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A New Window	By : Platinumsabr Category: Bleach > Het - Male/Female Views: 13905 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story. Any Original Characters are mine however, as is the story itself, and if you see it or any part of it posted elsewhere please report it

Chapter List
- 16
- 17
- 18
[No] Shaking Throne

Just as he was about to surrender to whatever awaited him, a soft melody
caught his ringing ears. It was soft, gentle, as melodic as a piano�s hymn and
as comforting as an angel�s voice. It was something he had known for as long as
he could remember until he couldn�t even remember anymore: the soft hum and
beautiful voice of his mother�s lullaby. He couldn�t make out any of the words,
but even the tune was enough to make him forget the pain, the suffering, and
soon he felt his consciousness fading for a different reason; the blood had
been set at bay once again.

And darkness was all he saw.

~~~~~~~~~

Silence reigned over every single
person that had gathered in the expanse around the sparring grounds, even those
that had come in response to the blood-curdling screams of agony; all except
one woman, singing her song, trying desperately to lull the awakened beast back
into slumber. None dared speak as they looked at the body lying on the ground,
unmoving in the chorus around it after the unimaginable pain had passed. The
grey skin, nearly green in its countenance, had yet to revert on the young
body, and the sweat trickling down Ichigo�s neck had even Captain Ukitake standing still as stone in the oldest kind of
cautionary action that could be taken.

Blood still seeped from the wounds
in his arms, nearly an inch deep in either forearm, and the same could be said
about his eyes, as the tears of blood still flowed even though they were shut.
The usual healing process after the first cut wasn�t taking place, and Jyushiro could only wonder why. He knew this form, and it
had been the one thing he had never wanted to see again. What he was looking at
was almost a spitting image of Kaien�s possession by Metastacia.
�Ich��

Ichigo�s eyes shot over to him so
quickly his words stopped dead in his throat. �Shh!�
The orange-haired captain whispered harshly. �Step back, slowly. Don�t make any
sudden movements, and don�t speak any louder than necessary. Right now he�s in
a very fragile state, so we need to get everyone out of here as soon as
possible. He�s calm, for now, but it would only take a small push to set him
off again.�

Sadly, there were still other
people present that had not been informed of this sensitive material. �KAIEN!!� Kin shouted in worry as she jumped to her feet.
Tatsuki�s and Ichigo�s eyes barely had time to widen in horror before black threads
struck out with deadly accuracy at the source of the noise.

Kin Urahara-Shihouin, heir to the
dwindling Shihouin dynasty and future wife of the Prince of Hueco
Mundo, could hardly believe her eyes as she watched
Kaien�s sickly-looking arm whip towards her as black tentacle-like threads shot
from the wound in it even though his eyes had yet to open. Her legs had frozen
in place and she flinched into a defensive position as she awaited the impact.

Only to have
nothing greet her.

She opened her eyes slowly to see
Orihime Ishida standing protectively in front of her with the familiar orange
triangle shielding them from any attack, the black threads stopped like spear�s
points against the godly shield.

�I don�t think so,� the normally
exuberant woman said darkly.

�GET OUT OF THERE ORIHIME!!!!�

Practically no one could believe
that the shrill screech had just come from Ichigo Kurosaki, but then they
witnessed the other arm shoot over and another line of spears was shot. Right
before impact the points from both arms softened and like living creatures they
split and snaked around the outside of her barrier and right at the voluptuous
woman behind. Orihime didn�t even have the time to scream before the tendrils
had�quite unexpectedly�missed her altogether and instead firmly grabbed the
hairpins still situated right above her ears. She yelped and fell to the ground
as they were pulled from her head and consequently the barrier was dispelled
instantly.

Everyone expected the unknown
ability that Kaien�s body was displaying to be immediately set back to work
slicing the bodies of those it aimed at, but none of them had been expecting
the tendrils to retract into their host�s body and stab the hairpins into the
already open wounds, one hairpin for each arm.

The reiatsu that suddenly crashed
into the area could only be described as demonic.

The residents of Hueco Mundo, those that knew
Kaien�s power personally, could only watch in terror as the body once again
went into convulsions as black energy coursed off the spiritual form of Kaien
Kurosaki. The screams came from a voice ravaged by overuse and the
transformation into an echoed, darker counterpart that showed all too well how
far his Hollowization had progressed. Were it not his
even stronger, more Hollow body Kaien would not have been able to take the
absorption of so many spirits at once, but even like this he still felt pain,
and it was far worse than Sougyo no Kotowari. The children especially were forced to the ground
under the reiatsu powerful enough to make a Vastro-Lorde
quiver even as they all tried to shield their ears from the pain-soaked cries.
Everyone watched, for minutes that stretched on into a short eternity, as one
by one a line of scar tissue was drawn away from the wound already incurred by Ukitake until when it was done the six-bladed snowflake pin
had been drawn on each arm, the captain�s long cut running right through the
middle.

As the hairpins were spit away by
the versatile threads and the reiatsu slowly simmered to a calmer yet still
outrageous state, they watched the body begin to rise. Tsukiyomi didn�t know
how much more she could take, as just like her in her transformed state, Kaien
too had the power to make the other self rise if the power applied to that
person. Since she was so used to it however, she was able to fight much harder
against it than he could, but any longer and she knew even she was
doomed.

�Souten Kishun, I Reject!!�

After what they had all just
witnessed, they had expected a different exclamation to come from his mouth, but
to their surprise it hadn�t even been him to shout the healing chant to release
the incredible powers of the phenomenon-rejecting fairies. Just as the
grey-green body was almost to its feet a shining blue oval shield surrounded
him and pinned him back to the ground as the tentacles fought vigorously
against it to no avail. Tsukiyomi almost cried in relief.

Every set of eyes turned to a boy
equally pinned on the ground, straining his head up to see through bangs of orange
hair as he forced his hand towards the shielded Kurosaki child. His thin
glasses had fallen off to the side, but his midnight blue eyes stayed locked
with perfect clarity on his target as he single-handedly held off the bestial
body. �Sora!� Orihime cried
worriedly.

Sora grit his teeth and
tensed his arm more. �J-Just�a little�more!! I�can use
his power�against him!! I�ll�revert him back!!!�

They looked back at Kaien and saw
the wounds that had yet to heal from Ukitake
gradually close as the scar tissue�something that not even the Souten Kishun could Reject�replaced
it and the tendrils were forced back into the body as his skin slowly went back
to normal and the eye tattoos faded back to reveal the ones just like Grimmjow�s. The reiatsu in the air seemed to scream in
protest but the intense power only proved to make Sora�s
healing barrier more effective as he channeled the reiatsu into it. It may have
been unnecessary to augment the godlike power, but it halted any further
assault nonetheless. Eventually the spiritual power too was squelched and
forced back into control as slow, steady breathing replaced everything and
Kaien had once again fallen asleep, this time as himself.

Sora
slumped to the ground, exhausted after fighting against the tremendous reiatsu
and the attacks from within his blue shield. He rubbed his sore hands as his
powers returned to him and went back to rings on his fingers and was surprised
when his father suddenly appeared beside him and helped him to sit up while he
handed him his lost glasses.

�Great job, Sora,�
Uryuu praised softly and his mother�s nature showed up instantaneously in the
fourteen-year-old�s wide grin of accomplishment.

Much to Uryuu�s
dismay, Sora chose to style his hair much like his
eternal rival, Ichigo Kurosaki, but the usual Ishida style didn�t suit orange
hair, as even he would admit, and so he really couldn�t complain. He had his
mother�s straight hair, but with a little styling he had managed to spike it
backwards, all but the few unruly strands that dangled down over his face. Unlike
Orihime, his powers had manifested in the rings he wore, and his Santen Kesshun was located on the pinky, ring, and middle fingers
of his left hand while Souten Kishun
took up the index finger and thumb. Tsubaki�s little
carbon copy, the Kouten Zanshun,
was located ever so opportunely on his right hand�s middle finger. It suited
the pint-sized hellion nicely. The blue coloration of the shields was in direct
correlation with his heritage as a Quincy,
but consequently he had no ability to make the trademark bow or other spiritron-based
weapons of the priestly archers; all but the Silver Tubes, which were weaker
but still useful. A shadow fell over the two family members and they both
looked up to see Ichigo looking down at them with relief clear in his eyes.

He squatted down to the young man�s
level, and Uryuu almost found it disturbing to be reminded how much his son
looked like his friend. �That was a very brave thing you did. Thank you very
much Sora.� And with a pat on the shoulder, the King
of Hueco Mundo rose to give
Orihime her hairpins back.

Needless to say, Sora Ishida was practically beaming with pride.

Conversely, Kin, she was on her
knees clutching her arms to her sides as she trembled like a baby bird bereft
of feathers. Now she knew, now she knew all too acutely what Asuka had been
trying to convey before. She was confident in her own strength, maybe even
overconfident, but the intense fear she had felt when her own fianc�s
dark reiatsu had pushed down on her was enough to make even her sweat.
This was the second time in five years she had ever felt Kaien�s reiatsu, but
it was the very first time she had ever seen its color, and she realized just
what he was fighting against, and just how much power was being forced into the
frame she now thought much too small for such an enormous power. What was even
worse was she knew he hadn�t even fully awakened, as the lullaby had calmed the
initial transformation into a state in between Kaien and complete Hollowization.

She flinched terribly when she felt
a hand on her shoulder and twisted over to see Asuka knelt beside her with no
contempt burning in her eyes, for once. The blue-haired hybrid simply looked at
her with understanding in her soft blue eyes and she hugged her shivering
friend. She didn�t say anything, she didn�t need to.

She knew, now her friend finally understood.

Kin simply clasped to Asuka�s lithe
frame and cried.

