Wow, is it more than a month already?! Sorry, guys, but this and that happened, and I barely had enough time to do this chapter! I had loads of assignments, in other words. But come on! You guys must have work to do, too! Speaking of work, I have been working on some drawings based on this story, and they will be put up on my deviantART account…just as soon as I find a decent scanner. So, you probably won't get to see them until after Christmas at the latest. Soz. But, hey, it's something to look forward too!

Chapter 15

A Game of Tag

In the light of the moon, a hooded figure sat on a rock, inside the only illuminated spot of the woods. It was Epona, and her hood was pulled down, revealing her face. She was around Ren's age, and her green eyes showed no happiness, as though her face was permanently sad. Her long black hair hung out of her cloak, with two small pigtails on top of her head, and two red bows at the bottom of her waist length hair in low pigtails. She was staring at the ground intently, especially at her shadow. Her human shadow suddenly changed form and twisted into a spiral until it turned into a circle shape. Then, she saw an image. It was Ren. And she was playing on a games console with Ichigo, with Ichigo fiercely mashing the buttons, while Ren calmly stared at the screen, confident in her skills. Toshiro was sat on a sofa behind them, and he looked almost disinterested as he stared out of the window, yet he couldn't resist sneaking a couple of looks at the game Ichigo and Ren were playing.

"…" Epona said nothing, staring at Ren and only Ren.

"Hey."

Epona looked up. Etheline had entered the clearing, and she could not tell if Etheline was angry or upset. She never could. Not that it mattered. Etheline always seemed to be in a bad mood.

"I hear that your attack failed on her."

"Yes." She said calmly, looking back at the shadow. Silence.

"Well?"

"Well, what?"

"What are you going to do about it, Epona?" Etheline asked, her voice starting to sound impatient.

"I am observing her for now." She answered. "I refuse to believe such a person can have so much light. I'm trying to see if she truly does have some darkness inside of her."

"And does she?" A pause.

"No."

"You must be pretty miffed, then." Etheline said with a smirk. "After all, you have been doing this for years. I guess it's exciting to have such a challenge."

"Maybe…" Epona said thoughtfully. At this point, Ichigo had thrown his arms up in the air before hanging his head, defeated, while Ren gave him a V sign with her hand, before smiling her usual smile. Epona watched as Ren looked over her shoulder at Toshiro. Ren spoke. Toshiro spoke. Ren spoke again. Toshiro rolled his eyes with a subtle smile, took the controller from Ichigo's hands and sat down on the floor next to Ren, ready to play. All through this, Epona did not hear a word they were saying. After all, the shadows only see. They do not hear.

"However, it might be difficult."

"Oh?" Etheline raised an eyebrow.

"That boy…He saw my face. He knows what I look like. And…he is getting closer to that girl. He might be the first one to notice."

"Care to explain?" Etheline asked, still a little confused.

"I mean that her light is so strong, I cannot unleash her darkness in one move like I have done for my whole life. I will have to do it gradually. Furthermore, if I am to act, I must act with discretion. It is because of the slow process that I fear he will be the first to notice."

"Oh, relax! Men never notice anything! Besides, acting in the shadows won't be a problem for you!" Etheline said boldly. "You are the Master of Darkness after all."

"…" Epona said nothing.

"Plus, it's not like she'll ever be the same again." Etheline turned around to leave. "And I'd prefer it if you didn't fail. Things will be so much easier if that woman is out of the picture." With that, Etheline vanished. Epona remained silent, still staring at Toshiro and Ren playing their game, while Ichigo said something, prompting Toshiro to turn around and yell angrily at him, probably something about being called Captain, followed by Ren laughing. Several minutes passed, and Epona still watched Ren and the two Soul Reapers, thinking about what Etheline said.

"Yes." Epona said. "It is the only way to fulfil my goal." Epona's hand clenched her cloak. "I will create the perfect world with my own two hands, no matter the cost." Now, Ren had won another game and Toshiro merely sighed, not caring either way if he won or lost. But, when Ren stood up and started to perform a victory dance, he smiled, and nobody but Epona saw. "And I will erase anyone who gets in my way."

