A/N: Okay, next chapter. This is where the plot really starts to thicken, and it's going to get more exciting, so updates should be more frequent. I just want to say thank you to all my reviewers and favorite-ers and alert-ers. I really appreciate your support. On with the story! (Italics are thoughts)
Disclaimer: Bleach is not mine. (I just realized I've never done one of these.)
Rukia and Sakasana bid goodbye to Renji hours ago, but they spent the rest of the day just hanging out. Sakasana filled Rukia in on the rest of the events that happened that morning after Rukia had "abandoned" her. Rukia was aghast when Sakasana told of her unnecessary explosion in Byakuya's office.
"You didn't!" exclaimed Rukia, looking at Sakasana in shock.
"Yeah… I did…" replied Sakasana, her head hung in shame. To her horror, Rukia began to laugh. "Hey that's not funny, Rukia-san. I really embarrassed myself."
"Relax, I wasn't laughing at you. I just would have loved to see the look on Renji's face!"
"I wasn't so much worried about him as I was KuchikiTaicho. I'm going to be having nightmares about the look on his face for sure."
They were on their way to the Shinigami Women's Association meeting being held in the back room of the Kuchiki Manor. Unbeknownst to her brother, Rukia gave NanaoFukutaicho a spare key. She didn't quite trust Yachiru with it, after all, Byakuya wasn't supposed to know they were there.
Rukia turned to look at Sakasana, studying her face in the late afternoon sunset; the way here skin was tinted in a deep brown hue amazed her. It stayed the same color whether it was winter or spring, and her hair seemed to defy gravity in the most peculiar way. One day it would be curly and bouncy, the next it would be long, strait, and flowing down her back. Her hair would change but her skin would stay the same. How does she do that? I have to know. But, would it be rude to ask? Maybe I'll just ask about her skin…
"Sakasana…"Began Rukia, heasitantly, not looking her in the eye.
"Yeah?"
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure, anything."
"Uh… Well…" How do I say this?
"What's wrong? It's not like you to be so hesitant." Sakasana observed, glancing at Rukia sideways.
"What's wrong with your face?" Rukia blurted.
"Wha… My face…?"
"Yeah, and your hair! Why doesn't your skin change and how do you make your hair differnet every day?" Rukia had lost all of her etiquette, her curiosity over Sakasana's appearance got the better of her.
"My skin does change." Replied Sakasana. "I get darker in the summer, just like you do, and as for my hari… Well, even I can't explain that. I guess, it's just how I am, it's just me…"
"…Oh, I see." Of course, how foolish of me. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. You'd think after being around Renji all these years I would be used to weird looking people." Replied Rukia after a somewhat awkward pause.
"Don't worry about it, and I'm not offended… WAIT!" exclaimed Sakasana, finally realizing what Rukia just said. "I'm not weird looking!"
"I'm just kidding Sakasana!" replied Rukia, trying to placate her friends wounded ego.
"…And neither is Abarai-Fukutaicho…"
"I guess not." Conceded Rukia." But you know what is weird? That ridiculous obsession he has with sunglasses."
"Oh?"
"He has at least 50 pairs!"
"Really?"
"Yeah. He spends all his money on them! Shelves of them line his room!" exclaimed Rukia, gesturing with her slim hands.
She's been in his room?
"He probably thinks if he buys enough of, Shirogane-san will let him design his own pair." Continued Rukia.
"His own pair?"
"Yep. That's been his dream for awhile; To have his own design of sunglasses sold at the Silver Dragonfly. Pretty crazy, huh?" finished Rukia, looking over at Sakasanan to see her reaction. She was surprised when she saw the look of wonder on her face. "Oh, man! Don't tell him I told you! He swore me to secrecy… but I… I don't know, it just slipped out."
Sakasana turned to face her friend in the dim evening light, really looking at her for the first time that day. She noticed just how frazzled she seemed. It wasn't an easy thing to detect, with Rukia being the somewhat guarded person that she is, but Sakasana noticed something was wrong; the way her shoulders were slightly drooping and her eyes weren't dancing like they normally did. "Don't worry Rukia-san, I won't tell him you told me… but is something bothering you?"
Rukia looked at Sakasana and saw the care in her eyes, the concern that Sakasana felt for her flowed from them like water and filled Rukia to her breaking point. She had to tell someone, no matter how she hated to appear weak, it wasn't healthy for her to keep these emotions pent up inside, where they could eat away at her. I can tell her, she'll understand…
"Yes…" began Rukia, "Lately, I've been feeling… wrong. I don't know how else to explain it."
Sensing that she needed to sit, Sakasana led Rukia to a bench on the side of the road and gestured for her to sit down. The SWA meeting could wait.
"I've been trying to fix it for a while now. I know I'm happy with how things are, but I feel like something is missing, like I've overlooked something extremely important. It feels like it's right in front of me, but I can't find it and everyday it's getting farther and farther away! If I don't reach out and grab it, it'll be gone! I don't understand what to do, I've never felt like this before!" she stopped and began to cry, to sob, leaning against Sakasana's shoulder for support, her small body shaking. "And with all this going on, I have to go back…"
"Back? Back where?" questioned Sakasana, rubbing Rukia's back soothingly.
"Back to Karakura Town…" she mumbled.
"You're going back to Karakura town? When?"
"Next week." Replied Rukia, sitting up and wiping her eyes.
"That's so soon…"
"I know. And I really don't want to go like this."
"… Have you told Abarai-Fukutaicho yet?"
"No, I haven't."
"… Are you going to?"
"I will, I just have to figure out how. How do you tell your best friend that you're leaving again? I've left him so many times. What if he doesn't care this time?"
