Chapter 6: Karen Vs. Karen
Hey everyone! What's up? It's me, sakuraphoenix, and I'm back with a brand new chapter! I know, I know, I've been meaning to update, but I've been busy as heck! The end of the quarter just past, but on the bright side, I'm on spring break, which means more updates! Well, enough of me holding you guys back, time for the disclaimer.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Shizuku. Credit goes to LyokoWarrior1994
This is going to start in Shizuku's P.O.V., and enjoy!
I was sitting on the roof of Karen's home. I was taking a look at my memory replacement device, and I saw that there wasn't much left of it.
"Not much of it is left." I said
My gigai was still okay, thankfully I come prepared.
"Everything's good here. I guess it's time to go and do some shopping." I said
The next morning… Karen's P.O.V.
I was walking up to my room with two rice balls and some hash browns. I don't know if they have hash browns in the Soul Society, but I bet that Shizuku would like to have something familiar.
"Shizuku, I brought you some breakfast! Open up in there!" I exclaimed as I knocked the door to my closet
There was some silent, and my patience was running thin.
"HEY!-! I said breakfast! Do you want this food or not?-!" I exclaimed as I opened the door
He wasn't here, and the pajamas he stole from Kazuki were here, folded up.
"He's not here. Perfect, so where did he go now? That's just great. That idiot." I said before I began to eat the rice balls
After I finished, I was about to walk out the door when I heard Kazuki talking.
"An impressionable girl. Young and in the springtime of her youth would only barricade herself in her room for one reason. And one reason only." Said Kazuki
That's it, this means war. I then threw a punch at his face, and he fell to the ground, and well, it hurt, a lot.
"Knock it off! Quit analyzing me you pervert, and stop jumping to conclusions while you're at it." I said
"What's the matter Karen? It's just because of your uncle isn't it? What's wrong with a little family understanding?" asked Kazuki
"Understanding my ass!" I exclaimed as we began going toe-to-toe
"You know, your breakfast is going to get cold." Said Homura
Shizuku's P.O.V.
I was walking to the shop where I bought some of the supplies I needed here in the World of the Living when I saw Rukia.
"I think we have this habit of running into each other Rukia." I said
"Shizuku. Morning." Said Rukia
"Morning yourself. So, why are you heading this way?" I asked
"I'm almost out of power for my memory replacement device and my gigai's been slowing down." Said Rukia
"I see. Same with me, well, minus the gigai part." I said
The walk was silent after that, until we saw the redheaded kid bully the girl, again. Rukia grabbed the broom he was holding.
"Huh? Who are you? Oh." Said the kid
"You just never change, do you little one? So is your manager in yet?" asked Rukia
There was a moment of silence.
"Hmph, come on in." said the kid
The kid opened the door, and let us in. We then saw what's-his-name, Tessai?
"Miss Kuchiki and the third seat of the third company. Just give me a minute, I'll go and see if the boss is up and moving yet." Said Tessai
"*Yawn* Don't bother, I'm already awake, for once. *Yawn* Good morning Tessai, Jinta, Ururu. Welcome back to my shop Miss Kuchiki and you Shizuku. Your timings couldn't be more perfect. I just got a new shipment in the other day. How can I help you this afternoon?" asked Kisuke
Later…
"One kikanshinki for the both of you. Oh, uh, what grade?" asked Kisuke
"I'll take the cheapest you got." Said Rukia
"Same." I said
"You got it. So, that makes 60 tablets of Somafixer, and um, look, I know this is none of my business, but if you use too much of this stuff Miss Kuchiki, it can be toxic. If you over synchronize with your gigai, you're in for a world of hurt when you finally jump-shift." Said Kisuke
"Yes, I'm aware of that, believe me; it's just that lately my connection with it has grown pretty weak. It's becoming a lot more difficult to move this body." Said Rukia
"Want me to check it out for ya? Come on, I'll cut you a good deal." Said Kisuke
"No thank you!" exclaimed Rukia
"Fine." Said Kisuke
"Speaking of deals, has my order come in yet?" I asked
"Oh yeah, I placed an order too. Has it arrived?" asked Rukia
"Oh. Yeah, they're here. Hey Ururu, go grab it out of storage, will ya?" asked Kisuke
"Oh, uh, okay." Ururu said before she ran to the back
"Just look for the box labeled 'new item', okay?" asked Kisuke
She was in there for a while, and she came back out with two substitute soul pill orders. We each opened them up, but the one I got wasn't the one I ordered.
