About You and Ichigo

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of the characters

Today was a rather quiet evening in the Kurosaki household.

As usual they all ate dinner together after the Kurosaki children came back from school and their father closed the clinic for the day. Normally dinner always ended with Ichigo and Isshin arguing over something until Karin stepped between them, but today Yuzu couldn't hear any shouting coming from the living room.

Their father excused himself with tears in his eyes that he had to leave his three daughters and his useless son alone at home while he needed to take care of some things for the clinic.

Ichigo was already in his room and studying for an upcoming test tomorrow while Karin already went to bed early after an exhausting football game earlier today.

This only left Yuzu and, as proclaimed by Kurosaki Isshin, his third daughter Rukia Kuchiki.

Speaking of the black haired girl, which despite being older than her was the same height as Yuzu, she was currently helping Yuzu clean the dishes while humming to what Yuzu believed is the opening song of the Chappy anime series.

It had been a few weeks since Rukia returned and started to live with them again after being abroad for the last two years. Abroad meaning in the afterlife of course.

Two years ago after an incident her brother became very depressed and Yuzu didn't know why. Rukia also suddenly left without saying anything.

Yuzu always knew that her family was in some way different from others. Her brother and sister could see ghosts for crying out loud!

It was when Rukia first appeared in their lives. Ichigo changed around that time and besides coming home late everyday he looked more exhausted and didn't seem to get enough sleep. Slowly over that period Yuzu began to put some of the things that were happening together and she knew that it had something to do with the afterlife but she never asked about it. She chose instead to support her brother and her family quietly from the side.

However when weeks after Rukia's disappearance Ichigo still didn't eat properly and retreated to his room everytime he was at home. Even her father stopped arguing with him and that's when she knew that something else must have happened.

So after another dinner, where everyone just ate quietly, she couldn't take it anymore and started crying while demanding to know what was wrong.

This was a small wake up call for her family and they realized that leaving Yuzu out of their knowledge was cruel so they decided to tell her the whole story.

Hearing the truth about everything that happened in the last couple months about her brother fighting, about Rukia, about Soul Society and about what really happened all those years ago with her mother was a shock for the little girl. She didn't imagine it would be something this serious.

She felt a lot of emotions that day. Sadness because she was reminded of the death of her mother, worry about Ichigo that he risked his life countless times. She was also angry that they kept all of these secrets from her.

Nevertheless she couldn't stop feeling sad for her brother, she knew how much protecting people meant to him.

That day the whole Kurosaki family cried together and while Yuzu was hugging her brother as strong as she could he promised her that he will try to be his old self again.

After that he began to eat more and started to talk to his family and friends again, though Yuzu suspected that he just got better at hiding his depression.

Time passed and then a few weeks ago Rukia was suddenly back.

From her father and sister she had heard that Ichigo got his Shinigami powers back and that Rukia would be staying with them again.

Yuzu was happy to have her 'older sister' back because she too missed her very much and the effect it had on Ichigo was noticeable for everyone.

The days in the Kurosaki home were once again filled with laughter, jokes and of course a lot of arguments and shouting. But something kept bothering Yuzu.

It was just two weeks ago when she noticed that something changed between Ichigo and Rukia.

The two of them always spent much time with each other even when they had just met. They would talk a lot about school or argue about something and they often went outside together. Back then Yuzu just thought that they were visiting friends from school but now she knew that they were looking out for Hollows to fight against them.

However now they seemed to be even more comfortable around each other. While before they always seemed to have something to do now they would often just sit quietly next to each other while watching TV and Yuzu could swear that they were sitting closer together than friends would normally.

There were also those times when they just smiled and gestured at each other during dinner when they thought nobody was looking.

With her curiosity peaked the thirteen year old girl started to keep a closer eye on both of them.

She soon realized that her brother and, if her suspicions were correct, his girlfriend were not particularly good at hiding their new relationship status.

Once she saw them going around town holding hands while she was grocery shopping. Another time she saw how Rukia was leaning against the hallway wall and Ichigo was whispering something in her ear.

