Confessions and Depression
Part one:
Breeze
"Toshirou! Oi!" Ichigo called out into the darkness of Hitsugaya's Estate. Rangiku quickly jumped out and shushed him. "Shhh! Ichigo, please, be quiet. Hitsugaya-sama is currently unavailable. Please talk to me about anything that concerns you or… you know." By 'you know' Ichigo knew she meant the Hans and Scourge.
"Alright, Rangiku." He sighed and looked at her seriously. "I know Toshirou's more in contact with the 'higher-ups' than I am, so he –or you- must know… who is the Slayer?"
Rangiku blinked at him. Once. Twice. Then, she laughed. "Oh. Ichigo! You should know, the Slayer hasn't been chosen yet!"
Ichigo sweat dropped. Only Rangiku would say that. Did the woman even know what year it was? "Ran, do you know what year it is?" Ichigo asked the buxom woman.
She smiled. "Sure! It's 1944, right?"
Well, at least she wasn't going senile.
"Yes, and who was the last Slayer?" Ichigo asked patiently. He knew how… slow, Rangiku was.
"Oh, um… it was around seventy or so years ago, I think… oh, yeah! Her name was Dia…" Rangiku's silly smile suddenly turned into a worried frown. "Uh-oh. HITSUGAYA!" She screeched, turning sharply and running towards –what Ichigo assumed was- Toshirou's bedroom.
"Hitsugaya-sama, the Slayers… they…" Rangiku started as she sprinted into her master's room. "The new generation Slayer is… Hitsugaya-sama?" The strawberry blonde stared at her boss with an odd expression.
Hitsugaya was standing next to the giant, Victorian window, his eyes blank and unreadable. "I know, Matsumoto. I know all about it."
Mitsuki looked around the train station anxiously. Where is that woman?
She had gotten a call the day before, from someone named Dianne Kusaku. She had claimed she was Rukia's grandmother, and asked her to pick her up.
"Excuse me, sir," Mitsuki finally gave up looking on her own, and asked one of the attendants. "Um, do you know where platform number eight is?"
He smiled kindly at her, showing off crooked, yellow teeth. "Down there, love. Just take a right at platform six, and keep walking down and past seven. Then take the first right until you see a large "eight" sign." The gray-haired man instructed in a thick English accent.
She huffed lightly, and forced a smile. The Kuchiki girl had had a bit of a rough morning, and looking around for her sister-in-law's grandmother was not a part of her agenda. But the old coot had said she knew something about the Next Generation Slayer, and Mitsuki had wanted to know more after Kisuke filled in most of the gaps the day before. "Thank you, sir." And with that said, she walked off to platform eight.
"Six, seven…" Mitsuki mumbled to herself as she looked at the passing signs. She suddenly felt someone bump against her, and she then found herself on the ground, her trench coat and dress covered in wrinkles and spotted with dirt. "Ouch… what hit me…?" She grumbled and rubbed her back. "Are you alright, ma'am?"
The Slayer looked up, and blinked. In front of her was a man with dark black hair, three scars on his face, and the tattoo '69' on his right cheek. How odd. "Are you deaf or something? I asked if you were okay!" The man said again, impatiently.
She immediately jumped up and sweat dropped, ignoring his outstretched hand. "Oh, I'm sorry! Yes, I'm perfectly fine, sir! How about you, though? Are you hurt?" The man shook his head. "Ah, no." She nodded and smiled. "Great. My name's Mitsuki. Mitsuki Kuchiki."
Kuchiki? He smiled. "Hisagi Shuheii, at your service!"
Mitsuki giggled. Despite his appearance, he really was very polite. Then she realized it was just about noon. "Oh, no! She'll be here any second! Hisagi-san, I'm sorry, but I'm going to be late in picking someone up. Hopefully, we'll meet again." She looked at him apologetically, and sprinted off into the eighth terminal.
He stared at her back. "If fate lets us, Kuchiki-san. If fate lets us…" He sighed, and walked to a payphone. "Yes. Can you patch me through with a Mr. Ryuken Ishida? Tell him it's Shuheii." He spent the next few seconds looking at Mitsuki's retreating back as she skipped down the path like a school girl. He immediately felt guilty about his decision.
