Kubo-tite: Ok Mizu-chan, what have we learned today?

Mizu-chan: That all the characters mentioned here are not mine, but yours. Only the story-line is mine

Kubo-tite: Very good! Here have a cookie

Mizu-chan: Yay!

Ok guys, so I wrote this chapter just to get stuff heated up, It's like a filler, I guess...Thanks to all my loyal reviewers for your love and support, I greatly appreciate that. It might take me a while before I can get to the next chapter so please don't kill me!!!!

A World In Between

Usually, when Ichigo and Rukia landed somewhere, they did it almost immediately, or at least they felt like it since they weren't conscious. But this time Ichigo and Rukia opened their eyes to find themselves inside the portal that takes them wherever is it that they go. Their surroundings were black and purple and the walls were full of electrical discharges. Rukia got closer to Ichigo trying not to get electrocuted and Ichigo felt the blood rush to his face.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Stop pushing me, you're gonna get be fried"-

"Stop complaining so much. Where are we?"-

"It seems we are in between worlds. How come we woke up now?"-

"How should I know? Maybe it wants us to see where we are going."-Rukia replied

They floated around going downwards until a silver light appeared at the bottom of the portal, causing them to cover their eyes.

Seconds later Ichigo opened his eyes and was standing in a field full of flowers. He looked up and pulled his arms in front of him. The princess appeared in the sky and landed on Ichigo's open arms.

"Phew, that was close"-Rukia said

Ichigo couldn't help thinking of the princess's small body cuddled in his chest. She felt so warm and tiny…

"Kurosaki-kun?"-

"Yeah?"-

"You can put me down now"-

"Oh, sorry"-

He placed the tiny princess on the ground and she dusted herself off. He cursed at himself for having these random thoughts and kept wondering what they meant. He scratched the back of his head and scowled. He didn't like this.

"This is strange; I don't feel any pure souls around here"- Rukia said as she looked around the fields.

A warm breeze surrounded them and the sky was of a soft blue. Miles in front of them there was a small city with many buildings and houses, so they decided to walk there. Once they reached the city Ichigo couldn't help but notice how huge everything was. There were skyscrapers and streets over buildings and floating cars.

"This place is insane"-Ichigo muttered

"I guess we should find somewhere to stay"-Rukia's tone was very unimpressed

"Aren't you surprised by any of these things?"-

"I have been to cities like these before with nii-sama and nee-san"-Rukia's tone was suddenly sad as she remembered her family. She wondered how long had it been.

"Well I've never seen anything like this."-

They walked down a crowded street full off people who were only looking straight forward. They never looked back or to the sides and their faces were very serious. Ichigo and Rukia walked up to a building that said 'Paradise Hotel'. The entrance had two huge crystal doors and the floor was carpeted. When they went in they noticed a mahogany desk and a girl sitting behind it with a wireless phone hooked on her ear.

"Welcome to Paradise Hotel, how may I help you?"

"We would like to have a room"-Rukia answered

"Ok, do you have a previous reservation?"-

"No, we do not"-

"No problem. We have a bedroom available. May I have your name please?"-

"My name is Kuchiki Rukia and this is Kurosaki Ichigo"-

"OK, great. Here are the keys and here is the receipt"-

"Wait a minute. How many beds does this room have?"-Ichigo suddenly remembered the previous situation he had with the sleeping arrangements. The secretary looked at him with confusion

"It's a single bedroom sir"-

"And we'll take it. My husband is such a goof sometimes"-Rukia gave the secretary a sheepish smile and clung to Ichigo's arm, dragging him to the room

"Why the hell did you say that?"-

"Because getting a single bed was cheaper than a double bed and I don't have a lot of money left, genius."-

They went into the room and Ichigo was happy to see that the space was comfortable enough. The bed was a queen size one and the room had a balcony. There was a TV and under it was a small refrigerator with all sorts of drinks. The bathroom had a tub and Rukia took possession of it right away.

"Oh yes, I definitely need one of these"-she opened the hot water and prepared herself a bubble bath, while Ichigo flipped through the channels.

As Rukia laid inside the warm water, she started reminiscing of all the events that had occurred. Everything has happened so fast and she couldn't help but wonder what had happened to her sister. Last time she saw her she was on her knees, crying. Her brother, on the other hand, was ready to take on her capturers. And Kurosaki-kun. Wasn't he in the castle that day to take the pendant away? She recalled that day when she saw him for the first time. There was something in his eyes that had startled her, like desperation or anger or both. No one in had ever spoken to her in such a fierce manner. Everyone around her was always so delicate and gentle, and for some reason, she was grateful of Kurosaki-kun's impoliteness towards her. He didn't treat her like a porcelain doll that at any moment would break; he treated her like she assumed he would treat anybody. She sighed and sunk deeper into the water. She had never met anyone like him before. That spiky, orange hair, those fierce brown eyes and that scowl, that omnipresent scowl. He was nothing like Byayuka nii-sama, who was always very serious and dignified, and that kind of was a comforting feeling, since she wasn't always very comfortable around him. She actually admired her sister for being able to maintain her happy self despite her husband's personality. Rukia had always dreamed of one day growing up to be as strong and graceful as her sister, but now, all she wanted was to see her again.

After almost an hour soaking in the tub, Rukia rose from the water and dried herself. A drift of cols air from the air conditioner caused her to shiver and to get goose bumps, so she wrapped her body in a robe that was hanging behind the bathroom door. When she walked out, Ichigo was half asleep on the bed with the TV on, so she decided to sit on the window ledge and sip on some coffee while watching the sunset.

