Disclaimer- I don't own Bleach

Chapter 2

Into the Present

Bright blue eyes fluttered open and looked around in confusion, the small dark room wasn't the same room she had been in moments before. Then she was no longer a child either, she was nearly two hundred years old, young by some standards and ancient by others.

'Just another dream,' she thought as she rubbed at her tired eyes with delicate, pale fingers. 'Well, a memory, anyways.'

The small, silver chain on her wrist with its blue ribbon laced through it that was tied in a neat bow to keep it on tinkled softly while she tugged in annoyance at the hem of a pleated gray skirt. Straightening up with a frustrated sigh she frowned at the red tie that was secured at the base of her throat. With yet another sigh she shrugged on a beige sweater vest over a white button up shirt and pulled her long white hair out of it.

Slipping on a pair of brown shoes over her white knee high socks the small girl grabbed a black book bag that was by her door and left the tiny room that made up the entirety of her home.

'I really don't understand why you waste your time going to school,' a voice said to her, it was a calm, cool voice, like the first soft blow of wind that signified winter had arrived.

The pale girl rolled her icy blue eyes while adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder so it was no longer pulling at her long hair that had gotten trapped beneath it.

'It's not like I have anything better to do with my time,' the girl retorted.

'You could always go back to them,' the male voice suggested to her.

Another sigh escaped the girl's pink lips as she brushed a few strands of her elbow length white hair from her face. 'I refuse to go back, and you know it,' the girl replied haughtily.

'More like you're too stubborn,' came the quiet, snide reply.

'Fuyu,' the girl warned, trying to smile at a passerby who was looking at her oddly. Her conversation may have been taking place only in her mind, but that didn't keep her from scowling openly and frightening the people walking by her on the sidewalk.

'Fine, fine. But really, Sayomi-sama, do we have to go?' Fuyu asked, though it was quite close to a whine. An arrogant whine, but a whine nonetheless.

'Honestly, Fuyu, it's not that bad. It gives us something to do to pass the time, and we have enough of it,' she sighed.

'At least-' The voice cut off as Sayomi stopped abruptly on the path that she was walking along.

She was only a few houses away from the school, standing in the shadow of one of the trees that lined the street.

'Sayomi-sama, are you alright?' Fuyu asked worriedly.

'That girl,' Sayomi replied airily, staring at a girl that was maybe only an inch or two shorter than herself with black hair. The girl's back was to Sayomi as she walked up to the gates of the same school she was headed for. 'Her reiatsu is the one I've been feeling, but it's different now. Almost nonexistent.'

'A Soul Reaper,' Fuyu stated, a hint of curiosity in his voice.

'Yes, she's a Soul Reaper, but what is she doing in a gigai and school uniform?' Sayomi mused thoughtfully.

The black haired girl paused at the gates leading to the school's courtyard and slowly turned her head in Sayomi's direction. When the girl's purple eyes landed on the shade beneath the tree she had thought there was someone under, there was no one there, just a few brown and green leaves skidding along the concrete.

'You're not going to school?' Fuyu inquired as Sayomi walked down an alley that led away from the school and back into the residential area surrounding it.

'No, I'm going to see Urahara. That girl had to have gotten the gigai from him so he most likely knows who she is and what she's doing here. There's another spiritual pressure too... I first noticed it last night, but.. It seems very familiar, don't you think?'

'It does, but I can't seem to place it.'

Sayomi walked a few minutes before coming to a neighborhood of apartment buildings. She walked along the path that was lined on either side by fences or the walls of the apartment complexes, and was dotted with a few benches and trash cans.

She stopped at an opening in a brick wall and turned into it. Before her was a rather nondescript two story building with a little banner that proclaimed it to be the Urahara Shoten, the neighborhood candy shop. Walking up to the sliding doors of the entrance the girl lifted a small, pale hand and slid one of the doors open.

Inside the doors was a series of shelves that held an assortment of candies and other sweets and snacks. Entering the shop and shutting the door behind her, she approached a raised platform that led into the rest of the building that served as a house. Slipping off her shoes and pushing them aside, she was about to step onto the platform when she heard footsteps from the back of the shop and stood impatiently, tapping her white clad foot against the wooden floor.

