Hello! Glad you decided to join me for another chapter. Well, no one reviewed on the first chapter, but I decided I might as well post the second since it will give people a better understanding. I don't particularly like this chapter, but it needed to be done to get the ball rolling. Also, I know Rukia does not make her presence known to the Kurosaki family until Rukia comes back at the start of the Arrancar arc, but it worked for me to make her presence known now. Chapter 3 is looking at being around 5 pages long. p: Please review and tell me if you hate it, love it, or think it's okay. Well, here's chapter two, enjoy!

Several days had passed since my encounter with the odd couple. I spent most of those days lounging around at the park, enjoying my time of peace and quiet. I raised my nose up and sniffed the air. It was going to storm soon.

Sure enough, about 30 minutes later, clouds could be seen covering the setting sun while thunder roared in the distance. I lazily picked myself up and ran off to find shelter. Unfortunately, it started to rain before I could find a place to hide. A light growl escaped my lips as I slowly got soaked to the bone. The wind picked up, and flashes of lightning appeared all around. I quickened my pace.

BOOM!

My feet stopped in their tracks. That sound was not thunder. My head slowly turned only to gaze up at a monster. Fear struck me and I froze. The monster looked similar to all of the other ones I had encountered. Its face was covered with a white mask, and its body was shaped like some sort of bull. It leaked an evil aura that I could feel with every part of my body. The monstrosity laughed as it slowly approached my shaking form. I tried to summon the power I usually felt when these monsters appeared, but fear overtook all functions of my body. My feral instincts kicked in right before it had a chance to hit me with one of its hooves. My feet ran down the street as fast as they could possibly take me. Unfortunately, it wasn't fast enough as I could hear the creature drawing closer. The rain made my fur heavy, slowing me down even more. If only I could find a way to escape him! I squinted to see farther ahead of me, and it looked like my prayer was answered.

There it was at end of the road, my chance to get away. There was a small hole in a fence up ahead. I tried to run even faster than I already was. If I could just make it there, I should be safe. I was so close!

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as I felt my feet slip out from under me and my body hit the wet pavement. The monster had caught up. I closed my eyes as I saw it raise one of its hooves. But the death I was waiting for never came. The sound of metal coming into contact with something made me open my eyes.

Standing in front of me was the orange-haired boy from before, with the same scowl adorning his face. My eyes widened at the sight of the huge sword he was using to block the giant hoof. The power rolling off of him was bizarrely…powerful. He was dressed in what appeared to be a black uniform of sorts. Ichigo was his name, wasn't it?

I watched in awe as Ichigo pushed the hoof away. He proceeded to jump in the air and slice through the creature's mask. His feet hit the ground just as the monster slowly faded away. Just exactly who was this boy? I shakily rose to my feet as Ichigo scoffed and started to walk away.

"Ichigo, did you notice? It's the same dog from before." My head whipped around as I heard Rukia's voice coming from behind me. When did she get here?

I quickly trotted over to her where she welcomed me with open arms. I practically sighed with contentment as her hand once again found my ear.

"So what was that hollow after her for?" Ichigo asked, though his voice clearly displayed his overall disinterest. So those monsters were the hollows they had been talking about days before.

"I'm not sure how, but it seems there's some reiatsu coming from her." Rukia observed. My head cocked slightly at her words. What was reiatsu?
"You mean to tell me that this mutt has spiritual pressure?" her companion stated in disbelief as I growled my disapproval at being called a mutt.

"It seems so. She seems to be pretty smart too. Maybe we should keep an eye on her for awhile. I don't think she has an owner or else she would be home during this storm. It'd also be nice to have a pet in your boring room." The raven-haired girl suggested. As much as I disliked the idea of being a pet, having a home sounded nice. Ichigo seemed to hesitate for a moment before shrugging.

"I don't see how it could hurt." He muttered as he started to walk away in the direction I assumed his house was in.

"He just doesn't want to admit what a softy he is." Rukia whispered to me, making a wolfish grin appear on my face, "Now let's head home and get out of this rain." It wasn't long before we finally reached Ichigo's home. It appeared to be a hospital of some sort. Ichigo opened the front door while quickly side-stepping behind it. All of a sudden a man flew out, looking like he was meaning to hit the orange-haired boy in the face.

