The bright rays of the sun shined through the window. Rukia's face scrunched into a scowl, as the sun beamed right into her eyes. She grasped her pillow with her hand, placing over her face to block the rays. Then she realized what she was touching. A pillow? Her pillow. Her eyes shot open, tossing the pillow across the room as she sat up quickly. She glanced about the room, feeling disoriented. She was in her room…but how? She remembered seeing that orange-haired boy and a monster and-
"Hisana!" Rukia suddenly shouted with urgency.
She rushed downstairs.
She couldn't remember what happened to Hisana. Did she pass out?
Once she reached the bottom of the stairs, Rukia stood still, raising her eyebrow. Hisana and Byakuya were drinking tea at the kitchen table, the giant hole in the wall still visible. They chatted as if nothing had ever happened. Rukia blinked. What was going on? Hisana had been injured last night but now she looked perfectly fine. Not a scratch on her.
"Hisana! What happened to your injuries!?"
Hisana and Byakuya stared at her, clearly confused.
"What are you talking about, Rukia? What injuries?" Hisana questioned, putting her cup of tea down.
The events from last night replayed in Rukia's mind. "From last night when the…never mind." She stopped there. Explaining it to them was not going to make them remember. But, how could they possibly forget?
"What happened to the house?" She questioned them, glancing at the massive hole in their living room wall. She knew very well what happened but she was curious of what they would say.
"A truck ran into it last night," Byakuya answered and took another sip of tea.
Rukia's eyes narrowed. A truck? They really didn't remember anything. A monster attacked them. Who forgets events such as that? Something must have happened to make them forget. But, what?
Ichigo. The Shinigami.
Did he do this?
The girl just shook her head, not having time to think about it right now. She was late; she was supposed to be at school by now.
Rukia went to her room to change into her school outfit. Putting on a gray skirt and the matching gray jacket, her eyes shot to her clock. She was really late.
She rushed down the stairs and waved at her sister and brother-in-law as she headed out the door. "See you guys later!"
The petite girl walked down the sidewalk to her school, her hands on the straps of her school bag. Once she arrived at her high school, she strolled down the hallway, deeply in thought.
She killed that monster or, as Ichigo called it, Hollow. Ichigo gave her his powers.
Rukia glanced at her hands. Did that mean she was a Shinigami now too? She didn't feel any different. She just felt like herself. Maybe it was only temporary?
What happened to Ichigo, though?
"Kuchiki-san!"
Rukia was snapped out of her thoughts by a loud female voice calling her name. Orihime waved at Rukia with a wide grin, Tatsuki, Rukia's childhood friend, at her side.
Shortly after being reunited with her sister, Rukia starting taking Karate, where she met Tatsuki. The two befriended each other instantly. They loved it when they were paired up to spar together. It became a competition to them. They bet on rewards such as buying the other candy. Even as they grew up, they still remained close friends.
"Hey, Kuchiki-san, why are you so late?" Orihime questioned since it was almost lunch time.
"Well, I woke up late."
Tatsuki raised her eyebrow in suspicion. "Right, you never wake up late. Was it because that truck ran into your house?"
Rukia only nodded. "Yeah…"
Everyone thought it was a truck. Had she been dreaming? Did any of that actually happen? The only person that could verify it was real was nowhere to be found. Maybe she really was going crazy.
The bell rang, indicating the passing period was officially over. The students headed back to their classrooms.
Rukia sighed. "Time for class."
The trio walked to their classroom and sat in their seats. Rukia's seat was in the back by the window. Orihime's seat was two seats in front of her and Tatsuki was at the desk beside Orihime. Everyone else shuffled inside and took their seats as well.
Even though everyone in the class was presence, the teacher still didn't start class.
The door opened and everyone's heads darted to it. Rukia, not paying much attention, gazed out the window as the person walked in.
"Ah, hello Kurosaki-kun. We were just waiting for you." The teacher greeted with a smile.
Rukia snapped out of her gaze. She knew that name.
"Name's not 'Shinigami'. It's Kurosaki Ichigo."
The girl spun around in her chair only to see a familiar carrot-top dressed in the Karakura school uniform walking into her classroom. What the-
"Class! This is Kurosaki Ichigo. He's our new student." The teacher introduced him to the class then gazed across the room. "How about you sit next to Kuchiki-san?"
