Chapter 11 - In the Name of God

Ukitake sat slumped against the wall of his cell, hands idle in his lap as he felt the ache pulsing throughout his body. At the moment it was bareable, a rememberance of the torture he'd endured a couple of hours before. The strange thing was that the boy, his capture, had come to sit across from the cell. It had been the same way yesterday and the day before. Ichigo had entered, sat against the wall across from Ukitake, and sat there in silence for an hour or so before leaving. He never said anything, even when Ukitake had attempted to make him speak. Ukitake had yelled, screeched at him, and he had tried to reason with him too. They just wound up staring at each other, but even when there was eye contact it lacked any sort of connection.

"I can't completely blame you," He attempted this time. "I understand, in a way, why you're here."

Of course, there was no response to this.

"After you fought so hard against Aizen, against our enemy... You were willing to risk your life to defeat him, because he was the bad guy and the world needed to be saved from him." Ukitake paused a moment to take a deep breath. "Then we came after you, on your home front too. We became the bad guys. You sort of expected that the Gotei 13 wouldn't be accepting of your exsistence, if I remember correctly... but I expect that you hoped otherwise after it seemed like you had defeated Aizen. But it was instead decided it was only safe if you were dead too. I know that we didn't leave you with many options. So I can't really blame you for winding up here."

Still silence.

"I did try to fight for you, I do want you to know that, so did Unohana when I told her. I know I didn't accomplish anything, I couldn't change the order because I couldn't prove that you weren't dangerous."

Ichigo rose to his feet this time, he approached the bars of the cell. The two stared at each other, this time there seemed to be a momentary connection, fading ripplets of some intense emotion.

"Tell him where it is." Ichigo stated, and then with that he left.

Ukitake stared after the echoing footsteps, wondering what the purpose of it all was.

xXxXXxXXxXx

It was Saturday, Tatsuki and Orihime had ventured out to the mall for some window shopping and to check out this ice cream parlor Orihime wanted to go to because she'd heard they offered strange flavors like Sweet Corn and Octopus. They had ventured through most of the stores and were now walking through the food court with their ice cream cones. Tatsuki had stuck with the fairly common flavor of pepprmint candy, Orihime had taken a leap of faith (as she had called it) and ordered basil flavored ice cream. It seemed prefectly suited to her tastes.

Tatsuki spotted the Kurosaki twins across the way, a group of friends with them all seemed to be crowded around some photo. She found herself drawn towards them, her mind beginning to drown out Orihime's nonsensical rant.

"He looks tough," One of their friends commented.

A boyfriend? Tatsuki wondered ammusedly, she decided to approach the group. "Got yourself a boyfriend, Yuzu-chan?"

Yuzu's eyes darted up to meet hers, she didn't seem embarassed, but suddenly very uneasy. Yuzu shook her head slowly as she reluctantly relinquished the picture to Tatsuki, she knew it wasn't going to be easy for her to see. Tasuki took the photo, confused by the girl's reaction, until she saw what it was a photo of.

"Ichigo..." She breathed. "Has he... is he back?"

"He came to visit a couple nights ago," Yuzu responded. They had managed to talk Ichigo into taking a picture with everyone before he left, and Yuzu had clung onto it every since her father had printed her a copy the following day.

"I don't get why he'd bother taking a plane all the way from America only to stop by for a few hours." One of Yuzu's friends was saying, but Tatsuki's mind was too far away to hear her. She couldn't believe she was staring at an image of him, after so long. He had left, and he had taken the strange world of his with him. Even Orihime claimed that she didn't see any monsters or such things, and Tatsuki had felt that somehow he was still keeping his promise to protect her from that.

"He was passing through, on his way to some where else." Karin quickly inserted, inwardly grumbling about why her twin sister felt it necessary to bring this photo along.

"May I?" Orihime requested. Without a word, Tatsuki handed it over. Orihime's face alit red when she saw it. She had liked him before, but now he was tall, handsome, and muscular. It made her blush madly, she quickly passed the picture back, holding in the urge to squeal. "He's really grown up, hasn't he?"

"I'm sure we have too. I mean, your boobs have doubled in size every year since we met." Tatsuki joked, but it was to put up a front. Seeing him had overwhelmed her with a lot of emotions she didn't really know how to deal with. Part of her was screaming curses at him for not coming to see her too, and another part of her seemed to be thanking the high heavens she hadn't had to face him. It wasn't that she was angry with him, but more like she knew she would've simply broken down, like how she felt now. Would she scream at him? Would she punch him? Would she cry? Would she hug him tightly, so tightly, and attempt to comfort him? Would he be the same as how she remembered? Would he be too different in his personality - unrecognizeable?

Tatsuki gave the picture back to Yuzu.

"Are you alright, Tatsuki?" Yuzu squeaked.

Tatsuki nodded emptily, her forgotten icecream began dripping down her hand. "Seeing him... it's just hard..."

One of their friends scoffed. "I know, right? He sure is lucky - just getting to travel around where he wants like that. You guys must be jealous."

"Shut up!" Karin shouted before she could stop herself. Her friends shot her strange, disapproving looks. "Just shut up!"

"What's the big deal?" Another friend asked.

"Why did you even bring this?" Karin demanded, rounding on Yuzu. Her annoyance was too overwhelming to bite her tongue any longer. She was just able to stop herself from refering to the picture as being stupid.

"I wanted to show everyone Ichi-nii." Yuzu pouted at her twin, who was clearly upset by it. "What's wrong with that?"

Karin opened her mouth but no words came out. How could she possibly explain it, how it was killing her to watch everyone gawk at him. She couldn't stand listening to everyone talk about him as though he was just fine. They didn't understand, they didn't understand at all, and their words felt so harsh. She couldn't express it, so instead she ran before she just took her anger out on everyone. She burst out the side doors of the mall and collapsed against the side of the building, hands pressed to her eyes as she willed herself not to cry.

She felt so sorry for him, her big brother who fought to save the world. The same world that was so awful to him. He deserved so much more than he got, he was always so kind, so loving, so brave.

His birthday presents, that he never got to open, were tucked away at the top of his closet. She knew, because she had seen them there. To her it had remained a representation of him, affirmation that he had exsisted, affirmation that this world was cruel. When she had first been learning to make her own bed, sometimes she would have to go into his room to get new sheets from the closet, and she could see a hint of the wrapping paper poking from the highest shelf, and she would cry.

She hated her parents for it, but more than that - she hated herself. She couldn't do anything for him. So weak. So useless. Even as she admired him so much, loved him so much. There was nothing she could do.

