Aaaaaand I'm back. Hello again.

Allons-y!

Tough decisions

'Oi.' Something nudges me. 'Wake up.'

I groan and open my eyes. Sunlight in coming through some cream translucent curtains in a window in the corner. Next to me, I can feel something small, warm and comfy. Rukia prods me again, and I quickly yelp, 'I'm awake!'

We fell asleep on Toshiro's sofa the night before, though I don't actually remember planning to go to sleep at any point as the last thing I remember was the three of us curled up on the sofa watching one of the Death Note movies.

Rukia stretches out. 'Ah, I love Saturdays! No school, this is great!'

'Uh huh...' I look around. 'Where's Toshiro?'

Rukia sighs. 'Don't worry, I doubt he's getting you into any more trouble.'

'I never suggested that. I'm just worried...'

'Maybe he's making you an apology breakfast,' Rukia suggests.

'I already made it clear that he doesn't need to,' I grumble. 'As long as he keeps the whole 'I'm an alien' secret, I'm good.'

Rukia gets up from the sofa, straightening her hair out. To be honest, she never looks bad, even in the morning. I smile, then push these thoughts aside when Shiro moans in complaint.

'Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed,' I mutter to myself (or rather, to Shiro).

'What?' comes Rukia's voice from next door in kitchen.

'Just talking to Shiro,' I call. 'Is Toshiro in there?'

'No... he's not upstairs either... hang on...' Rukia trails off before she says, 'Just got called into the hospital. Grandma's taken a turn for the worse'.'

'What?'

'It's a note. Toshiro left it. Oh God.'

'Does this happen often?' I ask, coming into the kitchen to find Rukia looking shocked, staring at the piece of paper in her hand.

'No. She's never... she's never been in a state like this. Oh God...' Rukia repeats. 'D'you think Momo knows? She must do. She's practically another grandchild to Toshiro's grandmother.'

My phone vibrates in my pocket. I answer it immediately, expecting it to be Toshiro. 'Hello?'

'Ichigo.' It's Zangetsu. He sounds really stressed. 'You need to get back. Right now.'

'What have I done now?' I whine, and Rukia sends me a sympathetic look.

'It's not you,' he says quickly, and the next thing he says makes me drop the phone with a gasp. 'It's... it's Number Seven.'

'We're going to have to focus on training,' Rangiku says, ushering me into the old chapel. This place is currently unused because of the new building that came along three or four years ago, and since then this building has slowly been left to decay. No one ever comes in here, so now I think about it, this might just be the perfect place to train. Ivy already curls around the pillars and there is a hole in the roof, letting the moonlight shine through.

'But I haven't got anything other than Hydrolocomotion,' I say hesitantly. 'I haven't even mastered Telekinesis yet-'

'It will come,' Rangiku interrupts. 'It always does at some point soon after the first Legacy. You have nothing to worry about. As long as you keep training, you will grow stronger and then you'll be able to master more abilities. And you have other gifts that you have never actually noticed up until this point.'

'Like what?' I ask.

Rangiku's eyes flicker over to a crumbled block of a fallen pillar, at least two meters long and so wide that my hand would only just be able to touch if I wrapped my arms around it. 'Destroy that thing,' she says casually.

'What?'

'You heard me. Hit it.'

'No way.' I take a step back from her, worried that she's lost it a bit.

She sighs. 'Trust me, you won't break anything except the pillar.'

'It's stone, Rangiku.' Doesn't she know what will happen to my hand if I try?

She smiles. 'Trust me, Hime. You'll be fine. I promise.'

'… Okay...' Maybe she thinks that I'll have some sort of forcefield Legacy. But what if I don't? My stomach clenches in fear. But on the way here, Rangiku made me promise to do whatever she would tell me to do in the training. It's insane. But I have to.

I lean down so I'm right next to the pillar. Closing my eyes, I punch forwards with my right hand with as much force as I can muster. I hear a huge crack and I expect to feel pain, but only a tiny bruising appears on my hand. I open my eyes.

'Did that hurt?' Rangiku asks me.

'Only a tiny bit,' I reply, staring at the pillar, or rather, the remains of the pillar in shock. It's crumbled into tiny bits of debris, the entire object having been destroyed by my fist.

