Hello again, my friends! It's been a long time since I've haunted this part of the net. I've been an extremely busy young girl, so please excuse me for the very slow posting. The occasional reviews of encouragement have fired me up, and I am going to try and keep the posts coming a little more regularly, even if there aren't many people left to read :S

If you're still interested in the fic, thank you very much. You don't know how much every little review saying you liked it means to me :)

Lots of love to aaaaaall you beautiful people.

"Ichi-chan!" Gin swept forward, scooping the blood-soaked boy into his arms. Grimmjow and Shiro stood, staring speechlessly at the limp orangette as he was lifted away in elegant arms. Without a second look, Gin and Ulquiorra were gone, leaving the two blood-covered men in the corridor.

After a moment of stunned silence, both came back to their senses. The fight lay forgotten, twin looks of panic in their eyes as they hurtled after Ichigo's scent.

All the Espada were gathered in the infirmary when Gin appeared, stained red, clutching Ichigo's dying form.

"Gin!" Aizen exclaimed, staring at his subordinate curiously. "What happened to Ichi-chan?"

Ignoring the man's words, the silver haired man gently lay Ichigo on the nearest bed, calling for Szayel with an uncharacteristic urgency in his voice. His face lay unguarded, sky blue eyes wide and smile non-existent.

As the pink haired Espada set to work on the orangette, Grimmjow and Shiro burst into the infirmary together, startling all inside.

Aizen raised a single eyebrow at the blue haired man, looking pointedly at his new 'friend', but raising a long finger to keep the other rippling Espada at bay. "He seems quite safe at the moment. Look at the poor thing, just as worried about Ichi-chan as we are. Grimmjow, would you explain?"

Shiro raced across the room without listening to a word Aizen was saying, much to the man's annoyance. Grimmjow kept his ground, watching Ichigo from afar, but also completely ignored his superior. Narrowing his eyes at the blue haired male, who was staring at the pale orangette with worry, Aizen called quietly to Tousen.

"Punish him," he smiled softly at the blind man, who unquestioningly strode towards Grimmjow, drawing his Zanpakutó as he went.

Distracted by Ichigo's condition, Grimmjow only noticed Tousen's approach at the last second. Instinctively, his hand went for his weapon, ready to defend himself against the man. Faster than anticipated, Tousen darted towards the blue haired man.

The following scream of pain and anger was enough to rouse Ichigo, who was slowly recovering through Szayel's work.

Blurry cinnamon eyes desperately searched the area for the man whom he knew the scream belonged to, paying no attention to his own injuries. His sight eventually focused on blue hair, and travelled down to see fingers clutching at the bloody stump of a shoulder. Grimmjow had fallen to his knees, head bent slightly and creating a pool of blood around himself.

Ichigo, unable to move his body, watched in horror as the man, already heavily injured from his fight with Shiro, slowly wavered, before crashing to the floor. He tried to shout out to the blue haired man, but the effort just sent disorientating waves of pain through him with no vocal results.

Ichigo began to panic at the lack of reaction to Grimm's collapse; no one moving to help him, Gin was the only one who even spared him a concerned look.

The orangette struggled inwardly, desperately willing his mind to push through the hazy pain that was clouding his movement. Finally, Szayel's hands still moving quickly around Ichigo's body, the boy found himself able to move his limbs again. Without a second though, he lurched up - only, his problem had become more than mental now. Looking down, Ichigo stared aghast at the bindings he hadn't even noticed being secured around his body.

Angry eyes searched for an explanation, seeing Aizen standing behind Gin with a taunting smile on his lips, and then finding Gin's sky blue eyes looking back apologetically. Sparing a few seconds to give those incredible eyes a hateful glare, Ichigo tore his head back to Grimmjow, lying still in an increasingly large pool of his own blood.

Suddenly, alarm raced through him, "Where's Shiro?" he demanded of no one in particular.

A moment passed, and then a sheepish voice said, "Here, Ichi."

The more vibrant counter-part looked around with a groan. Shiro was on the other side of the room, tied up securely, wrists attached to ankles.

"Tch. So much for saving me."

The pale twin gave an apologetic grin and as much of a shrug as he could manage from his bindings.

The orangette had a brief mental battle before relenting against his pride and looking to Gin for help. "Gin, please. If you won't help Grimmjow then help me," he motioned at his bindings, fixing Gin with a puppy-dog stare and pouting lips. Inwardly, he punched himself repeatedly.

