Hearts of Glass, Steel, Fire and Ice

"What are these?"

Retsu looked over at the plant Orihime was indicating, smiled and said, "Those are feverfew flowers. They can be used to help reduce fevers or to soothe an aching head."

Orihime nodded and turned again looking at the plants in such a way that she looked as if she wanted to burn the image of the daisy-like flowers into her memory. Her mouth also moved silently, repeating Retsu's explanation before she turned to another set of more leafy and slightly spiky plants.

Before Orihime could even ask, Retsu said, "And those are aloe plants. Very good for treating burns or other skin irritations."

Once again, Orihime seemed to focus all her energy on accurately filing away the information Retsu had just taught her. Retsu couldn't help the smile that spread across her face at her determined pupil's countenance, but then her deep-blue eyes became thoughtful and her expression changed to one of suppressed melancholy. The time had nearly come when she and the rest of her family would have to say farewell to their young friend.

Retsu was sure Orihime had no idea just how much time had passed since she first come to the house, but summer was now drawing to a close and fall was nearly upon them. Even before Orihime had arrived, Retsu and her entire family had known that they must help Orihime prepare for the journey that was to come by imparting what knowledge they could to her. They had all agreed and understood what was required of them in that regard, but Retsu was fairly certain that she was not alone in the feeling that she had had no idea just how heart-wrenching it would be when they were forced to say farewell to their 'adopted' family member.

In some ways, Orihime had managed to steal all their hearts the same way Rukia had all those years ago, but Retsu would never dream of saying the two girls were the same. They both had an infectious laugh, heart-warming smile and thirst for knowledge. However, in many ways, Orihime and Rukia were as different as the sun and moon. Orihime loved to tell entertaining, imaginative tales while Rukia preferred to express herself through more concrete art forms. When it came to filling the silence, Rukia didn't always feel it was necessary and would be happy to sit in silence with someone whereas Orihime thrived on listening to other people talk.

Hearing a noise behind them, Retsu turned to see Byakuya making his way through the gardens. Upon seeing her brother, Retsu's heart clenched slightly as she thought about the events of the past few weeks.

Ever since hearing about Byakuya's relationship with Rukia and his bond with her, Orihime had tried her best to try to help and befriend him. It had taken a few days, but little by little Byakuya began to warm to the energetic girl and her endearing ways in his own way. He had taught her the proper way to prune a rose bush, which flowers grew best in full sun or in half shade, and let her start to help him think of some new flower breeds he could cultivate. Orihime's idea of combining an apple blossom with a bluebell, crocus, dandelion and eglantine since they represent the first five letters of the alphabet and therefore could be christened 'ABCDE', pronounced 'ab-ce-dee', had earned her a slight upturning at the corners of Byakuya's mouth and a small spark of amusement in his stoic gaze.

In the past few weeks, however, Byakuya had begun distancing himself from Orihime. Retsu knew this was because Byakuya was steeling himself for yet another unwanted separation. He had grown more attached to Orihime than anyone, especially he himself, had anticipated, but unlike with Rukia whose need and reason for leaving them had been unexpected, Byakuya, Retsu, Jyuushiro and Hisana knew Orihime's departure was coming yet in some ways that only made it worse.

On Orihime's part, Byakuya's actions had not gone unnoticed and Retsu knew that Orihime felt that she must have done something wrong. Hurt Byakuya in some way. Said or done something to make him upset with her. As much as Retsu wished she could tell Orihime just how wrong those theories were, there was no way Retsu could tell Orihime what Byakuya was actually thinking and feeling without being forced to tell Orihime everything. About her upcoming journey, the possible dangers she would come up against, the friends she would make, the enemies she would unmask and so on. No, Retsu could not bring herself to take one burden off of Orihime's shoulders only to replace it with something far worse.

They continued working side by side until late afternoon, Orihime soaking up all Retsu's lessons like a thirsty sponge, when finally Retsu sat back and said, "Hisana and Jyuushiro are most likely finished preparing the afternoon meal."

