Edited and Rewritten

I don't own Bleach

Dying's easy. It's living that's hard.

Zarek- Dance with the Devil

Renee cursed when she woke the next day. She'd over slept. It was now late in the afternoon and there was still a lot she needed to do. Ordering some room service, she jumped in the shower and quickly cleaned up. She dressed simple today, with a pair of faded blues jeans, a black Level 27 shirt and her brown flip flops. Her hair was pulled back in a neat ponytail high on her head. After applying a little bit of make-up she was ready for the day. When her breakfast/lunch arrived, she ate in a hurry. Leaving the hotel on foot today, she walked around the little town.

There were an unusual amount of spirits here and she wondered why. Deciding not to talk to them, she continued on her way.

By 5:00 that evening, Renee was aggravated. She knew Renji was in the area, but without being able to read his mind, she couldn't pinpoint his exact location within the city. After eating some dinner at a local fast food joint, she decided to change tactic's. Instead of looking all over the freaking place for him, she'd search for the next best person.

Sitting down on a bench, she closed her eye's and opened her mind. It hurt a bit shifting though so many minds at once, but Renji and Ikkaku had taught her well. She could feel she was getting close, and right before she entered Rukia's mind, another's thought's interrupted her.

'What is she doing? Napping?' A male voice.

Snapping her eye's open, she blocked out their thought's and looked up into blue eye's behind a pair of glasses. He looked down at her strangely, before talking. "What are you doing?"

She scowled at him. "I'm thinking, what's it to you?" He shrugged and went on his way. "Weirdo," she whispered. Sighing she turned and started walking again. She knew Rukia was nearby, just didn't know where exactly.

Noticing she was close to a river, she figured that she could be alone there, making it easier to find her target. Walking down to the riverside, she sat down. Smiling at the beautiful colors on the horizon. The pinks and purples, mixing with navy blue of the coming night. A strange sensation of déjà vu over came her. Shaking her head, she closed her eye's concentrated on finding Rukia.

Renji sighed, "Do you two really need to come? I mean, we don't need an audience." He glared over that the two beside him.

"We might as well, there isn't anything else for us to do." Rukia said with a shrug.

"You could be out looking for hollows." He snapped.

Ichigo shrugged, "That's why we're here as Soul Reapers and not in our bodies." He smiled and nudged Renji's arm. "Plus, I wouldn't want to miss out on meeting your girlfriend, Renji."

Growling, he shoved Ichigo away and stiffened when he felt her nearby. All arguing aside, he got serious. "She's moved again."

"Yeah, I can feel her Reiatsu over by the river." Rukia said looking in the direction she could feel Renee. She frowned. "The Reiatsu is different, it's stronger then last night."

Renji gave a proud smile, "That's because she's using her power right now. I bet she's moving through the whole town's thoughts trying to figure out where I am."

"She's become that powerful." Rukia asked shocked. The last time she'd seen Renee, she had Captain Unohana's mind shield in place and had hardly any spiritual energy. "And I thought she can't read you?"

"She can't, but that doesn't stop her from looking for your mind's. She's using the training I gave her." Closing eye's he gave another smile. 'That's my girl.' "Come on, lets get to her before she finds us."

Renee was so close to finding Rukia, she was on the move making it hard to discern where she was going. Through her eye's though, she saw an orange haired boy wearing the same Soul Reaper outfits that Rukia and Renji wore. Strapped to his back was the biggest sword she had ever seen, it was wrapped in what looked like white bandage's. This was the Ichigo that Renji had spoken about. It's was obvious that Rukia cared a lot about this man.

On the other side of Ichigo stood the man she'd been looking all day for. His red hair was pulled back into his usual high ponytail and a white band covered the tattoo's on his forehead. 'Why do you cover you tattoo's, Renji?'

Suddenly they stopped and looked over at her/Rukia. A deep frown on his face. "What are you talking about, Rukia?" asked Ichigo.

'Shit.'

"I-I don't know, I wasn't even thinking about that. I don't know why I said that." Rukia was shocked and embarrassed at what she'd just said.

