CHAPTER 4:

One second his fingers were drumming nervously on his lap, the next he was jiggling his leg or fiddling with his cravat or fixing his hair or tugging at his coat or - -

"Stop that or I will cut you," Rukia warned.

Ichigo scowled at her and continued his fidgeting.

Rukia rolled her eyes. "So you whine and give us your huge high-and-mighty diatribe on how shallow these events are, yet now you are back for more." The girl stopped to sniff the air theatrically. "What's this? Is this hypocrisy I smell in the air? Hm? Why, yes, yes it is. With the subtle addition of I-told-you-so in there too."

Ichigo just glared at the girl from across the carriage seat. Sometimes, he wondered if he could invent a way to mentally make people internally combust. 'Or perhaps I could create a bomb small enough to be ingested and then remote controlled into setting off.' He already knew who test subject number one would be.

"Ah, the sweet smell of victory," Rukia grinned smugly. "And that would be fine and all, but would it kill you to relax for two seconds?"

"What are you so worried about anyway?" Renji asked, leaning back and resting his head on the walls of the carriage. "You are the one who wished to come this time, so why be so anxious? We did not get you all dolled up only for you to fidget away and ruin your attire. Lighten up and enjoy yourself a little."

The orange-head scoffed. '"Dolled up" he says.' Huffing, he crossed his arms over his chest and faced the window. He was only wearing a simple gray and blue outfit, and it was one of his own. Gray dress trousers tucked into a pair of knee length leather boots, a cobalt collared shirt and gray cravat peeking out from the fitted leather vest, and a long navy blue coat to pull it all together. 'Nothing too fancy, right?' Ichigo stopped his finger-drumming as a thought occurred to him. 'Unless, it looks like I am trying too hard.'

'No, that is impossible, he does not even know me. He won't know what I usually wear. Besides, even I know better than to show up at one of Unohana's balls in casual attire.'

The youth relaxed. Yes, it would be fine. Everything would be fine. G and him would finally meet again, face to face, and everything would be fine.

'Unless, he does not recognize me at all! Oh my god, how did this not occur to me earlier?! How is he to recognize me without the hair, or the clothes, or the contacts?'

'No, it shall be alright. Even if he cannot recognize me, I can most definitely recognize him. How many people have blue hair, after all?'

'... None. Of course! No one has blue hair! It must be a wig, or a dye or something! What if he also looks different this time? What do I do?! How am I to find him?'

Renji watched his friend with a fair bit of amusement. Ichigo was an open book - - he could not conceal his emotions to save his life. Though over what exactly his friend was currently panicking about, the red head had no idea. He did know, however, that Rukia would find a way to figure that out, one way or another.

"Oh thank god," Rukia sighed as the carriage slowed to a stop. The footman opened the door, proffering a hand to the lady, which she quickly took as she escaped the carriage. They had finally reached their destination.

Ichigo and Renji followed her out and made their way into Duchess Unohana's mansion. As he looked at the other guests, Ichigo recognized a few who were his father's friends, doctors from the hospital. There were quite a few familiar faces but none was the one he wanted to see. He scanned the heads of the crowds and there was no blue hair to be found.

Cold glass slipped its way into his gloved hand and Ichigo looked up to see Renji smirking at him. "Bottoms up, old friend. Nothing like a little liquid courage to steel your nerves," the red-head said with a wink.

Ichigo hesitated. Normally he wasn't one to drink but, hell, he had been fighting a panic attack ever since he sent out the pigeon with his last reply. Scowling, the boy genius accepted the champagne flute and gulped down its contents in one fell swoop.

One hour and two drinks later, Ichigo was taking a break outside the balcony.

He had looked everywhere for someone even remotely resembling the charismatic man from his letters but he had no luck. At first he looked for men tall enough to match G's physique. That significantly narrowed the list.

