Sorry for the wait. I had no access to a computer in my absence…well…one with a floppy drive anyways. Please don't beat me. –cries- Chapter 7 is already in the works.
Chapter 6 - Strike one! Fistfights and Sketchy Demeanors
Oh what a wonderful day today seemed to be holding for our little band! The sun was high in the air, beating down upon the assemblage of teens, their brows sweating in the heat that hung high in the atmosphere. Not even a little breeze was present, leaving the air still and stagnant. Yes. This would be a great day indeed.
People buzzed around the crowded parking lot, obviously looking for the sweet relief of the air-conditioned indoor shopping facility, along with the countless number of ice cream and beverage vendors. The murmur of the crowds flocking to the entrances reached Rukia's ears as she somewhat confusedly looked around. What in the world was this place? Sure she knew what a store was, but she had never been on an excursion to the mall. Did they have juice boxes there as well? Well whatever they had there, she was quite eager to find out. It must be something worth while for all of these people to be rushing inside. Staring at the huge building from the middle of the parking lot, she blinked.
'Wow…' She thought to herself as she stared in awe at the all-mighty place of trade; modern days' bizarre I guess one would call it. Oblivious in her own little world, Rukia didn't see the slowly approaching car, it's white sheen reflecting in the brilliant sunlight, making any on looker seem to go blind. Honking his horn at her, Rukia jumped, letting out a yelp of shock. She whirled around, her eyebrows drawn furiously, her disposition obviously getting the best of her.
"What the heck was that for jerk!" She yelled to the young man sitting in the drivers' seat. He glared back at her, his gangster attire making Rukia raise a brow.
"Yo, bitch! Move outta the way, before I get the whole hood down here to shoot yo ass!" He yelled back, his ridiculously huge necklace hanging out the window, looking almost as if it should be too heavy for someone to put around his or her neck. Anger forgotten, Rukia stared at the 'bling bling' and tried to stifle her laughter in her hand. How could she take a guy seriously when he was talking like that and wearing freakin' 100 pound weights around his neck?
"Watchu laffin' at, punk?" He enunciated, anger beginning to seep into his words.
"I just…hahaha….wanted to let you…..hahahahahahaha…know that you've got…HAHAHAHAHA…..You've got an ugly shiny thing on your neck," She innocently said as she clutched her sides, pain beginning to erupt there from all of her laughter. Obviously having enough, the young man got out of his car, his pants nearly sagging to his knees.
"You have a problem wit me, bitch?" He asked her as he slowly walked up to her and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt. Laughter ensuing, she managed to shake her head no before she saw is drooping pants and burst out into even worse fits. "What? Youz haven't seen a real hardcore gangsta before?" He queried, now obviously confused.
"Imma gonna shoot yo ass if you don't stop!" He yelled in her face, his grip tightening upon her tank top. Everything seemed to happen at once. Suddenly Ichigo was there, a deep scowl upon his face, his fist now planted in the 'gangstas' nose.
"Pfft. If you have to go and pick on girls, then you must be truly pathetic," Ichigo grumbled as he watched the young man hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. Slowly, he turned around, facing the direction of the mall. Grabbing Rukia's wrist, Ichigo began to pull her in that direction, his mood souring with each passing second. Stomping his way through the crowds of people, the orange-haired teen drug Rukia through the glass doors and into the shopping center. Cool air instantly rushed out to meet her face as the door swung open, the huge fountain directly ahead making her sigh with awe.
"Yeah well don't think too highly of places like this. A lot of crime and villainous actions are committed here," Ichigo had to open his mouth didn't he? He just had to ruin Rukia's fascinations. Grimacing a little at his comments, the former death god looked at her feet, her companion tugging on her wrist, telling her to move it.
"You don't have to be such a kill-joy," She muttered under her breath. That was one of the phrases that she had learned here in this world, and she seemed to like it. The word just had a certain ring to it. Kill-joy! Another phrase she particularly liked was 'Bite me!' She found it amusing that someone would say such a thing.
"Ohh mommy! Look at this!" A child yelled, his small voice wafting through the air to reach Rukia's keen ears. Looking at the scene from the corner of her eyes, she watched the young woman bend down, a warm smile upon her face, brown silky locks falling perfectly into place. What ever else was said, Rukia did not know, for at that particular moment, her vision was obscured by a huge column that was decoratively placed in the shopping center. Smiling slightly, she continued to walk, her eyes now burning into the back of the young man in front of her.
