Angel with a Shotgun

Chapter 11

-Ghosts from the Past-

Then~

"Wait, are you saying you met God?" Sam asked, backpedaling, because all of this was getting too real, too fast.

...

"I am part Hollow and part Shinigami. The term that most resembles me is a Vizard or even an Arrancar depending on who you talk to." The last part was spoken with more bitterness than anything else Ichigo had said so far.

...

This time Castiel seemed to stretch himself taller, "I'm an Angel of the Lord." It was said with such conviction Dean found it painful.

...

The sound of fluttering wings filled Ichigo and Dean's ears, before either could form a response Castiel had vanished into thin air.

"Man, what a dick!" Dean exclaimed loudly.

Now~

Ichigo tried to relax in the back of Dean's car, having been kicked out of the front seat to make room for Sam.

Neither he nor Dean had said much to each other or the others about what had happened with Castiel. Dean using the excuse that he just wanted to head back to Bobby's and get some sack time… Ichigo assumed it was an expression akin to going to bed but given the awkwardness after the last few times he'd missed bits of a conversation; there was no way he was asking.

Ichigo for his part, needed time to think. He'd just seen two very different sides of Castiel which was alarming in and of itself. Shunsui had warned him that the imperials were a peculiar bunch but this guy wasn't like any shinigami he'd ever met. Was the whole Angel thing really for real?

Ichigo closed his eyes and tried to relax his jaw, rethinking over everything was only serving to fuel his temper. A loss of control right now wasn't an option. Instead he focused on his surroundings, letting the purr of the engine fill his ears.

Dean's music started to play; quietly filling the silence between the occupants of the car, Ichigo drifted to sleep without realizing it.

Dean checked over his shoulder to see Ghost Boy sleeping crookedly in the bench seat. He shook his head lightly at the difference between the fierceness Ichigo had shown facing Castiel and the youthful innocence he projected in his sleep.

Dean threw a look at Sam wordlessly sharing his observation. His brother looked at him curiously, Dean inclined his head towards the back.

Sam studied the sleeping form briefly before turning back to stare out the window. "That is freaking weird." He whispered.

Dean snorted. "You'll have to be more precise Sammy, weird is kinda our life."

"Ichigo." Sam answered matter of factly but when Dean gave him a blank look, Sam explained. "That Kon entity he switches with. I mean, after he stopped his whining he spent most of the time sleeping in the back of Bobby's truck. He was all spread out, twitchy and drooling. Ichigo though, is almost the exact opposite." Sam looked back again, it was the same face yet completely different. "So, ya. Its weird."

"Damn right it is. That Cone guy gives me the creeps too." Dean shifted uncomfortably in his seat remembering all the hugging and crying.

"You gonna tell me what happened with the Angel?" Sam probed, hoping that with the shinigami asleep Dean would open up.

"I'm not convinced about the whole angel thing Sammy. Cause if that was an angel, well, he's a dick…" Dean's hands tightened around the steering wheel. The whole encounter had left a very sour taste in his mouth. All those souls in Hell, he wasn't special and he sure as shit didn't think his ass was worth saving. Dean fought back the flashes of memory; forty years in Hell worth.

"Come on Dean, it makes sense. After everything we've seen?" Sam wanted to believe that somewhere out there, there was something bigger than demons and monsters. Something good. Something that for once, might actually be on their side.

"Exactly Sammy, out of all the hunters we've met or all the lore we've read no one's ever seen an angel before. Even Ichigo isn't convinced." Dean knew Sammy had always been the more optimistic of the two of them, he loved and hated that quality in his little brother.

"Well Dean, you've just met one. What else could it be?" Sam pushed. "And your bodyguard is supposed to answer to this guy, so he can't be that bad."

Dean bristled at the bodyguard comment, he did not need a bodyguard damn it!

"Are you kidding me? That feathered ass hat attacked Ichigo the minute we let on that I knew the whole story." Dean hissed out quietly, not wanting to wake the sleeping Reaper. He'd been surprised at the animosity between the angel and Ghost Boy, those guys needed their help, not the other way around. This whole thing stunk.

Sam's brow wrinkled, obviously puzzled by the statement. He needed to push Dean to answer him but if he pushed too hard his brother would clam up even harder. So he stayed silent while keeping his gaze firm on Dean.

Dean relented after two minutes of Sam's overly expressive eyebrows followed by Bitch Face #8. He'd have gotten around to telling his little brother what had gone down eventually. At least here and now he could get it out of the way and crash as soon as they got to Bobby's.

He spoke quietly, kept his tone as emotionless as possible. Dean told Sam all about the douchie delusional reaper, of course he doesn't share quite everything; he skips over a lot of his own interaction with Castiel. It's not a road he wants to go down on in his own head, there's no way he's gonna push his baggage on Sammy.

