Thanks a lot if you're still Reading this silly story!
Just a friendly reminder that this story is NOT related to any of my other fanfics, enjoy!
Chapter 7
Freedom at last.
Ichigo was nervous as hell, he couldn't even remember the last time he felt this way, it was ridiculous to an untold degree. Two days after starting to study at Rukia's tree house he had taken the test online and, while he answered all of it, he didn't want to feel overconfident about it, what if he blew up his only chance to stay at the countryside? What if he had failed his whole year? What would his father say? What would his friends say? He was feeling anxious about the whole thing.
Not to mention that Yoruichi would kill the hell out of him, that was what scared Ichigo the most.
"Are you having a panic attack?" Rukia asked him casually "because it's interesting, I've never seen anyone had one."
Ichigo frowned at her.
Rukia was sitting across from him at the dining room table, since he had taken the exam already Yoruichi allowed her inside the cottage once more and, after making a huge deal about how her godmother left her homeless just to help a boy, she made herself at home again and forced Ichigo to watch some "Chappy" thing on Urahara's flat screen. Now, they were both waiting for the group call to start so Ichigo could receive his results with his classmates, he wasn't looking forward to that.
"I'm not panicking," Ichigo lied "I'm just anxious."
"Same thing," Rukia pointed out and then smirked "relax, once Ukitake-sama tells you how great you did we're going to the lake, I already prepared a bike for you."
"You know Ukitake-san?" Ichigo asked at the mention of the Principal.
Rukia nodded.
"He's one of daddy's friends," she explained "why?"
"I just thought that if you're close to him you could visit the school," Ichigo mentioned "I know you have like elite classes online but school is fun and-"
"Never!" Rukia interrupted him with a firm voice "I will never go to a normal school, I hate them."
"Have you actually gone to one?" Ichigo questioned.
"Yes, I have" Rukia admitted "for two years, the worst two years of my life."
Ichigo frowned, he thought about pushing the topic further, schools weren't that bad, sure he almost blew up his school year but that was because of personal issues, not because he hated school, what was Rukia's deal? He never got to ask, because Yoruichi stepped into the dining room with homemade cookies and placed the plate in front of Rukia.
"Shut the fuck up and eat those," his godmother ordered the Kuchiki heiress "otherwise I'm shoving them down your throat."
"I love you," Rukia gasped as she grabbed the first cookie and then smiled at Yoruichi "have I told you that?"
"Only when I feed you," Yoruichi frowned and then took a seat next to Rukia "stop torturing Ichigo."
"Uh," Rukia scoffed "I knew you were spoiling me just for his sake."
Ichigo rolled his eyes to disguise how relieved he was at having them with him, the video call was about to start and he would be forced to receive the results with the worst of the class and Grimmjow, Ichigo's biggest nemesis, was among them, just the thought of having to stand his smug grin was making Ichigo flinch inwardly.
"Relax," Yoruichi told him while passing him a cookie "you did great, otherwise you wouldn't be my godson."
Rukia nodded as she grabbed another cookie and Ichigo took a bite of his.
"Of course he did great!" Urahara exclaimed while stepping into the dining room "which is why I'll let you off farm duties for the rest of the summer."
"Really?!" Ichigo asked beaming, he hated farm duties.
"Scout's honor!" Urahara swore and smiled "I might consider give them back to you if you break the rules, of course, but after we get today's results you'll be free."
Ichigo nodded as he finished the cookie and, with newfound confidence, he clicked on the link to access the online meeting, the call connected almost instantly and Ichigo saw all of his least favorite classmates, apparently Ukitake-san was not in the meeting yet. The orange haired teenager took a deep breath as he tried to put up a poker face, the fact that Rukia's curious, and gorgeous, eyes were on him was not making anything easier.
"Look who's here," Grimmjow, a blue haired boy with a mean grin, greeted sardonically "Kurosaki fucking Ichigo, to what do we owe the honor of the rich boy's presence?"
Grimmjow, Ichigo thought of course. The orange haired teenager wanted to answer to the taunts, he wanted to give Grimmjow a piece of his mind, but the words died on his throat the moment he noticed the reaction of his godparents and Rukia. Rukia's eyes widened the moment Grimmjow spoke and Yoruichi gaped, they obviously recognized his voice, Rukia even paled slightly, Ichigo frowned at that and then looked at Urahara.
"What…?" Ichigo tried to ask but stopped himself as he noticed how his godfather, always so cheery and kind, looked murderous.
