Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Stirring slowly, everything was pain. He’d gone through that before, but this time Ichigo actually felt like he was dying, or almost did. He couldn’t tell where he was, but heard some commotion nearby. His mind immediately shifts towards the only thing he could think of; Rukia.

Rukia was in trouble!

Forcing himself up, Ichigo stumbles towards the source, his body aching, a violent buzz ringing in his ears making him feel like his head was about to split in half. Entering a corridor – wait, he was in a house? Wasn’t he laying on the street earlier? - he spots something glowing ahead with his blurry vision.

Moments later, something crashes through the wall, the sound of the impact sending Ichigo’s brain haywire, as if all his senses were in overdrive; he clutches his head and squeezes his eyes shut, feeling like the sound caused thousand hot needles to jab him right into his brain.

There was a distantly familiar voice calling out to him, but Ichigo struggled to keep his eyes open; something stood up ahead, but he couldn’t make it out what it was; the blue glow was too intense.

The next second, the thing suddenly leaps at him, smashing him hard against the wooden surface below, making his already pained and dizzy state worse. The light was so bright it felt like it was burning his eyeballs right off his face, and something was grabbing his neck hard enough to cut his airflow, something sharp digging into his skin until he felt something warm and wet dribble down his skin. When the ginger manages to open his eyes, he caught a glimpse of sharp, catlike blue eyes glaring down at him with the kind of fierce look you saw from predatory animals.

Then, the eyes shift, their expression widening by a fraction.

The pressure on his neck vanishes, and moments later the blue glow is replaced with something warmer and less eye-murdering. Figures now rush to surround him, but he couldn’t make out who or what they were. There were familiar voices nearby however.

"Urahara-san! He’s bleeding!”

"Go get the first aid, Tessai-san will handle this one.”

There were footsteps rushing away from him, and Ichigo could now barely make out the face looking down at him; it was Jinta. At least it kind of looked like him, his vision was still blurry, and he was struggling to breathe.

"Shit shit, this looks bad!”

"Did you notice Urahara-san? He stopped. Almost if--”

"Yes.”

A taller figure looms at the peripheral of his vision. He could tell from the silhouette who it was. That stupid bucket hat was unmistakable.

"It seems he recognized you, Kurosaki Ichigo.”

Everything fades back to black now, as his body could no longer handle staying awake.

Ichigo had only known Urahara Kisuke for a short period of time, but in that short period he’d learned a few things about the man.

One: the hat stayed on no matter what.

Two: he didn’t know how to contact you like a normal, sane person. Splattering a message to your closet door with what looked like blood was his idea of a perfectly reasonable delivery method.

Three: if you asked him for help, you’d bet your sorry behind you’d be in for some crazy experiments. Worse, sometimes he just ushered his help onto you, like the man had done in this case.

It wasn’t like he had a choice though; he’d need the man’s expertise to save Rukia, since that idiot had decided to sacrifice herself for the life of a human she’d only just met. Clearly she didn’t have a lot of friends if she was willing to go to that extreme. Then again, he was willing to put his life on the line like this to save her from what Ichigo saw as unjust punishment, clearly they were both some level of insane.

Not only that, but his friends had wanted to help too, having grown fond of her as well. Not to mention Chad and Inoue had both developed some odd abilities thanks to Ichigo’s massive spirit energy somehow. He had no clue how that mess worked, and he wasn’t gonna ask. None of them were ready to go yet, they had to get stronger to take on potentially the entirety of the Shinigami corp, no pressure whatsoever.

Still, heading back for the man’s shop after he’d been sent to recover fully for a few days was making him a bit tense, but Ichigo did his best not to show it. He’d had pretty painful recovery period staying there earlier that week, on top of having some weird ass nightmares; maybe side-effects of the medication the guy had forced down his throat.

Honestly, it had felt so....... real, but touching his neck when he’d woken up properly, there seemingly hadn’t been any new wounds on his neck, other than what he’d already received thanks to the shinigami bastards.

Ichigo shakes his head, forcing all that back for now, he didn’t have time to mull over some bizarre drug-induced hallucinations. Whatever crazy antics Urahara was going to put him through, Ichigo would survive it for Rukia’s sake. No way he’d let her die for his dumb ass. Chad and Inoue were being trained by the weird talking cat Yoruichi, while Urahara had said he’d help him out personally.

As the shop comes to view however, something unexpected catches his attention.

There was a figure standing on the porch leaning against the wall, which on itself wasn’t unusual as people were expecting him. It was that Ichigo couldn’t recognize the figure. Ichigo frowns and walks closer, noting the person was smoking a cigarette. He’d seen Urahara do that a couple of times but it wasn’t common. It was clearly not the sandal-hat himself upon closer inspection, wearing more modern clothing with the black leather jacket with the hood tucked over his head. He was skinnier than the blond man too, looking kind of...sickly, almost? 

Bits of blue hair were also sticking out from under the hood, which caught Ichigo’s eye next.

What an unusual haircolor, did the crazy shinigami weirdo have guests?

As Ichigo reaches the house, the unknown figure suddenly snaps his eyes open, electric blue eyes zeroing in on him, forcing him to stop on his tracks almost involuntarily. He’d never seen someone with such an intense glare, and he was known from his resting bitch face. There was...also something oddly familiar about it....

He and the stranger continued to have the odd staring match for a while, until the man breathes out a cloud of smoke, the sudden chemical assault slamming right at Ichigo’s face, making him cough and his eyes water. It definitely wasn’t some earthly stuff, smelt too strongly sweet compared to the shit his dad smoked.

The man tilts his head to the side towards the open doorway, a fairly smooth and lightly older voice than his calling out to the shop owner.

"Your carrot-top piss baby’s here.”

Ichigo stares at the man blankly, then feels his eye twitch, marching there to grab his jacket collar. The guy doesn’t even flinch, just looks back at him with lift eyebrow. Did he have cat eyes or was he just imagining it?

"Who are you calling a piss baby? The fuck kinda greeting is that!?”

He should’ve guessed given the man was still wielding his foul-smelling weapon, but Ichigo is still taken off guard by the cloud of eye-watering smoke that gets blown right to his face, forcing him to back down. Fucking hell what the hell was that shit anyway? Did Urahara sell or smoke it too?

"You were the one starin’ like some lunatic weirdo. Figured you musta be the one they were waiting for as apparently your brain short-circuits like that a lot.”

"Who the hell even are you?”

Ichigo asks once his vision stops being blurry from the smoke, still glaring at the guy defiantly. He was slightly taller than him, similarly lean built apart from looking like he'd just woken up from a flu induced coma, though his expression had a much more impressive resting bitch face than Ichigo could ever pull off. That, and he was clearly shielding his eyes lightly, as if the light was hurting them. In fact he did seem to be dealing with some sort of headache, judging from his demeanor.

The man ignores his question and continues to smoke, just pointing towards the door with his thumb, silently telling him to get inside. Ichigo squints at the stranger but heads in anyway, quickly realizing something had happened inside. The shop was a bit of a mess - more than usual - and there were scratch marks on the walls and the ceiling. Jinta was furiously scrubbing off some spilled liquid from the floor, and Ichigo didn’t even dare to ask what it was.

"Good morning Kurosaki-san!”

Urahara appears from the nearby door, and the ginger notes he had a bandage around his neck, and his clothes looked a bit torn at the edges.

".....What happened here?”

"Nothing, nothing! Just a little unexpected morning chaos, don’t you love that?”

Urahara waves at him dismissively with his fan, and Ichigo could tell he was hiding something. To be fair the man was always hiding things, but this case was more obvious than usual. Ichigo looks around for a second, before his gaze returns back to the blond man. That nightmare from that night appears back in his mind’s eye briefly.

"It looks like a giant cat got loose and scratched everything up. Did Yoruichi suddenly grow bigger and go into a frenzy after having too much catnip or what?”

There was an amused sounding snort behind him, and he turns to find the unknown man from earlier step in, dropping the cigarette to turn it off against the floor with his foot. The blatant display of rudeness makes Ichigo narrow his eyes again, but the man ignores his glare, pacing there with hands in his pockets. He still had the hood tugged over his head, and did look a bit like he was having a headache. Smoking that foul shit likely didn’t help.

"Ahh, I must admit the timing of this is a bit...inconvenient.”

"Not my fault you wanna train this piss baby right here.”

"Wow, again? At least try to come up with a new insult.”

The man just flashes him a kind of a freaky grin, showing he had very sharp looking canines. Ichigo still holds his gaze stubbornly, as he was never gonna give some jerk an inch. Also why the hell did this guy feel familiar...?

"I wanted ta call ya a crybaby but apparently that’s not accurate anymore.”

Anymore?

Before Ichigo could ask what he meant, Urahara claps his hands together, gaining their attention.

"While I am certain you are most curious of our visitor, he needs some rest and you must start your training! After all we have a damsel in distress to save!”

Ichigo looks between the man and the strange asshole, who’d already wandered off towards the door Urahara had come from, rubbing his temple lightly while cursing under his breath. Yep, the moron clearly had a headache and he was torturing himself by smoking. Ichigo tells the guy as much, making him stop briefly just to flip him off without even looking back at them.

"Kurosaki. We don’t have much time, come.”

Ichigo looks back at Urahara whose tone and demeanor had changed into something more serious. Right, he could wonder about the rude stranger later, he had to get stronger to save his friend. As they wall down and into a dark hallway, Ichigo notes there were even more scratch marks here and there, and what looked like burnt parts. Tessai was ahead, repairing a broken wall. Ichigo frowns dubiously, asking the blond what the hell did he store in his basement as it became clear the weird destruction originated from there.

Urahara hums, for a moment the only response being the clack of his wooden sandals against the floor of the corridor.

"Things you don’t need to worry about.”

"...Was it that new guy? Who is he anyway?”

Ichigo asks, because he was kind of an obvious suspect. While the guy seemed human - apart from his weird eyes - he’d suddenly appeared at the porch and the same day the inside of the place seemed kind of ransacked. Urahara still doesn’t respond to his questions however, just opens a door to another room. Well, room was an incorrect word; it was more like they’d just stepped into another world, with a sort of a desert with scattered rocks and rock walls, and a blue sky. While he should’ve expected some weird things with Urahara, this still managed to weird him out.

"This is where we shall be training you! It’ll make sure you won’t accidentally cause unnecessary damage while fighting.”

"Who am I—”

His soul gets knocked out of his body, which falls flat face first onto the sand, before hurriedly delivered away to a safer location by Tessai. The first thing Ichigo notices was he was struggling to breathe, and moving was hard too.

"Your soul energy was lost, this first lesson will be about recovering it.”

Urahara throws him some gear that looked like boxing things, and Ichigo puts them on confused, becoming even more baffled as the man now gestures at the little girl Ururu, stating he’d be fighting her. His first thought was naturally that this was a bit unfair given he was older and bigger, but she soon proves his assumptions wrong by pulverizing the nearby rocks with a single hit.

Yep, this was gonna be crazy, and he was crazy for agreeing to it.

Later that evening, Urahara leaves the training grounds, leaving the task of watching over Kurosaki for Jinta for now. He had faith in the young man to survive this ordeal, but admittedly him needing this training and their longtime guest’s awakening happening the same night wasn’t ideal. Walking upstairs past the still scratched up walls, the man takes an inventory on their guest’s reiatsu the closer he got. It was calm right now, and seemed stable enough, but this awakening had happened far sooner than they’d calculated.

Sliding the door open to the living quarters, he finds the blue haired man slouched on the nearest bed, covering his eyes with his hand. Tessai had left him some medicine to help with the migraine, but as usual he was too stubborn to take it. It wasn’t too surprising, he was very distrustful towards them after each awakening due to the slight loss of memory it caused.

"I’d recommend taking the medication offered.”

The blunet just grunts and doesn’t bother looking at him. Urahara eyes the man’s other hand warily, resting on his belly. Right now it was normal, tanned human hand, but they’d seen his soul transform it earlier to a blackened claw. It was fascinating how he could affect the very structure and shape of his gigai to an extent, although he’d be better off not doing it. In that instinctive state he was on each time he awakened though, supposedly the man couldn’t be blamed for wanting to pull out his claws, any beast did that when feeling threatened and cornered.

".....The fuck’s he here anyway?”

"As said, a damsel needs rescuing. fairly capable one usually, but the situation requires it this time around.”

"Whatever. Don’t really care.”

Urahara watches the man stand up, still monitoring his reiatsu closely. They couldn’t really have him lashing out again so soon, it could endanger Kurosaki’s process, and potentially this body as well. While his soul was calm, it still wasn’t stable, and leaving a physical body was....not ideal for him yet. After a moment, the blunet stops rubbing his face and drops his hands to his knees, shoulders slumped in a tired manner. Urahara relaxes, as it was clear last night’s outburst was likely where this’d be left at for the time being, thankfully.

"Thank you for not fully tearing my head off last evening by the way!”

Urahara comments cheerily, rubbing his injured neck and gaining a predictable eye roll from the man. He’d always been a fussy patient and a rude guest, but Urahara had noted beneath that rough, blunt exterior existed something more complex than meets the eye. Given his nature, it made sense.

"M’ almost disappointed its still talkin’ shit. Shoulda done it.”

"We admittedly did not expect you to awaken until at least another month, you could’ve given us a warning.”

The man turns to face him, offering him a predatory grin that tended to scare Jinta and Ururu each time they saw it, though the former would never admit it out loud.

"Yeah sure, I’ll shake you awake before tearing yer limbs off next time.”

"Oh, also, thank you for not murdering Kurosaki-san earlier! That’d been a very rude awakening for him!"

The blunet doesn’t respond to that comment, not that Urahara was expecting one. Chances were he barely recalled what happened that night, let alone yesterday evening when he’d been triggered into another frenzy once he woke up again from the brief comatose Tessai had put him in. At least it hadn’t been as violent as the first awakening. Urahara folds his fan and puts it away, crossing his arms over his chest with a more serious expression on his face now.

"I must ask you to steer clear from the basement for now. While your aura seems calm finally, it could interfere and cause problems to young Kurosaki.”

"Why the fuck would I wanna go to that musky dark old basement anyway? I hate that place.”

"You know the saying about cats and curiosity.”

The blunet narrows his eyes at him, but then just snorts and slumps back against the pillow, waving at him dismissively as he turns his back to his host.

"Yeah yeah whatever. Now fuck off, your obnoxious face’s makin’ my headache worse.”

Urahara thanks him politely, knowing that while the man was being rude about it, he’d heed his request. While blunt and ill-tempered, their guest was not unreasonable for the most part. Except right after waking up, his morning crankiness was quite the sight to behold - and a pain in the neck, literally. Leaving the room and closing the door, he enters back at the store side, finding Yoruichi sitting atop of a shelf, likely to come update him on her first day of training Ichigo’s friends. The black cat looks around at the mess briefly, before yellow eyes land back on him.

"You still haven’t cleaned up properly, huh?”

"It is a work in progress; we have to keep an eye on Kurosaki.”

"Do you think he’ll survive your challenge?”

Yoruichi asks completely calm and unconcerned, licking her paw. Urahara glances back towards the basement door, before shrugging and looking back at her with a goofy smile, bringing out his fan again.

"We’ll see! This’ll be exciting either way!”

Yoruichi shakes her head and scratches her cat ear, before looking towards the doorway where their guest was resting currently.

".....It’s a bit concerning your calculations were off this much. His power is growing faster than we expected.”

"Well, given his nature it was always going to be a bit unpredictable.”

"But it hasn’t been wrong before, not this much.”

Urahara reaches up to give her a chin scratch, gaining a playful bite as a response. He tells the black cat not to worry, as life was always going to be unexpected in some ways. They still had everything under control. Mostly.

The first thing Ichigo did when getting out of his hollow pit was to jab Urahara in the face, the crazy bastard. Why were all the Shinigami in some ways unhinged? Was that some weird requirement to fight hollows or something? And what did that say about him now, Ichigo realized.

Urahara rubs his eye poutily, seemingly not phased by his threat of killing him, probably because as angry as Ichigo was, he wasn’t exactly serious. Still. He’d beat the shit out of this sandal-hat bastard now that he had the chance. Making him fight a surprisingly powerful little girl was one thing, but dropping him into a pit and trying to turn him into a hollow? Fuck that!

His Urahara Kisuke ass-kicking operation attempt is interrupted by a surprise voice joining in, which makes pretty much everybody look up towards one of the cliffs scattering the weird impossible basement landscape; it was the blue haired man, somehow sitting atop a very tall rock pillar with his legs thrown over the edge, how the hell did he make it up there? Ichigo was pretty sure he was a human, or at least stuck in a weirdly weak looking gigai. It didn’t feel like a spirit form anyway, in fact.…

Weirdly, he couldn’t pick up anything, not even human life force?

Was this guy another special pill like Kon?

Whose body was that then?

"So when he tries to attack you it’s fine, but when I do it it’s a murder attempt?”

"Because you DID try to murder Kisuke you jerk! And Kurosaki too!”

Jinta shakes his fist up at the grinning blunet, but Ichigo couldn’t stop but notice he seemed a bit tense, almost if he was a bit scared to let his temper flare towards this guy. In fact, as soon as the blue eyes drift towards him, Jinta falters and backs away slightly. Tessai now kindly requests the man to come down and leave the space, as Urahara had specifically asked him not to come there right now.

"He’s outta the pit, so it’s fine. Just wanted ta see if the piss baby’s still human or if I have a snack ready down ’ere.”

"Kindly refrain from eating our other guest, Grimmjow-san.”

"The jury’s still out on that; his reiatsu reeks like a tasty gourmet meal.”

So his name was....Grimmjow?

Yeah definitely not human, what kinda weird ass name was that?

Didn’t sound like a Shinigami name either, at least so far all the ones he’d met - while jerks or wack like Urahara - had had semi human sounding ones. If that was the case, why did they give this guy such a sickly looking gigai? Was Urahara's stock running low or did those things get spoiled overtime somehow?

Then, Ichigo’s brain catches up on the weird conversation, and he proceeds to glare up at the blunet, pointing an accusatory finger at him. His face was flushed from anger as well, as he still had anger hormones in his body for yelling at Urahara earlier.

"Wait it was YOU who attacked me that night?! So it wasn’t a dream!?”

The man flashes him a wide grin, leaning his chin against his palm. Something about that shit eating grin pissed Ichigo off even more. The guy just reeked arrogant confidence,.

"Yer welcome for not gettin’ killed by the way. M’ very cranky when I wake up, n’ you being a weak little piss baby saved your ass from gettin’ devoured.”

Ichigo probably should’ve been more alarmed about this reveal and asked Urahara what the FUCK was going on, but he was too worked up still to really think things through clearly, so he continues to yell at the rude bastard to make himself feel better.

"Stop calling me a piss baby, asshole! Who the hell just randomly attacks people who’re almost dead already!”

"...Yeah, definitely more of a piss baby now; it’s so easy, taking the piss on you Kurosaki.”

Ichigo was about ready to hop up to punch that smug grin off his face, when his mind takes a double-take. Something about the way the man had said his name, it was....it was like he knew Ichigo. In a way someone who’d just tried to randomly murder you once probably wouldn’t. Well twice, that cigarette smoke was definitely a murder attempt.

Urahara breathes out a sigh behind him, now turning to address the man.

"I can see why you are curious, but we must continue his lessons, and you are distracting him.”

Grimmjow snorts at the man, then briefly alarms Ichigo as he shifts up, jumping down from his spot to a sheer drop that’d surely injure or kill a human, he however lands safely, which seems to surprise even Urahara beside him and even Tessai’s normally serious facade has his eyebrows shooting up so high on his forehead they almost leave his face entirely. The man now stalks closer to Ichigo, who finds himself grasping the hilt of his broken sword tighter unconsciously, not really even knowing why. The guy didn't look strong at all, but this was likely a gigai, although....

The blunet stops in front of Urahara, towering over him slightly as he was taller, leaning down lightly to quietly hiss at him with an intense glare that rivaled Karin when scolding their father, which was an achievement.

"This one’s not gonna last long. This thing works both ways, he’s fucking it up fer me. You wanna train him? Fine, but make it quick before m’ coughing blood again, or next time I wake up I will ACTUALLY lop off someone’s head. Could be his.”

"H-huh?”

Ichigo lowers his blade lightly looking between the pair bewildered, now a slight worried hint appearing into his brown eyes, both for the obvious threat in the man’s voice, but also the kind of alarming implications of his words. Both ignore him however, as Urahara returns Grimmjow’s gaze calmly, face still partially hidden by his fan.

".....This was unexpected, certainly I would not have both of you under the same roof like this in current situation if I could help it, but unfortunately I have no choice on the matter.”

The man snort and pushes past the blond man, shoving him hard enough to almost knock him off his feet. Ichigo just watches the mysterious man leave, disappearing through the door they’d entered from eventually. Silence mounts between the group, until Urahata coughs and gains his attention again.

"Pardon me. We may continue now that distractions are out of the way.”

"What was that about coughing blood? Who is that guy? why did he try to kill me that night? why did you guys pretend I dreamed the whole thing!?”

Ichigo bombards the hat-sandal bastard with his questions with a mixture of annoyance, uneasiness and even concern. Attempted murder aside, while the guy might’ve been a jerk he was a son of a doctor, and had principles; that whole coughing blood thing had sounded serious. The blond man hums sounding lightly amused before sighing and shaking his head, telling him calmly to focus on the task at hand.

"You do not have time to be distracted, Rukia depends on you Kurosaki-san.”

"Urahara, that guy TRIED TO KILL ME apparently, and you guys pretended it didn’t happen!”

"Kurosaki. I am serious. He is not of your concern, and the only reason you were even made aware of his presence that way was due to unfortunate timing.”

The way the man spoke and looked at him now made Ichigo swallows down hard, feeling a bit nervous now. He clearly would be better off dropping this subject for now, or Urahara would force it somehow. Ichigo glances towards the door one last time, before shaking his head to try and focus. He clearly still had ’lessons’ left to go through, whatever those were. Probably shit that seemed easy at first glance and was anything but in practice.

Turns out Ichigo was right. Because of course he had to be.

Even as he struggled with the simple task of knocking Urahara’s hat off his head, Ichigo briefly wondered about Grimmjow, what his deal was. And if he should genuinely try and kill Urahara after all.

He’d worry about that decision later, once Rukia was safe.

Ichigo wasn’t even sure what day it was once he emerged from Urahara’s basement of horrors, but he’d at least managed it. All his powers were back now, and his soul felt strong again, which was good. He almost didn’t want to kill the man anymore, almost. Stepping outside back in his human body, it felt nice to breathe in some fresh air. It was late, the sun had already set, but it was honestly nice seeing the starts after staring at the artificial blue sky of the weird basement for so long.

His gaze lands on the figure sitting at the steps, still smoking away as if he didn’t care his head would explode with pain or something. Maybe the guy was a masochist. He was no longer wearing his jacket or covering his eyes though, so maybe the migraine was gone. He hadn’t seemed in pain earlier either when he’d showed up to shit talk them.

The odd comment about blood flashes in Ichigo’s mind-eye, and he chews on his lip, his earlier curiosity returning again. He paces closer hesitantly, until the man turns to look at him without warning, making Ichigo freeze like a deer caught in headlights. Kinda hard not to, because again, murder attempt as their first meeting. That tended to leave a strong impression on people. It wasn't even like this was the first time someone's first instinct was to try and kill him - thanks, pineapple bastard shinigami - but in this case he'd already been in bad shape. 

Clearly his expression must’ve matched the deer metaphor as the man grins amused, before turning his head away again, taking a drag from his cigarette. This one smelt less strong, seemed to be more ’normal’ so to speak.

"Congraz on not dying. Yet.”

"Yeah, well...I’m too young and handsome for that.”

The man snorts, and while Ichigo couldn’t see his face, he could imagine the eyeroll currently happening.

"Don’t oversell yourself, piss baby.”

Ichigo frowns a bit tired of that insult, walking beside the man so he could see his face properly. Blue eyes were focused on ahead, and he was clearly not really interested in talking to him. As Ichigo examines his face more closely, he’s yet again hit by this strange sense of deja vu. He could’ve sworn he’d seen this guy before, beyond that night - hell he'd admittedly barely seen shit then - but the name hadn’t rang a bell in his mind.

".....You can stop creepin’ on me Kurosaki. I know I’m attractive, but that’s pathetic.”

Ichigo’s face flushes red in annoyance - annoyance and only that - and he crosses his arms over his chest, throwing the man’s earlier words right back at his face, telling him to not oversell himself either. Grimmjow just snorts and smirks at him lightly, before blowing a cloud of smoke at him. It doesn’t cause as extreme of a reaction, but Ichigo still coughs and waves the shit away from his face.

"...Anyway, what was all that about?”

He asks, making the man lift eyebrow at him questioningly.

"The blood thing? You trying to kill me earlier? I mean I have more questions but let’s start with those.”

Ichigo did his best to sound casual, even if admittedly he felt nervous. He’d gone ahead and checked his body’s neck just in case once he got to go back into it, but again, no wounds were present anymore, having been completely healed by now. If there had been a bruise and puncture wound, the proof had vanished by now. Perhaps Urahara and his gang had been counting on it, only for the blue bastard to blow their cover, maybe out of spite, he came off like a spiteful asshole. 

"Told ya; m’ cranky when waking up and yer face pissed me off.”

"You look like the kind of guy who gets pissed off by everything.”

Ichigo wasn’t sure if being snarky to this guy was smart, but he was still not going to have any bullshit from rude jackasses. Plus Grimmjow didn’t seem interested in crushing his throat right now, just continuing to smoke while pointedly avoiding his eyes. Clearly the bastard didn’t want to continue this conversation, which was kind of frustrating. Urahara hadn’t shared anything either…

"Human’s a weak prey, not worth the effort.”

"Can you stop talking about me like I’m some snack?”

The blue eyes glance at him amused now, and Ichigo realizes too late how that could be taken. He flushes lightly, crossing his arms annoyed and telling the man he obviously didn’t mean it like that.

"Well, I just told ya you ain’t, so quit bitching.”

"Look, I just wanna understand what’s going on, but Urahara’s not giving me anything!”

Ichigo huffs exasperated, gaining an eye roll from the man who now stands up, cigarette firmly kept between his lips now.

"You owe me at least some form of explanation for trying to kill me you know?”

The man plugs the cigarette away from his lips, then blows the smoke right at his face with some force, making Ichigo cough.

"No.”

The blunet vanishes inside without further word. The ginger stares after him with watery eyes, tempted to go after him, but senses following Grimmjow back inside would not bear any useful information. Clearly the whole store group wanted to keep him in the dark about this guy for whatever reason…

Ichigo turns on his heels, his bag firmly thrown over his shoulder. It was time to head home now, Karin and Yuzu had to be worried anyway.

"That sounds....insane.”

Uryuu finally comments as Ichigo finishes his tale about the crazy training week he’d spent at Urahara’s place. Inoue looked understandably horrified, and even Chad’s expression had shifted lightly from the usual calm visage, into something more concerned.

"Yeah, but I managed it. Even jabbed a good hit at the bastard’s eye.”

Ichigo comments with a triumphant grin, before taking a sip from his soda. They were at the rooftop spot in school, it was the last day of the semester before summer break. Inoue and Chad had recounted their first week of training with Yoruichi as well, and apparently progress had been made there too.

"Still, t-that sounds a bit extreme...”

Inoue muses out, playing with her hair nervously. Ichigo just shrugs, honestly not caring anymore. Besides....

"….There was one thing weirder than Urahara’s wacky training methods; apparently he had another guest at the time. Real rude, also tried to kill me our first meeting.”

Seeing Inoue’s horrified face, perhaps that wasn’t the best way to put it, but it was too late to take it back now. Uryuu frowns at him with a scolding look, whereas Chad questions the ginger what he was talking about.

"I woke up while I was still recovering, and there was this commotion somewhere. I followed the sound and this guy...or at least it seemed to have been him, I couldn’t see his face properly? Anyway, he crashed through a wall all glowy and beast like and then tried to crush and impale my throat the same time.”

"Are you alright!?”

Even Uryuu seemed alarmed by this, and Inoue looks at his neck highly concerned; the ginger waves his hand at them, telling that he was fine, there was not even a scar left from the incident.

"He did stop short from doing it, and then they did something? I don’t know what the hell they were up to, but the next time I saw this guy he was standing in front of Urahara’s shop. Looking like an average human with a bizarre hair color.”

Ichigo drinks his soda again, rewinding back on the brief interactions and overheard conversations with Grimmjow. He was still confused about that name, was it his actual name? It definitely wasn’t a human name. It could’ve been a foreign one, but Ichigo doubted that, especially given the guy had no accent whatsoever.

"Kept calling me a piss baby for some reason, and still tried to murder me with his shitty smoke twice.”

Upon seeing Inoue’s face again, Ichigo mentally slaps himself and reassures the group that by that point all the hostility was mainly just verbal jackassery. The guy hadn’t really done anything to him, other than be an asshole which seemed to be his default mode.

"….Sounds a bit like what happened that night was...unplanned? If he was acting so different and even looked different from that night.”

Uryuu muses out uncertain, and Ichigo finishes his soda, holding the still cool can against his forehead briefly as it was warm as hell that day, before throwing it in the nearby trash.

"I guess? I mean my memory’s hazy, but it definitely felt like some sorta fit or something in hindsight. Also for some reason they tried to hide it had happened? Claiming I was dreaming...”

"Feels a bit like they didn’t want you to know this mystery man was there.”

Chad comments after a moment of silence, gaining an agreeing nod from Uryuu and Inoue. The ginger had to agree, that was definitely the vibe he’d gotten from it as well, Urahara had even called the situation inconvenient for some reason.

"I don’t really even know what he is? That night my senses were pretty useless, and later it’s like...he has no reiatsu whatsoever?”

They all blink at him confused, and Ichigo explains he could now tell apart at least Shinigami, human, hollow and Quincy auras. Grimmjow not only didn’t seem to match any, but didn’t seem to even have one, which was weird. The only thing similar to that was Kon, but Ichigo was certain Grimmjow wasn’t another mod soul, considering what he’d seen that night.

"Maybe....they use some sort of...fake bodies when in mortal realm sometimes, right? Like what Rukia-chan did....so….”

Ichigo nods faintly, agreeing with Inoue’s assessment.

"I think it might be a gigai that’s completely hiding his reiatsu from being detected? Or maybe they use it to seal away his power so he won’t lop off Urahara’s noggin like he almost impaled my neck. Not that I’d blame him for wanting to do that one, Urahara pisses me off too sometimes.”

"Why would Urahara-san be doing such a thing though? Wonder why that person is with them?”

Inoue muses thoughtfully, gaining a shrug from Ichigo. You never knew with that oddball of a man, for all he knew he had a closet full of horrors and grumpy smoker asshole potential murderers stashed away somewhere.

"Whatever. We can ponder about this later. Rukia’s counting on us, and I’m counting on you to help me.”

His comment provokes a smile from Chad who lifts his hand to give him a thumbs up, and Inoue nods with a determined look on her face, stating he could count on them. Uryuu seemed a bit more hesitant, probably still reeling over the crazy things Urahara put him through - the same man was going to be sensing them to soul society after all - but eventually he nods as well, ready to help.

Watching the group get whisked away into the spirit realm from the shadows, Grimmjow paces back to Urahara, who was still fiddling with his machine.

"...They’re gonna die.”

"I doubt that, Kurosaki-san and his friends are surprisingly capable.”

"Guess he did give ya a mean black eye.”

The blunet snorts, watching as the portal closes and the machine stops whirring, returning everything to normal in the very-not-normal basement space. The blond man eventually stands up and turns to face him, asking him how he felt right now. It was an annoying question, he still didn’t trust the concern was real whatsoever. They were just playong nice ’cause they needed to be on his good graces for now. Whatever.

"Not hungry anymore at least. I wasn’t kiddin’ when I said his soul smells tempting.”

He tells the man bluntly, and Urahara was clearly not surprised by his admittance. It was an annoying thing he had to deal with given his condition, where he constantly felt slightly hungry and couldn’t do much about it. Having someone like Kurosaki around made it worse. It’d already been bad back then, and he hadn’t even understood why the ginger made him feel both uneasy and fixated the same time.

Fuck he’d really hated being a kid.

Even if he hadn’t known it, or that he wasn’t a normal brat. At least with every incarnation he’d started to feel more comfortable in his body, well, as comfortable as you could be in what was essentially a fleshy prison. He was still tempted to slice off this shinigami bastard’s every limb once he could finally leave these shitty bodies behind. Clearly Urahara could tell what he was thinking, judging from that annoying faint smirk on his face.

"….I must ask. If his soul smells tempting, why did you stop yourself that night?”

Of course he’d fucking ask, nosy bastard.

"Not worth the effort, too weak at the time.”

He knew painfully well the blond bastard could call his bluff, but he had the sense not to comment his thoughts out loud, likely knowing he could actually lose a limb if he did so. Instead, the man turns the topic on its head.

"....Did he seem to recognize you? Beyond witnessing your...fit.”

The man asks curiously, and Grimmjow averts his gaze, not really knowing the answer. He’d not meant to drop breadcrumbs to the ginger, but coupla comments had slipped past his filter, irritatingly. He could tell Kurosaki had slightly caught on, that he knew more than he likely should.

".....Dunno. Doesn’t matter, does it?”

As usual, the man doesn’t reply to his question, because being a mysterious asshat was more important than giving actual answers. The blunet snorts and turns on his heels, heading back upstairs. Urahara looks after him briefly, noting something interesting.

The shadow he cast on the wall didn’t match the man’s frame, it had horns.

Chapter Text

He was running, trying to get away from the monster. The ground was slippery beneath his feet, making the boy almost fall and stumble as he did so. He couldn’t trip, couldn’t fall over, the monster would catch him!

Turning the corner, he tried to find his way home.

Where was home?

He was lost.

The monster was getting closer, the boy didn’t know what to do!

He darts to an alleyway, hiding behind some old crates and trashcans, covering his head in fear and trying to be as small as quiet as he could, so the monster would not notice him.

Heavy footsteps pass by, the cold the monster was extruding reaching his very bones, making the boy shiver silently. Eventually, the footsteps and cold are gone, and he slips back out, going towards the way he came, hoping to find his way home before—

"There you are!”

The boy yelps and stumbles to the ground, turning back towards the monster terrified.

It was big and had a scary, massive white face with a big mouth and big teeth. It wanted to eat him.

"You’re slippery, but I always find my meals!”

The monster opens its maw to swallow him whole, when something blue flashes past them, striking the creature’s head. It wails terrifyingly and falls back with a trail of red following it. The b oy looks up in shock, but couldn’t make out what it was; the light was too bright. There was someone standing within it though, a small figure with a silhouette of something bigger around it.

There was a distant roar in the air, like that of a large beast

Sitting up slowly that morning Ichigo holds his head for a moment, feeling extremely drowsy. To be fair he had been since their return from the Soul Society, but this felt different. He could’ve sworn he’d been dreaming about something, but couldn’t for the life of him recall what the hell it was. Not that it mattered, Ichigo supposed as he gets up to go and take a shower. If it was important he'd have remembered it. 

It was the first stay of the semester, he’d skipped the entire summer break pretty much, during his invasion to kick the crap out of every shinigami in existence. Or at least it had felt like he’d had to go through almost every single one. It had been worth it though, Ichigo would’ve never forgiven himself if Rukia got killed because of him. He already carried guilt over one death, there was no need to add to it.

As Ichigo steps out of the shower and heads back to his room, he’s in for a massive shock. So much so he drops his towel and just stands there half naked, staring at the figure sitting on his windowsill, hands in his pant pockets. The hood was on again, and Ichigo could tell the bright sunlight outside was bothering him, he should probably invest in sunglasses or something.

"Huh, so you indeed didn’t die, well done.”

"I—What—Why the fuck are you in my room? How did you get in?!”

Ichigo shrieks before quickly covering his mouth, glancing downstairs and hoping nobody heard him. Dad was likely already at the clinic, and Karin had left for school already. Yuzu was probably still in the shower, hopefully.

"Window, dumbass.”

The blunet looks at him like he’d lost all his brain cells, and Ichigo coughs, gathering himself and picking his towel back up, squinting at the man cautiously. He still couldn’t pick up anything, that gigai - if that was what hid everything - was really good at hiding his reiatsu.

"I can see that. Why the fuck are you here? Trying to sneak kill me or something?”

"Nah. Not worth the effort.”

The man shrugs, digging out a cigarette pack. Ichigo instantly rushes there and snatches it from his hand, hissing at him to not smoke in his room dammit. He was still flushed red, probably from the shower’s heat and not because there was a strange guy he just met in his room without warning, while he was still half naked. Totally not that.

Grimmjow looks at him annoyed, clearly contemplating on the easiest way to hide his body, before rolling his eyes and snatching it back, putting it in his pocket.

"Your old man smokes.”

"Not in my—how do you know that?”

Grimmjow doesn’t respond to his question, instead rudely inviting himself in fully, looking around his room with a stoic expression. Ichigo looks between the door and the window, wondering if he could somehow shove him back out or into the closet to hide if Yuzu came in. He didn’t have enough imagination to explain such a surprise visitor to her.

"Huh, reeks of a shinigami. Other than you. Not that yer a real one.”

Ichigo blinks and looks at the man baffled, then quietly hisses at him, attempting to shove the bastard back towards the window. Despite his skinny, somewhat sickly looking gigai, Grimmjow wasn’t easy to move. He just slumps to his bed like he owned it, crossing his arms behind his head.

"You might wanna check yer closet for soul reapers before dressing up, smells like one was in there.”

"Get out of my room!”

"Nah. Your bed’s comfy, n’ I slept like shit last night.”

The man flashes him another one of those predatory toothy grins, which did admittedly unnerve Ichigo and remind him once again he was half naked and pretty vulnerable in this state. Kon was nowhere to be seen either, maybe the damn bear had sneaked out earlier to go find girls or some shit.

"You’re just gonna try and stab me if I turn my back to you or something.”

"Backstabbing’s no fun.”

Grimmjow snorts and closes his eyes, clearly intent on staying right there for whatever reason. Ichigo glares at the man for a long moment, before his shoulders slump. This was his life now huh, his room and bed being invaded by the weird basement dweller of Urahara Kisuke. None of that had been confirmed of course, but Ichigo knew for a fact the destruction he’d seen back then that originated from the lower levels of the building were caused by him.

The ginger gives the man a dirty look and flips him off, before pulling on a shirt and drying his hair furiously with the towel. Thank fuck he’d already put on his pants so he didn’t have to search for those too. As Ichigo’s eyes land on the spot of the closet Rukia had been in, a thought suddenly hits him, and he slowly turns to look back at his uninvited guest.

".....You can smell Shinigami?”

"Yes, those fuckers reek so strongly it makes me nauseous. At least your stench is dampened by the tastier human aroma.”

Grimmjow says all that without moving an inch or even opening his eyes. It’d be so easy for Ichigo to land a kick in his groin or something right now just for that weird food metaphor, but something told the ginger that’d end badly for him. What was with him and comparing Ichigo to food anyway? 

Besides...he was once again hit by a strange sense of Deja vu, watching the man hog his bed and stinking it up with cigarette smoke stench he carried, probably.

"Is....is the smell recent or?”

"Nah. Lingering. M’guessing the short chick used ta be in there. The fuck did you stuff her in your closet for?”

One blue eye now actually opens to look at him, and Ichigo squints at the man again, informing him Rukia had invaded his closet all on her own accord. That incites a faint amused smirk from his invader, who now sits up slightly, leaning his weight on one arm while the other rested on his knee. Looking at him more closely, Ichigo felt his anger and annoyance over the bizarre situation fade, as he saw how insanely tired he looked.

It seemed Grimmjow hadn’t been kidding about sleeping like shit.

"You used to havin’ people invade yer place like this? ’Cause you’re awfully calm, especially given I tried ta rip your head off earlier.”

"Well, to be frank that’s nothing new, you aren’t that special.”

Ichigo shrugs, pulling on his socks and now looking through his bag to see he had everything; he’d have to leave for school soon. Hopefully Grimmjow would leave as well, he didn’t like the idea of this freak being in the house while Yuzu was still home.

In truth, he was wondering about this himself. Sure what he said wasn’t a lie, but this guy was different from the previous cases, or should’ve been. Brown eyes look back at his guest with a slight frown, noting Grimmjow had lied back down, now covering his eyes with his hand.

Why did....why did this feel familiar....?

"Headache?”

Ichigo asks after a brief pause, gaining no real response from Grimmjow. Ichigo frowns and dares to walk closer, grasping the man’s hand to push it aside to take a closer look to his face. If looks could kill he’d be dead thousand times over by now, but weirdly enough he didn’t feel intimidated by the glare right now. It didn’t feel that hostile when compared to that near beastly, piercing stare from that night.

"Maybe you should've stayed put instead of wandering around in this bright weather.”

"The fuckers are loud. I’m not allowed to murder any of ’em for peace and quiet.”

"Trust me, my house is equally loud.”

"No it’s not.”

Grimmjow states like it was a fact, swatting his hand away and turning his back to Ichigo now, covering his eyes again. The ginger just stares at the man, honestly not knowing how to react at this point. He’d wandered in like he was invited, acting like invading someone’s house you’d just met for a nap was totally normal. Then again, that was how Rukia acted, maybe it was a spirit thing. At least Ichigo was fairly certain the soul in this weird gigai was no human soul. What it was he had no clue, other than maybe it glowed blue and was kind of catlike, judging from Grimmjow’s eyes.

Looking at the clock, he had to hurry and go; Ichigo huffs out a sigh, poking the man’s shoulder to try and get his attention.

"You can’t stay here, Yuzu might come upstairs before going and notice you.”

All he gets as a response was a swat of an arm, the man was clearly intent on sleeping right there for whatever reason. He should’ve been more freaked out and unnerved by this, but all Ichigo felt was this strange exasperation, and again, sense of familiarity. Like this had happened before, but it made no sense.

"M’gonna sense if she comes up, relax. Now fuck off.”

Grimmjow waves at him tiredly, and since there was no way of moving him away from there short of picking him up - Ichigo wasn’t gonna risk a torn limb - he let’s the blunet stay there, heading downstairs to try and see if he could get Yuzu to leave sooner. Lucky him, she was already heading out of the door, waving at him and telling him she’d left his lunch at the table. Watching her go, Ichigo sighs and glances back up, wondering if it’d be okay to let him stay there. Maybe he should call Urahara to let the man know where his weird basement dweller was. Or well, Tessai to be exact as Urahara either didn’t have a phone or chose not to pick it up, ever.

Ichigo decides to text the man just in case as he heads out, informing Tessai about Grimmjow having suddenly invaded his room.

"Do you require assistance?”

"He’s invaded my bed and won’t leave.”

"Ah, in that case, just let him sleep.”

That response makes Ichigo frown and stare at his phone screen for a few minutes, as it admittedly wasn’t what the ginger would’ve expected, for Tessai to be fine with this bizarre situation so quickly. It was like he wasn’t too worried about it upon hearing what Grimmjow was up to, despite the fact this guy could be very violent. He once again felt like others knew something he didn't, and it was driving him nuts.

The ginger huffs out a sigh, glancing towards his window before heading out to the street. It was probably fine if they weren’t worried, and it wasn’t like Grimmjow had acted particularly hostile this time around, not even calling him a piss baby like last time. If the weird bastard wanted to take a nap in his house, whatever. He’d be in for a rude awakening once anyone noticed him and would give him the Kurosaki hospitality treatment - which sure as hell would be loud.

.....Okay, hopefully he indeed would notice anyone showing up and leaving, because he really didn’t want to return to his house burned down or something. Or Yuzu crying because he refused her hospitality.

Why is that what you are worried about?

Shouldn’t you be concerned about your sister’s safety?

Ichigo halts his steps for a moment as this realization hits him and he stands there for a moment, a deep scowl etched on his face now. Yeah, why wasn’t he more worried? It was as if....as if he knew, somehow, that Grimmjow wasn’t a threat to his family. That made no sense, given what he knew of the guy so far.

"Ichigo!”

The ginger looks up, a familiar voice snapping him out of his thoughts. It was Tatsuki, who walks there and playfully punches his shoulder, asking what he was spacing out for in the middle of the street.

"Ow. First time I see you in forever and you attack me? Who needs enemies with friends like this?”

Ichigo complains with an Oscar worthy pouty expression, making Tatsuki roll her eyes, before telling him to hurry up or they’d be late.

"You all also better tell me how it went.”

She comments more seriously as they walk, and Ichigo nods faintly, promising to fill her in on the whole Soul society trip. Urahara had suggested to erase her memories about the whole thing, but Ichigo ended up telling the man off. Given she’d ran into a hollow earlier with Orihime, Tatsuki deserved to know even if she was not directly involved apart from that incident. Tatsuki was cool and tough enough to handle it.

What was supposed to be a normal day at school where he’d do normal things like attend classes and spend time with his friends, of course turned into complete chaos and spirit shenanigans because of course it did. The first thing greeting him in the hallway – after dodging a charged hug assault from Keigo – was a red pineapple head yelling to get his attention, joined by a few other familiar faces Ichigo recognized from Soul Society.

"You know these guys?”

Keigo asks puzzled even as Renji marches there to grab his collar, for some reason being very pissed off at random. And he thought Grimmjow was a total grump.

"What the hell, could at least say hi dammit!”

"Personal space asshole!”

Ichigo pushes Renji back from his face, which was swiftly retaliated by a hard bite on his palm, making the ginger shriek and punch him, because who the fuck bit people like that? Before their yelling match could continue for long however, someone smacks them both in the head with a book, and the pair turns to look at familiar short figure, standing there huffing and puffing still wielding her deadly weapon.

"Behave you two! You are causing a scene.”

"Rukia-chaaan!!”

Keigo attempts to tackle hug her as well, but the short woman just steps aside to avoid it, causing the poor fool to skid across the floor and crash against the wall nearby. People around them were looking at the scene a bit puzzled, with Rukia rubbing her eyes annoyed, before continuing to scold the two pouty males.

"Renji, you promised to behave once we arrive here, and Ichigo, at least try to be nice!”

"He started!”

Both yell and point at each other in unison; Ichigo was aware he looked like an absolute toddler right now pouting at his mom for being told ’no’ but seriously fuck Renji and his weird dog habits. The others walk there as well now, with Hitsugaya scolding Renji with his more calm demeanor, pointing they were supposed to blend in. The redhead apologizes with his face flushed lightly red, apparently being scolded by an actual captain worked better than Rukia’s angry scowl. Then again Toushirou could literally ice your sorry ass if he wanted to. Well Rukia too, but Hitsugaya was definitely stronger.

"Pardon this intrusion, but an urgent situation forced us to come here for your aid and protection, Kurosaki-san.”

Ichigo felt kind of weird being addressed so maturely and politely by a guy so short and young looking you’d think he was his sister’s age, but Ichigo knew better than to comment on it. Keigo and Tatsuki look between them, and the girl’s expression widens, as she connects the dots.

"Are you people--”

Ichigo quickly covers her mouth and shushes her, telling her quietly to not say that in public. She smacks his hand away annoyed but nods, understanding what he meant. Ichigo sighs and turns back to face the shinigami group, asking them why were they at his school, wearing uniforms.

"To blend in! What better place to stalk you than at your school!”

Rangiku informs him cheerfully plopping her ample bosom atop Toushirou’s head like an overtly affectionate cat, making the short figure grumble annoyed and calmly – somehow – tell her to back off.

"Aww but captain! You look so cute in that uniform, I just wanna squash youu!”

She proceeds to indeed squish him like he was a very angry and scowling teddy bear, and Ichigo watches the chaos in utter silence for a moment, before wordlessly walking past them to his class, already nursing a headache. Fucking hell maybe he should go back home and kick Grimmjow off his bed so he could lie face down and die. Maybe the bastard would even help with that.

"They don’t even blend in that well, that woman looks way too old.”

Tatsuki whispers to him as she catches up; Keigo was stuck in a conversation about fashion with Yumichika, who was mainly roasting his taste.

"Don’t say that to her face; Rangiku’s touchy about it for some reason.”

"I don’t mean like old old, just old.”

Ichigo shrugs and sits down, hoping the shinigami would sort themselves out and not cause complete and total chaos, he had no energy or patience to try and sort that wild lot out right now. They could hear some of that still unfold loudly at the corridor, and Tatsuki asks him concerned if they should do something.

"Nope, not my problem. The short guy’s a captain, he’ll put them in order if needed.”

Clearly Tatsuki doubted that, probably because Hitsugaya looked so young, but she had to trust his word as he did know these people while she did not, apart from Rukia. Moments later Keigo appears in as well looking utterly defeated, slumping to his chair with a whimper, the poor bastard. Yumichika clearly hadn’t pulled his punches. Inoue and Ishida enter as well clearly having witnessed the familiar chaos outside, judging from their puzzled faces. As they walk to Ichigo to ask what was going on, he just shrugs, stating they’d probably tell them once group stopped fooling around.

"And to think these people are supposedly professional…”

Ishida tuts and shakes his head glancing at the doorway to the class, making Ichigo smile amused. That he could agree with Ishida on.

Waking up, Grimmjow stares at the ceiling for a moment, before his eyes drift towards the clock; it was around three in the afternoon, meaning he’d napped for far longer than intended. Pushing himself up annoyed, at least the damned headache was gone. Slowly the man pushes himself off the bed, cracking his neck as he gathers himself from the drowsiness of sleep.

He had half expected Kurosaki to shriek and try to throw him out, not give up so easily. If he remembered, that’d make sense, but Grimmjow was pretty damn sure the memory erasure they’d given him back then was still present. Whatever, he felt rested now and could fuck right off. The bed-sheets probably stank like cigarette smoke, but the ginger bastard’s dad smoked too, so he had no right to bitch about it. He would, absolutely, and that’d be hilarious to watch.

Slipping back out of the window, Grimmjow heads out back towards the sandal-hat’s shop. Given nobody had showed up to forcibly usher him away from the house earlier, they likely knew where he’d gone and trusted it’d be safe. He could already imagine Urahara’s knowing look and dumbass smirk once he got back, the shinigami pissed him off so much.

As he walks into the nearby park, Grimmjow slows his pace to light a cigarette, not in any real hurry to go anywhere. There were some people around but they steered clear of him, he probably looked like some delinquent with his hood tugged over his head and the smoke. Whatever, if anyone gave him trouble they’d regret it. Urahara would regret letting him wander as well after that, but that was the asshat’s problem, not his.

Continuing his walk into the deeper parts of the forest park, his eyes catch movement at the corner; Grimmjow slightly tilts his head towards a smaller path nearby behind some trees, noting a figure was running across it with haste. It looked kind of familiar, and as the path curves and connects with his bigger one, Grimmjow recognizes the girl running towards him. It was Kurosaki’s baby sister, the crybaby one.

She isn’t looking where she was going, basically crashing straight into him and falling to the ground. She looks back up startled, wide brown eyes were filled with fear, but not because of him. He then finally picked up on what was chasing the girl, and looks up lazily just as a large creature emerges from the forest.

A Hollow, huh?

"O-oh no, Sir, you need to run!”

The kid tells him as she scrambles up, only to wince as clearly the brat had sprained his ankle. The hollow inches closer to them, clearly more cautious having spotted Grimmjow. The bastard probably couldn’t sense what he was, which was making the hollow cautious. That and the fact he was staring right at it lazily without even a hint of fear. Calmly, he pushes the girl behind him, breathing out some of his cigarette smoke before bringing it back to his lips.

There was something vaguely familiar about this Hollow, and as it speaks, he quickly connects the dots.

This was the same one from that night, wasn't it?

"You are a peculiar one, I can’t tell what you are.”

"Yer awfully quiet for someone who looks like a loudmouth.”

He comments bluntly, remaining visibly relaxed while keeping a close eye on the hollow. The girl was now hiding behind him still fearful but also puzzled, likely not understanding why he wasn’t terrified the slightest. Why would he be? This one was weak as fuck, not even really worth any effort to be put into killing it.

"You’d think somebody would be more afraid of facing death.”

The hollow chuckles at him amused, clearly not aware he should be applying that line to himself. Then again, his gigai worked damn well, nobody with even a hint of spirit power could apparently pick up on what his reiatsu was like. Blowing out another cloud of smoke, Grimmjow let’s a slightly menacing grin spread on his face, tilting his head lightly to the side.

"Hard ta be afraid when a big guy like you has to go chase a small fry like this; not strong enough to go fer a bigger fish?”

Clearly that sparks some anger from the Hollow as it shifts up to its full height to try and intimidate him, which of course worked about as well as Kurosaki trying to scowl him off his comfy bed. Fat chance that did anything.

"I am a hunter genius! You have no idea how good I am, insolent human! I prefer waiting patiently for suitable, high quality prey than attacking anything that moves like my brethren!”

Grimmjow digs his ear disinterested, his expression not changing whatsoever. He was just waiting for the big faced buffoon to strike, not feeling like doing it first. Again, weak fry like this weren’t worth the effort. He could barely hear the girl mumble something behind him, something about not provoking the beast. He didn’t bother listening properly, the kid had no idea how lucky she was having ran into him, literally.

Why was he again stuck saving a Kurosaki?

What kind of weird curse had been paid upon him to have to do this, over and over?

Grimmjow let’s a proper shit eating grin spread across his face now, looking the hollow straight at its giant ass masked face.

"Just admit yer too weak to actually chase down bigger prey.”

If a hollow’s masked face could do so, the bastard’s eye would be twitching, and clearly his calm demeanor and insolent attitude finally pissed the guy off enough to attack him recklessly, leaping forward without warning. That makes the girl behind him squeak in hilarious and familiar way as she quickly steps back, whereas Grimmjow just stares at the approaching threat, wondering if he should bother or not.

"Prepare to be devoured insolent human!”

Grimmjow sighs and drops his cigarette to the ground, turning it off with his foot the same time as he lifts his hand to catch the upcoming attack, striking his now clawed hand square against the hollow’s mask.

The pressure and energy from him utterly stopping the bastard’s momentum send a pressure wave of wind and reiatsu hurling outward from the scene, tearing off leaves and branches from the nearby trees and probably breaking shit further away. The kid was kicked off her feet as well, stumbling and rolling back several feet before coming to a halt face down, pushing herself up all dusted and dirty with brown eyes looking back at them in shock.

The hollow just stares at him in equally shocked expression, having not expected his attack to be stopped so easily. Not to mention, he was actively trying to push against the arm holding him back, which was a futile attempt. Grimmjow barely felt any pressure applied against his arm, which had now changed color partially into a dark bluish shade. You couldn’t see it fully of course given the leather jacket covered his arm, but he’d seen how it looked, he knew.

"What! How!?”

Grimmjow’s grin widens as he digs his claws deeper into the bastard’s stupid mask, making it crack. He had to be careful of course, too much power leaking out and his gigai would start breaking down, again.

"This kid’s in my territory, Fuck off weakling.”

He swiftly sends a pulse of energy through his arm to shatter the mask and injure the bastard, making the hollow howl in pain and back away as blood spread from his wound, leaving a thick trail behind. It stank like hell, but Grimmjow just licks the blood off from his claws, watching the injured hollow closely. He was tempted to murder it, but his gigai already felt off. He had to preserve his strength, as much as it pissed him off.

"You….What are you?! That feels like...but no, it is different. You can’t be a hollow!”

"Yeah no, I’m a real demon over here. Now kindly fuck off will ya?”

The hollow glares at him with a mixture of murderous intent and cautious fear while holding the injured side of his mask, before slowly slinking back into the shadows of the forest, warning him this wasn’t over. Grimmjow just snorts and watches the hollow until it properly disappears from the area, the blood slowly fading away from the ground as well.

He sighs and turns to look back at the kid who still sat there like a complete dumbass, her eyes so wide they almost popped off her sockets. Last time he’d seen her she’d been much smaller, and that was saying something given she was still tiny as hell.

"….You alright kid?”

He asks even as the man digs out a new cigarette for himself. It wasn’t really a good habit to have with shitty gigai, but it seemed to help calm his nerves, some sort of weird addiction thing human bodies developed. Fucking Urahara for even putting something like that into it, all to make the thing appear more ”lifelike” or whatever the fuck his excuse would likely be if asked.

"I...Y-yes. How did you…?”

The girl scrambles up now, her tiny body shaking like the leaves in nearby trees, it was a miracle she could even stand up properly. He had to give credit to her older brother, he was no longer an absolute chicken crybaby, unlike his baby sister. He could give the girl some grace though, she was still a kid and hadn’t had to watch her mum die.

Grimmjow shakes his head, noting that sounded dangerously close to compassion. He was only playing nice because he owed the ginger bastard one, that’s all.

"Are you….a Shinigami?”

Ah, so they were in the know of their brother’s antics in Soul Society. Grimmjow snorts and takes a drag from the cigarette, making sure not to send the smoke her way, the kid was still struggling to get her breathing under control.

"Ha, fuck no.”

He comments with an amused grin, making the girl look confused.

"Run off already brat; that thing might come back.”

"….O-okay. Thank you for rescuing me sir!”

Grimmjow watches her hurry away, before turning back and continuing his journey back to the shitty store. As he brings the cigarette away from his lips again, he notes it was lightly stained red. He could taste rust in his mouth, great.

"Fuck this fucking gigai.”

Grimmjow mutters out irritated, hoping that’d be it.

Apparently the group had decided invading his room was the best place to give him the brief for everything. First Grimmjow had hogged his bed, now six shinigami were crawling all over his room to both examine his stuff like some weird creeps, or find a place to sit. They also hadn’t bothered to use the damn door, sneaking in through the window apart from Rukia, who had at least some manners.

They’d already broken his lamp and Renji had nearly destroyed his phone, being spooked by it for suddenly ringing. Currently Rangiku was trying to stuff Ikkaku to the ceiling -for the lack of better words to describe the utter nonsense – to use his bald head as a new lamp for Ichigo. Sure the guy’s spit shined head put some light sources to shame, but he wasn’t eager on having a living lamp that could randomly try and stab him.

The only person that had been happy about this invasion was Kon, who had indeed ran off to find girls, gotten in trouble because Kon, then come back and found Grimmjow asleep in his bed. Too scared to go anywhere near him he’d hid in the bushes until the man had left.

Of course, Kon’s attempts at affection towards Rukia and Rangiku were denied as harshly as Rukia had denied Keigo earlier, so the bear gets stuffed in the closet, the door slid firmly shut. Ichigo would’ve almost pitied him had he not brought this upon himself for being an annoying pervert.

Once the chaos finally subsides, the group finally gathers around to explain everything to him, and admittedly Ichigo should’ve guessed it was about Aizen. He’d only met that guy briefly, but it had become very obvious that sneaky asshole was trouble.

"He’s been sending more powerful hollows in Karakura, although we do not know what his end goal is. Either way it was concluded some of us should head here for your aid to protect the town for the time being.”

"More powerful horrors?”

"Yes, they are called Arrancar, they are much more human-like in appearance than your typical hollows, and are strong enough to rival the power of a shinigami.”

Rukia helps supplement Toushirou's explanation with her shitty drawings, making it kinda hard to take anything seriously. He doesn’t comment on it however, not feeling like having his head assaulted again by her, this time with something more deadly than a book, and books were already mighty weapons.

"Why would that guy do that?”

"We don’t know, we are still gathering intelligence on this. All we know is that Aizen is hiding somewhere in Hueco Mundo, where hollows come from.”

The exceptionally shitty drawing of the aforementioned backstabber shinigami almost makes Ichigo laugh, he’s barely able to contain his snort upon witnessing the glory of Rukia’s drawing. This one was something he’d dare to tape on his fridge, because it was absolutely a deserved scatching insult to that horrible man. Just showing it to Aizen would likely damage his health by half at least. Having learned the kind of trust the snake had built, the utter back-stab and callous treatment of even one of his biggest fans still disgusted Ichigo to his core.

"Of course, since we’ll be staying here, we’ll need accommodations. The initial plan was to stay at your house, but--”

"The closet is mine!”

Rukia declares opening the closet door, then remembers Kon was in there, sliding it shut right at the bear’s face as he attempts to launch himself at her.

"You all can’t stay here.”

Ichigo tells them bluntly before things would get out of hand, again. Having a lethal dangerous blue bastard hog his bed briefly, that had already been a lot, but having this chaotic bunch staying there 24/7, hell no.

"Aww, but Ichigooo, you wouldn’t want to throw your new friends out on the streets!”

Rangiku gives him her best puppy eyes impression while notably accentuating her ample bosom, making the ginger blush and hide his face, telling her to not be indecent. The woman pouts at him, with Renji now trying to pick a fight with Ichigo, stating angrily the least he could do is help them with housing given they were there specifically to help him.

"Didn’t ask for your help pineapple bastard!”

"What did you call me!?”

Before an all out fight could break out, there is a knock on the door and the two sit back down instantly from pulling each other’s faces, as Yuzu enters, bringing everyone some tea. Everyone thanks her politely, with Rangiku even cooing and complimenting her how cute she was. Yuzu blushes a bit at that, holding the now empty tray to her chest. As Ichigo examines his sister, he suddenly notes she was weirdly tense. Was it just having so many people around? Ichigo wasn’t known for throwing massive house parties, not that this was one.

"Um. Ichi-nii is right. We won’t have enough space to house you all sadly.”

"Oh, that is alright cutiepie, we figure something out!”

Rangiku reassures her cheerfully, gaining a stinky look from Ichigo. So when he said it it was mean, but when Yuzu said it they’d listen? Bah.

He watches his sister leave the room, then gets up slowly, excusing himself as he heads after her. He felt slightly worried, sensing something had happened that she hadn’t told them when they all came home.

Walking to the kitchen, he paces beside Yuzu who was now preparing dinner, asking if she was okay.

"I know they’re quite the bunch to deal with, but---”

"Oh, I’m fine Ichi-nii! I’m glad to see you have made so many friends.”

Yuzu attempts to reassure him, but Ichigo just crosses his arms over his chest with a sigh, giving her a pointed look. After stirring the pot of curry for a while, the girl bites her lip, not looking at him in the eyes.

"I...saw one. Earlier today when I was heading home. It tricked me and chased me.”

Ichigo’s eyes widen in utter shock, and he grasps her shoulders worried, asking frantically if she was okay, checking her for any injuries. Immediately he felt guilt gnawing at him, what the hell had he been doing herding supposedly professional shinigami around a school while his sister was being attacked by a hollow, what kind of big brother was he?!

"I’m okay! This strange man showed up and saved me!”

Yuzu tells him, and Ichigo looks back at her face confused, then thinks back on it. Right Karakura did have its own assigned shinigami, that one afro dude whathisface. He asks her if he’d been the one, but much to his surprise, Yuzu shakes her head.

"He had blue hair and eyes. He...I don’t know what he did? He just struck the hollow’s mask and it broke!”

Yuzu demonstrates by pushing her hand forward suddenly as he let’s go, making her best attempt at cartoony cracking and explosion sounds. Truly, Yuzu should become a voice actress someday. Ichigo blinks, the description given matching a certain person, but….

"Did he say his name?”

"No? He just told me to head home after the monster vanished….he was smoking a lot? I don’t think he should, he already looked sick.”

Yup, it had to have been Grimmjow.

The ginger breathes out a sigh and rubs his eyes, stating he was glad she was okay. Looking back at her, Yuzu did seem a bit pouty now, making the ginger lift eyebrow at her confused.

"I wish he’d told me his name, so I could’ve thanked him properly!”

"Well….”

Ichigo pauses, should he tell her? It had to have been him, but clearly there was an air of mystery around the rude bastard, he probably shouldn’t be spreading info about him around so much.

"He looked so skinny too! I could’ve made him a lunch box or something!”

That sounded like a Yuzu thing to do, making Ichigo chuckle faintly. He ruffles her hair, stating he’d convey her thanks for the man if he ran into him sometime, given her description was pretty recognizable. Yuzu gives him an odd look before shrugging and focusing back on the food. As Ichigo turns, he was met with the kitchen doorway infested with curious nosy shinigami, apparently all of them had decided to spy on the conversation between the siblings. Ichigo crosses his arms and taps his foot irritated upon seeing them.

"You lot ever heard of privacy?”

"You seemed worried, so we were worried as well!”

Rukia protests with a defiant tone, with Ichigo just huffing out a sigh and rubbing his eyes; why did he attract so many chaotic weirdos as his friends again? What did that say about him? Was he this much of a mess as well from an outsider's perspective?

"To think your poor cute baby sister could’ve gotten eaten with so many of us here, a disgrace! What were you lot doing goofing around when a child was in trouble!”

"YOU were with us too Rangiku!”

Ichigo watches dumbfounded as the woman starts pulling on Renji’s ears in anger, with Toushirou trying to get them to calm down with an exasperated sigh. Meanwhile Rukia walks to him and Yuzu, looking at Ichigo with a frown. She could tell he’d recognized Yuzu’s description.

"That doesn’t sound like any Shinigami I know.”

"Yeah, I doubt he is one. He’s living at Urahara’s and they won’t tell me shit about him.”

Yuzu looks between them, asking Ichigo if he knew the person who’d saved her, reminding the ginger that oh yeah, his sister was still there and he really shouldn’t be discussing this in front of her should he?

"Why didn’t you say so! I’ll make him something right away and you can bring it to him the next time you visit Urahara-san!”

Before Ichigo could stop her Yuzu’s eyes were sparkling and she was already hustling around to make the best bento box she could. The ginger watches her gather up things with a mixture of a smile and concerned frown, doubting that jerk would be very receptive of a gift of any kind. Yet he knew if he didn’t bring it there, his sister would chew him out for it, and when Karin heard about the whole thing, she would do so as well.

"Ichigo?”

He looks back at Rukia, who was examining him concerned now. He shrugs, stating he really didn’t know anything really, not feeling like mentioning the guy had invaded his bed earlier. Ichigo pauses and grimaces internally at that phrasing, he did NOT mean it like that damn it.

"….Perhaps I should have a word with Urahara-san later.”

"Be careful, you’ll get locked in his basement of horrors otherwise as well.”

Ichigo pauses, hesitating for a second.

"Also. That guy is...probably dangerous if you catch him on a bad mood, so…”

Rukia waves her hand at him dismissively, stating she knew what she was doing.

Chapter Text

Standing before Urahara’s shop that cloudy afternoon, Rukia contemplates for a second how to approach this topic. The man was always full of mysteries and tended to hold his cards close to his chest. A mysterious murdery blue haired asshole hidden in his basement would for sure be one of those secrets he’d not give out so willingly.

However, the fact this stranger had openly shown his powers to little Yuzu was concerning for Rukia. Namely because whoever they were, they weren’t a Shinigami, a Shinigami would know not to flash their powers in front of a human like that.

Putting on her best stubborn face she enters the shop, spotting Jinta mopping the floor nearby with his usual grumbling. Upon spotting her, the redhead does greet the woman, asking why she was there.

"I’d like to speak with Urahara.”

"He’s busy tidying up the basement, but I can go get ’im.”

Anything to get away from mopping duty, as Jinta quickly dashes off with the speed of a teenager avoiding his life’s responsibilities, away from sight before the mop even hits the floor. Rukia just looks after him a bit baffled, wondering what on earth was happening below her feet if Urahara had to ’clean up’ something. Maybe she didn’t even want to know the details, it could be anything from a horrid tentacle monster to sentient ink spill currently devouring everything it touched. That sounded like something Urahara could create. Or certain, other mad scientist who was a lot less pleasant to deal with. 

Standing there and shifting her weight back and forth, Rukia notes he couldn’t spot anyone else in the store either; were they all downstairs?

Suddenly, her hair stands to an end, indicating something was lurking nearby, something powerful. Before the woman could even move however, she was hit by a surprise, terrible sickly sweet smelling assault that clouds her vision with tears, making Rukia cough and back away. Once she finally is able to turn to look at her assailant, she finds a tall, black clad figure with intensely blue eyes looming near her, a cigarette between his fingers. It hadn’t been a chemical weapon - although the smell alone could classify it as one - but the man had obviously blown the smoke at her.

"What on earth—how rude!”

She glares up at him pink cheeked, only gaining a slight lift eyebrow and a very sharp toothed grin as a response, the rude cretin had freakishly sharp looking canines that she could swear on her brother’s name were not human like at all. You could tear someone's throat open with those, and he looked like the kind of lunatic who would. 

".....Ah. So t'was you, huh?”

She looks at the man baffled, who just brings the cigarette back to his lips, though at least doesn’t blow the smoke right at her this time around. What was in that thing anyway? It did not smell like your average cigarettes or smoking pipe tobacco she had smelt over the years.

"The one Kurosaki went to rescue. Yer even shorter in real life than what Sandal-hat said.”

Rukia stares at the stranger for a moment, before her brain suddenly catches up, grey eyes darting over the man’s face and overall appearance.

Blue hair, blue cat-like eyes, kind of a freaky grin, rude as hell.

"....You’re the one who tried to kill Ichigo!”

The man looks at her blank faced for a moment, before bursting into laughter; the maniacal cackle was borderline psychotic sounding, almost rivaling Kenpachi's bloodthirsty laughter. Rukia takes a reflexive step back, and the blue eyes zero back on her, half lidded with that wide, predatory grin still plastered on the man’s face.

"Quite the greeting, huh? You often accuse people of a murder attempt as the first thing you meet ’em?”

"I—don’t play stupid, he gave me your description!”

This time she gets a blast of smoke aimed right at her face, and what in the name of spirit society was in that tobacco? It smelt so incredibly obnoxiously sweet Rukia wanted to gag. Ichigo truly hadn’t been exaggerating about the stench, it really was that bad.

"Well clearly he’s still alive so no need to get your panties n’ a twist, shorty.”

Rukia felt her irritation grow, waving away the smoke as she squares up at the asshole, glaring up at him with her best determined and authoritative expression.

"How dare you, I am the lieutenant of the thirteenth Shinigami division, hand picked by my brother Byakua Kuchiki himself, and I will not stand such insolent behavior from anyone! Let alone some messy, bad smelling scoundrel who can’t even bother introducing himself properly!”

Clearly her declaration didn’t impress the man much, as he just continues to smoke looking at her with that irritatingly disinterested expression. Given her brother’s name provoked nothing, he seemed to be clueless about the Shinigami ranks for some reason. At least that confirmed he wasn’t one as he’d told Yuzu, not that she'd had doubts about it. This just further confirmed what she'd already assumed a fact.

"......And I should care because?”

"It is only good manners to introduce yourself, and since you work here you must be Urahara-san’s staff, he requires his workers to be polite!”

That creepy, freaky predator grin was back, and the way the man’s eyes sharpen makes Rukia’s resolve falter by a hair, though he refuses to show it on her face. Clearly this one was the type to pick up on such weaknesses and tear you apart using them if you gave him the chance to. It was different from Kenpachi though, there was some more calculation going on rather than near mindless bloodshed. Rukia knew all too well smart brutality was far more dangerous than the kind that charges with reckless abandonment. 

"Don’t work here shorty; he tried ta make me do it, but wouldn’t let me kill nosy, shitty customers like you.”

The man suddenly steps closer without warning; Rukia felt her hand reach for the zanpakuto that currently wasn’t there.

For a brief second, she could pick up killing intent emanating from him.

However, as soon as that cold chill running down her spine appears it is gone again, and the terrible smelling cigarette is back to his lips like nothing happened. The smoke rises towards the ceiling to likely stain the roof with that same horrible stench for a while, blue eyes still examining her short stature with a disinterested look now, like she wasn't even worth his attention.

"Don’t give a shit about you Shinigami and your politics. Wanna know my name? Ask Kurosaki.”

With that, the man wanders off to the back of the house, disappearing from sight as quickly as he’d appeared, leaving Rukia standing there to wonder what on earth was all that just now. She’d genuinely thought he was about to attack her out of blue, but nothing happened. Rukia’s attention soon drifts away from the location the man had gone to however, as a familiar voice calls out to her. Turning, she was face to face with Urahara, who takes one look at her pale face, before sighing.

"I see Jeagerjaquez-san made an impression again.”

"Who the hell is that man?!”

Rukia demands from the former Shinigami captain who just shakes his head, calmly asking her what brought her to his humble shop. Rukia points towards the direction the blue haired maniac had gone, eyes blazing with righteous fury, or at least she hoped it came off that way; her confidence had been shaken by that brief encounter a little.

"That man supposedly tried to attack my friend, and has been openly showing off his power to a human civilian! While yes Ichigo’s family knows about all this, still one shouldn’t be using their spirit powers so openly in public! Also he was very rude and didn’t even recognize my brother’s name!”

"Oh dear oh dear, he keeps causing scenes doesn’t he?”

Urahara sounded more amused than anything behind his fan, and Rukia felt tempted to kick him in the balls now, though knew better than to try as she could never actually manage it. Urahara was a former captain after all, and much faster and stronger than he appeared.

"Why don’t you come and sit down, we can have some tea.”

"Only if you answer my questions.”

Rukia tells him firmly, crossing her arms over her chest with the kind of stubborn expression that would rival Ichigo’s scowl for sure. The blond man examines her quietly for a long moment, before shrugging, seemingly giving in very easily. The woman follows him deeper into the shop cautiously, feeling suspicious.

Sitting down at the table, Rukia hopes her stern glare was making it clear to Urahara she would not leave until her questions were answered. That or by force, though she doubted the former captain would go that far. Then again, you never knew with Urahara Kisuke, he was a man of many mysteries, and apparently murdery secrets stored in his basement.

"It is lovely to see you Kuchiki-san!”

Tessai greets her as he pours them both some tea, with her noting he had some scratches on his arms, like a giant cat had attempted to chop the said arm off. Yes, perhaps calling them ’scratches’ was underselling the gnarly scars she saw. The man seems to realize she was looking at the said arm, and coughs, quickly hurrying away after informing there was still cleaning to be done. Rukia watches him go, before slowly turning to look back at Urahara, who’d already picked up his cup to take a sip from it.

