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Consort To The Three Kings	By : Snowway32 Category: Bleach > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 7108 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of the characters there within, Kubo Tite owns that sole right and I am making no money from this. It is purely for my own pleasure.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
- 6
Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! Not to mention all the sweet happy birthday's I received! It truly made my day, still feels like I'm twenty though, which I hope to be for the rest of my life...not twenty-one. Anyways, I really appreciate all your support and I hope this chapter...early as it is, will be enjoyable.

I made it extra long, sometimes the inspiration just strikes you know and you have to write it down before it fades. He, he...I think I enjoyed writing Grimmjow's torment a little too much but then again he's a character that always looks for trouble.

Anyways, this chapter is a bit early because I'm working on another Hichi x Ichi multi-chap fic...this one AU supernatural but I hope that it'll be enjoyed as much as this one. It makes so happy when I receive reviews and support! Look out for it my honey's. Should be posted on Thursday I think.

I guess that's all I can say, please enjoy this chapter. It's a bit strange and I had way too much writing it but then again, what's a story when the author cannot enjoy reading it too. Enjoy my honeys! See you at the end of the chapter!

Chapter 5: I am Me

Dark brown orbs lazily blinked away a returning sense of exhaustion. His footsteps quiet as he moved down the line of Arrancar spread in front of him. Ichigo could already feel his scowl deepening beneath his crown in irritation to his growing frustration. Those he had had the misfortune to meet so far all had such confusing names he could never hope to recall them again. The giant with dark skin...Yammy, Ichigo thought, he could only recall a vague reference to the number 10 in his lengthy introduction. The one after him, with the strange mask...was so insignificant in presence that Ichigo passed right by him without notice, only nodding at the passing whisper of a name before he had come to a halt in front of a pink haired idiot.

Now this one had the audacity to look at Ichigo as if he was an interisting bug beneath a microscope, one that needed to be studied as a relevant test-subject. He had even pleaded with Ichigo to let him study the make up of his soul and its relation to the Hōgyoku's powers, that Urahara Kisuke kept sealed away somewhere far away from the pink haired idiots grasp. For obvious reasons, the consort had learned quickly enough. The man was certifiably insane in Ichigo's opinion and if it were not for Hichigo's warning glare in the Espada's direction and Ryuu's hand tugging him away from the overenthusiastic scientist, Ichigo was sure he would have been shot with an experimental poisoned dart and dragged into Pinkie's labs for observation. He shuddered deeply; he really did not know how to deal with people like him.

They just made his skin crawl.

The seventh, he wasn't so bad. Polite, still had a name Ichigo could not recall though. He made the orangette flush in embarrassment when he complimented Ichigo on the beautiful love he shared with his three kings. With his lingering gaze though, Ichigo quickly stumbled away in mortification at the way it had crawled across his body. The teen could practically hear Hichigo's ragging jealousy threaten to overwhelm the room with his thrumming reiatsu. And in return it ignited Ichigo's ire as well. So when already irate brown orbs landed on glaring teal eyes and the blue haired Espada opened his mouth to speak...all hell broke loose.

'Well if it ain't the cute-ass Strawberry! They told us ya re-awakened, but I didn' think ya'd already be shackled te their shitty little souls and bed already. Such a shame, ya'd 'ave looked real pretty and red spread out all over my sheets first.' Ichigo at first remained unresponsive as he blinked stupidly. His mind unable to make the connection to what the man was saying because of the pure shock it induced. There was a chocked chortle from the tall black haired man standing next the blue haired Espada, where unfortunately for them, the sound also served as the catalyst that drew Ichigo out from his inherent shock. When the words finally did register, the orangette saw red...an absolute deep, bloody, crimson red that was as dark as the night and as deep in shade as his deadly, roaring reiatsu that now exploded outwards at his ire.

A distinctive growl of unleashed fury echoed ominously through the room in tandem to the Three King's breath of surprise as they watched the scene unfold before them. The resounding echo of Ichigo's hatred had been the blue haired Espada's only warning before he was abruptly flattened with a well aimed punch that cracked his nose and an angered flying kick that sent him straight into the dais wall with a sickening crack to both the foundations and his spine. The blue haired man barely had a second to draw back a wheezing breath before the tip of a thrumming Zangetsu was digging into his neck's soft skin with biting force...drawing rivulets of blood from even beneath his iron hard skin...

Ichigo could hear several gasps of surprise and even fear from the ten Espada gathered before him, the sound loud enough to echo dangerously throughout the room as a distraction. No one had even seen him move, no one had seen him draw Zangetsu and no one had expected the orange haired consort to snap. But as his own blood pounded mercilessly within his ears, his breaths coming in soft, ragged gasps of raging fury, Ichigo found that his frenzied mind made little sense of the world around him in that moment. He wanted the man dead, bleeding at his feet...soaking it into his robes...staining his skin in carnage... He unleashed a ragging scream that built inside his chest.

This man...this man...! Ichigo couldn't believe it! The sheer horror of what he suggested...that Ichigo should share a bed with someone that wasn't Ryuu, Ichiru and Hichigo! Those he belonged to and those who rightfully belonged to him! Black was beginning to bleed into his vision, overwhelming his body completely until he felt a calming presence wrap around his shoulders as Ryuu's reiatsu washed over him and warm arms snaked around Ichigo's waist before a tugging pressure started to slowly but surely lead him away from the terrified man he had pinned to the wall with the tip of his Zanpactō without remorse.

'Calm down, Ichi. Hush now, there's no need to get so upset.' Ichigo's shoulders sagged, his hand relaxing against Zangetsu's hilt as Ryuu turned him around to envelope him in a gentle hug. The King's pale form was effective concealing Ichigo's upset features from curious eyes trained on the consort's strange reaction at teasing words. Ichigo knew that Ryuu was only doing it to preserve what little dignity he had left but he couldn't help it. He was shaking with rage, his mind struggling to cope with the sheer pain and the flash of soul deep panic he had felt from such a statement alone. It was as if something had ripped through his soul and pierced his heart, firmly cementing into his blood that no one, no one could take his beloveds' away from him and him away from them...not again...never again...