…

The next day, Saturday, front of the Village Hall, 11.30am

"Right. Let's see what you've got." Ren said with a smile. She was dressed in a green t-shirt with the Triforce on the front, along with her usual blue jeans and necklace. She held a skateboard that had a green background and frog face on the bottom under her arm. Steph, however, had a skateboard with fire patterns underneath, and it was clearly not hers. She certainly did not look like she was skateboarding either, as she had a blue blouse, a pink sleeveless jumper and a denim skirt. Somewhat nervously, she placed her foot on the skateboard. It barely moved an inch.

"Nah, nah, you have to move the foot closer to the edge. Like this." Ren placed her skateboard on the ground and planted her foot on the edge of her skateboard, where it flipped up for her to grab with one hand. "Now you." Steph tried to copy Ren, but instead, the skateboard flipped several times in the air before clattering on the ground. Steph sweat dropped, embarrassed. "Ha ha ha! Also, don't use too much force."

"I'll never be as good as you." Steph sighed.

"Sure you will. You just need practice." Ichigo and Toshiro were close by, sitting on a low wall in front of the huge building Ren and Steph were playing by.

"Something tells me that she's more boy than girl." Ichigo remarked, taking a swig from a can of Cola.

"You don't say." Toshiro said in a distracted tone.

"Hm? Is something bothering you?"

"Not really. It's just…Have you ever had the feeling you're being watched?"

"Can't say I have. But, hey. An organisation is against us. Who wouldn't watch us?"

"Someone's watching us?!" Ren exclaimed, overhearing what Ichigo said. "Ew! Pervs!" Ichigo flinched, amazed at how sharp her hearing was, yet Toshiro said and did nothing in response, as he had got used to Ren's unpredictable nature.

I've been getting it since last night. Toshiro thought. Nobody was outside the window, and there was nobody in that room but us. That feeling isn't here now, but what was it? Was it White Raven? Whatever it was, it felt dark. And almost…sad.

"Shiiiiiiiiroooooo."

"I'm here!" Toshiro yelped, suddenly being brought back to earth. Ren was right in front of him, her hands on her hips.

"C'mon. Let's go."

"Sure." Toshiro stood up off the wall.

"Why were you spacing out there, Shiro?"

"It's nothing for you to worry about."

"Uuuu, but if you say that I'll worry even more."

"It's nothing, really." Toshiro insisted.

"Well, if you say so." Ren said, still uncertain.

"I'm serious. It's nothing." Toshiro said again. He spun Ren around and walked to Ichigo and Steph, pushing Ren forward. "Now let's go."

"Alright, geez." Ren dropped her skateboard back on the ground and stepped on it, skating away from Toshiro. She looked over her shoulder with a smile. "I guess you can colour me reassured." Ren turned back around and raced around the corner, barely missing Ichigo, who yelled after her something about nearly running him over.

"I underestimated you." Steph said, appearing beside Toshiro.

"What do you mean?" Toshiro asked, puzzled.

"I thought it would take a while for Ren to let you in, but I guess the day is not far off."

"How can you tell?"

"You touched her back, didn't you?" Steph said with a smile.

"!" Toshiro looked at his hand. She was right. The first time it happened, Ren freaked out. It even happened recently when Nathan did it. But, he did it again just now, and nothing. No yelps. No scared looks. And, fortunately, no elbows in the gut.

"Ren only reacts like that when it's with someone she doesn't know or trust." Still smiling, Steph walked around the corner with the skateboard tucked under her arm, and after a few seconds of hesitating, Toshiro realised that they were all gone, and he had to run to catch up to them.

"Hey, Steph?" Ren started, looking over to Steph, who walked beside Ren while she skated. "You ever feel like you're forgetting something?"

"Sometimes. Why?"

"Well, I…Oh, I'm sure it's nothing important. Or is it?" Ren said mysteriously.

"Let's find out. We're passing your house."

"Oh, yeah." Ren looked up at her familiar house, and paused on her skateboard. "Hey, there's another car there."

"What?"

"Another car?" The boys had now caught up, and were staring at what the girls were looking at. Indeed. There was a black car in front of the car, the shine making it look as if it were brand new.

"Oh!" Ren tapped a fist on her palm. "I just remembered! My dad's coming back today!"

"Your dad?" Ichigo repeated.

"You have a father?" Toshiro asked.