He entertained the thought of seeking out men with blue hair but decided that would be futile. There was no way that hair could have been natural. Though it looked incredibly natural, Ichigo was sure that the right synthesized fibers or furs could have created that texture. Silk? Denatured horse hair? What about the dye? Extract of cornflower? Filtered blend of indigo?

'Focus, Ichigo! Focus!'

Yes, anyhow, the hair could definitely have been fake, but those eyes... Ichigo shuddered just remembering the intensity of those bright blue eyes. They were so incredibly blue that Ichigo almost thought they were contacts, just like the ones he himself had worn that night, because he had never seen anything like that before. But the way they captured his attention and held his soul for hostage, daring him to look away for even a second? No, those were no contacts. They were as real as anything Ichigo could be sure of.

So he had two things he could be absolutely sure of: G was a tall man with blue eyes.

He sighed, and stepped forward, deciding the best approach was to directly confront these men.

"Hello," Ichigo smiled stiffly as he walked up to a man. The man turned around and smiled back at the youth. Long blonde hair, soft brown eyes. Ichigo mentally sighed as he pretended to make his way around the man.

Ichigo plastered on another smile as he neared another suspect. Blue eyes, brown hair- this could be promising. Right as he was about to subtly hint at any previous encounters they may have had, a lovely woman sidled up to the brunette and slipped her arm around his. The auburn haired boy watched as his suspect placed a loving kiss on his wife's cheek and he slinked back to the shadows.

Now repeat this process with every person who looked even remotely like G, and one could see why Ichigo was frustrated and rapidly losing hope.

Ichigo wrapped his arms around himself as a gust of wind blew past him. Either G had been in the crowd and Ichigo had already eliminated him, or G had stood him up. Neither of the two options appealed to him. If G really was in there and refused to answer back to his hints, then either way, G was playing mind games again.

The orange-head scowled. He thought they had gotten past all the games and tricks. Clearly, G wasn't anywhere near finished. The young inventor's fists clenched. Fine. If G wanted to waste his time, then he didn't need to take this. He had had enough of this foolish behavior, and it was ridiculous that he had even gone along with it for so long. 'Fine.' Ichigo tore off that stupid cravat around his neck. He was done with this.

"Beautiful night, isn't it?"

Ichigo spun around. He squinted at the broad shouldered silhouette - - he could barely make out the shape of the man in the dim light of the cloud filled night, and it didn't help that the balcony was completely shrouded by shadows. There was no way of being sure it was G, but the whole scenario was far too familiar to be a coincidence.

"Peaceful too," Ichigo responded warily.

A deep-voiced chuckled rang out from the other side of the balcony. The man stepped forward and extended a hand. "Care to make a man's day?"

Ichigo looked at the proffered hand like it was a holding a meat cleaver.

"Relax. It is but a dance," the man laughed again. "Though I cannot promise that you won't be wanting more."

The young inventor's mind was running a mile a minute. That was twice now that this stranger made some reference to G. Ichigo was dying to just straight out ask him whether or not he was the same blue-haired devil messing with his mind for the past few weeks, but the more logical side to him reined him back. As any scientist worth his two cents knew, two times could be a coincidence; third time's the charm.

Ichigo took the hand and nodded, more to himself than his partner (though he didn't have to know that). "Challenge accepted."

The man pulled him into his arms and the two began dancing to the music drifting in from the ballroom. They swayed slowly to the music, as if time was a foreign concept and they owned the night.

Ichigo tried to keep his mind focused on identifying this mystery man but found himself quite distracted by the heat emanating from the large hands on his waist and the solid chest pressed against his so closely that he was positive the man could feel his heart beat. He kept his head down to hide the blush rising against his face and trained his eyes on a silver pin on the man's lapel.

"Why won't you look at me?"

Startled, Ichigo instinctively looked up and found himself trapped by the all too familiar gaze of a pair of eyes in the most mesmerizing shade of blue possible. He gasped and the youth traced a feather light hand across the man's cheekbones. An electric shock ran through him as he fell deeper and deeper into that bottomless pool of cerulean.

