First things first: Shirayuki55, since I couldn't reply to your awesome comments through PM I do so here: Glad you like my ideas, I agree that some scenes of both movies are very intense, I hope I've manage to portray some of that. I agree with your point of view of certain events in Hell-Chapter, and I've a feeling you're really going to like what I've done with that one... all Ichiruki fans will! But that's later on. As for the Aranoniero (however his name is written), that one's closer and I hope you'll all like that as well.
Regarding possessive Ichigo and his use of "My Rukia"... possessiveness is a trait I don't find very attractive in real-life, but that's because I think that most tend to be very selfish when it comes to that. In my writing the possessiveness is always 100% mutual. When Ichigo says "My Rukia", he's also saying "Your Ichigo", he's hers as much as she's his. I'm a huge believer in true love, eternal love, soulmates. The idea of "two bodies one soul, two minds one heart". The idea of two people who are bound together in every way possible, from the beginning to the end of time, beyond time and space, beyond life and death. The possessiveness therefore isn't about 'owning' someone, as it tends to be seen in RL, it's about the connection. About the fact that they belong together, more than one belonging to the other. Several religions/folklore have the belief that at the beginning of creation human beings had four arms, four legs, two heads, but either they were too 'big' to exist like that, or became a threat to the superior power (God, gods, whatever) and thus they were split in two. Since then each half spends their existence searching for their other half, trying to be complete once again. That's what soulmates are about, that completeness. The acknowledgement that together you're so much more than you're apart.
Anyway, enough ranting, on with the second part of Fade to Black. And to Orihime fans, I hope you'll enjoy what I'm doing with her!
Chapter 34. Snow and Ash
Orihime remained two steps behind and one step to the left of Byakuya as he lead a group of seated members of his squad in keeping Kurotsuchi's experiment from gaining a foothold, apparently the Kidou Corps were having too hard a time keeping the thing contained as it, somehow, kept growing. Byakuya had insisted that Orihime not get involved in anything unless it was absolutely necessary; on the one hand he wanted to make sure she would stay safe, on the other, he didn't remember her and wasn't sure how much trust he could put in her, in her abilities. Orihime knew that and accepted it.
In that very moment several startled yells and warning calls put Orihime on high alert. She turned around just in time to see a 'tentacle' that had somehow managed to slip through the shield unnoticed by everyone and was about to completely bury half of the shinigami around her. The red-auburn-orange haired girl didn't think, she just reacted.
"Santen Kesshun! I reject!" She called her kotodama.
The shinigami, many of whom had frozen in place due to fear and shock at the sudden attack, could only watch as an orange-tinted translucent crystal-like shield materialized at an angle, covering all of them and stopping the 'tentacle' in its tracks.
The tentacle tried several times to push through, but the shield was just too strong, eventually its attempts stopped, when the sakura-like blades of Senbonzakura's shikai destroyed it.
"Inoue-san," Byakuya called as he turned to her. "Are you alright?"
"Just fine Kuchiki-dono." Orihime nodded respectfully. "The creature wasn't as strong as I feared it might be."
Byakuya was considering the possibilities, what they could achieve if he put Orihime's shield to good use, when he noticed that, for the first time, Orihime was walking away from him. It took him a couple of seconds to find her, but soon he did, she was walking to the edge of where her shield had been until some seconds before, to the blob the 'tentacle' had left, a blob where some shinigami had ended up trapped before the shield stopped the tentacle completely.
"Inoue-san…?" Byakuya called.
He remembered suddenly, quite clearly, the exact words she'd used when describing her powers: "My Shun Shun Rikka grant me the power to create shields: to protect, heal and attack as needed." Could she possibly…?
Byakuya found the answer to a question he'd never finished, not even in his mind, right then.
"Souten Kisshun! I reject!" He heard the girl call new words.
An orange-tinted shield, very different from the one that had stopped the 'tentacle' in its tracks, appeared over the 'blob' and the shinigami trapped in it. For a few seconds nothing seemed to be happening and then, it was like the strange white substance suddenly were being dissolved into thin air. It happened in a matter of seconds, the thing vanished, leaving a bunch of shinigami standing, laying or even crouching, in the very positions they'd been in when being covered, only to fall the moment the shield disappeared.
For a couple of seconds nothing else happened, it took that long for all the shinigami present to realize the kind of miracle that had just taken place, the kind of miracle the young girl that had been trailing their captain since after lunch, had just worked.
Immediately a cacophony of voices rose, as people kept checking over friends and colleagues, marveling at what had just happened; while others thanked Orihime profusely, praising her miraculous powers for what they had achieved.
"Your powers truly are remarkable, Inoue-san." Byakuya commented as he walked to her.
"Thank you for your kind words, Kuchiki-taichou." Orihime bowed her head in thanks.
"I had never imagined a human could have powers such as yours." Byakuya declared. "Not even among the legendary miko, or the réalta."
"You know about the réalta?" Orihime was staggered at that sudden tidbit of information, but immediately tried to sound less suspicious. "About those ancient races?"
"It's the duty of the Kuchiki Clan to keep record of the history of Soul Society, that includes the treaties Seireitei has entered with races such as the ones I just mentioned." Byakuya explained in a very formal tone. "Can I infer from your words that you're interested in the topic?"
"Very." Orihime thought of an excuse for that fact, which was only half-lie. "As I believe Ichigo mentioned to you, we Nakama are a group who has one such allegiance with the Gotei. It wasn't until recently that we learned Seireitei had made such allegiances before, with races of spiritually aware and empowered individuals. That has made the whole thing of much interest to me. I wonder if maybe, finding out more about such races, I might be able to learn what has made us, those of us who aren't shinketsu shinigami, or Quincy, have our powers."
That, and it might help her learn more about the réalta, things that maybe not even Serenity knew, or hadn't told her yet.
"An interesting prospect." Byakuya declared calmly. "We shall go back to it, after we deal with the current situation."
Orihime nodded, getting focused on what was going on in that moment.
"Inoue-san." Byakuya called as he thought something over. "Is there a way for you to use both of the techniques you called on just now, at the same time, and on the same spot; and then move forward while keeping them active?"