"Yeah." Ren said flatly. A pause. "Wait." Her face went blank. "Uh oh."

"Uh oh? Why uh oh?" Steph asked.

"Well, I-"

"Awww! Can't I have a little alcohol?!"

"!" Toshiro flinched, recognising that voice.

"Of course not! We're here on a mission, so stop goofing off! They don't know we're here!"

"If you two keep yelling like that, then we'll be found out."

"!" Now, it was Ichigo's turn to flinch at the sound of those voices.

"Hey, who are you?"

"Told you."

"Oh, hiiiii! We're, um, we're friends of your kid."

"My son isn't home."

"No, it's the other one. You have another one, right?"

"My daughter?"

"Yeah, that one."

"Sure, why not?"

"Idiot."

"Uh oh, spaghetti o's." Ren muttered.

"You're kidding me." Ichigo groaned.

"Tell me I'm hearing things." Toshiro hoped out loud. "Tell me that's not…" Ichigo, Toshiro and Ren ran closer to the house and looked through the window to the living room. Their worst fears had come true. In that room was Ren's father, a middle aged man with black hair and glasses and a smart suit. And, before him, wearing their Gigai's, were Renji, Rangiku and Rukia.

"My father?"

"My lieutenant?"

"My rival?"

"My God!" Ichigo, Ren and Toshiro exclaimed at the same time. They did a double take and looked at one another, stunned. "Why are you worried?"

"I have a legitimate reason!" Ren insisted. "See, when I cast that spell to make people know who Shiro was, I might have forgotten a couple people, so my mom knows about you, but my dad might not!"

"What?!"

"Hey, hey, this is based on a might! Besides, she's your lieutenant, right? Why are you so freaked out?"

"I am NOT freaked out!"

"Yuh huh."

"Nuh uh." Toshiro retorted, ignoring how childish he sounded, and Ichigo was too bewildered to do or say anything in response.

"Right! That does it! I'm getting some answers!" Ren marched towards the front door and opened it with her house key. "Shiro, guard my skateboard." She walked into the house, while Toshiro picked up Ren's skateboard for reasons he didn't understand. Silence. "Ooooh, hi guys! This is a pleasant surprise! Let's catch up outside! Keep up, you two! Hi, dad! Welcome home, dad! I'll talk to you later, dad! See ya, dad! Love you too, dad!" Another silence. Seconds later, Ren marched outside, practically dragging Rukia outside, followed by a confused Rangiku and Renji. Ren then slammed the door shut with a sigh.

"Who the hell are you?" Renji demanded.

"You're meant to introduce yourself before asking the name of someone else, jackass." Ren said angrily. She stormed to Ichigo and Toshiro, who suddenly looked very nervous. Ren pointed at the three new arrivals. "You two! Explain! Now!"

"What's going on?" Steph asked, arriving to the house after spending too long watching from afar.

"That's what I wanna know!" Ren said in the same angry tone.

"She's pissed." Ichigo muttered to Toshiro, who nodded in agreement.

"Well?" Ren asked, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Right." Toshiro took a deep breath. He stood in front of the three Soul Reapers. "Why are you three here? Everything is under control."

"Not according to General Yamamoto, it's not." Renji said. "You haven't contacted Soul Society in more than a month. And nobody has heard from Ichigo either. Everyone thinks you're in danger, so they sent us here to see. Now, we can't go home, we can't use our powers, our Denreishinki are fried and we're stuck in these Gigai's."

"Well, there is an explanation for that."

"Shiro, is this your lieutenant?" Ren interrupted, pointing at Rangiku.

"Hi there!" Rangiku said cheerfully, waving at Ren. "I'm Rangiku Matsumoto, Captain Hitsugaya's lieutenant."

"…" Ren narrowed her eyes. She trotted forward, staring intently at Rangiku's chest. She prodded one breast with her finger. She did it a couple more times, prompting an embarrassed look from Toshiro.

"Ahaaa. Yeah, I get that."

"Stop harassing my lieutenant!"

"Huh." Ren said, lowering her hand. "I thought big boobs were impossible without surgery."

"Yeah, she's a right freak of nature." Renji agreed. "Name's Renji. Renji Abarai."

"!" Ren flinched after hearing his name. It sounded just like hers! And for some reason, it really pissed her off.

