I'm so bad to have forgotten Kenpachi's B-day! (11/19) So I decided to post this squirreled away ficlet… it's a two-shot. Pairing: KenpachixIchigo Based off of ShadowofLight's request for a kitty Ichigo. Summary: Ichigo wakes up one morning and finds out he has cat ears and a tail. He goes to Urahara for help and discovers has to go live in Soul Society, where Kenpachi finds out about them. This is after the war with Aizen. Ichigo is going to be out of character in this one, but that's only cat like things that he now reacts to. This is another one that I was originally going to write as a full length story, but decided not to because I have so many others planned. I had this image of Ichigo as momma-cat to Yachiru when in the Shinigami Cup Yachiru dresses up like a kitten and takes one of the koi in Byakuya's koi pond. -Yachiru: Snags a koi out of the pond with her kitty claws "Mew mew mew!" WARNINGS!!! No underage readers. Yaoi, smut, lemon, sex, violence, cursing. Now beta'd! By KitsuneKiri- thank you for doing this on the spur of the moment!
Byakuya: Staring at the pond later with a frown. "I think the number of koi in this pond has been declining recently."-
Neko 01
I didn't feel any different when I woke up this morning. It was the summer time so I didn't need to get up at any particular time. I lazily got out of bed and stretched, scratching my stomach as I yawned. I stumbled into the bathroom and blinked blearily as I urinated and tucked myself back into my pajamas. I bent over to wash my hands in the sink when I saw them, ears. To be more specific orange tabby cat ears sticking out from my hair just above my normal human ears.
I let out a screech and scrambled away from my reflection, falling onto the ground with a wince. That was when I realized there was an extra bump on my back right above my ass. A tail! I had a tail!!! I stared at it with disbelief.
"Brother?" Yuzu's sweet voice came through the door as she knocked on it lightly in concern. "Are you okay?"
"I- I'm fine Yuzu!" I said back. "I just slipped, that's all."
"Alright." She said, but didn't sound sure. "I made breakfast."
"O-okay!" What the hell am I going to do!? The last time I checked, spontaneously growing cat ears and a tail overnight isn't normal, even for Soul Society. What the hell am I going to do?
I peaked out the bathroom door to make sure the coast was clear, and then ran to my room, Shit. I paced in my room, vaguely aware of my tail flicking behind me in agitation and my ears twitching against my head. Urahara! If anyone knew what was going on, he would. Maybe this was a side affect of being a vizard, and it would go away.
Yes! Now there was the issue of getting out of the house and making it over there unseen… Maybe the ears and tail could only be seen by those who can sense the spirit world, but there were many people in Karakura Town who could do that.
I slipped into an old pair of jeans I had that were pretty loose and a long shirt. I noted that when I bent my hand a certain way, my nails actually slid out of the cuticles a little bit, and were a little sharper. I pulled my tail so it wrapped around the front of my body, wincing at how it twisted my tail at an odd angle, and put a piece of tape over it.
Hopefully that would hold until I got to Urahara's, although I could already tell that my tail had a mind of its own. I found an old black knit cap in my closet with a flaming skull on the front and carefully pulled it over my head, checking in the mirror to make sure it looked fine.
Thank god Kon is in Yuzu's room.
I stepped quickly down the stairs and threw some half-hearted excuse to my family and raced out the door. I walked as quickly as I could to Urahara's; not running in case it would somehow dislodge my attempts to hide my new appendages. I sighed in relief when I finally caught sight of the store and dashed inside.
"Kisuke!" I yelled, as I opened the door and stepped in. "I need to talk to you!"
"Hello, Kurosaki-kun!" Urahara slid open the door and beamed at me, yawning slightly and scratching his rumpled hair. "What can I help you with?"
"These!" I exclaimed and pulled off my hat. Urahara's eyes widened in surprise and his jaw actually dropped a little.
"Oh-ho!" He said, fan covering the lower half of his face instinctively in reaction. "That is unusual!"
"Yeah." I muttered. "Tell me what's happening!" I pleaded.
"Ah." He snapped his fan shut. "Perhaps we should have some tea and talk."