Urahara was clenching his fists to the point where his knuckles looked white, he was tense as hell and it showed on his jaw and shoulders, but what surprised Ichigo the most were Urahara's eyes, there was nothing but a deep hatred behind his eyes, Ichigo didn't have any doubts, they all knew Grimmjow and Urahara loathed him with fiery passion.
But why?! Ichigo wondered inwardly.
"What is it, Kurosaki?!" Grimmjow kept taunting him "cat got your tongue?!"
It took three seconds for Urahara to compose himself, he took a deep breath and, after hiding his expression by lowering his hat over his eyes, left the dining room. Ichigo gulped as he felt a little angry, didn't Urahara say how he wanted to be with him once he were to receive his test score?! Something on his face must've shown because Yoruichi decided to intervene.
"Fuck, sorry Ichigo, is not you" Yoruichi explained as she stood up hurriedly "I better look for him before he blows something on the basement," she shook her head "Kisuke!" she yelled as she ran out of the dining room.
"Oh! Kurosaki is with a girl!" Ashido exclaimed after he heard Yoruichi yelling "who would be so desperate as to give you the time of the day?!"
Ichigo was fed up, he was about to log out of the call, what was the point of keep listening to the assholes anyway? Why was Ukitake-san taking so much time to access the meeting? Ichigo clenched his fist but, before he could do anything, Rukia stopped him, she stood up fast and, without even asking for permission, she rounded the table and sat down on his lap to face the computer.
Ichigo gulped as she made herself comfortable, he could actually feel her curves and he started to beg for his blush not to show, this was the first time he had a girl on his lap, how was he supposed to react? What was he supposed to do? He didn't know where to put his hands! Was the room growing hotter or was his imagination?
"Uh," Rukia said as she smirked at Ichigo's classmates "I knew the voices were familiar," she tilted her head slightly "how have you been Grimmjow?"
Ichigo paid attention to Grimmjow's reaction, he had known him since forever, so he was surprised to see that Grimmjow, always so smug and loud, was speechless. His smirk faded, he paled slightly, he gaped and his eyes widened, but that was just the initial reaction because a few seconds after Ichigo noticed something else: annoyance. Grimmjow was annoyed at Rukia? No, that didn't feel right, he was surprised at seeing her but he was annoyed at Ichigo.
"I heard that you were not here in Karakura, Kurosaki" Grimmjow muttered with venom "but to think that-"
Rukia chuckled.
"Ichigo came to visit me," she said smugly as she put an arm around Ichigo's shoulders "we're going to the lake after Ukitake-sama tells him that he aced the test," she looked at Ichigo then "are you friends with Grimmjow?" she questioned.
"Don't insult me, midget" Ichigo scoffed feeling quite pompous at having her so close "in case that it is not obvious, we cannot even be on the same video call without jumping at each other's' throats."
Rukia laughed once more and looked at the computer again.
"I'm glad," she hissed and then looked at another one of his classmates "Ashido, uh? How are you able to afford an education at Ichigo's school? Scholarship?" she asked.
Ashido blushed with shame.
"None of your business," he muttered upset "I didn't mean to-"
"No, you're not smart enough for an scholarship," Rukia interrupted him and then sighed "Ukitake-sama keeps doing charity with lost and desperate causes," she shook her head "daddy already advised him against that."
Ichigo laughed at that, he felt horribly because he knew that Ashido's family situation was not an easy one, but having Rukia on his side against the assholes was truly something else, didn't he deserve a moment like this? If it wasn't for Rukia he would've been alone against all of them, he decided to enjoy this and to worry about feeling guilty later.
"What about you?" Rukia asked then while focusing on Grimmjow again "I'm pretty sure that you do not deserve to be at a school like that."
Ichigo blinked at that as Grimmjow glared at Rukia.
"Don't you dare," Grimmjow hissed "you already ruined my life once! If you-"
"If you threaten me right now I am telling daddy where you study and we'll see if you manage to keep your place in that school," Rukia warned high and mighty "I mean it."
Ichigo fought the urge to show his shock when Grimmjow closed his mouth; the rest of the classmates, Ulquiorra, Ginjo, Tsukishima and the other troublemakers were shocked at that as well, no one had power over Grimmjow, no one, however Rukia managed to shut him up. Ichigo thought right there that she was really Byakuya's daughter.
"You'll keep quiet for the rest of the meeting," Rukia ordered once more "the same goes for Ulquiorra and Ashido, you'll let Ichigo receive his results first and then we'll leave."