She didn't have to say any more as Orihime hastily rose to her feet and said with a beaming smile, "I wonder what they made today?" before helping Retsu to rise and then falling into step with her mentor as they headed towards the house.

As they neared the back entrance, Retsu heard excited voices coming from inside the house. Two of the voices, Retsu knew were her husband and Hisana, but there were three other voices that Retsu knew just as well yet had not heard for several months.

A sudden thought struck Retsu so she turned to Orihime and said, "Now that I think about it, I don't think I've ever told you that Jyuushiro and I-" but that was as far as she got for the very next moment two figures burst from the kitchen area, one chasing after the other.

"Get back here you little creep! What? Are you too scared to come back and say that again to my face!"

"Just try and catch me!"

Retsu stood frozen in surprise for a few moments before she took a step forward and said in her most quiet and silky smooth voice, "Ganju. Kukaku. Is that any way for you two to be acting in front of our guest?"

Despite the fact that both Ganju and Kukaku had been yelling at each other at the top of their lungs, immediately when Retsu began talking to them in that whisper soft tone they had ceased chasing each other through the gardens. They had turned towards their mother with wide-eyed expressions of surprise and dread as they waited to see what was going to happen next.

Turning to Orihime, Retsu gestured to the two teenagers and said, "As I was saying, Orihime, these are Jyuushiro and my children. May I introduce you to our daughter, Kukaku, and our son, Ganju."

"Don't forget about us, Mom," came a laughing voice from the kitchen that made Retsu smile in a more genuinely pleasant way.

"Of course not. Orihime, may I also introduce you to our son, Kaien, and our daughter-in-law, Miyako."

-

Orihime bowed politely to each new family member Retsu introduced to her and she took a moment to study each one in turn. Ganju looked sheepish, but he seemed like a nice person. His hair was held back by a green cloth that was wrapped around his head in a sort of turban. He looked to be about Orihime's own age. Kukaku was a little bit older than Ganju and while she had attempted to tame her own hair with a crimson colored turban similar to Ganju's, it was quite clear that Kukaku's hair was much more troublesome to tame, but she didn't seem to mind. Both Kukaku and Ganju had dark hair like Retsu and almost the same shade of brown in their eyes as Jyuushiro.

Turning her head slightly, Orihime could see by the way Kaien had his arm entwined with Miyako's that they were husband and wife. Kaien had an amused look on his face and his aqua blue eyes sparked with good humor. Beside him, Miyako was also smiling, but her smile was smaller and softer. Miyako carried herself with confidence and in an upright, lady-like manner, however, she was by no means aloof or conceited. Orihime thought that if any artists ever painted a picture of her, the title might have to be 'Portrait of a Lady'.

"It is a pleasure to meet you all," Orihime said sincerely.

Kaien gave Orihime a kind smile, which was very much like Jyuushiro's, and said, "It certainly looks as though you've adjusted to life around here quite nicely. I can't believe that you're lea-"

Squeezing her husband's arm slightly, Miyako said in a soft tone, "Husband."

Looking down at his wife, Kaien's eyes widened for a moment before he turned back to Orihime and said hastily, "That…you've only been her-"

"Husband."

"Well…I mean…what I'm trying to say is…what am I trying to say, Miyako?"

Miyako smiled at Orihime and said, "What my husband is trying to say is that we are so pleased to finally meet you. Father was just telling us about you and how you are such a capable student."

Hisana appeared behind Kaien and Miyako saying, "Now that we're all here, the meal is ready and we can all eat together."

While Orihime had been mildly curious about Kaien and Miyako's unorthodox behavior just then, as everyone went inside to eat and spend time together, those thoughts were pushed aside. She enjoyed talking and laughing with everyone gathered around the table. Even Byakuya seemed a little more at ease then he had been for a while.

The afternoon meal was cleared away and everyone went out into the back gardens to prepare to play a game. Orihime had been told that this was a game that their family always played when they were all home and able to participate. Retsu pulled Orihime aside as the others started clearing a space for them to play in order to explain the rules.