"G", he whispered, "It is you."

The man smiled, tightening his hold around the youth. "Hello again, sweetheart."

"You..." Ichigo frowned and punched him in the jaw. "You bastard! How long have you been here?!"

He grinned. "Is the whole punching thing going to become a tradition now, or are you just so excited to see me that you cannot contain yourself?" The blue eyed man laughed at Ichigo's expression. "Alright, I apologize. I have been here since the start. You just didn't see me."

The orange-head seethed. "So you just stood by and watched me make a fool of myself trying to look for you? I hope you were amused because I sure as hell am not."

Mischief twinkled in those blue eyes and the man put his hands up defensively. "I only wanted to see how long it would take you to figure out which one I really was. I had not expected you to take so long. Again, I am sorry."

Ichigo huffed, "No, you most certainly are not. If you recognized me first, you should have just approached me first!" The brown eyed boy paused. "How did you recognize me?"

"It was not easy. I did have my doubts at first, considering how different you looked from last time, Shiro," he said teasingly. "But the little mannerisms you have - - the way you talk, the way you walk - - gave you away."

"Oh." Ichigo fiddled with his sleeve. "So... does it bother you how different I look?"

"Yes."

Ichigo's heart dropped.

"The way you look gets me very hot and bothered."

Ichigo blinked for a few seconds until the words sank in. "You-!" He couldn't even think of an appropriate response, not when that insufferable man was grinning so smugly at him and his own face was turning more and more red by the second.

Oh, this was definitely the same man.

The brown eyed boy turned away with a huff. He could hardly believe that a man he barely knew was getting him so riled up. Speaking of which... "What is your name?" Ichigo demanded.

The man looked surprised. "My name?"

"Yes. I find it most irritating that I cannot attach any other name to your face other than 'G', which I presume is what your name begins with."

"Very well. My name is Grimmjow. Grimmjow Jeagerjaques. And your's would be?"

"Ichigo Kurosaki."

The man lifted Ichigo's gloved hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to it, "Enchanted to meet you, Ichigo." He smiled. "Would you mind if we get out here? This party is nothing but stuffy old fools and tedious floozies. I do believe this atmosphere is bad for my health."

Ichigo snorted. "And my mental well-being. Let's go."

They went back into the mansion with Grimmjow holding tight to Ichigo's hand and pulling him stealthily through the dancing and mingling crowds. They drew quite a few stares, mostly from jealous women and a few envious men, but they did not care. They snaked between people like the most delicate of dances and before they knew it, they were out the main entrance.

Ichigo breathed a sigh of relief when he noticed his surroundings and started laughing. "You brought me to the garden? Could this be anymore cliche?"

"It just figures that this sort of thing would not work on you," Grimmjow shook his head as if frustrated, before he caught his eye and grinned. "Ichigo Kurosaki, you are indeed a difficult lady to woo."

"You are ridiculous," he declared through his laughter. Ichigo tried to catch his breath when he noticed his hand was still being held by Grimmjow. He blushed and tried to slip his hand free but the other man just tightened his grasp.

"Why don't we just stay like this for a while longer?" he said quietly.

Ichigo, too stunned to actually say anything, just nodded. His hand felt incredibly strange being enveloped by another. He was used to having his hands flying over sketches, hovering over flames and fingers tinkering over gadgets. This stillness was... different. '

But not entirely unwelcome,' he supposed.

Grimmjow's thumb made circles on the inside of Ichigo's wrist as the two walked hand in hand through the garden. The scent of roses, daphnes, and camellias made for a heavy perfume that wafted gently over the two with each cool autumn breeze. The sound of their footsteps were a separate rhythm to the music from the mansion that, though softened, was still within hearing range.

"So now you know that my hair and eyes from that night were fake," Ichigo said slowly, "but your hair and your eyes... are they really natural?"

"Real as can be."