Just as she was about to open her mouth, a familiar voice yelled to them from the food court, the aroma's of deep fried, fattening goodness reaching the death gods nose. "HEEEEYYY! ICHIGO!" The yell resounded, bouncing off of the tiled floors and the smooth, undecorated surfaces.
Closing his eyes tightly, he slowly turned to look at Chizuru. "No need to yell! BAKA!" The last part he shouted back, the look of annoyance once again growing upon his face. The bespectacled teen smiled as she brought her arm down from the sky, now resuming her death grip on Inoue's poor arm. Completely oblivious to Chizuru, Inoue was speaking with Ishida, her innocent smile accompanied with a small giggle. He had obviously said something funny.
"What is this Ichigo?" Rukia attempted to ask her 'escort' of sorts. She was looking at an ATM, the cash machine's various amount of colors catching her attention. She waited for his answer, but soon realized that he wasn't going to give her one. "Fine then, jerk," She whispered quietly to herself as she began to try and wriggle out of his vice like grip, his fingernails beginning to bite into her flesh.
Sighing, Ichigo pulled Rukia over to the group, not even acknowledging that she was still with him. Huffing at being ignored, Rukia finally was able to wrench her wrist away from his angry grasp. Why was he so angry? What had she done to him to deserve such treatment? Hurt, irate and perplexed, she began to stomp away from her friends, not really in the mood to have everyone around her all at once.
Sadly, no one noticed her storming off except for Ayako, whose sinister eyes had never left her peer's body. Smiling wryly to herself, she silently slipped out from the crowd, Chei following suit.
Everyone was preoccupied with concerns of his or her own. Chizuru was having a yelling bout with Ichigo and Tatsuki; who the winner will be, no one could tell. Inoue was talking with Ishida, a slight blush making it's way onto his pale completion, while Chad and the other two young men were talking about the latest Magic The Gathering tournament they had went to…oh wait. Chad was just listening; he had no interest in that sort of thing. Chaos had ensued not even 10 minutes of them all being together! A new record!
Meanwhile, Rukia hurried through the crowds of people, the techno music that blasted through some of the stores catching her attention, though she would turn away from it as soon as she heard it. Tears were stinging the back of her eyes as she looked at all of the people she passed, the happy couples making her heart twist violently in her body. She was confused. This usually cold, emotionless girl was experiencing something that had never been explained to her before. Sure she had felt love towards her brother and Renji, but this was an entirely different feeling. Her head was fuzzy and dizzy, her chest would grow increasingly warm, as though a fire had been lit in the deep darkness inside of her subconscious, driving away all of her doubts and fears. That's what it was like. At times it felt like someone was driving a dagger into her heart cavity, blood spurting from the open wound like a cascading waterfall, at others it felt like a soft hand was caressing her cheek tenderly, the slightest tickle sending her into a sweet state of bliss. So which was it? Pain? Or ardor?
Holding herself softly, Rukia sat down onto one of the many benches that were standing dormant in the center of the huge isle way. Frowning deeply, she looked at her feet, her purple Converse ragged and smudged with dirt. Letting out a forlorn sigh, she tore her gaze away, an angry voice screaming over guitar riffs, a bass, and a madly flailing drummer (and that's what he is…a drummer, not a percussionist). People in black clothing and piercings were entering the store from which the man's voice was echoing, the dark interior of the store seeming to match Rukia's current mood. Deciding that she needed to get her mind off of things, she ventured into the store, her innocence attracting one of the clerks, his pierced lips curved into a smile.
"Welcome, can I help you?" He asked her, his raspy voice making his customer shudder inwardly.
"No," Rukia replied back blankly, her own voice cold and emotionless. Completely caught off guard, the young man looked at her with a bit of shock in his brown eyes. He didn't think that she would be so cold!
"Oh…All right then," he said back, backing away from her, a startled look upon his face. The dark-haired teen noticed his discomfort, his situation not really appealing to her. She didn't have time to deal with people at this moment in time, she was confused enough as it was. Slowly, she moved through out the store, looking at all of the T-shirts and clothing items that they sold there. The pants all had tons of pockets, zippers, and chains hanging off of them, making the person look as though they were wearing a straight jacket for their legs.
