Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or the characters! Thanks to CrystalRaindrop007 for Beta'ing!

Our prints in blood, I'll hold your hand. You fell, I smiled, I'll help you stand.

Before The Rain — IX

"Rukia, where are you going?"

Rukia turned around and looked at Hinamori, who was laying down on a second bed in Rukia's room; she could have had her own room, but both she and Rukia asked to share because they hadn't seen each other in so long.

"I'm going outside."

"Uh . . . why?" Hinamori asked, sitting up in her bed and yawning, stretching her pink pajama arms over her head.

"I want to go watch the stars. I like to tell my mom when something happens in my life. And besides . . . I'm meeting someone," Rukia said, smiling softly. "Hina, can you keep a secret?"

Hinamori nodded happily, now partly awake. Rukia walked over and sat on the bed beside her, playing with her hands nervously in her lap, letting her fingers linger over the scar on her thumb as she began speaking to Hinamori.

"I'm going to meet Ichigo. Please, don't tell anyone, alright?"

Hinamori nodded. She said,

"You're meeting him? Does that mean you're not fighting anymore?"

Rukia smirked.

If only Hinamori knew.

"Yeah, we're not fighting anymore."

"Cool!"

"And don't wait up for me, I won't tell you anything," Rukia said, pointing her finger at her cousin. Though she sounded strict, Hinamori could tell she was just playing around.

"I promise."

"Really?" Rukia asked, raising an eyebrow. Hinamori usually kept her word . . . but she seemed a little too interested in her and Ichigo.

"Yep. I promise. By the way . . . how did you make up?"

Rukia smirked again.

"I don't kiss and tell."

And she left a confused Hinamori alone in the room after she jumped out of her window. Hinamori, deep in thought, didn't understand that Rukia had said until almost twenty seconds later. Jumping out of her bed, her eyes wide, she ran over to the window to see Rukia on the ground below.

"He kissed you?!" she yelled.

Rukia just stuck her tongue out at Hinamori and ran off.

Rukia, knowing that Ichigo would need help getting out, decided to drop by the slave stables to see Hanatarō before she went to her secret place. Slowly opening the door, she was quiet as she walked in, and she watched the hole in the ground to make sure her foot didn't catch in it.

She found the nervous, over jumpy guard cleaning the tool shed out. She raised an eyebrow; guards never worked.

"Hanatarō," she said. She wasn't at all surprised when he jumped nearly a foot and dropped his broom.

"Yes, Kuchiki-san?" he said, bowing quickly before grabbing his broom off of the ground; he dropped it the first time, but managed to grip it tightly in his hand the second.

"I need you to help me."

"Yes, ma'am!"

"Don't be so tense. And all I need you to do is help Ichigo out of his stall at around eleven. Can you do that?"

Hanatarō, nodded, smiling now.

"Yes! Anything for you, Kuchiki-san."

"Please, call me Rukia."

"OK, Rukia-chan!" Hanatarō said. Rukia left him to his work as she crossed her arms behind her back and walked out to her special place.

The ground was covered in snow now, but she could still see the flowers poking their heads up through the white powder; they would die soon. She smiled sadly as she reached down and picked a single orange daisy and twirled it in her fingers. Walking forward, she began to try to leave as little footprints in the snow as possible. She didn't want to mess it up; it was too beautiful to scatter all around.

Looking up into the sky, she uttered a single sentence to the star she had given her mom.

"Mom . . . I'm in love, and it's exactly like you told me it would be."

By the time Ichigo had finished working, which was late at night, way after the sun had gone down, he was exhausted and he felt like going to sleep right there and then, but he wanted to meet Rukia. As he was led back to the slave stalls, he suddenly wondered exactly how he was going to escape in the middle of the night. But his question was answered when a slightly jumpy Hanatarō walked up to him.

"Um . . . Kurosaki-kun?" he said, fiddling with his fingers.

Ichigo nearly jumped out of his skin. A freakin' guard was talking to a slave in a respective way! But then again . . . it was Hanataō, and most of the slaves really liked him, and he liked the slaves.

"Yeah?" Ichigo asked, turning around. He didn't bother being polite with most of the guards; they were either stupid to tell anyone higher up what he had done, or they were just looking for an excuse to beat him and didn't care about threatening his family.

"Rukia-chan wants me to help you out, so . . ." he trailed off and looked down at the ground.