Then there were also the times when Yuzu woke up during the night only to see that Rukia's bed was empty. At first she thought that maybe she was hunting Hollows, but then she remembered that her body would still be here if that was the case. Also when Yuzu woke up in the morning before everyone else Rukia was back in her bed, though one time she could hear her sneak back into the room.

After all of this investigation there was no doubt anymore that the two of them were in a relationship together.

Yuzu couldn't be happier for them that in the end everything worked out for both of them, not to mention that Yuzu has always been a fan of romantic stories.

However despite all of that there was one thing left to do for her and that was to have a serious conversation with her brothers girlfriend.

As both of them continued cleaning the dishes Yuzu decided that today was a good day to have this conversation. With everyone else already in their rooms or not at home she could talk with Rukia without being interrupted.

"Rukia-chan." Yuzu said to get the attention of the girl next to her. Hearing her name interrupted Rukia's humming as she looked at Yuzu.

"What is it Yuzu-chan? Do you need me to also help you with something else?"

"No, this is the last thing I have to do for today, but if you wouldn't mind then I would like to talk with you about something."

Rukia noticed that Yuzu's voice sounded more serious than usual and answered "Sure, we only have a few dishes left and then we can talk."

After that short exchange of words both stayed quiet until they were done with their work.

Yuzu grabbed a pair of glasses and filled them with apple juice as they both went to sit down on the dining table.

It took a while before Yuzu started to talk and the atmosphere around them felt heavier than usual.

Looking at Rukia Yuzu began to talk "After mom died I began to take over all of the housework. I always helped her even as a small child so I was used to it. Around the time after her death everybody was so quiet and I felt like I needed to step into her shoes to bring some live back into this family."

"It was not easy at first but dad soon began to help me and slowly all of us started to get back into a normal family routine."

Rukia saw how Yuzu cast her eyes down and her voice became quieter as she talked about the woman that meant so much to the Kurosaki family. Without saying anything she continued to listen.

"Like I said I began to take over the household. From cleaning to cooking and going shopping. Looking out for everyone that they were healthy, though dad being a doctor was pretty good with that so I never had to worry about this too much. Anyway I began to take over a lot of responsibilities and I feel like this talk we are having right now is one of those. I guess if things were different maybe mom would be sitting here with you right now."

"Dad, I don't think dad would be a good person for a conversation like this."

Rukia was a little concerned now about the way Yuzu was talking and she got nervous as she began to guess to where this conversation would lead.

Soon after Yuzu confirmed her fears.

"Since when have you and Ichigo been dating?"

It was a simple question to start the conversation. A question where, as Rukia immediately realized, both already knew the answer so Rukia didn't try to deny it.

Looking at her hands the Shinigami girl answered "Almost three weeks now."

The youngest of the Kurosakis also smiled as she said "Ah, so you were better at hiding it during the first week. I would have guessed that it was two weeks ago. Congratulations, I am really happy for both of you."

Looking up Rukia was relieved to know that Yuzu wasn't against their relationship. It felt like a small weight was lifted from her chest.

Even with Yuzu's approval she knew that this conversation was not over yet.

"To be honest Rukia-chan, dad and I always suspected that you two liked each other. It was a lot of fun back then to speculate about the two of you behind your back." she said as a small laugh escaped her lips.

"Don't worry about dad and Karin. They already consider you part of the family. I can already imagine the moment when dad finds out." and with that even Rukia had to laugh.

Yuzu took a small sip from her class as she continued the conversation "Again, congratulations on your relationship. I know that it was hard for both of you to get to this point, and we will talk about this later but first let me ask you: When did you fall in love with Ichigo?"

Rukia leaned back in her seat as she took a few moments to think about the question.

"I don't know." came the short answer. "I can't tell you when it happened, but I can tell you how it happened."

"Ichigo told me that you know about everything that happened after I first showed up. The start between Ichigo and me was not really ideal I would say. That night when I gave him my powers it was to save us all and I didn't think much about it."

