Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Cursed Existence ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 4 )

All I'm Asking For

Disclaimer: not mine unless Kubo agrees to marry me.

Summary: He swore to kill whomever would inherit that power, only to discover later that it was no one else than his own betrothed. AU. IchixRuk.

Special thanks to Ussa-chan and Shingua for helping me stimulate my brain to think of something to progress this plot. Hontony arigato.

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Chapter: 3

Seeing the person whom she thought would pluck her out of her empty life turn like that was shocking enough. It was obvious ever since they were little that he was very attached to his mother and that even though he was a child at that time, he already knew that there was something wrong with his mom and that she would not stick around him for too long. She knew he would be mad, but she thought it would be directed towards their cursed state.

It was morning now, but she couldn't get enough sleep. The view her window had was breath taking. However, she couldn't see anything beyond that vast garden which was surrounding this old mansion. She had no objections to sticking around him now that she finally found him. on the contrary, she was now more determined than ever to change his idea about not fighting back the curse. But what worried her was the fact that she would break down under the heavy burden sooner or later, and that she needed to be in town by that time. maybe she needed to put more effort into convincing him that what he was determined to do was wrong.

Rangiku came in a few minuets ago, bringing her fresh clothes and telling her to dress up and join them down stairs for breakfast. The clothes she brought were a bit large, but convenient for the time being.

the vast hallway that met her when she went out of her room was extravagant. The lights were not back yet, but sun light was sufficient enough to appreciate the old structure of the place. There was one drawback however. This mansion was in desperate need for cleaning, and the damn threesome were not doing anything about it.

She reached the first floor, and found them all seated across a round small table. Her damned betrothed was reading a book, his attention torn between reading and the bickering coming from the couple seated next to him. The blond woman was putting freshly baked pancakes as a dark haired man kept on complaining about something like a child. The blond looked up and smiled at her: " Have a seat Rukia-chan."

Rukia smiled back and seated herself across her betrothed and next to Rangiku. The bastard was not even looking at her, still keeping his eyes glued to that book. The least he could do was apologize for his weird behavior last night but he was showing complete and utter indifference to whatever was going on around him.

She muttered a thank you to Rangiku upon seeing the blond placing a cup of tea in front of her. Then Rangiku's attention turned over to Ichigo: " I'll do what you asked me to after I'm done with my work."

Ichigo's eyes were still glued to his book as he muttered: " That would be great."

" Hey Moron, I'm doing you a favor here so the least you could do is shut that book of yours genius and spare me a few seconds of you precious time."

Ichigo shut his book closed so forcefully, then looked at Rangiku with a scowl: " Fine. What is it?"

Rangiku smiled sweetly at him, then spoke in sing song tone: " I need financial support Mister."

He knew that fact already, but what pissed him off was the attitude Rangiku used when talking to him. his friend may help carry out the conversation for him since he already knew how to deal with her. He looked over at Hisagi who was busy stuffing himself with those pancakes, and talked in that pleading tone that only Hisagi recognized:" Hisagi!"

" Don't look at me. It's your problem."

Figures! Even his friend couldn't deal with her that easily so early in the morning. Ichgio shifted his gaze back to Rangiku again, muttering with a sigh: " How much do you need?"

" Depends on your generosity Mister cheap."

That annoying tone of hers still did not waver away the slightest bit. And did she just call him cheap? Patience was the magic word upon dealing with this woman. He went back to his book, searching for the page he reached earlier as he said: " I'll give you my credit card okay?"

" Wow. That is so unlike you."

Ichgio was now exasperated beyond description : " Rangiku, what the hell do you want from me?"

Rangiku blinked back innocently: " Nothing. That's all. Sorry to waste your precious time." Then she turned over to Rukia who was trying desperately to hide her state of joy over what Rangiku was doing to Ichigo: " Rukia-chan. I'll be shopping for some clothes for you. Is there any specific thing that you want? "

Rukia winced at that. So the bastard was talking seriously about keeping her with him here. No wonder he was thinking of buying her the things she would be needing. And to top it all, he was not letting her do the shopping herself. wait! did he intend to imprison her here?

