Terms:

Nii-san: Brother

Kotowaru: I refuse

Chapter 8

Ichigo was in the second hour of his one-on-one session with Anna, and he was pissed. Apparently, Urahara had decided that now was the time for the group to take a break from battling each other, and they were all gathered around (from a relatively safe distance) to watch the show.

He had wasted no time going into his Bankai this time. He was scuffed up, and despite his enormous well of reiatsu, was feeling somewhat depleted at the moment. He had learned now to ignore Anna's taunts, her cocky demeanor, and her snarky smirk. By doing this, he had actually managed to avoid being caught off guard by her. Her movements were insanely fast, but she was actually pretty easy to read, now that he was getting the hang of it. Still, she hadn't used any of those energy attacks on him yet. He wondered if maybe she was running out of energy and couldn't use them, or maybe she was using them as a trump card.

But, why would she tell them about her trump card at the very start of the session, and then completely neglect to use it?

Something clicked together in Ichigo's brain.

She isn't serious….He thought, his scowl deepening, that frustration from earlier in the day coming out again. She's still taking it easy on us.

She had told him not to rush headlong into things. And he'd decided to take her advice. So far, it had earned him a cracked rib, a gash in his arm, and a bunch of scrapes. But, he had also forced her to draw both swords.

She stood in front of him, her left blade held in a defensive position, pointing outwards from her body and perpendicular to her arm, her right blade was held at her center, the tip pointed in Ichigo's direction. He hadn't been able to get through her defenses when she just stood there in that mode. It was when she attacked that he'd found he'd had the best chance. He'd managed to cut her across her ribs once, and she'd responded by putting the gash in his arm.

They were at an impasse at the moment. Both of them just circled the one another, waiting for the other to make a move. Anna was still smiling faintly. She wore flat black knee high boots over a pair of what looked like beaten leather pants. On her upper half, she wore a white tunic which was now soaked in blood over her ribs, though the wound had since healed.

Suddenly, her eyes flashed, and that damned grin widened. She rushed him, her lithe body going airborne as she viscously brought one of her short swords down. Ichigo blocked her easily with Tensa Zangestu, but he felt his body sink into the earth with the force of the blow.

Then, in a flash, he actually felt a spike from her reiatsu. It was monstrous and suffocating. His eyes widened as Anna's left hand and sword started to spark with electricity. Her face was relatively close to his, so much so that he could see how her eyes looked kind of like shattered crystal, and he could also see that they were actually glowing.

Anna's left sword swept up, knocking Tensa Zangetsu upwards, ending the sword-lock. Ichigo felt the hair on the back of his neck lift up as every one of his nerves tingled.

Instantly, the electricity from her left hand jumped to the right, her sword vaporized, and she struck him with the flat of her palm, releasing the spell.

Ichigo felt like his belly had been ripped out. He flew backwards with the force, tumbling head over heels until a boulder halted his movement.

"What are you doing, baka?!" He heard Rukia's voice from off to the right. "Stop letting her get the drop on you!"

But Anlanah didn't stop there. Her right sword materialized in her hand again, and she rushed him again. Ichigo felt that reiatsu spike again.

This time he was ready.

He pushed off the boulder, using it as leverage to make his Shunpō faster. Anna leaped up, trying to use the height as a vantage point.

Instead of jumping up at her, Ichigo copied something she'd done to him earlier in their session. He dropped to his knees, sliding underneath her on the ground. As soon as he'd gotten behind her, he shifted his weight, so that he spun around, jumping back to his feet now sliding backwards on the dusty earth. All before she could even turn around half way from her airborne position.

"GETSUGA TENSHOU!"

Anna's crystalline blue eyes shot wide as the black mass of reiatsu rolled towards her. She would not be able to block or dodge it. It hit her hard, and she fell from the air, rolling on the earth, and roughly into a rock, back first.

Blood sprayed from her lips, a brutal gash running from hip to shoulder from Ichigo's attack.

"Anna!" Shouted Orihime, her voice wrought with worry.

The older woman bounced unceremoniously off of the enormous rock, landing on her hands and knees. The wound in her torso spilled warm blood onto the dry earth of the training grounds.

"Fuck!" Anna cursed, the bloody gash already beginning to heal. She could feel her body move into overtime. They very center of her bones began to ache as the marrow reproduced as much blood as possible to prevent her body from bleeding out.

Ichigo heard Renji, Rukia, and Matsumoto let off cheers of victory. A tangible feeling of pride welled up in him.