"Well? Tell me your name."

"…" Ren looked away, pouting. "I don't wanna." She muttered. Pause. "Ren Conner." She grumbled.

"What was that?" Renji leaned closer to Ren.

"Ren Conner." Ren grumbled again in an angrier tone.

"I can't hear you."

"Rrrr…Ren Conner!" Ren yelled, startling everybody.

"No need to shout." Renji grumbled. "Hey, our name's sound the same."

"Don't remind me." Ren said under her breath. "Well, I guess you're the last one." Ren looked over at Rukia.

"Um, right. Yes. My name is Rukia. Rukia Kuchiki."

"Hm." Ren raised her eyebrows. "Interesting name." Rukia started to look very nervous for some reason. Ren suddenly smiled her cheerful smile. "I like it!"

"R…Really?" Rukia said with a slight blush.

"Nn." Ren nodded. She clasped Rukia's hands in her own. "I hope we can be friends!"

"Yeah…Sure." Rukia smiled a hesitant smile.

"She certainly doesn't waste any time." Ichigo muttered.

"So, are you the one?" Renji suddenly asked, looking right at Steph.

"One what?"

"You know? The girl in the reports."

"Oh, no. No, I'm not. I think." Steph shook her head, suddenly confused.

""You're not? Then who is it?"

"Right there." Ichigo said, pointing at Ren, who looked back with her innocent, blank expression.

"You mean that weirdo?!" Renji exclaimed.

"Yup!" Ren said cheerfully, completely disregarding the insult.

"But you're so sma…" Renji trailed off as soon as he saw the captain shaking his head furiously, and the substitute Soul Reaper making an X sign with his arms behind Ren's back. "…art." Renji finished.

"Um…okay." Ren looked in different directions with her eyes, confused.

"Ichigo, what gives?" Renji hissed, appearing by Ichigo's side.

"Don't bring up the S word around Ren." Steph answered for Ichigo, much to his annoyance.

"She's really sensitive about her height." Toshiro explained.

"I can hear you, ya know."

"She's also got sharp senses, so watch what you say."

"Okay. Let me get this straight." Renji pointed at Ren. "This is the girl who could see you."

"Yes." Toshiro nodded in the affirmative.

"But what can she do? She's just a human."

"I'm tougher than I look." Ren insisted, an annoyed look on her face. "I'm the one who's been protecting your captain all this time. If anything, you should be thanking me."

"Oh, yeah?" Renji said with a cocky smile. "Mind telling me why?"

"Gladly."

BOOM!

"!" Everybody looked in the direction of the explosion. There was a cloud of smoke rising up in the distance, and from that distance, Toshiro, Steph, Ichigo and Ren could hear roars. Feathers.

"Or not." Ren said flatly.

"It's by the road leading to the village." Steph said, shielding her eyes to stare off into the distance.

"Crud. That's ages away." Ren cursed. "Oh, wait. I can get us there instantly." Ren clapped her hands together, and in one second, or maybe a little more, her Lightning Shackles appeared with a small flash of light.

"What…What are they?" Rukia asked, alarmed at the light around Ren's limbs.

"Hold onto your hats!" Ren yelled, before clapping her hands once more, and in a flash of light, everybody was instantly transported away from the front of Ren's house. Before anybody could react, they were now in the middle of a road, with the edge of the village right in front of them.

"Ah…Wh…What was that?" Ichigo asked, his head swaying.

"I don't feel too good." Toshiro groaned, rubbing his head. "Couldn't you have warned us, Ren?"

"I said hold onto your hats! Geez!"

"My fish has gone swimming in the piano…" Renji muttered before collapsing on the ground, his eye spirals.

"Renji!" Rukia was promptly by Renji's side.

"Captain, how did we get here?"

"Ren isn't like ordinary humans. She has powers of her own. Powers that combat the Feathers appearing in this world."

"Feathers? What are Feathers?"

"Them." Ren pointed behind Rangiku. She looked over her shoulder, and her eyes slowly widened.

"Wh…" Rangiku turned all the way around. Right there were dozens of Feathers, each one more different than the last, and each one tearing up the long road in some way or another. "What are they?"

"They're Feathers." Ren repeated."

