Death was not something she wished for and in fact was the thing she feared the most. She could still remember being strangled as she was unable to move and protect herself, only to be brought back moments after her death to be a slave that was half way between life and death. She found herself cursing the fact she had been taken advantage of, that her freedom had been stripped away. She had been angry despite the fact she took the anger out by blowing things up.

The last thing she wanted was to be thrown away. "You mean like him." The voice in her head said.

Two eyes opened up and looked around at the surroundings, not registering what the voice in her head meant at first. A thought though crossed her mind. "What is the point of winning if you yourself don't live?" Her body ached and she felt a chill run through her body, causing her to reach up and grab her shoulder with her right hand, only to realize that her shoulder was bare. Her eyes darted down to see that her body was naked which in turn caused her to sigh.

She pushed herself up, wondering if Gigi had dumped her off naked somewhere. This caused her to stand up and stomp her foot. "This isn't funny! I really hate you guys!" She flicked her fingers at the dumpster near her and watched it explode upon contact. "All right, come out you guys."

The girl placed her hands on her hips, her purple hair draping over her shoulders. Silence was what greeted her and she tugged at her locks. Her hair was damp from having touched the rain soaked ground. Her violet eyes looked around before she crossed her arms around her ample chest. "Seriously." She flicked her fingers again, causing something near her to explode again. She crossed her legs and looked around in boredom for something else to explode.

Police alarms went off causing the voice to go off in her head again. "We're in the world of the living."

"No... duh. This is the world of the living." The girl rolled her eyes, watching as the police car rolled up to the end of the alley way. "This really is some cruel prank to pull." She looked to the other side of the alleyway and noticed another police car coming at the other end. "What an annoyance."

The police officers got out of both cars and she raised both hands up to flick balls of rieatsu at the cars, causing them to explode and catch on fire. This in turn caused the police officers to turn their attention to the vehicle fire while she used Hirenkyaku to move to the roof. She leaned over to look at the chaos below and saw more cars coming. For some reason she moved away from the place as the police swarmed the place. "Why? I know I can take them on."

"Because you don't want to end up like him." The girl swallowed as she moved past someone's clothes line, only to stop short and grab a shirt and panties from the line to pull on. The clothing was wet and she felt shivers run down her spine.

She finally stopped after getting a few blocks away and sunk down onto the rooftop, shriving as she crouched hidden behind an item on the roof. "I hate the cold."

"That's because it reminds you of him." The girl swallowed, brushing off the comment from the voice in her head before drifting into an uneasy sleep.

M

"It reminds me of him. That's why I hate the cold and wish to have nothing to do with it." The girl looked around and noticed that she was in another cold place and she wrapped her arms around her chest area, realizing then that she was dreaming of when she was younger.

The voice of another child came from her side, causing her to turn. Something in her mind told her that this person was male, but she couldn't see his face let alone the color of his hair. She did know that the icy feeling was coming from him. In irritation she raised her small hands and tossed her balls of rieatsu at him, only to watch as they did nothing. The other child complained then. "Bambi-nii! Stop throwing bomb-bombs at me!"

"It's Bambi-nee!" She found herself protesting. She felt him suddenly take her hand, causing a cold chill to run up her spine. Normally she would pull away from the cold, but something told her to not let go. A voice suddenly called from inside the building near where they were and the other child let go of her hand, running into the house in a rather excited manner. "Wait! Don't go! If you do..." He was gone from her site and things began shifting. "...the part of the dream I don't like will happen."

She found herself looking at Sternritter B, wondering where that someone was. "Hey... Uncle Ju-ju... where's Shiro-nii."

"Don't ever mention him again Basterbine."

She felt herself swallow. "Why? Where is he?"

"Dead."

"Why?"

"Because he isn't a Quincy."

"He's my twin. How can he not be a Quincy? He did better at me at our lessons."

"He could not achieve blunt. He is a failure and thus not needed. Plus, he unlike you was sickly." The man paused. "And don't mention him again. That child is an abomination, twisting Quincy abilities like he did. He's a monster."

M

The girl's violet eyes snapped open. "I can't lose and if I win I can't die. I won't end up like him. I won't." She suddenly felt a cane pressing at her forehead and looked up to see an older lady glaring at her. She realized she was now in a warm room with a blanket over her. The old woman glared at her which caused the girl to look away. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"What I want to know is why a young Quincy caused such a disturbance as you did an hour ago. I want to know why you would disgrace the Quincy blood line by doing what you did, openly using your powers in front of those who know nothing of us or the spirit world. I want to know why you had the audacity to run around naked and then to steal clothes. You are a disgrace."

"No. I'm not a disgrace. I won't be thrown away like him." Her eyes narrowed and she glared at the woman. "What right have you to tell me what to do you old hag!"

"I am the lady of the Ishida clan. You are now my ward." The woman went and sat down, crossing her legs as she did so. "You will have my nieces old room. I believe some of her old things from when she was a child should in fact fit you."

The girl looked at the woman. "You're related to that half-breed, aren't you?"

The woman looked at her in silence. "My son and I are not on speaking terms due to the circumstances of that child's birth. All you need to know is that child was dead to me before he was even born." The woman picked up a cup of tea. "You say you won't end up like him. Do you speak of his majesty?"

"His highness?" The girl frowned. "About that. Did the Quincy win? Did his majesty succeed?"

The woman set down her tea, the cup clinking against the plate. "How is it that you're not aware? We Quincy lost yet another battle with the Shinigami. That happened a week ago." The woman watched as the girl's violet eyes suddenly widened. "You really aren't aware of what happened. Those who survived the battle are locked up in the Shinigami jail cells."

"That can't be. If that were true I'd be locked up with them. Somehow I'm in the world of the living."

The woman set her tea down on the table this time. "Exactly who are you?"

"I am Basterbine Bambietta, Sternritter E... the Explosion." The girl stated.

"So you're that child." The woman narrowed her eyes, placing her lap. "How you escaped I do not know. I've honestly no news as to who is alive or dead. I do know that the bloodline is decimated even more. I think you understand what this means."

Bambietta looked at the ground. "No, honestly I do not. I woke up naked and ended up hiding from the police. Somehow I ended up here."

"I had my butler retrieve you." The woman continued to look at her. "Let me ask again. When you say you don't want to end up like him, who do you mean."

"Who do I mean?" The girl looked at her lap. "My twin brother."

"I've not heard of you having a twin brother and I know the bloodlines of the Quincy very well."

"Then you know of my father and mother?"

"Nothing much beyond the fact they existed once. What I know of your bloodline record, there is no twin brother."

"How can that be? He was tossed aside when we were little because he wasn't a real Quincy. He couldn't perform blunt and died."

"I believe this brother of yours is a figment of your imagination." The old woman repeated what the girl had heard many times in her life. "If you were able to perform blunt naturally then your twin brother should have been able to perform blunt naturally as well."

The girl looked to the side, frowning as she did. "She's right. Even I didn't begin my Quincy training that young. The dream must have been just that, a dream."

"Then where does your want to no be thrown away come from?"

"I honestly don't know."