|UBWR|

-Use Bleach When Required-

Ni Jū: Goodnight

We can't waste time worrying about the 'what ifs'.

-Kurosaki Ichigo

Sanae had never been the sentimental type. She preferred to always be in the present, and never dwell on the things that had already happened. You couldn't change the past, only learn from it and move on. But as she sat on the familiar roof, and stared up at the stars, she couldn't help but think of everything that had happened over the hundreds of years. Even after everything that had happened in Soul Society, and learning about the truth she felt a sense of relief. It was no longer a burden on her. She still felt grief about it, which would never change. But for now, she understood. And that was more then what she had gotten in almost three hundred years.

Sanae had decided to forgo the use of a Gigai. She had been banished from Soul Society, forever to walk among the humans, but she no longer needed to hide from the Gotei Thirteen. She had been hiding who she really was so much that she felt like she had lost apart of herself. Only now she could feel whole again.

Her azure coloured hair was pulled back into a low ponytail, two pieces of hair that weren't long enough to tie up fell at the sides of her face, framing it. Her light blue obi was tied around her waist as her black robes fluttered slightly in the warm breeze. Yamamoto hadn't taken away her Zanpakuto, but they had sealed most of her powers from her. She hadn't bothered to ask what the percentage was; it would only make her more upset. She had to try and tell herself that they had done it for the good of Soul Society. She was doing this for them. It was better this way. She was a threat, and threats needed to be dealt with.

Sanae huffed out a sigh. She picked up on someone's reiatsu approaching her as a faint smile crossed her face. About time, she thought smugly. Sanae waited a few more seconds before she heard a groan.

"Ugh, this was a lot easier to do a few years ago." Isshin muttered as he pulled himself onto the roof.

Sanae rolled her eyes at him. "You climb up the side of your house to scare your kid every morning. Stop being dramatic." Isshin gave her a goofy smile as he shuffled on over to her. He took a seat next to her as they both fell into a comfortable silence. Sanae smiled tenderly. She had thought that this moment would never happen again between them.

"When did you know it was me?" Sanae asked, turning slightly to smile at him. Isshin looked up in thought and stroked his goatee. He then gave her a sidelong glance.

"From the beginning." He chuckled. Sanae's expression turned into offense. Isshin rolled his eyes dramatically at her. "Just because you changed your hair colour doesn't mean that I wouldn't recognize my Captain."

"But you never said anything!" Sanae exclaimed, a grin on her face.

Isshin gave her a pointed look. "Neither did you."

Sanae looked away sullenly. "I thought that maybe…you didn't want anything to do with me anymore. After what happened in Soul Society—and how I treated you, I thought I would be best if you forgot about me."

"I could never forget my Captain!" Isshin exclaimed, shoving her shoulder slightly. His expression turned somber. "When I had heard what had happened…I was angry with myself. I should've been there with you."

Sanae sighed and shook her head. "You would've been killed too."

"So…what did happen?" Isshin asked her hesitantly. Sanae reluctantly looked over at him. She had gotten tired of repeating the same story but this was Isshin, he deserved to know. And so she told him everything. He listened intently and didn't speak until she was done.

"You can't blame yourself forever." Isshin said after she was done. Sanae gave a slight shrug.

"I know but for now, if I feel anything other then grief—it's like I'm betraying them some how." Isshin didn't reply to her and Sanae was thankful. She was tired of people trying to make her forgive herself. She knew how she felt. Sanae fidgeted with her fingers in her lap. "I'm sorry."

"Hmm?" Isshin inclined his head towards her.

"I'm sorry, Isshin." Sanae stated more loudly. "I was so horrible to you over the years. I made you do everything for me, and you never once complained. And when you received your promotion I should've been happy for you, pushing you to go for it. Instead I was selfish." Sanae gazed into Isshin's brown gaze, identical to Ichigo's. "It's my one regret, not being at your inauguration."

Isshin leaned back slightly on the roof. "I've never held it against you. Besides, I never would've been able to go for the Captain position if it wasn't for you. You being a lazy ass actually helped me."

Sanae snorted loudly at him. She brought her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. "Ukitake always said that becoming a Captain was the worst thing that ever happened to me. I can see now that he was right."

"He always did have a way of being annoyingly right all the time." Isshin mused absentmindedly.

