EDIT 10/21/2006: It's rather late as I begin to revise this chapter, but it's not like I'm going to wing it all through, because that would be a lousy editing, considering I'm very tired, I know I have to wake up early tomorrow, and I just recovered from a nasty virus which kept me feeling like a walking corpse but not exactly from work, because as long as I'm not hazardous or contagious (which I actually was, now that I think about it, but everyone chose to ignore that) I should still go to work. So I won't revise the whole chapter right now. I think I'm just rereading this to remember what I wrote and how I wrote it because it just feels like ages ago I was sitting down at an unearthly hour just like right now, fighting to keep my drooping eyes open as I tried to finish typing the last few paragraphs and it was torture, because I remember very fondly (though not so amusedly) how I would beg my tired and wired mind to make sense of the words spilling out of my fingers, praying to get it over with. Yes, I remember those cold nights blinking exhaustedly in front of the painfully-glowing screen and the near religious joy I felt when I was finally done. I remember them fondly, but God knows I am glad they are over. Still, as I sit once again, masochistically blinking tiredly at the glowing screen, I think I might miss those nights more than I think.

---

Hallo allerseits!

Sorry for the massive delay with this new chapter, but you have to understand, it's a once in a lifetime (well, okay, rather once every four years) chance to go see the World Cup. Today's game was awful, England lost in the worst possible way (though I have to admit, they played fairly well even if Rooney got kicked out. Either that or Portugal was playing really bad), but I had fun. It was intense. I'm still pissed that Japan lost (how dare they), and that England lost too after such a tight game (and I hate penalty shootouts, they're the worse), but I've still got Italy, which I root for because of my friends who are Italian. The games have been brilliant, anyway.

So you see, I've been busy drinking German beer and acting like an apprentice hooligan all over town. But I also got the chance to see my friends again, which is priceless. Wish we could do this more often. I'm also touring Germany. Really nice country. I'm learning a bit of German in the process.

Author's note: Walis pointed out something in her review, which originally I was going to point out in the previous chapter in the final note. But I forgot. So thanks, Walis. The thing is this: near the end, there was a note written on the book from Isshin to Masaki, and it was written in katakana. Katakana is used to write words that are taken from (mainly) the English language, or in some occasions, names; it's therefore used to spell words phonetically. This was actually a reference to a bit of an inside joke. Isshin has always reminded me a bit of my dad: they are both loud and silly (though my dad will never be nearly as silly as Goat Chin), and they're always meddling in their children's life (my dad tries to get me involved in various, often ridiculous, activities like going fishing, learning how to play golf, milking cows -I'm serious-, fencing, etc.) I drew a sort of parallel between the two, and I thought I should give Isshin a few of my dad's quirky things too, to balance. So Isshin likes to write random notes completely in katakana, so only a person who understands English (and has a lot of patience) will be able to read it. Needless to say, my dad's writing makes absolutely no sense most of the time, but he thinks it's funny anyway. Sometimes I do too.

Music for this chapter: "Nemo" by Nightwish, "Totally natural" by And you will know us by the trail of dead, "Shut your eyes" by Snow Patrol, "Bring me to life" by Evanescence.

Disclaimer: Don't own anything but the plot of this story.

---

Coming Undone – by Deathberry15

3: Ready or not

It was not surprising that Tatsuki was constantly concerned about her best friend. Even if she should already be used to her antics, she couldn't help but worry. Orihime had a weird lifestyle, she was clumsy and flaky, and she had a weird common sense (that is, if she had any at all). It was a wonder how she even managed to survive everyday. It often got her into trouble. But Tatsuki learned to deal with it. Being weird was Orihime's way of being normal.

What concerned her now was that Orihime was not being her usual weird, ditzy self lately. She had never seen her friend like this: quiet, distant, rarely smiling.

Tatsuki could've easily asked her what was bothering her, but she changed her mind. It was best to let Orihime come to her and tell her about it, if she felt like it.

Orihime and Tatsuki knew each other very well; they were best friends, had been for years; they trusted each other with practically everything (except maybe Tatsuki didn't trust Orihime's memory so much, for obvious reasons). They knew pretty much everything about each other. But for a long time, it had felt like Orihime was hiding something. Something big, something very important.

There must be a reason for that; a very good one. Everything was okay between them, anyway. Although Tatsuki did feel just a little bit ignored. There were supposed to be no secrets between them. Should she feel betrayed, left out, offended that her best friend would hide something from her?

It seemed like no one was acting quite like themselves lately.

Strange things had been happening; she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was that bothered her, but even she had been feeling a bit off herself. Even more so since she started seeing people around her that no one else seemed to be able to see. People were being odd, too: Orihime, Ichigo, even Chad and that geeky guy Ishida. Then there was that girl, Rukia. And those kids that appeared randomly, who didn't even look like high school kids; most of them looked older. One in particular actually looked younger.

Rukia was okay, Tatsuki guessed. She was not new to the place or the group anymore, and even if she was still a bit weird, she was nice enough. But the other people who sometimes hung out with her and Ichigo and the others, it was a bit disturbing. What a weird crowd, Tatsuki thought. But maybe that was just her.

If anything, she had not been feeling herself lately, and she thought it might have something to do with what happened about a month and a half ago, at the beginning of the term. She couldn't remember exactly what had happened that day, but the next day she woke up feeling very tired and out of it. Orihime was gone too, far longer, and came back after a few days all bandaged up and saying she had been in an accident. Falling down a flight of stairs? Tatsuki didn't buy that. And perhaps that's what bothered her the most; she knew Orihime had been lying, but she didn't know why she would do it. And she couldn't bring herself to ask.