Blinking a bit naively, she picked up a whip wondering why in the world a store would be carrying a weapon? Didn't this world have a ban against this stuff in public?
"I see you're into that rough stuff," That raspy clerk's voice whispered into her ear. What was this guys problem! Jumping like 3 feet into the air, Rukia dropped the item. Coughing a little, she turned to face the young man, a goofy smile plastered onto his face.
"Rough….stuff…?" She inquired, not quite sure what the young man was getting at.
"Don't play coy with me, Miss," He joked, raising his eyebrows suggestively. She was thoroughly confused at this time; Rukia cracked the whip, her experienced hands knowing exactly what to do. The clerk's smile didn't fade as he extended his hand, his black hair's tips bleached white, and spiked up all…cool like.
"I'm Shiang Kai, nice to meet you," He greeted, the piercings on his ears catching Rukia's attention for a split second. Brought back to earth, she looked at his hand and grasped it, her usual scowl planted on her face.
"I'm Kuchiki Rukia. It's a pleasure," She said out of amenity. "Now can you explain to me what you meant earlier?" She added, entirely serious. Kai twitched as he looked at the whip in her hand and brought a hand to his forehead, now realizing that she is serious. He looked at the ground, running his fingers through his gelled hair, not a strand moving out of place.
"J-just forget about it, alright?" He stammered with an embarrassed look upon his face. Shrugging her shoulders a little, Rukia dropped the subject until…
"What he meant, Rukia-san, was that you like sex rough," A voice whispered almost seductively in her ear, the person's breath tickling her skin. Whirling around quickly, Rukia glared at her 'seductress.'
"Dammit, Ayako-san. Why don't you just butt out? Leave me the hell alone!" She growled lowly at her, eyes flashing dangerously. Kai looked at Ayako, blinking some at the new comer.
"Really, Ayako-chan, you shouldn't try and seduce Ichigo-kun's prize," Chei boredly injected into the conversation while she examined her nails.
"You're not single?" Kai asked stupidly as he looked at Rukia expectantly.
"Of course I am! Ichigo is a stuck up dolt who likes to call his friends names and ignore them," Rukia croaked out, tears forming in her eyes. She was getting angrier and angrier with each passing second.
"Really? Does that mean I can have him, Rukia-san? You giving up on him just like you gave up on Renji? Just like you left him to die at the mercy of Aizen?" Eyes wide with shock, Rukia looked at Ayako.
Fists clenched now, Rukia gritted her teeth. She had not left him there intentionally. He was a grown man, he could take care of himself.
"Wait…what is all this talk about?" Kai asked, his confused tone making Chei look at him, her eyes sparkling with mischief.
"You bring shame to the Kuchiki family, Rukia! Coward!" Ayako taunted, her delicate semblance soft in the dim light.
"I am not a coward!" Rukia retorted, beginning to finally snap.
"Just so you know, Ichigo obviously doesn't give a rats ass about you, so you might as well go and take your mediocre appearance and personality somewhere where it's wanted. I know a very nice brothel that would accept even a plain creature like you," She continued, not noticing Rukia's slow approach.
Before anything else could happen, the former death god was on top of Ayako pounding the snot out of her. Punch after punch, the string of ferocious blows didn't seem to stop as the truth pierced through her heart. How could she have been so blind? Suddenly, white lights erupted in her vision as she felt something connect with the base of her neck, Chei now in the brawl.
"She's right you know," She simply added with a shrug, a bored look still upon her face. Ayako forgotten, Rukia crouched low, trying to get under Chei's guard, who parried her punch perfectly. With a counter attack, Rukia did a back flip, catching the girls chin with the top of her shoe. Chei was unable to block the blow and stumbled back, blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth because she had bitten her tongue.
"You bitch!" Ayako growled as she wiped blood away from her nose, her foot now being sent to Rukia's head. Aware of her new opponent, Rukia brought her guard up just in time, the force of the kick making her stumble a little because of the momentum that was passed. The two friends were now ganging up on her, one behind and the other in front. Beginning to tire, Rukia looked from something that she could use as a weapon, anything. That's when a metal rode caught her attention. Smiling, she blocked another kick, then feigned as though she was going to throw a punch at Chei, but instead used her forward momentum to roll and grab the pole, the slick weapon poised in her battle worn hands.
