A/N: A different spin on things. It takes place after the time skip. It's been a while since I've done anything Bleach related.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Tite Kubo does, and the world is a better place because of it.

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Byakuya can see it. He doesn't believe any one else does, but he does, and that is what matters the most. Of course Rukia may deny it, not willingly he perceives, but it would be pointless of her to try. Like a blade that has been used too much and too recklessly during its lifetime, her eyes have been chipped and dulled around the edges. Not sharp, not conflicting, not very noticeable, but it's there all the same. It's a ring around the heart, similar to a wedding band that wraps securely around a woman's finger, and it tells that she has been married to it for some time.

In the seventeen months that have passed, Rukia has changed. Explicit changes they aren't, but they are changes nonetheless. Her hair has grown out; it perfectly shapes her pale and heart shaped face. It no longer stops at her neck, the tips curling back, but rests promisingly down the middle, reaching its end there. She continues to conduct her duties as a Kuchiki nobleman or woman should, and she tends to her duties as a shinigami as well.

Her voice sounds the same...

Her face appears the same...

But it is her eyes, her violet blue eyes that silently unnerve Byakuya when he must engage them.

He thinks of Hisana when he peers into them. Swirls of violent and blue, a wonderful combination, but tolling the sadness as well. There was, is, a spark in them, a spark that he was never able to see in Hisana but has come to life in Rukia.

As of late, no, that's not right, for some time now, he has seen that spark repressed and submerged by a darkness that he could relate to.

A darkness that he has touched before.

A darkness that he has mild experience with.

At his desk, in his office, he stares at the report with a glazed eye. It doesn't grieve him but irritates him to read it; it's easy to admit that this is the solution to his problems. He hesitates on his response, unsure of what direction to immediately take, but he eventually comes to a decision. A young, eager, and new squad member rushes to his office; in a calm, collected, and poise tone of voice he gives him specific instructions which leaves the squad member briefly confused, but he follows the instructions diligently.

Byakuya waits, and he ponders.

In a matter of minutes, the door of his office reopens, and she enters with a sense of speculative and wariness on her features.

"You requested my presence, Nii-sama?"

Yes, her eyes are dull. Like a blade, chipped and misused, they are dull.

It is several minutes before Byakuya opens his mouth in response, and when he does, he speaks in his monotonous tone. Void of any sort of emotion, but holds all the promises of hope. Frankly, it is only the facts. She sits, she waits, and she listens intently; slowly, as he reads the words from the report, he sees the dullness quickly edge away, falling into a nothingness where it rightfully belongs.

By time he has completed reciting his report, her face is filled with a reborn life that wasn't there five minutes ago, and she is anxious.

She doesn't ask how or when, not even a why crosses her lips, but he accepts the mere I must go.

She leaves in a hurricane of a hurry. Even the paperwork on his desk bristles from her swift and sudden movements.

Byakuya is satisfied, but not entirely content.

The dullness is gone, replaced with a sharp spark that ignites throughout her body. It's a forest that is being engulfed by the flames, but for Rukia that is ideal.

Because he sees a new light, a new breath, that has gone missing for the past seventeen months return with vengeance.

What bothers him is the person he should show gratitude for this abrupt and relieving change of attitude.

Byakuya returns to his paperwork without batting a lash. That time, if it ever comes, must be tolerant until he lies on his death bed.

Simply because Kuchiki Byakuya would be damned before he acknowledged any sort of gratitude to Kurosaki Ichigo.

A/N: This will ultimately end up as non canon, but it's fanfiction. When has it accurately predicted events to follow in a manga series? Seriously, if you know an instance when it was accurate, tell me. If you have the time to favorite or alert, please take the time to leave a review. This departs from my regular style, and I was hoping for some feedback. Thank you all and have a good weekend.