"Yes…Mr. Ishida, I think… I think I've got her. The other Hunter's will most certainly be pleased… After all, this is the first hybrid our organization encountered in over seventy years."
"My name is Dianne Kusaku. Rukia's grandmother. I would love to speak to you in person. After all, it's safe to assume you were one of the people responsible for training my sweet little Rukia to be a cold-blooded killer, right? Not only that, but… I have some information about a certain someone that I'm sure you'd just love to get your little half-breed hands on."
Mitsuki recalled the conversation she and Dianne had earlier. Despite her calling Mitsuki a 'half-breed' the old woman really was nice. She was willing to give out information anyone, Vampire, Slayer, or Hunter alike would want.
Mitsuki's gray orbs kept darting back and forth, trying to find Dianne. Then, her mouth dropped. All Dianne said about her appearance was 'You'll know when you see me'. And man, was she right.
It was safe to say, in Mitsuki's case, that Dianne Kusaku and Rukia Kuchiki could be twins. The only difference was a sophisticated looking gray streak (Much like Mitsuki's own) in a silky mass of brown-black hair, and her eyes were a metallic blue. She really doesn't look all that old. People could mistake her for thirty, maybe forty years old! The Kuchiki Slayer thought to herself, watching at the Rukia-look-alike in awe.
Mitsuki snapped out of her revere long enough to go up to the 'old woman' and ask, "Excuse me, ma'am. Are you Dianne Kusaku?"
She looked at Mitsuki suspiciously. "Yes, I am. And who might you be, missy?" Her voice was thick with an English accent.
Damn. Even her voice sounds young! Mitsuki gave her half a smile. "Um… I'm Mitsuki. Mitsuki Kuchiki. I think we talked on the phone?" She looked at her, half hoping she was right, and half hoping she was wrong in her assumptions.
Dianne smiled kindly at her. "Ah, yes. Ms. Kuchiki. We did. Come now, I don't think you like standing out here, in the cold." She kept up her smile, and, while dragging her duffle bag behind her, started walking towards the exit.
"Hey! H-hold on a sec!" Mitsuki yelped, trying to catch up with her. "Um, Kusaku-san, if you don't mind me asking, uh… why do you look so… so…"
"Young?" She finished for Mitsuki. "I'll tell you later, Mitsuki-chan. But for now, let's just get to know each other, shall we?"
Mitsuki looked at Dianne, confused, but nodded. "Sure."
"If you want to, I can save you; I can take you away from here… so lonely inside, so busy out there. And all you wanted was someone who cares…"
Rukia sang along to the song playing on her radio. "I'm sinking slowly… so baby hold me!"
"Mikoto, sweetie? Are you ready yet? Ukitake-san is going to be here any minute!" Rukia called out. It was Miki's first day of 'home-schooling'. Urahara had decided it would be best if Mikoto was trained to be a Slayer.
A Slayer. You know; the people who kill and deceive on a daily basis? The people who are put in life-and-death situations not only with Demons and Vampires, but Hunters as well? The people who are trained with practically no emotions in the workplace?
Yes, those Slayers.
Even though she was one herself, Rukia hated the idea of her niece hiding guns and knives from very dangerous creatures. Rukia became a Slayer because she had to. Not because she wanted to.
Wow, Rukia thought, turning off her radio. I'm already a better mother than mine ever was. She shrugged and waited for a reply.
"Alright, okay! I'm ready!" Mikoto yelped as she ran into the living room, clad in a blue spring dress. "Is Ukitake-sensei here yet?"
"No, but he will be, soon!" Rukia smirked as the doorbell rang. "That's probably him!" Mikoto practically jumped at the door. She was pretty excited that she was getting to learn, as she put, 'how to kill the meanie Vampires!'
How cute was that?
Rukia thought it was very cute.
"Hello, Miki-chan!" A man with bluish-white hair and dark brown eyes smiled down at the little seven-year-old. "Ukitake-sensei!" She squealed, hugging him. "Are you going to teach me how to slay those really mean demons?" She asked it as if she were asking him to buy her a toy.
"In about… ten years, maybe." He joked. Actually, most Slayer trainees learn how to kill within the second year of their training. It's actually the second lesson of all the academies and home-schooling Slayer's lessons.
The first is how to stay alive.