"Uh…" Sam leans back in his seat. "Ok yeah. That's not so good." It's an understatement of course. Sam thinks back to the things Ichigo told them back at the psychic's house, he knows he's losing a lot of the doubts he's got about the shinigami's intentions. They've got too much in common to ignore and Sam can't help but feel compassion towards this kid.

Dean lets out a grateful sigh when he sees a sign for a gas station up ahead, the tank is a bit low and he could really use something to eat. "I'm gonna fuel up and grab some supplies," Dean points ahead to station in the distance. "We still got a couple hours before we get to Bobby's."

Sam frowns at the poorly made subject change, its obvious Dean hasn't told him everything that happened. He lets it drop for now. A stop to stretch his legs is a good idea anyway, maybe he'll be able to get some news from Ruby.

"I gotta go." Sam tells Dean over his shoulder as he heads around the side of the gas station. He barely hears the low grunt Dean gives him from beside the pump, his brother's too focused on the fuel meter.

They agreed to let the shinigami sleep, it really looked like he needed it. They all did honestly. Bobby had gone past the station, it was safe to assume the older man was in a hurry to get home to rest before they all dove into research mode.

He'd just rounded the corner when Ruby blinked into view. Sam blew out a relieved breath, a smile stretching easily on his face but it was cut off at the glare she gave him.

"Sam, is it true?" Ruby asked briskly, letting Sam hug her before herding them to the back of the building, out of view.

"Is what true?" He kept one arm around her, keeping Ruby close while he could.

"That a freaking Angel rescued Dean?" Ruby hissed, obviously distraught.

Sam drew in a sharp breath. "You heard about that already?" It had only been about two hours since Dean and Ichigo's encounter with Castiel.

"Who hasn't Sammy?" Ruby snorted, putting some space between herself and Sam's arms.

"Well Dean's not convinced but yeah, it seems like it." Ruby twisted away from Sam as soon as he'd finished.

"That's it then, I'm done. Bye Sam." Sam scrambles to catch her arm before she can run off.

"Whoa, whoa, wait. Ruby what's going on?" Sam pleads, they don't have much time, he knows that but he needs to know what's got her so spooked.

"Sam," Ruby looks at him like he's the most naive person on the planet. "I'm a demon, you're dealing with Angels; they smite first, maybe ask questions later. Not to mention that abomination basically glued to your brother. I don't want to die!" Ruby runs a hand through her dark locks. "I can't stay, Sam."

"Abomination? What the hell Ruby?" Sam's taken aback by Ruby's fear, it's not something he's used to seeing. Yet he can't help feeling a bit betrayed at what she calls the shinigami though, it stings him because that's pretty much what Sam is, an abomination.

"I asked around, that shinigami guarding your brother, isn't what he says he is." She glances around making sure they're still alone, like she doesn't trust her other senses.

"Yeah I know, he told us about the fact that he's part Hollow. It's just a part of who he is, besides what could he do to you?" He could understand her fear of Angels, they were anathema to each other but he couldn't see how a reaper could be a danger to a demon.

"Well, for starters he could devour me! Like he almost did back at the hotel. Or he could try to purify me and send me off to who knows where. I have no idea if that would actually work but I don't want to find out. Sam please. I'm sorry but I can't help you anymore." She tugs herself away from Sam.

Sam's brain was running a mile a minute, taking in the new information. An idea flashes across his mind, it's a long shot and kinda crazy. This could be the answer they've been waiting for though. "Wait, are you saying that Ichigo could kill Lilith?"

Ruby stops trying to run off, her face becomes blank and Sam knows he's got her attention. Suddenly she throws herself back into his arms, kissing him even though it's brief. "You're a genius Sam Winchester!"

Ichigo was startled awake when something landed on his face. He bolts up, nearly hitting his head to the roof of the car. "The hell?" He growls before noticing some kind of energy bar on his lap.

"We're back at Bobby's." Dean informed him, pointing to the house coming into view as they drove through the junk yard. "Figured you could use a snack." The hunter explains the food that had been thrown at Ichigo's face with a smirk.

Ichigo scowls at the two hunters, both seemed amused by his reaction. "You didn't steal this too, right?" He knows he sounds like an asshole, he should say thank you. This is more fun though.

"Shut up and eat Ghost Boy!" Dean looks over to his brother. "Kids these days." There's a snort from Sam while Dean shakes his head.

Ichigo doesn't bother answering, instead he rips the packaging loudly and shoves the whole thing in his mouth. It doesn't taste like much but he is actually pretty hungry so it'll do.

"Actually, how old are you?" Sam twist in his seat as Dean pulls the car up to park beside Bobby's truck. The younger Winchester gets a sudden panicked look and stammers a quick apology. "Sorry, that's a rude thing to ask. You don't have to answer that."

"No, it's ok Sam." Ichigo waves a hand, he doesn't mind and he understands the man's curiosity. "I was 19 when my body died, I'm about 21 now. I think. Aging is a bit different in Soul Society."