'All Garde are very strong, Hime,' Rangiku says. 'That's not something you wait for. It's always been there. Even young Garde children can do it, as it's not technically classed as a Legacy. There's also super speed. You can probably reach up to sixty miles per hour, maybe more.'

I'm powerful. For once in my life, I don't feel so ridiculously weak. I'm finally doing something. Finally.

'This is amazing,' I grin.

Rangiku walks up to the altar. I see her duck behind one of the benches, and I walk over to come over to see what she's doing. Beneath the steps under the alter is a little door. Rangiku pushes it open to reveal a tiny room filled with two small shelves containing very dusty copies of the Old Testament.

'What are you doing?' I ask curiously.

She turns around and shoots me a grin. She raises a finger to her lips.

I think, Oh no. I hope she's not going to break in on a secret stash of alcohol to celebrate or something.

Rangiku pulls out the shelves from the little room to reveal a trapdoor underneath. She pulls a key out of her pocket and quickly unlocks it to real a tiny slot under the room with a chest inside.

A chest.

The Chest?

'Is that...?'

'Yep,' she confirms, pulling it out for me to see.

'Wow!' I exclaim excitedly. 'So it's finally time to open it? I can finally see what's inside?' Rangiku never, and I mean never, let me see what was inside that thing. When we arrived at the convent, I knew she hid it somewhere but she never told me where and I often wondered whether I should try searching for it in her room.

'Place your hand here,' Rangiku instructs, indicating the lock. I do as she says and she holds the other side of the lock with her own hand. There's a whirring noise, then the lock clicks open. Wow... I had absolutely no idea that this was the way to get it open.

'It would probably be best if I open it and bring out what we need, and you wait over there,' she says kindly, nodding over at one of the nearest benches. Trying not to feel disappointed, I nod and walk over to it so she can get out the right stuff.

'Here,' she says finally, walking over to hand me a circular, valuable-looking, translucent turquoise stone. 'I want you to keep this on you at all times, Hime.'

'What is it?' I ask.

'I'm not really sure what it does, but the Elders told us that these stones will help you when you desperately need it. Given that we now know there is definitely a Hollow nearby, maybe more, you should keep this with you.'

'Okay,' I say, examining it closely. It is smoothly cut and very pretty, big enough to fit in the palm of my hand. I wonder how it works. How will it sense that I am in trouble?

Rangiku smiles, but it seems a little sad. 'If only Sora could see you now.'

'Who?' I ask.

'Sora.' She closes her eyes. 'That was your brother's name.'

'Sora...' I stand there, stunned. She never opens up about anyone from our past, but now she's felt the need to tell me. Compassion floods through me. Before I know it, I'm pulling Rangiku into fierce hug.

'Where were you last night?' Nel asks, biting down on her cookie that the cook supposedly gave to her because she apparently looked very sad. I'm not surprised. Nel always looks upset, probably because she has recently lost her parents. She's so adorable that everyone ends up liking her. Except everyone her own age, as she seems to be the outsider of the group at school. I think Tatsuki and I are her only friends.

'I was just with Sister Rangiku,' I answer, taking a sip of juice. The two of us are sitting at a table by ourselves at the convent, eating breakfast. I notice some girls around Nel's age at another table shooting her disdainful looks.

'Is she your mama?'

'Yes,' I lie, used to this question.

'Then how come you call her by her name?'

'She's one of the sisters. I'm obligated to.'

Nel nods, her eyes flickering over to the other girls of her age. They begin to sneer and laugh, looking at each other and shooting Nel mean looks. It's not in my way to glare at anyone, but I do it anyway. What on earth has Nel done to them to make them dislike her so much?

'It's okay. They don't really bother me too much,' Nel murmurs quietly, not making eye contact with any of them.

'You should tell the sisters,' I suggest. 'They could probably help you.'

'It's fine.' We finish our breakfast and leave the dining hall, getting our bags from the dorm so we can head off to school. The day goes by in a blur, my thoughts mainly on my training session the night before. I can hardly believe how strong I am. I'm also relieved that Rangiku is finally living up to her Cêpan duties.

You know what would be useful? If I developed the Legacy of Telepathy. I know it really is a Legacy, and if I had it, I would be able to communicate with the other Garde. I decide to write down what I know to clear my mind, knowing that I will have to dispose of it afterwards.

So there's that boy in Mexico who might be one of us. He has to be. What human could stop an entire building from collapsing?