"They…They look just like Hollows." Rukia, standing up and getting a proper look at the new monsters. "Only they seem different."

"I thought the same thing, too. They are tools used in an organisation, but we'll explain all that later."

"Huh?" Renji rolled onto his front, and looked in the direction his colleagues were looking in and saw…nothing. He noticed how there were several holes in the road, more than there should be, but other than that, there wasn't a soul in sight. "There's nothing there. It must be a trick. Either that, or Ren's weird trick messed with my head."

"What?" Ichigo went wide eyed after hearing that. "You can't see them?!"

"No."

"I don't understand." Steph said, shaking her head. "Why can't Renji see the Feathers?"

"Hmmm." Ren folded her arms, tapping her foot in thought.

"Can't you at least sense them?" Toshiro asked.

"Nuthin'."

"Ren?" Toshiro looked at Ren, seeing how deep in thought she was. Ren stopped tapping her foot, and several seconds of silence followed.

"AHA!" She suddenly yelled, tapping her fist onto her palm. Her eyes shifted to Renji, who had stood up while scratching his head in confusion. "Hey, Renji."

"What?" Renji looked over his shoulder at Ren.

"TAG!" Ren yelled happily, shoving Renji on his back so hard, he fell over again.

"Gah! Hey! What was that for?!" Renji yelled angrily, a massive bump on his head.

"That was completely random, even for you!"

"Relax, Steph. I did it for a good reason." Ren pointed at the Feathers again, who amazingly had not noticed the gang, despite the noise they were making. "You should be able to see them now."

"…" Renji looked behind him, still a little angry. But, the angry expression immediately vanished. Before him were blood thirsty, mindless monsters. "What the…What the hell are they?"

"He can see them now? But how?" Rukia said, voicing what almost everybody was thinking.

"It's contact." Ren answered.

"Huh?"

"None of you should be able to see the Feathers except me. That's the way it has been, but, through a series of events, all of you can see and sense them. I've never been able to figure out why. Until now."

"Mind explaining how?" Ichigo asked.

"Remember in the city centre when Pixie and Sentaro attacked us? When the Feathers appeared, Tom and Steph couldn't see them, but as soon as I tried to move them away, they were suddenly as clear as day."

"Yeah, she's right." Steph said. "As soon as Ren touched me, the Feathers just appeared out of nowhere."

"And then there's Ichigo. Even though he was practically staring at one, he didn't even blink. It was only when I tapped him on the shoulder that he could see it."

"That's right. If you hadn't touched me, who knows what would've happened."

"And now, these new friends of yours shouldn't be able to sense the Feathers let alone see them. Rukia and Rangiku had been in contact with me before the Feathers appeared. I took Rukia's hand and led her outside, so that enabled her to see them. As for Rangiku, I came into contact with her when I-"

"Okay, okay, okay, you don't need to explain that!" Toshiro said quickly, suddenly embarrassed again.

"Uuuu, you're no fun. Anyway, that left Renji the only one who hadn't been touched by me. That's why he couldn't see the Feathers while we all could. I hadn't touched him. So, when I tagged him just now, he was suddenly able to see them. Coincidence? I don't think so. So, the only way for anybody to see the Feathers is for me to have directly been in contact with them, and give or take a few days, you'll be able to sense them, too. And that is the reason why I tagged Renji." Pause. "That and I wanted to make Renji fall over." Ren said with a mischievous smile, prompting a vein to throb on Renji's head angrily.

"You figured all that out? Wow, you're not as dumb as you look!" Rangiku praised, patting Ren's head.

"Uuuu, don't patronise me." Ren shrugged off Rangiku's hand. "I have some Feathers to kill."

"You're going to fight them?" Rukia gasped. "But, you can't defeat them all by yourself."

"You'll be surprised." Toshiro said.

"Precisely. In case you haven't noticed, there's lightning around my wrists."

"Wait, so you make me fall and you expect me to sit here and let you go into a fight?"

"Yup."

"What kind of planet are you from?"

"Earth." Ren said simply, which suddenly gave Ichigo a sense of nostalgia. "Can I fight now?"

"No! I'm not letting you off that easily!" Renji yelled, standing up to glare down at Ren, who looked mildly irritated. "You can't just hit me because you felt like it, even if your intentions were good! It's not normal!"