Ichigo was another matter. He was her friend too, but he seemed to have forgotten about that. Tatsuki still cared enough about him to confide in him occasionally, and hope he knew he could do the same if he wanted to. But much like Orihime, he was distant, distracted.

Lately it just felt like everyone was keeping her out of the loop.

Something big was going on with Orihime. It was one thing to ask Tatsuki to let her bake cookies for her crush alone, but it had been days, even weeks, since her odd behavior began, and Tatsuki was still in the dark. It had something to do with Ichigo; that was for sure. Everything –as far as she knew— seemed to point to that. It was even more obvious now, after he had offered to walk her home yesterday. It was like they had become close overnight. But Tatsuki didn't even know half of it. Why couldn't Orihime confide in her, her best friend?

Tatsuki opened her notebook to a blank page, before casting a long glance in the red-haired girl's direction. Orihime, in her usual spot beside the window, was hunched over her open notebook, doodling absently on the page while staring outside, deep in thought. Tatsuki sighed. They were only a few feet away, but it felt like in the past few months, they had been growing further and further apart. Maybe it was meant to happen, but she deeply wished it wouldn't.

---

It did come as a bit of a surprise though, when school was over that day, and she was on her way to karate practice, seeing Ichigo and Orihime together again. She would usually be the one to walk Orihime home after school; but Tatsuki was training hard for an upcoming interschool competition, having training almost everyday. It didn't seem to matter, however. That day, just outside the school building, Ichigo bee-lined toward Orihime, right in front of everyone. Something had happened between them, and they no longer cared if anyone found out, if rumors spread or if people teased them. They looked at each other, and without a word, they linked hands and walked away.

Tatsuki smiled to herself, noting that people around them were pointing them out and whispering. Girls were giggling gleefully, some boys were shaking their heads in bewilderment, and Keigo's mouth fell open almost cartoon-style. Hadn't everyone seen it coming? It was only a matter of time, Tatsuki thought. Ichigo could not continue to be so dense. And eventually Orihime would find a way to get through to him instead of waiting for him to suddenly notice her.

Tatsuki's smile faded after a bit, realizing she was staring after them, no longer happily, but almost longingly. Her two best friends... Who knew what would become of them now. She felt happy for them, but she couldn't help feeling a bit sad at the same time. They were her friends, and they were leaving her behind. As much as she disliked it, she was a third wheel now.

Don't be so melodramatic, Tatsuki, she told herself. But she couldn't shake that feeling. Everything was changing. And she felt like she was the only one who was stuck, the only one who remained the same. She felt like she was being left out.

---

"Maybe you should take a break."

"Rukia, I'm fine."

"You're exhausted."

"It's this stupid gigai. I hate it. I feel all cramped up inside."

"You don't fight with your gigai. And you're not in your gigai when you're tripping over your own feet with exhaustion."

"I do not trip over my own feet!"

"Why are you so headstrong?"

"Why do you worry about me so much?"

Renji's question was met by a long silence. Rukia didn't look at him, as if she didn't feel like answering. Renji sat silently as well, waiting for his breathing to normalize, while Rukia knelt beside him, healing him. It was taking a long time, since she hadn't used demon arts for healing in a long time; not since Ichigo used to get into so much trouble with the Hollows. Plus, the injuries were considerable. But she had insisted.

"Well, somebody has to," he finally heard her respond in a very low voice. Renji tried to hide his smile, but Rukia was still not looking at him anyway.

The 6th division vice-captain had been moved by Tessai to the ground-level of Urahara Shouten, after he was severely knocked out by a surprise attack from Ururu. It was all part of the training, Urahara insisted nonchalantly as Renji tried to get up numerous times but couldn't; Renji had the feeling Urahara was starting to get a little bit carried away. After Rukia's arrival, Renji tried to heal himself, unsuccessfully, and gone back to training. When Ururu nearly knocked him out again with one single punch, Rukia offered to take care of his injuries, just so he would quit being so stubborn and stop moving long enough for her to heal him, and that's what she was doing. Although not precisely so he could go back to training.

But Renji would just keep training, much to her chagrin. She had spent all day yesterday trying to convince him to take a break from working out, considering he was always very tired and ill-humored afterwards. It was starting to really take its toll on him. But according to him, he couldn't quit now. He felt no change whatsoever in his performance, in his endurance. He just knew he had to keep working. As long as Urahara was okay with it, and continued to help him.

Something about Rukia's visit the previous day, seeing she was practically dragged in by a chattering Matsumoto, only made Renji want to train harder. Rukia just wouldn't ever understand, probably. He couldn't give up; he couldn't just set a limit. There was always a way to push that limit. He needed to do that, so he would never fail again. He had failed her once before, getting her nearly killed (not to mention himself, too); he couldn't take that risk again.

Renji wouldn't tell her that, though. There was no point. She would just say something stupid about not deserving to be saved. No matter what he could say, no matter what anyone could say, she'd still wish people would stop risking their lives for her.

But Renji never cared about that. He didn't care if she deserved to be saved or not. He wanted her to be safe, just because. Did he really need a reason?

Of course, trying to explain this to her was not something he wanted to go through. So he just kept doing what he did. Maybe one day, she would understand.

---

"Freeloader-san, dinner is ready," Ururu announced, just as Rukia and Renji emerged from the pit that was Urahara's underground training area.

"You're not planning on eating much, are you, freeloader?" Jinta added. Renji shot him a warning look.

Urahara was placing a large bowl of milk out on the floor near the door. "Done already?" he asked, as Rukia and Renji walked to the front of the store.

"He's taking a break," Rukia stated firmly, clearly telling Urahara not to comment any further. She shot Renji a look too, as if saying "don't even think about it."

Renji sighed. "We're just going out for a while," he said, not wanting to cross Rukia. "I guess I could use some fresh air after being muddled down there so long."