"If I refuse?" Grimmjow questioned angrily.
"You already refused to follow my advice once," Rukia reminded him "do you want to go through that pain again?"
Grimmjow scoffed.
"What's with you and the idiot?" he asked annoyed, Ichigo wanted to believe that he sounded jealous too "I thought that your so secret kingdom was no place for criminals and the like."
Rukia smiled.
"Ichigo is my friend, not a criminal" she said proud and protective towards Ichigo "our parents are best friends as well," her beautiful smile got wider "we'll spend the whole summer together."
Grimmjow's glare was quite something to see, and Rukia seemed happy at seeing him so enraged. Ichigo on his side was quite confused, but Rukia was sitting on his lap, so he was not complaining, whether Rukia was using him to piss Grimmjow or not didn't matter, both, Ichigo and Rukia, liked to see the blue haired bully so upset.
In that moment another person joined the call and all of the classmates, plus Rukia, kept quiet.
"My apologies for the delay," Ukitake greeted them "I was in a meeting and…" he stopped talking when he realized that there was someone who was not a student in the call "Rukia?!" he asked smiling.
"Ukitake-sama!" Rukia greeted happily "it's so nice to see you!"
"Yes, it's been a while" Ukitake agreed and smiled fondly at her and Ichigo "I can see that you've found a reliable friend, I'm glad."
Rukia nodded.
"He's visiting for the summer," she explained as she turned slightly to smile at Ichigo "I'm happy that he's here."
Ichigo scratched the back of his head awkwardly and looked aside, having Rukia's face so close to his was making him feel something that he didn't know how to describe, and she was still on his lap, but Grimmjow's scoff was making it worthy.
"That's awesome," Ukitake nodded "I didn't know the Kurosakis had a home in Seireitei," he pointed out "Isshin didn't inform me."
"We don't, Ukitake-sama" Ichigo explained respectfully "Yoruichi invited me to stay at her cottage," he smirked "apparently Rukia and I have the same godparents, this is quite a small world."
"In that case I won't waste more of your summer," Ukitake smiled "I'll give you your test results first so you can leave."
Ichigo nodded while Rukia clapped once excitedly, she wanted to leave the cottage as soon as possible. Before giving the results Ukitake explained the consequences of failing the test and assured them that if they were to work harder this ordeal could be avoided in the years to come, he advised all of them to focus on their studies and not to be discouraged by the hardships of adolescence. Ichigo noticed how everyone kept quiet, but he guessed that it wasn't because they were paying attention, since it was a video call he couldn't be sure but he could see most of them looking at Rukia, who was patiently eating the homemade cookies that Yoruichi left on the table, Ichigo frowned at that, but he told himself that he was the one who was with the midget so he could brag about his summer partner once he was back at school.
"So, Ichigo" Ukitake smiled "congratulations, you had a perfect score!"
Ichigo sighed relieved and Rukia cheered.
"You're free to go," Ukitake told him "make sure to enjoy the rest of your summer and please, work harder next year."
Ichigo nodded.
"I will" he promised.
"Goodbye," Ukitake dismissed him "and goodbye, Rukia, I'll probably visit you soon, Ginrei-sama keeps telling me to go but I've been busy."
"We'll be waiting for you, Ukitake-sama!" Rukia assured him "take care!"
Ichigo ended the call then and Rukia stood up.
"Come on," she said while grabbing his hand "we'll-"
"Wait," Ichigo stopped her but didn't let go of her hand "how do you know Grimmjow and Ashido? What's your story with them? Why did Urahara react that way when he heard them?"
Rukia pursed her lips annoyed.
"Seriously?" she asked rudely "I just promised you a day at the lake and you want to talk about an idiot?"
"I'm curious, you've never left this place, when did you meet him?" Ichigo insisted.
Rukia frowned, she recognized a lost battle and she knew that Ichigo wouldn't let it go, but they couldn't waste more time inside the cottage, they had a great day ahead, so she decided to give a brief summary.
"Long story short," she scoffed "he was sent here, along with Ashido and Ulquiorra, as part of a reformative program," she rolled her eyes "Urahara was their host, and for some sick twist of fate I befriended Grimmjow, but he tried to hurt me."
Ichigo tensed.
"How?" he asked with a low and dangerous voice.
"He didn't want to take no for an answer," Rukia said as she squeezed Ichigo's hand "he didn't get to do anything to me," she assured Ichigo "but Urahara, Yoruichi and granddaddy found out…" she shrugged "let's just say that he left this place with more than a few broken bones."
