"Dang, I'm already in enough trouble as it is with my teachers. I don't need being late to top it off," Ichigo complained.

"Don't get impatient Ichigo. We need to make this search thorough. Coming back without the other substitute is not an option," Rukia reminded him.

Ichigo had really worked himself up this time. Not even the calm of the sunrise was doing anything for him. Once the squads realized that the seventh was missing, they decided that the captains and their lieutenants shouldn't go because they already had their schedules filled with managing the squads and that the squad members were already all assigned stations in the world of the living. Besides that, all that needed to be done was find the stubborn guest that didn't want to leave their world. It didn't take everyone long to volunteer Ichigo's service. The mission was a simple one and even if it got complicated, if Ichigo was able to fight off multiple captains and lieutenants, he could handle a few hollows. Without much choice he left, but his friends offered to go with.

"We should split up, we'll cover more ground faster," Uryuu said. "It's going to be hard enough combing through the area for one person, and we have the other six waiting for us already."

"That should do nicely," Rukia complimented him. "I'll go to the north of here. Chad you check the east, Orihime can go south, Uryuu will go west and Ichigo can watch from the skies right here. Fair enough?"

"Fine," Ichigo grumbled. How boring was this?

"Dang it," she barely dared whisper. "Those guys were getting annoying. Can't they take a hint?" She'd been running for hours. Ducking into alleyways, slipping in and out of shadows, it was nothing new to her. She was just naturally an unnoticed person, but her pursuers had something different about their hunting tactics. No matter where she dodged, they always seemed to find her in half the time that most would. Like there was a flashing, neon sign that pointed right at her.

Once she had rested herself for a few minutes, she began her evasive tactics again. She had been hiding herself in the crawlspace of an abandoned home and silently prayed for more time to think about her next move. Maybe she could go from this place to the shed out back and then to the empty parking lot down the street. The strip mall there hadn't had a paying customer since Alain Poher was President of the French Senate. But here, it was just the Senate. She had been inside that store before and it was perfect. Surely, no one could find her there.

She could crawl through the window. Yes, that would do just fine. She carefully unhooked the simple latch, trying not to agitate it so it didn't complain back with squeaking rusted hinges. Good. No one was in sight from the window view. She just needed to run a few hundred yards and she would be home free.

The occasional car whipped by down the street with headlights lit like a roaring animal. It made her jump each time. She had very good reason to do so, too.

Maybe they weren't following her anymore. Maybe they had given up for the time being. That would have been a luxury she would gladly pay for. Although, now she didn't need it. She had the sanctuary of the old store. She loved hanging out here. It was one the only places she could hide in perfectly. Well, that's what she thought.

Slam! The door flung wide open.

"So, you're the one that everyone's looking for, huh?" A gruff male voice called out. "You have been giving me a lot of grief today you know that? It's a good thing you haven't learned any speed enhancing techniques. I never would have seen you running otherwise."

With the light shining in through the window, it was easier to see the girl. Or, at least, what she was letting people see. She had short, ratty, black hair that stuck in unwashed, unbrushed clumps covering her face from the nose up with her bangs. She wore a long, sleeveless coat colored tan that dragged over the ground so much that it was nearly destroyed at a nonexistent hem. Two bare, callused feet hung out from the bottom and only reached halfway to the ground from the chair she sat in momentarily relaxing beforehand, she was that young.

She could see the man pretty clearly too with his bright orange hair. He had that same uniform on as the other two from before, but his sword was way more massive. She immediately didn't like him.

"It's not safe to wandering around places like this. Where are your esco-"

"Ditched 'em," she muttered back with a rebellious hint to her voice.

Ichigo didn't like her attitude either. "Look, we need to get you back to Soul Society. We can't exactly return empty handed."

"Tough."

He glared at her for a few seconds before scooping her up in one hand as though she were potatoes in the sack she was wearing and pushing the door open in the other. "Same to you." In a flash, they were gone with the girl protesting and flailing the entire time. Not exactly her smartest move. Two hundred feet it not a safe height to drop someone from.

Finally finished! Sorry for the wait. New family rule: I can only publish on "no school days".

Please enjoy and review! ^_^