Two weeks later,
Yuuki is putting flowers in the flower vase at Momo's room when Toushiro entered along with Rangiku.
~Shiro, Matsumoto-san, ohayo!~
"Yuuki-chan! Ohayo!", Rangiku cheerfully said.
~It's still early are you guys going somewhere?~
"We're going to the human world for a patrol. It's weird that there hasn't been any sightings of Hollows or Chained Hollows these past few weeks. Everyone has been edgy since this is the first time it happened. So we're going to investigate.", Toushiro said.
~Shiro, can I come as well? I promise I won't cause any trouble.~
"No. You just stay here, you know those things are after you. You'll be safer here."
~But you said there hasn't been any sightings for weeks now.~
"We still don't know what might happen while we're there."
"Yuuki-chan why do you suddenly want to go anyway?", Rangiku asked.
~I just wanted to see how everyone's doing that's all. I thought that this might be a chance to see them.~
"So you miss them....", Rangiku said and smiles lightly.
Yuuki nods with a sad look on her face.
"Come on taichou, I'll take care of her while we're there."
(*sigh*) "....... fine then, Matsumoto you stay out of trouble and just keep an eye on her."
Yuuki brightens up when she heard his reply.
~Thanks so much, Shiro!~
"Haaah? Why me? I'm not making any trouble.", Rangiku said.
"Yuuki isn't the type of person to cause trouble. While you on the other hand, might get drunk in the middle of the day again and cause a commotion or force her to carry all your shopping bags."
"Come on, I don't remember getting drunk in the middle of the day."
(*cross popping veins*) "You can't remember because you were drunk! Who brings alcohol during missions anyway?!", he said with an irritated look on his face.
"It's to celebrate for a mission well done of course!"
"Don't celebrate over minor things!"
"Not all of them are minor though..."
"Just shut up and let's get going!"
*******
Finally arriving at the human world, Toushiro, Yuuki and Rangiku went to Orihime's place first. Orihime was surprised when she saw Yuuki and gave her a bone-crushing tackle-hug the moment she saw her.
"Yuuki-channnn! Welcome back!! You're okay!! (>▼<)"
(*sweat drop*) "Ummm... Orihime-chan, you know... if you don't let her go right now then she'll die of suffocation."
"Waahh!... sorry Yuuki-chan I was just so happy to see you.", Orihime said.
~I'm so happy to see you as well.~
Yuuki smiles happily at her.
"Ehhh!? (Yuuki-chan just smiled?!)
Yuuki tilts her head in confusion.
~Something wrong?~
Orihime was surprised when she saw her smile so happily. She turns her attention to the two Shinigamis.
"Toushiro-kun, Rangiku-san can I talk to you for a second?", Orihime whispered. "Excuse us Yuuki-chan I just want to ask them about something for a moment.", she said to Yuuki.
Yuuki looks at them with a puzzled expression on her face and nods. Orihime pulls Toushiro and Rangiku away so she can't hear.
"What is it Orihime-chan?", Rangiku whispered.
"It's about Yuuki-chan, she seems different now."
"Different? What do you mean?", Toushiro asked.
"Well... different as in a good thing.", Orihime whispered.
"Orihime-chan, don't keep us hanging. What is it?", Rangiku whispered.
"This is the first time I've seen Yuuki-chan smile so lively. She wasn't like this before so I just wanted to thank you. She seems to open up to you.", Orihime whispered as she smiled happily.
"No, no, no, I think it's all because of the captain. I noticed that every time she's with you, she seems so lively."
"Thank you, Toushiro-kun."
"N-No, I really didn't do anything.", he said as he blushess.
They finally finished their conversation and went back to where Yuuki was.
"Yuuki-chan! Sorry for the wait.", Orihime said.
~It's fine, can I ask what it was about?~
"It's a secret, hehehe. Ahhh!... you guys come on in."
"No thanks, we'll just drop Yuuki off here, she said she wants to talk to you so I'll come back later. Matsumoto, I'll leave them to you, if something happens contact me right away." , Toushiro said.