He wanted to cry, the memories from the night before breaking through his slim barrier of control as he was reminded of his own internal turmoil that had yet to be truly settled. Ryuu didn't seem to notice his distress though; he probably thought it was Ichigo's rage that still coursed through him. But Ichigo had found that the angered emotion had settled deeply within his heart, like a burning ember of unspoken hate, but it had been dimmed and overwhelmed by his emotional turmoil instead. Ichigo was sagging into the warm embrace, fingers clutching at long white locks in order to lean closer and gather a familiar scent around him to help calm himself before the tears burning at the back of his eyes could slide down his lashes and trail down his cheeks in frustration.

'Hush now, Ichigo.' After what felt like forever, Ichigo slowed his breaths eventually. Finally managing to find a deep pit of self control inside of him before he reached towards it uncertainly. Drawing upon the darkened calm, if only for a little while, to get through this meeting intact. When Ryuu uncurled from around him, Ichigo was ready to face the world again. But only barely. There was still a near undetectable tremor streaking through his hands, but because Ryuu anchored him to the world by twining their fingers together again, Ichigo made no protests when the older of the two led him forward to introduce the fifth Espada. The Consort gazed up at the Arrancar with a pool of unknown emotion swirling rapidly and deeply within his eyes. It was only when he remembered that this man had laughed at the blue haired man's ill-humoured joke that Ichigo glared at him harshly.

Taking a small amount of satisfaction from the fact that Ichigo saw a dark unreadable eye flinch with fear and then draw away from him after mumbling another strange name as his introduction. Ichigo never once saw Hichigo stay behind to talk to the blue haired Espada behind him. Or noticed the climbing tension that now swirled throughout the entirety of the room...the ragging tension and anger that wasn't coming from him.

'Speak one more word...one more and you're dead.' Hichigo's voice breathed softy, his demeanour seemingly calm besides the clenching of his fists by his side. The threat however, was underlined in Hichigo's watery tones as the tension in his body rose to lethal proportions. It was then that Grimmjow realized...the kid that he had taunted out of good fun, the one he had only heard stories about in the past and present. He was absolutely deadly and far too easy to piss off. However, the little Strawberry's nonchalant display of fierce power within mere milliseconds, it was no doubt like that of the Three Kings themselves. Their strength, it came as easy as breathing and it was usually under fierce control but the slightest thing could set it off on a deadly rampage. He now not only had one lethal soul pissed off at him, but apparently he had invited the ire of his three companions as well.

And not just normal companions...Hell's Three Dark kings' themselves.

The sixth could only give a sheepish smile. Grinning madly however, when he watched the youngest of the ruling trio pull Ichigo away from him. Those pretty and elegant tanned fingers clenched ever so terribly tight around his Zanpactō's hilt that the man was sure they would start bleeding soon. He could see the kid trembling with rage, ready to snap completely in an instant if it were not for his companion calming him down and keeping him wrapped in a fierce embrace. If only that beautiful rage and wild emotions could be harnessed in the bedroom. Grimmjow was sure that the orangette was a little hell cat in bed...no more than that...he looked quite sensitive too. He'd give as good as he got, it was unfair that he was limited in his partners and their—.

'Oh ho~...What're ya smirking about there Grimmy?' Hichigo cooed teasingly as he stepped closer threateningly. 'Ya think we're dragging him away 'cause we're upset at his behaviour? Or do ya want te drag him te yer bed still?' The Mei-Ou cackled insanely at the shocked expression crossing usually smirking features. Out of the Three Kings the first born was always a little unstable, had been that way ever since he had opened his eyes as Ichigo awakened his powers, especially when someone invited his ragging ire.

Golden eyes stared unashamedly at the man sprawled on the floor, openly admiring his King's handy work with a blade. He would have let things go further, allowed Ichigo to work out his rage upon the unsuspecting Espada as an example to the others that they are not be messed with, especially Ichigo. But Ryuu had already calmed Ichigo, well partly. This display of uncontrollable emotion Hichigo knew was a little side-effect of Ichigo summoning his mask the day before. The teen could easily lose himself to his instincts when provoked. The threat to be dragged away into another's bed and out of the arms of those he loved...it was no surprise to the three that Ichigo had snapped as he did. It was going to happen sooner or later, it would only take the right condition before it would be invoked. Just like now...

Hichigo was well aware that this specific Arrancar was going to be trouble since the moment he had first opened his eyes in Las Noches. Grimmjow had been created after Ichigo's death, when most of the original Espada had been killed in the resulting retaliation launched from Hueco Mundo and into the human world at Ichigo's murder. So it was pretty obvious that Grimmjow knew nothing of Ichigo's lethal temper and his struggling control over his more instinctive side once he summoned his mask. But it didn't matter though, the blue haired man had upset Hichigo's King and that was unacceptable. And with such crude words as well. The Mei-Ou was furious and it showed in the bare black-nailed foot that slammed into the man's heaving stomach heavily. The First King taking great pleasure in the bubble of blood falling down the corner of parted lips as he leaned his weight forward to inflict more damage.

'Tough luck, Kitty-Cat. He'll really kill ya, probably tear ya to pieces in ten seconds and murder everyone in this room if Ryuu had not dragged him away to calm him. I'd watch yer words if I were ye, Grimmy. Ichigo ain't a toy mouse fer ya te play with, he belongs to us as we to him...one more line like that and I'm kickin' ya out. I can always fill such a low ranking spot in the Espada easily. And by kicking ya out of the Espada, Grimmy... I mean tearin ya limb from limb and then killin' ya so very slowly ya'll wish ya were dead before those words ever left yer mouth.'

