Hello and welcome to chapter 9. Last time, I officially introduced Haruko and revealed that she was a Quincy and the cousin of the Sternritter Meninas. Some of you might be wondering "If Meninas is here, will we be seeing the other female Sternritters (or the Bambis as they're also known)?". Well my answer is to wait and see.

Now, up until now, the chapters I've made were retellings of episodes from the anime, though told out of order, especially with the last one where it was a retelling of episode 314. This time though, I'm going to be making an original chapter, one that's not based on an already existing chapter from the manga or episode from the anime. However, that doesn't mean that I'm going to be excluding any content from the manga and/or anime at all.

Author's Note: As I've mentioned before, this is where I reveal once and for all whether this is a harem or not. I perfectly acknowledge that there are people who like the idea of this becoming a harem and that there are those who don't. I know that at least half of you will probably leave and stop favoriting and/or following my story after this chapter, but that's a risk I'm willing to take. Up until now, I've been trying to please both those who like harems and those who don't at the same time and I can't keep going on like that. But just to let everyone know, the reason I chose to have all of these girls to move in with Ichigo was not merely to make it a harem, but so that they could help Ichigo develop his powers properly and so that I don't have to rely on Rangiku to be the only one to fill in for Rukia. Now everyone, prepare to either be delighted or disappointed, for this chapter is the moment of truth.

Chapter 9

Moving in

The Night after the Shrieker Incident:

At her apartment, Haruko had just jumped out of the shower, ready for bed. "That was a random day. I wonder what those girls were doing running around the city anyway. Oh well, probably better to just leave it at that."

That was around the point that her cell phone rang on the bathroom sink. "Hello?"

"Hello there cousin. How have you been?"

"Meninas, is that you?" gasped Haruko. "I haven't heard from you in so long!"

"Good to hear from you, too," said Meninas. "Now listen, I have a job for you."

"A job?" Haruko asked. "What do you want me to do?"

"Recently, a new Substitute Soul Reaper has appeared as a result of one of the Soul Society's lieutenants," Meninas explained. "His Majesty wants to test out a new device that was recently developed and we want you to do the honors."

"Me." Haruko raised an eyebrow. "But Meninas, shouldn't this be done by someone more experienced, like you, Bambietta, Geselle, or-?"

"Haruko, are you saying you doubt your own abilities, or do our training methods need to be harder on you?"

"I'm not saying that at all, Meninas." Haruko waved her hand defensively, even though Meninas wouldn't see it. "It's just that, I have my own life now and… I don't know if I should do this."

"It's your choice, Haruko," Meninas reassured her. "But remember: you're the one who wanted to join us. You're the one who begged for our training. You wanted to be like me, remember?"

Haruko took a deep breath before answering, "I know, Meninas, and… I still do. What do I need to do?"

Meninas then explained that for the past week, Ichigo had been letting several girls move into his house, and his room, and that at least four girls had already done so. She then explained that she should take advantage of that and be the fifth girl to move in with Ichigo in order to win his trust. When Haruko questioned how she would do that, Meninas explained that she would have to look like a damsel in distress by letting herself be attacked by a Hollow. She then informed her of a tapeworm-like Hollow and that she should be careful about its special ability. Haruko explained that even if she were to be careful, she could still be possessed and her soul could be in danger since Hollows were poisonous to Quincy like them. She even went as far as to remind her about what happened to a Quincy named Masaki when she was attacked by the Grand Fisher. Meninas reassured her that they were already developing a vaccine for that in case that did happen, and that it would be ready about...

Two Days Later:

Outside her apartment, Meninas gave Haruko the vaccine, via a needle, and a circular palm-sized badge with a five pointed cross on it.

"That should do it," Meninas crossed her arms. "Now you're ready for your assignment."

"I hope you're right," Haruko healed herself by absorbing some strange particles.

"Now remember: you have to look helpless and clueless when you come face to face with that Tapeworm Hollow," Meninas reminded her. "Just to make it look convincing, I'll hold onto your cross."

Haruko, while reluctant, unclipped her five-pointed cross pendant from her wrist and handed it over to Meninas.

"Good luck, cousin." With that, Meninas disappeared into the shadows.

Later while Ichigo and Rangiku were scouting around, Meninas watched from the ground. In her hands was a set of small, round, white tablets only a little larger than an adult fingernail with writing or symbols circling the flat edge.

"So, the Soul Reapers have caught wind of this Hollow as well," Meninas noted. "The fact that they didn't notice me is very insulting. Still, I can't fault them for that."

Meninas looked upon the tablets she held. "It's time to help my cousin with her mission. Good thing I have a more specialized bait for the task."

At her apartment, Haruko was washing the dishes, humming to herself, while Ken was playing a video game. Haruko was feeling pleased that she was actually going to be able to carry out the assignment she was given. But at the moment, all she could do was think of what she and Ken would do tonight.

"Hey sweetie, should we go out, or stay in tonight?" Haruko asked him. "I hear Pixar's Monsters, Inc. is still in theaters!"

But Ken's only answer was, "I think we should break up."

This news caught Haruko completely by surprise.

After taking a bite out of a cookie, Ken explained. "I mean, lately, you've been getting more and more peculiar. You see people no-one else sees, and you talk to people who aren't there. It's getting really creepy. You're a great cook and all, but you're weirding me out with all this 'ghost' stuff. Your cousin doesn't help either. Assignments…? Club…? She sounds like she wants to induct you into some cult, or a crime syndicate."

