Author's note: Hi everyone! So I am pretty new to the Bleach family but I must say that its one of the *BEST* anime series I've watched so far. I've enjoyed it so much in fact that I was inspired to start a story which I don't do very often! I'm currently in the middle of two other stories but they've been put "on hold" for a while whilst I'm currently suffering from the horrible disease of writers block! I'm hoping though that working on a fresh new story will help the creative juices flow once more and I can finish those works as well.

Anyways, I just wanted you all to know a few things before I let you loose on this story. First, I am still pretty new to Bleach although I've watched the anime up until it's 167th episode (still working on the rest), seen two of the three movies and am also reading the manga. So while I feel fairly well versed on the show I'm sure there's still a TON of cannon that I don't know. So if you see mistakes/flaws in the story then feel free to tell me (nicely of course!) and I'll try to stick as close to the original story as possible up until a certain point (Just a lil' after Rukia kills Espada #9 to be more precise)! Now with that said *be warned*, it's called "fiction" for a reason! I'm making up most events in this story as I see fit! Don't like where the plot is going? Then don't read it! Second, I LOVE ichiruki and this IS an ichiruki fic although I am going to try DESPERATELY to keep them *In Character* as much as possible! I cant stand OoCness but lets face it, since ichiruki isn't officially cannon *YET*, and this IS an ichiruki fic it'll eventually get a lil OoC. I'll do my best to make it believable though! Lastly, I would LOVE to hear some feedback from you! Did you like/not like it and why? Should I keep going or get lost? Please tell me but also keep in mind that this IS my first Bleach fic so be gentle in your reviews ok! ;) Thanks everyone please enjoy! –Miko

Dark Side of the Moon

By Miko Swordmaiden

Disclaimer: As much as I love them, I don't own the characters, Tite Kubo does. God bless him for it too!

Summary: In the aftermath of saving Orihime from Hueco Mundo and in the wake of the winter war, a terrible secret is about to be brought to light...an act so unimaginable that it could change everything...

'…We stand in awe before that which cannot be seen…' I wonder Sister… is it awe within which you stand before me now? Or is it Terror? Me, who you never even knew existed… until now.

'…And we respect with every fiber…that which cannot be explained….' Well…one thing is for certain…Rukia Kuchiki… no amount of explaining will drive me away and before this is over I'll have more than just your respect… I'll have control…

"Class, listen up! I expect everyone to be on their BEST behavior while we are in the planetarium! Keep your eyes open and your mouths shut and above all keep your hands to yourselves! Be sure to pay close attention to Mr. Komoharu's lecture because there WILL be an exam tomorrow in class." Mrs. Shinzai, the science teacher, threatened as she then turned to open the doors to the museum's planetarium wing.

"This is going to be so much fun!" Orihime Inoue gushed to her friend Tatsuki Arisawa as they shuffled towards the open doors along with their fellow peers. "Yeah," smiled Tatsuki happily, "I haven't been here since my third grade field trip. We came cuz' we were studying the stars and planets. Dyou' remember that field trip Ichigo?"

At the sound of his name the tall orange haired junior turned to see both Orihime and Tatsuki looking at him expectantly.

"What was that?" Ichigo Kurosaki asked cluelessly; his attention being divided between the two girls in front of him and the petite raven haired girl touching off-limit museum exhibits behind him.

"Our third grade field trip here! Don't you remember?" Tatsuki replied with a smirk, "Or was it not memorable enough for you?"

Ichigo snorted in irritation. "Che. How could I forget? The second the lights went out you punched me in the face!"

"You kept talking during the presentation! You were practically asking for it!" Tatsuki shot back, smiling at the memory.

"Asking for what?" chirped a female voice from behind the orange haired junior, catching him completely off guard. After jumping about a foot in the air Ichigo shot a glare at the girl standing next to him. It didn't matter though since she seemed completely oblivious to the dirty look being sent her way.

"Hey Rukia! We were just talking about old field trips here. Have you ever been to the planetarium?" Orihime replied happily before realizing what a ridiculous question it was.

Rukia just smiled good-naturedly as she waved a dismissive hand in the air. "Nope. It's my first time here so I'm not really sure what to expect."

"It's your first time huh! Then don't you worry about a thing Rukia-chan! I'll sit right next to you and make sure you know exactly what's going on!" Keigo Asano practically squealed as he joined in on the conversation. "I'll even hold your hand if you get scared!" He added, making a move to do just that.

Before he could grasp it though, Rukia, in full "acting mode", giggled merrily before skipping a bit closer to Ichigo. "Oh no! I couldn't inconvenience you like that Asano-san! Besides, Ichigo already promised to tutor me on my astronomy so I'd probably better sit by him!"