"Where have you been!?" I heard him shout. I winced and flattened my ears against my head. He was much too loud for my liking. I watched as him and Ichigo exchanged words, while Ichigo occasionally pointed at me. Eventually, I saw what I learned was his father gave a sharp nod. He then walked over to me and placed a hand atop my head.

"You're welcome to stay in our home as long as you'd like!" He shouted with a huge smile on his face. My tail wagged as I licked his other hand in appreciation.

"Quit treating it like it's a human dad." At this I growled, letting him know that I didn't appreciate that comment. He looked over at me, questioning himself as to whether he thought I understood him.

"I told you she was smart. It's almost as if she understands us." Rukia spoke up for the first time since we'd gotten there. I wagged my tail in approval of her statement.

"Rukia-chan! My third daughter! You've returned to us!" Ichigo's father shouted with sparkles surrounding him. 'Where did those sparkles come from anyway?' I thought curiously. After the odd greeting with Ichigo's dad, I followed Rukia and Ichigo upstairs to a door that had a 15 on it. Ichigo and Rukia left for a moment and came back with towels and a change of clothes. They proceeded to enter the room and lay the towels out on the floor.

"Come here girl!" Rukia coaxed. I cocked my head slightly before making my way over to them. As soon as I stepped on one of the towels, Ichigo and Rukia lifted up some of the other towels on the ground and attempted to dry me off. Shortly after I was dried off, Rukia left the room to change into her pajamas. Before I could react, Ichigo started to take his shirt off to change. I yelped in surprise, quickly placing a paw over my eyes. Ichigo let out a chuckle at my reaction but continued to change.

"Sorry I forgot you're a girl dog. Although I didn't think dogs could get embarrassed like that." Ichigo said thoughtfully. I removed my paws from my eyes to see he was thankfully fully clothed.

"So, your name is Kaiko, right? What an odd name. Who names their dog 'forgiving child'? Besides, that name is usually used for people." Ichigo stated as he glanced over my canine form. I let a growl escape my throat. I was human, dammit! And my name wasn't odd either!

"We'll just call her Kai for short. How old do you think she is?" Rukia questioned as she re-entered into the room.

"I don't know. She looks like she's around 4 or 5." He guessed. I shook my head as I tapped the floor with my paw fifteen times. Rukia's eyes widened in disbelief. Not only had I shook my head to signify that Ichigo was wrong, but I also answered with my real age.

"Ichigo, is it my imagination, or did she just correct you?" Rukia looked over at me incredulously.

'Crap! I've been acting too human-like!' I scolded myself mentally. I tapped my paw against the floor 3 more times, before placing my paws out in front of me with my butt in the air. My tail wagged as I groaned inwardly at such demeaning behavior.

"You're over thinking things Rukia. She just wants to play." Ichigo stated as he patted the top of my head.

"Hm I suppose you're right. Well, we need to get to bed if we want to be at school on time." Rukia reluctantly agreed.

No more was said as both of them got into bed and offered goodnights before drifting off to sleep.

'That was close,' I thought, 'I'm not sure what they would do to me if they figured anything out. Hell, I don't even know what there is to figure out!' I let out a sigh from my spot in front of the closet. The truth was, I didn't even know how I had gotten like this. 7 years ago, my family was attacked by a hollow. My parents were both killed before my eyes, leaving me to defend for myself. All I remember was wishing that I somehow had a way to hide and get out of there. As if answering my wish, I felt an instinct in my body take over as a warm feeling spread from what felt like the center of my being. When I opened my eyes, I was in the form I am still stuck in today. I managed to barely escape the hollow with my new form. The only problem was, I didn't know how to change back. For the past 7 years, I had been roaming from town to town, searching for a way to live, and possibly a way to change back.

I couldn't let myself be caught. If they figured out I was a human, things could get ugly.

'I guess I'll have to play dumb for awhile…' I thought as my eyes slowly shut before falling asleep.

Well, that's it for Chapter 2. Please just take a few seconds out of your day to review. It would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading!