MidnightEden234: Had a really fun time writing this. It took a record-breaking week (only) to write this story! And I had fun working with Shiro Zangetsu on this lil project. It's gonna be awesome and I hope you all enjoy it. :D

Shiro Zangetsu: Hey I helped writing this, call me Shiro Zangetsu, that's my username. Enjoy! :p

Chapter 1

Ichigo shifted his backpack to his other shoulder with a groan. The weight of his bag left an indent in his skin that was now turning an ugly red beneath his school uniform. There were several textbooks within his bag, and papers sticking out on all sides. He couldn't imagine why his teacher decided all these assignments needed to get done by tomorrow, instead of, you know, one day at a time? But alas, here he was, carrying home a backpack that was heavy enough he could use it for weightlifting.

Speaking of weightlifting, Ichigo had no energy to train right now, but Rukia, the petite girl walking beside him, was nagging him about keeping up with his Soul Reaper duties. If he was honest, he probably only heard half of what she was saying. You could say she spoke in one ear and everything came out on the other side of his head - no information taken in. That was if Ichigo heard her at all since he was falling asleep on his feet.

That was until she got his attention by kicking his ankle. "Are you even listening?!"

Tired, honey-brown eyes turned to her, barely feeling the attack. A grunted 'yes' followed by a nod was all she would get from him.

With an arched eyebrow she replied, "Oh really? Then why are you slacking off, hm? That's not like you at all, if you continue like this people will be in danger!"

"Rukia… shut up, I am tired."

Not being fond of being rudely spoken to, the petite girl started yelling at him again, nagging reaching levels beyond annoying. If he would rate it… over 9000, or as you may say: 7.8/10 too much nagging.

Now he finally had it! This started to become a headache and it was just a waste of time. Yes, he knew he slacked off. Yes, he knew it was dangerous for everyone, including him. Yes, he does know, damn it! With his bad mood, his mind started to dip into rather dark thoughts.

She still wouldn't shut up and now he had enough. Normally, he wouldn't yell at his friend, nor would he get angry, but he just reached his limit for today.

"You know Rukia, just shut up, I got it! I got lazy and I can't do anything right. But you know… I haven't seen you moving your lazy ass and killing some Hollows - or maybe you want to do my homework and school tests for me? But don't you dare get me bad grades! Or maybe just get a second fucking Shinigami in this town so I don't have to do everything at the same time!"

With his angered mind, he simply turned away from her and used the advantage of his longer legs to out-walk her. He only wanted to sleep, no nagging, no homework, no family, or responsibilities - just a night of uninterrupted sleep.

Rukia stopped walking, mouth hanging open like a fish out of water. That was unexpected, she couldn't remember the last time he seriously yelled at her like this. Maybe he never had before? He must really be tired, after all. "When was his last break?" But that question drifted away in the wind and remained unanswered.

When the strawberry finally reached his home, the first thing (or rather person) who greeted him was his oh so annoying father. "YOU ARE LAAAAAATE!" And with a war cry he aimed for his son's face only to get a rather lackluster kick in the face - but still enough to get him crashing into the wall.

With a grunt, Ichigo placed his foot back on the ground and clenched one hand in a fist, knuckles turning white, the other still holding his backpack. "What nonsense are you spewing, goat-face!? Is your mind finally going? Are you just old? Or are you actually unreasonable enough to make my curfew 7pm!? You know I was running around town fighting- err, taking care of a few things before I got home. I texted you, you old fart!"

Isshin sprung up from the floor, having melted to it after hitting the wall. He placed a hand over his heart and tears rolled down his face. "Oh, Ichigo, my boy, your words wound me! How could you say such terrible things to your loving daddy!?"

With that he jumped at the wall and cried at the poster of his beloved dead wife. "Masakiiiii, why is our son such a miserable and uncaring rock? WHAT DID I DO WRONG?! IT'S SO HARD TO RAISE SUCH A DELINQUENT SON WITHOUT YOU HERE, MY LOVE!"

"Let it go, goat-face!" Ichigo huffed. He rubbed his eyes and sighed, "I'm going to bed. Forget about me for the rest of the night."

As Ichigo turned towards the stairs, Yuzu cried, "But Ichi-nii! I made you your favourite dinner!"

Ichigo stopped, finally noticing the scent of curry in the air. It soothed him slightly. He turned around and gave Yuzu a gentle, big-brother smile. "Okay Yuzu, can I take a bowl upstairs?"

Yuzu blushed and gave a curt nod. She poured him a bowl and Ichigo walked over to take it from her.

Ichigo smiled and barely murmured, "You're the best Yuzu. Thank you."

She squeaked and nodded. After Ichigo left, Karin gently nudged her in the side. "Hey! How come Ichigo gets to eat in his room and not me?"

Yuzu folded her arms with a pout. She stuck her nose up in the air as she answered, "Because Ichi-nii has a part-time job, and is working hard in his last year of high school so that he can get into a good university!"

Karin grinned and chuckled at her sister's funny antics. "Sounds like you're picking favourites to me," she teased.

Yuzu plopped Karin's food in front of her. "I am not! Now eat before it gets cold! I won't be heating it up again for you."

Karin grinned slightly, she knew how to rile up her twin like no other. With that, the family became quiet, if you don't count a crying Isshin. But that's a normal background noise in this household, right?

Ichigo drowned out the noise with headphones as he marched down the hall into his room. He shut and locked the door before he pulled out the chair from his desk. He finally dropped his bag. He fell into his seat and released the deepest of breaths. His limbs finally relaxed, the tension from today rolling off his shoulders. Ichigo closed his eyes and let the sweet music from his phone fill his brain.

A little shudder went through his body when his mind remembered a time when he never had a quiet minute, when a certain Hollow haunted him in his sleep, not just then but the whole day. Thank god, he never heard from him again after the Ginjo incident.

Boy, was Ichigo ever in for a shock. Little did the Substitute Shinigami know, not just his Hollow, but many more of his spirits and personal demons were conspiring within his Inner World. Many of which he'd forgotten about, and was soon to be taught never to forget about them again…