Old Souls: beginning

Warm air slowly circulated around the surroundings, causing a faint breeze. White papers flew about in the gentle breeze, scattering all over the floor. A young Shinigami was running ramped throughout the Seireitei in search of their captain. She had lost nearly all of her important documents, but the matter at hand was far more important. Finally she caught sight of her captain, who was happily kicked back on a couch day dreaming the day away.

"Captain Kurosaki, we have an urgent problem!" she cried out, her light brown hair falling in her face.

"What is it Haruko?" Captain Kurosaki asked, glancing sleepily toward the upset 5th seat.

"Lieutenant Kurosaki is drunk!" Haruko replied.

Every ounce of drossiness left the captain instantly. They jumped up, and shot past their 5th seat using flash step. Within a matter of seconds, they stood outside the new bar that had opened a week ago. Panting, Captain Kurosaki staggered inside, only to find their lieutenant utterly drunken in a booth. With a sigh, they sat down beside the drunk.

"Is this anyway a lieutenant should be acting?" Captain Kurosaki asked.

"Oh shut it Ichigo! I'm not as think as you drunk I am!" lieutenant Kurosaki replied in a growl.

"Dammit Rukia you're plastered! Now come on before I have to carry you out of here!" Ichigo snapped.

Rukia opened her mouth to protest, but then passed out and fell face first onto the table. Ichigo rolled his eyes, and scooped up his lieutenant in his arms. On his way out the door with his sleeping wife, he turned to face the bar tender.

"I hope she hasn't given you any trouble, Retsu," he said.

"Oh no, she was very quiet this time. Oh, and I was accepted into the Soul Reaper academy finally! Wish me luck sir," Retsu replied with a smile.

"That's great! Maybe soon we'll have a Captain Unohana in our ranks," Ichigo said with a wave as he left.

Along his travel home, Haruko followed behind him, nagging him about not finishing all the important documents and allowing his lieutenant to go drinking at an early hour. His only replies to her were huffs and inaudible grumbles. Once home, Ichigo set the snoring Rukia down on their bed. She stirred a bit due to the sudden movement, and slowly opened her violet eyes. He sat down beside her, petting her hair softly to calm her a bit.

"Any reason for that earlier?" he asked.

"Not too loud; my head's killing me. That Retsu could sell an Eskimo ice," she mumbled.

"So it's her fault you were drunk?" Ichigo asked, a slight laugh in his tone.

"Why did she have to offer that free sample of green apple sake?" Rukia cried out, holding her hands above herself as if crying out to a higher power.    

Ichigo couldn't help but laugh at his drunken wife. He ruffled her hair after patting it down smooth, and then kissed the top of her head. Rukia squeaked a bit, and pulled a pillow over her head. "Now new captains and lieutenants can't be acting like this. Remember Rukia, we barely squeaked by on getting these ranks because of being together," Ichigo reminded her.

The two had only held their rank for a mere two years, but had done very well with the fourth division in that amount of time. Though because of their relation, it took a lot of persuasion to get the head captain to allow a husband and wife to run a division together. Because of that, the two always had to tread on thin ice, but they also were not easily replaced. The divisions were still in the making, and only three other captains were in place at the time with a handful more in the making. In time it was hoped that there would be thirteen divisions in total, each specializing in something specific, but for now they would make do with the four simple divisions. The fifth one was being put together, and would hopefully be up and running once someone of captain rank was found. Ichigo knew that Rukia had potential to become a captain if she actually put effort into it, though he doubted she would ever aspire to achieve that rank. There were days he wondered if she enjoyed following him about like a puppy, always at his side when needed and always willing to take any task he had. Though Ichigo had to admit he liked having Rukia at his side. There was never a dull moment with this spitfire of a lieutenant around!

"You wanna know why I went drinking?" Rukia asked, peeking out from the hole in the pillow case. That poor pillow she hid under had been thrown about countless nights, and each time fell on her zanpakuto that was carelessly left unsheathed. Though Rukia never cared where the pillow landed when she threw it; her focus was always on the person next to her in bed.