Ichigo nodded, as if he had never doubted the fact. Except that he had, and any true scholar would not just take words at face value but rather question and confirm it until all other possibilities were crushed to the ground.

"Can I... touch it?"

Grimmjow looked surprised for a second, before his features fell into an easy smirk. "I knew it. You just cannot keep your hands off of me, can you?"

Ichigo scowled. "Oh, shut up," he said, before reaching over and running a hand through that mane of blue. The orange-head blinked in surprise. It was soft, like real hair except better. It felt more like the downy tufts of fur behind a cat's ear or a horse's throat. It was absolutely fascinating.

"So... are you content to just stand here and stroke me for the remainder of the night? Because if you are, I was somewhat hoping for a different type of stroking."

Ichigo's hand recoiled like it was burned by acid. The young man frowned. "You would like that, wouldn't you?"

"I think you would have more to be worried about if I didn't like that."

"Oh, sure." The brown eyed boy coughed, "Pervert."

Grimmjow said something but his words went ignored. A glint of something caught the young inventor's eye and his curiosity pulled him towards it. He shoved away some of the shrubbery covering it.

"What is that?" Grimmjow peered over his shoulder and tried to get a better look. "A hoverboard?" he said skeptically.

"A broken one, at that." Ichigo pulled it out of the dirt and examined it with a practiced eye. "I wonder what it is doing here..." He started the system to turn it on. Lights flickered as the machine powered on and the engine began to run. A strange ticking noise started up just as the board floated a foot or two off the ground before crashing back to earth.

Grimmjow looked over and sighed. "It appears that I have lost your interest to a heap of metal."

Ichigo shushed him and flipped the board around. Just as he had suspected, the source of the problem was in the spokes on engine's jets.

"I sincerely hope that this is not how the rest of the night will go: you playing with your machines and me standing off at the side."

"It will only take a few minutes for me to fix it. Something must have lodged into it and caused it to crash," he mumbled to himself. He reached into his coat and pulled out a small set of tools. "Just wait until I finish. Use that legendary patience of yours."

"I am going to ignore the fact that you apparently carry around your tools everywhere because you look rather enthralling when focused like that."

"Shhh."

Grimmjow grunted but said nothing more. Ichigo snuck a peek at him and hid his amusement at the pout on the blue haired man's face, before getting back to work. He made quick work of repairing the machine and it was fixed in no time.

"There, done."

Grimmjow eyed the hoverboard suspiciously. "How does it work?"

Ichigo grinned. "I thought you would never ask." He put his tools back in his pocket and laid the craft on the floor, setting his feet in a sturdy stance before kick-starting the engine. With a quiet pur, the machine came to life and lifted itself, and Ichigo along with it, a few feet off the air until it reached about the height of Grimmjow's torso.

The blue-haired aristocrat stared at the contraption with a bit of disdain.

Ichigo crossed his arms and waited for the other to say something before he snapped under the silence. "Well?"

"What?"

"Are you getting on or not?" The board was certainly big enough for two.

"Not." Grimmjow shook his head. "I don't trust those things. Flying is not meant to be done that way."

Ichigo frowned. "So, you prefer airships?"

He supposed he understood the appeal. Airships were a smoother, easier ride. No work had to be done for one to enjoy themselves and ride along the winds in a lap of luxury. Meanwhile, hoverboards required constant vigilance; one wrong move, one small shift in posture could throw off the balance and send its rider careening back towards the ground. However, the freedom and the exhilaration of having nothing between him and the sky was well worth the risk. Ichigo had to admit, he was a little disappointed. He had thought Grimmjow would be a kindred spirit concerning the adrenaline of the sport, considering the man's wild and rebellious nature.

"I-" Grimmjow ran a hand through his hair, tousling it further, as his face set in frustration. "I can't explain it."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "Do not tell me you are afraid?"

"Afraid?" Grimmjow scoffed. "I know not the meaning of the word."