It took the girl several seconds, but eventually she understood what he was planning. If she combined both of those techniques she would be able to erase some of the substance, while at the same time keeping Byakuya and his subordinates safe from a counterattack. Then, if in those conditions she managed to push forward she would be able to help the group do the same, but…
"Where would you expect me to get you?" She asked what she thought was important.
"Kurotsuchi's lab." Byakuya answered approvingly. "Would you be able to do that?"
For all answer, Orihime called on her Rikka and asked them. The fairies-flowers agreed it was possible, though they cautioned Orihime on how costly it all would be on her reiatsu.
"Very well." She nodded when she was done. "Kuchiki-dono, what you want can be done, it will be a bit costly on my reserves, though nothing we have to really worry about, and we won't be able to move too fast, least I risk my shields being penetrated. Also, we might want to take it especially slow at first, while I get used to the form and power of this new shield."
"New?" Byakuya wasn't expecting that. "I thought we were talking about the use of two techniques you used just now."
"That is true, but for something like what you are planning, it is preferable if I use one of my mixed shields." Orihime explained. "It's really just using two of them at the same time, however, since they're connected and interdependent I am actually using less reiatsu than if I called on the two techniques separately; on the flip side, I have to measure the right form and shape of my reiatsu since it's not the same as either of the original techniques."
Byakuya nodded, it sounded very much like the focus and considerations needed when using kidou, especially the most powerful Hadou. He gave orders to his subordinates to take formation while Orihime made her final preparations and began focusing her reiatsu.
"Very well, here we go." She declared as she raised her arms. "Hinagiku, Baigon, Lily, Shun'ou, Ayame. Goten Sutashun! I reject!"
The new shield was the same color but had a quite different form from any of the previous ones the girl had used. It looked like a slightly twisted five-pointed star and after a few seconds it grew to cover Orihime, Byakuya and all the shinigami with them. Orihime spent a few more seconds testing the flow of reiatsu, she didn't want anything to go wrong. They were trusting her.
"There." She stated, her eyes fixed straight on her technique. "We can get moving now."
The shinigami adopted the formation as instructed, a small group of them surrounding Orihime in a lose circle, their priority was to keep the girl safe so she could stay fully focused on her own techniques and their advancement. The rest were ready to dispose of the experiment.
They began advancing then, and as they did, Orihime focused on letting some of the goop through the shield, keeping most of it back, and the 'tentacles' from attacking; however, as soon as the substance was through, the other part of the shield would reject it. If it moved too much, the shinigami would keep it at bay. That way they kept advancing, little by little.
xXx
Yamamoto was observing everything in silence from a spot slightly behind the Ave Blanca who, despite being already beyond exhausted, insisted on being the one to hold the shield. The Commander had to admit there was no one better to do it, not even the leaders of the Kidou Corps, which is in fact why he asked her to take charge of the operation in the first place. But still, it would help no one if she ended up dropping dead if she ran out of reiatsu.
Sasakibe Choujirou arrived to the roof right then and proceeded to recite the situation with each of the divisions working on keeping Kurotsuchi's experiments at bay, while Nemu led what remained of the Squad to try and find a way to stop the mess. She wasn't being very successful thus far, and Yamamoto was beginning to consider calling in Urahara Kisuke, the man appeared on the same records as the Nakama, and as the former 12th Division Captain and founder of the Bureau of Research and Development might be capable of solving the disaster they were in.
"Did she just go through the shield?" Sasakibe asked abruptly.
It was the truth, somehow the shield created by the Nakama girl had just pushed through the kekkai created by the Kidou Corps as if it weren't there. And not only that, the 'creature' wasn't able to reach them, and instead seemed to vanish as they moved forward.
"How can she possibly do that?" Several of the Kidou Corp members began wondering.
"It was in the notes." Yamamoto stated seriously. "Humans with reiryoku, whose will to protect and/or attack has manifested, become a power. The strength of their will seems to greatly influence their abilities, as much as the level of reiatsu."
"But to be powerful enough to go through one of the strongest kekkai in existence, as if it weren't even there…" Sasakibe wasn't fully convinced.
Ala Blanca, for her part, was an entirely different matter, her eyes fixed straight on the bright-haired young woman as she kept directing her own abilities, helping the shinigami through. Gray eyes fixed on the strands of reddish-hued hair…
"It's more than that…" She whispered, seemingly not even noticing she was talking out-loud. "The miracle lives again…"
xXx
"Rukia!" Ichigo cried out.
Loud metallic clashes echoed through the deepest parts of Inuzuri, signaling the battle going on between the orange-haired shinigami and the woman who, until a short time ago, was his wife. In a sense, she still was, no matter how much the strange fusion with the two unknown kids might have changed her.
In that moment Rukia was like a sort of darker version of herself, like a hollow version of herself, with ashen hair, black eyes, dressed in a white robe with a yellow sash (somewhat similar to the clothes worn by the kids) along with a red/violet cape; she also had the huge scythe the boy had been holding before, and was using it as a weapon against Ichigo.
"Reap him…Reap him…" She muttered in a strange, echoing, layered voice.
Ichigo had no idea what 'reap him' was supposed to mean, kill him? But something told him it wasn't that simple, not after that scythe seemed to begin going straight through his Zangetsu a few minutes earlier, in one of their first clashes. Zangetsu himself had no idea what that power was, only that it would be a very bad idea to allow it to happen. Shiro voiced his agreement, whenever he wasn't praising the darker Rukia…
*She just looks so hot…* Shiro stated. *Snow-princess is really smoking hot right now!*
*Shiro! Focus!* Ichigo snapped. *We have to find a way to undo what those creeps just did. Get my Rukia back! And stop calling my wife hot will you?*
*Just saying…* Shiro snickered.
His brief distraction cost him, Ichigo barely managed to shindo to a side in the last moment, before the scythe cut right through his neck.
"Stop it!" He yelled, not knowing what else to say. "Rukia, please, snap out of it!"