"Mediocre, huh?" She mused quietly as she suddenly lunged out with the pole, hitting Ayako square in the stomach which made her ram into her companion. "Let me tell you something! If this is how everyone feels, then I'll just leave!" She yelled at them, the pole barely visible as it's speed increased with her anger. Quickly, she spun her body around, catching both of their faces with the very tip of the rode.
The two fell, groaning out of pain. "Just to let you know, you just got massacred by a girl with a hurt arm, hope you've realized whom the superior one is now," Rukia growled as she threw the pole down, then looked around the store. Kai stood there a shocked expression upon his face. He had never seen someone fight like that before.
"I apologize," She said with a small bow as she turned to walk out the door, a bit of blood beginning to trickle down her cheek. People continued to stare, the gothic teens all staring at her with admiration.
"Would you like to go out sometime?" Kai blurted out, catching her wrist before she could step out the door entirely. Not sure of what to say, Rukia turned to him and gave him a little smile.
"I'm staying at the Shining Seashell. Ja ne," She stated as she broke his grip, walking away casually as though no fight had happened. Smiling all goofy like, Kai waved to her as she left, not knowing that his encounter with her would get 10 times weirder in the next 5 seconds.
"GOD DAMN THAT FUCKIN' SHINAGAMI! DAMN HER! RUKIA, YOU BETTER WATCH YOUR BACK," Came the angry shouts of Ayako, the seer having quite the time untangling herself from Chei, a small throwing knife now held in her hand. Finally free of her companion, Ayako ran out into the crowded shopping center, her sights set upon Rukia, her back turned towards her. Taking this perfect opportunity, Ayako threw the knife with deadly accuracy. With lightening fast reflexes, the weapon was caught between two of Rukia's fingers, her body twisted so that she could catch it in time and see her assailant.
"I have not the time for such trivial things," She growled as she tossed the weapon aside, the crowds of people all looking at the scene, shocked. A path was between Ayako and Rukia, the empty space seeming odd to particular young man that stepped out between the two, his face shrouded with shadow. His build was stout and proud, his strapping arms seeming to bulge with pure muscle. This young man was not nearly as big as Chad, but he looked almost as though he could be as tall. He was wearing a plain pair of baggy jeans, the tops of gray and black Vans sticking out beneath the folds of denim. To cover his abdomen was a simple white tank top, his sleek muscles rippling as he moved. On top of all that, his red hair was spiked slightly, reminding Rukia of someone that she had once known.
"Oi. Didn't you're mother teach you manners? It's not nice to attack a lady when her back is turned," His cool and relaxed voice drifted through the air to the former death gods ears, her heart skipping a beat. Slowly, the young man turned to face her, the tattoo's on his face and deep eyes making Rukia loose all feeling in her legs.
"R-Renji?" She managed to ask him, her voice seeming foreign in her own ears.
Ayako now realized her situation and let her arm drop to her side, blinking stupidly. "Oh, you thought that I was actually attacking her?" She said with a small smile as she brought her arms high above her head, an alibi slowly formulating in her mind. "We were just shooting a scene for our Indie film, surely you've heard of those right?"
"How the hell do you explain the knife, Ayako!" Rukia countered, pointing decisively at the sharpened object. Slowly walking over to her and picking up the discarded item, Ayako quickly switched the real one out with a fake. She had been prepared for something like this to happen.
"Why, Rukia-san, it was a fake. Couldn't you tell?" She asked innocently, holding up the plastic replica.
"Whoa! Killer footage, Ayako-chan! This'll be soo sweet+A guaranteed!" Chei exclaimed as she came out with a camcorder, acting as though she had recorded the whole thing.
"Uhrm…excuse me. WHAT HAPPENED TO MY TOTALLY COOL ENTERANCE!" Renji yelled, wanting to be noticed as well an annoyed expression upon his face. Smiling at her friend, the black-haired teen launched herself at Renji, a true smile now placed upon her lips. "AH!" He yelled as he nearly fell over because of the massive glompage.
"I missed you!" She chuckled as she let go of him, backing up to take in his appearance. Wait. How did he get here? Was her brother with him? Before she could ask any questions, she heard the sound of security slowly approaching.
"Halt! Hands in the air!" One of the officers commanded, pointing his gun at Ayako, Rukia, and Renji. Doing as they were told, Renji found it quite fascinating how people worked here in this mall place. A person says halt, and you are immediately supposed to comply. And just WHAT was that black thing pointed at him?