Rukia stared at him with wide eyes as Ichigo made his way to the empty seat next to her.
What happened last night was real!
Ichigo waved at her and gave her a smile, a fake one, of course. "Hello."
Rukia jumped up to her feet and pointed a finger at him. "What are you doing here!?" She shouted much louder than she meant to. The room grew quiet as everyone stared at her with confusion.
The teacher pointed her ruler at her. "Kuchiki-san! Take your seat!"
"Sorry, sensei." She muttered before sitting back in her desk, glaring at Ichigo. "We're going to have a talk at lunch." She whispered to him.
Once everyone was released for lunch, Rukia grabbed Ichigo's arm and dragged him to the roof. Once there, she slammed him against the wall.
"What are you doing here!?" she demanded, holding the collar of his shirt.
Ichigo growled, running a hand through his hair. "Geez, why are you so hostile?"
Rukia released him before she crossed her arms in irritation. "Just tell me why you're here! Aren't you supposed to be in that 'Soul Society' place?"
The orange haired boy shook his head, scowling. "I can't go. I don't have enough power to go back there. Last night, you took a lot of it. So, thanks a lot midget." He mumbled with irritation.
Rukia punched him in his shoulder. "Stop acting like this was my fault! You're the one who came up with the brilliant idea of giving me your powers."
"Whatever." He growled. "Since I have no powers, I have to stay in this stupid gigai."
"Gigai?"
Ichigo huffed with impatience and pointed to his chest. "A gigai is a fake body that Shinigami use when they stay in the real world for a long time. I'm using it to regain my powers so I can go back to the Soul Society. In the meantime, I decided that I was going to annoy the shit out of you by going to school with you." He chuckled then he narrowed his eyes. "Think of it as payback for breaking my nose."
"Shut up. So, that's why everyone could see you, right?"
"Yeah."
A beeping sound from Ichigo's pocket interrupted their conversation. He quickly reached for the phone-like device and flipped it open. His eyes analyzed the information of the screen.
"There's a Hollow nearby." He announced, watching the red dot flash on the map of the device.
Rukia crossed her arms. "Really? Why don't you go kill it, Shinigami."
Ichigo reached in his other pocket and placed a black glove with a flaming skull on it over his hand.
"You're the Shinigami now," Ichigo stated with a smirk.
He unexpectedly dashed towards Rukia, leaving her very little time to react.
"Hey, what are you-"
Ichigo's hand slammed against Rukia's face and sent her soul flying out of her body. Rukia tumbled backwards, falling to the ground. She sprung back to her feet, glancing down at her body. She was in a Shinigami uniform. Her violet eyes shot over to her lifeless body on the ground.
"What did you do to me!?" She shouted in shock.
Ichigo twirled around, heading towards the edge of the roof. "I'll explain later! Follow me!"
With that, the carrot top just hopped off the roof as if they weren't eight stories high. Much to Rakia's surprise, he landed safely on the ground below.
Rukia waved her hands in panic, looking down at him. "Wait! You can't just leave my body here! People will think I'm dead!"
"Just come on!" Ichigo yelled from the bottom of the building. "We'll be back before anyone notices!"
She exhaled and glanced over the edge of the roof. That was a long way down. Could she really just jump off and be ok? Well, Ichigo did it…
"Jump, Rukia! We don't have all day!" The orange haired boy shouted at her with annoyance.
Rukia took a deep breath before she leaped off the roof, watching as the ground became closer and closer very quickly. Then, like Ichigo, she landed safely on the concrete. She wasn't hurt at all.
"There, was that difficult?" Ichigo muttered.
The girl rolled her eyes before the two ran down the sidewalk and off the school grounds.
"So, where is this Hollow?" Rukia questioned, side-glancing at him.
Ichigo looked at his phone. "It's in the park up ahead."
The two stopped at the entrance of the park when they saw a spider-shaped Hollow chasing down the spirit of a small boy. The boy screamed as the Hollow closed in on him. He needed help.
Rukia reached for her sword and snatched it out of its sheath. She ran towards the monster and slid past it with her zanpaktou extended, slicing off half of its legs. The creature fell to its side, giving time for Rukia to jump above its head. She sliced right through its mask causing the Hollow fade away into ashes before vanishing.