This broke Haruko's heart and she dropped a dish before breaking down into tears. Ken just sighed, switched the TV off, and started packing up his game console.

Suddenly, she noticed a container full of the round white tablets Meninas was carrying with her. Seeing no other option, Haruko took out one of the tablets, placed it in her mouth, broke it between her teeth, and then swallowed it. She then left the apartment in tears, leaving Ken to finish packing his stuff.

Present:

Haruko moved into Kurosaki Clinic and was now sitting on the roof to look upon the stars and reflect on herself.

What a day. If I only had my cross, I could have easily handled that Hollow with little effort. Haruko tilted her head down. Or… Could I have, even then?

Next thing she knew, someone emerged from a shadow and appeared right behind her.

"Meninas!" Haruko gasped. "You startled me!"

"Get used to it," Meninas advised. "I have to keep a low profile until the time comes."

Haruko sighed. "I understand."

Meninas then changed the subject. "I see you've infiltrated Ichigo Kurosaki's home."

"More like they accepted me in," Haruko pointed out. "But did Ken have to die?"

"No, that wasn't part of the plan," Meninas reassured her. "He simply got caught in the crossfire and that Hollow took advantage of his involvement."

"I suppose," Haruko shed a tear before taking out the circular badge. "I'm just lucky I took that vaccine to keep my soul from committing soul suicide when that Hollow possessed me. Still, you want to tell me what this thing is for?"

"Oh that. Forgive me, cousin, I neglected to tell you about that." Meninas whispered to Haruko what the circular item was and what it was made for. "That item is a Medallion that is designed to steal a Soul Reaper's Bankai."

Haruko asked, "Is that really necessary?"

"In the long run," Meninas answered.

"But, Ichigo doesn't even have his Shikai yet, let alone his Bankai," Haruko rightfully pointed out. "I doubt he even knows his own Zanpakuto's name yet."

"And there's one more problem. The Medallion I gave you is just a prototype," Meninas explained. "Now, just in case you need to use your Quincy powers, I'm going to give you this."

Meninas took out another item, this time a silver bangle with a six-pointed cross symbol on it, a chain attached at the center of the cross, and a five pointed pentacle cross connected to the chain's other end.

Haruko recognized it immediately. "A Quincy Bangle…?"

"Indeed," said Meninas. "You might be keeping up appearances and you played the damsel in distress act well, but it's only a matter of time before one of them finds out that you're a Quincy. Some of them have probably already figured it out by now. As long as you wear that, they'll believe that you're just an amateur Quincy."

"Which I technically still am." Haruko took the Quincy Bangle from Meninas and put it onto her left wrist.

"Be careful, Haruko. It's incredibly dangerous, and if you use it recklessly, there's a chance it might explode." Meninas noticed the troubled look on Haruko's face. "Haruko, you seem concerned about something."

Haruko sighed. "It's just… Ichigo and the others were really kind to me. When Ken decided to dump me, I was genuinely heartbroken. I even tried to commit suicide on that bridge and again when the Tapeworm Hollow attacked me today. But they were genuinely concerned for me."

"Are you saying I wasn't concerned for you when I gave you that Hollow bait to draw that Hollow towards you, or that I'm not concerned for you right now when I handed you that Quincy Bangle?" Meninas questioned. "Or perhaps you've forgotten who was the one who trained you in the ways of the Quincy, who taught you our history with the Soul Reapers and our confrontation with the Bounts, and, more importantly, the one who begged His Majesty to spare you when he commenced Auswählen on that fateful day. How insulting…"

"No, no, I haven't forgotten, Meninas!" Haruko waved her hands defensively, and then calmed down and answered, "That was all your doing. If it wasn't for you, I would have lost my Quincy powers and who knows what would have happened after that."

"Indeed." Meninas smiled before getting serious again. "Now straighten up and get to work, and remember Haruko: you are here on business, not to play around."

Meninas then created a portal using her shadow and went back to HQ, but not before Haruko told her, "Come on, Meninas. I might still be recovering from losing Ken, but when I'm on the job, I don't play around."

In the dining room, Rangiku met up with Isshin, who was supposed to be in his room, and Yoruichi. Both were sitting at the table, their usual humor and mirth nowhere to be found.

"I see you made it," Yoruichi told her.

"You asked me to come with you, Yoruichi," Rangiku pointed out. "And… Isshin… what's going on here?"

"I think we need to talk about Haruko," Isshin told her, getting straight to the point.

Yoruichi began. "We have reason to believe that-"

Rangiku cut her off. "She might be a Quincy?"

Yoruichi narrowed her eyes. "So, you've noticed, too?"

"I've only heard stories about the Quincy race," Rangiku admitted as she sat down in a chair opposite of Isshin. "But I've been around long enough to tell the difference between the spirit energy of a human, a Hollow, and a Soul Reaper. I can tell right away that Haruko's spirit energy didn't fit into any of those categories."

Isshin smiled. "That's my former soldier: as smart, perceptive, and sexy as she ever was."

"In any case, Rangiku," Yoruichi said, getting back on topic, "you and I are going to have to keep a close watch on Haruko. I know she just lost her boyfriend, but we have reason to believe there's something else going on."