"I thought that I would reclaim my powers soon enough, but that didn't happen. Despite that I still began to train Ichigo and while we didn't agree on everything we still made a decent team. At that point I still considered him to be just an arrogant brat for the most part. Things changed after the incident with Grand Fisher."

"After hearing about Masaki and learning more about Ichigo I started to respect him more and at the same time I realized that I couldn't get him involved with Soul Society."

"That's why I left the first time and I couldn't believe my eyes when despite how I treated him he still came to my rescue. I think that was when I truly realized what friendship meant to Ichigo."

"After that a lot of things happened and I returned to the human world. Time passed and we basically spent everyday together. Probably around this time my feelings changed from friendship to something more."

"Then the war escalated. We went to save Inoue and right after that the final fight against Aizen happened. Before we really knew what was happening we learned that Ichigo would lose his powers."

"I think that is when I realized how much he means to me, but I was a coward."

Rukia paused again to drink from her apple juice while Yuzu thought about what she had heard until now.

"So back then we were just standing in front of each other as Ichigo slowly lost the ability to see spirits. We both didn't know what to say. There were just so many emotions going through us and somehow we both seemed to silently agree that it was not meant to be. We just exchanged a short goodbye and then I was gone from his world."

"Those two years were some of the hardest in my life and when I came back Ichigo and I didn't hesitate for long and here we are."

Once again there was silence between the two girls. As Yuzu put her fingers around her glass she began to speak again.

"Thank you for telling me about how you felt Rukia-chan."

Yuzu's eyes focused on her glass as she continued to talk "However Rukia-chan there is something I haven't told you yet."

Rukia saw as a more serious look appear on Yuzu's face and was unsure as to what she should expect to hear.

"Rukia-chan I, I am actually really angry at you. I would even say that at some point in the last two years I hated you."

The petite girls eyes widened as she watched Yuzu tighten her hands around her glass.

"Wh-" before Rukia could ask her question Yuzu began to talk again. This time in a considerable louder voice and as she looked at the black haired girl sitting opposite from her and Rukia could see small tears running down her face.

"He, he was just so different! I couldn't even recognize him sometimes. It reminded me so much of the time after mother died. Actually it might have been worse!"

"Even after he promised me that he will get better, it still wasn't the same. Sometimes he would just be quiet all day and wander aimlessly around town until he came home after dinner time. And then, and then there were the nightmares he had!"

"I was always a light sleeper so I heard him when they were particularly bad. He would just turn restlessly around in his bed and I didn't know what to do. He also mentioned a lot of names while sleeping. Some I didn't recognize but others sounded familiar from the stories that I've heard. He mentioned your name the most, because he loved you so much and just couldn't forget you!"

"I just wanted him to sleep in peace. I just wanted my older brother back. I wanted him to forget you." Her voice became more quiet now as more and more tears fell from her eyes.

"Why? Why did it take you two years Rukia-chan? From what you told me it was also hard for you but why didn't you come? Why didn't you do something?"

"Even if he can't see you Karin-chan, Karin-chan told me about this technology from Soul Society called gigais that allow you to to have a real body. Why didn't you use it to see him?"

"But the worst thing is that I know that you visited Karakura over those two years. Karin-chan told me she saw you at Urahara's shop and I have gotten better at seeing spirits. Even I once knew you were around. So there are no excuses from you. Why did you never come to see him? It would have helped him so much!"

Yuzu needed to catch her breath as she was overwhelmed by all the emotions that she had hidden over the last months.

After a while, without saying a word, Rukia stood up from her seat and walked around the table. She put the nearest chair right next to Yuzu's before she sat down again. Now right next to Yuzu she took the young girl into her arms and to her relieve Yuzu let her.

The younger twin began to cling to Rukia as she cried into her chest and the black haired girl began to rub her back.

"I, I am so sorry Yuzu-chan." Rukia began to talk as tears also started to build up in her eyes.