"Kuchiki-san should know what's best for you, shouldn't she?" Urahara replied with a sly smile. "After all, she's exactly what you need. I mean— she knows exactly what you need," he stammered apologetically. Rukia blushed, knowing that little blurb was intentional, and thought it best to change the subject.

"Are you expecting Yoruichi-san, by any chance?" she asked, noting the bowl of milk.

Urahara nodded and looked out the open door. "She should be here soon. Can't be too careful, after all. We don't know when we'll need all the help we can get."

"That's rather cryptic. What exactly do you mean?" Renji asked.

Urahara turned back to them, his eyes glinting in the faint light in spite of the shadows covering his face. "I have warned Soul Society about a possible surprise attack. We should be ready at every moment. We don't know when we might go into battle."

Renji and Rukia looked at each other in concern. "Wait, what makes you think we might get a surprise attack?" Renji asked.

"There's always a possibility. We don't know what the enemy's doing when we can't see them. Which is most of the time."

Rukia frowned in confusion. "Are you saying Aizen will move sooner?"

"I'm saying we can't tell when Aizen will make his move."

"Urahara, what the hell are you talking about? Haven't we gone over this already?" Renji demanded. "We've already discussed this, even with Soul Society—"

"There's something we've overlooked," Urahara interjected. He paused so they could weight his words, but he cast a long look outside. The clouds forming in the darkening night sky announced a heavy rain. "And I'm afraid my precautions may not do any good after all."

Rukia and Renji exchanged looks again and then stood squarely in front of Urahara.

"Would you mind explaining yourself?" Rukia said.

---

Ichigo drummed his fingers on the open book in front of him. He realized he had just read an entire page three times without processing anything in it at all. He had a chemistry test the next day, but something nagging at the back of his mind didn't allow him to study peacefully. That and the mod soul he was forced to deal with.

"Kon, get off the desk," Ichigo growled.

"I'm not doing anything," the lion plushy retorted, holding up his paws in defense. He sat on a pile of books on Ichigo's desk, watching him quietly. Ominously quiet.

"You're distracting me. Go away. I'm trying to study," Ichigo said, frowning as he put his head on his hands, poring over the book once more.

"But I haven't done anything. Why are you always in such a bad mood?"

"You piss me off."

"Are you sure it's not just you?"

"Sod off, would you?" Ichigo exclaimed, making Kon flinch slightly. The lion got up quickly and made a mad dash for the bed, keen on getting away before Ichigo could think of venting the pent-up anger on him. "Bloody plushy," Ichigo murmured moodily and went back to studying.

Kon could tell something was bothering Ichigo, but he had no idea what it was. As much as he was indignant at the boy's lashing out at him for no apparent reason, he had no intention of provoking him any further. He plopped onto the mattress, leaning comfortably against the pillows. "Where's Nee-san?"

"I don't know."

"Why wouldn't you know?" Kon demanded.

"Why should I know?" Ichigo retorted.

"I bet he's with that tattooed guy," Kon grumbled. "Stupid ketchup-head…"

"Kon, would you shut up?" Ichigo exclaimed again, banging a fist on the desktop. Kon, however, didn't flinch, and instead started pacing on the mattress.

"She's too good for him," he started muttering, but he was louder than he should be. Ichigo sighed, trying to stay cool.

"Well, there's no doubt about that," Ichigo snorted. "But then again, you're just a plushy," he added with a smirk. Kon pouted like a little kid, and Ichigo thought this was the end of the mod soul's quiet ranting, and he would finally get some peace to study. But however offended Kon was, he still wouldn't shut up.

"The world's gone mad. Rukia is caught up with that guy, Orihime-chan and you seem to have something going on, although you're too stupid to really do something about it. What is it about you anyway? You're just a cranky kid with awful hair and a screwed up life—"

Ichigo turned dangerously to face Kon, and all he needed was a glance to make the lion stop talking and recoil. As soon as he was certain that Kon was going to stay quiet, Ichigo turned back and bent over his book once more, trying to focus. But to no avail. Now that Kon had brought it up, his mind turned to Orihime.

What could she be doing that instant?

"AAAARGH!!"

"FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!!" Ichigo yelled, standing up to face Kon once again, and see what it was that the plush toy was making a racket about now. He then wished he hadn't, because someone in the house might come upstairs wondering what he was yelling about.

Kon merely pointed to the pillow, on top of which was Ichigo's shinigami license, vibrating and emitting a sound that reminded him of a broken alarm clock (after it's been tossed across the room and it has burst into pieces, but it still makes a very annoying sound). It was unlike the sound the alarm usually made, though.

Ichigo picked it up and stared at it. "It's not a Hollow."

"Is it those Arrancar guys?" Kon asked. Ichigo didn't answer. He got a strong, bad feeling. He snuck a look out the window. It was already very late and very dark; clouds had blocked the moon. Lightning lit the sky, and thunder split the silence, making the windowpanes rattle. Yes, he had a very strong, very bad feeling.

"They're either coming, or they're here already," he muttered under his breath. He needed to find the others. They needed to be ready.

Ichigo pressed the object with the hollow symbol to his chest. Promptly, his soul, wearing the shihakushou and sporting the large, ribbon-wrapped zanpakutou, was pushed out of his body, which fell limply to the floor. "See you later," Ichigo said confidently, heading to the window. Kon shook his head.

"You shouldn't go out when the weather's like this," he said. "You were just sick. You might get sick again."

"Now's not the time to worry about that," Ichigo replied as he opened the window. Kon shrugged.

"Well, that's your problem, then. I can't stop you."

Ichigo was about to leap out the window, but he hesitated, and turned around to face Kon.

"I need your help."

---

"Toushirou-kun?"

