Hello hello. Quick update is a good update in my opinion!

Thank you to all of you who reviewed and reassured me that last chapter wasn't as terrible as I thought, you guys are the best!

Just a small little Author Note: When Sam calls Orihime, "Inoue" it isn't a formal thing like it is in Japan. He says it as it would be used in America, as if she were 'one of the guys'. Just thought I should mention that!

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or any of its characters but everything else is mine.

Let's get into the thick of it!-

The next week presented itself with a routine.

Wake up, have breakfast with my father and Ryley, train, meetings with the council, meetings with the wedding planners, lunch with Ryley, train even more, patrol on the wall, dinner alone- though Ichigo sometimes emerged from the shadows to sit with me- and then back to my room to bathe and sleep. Then repeat.

Routines can be good. They can give you a certain amount of control in an otherwise hectic world. There was an almost calming feel to knowing exactly what was going to happen next. I'm sure that's how some people really feel.

But I most definitely wasn't one of them.

Ever since Ryley had come to stay in the Courts, I'd felt smothered. Wake up, Ryley was there. Finish training, there he was again. Like he too was constantly watching me. I'm sure he and Ichigo would get along well, talking in the shadows, waiting for the worst time to appear in front of me.

But the one good thing Ryley brought with him was peace of mind. For Clark had been distant, a pleasant distant. Yet, there were bad things to be taken from it, being left alone made me far too comfortable. I no longer felt the need to watch over my shoulder. To hold my breath before I turned a corner.

Though, I had a feeling that Ryley was not the cause of Clark's distraction. I had not seen the woman in black since that day in the dining hall, but I knew she remained in the courts. I would not forget the slimy feeling of her presence as long as I lived.

Night was beginning to fall, the sun drooping over the horizon. Another day gone. Another day lost. And a smaller step towards my future; bleak as it may be.

And for the past half hour I'd been trying to ignore the small chill at the back of my neck, but it had only grown. "You might as well walk with me, if you're gonna make your presence so obvious." I called behind my shoulder. It was a few seconds before I heard his footsteps come up behind me.

"And here I thought I was being stealthy." Ichigo sighed, as he fell into step beside me, his hands in his pockets. "I don't think you have a stealthy bone in your body." I threw back. Over the week I'd come to feel his eyes far easier. Which lead me to believe that his skill within the first few days had just been a mirage, a trick of luck that only lasted until I had learned more about his movements.

He leaned in close to me, whispering, "Or is that what I want you to think?" Tapping his finger against his temple, clearly making it a real thinking point. My lip twitched up.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, setting a comfortable rhythm.

"So, I've been following you for a while but I don't think I know anything about you, aside from the obvious." He stated out of the blue.

I couldn't help but smile, just a bit, at his attempt at small talk. "Oh? And what's so obvious about me?"

"That you're a real talker, like man I just can't get you to shut up sometimes!" I laughed out right, the sheer force of it shocked me. And even Ichigo seemed a bit surprised. "You should do that more often, it's nice." He said it so quickly, as if it were nothing, before moving on. "Oh! I know that you are an avid reader, even though you have some pretty dark tastes."

I started at that, "I don't have dark tastes!"

He looked sideways at me, "I've seen the contents of the library you call a room, half the books in there end in death! Unless, of course, you have a secret stash of dirty alone time books, in which case please tell me all about it."

"Oh, please." I rolled my eyes dramatically. "Besides, you already know more about me than I know about you."

"You know plenty." He shrugged.

"I know you're from Bellator. And that you're an awful spy. That's about it." Once the words were out, I realized how easy it was to say them. How quickly they flew out, without a thought. I don't think I had ever spoken to anyone so casually. If anyone were to see us, and tell my father...

"What else is there to know about a guy?" he said it softly, like he could sense the shift within me and was worried about me shrinking further into myself.

Ichigo was a rebel, he was here to gather information. He was a traitor to the crown, and yet here I was, talking freely with him. His words from earlier floated in my head. Could he actually be tricking me into believing him a terrible spy, so that slowly, I would let my guard down and speak of things I should never talk about. With anyone. And he would take those words back to the rebellion, to Kisuke and Bronze.

And what of Ryley; What would he have to say if he learned of his betrothed walking on the wall with another man? What would Clark do if he believed I was stepping out on my soon to be king?

Ichigo laid his hand on my shoulder gently, I swirled around, literally stumbling out of my thoughts. "Don't touch me." I hissed, throwing a cautious look over my shoulder, knowing Clark's eyes were always watching.

He withdrew his hands as if I had burned him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-" He cut himself off before looking down, his eyes covered in shadows. And when he looked up again, they were unbothered.

"I guess, you'll always remain a mystery. I'll let you continue alone from here. I'll be seeing you, Princess."

And with that he was gone, disappearing back into the shadows. And this time, though I knew he was still watching, I could not feel his eyes. Making me certain of my suspicions, Ichigo was a far better spy than he'd led me to believe.

And I was really beginning to hate this patrol.

"Pick it up!" I shouted over their echoing footsteps.

Up and down the stairs they ran. Up, down. Up, down. It had barely been twenty minutes and they looked like they were ready to explode if it meant they could breathe freely. They would need far more stamina.

"I don't think they realized how true my words were that first day." Sam laughed from beside me, arms crossed. "You really do make me look like a picnic, Inoue."

"You just don't push them as far as you should." I corrected. "They might hate you for it, as I'm sure they hate me now, but we hated our instructors too, at first. But now we see why we needed the tough love."

He was nodding, never taking his eyes off his boys as they forced their knees high. "I've lost enough of them this year, Orihime. And I'll push them as hard as needed to ensure that I don't lose anymore."