"So these are the only ones you could get then?" asked Rukia
"Oh please, give me a break; those are the second most popular ones on the market. Wasn't all that easy to come by. Now look Miss Kuchiki. Just go easy, you can't fake it forever, alright?" asked Kisuke
"Yes, I know that." Said Rukia
Later, Karen's P.O.V.
"Good morning. Hello everyone, how are you?" asked Shizuku
"Hmm?" I wondered
"Oh hey, good morning Shizuku." Said Tatsuki
"This isn't like you, it's already third period." Said Orihime
"Sorry, something came up. By the way, Karen, um, may I steal you for a second?" asked Shizuku
"Huh? What do you want? If you just want to talk, why not do it here?" I asked
He then socked me in the stomach, thus knocking the wind out of me. That's it, when I get the wind back in me; I'm going to kill him!
"Oh Karen! What just happened? I better take you to the nurse's office, stat!" exclaimed Shizuku, faking concern
In the courtyard…
"Here." Shizuku said while tossing some kind of Pez dispenser to me
"What's this supposed to be?" I asked
"Gikongan, substitute Soul Pills, tablets that force souls from the flesh. Just swallow one, and a substitute soul will enter the body so the real one can roam free. If the time comes that you must face a Hollow and I'm not around, you can use them to transform into a Soul Reaper." Said Shizuku
"Why the hell does it have 'Soul Candy' written on it?" I asked
"Oh. That's only because the Soul Society Women's League complained. They didn't like 'Gikongan'. They said it wasn't cute enough, so they decided to change it." Said Shizuku with a sour look on his face
"But why is it a duck?" I asked
"Shut up! I was trying to get you Chappy the Rabbit. It's the most popular one with the girls." Said Shizuku
"Um, thanks I think for putting my concern over yours, but the fact is, I'm a bit of a tomboy." I said
"Oh." Said Shizuku
"Anyhow, I don't exactly understand your explanation." I said
"Then just take one, and it'll be clear as crystal." Said Shizuku
I swallowed one of the things, but suddenly, I wasn't feeling so hot, and the next thing I knew, my soul was pushed out of my body.
"Whoa! I'm out of my body!" I exclaimed
"Don't be so shocked. Inside that empty shell of a body there resides a substitute soul, and no one will even notice that your true soul is gone." Said Shizuku
My body then got up on its own.
"Hello, good afternoon. Nice to meet you, my name is Karen Tsukimori." Said the substitute soul
My face paled a bit. She/it/whatever was acting nothing like me!
"Early to bed, early to rise. That's my motto." Said the substitute soul
"Early to bed, early to what?-!" I exclaimed
"Pretty amazing, isn't it?" asked Shizuku
"Amazing my ass! What the hell is that thing over there?-! How can she be me when I'm me?-!" I exclaimed
Shizuku's soul pager then began beeping. He then opened it.
"Perfect timing. We just got a mission. Why don't we leave her at school, while we head out?" asked Shizuku
"Are you insane?-!" I exclaimed
"Let's go!" exclaimed Shizuku
He then dragged me away.
"Hey! Wait, they'll know she's a fake! Hey! You! Make sure you attend my next class and keep a low profile!" I exclaimed
"*giggles* Don't worry leave everything to me. Take your time." Said the substitute soul
Mod Soul's P.O.V. (A/N: Yes, I said Mod Soul. Shizuku got that just like Rukia by accident. I'd thought it'd be interesting to see.)
I stretched the limbs of the body I was in and tested the leg strength. Pretty good, for an average girl, but when I tried my arm strength by throwing a few rocks into the air, I was impressed. This girl has some muscle.
"Finally, it feels great. It's been too long since I had a body to move around in. Looks like I'm finally free. Unlike most other mods, I'm pretty sure that girl will kick me to the ground if I'm not careful. I better head to her classroom, but what is it?" I wondered
"Hey you, aren't you Karen Tsukimori from ninth grade group three? What have you been doing here?" asked a male voice
"I was just coming back from the bathroom, and I thought I could take a shortcut back to class. Sorry if I've caused a disturbance." I said
"Okay, then hurry back then Miss Tsukimori." Said the teacher
"Yes sir." I said
Well, that's a start. I headed back to her classroom, and I sat down in the desk with Karen's name written on it. A bell then rang.
