A/N: Excuse any grammar errors, misspelled words, misplaced anythin' and blah blah blah. No ones perfect. 'Specially not me. So deal, Like I have.

Once I establish contact with my homie that can proof read this bit of horror for me, I'll repost it again. Corrected an' what not.

As a warnin', I don't intend this to be very long. It bein' my first an' all. There will be quite a few character deaths in this fic'. Just so ya' know. I'll let ya' find out who gets the noose on ya' own. XD

Wonder if ya' can figure out whose gonna be first to die. *snickers*

Disclaimer: Don't own Bleach.

Summary: Ichigo, true to his name and his heart, will forever protect and love her. Even if it means he has to wipe out everyone close to her, to take her as his own.

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The Unknown

Chapter I

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A lone figure stood at the bottom of a grassy knoll. Watching as the rain falling from the sky splashed upon the rushing water of the Karakura river that laid before said figure.

The spirit particles of a recently slain Hollow drift up and disappear into the rainy night sky not a few feet away from the motionless figure.

Suddenly, a clap of thunder is heard followed by a flash of lightning lighting up the sky, the weather becoming more intense by the second, giving away the identity of one, Kurosaki Ichigo.

The storm that raged around him had nothing on the storm that raged inside him.

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Inoue Orihime jumps in her seat, while also covering a gasp ready to escape her mouth by covering it with her hands, when hearing the thunderous clap of thunder that was soon followed by the flash of lightning.

Her eyes stray towards a window in her kitchen as she lowers her hands to her lap. She stares out past the rain that pounds against her window in the direction of the Karakura river.

She raises her right hand to cover her rapidly beating heart. A foreboding feeling over coming her mind.

She rises from her seat and proceeds towards her front door, grabbing a jacket and umbrella along the way, and exits in a hurried rush with one name on her mind.

'Kurosaki-kun…'

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He can feel his presence in the back of his mind even before he utters a word. But then again he knew his presence was there all along even from the start of it all. He just happened to learn a lil patience this time around and decided to wait for his moment.

Which was now.

'Ichigo…'

Ichigo could feel the gliding of fingers along his jaw line. Starting from the tip of his chin and slowly making its way towards the back of his cheek bone. A suppose-to-be gentle caress.

He scoffs. Gentle could never be a word to describe any hollow. Least of all his own.

'Ichigo…'

He allows his eyes to slowly close. A grimace still present upon his face from the pain still throbbing away in his chest.

'Ichigo…look at ya'…look what has become of ya'…so pathetic…'

His left eye gives a slight twitch at the words being whispered within his mind. Though it feels as if they were whispered beside his ear as well. His eyes then slowly begin to reopen at the feeling of a presence, not within his mind, but before him.

With his eyes refocused he was not disappointed to see, standing not an arms length away with a grimace almost rivaling his own, his ghostly pale doppelganger.

His own inner hell and demon.

His darker side.

His Hollow.

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Breathing heavily from running, Inoue made it to the bottom of the hill that separates her from the river.

Tightening the jacket around her body she stares at the hill before her. She feels his over powering reitsu pulsate from the other side.

She debates with herself whether or not to climb the hill and intrude on his moment alone. But the foreboding feeling has not yet left her. If anything, it has only gotten worse the closer she got to him.

Suddenly thoughts were racing through her mind.

'He is still where I felt the hollow presence not to long ago. Where he headed to vanquish it. What if…What if something happened. What if he's hurt! What if he's lying there…DIEING!!'

With that last thought in mind, she threw all caution to the wind and started a running pace up the hill.

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He watched as his attendant within his mind circled him. Honey-brown eyes followed piercing golden-yellow as the Hollow sized up the situation.

"Ya' know…Ya' could so easily just forget her if ya' just allowed yourself to."

Ichigo's eyes narrowed at the audacity of the Hollows words. How dare he think he could just…forget. To allow himself even. The bastard.