Hitsugaya stopped looking out the window long enough to face Orihime, who wore an apron over her sweater and skirt. He realized he was rubbing the towel to the same plate over and over again even when it was already dry. He must have zoned out.

"Captain?" Matsumoto called.

Hitsugaya didn't respond. He only got up and walked to the window, looking closely at the odd formation of clouds in the sky. He had a bad feeling.

"Seems like it's going to rain," Orihime said, looking out as well.

"No," Hitsugaya shook his head. "They're here."

Matsumoto accidentally dropped her hashi into her bowl of peanut butter and jelly ramen –that Orihime had prepared for dinner—, splattering some onto the table.

In the blink of an eye, Hitsugaya and Matsumoto were both standing in their shihakushous, while their gigais, now occupied by their respective artificial souls, stood back to give them room.

"Take care of Inoue-san," Hitsugaya said. Mod-Hitsugaya and mod-Matsumoto adopted an exaggerated military stance, saluting in affirmation.

"Yeah, don't let her get bored. I know you guys can be a real drag," Matsumoto added. The artificial souls glared at her.

Before Orihime could say anything, the shinigami exited through the living room window. She stared after them longingly, silently wishing they would be okay, while in the kitchen, the two artificial souls started fighting over the bowl of ramen for some reason, then started throwing ramen at each other, eliciting a full-fledged food fight. Orihime, no stranger to this sort of behavior, still couldn't help but sigh tiredly at the sight of her messy kitchen.

"I wish I could go," she said sadly to herself, because neither mod-Matsumoto nor mod-Hitsugaya (who looked like he was having a lot of fun) heard her.

But I made a promise.

---

Keigo sat up in the couch, dropping the manga he was reading. He had a sudden bad feeling. Like something was about to happen; only he had no idea what it could be. But he felt odd. Maybe it was something he ate.

He glanced at Yumichika and Ikkaku, who were sprawled in the living room reading manga, just like him. Making themselves right at home, it seems. Nitwits, he thought irritably. They imitated him, sitting upright and alert, like they heard or smelled or otherwise sensed something strange.

"Yay! I'm finally home! Where's my favorite roommate? We've got to do something fun tonight," Mizuho announced as she walked through the door, carrying some shopping bags. She stopped long enough to give a long, flirtatious smile at Ikkaku, before heading into the kitchen. "Looks like it's going to be a rainy night, so we have to keep ourselves entertained, don't we?" she added. Keigo rolled his eyes. Ikkaku shook his head, while Yumichika couldn't help but snicker lightly. This was going to be a long night. Fun for some, though. Maybe she was the bad feeling they were getting.

Keigo glanced out the window. "Well, look at that. 'Rainy' is an understatement; we have a storm coming tonight. Look at those heavy clouds," he said, pointing outside. The dark night sky was turning a murky grey from the clouds, a gust of wind blowing strong and constant, making the windowpanes rattle lightly.

Ikkaku and Yumichika followed his gaze and stared out the window too. A lightning bolt cut through the sky. The two of them exchanged a look. Like they just realized what was bothering them.

Without a word to each other or to their hosts, they got up and ran out, leaving Keigo completely perplexed. Mizuho came back out to the living room.

"Who wants ice cream?" she asked cheerfully. It took her a moment to realize the only one there was her brother, and she frowned. "Where'd they go?"

Keigo only blinked in response. Before he could even make an attempt at an answer, the door flung open again, and Ikkaku and Yumichika stepped back in.

"Sorry about that," Ikkaku said, and he sounded a bit odd. He was smiling, something he didn't do very often. Yumichika had a bit of an idiotic look on his face. The two men sat back down on their respective seats, picking up the manga they were each reading, and acted like they hadn't just ran out for no apparent reason only to come back a split second later.

Mizuho didn't seem to notice anything odd about that. She grinned and brought them ice cream bowls, which the guys proceeded to devour. Keigo could only stare at them oddly, his appetite suddenly spoiled by something besides the weird alertness he felt.

It was times like these he really regretted taking them in as houseguests. They really gave him the creeps sometimes.

---

Urahara looked up at the ceiling. Tessai was just bringing the food to the table, where the group sat comfortably, including Renji and Rukia, whom Urahara had invited to stay for dinner. He decided it was only appropriate to have them over, so they could talk calmly, and he could explain. But as they ate, Urahara had only started to explain about the Hougyoku and the ou ken, and hadn't really gotten very far, when he put his hashi down and stared calmly ahead.

He knew something was going on outside. He could feel it. Rukia and Renji were aware of that too; they looked at each other questioningly, and knew the other was as clueless, but they shared the same feeling of foreboding. Urahara shook his head in dismay.

"I should've known this would happen."

Rukia stared hard at him. "Known what? What is it, Urahara?"

"The Arrancar have come tonight."

Renji nearly shot to his feet. "Now? It's not December yet! They can't be ready! Why would they come now?"

"It's not the battle we're preparing for," Urahara said simply.

"Then why are they here?" Renji asked.

Urahara looked thoughtfully at his food for a moment before answering. "Inoue-san is in danger."

---

Kon ran steadily down the sidewalk, taking in his surroundings. It all looked so strange to him, even though he had passed numerous times through those streets. But he knew where he was going. It shouldn't be very far now. He thought he could make it before it would start raining, but even with his speed, it wasn't too long tiny droplets had already started falling.

He rounded the corner and came face to face with a dark figure, a guy maybe as tall as Ichigo. Kon was startled. The guy wore a white garment similar to a white kimono over black hakama, and a zanpakutou attached to a belt around his waist. He had black hair and eerily bright green eyes, with a dark paint-like shadow surrounding his eyes and trailing a line down each cheek, like black tears. He didn't look like a shinigami. Was this one of those Arrancar? Kon immediately felt something off about this person's reiatsu, and merely looking at him gave him the chills. This was not a chance encounter.

