Chapter 22: Upon Closer Inspection

Even with the sun warming the world around them, there were still thick packs of snow on the ground and surrounding stores; a gentle cooling breeze ensured it would not be melting any time soon. Every now and then a little flurry of snowflakes would litter the sky, adding to the overall ambience, but it would never last too long or amount to much of anything. Patiently, Zakuro accompanied Ichigo to store after store after store in search of the perfect gift for the reclusive and distance Shirogane Ryou.

Ichigo seemed absolutely at a loss as to what to give him. Sure, they'd gotten a lot closer as friends recently, but he still irked her on a regular basis. "Hey, Ichigo, how about this?" Zakuro held out a particularly large stone, which made her young friend look at her kind of funny. "Ever hear the saying 'don't judge a book by it's cover'? It's called Rainbow Obsidion. Here, hold it up to the light and take another look."

It's so heavy, Ichigo thought as she followed Zakuro's instructions. The Rainbow Obsidion was unlike anything she'd ever seen before; colors flashed and swirled as she turned it ever so slightly. "It's what they call a 'grounding stone,'" Zakuro explained. "It's associated with Pluto, who was the Greek god of the underworld and keeper of hidden treasure. People meditate with sphere's like this to draw certain energy elements from them. This particular stone is useful for developing the strength needed to stand on your own convictions against your enemies, hidden or seen. Really good for pain and tension too."

"Wow, this is perfect... Zakuro, thank you so much!" She picked up the stand that held the sphere and rushed over to the counter to purchase the item. Zakuro smiled a little and picked up a small piece of Jasper which she twirled around in her fingers as she waited.

--

--

The sphere was much to heavy to wrap in a box, so for the time being it sat elegantly on Ichigo's desk. It was funny, but ever since she'd given it that second look, she'd started to notice little details about it that were both stunning charming. The stone seemed to command her attention, even when she was otherwise occupied. It was calming... soothing... a pleasure to be around. If only Ryou was more like this, she thought to herself often that week.

Masaya had been released from the hospital the day after he checked in. School not being in session for the winter break, she had no excuse to see how he was doing. Truthfully, the whole ordeal had left her a bit shaken and worried about how to approach the situation. She'd been told not to try and jog his memory, but she also didn't see how she could just go on seeing him day to day, talking to him, dating him, kissing him, after what had happened. What a mess, she sighed sadly. Christmas was a week away; she'd been looking forward to spending it as Masaya's girlfriend. Now, that seemed impossible.

"Come in..." Sakura Momomiya creaked the door to her daughters room open and stepped inside. How are you feeling honey, she asked. "I'm fine..." was Ichigo's sullen reply.

"Talk to me Ichigo... you used to tell me everything, but this year you've been so reclusive. You know you can tell me anything, right?" Ichigo hung her head; was she really so selfish that all she'd seen was how she was hurting her boyfriend. She'd been lying to her parents this whole time too after all. Not to mention Miwa and Mowa, whom she hadn't even talked to in weeks.

"I'm sorry Mom," Ichigo wrapped her arms around her mother's neck and started sobbing. Sakura held her tight, gently rubbing her back.

"It's alright sweetie... Shh... Everything is going to be okay..." Ichigo sat back, wipping the tears from her eyes; Sakura brushed a whisp of hair from the teen's face and smiled.

"I'm sure Aoyama-kun will be just fine. And don't worry, the authorities will catch whoever attacked him." Ichigo nodded; it was best that her mom think this was all about Masaya anyway. "You know sweetie," her tone had changed slightly. "I worry about your relationship with Aoyama--now don't get me wrong he's a very nice, polite young man, and very cute," she added with a wink, "but, honey you are too young to be suffering like this over a guy, especially one you've only gone out with a few times now."

"But you told me you and Dad started dating when you were our age," Ichigo interjected, a little upset by the change in conversation.

"Yes, but we only dated for two days! Then we were friends for years and dated lots of other people. We were in our final year of school before we realized that we loved eachother, and we've been together ever since." She smiled softly at her daughter, standing to leave. "You are young Ichigo, don' limit your options so early on. Aoyama is home now, and on the way to recovery, and moping around here, calling out of work yesterday... nothing will undo what happened." She kissed the top of Ichigo's head. "Get some sleep, okay?"

Ichigo sat there for a moment after her mother had left. Maybe she was crazy, but until recently she had been more or less in control of everything. Now the fighting was getting more violent, more deadly. She glanced across the room and caught a glimpse of herself in the vanity mirror. I don't even recognize myself any more, she murmured before curling up in an attempt at sleep.

--

--

"But Kisshu is not fully healed yet. If anything were to go wrong, it could kill him."

"That may be," Deep Blue replied curtly, "but he has sealed his own fate, Pai. We will go through with the new plan, as I ordered it; Whether or not Kisshu survives in not my concern."