”Who is that man? He’s not a Shinigami.”

She asks the man again, picking up her tea and eyeing it dubiously. Surely Urahara wouldn’t spike it, right? Then again you never knew, when it came to protecting his secrets the former captain was a true trickster. The man seemed amused by her suspicion, taking another sip from his cup.

"No, he is not.”

"Then who or what is he? Definitely not human.”

"He is a very peculiar guest for sure.”

"You are dodging my question.”

Rukia accuses the man with an annoyed frown, daring to drink her tea. He probably wouldn’t bother spiking it, given once she woke up she’d just come right back to demand answers again. Unless he was planning on trapping Rukia in his basement too, which would probably look bad on him. Urahara was a bit of a lunatic in his own way, but he was no Kurotsuchi-san. He thankfully had a heart, and standards, even if it wasn't always clear what those standards were.

"I feel it’d be impolite to speak of him without explicit permission, he is a very privy man after all.”

"He was being impolite to me, so I’ve earned the right of being impolite back!”

Rukia huffs still smelling that awful stench of his cigarette on her clothes somewhat. She still wondered what on earth had he been smoking, no tobacco smelled that strong as far as she knew. Then again she didn’t smoke.

"I suppose, there is a reason we don’t have his handsome face greeting you at the front!”

Urahara comments cheerfully with his trademark smile, and Rukia crosses her arms over her chest, giving the man a dry look.

"I wouldn’t call it that. He has the face of somebody who’s going to murder you in the most painful way possible, and will enjoy every second of it. And I thought Kenpachi's grin was bad.”

"Eeeexactly!”

Urahara chuckles with a sing-song tone and drinks his tea again, making Rukia’s eye twitch. It felt like the man wasn’t taking the conversation very seriously. She slams her hand against the table, glaring at the former captain with what she hoped was a stern and commanding look. She sometimes practiced those in Ichigo's room mirror whenever she could, though had to be careful about it because getting caught by Renji or Ichigo - or worse, Kon - was embarrassing.

"Let me remind you, that Ichigo was apparently attacked by this man, and just now it felt like he was about to attack me. It is a serious offense to try and injure a Shinigami on-duty, and you seem to be harboring someone with such intent!”

Urahara just looks at her calmly, continuing to drink his tea like he wasn't being grilled about a big bastard shaped secret that had almost mauled their mutual new friend. Rukia huffs and sits back down, glaring at the man peeved, trying to force him to talk with the force of her disapproving glare alone. It didn’t seem to work at first, but eventually the former captain lowers his cup back to the table with a thoughtful hum, watching the steam rise from his cup.

"....He was simply testing you, Kuchiki-san. To see what you’re made of. Naturally he would. I am assuming you passed given he didn't insult you further.”

"What does that mean?”

Urahara looks up at her slowly, crossing his arms over his chest with an unusually serious expression.

"To see what kind of person Kurosaki risked his life for.”

Rukia blinks confused, trying to make sense to the man’s words. Why would the blue haired rude cretin care about such a thing? As far as she understood, apart from saving Yuzu, he’d been very rude towards Ichigo. Why was he curious about Ichigo's friends like that?

"Listen. I wish I could say more, but it is vital to keep quiet about his presence for the time being. All you need to know is that he is a very important puzzle piece, and he’s severely ill right now so agitating him isn't wise.”

The woman pauses at that, her annoyance slowly melting away upon hearing those last words.

Sick?

An image of that conversation between her and her brother about her older sister flashes before her mind's eye, and she starts to doubt herself, wondering if it was appropriate for her to pry into this after all. Yes smoking such garbage would make anyone sick, but clearly this wasn’t about his apparent unhealthy habit, and she doubted Urahara was referring to his abrasive, seemingly hostile and violent personality either....

"I must request you not to speak to anyone in Seireitei about him, not yet.”

"Why?”

Urahara remains silent for a long moment, his expression making Rukia feel like she was being evaluated somehow. She didn’t like that look, she’d seen it a lot from Byakua in the past, feeling like she kept failing him. Of course, after Ichigo’s heroic - and reckless, foolish, moronic - efforts their relationship had begun to warm up a little, but still.... It was a look like that always made her feel like she wasn’t good enough.

Finally, Urahara leans closer, crossing his arms over the table while still holding her captive with that serious gaze, now a warning clear in them. Whatever he was about to say, should not be heard by the wrong ears or something terrible would occur, and it’d be her responsibility if she didn’t keep quiet.

"He is something Aizen desperately wants, and also our best tool to defeat him, potentially.”

Rukia’s eyes widen in shock and she reflexively glances towards the direction the man had vanished into, before slowly turning her head back towards Urahara, quietly asking how could that be. Why would a strange, rude unknown type of spirit inside a strange gigai be something that valuable?

"I cannot tell you further details right now. The situation is...very delicate so to speak.”

Rukia frowns frustrated again, deciding to bring out her triumph card she'd come with.

"At least tell me what Ichigo has to do with this? He went to his house! Slept in his bed! That's bizarre behavior from a stranger! Especially given Ichigo could see him!”

Urahara seemed surprised by that piece of knowledge, apparently having not expected her to know about it, which was rather short-sighted of him. Of course Ichigo would talk to them about it. She’d done her homework before coming there, asking Ichigo more of what he knew beyond the incident with Yuzu just in case, and this part had also been quite shocking. The man acted like he knew Ichigo somehow, but the ginger had sworn he’d never seen him in his life. Given the man's face, there was no way you'd forget it.

"Urahara, there is no way Ichigo would’ve been comfortable about that normally, yet he just let him stay! There is something you are hiding from me, and him.”

She glares at the man across the table, hoping this apparent surprise would loosen his lips and divulge bit more information. After a moment of tense silence that seemed to last forever, Urahara breathes out a sigh, picking up his tea again and sips it, though it had likely gone lukewarm by now. The clock on the wall nearby keeps ticking with each passing second, making Rukia feel a little restless.

"Ah....I should've expected he'd tell you. Well, either way.....some things would be better left forgotten, but I suspect it will start returning now that Kurosaki has activated his spirit powers.”

"What does that mean?”

A chill runs down her spine again all of a sudden, and Urahara’s gaze drifts up behind her now. Rukia follows his gaze, already knowing what waited her there, standing on the doorway with hands in his black hooded jacket pockets. Sharp blue eyes were zeroing in on her with an expression that spoke of silent anger, and a warning just like Urahara’s expression had moments earlier. She was prodding into something she really shouldn’t right now and whoever this man was, he was ready to make her stop, with force if he had to.

Rukia looks back at Urahara, who’d pulled out his fan to hide behind it, still looking at her calmly.

"......I think it is time for you to head out, Kuchiki-san. It was nice speaking with you.”

Something about his tone left no room for argument, and feeling that silent glare at the back of her neck, Rukia knew she as out of her depth right now. Some fights were better forfeited. So, the short woman nods and stands up, politely thanking him for the tea. Before she could turn to leave however, Urahara’s voice stops her briefly.

"I’d appreciate if nothing of this conversation leaves these walls for now.”

".....Of course.”

Walking past the blue haired man, Rukia notes briefly he looked really pale and sickly, yet somehow there was an air of threat and power around him. Clearly, the gigai his soul was in didn’t fit together with the spirit, which....was that related to the mystery sickness or the cause of it? If it was the gigai, why was Urahara using it?

She doesn’t ask anything however, sensing there was no more information to be given currently. Urahara had meant it when he’d told her to leave, and she had an eerie feeling he’d let the blunet use force to make her do so if he had to. It felt odd, not being welcome in this space for a change, but Rukia knew better than to disrespect the wishes of the former captain. She did owe her life to him after all.

The two walk by the door and watch her leave, eventually disappearing from sight.

"So he told you nothing?”

Ichigo asks, not sure if he should be surprised or not. Rukia just swings her legs angrily, trying to poke the straw into her juice packet. She eventually plunges it in with such force it spills over lightly, staining her shirt. Ichigo watches her fuss over her uniform for a second, before sighing and looking out to the town. They were at the roof of the school again, as Rukia had updated them on her visit to the crazy former Shinigami.

Namely, him and his human friends, Renji and others were currently on-duty across town as they’d sensed a lot of hollows entering, leaving the school stuff to their magical body-doubles who were currently stuck on an algebra lesson. Ichigo had wanted to go, but the gang had insisted he’d rest for now given the whole ordeal back in Seireitei. The ginger didn’t like being pushed aside, but as Rukia had come back from Urahara all huffy and puffy, his curiosity had wan him over.

"No, just joked about not having that rude asshole manning the front given he looks about ready to murder anyone who tries to talk to him.”

"Average customer service experience to be fair.”

Ichigo shrugs, making Rukia glance at him confused. Clearly the Shinigami did not know of the horrors that was customer service jobs, especially in retail. Ichigo would rather fight a hundred hollows at once than deal with just one entitled middle-aged mother insisting their bratty toddler was an absolute angel and deserved all the candy they wanted for free.

Ichigo shudders at the mere thought; indeed there were things more terrifying out there than hollows.

"Ugh, I can’t go back to class like this!”

"Let me help.”

Inoue uses Rukia’s bow to try and cover the small stain, tying it bit more loose where it was big enough to do so, while still passing the school dress code.

"So, we still have no idea who this strange person is that Urahara has living in his shop? I don’t like this, especially with what has been going on with the hollows and that traitor Shinigami.”

Ishida adjusts his glasses, gaining an agreeing hum from Chad. Ichigo had to agree, he had a strong gut feeling the rude blue asshole was connected somehow, but they had no real proof, and sandal-hat was refusing to show his cards for them for whatever reason.

"Maybe we’d be better off not prying? There must be a reason why Urahara-san is not telling us anything.”

Orihime offers hesitantly, and it wasn’t like she didn’t have a point. Urahara Kisuke usually had a reason to not give out certain information, until it was the right time. There was just one problem with all this. Turning to face his friends, Ichigo reminds the group of the said problem, leaning his back against the chain-link fence.

"That guy showed up at my house to hog my bed, and for some reason I was totally fine with it? Who does that?”

"Kon.”

Rukia comments dryly, gaining a slight, barely restrained snort from Ichigo because she wasn’t wrong. There was a muffled protest in his bag, but Ichigo just kicks it further away, refusing to acknowledge his presence. Kon could easily open the bag himself if he wanted to, the bastard just pretended to be helpless to get help from Inoue or something thanks to her sympathetic nature.

"I’m serious though. It’s....weird I didn’t really feel that bothered by it? And that guy talks like he knows me. It’s bizarre.”

"Maybe he hit you in the head so hard you forgot some of your memories?”

As silly as Ishida’s suggestion sounded, Ichigo could honestly buy that. From what he’d gathered of the guy based on the couple of meetings they’d had alone, he seemed like the kind of asshole who’d do that. Still though, he was kind of infamous for having a thick skull, you’d have to fuck him up pretty bad for that to work. Ishida also points that out a second later as he concludes his theory wasn’t likely, making Ichigo glare at him out of principle.

"Well, either way, Urahara won’t give us any information for now, so perhaps Inoue is right and we should just wait and see.”

Ichigo looks at Rukia admittedly a bit confused. She was a very stubborn mule of a short woman that packed enough hardheadedness and tenacity to rival his. Hearing her want to leave this alone felt weird. Rukia pointedly ignores his odd look, just continues drinking his juice casually. The ginger’s gut instinct told him something was up, but clearly she wasn’t willing to divulge what she knew right now, and Ichigo knew painfully well prying that from her mouth would probably require far more effort than he felt like giving right now.

He still had to get through that algebra lesson as well today, after all.

Watching the shop, Ichigo wasn’t entirely sure what he was doing. Sure, he was doing his job as a Shinigami substitute, but lurking near Urahara’s store was probably a bit out of the job description; it wasn’t like he could really see inside from there, and probably trying to get closer would result in him being spotted. It felt kind of awkward, spying on your supposed friend, but Ichigo was burning with curiosity, wanting to know who the hell that rude bastard was, and why he’d thought hogging Ichigo’s bed and smearing it with stench of tobacco was somehow normal. Okay, they hadn’t smelt that bad afterwards, but the point still stands.

As Ichigo watches the lights on the shop dim and brighten as people moved inside, the ginger begun to really find this idea stupid. What the hell did he think he was gonna find out, looming there like some weird gargoyle trying to spy into Urahara’s windows, he could barely see shit from this angle anyway.

The ginger sighs and stands up, figuring this was a waste of time.

As he turns however, he’s faced with a jump-scare of blue staring down at him from the top of the emergency exit of the building he’d been squatting on. Ichigo was so taken by surprise - how the hell had he sneaked up on him in a gigai no less - almost falling off the roof as he stumbles back like some clumsy toddler. Before he could faceplant to the street below embarrassingly however, an arm shoots out and grabs his collar, yanking him back until he was dangerously close to the snarling mouth, noting the guy had killer canines.

Also how the hell did he get down from there so fast?

"Why d’you try to get killed every time I run into you, I fuckin’ swear you got near nothin’ up there, just hollow echo of two brain-cells.”

"Well at least there’s two of them.”

Ichigo blurts out without thinking, then quickly pushes the man back, hissing about personal space. At least he wasn’t smoking that stinky shit right now, but the smell still lingered on his clothes for sure. The man just examines him with that unimpressed look, which for some reason pissed Ichigo off, but also....there was this weird tug in his gut he didn’t understand.

"The fuck are you lurking out here for? Hollows ain’t gonna come ’ere with sandal-hat present.”

"Just making sure. Why the fuck are YOU on a roof anyway?”

Grimmjow snorts, before squeezing his eyes shut, turning away to cover his mouth briefly as he coughs. Ichigo’s annoyance fades away as soon as he spots the bits of red covering the man’s palm now, asking worried if he was okay.

"M’coughing my guts out, what do ya think?”

Grimmjow snarls at him annoyed, before turning his back to the ginger, coughing and hacking some more, spitting out blood from his mouth. Ichigo immediately rushes beside him, asking if he should go alert Urahara or something. The blunet just smacks his hand away, pacing to the emergency exit and leaning his back against the cold wall now, breathing out slowly. His face was in a deep frown, and the blue eyes were currently hidden behind tired looking eyelids. What the hell was going on with this guy, was the gigai this faulty, or was the soul somehow sick or damaged?

Ichigo fidgets there not knowing what to do, glancing towards the shop below. Should he let Urahara know?

"Relax. Been worse.”

Grimmjow mutters out, and as Ichigo turns back to look at him, he was already digging out a cigarette to light it, with the ginger swiftly snatching it from him, gaining an annoyed look from the blue haired man.

"That’s definitely gonna make this shit worse! And you call me dumb!”

"M’not on the mood Kurosaki, give it back.”

There was an annoyed tone to the man’s voice, and Ichigo had a feeling had he been feeling better it would’ve been more murdery, but clearly the guy was sick as hell with something.

"No. I don’t have to be the son of a doctor to know this shit’s bad for you. You’e coughing blood for fuck’s sake!”

Grimmjow gives him an odd look, before snorting and rolling his eyes, snatching the cigarette back before Ichigo could stop him.

"You think I smoke this smelly trash ’cause I want to? It’s not normal cigarette, moron. Special mix that keeps my reiatsu calm.”

Ichigo blinks confused, asking why he’d need to use smelly drugs for that. Grimmjow shrugs and lights it finally, with Ichigo noting this one didn’t actually smell as putrid as the previous ones. This was more normal stinky cigarette smell.

"Huh, guess he adjusted the blend. Musta grown tired of his own chemical weaponry stinkin’ up the shop.”

The blunet mutters out, apparently being as surprised it didn’t carry the horrid stench from earlier. For a moment they just stand there in silence, with Ichigo watching him smoke, still wanting to tell the man not to, but sensing that’d be a waste of time. Instead, he examines the tired face closely, still trying to figure out who the hell he was and why did he seem to know things about him he shouldn’t. Had Urahara told him, if so, why? Why would Urahara mention the fact his dad smoked occasionally, it didn’t seem like important information. Also that whole crybaby comment during their first - well, technically second - meeting, what had he meant it didn’t apply anymore?

Did Grimmjow know about the fact he used to be kind of a sensitive kid before...before mum....

"I know ’m a looker, but yer bein’ creepy as fuck, Kurosaki. Again.”

Grimmjow blows the smoke to his face to snap him out of his thoughts, and Ichigo coughs, backing away lightly while he tries to dissipate the smoke by waving his hand. It wasn’t as bad now, but still unpleasant and stung his eyes.

"Can you not? You can’t blame me for being worried, seeing a guy cough out blood out of blue! It makes me worry your lungs might be damaged or something, and you keep putting toxic shit on there!”

"This is a gigai, the fuck does it matter if I ruin its lungs?”

"Well for some reason you are stuck in it right now, so you should take better care of it!”

Why was he arguing with this guy about this again? He barely knew him, it wasn’t his business if Grimmjow wanted to fuck up his body, however borrowed it was. Besides something told him the spirit inside was also being affected, why else would he mention about his reiatsu?

The blunet continues to smoke, just staring at him through the white fog emitting from his cancer stick, almost daring him wordlessly to try and take it again. Ichigo makes no move to do so, it shouldn’t be his business anyway. Being a doctor’s kid though, he couldn’t help himself.

"So if it is not normal cigarette, what does it do? You mentioned your reiatsu.”

Grimmjow’s face twists into a faint amused smirk, allowing Ichigo to yet again see those kind of freaky sharp canines. If the spirit had those too, Ichigo doubted he was a human. Unless he just had a thing for looking like a predatory monster.

"Told ya. Keeps it calm.”

"But why would you need it to do that?”

"Why should I tell ya?”

"I let you borrow my bed, you owe me one!”

Grimmjow looks at him silently for a moment, his face having gone blank now. It was unnerving in a way Ichigo couldn’t put into words, and he starts fidgeting nervously, trying not to show it outwardly. There was a distant staticky echo in his brain, as his inner hollow laughed his ass off at him being weirdly intimidated by this sickly looking asshole. By all means he shouldn’t have come off that scary, he was coughing up blood and looked about ready to topple over at any moment, and yet....

Ichigo felt like he was just standing in the storm’s eye, waiting for the wall of hail and lightning and fierce wind to reach him eventually.

"So I don’t fuckin’ die, moron. My reiatsu’s the reason m’ coughing up shit.”

Grimmjow suddenly comments with an irritated huff, taking a longer drag from his cigarette. Ichigo is left dumbfounded by that comment, having not expected an answer, let alone it to be something like that. What did he mean die? How could not-calm reiatsu lead to someone dying? Wasn’t he already a spirit? That answer gave him way more questions than answers. The blunet coughs again though this time there’s no blood thankfully, cursing under his breath as he glares at his cigarette for a moment.

"Fuckin’ hell. T’s because of that damn weakling I had to save the brat from. Used too much.”

Ichigo blinks, then slowly connects the dots in his head.

"You...you mean Yuzu?”

Grimmjow just nods, spitting to the ground next to him; there was hints of blood in it much to Ichigo’s concern.

"Yeah. Shoulda not have done that. You morons were nowhere on sight, so the fuck was I supposed to do though? Let her get eaten?”

The angry, almost accusatory grin makes Ichigo step back, swallowing down hard as guilt starts settling in the pit of his stomach now. So Grimmjow was coughing blood because he saved Yuzu? Because Ichigo hadn’t been there to protect his sister, he’d done something that damaged his health. The apology was at the tip of his tongue about to slip out, but a hand suddenly grabs his throat, silencing him. It felt cold, it shouldn’t feel that cold he thought, and Ichigo had no clue why he thought so. The air around them was cool anyway and—wait, how was he even able to grab him? He was in spirit form!

Grimmjow was now very close to his face, the smell of cigarettes assaulting his senses, alongside a very vicious looking glare that made him feel like he’d just burned down the man’s house and killed his crops or something. In other words, he was pissing mad and sounded offended.

"Dare to apologize n’ I will rip your throat open, don’t care if it kills me.”

"You really don’t like people sympathizing with you, huh?”

Ichigo bring his hand up to rest on Grimmjow’s arm, once again strangely bothered how cold it felt. It was abnormal even for a sickly person in cool air.

He felt cold like....death....

"I don’t like whiny little martyrs wantin’ ta apologize for every little fuck up they do. What’s done s’ done, get over it, Kurosaki.”

Grimmjow eventually let’s his neck go and now turns his back to him, walking to the other side of the emergency exit. All Ichigo could see were the wisps of smoke rising above the boxy entrance, and he watches them rise up for a moment, before breathing out slowly, scratching his throat. It felt chilly from the spot Grimmjow had grabbed him, and the ginger had an eerie feeling he’d been holding his grip back a lot.

Ichigo glances back down towards Urahara’s shop, before heading out into the night, blue eyes watching him go silently.

"Why do you keep following me?”

"I wanna be your friend!”

"Why? Don’t need some snot nosed crybaby following me around!”

"But you seem lonely!”

"Fuck off already!”

There was a splash, his vision suddenly engulfed by water; it was cold and his lungs burned, the current trying to pull him deeper below the surface. The boy struggles to get back up, but he couldn’t swim that well yet.

Panic settles in as he fights against the water, feeling his vision blur.

Mama

Dad

Help!

Something appears in his blurred vision suddenly, something blue.

He’s yanked out of the water, pulled back to the surface and to the edge of the river, coughing and hacking to get the invading substance away from his lungs. The hand was still grasping his arm tightly, and he was now pulled against something warm, squeezing him once he stopped coughing.

"Don’t walk on the edge like that you dumbass!”

The voice sounded mad, but also relieved, and.... guilty.

It was okay.

Ichigo knew he hadn’t meant to shove him into the water.

Ichigo couldn’t get that meeting on the rooftop off his mind, mulling over Grimmjow’s words over and over. He was sick, and because he’d saved Yuzu, his odd illness got worse. Because Ichigo hadn’t been there to do his job. His neck still felt cold and kind of itchy from the spot he’d been grabbed from, and he found himself occasionally scratching it. His absent-mindedness did not go unnoticed, as during lunch-break Orihime and Tatsuki approach him looking concerned, with former asking if he was okay.

"Uh. Yeah. Slept kinda poorly. Think I saw a dream or something?”

"A dream?”

"Something about falling into water, can’t remember it now.”

Ichigo shrugs and scratches his neck again, feeling kind of awkward seeing these two look at him like he was dying or something. Did he really look that bad, Ichigo wonders as he glances at his reflection from the window. Sky was cloudy so it was darker outside, making the reflection clearer than on a sunny day.

Yeahh, he had bags under his eyes, though it wasn’t purely from the Shinigami duties, they didn’t normally leave him this sleepy looking. Maybe it was the dream, though he had no clue what it was about. Water he could understand in relation to his mom, but this dream had felt different from that nightmare. It wasn’t rain, it was...a river...?

"Maybe you should take a break from Shinigami duty, you look awful.”

Tatsuki comments after a moment of silence, gaining an agreeing nod from Orihime, who reminds him there were plenty of them around right now. The ginger just shakes his head, reiterating that he was fine, sometimes you just slept poorly. Clearly the two disagreed, but before Tatsuki could start to argue with him about it, they get interrupted by Chizuru who glomps Orihime from behind, diverting Tatsuki’s attention elsewhere long enough for Ichigo to slip away, heading outside towards the gym as he had sports lesson next.

"Hime is right, you look like absolute trash!”

Came Kon’s voice from his bag, moments later the furry lion plushie head plopping on his shoulder. There was nobody there right now at the yard due to the weather taking a turn for the worse, hence he probably felt safe peeking out. Ichigo wordlessly tries to push him back to the bag, without looking, but Kon shoves his hand away, managing to climb on his head to pull his hair.

"Ow Kon! Watch it someone might see!”

Ichigo grabs the plushie annoyed, bringing him face-to-face with himself, making sure to squeeze the little perverted shit hard enough it was uncomfortable. Kon just crosses his teddy bear arms stubbornly, before reaching out to poke him in the head with one of his soft cloth claws.

"You’re like walking dead, Ichigo! You keep going around at night while trying to study during the day, and you keep having weird dreams and keeping me awake with your mumbling and whining!”

"Just get earplugs then.”

"You’re not getting it, you dumbass! You’re making Hime worried, nobody should make her worried you tactless oaf!”

Kon attempts to punch his nose with his teddy bear paw, not exactly causing much damage with his weak plush form. Ichigo just snorts and stuffs him back inside his bag, heading to the gym. He didn’t need to hear this from a plushie possessing mod soul of all people.

"Why do you dream about that blue haired freak anyway?”

That makes Ichigo’s steps halt, and he slowly looks back towards his bag, with Kon peeking back out from there, looking up at him with a judgy expression. Or as much as a toy lion could look judgmental.

"You keep mumbling out his name, or at least sounds like it? Wasn’t he called Jackass something?”

"Grimmjow. His name’s Grimmjow, not Jack- anything, even if he acts like a jackass. Why would I be dreaming about him?”

"I dunno, but don’t know any other person in your life that one could describe ’blue haired bastard’ or ’blueberry fuckface’ or any other number of blues you’ve mentioned across all your nightly blabbering.”

"How do you know how he looks? You haven’t seen him before.”

"I’ve heard you describe this guy a few times at least, duh. Besides I did see him! Once!”

Ichigo now just stares at his plush companion, not even noticing when first drops of rain hit his head. What the hell—oh. Oh right. Kon had seen him sleep in his room that one time, right?

"So who else could it be! Or do you have another blue haired crazy basement dweller in your friend group?”

"He’s not my friend, we just met. Also no.”

Ichigo quickly stuffs Kon back inside his bag and rushes to the gym as the rain gets worse, but those words haunt his mind rest of the day, replacing his earlier haunting of guilt over what happened with Yuzu. Grimmjow was apparently bound to haunt his brain today no matter what, huh. An asshole both in the flesh and in his thoughts.

The ginger wasn’t sure how to feel about it.

Chapter Text

Laying awake that night, Ichigo listens to his clock ticking at the wall. Each passing second was making him more and more twitchy, more restless than a guy in a line for bathroom after eating too many tacos. The only reason that metaphor even came to his mind was because of Inoue having talked about some weird ass taco recipe she'd tried that day, something that surely would've caused people bathroom issues.She was a great friend and had an amazing power, but bless her heart, she couldn't cook to save her life.

He could feel his Shinigami friends patrolling around Karakura here and there, itching to join them. He knew he shouldn’t, he’d been sleeping so poorly for the past few days which had pretty much made everyone tell him to stay put. Besides, his sisters would also kick his sorry ass right to hell if he didn’t try to rest properly before going back on field.

Still, he felt kind of frustrated about the whole situation.

Ichigo had no clue what was keeping him awake, why was he so restless. Was it the threat with that sleazy backstabby Aizen? Probably not no, he ultimately barely knew the guy, apart from what he’d been told and briefly witnessed.

No, this felt more like something was tickling at the back of his head, almost like a vague memory that refused to settle down and let him look at it. Ichigo huffs out a sigh and sits up, rubbing his eyes and turning his gaze towards the window. It was a clear night with no cloud in the sky, and everything seemed peaceful for the most part. Only he likely knew of the chaotic bunch running around the rooftops even now, hunting down any hollows lurking there.

"You gotta get some sleep into that stupid, rockhard noggin’ of yours Ichigo!”

Moments later a familiar stuffed animal hops onto the bed, standing there as determined as he could look in that silly form, pointing a felt claw at him.

"I will not let you make the ladies worry over you again! Go to sleep before I knock you out and make your body do so!”

"That’s considered assault. Try it and I stuff your pill into that creepy ass bunny-doll Yuzu has.”

Kon shudders at the mention of the said toy, let alone Yuzu, but still goes ahead to pound at his arm with his plush paws.

"It doesn’t matter! Quit being stupid and go to sleep! Rukia-chan and others got this covered!”

Ichigo eventually grabs the plushie by the head, bringing Kon face to face with him with an unimpressed look, the toy still flailing around to try and uselessly whack him on the nose. It was pretty funny to watch, but he was too tired and grouchy to even muster a smile at his mod soul companion's antics. 

"I would if I could, dumbass. I don’t know why I can’t sleep.”

"Then grab some sleeping pills! Your dad’s a doctor, he’ll have those.”

"I’m not stealing his drugs, what the fuck Kon!”

Ichigo now shakes the plush lightly irritated, before throwing him to the floor and getting up with a sigh. The lion teddy scrambles up, asking suspiciously where he was going - and if he was going, he should hand over his body. Ichigo rolls his eyes as he pulls on his pants, informing Kon he’d just take a walk in human form.

"Then I’m coming with you! you attract hollows anyway so you may need me for fast getaway and power up!”

"Whatever, just don’t cause a scene.”

Putting on his hooded jacket and a scarf, Ichigo heads downstairs with Kon climbing into his hood, and they slip out quietly, not waking up his family. Then again, with how loud the old man tended to snore, you could probably fire a cannon next to him and he wouldn’t wake up. Wandering across the quiet streets, Ichigo’s mind drifts aimlessly, wondering how everyone was doing. He hadn’t seen many pluses around recently, hoping that simply meant that either not many people were dying and getting stuck here, or that the shinigami were doing their jobs well.

Then again, with the increase in hollow activity....

Ichigo shakes his head, refusing to think about it. He zips the jacket up now, as the wind was picking up and it was getting colder. He could hear Kon whine about it too, and moments later he feels something soft and plushy crawl into the back of his jacket, making Ichigo yelp and quickly grab hold onto Kon’s leg, before he could wiggle his way fully in there.

"What the hell Kon!”

"M’cold! Lemme in there!”

"You’re a fucking plushtoy, you don’t get cold!”

"It’s the thought that counts, besides I’ll be better hidden in here!”

Ichigo gives up and allows Kon to crawl inside his jacket, clinging to his back like a very annoying, pervert koala bear. Koala bears would be cuter than this asshole at least. He continues walking, keeping an eye out for any of his friends or a hollow just in case, but so far everything in this area was peaceful. Ichigo heads for the park nearby, pacing along the river for a while, just watching some leaves that had fallen to the water float by.

He eventually reaches the nearby bridge and walks to it, just leaning against the railing to watch the calm scenery, moonlight illuminating everything with soft cool light alongside couple of the street lanterns alongside the park pathways.

As he stood there in silence for a while, his mind drifts back to something, namely the dream he’d had earlier that week. He still couldn’t remember much about it, other than the cold water surrounding him from all sides, until something pulled him out. Ichigo had no clue what that dream was about, it wasn’t the same nightmare about mum.

As his gaze wanders alongside the riverbank further ahead, he’s suddenly hit by something, a sense of deja vu. Ichigo frowns and shifts away from the ledge, leaving the bridge to follow along the river, until he reaches a lightly elevated part of it. Looking down at the water, that weird sense of familiarity was hitting him really strong now. He’d walked along this place before, but something about this spot was...

"What are you doing Ichigo? You’re not planning on jumping down there? If you needed a bath you could’ve just used the one in your house you stinky!”

Kon shoves his plush lion paw to his face without warning, and Ichigo grabs him off his back, tempted to throw the bastard into the river. He doesn’t however, just holds Kon in front of him while looking down at the water, barely making out his reflection thanks to the street lamp nearby. Kon struggles panicked for a second, likely thinking he was genuinely planning on ditching him there, but then stops as the ginger makes no move to do so, just continues to stare at his reflection with a thoughtful frown.

"Weird. It’s like....I’ve been here before.”

"Of course you have! You walk through this park to go to school dumbass!”

"No, I mean....the dream.....”

"Which one?”

Ichigo doesn’t respond, brown eyes fixated on his reflection below. He looked pretty awful, those bags under his eyes just kept getting worse, huh? It wasn’t like he hadn’t pulled long nights as a Shinigami before, it was just that his body still sort of got to rest. Now....now something was keeping his human flesh bag from doing so, and it was likely connected to his dreams, rather than the substitute Shinigami job.

Kon was now looking between him and the waters, likely wondering why he was gaping down at the cold water like it held the mysteries of the universe or some shit like that. Kon even waves his paw at him, trying to get Ichigo’s attention but he ignores it, examining his distorted reflection. Yeah, he truly looked like shit, it was no wonder his friends kept telling him to rest and not get involved in Shinigami business for now. Not helping out didn’t really do shit though, given his exhaustion stemmed from something else, something Ichigo didn’t understand himself.

As he continues to watch his image distort slightly with the passing water currents, something else suddenly appears in it. For a brief second, he could see a figure standing behind him.

Something with horns.

A strong shiver runs down his spine and Ichigo looks up abruptly, his gaze searching the area wildly. There was nothing there, and looking back down the image of the mystery figure was gone.

He backs away from the water a bit unnerved now; was there a hollow nearby? It didn’t feel like it, but something was definitely watching him. Kon was squirming even more in his hold, asking what was going on as he tries to struggle free from Ichigo’s iron grip. Brown eyes scan the treeline, the pathway next to the river he’d walked, going back to the bridge. Nobody was there, at least he couldn’t spot anything. No human, hollow, or Shinigami.

"O-oi, Ichigo, what’s going on?”

Kon asks having now realized how tense he was, and the ginger starts walking back towards the bridge, still keeping an eye out for any threats.

"Is it a hollow?”

"I... don’t know.”

Ichigo reaches the bridge, still looking around and clutching Kon a bit too tightly. He wasn’t even sure why he felt so nervous as if it was a hollow, he could deal with it easily thanks to Kon being with him. For a moment he just stands there, listening to his surroundings closely for any signs of a threat. At first, all he heard was the subtle rustle of leaves and grass on the wind, the sound of splashing water, and his own breathing and heartbeat.

Then, he could hear it.

Footsteps, barely audible, somewhere nearby.

He couldn’t tell where they were coming from, and he looks up towards the direction he’d come from, eyeing the treeline closely.

"Kon, you might have to—”

"Got it, leave it to me!”

Kon wiggles in his grasp clearly eager to hijack his body, but before either could even begin the awkward process, a familiar scent hits his nostrils. It wasn’t as sickly sweet anymore, but it was such a distinct smell he recognized it instantly. Ichigo turns around, finding a very familiar figure standing there behind him, a cigarette on his lips as usual.

For a moment they just stare at each other, until the man’s face twists into an amused grin, pointedly looking at Kon who’d gone limp in his hold, maybe pretending to be just a normal plushy, or dead, hell if he knew.

"Ain’t you a lil old fer comfort teddy bears, Kurosaki?”

Ichigo just stares at the man for a moment.

"......So you can say my name.”

That was a really dumb idiot thing to say, but he was so taken aback by his sudden appearance - again - that Ichigo’s brain cells apparently had stopped working properly. Besides so far the guy preferred just calling him names than using his actual one, so there was that tonal whiplash as well. Grimmjow just snorts and then suddenly snatches Kon from his hands, examining the plush with a mildly curious look. Kon was doing his best ’I am just a lifeless toy’ impression, but something told Ichigo he knew.

Grimmjow knew Kon wasn’t a normal toy.

"The fuck is this thing? T’s kinda like the shit Sandal-hat has, but different.”

Grimmjow was notably pressing on Kon’s chest with his thumb, and Ichigo could tell it was highly uncomfortable to the mod soul, in fact as the plushy head turns towards him, he looked strangely terrified, beyond the kind he'd seen from when Yuzu had snatched him for her tea parties and dress-up. He quickly snatches Kon back, glaring at the blunet annoyed.

"Why the hell are you stalking me?”

"You ain’t that special. M’allowed ta take a walk, shitty Shinigami wannabe.”

Huh, so at least he was no longer calling him piss baby, progress. Clearly the man was capable of more creative insults. Ichigo could feel Kon shake lightly in his hold, clearly spooked by the experience of being suddenly snatched by the blunet. Like Ichigo had noted earlier though, Kon seemed a bit.... too afraid.

"You look like absolute shit.”

Grimmjow comments casually after taking a quick inventory on him, and Ichigo snorts, throwing that insult right back at his face.

"Pot called the kettle. You still look like a walking dead almost. Shouldn’t you be bedridden or some shit with your scraggly, weak looking ass?”

Grimmjow narrows his eyes at him annoyed, but doesn’t say anything at first, just takes another drag from his cigarette, predictably blowing the smoke to his face. It doesn’t sting as bad thanks to the lighter smell, but it still makes his eyes water. Ichigo waves a hand in front of his face to get rid of the smoke, still glaring at the blunet. In truth, it was hard to stay mad, looking at the bastard. He really looked bad, like he’d been bedridden with flu for weeks. Pale, even more tired looking than Ichigo, and his posture was terrible and kind of slouchy. His annoyance melted away quickly, replaced by concern.

"I'm serious. I don’t know what’s happening with you, but you look like you shouldn’t be moving around too much.”

Grimmjow snorts and continues to smoke for a moment, his voice breaking the silence after the third drag from it.

"Hard not to. With the way my brain’s wired right now. ’S restless as shit.”

"....Is it because of the gigai?”

Ichigo asks hesitantly now, allowing Kon to climb back inside his jacket to hide.He wasn't sure why he was even trying to have a normal conversation with the man, he kept giving him the vibe he didn't like talking with him, or that his face somehow offended the blunet just for existing in his vision.

Well, that was the initial impression, right now he was weirdly mellow.

Grimmjow just examines him silently for a moment, and that gaze was making him a bit uncomfortable. He wasn’t sure why though, as like said this one wasn’t that hostile right now, just hella tired looking. Maybe it was just his doctor’s son instinct making him worry over this asshole’s condition, that was probably it.

"......Nah. The wiring’s faulty from the start.”

"That’s....probably an offensive way to put things like this.”

"Don’t care.”

Grimmjow snorts, now dropping his cigarette down to the bridge and turning it off against the slightly damp planks with his foot, making Ichigo look at him with slightly disapproving look. The bastard just flashes him a rogue grin, almost daring him to say something about it.

"...You didn’t answer my question still. Why are you stalking me?”

"Told ya m’just out fer a walk.”

"I somehow struggle to believe you’d run into my be chance like this again.”

They just glare at each other for a moment, until Grimmjow averts his gaze, another coughing fit hitting him out of blue. Ichigo’s eyes widen in concern again as he sees the blood; why the hell was that even happening? As far as he knew, Grimmjow would have to have a serious influenza, or a ruptured lung, or some sort of tumor there to cause this, which would be far more serious than the man was giving his symptom credit for.

"Seriously, you need to sit or lie down, and let someone check that over! I don’t know why Urahara keeps you in this gigai if its this faulty, or is it your spirit?”

He reaches out noting the man was swaying and looked about ready to topple over due to his fit, but Grimmjow grasps his wrist before he could, glaring up at him from under his hood with a vicious enough stare to give him pause. His instincts were picking up, alerting him of some sort of imminent danger, which made no sense given how sickly the man was.

Yet....looking at those blue eyes, there was power behind them, wild, borderline animalistic power that was itching to tear his throat open, like he almost had that night.

".....Havin’ a fuckin’ human fret over me like that’s insulting, Kurosaki. Stop.”

"Well, you look like one too right now! I don’t really care what you are either, you’re clearly in shit shape and for some reason they just let you run around like this!”

Why was he arguing with this bastard about this so much? If Grimmjow wanted to continue looking like walking dead and cough his lungs out it wasn’t his business. For all he knew the guy was a masochist and got off on his own suffering.

....................

...........It was just.....

Seeing him in such a bad shape bothered Ichigo a lot, more than could be explained away by his whole doctor family thing. In fact, his heart was now beating kind of rapidly and his body was tense, as if expecting something to happen, even though he couldn’t even sense any threats around. He had seen that horned figure earlier, but Ichigo had no clue what it had been, it hadn’t felt like a hollow, and was gone now.

Why was he so tense all of a sudden? Grimmjow didn't look THAT bad despite what he'd said....

The man was now looking at him with a strange expression, lowering the arm he was still holding the wrist of - his grip was surprisingly tight despite his condition - and blue eyes seem to examine his face closely, as if trying to find something. It was weird and kind of freaky, and Ichigo kind of wanted to yank his arm away, but couldn’t.

"......Does this feel familiar, Kurosaki?”

He finally asks with a calm tone, the earlier sense of threat emanating from him having vanished completely. Ichigo blinks and looks at him confused, asking what the hell the man meant. Grimmjow just looks at him with that eerie calm, his iron grip still holding onto his wrist. It hits the ginger now, that apart from mentioning he looked like shit, Grimmjow hadn’t insulted him even once during this conversation. All that snark from their first meeting was missing, and it bothered him greatly for some reason, like it felt....off.

Wrong, uncharacteristic, unnatural.

That made no sense, he barely—he barely knew—

"Two years ago. Do you remember?”

"Remember what?!”

Ichigo now manages to free his hand from his hold, backing away slightly unnerved now. Grimmjow just continues to look at him with that same stoic expression, hands slipping into his pant pockets.

"This place. I was wonderin’ if yer memory was comin’ back, lurking around here, and that face. You look like yer about to bolt.”

The ginger frowns, having no fucking clue what the man was talking about. And yet...that strange feeling of deja vu from earlier, it was returning slowly, creeping back at the forefront of his mind. Not to mention the weird tension, the anxious sensation tugging in his gut that he couldn't explain. Grimmjow now turns his gaze away, towards the riverbank ahead Ichigo had stood on earlier, before something had driven him back to the bridge. He still didn’t know what it had been.

"Was wondering if you were recalling somethin' coming here.”

"What are you on about?!”

Ichigo hates how his voice goes a bit high pitched now, not knowing why. The slight anxiety was increasing, making his body twitch restlessly more and more. He almost wanted to reach for Kon to get out of his body, to go into his stronger state to defend himself. From what, he wasn’t sure. Grimmjow? No, not exactly...

It wasn't about his safety he was worried about, but....why....?

The blunet now digs out a new cigarette, lighting it for himself, bringing it to his lips and blowing out a cloud of that weird, sweet smelling smoke that rises up towards the moon above. Silence surrounds them for a while, as Grimmjow continues to smoke, his gaze still fixated on the riverbank ahead. Ichigo just stares at him, though his eyes keep flickering to their surroundings, as if expecting something to happen. There was nothing there, no hollows, no muggers, nothing of the sort. Only the wind making the leaves of the trees dance in the night.

"Lotta bad things have happened to ya ’round here, huh. You lost your ma, you almost drowned, got nearly eaten by a hollow, twice.”

Ichigo freezes; how did....how did Grimmjow know about his mother? Had Urahara told him? Why would he have done that? Also what did he mean—

River.

The dream.

He’d fallen into the river.

The image of that nightmare now flashes before his eyes, only it was becoming more clear. As he stares at the man silently smoking away and watching him with that stoic expression, Ichigo’s mind starts to connect the dots. The blurry image of someone reaching for him becomes clear, until....

A young boy close to his age, his hair was blue and a wild mess, his eyes somehow far too intense and aggressive for a child’s face.

"You wouldn’t stop tryin’ ta make friends with me, stalked me all the way here. I got pissed off enough to kick you, but your dumb ass landed in the water. The current’s strong in that part too.”

Ichigo barely registers his voice, holding his head and backing away against the railing of the bridge, an image starting to form in his mind.

The river, blue haired boy, always alone, always angry.

He’d felt bad for him, because he always seemed to be alone in the park, no parents in sight. He’d tried to approach him and make friends, but he’d always turned him down and been really mean. Ichigo had gone to his mum crying, not understanding why the other boy hated him so much, he just wanted to help!

Mama had said he didn’t hate Ichigo, he was just very troubled.

He’d believed her, mama was always right about these things, so he’d tried again. The boy kept being mean, but Ichigo didn’t give up. He was clearly lonely, and that was maybe why he was so mad, right? Mama said sometimes people ended up pushing away what they wanted and needed, because they felt they didn’t deserve it. Maybe the boy thought that way too?

"Didn’t mean ta try n’ drown you, so I jumped after; if m’gonna kill someone, it better be on purpose.”

He continued being kind of mean, but Ichigo had noticed, he’d started to be less mean. He’d even eaten the bento Ichigo’s mama had made him as per Ichigo’s request, because he looked so sickly and skinny, did his parents even give him enough food? He still didn’t want to play with Ichigo or his friends, though, always leaving if more kids appeared. It made Ichigo sad, but he didn’t give up. He wanted to be friends.

"Had to carry ya home, your ma was pretty upset, scolded me like crazy.”

He’d brought him home in piggyback, Ichigo could tell he felt guilty over what happened. She’d helped dry off his wild hair while telling them both not to play so close to the river’s edge. Ichigo felt bad, it was an accident! He didn’t mean to push him down there like that! He tells mama as much, and she sighs, offering him a smile.

"I know he didn’t mean to. But it was still dangerous! You both could’ve drowned!”

"Bullcrap, I can’t drown!”

".....You are strong ——, but not invisible. I’m glad you dived after him, but let’s not have this situation happen again at all okay?”

Mum pokes his nose, and Ichigo could tell his friend didn’t know how to react to it, eventually just looking away grumbling under his breath, still claiming he couldn’t drown. He was always so confident and brave, Ichigo felt kind of envious. He’d never seen him cry either, though mama said crying wasn’t a bad thing, and not crying could be a sign of someone being really sad but unable to show it. His friend didn’t seem sad, just...angry.

He was always so angry, Ichigo didn’t know why.

—— looks back at him now, his blue eyes were so wide and big like a cat’s sometimes were, Ichigo could see his own reflection in them.

Slowly, the ginger looks back at the blunet who’d shifted to lean against the opposing railing, cigarette still held firmly between his fingers. Ichigo swallows down hard, just staring at him for a long moment.

"You....I.....mum...”

"I met her yes.”

Grimmjow just stands there, watching as Ichigo tries to gather himself, still holding his head now trying to understand what just happened. Those were memories, clear as day, but where did they come from? Had the man inserted something into his brain with his iron grip somehow, or just that death glare? Ichigo thinks back on the strange question the man had asked earlier about remembering. What had he asked again....?

".....Those....that’s not two years ago!”

He looks back at Grimmjow with an accusatory glare, his heart still beating rapidly in his chest. This had to be some weird trick, right? Since Grimmjow wasn’t human, whatever he was, he was using something on Ichigo to create those visions, right?

But why?

"I don’t know what the hell you are doing, but get out of my head!”

Ichigo now grasps his jacket collar, glaring up at the man and hating how those eyes reminded him so much of the boy from his vision, just narrower, older, more vicious now. Grimmjow seems amused by his reaction, and Ichigo stops him before he could bring the smoke to his lips to blow it at his face to ward him off, refusing to move away or let go.

"How did you do that?! Is it some touch based trick? Or your eyes do weird shit?”

He hated how he was shaking now, that earlier anxiety having increased tenfold. Ichigo didn’t even know why, the visions weren’t particularly traumatizing, or violent, or—or—

"Two years ago, I died on this bridge. In front of you.”

Those words hit him like a fully loaded semi-truck or an attack from Kenpachi, the weight of them spreading across his shoulders and making him slowly loosen his grip on Grimmjow’s collar, his breath halting in his throat for a second. All the sounds around them seem to die down, the only thing he could hear now was his own, rapid heartbeat, and the man’s calm voice.

"It was bad enough that Urahara erased yer memory of everything. Not just you. Yer family, the few friends of yours that knew ’bout me. T’was like I never existed.”

That was....

Urahara.

Why would....?

It had to be a—but why? Why would he make up such a lie?

There was something else flashing in his mind now, but he couldn’t make sense to it, all he knew was the feeling of utter dread, and devastation, and fear. The kind of primal fear he could only recall feeling once before, when his mother died. Even being stuck in Urahara’s hollow pit didn’t quite match that. Ichigo finds himself backing away and bending over, collapsing to the bridge as something hits him. A memory he couldn’t remember, but could feel whatever he’d felt at the time. It was making him feel sick, and anxious, and like he was about to die.

Footsteps walk closer, and he could feel Grimmjow crouch in front of him now, the familiar scent of his cigarette managing to somehow push away whatever had grasped his core right now, trying to yank his heart off his chest, like someone was trying to turn him into a hollow. Yet, it wasn’t that, it didn’t feel like when his inner hollow would be fucking around with him.

A hand grabs his hair suddenly, pulling his head back painfully so he was face-to-face with Grimmjow, and Ichigo tries to speak, but something stopped him from doing so, as all he could do was stare back.

What was happening to him?

Grimmjow watches Kurosaki struggle, as the deeply buried memory attempts to claw its way to the surface to re-traumatize him all over again. He clearly couldn’t recall the details, but the emotions, the instinctive reactions, it was all there. His body recalled before his mind could.

He could make it worse, so much worse.

Grimmjow could force it all back into the forefront of his memory right now if he wanted to, and watch the ginger suffer with the weight of what had been hidden from him.

Because of the condition he was in, Grimmjow was tempted, very tempted to do that. His sadistic side was nearly purring enthusiastically at the devastation that he could cause to this raggedy ass wannabe shinigami, who’d made the mistake to befriend him all those years ago. No, it was worse than that, but that part hadn’t caught up with Kurosaki yet. He still couldn't remember details, just vague sensations, emotions, pain. 

It would be so easy, to tear open that old wound Urahara had done his best to scar over and bury so deep Kurosaki would’ve never found it again, but of course he had. Kurosaki's self-preservation was so shit that he’d slowly picked at it without knowing after becoming a shinigami, and it was now bleeding open more and more, and he could just get it over with and rip apart the whole thing and let him bleed out if he wanted to.

In any other case, perhaps he would have.

His hatred for Shinigami burned strong, but it wasn’t blind fury.

The world was more complicated than that, and he’d never let his anger get the best of him like that, ever again.

Besides....

Sighing, he let’s go of the ginger hair, placing both of his hands on Kurosaki’s shaking shoulders instead, cigarette still between his fingers. The smell from it was clearly helping to ground him for some reason, perhaps it worked on humans and Shinigami the same way it worked on him. Pretty fucking ironic given how much the ginger bastard had complained about the smell earlier.

"Alright, just breathe. Yer clearly not ready to deal with all that.”

For a moment the ginger continues to stare at him while panting, but he eventually starts to calm down, closing his eyes as he clutches his stomach lightly, sucking in a deep breath. It was a pathetic sight, but Grimmjow remains silent, just holding onto him until he stopped shaking. His reiatsu was still all over the place as well, would probably be knocking out weaker humans if he hadn’t been stuck in his fleshy body right now.

Grimmjow eventually let’s go and stands back up, watching him sit there eyes closed, a deep frown still plastered on his face.

"....Urahara. He would...yeah. He would. It sounds like....but…..”

"Kurosaki. You don’t wanna know the answer right now. You just got a glimpse of the beehive buried deep in yer brain. Dig on it more an’ you’re in for a hell of a time, and not in a fun way.”

Grimmjow snorts, having to take support from the railing for a moment as he was getting dizzy. Fucking hell this one was breaking down so fast. Sandal-hat was working on the next one already, but clearly they had to hurry before this gigai failed...

"You said you died!”

Blue eyes snap open, noting Kurosaki had gotten up now, grasping his arm, though he seemed to mainly be doing it to support him now annoyingly, fucking over-empathetic human flesh bag. He doesn’t shove the hand away though, just looks back at him with amused lift eyebrow. Kurosaki’s face was still frantic as hell, looking back at him with an expression that was trying to make sense of what just happened, even now.

He already knew where this was going. Kurosaki was so goddamn predictable like that.

"You died. Here. I saw it….?”

"Yes.”

"But...then….”

Oh, the poor asshole was jumping into the exact conclusion he’d thought he would, judging from that face. He didn’t even have to bring it up, the dumbass was excellent at taking the blame for everything and anything.

".....Are you....a hollow? Did….did I...?”

He was so tempted to play along, that sinister part of him edging him to do just that, hit him where it’d hurt the most.

He hated it.

It was all because of his current condition, that this voice was so loud, urging him to be sadistic towards even someone like Kurosaki. The part of him that wanted to tear and destroy, barely restrained unbridled rage and bloodthirst that were held back by only small slivers of sanity left, and a memory of a shaking, flustered teenager standing on this very bridge, after having spilled out something he hadn’t meant to, followed by probably the most horrid way possible for that situation to escalate.

There was a reason Kurosaki’s old man had asked Sandal-hat to remove those memories.

He lifts his hand, grasping the collar of Kurosaki’s jacket to pull him closer, a near demonic grin spreading across his face. Their foreheads were near touching now and the brown eyes were wide and cautious, his manic grin probably freaking the ginger out. Knowing what he knew, the whole situation was so amusing, in so many ways, and Kurosaki had no fucking clue about it, not yet.

"Don’t ask me shit that makes me want to hurt you, Kurosaki. Go home.”

With that, he shoves Kurosaki  back and turns away, heading back to the park entrance before the monster screeching in his messy brain could take hold and make him do something he’d probably regret. Brown eyes just watch him go, hands clutched into tight fists.

He'd remember eventually, so much was coming back, and once it did come back...

Well, he'd make sure to watch that shit-show unfold.

Chapter Text

That morning, Yuzu goes up to check on her brother; she was feeling a bit concerned, as Ichigo hadn’t come down for breakfast like normal. Sure, it was the weekend so he had no lessons today, but typically her older brother was an early bird.

Knocking on the door and opening it, she finds that Ichigo was indeed awake, but something was off. Ichigo was just sitting at his bed, still in his pajamas, sunken in deep thought. He looked extremely tired, worse then ever before in fact. The sight made her wonder concerned if he’d had bad dreams again, and if they’d been worse this time around.....

Walking closer, Ichigo doesn’t seem to notice her presence until she eventually waves a hand in front of his face, snapping him out of whatever sleepy thoughtful trance he was in. He looks up at her a bit dazed, before shaking his head and glancing at the clock.

"Ah...shit, s’already morning?”

"Yes? Did you not sleep the whole night?!”

She asks alarmed, gaining a sheepish and tired chuckle from her brother, who looks back at her apologetically. Yuzu proceeds to scold him for a moment, before asking him if he was okay. It was kind of a silly question as obviously he wasn’t, but still. Ichigo doesn’t say anything at first, making the girl wonder if he was too tired to properly even register her question. Eventually though, Ichigo breathes out a sigh and apologizes again for worrying her, getting up to change out of his pajamas. His steps were wobbly and slightly uncoordinated however, making it clear he hadn’t slept one bit last night.

This was extremely worrying, because it was different from his shinigami work; at least then his body would still get to rest thanks to Kon, but it was clear something else was going on now.

"Aw, shit.”

Ichigo leans against the door of his wardrobe for a moment, looking about ready to topple over. Yuzu examines him with that same concern still coloring her expression for a moment, before asking hesitantly if she should just bring his food upstairs.

"....I...Maybe. Don’t trust making my way down the stairs safely right now...”

"Okay, I’ll bring your breakfast up here! You should probably try and sleep once you’ve eaten; you look awful.”

"I know. Sorry...”

Ichigo manages to change into day clothes - a t-shirt and sweats - before pacing right back to his bed, slumping down to it with a huffing sigh. He covers his face with his arm to shield it from the light, it clearly hurt his eyes. Yuzu hurries downstairs, gathering up Ichigo’s portion to a tray much to Karin and their dad’s confusion.

"Where is Ichigo?”

"He.....it seems like didn’t sleep at all last night; I’ll bring his food up to him, as he might just stumble down the stairs if he tries to come down.”

"Huh? Why? Did he have a nightmare again, or did his shinigami buddies keep him up and running way too late last night?”

Yuzu shakes her head, looking back at them; the two now seem to notice how incredibly worried she looked, wit Karin’s playful smile vanishing in an instant.

"His body gets to rest in the meantime, right? Kon makes sure of that. I don’t think this is soul reaper related.”

".....Ah yeah, where is that weird lion bear anyway? Did you see him?”

"He tends to hide from me a lot...I wanted to ask him what was going on, but I don’t know where he’s hiding now.”

Yuzu shrugs and picks up the tray of food, bringing it up to Ichigo’s room. She was not surprised to see he’d dozed off briefly, though her brother stirs as soon as Yuzu lowers the breakfast tray on his desk. Karin had followed him up, now glaring at Ichigo with a frustrated look, hands on her hips.

"What the hell is wrong with you Ichigo? Do you need to go see a doctor - other than old man - or is this some spirit society flu thing or whatever? You look like absolute trash!”

Ichigo doesn’t respond, just sits up and picks up the glass of orange juice Yuzu had brought him, drinking it all down with one gulp. The two sisters examine their brother, not knowing what was going on. He’d had a lot of bad mornings lately, but this was far worse than ever before. Yuzu couldn’t recall last time she’d seen Ichigo so sleepless, maybe this had happened when mum died, but she’d been too young to really remember that....

Dad was now peeking into the room as well, for once not being his usual loud self. Probably because of how awful Ichigo looked, their dad was goofy an eccentric, but knew when to pipe down if things were serious. He walks beside the two girls as well, asking Ichigo if he’d had a nightmare again last night.

"....No. Yes. I don’t know.”

The ginger huffs and rubs his face tiredly after putting his empty glass away, dropping his hands to his lap as Ichigo just sort of stares into thin air for a moment, the same expression on his face as Yuzu had seen when walking in the first time.

The two sisters look at each other uneasily, with Yuzu asking if they should let him rest. She gains no response at first, but eventually Ichigo nods faintly, apologizing quietly again for worrying them. The two sisters leave the room, with Karin still giving Ichigo a brief worried glance. Before their old man could follow the pair’s example, Ichigo’s voice stops him however.

"Dad. Can I...can I talk with you alone for a sec?”

"Of course, anything you need sonny!”

Isshin comments after a moment of surprised silence, closing the door behind the girls as Ichigo gestures him to do so; clearly whatever he wanted to talk to their dad about, he didn’t want them to hear it. The sisters look at each other, with Karin pressing her ear against the door.

"W-what are you doing?”

"I wanna know what they’re gonna talk about!”

"But Karin, Ichigo clearly wanted to speak about it privately.”

"Hush, you’re curious too aren’t you?”

Yuzu bites her lip, as Karin wasn’t wrong. Still, she found eavesdropping on them a bit rude, and Ichigo must’ve wanted to talk with dad alone for a reason. Stopping her older sister when her mind was set on something was pointless however, so Yuzu breathes out a sigh and joins beside her, trying to hear what was happening on the other side.

"What weighs on your mind, Ichigo? You know you can always talk to your old man!”

Ichigo looks at his parent, trying to remain at least somewhat focused, which was admittedly hard after being unable to sleep for the whole night. He was honestly not entirely sure why he felt the need to talk to dad about this. He just had this weird gut feeling that wouldn’t stop nagging at the back of his head. Grimmjow’s words from last night still echoed in his mind, and he couldn’t stop but wonder.

If they were true, and many people’s memories were erased, did that mean his dad too? If so, was he the only one starting to remember things? If not, asking dad about it was maybe the safest bet then....

"Dad.....does.....does the name Grimmjow say anything to you?”

Ichigo wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but certainly not the reaction he got. His old man looks surprised at first before seemingly catching himself, trying to pretend what the ginger had just seen hadn’t happened, shrugging.

"Can’t say I do, that is a very foreign name so I’d surely remember it! What language is that even? German maybe?”

Ichigo stares at him for a long moment, kind of taken aback by how quickly he’d been proven right. Dad clearly knew that name, but.... why the hell would he look surprised hearing it? And pretend not to know it? If his memories had been tampered with and he did remember now, why would....?

"Did you perhaps meet someone new at school?”

"Dad. I had a terrible fucking night just now, I’m too tired to deal with any bullshit. Do you know him or not?”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh, rubbing his eyes while trying to remain awake.

The old man grows quiet for a long moment, which was very damn uncharacteristic of this obnoxious weirdo. To fall silent like this, Isshin Kurosaki wasn’t typically capable of it, so something was definitely off here. Looking up at his dad, there was clear conflict in his parent’s eyes. Ichigo drops his hand, glaring at him as sternly as he could, which was kind of easy to do when you were dead tired. Nobody had time for bullshit when exhausted to hell and back.

"Dad....”

".....Did you run into him last night perhaps when you went out?”

"Yes. He told me some stuff. Stuff that’s been keepin’ me awake and Kon hiding in the closet the whole night.”

Ichigo pauses to glance at the aforementioned closet, before looking back at his father. The old man was examining him with a slight concerned frown again. However, the concern didn’t seem to be for his sleepy state anymore, but something else.

"......What did he say?”

"That I knew him. That he died two years ago, and I saw it. That people’s memories about him were erased by Urahara for some reason.”

The ginger shifts away from his spot, grabbing his father’s shoulders now, both to stabilize himself as he was dizzy as hell, and to make sure the old man would keep his attention on him and not try to slip away from this conversation, now that Ichigo could tell he knew something.

"Dad, what happened? Don’t try to bullshit me, you clearly know something! I saw how you reacted to his name!”

Isshin remains dead silent in a creepily uncharacteristic way, just examining his tired, pissed off face with that same concerned frown. Eventually though he closes his eyes and sigh, crossing his arms over his chest. Ichigo let’s go of his shoulder now as he has to lie back down, covering his face with his hands again. The light from outside hurt his eyes really bad, and he was having a murder headache; not sleeping at all was definitely bad for you, not that he hadn’t known that.

".....I see....that....I’m honestly unsure why he did that.”

"What do you mean?”

Ichigo asks, dropping his hands to glare at his dad, whose gaze had now drifted towards the closet doors that Kon hid behind; he’d pretty much slipped there immediately as soon as they got home, not saying a word. Dad wasn’t really looking at the said closet, more focused on something in his thoughts instead.

"The dreams you’ve been seeing. I spoke with Urahara about them. He’d....he did warn me this could start happening now that you’ve become a shinigami. We were kind of hoping it wouldn’t, but...well. Perhaps it was inevitable as you two crossed paths that day.”

His dad didn’t sound particularly mad per say when he said those last words, but was clearly a bit displeased about the fact Grimmjow had been present the day Urahara had taken him in for training to save Rukia. Ichigo frowns and sits back up slowly, having to wait until the world stopped spinning, before speaking again.

".....I’ve been seeing a dream where I’m a kid. I fall into a river, then someone pulls me out of there.”

"I’m aware, you’ve mentioned it before.”

”Was that a dream, or was it a memory?”

".....Yes. It is a memory.”

That blunt, honest answer catches Ichigo off-guard, and Isshin turns to look back at him with a sad looking smile, arms still crossed over his chest. That serious aura surrounding him was really freaking Ichigo out, it was very unlike the goofy dumb idiot he was used to his dad being.

"You’d insisted on making friends with him. You had an argument, and he accidentally kicked you into the water. He jumped in right after to rescue you, knowing even if you could swim, the current was very strong there.”

"......So.....we actually met when I was a kid....he was telling the truth....?”

"Yes. Although, he didn’t use his real name at the time. He was quite mean to you at first, but Masaki told you he was just a very troubled child, so you insisted on wanting to make friends.”

"Wow. Somehow I’m not surprised to hear he was a jerk already back then, he’s probably ten times as bad now.”

Ichigo comments dryly, gaining a chuckle from his father, before Isshin sighs and leans his back against the wall beside his window now. There was weight to the old man’s eyes Ichigo hadn’t seen before, and it was making him uneasy. Isshin Kurosaki was always so happy-go-lucky to the point of annoyance, that witnessing such a serious expression from him was throwing Ichigo’s brain for a loop, wondering if he was hallucinating due to sleep deprivation.

"He....ah. Perhaps I should ask you first; what do you remember? Was that river incident the only one?”

Ichigo goes quiet and thinks back on the flashes and dreams he’d been seeing, something tickling at the back of his head. Then, his eyes widen as he recalls another dream, one he’d seen first when his sleeping troubles started.

"There was....I think it was....about mum, but....it was different from how...?”

Ichigo swallows down hard, trying to recall the nightmare as unpleasant as it was. He wasn’t sure why he associated that nightmare with mum though, she wasn’t present in it, was she...?

"I...I was running away from something. Then when that thing almost catches me, something attacks it? Something blue and...kind of animalistic? Like a big cat maybe?”

Isshin just nods faintly, making Ichigo look at him unnerved now.

"Did....did that actually happen too? It’s not...it’s not just a dream?”

Isshin averts his gaze, seemingly contemplating on what to say next. Ichigo reaches for his shoulder again, giving his old man a slight shake with probably a little hysteric expression now, judging from his voice going up to a higher pitch and making him sound like he was about ready to have a breakdown.

"Dad! Did that actually happen? What the hell did I see?! How long have you—”

"Ichigo, I really wish I could tell you, but I am worried this will have a major negative impact on you. Some of those memories are....traumatic, they were locked away for a reason.”

"You’re telling me Urahara made me forget a friend of some sort, that DIED and now is hanging around in a gigai, being a jerk to me for reasons I don’t know! I deserve to fucking know what’s going on here!”

Ichigo gives him a frustrated shake, making his dad hold his hands up defensively, asking him to calm down. The ginger just shakes him more in response, his tiredness starting to make him act a bit irrational perhaps.

"Calm down?! I just found out that the rude asshole that I thought was a total stranger had been involved with my family before, a man I thought I could sorta trust has tampered with my memories in the past, and YOU seem to know about it?! Did he even make you forget?! Whose memories did sandal-hat also fuck with?!”

Ichigo stops shaking his old man as a dizzy spell hits him, and he squeezes his eyes shut, still clinging to his parent to weather it.

".....Why did he tell me he died? Why is—is he a hollow? Was it my fault? Did he die and turn into a hollow because of me?! Answer!”

He looks back at his dad with almost desperate look now, because that thought hadn’t left his mind since last night. Based on the small bits of information Grimmjow had given him, what else was he supposed to think? He was a spirit in a gigai, not a living human in a living body, and yet he’d been a child once apparently, meaning he’d been alive...

"No. What happened wasn’t your fault Ichigo, and if he dared to claim that, he was lying.”

The ginger looks up at his old man, noting his vision was swimming with colorful lights, and he still felt dizzy. Ichigo refuses to lie back down however, just clinging to his old man who holds his gaze steadily, grasping his shoulders in turn now. He still wasn’t sure if he was truly awake or not, his brain felt like mush. Yet, the headache from his lack of sleep felt all too real, as well as the hysteric anxiety tugging at his gut.

He was very much awake, and his dad was very much staring at him with a weirdly serious expression, and he was very much confirming that Ichigo’s memories had been tampered with at some point, and that he knew Urahara from before. That he knew Grimmjow from before....

"Ichigo, I....”

"Is.....is that.....is that why he’s an asshole towards me? ’Cause I got him killed? Is that it? He hates me now because I got him killed....”

Ichigo couldn’t help himself, voicing out that thought; his dad had just told him his fear wasn’t right, but it was hard to believe it. What else could it be? He had been a child! He’d grown up, he’d been alive! Grimmjow had said himself he’d died three years ago, so he had to have been alive before that, and if Ichigo had seen that, maybe—maybe—

"Ichigo! Listen. I told you It wasn’t your fault.”

Those words barely register, with the ginger just staring at his father dully. He was so tired from lack of sleep and all these anxious thoughts swirling in his head since that talk at the bridge. He felt extremely drained, both physically and mentally.

"What happened was never your fault. I don’t frankly understand why he’d make you think that. If he’s blaming you for losing that gigai, it’s not very fair.”

"H-huh?”

Isshin breathes out a slow sigh now, removing one of his hands from Ichigo’s shoulder to rub his eyes. The room grew a bit darker, as a cloud had covered the sun outside briefly.

"I was....concerned about it. With time, he just...but he genuinely seemed to like you? I don’t know, his kind are hard to read and understand sometimes.”

Dad was now musing to himself more it seemed like, his gaze averting to the window as the old man seems to recall some sort of memory or two. Ichigo was struggling to focus, struggling to process the information being given, he was so tired. He just wanted to sleep, sleep and not wake up in a while. What did the old man even mean with "his kind" anyway? 

"Urahara, he....he let you two be friends, because it seemed to help keep things calm for him. So he could remain stable and...hidden.”

Ichigo just let’s him talk, having ran out of energy to ask anything. He was getting some answers anyway, even if a lot of it was confusing and he didn’t really understand the words being told to him fully. Why had old man been involved with the shinigami in the past? Had Sandal-hat already known about his strong spiritual essence and latent potential, so he'd made contact with dad? So many questions....

"I ultimately let you two hang out mainly because of Masaki. She seemed to trust him with you? Especially after that river incident, she told me that while he was rude and abrasive, that feisty spirit liked you, and the fact he’d risked his life to save you said a lot.”

Isshin huffs out a sigh, rubbing his eyes again before looking back at Ichigo. He’d never seen his dad look so guilty, apart from the day of their mother’s funeral. Clearly this memory tampering thing hadn’t been something he’d agreed on that willingly, and seeing that expression caused Ichigo’s anger to slowly dissipate.

"I....don’t know exactly, what happened that night. I wasn’t present, I was only called to pick you up from Urahara’s house. Well you and Tatsuki.”

"Tatsuki?”

"She’d gone out with you, you’d had a fight with him and wanted to go confront him about it, and she’d come with you for emotional support. Or literal support if a fight broke out I guess? I think even he respected her karate skills.”

"He better.”

Ichigo mutters out tiredly, gaining a chuckle from his dad. The smile fades quickly however, replaced with a deep frown on his face.

"Urahara wouldn’t tell me the exact details, but.....it was the hardest decision of my life, Ichigo. Or one of the hardest. I saw your face, you were awake but it was like you were in a trance? I’d never seen you like that, it really scared me.”

Ichigo swallows down hard, hearing the clear parental worry and upset entering his old man's tone.

"I asked him if....if he could erase your memory of what happened, he’d already been contemplating on potentially needing to do so with Tatsuki given what she’d seen, not to mention the whole thing had apparently compromised the situation with Grimmjow potentially. We concluded it was for the best at the time to....just wipe everything from anyone involved. Including your sisters.”

"What?!”

Ichigo sits back to look at his parent in utter shock, before hiding his face to his hands now for a moment: it was a lot to process after all. Dad just let’s him just sit there in silence for a while, to let him gather himself.

"He let me keep my memory just in case, for precaution, if issues arose.”

"What kinda issues?”

"Well...what is happening right now, for example. In case yours returned.”

Ichigo just stares at his dad, not knowing what to say. What could he say to all this really? What he thought had been his life had chunks missing from it, and his dad had known the whole time, hiding it from him, him and his sisters, and gods know who many else they knew.

"....Why would....I don’t understand. I don’t understand dad! What happened!? What was so bad you had to erase a memory of someone I was friends with? What did I do?!”

Ichigo hides his face to his hands again, he was too drained to really process all this, but he was also too anxious to rest. His body was shaking badly right now, and his eyes felt like they burned. He hadn’t cried since his mum had passed, and he wasn’t about to now either. He almost stubbornly forced it back, which did just make the burning sensation worse. Stuff like this was absolutely one of his worst nightmares, he hated losing people. he'd hate it even more if it was his fault that happened....

Suddenly, arms wrap around him and Ichigo freezes, realizing dad had pulled him into a hug. Normally he’d kicked the old man off right away, but something made him just lean into it, grabbing onto his polo shirt.

"I know this is a lot to process. I promise you Ichigo, you did nothing wrong. I don’t know why he’s made you think that, but he’s wrong either way.”

"....he said...he said I should stop thinkin’ about it. I had....”

Ichigo goes quiet, swallowing down hard as he hides his face against his old man’s shoulder for a moment, just trying to breathe in evenly. Isshin hums and pats his back, quietly asking if he could tell him exactly what had been said and what had happened during their talk last night. It takes him a moment to find his voice again, but Ichigo recounts their conversation, including the part where he’d collapsed to the ground and felt really sick.

Isshin remains quiet for a long moment, before breathing out a sigh.

"....I see. He definitely didn’t word that well.”

"Just—just tell me, did I—”

"I already said no.”

"But I don’t get it! We were friends, right? If I didn’t do anything wrong, why does he act like he hates me now?!”

That was the part that didn’t make sense to Ichigo. Grimmjow had been so rude towards him so far, definitely not acting like they’d ever been friends. It wasn’t the kind of friendly ribbing Renji did for example, there was something kind of vicious behind it. Ichigo felt his body shake even more, hating how torn up he felt. The idea that he’d fucked up somehow and managed to make someone he’d been friends with since childhood apparently to start hating him...

And what had caused this rift apparently being so bad his memory had to be erased of it—

Just what the hell did he do?!

"....Listen, Ichigo. You look terrible, you are exhausted. You need to rest for today. If you need, I can give you some melanin to help you fall asleep, okay? I’ll go and speak with him.”

Ichigo opens his mouth, then closes it, unable to say anything. He just nods eventually instead. For once, old man was right, he was too mentally fucked up right now to deal with this, he needed to calm down and rest.

Opening the door, Isshin wasn't surprised to see the two girls eavesdropping, with Yuzu immediately apologizing for it, stating they hadn't heard anything. Whether that was true or not didn't really matter right now. He just asks the pair to go and get Ichigo some melanin so he gets some sleep, as he had to go see an old friend.

"Who?"

Karin asks confused, clearly a bit unnerved by how serious he was; Isshin couldn't blame the girls, he rarely showed this side of his around his family. Now however...he really needed to go have a chat with someone, and that man would not care for silly goofy shenanigans. He had to take this seriously if he wanted answers.

The two girls watch him pull on his coat and head out wordlessly, likely still wondering what was going on. 

Of all the colorful visitors to his humble shop, Urahara was admittedly surprised to see Isshin Kurosaki after all these years, but also not entirely surprised. Last night once Grimmjow had returned from his walk, he’d been cursing under his breath and muttering something about fucking up.

The only topic Urahara could think of him say that about had to be related to Ichigo, which was likely why Isshin was there now.

"He remembers.”

"Oh dear. How much?”

"The river incident, parts of what happened with Masaki. The bridge, though not clearly.”

Urahara hums and adjusts his hat, asking Isshin after a moment if he was there to request another wipe. Unsurprisingly, the man shakes his head, instead asking where Jeagerjaquez was, arms crossed over his chest. The blond man hesitates for a moment, but gestures at the backroom.