The door swung with a creak, and latched back shut with a heavy shudder.

Karin burrowed her palms more deeply into her eyes as she willed the tears away.

"Karin-chan?" It was Tatsuki.

"Leave me alone," The younger girl pleaded.

"You know what, I get it," Tatsuki claimed, her tone gentle. She lowered herself down against the wall so they were sitting next to each other. "It's not easy to hear people talking about him when they don't know the truth of it."

"I hate it! I hate it! It's not fair!" Karin screeched, kicking her feet angrily at the concrete. "It's not fair that he has to have all this responsibility, and yet he's not allowed to come home."

"It isn't fair," Tatsuki agreed.

"It's awful, he hugged me, and I could tell it was like he wasn't used to hugging people, it was awkward. It's so sad, it makes me feel so sad for him." Tears managed to escape past her palms. "And I don't understand, not really. It feels so cruel that he has to stay away. My parents have tried to explain it, but it just makes me feel like they're such awful people. I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't. I know they can't do anything about it, but I don't understand, not really."

"Well, Karin-chan, we haven't really talked about your brother before. We were best friends since he was five. I might not understand everything either, but maybe I'll have some answers for you." Tatsuki offered.

"I can see ghosts," She admitted, breathing deep to calm herself. "I know he could see them too."

"Yes, and there were the monsters, hollows he called them."

"Hollows," Karin repeated. She finally allowed her hands to fall into her lap, revealing her red, sorrowful eyes. "I haven't seen any monsters. I sort of remember that Ichigo could do this thing where it was like he was a ghost. I remember seeing his body laying there before and knowing that he wasn't actually there."

"That's how it was when he had to fight. The people and the monsters he fought were ghosts, and I guess it was like he had to be a ghost to fight them too. A shinigami, that's right... I almost forgot - that's what your brother is, what makes him so strange and so special. He said he used to just be a human that could see, but he became a shinigami. He never told me what happened to change him."

"A Death God?" Karin asked, she looked up at Tatsuki imploringly. If she had realized that Tatsuki knew more about her brother than her parents did (or were willing to discus) she would've started asking questions a long time ago. "Do you know what that means? Did he tell you?"

Tatsuki figured that so few people in this world cared about him, those who did deserved to know at least as much as she did. "He was a little vague, he said it meant he had responsibilities to those who'd passed and the power to uphold those responsibilities."

"Did you ever see him use his powers? What sort of power did he have?"

"I didn't really ever see him, because I can't see him when he's out of his body. I saw him leave his body once, it was like a really strong gust of wind came off of him, threw me back it was so strong. Then his body just fell forward." Tatsuki said, trying hard to remember. "There was this one time, though, I walked into the room when he was getting ready to use some sort of power. His eyes were glowing this intense blue color, I remember it was like the air around him began turning blue as well."

"What else, please, what else do you know about him? I was just little and I don't remember him so well. Anything you know, please tell me." Karin requested. At home, talking about Ichigo always made her mother cry, even when it was insisted that it was okay to talk about him. Even when she dared to, how often did she find answers?

"Growing up, your brother was always bullied because of his hair and his general strangeness. It was something he struggled with his whole life. People just didn't get him, and they hated him for it. But you know, sometimes it shocked me just how happy he was. Even after he started seeing the hollows. He said that just seeing you guys washed everything away. He had just a great, big smile."

"I remember," Karin hugged her knees to her chest.

"At some point, I don't remember exactly when it started... I think it was probably those last couple of years before he left... he had this black notebook that he carried everywhere with him. He'd keep it tucked under his shirt. Or sometimes I'd find him sitting there, just hugging it to his chest. He never explained its significance to me, or let me see what was written in there, but it was clearly very important to him."

"Really?" Karin asked. She felt a spark of hope, perhaps it would hold answers for her.

"He tended to be quite adament about keeping people in the dark. I'm sure there was a lot of stuff he had to deal with that he didn't tell anyone about. It's just sort of always been that way. He hated having people worry about him when he came home. I think he left because things hit too close to home. After your Mom got hurt - "

"Mama got hurt, when those ninjas came?"

"Yeah. I guess she tried to protect him or something. No offense, but Ichigo loved her, really really loved her. I'm sure he was horrifired, probably still beats himself up over it. For him, something like that was too much. I believe, ultimately, that's why he left."

Karin looked up at the sky, the brightness stinging at her eyes. So it wasn't that her brother left because her parents wouldn't do anything to protect him. They had tried. He left because they had tried, and in doing so got hurt.

xXxXXxXXxXXxXx

Rukia sat with a map of the Seireitei stretched out on the table before her, it was something of lunch break right now, although she wasn't that hungry. One at a time she marked off the sections which had already dealt with an attack. Now that the Thirteenth Division had been hit, only the Tenth Division and the Fifth Division had yet to be attacked. The Ghost... it... he... Ichigo only appears where there aren't any cameras. Rukia reminded herself, she felt her hand shake, but she focused herself into a calm. She was going to have to be level-headed if she was going to get him back.

She pulled out a map she had managed to get from the Vice-Captain's office, it was a second map of the Seireitei, but this one showed the current level of camera coverage in each area. With this information she was able to vastly reduce possible locations for the next attack. Surely, there were already detailed plans laid out as to patrolling these areas. But it wasn't about there even being someone else there, if she were the only one when he made his appearance, she had faith that she could stop him.

It wasn't like she was happy about all of this or anything, but it seemed to have given her a new sense of purpose.

"Alright," She breathed, looking at the small blobs which defined her areas. In one night she could probably go through all the blobs in one Division. It was a toss up as to which one would be hit next, but she decided she'd have the best chance of finding him if she switched up each night. Tonight she would go to the 10th Division, tomorrow the 5th, then back to the 10th, and so on.

With a decent plan now formulated, she rolled up each of the maps and tucked them into the top of her shihakushou until she was able to go back to the barracks. Ichigo, it's going to be alright, she mentally reassured him. I'm going to pull you back from this, I'm going to stop you. You're going to be alright...

xXxXXxXXxXXxXx

"Oh, stop punishing yourself, Ou-chan! It's pathetic." The hollow grumbled.

Ichigo was gnawing on a piece of bread. "With Ukitake, you mean."

"Yes, with Ukitake."

"He was really kind and helpful to me, back when we met." Ichigo set the bread down on his plate and brushed the crumbs off the maps he was studying. He was being sent on another terrorizing mission in the Seireitei. It had been a couple of days since he hit the 13th Division, and apparently it was time to start going at it again. Typically he would be given a mark, but if there was no one in that area he was let off for the night. But now that there were only choice places without cameras left, and two Divisions they hadn't hit, he had five locations to check before his work was done. He had to memorize the perimeter of each mark, so he didn't stray into the camera zones.