~~~~~~~~

The living room was almost deathly quiet,
all but the few remaining sniffles of the younger ones that had been caught up
in Kaien�s reiatsu. Everyone who wasn�t out on the town was assembled in the
living room with the noticeable exception of Kaien, and needless to say those
without parents there were clinging to the oldest family member left. Even Kin,
engaged and almost nineteen, was sitting with her parents.

�So�what�s the plan Kurosaki?�
Uryuu asked to break the silence.

Ichigo sighed and let his head fall
into his hands. �I don�t know. We had planned to go to Soul Society to fix
everything tomorrow but that plan did include my entire family. I don�t
know how long it�ll take him to wake up now; he hasn�t lost control in so long
I�m not even sure of his abilities in that form anymore.�

Sora
coughed to gather everyone�s attention and instinctively adjusted his glasses
just out of habit. �When I was healing him I noticed that his body was running
on practically nothing, and to be absolutely honest I�m not even sure he should
have been awake. I saw him eat this morning and I noticed the energy from it,
but there should have been much more considering how much he ate. It was like
something had forced his body to stay awake, because the only thing I can think
of that would justify his deficiency would be a lack of sleep. I restored his
body�s balance to normal so after a good rest he should be ready to go. At my worst
estimate he should be good by tomorrow.� He watched as more than a few of the
adult faces around him gradually went red as imaginations were ignited, but he
ignored it.

Even Ichigo had turned his fair
share of red. �W-Well, that solves that I guess. The date�ll
stay the same then.�

There were doubts written in every
child�s eyes, Tatsuki could sense it. Her unique reiatsu detecting abilities
put her in tune to every potential flux and years of training had honed that to
be able to discern nearly every possible reason for them. Being that she was a
parent herself, she knew she had to keep her temper under control, but at the
moment she wanted to scream at them all. With a long exhalation that had all
attention on her, she looked up from under her long bangs and nearly froze
everyone with her glare. �Now, you all understand what just happened, right? In
four years that�s been the first time he�s ever lost control enough to
change that far. He�s as much a Shinigami as any of you, so he belongs in Soul
Society just as much as you do.� The entire lecture was said through grit
teeth, and it was directed pointedly at the children�more specifically even:
the academy students�of the group.

All the adults knew exactly what
she was talking about, and they made mental notes to go over everything in more
detail later. After all, their children hadn�t been alive when Ichigo had
risked everything to protect, in all accuracy, the world�s safety. Therefore
they were bound to not have the same level of respect that they should have,
even if the white jacket gave them more than enough reason to. It was only
natural, especially after their own visits to Hueco Mundo over their five-year hiatus, that that same respect
should be given to his children, to a lesser degree naturally.

The topic of thought laughed and
put a hand through his ragged orange hair. �Well, I guess that killed quite a
bit of fun for the day, ne? Kaien�s in bed now so you
kids can go back down and play if you want.� Given the opportunity, and not
liking to stay in any one place for too long anyway, every child was out of the
room in a second. Ichigo sighed again as he reset his gaze on the adults left.
�I know keeping everyone occupied will be harder now that this� happened, so I
don�t mind if you guys go home early. Don�t feel obligated.� It apparently
didn�t matter to him that three sets of parents weren�t even there to hear
that.

Urahara gave a laugh and adjusted
his hat for no reason whatsoever. �Honestly Kurosaki-san, you can�t expect us to
leave just because of that did you? Most of us haven�t seen you and your family
in years, I�m sure we can find a l~~~~ot
of things to keep ourselves occupied. We haven�t done much talking by the way, as
an example.�

�Indeed,� another voice
interjected, drawing the attention away yet again, this time to Byakuya, �that
transformation was quite tame compared to your first, and he is not a weak
child anymore. Soul Society classified your family�s� records for a reason.
There is no need for such trivial fuss.�

Even though everyone else smiled
and nodded in agreement, Masaki was practically glowing with adoration for her
teacher, though no one took too much notice except Ikasam
and Tsukiyomi.

