Disclaimer:I do not claim to own Bleach or any of it's characters. Nope. Nothing. Wait! I own the keyboard I'm writing this on! I bought it!

Warning: Character death, depression, violent murders?

A/N: Hi I'm back again! My computer's hard drive wore out and I couldn't get on for all of July! thank you everyone who favorited and commented on my other stories, you made me die several times of happiness. This fic is a request for Chick1966 and once again, I cannot begin to describe how sorry I am for how long this took. I have summer homework and I have to read three book write four essays and it's just... ugh. Anyway, ignore my ranting and I hope you like it! :3

The world always falls to pieces in a matter of seconds. It doesn't go on and on for hours or days. It is instantaneous and sudden. You could see it coming but you still can't brace yourself for that moment. But for those not looking, when the world slides away, they slide with it.

He didn't see it coming. None of them did. Ichigo was in the Soul Society, training with Renji and Urahara when his cell phone rang. He didn't notice it the first time it rang, as he was currently avoiding shots from both Renji and Urahara. It finished it's ring and almost immediately started up again. Ichigo still didn't notice but Shinji was walking past the sixth division barracks and heard the weird ringtone.

BOHAHAHAHA! rang out again and Shinji glanced around, trying to figure out where the weird laughter was coming from. Finally he spotted Ichigo's cell phone on the ground next to his substitute shinigami pass. Shinji looked up to see if he could find Ichigo just in time to see a flash of orange and black hurtling towards him.

In the next second Kisuke and Renji were standing next to where Shinji had been knocked over. "Hey Shinji. What're you doing here?" Renji asked while he tried(and failed) to hide a smirk.

"Getting hit by random flying people apparently." Kisuke smiled and helped Shinji slide out from under the person who had knocked into him. Shinji took a second glance and started, surprised. "Is that you Ichi?"

Ichigo groaned and rolled onto his back. He forced his eyes open and blinked rapidly for a few seconds, trying to clear them. "Yeah, it's me. Sorry about running into you. If you wanna blame someone, blame the stupid pineapple-head over there. He caught me off-guard." Shinji grinned at that before remembering why he had come this way in the first place.

"Oh yeah, I forgot. I was walkin' this way because I heard your phone ringing, Ichi. you have a really freaky ringtone." Ichigo looked confused for a second before rolling his eyes and forcing himself to his feet.

"I forgot. Yuzu decided to make her ringtone that weird Don Kanonji guy laughing. She still watches that show. I have no idea why." Just as Ichigo was reaching for his phone it started laughing again and everyone jumped.

Ichigo recovered quickly and picked up his phone. "Hello?"

"Ichi-nii! you have to help us! This thing came out of nowhere and Dad's not waking up and there's so much blood!"

"Woah, woah, Yuzu calm down! What's going on?" The other shinigami looked at Ichigo in concern, watching as he stiffened and gripped the phone so hard it almost shattered.

"We were having a picnic in the field, you know the one with all the wildflowers, when all of a sudden Karin and Dad jumped up and started yelling at something, I think it was a spirit 'cuz the air was all blurry and then Dad fell and started bleeding and Karin and I ran. I don't know if they know where we are but... but I'm so scared."

"All right, listen to me. Stay where you are I'll be there as soon as I can. I'm coming, I promise." Ichigo snapped his phone shut and started shunpoing towards the Senkaimon. Shinji, Kisuke and Renji exchanged confused looks before darting after him.

"Ichigo!" Kisuke called out. "What's going on?" Ichigo didn't bother to reply just started going faster, pushing himself to the edge of his limits.

They were there within moments and Ichigo stopped right in front of one of the Senkaimon guards. "I need to get to Karakura. Now!" The guard looked frightened but when he saw Kisuke and Shinji behind Ichigo he nodded and handed Ichigo a black butterfly. Ichigo didn't even thank the man, just darted through the large doors.

The three shinigami also received their own swallowtail butterflies and followed after Ichigo. When they caught up to him he tersely spat out,

"Yuzu called. She said that she Karin and Dad were attacked by something spiritual. She couldn't see what it was." Shinji was about to ask Ichigo where they were when they reached Karakura. They were high above the town and Ichigo paused only for a moment to gain his bearings before dashing off to the right, away from the town.

When Ichigo was within sight of the clearing he stopped suddenly. The three men chasing after him also ground to a halt, seeing Ichigo freeze. Then they looked down into the clearing and saw what had dramatically halted the substitute shinigami.

Isshin was lying on the edge of the clearing farthest from them, stomach torn open and throat dripping ruby rivers. Ichigo fell next to his father, reaching out a hand but stopping just short of actually touching his father. Isshin seemed frozen in time, eyes closed and mouth slightly ajar.

Renji warily approached Ichigo, afraid to try to say something. He didn't have to for in the next second, two screams rang out through the clearing and Ichigo snapped his head up. His mouth moved but no sound came out and then he was running, running faster than he ever had before.

But not fast enough. He could never be fast enough, could he?

Ichigo burst through the trees and stumbled before falling backwards, landing hard on the ground. He couldn't stop staring at the sight before him.