Ichigo saw Gin waver slightly, biting his lip as he gazed at the strapped-down boy. Just as it looked as though he would relent, the silver-haired man shook his head slowly, "Sorry, Ichi-chan, it's outta my han's."

Aizen gave a small, yet commanding, chuckle from behind his subordinate, "Thank you, Gin."

The powerful man stepped forward, smiling calmly at Ichigo and opening his arms slightly, as though to embrace him.

"Ichigo Kurosaki," there was underlying malice in every quiet word, "I have allowed you to run free and showed you nothing but kindness at Las Noches. However, to achieve my goal I needed some… leverage,"

The man paused, a seductive smile pointed in the boy's direction, motioning at the clearly half-dead Grimmjow and the bound Shiro,

"And that's exactly what I have, now. So, will you side with us?"

Ichigo gaped at the man. "No," he said simply.

Another chuckle passed through Aizen's lips. "Must I make it more obvious, Kurosaki? I will kill Grimmjow, and this twin hollow of yours."

Ichigo continued to stare at the arrogant face, brow furrowed. There was no way he would join Aizen and the Espada, but he also couldn't let Grimmjow die. And despite the small incident of being gored by him, Ichigo was growing fond of his pale copy.

"Better hurry, Ichigo, Grimmjow isn't looking too well," Aizen said teasingly, with a mocking smile.

"What does joining you… entail," Ichigo said in barely a whisper, hating himself for his weakness.

"Oh, just a little murder,"
"No."

"I see. Well then, Tousen, remove Grimmjow's body. Just throw him from the walls, he'll die shortly in the desert."

Ichigo clenched his jaw, panic welling inside him as the blind man crossed to where Grimmjow was lying, soaked in blood.

"Okay!" he slammed his head back against his bed, grinding his teeth, "okay."

"Good choice," smiled Aizen serenely, "Szayel, save Grimmjow. And reconnect his arm."

The man swept from the room, Tousen and Gin following after him.

"Gin!" called Ichigo without thinking.

The fox-like man turned, his usual smile back in place, "Ichi-chan?"

The orangette paused for a moment, deliberating, before saying quietly, "Will you stay?"

Gin looked shocked for a moment, and then smiled again. He turned to Aizen, who chuckled slightly, "you may stay, Gin."

The silver haired man swept back to Ichigo's side, where they watched Szayel working furiously on fixing Grimmjow. Both men were now soaked in the bluenette's blood.

Nnoitra and Starrk still lay in other infirmary beds, not fully healed yet due to Szayel's new charges. Ichigo felt a wave of regret for all the other men in the infirmary – they had all been injured due to his inability to control his feelings.

"Ichi-chan," Gin said urgently, grasping his hand, "I'm sorry. There was nothin' I cou' do, I… I'm sorry."

Gin sighed deeply as Ichigo just nodded a little, barely acknowledging his words as he anxiously watched Grimmjow.

"He 'preciates it," Shiro smiled at the silver haired man, body contorted strangely in his bindings. Gin slowly moved over to the colourless half of the pair, and loosened the ties slightly, "Sorry ta you, too."

"Na," Shiro shook his head, "ya don't need to 'pologise to eitha of us. Ya did nuthin' wrong."

"But I didn' intervene."

"Wha's the use of you tryin'a help an getting' killed? We're all alrigh', aren' we."

"Aizen will kill ya."

"I know."

Gin widened his eyes at Shiro's response. The gold eyes stared back unwaveringly, displaying defiance, and a little sadness.

"I'll miss Ichi," he said casually, looking across at the orangette, "bu' I recon he's alrigh' withou' me."

"He can look after 'imself."

"Not 'motionally."

"I'll look after 'im."

"Yer in love with him?"

"Completely."

"He loves Grimmjow."

"I know."

Shiro narrowed his eyes at the fox-like man, sizing him up. After a moment, he grinned widely, "I wish he'd choose ya. I like ya."

The two men stood silently, observing the boy of their affections, who was sweaty and pale and still staring resolutely at Grimmjow. A groan escaped the man in question, and Ichigo's hands clutched at the air beside him, before he looked alarmed and called, "Gin?"

With a sad smile, Gin bowed his head to Shiro and swept back to his beloved's side.