"Try not to provoke him, his condition is...not the best.”

"I won’t. I just have a question.”

Grimmjow could hear the door opening, recognizing the reiatsu entering the room. He didn’t even have to open his eyes to know Kurosaki’s annoying old man was there, sitting down at the chair next to the doorway. He doesn’t bother opening his eyes, holding his hand over his head cigarette still between his fingers.

Fucking hell; he knew this would happen, just not this fast. He really didn’t want to deal with this right now.

After the tense silence stretches between them for a while, the man finally bothers to speak up, likely realizing he wasn’t gonna get a greeting from him.

"Care to tell me why did you provoke my sons’ memories like that?”

"He was already rememberin’ shit clearly. Was just curious.”

He shrugs and finally opens his eyes, bringing the cigarette to his mouth to take a drag from the sickly sweet shit, refusing to look at the upset parent clearly there to bitch at him over his son having a mental breakdown because of him.

".....Ichigo seems to think he’s at fault for what happened. I’m just wondering why didn’t you tell him the truth, since I suspect you’d know he’d jump into that conclusion.”

Grimmjow takes another drag from his cigarette, watching the smoke rise up to the ceiling before dissipating into thin air. Fuck his head hurt like hell, he kinda wanted to vomit too. This damn body was clearly degrading much faster than ever before...

"Why the fuck would you ask that from a demon? We’re sadistic by nature. You see a weakness, yer gonna dig into it.”

"To be frank, I am under the impression that claim is partially bullshit. And not just because of your...bizarre condition.”

Grimmjow snorts and slowly pushes himself upright, holding his head for a moment as the world spun annoyingly. Once he finally looks back at Isshin, it was kind of hilarious seeing this usually goofy, obnoxious and annoying weirdo act so serious. Kurosaki really didn’t know that much about his dad for sure, and part of Grimmjow wonders if the old man had finally spilled the beans about his history to Ichigo because of this. Maybe not, he was likely already dealing with a lot of bullshit dropped onto him at once, and yeah, it was kinda his fault. 

"I just want to understand. I was under the impression you... liked..... my son well enough. Why would you suddenly do something this cruel? I doubt what happened at that bridge was his fault. Even if it was—”

"It kinda was yeah, but no, I don’t really blame ’im for it.”

Grimmjow snorts and rubs his eyes, his answer clearly catching Isshin off-guard, as his eyebrows shoot up to his hairline, almost flinging right off his dumbass face. They do come back down for a deep frown now, it was so bad his forehead crumpled up like a fuckin’ raisin, almost making him laugh.

"Why would you do this then?”

A wry grin spreads on his face slowly, though there was nothing happy or gleeful about that expression.

"Told ya. I’m a fuckin’ demon, Shinigami. A demon whose animalistic side’s tuned to eleven because of the bullshit Aizen did ta me. I’m in pain because of all this. Constantly.”

He gestures at himself, before taking another drag from his cigarette, trying to calm hos nerves as getting pissy would just make shit worse right now. It wasn’t like the guy didn’t have the right to be mad, he absolutely did. Hell, Grimmjow was mad about the whole shit show that’d happened.

"I don’t have the kind of fuckin’ filters I normally would. I said what I did ’cause I saw a weakness, n’ the monster wants ta pick at it. I coulda done an’ said so much worse things, but I fucked right off before that could happen.”

"...I don’t think that justifies—”

Grimmjow let’s out an angry sounding snarl, feeling his reiatsu want to burst out of his gigai prison, but it is forced to stay in there, making him cough briefly, drops of blood appearing on his palm. Fucking hell. Looking back at the Shinigami asshole, he did at least bother to look concerned now, looking about ready to get up and go get Sandal-hat to check on him, but Grimmjow doesn’t let the bastard do that.

"You think I WANTED to cause this? I shoulda just let ’im wander ’round like a headless chicken as much as he wanted n’ not gone talk to him. I know that! I fuckin’ know!”

He coughs again, and takes a moment just to pull it all back in, squeezing his eyes shut while his hands clutch the bed sheets tight enough, that had he had his claws, they would’ve torn. He was mad, he was so pissing mad you wouldn’t fucking believe, but being angry right now would make everything worse. He had to just keep it in for now, just fucking breathe and stay calm.

Still.

His next words come out venomous, blue eyes drifting back towards the shinigami with the kind of vicious stare that would intimidate most people who saw it.

"You decided to take ’im from me. You chose ta erase his memory. I understood why, m’not complete fuckin’ animal, but you fuckers ALSO know how demons like me work.Y'all did yer homework.”

The grin from before creeps back up to his face, but this time it definitely had feeling behind it, and it wasn’t guilt.

"Y’all really thought I wouldn’t show up? Especially now when he’s a shinigami like you? You LET me be friends with ’im. Don’t come here blamin’ me for this when YOUR choice caused this. You coulda just made 'im forget I died, job's done, but no. You couldn't leave it at that, could you? Were you so scared he'd get hurt by me in the future if you let 'im stay near me?”

He coughs again, cursing under his breath briefly, before looking back at Isshin.

"Job well done, he got hurt anyway. Parent of the year aren't ya? lettin' him go up there to pick a fight with the entire seireitei. Yer lucky Ichigo's a stubborn, tough little asshole, 'cause his chances of survivin' that were real fuckin' small."

Predictably, the shinigami has nothing to say to all that, he eventually just stands up calmly, telling him to rest before leaving the room. Grimmjow snorts and slumps back down, lifting his hand to study the droplets of dried blood on it. Kisuke had to hurry the fuck up if they really wanted to keep him alive, ’cause this one was failing, fast.

Dropping his hand, Grimmjow brings the cigarette to his lips again.

Isshin stands there for a moment, processing the brief conversation he’d had with the vicious spirit. It had explained a lot, and to be fair, he’d had a hunch about it, given what Kisuke had taught him about Oni like Grimmjow. It had also stung a little, being called out on letting Ichigo go to such a dangerous journey. He'd had to let Ichigo do it, there was no way he'd let his friend get killed because of him, and Isshin just couldn't go and help him at the time. He was in no shape to do so. 

It really felt like no matter what he did, he kept making poor choices when it came to parenting his son, huh?

His mind drifts back to the conversation he’d had with Urahara after that night, when they'd had to erase Ichigo's memory.

"While this is probably for the best...I suspect Jeagerjaquez won’t like this.”

"I suppose, he and Ichigo did spend a lot of time together.”

"It’s not...it’s more of an Oni related detail I’m afraid...”

"Oh?”

"I doubt he’d actually do anything necessarily; for his aggression, Jeagerjaquez ultimately rather rational, especially when you consider the state his soul is in.”

"Kisuke, if doing this put my son in danger I swear—”

"All I mean is...Oni are possessive of their belongings. Or people they’ve deemed worthy of their attention, so taking Ichigo away from him essentially will ruffle some feathers - or fur in this case I suppose. However, they are protective of them too. I’m sure he’ll understand it is safer for you all for him to stay away once he awakens.”

"What the hell do you mean Kisuke? That’s not exactly reassuring!”

Urahara pulls out his fan, hiding his face behind it partially.

"Some day, he might show up to your house, and you need to be prepared to deal with whatever that brings. That is the main reason why I am not erasing your memory of him.”

".....Was it a bad idea, letting them become friends? Be honest with me.”

"Time will tell. If this is any reassurance though....”

Urahara places a hand on his shoulder now.

"Think of it this way; If he hadn’t, your son could’ve died falling into that river. He could’ve died with his mother. He could’ve died tonight, but didn’t, thanks to—”

Isshin snaps out of his memory as Urahara walks to him, asking calmly how it went. The man breathes out a slow sigh, rubbing his eyes with the deep frown of a concerned parent. Ichigo had done well in Seireitei, even if he’d been worried to death. It had been a major risk, but letting him go there hadn't ended badly, he'd even made more friends. It was fine, he hadn't blundered horribly.

He wasn't sure though, if he could say the same about letting his child become friends with an Oni-Hollow hybrid.

Oni were possessive of their things, including people they deemed worthy.

"Well. I have my answers now, but I am unsure what to do with them.”

"....Keeping things from him is probably unnecessary at this point, he’s involved whether we want it or not. I suppose the main question is, how should we break the story to him? Given you came here right the next day, his reaction to whatever little he recalled had to have been bad.”

Isshin rubs his neck, contemplating on it. He again didn’t know the details, only saw the aftermath of it with Grimmjow’s bloodied gigai, his beastly restless soul trapped into a reiatsu bubble, unconscious Tatsuki, and Ichigo with that empty, horrified expression on his face that still sometimes haunted Isshin’s memory.

"....I need time to think about that.”

Chapter Text

Ichigo could tell his friends were worried and the ginger couldn't exactly blame them; he probably looked like absolute trash, having struggled to rest the whole weekend.

He’d gone out to hunt hollows the following night to try and at least give Kon a chance to rest his body, but the mod soul had been equally restless. It’d been odd for him to be so quiet. Ichigo couldn’t even tell if Grimmjow picking him up had scared the poor bastard that bad, or if he was just insanely worried about Ichigo after that fit he’d had. Maybe it was both, Kon did kind of look concerned when he’d left that night.

Nothing special had occurred, so far he hadn’t ran into any of these ’arrancar’ he’d been warned about, and running into the short captain that night, he’d confirmed so far they hadn’t caught another sighting of one yet.

Still. They clearly expected more to show up eventually.

"Ichigo, are you okay?”

He snaps out of his thoughts and turns to look at Tatsuki, who was sitting beside him under the tree alongside Chad; they were waiting for Inoue and Ishida to finish their lessons, as the former had suggested they’d go to a picnic after school, probably to try and help him get his mind off whatever was troubling him. His taller, quiet friend also looks at him slightly concerned, though doesn’t voice out his thoughts, given Tatsuki had likely already done so.

Ichigo breathes out a sigh, rubbing his face. He didn’t know what to say, the bombshell dropped on him that weekend was so massive he was still struggling to process it. Dad had kept insisting that he hadn’t done anything wrong, but it was hard to believe given the only bits of contect he currently had. It really made it look like he’d....

"Ichigo, I’m serious; what’s going on? Is this whole Shinigami thing causing you problems?”

"No, it’s...”

"Well clearly something is! I’ve never seen you this tired and troubled, and that’s saying a lot considering how upset you were about Rukia back then!”

Tatsuki clearly had no time for bullshit, she was worried, she wanted to hear the truth, and...given what dad had told her, she’d been involved. Tatsuki had known Grimmjow too, so she’d maybe deserve to know? Only....whatever happened had been really bad, and given how strongly he’d reacted just to the memory of a memory essentially, how bad would it be for her?

"....Is this about that strange blue haired man? The one you’ve mentioned before.”

Chad suddenly comments, and Tatsuki looks back at him confused. The ginger averts his gaze away from his two friends, noting Ishida and Inoue were heading their way already, with latter waving at the trip enthusiastically. She gets surprise glomped from behind by Chizuru the next second, nearly knocking her over. Tatsuki huffs at the sight and gets up to go pry her off Inoue, with the guys just watching the scene awkwardly.

"....You don’t really want to talk about it.”

Chad comments suddenly, and Ichigo looks back at him, kind of not surprised he could tell. This also made him wonder though...he was already friends with Chad back then, so surely he’d met Grimmjow too? Was his memory also tampered with? So far dad had only mentioned his sisters and Tatsuki, but it could be more people.

Before he could respond, the group arrives there, with Chizuru being dragged from her ear by annoyed Tatsuki, who now looks back at Ichigo.

"Chizuru said her and Keigo would also join in on the picnic, is that okay?”

Mainly, she was asking if he needed or wanted to talk about shinigami stuff, as Chizuru and Keigo were clueless about all that. Part of Ichigo told him she really wanted him to ask the eccentric lesbian and their clueless idiot of a friend not to join as she wanted to hesr the story, but...

"If they want to.”

He shrugs, not feeling ready to talk about this yet. Tatsuki was clearly not happy about it, but chose not to argue as that’d been very weird to do in front of Chizuru and Keigo.

The weather that day was nice at least, and the group picks a spot under a tree in a quieter corner of the park, just off one of the side paths. Thankfully Inoue hadn’t been in charge of making the food – alone – as otherwise it probably would’ve been inedible. It was kind of odd to Ichigo, just hanging out with his human friends with no shinigami in sight.  He suspects Tatsuki or Inoue had requested their soul reaper friends to not barge in on this for this once, wanting to give Ichigo a proper break. The ginger had his doubts they’d fully listen, but then again his exhaustion did seem to worry them too. That, or Tatsuki was scary enough even for them to listen for a change.

Of course, avoiding the topic altogether was impossible, namely because Keigo and Chizuru were being nosy about them in turn, asking why Rukia hadn’t joined them.

"Uh...”

"They had some exchange-student meet-up to go to.”

Tatsuki comments casually before Ichigo could come up with a lie, taking a bite from her onigiri. Inoue and Ishida nod vigorously in unison, which was kind of funny to watch. Keigo and Chizuru seem a bit weirded out by the reaction, though with latter it soon dissolved into another squeal fit over how cute Inoue was, getting swiftly karate chopped in the head by Tatsuki before she could actually even do anything.

”Here you go Ichigo!”

Inoue offers him the box of onigiri too, and the ginger picks one, sniffing it suspiciously. Yeah, seemed to be just normal, store brought ones and not one of those weird leek wasabi experiments from Inoue. Taking a bite, he watches as Keigo whines about having wanted to spend more time with Rukia and Rangiku, with the black haired girl pointing out there was no way he could handle the latter.

"Aw C’mon! I did fiiine!”

"You got completely roasted by Yumichika earlier and Rangiku barely paid attention to you. You’re out of your league buddy.”

"A man can dream!”

Ichigo watches the pair bicker with a faint smile, continuing to eat his snack. It was admittedly a nice change of pace just to listen his friends to argue and talk about normal, everyday things. Well, as normal as you could with this bunch anyway.

"Come to think of it; where do they stay? I haven’t seen any of them on the dorms?”

Chizuru suddenly asks, and it takes Ichigo a second to realize she was talking about Rukia and others. Yeah, come to think of it, where did they go to stay? He hadn’t found any rogue shinigami hiding in his closet, so they had to have found a place to stay elsewhere. Unless they just hid their gigai in a warehouse somewhere for the night while going around as a Shinigami. That’d be fucking weird, unless they could store them at Urahara’s place, which….

A blue haired figure flashes in his mind’s eye, and Ichigo lowers the juice box he was about to drink from, feeling that earlier unease creep up his throat. The ginger shakes his head, forcing that thought back; now was not the time for this, he was supposed to be relaxing dammit.

"Ichigo?”

Inoue’s worried voice makes him look back at the group, realizing they all were sort of looking at him now.

"Man, that’s a bummer face if I’ve ever seen one; did you get rejected or some shit?”

Keigo asks, making Ichigo snort and roll his eyes at him, stating he wasn’t Keigo, he didn’t have similar problems to him. This naturally makes him glare at Ichigo all huffy and puffy, crossing his arms over his chest with a childish pout.

"Not MY fault women don’t understand my charm!”

"Now you’re being weird and pathetic.”

Tatsuki comments dryly, then looks back at the ginger with a worried frown. Wanting to push their attention away from him, the ginger hurries to ask if any of them knew where Rukia and others were staying at. Keigo looks at him suspiciously, asking if he was trying to get a head start with the ladies, gaining an ear pull from their now annoyed karate master.

"W-well, Rangiku-chan and Toushirou-kun are staying with me. I think...Didn’t the rest stay with you currently?”

Inoue looks at Ishida, who adjusts his glasses with his finger, having that trademark expression that Ichigo recognized as his poshy flavor of displeasure.

Wait, Ishida' s place?

"Are you for real? You stuck RENJI and BALDY in your poshy ass mansion?”

Ichigo asks barely able to contain his amusement, gaining an annoyed huff from the Quincy, who points at him dramatically with an accusatory tone.

"YOU wouldn’t house any of them, and Urahara-san for some reason wouldn’t take them in either, I was the only one who apparently had enough space, and quite frankly; they are driving me nuts! Last night Renji and Ikkaku almost broke a very expensive vase we have in the lounge! Father will disown me if he comes home to that chaos!”

Ichigo just laughs at the mere idea of those two crazy assholes lurking around the fancy Ishida mansion; Yumichika could pull that vibe off, but the two idiots were definitely way too rough and rowdy for that high-end, posh setting.

"Quit laughing Kurosaki! This is serious! For now I can get away with it because father is traveling, but he WILL kick them out and ground me once he comes home!”

Ishida’s death glare wasn’t exactly impressive, but some of his anger did seem to wane seeing Ichigo smile and laugh for a change, given how moody and serious he’d been for the past few weeks. Eventually the ginger gets a hold of himself, coughing and smirking at Ishida.

"Can’t help you buddy, Yuzu said no.”

"Sometimes I wonder why I bother being friends with you…”

"Why are you guys housing them? Shouldn’t the school or their parents be handling that?”

Their argument gets interrupted by that question from Chizuru, and Ichigo pauses, trying to come up with an explanation. This time Ishida steps in for the rescue, huffing out a dramatic annoyed sigh – clearly not even faked – explaining there had been some sort of paperwork issues in arranging for the exchange students for their dorms.

"Their school is trying to figure it out, but since we knew them beforehand, we offered them a place to stay for a moment – or well, I was coaxed to, since their first choice said no.”

"Huh, that’s terrible! Well I’m glad you and Inoue-chan stepped in for them!”

Ishida sure was convincing actor, then again it didn’t take that much to get these two to believe such an explanation. It wasn’t necessarily even that far-fetched idea, even if uncommon solution around here. Ichigo was vaguely aware couch-surfing was more of a thing in other parts of the world at least.

Finally drinking his juice, Ichigo picks up another Onigiri, still snickering inwardly at the idea of Ishida having to her the chaotic rowdy pair that was Renji and Ikkaku. He almost felt sorry for the poor poshy bastard.

"Who was their first choice? Why’d they say no?”

"An old friend of Rukia, he doesn’t have space in his house right now.”

Ichigo answers, it was an easy enough stretch of truth to make even with his exhausted brain. The likely reason as to why Urahara had said no to them was likely Grimmjow. He doubted the blunet would’ve wanted a bunch of loud rowdy shinigami around him, if he was already annoyed by just Urahara and his group.

"Huh, that sucks I guess.”

Keigo rubs his neck awkwardly, not having much to say to that. Instead, he focuses on devouring his sandwich now, and for a little while they’re all silent, just enjoying the food they’d brought. Most of it was bought, but you could tell some was made by Ishida by how fancy the sandwiches and sweet pastries looked. Inoue was now asking him for a recipe for the strawberry cream puffs, wondering if it’d work with peanut-butter lentils, or some other weird probably gross combination her bizarre brain could come up with.

Ichigo turns his gaze towards the skies for a moment, watching the clouds pass by. It was kind of peaceful right now, but he still struggled to relax. All those thoughts still tiptoed around at the back of his head, waiting for their opportunity to lounge at him like Grimmjow had that night, ready to choke him.

Closing his eyes, Ichigo sucks in a deep breath.

So, his memory - and some of his friends and family’s memory - had been tampered with, so what? He’d gone through worse at this point, being almost killed by bunch of soul reaper jerks and hollows alike. Dad had said it wasn’t his fault. He’d even confronted the blue haired asshole about it, and even he’d indicated so.

Yet....

There was a flash at the back of his mind, not really a memory, but an emotion. He brings his arms around himself unconsciously, feeling some of that bizarre dread and nausea from that night enter his system slightly. Ichigo wasn’t even sure what exactly it was that he was feeling, it was a very faint echo of a volatile mix of negative things, things he couldn’t discern exactly what was what.

He doesn’t notice worried eyes turning towards him now, reaching up to grasp and hold his head, feeling his breath quicken as that chaos starts to seep out from behind the door he attempted to lock it into, his surroundings growing distant.

The glow was gone, the scary thing had howled and run off.

The boy sat there shaking violently, barely able to see through his blurred vision.

What was that? The glowing thing? It looked like a big cat. Where had it gone? Had it chased after the scary monster?

Rubbing his eyes, the boy could hear uneasy footsteps heading his way, like someone was struggling to walk. Snapping his eyes open, someone was standing in front of him, holding his arm, it looked injured.

There was...there was so much red on him...

Even with blurry vision, he could recognize the blue eyes staring down at him, wide like a cat would have sometimes. Human eyes didn’t do it this much, at least he didn’t think so. The boy manages to wipe his tears fully, staggering to his feet only to fall again. His ankle hurt, maybe it was twisted or broken.

—-crouches next to him, helping him stand back up. It was a bad smell, he normally only smelt it sometimes at dad’s clinic, why did —-smell like that?

"You alright?”

The boy tries to speak, but his voice was gone. He felt kind of like he was about to cry again, and it was difficult to breathe, and his friend was injured, and what if the monster came back and and and—

"Woah, hey! Breathe.”

Hands hold onto his arms, keeping him steady as he starts tearing up again. He stood close, forehead almost touching his, and he felt weirdly safe right now, despite the scary things that had just happened.

"M-mama, s-she—”

"I know. I....”

Ichigo couldn’t hear what he said next, his vision was turning blurry and dark, and he falls forward, bring caught by something blue and red and stinking of rust.

"Ichigo!”

A distant voice calls out to him, and the ginger slowly realizes he’d slumped to the ground at some point, curled up like having some sort of a weird fit. He still felt like he was struggling against a raging current of water, wanting to keep him submerged. His vision was blurry, layered in a a strange way. At first he was staring up at the blue skies with blurred images of his friend’s faces around him, then as he blinked he was laying down on a hole in the ground, with familiar silhouettes of empty buildings.

His vision kept shifting between the two, until a figure appears at the edge of the hole, and his inner world comes into full focus with a sharp and sudden snap almost.

Ichigo was laying in a crater in the middle of one of the endless streets, with his zanpakuto spirit looking down at him with a deep frown on his old man face. The ginger pushes himself up slowly, his gaze searching the surroundings dazed. Why was there a hole in the ground? Why was he in a hole? Also...

Looking ahead, Ichigo realizes there was a....door in the hole, or rather a very big, old fashioned gate of sorts, sealed with all sorts of chains and talismans.

"....What the hell is that?”

"I do not know. It appeared recently.”

Ichigo stands up slowly and walks towards it, noting his uneasiness grew with each step. He stops once he reaches the door, realizing there was something familiar about it. Namely, the chains and talismans surrounding it reminded him of someone.

"This feels like...Urahara? Did he do this?”

Touching the nearest chain, Ichigo quickly pulls his hand back as it felt like he was burned. Looking down at his hand, there was nothing on it though, but examining the chains, he notices something. They were corroding bit-by-bit, by what looked like small blue sparks of lightning and fire. It reminded him of how hollow-holes were formed, except this was clearly something different. This was not about losing your heart, this thing was....keeping something in.

"You seem to be right.”

Ichigo almost jumps finding the old man right next to him now, examining the bizarre gate from behind his glasses. His expression was hard to read, but Ichigo could sense something akin to concern emanating from the zanpakuto spirit.

"This has been here for a while. Before I or your inner hollow awoke.”

".....Wait, could this be....”

Ichigo studies the charms a bit more, noting he could recognize some of the characters written in them. It was more old fashioned way of writing those, but having been to soul society, Ichigo could recognize symbols for memory and dreaming.

"All beings have repressed memories, but this has been forced unto you, Ichigo. This isn’t natural.”

"I know, this must be what dad was talking about! Sandal-hat had to erase my memory two years ago.”

He reaches for the door again, this time the following zap sends him flying backwards, although he gets caught by his zanpakuto spirit before he could crash land against the opposing wall of the crater, eyeing the door suspiciously.

"....It has protections in it. Whoever did this seal, really does not want it to be broken, or have you go anywhere near it.”

"Yeah, no surprises there. But something’s eating it already.”

Ichigo comments once he gets put back down to his feet by Zangetsu, glaring at the door peeved now. Damn Urahara and his trickery, of course he’d make shit extra hard. He doesn’t try to touch the gate again, not feeling like getting his two brain cells fried to nothing today. Still though. Why was this manifesting now? He’d never seen it before. Was it because his memory was starting to return?

"Perhaps. Something is definitely leaking from within, which may have brought it to the surface.”

Zangetsu gestures towards the ground in front of the massive sealed gate, and yeah, Ichigo could now spot what the sword spirit had; there was some sort of smoke or mist coming out from under it. He walks a bit closer again, up until the said smoky substance reached his ankles. It felt really...weird. It was kind of warm, like it was coming from a fire, but it didn’t smell like smoke, and it looked more like water vapor anyway, foggy mist. It also had a weird aura attached to it, that vaguely reminded him of—oh.

It was similar to that strange figure he’d seen moments before Grimmjow appeared that night!

The weird horned creature who’d lurked behind him then vanished without a trace.

"What the....”

The smoke starts creeping up his legs like white see-through wispy vines growing onto his body, and Ichigo freaks out a little, backing away only for the smoke to follow him, clearly keen on wrapping around his body.

"Shit shit shit!”

He looks up at Zangetsu who was just standing there watching him, seemingly not worried the slightest. Shirosaki had appeared beside him as well, for once not cackling like a maniac and grinning at his misery.

"What the fuck’s happening?!”

Ichigo asks as the smoke now reaches his waist, feeling way more solid than it had the right to be. The two spirits just watch him panic and flail around like a headless chicken, until Shirosaki’s distorted voice comments something that makes him pause.

"That don’t feel like average hollow. Grimmjow’s got a spliced soul like you, king.”

Brown eyes look up at Shirosaki baffled, but soon his vision is completely overtaken by the white smoke, as a massive wave of it emanates from under the door, blinding the ginger. He tries to clear it from his face, the thing sticking to his skin like it wasn’t really gas anymore but liquid, the current pulling him towards the door.

"Oi, what the hell’s happening?!”

He could see the silhouette of the door standing out in the white emptiness now, more and more chains starting to break. Dread was entering his body now, feeling like something really bad would happen if that door opened, and this damn smoke was dragging him closer to it!

Then, something seems to attack the gate, glowing blue slashes appearing through it out of blue, and the thing shatters. Not opening, but seemingly being forced back to deeper recesses of his mind, the pressure and weird dragging sensation dissipating alongside the sealed memory gate. There was something standing in its place, it looked like some sort of big feline. Ichigo’s eyes widen as he recognizes the silhouette, it was the same beast he’d....he’d seen in those memories. The figure’s silhouette starts to shift and distort like it was underwater, and moments later in place of the giant cat stood...a kid?

He couldn’t make out the child’s face, but Ichigo knew that silhouette.

He’d seen this in those memories.....

Between blinks however, the figure shifts again, now turning into something much taller, something with horns. Ichigo backs away reflexively, his eyes beginning to hurt the closer the glowing figure got, having to squeeze his eyes shut as the intense blue light felt like it was sending lightning strikes right against his eyeballs, it burned so bad.

Then, he could smell it.

A familiar, kind of sweet scent of a cigarette.

It invades his nostrils and makes his eyes water a little, though the smell was no longer hah inducing. He could feel something grasp his shoulder now, a familiar lazy drawl reaching his ear.

“Wake up, Kurosaki.”

Snapping his eyes open, Ichigo just stares ahead, as the normal world comes into view properly. He was still laying on his back, staring up towards the skies. However, something had changed from earlier; his friends were starting a bit further away now, and there was a familiar presence looming beside him, a familiar smell still lingering in his nose.

Tilting his head towards the source of it, he finds a familiar pair of intensely blue eyes looking down at him, an unimpressed look on his face.

Grimmjow was crouched next to him, looking about as sickly as last time, cigarette between his fingers while his free hand was still grasping his shoulder. As soon as he notices Ichigo was awake, the bastard takes another drag from the probably-hopefully-maybe-fake cancer stick, blowing the smoke to his face and making him cough.

“What the hell you ass?!”

Ichigo asks as he sits up coughing, with Grimmjow letting go of his shoulder with a shit eating grin plastered on his face. The ginger glares at him annoyed, still wiping the water away from his eyes.

“Only a dumb fuck like you would go touching shit like that.”

“H-huh?”

Ichigo blinks confused, then turns to look at his friends, all of which eye the blue haired man dubiously. Well, all except Tatsuki, who was frowning with a puzzled look on her face. Keigo was hiding behind Chizuru, who was hiding behind Chad. Right, those two had no clue who Grimmjow was, and he wasn’t sure if he’d ever mentioned him to Tatsuki.

“You know this addict looking weirdo?”

Keigo asks from behind Chizuru and Chad, gaining an annoyed glare from the blunet that probably makes his poor idiot friend pee his pants and hide even more.

“Y-you suddenly collapsed, and we couldn’t get you to wake up!”

Inoue explains with an extremely worried expression on her face, clutching her hands to her chest. Ichigo felt really bad seeing it, the whole point had been to get him to relax and instead, his mind had decided to be a dick and launch a full on attack against him just for shits and giggles.

“He showed up and basically pried Inoue off you as she tried to shake you awake, blowing that toxic garbage to your face.”

Ishida explains with an angry glare aimed at the blunet, who shrugs, standing up now as he brings the cigarette to his lips. Ah yeah, was that why Ichigo felt so dizzy? Looking back at Inoue she was blushing now, averting her gaze as she plays with her hair, muttering out an apology.

“Knew it’d wake ‘im up. This shit calms your soul down, his was freaking out like crazy.”

“Told ya he’s a druggie!”

“Keigo, don’t be rude.”

Tatsuki glances at him annoyed, before looking back, examining Grimmjow with that same puzzled look, and Ichigo suddenly wonders...did she recall something?

“...Have we met?”

She confirms Ichigo’s thoughts with that question, and Grimmjow examines her briefly, his expression stoic for the most part, before shrugging.

“Hell if I know.”

Clearly that answer didn’t please Tatsuki, but Grimmjow ignores all of them now, looking down at Ichigo who was still stuck sitting there, as his head felt dizzy even now. He doubted it was just Inoue shaking him while he was knocked out. Slowly, he looks up to meet those blue eyes, suddenly hit by a flurry of questions he wanted to ask, but Grimmjow cuts him down before he could even voice any of them out.

“Not now. Too many outsiders.”

Ichigo frowns faintly, wanting to point out that most people present were aware of spirit society and apparently at least one of his friends also had known him, but Grimmjow lightly nudges his head towards the pair hiding behind Chad, and...right.

“...Then, when? You KNOW I have questions.”

Ichigo stands up finally, finding his steps were still annoyingly shaky. Before he could embarrassingly fall flat on his face again however, a hand grabs his arm, keeping him upright. He was now near face-to-face with Grimmjow, and the man was way too close for comfort, invading his personal space like a bastard cat.

.................

Why did his face suddenly feel kind of heated?

“I hafta show you somethin’ so if you want answers, you’ll show up at Urahara’s tonight.”

Huh, that invitation was certainly not something he’d expected, and his confusion likely shows on his face, as Grimmjow snorts, grinning at him amused now. He doesn’t bring his chemical weapon to his lips for once to blow the shit at Ichigo’s face like the ginger half expected him to do, although…

He didn’t mind the smell that much anymore, as long as the shit didn’t get in his eyes.

“Don’t go prodding things in yer brain in the meantime; that shit’s dangerous for squishy little human like you.”

He actually grabs his jaw now to squish his face together to further prove his point, making Ichigo push him back annoyed, rubbing his face while totally not feeling like his face was flaring red, nope. That was just everyone’s imagination if it was visible.

“You’re a human too you know?”

The following laugh was something between the cackle of a maniac, and genuine amusement. Grimmjow doesn’t say anything however, just prods his forehead with a sharp finger, telling him to show up before wandering off, disappearing behind the trees. Ichigo just rubs his forehead glaring after him, before turning back towards his friends, all of whom were staring at him now.

“Uh...What?”

“...What the hell Ichigo!? Who the hell is that guy? Why are you hanging out with creepy weirdos like that now!?”

“What was he even talking about? Why did it feel like I’ve seen him before?”

“Was he flirting with you or something? I didn’t know you liked bad boys!”

Out of all the questions asked at the same time, Chizuru’s mischievous glint makes everyone stop their hounding at Ichigo, now staring at her baffled. The awkward silence is broken by Ishida, who adjusts his glasses awkwardly, asking what on earth made her think any of that was flirting.

“Aww c’mon you guys! Getting in his personal space like that? Saying he wanted to talk with him alone essentially, that playful grin! Also! Look how red he is!”

Chizuru points at him with a snicker and oh god she was right, he could feel the heat on his cheeks now. Ichigo quickly covers his face, then glares back at the snickering redhead, loudly stating that was DEFINITELY not flirting, and his face was red because of the smoke, and what the fuck was wrong with her?! Clearly Chizuru bought none of that, judging from her grin.

“It’s okay Ichigo, we won’t judge you too hard for having an absolutely awful taste in men! I always wondered if you were ga---”

“Alright that’s enough!”

Tatsuki karate chops her in the head again, thankfully cutting Chizuru off finally. She then turns to look back at him seriously, asking if he was okay now. Ichigo averts his gaze towards the direction Grimmjow had gone to, rubbing his neck awkwardly.

“...Yeah, I think so. Sorry for scaring you.”

Something hits his head now, and looking up Ichigo realizes it was starting to rain. It seemed like it was time to cut their picnic short, with the group scrambling to pick everything up before it got soaked. For now this incident seemed to be pushed aside, though Ichigo could tell many of them were still glancing at him concerned occasionally.

Picking up his jacket and putting it back on, Ichigo glances towards the direction Grimmjow had gone to again.

Urahara’s, huh?

Chapter Text

He’d been feeling antsy rest of the day, after being told to go see Urahara.

Tatsuki had clearly wanted to press him about what was going on, who was the blue haired man and why did she feel like she’d met him before, but upon seeing his expression, she’d let it be for now as they parted ways once her bus had arrived. If his sisters could tell something was going on, neither acknowledged it, but dad was certainly keeping an eye on him, a deep frown marring his features that he quickly smoothed over and hid if one of the girls were about to see it.

That evening, as he was preparing to head out, it takes Ichigo a while to coax Kon out of the wardrobe, he was still preferring to hide there for some reason. Admittedly concerned, once the stuffed lion finally peeks his head out, the ginger asks what was wrong. He’d been so freaked out himself he hadn’t really gone and done this earlier, but now...

"I-I-I-I don’t know! I’ve never felt something like that! I don’t know what that freak is!”

Kon looks up at him now, and what make this whole deal with him even more concerning was the lack of over-dramatic wailing and tears, the typical showman routine Kon would try and pull off in this situation normally. He just stood there still half-hidden by the door, sort of clutching it with his plushy claws.

"I thought...he was pressing on my pill, I could feel it crack.”

Ichigo’s eyes widen upon hearing that, and he asks more frantic if he was okay, if they should let Urahara check him over. Kon shakes his head after a moment, looking back at him. You could somehow store a lot of fear in those beady teddy bear eyes, fear Ichigo hadn’t seen ever before.

"He noticed. He stopped pressing it second before you snatched me back. It’s like t-that asshole didn’t even realize how strong he was!”

Seeing how afraid Kon was, Ichigo began to wonder if he should just go in his human form, feeling like letting Kon know who he was going to see would terrify the mod soul more. However, he kind of felt safer going as a Shinigami, and Kon would likely agree with that sentiment too, he was more vulnerable in his human body.

"Uh. I need to go visit Urahara, so I’d need you to take my body for a bit.”

"Why are you going there?”

Kon squints at him suspiciously, and Ichigo bites his lip, suddenly not knowing what to say. In any other situation he’d just gone ahead and plopped the pill out of the teddy lion’s mouth to go on his merry way, but the fact the mod soul was this terrified bothered him. Why was he so shaken by that ordeal anyway? He’d faced death before, did that moment remind him of it, or was this something else.

"....Grimmjow asked me to come. He wants to show me something.”

"H-huh? No way! You’re not going there, that freak will kill you!”

That was more like the Kon he knew with the angry yelling, but he was still hiding behind the door.

"I....Kon, listen. I knew him as a kid. I knew him for years, apparently. Something bad happened two years ago that made Urahara erase my memory of him, and I need to know why. I think he might want to give me some context.”

"....Right. I heard that convo you had with your old man.”

Kon still seemed reluctant, looking at him with a mixture of fear, frustration, and worry.

"Look, I get you’re scared, but I need to do this. I really want to know what the hell is going on here. Besides, now that you said that I’m worried about your pill. Let me at least see it.”

Ichigo offers his hand out to Kon, trying to offer him a reassuring smile. It wasn’t easy to pull off given he was admittedly about as freaked out as Kon was, but he had to go there, and going as a Shinigami was probably the safer option, if something went wrong.

After a long moment of silence, Kon finally steps out from his hiding place with a sigh, grumbling under his breath. Something about Ichigo’s stubborness probably. The lion plush then hacks out the pill, the body falling limp as the small object drops into Ichigo’s hands, and he examines it carefully. The pill seemed fine, no visible cracks or chipping at least. He swallows it to allow Kon to take over, stepping out of his body and stretching a little, turning to look back at his body.

Kon was looking at his – Ichigo’s – hands and checking everything over, before looking back at the actual owner, with the ginger asking if he felt alright.

"Y-yeah. Get outta here if you have to go then, stupid reckless Shinigami!”

Kon plops down to his bed with a pouty look, with Ichigo giving him a halfhearted reminder to not do anything weird like leap over buildings or attempt to flirt with people, before slipping out from the window and heading into the night of Karakura.

Dashing across the rooftops, Ichigo heads towards Urahara’s shop, his heart kind of beating faster with each step he took closer. What did Grimmjow want to talk to him about exactly? What was he planning on showing him? Ichigo finds himself slowing down the closer he got, feeling an uneasy tug in his gut. His mind drifts back to that gate, likely a manifest of Urahara’s seal on his memories. That thing had been very imposing, and Ichigo still wasn’t admittedly sure if prodding into this was a good idea.

Old man wouldn’t make such a decision for no reason, right? It had to have more to do with it than just serious trauma. He must’ve seen something he wasn’t supposed to, something that connected to something bigger that had been going on.

As the shop’s lights eventually come into view, Ichigo stops on top of the nearby building’s roof, looking down at the humble store. It was the same building Grimmjow had sneaked up on him on last time, but there was no sign of the blue haired asshole right now.

…..Damn it, now that he’d been seeing all those flashes of memory, Ichigo begun to feel bad for calling him that, but Grimmjow WAS an asshole, he really was. At least now. Huffing out a sigh, Ichigo jumps down and walks closer to the shop, his ears picking up a lot of chatter. Urahara apparently had guests over, huh. Ichigo doubted Grimmjow liked that very much.

Stepping on the entrance terrace of the shop, a familiar face suddenly pops out from the door, surprising Ichigo; why was Rukia here?

"Oh, finally! We’ve been waiting for you!”

Before Ichigo could even ask anything, she drags him inside, and makes him sit at the table as well, currently occupied by all the shinigami present in Karakura, with Yoruichi in her cat form, sleeping on pale faced Renji’s lap. He looked like he was about to die, all too aware he had a lapful of a woman from a powerful family currently curled up in his lap.

"What took you so long? We were about to start without you!”

Rukia huffs and puffs at him irritated, making Ichigo blink and look around the table.

"We decided on a meeting to discuss and update on the situation, Urahara-san said he’d invited you as well.”

Toshirou explains calmly with arms crossed over his chest. It still felt kind of wrong seeing his short stature among this table filled with adults, strong liquor sitting atop the table ready to use. To be fair he wasn’t legal drinking age either, but the icy captain still managed to look like a middle schooler despite his best efforts at a mature adult scowling.

"I….”

"Oh, there you are Kurosaki!”

Urahara steps into the room from the back, hiding his face dramatically behind his fan. He gestures at Ichigo, who was still confused as to what the hell was going on. Sure Toushirou had just explained it, but nobody had given him any heads up there’d be a big meeting or something.

"I believe he has more personal matters to attend to, first.”

"Huh? What kind of personal matters?”

Renji blinks confused, having dared to finally pet cat-Yoruichi, who was purring happily in his lap now. Urahara doesn’t say anything, just gives a glance at Rukia’s direction. Right, maybe she was the only person here who knew and had met Grimmjow. The short woman says nothing though, just frowns slightly as Ichigo gets up awkwardly, promising to be right back.

"He’s downstairs somewhere in the training arena.”

Urahara explains quietly as he walks to the man, who now grasps his shoulder, lowering his fan enough to let Ichigo see just how serious his face was right now. It was kinda unnerving, and Ichigo looks at him with lift eyebrow, feeling several pairs of eyes at his back now.

"There is...only so much he can say right now. The situation is very delicate.”

"Yeah, feels like it.”

"Don’t push him too much. He wants to give you the answers, but it is not safe to do it all at once. His condition is also...well.”

Urahara pulls his hand back, hiding his face behind his fan again.

"Let’s not have a repeat of your first reunion from that night, shall we?”

"...Well, I’m a Shinigami right now, it’ll probably go better even if that happens.”

"That is what worries me. I was hoping you’d show up as a human, but alas.”

His tone changes to that cheerful one like a switch was flipped, patting his back and telling him to go off before joining rest of the group at the table, all looking between him and Ichigo dubiously. The ginger hesitates there for a moment, before turning his back and heading towards the basement. Yeah, if he had been nervous heading there, Urahara’s cryptic warnings made it way worse.

Maybe he should’ve listened to Kon, but…

Ichigo shakes his head. Walking across the dim, still somewhat slashed up corridor, eventually reaching the door for the training grounds. Opening it was still an experience, finding himself outdoors somehow, with clear blue skies and an endless rocky desert. The sky was just an illusion of course, but it still kept catching him off-guard.

Wandering deep inside the training area, the slashes and broken stone from his training days still dotted the landscape, Urahara clearly hadn’t bothered to do a spring cleaning yet. Walking deeper, Ichigo’s eyes search for a familiar patch of blue; you’d think with how yellow, brown and red the setting was – apart from the sky – blue hair would stand out easily. Yet, he couldn’t see a head nor hair of Grimmjow; was Urahara sure he’d escaped here to sulk from all the noise upstairs?

Then, his senses pick up something, and Ichigo turns around, scanning the stone pillars and scattered, broken rocks nearby. He felt like he was being watched again, like that night when he’d ran into Grimmjow and the bastard had dropped a bombshell onto him.

"Yer still bad at locating me precisely, huh?”

A voice from behind him makes Ichigo jump and almost pull out his zanpakuto, his nerves were pretty strained right now after all. Familiar pair of catlike blue eyes stare at him from the shadows nearby, before Grimmjow steps out into the artifical sunlight, his black jacket’s hood tugged over his head. Ichigo’s eyes widen as he sees just how sickly he looked; Grimmjow’s skintone was close to being almost white now, his hair was partially matted looking against his skin, and his eyes didn’t seem that focused right now.

"Shit, are you--?!”

"No. Irrelevant.”

That blunt dismissal of his own awful condition frustrated Ichigo, but Urahara’s warning still rang in his ears. He could sort of see what the man had meant, Grimmjow looked like absolute shit, worse than ever before.

Don’t push him too much.

Reaching him finally, Ichigo notes he was kind of hunched over too, like he was too tired to hold his posture up properly. This wasn’t the lazy, languid kind of slouching he’d seen from the man, this was a guy who was struggling to stay upright.

"You...you should really sit down.”

"Not now. Follow me.”

Grimmjow utterly ignores his concern and heads back towards the door Ichigo had come from. Having no choice, the ginger sighs and follows him, resisting the urge to try and at least offer him some support, worried the man would just fall on his face out of exhaustion soon. Entering back into the dim corridor, Grimmjow leads him deeper down the hallway, eventually turning a corner Ichigo had never really noticed in the darkness. He’d never had a reason to go further down the corridor after all. It seems to take bit of an U-turn as they eventually turn to the left again, the short hallway there looking much more damaged than anything before. It was almost if Tessai hadn’t even tried repairing this area.

Ahead, was a door with shit ton of torn seals in it, reminding Ichigo of the gate he’d seen buried in his mental scape. These seals were different, but clearly came from the same creator. Grimmjow stops in front of the door, grasping the handle then pausing, turning to look back at him with a slight frown.

"…..I might just doom ya into doing it anyway, knowing you, but for yer own sake. Don’t look at the one in the back. That one might trigger you.”

"H-huh? What is all this about Grimmjow!”

"Context.”

The blunet shrugs and pushes the door open into the room behind it, glancing back at Ichigo with a more mischievous, borderline sinister looking smirk.

"Welcome ta Urahara Kisuke’s corpse basement.”

"Urahara’s what---”

Ichigo slams his mouth shut as he steps in, taking in the sight that awaited him in that room. It looked like some bizarre mortuary with several beds, or rather, dissection tables resting side-by-side, each of them having something resting on them, covered by a white sheet. Ichigo swallows down hard, taking in the sight. Some of those cloths were very stained, like they had dried blood on them. Especially the one at the back, the canvas was soaked with the substance, long since dried to it in a way that could never be properly removed.

There were also science equipment and some sort of bizarre tube with liquid in it, large enough to hold a human inside. It was empty currently, and there were some sort of papers scattered around at a table and attached to the walls nearby the strange device. The papers on the walls seemed to be related to human anatomy and souls, though he did also catch a glimpse of peculiarly shaped figure, one with horns.

There was also a door nearby that seemed to lead to another room as well, and this door also had those talismans on it, broken and scratched apart like the ones in the previous door. The room smelled old and musty, and worst of all, rust. Or blood. He’d expect this from that creepy weirdo with the clown make-up, not Urahara.

"W-What is….?”

Grimmjow was now leaning against the closed door they’d entered from, digging out a cigarette to light it for himself. Ichigo wanted to slap it off his hands for smoking before literal dead bodies, but Grimmjow cuts him off before he could even try saying anything.

"Gigai. They’re Gigais, dumbass. Do you really think Sandal-Hat’s some bizarre serial killer?”

"….I mean….”

Grimmjow snorts and takes a drag from his cigarette, blue eyes keenly focused on him as if observing his reaction. Ichigo looks towards the nearest body, noting it was much smaller than the rest. He approaches it slowly, grasping the canvas with his fingers. His heartbeat was thundering in his chest, part of him having an awful hunch as to what was under it.

Pulling the canvas away slowly, his fear became a reality.

It was a corpse – or unhoused Gigai, Ichigo reminded himself – of a young, blue haired boy, ten years old at most. A boy that looked exactly like the kid from those flashbacks, only much paler. Ichigo’s hand reaches for the pale, unmoving face shakily, as if he was in trance.

It felt cold, cold like dead.

"Gigais...Gigais are still...even without a soul they still feel alive….”

"These ones are special design; meant to really keep a soul trapped in ’em. Remove the soul, they’re as good as corpses. Won’t decay though.”

Grimmjow’s casual, noncahalant comment barely registers, as Ichigo examines the pale child closely, something awful settling at the pit of his stomach. It was a Gigai, he knew that, Grimmjow had said so, it made sense, but…

"I remember...You….this. You looked like this when we met, right?”

"Uh huh.”

"...What….”

Ichigo slowly looks back up at Grimmjow with widened eyes, his hands now kind of clutching the canvas that had been covering the lifeless child gigai. He’d never really seen one this size, and combined with how not-alive it felt and the setting...this was a lot to take in.

”M’soul’s...can’t stay in ta same body fer too long. It gets too strong n’ will destroy the gigai from inside out.”

Ichigo looks back at the lifeless kid body in front of him, his eyes searching without him meaning to. There were no signs of anything violent having taken place, the gigai seemed unharmed, apart from looking much paler and skinnier than the kid he recalled from his memory.

"T’wasn’t that dramatic the first time around. Now the one I broke before this one. That one was a gory mess.”

Grimmjow gestures towards another covered body further ahead, another one with a bloody canvas covering it, though not quite as stained as the one at the very back of the room Grimmjow told him not to investigate. Ichigo doesn’t dare to move at all, rooted in place beside the child one. That covered corpse did look off, like it was missing limbs…

Shaking his head and turning his gaze away, Ichigo turns to face the blue haired figure now, not even knowing how to react to all of this. Why was Grimmjow showing him all this? To freak him out? If that was the goal, he was succeeding in it. Judging from that amused look, that had at least partially been the goal.

"Admittedly I almost lost this one I currently have instantly ’cause of you. That’s why when I woke up I just went berserk instantly, I could smell ya nearby.”

"...What?”

Ichigo stares at the smoking blunet in shock, the image of that beastly figure flashing before his mind’s eye again. He still wasn’t sure what it had been, what Grimmjow was exactly. It didn’t quite feel like a hollow, but…

"They managed ta force me back into this, but musta caused some damage ’cuz its collapsing faster than they anticipated.”

Grimmjow examines his sickly pale hand with mild interest, before bringing the cigarette back to his thin lips. It was so disturbing, the way he was so...casually speaking about essentially his own death – or deaths. Looking back at the room, he counted six bodies total, meaning Grimmjow had di–he’d lost a gigai at least six times.

"….Why...why is Urahara even doing this?”

"My soul’s fucked, Kurosaki. It can’t survive right now without a vessel. The problem is though, t’s gaining strength back, so these things grow too weak to contain it pretty quickly.”

Grimmjow now leaves the door and paces to him, blue eyes drifting back to the child figure resting beside Ichigo. There was no emotion whatsoever on his face, despite essentially looking at a dead kid version of himself. Ichigo would’ve been disturbed in his shoes, even if he knew these were gigais. Their inhabitant was standing before him, alive, though clearly not healthy.

"Why are you showing me this?”

Ichigo finally manages to break his silence, staring at the blue haired man with a flurry of thoughts and emotions swirling in his brain, struggling to process any of it. His instincts kind of wanted to make him run, to pick up his zanpakuto, anything. There wasn’t even a threat he sensed, but this place was so...he was starting to feel sick.

Grimmjow hums, his gaze drifting back to him now, the cigarette still on his lips, until he removes it to speak.

"Told ya. Context. So you stop thinkin’ my latest death was your fault. I wasn’t even 'alive' to begin with.”

"So you are a hollow?”

"Kind of.”

"What do you mean 'Kind of?!”

Ichigo now grasps his collar, bringing himself very close to Grimmjow’s face. That was a mistake, not because of the cigarette smoke as for once the blunet kept it away from him, but...being that close to him suddenly made the ginger feel kind of warm and weird, and he pulls back, though still holding onto Grimmjow’s collar. If his weird behavior was noticed by the blue bastard, he doesn’t react to it, that same stoic look still on his face.

Instead, he calmly removes Ichigo’s hands from him and paces towards the table now, seemingly examining whatever notes were scattered on it. Ichigo walks there too, noting they seemed to be notes about gigai creation and other soul related subjects he didn’t understand. There was something else however, that catches his attention.

An older looking scroll, written with what looked like much older type of writing, Ichigo struggles to read it. It seemed to be some sort of...summoning chant? Not for a being, but some sort of doorway. Was this about a Garganta? No, he couldn’t see any mention of Hollows or Shinigami in that ancient looking scroll. There was also something else next to it, a black long feather that Urahara – or someone in this house anyway – had used to write up some of the talismans. Something about that feather felt strange, like it had some sort of spirit energy attached to it.

He reaches for it cautiously, his fingertips brushing against the soft, silky edge of the old fashioned writing utensil.

An image flashes in his head the next second.

A short woman with black hair and elegant black wings and clothes. She looked so familiar, in fact her face….

"...Rukia!?”

Ichigo pulls his hand back in utter shock, staring at the feather pen in shock and confusion. Why had Rukia suddenly popped in his mind, and why had she been wearing such fancy clothes? Why did she have wings? What was going on here!?

Grimmjow just walks past him to pick up the feather, examining it with that same stoic look in his eyes. Ichigo wants to tell him to put off his damn cigarette to not get ash on it, but the blunet’s voice yet again stops him before he could.

"Tengu feathers. Those fuckers always liked to be all dolled up n’ were annoying poshy bastards. Easily distracted by shiny things too.”

"H-huh?”

Grimmjow places the feather back down, turning to look back at him with almost calculative look now, as if wondering how much could he tell him. Ichigo had so many questions, but seeing how sickly he looked...and Urahara’s warning still hadn’t left his mind.

"….You saw a vision, right?”

"Y-yes, why was Rukia--?”

"That wasn’t the short annoyin’ Shinigami upstairs you saw.”

"Then who was it?”

Grimmjow’s expression shifts into something darker for a second, making Ichigo swallow down hard and take a step back. The blue eyes were glaring at him intently, as if there was a LOT the man had to say, cruel and nasty things, but he was holding himself back. Ichigo’s sixth sense was telling him that sinister urge emanating from the man wasn’t really aimed at whoever that feather belonged to, but….him. It was that same expression from the bridge, the one that made Ichigo doubt his memories about their supposed friendship.

As if Grimmjow knew something that could seriously hurt him.

The blunet shakes his head eventually, rubbing his eyes and cursing under his breath as the sinister aura vanishes slowly. Ichigo releases a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, his eyes still drifting back at the feather.

"….Were we really friends?”

He asks after a moment of silence. Making Grimmjow look up at him with a surprised expression. Probably given how much of an abrupt topic change it was. Ichigo just had a feeling asking more about that feather right now was a bad idea. He forces himself to meet the man’s gaze, keeping his voice as steady as he could.

"All those memories, and what my dad told me. It really sounds like we were friends. Yet...it really feels like you hate me now, but then everyone also keeps saying what happened wasn’t my fault. I don’t understand Grimmjow.”

He still holds the man’s gaze, Grimmjow’s expression having gone stoic again. He was impossible to read right now, and it was frustrating.

"If I really didn’t do anything, why do you hate me now?”

That’s what he really wanted to know.

Sure probably not the biggest or most important detail in grand scheme of all these reveals so far, but it was that one thing he really, desperately wanted to know. How had he fucked up to make a friend hate him this much?

The blunet remains silent for an agonizingly long moment, before breathing out a sigh, dropping his cigarette and turning it off with his foot. He then walks closer to Ichigo, who refuses to back away for once, even as the sickly pale hand grasps his throat. The grip was very weak, but Ichigo had a feeling whatever was inside that gigai, if it was stable, it could crush his throat pretty damn fast.

"I don’t. It’s….things are fucked up in ’ere right now, Kurosaki.”

He taps his head with a finger now, looking mildly frustrated.

"It’s...look. I really can’t explain it right now, Sandal-Hat made it pretty clear if too much slip through that seal he put on you at once, yer gonna have damage to your brain or some shit. Not that there’s many cells to damage in there to begin with, but still.”

Ichigo frowns at the slight jab, but doesn’t comment on it as he thinks back on the gate he’d seen. Yeah, it’d seemed pretty serious.

"Yeah, I am mad at you, but t’s not because of you. It’s just...petty bullshit. Shit’s broken and wired wrong, impulse control’s down to hell. M’trying not to listen to it.”

That was definitely not a very helpful answer, but there was something sincere about Grimmjow’s tone. Like he genuinely meant it, saying he didn’t hate Ichigo. The ginger’s shoulders relax slightly, and his mind starts to register how warm Grimmjow’s hand against him actually felt despite his sickly state, and he’d moved it on the side of his neck now, and--

Ichigo coughs and backs away, feeling heat creep up on his face now. He tries to look at anything else but Grimmjow, his eyes eventually landing on the massive human-sized test tube. Akward silence lands between them, and he could feel blue eyes examine him closely, a mild frown on his face. Ichigo had no idea either about that reaction, he had no idea about a lot of stuff right now.

"...So is this where Urahara makes your weird gigais?”

Grimmjow just nods, his gaze still fixated on him. It soon averts away though, as a coughing fit hits him, and brown eyes instantly return back to him, with Ichigo rushing by his side alarmed. Sure enough, there was blood on Grimmjow’s hand now, and Ichigo asks frantic if he should bring him to Urahara, bringing the man away from the musky air of that horrible room back to the corridor, helping him lean and sit down against the wall. The blunet shakes his head, seemingly a bit annoyed about having Ichigo fuss over him.

"You should head back up. Your nosy shinigami buddies musta be wonderin’ the fuck are you doing.”

"I can’t just leave you here in that condition!”

”He’ll be fine.”

Ichigo turns to look at Tessai who’d appeared there out of nowhere, calmly gesturing Ichigo to head back upstairs. The ginger looks between them skeptically, until Tessai firmly grasps his shoulder, politely requesting him to go.

"Also. Preferably do not speak of this to those above.”

"They will ask.”

"I am aware. Urahara-san will distract them for you. Now go.”

Tessai nearly pushes him back towards the basement entrance, and Ichigo glances back at Grimmjow who’d leaned his head back against the wall eyes closed, looking very pained now. He was breathing in slowly, as if just doing that hurt. He really didn’t want to leave right now, but...he had to trust Tessai had this under control, already crouched in front of the man to check on him.

Grimmjow had been with them for years, it’d be fine, right?

Ichigo swallows down hard and turns his back to them, every inch of his being resistant to just walking away, but he had to go. Tessai’s words had left no room for argument, and he wasn’t keen on getting roped by the moustache bondage loving weirdo.

Blue eyes follow his every step, until he vanishes behind the corner.

Chapter Text

After Kurosaki had finally left back upstairs, Tessai eventually dragged him to the healing Onsen in the training chambers, though knew better than to try and undress him himself to drop him in there. The weird kinky bastard had learned his lesson last time when he’d almost lost his balls for even trying that shit anymore. It’s like the dumbass kept forgetting he was no longer a damn child that could be easily ordered around and handled physically.

Even then it hadn’t been easy, but now Grimmjow’s resistance had real, lethal bite to it that Tessai respected, good for him.

Slipping into the hot water, the blunet curses quietly, as it always hurt like a bitch at first. If he was in his true spirit form he’d barely notice, but this weak ass gigai liked to make a big deal about it. Too bad it was currently the best way to combat his condition, given Urahara was struggling to calculate exactly how strong to make the next body.

"They should be done in a few hours, provided Urahara-san doesn’t make them drink too much.”

"So ’m stuck here fer the rest of the night, good to know.”

Grimmjow snorts, closing his eyes as he weathers the unpleasant heat for a moment, waiting for his shitty meat vessel to get used to it again. He fucking hated being stuck in these things, they always made him look so goddamn pathetic. It was clear he looked like absolute shit just how worried Kurosaki had been. It had to be worse than last time. He barely noticed given the changes were gradual, but he could bet his left arm the look aimed at him today had been far more worried than the one at the bridge.

"They want to discuss the situation, given so far there hadn’t been any further sightings of more powerful hollows.”

"Either y’all are shit at noticing ’em, or he’s decided sending ’em in is too risky as they’re gonna get caught faster.”

Grimmjow mutters out, gaining a thoughtful hum from the mustached man, who still stood there with his blank face like some extra creepy living statue. The blunet cracks an eye open, looking at the mustache bastard annoyed, telling him to bugger off.

"I want to make sure you won’t faint and drown this gigai prematurely. We aren’t ready for a soul transfer yet.”

"Fuck off. I don’t need a damn babysitter.”

Grimmjow snorts and closes his eyes again, just leaning against the stones behind him. He was tempted to lean his head back against them too, but he sure as shit was not baring his throat around any shitty shinigami. Tessai finally seems to get the fucking hint as he adjusts his glasses, telling him to not stay in the water for any longer than necessary, before turning to head back up to the rest of the noisy lot. Finally, some fucking peace and quiet.

Eventually, his body no longer felt like it was being scalded by the water, and blue eyes open, staring at nothing in particular. When inviting Kurosaki over, he hadn’t expected it to coincide with Urahara’s shitty Soul Reaper drinking night, or whatever the fuck that mess upstairs was. Knowing the man, there had to have been a reason for it. Was it in case his soul broke free tonight, so he’d have more hands on deck to bind it, given there was no body to offer yet? Or was the Sandal-Hat planning on finally letting the rest of ’em in on this? He felt skeptical about either option, but couldn’t think for another reason as to why Urahara would have this meeting tonight, the same time he’d told Grimmjow to share some bits of memory with Kurosaki.

Mainly, that whole gigai basement had been the blond’s suggestion, stating it’d give Kurosaki enough context to hopefully handle things better, once the memories did return properly. The shitty seal basically amplified one’s emotions about the erased memory, thus making the mind naturally guard against reaching for them, or some bullshit like that.

Lifting his hand out of the water, Grimmjow notes some healthy color was returning to his skin, and he did start to feel less nauseous, which was probably good. As much as he wanted out of this damn thing, his soul just wasn’t stable enough. Having it just fade away was a pathetic way to go, and his sorry ass wasn’t dragged there by that damn Tengu with her last breath just to drop dead.

A favor for a dear late friend she’d said.

His brow ceases with an annoyed frown now, and Grimmjow drops his hand back into the water, feeling some familiar murderous rage enter his system. The blunet eventually hauls himself off the water to pull his clothes back on, almost managing to do the whole thing without getting dizzy as fuck. Almost. Leaning his palm against the stone wall to stabilize himself, Grimmjow glares into thin air as if that genocidal bastard was standing right before him, smiling his disgusting, overconfident smile. Lifting his hand, a faint blast of red demolishes the thought, and the opposing cliff-face alongside it. Grimmjow’s vision frayed at the edges for doing that admittedly stupid waste of energy, but he didn’t care.

No, he had to live, if just to spite Aizen.

"So there really hasn’t been any sightings since?”

"No, we have not seen a single one since the ones Urahara-san reported to us. In fact, the ones he described haven’t shown back either.”

Toshirou explains, gaining a faint agreeing nod from Sandal-Hat, who drinks his sake. The meeting so far had been fairly serious in nature, but Ichigo had a feeling if they continued to drink, things would escalate into nonsense real fast. Why even bring liquor out for such a serious thing? To ease tension? Probably. Or shinigami just really liked to get drunk, that was the impression Ichigo had anyway.

"If that’s the case, do we need to really even be here? Maybe whatever Aizen was sending those for isn’t in Karakura after all?”

Rangiku asks, a thought Ichigo was also sharing. If none of those arrancar or whatever were coming back, this lot being here was unnecessary. Sure Ichigo didn’t mind having his friends around, but he did feel sorry for poor Ishida, knowing he’d taken in the most rough-and-tough duo of this group. Even Yumichika couldn’t fully save that disaster.

"Yeah, Rangiku has a point for once; as much as I don’t mind hanging around this place, it feels like we’re being led astray or something. What if that bastard was just sending those things here to trick us?”

Renji crosses his arms over his chest, a broody look on his face where his lower lip was almost jutting out thoughtfully. It was kind of funny looking, but Ichigo manages to keep his laughter at bay, just taking a sip from his tea. He had a cup of sake prepared for himself as well, but he hadn’t felt like drinking. Technically he wasn’t quite of-age yet either, but he doubted anyone here really cared.

"Oh, it is here.”

Urahara’s voice makes everyone turn to look at him, and moments later, Tessai appears holding a scroll that looked vaguely familiar. Right, he’d seen that at the table downstairs...

The man places it in front of his boss alongside the feather pen - Tengu feather, that’s what Grimmjow had called it right? - before whispering something to him. The blond man just nods before turning to look back at everyone, several pairs of eyes now fixated on the scroll. The black cat on Renji’s lap finally hops off and walks there, sniffing the scroll and feather curiously, before settling down to Urahara’s lap instead now. Silence mounts between them, until Toushirou finally asks what it was.

"This, is an old relic I discovered years ago, a special ’key’ so to speak.”

Urahara rolls it open and pushes it at the table, letting everyone examine it more closely. Ichigo still had no clue what it was exactly, he could only vaguely read some of the words, speaking about a gate and a passageway, and spirits maybe?

Suddenly, Toushirou pulls the scroll closer, a shocked expression appearing on his face. Clearly he understood something others didn’t, as Rangiku asks from her captain moments later, what was wrong.

"This is....I didn’t know these even existed anymore! I thought they all were burned eons ago.”

"Indeed, almost all of them were for the sake of balance, but I discovered this one years ago, before this all started. In fact, it was due to my suspicion towards Aizen already at the time that led me to this scroll.”

"What is it?”

Rukia voices out the question the rest of them were all likely thinking, with Toushirou pushing the scroll back to Urahara, a deep concerned frown marring his face.

"It is a special scroll to open a pathway between the Main Realms and Spirit Society.”

"Spirit....isn’t that just soul society?”

Renji asks with a confused head-tilt, gaining a shake of head from Toushirou who’d now crossed his arms over his chest again. Clearly the short captain knew about all this stuff, which felt a little funny, a middle-schooler looking guy schooling a bunch of adults about a thing Ichigo felt like they should’ve known about. He had his ’human’ excuse, they didn’t.

"Spirit Society is a separate dimension from the ’Main’ branches. Living world, Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, Hell. Spirit Society is a world populated by mythical and spiritual beings. It used to be more connected to the other four, but overtime as humans populated the world more and more, the inhabitants decided to seal away their world and separate it from the rest, fearing invasion by human souls that were outnumbering them. No soul from Spirit Society has passed into Seireitei or Hueco Mundo in eons as a result.”

Ichigo swallows down hard, hearing that explanation. He knew painfully well how awful humans could be - hell, Aizen had been human once - so he couldn’t blame them. Rukia was holding her chin thoughtfully beside him, and then snaps her fingers, as if recalling something.

"Ah! I remember learning about this from somewhere back in Soul Reaper academy. There used to be trade between Spirit and Soul Society hence those scrolls exist, but after this decision was made the trade ceased.”

"Aww, you have a very good memory Rukia-chan! I totally forgot about that.”

"You never pay attention to anything at school anyway.”

"What was that?!”

Before Rangiku could reach over the table and grab Renji into a choke-hold, Urahara coughs loudly, gaining everyone’s attention now.

"Indeed, as Toushirou just explained. This scroll was one of those old keys to this realm. I in fact was in contact with someone in there for a while, and found out with their help that there was another scroll currently being used.”

"By whom?”

Ichigo asks, already having an eerie feeling he knew the answer.

"Sousuke Aizen.”

Dreadful silence lands around the table, as everyone just sort of stares at him, wondering what the hell did that man want with this other world exactly. Nothing good, that was for sure. His gaze drifts back to the scroll, and the feather pen still sitting near Urahara.

"....The person you spoke with....did....”

Ichigo pauses, feeling everyone’s eyes on him now. His gaze was still fixated on the feather.

”Was it....a woman who looked like Rukia?”

Urahara seems surprised by his question, and the aforementioned woman was also staring at Ichigo in shock now, looking between the ginger and the former shinigami captain confused. Once Urahara gathers himself, he nods and picks up the pen, examining Ichigo curiously now.

"Did you perhaps touch this down there?”

"Y-yeah. I saw a vision. There was this short woman that looked a lot like Rukia, but more elegant and fancy. She also had wings.”

"Wi—Hold on, I am perfectly elegant you asshole!”

Rukia pulls his ear as her cheeks flare pink, and Ichigo ruffles her hair vigorously to get her to stop, telling her with a brief laugh that now was not the time to argue about that - and she was about as elegant as bull in a china shop. Urahara’s voice reaches them before that fight could escalate either, though Rukia keeps still pulling his ear even as she looks back at the man with more serious and professional demeanor again.

"Indeed, she was one of the people who aided me. She gave me this pen as a gift to enable us to correspond with one another without needing to open tears. Alas...”

Urahara’s expression turns mournful now, regret shining from his thoughtful eyes. Ichigo felt his heart sink, cold chills starting to run down his spine. Nobody in the room missed the shift in the man’s mood, with Rangiku quietly asking what happened after a moment.

"....Her letters stopped one day. Last one had told me of suspicious things occuring, people going missing. Then. She showed up at my doorstep.”

Urahara’s tone was very heavy, and Ichigo felt even colder chill enter his body. He couldn’t even feel the hand pulling his ear anymore, though Rukia lets go of it soon after, gray eyes wide as she looks at Urahara.

"She was...carrying what looked like a small horned child. She was at death’s door, her very soul was fading. There was nothing we could do.”

Urahara brings up his fan to hide his face for a moment, letting those words sink in. Ichigo could tell this wasn’t just for theatrics, the former shinigami was taking a moment to gather himself as well. Tessai stood by him, placing a large hand on Urahara’s shoulder briefly, with cat-Yoruichi in his lap even lifting up to rub her head against his chin. Sucking in a deep breath, Urahara eventually lowers the fan, placing it on the table next to the pen, before taking a long swig from his sake.

"She told us to protect that boy, he was something Aizen desperately wanted, a key to whatever he was doing. But the poor child was also so weak. We almost lost him too almost immediately, until I realized I could prevent his soul from fading by tying it to a solid vessel.”

It was only now that it hit him; the child Urahara was speaking of was—

"Grimmjow. You’re talking about Grimmjow, right?”

Only Rukia knew what the hell he was talking about, her eyes widening as she seems to realize the same. Everyone else just looked utterly confused, with Ikkaku even asking who the hell was that.

"Yes. Rukia did also leave behind something else from our other correspondent - he’s dead too I’m afraid - but I have yet to figure out its secrets.”

Urahara now holds up what looked like a simple journal, similar to the ones he’d seen the man himself using. Yet, Ichigo could tell it was enchanted somehow, he could feel a faint flicker of energy emitting from it, though Ichigo couldn’t tell what it was exactly.

"Who did that belong to? It looks similar to your journals Urahara-san, albeit a bit more high wuality craftsmanship.”

Yumichika asks curiously, and yeah, looking closely the cover of this journal was nowhere near as shabby and used looking. It even had some embroidery on the cover, like a nature waterfall scene of some sort. Urahara hums and briefly opens the book, looking through it.

"....The peculiar part about Spirit Society is, you may find your doppelgangers living there. Familiar faces, familiar personalities. Just more....mythical.”

He now turns the journal so they could inside it, and there was a signature at the inside front cover, written in gold ink with familiar looking hand-writing.

Urahara Kisuke

"....What?! There’s.....there was a version of you?!”

Renji’s face had gone pale, and yeah, one Urahara Kisuke was a lot to handle already. Two was way worse. That was absolutely a terrifying concept, although Ichigo soon pushes that thought aside as the man’s earlier words sink in.

"He’s....also dead...?”

Urahara nods faintly, placing the book back down at the table as he crosses his arms now, his gaze holding the weight of someone who’d clearly been a Shinigami captain once. The kind of authority that told you you better listen what he had to say right now, for your own sake.

"While I know Aizen was already up to his schemes, part of me feels responsible for their deaths. He found out I was being nosy, and tried to eliminate us as a threat. That did not work ultimately, but...I lost some people who’d become dear friends of mine.”

Following silence was absolute, with Ichigo swallowing down hard. Nobody knew what to say to that, and he thinks back on that vision of a Rukia-lookalike woman, realizing that she was gone. His gaze drifts towards the short woman beside him, who was maybe thinking about the same thing he was. He’d lost a friend - or a version of her - before even meeting her to this guy.

Before this, he’d barely known Aizen, but that alone now made this personal.

"....You said she brought a child here?”

Rangiku asks cautiously after a moment, and Urahara nods, now looking at Ichigo.

"Yes. Of course, he was no mere child to begin with, but it wasn’t until after her death and us stabilizing his condition, did I recognize who he was. Tengu-chan had told me about this man. A bit of a rogue hermit, last of his kind. A king if you will.”

"A...king?”

Ichigo blinks confused now, and rest of the group were probably wondering why was Urahara staring at him while talking about this. It did feel like he was mainly addressing him, wanting the ginger especially to know about all this.

"Last of the Oni clan, a demon of the Sacred mountain. An unpleasant fellow, unless you manage to get through his strong defenses. Something a little smiling human boy managed to do, without even really knowing how incredibly difficult that feat would be to most.”

Ichigo averts his gaze at the table now, processing Urahara’s words. An oni? Was that why Grimmjow’s aura felt so weird? But he’d said he was a hollow....unless, hollowification process worked differently with nonhuman souls? All eyes were on him now, as if waiting for an explanation to Urahara’s comment, but he had none. He’d only found out about all this right now, the same time they had.

"....Where is this Oni now, Urahara-san?”

Toushirou asks, gaining a hum from the blond haired former captain.

"I’d hope resting. He’s in terrible shape, his current vessel was damaged during awakening, we haven’t managed to make a new one yet. If he slips out of the gigai, his soul will fade like poor Tengu-chan’s did, only this time it’ll be more violent and likely endanger anyone nearby.”

"What does Aizen want from this demon king guy anyway? A kid or not, a demon’s a demon, right?”

Ikkaku asks skeptically, making Ichigo instantly frown at him. He didn’t even know why. Baldie doesn’t notice his glare, still looking at Urahara who glances down at the journal in front of him again.

"I am not yet certain, but I trust her word of needing to keep Jeagerjaquez-san alive. Once I crack the mysteries my other self left me, we should be able to understand exactly what was it that Aizen was seeking from Spirit Society.”

There was something nagging at the back of Ichigo’s head about this, and he soon recalls what it was.

"He...he said he’s a hollow though? Kind of.”

Urahara looks back at him alongside the rest of the group, even Yoruichi lifts her cat head to examine him closely. The blond man hums and a hint of amusement enters his smile again after such a long time - by Urahara’s standards - of being kind of solemn.

"....Yes. Aizen did something to his soul that has given him hollow-like attributes. We initially tried to remove it to save his life, but that made things worse. Rest assured he’s too powerful to head out and hunt any human souls.”

That last part was more likely to reassure the other people around the table, judging how alarmed they were about this piece of information. Toushirou’s frown was deepest it had ever been, telling Urahara they’d have to inform their superiors about this. This likely meant Genryuusai himself, and Ichigo felt his throat tighten at the thought. For some reason, he really didn’t like that idea.well actually, he knew exactly why; the old Shinigami head would likely rather just execute such an unpredictable element, especially if Aizen wanted him. Much to Ichigo’s relief however, Urahara seems to agree that this wasn’t a good idea.

"I’d prefer you didn’t. We don’t exactly know what we are dealing with here, and knowing our honorable leader, he could end up making a rash judgment that’ll hurt us more in the long run.”