Well, taking the fact that she would be traced easily thanks to her riatsu, he would have to keep her within these vast walls. The bastard would get whatever he wished for. She would accommodate him until she could beat some sense into him.

Rangiku noticed Rukia's wince, and so she though to reassure her quickly: "Don't worry. He'll be paying for everything."

" Whatever is fine Rangiku-chan."

" Are you serious? He'll be paying for god's sake. Just ask for whatever you wish for."

A mischievous look came over Rukia's expression at hearing Rangiku say that. Well, she could make his life a bit difficult. The guy needed to know that she would not be that easy to handle: " Anything that's priced with 3 digits and above."

Ichigo's head snapped out of his reading at hearing Rukia say that. Was she out of her mind? And now the famous spender Rangiku was taking an interest in the discussion: " What size do you prefer?"

This can't be happening. Rangiku the spender was not even debating the matter with her. she was going on to the next question. He should've known. Before Rukia could answer Rangiku's question, he spoke up immediately: " I though it was obvious. Even small would be too big for her."

" Excuse me?"

" you heard me."

Rukia rose from her seat at hearing him say that. Not only did he leave her, kidnap her, and dump her in this isolated place, he was also making sarcastic remarks about her. her tone got high enough when she spoke those words with all the vehemence she could muster: " To whom do I owe the honor of leaving a clean comfortable place to this hostile pig's barn?" then she spared the bewildered Rangiku and Hisagi a glance and muttered: " No offence"

The couple replied together: " Non taken."

Ichigo whose anger was already brought out thanks to Rangiku replied: " Is this the thanks I get for relieving my town's people from their futile struggle?"

" No one asked for your help psycho. And even if they needed any, you'd be the last person whom they would consider."

He was now on his feet, speaking in the same angry tone she used:" Do you realized how hard I worked through out these whole ten years. I had to cut every connection with every familiar figure I had so that I wouldn't be tracked and brought back. I've lived alone through out this entire time, and now I have two maniacs for companions. No offence."

" Non taken."

" I don't care what difficulties you chose to go through. Why do I have to get dragged into your pitiful life?"

" You chose to go through that yourself. If you refused to bear the burden, you would be still playing the perfect Kuchiki doll back home."

" How dare you make it sound as simple as that! as a Kuchiki I should…"

But he wouldn't let her even finish her sentence: " As a Kuchiki you should've talked to that useless brother of yours and told him that this was not what you signed up for when you were adopted."

Her anger flared at this. The bastard had brought her brother in this as well: " Don't you talk about Byakuya ni-sama like that. At least he took care of me when the one who was supposed to left."

Again! He hated to be reminded of that. He left yes, but he never forgot about her. not even once: " I was planning to come back for you, but you never even…"

" Oh? Is that so? How am I supposed to know your thoughts psycho. I never knew you had so much faith in my sixth sense. Or were you hoping that I would grow to obtain psychic powers?"

" It's useless talking to you midget. Your small brain was washed by the Kuchiki clan."

Did she just hear him right? Brain washed? He was the one going against what the elders decided for God's sake: " In case you haven't noticed, every single soul back there thinks the same way as I do. You're the one who deviated. In short, you're the one whose brain was washed."

They were glaring at each other now, breathing hard to regain their composure. Rangiku and Hisagi knew that the composure they were seeking won't come, and that if they did not separate the two now, there would be a second round of this battle. Rangiku rose and took Rukia by the hand to get her to leave the men's presence, whispering so that Ichigo would not hear her: " Rukia-chan. Leave this stubborn bull for now, you could beat some sense into a wall, but never him. believe me."

