Ichigo stared at Uryuu, a curious look flickering in his eyes as he popped his jaw back in place. "Her reiraku... spirit ribbons? Was it red? Like a Soul Reaper's?"

"No...," Uryuu responded, taking his place, seated, on the ground again. "... It was like any other... just plain. But she had so many around her that she was almost drowning in them. It's like her spirit energy was flowing out of her… just like yours."

Ichigo blinked for a second, then scowled a little. "Well? Keep going. This story's a little interesting."

Pausing, Uryuu grinned. " Well, then-"

But the bell signaling class to start again interrupted him.

Glowering, Ichigo glanced reluctanly over his shoulder. "Ah, damn..."

"I guess that concludes this for today...," Uryuu sighed, getting to his feet and brushing himself off. "We'll continue this sometime later, Kurosaki."

As Ishida made his way towards the door, Ichigo hesitated.

"Hey!" Ichigo jumped up. "I wanna hear the rest! We still have time before the teacher gets to the room!"

The two boys made their way down, a little slower than they probably usually would.

"So, what happened next?" Ichigo asked, glancing at Uryuu, who was a few steps ahead of him.

Uryuu turned his head a little. "Next?"

There was a short silence.

"... Nothing happened next."

Ichigo's eyes narrowed at the back of Ishida's head. "That was a dull story, then."

"I never said that was it," Uryuu smirked.

"Excuse me..."

It was the middle of lunch and I wasn't doing anything but sitting at my desk, reading, when a quiet voice sounded I my ear. I turned around to see Koyuki standing behind me, biting her lip.

I looked back down to my book. "What is it."

She was quiet for a long minute, the sound of the other students around us talking was the only thing keeping me from staying in the room. I got up, closing my book and made my way to the door. As I did, I heard footsteps trailing behind me.

I found myself walking outside into the quad with my nose stuck in my book and completely forgot that Koyuki was behind me. Reluctantly, I stopped walking and looked at her again.

"This must be important if you followed me all the way out here," I said, raising my eyebrow at her.

Flinching, she quickly bowed her head, her hair falling around her face. "Well, I just wanted to ask you a question."

I sighed, shutting my eyes and closing my book in my hand, pushing up my glasses with the other. "It better not be a stupid one."

"I hope it's not...," she said to herself, but loud enough for me to hear.

"Well, what is it?"

Koyuki only glanced up at me for a second before looking back at the ground.

"... Nevermind," she said suddenly, beginning to walk past me. "It was a stupid question..."

With that, I spun around and grabbed her shoulder, turning her back to me again. "You've wasted enough of my time by following me out here, now ask your question before I get irritated in any way possible," I sneered, watching her eyes dart back and forth between mine.

She had a startled expression in those gray eyes of hers.

Suddenly, I snapped out of it and pulled away. "I'm sorry about that...," I said as calmly as I could, pushing up my glasses again. "I'm in quite a testy mood right now, so I think I'll be going back now..."

Koyuki remained where she was while I walked past her, going back to reading my book where I completely lost my place...

"Didn't you say this was gonna be a sappy love story or something?"

Uryuu paused in the hallway while he and Ichigo neared the classroom door. Ichigo halted by his side.

"What now?"

"Would you stop interrupting?"

Ichigo scowled. "SO WHAT IF I'M INTERRUPTING YOU? I have questions that need answers!"

Uryuu sighed again. "Just be patient," is all he said in response. "... But now, I think I'll make you wait for the rest."

"WHAT?" Ichigo barked as Uryuu quietly walked in to the classroom ahead of him.

The bell rang again, ending class and school for the day. Uryuu wasn't at all in a hurry to leave, but seemed Ichigo was.

"Just because you want to hear the rest doesn't mean you have to hover over me like that," Uryuu pushed up his glasses after noticing the spikey shadow on his desk.

Ichigo sneered. "Well, you could hurry it up. I don't want goat-face pestering me about being home late again..."

"... Goat-face?"

His bright hair waved in the air as Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Long story... Just come on and finish yours," Ichigo sighed as he turned and started towards the door, Ishida following slowly behind.

I was walking home and Koyuki was trailing quietly behind me. I really wasn't paying any mind to her. She probably had no idea what her reiraku was, none the less what Soul Reapers, Hollows, and Quincies were. But I found it intriguing that she pursude me so. I decided not to lead to her to my home, so I took a wrong turn along the way, heading back to the school.

When we neared, she ran up to me.

"Um, it's Ishida, right?" she said with a curious, yet nervous face.

I glanced at her, then blinked away. "That's correct."

Koyuki paused briefly. "You know you're going back towards the school?"

Nodding, I pushed up my glasses. "I thought you to be lost, since you were following me like you were."

Suddenly, she stepped in front of me, blocking my path and stared up at me. "You knew I was following you this whole time?"

I wasn't in the mood for such useless chatter, so I just said whatever came to my mind.

"I could sense your spirit energy from a mile away with the way it's just flowing out of you."

She seemed to falter when I said that, her awkward silence a sign of that, but also her spirit energy tensed and decreased slightly.

I only sighed, pushing up my glasses again. "Now, if you'll excuse me," I said, turning my back to her and walking away. "I'll be heading home now."

"Wait!"

Something made me stop. I didn't want to stop, but I did. I turned to her reluctantly.

"You know what reiraku are! That means you can see spiritual entities, right?"

How could she have known that? I was as blunt as possible, yet she already knew. She wasn't a Soul Reaper... Maybe that's all. Maybe she can only see them and that's all. After all, she can't be a Quincy. And it's impossible for her to be a ghost since the people at school saw her, so it was foolish of me even thinking that.

I was staring at her, bewildered, trying to think of an explanation to why she knows this much. She couldn't have just looked things like this up in a book...

Koyuki examined my face, seeing that my slight state of shock was a "yes" to her question, and her eyes lit up. "Then do you know what Quincies are?"

Suddenly, my body was out of my sense of control. I grabbed her shoulders and pinned her against the nearest wall.

"How do you know what they are!" I growled in a low tone.

I startled her again, so she didn't answer. She just stared back, her breath quivering beneath me.

That's when I noticed I had gotten past a barrier that I shouldn't ever cross, a woman's personal space. Last time, I was only on the line of separation, but now, I was too far in to forgive myself. Her face only inches from mine.

There was a burning in my chest. It wasn't that of pain, though... it felt more like...

Abruptly, I released her and made a run for it, not looking back once.