The Cêpans will be wise. The chances are they haven't taken many of the Garde into third world countries. This means that most of the Garde will probably be in the Northern Hemisphere.

USA?

Europe?

How about Asia? There might be some in places like China or Japan.

Noticing the teacher heading my way, I quickly shove the piece of paper under the text book we're meant to be reading out of, sighing in frustration. I wish I knew more.

As I'm walking back from school by myself towards the convent, wondering where Nel has gotten herself to, I finally discover exactly what's happening to her.

On an empty road with no signs of cars coming along, I catch sight of that group of girls from the convent pushing Nel around, ignoring her cries to stop. I quickly rush over to the scene, desperately trying to pull the other girls off my little friend.

'Hey- let her go!'

'Freak!' one of the girls cries, throwing one last punch at Nel's stomach before she and her horrible friends tear off up the road, yelling abuse at us.

'Are you okay?' I ask Nel, pulling her into a hug. Nel whimpers and clutches onto me.

'I should have listened to Nozomi,' she whines. 'She made a call of distress and I ignored it.'

'Where is she?'

Nel points up at a tree in one of the gardens next to the road. I catch sight of the little green bird, her beady black eyes focused on something down the road from us, the way I came from. Her little body is rigid, almost as if she can sense something else that must be bad. I follow her gaze and see exactly what the bird can see.

No.

Why?

It's the Hollow again. He stands there, still as can be, watching me with those eyes. He's closer this time, and I can see the exact shade his eyes are. Emerald green, dark and mysterious. He takes a menacing step towards Nel and I.

'Leave us alone!' Nel shouts unexpectedly, and Nozomi makes a screeching sound, noticing her owner's distress.

The Hollow takes another step in our direction.

'Don't run,' he says in an ordinary calm, male voice, his expression not changing in the slightest.

I place myself in front of Nel, knowing that because she is a human, she doesn't deserve whatever fate awaits me. I won't let him hurt her. No way.

'You're Number Seven, aren't you?' the Hollow says.

I don't answer. Instead, my fingers curl around the gem in my pocket that Rangiku took from the Chest. I'm supposed to use this when I'm in trouble (even though I have no idea how it works). Well, now's the time to find out.

Help me, I think. Please, someone help me.

Zangetsu hands out this weird tablet thing. It's a funny grey instrument, and when I say tablet, I don't necessarily mean the electronic type. It does appear to have a touch screen, but it's built into a stone slab, like the other sort of tablet you might get where you might find runes carved into it.

Rukia and I went our separate ways after I got the phone call from Zangetsu. She wanted to come to my house to help out in any way, but I told her that I'd contact her if there was any new development. I had rushed back to see Zangetsu as fast as I could, and I've only just arrived. We now stand in the lounge, Zangetsu's monitors all bleeping away in the corner.

'What's that?' I ask breathlessly.

'I took it out of your Chest when we last unlocked it. I was told before we left Lorien that we would probably need it once your Legacies were beginning to develop, because we can only assume that the other Garde are gaining their Legacies as well.'

'Uh huh,' I say, slightly impatiently. 'What does it do?'

Zangetsu indicates the screen made up of green and blue. I realise it's a map of the world, and I can clearly see a beeping red dot somewhere in Europe (Spain, I think).

'It shows the location of any Garde who has sent up a distress message,' Zangetsu explains. 'Meanwhile, the other Garde remain unknown in whichever location they've placed themselves in.'

I study the screen, pretty sure that the red dot is in Spain. Up in the top left corner, also in red, is a blaring number seven, telling us exactly which one of the Garde is in danger.

'How did he or she send the message?' I ask.

'With this,' he replies, handing me a weird turquoise stone that looks rather exotic compared to the stones you find on Earth. 'I've been meaning to give this to you. I believe it works telepathically by sensing the distressed thoughts of its owner. Number Seven must have had theirs on them.'

'But there's the Charm,' I argue. 'Seven is safe.'

'Nevertheless, they can still be captured, and their Cêpan can still be killed.'

'So, what do we do?' I ask. 'Are we going to... uh, Spain, or wherever that is?'

Zangetsu looks torn. 'I wish we could. But I would say that doing that won't be a good idea until you've developed your Telekinesis, and we're still waiting for that to happen-'

'I have it,' I blurt out. Zangetsu stares at me.

'What?'