*Ichigo, you need to be focused, or you might lose your life.* Zangetsu reminded him. *As much as we may hate it, right now that's not your Rukia…*
*I know.* Ichigo replied as he kept fighting. *But no matter how many times I tell that to myself, no matter how different she might look right now. That's still Rukia, that's still my soulmate, and there's no way I could ever hurt her.*
And that was the crux of the matter. His plan when going to Inuzuri was to: find Rukia, kick the ass of whoever had her, and make things go back to normal; however, suddenly Rukia was no longer fully Rukia, and the other part of her was what was keeping him from his beloved in the first place…how was he supposed to kick ass now?
"Rukia please!" He called as he parried another blow. "It's Ichigo! Remember me!"
But it was no use, the strange fusion had caused what memories were returning to Rukia to be lost again, and Ichigo could almost feel his heart break.
xXx
Yamamoto never got around calling Urahara, and yet the man still arrived, along with Yoruichi, something the Commander couldn't decide is he was happy about, or not. In the end he decided just to accept it, the day was already strange enough to ponder too much on the details.
It was Kisuke who found Kurotsuchi's backup brain, the whole reason he wasn't forgotten, and yet he'd forgotten everything himself; an advantage Kuchiki Rukia did not have, which was why, in her case, she forgot everything and everyone forgot her. In any case, Kisuke was able to read the research Kurotsuchi was working on and make a plan on the best way to handle the situation. They needed to destroy a reishi converging device that was connected to the experiment creating the 'tentacles' and the strange goop. And the best part was that Kuchiki Byakuya and a small number of his men, along with Inoue Orihime, were already on their way.
The Commander for his part ordered the rest of the high-ranked shinigami to be ready to attack the experiment themselves the moment the shield fell, which would help them keep it from expanding and at the same time would give Byakuya an opening to finish with it.
"It's time to let the shield fall." Yamamoto told the girl sitting before her.
"But, I can still keep going." Ave Blanca complained.
"Maybe you can." Yamamoto didn't deny that. "But as long as we remain like this, we aren't progressing. We are not losing, but we aren't winning either. It's time we dealt with this."
Ave Blanca knew he was right, which is why she didn't complain anymore, simply nodding her head and making a series of hand-signs at the same time she muttered an incantation under her breath. Like glass breaking, the kekkai fell.
"Go!" Yamamoto ordered in a booming voice, even as he called on his own shikai.
In a second it was a mix of ice, fire, ash, energy, blades and a lot of reiatsu.
"Inoue-san, beware!" A voice called suddenly.
Orihime turned her head in time to see pieces of a frozen tentacle about to crash against her shield, she barely had enough time to focus more reiatsu, enough to keep that out, though a piece did get through, a couple of shinigami having to jump away so as not to end up hurt.
"I'm sorry!" Orihime called, embarrassed. "So sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry about Inoue-san." Byakuya assured her. "You're doing a very good job. I think we're almost there."
They were, Orihime could sense the spot where the reishi particles converged as easily as Byakuya could, and knew that to be the trouble.
"Can you let me out to take care of this?" Byakuya asked the girl.
"I can do one better." Orihime told him after considering briefly. "If you touch me before releasing your zanpakutou, allow me to read your reiatsu signature, I can make it so my shield will allow Senbonzakura through, while still keeping the experiment out."
Byakuya liked that plan, so he pulled up a bit Orihime's sleeve, touching the back of her hand, knowing that skin on skin contact was important for the best reiatsu-reading possible. After a few seconds Orihime nodded, she'd gotten it, then Byakuya let go of her hand at the same time he called on his zanpakutou.
"Bankai." He let the zanpakutou fall. "Senbonzakura Kageyoshi."
Those observing from outside might have briefly thought that Byakuya was absolutely insane, at least until they watched the thousand sakura-like blades go right through the orange-shield as if it wasn't even there, and rushing against the experiment.
It was a huge demonstration of power. As every captain and lieutenant present made use of their respective shikai, and even their bankai in some cases; Kisuke and Yoruichi giving their assistance as well. Orihime couldn't help but marvel quietly, she hadn't seen such use of power since that day on Soukyoku Hill, when she and the rest of the Nakama had first taken on the Gotei 13 to save Rukia.
It was over quite fast. Still, Orihime refused to let the shield down until the shinigami around had finished destroying all the experiment and Byakuya confirmed that it was over. Then she simply called the Rikka back.
Instantly, there was celebration, and many of the shinigami that had been with her and Byakuya kept praising her for her abilities, for what she could achieve with them. Orihime couldn't help the pride bursting from inside her.
"The Gotei 13 is thankful for your assistance in this matter Inoue Orihime-san." Yamamoto said in a strong voice.
"It's been a pleasure to help sir." Orihime bowed her head gracefully with a smile.
"What do you plan on doing now Inoue-san?" Sasakibe inquired, curious.
"I…I would like to go find Ichigo." Orihime answered quietly, as he looked into the distance. "See if he needs any help…"
Several others nodded, understanding the young woman had to be worried about her companion, and after what they had just seen her do none of them were about to underestimate her or suggest in any way that she couldn't help him.
"I will help you get there, Inoue-san." Byakuya offered unexpectedly.
Yamamoto didn't say anything, though he nodded his acceptance. Ukitake, for his part, nodded approvingly, he was one of those most curious about the girl none of them seemed to remember, and he liked the idea of Byakuya helping, after all, the girl was supposed to be his family, even if not even the noble could remember her, it was still important that he be there.
"Let's go, Inoue-san." Byakuya took hold of her around her waist. "Hold on tight."
In a burst of shunpo, the two were gone.
xXx
"Stop it, Rukia!" Ichigo cried out for what must have been at least the twentieth time.
He tripped slightly as he shunpoed away from his 'opponent' several steps, holding his blade with only his right hand, as his left hung almost useless, bleeding, by his side. He'd been pretty much forced to go bankai at one point, as it became very hard for him to keep up with the 'Dark Rukia' in shikai, particularly when he had no interest in syncing with either Zangetsu or Shiro, or even going all out. He abhorred the mere thought of hurting his beloved.