He didn't have time to think further about it. The guy had the zanpakutou in his hand. When did he unsheathe it? Before he could react, Kon just felt a sharp pain shooting through his stomach, and a blinding icy coldness piercing his midriff as the Arrancar stabbed him in one fluid movement.

---

Renji and Rukia stared at Urahara in shock, as the blonde man stood up and walked out. Even Tessai, Ururu and Jinta had fallen completely silent and stopped eating, following the shop owner with wide eyes.

"What do you mean? Why is Inoue in danger? What does she have to do with anything? What the hell is going on? Where are you going?"

These questions were shot by Renji and Rukia in one garbled mess, each talking over the other, as they trailed Urahara closely back to the front of the store. Urahara didn't stop to look back at them, but instead approached the entrance, the doors locked because it was already past closing time. He turned the locks and pushed the glass doors wide open, letting in the cold air of night, sweeping in a thin mist that smelled of wet grass. It was beginning to rain, the precipitation growing more intense by the second, steadily becoming a shower. Thunder and lightning rolled, and the wind blew with an eerie whistle. Urahara looked out, taking the scene outside coolly, while the two young shinigami behind him trembled –not so much from the weather, but sudden chills—, clueless as to what was going on.

"I had the feeling that they would come. Not to battle, but to obtain something that they need," Urahara finally said after staring out for a long time.

"Need? They need Inoue?" Renji asked.

"Aizen is going to use her. She's got powers that come in handy to him."

"Is this why you didn't want her to fight? Because they could get to her during the battle?" Rukia inquired.

"I didn't want her to get more powerful. She shouldn't have known how powerful she truly is already. They were coming for her anyway, sooner or later, and they would've gotten to her. At least she would've been unaware of her true potential. Which might be advantageous."

"Some advantage," Renji spat sarcastically. "What does he want with her?"

The former 12th division captain seemed to doubt for a moment answering the question.

"The Hougyoku."

Rukia and Renji looked at each other confused. "I'm not following," Renji replied.

"Inoue-san has many powers, the source of those powers being the Shun Shun Rikka," Urahara explained. "However, Aizen might just be interested in one; the Souten Kisshun, the Reflecting Shield. It acts in a ways that is seems that she can manipulate time and space to restore things. That is how she heals."

"What does that have to do with the Hougyoku?" Rukia asked.

"The reason Aizen would want to use Inoue-san would be to accelerate the maturity of the Hougyoku. If Inoue can manipulate time, she should be able to do it."

Rukia and Renji looked horrified. Urahara could only continue.

"I believe the Vizard named Hachigen also possesses some very similar powers. In which case, Aizen might've considered him too. But then again, Hachigen is a Vizard, and Aizen might not know about him or the other Vizards. In which case, what could be easier than snatching a mortal girl right off the face of the earth? Even if she's surrounded by shinigami, it should be fairly easier. All you need is the element of surprise."

---

Ichigo shivered. Even if it wasn't raining hard yet, he felt as if he had been under the rain for hours. But he tried to forget about it, and focused on finding the Arrancar, before they could find him. Had they entered the living world already?

Before he knew it, he saw the rip in the sky. It was only a block away, hovering above the park where about a year ago, he encountered his second hollow, already a shinigami, saving a boy in the process, and performing his first soul burial. That day had been sunny and fresh. Tonight, it was dark and stormy, and the forces gathering in the spot, flowing from the open doorway between Hueco Mundo and Karakura Town, made it all seem like a nightmare.

Ichigo looked up at the Arrancar, and they stared back down at him. There were four of them: the giant one, Yammy, perhaps the most threatening-looking one out of them all. Two of them Ichigo had never seen before, one with light hair and an expression of detachment, while the other was an androgynous male with black hair and sleeves that were too long for his arms. The last one, of course, was the one Ichigo hoped to meet: Grimmjaw, wielding his zanpakutou with the only arm he had left, and looking particularly vengeful.

Now was the time, Ichigo thought, to see how much he had improved during training. The long wait for some action made his muscles tingle. He wasn't afraid; he had been looking forward to this, to testing his control, his new powers. He no longer felt afraid as he faced them, as he stood there alone, waiting for them to come at him. He knew what he was capable of, knew his strength, and he was confident.

He wasn't alone much longer, though. Hitsugaya and Matsumoto rushed up from behind. They stopped beside him, panting slightly. Ichigo greeted them with a nod.

"Where's Inoue?"

"She's fine. She's at home with our artificial souls," Matsumoto replied.

"Good."

"Where are the others?" Hitsugaya asked.

"We don't need them. We can take on these guys on our own," Ichigo replied with a grin.

"No, I mean, where are the other Arrancar? Why would Aizen only send four of them?" Hitsugaya said. Ichigo looked at him strangely. Why would Hitsugaya wish more of them had come? Though it did seem odd.

"If you guys don't mind," said the androgynous Arrancar, looking haughtily at the three, "I'll take on all of them at once. Otherwise, it's just too easy."

From his back sprouted eight tentacle-like arms, long and thick and stretching out from behind, reaching toward the three shinigami. Hitsugaya and Ichigo managed to jump out of the way, but Matsumoto tried to slice through one of them with her zanpakutou, only to be knocked over by it. Just when the tentacle was about to lash out at her again and probably trap her, Yumichika and Ikkaku dropped in, cutting and slashing with their zanpakutous.

"Want to take on us too?" Ikkaku asked viciously. The Arrancar looked momentarily surprised, but he went back to smiling arrogantly.

"More fun for me," he said.