They settled into a confortable silence for a couple of minutes before Sanae spoke again. "I'm sorry about Masaki. Ichigo told me about what happened to her." She said sincerely.

"Thanks." Isshin murmured.

"She sounded like a really nice woman." Sanae continued. She saw a faint smile come over Isshin's face.

"Yeah, she was an ever better mother." Isshin looked down at her, a sly look on his face. "Speaking of family. What's the deal with you and my boneheaded son, eh?"

Sanae's eyes widened as she whirled around to face him. "Wh-what? Nothing! We're friends—don't be ridiculous." Isshin threw his head back and laughed boisterously. Sanae gave him the stink eye. She could never stay mad at Isshin for very long, he was just that type of person that could make her annoyed one second and then happy again the next.

Sanae shook her head at Isshin and stared out across the horizon of Karakura. "The thing is…for the past two hundred and fifty years all I've been doing is existing in this world. But in the past couple of months, I feel like I've been living again. And it's all thanks to that stupid carrot head."

"He has a way of doing that to people." Isshin stated proudly. Both Sanae and Isshin's head turned to the right, where they felt a reiatsu presence approaching the house quickly. Isshin got to his feet and brushed down his black pants. He met Sanae's stare for a moment. "It's good to have you back, Captain."

Sanae smiled tenderly. "I'm glad you're ok too, Lieutenant." Sanae watched as Isshin gave her a mock salute and then skidded down the tiles. He leapt off the roof and hid himself in the house. Sanae chortled to herself, reminiscing about their glory days together.

X

It was only a few minutes later that Ichigo leapt up onto the roof of his house. His tawny eyes sought out Sanae as she sat on the roof calmly. She lifted her hand and gave a little wave. "Hi."

Ichigo frowned at her, his expression darkening. "Hi? That's all you've gotta say?"

Sanae scoffed and lowered her hand. "Well, what do you want me to say?" Ichigo approached her, his gaze never leaving her face as she avoided him.

"That they banished you for no good reason! You need to fight it. Fight for yourself. They can't do this to you!"

"They can, Ichigo." Sanae sighed with resigned acceptance. Ichigo shook his head at her.

"I understand that what happened was horrible, but it wasn't your fault. They can't banish you for something that was out of your control."

"They didn't banish me because of my hand in the deaths of my subordinates." Sanae snapped at him. Ichigo froze where he stood. His scowl disappeared, a puzzled expression appearing. "They banished me because of the Hollow that Aizen placed inside of me." Ichigo's eyes widened. His mouth parted slightly as he tried to say something, but nothing was coming out. Sanae was afraid of this; it was exactly what had happened with the Captains. "I'm a threat to them, to Soul Society." She continued. Ichigo was still frozen to the spot. Sanae knew that he was thinking all the horrible things that could happen now. She had had enough. She rose, shaking her head at him and then turned to go. She felt a hand suddenly clamp onto her wrist. The feeling had Sanae whirling back around.

Ichigo's brow was furrowed as he stared down at her. Sanae was surprised to see that his expression held no animosity for her. Instead, he looked at her with understanding. Sanae pulled away from him. "You're not the only one." Ichigo muttered dejectedly. Sanae gazed at him in bewilderment. She didn't understand fully. What was he implying? Of course Soul Society trusted him, he helped uncover the plot of betrayal from Aizen. Ichigo continued to hold her gaze. "I have a Hollow too."

Sanae stumbled back half a step. Had she heard him right? "That's not possible." She whispered in disbelief.

"It is." Ichigo reaffirmed. "I don't know how mine came to be…but all I know is that it's there—inside me." Ichigo held his hand over his chest to emphasize his point. His eyes cut up suddenly. "Is that what Aizen meant? About you being the first experiment?"

Sanae gave it a moment but nodded weakly. "I wanted to tell you back in Soul Society…but I just didn't know how. I didn't want you to look at me the way the others did when I told them." Ichigo gave her a sympathetic look.

"Well, at least you're not alone in this. We can figure it out together."

Sanae scoffed at him. "When did you become so confident?"

"One of us has to be." He smirked down at her.

Sanae slapped her hands against her thighs and sighed. "Yeah well, Aizen called me a 'failed' experiment so I doubt there's anything I can do about it now. It's been locked up for almost three hundred years, why not just add on a few more centuries?"

