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Stand in the Rain	By : ShadowedEcho Category: Bleach > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2047 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, no money is being made by me, this was written purely for entertainment purposes

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
"We should do more to help him," Shunsui was speaking to Jyuushiro, he had come to visit the 13th squad to check up on Ichigo and get a chance to see his lover. Both Captains were currently watching Ichigo move through the gradually increasing list of approved training methods, and they weren't the only ones, a few squad members were scattered around the training yard, observing the new warrior in their midst.
"And what do you suggest?" Jyuushiro agreed with him, and was willing to listen to any good ideas; Ichigo was still pushing himself as far as he was permitted to go. The white haired Captain had little doubt he would start trying to find ways of pushing further.
Shunsui glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, "I think we should hold another meeting."
Jyuushiro frowned a bit, "Are you sure that is wise? It might help Ichigo, but that last one was only a few weeks ago, don't you think we might cause suspicions?"
The pink clad man sighed, "I know it's a risk, but look at him. He is trying to deal with everything on his own, even after I told him about us. He doesn't think there is anyone else here willing to listen about everything, and actually understand. We have people who have been hurt, and who started out ashamed of who they are. If we don't take a few risks I think we are going to lose Ichigo. He has done too much, and been through Hell, all because he was thrown into our war and asked to fight. Because of all that, we shouldn't fail him now."
"I agree," Jyuushiro admitted, "But the others might not. We should take the time to explain a little of what's going on and let them chose for themselves rather than dumping all this on them at once." He was concerned for Ichigo, yes, but the others they had taken under their wings meant something to him too.
"Of course they would have a choice. I am not suggesting we treat Ichigo any different from the others. We have always warned them when a potential new member was going to be joining us, Ichigo should be no different." Shunsui understood his lover's concern, but if they were careful and took the right precautions, this would be the best course of action for everyone.
"How much are we going to tell Ichigo?" Realizing his partner knew what he was doing, Jyuushiro gave in and started planning the conversations they would need to have.
Shunsui took a moment to think about it before he responded, "We need to tell him the truth. If we surprise him too badly he might not be in any condition to listen at all, much less trust us."
"All right, when should we hold the meeting?"
"Probably a week from now, it's going to take a little while to get everyone together. I think we should approach Ichigo as close to the meeting time as possible. It would be bad if he was given enough time to over-think it and back out of coming."
"You really think this will work?"
"I don't know," Shunsui replied unusually seriously, "But it's all we have."
In the training yard below them, Ichigo moved through the steady motions of the next kata, several pairs of eyes following his smooth movements. Unaware of the two worried Captains and their quietly laid plans, he attempted to block everything out, the people, the memories, and the hurt. He had gotten to the point he was attempting to mix his physical training with his Kido. One thing Izuru had told him in their last lesson was he would need to learn to concentrate on pooling his Spiritual Pressure at the same time as he was fighting. Most Kido was battle oriented in one way or another, so while being able to contain his power in the quiet calm of his own room was good enough to learn the basics, to use it in the situation it was meant to be he needed to learn control under duress.
When he had reached his training limit for the day, he exited the practice arena and returned to his room. There wasn't much to do, so he began his Kido training again. Pulling in his Spirit Pressure, holding it for as long as he could, then releasing it. He had gotten to a minute and a half now. Figuring the longer he could hold it the better. Cloaking the power was his next lesson. It was different then holding or using his power, resting somewhere between the two.
The next few days passed the same way. The two older Captains carefully spread the message around to the right people, while Ichigo pushed himself harder and harder in his attempt to escape the past. Retsu was watching him as closely as she could, but with her Captain's duties taking up a good portion of her time, she just knew he would start finding ways to circumvent her orders. He was too much of a hothead not to. She only hoped she would see the spark of determination return to his eyes, it had been snuffed out for far too long already.