Ichigo wasted no time, however, he Shunpōed next to her, Tensa Zangestu pressing gently under her chin. He had let his worry get the better of him last time, he wouldn't let it happen again. Her wound wouldn't kill her, hell, she'd probably be kicking his ass again if he gave her any time to recover.

"Yield." He said simply.

Anna went still, a low laugh emitting from her. She flung herself backwards, removing her neck from harm's way of being slit. She grabbed Tensa Zangestu with her bare hand.

What the hell…? Ichigo thought as his eyes widened in surprise at her willingness to slice open her hand in such a manner. But she gripped Zangetsu as tightly as she could. Ichigo saw a spark from the hand that was wrapped firmly around his sword.

"Shit!" He hissed and tried to pull Zangestu free of Anna's hand, but he was too late. He felt his own hand clench around his sword without his volition as the sharp pain of electricity wormed from his sword into his arm. He felt like there were a million insects under his skin, and they were all digging through his veins moving at a rapid pace towards his heart.

The moment the pain subsided, he realized that he was no longer upright, but instead, he was flat on his back, with Anna sitting atop his legs. The blades of her kodachi were crossed, the place where they met pressed gently against Ichigo's now vulnerable jugular.

"Tch!" He spat in a mixture of frustration and self-disappointment again.

"Yield?" Anna asked with a smirk.

"Goddammit, I yield." He hissed at her.

"Good." She smiled. Then added, "Just a hint, I never say 'I yield.' But, don't you think losing consciousness on the battle field is the same as yielding?"

Anlanah's swords dematerialized and she stood, the weight of her lifted from his legs. The rest of the group started heading towards them. He thought about tripping her and pinning her, but that would be fighting dirty. Anna proffered him a slim hand, he took it begrudgingly and allowed her to help him to his feet. Leaning back, crossing her arms, and cocking her hips, Anna raked her eyes over him.

"I want to see more of those tactics from you." She said, finally. Ichigo just now had a moment to look at her and assess the damage he'd done to her….well, at least her clothes.

A bright red flush suddenly colored his cheeks and he turned abruptly on his heel, eyes wide, and expression made of pure and utter embarrassment.

"Anna….y-y-y-y-y-y-you're c-c-cl-"He started, stuttering like a fool.

She must have looked down at herself and seen that her right breast was completely exposed, because she spat some profanity in a language he didn't understand. However, he could see Renji, Sado, and Uryuu's faces as they noticed the state her clothes were in and all three about faced in much the same manner Ichigo had. Urahara was kindly looking away. Ryuuken's eyes were keenly trained on Ichigo's….and if looks could kill, Ichigo would have had a reishi arrow through his eye.

"Oh! Anna-san!" Came Rangiku's voice as she rushed past Ichigo, untying the light pink ribbon around her shihakusho. Orihime's stormy eyes were swimming with worry as she approached them.

"Anna, are you injured?" She asked anxiously, standing just in front of Ichigo and a few paces to the left.

"Just my pride," She muttered. "Heal the Strawberry, he needs it more."

Ichigo felt his eye twitch at the use of Anlanah's new nickname for him, but was shortly admonished by Orihime's gentle smile as she called out her Rikka to take care of his injuries.

"Well, this is nice and cozy, but we should get back to some actual work." Ryuuken remarked with irritation. "Sado, you're next with me in one-on-ones."

"Okay." Replied the giant as they walked off to the opposite side of the training grounds.

"Yoshi!" Said Orihime with satisfaction. "You're good as new, Ichigo!"

"Okay, the boys can turn around now!" Exclaimed Rangiku cheerfully.

Ichigo slowly turned, afraid of what he would see.

Anna had Rangiku's long and wide pink ribbon wrapped around her chest a couple times and tied securely in the back, effectively covering the hole Ichigo had made. Renji came up behind Ichigo and clapped him gruffly on the shoulder.

"Hey, I know she's hot an' all, but was it really necessary to go that far just to see her tits?" He joked. Ichigo scowled at him, feeling the heat in his cheeks rise again. He clenched his fist, readying himself to punch Renji right in the nose, but Rukia beat him to the punch.

"AHO!" She hollered, anger rising in her deep violet eyes. Renji cupped his nose as it began to bleed, and Ichigo couldn't help himself. He pointed at Renji and started sniggering, until he also felt his nose break from the petite woman's fist.

"FUCK!" He cursed. "Jesus, Rukia, was that really necessary?!"

"You injured a woman's pride, of course it was necessary, you dolt." She hissed.