"Something else." Rangiku raised her right eyebrow. "Like what? I know the story of what happened to the Quincy, and what led up to their fate, and I know we all just met Haruko, but I don't think she's the type who would take revenge, especially for something that happened centuries ago."

"You're probably right, but that's not it." Yoruichi whispered something into Rangiku's left ear.

In the bedroom, Ichigo, Tatsuki and Orihime were sitting together on the bottom bunk, wondering what was going on. All three were in their sleepwear at the moment.

Orihime stared at the floor. "I wonder what Rangiku, Yoruichi, and Haruko are doing right now."

Tatsuki shook her head and lifted her hands to the ceiling in an "I don't know" gesture. "Who knows."

"There's a lot of things I don't know, like why the hell am I getting so many girls in my room." Ichigo closed his eyes and rubbed the back of his head. "First it was Rangiku, then you two, and now Haruko!"

Tatsuki got up on her feet and glared at Ichigo. "Are you telling us to get lost, Ichigo?! Don't forget, you invited Orihime to live with you and promised her brother that you would take care of her!"

Ichigo got back on his feet and replied, "But then you invited yourself to live here because of that incident with the Mod Souls, then you and the others invited Haruko today. Not to mention Rangiku invited herself into my room. Now everyone thinks I'm forming a harem."

"Just admit it, Ichigo." Tatsuki thrust her face at Ichigo. "You want some of us to leave!"

Ichigo stuck his face in Tatsuki's. "What would you know about it, Tatsuki?"

While Ichigo and Tatsuki glared at one another, Orihime got on her feet and pushed the two away from each other, much to their surprise.

"Stop it, both of you!"

Ichigo and Tatsuki looked at Orihime's face, which was hidden by a shadow. Orihime then revealed her face to Ichigo and Tatsuki, showing an uncharacteristic amount of fire in it. This was enough to intimidate them, at first, but Orihime quickly simmered down with a deep breath.

She then expressed her more characteristic soft side and told them, "It's been a long day for all of us, so why don't we just relax?"

Ichigo and Tatsuki agreed and calmed down and all three got back into their beds. Tatsuki got into the top bunk while Orihime and Ichigo got back into the bottom bunk. Moments later, Haruko, Rangiku, and Yoruichi reentered the room, Rangiku and Yoruichi through the door and Haruko through the window.

"What were you guys doing?" Tatsuki raised her eyebrow.

"I needed some time to reflect on everything that happened today." Haruko had an innocent smile with her eyes closed, a small tear forming in her eye.

"We were having a little meeting with Isshin," Yoruichi licked her right paw. "Anyway, as of now, Haruko is moving in with us. However, Orihime and Tatsuki are still in the process of bringing in all of their stuff from their old places, which means that tomorrow is going to be a busy day. We might as well enjoy ourselves while we can."

"A busy day." Ichigo raised an eyebrow before his eyes widened in realizing what Yoruichi was implying. "Oh, that's right! You two still don't have all of your clothes here yet!"

"Could have told us about that sooner." Tatsuki crossed her arms, closed her eyes, and lowered her head at that. "But anyway, Yoruichi, what do you mean by 'enjoying ourselves' while we can?"

Yoruichi closed her eyes and looked away. "What I mean is that we should have a little fun with Ichigo tonight. Next weekend, we all have to work on getting the rest of your things from your old places."

"A little fun?" Ichigo asked before crossing his arms. "Hey wait a minute! We can't do anything like that here, not with my sisters here! Besides, I'm still underage and you're a cat! What the hell kind of 'fun' are you imagining?"

Haruko stared at Yoruichi, wondering the same thing, Rangiku raised an eyebrow, and Orihime and Tatsuki snickered.

"Ichigo, you're so clueless."

Ichigo turned to Tatsuki confused. "What do you mean?"

"Oh that's right," Yoruichi said as the feline's furry face smirked. "Behold. This is what I really look like."

Everyone watched as Yoruichi morphed into her true form. To Ichigo's shock, he saw a slender, well-endowed, dark skinned woman with golden irises, waist-length dark purple hair with chin-length bangs framing the sides of her face.

"You're a… a girl," Ichigo gawked.

"Pffft, that face…! It's even better than I thought it would be!" Yoruichi laughed and crossed her arms. "Can't blame you. I guess people always assume I'm a man because of the voice I use when I'm in cat form."

Yoruichi walked up to the bed and sat right next to Ichigo on his right side, Orihime was on his left side. "No matter how many times I reveal my true form, it's always fun to see the reaction I get. Though honestly, I thought you guys would handle it a bit better."

Haruko put her hands on her waist and said, "I thought you said you were a talking cat!"

"Cat's don't talk," Yoruichi pointed out. "Use your head."

But as Ichigo examined Yoruichi's true form, he realized that she was naked and got red in his face. It didn't help that his eyes were magnetized to Yoruichi's breasts, which he could tell were not quite as big as Rangiku's or Haruko's, but almost as big as Orihime's.

Yoruichi raised her left eyebrow and asked, "Hm, what is it Ichigo?"

"WILL YOU PLEASE PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!"

"SHHH…!"

"Keep it down, Ichigo," Tatsuki told him. "Do you want to wake up your sisters?"

Ichigo covered his mouth, "Sorry…"

Tatsuki sighed before turning her attention back to Yoruichi. "But seriously Yoruichi, you should get dressed."