'I got it last night,' I continue, my voice shaking a little. It looks like now is the time for confessions.

He's silent for a few seconds, before he asks, 'Are you sure?'

I nod. Maybe I can just get away with saying that I know I have it, without having to mention where I was last night, or the fact that I know there's a Hollow here in Karakura. To prove that I have got Telekinesis, I focus on the chair to the side of me. Zangetsu watches, fascinated, as the chair slowly but steadily rises off the ground to hang suspended in mid air.

'Brilliant,' Zangetsu says softly. 'I suppose that means we're going then.'

As I'm shoving my small pile of belongings lying on my bed into my suitcase, I notice Kon watching me from his spot on my pillow. He's still and rather calm, almost as if he knows what's happening.

'I'm sorry, boy,' I tell him. 'Zangetsu and I have to go, and I don't think you can come. Maybe Rukia could take you in.' My stomach does a painful leap as I think about that. I'm going to have to say goodbye to Rukia for the last time. I bite my lip. It's not that I'm afraid that she won't understand, it's more the fact that I'll probably never be able to see her again.

I reach down for my phone in my pocket, ready to say goodbye, when it starts to ring unexpectedly.

It's Toshiro.

'Hey,' I greet him, my voice rather low.

'Hey,' he replies, sounding equally, if not more, distressed. His own voice sounds rough and almost has a heavy element to it, which makes me think that he might actually have been crying. 'I'm just phoning to say that... my grandma died.'

'I... I'm sorry.' That's about the stupidest thing I could have said. Like being sorry is going to change anything. 'Did she go peacefully?' I ask awkwardly, trying to see if I can comfort my friend in any way.

'In her sleep,' Toshiro replies, his voice breaking. 'But I didn't get to say goodbye properly.'

Why has Toshiro called me? I mean, I can understand that he probably wants to hear a friend's voice right now, but if someone really close to me died, I'd be too distraught to call anyone.

'Listen... I need to come with you.'

'W-what?' I ask.

Toshiro sounds as if he's growing more and more confident. 'I need to come with you. There's nothing left for me in Karakura now Grandma has died. I want to help you find the rest of your people.'

My paranoia sets in. It's my natural reaction to freak out if my true identity is revealed over the phone, in case someone else is listening to our conversation. But I'm leaving Karakura anyway, so what difference does it make?

'Listen, buddy... you're not thinking straight,' I tell him. I mean, he's just suffered a terrible loss. No wonder his brain's all muddled up.

'I need to come,' Toshiro insists. 'I want to help you.'

'But... you're a human, Toshiro. This isn't it your fight.'

'Isn't it?' Toshiro says, his voice sounding upset but nevertheless, stronger than ever. 'I've been part of it for a long time without even realising. I know the truth about something even you don't know. I know the whereabouts of Number Six.'

I choke, and quickly turn it into a cough. 'What?'

'How do you think I know you're leaving to rescue Number Seven?' he continues. 'I have my source. She's here with me now.'

'Number Six?' I ask quickly. 'Number Six is with you?'

'No,' Toshiro replies. 'I know where Six is, but she's not my source. My source is Momo.'

My hand flies to my mouth in shock. Oh crap- Rukia said that Momo would probably be there at the hospital too...

'I know Momo's a Hollow,' Toshiro finishes.

Then he hangs up.

Okay. I've officially decided that now is the time I'm going to tell Zangetsu everything.

I race down the stairs as fast as I can (which is pretty damn fast), my heart beating wildly at a speed I'm not altogether comfortable with. Can the Loric have heart attacks? Because over the last few days, I've been in some pretty shocking situations.

Zangetsu is boxing up the monitors in the lounge, getting ready for us to go to the airport. He must have already booked the tickets on the one laptop he's left out on the table, still usable if he needs to quickly use it in the time that we'll have left at this house.

'Hey, Zangetsu... there's something I need to tell you. Actually, quite a lot I need to tell you.'

He turns to look at me, immediately recognising the guilty look on my face, probably remembering all the times he'd catch me searching for the Chest, because I'm pretty sure this was the expression I always wore. 'What is it?'