Ichigo remained silent as he turned to gaze out across the skyline. "What are you gonna do now? You're not wanted by Soul Society so you don't have to hide anymore."

Sanae held her hands behind her back and followed his lead to look out across the night sky. "Probably stick around for a while. I kind of like it here. I've never really stayed in one place for too long, but it's different here. I can be myself."

Ichigo rubbed the back of his head absentmindedly. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you around then."

Sanae gave him a sidelong glance. "Is this your way of kicking me out of your house?"

"Technically we're on the roof, idiot." Ichigo clarified.

Sanae laughed lightly. She gave him a small wave. "I'll see you around, Ichigo." She walked down the slope of the roof.

"See you, Sanae." Ichigo responded with his own wave. He watched her leap off the roof and land on the next house. Ichigo watched her go until he couldn't see her anymore.

Sanae landed on the ground outside of the Urahara shop. She gazed up at the sign above the door and smiled fondly. It had been quite a while since she had been back here. It felt like home suddenly. Entering the shop she kicked off her shoes and headed to the kitchen where she could see shadows moving across the room. Sanae peered around the corner and smiled happily at Yoruichi and Urahara who were both sitting at the table drinking tea.

Yoruichi was back in her cat form, lapping at the drink on the table. Urahara was seated next to her. They both noticed her at the same time as Sanae entered the room quietly and took her seat across from them.

"You look well." Urahara commented. His grey eyes travelled up and down her attire. It had been a long time since he had seen her in her black robes again. He poured Sanae a cup.

"After everything that happened in Soul Society, I'm surprised I'm still breathing." She replied dryly.

Urahara took a quick drink. "Yoruichi filled me in on what happened."

"I don't want to talk about it." Sanae hissed. "I agreed to it so that's that."

"I fear for your safety, Sanae-san." Urahara pleaded with her. "You don't know what could—"

"Urahara." Sanae snapped quietly, cutting him off. Her eyes had gone dark as she stared at the normally exuberant man. "Did you know about my Hollow?"

Yoruichi froze in her drinking. Her yellow eyes went wide as she too turned her attention over to Urahara. Urahara kept Sanae's gaze, and then sighed regretfully.

"I had my suspicions…" He muttered quietly.

Sanae tore her gaze away from him. She exhaled sharply through her nose, trying not to let her annoyance seep through. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked him.

Urahara's grey eyes flicked between both women in the room. It was apparent that he had kept his suspicions from Yoruichi as well. Urahara studied Sanae for another moment. "Probably because of the same reason your Zanpakuto kept it from you as well."

Sanae turned her attention to Yoruichi. The cat was staring at her empathetically. There was no doubt that when Urahara has said that Yoruichi had told him everything, he literally meant everything.

Sanae was eerily silent. She was staring off at the side of the table, going over her thoughts and feelings. Both Yoruichi and Urahara were holding their breath for whatever was about to happen. Instead, Sanae attempted a weak smile at the blonde haired man. "I'm not mad at you."

Urahara let out the breath he was holding with a gleeful smile. "Well, I'm glad to hear it." He brought out his fan and waved it teasingly. "Because I would've hated it if you moved out of here!"

Sanae looked at him, bewildered, but then started to laugh. "I'm not going anywhere for a while. Going back there not only gave me the answers I wanted, but it also helped me realize that the person who I was back then wasn't someone who I should be proud of."

"You were a bit arrogant." Urahara noted.

"And mean..." Yoruichi added.

"Quite egotistical too…"

"Let's not forget lazy!"

"Ok! I get it!" Sanae chuckled shamefully. "I realize the error of my ways, and I'm gonna try and fix it." Yoruichi and Urahara sniggered at one another before Yoruichi padded over to Sanae on top of the table and laid one of her paws on top of Sanae's hands.

"We're with you through this, Sanae."

"Thank you." Sanae said sincerely. "I wouldn't have made it without you two."

For a long moment, the three of them shared smiles with one another. It was a wonderful, peaceful moment. Only broken by Urahara yelling, "Group hug!" then diving across the table at them both.

Ichigo sat at the booth, surrounded by his friends. Tatsuki was on his right, Mizuiro on his left. Orihime, Keigo and Chad were across from him. They were all sharing a large platter of fries and various milkshakes spread across the table. Keigo and Tatsuki were talking about some karate competition that had aired over the break. Tatsuki was talking about techniques; Keigo was talking about how hot the girls who had competed were.