A tall, muscular man wearing glasses and an apron walked into the room. "Ms Himura, what can I do for you today?" the burly man asked when he laid eyes on the white haired girl.

"Hello, Tessai. Is Urahara available?" She asked politely, her voice quiet and soft, reminiscent of falling snow. For though it was calm now, it could be cold and unforgiving at times.

"I'm afraid that he-"

"Well, well what have we here," a man chirped jovially as he walked into the interior of the shop. He wore a green and white beach bucket hat over his messy blond hair and dark green hakama and kimono top, over which he wore an open black robe.

Sayomi quirked a thin brow at the man whose eyes where hidden in the shadow of his hat.

"Ahh, Sayomi," the man sung upon laying his eyes on the irritated white haired, blue eyed girl.

"Kisuke, I believe Tessai was in the process of trying to get you out of having to see me," Sayomi said coldly.

Kisuke shivered as she spoke but quickly shook it off and smiled brightly.

"Well I'm here now. So how may I help you, beautiful lady?" Kisuke asked her pleasantly as he whipped out a little fan and covered part of his face as if embarrassed.

"You know why I'm here," she stated blandly.

"Ah, yes well, how about some tea?" the blond offered.

"Fine, but I want answers, Kisuke. I'm not in the mood to see how well you're able to avoid anything that's asked of you."

She followed the store owner and the large man to the back of the shop and sat down on a red cushion that was set before a round wooden table.

"I suppose you sensed the changes in spiritual pressure?" Kisuke asked conversationally.

"Yes, I had sensed an unfamiliar spiritual pressure in the area lately, but last night it died down and was replaced by another. This one is stronger, and seems to be uncontrolled," Sayomi replied as Tessai set a little green tea kettle on the table as well as two red cups.

Sayomi poured herself a glass of the hot green tea and waited for Urahara to reply.

"And what is it you wish to know?" He asked curiously, sipping his tea.

"As I was walking to school this morning I saw a new student, she had short black hair, purple eyes, a little shorter than me... Which is pretty impressive," the girl muttered as an after thought, before continuing. "Sound familiar?"

Urahara seemed to think about the question for a moment while tapping his fan against his chin, "Nope, not at-"

"Don't lie to me, Urahara. Do you remember the last time?" Sayomi asked, her voice unnaturally calm, in a way it almost sounded as if she were singing.

A visible shiver made its way down Urahara's back and Sayomi repressed a satisfied smirk while lifting her tea cup to her lips.

"Well," she pressed after taking a small sip of the warm beverage and lowering the cup back to the table top.

"Oh, I remember now," he replied sheepishly, scratching at the back of his head in a way that reminded Sayomi of a baboon.

"I thought you might. Who is she?"

"It wouldn't be right to give away information about my customers, I would lose their trust," Urahara answered dramatically.

A sudden stir of wind swept through the room, lifting Sayomi's hair off her shoulders briefly before it settled back down.

"I'm not in the mood for your games, Urahara. Who is she? She's a Soul Reaper, correct?" Sayomi pressed.

"Um, well," the man replied as he rubbed at his neck uncomfortably.

"So she is," Sayomi stated. "What is she doing in the living world? In one of your gigai none the less."

"Well..."

Another stir of freezing wind swept through the small room making Urahara chuckle nervously.

"She was sent to watch over Karakura town, but things went wrong and she accidentally... gave her powers.. to...someone," he replied evasively.

"I see. That explains why she seemed so weak, she's recovering. It also explains the strange surge in reiatsu I felt last night. Who did she transfer her powers to? The reiatsu seems strangely familiar to me."

"I don't know."

"You're lying again," Sayomi accused darkly.

Urahara waved his hands around in front of him frantically while stuttering out a denial.

"Never mind, I'll figure it out on my own. Now stop your whining," Sayomi ordered, annoyed by the man's act of fear. She had known him long enough to know he wasn't one to fear anything easily, but he liked to have his fun by being overly dramatic and enthusiastic any time a suitable situation presented itself to him. Which was nearly anytime he opened his mouth.

"Shouldn't you be in school?" Urahara inquired after a few moments of silence during which time the two sipped absently on their tea.