"Ichigo!" Came Orihime's concerned voice as she called her Rikka again to heal his nose.

Anna rolled her icy eyes at them.

"While I appreciate the gesture, Rukia-chan, I also think it we may not want to exhaust Orihime, since she's up next."

"No." Said Ichigo.

"Excuse me?" Replied Anna, a vein popping out at her temple.

"There's no way I'm letting you fight Orihime."

Anna walked up to Ichigo, her eyes level with his, they pierced through him like a lance.

"Terrae, ligneum ferri, aeris, con prædam tuam." She hissed, her hands lifting from her sides.

Ichigo had no reaction time when roots suddenly sprang from the ground and wrapped around his arms and legs, literally rooting him to the spot. Almost immediately after, metal snaked up from the ground like mercury and wrapped around his ankles and wrists as well. Then, as if that wasn't enough, he felt an invisible pressure lock around his whole body, making it impossible to move. He flung a string of profanities at Anna's smirking expression.

"Just sit tight, Strawberry-kun." She taunted. "I promise I won't hurt her….on purpose."

He wanted to rip out LaRell Anlanah's throat.

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

Orihime stared slack jawed at her boyfriend.

"Ano….Anna….could you-?" She began.

"No," Said the other woman with an air of finality. "Kotowaru. He will interfere with your growth."

"Anna-san. I really think that this is going too far." Contested Rukia.

"I will release him from the bind after he has seen what I will be doing with Orihime."

"Anna-san," Began Urahara. "Perhaps you should just explain yourself to Kurosaki-kun first."

Anna met the eyes of each person currently in front of her.

"You all agreed to trust me, "She replied to them flatly. " This may sound calloused, but any one of you dead would be of no use to me, thus I've no reason to harm you irreparably. Until I have Ichigo-kun's word he will not interfere with training of any member, he stays where he is."

Silence.

"Well, you ain't gonna get my word." Said Ichigo, holding on to his previous conviction. "Even going easy on her, you'll hurt her."

Orihime had enough of this. All of this debating over her. Not only were they wasting time but…..

She knew she wasn't a fighter. She lacked the will to cause pain to others. But she wasn't completely helpless. Since she had come back from Hueco Mundo, since the encounter with the Full Bringers, she had become much stronger. She doubted if she could beat Anna, but she figured she could at least learn something new.

"Ichigo, please, trust me." She said, trying to convey as much of the conviction she felt as she could. "Please, I can do this."

The substitute clenched his jaw tightly and ground out a small "fine."

Orihime squealed with excitement, a smile lighting up her face. She looked over at everyone, Anna in particular. The British woman had a sly smile on her lips that Orihime couldn't quite read. Everyone behind her however, was slack jawed in astonishment.

She blinked in mild confusion. Rukia walked up to Orihime and took her hands in hers, looking into her eyes with a worshipful expression.

"Teach me how to do that."

"Eh?"

"What you just did to Ichigo….teach me how to do that."

Anna cleared her throat loudly.

"Alright, alright, enough with the shenanigans." She waved her hand at Ichigo. "Dimitte!"

The restraints around Ichigo unwound themselves rapidly allowing him free movement again. Whatever tension was remaining in the room dissipated after that. Orihime suddenly felt nervous, and she supposed her animosity showed.

"Don't worry, child." Anna chided kindly. "I don't know the full scope of your abilities, and I wasn't planning on making you fight the first day. I want to see what you can do. Then we'll go from there."

Orihime instantly relaxed. She wasn't sure if Santen Kesshun could hold up against one of Anna's fully powered strikes anyway.

Anna directed her attention to the rest of the group, who had mostly remained silent.
"What are you lot gawking at! Get to your group work!"

Anna watched Ichigo's back, then:

"Ichigo!"

"What?!" He shouted back without turning, his shoulders were tense, his fists still clenched. Orihime knew he was worried.

"I promise I won't hurt her." Anna swore. Ichigo seemed to relax a little after that remark, and picked up his pace to meet up with the others.

Soon, it was just Orihime and Anna on their side of the training grounds.

"Alright, let's see what you've got." Anna said with a smile.

()()()()()()()()()()()()()

About an hour later, Orihime had shown Anna all that she could do with her Shun-Shun Rikka and had tested her abilities at various levels. They were able to determine that her shield could withstand a blow that had the force of a mid-powered Arrancar. Orihime was actually surprised to find it so strong. It meant that Anna probably couldn't break it without really letting off a lot of power. She even remarked that it could handle a Getsuga Tensho while their redheaded friend was in his Bankai, so long as he didn't charge it up too much.