Rukia complied and went over with the blond, still feeling furious, but she had to admit that if were to stick around him for another minuet, she would definitely grow insane. Hisagi was waiting for them to leave their presence then he looked over at Ichigo who threw himself back in his chair. He was now going through that ugly book again, searching for that damn page, nearly ripping the pages off in his anger. Then Hisagi spoke in a calm manner: " Was it really that difficult to just shake your head, or at least pretend that you were listening but not interested in replying? After all, you always did that when you wanted me to stop talking to you."

" Are you siding with her as well?" it was a threatening remark muttered with a threatening glare which Hisagi knew very well, but he wouldn't stop talking now: " Do you expect her to bow her head to you in gratitude for snatching her like that, and laugh the whole thing off? Of course she would object, but you had to reason with her, not talk back like that."

Hisagi was looking at Ichigo expectantly, but the bastard went back to stirring his tea and eating his breakfast. He threw the book when Hisagi was in the middle of his sentence after getting frustrated over not finding that damn page.

It was now Hisagi's turn to get angry: " see you're doing it again. You want me to shut up don't you? bad news friend. I'm not going to. You're gonna hear me whether you like it or not."

" Are you done talking cause suddenly, I feel a strong urge to punch someone, and you have no idea how tempting the idea of punching you is right now."

" whatever you wish for. don't come running back to me for advices on how to deal with her, you hear? That was a free offer and you blew it. Now on to our job. There a few things I wanted to discuss with you."

" Now you're talking."

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Hisagi left for work a minuet ago, along with Rangiku who couldn't stop sending those death glares as she was urged to leave by Hisagi. Here he was bringing a stranger among his comrades only to have them take her side rather than his. And he thought that they gave him their agreement to help him out because they were siding with him. although he expected some troubles to arise with the Eye around, he never expected any of what was happening to him now. and how the hell did Hisagi put up with that blond sweetheart of his? She was not only making those sarcastic remarks about him now, she had to drag Rukia in it as well. Did that sadistic woman have that much fun in toying with his temper?

God help him. now he had two women to deal with and they were further proving the conclusion he reached long ago…women are hard to understand or deal with. He was infuriated beyond words after he finally managed to put his raging temper under control thanks to those death glares Rangiku sent. The woman can make even a saint lose his patience. Of course Hisagi was not a saint or a human, he was definitely an alien. Yes! Yes! that could explain why he was so calm and composed around her. his dear friend was definitely not human.

Ichigo had this strong urge to distract himself with anything. that's why he went back to his library hoping that the work he couldn't finish yesterday would keep him away from thinking about the newly raised troubles. And there she was…in his library, his sanctuary, looking around his own books and records.

Right now he needed to calm down. The library was large enough that he was sure that if he went through his work he would hardly notice that there was anyone around. He sat on his desk, totally determined to ignore her, but his things were not the way he left them!

His mess! The mess he got used to was now replaced with a spotless clean table! How could she invade his own sanctuary like that?

Ichigo closed his eyes and counted to ten. This was a trial, and he needed to survive it. Right now he needed to sort his papers back to the way he left them. He looked around for his pen, but it wasn't around.

He looked up subconsciously at her and found the pen behind her era as she held a book in her hand, looking at the preface page.

He ignored that again, swearing that if he found another wrong thing with his sanctuary, he would not keep quite no matter what. His spotless large desk had a note written on his note pad. He picked it up and inspected it only to find some numbers scratched on them along with an address: " What's that?"

Rukia jerked her head towards him at hearing his question : " A note I wrote on the place and time."

But instead of putting any further question about her vision like Kira and Renji did, he threw the note aside, and went on inspecting the drawers for god only knows what. At seeing him showing no sign of interest in the matter, and at seeing the way he treated her note, Rukia grew afraid that the bastard was not only intending to imprison her here, but was also planning to ignore her visions as well. Although it would never seem possible that someone who held his power and who had recognized the pain of losing someone would ever think of ignoring those in need, but his actions were surprising enough that she no longer held anything as impossible.