Ichigo was only a little surprised when he was summoned to Captain Ukitake's office for another chat, he had enjoyed their early morning discussion the morning after his arrival, so he was looking forward to the next conversation. When he arrived, he was definitely shocked at the appearance of the second man in the room. Shunsui was stretched out in a light dose, his head resting in Jyuushiro's lap, the pale Captain running his hands through wavy brown hair affectionately. Feeling a bit awkward at stumbling on the almost intimate moment, Ichigo spoke unsurely, "You wanted to talk to me?" He hoped he had kept his voice low enough to not wake the sleeping man, if he truly was asleep.
"Yes Ichigo, please come in. Oh, and don't worry, Shunsui isn't sleeping, at least not yet he isn't." Jyuushiro invited him inside, before nudging his partner's head, making warm grey eyes open, and a crooked smile appear on masculine lips.
"Ah, Jyuu, you give all my secrets away," He teased before adjusting his position so he didn't lose the warmth of his love's closeness, but he could see Ichigo too. He never did stand on propriety, and he was too damn comfortable to move just to observe some obscure set of manners that Ichigo himself rarely bothered to use.
Ichigo moved inside, not sure what to expect from the meeting with this curve ball thrown at him. "What did you two want to talk to me about?"
"We have an invitation to extend," Jyuushiro explained, Shunsui nodding in agreement. "Shun and I run a small group compiled of people like us trying to make it work in the higher positions of the Soul Society. Unfortunately, the way things stand now, the closer you are to the Head Captain, the more extensive the punishment for breaking his rules. To combat this, we started to slowly bring together the Officers, Lieutenants, and Captains that either belong to this lifestyle, or are supporters of being able to love freely."
Seeing the still slightly blank look on Ichigo's face, Shunsui clarified, "What he is trying to say is we run a group designed to protect and support those who chose same sex partners. There is a select few in the group who are not homosexual, but want to see the rules changed anyway, usually they have a friend or relative in the group that they are supporting by taking our side."
Ichigo nodded in understanding, but he still had a few questions, "Why are you telling me about it if it is for their protection? Shouldn't it be a secret?"
"Didn't you hear me say we had an invitation? Ichigo we would like it if you joined us for at least one meeting. We know it is a lot to ask, but we truly think it would do you some good. There are people that you could connect with in a way you would probably be afraid to otherwise. It is a place free of judgment and prejudice, or as much as we can reasonably achieve anyway." Jyuushiro reasoned as quickly as he could, wanting to get his point across before Ichigo decided to bolt.
Instead of bolting, he turned beet red, "What makes you think I belong there?" He would have felt better had that not come out sounding so desperate.
Both Captains had amused expressions on their faces at that, at least he reacted predictably to one thing anyway. It was Shunsui who spoke for the both of them, "You know, that is the one question every single person we have approached has asked. If you can tell us honestly that you don't want to come along, that you don't have any idea where we got the crazy idea you might belong with us, we will apologize and not bring it up again. However, I have seen many like you before. You are nervous, and afraid, for good reason a lot of the time. Just try it once. The first meeting only involves those who know we are bringing someone new, and they are willing to take the risk of you knowing their secret in the hope of reaching out and helping someone else the same way they were helped. Once you get through the first meeting, and if you chose to continue coming, you will meet those that are more cautious about revealing themselves."
Ichigo's usual scowl deepened a bit as he thought it over, finally deciding on what he needed to ask to make a choice. "How many people will be at the first meeting?"
"Besides us, nine, made up of seven members and two supporters. Like I said, the number will rise if you like what you find." Shunsui answered him with his smile back in place, those were the kind of questions asked only if he wasn't going to protest the accusation he belonged with them in this.
"Wait you just said it was Officers and above, this is the smaller group, and there is nine? Isn't that number a little high? Especially with the taboo, I would think it would be, I don't know, smaller anyway." Ichigo was caught off guard at the number, expecting maybe four or five, with a few additional ones added on later.