"During the last two years I was lost. At first I thought that those feelings maybe didn't mean anything. It was such a stressful time during the war and I tried to convince myself that it wouldn't have worked and that those feelings were just me confusing them with friendship."

"However, however even after weeks past nothing changed. I couldn't stop thinking about him. I tried to focus more on my duties and I even got promoted to vice captain. But I didn't even feel like celebrating it."

"So on that night, when I was promoted, I couldn't sleep. I needed to see him so I went to the human world without anybody knowing. And just like you said Yuzu-chan, when I saw him he looked so empty. Even if it would have hurt me I hoped that he had managed to move on but I was so so wrong."

"I was in his room and watched as he couldn't fall asleep. I was right next to him and he didn't even know. That night I spent in his room and went back to Soul Society before morning arrived."

"I just didn't know what to do. Trust me Yuzu-chan I wanted to rush to Urahara to get my old gigai back but I couldn't do it."

"I was just so convinced that the thing we had between us just couldn't work. I was a vice captain. I have more responsibilities and I just hoped for both of us that we would move on."

"I worked even harder then before and even then I sometimes couldn't resist seeing him, so I visited him a few times. I noticed that he was spending more time with his friends in the real world again. I thought that he was getting better but from what you told be that didn't seem to be the case."

"They didn't tell me. They only told me after it was almost complete. They found a way to get him his Shinigami powers back. I was so angry at them for not telling me sooner. If I would have known back then, then I would have gone to Ichigo immediately to tell him about it."

"From what they told me, they didn't reveal it to me until now because they weren't sure if it would work. Urahara and the people from the 12th division made a lot of tests until they were convinced that it would work. The only thing left was some of my soul energy. I was the one who unlocked his powers so they needed me again to restore them."

"Of course I agreed immediately and soon after he saw me again, for the first time in two years."

Yuzu has calmed down now and no more tears would escape her eyes but the two of them didn't separate from their hug.

"I regret so many things that happened in those two years and even now I don't know what will happen. I am so glad to finally be together with him again but at the same time there are still so many obstacles left that we need to overcome."

"The captain commander granted me a few weeks off work to watch over Ichigo's condition until we are sure that everything is alright and I don't know what will happen when I need to go back."

"I am still a vice captain with a lot of responsibilities, I can't stay here permanently. It is just that this whole situation makes everything so complicated. I am dead and he is alive. Yes, he has his powers back, but there are still things that we both have to do in our respective worlds. Ichigo and I have been discussing a few things and I am afraid Yuzu-chan that we will not find a solution. That's why we didn't tell anybody about our relationship yet."

Minutes passed as both of them went over what was said and Yuzu started to realize that the situation wasn't quite as simple as she thought it was and even though she still disagreed with some of Rukia's decisions she could now understand why she made them.

"Thank you Rukia-chan. For telling me what you went through. You didn't seem to have it any easier than Ichigo."

"I am not sure what we can do about those problems that you mentioned but maybe if you and Ichigo started talking with dad and Urahara and maybe even this captain commander, if all of us come together then maybe, maybe we can find a solution that everyone is ok with."

Rukia smiled at Yuzu. Today she earned a new found appreciation for the youngest Kurosaki. Yuzu's strength had always been that she managed to look at everything in a positive way and tried to cheer everyone up and it looked like that Rukia as well as the Kurosaki family sometimes forget that Yuzu too had things on her mind that are bothering her.

"You are strong Yuzu-chan. Stronger than most people I know of, definitely stronger than me."

"Don't say that Rukia-chan, I don't know what I would do in your situation. The only thing that I can tell you is, that if, if mom was here, than she would be very proud of you and grateful that Ichigo has found a woman like you."

They had been talking for quite a while and it was already late into the night. They put their glasses away, exchanged a few more words and then went to bed. Without mentioning it Rukia went to Ichigo's room, she had decided that tomorrow they would tell the other two Kurosaki family members about their relationship and after that decide what will happen.

Yuzu watched as Rukia closed the door to Ichigo's room and in her heart she knew that in the end everything would fit together.