"Good." He leaned back, directing the board lower towards the ground. "Hop on, then."

Grimmjow rolled his eyes and stepped on. The board shifted precariously under the new weight and Ichigo adjusted his stance to regain balance. He turned his head to check Grimmjow's formation and frowned.

"Spread your legs further apart, a little more than shoulder length - yes, good. Now, bend your knees slightly. Lean forwards with your arms out to keep balance."

Ichigo nodded with approval at Grimmjow's form. "Since I am assuming you have never done this before, here are the basics," he ignored the man's scowl and continued on. "Basically, whichever direction you lean your weight towards is the direction that the board is steered towards. However, since this is your first time, I shall steer and you ought to just focus on keeping your balance."

"Who said this was my first time?" Grimmjow glared.

The orange-head looked blankly at him before smirking with a smug grin crossing his face. "Don't worry, I will be gentle with you."

Grimmjow scoffed, a retort ready at his lips when the board suddenly shot up into the air. They were rapidly ascending and in just a blink's time, they were well above the flower garden and leaving the vicinity of the mansion. The sound of music and chatter from the party dwindled into nothing as the board gained momentum, speeding them further and higher up into the night sky.

The whoosh of the air rushing by tickled their hair and tousled their hair. Ichigo expertly steered the board with minute shifts in his weight and brought them flying over the city of Seireitei. As the two zoomed over the city, the brown-eyed boy swerved in the air as if he belonged up there while Grimmjow just struggled to not fall off the board.

He thought he was doing pretty well for someone who had never done this before, until the board suddenly lurched forward and Grimmjow found himself fumbling for balance. In a desperate attempt to steady himself, his hands caught onto Ichigo's waist. The younger man jumped when he felt Grimmjow's hands on him.

"Sorry, sorry," Grimmjow said, letting go quickly. He just knew he was going to get punched again, and considering how high up they were, he wasn't sure they could afford the pilot of the tiny board to get distracted or upset with him. "It was an accident, I swear."

"You-!" Ichigo blushed and sighed. "Just... hold on." He reached behind him and brought the large hands back to his waist. "We don't want you plummeting to your death now, do we?"

"I don't know," Grimmjow said warily. "Do we?"

Ichigo laughed and chose not to answer.

Grimmjow grumbled, taking the man's silence as an invitation to hold on tighter.

The orange haired genius decided that he rather liked causing the other man discomfort. It took the arrogant aristocrat down a few pegs. Grimmjow was too used to getting his way and Ichigo found that taking him out of his comfort zone was healthy for both of them. This new side of Grimmjow was a refreshing change to his usual persona.

After a half hour of hovering, Ichigo decided to give the other man a break. He circled around Seireitei's largest structure, the clock tower, before slowing to a stop right above the clock's face.**

"We have arrived, good sir."

"Why, thank you, my good man," Grimmjow teased as he stepped off the board on to the ledge.

Ichigo followed after him and shut off the hoverboard. The two climbed over the ledge and carefully seated themselves on the safety railing so as to face the view of the city sprawled out in front of them.

Grimmjow wondered why the orange-haired youth brought him here. It was beautiful, but it was also cold and a precarious location to simply relax in. He figured it had something to do with the privacy that the clock tower ensured. A lascivious smile made its way across the blue eyed man as he thought about all the possibilities for the young inventor's sudden desire for privacy. Amused and curious, Grimmjow decided to let himself be the prey instead of the predator for once, and told himself to fall back.

He waited and waited for Ichigo to make a move or start a conversation but the other man said nothing. Moments turned to seconds, to a minute, into ten, before, finally, Grimmjow snapped.

"Say something!"

Ichigo turned his head to face him, an eyebrow raised as if he was surprised. "What do you want me to say?"

"I don't know and I don't care. Just say something, anything to break the silence."

"Why?"

"Because it is too quiet. I get bored."

The young inventor stared at him, long and hard, for a second before sighing. "Fine," he said. He shook his head, as if disappointed, and looked away to the city again. "People..."