Outside the room, Yuzu, who was woken up by Ichigo's scream earlier, and Isshin were right in front of Ichigo's door, each with an ear pressed against a glass they held up against the door, allowing them to listen in.

"Oh, right, sorry about that," they heard Yoruichi say calmly. "It's been so long since I had to wear clothes, I forgot. Though I'm surprised at you, Ichigo. You're more innocent and naive than you look, especially since Rangiku and Orihime have been living with you for a while now. Was that really the first time you ever saw a girl naked? Huh?"

"Never mind," Ichigo groaned.

"You want another look," Yoruichi teased. "You never know, life is short and you might not get the chance to see hot young girls in their birthday suits again."

"Oh, knock it off, Yoruichi," said Tatsuki. "In case you've forgotten, Ichigo, Orihime, and I are underage."

Karin showed up, crossing her arms and looking annoyed. "I wondered what all the commotion was about. This isn't cool you guys."

Yuzu shushed her sister. "It sounds like Ichigo got a fifth girl and she's in her birthday suit!"

"So what," Karin closed her eyes and tipped her head down. "His birthday's coming in about two months and by then he'll be 16 and won't be a kid anymore."

"Nooo!" Yuzu grabbed her head with both hands and started crying.

Isshin pulled away from the door before shouting, "OH, MASAKI! IT'S THE DAY WE'VE BEEN DREADING! I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO…!"

Both Isshin and Yuzu's whining were cut short when the door suddenly flung open and knocked them away.

"WHAT THE HELL! WHAT'S GOING ON OUT HERE?!"

"I told you it wasn't cool!" Karin shook her head.

Ichigo looked down on his father and sister. "You guys, get the message!"

Ichigo then promptly closed the door. He closed his eyes; his head dipped and he sighed. "Why do I get the feeling this is going to start happening a lot?"

Yoruichi brushed him off. "Don't be so down in the dumps. At least we get to share the room together."

"Oh, shut up." Ichigo turned around and saw that Yoruichi was now wearing a magenta shirt and lavender pants. "Good thing Orihime had spare clothes. I don't think Tatsuki, Rangiku, or Haruko's clothes would fit you. Tatsuki's would be too small, and Rangiku and Haruko's would be too big."

Rangiku and Tatsuki didn't take too kindly to this. "Hey!"

Rangiku promptly smothered Ichigo's face in her bosom as a punishment.

"HEY!" Tatsuki shouted.

"Heyyy," Yoruichi drawled, before snickering.

Orihime covered her mouth, in case she said something embarrassing.

Haruko's eyes were almost as wide as the rims of the glasses beneath her furrowed brow. What kind of crazy household had she just moved into?

Meanwhile, Meninas emerged from the shadow and arrived in what appeared to be a large, ice-encrusted palace. There to greet her were 4 other Quincy girls. One was a slender young girl with long, straight, dark brown hair and brown eyes. One was a petite young girl with chin-length blonde hair and purple eyes. One was a tall, well-endowed young woman with long, light-green hair, blue eyes, prominent eyelashes, and thin, lightning bolt shaped eyebrows. And the last one had blue eyes and long, black hair extending down to her lower back with two strands sticking up like antennae.

"Welcome back, Meninas."

"Hello, Bambietta. Liltotto. Candice. Giselle," Meninas said to her fellow Quincy.

"I suppose Operation Trojan Quincy was a success?" Bambietta said.

"Did you bring back any sweets?" Liltotto asked.

"Phase one of Operation Trojan Quincy was a complete success, but we'll have to wait a while for phase two." Meninas turned to the petite blonde. "And no, I didn't bring any sweets for you, Liltotto."

Candice narrowed her eyes. "Honestly, Meninas, I should have been the one to infiltrate Ichigo's house, not your rookie cousin."

Giselle showed a mischievous smile. "Because you want to be queen of his little harem, don't you, Candy?"

"I never said I wanted to be in that kid's harem!" Candice snapped back while Giselle looked away. "You wanna fight Gigi? Hey, look at me when I'm talking to you!"

Meninas sighed before closing her eyes. "There they go again…"

The next morning in the World of the Living, Ichigo and the girls made their way to school. Orihime was carrying Kon and Momone in her bag, just in case Ichigo and Rangiku needed to take on their Soul Reaper forms. Surprisingly, Haruko was with them.

"I get Rangiku coming to our school, but why are you coming, Haruko?" Ichigo asked. "It's not like you're a student."

Haruko smiled innocently. "Oh, I have my reasons."

When they reached the school, Ichigo, Orihime, Tatsuki, and Rangiku entered through the front and up the main stairwell while Haruko broke off and headed left. The quartet thought little of it as they reached their classroom. Keigo and Mizuiru were waiting for them.

Keigo was cross, as were his arms. "It's not fair, Ichigo! How could you do this to us?"

Ichigo gave him a blank stare. "Huh?"

"You know exactly what's wrong!" Keigo whined, tears rolling down his face like a waterfall. "How did you get so lucky to have your own harem?!"

"It's not a harem!" Ichigo growled through his teeth.

"Don't play dumb with me!" Keigo exclaimed. "Rangiku, Orihime, and Tatsuki all moved in with you!"

Tatsuki stomped her foot. "Zip it, Keigo! Ichigo might be developing some weird relationship with Rangiku and Orihime, but he and I are just friends, nothing else!"