From what Orihime was able to gather, the family divided into three teams and each were allowed to select one 'base', one 'safe-house' and one 'jail'. Each team also had five colored poles that they were to keep in their 'base'. The teams were supposed to prevent the other teams from stealing their colored poles but instead trying to steal poles from the other teams. The 'safe-house' was a place where a member of that team could stop and rest for a maximum of two minutes without fear of being captured. Opponents could capture one another by managing to subdue them by any means necessary. The game lasted for two hours at which time each team would bring forth their poles and would count how many they had managed to protect of their own and how many they had managed to steal from others. Whoever had the most in both categories would win the game.

The team captains were Jyuushiro, Kaien and Byakuya. Jyuushiro chose Miyako and Ganju, Kaien selected Retsu and Hisana and Byakuya picked Orihime and Kukaku. Five minutes later, the game began in full force.

The one benefit and detractor about the whole game was that everyone was spread out all over the gardens. That meant that there were plenty of good hiding places to choose from for both you and your opponent.

Orihime began by flitting from one bush to another and somehow managed to find Team Jyuushiro's 'base'. Just as she was reaching out to take one of their poles, Orihime heard someone yell "Got you!" and the next moment a heavy weight tackled her to the ground. When she managed to catch her breath, Orihime saw that Ganju had knocked her over and he was grinning triumphantly down at her.

"You're so lucky! You're my first prisoner of this game!"

Not knowing what else to say, Orihime merely nodded and waiting for Ganju got up before she started to rise as well, resigned to her fate as his captive. The next moment, however, Ganju suddenly pitched forward and nearly knocked Orihime over again. Too surprised and confused to do anything, Orihime felt a hand grasp her arm and pull her away from the falling Ganju just in time. For a moment, Orihime stared down at Ganju's prone form before turning her attention to the hand still holding onto her arm and then up into the face of her rescuer. It was Byakuya.

He didn't look at Orihime as he said, "I will take him back to our jail. You take care of the pole."

Orihime nodded and watched Byakuya helped the slightly stunned Ganju away from the 'base' before she called after them, "Thank you for saving me."

Byakuya half turned around and Orihime could have sworn he gave her a ghost of a smile before turning and walking away.

The game continued on and Orihime couldn't remember a time when she had had so much fun. She managed to capture Jyuushiro, who good-naturedly chuckled as Orihime escorted him to 'jail' and said that he was almost glad for the time to rest his old bones. Then Orihime turned right around and got herself captured by Miyako, who was just as silent as she was graceful. And on it went until finally Orihime heard the gong to signal that the game was over.

After counting up all the teams poles, it was determined that Kaien's team was the winner as they had managed to keep two of their poles, capture three from Jyuushiro's team and one from Byakuya's team.

Looking around at his family, Jyuushiro smiled at everyone in turn as he said, "Nothing like a little game to help us bond together as a family after being apart for so long. Why don't we clean up now and all pitch in to help make the meal tonight?"

Everyone set to work with enthusiasm and conversation flowed freely as each person went about doing their bit to make sure the meal was finished on time. Retsu took it upon herself to 'patrol' around the kitchen in order to 'punish' anyone who decided to try and sneak bites of food here and there. The most frequent offender in that area was Ganju who just didn't seem to have a subtle bone in his body.

Finally the meal was set on the table and everyone gathered around. They were about to begin eating when a firm knock was heard at the door. Orihime was surprised to see everyone look up at each other in surprise before all their expressions turned to ones of what seemed like resignation.

Then most surprising of all Retsu turned to Orihime and asked, "Would you please go and invite our visitor to come and join us for dinner?"

Even though she was surprised, Orihime excused herself, got up and went to the door to do as Retsu had asked. When she opened the door, Orihime automatically began to greet the guest but as soon as she got a good look at just who, or more accurately what, was at the door the words died in her throat. Standing in front of her was a wolf. A wolf the size of a horse and whose fur was a deep crimson with darker, black patches scattered across its neck, back and torso.