Rukia smiled, vaguely remembering asking her sister that question. She had recommended Ukitake.
"Okay, okay. I'm leaving so you guys can learn whatever. Just don't burn down the house, okay?" Ukitake thought it was a joke, so he laughed. Rukia shook her head. "I'm serious. If anything goes wrong, Orihime is in the next room over, looking over some medical reports she got from the 4th Division. I'm going to be in town so there will be no possible way to reach me. Ukitake, Miki, please don't make me regret this decision." She smiled, and left.
Mikoto stared at the door, and blinked. Once. Twice. Then…
"What do we do now?"
"So that's why you look so… well, young." Mitsuki smiled at Dianne. They were seated outside a small café called 'Summer'. Apparently, the 'old' woman was a hybrid, like Mitsuki. She had gotten bitten back in 1871, by a Vampire who went by the name of Grimmjow Jaggerjack. "It really was a shame. He was so nice… well, to me, anyways. Kind of rude towards anyone else. I was dying by one of his comrades… and he gave me immortality." She sighed almost dreamily. "It was like walking on air… did it feel like that with you, too?"
Mitsuki thought back to the night of her conversion. She remembered screaming, an apology from Karin, blinding pain, and what felt like a soft hug from Hitsugaya. Nothing that felt like walking on air. It was more like… drowning in a sea of lava, not being burnt, but feeling the burning. She shivered. "N-no. Not really."
Dianne nodded in understanding. "You probably were feeling hatred, maybe betrayal if it was so painful. If it had a dull aching feeling about a day afterwards, you were feeling confused, maybe even lonely. But if you felt happy, euphoric, like I did, you were glad you were turned into what you are." She offered a smile. "Mitsuki, have you ever heard of the Kousen no Shinku Yuki*?"
Mitsuki nodded. "I think so. Wasn't it a war between Vampires, Slayers, Hunters, and Shifter Demons back in the 1870's?"
Dianne nodded solemnly. "Yes. It was. Kauri-kun's son, Kisuke, told you about the 'Generation Slayer', right?"
"Some of it…" Mitsuki mumbled, sipping her tea. "He told me she was the most powerful Slayer of her time." Dianne nodded. "That's correct. In truth, the Generation Slayer isn't always revealed. Sometimes, it can take decades before the next one is called forth." She laughed lightly, stirring her coffee. "I was the Generation Slayer nearly seventy years ago."
Mitsuki almost choked. "H-huh?"
Dianne nodded. "Yep... and, there's something else you need to know about Aizen."
"So… it seems the Slayer has awoken yet again."
Rukia's head shot up, and the store clerk in front of her looked at the Kuchiki woman oddly. "Are you okay, Rukia?" The woman knew Rukia from her many visits to the store. The Slayer nodded. "Um, yeah… I just thought I heard someone say my name… I'm fine, Hari." Rukia laughed awkwardly.
"She is said to combat all forces of darkness. She is said to be the savior of the Earth."
Rukia shook out the voices yet again. They seemed so familiar… like they were here to help her. Like she knew and could trust whoever these people were. But she couldn't tell who they were, or if they were old family or friends.
"She is you, Rukia Kuchiki. You are the Slayer."
Rukia bit her lip, holding back a scream that came with a pounding headache.
"Rukia…" Matsumoto sighed in exasperation. She finally remembered the petite girl from her years as a 'human'. Hitsugaya had sent her to a normal middle school for a while, to try and find the next Generation Slayer. And oh yes, Matsumoto found her. She just never realized it.
Until now, that is.
"Damn it," Rangiku cursed, and dropped the class photo into the fireplace.
She needed her sake.
Present Day, 2009
Misuzu's POV
Ichiru was such a sweet girl. Reminds me a lot of myself when I was her age.
I walked through the crowded streets, stopping in front of a large, white building. Osaka's psyche ward. I walked into the depressing building, and smiled at the receptionist, Yuki. "Hey, Yuki." She smiled brightly at me. "Hello, Misuzu! I didn't see you here last week. Busy with work?"
I nodded. It was a lie. In all my years of life, I never really grew accustomed to lying, even though I do it every day to survive this cruel world. "Yeah… how is she? Any better?"
