The princess was sleeping when they returned.

An extremely sappy sentiment or thought, to be sure, but Ichigo would mentally kick himself and groan in embarrassment at the recollection later that night after they all got home safely. At this point in time, he hesitated before drawing any nearer to the still figure, trying to unravel his hopelessly tangled emotions as visions and ideas came crowding into his mind all at once.

Was this what Orihime felt like whenever she saw him wounded after a battle was finished? Seeing his blood caking against his clothes, skin and hair and then reliving the moments when the injuries were inflicted? While he did not feel his eyes sting with tears at the sight of her lying there with the blood nearly completely dry against her scalp and hair, Ichigo wondered if maybe that was because she really had...no, he saw the slight rising and falling of her chest. Orihime was still alive and she would recover.

Even with their combined strength and the sacrifices of so many, Yhwach had only barely been defeated. And his threat still hung heavy in Ichigo's memory. Happiness was not an emotion Ichigo was accustomed to, at least, not recently. So why was the idea of it being used to destroy him so devastating? He had his ability to protect everyone back, so what more was there?

Looking down at the girl only a few months younger than himself and who had been through just as many horrific events, Ichigo knew the real answer down deep in his heart. Having the strength to protect others is one thing, but having someone you are willing to do anything to protect...was both a blessing and a curse. He had experienced all the cursed effects, but none of the blessings.

No, that wasn't strictly true, Ichigo thought to himself. His mother's love and smile during the first nine years of his life had been a bright, warm part of his memories that he had never been able to fully suppress. It had taken him so much longer to perfect his scowl to keep people away after her death than to learn how to smile in her presence. Those times when Orihime had been crying or smiling in relief or excitement over seeing him, over time, had slowly touched on that part of him that had only ever been triggered by his mother's smile.

Turning his attention from Orihime's face to her hairpins and then to her hands, Ichigo recalled that this actually wasn't the first time he had approached her after a battle and she had been wounded. He had promised to protect her not long after the first time he had failed her, but Ichigo realized that as long as she continued to fight alongside him, Orihime would never be truly safe. Her life would always be in peril. She may live through whatever battles they fought together, but next time she might receive even more grievous wounds that would-

The sharp slap across his cheek wasn't necessarily painful, but was powerful enough to snap Ichigo out of his increasingly dark thoughts. Eyes wide with shock, he turned his head in the opposite direction from where the slap had sent it and found his gaze arrested by Rukia's equally wide and, yet in her case, absolutely infuriated glare.

Jabbing her finger up until it was mere inches from Ichigo's nose, Rukia said in a grated whisper, "I know that look on your face all too well, Ichigo Kurosaki."

Feeling his own eyebrows draw together almost of themselves, Ichigo replied in a tone to match his expression, "How am I supposed to react, huh? Orihime was hurt because I-"

True to form, Renji slapped Ichigo's other cheek to stop his misguided anger, before using a calmer, but no less firm tone than Rukia's, as he said, "You both walked into that fight with Yhwach knowing there was a real possibility that he would emerge victorious. He did, but only for a short time."

Whipping his head around to glare at Renji, Ichigo snapped, "And have you forgotten what he said about coming and finding us in the future? Destroying us when we are happiest? Just because we've defeated Yhwach here and now, doesn't mean that he hasn't already gone into our futures and killed us there."

"So what?" said Renji with an annoyed frown, "You're going to allow your fear of Yhwach's words to control your future?"

Gritting his teeth, Ichigo retorted, "I can't protect Orihime when she's happiest if Yhwach kills me first. I've failed her so many times already, I can't...I can't let Yhwach win like that again. Not by hurting her."

For a time, both of them simply looked at Ichigo before finally Rukia said flatly, "Sounds to me like Yhwach has already won. Over both of you."

Frowning, Ichigo said in a slightly confused tone, "No, Aizen, Renji and I just defeated him now, but what I don't know is-"

Holding up a hand to stop him, Rukia fixed Ichigo with a hard glare as she said, "Has it ever occurred to you that maybe Yhwach said those things to get inside your head? To trigger something inside you and the rest of us so that he might be able to actually have a chance of defeating us in the future?"

Even Renji seemed a little bit lost at her words as he asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Keeping her attention on Ichigo, Rukia went on, saying, "Yhwach and the other Sternritter knew that our greatest strengths and weaknesses came from those we hold dear. By saying that he would destroy us when we were happiest, Yhwach might have actually been trying to keep us becoming truly happy because that is when we would be at our strongest against him."