"Everything is going to be okay, Rukia-san." Said Sakasana, sensing that Rukia needed more comforting. "You're a strong woman. A fighter, a warrior, you'll make it through this… but maybe you should skip the SWA meeting tonight…"
"Yeah. Maybe I'll just go home and get some rest…" replied Rukia, standing to her feet and looking up at the starlit sky. Sakasana is right, I am strong. I am a warrior. I'll get through this. I don't need to keep acting like some wounded little animal just because I'm a little lost right now…
"… Do you want me to walk home with you? I mean, since we're going the same way anyway?" asked Sakasana, coming to stand next to Rukia.
"Yes." Replied Rukia faintly.
They made their way to the Kuchiki Manor, and Sakasana saw to it that Rukia was safely inside, before making her way to her real destination: The Eleventh Squad training grounds.
Ikkaku Madarame paced the training grounds anxiously, while Yumichika lounged in the background.
"Relax, Ikkaku. No one's noticed in two years, there's no way you're going to get caught now." Called Yumchika .
"It's not that, she's late. She's never late."
"Well it is Monday night, there's a SWA meeting tonight." Said Yumichika, getting up from the ground and coming over to Ikkaku. "She'll be here soon."
Ikkak replied with a "hmph" and kept pacing.
After seeing that Rukia was taken care of, Sakasana turned and headed towards the Eleventh Squad training grounds.
She had talked to Ikkaku last week, saying they needed to meet up. Unbeknownst to him, she actually wanted to take a break from their training. At least until I get used to my training with Abarai-Fukutaicho. There's no way I can stand two beatings a day!
Upon entering the training grounds, she felt the familiar fluid reiatsu of none other than Yumichika.
"Hello there, Beautiful." He greeted her, just as he did every time he saw her, never failing in causing her to blush.
"Good evening, Yumichika." Replied Sakasana politely.
"You're late." A curt voice cut in.
"I am not." Retorted Sakasana, turning to face her accuser. "I never specified what time I would be coming."
"Whatever." Ikkaku conceded . "Let's just get this training started already." He said, unsheathing his zampakuto and pointing the tip at her.
As much as Sakasana would have loved to draw her own zampakuto and lite into Ikkaku, she resisted the urge to fight, ignoring her zampakuto's complaints. "Actually Ikkaku, I came here to talk, not to fight."
"Tsk. Talking has no place here. Fight or get out!" he barked.
"Ikkaku, how ugly of you." Remarked Yumichika, still standing on the sidelines. "Let Beautiful speak."
"… Fine."
"Thank you, Yumichika." Said Sakasana, sending him a greatful look. Then, turning back to face Ikkaku she said, "We need to postpone my training for the next three weeks."
"What?" exclaimed Ikkaku.
"I am starting my required training with Abarai-Fukutaicho next week, and I would hate to overexert myself…"
"So you're just tossing me aside?"
"No! I just cant-"
"Believe it or not, my time is valuable Kousugi, and I can't keep bending to your schedule! I have other things, more important things to do!"
"I know, but-"
"And I won't have a fourth seat like you-"
"NOW WAIT JUST A MINUTE!" Sakasana erupted, feeling her vision go hazy. She began to feel oddly detached from herself, almost as if she was just watching instead of actually being there. Her voice was sounding farther away and had a strange echoe-ey quality to it. Oh no, it's happening again! "I am not a fourth seat anymore! I am Kousugi Sakasana Rokuban Sansaki, and you will treat me as such, as your equal! If I say my training is postponed, then it is postponed! No arguments! And as for your precious time, you can keep it. The only reason I came to you two years ago was because I knew that Abarai-Fukutaicho had trained with you." She stepped closer to him, until their faces were merely inches apart. "In this situation, YOU work for ME, and don't you EVER forget it!"
Her reiatsu was emanating from her, clay red tendrils wrapped around Ikkaku. He could feel the sting of them on his skin. "I will see you in three weeks, Ikkaku." With that, she turned and stormed from the training grounds, leaving a shocked and dumbfounded Ikkaku and Yumichika in her wake.
Renji smiled to himself in the darkness of his room. That lunch had been quite a surprise, though unpleasant at first, he had found himself enjoying the time spent with those two women.
But Rukia's mood didn't go unnoticed.
Renji saw how anxious and pensive she was acting. All through lunch Sakasana had been the one who carried the conversation, asking him all kinds of questions about him.
Funny how she can barley talk one minute and the next you can't get her to shut up. Renji smirked at the memory of meeting her that morning. Wait, when did I start thinking about her…? It's Rukia I'm worried about. I have to talk to her, get her to tell me what's going on…
It was dark, but she wasn't outside. It was the darkness of indoors, of shut windows and dampened lights. She was in her room and she couldn't remember how she got there.
Sakasana felt heavy, as she strained to lift her head and limbs. She realized that she was laying on her back on her futon, but she couldn't remember how she got there.
…Ikkaku was yelling at me, and then…oh no! Images flashed behind her eyes of yet another outburst of fury. She could see her reiatsu flaring around her and the stricken looks on both Ikkaku and Yumichika's faces in the moonlight.
Suddenly, a sharp, jarring pain exploded in her head, blocking further contemplation. Grasping her head in her hands, Sakasana rolled to her stomach, drawing her knees up under her belly, she bit back a scream as the pain increased. This was the worst one yet.
First came the outburst, then the headache. That morning it had been the other way around. What is wrong with me? She couldn't take it when the pain increased yet again, and she collapsed unconscious, remaining so for the rest of the night.
A/N: A so-so chapter… anyway, I've got some major drama/angst coming in the next chapter, so don't say I didn't warn you. Welp, you know the drill, let me know what you think and review!