I settled down onto a cushion and held my teacup between my hands, trying to get whatever comfort I could from its warmth.
"Where to begin…" Urahara mused, taking a sip of his own tea. "You know that Yoruichi has a cat form and a human form. Also that the 7th division captain Komamura is an anthropomorphic canine. Things such as these are rare, but still known to occur in Soul Society." Urahara explained. "And you happen to be one of those rare instances."
I stared at him. So that's all that this was? A rare instance?
"But how do I get rid of it!" I said desperately, knowing the answer but needing to ask.
"I'm sorry Kurosaki-san, but you can't." Urahara said sympathetically. "And I have more bad news for you." Oh god, I felt my heart clench. "You can't stay in the human world the way you are now." Please no.
"Why?" I asked, a hint of despair slipping into my voice as I looked up at Urahara pleadingly.
"This is a physical manifestation of your spirit form." Urahara said. "Soul reapers aren't meant to be humans. They've already passed on from the real world and are no longer connected to it, but instead to Soul Society. Some, like me, can use a gigia when in the human world, but I was in Soul Society for a long time before I came back."
He looked at me seriously. "If you continue to stay in the human world in your body, you're soul chain will start to deteriorate and you will become a hollow."
"But I have a family! Friends! A life!" I yelled, "I'm not dead, are you telling me I have to die!?"
"That's what it comes to. Yes." I slumped in my seat, tears falling from my eyes. This couldn't be happening. I was alive! And now I had to leave my entire world behind because of some stupid cat ears and a tail!
My hands reached up to my extra appendages and I tugged at them. It hurt but I tugged harder, trying to yank them off. It hurt so badly but I continued to do so. I could hear Urahara yelling my name distantly, but then everything turned black and I knew nothing more.
When I woke again the sides of my scalp were a little sore from where I had tugged on my ears earlier. I blinked, realizing that somebody was actually soothingly stroking my hair and it was calming me down. I didn't want to move, but I wanted to know who it was. I turned my head slightly to see… Goat Face staring down at me with a worried frown. My head was in his lap and he was carding his fingers through my hair with a gentleness I didn't know he had.
"Dad?" I asked in confusion. And sat up, rubbing my eyes.
"Son." His voice was serious, and yet full of emotion. "We need to talk…I've been putting this off for such a long time, but you need to know."
I stared at him, not understanding. "Ichigo I'm… a Soul Reaper. Or rather, I used to be. I left Soul Society when I met you're mother."
"No, no!" I protested, slamming my fists onto the bed covers. This was too much to take in, too much change! I can't handle anymore!
"It's okay son, it's okay." He gathered me into my arms and let me cry against his shoulder.
"It's not okay, it's not!" I sobbed, clenching my hands in his shirt. "Ka-Karin and Yu-Yuzu are going to be here." I sucked in my breath sharply. "And I'm not! I'm going to be dead! And my fr-friends!" I stuttered, sniffling deeply and then just crying, crying as my father rocked me and murmured soothing words, shushing me gently.
"You'll see us again." Isshin murmured as my sobs quieted down. "And you'll still have you're friends in Soul Society." I nodded, slightly embarrassed for breaking down but unable to make myself let go of him and his comforting presence.
"I just…I know I don't say it a lot, but…" I paused, wiping my eyes on the sleeve of my shirt, "I love you guys so much, and I don't want to live in Soul Society. How am I suppose to explain to Karin and Yuzu about this!?"
"They know about spirits. They'll understand." I nodded, suddenly exhausted from all the crying I had done and the shock of finding out I had cat ears and a tail, that I have to live in Soul Society permanently, and that my dad is a Shinigami. My breath slowly steadied out and my eyes grew heavier. I could feel dad moving me back onto the bed, but his hand still stroked my hair and rubbed behind my ears. It felt so good…It made me want to purr.
Everything was wrong in the world. I don't want to be a neko. That was my last thought before I fell asleep in my father's arms.
…
"So…" Rukia said.
"So…" Renji commented, staring at me unabashedly.
"So!" Urahara said enthusiastically. "Ichigo needs to go Soul Society."