"Allowing him to yell at you doesn't make the betrayal feel any better."

"I feel he deserves a chance to at least speak his mind, it's likely that he will die in this place."

There was a light tapping on the door as it swung open, he knew by the sound that it was Aizen. "Are you in here talking to yourself again?"

The boy's eyes shimmered yellow as he turned to look at the man. "What does it matter to you?"

"I suppose it really doesn't." He smiled amussedly.

"Anyhow, I'm still eating." Ichigo supplied, snatching the bread back up. "You know I don't like to be bothered."

"Yes, but it's not like you're going to do anything about it if I don't want to wait." The threat was well vieled, but still there.

"I suppose not, but I reserve my right to be grumpy anyhow."

"Fair enough. Now how are you doing with the plans?" Aizen asked, daring to approach his small table.

"Nearly done. I can be ready in half and hour."

"Good," For a moment he placed his hand on Ichigo's shoulder, a moment which sent shivers through Ichigo's body. But his exterior remained seamless.

"I'll be down as soon as I'm ready."

Aizen wandered back over to the door. "I'll let you finish your meal in peace then."

xXxXXxXXxXXxXx

Karin rifled through the desk drawer. She wasn't seeing it anywhere, but she was double checking everywhere because she didn't want to open the closet door (the one place she hadn't looked yet). She really didn't like the closet, but she was going to have to try in there if she didn't see it soon.

"Karin, dear, what are you doing?" Masaki asked from the doorway.

"I'm looking for this notebook Ichi-nii used to carry around everywhere... I thought it might be in here." Karin replied.

Masaki couldn't conceal the surprise on her face. "Why are you looking for something like that?"

"I don't really know. I guess, I just felt like I might be able to learn something new about him."

Yes, she would learn something new, not things that Masaki felt would be beneficial for her to know. "Well, you need to stop going through your brother's things, he wouldn't appreciatte it. Besides, that notebook you're looking for is something he would've taken with him."

"Alright," Karin replied. She wanted to say, 'Why would it bother him, it's not really like this stuff is his anymore'. But that would be too harsh, too rude. Their mother acted like he was just going to decide to come home someday. Did she not notice, when he was here, the way Ichigo's eyes would glaze over whenever coming home was mentioned? When could he feel alright about coming home? Maybe not until all the hollows and the bad guys were taken care of... but was that even possible? No, no... Ichigo wasn't coming home, this stuff wasn't his anymore. It was just junk that had his name tacked on to it, which seemed to make it impossible for their parents to even touch.

xXxXXxXXxXXxXx

Rukia ran along the path, hood pulled tightly over her head to conceal her identity from the cameras. She had managed to sneak out of the barracks unseen and was now on route to the 10th Division. Her heart raced, the situation felt more dire since she had learned that her Captain was missing. If it had been Ichigo, she prayed in that demonic form he would somehow still have kept Ukitake alive. Perhaps she could rescue both of them.

"Ichigo," She whispered, prayed, as her feet pounded across the stone. Even for being nighttime, it was very quiet. Usually there would be gaurds, patrolling squadrons. There still were some on the main roads, which she dodged around. But most of the shinigami were to stay in at night for their own safety. But then that meant there would be seated officers patrolling the small roads, looking for a chance to kill the monster that had been terrorizing the Soul Society.

How awful for him, if... when she was able to bring him back to being himself again he would be absolutely horrified with what he'd done.

It could completely break him, She thought. If he wasn't broken already, which he very well might be if he had fallen into that hollow. Would she tell him what he'd done, if he didn't remember? Would she be able to put him back together? Then what was she supposed to do with him? Of course she would do everything she could to not let the Gotei 13 know it had been him, but even so they'd already been after him. Where was he supposed to go? Was there really any place of refuge she could offer him?

Rukia pushed the worried thoughts away as she crossed the 10th Division's border, asserting to herself that she would just have to take things as they came, and everything would work out somehow. She would make sure of it.

xXxXXxXXxXXxXx

Ichigo stepped out into the cold night air, his clawed feet scratching into the stone tiles. He inhaled deeply, feeling his ribcage expand to it fullest potential. He liked the air here, so full of reishi.

But he had a job to do, a deplorable job. So he made his way about the maze like paths, looking for some sign of life. He stopped along the mental borders he had set up from studying the maps, which told him there would be cameras around the corner. After he'd searched all through this patch of back streets and found noone, he slid his hand through the air and pulled open the Garganta.

The air of the room felt compairably stuffy.

"The streets there are all empty," Ichigo reported.

"Opening to second mark," One of Aizen's servant arrancars replied, and got to work opening another Garganta.

Ichigo glanced over to where Aizen was watching quietly, Ulquiorra standing even more expressionless beside him. Without any exchange of words, he stepped through the black, gapping opening, back into the wonderous night air of the Soul Society.

He could hear muffled voices this time, and followed them around the next corner. His hand fingered Zangetsu's handle before drawing it forward. He took a couple more deep breaths, even his breath seemed to reverberate with the mask on. Then he turned the second corner.

There was a group of four shinigami there, sitting around a small latern, a card game laid out before them and a bottle of sake being passed around. They had probably been assigned to patrol one of the main roads, and decided to sneak off and have some fun instead. It was too bad, surely they had been warned against something so stupid.

Four, there's four of them, Ichigo counted from the dark. He took another deep breath, he tried to keep himself as calm as possible, because in this form if he started to get worked up his mind would start trying to snap into that ruthlessly violent mode where the killing actually seemed enjoyable, necessary. Ready, he approached them.

The shinigami were roaring with laughter at some stupid joke, then one's eyes caught on Ichigo. His jaw dropped in a frozen terror.

"Th-the... l-l-look!" He finally managed, and the others turned as well. But by then, it was too late, in the moment the closest was already dispatched and casted to the side. The shinigami scrambled to their feet, grabbing for the zanpakutous. The second was down before they had their swords drawn.

"S-stay back! Monster!" One cried, pointing his shaking sword at Ichigo's chest.

Ichigo reached out and broke the blade off with his clawed hand. Then in the next second, that man was on the ground as well, bleeding out.

He could hear approaching foot steps. He plunged Zangetsu's blade into the final shinigami, and yanked out the blade as the new arrival came into view down the street. In the darkness the character was indistinguishable.