'Last warning.' Hichigo said as he walked away. A stray hand coming up to brush the stray strands of white from his eyes as a sigh left his lips. It was going to be a long day as gold and black eyes followed Ichigo's form where he was greeted by Ulquiorra politely. As if sensing that he had found a kindred spirit that was a little more in control of himself, Ichigo eagerly greeted the fourth back with a wave. Even turning a bit to the side in embarrassment when the seemingly emotionless man knelt on one knee and pressed a bowing kiss upon the skin of Ichigo's hand in a show of unwavering loyalty. Hichigo snorted at the sight, it was so reminiscent of the night when they had torn through this castle in order to kill Aizen...

Ichigo had unknowingly saved the dark haired Espada from his own master's destructive blade and in return Ulquiorra had sworn to always remain loyal to Ichigo and his lovers, no matter what the circumstance. Ulquiorra and Starrk had been the only two of the original Espada left in Hueco Mundo since Aizen had met his demise at Ichigo's hand. Thus it was nice to know that there were at least two other Arrancar that were knowledgeable enough no know when and how to approach Ichigo and also when to push and pull away should he become irritated.

Perhaps this day wasn't going to be as long as Hichigo thought. However, he could be proven wrong...especially when Ichigo stalked past the second Espada with a glare and a sneer.

Yup, they were in for a long day indeed.

...

'Hueco Mundo is the realm between worlds, Ichigo-sama. It has forever been unstable and unpredictable until the Ruling Five had been properly established hundreds of years ago. It is, as you see it now, the powerful kingdom that you and your beloveds created in order to establish a balance of peace between the Human World, Hueco Mundo and the Soul Society. You had hoped that if having a Part Shinigami on the throne of Hueco Mundo, then Soul Society would fall into peace beside you for the sake of preserving the balance between the worlds.'

'Ichigo-sama may have eradicated Aizen, crushed his forces and rid the Shinigami of their biggest threat. However, the Soul Society were still wary of you and your unknown powers. No one understood how it worked, how you could have become so powerful with the pieces of your soul separated like they were but they still saw you as a threat nonetheless. You had been a prisoner in this realm for two years before the purging, suffering unbelievable tortures both emotionally and physically. They did not believe that your mentality was stable enough to warrant trust.'

'It was only because you sat at the panicle of the Hollow World's throne that they left you alone and unharmed—.' God, Ulquiorra could talk a lot for his surprisingly quiet nature, Ichigo thought absentmindedly as his concentration started slipping away from him. His cheek was resting upon the palm of his hand as dark brown orbs drifted shut in unnamed fatigue. Why was he still so tired? He just couldn't understand it. After having met the Espada in the throne room earlier, Ichigo had found only two of the ten that he knew he'd get along with well.

That had been Ulquiorra, the strangely emotionless male that seemed to offer Ichigo his loyalty for whatever reason and Starrk, the lazy Primera that had given Ichigo a once over with his grey eyes and nodded to himself before telling Ichigo that they should spar some time. He would offer Ichigo a chance to work on his inherent speed, analyzing skills and hollow techniques. Had it come from anyone else and had he not sounded so sincere, Ichigo would have bristled at the implications that he was not good enough. But with Hichigo's, even Ichiru's encouragement from where he was seated on the throne, that it would do him some good. It was quickly decided that Ulquiorra would teach Ichigo about the history of their realm, what his own duties required of him and his role as their consort whilst Starrk would train Ichigo in the finer details of his combat skills.

'Ichigo-sama? Are you listening?' Brown eyes snapped open at the call of his name, leaving the teen momentarily startled by the dots of black dancing in front of his vision as the artificial light, creeping in from the large open window behind them, blinded him for some reason. The library was quite the large room, stretching over two floors with beautifully decorated dark-wood furniture, soft leather arm chairs, plush carpets and a large black desk standing before the open French Doors. It was filled with floor to ceiling bookshelves that were overflowing with endless reams of vellums containing all kinds of knowledge but Ichigo was finding it very hard to focus on anything of importance at the moment.

In fact, he was starting to get worried about himself when he barely saw Ulquiorra abruptly rise from where he was seated and disappear in a flicker of white and black before he reappeared by Ichigo's side through his ever darkening vision. The consort's brows were pulled together at the sudden heat that flashed against his skin and the pain reverberating through his skull the moment Ulquiorra rested a hand upon his shoulder. The unexpected action caused the teen to jerk away when a rasping breath escaped his parted lips and his nails dug painfully into the skin of his palms in hopes of keeping himself grounded where he was.

What was happening to him? It felt like the world was closing in on him in a constrictive squeeze of darkness. His heart was beating a painful rhythm against his chest as he made to stand. A sudden restlessness buzzing against his skin told Ichigo that he had to be beside Hichigo, it was crawling across his skin...his reiatsu leaking from his skin in uncontrollable bouts as he called out to them in confusion. He was so tired and yet he couldn't seem to tell his tutor that at all. In fact all Ichigo could do was watch through a haze of blackening dots as Ulquiorra's darkened upper lip moved as he spoke to him in concern.

Those surprisingly emotionless emerald green eyes were shimmering with an inkling of concern and fear when Ichigo refused to answer him. Strong fingers were uselessly trying to push Ichigo back into the soft armchair when he stood, but the orange haired teen merely shook his head in the negative and pushed passed the attempted block. He couldn't stay, he had to find Hichigo, or Ryuu or Ichiru...but because his heart told him Ichiru was closest, Ichigo's unconsciously called out to him as he swayed on his feet unsteadily. Things were going downhill fast when he shook Ulquiorra's hand from his upper arm and headed towards the door with a decisively snarled 'I'm fine.'

A heady rush of vertigo had Ichigo crumpling to the floor several metres away from the closed library doors instead. Had it not been for strong arms winding around his waist protectively to catch him, Ichigo was only vaguely aware that he would probably have hit his head against the end of a table quite painfully. He was so dizzy, so out of it that when he looked up through his falling lashes and blurring vision, all Ichigo could make out was a concerned frown pulling at usually stoic features and warm dark brown orbs peering into his very soul from behind yellow tinted sunglasses as surprisingly Zangetsu was the one who had caught him.