Another amused glance passed between the two companions, "Ichigo, you really aren't alone anymore. It's only seven people out of thirteen squads, think about it, even in the Living World there has been research done that concluded the probable rate of same sex inclinations was one in every ten people. Only ten percent of the population, but ten percent of the Officers means there should be at least one per squad, or two in one to balance out a squad with none. Not enough to challenge the Head Captain directly, but enough if we stand together, we can protect ourselves." Jyuushiro explained gently, his smile stunningly gorgeous even through Ichigo's shock.
Shunsui added, "I have also been thinking about another thing, about the reason so many of us achieved high ranks in the squads. To hide who you are for so long, from everyone who didn't know exactly what to look for, it takes skill and determination. The same two traits that make us good candidates for Officer level positions and above."
Ichigo took another moment to absorb that. "Okay, I think I understand, now when is this meeting?"
"Tonight," Shunsui informed him, "We thought it best to tell you as close as possible, this will be good for you. Giving you a chance to back out would just hurt in the long run."
Jyuushiro pushed him off his lap playfully, the bigger man landing with a thud and a muffled 'ow,' before asking him in an exasperated voice, "What was the point of waiting if you were just going to give him the idea to run anyway?"
"What? He's coming, he wouldn't be asking us this if he wasn't. There isn't any harm in telling him!" Shunsui protested, reclaiming his spot on his love's lap.
Jyuushiro just looked down and shook his head slowly, "I don't know why I put up with you sometimes."
"You know you love me," Shunsui teased, eyes glittering mischievously.
"For some unknown reason, yes," If his smile was gorgeous, it was nothing on the laugh that escaped the Captain at this point.
Ichigo couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped his lips at the exchange between the two, his laugh joining with Jyuushiro's.
"That is something nice to hear," Shunsui muttered to himself, listening to the other two laughing for the first time in ages. That was definitely a sound he wanted to hear more of.
Ichigo sobered up soon after that, "So where is the meeting?"
"We have a few different places in the Rukon districts, we never use the same place twice in a row, since you still have trouble sensing Spiritual Pressure we will be taking you to the first one. Once you get the hang of tracking someone, you can follow on your own if you like. Most of us are suppressing our power for the meetings to reduce the risk of unfriendly people tracking us down during them, but Jyuu and I take turns revealing our locations so members can find us. All you have to do is wait for us to call a meeting and search for one of us, it's easy from that point on." Shunsui answered him.
He nodded in agreement, "All right. Are you two going to find me later, or is there a time I should come meet you here?"
"We will come get you, it would be easier that way," Jyuushiro decided. "Now, would you care for a cup of tea? That wasn't just a front to get you here to ask about this, you should stay with us awhile."
"Sure, I could stay awhile," The Visored accepted, the tenseness he had nearly forgotten about fading from his stance as he relaxed at the topic change. He couldn't help but think the offer sounded good, but there was a lot that had the potential to go wrong with it too. Ichigo knew he was being watched, both because he was still suffering from the aftereffects of the collar, and because the Head Captain didn't really trust him and honestly never really had. There was a chance he could lead exactly the sort of people they didn't want finding them straight to the meeting. He would be risking the others by going. The only reason he considered it at all was the two Captains had made it seem like the others knew there would be a risk and decided to come anyway.
The day passed much the way the previous ones had, but at least Ichigo had more of a distraction than usual to help combat the memories. He was grateful for that. It was getting harder to keep everything locked down, the dreams getting more detailed and frequent, with only Junichi with him to battle the demons in the dark. The Hollow still seemed to be hiding something from him, but he hadn't done anything to harm him, so the albino being still held his trust.
When the time finally came, Jyuushiro collected him from his room, and they headed out of the Barracks together. Once out of earshot of the general squad, the white haired Captain spoke, "We thought it best if only I escorted you. If all we seem to be doing is taking a walk to build our strength back up, there is less chance of us being followed. Shunsui went ahead of us, he will be waiting, and the three of us will be the first to arrive. We think it is easier on new members if they meet the current ones a little at a time, rather than overwhelming you all at once."