But what really made Orihime happy was that even Anna was forced to retreat some when she struck Shiten Koshun due to the improved method's ability to fire back.

"Very good!" Anna said enthusiastically. "You've got a wonderful defensive capability. Your control over your reiatsu is very good, and I think that we might be able to improve its level some."

"Really?!" Orihime gushed excitedly.

"Yes, by the time I'm done with you, Orihime, you'll be able to block me coming at you full force, I think."

She felt excited. She'd been working with Hachi and the other Visoreds for a little while before most of them went back to Seiretei. She had always wanted to do more with them, but didn't have the chance.

"Now, from my experience, the best way to increase your reiatsu is to use more of it. Your body should adjust by outputting more to replace what was lost. After a while, your body will be able to maintain a higher level than before." Anna said informatively. "Now, I'd like to spend months with you, but I can't. So we're going to have to do this as a crash course. It's going to be tough, and when we're done, you might have to have Ichigo carry you home." Anna said, adding a sly wink after that last part.

Orihime felt herself redden deeply.

"Is it that obvious?" She asked quietly.

"To me it certainly is," Anna chortled lightly. "But you're talking to someone who's had a few hundred years and two children to help her see that you fancy the Strawberry quite a bit."

"C-can you-?"

"Don't worry, I won't breathe a word to Strawberry about it. Though, it is a pity." She paused. "I think you might be surprised if you confessed to him."

Orihime had to stop herself from blurting out that they were actually already dating, and that they had decided to keep it a secret for now. She was very relieved that Anna was none-the-wiser of the quickening of their relationship. It would make things a little easier. Instead of saying anything to the older woman, she simply nodded, a blush creeping up her cheeks.

"Alright, moving right along. The first thing we're going to work on is your shield."

Orihime gave another nod, her expression changing from one of slight fluster, to determination. She threw up Shiten Koshun since it required more reiatsu to produce and maintain.

And it began.

Anna threw blow after blow at her shield, dodging the trajectory that shot out of it with grace each time. They continued this until Shiten Koshun broke. Then Orihime would produce it again. Each time they continued in this cycle, the shield wouldn't last as long as the time before it.

Once their one-on-one ended, Orihime slid down to her knees panting heavily. Sweat glistened on her forehead.

Quite suddenly, Orihime felt a fluctuation in reiatsu from Anna. She didn't even realize it until she saw the final result. Without a conscious thought, Shiten Koshun was up, and it held against the very powerful blast that was unleashed on her. The attack reflected on Anna, who dodged it, only for it to completely incinerate a boulder behind her.

Orihime felt a thrill of accomplishment.

And then she fainted, her energy completely depleted.

()()()()()()()()()()()()()

"….hime…"

Onii-san….?

"Orihime!"

Hnm…Ichigo…why do you sound so worried?

"Goddammit, Anna, you fucking promised me you wouldn't hurt her!"

"I didn't lay a bloody finger on her," Orihime heard Anna's tense tone. "She just exerted herself a little more than I anticipated she would."

"Bullshit! I felt that spell you flung at her!" He hissed. "That was full force!"

"Okay, sure, but I figured she could handle it, and she did just fine! It didn't even break her shield," Anna said, not without a hint of resentment. "Besides, I needed her to deplete all of her reiatsu. Her body will compensate for it."

"You don't know that!"

"Ichigo…" Orihime uttered softly, opening her eyes just a tad, her hand coming to rest gently on his arm. "It's okay…..I'm okay." Orihime sat up slowly, feeling just a little dizzy, her reiatsu still recovering. Ichigo was kneeling next to her on her right, his brow furrowed deeply in worry and anxiety.

"I agreed to it. Anna didn't make any mention that it wasn't going to exhaust me." She said with an uncharacteristically firm expression.

"But, Orihime you-"Began Ichigo.

"Actually," Chimed Orihime, her expression changing to exaltation. "I'm really proud of myself! I can't believe I actually managed to block Anna's spell when she was serious!"

Ichigo's jaw snapped shut. He averted his eyes, a small blush running up his neck, he mumbled, "Well, so long as you're okay….I guess…"

Orihime squeaked with joy and wrapped her arms tightly around Ichigo's neck, loosing herself in her joy that he was approving of her attempt at bettering herself in combat.

"Oh! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She giggled madly.

"Ano…." Came Rukia's perplexed voice from behind Anna, who was kneeling on Orihime's other side. "He can't breathe, Orihime."