"Can it, Red Pineapple." Ren said flatly.

"!" Renji recoiled back, speechless. The words Ren jut spoke echoed through his head over and over again. That nickname. That annoying nickname. It was just like the name a certain boy he knew who worked in a certain shop called him.

"The red haired devil!" Renji shouted, trying to attack Ren, but it took the efforts of Rangiku and Rukia to keep him at bay, while Ren looked on, confused.

"My hair isn't red, it's blonde. I think. But you have red hair. Is that your nickname?" That innocent commentary only caused Renji to struggle even more in the grip the girls had on him, his yelling now incomprehensible words.

"And so, a rivalry is born." Steph said, while Ichigo merely sighed.

"Just let Ren fight." Toshiro said in a flat tone, getting frustrated. Things were going to be a lot more difficult now that these three were here. It was exactly like the time he led a team of Soul Reapers into the World of the Living, except this time, Yumichika and Ikkaku weren't here. And that's the way he intended to keep it.

"Thank you, Shiro." Ren turned around to face the Feathers, who still had not noticed them and were still tearing up whatever was in their sight. "And I've just got an idea. I need my skateboard. Shiro?"

"Huh? Oh." Toshiro, realising he was still holding onto the skateboard Ren entrusted to him, placed it on the ground and rolled it across the ground towards her. Without turning around, Ren placed her foot on it, stopping it in its tracks.

"Thanks."

"What's with the "Shiro"?" Rukia asked.

"Don't know." Rangiku said with a smile. "But it's a cute nickname, don't you think?"

"Rangiku!"

"Let's rock and roll!" Ren yelled. With one push from her foot, Ren was literally rocketing towards the Feathers on her skateboard so quickly she was a blur. "Woohoooooo!"

"Oh, yeah. Her Lightning Shackles are on." Ichigo said rather matter-of-factly.

"Yeah. This won't take long."

"Captain, why are you and Ichigo so cool about this?"

"If you've been here as long as us, you'll know that Ren is perfectly capable of taking care of herself."

"Precisely, so we're just going to stay here and wait for Ren to return."

"But-"

"That's an order."

"Yes, sir." Rangiku sighed, folding her arms as best she could, and watched the Feathers tearing apart the road, as well as a trail of light weaving in and out. Ren.

"Yee haw!" Ren yelled. She skateboarded around and under the Feathers, yet she made no attempt of attacking them. Instead, she touched them with her hands, and each handprint she left on them glowed yellow before shrinking into a yellow teardrop shape. She wanted to end this quickly, and no ending was quicker than a flashy ending, no pun intended. And so, he was going to make sure all of the Feathers had one tag. Ren finally got to the edge of the Feathers and skidded to a stop. She counted the Feather. Twenty. And number of glowing spots? Twenty. Perfect. With a smirk, Ren clapped her hands, disappearing in a flash of light, reappearing in front of the Soul Reapers plus Steph.

"All done." Ren said, flipping her skateboard up and holding it with her left hand.

"Um, hate to break it to ya, Einstein, but they're still there. You didn't do anything."

"Did I, Renji?" Ren asked with a smile. Right after she said this, the clouds above the Feathers began to darken and rumble, prompting the Feathers to look up at the black omen. Unbeknownst to them, the Yellow markings left by Ren began to glow even brighter.

"What's happening?" Rukia wondered out loud, looking up at the clouds. She could have sworn she saw some flashes appear occasionally in there.

"Steph?" Ren said. Steph, with a smile, took out her phone and started the video recorder on it. "See, Renji gave me an idea. I thought I'd play a game of tag of these guys." Ren raised her right hand up. "And in my game of tag…" Ren snapped her fingers. Suddenly, twenty lightning bolts instantly shot out of the clouds, each one landing on a Feather and immediately making them burst into ashes. The light from this attack was so bright; everybody had to shield their eyes from the flash. All, except Ren, who had her back turned and was still smiling. The light died down, and the silver Feather cores clattered onto the ground, still smoking a little after that ordeal. "There are no tag backs." Ren finished.

"Aaaaaand…cut." Steph stopped videoing, and pocketed her phone.

