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A Shadow of What Was	By : katami Category: Bleach > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 49594 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Author's Notes: Who needs sleep? Apparently not me, because I have another chapter for everyone and am writing like a fiend to get to the 1/3 way point of this story. Go me! Nearly 1/3 done! *Katami bangs her head on the desk* My muse hates me...that or she just loves Urahara that much.

Kisuke: "I'm going with the latter. I'm irresistible after all. Remember everyone, reviews mean love and writers have fragile egos....and minds; but we try not to mention that." *winks at the readers*

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Shirosaki gazed at his peacefully sleeping companions, restless and edgy despite their presence. The power inhibitor his stupid king had gotten himself trapped with drained the zanpakutou. The drain was not enough to harm them or Shirosaki would have had to push Ichigo aside and kick some ass. The king's stupidity over the ol' Hat-n-Clogs was not going to cost him his lovers. He hated the rain as much as Zangetsu and Ichigo, but Urahara was Ichigo's lover, not his. Zangetsu and Benihime were his, and Shirosaki looked after what was his.

He growled faintly, unable to get comfortable or sleep and not interested in laying quietly with Benihime and Zangetsu. He was not a laying quietly kinda guy; he liked action. Time and Zangetsu and Benihime had mellowed him a little, but he was not, and would never be, some tamed house pet. He was still the same wild horse he had been all those years ago, ready to turn on his rider the first chance he got.

He slid carefully free of the zanpakutou's grasps, pulling on his hakama before leaving the confines of Zangetsu�s corner of Ichigo�s soul. They each had their own little portion of Ichigo. Zangetsu�s portion was tucked away on one of the highest buildings. It was a dark and lush place, full of rich sounds and textures. It reminded Shirosaki of nothing so much as the back room of a jazz bar, with exposed red brick walls, hardwood floors.

He left Zangetsu�s hideaway and paced the confines of the king's soul world, grumbling a few insults at Ichigo but quickly grew bored with the activity. Ichigo was asleep and insulting him wasn�t nearly as fun when he didn�t bitch back. He seemed to the only one unaffected by the inhibitor, although Zangetsu and Benihime might have argued that his temper was shorter and he was edgier than normal. He chalked it up to Shinigami power trying to affect him and those he considered his.

He stalked around the oddly twisted world of Ichigo's soul, finding himself in Benihime�s area. It was the newest and most unique area in Ichigo�s soul because it was completely unlike anything else there. It was foreign and alien and hence interesting. And Shirosaki had never been one to miss out on something fun or interesting.

Benihime�s place was a sheltered little garden on the top of one of the skyscrapers. It was a riot of green. There were roses and orchids, and wisteria plants, and maple trees, and even a lone cherry tree, and millions of other shrubs and plants that Shirosaki could never identify but never grew tired of examining. Even if they were plants - they were new, something besides glass, steel and concrete. There was a tiny pond fed by a delicate little waterfall that trickled down over rocks, although he had never been able to figure out where the water came from. Or reach the top of the rocky incline. There was a crimson bridge across pond but it led to nowhere, which was annoying but not surprising.

Only today the bridge didn�t lead to nowhere.

Normally, the bridge showed a green bank that could never be reached - at least by him. Benihime claimed it was her link to the old man�s soul. Today the bridge was different. There was a hazy mist on the other side and dark shapes just visible through the fog. Buildings probably. What was with these damned people and the fucking need for buildings in their souls?

Shirosaki felt a huge grin split his face. Change was always something fun. He spared half a second to the idea of waking up Benihime to question her about the change but then thought of how sluggish the zanpakutou had been. He might not have been able to get a straight answer out of them for hours. And really, what would be the fucking point? It wasn�t like she could stop him from exploring it - lover or not, Benihime was not his master.

He stepped onto the delicate red bridge, pausing as something about it felt different. He shrugged and continued on, hand on the hilt of his sword; although Benihime and the king would certainly be pissed if he hurt Hat-n-Clogs.

Not that he was sure he could. Old Hat-n-Clogs was one scary bastard for someone who acted like a total retard. Shirosaki had met him exactly twice; once before he and the king had started screwing and once after. The first time they had been sparing, the king and the idiot, and he had slipped out. That nutty old guy had held him off until Ichigo could wrestle control back, which was pretty damn impressive since he had nearly killed captains of the Gotei Thirteen. The second time he had broken free while the king was fucking the old man. Urahara hadn�t missed a beat, just slammed him to the floor, blade at his throat, and called for Ichigo to come back.

After that, Shirosaki had kinda decided Ichigo could�ve done a lot worse for himself than someone like Urahara.

He forced his way across the bridge, making the last half of the journey by sheer stubborn unwillingness to turn back. With each step he had felt weaker and weaker, like the power was being drained out of him. He made it across though, breathing hard, sweating and leaning on his sword, but he made it.

"Ha! Stupid fucking bridge," he panted. The fog on the other side of the bridge was dense and confusing, voices and ghostly images echoing around and through it. He pushed his way through, trying to figure out where he was, but the fog was too thick and things seemed to shift around. For a moment he thought he saw the Urahara Shouten, Hat-n-Clogs asleep in its depths, but when he looked closer it was gone. There was the sound of children - not playing children, street kids - but he hadn�t seen any sign of them. And when he looked for them, the noise had died to silence.

He ventured deeper into Urahara's soul and the fog began slowly to lift. When he came to a crossroad, it was gone completely where the roads met but grew thicker the further one ventured from the clear spot. There, in the center of the clear space, was the Mizuno kid, looking exactly like Urahara must have at seventeen. He was looking around, lost and confused, turning all about but unable to leave his patch of ground.

�Hey!� called Shirosaki.

The kid did nothing, like he hadn�t even heard his shout. "Hey!" he tried again. Again the kid ignored him. Shirosaki frowned and moved closer, but as he reached the end of the fog, he reached some sort of invisible wall. He pounded on it but couldn�t get through and still couldn�t get the kid to notice him.

A figure on the opposite side of the clear patch noticed him though. Urahara, but not as Shirosaki knew him. Younger and in a Shinigami robe and captain�s haori. This man exuded confidence and power. Urahara the captain, Shirosaki decided. And looking at him, yeah, the king coulda done a whole lot worse.

The captain was glaring murderously at Shirosaki and reaching out for the kid. He didn�t seem to be able to enter the clear zone though. But he could reach into it, brush against the boy. Only the boy startled each time the captain reached for him and skirted away like a nervous colt. For one brief instant, the captain grabbed a hold of the kid�s arm and Shirosaki watched as the two figures merged into one. A young Urahara, no older than the boy had been, stood there in black robes with a captain�s haori. Then instantly the two figures ripped apart and were once more two distinct entities - the boy and the captain. And the kid fled to the far corner away from the captain.

"Spooked him good, huh, Captain?" he called to the other, giving him a mocking wave and a wicked grin.

The captain looked like he wanted to pound him.

Shirosaki felt a tug from the center of his being and found himself jerked back to Benihime�s garden on Ichigo�s side of the bridge. He stared at the little bridge, his most devilishly delighted grin on his face. He had gotten onto Urahara�s soul! Granted, he hadn�t been able to do much of anything, but he had gotten there. Gotten somewhere new. Somewhere with new secrets to explore and new things to see.

A world of possibilities flashed through his mind, and Shirosaki couldn't help throwing back his head and laughing.
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A Shadow of What Was