Soon the bell rang and everyone got to their desks. It was then that their teacher came into the room. She was a young woman with rounded glasses and long brown hair tied back in a ponytail. This was Misato Ochi.

"Hello, everyone!"

"Hi, Ms. Ochi!"

"I have an announcement to make," Misato told them. "Today, you're receiving a new assistant teacher who will help in your education! So, please give a warm welcome to Ms. Haruko McAllon!"

This caught the attention of Ichigo and the girls. Moments later, Haruko entered the room in her new teacher's outfit.

"Hello everyone, I'm Haruko McAllen." She bowed and smiled. "I'm your new assistant teacher in the world of business."

One student in particular narrowed his eyes behind his glasses upon noticing the new assistant teacher.

Later after class, Ichigo and the girls were hanging out on the rooftop, including Haruko. However, Ichigo and Tatsuki still wanted answers.

Ichigo went first. "So, this is what you meant when you said you had your reasons?"

Haruko giggled. "Well, I'm too old to be a highschool student and our home is a small clinic. We needed another person who could help make some money to help provide, otherwise we'll end up bankrupt."

Tatsuki scratched her chin. "Yeah, that's true. But why didn't you ask Isshin for a job at the clinic?"

Haruko sheepishly scratched her head. "Because I have no experience with the medical field and doctors and nurses are professionals."

"I don't know about that." Orihime put her finger on her lower lip and looked up at the sky. "Yuzu and Karin are nurses at the clinic and they're much younger than any of us here. I'm sure if you ask them, they could give a crash course."

Kon popped out of Orihime's bag. "I wouldn't mind being nursed by you, Orihime."

Before anyone could answer, Rangiku picked up another Hollow on her Soul Phone. This was the signal for her and Ichigo to take on their Soul Reaper forms. Not wasting any time, Rangiku put on her glove and ejected Kon and Momone's Soul Candies out of their cotton-stuffed bodies. She then made sure to give Ichigo Kon's Soul Candy to ensure that what happened yesterday wouldn't happen again. They then ingested their Soul Candies and took on their Soul Reaper forms.

"Well, we're off," said Ichigo to the others. "You two take care of the rest, and try to behave yourselves."

"Leave it to us." Kon saluted.

The two then went off to take care of the Hollow.

Orihime clasped her hands together and prayed. "Be careful, Ichigo."

Suddenly, Kon came up behind Orihime and Haruko and groped them both at the same time. His right hand was on Orihime's right breast while his left hand was on Haruko's left breast.

"AHHH…!"

"Oh, you two are so sexy."

Tatsuki grabbed onto Kon's hair and pulled him away. "Knock it off, you little pervert! Ichigo just told you to behave yourself!"

"Sorry," Kon apologized. "Getting over these habits could take a while."

Momone then pulled Kon away and plunged him into her bosom. "In any case Kon, why bother getting perverse on those two when you've got me?"

Kon shook his head with delight in Momone's boobs. "Now this is my kind of therapy."

Tatsuki shook her head and sighed. "This is going to be a running gag, isn't it?"

Later that day, the school day was over and Haruko was walking towards the exit to meet up with the others. "What a stressful first day on the job. I know Isshin said that it would be tough, but keeping up this job is harder than I thought."

A voice caught her attention. "So is keeping up that facade."

Haruko stopped and turned her attention towards one of the students. He was a tall bespectacled young man with a slender build, straight chin-length black hair framing both sides of his face, fair skin, and blue eyes.

"I see you decided to show yourself, but perhaps you can introduce yourself to me before we start our conversation."

"You should already know my name by now." the young man replied. "I'm Uryū Ishida, one of your students. I'm also the last of the Quincy race, or at least I thought I was until now. Let me ask you, Ms McAllen. If there are other Quincies out there, then why haven't you shown yourselves? More importantly, why is a Quincy hanging out with a Soul Reaper?"

Haruko hid her eyes behind the light shining in her glasses. "What I'm doing with those two Soul Reapers is none of your business, Mr Ishida. As for how there could be more Quincies out there, why don't you ask your father? He's been around longer than you have and he knows things about our race that you don't know."

Haruko then started walking away. "But then again, perhaps you don't want to talk to him for some reason."

Now it was Uryū's turn to hide his eyes behind the light shining in his glasses. "Enjoy your time with those Soul Reapers, especially Ichigo Kurosaki, because come this summer, I will defeat him."

The two Quincies then walked away from each other.

Outside the campus, Ichigo was walking alongside Orihime and Tatsuki, chitchatting as they made their way home. Rangiku however lagged behind with Haruko and the two were having a serious chat.

"I know…"

"You know what? Haruko asked. "Be more specific please."

Rangiku kept her serious tone. "I know that you're a Quincy."

Once again, Haruko hid her eyes behind the light shining in her glasses. "And just what are you going to do about it, Soul Reaper, kill me?"

Rangiku remained serious.

"What is your goal with Ichigo?"

"My goal with Ichigo?" Haruko pushed her glasses back a little and smiled. "What makes you believe that I have a goal with Ichigo?"

"Don't play dumb." Rangiku turned her head to look Haruko in the eyes. "I know that you could have easily handled that tapeworm Hollow yesterday, and yet, you chose to let it possess you."

"Is that right?" Haruko questioned with a straight face. "And just what do you plan to do about it?"