"People in this city are always busy," Ichigo started. "It matters not whether they were born here nor if they moved to this city for being attracted by the life and the lights, like moths to a flame - - they all turn out the same. They seek excitement and thrill, confusing them for sources of happiness. In a city like Seireitei, it is easy to find a way to entertain yourself. Theater, art, dance, parties - - anywhere you look, there is something going on around every corner. So people chase after these so-called flames, believing that they are chasing happiness. They go fluttering from one thing to another, never having the time for anything.

"They fool themselves into thinking they are content, and when they realize that they are not, they desperately seek a new trend to occupy themselves. This can go on for the entirety of their lives and they still might not understand why they cannot find the contentment they so desperately seek. They turn to all sorts of ridiculous notions: drugs, crime, sex. They will do anything to bring themselves out of the monotony of their lives.

"People get so wrapped up in their problems and their lives that they completely miss out on anything else. Or maybe it is not that they miss it," Ichigo corrected himself, "but that they choose not to see it. While there are those whose greatest problem in life is which ball to go to and what style of gown is no longer fashionable, others are begging on the streets just so that they can live another night. How is it that people gifted with so much cannot find a way to be happy, when the starving and homeless find joy in just finding spare change on the streets?

"What the former do not see, what they are blinded to, is the simplicity of happiness. All they have to do is just slow down enough to truly appreciate one of the many things in this city. For example, the theatre. They hear the voices and the words, but they do not appreciate the emotion in the dialogue. They can see the players' movement, but they do not see the impassioned gestures of characters coming to life from within the vessel that is the actors' bodies.

"Seeing is not the same as appreciating, just as how hearing is not the same as listening. Until one can understand that, they will never learn how to truly be happy."

Ichigo finally faced Grimmjow. "Now do you understand why I brought you here?"

Grimmjow looked at the orange haired man and then returned his gaze to the view before him.

Seireitei truly was a large city. When he looked at it from up here, it seemed like it would stretch on forever, even though he knew that to be false. The horizon was broken up with buildings and bridges popping out of the ground. The sound of chatter from down below and the clip-clop of horse drawn carriages were muted by the height of the clock tower. Grimmjow looked down with amusement at the tiny people on the streets. The lit up windows of families at home or offices still at work looked like fireflies in the vast night sky. Clouds hung low, blocking the moon in wisps of gray. The cold air was crisp and clean, with a scent that signaled the arrival of winter.

He looked back at Ichigo and smiled. "I believe I am beginning to."

Ichigo smiled back at him. He reached over for the other man's hand and both watched the world go by. This time, no words were necessary.

As nice as their time alone was, the two eventually had to return. The ball was almost over by the time Ichigo and Grimmjow landed at the same garden where they took off.

After Grimmjow stepped off the board, Ichigo jumped off and shut the board down. He looked wistfully at the machine. It was an older model, but now that he had fixed it, it ran just fine. In fact, if he could just take it home and make a few adjustments, it could out-fly any other model. Ichigo sighed. No, he couldn't keep it. He had found it and that meant he had to return it.

Entering the mansion, Ichigo turned to the other man. "Grimmjow, I am going to find Duchess Unohana and see if she wants this back," he gestured at the board. "I shall find you later."

The blue haired man smirked. "Are you sure you do not want me going with you? I fear you may miss me too much."

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Idiot," he muttered as he searched for the duchess alone.

He had just caught sight of the woman's signature braid when two pairs of hands apprehended him. Rukia and Renji dragged him to a secluded corner of the room.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, where did you go? Do you know how long you were missing,? Did you even stop to think about how worried we were this whole time? How could you possibly leave in the middle of the ball when you," Rukia jabbed him in the chest, "were the one dying to go?! And what are you doing with a hoverboard? Where could you have possibly found a hoverboard?!"

"More importantly," Renji interrupted, "who were you just talking to and why?"