"I think I know," Renji bent down and looked into her eye's. "You're in there aren't you, Renee."

She was caught, might as well take complete control.

Renji watched as Rukia's violet eye's changed to Renee's cobalt one's. She smiled sweetly. "You caught me, guess I don't have as much control as I thought."

"WHAT THE HELL!" Ichigo yelled, pointing at Rukia's possessed body.

Renee waved at the man. "Hi, I'm Renee."

"HOLY SHIT!" Another yell.

Renji slapped him over the head. "Shut up Ichigo, it's just one of her abilities." Taking Rukia's arm, he lead her away from the freaking out Soul Reaper.

Laughing she watched the guy, "I can see why Rukia likes him so much. He's kinda charming in a way."

"What are you doing here, Renee?" Renji asked.

"I thought you'd be happy to see me."

"I thought I told you I'd come back and see you. Did you not believe me?"

He was mad, she could tell by the way his face stayed serious. "I didn't have anyone to spend my Christmas break with, so I thought I'd come and surprise you." She crossed her arms and looked away from him. "I guess it was a dumbass plan, just like Fez said."

He could hear the hurt in her/Rukia's voice. Taking her chin he forced her to look back at him. "Hey, don't talk like that. I'm happy to see you, it's just that I wish you would've stayed put."

"Well I missed you, and I had nothing better to do."

"Where are you, Renee?"

"I'm by the river, sitting in the grass."

"Good, stay there, we're not to far from you."

She nodded and gave him one last look. "I have a lot to tell you Renji."

"We'll talk when I'm really with you. Now give Rukia control over her body before Ichigo has a heart attack."

Renee pulled out of Rukia's mind and came back to her own. It was a little disconcerting but she was able to stabilize her mind. Placing her shield up, she opened her eye's and looked out over the water.

A twig snapped behind her, with a smile she stood and turned around. Instead of seeing Renji's face, she was looking down the barrel of a gun. "No," she whispered, her recurring nightmare flashing in her mind. Looking passed the weapon, she meet a pair of grey eye's, underneath a mop of dirty blonde hair. He looked familiar but she wasn't sure where she knew him from. Dropping her shield she tried to get into his mind only to come up short when she couldn't. It wasn't like with Renji. With him he was a complete blank, but with this man, it was as if a steel wall was around his thoughts. She could get passed it eventually but that would take time. Time, it looked like, she didn't have.

The man in front of her laughed manically. "You won't be able to get in so easily bitch. Three years of studying behind bars taught me how to block you from my mind."

"Who are you?" She asked, trying to find an opening.

"What, you don't remember me?" He spat. "You had me slammed in jail for something I hadn't even done yet. All because you could read my mind. Well you can't read it now, can you?"

She shook her head. "I don't remember who you are. Why don't you tell me your name?"

"It Adam Michels, you stupid cunt. Stop moving!"

It hit her then. She didn't recognize him at first, with his hair so long and unkempt, but she did know this man. "We went to Lakeland together. You were a quiet guy, pretty girlfriend."

He smiled, "So you remember now. Good."

She frowned at him. "I also remember you were planning on killing that pretty girlfriend of yours."

"I was planning it, but never got the chance." He pointed the gun at her head. "All because you happened to hear my thoughts that day. Turned me into the cops, had me sent to jail, where I sat for three year's."

"How'd you get out so early?"

"They couldn't find a single bit of evidence to your clam. Not to mention I had good behavior." He scowled at her, "For three years I've been plotting my revenge. You took everything from me. EVERYTHING!" a step closer. "And now I'm going to take everything from you. You won't ruin another person's life."

Before he could squeeze the trigger, Renee used her telekinesis to throw the gun away from him. He was stunned for a second, but soon snapped out of it and lunged at her. Dodging the attack, she gave a swift kick to his left side. It didn't faze him, only made him madder. Thinking quickly, she went to deliver another kick to his side, this time she backed up the kick with her powers. Missing his side, she kicked him in the shoulder, sending him flying.

