Title: A Slow Descent

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or concepts of Bleach. They belong to their rightful owner and i make no profit from this work of fiction

Warnings: Violence, Angst, swearing, Yaoi (Byakuya x Ichigo)

Authors Note: I'm re-watching the entire series of bleach, and inspiration struck me for this story like a bolt of lightning. It follows after the soul society arch and branches off into a bit of an AU. It's probably angst ridden, as that seems to be all i can write, and i hope you enjoy it! First Bleach story, so I hope everything fits and makes sense. Reviews, comments and suggestions are always welcome, but abuse will be ignored. This is just the prologue, the first chapter will follow shortly.

Lyrics are from Linkin Parks' "Shadow of the Day".

Prologue

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And the shadow of the day

Will embrace the world in grey

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Awareness struck him like a sudden blow to the head.

The first thing Ichigo realized was that he was no longer in his body. He had changed to Shingami form, like countless times before, but something was different. Then he saw the blood.

So much blood...and there was his father, and Yuzu and Karen. All coated in glistening red. It was everywhere. Coated on the walls, spreading across the floor like a crimson flood, turning what had once been a home into a scene of slaughter.

Stunned into numbness, Ichigo turned around and staggered backwards, stumbling into the wall and sliding down it with an open mouth. A scream was tearing at his throat, trying to escape, to get out but his throat wasn't working. His stomach was rolling painfully and blood pounded in his ears, louder than anything else, drowning out even his thought

His body lay there, slashed beyond recognition and staring up at the ceiling blankly.

He was dead.

Ichigo didn't know how long he stood there for, unable to move or scream or even cry as his world crashed down around his ears. It was all gone. Everything he had fought to protect, his family, his very life.

It wasn't supposed to end like this. Karen was going to become a world famous soccer player. Yuzu was going to be somebody's wife, and have children. It didn't make any sense.

Why was he still there? He was a death god instead of a ghost.

He tried to summon the energy to cry or scream or do anything but nothing came to him. Ichigo felt as weak as a kitten. But he kept breathing, and his heart kept beating as he sat there and stared helpless and heartbroken at the bodies of his family.

Pale moonlight shone through the open window and fell upon Yuzu's shiny hair. Blood-soaked now, he realized. Everything was covered in blood.

What had happened? Ichigo tried to remember, but all that came to him was a blank emptiness. Had it been a hollow? A human?

It didn't make any sense. How could someone be there one moment, breathing and living as people did and then all of a sudden be gone? How could he be dead?

Suddenly, his death god senses flared to life, and across the room he was looking at Renji and Rukia. Hell butterflies fluttered away into nothing as he met their eyes.

Rukia's gasp of horror fell heavily on his heart, renewing an ache he hadn't realized was there.

They ventured forward, looking around at the scene with solemn, serious faces. Ichigo wanted to be angry. He wanted to rage, and scream and tear the place down. But his body wasn't obeying his thoughts for once, and he stayed where he was sitting, looking on hollow-eyed as Rukia knelt by Yuzu and touched her cheek sadly, saying some sort of prayer over his fallen sister.

Renji was standing in front of him now, looking down upon him with none of his usual brash words or raging charisma. Ichigo stared up at him blankly, trying to think of something to say. But there wasn't anything that could be said to change the way things were. No words would bring back his family, or his life.

He should have known that this would be the result of his actions. His family had been ruthlessly slaughtered, and although he couldn't remember how or why, he knew instinctively that on some level it was his fault.

"Come on, Ichigo. It's time for us to leave." Renji spoke quietly, but his words seemed to ring out in the darkness of his house.

Everything was dull, muted somehow in a way they had never been and Renji's words were like an anvil to his chest.

"We have to get you back to Soul Society. It's dangerous for you here."

Ichigo didn't understand how that could be possible when he was already dead, but he obeyed wordlessly. Using the wall, he pulled himself upright and swayed unsteadily. His body felt heavy, like he was swimming underwater with weights attached to his limbs.

He shook off Rukia's helping hands and staggered forward a few steps before his legs gave out. He collapsed forward onto Renji, but the red haired lieutenant caught him and pulled one of his arms over his shoulders with little fuss.

Ichigo couldn't breathe. He felt a wave of exhaustion and an indefinable ache roll over him, and he sagged even further against Renji.

He wasn't aware of the doors to Soul Society appearing and opening before them. He didn't raise his head as Renji pulled him through, and he didn't blink at the sudden brightness of the other realm.

Ichigo could hear voices around him talking, but the words were like nonsense to him. He felt as if someone had stuffed his head with cotton wool.

They were dead. All of them were dead. Even if he couldn't see their blood on his hands, he knew it was there, felt it was there. It was a stain he would never get rid of. He had to atone for their deaths because he should have protected them better than he had. Because of his laxness, or his foolish stubbornness, or both, his family was dead. And so was he.

Ichigo was dead.

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Sometimes beginnings aren't so simple
Sometimes good bye's the only way