o1. Rukia hates Byakuya's kenseikan. To her, it looked like fine silver claws that held her brother's head in a firm grasp. It seemed uncomfortable to wear and she suspected that it was the cause of her brother's ever-present scowl.

o2. Rukia once snuck to sleep in her brother's room when he was away for a week sorting out Kuchiki matters. She thought that somehow Byakuya's futon would be special, but it was as plain as the ones she saw the household servants were using. She woke up with a stiff neck and a cramped shoulder the following morning.

o3. Rukia never did like the taste of green tea. To her it tasted like mud dissolved in water made to smell like plant leaves. She only drank tea to be polite, and besides she liked how Ukitake-taichou would smile to her kindly whenever she poured a cup.

o4. Rukia found Komamura-taichou interesting. She wondered if his fur would be as soft as a rabbit's.

o5. Rukia tried gardening once, at the insistence of her captain; he encouraged her by saying that it would be a calming pastime. She promptly gave up on it though – she could not see what was so rewarding of being exposed under the sun, getting hands dirtied by the earth. To her it seemed pointless; she would have rather spent her time training with her sword. She did just that.

o6. Rukia liked Orihime's hair. It was long and shiny and soft compared to her dull black hair, which had uncontrollable fly-away waves at its ends. She would have liked to grow out her hair but never did – she already looked much like Hisana without trying; she didn't want her brother to be reminded of his loss.

o7. Rukia never did understand why Ichigo always insisted that she sleep on his bed (and he would sleep on the floor). Why, his closet was comfortable enough as it was, much more than the cold, naked streets of Rukongai.

o8. Rukia sometimes would wonder how her brother would look if he had short hair. The sight would surely look refreshing, but she shook the thought away – it would be such a waste to cut such beautiful hair.

o9. Rukia may not know much about current Earth fashion, but she knew enough to say that gigai-Renji dressed quite… badly. Well, not much really to notice, but to her, his clothes always looked a little off. (Was it because it was Urahara who provided them?) She sometimes dropped hints that he should take tips from how Ichigo styles himself but all she ever got from Renji was an angry grunt.

1o. Rukia is one of the very fortunate few who have seen Hitsugaya-taichou blush. Her fingers brushed his when she passed a mission report to him. It would have been an interesting topic to share with Matsumoto but she decided against it thinking that it was a secret meant to be enjoyed alone. (Plus she did not want to imagine the wild rumors that might evolve from it!)

11. Rukia was invited to "come over and play" by a certain pink-haired fukutaichou when she passed by the Eleventh Division's street. She had spare time so why not? It was nice having someone not mock her drawings for once.

12. Rukia likes canned peach juice. She bought one from the vending machine at Ichigo's school and gave it to Ukitake-taichou as a gift, thinking that he would like how it tasted too. However, she forgot to explain to her captain what the cylinder of metal was. To this day, the said can stands as an ornament at his office, along with his collection of small animal figurines.

13. Rukia liked it when Matsumoto engulfed her in a spur-of-the-moment greeting hug. Rukia wondered if Unohana-taichou's would be just as soft and warm.

14. Rukia has been forever holding in her desire to bonk Zaraki-taichou's head. All she wants is to hear those tiny bells ring.

15. Rukia receives a gift of a new kimono every year from her stoic brother. Nothing else could bring her such joy and honor – to walk beside her brother during spring festival wearing colors that match his.

16. Rukia once recommended that Hanatarou drink coffee in the hope that it would perk the healer up. It was an advice that she regretted giving after hearing from Kiyone (who heard it from Isane) that Hanatarou was not able to sleep for three days. Maybe she should have told him to drink just a cup and not an entire pitcher in one go.

17. Rukia, in all honesty, joined the Shinigami Women's Association only because of the promise of the occasional free Chappy items. (It was a bonus that she got to hear fun rumors about the association's favorite individual – none other than the bishounen Sixth Division captain – being passed around the SWA. All of them far-fetched stories, but they were worth some laughs.)

18. Rukia watched Ichigo sleep one time. It was hard to believe that the same person who could kill a Menos Grande in one strike could sleep so peacefully and dream of petting baby pandas at night.

19. Rukia is – and forever will be – proud of Ichigo. She was his first shinigami mentor after all. But the student surpassing his teacher somehow placed a dent in Rukia's pride – thus explains the additional four hours training per day in the near-impossible hope of being his equal. It was the duty of the teacher to protect the student, not the other way around.

2o. Rukia must be the only female in this world (Earth) and the next (Soul Society) to have seen Ichigo walk around with just a towel on. For once, she found an SWA rumor to be true – yes, Ichigo was hot. But she would never tell him that – not in this lifetime, at least.

21. Rukia finds herself envious of the friendship that Ukitake-taichou and Kyouraku-taicho share. Though she had Renji, nothing could quite compare to the strength of a bicentennial-old bond.

22. Rukia died as an infant on Earth. Some shinigami at Soul Society pitied her for this, but she did not care – at least she had no other life to be regretful about.

23. Rukia had a short list of men that she would gladly sacrifice her soul for: Byakuya, Renji, Ukitake, Ichigo – Byakuya for taking her in as family, Renji for being her friend from the very beginning, Ukitake for believing in her when no one else did. She didn't quite get it why Ichigo was on the list. She'll figure it out later, after she finishes her cute bunny sketch of them holding hands (paws?) under a rainbow.

Twenty-three Sketches Before Noon
Bleach
published 11-05-09
edited 07-22-11