Rangiku's only answer was, "I don't know what your game is, Haruko, but let me make something clear to you. If you give me one good reason to believe that you might hurt Ichigo, I'll make sure you pay for it with your life."

But Haruko saw right through Rangiku and countered back. "You seem very defensive when it comes to Ichigo. Could it be that you're in love with Ichigo?"

"Huh!?" Rangiku blushed and shook her head in denial before making a comeback. "Are you crazy!? I barely even know him! Besides, I prefer older men."

Haruko smirked. "You can lie to yourself all you like, but I know you're in denial."

Before the conversation could go away further, Ichigo called out to them. "Come on you guys, get a move on!"

Not wanting to keep everyone else waiting, Rangiku and Haruko ended their serious conversation and went off to catch up with the others.

That weekend, Ichigo and the girls were making their way to Orihime's old place to help her gather up the rest of her stuff and move it into Kurosaki Clinic. They had heard that workers working on rebuilding the place managed to recover Orihime's items and that most were relatively intact from the night her brother attacked in his Hollow form.

That was a relief for Orihime. Sora had taken care of Orihime throughout her troubled childhood and to lose all these precious mementos… Well, no need to feel sad about that anymore. Orihime would never let herself forget all that Sora did for her. She could honor his memory for the rest of her life.

Upon reaching it, they saw that Orihime's clothes were already cleaned and put on hangers or in boxes.

"Thank you very much." Orihime bowed respectfully.

"No problem, young miss."

Not wasting any time, Ichigo and the girls gathered as much of Orihime's clothes as they could and took them back to Kurosaki Clinic. Once they were done, they came back for the rest. They kept going back and forth like that until the day ended. They then picked up where they left off the next day and took the rest of Orihime's items to Kurosaki Clinic.

The last item to be picked up was the picture of Orihime's brother, Sora, and perhaps quite fittingly, Orihime herself was the one who would take it. Standing alone in her reconstructed, now former, apartment, Orihime took one last look around at the dwelling that Sora had maintained for her. With a sigh of nostalgia and a little bit of trepidation, for one last time, she gazed upon her brother's face in their shared home.

"Well, brother, this is it. After today, I'll have officially moved in with Ichigo and his family. I'll probably have to share him with Rangiku, Yoruichi, Haruko, even Tatsuki, but I'm glad I'll be spending the rest of my days with Ichigo."

The next weekend, Ichigo and the girls spent their time at Tatsuki's old place. Unlike with Orihime, they were aided by Tatsuki's mother, who seemed really mixed on the idea of her "little girl" moving into a boy's house, let alone his room. On the one hand, she was happy for her daughter that she was now living with the boy she had known since they were kids. On the other hand, she was also not comfortable that this same boy was having several other girls move in with him as well.

"Man, my ears are still ringing." Ichigo exclaimed while carrying some of Tatsuki's stuff. "I can't believe your mother is so overprotective of you, Tatsuki."

"At least you're not the one she was complaining to the whole time." Tatsuki sighed while carrying some more of her stuff. "But thanks for letting me handle her."

Ichigo chuckled. "Hey come on, you stood up for me when we were kids. The least I could do was let you stand up for yourself."

Tatsuki was caught off guard as she noticed Ichigo smiling. Ichigo, I haven't seen you smile like that in a long time, since before that fateful day in fact. I'm not complaining, but since when did you start to loosen up like this? Is this because of Rangiku? No, that can't be it. Whatever it is, you're changing.

Behind them, Rangiku, Orihime, Yoruichi, and Haruko, who were carrying more of Tatsuki's stuff, took notice of her and Ichigo's conversation.

Haruko tilted her head. "I wonder what those two are talking about."

"I honestly don't know," Rangiku admitted.

"Tatsuki's known Ichigo longer than I have." Orihime explained. "I don't know all the details, but they've known each other since they were kids."

"I'm surprised they didn't become anything more than just friends." Rangiku scrawled.

"There's a lot we don't know about Ichigo's personal life." Yoruichi pointed out. "But anyway, we better catch up with them. Wouldn't want Tatsuki to get too far ahead of us, now would we?"

The four, at that, picked up the pace, a little more fire stoked in their furnaces.

The weekend after that, it was Haruko's turn to move out. Unlike with Orihime and Tatsuki where they simply walked all of each other's stuff to the clinic, they instead drove to Haruko's old apartment in Isshin's car, something that made them question why they didn't just do this in the first place.

"So this is where you and your ex lived?" Tatsuki looked around Haruko's apartment with interest. "Not bad, though a little on the small side, if I can be honest."

"I don't know about that Tatsuki." Orihime picked up a box full of clothes with a naive smile on her face. "Seems really big compared to Ichigo's room."

Everyone had to laugh at that.

"Oh, it's not much, really." Haruko smiled and waved it off before becoming somber. "To be honest, I'm going to miss this apartment. Ken and I shared so many fond moments here."

Ichigo tipped his head in guilt. "I'm sorry we couldn't save him."

"No, don't worry about it, Ichigo." Haruko sighed. "I still miss him, but I need to move on."

This made Ichigo upset as he shouted, "How could you just say that like you're okay with it?!"

Haruko dipped her head and hid her eyes behind the shine of her glasses. "Of course, I'm not okay with it. It hurts, very much. But dwelling on what happened to Ken won't bring him back, nor will it make me feel any better."

Ichigo realized that he completely overreacted. "Sorry, that was way off base."