"I don't go because I have to, you know," Sayomi answered with a sigh. "I go because I'm bored."

Kisuke's eyebrows rose. "Bored?"

"Yes, bored," she repeated, eyes focused on her tea. "Ever since I came to this stupid world I've been bored."

"You miss the Soul Society," he observed, watching as a muscle in Sayomi's cheek twitched.

"I miss the life I could have had... that I should have had," Sayomi answered quietly, still looking into the green tea before her.

"Yes, don't we all," Urahara agreed soberly.

They sat in silence for a little while sipping casually at their tea.

Urahara sighed contentedly. "What are you going to do?" he asked.

Sayomi frowned. "I hate Soul Reapers," she said quietly.

"Do you? Or are you just trying to convince yourself you do?"

The muscle in her cheek twitched again. "I hate Soul Reapers," she repeated.

"Even though you were one?"

She sighed heavily and blinked into her tea cup. "That was a long time ago," she answered wistfully.

"Not that long ago," Urahara replied.

"Perhaps. I think for now I'll avoid her. I don't need anyone alerted to where I am," Sayomi said as she stood up from the table.

"What about the others?" Urahara asked.

Sayomi scoffed. "They won't cause trouble unless it's beneficial to them. It's too likely to draw unwanted attention if they do. They won't be interested in some run away Soul Reaper, her presence doesn't require anything other than a little extra caution on our part. As for whoever this girl transferred her power to... They're strong and that will get their attention, but they won't do anything. Except perhaps keep an eye on them. Soul Reapers aren't our allies after all."

"They aren't your enemies either."

She stared at Urahara for several long moments before shaking her head and exhaling a tired breath. "That depends entirely on whether or not the order to execute us on sight still stands, now doesn't it?"

Urahara chuckled. "I suppose."

"I don't know what's going on, but I know you've had a hand in it.. Don't do anything reckless, Urahara," she said as she made her way to the exit.

"I would never," the man replied in mock offense.

Rolling her eyes, Sayomi exited the shop and walked around the town for a few hours until a flare in reiatsu caught her attention.

"It's the same as last night, and the one I've been feeling all day," she said as her eyes roamed the streets.

Without hesitation she ran up the block until she came to a fenced in kid's play park. She saw a spider like Hollow chasing the soul of a small boy that for some reason hadn't found its way to the other side after his death. She was behind the spectacle, covered from view by the shade of a few trees and a short block wall. She could only make out the Hollow and the feet of the little boy.

There was the sound of two people running, their voices raised as they argued amongst themselves. The Hollow let out an angry roar, the little boy fell backwards sobbing in fright. Not a moment later the Hollow's roar ended abruptly and it began to disintegrate. When it had completely disappeared Sayomi saw the source of the spiritual pressure she had first noticed the night before as well as the little black haired girl she had seen earlier at the school. The one wearing a gigai of Urahara's design.

She recognized the orange haired teenager with the black haired girl as one of her classmates and sighed. He was not currently human, his soul had parted temporarily from his body and he wore the standard uniform of a Soul Reaper. He even carried an oversized sword, what appeared to Sayomi to be his zanpakuto. Every Soul Reaper had one, the shapes and sizes varied, as did the abilities, but they all served the same purpose; to defeat Hollows and send the souls of the dead to the Soul Society so they could be at peace. Soul Society, another world, a world for those that didn't belong in the world of the living. A world of spiritual beings. A world that wasn't supposed to interact with the world of humans.

"Ichigo, what have you gotten yourself into?" Sayomi muttered as she watched him perform Konso, Soul Burial, on the small child. The little boy's soul, now at peace, melted away until a single black butterfly could be seen flying up into the blue sky heading for the Soul Society.

Watching as the two remaining people left the park, Sayomi frowned thoughtfully after them wondering just what Ichigo's new ability to become a Soul Reaper would mean to those who were trying to avoid the eyes of Soul Society that would like be quite interested in him and the girl who had bestowed her powers to him.