Yuki shook her head sadly. "Well… she was recalling some real past events. Not just silly hallucinations. She was saying something about a girl named Rukia… and a young man named Toshirou. Do you know who they are?"
I looked down. "Rukia… was her sister. Toshirou was her… best friend." I looked back up, and smiled. "I'll be back in about twenty, okay? Can you… make sure no one bothers us? I want to ask her a few more questions."
"Okay, Misuzu…"
I walked down the hall towards her room. Mitsuki Kuchiki's room. I opened her door, and walked in quietly. She was sitting up in bed, staring blankly out the window. I offered her a smile as I closed and locked the door behind me. I finally let the spell drop. My gray eyes turned amethyst, and my blonde hair went black.
I was Mikoto again.
"Hey, auntie Mitsuki!" I chirped, hoping she'd recognize my voice.
She did.
"Miki?" Her voice was hoarse. She called my name once, twice, three times. She was still staring out the window. "How's Rukia doing?" Her mind is still caught in that time. In December, 1944, in Karakura Town. I decided to, yet again, save her whatever's left of her sanity.
"She's great. You know, she really misses you. So does Hitsugaya." I lied again. Hitsugaya doesn't miss her. He tries to forget her. Since the war… my life, Mitsuki's life, everyone's life, was a living hell.
"I miss them, too!" She laughed. I miss her laughs. Not this one, though. Her laughs nowadays are empty, hollow, and devoid of any emotion. The Mitsuki I'll always remember was so full of smiles… so full of kindness. So… not this.
I smile bitterly. "Miki… before I forget, happy birthday. A girl only turns eight once, right? I promise you, once I get out of here, you, and I will go on an all-out shopping spree! I'll even drag Toshirou along!" She says this every week. Every damned week. She still sees me as a little eight year old. My hair in pigtails, skipping around in a cute little winter dress.
I'm a woman now. I look nearly twenty-eight, now. A full grown, Vampire.
It's true. Hitsugaya did it, at my request. I wanted to live. Be immortal. I have to look after Mitsuki, and whatever's left of my family. I have to find, and help train the next Slayer. Now that Yoruichi and Urahara are gone, I have to.
I have to.
"I'm looking forward to that. Well… I got to go. I'll come by again, next week, okay?" She nods, and I sigh. This is just too painful.
I quickly walk out the door, and almost immediately bump into someone. I growl upon seeing who it is. "Hitsugaya Toshirou. What are you doing here?" My voice is dripping with venom. He gives me half a smile. "Just came to say 'hi'."
"She hasn't changed in nearly sixty-seven years. You haven't even spoken about her in fifty of those sixty-seven! And you have the nerve to come here?" I was overcome with rage. He didn't care about her. Hell, I barely cared about her! She actually dared to go mentally insane, and leave me all alone in the world? My eyes welled up with tears as my mind caught up with what I was thinking.
I was still glaring daggers at him. He just looked at me calmly. Now I know what made Mitsuki hate him so much. He was a cold-hearted bastard.
I sped past him. I ignored him entirely. I heard him whisper…
"I'm sorry."
I didn't care. He was so full of shit. His apologies don't mean anything.
Not anymore.
End POV
April 01, 1944
Mikoto stared up at her bedroom ceiling. "Auntie Mitsuki … auntie Rukia…" She whispered, curling up into a small ball. And, after reviewing the dream she had just had, peered at the small, bedside alarm clock. Squinting in the darkness, she saw it was nearly three in the morning. Mikoto smiled bitterly. Too early to bother Rukia.
She tensed; something was watching her… something…
She shook her head and forced herself to relax. Nothing was there… nothing… absolutely nothing…
And with that one thought, she closed her amethyst eyes, and did not fall asleep.
The feeling of someone observing her never left.
"Where's Ichigo?" Senna asked one quiet Saturday morning.
"Don't know. Probably at Hitsugaya's again." Karin shrugged.
"Do you like Ichigo, Senna?" Sakura asked the violet haired woman. Karin stopped flipping through TV channels. Senna stopped flipping through her Book of Shadows. "Excuse me, Sakura?" Her voice was cold, and unpleasant.
"I saw the spell you cast." Was all Sakura said, her voice also blisteringly cold. "'To Protect a Lover', huh?" Her eyes were cold, and she was staring at Senna with murderous intent. Reiko loved Ichigo. Reiko's soul loved Ichigo. Whoever was Reiko's reincarnation was Ichigo's soul mate.