"I appreciate that, I'm curious to know who will be there, but I know it wasn't safe to ask that while we talked earlier in case someone happened to be listening in." Ichigo explained.
The gentle man nodded, "We wouldn't have been able to answer had you asked, and it is still not truly safe here either. Better to wait until you meet them in person. Even if someone had been listening in and heard our method of leading members to us, they would still have trouble proving anyone they intercept was heading there. Officers often have business in the districts we set up meetings in, it's a ready made excuse to help head off awkward questions."
The rest of the journey passed in comfortable silence. Ichigo had questions of course, but as Jyuushiro had said, it still wasn't completely safe to talk while out in the open. They had arrived in one of the nicer Rukon districts, the spirits were dressed well and the buildings were neat and orderly. Children clustered on the edge of the streets, locked in various games and contests, some of which Ichigo recognized and others he assumed were popular before his time. Food vendors were dotted among the houses, offering a limited fare for those few spirits with enough power to get hungry.
Jyuushiro lead them confidently into one of the houses, and Shunsui was indeed waiting for them inside. Only he wasn't alone. "So you did decide to come Nanao, it's good to see you," The Captain of the Thirteenth greeted the studious Lieutenant.
"Thank you Captain Ukitake, and yes, my Captain did persuade me that it would be prudent to attend," Nanao replied, before turning towards Ichigo. "You are the first new member we have had in awhile. I don't know you well, but you will be welcome here I am sure, my name is Nanao Ise and I am the Lieutenant of the 8th squad."
Before Ichigo could reply to her, a pink clad arm landed heavily on her shoulder, Shunsui pulling her into a one armed hug, "Yes my little Nanao was harder to convince than you were Ichigo, but she eventually came to see things my way." He teased his far too serious subordinate, only to get wacked over the head with a large book for his trouble.
"Get off me you big oaf, you only had trouble persuading me because I was trying to catch up on the work you decided to wait to the last minute to start on!" She protested, stowing her book back where she got it. Ichigo watched her and decided he needed to get some of those internal pockets sown into his uniform too, it was a handy hiding place.
A quiet snicker broke into the interaction, Jyuushiro not being able to hold it back, "You deserved that one Shun, and you know it."
Shunsui heaved a sigh, and dramatically asked, "Why do I surround myself with such violent people?"
"Did someone say something about violence?" A new voice interrupted, and Ichigo wasn't exactly shocked at this one.
"Hello Yumichika," He greeted, turning to look at the narcissistic fifth seat. "I'd say I was surprised to see you here, but I would be lying."
His flippant reply went a long way towards causing surprise though, "It's not like I try to hide. Where I grew up people hurt you and hate you anyway, might as well be yourself."
"Where did you leave Ikkaku?" Shunsui asked him, and Ichigo realized they were probably all on first name basis in the group, protecting each other like this would be a good way of developing friendships.
Yumichika shook his head in exasperation, "The idiot decided to challenge the Captain again. He knew we had a meeting and did it anyway. He is currently recovering in the barracks. I'd give him at least three days before he's healed up this time."
A smile crossed the brunette's face, "Well that's an improvement from the week he was laid up the last time they fought."
"This is true," Yumichika agreed, "I'd still prefer it if he waited until he actually stood a chance before fighting him. A good fight is one thing, getting massacred is another."
"I happen to know you like watching Ikkaku fight," Shunsui reminded, distracting the Officer from thinking too much on his partner's injuries, it was par for the course with the two Eleventh squad members.
A wry smile, "I'm not going to argue with that."
"Ikkaku get himself in trouble again?" Another familiar voice inserted itself in the conversation, only this one did cause shock.
"Renji?" Ichigo asked incredulously, "You're here too? What about Rukia?"
