Do Words Make a Bit of Difference?

*Spoilers for Hueco Mundo Arc ahead. Danger, Will Robinson.*

Daylight stabbed my tender retinas when consciousness next overcame me. Pain, delicious pain, my first love, the one constant in my some-what horrid existence, seared my nerve endings. That Rukia was nowhere to be seen didn’t surprise. I heard muffled exclamations and felt tension coming from the living area. Something big, something bad had happened. Another Arrancar attack? I wondered idly as I attempted to scoop my hair back into its customary style.

Urahara refused to comment on his unease, instead instructing me to get to Inoue’s apartment as quickly as possible. I dumped the smelly gigai in a heap in the corner of the room I’d occupied and stretched languidly. It was beyond nice to be back in my soul form, but I didn’t have time to enjoy the familiarity, the freedom. I hurried out of the house and shunpo’d as fast as I could to Inoue’s.

The disgusting screen, strangely alive with slimy tentacles and growths, had just flickered to life. The captain-commander looked as comfortable on-screen as the uselessly vapid TV starlets that frequented the airwaves in the World of the Living. What he said shocked me to my core. It wasn’t true, that much was patently clear, but the evidence against the human girl was overwhelming nonetheless. Orihime Inoue was branded a traitor in less time than it took to tie my sandals securely.

I heard Rukia gasp and I heard Ichigo’s protests first murmured and then yelled before anyone had time to even consider words to refute the outlandish claim. My mouth opened and I heard my voice offering to go to Hueco Mundo to drag her back for questioning. I was was shot down without delay. I knew the kid well enough to know that he would be going after her as recklessly as he had Rukia. I would join him this time, join the first charge. Guilt and pride, hell, sheer stupidity wouldn’t allow anything but that, with or without the OK from the higher ups. I was ready to charge out right then and there, consequences be damned.

The overwhelming combined reiatsu’s of my present and former captains put a quick end to that pitiful excuse for a plan. It didn’t matter if I was kicking and screaming, I was going back to the Soul Society whether I liked it or not. So, I went quietly, fully aware that resistance was as futile as my desperate longing for Rukia. On my best day I might have had a breath of a chance against Kuchiki’s Senbonsakura, but against Zaraki with him, I had none. I was smart enough to know that.

Stillness, like that measure of calm between thunder and lightning, filled me. I pretended obedience, a skill I’ve never been particularly good at, nodding in all the right places, making all the right noises. It was easier than I could have ever imagined.

Surprisingly, Kuchiki-taichou gave me leave to go, later when Rukia and I were safely back in the Seireitei. Then Rukia showed up out of nowhere, gave me a cloak and it was like we were back in the Alley. Words were unnecessary. It was like we had been transported back in time, back to the days when we were still stealing for survival. Gods, things were so simple then. In any case, her look was enough to tell me what I needed to know. We were going right then, no preliminaries, no preparations, no back-up. Not that it mattered in the slightest.

By the time we reached Urahara’s store in the World of the Living Ichigo had gone on with Chad and Uryu. I took a few minutes and cursed him thoroughly, imaginatively, combining fuck, shit, damned, bastard into a long litany using the words as verbs and nouns in the all their pro- and ad- prefix glory.

Rukia looked at me with an indulgent expression; she’d clearly expected Ichigo’s absence. Urahara tossed his zanpakatou across the divide and opened the Garganta with a ripping sound. I was reminded of the sound my feet made against the sticky floor of the bar Rukia had accosted me in.

I walked through the opening Urahara created first. My feet sank into the spongy material, impeding my progress until Rukia followed me through and explained the trick of focusing reiatsu. She had always been so much better than I at paying attention, following direction. She looked like a warrior as she walked through the strange darkness, like she meant to rip the brain stem out of any Arrancar who was unfortunate enough to cross our path.

The room we dumped out in was strange, a maze of options and traps. Rukia took the lead and guided us to the cold sands outside. I could feel Chad’s and Uryu’s quiet spiritual pressure in the distance, along with Ichigo’s raging. The latter was again operating as a Quincy, something that was a sort of a shocker since he'd lost his powers when they'd all stormed the Soul Society. I’d always liked the arrogant fucker, though. Especially after the way he’d stood up to the freak that was Kurotsuchi.

Our force wasn’t enough. I knew that instinctively, like I'd known which shopkeepers kept poisoned razor blades under the apples on display like a twisted fairytale. I would die in the sand. I knew that now that I was here. That wasn’t so terrible. As long as Rukia survived, as long as Inoue was saved from this wretched place, my life was a small price to pay. Someone had to die; I could feel the very sand under my sandals demanding it already.

Ichigo’s reiatsu flared to battle frenzied heights, and we shunpo’d as fast as we could to the location. There was a huge mask made of sand, apparently impervious to the assaults of the others. Even Ichigo’s powerful attacks were not enough to bring it down. When it bellowed it’s weakness to water Rukia’s eyes lit up and she unleashed the Ice Dance of her zanpakatou. The mask shattered and we were all grateful for the reunion, even if Ichigo had managed to pick up four Hollows like they were a pack of strays.

The little girl hollow spoke with a lisp, but she was far more powerful then she let on, even someone as stupid as me could tell that. We were all glad for the company though, for the added strength our combined forces meant. Introductions were awkward, we were apparently ‘Bad Guys’, but we were still allowed on the worm-like creature. Without sand sucking at our feet our progress seemed exponentially faster, even though the Arrancar stronghold never seemed get any closer.