"Tell me, are you Reiko? Are you truly Reiko's reincarnation? If you are, I guess I can't stop you. But if you aren't, just know that you will never… ugh!" Sakura was cut off as Senna lunged at her, choking the Brachen girl.
"Damn you, you little bitch! Tell me, what does that wench Reiko have that I don't?" Sakura glared at the Demon currently strangling her. "You're cursing a dead woman, Senna!" She screamed, and Senna stopped, her eyes wide with insanity and guilt.
"Temperance should have been the one to get Ichigo… she should have been his only one. But that damn bastard... he just had to screw everything up… by falling in love with Reiko. You should have seen that poor woman's face when he announced their marriage."
"Reiko and I will soon be getting married!"
"He was so… happy. I hated it. And if he hadn't made poor little Temperance cry that day… I most likely never would have snapped. She was sobbing, Sakura. Sobbing! She would have gone insane if Gin and I hadn't…" Senna immediately realized her error.
"Hadn't what?" Karin finally spoke. "What did you do, Senna?" Her eyes were blazing with a fiery rage.
"Senna…" Sakura whispered, rubbing her neck carefully.
"Nothing… I'll be right back…" And with that said, Senna grabbed her black trench coat, and made for the door.
Neither Karin nor Sakura tried to stop her. "How much did you hear?" Sakura murmured, turning to the door that led to the kitchen. Ichigo walked out, a stoic look on his face. "More than enough." He muttered, running a hand through his hair.
"Now do you believe us? Now do you believe us when we say Senna is Temperance?" Karin asked her brother, turning off the television.
He looked back at his sister and comrade. Then, he looked at a piece of paper in his hands, ten numbers scrawled across it. "Yes. I do."
"This is a crime. Falling for a Vampire is strictly forbidden. Do you know why that is? It's because this kind of love only leads to intense heartbreak. Take my advice, and don't make the jump. Don't fall off this cliff, thinking that monster is there to catch you."
The voices inside her head… the once soothing, warm whispers had turned into screams and warnings, threats and battle cries.
"If you truly love someone, then don't hesitate. But don't think for a second that they will ever love you back."
It had been three weeks since they first appeared, at the supermarket. And Rukia was going crazy.
"Kuchiki?" Rukia looked up and saw two worried, golden amber eyes. "Oh, hi, Yoruichi. Yeah, I'm fine… just a bit… stressed out. Um… any new missions I could take? The peace is kind of working my nerves." She laughed sheepishly, toying with her fingers.
Yoruichi shook her head. "Nothing that needs immediate attention." She shrugged. "Why don't you take a training day with Urahara and me?"
Rukia thought about it. It would get her mind off of these stupid voices.
"That sounds great."
Mitsuki sighed heavily as another Turok-Han turned to ash. Damn, what's with all these things?
"I'm surprised the Slayer's aren't here yet. They're usually so fast." Mitsuki commented as Dianne walked up behind her. "Yes, they are. But you should know by now, Vampires and Demons are more acute to sensing these things than humans, even if they are Slayers."
"I guess so," Mitsuki giggled, wiping sweat from her brow. "Hey… Dianne, when Grimmjow bit you, did you get… visions, of some sort? When you were sleeping? Like dreams, only they felt so real?"
The ex-Slayer shook her head. "Sorry. Can't say I did. Why? Getting some premonitions? I've heard of occurrences like that, but never experienced it." She shrugged. "Why don't we get back to your training? You need to be physically and mentally prepared. As a matter of fact, so does Rukia. I'll have to help Urahara and Shihoin with that later." She giggled, and pointed to something behind Mitsuki.
"Heads up! Lizard Demons, ten o' clock!"
"Do you seriously want to do this?"
Rukia panted as she dodged more of Yoruichi's attacks. Damn… they didn't call her the Goddess of Flash and Speed for nothing.
"You can stop all of this now. Just admit to yourself you don't love him!"
'Love who?' Rukia mentally screamed, deciding enough was enough.
"Ichigo Kurosaki, of course. Just admit this one fact, and I can stop Aizen right now." The little voice echoed. "You don't belong with him. Senna does. Senna always did!"