"No, I only asked you why cause it was in the script. Of course I'd like to know why, dummy," Ichigo replied as he thumped the top of her head.

"Captain Yamamoto requested to speak to me tomorrow. His lieutenant said it was about a very important matter that he couldn't disclose," she said. Rukia buried her face further into the pillow. "I just know we've blown it! They're going to transfer me into the new fifth division, I just know it!"

Ichigo grumbled at the fact that he only heard half of her comment. He grabbed hold of her pillow, and chucked it across the room. It hit the wall, bounced onto the floor and then bounced back and hit him in the face. After spitting out a number of feathers, he said, "How have we done any worse than the other captains and lieutenants? I bet they're just gonna tell you we're doing so awesome that we'll become the new Soul King and Queen!"

"If you're attempting to make me laugh you're failing at it," Rukia replied flatly.

"At least I'm not the one hiding under a pillow the size of myself," Ichigo through back.

Reaching upward, Rukia swatted at his hair and then rolled onto her back. Within a few minutes she dozed off again and was reawakened in what seemed like a matter of seconds. Rocks slamming against the front window, and then busting through the glass, surprisingly only woke Rukia. She jumped up and proceeded to dart over to her shattered window, only to trip over the sleeping Ichigo beside her. He had fallen asleep on her belt, which was keeping her from moving. Rukia eyed the situation and pondered her two options of how to deal with it. One was to simply take off the belt, but if she did that her shirt would fall open. Two was to wake Ichigo, but that risked getting smacked in the face like the time before. 'Do I want a concussion or want to flash?' she continued to ponder. Her answer then came to her as another rock came flying through the window and hit Ichigo in between the eyes. He shot up; taking her belt with him that was gripped in his hand, and went to the window to find the source of the problem.

"Haruko!" Ichigo snapped as he slammed the front door open.

Standing in the doorway with a handful of rocks was the 5th seat, Haruko Shikinami. She was the newest addition to the division and was the couple's worst nightmare. Though Haruko was a sweet girl, she nagged them until every ounce of paperwork was completed. She also had a nosy side to her that drove every last Shinigami utterly mad. Haruko, rather than reply, glanced around Ichigo to peer inside his home. Of course, her eyes went directly to the open shirted lieutenant, and then back to the captain whom held the lieutenant's belt in hand.

"Am I interrupting something?" Haruko asked, raising an eyebrow to her captain.

"No, and even if you had you just ruined any mood there could have been," Ichigo replied, now tinted in a lovely shade of red that Rukia had turned a second before.

"Good then. You still need to finish these papers and lieutenant Kurosaki, Captain Yamamoto would like to see you now," she said, glossing over her captain's newfound skin tone.   

Rukia gulped when she heard those words. She held her shirt closed as she hoisted herself out of bed and toward the door. Swiping the belt from Ichigo's hand, she tied it around her thin waist and continued on her way. The whole travel to the 1st division barracks her heart beat rapidly. Rukia's hands were sweating horribly, and she could have sworn the collar of her shirt was choking the life out of her. 'I just know something good won't come of this' she thought grimly. Something inside her kept screaming to turn back and run home. She just knew something horrible was going to happen, but she couldn't place her finger on what. Was she to be transferred, or demoted? Was Ichigo going to receive a new lieutenant; a prettier lieutenant perhaps? Caught up in her dark thoughts, Rukia failed to notice the Head Captain stroll past her. Captain Yamamoto stopped and glanced back toward the frightened lieutenant.

"Lieutenant Kurosaki," he called out, hoping to catch her attention.

Whirling around, Rukia stammered out, "Y-yes s-sir?" 'Now I know this won't end well! I just ignored the Head Captain!' she screamed to herself.

"I was hoping to speak with you in private, but these surroundings work as well. I've been discussing with Captain Ukitake, Captain Kyōraku and Captain Kurosaki about who will become our fifth captain for the newest division. After a long while a single name kept coming up in the discussion and we all agreed that they would make a lovely captain," Captain Yamamoto explained.

