Initially, this was going to be a little drabble or angst piece for Tatsuki, but I decided to start doing some real writing for it instead because I just like her so much. Damn you Ichigo for leaving her behind. Why didn't she get powers, huh? What the hell is up with that?

Chapter One

Broken

"It's none of your business."

How could he have known how much those words would hurt her? The way he looked at her then, eyes full to the brim with pity and sadness; it broke her heart. She had cried herself to sleep that night. Her heart was so heavy, so full of emotions earlier that day, and now it was so empty. She asked herself what she had expected, coming to him and bearing her soul for him like that. What had she hoped he'd say?

And the very fact that she needed to ask that of herself made her cry even harder.

He hadn't always been like that; cold, withdrawn, distant. She remembered him as a boy, crying and walking up and down the river bank, a sad child missing his mother. He didn't seek out help, but when she went to him, he didn't push her away. That was who he was. He never asked for help, but he wasn't the kind of person to turn you away. And it wasn't just when he was a kid. Until last year, he had been like that. He had been her friend. He had been her nakama.

He had been the Ichigo she knew.

But not anymore.

He was a different person now. He hid things from his friends, from her. He hid himself from her and didn't even notice how much it killed her inside. She had seen him in his black clothing, carrying that big sword and fighting…monsters. She had seen him run off with Orihime and Chad. She watched him strike down great beasts. Monsters that threatened their home, and he was defending them. She herself had nearly been killed twice by those things.

But for all she had seen, she knew so little. What the hell were they? Why couldn't everyone see them? Why couldn't anyone see Ichigo fighting them? Where had Orihime disappeared to? For fuck's sake, what the hell was going on!?

She had gone to him, her head full to burst with questions. Her heart was heavy with doubt, and fear, and above that, hope. Orihime had gone. She wasn't anywhere. Her best friend…the one she swore she would protect was gone without a trace. She couldn't take it anymore. She had to know what was going on. So with her head and her heart swollen to burst with confusion, fear, doubt, and hope, she confronted him.

And that's when he broke her heart.

"It's none of your business."

She could have died right then. Everything she ever believed about him disappeared in that moment. What was she to him anymore? She had showed him her heart there in the hall. Called him her friend, called him her nakama. And he just looked at her with those eyes. His expression conveyed to her in an instant the impossible gap between them that had appeared without her noticing. She was no longer part of his life. Not in the way she used to be. She had lost him, and those eyes said that she would never get him back.

"Well fuck that," she says as she grits her teeth and clenches her fists. Taking a deep breath, she sits up and steps out of bed. She still feels empty inside, broken down and distraught. But inside her emptiness, she has made a decision. He may have lost himself and left her behind, but she was still who she always had been. She was still Tatsuki Arisawa.

And Tatsuki Arisawa never gives up without a fight.

Fueled mostly by anger, she strides across the room and takes a deep breath. She can feel her blood pumping in her ears, loud like drums. Her knuckles are white and when she lets her breath out, she closes her eyes. She hears him over and over again, telling her not to concern herself with him. He could see the gap between them, knew how wide it was, and thought she could never cross it. He had given up on her. She takes another deep breath in and opens her eyes. Her punching bag hangs motionless in front of her.

She may not be able to see the gap between them, but she wasn't about to give up on herself.

As she begins to breathe out, she screams at the top of her lungs. Her fist flies forward, faster than can be seen and connects with the punching bag. It swings back, buckling where she hit it. Still screaming, she retracts her fist and throws the other before the bag can even finish its swing. Again, the thud of her knuckles on the canvas echoes dully in the room. The bag buckles again and swings up higher. She strikes a third time, a fourth, a fifth. The bag swings up, nearly parallel with the ground. Her throat feels raw from screaming and she draws back her fist one last time as she begins to run out of breath.

Throwing her whole body into it, she swings her fist forward as the bag comes swinging back toward her. Her voice gives out as her fist connects. The canvas caves in around her fist and then explodes backwards, swinging back so fast it hits her ceiling and then falls back with a jangle of the chain. She lets the bag fall against her but stands her ground, her muscles tight and her jaw clenched. She breathes heavily, the blood now pumping in a deep bass that fills her ears. She can hear the other tenants in the other apartments stirring. She is breathless and full of fury.

Shaking her head and breathing in deeply, she stalks to her door, slipping on her sandals and grabbing her sweater. She pushes the door open and then slams it behind her. She is vaguely aware of her landlord yelling something as she takes off down the street, something inside her telling her where he is. A faint buzzing in her mind lets her know which turns to take. The run passes in a haze and soon she finds herself standing in front of a general store. Breathing heavily, she clenches her fists and looks up at the sign in front.

It reads, "Urahara Shoten."

A giant, mostly bald man with a startling mustache is standing outside, sweeping the front steps. He turns to look at her. "Ah, I'm sorry Miss, we're closed."

"Ichigo is here," she says. "Where…under the shop? He's here, isn't he?"

The man stands up straight and adjusts his glasses. His expression changes ever so slightly. "You're Ichigo's friend then?"

The way he speaks, she knows he knows something. Her mind begins to spin again with all the questions Ichigo refused to answer. Tears begin to fill her eyes and she lets them fall.

"Orihime's gone!" she shouts. "I can't feel her presence anymore and I'm scared! I want to know where she went! And…and I'm afraid that Ichigo is going to go there too! Dammit! I don't want to lose either of them." She clenches her fists until her knuckles turn white. "Why am I the one left behind!? Huh? Why me!?" She looks at the man through tear filled eyes. "I…I just want to know what's going on!"

The tall man looks at her passively and then leans his broom against the front wall. He steps back and opens the sliding door. Turning to her, he motions through the door way. "Come inside. I'll make tea." When she doesn't move, his expression turns more serious. "I can answer your questions. We have a lot to talk about." He motions through the door again.

"Please, come in."