The others added in their two cents every so often. Ichigo chose not to join in. He didn't have anything to contribute to their conversation really. Instead, he let his thoughts wonder. It had been over a week since he had returned from Soul Society. Life had gone back to normal somewhat. He fought Hollow's when he needed to, and he hung out with his friends for the remaining few days before school started back up, which was tomorrow in fact. But he couldn't help but wonder about what his blue haired friend was up to.

He hadn't seen her at all during this week. It was strange. He had spent so much time in her company over the past month that it was weird to think she wasn't around him and his friends anymore. He had to keep telling himself that Sanae wasn't an ordinary teenager like he was—even though she acted like it at times. She was a seven hundred (nearly eight hundred) year old Shinigami. Not only that, but she had a Hollow, like he did. They had an understanding with one another.

As Ichigo stared around at his group of friends, he couldn't help but think that none of them could really understand what he was going through. He cared for his friends deeply, and would do anything to protect him. But it was a relief to know that he wasn't the only one suffering.

His Hollow hadn't been bothering him as much lately. He was still there, niggling in the back recess of his mind. He could feel him there, tapping at him, just waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Ichigo clenched his fist under the table as he thought about what had happened during the fight with Byakuya. It was the first time he had felt completely out of control. He vowed that it wouldn't happen again. He would win his battles on his own, without the help of some pale freak.

"Oi—Ichigo!"

Ichigo jumped at the sound of hearing his name. His snapped his head down to Tatsuki who was staring up at him. "What?" Ichigo asked her. There were a few chuckles from the group at his obvious obliviousness to the conversation at hand.

"We said that we might head to the End of Summer festival tonight, you in?"

Ichigo had forgotten about that. Karakura did it every year. The night before school started back up there would be a festival with stalls, fireworks and lanterns. He had skipped out on the past few years, mainly because he dad was too embarrassing most of the time.

"Uh, maybe?" Ichigo offered, plucking another chip off the plate and tossing it into his mouth. "Only if Keigo's not going."

"What!?" The boy in question screeched. The group laughed loudly at the brown haired boys reaction.

Ichigo smirked at his long time friend but also nodded down at Tatsuki. "Sure, I'll come. There's someone I want to invite though."

It was dusk when Ichigo arrived at Urahara's shop. Even if summer was coming to an end, it was still mildly warm. Ichigo was dressed in plain denim jeans and a fitted black shirt. He opened up the sliding door. "Urahara-san!" He called out. He peered around the shelves, but couldn't spot him anywhere. Ichigo moved further into the shop and into the living area.

Urahara suddenly popped out from one of the rooms, wearing a floral pink apron and holding a spatula. "Ah! Kurosaki-san. What a pleasant surprise!"

Ichigo reeled back in shock at the appearance of the man. "Uh…cooking?"

Urahara waved the spatula at him. "I'm making Ururu's favorite dish for dinner tonight!"

From underneath, a small red headed boy popped out with the most unimpressed look on his face. "He's burning the food." Urahara smacked Jinta on the head. "Ouch!" He cried out in pain.

Tessai suddenly appeared, towering above Urahara's head. He had switched his normal blue apron for a bright red one that had a picture of Urahara on it roasting marshmallows. "Good to see you, Kurosaki-kun. Would you like to join us for dinner?"

Ichigo looked between all three of them. He looked like he just wanted to turn tail and run but held his ground, albeit reluctantly. "Oh, thanks but I'm good. I'm actually here to see Sanae."

"Wonderful!" Urahara cried out, scaring Jinta half to death. "She's been sulking in her room for the longest time, maybe you can coax her out of there."

It didn't surprise Ichigo in the slightest that she had been 'sulking', as Urahara put it. He had assumed as much considering she hadn't been seen around town for over a week. Ichigo nodded in appreciation to the three who stood in the doorway as he shuffled passed them and heading in the direction of Sanae's room. He remembered where it was from the last time he was here.

Urahara, Tessai and Jinta watched him go. Jinta smirked. "Hey, do you reckon they're gonna—Ouch!" Jinta cried out once more as Urahara had smacked him on the head with the spatula.