The familiar scent of irises seemed to waft at him, and his heart almost stopped - Rukia.

Ichigo quickly smashed the lantern with his foot, hoping he'd reacted quickly enough that she had not been able to define him, and then he turned and ran. His heart thumped in his ears as he twisted through the patch of back streets. He flung himself around the corner and pressed his back to the wall there, he couldn't go any further without getting in the range of a set of cameras. He tried to hold his breath so he could hear her footsteps, praying that he had managed to lose her.

"Ichigo?" He could hear her ask as her foot steps slowed to a stop.

Ichigo clenched his eyes shut. She already knew it was him. These were not ideal circumstances for their reunion, he had hoped they would see each other once Aizen was dead, once this was all over.

"Ichigo... please... it's me." She called.

"Be easy for me, this time." He requested in a whisper as he tried to seperate himself from the hollow power. His claws burrowed into the wall behind him, but the transition to normalcy seemed smoother than it had been the last few times. Perhaps his desperation helped.

As he regained his humanoid stature, he left the wall and stepped out infront of her. "You found me."

Those large, purple eyes widened with surprise. She had thought she'd lost him.

"Ichigo!" She collided into him with such force that he toppled backwards onto his buttocks.

Arms wrapped around him, touching him, she could feel the danger pulsating in his reiatsu, her mind snapped back into a place where she could think clearly. She slapped him hard across the face and scurried back onto the tile. He seemed less surprised by this gesture, than he had been by the hug.

"I thought that you'd lost yourself, but... but it's you!" She screeched. "You're doing this!"

"It was me." He nodded with a sad sort of smile, he could see the horror on her face. "Is that disappointing for you?"

"You're killing... killing so many." She gapped at him. It hurts... Rukia blinked, her hand unconsciously gripped at the front of her shihakushou.

He pushed himself upright and watched her struggle with the sight of him. It was a bitter reunion, she had missed him so terribly but now she didn't feel like she could face him anymore.

"What is the purpose of this?!" She screamed. "Why are you doing this?!"

"You have to trust me," Ichigo stated. Not a single emotion wavered in his eyes, but he eminated a sense of strength. He offer his hand to her.

She stared at his hand, her heart raced. This is Ichigo, the thought kept repeating in her head. Ichigo had never been a selfish person, even if she could not dream of understanding why he was doing this awful thing, somehow he had to have their best interests at heart - this was Ichigo, after all. She was reluctant, but she took his hand. She could feel the flux of his reiatsu, it washed up on her like icey water as it began to ebb through her, to pull her. She had done this before, but this time his reiatsu felt so rough and threatening, for a moment she thought she was going to drown in it. Then she was through.

The blue buildings stretched before them, shadowed by the thick black clouds ahead. Rukia remained cautious, eyeing the distance that now stretched between them. They were on the same building, but about fifteen feet apart. He seemed to hold himself differently here, his barrier wasn't so well held and she could almost watch the flurry of emotions swirling through his eyes.

"Here we are," He breathed deeply, as though the air outside this place had been thin.

Rukia found herself grasping at her right shouldr as the lightning barreled across the sky above them, it crackled with loud, resounding snaps.

"The lightning wont strike you or anything," He offered.

She felt greatly perturbed by him, he felt so different than from when she had known him, and she watched for some subtle sign that this was the same person.

"I'm going to kill him, kill Aizen." He stated then, glancing over to her with want of understanding.

"I don't understand," She muttered, her mind felt dull, like it somehow should make sense, but it didn't. "Aizen is dead, you already killed him."

His eyes strayed from hers. "I had tried to tell you, he's not dead, he faked me out during our battle. He tricked everyone, and now he's off the Gotei 13's raidar because of it. But he's not dead. I know it doesn't make a lot of sense, Rukia, but that is what this is all for. It's all to kill Aizen."

Rukia stumbled back as though the further shock and confusion had socked her in the stomach. Her foot caught an abnormalty in the smooth surface of the building, and she feel backwards. It was in moving to get back up that she noticed what had tripped her, a deeply gauged line. There wasn't just that one, but many along side it, and even more stretching back behind her. It seemed almost a tally of some sort.

"One-hundred-fifty-nine." Ichigo stated, his eyes dared to glance back over to her for a moment - wanting her reaction. "How many I've killed for Aizen."

She couldn't turn to look back over to him, she felt her body shudder, her mind grasping desperately for comprehension. You fucking murderer, disgusting, dangerous. Betrayed, I've been betrayed... Her thoughts spat, but her emotions refused to agree. This was Ichigo for crying out loud! The innocent little boy she used to thomp on the head for calling her 'Ms. Kuchiki', who used to tail her like a puppy-dog.

"So then, is one of these... for Ukitake-taichou?" She asked emptily, wanting to feel the anger her mind kept insisting was proper.

"He's not dead." Ichigo replied, he bent over to trace his finger down one of the gauged lines. "Aizen has him locked up in Las Noches. They've been torturing him to find the location of the Hougyoku."

"Why? ...Why Ukitake?" She gulped.

"Because Aizen figured that you would've trusted him enough to tell him, or that he might've even helped you to hide it."

Her hands clenched into trembling fists against the blue brick of the building. Her mouth was dry. "How come you make it sound like you work for Aizen?"

"I've been living in Las Noches." His reply hung in the air, almost seeming to chill it.

Ichigo sank to his knees, his head drooped defeatedly. He could almost feel her trying not to hate him, she'd seen the damage he'd caused, the lives he'd taken. "I have to kill him, it's my responsibility, I have to kill Aizen, no matter what it takes. I know that you're scared of me, and I understand. You remember the notebook I'm sure, you remember that we had exsisted on a different timeline, one where even after a full scale war I still couldn't defeat him - couldn't protect you from him. Thousands died. This time I have to take care of it before it gets that bad, before it gets out of hand. It is really awful, but these marks, the people I've killed, as long as it doesn't reach the height it did last time... Even if it's by my hand... Isn't it better this way? If a couple hundred die, instead of a couple thousand."

"Dead is dead, Ichigo!" She cried, without really even thinking about what she was saying. This was the man she had confessed her love to, she had kissed. She still loved him, still yearned for him, she'd wanted to save him - but he didn't need to be saved and that terrified her. "Whatever your intent is, murder is still murder."

"I know," He replied softly, sadly.

"Then why?" She finally turned back around to face him, eyes brimming with tears. "If you really understand that, then how could you?!"

"I have to get close to him. I have to get close enough to kill him, and I can't unless I do what he asks me to. He has to believe that I'm willing to obey him. He's protecting my family. Since the Gotei 13 drove me out, he believes I'm doing this because its the only thing left I can do to be sure they're safe."