Rukia landed softly on the ground.
"Pretty good for only your second Hollow." Ichigo remarked as he walked over to her.
The two headed towards the shivering boy spirit.
"What now?" Rukia questioned while they stood before the boy.
"Send him to the Soul Society. Just tap the end of your sword on his forehead. It's called Konso." Ichigo explained to her.
The Shinigami knelt so she was eye-level with the boy.
"What...are you going to do?" he asked nervously, his eyes wide.
She smiled in an effort to calm the boy. "You're going to go to a place called the Soul Society. You'll be able to pass on and all these monsters will stop coming after you."
The boy nodded slowly.
Rukia tapped the end of her hilt on the boy's forehead. An unusual, bright blue light surrounded the spirit. He slowly vanished into the earth and, in seconds, he was gone. Rukia stood up. Her work here was done. She sheathed her blade.
"Guess I can trust you with this after all."
Rukia glanced at Ichigo, her eyebrow raised. "What?"
"Since I can't do my job as a Shinigami, you're going to have to do it. Just until I get my powers back." He crossed his arms, looking at her. "I didn't think you could but I guess midgets can fight too." He snickered only to feel jab to his stomach.
The black haired girl frowned. "Who ever said I wanted to fight Hollows all the time? I do have a life. I don't have time to protect the whole town."
"Who else is going to do it?" Ichigo rhetorically questioned her with a scowl. "I was assigned to this area and I can't guard it without any powers. The Hollows just can't run loose. Someone has to take care of them."
A few minutes passed before Rukia sighed, giving in. "Alright, fine. I'll do it. Now, just shut up about it."
Ichigo nodded, smiling. "Good. Let's go."
With that, the two headed back to Karakura High and made it back just as the lunch period ended. No one even noticed the two had left.
XXX
Once school ended, Ichigo and Rukia walked out of the classroom, heading for the door.
"Hey, Rukia!" Tatsuki called as she and Orihime ran to them, causing the two to pause.
Turning around, Rukia smiled at the girls. "Hey!"
Seeing the two together, a mischievous smile formed on Tatsuki's face. "I see you and Kurosaki-san are already getting to know each other."
"Shut up, Tatsuki." Rukia nudged her friend, frowning. "Ichigo and I have already met before, that's all."
Ichigo snorted at her comment as he dug his hands into his pockets. A pair of violet eyes glared at him.
"Um…Kurosaki-kun?"
The spiky haired teen's eyes followed the source of the timid voice.
Orihime nervously smiled, bowing her head slightly. "I'm Inoue Orihime. Nice to meet you…"
As Ichigo was about to reply, he noticed a something dark on Orihime's leg. He leaned over a little to get a better view of it. The shape of the mark almost resembled a hand print. A very large hand print. As if something wrapped it's hand around her leg. Interesting…
A pointy elbow digging into his side brought him out of his thoughts. He glared at Rukia, the culprit, before bringing his attention back to Orihime.
"Ah, nice to meet you too, Inoue."
Upon hearing him speak, Orihime blushed slightly causing Ichigo to raise his eyebrow.
Feeling the awkwardness in the air, Tatsuki changed the subject. "Anyway, so I was thinking that we all could hang out sometime."
Orihime's eyes beamed with excitement. "We can go to my place tonight! I'll cook!"
Everyone except Ichigo cringed.
There was one thing that was certain about Orihime: She could not cook. Rukia and Tatsuki learned that the hard way. They were not about to go through that torture again.
The orange haired girl glanced at Ichigo, smiling. "What do you think, Kurosaki-kun?"
Rukia tried to warn him by discreetly shaking her head. But, the carrot-top didn't pick up on the signal.
Shrugging nonchalantly, Ichigo agreed. "Sure."
"Yay! I'll see you guys at my house! I have to go grocery shopping!" With that, Orihime skipped down the hallway, disappearing out of the doors.
Rukia and Tatsuki's eyes slowly glared at Ichigo, darkness lingering over them.
"What!? I was trying to be nice!" He shouted as he noticed the gaze.
"You're an idiot, Ichigo." Rukia mumbled, almost gagging when she remembered the last time Orihime cooked for them.
This was going to be great.