*You're hurting her more like this.* Zangetsu told him, and not for the first time. *Allowing her to hurt you…what do you think your Rukia would say if she were to see you right now?*
*That I am a weak-assed pansy, and probably a coward to boot.* Ichigo muttered, voice full of self-loathing. *I know what she would say okay, I know she would hate all this, you need not remind me, Ossan. Still, that doesn't change matters any, I cannot hurt her.*
*No, I suppose it doesn't, and you can't.* Zangetsu admitted. *But unless you do something, soon, that decision will be taken from your hands.*
Even inside the Inner World, the zanpakutou spirit had sensed it as well as Ichigo himself, two powerful, controlled reiatsu were in route to Inuzuri, fast; and considering that one of them was Orihime, Ichigo could hazard a guess and say the other one must belong to Byakuya. The orange-haired couldn't risk it, as much as he may respect the man, the kind of brother he'd become in the last months, he still held duty very high in his list of priorities; if the noble saw the Dark Rukia, if he thought the normal Rukia was gone and not coming back, things would get ugly, very ugly.
"That man…we must reap that man's memories." The Dark Rukia muttered yet again. "If we do that, no one will be able to remember Rukia anymore." There was a shift in the voice. "That's it. Then we'll be the only ones Rukia cares about!"
So reaping meant taking away the memories, that was why Rukia didn't remember, and probably, somehow, why no one remembered her either. Ichigo knew for sure that was one thing he would never allow to happen to him. He was never forgetting Rukia.
"You lunatics!" He growled, directing the comment to the two 'children'. "Memories aren't everything. Rukia's soul remembers me, even if you try to stop her mind from doing so, her soul, her heart know me! You can't steal the bonds that hold us together!"
No, memories weren't everything, it was the truth, though one he'd only come to realize in the last few minutes. It didn't matter if Rukia didn't remember him, if she didn't know she loved him; he could make her fall for him again; if he had somehow managed the first time around, when he hadn't the slightest idea what he was doing, or even what he was hoping to achieve, it should be easier the second time around right? Besides, memories or no memories, the bond was still there, they were still soulmates, still fated, everything else…was inconsequential.
Yet again Ichigo had to pull back after several more clashes. While the orange-head had always known Rukia was strong, he never imagined she could be such a formidable opponent. And he was quite sure it wasn't all because of the strange fusion, she was really, really strong.
"But it's not all about the power…" Or was it? Something had just occurred to him.
*Aibou…?* Not even Shiro knew what he was thinking, and he didn't like that.
*That's the real problem, isn't it?* Ichigo asked into his inner world. *With those children, and the hollow-like presence together, Rukia's will has been overwhelmed. She's still the strongest presence, which is why she retained the image, but her mind and soul aren't in control right now. She needs more power to regain control…*
*Aibou…are you thinking what I think you're thinking?* Shiro asked quietly.
*It's such a huge gamble, isn't it?* Ichigo answered with another question. *But she, if anyone, is worth the risk. She's worth any risk.*
*That she is.* Shiro agreed completely. *Go get back your snow-princess, Aibou.*
*You have my support as well Ichigo, and I'm sure Shirayuki-san will help us too, in any way she can.* Zangetsu put in his two cents.
Ichigo nodded, gratefulness filling his Inner World.
The shinketsu shinigami was only half aware of the two reiatsu that had finally stopped, standing in the very limits of the hilltop where the long, strenuous battle was taking place; the young man's full concentrating was on something, or rather someone else.
Orihime stepped away from Byakuya, nodding silently, thankfully at him before turning to her Nakama. She was about to say something when she noticed the very serious expression on Ichigo's face; she knew then something was about to happen, and decided to leave him to it.
Right then Ichigo focused all his reiatsu, all his desire to get back his Rukia, all his love for her, and then shot straight at her.
With the Dark Rukia, the hollow power in her kept growing, so much and so fast it would soon alert the Gotei 13. She saw Ichigo rushing at her and moved her own weapon to attack, even half insane as she was, she knew the shinigami had to die.
Then, contact. Silence reigned supreme as the dust settled, revealing the results of the latest clash, only it hadn't been a clash at all, not really, it had been more…
Byakuya blinked, not quite believing what he was seeing, the kind of risks the young man was taking to get the woman back. Beside him, Orihime pressed both hands over her mouth to hold back the scream that had wanted to come out at the scene her eyes were witnessing.
In the middle of a small crater, the two 'opponents' half-stood, half-knelt, one with a scythe digging painfully into his side, blood falling in steady though barely noticed rivulets down his black hakama; the other with a blade running straight through her chest, some drops of her own blood on the black tip, contrasting greatly with her white attire.
For a seconds, nothing seemed to happen, then there was a bright flash of blue and white light, the mix of both of their reiatsu. When the light died down Rukia was once again in the flowered yukata, Ichigo in his normal shihakusho, with the sealed zanpakutou of both of them, laying, unsheathed, at a side.
"Rukia…" Ichigo whispered, holding her tightly to himself.
"Ichi…go…" He heard her whisper back.
The relief and joy Ichigo felt in that moment was enough to completely erase all the despair and the pain he'd gone through in the last few hours. Rukia, his Rukia, was back, and nothing else mattered in that moment.
No one could have expected what happened next. A worm-like phantom-ish hollow detached from Rukia's still trembling form, ignored Ichigo, before leaping straight at the two standing, watching from several feet away.
Orihime's reaction to the sudden attack what absolutely instinctive, she didn't even need to say a word as three of her Rikka materialized in front of her and Byakuya in an instant, forming her triangular defensive shield.
The hollow, realizing it wouldn't be able to get through the shield, moved against the next target, the ones most vulnerable in that moment.
Ichigo and Rukia realized what was going to happen, a fraction of a second before it did. Then the hollow crashed against the two fallen 'children', who screamed and began trashing the moment the creature touched them.
"No!" Rukia's scream joined the others.
Not knowing what exactly was going on, Ichigo watched his beloved stumble in the direction of the wailing children.
"Homura! Shizuku!" Rukia cried as she dropped to her knees by them, touching both repeatedly. "No! Leave them alone! Stupid monster! You're not taking them from me again! Not again! You Are Not Taking My Children From Me Again!"
What looked like a storm of white reiatsu rose from Rukia as she held onto the two children, draping her body over theirs, as if trying to shield them with her own, smaller form. And so, the hollow moved against her instead.
"Rukia!" He cried out as he rushed after her.
He stumbled and nearly fell completely just a second later, as he felt something inside his own soul coming dangerously close to snapping.