But that wasn't right, his mind yelled at him through the hazed pain of a building migraine. Zangetsu Ossan lived in his Inner World...how...how could he materialize by Ichigo's side? Especially when looking so calm when Ichigo was close to a panic at Ulquiorra's features now peering over the older man's shoulder in great concern when he was gathered against a cloaked chest and carried towards a dark couch.

'W-wha? Z-Zangetsu? What's...nggh!' He suddenly moaned in pain when a touch of electricity raced up his spine and blurred his vision even further. A cool hand rested upon his forehead, causing Ichigo to fall back against the soft cushions against his will when his Zanpactō spirit poured cool reiatsu into his very veins in order to keep him calm but that however, did not stop that strange pattern of pain flashing through his system.

'I know it hurts, Ichigo. Just go to sleep. Holding those memories back any more is going to tear you apart.' Ichigo was about to protest, to ask what the older man meant when he was suddenly tugged headlong into a deep and terrifying darkness. Leaving him drifting through a world he did not know, where the only thing keeping him sane was the fast approaching reiatsu of his beloveds rushing towards him from all over the castle grounds and the warm, calloused fingers of Zangetsu trailing through his bangs comfortingly. Soft, reassuring whispers drifted into his mind...telling him that everything would be fine, that he needed to relax and he did...feeling himself tumbling headlong into the unknown where an inkling of fear ignited beneath his skin when he could no longer sense or see a thing.

'What just happened?' A bewildered voice, changing in tone and pitch to relay emotion, caused the dark haired man to look up from the unconscious teen he was standing guard over. He was quite surprised when the emerald eyes of the Cuatro Espada drifted over Ichigo's form with quiet worry, showing a display of emotion on those usually unmovable features that Zangetsu was unsure this man could even achieve before. But then again, when the Three Kings' Consort lost consciousness in your presence for no apparent reason, it would cause concern for anyone. Dark brown orbs observed the pale man standing before him, leaning so anxiously over Ichigo's unconscious form for any sign of a threat. When he found nothing, a calloused fingertip traced a warm cheek softly before smoothing the ever present frown that furrowed deeply even beneath the weight of Ichigo's circlet.

'He was dragged into his mind in order to confront his sealed memories. It would have happened sooner or later; Hichigo's uncontrolled actions yesterday may just have brought it along a bit too quickly for him to deal with it normally. ' Zangetsu said with an irate sigh, this could all have been avoided if all of them had sensed the danger Ichigo had walked into the moment he crossed the threshold into Abarai Renji's home. But they had been too late, forcing an unnecessary burden upon unknowing shoulders as Ichigo struggled through these upsets two years too early. Brown eyes fell shut behind tinted sunglasses as he listened carefully to Ichigo's slowing breathing as he finally relaxed into himself.

The Zanpactō spirit would be lying if he said he hadn't been startled the moment he had felt Ichigo's start losing consciousness for no reason. He had been privately grateful that the familiar tug of his master calling him out to materialize by his side helped him catch Ichigo before he could fall and hurt himself. But where the orange haired teen's consciousness was going now, delving into the depths of his soul deeper than even Zangetsu's Inner World, no one could follow him there. The older being could only hope that Ichigo would keep himself calm when it really happened, because reaching a place where his connections to Hichigo, Ryuu and Ichiru was cut off along with Zangetsu's own warmth...he would be well and truly alone for the first time since his body had died.

'I'll go get Hichigo-sama.' Ulquiorra voice said several seconds later and Zangetsu merely opened his eyes to give the Espada an incredulous glance before he shook his head in the negative.

'It won't help, it's already too late.' And it was, not even a millisecond after the Zanpactō spirit had spoken those ominous words the closed library doors were flung open and rustling clothes and panicked footsteps rushed towards them. Ichiru was the first recognizable flash of white as he came to a stop right in front of Ichigo's prone form. His tensed shoulders and abused bottom lip told Zangetsu that the others were not far away...they had all felt Ichigo's call the moment before he was engulfed in darkness. Ichiru however, looked quite dishevelled. The second born did not breathe a word, a concerned hand merely resting upon a cooling cheek as he searched for a way to stabilize Ichigo's ragging reiatsu that was beginning to eat into the room itself like a stain.

'Already, Zangetsu?' The white haired spirit asked sadly, not even looking away from Ichigo's features as he knelt beside his beloved. He knew what was happening with only one glance, but he also knew that there was nothing they could do to stop it. He could not even conceal the pained spark of sorrow flickering through golden eyes when he gazed at the one they loved so deeply and completely looking so distant and deathly still. Ichigo was about to face a darkness inside of himself that they could not guide him through. Ichiru sighed tiredly as he seated himself on the white carpet and captured warm, motionless fingers within his.

'Yes.' Came Zangetsu's affirmation and Ichiru tugged his bottom lips between his teeth. It was still too early; Ichigo's soul would break with the strain it was being put under at the moment. The Mei-Ou tightened his grip on Ichigo's hand and hoped that the small physical comfort would help keep Ichigo at least aware that he was not as alone as his heart was telling him he was in that moment. At another rush of white that sonido'd into the room, Ichiru promptly rested his forehead against Ichigo's shoulder as he looked up at his brothers that looked just as frazzled by this as he was.

No words were spoken, they all understood. Hichigo, without even waiting for an invitation, plopped his back against the couch's side so that the back of his head rested softly against Ichigo's before he reached a warm hand over his shoulder to twine it within a soft splay of orange locks. There were a million unspoken words dancing between the six people gathered in the room, but when Ulquiorra knew he was not needed anymore he slipped out and headed deeper into the castle. Leaving the ruling five (seeing them together in one room was a rare sight indeed, especially with the Zanpactō spirit materialized) where interruptions were surely not needed.