"No need to fret, officer. We were just recording a scene in our home movie. We even asked the manager of this store if it would be all right, and he said it would be just fine. You can ask him," the green eyed, black haired Seer explained as she dropped the plastic knife.
"Its true!" Kai piped up, not wanting for his future date to get thrown in jail. He smiled at the officer and let out a sigh.
"You should have informed us earlier! Then we wouldn't have had to run all the way down here," One of the younger officers complained, running his fingers through his wavy brown hair. Slowly, they all holstered their guns and began to leave, believing what the young man Kai had said.
"This is not the first time something like this has happened. Usually there are a lot of people who want to film here, since it's located in a such a perfect place," Kai explained when Chei had inquired about them not asking much.
Frustrated once again with Ayako, Rukia turned on her heel and began to storm off in another direction, gloom beginning to settle in. "Don't you dare follow me," She growled over her shoulder as she heard someone step towards her. She was in no mood. Sure, she was happy to see Renji, but she just didn't want to be bothered. With that entire scene behind her, Rukia was left to brood over her feelings as she sat down on the edge of the fountain that she had seen earlier. Looking into its cool depths she watched her reflection ripple and break as people threw pennies for good luck into the water.
"I wish for once my life wasn't so hectic," She murmured to herself, the presence of a sinister personage not even registering within her mind.
&-
Meanwhile, the rest of the gang had gone their separate ways, Ichigo all by himself, looking for the missing Rukia. Inoue was with Ishida, Tatsuki, and Chizuru. He could hear a little bit of commotion coming from the general direction of Hot Topic, and decided to make his way there. As he walked there though, he got sidetracked, the temptation to go into Fye too great of a challenge.
"Hmm…" He whispered to himself as he picked up an album by one of his particularly favorite bands, Within Temptation. The band always seemed to make him feel happy.
I need you're arms around me,
I need to feel your touch…
The song blared out over the intercom, the style that the singer was using quite similar to the song that Ichigo had heard when he was watching the rain pour down just yesterday. But unlike the last song, this one seemed to hold no purpose to his current situation.
I need your understanding,
I need your love…so much
The catchy baseline continued, the somewhat simple band beginning to draw Ichigo's attention. Listening intently to the lyrics, he frowned a little bit for it was starting to sound like some people he knew.
You tell me that you love me soYou tell me that you care
But when I need you Baby, (baby)
You're never there!
Sighing some, Ichigo began to move towards the exit, knowing that he should resume his search, and he could hear that the commotion was dying down just a turn away.
On the phone long long distance
Always through such strong resistance
And first you say,
You're too busy
I wonder if you even miss me.
Never there.
You're never there!
You're never ever ever ever there!
(Hey!)
Trumpet solo
Just as the last note popped out of the bluesey trumpet, Ichigo walked out of the store, the song yanking at his heart a little too hard for his liking. Stuffing his hands into his shorts he walked to where the scene that had been made was.
"Oh. What's this then? What does it do? AHHH!" The familiar sound of Renji's voice made Ichigo break out into a run, the empty path still there, which means that the security guards had only just left. Upon seeing Ayako and Chei with him, the orange haired teen knew something was up.
"Baboon! Where's Rukia?" He grunted in greeting to Renji before he jumped right into what he needed. Shocked at seeing his rival in such a place, the red haired young man smirked a little as he discarded the little disposable camera that he had been playing with. The flash had gone off and scared him.
"Well looky here! Ichigo! You know…I wouldn't go and talk to her right now. She seemed pissed. What did you do to her!" Renji was jumping to conclusions and was now holding Ichigo by the scruff of his tank, his face contorted into rage. "If you hurt her, Ichigo, I will not hesitate to kill you." Well that was reassuring. Grunting, his scowl deepened as he planted his fist into his face, Renji letting go in succession. Straightening out his shirt, Ichigo gave him that looks that said, "you're so stupid."
"I didn't do anything to her---"
"Precisely why she is angry with you, Ichigo-kun. You ignored her," Ayako chimed in as she tried to act innocently. She didn't seem to have any serious injuries, and the ones that she DID have were hardly noticeable because of all the blush she had just applied. Finally realizing what he had done, the substitute death god pushed his fingers through his hair and let out a groan.
"Which way did she go?"