"Don't get too cocky, Luppi. This one's mine," Grimmjaw announced, and he pointed at Ichigo with his zanpakutou. Ichigo grinned.

"Bring it on."

---

Orihime stared out the window, like she usually did on rainy days. Only this time, she wasn't watching the rain. She was looking out for her friends. She could see the tear in the sky from a distance. She wished they would be alright. She really wished she could go with them, too. If it meant she would be able to help a little.

Also if it meant getting out of her flat at least until Hitsugaya and Matsumoto could return to their gigai; in the meantime, mod-Hitsugaya and mod-Matsumoto had already raided her fridge, prepared something very strange, and then proceeded to stuff their faces. All in the last five minutes.

She was trying to ignore them –trying to control them would've driven her crazy—. It made her sad, though; soul candy seemed like a very good idea, but not considering how modified and artificial souls have to stay trapped very long inside those little balls, waiting for a shinigami to need one. Maybe they behaved like that because it was strange for them to feel this sort of freedom. Still, she wished they could be a little less enthusiastic.

Something outside caught her eye all of a sudden. She scrutinized the ground below, trying to see though the curtain of water falling steadily now. A glimpse of orange, moving fast down the street. Kurosaki-kun? There was no one else with that hair color.

Orihime rushed to the door. She was putting on her shoes, when her two companions left the kitchen, wiping their faces and rubbing their stomachs in satisfaction.

"What shall we do now to keep you entertained?" mod-Matsumoto asked in a sing-song voice.

"Oooh, let's jump on the bed! That's always fun!" mod-Hitsugaya said, an extremely dorky grin spreading over his face. It was definitively weird to see him like that, but Orihime reminded herself these were not her shinigami friends.

"Kurosaki-kun's coming this way. I think he might be in trouble. I have to go down and check on him," she said, ignoring their babbling. They looked at each other.

"You shouldn't go outside. It's raining, and there might be danger," mod-Matsumoto reprimanded, but she was still smiling.

"We'll go with you!" mod-Hitsugaya exclaimed cheerfully, pumping his fist into the air.

"Yay!" mod-Matsumoto mimicked him. Orihime laughed awkwardly. She grabbed an umbrella and went ahead of them as they put on their shoes.

---

"Kurosaki-kun?"

Orihime stepped out under the rain, large raindrops pattering on the green umbrella the only sound she could hear besides the rain falling on the streets and buildings, and the thunder. There were no cars driving by, no sounds coming from inside the houses and buildings, not a single soul outside. She was utterly alone.

"Kurosaki-kun?" she called out again, looking around frantically. She was sure she had seen him. It couldn't have been anyone else.

Suddenly she sensed something, or rather someone, nearby. But even as she stared all around, she saw no one.

"AAAH!" Orihime exclaimed, startled by a noise from behind. She turned; Ichigo was sprawled face down on the sidewalk, soaking wet and trembling.

"Kurosaki-kun?!" Orihime looked at him warily, still surprised. Ichigo lifted his face to her, holding out an arm, reaching for her.

"Orihime-chan…" he said in a very shaky voice.

"Kon!" she yelled, realizing who it was. If Kon was in Ichigo's body, Ichigo was in his shinigami form, probably headed the same way as Hitsugaya and Matsumoto. Just thinking about it made her really nervous and scared. She just hoped he would be alright. But what could Kon be doing here?

"Kon, are you okay?" she asked, realizing the shape the mod soul was in. He wasn't getting up, and he was twitching on the ground. All of a sudden, someone came up from behind and tackled Orihime half to the ground as she was crouching down. She dropped the umbrella in the process.

"What are you doing? You should've waited for us! You shouldn't go outside alone! You could get killed!" mod-Hitsugaya exclaimed, applying a headlock. Orihime tried to pry him off unsuccessfully, but mod-Matsumoto thwacked the white-haired boy and pulled him off.

"You're the one who's going to kill her!" she yelled.

"It's only Kon. He's a friend," Orihime said, rubbing her neck where the mod soul had nearly strangled her. She got on her knees and tried to help Kon get up. But his hands were pressed to his middle area, and he began to moan in pain.

"What happened to you? What are you doing here?" she asked. It was not until he rolled onto his back that she saw why he was in so much pain; a large blood stain covered his shirt, a stab wound protruding through a hole in the fabric. Orihime gasped and slapped a hand to her mouth to keep herself from screaming.

"Ichigo asked… he asked me to come see you…" Kon said weakly, "to make sure you were… alright." His breath was coming out in short, feeble gasps. The two other artificial souls stood over them, staring in disbelief.

"He did that?" Orihime asked, her eyes filling with tears. She got ready to call out the Shun Shun Rikka, to use her Souten Kisshun. "You're going to be alright."

"Orihime-chan, but there's…"

"Don't speak, Kon. You're hurt," she said. "Just hang in there. I'll take care of that wound for you."

Kon tried to get the words out anyway, but as soon as the reflective shield covered him, he could no longer speak. He felt warm all over, and peace and calm overwhelmed him, until his mind was blank.

---

"Why didn't you say something before?!" Rukia yelled. She stood squarely in front of Urahara now, ready to berate him for everything he had just said. Had he really known all this time what was going to happen, and not told anyone? How was that possible? How could he do that?

Urahara didn't respond. His face was blank, eyes hidden by his striped hat. Rukia huffed and puffed, enraged. She wanted to punch him, hurt him in some way. She was tired of the way he acted, the way he treated everything like science, like endless experiments, treating everyone like a potential guinea pig. He always stood back watchful of how events develop before his eyes, allowing things to happen as he observed, knowing what would probably happen, according to his hypothesis and theories. Was that all he was after? To see if he was right or not? He was truly a mad scientist.