Orihime's attention snapped in the small shinigami's direction. Sure enough, Ichigo was turning blue, her tight grip was cutting off his air. She immediately released her boyfriend.

"Um…um…sorry, Ichigo, I just got really excited…and then the little green men got into my head and decided to mess with my filters…" She gabbed nervously.

"Is there something you two would like to tell us?" Asked Uryuu, who stood behind Ichigo.

"Uhhhh….n-no?" Offered Orihime.

"Oh, c'mon now, Orihime!" Came Rangiku's jovial voice from behind her. "You two look so cute!"

"I-i-it's not like that, Rangiku-san!" She stammered, noticing that Uryuu cocked an eyebrow, his expression unconvinced.

"Yare, yare…." Chortled Urahara, his fan suddenly out and hiding half his face. "Is romance in the air, then?"

"Will you leave her alone?" Hissed Ichigo, shooting a glare in Rangiku's direction. "She just got a little carried away, is all, right Orihime?"

"U-uhn!" Orihime agreed. "There's not anything going on between Ichigo and I. We're just nakama." She said it with as much firmness and conviction as she could.

"Well, this is sweet an' all, "Growled Anna. "But we really should keep to schedule. Rukia! You're next!"

"Orihime, perhaps you should sit out for a little while and recover some of your strength. About an hour should do." Said Urahara, marching back over towards the group area.

Only three more hours of this to go…at least until tomorrow.

()()()()()()()()()

"Ahhhhh! I'm bushed!" Exclaimed Rangiku, stretching out like a cat in the water of the hot spring contained in a slightly secluded spot at one end of the training grounds. "Talk about grueling! I didn't think that Uryuu's father could be such a tight-ass!"

"You have no idea, Rangiku-san…" Anna sighed, sinking down into the water up to her chin. "Oh, this stings so good."

"Do you like it? Kisuke and I made it. It helps heal some of the shallower wounds that you obtain, and it's rich in reiatsu." Bragged Yoruichi, her sleek naked body slipping into the water.

"Ano….Yoruichi-san….there aren't any extra towels to wear into the hot spring…." Orihime fretted, still completely dressed. Rukia stood next to her, also still fully clothed. Both girls wore bright red spots high on their cheeks.

"Oh, stop being so prudent Orihime!" Chided Rangiku. "We all have the same parts, it's not like we won't see something we've never seen before!"

"But-"Started Orihime. Rangiku climbed out of the water, steam rising off of her ivory skin, water running down her curvy, and naked, body. She made a beeline for Orihime, her expression somewhat irked. Yoruichi followed Rangiku's suit, walking purposefully towards Rukia.

With rising horror, the two younger women were stripped of their clothes by the two elder, only able to offer choked protests in their embarrassment.

"Rangiku-san!"

"Yoruichi-dono!" Both girls chimed at the same time, in the same shrill tone. Orihime felt her completely nude body being lifted up and half-tossed over Rangiku's shoulder. She squeaked in protest.

"Incoming, Anna!" Laughed the blonde Shinigami.

Shortly, she felt herself falling, she landed in the hot spring with a splash, the burning water engulfing her whole body. When she surfaced, she noticed Rukia next to her, her cheeks a flaming scarlet, and she was sputtering from the water. Rangiku and Yoruichi climbed back into the small spring.

Orihime looked over at Anna, whose piercing eyes regarded her with genuine amusement.

"Yoruichi-dono…" began Rukia, trying to hide herself under the water as much as possible. "What about the boys?"

"This isn't the only spring on the grounds. After you lot came along, Kisuke and I installed another one at the other end of the facility and made both of them big enough to accommodate at least 5 people at a time." She reasoned.

"N-no…I mean what if they peek?"

"I'll eviscerate them." Anna said darkly, a twisted grin forming on her features.

Orihime gasped sharply as she felt two slender and feminine hands wrap around her generous bosom and give a firm squeeze.

"Ooooh, Hime! Your's are bigger than mine now!" Giggled Rangiku playfully.

"Rangiku-san! W-w-w-w-w-w-w-"Orihime sputtered.

"Knock it off, Matsumoto-san." Ordered Anna, leaning back in the water, her short hair now dark and curly and clinging to her face and neck. "We're here to relax and rejuvenate before bed, not fondle each other."

"Wow, Anna-san, you're more of a wet rag than my taicho…." Grumbled the blonde in response. Rangiku released Orihime and made her way over to the edge of the spring, rolling in the water so that she could rest her arms and head on the edge, her back facing the group.