"But—”

"Aizen is smart; he must’ve already prepared for the possibility we’d inform Genryuusai-san about Jeagerjaquez. He know what would happen next. Telling him we’ll be playing right into Aizen’s hands.”

It still felt weird hearing that low male voice from Yoruichi’s mouth, but her words spoke the truth, or at least the table full of Shinigami seemed to agree, judging how quiet everyone was, and Toushirou’s reluctant frown.

"Tengu-chan told me to keep him alive for a reason, so I will. Besides something tells me we’d be up for another Kurosaki invasion if you tried to take him to Seireitei.”

Urahara’s tone had some playfulness to it, and he once again becomes the center of attention to everyone. Ichigo hates the way his face heats up now, glaring at Urahara while sending mental daggers and fireballs his way. The Sandal-Hat bastard just picks up his fan again to snicker behind it, clearly amused by his reaction.

"What the hell Ichigo? You’ve known about this for longer than us?”

Renji looks at him genuinely offended, and the ginger protests, stating he was learning about this only right now. It wasn’t even a lie, even if he’d supposedly met Grimmjow in the past and been friends with him, he’d had no idea about all this demon stuff. The redhead still looks at him skeptically, clearly not buying it.

"Kurosaki is telling the truth. While there is a connection between them, he was as ignorant of all this as you.”

Yoruichi comments casually, now licking her paws and kneading Urahara’s knee lightly. Apparently her word was convincing enough as Renji huffs and crosses his arms poutily, still glaring at Ichigo though like he was mad.

".....So if we won’t be contacting Seireitei about this, what should we do? Just keep waiting if those arrancar show up again? They’re searching for this Oni king, right?”

Rukia asks after a moment of silence. Before Urahara could really answer however, Jinta suddenly sprints into the room looking alarmed, yelling something about Grimmjow. At least, Ichigo could only think of one person who’d fit the description of ’blue haired asshat’ Jinta was giving them. He sounded quite panicked, speaking so fast none of them understood what he was saying.

"Calm down Jinta, take a deep breath and start again.”

Tessai tells him firmly, and Jinta takes a deep enough breath to create a chipmunk face, almost making Ichigo laugh. His smile is cut short however, as he hears what Jinta had to say.

"He passed out! Looks real bad!”

Urahara’s eyes widen, and he gets up, hurrying after Tessai who was already following Jinta downstairs. Ichigo stands up abrutply as well; he knew it had been a bad idea to leave Grimmjow by himself, he looked so awful! The ginger heads after the group, feeling confused eyes at his back. Yoruichi was trailing beside his feet as well, her cat face looking about as serious as a cat could look like. Making his way down the stairs, he soon spots the others; they were crouched around a figure laying on the ground at the corridor, it seemed like Grimmjow had intended to either come upstairs or just linger around the staircase to listen in. It didn’t really matter what his intend was, all Ichigo knew was that he was now laying there knocked out, looking sick as hell.

Hurrying beside Tessai, the ginger asks how he was, words cut short as he sees the man. Namely, his other arm had changed; it was now completely black, with blue, sharp nails protruding out of his fingertips. Those nails definitely didn’t belong to a human, they were more like cat claws.

"Urahara-san! Wh-what's going on!?”

"It is breaking through this bad that he transforms the body involuntarily? Interesting.”

"He was just laying there like that! Was-wasn’t he supposed to be at the healing bath or something?!”

It was admittedly surprising to see Jinta worry so much, but then again if Grimmjow had been with them for a while, maybe the kid had grown somewhat fond of him. Ichigo didn’t really know whatsoever what the blunet’s relationship with this bunch was exactly anyway.

"He is not bleeding reiatsu at least.”

Yoruichi’s odd male voice comments as she nudges the unconscious figure’s black arm with her kitty nose. Urahara nods seemingly agreeing, holding his chin thoughtfully now.

"He must’ve had a very unpleasant flashback or a thought, those can sometimes trigger fits.”

"B-but he’s not typically passed out like this, right? Just gotten dizzy!”

"I am aware Jinta, perhaps we should---”

”What is going on here?”

They all turn to look back towards the entrance in unison, finding the entire shinigami bunch standing there, having followed the group downstairs. As they walk closer, the group finally notices the unconscious figure they were all gathered around of.

"Is...is that the Oni we were talking about?”

Renji asks cautiously, with baldy walking beside him, eyeing the figure cautiously.

"Don’t look like much, what’s with the shitty gigai?”

"Grimmjow told me….his soul won’t survive on its own right now. The whole sickness Urahara was talking about.”

Ichigo mutters out, reaching towards the clawed hand now as if in trance. As his fingers brush against Grimmjow’s fingers, there was a flash in his mind. That same arm, grabbing his throat, a distant angry snarl echoing in his mind.

"The fuckin’ NERVE to say that to me, Kurosaki! You have---”

Ichigo backs away as if he was burned, reaching the other wall of the narrow corridor. Rukia and Renji both look at him alarmed, with the woman asking if he was okay, while Renji was about to pull out his zanpakuto. He stops however as Urahara holds his hand up, standing up to look at Ichigo closely.

He was just panting, feeling terrible dread in his mind that the ginger suspected was connected to that brief memory he’d suddenly unlocked. Grimmjow’s voice sounded so...angry, but also hurt in a weird way? His heartbeat was thundering in his ears, and Ichigo barely registers it as Urahara walks beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

”….We’ll take care of him, he’s not dying. Perhaps you should go home for now, Kurosaki-san.”

Ichigo doesn’t respond to that calm voice, his gaze still fixated on Grimmjow, whose limp body Tessai had already picked up from the floor, looking back at Urahara as if asking silently where to bring him. The blond man hums and examines the blunet briefly, before nudging towards the stairs with his thumb.

"He’s stable, just lost energy suddenly. He’ll likely sleep it off, but we’ll monitor the situation.”

Tessai nods and walks past the confused bunch, with Toushirou eventually asking what was going on, if that truly was this Oni king Urahara spoke of.

"Yes. His majesty been suffering from an ’illness’ which we’ve been managing for years now, but are hoping for a breakthrough with curing soon. He’ll be fine.”

Looking back at Ichigo, the man waves a hand in front of his face, finally gaining the ginger’s attention as that strange anxiety leaves his body, allowing his senses to return to the real world. He breathes in deeply, just sort of staring at Urahara, kind of scared to move right now for some reason.

"Kurosaki. Go home. Your memory has been provoked more than enough for today, any further than this might be too much at once.”

"...Will…?”

"Rest assured he’ll be fine.”

Urahara coaxes him away from the wall, pushing him towards the exit upstairs. Nobody attempts to stop him, not having enough information about what was going on.

Making his way back upstairs, Ichigo finds Tessai had brought Grimmjow to a guest room at the back, although looking at it more closely...maybe this was just Grimmjow’s room. It had an ashtray with those same cigarettes in it, alongside some talismans scattered here and there on the walls like downstairs. Tessai had just put him down to the bed, before turning to face Ichigo, repeating Urahara’s recommendation to him.

"We’ll be in contact with you again surely, but for tonight you should return home and rest.”

Ichigo’s gaze fixates on the still black arm the man had, dozens of questions still swirling in his head. Not just about what happened to Grimmjow, but what had that flashback been. Why had Grimmjow been mad at him? He had said he was, but he’d also claimed he didn’t hate Ichigo. That anger he heard from that voice of a memory though….

The ginger swallows down hard and nods, turning on his heels to head back out. In any other situation he’d refused to go because there was still a threat looming over his town potentially, but he felt really anxious right now, in a manner he hadn’t felt since he was a child.

Ichigo could feel his friends’ eyes on him as he disappears into the night outside, likely wondering what was going on.

He wished he knew too.

ART TIME: some flashback doodles I did for this fic, since it was the only one I hadn't drawn anything for at this point.

Chapter Text

The next day, Tatsuki predictably corners him at school, still seeking her answers. Her steely determination falters however, seeing his expression. It had to be pretty bad if even she began to back off, despite clearly wanting to desperately know what was happening.

"After lunch okay? I....I probably need to talk with everyone about this.”

"Does that include Keigo and Mitzuru?”

Ichigo shakes his head after a moment of hesitation. For now he wasn’t ready to drag those two into all this spirit world nonsense, even if they had seen Grimmjow themselves. They agree to go and speak at their rooftop hangout space later, with Tatsuki letting Inoue know as they had gym class first.

Sitting down to the biology lesson, Ichigo struggles to focus, too much weighing on his mind. It wasn’t exactly ideal given the big exams were closing in; with all the Shinigami nonsense going on, he kept forgetting about them, about the fact it was his senior year, and soon he’d have to think about where to go next. His eighteenth birthday had been spent in Soul Society too, come to think of it. His family hadn’t really even brought it up because, well, they were just glad he hadn’t dropped dead, but part of Ichigo felt a little bad about it now.

He breathes out a sigh and attempts to focus on the lesson, sensing Ishida’s concerned glance at the back of his head. He’d barely greeted him or Chad, just telling them they had to talk during lunchtime. No wonder if they were worried.

All he seemed to do was worry people, huh?

There was a flash in his mind, drifting him away from the present.

Ichigo was mopping the floor of the clinic angrily, his face still stinging from the earlier fight. Old man hadn’t been happy seeing him come home with a black eye while —— supported him, but for once didn’t accuse him of making it. Yeah he and ——fought a lot, but he tended to avoid his face for some reason. Not that it mattered, kick in the balls definitely hurt more than a broken nose, at least Ichigo stubbornly believed so.

The door to the clinic opens, and a familiar mess of blue hair appears on his peripheral vision. Ichigo just continues mopping angrily, feeling that shit eating grin on his back. After a moment, a lazy drawl reaches his ear, making the ginger spin around to glare at the bastard angrily. There was not even a scratch on ——, that was fucking bullshit. He could’ve sworn one of those assholes scored a hit on his face too!

”What?”

”I wan the bet.”

”Oh fuck you! They started!”

”Aannnd you didn’t back off, so I wan.”

That grin was equal amounts of infuriating and weirdly endearing, and Ichigo refused to think about why that was, nope, he was not touching that. Also, it wasn’t his fault assholes wanted to pick fights with him, he didn’t go looking for them like —- dammit! That didn’t make him a troublemagnet!

He’d now walked closer, Ichigo could spot his dirty black shoes in his peripheral vision, and he unceremoniously smacks his leg with the broom, telling him to take off his shoes indoors damn it. —— doesn’t even flinch, just continues to grin down at him. Fuck did he have any sort of pain receptors there?

"Face it, you can’t even go for one week without a fight.”

"Funny coming from you of all people.”

——snorts, purposefully pacing around the area he’d already cleaned just to give him more work, the asshole. Why did he even like this guy again? Not that way, he hurries to tag on, as if the idiot could somehow read his thoughts.

"I’m not claimin’ I don’t pick fights like some people.”

"Ugh whatever, stop smearing the mud all over the place or I’ll tell Yuzu you’re being a shithead again!”

Wisely, ——- pauses and considers that for a moment, before taking off his shoes finally. Even he was not immune to the terror that was Yuzu’s disappointment and scolding. Then again she’d never be as harsh to him, he’d somehow charmed his baby sister enough that she struggled to stay mad at him. Ichigo? Oh she’d hold a grudge alright, guilt tripping him into helping out with stuff for weeks, but ——? He just had to compliment her cooking once and he’d be off the hook.

"Seriously, how is there not even a scratch on you, that’s fucking unfair!”

—— looks back at him with an amused grin, now sitting on one of the waiting room chairs with his legs crossed. Well he was more slouching than sitting, if he tried to get any more comfortable he’d slide right off the damn chair.

"Maybe you just suck at fighting.”

"As if, I’ve kicked your ass more than once!”

"Yet yer the one who keeps needing ta be patched up....”

"You just got some....some weird magic! Must be that scary grin you can pull off, how do you even do that?!”

"Do what?”

—— asks casually, that aforementioned terrifying grin purposefully spread across his face. If he smiled any wider his face would split in half, fucking freak of nature. Ichigo now points his mop at the asshole threateningly, squinting at — —- while he kept smirking at him mischievously. It was so damn hard to stay mad at this bastard, as much as Ichigo hated admitting it. With his stupid weirdly charming shit-eating grin, the weird over-expressive eyes that seemed to contract and expand way more a human’s should - he must’ve been a cat in previous life - and the way he always saw right through him, no matter what. He read him almost better than mum did, and that was saying something.

"You know exactly what I mean. Hanging out with you, maybe its just YOUR punk face that attracts people!”

"Then don’t. Problem solved.”

The blunet shrugs, knowing full well Ichigo would never do that. Instead, Ichigo huffs and continues mopping, still grumbling annoyed under his breath.

"You always look like you wanna tear someone’s throat open when you smile like that, no wonder people run the hell away from you.”

So focused on trying to get this one particularly stubborn stain off the floor left by — —, Ichigo doesn’t notice the blunet slipping off his chair and walk closer, until an arm slung over his shoulders, catching the ginger by surprise. He freezes there, feeling the bastard snicker at his startled reaction, breath brushing over his ear now.

"Want a demonstration?”

What the fuck was he doing? Ichigo’s face was starting to gain color, as — — was close, way too close, close enough to nip his ear or bite his neck, or—

"Fuck off asshole!”

Ichigo manages to shove him off with a flustered shriek, using the dirty mop as a weapon again to make the snickering bastard back away, his face still fuming. There was mirth in the blunet’s expression, and Ichigo knew painfully well his face was red like Yuzu’s extra spicy tomato soup.

"Did you stay here just to bully me?!”

"Uh huh. N’ yer sister asked me to stay for dinner.”

"Of course. Damn it Yuzu, she likes you too much!”

"Try bein’ nice ’bout her food once in a while. You keep taking shit for granted.”

It wasn’t meant harshly, just an off-handed comment, but Ichigo still averts his gaze down to the floor, feeling a sting of guilt now. He just said shit like that sometimes, huh. The bastard probably didn’t even realize it himself, even now he was just looking at him with confused lift eyebrow, asking why the hell was he moping now. Ichigo shakes his head and doesn’t respond, just tells him to stay out of the way so he could fucking clean up properly.

”Ichigo?”

Snapping out of his sudden flashback, the ginger looks around a bit puzzled, realizing the lesson had ended. That memory had been...odd. As in, it hadn't caused him anxiety or panic, it had been weirdly normal and...kind of nice? He could still feel the warmth at the pit of his stomach, although he wasn't fully sure what it meant.

Fingers snap in front of his face, and Ichigo turns his attention back towards the figure nearby. Ishida stood beside him alongside Chad, a concerned frown marring his face. The eyes behind those thin glasses didn’t look happy, though Ishida was one of those guys who seemed to permanently be displeased by something. His dad was way worse, from what Ichigo could remember having seen his photo.

"Are you alright? The lesson ended.”

"I...yeah, sorry. Musta zoned out.”

"Did you not sleep at all last night? Again?”

Ichigo shrugs sheepishly, pulling himself off his chair.

"You said you wanted to talk to us.”

Chad comments after a moment of awkward silence as Ichigo packs up his bag, and the ginger nods, throwing it over his shoulder as he looks back at the two.

"Yeah. You all likely want to know fully what’s happening. I don’t know if Rukia and others told you anyhing yet?”

"No, they haven’t been present today either, only the mod souls and they have no clue what is going on either.”

"Alright then.”

This’d be a long chat, they’d probably be late from the next class.

He hadn’t even been sure where to start exactly, but in the end had just gone ahead and told them everything in regards to him and Grimmjow at least. He wasn’t sure if the Oni stuff was something he was allowed to share with them, he suspected the Shinigami wanted to try and not involve the humans as much as possible. Ichigo was an exception to an extend, but Ichigo wouldn’t be surprised if he would be kept in the dark from some things at least.

Clearly, that story was a lot to process, especially for Tatsuki who was staring at him eyes wide, before holding her head in utter shock. Inoue reaches her hand out hesitantly, placing it on the distraught karate master’s shoulder. Tatsuki was tough, she wasn’t shaken by things easily, but clearly finding out her memory had been tampered with was alarming. Ichigo had brought up the possibility same had been done with Chad too given the timing, but he couldn’t be sure. Chad didn’t show much of a reaction either way, just looking back at Tatsuki concerned.

The dark haired girl eventually gets up and paces around for a moment, face in a deep, displeased frown. Yeah he could understand how she felt, it’d pissed him off too, hearing someone tamper with his brain like that, even if they supposedly had a good reason for it.

"....So that’s why he felt familiar....”

"You....you recognized him?”

Inoue blinks surprised, whereas Ichigo had expected that. He’d seen her reaction to Grimmjow showing up. Something had stirred in her brain, even if it wasn’t a full memory. He tells her to be careful, as if his experience with those memories and that weird gate seal thing had been anyhing to go by, it could be worse for her as someone less adapted to the whole spirit stuff. Tatsuki remains quiet for a long moment, before looking back at Ichigo that same deep frown still plastered across her face, asking where the man was now. Ichigo bites his lip, averting his gaze and wondering what he should say.

"He’s unconscious back in Urahara’s shop.”

A voice interrupts them, and everyone turns to look at Rukia, who’d appeared there in her Shinigami form. She steps down from the ledge, a serious look on her face as she crosses her arms over her chest, addressing Tatsuki directly.

"He wants to see you and Orihime after your lessons.”

"Me and Tatsuki? Why?”

"From my understanding, when it comes to Arisawa, it relates to the memory spell he did to her. As for Inoue, he said he needs your help.”

Orihime blinks surprised, and Ichigo felt uneasy; usually when she was needed, it meant her incredible ’healing’ ability was required. They’d said he’d be fine, but what if...

"He also asked you to show up too, Ichigo. Just in case.”

"Just in case what?”

"He didn’t tell me the details, but indicated something could go wrong, and you’re their best bet at neutralizing it.”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh, a bit tired of all this cryptic bullshit from Urahara, but he just nods in response. Yelling at Rukia over it would be stupid anyway, she was just the messenger and clearly as annoyed about the man’s unwillingness to give them the info straight, judging from her irritated expression.

"Well....I guess we’ll be going at Urahara’s this evening, ladies.”

Ichigo shrugs, gaining a hesitant nod from Inoue, while Tatsuki was still looking at Rukia with a frown, clearly suspicious. He didn’t blame her, as apparently last tome she’d ended up there, her memory had been tampered with. Urahara would likely end up in a headlock or get a kick in the balls if he tried that again, and part of Ichigo almost wanted to see the former shinigami captain get bested by a human high schooler. Sure Tatsuki was the toughest high school girl he’d ever met and a karate master, but still. That’d be a sight worth seeing.

Heading to the shop, all three were nervous. Well not just the three of them; Chad and Ishida had insisted on coming with, or more Ishida had, with the quiet big guy just nodding in agreement. Kon was also hiding in his bag, given it had been pretty clear he’d need to become a Shinigami for this. He’d stayed hidden for now, maybe because Tatsuki had never really seen him as the teddy lion – or maybe because he was still terrified of going there.

Ichigo was a bit concerned about this too to be fair, given why Urahara seemingly wanted him there, but he reminded himself these two could defend themselves if necessary. Hell, more people ready would probably be good. Literally the only person that could potentially be in danger was Tatsuki, and she was, well, Tatsuki.

Speaking of her, she was glaring ahead with a deep frown, her steps a determined march. She was clearly eager to yell at Urahara for tampering with her mind, but knowing her she’d probably first let the man explain himself, then kick his ass.

The familiar building eventually appeared ahead, and Ichigo felt his mouth go kind of dry; would Grimmjow be okay? Orihime being asked to come had to relate to him somehow, didn’t it? Jinta had even pointed out back then Grimmjow didn’t normally faint like that….

Part of him also thought back of the brief flashback he’d had while at school. It had been so...normal and domestic that it freaked him out more than the eerie flashes of bad stuff. Although, there had been an element to it that he was still mulling over a little bit too. Namely...why the hell had he been acting so flustered? That was weird. What’s more, that had happened even now a couple of times, and the ginger still had no fucking clue why. Grimmjow had been a friend, a jerkass bitch friend apparently, but still a friend. He didn’t really get flustered around his friends much, that was weird.

That memory had also confirmed it hadn’t just been a new development, but something he’d already been doing back then for some reason….

"Oh, Rukia-chan is here too!”

Inoue’s voice snaps him out of it, and sure enough, Rukia was standing on the yard waiting for them, in her gigai now. The group reaches her, and she wasn’t surprised to see Chad and Ishida there too. Ichigo asks if others were there as well, gaining a shake of head from her.

”Urahara told us to just continue doing our jobs for now, and he specifically asked me not to bring others here. He indicated if things went sideways, too many shinigami around could...provoke something out of Jeagerjaquez. I assume its the hollow part.”

"Hollow part? What do you mean part?”

Ishida adjusts his glasses confused, and Ichigo only now remembers that yeah, he had mentioned the hollow thing, but not the Oni part. Rukia looks between them, before sighing and gesturing the group to head inside and stating she'd explain later, though she gives Ishida a stern look before he could do so.

"You are not allowed to do anything, understand? If things go bad, we cannot have Jeagerjaguez to get killed by your arrows.”

"Why would I do that? Ichigo literally told us the guy is his friend!”

Ishida protests clearly a bit offended, and Ichigo couldn’t help but smile, hearing that sign of trust from Ishida. He had every reason to be wary about Grimmjow knowing now the man was a hollow – sort of – but he was still willing to trust Ichigo’s judgment when the ginger had made it clear he didn’t see Grimmjow as a threat.

Mostly.

As long as he was still sane, clearly.

"Just in case. I do want to trust you Uryuu, but your arrows…”

"I get it. Fine.”

"Don’t worry, if shit hits the fan Chad will cover for you.”

Ichigo comments casually, gaining a thumbs up from their silent friend. Ishida rolls his eyes as they all head inside, greeted by Urahara. He quickly has to back away still hiding his face behind his fan slightly as Tatsuki marches to the man, pointing an accusatory finger at his face.

"You were the one who tampered with my memory, aren’t you?”

"It was an emergency.”

"You BETTER have a good explanation to that, old man!”

"He does, we called you here in regards to this.”

Tatsuki jumps backwards and stares at the black cat sitting on the nearby shelf, licking her paw. It was only now Ichigo realized, she didn’t really know Yoruichi. The girl seems to quickly connect the dots however, squinting at the black cat.

"You’re a Shinigami too, aren’t you?”

"Yes. I just like being a cat in human world.”

Yoruichi comments casually, continuing to lick her paw clean, before looking back at puzzled Tatsuki.

"Before that though….Inoue-chan, we need you and Ichigo to come downstairs. Ichigo, if you could…”

the ginger nods, digging out Kon, or well this time around he just opens the zipper, asking Kon if he could come out. He really didn’t feel like manhandling the poor bastard right now, he’d never seen Kon like this. After a moment the lion does climb out of the back, making Tatsuki stare at the sight baffled.

"That scary demon isn’t here, right?”

"Not right now. C’mon I need to get out of my body. Rukia and others will protect you if shit hits the fan.”

Kon glances back at the trio still nervous, and Ichigo could tell his demeanor was surprising to Rukia, who was staring at the mod soul eyes wide. Eventually though Kon nods and coughs up the pill, allowing Ichigo to swallow it. It was still a bit disorienting to step out of his physical vessel, but it wasn’t as bad anymore. Kon still stood there clutching his bag against his chest, looking up at Ichigo with clear concern. It was so weird still. Kon knew the guy had been his friend, and still seemed to think he was walking in the jaws of death.

"It’s fine Kon. Just go do my homework or something.”

"I’m NOT doing your work for you!”

Kon sticks his tongue – Ichigo’s tongue – out at him, gaining an eye roll from Ichigo. Tatsuki just looks at the bizarre exhange, then seems to conclude something, frowning at Kon.

"….It was you in Ichigo’s body back then, right? When he was hopping in and out through windows and acting weirdly friendly.”

"Uuuuh…..yes? Don’t kill me please.”

"If I tried, Ichigo would be stuck as a Shinigami. No way I’m letting him have that power and get himself killed the second time.”

Tatsuki comments dryly, making the aforementioned ginger laugh awkwardly, then turns towards Urahara to ask him where to go.

"We are coming too!”

Ishida declares as Urahara gestures towards his basement door predictably, but Yoruichi swiftly tells them not to. When the young quincy demands to know why, the cat and the man glance at each other, before looking back at the group.

”We are hoping, if he loses it, Ichigo can distract him enough we can seal him. He likely won’t find him as much of a threat as you two. Also, as Ichigo said, someone needs to be up here to protect his body and Kon if something happens.”

Yeah, that didn’t sound good one bit, and Ichigo felt anxiety tug in his gut lightly. Just what the hell was going on? What was wrong with Grimmjow? He shows none of his unease however, turning to look back at the pair and Rukia.

"You stay up just in case he slips past me. Also I kinda agree with Rukia, don’t shoot him with your arrows if he does please. Just….”

"I already told you I wouldn’t! Gods!”

Uryuu adjusts his glasses furiously with his middle finger, and Ichigo smirks at that, flipping him back before following the two and Orihime down into the creepy ass basement.

As they walk across the hallway, Ichigo realizes they were being brought to the laboratory,; of course they would be, he should’ve guessed. Glancing at Orihime concerned. There was no way she could stomach what was waiting down there, he barely had. As if guessing his thoughts however, Yoruichi slows down to walk beside him, her tail wrapping around his ankle.

"We cleaned up in preparation for this, do not worry.”

Inoue looks between them puzzled, but Ichigo just nods, muttering out a quiet thank you under his breath.

Reaching the door, Urahara leads them through it, and the room was indeed empty of gigai corpses and bloodstains, only the table and the weird device at the end left. It was so clean and sterile you could’ve almost figured the sight Ichigo saw had been just some macabre nightmare.

"This must’ve taken a while.”

He mutters out, gaining an amused snicker from the cat beside his feet.

"Jinta did work throughout the night. I think we broke his back.”

"Lazy bums.”

"Hey, I have paws, I can’t even hold a mop!”

"You can turn human.”

Before their silly argument could continue, Urahara coughs and gains their attention, having brought them before the door at the back. It had new seals on it that were glowing lightly. Urahara draws something in the air with his fan in front of the door, and after the seals glow for a second, it opens slowly on its own. The man then gestures them to step in, telling Orihime ’ladies first.’ Ichigo hoped there was no nasty surprises waiting for her there, or he’d kick Urahara’s ass all the way back to Seireitei and back.

He could hear a surprised gasp and quickly rushes to the door, only to be left speechless.

Sure he should’ve expected something like this, but it still caught him off-guard. Instead of a room, they enter inside a cave entrance of sorts, sporting a massive Torii gate. It almost looked like where the door was there had been a path outside, that was now blocked by a smooth stone slab the door was attached to.

"Follow me.”

Urahara tells them calmly, heading bast the Torii gate and deeper into the cave, towards a strange looking ethereal light ahead. The two glance at each other but head after the man eventually, not having much of a choice.

"Urahara-san could really take up indoor furnishing, he’s able to create all these crazy spaces!”

Inoue comments with sparkles in her eyes, clearly less creeped out by the cave they were in currently, clearly too tall to genuinely fit under Urahara’s house. The path they were walking eventually leads them behind a corner, revealing where the light came from. Another one of those baths like the healing one in the training room, only this one was bigger and deeper, emitting blue light from it. The atmosphere was thick with some sort of spirit energy, but it was different from what he was used to. Ichigo frowns confused, asking what was it that he sensed.

"The pool is infused with Spirit Society’s energy. It is slightly different from ours, that’s why it feels strange. It does heal all the same, though doesn’t work as well on Shinigami or Hollows.”

Yoruichi explains, now hopping atop of a rock formation nearby, her gaze focusing in on something. Ichigo follows her gaze while Orihime studies the pool with sparkling eyes, having noticed there were actual plants growing at the bottom, seemingly the source of the blue glow. She says something about it but Ichigo ignores her, his eyes having found what Yoruichi was looking at. There, near the pool’s edge, laying on what seemed like pile of furs was Grimmjow. Ichigo’s eyes widen and he hurries there, only to note the man looked different. Not just that, he now realizes he seemed to be bound to the ground by some sort of glowing restraints, likely work of Tessai.

"What is….”

"His Gigai failed last night shortly after everyone left. We didn’t have new one ready so we had to bind his soul here. Thankfully it is no longer at risk of fading it seems, but we couldn’t get him to awaken either.”

Yoruichi explains, but Ichigo wasn’t really listening, taking in the sight properly. This was how he really looked like?

The wild blue hair was still there, his facial features hadn’t changed, but everything else was somewhat different. His skintone had a healthy tan to it, and he was….well. He was putting Ichigo’s build to shame, to put it mildly. It makes the ginger glance down at himself feeling a little self conscious of his own muscles now, before slapping himself mentally. Now was not the time for that kinda bullshit. He could now clearly tell he was an Oni, given the pair of blue-white horns jutting out of his head. The ”king” part was debatable, even if he was definitely decked out with the feather earrings and all the other excessive shit he wore, but it still didn’t really look royal to him.

There was something more familiar too, though; a mask on his cheek in the shape of very sharp fanged jaw, and a hollow hole at his stomach. Ichigo had a feeling those weren’t part of his natural Oni-disposition, and rather the side-effects of whatever Aizen had done to him.

"Ichigo, did you notice---oh! Oh. He looks different! Wow he has actual muscle!”

Inoue blinks surprised as she finally makes her way there, staring at the unconscious figure with widened eyes. Ichigo couldn’t really add anything to that, gaze still fixated on Grimmjow. It wasn’t just that he looked different, Ichigo could now feel properly what he’d felt glimpses of. The power that had been sleeping within the gigai, trapped inside it. It was still sleeping too for some reason, but not trapped. It was almost like watching a wild animal from afar, currently napping but about ready to bounce and tear your throat open if you got too close.

That metaphor made him think back on that weird memory, and Ichigo shakes his head, before asking Urahara what was going on, and what did they want from Inoue exactly.

"Well…”

Urahara now directs their attention back into the pool, and as Ichigo walks to peek inside, he now spots something at the bottom. Inoue follows his gaze and yelps, covering her mouth in shock as she notices it too. There, at the bottom rested a body. Well to be exact it was Grimmjow’s gigai, eyes closed and almost completely naked. It–He looked really sick and lifeless, which to be fair the gigai was right now.

"We managed to preserve it, as I suspect while his soul is no longer in danger of fading, it seems to be unable to remain conscious unless in a body. That pond won’t be enough to make it sustainable, but Yoruichi-chan suggested we could perhaps use Inoue’s power to repair it properly.”

They both look back at Urahara, who glances back at the sleeping spirit.

"She could potentially reject it back to the state it was before his initial premature awakening, and it could in all likeness handle his soul, at least long enough for us to make a new vessel that’s more suitable.”

"But...he said that whole thing happened because of me? I don’t think I should be here…”

Ichigo points out, gaining a thoughtful hum from Urahara.

"….It depends. I’d say you were also the reason why rebounding him to the body was remarkably easy that time. It is a risk we are willing to take. Leaving him like this is too dangerous, in case the hollow side takes control again and goes berserk.”

Ichigo looks back at Grimmjow, thinking back on that beastly catlike figure. So that had been the hollow part, not the Oni? Supposedly that made sense….

"I’ll do it!”

Inoue comments suddenly with a determined look, making Ichigo look back at her a bit uneasy. While healing the gigai was fine, this was Grimmjow they were talking about. What if the hollow decided to go berserk while she was here? If her powers would provoke it somehow….

"We made sure those restrains would keep him at bay for a while if that did happen.”

Yoruichi comments as if reading his mind, making the ginger frown at her and point out that wasn’t exactly that reassuring. Orihime tells him not to worry however, clearly wanting to be helpful. Perhaps because this guy was supposedly his childhood friend, she felt extra determined to do so. Ichigo sighs after a moment and nods, figuring he couldn’t exactly stop her – nor did he really want to, in truth. Seeing him just lie there bound by Tessai’s ability was too freaky, he’d rather have the man awake spewing insults at him.

Urahara hums and nods, standing up and walking to the pond now, using a spell to bubble the body below and float it up to the surface, laying it down to the smooth stone surface nearby. Ichigo now notes they’d at least had the decency to give him boxers, which didn’t seem to be wet weirdly enough. Maybe that water was different from human and spirit world water.

Inoue crouches next to the lifeless Gigai, and it was really hard to tell how it had failed exactly, had it just ejected Grimmjow’s soul? Supposedly had it been more bloody and messy, there would be some scars, maybe. Would they even have been able to preserve it if that had happened?

Probably not, Ichigo reassures himself, even if he still felt very uneasy.

The orange glow of Inoue’s power surrounds the limb body, and Ichigo just watches her work, hoping this would work. It likely should, he couldn’t imagine Urahara inviting them there for nothing, he had to be confident. The man’s visage gave nothing away, just standing there watching her, face partially hidden behind his fan. After a while, color seems to return on the gigai’s face, indicating her powers were doing something. Urahara let’s out a quiet hum but doesn’t react otherwise, just studying as Inoue’s power worked its magic.

Then, Ichigo suddenly felt like something was watching him. He looks around cautiously, glancing at Yoruichi. Her eyes were also focused in on Orihime currently, so it wasn’t her. Brown eyes search the cavern, his eyes eventually drifting back towards the bound spirit behind them. Grimmjow hadn’t moved, his eyes were still closed, but…

"Is it working? He looks better but I can’t tell…”

Inoue’s voice makes Ichigo look back, and Urahara and Yoruichi both walk closer to check on the gigai. Ichigo just stood there frozen, as it wasn’t like he could offer much of an opinion, he had no clue how these things functioned exactly.

His hair stands to an end without warning, and there was a low growl emanating from somewhere suddenly, making Ichigo whip around, his hand already reaching for his zanpakuto reflexively as he felt a threat nearby. At first, he saw nothing, Grimmjow was still completely immobile, not even a hair had moved.

Then, just as Yoruichi yells out a sudden warning in alarm, his eyes snapped open, and they were glowing intensely blue. The bindings around him burst into blue flames as well, briefly blinding them. There was a loud growl in the air, and Ichigo could see a figure struggle against the bindings as they morph. Moments later something charges at him, and Ichigo brings out his zanpakuto, just in time as claws strike at it, attempting to turn him into sliced shinigami ham. The shockwave from the impact knocks everyone else off their feet, and there was a splash. Ichigo glances towards the group alarmed, noting Urahara had been knocked into the water.

He quickly has to focus back on his attacker, who suddenly kicks him against the cave walls with a roar, and Ichigo could tell something sharp had sliced through his robes, there was a sting to his belly.

"Kisuke!”

It was all a blur, Ichigo couldn’t really tell what was happening, the spirit was glowing too brightly. It felt like a hollow for sure, but supercharged with something. He blocks another attack by those deadly claws, trying to call out to Grimmjow.

"Oi! Snap out of it!”

He only gets a roar as a response, and the happless ginger is sent flying across the pond now, making him crash against one of the cave stone pillars, making it crumble into the water.

"Kisuke, the bindings!”

The female voice indicates Yoruichi had turned to her human form now, and he could catch a glimpse of naked cat lady standing before scared Orihime, who’d formed a protective barrier around herself and the gigai. Urahara was already summoning more of those bindings to try and tie Grimmjow’s wild soul again, but they get burned and sliced apart as well.

"My, he’s MUCH stronger than before!”

"Don’t just waste time then, make them stronger too!”

Before Urahara could, the glowing mass charges back at Ichigo, now pinning him deep into the opposite rock wall, knocking all the air out of his lungs. Damn, Grimmjow was so fucking fast, and those claws were sharp as hell. Also he could taste blood in his mouth from that impact.

He attempts to pry off the arm pinning him there, kind of unsure what the hell he should do right now; could he just fight him normally? Would he accidentally harm him badly if he did, given how bad of a condition his soul had been for so long. As Ichigo manages to look up, he notes the glow was dimming slightly, and he could make out Grimmjow’s face now. The jaw mask was gone, replaced by some sort of crown, and...he had...kind of cat ears?

The Oni definitely didn’t have those, so this was the hollow side.

"H-hey, Grimm, c’mon, snap out of it!”

He wasn’t even sure why he shortened his name like that, but strangely enough, it seems to have an effect as the hostile energy around the spirit dissipates lightly, almost if the beast was confused. Ichigo notes the grip around his throat loosens as well, allowing him to kick the deadly hollow-cat off him. More bindings appear now, this time managing to keep the struggling soul bound, snarling at them like it was truly animalistic. It was...kind of hard to watch, and Ichigo swallows down hard, rubbing his neck. He could feel bits of blood there, indicating the sharp claws had punctured his skin.

"Should we put him back to sleep?”

"I’m not sure we can put him into his gigai in this shape.”

The two shinigami discuss what to do, all the while the trapped soul trashes around, the glow growing fainter and fainter each second, allowing Ichigo to see the thing – see Grimmjow’s beastly form – properly for the first time.

He had a massive mane of blue hair running all the way down his back, his legs were more like feline legs with actual paws, which would’ve been cute had it not been for the very sharp claws attached to them. His body was covered in white clad bone armor for the most part, apart from his chest, and the whip-like tail was swinging around wildly, almost scoring Yoruichi in her thigh. The woman jumps back just in time though, having sensed the approaching threat.

"Perhaps, we shall just wait until he has worn himself out? It does seem like I made the bindings strong enough this time around....”

"It’s still so strange though, isn’t it Kisuke? Looking at that, he SHOULD be able to remain sane in that form too. It’s clearly an Arrancar, not a weaker type like what Tengu-Kuchiki indicated.”

"Yes...now that you mention it…”

Ichigo had no clue what the two were talking about, just staring at Grimmjow on the floor, whose glowing blue eyes now land on him. He still couldn’t see his pupils, but part of him felt like the beast very much wanted to maul him.

Then, Grimmjow stops moving suddenly, sort of just staring at him from the ground. The air of threat vanishes almost instantly, replaced by something else. Everything just grows eerily quiet, and Yoruichi and Urahara seem to notice too, looking back at the bound hollow on the ground. Ichigo takes a step closer, not even knowing why. Urahara and Yoruichi watch him cautiously, with Inoue still sitting behind her safety barrier, eyes blown wide with worry. The ginger walks ever closer, bit by bit, holding the blue glowing gaze.

"...Grimm? Do you….do you recognize me?”

Ichigo calls out cautiously, having put his zanpakuto away to not appear like a threat. It did feel like approaching a frightened animal now when he thought about it. Grimmjow was stuck as a hollow, surrounded by Shinigami, no wonder he freaked out. At least, Ichigo suspected that could be it.

He crouches down near the frozen figure, still holding his gaze.

"C’mon. Calm down, you’re not in danger alright? We’re trying to help you.”

The way Grimmjow’s tail was swinging indicated he didn’t exactly buy it, face twisting into a cautious snarl. Ichigo swallows down hard, unsure what to do or say next. The two Shinigami kept just standing there and watching him – and Yoruichi should REALLY put on some damn clothes – as if wanting to see where this went.

"Listen. We need to get you back to your body or you might die. Or be stuck asleep I guess, I don’t know.”

He was still snarling, entire body tense like ready to bounce at him and tear his throat open with his bare teeth. That was clearly a bad train of thought to hop onto, because once again his mind flashes back to that memory, making his face gain slight color, though Ichigo forces it down. He could ponder and deal with that weird memory later.

”If you still wanna pick a fight with me, we can do that later. Apparently that’s a thing we did, I remember now.”

Ichigo smiles faintly, and Grimmjow tilts his head to the side a bit, a gesture that was very catlike. It was...kind of...cute....

The ginger's face flushes really bad now and he shakes his head trying to force that thought away, it was fucking embarassing. Grimmjow meanwhile relaxes a bit, sitting more upright, or at least as much as the bindings allowed him to. His eyes were still glowing, but the pupils were now visible, gaze still fixated on Ichigo like a curious cat. Supposedly that was progress.

"Yeah. I remember. God you were such a jerk, leaving mud trails everywhere just to create more work for me, asshole!”

He says that with a fond smile, and it wasn’t even really faked; he could remember the emotions attached to that memory. For all his bitching, Ichigo could tell his past self hadn’t minded Grimmjow’s mischief that much. Ichigo now lifts his hand hesitantly, offering it to the feline figure, whose gaze flickers between him and his hand. He wasn’t really sure what he was expecting, Grimmjow to grasp it or do something catlike like sniff or scratch it. As long as he wouldn’t try to tear it off, it’d be fine.

After a moment, the clawed hand lifts up, seemingly reaching for his. Only, he suddenly pauses and seems to glance behind himself for something unseen, looking a bit alarmed. Moments later, his body bursts into that blue glow again, blinding them all.

"Grimmjow!”

Ichigo yells out alarmed, unable to tell what was happening.

Then, something grabs his throat. Ichigo grabs the arm doing it, noting it was not covered in bone armor anymore, but did have very sharp nails pressing into his skin. He gets dragged forward, still unable to see anything, until breath brushed over his ear. Something was crouched in front of him, holding him captive, something that definitely didn’t feel like a hollow.

"….I know you’re in there. Don’t think I've forgotten what you did.”

The low, calm voice speaking to his ear sounded a bit like Grimmjow, but….something was different…

"Be glad yer stuck in there. I’d fuckin’ kill you otherwise.”

"What---?”

There was an animalistic snarl, and whatever was holding him disappears. Ichigo falls flat to the ground, his eyes burning from the bright light surrounding him, and there was a strange weight of dread landing on his shoulders, except...it wasn’t coming from him.

Abruptly, between blinks, Ichigo could see into his inner world.

There, among the endless streets, stood his hollow, staring ahead with an expression Ichigo had not seen before.

He couldn’t even tell what it was, shock, fear, distraught of some sort. Things his hollow very much wasn’t normally.

Another blink or two, and his inner world disappears from sight, the glow now vanishing altogether. He still couldn’t see much, everything just looked pitch black after that bright assault to his eyeballs. After a moment though, A figure appears beside him, a blue haired one who was currently mostly bare.

Had they managed to put his soul back in? Wow he did look skinnier in that gigai for sure….

"Kurosaki?”

Oh, now the voice was right. It was normal again.

Ichigo passes out, as if whatever just happened was a bit too much for his brain to handle.

Chapter Text

When Ichigo came to, his head was aching like crazy. It felt like he was housing a major migraine, and it takes the ginger a moment to gather himself, fighting against the dark void of sleep. There was a familiar scent creeping to his nostrils, a wispy guide to slowly drag him out of dreamland. Opening his eyes, Ichigo is faced by the familiar ceiling of Urahara’s store, indicating he was still there. It was already dark outside, indicating he’d been out cold for a while. Shit, his sisters would likely be worried, not that they’d find this unusual, but still.

Lifting his hand slowly to brush his fingers against his neck, Ichigo notes absently he was still in spirit form, wondering if Kon had brought his body home or stayed here. His neck still hurt lightly from the cuts caused by Grimmjow’s claws, and he could feel a bandage around it.

As the familiar smell registers properly to his now awake brain, Ichigo turns his head towards the source, finding the aforementioned blunet was sitting on a chair next to the window across the room, slouching on it in a familiar manner, a pose similar to the memory he’d recalled. He was smoking again, bringing the spirit-calming-magic-nonsense cigarette away from his lips to speak.

"You look like shit.”

Ichigo almost rolls his eyes, having expected that comment. He pushes up slowly, noting he did feel a little dizzy, his throat ached lightly, but he was otherwise okay. Turning to check back on Grimmjow as concern bubbles up in his stomach as he now recalls what the hell was going on, the ginger notes something was...different. It takes him a moment of squinting at the bastard, scrambling his brain as he tried to figure out what was off, until he finally makes a connection, a connection Inoue had already made earlier witnessing his horned spirit form.

"You got muscle now.”

Grimmjow takes a long drag from his cigarette with a very unimpressed look, and yeah Ichigo didn’t blame him for looking at him like he was a total brain-dead moron. That was probably a very dumb thing to point out in the grand scheme of things. It was just so weird to Ichigo, having been used to seeing him so sickly and thin so far.

"You really lost a brain-cell or two, huh?”

"I mean! The gigai didn’t look like that! You’re clearly in one, but the one Inoue healed was different!”

Ichigo insists feeling his face heat up with embarrassed anger, gaining a snort and an amused grin from the man, which only made Ichigo’s face grow redder. He is tempted to throw his pillow at the bastard, but before he could, Urahara steps in, looking delighted to see him awake.

"Ah, welcome back Kurosaki-san! You’ve been having quite the lengthy beauty sleep.”

"Where’s...?”

"We sent them all home for now, since there wasn’t much they could do for you.”

Yoruichi explains as she also walks in - back to being a cat - hopping onto his bed and kneading the sheets lightly, before licking her butt. Ichigo averts his gaze, as brief flash of naked Yoruichi appears in his brain, and it was enough to make his cheeks flare again. Damn it with Shinigami and their weird exhibitionism sometimes.

"Is...what happened?”

Urahara hums, glancing at Grimmjow as if he was wondering the same somewhat. The blunet remains quiet for a moment, before narrowing his eyes at the man annoyed.

"Told ya. Don’t remember attacking you bastards. One moment I was at the hallway, the next I woke up in the cave nearly naked.”

"That is strange. Usually you would remember some bits of those moments. Then again that whole situation was odd.”

Ichigo looks between them awkwardly, not really knowing what to say. He didn’t know enough about the subject to say if it was odd or not, but clearly in the eyes of those more knowledgeable, yesterday’s cat fight had been abnormal in some way. He could recall them musing something about Grimmjow's hollow form being too strong to be beastly or something, but again, he didn't understand shit about it, he didn't have anything to say.

Instead, he blurts out the same stupid observation from before, unable to help himself.

"Why’s he built now? His gigai was so slim before.”

Both turn to look back at the flustered ginger, who kicks himself internally seeing the shit-eating grin spreading on Grimmjow’s face now. The man takes a drag from his cigarette, amusement clear in his voice. It was making his blush worse too, and Ichigo was tempted to just sink through the floor and run off back home, only he was still bad at phasing through things even in spirit form. That attempt would leave him a pathetic heap on the floor.

"What? Feeling self-conscious, Kurosaki?”

"I just mean, you didn’t—it didn’t look like that!”

Clearly he was only making things worse, as Grimmjow’s smirk only grew. Urahara looks between them with face hidden behind his fan, and Ichigo could tell from the twinkle in the man’s eyes he was also finding this funny. Asshole. Urahara at least has the decency to answer his question though.

”It seems...since his soul has stabilized now, it forcibly shaped the gigai to match his true physique to an extent. It is rather fascinating as normally a soul shouldn’t be able to do such a feat, but given what he is, the folks of Spirit Society may be naturally able to mold things with their souls beyond our capabilities.”

There was that scientific enthusiasm in Urahara’s eyes, which Ichigo wasn’t sure if he should be worried about or not. He was no creepy clown man Kurotsuchi, but still bit of a wacky experiment loving weirdo. If Grimmjow was bothered by it he didn’t show it, probably used to the Sandal-Hat’s antics.

"So....does this mean his soul is no longer dying?”

Ichigo asks genuinely wanting to know, gaining a faint nod from Grimmjow.

"Still can’t really leave this damn thing safely, but m’not gonna be coughing blood on you anymore. Shame, seeing you freak out over it ’s funny.”

"Wow. You’re truly a bastard.”

"Little late on the intake are we?”

"Well you did murder some of my brain-cells earlier today, so you can’t blame me.”

Grimmjow laughs at that last remark, a sound that was kind of freaky and unstable, but weirdly all it did was send warm flutters down his spine, pooling at the pit of his stomach. He’d heard that sound before, somewhere. Once the blue eyes look back at him with that same amusement, Ichigo averts his gaze, feeling kind of weird.

"Now then, since you seem to be in good spirits, perhaps you can enlighten us on your side of the story, given Jeagerjaquez-san cannot remember anything.”

Urahara comments after observing their conversation for a moment, and the ginger frowns, trying to think back on the brief scuffle he’d had with Grimmjow. It had all happened kind of suddenly, the transformation, him attacking them, then the way he seemed to calm down by just staring at him? It was weird for sure.

"The fuck does he need to explain? You were there apparently, saw the whole shit show.”

Grimmjow points out, and Ichigo had to agree. What was there to say---ah.

"….There was...a voice?”

"Voice? What do you mean?”

Clearly, he'd been the only one who heard it.

"When he started glowing the second time, it sounded like someone was talking to me. As in...it kind of sounded like you, but not?”

Ichigo looks directly at Grimmjow who frowns, then faintly shakes his head, predictably stating he couldn’t remember such a thing either. The more the ginger thought about it, the more that moment was odd. Not only did that voice sound off – it sounded kind of...older? Than Grimmjow’s typical gruff vocal chords, and also…

"I...I saw my inner hollow for some reason.”

"You...you did?”

Urahara blinks surprised, gaining a faint nod from Ichigo, whose gaze was still fixated on the blunet. Grimmjow wasn’t looking at them anymore, smoking his cigarette and seemingly digging into his brain internally to try and see if he could pull something out. Nothing, his memory was clearly not cooperating judging from his annoyed expression.

"Was he trying to take you over?”

"No. He just...he looked weird.”

Ichigo didn’t know how else to describe that bizarre sight, he’d never EVER seen Shiro look shaken like that. His hollow didn’t get scared. Sure, Grimmjow’s aggression was a surprise and he was clearly a strong spirit, but knowing Shirosaki he’d rather be eager to fight such a strong opponent. Urahara examines him closely, holding his chin with a thoughtful expression now. For a moment they all remained silent, processing this bit of information Ichigo had shared with them. Maybe he should try and go in there, ask the pale faced asshole what the hell that was about directly, although he doubted he’d gain much answers. Shiro was always so cryptic, just like the old man.

"Well, this is certainly a fascinating mystery! On a more positive note, Jeagerjaquez-san seems to be doing much better now, hopefully we won’t have to deal with another ”death” anytime soon!”

Urahara comments, clasping his hands together loudly, making the blunet jump as he was sunken in thought. The man glares at the former shinigami annoyed, and judging from his face Grimmjow was very much plotting his murder while Urahara slept. Something about that look felt familiar, tugging a smile to appear on Ichigo’s lips. As Grimmjow seems to notice it however, Ichigo averts his gaze, asking about Tatsuki instead.

"We checked the seal I put on her; it is not as heavy duty as yours, but having it unravel too quickly could still be an issue. She very much insisted on regaining her memories, even if I warned her some of it could be quite traumatic. She was on that bridge too after all.”

"...Did she punch you? I remember her looking like she wanted to do so.”

"She did, he has a nice bruise on his shoulder now, I like that girl!”

Yoruichi comments from his lap, having climbed there and made Ichigo pet her without him even noticing. The comment gains a pouty look from Urahara who rubs his shoulder now, giving the snickering cat a dramatic look of betrayal.

"Why did I pass out?”

Ichigo asks next, because that part was still a bit confusing.

"Well...It did feel briefly like his Oni essence spiked and hit you full-force. Since you are not used to such energy, that likely knocked you out.”

Yoruichi explains while grooming herself, slipping on her back to allow Ichigo to rub her soft belly now. At this point of the night he was long past being weirded out by the fact he knew this was actually a whole ass woman rubbing herself against his lap, shit was weird dealing with Shinigami.

"Huh. Well I’m more prepared next time then.”

Ichigo glances at Grimmjow, noting he was frowning at him again. Clearly still wondering what the hell had happened to him exactly, why he’d gone into hollow beast mode, and then whatever the fuck it was that Ichigo heard and saw. Now that he thought about it….

"Gotta say. It’s really funny a guy with your scary mug has cute cat paws in supposedly deadly hollow form.”

That earns him a casual middle finger.

"You got a literal murder machine in your lap right now, watch what you say or she’ll scratch your balls off.”

Yoruichi, for some reason deciding to side with Grimmjow, pulls her claws out to lightly claw at his crotch just to be a little shit, making Ichigo freeze and then quickly throw the cat off his lap with an annoyed, betrayed glare. Of course all Yoruichi did was snicker, before hopping on top of the small desk next to the window, allowing Grimmjow to scratch her chin.

"Wow. Of course you two would tag team against me. Fucking cats.”

"Hey, I have to stand by my nephew you know!”

"Cut that out already. Haven’t called ya ’auntie’ since the third body.”

"Such shame, you were such a cute, feisty, bitey little nephew! Auntie was so proud!”

Ichigo stares at the bickering pair baffled, his brain trying to understand the bizarre conversation. Urahara was shaking his head as well with a dramatic sigh, looking back at Ichigo with an over-dramatic solemn expression.

"Do you see what I’ve had to deal with for the past twenty years? Yoruichi was far too enthusiastic finding out he is a fellow feline.”

"Deserved. With the weird shit you put people through, maybe you deserve getting bullied by two mischievous cats.”

Urahara feigns shock and holds his chest dramatically, making Ichigo roll his eyes before looking back at Grimmjow and Yoruichi, the latter whom had now hopped to sit on his lap, purring as the blunet pets her with distant expression, clearly sunken in thought.

Huh. Those two clearly had a close relationship of some sort, Ichigo realizes at that moment, and as he thinks back on that conversation just now…

An image of a tan skinned woman – Yoruichi, he realizes it was her – appears in his mind, wearing proper clothing for once, thanking their mother for looking after her nephew. ----was standing next to her, hood tugged over his head and looking very grumpy as usual. He keeps glancing at Ichigo though, frowning.

Why was he frowning?

Before Ichigo could fully grasp the memory, it disappears instantly and returns him back to present. He realizes now Urahara had said something to him, seemingly expecting an answer.

"Uh...what?”

"Do you feel ready to head home, Kurosaki-san? Everything here is done for now, and you should probably get some rest too. Besides, Kon was very reluctant to leave you, but he was also rather terrified of our Oni-hollow companion.”

Grimmjow looks up at them with lift eyebrow, and Ichigo recalls the conversation he’d had with Kon, now looking at the blunet with an unhappy frown.

"You really scared Kon, grabbing him like that. He thought you broke his pill!”

Grimmjow says nothing for a moment, tilting his head with genuine confusion in his eyes. The ginger’s frown deepens, and he reminds the man of their chat back at the bridge, how he’d snatched Kon from him before Ichigo could stop him. Another second or two passes, until Grimmjow seems to connect the dots, shrugging clearly not very apologetic.

"Hard ta estimate my physical strength in these things as it keeps changing.”

"You could at least be a little remorseful for almost killing someone essentially!”

"Well I didn’t, so got no reason ta be sorry.”

Ichigo stands up as bit of heated anger slips into his mind now almost involuntarily, his temper getting the best of him. Kon might’ve been an annoying, frustrating little pervert, but he was part of Ichigo’s family, and he’d be damned than let anyone be a jackass to him this way. Ichigo walks there and grabs Grimmjow’s collar, glaring down at him furious while Yoruichi leaps out of the way, not wanting to get caught in the middle if a fight broke out. Blue eyes meet his gaze calmly, not bothered by his anger the slightest.

"I can look past your jackassery and shitty asshole behavior when its just words and shit-talking, but I draw the line at hurting my friends. Even if you were one yourself, I’m not taking that shit from anybody.”

Grimmjow says nothing, his expression not changing whatsoever. It was starting to make his anger deflate a bit, because he should react at least somehow damn it!

"…..Huh. Truly not a crybaby anymore.”

Grimmjow comments suddenly with a wide grin spreading across his face, lifting his hand to pat his head like he was a toddler. It catches Ichigo off-guard, and all he could do was stare at the blue eyes, hands still grasping the jacket collar. Then, Grimmjow swiftly kicks him in the crotch, forcing Ichigo to let go of his jacket and stumble backwards with a pained grunt, glaring at the grinning asshole with the intensity rivaling the brightness of his hair. The man just takes a drag from his cigarette, leaning his head against his palm now.

"What good’s an apology gonna do here? T’was an accident, or woulda been if it had broken. I had no fuckin’ clue I was pressin’ on it that hard. I wasn’t kidding when I said I have no fucking clue how strong I am at a given time.”

Grimmjow’s smile vanishes as he narrows his eyes at Ichigo with an irritated glare now, next words coming out a more familiar angry snarl he’d seen before.

"Bitch be glad it wasn’t your neck I almost broke. Coulda been, I’ve done that before.”

"Yeah, I remember you choking me when I was already almost dead that night.”

Grimmjow remains silent, his expression going stoic now.

He doesn’t say anything, but Ichigo suddenly had a feeling….the man wasn’t talking about that night when he'd dropped his crazy bombshell onto him. Or what happened just now. The ginger swallows down hard, unconsciously brushing his fingers over his bandaged neck. The blue eyes fixate on his hand briefly as well, and Grimmjow brings the cigarette back to his lips, blowing out another wisp of smoke that rises to the ceiling, dissipating in silence as nobody talked for a moment. Urahara and Yoruichi were both looking between them in silence, as if waiting for something.

"…….This won’t make sense right now, but….”

Grimmjow’s voice was uncharacteristically quiet, his gaze fixated on the smoke between his fingers.

"…...Really didn’t mean to do any of that, that night. Shit was going on. You knew there was, I just didn’t talk about it ’cause no fuckin’ way you’d understood at the time, a teenage human brat. You wanted me ta tell you. I just couldn’t.”

Ichigo had a feeling this was related to the bridge incident somehow. He had a myriad of questions, but something about Grimmjow’s tone made him unable to voice out any of them. He sounded uncharacteristically somber, lacking the typical gruff edge he was used to getting from him. Like whatever he was talking about was kind of difficult to address in some way. Eventually, the blue gaze rises back up at him, and Ichigo swallows down hard. Grimmjow looked so weary and tired suddenly, but it didn’t seem to be caused by gigai issues or anything. No, this was mental.

"What are you talking about?”

Grimmjow just shakes his head with a sigh, getting up from his chair. He walks closer now, making Ichigo take a step back involuntarily. The ginger had no clue why he felt the need to do that, it wasn’t typical for him. There was just something tugging at the back of his mind, a distant memory that stubbornly refused to appear – or was prevented to, by the gate he’d seen in his inner world.

For a long moment Grimmjow just looks down at him, and oh yeah, his Gigai was now notably taller than him too.

Ichigo meets his gaze stubbornly, struggling to read what was going on in his brain right now.

"…….Try not to get killed by whatever the fuck’s lurking out there, alright?”

With that, the man leaves the room, leaving Ichigo blink after him confused, looking back at the two shinigami, both of whom were sharing a knowing look. Both refused to elaborate on what the hell all that had been though, just recommending he’d head home before Kon would rush back for him and make a scene on the way. Sensing he was no longer that welcome to linger around, and feeling fine by now, Ichigo nods hesitantly, leaving the shop to head home while mulling over Grimmjow’s words. Clearly he'd wanted to say something, but decided against it. 

Later, as dawn begins to break, Yoruichi paces to the man’s room, finding Grimmjow sitting at his bed, holding his head with a slight frown. She hops onto it, settling down next to him. For a moment they both were silent, though the blunet’s free hand eventually reaches to scratch her ear out of habit, and Yoruichi purrs in approval.

"….It’s gonna be hella bad when he remembers. He had no fucking context to anything back then.”

"That bothers you?”

Grimmjow flashes her a sardonic smirk, not wanting to admit it out loud but also unable to deny it. Yoruichi didn’t blame the man. They understood perfectly fine what happened that day, on that bridge; Grimmjow was struggling with a lot of internal turmoil due to very confusing memories he didn’t understand or connect with. Ichigo had accidentally recreated a memory he’d been mulling over for the past week or so, because it hadn’t made sense to him at the time, thus triggering an unfortunate violent reaction.

His lashing out had been understandable to them; from their perspective it had been simply a young distressed soul struggling to make sense to his existence, having memories from his past life seemingly conflicting with one another due to lacking context in-between, all the while his current body was starting to break down again as well. The ginger had just had extremely bad luck, provoking his already stormy mind into full on hurricane, being stuck at the center of it with no way out once it hit.

None of what happened had been intentional, none of it would’ve happened had Grimmjow not been in such a bad shape mentally.

For Ichigo however, clueless of anything spiritual at the time, it had been something entirely different. He had no idea of these strange memories, Grimmjow's internal crisis, mental distress, none of it. He hadn't known. 

In his eyes, that night....

That night, his best friend, someone he’d known since childhood, had tried to kill him for confessing something to him. something he’d held in his heart for months, and had been terrified to bring up. He'd dared to voice those thoughts, those emotions he'd tried to keep hidden for so long, only for it to seemingly blow up to his face and prove his fears right, thinking he should've kept his mouth shut. He'd been muttering that over and over to them when they'd picked up the pieces after everything, that he should've stayed silent. He'd just tried to defend himself reflexively.

He'd had no idea, no idea you cannot kill a dead man. 

"Fuck.”

Yoruichi looks up at Grimmjow who was rubbing his face with both hands now, cursing under his breath. He was clearly thinking about this too, wishing he’d dared to just tell Ichigo everything. He hadn’t, because they’d warned him not to provoke the seal into breaking too quickly. Yoruichi stands up and quietly settles right next to his leg now, purring slightly.

"Cheer up, he’ll have the context now. You can clear things up finally.”

Grimmjow says nothing, but his hand comes back to pet her.

Chapter Text

Wandering across the empty streets of his inner world, Ichigo searches for the familiar pale faced doppelganger of his; for once when he wanted to find the asshole, he was hiding from him apparently. The old man wasn’t much help, just observing him from above wordlessly, refusing to say anything. Damn zanpakuto spirits and their desire to be all mysterious and shit.

Sighing, Ichigo peeks behind another building, only to realize he’d reached the sight where the sinkhole was, the unnerving gate door still standing down below. Annoyingly, he could see Shirosaki standing down there too in front of it, the absolute last place he wanted to go to right now. Ichigo inches closer to the edge of the crater, careful to not fall down there as he calls out to the hollow.

"Shirosaki! Quit hiding from me, we need to talk!”

The pale figure doesn’t respond at first, but slowly turns to look up at him, his face uncharacteristically blank. Ichigo wasn’t entirely sure he’d heard him, so the ginger risks going down there, sliding across the steep wall to reach him. He still leaves space between himself and the unpredictable entity, who was still staring at him with a blank look on his normally sneering face. Not seeing that toothy grin or an angry frown plastered across his doppelganger's features felt really weird and creepy.

"Shirosaki, what’s going on?”

"The fuck are you askin’ me?”

"He spoke to you directly. You. Not me. Why?”

Ichigo didn’t bother specifying who he was talking about with words, just gesturing at the massive creepy chained door put in his brain by a very eccentric shinigami scientist. Shirosaki looks between it and him, a bit of that typical feisty anger returning back to his pale face.

"I don’t fuckin’ know! He’s yer business King, not mine!”

"I saw you. You looked scared.”

"The fuck I was!”

Shirosaki says that a bit too quickly, and his whole body language was tense. Ichigo knew antagonizing his inner hollow could be a bad idea, but he really was tired of people keeping secrets from him. This guy was mooching off in his brain and not even paying rent, so he deserved to get at least some form of proper answer in this case.

"Shirosaki. You know I know you’re fucking lying. What is going on here?”

The pale figure throws his hands in the air with a frustrated yell, stomping around like a child for a moment even as he spoke.

"I told ya King I don’t fuckin’ know! I don’t—t’s like somethin’ else made me act weird! I thought t’was just you bein’ weak again, but it wasn’t!”

"He said….he said that he knew you were in here, and that he remembered something you did…?”

Shirosaki turns on his heels to glare at him, but Ichigo could tell it lacked the usual bite. Whatever had happened to his inner hollow, it was really freaking Shirosaki out. Ichigo couldn’t really blame him, the only way this would make any sense would be if Grimmjow had somehow known his inner hollow before he became his inner hollow, somehow, but from what he understood, the blunet had shown up in human world after Ichigo had already been born. As far as he knew, he’d had Shirosaki in his brain already at the time, he’d just been slumbering until Ichigo had Rukia poke through him with a shinigami blade to make him into one temporarily, or it was supposed to be temporary anyway.

”I don’t—I don’t know. I don’t know.”

Shirosaki keeps repeating that, holding his head now as he continues to pace around restlessly, now muttering to himself. Ichigo could tell there were no answers to be given by his inner hollow annoyingly, so he decides to leave him be for now.

The next day, Ichigo is met by a surprise guest - or perhaps not that surprising - as Tatsuki shows up alongside Orihime, both wanting to make sure he was alright, and to know what exactly happened as Urahara had predictably not told them too much. Ichigo sighs and sits down at the kitchen table while Yuzu brings everyone tea, looking between the, curiously.

"…..Could you go check on dad and Karin? I think they’re still searching for something at the clinic.”

Yuzu gives him a pouty look, likely realizing he didn’t want her to listen in right now, but she goes anyway, though the look she gave him indicated he would not be let off easy about this. Turning to look back at the two girls, he sips his tea, before humming thoughtfully.

"Well. Urahara said I likely just got hit point-blank by an energy type I’m not used to, so that knocked me out.”

"That’s all?”

Clearly Tatsuki was skeptical of that answer, but Ichigo shrugs as that was all he knew really. Sure there was that conversation after he’d woken up, but there wasn’t much to say about it either; he didn’t feel like admitting having made an awkward observation about Grimmjow’s changed physique to these two.

"Is he okay now? He kind of passed out briefly again, after checking on you.”

Inoue asks a bit concerned, and Ichigo nods faintly, drinking his tea. Tatsuki sits there for a moment in silence, arms crossed over her chest with a frowning expression. She hadn’t touched her tea at all, examining the cup like it’d somehow give her answers to her questions.

"…..He said the memories he erased from us were pretty traumatic, but he wouldn’t elaborate much.”

"That’s what everyone keeps saying yeah. Come to think of it…”

Ichigo holds his chin for a moment as he thinks back on the last thing the blunet had told him before leaving the room. The two girls look at him curiously, and Ichigo huffs out a sigh, looking back down at his teacup.

"He said…that when whatever happened, happened, shit was going on that he wasn’t telling me about? Shit that I guess I picked up on. Maybe I was trying to pressure him to talk or something, and it resulted into an argument that somehow went badly?”

"Maybe? Maybe he lost control over his powers like earlier?”

Inoue suggests thoughtfully, playing with her hair as she seems to ponder about the situation as well. Yeah, maybe he’d pissed Grimmjow off somehow and shit had hit the fan, maybe in a way his then clueless human brain wouldn’t have understood. That’s what Grimmjow had indicated too, hadn’t he? He was dealing with things - likely this whole spirit using a fake body thing, being a demon or whatever - Ichigo back then would have no idea of.

Still though…

"…..Yeah. I think…..”

They both turn to look towards Tatsuki, whose frown had only deepened now, as she seems to recall something, looking up at Ichigo.

"He was….acting weird according to you. I remember…”

"You recall something?”

Ichigo asks surprised, although the whole reason she’d come visit Urahara was because her memory was starting to return, so maybe he shouldn’t be that shocked. Tatsuki nods faintly, averting her gaze as she seems to try and connect the puzzle pieces floating in her head.

"I…think it was after school? I’d dropped by to help with some homework, and you were being a moody little shit. I asked you and you said you’d had a fight with….”

She pauses, frowning some more before shaking her head.

"Damn. I can’t remember his name? I know what it is now, but….I don’t think it was the one he used then?”

"No, it wasn’t, he said as much.”

Ichigo confirms, and Tatsuki huffs out a sigh, ruffling her hair seemingly a bit frustrated just how well Urahara’s machinations were still messing with her head. Ichigo could relate, Urahara’s antics were often pretty damn frustrating.

"…..Well. Anyway. You told me he’d been avoiding you lately for some reason? Like he’d come over to hog your bed again, but then something happened.”

Ichigo tries to recall what this could be, but his mind was still drawing blanks. What Tatsuki was telling him did feel familiar though. He asks her cautiously if she could remember what exactly it was that had supposedly occurred, and she thinks for a moment, closing her eyes.

"I think…he’d had a nightmare? When you tried to ask what was wrong he’d just gotten up and gone to sleep on the couch downstairs instead, leaving the next morning before you woke up. He’d avoided you since.”

"That’s…must’ve been a bad nightmare, why the fuck would that make him avoid me?”

"That’s what you were wondering too at the time.”

They fall silent now, as Ichigo processes that information, mulling over it in his head. He still couldn’t recall this memory, but felt in his gut Tatsuki was telling the truth, that something like that had happened. He just wished he could remember it himself.

"….Um. So I guess you and him truly were close?”

Inoue suddenly comments, snapping Ichigo out of his thoughts as he looks back at her. She was playing with her hair even more, having averted her gaze down to her teacup with a faint blush.

"I mean. He’s slept in your bed, right? Tatsuki-chan said he came in to ’hog’ it, and it sounded like it happened often?’

"Ah. I…guess so?”

Ichigo shrugs, rubbing his neck awkwardly now. He hadn’t really thought too deep into this, mainly just wanting to know what happened, what warranted a total memory erasure. Yet the glimpses he did recall and the way Grimmjow acted towards him, there had to have been some form of close bond there. He wouldn’t really let just anyone steal his beloved bed from him, he hadn’t even let Rukia sleep in it, she’d been put in the closet. Well she’d put herself in there to be fair, but still.

"Yeah…he….he did do that since…we were…kids.”

Tatsuki muses more to herself than anyone else, arms still crossed over her chest while her gaze had gone distant. Ichigo almost envied how quickly she seemed to be remembering stuff right now, while his uncooperative brain drew blanks. Then again, Urahara had indicated he’d needed a much stronger seal.

"….W-well, we are glad to see you’re okay now!”

Inoue eventually breaks the awkward silence, gaining a faint smile from Ichigo, apologizing for worrying them. Tatsuki rolls her eyes at that, pointing out this was nothing new with him. The ginger wants to protest, but he couldn’t exactly argue against her about this. She wasn’t wrong after all.

As the two girls leave once convinced Ichigo was okay, Tatsuki still mulls over everything she now knew. Urahara hadn’t really told her anything, other than confirmed what Ichigo had already told them. Yes, the blue haired guy was apparently once a friend of Ichigo, and she’d known him too. Chad had met him as well during the couple months before the bridge incident. He didn’t have a full on seal like her and Ichigo, given the big guy hadn’t interacted with Grimmjow much, but his sisters did have something like that too.

She’d pressed him about what exactly had happened - she’d gone as far as to punch the asshole - but Urahara had been adamant in letting the memories return at their own pace, as forcing things could apparently do some damage given the nature of the seals, especially the one on Ichigo. Of course the rock headed dumbass would need something sturdier to keep his brain at bay, why was she even surprised?

"…..Were they really that close?”

"Hm?”

Tatsuki looks back at the ginger girl beside her, who was seemingly mulling over something in her head, her hand grasping the strap of her bag quite tightly.

"It’s just….I keep thinking about what happened down there? How he seemingly went crazy and attacked everyone, but then Ichigo seemed to be able to calm him down really quickly? It was like…..like watching a wounded animal lash out before that….”

Inoue had described to her what had happened in the weird magical cave basement earlier - what was with these soul reapers and their love for non-euclidean spaces? - and admittedly she’d fiund it kind of surprising too, that the hothead ’I will pick fights with literal death gods’ Kurosaki Ichigo managed to calm down something as scary as that. It had sounded terrifying at least, the way Inoue had described the man’s sudden transformation and attack. Thankfully he hadn’t seemingly targeted Inoue even once, but still, knowing she’d been in a dangerous situation like that - again - without her there frustrated Tatsuki to no end.

"I don’t know….it felt like…gosh this sounds so silly probably, but it felt like he was scared? Of the shinigami around him so he attacked them.”

Tatsuki had to admit, ’fear’ wasn’t an emotion she’d associate with this guy in question based on what she’d seen of him so far, and the bits she could remember. She says nothing however, letting Orihime muse out her thoughts, her empathetic side in full display.

"I mean…maybe it makes sense? He turned into a hollow of some sort, and Urahara-san did tell me that his soul is partially like a hollow’s one, even if he’s not a typical kind. A hollow would be terrified of soul reapers, right? But….he felt like a really strong one? Would something that strong be spooked by them?”

Tatsuki shrugs, glancing up at the skies; they should probably hurry if they wanted to make it to the mall before the rain.

"Also….close to the end. There was…something different.”

"Different?”

Tatsuki blinks, stopping on her tracks as she turns to look at Inoue, who was now biting her lip with a concerned frown. This was not something she’d shared with her initially, only saying the blunet had turned into a hollow briefly, which apparently was normal, somehow.

"The energy I felt from him moments before it all ended, it was….maybe it was the Oni?”

"Oni?”

Inoue looks startled, as if realizing she’d said something she wasn’t supposed to. The ginger looks around panicked for a moment, until Tatsuki sighs and drops a hand on her shoulder, making her look back at her.

"Tell me. If Urahara gives you shit about it, I’ll kick his balls off.”

"Uhm. Please don’t. But…”

The sky had suddenly gone dark, and the next second bunch of rain started pouring down from the skies, interrupting their chat and forcing the two girls to run for cover in the nearby small corner store before they soaked to the bone.

Heading out into the rain in spirit form was always a bit weird experience, given he didn’t really get wet from it, but still somehow felt soaked. While the town had more soul reapers than it likely would typically need, Ichigo had felt too restless to continue sitting idly by. Kon was still kind of nervous and all, but at least he’d stopped hiding in the closet.

Ichigo wanders across Karakura, dispatching some smaller hollows here and there. It was kind of a quiet night, much quieter than what he was used to before. It seemed like having so many shinigami around scared off most hollows from the town, which was probably a good thing. Ichigo just found it a bit frustrating; he had too much pent up energy in his body at the moment, too many questions still swirling in his brain. The weather didn't help, rain like this always made him feel uneasy, for understandable reasons. It always made him think of mum, and with latest reveals, he'd started to think about her even more than normal....