"Aw, man that was so badass!" Ren exclaimed, dropping her skateboard for a minute to throw her fist up in the air. The Feather cores then shot into the air and into Ren's left palm. "Oh, ow, ow, hot cores, hot cores, hot cores, hot cores." Ren aid quickly, tossing the now gold cores between her hands. She quickly pocketed them as soon as they had even slightly cooled down and blew on her hands for about half a minute. "Phew." Ren looked up, and saw the open mouthed expressions of Renji, Rukia and Rangiku. Steph looked pretty normal, and while Ichigo and Toshiro were almost completely accustomed to Ren's ways, they still looked amazed. "What?"

"WHAT THE HEEEEELL?!" Renji yelled.

"Eh?" Ren blinked.

"What the…How did you do that? The lightning. And the things. They just…exploded. And these things. Why do you have them? What's going on? Tell me!" Renji asked quickly, all while darting around Ren at different angles, picking up Ren's arm a couple of times to look at the Shackles.

"It's a long story." Ren said, the Shackles disappearing.

"It does not matter. We have to know what is going on and why Captain Hitsugaya is stranded here." Rukia asserted. Rangiku nodded in agreement.

"Alright. Here it is." Ren took a deep breath. "Basically-Shiro-came-here-thinking-he-was-investigating-Hollows-but-it-turns-out-the-Hollows-are-Feathers-and-I-am-linked-to-them-in-some-way-or-another-though-I-don't-know-why-but-I-do-know-why-Shiro-is-linked-but-I'll-get-to-that-later-because-the-uber-important-part-is-that-there-is-an-organisation-controlling-the-Feathers-called-White-Raven-and-they-are-the-ones-that-wanna-kill-Shiro-since-he-is-as-big-a-threat-as-I-am-but-they-actually-know-he-is-a-threat-which-is-why-they're-trying-to-kill-him-and-it-turns-out-he-is-the-reincarnation-of-a-guy-named-Ryuki-who-is-a-Heavenly-Guardian-of-this-place-called-Cielvia-and-I-apparently-look-like-its-princess-who's-called-Zena-and-Shiro-is-starting-to-develop-Ryuki's-powers-since-he's-a-reincarnation-and-all-which-is-an-even-bigger-reason-why-they-want-to-kill-him-but-the-powers-are-handy-since-his-Soul-Reaper-powers-disappeared-since-my-being-here-made-it-seem-like-Soul-Reapers-didn't-exist-here-so-that's-why-you're-powerless-and-I'm-pretty-much-the-best-ally-you've-got-right-now-until-I-find-a-way-for-you-to-get-your-powers-back." Ren said very quickly and in one breath. When Ren finished, she sighed. Silence.

"Wow." Ichigo said slowly, amazed at how fast Ren could talk.

"Um…" Rangiku said, going over what Ren said.

"I'm sorry, but I didn't quite catch that." Rukia apologised. Ren narrowed her eyes.

"An organisation is our enemy and they want Shiro." Ren said bluntly. That's what she gets for telling the long version!

"Ooooooh." Renji, Rukia and Rangiku said in unison, suddenly understanding.

"My captain?!" Rangiku gasped, realising fully what Ren meant.

"Captain Hitsugaya?" Rukia looked over at her commanding officer, who didn't look the slightest bit worried.

"You're their target?!"

"Yeah." Toshiro said.

"And you're okay with it?!"

"Well, no, but I'm getting my powers back bit by bit. I'll be able to defend myself in no time."

"So we're just dead weight." Renji grumbled while hanging his head, suddenly depressed.

"No, no, no, no." Ren said in a comforting tone. Pause. "Actually, yeah." Renji groaned.

"I don't care if my powers are gone forever." Rangiku declared. "As your lieutenant, I will make sure that um…what's it called again?"

"White Raven." Ren answered.

"Right. I will make sure White Raven does not touch you."

"I will do my part too." Rukia said, determined.

"Hell, I'm in, too." Renji said with his usual smile, suddenly over his depression.

"Wow, Shiro. You've got some good friends here." Ren said happily, hooking an arm around his shoulders. "Count yourself lucky."

"I know I am." Toshiro said, sneaking in a smile. But, only Rangiku noticed. That, and the fact that Ren's arm was around his shoulders. Usually, he would shrug it off right away, but he didn't even attempt it. Why was that? It just wasn't like the captain she knew…

"I just have one question."