She stood there for a second before walking over and tapping his foot with hers. He wasn't dead just knocked out. Shouting in the distance made her look over her shoulder. A smile spread over her lips. Looking back down at Adam she couldn't help but feel pity for the man. He hadn't always been a bad guy. Just wanted to do a stupid thing which landed him in a bad place. In the end, it had made him crazy. Casting the man off she turned her back on him.

Her first mistake.

About halfway to Renji, she noticed that his eye's weren't looking at her, but behind her. "Renee!" He yelled.

Stopping she went to turn see what was wrong, only to have a loud bang deafen her ear's. Pain bloomed all over her body. She'd made her second mistake in not scanning his mind.

"Bakudō number 1, Sai." Renji's voice yelled from somewhere ahead of her.

After restraining the bastard, Renji ran to Renee as she fell to her knee's. Before she could hit the ground, he flash stepped to her side, catching her to him. A scream escaped her lips as she hit his chest. Blood seeped from the wound in her back. Looking closely, he noticed that the bullet never exited.

"Oh gods, Renee." Renji breathed, pushing back the hair, that had come lose from her ponytail, away from her face. She had her eye's closed tight in pain. Picking her up, he ran passed Rukia and Ichigo, knowing they'd take care of her attacker. The bastard was lucky to still be breathing.

Her fist clutched at his uniform, "It hurt's so bad." She opened her eye's and looked up at him, tears pooling in her cobalt gaze. "I'm so sorry Renji, I shouldn't have left home. I gave him the perfect opportunity."

He shook his head. "Don't talk, just stay calm. I'm taking you to Urahara, he'll know what to do."

She nodded, her grip tightened. After a moment she whispered, "Renji, I'm dying aren't I?"

He gave another shake of his head. His own tears managing to escape. "No, I won't let you. Just hang in there ok, you're going to be fine."

"I won't make it," She gave him a smile etched in pain. "I'm ok with that, I don't mind dying."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Renji asked anger in his voice.

"If I die, then I'll be able to go the Soul Society."

"Yeah, but you're not going to die, I'm going to get you fixed."

She buried her face in his kimono. "I've always loved your scent."

By the time Renji made it to Urahara's shop, Renee was so pale from blood loss that he thought she was gone. When he laid her down on a bed in the back room, and she groaned, he let out the breath he'd been holding.

"Renji," she whispered.

"I'm here Renee,"

Kisuke walked into the back room, water and wash clothes in his hands. He paled when he saw Renee laying in a pool of her own blood. "Renji, I don't think we're going to be able to save her. She's already lost-"

"SHUT UP!" He yelled, "She's not going to die. Go get Orihime, she can heal her."

"Renji, face the facts. She's lost a lot of blood. She's dying." Yoruichi said appearing in her human form.

"No," Renji whispered leaning his head against her forehead. Kisuke and Yoruichi left them, letting Renji say his goodbyes. "Renee, please don't leave me." He used the same plea she had, the night he'd been force to take her home.

Her breathing was labored making her words soft, "I'm going to go to the Soul Society aren't I, Renji?"

"Yeah, I'll make sure of it."

She smiled, "Good," Opening her eye's Renee looked up at his tear soaked face. "Why are you crying? We'll see each other again."

He clinched his eye's closed. "There's no grantee that you'll remember anything about your time alive."

"I could never forget you, Renji. I promise, that I'll remember you, even if I forget everything else."

He smiled and kissed her forehead. "I'll hold you to that promise."

"Dying's easy. It's living that's hard." Confused he looked at her. She gave a weak smile. "It's from my favorite book, Dance with the Devil. I now know what Zarek was talking about." Blue meet brown. "I love you, Renji Abarai."

"I love you too, Renee Duvall." The tears poured down his face freely.

She passed that night, a happy smile on her pale face. Renji stayed by her side the whole night. Making sure that she went straight to the Soul Society. The next morning he left for the Soul Society, to search for her. They sent her body home, where her friends and family grieved. Fez took her death the hardest, blaming Renji for letting it happen. He never really got over it.

Hope you enjoyd this chapter. Remember to send lots of reviews ^^