The Kurosaki heir scowled and set down the hoverboard, propping it up against the wall. "Calm down, mother," he ignored Rukia's glare. "I returned, did I not?"

"Young man, if you even dare-"

Ichigo stopped her oncoming rant with his hands held up in a typical surrendering position. "I did want to come here tonight but only so I could see a friend again. After I saw him, we decided that balls were boring, the people here were boring, and pretty much everything else about this was just as boring so we decided to explore. We found this in the garden so we borrowed it and took a little trip. I do not know how long I was gone, and to be honest, I do not particularly care, though I do apologize for making you two worry. I suppose I just lost track of time." He shrugged. "Not much to worry about, is there?"

Rukia exhaled slowly through grit teeth. "You borrowed a hoverboard that you just conveniently found in the garden?"

"I do believe that is what I said, so yes. Yes, I did."

She slapped him on the arm. "You stole someone's hoverboard?!"

Ichigo hissed and rubbed his arm. "Did you not just listen to my story? I found it. It was broken and abandoned in the garden so I fixed it. If anything, the owner should be thanking me. Good grief, woman, control yourself."

This mildly appeased the Kuchiki princess though her glare was not weakened. Renji cleared his throat. "You have yet to answer my questions."

"Hm? Oh, the blue haired man? That was Grimmjow. Grimmjow Jeagerjaques? He was the friend that I was with before."

Just like that, all of Ichigo's efforts to calm the two were wasted. Judging by the expression on their faces, the two were not anywhere close to done with yelling at him.

"Grimmjow Jeagerjaquez?" Rukia hissed. "This whole time you were gone, you were with Grimmjow Jeagerjaquez?"

"Uh, yes. I believe I just said that. Really, Rukia, start paying attention."

"Ichigo," Renji's tone made the orange-haired youth stop joking. "Do you have any idea who he is?"

"Does it matter? He is my friend."

Rukia rolled her eyes, "That answers the question."

"Ichigo..." Renji paused, searching for the right words so as not to offend his friend. "Jeagerjacquez is notorious in our society for being... sybaritic."

His friend raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest, prompting him to elaborate.

The red head sighed. "Jeagerjacquez is a man ruled by impulse. He follows whatever interests him. Once he loses interest, whether it be trends, games, toys, or people, he tosses them aside as if it all means nothing to him. He has gone through more than a few lovers, if you can even call them that, and none have lasted more than a few weeks before he gets bored with them. He breaks their hearts like a child with toys, yet they would just as quickly crawl back to him. The man has no morals, no scruples, and he does not play by any rules. This is a man who literally does whatever, and whoever, he wants whenever he wants."

Rukia scoffed. "You keep calling him a man, but a real man would not lack the decency to at least apologize for making a lady cry. You should have seen Nemu after he ended their so-called relationship. She was in shambles, and this is Nemu we speak of!" She huffed and crossed her arms. "I say he is more animal than man."

"My point is, Ichigo," Renji continued, "he is dangerous."

"How do you know? Have you ever actually spoken to him? Have you ever actually tried to get to know him?"

"I have no need to. Word of his reckless behavior spreads through these circles like wildfire. These rumors have to have come from some where."

"Oh? So this means you have not. I would have thought that the two of you would know better than to heed the meaningless hearsay coming from the mouths of these idle wenches!"

"We do know better!"

"How can you say that?! You have no idea who he is!"

"And how long have you known him, Ichigo?! Can you honestly say that you know him?" Rukia fixed her large eyes upon him. "You cannot know what his true intentions are."

"No, I can't," Ichigo said. "But Grimmjow has given me no reason thus far to doubt him, and until he does, I will give him the benefit of the doubt."

"Ichigo," Renji pleaded. "We just do not want you to get hurt."

"We have seen what happens to the people who get too close to him. We just cannot bear to see the same thing happen to you."