Renji and Rukia stared at me. It made me feel like I was some kind of freak. I stared down at the table and wouldn't meet their eyes.
"Oh, Ichigo." Rukia sighed and stood up, wrapped her small arms around my shoulder and resting her head on the top of my hat covered one. "I'm sorry."
"Yeah. So am I." I responded, but gently patted her arm.
Renji continued to stare at me, not saying anything. I glared at him.
"Can I see them?" He asked, leaning forward in his seat and continuing to watch me. Of all things, that's what he asks? It makes me want to laugh it was so Renji.
"Sure." I shrugged and Rukia stepped back, sitting next to me once more. I reached up and tugged off my hat, revealing my furry ears that almost completely blended in with my hair.
Rukia reached up and then hesitated, glancing at me.
"Can I touch them?" I nodded and she gently put her hands over my cat ears.
"They're so soft!" She exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise. I nodded again and blushed slightly.
"Let me see." Renji stood do, approaching me cautiously as if I would suddenly leap at him. He slowly reached for my ears, pulling them back slightly and glancing at me to make sure I was okay with it. His rough fingers brushed against my ears and they twitched slightly. He rubbed behind them slightly and my eyes closed partially. I couldn't help the soft rumble that came up in my chest as I leaned against the touch.
Renji continued to gently scratch my head and I shifted closer to his side, rubbing my head against his arm to urge him to continue. My eyes snapped open when I heard a deep chuckle and I shot away from Renji, blushing heavily and trying to calm my tail that was swishing underneath my shirt.
"Sorry Ichigo." Renji said, trying to stifle his laughter. "I didn't know you would react that way, kitty!"
"Fuck you!" I snapped, completely mortified.
"Aw, come back and cuddle, kitty!" He reached for my head again but I ducked, grabbing my hat and jamming it over my head.
"Renji!" Rukia scolded and thumped him hard over the head. "He can't help it!"
"Ow!" Renji yelped and rubbed the top of his head. "I didn't mean anything by it, I just think he's cute!"
If anything I turned redder. I wonder if I can sneak away with no one noticing. I hunched my shoulders forward and got on my hands and knees. Staying as close to the floor as possible I slowly slunk to the door.
"Oh no you don't, Kurosaki-san!" Urahara sang out and suddenly the scruff of my neck was grabbed and I was being lifted into the air. I instantly went limp and curled my legs up slightly, glaring at Kisuke miserably.
Renji let out another burst of laughter as he caught sight of me. I swore to kill him the next chance I got.
"Stop it Renji!" Rukia shouted and picked up a seat cushion, slamming it down onto his head.
"As you can see, Ichigo has some new attributes in addition to the ears and tail." Urahara said as he set me back down gently.
"I haven't figured out all of them yet, I assume more will come with time." He smiled at my sulking form and gave me a light scratch underneath my chin. I had to fight not to close my eyes and bare my throat for more such pettings.
"Alright." Renji was serious again. "I'm going to call Soul Society and inform them on this new situation." He glanced at me. "You should say you're goodbyes, you might need to leave immediately."
I nodded and stood. "Yeah… I'll do that."
Saying goodbye was the hardest thing. Especially since some of my friends didn't know about Soul Society, and to them I would just be dead. Telling Yuzu and Karin…there was a lot of crying. It hurt so much, too much. When I finally went back to Urahara's again to go through the gate…it was like I couldn't see the world around me. I could feel my body moving, hear people talking around me. But it meant nothing. I still couldn't believe this was happening.
Rukia patted me on the head sympathetically, and surprisingly enough, Yoruichi was there smiling at me gently. I stared at her. She stared back. Urahara coughed and intercepted.
"Okay! Yoruichi is going to stay with you in Seireitei and help you out a little bit. She's the one who knows the most about what's going on, so she offered to come with you."
"Thanks." I forced a smile. She sighed and gave me an understanding grin.
"It will be fine, Ichigo." Yoruichi said with soft eyes. "I'm sure everyone keeps telling you that, but it will be fine. After a while you will be able to come back to the real world and see everyone again."
I smiled again, but this time it was a little more natural. "Yeah, I know. But it's still hard."