'It's too much, Zangetsu.' Hichigo said eventually, golden eyes fluttering shut as his sharp fingernails dig deeply into the flesh of his palm and anger at himself for not being able to do more.

'It may be too early but you are forgetting that Ichigo is strong, Hichigo. He'll survive. The emotional pain may be excruciating but his strength of will is enough to see him through this. We can only wait now.' Strange how the old man could calm and sooth all of their fears with just a few words of reassurance. But then again that was what made his spirit so valuable to them, especially to Ichigo when he was in desperate need of a mentor. But for now...they had to wait...there was nothing more they could do.

Darkness, warm darkness, that was the first thing that Ichigo noted when he slowly regained his awareness around him. A cloak of confusion was still wrapped around him headily, pressing into his mind and slowing his blood in his veins but slowly and surely: emotion, taste, scent and even touch came crawling back to him. There was warm cloth beneath his head, the feeling of a strong thigh beneath the cloth as well. So he was resting in someone's lap...that he was sure of. And...hmm, there were gentle fingers trailing through his short orange locks affectionately. Wait short? Why were they short? Ichigo scowled; he could clearly remember the feel of his own hair. Especially now that he had gotten used to the heavy weight that dragged down his back in waves of brightness but now...it lacked the warmth and sensation of that. He was startled when he heard a heady chuckle drift through the air somewhere above him and a warm scent curled around his nose as his captor leaned over him to whisper in his ear.

'How long are you going to pretend I'm not here, Ichigo?' Hazed chocolate brown eyes instantly snapped open at the sound of the amused voice, it sounded kind of familiar. Blinking rapidly to clear the blurring in his vision, Ichigo hummed in confusion as a darkened plane began to swim into focus before him. Past the black clothed thigh his cheek was resting against, there were the endless sands and dunes of Hueco Mundo's world. Where even the ever present crescent moon that hung low in the sky, seemed brighter than normal. The silvery wisps of its rays flooding the sandy planes with such a bright illumination that the world was alarmingly clear...not at all like the shadowed realm Ichigo had seen glimpses through the palace's windows and even transversed the sands of a few times before.

'Whe—.' The orangette was just about to inquire where he was to the stranger's whose lap he was occupying now, but when he forced himself to turn on his back to better observe the person he now considered his current cushion, his words promptly died heavily within his throat. He was staring up...at himself. Well, a two year older version of himself, his mind told him. His doppelganger's orange locks were scruffily spiky and long...not as long as Ichigo's had been before arrived in this plane...but it fell into his warm brown eyes, concealing the peak of red brushstrokes running beneath his left eye before the strands at the back of his neck trailed down the skin to brush against the collar of a black, white and red Bankai cloak.

The right sleeve of the more scruffy cloak, Ichigo noticed, was torn away and a trail of black chains wound up a black gloved hand to connect and seal around his bicep. Not very far from the gloved fingertips however, still connected by a black chain and sticking up from the surface of the sands, was a black Tensa Zangetsu. The four prongs were expanded and larger, making the dark weapon look far more menacing than Ichigo had seen it when he had performed Bankai for the first time. He was just about to open his mouth to ask something when the older version of himself shook his head and promptly silenced Ichigo when tanned fingers were once again brushing shorter orange locks away from Ichigo's forehead.

'Many questions, I can guess...Me.' He said with a chuckle. Ichigo was just about to open his mouth to shout in indignation but he was instantly hushed by the older teen's negative shake of his head. Those wispy orange locks fluttering around his face before it came to rest in between his eyes again and fell to cover the strokes of red markings beneath his left eye rather artfully. By the sad smile blooming across his doppelganger's lips, Ichigo fell silent as he pulled up a free thigh so that he could rest his cheek against a knee and gaze directly into Ichigo's eyes with orbs that were so much like his own but filled with so much more sorrow and pain. The younger of the two suddenly feared what this man had to say to him...but couldn't help but take comfort at their close proximity.

It was like the little piece of him, that he had felt had been missing since he had awakened his powers, had finally reconnected with him. And those warm fingers in his hair, it was different from the way Hichigo, Ryuu and Ichiru touched him...it was there for sheer comfort and affection, gentler and much more assured of how to draw out Ichigo's calm than even they had been able to do.

'I'm sorry for the pain I caused in getting you here, King. But if I did not, you would truly have fallen into despair and a destructive swirl of emotion far deeper and dangerous than I would have been able to reach you later on.' The younger of the two beings stared up at his doppelganger with confusion at the rolling nickname that Hichigo used for him, but eventually just sighed. The tiredness he had felt before, that hopeless confusion...it had faded into the background now and somehow he knew it had to do with this being in front of him.

Protecting him...

'It's fine I guess, I've stopped questioning these things when they happen out of the blue. You know...going with the flow and hoping to survive at the end of it...what else can I do?' At his nonchalant shrug the other orangette laughed deeply, especially when Ichigo's own scowl deepened in return to his response.

'I've forgotten just how much shit like this happens to us, Ichigo. ' The teen did not miss the way his doppelganger referred to them. 'It happens so often too, god you must be tired by now...just like me. In all those years that I spent beside my beloveds, I was often tired too. But you need to know that it has to do with the strain the Hōgyoku put on our soul when it split us in five. It is not an easy task upholding four powerful beings...all with reiatsu higher and more potent than even the Captains of the Gotei-13, with only your soul as the medium tying them together all by yourself. So when you get tired, don't be afraid to tell them to leave you alone for a while.'

'Ichiru usually understands, he'll keep the others back...well that is unless it comes to having fun in the bedroom. All advice I can give you when the times comes, little one, and don't assume it won't, is to hang on as tight as you can and just go along for the ride. Trust me, you'll learn to love it. Even through you're apprehensive now, I can tell you it's like reconnecting with the pieces of your soul that you feel is missing from inside of you. A very potent...very poignant experience. Nothing but absolute and unadulterated bliss.' Ichigo was utterly dumbfounded, brow wrinkling deeply at the words before his doppelganger suddenly burst into laughter at Ichigo's now twisting grimace of dread. The violent shade of red creeping across his nose was suddenly mirrored in the older Ichigo's lightly dusted cheeks at his own bold and unexpected words.