Yuzu and Karin were laid out on the ground in a pool of blood, hugging each other tightly, not letting go, even in death. Karin's sid was mangled and the flesh hung of her in ribbons. Yuzu was slightly more put together but the gaping hole in her chest ruined the illusion.

"What have we here? Ichigo Kurosaki, hm? Looks like you're a bit late aren't you?" An espada stood a few feet from Yuzu and Karin's bodies a cruel smile on his face. His mask covered the top half of his face and was made of intricate swirls. He wore white pants and a shirt, but they were stained red with blood. When Ichigo's eyes darted up to meet the espada's, he grinned wider, relishing Ichigo's apparent terror.

"Oh, you should've seen them run, get hopeful you were coming. Then I let them see me and watch that hope die before I killed them. The younger one was saying your name before she died." Ichigo's eyes flicked back to Yuzu's body. "So sad."

Kisuke gripped his sword, prepared to kill the espada in a heartbeat. Shinji was cussing up a storm and Renji was clenching his jaw so hard he thought he heard his teeth shattering. All three made no move because no one wanted to set Ichigo off in any way. His mental state was unstable enough as is.

"You? You killed them?" Ichigo said, voice barely above a whisper.

The espada grinned and merely said "Yes."

It was as if black fire erupted from Ichigo, covering him and burning away feeling and emotion until only white bone was left.

Kisuke and Shinji both jumped backwards but Renji just stood there gaping at Ichigo. Shinji grabbed his forearm and dragged him away from Ichigo. "Shit." Shinji muttered as he ran away from the black reiatsu encircling Ichigo.

Ichigo stood up, swaying slightly. The espada looked frightened backing up one step, then another. Ichigo lifted his head and stared straight at the cowering espada with pitiless yellow eyes, surrounded by black. He slowly uncurled his clenched hands, letting the sharp claws show before Ichigo vanished.

The espada put a hand on his sword hilt, sitting on his blood-stained hip while frantically glancing around. Frantically, he cried out, trying to locate Ichigo.

"Where'd you go? Show yourse-" The espada's throat was gone, leaving only a bloody mess. He fell to the ground, frantically clutching at his throat when he saw a white, clawed foot appear next to his head. The espada struggled to roll onto his back and when he did he was met with the sight of a hollowfied Ichigo standing over him, blood dripping from his claws and splattered over the thick black lines on his chest. While the espada watched Ichigo charged a cero between his horns and whispered unintelligibly before firing.

The shinigami felt the wind rush over them and when the red light faded, a small portion of the woods were obliterated and there was no trace left of the espada. Or Ichigo.

"Whe-?" Shinji started shouting before he was knocked to the ground by a clawed hand. Kisuke and Renji drew their swords and faced Ichigo, who was towering over them, blood dripping off his hands.

Renji charged Ichigo and slashed at him with Zabimaru which was easily swatted aside. When Renji came back for an upwards slash, Ichigo grabbed his sword and then punched Renji hard in the chest sending him flying. He hit a tree and slid down to lay at the base, clutching his chest and trying to stand, failing horribly.

While Ichigo stared impassively down at Renji Kisuke appeared behind him and readied his sword to slice off part of Ichigo's mask. Shinji saw what Kisuke was about to do and distracted Ichigo by attacking him from the side.

"Aww come on Ichi. Don't you wanna play with me?" Ichigo opened his jaws and screeched at Shinji, the sound piercing into all three shinigami and making them shiver. Luckily Kisuke moved while Ichigow as still fighting off Shinji and he managed to crack Ichigo's mask, splintering it right next to one of his horns, narrowly missing his head.

The mask fell away from Ichigo's face, and he crumbled with it, landing on his side. In a rush of wind, the pieces on the mask disappeared into the hole in Ichigo's chest, taking the claws and red tufts of fur with it.

Once the wind died down, all that was left was Ichigo, lying in a crumpled heap on the ground. Renji finally managed to drag himself over to Kisuke and Shinji and joined them in staring down at Ichigo, wondering how they would be able to fix somebody so badly broken.

The silence was killing them all. Every shinigami who came to the room that Ichigo was resting in, died a bit seeing the lifeless doll that was formerly the hotheaded substitute shinigami. Ichigo had been unconscious for 6 days before waking up and staring at nothing, responding to nothing and no one. Soon, no one came by, afraid to see the empty eyes once so full of light.

The only ones who still frequently visited were Shinji, Kisuke, Rukia and Renji. Eventually though, even the latter two stopped coming because Rukia was sent to the World of the Living for a long-term mission and Renji was seriously injured fighting off menos that had invaded the soul society so it was really just Shinji and Kisuke.

At that moment the two were walking over to Ichigo's room, quietly talking about Rukia's mission to the World of the Living and how she had to fight off several hollows that randomly appeared the other day. The town Rukia was stationed in was a small town in northern Japan, not known for it's spiritual activity.

"Seriously, why would eight hollows randomly appear there at once? According to Rukia there wasn't any activity in the last week and then suddenly they show up."