"I what!" Ichigo sputtered before Rukia's sharp elbow connected with his gut, causing him to double over slightly with a gasp. "I mean, yeah that's right. Whatever." He hissed while glowering over at a triumphant looking Rukia.

"You feel alright Kurosaki? The men's room is over there." Jibed Uryu Ishida who now joined in on the group followed closely by Yasutora "Chad" Sado.

Ichigo forced himself upright at Uuryu's sarcastic remark. "I'm just fine thanks." He spat irritably while rubbing his side.

"Well if you're ok then we'd better get going. The rest of the class is already finding their seats." Murmured Chad in his deep monotonous voice.

Looking up in surprise the group realized that they were the only ones left standing in the hall and all hurried into the dark room after their classmates.

With a sigh Ichigo slumped into one of the many reclined seats in the room and stared up at the dimly lit domed ceiling.

Rukia excitedly plopped into the seat next to him and swiftly poked Ichigo in the shoulder. "Hey! Ichigo! What exactly are we supposed to do now? And what exactly did Keigo mean when he said I might get scared? Why would I be scared?"

Ichigo exhaled loudly in annoyance at her incessant questions. "It's a planetarium Rukia. They turn out the lights and you look at stars. And Keigo just said that so he'd have an excuse to hold your hand."

Rukia's brow furrowed in confusion. "But, its daylight right now… and we're inside! So how on earth can we look at the stars in here?" She queried while looking up at the empty ceiling. "And why are these seats reclined so far back?" she uttered randomly.

Ichigo valiantly fought the desire to duck tape her mouth shut to stop her endless prattling and nearly cried in relief when their lecturer finally walked in and shut out the lights.

Instantly Ichigo felt a tiny hand fly to his arm in startled alarm as he felt Rukia squirm uncomfortably in her seat. "ICHIGO!" She whispered harshly. "I can't see a thing! Are you still there!"

Ignoring the shock that her touch sent shooting up his arm, Ichigo reached over to still her searching hand by putting his on top of her own. "Of course I'm still here!" he whispered back, the irritation in his voice softening ever so slightly. "Just sit still and relax ok. It has to be dark in here in order for the projector to work. It's completely normal alright? Now sit back and look up." He quietly finished, smiling faintly to himself as he felt her small hand relax hesitantly under his own.

As the eyes of the class adjusted to the darkness around them the ceiling ever so slowly started to fill with tiny projected stars. Ichigo couldn't help the smirk that spread from ear to ear on his face as he heard an audible gasp from Rukia as she squeezed his arm beside him.

"Oh Ichigo look!" she whispered in awe as the ceiling of the room was now covered in countless stars of varying sizes and degrees of light. "It's so beautiful… how is this possible?" she questioned in awe.

Unable to help himself, Ichigo looked over to see Rukia, covered in artificial starlight, staring up in wide-eyed wonder. She looks so beautiful. He thought silently to himself as he watched her reach her other hand out to try and touch the stars that sparkled above. For just a moment, everything felt right with the world which was a welcomed relief after the horrors they all went through in Hueco Mundo. They had only been back for three days and though they had all escaped alive, it hadn't come without its sacrifices…

As though suddenly sensing his eyes upon her, Rukia turned to see Ichigo smiling at her before swiftly turning his head away and screwing a typical scowl onto his face. Rukia sat there stunned for a moment before unconsciously pulling her hand away from his arm where it had been resting this whole time. Ichigo immediately missed the warmth of her touch but didn't outwardly react.

"I suppose…" He uttered quietly, "that as far as we're concerned, anything is possible."

Rukia's eyes once again returned to his face, partially highlighted by the surreal glow overhead. The typical scowl was now replaced by an unreadable expression as his eyes stayed focused on the stars. After a moment Rukia smiled to herself before casting her gaze up to the stars as well. Yes. She thought after a moment… Anything is possible.

I'm so tired. Rukia thought wearily to herself as she slowly made her way towards the Kurosaki home. After returning back to the school after their trip to the planetarium Ichigo had told her that he needed to speak to a few of his teachers regarding make up work for being gone so much so she may as well head on home without him.

Home. Rukia thought to herself with a small smile. It continually surprised her just how much she truly felt at home with Ichigo and his family. In the past she had always worried about just *where* exactly she belonged and though there were many people in her life who had tried to assure her of her place, she had always felt…. adrift somehow… never truly tethered to anyone or anywhere…except here. For whatever reason, she always seemed to end up here.