"Now, now, Jinta-kun. It's not nice to make assumptions about people." Urahara scolded him.

Jinta seethed up at the blonde man, rubbing his head. "But you were literally saying the other day how—"

"Urahara-san." Ururu interrupted suddenly. "The eggs are burning." Urahara whirled around, a scream tearing out of his throat as he rushed to the stovetops side.

X

Ichigo knocked on her door with two short taps. He waited patiently for a reply but heard nothing. He knocked again and waited. When there was nothing once more Ichigo sighed. "I'm coming in. You better be decent!"

He slid open the door and entered the room. He had been expecting to see her curled up in a ball under her covers, or crying in a corner. But what he didn't expect was to see her sitting up against the wall reading a book like nothing bothered her in the slightest. Her attention shifted over to him as Ichigo stood awkwardly in the doorway. She was in soul form, her hair loose and hanging over one shoulder. Sanae placed her bookmark into the pages and then closed the book quietly.

"Oh, well do come in, Ichigo."

"I knocked—twice." He pointed to the door behind him.

Sanae stared at him. "I heard." She said dryly. Sanae got to her feet and then placed her book away on her bookshelf.

"Urahara says that you're sulking." Ichigo stated. He saw her shake her head.

"I'm not sulking. I'm brooding."

"Is there a difference?" Ichigo questioned her with a smirk.

Sanae huffed at him. "What do you want, Ichigo?" She turned to face him, but leant back against her bookshelf.

Ichigo cleared his throat awkwardly. "Well, there's this thing going on down in the square. A bunch of the guys from school are going—and considering how you liked the other festival I thought I'd offer the invitation for you to join us as well." Sanae's eyebrow did a little quirk upwards. "It'll get Urahara off your back for a bit…"

"I'll be ready in ten."

X

True to her word, Sanae was ready in ten minutes. Ichigo had waited for her outside the shop. The sun had almost set, but the fireworks wouldn't start for another hour at most so they still had time. By now his friends would be arriving at the square. It didn't bother him that he was going to be late, they'd get over it. Ichigo had heard the door slide open as he turned. The last thing he expected to see was Sanae with brown hair again. It threw him off for a moment. She was dressed in a pair of shorts and white blouse, her chocolate coloured hair pulled back into a ponytail.

"Urahara had another gigai handy." She said, stepping up to his side.

"Convenient." Ichigo commented nonchalantly.

They entered the festival grounds. It was filled mostly with teenagers in large groups, all of them cramming to spend their last couple of hours of freedom with their friends. A few families were around, and a few couples. Sanae was gazing around at all of the various stalls. Ichigo noticed that she was a lot more somber this time around. At the last festival she had been bouncing with energy.

He stopped off at a drinks stall and bought them both a fizzy drink. He handed Sanae hers as she thanked him. Sanae sipped it as she peered over at the quiet carrot head. "So, why'd you really bring me out here?"

Ichigo scoffed and shoved his free hand into his pocket. "I had a feeling that you might've been sul—brooding," he corrected quickly when he saw the murderous look she gave him. "Thought maybe it had something to do with your Hollow. Or the banishment…or both."

Sanae smiled into her drink. "They are contributing factors. Mainly I've been missing Ukitake and Kyoraku." Ichigo gave her a look that said 'explain'. So she did. "I felt like I had just got them back, and now they're gone again. I can't talk to them or see them. They were the ones who kept my head on my shoulders my whole Shinigami life. I used to be able to talk to them about anything, and they'd never judge me."

"They sound like good friends." Ichigo replied. They paused out the front of a game stall and watched a young boy trying to hit the bottles down.

"I never even got to talk to them about the Hollow. I guess I just feel…lost."

Ichigo sighed in reluctance. "My Hollow scares me." Sanae stared up at him inquiringly. "I can always feel him, like some dark shadow looming over my shoulder. I'm worried that if I slip up, and he comes out again—he's going to hurt people that I care about." Ichigo saw her face when he mentioned hurting people. "Ah, crap, I didn't mean it like that."

"No, it's fine." Sanae argued. She forced out a smile. "I can't have everyone tiptoeing around me forever. I still think about them everyday, about all the things that I could've done differently. I can't forgive myself, not just yet—but I don't want people to start acting differently around me."