'Ichigo… what does Strawberry have to do with…?"
"WHOA!" Rukia yelped as she lost her footing, dodging Yoruichi's katana. The dark-skinned woman smirked triumphantly. "You let your guard down, Kuchiki."
"Admit it. Admit it…" The voice was persistent.
'No… I won't. I don't have to. Because the truth is… I do love him. I do love Ichigo Kurosaki.'
Where did that come from? She hardly knew the man, yet she felt as though she could trust him with her life. He was like her world.
"You're going to regret this. You'll regret this when you're laying face-down on the ground, blood spewing from your mouth." And then, the voice was gone.
Rukia sheathed her katana. "Damn it…" She muttered.
"Rukia?" Yoruichi's voice broke her out of her thoughts. "Yeah, Yoruichi?" She responded back, toying with a loose strand of hair from her ponytail.
"You know the old stories about… the Generation Slayer, right?"
Rukia nodded slowly. "Why?"
"Oh, I just ask because if you do, that'll make this conversation much easier."
Part 2:
Ocean
You never did mean to look at me like that…
with so much longing…
Right…?
"You've got to stop this,"
I whispered with all my might.
And after that, you left me,
and my heart trembled,
with unimaginable misery.
I never should have asked you… to make sure we stay apart.
All I know is, when we meet again,
you will ask and say,
"Can't we pretend? For just one more day?"
Flashback
Yoruichi looked at the piece of paper in her hands.
"Mission number 0283, codename: Tenshi. A two-man squad mission. Who was sent, Special Ops Force or Speed Force?"
Urahara sighed. "Special Ops Force number thirty-two, Inoue Orihime and Rukia Kuchiki."
_-_-_Meanwhile_-_-_-_
"Ichigo Kurosaki, stay right where you are." A hoarse, worn voice called, accompanied by the sound of a gun being loaded.
The orange haired Vampire turned slowly, coming face to face with the raven-haired woman who had been following him for nearly eight miles. Her violet eyes were shimmering with hate, and her gun was pointed at his chest.
"Kurosaki-san, do you know why you're here?" She continued when he was silent. "You're here, to pay for your crimes." She took two steps forward. "You have a soul, a heart…" She continued, taking three more steps. "You should know where I'm getting at."
After a moment, he spoke. "I do. Rukia." He said, using her first name. "And I've atoned for my sins."
"How? You're not dead." She stated, stepping forward until there was no less than four feet between them. She pressed her gun right up against his chest.
"You… have no idea what it feels like to do the things I've done… and actually care." He breathed the words, as if just being near her would kill him.
Then again, it probably would.
Her voice was quiet. "Don't I? You may have killed many, but so have I. I've killed children, men, woman… even my own superior officer, Kaien Shiba." Rukia shrugged. "But seriously, what's one more?" She asked him as she gripped the gun tighter.
He placed a hand on top of Rukia's'. "I used to think like that. That I've already killed, what's one more? But soon, that one turned into one hundred." He carefully took the gun from her hands. Rukia glared at the Vampire, who was now staring at her with emotionless eyes.
"You may be right, but I…"
"ICHI-NII!" A shrill voice called, and Rukia tensed. "Damn it…" She cursed, and almost immediately unsheathed her dagger, pressing it roughly to Ichigo's throat. "Might as well finish this up quickly." She whispered, and was just about to slice open his neck, when…
Light.
A light stopped her. She heard a voice echo, "Don't." And, then, the next thing Rukia knew, she was in her room.
She couldn't remember anything.
"I remember… everything."
Rukia was staring at her ceiling, blinking back tears. "That was… five… five years ago today…" She choked lightly on her quiet sobs, and brought her knees up to her stomach, burying her face in her hands. "Oh my God… what am I going to do?"
"Rukia?" It was Inoue. Her gray eyes were torn between confusion and worry. She took a few steps forward, and sat down on the couch next to her friend.
"Are you alright?"
"Ichigo… good luck."
The Kurosaki's eyes snapped open. That sounded a lot like…
Reiko.
He shook his head wildly. It couldn't have been.
"Ichigo-san?" A sweet voice asked, full of concern. Ichigo looked up from his position on the couch, to be met with two worried, blue-green irises. Sakura. "Uh… yeah, Sakura?" She looked at him for a few moments before gently touching his cheek with her soft hand.