Dean and Sam are silent, Ichigo sees them share a conversation without saying a word. The awkward silence is broken when Dean snorts, shooting an unreadable look towards Ichigo.

"See," Dean exclaims brashly. "Like I've been saying, Kid."

"Right Dean, cause you're so old and wise." Sam delivers mockingly.

"Bitch."

"Jerk."

The brothers exit the car simultaneously, despite their words, they're smiling.

Ichigo lets out a quiet chuckle, he's not sure why but that little stunt seemed to have released the last few hours of tension. He can see himself enjoying his time with these American hunters.

It's still dark out, though Ichigo is pretty sure the sun will be rising soon. He pulls his bag over a shoulder as he steps out. After closing the door quietly he leans on outside of the car waiting for the Winchesters to unload their own bags from the trunk.

Once they all have their gear and Dean's baby is safely down for the night, they make their way over to the house.

Bobby meets them on the porch, shotgun in hand. "Took you boys long enough, everything all right?"

"Yeah, had to stop for gas." Dean explains while adjusting his grip on the duffel bag he's got slung over his shoulder. "Usual room?" He knows he doesn't really have to ask since Sammy and him have had the same rooms since they were kids. He asks every time though.

"Yup, go right on up. We'll start looking at the books once we've all had some shut eye." Bobby pats Sam on the shoulder as they pass each other, exchanging quick good nights. He turns to Ichigo, walking up behind him as they walk into the house. "I've cleared some space in the last room down the hall, it ain't much and it's still cluttered but it'll do for the night. You can clear it up some if you'd like tomorrow."

Ichigo gives the older man a grateful smile, he doubts anything could be worse than that awful bed at the motel. "Thanks Bobby-san."

When Ichigo wakes up it takes him a few moments to get his bearings. He's not in his bed in the Eight Division compound, he's not even in Soul Society. He's in the Living World, it's been three days now since he received his assignment from Shunsui. Three days of feeling too much like he had back when he was fifteen and had been subjected to the most intense learning curve of his life.

He stretched himself out, shaking the remnants of sleep off before finally pushing himself out of the small bed Bobby had gotten ready for him. The room was indeed crowded; it was filled with old wooden trunks, boxes and most of all books, a lot books. And dust. Enough dust that Ichigo was sure this room hadn't been used in a very long time. Thankfully he'd had the mind to open the window and thus had been able to breath well enough to sleep through the night.

A quick look at his phone told him it was just past seven am, he also had a message from Chad. It seemed his backup was going to be a bit late, Chad was as short with his text as he was with his words. It merely read "Still waiting for Urahara-san, will be there ASAP." Ichigo smiled to himself. Good old Chad, it was going to be great to see his old friend again.

After the Quincy war had ended, Chad and Orihime had decided to head back to Hueco Mundo. At first, they had returned to help those they'd befriended and allied with as most were still in need of healing from incursions with the Quincy. Then word had begun to spread and soon a small strangely peaceful colony of Arrancars and evolved Hollows had sprung up around them.

With his two oldest friends living permanently in Hueco Mundo while he settled in Soul Society it meant they rarely got the chance to see each other anymore. All in all it had been at least 6 months since he'd seen his old friends.

Ichigo's woolgathering was interrupted when what sounded like a struggle caught his attention. Rushing up and out of his room he followed the sound to the room across from his, Ichigo wearily opened the door not knowing what to expect on the other side.

Tense muscles relaxed slightly at the sight of a mostly empty room. There was no struggle, unless Ichigo counted Dean tangled in his bed sheets obviously caught in a nightmare.

As Ichigo made his way towards the bed to wake the hunter, the door behind him creaked further open. A quick look back saw a bedraggled looking Sam rush in, the younger Winchester had no doubt come to a similar conclusion as Ichigo.

"Careful, he usually swings first and ask questions later if you try to wake him up." Sam advised quietly, throat tight. The taller man pushed passed Ichigo, sitting at the end Dean's bed before lightly patting his brother's leg. "Dean, wake up man."

Just as Sam had warned Dean shot up, fists at the ready. Dean sat there for a few moments, blinking up in confusion before his features turned guarded. "What the hell are you two doing in here?"

"Well we were all up and figured you couldn't be the only one to sleep in." Sam smirked, acting for all the world like Dean hadn't just been twisting in anguish.

Ichigo was struck with a very deep reminder of how much he missed his little sisters.

"What are you doing in here Ghost Boy?" Dean turned to Ichigo after shooting Sam a very disgruntled look. Ichigo wasn't sure if the man was playing along to save face or genuinely believed no one had caught him in his nightmare.

"Returning the favor for you nearly breaking down my door yesterday morning." The shinigami put on his cockiest smirk. He knew all about nightmares, if Dean ever felt like sharing them with him he'd listen but he wouldn't force the matter unless it became a problem.