"Rukia!" He screamed.
Somehow, the half-unconscious, badly hurt children seemed to react to Ichigo's screams.
"Rukia?" They both called as they turned to look at her.
For all answer Rukia began wailing and trashing, as the dark reiatsu began enveloping her again.
"NO!" Ichigo yelled as he got to Rukia, holding her to him as tightly as possible. "Rukia!"
He could still feel the hollow putting great stress on the soul-bond, it was like it would snap at any moment. If that happened…no, he just couldn't think about it, the prospect about losing Rukia, even if just in that rather small way, was more than he could handle.
"Ru…kia…" The children called again, growing more and more worried. "KAA-CHAN!"
It took that long for Orihime to break out of her stupor and rush to where the others were. She immediately dropped to her knees between the four laying on the rocky ground, moving her hands and eyes around repeatedly as if trying to find something to do, some way to help; she hated seeing others hurt and doing nothing.
"Ichigo, what is going on?" She asked after a few seconds.
"The fucking hollow is trying to take her over, for good." Ichigo answered with a snarl. "It's tugging at our bond…so hard…"
"What can I do?" Orihime asked, nervous.
"Try to help the two children." Ichigo answered.
That answer really caught both Orihime, and the still standing Byakuya by surprise.
"They are important to Rukia." Ichigo clarified. "She will hate it if something happens to them on top of everything that already did…"
"What do you plan to do, Kurosaki Ichigo?" Byakuya asked in a very serious tone.
Ichigo took a second to wonder if Byakuya was referring to him like that because he still didn't remember, or because he did and was worried about his sister. In the end, in didn't matter, it didn't change the situation any.
"I'm going to make sure Rukia wins this." Ichigo answered.
Carefully, he touched his forehead to hers, closing his eyes and focusing. Before he had pulled Rukia into his Inner World, now he wanted to do the exact opposite, he wanted to go into hers.
"Ru…kia…" The dark haired boy muttered in a pained tone.
Orihime became aware of their bad injuries right then, and trying her best to push the situation with her two nakama to the back of her head, she focused on her healing shield and covered both of the unknown children with it.
"This is…all our fault…" The boy whispered as he closed his eyes tightly.
"This was supposed to be our punishment, not hers." The blonde added.
It was until then that the two became aware of the orange-tinted oval dome covering them, they immediately turned to look at Orihime.
"What the hell are you doing?!" The blonde demanded in a harsh tone.
"Helping you." Orihime answered softly.
Or at least that's what she was trying to do, and though she had no trouble healing the minor injuries that the two had gained during the fight against Ichigo, there was something else in them, some kind of metaphorical hole through which their life seemed to be leaking. They were dying and Orihime didn't even know why.
"Why isn't this working?!" She cried out, stressed.
"Because we're already dead." The boy deadpanned.
That definitely called both Byakuya's and Orihime's attention.
"If you're dead, how are you here?" Byakuya wanted to know.
"We wanted to see Rukia-kaa again so much…" The boy whispered in a grieving tone. "All that's happened has been our fault. Because we wanted her, but we weren't worthy…"
"This was our punishment." The blonde muttered again. "Because we didn't listen to Rukia… We didn't listen, and everything that's happened since then has been our fault."
"We lost so much…" The boy whispered, beginning to cry.
"And yet we wanted her back, we wanted to see her again, to have her give us our names, like she was going to before everything went so wrong…" The blonde cried. "Before that idiot shinigami ruined it all. Before he took us away…" she turned to the sky, as tears fell down her dirty cheeks. "We just wanted our kaa-chan back!"
Orihime was very upset, and Byakuya could see that clearly. However, he had no way to help her. While he was very good at kidou, healing one wasn't his thing, and if those children were really already dead, had been for decades, there was nothing he could do, nothing either of them could hope to do.
"Inoue-san." He called her softly. "I don't think there's anything that can be done…"
"There is, there has to be." Orihime insisted.
"Inoue-san." Byakuya insisted. "It is quite obvious to me that you're somehow winding back time to undo the wounds in the children, that works well for things that happened recently, but if what killed them did so a century ago…you cannot go that far back."
The noble really didn't like having to say that, it was obvious the girl was a very caring, very sensitive person, it felt wrong to have to take away what hope she might have…but if he didn't stop her he might push herself too far. It wasn't worth it for her to die, especially if not even her death would change anything.
"I don't wind back, I reject…" Orihime clarified, then something occurred to her. "I cannot reject enough time, but I can reject something else."
Before Byakuya understood what exactly she was planning, or either of the children could think about saying anything, the young woman had called back her Rikka, only to send them again, with a new kotodama this time:
"Shun'ou, Ayame, Souten Kisshun! Nibankyuu! I reject!"
xXx
Ichigo had to use all his strength of will to control his need to hurl. What he had just witnessed, what had happened to Rukia, but especially to those two children, innocent children, a century before…it made him totally sick. He understood in that moment why the two hated shinigami so much, and also why Rukia was so important to them, so much they would do anything to have her back. Rukia was their mom, as far as they were concerned, and regardless of how young she might have been at the time, how young she might still be, one way or another. They did everything in an attempt to get their mom back…and who was Ichigo to say it was wrong of them, when he had no idea how far he would go to get his own mom back?
"It is truly a tragedy what happened in the past, but you need to focus on the present Ichigo." A serious voice told her.
"If you don't, there's no way those kids are getting back their momma, or you your snow-princess, aibou." A second voice said in a more biting tone.
Ichigo blinked as he noticed suddenly where he was standing. It looked like a park, or the clearing in a forest, except it was winter, and the lake occupying at least half of the area was frozen. There was snow and ice all around, snowflakes floating as if in some kind of permanent, soft snowstorm. And yet, somehow, it wasn't really all that cold.
He was in Rukia's Inner World, and somehow, getting there he'd ended up pulling both Zangetsu and Shiro with him, it was them who were trying to get him to focus, and he knew why. Sode no Shirayuki was standing a few feet away, on the edge of the lake, watching the vicious battle taking place over the reflecting surprise, the battle between two that looked so much alike and yet were entirely different.