The ginger was so focused on his internal musings in fact, that he almost misses the small voice calling to him, until something tugs his sleeve. He turns around, finding a small girl beside him. Well, not just a normal girl, this was a ghost, a plus. He blinks, as it had been such a long time since he’d seen one like this.

"Mister, can you see me?”

She asks looking very scared, and Ichigo crouches down in front of her, asking if she was okay. She looked maybe eight or nine years old, and very sickly. She had a hospital gown on her, indicating she had died at a hospital nearby.nShe’d wandered far from her body, that was for sure.

"I-I don’t know where I am, I was trying to go home…”

She plays with her fingers, and Ichigo felt his heart ache. She wasn’t going home, the poor child clearly hadn’t realized she was dead. Judging from her appearance, probably some sort of longtime illness. The ginger manages to bring out a gentle smile, placing a gentle hand atop her head.

"It’s alright, I can help you find home.”

"T-Thank you! Nobody in the hospital answered to me when I asked about mummy. S-She said she’d come see me today, but she didn’t….”

Oh.

Oh that was so much worse. The poor kid.

Ichigo couldn’t stop but frown, wondering why hadn’t her mother shown up like promised? Well, there wasn’t much he could do about that, he should send this girl on her way before a hollow would show up and--

Just as Ichigo was about to use his zanpakuto to do just that, his sixth sense pics up, and Ichigo swings around, blocking a very sharp looking clawed hand trying to lop his head off. The hollow looks surprised and back away, cursing at him as he holds the now bleeding limb. Based on the voice the spirit was male at least. The ghost girl was hiding behind Ichigo’s leg now looking very terrified, and understandably so.

"Guess I need to deal with you first.”

He mutters out, tightening his grip on his blade. This one looked bigger than the ones he’d spotted so far, reminding him of some sort of bat maybe, with the wings and weird looking snouted mask. It was hunched over too as the hollow stood, kind of like how a gorilla would stand maybe?

"Stay the fuck away from my kid you freak! She’s mine!”

Ichigo blinks at the hollow snarling at him, then glances down at the girl, whose eyes widen in shock.

"….Papa….?”

Oh, oh crap. This just got even worse, somehow.

Ichigo quickly looks back and blocks another attack, as the hollow attempts to attack him again, still snarling insults at the ginger. Was this thing really this plus girl’s dad?

"She’s mine, Mine, don’t you dare to send her away asshole!”

The little girl had now backed away even more frightened, and she seemed to be mumbling apologies under her breath. Ichigo had wished for some sort of action for this night as the quiet was driving him nuts, but this was not what he’d expected.

"Calm down, you’re scaring your kid!”

Ichigo yells back at the enraged spirit, managing to force it back. The hollow stumbles across the grass, smashing against a nearby tree. It gets back up quickly though, sending some sort of supersonic blast his way, that knocks the unprepared shinigami substitute off his feet. Ichigo rolls down the hill nearby, landing in a heap at the bottom. The ghost girl looks back at him alarmed, then quickly turns towards the hollow who’d closed in on her, grasping her arms with both clawed hands.

"L-Let go!!”

She struggles against the firm hold in a panic, and Ichigo quickly hops back up, knowing she was in danger even if this thing was her parent. There was a very tragic story behind all this, but Ichigo had no time to dwell in it, swinging his blade and managing to send a slashing attack straight at the hollow’s mask, knocking him back with a bat-like shriek escaping the spirit’s throat. The little plus girl now stumbles down the hill to Ichigo, and the ginger notes her arms were bleeding; she’d clearly been slashed by the hollow.

"Stay back, I’ll deal with this.”

"W-why is papa so mad? W-what did I do? Why is he l-like that? M-mama said he was gone…”

Ichigo doesn’t have time to really even contemplate all that, as the bat hollow leaps at him with another supersonic blast, though this time he was prepared, managing to block the pressure wave from it with his own energy. He had to get this hollow to back away from the girl so he could do this without her seeing it. Ichigo proceeds to charge up a massive attack, slashing the hollow and sending it fly far away, to the other side of the hill.

"P-Papa!”

"He’s not thinking straight right now, stay here for safety.”

Ichigo instructs the girl before dashing after the hollow he’d sent away, blocking another clawed hand trying to strike him.

"I don’t know what you are, but you took my wife from me! I’m not letting you take my kid too!”

"What are you talking about?”

Ichigo asks while managing to force the hollow back again, cutting one of the mask bat ears off. The hollow backs away with another shriek, holding his now partially broken mask. He was bleeding from that side, indicating Ichigo had also managed to cut the flesh somewhere beneath the bat facade.

"I saw it! One of you! Her car crashed, she was going to join me, but then one of you appeared and took her away!”

Ah. Well, now Ichigo knew why the mum never showed up. Whether this hollow had caused the crash himself though, was another matter entirely.”You were going to make her disappear, I won’t let you! I won’t let you!!”

The hollow lets out another mighty sonic blast that actually sends some dust and soil flying from around him, with Ichigo having to cover himself from the barrage of sharp sticks, rocks and other debris. He barely manages to dodge the following slash, now chopping off the other ear. He was honestly holding back way too much, Ichigo knew that, it was just.... knowing the plus somewhere on the other side of the hill was this guy’s poor kid, it made this fight a bit tricky mentally. He felt reluctant to fight this guy, and the weather was still weighing in on him heavily. 

"They sent her to a safe place, a new life! I was just going to do that for your daughter too!!”

"Lies! She was supposed to come to me, but you took her away!!”

This fight reminded Ichigo a little of that whole ordeal with Inoue and her late brother; this poor bastard clearly had loved his family, but had turned into a hollow sometime after death, and was completely overtaken by that. Blocking another strike, Ichigo takes a moment to just suck in a deep breath, before finally managing to gather himself together. He slashes the hollow across the mask for a killing blow, watching the poor spirit stumble back as his mask starts to crack, blood oozing from the wound.

The mask shatters, and he could see the man’s face beneath finally, noting he had a damaged looking skull. Perhaps he’d died from blunt force trauma at some point. The spirit’s eyes were glazed over, just sort of staring at him dully. He blinks a couple of times, his gaze drifting towards the direction the little girl was hiding; she’d come back up despite Ichigo’s warnings, peeking at them from behind one of the trees at the hill’s edge.

"….I….Oh gods...Maya...I’m so sorry…”

He was waking up from it it seemed, but Ichigo knew he had to act fast. The ginger lifts his blade, now using the butt of it as he walks to the downed spirit.

"Don’t worry. Your wife will be waiting for you on the other side. All sins committed as a hollow will be cleansed by this.”

"It’s my fault...I….I was so lonely…”

Ichigo presses the butt of his zanpakuto at the man’s forehead, still reassuring him.

"Like said she’ll be waiting. Your daughter will join you soon alright? I’ll send her there too in a moment.”

The man just looks towards his child, his expression shifting into a soft smile eventually as he disappears in a poof of glowing dust. Ichigo breathes out a slow sigh, just standing there for a moment in silence. It had been a while since he’d ran into a case like this; usually the hollow and the plus didn’t know each other. At least this case was nicer, rather than that one shitty serial killer who’d chased after the child of the woman he’d murdered....

"W-what happened to papa?”

The girl’s voice catches his attention, and Ichigo turns to look back at her, crouching down in front of the puzzled and scared looking child.

"He’s okay now, don’t worry. He and your mum are waiting for you back home now.”

"H-he was so mad...what did I do?”

"Nothing. I promise everything is okay now, you can go home.”

The girl sniffles and rubs her eyes, looking up at him with big, teary eyes. It was kind of hard to force the smile to stay, because truthfully, would she be able to find her family there? Soul Society was big, full of souls, some of which never managed to find their loved ones…

"Mama said dad...dad ’went away’ last year. She said he fell at work…she was really sad.”

The girl still rubs her eyes as tears started to overflow, and Ichigo could sympathize painfully well with this poor kid. He’d lost his mum suddenly as well, though at least she didn’t feel responsible for it like he did. Forcing those thoughts away from his head, Ichigo smiles at her again, patting her head.

"Well, you’ll be back together now, okay?”

"D-do you think so? Papa won’t b-be mad at me?”

"Yes. Let’s send you to your parents before they worry too much, okay?”

The girl nods after a moment, and Ichigo taps her with his blade, making the little girl’s spirit fade as well, heading for soul society. Hopefully she’d find her parents and not be one of those unlucky souls who never reconnected with their passed on family members. Ichigo stands back up, releasing a slow sigh as he just stands there for a moment, barely noting the rain was getting heavier. Perhaps he should've stayed home after all, although if he had that poor girl could've gotten devoured by her own dad in all likeness. Still, he felt really heavy and tired in a manner he probably shouldn't after such a simple scuffle.

It was just...there was a lot of strain in his mind lately, and this weather. This weather was making it so much worse right now.

The weather was similar to that day when mom...when….

An image flashes in his head, a memory he’d seen before. It was again that blurry, unfocused flashback about that night, the version that had begun to appear once he’d ran into Grimmjow. The one his dad confirmed was a real memory. Him, running away from something, until it catches up, then something...or someone….

No.

Not just someone.

It was….

"You often space out in the rain like a fuckin’ lunatic now?”

Ichigo snaps out of his memories, turning to look back at the familiar blue haired figure who’d appeared beside him, holding a black umbrella to cover himself from the rain. For a moment the ginger just stares at the man, before taking a step closer, then almost stumbling to him, grabbing his arms with strange frantic agitation. Grimmjow looks back at him a bit surprised, but doesn’t try to push him off, just meets his gaze with puzzlement.

"….What...what exactly happened that night? When mum died?”

"M’not sure I should tell ya.”

Ichigo just shakes him lightly, insisting.

"I saw it! I’ve seen those memories, I just don’t fully understand them! Please, you got to tell me!”

He kind of hated how pathetic his pleading sounded, but the rain, the rain was driving him crazy right now, making him mull over this, and he KNEW Grimmjow had the answers he needed, and and--

Grimmjow huffs out a slow sigh, managing to push him off back into the rain, not that Ichigo felt it that much in spirit form. The ginger was still panting harshly, and he covers his face for a second, cursing under his breath. What the fuck was wrong with him again, had that fight really bothered him that much?

"…..What do you remember?”

Grimmjow finally asks, and Ichigo drops his hands, turning his gaze away as he hugs himself, swallowing down hard. Despite him supposedly not being able to feel the cold air and rain in this form, he certainly felt like shivering.

"I was running away from something. Then I tripped? It caught up to me, and tried to eat me, but something else attacked it instead. It looked like...like some sort of a large cat? Like...like a…”

"Panther.”

Grimmjow comments casually, and Ichigo’s gaze snaps back at the man, who was examining him cautiously still, though there was a hint of an amused smirk on his face.

"….Then...it kind of disappears, and there’s...You. You were there. I think I passed out.”

"You did.”

"What...was that thing chasing me...a hollow?”

He’d been wondering about this since that memory had appeared, and Ichigo barely dares to look up at Grimmjow, dreading that he knew the answer. The blunet remains silent for an agonizingly long moment, before nodding faintly.

"It tried ta gobble up you both. M’guessing it got more interested in you as it ditched her to chase after you when you ran off. Or it sensed I was approaching the area.”

Grimmjow shrugs, glancing towards the skies from beneath his umbrella, as the rain seemed to easing up for a bit.

"I was just wanderin’ around, wasn’t really plannin’ on getting involved. I saw her in the ditch. Her soul was in bad shape, the bastard musta taken a nibble at least. She still managed ta recognize me.”

Ichigo’s gaze snaps back at Grimmjow fully, brown eyes wide.

"Well, more than ”recognize,” in that state she probably saw what I really was, before I even knew. She asked me ta go save you.”

"H-huh?”

"This was before we were proper friends, really. You’d been tryin’ ta make friends already to be fair, but you know. M’ a stubborn bastard. The river dip you took had happened only coupla weeks ago from that.”

Grimmjow shrugs with a wry grin, though there was nothing happy about that expression.

"I had no fuckin’ reason ta do it, but guess I was crazy enough already at the time ta listen.”

"...So….that blue glowing thing I saw was…?”

"I don’t remember much from that either to be fair. First I was runnin’ ta try and track your sorry ass down, the next I was covered in hollow guts n’ you looked about ready to pass out nearby. Sandal-hat told me later my power had come out briefly ta drive away the hollow bastard, but wasn’t enough at the time ta kill it.”

Grimmjow falls silent now, just examining him to see his reaction. Ichigo stood there his face completely blank. In a way, none of this should be new information. He’d seen that memory, his dad had confirmed it was a real memory. It had been obvious the kid he’d seen was Grimmjow, and yet…

"Mum...her soul was….still….?”

"Faded. T’was too damaged ta make it through to Seireitei, she probably just blended wit’ the spirit world itself.”

There was no real emotion behind those words, nothing mocking, nor reassuring. Grimmjow’s words were simple, neutral, stated like a basic fact. Ichigo just turns his gaze away, holding his head now as he mulls over those words, feeling his chest tighten and his knees grow kind of weak. He has to sit down onto the damp grass, just staring at his hands now.

Footsteps eventually appear closer to him, and Ichigo barely notes the umbrella was covering him too now. Not that he needed it, but…

".......S’that why you were struggling against that weakling? The weather’s makin’ you moody again.”

Ichigo wanted to snap at Grimmjow for that seemingly callous way of referring to his obvious trauma, but as he looks up at the man, there wasn’t even a hint of mockery in his expression, just a mild frown crossing his brow. Of course. Grimmjow would've seen this before, right? Seen how rains like this had an effect on Ichigo....

"….You were watching?”

"Uh huh. Wondered if I should step in, but you managed to get your head outta yer ass in the end.”

"Would that even have been safe to do for you?”

Grimmjow shrugs, lifting his other hand and morphing it into the more hollow-like claws. It was still wild to see, how he could apparently transform his gigai partially like that.

"Probably. It’s just that I can’t leave this fake piece of shit properly yet, n’ it locks out a lot of my power from my grasp.”

The man clearly sounded annoyed about it. Ichigo just looks at him for a moment, before turning his gaze away again. After a while, as the rain ends and the moon peeks out from behind the clouds, the ginger finally pushes himself up, breathing out slowly. The blunet had folded his umbrella as well, just watching him closely in silence.

"….You said you didn’t manage to kill that hollow. Do you think it’s still out there?”

Ichigo finally asks as he turns to face Grimmjow again, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible. The man doesn’t respond at first, his face completely unreadable. Finally though, he nods. However, what he says next surprises the ginger in a way he would’ve never expected.

"I saw it sometime ago, it tried to eat yer baby sister. Still couldn’t kill it, ’cause at the time I was still 'sick.”

".....What!?"

Chapter Text

Grimmjow just watches Kurosaki process his words in silence, his expression completely dumbfounded. He knew the bastard could be slow, but was the idea this hollow in question was still alive somewhere out there really that shocking? Apparently so, judging from how long it took Kurosaki to snap out of his shock, grabbing his shoulders again with an intense look on his face. That was more like it, his sad moody side was always so damn awkward to deal with.

"What did it look like? Yuzu can’t see them properly!”

"All weaklings look ta same to me. Big ass head that talks a lot, but says very little.”

Grimmjow comments casually, digging his ear mildly amused by how frustrated Kurosaki was getting, letting him go and pacing around for a bit with that annoyed expression on his face now. He clearly wanted to bitch at him, but knew painfully well it would not be that productive, as even if he knew what this guy looked like, there was no guarantee Kurosaki would ever run into it himself. For all they knew the asshole was dead already, killed by another Shinigami, though Grimmjow had a hunch that wasn’t likely. The fact such a big ass hollow had survived for so long indicated it was a whole lot smarter than average, and the fact it’d been capable of yapping bullshit for so long indicated as much.

"Is there anything else you can tell me, anything at all?”

Kurosaki finally asks from him again, a determined flare burning in his eyes now. Grimmjow wants to roll his eyes at the sight, but just huffs out a sigh and crosses his arms over his chest, averting his gaze for a moment as he thinks back on the encounter.

"Actively lures its prey into a trap, actually talks enough shit to seem smart fer a hollow. Woulda not be surprised if yer Shinigami buddies had some sorta record of this guy somewhere, from what I gathered from sandal-hat, some of the more dangerous hollows that get away are identified n’ they take notes fer future encounters.”

Grimmjow shrugs, looking back at Kurosaki who was still looking at him with a frown, now turning his gaze roughly towards the direction Sandal-hat’s shop was. He was likely tempted to go demand this information right at this second, but despite being an occasional dumbass, Kurosaki wasn’t a total fool. He knew that actually finding this hollow in question would be hard, if it indeed had survived for so long, hunting humans. Just ’cause you knew your target, didn’t mean you’d know where it was.

"…..Thank you.”

Those words catch Grimmjow off-guard, and he looks back at Kurosaki baffled, who was now smiling at him for some random ass reason. He’d always found his smile annoying, and a bit uncomfortable, though it wasn’t until after the bridge incident that he understood why. It was real fuckin’ bullshit reason too, ’cause technically Kurosaki didn’t really have anything to do with it….

"For saving me that night, even if you didn’t really like me yet at that point.”

"Sometimes I still don’t, to be fair.”

"Yeah, you’ve made that clear.”

Kurosaki let’s out a huffing laugh, his shoulders slumping as his body loses some of its tension now. Likely he’d concluded in his brain that despite all this new info he’d now received, there wasn’t much he could do with it at this point. He’d likely still go and try to grill his Shinigami buddies about this particular hollow the first chance he got, knowing him. The rain was starting to pick back up, so Grimmjow opens his umbrella again, not really feeling like turning himself into an angry wet cat. Being two of those was enough for him. Kurosaki just stares up at the skies, his spirit body letting the rain just sort of pass through it. If it felt weird, he didn’t show it on his face, seemingly sunken in thought.

"You gonna continue doing your job, or go home now? Either way standin’ around’s a waste of time.”

"Feel free to leave, if you don’t want to stand here in the rain, nobody’s stopping you.”

The ginger shrugs, turning to look back at him with an amused smile now. His mood sure changed fast, but then again it wasn’t like Grimmjow hadn’t seen this before. Even as a brat Kurosaki could go from bawling to smiling pretty quick, that trait seemingly hadn’t left even if bawling was rarer after his ma died.

"Go home Kurosaki; yer clearly not in the right headspace to do this shit. Let your Shinigami buddies handle the hollow huntin’ for the night.”

He tells the ginger simply, before turning on his heels to head away, feeling Kurosaki’s gaze on his back.

Ichigo couldn’t get that encounter from last night off his mind, mulling over Grimmjow’s words most of the next day, barely able to focus on his lessons. It was a lot to process, the fact Grimmjow had saved his life not just once but twice when he was a child, and that the hollow who’d likely killed his mum was still out there.

Also though….what had Grimmjow meant that mum could ’see’ what he truly was at that time? How would mum have known about any of that? Ichigo frowns, now having a feeling there was yet another secret to his family, another detail his old man had left untold…

"Ichigo!”

He almost jumps and turns to look towards Tatsuki, standing beside his desk, class was already over apparently, with everyone else having left the room while he’d been spacing out.

"Are you alright, you got that resting bitch face going on again, that indicated you want to go yell at someone.”

Tatsuki asks, crossing her arms over her chest while Inoue fidgets beside her nervously, looking a bit concerned. Chad and Ishida were standing on the doorway still as well, likely wondering why he’d just sat there and not noticed everyone leaving.

"….I learned more things last night, and feel like dad and Urahara still haven’t been fully honest with me.”

"Oh?”

Inoue looks at him surprised, and the ginger sighs, pushing himself up from his seat and gesturing them to follow; it was better to discuss this somewhere more private than in the middle of the classroom.

The group heads up to the roof to their favorite spot, sitting down with their snacks and drinks, listening as Ichigo recounts the conversation from last night. He keeps an eye on Tatsuki’s reaction in particular, wondering if she’d start remembering more things. They all looked positively horrified, learning he’d been almost devoured by a hollow as a kid, then baffled about the part with Grimmjow showing up.

"So….in other words the beastly hollow side of his that attacked you last time out of nowhere, came out back then too to potentially try and eat this other hollow? Is that what I’m hearing?”

Ishida asks eventually adjusting his glasses, gaining a shrug from Ichigo.

"That sounds dangerous, he could’ve attacked you as well!”

"I know, but he didn’t! All I remember is seeing a big cat - his hollow form I guess? - and then he was standing there, drenched in hollow goop. I passed out shortly after, woke up back home.”

He watches as the group mulls over the situation, with Tatsuki’s frown deepening after a moment, as she slowly looks back up at him, a searching expression in her face. It did seem like she was remembering something again.

"….Yeah. I think. After your mother passed, that’s when he accepted you as a friend properly. He was in the funeral with his ’aunt’ which we now know was Yoruichi. He started hanging around more, and was…..notably nicer. Or as nice as that guy could be anyway.”

Her expression was kind of distant, her words somewhat hesitating as she recounted the memory in her head, and Ichigo just nods faintly, unable to currently remember this detail. He remembered bits of the funeral, but it was all still very fuzzy in his head. Not just because of trauma though, as recent events had made clear.

"It’s rather awful to know that hollow is still out there though. You’d think the Shinigami would’ve caught it by now, but if what Jeagerjaquez said about the one attacking your sister earlier was true….”

Ishida had a point, and Ichigo wasn’t happy about this either. How many more had that bastard lured into their deaths between then and now? How come had the Shinigami not managed to slay this hollow yet? It was frustrating.

"….Um. What are you going to do now, Kurosaki-kun?”

Inoue asks after a moment of silence, and Ichigo shrugs, drinking his juice as he glances down towards the ground, spotting Keigo currently locked in an argument with their local Lesbian menace.

"I….want to ask if they have info on this guy, Grimmjow said Shinigami would record notes about these more elusive and dangerous ones. It sounds like a case they’d have information on.”

"Would they bother sharing it with you?”

Ishida points out, gaining another shrug from Ichigo as he finishes his juice box, throwing it in the nearby trashcan.

"Why wouldn’t they? I’m working as a substitute Shinigami, I have the right to know about this stuff don’t I?”

His Quincy friend seemed skeptical, but to be fair he still hadn’t fully warmed to the soul reaper kind as a whole, even if he liked some of them individually, like Rukia and Renji. Given the whole difficult history between Quincies and Shinigami, Ichigo didn’t exactly blame him. Plus, those guys could be a pain in the ass and a messy bunch; it was a miracle they got their jobs done in the first place, sometimes.

Their chat is interrupted by Keigo spotting his bright orange hair from above, demanding them to come down and back him up with some dispute he was having with Chizuru. Ichigo just rolls his eyes at him, but considering the time, they’d have to head back down soon anyway as the break was almost over.

”Rukia and others aren’t at school today either, its just their mod souls; if you want to grill them about this hollow, you might have to go visit Urahara.”

Tatsuki points out as they head out, and Ichigo nods faintly, figuring he should do just that. Sure, it wasn’t like knowing more about the hollow in question would necessarily help him find it, but if he’d see it, he’d know.

Arriving at Urahara’s shop, Grimmjow was sitting by the porch smoking again, clearly not surprised to see him there. Ichigo admittedly hesitates for a second suddenly, because honestly, at this point he wasn’t sure what the whole deal between them was now. They were friends at some point, clearly, and Grimmjow knew him in a way only his friends did, but he still could barely remember it.

…..There was also that odd memory from a while back he still didn’t quite understand, the one where he’d been mopping the clinic….

"Don’t just stand there looking like a dumbass; go bitch at Sandal-hat about the hollow yer after.”

Grimmjow cuts straight through his thoughts with his gruff voice, and Ichigo snaps back to reality, frowning at the cancer stick he was holding between his fingers.

"From my understanding you don’t need to smoke that garbage anymore, right?”

"Habit. ’Sides Kisuke likes keepin’ me drugged just in case, given I tried ta lop people’s heads off last time, remember?”

Grimmjow flashes him a wry grin, showing off the very sharp canines he had visible even with the gigai. Ichigo just rolls his eyes at the man and walks past him, asking Ururu who was by the counter where Urahara was. She predictably points downstairs, stating he was in the cave room.

Ichigo heads down, feeling Grimmjow stalk after him for some reason, barely making a sound like he was a giant, angry looking blue cat. To be fair, he very much was an angry looking blue cat based on everything Ichigo knew. That and an Oni, but even that Oni form had fur attached. It had definitely been a healthier looking version of Grimmjow, unlike the grumpy asshole he’d first met who’d been coughing his lungs out.

His thoughts lingered on that memory a second too long, until he spots the door to the lab which would enable him to enter the weird cave they’d trapped Grimmjow in.

"They still tryin’ ta figure what the fuck exactly happened.”

The gruff voice speaks almost right next to his ear suddenly, making Ichigo almost jump and briefly glance at Grimmjow, who once again flashes him a wry grin, clearly amused by how caught off-guard he was.

"I forgot how easy you are ta sneak up on. Screamed like a little girl that one time I dropped by through your window.”

"I….first off, why can’t you just use a door like a normal person? Who climbs in through windows?!”

Ichigo had now stopped in front of the open laboratory door, glaring at Grimmjow who just takes a drag from his cigarette, looking at his pissed off expression like it was the funniest shit he’d ever seen. The guy sure was an asshole, how on earth had they become friends in the first place?

"’Cause it’s funnier to spook you. ’Sides it was like two in the morning.”

"What the hell were you doing in my house at two in the morning anyway?”

"Couldn’t sleep. Hoggin’ yer bed was always the best way to get some shut eye.”

Ichigo just glares at Grimmjow’s amused bastard face, but a cough from nearby interrupts the conversation, making both turn to look towards Tessai. The man greets him politely, asking him what brought him there for a visit in this lovely day.

"I have something to ask about from Urahara. Or any Shinigami that might know, really.”

"Oh? What would that be then?”

"He wants ta know the details of the lil slippery bitch who killed his ma and almost gobbled his sister. You assholes are bound ta have some intel about this one.”

Grimmjow tells him casually before Ichigo could utter out a word, and Tessai hums, examining Ichigo closely now. The ginger felt a bit like deer caught in headlights for some reason, like he was being judged. Ichigo crosses his arms over his chest, meeting Tessai’s gaze almost stubbornly now, as he points out his substitute Shinigami status surely would give him the right to know about more threatening hollows beforehand.

"….Certainly you aren’t wrong. I am not sure if Urahara-san would have access to those files right now, but I can ask him about it. Considering we were, ahem, somewhat involved in that situation because of Jeagerjaquez, perhaps there is some information he can share. For safety purposes.”

Tessai adjusts his glasses, looking at him pointedly with a glint in his eyes.

"Revenge quests are not really suited for Shinigami’s duties.”

"Oh fuck right off old man. Go get the sandal-hat so we can get this shit over with. T’s not like it matters why yer killin’ the fucker. It needs to be dealt with anyway.”

Grimmjow snorts at Tessai while leaning his arm against Ichigo’s shoulder, and the ginger glances at him half annoyed half confused, because he didn’t really expect Grimmjow of all people backing him up like this. Yet again, maybe if he had his full memory back, it’d make more sense though…

Tessai just let’s out a long suffering sigh and heads back inside through the door to the cave room, leaving the pair standing there on the doorway to the lab. It was still mostly empty, no fake bodies in sight or anything; Ichigo shudders at the memory of first seeing this place, it had looked like some serial killer’s basement from a horror movie.

The arm weighing down on his shoulder eventually moves away, as Grimmjow slips that hand into his pocket now, blowing out a cloud of smoke and watching it float its way to the ceiling. Ichigo takes a moment to just sort of examine his face, the sharp angles, electric blue eyes and the always lightly frowning expression he seemed to wear. It still felt weird how familiar and alien his scary mug was, giving him a constant sensation of unnerving deja vu.

"Quit bein’ creepy, Kurosaki.”

Grimmjow suddenly comments with an amused grin, turning to look at him. Ichigo feels his face heat up and he turns his gaze away with a grumble, just as Urahara appears into the room and greets the pair in his usual, slightly dramatic, friendly manner.

"Tessai told me you’d be interested in learning more about a specific hollow we’ve been trying to capture for years, correct?”

"Yes. Just in case. I mean, I can’t be sure I’d run into it again, but….”

"This relates to your mother and sister, I am aware. Please follow me.”

Urahara gestures him to follow back upstairs and Ichigo does so, noting Grimmjow keeps tailing him like a cat would their owner. Or rather servant. Cats had no owners, only favorite servants. Urahara brings him to his office room, and Grimmjow remains standing by the door, leaning against the wall next to it while Ichigo sits down at the table, while Urahara rummages through his pile of papers and books, kicking up dust in the air. Eventually he pulls out something with an ’a-ha!’ And brings Ichigo an old dusty folder with some papers in it.

Opening the file, there were some crude drawings of a hollow, likely witness accounts from previous encounters, as well as some text written below by what was clearly the man’s own handwriting.

"This one calls himself Grand Fischer. He is capable of creating believable looking human lures that look like people, often taking a form of their prey’s loved one. It is a rather sophisticated hunting method for a relatively weak hollow I must admit.”

Ichigo remains silent, just examining the notes and the drawings of the spirit. This was the culprit behind his mother’s death, the one who tried to take his sister from him as well, tried to kill him as a child. During moments like this, it was hard to keep in mind the soul behind that mask could very well be innocent, just a poor bastard who hadn’t been reached on time by a soul reaper.

"He is very dangerous indeed. Not as dangerous as, let’s say someone of Jeagerjaquez-san’s hollow side, but dangerous for a human devouring hollow.”

"What’s that supposed to mean?”

Ichigo asks without really lifting his gaze from the papers, gaining an amused snort from the aforementioned man still standing by the door.

"Apparently my hollow side wouldn’t hunt humans; t’s strong enough ta command Menos, the big guys.”

Ichigo whips his head up finally to look back at Grimmjow surprised, who just offers him a wry grin with a shrug.

"Fitting for an Oni King, eh?”

"….Indeed, the ’hollow’ side attached to him is something we’d call an Arrancar. I believe we’ve talked about this before though, haven’t we?”

Ichigo shrugs uncertain; he’d been getting so much new mind blowing information recently that having something slip his mind wasn’t out of the question. Urahara just let’s out a thoughtful hum next, briefly lifting one of the drawings to examine it more closely.

"Each time we almost get him, he manages to slip from our grasp. This one can turn himself invisible even from the Shinigami on top of his lure tactics. That’s what makes him so hard to eliminate.”

"Clearly. It’s been what? Ten years? And he’s still out there hunting innocent little girls who are just minding their business.”

It was hard not to sound angry or judgmental right now. Urahara had just told him a likely reason why they hadn’t caught this Fischer guy yet, but it was hard not to be mad. For his mum, his sister, himself. Any souls this hollow had devoured since.

"….Believe me, cases like these are frustrating for us too, but rest assured we will catch this one sooner or later. I’d recommend though, if you happen to run into it, do not face him alone. You are strong Kurosaki-san, but given the personal nature of this case—”

"I’m fine. Thanks for the info, Urahara-san.”

Ichigo cuts the man off before he could finish, standing up abruptly and bowing politely, before turning on his heels and heading out of the room. He didn’t need to hear that lecture right now, he’d expected to be told that. So what if it was personal somewhat? He was a Shinigami, it was his duty to take down hollows and purify them. Send them wherever they belonged, be it hell or Seireitei, like that girl and her family.

"Are you okay Ichi-nii?”

Yuzu asks from him that evening while they eat dinner, his now sour mood kind of bleeding through a little apparently. He just shrugs, stating wasn’t he just wearing his ’default scowl’ as Karin called it.

"Nah, that’s got three wrinkles too many!”

Karin points out, gaining an over-enthusiastic agreeing nod from Yuzu. Dad scolds the two, telling he must’ve just been tired from schoolwork given he was in his final year. Ichigo makes a noncommittal hum, shoveling food in his mouth while occasionally giving his dad a glare. He’d been doing this the whole time in fact, making his old man shake in boots. Still, Isshin hadn’t budged, clearly dad wasn’t willing to give in yet and spill the beans, even if he knew there were more secrets he was holding from his son.

Since the old man wanted to be stubborn, Ichigo just finishes his meal, thanking Yuzu for it as usual, before heading upstairs without further ado. He could hear Karin start grilling dad about his earlier look, making the ginger smirk faintly.

Slumping to his bed with a huffing sigh, Ichigo rubs his eyes before checking his phone, noting he had a message from Rukia.

"Sorry 4 not being around today, busy.”

Ichigo didn’t really care that much right now, although he was miffed that once again it felt like the Shinigami didn’t want to involve him into things. They had all been doing something today while he’d been stuck at school. He contemplates it for a second, then decides to call her. She responds rather quickly, with only after two beeps.

"What’s up? Caught any sightings of Aizen or something?”

"No, not a whiff. It’s like Aizen is waiting for something now. A lot of smaller hollows around though, and Urahara had us running around the place for some minor errands he claimed were important for his research into the situation. As if! That man is as sneaky as they come, he just had us doing his boring everyday tasks for him!”

Ichigo had no way to prove if she was lying or not, but given how quick the reply was, maybe she was being truthful; Rukia would hesitate for a moment before replying, if she was trying to deceive him while not really wanting to. Not to mention that complaining about Urahara felt very normal and not faked at all.

"I can’t understand why are we just standing idle instead of going to find him! That man is dangerous beyond belief, we are wasting time here!”

"I’m guessing because he’s dangerous that you are waiting.”

"Wow, you of all people scolding me of impatience, now that’s a riot.”

Rukia scoffs but let’s out a slight snicker afterwards. Ichigo hums and gets off the bed, walking to his closet and casually swinging it open, finding the said girl sitting there, the phone still in her ear, looking like a deer caught in headlights.

"...You know you could’ve just told my family you needed to crash here tonight, right?”

"But I like your closet. Especially when its Kon free!”

Ichigo frowns at that.

"Wait, Kon’s not there?”

"Nope, I made sure to check!”

Rukia gestures around herself, and yeah Kon was nowhere to be seen. Had the idiot bear gone off into the night again? To be fair that was a good sign he was recovering from his scare, as mostly he’d just been hiding in there for the most part, not even trying to annoy him. Not like Ichigo didn’t understand, if Kon had genuinely thought at that moment he was gonna die, with his trauma….yeah. He should really make Grimmjow apologize for that. It no longer seemed that impossible of a task.

Still though…

Ichigo looks around his room but couldn’t find the pervert bear anywhere, not even a note. Okay that was odd, normally Kon would at least do that. He doubted the idiot would’ve forgotten in this situation, hell he’d been more likely to give him very specific instructions where to find him and what route he took.

Suddenly, Rukia grasps his arm, a frowning expression on her face as she looks around.

"What’s up?”

"….A hollow was in here earlier, before I came in. I didn't notice at first, but now....”

"...Wha?!”

"A very small and weak one, but one nevertheless.”

Ichigo frowns and looks around more closely, slowly realizing that yeah, he could sense it faintly. Not a very strong one, and it did not seem like it had gone downstairs at any point, but still. Why would a hollow sneak into his room? Ichigo looks around again now a bit more concerned, even if it wouldn’t make any sense; a hollow would likely not be interested in a mod soul, right? Besides if it would’ve somehow….devoured...Kon’s pill, his toy body would be there.

"….Is there a way to track a mod soul?”

"You don’t think the Hollow took Kon? Why would it do that?”

Even as Rukia says that, she digs into her bag for a device, another one of Urahara’s creations likely. Even if it wasn't that likely this peculiar hollow visit would be related to Kon's disappearance, it was probably for the best to go find him....

"Since Kon likes running off, and we don’t always know where our mods might hide.”

Rukia explains the existence of the small round, watch-like device to him, even as Ichigo digs out his Shinigami badge he also had, removing himself from his body and managing to haul it to his bed. He writes a note to his sisters in case one of them came up – dad deserved to be spooked so he didn’t bother addressing him – before looking back at Rukia, who was also ready to go, telling her mod soul to stay hiding in the closet, but if she was found by the Kurosaki family, explain to them she and Ichigo had gone out.

The pair dashes across the rooftops of Karakura, following the signal provided by the tracker. At least Kon had to be still alive, as otherwise this thing wouldn’t work if his pill was damaged beyond repair.

"He’s moving fast for a teddy lion.”

"Perhaps he called a taxi?”

"With what money? My wallet was still in my pocket.”

Ichigo comments casually, both of them knowing full well the mere idea of Kon doing that was very ludicrous, and it was more likely someone – or something – was carrying him. The pair eventually reaches the park – why was everything in this accursed park? - and they slow down, with Ichigo noting the signal had stopped moving. They were somewhere close, but so far all the pair could see was trees, pathways and lampposts scattered around. The river was a bit further away, but it seemed like Kon was somewhere near it.

"Careful. Who knows what is waiting for us.”

Rukia warns him quietly, and Ichigo nods faintly, pulling out his blade as they approach the location slowly. They soon hear a familiar voice cursing and complaining distressed, spotting a figure ahead, hunched on top of the bridge railing like a weird gargoyle, while holding a comically struggling teddy bear.

"Oi! Let me go you asshole! You can’t fucking eat me you dumb dumb hollow!”

The hollow looked like some sort of chameleon, randomly poking Kon’s fluffy face with its tongue as if confused about this fact. Ichigo swiftly slashes its mask to kill it, while Rukia captures Kon before he could fall into the cool waters of the river.

"Ah! Nee-chan! I was so scared, thank you for rescuing me!”

Rukia swiftly drops the bear to the bridge floor with a huff, before he could rub his face against her chest. Ichigo picks Kon up instead, trying to shake the hollow guts off him, gaining a predictably loud protest from the mod soul.

"OI! Gently gently, I was almost eaten tonight!”

"What the hell even happened, why didn’t you leave a note?”

Ichigo ignores his protests and now holds Kon with both hands, giving him an annoyed shake. Kon at first looks about ready to bitch at him some more, then seems to realize Ichigo had been genuinely worried. That shuts him up for a moment, and Kon coughs, rubbing his head with a shrug.

"I dunno. I was just hanging around your room when that thing showed up and snatched me! I don’t know what it wanted, I kept telling it I’m not food!”

"That is odd. I don’t think even simplest of hollows would be stupid enough to mix up a mod soul for an actual living one.”

"Oi! I am a living soul nee-chan!”

"Living devourable one I mean.”

Rukia rolls her eyes at pouty Kon, with Ichigo huffing out a sigh, now stuffing Kon into his robes.

"Ow, hey! When did you wash last time, your armpit smells like ass!”

Kon complains even as he climbs his way up under his robes to Ichigo’s shoulder, and for once he just lets Kon do that. Just as he settles in however, their instincts pick up, and the pair stands there back-to-back, looking around as they could sense something nearby.

"Can you…?”

"Yeah, its close. A big one.”

Rukia mutters out quietly, as her eyes scan their surroundings. Neither could tell where it was coming from, but there was definitely a hollow nearby. It wasn’t Grimmjow stalking him again, at this point Ichigo recognized his odd-feeling reiatsu. Then, his eyes spot movement somewhere nearby the river edge across the bridge. Brown eyes widen slowly, as he takes in the figure that was standing there, watching them.

"...Mom…?”

Rukia turns to look at him as Ichigo moves, asking him confused what was going on. Her gaze follows his, watching the woman standing there watching them, then slowly turning to walk away.

"Ichigo wait!”

Rukia grasps his shoulder as the ginger attempts to follow, struggling to understand what he was seeing. That was definitely his mum, but...how? Grimmjow had said her soul was….

"It’s a trap. I can sense something in that direction.”

The ginger glances back at Rukia, then at the woman who’d now stopped at the edge of the forest, watching them. As if expecting them to follow. Kon was now hiding behind his back spooked, muttering out warnings under his breath.

"Let’s call for back-up just in–-”

Ichigo shoves her off him impulsively and follows after the mysterious figure, because he suddenly recalled something, something Urahara had told him earlier that day.

’He is capable of creating believable looking human lures that look like people, often taking a form of their prey’s loved one.’

He follows the figure all the way to an opening in the forest, watching the woman closely as she stops across the field, turning to look back at him. She looked exactly like mum, down to her warm smile, but….but he knew better. Rukia had reached him by now, but Ichigo holds his hand up to stop her from doing or saying anything, eyes focused in on the figure, who now speaks.

Oh god it even sounded like mum.

"It’s been a long time, hasn’t it Ichigo?”

Rukia watches them confused, but says nothing as she could clearly tell Ichigo was on high alert, holding his blade up while staring at the woman. He had no idea what she was exactly, but he knew she wasn’t mum.

"….Quit your act. I know you’re here, Fischer.”

The figure blinks surprised, tilting her head and asking confused what he was talking about. Ichigo just slashes the air, and the figure dodges alarmed before the reiatsu attack could hit her. It felt wrong doing this, but he knew. He knew what this was, Urahara had just told him.

"Why would you attack your own mother like that?”

She – or the hollow – pretends to look sad, but Ichigo steels himself, just glaring back at the fake version of his mum, his knuckles going white with how strongly he was gripping his blade.

"I don’t know how you’d know my name or that she was my mum, maybe you have a good memory, but it doesn’t matter. I know you’re just trying to lure me there, Fischer. I know who you are.”

The figure looks at him for a moment, then huffs out a sigh, starting to transform into something grotesque before their eyes. Moments later, whatever his fake mum had turned into, attaches itself atop a massive hollow’s head like a anglerfish lure – oh, Fischer, Ichigo now understood the name – looking down at them amused.

"It seems telling that little runt to grab the bear was a good idea, it did indeed bring you here. I would’ve preferred a snackable prey, but alas it doesn’t matter now.”

"You wanted to bring Ichigo here, why?”

"To devour him of course! This brat got away from me last time!”

The hollow roars and attacks them suddenly, forcing the pair to dodge. Rukia swings at it, but the bastard turns invisible, forcing the two to go back-to-back again, searching for it. It seemed like the invisibility wasn’t just to hide its physical appearance; the reiatsu was difficult to pinpoint now as well.

"We should’ve called for back up!”

Rukia scolds him as she scans their surroundings, and yeah, he’d probably been a bit reckless, but the fact the guy preferred going invisible indicated he knew they were a dangerous threat. Moments later, some sort of furry spikes appear out of nowehre trying to impale them. Both manage to dodge that attack too, but a tentacle manages to wrap around Rukia’s limb next, throwing her across the forest floor, until she crashes against a nearby tree.

"Rukia!”

Ichigo attempts to rush for her aid, but is forced to block more of those spikes aiming for him, noting they felt stronger than your typical hollow attacks. He was struggling to cut through them, though eventually manages to swing his blade to slash them to bits. Fischer disappears again, and moments later the strange lure appears again, scolding him with his mum’s face as some sort of psychological manipulation tactic or something.

"Now now Ichigo, this is not how to treat your own mother is it?”

"Shut up!”

He sends an attack its way, but the lure just disappears from sight with Fischer’s laugh echoing in the air. Moments later those tentacles appear again, managing to throw Ichigo in the air with a barrage of fur spikes following; he manages to block the attack mostly, but one of the sharp things manages to graze his leg, making it sting. Ichigo ignores the blood dripping down his ankle, sending a stronger reiatsu attack the hollow’s way, but the bastard once again disappears from sight, easily dodging it.

"It’s toying with us!”

Rukia comments with a huff as she manages to reach him just as he lands back down, and the pair look around, searching for the hollow.

"I asked for back up by the way.”

"I can handle this.”

"Ichigo, I know this is personal---”

She gets cut off mid-sentence as another attack from nowhere is launched at them, and Ichigo pushes her out of harm’s way reflexively, while taking most of the force of this one. He skids backwards across the ground, slashing through the spikes again with the hollow annoyingly managing to avoid it. He’d fought fucking Shinigami captains and still was somehow struggling to land a hit on a simple hollow? What the hell, was his aim that bad, or was his brain being messed with because this one was the guy who killed his mum? He prepares himself for another attack as soon as he spots the bastard again, but this time Rukia sends a barrage of ice his way, managing to hit the hollow and freeze him against a nearby tree.

"Focus, Ichigo! You can do better than this!”

Rukia huffs and puffs at him annoyed, and yeah, she was right about that. He quickly charges at the follow to try and break his mask, but somehow, Fischer manages to avoid it again by turning invisible, somehow escaping her ice trap so all he cut was the tree and her ice. Ichigo watches the top half of the poor plant crash to the ground, with no sign of their opponent.

"How the hell does he do that?!”

"Impressed?”

Both turn to look towards the human figure standing further away, still wearing Masaki’s face. Ichigo now feels his eye twitch, and he recklessly charges at it, yelling at the bastard to stop using his mum’s face to try and fuck with him. That was of course a dumb idea, as seconds later, something sharp strikes him in the gut, paralyzing him briefly as he comes face to face with the hollow, claws sunken into his body. Rukia attempts to help him, but she gets trapped to the ground by a mass of tentacles, knocking her blade off her hand.

"Hmm, I am not certain if you truly are the right one, let’s see…”

Images begin flashing in Ichigo’s head the next second, almost if...the hollow was looking through his memories?

His friends, boring schooldays, first meeting with Rukia, his battles in Seireitei, Grimmjow blowing smoke to his face…

"Oh! There it is! They were right!”

Fischer suddenly exclaims, now more images of Grimmjow flash in his head, and Ichigo realizes he was digging into his memory about the blue haired Oni-hollow cat bastard for some reason; The ginger struggles to free himself from his grasp, managing to kick the hollow back finally. The puncture wounds on his torse were bleeding, but thankfully not that bad.

"W-What the hell was that!?”

He demands from Fischer, who just stands there now, examining him curiously. He soon has to vanish from sight though as Rukia breaks free, throwing shit ton of ice at him with an angry huff.

"That is not how you treat a lady you absolute pervert!”

She yells after the hollow clearly pissed off, but Ichigo barely registers what she was saying, because something was happening in his brain now. Things were flashing before his eyes, more memories of his childhood, now including Grimmjow in them; hanging out at the park, or somewhere in the school grounds, the bastard hogging his bed both kid-sized and teen-sized, Yuzu scolding them for having a fight…

"Ichigo! What’s wrong, what did he do?!”

Rukia calls out to him, trying to shake him awake, but it all felt so distant. He collapses to the ground, holding his head now, as memories flood his mind in a way they never had before. It was like...like whatever that hollow did, it had damaged the seal inside him somehow.

"Ichigo!”

Rukia yells again, quickly turning as a massive attack of spikes heads their way now, clearly intent on taking advantage of his distraction to kill them. However, before he could, a blast of red energy strikes him in the face, knocking Fischer out of the skies.

Rukia watches him fall in shock, then turns to look towards the figure walking towards them from the darkness, the area immediately filling with a powerful – and familiar – reiatsu. Ichigo manages to turn towards the figure moments before his brain forces him to pass out, overwhelmed by the flood of memories.

Grimmjow.

"Y-you! You shouldn’t---!”

Rukia gets promptly ignored by the man who now walks between them, calmly watching as the hollow manages to gather himself, his mask cracked and bleeding quite badly.

"Ahhh...this explains so much about you. You indeed aren’t human.”

Rukia blinks confused, had these two met before? Jeagerjaquez just snorts and cracks his neck, looking positively unimpressed.

"Didn’t I basically tell ya to bully someone of yer own size, bastard?”

Fischer says nothing, just starts to turn invisible again, likely to escape the scene as he was faced with something clearly too powerful for him to handle – even in just gigai. Rukia couldn’t stop but wonder just how powerful had Grimmjow been as an Oni, and was he stronger or weaker now as a hollow with strange mix of power from his past life included?

As soon as Fischer attempts that however, Grimmjow’s eyes sharpen, and in a flash of blue he was before him, striking his now clawed hand deep into the hollow’s mask, tearing it open. His body was starting to glow blue in general, and Rukia finds herself avoiding her gaze from the sight, as Grimmjow tears the struggling hollow to pieces, ripping its limbs off and breaking more of the mask, all the while laughing like an absolute maniac.

She crouches beside Ichigo now, noting he’d been knocked out cold, and shaking him provoked no reaction. He did not seem to be dying though, so whatever this was, it wasn’t poison.

Moments later the disgusting noises cease, and Rukia dares a glance towards the blunet, who was now covered in hollow blood, his body still glowing. The blue Reiatsu around his body was forming horns of sorts, but she could also see a tail, likely more akin to his hollow feline form.

There wasn’t much left of the hollow, but Rukia couldn’t tell if Jeagerjaquez had eaten parts of it, or just mutilated the poor spirit beyond belief. She tenses as Grimmjow turns to face them now, spitting some blood from his mouth – he must’ve at least bitten him – pacing closer to them with his typical casual swagger, very unlike his earlier showcase of brutality.

"How’s he?”

"….Unconscious. How did you….you shouldn’t be able to pull out your power so much with a gigai!”

Grimmjow flashes her a rogue grin – oh god even his teeth had bloodstains on them – before responding, gesturing at himself casually.

"This thing can’t block all of it. My weird state apparently makes it impossible according ta sandal-hat. Still can’t bring out all of it, or leave this damn thing, but whatever.”

Grimmjow proceeds to nudge Ichigo with his foot, making Rukia glare up at him angrily, her hand still resting on her zanpakuto hilt reflexively. Grimmjow rolls his eyes at the sight, before crouching down as well and turning Ichigo over to check on him properly. Rukia notes the blood on him was starting to fade, and looking back towards the corpse of the hollow, so was it, turning into golden dust. So Grimmjow hadn’t full on eaten Fischer, just killed the hollow so the soul was finally released from the earthly chains.

"Aaa….yeah, that’s bad.”

"What?”

Rukia snaps her gaze back at Grimmjow, who was digging a piece of furry flesh from his teeth now – what was with this man and his disgusting hygiene – still looking down at her unconscious friend.

"The seal’s broken. Whatever that bastard did ta him, it damaged it enough.”

"Seal?”

Grimmjow finally looks back at her, and there wasn’t even a hint of that earlier mockery or predatory glint in his eyes; the man had gone entirely serious.

"His memories. The seal keepin’ em at bay broke.”

That was alarming based on what she knew, looking down at Ichigo and asking frantically what was she supposed to do. Grimmjow just rolls his eyes and hauls the limp ginger off the ground, placing him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"We’ll bring ’im ta sandal-hat, of course.”

Chapter Text

Rukia watches as the two men hover around Ichigo, with Tessai having put him in some sort of a spell bubble. Jeagerjaquez was leaning against a wall nearby; his face was very stoic, but with how tense his body was, it was obvious the man was worried as well. At this point, she just accepted that fact, rather than finding it odd. Either way, Rukia felt very frustrated, unable to do anything to help her friend, who was just laying on the floor, while Urahara was muttering to himself while studying his condition.

The two kids weren’t present, perhaps they had decided to let Ururu and Jinta sleep and not be involved in this, which to be fair Rukia wasn’t sure what those two could’ve done to help anyway. 

"How bad is it?”

The odd male voice of the cat beside her speaks up - she still wondered why did Yoruichi-san sound like a man in that form - and the former captain turns to look back at them, still holding his chin thoughtfully.

"The seal is quite badly damaged; I am not entirely sure if repairing it is possible.”

"Shoulda ya even bother at this point?”

Jeagerjaquez pipes up with a challenging edge to his voice, and Urahara looks back at him calmly, seemingly not bothered by the slight, murdery vibe the man was giving off. She hadn’t noticed it before, but it was now oozing from Grimmjow so strongly she had to take a step back a little. Clearly he wasn’t fond of the idea of having Ichigo’s memory forced back again, which, admittedly she’d agree with, but why was he being so aggressive about it?

Just what kind of relationship had he had with the ginger before his memory erasure?

"…..Perhaps I indeed shouldn’t. It is just that, given what happened that night, we don’t know for sure how it’ll affect his mind if everything returns all at once. Even you must be concerned about that, aren’t you?”

Grimmjow narrows his eyes at Urahara but says nothing, indicating the former captain was correct with his assumption. Rukia looks between them, before sucking in a deep breath and crossing her arms over her chest, gaining everyone’s attention.

"What exactly is going on here? What is it about Ichigo’s history with you that needed to be erased so badly? I could understand hiding the spirit world from him at the time given he had no involvement, but that’s not all is it?”

She gives Urahara a pointed look, and cuts him off before he could really respond with any of his diplomatic and vague nonsense.

"Ichigo is my friend. This seems serious, and I deserve to know fully what is going on exactly. Why make him forget someone he was apparently close with? To the point he’d let them hog his bed?! He doesn’t even let ME do that?”

Rukia feels her cheeks color pink at that last part, admittedly slightly pouty about the fact Ichigo had seemingly allowed Grimmjow to do things he wouldn’t tolerate from any of his other friends. The blue haired Oni-hollow was a frustrating mystery even now, despite everything she had learned so far. Silence lands in the room as she continues to glare at Urahara, who glances between her, Ichigo and the aforementioned blunet. Grimmjow was still glaring daggers at him, perhaps out of principle. The former captain eventually releases a slow sigh, looking up at Grimmjow with a questioning look, as if asking whether he was fine with them telling her the details about this.

Much to her confusion Jeagerjaquez seems to hesitate at first, which felt strange.

He clearly wanted Ichigo to remember, but also didn’t want to talk about it. Rukia felt her determination falter, starting to feel like she was perhaps encroaching onto a subject that wasn’t really any of her business. Eventually though, Grimmjow shakes his head with an annoyed sounding huff, his gaze fixating on the unconscious Ichigo still on the ground, being monitored by Tessai crouched next to the spell bubble.

"….The shit that happened that night. Yeah, with current Kurosaki it probably wouldn’t be a big deal after all the shit he’s gone through for you lot, but fer the naive feisty bastard he was two years ago? T’s an entirely different ballgame. Don’t know how well you can understand that.”

Blue eyes drift to look at her, and the level of seriousness in them makes Rukia swallow down hard, though she remains silent. After everything, it was indeed hard to remember the Ichigo that had been before all this, before they’d met. Sometimes it was easy to forget how young he was too. Grimmjow looks back at Ichigo, and Rukia notes he’d started to shift lightly, a familiar frown creasing his brow as if he was having an unpleasant dream.

"…I guess it kind of started coupla weeks earlier. When I dropped by one night ta kick ’im off his bed so I could hog it as you put it. Didn’t know why I tended ta prefer sleepin’ there at the time, I just did.”

"What did Ichigo do, did he sleep on the floor then? He’s too tall to fit in the closet.”

"Nah. He used ta get a futon ta sleep on the floor, but sometimes the bastard was too stubborn to even do that, so he slept next to me, usually moments away from fallin’ off the bed ’cause I need space.”

Rukia blinks, scandalized by this reveal - they slept in the same bed?? The only reason Ichigo allowed that with Kon was because the small menace was indeed small, and even then it happened only occasionally if Kon was genuinely having a tough night - but Grimmjow shrugs, seemingly not finding this particular detail embarrassing or bizarre.

"Anyway, at that point he knew better than ta tell me off, so he let me stay. Shoulda known though, when I get restless like that, it means my brain’s cooking shit up.”

Grimmjow taps his head with a wry grin appearing on his face briefly, before their attention is diverted back to Ichigo, who was now shifting in his sleep, now sweating lightly as his brow creased even more. Rukia asks Tessai concerned what was wrong, and the stoic man looks at Ichigo for a moment, before looking up at them.

"It seems…more memories are coming out. Should we try to stop it? He’s going to be in for a rough night otherwise.”

After glancing at Grimmjow, Urahara hums and walks closer to the troubled looking ginger, kneeling down next to him.

"Let’s just monitor the situation. If the memory flow starts causing some actual damage to his soul, we’ll step in. That seal was always a precarious thing, and we did worry it could cause him more harm than do good.”

"….Very well.”

Rukia just looks at the two men with a concerned frown, before looking back at Grimmjow, whose face was still very stoic. She eventually breaks the silence, asking him cautiously what happened next.

"…..I had a flashback. At the time though, I didn’t know that’s what they were; memories from a past life. I thought it was all just….really weird dreams or nightmares. I socked him in the jaw accidentally when he tried ta wake me up. Normally I’d laughed at him for how fuckin’ funny he looked on the floor, holding his nose like a pouty brat, but…”

The man goes quiet for a moment, rubbing his eyes as a weight lands on his gaze suddenly, the kind she hadn’t seen before yet. Whatever he’d seen, it had clearly bothered him a lot at that moment, and it had to have been serious if it had been the trigger to whatever happened next that led to Ichigo’s memory erasure.

"….What was that memory about?”

She inquires after a long moment of silence, wondering more and more if she should’ve demanded answers. As rude as the man could be, she’d never want to bring emotional distress to somebody, and clearly thinking back on this was doing so. Grimmjow just huffs out a frustrated sigh and drops his hands into his pockets, turning to face her now.

".......There was a Kurosaki in Spirit Society. He was an Oni as well, different from me but I can’t fuckin’ remember how exactly. It don’t matter either way. Apparently my past self n’ that guy had a very complicated history.”

"Wait, hold—there was another Ichigo?!”

”Uh huh. As obnoxiously orange and reckless dumbass as this human one over here.”

Grimmjow juts his thumb towards the unconscious figure, who was now shifting more and more in his sleep. Before Rukia could fully process this reveal however, the blunet continues his story.

"Apparently, we’d clashed a lot in the past, n’ I’d - or my past self - had tried ta kill that Kurosaki at least thrice. At the time I didn’t know it, ’cause I had no idea who or what I was and what the fuck was going on, but that dream had been a memory about one of those fights.”

She looks back at the man in utter shock, still trying to grasp the fact there was another Kurosaki Ichigo out there somewhere, or, at least had been….

As she thinks back on the things she knew, Rukia feels an uneasy tug in her gut, and Grimmjow could clearly see it from her expression, nodding faintly with a deep frown appearing on his face now. It wasn’t really an angry one though, she couldn’t really tell what emotion it was she was seeing.

"Dead, he was the friend yer doppleganger was doin’ that favor for, bringin’ my weakened soul here.”

"Oh heavens…”

"So, imagine how fuckin’ bizarre it would’ve been for me at that point, seein’ a very vivid dream of myself tryin’ ta kill someone I thought was a close friend. It freaked me out enough that I fucked right off from there, not tellin’ him what the hell was going on.”

Grimmjow mutters out after a moment, his gaze fixated back in Ichigo again. He’d gone quite pale now, and the two men had begun to cast some sort of spell now, with Yoruichi watching them intently.

"I avoided ’im for like…two weeks I think? ’Cause I was freaked to hell n’ Sandal-hat and ’auntie’ kept just tellin’ me it was some weird bad dream. They didn’t wanna tell me the truth yet ’cause they felt I wasn’t stable enough at the time, which, guess they were right given what happened next.”

That same wry grin returns on the man’s face, and as he looks back at her, there was something more sinister in those electric blue eyes. However, it didn’t seem to be gleeful or sadistically joyful by any means, but definitely angry this time.

"It was all such bullshit timing. He just…went and said that shit at the worst possible moment. None of it had to fuckin’ happen, but he—”

Grimmjow cuts himself off as sparks of his power start dancing around his body, and the man curses under his breath, turning his back to all of them to calm down. Clearly whatever he was getting at was a big deal, so much so his power threatened to lash out.

"…..What did Ichigo say? What happened?”

Grimmjow remains quiet for a long moment, his back still turned to them. His body was entirely stiff, and he was clutching his hands into fists so hard they had that almost sickly pale hue he’d used to sport when they’d first met. Perhaps demanding answers had been a bad idea, this really looked like a difficult topic….

Before she could apologize for being nosy and causing distress to the man, Grimmjow suddenly starts chuckling under his breath, before it turns into a full blown, manic laughter, loud enough to startle her and make her jump. The way he turns to glare at Ichigo now makes Rukia’s hand unconsciously shift to her zanpakuto hilt, but Yoruichi quietly tells her to stay put, watching Grimmjow closely.

"It’s always the same fuckin’ story with this asshat! Always! Doin’ that to me TWICE. Fucking hell sometimes I still wanna kill you, asshole!”

Rukia blinks, suddenly noting he sounded….odd. Older. It was only for a split second though, as the man shakes his head and sharply turns his entire body away from them again, cursing under his breath as sparks of blue lightning still dance around his body.

"….Jeagerjaquez, perhaps you should step outside to take a breath.”

Urahara tells him calmly, and the blunet marches off without a word, leaving Rukia standing there utterly flabbergasted by what she’d just witnessed. What the hell had that reaction even been about? Why had he sounded strange for a second? She now had even more questions than answers after that exhange, and it was quite frustrating.

"My, wasn’t that exciting?”

”Exciting?! Kisuke you fool, his power lashing out could’ve caused damage! You should’ve at least told him to have this chat outside!”

Yoruichi scolds the man, but Rukia shakes her head, stating this was her fault; she’d pushed into a topic that clearly wasn’t any of her business.

"No, it is only understandable you’d want to know, and clearly he was willing to tell you about it. Supposedly I can see why; you were the person Ichigo went so far as to risk his life for, so in his mind you must be worthy enough in some way. This conversation would've probably been better left at a time where Kurosaki wasn't knocked out like this though.”

Yoruichi tells her calmly - what did she even mean by ’worthy?’ - now pacing to sit her cat butt down next to Urahara, observing Ichigo shift in his sleep closely; the glow of the orange bubble was reflected from her yellow cat eyes, making them look almost blazing.

"So he just punched you and then left? Wow that is strange.”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh and spins around in his chair, glaring at nothing in particular poutily. He had no idea what was going on, why that asshole was suddenly avoiding him after that night; it wasn’t like he hadn’t socked him in the jaw before. Once his chair does a full 360, Ichigo is back face-to-face with Tatsuki sitting at his bed, arms crossed over her chest with an unhappy frown crossing her brow. She and Jack didn’t exactly always get along, but she didn’t really mind their friendship.

"Have you tried calling him?”

"I did! I even went to see his aunt and uncle, but they said he wasn’t home. Something’s up I just know it, and that asshole is not telling me what I did wrong!”

"I doubt you did anything Ichigo, from what you described he had some sort of bad dream and left after that.”

"He’s had those before! It was never this bad….”

Ichigo huffs and slams his head against his desk, extremely frustrated by all of this. All he’d been able to think about for the past couple of weeks was the strangely freaked out look Jack had had before he’d suddenly just left without saying a word. He’d NEVER seen him scared like that, anytime he’d apparently had a ’shit dream’ he’d just acted nonchalant about it. Hell, even after waking up from those he’d just been staring at nothing with a blank look.

His aunt had explained to Ichigo once it was some sort of sleep disorder, giving him vivid dreams. Had he had a particularly bad fit that night? If so, why was he now avoiding Ichigo?

"Maybe you should demand from them to at least explain why he’s avoiding you. If you did fuck up, it’s hard to apologize when you don’t know what is going on.”

Tatsuki did have a point, he just didn’t feel like doing that, Jack’s relatives gave him weird vibes. Not like bad weird, but they definitely seemed like an odd couple in the truest sense of the word, so Ichigo doubted he’d get any answers from them.

As silence mounts between them, Tatsuki eventually huffs and gets off the bed, glancing outside; the sun was setting slowly, coloring the sky in brilliant warm hues. It kind of pissed Ichigo off how pretty the weather looked, it should be cloudy and moody to match how he felt damn it!

"Alright Ichigo, get up.”

Tatsuki literally drags him off the chair and towards the door, making the ginger struggle against her strong grip confused, asking what the hell was she doing.

"We’re going to see Urahara’s. You’ve been moping about this for far too long by now, and it’s getting too pathetic to watch. I’ll go with you so we can demand some answers. You can BET those two won’t be able to weasel their way out of it when I’m with you!”

Tatsuki gives him an encouraging smirk, and Ichigo sighs defeated, letting her drag him outside, quickly telling the confused Yuzu at the kitchen that she’d borrow Ichigo briefly.

"Oh, are you two going on a date?”

His sister asks predictably with sparkles in her eyes, gaining a snort from Tatsuki who almost kicks him out of the door as soon as he got his shoes on.

"No, he has a ’date’ with a certain Jackass who’s been avoiding him like plague, and I’m done watching this idiot mope!”

"Oh, okay. Say hi to Jack from me Ichi-nii!”

"Sure…”

Ichigo barely manages to respond before Tatsuki closes the door behind them and drags him away from the house into the sunset outside.

They walk across the street in silence for a while, with Ichigo wondering if this was a good idea. Tatsuki was scary yeah, and Yoruichi-san clearly respected her, but he still doubted they’d tell them much; his aunt and uncle had always been incredibly cagey about Jack’s condition or family for that matter. Sometimes Ichigo wondered if something bad had happened to them. He also still couldn’t stop but wonder if he had done something wrong after all….

"…..I….I don’t know if we should do this.”

"Oh C’mon Ichigo, since when were you a coward?”

Tatsuki looks back at him sounding genuinely baffled, and yeah, his hesitance was probably out of character. Ichigo Kurosaki was many things - a delinquent punk who was really good at school, a walking freakshow thanks to his hair - but not a coward.

"What if I did do something wrong?”

"And? Then you apologize. I doubt so based on what you told me though.”

Tatsuki did have a point, it wasn’t likely he’d have fucked up somehow that night; whatever Jack had dreamed about was probably the reason he’d left, but…why was he avoiding him even now? There was a nagging feeling at the back of Ichigo’s head that he now couldn’t shake, but…

They had stopped walking now having reached the nearby park that was a good shortcut to the store Jack’s aunt and uncle lived, and Tatsuki turns to face him properly, hands on her hips. He could tell from her expression she knew what he was thinking, he’d blurted this out to her once a while back.

"….Ichigo. I doubt its that.”

"But what if it is? What if he figured it out, and now hates my guts?”

The more he thought about it, the more anxious it was starting to make him. It was an odd feeling, Ichigo was not used to it; since his mum had died, he’d toughened himself up, refusing to get scared or anything to protect his baby sisters, but…

"It’d explain this right? People who are against stuff like that cut others out from their lives when they find out.”

Tatsuki huffs out a near scolding sounding sigh, dramatically grasping his shoulders and giving him a little shake, calling him an idiot for the umpteenth time that week.

"Remember when he stole some liquor from his uncle and dared you to try it, and you both got totally wasted?”

"Yeah. Never seen old man that serious. I think he was actually mad at me for a change. Or well, Jack and his uncle.”

"You told me you discreetly asked him about this topic, right? Remember what Jack told you that time.”

Ichigo thinks back on that time, but clearly it was taking too long to recall the memory as Tatsuki gives him another irritated shake, before letting go and placing her hands right back on her hips, staring down at him like he was the most frustrating dumbass she’d ever met.

"He literally said, that it’s none of his business who someone wants to fuck. As long as its not forced, he doesn’t care.”

"I mean….yeah but. It might be different when it is about him.”

Ichigo points out, and Tatsuki seems to lose some of her confidence, because yeah, Ichigo had a point. She shakes her head after a moment however, offering her hand to Ichigo.

"....Well, only one way to find out; it’s better to know what’s going on, than painting demons at the walls like this, right? If it is a problem for him, then at least you’ll know. I’ll deck that asshole if he tries anything okay? You know I can do it!”

The determination shining in her eyes was admittedly encouraging; yeah if shit got really bad, Tatsuki would have his back no matter what. She was also rarely wrong about these things, so maybe it wasn’t that anyway, maybe they were still fine and Jack was just being a dumbass over something again. Wouldn’t have been the first time.

"I don’t think his aunt and uncle would approve of you throwing him around though…”

"Oh hush, those two like me. They’d gladly let me kick his ass any time of the day.”

Ichigo let’s out a laugh at that, because she wasn’t wrong; Jack’s aunt especially had taken a liking to Tatsuki the moment they’d met. His friend ruffles his hair playfully and tells him they better get moving before it gets completely dark, and Karin would come hunt him down with a broom to shoo him back home. The mere thought makes Ichigo shudder, as it sounded like something his sister would do. So, the pair heads into the park, with Tatsuki promising she’d heckle the old sandal-hat until he’d let them talk with Jack if he’d initially try to refuse.

However, as the sun goes down and they reach the nearest bridge that crossed the river, a familiar figure catches their attention, making Ichigo freeze on his tracks. A familiar blue haired figure was standing on the bridge, leaning against the railing and smoking – he’d told him not to do that multiple times, that there were better ways to calm his nerves, but the stubborn asshole always just waved him off.

"Oh! We’re in luck, c’mon Ichigo!”

Tatsuki points towards the bridge, and before Ichigo could turn on his tail and run, she drags him there, either not having noticed his silent panic, or was ignoring it to have this whole situation solved. As soon as they reach the bridge, Jack lifts his gaze to look up at them, looking kind of surprised to see Tatsuki marching his way, dragging Ichigo behind her.

"….The fuck are you doin’ Arisawa?”

"You two need to talk! Ichigo has been driving himself mad about you avoiding him, hell, he’s been driving ME mad!”

Tatsuki now pushes Ichigo in front of her, with the ginger shoving her off with a grumble, telling her he could’ve walked there on his own. He sucks in a deep breath and slowly, turns to look at his friend. Immediately, he could tell something was off; Jack was very pale, indicating he’d perhaps been sick again. Was that the reason he’d been avoiding him? If so why didn’t his aunt and uncle just tell him Jack was sick?

"…..What the hell happened to you?”

He finally blurts out, examining his friend’s face closely. Shit he looked really awful, last time he’d been this pale, Ichigo hadn’t seen him for months.

"Are you….are you sick again?”

Jack takes a drag from his cigarette, pointedly avoiding his eyes. It was weird, he didn’t seem to be happy to see Ichigo, which made his heart sink a little.

"C’mon, what’s going on Jack? If you are, why didn’t they tell me?”

"Look, Kurosaki. I’m really not on the mood to talk with you.”

"You could at least tell me what’s going on! You---you’ve never just fucked off like that! Each time you got sick Urahara-san at least told me about it! Now they’ve been very cagey about you!”

Ichigo dares to grasp his shoulder, noting Jack instantly goes stiff under his touch, then actually shoves him back without warning, eyes blown wide. He looked like a deer caught in headlights, and Ichigo pulls his hand back, feeling his earlier doubt and anxiety come back. What if….

"Jack, whatever it is, Ichigo deserves to know. He’s been worried sick about you!”

Tatsuki pipes in sounding puzzled, the frown on her face indicating she found his behavior strange as well. Jack wasn’t really the type to be this tense and jumpy normally, let alone react so negatively to being touched. By Ichigo that is, as soon as Isshin or Urahara would try to ruffle his hair or something, he damn near would try to chomp their fingers off.

Eventually, that strange look from his eyes vanishes, replaced by the usual stubborn defiance, the kind of look he’d give when Jack didn’t want to do what was asked of him. He snorts and takes another drag from his cigarette, before dropping it to the ground and stomping on it. He slips his hands back into his pockets, glaring at Ichigo with very familiar annoyed arrogance. The kind that told you he was looking down on you, but he’d never really done that to Ichigo, not since they were kids….

"I don’t hafta explain this dumbass anything. T’s not my problem he’s gonna freak out over every little thing that happens.”

Ichigo feels his temper flare now, glaring back at Jack as his blood pressure rose slowly.

"Are you fucking---You suddenly wake up from some nightmare, punching me in the jaw in the process, run off back home without explanation, then AVOID ME for two weeks!? That’s not a ”little” thing Jack! That’s fucking WEIRD from you!”

"Maybe I just didn’t feel like hearing you bitch about my bad habits for a while.”

Jack comments with a snort, digging his ear clearly disinterested in this conversation. Seriously, what the fuck was his problem suddenly? Why was he being so cagey too, what did he do? What happened?! Ichigo steps closer without really thinking, grabbing his jacket collar to glare up at him with the intensity of a pissed off Karin – it was truly a scary sight from his experience, but it didn’t seem to do much to Jack, whose blue eyes just looked back at him with a blank look, apart from the slight lift eyebrow.

"I know you can be a stubborn asshole, but you could AT LEAST be honest with me and tell me what the fuck happened?! Is this some sort of pride thing again? You don’t want to tell me because its embarrassing?”

"Oh fuck off!”

Jack finally snaps and shoves him back again, a hint of familiar anger entering his gaze again. That blankness had admittedly been a bit eerie, it was unlike the normally expressive, stupidly charming eyes Jack had. Even when he was glaring daggers at Ichigo, he always founds those eyes pretty, though he’d be caught dead ever admitting such sappy ass bullshit out loud. Jack would for sure kill him for even attempting to say that.

"You’re not my parent or babysitter Kurosaki, I don’t have to tell you anything!”

"You kinda do when you first insist on hogging MY bed, then PUNCH me in the jaw AND ditch without an explanation!”

His voice was cracking slightly as he yelled – curse you puberty – and Ichigo finds himself reaching for Jack again, though this time he gets stopped by a hand grabbing his wrist, blue eyes glaring down at him with that same pissed off look. There was something else there too, that tension he’d seen earlier when they’d first made their presence known to him. Jack clearly didn’t want to be in this situation right now for whatever reason....

”I had a bad dream, you were dumb enough to try and wake me up, that’s all. It’s not a big deal.”

Ichigo manages to pry his wrist off Jack’s grip, noting it had bruised quite badly. It hadn’t really even felt like he was squeezing that hard….?

Ignoring his injury, Ichigo just glares back at him, incredibly frustrated of just how dismissive Jack was being about all this. Sure he’d always been bit of an ass, but he tended not to act like this when Ichigo worried about him usually. Hell, each time he’d gotten sick, he’d told his aunt and uncle to let Ichigo know he wouldn’t be around for a while…

"Then why did you run off, looking like the devil was chasing you?”

There was a hint of something in his eyes, something Ichigo couldn’t really discern. Jack doesn’t show his reaction otherwise, just offers him a wry, lopsided grin.

"Maybe yer ugly mug was too freaky to handle first thing you wake up.”

"Fuck you! We both know that’s not it!”

"What? That you face’s ugly? Ever looked in the mirror Kurosaki, that scowl can give ghosts nightmares.”