Ichigo got back to packing Haruko's stuff, leaving Orihime and Haruko bewildered as to why he reacted the way he did. Tatsuki however caught on to the reason for his reaction.

Rangiku and Yoruichi meanwhile were keeping their eyes out for any signs of Haruko showing possible hostility towards either them or Ichigo. They both knew that she was a Quincy, but they didn't know what she was up to. Regardless of that, they still helped out in getting her things to the car.

Rangiku however paid particular attention to Ichigo's sudden outburst. What was that all about? Ichigo might be stubborn and maybe a bit short tempered, but I've never seen him blow up like that.

June 16, 2001:

Ichigo woke up and, as usual, found himself snuggled up in Rangiku's cleavage. By now he was used to it and, though he wouldn't admit it, grew to like it. A lot, it seemed, for this morning he even found his hands had wandered onto her in his sleep.

"How are my girls, Ichigo?" Rangiku woke up with a smirk.

Ichigo turned red enough to bust a blood vessel in his nose. He wanted to deny how much was enjoying this, but all that came out was, "Well, they are nice, I guess…"

Suddenly, Orihime woke up and poked Ichigo in the back to get his attention. "Ichigo…?"

Ichigo turned his head to see Orihime, who had been sleeping on his left side (with Rangiku on his right). A deep blush and shy smile were on her face and she was steepling her fingers.

"Do you like mine, too?"

Ichigo was now the one blushing and Rangiku simply giggled at this. Ichigo, ignoring Rangiku's giggles, sighed before letting go of her boobs and turned in bed so he was now flat on his back, staring upward.

He sucked in a breath, closed his eyes so hard that his whole face started to cringe, pursed his lips, and croaked, "...Yes."

Rangiku started poking his cheek. "Admit it: being around beauties like us, you've gotten a fetish for big boobs, haven't you, Ichigo?"

Ichigo sighed. While he wouldn't openly admit it, he knew that he had developed a fetish for big boobs, perhaps one that was bigger than Kon's. Perhaps it subconsciously developed once Rangiku moved in after the Fishbone D incident, perhaps it was from having five girls in his room all the time, perhaps Kon's bad habits were rubbing off on him, perhaps it was a combination of all three, or perhaps it was something else entirely. Whatever the case, he knew that he had a fever, where the only cure was going motorboating, but there was no way he was going to openly admit it.

Just then Haruko, having woken up earlier, entered the room. "Good morning everyone. Breakfast is ready."

Haruko looked at Ichigo, Rangiku, and Orihime and they looked back at her. There was a moment of silence until Ichigo broke that moment.

"Haruko!" he gasped. "This isn't what it looks like!"

Behind her, in the hallway, Yoruichi took on her true form and displayed her tanned, naked curves with a smile.

"It's not?" she said.

"PUT SOME DAMN CLOTHES ON!"

Later at the dining room table, the Kurosakis and their new live-in neighbors gathered and were promptly eating their breakfast, which Haruko had provided. Today's special was blueberry pancakes accompanied by an egg and bacon sandwich with sausage patties in place of bread.

"Oh wow- OW!- Haruko!" Isshin burned himself trying to pick up the sandwich. "You really went all out!"

"Yeah, I'm impressed with these pancakes you made." Tatsuki took another bite. "These might even be better than Yuzu's! …No offense, Yuzu."

But Yuzu was busy talking with her mouth full. "None taken."

"Oh, it was nothing really." Haruko waved it off. "I have plenty of experience providing for others. When I was still with Ken, I sometimes had to provide for both us and his friends."

"Yeah, it really shows." Ichigo took another bite before realizing something. Still, I can't help but feel like I'm forgetting something.

Ichigo then checked his watch and saw a certain date on it. This caught the attention of the girls, specifically Rangiku, Orihime, Tatsuki, and Haruko, who were all confused as to Ichigo's sudden change in behavior.

"Ichigo?" Rangiku called out. "Are you okay?"

Ichigo didn't respond at first, his eyes were hidden by a shadow. "Yeah, it's tomorrow."

Rangiku was confused. "Ichigo?"

Ichigo merely finished his pancakes and walked off.

Haruko asked, though everyone was thinking it. "What's wrong with Ichigo?"

In moments, Karin and Yuzu's spirits deflated.

"That's right, tomorrow's the day."

"We better get everything ready."

"I need to put up a sign," said Isshin, "saying we'll be closed tomorrow."

Isshin, Yuzu and Karin then finished their pancakes and walked away, leaving their guests high and dry as to what was going on.

Haruko broke the silence. "What was that all about?"

"Haruko." Tatsuki turned to Haruko. "What's the date today?"

"Huh?" Haruko checked her watch. "Oh, today, it's June 16."

"I knew it." Tatsuki hid her eyes under the shadow of her hair.

Orihime was alarmed. "Tatsuki?"

"It's nothing to worry about." Tatsuki reassured everyone. "I know why Ichigo and his family are acting like this. And I'll bet you tomorrow, we're going to the cemetery."

That night, Isshin had gathered everyone in the living room. "First order is to go over everyone's jobs for tomorrow and as chairman, I have the final say in all decisions."

"As if," Karin complained. "What kind of meeting is this and who made you chairman?"

Isshin pointed a finger at his daughter. "Hey, hey, you must raise your hand if you wish to speak, chief of staff."