Ichigo smiled. So that was how he was going to get out.

"You know Rukia?" Ichigo asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah! She's really kind. And when I called her Kuchiki-san, she told me to call her Rukia instead. She's a lot nicer than I've always thought," Hanatarō said, reaching out to unlock Ichigo's stall. Once it was open, Ichigo stepped into the pathway between stalls and placed a hand on Hanatarō's shoulder.

"Thanks, Hanatarō. Also, do you know what time it is?"

He nodded and told Ichigo that it was about eleven, then closed Ichigo's stall door again. Ichigo ruffled his hair before slinking out of the barn. When he stepped into the fresh, crisp air, he breathed in deeply.

He had an hour before he had to meet Rukia . . . so, he might as well do something.

After figuring that vandalizing the tool shed would only get him in trouble, he squashed that idea and decided to just walk around in the night air. But as he began walking through a large field, he decided to pick Rukia some flowers. He mentally beat himself over the head for it; he never did anything like that for anyone. But he found himself smiling, which he did even less, as he picked a few of the bright orange flowers.

As he straightened to his feet, his eyes widened when he saw another figure in the middle of the field.

The person, who Ichigo was sure was a girl, had dark hair that was blowing around her face. Her skirt was blowing around in the night air and her hands were folded in front of her as her eyes gazed skyward. Ichigo let his eyes run over her figure as he walked slowly toward her. When he was close enough, he smiled as he realized that it was Rukia who was walking around. He let his smile grow as he walked toward her.

"Hey," he said quietly.

She turned around, her eyes wide as she stared at Ichigo. He reached his hand out and offered her the few flowers he had grabbed. She took them, letting her fingers wrap loosely around them. Neither spoke a word; they just stood and stared out at the moon and stars. After a few seconds, Rukia let her hand stray from her side and gently grab his.

"We weren't supposed to meet here," Rukia said quietly. Ichigo nodded, but didn't say a word, so Rukia continued. "Ichigo . . . do you love me, too?"

Her question surprised him, and he turned around so he was facing her. She had a slightly nervous look on her face as he smirked.

"Yeah, I do. I love ya, too," he said, gripping her hand tighter in his.

She smiled and leaned her head up against his arm.

"Ichigo, what's going to happen when . . . when I get married?"

He took a deep breath and looked Rukia in the eye. He said,

"Rukia, do you trust me?"

She nodded, her violet eyes staring deep into his without blinking.

"Do you really actually love me?"

"Yes."

He noticed that she said it without hesitation. He smiled and reached out, placing his hand on her cheek and rubbing his thumb over her lips. She let her own hand wander up to cover his.

"Then marry me."

Rukia's eyes went even wider than before and her hand stopped moving on his. He didn't break their gaze as he waited for an answer. Rukia opened and closed her mouth a few times, but didn't speak. Finally, she managed to get a few words past her lips.

"I-I . . . Ichigo . . . "

He finally let his gaze drop. He smiled sadly as his hand fell from her face and landed back at his side.

"Sorry," he mumbled. "That was a stupid idea, I guess."

"No!" Rukia yelled, her voice echoing throughout the night. Realizing that she had shouted, she blushed a little and looked at the ground. "I-I mean . . . it wasn't a stupid idea, Ichigo. I just . . . my brother . . ."

Ichigo, seeing that she meant what she said, spoke softly.

"Forget about him. Forget about the arranged marriage, forget about everything. Do you want to be with me?" he asked her, his eyes once again traveling to meet hers as he reached his hand out and lifted her head so he could stare directly into her eyes. She didn't speak for a second; her eyes glanced back and forth as if she was searching for something in his gaze.

"But the arranged marriage has to happen. My brother said that it was all worked out and everything . . . and how could we? I mean-"

Ichigo cut her off by pressing his lips to hers. He kissed her briefly before pulling back.

"Forget about everything, Rukia. Forget about everything but us," he said, his voice only above a whisper. Finally, Rukia nodded.

"I love you, Ichigo. I-"

"Marry me, then," Ichigo mumbled, gently running his hands through her hair. She closed her eyes and smiled.

"Yes."

He took her in his arms and held her tight under the beautiful shine of the moon. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, wanting the moment to last forever. But as the animals of the night began howling and the wind picked up, she began shivering from the cold as it nipped at her ankles and neck and face. Ichigo noticed and began rubbing the back of her neck to warm it up. She closed her eyes and let his hands run over her soft skin, and the warmth from his hands wasn't the only thing making her blood pump faster.