We shouldn’t have been surprised by the appearance of another huge sand mask, but we were. The vortex it created sucked us relentlessly into the middle of the swirl. Rukia tried to do her Ice Dance, but in her enthusiasm she didn’t realize that she was stabbing our ride. The worm rebelled, as well it should, tossing us around. Rukia wasn’t able to hang on, and I saw her flip unto the collapsing ground moments before we were sucked underground.

Everything was reduced to sand, to falling, to grasping at the scaly skin of Bawa-Bawa the worm. We landed on to firm ground with no fanfare, limbs akimbo, sprawled uncomfortably twisted, but we were glad to be alive. Uryu started immediately babbling about Menos, but we were all too fucking happy to be alive to take much notice of his ramblings.

Elation gave way to panic the instant I realized Rukia was gone. Sand stuck in my throat as I shouted for her. Shit, fuck! She’d been thrown from the gods-damned worm before we fell though the sand. I stretched out my reiatsu, feeling for her distinctive signature. I could feel it faintly in the distance, but I couldn’t pinpoint it. Ishida and I took a ride on the worm up one of the tree-things; he was looking for Menos, and I was looking for Rukia. He found what he was looking for and I got distracted.

Really, we all got distracted. Menos crawled out of the oddly dead forest under the sand sky and we fought. There were just so fricken' many of them. When they were all gone, so were our hollow companions. I wasn’t all that upset to see them go, but Ichigo insisted that we find them and rescue them. What about Rukia, I wanted to shout, but I knew, or hoped and prayed that she could take care of herself. The little green-haired girl with the fucked up mask, and her equally wacko companions were less likely to be capable of that. So we were off, on yet another unlikely mission- to save some hollows.

While we were busy trying our best to do just that, I felt a cold chill run down my spine. Rukia had broken out her shikai. I only hoped that she was kicking ass and taking names, since we were busy fighting a shit-load of menos. Ishida busted out truly awesome amounts of arrows and suddenly it didn’t seem like we were all that outnumbered. I loved a good fight so I threw myself into it, bankai and all. Gods, it felt good to let Zabimaru fly as they were supposed to.

Then, as suddenly as they showed up, they were gone. We were clear of enemies and Rukia showed up with a strange looking shinigami, Ashido. The way she said his name gave me palpitations and cold sweat trickled down my back. What had happened between them while we were separated?

There was no time for pointless speculation and we raced for the exit. More menos showed up as we entered the tunnel, cero's flying and rocks tumbling. As we fled the destruction another type of enemy decided to join the fray. Ashido decided to stay back and fight the adjuchas; they had a history... And he was pissed.

The way she screamed his name as the tunnel collapsed... She’d never said my name like that, not once.

Suddenly, it became clear. A hundred and eighty-some-odd years and I knew it was time to let her go. This time it wasn't a matter of trying to do so, it was necessary. She had the right to feel whatever she wanted for whoever she wanted. I was through, done, empty.

We would be a team for this mission and I’d do my best to protect her if she needed it. But it was time to stop trying to force something, to make her notice me, love me. She didn’t belong to me like that. Not anymore, if she ever really had. It was time to accept that our paths had diverged. The time for longing was over, the time for friendship lost. I knew I'd be there if she ever needed me, but I finally stopped hoping for the best. It was kind of freeing in a way, to finally give up. I'd never have thought it was in me, but for her, I could do it.

Goodbye, Rukia.


~*~


Look y'all. I need your opinions. In the next chapter there's going to be mention of a wedding. The who is not hugely important to the plot, but it needs to be done. The only thing is that the wedding needs to take place in the Soul Society, and it HAS to be a couple who a bunch of people would need to come and well-wish. In other words, someone of a higher standing than say Hanataro (although he's totally adorable). I'm thinking Inoue/Zaraki, but it's not set in stone. I may or may not do an off-shoot based on that... I've got an idea in my head, but it's not fully formed and functional like this story came to me.

So my question to you is: Yay or nay? If nay, who? Yeah, I know Ichigo and Orihime are like 'meant to be together', but for some reason I'm feeling a sort a crack pairing after writing about a super obvious couple. Don't get me wrong, Ren/Ruki are my favorite Bleach couple, and I really love writing about them- and I will finish this before starting anything new.

The thing is, at least in terms of plotting future possibilities, I'm sort of in the mood for "tea rather than coffee", as it were. And Zaraki is just interesting, Inoue, eh- she's OK. Much more interesting since the kidnapping, which is prolly why I'm even considering it. Anyway, Zaraki, hmmmm. He's my number two (tied with maybe Shuuhei, maybe... See a pattern? Tattoos/scars?). Back to Mr. Z, so big and strong and scarred- god I love a good scarred man to... examine. Sure, EXAMINE. But, I digress.

Yah, so let me know. I'll be taking your opinions into consideration. Either hit me up on LJ or review.

Chapter title: Chevelle (saw them last weekend, and I was reminded how much I enjoyed that song.) I claim no ownership and make no money, damnit.

Thanks to the always fabulous SexyBleach. I just wish there was a way to let you know how much I've genuinely appreciated your support... It always makes my day when I see that you've reviewed.

I also want to give a special shout out to all my previous reviewers:
Polymer
Emcielle
emmie_chan849
Miss Asuka
and my newest ones:
Bill
Arei ~
I'm not sure if I communicated it adequately in the past, but I LIVE to hear back from you. The fact that you all took the time to do so makes all the effort and second-guessing myself and writing/plotting so worth it.

If I could hug everyone of you I would.

I guess that ends my blathering for tonight- other than the usual... (As if it wasn't already patently clear)
~Review!~