"Get out of here, both of you. Christ, it's like I'm surrounded by little kids or something." Dean grumbled shooing them out of the room.

"Fine, we'll let you to your beauty sleep." Sam got up, it was clear he was hesitant though.

Dean merely shot them another fierce glare adding some not very nice hand gestures. Sam and Ichigo shared a look, they'd leave the elder Winchester be.

With Dean's door closed behind them Ichigo and Sam stood awkwardly in the narrow hallway. The silence stretched out, neither sure what to say.

Sam's gaze narrowed, taking notice that Ichigo was wearing the same thing he'd had on since picking Sam up at the motel. "Is that all you've got to wear?" The words escaped the taller of the two without Sam meaning too.

"Since I left in a hurry, this is all I've got. I can go buy some other clothes but I don't know where to go… And there hasn't been time." Ichigo scratch the back of head his nervously. It was a small detail sure, but it would be nice to at least be able to wash what he'd now been wearing for a few days and have something fresh to change into.

Ichigo noticed as Sam stood at his full height, obviously studying Ichigo's size and build. The hunter crossed his arms across his chest with a half nod, agreeing with himself about something. "Well, if you want, I think Bobby's stored a lot of Dean's and mine's clothes from when we were younger. I'm sure there's gotta be something in there that'll fit you."

Ichigo considered the offer, it was kinda hard to imagine Sam Winchester had ever been smaller… Dean was only a few inches taller than Ichigo however so Sam was probably right. Even if they're styles differed there was bound to be something he could borrow, for a short period of time anyway.

"That would be very helpful, thank you." Ichigo answered sincerely.

As it turned out, most of those wooden trunks in the room Bobby had decided to lodge Ichigo in contained the majority of the Winchester brothers' clothes from their younger, shorter, years.

Ichigo - in his newly acquired jeans and plaid overshirt combo, Sam, and Bobby had just sat down for some scrambled eggs and toasts when Dean finally made his way into the small dining area.

Everyone at the table stopped, turning to look at the elder Winchester who looked like he hadn't slept at all despite getting up last. Neither Ichigo or Sam were overly surprised but everyone was visibly concerned.

Dean ignored the starring, it could wait until after coffee. He stopped short at Ichigo however, looking confused.

"What? What the hell are you wearing?" The question was asked with a sort of choked off chuckle.

Sam snorted, choking on his mouthful of eggs, earning him a glare from Ichigo and Dean. Bobby simply went back to his coffee opting to ignore everyone around him.

"Um, well." Ichigo drew a blank, suddenly frozen looking down at the clothes he'd picked. He hadn't really paid attention to anything aside from the size and feel.

The jeans had that nicely worn in feel though they were looser than what he prefered and there was a light tear on the right knee. The thin faded black tee bore a bold yet faded Led Zeppelin logo, put together he hadn't thought he could go wrong with a black shirt and jeans... He'd thrown on a warm looking long sleeved red and black plaid shirt over top as an afterthought. It was all very far from his usual style, but he was actually comfortable.

"Oh, I told Ichigo he could look through some of our old stuff since all he had was what he got sent here with." Sam paused, waiting for his brother's reaction.

"Oh." Dean stood straight, as if he was still deciding what he thought about the scene in front him.

Finally he merely shrugged and made straight for the coffee pot. With his cup filled the elder Winchester joined them at the table, sitting opposite of Ichigo.

The four hunters and the reaper sat in companionable silence, Ichigo had made a sour a face when he'd noticed Dean drank black coffee. He prefered his own with cream and only lightly sweetened, and Renji put so much sugar in his Ichigo wasn't sure he could call it coffee.

The shinigami chuckled at the unexpected thought, remembering his best friend the first time he'd tried the bitter drink.

"What's funny?" Dean ask curiously, he'd been focused on Ghost Boy's shirt trying to remember what it was about it that sparked some memory. He'd seen the kid's gross out at how Dean liked coffee then the expression had gotten that blank look someone gets when they were remembering something. That chuckle probably had a story behind it, something simple but worth laughing over. He could do with those kinds of thoughts once in while. Dean didn't think that would happen anytime soon.

Ichigo's eyes snapped up, feeling a little embarrassed at being caught in a silly memory. He watched the hunters around him waiting patiently for him to say something, to fill the silence with something that wasn't doom and gloom.

"My friend, Renji, the first time he tried coffee he just drank it." Bringing his elbows on the table to rest his head in one hand while he points a finger from the other towards Dean's cup, "It was like yours, he spat it out all over Kisuke's table." He chuckled again, this time joined by the others. "Now he puts so much sugar in that I don't think it is really coffee anymore." He shook his head, tilting it back while he pictured Renji at his work desk with his cup of sugar coffee.

The hunters shared another chuckle, enjoying this little moment of normal that Ichigo had shared with them.

The moment was short lived though.