'F-forget I said that.' Older Ichigo murmured through his chortles, even as his orange locks fell into his eyes when he hid his laughter in his cloak's sleeves.

'S-shut up! I-it's not funny!' He yelled in mortification, but it was still quite a while before his doppelganger stilled his shaking shoulders.

'W-where are we, anyway? Why am I here and what exactly are you...why do you look like this?' Ichigo eventually asked as a comfortable silence settled between them. Before he could sop himself, Ichigo's hand now curiously reached up to brush his own fingers through his doppelganger's messy orange locks just to see if he was real. The older version of himself however, didn't seem to mind his touch at all. No, he merely have a gentle smile before his gloved fingers curled around Tensa Zangetsu's hilt and pulled the deadly blade from the sand and resettling the daitō closer to his side. It was as if he was drawing comfort from its proximity and Ichigo's presence close to him. There was a soft ripple in the air as the older male shifted to lean over Ichigo so that their noses were nearly touching and long fingers uncurled from his orange locks to rest against Ichigo's cheek softly.

'The easiest answer, King, is why I look like this. This is what my transformation looks like when I use the Saigo no Getsuga without channelling reiatsu. It truly is a dangerous gamble, this transformation lasts three years whilst a broken white Zangetsu is re-forged within our soul. My hair...I always cut it no matter how they enjoyed it when it was long. This was the style I usually wore, because it was how it was like before I killed Aizen. It reminds me that determination and will all prove invaluable to any difficult battle.' There was sadness in those words, Ichigo knew because he too could feel the reverberating ache bubbling within his own chest at his doppelganger's suffering.

'Don't feel so guilty for being a little selfish, Ichigo. I know you are still really confused as to what is going on, what you are feeling around Ryuu and Ichiru but especially Hichigo. It does not mean that you have to push your personality aside to please them just because you feel the left over guilt that I felt when I died. I'll tell you a little secret, King, before we get to the really heavy stuff. The only time that I wore my hair as long as yours, was when there was a formal event or ceremony to attend or I summoned my mask to protect those I loved.' There was a gentle tug at Ichigo's hair as a warm forehead rested against his softly and two brown orbs dug deeply into Ichigo's soul.

'Do not fear, never turn back...you'll die if you hesitate. Everything, you'll understand it eventually, that's what I'm here for after all. All my knowledge, all my past experiences...all of my memories are buried deep within your mind. Concealed behind excessive reiatsu blocks; here is where we come to the reason why you find yourself here. This place is just a deeper plane of consciousness within your mind. It's the doorway that separates our memories, some pleasant and some I would rather not have to share with you at all.'

'However, in order for you to feel complete...for the both of us to be at peace and reach our full strength again...I have to start sharing my experiences with you.' Ichigo was getting more and more confused, especially with the glint of sorrow that shimmered deeply within those bright brown orbs. Why did it hurt to look into them? There was more to it than just a small twinge of anxiety swirling in his stomach...more to everything he felt at the moment.

'As to what I am, you have probably figured it out by now Ichigo. I'm you as you are me. I'm your guide and you are my ward to protect from danger. It's the reason why you feel so comforted around me, our connection runs deeper than even the connection that exists between our beloveds. Ah, ah! Don't deny it, King.' The older Ichigo said with a mocking chuckle as he pressed an upside down fingertip across Ichigo's lips with sheer mirth shimmering in now teasing brown orbs. 'We both know that if our connection did not exists and was not as deep as it was, if I had dared to get close to you as I am now...we'd have been grappling in the sand with clashing tempers already...probably trying to kill each other.'

'F-fine, I believe you.' Ichigo grumbled defiantly, arms coming up to cross over his chest...which he belatedly realized was also covered with the same black and red cloak of his Bankai form. His own black hakama now buffeted by the wind was rushing in a cooling touch around their forms. 'So you called me here to share memories, which ones?' Older Ichigo sighed as he leaned away so that their forehead separated and warm fingers instead passed through Ichigo's hair comfortingly again, causing the younger to shift against the sand in order to settle into a more comfortable position.

'One I would rather not share at all, King. But we have to start somewhere before the reiatsu blocks wither away completely and everything is pressed into your mind at once. If that were to happen your mind would snap at the pressure, uncontrollable emotions and the pain. So please forgive me for this...you'll remember this one with a lot more bitterness and pain than the others because of the trauma connected to it. If it'll help you at all, try to remember that I am reliving it with you even when you won't sense my presence.' Ichigo was about to ask what the older teen meant when the plane around him started to shift and his doppelganger leaned down to press a kiss to his forehead.

'Close your eyes and don't lose yourself in there...Ichigo. It is only a memory, it cannot hurt you.' Ichigo had barely closed his eyelids before the world turned and shifted and he was once again dragged backwards into an unknown plane. There was barely even time for him to let out a curse before his now geta clad feet met solid ground and a row of wooden houses spread before him welcomingly. A road of dirt pertaining the surface that his feet now rested upon, pointed out that the time was indiscernible through the heady and violent torrent of rain falling from pitch black clouds above...but the creeping shadows suggested that the night was fast approaching and so was the sense of foreboding building in his veins.

What the hell had he gotten himself into this time?

...

17th June 1683, unknown village outside of Edo. A heady barrage of resounding rain echoed comfortingly throughout the moderate traditional home as its fell in a pitter-patter upon a black tiled roof with beautifully curving eaves. The home was resting just at the edge of the small village, its outside walkways overlooking the spread of several rice-paddies and vegetable fields as they offered up a tranquil view into the distance despite the torrent of rain. It was the perfect epitome of peace; unless one were to listen to the sounds of heady clashes and grunts of pain echoing loudly throughout the home's small tearoom.