"I don't th----"
"WHICH WAY DID SHE GO!" Ichigo yelled, now doubly pissed, but not at Rukia. No. At himself. He was angry with himself. The two snapped to attention and pointed in the direction where their friend had gone. Stomping off to find her once again, Ichigo decided that he would have to apologize to her.
Back at the scene, comical tears cascaded down Renji's face as he squatted down and sat in the corner, pushing his index fingers together over and over again.
"What happened to being surprised? Am I just to be ignored?" Renji asked as the dark mist of gloom began to rise over his squatting form.
&-
A forlorn sigh left Rukia's lips as she dipped her hand into the cool water, breaking the serenity that it held. Deep in thought, she did not feel the presence of another behind her, which would cost her a lot.
"Well well well," Came a familiar voice, pulling her from her reminiscence. Startled, Rukia looked at the towering form of…
"N-niwa!" She exclaimed as she stood up, her fists raised anew. Her oculus' hard and filled with pure abhorrence. Her gaze drifted through the young mans' band and spotted a particular gangster that looked familiar. "YOU! You're in league with Niwa!" She exclaimed as she looked at the black haired teen, a cruel smile upon his lips.
"Giving my men more hard times, I see, Rukia," He jeered as he took a step closer to her. Man! Today just wasn't her day, was it? She didn't know who she would prefer at the moment; another fight with Ayako and Chei, or this creep Niwa. Taking a precarious step backwards, she waited for him to make his move.
"What do you want with me, Niwa. Leave me," She growled lowly, her eyes moving to his thugs. There were certainly more than there had been last time. This time she wasn't sure if her luck was going to be with her once again, for it didn't seem to be favoring her this particular day.
"Aww, you mean to tell me that you don't want to play?" He jeered at her as his men began to surround her. This defiantly was not looking good. The two of them were now in the center of the circle, men to her back, and sides, Niwa facing her, but men also behind him. What she would give to have her pole back at this particular moment. Taking a deep breath, Rukia swiftly made up her mind. She would have to break the circle.
Smirking just a little, Rukia was gone in the span of heartbeat. The men looked around frantically, knowing that if she gained the upper hand that there was no taking it back.
"Ack!" One man gagged, spit flying from his mouth as he spiraled backwards, a pained expression upon his face. Too startled to react, the man next to the first thug found Rukia in front of him, crouched low, then in one sweeping moment brought her elbow up to connect with his jaw, which made him bite his cheek. Using her momentum, Rukia grabbed onto his neck, brought herself around to his back and planted her knee right into his kidney. Eyes glazed over, the man fell to the tiled floor, unconscious. The men were starting to recover now from their seism, and one after the other were beginning to attack.
"DIE WENCH!" One yelled as he brought his clasped hands down, aiming for Rukia's skull. Fully expecting something like this, the shinagami side stepping to the right of the sloppy attack. The man stumbled forward, the perfect stepping stool for the black-haired teen. Pushing him down by jumping upon his neck, she didn't wait for him to even hit the ground before she was airborne again, this time in a back flip, though the person the kick intended for throwing up a block just in time. Not expecting a counter attack, the man let his guard down, smirking at her. He was shocked when he watched her complete the flip, then it seemed that her toe didn't even touch the stepping stool man before she was twirling into a front flip, hitting the top of the mans head hard with her heel. To pull off the rest of the combo, she allowed her big toe to once again touch the "stools" body before she suddenly rushed into a round house kick, knocking that man unconscious and also knocking another into the fountain. Looking around, Rukia stepped off of the thug and began her assault upon another crony.
This man, however, threw a punch at the quickly approaching death god right when she should have been in front of him. Confused as to why she wasn't there anymore, he felt a sharp pain erupt at the base of his neck, and felt the corners of his vision grow black. Rukia had jumped up at the last second and had brought her elbow to connect with the base of his neck, then using his shoulders as a sort of spring board, she placed both hands on them (doing a sort of hand stand) then launched herself away from him. Skidding on the ground, she quickly used her speed to bring herself around and kick the last thugs' feet out from underneath him. To make sure he was formally out cold, she delivered one final blow to his stomach, winding him and making him also drift to the clutches of nothingness. Standing in the midst of all the unconscious bodies, Rukia looked at Niwa, her shoulders shaking with rage. Was she actually…having fun beating these people into bloody pulps? Suddenly, that shake of rage turned into a shake of remorse and sadness as tears began to blind her. Her breath caught in her throat as she found the bench of the fountain and sat down on it. At this time, Niwa couldn't help but feel sorry for her. He didn't know what had happened, but the fact that he was highly infatuated with her made him begin to worry.
