Well, a short epilogue to end off this story. I thank everyone who has reviewed this story, and I hope you've enjoyed it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of its characters. Neither do i own the series my story is based on or any group, place or organization mentioned in my story.

Strawberry Fix

Epilogue: You'll Be In My Heart

Sunday 1400 hrs

"You know, when I said I wanted to meet your family again, this wasn't what I had in mind," Rukia said quietly as she stood with Ichigo quietly at a corner of the mortuary hall near Karakura Town.

"Neither did I," Ichigo replied just as quietly. His face was impassive, his tears dried up long ago. "But at least, it's a reunion of sorts for the entire family, including Oka-san."

He glanced back towards the altar, where Karin's body, dressed in a kimono Yuzu had picked for her, lay in a casket. Next to it, a somber Isshin and a teary Yuzu stood greeting people who had come to pay their respects.

Rukia said nothing. She grieved as well, but like Ichigo, no tears came.

Isshin had received the news on Friday night, along with Yuzu. Then, he called Ichigo, who had taken the painful option of not revealing that he and Rukia were the last people to see Karin alive. Right now, he couldn't live with the guilt; that he might have been able to save Karin.

Ichigo met up with his remaining two family members on Saturday, along with Rukia, to make preparations for the funeral – the collecting, washing and preparation of the body, arrangements, the wake itself and the final cremation. It was the very least he could do for Karin; seeing to it that she got a proper funeral. Seeing Rukia that day at least managed to bring a sad smile to Yuzu's face, but even Isshin wasn't in the mood to tease Ichigo.

Through their combined efforts, the funeral was able to be held today in Karakura Town, in place of the originally planned reunion. This was where Masaki rested, and this was where Karin would join her mother soon, way too soon. So for the first time in ten years, the entire Kurosaki family was reunited; not physically, but at least spiritually.

The funeral was a fairly closed affair. Because of Karin's former status as a rising female football star, her death attracted media coverage, but they weren't allowed in. Only friends, relatives and Karin's teammates were allowed to enter and pay their respects. Those living in Karakura Town who knew the Kurosaki family came to pay their respects too.

Ichigo still bothered about his anonymity, so the restriction of the media worked to his advantage. However, he couldn't help but feel slightly guilty at being relieved that he won't find his face plastered on newspapers. This was Karin! He shouldn't be bothered about how the media might blow his anonymity. What was he going to do, skip the funeral?

The answer was simple. No. He owed her that much, even though there was an investigation going on about the blast. It didn't take a fire inspector two seconds to determine that the blast did not originate from a gas leak. Eventually, they found traces of the bomb and that resulted in a full-fledged investigation.

But now Ichigo didn't care if his face got put on the papers, and his enemies tracked him down. So what? He'll be ready for them.

Just then, Hisana approached the two of them, followed closely by Byakuya. They had arrived along with Rukia a while ago, and they had gone to talk to Isshin.

"Rukia, we'll be over there if you need us," Hisana said, placing a hand on Rukia's shoulder and gesturing towards a table near the altar.

Rukia nodded, and Hisana turned to Ichigo. "I'm sorry for your loss, Ichigo. No one, especially not Karin, deserves to die that young," she said with a slight bow.

Ichigo nodded stiffly, not trusting himself to speak. Then, Byakuya walked up to him, and to Ichigo's surprise, he bowed. "I too am sorry for your loss, Kurosaki. I do not wish to come across as tactless, but neither do I want to repeat comforting words I'm sure you've heard countless time. So, I will say this – don't let this get you down. You'll just be digging a hole for yourself, and I do not wish to see that happen. It will be an insult to your sister."

Of course, Ichigo knew that; he ran away without considering his family's feelings. Still he said, "Thank you… Byakuya-san."

Byakuya nodded, a barely perceptible smile on his face, before he walked his wife to one of the tables, which was empty except for a white-haired young man who was staring at the floor with a stricken look.

Rukia noticed this and pointed him out. "He looks like he's taking Karin's death quite hard."

"Yeah, but I spoke to him earlier. He told me that he had no mood for exams now, but I told him that doing so would be an insult to Karin too, since she wanted him to do well as well." Toshiro had been one of the first few well-wishers to arrive, and after talking briefly to Isshin, Yuzu and Ichigo, he had sat himself down at the table and hadn't moved since.

"That's… real nice of you," Rukia said.

Ichigo didn't comment. He didn't feel like being sarcastic or anything right now. "Besides… If there was someone who should be guilty, it's me."

Rukia wanted to protest, but just then, a rough voice sounded behind them. "There is a time for grieving, but most importantly, be proud of her, and what she'd done."

The two adults turned and saw the same old man walking up towards them, cane in hand. He didn't seem to have his cat with him; perhaps animals weren't allowed in the mortuary.

"How did you get in?" Ichigo asked.

The old man didn't answer; instead he stood in front of them and glanced at the altar. "She is a brave, brave woman. She saved the world untold misery."

"And went through untold misery in the process. How did this happen?" Ichigo asked, struggling to keep his voice low.

"It's because of the war. A war to destroy this world, and as I said before, you two are soldiers, weapons. Likewise, you must be tempered, honed, tested, and trained."

"What war is this?" Rukia asked.

The old man shook his head. "It is not time for you to know. In time, you will. But know this – everything that happens from now on is more or less set in stone. There will be no more coincidences for you two."

He said it with such certainty that it drew chills from the both of them. "Remember, be proud of her. I am. The world owes her a great debt."

Simultaneously, the both of them glances back towards the casket. "You got that right," Ichigo said as Rukia squeezed his arm gently. He could feel tears returning.

"It is a tragedy," the old man's voice said with a trace of regret. "But war is fashioned from tragedies. This isn't the first; it won't be the last. Remember, a spear has no branches."

Rukia didn't react to that last part, and it took Ichigo awhile to realize that he had heard that statement before. But when he turned back to ask the old man what he was talking about, he had disappeared. "What… where did he go?"

This attracted Rukia's attention and they looked round for the old man, but he had disappeared; vanished without a trace.

"Do you think he's being serious?" Rukia asked Ichigo as they looked round, baffled by the old man's disappearing act, but they couldn't see him.

Ichigo had no idea too. "Who knows?"

He stood there, wondering, so many questions in his mind. No more coincidences? A spear without branches? A war? What was the old man talking about?

He thought about his family. Would they ever be the same again? No, obviously not, not without Karin there.

He thought about Aizen, whom Ichigo was damn sure he'd seen on Friday. Why didn't he help? Why was he there in the first place? Ichigo had jokingly managed to link his name with the mysterious 'Sozen,' but had written it off as a coincidence. Was it really? Was there something more to Aizen? Or was he just seeing conspiracy theories everywhere?

And most importantly, he thought about Karin. Of her sacrifice. Of her troubles.

He stood there, haunted by the million questions swimming through his head and the old man's parting words, but more importantly, he was haunted by what he'd done, or didn't do, to force Karin to sacrifice herself. He didn't do enough, and it would haunt him for a while, maybe forever.

He wanted to scream at the injustice she suffered.

Bit of a sad ending right? As I've mentioned before, there're still many unanswered questions. I won't be continuing this story because it'll be way too long, and there's so much more stuff.

But if you guys want to see the story I've based my fic on, go check out F Paul Wilson's Repairman Jack Series. The original plot is there, and way more intricate.

Until then, a thank you to everyone who has stuck with me for this story, and go check out my other story!