With that authoritative statement
it was like any tension that had been in the room evaporated and everyone was
able to relax. One by one conversations were started and soon nearly everyone
was engaged in some form of communication, and if not they were listening to
the conversation with the most participants. Kin, she carefully approached one
of the listeners, Orihime Ishida, and gently tapped her on the shoulder.

Orihime turned around to face her
with her normal smile gracing her lovely face. �What�s up?� she asked
cheerfully. Leave it to Orihime to be so happy and friendly after coming close
to death or dismemberment just a little earlier.

Kin resisted the urge to shuffle
her feet in embarrassment. �C-Can I talk to you? Away from everyone
else?� she whispered quietly, unknowing of the way Asuka�s ears perked up
curiously.

Despite the confusion in her eyes,
Orihime nodded with yet another smile. �No problem.� The two then left the
room, one making sure no one followed to the other�s confusion. A spare bedroom
was found and the orange haired beauty sat down on the bed against the nearest
wall. �So? What�s up? She asked again in a cheery squeal as she bounced lightly
on the bed.

She may be getting older, but she
was still Orihime alright.

The older woman noticed with
fascination the way the chocolate-skinned teen turned a bright shade of red.
�U-Um, I was wondering�could you heal me?�

Instantly Orihime�s eyes clouded
with worry. �Did he get you? I thought I stopped him in time but he could
have��

�No, No!� Kin quickly clarified.
�It�s just�I know I have the same�uh�d-deficiency�that Sora
mentioned, so I was wondering if you could get rid of it like he did.�

Orihime cocked her head to the side
and pushed a fingertip into her lips in one of the most endearing motions of
confusion Kin had ever seen on a woman her age. �Huh? Why would you have it
too?�

The Shihouin heir resisted the urge
to roll her eyes. Another part of Orihime hadn�t changed either. Do I have
to spell it out for her!? �Well�you see��

�Oh I know it was Christmas Eve and
everything but�OH! Were you up waiting for Santa Claus!?� she interrupted
excitedly.

This time Kin did roll her
eyes. �NO!� Upon realizing there was no way out of it, Kin turned twenty
different shades of red as the oblivious Orihime watched before she leaned over
and whispered into the woman�s ear what she couldn�t bring herself to say at
regular volume.

Orihime�s face promptly matched
Kin�s in a healthy red glow. �Really!? Oh�
wow!!�

And just like that the sliding door
opened and shut like a bullet and Asuka had jumped right into the middle of the
room. �AH HA! I knew it!� she boasted triumphantly,
gleefully taking in Kin�s look of absolute horror. �The nose knows, ya know?� And as her grin widened as she tapped the
aforementioned device on her face, so did the degree of color on Kin�s face.

�Soooo, how was he?�

Kin�s head moved life a machine
that needed a good oiling over in astonishment to see that it had been Orihime
of all people to ask that of her. Asuka�s mouth unhinged itself just
because she had been beaten to the punch, but nevertheless she got to witness
the look on Kin�s face, and that was priceless.

�Wha�bu�you�uh�why�?� Kin had been reduced to a babbling mess,
and the amount of incoherent mumbles was enough to send the other two women in
the room into snickers. �Tha-That�s like me asking you
how your husband is!!� she finally shouted out after the embarrassment�which
still hadn�t left�ran its course. Imagine her horror when the busty orangehead�s eyes seemed to glaze over while a smile so
unusual it didn�t seem possible in anything other than an anime came over her
face as saliva threatened to fall from it. Asuka�s face turned dark red. She
may be extremely thankful for her enhanced senses, but it was at times like
these that they caused her trouble. Orihime was still a knockout, but it wasn�t
like she wanted to smell her arousal. �Have you no shame!? Argh! Why�d I even say that!?!�

Something that rarely seemed to
occur to Asuka and Kin was that they were still barely nineteen years old
because they were strong enough to be seriously respected in either spiritual
realm, but that meant they didn�t have near as much experience as the woman
sitting on the bed when it came to actually living life. �Why should I
be ashamed?� Orihime asked in the deadest of seriousness, and caught both other
women off-guard. Seeing the one scramble for answers while Asuka caught on
rather quickly, Orihime crossed her arms under her bust proudly. �That�s right,
there is no reason. If I was ashamed of that than I would be ashamed of Uryuu,
and if you are ashamed of the one you love you clearly don�t love him.�

Kin�s heart nearly stopped in
shock. �Don�t you dare even think I don�t love him!�

�Well then what�s the problem?�
Asuka asked smoothly as she slinked back gracefully into one of the chairs of
the room and crossed her legs. �I can get this party started if you don�t want
to; after all, I�ve told you a few times how good Souken is in��

�We are NOT having this
conversation!� Kin shouted, fighting off her own curiosity. She had been given
more than enough information regarding that to last her a lifetime.

Orihime pouted. �Aww, why not? If he�s anything like his father��

Thankfully, or perhaps not, the
door opened before anything else could be said. If it had been a male then Kin
would have jumped for joy just because this was a topic never discussed in a
mixed environment, but fate really seemed to hate her that day as it turned
out, because it was Retsu Unohana
who peeked in. �What�s all the commotion in here about?� she asked kindly.

Asuka�s grin took on inhuman proportions.
�Grab a set, you can join us.� Unohana smiled gently
and took the invitation, entering and closing the door behind her as she took a
seat beside Orihime on the bed.

�What are we talking about?� That
too was said with another trademark Unohana, eye-closing
smile.

Asuka pulled no punches. �Sex,� she
answered bluntly, and to Kin�s surprise the woman only seemed slightly taken
aback, and her composure had been regained quite quickly after the initial
surprise.

�I�m leaving.� The Shihouin
princess could only take so much. If they wanted to take about their love lives
than so be it, but she wasn�t going to be a part of it.

�Why?� Retsu
asked straight-out, and stopped her cold. �It�s a necessary function for the
propagation of the species, not to mention thoroughly enjoyable. Are you
afraid?�

Like hell!! Kin
Urahara-Shihouin was afraid of nothing. Well, that wasn�t entirely true�anymore.

The grin on Asuka�s face had
returned full-force. �She�s just a bit sheepish �cause
she just became a woman last night.�

Unohana�s
eyes widened. �The tension between you two yesterday was almost palpable, no
wonder.�

Kin�s face was once again heating
up, but she held her temper in check. �We had our reasons, okay!?�

The Fourth Division�s captain�s
benevolent smile didn�t falter. �I�m not accusing you of anything. In this day
and age it is commendable to save yourself for your husband,
I was merely stating an observation.�

The youth seemed much more at ease
with that remark, and Asuka had the decency to be in awe of the elder Shinigami
captain. Kindness, strength, and skill such as hers were things rarely found in
the worlds. That didn�t stop her from moving a foot over and poking Kin in the
hip to bring her back to the Present though, she
couldn�t allow the object of her curiosity to zone out on her. Said curiosity
was piqued even further when Kin actually winced at the contact. She
can take a punch from me, but not a tap? What the hell?