Orihime turned her attention back to Anlanah and offered her a small smile of appreciation.

After about another half hour of silence, Rangiku and Yoruichi declared that they would be getting out and heading to bed, shortly after that Rukia followed suit, leaving Anna and Orihime alone. The Fae sat leaning against the edge of the spring, her head tilted back and her eyes closed.

"Ano…Anna?" Ventured the auburn haired healer.

The other only raised an eyebrow in response to let Orihime know she was listening.

"D-do you still love your brother?"

Anna's eyes popped open, and she lifted her head to look at Orihime directly. Her eyes were fierce, but there was a deep sadness behind them that Orihime was very familiar with.

"It's hard to put into words." Said the elder woman, her eyes softening a little as she focused on putting her emotions to words. "I miss who he was, what he could have been. I hate what he's become. I think a part of me might still hope that we can go back, even though rationality begs to differ. How I feel doesn't really matter, now, though does it? Regardless, he has to be stopped, and at this point I don't care if I die trying so long as it's done."

"I think I understand…"Orihime said. "M-my brother died when I was really young, a-and he lingered in this world to watch over me. Eventually it resulted in him becoming a Hollow, and he attacked me. Ichigo stopped him and saved me, but I couldn't help but think at the time 'I have to stop him. I have to stop him because the nii-san I know would be hurt if he saw this.' Do you think the same way, Anna?"

"I believe my brother at one time, was inherently a good person and that his weaknesses lead him down the path he now walks. The brother I grew up with was short-tempered, foul-mouthed, and somewhat unstable, but I've always thought that it was the result of his insecurities. Maybe, if he hadn't have been born to our clan, if he hadn't have been born as my twin, he would have achieved great things and would never have had those insecurities." Anna replied, her expression thoughtful.

"But, Anna, it isn't your fault. Please, don't blame yourself for something you didn't have control over."

Anna smiled at Orihime, a small laugh escaping her.

"I frequently wonder about different outcomes. I'm not blaming myself one bit. I just can't help but wonder if things would have turned out better if the past had been different. "

Orihime nodded in understanding. But, she was grateful for her past. Of course she missed her brother dearly. Of course she still woke up crying sometimes when she had a pleasant dream about him. But if certain things had never happened, then she never would have met Ichigo, or Rukia, or anyone else she'd become so close to over the course of the past two years. Orihime felt like Anna had none of that feeling. Even though the beautiful woman smiled at her, Orihime couldn't help but see the regret and sadness behind her eyes.

Anna stretched and stood up from the water. Orihime felt heat rise in her cheeks as she got a full look at the Fae's unclothed body. Anna's skin had looked like fine china when she was clothed, but now that Orihime had the opportunity to see her whole body, she could see scars covering her torso.

"Anna, who-?" She started, already knowing the answer. Anna looked at her in puzzlement, then looked down at herself.

"Oh, I guess I'm more exhausted than I thought."

The Fae whispered a few words in that liquid language Orihime had heard before. The scars shimmered, and then vanished.

"How?"

"It's a simple illusory spell. They're still there, but I'm about as fond of looking at them as anyone else is."

And with that Anna exited the bath, wrapping a towel around her, sliding on some slippers, and slipping a robe on over her bare skin. Orihime decided it was time to get out as well, and after she had put a fresh set of clothes on, she followed Anna up to Urahara's shoten, feeling like she understood the enigmatic Fae more than ever.

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

So I know it's been like two months since I posted, and I'm very, very sorry. Between life being life and a rough bout of writer's block, I haven't had the motivation to work on this story. It seems, for some reason, though, that Shin Sekai Yori has broken the spell of no creativity. For those of you who have not seen this anime, go to and watch it. I'm serious. It starts slow, but after about the third episode it picks up. Currently, it's insanely good. I just watched the new ep last night and I find myself wishing I had the T.A.R.D.I.S. just so I could go forward in time and watch the whole damn thing.

Anyway, I will be posting irregularly from now on, but I won't leave this story alone. I really like what I've done, and it's on my mind often, so I will complete it!

Oh, and to the person who said she hates Anna.

Good, for the first few chapters you're supposed to. In fact, you're not really supposed to like her at all. She's arrogant, strong willed, contradictory, hypocritical, and ignores some of her own faults. As I've said before, Anna is actually from an original work of mine and she's literally years in the making (10 to be exact). I've used her in this story because I've never written anything like this before and she's my gateway character. The next fic I write will be all cannon characters. But for this one, I needed her to help me get into the story.

-Third