'You know Toshiro and Rukia?' I begin. He nods. 'Anyway, at Halloween, I met this friend of theirs. She's called Momo Hinamori, and she's a Hollow.' Zangetsu stares at me in shock, not saying anything. 'I... I didn't want to tell you in case you forced us to leave Karakura. She acted like a normal human being, and I don't think that she knew I'm one of the Loric. I decided to act like a human as well, but I may have blown that when I ended up fighting Grimmjow and his friends...' I continue to explain every single thing I've been keeping from him, telling him all about everything that happened last night, and how I had to reveal my identity to Rukia and Toshiro. I also end up mentioning how they captured Number Two, and I show him the footage of her interrogation on their camera that I stole from them.

'That was...' Zangetsu trails off once I've finished. 'Reckless. Utterly reckless. Do you realise how much you've threatened the safety of the Loric race to satisfy your own selfish needs?'

I hang my head in shame. 'I just didn't want to leave... I thought things would be better here...'

'I know,' Zangetsu says, sounding a little kinder now. 'I don't want to leave this place either. It seems we've been keeping secrets from each other.' I tilt my head curiously. 'There's a reason we came to Karakura in the first place,' he says quietly. 'I believed that there may be something here that might help the Garde here.'

'Toshiro said that he knows the location of Number Six,' I offer. 'He or she can't be too far away. Those guys last night said that Six is somewhere in Japan.'

'Both Toshiro and those guys are getting their information from Hollows,' Zangetsu dismisses. 'This could just be a trap to capture you.'

'But what if it isn't? And what do you mean when you said that there's something here that might help?'

'When I said that, I meant that I myself had suspicions of Number Six being here, or nearby,' Zangetsu admits.

'So Six is here somewhere! The Hollows weren't bluffing-'

'Ichigo, we've been here for months, and there has been absolutely no sign of Number Six,' Zangetsu points out. 'If they were ever here, then they must have moved on.'

'But-'

'You should get some rest,' Zangetsu interrupts. 'We'll be leaving for the airport in a few hours. I've booked the tickets. And it's probably best if you don't contact Toshiro again, especially seeing as he is there with a Hollow.'

I nod, not saying anything. On the way back to my bedroom, I try to think of how to get back in contact with Toshiro again. Even if I did break Zangetsu's new rule and call him, I bet Momo will stop him from answering. Of course she would. She's my enemy, so she'll stop at nothing to keep me from finding another one of my people.

As I lie down to rest on my bed, Kon coming to place himself on my chest, I contemplate my situation and what I can do about it.

Zangetsu said that I can't call Toshiro.

But he never said anything about Rukia.

Reaching into my pocket for my phone again, I dial Rukia's number. No reply. Why isn't she picking up? I really need to talk to her! I try her home number, but there's still no answer. Damn, where is she?

In frustration, I take Zangetsu's advice and try to get to sleep instead. I guess that up until this point, I hadn't quite realised how tired I was. I barely got any sleep last night because of my journey, and so the only sleep I did get was on Toshiro's couch. I fall asleep pretty quickly.

I see Number Nine again. He's still in a forest, probably somewhere in Central Park, and as far as I can tell he's still being chased by the Hollows. I can see them in the background, holding guns but none of them firing (probably because they're wary of the Charm). But as I watch, one Hollow gets a little over-confident and there's a blasting noise from the cannon-like weapon he's holding. It hits Nine squarely in the Chest, and I forget all about the Charm as the panic sets in.

Nine's clothes are a little scorched, but aside from that he is okay. I watch as the Hollow who shot the cannon stares down at his body, confused, horrified at the huge whole that just appeared in his chest from the rebound attack. So the Charm really does work. But as I watch, the rest of the Hollows close in on Number Nine-

'NO!' I yell, sitting up straight in my bed, scaring the shit out of Kon.

After I've finished explaining my dream to Zangetsu, we sit still for a while. It's still another couple of hours before we have to leave for the plane, so what are we going to do?

'Nine's somewhere in Central Park,' I say finally. 'I know it's a big place, but it's a hell of a lot more specific than the fact that we know that Seven is somewhere in Spain.'

'So...' Zangetsu trails off. 'It would probably be more logical to go to New York instead and help Nine, instead of heading to Spain on the off chance that we might find Seven if we look hard enough.'

This is a horrible decision to make. Seven sent that distress call for a reason, telling us that he or she really needs our help, but we'd have to search through the whole of Spain.

'I guess that's it, then,' I say finally. 'We're going to New York.'

I suppose this means we'll be reaching the end of this story soon. Well, there's definitely going to be a sequel, so the story will continue.

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