This hadn�t gone unnoticed by the
other two in the room either, and their looks portrayed their confusion. �Are
you okay Kin?� Orihime asked softly.

Kin smiled amusedly while she
rubbed what had definitely formed into a bruise as she thought of the identical
one she must have on her other hip. �Like I said before, I could use some
healing, alright?�

�What happened?� Retsu asked worriedly.

Kin sighed dejectedly. It seemed
there was no way out of this after all. She carefully made sure the door to the
room was locked and, even though she was surrounded by other women, she still blushed a little when she pulled her jeans down enough to
show the marks on her hips, thus revealing her skimpy black undergarments as
well.

Asuka�s eyes nearly bugged out of
her head. What she was seeing was definitely bruises, and they were shaped
exactly like human hands. �Holy hell��

As soon as she was sure everyone
had seen, her jeans were up faster than she could
regularly run. First Kaien had destroyed all their plans when he took of his
jacket before, and here she was doing this now. If there is a God, he hates
me. ��We didn�t go to sleep last
night, okay? He thought we might fall asleep during presents so we each took
one of those Fourth Division energy pill thingys.�

The shock was still clear on
Asuka�s face. �Didn�t go to sleep? Damn, that�s not the only thing you did
obviously!�

The woman in question rubbed the
side of her head embarrassedly. �Well, I might have gotten a bit carried away��

At that Asuka nearly choked on her
own saliva. �You got a bit carried away!? I don�t think you could
have done that to yourself!�

Kin looked at her friend like she
was the stupidest thing she had ever seen. �I�m sure you know very well
who did those, don�t you? You are the one who kept prodding me to
tell!!� She had gone from reminiscing happily to openly pissed, so Asuka made
sure to tread carefully with the next few comments.

�Did�didn�t that hurt?�

A blank stare met her. �I could
have been stabbed through the chest and not felt a thing, but you should know that
too shouldn�t you? Or maybe your archer�s not as talented as you make him out
to be?�

Her Hollow pride had her up and
over in an instant, snarling in the face of the woman who had just taunted her partner.
�Watch your mouth.�

Kin didn�t flinch. �Then you watch
yours.�

That argument had been stalemated
as soon as it began, and Asuka knew that right away. With an angry huff, she
stomped over and fell back down into her seat. �I�m sorry.� It was bitter, but
an apology nonetheless.

Hearing those
words, Kin�s eyes softened immediately. �Me too.
I�m just a bit too tired I guess. Heh, I get cranky
without my sleep, but I can honestly say I don�t miss it at all.�

�You can say that again!� Orihime
piped up excitedly. �Kaien must have had thirty different marks on his back
this morning!�

It would seem that her blood�s
favorite place to be today was her face, because once again the cocoa-skinned
blond felt it rush to her cheeks. �I didn�t know how bad it was until this
morning. I�m sure you would have too if he did that to yo�nevermind��

One of Asuka�s neon blue eyebrows
stretched up. �If he did what to us?�

�N-Nothing!�

Now even Retsu
was beyond curious. �Come, what was it?�

Another rant of embarrassed
babbles was going to start, or so it seemed, but before it could a rather hard thump
of something hitting something alerted the tenants of the room to another thing
happening elsewhere. �What was that?�

The blue-eyed hybrid closed her
eyes and concentrated on the sound. �What the hell? It sounds like it�s coming
from Kaien�s room.�

Kin was up and out of the room not
even a second later.

~~~~~~~~~

He hated this feeling.

Helpless, powerless, useless; he
couldn�t even find enough adjectives to aptly describe his futility. It was
like he was outside his body looking down through a hazy darkness that gave the
impression it wasn�t really himself he was looking at. Pain never seemed to end
in this place, and he could feel the muscles in his body move as he looked down
on the identical movements below, but wherever he was he wouldn�t move
likewise. He knew the muscles were in use, but the commands weren�t doing
anything to his limbs as he looked down on the creature he once believed was
him.

He could see everyone, hear
everyone, but he couldn�t move to them, couldn�t talk to them, interact with
them, warn them. He didn�t know how he knew, but it was like he was
aware of something else in control of his body, and this something felt nothing
but primitive instinct. It understood the feelings of companionship for a mate,
hatred for an enemy, the scent of family, and protection of its territory, but
no higher emotional qualities that made a human being what they were.

It was like he was behind a wall of
thick glass that prevented him from returning to the body he could see, no
matter how hard he hit or how loud he cried, nothing would ever happen to
affect the body below. His knuckles were battered and bruised and his throat
had been scraped raw, but he could still see his father and Jyushiro
standing by his body.

Then movement caught his eye, and
he could feel the body below him respond to the movement with instant
hostility. His bloodshot eyes widened in terror as he saw Kin rise and cry out
his name, and once again he screamed everything he could think of, anything to
get her to hear him. A mate would be recognized usually, but not in this state.

Stop! Don�t come!!! Stay away
from me!! Please God don�t move!!! His mouth was moving but no words were
coming out, his hands were scratching at the glass but nothing was happening,
his tears were falling but only the bloody counterparts of his physical body
could be seen. He watched, horrified, as his body lashed out its
hair-like tentacles at his fianc� but he couldn�t do anything, and worse yet
another of his family friends, his would-be aunt, Orihime, had pushed herself
into the fray.

STOP!! For the love of God
please stop attacking!! They�re family!! Not her! I can�t hurt Kin! I
promised!!! I promised damn it!!!

He fell to his knees, helpless as
he cried and shouted, unable to do anything but watch the scene unfold. He watched
himself gain the power to alter Time itself, and finally after what seemed like
an eternity of torture that wracked both his body and mind the last thing he
could see was something blue, calming the body below and easing his own
existence in this strange world.

He could only pray that this dream
ended soon, because he knew it had to be a dream. It was only in dreams that
fear like this could be experienced, and he wondered when the nightmare would leave
him in peace.

In this place, he could only
scream.

Scream, cry, and pray that it
ended.

Kin�please�please forgive me�

~~~~~~~~~

Tsukiyomi had been quietly
observing the conversations around her when she heard the abrupt slam of
a sliding door opening and instinct told her to follow when she saw Kin rush
out of the room like the horsemen of the apocalypse were on her tail. Why she
was in such a rush she had no idea, but when she skidded to a stop on the
hardwood floor and peeled the door in front of her open, the white-haired
Kurosaki knew something had to be wrong.