"Ask away."

"Where are we gonna crash?" Renji asked.

"Oh." Ren said, unhooking her arm from Toshiro. "Uh…"

"Here we go again." Steph sighed, knowing full well what was going to happen.

"…" Ichigo and Toshiro looked over their shoulders at Ren, who blinked innocently.

"What?" Ren said. She suddenly figured it out, and instantly went on the defensive. "Oh, no. Ooooh, no no no no no no." Ren said shaking her head and stepping back while bringing her hands up. "I am NOT having them stay at my house!"

"We live there, so why not them?" Ichigo asked.

"For obvious reasons, one being that my house can't accommodate three more guests!" Ren exclaimed.

"I'd offer to let them stay at my house, but it's not big enough." Steph said, her hopes of being useful suddenly dashed.

"Come on, Ren. Can't you just squeeze in a few more people?" Toshiro asked.

"No." Ren said firmly.

"But-"

"Dame!" Ren yelled, stunning Ichigo and Toshiro.

"She spoke Japanese." Ichigo muttered, surprised that Ren knew another language.

"She's serious." Toshiro agreed, knowing what Ren's habit of speaking Japanese meant.

"Damn straight." Ren said, nodding her head.

"What are we going to do?" Rukia wondered. "Ren can't let us stay, and nobody else knows about us?"

"Now what?!" Rangiku said with an exaggerated sigh. "It's not like we can get our own place."

"Own?" Ren repeated. "That's it!" She beamed, tapping her fist on her palm.

"Huh?" Everyone looked at Ren.

"I'm such an idiot! Why didn't I think of it before?!" Ren grabbed Rangiku's hand and practically dragged her back towards the village. "Follow me, follow me!" Ren practically sang. After a couple of looks, the rest of the gang followed, while Steph picked up Ren's skateboard and carried it with her.

…

"Hmph." Nathan leaned on a wall of the post office in his village, his arms folded. He was not in his uniform this time, but in a red T-shirt with the word "Duff" printed across it, a black windbreaker jacket and dark blue jeans. He may as well get used to this shirt. He was going to be wearing it a lot more for the next few days.

"That Ren. I won't forgive her." Nathan grumbled angrily.

"You and me both."

"Hm?" Nathan looked toward the sound of the voice. Standing on the pavement to his right was a woman with long black hair tied up in a side ponytail, wearing a black coat with a white belt around her waist. It was Dixie. "Who are you?"

"That's not important right now. What is important is this girl you hate. Ren's her name, right?"

"Yeah."

"Same here. I've got a bone to pick with her, too."

"That's nice." Nathan said dismissively, moving away from the wall and towards Dixie. "I'm not interested in your story." Nathan began to walk past her.

"What if I made it worth your while?" She said. Nathan stopped in his tracks.

"Go on." Nathan said slowly, looking over his shoulder.

"I know what you want. Ren has mistreated you. She has made you suffer for the last time. You want to make her pay for what she has done to you. I can make it happen."

"Keep talkin', lady." Nathan smiled, turning all the way around to face her. Dixie walked towards Nathan.

"You're a strong man, aren't you? Capable of so much, yet you have been misunderstood so many times. It's all that woman's fault."

"Yeah. You're right." Nathan said, narrowing his eyes. Dixie was now right in front of him. She didn't know that her plan would be this successful. To think that someone who also hated Ren could exist. It was all so perfect. She smiled. Ren won't know what hit her.

"You want revenge, don't you?" She purred, stroking the side of Nathan's face. "So do I. We're both so similar, Nathan." Nathan's his eyes widened. He wasn't sure what bothered him the most; this strange person flirting with him, or the fact that she knew his name.

"You know my name? Who are you?" Nathan asked.

"My name is Dixie, handsome." Dixie said with a smile that was flirtatious, yet there was a vicious look in her eyes. "And I think you and I can help each other out."

Dun dun dun! Dixie is back! And she's teaming up with Ren's worst enemy! Meanwhile, what exactly has Ren got planned for the new guests? What will Nathan and Dixie have planned? Find out next time, and I will make sure it comes out sooner! Pinkie swear! See? Now I have to do it! I don't wanna swallow a thousand needles! It sounds painful…