Laying a more gentle hand on Ichigo's arm, Rukia said, "You may have Orihime's best interests at heart, but cutting yourself off from her may actually be the key to Yhwach defeating you in the future because then you will be fighting him completely alone."

Stepping around to where Renji was standing, Rukia took one of his hands in hers as she said, "I don't care if Yhwach does actually kill me at some point in the future. For now, I will enjoy the time that I have and become as strong as I can so that I'm ready for him when he does come."

Looking at their interlocked hands, Ichigo turned his attention back to Orihime. She was still sleeping, but now that Ichigo was paying a bit more attention, he saw that her expression wasn't peaceful. At first he wondered if her pain hadn't really subsided and she was merely wincing, but then a thought crossed his mind that Orihime's expression was concerned, almost apprehensive. Crazy as it seemed, Ichigo knew he was right. Orihime's keen sense of intuition was picking up on something that was keeping her from resting peacefully. Once that thought had passed on through, another quickly came to take it's place: he was the cause.

In less time than it takes to inhale, Ichigo's brain finally came to terms with things he had always known but never fully understood until now. Orihime was very sensitive when it came to him and his emotions. Unconsciously, she had felt his emotions turning darker as he had contemplated cutting himself off from her in an attempt to keep her safe. He affected her the same way she did him. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks that really and truly knocked the air out of his lungs for a few seconds.

When he was finally able to breathe again, Ichigo forced himself to ignore the obvious emotions welling up inside him a few moments longer and he asked almost desperately, "But do I deserve her? After all I've done..."

"No."

The answer took Ichigo completely by surprise and he gaped at Renji as he tried to process what had just hit him.

Shaking his head, Renji clarified his statement by saying firmly, "You're asking the wrong question, Ichigo. It has nothing to do with whether or not you deserve Orihime's love. There's nothing we can do to earn love, we accept it when it's offered to us and try never to forget just what a precious gift we've been given."

Clearing her throat partially to get their attention and partially to cover her embarrassment at Renji's words, Rukia added, "It doesn't hurt when you also return the person's love with your own. If you truly love Orihime, you will consider her happiness before your own."

Swallowing hard, Ichigo nodded absentmindedly as he turned and started walking over to where Orihime was lying. Carefully kneeling down near her head, Ichigo simply looked at her a little longer, trying to come to terms with all the thoughts and emotions spiraling throughout his entire being. Realizing that Orihime's expression was not going to change until he did something to change it, Ichigo hesitated once more before he bent his larger frame over hers.

It wasn't until his lips met hers that Ichigo allowed his eyelids to slowly drift shut. The idea of 'true love's kiss' and the power it held may have potentially floated around in Ichigo's subconscious, but there was one thing Ichigo knew for sure as he kissed Orihime: there was no turning back now.

Feeling a slight shift underneath his lips, Ichigo realized with a jolt that he was kissing Orihime without her consent. Pulling away as if he had been burned, Ichigo felt a weight settle in his stomach when he opened his eyes and met Orihime's gray, surprised eyes.

"Ichigo? What-"

Warmth rising up from his heart, to his neck and then to his cheeks, Ichigo said in a horrified whisper, "I'm so sorry, Orihime. I wasn't thinking. I don't know what possibly possessed me to..."

Orihime tried to prop herself up to look at him from the same eye-level, but her arms gave out on her. Almost as if they weren't being controlled by his own brain, Ichigo's arms swooping beneath Orihime's back and slowly lifted her until she was sitting up. However, even then, he kept one arm around her shoulders to help her remain upright.

While Ichigo may have been at a loss for words and Orihime's face was just as flushed as his, nevertheless, Orihime summoned up the courage to ask barely above a whisper, "Ichigo...what does this mean?"

For a moment, Ichigo wondered how in the world he was going to tell Orihime what was in his heart. Then he looked into her eyes and saw something in their depths that took his breath away once again. It was so faint he almost missed it, but Ichigo was sure that he saw hope in Orihime's eyes. Hope that she wasn't dreaming about what he felt for her.

Then the words came easily. It wasn't a long speech, but it was from his heart. And that was enough for her. When she reached up to gently grasp Ichigo's face and pull him towards her for another kiss, he allowed it without a second thought.

Again, somewhere in the far recesses of Ichigo's mind, the concept of 'true love's kiss' being used to break the hold of a curse echoed faintly.

Author's Note:

What can I say? I a huge romantic sap. Also, I've been binge-watching 'Once Upon A Time' so the idea of 'true love's kiss' has been bombarding me as well as 'the product of true love'. Anyone care to take a guess as to who that may refer to in this scenario?