"Are you okay? You're crying…"
Ichigo gasped and quickly wiped away the water dripping from his eyes. Ichigo Kurosaki, one of the Underworld's most elite Vampires, did not cry. "I'm fine. And I'm not crying."
Sakura stared at him for a moment, a stoic expression on her face. Then, her brows knitted in a worried frown. "If you say so. But just remember, if you ever need anything, Karin and I will always be there to help."
He nodded quickly, and made for his room. "Damn it… Rukia…"
April 1, 1944 11:22 PM
Rukia hesitated. For the first time in God knows how long, she hesitated.
She bit her lip.
She tried to calm trembling hands.
She felt her knees buckle.
Then, gathering whatever courage she had, grasped the phone in her hand tightly, and proceeded to dial the number she had long-since memorized.
622-639-482…
"Telephone! Bro, it's for you," Karin smiled lightly as Ichigo took the phone.
"Hello?"
It was silent. Then…
"…Hey."
Rukia's stomach was in knots. Why did she do this?
Oh, right. The truth.
"Listen… Ichigo, I know this is really sudden, but… could you… I don't know… come and meet me at the park? In an hour, maybe?"
"Sure. Hey, Rukia, where are you? I don't hear anything. Usually when we talk I can hear some sort of noise in the background." Rukia's violet eyes drifted from left to right. "I'm not home. I'm using a payphone. It… It's too noisy…"
She was lying. She just needed to hear his voice. And ask him so many questions, without attracting Inoue or Mikoto's attention.
"Oh… okay. Karakura Park, ten o' clock, right?"
She swallowed thickly. "Perfect." Why did it feel like someone was… watching her?
"Actually, Ich," She stopped him from hanging up.
"Yeah, Ru?"
She was silent. She was listening for footsteps… heavy breathing… something.
Anything.
"…Please, hurry."
The line went dead.
"Inoue-san."
"Yes, Miki?" Inoue asked the young girl, busily chopping away at a tomato. Dinner was over. She just needed something to do. "Is something wrong?"
Mikoto looked outside with blank eyes. "No. It's going to rain soon." Inoue turned around and saw the approaching storm clouds from outside the window. She smiled weakly. "Ah. So it is. Looks like it'll be a hard one! I hope Rukia get's home alright…"
Mikoto nodded, barely registering the auburn-haired healer's words.
"Me, too."
"Hey, how about we watch a movie? Doesn't that sound fun?"
Mikoto's eyes hardened and she shook her head. "No. It doesn't."
"Okay, then what do you want to do?" Orihime smiled weakly, washing the cutting board and knife.
"I want to go see Auntie Mimi."
"Ichigo, thanks for coming out so late." Rukia smiled almost weakly at her companion.
"No problem. What did you want to talk about that we couldn't talk about over the phone?" He asked, motioning for her to walk with him around the park. He quietly slipped his hand into her cold one. "Well… quite a few things, really. First of all, do you know what a Slayer is?"
He visibly tensed. "I might. Why?"
Rukia sighed, eyeing the 'young man' at her side. "A Slayer is someone who kills Demons. Vampires, Goblins, Ghouls, Ghosts, I could go on."
"I see." His voice was quiet, and nearly emotionless. "You don't seem so surprised," Rukia accused in the same quiet tone. "Why is that, Vampire?" She spat the last word like venom.
Ichigo's eyes widened. In that one instant, she sounded so much like…
"Tell me, Vampire."
"Reiko."
Rukia looked at him with cold violet eyes. "Excuse me?" She asked, glaring at him now. He stared back with wide eyes. "You… you can't be… but… you're…"
He pictured Reiko's smiling face, and then looked to Rukia's scowling features. "Reiko," He breathed, and then he remembered her last question. 'Why is that, Vampire?' He took a step back. "How in the world did you…"
"Know that?"
This was bad. Very, very bad. Here was a Slayer, his mortal enemy, quite possibly armed, and here he was, defenseless, and he could never lay a hand on her with his new found knowledge. "You called me Reiko." She stated blankly.