A sinking feeling in Rukia's heart began to set in at his words. She knew his next sentence would be "And you've been chosen to be the new lieutenant". The idea of only getting Ichigo to herself at night, and rarely seeing in the day, pained her.

"I just hope no one gets too confused in the captain's meetings with there being two captains sharing the same name. Captain Rukia is more than likely what you'll be addressed as, while Captain Kurosaki will still be addressed normally. Good day to you, Captain Rukia. Your first day as captain begins in a month," Captain Yamamoto finished before continuing on his way.

"Captain... Rukia..." she mumbled to herself. The sound of it thrilled her!   

With a skip in her step, she headed back home to Ichigo. He would be the first to hear of this great news! Then it hit her; Ichigo was a part of the discussion about her becoming a captain. He knew all along! Rukia wanted to be mad at him but couldn't bring herself to. She was in far too good a mood to ruin it over a petty secret. Ichigo probably wanted it to surprise her anyways. Shrugging off that thought, Rukia continued home. Along the way she stopped by a local baker and picked up the best cake they had, along with a few dozen cookies. She then swung by the local bar where Retsu worker, and picked up a few bottles of sake. Rukia wanted to remember this day, even if the memories were of she and Ichigo passed out on the floor drunk. The rest of the way home she juggled the bags in her hands, which multiplied in time. What started as a cake box and bags of cookies with a couple bottles of sake turned into a multicourse candlelight dinner. Finally after three hours, Rukia found herself at home. The sun had set, turning the sky a fiery red with hints purple swirled in and a single star sparkling in a patch of royal blue. Rukia found herself staring at the sky while standing at her front door. She couldn't help but notice something wrong in the picture. The sun had sunken out of sight sometime back, but no moon shown in the sky.

As she continued to stare at the sunless sky, Rukia turned the door knob and entered her home. The lights were out, leaving the house in dark shadows. Ichigo sadly wasn't there, but that was alright. He not being there gave her time to prepare all the food she'd bought! Though to her surprise, Rukia wasn't alone. 5th seat Haruko Shikinami sat in a wooden chair near the front door, her gaze directed to the floor. Haruko slowly brought her gaze upward to meet Rukia's; tears poured from her hazel eyes.

"I... I'm so sorry lieutenant Kurosaki... I'm so sorry," Haruko cried.

"What's going on? What are you sorry for?" Rukia asked. This wasn't like Haruko. If this girl had murdered someone in cold blood, she still wouldn't apologize and would claim the person fell repeatedly onto her zanpakuto.

"We did everything we could... but it just wasn't enough. We... we just couldn't stop the bleeding in time," she continued, her voice barely audible.

"What are talking.... about..." Rukia at first was still highly confused, and then she pieced the puzzle together. Rukia dropped her bags on the floor, the plastic packages accompanied by a cascade of tears. She fell to her knees and felt her heart stop. "What... what happened?" she managed to ask. A shred of hope lie in her heart that Haruko was there to inform her that the 3rd seat or 4th seat had an accident.

"A number of ranking officers had volunteered to help in the construction of the newest division. One of the pillars in the barracks wasn't very sturdy, and collapsed on itself. The entire building came down, injuring a few squad members," Haruko began. She stopped for a second, and then squeaked out, "C-Captain Kurosaki made sure everyone got out... but he didn't get out in time. The building structure crushed him."

Rukia barely even heard her. Everything was going dark around her and was beginning to feel ice cold. Haruko apologized once more, and left her in peace. She set a note beside Rukia before leaving and hoped she would read the message at some point in time. Though the paper sadly sat on the floor for some time untouched. Rukia didn't leave the position the whole night, and didn't move until a few squad members went searching for her, but even then it was them who had to physically move her. Many came by to say that they were sorry for her loss, but none of them ever received a response out of her.