"H-hey. What's wrong?" He asked her, confused at her reaction. Most people would have had the opposite reaction and would still stand strong. But here she was, the look of loss upon her delicate features. Slowly, he walked over to her and sat down next to her, an eyebrow raised.
"Why do you continue to pester me. Can't you leave!" She managed to growl at him through her tears. Standing up suddenly, she pushed the young man into the fountain and ran.
'I have now taken my anger and pain out upon others. I should not even be allowed to call myself a shinagami. I have no right,' she thought to herself as she ran. Rukia ran blindly through the mall, finally crashing into a red flurry.
"Rukia-chan….is something wrong?" It was Inoue's voice. Quickly, Rukia picked herself up off of the ground and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
"I'm fine," She said, her voice finally back to normal. Extending her hand, she pulled Inoue up off of the ground and patted her on the shoulder. "Sorry."
"YOU BITCH!" The shout of Niwa made Rukia's blood run cold as she looked at her friends, then in a desperate attempt to keep them out of her issues, she ushered them into the closest store. The pink and purple shades made Ishida blink.
"Uhm. Rukia-san, we're in Claire's…is there a reason?" He asked as he looked around, watching Inoue and Chizuru gush over how cute a little plushie was. Naturally, Tatsuki had her arms crossed and was trying to avoid the situation by acting all cool like.
"You guys are hopeless," She muttered under her breath as the two grabbed her and put some sample makeup on their friend. Coughing Tatsuki tried to get away from all of the toxins by wriggling. Her antics were in vain though, for Ishida now had a hold of her, courtesy of Chizuru's threats.
While all of the chaos was ensuing, Rukia made her escape back out into the mall and was running away from Niwa. He was closing in on her at a dangerous speed and if she didn't find a place to hide, he would certainly catch her. She skidded to a halt as she looked from left to right, but her few minutes hesitation allowed him to grab her by the wrists and drag her just outside of the mall. Struggling against his vice like grip, Rukia was beginning to feel defeat settle in. That was until…
"Oi, baka. Let her go, or else I'm going to have to kill you," The callous voice drifted to Rukia's ears like wonderful music. Once again, he was saving her. Niwa's eyes suddenly turned to the orange-haired young man, the expression upon his face making his eye twitch.
"You again! Why do you insist upon disrupting us? Can't you see she's willing?" Niwa tried to lie to Ichigo.
"Judging by her struggle, it would seem that she does NOT wish to go anywhere with you, so why don't you just let her go, before my fist slips and breaks your jaw," the substitute shinagami threatened, his brown eyes flashing dangerously. Smirking, Niwa seemed unfazed by the threat, though he did know that it was not empty.
"I-ichigo!" Though she was angry with him, Rukia felt a sense of relief once he showed up. So she wouldn't get taken away today. Good! Slowly she looked up at what was a clear blue sky, the white clouds seeming to swirl in, blocking some of the heat from the people down below. Was it going to rain again? As she looked upon the clouds, a sense of insecurity seized her. It was as though he was watching her…those cruel brown eyes were searching over her. She felt naked, though she was certain that she had clothing on. Her soul was being exposed to him…just what was he planning? Disturbed, Rukia finally felt herself being pulled forward by Niwa, a plan formulating in his scheming mind.
"Don't think I won't give up without a fight, you arrogant bastard!" The blacked haired young man yelled back to Ichigo over his shoulder. Clenching his fists, Ichigo began to chase, but for some reason, he just could not catch up to them, even WITH his abnormal speed. No matter how hard he exerted himself, he found himself the same distance, if not a little further from his targets than before. Had he gotten so fat and out of shape in only one day? His trained eyes never left Rukia, an inexorable need to protect her beginning to cleave at his insides. Slowly but surely, something was shattering the rift that he had put up so that himself and his inverted self would not once again clash.
Darting into a deserted alleyway, Niwa placed Rukia behind him and went to oppose his emulator, who was right behind them. Not even breathing hard, Ichigo stood up straight, noticing that there was no one there, save for the three. Forgotten garbage filled the humid air with an unpleasant smell, which began to make Rukia cough. How could a world so beautiful be so dirty?