It was her brother�s door.

She rushed in after her future
sister-in-law and wasn�t expecting Kin to stop, so she ran headfirst into the
body that had stopped stiff upon entering. �Ow! What
the�� She muttered as she rubbed her sore nose, and only then did she look past
the body to see that her older brother was in a tangled mess of bed-sheets and
covers on the floor, and he was clawing at the air like his life depended on
it.

His hair was slick and glistening
in the light being allowed in and his skin was shining from the amount of sweat
beading off him. His pants were the only thing they had kept him in when they
returned him to his bed after his transformation, and even they were sticking
to his body from the amount of moisture they had absorbed. Each muscle was
tensed to the extent of rigid detail and it was almost like his skin was going
to break over the corded sinew trying desperately to escape its hold.

Kin couldn�t move. She could see
the pain clear on his face but it was far too much like the symptoms of his
transformation. Even now those images wouldn�t leave her mind, the time just a
short while ago where his mind lost control of his body, the time where for the
first time in her life she had been positively terrified of her best friend and
lover. Even she, heir to the title of Goddess of Flash, had no time to react
when those things had shot at her, and were it not for Orihime she had
no idea what would have happened. Even though it was Kaien, she still couldn�t
help but think she would have died. She was too afraid to move, to go over to
her own fianc�, and she hated herself for it. Tsukiyomi on the other hand had
no problem with that, in fact she rushed over to her brother�s side in the
heartbeat it had taken for Kin to contemplate her fear.

�Kaien!
Kaien wake up!!� she shouted at the flailing body, and Kin flinched when she
saw his arms shoot over to grip the shoulders of his little sister with
crushing force. Tsuki had no problems with this,
however uncomfortable it might look, because she had her own strength to rely
on. She put a hand on the fingers gripping her shoulders and looked down to see
Kaien�s eyes were wide open, staring her in the face with the bright,
iridescent yellow eyes that put even Kin�s to shame.

They were sightless.

His eyes were glazed over, like his
body was responding to the command but only his mind was seeing an image. He
was still asleep.

�Stop!
Don�t come!! Stay away from me!! Please God don�t move!!!� Even the
exclamations were uttered in an urgent whisper, full of enough emotion to make
the extra volume normally associated to such insistent pleads unnecessary.

Those words seemed to hang in the
air as those that had followed into the room absorbed them, and the full
meaning of what they were trying to convey was only understood by one person.

Tsukiyomi felt like her heart had
just been stabbed with a million tiny needles. Her incredible black eyes
moistened and everyone looked on as the coldest member of the Kurosaki children
started crying before she threw herself into her brother�s arms and wrapped her
arms around his neck as she sobbed into his collarbone. �You�re still fighting
aren�t you? Even now you�re still fighting it��

Her words went unheard on the body
still ensnared in slumber. �STOP!! For the love of God
please stop attacking!! They�re family!! Not her! I can�t hurt Kin! I
promised!!! I promised damn it!!!� He was crying now, and his hands were back
scratching at the air like there was no one hugging him.

Kin felt the world start spinning
around her and suddenly her knees seemed as reliable as gelatin. Her legs gave
out on her and she fell to her knees as tears formed and fell from her eyes. He
was seeing it, some deep part of his subconscious had retained his memories and
he was seeing them in his dreams, something so terrifying he was fighting with
all of his being to stop it.

And she had doubted him. Worse, she
had been afraid of him.

Eventually his flailing arms fell
to the ground in an act of damned finality and the pitiful whimpers as his sobs
continued and his sister joined him were all that could be heard in the deathly
silent room. Kin managed to get up enough motor control to move over to the
siblings and she wrapped her thin arms around them both while her own tears fell.
That was when she heard it, the last words of a man trapped in his own personal
hell.

�Kin�please�please forgive me��

And for the second time that day,
Kin Urahara-Shihouin was reduced to bawling like a baby. She, his own fianc�, had been unable to see what Tsukiyomi had seen so
clearly right away. What had happened hurt him a million times more than it
hurt her, and thanks to Orihime she hadn�t actually been touched. Her fear was
nothing compared to his, and she was so disgusted at herself all she could do
was cry.

Next time�next time I�ll be
there for him. It was the one thing her pained heart could do: vow to never
let it happen again. She would never be afraid of him again. Even if her body
trembled and froze, she would force herself to be by his side. Next time she
would stop him, because she knew he recognized her. She was a part of him now,
just as he was a part of her. Next time would be different, she swore it.

�I forgive you, I forgive you
Kaien. Please�please, can you forgive me?�

With those words the near-hysteric
body in her arms calmed almost immediately, and his breathing once again evened
out into the deep REM sleep of the previous instance while he went limp. After
a little while Tsukiyomi disentangled herself from his body and wiped her puffy
eyes, but Kin wasn�t willing to do the same. Having witnessed everything,
Orihime wiped her own wet eyes and put her hands out in front of her. �Souten Kishun.�

Kin felt something encompass her,
but she couldn�t care. As her bruises, hickeys, and everything else that might
have marred her skin disappeared, her body�s natural balance was restored as
well, to the extent that the energy pill itself was Rejected
from within her. As soon as that happened Kin felt whatever energy that might
have been supporting her disappear and she slumped into Kaien�s body, fast
asleep.

Tsukiyomi smiled whimsically down
on the two before she started cleaning up the sheets and covers that had
scattered around Kaien when he had fallen from his bed. Even they were soaked
in sweat but she still did it, because he was exactly like her. She remembered
everything she did when she lost control, and she knew the fear he had
experienced, because it was just like hers. Remorse and fear, she knew those
very well.

The others silently left the room,
shaken after what they had just witnessed, and allowed
Tsukiyomi to do her work in peace. After everything had been replaced, she
reached down and picked up her brother�who was both four years older than her
and a good sixty pounds heavier, a true testament to the power she housed
within her�and laid the unconscious body in bed. She repeated the process with
Kin and something deep inside her clenched when the woman instantly rolled into
the body she had been put near. She was only fourteen, but that didn�t mean she
didn�t crave the companionship her brother had found.

