I don't own Bleach. Sorry for the terribly long wait, but life has been hectic. Anyway, here's a little something to munch on. I swear the next Chapter will but up this weekend!!

Peace!!

NEXT CHAP: The Fox Trot

The next morning by some miracle Ichigo was able to wake up on time, slip out of the house before his crazy family woke up and make it to Urahara's shop without any major incident. Maybe his luck was starting to change for the better?

Though, now standing and yawning is vast cavernous training room under the shop, he had to admit it had been a truly restless night. He was so pumped full of a nervous energy, and emotions and different... thoughts... (Not about anyone in particular... ok that's a total lie.) He had found it difficult to get any real rest at all.

Yoruichi was now stomping her foot getting his attention back.

"Listen up knuckle head." She said crossing her arms and taking a wide, dominant stance. It was the 'I mean serious business punk' stance.

Ichigo just scratched the side of his face and gave Yoruichi his best bored/annoyed expression which he could tell irritated her to no end. Score.

"Animal transformations are nothing to play with and are an extremely serious and disciplined form of reiatsu control."

No shit. He though ruefully, remembering what Yoroichi had done before to drive that point home before -- ending up with him naked on top of his beautiful friend.

"In animal form you able to more completely hide your reiatsu because it takes on a slightly different texture; Thus animal transformations become an incredibly useful tool for infiltration and espionage missions. This is how I was able to pass undetected during our first little trip to soul society.

"We take the form of the creature to which we most relate. Being beautiful, lithe and cunning I naturally relate to a feline. You, being a sly punk and an obnoxious devil are apparently a fox... though I would have pictured more of a blunt, brutish bore or something..."

"What was that??" Ichigo yelled. He growled a little at the little smile forming on Yoruichi's lips. She sure knew how to push his buttons. At least she could tell that he was paying attention.

"Shut up!" She yelled back. "You have emotional problems. You must learn to control your volcanic attitude to get to the heart of what you need to do! I've said it before, the soul and the heart are connected! As long as your heart is turbulent you will never get this!!"

"Why are you yelling?"

"I'm trying to get through that thick head of yours!!"

Grrrr. He growled again as his patience began to wane.

"It is about need!"

As Yoruichi continued her very loud explanation... upstairs Orihime had arrived in front of the candy shop door.

"Yoruichi-san? Urahara-san?" She called in her little voice. Pushing open the door and looking inside everything appeared to be empty.

How strange they asked me to be here at this time but Matsuoto wouldn't tell me why... I wonder where everybody is.

Walking a little further into the dark dusty shop an idea popped into her head.

Maybe the training has already started! Yeah! They're probably down in the training room!

Smiling at her own (amazing) deductive powers Orihime made her way over to the trap door, threw it open and made her way down the incredibly long ladder. Once at the bottom she still didn't see anyone. Orihime was about to yell out when she heard muffled voices some distance away behind some particularly tall, mountain like rocks.

She trotted over making sure to be as quiet as possible -- she didn't want to interrupt if some kind of lesson had already started.

As she got closer she could clearly hear Yoroichi's voice. But for some reason she decided to stay and listen for a moment -- just to get an idea of what was going on… Yoruichi didn't sound happy and Orihime didn't feel like getting scolded right away. Yoroichi-san can be pretty scary.

Ichigo was too distracted and annoyed at the moment to realize just how close Orihime's reiatsu was.

"So my ugly little shinigami," Yoroichi went on, "we are going to put you through a rigorous test."

"Yeah, yeah. Sure, sure."

"One in which you are going to have to realize the need to transform back, not the want!"

"Uhhuh, you said that already."

"One where you have to discover the path between your heart and your soul!"

"Can we get on with this already!"

Yoruichi smiled a curled cruel smile that only a demon would wear. Her eyes shifted to the right where she knew Orihime was hiding, watching and listening.

Now was the time, and oh boy was she going to enjoy this!!

...

NEXT CHPT: A foxy reunion