'Aaggh! What the HELL Oyaji?! Are you trying to kill your own son on purpose?!' A sixteen-year-old Kurosaki Ichigo yelled loudly, short and spiky orange locks falling into defiantly glaring brown eyes as he straddled a dark-haired and beardless man's stomach. His tanned fingers wrapped around his father's neck in an attempt to strangle him (if only playfully to get him to stop his ridiculous attacks) when the older male had jumped him awake from his afternoon nap. Only at the man's submissively croaked 'I yield' did Ichigo let go with a smirk of triumph. Rising to his feet to nonchalantly dust off the knees of Ichigo's dark blue hakama and resettle his informal kimono that had gotten askew in the usual skirmish between father and son, he sneered at the man's playful antics quite fondly for the apparent anger he was supposed to harbour at his rude wake up call.

The youngest member of the small Kurosaki family felt a frown creep upon his brow however, at the subtle pressure building in the air around him. The strange sensation causing him shiver at the chilling touch rushing against his skin. He had been feeling these little shifts in the air for a while now...and along with the tugging foreboding in his gut, aided sometimes by his ability to see ghosts and masked monsters, Ichigo was just about to open his mouth to ask his father if he felt it too when the older man's usually playful features turned deadly serious.

It was a look that Ichigo hardly ever got to see, the one glance that brooked no form of argument from Ichigo. So when dark brown orbs gazed at the orangette across a green kimono clad shoulder, the sixteen-year-old tugged his bottom lip between his teeth in rising concern.

'Wha—?'

'Go and help your mother with dinner, Ichigo. I'll join you in a little while.' Feeling stupid for even thinking there was something wrong, Ichigo merely shrugged and left through the closed shoji doors and headed towards the room where his mother was already humming softly to herself over several pots and dishes spread around the square hearth dug into the corner of the large family room. Her flowing brown locks, unbound from its usual bun and illuminated by the fire's soft orange flames, swayed around a dark purple kimono and fell over her shoulder as she worked around the dishes to test the spices and keep warm, smiling brown eyes over the simmering rice.

'Have you boys enjoyed your play for today?' She asked playfully, looking up from her work before a soft, musical voice drifting into soft bells of laughter at Ichigo's scowling features at her teasing words. Ichigo's lips parted in an attempt to curse his father's immaturity and her teasing, but he was silenced instead when delicate arms wound around his neck in a soft embrace and a warm forehead was pressed against his neck softly. He smiled softly instead. Somehow he was forgetting his ire and words as her maternal warmth engulfed him so lovingly.

She was probably the only woman that Ichigo would ever love so unconditionally as he did.

'My beautiful Ichigo, you've already grown so much. I'm so proud...you're becoming even more handsome than your father and in a few years you'll grow taller as well! Oh, untill you fall in love, I want you to always stay as beautifully honourable and innocent as you are now.' The orange haired teen flushed deeply at the implications of her words; his embarrassment creeping up his neck to even colour the backs of his ears a bloody red. His mother merely laughed delightfully at his reaction before flitting away gracefully towards her dishes as Ichigo trailed unsteadily behind her to help.

'Okaa-san, do you think there's something wrong with Oyaji? He's been acting strange lately; ever since I saw that ghost dressed all in black .' His question was ignored however, in favour of the tensed silence that erupted when an unknown presence suddenly stepped through the shoji door without even sliding them open. Ichigo frowned at the invasion, just about to raise himself and demand the spirit leave them alone when he suddenly felt his mother's arms grab him around his waist and throw him to the ground with considerable strength. Ichigo grunted as his breath was knocked out of him when his mother landed on top of him. Brown eyes went wide with shock and disbelief when the shoji doors this time were thrown open and his father - covered in leaking sword wounds to his stomach and back - was dragged behind a man with wavy brown hair and strangely bulky black glasses. It was strange because his father was dressed in black too...even had a white haori like the first man that had intruded upon them.

There was a charming smile splitting the dark haired man's lips though, looked quite grotesque when outlined with the droplets of Ichigo's father's blood that was splattered on his chin and cheek.

'O-otou-san?!' He chocked, desperately trying to get out from under his mother's grip but it was useless...she was surprisingly strong as she kept him shielded with her back to the enemy. Ichigo's attention was drawn to the first man that had entered their home. With long blonde hair and a white haori whipping around his shoulder, he seemed to grin in triumph as he stepped closer to Ichigo and his mother with a deadly katana balanced over his shoulder.

'Kill the mother and child and bring Shiba back for execution correct?' The blonde haired man grinned menacingly, briefly turning to the brown haired man for confirmation of his words before he raised his sword and lunged forward. Ichigo struggled against his mother's death grip but she refused to let him go, refused to allow him to protect her as a sickening splatter of blood blossomed across Ichigo's cheek mere seconds before an excruciating touch of pain lodged itself in his shoulder with a cry. They didn't even wait to see if they had finished their job, merely disappeared through the now blood stained room in search of something Ichigo did not understand.

'O-Okaa-san?' Ichigo breathed shakily...darkness swimming in his vision as a different sort of panic started to settle across his veins. There was no response to his soft question though, and only when Ichigo turned his eyes upwards in confusion, not quite understanding the growing stain of blood that was leaking from his shoulder or the dripping crimson that stained his chest from where his mother's was laying on top of him. The only thing confused brown eyes encountered however, were dead honey-brown eyes that used to always be filled with so much life...so much love and warmth.

Now they were only stared vacantly up at him. An expression of pain and sorrow frozen forever on those hauntingly beautiful features that only his mother possessed. .

Shock ragged through Ichigo's veins as the world suddenly began to blur around him. His chocked sob ringing out loudly throughout the room as a slow ringing began to echo in his ears and the world began moving too fast for him to grasp onto anything familiar. His hands...they came up to touch his mother's back...by came away with nothing but sickening blood that stained his hands in a sticky, deadly mess. He was trembling, Ichigo could feel...it was like he was the only one that had come to a standstill. The only one stuck in desperate anguish as he shifted out from beneath his mother's protective form in an attempt to better wake her. She was so deathly still though...still warm but rapidly cooling. Ichigo was only vaguely aware that the despaired screams ringing out through their home were all coming from him.