She sighed as she left the room and
closed the door. It looked like she had another problem on her hands now; she
was just way too tense to enjoy the trip to Soul Society. It was going to be one
of those long bath nights tonight.

~~~~~~~~~

It was only natural that after a
good number of people walked back into the living room looking for all intents
and purposes like their puppies had all died simultaneously, the owner of the
house would be a bit curious as to what just happened. Everyone was well
acquainted with Ichigo�s silent moments, and they could sense the dark aura
that radiated from him after they were done. His bangs shielded his eyes from
sight, and wordlessly he had gotten up and left the room. A few people were
wondering why he left so abruptly, but there was one at least that knew.

Tatsuki sighed sullenly and rubbed
her swelling stomach. Ichigo never had liked people to see him cry, and now was
no different. Even the almighty Ichigo Kurosaki could cry, and any other father
would be no different were their children in the same situation.

It was late at night now, and the
orange-haired King was lying awake in bed, unable to sleep. He knew his kids
were probably still up because they went to bed late naturally, and so did he,
but today he wanted to get a bit more rest before the trip to Soul Society.
That, and light always bothered his eyes after he had cried. Even if he forced
it to stop, the damage was already done, and going to sleep sounded like the
perfect way to excuse himself. It had sounded like a good idea at the time.

As it was, that didn�t seem like it
was going to happen. His own kids were worse off than he had been at their age,
and he couldn�t do a damn thing to help them other than to be their dad and be
there for them. It was infuriating. He had enough power to reign over the
entire realm of the Hollows, but he couldn�t even help his own children!! He
tossed restlessly about his side of the bed, trying to find a comfortable
position only to realize he wasn�t going to get to sleep anyways.

So some part of Kaien remembered
what he did this time? That never happened before,
he thought to ease his overactive mind. For the first year in Hueco Mundo training Kaien had
been like walking on eggshells. He had willpower, but he couldn�t recognize the
signs that he was about to lose control, and since later he would have no
recollection of anything he had done it was impossible to teach him how to
repress it. Needless to say, they had learned very quickly to keep Tsukiyomi
away from him while they were training. Being that his child was completely and
utterly unique made teaching him anything regarding his powers almost
absolutely impossible to begin with, so naturally the uncharted territory was
rocky for a time before Kaien had finally managed to keep a hold of himself. Maybe
it has something to do with his Hollow hole disappearing�? That would explain
some of it.

His thoughts were interrupted when the
door to their bedroom was opened and Ichigo winced against the offending light
being let in to try and see who it was. The door closed and a soft click
indicated it had been locked, and Ichigo knew the locking mechanism on their
door instantly triggered the reiatsu inhibitors of their bedroom, thus making
their power undetectable to the outside world�it also triggered the barrier he
had put around their room too, but it wasn�t like he was going to tell people
that he had soundproofed it. If anyone found out, he could always claim it was
another defense against their reiatsu leaking out into the world. He
could still sense the reiatsu though, since he was inside the room, and
recognizing his own wife�s power was rather easy. It was almost as powerful as
his in its dormant state after all.

He sighed for no particular reason
and flopped back against the bed. His sensitive ears heard a similar sigh
before the rustling of clothes drew his attention and then he was suddenly
being laid against by a soft nude body. Some part of him wanted to fight the
physical effects he knew this would have on him�other than the obvious�but to
no avail, and the tension in his body melted away under her embrace.

�Two angsty teenagers and a father to match. I can only
hope this little one takes after Masaki,� Tatsuki joked slyly as she poked her
ever-loving husband in the ribs. Her eyes fluttered when his large hand moved
over and gently stroked down her growing belly lovingly, and she could see his
magnificent amber eyes sparkle in the dim light of the room as he looked down
at her swollen abdomen.

�I never thought being a parent
would be so hard�� the irony in his voice was thick as smoke, but there was
real emotion behind it, like he couldn�t believe this was their fourth�fifth,
since Ikasam counted, child and not their first.

Tatsuki chuckled lightly and placed
her hand on his reassuringly. �We�re doing everything we can for them. That�s
all we can do. Besides, Kaien�s getting married, I don�t think
he�ll want to stay at home forever!�

At the Ichigo had to laugh too. �I
know, I know,� he conceded, and his voice had lost the depression he had
previously been under. Tatsuki never ceased to amaze him, and this time she
hadn�t even needed to resort to violence to get him to see reason. It wouldn�t
be the first time. �I remember when we said our �I do�s�, and I wouldn�t have
cared if we were living in a goat hut in the middle of nowhere, as long as I
was with you I knew I would be happy.�

The former tomboy felt her cheeks
heat up and she brushed some of her longer hair out of her face embarrassedly.
�You�re still such a fricken sap.� But, as usual, her
words had lost their usual bite and were instead warm and happy. Funny how it was,
she just couldn�t find it in herself to stay mad at him.

�And I still love you,� he replied
with one of his childish grins as he pulled her back to his chest.

Tatsuki melted. Yes, she still
hated using terms like that, but it was the only thing she could think of to
describe it. She knew it was probably just the extra hormones playing havoc
with her system, but she felt more warmth than usual from his body, and his
loving words had made whatever muscles poised to fight back at any time were he
to make a stupid statement�something that had definitely happened before�turn
to some kind of indescribable mush. That, and his
other arm was wrapped softly under her bosom, something that had been growing
increasingly sensitive over the weeks. His head was nestled gently in the crook
of her neck and his hot breath was tickling her skin, which under the
circumstances was both bothering and exciting her.

�Ichigo�� She could feel the other
effect of her molding herself against him pressing against her butt, through
neither of their intentional actions, but it was something that her mind had
decided to zero in on. After their bodies had been restored Ichigo had thought
it to be a good idea to start sleeping in the nude again now that his muscles didn�t
get so sore if he woke up cold. Her hyperactive hormones were acting up again,
but ever since he had found out she was pregnant the infuriating man beside her
had chosen to keep his hands to himself, for once. Right now she found that
increasingly frustrating. Said male gave a low mumble in response to his name
and kissed the flesh under his mouth softly, apparently none the wiser to her
growing state of arousal. Just the touch of his lips sent fire to her
nether-regions so she decided to take the more direct approach.

Over a month of abstinence was long
enough for her, and since she knew longer stretches than that were to come in
the later months of her pregnancy, she made the quick decision to act before
the opportunity was lost. Ichigo wasn�t the only one affected by lack of
intimacy after all. With a barely-restrained moan she rolled her hips back and
rubbed the hard organ pressing against her in the flesh of her ass, and to her
delight she felt the relaxed body of her husband go stiff, or in some cases,
stiffer.

�The baby�� His low voice warned,
already knowing she knew what he meant by those two words alone. He was
a doctor for goodness sakes.

��will be fine.
Please Ichigo?� she completed for him. She knew he wouldn�t do anything to hurt
the baby, but at times he was a bit too overprotective of her. Not that she
really minded though. Her ragged moan broke through the silence when his hand
trailed down the small bump of her stomach and started gently caressing the
folds of her sex. �Yes...! Just like that��

She could feel his smile in the
back of her neck, and though the thought crossed her mind to get mad at him,
another expert dip of his fingers and that flew away like dust in the wind. �Heh, have you missed this?� he asked, maybe a bit too
smartly for the gravelly state of his voice.

Tatsuki couldn�t help it, it was
gut instinct. Her head moved of it�s own accord to turn around so she could
smash her lips against his, and it was around then that she completely forgot
why she had done that in the first place and when his tongue snaked out to
plunder her mouth she nearly forgot she was pregnant too. When he pulled away,
as equally dazed as her, he saw her Hollowized eyes
looking at him hungrily. �You little bastard, you planned this didn�t
you?�

Ichigo laughed lightly and pressed
more insistently into her with his fingers, massaging her inner walls like one
would outer flesh. His intent was reached when her eyes fluttered and rolled
back in her head as a seductive groan was issued from her gasping mouth. �If
you think I could hold out for this long other than to keep you safe you�re out
of your mind. Torture doesn�t begin to describe it�� he whispered hoarsely as
he nibbled at her nape and kissed a trail along her collarbone to her shoulder
while she tried to thrash in his grip only to be held firm by the body pressing
into her from behind.

�No fair dammit�no
faaaiiirrr�� she moaned again when he ground
himself against her and she bucked her hips up, unsure of whether she was
trying to get more attention from his hand or the hard erection teasing her
backside. The pleasure was coursing through her like a drug, and she wanted
nothing else but to bask in its glow for as long as she could. Her muscles had
all given away their control and she felt so ridiculously happy she was sure it
was a drug going through her. The hand that had stayed under her bust
moved up to tease one of her nipples and she arched her back into him even
harder as she cried out. She was glad she wasn�t lactating yet, but in
preparation for that her breasts were so sensitive the lightest touch felt like
an electrical current had just run through her. �Please�no more�!! Give
it to me!�

She fell to her back when Ichigo
moved from behind her and poised himself above her, which under any other situation
would have been intimidating with his impressive physique. One of his hands
slipped between the bed and her body and grasped her gently above her tailbone
and lifted her lower body off the bed, which slid him into her at an
excruciatingly slow pace. Tatsuki�s moan was much more pronounced this time,
and her hands instantly went to her breasts since at the moment he had absolute
control of their lovemaking.

After over a month of self-restraint,
Ichigo was fighting every male instinct within him to keep it slow. Holding her
up like he was was nothing with his strength, but his
legs were gradually losing feeling as he plunged into her again and momentarily
numbed his muscles. His long, careful and powerful strokes were perfect for the
situation, and after so long her hoarse cries and hums were like music to his
ears. He leaned himself down to capture her lips and she responded greedily
while he lowered and raised her lower body and he pushed to meet the timing.

Each thrust was drawn-out yet still
so cataclysmic Tatsuki thought she was going to lose her mind. He was reaching
so deep inside her she could hardly breathe but she knew she could. Her own
mind was playing tricks on her under the intense euphoria and she clamped down
on him harder, trying to quicken her sought release. He still felt so large
within her it was like they had never made love before, but four children made
that impossible. From this seemingly awkward position as he took care of
practically everything himself and their lips met in feverish passion, he was
hitting just the right spot within her that was making her toes curl and her
grip on him tighten.

She was close, he knew it. He was
too, and so he was really glad he knew the signs of her oncoming orgasm.
Breaking away from her mouth, which she then took the opportunity of using her
now free head to thrash it back and forth, he bit down on one of her nipples
while pinching her clit at the same time and Tatsuki convulsed under him as her
cry broke out of ravaged vocal chords. As Ichigo felt her tightening around him
he knew he was doomed, and the tension coiling in his body just waiting to be
released snapped violently and he trembled over her as his climax rushed out of
him. With his strength momentarily gone, they both slumped to the bed with
their heavy breathing the only sound in the room.

He looked over at her through his
haze and saw her resting on her back, skin flushed endearingly while she smiled
contently with her eyes closed. She looked too damn sexy at that moment Ichigo
couldn�t resist leaning over and capturing her mouth once again, something
Tatsuki had no qualms about, and she wrapped her arms around his neck to
continue. When he finally pulled away she kept her arms there and he stayed
poised above her, looking down on her with gentle emotion radiating from his
happy eyes.

�God I love you. I just can�t
stop,� he confessed breathlessly as he leaned down again and made Tatsuki
squeal in a very un-Tatsuki-like manner when he combined that with a rather
pointed grind of his hips.

Her eyes glinted in the dim light
of the room as she smiled seductively. �I love you too Ichigo. I�m not ready to
call it a night yet though.�

He just grinned
right back at her before darting back down.

This passion wasn�t going to be
extinguished any time soon.