After a month, Captain Rukia's rank was demoted back to lieutenant. It was questioned whether her rank should be demoted lower, but it was decided that it was best not to upset her any worse. Not once did she move from her bed; non-ranking officers had to feed her daily to ensure she even survived. Within the next month Rukia began to wander around the Seireitei once again, but refused to speak to anyone. Finally after another year, she requested that another take her role as lieutenant, and that she be given the lowest rank available. A lieutenant wasn't very useful to their division if they never spoke or dealt with anyone. Rukia thought it was best she live out her life alone, and not with heavy responsibilities resting on her shoulders. When a second year had gone by, everyone came to terms with a saddening realization; they had lost their best captain and lieutenant in the same day. No one had seen or heard from Rukia since she retired. Retsu over time began to miss her best customer and one of her closest friends. She took off one night at the bar and went in search of her old friend. To her surprise, Rukia still lived in the old house she and Ichigo had owned together.

With a light knock on the door, Retsu called out, "Rukia, are you there?"  

The door creaked open slowly, allowing Retsu to step in quietly. Sitting silently in the bed was Rukia. She was staring out the back window, watching the cherry blossom petals swirl about in the light wind of the night. Retsu slowly approached the large bed, and gently sat on the edge of it.

"Do you know how long I knew Ichigo?" Rukia asked. Her voice had a distant sound to it, and cracked slightly as she spoke, showing how long it had been since she had spoken.

"I know you two went to the academy together," Retsu replied.

"We were two teenagers in the Kusajishi district of Rukongai. Ichigo had just stolen the last scrap of food in the area and I refused to let him keep it. He told me that if he ever saw me again, it'd be too soon. Within the year I enrolled myself in the academy, and the classmate who sat beside me was Ichigo. For a few days he thought it was a joke, but after a couple of years he got the hint that I was truly a student. We were always paired together for assignments and field trips, and over time we became friends. The day we graduated Ichigo asked me to marry him. He said that at first he'd rather me have dropped dead, but over the years I grew on him and if I wasn't always at his side, then life would be boring and meaningless. How do you say no that, you know? By month's end we were married, and were given lower ranks in the third division. Things just were so perfect for us. It didn't even take long for him to become a captain," Rukia said, a sweet smile in her eyes as she told her past stories.

"Two rivals in love? That's wild," Retsu replied.

"I know, weird huh? The first day I meet Ichigo he declares that one day he'll kill me, and then he's promising me that he'll love me forever, take care of me and never abandon me. Did you know the year Ichigo died would have been our twentieth anniversary?" Rukia asked, her gaze never once leaving the back window.

"That's a good amount of time," she replied.

"You know, I finally got myself to read that note Haruko gave me. Supposedly, despite having a whole building on top of him, Ichigo asked her to bring him paper. That note was him saying goodbye, and apologizing for not keeping his promise of never leaving. Though, the last line I can't fully understand. He said, 'See you again on the other side'. This is the other side already, but is there another or does it all just start over again?" Rukia asked. The sweet look in her eyes dimmed until her violet eyes appeared lifeless.

Retsu stayed with her a bit longer, and then apologized for needing to leave. Rukia only nodded in response and continued to stare out the window. As the night sky darkened she got out of bed and headed out the back door. A small lake sat behind her home, just barely four foot deep at best. Rukia, fully clothed in her shihakusho, stepped into the lake and then lay down in the cool water. She then began stacking stones onto her chest, building them up like a little castle. Soon both the stones and the water were above her head; Rukia was barely even visible in the late clouded moon lighting. As Retsu finally turned in for the night, she glanced out her window briefly. One thing caught her attention; there wasn't a moon showing in this night's sky.

Icy cold wind whipped through the cemetery as a funeral was finishing. A large pile of roses sat atop two graves, despite one grave being an older one. The numbers of people thinned out until just two were left in the cold. Haruko and Retsu stood in front of the graves of their two close friends. A couple that even in death, was side by side.

"I wonder why Rukia did it," Haruko murmured.

"Because she wanted to see if she'll meet Ichigo on the other side," Retsu replied.

To be continued in another lifetime...