It wasn’t a new insult, he’d heard it before from Jack. It was always said playfully without any real meaning behind it, but now...now it somehow hurt a bit more, and Ichigo finds himself back away slightly, feeling a sting in his eyes. This had been such a bad idea. Jack clearly didn’t want to talk to him, but he just didn’t know why, and it was driving Ichigo up the wall crazy.

What happened, what did he do!?

Did….did he find out, and…..?

"….Why can’t you just tell me what the fuck did I do?”

"Huh?”

Jack dares to look confused at that, and Ichigo gestures vaguely into the air, frustrated by this whole conversation. He could also feel Tatsuki’s concerned gaze on his back, she’d chosen to stay quiet for now and let them talk this out, but clearly it wasn’t going like she’d expected. Hell, for someone usually very direct and blunt, Ichigo hadn’t expected this behavior either.

"Why else would you avoid me? I must’ve pissed you off somehow, just tell me what was it! This is fucking childish!”

"It’s not----ah fucking hell Kurosaki, I am NOT in the mood right now.”

Jack rubs his eyes irritated, then suddenly turns his back to them, clearly intending on leaving and escaping this situation for now. He should’ve just let him do that, he really should have. But Ichigo was the dumbest fucking idiot on planet earth, so instead he ran after Jack, managing to knock him to the ground on his back. Blue eyes look up at Ichigo in shock as the ginger grabs his collar again, yelling at his face unable to help himself.

"You’re the most stubborn, frustrating asshole I’ve EVER met, I’ve spent sleepless nights thinking about you, if you’re okay or if something worse happened, and you brush ALL of it off like it means nothing! Since when were you too much of a coward to tell me what the fuck is going on!? You were always the type to ABSOLUTELY tell me to my face if I fucked up, and find it fucking FUNNY!”

He shakes Jack lightly, feeling tears start to prickle down his cheeks, ah fuck.

He REALLY didn’t want to start bawling, it was just...just….

"I--I don’t even….why the fuck I like you so much, you’re such an asshole! Of all people, why did it have to be YOU!?”

His chest was heaving now, and Ichigo lifts one hand to rub his eyes, hating how he’d started to bawl like some damned toddler, it was embarrassing. Jack just stares at him completely blank faced, as if having not fully comprehended what he’d just said. Might as well rip the bandage off now that he’d blurted that out, huh.

"Yeah, you heard me. Stupid fucking asshole, I like you. More than I should clearly. Is that why you stopped talking to me? Because you found out, and it made it weird? If so just TELL me instead of ghosting me like some coward, goddamnit!”

Ichigo’s whole body was shaking now, his hands clutching the jacket collar Jack was wearing so hard his knuckles were about as pale white as Jack’s face was currently – his illness had to be acting up too right now, he wasn’t this pale typically – and for a moment everything around them was utterly silent, as Jack just stares up at him blankly, the moon that had now risen above reflected in his blue eyes.

It was such bullshit, an asshole jackass like this didn’t deserve having pretty eyes like that, it pissed Ichigo off so much.

Then, Jack suddenly shoves him off himself, actually kicking him in the gut hard, making Ichigo stumble and crash against a nearby tree. The impact knocks all air from his lungs, and for a moment he is seeing stars. He could hear Tatsuki yell at Jack for that, before rushing to check on him.

"You...You CAN’T BE FUCKIN’ SERIOUS!”

Jack suddenly spats out as he finally staggers up to his feet, the kind if intense fury blazing in his eyes Ichigo had never seen, and neither had Tatsuki. She actually stands up to shield Ichigo now, but it didn’t seem like Jack was even aware of her presence, just glaring at the ginger scrambling up behind her, his heart sinking right into his stomach.

"Of all things….today...OF ALL THINGS HOW FUCKIN’ DARE YOU!?”

He actually now charges at them clearly intent on picking a fight – that wide bloodthirsty grin was very terrifying when it was aimed at you – and Tatsuki quickly blocks him with her karate skills, loudly telling him to back off. She was clearly a bit shocked by his reaction. Tatsuki must’ve genuinely thought this wouldn’t happen.

"Get outta my face Arisawa!”

"I’m NOT letting you beat Ichigo over this!”

What happens next was even more unexpected, namely because Ichigo had NEVER seen him do that before.

Jack actually throws her aside with unnatural ease, making her impact hard against the bridge railing, hard enough to make her hit her head. Ichigo watches in shock as she slumps to the ground, holding her head that was now bleeding. She looked up at Jack shocked as well now – and afraid. Nobody had ever managed to throw her like a rag doll so easily before, not even Jack. He was strong, but he’d never actually won a fight against her before, unless…

Unless he’d been holding back like crazy.

The aforementioned man was heaving now, and Ichigo could recognize the signs of a fit caused by his illness; clearly he was exerting too much energy right now, and would likely pass out or something if he didn’t calm down. As Ichigo calls out for his name however, the blue eyes snap back at him, and...they looked strange. As if he wasn’t really looking at him right now….?

"Ja–”

The blunet suddenly roars and charges at him, forcing Ichigo to dodge and protect himself. He watches in shock as jack actually breaks the tree he’d leaned against with just a punch, before chasing after him like a vicious animal trying to catch it’s prey.

Oh, something was BADLY wrong, this couldn’t just be him being disgusted by the idea of Ichigo having a thing for him, right?

It almost felt like some sort of switch was flipped in his brain, turning Jack into a rabid beast that now wanted to murder him for some reason. Ichigo manages to block a punch aimed at his head, but he could instantly tell much more force was used than usual.

Was Jack always this strong?

He attempts to call out to him again, but nothing seemed to go through. It was like the person he’d known was gone, replaced by some sort of mindless beast.

It was all becoming a horrific, blurry nightmare; all he’d wanted was to just know if he was okay, and now for some reason, his best friend was trying to kill him. Ichigo barely manages to block and dodge the attacks, until one hit manages to land, knocking him to the ground bleeding from his nose. Jack was standing before him still panting, looking like an absolute mess. There was blood on his face, and Ichigo slowly realizes it was likely his. He couldn’t see even a hint of the Jack he knew on those murderous, blank eyes, it was as if he was possessed by something that harbored intense hatred for him.

Suddenly, there was a yell and moments later Tatsuki appears, managing to kick him away from Ichigo, though she collapses to the ground as soon as she does so, her severe head injury still affecting her.

"T-Tatsuki...”

STOP! What the hell are you doing!? This is NOT worth doing all this Jack!”

Tatsuki yells at the blunet, who scrambles up from the ground, now holding his head with a pained expression. His eyes however, started to shift into something more familiar – and they seemed….scared….?

"Arisawa, get outta here.”

"I will NOT let you hurt Ichigo! I THOUGHT you were better than this!”

Jack doesn’t respond, just holds his head with both hands, letting out a pained sounding groan, perhaps the hit from Tatsuki had caused him a concussion or something, as Ichigo couldn’t see any blood that wasn’t from him.

"If he’d kept his mouth SHUT none of this would’ve happened!!”

Jack growls right back at her, and Ichigo swallows down hard; so that was it? His worst fear had been true after all. Jack did care about the fact he liked him, and hated the idea so much he’d rather...rather…

"YOU said to Ichigo you don’t care about who someone likes! YOU lied to him!!”

For a split second, Jack seems confused by her enraged, teary eyed words, but it is quickly replaced by another pained groan, and something in the air made Ichigo’s hair stand up to an end, watching Jack struggle. Something was...something was going on…

"G-get outta here, now!”

"I’m not letting you just--”

"Tatsuki I-I think something’s wrong!”

Just as Ichigo says that, Jack suddenly charges at her with an animalistic sounding growl, and Tatsuki is unable to block him from throwing her aside again, clearly viewing her as a mere small obstacle in between him and his actual prey – Ichigo. The ginger manages to get up and block the punch aimed at his head, noting Jack’s face had once again gone kind of blank despite the angry sneer.

Everything around him blurs again, as if adrenaline in his body forced him to only focus on the bare minimum; trying to stay alive.

At some point, they end up close to the ledge of the river.

Second later, his world suddenly shifts, as they both fall into the water, the current quite rapid at that spot. Ichigo panics at first, struggling to orient himself in the water, but eventually finds himself breaking the surface with a loud gasp, coughing out the water in his lungs. He looks around in a panic, trying to find the familiar patch of blue hair; he eventually spots him further ahead, sinking to the bottom of the river.

Ichigo swiftly sucks in a deep breath, diving down to grab the limp figure, somehow managing to drag him to the surface despite how heavy he was with soaked clothing, swimming towards the shore nearby. There was blood around them in the water, and Ichigo could tell it wasn’t all coming from him anymore.

Once he manages to drag him to the shore, Ichigo calls out for him, but gains no response.

"J-Jack….?”

Silence.

Slowly, Ichigo turns him over, realizing to his horror that the blood he’d seen….it was coming from a deep gash on his neck.

Not to mention, his head was….that angle wasn’t….

He wasn’t breathing.

"J-Jack, No!”

Ichigo shakes the lifeless body, refusing to accept what he was seeing. It couldn’t be, it couldn’t-- How had this happened? What had hit him to slash his neck like that?

How could this happen

How could this happen!?

..................

It was his fault….

.........................

”Ichigo, are you----”

Tatsuki goes dead quiet as she reaches them, just covering her mouth in shock as she realizes.

Ichigo grasps his head now, tugging on his hair probably hard enough to pull off some strands. He didn’t really feel it, as static rings in his ears. He was starting to feel nauseous, the stench of blood entering his nostrils so strongly he wanted to throw up.

"I didn’t….I….I….”

He couldn’t tell if he was laughing or crying, his whole body was shaking with shock, and he shakes the body again, trying to get him to wake up.

He didn’t wake up.

He didn’t wake up.

He wouldn’t wake up.

"Ichigo….w-we should….”

A chill runs down his spine, and Ichigo looks up, suddenly feeling like they were being watched. Was it a ghost? He hadn’t seen any nearby….

Yet, there was...something big….looming behind her…

"Tatsuki!”

Just as he yells out a warning, an unseen force seems to swipe her off her feet, and Tatsuki let’s out a panicked yell, struggling against whatever was holding her. Ichigo stands up and tries to see what the hell it was, picking up a fallen tree branch from nearby. It was just a silhouette, but a big one, and whatever this thing was, it felt sinister.

Tatsuki was currently seemingly kicking the thing’s head, and Ichigo quickly lunges to smack whatever was holding her in the air. He couldn’t see it exactly, but knew it was there. A pained, inhuman yelp echoes from somewhere and Tatsuki falls to the ground for the third time that night. She doesn’t get up however, just staring into the air with a horrified expression. Whatever it was, she could see it right now. Ichigo flings the branch at whatever the thing was, managing to hit it in the head.

The looming figure turns to face him – or at least seemed to – and Ichigo could vaguely hear a voice talking to him, though…

Something suddenly strikes him on his shoulder while another thing wraps around his body, and moments later he is whisked into the air instead, the image of whatever was attacking them slowly becoming clearer. It was….some sort of giant, white monster with a bony mask and tentacles, one of them having a sharp spike in it, likely the one that had struck his shoulder. Ichigo also realized now why Tatsuki was paralyzed; his body was struggling to move as well, indicating the spike thing had some sort of paralysis poison in it.

"W-What the hell are you!?”

Ichigo manages to blurt out, as the thing just opens its massive jaw, a gleeful voice emanating from somewhere within the gaping darkness.

"I’m gonna eat chu now, tasty huuuman!”

Ichigo struggles to escape, earlier adrenaline still pumping in his blood, but it did little to resist the paralysis this creature, whatever the hell it was, had caused. Was this it? After killing someone he cared about, his punishment was to be eaten by a weird monster….

Then, there was a familiar spark of energy in the air, something he recognized from childhood. Moments later, something big and blue flashes past him, attacking the creature holding him up. It drops Ichigo to the ground with a loud, pained shriek, making him roll back down to the riverbed uselessly, ending up next to Jack’s lifeless body, eyes still staring ahead with no life in them.

Ichigo still couldn’t move, all he could do was stare ahead at the corpse, while hearing the disgusting noises of something big being torn apart by something else.

The nausea was back, and he desperately wanted to turn his head away, but couldn’t. The paralysis was too strong. He could taste bile in his mouth, and for a moment, Ichigo feared he was going to choke on his own vomit.

Something glowing appears above him, a limb blocking his view of Jack’s corpse. It was glowing so brightly he couldn’t tell if it was human or animal, all he could tell was it had sharp, bloodied claws. Something struck his chest, and Ichigo feels his body convulse, finally able to move and turn his back to the body, vomiting out whatever was stuck in his throat. He coughs and hacks, the bile stench mixing with the sharp smell of blood, and his head was spinning like crazy, his heart still beating rapid enough that he feared it’d jump out of his chest.

Whatever was lurking above him, it suddenly slams him back against the ground, an animalistic growl echoing in the air. His vision was too blurry to make out too much – and the glow was very bright – but somewhere within all that, he could catch a glimpse of familiar blue eyes. There were now claws digging into his chest, hard enough to draw blood.

"I-I’m sorry Jack, I didn’t---”

The figure’s growl was cut off mid-sentence, as something suddenly seems to hit it, a glowing ball of orange. As soon as the figure above him disappears, all Ichigo could see was darkness. His body felt very heavy and sluggish too, almost if the river they’d fallen into had decided to swallow him whole again. He’d deserve it at this point, he’d caused this.

If only he hadn’t gotten aggressive, maybe...maybe he would’ve been better off.

If he’d just kept his distance, they could’ve cut contact without this.

If only he’d shut up and gone away, jack would be–he would---

...............Wait.

Wait a second.

That makes no sense.

Ichigo snaps his eyes open, finding himself floating in darkness somewhere, and ahead of him was a figure.

It was him, the bloody, injured, covered in blood and vomit version of him from that night.

Right, he hadn’t actually passed out, he’d just been paralyzed by shock. Yoruichi-san and Tessai had helped him get up and carried him to their place, as well as Tatsuki who’d slipped unconscious. Dad had come there too, and then, after they were patched up….they’d spoken something about a ritual….

"If I’d just...it’s my fault.”

Ichigo looks back at the hollow, blank expression of his younger self, clearly traumatized by what had just happened, what he had just seen. Those were the memories they’d been hiding from him, Ichigo realized, the memories he’d been warned about.

"It’s my fault, he died because of me, because I–-”

"No.”

Ichigo cuts his younger self off, forcing down the desperation and guilt oozing out from him, trying to force him into the same state of horrific guilt and shock as well. It was incredibly difficult to resist, for those emotions, that feeling from that night, it was all so visceral Ichigo forces himself to just breathe for a moment, trying to force back the nausea and desire to curl up under a rock and die.

No, that wasn’t it.

He knew things his past self didn’t.

"He didn’t die that night. He was a spirit to begin with. His gigai just broke again, it was...it was clearly gonna do it soon anyway.”

Ichigo speaks as calmly as he could, opening his eyes to look at his blank faced younger self. Seeing the state he’d likely been that night from third person...yeah. No wonder they’d wanted to wipe his mind about all this, he looked absolutely horrible. Hell, he felt horrible, and it was only the knowledge he had that his past self didn’t, that he could resist the hysteria trying to sink its claws into him.

"He got mad because I confessed. Because he hates that I….”

"No. I mean. If he hated you – me – for that, he wouldn’t have come back, right? He would’ve stayed the fuck away from me. He didn’t.”

It was weird, whatever was happening. He was reasoning with himself, essentially trying to explain his own memories to him with the new context he had gained since then. Some sort of self-reflective therapy or whatever.

"But he tried to kill me after I said it.”

"...I don’t know exactly why the hell he got so mad, but...I think he must’ve lost control somehow? He was already clearly sick, meaning his gigai was breaking down. Last time it happened, he did attack me too. He even….yeah, he told Tatsuki to leave! He was trying to warn us!”

His younger self was now looking at him confused, that blankness slowly starting to fade from his eyes. he was getting through to him - to himself. he was somehow managing to calm himself down, by reminding himself of what he now knew....

"He even told me earlier, that its not what it seems. He must’ve meant this. He didn’t get mad about the confession itself, it was something else that triggered this.”

”.....But what......?”

His younger self asks, and Ichigo remains quiet, because he didn’t know either.

However, he had a hunch.

This all had started after Grimmjow’s nightmare. It had to relate to whatever nightmare – or rather, a flashback – he’d had that night. There were voices echoing in the air now, and Ichigo looks up towards the light above, realizing he was standing in that crater he’d found earlier. As he looks back down, his past self was gone, replaced by what were the ruins of that gate, slowly fading into dust.

"Oh. I see what happened now.”

That was all he could say, before turning to look back up towards the old man and Shiro, looking down at him. Zangetsu let’s out a thoughtful hum, before nodding faintly. slight hint of pride in his old man eyes.

"It seems you have overcome another internal hurdle, Ichigo.”

Shiro just nods as well, uncharacteristically quiet. The ginger doesn’t ponder on it too much right now though, feeling the waking world pulling on him to go back.

Chapter Text

Waking up, the first thing that registered to Ichigo’s brain was some quiet talking on the background. That was until a voice suddenly yells loudly right next to him, making Ichigo reflexively grab and shove away whoever was assaulting his poor ears.

"Ow, what the heck Ichigo?!”

The ginger blinks couple of times to clear his vision, eventually being met with…his own face staring back, currently rubbing his nose poutily.

Ah, Kon.

"Why….why the hell were you yelling right….at my ear dumbass?”

"Oh s-shut up! You’ve had us worried the entire night and day!”

"Huh?”

Ichigo looks around, noting it seemed to be late afternoon. Had he been out for that long? He was currently resting on a bed in what he recognized was a room in Urahara’s house. Ja—Grimmjow’s room to be exact. At least, Ichigo could now remember hanging out here occasionally back then….

"…..How long was I out?”

"I told you! Over a day! I had to go to class for you, they had a surprise algebra test! I hate algebra!”

Kon keeps bitching at him, but Ichigo just ignores his whining about math class for now, sitting up slowly to take in the familiar yet alien room. The furniture were still in the same spots, there were still books haphazardly stored away in the shelf, but lot of the other things he could recall were gone. Jac—Grimmjow had often had some random gadgets in his room he’d been tinkering with, Ichigo had no clue what those had been, but now he suspected they had been Urahara’s inventions of some sort - kid friendly ones that could keep him occupied so he wouldn't get agitated with his own thoughts and memories, as clearly that was dangerous judging from what he'd learned.

Some of those talismans he could remember seeing here before as well were still scattered around the walls, talismans he also realized he recognized from that cave room and laboratory. Right. they’d had them in his room too already, though Yoruichi had back then told him they’d been there to ’ward off’ his severe nightmares. He’d thought of it as some old people mumbo jumbo, he’d had no idea at the time she’d been truthful in a way.

There were some old photos on the walls, still, a few with him as a kid, one even including Ichigo in it. The fact Grimmjow had kept that, it made him feel strangely touched.

Ichigo could even still see that one panther plushy peeking from behind the wardrobe in the corner of the room that his mum had given to him that one time...

"Hey, Ichi! Are you listening to me at all!?”

Kon suddenly grabs his collar and shakes him, making Ichigo shove his face back annoyed, telling him to knock it off. Kon proceeds to bite his hand, and they grapple for a second, until his mod soul companion manages to wrap his arms around him, squeezing Ichigo tightly. The ginger just sort of freezes, realizing Kon’s shoulders were shaking.

"Y-you damn moron! W-we were so worried! Urahara-san said that this could—that the weird seal thing breaking could be dangerous!”

Oh, he was like, actually worried.

Ichigo pats his own body’s back awkwardly, reassuring Kon he was okay, just a bit dizzy. After grossly sniffing and wiping his face against Ichigo’s shinigami robes - he’d get back at the bastard for that later - Kon pulls back, wiping his eyes and glares at him like he was an utter moron. Before he could say anything further however, a looming figure appears on the doorway, and Kon freezes, his face growing pale as a sheet. Ichigo’s gaze drifts towards the door, and he quickly realizes why Kon was suddenly so freaked out.

Grimmjow just stood there, leaning against the doorframe with his hands in his pockets, hood tugged over his head. Right. Of course Kon would be scared of him, given that incident back at the bridge….

The bridge.

Images flash before his mind’s eye, and Ichigo has to close his eyes for a moment, holding his stomach as a bit of nausea starts to creep back up. Even though he knew better, Grimmjow was standing right there, that vision of his mangled body was still haunting his brain.

"…..Oi, Mod soul. If ya can’t give ’im his body back yet, fuck off will ya? He’s not in the clear yet n’ don’t need you yapping his ear off.”

Normally Kon would’ve likely protested loudly, but his fear of Grimmjow kept him quiet. He just looks back at Ichigo, who manages to crack an eye open at him, nodding faintly with a smile, telling his worried mod soul to go inform the others he was awake. Grimmjow steps in the room now, allowing Kon to get out without getting too close to him, watching him go before turning to look back at Ichigo, who was still holding his stomach, having closed his eyes again. He could hear the blunet walk across the room, eventually slumping to sit down nearby, probably the chair at his desk. He’d done his homework there at times as a kid, hadn’t he? With Grimmjow doing his best to be a nuisance and distract him.

"…Sandal-hat’s gotta check you over later just in case. That thing he put on yer brain was kinda experimental ta begin with.”

"Yeah. Being his guinea pig sounds about right. Of course I would've been one long before I knew it.”

Ichigo mutters out, sucking in a deep breath as he finally manages to open his eyes, looking up at his companion who was slouching lazily in his chair, hands still in his open hoodie pockets. The ginger couldn’t help but note he was looking pale again, which of course caused more flashes in his brain to the memories he’d just witnessed.

"T’s ’cause I had ta step in n’ save yer ass. This gigai didn’t like it. Hafta take it easy fer a while so stop gettin’ almost eaten by hollows yeah?”

"Wasn't this one supposed to be more durable, or something...?"

"Apparently not."

Grimmjow sounded very tired too, and Ichigo felt a sting of guilt in his chest now, though he couldn’t tell if it was from that comment, or the lingering feeling from those memories. They sit there in silence for a while, the sky’s warm hue outside growing more and more intense, as the sun was setting slowly. Wow, he truly had been out cold for an entire day huh?

"You probably wanna know what the fuck actually happened.”

"…..I….yeah. I do.”

Ichigo mutters out after a moment, biting his lip as he looks back at Grimmjow. He was still sort of trying to process everything, the new - or rather, old and unlocked - memories, and the emotions attached to them. The blunet remains silent for a while, before huffing out a tired sounding breath, lifting his hand to rub his eyes; he looked so tired Ichigo begun to wonder if this was the right time for such a conversation.

"….What do you think, currently, that it was? Just wanna know where yer at exactly with everything right now.”

Ichigo averts his gaze again, thinking back on the odd chat he’d had with his younger self.

"…..You….something about what I said set you off that night, and then….you lost control of your hollow side I’m guessing? Then…your….gigai broke, but you somehow got out to kill the other hollow that attacked me and Tatsuki….?”

He looks back at Grimmjow after a moment, almost dreading to look at the blunet in the eyes right now. It was kind of strange he felt so nervous, because it wasn’t like he felt fully connected to those memories yet, and still…. He could now vividly remember the worry he’d had over those thoughts and feelings back then, what his friend would really think about it. He’d probably been reading too many horror stories online about people’s reactions to things like that. How even those you thought would be fine with it, turned against you, sometimes violently.

"Yeah. I mean. Back then I didn’t fully understand what was going on either, but I did know, that when I started feelin’ weird and aggravated like that, bad shit happened. My gigai was about to give, n’ gettin’ so worked up was final nail in the coffin. There was nothin' I could fuckin' do about it at that point.”

Grimmjow shrugs, both of them briefly glancing towards the door as there was some commotion further away. No one enters the room however, perhaps they knew Grimmjow was there and wanted to give them a chance to talk. They had to know what kind of shit Ichigo had just witnessed after all.

"What d’you think set me off?”

Ichigo looks back at him, feeling that slight unease tug in his gut again. Clearly Grimmjow wanted him to say it out loud for whatever reason. Maybe just to confirm his own suspicions or something, or just to watch him squirm, honestly the ginger wasn’t sure about his intentions at the moment.

"….That I confessed? You got angry after I yelled at your face about it…”

He watches Grimmjow’s face cautiously, hating how anxious he felt about this; that memory and those emotions, he wasn’t even sure if he even felt that way anymore, as all of this was so new and fresh to him in a way, but still. The blunet eventually tilts his head slightly, an indication of a nod.

"It’s not for the reason you likely thought, as I said.”

While that answer was very cryptic, it did seem to ease the weird anxiety in his gut, even though he’d already deduced this was likely the case; if Grimmjow had a problem with him being gay - let alone gay for him, and oh fuck that sounded so cringy now when he thought about it - he probably wouldn’t be here, sitting in that chair talking to him.

"If you’d said that to me any other day before that night….”

He goes quiet suddenly and averts his gaze, his silence making Ichigo fidget awkwardly. It felt like the blunet was either considering his next words carefully, or wasn’t sure what he was going to say next, what he should say.

"….Well. Honestly I still wouldn’t have known how ta fuckin’ react, for similar reasons. But I wouldn’t have blown off the handle like that. Mainly ’cause I wasn’t a ticking time bomb back then.”

"You could’ve just told me to fuck off with that if you’re not interested. It’s okay, I can take a ’no.”

"The fuck you can, Kurosaki. You raided the goddamn Seireitei ’cause they told you ’no’ about this whole shinigami shit.”

"That’s different, Rukia was gonna die! In that situation only thing dying would’ve been my dignity.”

"Didn’t know you had any.”

Ichigo huffs and rolls his eyes at Grimmjow, then pauses as he realizes how familiar this whole thing felt. Even beyond their interactions since their initial ’first’ meeting. He looks back at Grimmjow whose face was twisted into a faint, amused grin, though it fades quickly as he shakes his head, brushing through his blue hair with a tired sigh.

"I had another dream that night. I went for a walk ’cause I was freaked out by it. Well, not that flashback by itself, but ’cause of the one I saw earlier when I dropped by to kick you off from yer bed.”

"The one you punched me in the jaw for?”

"Uh huh.”

"That was rude by the way.”

Grimmjow just rolls his eyes at him, before turning his gaze towards the window; the sky had now gone more reddish, it would soon be nighttime again. Ichigo didn’t really feel like going back to sleep, at least not right now. Maybe once he got back to his body though, he’d be knocked out cold, who knew.

"…..There was another Kurosaki.”

"…..What?”

Brown eyes blown wide, Ichigo looks back at Grimmjow shocked, although in hindsight he probably shouldn’t be. That world had had a Rukia, and an Urahara too after all…

"Yeah. Another you. Older, spikier with some horns and shit, but still a lot like you. My past self n’ him, we had a complicated history it turns out.”

Listening to him speak, it truly felt like Grimmjow felt very detached from those memories he was recounting. Much more so than how Ichigo felt about the ones he’d regained back. They did feel like his memories, not something that happened to someone else, but clearly for Grimmjow, it was different.

"I ain’t gonna sugarcoat this; I tried ta kill ’im, a few times. Don’t remember exactly why. Maybe his mug pissed me off, maybe it was some territorial Oni thing. Don’t matter.”

Grimmjow’s gaze lands back on him, and Ichigo wasn’t sure if he was expecting a strong reaction to that reveal or what. Yeah, maybe he should’ve reacted stronger, but given he’d just seen a memory where Grimmjow had tried to kill him - albeit not entirely voluntarily - it did dampen the effect of that reveal.

"That night, I saw a memory from one of those fights. Namely, one where I almost succeeded. The only reason that Kurosaki survived was thanks to that tengu lady steppin’ in and saving his ass.”

"Tengu….the other Rukia?”

"Uh-huh. Blew me away with her wind. Not really relevant. What matters is the fact that I didn’t fuckin’ know what all that was back then. Ta me, I’d just seen a nightmare of myself tryin’ ta kill someone I’d been friends with since we were brats. Someone who fer some reason insisted on sleeping next ta me instead of getting a futon that night.”

Ichigo’s eyes widen, as he suddenly gets it.

His reaction that night, waking up and seeing him bloody on the floor after such a dream, not knowing what it actually was….no wonder he’d ran and avoided him. Especially when, as he’d said earlier, Grimmjow had only known that he had ’seizures’ where he could hurt people…

"Yeah. I avoided you ’cause I was real fuckin’ scared about havin’ a fit like that around you or something at the time.”

Grimmjow says that very quietly, clearly not liking to admit he’d been afraid of something, but….hearing those words, all of his earlier anxiety seemed to melt away altogether. Grimmjow definitely didn’t hate his guts, he’d kept his distance because he did care, a lot.

"It probably would've been fine, Sandal-hat an’ Yoruichi woulda likely managed to snap me out of my paranoia eventually, but then…..”

"Then what?”

"I had another dream.”

"About another battle between you and that Ichigo?”

Much to his surprise, Grimmjow shakes his head slowly, his expression having gone blank again. He was just staring at the floor now, looking so tired Ichigo half expected him to fall asleep in his chair.

"….Let’s just say. Between those two flashbacks, I was missing a shitload of context, so seein’ that I freaked out even worse. I felt like I was goin’ insane or some shit. More so than usual.”

"So what was it about then?”

Ichigo was both insanely curious now, but also extremely concerned for Grimmjow; he was so pale, and that exhausted look reminded him too much about the state he’d seen him in when they’d first met. The blunet huffs out a curse under his breath suddenly, and then shifts to sit more upright, digging out his cigarette pack to light one. Ichigo doesn’t scold him for it now, understanding better that those weren’t normal smokes. A familiar sweet scent fills the air, things around them slowly growing darker as the sun set, until the main light coming into the room was the light on the hallway, and the street lamp outside shining through from the window.

"….Apparently. Between that murder attempt and what I saw that night, the relationship my past self had with that Kurosaki had shifted dramatically. I now recall more context so I know how the hell that happened, but back then, I had no idea. All I knew that one night, I dreamt of tryin’ to murder you for some reason, and the next time….well…”

He gestures vaguely at Ichigo, before bringing the cigarette back to his lips, taking a long drag from it. Ichigo almost wanted to ask him to lie down on the bed instead, he felt fine enough to get up, but refrains from talking for now.

"….Ah. I feel like…”

He suddenly gets up and paces to him, lifting his free hand away from his pocket, holding it over his head.

"It’d be easier ta show you.”

"You can do that?”

"Uh huh. Apparently memory sharing ’s something Onis can do. Or a King like me at least.”

Before Ichigo could give him a jab about that comment, his mind is suddenly whisked away elsewhere, his surroundings shifting as the room faded from view.

There was a red, old fashioned bridge ahead with torii-gates, crossing over a river with glowing blue flowers floating in the water current. Two figures were currently walking across it, and Ichigo could recognize one of them instantly from the vivid blue hair he was sporting.

He did look different from Grimmjow Ichigo knew though; even thinking back on the one he’d seen chained up in that cave that one time, this was different. This Grimmjow had no hollow hole or a mask on his cheek, just a black tattoo similar to the said hollow mask. He also seemed taller, and his hair was longer too. he even carried himself differently, with the kind of confident aura the current Grimmjow didn't quite have. Ichigo glances around, but couldn’t see the blunet anywhere; he was seemingly alone currently, witnessing this memory.

The pair were clearly drunk, and the Oni-Grimm currently had the slimmer figure in a playful choke hold, the other trying to shove him off without any real attempt being done. As they get closer, Ichigo’s eyes widen in slight surprise, even though he should’ve expected this. Grimmjow had told him after all.

Still.

It was fucking weird seeing yourself like that, sporting old fashioned fancy white and yellow robes, with bunch of small spikes sticking out of your head like some funky crown. This Ichigo was also clearly older than him too, his orange hair being much longer than his.

"Quit it already Grimm! Killing me when I’m drunk is an underhanded tactic!”

The Oni-Ichigo laughs, finally managing to push the cackling blunet off him, though it was clear this little scuffle wasn’t very serious. Grimmjow just flashes his companion an amused grin, and yeah, Ichigo could tell why his past self crushed on this asshole just from that. That smile was irritatingly charming. What’s more though, looking at his twin’s expression…

"What? Just makin’ sure yer sorry ass don’t fall into the river, yer clumsy as fuck even when sober.”

"Hardy har, I can swim, I’m not THAT drunk.”

"But you’ll bitch and moan if you get wet, fuckin’ princess.”

".....You do realize how that comment sounds, right?"

Grimmjow just flicks his forehead with an eye roll, calling him a pervert while clearly not really being that serious about it; the following pout from his oni twin was impressively similar to the expression Ichigo knew he could do as well. The pout doesn’t last long, and the pair stop at the bridge now, with Oni-Ichigo leaning against the railing now, watching the flowers float on water. Grimmjow in turn, chooses to climb on top of the edge instead, perching on it like an oversized bird - or a cat.

Watching them, it was difficult to imagine these two would’ve been lethal enemies at some point, which further made Ichigo see why Grimmjow would’ve freaked out about that other memory…

"Hey, Grimm?”

The Oni-Ichigo breaks the silence after a moment, gaining a lift eyebrow from the giant man-shaped cat with horns perched next to him. How did he manage to stay up there anyway? Grimmjow had an enviously good balance, he was jealous now.

"….Thanks for coming. I know you don’t enjoy being around people a whole lot, so I appreciate it.”

The blue haired demon snorts and rolls his eyes, somehow managing to ruffle Oni Ichigo’s hair without poking himself with those crown horns.

"You woulda not have left me alone if I didn’t. Yer a stubborn fucker, probably the main reason you’re still even alive given how much you attract danger.”

"I did attract you yeah. The kind of danger that won’t leave me alone, it's truly a massive problem.”

Oni Ichigo chuckles faintly, looking back towards the flowers floating in the water. Grimmjow was giving him a strange look now, but doesn’t say anything, just turns his gaze away. As Ichigo examines the pair, he suddenly starts to understand. His oni twin kept glancing at Grimmjow, he kept having that look in his eyes, and….oh.

Oh.

He knew where this was going, didn’t he?

If this was what Grimmjow had seen that night, and then that thing at the bridge had happened…

Grimmjow eventually shifts, now just sitting on the bridge ledge properly, dangling his bare feet over the water. His companion follows his example, though chooses to keep his legs towards the bridge instead, sitting the other way around. He was still glancing at Grimmjow, and Ichigo could tell that color on his demon doppleganger’s face wasn’t just alcohol. He looked like there was something he was trying to say, but was hesitating.

Ichigo knew what it was.

Clearly, Grimmjow was aware of his companion mulling over something, as the blunet eventually snorts and turns to look at Oni Ichigo annoyed.

"What? Spill it, I can literally hear yer overthinkin’ shit again.”

"You can share memories, not read minds.”

"The gears in your brain are so rusty they make shit ton of noise, Kurosaki. Hard not to hear all that.”

The ginger demon laughs at that, his reaction seemingly confusing his companion a little, the point he now grabs Oni Ichigo’s arm and threatens to throw him into the river if he didn’t explain what was so damn funny now. His companion eventually manages to stop laughing with a wheeze, now looking back at the pouty looking blunet, who was clearly still confused about his behavior.

"Yer way too drunk huh; never knew your stubborn ass was this lightweight.”

"Yeah, guess I am.”

Watching the pair, Ichigo felt uneasy now, suddenly having a feeling this wouldn’t end well for his twin. Obviously, this Ichigo had died, but beyond that…

Suddenly, his twin leans closer, clearly catching Grimmjow off-guard. The kiss doesn’t last long, and once his twin pulls back he had gone completely red, now averting his gaze and rubbing his neck sheepishly. Grimmjow had gone completely stiff, just like he’d done that night at that other bridge.

"S-sorry. I….uh.”

He seems to struggle for a moment to decide what to say, still avoiding the blue eyes staring at him. Grimmjow still hadn’t moved an inch, as if his brain had short circuited and he was struggling to process what just happened.

"….You know. You’re not as bad as I thought when we first met. And lately, I don’t know. I just….I like hanging out with you, when you’re not trying to kill me.”

Oni Ichigo chuckles sheepishly, still avoiding his gaze. Grimmjow now turns his head away, his face still unreadable, though the shock seemed to have faded. The atmosphere around the pair had shifted from the easygoing drunkedness to something much more tense and awkward, though Ichigo wasn’t sure if he was reading it that way, or if the emotion was attached to the memory itself.

"I’ve been thinking about that a lot. And….I-I don’t think its…”

Oni Ichigo swallows down hard now, finally daring to look up at Grimmjow. Seeing that uneasy look in his eyes, oh fuck he was scared too. It had clearly taken his twin a lot to bring this up, and so far, neither could tell what Grimmjow was thinking.

"I don’t think it’s friendly affection I’m feeling.”

Silence.

It felt like all the nature noises around them had ceased, though Ichigo doubted that had actually happened; Grimmjow just seemed to not recall the sounds around them at this point, perhaps. His twin kept examining Grimmjow’s face closely, trying to see what his reaction was. Ichigo felt his own heartbeat pick up, because he suddenly realized that no matter how this went, this memory was tragic given what happened later.

Finally, Grimmjow moves.

Wordlessly, he gets up and hops back to the bridge, not looking at his companion even once, before suddenly dashing off, disappearing into the forest while Oni Ichigo calls after him, looking dejected now. The outreached hand lowers as the memory begins to fade, and Ichigo looks at his twin’s face, feeling a pang on his chest.

Things around him turn completely dark now, and Ichigo breathes out a slow sigh, sad smile spreading across his face now.

"So you rejected him, huh? Did you maybe think...that this memory happened before the fight, and it was result of this...?"

The ease he’d felt earlier was now replaced with a certain kind of sadness, which was kind of stupid in a way; that hadn’t really been him, but also kind of had been, hadn’t it? This likely indicated that even if things hadn’t turned violent that night, Grimmjow would’ve probably still, well, told him to fuck off.

Well, it was what it was, he supposed.

Suddenly, Ichigo felt his hair stand to an end, and he looks around the darkness, wondering if there still was something about this memory Grimmjow was showing him. It didn’t feel similar though. It did feel like something was watching him, though…

There was something in the distance, a glowing white figure, slowly heading his way. Ichigo tenses lightly, as something about that figure felt...familiar, but also not quite. He watches as the unknown entity slowly walks closer….then suddenly starts to sprint, leaping towards him as if it was trying to attack.

"Oh shit!”

Ichigo turns to run, but before whatever the thing was managed to get to him, something slams it down to the ground hard enough that the entire setting around him shakes. Ichigo gets knocked off his feet, landing down face-first to the invisible floor, or whatever it was. As he pulls himself back up and looks back, he sees a bluish, familiar figure standing further back, one leg firmly pressing whatever the glowing white creature was – it looked like a big cat – down to the ground, trapping it.

"What the---”

"Get out. Kid.”

A familiar, but older, voice echoes around him, and the next moment, lights engulf and blind him.

Ichigo snaps awake to the sound of coughing, and he sits back up alarmed, watching Grimmjow now sitting on the floor next to the bed, coughing out blood. He instantly scrambles off the bed to crouch next to him panicked, asking if he was alright, while calling out to Urahara and others.

"Shit...even doin’ that was...too much huh?”

Grimmjow manages to mutter out once the fit subsides, staring at the bits of blood on his hand dully. He’d clearly gotten paler again as well, this wasn’t good. This gigai clearly wasn't as good as expected, or maybe his soul still wasn't as stable yet as they'd initially thought. It honestly didn't matter what the reason was, all Ichigo knew was that he was sick again.

"Why did you do that dumbass if you knew this was a potential risk?!”

Ichigo scolds him even as he helps the man stand back up, and lie down to his bed, now that Ichigo no longer needed it. He was still reeling from that memory he’d been shown, but right now he had more pressing matters to worry about. Tessai and Yoruichi appear in the room moments later, and Ichigo steps back, letting them check on him. After a moment, Tessai politely asks him to go fetch Urahara. The ginger doesn’t waste any time, asking where Sandal hat was.

"Downstairs laboratory.”

Ichigo nods and heads there, rushing past very confused looking Rukia, Renji and Ikkaku, who apparently were also present. Kon was with them too.

"Urahara! You need to come upstairs, Grimmjow is not doing great!”

He yells out as soon as he enters the laboratory, noting there was a blank, mannequin like white figurine inside the system now. Perhaps he was already making the next Gigai for Grimmjow. The former captain turns to look at him a bit surprised, but nods and gets up, walking almost annoyingly slow.

"Calm down Kurosaki-kun, I doubt it is that urgent.”

"He was coughing out blood.”

"My, what did he do?”

"Show me...a memory.”

"Ahh, I see.”

Urahara mutters out thoughtfully as they step back upstairs, then tells him to stay back for now to give them space to handle the situation. Ichigo watches the man disappear into Grimmjow’s room, his heart still hammering in his chest. The ginger was so agitated that he doesn’t notice his shinigami friends trying to talk to him, until Rukia snaps her fingers in front of his face.

"Ichigo! Are you alright, what happened?”

He finally looks back at the trio still sitting at the table staring at him confused, and Ichigo sucks in a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.

"I...He had a fit again.”

"Clearly. What about you? Are you okay? You still look pale.”

Rukia tells him even as she makes him sit down at the table with them, with Renji offering him some water. There was sake at the table too, but his friends likely understood giving him alcohol right after waking up probably wasn’t a good idea. Ichigo could’ve done with sake right now, but he just drinks down the water, trying to calm himself down. Kon was still examining him dubiously, and it really showed how concerned he was, that he was staying quiet for a change and not bitching at him. 

"…..I know everything now, what they made me forget.”

"Huh, wait what?”

Ikkaku blinks confused, and Renji looks at him baffled too. It occurs to Ichigo now, that outside his human friends and Kon, only Rukia knew about all this. The short woman waves them off, quietly telling the pair she’d explain later, before looking back at him, asking him gently if he wanted to talk about it. She could likely tell he was still shaken up from it all. Ichigo stares at his glass for a moment, before sighing and looking back at her.

"Well. He was telling the truth when he said what I thought at the time wasn’t true. That’s all I can say right now, as it’s….a lot.”

"Alright. We can talk about it later if you want. He already did give me some context earlier to be fair.”

Ichigo blinks surprised, but then just nods, sighing and grabbing the sake bottle. Yeah he was still technically not supposed to drink legally, but people in this house didn’t really care that much, and nobody would tell his dad, probably.

The image of that dejected, heartbroken version of him still haunted his mind.

Chapter Text

the next morning once he comes downstairs - Kon had brought his body back home and he’d finally entered back into it - Ichigo got quite an earful from his sisters, both having scolded him for worrying them. Neither knew exactly what was going on - unlike him, they didn’t seem to have any memories returned about ’Jack’ - but they knew enough that warranted an onslaught from Karin, broom and all included. Ichigo didn’t really have it in him to argue about it or defend himself, as it wasn’t like he’d wanted to worry his family, they had every right to be mad. Heck, even dad had been a bit upset with him, though he didn't attempt to scold him much, perhaps still feeling guilt over choosing to erase his memory to begin with. In a way, this was all his fault, the girls just didn't know it.

Eventually, Yuzu manages to hold Karin back enough to allow Ichigo to head out to school at least, though he had a feeling Karin wasn’t done yelling at him yet, judging from that huffing and puffing. Arriving there, he was greeted by Inoue and Tatsuki, both looking concerned which was understandable; Kon must’ve told them what was going on, when he’d shown up to school in Ichigo’s body. There was no way they wouldn’t have noticed.

"Are you alright, Ichigo?”

Tatsuki asks, and the ginger just sort of examines her closely for a moment, wondering if her memory of that night would also come back fully eventually. Her seal had clearly been bleeding as well after all, just not as dramatically as his.

"Earth to Ichigo, hello?”

He snaps out of it as Tatsuki waves a hand in front of his face, smiling sheepishly. Great, now they looked even more worried, he really wasn’t helping his case huh?

"Sorry. Uh. A long night. Two nights basically.”

"Yeah, we noticed. What the hell happened to you? Kon just said you got knocked out by a hollow!”

Ichigo glances around, but there weren’t any outsiders in sight currently. Classes would start soon however.

"I….I’ll explain after lunch alright? It’s a lot.”

The two girls glance at each other but then nod, understanding full well this wasn’t something you could casually discuss in the school hallway with dozens of other people around. Not that many would pay any mind to their chatter, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

”Kon behaved, right?”

”Uh huh. He was so worried about you he didn’t have it in him to do his usual shenanigans. Even passed the algebra test.”

Tatsuki explains, waving at Chad who was heading their way. Ichigo just nods, admittedly relieved to hear that; last time Kon had been unleashed on his poor unsuspecting classmates, well, the less said about it, the better. It took him weeks to shake off the weirdo window hopper reputation. Also, Ichigo admittedly felt even more bad now, hearing how severely Kon had been affected by this whole incident. Sure the mod soul could be annoying to deal with, and his shenanigans often caused Ichigo trouble, but he was still his friend.

"Hey big guy, what’s up?”

Ichigo greets Chad as he joins them to head inside, and his tall friend let’s out his usual thoughtful hum, clearly contemplating something right now.

"…..Who’s Jack?”

Ichigo blinks surprised, stopping on his tracks.

"Where did…?”

"Mmm….I feel like….that name is familiar. It’s been in my head since yesterday.”

Chad pauses, looking at him with a slightly curious expression, though it wasn’t the easiest to see with how his hair tended to hide his eyes.

"….Is that related to this mystery friend Oni-hollow of yours, that your memory was erased about?”

"….Yeah. Uh. About that. I remember everything now. I promised the girls to explain everything during lunchbreak.”

Chad just nods and gives him a thumbs up, not needing any further explanation for now. Ichigo really appreciated this about Chad honestly, because he still needed some time to process before he was ready to talk about it all. In fact, he admittedly hadn’t slept much last night, and the only reason you couldn’t tell was because of him having been knocked out for over 36 hours before that. He basically hadn’t really needed any sleep.

Out of all the new reveals, for some reason he’d fixated on the memory Grimmjow had shown him specifically.

Not just the ultimately tragic rejection given what had followed, but also…what had happened next, once the memory had faded. That clearly hadn’t been a part of it anymore, but something else. That something had tried to attack him, and Grimmjow - at least Ichigo thought it had been him - had stepped in to stop it. Yet, he hadn’t really commented on it at all once Ichigo awoke? It felt like such a bizarre thing to happen, and given he’d chosen to show that memory to him willingly, why would he then tell him to ’get out’ like he was invading?

…..Also why the hell was he calling him a kid all of a sudden….?

Then again, he’d been coughing up blood and shit, Grimmjow had clearly had bigger things to worry about at that moment than to explain himself even further. Ichigo hadn’t bothered to press him for any more answers after that point, given how bad it had looked. He hadn’t asked Urahara or others either, given they’d been busy stabilizing Grimmjow’s gigai.

……Maybe he should go and check on him after school today, because Ichigo was admittedly still worried.

Glancing at Tatsuki, Ichigo couldn’t stop but wonder though, how much should he reveal to her, given she’d been directly involved. It had to have been bad for her too, would she feel guilty, thinking the whole mess was her fault for dragging Ichigo there in the first place. He’d never blame her of course, but…

He’s snapped out of his thoughts abruptly as Keigo nearly tackles him to the ground, with Ichigo swiftly kicking him against the wall. The dumbass should’ve predicted that, but Keigo never learned did he?

"Ow! Is that how you greet your buddy Kurosaki? How mean!”

"Stop trying to tackle me like a maniac, and maybe you’ll get a normal one.”

Ichigo tells him dryly, swiftly heading for the class, ignoring the childish faces Keigo was aiming at him.

"Hey I just wanted to cheer you up! You seemed very down yesterday, barely even said hi to me!”

Ah, right. Kon.

"Felt a lil tired, that’s all. M’good now.”

Ichigo pats his head without looking, heading to sit down on his seat. He honestly wasn’t on the mood for english class - or any class for that matter - but he didn’t feel like skipping things either. It was his final year after all.

"You sure? I mean…you still seem a bit….distracted.”

Keigo points out, but Ichigo just flashes him an amused smile, calling him a mother hen.

"I’m good. Now go sit down before teach makes you take extra classes.”

Without further ado, his friend hurries to sit down, not keen on doing any extra work.

Sitting at their favorite spot, Ichigo looks around at his friends, all of them looking at him kind of expectantly. Ichigo looks down at the juice carton, poking the hole open with his straw and taking a swig from it. None of the Shinigami were present currently either, though they had been in the morning; apparently Urahara had summoned them for a meeting. Ichigo was kind of annoyed he wasn’t being involved, but also figured it was probably because of the shit he’d just gone through. At least Urahara had some moral integrity and empathy, instead of being a total complete mad scientist wack-job like Kurotsuchi. Just thinking about that guy made him shudder…

Silence mounts between them as Ichigo drinks his juice, trying to get his thoughts in order.

"….Are you…sure you want to talk about this so soon after?”

Ishida eventually questions him with clear concern in his voice, and Ichigo breathes out a sigh, shrugging.

"I don’t know to be honest. I feel like I need to, but… not gonna lie, the stuff’s heavy.”

"So it really was that bad, huh?”

Tatsuki mutters out gaining a faint nod from Ichigo, who kept his gaze firmly on his juice carton he’d picked from the cafeteria before coming up there. It felt easier to talk like this, not looking at them in the eye right now. It wasn’t like he felt ashamed to speak about this with them, it was just….well, like he’d said. Lots of heavy stuff that even with the added context of gigais and spirit world shenanigans, didn’t make most of it any easier.

"…..I guess. To recap stuff I think we all know already; Grimmjow and I were friends up until two years ago. Tatsuki and Chad knew him too, right?”

The group glance at each other before nodding, with Chad even giving him a thumbs up. The gesture makes Ichigo chuckle faintly, before he sighs and looks back at his carton, fiddling with the straw for a moment.

"Well. To answer Chad’s question from this morning. Yeah, ’Jack’ was the name we knew him as. Jack Urahara. They pretended that he was a relative of Sandal-Hat. Weird because being Yoruichi’s nephew woulda made more sense, but whatever.”

Ichigo shrugs, drinking rest of his juice before properly disposing the carton in the nearby trash bin. Admittedly, even all those memories returning - he was still gaining some more back bit by bit - calling Grimmjow ’Jack Urahara’ no longer felt right. It wasn’t his name after all, and he probably would never do so again. Nor was he expected to at this point, probably.

"Hmmm. I thought so.”

Chad nods faintly as if Ichigo had just confirmed what he’d suspected. Maybe he did remember something more now, but he could ask Chad about it later; he couldn’t yet recall exactly where or when Chad would’ve met Grimmjow, but it must’ve been sometime around when he’d met Chad himself, probably.

"So…all the stuff about his gigais and them ’breaking’ and stuff, that’s what we have already gone over as well, right?”

Another unilateral nod from everyone: Ichigo knew he probably didn’t really need to recap this, he was mainly just stalling because the new stuff he now knew was…a lot. He wasn’t honestly sure what exactly he could tell them, given some parts were very personal to Grimmjow. Still, he had to tell them something, his friends deserved to know with how much they worried about him this whole time. The ones who knew about this spirit world stuff anyway, it was better to keep Keigo, Chizuru and so on in the dark. Mainly Keigo, he’d piss his pants and the stink would not leave for months.

"…..Well. Basically. That night two years ago, Tatsuki and I confronted him at that bridge, for avoiding me for two weeks. I uh…I had an argument with him, and I didn’t know how bad of a condition his gigai was at that time - hell, didn’t know it was a gigai, obviously - I basically agitated him so much that his hollow side took control and made him….attack me and her.”

Everyone goes dead silent at that, and Ichigo examines Tatsuki closely, noting her face had gone pale. She averts her gaze now to the ground, a deep frown marring her face as she holds her head lightly. Inoue calls out for her concerned upon noticing it, placing a hand against her back.

"I….”

"Are you sure you want to listen to this? I mean….we don’t know how your seal is like currently, we don’t want you fainting randomly like me, or worse.”

Tatsuki shakes her head after a moment, stating she was fine. Ichigo watches her suck in a deep breath, clearly in an attempt to calm and steel herself. She likely knew full well there was a potential risk of her reacting to this badly, but still wanted to be present, given she’d been involved.

"What did you two argue about?”

Ishida asks after looking at Tatsuki with a concerned frown for a second.

"….Well. I was just really mad and frustrated he’d been avoiding me, like mentioned. He actually had a good reason, but he couldn’t really tell me at the time given all this spirit stuff; apart from me seeing ghosts, I had no clue about any of it back then.”

Ichigo had a feeling Ishida could tell he was not telling the full truth there, but his Quincy friend chooses not to press him about it for now, just adjusting his glasses with an ’I see’ response. The ginger huffs out a sigh and leans his head back against the fence he was leaning on, just watching the clouds drift by silently for a moment. He didn’t feel ready to mention the full reason behind their argument, namely because he didn’t really know how he felt about it now himself. It had been two years…

"….There was another hollow that sneaked up on us. Grimmjow’s soul managed to escape the gigai fully, because of…”

An image flashes in his mind again, and Ichigo squeezes his eyes shut, reminding himself that it had been just a gigai. Grimmjow hadn’t actually died like that, he was a spirit borrowing a physical, artificial vessel.

"Ichigo?”

Inoue calls out to him worried, and he shakes his head, before opening his wyes again to look at them. She looked really upset and worried for him right now, fucking hell and he thought worried Yuzu was bad….

Before he could say anything however, Ichigo realizes they suddenly had unexpected company. In fact, everyone turns to look towards the roof entrance building, finding a familiar figure sitting atop of it, looking down at them with an amused smirk.

"….How…..How the hell did you sneak up on us?! I didn’t sense a thing!”

Ishida eventually breaks the stunned silence, pointing a finger at Grimmjow who just rolls his eyes at him. As soon as Ichigo recovers from his own surprise, the ginger frowns and gets up, walking there to glare at the bastard with hands on his hips. It was probably a pretty good mad Yuzu impression, just less intimidating.

"What the hell are you doing?! Shouldn’t you be resting? How did you even get up here unnoticed?”

"Ya humans aren’t as observant as you like ta think. ’Sides I told you this body doesn’t quite limit all my power. I can still jump high n’ airwalk.”

"…..Okay, fine, but that’s not really the most important part; why are you here, and not resting back at Urahara’s you dumbass!”

Ichigo could feel his friends watch their bizarre exchange, and yeah, at first this did feel a bit weird, except that as soon as he started berating the dumbass, it felt…natural. Like he’d done this before. Because he had. So many times.

"Look at you, your memory comes back and you instantly start mother henning me like yer mum.”

There was a collective gasp within their audience, because apparently his friends either didn’t know or forgot Grimmjow had met her. Not to mention, mum was a sore subject for him, but strangely enough, Ichigo didn’t feel mad about her being mentioned. Because it was true. This was what ma had done with ’Jack’ as well when he visited and seemed unwell. Ichigo huffs out a sigh and crosses his arms over his chest, asking him again why he was there. Grimmjow just lifts eyebrow at him, an amused grin appearing on his tired face now.

"Cuz I knew you’d be worried about me.”

That response, Ichigo opens his mouth and closes it, not knowing what to say. It was so strangely disarming, hearing that simple response. Suddenly Ichigo couldn’t bring himself to stay mad about this dumbass not staying in bed, and it was so frustrating.

"Also. Kisuke wants to check on her today as well.”

Grimmjow points at Tatsuki, making everyone look at her now. She was examining the blunet closely, though it was difficult to tell if she was recalling something again, or just trying to.

"T’was a pretty rough night for Arisawa too. I mighta broken quite a few of her bones n’ given her a concussion. Not to mention she saw my ’corpse’ too.”

The nonchalant way Grimmjow says all that catches everyone off-guard, and for a moment everyone just stares at the blunet, before looking back at Tatsuki even more concerned now. Ichigo gives him a stinky look, quietly telling the bastard to be a bit more tactful about this. Grimmjow just shrugs and stretches his arms lightly, clearly not caring he’d just potentially alarmed the whole bunch with his comment.

"T-Tatsuki, do you….?”

Orihime looks at her extremely worried, but after a moment she just shakes her head, looking up at Grimmjow tensely.

"I…don’t remember any of that. I do remember us going to see you.”

"Yeah, you might prefer not remembering, not gonna lie.”

The blunet shrugs, his casual manner of addressing all this clearly bothering his friends. Well at least Ichigo assumed so, Chad was difficult to read as usual. Examining Grimmjow’s face, Ichigo admittedly had a lot of questions still, but many of them he didn’t feel like asking in front of everybody. There was one thing though…

"….When you fell in the river…”

He swallows down hard, still reminding himself it had been a gigai, not an actual body. Just a gigai. Grimmjow looks at him puzzled for a moment, then seems to catch on what he was thinking, his face twisting into an amused, slightly sadistic grin.

"Oh that? Nah, it wasn’t your fault at all. That gash came from the inside.”

"…..What?”

"Remember the real bloody corpse in the basement I told you not to look at?”

"Uhhh……”

"That’s the result of my hollow literally clawing its way outta the gigai. That’s simply what happened when I fell into the water. The damn cat was trying to physically claw its way outta the flesh prison we’re stuck in. Broke my neck in the process.”

Ichigo could hear some gasping, and glancing at his friends Ishida looked a little green now. Ichigo glares back at Grimmjow, once again scolding him for being so blunt about it. Sure they knew now it hadn’t been an actual body, but still!

"......Was he always this bad?”

Tatsuki asks dryly from Ichigo, who looks back at her briefly, before nodding with a sigh.

"Yeah. I…I’m afraid so.”

Grimmjow just snorts and rolls his eyes at them, before hopping down to the same level with them, casually walking to his backpack and snatching the snack bag of salted peanuts from it, casually starting to eat them.

"….Those are mine.”

"Uh huh. Now they’re mine.”

"You could’ve just asked.”

"Not as fun as watching you pout like a brat.”

Grimmjow proceeds to empty the entire bag, before throwing it in the trash as well, before turning to face all of them again with his hands stuffed in his hoodie pockets. It was admittedly hard to stay mad at him when he still looked kind of ill. Given what Grimmjow had just said, it made it all the more worrying, as that sounded like a brutal way to lose your physical body…

"Ah yeah. Also. Sandal-hat wants you to the shinigami meeting tonight, if you can show up anyway. Something something reliving traumatizing memories is apparently bad and shit.”

Grimmjow gestures towards him dismissively, causing Ishida to scold him loudly, that such things were not to be taken lightly. The blunet just digs his ear looking bored, briefly glancing at Ishida like he was an annoying ant he had to deal with. This of course makes Ishida even more annoyed, but Chad places a hand on his shoulder to prevent him from marching there.

"What is the matter with you? You claim you came here just to reassure Ichigo essentially, bit then you say things like that! Do you really care, or are you just messing with him because its funny to you?!”

"Ah yeah, hella funny. Pissing you off is clearly even funnier, Quincy.”

Ishida is now being held back by Chad with both arms as he clearly wants to march there and punch the grinning blunet in the face, but Ichigo pays no mind to it. As he examines Grimmjow quietly, it suddenly hits him that…

That more vulnerable moment earlier, when he had given Ichigo the full context to those memories, it wasn’t something he’d commonly show to people. That’s how he’d always been, he could remember now; this nonchalant attitude towards his brutal ’death’ and seeming dismissiveness towards the horrid things Ichigo had to relive, it wasn’t that he didn’t care.

He just didn’t want to show it publicly, in front of so many people.

"…..Its alright.”

His words cut off Ishida mid-rant, and he turns to look at Ichigo confused, who just breathes out a sigh, crossing his arms over his chest as he looks at Grimmjow amused.

"Tell them I’m fine, I’ll be there. Should Tatsuki come earlier? I’d at least assume that’s what Urahara would prefer.”

"Uh huh. She ain’t Shinigami so she has no place in their stuffy boring meeting. Ain’t gonna miss much I reckon.”

Grimmjow digs his ear with a shrug, glancing back at the aforementioned girl before looking back at Ichigo. For a second it felt like he wanted to say something, but chooses against it, likely due to their audience. Instead, He just snatches the chocolate granola bar he also had in his bag, before hopping back up to the exit rooftop, glancing back at them amused.

"You’re welcome for the nightmares, by the way.”

With that, he seems to jump of the goddamn roof to the small back alley behind their school building, except as soon as they head to see to the other side, he was gone. He had said he could use air walk in that gigai after all…

"…..Why would you make friends with such an asshole, Kurosaki?”

Ishida questions him after a moment of stunned silence, adjusting his glasses and giving him a look that spoke a lot about how Ishida perceived his intelligence right now. The ginger just grins at him, asking which asshole he meant. It takes him a moment to get it, but Ishida eventually splutters and glares at him peeved, gaining a laugh from the ginger as a response.

As the bell rings to signal the end of the break, they head back downstairs.

It took some convincing for his sisters to let Ichigo go that evening, but begrudgingly they allow him to go for the Shinigami meeting at Urahara’s, as long as he promised to leave any hollow fighting for the ’professionals’ for tonight. Ichigo pretended not to be childishly insulted by that comment, and only pouted about it once he was out of sight, dashing across the rooftops. It was a quiet night, no hollows in sight for now, which made sense. Place was overran by soul reapers, that likely kept most weaker ones hiding. The trip to the shop didn’t take long, and Ichigo lands at the yard, finding Rukia and Renji waiting for him at the porch.

Both naturally ask how he was doing, with Ichigo reassuring his friends he felt fine. Rukia, predictably, looked at him skeptically, but chose not to say anything for now. As they head inside Renji places a hand on his shoulder, gaining Ichigo’s attention.

"Hey uh...Rukia told me about all of it. Is….is it true?”

"What did she say?”

"That the Oni-Hollow guy was your childhood friend somehow?”

"Uh huh. I mean, he was already a spirit then and all. Did she only tell you or?”

"By the time she was able to talk about it, Ikkaku had knocked himself out cold with Yoruichi’s extra powerful sake, so yeah. We didn’t feel like that part is necessarily something everyone needs to know about, so…”

Renji shrugs, still looking at him a bit puzzled. Ichigo couldn’t blame him, this was unexpected new information to learn about him, it had been unexpected even to Ichigo.

Entering the main room, he finds rest of the bunch already present, and Urahara gestures the trio to sit down. Ichigo glances around, asking Tessai where Grimmjow was. The stoic man hum, then nods towards the back, where his room was.

"He’s still quite exhausted, you’d be better off letting him sleep. I understand you likely still have a lot of questions for him, but--”

"It’s fine Tessai, I understand. I just wanted to make sure he was alright, it uh...it looked bad…”

Tessai pats his shoulder, telling him not to worry as they had been handling this situation for years now. Ichigo just nods and looks back at the several pairs of curious shinigami staring at him. Rangiku even asks if he was talking about the Oni King, questioning what was going on. Ichigo just shrugs, asking Urahara what the meeting was for. The woman pouts at not gaining a response, but her short captain subtly kicks her under the table, quietly telling her to leave it for now as it was private. Judging from Toushiro’s expression though, Ichigo had an uneasy feeling he also knew more than the rest of them. Maybe Rukia had only told Renji, but...being that short, the icy captain could probably easily eavesdrop on stuff unnoticed.

Urahara coughs to gain everyone’s attention, sitting down to his seat as well, while cat-Yoruichi curls up into his lap, letting him pet her.

"Firstly, before you ask Kurosaki-san; I checked your friend over earlier today. Her memory seal seems stable for now, but we'll monitor it. Hopefully it won't have as much of a dramatic breaking as yours."

"Drama isn't quite her thing anyway. Thanks for looking out for her, she's cool."

Ichigo shrugs, relieved to hear Tatsuki would be alright for the time being. Urahara nods faintly with a genuine smile, before focusing fully on all of his guests.

"As you all know, we have not seen any signs of Aizen’s activity for a while now. No sign of any of his fellow traitorous companions, let alone powerful hollows.”

"Yes, so far the only thing any of us have been witnessing are low-level hollows.”

Hitsugaya confirms with a serious nod, and damn it, it was still hard to take him seriously due to his baby-face and short stature. Ichigo was wiser than Rangiku though, never commenting on it.

"I have been hearing some grumblings from Genryuusai-dono about keeping you all here, when nothing seems to be happening.”

"So did you call us here just to tell us we should go back to Seireitei?”

Rukia questions the man, clearly not happy about the idea as she glances at Ichigo. Admittedly Ichigo agreed; what if Aizen was purposefully keeping low profile to tire them out and make them leave, so he could then sneak in and do whatever it was he was up to. He even voices out this concern, gaining an agreeing nod from Urahara.

"That is a concern I expressed as well, and so did Captain Hitsugaya. Unfortunately our leader is starting to run out of patience with this strange stalemate.”

"Get on it already Urahara! We know you got some sort of plan!”

Ikkaku demands, getting hit in the head by his pretty boy companion, telling him to behave, and reminding baldie that Urahara was a former captain. Ikkaku grumbles at him, but does address sandal-hat more politely now. Ichigo found it pretty funny how these guys sometimes got so hung up on Urahara’s former status. To Ichigo, the dude was a weird ass scientist who also pretended to be the uncle of his childhood friend. He regularly switched between insulting the guy and addressing him politely, and Urahara didn’t bat an eye.

”Well. Given Aizen is clearly holding his cards close, I have been considering, perhaps we should make the first move instead; we could send a team to Hueco Mundo to spy on him, or at least try to locate where exactly he is hiding.”

The following silence was absolute, Until the entire table bursts in protest much to Ichigo’s confusion, all yelling at the same time.

"Are you insane!?”

"Hueco Mundo, That is an extremely dangerous plan Urahara-san!”

"He’s going to notice anyone invading there for sure!”

Urahara keeps his hands up, telling everyone to calm down, though the chaos doesn’t stop until Tessai slams a tray full of teacups hard to the table, asking everyone sternly but politely to be quiet, as their royal guest was sleeping. Once everybody quiets down and picks up their tea, Sandal-hat gathers himself, picking up his tea and taking a sip from it as well. He sighs pleased and thanks Tessai for the tea, before addressing the group of grumbling Shinigami again.

"I understand your concern, but I have been studying the veil between human realm and Hueco Mundo, and I believe I’ll be able to create an opening without us being noticed. Right now we have been waiting for something to happen, but that amounts to no progress whatsoever. Therefore, I believe it’d be wiser to at least be a little bit more proactive, and find out where exactly he is hiding.”

"Still though; going to Hueco Mundo is extremely dangerous and risky, not many Shinigami can even survive that place, if any.”

Ichigo had no exact clue about what they were talking about, but judging from short captain’s face, this was genuinely a big deal. Urahara hums and nods, taking a sip from his tea again. He was once again being a theater kid, holding dramatic pauses before revealing another ace from his sleeve, Ichigo almost wanted to roll his eyes at the theatrics.

"I have been developing some tools to protect us from the oppressive atmosphere there. I naturally wouldn’t suggest such a plan if I hadn’t come prepared.”

"….Even if we do find his hiding place, what will that help?”

Rukia questions the man next, and Ichigo was kind of wondering the same thing.

"Well, for one, we can better monitor his activity then. We’ll know enemies will be approaching even before they do.”

"Uhm, Excuse me Urahara-san, but if I may…”

Everyone turns to look towards Yumichika, who sips his tea dramatically as well; he and Sandal-hat were both theater kids after all.

"From my understanding, Aizen is after your guest at the back, correct? Wouldn’t it be safer to just bring him to Seireitei?”

"Y’all got invaded by a bunch of us humans, I don’t know if its that safe.”

Ichigo points out, not really liking that idea at all. His comment causes an awkward silence around the table for a moment, though Rangiku seemed to agree with him, stating casually that he had a pretty good point. Sandal-hat hums again and nods, stating that Ichigo wasn’t wrong.

"To be fair, you helped them do that.”

Renji mutters out poutily, gaining a chuckle from Urahara, who now hides his face behind his fan.

"Beyond that though; our guest is currently part hollow, I don’t think Genryuusai would allow it. In his mind, it’d be wiser to just strike him down and---”

"Hell no!”

Ichigo immediately slams his hand at the table, standing up and glaring down at all of them intensely. His reaction doesn’t surprise Urahara or Yoruichi, which, of course it wouldn’t. He huffs out a sigh and sits back down, crossing his arms over his chest.

"He’s done nothing wrong! He didn’t ask for this mess. You don’t even really know what exactly he wants from Grimmjow! Besides, didn’t you imply he might be the key to defeating Aizen earlier?”

Ichigo glares down at Urahara, who still seemed to be smiling amused under his fan. In all honesty, Ichigo’s angry words weren’t aimed at Sandal-hat himself. He knew Urahara was on his side with this. It was more a general statement towards the Shinigami as a whole.

"Indeed. We still don’t know enough about his purpose, for being put in this position, let alone why Aizen is keen on getting this one back.”

”Well, you did say he was some sort of King, right?”

Rangiku asks, and Sandal-hat nods, now putting down his fan to be more serious again, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I have been looking into his past some more, his memory is still quite patchy. Best way for understanding his full nature would probably be travelling to the ruins of Spirit Society, but establishing pathway there hasn’t been easy, given how damaged it is due to Aizen’s actions.”

"...You aren’t bringing this up just for fun, aren’t you?”

Ichigo asks, knowing this mad scientist all too well by now.

"….I may have been able to create such a connection yes, but unfortunately, it isn’t easy to pass through. Namely, for us Shinigami it can be difficult.”

Oh.

Everyone’s eyes now turn on him.

"You….You want me to go there?”

"You and some of your friends. Humans like you could probably get there easily.”

"I...guess. Still sounds kind of dangerous if the place is unstable.”

"You are quite used to danger though, aren’t you?”

"Why didn’t you invite Inoue, Chad and Ishida into this meeting too then?”

"Considering how risky this is, we didn’t feel comfortable pressuring your friends into doing this as well. Kisuke and I decided to first suggest this idea for you alone, since it is rather obvious you’d want to go anyway.”

There was a familiar twinkle in those yellow cat eyes, and Ichigo hated that she was very much correct. He’d be ready to go right now, but his friends….he wasn’t sure he’d want to have them risk their lives again like that, powers or not. It just did sound like no Shinigami could enter---

"Uh. I am part shinigami though?”

"Yes, but you are human soul, first and foremost Kurosaki-san. You should be able to pass through no problem.”

The fact Urahara wasn’t being absolutely certain about this was a tad frustrating, but also exactly what Ichigo would expect. The ginger huffs out a sigh and downs his now lukewarm tea, before nodding.

"I’ll go. I...I don’t know if I’d want to have Inoue and others risk their lives again though. I mean, I know they would. I just….”

Sudden sound from somewhere gains everyone’s attention, and there was a burst of power emanating from the back. Ichigo stands up alarmed as he recognizes this sensation, and some of the shinigami grab their blades, expecting an attack. Urahara holds his hand up however, looking back towards the corridor the sensation had come from.

Moments later, something big and faintly blue glowing emerges from the dim hallway, and…

….Ichigo finds himself staring at a pair of long clawed, disembodied glowing blue hands.

What.

"Urahara-san, What is that?!”

Toushirou asks even as he prepares to pull out his zanpakuto, but Urahara tells him to stand down, smiling amused.

"Oh! He’s managed to summon them back, interesting.”

"Urahara, what the hell--”

Ichigo’s questions gets cut off mid-sentence, as the hands suddenly beeline float to him across the room, and Ichigo leans back startled, just staring at the massive pair ominously floating in front of him.

"Um, Kisuke, should we--?”

Yoruichi speaks out as they all just watch the strange apparition, but Urahara still holds his hand up, calmly telling everyone to stay seated. He was watching Ichigo closely though, as if wanting to see what would happen.

Yeah, Ichigo wondered the same; why had these things gone straight for him like that? The aura they emitted definitely reminded him of Grimmjow, but…

Suddenly, the hands move again, and for a second Ichigo expects to get squashed by a pair of massive magic hands, but instead they just sort of clasp around him, briefly picking him off the ground with a squeeze and light shake like an enthusiastic toddler picking up their favorite toy, before plopping him back down to his seat, using one massive finger to pat his head. Then, the hand stops and pulls back, and somehow, Ichigo felt like they were...confused about something.

The finger proceeds to poke the top of his head again – somehow not pricking him with the massive claw – over and over, until Ichigo shoves it back.

"Oi, Stop that!”

"It seems they like you.”

Urahara comments cheerfully, with everyone else around the table just watching the unfolding scene baffled. The hand still keeps prodding his head, as if expecting to find something there.

”….Ah. So that’s where you went.”

Everyone turns to look back towards the figure now leaning against the side of the hallway entrance, looking about as pale and tired as last time. The hands turn towards him and quickly fly back to Grimmjow, poking his cheek with one of the claws – gently – multiple times, until Grimmjow also smacks it away annoyed.

"I’m fine damn it! I don’t need both of you fussing over me.”

"...Uh…...What is going on here?”

Renji eventually breaks the awkward silence, with Urahara chuckling, calmly gesturing at Grimmjow and the hands still continuing to bother him, seemingly trying to pull or push him back to his room.

"Those are the Hands of the Oni King. He’s summoned those once before few years ago, but couldn’t do so since.”

"Those hands are part of your powers?”

Ichigo asks curiously now, gaining a shrug from Grimmjow who again smacks the massive finger prodding his cheek away. It really did feel like those things were fussing over him in some way, almost if they were sentient…

"Are you alright otherwise? Summoning those uses a lot of power.”

Yoruichi asks, pacing to Grimmjow in her cat form to sniff his leg, before jumping on one of the hands and biting it playfully as cats do. The hands didn’t seem to mind, letting Yoruichi do it while still trying to tug Grimmjow back to his room from his sleeve. The aforementioned blunet looks down and lifts his hand for them to see, and Ichigo realizes it had gone completely black, with blue sharp claws on it.

"Can’t change back. This feels a bit different from last time.”

He holds his hand up to let Yoruichi sniff it – Ichigo wasn’t sure if it actually did anything, or if Grimmjow just leaned into her cat shenanigans – while Urahara holds his chin, examining him closely.