"Alright boys time to hit the books." Bobby pushed out his chair and made his way to the counter, he began a new pot of coffee. "I got a feeling we're gonna need more of this stuff."

While the hunters searched through the many books in Bobby's collection, there wasn't much Ichigo could do to help in that area. He could read English but not as well or as quickly as the hunters. He couldn't read Latin or Greek at all, and some books Ichigo was sure contained languages long dead.

It was all so frustrating. How was he supposed to do his job with so little intel. He was sure those days had been behind him. He glared at his Denreishinki. Ichigo wanted to call Shunsui, give him a piece of his mind about this bullshit assignment. He couldn't though, not yet anyway, his gut told him he couldn't risk it.

"You stare any harder at the thing and it's gonna explode." Dean's voice startled Ichigo, the shinigami's gaze shooting up to the man standing next to him.

The hunter let out a sigh as he dropped a dusty tome on the coffee table where Sam had settled with his laptop. "I need a break." Dean declared, Ichigo wanted to agree but on the other hand all they'd been able to do was confirm that an Angel was pretty much the only being that would have been able to pull Dean out of Hell.

Ichigo's charge hadn't taken that news very well and had been rather sullen since then.

"Dean, c'mon we've only been doing this for," Sam paused, looking back down his laptop. "Ok, yeah, we've been at this for four hours." The younger Winchester leaned back into the sofa obviously dejected.

"I'm hungry. Think I'm gonna go get some lunch. And pie." Dean declared to the room, not waiting for answer before turning to head out.

"I'll come with you." Ichigo called out quickly, it wasn't like he was contributing much. Besides, he wasn't about to let his charge just wander around alone.

Dean groaned. "I don't need a freaking babysitter okay!"

Sam, whom Ichigo was quickly figuring out to be the voice of reason between the two Winchesters, spoke up cutting Dean off before the man could continue his complaints. "Dean, just take Ichigo with you. It can't hurt to have a shinigami as your backup."

Dean glared at the room. "Unbelievable, Bobby?" Surely he could count on the old man to agree that he didn't need supervision.

"Just take the kid with you Dean. No one should be going anywhere on their own right now." Bobby let the book he'd been absorbed in for the last hour fall open on his desk. "I got some things to check on anyway and could use some quiet." The elder man had had just about enough of Dean's constant winging.

"Fine, c'mon Ghost Boy. Before I change my mind." Dean walked out without another word.

"Sorry about him, he's just." Sam paused at a loss of what he could say in defence of his older brother. He couldn't think of anything Ichigo wouldn't be able to figure out on his own.

Ichigo merely shrugged his shoulders, sure Dean's abrasive attitude was annoying but Ichigo understood. Probably better than most. Besides, he could give as good as he got.

When he got in the car, the music was blaring loudly, a clear message from Dean that he didn't feel like talking.

"You know even if you tried to leave without me, I could find you anywhere." Ichigo grinned at the man's glare.

"That's fucking creepy, you know that right?" Dean's only answer was another shrug as the reaper bobbed his head to the rhythm of the music.

Dean and Ichigo had just gotten back in the car, the bench loaded with what Ichigo counted as way too much junk food, when Dean's phone rang.

Ichigo watched Dean brows crinkle as the man looked at the caller ID. "Its Bobby." The hunter answered with an annoyed, "What is it?"

"I think we got a problem." As usual Bobby doesn't waste any time, the older man doesn't even bother waiting for Dean to ask which problem he could be talking about. "I called a couple Hunters when you had your chat with the Angel. Ichigo made it pretty clear the town Sam had been stayin' in had at least one Demon, figured they could take care of it."

"Ok, so what's the problem Bobby." Dean cuts in, as he starts the engine. If this couldn't have waited until they got back then Dean was pretty sure he didn't want to hear it.

"Well I haven't heard from any of 'em. No one's pickin' up either. That ain't normal." Dean can clearly picture Bobby taking of his cap and rubbing his forehead.

"I get what you're sayin' Bobby but what the heck can we do about it. Man we got our own problems." Dean wasn't too fond of hanging out with other Hunters but normally he'd have stepped up to help without too much reserve. Right now though, with the whole the devil is breaking out of jail thing, they had enough to worry about.

"Don't start with me boy, I understand that but right now we've got bubkes on that front. A quick drive a state over to check on some of them won't hurt nothing." Bobby sighs. "I'll text you the address, you take the kid and head out. Sam and me will meet ya there."

"Alright, alright. We'll see ya there." Dean agreed reluctantly, it's not like Bobby is giving him much of choice though. He hangs up, pushing the button down with more force than needed.

Ichigo who'd blatantly listened in on the conversation, spoke as soon as Dean had put his phone back on the dashboard. "How long is the drive going to be?" Concerned that Chad would arrive while they were checking on the possibly missing Hunters.