She still couldn't get over the fact that she had been nearly executed because of him. Everything that had happened leading to that moment, and everything afterwards up to now, it had all gone according to his plan. He knew every move, everything was calculated. He was an eager spectator. It made her sick.

She paced a little in front of him, trying to get her temper under control. Now was not the time to fight him. By the way he was staring back at her, she had the feeling he knew she wouldn't fight him anyway. Because he knew. He always knew.

"We could've been ready!" she shouted. Renji put a hand on her shoulder, as if trying to calm her down. She just shoved it off.

"Are you not ready right now?" Urahara said quietly.

Rukia and Renji looked at each other, without speaking. They both knew what the other was thinking. Casting one last look of utter despise in Urahara's direction, Rukia ran past him, followed closely by Renji, and the two shinigami pushed through the doors and sprinted out and into the rain.

---

Kon opened his eyes. Drops of water pelted his face, and he shivered violently. He had felt so warm and cozy just a moment ago. What had happened?

"You'll be fine now, Kon," a voice said. Kon tilted his head to his right and saw Orihime kneeling beside him and smiling. She was drenched, and Hitsugaya and Matsumoto were standing nearby.

His body slightly ached all over. Instinctively he touched his stomach; the wound was gone completely, and only a tear in the fabric and the large bloodstain covering the front remained as evidence of what happened. He was still in Ichigo's body; there was a reason for that. Slowly he tried to recall what had happened.

"Who the hell is this guy?" mod-Hitsugaya said suddenly.

Kon tried to push himself up awkwardly on his elbows, and lifted his head to see whom the artificial soul was talking about. At the corner of the street, the same shadowy figure he had encountered before stood under the rain, watching them. He suddenly remembered everything that had happened.

"Orihime-chan, run!" Kon shouted hoarsely. "He's the one who stabbed me. He followed me here. You have to get away!"

"Who?" Orihime asked puzzled, until she looked in the direction Kon and mod-Hitsugaya were pointing. Her eyes widened.

"He's an Arrancar! He's coming for you!"

Orihime slowly stood up, and pulled Kon to his feet. Kon, even though his body still felt sore, grabbed her hand and tried to pull her away.

"Come on! We have to get out of here!" he said. But she wouldn't budge.

"Kon, find Kurosaki-kun. Find the shinigami and tell them, anyone who can help. I'll hold him off," she said very seriously, not taking her eyes off the Arrancar.

"But—"

"GO!"

"I'll stay with you," mod-Histugaya declared, dropping into a fighting stance. Kon would've said something else, but mod-Matsumoto pulled him by the arm and yanked him away, so he could do nothing but follow her, half-dragged in the opposite direction. He cast one last look over his shoulder at Orihime and mod-Hitsugaya, and the Arrancar, before speeding down the street. There was only one thought in his mind now; he had to find Ichigo. Orihime needed his help.

---

"How imprudent," the Arrancar said, his soft voice clear and strong over the noise of the falling rain. Orihime tensed. Even at a distance, she distinguished his features perfectly. The eerily bright green eyes, the dark lines on his face, like black tears trailing on his cheeks, and the broken Hollow mask like a helmet on his black hair. She remembered Ulquiorra.

This time, however, she was not afraid.

"To leave you all alone on a night like this? It seems Soul Society is more reckless than I believed," Ulquiorra continued, now advancing very slowly toward them. Orihime breathed calmly, weighing her options. She could turn and run, but it wouldn't do any good; if Ulquiorra was after her, he'd get her. He was an Arrancar, and she was only human. The only other choice was to fight. Giving up and giving in was not an option. She wouldn't let herself be beaten so easily.

"She's not alone," mod-Hitsugaya declared, hands on his hips. Orihime felt better knowing he was there.

There was a flurry of movement, and Ulquiorra was no longer there, just in front of them. Orihime's face blanched, and mod-Hitsugaya gasped.

"Wha—?" he said stupidly. Orihime turned to him, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Ulquiorra again, zanpakutou drawn. He stood directly behind mod-Hitsugaya, and there was blood dripping from his blade. She realized Ulquiorra had moved so fast, neither she nor the artificial soul had seen him.

Mod-Hitsugaya brought a hand up to his chest, then lifted it up to eye-level. His fingers were covered in oozing dark liquid. Ulquiorra had stabbed him, through and through, in from the back and out through the chest, and he hadn't even felt it. Orihime watched, horrified.

"She is now," Ulquiorra said. Mod-Histugaya uttered a small 'oh' of surprise, and promptly fell limply to his knees and then flat on his face on the wet pavement. There was a flash of light and the soul candy popped out through his mouth. The empty gigai now lay in the middle of the street; the tiny gumball-like soul candy bounced around and eventually rolled to a stop near the arms of the gigai.

Orihime had no time to scream. She realized how close Ulquiorra was to her.

"Santen Kesshun! I reject!" she called out. In a split second, Hinagiku, Lily and Baigon had shot out of her hair clips and formed the shield around her, just in time to protect her from Ulquiorra's zanpakutou, which had lashed out at her like lightning.

Why were the Arrancar after her? What did they want with her? Not a single reason came to mind. But right now it didn't matter. She couldn't let them get her.

"Tsubaki! Koten Zanshun!" she called. The feisty fairie-like being shot out of her hair pins, and hovered in front of her, staring at Ulquiorra, ready for a fight.

No, I am not alone, Orihime said to herself. She stared Ulquiorra straight in the eye, determined, confident. This time she would fight.

"I REJECT!"

---

"Now what?" Rukia asked. Renji and Rukia stood on the street, squinting through the rain trying to gather their surroundings.

"I don't know!" Renji yelled over the thunder rolling. The sky flashed with bolts of lightning zigzagging across the black clouds. "Maybe we should find the others!"

