Work Text:
Why?
Why was he fighting for the other side, the enemy?
The enemy that murdered their mothers little less than a decade ago.
Who, a thousand years ago, waged a blood soaked war against Soul Society.
And now was betting thousands of Quincy, Shinigami, and Human lives to become the King of a dead world.
But wIth the way he stood by that monster's side, as his Prince Von Licht, he had to know the truth!
So why was he being shot at by those beautiful bright blue arrows?
Those beautiful bright blue arrows he got to see dance alongside a well placed Getsga Tensho.
But now we're clashing as though the life they spent together meant nothing.
He just could not understand.
Not when just a night ago they were saying their goodbyes under the moonlit sky promising that he would come back in one piece to the other he held in a feather-light grip.
The other had a worrying smile playing on his lips with a matching look to his eyes that should have given away that he had other plans than being there to welcome him home.
When he was being told encouraging words to quell his nerves for leaving when he had an inkling feeling he should have stayed, was it all lies?
Did the person he called his boyfriend even love him?
Were the midnight cuddles or the secret kisses in abandoned classrooms just a way to pass time?
Or was it just a way to manipulate him for the inevitable? To set him up to kill the soul king and place what his once beloved called ‘his majesty’ on the throne.
And than to discard him like a piece of trash when his metaphorical job was done.
But it isn't just him either that got thrown to the side either. What about them? The others who couldn't believe the betrayal either.
The sewing lessons and hours spent talking about music? Or the trips they all took together to get ice cream or to just get away from it all for a day?
Was all of that just a front? To make the betrayel harder when everything revealed itself.
When he was first challenged with that hollow bait nearly 3 years ago now, was that the first sign? That being a Quincy was all that the other was?
When he invited what seemed like a pathetic lonely soul desperate to join him and his friends for lunch- was it rather a prime invitation for hurt?
Was going to save the fallen soul reaper from her execution just a set up for the coming war? That losing his powers was just a cover for whatever he could have been planning?
Was he planning something? Was he already so far into the ranks of his dearest Wanderniech when he was fighting side by side with him in a Shinigami war?
When he confessed to the other in the sparkly dotted sky after a night full of hollow hunting- was the beautiful first kiss just the set up for the harsh reality of heartbreak?
When he was at his lowest and the other was there to help him back up on his feet when it felt like he never could- that was all empty words wasn't it?
The sweet nothings whispered in his ear or the bright bold displays of affection were just a show to others that he was the pathetic soul that was desperate for an ounce of affection.
But- was he even sure it was all fake? Not when it was for a plan that dreamed of the death of a colorful world with a king who cherished misery.
The other, always clad in white and proud of his heritage that spoke of death like it was small talk, was never a good lier.
At least he wasn't in the dead of night when he was in his lap, silently crying while telling the tales that plagued his life.
The tales that told the deaths of a deeply cherished mother and grandfather. The tales that told the neglect of a child struggling to breathe through the dark water he found himself in. The tales that told how he was almost murdered by his own father in the attempt to regain a missing part of himself.
Or when he was trying to hide a panic attack in the middle of class. Or the trash can filled with broken second hand items that were obviously purposefully smashed no one was supposed to know about. Or when the angry red marks hidden behind long sleeves showed themselves to those who would just listen.
That was what kept him from believing the betrayal despite all the crazy explanations his brain was creating to rationalize what he could hardly process.
Because who was he kidding that this was all a plan?
Not when-
Not when Sternritter A, Prince Von Licht, the Last Quincy, or whatever else fancy name he was called was just a broken boy that didn't dream of grandeur.
He instead dreamed of the reality of tomorrow. The tomorrow he never thought was possible before the confession came of love. That those tomorrows would soon be wished upon to come when he had something to wake up to.
At least Ichigo believed in the redemption of this too good to be true betrayal until the arrow crashed into his chest.
And all he could this of while he was falling through the pale blue sky was-
What happened to those days where they would skip class to rest up on the roof after a night filled with hunting hollows?
What happened to the late night visits to fend off the negative thoughts from their crushing grip?
What happened to those days where he would cuddle up together and kiss his loved one in the sorry state that the man he cherished so deeply called home?
And when he finally crashed to the hard ground to do nothing but bleed out when he couldn't even feel his fingers toes, he couldn't help but wonder-
Where was Uryu Ishida?
The true Uryu Ishida.
Was it Uryu Ishida, the class president of Karakura High School and top student in the whole school?
Was it Uryu Ishida, the second in command to the one playing with the strings of this puppet show?
Or was it Uryu Ishida, the beautiful boy he loved, who would end up killing him with the arrow in his love sick heart?