"That asshole," Ichigo hissed "I should-"
"He's not worth it!" Rukia interrupted him "come on, we'll pick my camera and we'll go to the lake!"
Ichigo swallowed his anger as he allowed himself to enjoy Rukia's happiness, he was here with her now, right? That was what mattered, so he nodded as he stood up too and together they left the cottage.
"Just as Ukitake told us before," Yoruichi said while placing an ice pack on her husband's forehead "our idiot godson aced the test with a perfect score."
Urahara, who was resting on a sofa with his head on Yoruichi's lap, smiled.
"Of course he did," he said proudly "he's our godson after all."
Yoruichi sighed as she caressed Urahara's hair.
"Are you feeling better?" she asked "you scared Ichigo with your reaction, you know? I should deny sex to you the rest of the summer for not keeping your emotions in check."
"I will never forget that bastard's voice," Urahara hissed, his eyes were closed but Yoruichi could feel his tension "what is he doing at Ukitake's school?"
Yoruichi sighed.
"Ukitake likes to keep troubled boys under his wing," she explained "and he doesn't know what he did, otherwise he wouldn't have accepted him."
"We should've gotten rid of him" Urahara scoffed.
"Stop," Yoruichi ordered sternly "she's safe and he's far away from here, and right now she's with Ichigo of all people, focus on the present."
"I'll try," Urahara promised "I just wasn't ready to listen to his voice, the memories came faster than I could process them."
A heavy silence fell over the room and Yoruichi knew they were both remembering the same thing, a younger Rukia screaming for help while running away from Grimmjow and, after reaching her cottage, falling unconscious on her godparents' arms. Yoruichi gulped as she pushed that memory at the back of her head.
"She's safe now," she repeated mostly to herself "she has not leave our sight since then."
Urahara nodded and, as they heard Ichigo and Rukia running to enjoy their summer, they allowed themselves a few peaceful minutes.
"Why are we picking up a camera?" Ichigo asked as he followed Rukia across the road towards the Kuchikis' cottage "we should go to the lake instead."
Rukia chuckled.
"You said you wanted several anecdotes to brag about, didn't you?" Rukia reminded him "well, pictures are the only thing that will make everyone believe you, we'll ride the bicycles to go to the lake today, and the scenery is wonderful."
Ichigo smirked.
"Cool," he said "I'll also upload some of them on Instagram."
Once they reached the Kuchikis' cottage a maid opened the door for them; they stepped inside and Ichigo's eyes widened as he observed the room before him.
"I know that your family is not exactly..." he paused for a second to look for the perfect word "humble, but seriously?"
Rukia blinked twice.
"What? This is smaller than the house at Karakura" she said.
"Than the mansion back at Karakura you mean" Ichigo corrected.
Rukia rolled her eyes.
"Calm down, rich boy" she scoffed reminding him that he was not in place to judge "come, my room is this way."
Ichigo followed her from the drawing room to a big staircase, they went up to the second floor and they reached a hallway, Rukia guided him to the end of the hallway where she opened a double door and Ichigo rolled his eyes at what he saw.
Of course he thought.
"My sister would love your room," Ichigo pointed out "seriously."
Rukia smiled proudly as she took a seat on the bed, Ichigo decided to look around.
"Do you have a sister?" Rukia asked "how old is she?"
"I have two little sisters, they are fraternal twins" Ichigo explained as the pictures on the wall caught his attention "Karin and Yuzu."
"That's cool, I always wondered what having a brother would feel like," Rukia smirked at him "are you the overprotective kind?"
"They are the overprotective ones," Ichigo chuckled "one time Grimmjow decided to come to my house just to fight, you should've seen Karin, before I understood what was happening she was chasing Grimmjow down the street while throwing eggs at him."
Rukia laughed.
"That'd badass!" she praised "is Yuzu the same?"
Ichigo shook his head.
"Yuzu is quite the opposite, she loves cooking, dresses and everything that is cute," he sighed "she would go crazy in here."
Rukia's smile couldn't get any wider, Ichigo could easily tell how proud she was of her own room and he couldn't blame her. The room had a four poster queen size bed on the center, while on the right side of the room there was a balcony overlooking the Kuchikis' garden and the woods, on the left side of the room was a desk with a laptop and several books, Ichigo didn't have to guess that that's where she received her online classes but what Ichigo liked the most about the room was the flat screen facing the bed. It was a spoiled brat's room and what stood out the several plushies on top of the bed and on the corner of the room; Ichigo was willing to bet that each plushie was worth a small fortune.