"Hold on, I'm chief of staff?" She put a hand to her chin and smiled, pondering the possibilities.

"Rangiku here is my second in command." Isshin explained. "Haruko, you're in charge of handling lunch and Yuzu is your secretary."

"Aye-aye, Chairman!" said the former office lady.

"Only because she's such a great cook," Yuzu added, smiling.

Isshin pointed towards Tatsuki. "Tatsuki, you and Orihime will load our packs."

Tatsuki sighed. "Well, if we have to."

"Of course we have to!" Orihime bowed. "And of course we will."

Later that night, Ichigo and the girls were in their shared room, with the girls still worried about Ichigo. He hadn't said anything to Orihime while they'd brushed their teeth together and hadn't given Rangiku so much as a glare when she'd feigned lifting her shirt for him.

"Is there something going on, Ichigo?" Rangiku asked. "You've been a bit off recently. First you blow up on Haruko when we were picking up her stuff from her apartment, now all of this. What's wrong?"

Ichigo broke the silence. "Rangiku, listen."

"Hmm…?"

"I know I have serious responsibilities as a Soul Reaper, but I was wondering… Could I maybe take tomorrow off?"

Rangiku raised an eyebrow. "Is there any particular reason you want to take tomorrow off?"

Ichigo explained, "It's the anniversary. The anniversary of my mom's death. Well, actually, it's not just the day she died." Ichigo turned to look at Rangiku. "It's when she was killed."

Rangiku put a hand to her open mouth, as if to cover the fact she'd been left speechless.

At the Urahara shop, over a cup of tea, Kisuke was having an enlightening conversation of his own.

"I gotta admit, I never expected to have you as a guest, especially given our history," said Kisuke, keeping his eyes hidden by a shadow from his hat. "Although, considering what you mentioned, I guess it's exceptional. But here's another question. What's going on with Lieutenant Matsumoto's powers?"

Kisuke's guest daintily sipped his drink. "'Going on'?"

The shopkeeper himself took his own sip, if only to log his guest's answer away with the others. "I noticed that she had to use twice as much spirit energy in order to use her Shikai. Yes, she's wearing her limiter, and she gave up half of her powers to Ichigo, but even with one-tenth of her power, she shouldn't be so weak.. So either the Hogyoku is making her weaker or Aizen is making the Hollows stronger."

The guest, who was a thin, tall, and youthful man with very sharp features and unusual silver hair, with his eyes kept narrowed to slits, simply answered, "You shouldn't jump to any conclusions, Kisuke. The answer could simply be that Rangiku's Zanpakuto spirit is having an affair with Ichigo's Zanpakuto spirit."

Kisuke racked his amazing brain for how that could ever be described with the word 'simply'.

In Hueco Mundo, no, in the shadow of a mighty porcelain castle at the center of the desolate desert, Grand Fisher was approached by what appeared to be a very tall man with a thin, lanky body.

"Hello, weakling. You like eating women and children, right?"

And that was chapter 9. Well, that was my first chapter to be original rather than being based off of an already existing chapter from the manga or episode from the anime, canon or filler. I'm not sure how it turned out, but I hope it was good enough for all of you. For those of you who are wondering why I had Haruko be an assistant teacher rather than a student like Rangiku is, I actually got the idea from a review for chapter 1 from Xerzo LotCN where he stated, and I quote: "Also im curious how rangiku will go with blending in can she fit as a school girl or would she be a teacher or a councilor?". While I went with the student idea for Rangiku, since that's what she posed as in the manga and anime, I never let go of the other ideas, and since Haruko looks a bit too old to be a high school student (at least to me, correct me if I'm wrong) I felt that the teacher (or assistant teacher in this case) idea would suit her. I might change my mind and have her be a councilor instead in the future, but for now, I'll let you be the judges.

So anyway, as you can see, Haruko is secretly working for the Sternritters, as I mentioned in the last chapter. On top of that, she possess a medallion that is capable of stealing a Soul Reaper's Bankai. Now, I am aware that nobody can use Bankai yet, with the exception of Kisuke and Yoruichi, but it's only a matter of time before Ichigo and/or Rangiku achieve it, and when they do, Haruko will be waiting.

Now as I said before, this chapter was just the calm before the storm. The next chapter will return to what happened in the manga and anime and, as you can see, it revolves around Ichigo and his family visiting his mother's grave. Stay tuned for the inevitable encounter with the Grand Fisher, the very Hollow that Rangiku was originally assigned to hunt down at the start of this story.

Author's Note: Now for those of you who were wondering if this was a harem or not, my answer is... YES, this is a harem. The reason I didn't reveal this at the start of the story was because even I didn't know where I was going with this, at first. All I was doing was make it up as I went along while using the plots from the episodes of the anime as templates. For those of you who like (or just don't mind) that has become a harem, congratulations. However, I still have one girl left to include. I haven't revealed who it is yet, but I will say that she's an Arrancar. I'll reveal who she is in the next chapter, but I'll bet some of you can already guess who she is. For those of you who don't like that this is a harem, I'm sorry that this wasn't what you wanted to hear and I guess I can't stop you from leaving. But you're always welcome to come back if you ever change your minds. I may do a non-harem version of this in the future, but for now, this is the only version I have. I hope you're not too disappointed by this news and if/when I'm ready to write a non-harem version, you're more than welcome to help.

Chapter 10: June 17, Memories in the Rain