"You'll have us, Ichigo." Rukia reassured, gesturing to herself and Renji.
Renji grinned at me and nodded. "Yeah, we'll be coming with you. We'll have missions in the real world sometimes, but we'll mostly be around."
It was nice to know that I would have some of my friends with me. And Yoruichi would be a lot of help deciphering these different and characteristics that keep popping up. No way in hell do I want to be in the position of cuddling or becoming instantly limp when somebody picks me up by the back of my neck.
I wonder what it will be like, living in Soul Society. I'm going to be briefed when I get there on my new Shinigami duties and what division I'll be in. Urahara was opening the gate now. I gave one last glance to the world around me and stepped through.
It was the same as always, running as hard as I could to not get crushed by the cleaner. We landed outside, Yoruichi gracefully on all four feet and me…actually on both of my feet. I checked to make sure my hat was still pulled over my ears and sighed with relief. It was the same black knit one with the flaming skull that I had been using the entire time, from the human world, and I didn't want to let it go. I looked at them curiously, certain that I had been tumbling in the air a second ago, but shrugged it off. Rukia and Renji were both laying face down on the ground with their limbs bent at odd angles.
I had my first real laugh in awhile at that one. Of course it promptly got me hit by Rukia, but I saw her pleased smile before her sputtering indignation took over. She stopped immediately when she saw her older brother Byakuya standing over her with a raised eyebrow.
"Nii-sama!" Rukia blushed and got to her feet. He nodded to her and turned to me.
"Kurosaki. You are to come with me." I nodded and followed his swishing robes, sending one last glance to the others.
He took me to, surprisingly, Yamamoto himself. The old grizzled man was leaning heavily on his cane, unaccompanied by his lieutenant. He stared at me silently before he began.
"Kurosaki Ichigo. It can not be said that you are inexperienced in the ways of the Shinigami." He paused studying me.
"However, you lack the educational roundness that real Soul Reapers possess." I wanted to say something, but remembered who this was and bit my lip.
"Although, going to the academy would be ridiculous with the level you are right now." I nodded my head, still not saying anything. That's one worry off of my back.
"Your knowledge of kido is non existent and your kendo is rudimentary at best." I resisted the urge to shrug and scratch my head.
"Yoruichi Shihōin will assist you with learning kido. Captain Zaraki has offered to help you with kendo." Oh dear lord, no.
"Sir-"
"This is not up for discussion!" I said nothing, staring at him. "You are dismissed."
I left quickly, glad to be out of the room. My ears itched and my tail was starting to hurt from being confined for so long. Captain Yamamoto may be aware of my new developments, but I was still self-conscious about others knowing. All I wanted to do right now was to curl up and ignore the world- or rather, ignore Soul Society. I haven't felt this alone since mom had died. And this time my family isn't able to be there for me.
The place Yoruichi and I were staying was a little house close to the 11th division quarters. It was a cozy place, with lots of cushions everywhere that looked like good places to nap. I threw myself onto one of them and buried my head against the soft fabric. I heard Yoruichi come padding over as she slipped into her human form and walked over to me. I yanked off my hat and threw it across the room, shifting and tugging on my kimono to release my tail.
I sighed in relief and pulled the cushion tighter to me and rested the side of my face on it. So this was going to be where I was going to stay? Where I was going to live? I looked over at Yoruichi who was blessedly covered in clothes as she watched me.
"You know." She began. "When I'm in cat form I act more like a cat. When I'm in my human form, I act more like a human." She paused scrutinizing me. "You, however, act like both a cat and a human."
"Huh? Yeah…I guess I do." I thought for a minute about my behavior and what I had seen of hers.
"Well, it will be easier to help you that way." Yoruichi said thoughtfully, resting a finger against her lip as she stared off into space. "We may be able to train you out of some of your habits, but a lot of it is going to be instinctual for you."
"Like purring?" I said with distaste.
"Yeah…and some other stuff." The last part was said hesitatingly.
I glanced up at her and scrutinized her face with narrowed eyes. "Like what?"
"Well, I'm not sure what cat-like behaviors you will exhibit, and which ones you will retain from your human side." She explained.