Ichigo was about to call to her, until he realized that would be extremely stupid, one did not distract a person in a life-or-death battle; and, in a sense, the fight taking place before him was more than even that. All he could do was focus on their stressed bond and send as much love, confidence and strength through it as he could. He believed in Rukia, she could win, she would win, anything else was simply not acceptable, or possible.
However, with Rukia, she wasn't actually trying to win, or at least, she wasn't actively trying to defeat her darker half; instead, she was attempting a more unorthodox approach.
"We do not have to fight." Rukia insisted as she evaded a slash from her darker half.
"Yes we do!" Dark Rukia replied. "We have to fight. I have to win, I have to take you down, to take control…otherwise I will be erased from existence!"
"I would never do that." Rukia shook her head.
"That's what you say now." Dark Rukia snarled. "But I'm a hollow, you're a shinigami. Who do you think you're fooling?! You already went against me…"
"Because you were hurting the children, my children." Rukia answered defensively. "No one hurts them and gets away with it."
"Even worse." Her opponent growled. "Then you'll just use that as an excuse to destroy me!"
"I do not want to destroy you, not if I don't have to."
"Why?! Why not?! You're not making any sense!"
"We don't have to be enemies. We can learn to co-exist, help each other."
"I'm a hollow, I don't do 'playing nice'."
"You could if you wanted to, you're already taking parts of me, making them yours, otherwise you wouldn't still look like me after Ichigo lent me his power to overcome the fusion. You are a part of me already. If you accept it, we can learn to handle it."
"I don't believe you!"
Rukia had no idea what else to do, or say, how to convince her 'darker twin' that she was saying the truth, and then she became aware of her beloved's presence in her Inner World, and she also noticed he wasn't alone…
"Look behind you." Rukia parried a blow before speaking again. "Can you see the orange-haired shinigami standing there, with a white double by his side?"
A couple of blows more and the two switched places.
"I see him, them." Dark Rukia stated. "What about them?"
"Can you sense what makes them similar, and what makes them different?" Rukia inquired.
It took several seconds and some more, less strong, blows, before Dark Rukia could truly get a feel for the energies of the two teenagers.
"One is a shinigami, the other is a hollow." Dark Rukia seemed completely confused by that.
"One is like me, the other like you." Rukia reinforced the idea. "The first is Ichigo, my soul-mate, and the other is his Inner Hollow: Shiro. They are part of the same soul, of the same person, just like we are…or could be."
"Would you really accept me?" Dark Rukia asked, unsure.
"I already do." Rukia assured her. "The question is, can you accept becoming a part of me?" she sighed. "You'll spend most of the time in my Inner World, with Shirayuki-san. Once I learn how I'll do my best to include you in the fights, and it's likely that at some point I'll need your help, just considering the enemies I'll be going against…"
"It would make things interesting." Dark Rukia admitted. "And something tells me if I don't agree, then I will be erased…"
"I just don't want others to end up hurt."
"And you would hurt yourself to manage that?"
"Without hesitation."
"You know this will have consequences? Deep, permanent consequences?" The hollow closed her eyes, not sure why she was feeling so afraid, not for herself but for the one offering her so much. "Your soul will be split. The power given to you by the ones whose soul is bound to yours will allow you to endure this, and to heal from the trauma, but the splitting will be permanent. Just like his is…"
"I know, I guessed it was a possibility. I accept it. I accept you."
Those seemed to be the magic words. As Dark Rukia rushed her dark counterpart one last time. Right before their weapons could clash, they disappeared, and the two slammed against one another. A snowstorm seemed to appear right on the spot, the howling of the wind made even worse by the feminine screams coming from it.
"RUKIA!" Ichigo screamed.
For him it was even worse, he wasn't only hearing his beloved scream, again, he could also feel the tear on the bond, grow more and more; so much it was like the bond would fully snap any second. That was the only reason why he hadn't rushed straight into the snowstorm to save Rukia, the pain he was in in that moment was so great he couldn't move, couldn't breathe and could hardly even think.
Shiro hated so much to see his partner, his brother like that, he couldn't help but drop on his knees, taking hold of one of Ichigo's hands, trying to offer some kind of comfort, even when he could feel the echoes of the bond tearing and understood why the orange-head was like that.
Then, it was like everything snapped in an instant. Ichigo and Shiro both extended their free hands in the direction of the sudden-exploding snowstorm.
"RUKIA!"
"SNOW-PRINCESS!"
It was over.
For a second, an almost eternal second, nothing happened. Then, it was like an implosion, of reiatsu, of pure strength of will, and heart, and soul.
When everything cleared again Ichigo and Rukia were standing in the middle of the frozen lake, with their counterparts standing at their sides, and they were all holding hands.
Ichigo and Rukia could both sense the difference easily enough. Rukia's soul had split, the power Ichigo had shared with her through his zanpakutou allowed her to heal from something that would have destroyed most mature, powerful spirits. Then, half of her soul had fused with the remnants of the old memory-reaping hollow. The soul-bond, after coming so close to snapping so many times in a short while had finally stabilized again, managing to compensate for the change. In the end, all four of them were soul-bonded, each to their respective counterpart, as well as their 'Perfect Match'.
"Well," Ichigo decided to break the ice with a witty comment. "Seems like you'll be getting your snow-princess after all, eh Shiro?"
"Snow…no way!" Shiro shook his head with a wicked smirk. "This new girl is much too hot for that! Smoking hot!"
The 'Dark Rukia' looked Ichigo's white counterpart up and down before snorting and looking away pointedly.
Ichigo and Rukia couldn't help it they laughed.
xXx
That evening the dinner took place at the Kuchiki Manor as scheduled. It was a good thing that, even if practically everyone forgot Rukia, the members of the household were so used to just follow instructions that they never stopped arranging everything.
Ichigo and Rukia spent the night clinging to each other, basking in the fact that not only their soul-bond still existed, but the one formed between their Inner Hollows seemed to have strengthened the union as a whole. Orihime for her part had been unconscious since the two left Rukia's Inner World which, they suspected was becoming Their Inner World, judging by the city that was forming around the small winter-meadow, especially the skyscrapers which were so characteristic of Ichigo's world. The other parts of their souls had no problem whatsoever with the sudden development, since it allowed them to be closer themselves; though the Dark Rukia, whom Shiro had taken to calling Kaijin (Ash/Embers) kept rejecting her 'soulmate' rather coldly. Ichigo and Rukia found it very funny.