Rukia suppressed another yawn as she continued to trudge along the seemingly never ending sidewalk. The road to Ichigo's house never seemed so long! She thought in frustration as she stretched her arms trying to wake herself up. "Why am I so unbelievably tired!" She griped to herself. I know we've only been back from Hueco Mundo for a few days now but I've gotten plenty of rest and my wounds are all healed… so why do I still feel exhausted? She worried while her hands unconsciously felt along her sternum, looking for spear wounds that were now nothing more than fading scars.

A shudder ran down her spine as she remembered the cold steel of Kaien's, NO, Aaroniero Arruruerie's trident piercing her unprotected body without mercy. She could still hear the awful sound of metal ripping into flesh. She swallowed painfully as she thought of how she had miraculously recovered enough strength and will at the last possible moment to kill the ninth espada before losing all consciousness entirely. Everything that happened to her after that still remained a mystery…even to Rukia.

She sighed heavily as Kaien's face flashed briefly in her minds eye. Pain, sorrow and remorse filled her heart as she thought about her former lieutenant. Almost instantly though her heart surged with anger and hatred for the monstrosity that had consumed his body and used it as a means to kill her.

"He deserved to DIE!" a sickly twisted voice crooned.

Immediately Rukia whirled around at the sound. Though it had been little more than a whisper on the wind, she had heard it clearly and distinctly, as though coming from right behind her.

At her surprisingly sudden movement however, Rukia's foot slid on some loose gravel and with a gasp she fell to her hands and knees on the side walk.

"Yo! Rukia! What on earth are you doing?"

Rukia's head snapped up at the sound of Ichigo's voice and sure enough she saw him jogging swiftly towards her.

Ichigo had just rounded the corner when he saw Rukia spin around for no apparent reason and unceremoniously fall to the ground in the process. Normally he would have teased her about being so clumsy but as he came closer he saw her trembling slightly.

"What happened Rukia? Are you hurt?" He asked worriedly as he dropped his book bag and crouched down next to her on one knee. Rukia ignored him for a moment as her eyes wildly scanned the area around them for the source of the other voice she had just heard…but apparently, besides Ichigo, she was alone.

"RUKIA!" Ichigo shouted again, this time finally getting Rukia's attention. "Are you ok? What happened just now?"

"I'm fine." Rukia replied automatically before trying to stand up. Ichigo swiftly grasped both her arms to help her up and winced when he saw her knees were scraped and bleeding. "I just turned around too fast and lost my footing." She snapped slightly embarrassed. Ichigo held onto her for a moment until he was sure she was steady on her feet before dropping down once again to inspect her scraped up knees. Rukia couldn't stop the sudden blush that graced her cheeks as Ichigo carefully examined her injuries, flexing her hands nervously at her sides as his fingers hesitantly fluttered over the cuts.

With a "tsk" he then stood up and regarded her quietly for a moment. "Why on earth haven't you beaten me home yet? Did you lose your way or something?" he joked sarcastically.

Rukia glared at him. "No! Of course I know where you live idiot! I was just… enjoying the walk and taking my sweet time getting there! Ok!"

"Ok ok! No need to get all defensive!" he scowled while waving his hands in front of him as though shielding himself before softening his gaze at her. "Lets just get home and we'll take care of those scrapes ok." He muttered while picking up their dropped book bags from off the sidewalk.

Rukia gave him a small smile and nodded.

They had been walking for a few minutes before Ichigo glanced down at his watch and growling in frustration. "At this pace it'll be midnight before we get home Rukia! Come on!" And before Rukia even knew what was happening Ichigo swiftly dropped down, grabbed one of her arms and slung her up onto his back piggy-back style. "Just what do you think you're doing fool! I'm perfectly capable of walking!" She shouted next to his ear.

Ichigo winced as he craned his neck around to look at her. "Chill out alright! You were just walking too slow…which is no surprise since you're twice as short as me; its only natural that it'd take you twice as long to get somewhere.. ouff!" he grunted as Rukia kicked him in the side with her heel. He smirked slightly to himself though as he felt her arms link around his neck and accept his help. If he were honest with himself though, her pace wasn't the only reason why he had decided to carry her. She just looked so tired and he refused to let her limp home with banged up knees.

They walked along in silence for a while before he felt Rukia's body completely slump against his back, her head finally coming down to rest on his shoulder. A soft sigh escaped her lips and he could feel her warm breath against his shirt. He couldn't help the smile that crossed his face and he wondered mildly if she had fallen asleep.

"Ichigo?" she sighed softly. 'Guess not'. He thought to himself with a smirk. "Hmm?" he murmured just as softly. "…Thank you." She whispered before letting his steady pace lull her to sleep. Ichigo's smile widened just a bit at that. "Don't mention it." He whispered back softly.

So? How'd I do? Please review! ;) - Miko