He opened his mouth to speak. To speak the words he was thinking, when before he could even utter a word, his Hollow continued with a sneer.

"She rejected ya'. She rejected ya' an' then moved on. Your weak Ichigo. She rejected ya' 'cause your weak! Why would she want to spend her time an' life with someone who is weak!"

Ichigo's vision lowered to the ground at his feet. Now soaking wet from the pouring rain that has yet to let up and only becoming heavier. His eyes becoming dull.

Golden eyes watched as the Orange-haired boy before him lowered his eyes and bowed his head.

A sinister smirk slowly appearing upon the Hollows face at the delicious feeling of pain and heartache that flowed from him.

But just as quickly as the smirk was there it was gone. Replaced by silent shock as Ichigo raised his head to display the smirk that now replaced his grimace not moments ago.

"Weak? I don't think so. She didn't leave because she thought I was weak."

The Hollow let a brow lift. The smirk back in place upon his own face.

"Oh?"

The Hollow snickered as his human counterpart furrowed his brows. The smirk being wiped from his features.

"Let me guess. Your on the path to believe she left 'cause…it was the right thing ta do? Somethin' along the lines of ya' finally livin' a normal life again without Soul society's interference. Without HER interference?"

He tilted his head to the side as he watched every little emotion play across Ichigo's face. He relished in every spark of feeling that shot through him.

His smirk stretched into a grin across his face when he felt the feeling of doubt shoot through Ichigo's mind.

It was time to push him over into the darkest part of his own mind. And help that doubt fester into anger, into rage.

"Or…"

The Hollow continued as he walked past Ichigo to stand behind him. Ichigo remaining still, face forward, eyes alert. Ready for whatever the Hollow might have planned.

He leaned forward, his mouth beside Ichigo's ear as he too stared off into the same direction as Ichigo.

"…could it be she left 'cause she didn't feel the same. That her love for ya' was just somethin' that ya' conjured up for yourself to believe…That in reality she didn't love ya' the way ya' loved her…"

The Hollow quickly jumped back. Watching as the cleaver shaped blade finished slicing through the air where he was once standing. Or better yet where he was standing and would have lost his head.

Breathing heavily Ichigo lowered his head enough to allow his bangs to block his eyes from the Hollows sight. He could still see his Hollow through his bangs but refused to let him see the anguish that presented itself through his eyes.

He didn't want to believe it. He REFUSED to believe it. He knew she loved him as he loved her. He just knows it.

But what if the Hollow was right.

What if…her loving him was indeed just something he wanted to believe. And what if he believed it so much that he couldn't see the truth right in front of him…

"NO!"

Ichigo lunged towards his Hollow. Pulling his blade into a downward slash. His Hollow swung his blade upward to block and then lock blades with Ichigo.

"What's the matter Ichigo? Does the truth hurt?"

The Hollow pulled back to avoid the swinging fist that Ichigo suddenly let loose.

Ichigo continued the momentum of his swinging fist, even when his Hollow was no longer in it's path, allowing his body to twist a full 360 spin while lashing his blade out and catching the Hollows sleeve.

The Hollow, now a good feet away, raised his cut sleeve. Eyeing it before allowing his eyes to stray to the rigid body across from him.

Ichigo, gritting his teeth, managed to speak through his anger.

"She loves me. I know she does."

Allowing a chuckle to escape, the Hollow lowered his arm back to his side. A smirk present once more upon his face.

"Is that so. An' how would ya' know? She never said as much."

Ichigo calmed himself. Lowering his arm along with his blade.

"She doesn't need to…"

His eyes now piercing his Hollows.

"…Her actions speak loud enough to me, that she does."

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A/N: This is just the calm before all hell breaks loose. Which will actually start next chap'. Also, let me know if anythin' makes no sense. I wrote this while runnin' on fumes from lack of sleep. *shrugs* Works a pain in the ass. What can I say.