There's no plot, no purpose except it's been bothering me and I want to write it before I forget it. I can't possibly sink any lower… hahaha.

Spoilers: Soul Society Arc

Disclaimer: Do not own Bleach characters.

Forgiveness

The Hollow is surprisingly persistent.

The orange-haired male spits out the blood in his mouth. Damn persistent.

Its numerous tentacles makes it hard to sneak up behind it. He has already tried many times, and always ends up in an undignified heap on the ground.

"Demon Arts, Red Shot of Fire!" A flash of jet black hair and she is besides him.

"Ichigo, pull yourself together!" Rukia, his long time partner, demands in an urgent tone.

"Feh, no sweat," the young shinigami replacement replies. He struggles to his feet, a bit unsteady. Ichigo once again rushes at the monstrous Hollow with a battlecry.

Rukia followes his lanky form with concerned eyes.

He's always so reckless…

It is close to midnight and the faint sliver of the moon is currently blocked by the looming clouds. The sensor led them to an abandoned warehouse, where they had found the lurking Hollow. Dispatching it, however, is another matter.

Usually, Ichigo has no problem with the small fry. But lately, the teenager seems… distracted. She had approached him on many occasions, nagging him of his unforced errors. Instead of his usual indignant outbursts, Ichigo just looked at her with a brooding gaze. His quiet 'yeah' unsettles her.

This is not the same Ichigo that brazenly invaded Soul Society to rescue her. This is not the same boy who beat the Gotei captains with a cocky grin on his face. This mild-mannered Ichigo… frightens her.

"Rukia! Watch out!" Too late, she turns her head at his warning only to be met with one of the monster's tentacles. The world turns to black.

"Rukia!" He watches as her frail body slams into a metal wall and crumple uselessly to the ground with a sickening crack. Fury explodes without restraint within his chest. Bright spots dance before his eyes, obstructing vision.

"Bastard!" He yells out and charges with renewed vigor.

Ichigo doesn't notice that his eyes are turning into a dangerous amber. Nor the fact that traces of a pale white mask is materializing in front of his face. All he knows at that moment is that Hollow is going to pay.

The excruciating pain in her side brings her back to consciousness. Partially incoherent still, Rukia slowly opens her eyes. One of her hands goes to her ribcage, where it gingerly assesses her injuries. She swears at her own stupidity. Losing her guard because she was concerned over some teenage boy's angst. Renji and the others will never let her hear the end of this.

With one hand at her side, Rukia uses the wall to push her battered self to a sitting position. It was then that she finally notices the dissolving Hollow, and Ichigo's tall silhouette within the clearing dust.

She smiles with relief. At least someone knows how to take care of themselves.

She opens her mouth to call out to him, but the words die on her lips.

That is not Ichigo.

Amber colored eyes glare at her from an abyss of darkness, with the white mask of a Hollow obscuring half of his visage, the tall figure turns and walks over towards her.

That is not Ichigo.

A wide sadistic grin on the too familiar face, he grabs her by her black gi and lifts her light body in the air. He drops Zangetsu carelessly to the ground. Rukia flinches from his pungent smell of death and blood. Without warning, he slams her back against the unyielding wall. Her vision swims from the fresh assault of pain.

"Hello… Rukia," he rasps into her ear.

"Who are you?" she whispers, yet not wanting to hear his answer. The being ignores her question. He leans in closer, his hot breath sending shivers through her body. His knee comes up between her legs, supporting her weight as the hand that gripped her shirt front moves up to her throat.

"Make one move, and I'll choke the life outta you," the sinister voice cackles. As if to prove his point, his rough fingers wrap themselves around her slender neck. His other hand slithers its way between the folds of her hakama and meets skin. He greedily runs his wanton hand over her smooth flesh, moving even closer so that their bodies are tightly pressed against each other, so that the female shinigami can clearly feel his arousal.

Rukia's eyes widen in shock. "Stop it!"

The person who is not Ichigo turns to look at her distressed face. He smirks in amusement.

"Why? Doncha like it?" The rough pads of his fingers brush the underside of her thigh.

"No," she chokes out, "What have you done to Ichigo?"

"Feh, that weak-ass bastard is gone. Thanks to you."

"What?"

"Yeah, you heard me," he grins evilly, "Cuz you were so amazingly stupid and dense with that boy's feelings, I came out."

She still at his words.

Ichigo's… feelings for me?

He chuckles at the expression of disbelief on her delicate features. Her eyes, large with fear and surprise, are entrancing. No wonder the idiot fell for her.

"Unlike Ichigo, I have no problem taking you right here. Maybe that'll stop his stupid obsession with you. That boy has been denying himself a good piece of flesh," the male flashes her a lecherous smile and proceeds to loosen the folds of her clothing.

Rukia begins to struggle under his hold, but the hand tightening around her throat made spots appear in front of her eyes. She feels her body go limp with the lack of oxygen.

No!

Her mind screamed at her to fight, but where the heart is strong, the body was weak.

The demonic face looms closer to hers. She tries desperately to turn her face away, but crushing fingers on her chin forces her to look upon his detestable face. Rukia glares at him with defiance.

This is not Ichigo.

"Demon Ar-" He cust her off with his mouth, stifling the spell. Rukia shut her lips tightly, refusing him access.

No amount of coaxing could open that delicious mouth. He smirks with amusement.

"How feisty…" he murmurs against her lips. He draws back for a second, but then attacks her again. He catches her lower lip in his mouth and bites down. Hard.

Crimson blood spills from her mouth, running down her jaw, and dripping from her chin onto the strong hand gripping her throat in a death grip.

The creature who is not Ichigo slowly licks her blood from his hand. His tongue traces the scarlet trail until he is back at her mouth. Leisurely, he suckles her injured lip until she cries out. Seizing the opportunity, he swiftly enters her mouth. He punishes her with uncompromising strokes of the tongue, exploring every last inch, leaving no place untouched. Sensitive skin burns under his touch. Her silent screams turns into silent moans. Her body is betraying her.

There is nothing she can do. Her weakened condition leaves her powerless in this monster's hold. If there's one thing Rukia hates the most, it's the feeling of complete, utter helplessness. She closes her eyes.

I deserve this. It's not him that's the monster, I am.

Tears overflow from her eyes, and makes a trail of sorrow down one cheek. A single droplet of water falls on his hand.

He freezes.

Rukia opens her eyes. Amber eyes glare back at her.

He snatches his hand away as if he's been burned. He takes a step back, and then another.

Without his leg to hold her, Rukia sinks to the ground listlessly, her body too weak to support itself. She watchs in bewilderment as the figure in front of her drops to his knees. Both hands clawing desperately at the white mask, the youth lets out an agonized scream. Within seconds, it is over.

Ichigo falls forward on his hands, gasping for breath, and his harsh panting the only sound in the desolate warehouse. He looks up and sees Rukia gazing at him with a horrified expression.

"Rukia," he hoarsely whispers, "Forgive me."

Before she can answer, Ichigo collapses. Ignoring the sharp pains in her side, the female shinigami crawls over to his side. With a tenderness unknown even to herself, she lays a hand on his cheek.

"No, it is I who needs forgiveness."

Notes: Thanks for all those who reviewed! I went back and fixed my horrible grammar. Hopefully it flows better now.

And I still chuckle when ppl add this to alert list. Keep dreaming guys! I wrote this because I had a similar dream while drugged up on cold medicine and having one of the worst flu's of my life. Very low chance of getting another inspirational sick dream I say. Haha.