He smiled and soon he moved his hands to her face.

"Hey . . . Rukia, where do we go from here?" Ichigo mumbled, standing back from her a little. She shrugged, her hand gripping his tightly.

"I don't know. But wherever it is, I want it to be with you."

Byakuya sat in his room, his legs crossed under him as he stared at the picture of Hisana. Her hair and her eyes . . . they were exactly the same as in his dreams every night. Her smile was he most beautiful thing in the world, and he would give anything, anything, to see it again. He would give his life to see her again . . . if just for a few minutes.

"What should I do?" he asked quietly, letting his fingers run over the glass that his memories of her were encased in. "Rukia . . . she . . . I think she loves one of the stable boys. What should I do? She is to be married to Ichimaru Gin in two months because he is the highest in a noble family."

He sighed and took a deep breath, replacing the picture on the table.

"I don't know what to do. If I break tradition, I could be thrown from the throne. If I don't break tradition Rukia will be forced to marry a man she doesn't love."

Byakuya let out a ghost of a smile as he swore he could feel a hand on his shoulder.

"I married you because I loved you. Is it fair to make my sister marry someone she doesn't love?" he asked, standing to his feet. "I just don't know what to do. But Rukia slipped out her window an hour ago. What do you think the chances are she's going to meet that boy?"

Byakuya knew that if Hisana were here, she would be smiling.

Ichigo and Rukia just held each other for a good half hour before they moved from each other's arms. Rukia had her head laid on Ichigo's chest and he had his hands tangled in her hair as he held her tightly to him. They only sounds that they heard was the calm, soft breathing of each other. Finally, when the cold night air made them realize that they would need to leave soon, Ichigo pulled back from the embrace and smiled softly at Rukia.

"Ya know, you're the only girl that's ever made me want to smile all the time when I'm around you. I mean . . . I was like that with my mom, but never since. I don't smile much, at all, but when I'm around you . . . it makes my heart beat faster and I feel like I can't keep the smile off of my face."

Rukia smiled, too.

"And you're the person who made the rain in my heart go away."

They both fell silent for a minute, before Ichigo said,

"Hey, Rukia, why did you want to meet me tonight?"

Rukia blushed a little and clasped her hands together behind her back as Ichigo reached out to tuck one of the flowers he had given her behind her ear. She shrugged.

"I just wanted to talk to you. I felt like I needed to tell you who I my marriage is going to be to. I-I found out today; Nii-sama didn't even give me the promised time to choose someone myself. As soon as he made the deal with one of the other noble families . . . he - he didn't give me a chance."

Ichigo's eyes fell toward the ground as Rukia spoke.

"Um . . . who is it?" he asked, his gaze trying to bore into the soft, cold snow he could barely see.

"Someone named Ichimaru Gin. He is a friend of Aizen-sama," Rukia said, her gaze following Ichigo's to the ground.

Ichigo's head snapped up. As Rukia gasped quietly, he clenched his fists tightly.

"What?!" he yelled, frightening Rukia a little. She backed up a step, and when Ichigo saw this, he lowered his voice and moved closer to her, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Do you . . . do you know him?" Rukia whispered, crossing her right arm over her stomach and gripping her left tightly.

"Yeah. He's a real ass. God, your freakin' brother can't make you marry him!" Ichigo exploded, not able to hold his emotions in any longer. "I won't let you!"

"Ichigo . . . don't try to stop my brother; he could kill you. Please, just stay out of it. I'll try and stop them, but if you get involved . . . I don't want you to di-"

She was cut off as Ichigo kissed her again. When he pulled back, here eyes went wide at the look of determination on his face.

"I will not let you marry that man; he'll use you and he will never love you like . . . like I do," Ichigo said, his hands clasped tightly at his side. "I would rather die than see you marry such a man and be treated like your not worth anything. And you are worth way more than that; you're worth the world. Besides, you said you'd marry me."

Rukia smiled softly and laid her head on Ichigo's chest as he pulled her into his arms again.

"Thank you, Ichigo," she said, closing her eyes and breathing in deeply of his scent.

And, as they embraced under the stars and the moon, their mothers smiled down on them.

That's all folks! I worked hard on this, and I hope to get some feedback. So, until the next chapter . . . have fun and . . .

Please Review!