"You are right. Your soul doesn’t seem to have de-stabilized, but it is certainly affecting this Gigai unexpectedly.”

"No shit.”

Grimmjow snorts, now picking Yoruichi off from the massive hand, casually holding her in his lap and petting her. He must’ve done that a lot, because he didn’t seem bothered by the fact she was actually a shinigami woman, AND his ”aunt” so to speak. His casual demeanor around cat Yoruichi seemed to baffle rest of the people present, all except Rukia who at this point was likely used to the strangeness around the former captain.

"You really wanna send Kurosaki into a fuckin’ graveyard?”

Grimmjow suddenly mutters out, still petting purring Yoruichi in his lap. Blue eyes now look up at Urahara with a sharp look to them, all of that exhaustion from before seemingly having vanished in an instant.

"He and his friends are our only option to learn more about what happened there, and about you, given your memory is still quite patchy.”

"Y’all sure love makin’ him do all your dirty work, huh?”

Grimmjow comments with kind of an angry grin on his face now, and Ichigo realizes he recognized that look. He’d seen it from ”Jack” in the past, when he’d been acting kind of protective towards him. Apparently that habit was still there, despite the years of separation. Noticing that did weird things to Ichigo, and he felt a bit fluttery in his chest, though did his best not to show any of it.

"We would not suggest this if we could go ourselves; Ichigo absolutely shouldn’t be involved so much.”

Yoruichi tells him while prodding Grimmjow’s face with her paw, resulting in her instantly being dropped like hot potato to the floor. Yoruichi gives him her best offended cat look, before heading back to the table to settle onto the pillow of Urahara’s seat.

"How the fuck are you plannin’ on opening a pathway there anyway? What you used ta contact that Kisuke is unusable now, since he’s dead.”

"….Well….”

The glint in Urahara’s eyes was a bit unnerving, and Grimmjow narrows his eyes at the man, as if guessing what he was thinking.

"You want me ta open it, don’t you?”

"You did mention you might remember how to do that.”

"Yeah, MAYBE, Kisuke! Maybe. I don’t fuckin’ know if it’ll work right now, given m’ part hollow!”

They all watch the argument unfold awkwardly, until Toushirou finally interrupts them with his best authoritarian voice – it was still so hard with his babyface, but it worked at least – demanding to know what exactly they were talking about. Grimmjow snorts, then proceeds to walk to the table as well, slumping to sit down next to Ichigo, the hands still hovering behind him. They actually wave at Ichigo, who waves back awkwardly, still not knowing what to think about them. Clearly, the sentiment was shared across the table, as everybody was side-eyeing Grimmjow’s bizarre floating companion.

"Apparently, we could easily access human realm at one point like y’all. Overtime though that ability was only granted to the more powerful ones – like me. Or the old man Tanuki Kisuke, or shorty’s doppleganger.”

Grimmjow gestures at Rukia with his thumb, and she clearly didn’t know how to react to that; on one hand Grimmjow had basically said she – or her double – had been considered very powerful back in Spirit Society – but he’d also refused to use her name, calling her ”shorty,” which was pretty rude. That kind of backhandedness was very Grimmjow, though, and Ichigo couldn’t help but smile a little.

"I’ve had some flashbacks of doin’ that, so I MIGHT be able ta open a pathway there. Weight on the word ”might,” ’cause I don’t know how me bein’ a hollow will affect it, let alone the state that place is in….”

Grimmjow goes quiet, and the serious expression on his face, just reminded everyone of what likely would wait those who ventured there, if they decided to go.

"…..I’m not so sure about this plan, Urahara-san.”

Toushirou eventually breaks the following silence, and yeah, clearly he wasn’t the only one who thought that. The former captain hums and sits back down, after picking Yoruichi up to his lap again.

"I understand your concern, but it is our best bet. Sitting around doing nothing yields no results either. Kurosaki-san – and some of his friends potentially – going there could at least help us learn more about Jeagerjaquez’ past, and perhaps give clues as to what Aizen wants from him.”

Everyone grows quiet, as nobody really had a proper argument against this fact; just sitting around in karakura was clearly doing nothing, but them going back to Seireitei likely would be equally useless. Going to Hueco Mundo or the ruins of Spirit Society could perhaps give them some ideas as to what to do.

"I already said I’ll do it.”

Ichigo pipes in eventually, and Grimmjow instantly turns to look at him, looking positively mad. It actually makes him falter a bit, as that expression reminded Ichigo of the anger he’d seen back at the bridge that evening. Grimmjow proceeds to grab his collar, tugging him closer to basically growl right at his face now.

"You dumb FUCK, stop throwing yourself in danger head first all the time goddammit! Do you have ANY idea how dangerous ”dead” worlds are?! Hueco Mundo’s peanuts compared to that!”

"Well, sitting around does nothing, and this could help us learn what Aizen is up to!”

The black, clawed hand grasps his collar too now, as Grimmjow gives him a light shake, his voice growing in volume now as he glares down at him with the intensity of thousand suns.

"YOU don’t fucking GET it Kurosaki! Did these dumbasses NOT teach you about dead verses?! You’re gonna get yourself killed. And I can’t even hunt down your ghost to fuckin’ murder it, ’cause that’s gonna be gone too!”

"Oh fuck off! I’m just trying to help--”

A sudden weight lands on him – and everyone at the table it seems – as Grimmjow’s body begins to glow, and Ichigo could actually see a faint silhouette of horns appearing on his head now. Their surroundings start to feel distant, as all noise sort of faded to the background; all he could focus on was the extremely mad Grimmjow still holding onto his collar, his face slowly twisting into a very angry grin again.

"Help', huh?”

He sounded different again, Ichigo realizes.

The blue clawed hand suddenly grabs his jaw, tilting his head up, forcing him to look straight back at those intense blue eyes, that were now glowing faintly as well. What was happening? Something felt..different...and familiar.

"Funny, comin’ from YOU. After what you did, don’t come talkin’ to me about ”helping” anyone.”

"What…”

The claws of his fingertips dig into his skin now, making Ichigo shut up. He could suddenly feel something emanating from within, a feeling that he knew, but it...it didn’t seem to be coming from….wait.

Shiro.

It was coming from Shirosaki, again.

What was going on??

"Are you tryin’ to get this kid to do stupid shit like you as well, hmm? Or is he as pathetic as you.”

Wait, was he talking to….?

Before Ichigo could properly even process what was going on, Grimmjow suddenly let’s go of him and backs away, holding his head looking a bit dazed. All the sounds return properly, though still mostly drowned by his own heartbeat. Rukia and Renji had both stood up, likely planning on helping him, but Urahara had once again told everyone to stay back, looking at Grimmjow closely.

Grimmjow stumbles couple of steps back, caught by his hand companions once he falls. Ichigo just watches the hands hold the now unconscious figure very gently, and he could feel worry emanating from them. Slowly, Ichigo turns to look at everybody, who all looked back at him utterly shocked and confused.

What the hell had just happened?

Chapter Text

That morning, Ichigo sat at their kitchen table quietly, prodding his breakfast with no much appetite present. He was still reeling for last night’s meeting, once again wondering what the hell was going on with Grimmjow exactly. He could feel his family look at him concerned, but nobody dared to ask anything for a change; his face had to be pretty bad to deter any sort of interrogation even from Karin. To be fair, he hadn’t slept much last night either even after coming home, so he likely looked tired as shit as well.

Ichigo drinks his tea, lowering the steaming cup back down and just sort of stares at it, thinking back on last night.

The whole group was reeling, with Ikkaku and Renji demanding what the hell that force they’d just felt was. Rukia - who’d sat next to Ichigo on the other side - was still pale like a sheet after having felt the near full force of whatever that was as well, and the chaos had been loud enough to wake Ururu and Jinta up, both of whom were now asking Tessai what was going on.

Ichigo just stares at the floating hands, still holding their master gently as they float him back to his room. His hand lifts up to touch his jaw, and he could feel light scratches from Grimmjow’s claws, still trying to process what that had been. One thing was for sure; he’d felt that energy before, it was definitely Grimmjow’s Oni-spirit energy, hitting them near full force suddenly. It was honestly also kind of predictable, that baldy and Renji would’ve been the ones too stupid to connect the obvious dots.

"Ichigo? Are you okay?”

Rukia’s hesitant voice finally snaps him out of his musings, and Ichigo turns to look back at his friend. Describing her face as concerned was an understatement; she looked like she’d expected him to drop dead or something.

"Yeah. Uh. Guess he REALLY doesn’t like Urahara’s plan huh?”

"It felt like he was gonna kill you, dumbass! And we couldn’t….I’ve never felt such a strong Reiatsu before from a hollow? Was that his Oni power?”

Renji mainly aims this question to Urahara - oh wow he finally caught on, took him long enough - who was holding his chin with a thoughtful expression, examining Ichigo closely now. The ginger could almost hear the gears turning in the man’s head, sensing that he had a better idea of what had just happened than anyone else. Because of course he did. Kisuke Urahara always knew shit you didn’t, no matter how much you’d try to get one step ahead of him.

"Urahara-san, are you… are you sure Jeagerjaquez can be trusted? I have to agree with Abarai, he suddenly seemed very hostile towards Kurosaki.”

Ichigo frowns at the short captain, but before he could say anything do defend Grimmjow, Urahara asks to speak with him privately for a moment. The ginger nods hesitantly and follows him to a separate room - his back office - wondering what the man was up to now.

"….Remind me Kurosaki-san, hasn’t that happened before?”

"Huh?”

"This sudden….switch in his behavior, change in tone perhaps? I seem to recall you mentioning something odd like this earlier.”

As Ichigo thinks back on it, he realizes what Urahara meant. Yeah, back in that cave room, Grimmjow had also behaved kind of odd towards him after he’d managed to calm down his more beastly side. When he’d seen that weird vision of Shiro…

"Back in the cave room. Before I got knocked out. In fact, it actually also happened when he showed me his memory earlier too?”

"Oh?”

"Y-yeah. I wanted to ask him about it. He just…after he showed it, there was this white beast that suddenly appeared and tried to pounce at me. Grimmjow - or I think it was him - stopped it, but then told me to ’get out’ like I’d invaded his memory, when he himself let me see it? It was odd…”

"Hmmm. I see I see…”

"........You know what’s going on there, don’t you?”

Ichigo squints at the man, who whips out his fan to hide behind of, just to be dramatic again.

"Perhaps. But I must observe things a bit more first. Please do tell me if incidents like this occur again, or if you remember more details about them.”

Ichigo glances back at the room where others were, hearing some commotion that sounded like Ikkaku and Renji fighting over something. Those two would never change, huh? He looks back at Urahara, asking the man if that was all he wanted to say. Unsurprisingly, the man shakes his head, folding his fan again and crosses his arms over his chest now, with a more serious expression in his face.

"Now. To be fair to Grimmjow, his concerns about this are correct. Dead spaces like that are dangerous beyond normal; they can contain dangers unfathomable to even most of us Shinigami. The only reason I know about these things is thanks to my late double, who taught me about it. ’Dead worlds’ is a concept more familiar to beings living in smaller spaces like the Spirit Society was. We Soul reapers have had no reason to study these interconnected spaces much outside the trinity of human world, soul society and Hueco Mundo.”

"I’m kind of used to facing the horrors and almost dying at this point; nothing is scarier than angry Karin at two A.M.”

His comment makes the former captain smile amused, though it doesn’t last long. Urahara now grasps his stubbly chin - he should just give up at this point, clearly growing a beard was not in the cards for him - letting out a thoughtful hum.

"It is interesting to me that he’d know of it too. It is not a detail I’ve ever mentioned to him from my studies, nor have I ever seen him show interest in them, beyond wanting to understand his memories better. Since this detail did not seem relevant to all that, it never came up.”

"….And?”

"It likely means his Oni-self did know about this. One may conclude this was common knowledge in Spirit Society, but from what late Tanuhara told me, it is typically something only scholars - or those able to access other worlds - would know about. I did suspect Jeagerjaquez would've been one of those powerful ones able to pull off such a feat based on the legends I did read about the Oni King. Not Grimmjow specifically, but what those with his status could do.”

Tanuhara?

Really?

"I mean. He did just admit he can open a pathway there, probably, so isn’t that just confirmation to that theory?”

Ichigo asks with a shrug, wondering what the man was getting at.

"Yes, I am quite pleased he confirmed it to me willingly; I was actually hoping to see if bringing this up would trigger such a memory, or he'd finally admit it. Unfortunately, this does also mean convincing him to help us is extremely difficult. He understandably doesn’t want to go there on the basis of the dangers lurking in such space he knows about alone. The fact the only person we are capable of sending there would be you as well, that makes this difficult.”

"I’d be worried about the big bossman back in Seireitei too, if he’s starting to question Toushirou and others being here. I mean, you told them not to tell anyone in Seireitei about Grimmjow, right? I trust Rukia and Renji, but….”

Urahara smiles faintly, understanding his concern about this.

"That is why I suggested the Hueco Mundo mission. It could help convince Genryuusai-dono to let them stay here for a while longer, since obviously sneaking there is much easier from human realm, and our Commander knows this.I want to use that to both buy us more time, and to throw Aizen off however; give him something to focus on, while sending you and some others back to Spirit Society to dig into his secrets. I doubt he didn’t leave any clues behind.”

"From their reaction, it doesn’t sound like a very good idea the old fart would necessarily agree to.”

Ichigo points out dryly, both of them glancing towards the door as it sounded like a full blown brawl had broken out now.

Goddamnit Renji, Ikkaku.

"Oh, but here’s the thing, Kurosaki-san; we don’t have to actually send anyone there; we can just pretend we are trying to do so. Captain Commander will likely be curious if that can even be done - send Shinigami safely to Hueco Mundo - so he'll at least allow for test runs with tech that the team can monitor and report to him about. Preparing for such feat takes time either way, something we could really use now to keep all the cards in our hands in regards to Jeagerjaquez.”

Urahara had that twinkle in his eye again, almost making Ichigo want to roll his eyes at the man.

"I mean, I get what you're thinking, but those guys back there destroying your dining room do know about your spirit society idea as well. What if they tell the old man about it too? He's gonna find out about Grimmjow for sure then.”

"They won't. They just need something to report to him, and this Hueco Mundo plan is more than enough to pique his interest and give them more time before needing to return and therefore report everything they know to Master Genryuusai. They will be able to keep some things a secret when not physically face-to-face with him.”

"So…your idea is to suggest this plan, get the big boss to agree to it, hope they don't tell him about Grimmjow yet, then pretend to try and bring Shinigami safely to Hueco Mundo, while trying to convince Grimmjow to help me - and maybe some of my friends - to get to Spirit Society’s ruins? All to ’buy time’ so the old guy won’t call them back and find out about Grimmjow?”

"Roughly yes.”

"There’s coupla issues with that; first, how long are they gonna keep this a secret from the old man? They’ve done so so far, but if no actual progress regarding to Aizen happens, I don’t know. They might wanna tell him even if they're not standing right in front of him being interrogated about their mission. Also Grimmjow clearly didn’t wanna do it, how the hell are we supposed to convince him to do this?”

"It is risky indeed, but I know this lot quite well; better than you may realize. Hitsugaya understands my desire to keep things quiet for now, and the rest will follow his lead.”

Something about those words and Urahara’s expression yet again made Ichigo want to groan annoyed; another secret the man was keeping, that Ichigo didn’t know about.

"Well. Either way! Just keep applying your Kurosaki-charm and I’m sure he’ll come around!”

Urahara pats his back roughly, before heading back out to interrupt the random fight that had broken out between Renji and Ikkaku, the pair having already broken his table. ichigo had a feeling this chat had mainly been so Urahara didn't have to suffer through worst of that chaos.

"Ichi-nii?”

Ichigo snaps out of his thoughts and turns to look at Yuzu, who informs him that Tatsuki was at the door, looking kind of upset. The ginger frowns and gets up, stepping outside. She was indeed standing there with arms crossed over her chest, looking very serious and kind of pale. She asks quietly is she could come in, and Ichigo gestures her to do so, confused about her tense behavior.

"Oh! Hello Tatsuki-chan! Care for some freshly baked pancakes? Yuzu makes the best ones in the world!”

Isshin declares loudly, but Tatsuki declines politely, stating she’d just come to talk with Ichigo. The old fart shrugs - more for him as he put it - and goes back to devouring the massive pile on his plate, almost choking at one point with how fast he inhaled the whole thing, like he was trying to do a kirby imitation or something.

"Can we….can we go upstairs? I’d…”

"Sure. I mean, Kon’s there but does that matter?”

Tatsuki shrugs, seemingly not really caring either way. They head up to his room, and Ichigo closes the door behind him, while Tatsuki sighs and sits down at his bed. If he’d thought he’d looked tired this morning looking into the mirror, she was way worse. She had bags under her eyes, an extremely rare sight as normally their karate champion would make sure to rest properly.

"So, what’s up?”

For a moment, she says nothing. Then, Tatsuki huffs out a slow breath, rubbing her face with both hands now.

"Last night. I saw….I-I think it came back. Most of it anyway.”

Oh.

Oh shit.

"Woke my mum up by shouting your name. They were pretty worried and asked what happened.”

She drops her hands and crosses them over her chest, still looking extremely troubled. Ichigo now sits down beside her, awkwardly placing a hand on his childhood friend’s shoulder. He’d never seen Tatsuki this shaken, but given what he knew she’d seen that night, it was no wonder.

"What did you tell them?”

"Just…that I had a bad dream. Obviously.”

Silence mounts between them, with Tatsuki biting her lip, as if mulling over something in her mind.

"….I….I’m sorry Ichigo.”

He’d expected this.

"Hey, it wasn’t your fault okay?”

Ichigo tells her with a sad smile, squeezing her shoulder encouragingly. Tatsuki shakes her head and looks up at him with a troubled frown, clearly not agreeing with him that it was okay. Also expected of course.

"But it is! If I hadn’t insisted on making you two talk that day, none of that would’ve happened!”

"We had no clue what the hell was going on with ”Jack’ at the time. You couldn’t have guessed shit would hit the fan the way it did.”

"I don’t mean that, although it is a part of it. Even IF he’d genuinely been just a human like we thought, I should’ve been more tactful about it!”

She now turns to face him properly, holding onto his hands with a very frustrated look on her face. Frustrated with herself for a change, not with Ichigo.

"Coming out like that can be INSANELY risky, even I knew that at the time! Just because it seemed like Jack – or Grimmjow, whatever his name now is – would be fine with it, he’d never explicitly stated it! I just assumed so because of second hand info I got from you the day after that drunk episode! For all we know you could’ve recalled wrong!”

Ichigo just looks at her awkwardly, not knowing what to say. He genuinely didn’t hold this against Tatsuki whatsoever, because yeah, he’d kind of assumed mostly that it’d probably be fine too. But, he could see why she was mad at herself in hindsight, even removing the whole hollow-demon aspect from the equation.

"I just...he never acted weird about being physically close to you? Like you know how some guys act about it. He also never showed interest in women like you’d expect from a horny teenager guy.”

"….Yeah. That’s true. In hindsight, it could’ve been because he wasn’t actually a horny teenager human. Just a horned teenager demon-hollow.”

Ichigo shrugs, squeezing her hands now with a reassuring smile, his lame joke gaining a dry, unimpressed look from Tatsuki, though she eventually smiles a bit as well, some of that weight leaving her expression.

"Still. I shouldn’t have assumed things like that just because I had a hunch. You can’t know unless someone explicitly tells you.”

"Well, things are better now, so I’d say its water under the bridge, alright? I’m not mad at you over this, I don’t think I would’ve been even if they let me keep my memory. I’d likely just blamed myself for blowing my chance so bad by getting mad at him instead of listening when he said he wasn’t up for a chat right now.”

Ichigo looks down at the hands he was holding, noting Tatsuki’s felt kind of cold. Another sign she’d slept like shit, having her body temperature be lower than normal. Ichigo knew as it happened to him too.

"….I guess we both messed up that night.”

Ichigo hums, still wanting to argue that he did not put any blame on her, but knew Tatsuki wouldn’t hear it.

"Tatsuki, do you want----oh, did I interrupt something?”

Yuzu peeks in from the door and sees them holding hands, a mischievous look appearing on his face. Ichigo immediately let’s go and back away flustered, glaring at his sister angrily and telling her to stop snickering damn it. Tatsuki just laughs at her, telling Yuzu to ’bugger off.’

"Sorry Yuzu, your brother is too dumb for me.”

"Aww, but you two would make a cute couple! You could probably keep Ichi-nii out of trouble.”

"Fat chance, I’m afraid.”

Yuzu sighs dramatically, conceding that Tatsuki was probably right. Ichigo glares at the now two snickering girls, before poutily asking what Yuzu wanted.

"Just wondered if she’d like some tea and pancakes, she looks so sleepy and nothing wakes you up better than a good, tasty breakfast!”

"There’s any left from dad’s dramatic vacuum cleaner impression?”

"I protected the rest with my life!”

Yuzu declares dramatically, placing her hands on her hips with a determined pose. Moments later they could hear Karin’s voice from downstairs, informing them Yuzu had chased their dad off to the clinic with a broom. Tatsuki and Ichigo look at each other before snickering at the mental image together, and Tatsuki nods, clearly figuring it would be impolite to refuse. She’d had breakfast at their place many times before when kids – sometimes with Grimmjow as well, Ichigo realizes, as a memory pops in his head. There were still a lot left for his brain to recall apparently, huh.

They both get up the bed and head downstairs, Ichigo mainly to keep the old man from sneaking back to snatch more of the pancakes, as he wasn’t hungry.

Entering through the open window, the house was quiet. He doubted that no one had noticed him, they just kenw why he was there, and let him be.

It doesn’t take him long to find the right room, it would always be the fanciest, most private shit the Tengu bastards could offer. Slipping in without a sound, the reckless dumbass doesn’t notice his presence, until he was standing right next to the bed. Brown eyes snap open and turn to look up at him, the typical flaming glow effect gone from them. He looked like shit, wrapped in bandages that had healing spells scribbled on them, and if the dumbass was any paler, he’d look like dead.

"…..Well that’s terrifying to wake up to.”

He snorts and sits down at the feet end of the bed, making sure his face showed exactly what he thought about this latest reckless stunt. His eyes drift towards the left side of his head – right from Ichigo’s perspective – the broken and cracked horn standing out like a sore thumb.

"….You’re a fuckin’ moron, Kurosaki. Sacred hero, my ass.”

"Hey now. I did not ask for any of this, the old farts just insist the prophecy must mean me. Because of this bright orange thing on my head. Apparently haircolor is good enough indicator of some sort of fated calling or whatever.”

Grimmjow snorts and rolls his eyes at the pouty look, before noting Kurosaki was pretty careful about applying pressure to that side of his head. He knew full well why, his horns were weird for an Oni. Namely, they were far more sensitive than normal, meaning having one break like this hurt like a bitch. Yeah it’d hurt for Grimmjow as well, but from what Kurosaki had described to him once, his pain was way worse, and didn’t go away until the horn regenerated. Birth defect or something.

"….It’s fine. I can handle it. Rukia said it should regrow back in a week or two.”

"That’s a long time to deal with that shit, don’t cha think?”

"Oh, is the mighty Demon King worried about me?”

In the past, he would’ve taken such a comment as an insult and put the person in their place real fast. Coming from Kurosaki at this point however, he just rolls his eyes again, before shifting closer so he was now sitting right next to him. The ginger dumbass does seem a bit taken aback by it for some reason. In general, he had noticed he’d started to act a bit cautious around him again if he got close, but it didn’t seem to be fear. He had no clue what it was.

"Nah. But watching you pretend it don’t hurt’s annoying. Especially ’cuz the birds are gonna kick a fuss about it.”

Kurosaki says nothing at first, then just shrugs, turning his gaze away towards the window. He could still feel that slight nervousness emanating from him, but again, it didn’t seem to be fear or caution towards a threat he could remember from back then. It was confusing, but he didn’t care about asking right now.

His gaze fixates on the broken horn, noting the reddish-black color was pulsating lightly, likely a side-effect of the growth process. He could tell each pulse hurt, Kurosaki couldn’t fully hide his discomfort from him. After all, he knew all too well what it looked like; when they’d still been enemies, he had targeted his horns as well, once he figured out their sensitivity. It was also a power move thing, given Oni did value their horns a lot.

Now though…

"….I can probably speed it up.”

Brown eyes turn to look back at him surprised, with Kurosaki immediately regretting that choice, judging from the way he flinched once the horn brushed against the pillows, making Grimmjow roll his eyes at the ginger dumbass.

"Remember? As an Oni King, I can bend elements ta my will, n’ I’m especially good with lightning – and fire.”

"Ah...yeah. Fighting you is a pain in the butt because of that.”

"Bitch, your fire is a pain in the ass to control; fucker's every bit of a stubborn mule as you."

Kurosaki chuckles faintly, though his laugh gets cut short as Grimmjow brushes his fingers over the broken horn. He was being careful of course, but didn’t blame Kurosaki for tensing up. He hadn’t really let Grimmjow touch his horns since their enemy days, not that he’d ever tried. Blue eyes glance down at Kurosaki, noting he was watching him closely again, but still didn’t seem afraid. It was kind of odd to be honest, given last time he’d touched Kurosaki’s horns like this, he’d very much been trying to tear ’em off, and almost succeeded once with this one specifically. There had been a lot of blood and he’d been in a shit ton of pain --

Grimmjow pulls his hand back, annoyed at how uncomfortable thinking about that made him now. Technically, as the King he didn’t need permission to do this – old Oni rules, although since they were the only ones left that old hierarchy didn’t probably apply much – but given their history….

"….Do you want to try fixing it?”

"Would prevent all the drama from the Tengu, and you probably making it worse with your stupidity.”

He comments with a shrug, not wanting to admit it out loud out of principle. Kurosaki hums with a knowing smile, the kind that made him want to ditch the whole idea and just make his suffering worse by punching him in the face. He never did it though, because the irritation that look caused now did feel somewhat different from back then.

"….Well. I guess you could try. I mean, at this point can’t be worse than what I’m going through right now.”

He’s admittedly surprised, looking down at the smiling ginger. After a moment of silence, Grimmjow rolls his eyes at him, before reaching up for the broken horn again, grasping it relatively gently. He’d figured Kurosaki’s horns worked a bit like the crystals he could infuse and grow with elemental magic, he just had to be a bit more precise and careful because these were attached to a living being.

"This is still gonna hurt, so if you gotta bite down on something, preferably use yer pillow or some shit. I can’t fix stupid after all, so if you draw blood that's on you.”

Kurosaki laughs again at his jab, before flinching yet again as the sudden movement hurt, dumbass.

Grimmjow huffs out a sigh, before focusing on task at hand, slowly calling out to the element he knew existed within Kurosaki. The ginger was stubborn and quite strong himself, hence he could never really turn his fire against him fully, but he could make it listen to him when the ginger was weakened like this. He had noted it had generally become easier lately, which Grimmjow knew full well was due to the fact they were…..kind of close nowadays, friends or some shit like that.

He didn’t want to think about the implications of all that currently.

As the horn begins to glow, Kurosaki tenses with the pain likely getting worse; he ignores the reaction, focusing on the task at hand. The fire within Kurosaki was still fickle and just as stubborn as its wielder, but it did seem to at least begrudgingly listen to him, as if sensing he wasn’t trying to hurt its master for a change.

Eventually, Kurosaki does need to bite down to the pillow to not split his lip or bite his tongue. He couldn’t stop but wonder if this genuinely hurt worse, or if Kurosaki just let himself be miserable for a second, because he knew Grimmjow wouldn’t make a big deal out of it.

After a moment, he starts pulling on the substance, slowly extending the now slightly softer substance to reforge it into the shape it used to be. It was a bit like pulling molten glass, though obviously Kurosaki’s horns were typically stronger than that. By the time the fire began to settle, Kurosaki's broken one was roughly back to its previous shape and length; he still holds onto it, waiting for the thing to solidify while it was still glowing with that intense, fiery red glow. Kurosaki had grown quiet now, though he could tell from the heavy breath it still felt uncomfortable.

Once the glow dissipates, he slowly let’s go and examines the result, noting satisfied it seemed to be identical to the other one. Not that he’d expected to fuck it up, he had been using Kurosaki’s own power to fix it, and his fire did know what shape it was supposed to be.

A strange whimpering sound makes him look back down at Kurosaki, and the ginger finally stops biting the pillow with a gasp, still panting lightly. Much to his slight confusion, he notes the ginger was kind of red; had he picked up a fever from that, or was this just another weird pain reaction to his hypersensitivity with his horns.

"Ah...shit. uh.”

Kurosaki mumbles out sounding strangely flustered, and he lifts eyebrow at him. The ginger slowly turns back to his back, notably holding his pillow against his chest still, almost if hiding behind it….?

"….It’s just. Uh. I guess because it vanishes so fast, it feels kinda funky.”

"The fuck are you talking about?”

Kurosaki let’s out a sheepish laugh, further hiding behind his pillow like a bashful child, it was weird.

"The pain. Usually it subsides slowly, and once it does you kinda get this weird euphoric feeling? But now it kind of vanished almost instantly, so...that following tingle was kinda strong too…”

Grimmjow snorts and rolls his eyes, telling the idiot there was no need to be so embarrassed about his body reacting in a natural way to his weird sensitivity bullshit. The brown eyes now had some of their fire back, and Kurosaki gives him a weird look, before sighing, a wider smile as warm as his stupid fire spreading across his face now.

"Thanks, Grimm.”

"……..Quit calling me that.”

As he comes to, Grimmjow sits up slowly, noting he was back in his room. Holding his head, that dream was still lingering in his mind. Another new memory, at least this one wasn’t fucked up somehow. He could feel something poke his cheek, and turning to look towards it, he realizes the hands were still there, hovering next to him in a manner that oozed concern.

"….Why the fuck are you still here?”

It wasn’t a demand, more confusion; last time he’d accidentally summoned them, they’d dissipated quickly. Now however, the hands seemed to be sticking around. Grimmjow looks back at his hand, noting it was also still stuck in that weird dark blue hue with claws. He didn’t feel sick anymore though, so the gigai wasn’t breaking at least.

Grimmjow drops his arm and looks outside, wondering how long he’d been out. It was still nighttime, but for all he knew it could be the next night already, or even beyond that. Slowly, he looks back at the hands, and after a moment of silence, asks them how long he’d been out. The hands eventually hold up a finger, and Grimmjow somehow understands they meant one day. It seemed to be some sort of telepathy, though not as direct; there weren’t really words or sentences he heard, more...a feeling. Just suddenly knowing things. It was weird, but apparently how this hands stuff worked. Speaking of…

He looks down at his blue hand again, thinking back on the memory he’d just seen.

His past self had specifically used this arm to fix that Kurosaki’s horn, and he had a vague idea there was a reason for it. Something about this one being specifically used for that kind of thing, which was why it had this weird color. There was another thing he had also noted from that memory, that his past self hadn’t picked up on apparently. This memory was likely dated sometime before that bridge incident, because Grimmjow could bet his blue arm this was one of those moments, where that Kurosaki developed his crush on his past self. He'd seen that slow realization in the ginger's expression, something his past self had either ignored, or genuinely been a clueless idiot about.

A finger pokes his cheek again and he swats the hand away, once again asking why it was still present. The arms shrug, clearly having no answers to that either. Grimmjow frowns and thinks back on what had happened. He could recall yelling at his Kurosaki for wanting to agree to Urahara’s plans, but afterwards, his memory got hazy. Last thing he could remember properly, was the ginger telling him he just wanted to help.

Typical Kurosaki.

Grimmjow huffs out a sigh and rubs his eyes, before trying to get off the bed to go see what the fuck Sandal-hat was up to. However, as soon as he stands up, his instincts pick up on something, and Grimmjow looks back out towards the window. He remains still and quiet, his eyes scanning the sky outside.

"What is….”

He could sense something...vaguely familiar, but wasn’t sure what it was exactly. What’s more, it was coming from all over the place, as if the thing emitting this aura was massive….or rather...there were many.

"What the hell---”

Suddenly, there was a large explosion of reiatsu somewhere, which Grimmjow instantly recognizes as Kurosaki. What’s more, he could pick up more familiar onces the more he listened. All the shinigami bastards hanging around seemed to be fighting something right now across the town.

"What the fuck is going on?!”

His head begins to hurt, and the arms move closer to him to support him upright, as he started to feel strange again. Something about whatever the shinigami were fighting felt vaguely familiar, but...something about Kurosaki as well was…

His vision begins to fade again, and Grimmjow realizes this felt similar to that moment last night, when he’d been arguing with Kurosaki. It was strange, he felt a bit like...like there were two desires arguing against each other in his mind, both provoked by different things he was sensing, and Grimmjow had no fucking clue what that meant; was his hollow-side causing shit again?

"What…..?”

Unseen by humans living around the small store, its windows at the back briefly glow blue, before something seems to leave the building, dashing across the skies towards one of the equally unseen battles in the night.

When a door in the room opens and the sleepy young girl checks on the commotion she'd heard, all that waits for her, was an empty gigai.

Chapter Text

It had been initially a largely uneventful night, with Rukia still mulling over what she’d witnessed yesterday: seeing Jeagerjaquez turn hostile like that towards Ichigo was unnerving, especially given how it seemed to be at odds with his behavior typically. From what she’d gathered at this point based on her observations and what she’d been explained by Orihime, Grimmjow was kind of a jerk, but the claim that he’d been a good friend to Ichigo seemed to ring true. Apparently during the latest encounter between the group and the man, Inoue had observed something between the two the others hadn't.

"He was saying things in a very rude and harsh manner, but....I could tell it didn't bother Kurosaki-kun? It felt like he was able to read behind those words and see what he actually meant."

After dispatching another weak hollow, she suddenly gets a notification on her hollow tracker, indicating something stronger had entered the area. Looking around she couldn’t see or sense anything nearby however. Then, another ping, and another.

Looking down at her device, Rukia realizes to her horror there were more than one signal, what’s more, the reiatsu reading was off-the charts. Whatever these things were, theyw ere far more powerful than your average hollow. She quickly leaps to the nearest rooftop and runs across them to try and locate one of the others; they all had likely gotten the same warnings, and it was probably for the best to not engage alone with what she suspected this could be.

"Rukia!”

She soon spots Ichigo heading her way, and it was clear he had indeed seen the alerts as well.

"What’s going on? The tracker thing went crazy!”

"Something more powerful must’ve entered Karakura; it could be his doing.”

Ichigo’s shock is immediately replaced by a concerned frown, glancing towards the direction Urahara’s house was. She quickly realizes why and looks down at the tracker again to check. None of the signals were heading that way, they seemed to be wandering aimlessly.

"Should we warn Urahara?”

"Going there could attract whatever these signals are to his location: his shop is fairly well hidden from prying eyes, it doesn’t really let out any reiatsu outside what you’d expect from a normal human store. If a bunch of Shinigami head that way right now, they might notice, if they are what I think they are.”

Ichigo just nods faintly, looking back at his tracker’s screen. One of the five blips was nearby, so they decide to head there; others would likely follow suit and track down more of these signals. As they rush across the nightly city rooftops, Rukia uses her communicator to let others know he and Ichigo were engaging one of the potential threats. She gains no response, which could be a good or a bad sign. Rukia couldn’t sense any hints of a battle anywhere yet, so hopefully the signal was just weak; these devices were sometimes unreliable in the presence of powerful spirit energy.

"I think it’s coming from there!”

Ichigo directs them to a small street nearby, in a quieter apartment complex neighborhood. As soon as the pair lands on the ground, Rukia suddenly picks up something familiar nearby.

"Wait...is that---”

She gets cut off as Ichigo suddenly sprints forward without warning, the whiplash from the air pressure of his movement nearly knocking her off her feet. Rukia quickly gathers herself and chases after Ichigo, yelling after him and asking what the hell was---

Rukia quickly shuts up as she realizes what Ichigo had sensed; that unknown reiatsu target was near where she felt Chad was. Speeding up and turning a corner, Rukia arrives at the scene just as Ichigo blocks an unknown figure from attacking their friend. She had no idea why he was out this late when they’d explicitly asked Ichigo’s friends to stay put for now, not wanting to involve them any further than necessary. I

Getting kicked back, the unknown man – he was a hollow, an arrancar for sure judging from how human he looked – he seemed a bit surprised at first, then flashes them a very sharp toothed grin.

"Finally! I was wonderin’ if any of ya shinigami show up!”

"Who the fuck are you?!”

Ichigo demands, holding his blade up to shield the two while Rukia checks on Chad. Other than looking shaken with just how close of a call that was, he was fine. Turning to look back at their opponent, Rukia tells Chad to get away from there, and let her and Ichigo handle it. Wisely, he does exactly that without any complaints, he wasn’t as stubborn as Ichigo. She could grill him about being outside at this time later.

"Did Aizen send you here?”

Rukia questions the hollow who seemed to be measuring them up with that overtly confident smirk, gaining a shrug as a response.

"Maybe, maybe not. Y’all got somethin’ of ours.”

That comment immediately makes Ichigo charge at the unknown hollow, who blocks his blade easily with his arm, not even drawing blood. Rukia had expected as much, as unlike Ichigo she’d read more into the arrancar, and hadn’t had time to warn him before he rushed for an attack.

The hollow seems amused by Ichigo’s reaction, easily kicking him aside. Rukia uses his distraction to try and sneak up on their opponent, but unfortunately, the man’s instincts work too well, and he notices her attempt. The hollow dodges her slash aimed at his mask in a manner similar to Shinigami flash step, catching her off-guard. Rukia almost gets an arm pierced through her body, but at that point Ichigo had recovered, appearing between them in a blur of orange and sending the hollow flying with his blade swing. The man gains his balance quickly, instantly launching a counterattack by bouncing off the wall of a nearby building, having now brought out….a blade?

The sight of it catches Rukia by surprise, as she couldn’t recall any mentions of actual weaponry from Urahara’s notes. She quickly focuses back on the battle at hand however, as Ichigo manages to block the weapon swiping at him, only the resulting impact pushes him back several feet, and Rukia could tell why; there was a lot of power behind it, far more than even the strongest of hollows she’d fought.

Still though. It wasn’t as strong as what she’d felt from Grimmjow last night.

That spoke volumes of how strong the Oni king's hollow side was, no wonder he struggled to keep it at bay. 

"Ya know where he is, don’t ya kid? Where d’you Shinigami hid ’im?!”

"I have no clue what the fuck you are talking about!”

Ichigo swings his blade again, but the hollow swiftly dodges his swing, almost stabbing Ichigo in the back, or would have if Rukia hadn’t blasted him away with a kidou spell.

"Focus, Ichigo! He’s clearly not your typical hollow; remember what Urahara said about them!”

"Something about Shinigami captains?”

Just as Ichigo says that, they both could suddenly pick up alarming signs from all over the town; other fights were happening across Karakura, not just theirs. The hollow briefly pauses and seems to sense the same thing as they did, humming with an amused grin spreading across his face, the toothy maw glinting in the dim streetlamp light.

"They musta found some of ya losers too huh? Too bad I found what we needed first!”

Rukia realizes now that the hollow was primarily targeting Ichigo, completely ignoring her as he focuses on the ginger, who was struggling to block the hollow’s attacks; Ichigo was still clearly struggling to adjust to the mindset that he was fighting a shinigami captain level of a threat, not an average hollow. Instead of trying to guide Ichigo verbally, she uses the man’s laser focus on Ichigo to activate her shikai, calling out for Shirayuki.

Feeling her reiatsu shift does make the pair turn to look at her, Ichigo with slight awe – right, he’d never seen her zanpakuto release yet had he? - and the hollow with annoyed confusion. She doesn’t give him time to realize the potential danger he was in, silently telling Ichigo to quickly move back – which he immediately does – before she launches an icy torrent at their opponent, the glow from her spirit energy briefly blinding them both.

Once the glow settles, there was a large ridge of ice right along the street, emitting icy mist everywhere around it. That hollow felt strong, but wouldn’t survive a point blank hit from her zanpakuto like this for su---

"Damn, that was close! You’re an icy cool bitch I’ll give you that.”

Much to her frustration, the hollow had managed to dodge the attack, standing on the nearby rooftop. Rukia curses inwardly, trying to prepare another icy attack to throw at him, but it wasn’t easy to do these multiple times in a row.

"Rukia! Are you alright!?”

Ichigo asks concerned, likely having noticed her panting.

"Yes. Doing this again will take a second though.”

"As if I’d let you!”

An eerie red ball appears on the eye-socket of his mask as he moves the bandages away from it, and the pair quickly back, away knowing getting hit by that could spell bad news for them. Hollow Ceros were never a joke, and this was bound to be far more powerful than even a Gillian’s one. Before he could launch his attack however, a sudden burst of powerful reiatsu interrupts him, and they all go quiet, looking towards the direction it was emanating from.

Urahara’s store, it was coming from his store, Rukia realized.

What’s more, it was moving, heading towards their general location.

"Shit, did his gigai break?!”

Ichigo voices out the exact fear she was feeling now; this was absolutely the worst time for Jeagerjaquez to do this damn it!

"That power…..King!”

They both look back at the hollow at the rooftop, looking towards the source of that immense spirit pressure with a shocked and strangely delighted look. It was like he completely forgets their existence, and starts to head towards the invisible beacon giving out Grimmjow’s whereabouts.

Ichigo quickly rushes after him, with Rukia slowly pulling back her reiatsu and catching her breath, before following. Just as she is about to, a panicked message comes in from Renji.

"Shit, Rukia! Did you feel that?”

"Yes, our enemy is heading that way.”

"Same here! They all just dropped the fight; we gotta warn Urahara he’s left his gigai again and the enemy is closing in!”

Rukia attempts to respond, but the signal was broken by severe static, likely caused by the wild and powerful reiatsu Grimmjow was emitting currently. Rukia curses and puts her communicator away, heading after Ichigo and the unknown hollow.

The bastard was really fast, it took Ichigo a while to catch up to him, managing to knock the shark tooth face off the rooftop with a slashing attack. It doesn’t actually cut him apart from his clothes, and Ichigo had a feeling he should’ve studied these arrancar more. He’d just been kinda busy with the whole forgotten memories thing.

"Ow, that hurt ya bastard!”

The guy growls at him clearly annoyed, gaining a triumphant smirk from Ichigo.

"What? I thought you WANTED to fight a Shinigami!”

The guy immediately charges him with his blade, and this time Ichigo knew what to expect, managing to block the attack without skidding across the entire length of the roof he stood on. He knocks the guy off him and actually manages to finally land a proper hit, cutting his face lightly with his blade. Still though, not that good. He could tell this arrancar asshole wasn’t quite the same level as Byakua for example – let alone what he’d sensed and still did from Grimmjow – but given he wasn’t that familiar with what he was dealing with yet, he was being more cautious than usual.

"Guess I could go ahead and kill ya, less Shinigami fer King to waste his time on.”

The toothy bastard flashes him a bloodthirsty grin, and their blades clash again, sending waves of reiatsu out from their location. It was ultimately a small ripple in comparison to what Ichigo still felt emanating from somewhere, though much to his concern, it seemed to be fading. He hoped it just meant Urahara had noticed and they’d captured his rogue soul again. Ichigo quickly turns his attention back to his opponent who shoves him back, the white blade narrowly missing Ichigo’s eye, cutting some of his hair off from his bangs.

"The fuck are ya holding back for, Shinigami? No way they’d use weaklings like you to guard ’im!”

"Maybe a toothy weirdo is not worth utilizing my full power.”

Ichigo mocks the man right back, clearly pissing off his hollow opponent, who now uses the speedy motion ability to try and surprise attack him from behind. This time Ichigo expects his speed too however, managing to block the attack and send the guy flying into the air, before having to dodge a cero aimed at him from the guy’s face hole. Talk about having a bad case of pink eye.

"Stay still you asshole, lemme kill ya!”

"No thanks!”

Ichigo quickly sends a slash of power towards the hollow, who brings his arms in front of him to block the attack; it scorches him a little finally, but Ichigo knowingly hadn’t charged the attack with so much power yet. He could tell the guy was holding back too – probably because he thought of Ichigo as weak – and the longer he could draw out the fight, the more this dumbass would drop his guard, allowing Ichigo to deliver the finishing blow.

Or that had been his plan, except clearly he’d underestimated this guy’s patience, as the next Cero sent his way was much stronger and faster. Ichigo uses his blade to slice it, being unable to actually move out of the way on time. The attack manages to scorch the edges of his shinigami robes and he could smell the nasty smell of burning hairs, but this wasn’t strong enough Cero to overcome his zanpakuto.

”That all you---!”

He gets cut off as sharp pain hits his shoulder, and Ichigo realizes too late the guy had managed to sneak behind him in that chaos, perhaps anticipating he’d be able to block the Cero. He’d now jutted his blade straight through his shoulder, pulling it back and kicking Ichigo down to the ground, the impact creating a small cracked dent to the pavement. Zangetsu had fallen further away, and Ichigo’s vision was dancing with colorful lights, all air knocked out from his lungs.

Above, he could see the guy aim another attack down at him, before having to flee a barrage of ice sent his way, as Rukia had caught up. She quickly rushes to him alarmed, asking if he was alright. Ichigo manages to scramble up, holding his bleeding shoulder. Honestly, he’d gone through far worse, he’d just been careless.

"Damn, this guy really is stronger than a normal hollow.”

"Of course they are! Urahara-san warned us for a reason!”

"How was I supposed to know the difference was THAT big?!”

"You’ve sensed Grimmjow’s power! Even ignoring the Oni side, he's STRONG. You SHOULD know better you reckless fool!”

The hollow watches their bickering quietly for a moment, then decides to take advantage of their distraction, attempting to sneak-kill them with a Cero. Too bad for him, Rukia’s instincts still worked excellently despite being so focused on yelling at him, quickly getting them both out of the way. The red blast chars the ground, instead of turning them into freshly cooked shinigami barbecue.

"So annoying, You shinigami are slippery.”

The hollow grumbles clearly annoyed the attack missed, and Rukia sends another ice attack his way, though Ichigo could tell it was weaker than before; she hadn’t been kidding when she’d told him this thing needed charging. The toothy bastard dodges it fairly easily, aiming another blast their way with his glowing eye-socket.

However, before he launches it, something gains his attention, and the hollow floats back to the ground, turning to look somewhere with widened eyes. Or eye, they could only see one of them after all.

Ichigo now realizes as well, that he could feel something familiar nearby. They both turn to look towards the direction the guy was looking at, finding a familiar, glowing feline figure leaning against a wall in an alleyway nearby. His eyes widen in alarm, sensing that Grimmjow’s reiatsu was flickering quite badly.

"Oh...oh no, I thought Urahara and others caught him already?”

Rukia mutters out, tightening her hold on her zanpakuto. Their opponent had now completely turned his focus on the glowing blue maned figure, his expression shifting from surprise to some sort of awe, and….relief?

"King! Finally! You escaped those shinigami bastards didn’tya? Is this your resurrecction? It feels really strong!”

Grimmjow doesn’t respond, and Ichigo notes his eyes were completely empty, filled with that eerie blue glow he’d seen before. Their opponent seems to realize something was off as he gains no response, the smile fading as an angry frown appears on his face.

"King, don’t cha recognize me? It’s me, Di Roy!”

The two glance at each other, unsettled by this new turn of events; this hollow knew Grimmjow somehow?

"Did they do somethin’ ta you? Those bastards, we’ll kill all of ’em!”

Grimmjow still doesn’t respond, and Ichigo could feel he was bleeding reiatsu quite a lot; if they didn’t get him back into a gigai he could...he could….

"Grimmjow!”

Ichigo calls out without thinking, both the hollow – Di Roy – and the empty blue glowing eyes turning to look towards him. The former was clearly offended that he dared to speak to his ”king” with his name, but Ichigo keeps his gaze fixated on the glowing blue eyes, hoping he recognized him.

"Y-you need to get back to them! You’re bleeding so much power, your soul might fade!”

He couldn’t tell if Grimmjow understood a word he said, nor did he have the time to figure out, as Di Roy suddenly appears between them, foregoing using his blade to just smash Ichigo’s head to the ground with the kind of fury that felt personal. Rukia calls out his name and attempts to attack the man, but she is forced to dodge a powerful Cero sent her way.

"How DARE you speak his name asshole! You stole ’im away from us!”

Ichigo could barely understand the words said to him, his head was ringing so bad and his vision clouded with blood.

"He’s….gonna die like….his soul’s unstable…”

Di Roy presses his face further against the ground with a snarl, clearly unwilling to hear whatever he had to say.

"I’m gonna fuckin’ kill---”

A sudden roar interrupts him, and something swipes Di-Roy off him in a split second. His vision shifts from bloody red to blinding white, as the feline figure was now standing over him, snarling at the downed hollow scrambling up nearby. Grimmjow’s aura had spiked and was positively feral right now, Ichigo could only sense the hollow, none of the Oni right now.

"King? Why are you defending that shinigami bastard, did they brainwash you?”

Ichigo was slightly taken aback by the genuine concern in Di Roy’s voice, quickly replaced by anger as he still gains no response.

"They did, didn’t they; usin’ you to do their dirty jobs, just like Aizen-sama warned!”

Ah, so they did work for Aizen.

Grimmjow takes a step forward towards the hollow, before collapsing to the ground, giving Ichigo a pretty good view of his cat paws. Such a cute detail in such a terrifying thing, and he clearly had a concussion for even thinking about silly details like this right now.

"K-king!”

Di-roy yells alarmed and seems to try and rush to Grimmjow’s aid, when a sudden burst of energy emanates from Grimmjow, blinding them all with blue light that flickered like blazing fire.

Once the chaos starts to dissipate, Ichigo finds much to his horror that Rukia was laying knocked out on the ground, did she get hit directly by that sudden blast of spirit energy? He turns to look towards the figure now standing between him and the laserbeam eyeball guy, noting his form had changed. He was glowing – or more like burning, he was surrounded by what looked like blue flames – intensely, only really allowing them to see his silhouette. Clearly though, he had his horns.

”King, is that….is that what Aizen-sama told us about?”

Di-Roy questions him unsure, only for Grimmjow to suddenly appear before him, smacking him aside with ease. Ichigo watches as the guy cartwheels across the street like a life-sized rag doll, noting the hit against his head had badly cracked his mask. The sight would've been hilarious if Ichigo hadn't felt like he was witnessing something really bad somehow, something that wasn't really supposed to go this way.

Once he finally stops and scrambles up, the guy was holding his bleeding mask, now looking kind of horrified.

"K-king?”

"I don’t know who the fuck you are.”

Grimmjow’s voice finally reaches their ears. And Ichigo notes it once again sounded...older. The blazing figure now approaches Di-Roy slowly, like a predator stalking its prey, and damn Ichigo actually begun to feel bad; the guy clearly hadn’t expected things to go this way, backing away with fear now.

"W-what did they do to you? We came to rescue you!”

Grimmjow pauses, and Ichigo could feel his reiatsu flicker, as if there was some form of internal conflict. The fiery aura around him seems to dissipate slightly as well, and as the ginger dares to sit up, he notes he could feel the hollow energy trying to claw its way back in.

What was going on?

"They must’ve brainwashed you or somethin,’ why else would you protect that shinigami---”

Grimmjow suddenly dashes forward and grabs the poor bastard by the throat, slamming him hard enough against the nearby tree to make it crack all the way through, more of Di Roy’s mask chipping away.

"I. Don’t. Know you.”

Grimmjow snarls at Di Roy who was now reflexively trying to pry his arm off his neck; Ichigo stands up slowly, swallowing down hard as he calls out to Grimmjow again. He wasn’t sure why he was doing this, he had intended to try and dispatch this hollow dude just moments earlier, but…

”Grimmjow. Maybe don’t kill him yeah? It sounds like...like he knows something about you.”

”Like hell I’d tell you Shinigami shit!”

Di-Roy manages to spit out, before hacking as Grimmjow squeezes his neck, forcing him to shut up. The aforementioned blunet was also now holding his head, and Ichigo could sense the two powers flickering, almost if...if the hollow and the oni side were fighting for control?

"C’mon. Let go. If he knows you, we might be able to figure out more about you, what Aizen wants.”

"You might as well kill me Shinigami shithead! I ain’t tellin’ you nothing!”

Di-Roy manages to croak, though Ichigo could tell he wasn’t actually keen on dying, glancing towards his supposed ”king” with that fear from before. Pacing closer and ignoring the sting from his shoulder, Ichigo vaguely registered the sensation of more people heading that way, both familiar and unknown. He keeps his gaze on Grimmjow, his gut instinct telling him he had to stop him from killing this guy. Not just for the fact he’d stated, but….

Without warning, Grimmjow suddenly let’s go of the guy who sucks in a loud gasp. The glowing figure backs away, and they both watch as his reiatsu flickers violently now, switching between the hollow aura and the oni essence. His form kept flashing between the two as well, and Ichigo could’ve sworn he heard a growl somewhere in the distance.

"I….Don’t...know you!”

Grimmjow insists again, though there was a strange echo to his voice. They both watch him eventually collapse to the ground, now back in his feline form. The glow arround Grimmjow’s body dissipates, and the heavy weight of his reiatsu disappears in an instant, leaving almost an eerie quiet between them.

It is soon broken by someone yelling, and both Ichigo and Di-Roy look up, finding beaten up looking stranger – another hollow – standing in the nearby rooftop, looking down at the scene alarmed.

"Di-Roy! You---what the hell happened?”

"I dunno, he just attacked me! They must’ve brainwashed ’im or something.”

The unknown big guy slowly turns to look at Ichigo, who now curses at himself for not picking up Zangetsu as he was vulnerable right now. More of those hollows show up, all in varying levels of disarray indicating they’d been fighting as well, before sensing Grimmjow’s aura and heading there.

Where were his friends?

Were they okay or had Grimmjow’s aura knocked them out like Rukia had been?

There was no way, especially not with a bullhead like Renji or Ikkaku.

"Is that….”

"It must be his resurrection.”

Ichigo turns to look towards the older looking man and his blond companion, both eyeing Grimmjow cautiously but with slight curiosity. As if this form was new to them, like what Di Roy had indicated as well.

"It feels so weak, WHAT did you do, bastard Shinigami!?”

The big guy jumps down clearly intent on picking a fight with him, and Ichigo wonders briefly if he could rush to grab Zangetsu before the big guy would pummel him into paste. However, before anyone could move, a sound catches their attention.

Above, a hole had appeared in the sky, and Ichigo spots a vaguely familiar looking dark skinned man stepping out of it, examining the scene below with clearly unhappy expression
Well, examining probably wasn’t the correct term, at least when sight was concerned. If Ichigo recalled right Tousen Kaname was blind.

"….What. Are you fools doing.”

"L-look, Tousen-san! We found ’im!”

Di-Roy stutters out as he scrambles up, still clearly dizzy from the beating he’d gone through. Kaname let’s out a long suffering sigh, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yes you did. AND you left without explicit permission from Aizen-sama. You have alerted the Shinigami to your presence here, heightening their awareness of the enemy, AND from the looks of it, you’ve done damage to his soul.”

"B-Bullshit! He was like this! The Shinigami must’ve---they must’ve done something!”

Di-Roy insists pointing art Ichigo accusingly, and it did feel like all five still wanted to maul him, seemingly thinking he was somehow personally responsible for Grimmjow’s weak condition right now. His soul felt really weak, but much to Ichigo’s immense relief, it did not seem to be bleeding any energy anymore. Maybe the soul had indeed stabilized after all, that gigai just hadn’t been strong enough to hold it, and Grimmjow couldn’t handle his strange mix of powers for long.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, we meet again. Can’t say I am surprised.”

"What does Aizen want from him!?”

Ichigo demands, having now made his way to Zangetsu while Tousen chastised the group, lifting his blade up to point at the man. He doesn’t seem concerned, and it had nothing to do with him not being able to see Ichigo; he surely sensed he had Zangetsu in his hands again.

"You should stay out of business of the spirits, human.”

"Well you all kind of forced my hand here, so I’m very much in your business, and you can die mad about it I guess. Or die again, whatever.”

Tousen just hums amused, then orders the group to retreat back to Hueco Mundo. Di-Roy protests loudly, and the older looking man also expresses his dismay about leaving their 'king' in the hands of Shinigami, especially since currently the only obstacle that stood before them was a single opponent.

"You’d be wise not to underestimate this one, Shawlong. Aizen-sama finds him interesting for a reason. Besides, right now your King is in no shape to travel. Be patient. We’ll be back.”

Tousen tells the man calmly, keeping a close eye – figuratively speaking – on Ichigo, while the group reluctantly leaves, with Di-Roy limping past him, turning to glare at the ginger with the kind of intensity that almost rivaled his laserbeam eyeblast.

"We’re gonna take ’im back, Shinigami asshole, and there’s nothin’ you can do about it, just you wait!”

Ichigo says nothing in response, just watches the group disappear back through the portal; he knew better than to try and stop them, his injury was still bad, Rukia was out cold, and he was worried about Grimmjow’s condition. Tousen gives him one last thoughtful glance, before closing the hole in the sky.

Chapter Text

They’d put Grimmjow back into the cave room, with Tessai using his binding spells to trap him just in case, given he was stuck in hollow form. Ichigo was still reeling over everything that happened, still replaying the events of that night in his head. He’d been checked over by Tessai, and thankfully his injuries weren’t severe enough to require calling Inoue there. Chad was with them, as he’d pretty much still watching the whole situation unfold after his near-death experience, and likely was concerned for Ichigo, even if he didn’t show it.

Currently, his friend was standing beside him, watching the shinigami hustle around to seemingly add extra layers of seals and protection to the cave room, while Urahara was crouches next to Grimmjow, checking on him. He seemed fine, his soul felt stable right now, at least it did to Ichigo. Still, he was no expert, so who knew. His gigai was apparently damaged so he couldn’t be put back into it until Urahara fixed it, which was also why they were strengthening the bindings and everything around the place; both to try and prevent him from going on a rampage, and from being found again.

A hand lands on his shoulder, and Ichigo turns to look towards Chad, finally managing to tear his gaze away from the unconscious spirit.

"Are you alright?”

Chad asks quietly, and Ichigo nods faintly, breathing out a slow sigh.

"Just…processing stuff.”

"It really seems like a hectic night.”

Chad agrees with a faint nod, squeezing his shoulder briefly, before letting go as Urahara now approaches the pair. Ichigo can’t help it, asking how Grimmjow was, if his soul was stable or not.

"He is stable. At least, it seems the damage his soul had suffered from has well and truly healed now, but we are still uncertain of what exactly is going on with his hollow- and Oni-halves. It is a very unusual situation.”

Urahara now gestures towards the door, wordlessly indicating that they should probably leave, as there wasn’t much Ichigo could do for Grimmjow right now. The ginger was reluctant to do so, but Chad subtly coaxes him to leave, grasping his shoulder again and gently but firmly herding him towards the door.

As the pair heads upstairs, Ichigo started to feel the weight of tonight’s events to catch up on him, and he finds himself slumping to sit down on the floor next to the basement door, leaning his back against the wall with a sigh. Fuck he was so tired for some reason….

Chad sits down beside him in sympathy, and for a while neither speaks, with Ichigo just sort of staring into thin air, watching dust particles float in the dim light.

"….Why were you out this late?”

Ichigo eventually breaks the silence, gaining a hum from his friend. As Chad doesn’t respond, he turns to look at his friend, whose face was as stoic as ever, eyes hidden by his hair. He waits, but Chad still says nothing, making Ichigo frown.

"Chad?”

"I had an errand to run.”

"At 2 A.M?”

Ichigo squints, feeling like his friend was hiding something. Before he could grill him about it more however, Yoruichi pops out from the basement, cheerfully asking why they were moping on the floor.

"I don’t know, I got my head smashed in by a hollow dude with shark teeth, you tell me.”

"Cheer up Ichigo! He’ll be fine, we just need to make sure the little kitty won’t escape again.”

"Why did this even happen?”

Yoruichi’s smile fades a little, and she crosses her arms over her chest with a faint frown.

"We don’t know yet. Urahara is studying his soul’s condition right now, but likely we won’t get answers until he wakes up - and it better be soon, I feel like Hitsugaya and others are starting to be on the fence about whether they indeed should keep quiet about Jeagerjaquez or not.”

Ichigo frowns, not liking that, not one bit.

"I’m certain they’ll likely still agree to propose the Hueco Mundo excursion idea first, before letting Genryuusai know about the Demon king. After all, since we don’t know yet what exactly Aizen wants from him, its not like that information would be that useful for the higher ups.”

Yoruichi reassures him, and Ichigo hoped she was right. He trusted Rukia and Renji by now, but the rest? Not really no. The dark skinned woman glances at Chad now, and there seemed to be a silent conversation between them, before she smirks widely again, patting Ichigo’s shoulder and telling him and Chad to head back home for the night, now that all the excitement was over. She was probably right, even if he felt reluctant to do so. Ichigo pushes himself off the floor, insisting on escorting Chad home before heading back for his body, just in case. That had been a really close call after all.

While he was still wondering what was going on with Chad, Ichigo chooses not to drill him about his late night wandering further for now, feeling too exhausted to care.

Yoruichi watches the two leave, before returning back to the laboratory, where Urahara was writing down some notes. The discarded gigai was resting on a bed nearby; it did not seem damaged outwardly so something about the internal workings must’ve broken. Not physically, but it wasn’t currently capable actually holding a soul inside it.

"….I’m guessing you did contact Hachigen and others about…?”

"Yes.”

"Was that why Chad was outside this late?”

"In all likeness yes. His friends are keen on joining him for this trip.”

"Provided Grimmjow agrees to open a portal for us, so far it doesn't seem like it."

"I'm sure Kurosaki-san will convince him sooner or later. He is at least as stubborn as our feisty Oni-King after all."

Yoruichi hums, glancing towards their fellow shinigami finishing up all the protection spells. They were all avoiding the trapped hollow spirit resting at the center of the room, still somewhat unnerved and puzzled to see him in this form - especially given they could still feel his reiatsu wasn’t quite that of a hollow. It was a bit like Ichigo, how he seemed to have a mismatch of energies in his aura, though the combination of an Oni and a Hollow was unheard of, since normally Oni had nothing to do with the hollows from what they understood.

".......It’s kind of concerning if those hollows did in fact know him.”

"From what Kurosaki-san told me, Grimmjow insisted he didn’t know them. He hasn’t mentioned people befitting of their description either.”

"Maybe he just doesn’t remember them?”

"I suppose that is a possibility.”

Urahara hums thoughtfully, but Yoruichi couldn't tell whether he believed this to be a possibility or not.

The next morning, Ichigo still felt the ache from the beating he’d gotten last night. Still, the ginger manages to drag himself to the bathroom and later downstairs for breakfast. Slumping down to his chair, Karin asks him if he had a long night. It was said with a casual demeanor and tone, but Ichigo could tell his sisters were a bit concerned. He probably looked like shit.

"Good morning Sonny!!! I hope you didn’t have too hard a time chasing ghosts last night!”

Isshin pipes in as well once he gets out of the bathroom - hearing the old man sing some random radio hit pop song from the eighties at full volume in the shower would never leave his poor brain - getting swiftly smacked in the hand by Yuzu as he tries to steal some pancakes from Ichigo.

"Behave, dad! Ichigo clearly needs some extra fuel!”

"But your daddy works hard at the clinic, what about my extra fuel for grueling long days at the front lines!”

Ichigo tunes out his whining and focuses on eating his breakfast, not really feeling like dealing with his family’s shenanigans. They at least seemed to pick up on it, leaving him be for now as the two girls focused their full assault on the old man, with Yuzu scolding him for trying to steal from everyone’s plates, and Karin eventually kicking him in the balls.

Ichigo decides to head out for a walk to clear his head a bit; it was sunday so no lessons today. Predictably, Kon sneaks into his coat as well to join him just in case. He’d been pretty worried once Ichigo had shown up home. Sure all his injuries had been healed, but his face had likely made it clear shit had hit the fan.

"Sooo….?”

Ichigo remains quiet, waiting until he reaches a quieter area with no people. Still though, he digs out his phone to pretend to be in a call with someone before answering.

"You sure you wanna know?”

"You were pretty beat looking when you came home, of course I wanna know!”

Plush feet kick his back, and Kon pops out from his jacket collar, pushing against his cheek like the menace to society - or Kurosaki Ichigos - he was. Ichigo just shoves him back annoyed, continuing to walk while still holding the phone to his ear. More people around so it was better to do this than risk looking crazy.

"Some of those hollows they told us about showed up finally - and they seemed to know Grimmjow?”

Kon goes quiet for a while upon hearing that name, clearly still intimidated by the blue Oni-hollow spirit. Ichigo takes this as his cue to continue talking, roughly describing the events from last night.

"He’s now stuck at that cave room in Sandal-Hat’s basement. They’re keeping him tied in case he goes berserk again once he wakes up. His soul is no longer at risk of fading though from what I understood, so Urahara might not have to make a special gigai for him anymore.”

"….You know Ichigo. Its kinda weird how the cat hollow seems to like you.”

Kon suddenly comments, almost making Ichigo splutter and drop his phone in surprise. He quickly catches himself and turns his back towards the few confused onlookers walking by, now speaking quietly with his cheeks flaring.

"What the hell does that mean?!”

"Well, if I understood correctly from all this, the ’hollow’ isn’t really Grimmjow you know, right? If he can’t control it and all, its more like your inner cackling marshmallowy maniac. Yet it seems this particular murdercat isn’t that keen on murdering you.”

"Maybe it’s just…he’s not a human soul to begin with, so maybe the inner hollow thing is different for him? Like it IS him, just more instinctive?”

"Soooooo are you saying that scary cat demon bastard likes you so much, he instinctively won’t hurt you?”

Ichigo could hear the eyebrow wiggle in Kon’s voice, and part of him was kind of baffled by Kon of all people teasing him about Grimmjow suddenly, when he’d been kind of scared of him earlier. Hell, just bringing Grimmjow up had made him go quiet just seconds ago. He was tempted to grab the plushy and throw it into the nearest trashcan, but refrains from doing so as Kon was still useful, sometimes.

"Okay but for real Ichigo; its kind of strange how each time he’s gone berserk, he hasn’t ultimately harmed you, right? If that hollow in him is so dangerous, why’s the cat not really tried to use you as a scratching post?”

Kon had a point admittedly; it was a bit strange. The only moments of true hostility - that weren’t just Grimmjow’s dickish personality - seemed to come more from the Oni side of him. Ichigo frowns and ponders about this quietly for a moment, thinking back on each encounter with the hollow.

Yeah.

Even back then, Grimmjow hadn’t really tried to kill him even after he got out of his gigai in that berserk state, now when he thought back of that regained memory? The next time they met, same thing. As soon as he seemed to recognize him, Grimmjow had stopped himself long enough to be recaptured and sedated by Urahara and others. Maybe Kon was right, maybe Grimm did actually care about him enough that even his inner hollow bend to his will enough not to harm Ichigo. Considering his outburst about going to the Spirit realm too….

"Ichigo?”

Ichigo almost jumps, snapping out of his thoughts and turning to look at a familiar girl who’d apparently sneaked up on him. Inoue examines his face concerned, asking if he was okay. As soon as Kon recognizes her voice he attempts to scramble out of Ichigo’s jacket to say hi to her - and hug her boobs probably - but Ichigo violently shoves him back, telling Kon to behave or he WOULD throw him into the nearest trash bin. Looking back at puzzled Inoue, Ichigo smiles sheepishly, rubbing his head.

"Yeah, I’m fine. Just. Thinking about stuff. Last night was rough.”

"I heard as much; I’m going to Urahara right now as they asked my help with something.”

"Oh?”

"I don’t know what. Maybe it relates to Grimmjow?”

Ichigo looks at her a bit concerned now, wondering why she’d be needed.

"….Guess I could come with you.”

"Oh?”

"Yeah, got nothing else to do, and I mean…”

Ichigo rubs his neck again averting his gaze, and Inoue nods after a moment wordlessly, seemingly understanding what he was getting at. He was worried about Grimmjow, it was probably obvious. The pair heads towards Urahara’s store wordlessly, with Ichigo hoping it was nothing serious. Maybe Sandal-Hat had just blown off his eyebrows or something, and needed her to reverse the damage.

It turns out Urahara indeed needed his eyebrows repaired, and the reason was both really alarming, but also kind of hilarious in a weird way.

Apparently, Grimmjow had suddenly snapped awake, managed to overwhelm most of the bindings with his Reiatsu - or rather, the odd combination of Oni and hollow energy managed to distort the barriers, because they weren’t really used to such thing. They’d managed to still trap him in the cave, but trying to sedate the volatile spirit again had resulted in scorched hair and eyebrows, including Urahara’s, and even Yoruichi’s cat tail.

"….So, you have a very angry, volatile hollow panther or something stuck in your basement right now, and he hisses at anyone who dares to come close, blasting them with a Cero? Musta been a weak one at least since the house is still standing.”

Ichigo asks trying not to smile openly; this was clearly a serious situation, but given the damage seemed to be more on their pride than actual severe injuries, it was hard to not find this funny.

"He did seem unable to summon a more powerful one, but regardless; if this keeps up, he’ll break through the barriers in no-time. We considered asking Captain Hitsugaya to try and freeze him, but Yoruichi-san pointed out it could anger him more, since we don't know exactly why he's being aggressive.”

Tessai explains while adjusting his glasses, still covered in soot. Ichigo hums and examines the group, noting most of Jinta’s hair was burned off too, with the poor brat trying to hide it with his beanie. As he examines the group more closely though, Ichigo couldn’t help but notice…

"…None of you are that injured.”

"His aim’s terrible!”

Jinta comments with a snort, but Ichigo shakes his head, holding his chin thoughtfully now.

"Nah, if he wanted to burn you to ashes, he would've done it first try. He’s not trying to actually kill any of you, is he? I’ve seen what he can do, this is…pretty weak showing from him.”

"I admittedly suspected the same. I can’t tell if he recognizes us or not, but he doesn’t seem to see us as an actual threat anymore - but he’s clearly pissed at us for some reason.”

Yoruichi agrees, licking her paw that also looked a bit burned. Inoue asks her if she needed it healed as well, and the cat offers it to her, allowing Inoue to heal her as well. After checking his eyebrows were back in place, Urahara puts his hat back on, coughing and turning around to face Ichigo. He could already guess what the man was going to say, seeing that familiar glint in his eyes.

"….You want me to go down there, don’t you?”

"Indeed. From your past track record, he doesn’t seem that hostile towards you, at least not as a hollow!”

Urahara comments cheerfully, and he kind of wanted to walk straight out of the house, not keen on being bait for an angry hollow cat-man. However, this was Grimmjow, and Urahara was right. Hell, Kon had pointed this out as well just moments before. Ichigo looks back at the expectant faces around him, with only Inoue showing any kind of concern, asking if this would be safe to do.

Ichigo releases a long suffering sigh, then drags Kon out of his jacket.

"Perhaps you should remain in your human body.”

Yoruichi pipes up before he could let the mod soul have his body, and both him and Kon turn to look at the black cat confused.

"Are you gonna try to get Ichigo killed?! Like yeah I like his body, but I like Ichigo more!”

Kon protests instantly shaking his soft teddy bear lion paw at her, and Ichigo would be caught dead before he’d admit he was touched hearing Kon say that. Yoruichi just settles down to Ururu’s lap now, purring for a moment as she pet her before looking back at them.

"I suspect going there as a shinigami right now is going to pick a fight with him at this state. Not saying you’d lose, but we like our basement.”

"Fine fine.”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh and drops Kon to the floor, figuring it was probably for the best to leave him there. The bear turns to look at him concerned, asking if he was sure about this. Ichigo lifts eyebrow at Kon, asking why was he so worried about this given what he’d said earlier.

"I was just thinking out loud to tease you! Doesn’t mean I’m not worried damn it!”

The lion plush uselessly kicks his leg, and Ichigo just pats his head, before picking him up from the said head and throwing him to Ururu, asking her to wash him since it’d been a while since Kon had had a proper bath. With the horror struck face crossing the lion doll’s features, Ichigo turns on his heels and heads down to the basement, probably seeming a lot more confident than he felt. While so far, Grimmjow’s hollow side indeed hadn’t harmed him before, who knew. This was risky, nothing would change that.

Entering the laboratory, he pointedly avoids looking at the lifeless gigai resting at a table nearby, at least Urahara had the decency to cover him - it - with a sheet. The door was slightly damaged with many of the seals torn and scratched, and Ichigo hesitates for a second, before finally opening it and entering the cave.

It was still so weird, seeing the impossibly tall ceiling and torii gate supposedly hidden beneath the shop. It made no sense, the cave ceiling would be higher than the store roof outside, but that was spirit world bullshit for you.

Heading past the gate towards where the cave lake was, Ichigo keeps an eye out for giant white cats, but so far couldn’t spot anything. He is eventually met by the bluish glow of the lake as well as the lanterns around the larger opening, brown eyes searching for a familiar figure. He couldn’t really pick up anything right now, other than the magic lake thing itself. Ichigo could also see the damage done by Grimmjow’s scuffle with the group, some charred and burned rocks and rubble here and there, slashmarks in the ground and walls, and even what looked like a crude face-print of Urahara in the soft sand.

"If I were a tall, armor clad hollow cat demon, where would I be hiding?”

Ichigo muses out as he looks around the place, peeking into the shadowy corners and locations, all the while trying to sense Grimmjow. It wasn’t like he didn’t, it was just that he couldn’t pinpoint where the reiatsu was coming from. Damn cats and their stealth. Ichigo stops next to the lake, peeking into the waters just to see if he was taking a swim perhaps, but nothing. The pool was empty, just like rest of the cave seemed to be. Where the hell was Grimmjow hiding now?

"I know he’s got a cat hollow form, but this is a bit on the nose.”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh and turns around - only to be faced by electric blue eyes peering at him through the darkness.