"You could have trained, you could have become stronger, until you could defeat him." She stated. Yes, her mind agreed, that was something Ichigo would do. So then why hadn't he gone that direction?

"I didn't want to do this. This plan, it wasn't something that I conjured up. You know that I've never been very good with strategies and such. I would have done a million other stupid, and maybe not so stupid, things. But I never would have decided on this by myself. I would have rathered died, I was going to just turn myself in. It was Kami-sama who told me this was the only way I could defeat him."

"Kami-sama?" Rukia replied, dumbly. What a strange excuse, but she wanted to believe it. He had to be telling the truth, right? How could Ichigo possibly have concieved of such a contrieved plot on his own? She believed that Ichigo, as she knew him, would have simply thrown himself at Aizen and given it everything he got a long time ago. Even if he believed the battle to be hopeless. She had watched him before. Yes, that's how he was... is? Still, maybe? It was hard to say, but her logic, her love, pushed hard against the anger.

"I... I believe you." She whispered.

xXxXXxXXxXx

"You have to stay close to that man."

"Kami-sama." Ichigo looked up, removing the hands he'd had pressed miserably to his face since Aizen had finally left him alone. The man stood there in his white attire, but Ichigo didn't gain the same hope he had last time he'd seen God. "I can't. I'm not going to join Aizen, like he wants me too. He's only interested in me as a specimen anyway, it's not like I hold any importance for him."

"You have to," God replied. "I know that's a lot to put on your shoulders, but at the same time it is your responsibility to kill that man, not to turn yourself in, and not to go on some suicide rampage in the Soul Society."

"I could just run away, I could go back to the Vaizards, they'd welcome me back." Ichigo attempted, trying to find a decent solution now that he was being told this was the only way.

"You cannot allow him to surprise you again, if you can keep your eye on him then eventually you will find your opportunity to kill him."

Ichigo shook his head. "There has to be another way."

Kami looked up at the clouded sky. "Do you not agree that it's your responsibility to defeat him?"

There was long silence as Ichigo glowered at his feet, he was scared and trying very hard not to be. "You're right... You're right... I know that I have a responsibility to take care of this, but surely there is another way?! I don't want to fight for Aizen. I don't want to have to look at him every freakin' day, wondering when I'll be able to finally stab my sword into him and know that he really is bleeding. All the while doing his dirty work, playing his games!"

"He will keep his promise to protect your family," Kami replied. "How do you plan on doing that anymore? How can you protect them and keep yourself hidden from the Soul Society at the same time?"

"I don't know!" He cried."I'll figure something out!"

"What if you mess up, what if someone gets hurt again?"

Ichigo emitted a growl that was deep, angry, and hollow. "Why?! Why the hell haven't you said anything all this time... before it got this bad? When I saw you the other day, when I was fighting him, why the hell didn't you tell me he was going to fake me out?! Why couldn't you have given me some sort of solution. Things didn't have to become this bad, they didn't have to get to this point!"

"There was no solution. You couldn't have killed him then, and you can't kill him now." Kami replied. "This is how you will kill him, you have to get his sword away from him before he can grab for it. Only then can you kill him for sure. It's not about being stronger, as long as he can affect your mind, victory is hopeless."

He felt so angry, so betrayed. There had to have been some other way, this couldn't have been the plan all along. "I don't get it... I just don't get it...that goes against everything I have worked for, the He had worked for...Please, there has to be something else... please don't demand this of me, I can't do it."

"You got to live again, not only you, but Rukia, your mother, your family, your friends, everyone got a second chance at life for this. If you can not kill him, he's just going to take that away, and there will have not been any purpose to it. This is the only way you can protect that. You want everyone to be able to continue on living, don't you?" Kami asked. "I know you, Kurosaki Ichigo, I know that you would rather be the one to make the sacrifice. I know that you will do it, even if you hate me for it, even if you hate yourself."

"...you're right." Ichigo finally said, his voice was dark. "Can you promise me this is the only way? Can you promise me that my family and my friends, that Rukia is going to be alright?"

"Yes," Was his reply.

xXxXXxXXxXXxXx

"Ou-chan," It was questioning. Rukia turned to the white figure who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, the replica of Ichigo that represented the hollow powers. Its form seemed strangely unstable this time, flickering in and out of exsistence, sometimes nothing more than an after image.

She noticed how Ichigo didn't turn to look at his counterpart, but focused his gaze ahead. "She cornered me."

"You've never been able to stand the idea of her hating you," The hollow replied.

"I was trying to explain everything to her, trying to get her to understand." Ichigo said, he rose to his feet and now allowed his eyes to linger over to the flickering form.

"Then she needs to know about your situation, if you're confiding in her, allowing her to help you, then she needs to know everything."

Rukia watched Ichigo's face scrunch up, the same way it used to when he was faced with something emotionally difficult. "What is he talking about, Ichigo?"

"I've become unstable, I guess is the best way to put it. I've been using that hollow form more and more, and everytime it gets harder to come back from it."

Rukia shot an accusing look at the hollow, who raised his hands defensively.

"It's not something he's doing, Rukia," Ichigo asserted. "It's my own fault for using that power so often."

"Everytime he takes that form, he's subconsciously telling himself that there is no need for us to be seperate." Shiro explained, then he shifted over to Ichigo. "I am just you, after all. You keep me sectioned off, as you reject the part of you that is hollow. The more you use that power, the more you accept me as a part of you."

"The more I take that form, the more difficult it gets to bury the power back inside me. The more I use it, the more Shiro-kun degrades, the more we become joined... or become whole."

"So... what happens when you can't come back from it, when the hollow is integrated?" Rukia asked, clutching at her hakama as though they'd offer her security.

"I'm not completely sure, I don't think that I'll just become a mindless beast, because for the most part I can hold that form while maintaining consciousness. But as I tried to explain to you after the first time, all this anger and violence becomes more natural. My main concern is that if I cannot take care of things before that point, my hatred for that man, for Aizen, might overwhelm me. It's already so hard..." Ichigo's eyes whelmed with this menacing sort of rage.

"I want to watch the light fade from his eyes," Ichigo growled, but it was not just Ichigo, the voice came from the hollow too. Even the thunder crackled with them.

Rukia shuddered from the intensity of it.

Of course the stated sentiment was much more mild compared to the thoughts that had begun streaming through his head. The air of the inner world wavered and the disconnection almost seemed like a physical snap.