The red headed Lieutenant had a slight blush on his cheeks at the mention of his childhood friend, but managed to reply, "What about her? I am here as a supporter, these two have been my friends since we were in the academy." He pointed behind himself, and drew Ichigo's attention to the other Lieutenants behind him.
"Nice to see you again Izuru," Ichigo was quick to greet the blonde, before looking at the one with tattoos and short black hair, "You're Shuuhei right?"
"Yeah, Shuuhei Hisagi, Lieutenant of the 9th," Shuuhei introduced himself. "I know a bit about you from Renji and Izuru, its good you decided to show up. We need some new people to liven things up again."
"Ichigo is definitely good at livening things up," Renji assured, interrupting without care, "Look at what he managed the first time he was here."
"I agree with Shuuhei Ichigo," Izuru decided to ignore Renji and side stepped the red head, "It's good to see you. I'm a little surprised, but glad all the same."
Ichigo treated his Kido tutor to a rare smile, "Thanks Izuru, and I'm glad someone was surprised at least. I was beginning to think I was being too obvious with all the people finding out lately."
Nanao spoke up with that, "Don't feel bad Ichigo, it's not that you're bad at hiding, it's just my Captain and Captain Ukitake are good at seeing. They found all of us too."
"We have a lot of practice at knowing where to look for signs, it helps we have another set of eyes helping us too." Jyuushiro informed them conspiratorially.
Ichigo was genuinely curious about that, "Who is your helper?"
"Why don't you turn around and look?" Shunsui responded for his love.
Ichigo did as instructed and saw another group of three heading inside the building, all three from the same squad. "I should have known your third set of eyes was Captain Unohana." He admitted ruefully seeing the sedate Captain leading the trio.
"You're looking well Ichigo. Let's hope this helps you heal even more," Retsu greeted easily, her soft voice as calming as ever.
Ichigo's tone was appreciative as he responded, "I have you to thank for patching me up. I don't know where this will lead, but so far, I'm not regretting coming." He turned to the other two, one an old friend, the other he was just getting to know during all his recent visits to the fourth. "Hanataro, Isane, its nice to see you again."
"Good to see you too Ichigo," The tall woman responded first, she was a kindhearted Shinigami with a presence almost as relaxing as her Captain. "I hope you like it here."
"With all the people I am seeing, I don't know why I wouldn't," He responded to her, before Hanataro walked over to him. He shifted around a little where he stood, nervous about saying what was on his mind, so Ichigo gave him a little push, "What's wrong Hanataro? You know you don't have to be nervous around me."
When he did speak, it was almost too soft to hear, "I already knew about you Ichigo," He admitted before wincing a bit as Ichigo tensed. He pressed on though now that he had started talking. "I thought about saying something to you, but you didn't seem to want anyone knowing. I wanted to invite you to one of these meetings myself, but you were in the living world so I doubted you could make it."
"How did you know?" Ichigo asked carefully keeping his tone even. He wasn't mad at Hanataro, but he was still anxious about people knowing about him before he chose to tell them.
A shy smile, "It takes one to know one. You have to know where to look for signs, and I wasn't completely sure. I was only positive I was right when this meeting was called."
"I should get used to people finding out shouldn't I?" Ichigo asked rhetorically, unintentionally causing a few people to need to suppress laughter.
A few minutes of talking passed before the last member of the group arrived, "Sorry about my lateness, I had an issue to resolve with my squad."
"Glad you could make it Soi Fon," Jyuushiro greeted warmly, the tiny woman was amusing to him with the way she could be so cold and formal one minute, and acting almost childlike the next.
"Lady Yoruichi would be mad at me if I didn't try to help Ichigo. She wouldn't come out of hiding to teach just anybody. I thought I would see for myself what was so special." Soi Fon admitted, and if her tone was a bit petulant at the end, it only increased Jyuushiro's smile.
Ichigo spoke to her cautiously, "I don't know what's special about me, but I am grateful to Yoruichi for her help."