~~~~~~~~~

Eyes blinked lazily before they
realized something was off about their location. Kaien�s eyes shot open and
they darted around curiously. The last thing he remembered he was fighting
Captain Ukitake, and he had gotten cut. He did remember
having the worst nightmare he had had in a long time, but that was second to
figuring out what had happened.

Did I pass out? That hasn�t
happened since I first started assimilating zanpakutous�. He raised his
right arm from his position lying down, as the scar on his left would be hard
to see being that it was mostly covered with black ink, and his pupils narrowed
to mere dots in his irises as his breathing went from slow and easy to
hyperventilating proportions.

The scar was there all right, but
there were also six other lines connected to it, forming an identical formation
to Orihime�s hairpins. He had acquired the Shun Shun Rikka. Just like his dream. It�it was real�I
really�almost killed Kin and Auntie Orihime�.

He pulled himself up and a soft
noise alerted him to the fact that he wasn�t alone in the room. Looking around,
he froze upon witnessing his fianc� and lover, Kin Urahara-Shihouin, in the
same bed as him. After checking the air, he could smell the remaining scent of
her tears, and he could tell just from looking at her that she had been crying.
He couldn�t understand why she would be in his bed after what he had done, he
simply couldn�t. He hated himself.

Unable to stop himself despite his
own protests, he reached out and tucked a mass of golden blonde hair behind her
ear and smiled sadly when she leaned into his touch with a happy sigh. �And
here I thought I was close to deserving you�� he whispered softly, with audile
disgust at himself.

He had almost killed her.

�What the hell kind of fianc� am
I!?� He ran his hands through his hair angrily and arranged the covers that had
been on him onto Kin before he left the bed and over to the washroom connected
to his room. As he stood staring himself in the mirror he could see the
remnants of dried blood sticking to his eyelashes, and he knew that the body he
had seen in his dream had actually been him. �So that�s what I look like huh?
No wonder Asuka�s so afraid of me��

The realization hurt more than he
had thought it would.