At first, Orihime had been naturally surprised by the fact that there was a wolf standing there at the front door, but her instinct immediately told her that she had nothing to fear from this wolf. Instead, she now found her gaze riveted upon the wolf's eyes. They were a deep shade of brown…and they reminded her almost exactly of someone's eyes. Someone she knew. Someone who was important to her. However, she couldn't think of who this person was right at the moment.

Shaking herself out of her stupor, Orihime smiled at the wolf, bowed politely and said kindly, "Good evening. Please come in and join us for dinner."

The wolf's eyes seemed to smile slightly before it dipped its head in polite acknowledgement of Orihime's pleasantries and replied in a voice that didn't sound as if it had been used much recently, "Thank you. That is very kind of you."

As Orihime let him in, she said, "My name is Orihime Inoue."

The wolf looked at her for a few moments before he said, "You can call me Norainu."

Nodding, Orihime said, "It's nice to meet you," as she led him to the dining room where she introduced him to everyone. For a moment when Orihime got to Byakuya, she was almost positive that she saw him give Norainu a questioning look but it passed so quickly that she began to think that it was only her imagination.

Despite the fact that there was now an enormous wolf sitting and eating dinner in their midst, everyone acted, joked and talked with one another completely naturally and even included Norainu into their circle. This was one reason Orihime had really come to love this family: they accepted and loved anyone and everyone who stepped over their threshold.

After dinner was over, everyone went out into the back gardens in order to watch the sun go down. As Orihime looked up at the evening sky with its blazing colors of orange, pink and purple, something tugged at the back of Orihime's brain like a memory that wanted to surface but was having trouble doing so. Orihime was sure that it was something important and about someone who was very important to her, but she couldn't think of who it might be. Something about Norainu's eyes and a certain shade of orange in the sky was triggering this memory.

Feeling a hand on her arm, Orihime looked up to see Retsu returning her gaze as the woman asked, "Would you walk with me?"

Orihime nodded, rose, excused herself from the others and followed Retsu through the gardens. After having spent so much time wandering through the gardens, Orihime knew that Retsu was taking her to Rukia's statue. She followed in silence, waiting for Retsu to explain what was going on.

When they arrived at the three statues, for the space of about three minutes, Retsu said nothing until finally she began by softly asking, "Orihime, have you enjoyed your time here?"

Orihime blinked in surprise before she replied, "Of course. You've all been so kind to me and have taught me so many useful things. I can't remember a time when I've been so happy and content."

A sad smile stretched Retsu's lips as she said, "That's it exactly. You don't remember a time when you were happier because that is the way it had to be for a time."

Before Orihime could ask, Retsu turned to her and continued, "I cannot give you all the specifics, Orihime, but I can tell you that your coming here was no accident. You were meant to come here, spend time with my family and me and learn what you could from us before you continued on with your journey. In addition to all this, you also had to wait until your destined traveling companion could come and join you."

"What do you mean?"

Retsu took Orihime's hands in her own before she looked deep into Orihime's eyes and asked, "Orihime, before you came here you were searching for someone. Who was he?"

Orihime frowned in concentration before she said slowly, "I don't know. The memory is there in the back of my mind, but I can't seem to…wait. There's a face. It's very faint, but I know who he is. His name is…his name is…"

Orihime's eyes began filling with tears as she looked at Retsu and said, "I can't remember his name! I know he is someone very important to me and I know that I'm supposed to find him, but now I'm scared. Why have I forgotten him? Why can't I remember him?"

Reaching out to clasp Orihime's face between her hands, Retsu said, "Your memories are just harder to access here which is why you were brought here. You'll remember everything tomorrow morning."

"Why?"

Taking a deep breath, Retsu said slowly, "Because tomorrow you will be leaving with Norainu to continue on your journey."

Author's Note:

So, I'm curious to see what you guys make of this chapter and the new developments that are happening. Also, if you guys have figured out who Norainu is and why he has come to accompany Orihime on her journey.

Hope you guys enjoyed this and I'm so sorry for the late update!