"It is unusual." Kisuke frowned in concentration as he slid open Ichigo's door. "Perhaps-" He stopped in the middle of his thought, frozen in place. Shinji also stood next to them, eyes wide with shock.

Ichigo's bed was empty, blankets rumpled and tossed to the side. Both men put their hands on their zanpakuto, ready for whatever would come. Well, not whatever would come.

Shinji clearly wasn't expecting the fist to connect with his temple and stumbled, swinging out his arm to catch onto something. Kisuke grabbed his arm and helped him up before turning to look at their opponent and stopping.

Ichigo stood in the doorway, hair disheveled and breathing hard. He locked eyes with Shinji for a second before turning and dashing out the door, leaving the stunned shinigami in his wake. Kisuke chased after Ichigo first Shinji following soon after.

Kisuke found Ichigo on the outskirts of the Soul Society, sitting at the base of a large tree. All the other trees surrounding him had been sliced to pieces. Warily, Kisuke took a few steps towards Ichigo and only stopped when he heard him speak. It was mumbled too quietly for him to hear so Kisuke took another step forward.

"Couldn't. Couldn't. Couldn't" Over and over like a mantra, Ichigo repeated that word. As if he didn't know any others

Kisuke hesitated before gently saying, "Couldn't what?"

"Couldn't protect." Ichigo looked up at Kisuke with eyes drowning in guilt. Kisuke's heart splintered in his chest.

"Couldn't protect them. S'posed to. Couldn't." Kisuke felt his eyes burn with unshed tears for the broken child in front of him. But it was the next word, the question that must have been running through Ichigo's head since he saw his family that truly crushed Kisuke.

"Why?"

Kisuke closed his eyes for a moment and bowed his head in sorrow, wishing he could take Ichigo's pain away.

"It wasn't your fault." Ichigo looked at Kisuke with desolate eyes, not believing. "What could you have done? You were training at the time so that you could protect them. Once you heard what was going on, you came as fast as you could. There was nothing you could have done."

"He's right, Ichi." Shinji appeared next to Kisuke, expression drawn and unusually serious. "You can't save everyone, and you damn well tried."

Ichigo just shook his head and wrapped his arms around his legs pulling them tighter to himself. Watching Ichigo, so defeated and empty made something in Kisuke snap, unfurling fury at the espada who would ever do such a thing. It made him pull out his last card, the one he didn't want to use.

"Yuzu was always such a happy little girl, do you really think she would want to see you so depressed?" Ichigo flinched. "Well, at least I know you can hear me. I guess the great hero can do something besides sit and mope all day."

Shinji looked at Kisuke like he was insane, which at this point, he was a little bit. But there was no stopping now.

"Maybe you're right, maybe it is your fault that they're dead now. You should have been there, should have broken your neck trying to get to them. But now your family is dead and it is all. Your. Fault."

Ichigo was up faster than either man could register and had his hands wrapped around Kisuke's neck and pinned him to the ground.

"Take it back!" The shout startled Shinji, as he was not used to hearing Ichigo speak, much less shout recently.

Ichigo leaned in close to Kisuke and hissed, "Take. It. Back." accentuating each word by slamming Kisuke's head into the dirt.

"Why-why should I? It's true isn't it? That it's your fault?" Ichigo squeezed Kisuke's neck harder making him gag and scrabble at the ground, trying to get air into his lungs.

"No!" Ichigo let go and stood over Kisuke, glaring at him as he coughed. "It wasn't! I cou- couldn't have gotten there. T-there was n-no way!" Shinji grinned for a second before setting his hand on Ichigo's shoulder.

"See? Now, if it's not your fault then what reason do you have to sit around all day, instead of doing something better?"

Ichigo stopped dead, freezing for a few second before tentatively asking, "Like what? What could I do?"

"You could save other people. Make sure no one feels the way you do again." Kisuke got to his feet while keeping his eyes locked with Ichigo's. He made sure Ichigo was really looking at him before he gently said,

"You could protect your friends. They're your family now right?" Ichigo looked surprised, as if that thought had never occurred to him. Then he crumpled and landed hard on the ground.

Shinji tried to catch him and missed, landing on his knees next to Ichigo. He turned Ichigo's head toward him, worried he fainted but when he saw Ichigo's eyes open and staring at him Shinji was just confused.

Until Ichigo started crying.

It was just one tear at first then another swiftly followed. Shinji just stared at Ichigo open mouthed. He had never seen ichigo cry before and the sight of it was both painful and reassuring. Ichigo hadn't cried once since his family had been killed and it was slightly unnerving.

But now the tears flowed freely and Ichigo was no longer a hero or a broken puppet. Instead he was a boy who was finally grieving for his family. Ichigo rubbed a hand over his eyes but the tears just kept coming.

The shinigami sat with Ichigo until he fell asleep and both knew that the tears were the first piece of Ichigo's heart that he stitched back together.

And they would be there to help him find the other pieces.

A/N:I have a question for everyone and anyone who feels like answering!

When people comment should you PM them personally to thank them? I read all my comments but don't want to be a stalker... ^-^;

I went through a few versions of this before I decided on this one. I think I like it best. Let me know how you feel!