"Forgive me," Ichigo rubbed at his face tiredly.

"But Ichigo... Haven't you placed yourself in a dangerous situation, if you're unstable, like you say you are. Then what if you can't... can't become yourself again and Aizen has you?" She squeaked.

"It's sort of a double-edge sword," He replied, eyes turning up to the dark sky. "Aizen knows that I struggle with it, and he wants me to reach the point where I am permanently in that space. I don't know if it just intrigues him, or if he thinks I'll be easier to control. But at the same time he knows that I don't have very many choices left, and that protecting my family is more important than anything. He is not going to ever trust me, not really. But he knows that I'll do whatever it takes to protect my family. The more he watches me risk my stability, the more it assures him that I am willing to do whatever is needed to be sure he'll keep his promise. All I need is a moment where that trust blinds him. A moment where he wont doubt me, where I can take him by surprise."

Rukia was still shaking from the torrent of emotion, but she was certain now that on some level this was still her Ichigo. If he had changed it had been from the horror and the responsibility of this task placed unto him. She felt so... so sympathetic. So sorry for him. She had since the Gotei 13 had attacked him, and chased him away to some unknown hiding spot, but it was with renewed vigor. They had just begun to really open up in their relationship too, had really only begun to have a relationship, before he was ripped away.

"It's okay," She found herself saying. She approached him with all the warmth she could muster, even with the deep sadness she was feeling. "It's alright, I trust you."

For a moment his eyes flashed, like a spark of exhilaration, and she remembered the boy who had greeted her three years ago after her long absence; the boy who so deeply seemed to need her. It made her want to cry all over again, but instead she tried to smile.

"I'm on your side, Ichigo, okay? I'll do what I can to see this through." She pressed her lips to his, raising up on the very tips of her toes. The very air seemed to grow warm around her. Then they feel apart, as her feet grew too tired to keep her up.

He smiled affectionately down at her, his hand stroked against her head, brushing some loose strands behind her ear.

"Thank you, Rukia." He planted a kiss on her forehead.

"I'll do anything I can to help," She whispered, unsure why she kept her voice so low.

"I hate to ask this of you, but I need the location of the Hougyoku."

xXxXXxXXxXx

"Did you find it?" Tatsuki asked.

Karin shook her head, the two girls were standing outside of Karin's school. "I tried, but Mama wasn't very happy about it. I'm not sure if it was the looking for the notebook or going through his things that really bothered her. She was definitely surprised when I mentioned it though."

"I wouldn't be surprised if she knew what was in it." Tatsuki stated.

"Do you know anything else that could give me some answers? Heck, I don't really even know what sort of questions to ask. I just want to know about him, I want to try to understand him." Karin sighed.

"He took me to this strange place once. I haven't been there by myself, but maybe the people there would know something. It seemed to me that they understood what was going on with him. Come on, it's not far, let's check it out."

Karin more than readily agreed, she had felt better after their conversation the other day than she had in a long time. She was eagar for more of the feeling of alleviation and to learn more about her brother. The two girls wondered around a bit, as it took Tatsuki a little while to remember how to get there, but finally they found themselves before the little candy shop.

"How can they expect to get any customers?" Karin laughed.

"I'm sure it's just a front for some shinigami something." Tatsuki replied. She approached the door cautiously and knocked four times.

A litte girl with long black bangs peaked her head out. "Oh, hello? Can I help you?"

"We want to talk to the man with the striped hat." Tatsuki stated firmly, hands moving to her hips. "About Ichigo."

"I'll ask, but he has some other visitors right now..." The door slid back shut.

The two girls traded looks of intrigue.

"Do you remember when your brother fought that big battle, and he came back all injured." Tatsuki asked carefully.

"Of course," Karin answered, eyes dropping.

"He left the next day, and came home as good as new... that's when he took me to this place." She briefly wondered if she should mention Orihime, but decided better of it. If Orihime wanted more people to know about her healing powers, she could tell them herself. "That man that we're going to see, Ichigo told me that he is also a shinigami."

Finally the door slid all the way open, the same little girl was standing there. "Hello again, you may come back with me if you would like."

Tatsuki and Karin followed her through the candy-shop front and into one of the back rooms. There was the man, Tatsuki recognized, with the very green attire and the stripped hat. But also two other strange characters who stood across the small tatami room from him. One was a short, blonde girl with pig-tails and a red jumpsuit. The man beside her also had blonde hair in a strange, almost bowl-cut type style.

Urahara was surprised to see his new set of guests. He tapped his fan into the palm of his other hand. "Well, isn't this a surprise, your timing is eerily impecable. I never thought I'd see you lovely ladies wandering into my lowly shop. It has been a long time since I've seen either of you."

"Arisawa Tatsuki," She nodded her head to the other guests.

"I remember," Urahara smiled. "And this is Karin-chan... Kurosaki Karin."

Karin also offered a nodded bow.

"Kurosaki..." The blonde girl muttered with puzzlement. And then realization. "You're Ichigo's sister."

"Indeed she is," Urahara inserted, then shifted over to the girls. "Your father told me about your brother's visit the other day, it's part of why these ones are here, they've been trying to find him."

How strange, Karin felt, what sort of connection would these people have to her brother. Were they shinigamis too? She could almost feel the expanse of this world that her brother lived in, filled with its own vast complexeties. She wanted to know all of it - she wanted to understand.

The door to the tatami room slid open again, and a tall, burly man with glasses entered. He had a tray stacked with a teapot and cups.

"Oh good," Urahara clapped his hands together with a pleased smile. "The tea is ready."

xXXxXXxXXxXXx

Ichigo smiled slightly. His hand lightly graced his lips, remembering the kiss. The feeling from that moment, it was so wonderful. A light in the darkness. Then a rugged, pained scream echoed through the corridor and tore him away from the memory.

He continued on, obtaining more of a blank expression, as he attempted to vacate from his emotions. That, of course, never worked for very long. He couldn't just not feel. If he ignored all else, sooner or later the anger would claim him.

Ichigo lingered by the doorway the scream had originatd from, keeping his face unreadable as he listened to the Captain's wailing screams. Even so, he didn't dare to enter, he'd seen enough of the torture already. Come on, Ukitake, just give him a location, He willed.

After what seemed a long, arderous struggle, the screaming faltered, and died.

"Clean him up and take him back to his cell." Aizen's voice echoed through the now silent room before he emerged into the hall. He grinned at Ichigo. "Enjoying the show?"

Ichigo ignored the question. "Did you get a location?"

"Here, it's in the Rukongai, he says." Aizen passed him a folded piece of paper that had more specific instructions.