Ichigo groaned. He could not believe that, out of all people, Renji and Rukia would be the ones to judge his friendship with Grimmjow. How long had they known each other?! By now, surely they should trust him to be able to separate liars from the honest.

Yet... they had never lied to him before and Ichigo knew that they wouldn't unless they thought it was for the best. It was for exactly that reason, that Ichigo held them so dear. They were his friends and they would never do anything to hurt him.

Ichigo looked at his two friends. The desperation on their faces and the concern in their voices spoke volumes for them. He lowered his head and clenched his fists.

No. Rukia and Renji would never lie to him, so that could only mean they were telling the truth about Grimmjow.

He smiled grimly at the irony of it all. Of course. Here he was, a proud intellectual yet he was foolish enough to fall for such a cliche plot. How could he be so stupid?

"Ichigo," Rukia asked hesitantly. "Are you alright?"

"Fine. Just fine," Ichigo laughed bitterly and shook his head. He bit down on his lip and forced a smile on his face. "You were right."

"Oh, Ichigo." Rukia hadn't wanted this. All she wanted was her friend to be safe; she had not counted on that pained expression on his face. She reached for him but he shrugged off her touch.

"No, I-" Ichigo cleared his throat, ignoring that lump in it. "I think I will just head home first."

"We'll go with you!"

"No. You two stay here and have fun. I- I need to be alone right now." He smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes before turning around and leaving.

Ichigo took long strides and walked quickly to the door. He wanted to get out of here. Now. It felt like all eyes were on him and they were intrusively burning a hole through him. It felt like everyone could see how stupid he was. He felt his face grow hot with shame and he quickened his steps. It felt like his walls were crumbling and he was minutes away from crying. 'No,' Ichigo thought. 'I won't cry. Not over someone like him.'

This was exactly the reason why he left this environment in the first place. The lies, the facades, the games - - he was sick of it.

"Ichigo!" Grimmjow caught him by the arm and grinned. "Did you find her already?"

The young man slapped the man's arm off of himself. "Don't," he snarled, "touch me."

The blue-haired man frowned. "Who pissed in your glass of wine?"

"Shut up." Ichigo spun around and jabbed a finger into the taller man's chest. "It is people like you that make me so disgusted with the world. You have no respect for anyone. You play games and use people like entertainment. You do not have a single care for anyone in the world who isn't you!"

Grimmjow growled. "You had best watch what you say. What makes you think you have the right to speak to me that way?"

"Oh? Don't I? Am I not one of your many little toys? What's wrong? Does the master not find his toy's behavior pleasing?" Ichigo smirked, "You must regret this now; all this time and effort spent on such a disobedient little puppet. Don't you just wish you could throw me away just like all the others before me?"

"What the hell are you talking about?!"

"You know exactly what I am talking about!" Ichigo snapped. He stepped into Grimmjow's space and hissed, "You approached me because you were going to use me and then dispose of me, just like all your other previous interests! Are you telling me I am wrong about that?"

Blue eyes glowed like the burn of fire but Ichigo did not back down.

Finally, Grimmjow silently said, "No."

Ichigo's gaze narrowed. "I knew it. Grimmjow, you really are a sick bastard." He shook his head at the other man. "I don't ever want to see your face again."

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Nine months... I am most ashamed. I am so sorry. (Especially to you, God's Sense of Humor, for being slow with this when this was supposed to be dedicated/written for you over a year and a half ago. And for making this story like 10 chapters long when I said 5. I hope you're still reading this story...) I have no good excuses for you. Thank you, violentbrat, for kindly reminding me to get on with it. So I did. :D Hopefully this extra-long chapter makes up for the time taken to write it. This is the longest piece of writing I have ever done, schoolwork not included.

**In case anyone is having trouble with the setting, picture Seireitei to be like Victorian Era London (which means mid to late 1800's), and Karakura to be like some small country town on the outskirts of the city. The clock tower is, of course, Big Ben. And the hovercraft, in my mind, is like a mechanical flying surfboard.