He hung his head and simply stood
there, hunched over the sink as he fought off the urge to cry. �Dammit�what�ll Kin think of me now!? I can�t put her
through that again�but I can�t take back what we did�I can�t call it off�I
can�t do that to her now.� He looked back up at his reflection in the mirror,
and was suddenly furious at the person he saw looking back at him. �WHY DO YOU
ALWAYS HAVE TO HURT THE PEOPLE I LOVE!?!?�

Before any thought had even been
processed he had lashed out and punched the mirror in front of him, anything to
make that image, that sickening antithesis of himself,
go away. The sound of breaking glass shattered the stale silence of the morning
and his knuckles bled from the shards that had stuck into his fist, but he
barely felt the pain. His breathing was coming in labored pants and his muscles
were flexing and uncoiling as he fought down the desire to destroy more, but
the disgust had yet to fade. It was no use, he knew he
was crying now. He hated crying, he hated the weakness, but ever since he had
come back he had cried more than he had ever done in his entire life before,
whether they were from happiness or sadness he didn�t really care to note at
the moment. He reached his hands out to the wall as his balance wavered and he
leant heavily on the wall above the sink trying desperately to keep himself relatively quiet.

He stiffened when he felt a pair of
arms wrap around his waist and a head was set against his back, just as she had
done once before. �Why do you always have to hurt yourself?� a soft voice asked
sadly.

That got a sick, one-breath laugh
from the young man. �More like why do I always have to hurt you? I
remember�everything. I thought it had to be a dream�but I know�I know it was
real now.�

Kin�s grip around him got tighter.
�I know�and I�m sorry.�

Kaien tried to turn around to face
her just from the surprise that plea evoked from him, but she held him firm. He
couldn�t describe the emotion that welled up in him when she said that, but if
there was something worse than disgust it had to be that. Why on earth would she
be apologizing to him? �Why in the hell are you saying sorry? I�m the
one who should be saying I�m sorry, hell, I�m the one who should be on my knees
begging for your forgiveness, not the other way around.� His voice was still
full of bitterness and hatred, self-loathing that went far beyond depression.

He had forgotten how much strength
his fianc� had packed into her small frame, and soon the man a full head taller
than her had been twirled around and she had reached up and pulled his head
down for a kiss that tasted like the saltiness of both of their tears.
His wide eyes never closed as he looked at her once again tear-streaked face as
she kissed him, and when she pulled away and opened her eyes to look up at him
he could see the regret tearing apart her insides. She hugged him to her
in a distraught clasp and he hesitantly put his arms around her trembling body.

He was awake, and she was in his
arms again, yet all she could think of was those last words of the night past.
Through her hiccups she said what had been eating away at her heart ever since.
�I�m sorry. I�m so sorry. I was afraid of you�I was terrified of you,
and even when you were sleeping you were crying, trying to get yourself to stop.
I heard everything you said, and I heard you beg for forgiveness once already.
I forgive you Kaien, I forgive you for everything
you�ve ever done and everything you�ll ever do, just please forgive me too!�
She buried her head into his chest like she wanted to curl up and die right
there, and for some reason Kaien felt warmth explode
through his body like a flash-fire. Her words, words from their first
experience with his more Hollow side, came back to him full force and a small
smile broke out on his face as he gingerly held the woman in his arms.

He never should have questioned
this. This was love, unconditional love.

He really was an idiot.

He pushed her away and before she
could voice her protests or look at him in confusion he had leant down and tenderly
pressed his lips against hers. This wasn�t a desperate kiss, this was a kiss
full of love, a kiss full of forgiveness; simply put, it was their kiss,
as Kaien carefully bit and nibbled at her beautifully thin lips like they were
the sweetest things he had ever tasted. It was her turn to have the wide eyes
this time, but they closed serenely as the treatment continued and coaxed any
tension and even her tears away. She felt warm, really warm, and when his hands
reached up and gently caressed down the sides of her face she nearly started
crying again. He knew. She had gotten her point across, and at the same time
she was reminded of how he made her feel. When he pulled away she was unable to
stop the whine of discontent, but he pulled her back to his chest and gently
held her there as they stood amidst shards of mirror.

�I forgive you,� he whispered
caringly. �I love you with everything I am, and the thought of hurting you
scares me so much I just��

She laughed softly and flicked his
nose with her middle finger playfully. �I know already. I promise I�ll always
be with you Kaien, isn�t that one of the lines? �For richer
or poorer, through the good times and the bad�?�

Kaien chuckled too. �If it isn�t,
I�ll make it part of my vows. You are so amazing.�

She smiled and snuggled into him.
�You�re not too bad yourself.� Satisfied with her show of appreciation, and
knowing what the plans were for today, she grudgingly removed herself from his
embrace. �Now let�s get you and this place cleaned up, we�re going on a trip
after all.� With that, she carefully walked out of the room.

Kaien Kurosaki smiled and followed.

You really are amazing, Kin�

~~~~~~~~~

�We�ll be going now. We�ll get the Senkaimon ready for you guys, so wait just a little while.
The entrance should be right around here, so be ready when it gets here. See
you in a bit!� Rukia announced from the entrance of the round door she and the
other Shinigami were entering with their Hell Butterflies. Hanatarou
and Nemu would be safe if they stayed with the
captains even when they got to Soul Society.

�For the fifth time, we got it
already! Now get the hell outta here!� Ichigo
immediately shouted back, and as the door was closing they could see Rukia
pulling down one of her eyelids as she stuck her tongue out at the
orange-haired captain. He let loose a relieved exhalation when it was finally
done and the only ones left were his immediate family, as Chad and Halibel, Karin and Ulquiorra, and their families had
already left back to Hueco Mundo.
This time it wasn�t their fight. Yuzu and Jinta had gone home too with Isshin
in tow, much to Jinta�s annoyance.

He looked over to where his son was
standing with Kin leaning into his side, and noticed the look of sadness still
hadn�t disappeared from his face. Yesterday he had been looked at like a god
among men by his younger counterparts from the other families, and today all he
could read in their eyes was fear, all but those that had lived in Hueco Mundo, like the Ishida�s
and the Sado�s. It was a terrible feeling. Ichigo
sighed and walked over to pat his hand on his son�s shoulder.

�Don�t worry about them, they�ll come around sooner or later. Besides, it�s
your first trip to Soul Society, you shouldn�t look so down!�

Kaien tried to smile, really he
did, but it was only when Kin squeezed his one un-bandaged hand reassuringly
had he been able to manage it. �You�re right! Maybe I�ll stop by the academy,
see what they all learn there just for kicks!� It was forced, but it was better
than nothing.

Both Ichigo and Tatsuki smiled, and
right after that a blinding white light illuminated behind them. �Looks like
it�s here, let�s get going.� With that, Ichigo, Tatsuki, Tsukiyomi, Masaki,
Kin, and Kaien, walked into that light to the next world.

To Soul Society.

~~~~~~~~~

Author�s Notes: LOL, as you may or may not have noticed, I was
really in the mood for some angst. Thanks to my reviewers and to everyone else
for giving this story your time. I hope to update more but I can�t make any
promises!

By the way, thanks for all the
e-mails! The few I got them from are so awesome!!!

Thanks for reading and I hope you
enjoyed his installment!
- 16
- 17
- 18
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