Toushiro leaves and the three girls enters the house. Orihime went to get some snacks, they intend to eat while talking.
"Yuuki-chan, have you talked to Kurosaki-kun?"
~No, I haven't gone to see him yet. He might hate me after all the things that happened.~
Yuuki is writes her reply this time instead of using sign language since Rangiku can't understand it and can join in their conversation.
"That's not true. Kuchiki-san kept me updated on you, it wasn't your fault. I'm sure Kurosaki-kun feels the same, he'll understand so just talk to him....", Orihime said.
~There's something you still don't know.~
"What is it?"
~About the person who killed them, his name is Haru.~
"So you know him?"
~More than that, he's actually my brother.~
"What!? But how did you know that?"
~My childhood memories are slowly returning. I've also seen what my parents looked like.~
"Do you know where they are and what happened to them?"
Yuuki shakes her head no with a sad look on her face.
~Even if I wanted to go and look for them, I don't know where to begin. Shiro said nothing was left to the house near the place where they found me.~
"Toushiro-kun? I thought Isshin-san was the one who found you?"
~It's a long story.~
"Orihime-chan, let me tell you about the things that happened recently.", Rangiku said.
She told her everything that happened so far. Orihime was silent for a while and seems to be deep in thought.
"I see... you still don't remember your parents' names so it'll be hard for you to search but I'm sure you'll get all your memories back soon.", Orihime said and smiles to cheer her up. "On the other note, if you have the ability to cure the Chained Hollow victims, then isn't that a good thing? Why are you so unhappy?"
~That's just it, if only I have known about it a bit sooner then I could've helped Yuzu-chan and Karin-chan. Then Ichi-nii and dad wouldn't have suffered.~
"Yuuki-chan there's nothing you could have done."
(That's the thing! I can't do anything at all! I hate it! I might have the ability to cure them but I don't know how to do it. That's was only thing that I can do but I still can't do it right, how useless can I get? Those things are after me and everyone is just getting caught up in my problems. So everything is my fault!), she thought.
Yuuki clenched her fists out of frustration and started to cry. Orihime and Rangiku tried to comfort her. Then she suddenly wiped away her tears and looked at both of them with a serious expression on her face.
~Matsumoto-san, Inoue-san can we take a stroll for a while?~
(Moping won't get me anywhere. I have to get a hold of myself and figure things out.), she thought.
"S-Sure.", Orihime said, a bit surprised.
"Yaay! We're going for a walk! What should I buy? This will be a girls day out!", Rangiku happily said.
Orihime and Yuuki giggled when they saw Rangiku's reaction.
"Rangiku-san is really excited. But we're just going on a walk not shopping.", Orihime whispered to Yuuki.
~At least she's happy so we'll just have to let her be.~
"You're right! It's a lot better than a gloomy atmosphere. Now I'm getting excited as well, let's go!!", Orihime cheerfully said.
The trio went out to different kinds of places to have a good time. While Rangiku shops, Yuuki and Orihime were helping to carry her bags.
"Yuuki-chan! Look at this! I bet this will good on you! You should try it!", Rangiku enthusiastically said.
Yuuki hesitated but Rangiku dragged her to the fitting room. She looks at Orihime with a 'Help me!' look on her face but she waved at her with a 'Sorry, I can't' expression on her face. A few minutes later, Yuuki came out of the fitting room.
"Woah! See?!! I told you! I'm so good at this!! (^.~)v", Rangiku proudly said.
"Yuuki-chan you look very cute!", Orihime said with sparkling eyes. "This one next!", she enthusiastically said as she hands her another dress.
Yuuki gave in to their demands and eventually enjoys herself as well. Then they joined her in dressing up and compared them with each other. After trying some on clothes they decided to get something to eat.
While walking along the shopping district, the trio we're happily chatting asking each other where to go next. Then Orihime suddenly stops on her tracks as she saw a very familiar figure.
"Kurosaki-kun?"