"Now that it's just you and me, bitch, how about we get started?" Ichigo growled as he brought his fists up, the muscles in his arms rippling a little as he moved.
"Going to fight me with your bare hands? HAHAHA! Don't make me laugh! You have no idea what I can do. Watch and learn!" Niwa growled out as a sudden gale issued from his body, the swirling offal and dust obscuring him from view. Yowls of pain and anguish echoed from the center of the wind tube as sickening cracks and snaps were heard, as though Niwa's bones were breaking and reassembling themselves in different places. Rukia threw her arms up to shield her eyes from the violent wind, her footing beginning to get lost. As soon as she thought that she was going to be blown away, the wind stopped, the dust slowly settling back down to the ground.
Niwa stood slightly slumped over, but his appearance had changed…very drastically. What had been regular blue shorts and a black tank top was now a black and white kimono. Upon his feet were sandals, the grass shoes seemed to come right out of a museum themselves. At his hip was a katana, the sleek blade long and slender. Slowly, he looked up, for his face had been shrouded in shadow. Shocked, Ichigo saw the mask of a hallow in front of him. What was this abomination? He was neither shinagami OR hallow!
Silently, the two stood shocked as the young human man stood up straight and pulled his zanpaktou, the blood red steel scintillating dangerously in the sun light. "How lucky I am! A man saw my defeat yesterday and offered me more power to obtain what I wanted! HA! Now, face me you powerless shit!" Niwa suddenly launched himself at Ichigo, his zanpaktou thirsting for his blood. Shocked, Ichigo stood motionless as he watched the rapid approach of Niwa…
"ICHIGO!" Rukia yelled out in distress once she had regained her voice.
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Oh ho ho ho! –devilish laugh- Just thought I'd leave you all at a cliff hanger. So….what'd you all think? Good no? Oh yeah…and just thought that I'd tell you, Rukia's brother is NOT the bad guy in this fic. If you guys have seen episodes 58 and up, you would know why. Muahahaha! Man…I've gotta work in a lot of things now. –sighs- Don't worry, there will be plenty of Renji scene-age coming up. :P AHAHAHA! So unpredictable! W00t! A hallow and shinagami in one….O.O Who does THAT remind me of…hmm…muahahaha! Oh, and I did a very good job about no Author's notes in the middle! And I didn't put one at the beginning either! Yay!
Oh yeah, 10 cool points if any of you can tell me which band sings the two songs I've used so far! Let's see if anyone knows their under ground bands! Yeah! And as for advice…hmm…let me see…Never argue with an old man…especially if he's your band teacher. He'll end up hitting you over the head with either A) A huge stack of papers B) an eraser or C) He'll just call you square. O.o Well, Till Next Time, Ja ne!
Sakura….Now Middy-chan! P.O.D.
P.S. OMFG! OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG! I HAVE to tell you guys! Okay, I just witnessed a freakin' miracle! I used to have this C.D. player that I absolutely loved to pieces, when one day I dropped it on the ground. You're probably thinking, "Oh it's just the ground," right? Well…it was cement and from about 5 feet up. (note that that's about how tall my hands were at the point of the drop…only about 2 inches away from the top of my head…O.o) Well, after that it wouldn't work, right? So Chi bought me a new one, and I was all, "This thing hates me…" . And it really does because when I want it to play, it doesn't, and when I'm indifferent, it plays. Retarded cursed item! Anyways, that was about…oooh…Hey! Almost a year ago! Since it's almost my birthday once more. Moving on…so I've been dealing with this retarded CD player that won't play my awesome Techno CD's or (low and behold) David Bowie! I threw my old CD player on the ground, reluctant to get rid of it in the move, and guess what! After being stepped on by me and my nephews a billion times, IT WORKS AGAIN! AHH! THANK YOU GOD! I LOVE YOU! I was actually crying tears of joy when it started working. I called Mo up and she actually thought that a manga had suddenly appeared in my hand because of the way I was yelling OMG OMG OMFG! She asked me if I bought Immortal Rain volume 6 yet when she assumed. Then when I told her about the CD player, she totally had the anime reaction of a sweat drop. I could totally see it run down her cheek…You know you've seen too much anime when….O.o Well…I'm seriously leaving this chapter and working on 7 now! Ja! (It was a miracle!)