Grimmjow was perched atop one of the taller boulders jutting out from the cave floor like a cat shaped gargoyle, glaring down at him from the shadows with his whip-like bony tail moving behind him restlessly. Ichigo’s earlier confidence about this being a piece of cake was waning fast, and he now regretted not changing into his Shinigami form.

"…..I get wanting to blow Urahara’s face off sometimes, but Yoruichi? Her poor tail, what did she do to deserve that?”

Grimmjow doesn’t respond, just tilts his head lightly, as if he didn’t really understand what he was saying. It was always really weird, how much more animalistic he was in this form, even for a hollow; normally they did have human intelligence and talked, but right now he truly felt and acted more like an actual cat.

A ghost cat who was likely wondering if his soul would make for a tasty human meal.

Ichigo stands there awkwardly, not really knowing what to do. Before he could think of a next move, Grimmjow suddenly moves, appearing before him so fast the misplaced air creates a pressure wave that knocks him to the ground. For a moment all Ichigo saw was blurry colors and stars from the impact and the sudden appearance of a powerful reiatsu in front of him, but as his vision clears Grimmjow was now crouched over him, tilting his head with an expression that reminded him of a curious cat.

Okay, wow, Kon really was right. This hollow side did not seem to want strawberries for lunch. In some other context that would've perhaps been disappointing, but in this case it was a relief.

"….you could’ve warned me, asshole.”

Ichigo mutters out, still not really daring to move from the ground, just watching the figure closely. Grimmjow was squinting now, tilting his head to the other side as if trying to puzzle something out in his brain. One of his legs was very close to Ichigo’s hand, and he was tempted to poke it - c’mon, cat paws - but he holds himself back, knowing those cute fluffy toes likely hid VERY sharp claws in them.

His eyes quickly snap back to the blue eyes, as Grimmjow suddenly leans closer, and seems to…sniff him? What? He was definitely scenting his hair now, and it was really weird, seeing him behave so catlike. Would he be embarrassed once he snapped out of it, and try to murder him just so he kept his mouth shut? If so he’d have to do it twice to be fair, but Grimmjow seemed more than capable of that.

Grimmjow backs away suddenly, falling on his ass to the ground now, holding his head as he blinks couple of times. Ichigo now dares to sit up slowly, watching as he shakes his head, as if trying to clear his mind or something.

"…..What….the hell happened?”

Ichigo blinks in surprise, hearing him finally speak.

"Are…are you okay?”

Slowly, Grimmjow looks back up at him, and yeah, there was much more…human in those eyes. Whatever weird cat trance he’d been in, it seemed to be clearing.

"My head’s….fuzzy. Did I…burn off Sandal-hat’s face?”

"Just his eyebrows.”

"Ah, fuck. My hollow aim’s bad.”

Grimmjow snorts, the comment punching out a relieved laugh from Ichigo, gaining a stinky look in response. The bony tail whips out to smack his arm, making Ichigo yelp and rub the spot poutily, though his annoyance doesn’t last long.

"Seriously though, are you okay? Do you remember at all what happened?”

Grimmjow doesn’t respond at first, seemingly taking a proper inventory of himself with a puzzled look. That’s right, he hadn’t really been ’conscious’ before in this form. Ichigo watches him even wiggle his cat toes a bit, the urge to touch them rising in Ichigo again, right up until Grimmjow whips out the impossibly deadly looking claws attached to them as if he’d sensed it.

"Weird.”

"Yeah. Seeing something that cute in something this deadly is weird.”

"You wanna get your balls scratched off?”

It wasn’t a real threat, Grimmjow was still prodding at himself, just sort of examining this new form he hadn’t seen before. The frown on his face though…

"…What do you remember?”

Ichigo asks again, and Grimmjow finally looks back up at him, and shit he really wanted to touch those ears, they looked so fluffy.

"Hands. They were present when I woke up. Then…I felt somethin’ familiar out there.”

"The…the arrancar? They…they implied they knew you.”

Grimmjow remains stoic, that same frown still on his face. For a moment Ichigo wondered if he’d even heard him.

"….I dunno who they were. I…vaguely remember their faces.”

He sounded very uncertain, and Ichigo hums, wondering if he did know those hollow and just didn’t remember. Maybe there had been more cases like him? Maybe all Arrancar Aizen had at his disposal were former citizens of Spirit Society. The thought made Ichigo’s blood run cold, a shiver running down his spine as he realized what that could mean.

What if there was a hollow version of Rukia out there? Or Urahara? Could he even face off against people like that?

What if….if…..

"Never met ’em in my Oni life. I’m sure about that.”

Grimmjow cuts his thoughts off, face in a deep frown. His tail was still moving around behind him as he thought, the movement kind of mesmerizing. Ichigo slaps himself mentally, trying to focus as this conversation was kind of serious.

"Well…all that aside. Why did you attack them?”

"I always do. Somethin' somethin' hollow surrounded by shinigami is a bad equation. Obviously.”

"….Why did you seem to just drive them off and not try to kill them?”

Grimmjow rubs his eyes - somehow managing to not poke his eye out with those sharp claws - before looking back at him, that same frown marring his face.

"I…don’t know exactly. My brain’s hazy in that state, but…I didn't feel like I was in danger anymore? I guess just wanted ta be left alone fer a moment, and they were crowding me.”

Ah. That….actually made sense. It was a very catlike thing to do, to want space.

"Do you think you’re starting to slowly tame your hollow side finally?”

Ichigo asks with a faintly amused smile, gaining a snort and an eyeroll from Grimmjow, although as he glances down at himself, a more thoughtful expression appears on his face again.

"Maybe. Like said, didn’t feel as aggravated this time around? Like I was half-conscious the whole time?”

"Well, given you are in that form and fully conscious right now…”

Grimmjow just nods faintly, looking at himself again. Ichigo could no longer hold himself back, reaching out to poke the nearby cat toes, making Grimmjow pause and look at him very unimpressed.

"What? Cat paws! You have to touch them.”

"You humans are fuckin’ weird.”

Grimmjow comments with a snort, before pulling himself off the ground, bringing the paw away from Ichigo much to his immense disappointment. He needed to probably gain more friendship points back with Grimmjow before he’d be allowed to boop his toebeans again—ah hell, now he sounded like Yuzu, it was starting to get cringy. Grimmjow was right, humans were weird. Especially humans like Ichigo Kurosaki apparently.

"Need a hand?”

Grimmjow asks amused, looming tall over him, and Ichigo squints, pushing himself up and dusting his clothes off from the sand Grimmjow’s antics had coated them in.

"No thanks. If I let you help you’d probably pull my arm off with those murderclaws.”

Grimmjow shrugs, examining the said claws with mild curiosity. Ichigo takes a proper look at him standing now, admittedly envious how much taller than him he was now. Grimmjow had always been a bit taller, but this was excessive damn it!

"….Do you think you can shift back to a more human or Oni-like form, or?”

Grimmjow looks back at him, then seems to hesitate for a moment, before closing his eyes. His body starts glowing blue and Ichigo backs away just in case, watching as Grimmjow’s form begins to shift. Briefly, he catches a glimpse of a familiar, massive feline figure appearing around him - it was the same one he’d seen in his early childhood memories Ichigo realized - before it shrinks again, and the catlike features give away to a different, familiar horned silhouette.

Once the light dissipates however, Ichigo realizes it wasn’t quite as familiar as he’d initially thought. He’d seen Grimmjow’s Oni-form before, in this cave, in that memory, but this was notably different. It wasn’t just the hollow jawbone mask stuck to his cheek or the hollow hole still present.

Something about this form this time felt more…complete. Like before he’d only caught partial glimpses of it, missing some notable details and pieces of power. Now however, he looked fully decked out with the extra layers atop his pants, the feather earrings, the fur draped across his other shoulder looked much thicker too.

Also, Ichigo could’ve sworn he somehow got even beefier now, what the hell.

"….That’s a lot of bling to carry around.”

It was the first thing Ichigo could blurt out from his mouth, his brain having kind of short circuited a little due to the sight before him. Grimmjow just shrugs, lifting up his dark blue hand, a blue flame suddenly appearing on it. It reminded Ichigo of the flame-like aura Hands had trailing behind them often, but much stronger.

"….Think I could burn off Sandal-hat’s face with this?”

Grimmjow asks casually, turning to look at him with the kind of grin that was somewhere between manic and kind of playful. Ichigo felt his throat go kind of dry, but he manages to snort, crossing his arms over his chest and tells Grimmjow he would not allow Urahara murder in his own house.

"So I’ll just have to drag ’im outside, got it.”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh before laughing, shaking his head at the smirking bastard.

"I doubt you want to pick a fight with Yoruichi about this. I suspect she’d be very mad if you scorched her favorite scratching post.”

"….Fair point.”

Grimmjow shrugs after considering it for a moment, briefly looking at his own reflection from the water surface. A frown appears on his face again, and a hand lifts up to briefly touch the mask. It wasn’t supposed to be there, so if he felt weirded out, Ichigo didn’t blame him. As blue eyes return back towards Ichigo, Grimmjow seems to take an inventory on him for some reason, a highly amused grin appearing on his face moments later.

"What?”

"….I’m pretty sure you woulda not have stuffed that lion bear thing in your pants like that.”

As those words register properly and Ichigo glances down, his face flares red, and Ichigo quickly covers himself, glaring at the cackling bastard embarrassed and pissed off.

"It’s not—its just adrenaline! I thought you were gonna eat me!”

Grimmjow just gives him a pointed look, making Ichigo realize he’d just dug his hole deeper. Grabbing the nearby piece of rubble on the ground, Ichigo throws it at the widely grinning maniac, his cheeks still fuming bright red. Of course, the rocks gets easily smacked aside, doing no damage whatsoever. Ichigo huffs irritated, turning to go and get Urahara and others so they could deal with the cackling bastard instead. 

Cats. 

Chapter Text

While it had lifted some eyebrows, thankfully nobody had commented on his fuming face - yet - and Urahara and Yoruichi had headed downstairs with him, Inoue in tow just in case her healing powers would be needed. Currently, the two humans watch as Urahara checks Grimmjow over with some sort of reiatsu scanner thing, asking how he felt. Since there didn’t seem to be any physical injuries, Orihime's power wasn’t needed at least it seemed like. Ichigo could also tell she was a bit intimidated by Grimmjow even now, especially seeing his ’true’ form finally. He doubted he'd be a threat to her, but also understood why she'd feel a bit freaked out.

Talking about that, it truly did seem his soul had finally, fully stabilized, although he still had his hollow hole and mask. From the musings Ichigo could pick up on, this was likely because, well, Grimmjow was technically supposed to be passed on already; unlike human souls, Spirit Society members would just immediately pass on into another life, except for the rare cases they were evil enough to send to hell. Ichigo was sure Grimmjow would've never ended up there.

Admittedly, after all this spirit society stuff, Ichigo was no longer sure what death even meant, even with humans like him. If anything it just seemed like a soul’s transformation from one form to the next. Grimmjow was once an Oni, now he was a hollow with some Oni traits still in existence. if things had gone as normal, he could've been reborn back in his home-world as another being. Maybe a cat of some sort, that would suit him based on his hollow form.

"...That's a lot of decorations. Jeagerjaquez-san didn't seem like the kind of person who'd dress like this?"

Inoue muses lightly curious, and Ichigo shrugs, not disagreeing with her. 

"Maybe he just had to dress like that, as a king?"

"Maybe..."

They watch as Urahara checks his device, letting out a thoughtful hum.

"I suppose this means I won’t need to develop a more intricate gigai anymore. Normal one should suffice.”

"Don’t fuckin’ wanna be stuck in those things anymore anyway.”

Grimmjow snorts, cracking his neck with an annoyed frown; he was sitting on one of the rocks near the edge of the lake, clearly not really caring for this whole ’doctor’ check up. He hadn’t tried to fry Urahara’s face off yet like he’d threatened, but Ichigo wouldn’t be surprised if a burst of blue fire would hit the sandal-hat’s back as soon as he turned. Glancing at Inoue beside him, Ichigo could tell she was a bit concerned he’d actually try to do so. He wanted to reassure her, but the truth was he couldn't be one hundred percent sure Grimmjow wouldn't try to do that...

Looking back at Grimmjow, Ichigo was of course relieved to hear he’d be fine, that there was no risk of his soul just decaying anymore. The hollow thing was still odd, though from what he could understand about Urahara’s musings - and from what he’d witnessed - Grimmjow seemed to finally have control over that side of his soul at least. Honestly, he almost felt jealous with how easy it seemingly had been for Grimmjow; he always had to kick Shiro’s pasty ass, and the bastard still tried to overtake him sometimes. Then again, since he was a demon king from a pocket dimension who’d likely existed much longer than him, that extra life experience probably gave you an advantage with this kind of stuff.

Still.

He’d spent most of his time on earth in a sickly state, why did he automatically gain proper muscle and shit in an instant? Ichigo had to go through grueling training to get where he was, and Grimmjow just had to tell his cat side to fuck off and behave. It was petty, Ichigo knew it, but fuck it, Grimmjow deserved the pettiness after embarrassing him earlier, even if it was just the two of them; it wasn’t his fault his body had weird reactions, and that Grimmjow was attractive, and that his memories from back then seemed to have an impact on his hormones even though he still felt only half connected to some of them—

"You’re staring.”

Ichigo jumps and turns to look at the black cat snickering on a tall rock nearby, so she was almost eye-level with him. Inoue looks at her confused as well, with Ichigo glaring at the cat annoyed. Thankfully Inoue didn't seem to have caught onto this whole ordeal, but unfortunately Yoruichi DEFINITELY did.

"No I’m not.”

"You are. I suppose I can’t blame you; he’s a looker for a demon.”

"Grimmjow-san? I guess he is?”

Inoue pipes in still confused by the conversation, and Ichigo huffs, crossing his arms over his chest with a pouty expression.

"A cheater, that’s what he is! Why does he just...GET to look cool with a snap of fingers, and I have to fight my evil internal twin for that?”

Ichigo knew he was being really childish. He just…he’d actually been really worried about Grimmjow, and then..... he turned out to be totally fine, just like that!

What the hell, if this was Ichigo, he would’ve been dying and needing at least a week to recover or something. It wasn't fair!

While Inoue looks between them utterly puzzled by the bizarre conversation, Yoruichi just flashes him an amused cat smile, before licking her paw and rubbing her ears a bit as cats do, turning to look back at Urahara. The man had seemingly finally finished his examination, turning to look back at them with a cheerful expression.

"Everything seems good! He should be able to leave this cave no problem in his spirit form - although I don’t recommend it yet, given what happened last night.”

"We can’t be sure how fast they’d try again.”

Yoruichi seems to agree with the assessment, and Ichigo looks back at Grimmjow, still sitting on his rock behind Urahara, twirling a blue flame in his hand clearly tempted to smash it on the man’s head. He doesn’t do it however, and admittedly Ichigo suspected he wouldn’t have made it so far. Urahara seemed aloof, a goofy weirdo, but he had been a Shinigami captain for a reason.

So, instead, Grimmjow proceeds to summon hands behind him, both of which flip Urahara off while he talks, admittedly almost making Ichigo burst into laughter while Inoue looks around awkwardly, wondering if she should say anything about it. Ichigo couldn’t stop but find that reaction just so….Grimmjow-ish. The topic was very serious and connected to him very directly, and yet, there the bastard was, casually flipping off the person who’d saved his life and taken him in.

No wonder his hollow form was a cat, even when his Oni-side didn’t technically have any cat in it. Maybe.

Yoruichi was clearly amused by it as well but doesn’t react, which was likely why Inoue ultimately stays silent,fidgeting there awkwardly while twirling a lock of hair around her finger. It was very likely Urahara was very much aware of the silent vulgarity aimed at him; he’d lived with Grimmjow for a long time by now, and from what Ichigo could remember, he’d been a true menace even as a brat. Sandal-hat had to be used to being flipped off almost constantly by now.

"For now, it is for the best he won’t leave this area in spirit form, and instead continues to utilize gigai. We still don’t know what Aizen wants from him after all, so we can’t let them get their hands on him.”

"What about the others? They’ll find out about this change for sure. Do you still want to keep Genryuusai in the dark about his presence?”

Yoruichi asks next, and Urahara hums, pulling out his fan to hide behind it for drama points. Ichigo almost rolls his eyes at it.

"Yes. After all, we have no concrete information yet. Hopefully the proxy mission with the drones can gain us some intel, but the more interesting source—”

"I told ya, no.”

Grimmjow cuts him off, making Urahara turn to look back at him. Hands were no longer flipping him off, just floating behind Grimmjow in a relaxed position. Or they were, until they suddenly move and beeline to Ichigo for some reason, making him almost fall on his ass in the sand; maybe the hands hadn't noticed him until now or something.

One hand proceeds to grab and squeeze him lightly, like a giant holding a toy, while the other pokes his head again, clearly still fascinated by his lack of horns - at least, at this point Ichigo assumed the hands thought he was that Ichigo. Grimmjow snorts and rolls his eyes at the sight, before looking back at Urahara with narrowed eyes, his face twisting into an angry sneer.

"M’not letting you bastards send ’im there. He’s a fuckin’ human, he shoulda not be involved in any of this bullcrap.”

"I do not like the idea of sending him and his friends there without our help either, but with how fragile the dimension must be, a shinigami’s presence could disrupt it too much, we already established that.”

Grimmjow’s eyes sharpen, his grin turning more vicious. Ichigo manages to free one arm to try and swat the giant finger prodding his head away. It was being gentle, but still, he was not a floating demon hand toy!

"Yeah? What ’bout the fact Kurosaki’s got Shinigami in ’im.”

Ichigo turns to look back at Grimmjow, noting everyone had gone quiet. He blinks puzzled, unable to prevent another poke from the giant hand, which now turned into a careful head rub, messing up his hair. Why did Urahara look like a deer caught in headlights all of a sudden...?

"…..Grimmjow, this is not your—”

"Fuck that part, none of my business. What I mean is, how the hell would it be safe for him, if you fuckers can’t go?”

"He doesn’t have enough Shinigami essence in his soul, that’s why.”

"And you base that assumption on what? Before I showed up, you fuckers didn’t seem ta know much anything ’bout dead worlds or Spirit Society.”

"True, but I did search up a lot of information once you brought it all up.”

Grimmjow finally slides off his rock, stalking towards Urahara like a looming predator, of course not making the man even flinch. Why would he, honestly? He watched Grimmjow ’grow up’ so to speak, it was probably hard to be afraid of your own kid in a sense. The blunet now glares down at him, grabbing Urahara’s collar and looking real tempted to burn his face off again.

"Then you should fuckin’ KNOW why I don’t wanna send ’im there. That reckless bastard’s gonna get himself killed real quick.”

Ichigo frowns, finally managing to free himself from being a barbie doll for disembodient hands that had been trying to restyle his hair, marching there to push Grimmjow away from Urahara. Not to stand up for the sandal-hat - he could handle himself - but to have Grimmjow’s full attention.

"Look, from what I gathered this trip would be hella important, so we can figure out what Aizen wants from you. Do you honestly want to just sit around all day in this stupid cave, or pretend to be human up above? I doubt that!”

"You don’t fuckin’ know what you’re getting into, Kurosaki!”

"Yeah, maybe I don’t. But I will do what I have to, to help my friends! You are my friend, clearly. Unless all those memories I’ve regained were another layer of bullshit from you all, which I doubt.”

Grimmjow now grabs his shirt collar instead - though Ichigo notes he was notably gentler than with Urahara, probably because he was aware this was his fleshy weak human body - tugging him closer to stare him down with the intensity of thousand suns. His mood sure flipped fast, from the earlier relaxed mischief to this intense anger, which admittedly was making Ichigo’s resolve falter a little. Not because of the said anger, but something else in those electric blue eyes. He could see Inoue watching them concerned, but Urahara holds his hand up, preventing her from trying to help or anything. 

"….Why do you think someone like me knows ’bout dead worlds, Kurosaki? Its not that common knowledge even among Spirit Society folks. Not somethin' I would normally know about.”

His words were very quiet now, though he never let’s his gaze fall, still keeping his eyes locked on his as if he wanted to drive home a point. Ichigo also notes, that..... he suddenly sounded slightly different, again, though it wasn’t as noticeable as that last time when he’d gotten really aggressive about it. Yet, there it was, a distinctive difference that reminded him of the outburst during their shinigami meeting, or that presence that kicked him out from that memory, or even....

".....How do you think he died?”

It takes a moment from Ichigo to understand.

"...That...that other me?"

"He entered into one, and got 'imself killed."

That….knocks all the fight out of Ichigo, and he could hear Inoue gasp in shock behind him. Grimmjow finally averts his gaze, still grasping his shirt collar firmly. His expression grows distant, and the next words felt like he was recounting something that happened to somebody else.

”…..I don’t….remember everything, but…Aizen tricked him into goin’ there. That’s how he got him. He used me as a bait.”

"….What?!”

Grimmjow shakes his head and let’s go of his collar now, turning his back to them as he rubs his eyes for a moment. Lifting his head up, Ichigo notes he suddenly seemed a bit…disoriented, and he asks immediately if Grimmjow was okay, now worried maybe he wasn’t as fine as they thought. Grimmjow still looks dazed as if he hadn't heard him properly.

"I….”

He cuts himself off with a curse, holding his head now as if he was having a headache. Ichigo takes a step closer concerned, repeating his earlier question. Grimmjow just shakes his head, smacking his hand away as he tries to place it on his shoulder.

"Look. I’m not doing it. M’not letting you go in there.”

He tells him bluntly, giving Ichigo a very stern glare, before turning his back to them and leaping all the way across the lake to get away from them. Ichigo just looks after him silently, swallowing down hard as he processes this new piece of information he’d learned. Inoue now rushes to him to ask if he was okay, gaining a nod from Ichigo. As they turn back towards Yoruichi and Urahara however, Ichigo notes the man was holding his chin thoughtfully. The pair were also whispering to each other, much to Ichigo’s confusion.

"…Did you notice, Kisuke?”

"Yes. It was subtler, but…”

”What are you two talking about?”

Ichigo asks annoyed, not liking seeing them gossip like that after the bombshell Grimmjow had just dropped onto them. Urahara seems to realize his annoyance, as the man coughs and chuckles sheepishly.

"Ah, pardon. We just noticed something that…well. Why don’t we give him some space after recalling such an awful memory; your family must be wondering where you have gone off to now.”

Ichigo glances back to the dark corner Grimmjow had vanished into, before sighing and nodding. Clearly, he didn’t want to continue chatting with them right now, and Ichigo didn’t blame him one bit. Also, whatever Urahara and Yoruichi had been whispering over, the sandal-hat wasn’t willing to explain to him yet.

Urahara watches the two leave, before turning back towards the black cat sitting beside him, looking up at him questioningly. The man hums and gestures her to follow him to his office, requesting Tessai to bring in some tea.

"How is the angry kitten?”

"He’s sulking, but stable, and no longer a kitten. It might take a moment to convince him to enter back to a gigai though, now that he no longer needs it to survive.”

Tessai hums and nods faintly, informing them the tea would be ready soon; he didn’t seem to need any further explanation for now, happy to hear things were under control.

Entering his office, Urahara sits down at his desk, with Yoruichi hopping up to it, stretching a little before settling down to the cat bed he had for her there. It was a very fancy one with red velvet coating, Yoruichi would’ve scratched his balls off for anything less.

"So, Kisuke. What do you think happened there? It seems you finally have confirmation to whatever theory you had in your head about his strange outbursts towards Ichigo.”

The man hums and digs out some of the notes and correspondence with his late tanuki counterpart, eventually finding what he was looking for. It was not a phenomena that happened often among the main trinity of worlds – Hell was its own special location, even if it was considered part of the main worlds – but apparently more common within these pocket worlds.

"I suspect...that our grumpy nephew might be suffering from a Soul Relapse.”

"A what?”

Yoruichi asks, licking her paws before looking at the letter Urahara had dug out curiously.

"It is a phenomenon that Tanuhara told me about in one of his letters; a situation, where a reborn soul might end up with memories of their past life. Typically because something went wrong in the transformation process, such as having unfinished business, specific type of curses, and so on.”

"Oh….?”

Yoruichi uses her paw to turn the paper and read it as well, though how much she actually understood, Urahara wasn’t sure; this wasn’t her forte, she was better at doing the stabby in the dark. He’d never say that thought out loud of course, not wanting his pillows covered in cat piss.

"Ah...so its a bit like a dual personality situation? Where the old self sometimes overrides the new?”

"Yes. I suspect each time he gets strangely aggressive towards Kurosaki-san, that is his old self, still holding some form of a grudge towards that other Ichigo. Our Grimmjow – the reborn soul – has no real hostility towards him. He likes him.”

"What about the hollow part?”

Urahara hums and holds his chin thoughtfully, as that was a good question. Spirit Society citizens did not turn into hollows, so what did that mean for Grimmjow, if he was indeed dealing with a Soul Relapse? Was there perhaps another entity within him, the source of that hollow form, such as Shirosaki within Ichigo?

"….Well, either way, having that old grudge be present is probably not ideal, if we want to gain access to the remains of Spirit Society.”

Yoruichi points out, although Urahara was certain there was a detail she was fully aware of; a detail they just witnessed that seemed to contradict this perceived grudge they had picked up on during the last episode. Their conversation pauses briefly, as Tessai brings them tea, informing the pair Grimmjow had stalked upstairs finally, mainly to scare the shit out of Jinta with his sudden appearance, and to grab food.

"I assume you still want him to go back to a gigai to hide his presence.”

"For now yes, though convincing him might take some work.”

"I could---”

"OI! Leave my nephew alone for now Tessai! He recalled something pretty traumatic! Let him sulk.”

Yoruichi pipes up with a cat hiss, and the man just nods, promising to leave Grimmjow alone for now – besides he’d skulked back downstairs anyway, where he couldn’t be sensed by anyone. Once the man leaves, the black cat huffs out a sigh, yellow eyes turning back towards Urahara.

"From what he said...I don’t think its necessarily a grudge - or the grudge - that’s making him not want to help.”

"Yes, while there seems to be some animosity towards Kurosaki – the other one at least – his reasoning for refusal in this case does imply fear for our Ichigo’s safety.”

"That’s gonna be hard to overcome, if that other Kurosaki did in fact die, due to entering a Dead Realm.”

Urahara nods faintly and picks up his teacup, stirring the drink and blowing on it before drinking. Tessai always made them way too hot at first, he’d learned his lesson by now to not burn his tongue.

"Our best bet would be to learn what exactly happened, to help alleviate his concerns. That, and I am of course trying to work on a solution where we could send fellow Shinigami instead, so we don’t have to risk Ichigo’s life again.”

"Yeah, I mean….Grimmjow had a point; Ichigo has Soul reaper blood in him. Even if he’s not a full shinigami, could that have an effect on the place? Not to mention the...other heritage he has…”

Urahara holds his chin again, admittedly a bit mad at himself for not having thought of that obvious possibility. According to Tanuhara such spaces were extremely sensitive, and while Ichigo was not a full soul reaper, he had a very powerful combination sleeping within him. Their idea of sending Ichigo and his friends there based on the idea that human souls in general had been more welcome in those pocket spaces, especially Spirit Society given they used to interact with humanity more in the past.

However...How human was Ichigo? It was a question he’d never had to ponder before…

".........Should Auntie try and speak with him? Maybe I can get him to share a bit more eventually about what happened. At least he typically opens up to me eventually, or used to.”

"I’m afraid ’auntie’ no longer works, he’s all grown up now. He stopped calling you that after the bridge.”

"It was such a bummer for sure!”

Yoruichi laughs, but there was genuine concern hidden behind her laughter. After all, even if Grimmjow was now back to his true self – whatever that meant exactly – she had watched him 'grow up' and likely still saw the man as her honorary nephew.

Ichigo sat in his chair, checking over some school-tasks he had due for tomorrow. The incident back at the store still hadn’t left his mind, the new reveal from Grimmjow about his twin’s fate. He wasn’t quite certain, but it had seemed like a newer memory, or at least something he hadn’t told Urahara and others about, judging from their reaction. Ichigo stares at his math equations, unable to really focus on it; his math wasn’t mathing, with his mind too preoccupied by the fact they were kind of trying to ask Grimmjow to do something that had apparently led to the doom of another Ichigo. It felt like purposefully provoking someone’s trauma, and it rubbed him the wrong way.

The same time though, they had to do something, find information from somewhere, and if Ichigo was the only person who could go there safely…

"YO! Ichigo, what are you moping about now!?”

Kon pops up right next to his ear, somehow having managed to crawl up there without him noticing. Ichigo jumps and swats him off like a spider, causing Kon to land face-first against the closet door, sliding to the ground. The plushtoy isn’t out for long, quickly jumping back up and rubbing his nose, pointing him accusingly.

"OW! What the hell was THAT about you asshole!”

"Don’t fucking crawl on me like some creepy bug!”

"I called for you like three times!”

Kon protests, hopping to his bed now to sit at the edge, swinging his tiny plushtoy legs back and forth.

"Really, you’ve been staring that same page for fifteen minutes, what gives?! You’re not THAT bad at math!”

"I guess I’m kinda distracted right now.”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh and leans back in his chair, stretching a bit before resting his arm on top of the backrest, turning to look at Kon who was still looking at him skeptically.

"Distracted? If your frown gets any deeper you’ll become a grandpa in no time!”

"Don’t say that, you’ll give dad a heart attack. He’s too young to be a grandpa, or so he keeps claiming.”

Ichigo chuckles, before breathing out a sigh and closing the book; he clearly couldn’t do this right now, he was too distracted.

"Is it that Oni again?”

Kon suddenly asks, and Ichigo looks back at him surprised, only to remember that yeah, Kon HAD in fact been present, he’d just stayed the hell away from Grimmjow, mostly as a prisoner for Ururu’s tea party. he'd almost forgotten to take him back home, if it wasn't for Kon escaping Ururu's clutches in a brand new fancy dress get up, metaphorically bawling his eyes out and climbing to hide in his bag again, the drama queen.

"What the heck happened when you were down there anyway? First you came out all huffing and puffing, and the next time you looked like you’d seen Kenpachi’s asshole.”

Ichigo shudders at that mental image, asking what the hell was wrong with him. Kon just shrugs and crosses his arms over his chest.

"Felt like an apt metaphor, since you keep seeing ghosts anyway, that’s not weird.”

Ichigo squints at him for a moment, but eventually gets up with a huff, walking to slump to his bed in his back, nearly causing Kon to fall off. He ignores the annoyed grumbling right next to his ear, just staring up into the sky from his window, watching the clouds drift by.

"He….I don’t know if he recalled it just now, or if he’d just kept that memory from them, but….Grimmjow revealed us something.”

"What kind of horrors did he have to offer now?”

Kon grumbles, though there was a hint of concern in his voice.

"Urahara wants to send me into the Spirit Society’s ruins – well me and Chad, Inoue and Ishida probably – to investigate and see if there’s any information Aizen left behind there for his plans. Problem is, only Grimmjow can open a path there currently.”

"Aaand?”

"….He doesn’t want to do it, because there was a version of me he knew, who apparently got killed by being lured into an unstable dead world by Aizen.”

Kon goes quiet and stops fidgeting, just sort of staring at him in silence. Ichigo huffs out a sigh and brings his hands up to rub his face. It was one thing if it was for general safety concerns, but this was incredibly personal for Grimmjow, wasn’t it? It wasn’t just that he was worried about him, this Ichigo, but because what had happened to that other one.

"He didn’t tell us how exactly. Like...I don’t know what dangers lurk in such a place as nobody hasn’t told me, other than Dead worlds are unstable somehow?”

Ichigo drops his arms and continues to watch the clouds drift by; Kon had gone so incredibly silent Ichigo could actually hear Yuzu humming a song downstairs, while she cooked dinner for them. Eventually though, a plush lion face appears in his peripheral vision, and Kon grabs both of his cheeks, squishing his face together.

"Why the HELL would you have to go there then?!”

"Urahara said---”

"Who cares what he said! You ALREADY keep almost dying on us! The fact a version of you DID in such a place, that’s bad! I can’t believe I actually agree with that brute!”

Ichigo smacks Kon away annoyed and sits up, pointing out that he had survived quite well so far, and that Ichigo wasn’t him. He was still alive after all. Kon was clearly not convinced at all, now starting to uselessly punch his arm with his weak ass teddy bear fists, continuing to call him a dumbass.

"This is THEIR mess, their problem! They should be the ones going there, not you! You should be doing homework a-and dozing off at class and hitting on cute girls! Not fighting some megalomaniac shinigami traitor!”

Ichigo opens his mouth, then closes it, admittedly not knowing how to respond. Kon was clearly worried, and it wasn’t like he was wrong; none of this really should be his business, but…

"….Grimmjow is my friend, or was, is, I don’t know right now. The point is, he needs help. If I can help, I will do it however I can. I get that you are worried, but...I could never forgive myself if something bad happens, and I could’ve prevented it by going there.”

Kon was now clinging to his arm, shaking like he wanted to cry.

"Why you gotta be such a self-sacrificing dumbass, Ichigo!”

Before he could answer, a shadow appears nearby, and Kon let’s out a scared ”eep,” going to hide under the bed now. Ichigo looks up towards the intruder, admittedly having not expected Grimmjow squatting at his windowsill, in his spirit form no less. It was a menacing sight for sure, though he'd never admit it out loud.

"...Why the hell are you out here? Shouldn’t you stay at the cave?!”

"Got bored.”

Grimmjow shrugs and sits down at the ledge properly, hands in his pant pockets now. Apparently they had pockets, making Ichigo wonder if he had more gems and jewelry stored in there. The look definitely screamed royalty in some way, but didn’t really remind him of the Grimmjow he knew, come to think of it. The person he’d grown up with had never really dressed that flashy, often wearing the same black or white hoodies and a leather jacket…

"Those fuckwads already know I’m somewhere in Karakura anyway, I doubt tryin’ ta hide that does shit anymore.”

"...Still…”

Ichigo huffs out a sigh, figuring trying to argue with him about this was a lost cause.

".....So. Are you gonna ask or not?”

"Huh?”

Ichigo looks up at him confused, gaining a snort and an eye roll in response, is if he was missing something obvious.

"The memory I showed ya before shit went down.”

"Ahh...I’ve had other things in mind.”

"Pretty sure its just me.”

Grimmjow flashes him a playful grin, making Ichigo grumble and avert his gaze, hoping his cheeks wouldn’t flare up again. It wasn’t like he wasn’t wondering about it too of course. Rejection was one thing and all, but he felt like someone like Grimmjow would’ve just told his twin point blank he wasn’t interested, not ditched him like that, right?

"...I mean, it’s none of my business is it? That wasn’t really me.”

"I can tell it bothers ya, Kurosaki. Don’t even try to deny it.”

Grimmjow tells him matter-of-factly, and Ichigo grimaces, rubbing his neck now; yeah, it kind of did, as much as it shouldn’t. Yeah that Oni had had his face and name and all, but it wasn’t him. That Ichigo was a total stranger, and the situation between him and Grimmjow’s past self wasn’t any of his business….

"I didn’t.”

Ichigo looks back at the blue menace sitting on his windowsill, noting Grimmjow’s face had turned into kind of a frown, like he was struggling to recall something. For a moment they both sit there in silence, until Grimmjow sighs and rubs his eyes, somehow managing to not poke his eye out with those sharp claws.

"As in….from what I’ve gathered of all the shit I’ve recalled, it don’t make sense to me he – I – would have? But I don’t fucking remember why I did that!”

Grimmjow seemed genuinely annoyed by this, and yeah, Ichigo could understand; he’d hate it too, remembering himself doing something that would feel out of----wait.

"You…?”

Grimmjow drops his hand, giving him a dry look.

"If I would have, I’d have told him to fuck right off, wouldn’t I?”

"Right...yeah. I was kinda….thinking the same…”

This conversation started to feel awkward, but it was clear Grimmjow wanted to get this off his chest, so Ichigo lets him mull over his frustrations when it came to his memory. Maybe he just felt most comfortable doing it with him.

"I don’t remember what I was thinkin’ at that moment” Not just that memory to be fair though; with a lot of ’em it feels like I’m watching shit happening to someone else?”

"Disassociation, or that’s what we call it. Kind of common with some people that have trauma. Makes it easier to process or something.”

Ichigo explains awkwardly, gaining a grimace from his spirit guest. Clearly Grimmjow didn’t like the idea, perhaps thinking it was a sign of weakness. That’s right...Ichigo could recall now, from the bits and pieces floating in his brain; Grimmjow hated looking weak. Then again, he would’ve figured that out even without his memories probably.

"I fuckin’ hate it. I mean, usually I don’t give a shit, but that memory caused that whole mess, and I don’t even know why the fuck I did what I did!”

Ichigo remains quiet, watching Grimmjow rub his eyes; he now noted he could feel his reiatsu spike and lower, perhaps matching his anger. He was trying to stay calm, to not alert anyone of his presence. Ichigo averts his gaze down to his lap now, processing the new bits he’d learned. Admittedly, part of him felt kind of...glad to hear what he’d witnessed probably wasn’t a rejection, even if the actual reason for Grimmjow leaving was still a mystery.

The fact Grimmjow had decided to let him know all this, clearly it had bothered him too that Ichigo thought that, even though he wasn’t really that Ichigo? Or maybe he just wanted to vent this all out, and didn’t feel comfortable doing it with Urahara and others, which, Ichigo would not blame him for. As much as he considered them his friends, Sandal-hat and his gang were a nightmare to deal with sometimes.

"….There’s another thing.”

Ichigo looks back up at him, noting Grimmjow was examining him closely now, that faint frown on his face.

"I know Sandal-hat picked up on it, an’ maybe you did too, why I sometimes freak out on you real bad when that's not really what I normally would do.”

It almost sounded like a question, and Ichigo tilts his head confused, asking what he was referring to. Grimmjow flashes him a wry, joyless grin now, averting his gaze to watch the sky start to turn orange, as the sun began to lower.

"You know why I know I must’ve liked that asshole?”

"...I don’t know, you stopped trying to kill him?”

Grimmjow snorts and let’s out a low chuckle, before turning back towards him, his eyes now blazing with blue fire in them. Ichigo could’ve sworn his voice changed again slightly, and he felt his hair stand to an end. Something uneasy curled in the pit of his stomach now, making Ichigo subtly lean back, away from the figure sitting at his windowsill.

"You’re only gonna feel this betrayed by someone you used to love.”

Chapter Text

Rukia had been surprised to learn that the Oni King’s soul had finally stabilized, able to just exists without the need for a gigai whatsoever. It almost seemed like that incident with those arrancar had somehow fixed him, though it was likely a coincidence. Speaking of arrancar, Urahara’s idea to send his drone devices to scout out Hueco Mundo at first for Aizen’s whereabouts had been approved by Genryuusai-dono according to Captain Hitsugaya. They hadn’t told Seireitei yet about Jeagerjaquez as per Urahara’s request, though Rukia still wondered why.

Did the former captain perhaps worry there was still a mole among their ranks, or did he not trust Genryuusai himself?

Given his history, both options were likely in all honesty.

She also wasn’t certain if this particular mission would indeed distract their enemy enough to allow Ichigo and others to slip into Spirit Society in secret. Why was Urahara even so certain there would be something there? She had a strong feeling the man yet again knew more than he was letting on, preferring to keep all his cards hidden for now.

Either way, in a way having those arrancar show up had been a good thing, because it had convinced Genryuusai they needed to stay in Karakura for now, given Aizen seemed to have an interest in the town - though only they knew why.

There hadn’t been many hollows present in the town since, perhaps scared off by the battles between the shinigami and their stronger peers. That, or Grimmjow’s powerful burst of power that night had frightened them away from Karakura; Rukia couldn’t tell if what she’d felt had been the hollow or the oni power, or a combination of both. Whatever it had been, it had been powerful.

Currently, she was sitting at the Urahara shop kitchen, watching the said powerful oni king stubbornly refuse to get into a gigai, clearly tired of being stuck in a physical body. Seeing Yoruichi scold him in human form like he was a child was very bizarre, but then again, given the history between them….

"I’m not doin’ it, fuck off with those things.”

"We can’t have any of those guys track you down to this place! C’mon now be nice to your auntie!”

"I stopped callin’ you that two years ago.”

"Won’t stop me from still being the aunt who raised you!”

Yoruichi now pulls his ear, and Grimmjow smacks her hand away, rubbing it with a pouty expression. It was so bizarre, seeing someone she’d deemed dangerous from their very first meeting, who was supposedly some sort of powerful king in previous life, act like a pouty toddler, getting scolded by his parent for not playing nice.

"Please do listen to Yoruichi-san, the gigai is necessary to continue hiding you from Aizen.”

Tessai comments calmly adjusting his glasses, gaining a middle finger in response. This of course makes Yoruichi pull his ear again, scolding him about manners. Rukia had a feeling though that she wasn’t that serious about it, and just liked playing the role of a parent.

"I already fucked off earlier an’ nothing happened. You idiots are worrying over nothing!”

"Just because you got lucky THIS time, won’t mean you wouldn’t attract attention the next. If not Aizen, then other Shinigami! We are trying to keep you hidden from Seireitei too, dumbass!”

Yoruichi whacks his head lightly and Rukia turns her gaze away, really struggling to process this whole scene. Instead, turning to look at Urahara who was sitting at the table across from her, pouring over some old notes Rukia suspected came from Spirit Society.

"Anything useful you’ve found out?”

"Not yet, no. It’d be easier if Spirit Society wasn’t in ruins, as there would be natural pathways open. There is a chance one could still be, but I’ve yet to figure out how to find one.”

"Is this necessary? From what I’ve seen, Jeagerjaquez is very against sending Ichigo and others there - which, to be fair, I agree with. Is it really not possible for a shinigami to join them?”

Urahara looks up towards the debate happening at the other end of the table, with Yoruichi ruffling his hair violently, until Grimmjow pushes her off by her face with his hand, of course leading to his hand getting bitten - and her face almost being burned by blue fire.

Tessai proceeds to separate the pair, telling them both to behave now, with Yoruichi also pouting like a child while Grimmjow digs his ear, flicking whatever he got out of there in Tessai’s face. There was a beat of silence, before Tessai uses his binding magic on the blunet, who manages to tear through them with his claws and fire, now kicking the man across the room and into a wall, leaving a big dent there as Tessai slides down to the floor. Rukia looks at the sight alarmed, but Yoruichi just cheers, smirking widely.

"Nice one, nephew!”

"Fuck off, I’ll throw you outta the window next, hag.”

"Who are you calling a hag, brat!?”

For a moment Urahara and her just watch the fight unfold with Yoruichi now trying to scratch Grimmjow’s face, while he grabs her arm and as threatened, yoinks her towards the nearby window, though unlike Tessai she shapeshifts mid-air into her cat form, only landing onto the glass to bounce right back, shapeshifting back to tackle to blunet to the floor with loud curse following from him.

"Yoruichi is having fun I see. To be fair it’s been such a long time since she could have a playfight with him. After the bridge incident he became more closed off from us.”

Rukia looks back at Urahara, who didn’t seem to be that worried about his shop being destroyed by the catfight currently happening. Then again given what the man had just said, he was perhaps used to it. Tessai manages to create a barrier before a stray flame would reach them, before proceeding to use his bindings to hurl the pair down the stairs, probably so they could finish this fight in the basement cave.

Once he was done, Tessai adjusts his glasses - they were slightly cracked - before asking the pair casually if they wanted more tea.

"Why, that would be lovely!”

Rukia blinks, her brain struggling to process what she’d just seen, before nodding faintly as well. Yes, tea. Better just to have some tea and move on from all that.

"Regardless, now that all that excitement is over. How have you been doing, Kuchiki-chan? Or the rest of you. After that arrancar invasion, there hasn’t been much work for you to do, has there?”

"No. We’ve been mainly going to the school to watch over Ichigo and his friends. Yumichika joined a drama club, and somehow Renji and Ikkaku haven’t gotten banned from the premises yet. Not so certain about Ishida though; it seems he might want to kick them out from his house, too much chaos.”

Rukia huffs dramatically, gaining a faint chuckle from Urahara. Those two boneheads were extremely temperamental, and Rukia could tell Ishida was biting his nails - metaphorically speaking - waiting for the day his father would return from his trip and see the mess those two had made, or just the mess that was those two. It wasn’t even just that, from what Rukia gathered there was some heavy bias and disdain towards Shinigami from his father, which given the history she’d learned there, she couldn’t exactly blame him for.

"Toushiro and Rangiku-san have been staying with Inoue, right?”

"Yes. Their living situation has been less chaotic - although none of them are very good cooks, so they often get takeout, or Tatsuki brings them something.”

"And you? Still cozying up in Ichigo’s closet secretly?”

Rukia blushes at that, crossing her arms over her chest while glaring at him defensively.

"Hey, It’s not a secret! I just enjoy sleeping in a more closed space. His family does know I stay there!”

The man just nods and thanks Tessai who brings them their tea, sipping it. He also asks how things were going at the front with the two.

Before the man could answer however, they all suddenly feel a spike of Reiatsu emanating from below, and all three turn to look towards it alarmed, with Urahara getting up immediately to hurry downstairs, Tessai in town. Rukia watches them go, then looks back at the teacup the man had accidentally knocked over the papers he’d been studying. She quickly gathers them up and away from the liquid to make sure more wasn’t drenched, cleaning up the spilled tea before hurrying after the pair.

Once she reaches the laboratory doorway, Rukia could smell smoke, and sinched hair. The door to the cave room was completely busted open and signs of the earlier squabble between Jeagerjaquez and Yoruichi fully visible all over the laboratory with some broken tools and knocked over tables.

However, what was waiting inside the cave area was the thing that had alerted them there.

Yoruichi was sitting on the sand, holding her arm that looked badly burned, some of her hair was also indeed scorched. Tessai was already beside her to check on her injuries, though she waves him off, her pained gaze firmly focused on ahead. Urahara was standing between them as well, his eyes fixated towards a blue glow nearby.

Rukia looks at it as well, already having a hunch as to what had happened, although not understanding why. That injury Yoruichi had was much worse than what she’d seen earlier, indicating that attack had been far more severe. For all their arguing earlier, it hadn’t seemed like Grimmjow had seriously tried to hurt her - until now apparently. Currently the aforementioned man was just standing further away, watching them with his aura burning so brightly around his body they couldn’t really make out his face, other than the eyes peering down at Yoruichi, narrowed into slits.

"…..What happened?”

Rukia asks from the downed catwoman, who was still holding her injured side, the bloodstains on her clothes there indicating perhaps it wasn’t just a burn.

"I guess I must’ve broken a taboo.”

She comments with a shrug, grimacing as the action hurt. Urahara hums upon hearing that, glancing back at her briefly. Rukia’s hand was now on her zanpakuto hilt, though she wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do right now. Jeagerjaquez was making no move to attack them, but the way he was glaring towards Yoruichi…

"I scratched one of his horns by accident.”

Rukia blinks, tearing her gaze away from the burning figure back towards Yoruichi; such an injury from that?

"I see….I do recall Tanuhara mentioning this in our correspondence.”

Urahara comments calmly, still keeping his gaze on Grimmjow. It occurred to Rukia now, that the man was staying between them in case he’d attack again, though that didn’t seem to be the case. Eventually, Grimmjow seems to start snapping out of whatever trance he’d gone into, the glow around him disappearing as he holds his head, collapsing to the sand. Once all the blue oni flame reiatsu dissipates he was laying on the ground unconscious, with Urahara walking closer and crouching next to him, carefully examining something.

"He told me that for Oni, touching their horns is a very forbidden thing, and usually is taken as a challenge for battle to the death, or a grave insult at least. They typically only let their life partners touch them.”

"Ahh…no wonder he got pissed at me.”

Tessai was now helping Yoruichi up to bring her for treatment, and Rukia realizes alarmed, it indeed wasn’t just a burn; it looked like someone had struck their claws deep into her gut, and the injury was quite gnarly. She didn’t seem too phased though, which was admittedly typical for Shiouin Yoruichi.

"Oi, Kisuke, tell him once he wakes up, that it’s fine. My bad.”

Urahara just hums and nods in response, with Rukia watching Tessai bring the injured woman away, before she dares to walk closer as well. Indeed, there was a faint scratch on Grimmjow’s other horn. It was barely noticeable.

"….I feel this was a disproportionate reaction to such a small cosmetic nick.”

"You need to keep in mind, he is - or was - an Oni, not a human soul. They have different rules and societal expectations. Besides…”

Urahara turns him on his back, and thankfully Grimmjow seems to be completely out cold, not suddenly lighting up a flame to throw at them.

"To tell you the truth, when he first arrived in that weakened form, one his horns was broken. Having Yoruichi-chan scratch it might’ve triggered a trauma response.”

Rukia’s eyes widen in shock, and looking back at the unconscious figure…if that was the case, then she could understand the reaction, even if it was still unwarranted. Urahara gestures her to help him, and they manage to carry the unconscious figure to a pile of what seemed to be fur pelts in the corner, making him rest there.

"This cave was modeled after his home back in Spirit Society, or at least based on the descriptions Tanuhara had given me.”

Urahara comments after they were done, cracking his back as if he hadn’t made her haul most of the weight. Rukia chooses not to call him out on it, instead looking around the cave more curiously. It did perhaps explain things, why it was the way it was. The opening, the glowing healing water pond, this corner with fur pelts, the Torii gate at the start. Looking around even more, Rukia only now realizes it wasn’t just lanterns and the lake that lit up the place; there were glowing crystals in the ceiling as well. She hadn’t noticed the, before, typically focusing on the ground level.

"….Still. Certainly an interesting turn of events, that he’d have a violent reaction even in this form; so far it has only been the hollow.”

The former captain muses, holding his chin thoughtfully as he examines the sleeping figure. Rukia looks back at him as well, still alarmed by this incident. Not only because of Yoruichi getting injured, but because of how easily it had happened. Shiouin Yoruichi was an extremely good fighter, how had she let her guard down that bad? Was it because she’d never considered Jeagerjaquez a threat before? Even then, she should’ve been able to avoid that strike, right?

"Calm down Kuchiki-chan. This is not as serious of an event as it seems.”

"That injury looked serious to me.”

She comments dryly, gaining a faint chuckle from Urahara.

"I understand your concern, but rest assured, that attack wasn’t even meant to be lethal.”

"How do you know?”

"There is no way he would’ve missed all her vitals like that from close range, if that strike was intended to kill. He must’ve had some awareness still despite his potential reflexive reaction, to stop himself from seriously harming his ’auntie.”

"….That sounds so weird. Yoruichi-san and auntie don't belong in the same category.”

Rukia admits after a moment of silence, gaining an amused smile in response.

"I suppose it would, since you’ve only met him in this adult form, and his interactions with us changed since that bridge incident, where we decided to separate Ichigo from him. I am suspecting the main reason for this change at the time though, was his Soul Regression.”

"A….what?”

Urahara refuses to explain in typical Urahara fashion, just gestures her to follow him back upstairs, to let Grimmjow rest.

Ichigo wasn’t paying much attention that day, still mulling over what Grimmjow had said the night before. What did he mean the Oni Ichigo had betrayed him somehow? If that guy had been a lot like him, Ichigo couldn’t see himself doing such a thing to a friend - let alone someone he was clearly in love with.

What was more frustrating about it all, was the fact Grimmjow clearly had no clue what happened right now either. His memory was still very uncooperative, leaving them with more questions than answers. Sighing, Ichigo leans his head back against the emergency exit wall, staring into the skies while others chattered about something. Likely school related given they were up here with some of his human friends, who weren’t in the know of all the spiritual chaos happening.

"Are you alright Ichigo?”

He almost jumps and turns to look at Tatsuki who’d wandered to him, offering him a can of soda. The same one he’d picked up to drink and then promptly forgotten and the ledge he’d sat on previously. He accepts it with a sheepish smile, cracking it open and taking a sip.

"All things considered.”

"Is it….?”

She doesn’t have to say his name; the fact she was whispering made it clear whom she was asking about. Ichigo breathes out a sigh, glancing at their friends, with Keigo and Chizuru currently debating loudly about something while Inoue attempted to keep peace.

"Just…..with each new piece of info I learn about his past, it leaves us with more questions.”

"Ah. What did you learn now?”

Ichigo takes another gulp from his drink. The debate had nearly turned into a full blown slapping match, and they both watch it for a moment amused, before he releses a sugh and turns to look back at Tatsuki. He still felt hesitant, talking to her about all this as it felt like he’d just put her at risk. However, she was already involved, if not as directly as Chad, Inoue and Ishida.

"…..He….indicated that it might’ve been mutual, but….my Oni-version did something bad and broke his trust. Or that’s the impression Grimm has right now, he’s not sure since his memory is still ass.”

Tatsuki’s eyes widen in surprise, before she turns her gaze away, letting out a thoughtful hum. It was difficult to tell what she was thinking with how unreadable her expression was, but this reveal had to give her some food for thought, given, well, what happened at the bridge that time. Ichigo still wasn’t sure what to do with those past feelings from his younger self honestly, whether they still applied or not.

"….Hard to imagine what he could’ve possibly done to fuck up that bad, if this Oni was anything like you. You piss people off easily, but you are one of the most trustworthy people I know.”

Tatsuki eventually comments, looking back up at him with a puzzled expression. Ichigo had no answers to those questions, he was not Oni-Ichigo. Onigo, Onisaki, maybe he should give his twin a dumb nickname too like how Kisuke called his late doppleganger Tanuhara.

"I don’t know. It’s driving me nuts.”

Ichigo admits as he takes another, longer swig from his drink, the carbonation in it making him burp and grimace as it made his throat burn a little. Tatsuki gives him a playful scolding look, shoving him with her elbow and telling him not to burp in front of a fine lady like an absolute heathen.

"I’ll tell you once I see a fine lady somewhere.”

"Oh piss off Kurosaki!”

She ruffles his hair with a laugh, the sound interrupting the catfight between Keigo and Chizuru, everyone turning to look back at them confused. Ichigo just pushes her off him with a smirk, the brief banter elevating his spirits lightly. Sure there was a lot pressure on his shoulders right now, lot of frustrating questions he had no answers to, but at least he still had his friends as well.

Unable to really rest properly that night despite the Shinigami crew insisting he’d do so since they were there, Ichigo wanders the nightly streets again, sending couple of pluses to the Soul Society and dispatching a few weaker hollows. Kon had also tried to get him to stay home, but ultimately relented sensing the ginger needed to take a walk to clear his head at least.

Despite his best efforts, Ichigo couldn’t shake that conversation off his mind, mulling in his head over and over as to what Onisaki could’ve possibly done to piss off – no, worse – betray someone he supposedly cared so deeply for? Also yes, he was going to stick with Onisaki for now, as saying 'Oni Ichigo' got annoying after a while. Urahara was clearly rubbing off on him damn it.

He’s not surprised to find himself wandering near the aforementioned former Captain’s house. He really wanted to go and talk to Grimmjow, to try and see if he recalled anything new. Probably not, but the mere idea of a version of himself backstabbing someone he was close with made him uneasy.

"Didn’t we tell you to stay in bed?”

A familiar voice speaks near him and Ichigo jumps, finding a familiar black cat sitting on top of the emergency exit to that building. He notes Yoruichi’s fur looked a little...off, under the moonlight. As if she’d been burned a little to her side. She clearly noticed his stare as the cat glances at the injured spot.

"Had a bit of an argument with my nephew that got spicy.”

"….What?”

"Apparently touching an Oni’s horn is a faux pass.”

Ichigo stares at her baffled, his face going crimson red as the cat has the audacity to snicker at him and the violently offending image those words put in his brain.

"That was not an euphemism Ichigo, just so you know.”

"How is that not!?”

Ichigo splutters, and the cat stands up, stretching a bit, only to flinch a little as she straightens her small furry body again. Yoruichi was trying to hide it, but it was clear her injury hurt even now. Ichigo asks her if she was okay as his irritation was replaced by concern now.

"I am fine, don’t worry. It’s just a flesh wound.”

She tells him cheerfully with her odd male voice, pacing to his feet to rub her head against his legs affectionately like cats do. Ichigo hesitates for a moment before carefully crouching down, allowing her to climb in his lap. It was...kind of weird given he knew who she actually was, but damn it, Yoruichi’s cat form was cute and she clearly didn’t mind being petted like this. Straightening back up, Ichigo does exactly that, while his eyes fixate back on Urahara’s shop.

"….I was trying to persuade Grimmjow to help us get into Spirit Society. I should’ve listened to Kisuke when he warned ’auntie’ angle won’t work anymore.”

Ichigo looks back down at the cat in his lap, mildly surprised. He glances at the slightly damaged spot on her fur, wondering if pressing on it hurt. He makes sure not to touch it just in case, not wanting his balls scratched off.

"I was really just trying to playfully smack him from my favorite squatting rock, but I touched his horn in the process. I wasn’t aware of it, but it is something the Oni folk take serious offence to. That, and that one was broken when he came to us. He must’ve taken it as an attack instinctively.”

Yoruichi didn’t sound angry, if anything she sounded a bit upset with herself, like she should’ve known better. Ichigo swallows down hard, glancing back at her injury as he now understood where that injury came from. Grimmjow must’ve done it.

"Were you….?”

"Human form. Shows how severe the injury is when it shows up even now. I was lucky he still likes his auntie enough or all that would’ve been left would’ve been a pile of spectacularly silky fur!”

Yoruichi laughs, the sound eventually dissolving into a sigh as she now smushes her cat face against him, rubbing all over his chest and purring. Ichigo does his best to NOT remind himself this was actually an adult shinigami woman cozying up to him, because that would be way too weird. It was a cat, just a black cat, just a very talkative black cat.

"I admittedly feel foolish, for trying to approach it like that; I should’ve known better. I guess my mind still hasn’t caught up to the fact that ’Little Jack’ no longer exists essentially.”

Now, she sounded genuinely kind of sad, apparently having really enjoyed playing the funky aunt role for so long. Ichigo didn’t know what to say to that, so he just scratches her ear, hearing her purr louder only to try and trap his hand between her claws the next second.

"Ow. Jerk.”

"You knew the risk when you picked me up.”

Yoruichi comments casually as she licks her paws, settling more into his hold while her yellow eyes fixate on the shop as well. Lights were on at the back, indicating someone else was awake still, likely Urahara.

"He’s been out cold since; that burst of reflexive energy took a lot out of him. He’s sleeping below in the cave room. Poor brat is gonna feel bad once he wakes up for sure.”

"Grimmjow and feeling bad about mauling someone? Are we talking about the same asshole?”

"Hush, maybe he likes using YOU as his punching bag, but I’m his auntie! I have special privileges!”

"Didn’t you just say--”

Yoruichi digs her claws against his arm, and Ichigo wisely shuts up, grunting to try and hide the sting those pointy needles caused even through the shinigami robes. He stands there silently for a while, his arms admittedly starting to grow tired for holding Yoruichi that long. He’d never say that out loud of course; he’d definitely lose his balls for somehow implying that she was fat.

"….So, what puzzling things did he tell you now, that made you wander here? We know he likely dropped to visit you last night.”

Yoruichi mutters out after a moment, and Ichigo bites his lip, wondering how much he could or should say about it. What Grimmjow had shared was incredibly personal and between them, or well, between him and Onisaki, but still…

"...Well. Let’s just say he indicated my doppleganger did something that sounded very...unlike me. So now I’m wondering if his Ichigo was a shithead, or if I’m a shithead.”

"You definitely are, but not like that.”

Ichigo squints at Yoruichi, gaining a snicker from the mischievous cat who had the audacity to look proud of herself. Eventually though she turns her glowing yellow eyes up at him, tilting her head with a questioning expression. Ichigo sighs and looks back at the building, unconsciously continuing to pet her as he did so.

"He...didn’t recall the details, and the way he worded it...it was more an indirect deduction.”

"How so?”

Ichigo could tell his face was fuming, judging from the mildly amused glint in Yoruichi’s cat eyes, staring at him like a little shit about to bounce on you like a toy mouse.

"Look. Just...its a theory is all. I don’t know if he’s right about it either, I’m not him, and his memory is shit anyway!”

"Why so flustered?”

Ichigo risks getting neutered, dropping Yoruichi from his arms as he quickly turns and heads away, not wanting to continue the conversation. Or, he was about to do so, when someone’s voice suddenly catches his attention, and both of them look down at Urahara who was waving up at them at the front porch, clearly having spotted Ichigo. He jumps down and makes his way to Urahara, with Yoruichi slipping from his lap as soon as his feet touch the ground, rubbing her head against Urahara’s leg before heading inside. Sandal-hat watches her go, before turning to look back at him.

"Kurosaki, good timing! Could I ask you a favor?”

Clearly he didn’t bother asking what he was doing out there, or scolding that he should be resting instead. Urahara had never really been as gun-ho about trying to keep Ichigo locked down, not when it usually served his purposes better to let him roam free.

"What do you want?”

"So harsh! I was just going to ask you to go and check on Grimmjow. He’s been out cold since that incident with Yoruichi – I presume she told you about it as that dent in her lucious fur is rather noticeable – and you may be the only person he won’t try to brutally murder when waking up.”

"I don’t know about that…”

Urahara looks at him curiously, but Ichigo sighs and nods; it wasn’t like he didn’t want to speak with Grimmjow to begin with, although the conversation would’ve likely yielded no new answers.

"Fine, I go and be a cat alarm clock. I will send any subsequent hospital and funeral bills in your direction. Provided dad doesn’t drop-kick you right back to Seireitei.”

Urahara laughs, just gesturing him to head inside.

Ichigo finds Grimmjow asleep below as said, in the pile of furs from before. He looked unharmed which further put the incident into perspective; Yoruichi was a very skilled fighter from his understanding, so the fact she’d landed no real injury on him...well, to be fair she’d not expected an attack, and why would she attack Grimmjow in the first place?

He walks closer cautiously, feeling that familiar sensation from Grimmjow’s odd aura after a moment; a mixture of familiar hollow essence and the more blazing demon power. He stands there awkwardly for a while, not knowing what to do. Should he try to wake Grimmjow up and ask if he was doing alright, or just let him sleep? Urahara had simply asked him to check on Grimmjow, and well, he had now, hadn’t he? Admittedly Ichigo did wish he’d been awake…

As he studies the sleeping demon-hollow, Ichigo’s eyes drift towards his horns, likely because of what Yoruichi had said. They both looked fine and completely smooth on the surface, it was hard to imagine one of them had been broken once. He finds himself kneeling beside Grimmjow, watching him snore softly under his breath. It was hard to believe that he’d been agitated in any way before this; it reminded him of how relaxed this bastard was when hogging his bed.

Looking back up at the spiky bits jutting from his head, Ichigo suddenly notes that his earlier assessment was incorrect. There was a very small scratch on one of them; he couldn’t tell if it was old or somehow caused by Yoruichi. She could have sharp nails even in human form, but if she just smacked him like she indicated, Ichigo wasn’t sure that could’ve caused it.

Apparently his brain had briefly deleted the information Yoruichi had told him about touching a Oni’s horns – and why did it have to keep sounding so suspicious – as he trails a fingers across the slight cut, noting the edges didn’t feel particularly raw. Perhaps it was an old one from somewhere, or a remnant of the horn regrowing but retaining slight damage.

The horn’s surface reminded him of the boney hollow masks, though it was a bit smoother to the touch than them. Ichigo couldn’t stop but wonder how life was like with literal spikes jutting from your head like this. There were some things that’d surely be more difficult with them for sure. Maybe Oni Grimm didn’t wear shirts because they’d be a pain to remove. Then again there were plenty of types you didn’t need to pull over your head, and those were more likely the kind of stuff people in Spirit Society wore.

As his fingers trace the scar again, something….something shifts.

It happens gradually; something creeping towards the forefront of his consciousness, until he’s suddenly somewhere else, in someone else’s body.

What was….?

He was knelt beside Grimmjow, clearly battered from some sort of a battle; judging from all the bandages and the cracked horn, it’d been rough. There was anxiety swirling at the pit of his stomach that wasn’t his. Lifting up his hand, Ichigo soon realizes…

It was as if...if he was seeing a memory from Onisaki, somehow…?

He dampens the cloth again to wipe off some of the blood from his face, trying to keep his hands from shaking. Grimmjow would be fine, he was tough. Still, seeing the proud Oni king like this, it was…. mildly disturbing. Grimmjow was so pale, and his skin felt colder than normal. That normally brightly burning aura was very dampened as well. Urahara-san had said he’d be fine, just need a few days to recover from his injuries. He did his best to stay calm, but it was hard.

His gaze drifts up towards the cracked, damaged horn, swallowing down hard. Nobody else had ever managed to do this before, apart from Ichigo himself – and even then it had been an accident. Whoever that mystery figure had been, Ichigo had an uneasy feeling they hadn’t even taken Grimmjow that seriously.

Closing his eyes and sucking in a deep breath, he takes a moment to calm himself, before opening his eyes again. Eyes still fixated on the broken horn, a sign of shame and damaged pride; he knew Grimmjow would be furious about it. More than that, it’d likely make him doubt his own strength.

His hands drift up to brush the sleek, black-and-red spike jutting from his own head, thinking back on that night. He wasn’t even sure if Grimmjow fully understood what that action could’ve symbolized, he hadn’t grown among the Oni kind like him, before he was put to slumber by Aizen, to get him out of the way.

He hadn’t brought it up, as it was....unlikely Grimmjow wouldn’t have done it had he known. But….

He hesitates, reaching out to brush his fingers against the fractured edges of the damaged spot. Closing his eyes, he wills his power to run into them, lacing around the damaged horn, slowly knitting everything together, regrowing the parts that had been chipped away. It wasn’t quite as easy for him as he didn’t have the same absolute control over elements like a King would, but his power was close enough to Grimmjow’s natural leanings towards Fire and Lightning.

Once his eyes open again, majority of the damage was gone, and the rest was barely noticeable.

Still…

He leans closer, brushing his lips over the faint scar left behind, keeping them there a moment before pulling away, trying to swallow down the blush coloring his cheeks. Looking back down at Grimmjow’s face, some of that frown had eased, indicating the pain from the damaged horn was gone at least. It makes him smile relieved, although….

He’d….he’d need to talk to Grimmjow about this, someday.

When Ichigo comes to, he could smell something burning. There was a voice calling out to him, and opening his eyes, he finds himself laying flat on his back on the sand, some of his clothes burned as if he’d been hit by a fireball in the chest. Grimmjow was crouched beside him, looking somewhere between alarmed and like he wanted to strangle him.

"What the HELL were you thinking, Kurosaki!?”

"….What...happened?”

"I nearly blasted a hole through you, dumbass!”

Grimmjow smacks his head lightly as Ichigo pushes himself up, rubbing it poutily while he surveys the damage. Thankfully onl his clothes were slightly burned, the blast hadn’t made contact with skin – mostly, it still hurt like hell.

"Did Yoruichi not warn you about not touchin’ shit carelessly?!”

Grimmjow smacks his head again for good measure, and likely would’ve done so for the third time had Ichigo not grabbed his arm, turning to look at the furious cat demon. It takes him a moment to process everything, still dazed by whatever the hell just happened.

Right.

He’d touched the horn – the one on his head, why did this keep sounding so weird goddamnit – and then had a...vision of some sort? Grimmjow must’ve woken up while he was in his weird flashback trance, and reflexively attacked him like he’d done with Yoruichi. Clearly with less power though, given he wasn’t as injured. Grimmjow quickly pries his hand free and grabs both of his shoulders, giving him an angry shake, clearly not over Ichigo’s apparent stupidity.

"Be glad even in that state I could recognize you from the human stench! You were too open I coulda done some real bad damage!”

"Ow ow ow, I’m sorry okay! Stop trying to break my arms!”

"Maybe I should so you’d keep your grabby hands to yourself.”

Grimmjow huffs but does as asked, shifting to sit back cross legged beside him, still eyeing Ichigo like he wanted to dig out all his insides for this. Ichigo looks back down at his hands and the lightly burned clothing, mulling over the vision he’d just seen in his head. That was clearly not Grimmjow’s memory, but if not, how the HELL did he see something like that?

"The hell are you spacing out for?”

Grimmjow snorts after a moment, and Ichigo swallows down hard, looking back up at him.

"…..I….think I might’ve seen….a memory from your Ichigo.”

"….What?”

Grimmjow looked about as baffled as he felt. Ichigo nods faintly, dropping his hands to his lap as he swallows down hard, hesitantly describing what he’d just witnessed.

"He was….treating your injuries. Something really big had happened. An unknown opponent that managed to damage your horns. In general, it sounded like you both had been taken off-guard by how powerful this enemy was.”

Glancing at Grimmjow, his face was blank now, though Ichigo couldn’t tell whether it was because he could recall what this memory related to – or not.

"He fixed your horn. He was also mulling over…..ah. Grimm, can I ask you something?”

"You’re gonna do it anyway.”

Grimmjow huffs out a sigh, brushing through his hair as he shifts to bend his other leg up now, hanging an arm over it. Apparently he didn’t have the energy to be baffled and confused by this sudden, nonsensical twist.

"Do you...perhaps remember anything about your Ichigo’s past? From his musings...it sounded like he’s not...he was sealed for a long time until you met? So he grew up around other Oni unlike you.”

"Uh huh. Our Aizen was the one who sealed him away due to some prophecy bullshit. It was the birdlady who accidentally smacked him awake, though at the time nobody knew who he was or why he was sealed.”

Grimmjow shrugs, frowning as he looks back at him.

"...At least, I think that’s how it went. My memory’s still kind of a mess.”

Ichigo nods faintly, that explanation matching what he saw. Ichigo averts his gaze as he hesitates for a moment, wondering if….

"…..So. Um. If I understood Yoruichi’s explanation correctly, Oni horns are kind of a taboo thing to touch.”

"Why do you think I tried to blast your face off?”

"If you were aiming for my face, you were miles off.”

"You get the point jackass.”

Grimmjow rolls his eyes at him with an annoyed snort, though Ichigo caught a glimpse of an amused twitch at the corners of his lips.

"…..So, what does it mean if he heals it?”

Grimmjow looks at him silently for a long moment, before huffing out a sigh, rubbing his face with his non-blue hand, the latter still draped over his knee. Ichigo wondered if pushing into this topic was a bit too much right after Grimmjow woke up so violently, but he seems to humor him for now, dropping the arm as he looks back at Ichigo with a slightly frustrated expression.

"The Oni only let their partners heal their horns if necessary. Usually you let it grow back, or heal it by yourself. Hell, they usually ONLY do that for their partners.”

"So….”

"Why do you think I’m so fuckin’ baffled by the fact I ran? I’ve got more than enough evidence in my brain I shouldn’t have rejected him, yet I ran? It’s clear whatever happened that made me feel betrayed was after that too.”

Grimmjow pauses, seemingly struggling with something internally, averting his gaze as if he was hesitant to say whatever was in his mind. Ichigo nearly told him that he didn’t have to talk about this, but Grimmjow talks before he could voice those words out.

"I remember healing his, more than once. At the time I didn’t….really understand the significance of that, even if I had an instinctive level of knowledge about it. Didn’t grow up with other Oni, so some subconscious shit was never explained to me.”

Oh. That was….surprising.

Or perhaps not.

"Fucker got his torn off so easily. Kinda like how you keep pickin’ fights left and right, you both are such pains in the ass, no pride or dignity whatsoever when someone’s life you care about is on the line, Demon honor and pride be damned, or common sense in your case.”

It was said with reluctant, gruff fondness, something Grimmjow likely wouldn’t display publicly in front of others. Ichigo smiles nevertheless, feeling something flutter slightly in his chest.

"The thing is….I….might remember what you’re talkin’ about. Though I have no fuckin’ clue how you could have one of his memories.”

Grimmjow admits after a moment, looking back at him with a deep frown crossing his face again. Ichigo didn’t blame him, he was still confused by it; could Grimmjow somehow be carrying memories from Onisaki as well somehow? Or was it something else….

"I….wasn’t as out cold as he thought. I remember being hella confused about his behavior, and then confused I wasn’t pissed off about it. Choked it off to just, you know, you having zero self-preservation.”

"Hey now….”

Grimmjow gives him a pointed look, and yeah, it wasn’t like Ichigo could deny that. He was infamous for throwing himself at the enemy with reckless abandon, no matter what. Grimmjow huffs out a sigh and shifts to sit back cross legged, rubbing his eyes with both hands now, before dropping them on his lap, hunched over like he was still tired from his earlier outburst after Ichigo’s faux pas in Demon etiquette.

"I don’t get it Kurosaki. What the fuck did he do?”

"Well, maybe he did something dumb enough that it was easy to go back to hating him; I’m good at pissing people off after all, even my friends. Just ask Rukia.”

Much to his confusion, Grimmjow shakes his head lightly.

"The thing is Kurosaki...it feels different. It ain’t the same kind of spite from the beginning. That’s why I used the word ’betrayal’ when I told ya about this.”

Right. That’d certainly be a different flavor of anger when compared to someone who was simply an enemy. Ichigo swallows down hard, looking away as he wonders once again what his twin had done. Given the bits he’d seen, and that vision just now – provided it was a real memory, judging from what Grimmjow said it had to be, somehow – Onisaki clearly adored Grimmjow deeply.

What the hell happened?

"…..You oughta talk with Sandal-hat about that ’vision’ you saw by the way; that’s weird as hell; I could understand if it was my memory, but that clearly wasn’t. Some shit’s going on there, and I don’t know what, but its freaky as all hell.”

Ichigo looks back at Grimmjow, nodding faintly as he had to agree.

Seeing memories from Grimmjow? Sure, no big deal, he already showed he had an ability to do so, and maybe it could activate on accident. Seeing memories from a supposed dead version of himself? Now that...that was unnerving. Something was definitely going on, and Ichigo could bet his left arm Urahara knew more about it.