"Alright! At last! Time for lunch!" exclaimed a girl with orange hair
"Geez Orihime, its just lunch. It's not a big deal." Said a girl with black hair
"How can you say that Tatsuki? Everyone knows that a healthy red-blooded high school girl comes to school for only one reason, to eat her lunch." Said Orihime
"Yeah, yeah. I get it. Have a seat already." Said Tatsuki
"Hey Karen, want to eat with us?" asked Orihime
"Um, sure I guess." I said
I have to act like I'm Karen Tsukimori.
"So Tatsuki, Karen, what did you two have for lunch today? I've got bread and red bean paste." Said Orihime
"That sounds good. Unfortunately, my lunch is a little more ordinary." Said Tatsuki
I looked at Karen's lunch and it was some kind of thing with onions, meat, and greens. She also had a water bottle and some tomatoes.
"Wow. You brought quiche for your lunch. You're lucky you have time to cook, even with your uncle driving you nuts all the time." Said Tatsuki
"Yeah, I guess." I said
"Orihime, why don't you and I eat together?" asked a girl with red hair
"Yeah. Okay." Said Orihime
She then lunged at Orihime. Wow, humans are something.
"That's so cute! You bite into an entire loaf of bread and smile with crumbs all over your mouth!" exclaimed the girl
I then sensed something, but it wasn't a Hollow, a ghost, or a Soul Reaper. But just what was it I was sensing? Just then, I saw a boy with orange hair and brown eyes jump up from the ground, and he was what I was sensing! Another Mod Soul!
"Excuse me, this is the ninth grade class group three, right?" asked the boy
Karen's P.O.V.
I charged in, zanpaku-to drawn, and took out the stupid Hollow.
"Oh boy, I'm getting a bad feeling." I said
Mod Soul's P.O.V. (A/N: Yes, I don't mean Kon. I'd never write in his point of view for a good reason)
"Wait a second! How the hell did you get up here like that?" exclaimed Tatsuki
"What do you mean how? I jumped up here. You saw with your own eyes didn't ya? Well, pretty rad, huh? Can you believe it?" asked the male mod soul
"I bet he crawled over from the classroom next door." Said a boy
"No way! He jumped up from the yard!" exclaimed another boy
"Did you see him do it?" asked the first boy
"Well, no, I didn't see it." Said the second boy
I then noticed that he was looking at Orihime, he then jumped over to her.
"Hey there pretty lady. I don't believe that we've met. Will you please do me the honor of telling me your name?" asked the male mod soul before he kissed Orihime's hand
Oh no! He's going to get not only me, but the person who resides in that body in trouble! The actual soul! I then grabbed his arms.
"Okay you! That's enough! This better not be your sick version of a joke!" I exclaimed trying to get into Karen's behavior
"Hey you're pretty cute yourself now that I get a closer look at ya." Said the male mod soul
He then kissed me on the cheek, and now I was mad as hell. I let go of his arms, and punched him into the wall. Uh-oh, I think I used too much in that punch, because he was flying out the window.
Meanwhile, Karen's P.O.V.
"Why are we in such a rush to get back to class?" asked Shizuku
"I'm worried, and I have damage control to take care of! I want to make sure she's doing okay!" I exclaimed
"There's nothing to worry about. She's fine." Said Shizuku
"I'm not so sure about that. I'm getting a bad feeling all of a sudden." I said
I then heard screams and then, I saw Ichigo getting either punched out or pushed out of the classroom. But surprisingly, he was okay, and landed on his feet. He then jumped back up. Did I see that correctly?
"So you were right. Like you were saying, we better hurry." Said Shizuku
"Told ya so." I said
I then saw a desk being thrown out, and this time, Ichigo jumped out of the window, landed on his feet, and ran. I then saw, wait, I'm not seeing things, am I? Did I just see Rukia and Ichigo chase after… Ichigo? And was he in a Soul Reaper uniform? Okay, I'm probably seeing things. Ichigo is so not a Soul Reaper. Shizuku ran inside the building and I waited for the signal. Soon enough, I heard it.
"Karen! Now!" exclaimed Shizuku
"Right!" I exclaimed as I jumped into the air
The substitute soul stopped dead in her tracks.
