When Rukia woke up the next day, a look at her clock told her that it was past ten already.
She got up and went to the kitchen to make herself a light breakfast and wondered why no one had come to get her yet.
After her meal she showered, then dressed and just after she pulled over her shirt, the doorbell rang.

Upon opening the door, the raven haired found Shinji wait outside and greet her with a wide grin.
"A wonderful morning Ma'am. I hope you slept well, because only a well rested mind will stand todays lessons."
His way of speaking confused Rukia a bit and she only managed to stutter out her answer.
"Uh, yeah...I...slept well."
Shinjis smile grew a tad wider as he turned around while speaking on and pointing toward the sky.
"Then follow me to the lions den. Off we go to the library!"
Rukia hesitantly followed after the blonde and thought to herself.
'Is he for real?'
Compared to the others whom she met, he seemed like an a bit too energetic child.
That impression though wouldn't remain for too long.

As soon as they reached the library, Shinji began to collect books from all around the shelves.
Once he finished, Rukia found huge piles of books on the table in the library's center.
In total it might have been fifty or more.
Just a single one was placed alone, right in front of her.
"Today you'll learn everything we know about ourselves and those who had a long history as our enemies."
Shinji offered her a seat, before he sat down himself next to her.

Hours of education, of how it was believed that Slayers and Vampires came to be, other theories of their origin and the history around Shiros group to the point the pale one met with Ichigo and things began to change, went by.
It took Shinji until dawn to explain everything in a tempo that Rukia could follow and process it all.
Eventually he finished and called it a day, though Rukia believed that there were many more things that hadn't been spoken about, maybe because she needn't know or she mustn't.

Back in her bed she revised some important parts in her head, until she fell asleep.
On the second day she got woken around eight o'clock by the continuously ringing doorbell.
She hurried to the door and was greeted with the raven haired ones presence.
"Get dressed and come to my garden. I believe you already know the way."
He left without another word.
Rukia asked herself if he wasn't a morning person.
Then If he was he could easily have come to her at a later time, so that couldn't be the case.
Really, that fellow might be looking good, like most of them, because they knew how to keep their youthful looks, but he lacked in some other regards, character wise that is.
Anyway, Rukia dressed quickly and headed to the Vampires garden.
There she searched for him until she came along the Sakura tree, where she saw him the last time.
He wasn't there either.
She let out a frustrated sigh.

"Pathetic."
The soft baritone of Ulquiorra sounded right behind her and she spun around, eyes wide as she backed away from him.
"When -?"
"Since you entered this place."
The male cut off her question.
"You are a pitiful fool, waging yourself in some false safety and seeing us as some domesticated lifeforms. We are dangerous predators. Especially Ichigo-sama, who's going to keep you around most of the time. With senses as dull as yours, you're signing your own death sentence."
He spoke monotonous and looked at her as if he wasn't interested in the whole thing at all.
His hands disappeared in the sleeves of his Yukata, as he walked past Rukia, who took a defensive stance as he got closer.
"Don't bother."
The Vampire commented her action and passed by her.
Rukia never let him out of her sight and asked as she turned around to always have the Vampire in front of her.
"Then what shall I do? What's todays goal?"

Ulquiorra stopped and Rukia dared to blink just once, but that short moment was enough to loose sight of him.
She looked around, lastly checking in her back where he stood a mere foot away from her and before it even registered in her brain he had flicked her on the forehead.
A second later she rubbed the sore spot.
She was stunned a bit.
Ulquiorra went past her again, to the bench under the tree.
"Be aware of your surroundings. You'll have to learn it by yourself within the day."
He sat down and produced a novel from his Yukata.
Rukia spun around and demanded to know.
"What am I supposed to do?"
"The result counts, not the means to get there."
"Give me a hint."
Silence followed, until Rukia gave up and dropped onto the gravel way, arms and legs crossed.
The female closed her eyes, to heighten her concentration and think about a way to sharpen her senses.
"You have time until sunset. You should find the answer quick, or you won't leave this place on you own legs."
She understood the threat in it, that he spoke so nonchalantly while he read his novel, as if it wasn't anything special.

The woman tried to come up with anything, but soon her brown knit together and she began to frown.
Damn it all, how should she concentrate with the continuous splattering sound of the spring and the whooshing of the leaves in the wind, mixed with that guy flipping the pages every minute, so loudly.
'Wait a second!'
Until now, she hadn't ever noticed any of this, that clearly.
She might have found the right direction for the first step.
Now she was assured that she could do this.

Chapter 17
End