I woke and he was gone. I sighed and slowly sat up; shrugging off the wires and tubes… apparently they had some work done on me over night, but I never needed to stay for more than a day or two. I was feeling fine so I decided to spare the doctors some time and just sign myself out.

After filling out all the paper work, and requesting a hoodie to keep myself out of the sun, I was allowed to leave. I took the shadiest path back to where I was staying, deciding that I'd better to get some work done. I took my laptop around town, writing about the people, what they do for a living and why they liked living out here so much.

I liked it too. If it wasn't so damn sunny I'd stay here forever. But my hometown is much darker, gloomier too. I don't collapse as easy there.

Anyways, I was approaching the farm when I heard a strange noise. It was almost a scream, but it didn't sound human. Whatever it was, I felt pins and needles rush up my spine. I tucked my laptop away in my bag and ran as fast as I could to where I heard the sound. The first thing I noticed was blood.

It was a small barn, the wood a dark grey due to age. The grass leading up to it was stained red, and a few spooked sheep were tucked away in the corner of a fence.

I knew it was a bad idea to go inside… So I didn't risk it. I took out my camera, turned on the flash and snapped a few pictures before backing slowly out of the area. Locking the gate behind me - as if it would defend me from all or any monsters - I slid on my bag and ran for it. I heard another cry, this one of sorrow and not of fear, but I didn't look back.

o/o/o

"Oh yeah, the big bad monster is here!" Rukia joked, circling the room like she owned the place. (Which maybe she did…)

"Oh come on, Rukia! You know the legends as well as the next person around here!" Orihime insisted.

"So a couple of sheep got killed…" She shrugged. "Happens all the time in towns like this. It was probably just some wolf or something."

"Yeah, or something…" Orihime huffed and went back to cleaning the counter. I smiled awkwardly and went back up stairs. I didn't bother mentioning to them that I had a photo, which probably would have made things worse.

I set the camera down on my bedside table, and then flicked through the images. I stopped at the one of the sheep. Sheer terror consumed my entire being.

The sight was horrible. A mixture of drool and blood dripped off the creature's face, along with half of its cheeks. Elongated black nails stuck out of its finger tips, currently ripping into a sheep. It had a long, thick tail, much like that of a cobra's. What made everything worse was how it was staring right… at…

Me. It was looking at me. Hungrily, angrily, and almost possessively looking at me.

I turned the camera off and put it back down, supressing all urges to rip out my own brain so I could wipe that image from my mind. Why!? Why did it look that way? And of all things, what the hell is it!?

o/o/o

A few hours later had me sitting at a table. There was a muffle of men arguing about something, but I hadn't been paying attention. There was something familiar about that picture, something mysterious and intriguing. It reminded me of-

"Will you join us, Shirosaki?"

I blinked, just now realizing that I'd somehow been pulled into this conversation. Five men stood around me, and of them, three were making a trip up the mountain to kill whatever creature that had murdered the farmer's sheep.

I nodded absentmindedly, and that seemed to be enough of an answer. I was handed a back pack filled with necessary elements to get us to the top of the mountain, and we headed out that afternoon after lunch… Lamb chops.

"Sorry that you have to see this." One man, that I'd come to know as Grimmjow, apologized. "Our town isn't usually like this, but you see, we can't have wolves terrorizing the children… It's our job to look after 'em."

"Bull shit." Another man, Renji, interrupted. The third, Ikkaku, laughed as Renji continued, "Grimm here's just in it for the fame, the gals, and the chance t'kill something. He doesn't give a rat's ass about children… or purity, or innocence… and any o'that shit!"

Grimmjow muttered something that I couldn't make out, and Renji smirked triumphantly. We approached a cave, deciding to make a camp here for the night. Ikkaku said that this was higher than where wolves tended to go, so we'd be safe. And once the wolves were driven from the town at early morning, we'd be able to kill the Alpha and the pack would leave.

I left about an hour after everyone was sleeping so I could take a piss. That's when I heard a growl, and it was very apparent that we weren't alone in this cave.

The growl was that of the monster I'd seen earlier. Before I could warn the others, I heard screams and loud ripping noises. I shuddered and fell to the ground, hidden behind a wall of dirt. I heard the monster walk past me and leave the cave. Then I sighed in relief. As the night began to turn to day, I was soon able to see the trail of blood that lead into the back of the cave.

I gulped as I approached what was left of the tents. There was blood everywhere. That thing wasn't there to feed, it was there for the kill. It was then that more ripping sounds came from behind me. I didn't have time to hide, just turn around.

And there stood the creature, the sun shining harshly on its skin. It sizzled and melted like wax, vanishing as it hit the ground. Its pale flesh was replaced with tanned skin, its face flaking away to a young human face… and its fur shrank until nothing but a small mop of orange hair was left.

I stood in horror; this boy in front of me was none other than the monster that had just murdered three people. Before he looked at me, I hid behind a large boulder. I calmed my breathing, my heart beat and nerves. I hoped he didn't see me, and judging by the following silence I guess he hadn't.

There were morning birds around the caves, each echo bouncing in a different way through the caves to make an almost haunting melody.

Then I heard a voice, and it wasn't Ichigo.

"You should get some clothes on…" She sounded slightly older, but there was an odd wisdom to her voice that seemed way beyond her years.

"What clothes? I have none left… they're all torn up, burned, or covered in blood." I nearly cried at the overwhelmingly bland tone he had, he obviously didn't care about the situation. I was so scared, my fear getting worse by the second.

I heard some shuffling of the feet, and then the haunting birds came back as the only sound.

"So, is it him?"

Silence again, much more haunting then before.

"I don't know. He has his eyes, so… beautiful."

"You're disgusting."

I swallowed slowly and leaned back against the stone.

I heard Ichigo storm off. He was upset, I could tell, but what was really going on here?

"You can come on out, Hichigo Shirosaki."

o/o/o

I'm asking for some SERIOUS feedback, please! I'd like to know where I can improve! Chapters will be fixed up according to what you, my lovely readers, see! This applies to all my fics! I'm in the 11th grade now and I really want to be an author, so if you guys don't mind pointing out any mistakes you see, I'd be really appreciative!