Ichigo's gaze softened at her statement. "You have to forgive yourself someday, how else do you expect to beat your Hollow?"

Sanae shrugged and finished off her drink. She chucked it into the trash and faced Ichigo. "I guess I won't be beating it for a while then."

Their talks of Hollows and teammates disappeared after that as they both took a leisurely stroll around the festival. Ichigo would point things out to her that she didn't know about and then Sanae would mention something to Ichigo about her time in Soul Society. He was eager to hear about her stories of being a Captain; it intrigued him that she had been able to keep it a complete secret from him for the whole time. He should have really guessed she was a Shinigami in the first place, considering how well she beat his ass when she was training him.

"I think the fireworks are starting soon." Sanae pointed out as she noticed people congregating near the riverbank. They followed the crowd, and found a picnic table that was currently unoccupied. Sanae hopped up onto the table, sitting on the top as Ichigo leaned against the side, his hands shoved into his pockets.

"Hey look, there's Orihime and Chad." Sanae pointed out, motioning over to the left. Ichigo followed her direction and sure enough, he saw his group of friends. Keigo was running circles around the group. Mizuiro was texting on his phone. Tatsuki was chatting with Orihime and Chad was silently staring up at the sky. "Did you wanna go over to them?" Sanae asked him.

Ichigo observed the group for a moment longer, before shaking his head. "Nah, it's ok, I'll catch up to them later."

Sanae was about to reply when the first firework went off. It was a beautiful orange colour. It exploded in a twinkling display. "Hey, they're throwing the festival in your honor." Sanae sniggered. Ichigo shot her a peeved look but then fixed his gaze back up to the display. The fireworks were definitely summer themed. With red, orange and yellow fireworks brightening up the night sky.

Sanae was happily watching the fireworks. There was just something magical about seeing colorful explosions in the sky. They had the ability to make her forget all about her troubles. She would never tell Ichigo to his face, but she was glad he had made her come out to the festival.

"Stay here for a minute. I'll be back." Ichigo told her suddenly. The fireworks were still going on but Sanae couldn't even ask him about where he was going as he suddenly disappeared.

It was literally only a few minutes later when Ichigo appeared, carrying a medium sized lantern in his hands. It was a plain paper lantern, the ones that you release into the sky. Sanae gave him a quizzical expression as he held it out for her.

"Here," he said, passing it to her.

"What is this?"

"A lantern, stupid." He mocked her.

Sanae rolled her eyes at him as she held onto the lantern firmly. "I know that much, I'm not entirely inept. I meant what is it for?" Ichigo smirked down at her. Even though she was sitting on the top of the picnic table, he was still a few centimeters taller than her. It was a bit mortifying to be honest, in Sanae's opinion.

"You release it." Ichigo motioned to a few others that had gathered around, holding lanterns. "We do it every year. They symbolize new beginnings, new hopes and dreams and all that crap."

"And we're doing it because?" Sanae asked in a deadpan tone.

Ichigo's expression turned slightly serious. "Well, I thought that maybe—It was a way for you to say goodbye…properly."

Sanae suddenly knew what he meant; he didn't need to elaborate anymore. She stared down at the lantern in her hands. The small flame was dancing around inside, like it was just waiting for her to let go.

"I know what it's like, thinking that you're the one who caused someone you cared about to get hurt, and it sucks." Sanae knew that he was talking about his mother. "I know the situations are completely different, and I know you don't want to forgive yourself yet. But maybe it's time to let them go." Sanae blinked away her tears. "You've been holding onto them for so long, you need to let them rest now."

Sanae's watched as a few people released their own lanterns now that the fireworks had finished. She saw their happy faces, children screaming with delight as they watched the lanterns drift lazily up into the sky.

"They wouldn't want you to be unhappy, would they?"

Sanae shook her head at his question. She was quiet for a long while. People had started to disperse around them, but Sanae was completely transfixed on the lantern that she held in her hands. She ran her fingers over the paper, imagining the faces of her twenty-four subordinates staring back at her. Instead of them looking at her with hate and disdain, all she could see were smiles. Ichigo was right, she needed to let them go.