"Couple hours." Dean answered after he'd checked the address Bobby's texted him. Gone were the days of checking maps on the side of road, gps was awesome. He's not happy about the reaper eavesdropping though so he can't help taking some shots at the kid. "Why, you in hurry to be some place else? I thought you were suppose to follow me everywhere?"

Ichigo scowled at the Hunter's tone, the man was trying to get a rise of him and he's pretty sure it's because he'd overstepped about the whole phone thing. "I need to be able to plan ahead." He leaves his answer short, figuring it might be best to step back a bit besides not taking the bait would annoy Winchester which was fine with the shinigami.

Ichigo pulls out his Denreishinki, texting Chad to let him they're leaving Bobby's for a yet unknown amount of time.

"Texting someone?" Dean pries openly. They're gonna be driving for a couple hours, now is a pretty good time to pump the kid for more info. The reapers have whole freaking files about them, it was only fair he did his own recon.

Ichigo waits until he's sent his message before looking up to answer the hunter. He supposes it's only fair he answer the question honestly, Dean was guarded in general but he'd given Ichigo his trust, something that made his job much easier. He was also aware that trust was a two way street.

"Chad, my friend coming to help your brother, I was making sure he knew we might not be there when he arrives." Ichigo's mouth pulls into a slight smile, despite the unfortunate circumstances he was happy that they would get to see each other.

Dean noticed the smile out of the corner of his eye. It made sense, wouldn't have been a great first impression to someone who was doing them a favor. Dean realised that even though the kid had told them his history, Ichigo hadn't been big on personal details, mainly it had just been the sequence of events even the time frames had been vague. Knowing what kind of people Ichigo called friends would give Dean a better idea of who Ichigo was, not what.

Dean found he really needed to make that distinction. "You two been friends a long time?"

Ichigo shot Dean a surprised look at the personal question. He opened his mouth to say something dismissive but closed it instead. He considered the question while looking out the window. Not many people asked him those kinds of questions, those who would already knew the answers. Everyone else around him were superiors or juniors in rank or status, Ichigo didn't care about that sort of thing but people in Soul Society did.

And so Ichigo answered Dean's question, and then he kept on talking. He told the mortal hunter about his first meeting with Chad, about his other friends before and after his meeting with Rukia. He talked of the bullies who singled him out for his hair colour, of what it was like being able to see ghosts has a child.

He even talked about his initial training with Kisuke, the wars and how he was still struggling to adjust to his relatively new Captaincy. In the end he came full circle when he explained that due to Chad and Orihime's choice to live in Hueco Mundo, he hadn't seen the other in a long time.

There was a pause, Ichigo out of things to say and Dean still absorbing what had just been laid out.

In the silence Ichigo came to the realization of what he'd just done. Never before had he been so open about his life. He panicked, what was wrong with him? Not even in his many drunken nights with Shinji had he been so loose lipped.

Dean took a side look at the reaper, noticing the red tinge the kid's face was slowly taking. The conversation hadn't been as awkward as Dean would've normally felt, he didn't really do feelings especially not his own but Ichigo had just sort of started and hadn't stopped. Dean had been to curious to object, it had been easy to simply listen as he drove.

"Hunting ain't an easy life, people tend to die a lot around you so…" Dean explained in an effort to relate. Only other hunters understanded the life, they all knew how nearly impossible any kind of relationship was.

"I am dead." Ichigo said it plainly, it's a fact, something he's gotten used too. Besides, when you know what happens after life, dying isn't exactly a big deal.

"That's so fucked up." Dean shakes his head with a bitter chuckle. Of course the only person he's felt comfortable around since popping out of Hell is freaking dead.

"You got a girl waiting for ya?" Dean asks teasingly, trying to keeping the conversation from getting even more morbid.

Ichigo groans, he hates that question. Shinji and Matsumoto ask him constantly, no one seems to understand that he's just not interested. He can barely keep on top of his friendships, he doesn't have the time to commit to anyone. He doesn't get why everyone cares so much.

"Wow, did I touch a nerve?" The sound Ichigo made is all too similar to Sammy's when Dean asks that same question.

"I don't, I have no time for someone else, it would not be fair." Ichigo hopes the man can leave it that. He give Winchester a look, this isn't something the shinigami wants to debate.

"You sound like Sammy before…" Dean clams up. He was about to say before his little brother shipped himself off to Stanford, before Dean came and ruined his life. Before Jessica died. "Sam's always been the romantic type."

"People have different needs." Ichigo offers a small piece of wisdom Shunsui had once given him. He's not sure if it applies but he thinks it does.

Dean only responds with a nod, that was the last he'd expected the reaper to say yet finds it was the best thing the kid could have said. There's one that come to be pretty obvious to Dean, Ichigo was steadily becoming a who and not a what in the hunter's mind.

Bobby's friend is dead and her house is something most people would think was straight out of horror movie. To three seasoned hunters and a shinigami though this wasn't their first time witnessing something like this.