The truly miraculous thing that afternoon, was the recovery of Homura and Shizuku who, in fact, went back to being children after Orihime's use of her powers on them; they were exactly like they'd been a century earlier. They had all their memories intact, of their death, of their time in Hueco Mundo, their attempts to get Rukia back; But they were alive, as if that fateful encounter with the possessed shinigami had never happened. At first they had actually feared Ichigo, or even Rukia would hold something against them for their actions, but they didn't. What's more, Ichigo proposed that the two be adopted by Rukia and him, making them truly Rukia's children, a proposition they accept with great delight. Rukia in particular was absolutely delighted, she had always seen the two more as her children than siblings, and having them truly be a part of her family was more than she could have ever dreamt of.
It was an unprecedented move, for a pair of adopted nobles to adopt two Rukongai children themselves and give them their name, however, Kasumi fully supported Ichigo's decision. And in a clan as small as the Nagaken, any possibility of its strength increasing was accepted with little doubt or complaint. And even if the Kuchiki would like to say some things themselves, it wasn't their name being offered, so their opinions mattered little,
The following morning after breakfast, when Orihime went back to sleep to recover from the use of her powers the previous day, after leaving Homura and Shizuku to explore what was, effectively, their new home to their leisure, Rukia, Ichigo and Byakuya got together in Ichigo's private office with some tea, to have a pretty serious conversation.
"You have Inner Hollows." Byakuya stated blankly, watching the pair carefully.
Rukia was so shocked by her brother's words she nearly spat the tea she had just spit.
"Well." Ichigo said after sipping his own beverage. "If that's not a conversation opener, I don't know what is."
"Stop your sarcasms Kurosaki, this is serious." Byakuya stated in a sold voice. "You and Rukia are, somehow, Visored."
"Well Byakuya-san." Ichigo said, still pretty relaxed. "I have to say that while your first comment was pretty much on target, you're rather mistaken on the second."
"I know what I sensed coming from you, from both of you." Byakuya insisted. "The dark reiatsu, the double-layer of power…you're like Hirako and the others."
"Once again Byakuya-san, you're only half right." Ichigo insisted.
Byakuya was about to say something, but Ichigo stopped him with a hand motion. He knew Rukia was still shaken by how quickly her new status had been discovered, they hadn't even begun her training yet; in any case, that meant Ichigo would have to handle explanations himself, he just hoped Rukia's brother won't kill him before he's done.
"It is true we have Inner Hollows, I won't deny it." Ichigo said directly. "But things aren't as simple as you might believe either. We're not really Visored, even though the basis of their powers, and ours, are the same; there are some details that make us very different. Mashiro named me the 'Maskless Visored', and as childish as I think the title might sound, it is actually quite fitting. Because that's the core of the difference between the Visored, and us, the masks…"
What followed was the most detailed explanation Ichigo could manage. He knew that Byakuya, more than anyone aside from him and Rukia (in each other's cases) deserved to know everything he possibly could about the situation. He explained how he'd ended up with a hollow himself, what it all meant to him, not just the powers, but mentally and emotionally. Then they had gone into how and when Rukia had found out about him, her acceptance of him, and of Shiro. Then they went into what had happened the previous day…
"If the hollow possessed her, like what Aizen did to the Visored, or what that other hollow did to Shiba-fukutaichou and his wife, how is Rukia any different from the Visored?" Byakuya asked.
"Because I accepted her." Surprisingly, it was Rukia who answered.
"Accepted her?" Byakuya repeated, not quite sure he was understanding correctly.
"Kaijin, that's my darker twin's name, just like Shiro is Ichigo's." Rukia explained. "And while I may have ended up with a hollow in a similar way to the Visored and… Kaien-dono and Miyako-dono, the difference is that I chose not to fight her. I proved I could do it, by standing up to her, but in the end chose not to do so, never tried to destroy her. I gave her my trust, and she gave me hers, very much like Ichigo and Shiro did with each other. And even though Kaijin might have been a separate entity at once time, the same ability that allowed her to assimilate others before, allowed her to join with me. Then, when acceptance came, my soul split…" she raised her hand to stop the upcoming denials. "I know that would normally destroy someone, but Ichigo had lent me some of his power just before, to allow me to break the fusion between Homura, Shizuku and myself. That power allowed me to endure the split and recover enough that now I have two souls instead of one, or three if you count Shirayuki-san."
"So, is there any risk?" Byakuya asked, above everything, worried for his sister.
"None." Rukia shook her head. "Kaijin really isn't bad. Right now we're still getting used to the fact that we were originally one, and yet at the same time not. Also, the soul-bond Ichigo and I share seems to have extended to our Inner Hollows, which puts a new level in our dynamics."
"Eventually she'll be able to train to use Kaijin's powers." Ichigo added. "Just like I use Shiro's."
"What powers are we talking about here?" Byakuya wanted to know all he could.
"Well, Cero is a given." Ichigo began enlisting. "I think Rukia should be able to use bala as well, I cannot, since I don't have the control necessary. There are other special abilities Kaijin might have, like the memory reaping and such and, eventually, Resurreccion."
Byakuya nodded, Ichigo had already explained about his own Resurreccion, and while a part of him worried what all this might mean for his sister and her husband in the long run, how the Gotei 13, and especially the Chamber 46 might react when they found out, and eventually they would; he also couldn't help but be thankful, because it all meant his sister had access to another source and level of power, and she wasn't alone. Ichigo would make sure she was alright, he would be with her every step of the way, and even with as extraordinary as her situation might be, she would never be alone. Nothing was more important than that.
There was only one detail left.
"All this is going on, has obviously been going on for a while, at least where Ichigo-san is concerned." Byakuya stated in a low but very serious tone. "Yet I didn't know…"
"Before you say something, or suggest something that might end up with someone being hurt, I will explain that." Ichigo interrupted him swiftly. "It was not, as you might be thinking, a lack of trust. The truth is, we…Rukia didn't want to place you in a compromising position. Make it so you might have to choose between your family, and your duty…again."