"Right." I want to pull the pillow over my head and never come out. "So what exactly are you going to be teaching me about kido?" I ask curiously.
"At first I'm just going to go over the basic offensive and defensive kido spells. Once you understand the concept, it's a matter specific incantation. There are also other more specialized spells that you might want to learn later, if you want."
I sighed and sat up, pulling the pillow with me. "When do we start?"
"Tomorrow."
I nod. She's still watching me closely, seemingly looking for something, though I don't know what. "Yoruichi…"
"Yes, Ichigo?"
"Thank you."
She nodded in understanding. "I know. Just remember that I'm here for you."
…
Kido lessons turned out to be a real bitch. Yoruichi enjoyed watching me fail. I knew it. I had never been good with the technical stuff and reiatsu control, which was what kido consisted of. That and I had so much spiritual energy that the spells I managed to do usually destroyed everything in sight.
Kendo was just weird. I mean, I could fight with a sword already, it was just, once again, the technical stuff that went along with it. And I started to realize that my new…characteristics were going to be a hassle when it came to Kenpachi.
The first time we saw each other since my new move to Soul Society, he predictably attacked me. Whatever. I had taken extra precautions before the lesson to make sure that my hat would not fall off and my tail would stay put. And then I found out something that I knew I was going to regret.
Something so tiny that it was ironic how much it affected me. Kenpachi's hair had bells in them. Bells were fun to play with. That's right. The entire time we sparred, all I could think about were his bells. I wanted to reach my hand up and bat them, make them jingle. Grab them with my paw, hand!, and chew on them.
Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if they weren't attached to Kenpachi's head at the time.
I think I surprised the large Shinigami when instead of thrusting my sword at his torso, I twisted it and brought the sharp blade through the ends of his hair. All the bells and some of his hair tumbled to the ground at once. I suppose I expected his hair to be spiky or something, but instead it fell to his shoulders flatly, albeit ragged at the ends. I ignored my shock, however, and played my move off like nothing. I grinned and rested my sword over my shoulder.
"I don't need your fucking bells to tell me where you are." I said with a smirk.
His eyes narrowed and then he grinned back. "Hah! So that's the way you want it, Ichigo?"
And the fight began again. He didn't put the bells on again, for which I was very thankful.
I didn't know how this was considered a 'lesson,' it was more like us sparring with a few occasional tips thrown in by Kenpachi. One of the more memorable moments was when we were fighting like usual and Kenpachi paused, saying
"You know, you shouldn't lift your heels up when you move, it makes you slower. Just slide." I blinked a few times, a little thrown off, and Kenpachi used my surprise to his advantage and promptly disarmed me, giving me a long slash to my hand.
I held it to my mouth, glowering at him and nursing my wound as he cocked his head at me. "What did I tell you about your spiritual pressure?"
I mumbled something around my hand that I was licking, gazing up at him balefully.
"Well?"
I pulled my hand away and glared at him. "Don't let up on it."
"Good. Again."
Needless to say, my ass got kicked so many times I lost count. Kenpachi was a lot stronger than when I last saw him, more precise with his movements. I suppose part of that was also that he we weren't actually trying to kill each other, which meant his brute strength won over mine. And I still wasn't used to my cat instincts that would try and mess me up.
My ears and tail were also starting to seriously ache from being squashed and pressed down so much. But I was still so self-conscious about them that I didn't want anybody else to know. I doubted most of the Shinigami would care, but it was still something to get used to.
I know Yoruichi was concerned about the random cat habits I was picking up, but so far nothing too serious. Although I was starting to hate the fact that I loved being petted. All Yoruichi had to do to calm me down was to give me a scratch behind the ears and I was turned to putty. It just felt so good, I couldn't help myself.
God help me if Kenpachi finds out.
…
LINE
That's where I'm ending it this time, because there's a second part which will be equally long. I know that Neko-Ichigo is horribly over used and cliché, but I hope that I put a new spin on it that makes it my own =D
Constructive criticism is very welcome, but so is any type of reviews!
Let me know if the formatting is still wonky, I think I fixed it, but I'm not sure.