Ichigo followed Dean and Sam as closely as possible, because he's an idiot and he's stuck in this stupid gigai. No one thought to grab his bag which he'd left in his room, so no Kon. He pays close attention to what the brothers tell him about what they think has happened.

The shinigami is surprised to learn that salt of all things would keep ghosts away, what he wouldn't have given to learn that when he'd been younger. It would have been great to keep all those ghosts out of his room.

He readily agrees with Dean that he has never seen a ghost do this do a person. "A Hollow could do this but I was told they were rare in these parts." Ichigo wonders if it's because America has a substantial Hunter community thus pluses don't often get to the point Hollowfying. Or maybe it has to do with the different afterlifes.

"I really don't feel like running into one of those ugly son's of bitches." Dean shifts his weight wearily, paranoia making itself evident.

"I'd feel it if there was one close by." Ichigo tries to sound comforting, he doesn't mention that he'd have to fight without his main weapons. He knows he can fight in his gigai but he wouldn't be strong or efficient.

When the Winchesters and Ichigo meet Bobby outside the house, the older hunter is on the phone. They wait patiently hoping this is an isolated, totally random, as nothing to do with them thing. They all know that's not likely.

"Balls!" Bobby growls, folding his phone shut. "No one's pickin' up."

"Something's going on uh?" Sam asks lamely.

"You think?" Bobby snaps, he raises his hand at Dean before the older Winchester can lay into him for snapping at Sam. "We need to try and figure this out, and quick. You boys check out these addresses while I go the other way."

"Bobby, I thought you said we shouldn't split up." Dean's got a horrible feeling about this, the idea of letting Bobby go at it alone doesn't sit well with him.

"Fine, I'll take Sam with me, you keep your bodyguard." Bobby gives the group a sharkish grin. He's enjoying rubbing this in Dean's face.

"I think Bobby's got a good idea Dean." Dean looks at Sam with surprise, he's starting to suspect Sam is actually avoiding him but he's got no clue why that would be. Its at least twice now that Sam has opted to separate from Dean.

"I don't think any of us should split up that much." Ichigo doesn't like the idea of Sam and Bobby going off on their own either. Especially if there's even a slight chance this is a Hollow attack.

"Ghost Boy's got a point." Dean takes a step closer to Sam, looking up at his little brother he tries to get Sammy to understand how much he doesn't want them to split up.

Bobby knows in his guts he's likely to find the exact same scenes if he goes to check the other hunters' homes. He still has to make sure, they need more information and he tells the youngsters around him just that. "Who else is gonna look into this Dean? You really wanna risk bringing some other poor sap into this?" He's been worried perhaps his reaching out to these people for help was what had led to their deaths in the first place.

"Okay, you win damn it!" Dean bites out, he agrees with Bobby but that doesn't mean he isn't gonna voice his displeasure about the situation. He grabs the small page Bobby rips out of small notebook with a grumble. "C'mon kid, we're going to Jackson."

Dean stops in front Sam. "Just don't try anything without calling me ok. And keep an eye on Bobby, he's getting old."

"I heard you, you idjit! Old my ass." Bobby shouts at Dean as they all make their way to the vehicles.

The light chuckles from the hunters and shinigami do nothing to hide how tense they all are.

"You're saying ghosts don't behave like this here." Ichigo asked Dean as they left behind another gruesome scene. This one noticeably worse than the last.

"Not really, a poltergeist sure but those tend to be tied to places or people… A hunter wouldn't have left something like this fester on their home turf. These were surprise attacks." Dean explains as he pockets his EMF reader and pulls out his cell. "This doesn't make any freaking sense."

Instead of listening to Dean's phone call, since it's obvious he's calling Bobby or Sam, Ichigo concentrates on their surroundings. He doesn't feel anything, not even a low level Hollow and the souls had already moved on.

"We're going back to Bobby's, gonna hunker down until we figure this out. Who knows, maybe that asshat Angel is gonna show up and actually be useful." The sarcasm was thick but it doesn't hide how spooked Winchester is.

Ichigo snorts, "Yeah, that would be great. I doubt it though."

With all the driving they're doing, Ichigo is starting to get used to just sitting there watching the world pass by. He's still immensely grateful for the pit stops Dean has to make though, his ass was actually starting to go numb.

Ichigo briefly wondered how the Winchesters managed to stay shape when they spent so much time sitting in a car.

"Bathroom." Ichigo calls out as he exits the car, it feels so good to stretch out his legs he groans in relief. Nevermind staying in shape, how does Sam manage being pretzeled in there for so many hours at a time. Maybe there's a trick to it he hasn't been made aware of yet.

Dean looks up in confusion from his spot next to the gas tank. "I thought that wasn't really a real body?" He half whispers, he knows how crazy that sounds and he doesn't want to bring any attention to them.