Sanae sucked in a deep breath and raised the lantern up so that it was parallel with her face. "I wish…it had never happened to any of you. You didn't deserve it. I don't know if I can ever forgive myself for failing you all…but he's right—I need to let you all go." Sanae lifted it up a few centimeters but didn't let go yet. "You're probably all so tired…so I'm letting you rest now. Goodnight…"

Sanae released the lantern one finger at a time. With the restraints gone, the lantern floated up into the sky. Sanae watched it, her eyes never leaving its white shape. It was only when it blurred with the other lanterns that she finally allowed herself to move. Sanae hopped off the bench and brushed her pants down. Ichigo was giving her a half smile, one that looked sympathetic and proud at the same time.

They paused at the archway. Ichigo angled his head towards her. "I'll, uh, walk you home?"

"You don't have to." Sanae waved her hand dismissively. "I'm a former Captain remember? I can take care of myself."

"You gonna be ok?" Ichigo asked, a frown marring his features. Sanae placed her hands onto her hips and gave a large shrug.

"Yeah, I think so." She smirked up at him. "Surprisingly, I feel a lot better. Your lantern thing worked."

"I do have some smart idea's once in a while." He said smugly.

Sanae rolled her blue eyes at him. "Key word being 'once in a while' there."

"Shut up." Ichigo snapped playfully at her. He cleared his throat from the sudden awkward silence and rubbed at the back of his head. "I guess uh…"

"…see you around?" Sanae offered. Ichigo nodded. Sanae gave him a final wave and then turned on her heel and began walking in the opposite direction to her orange haired friend. She got a few meters, before she snuck a quick glance over her shoulder at him. He was walking away, his hands obviously stuck in his pockets. A smile crept over Sanae's face as she turned back. The smile stayed on her face for the rest of the night.

And it was only when she was in bed later, that she realized that Ichigo had never actually gone over to his friends…

My god, the beginning of this chapter just did. not. want. to. be. written. I've been stuck on this chapter for almost a week. I think all the angst was getting to me over the past couple of chapters but finally it's over. SS arc is done and dusted and next chapter we move on into the Arrancar arc. This one obviously was a filler but i hope to baby jesus that you all enjoyed this sweet wholesome moment between Sanae and Ichigo. Like omg I die. I feel like he might have been a bit ooc here in some parts, but maybe that's me being overly critical of myself like always...anyway, lemme know what you thought of this chapterrrrr!

But some sweet little development here between our two kiddos. again. i. fucking. die. hope you enjoyed I stayed up till 1am writing this and i have work in like six hours. .hauhhhhhh im tired.

REPLIES

Savage Kill - Banished to the human world oh nooooo where she'll have to spend time with ichigo oh noooooo xD

Ukitakeitalialover041757 - Aw thank you! She's a lil sulking button right now, but hopefully no more! Hope you enjoyed!

hi again x3 - dude I'm literally loving these back and forth reviews hahah xD Well if you enjoyed them talking last chapter HAVE ANOTHER ONE lol bout time i wrote these two together in this type of situation. cliche? maybe, but im a cliche whore xD

HeavenlyCondemned - Damn i really missed an opportunity with not getting her banished to hueco mundo lol but anyway we'll see what happens lol

xXThatRandomKidXx - I'm glad you find them as cute as I do, especially in this chapter. probably one of my fave chapters right now tbh. relationship in the human world? whatever do you mean? xD glad i could finally write something like this ive been dying for it lol Thank you!

FriendlyNeighbourhoodHUfflepuff - That gay tik tok literally gave me Urahara vibes ahaahahah xD i feel you. its 1am and I stayed up to finish this and i have work at 7. cri.

Infernoinside - Hiya! Thank you! I'm actually not doing the fillers in this, sticking to canon storyline (for the most until TYBW) and even though I've watched the anime like 10 times i've never watched the bount or sword arcs :S only the regai(? i think thats how you spell it cbf googling)

Nixxon Mysterio - That's my secret cap. There's always cliffhangers...except this one. You'll come to know that i am a cliffhanger whore. I love torturing people (nicely of course). Keep on track of your uni work! God it hurt me to write that Aizen scene. poor lil baby sanae. oh you liked wholesome ichigo and Sanae moments, well HAVE SOME MORE! mwahahah ive deprived you all long enough. and ill let you know...there is a reason for everything in my story. i'll let you figure out what that might mean lol xD

Thank you all my little lovelies. I need a ship name for these two Sanigo? Ichiae(wtflol) Sanchi? help me im tired lol