmjow snarled, "Don't bother to lie. Kyoko and Haru told me everything."

Rukia looked back at Chrome and they shrugged, neither of them wanted to tell them anything.

"Nothing happened. So stop worrying about me, everyone. I can defend myself if I need to, so stop worrying about me too much."

"But Rukia-san, with everything that you told us we were sure that you weren't really planning on leaving the mansion unless it was with everyone else."

"I can't stay here frightened about what might happen. They saw me; big deal, it wouldn't be long until I had to face them anyway."

"Rukia just tell us the next time you're out. We were worried." Yamamoto said, stepping forward to lay his hands on her shoulders.

"Look, everyone, stop trying to keep me here under lock and key. I am not a defenseless little girl."

"We're not trying to keep you here, we're just worried."

"All right! I'll tell you the next time I leave! Now can we drop it?"

Everyone still had an uneasy look on their face, but no one said anything more. Everybody started to head to the living room. Yamamoto had calmed down a little and finally noticed her new outfit.

"Uh…Rukia, what's with the new outfit?"

"Kyoko-chan threatened me to wear it."

Yamamoto raised an eyebrow; he couldn't imagine Kyoko threatening someone. He let out a chuckle.

"It looks cute on you."

Yamamoto tried to hold in his laughter, even more so when he saw Rukia blush at his comment. Wrapping his arm around her waist, they walked towards the living room, ready for a quiet evening after the drama of the day.

Or so they thought…

Chapter 35 End

Beta-ed by Grenoulle-85

It's been really lonely lately... Reviews would be greatly appreciated