"I would make the right choice." Byakuya declared stoically.
"I know that." Ichigo didn't even hesitate when saying that. "Still, we thought it best if we didn't force you to choose until it was absolutely necessary. After the last 'conversation' we had with Yamamoto we considered telling you everything, we never came to a definite decision. And then this happened…" he shook his head. "I never imagined we could end up in this position some day, that Rukia might end up like me…a hybrid. But, on the flip side, at least she and her Hollow aren't actually actively trying to destroy each other."
That was definitely a very good thing.
"We trust you Byakuya-Nii-sama, I trust you." Rukia confirmed with a smile. "You're my big brother,
how could I do anything but? I just, I really didn't want to put you in a difficult position. Make things more complicated for you…"
"There's no complication in this Imouto-chan." Byakuya said with the softest voice anyone had ever heard from him. "It might have taken me a while to fully act like it. But in the end, you're my sister, nothing is more important than that."
Rukia smiled brightly at her brother at that, as did Ichigo. Byakuya was truly becoming the best brother he could be, and that was definitely a good thing too.
xXx
Rukia and Ichigo left Seireitei along with Homura and Shizuku that same afternoon, knowing their Nakama must be very worried about them. They had talked to Urahara before he and Yoruichi left Seireitei again, about getting gigai for the children and arranging papers for them; the shinigami-turned-shopkeeper had promised to have everything ready when the small family got back. Officially they would be the Kurosakis new foster children, only those closest to them would know who their parents actually were.
Orihime was left to rest some more in her room at the Nagaken Estate, she would be making her way back either that same night or the following morning, arrangements had been made and Kasumi would open the Senkaimon for her to go back in time to get to her apartment, shower, change and get to school on time. At least that was the plan.
In the end Orihime spent most of Sunday sleeping, getting ready to leave early on Monday morning. Dressed once again in the yukata she had arrived in, she agreed on a short breakfast with Yailen before walking to the prepared Senkaimon. During the breakfast Orihime noticed the older girl kept looking at her strangely, as if searching for something that couldn't be seen at plain sight, however, in the end Yailen said nothing.
"See ya, Yailen-san." The Rikka wielder said goodbye to the older girl with a smile.
"See ya Orihime." Yailen answered, a strange glint in her eyes. "Good luck."
Kasumi insisted on sending a couple of escorts with Orihime, just to make sure the girl would arrive alright, it took the teenager until they were already halfway through the Dangai to convince the two guards that she could go the rest of the way alone, it wasn't like she hadn't gone through the Dangai before, and her Rikka would make it so that even if the Senkaimon opened in the middle of the air, she could handle the situation.
Once the escorts were gone, Orihime continued her careful walk down the Dangai at a steady pace. She wasn't running, didn't really need to, as long as the Cleaner didn't appear she had no need to rush, and it might not be a good idea, considering the clothes she was wearing.
It was right as she was less than ten feet away from the end of the path, that things changed abruptly. She could feel power, dark energy, as a rip opened in thin air, right behind her. It was followed by the entrance of a dark reiatsu into the Dangai, a presence she could identify scarily easily, even after only having seen the owner twice.
"Onna." A hard, cold voice called her from behind.
Orihime turned around slowly, calmly, her eyes showing no surprise, no fear, as if she'd known it was all going to happen long before her 'visitor' appeared.
"Hello, Ulquiorra." She greeted the newcomer easily.
xXx
In a time of wars, of lords, of princesses, and samurais, of warriors and great powers, a small girl stood in her room, dressed in a furisode kimono in shades of blue, purple and some red and orange, the image was that of a rainy horizon; her long straight hair was as black as a raven's wings, and her eyes violet as the midnight moonless sky.
The main door of the room opened and a tall man dressed in an elegant kimono entered.
"It's time." He announced in a very serious voice.
The two servants who had been standing, pretty much unseen, at corners of the room, went to place a couple of bags by the little girl, before bowing deeply to the man and leaving the room.
Right as they left a young boy, barely a year or two older than the girl, entered the room and immediately took the bags, before going to a corner of the room, where a huge tapestry of another rainy landscape, this time a garden, hung. The boy moved the tapestry to reveal a hidden passage, there he stood and waited.
"I don't want to leave, Chichihue!" The girl cried as she threw herself into the man's arms. "I do not want to leave you!"
Until that moment she'd been the picture of the perfect poised princess, but she couldn't keep faking it, not when leaving hurt so much.
"This is necessary my little princess, I wish it weren't so…" The father shook his head with regret. "It is not fair for you to have to pay for the mistakes of my past. But that is how it is. For your own safety you must leave, tonight. And you are to never come back."
She knew all that, it had been explained to her before, didn't mean she had to like it. But in the end she loved her father, very much, because she loved him she wanted to stay, and for that very same reason she would leave. Because it was what he wished her to do.
With a nod, the little princess walked to where the boy was waiting for her, he placed a black cloak over her furisode, to hide her from plain sight, before going into the passage, to guide her. For one last time, the girl looked back, at the father who observed her from her door.
"I love you Chichi…" She whispered softly for what she knew would be the last time.
"I love you too." He whispered back at her. "Always and forever. You're my little princess, never forget that. My Amekimi…"
With a last, teary nod, the girl nodded once and then disappeared into the passage.
It was the beginning of a story… one which one day would become legend.
Regarding Orihime's 'new spell': Goten (Fifth-Heaven) Sutashun (Star-shield). Like the two mixed shields from before, it's essentially two of them working in tandem, and the reasons for them to exist are as she explains to Byakuya in the chapter itself. I really wanted to explore more the idea Kubo started in canon when he gave Orihime her fourth shield, but it never went anywhere. I won't be giving Orihime any more spells but she doesn't need them, I don't think. Still, there's a lot more to come on that front!
From this chapter on we're starting something that can essentially be seen as a 'story inside a story'. That's important for one of the subplots in this fic, I'm sure the reasons will become obvious really fast, if they haven't already. If anyone wants to make guesses as to where things are going I'd be delighted to read all about your thoughts of this.
To Orihime, Ulquihime fans... your moment's coming! The main part of the Hueco Mundo arc is coming!
See ya next week...