That was apparently the right thing to say, because Soi Fon almost instantly relaxed, and a far way look came into her eyes as she remembered her mentor. Ichigo much preferred this docile version of the potentially volatile Captain.
The rest of the meeting went by smoothly, the time flying quickly as Ichigo learned about the members of the group. He was familiar with quite a few of them previously, but it was nice to see them all so relaxed in this atmosphere of safety. They showed him a bit of their true selves, and he slowly but surely returned the favor. It was a nice way of spending an evening, and by the end of the meeting he willing agreed to attend the next one.
This time both Jyuushiro and Shunsui walked with him back to the 13th Barracks. The two Captains had an advantage over some of the younger ones in the group that their public friendship had lasted so long it wasn't odd for them to be seen together at odd times. They had to be careful with just how affectionate they were in public, but they could steel more time together than most could.
Ichigo wished them good night and split off from them to go to his own room. He stretched out on his futon, hands crossed behind his head, one knee drawn up, the other leg stretched haphazardly off the side of the low mat. Ever since his confinement he couldn't bear to curl up, at least not while awake.
He was slowly coming to terms with the shocks of the day. He wasn't alone. There were others like him in Soul Society, hidden in the background yes, but still there. It was a cold comfort, but he would take what he could get. At least the others had someone to stand by them during hard times, even if it was unconventional at times.
His thoughts were brought to a halt by a tentative knock on his door. Raising his head up a bit, he waited until whoever it was knocked again. Once they did, he pulled himself to his feet, and crossed over to answer the knocking. "Oh, Izuru, it's you. What's going on?" Ichigo was momentarily startled at facing his Kido tutor when they hadn't planned a lesson, and so soon after the meeting too.
"Ichigo, may I speak with you?" His voice was much firmer than his body language suggested it would be, and Ichigo found himself stepping back and beckoning him into the room. A small worried frown was on his face, something was wrong with the Lieutenant, he knew him well enough by now to tell that much.
"Yeah you can talk to me, you know you don't need to be so formal," He invited, sliding down to sit on the edge of his futon, while Izuru took the chair by his desk.
Izuru looked at him through his concealing bangs, "Sorry, old habit. I tend to go overboard on formality if I'm nervous, Renji likes to tease me about it." He confessed.
Ichigo nodded in agreement, "What did you want to talk to me about? You shouldn't have anything to be nervous about after everything that's happened tonight." The hesitancy returned to the blond, he appeared to be trying to get himself in order, but failing miserably. Must be something serious, "Hey Izuru, just ask, if it comes out wrong I won't get mad, it looks like something pretty serious."
Izuru forced himself to bite the bullet and speak, "I wanted to ask you about my Captain." He spoke swiftly, before his nerve could fail him.
"Ichimaru?" Ichigo had tensed at the question, but he would hear out what the other had to say.
"Yes." Izuru admitted, "He and I, well we had an, um, agreement I guess you could say. When he left I was stunned, and confused, and hurt. I need to know, while you were there. Did he hurt you? Was I so very wrong to trust him?" Once he started speaking he couldn't stop.
Ichigo took a few deep breaths to steady himself, while he thought back, wanting to be honest. "No, he didn't put a hand on me. He followed all orders Aizen gave, but never hurt me if he could avoid it." He finally replied after several minutes of tense silence.
Izuru let out the breath he had unconsciously been holding, "So there is still some hope," He whispered to himself.
"You and he, that agreement you mentioned, were you two lovers?" Ichigo couldn't stop himself from asking, and seeing Izuru's reluctant nod, he realized just how much pain the other was probably in. "Do you need someone to talk to?" Ichigo offered quietly, not sure he was the best choice, but at least he was there.
"Are you sure you want me to? He is one of the ones… well I don't want to hurt you." Izuru cut himself off before mentioning Gin had been one of the ones holding him captive.
"I know what he has done, but I didn't know him before Aizen started causing trouble. Tell me your side of things, I will listen." Ichigo figured if he didn't get the other to talk soon, he would only suppress all of that pain again, and that wasn't good for anyone.