"Stop right there. There's no place to run now." I said
She looked behind her, and then decided to go toe-to-toe with me. I had to dodge my own punches! I had to be careful, after all, this is my body we're talking about here. But she did manage to catch me off guard a couple of times. Soon enough, I was in the air, and she punched me through a row of desks! This is going to be sore in the morning.
"See ya. Wouldn't wanna be ya." Said the substitute soul
She then jumped out of the window, used her hands, I mean, my hands, as support for herself, and then took off. She was definitely faster than me.
"What the hell does she think she's doing? Is she crazy or what?" I wondered out loud
"Is it even possible? No, she couldn't be one. She must be a… mod soul!" exclaimed Shizuku
We then tried to chase her/me/it/whatever, but we soon lost it.
"Aw crap! Great we lost her, I mean, me, I mean, it, oh whatever!" I exclaimed
"We're at a dead end here." Said Shizuku
"What?-! Look! We don't have time for your Soul Reaper nonsense! I have to capture her, I mean me, I mean well, I'm not sure what I mean! But you saw it too! She/it/whatever p-p-p…" I started
"Yes, she punched Ichigo out of the window." Said Shizuku
"Oh man! Ichigo is gonna hate my guts for sure tomorrow! This sucks! My life is over!" I exclaimed
"Get over it already. I'm sure that Ichigo probably knows that it wasn't you." Said Shizuku
"You make it sound like Ichigo's a Soul Reaper! Well newsflash, he's not! ARGH! I put years into crafting that image onto other people and there are very few who know the real me!" I exclaimed
"So you act and talk that way on purpose? But what about when you're around me?" asked Shizuku
"I guess… when I'm around you, I feel comfortable revealing who I really am. But… just forget it. It doesn't matter. You called her a mod soul, right? Just what is it?" I asked
"A while back, the Soul Society initiated a new project they called 'spearhead'." Said Shizuku
"Spearhead?" I asked
"Yes. They took souls that had been modified for combat and placed them into the dead after their own souls had parted. They were to be used as soldiers against the Hollows. It was a reprehensible plan. All of the souls that were selected to take part in the Spearhead project were then altered. Once inside a body, one aspect of their host is made superhuman. An artificial soul built for battle, a mod soul. The spearhead project was rejected because it would force corpses to fight. In the end, all of the mod, or modified souls that were still in the incubation stages were ordered to be destroyed. However, it seems some are still out there." Said Shizuku
"Hold the phone, you mean the girl inside my body was created by the Soul Society, and now they've decided they want her wiped out for being what they made her?" I asked
"That's exactly what I'm saying." Said Shizuku
"And… and you're telling me you can honestly accept that?-!" I exclaimed
"Whether I accept it or not is irrelevant. The mod souls must be destroyed. The Soul Society commanded it, and lest you forget, the laws of the Soul Society are not arbitrary. They've been put in place for the protection and well being of all human souls. Now let's go! You want to get your body back, don't you?" asked Shizuku
As Shizuku and I were running, I wondered how she must feel, walking around inside my body, even though she was created and then given a death sentence. But somehow she survived, and she found her way to a body. But still, she has to keep running. I can't imagine what that must be like for her.
Mod Soul's P.O.V.
"I think I lost them. *pant-pant* Even though I was just taking over her body, even if for a moment, how long must I keep running, running from my fate?" I asked out loud
I then noticed a few boys doing something, so I walked over to them, and watched silently.
"Man, this is so much better than Phys. Ed. What a waste of time." Said one of the three boys
"Yeah, this is a great way to ditch class." Said another one of the three boys
They were playing some kind of game, and it looked like one of them lost.
"Dang! I can't believe I lost again! What's wrong with you? Get him! I created you, didn't I? Now do what I tell ya!" exclaimed the first boy
"Just kill it off." Said a third boy
What did he just say?
"Yeah, totally. Anyone who doesn't obey their master should die." Said the first boy
"Geez, you destroyed him." Said the third boy
"So what? I'll just make a better one." Said the first boy
The boys then laughed about it, and I clenched my fists in anger. Then, the mod soul from earlier who kissed my cheek showed up and smashed one of the boy's game systems. I was going to do the same thing myself, however the Soul Reaper then showed up. I guess wanting to give those boys a piece of mind will have to wait.
Done and done! Whew, this took me a while. Anyhow, please review, check out my poll, and until next time, I'm sakuraphoenix, saying I heart you, signing off for now. Kan dao ni!