After looking at the spot where she had seen Ichigo perform the Konso on the young boy, Sayomi sighed and turned away from the park. She walked back to her little apartment that was in a more run down part of Karakura Town. Walking up the shoddy, creaky steps to the second floor of her building that looked as if at one time been quite nice, but had been left uncared for too long so that the paint was peeling and there were water stains on parts of the ceiling from leaks that were ignored. Unlocking her wooden door and pushing it open, she stepped into her apartment, if the single room could have been called that.. She had a bed roll off towards the back under the one window in the room, and there was a little kitchen area with a small fridge to her left, and a little bathroom to her right. If she hadn't been as small as she was she doubted she would have fit in the cramped space.

Walking over to the fridge, she grabbed a bottle of water and then sat down on her bed roll in deep thought.

'What are you going to do, Sayomi-sama?' Fuyu asked.

'I really don't know. I want to avoid her at all costs while she's here, but something tells me that Urahara is up to something. When isn't he though?'

'Will you just remain here then?'

Sayomi sighed and shook her head. 'No, I'll probably visit the others.'

'I'm sure they would like that.'

'It's been awhile and I'd like to see them again... Some of them, anyway. That and it's been a long time since they've tried contacting me. Meaning that they have either not gotten any new information or they no longer feel the need to consult with me,' Sayomi replied.

'So they likely have no new information then?'

'Yes. They wouldn't make a move without my knowing and if they did they know there would be consequences.'

'For one so small, you really are a little scary sometimes,' Fuyu stated.

'Fuyukaze,' Sayomi snapped.

'See,' he chuckled.

The white haired girl growled. 'Well, for a zanpakuto you talk a lot.'

By them or they Sayomi and Fuyukaze were referring to the Vizard, or the Masked Army, as they were called. They had all been forced out of their home, the Soul Society, nearly a hundred years before. They had then taken refuge in the world of the living. Waiting, and watching. It had not been a simple mistake, or bad decision that had landed them in the predicament that they were in. Instead, it had been a traitorous and vile act by a fellow Soul Reaper that had triggered a reaction within them all. This reaction had awoken evil beings deep within their souls. Beings that were the opposite of what they stood for as Soul Reapers.

Their inner Hollows.

Kisuke Urahara had been able to help them before they had fully been taken over by their inner Hollows, but they then had to learn to suppress them. To beat down and then how to harness the power of the beings inside them so that they could use it and become stronger.

To say the least it had not been easy. They were no longer simple Soul Reapers, they weren't Hollows either, they were something else entirely. They were contradictions. They were Soul Reapers that could use the powers of their inner Hollows at will.

They called themselves,Vizard, masked army, because they were able to manifest the mask of the Hollow that lie trapped inside them. The mask of their inner Hollow gave them strength beyond what they had had, made them faster and gave them skills and abilities that Soul Reapers lacked.

However, a new race, especially one so powerful, was not easily accepted. To Soul Reapers, Hollows were the enemy. So what do you do when your friends, your leaders, and even some of your nobility are suddenly able to use powers that only a Hollow should be able to use?

There was only one thing to do in the eyes of the Soul Society.

Fear.

You fear them because they are not like you. They are something that should not exist. Abominations. In the eyes of Soul Society's rulers abominations should not exist. They should be destroyed entirely.

This being said it is easy to see why the Vizards would hate Soul Reapers, some don't feel as strongly as others, but the majority can't forgive the injustice done to them. They were forced from their homes to hide in a world they didn't belong in. A world that they had to avoid or risk someone noticing how they didn't age like normal humans, or how they could do things humans shouldn't be able to.

The Vizards have accepted their fate despite that. Most embrace the new found abilities they were given. Why wouldn't they though? They are stronger than almost any other being, and they know that in the end that extra strength will help them to defeat the ones who forever changed their lives.

~A/N~

And now the original story line will be much more prominent for awhile. Again, it is by no means the same story. I've changed quite a bit of the content and edited it as well. So hopefully it will be much more enjoyable and those of you who have read the original will hopefully also find this version to be enjoyable and not too repetitive.

Thank you to all of my wonderful reviewers: XxXLIFEafterDEATHXxX, Leyshla Gisel, KizunaCho, Ms. Lucky 1322, and Setsuka510. You are all super duper awesome!

Review ALL the stories!

Well, at least mine... Did anyone even get that? Or am I the only meme fan...