I remembered what it was like. To be the one running up those steps. To watch my comrades disappear month by month, to watch them die in the trials. Some right in front of me. An, perhaps it should have made me more understanding, make me want to let them rest, but it was just the opposite. Sam and I had never been allowed to rest, and I had no doubt that is why we were here today.

"Speaking of love..." Sam ventured, his voice turning heavy. "How are things going with the Northerner?"

Gritting my teeth I huffed out a big sigh, "He is... very Northern."

"Yes, people from the North have a way of being that way."

"That's not what I mean. I've just grown up in this world." I gestured around me vaguely. He nodded. "And- not that I put much thought into it, but I always assumed that the man I married would be more..." I struggled to find the words. "Like you, I guess."

"We can't all be soldiers, Hime."

"Yeah, I know but how am I to trust him, Sam? Trust him to lead my people, to lead you- and them." I was shaking my head, not liking the idea at all. "He's never even been to war, yet I'm suppose to allow him to send my men into battle, knowing I can not go with them? That I will be shoved to his side, pretending that this was never my way of life? I can't do it. I won't."

These thoughts had been rising and rising inside of me ever since the Gathering. A rising fire, and ever moment spent with my betrothed only added more fuel to the flames. Ryley was kind, and I had no doubt that he would make a great husband. But that did not mean he would make a good king. And I had lived every second of my life being bred into a ruler the Golden City deserved. One it needed.

Ryley had stolen that from me.

No, not Ryley. Clark.

My fathers reasoning had yet to be revealed but the more I brooded and sulked the more it seemed likely that this was a core motivation to this arranged marriage.

"I can understand that. I've known you practically my whole life, we have fought together countless times, and I respect you as a general and that respect will remain when you are Queen... But as your friend, I think maybe you are looking at this the wrong way." Glancing sideways, I saw he was already staring down at me, his body still turned towards the recruits. "Aren't you tired, Orihime? Tired of the death and the unending scars? Don't look at this as a door being closed, look at it as one you never thought could exist being swung open. This could be your way out, Hime. If I were you I'd at least consider taking it."

I stared at him, baffled. Never had I expected Sam of all people to be saying these things. He was a warrior, a soldier, through and through. He was happy with all the decisions that lead him here... or so I'd thought.

Yet, his words made a lot of sense to me. I had been too far into my self pity to see the bigger picture. If I was not General, if I was merely a queen to a King... I could be anything- do anything I wanted. No Clark breathing down my neck. No schedules or responsibilities.

Free...

I took a step forward, towards the stairs, but shot a look over my shoulder, "If you ever need that door, Sam." He seemed to be holding his breath. "Let me know."

A dazzling male smile was all the answer I needed.

"Alright, wrap it up!" I hollered.

And in a whoosh, all the recruits were at the bottom of the steps, some collapsing completely to the ground dramatically, chests heaving as they tried to catch their breath.

"I can't tell you what your next task is," All of their heads popped up at once, nostrils flaring slightly. "but I can tell you, that if you wish to succeed, you'll need to be able to run much longer than that." I took in their clothes- or lack there of. "Wearing a lot more."

They all glanced at each other, the looks looking like they would rather die than take another step. Hisagi stood in the back of the group, looking at Juanca, who stared back. Hisagi had been distant ever since I had left him here to go to the Merchant District. When I had told him never to question me. I tried not to take his distance personally, and instead tried to see it as a small gift. With all going on around me lately, it was best if he stayed away. But I was glad to see he had finally found a friend within his squad.

A black figure emerged at the top of the banister. Ichigo, leaned with his elbows braced on the metal, his chin cupped in his large palm. His face was blank, no trace of why he was out in the open. I snapped my eyes back down, before anyone else could notice the small feeling of panic that rose in me. "That's it for today, and why don't you guys take tomorrow off." I threw a smirk over my shoulder at Sam who had come up behind me. "And you can thank Sam for that small freedom."

He was shaking his head, but I knew he appreciated the gesture.

"Man, you're just a magnet for attractive guys, aren't you?" Ichigo groaned when I met him at the landing. "How do I compete with body builder soldiers?"

I ignored his teasing. "You shouldn't be here. The more people know about why you're here the more danger your friends are in." How could he not understand that?

"I got bored standing all by myself while you're down there making friends." He finished with a nod over my head. I glanced back and saw Sam, still utterly shirtless, making his way up to us. I whirled back to Ichigo. "He's a loyalist." That was all I had time to say before-

"Sam Cortman." Sam held out a hand that Ichigo shook firmly.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, nice to meet you. Orihime's always talking about you."

Two pairs of eyes looked at me, and I rubbed the back of my neck, letting the words ramble out of my mouth, in hopes a viable excuse fell out. "Yeah, Ichigo is interested in becoming a Royal Guard, even though I keep telling him he missed the recruitment age by a long shot but I told him you were the man to see."

Ichigo's eyes sparkled. And Sam just seemed taken off guard as he nodded. "Oh, well we don't even begin looking for anyone for another six months. How old are you, Ichigo?"

"Twenty-two."

"Two years over recruiting age..." Sam looked at me and then bumped me with his naked shoulder. "But since Hime referred you, I think I can make a small exception. You have any fighting experience?"

I was glaring at Ichigo, pouring every bit of anger I had at the world into it and he wasn't even bothered as he said, "You can say that."

Sam laughed, "Right. Well, why don't you come train with us for a while? Then I can see what you've got. We meet at 10am and 2pm, everyday. Except tomorrow, since Inoue suddenly sprouted a heart."

Ichigo was already agreeing before I could think of a valid reason why that was a very, very terrible idea.

A within the course of a two minute conversation, Ichigo and Sam were the best of friends.

.

.

.

Oh Ichigo you sly motherfluffer. Just keep worming your way in! I believe in you!

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I loved writing it!

Please review if you have any thoughts!

Till next time!-