"Well," Rukia said while standing up and walking to her bedside table "we better get going," she took the camera and smiled at Ichigo "Lucy prepared a basket with snacks for us and you need to celebrate the fact that you won't be getting back to the cold city for the whole summer."
Ichigo felt pure happiness as he nodded.
Ishida Uryuu was a bespectacled boy with dark hair and pale skin, he was smart, respectful and a prodigy at sewing, he was Ichigo's cousin and one of his best friends. When the orange haired teenager was sent to the countryside Uryuu thought that it was for the best, a little distance from his father and the problems in Karakura would be beneficial for him, but he also knew how stubborn Ichigo could be, he would often bury his emotions and avoid to talk to people because of it, that's why when Kaien and Renji suggested to visit Ichigo he agreed to go with them, but he had forgotten how impatient Renji and Kaien were.
"We're supposed to wait for Yoruichi-san to call us! We cannot barge into Seireitei without a formal invitation!" Uryuu tried to reason as Kaien manhandled into his car "stop this nonsense!"
"Don't be ridiculous, Ishida" Renji said carelessly, he was on the passenger's seat "we are talking about Ichigo's godparents, they like us, they'll let us in without much trouble."
"Agreed!" Kaien said as he started the car.
"Idiots!" Uryuu said as he struggled on the backseat, Kaien tied him with the seatbelts "you're forgetting about the girl on the phone, she's the one who decides who goes in or out of the Seireitei, the land belongs to her family."
"What kind of girl holds that kind of power?" Renji scoffed not believing a single thing "Urahara and Yoruichi are the owners of the land, isn't Urahara the mayor of that town? They won't reject us."
Kaien nodded.
"Exactly," he said "besides we have to make sure that Ichigo is not suffering or being tortured."
Uryuu only shook his head as he gave up, they were probably right and they needed to check on their friend, what if Ichigo was in hell?
Ichigo was pretty sure that he was in paradise.
He had aced his test, he was free for the rest of the summer and Rukia was teaching him how to jump for the little waterfall into the lake, he couldn't ask for more. After leaving the Kuchikis' cottage they took a couple of bicycles and Ichigo followed Rukia through a road in the middle of the woods towards a lake that was surrounded by trees, and just behind it was a waterfall, it was small but it was perfect to jump into the lake.
Rukia had prepared beforehand, she had been wearing a bathing suit under her sundress but since she didn't warn Ichigo beforehand he was forced to swim using his boxers, he was a little embarrassed but Rukia didn't make fun of him, and she didn't act awkward because of that, so Ichigo was thankful. They spent most of the afternoon jumping and swimming and once they were exhausted they sat down on the grass to enjoy the snacks Lucy prepared for them.
"So," Rukia said, her hair was damped and her cheeks were red "the sun is setting, we'll have to go back soon otherwise Yoruichi will give me an earful."
Ichigo sighed as he laid down on the grass.
"Can we come at night some other time?" he asked "I bet the lake would look awesome at night."
Rukia nodded.
"It is awesome at night," she agreed as she took a picture of Ichigo laying on the grass with the basket full of delicious snacks next to him, the lake was at the background so it looked great "but we'll have to beg to get their permission."
"Why?" Ichigo frowned "this is private property, under Urahara's control, isn't this the safest place in Japan?"
"It is," Rukia said as she stood up and placed the camera a few meters away from them, she set up the timer and then sat down next to Ichigo "but as I grew up I gave Yoruichi quite a few scares," she paused to smile as the picture was taken "I used to get lost quite often so she's a little bit paranoid now."
Ichigo supposed that that made sense, after all Yoruichi was extremely maternal towards Rukia but then a thought occurred him.
"I bet that your puppy eyes would work on Urahara," he pointed out "can you try?"
Rukia smirked proudly.
"Of course!" she said.
Ichigo smirked back and as they both admired the sun setting behind the waterfall Ichigo decided that coming to the countryside was the best decision of his whole summer.
In case you keep reading this, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I sort of wanted to show you the next part of Rukia's childhood but I'm running out of time so you'll get it on the next chapter, I'm quite excited to keep writing about it, of course it also depends if you want to keep reading, let me know if you want to know how the story goes and I'll be anxiously waiting for your review! Also, let me know if you want in detail what happened with Grimmjow and Rukia, I wanted to make a separate one-shot for that part of the story? What do you think? Let me know.
Pd. I apologize for my grammar mistakes.