"Wasn't she a Slayer, about one thousand years back?" Rukia asked, crossing her arms. She didn't appear to want to kill him, but Ichigo still had to stay on his toes. "I'd heard she got together with a Vampire, but I never would have thought it'd be you." She shrugged. "So, what was it? A reincarnation bind? Her sister was a priestess. It wouldn't have been hard." She huffed, and walked past him. "Get over here, Ichigo. I'm not gonna kill you. I'm as mad as hell, though."
"What exactly did you think?" She started when he caught up with her. "That I was her reincarnation?" She stared at him coldly, and then sighed. "Never mind."
"No. Not never mind. You were absolutely correct. I did think that. Actually, I know you're her reincarnation." He said stubbornly, staring at her intently. The blazing eyes, constant mood swings, ebony hair, violet irises, petite frame… everything was so Reiko, but at the same time, so not.
"I'm not!" She screeched as lightning flashed. "I'm not her, Ichigo!" She was near tears. "I'm… n-not…" She was glaring at him fiercely. "Ichigo Kurosaki, I am Rukia fucking Kuchiki! Not your sappy little fairytale girlfriend who claimed she'd be 'reborn' every generation! I am my own person! This isn't some fairytale! This is real life. And no matter how much it hurts, you've got to learn. There are no happy endings in real life." She choked on a strangled sob.
"It must've been nice. Living in denial for all those years…" She laughed bitterly. "I just wish… I had enough willpower to do just what you did, even just for a bit. Maybe… just maybe… I'd have been able to save myself from the heartbreak." She smiled weakly at him. "Is that what you did, Ichigo?"
She sounded so… broken.
He wanted to prove her wrong. He needed to prove her wrong. He caught her by the shoulders, and did something totally unexpected.
He kissed her.
This is so wrong, he mentally screamed. She'll end up just like Reiko! Do you want that?
No. His mind's other half fought back. I don't… I love her… I love her more than I ever loved Reiko…
"I'm not her!"
Ichigo stiffened. She wasn't. There never was any 'reincarnations'. Every woman he thought to be Reiko, was another girl, who he forced himself to love. It was in that moment her realized Reiko lied. She just wanted him to be happy. "I'm sorry… Rei… but I've found someone new. Someone new…" He apologized mentally, kissing Rukia harder.
Rukia's eyes were closed. She was in shock, most defiantly, but she was enjoying it. My… god… this is so… wrong. But then why does it feel so totally right? Rukia asked herself this question, and quickly grabbed his shirt collar. For a second, he feared she'd push him away. But instead, she broke off and whispered…
"Help me understand how you can still love me, even though you now know I'm not her."
And as she said that one sentence, and as Ichigo grabbed her hand, pulling her to God-knows-where, Rukia wasn't so sure anymore. She wasn't so sure she could call herself pure after tonight. And no matter how confident, how much fool-proof arrogance she held, she was almost positive about it.
She was certain the next morning, when she awoke in Ichigo's arms.
She was no longer human.
Yoruichi looked through the glass window, watching the steady rise and fall of Mitsuki's chest, and the spiking heart monitors. Her heart had skipped nearly five beats, at one point. Yoruichi sighed, looking at Dianne. "Dia, what the hell are you doing here?" She sighed, looking at the retired Slayer.
"Just passing through!" She looked at Mitsuki. "Poor kid… she's never gonna make it."
Yoruichi smirked. "You'd be surprised… that 'kid' is surprisingly strong-willed. After all…" She looked at Orihime, who was sitting with Mikoto, who looked absolutely terrified. "She has someone who can't afford to be left alone."
Dianne sighed. "Maybe…"
A/N: Not entirely sure how people are going to react to this chapter, but okay, yeah… one of the LONGEST chapters EVER.
*War of Crimson Snow-
The War in Dianne's generation. It was so bloody, it was names 'Crimson Snow' because of it.
The poem for part 2 was written by me! It's entitled, "Just One More Night". If you want to use it, be my guest. Just give me credit! Haha…
And for the whole Mitsuki-Mikoto-Toshirou love/hate thing, I might fix it… or just kill Mitsuki and be done with it. Killing her is so much easier, but it's up to you guys! And Rukia… she's STILL ALIVE in the 'present' timeline. I'm just saving her until the end.
Okay... plz review. Do you seriously want me to leave it here?
Okay, people… time for me to log off.
-TMU, out.
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