Izuru started talking slowly, but gained speed as he pressed forward. "I grew up hearing stories about the captains and lieutenants, you can't avoid that in Soul Society. Gin Ichimaru was Aizen's lieutenant during this time, and through my early years at the academy. That's all he was to me, a story, well until a certain event happened.
"One time, my class went on a mock Hollow raid, a supposedly controlled battle between us and very weak Hollows that the higher level students at the academy watched over. The younger students were split into groups, I got paired with Renji and Momo. Shuuhei was one of the older student's monitoring the operation. When the barrier the upper level was maintaining broke down, a group of Hollows converged on us. Shuuhei and his team sent all of us younger students back to Soul Society, but my group didn't listen. Shuuhei's team was in trouble, remember they were still students themselves, so Renji. Momo, and I stayed with them to help.
"Working together we managed to hold off the Hollows for a bit, but there were too many, and it wasn't looking good. We thought we were done for, until Aizen and Gin showed up. They saved us from the Hollows. Momo had already been drawn to Aizen from the start, but that just added to her obsession. Me, I was more concerned with the silver haired Lieutenant at his side.
"Gin became a Captain not long after that, and I worked diligently to become his Lieutenant. I thought he would pick Rangiku for sure, but he didn't, she went with Captain Hitsugaya, and Gin chose me."
"When did you get together?" Ichigo asked as he heard Izuru losing steam, not sure how to proceed.
"I had been attracted to him from the start, but I hid it for obvious reasons. Then a bunch of us went out and had a little too much sake, I couldn't make it back to my quarters alone, but instead of stumbling back with Renji or Shuuhei I found myself led out of the bar by my Captain. When we got back to my room, he was helping me undress, and I guess I lost it for a moment, because I kissed him. I thought he would run me through with Shinsou, but he just pulled me closer and kissed me back." Izuru had a faint blush at the last part. "It was so odd between us at first, the same hands that would force me bleeding to the ground in the training yard, would hold me tight and not let go at night. I miss being in his arms, I don't know why he left, but more importantly I don't know why he left without letting me know. I might have gone with him, not because of Aizen, but because of him." Izuru admitted the last part quietly, never having said it out loud before. "I don't think everything happened the way we saw it, there are too many pieces that don't fit."
"Do you trust him?" Ichigo asked seriously, not letting Izuru look away. "Do you honestly think he may not really be on Aizen's side?"
"Yes, I trust him, he could have killed Rangiku on that hill, or Momo before that, or even Captain Hitsugaya. He is strong enough if he wanted us dead we would be. I think he fought us so Aizen wouldn't, Gin hurt us so Aizen wouldn't kill us." Izuru answered as honestly as he could, the discrepancies bugging him ever since the escape.
"I wouldn't have stayed sane in that place if I didn't have at least a little hope. Don't get yours so high he hurts you again, but if you truly think he is up to something, than maybe he didn't bring you with him because he didn't want you in Aizen's path if something went wrong." Ichigo couldn't honestly say much about Gin one way or another, Tousen had been the one to punish him if Aizen ordered it, Gin didn't hurt him unless it was out on the training arena and couldn't be avoided.
"Instincts are usually right, if he truly believes this, than it is worth looking into." Junichi advised at hearing Ichigo's thoughts on the matter.
The Visored responded quickly, "I agree, but we don't know if he is deceiving himself because he loved him or if it really is the truth."
"You can only deceive yourself so far. He has a point about Gin fighting so Aizen might not. I said worth looking into, not believe without proof," His Hollow reprimanded sharply.
"All right already, I said I agreed. No need to get all huffy with me," Ichigo responded.
Junichi snorted in disbelief, "I am your Hollow, I don't need a reason to get huffy, you certainly don't."
Ichigo didn't bother to respond, he knew if he did, he would only regret it.
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Stand in the Rain