"It's probably just more false directions." He muttered, but slipped the paper into the top of his shihakushou even so. As much as he admired Ukitake's strength of will to keep this up, he'd been sending him on frenzied searches almost every night for the past week.

"Perhaps, even so, you will go there tonight and see. He will give us the right location eventually, or he'll die in that room." Aizen replied.

"Alright." Ichigo stated. With that he took his leave, back to the more comfortable confines of his room. Once he looked around to be sure he was alone, he slowly shredded the paper Aizen had handed him into the trash can. He didn't need to deal with anymore of Ukitake's misdirections now that he knew the location of the Hougyoku. Tonight he would be able to retrieve it.

He silently thanked Rukia.

Surely if he was doing something terribly wrong with all this, Kami-sama would say something. So he had to assume for now that he was only doing what was expected.

xXxXXxXXxXx

Now that everyone was sitting comfortably around the perimeter of the room, a cup of tea in hand, Tatsuki decided it was time to step in.

"So then, what is going on? We don't really understand all this, so please start at the beginning and go slow." She requested.

"These two came to me a couple of months ago, asking for my help locating Ichigo. The device he uses to hide his reiatsu is one that I created, so I created a machine... a computer, if you will, that can detect that device. For the past two months it has been logging his activity. The read-out indicates that he appears in Karakura maybe once, twice a week for a couple hours at a time."

"That regularly?" Shinji asked.

"Yes, and I feel it's safe to assume that when he leaves he's not going to the Soul Society. So I am fairly certain, at this point, that he's been residing in Hueco Mundo." He replied.

This seemed to set heavily in the room.

"Then we need to go there, pull his head out of the sand, and knock some sense into him!" Hiyori proclaimed.

"I don't really... follow." Karin admitted. "What are these places you're talking about?"

"The Soul Society, simply put, is where the shinigami live. Hueco Mundo is where all the hollows live." Urahara offered.

"So then, if he's a shinigami why wouldn't he be in the Soul Society?" She asked, and when she asked she knew she wasn't going to like the answer.

"Because they want him dead!" Hiyori cried. "All the freakin' shinigami want his head, even after he killed Aizen and everything."

"Hiyori," Shinji sighed.

"What? She wanted to know what the truth was, didn't she? That's why your brother disappeared. He dared to stand up against the man who threatened everything, the shinigami's worst enemy, and once he won they decided he was the next biggest threat."

"It was the other shinigami that attacked him?" Tatsuki asked, she wasn't too surprised to hear this, she only knew of a handful of shinigami. Aizen had been very bad, and Ichigo said that he was a shinigami. So it would seem that shinigami were neither good nor bad. Like humans, they acted on their own fears and desires, made their own choices. "Why do they feel like he's a threat? Are they afraid if he could take down Aizen, he could take them down too?"

"Something like that," Urahara agreed.

"I don't get it," Hiyori stomped her feet frustratedly at the tatami floor. "Why didn't he just come home? He would have been safe!"

"Home?" Karin asked, surprisedly. What this girl referred to as home, was surely not the Kurosaki's home.

"Yes, home. The place where he's understood and not judged for being what he is, the place he belongs." She blurted angrily. Hiyori felt so frustrated that Ichigo would go live in Hueco Mundo (where he would have to constantly fight to survive) before he came back to them. There had to be something more, she knew it in her guts. It wasn't like it would endanger the Vaizard any, they were hiding from the Soul Society themselves! So there had to be something more going on.

"Calm down, Hiyori, you don't need to yell at the poor girl." Shinji coaxed, though he wore an annoyed frown. "Nobody is happy about what happened. We will find him, and we'll talk some sense into him."

Shinji placed his empty cup back on the tray and stood up. "We're going to head back and talk to the others. Thanks again for your assistance, Kisuke."

"Feel free to drop by more often." Urahara waved them out with his fan.

Karin had her lips pursued tight. So apparently he had some sort of second family, or something. At least people who seemed to consider him family. She sipped her hot tea, while trying to put her thoughts together.

"Those people..." Tatsuki began.

"Oh, they like to keep to themselves most of the time. But they're very protective of each other, and they consider Ichigo to be one of them. If they can, they'll find him." Urahara flicked his fan open infront of him. "Now, I don't mean to be rude, but I think this is enough for today. You two should head on home."

The girls returned their cups to the tray.

As Karin rose to her feet, she remembered why they had come in the first place. She felt like she had a lot of new information now, but she hadn't fully processed everything. Maybe that notebook would help her sort things out.

"The notebook Ichigo used to carry, do you know about it? Do you know where it might be?" Karin implored.

"He told me that he'd destroyed the original." Urahara tipped his hat to further shade his expression. "But I did, at one point, make a copy of it without his permission."

"Can I borrow it, please? May I?" Karin begged.

He hesistated at first, thinking of what Isshin might say if he found out. But then he caved and left to locate the notebook. He returned a few minutes later, with a black notebook in hand. He passed it over to Karin. Then, with a very serious look, he said. "I believe those who actively pursue answers have the right to find them."

Karin could only nod her head to this, pressing the black, spiral-bond notebook to her chest.

xXxXXxXXxXXxXXxXx

Ichigo thrashed around the room, his body in its fully hollowfied state.

He roared in a monsterous howl, thrashing, he slammed his body into the wall. Ichigo gripped at the wall, panting harshly. Then anger and malice overwhelmed him and he screeched again, he dug his claws into the wall to keep himself there as he fought to surface from monsterous, dark thoughts. It didn't want to let go. Or rather, it was more like he couldn't quite define himself amonst the beast's mind, and the harder he fought to shove that power back into his core, the more he pushed himself away at the same time. Every time he sunk, he was the monster solely for the seconds or the minutes until he could find himself again, realize he exsisted, and that he had to return to being a shinigami.

Finally he seemed to grasp the line of seperation and he forced the dark power down, down into his soul.

Ichigo was half-slumped exhaustedly against the wall. It was painful in a strange sort of way. The power wouldn't just sink back into him anymore, to make the seperation it felt more like he was tearing off a part of himself.

Aizen stood in the door way, Ichigo had been somehow vaguely aware of his presence the whole time. Ichigo managed to glance over to him now, his body fading into its human form.

"It gets more difficult everytime you take that form," Aizen stated, he seemed a little amussed by it.

"Leave me alone," Ichigo growled at the man, there was still a hollow reverberation in his voice.

"You're going to be in trouble if you keep this up," He continued.