Ichigo slowly opened his eyes as the tine princess walked out of the bathroom. He saw her get some coffee and sit by the window, staring outside. He stretched and yawned loudly, which caused the princess to jump a little.

"You startled me"-

"Sorry. I thought you had drowned in there"-Ichigo started flipping the channels again.

"I just needed to relax. Did you need the bathroom?"-

"No, I'm just saying…I thought you had actually drowned"-

"Were you worried about me or something?"-Rukia turned her face to Ichigo with a raised eyebrow.

"No, I was not"-he scowl grew deeper in annoyance as the princess let out a small chuckle

"Kurosaki-kun, do you think we were chosen by this pendant?"-Rukia asked holding the small diamond pendant in her hand. Ichigo looked at her.

"What do you mean 'chosen'?"-

"Do you think that if anyone else would have had this necklace, they would be doing the same thing?"-

"I don't know, maybe not. Maybe we were chosen, I mean aren't you like a witch or something?"-

"Why would you assume that?"-

"Um, let's see. You open a weird portal that takes us places, you awake the pure soul's powers and every time you wish for something it happens, like with that dream thing you did."- He said counting each thing with his fingers.

"I guess you're right. It's just that everything in my life has always been planned ahead. Being in the castle, I was always told how a princess is supposed to be. I always thought of my life being like the people of this city, always looking forward and never noticing the trivialities of life. I guess I've missed so much"- Rukia suddenly remembered what her sister said to her the day she received her necklace.

"This necklace represents the power that the Kuchiki Royal Family has. If Byayuka-dono gave this to you, it's because he considers you to be worthy of it, so please take good care of it, and of yourself"

A single tear fell through Rukia's cheek as she started at the sunset. The pinkish-orange light casted by the sun made her skin glow and her watery eyes were noticeable in the light. A ragged sigh came from her and Ichigo looked away from the TV, noticing that Rukia was wiping her face.

"Are you ok?"-he asked rather softly

"I'm fine"-her voice was steady

He turned off the television and stood up from the bed. He pulled a chair from the small table in the middle of the room and sat next to Rukia, leaning on the chair and placing his arms behind his head.

"Is there anything you need to talk about?"-

Rukia turned to look at him. She was rather surprised but pleased at the same time. He knew she was crying, but he wasn't putting her aside.

"Humph, you're full of surprises Kurosaki-kun. But really, there isn't anything bothering me"-

"You know, you're a terrible liar"-Rukia looked at him and smiled.

"Fine, I'm worried about my sister. I haven't seen her in a long time and I miss her"-

"Ah, so the princess does have emotions huh? Well, I guess you'll see her again when all of this is over"-he assured her

"How do you know that? What if those other hunter friends of yours hurt her or took her?"-

"They wouldn't do anything without my orders, so don't worry about that."-

"Well, that's easy for you to say since you don't have anything to lose"-She didn't mean to say that since she didn't know anything about Ichigo's past, but she was defensive and emotional. Ichigo looked at her and returned his gaze to a wall.

"Yeah you're right; I don't have anything to lose. My parents were killed and I don't have any other family members, so yeah, I don't have anything to lose"-he didn't seem angry he seemed…hurt?

"I'm…I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"Rukia stammered. Emotions always won the battle with her.

"It doesn't matter. Listen, you and I are in this for different reasons. I want to know who killed my parents and you want to know more about your powers. I'm a hunter and you're a princess, I get it. We may be from the same world or whatever but we are completely different."-

Rukia frowned at Ichigo's speech. He wasn't making much sense and she noticed that there was a faint reddish color spread on his cheeks. She smiled at the thought that maybe he was blushing and, reading between the lines, maybe he wanted to tell her something.

"I'm not sure of what you're trying to say Kurosaki-kun."-

"I'm just saying that…I'm pretty sure your sister would be proud of you. I'm sure she knows how strong you are and you should know that to."-He stopped leaning on the chair and was looking at her. She smiled and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you. I really appreciate that."- She stood up and went to the bed, lay down and closed her eyes. Ichigo was frozen where he was sitting and still felt in his cheek the warm kiss that he had just received. He stood from his chair, scowling of course, and went to bed next to Rukia. He was on his back and his hands were behind his head, and he was staring at the ceiling. In all the time he has being a hunter, he had never been unable to speak his mind. Yelling and scolding was his thing, but this was unbearable. His chest was in a knot and the words were at the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't muster the guts to do it. He let out a deep breath and closed his eyes, falling asleep almost immediately.

Rukia felt Ichigo lay next to her, and heard his ragged breath. Apparently he was altered about something. She closed her eyes and smiled, happy at the thought that maybe Kurosaki Ichigo had feelings for her. What made her happier was that she would probably reciprocate the feeling.

The next day a maid knocked on the door. Since no one was answering she opened it with her master key. She was surprised to see that the room was empty and it seemed like no one was ever there.

"Oh, I thought it was occupied"…

Yay, Rukia would reciprocate!!! Now all Ichigo needs to do is tell her!!!!...Yeah I know, That's probably gonna be hard huh? Hope you guys liked it. Please R&R

Reader and Writer interaction time!!!!:

Who said "I will put it in a away that even an idiot like you will understand"?...Rukia!. Episode 1, you know, woth the funny drawings...