She marched towards him angrily, finding him flipping his papers looking for something within them then she spoke: " Hey! You are going to save that woman aren't you?"

The bastard did not even spare her a single glance, still busy with those damn things on his desk, as he muttered without a hint of interest: "What woman?"

" The woman I saw in my vision. She was being attacked…I mean…she's going to be attacked by hollows."

He still did not look at her as he muttered: " That's absolutely non of my damn business. Leave now. I don't like working when someone is invading my space."

He was a pig after all. There was no way she could wait to convince him with this fact as well. She walked over to stand directly next to his chair, trying to get him to give her a proper explanation: "You can't be serious!"

" I asked you to leave Rukia. do I have to repeat myself?"

" To hell with your space! You're going to listen to me whether you like it or not."

Without warning, all the anger he held from the night before to this day broke loose. He suddenly stood up, almost knocking his massive chair down as he did this, and pushed her against the wall, imprisoning her between his arms which were pinned to the wall, on both sides. She was shocked for a second at his sudden leap, then she heard him ask with a low chilling angry tone: " What did I tell you yesterday?"

Yesterday was an eventful one. Many things happened, and many things were said, but if he was referring to his say in the matter they were discussing now, then she distinctly remembered that he told he would take care of the matter. However, he shouldn't blame her for her question. He was confusing her with his strange behavior, and he didn't have to get that angry just because she was making sure.

His scowl went more intense as he carried on in the same chilling tone: " No answer huh? If you remember what I said yesterday then why are you wasting my time and yours asking those silly questions?"

She still would not answer him for the simple fact that she was shocked enough to find him contradicting more and more the image she created for him in her mind for all those years. She wanted to leave his presence at any cost. Now that her question was answered, she didn't need to ruin what was left of the perfect image she created for him in her mind.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he asked his next question: " What am I?"

Rukia was puzzled for a second. What was he exactly trying to say? the bastard was many things. For one, he's a bastard, and there was no need to delve in that matter anymore for she was sure that the list of nouns she could come up with would take all night to spill.

Ichigo noticed her puzzled look, or rather, he noticed that she was purposely ignoring to answer his questions, but he wouldn't be swayed. There was a message he wanted her to get, and he would not stop until he made sure that she understood it: " I'll rephrase my question, What type of curse am I exactly under? What will happen to me if I don't slay hollows?"

He would simply achieve a state of turning into a hollow himself for the simple fact that his sword will feed on his soul instead. Now she realized why he was asking all those questions. he wanted to answer her question and teach her to not jump to conclusions again the hard mean way. She totally hated him now.

" Did you even ask yourself those questions before you made those conclusions?"

Her eyes now were over brimming with tears, threatening to fall at any second. She took a deep breath, then met his eyes with the same fury he had, she spoke in a calm tone which soon turned shaky as her tears fell: " Why am I here? Why didn't you come back for me after you left? Did you think about what I would go through after what you did? Do you have the slightest idea about what I faced there after Hisana died? Kurosaki Ichigo…what am I to you?"

His answer came out without a hint of hesitation: " You are the Eye and nothing else. Your presence here is mandatory to prevent those elders from keeping our cursed breed alive. you are no longer the girl who was betrothed to me. Keep that in mind Rukia. I ran away cause I wanted to forget, and if forgetting required I cut my tie with you, then I'll do it by all means."

Rukia could not keep herself from nearly choking on a sob. The guy was a mean, heartless, cold bastard: " How could you say that?"

His expression turned softer, but his words were the same cold ones: " The person from your memory no longer exists Rukia."

She pushed him away from her so that she could leave the place at once. Ichigo stood there motionless. He knew that what he said was harsh, but at least he was being honest with her…

Or so he told himself.

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Author's notes:

Okay. I really hope that the story is going somewhere interesting. Your thoughts and reviews people.