Ichigo mustered up what he could of composure. "I've done everything you've asked of me... and I expect you to maintain your promise regardless of what happens to me."

"Of course," Aizen replied. "And what of the mission?"

Ichigo pulled the Hougyoku, which was encased inside a barrier of a slightly larger size, out of the top of his shihakushou. Aizen couldn't help but grin as he snatched up the orb. He inspected it carefully, but he already knew in his guts - this was it.

"You really found it," He marveled. "And what's more, you brought it back to me."

Ichigo wipped at the sweat streaking dow his forehead. "Yes, I don't have to repeat myself again, do I? I am here for just one reason."

"For your family, so you'd even give up the very world for them."

Ichigo stumbled over to the bed, muscles sore from the transformation process. "You got what you want, now get out of here. I'm not in the mood for this stupid, pointless conversation. And I don't need you gawking at me either!"

Aizen turned the orb over in his palm and nodded. How amussing and how fun for him that he was able to get the boy to do something so completely contrary to what he'd always fought for. It made him feel so powerful, so unstoppable! But for now it was probably best to listen, he didn't want to push the boy too much less he break him completely. So Aizen left Ichigo alone, grinning again as he held the Hougyoku out with admiration.

xXxXXxXXxXXxXx

In the middle of the night Ichigo woke up trashing, covers tangled around his feet. He was drenched in a cold sweat, trembling. He felt tears on his cheeks, which he quickly scrubbed away in detest. He felt afraid, so afraid and so small. For a moment he felt like a small child again, trapped in this horrible place. He felt fear and frustration that had mounted, unprocessed, inside of him since Kami-sama had demanded this ludicrous deed from him.

He wanted suddenly for his mother's embrace, but it hurt all the more knowing it was very possible that he would never feel her touch again.

The room was empty, he was alone. Hands gripped at the sheets. He was always alone.

"It was just a nightmare," Shiro's voice rang between his ears, somehow annoyed yet coaxing at the same time.

Maybe not completely alone, not yet.

"Shiro-kun." Ichigo gasped, his breathing felt labored even though he'd just been sleeping. He could feel his counterpart as a fading, dim flicker.

The fact lay unspoken between the two of them, though they both understood very well; one more time. Just once more is all it would take, once more and Ichigo might not be able to seperate from the hollow again. Even now, he knew, he was already integrated with much of what Shiro had once represented.

He felt tears try to whelm up, stinging at his eyes. He blinked them away, and he had to draw up those harsher emotions, the hate and the anger, to cover up and push away the fear so that he didn't feel so vulnerable.

"S-Shiro-kun... Please, don't leave me alone, I can't do this by myself." Ichigo stammered. Again he had to will away the fear and the loneliness. What was he going to do when there wasn't that voice in his head to calm him anymore? When he had to put up with all of this crap, face the results of his choices, all alone? These past three years, the hollow had been his best friend, his only friend. They were in this together, thick or thin, and now he was going to be alone. The thought frightened him more than having to fight Aizen (though, that's not a fair comparison, because at this point he wanted nothing more than to wring that man's neck).

Ichigo blinked, hands bracing against the sweat soaked sheets. He sank back, something that had become more than natural, and found himself standing on the side of the skyscaper with the fading image of the only friend he had here.

The hollow approached him, flickering white hands gently raised up his tear-streaked face. "You already are alone, Ou-chan, I am you."

Lightening broke against the sky continiously, trying to stifle the rain that wanted to fall. The King was trying to overwhelm his grief with anger. It had been this way most of these past three years, but the world shook, deeply desperate now. It seemed like some rain might actually pour tonight, as it had not been allowed to in a long while.

The hollow grinned that devilish grin that seemed to come to him so naturally, and turned for a second to watch the rain break through in the distant and smear the blue of the horizon into a grayish swirl.

"It feels strange," Shiro muttered, swiveling to look back at his king's face. They had gone through a lot together, when he had first awakened he could not have dreamed that they would end up forging such a friendship. "It's strange, Ou-chan... I have always endured your emotions, and their intensity that always seemed so harsh for you. I laughed at it even, at those emotions which were so persuasive... so powerful. It's strange because lately... I can feel them. It's not the same, not disconnected like it always has been."

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked.

"I hate it." The hollow spat, but he still had the grin plastered on his face. "I can feel the loneliness too, I can feel the fear too, and I hate it. It hurts. It hurts, but not like any physical wound."

Ichigo nodded, unable to find his words, only able to mentally agree that, yes, it did hurt. Even Ichigo had spent so much time not allowing himself to feel these things, that the pain was acute. The rain reached them, for a moment breaking through the hinderance of the lightning. The two became soaked as it pounded down on them.

"Our opportunity should be soon, this one last time we're going to have to give it all we've got." Ichigo stated over the drumming of the rain on the buidling around them.

Shiro nodded. "Even if you can't seperate anymore, even if you lose yourself to the instincts and the anger, I trust that you will give it everything - we will give it everything. Till we breathe our last breath; we will fight until we kill Aizen Sousuke."

A torrent of wind ripped at the rain, flurreling the soggy sleeves of their shihakushous.

"Yes, we will." Ichigo replied, that was something he could be sure of. By now his task, his goal in life, had to be so prevalent to the very core of his being, that he would seek it even if he was no longer aware of himself.

Ichigo stared down at his feet for a moment, the puddling water soaking into his tabi. Then he looked back up to Shiro with a certain amount of peace. "Things will be fine then."

"I believe they will," The hollow agreed, that grin had finally faded to an unamussed sort of expression. His words were firm. "Somehow, we're going to be fine."

The rain slowly receded, and the lightning regained its reigning terror over the sky.

"Thank you, Shiro-kun." Ichigo said. He felt deeply eased, even the fretful nightmare was now a distant memory.

"I know that my exsistence is sort of unnatural, but I've enjoyed it," The hollow smiled here, but it wasn't a grin, and it held none of the sly sort of look it usually did - which looked rather strange on him. "You've allowed me to explore the outside world, you've entertained my demands. Even though you're the King, you gave me a chance to be in charge. You fought with me whenever I've asked. It was... it was fun."

The hollow sighed, flickering harshly for a moment, as though he might just blink out of exsistence at any moment.

"It's strange, with these feelings... I find myself regretting what my exsistence means for you."

"Don't ever apologize for exsisting, that's what you told me, Shiro-kun. You can't change what you are, so you've just got to accept it - you've got to own it."

Shiro nodded. "I remember, I did say that. Yes, that's right..."

Both turned and watched the rain fading in the distance. "We'll be alright."

Chapter End