Upon hearing his name Yuuki quickly hid behind Rangiku. She sneaks out as she blends in with the crowd. She hid in an alleyway and peeks at them. They seem to be chatting happily, she was happy to see Ichigo again. She was lip reading to know what he was saying. When they finished chatting, Ichigo walked towards her direction. So she frantically hides beside a dumpster and waits for him to pass by. While hiding, she suddenly felt her head throb and passes out as another memory comes back.
*******
Yuuki and Haru were playing hide and seek outside. Haru is counting while Yuuki searches somewhere to hide.
"... 99... 100! Okay, ready or not here I come!", Haru said and started searching for her.
Yuuki was hiding up the tree and waits for Haru to pass by. While shifting position she slipped and started to fall. She closed her eyes and braces herself for impact, but she never hit the ground. She slowly opens her eyes and realized she was caught by someone. A tall man with silver hair, she looks at his golden eyes with a puzzled expression on her face.
"Who are you?", she asked innocently.
Haru suddenly came running to them and was surprised. He looks at the person who just saved her and smiles.
"Shinjo-niisan! You're back!!", he said as he recognized him.
"Yo! Haru, it's been such a long time and you must be Yuuki."
Haru turns his attention to Yuuki as she stares at him and Shinjo.
"Yuuki he's Shinjo-niisan, I've already told you about him."
"Shin... jo... -nii?"
"Yes?"
She smiled widely and hugs her brother.
"Niisan, we should get inside mom and dad aren't back yet but I'm sure they'll be very happy to see you.", Haru said.
"Okay."
The three siblings went inside and chat while waiting for their parents.
"So Yuuki was chosen by the jewel as well, is that true?", Shinjo asked.
"Yeah, when she was born we were surprised. The jewel showed up again. Mom said she was holding onto the jewel.", Haru said.
"Jewel?", Yuuki asked and tilts her head.
Shinjo looks at Haru with a puzzled look on his face.
"You haven't told her yet?", he asked.
"Come on niisan, she's four, she might be smart but she can't understand complicated stuffs yet."
"She's never too young. There are other ways to make her understand, you know."
"Really? Like how?"
"Like telling stories, children like stories."
"Niisan you seem to be good with kids."
"Well of course, I used to take care of you when you were small remember?"
"What was Haru-nii like when he was small?", Yuuki asked brimming with curiosity.
Shinjo chuckles and pats Yuuki on the head.
"He was a total pain, the moment you take your eyes off him he'll be out there terrorizing animals or the people at the house. A real troublemaker, mom was the only one who can stop his rampage, when she starts to tell him stories he'll behave like a good kid."
"Mom's stories always interest me, but I wasn't that bad you know.", Haru said as he pouts.
"Oh yeah? What about the time when you said you found a puppy but turned out to be a baby wolf?"
(*cross popping veins*) "It's still a dog!"
"Then what happened?", Yuuki asked.
Both of them ignored Haru and continues to talk.
"Shortly after that the whole pack came searching for it. All the people in the house were locked inside for hours. It took a while to convince Haru to return it to its parents. In the end, mom was the one who convinced him, a real mama's boy."
Both Yuuki and Shinjo laughed.
"Now you're making fun of me.", Haru said as he pouts.
"That wasn't even the worse part."
"Alright! Enough stories about me! Shinjo-niisan what I want to hear is the story about Legend of the Sacred Jewel of Soul."
Shinjo knew what he was trying to say and nods.
"Okay then, Yuuki you want to hear it?"
"Of course I do, tell me!", she enthusiastically said as she jumps with excitement.
"Okay, okay calm down princess."
Haru looks outside through the window.
"It's starting to rain, mom and dad might take a while to return.", he mumbled.
"A long time ago, a beautiful goddess came down to earth because Five Realms started to converge.", Shinjo started.
"Five Realms?", Yuuki asked.
"The Human world, Soul Society, Hell, Heuco Mundo, and the Abyss. Among the all the other realms, the Abyss is the most powerful one. It's like a Black Hole that swallows up everything in its path. So the goddess went on a journey between the five realms and conjured a monolith in each realm."