She wouldn't wake up anymore and everywhere Ichigo looked through the room...not even her soul was left behind to help him through this anguish. .

The voices in his head that sometimes talked to him in his sleep...the ones that usually offered comfort were screaming along with him too. Their grief and strength of will for revenge gave Ichigo a little strength to crawl across the tatami mats towards where he father was leaning against a wall. He looked so defeated, especially when dark eyes looked towards Ichigo. Isshin's eyes, Ichigo noted through the blanket of shock wrapped around him, were strained with sorrowful tears that streaked down his cheek. When Ichigo finally came to kneel shakily before his father...his left hand gripping the bleeding wound on his shoulder, as he gazed dazedly into his father's pained eyes. There was something there that he couldn't understand. Regret, guilt...but there was also so much hatred...that was the one emotion Ichigo never thought he saw cross his father's eyes.

'I'm sorry, Ichigo that I couldn't help.' The older man said softly, his pained breaths puffing through the air as he breathed shakily through his wounds. In that moment, with the spreading pool of blood forming beneath Isshin, Ichigo was starting to fear for his father's life too. His panic however was silenced when a warm, bloodstained palm came up to cup Ichigo's cheek gently. There was slow movement as his father fumbled with something silvery and sharp beside him. 'I-I can give you the power to protect yourself, son. It's going to hurt, probably more than that shoulder of yours...but it's the only thing I can think of to protect you. P-please trust me, Ichigo. A-after this...I-I want you to go and find Urahara Kisuke...t-tell him what happened. H-he'll help.'

'Otou-san? O-otou-san's not leaving me too right?' And this time, tears flooded Ichigo's vision as the tip of a sword, so similar to the man's who killed his mother, was lifted in his father's hands gingerly. Ichigo's question went unanswered and with the sorrow dancing in his father's pain darkened eyes, Ichigo truly felt the panic begin to build...his father wasn't expecting to survive this...

'D-do you trust me, Ichigo?' Ichigo could only nod dumbly. There was no time to ask why though, before a chocked scream left parted lips and Ichigo felt the pain of his father's katana impale him straight through his heart. God, he wasn't even given a second to contemplate the sheer betrayal the action caused untill a pained wail was lodged in his throat as something, the thing that Ichigo had always thought felt out of place inside of him since he was little, shifted instantly in a heady rush of power so potent and overwhelming that the voices inside his head started screaming louder and louder untill he was sure he would be deafened by them.

'T-take it, Ichigo! Take my power and protect yourself.'

'N-no! I want to protect you, Otou-san! I c-couldn't protect Okaa-san! I h-have to protect you!' There were several moments of sheer madness where Ichigo was sure his vision had turned completely black and he had died as the pain in his chest faded and a deep, crushing force of power exploded out of him in a deadly rush. It was painful, Isshin had been right, but it was liberating all the same. It was like Ichigo could finally take a proper breath, there was no longer a seal over his heart. He felt at home...at peace as hazed brown eyes absently glanced at the black hakama and kosode he was clad in and the familiar...welcoming weight of a pitch black sword that was a long as he was tall and curved off to a deadly point. It was thrumming in his hands as Ichigo looked around bewildered, he thought he had died...

'W-what am I?' He asked softly, rising the heavy sword over his shoulder to test its weight.

'Like your old man, Ichigo. A Shinigami and going by that reiatsu of yours...not even that scrawny little mongrel rushing towards here is going to be a problem for you at all. Promise me though, that you'll look for Kisuke after this Ichigo...no matter what happens you have to find him. I love you son, don't die until he can protect you.' Ichigo was just about to protest, wondering once again how the wound in his shoulder had stopped bleeding and a warm voice purred in contentment in his mind. But that building pressure in the air was coming back, the one that Ichigo had felt right before all of this had started. Instinct told him that it was a threat so he swung his heavy blade in an arc as a flash of pure blue streaked through their home...ripping the small house to pieces as his enemies closed in on him.

He glanced up at the night sky...the man's white haori was hard to miss in the crescent moon peaking through the rain clouds. The two of them were looking down on him...hovering in the air. As if it were solid beneath their feat. Great now how did he get up there?

'You can do it too, Ichigo. Accept us, accept us and we'll help you!' There was no more time to think, dark brown eyes bled to black as golden eyes followed an insane chuckle spilling from his lips the moment his sword clashed with the blonde man's in the middle of the sky. Ichigo had moved so fast he didn't even know he had moved until his lip curled into an insane smile of cackling laughter. The beginning of a white bone mask starting to form over his left eye as the surge of his power forced two men to their knees as it rushed through him in heady bliss.

He was finally free...the constrictive squeeze of his body leaving Ichigo to now become what he was always meant to be. He laughed at the spray of blood arcing in the air as his black sword dug into the blonde haired man's back again and again, a waraji clad foot slamming into his spine to send him rushing to the ground when he got bored with his whimpers of pain. There was so much pleasure racing through his veins...it was insanity and yet not. God! It felt so good!

'He, he, he! You're dead Shinigami, you're so dead! Think ya can kill our precious King?!' Ichigo spoke but his voice took on a distorted quality and an insane cackle. 'No one can...your blade will never reach us.'

All done! Hope it was satisfactory, and you enjoyed Ichigo's confrontation with his past self. That part I confess, I had way too much fun writing. Makes me want to write another self-cest pairing between Ichigo and himself when he defeated Aizen. I'm such a pervert sometimes, be expecting some limes and lemons coming in the next few chapters.

For now, I've gotta run...my treat of hot chocolate is well deserved I think. Please review, feeds my muses when I struggle to do it all by myself. That's all, see you guys in a fortnight again.

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Consort To The Three Kings