Ichigo shrugs. "It does everything a regular body does. You saw me eat, it's gotta go somewhere."

"Urgh, gross. Just, just go already." Dean waves Ichigo off while his nose is still wrinkled in disgust.

Ichigo does his best to touch as little of the washroom he finds off the side of the gas station as he can manage. He also tries to breath in as little as possible. The lights flicker briefly and Ichigo isn't surprised this place has shoddy electrical.

A shiver races up the shinigamis back just as he turns off the tap. There's a feeling in the pit of Ichigo's stomach that tells him something isn't right. The lights flicker again and Ichigo catches someone's reflexation behind him.

He blinks. No, that's impossible. This is some kind of trick.

"Hello Kurosaki." It's the same monotone voice, the face looks more human but the eyes are still just green and bored looking. There's no mask or Hollow hole.

Ichigo wips around, he's floundering. He'd never forget this face but it doesn't make sense. "You're dead." The statement squeezes itself out of his throat.

"Yes, you killed me. Actually you annihilated me." Ulquiorra steps closer.

The shinigami growls, it a low sound, an animal warning another away. Except the Fourth Espada doesn't look like an Arrancar anymore, he looks like what Ichigo imagines Ulquiorra might've looked like when he'd been human. However long ago that was.

"You killed me first." Ichigo's always had regrets about what happened in Hueco Mundo, but he'd had little choice in the matter. "It was a war."

"You didn't kill him though." Ulquiorra's face twists, the calm Ichigo remembers the other had always maintained disappearing in an instant. "She could have saved me, she was so close but you just had to interfere."

It happens quickly, almost too quickly. The ex Espada lunges for Ichigo, rage blazing brightly in those deep green eyes. There's none of the finesse he remembers either. Ichigo barely manages to catch the other's arms, locking them together.

Ichigo's grunts while they smash each other into the tiles has an unmistakable Hollow lilt, he knows his eyes have changed colour as well.

Ulquiorra laughs mockingly as he smashed his forehead into Ichigo's face. "You're no better than we were!"

Ichigo takes the hit, he doesn't want to risk letting go of whoever the hell this is. He can't bring himself to believe that Ulquiorra would be like this, so uncontrolled. He tightens his grip, "I had no choice!" Ichigo hadn't been himself, the Hollow instincts had completely taken over and he'd removed a threat. It had been simple at the time but he'd been plagued with guilt for a long time afterwards.

"She could have saved me! You took her away from me!" Ichigo is so stunned by the accusation that his hold loosens, Ulquiorra doesn't waste the opportunity to wrench an arm free, his hand going for the shinigami's throat.

Ichigo's choking before he really realizes it, he can't get a tight enough hold on the fingers squeezing around throat, for some reason his own fingers keep slipping off.

He's pushed into a corner and by now there's nothing human about the sounds he's making, it's when he uses his hand to push Ulquiorra's now ferally twisted face away from his own that his notices his hand is covered in blood. It doesn't register though because what he sees even more clearly is the light of the cero gathering in his palm.

Ichigo doesn't think about the damage he could cause to the whole building or the amount of trouble this could rain down on them. He's going to blow this fucker away and remove the threat permanently.

The gun shot rings loudly in the trashed bathroom, just as Ichigo was about to let go and blow the place sky high, Ulquiorra disappears in a puff of smoke.

The sight of crazed green eyes are replaced by Dean's hard stare. "What the fuck was that!"

Ichigo lets himself sink to floor, the cero dying in his palm, the realization of what he'd almost done takes his breath away. He looks up at Dean, the bathroom is completely wrecked, Ichigo knows he looks likes hell just from the way Dean rushes to crouch in front him.

"You good?" The hunter asks, they both know he's asking if Ichigo can make it out of here on his own power.

Ichigo takes a deep breath, "Yeah, I fine." He takes Dean's offered hand to raise himself up. This feels like a reversal of the scene back at the motel when it was Ichigo pulling Dean off the ground.

"No you aren't but we'll deal with that later." Dean led them both to the car as quickly as possible. They needed to get back to Bobby's asap, Dean was gonna burn through as many speed limits as he could manage.

Something seriously fucked up was going on.

A/N

Yeah! New chapter, this didn't really go the way I'd planned out but I'm rather happy with it. I hope ya'll like it as well. I know I said Chad would be in this one, I promise he'll be in chapter 12. Now I know some folks might say Ichigo could take a ghost no problem, but keep in mind these aren't regular ghost and Ichigo is complete thrown off by just who it is that's gunning for him. Also I don't do OP, I just dont, otherwise this wouldn't be any fun to write. Questions, concerns, Pm me and I'll do my best to answer you queries.

In the mean time, thanks all of you so much for loving this as much as I do. Till next time :)

oh, and I've lost touch with my beta and have no patience when Im excited about finally finishing a chapter. So if something is weird or wrong, feel free to point it out. Politely please.