WHEN THE SNOW FALLS
by Yih

Chapter Eight
Dancing Together

"You must concentrate," Byakuya said firmly. "You must unite yourself with your zanpakuto if you wish to learn its name."

Rukia held her zanpakuto tightly with both of her hands, her eyes closed as she tried to focus all her reiatsu into reaching out to her zanpakuto. Please, she whispered fervently, I wish to know your name, so that we may grow strong together. What is your name, my beautiful zanpakuto? I must rely on your guidance for any further growth. I must rely on you.

It was quiet for what seemed like a very long time in Rukia's mind before she heard the clearing of a throat. Sode no Shirayuki, she heard in her head. The voice was cold and elegant, lovely in sound. Rukia could feel the spirit of her zanpakuto and it reminded her in a way of Byakuya, so beautiful and proud. Do not forget it.

Wait! Rukia cried out in her mind when she felt the presence of her zanpakuto starting to disappear. Don't go… But he had already gone.

"Was this time a success?" Byakuya asked, breaking the silence.

Rukia opened her eyes and glanced up at him. "His name is Sode no Shirayuki."

"An ice-type zanpakuto," he murmured. "Interesting."

She hadn't even thought to think about what the name might mean, but what Byakuya had said made sense. Of course, her zanpakuto would have something to do with ice, with a name like Sode no Shirayuki.

"Has he told you how to use him?"

Rukia glanced down at her zanpakuto. "No."

She expected Byakuya to say something that would make her cringe internally, although she would not dare to show him her weakness directly. Instead she was surprised when Byakuya said, "We shall try again tomorrow. The first communication is not always a revelation as much as most would like it to seem. I remember when Senbonzakura spoke to me…"

Rukia stared at him, gazing down at his zanpakuto, lost in thought. His long black hair swirled in front of his face because of a light breeze and he was utterly beautiful in her eyes. Then again, she wasn't the only one to think so. Rukia noticed how other female shinigamis, how females in general, looked at Byakuya when he walked by them – unaware of their admiration.

"She told me to get stronger first before relying on her," he murmured. "Your zanpakuto must think you're almost ready."

Every day she spent some time with him, she learned just a little bit more and it made her feel all the more close to him. "What must I do to be ready?"

"Keep training," he said, "and keep listening. Only your zanpakuto can help you here."

-

So Rukia followed his advice and she trained and trained with her zanpakuto. She practiced mainly with Kaien in the evenings before he and Miyako went to their modest home, and sometimes she practiced with Byakuya when he had the time. Kaien was strong and brutal in his training, harder on her after her failed mission than he had ever been before – not that he had been easy, but Rukia supposed he blamed himself for her failure. Despite Kaien's strength, he was nothing compared to her brother.

There were times when she fought Kaien and she could feel him straining, even if only for a second, against her. She had never pushed Byakuya that far. He fought her with languid grace, never seeming surprised at any thing she did, at any of her quick footwork or at the quick moves of her blade. Kaien fought with fiery passion and Byakuya fought with cool calculation.

Rukia held her zanpakuto with both of her hands and closed her eyes. Kaien told her that she thought too much when she fought; Byakuya told her she was too reckless by far. Both of them agreed on one thing, that she needed to learn how to release her zanpakuto if she wanted to improve further.

Sode no Shirayuki, Rukia whispered. Won't spare a moment and converse with me?

Silence was his answer. Rukia, for some reason, knew that the spirit of her zanpakuto was male – cold, elegant, and powerful like her brother.

I wish to become stronger, but I need your help.

She felt a stirring in her zanpakuto, like his spirit was gathering. In her mind she saw a figure, cloaked in white, standing far off in the distance.

Please help me…

The figure approached her and she saw that he was tall, graceful. He extended an arm to her and said, Dance with me.

She took his hand and was swept away with their power together – dancing. Rukia never felt faster, never felt stronger than she did at this instant. She was dazzled and drawn to her zanpakuto more than ever and too soon it was over and she felt the spirit fading away.

She didn't have to be reminded this time not to forget, she knew exactly what Sode no Shirayuki was trying to tell her this way in his ambivalent manner. Rukia held her zanpakuto with her right hand, pointed to the ground, and whispered reverently, "Dance, Sode no Shirayuki."

Her zanpakuto transformed before her eyes into a beautiful white blade with an equally white crossguard and hilt. It was gorgeous and it was powerful.

"Well done," Byakuya said, coming from out of nowhere to stand behind her. He placed both of his hands on her shoulder. "Now rest."

Rukia wanted to tell him that she wasn't tired, that she wanted to try out her zanpakuto in its shikai release, but her limbs felt heavy and her eyes wouldn't stay open. She was exhausted and she felt herself sag back into Byakuya's warm arms. Strange, she thought, how warm he was when he looked so cold and unapproachable – at least he had, but recently he had changed.

And she found, she could lean on him now.

-

A/N: We're getting to the romance part, no worries. Thanks for reviewing! Happy Thanksgiving! I'll probably update as much as I can this next week or so, and then I'll have to slow down because of exams for med school. Christmas break will be sporadic, but I'll probably be able to release some chapters when I'm not on my trip to DC. Thanks for all your support and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Released on: 11/27/08