Rukia nodded. She said it would be a good idea to get out of their gigais first. Two teenagers running around in a stormy night might draw attention. They also needed to be ready if the Arrancar had arrived already.

"Which way?" Renji asked, pulling out his soul candy dispenser, ready to make the switch. Rukia swept her hair back. She walked toward the corner.

"This way. Let's find Hitsugaya and Ichigo and—OOF!" she started, but something –or someone— came around the corner at that very instant and crashed her. Renji stared in shock. Two figures were piled on top of Rukia, the tiny girl's eyes practically bulging as she tried to push them off.

"Ow! Gerroff, dammit!" she shouted. As she got up, she saw who the two soaked people were. Matsumoto and Ichigo looked at one another, and back at her.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asked, frowning in confusion.

"NEE-SAN!"

"Kon!"

"Nee-san! I'm so glad to see you!" Kon hugged Rukia, lifting her off her feet, and she had to punch him in the stomach to make him let go. Kon dropped her and doubled over in pain, sinking to his knees.

"Oi, I didn't hit you that hard, now did I?" Rukia said, shaking her head at his exaggeration. But at a closer look, she saw he wasn't acting. There was blood staining the whole front of his shirt. Rukia gasped. "What happened to you? Who did this?" she asked, scanning Ichigo's body for wounds. There were none, but the skin of his stomach was red and swollen. There had been a wound there. Someone healed it.

Kon regained his breath. "It was an Arrancar! He followed me to where Orihime-chan was. He came to get her."

"We were looking for Hitsugaya-taichou and Matsumoto-fukutaichou. They went to find the other Arrancar. They will be able to help," said the woman that looked like Matsumoto but apparently was just her gigai occupied by an artificial soul. Renji and Rukia exchanged concerned looks for the umpteenth time that night.

"Where's Inoue now?" Rukia asked, alarmed.

"She's with the Arrancar?" Renji asked.

"She said she'd hold him off," mod-Matsumoto replied with a shrug.

Rukia gulped. Urahara had been right. They did come for her. But she refused to let that happen. If she could avoid it, then she would go to any lengths.

"Renji, find Ichigo. Take her with you," she told Renji, pointing at mod-Matsumoto. "Kon, you go home. You're in no shape to be running around. Ichigo's body has been maimed enough." Pulling out her Chappy, Rukia swallowed one of the round pills, and a second later, there were two Rukias: one still in the school uniform, and the other dressed in the black kimono, a pure white zanpakutou sheathed at her hip.

"Take Kon home. Make sure he is safe," she told her artificial soul. Mod-Rukia saluted in affirmation and grabbed Kon's hand.

"Let's go, pyon!" she exclaimed, and pulled Kon along. He was reluctant to follow, glancing one last time at Rukia.

"Get going, then!" Rukia yelled at Renji and mod-Matsumoto, before she started in the direction Kon had come from.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Renji called after her.

"To find Orihime!"

"Rukia!"

But Rukia was gone. She quickly disappeared behind the thick curtain of rain.

---

What's going to happen to Orihime? Will Rukia get to her in time? What will Ichigo do? Why am I talking like this?

Hope you were satisfied with this chapter. It was longer than usual.

I just wanted to make clear that the plot of this story was something I thought up a couple of months ago already (maybe more), and I am not directly influenced by what's going on in the manga right now, even though I try to adjust to current events while keeping to my original plot. So the storyline is mine, and I'm not really making it up as the manga goes on. Meaning that the possibility of Ulquiorra being sent exclusively to get Orihime and bring her to Aizen has been something I've considered since the last few squares of a recent chapter (don't remember which number) showed Aizen looking at images of Orihime and going "hmm, interesting power…", which was really creepy.

And I also, just wanted to direct your attention to mod-Hitsugaya for a moment (I know they're not mod souls, by the way, I just think mod-Hitsugaya is better than artificial-Hitsugaya, simply because it's shorter, so there, that's why I use it), and have you tell me whether you think it would be the cutest thing to see him act so hyperactive. I think it would. Thanks to my friend Jake for the inspiration. Alexz edited a special version of the Coca-Cola commercial from Argentina, which is a spin-off of Billy Joel's song "We didn't start the fire", where people and things (objects, animals) all appear with a coke in one hand and waving the other hand. So my friends appear in between scenes of the actual commercial, wearing wigs and stuff and having a merry ol' time down in Deutschland for the World Cup. Jake was Hitsugaya with a white wig; he was also Sasuke from Naruto, with the forehead protector, and Harry Potter, with the glasses; Alexz was Orihime, Sakura from Naruto with a pink wig and forehead protector; Paris was Naruto, and he even painted the whiskers on his face with a pen. It was cute. Anne Marie was Chiyo-chan from Azumanga Daioh, with the pigtails and all! I wish I had been there, then Harry could've been Ichigo and I would've been Rukia. But it was still funny (and thus inspiring) to see Jake with a white wig, pretending to be Hitsugaya on a Coca-Cola high.

Sorry for rambling. Maybe I'll convince Alexz to post the video later on in YouTube or something. It would be funny. She'd surely get a lot of hits.

Thanks for reading. Hopefully I'll be faster with posting the next chapter. But give me a break, I'm enjoying myself.

I'm still in Gelsenkirchen right now, it's very late (or very early, depending on how you look at it, and how much you've been drinking), and I'm tired of chugging beer to forget my woes and complaining that England lost. So I'm going to bed. Tomorrow (well, today) and the rest of these days we'll be touring the country, until the 4th, when we'll go to Dortmund for the match between Germany and Italy. It's going to be awesome. Hopefully I'll still get a chance to write.

Until then, have a nice one! Auf Wiedersehen!

-Nariko the Seer a.k.a Deathberry15