Title: Come To My Window
Summary: Ichigo can't be more certain that Grimmjaw, his nemesis, is gone for good…until the Espada shows up in his room asking for something he can hardly refuse. Oneshot. GrimmxIchi.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach; genius Kubo Tite does.
A/N: This is corny and cheesy.
He sat by the window, his elbows resting on the windowpane to support the palms where his chin was propped. He contemplated the mundane details of his life for the past month; gone were Aizen and his army of Arrancars, the Hollows, the Espada, Ulquiorra, Noitora, and the rest…including Grimmjaw. For all the world was concerned, Hueco Mundo was no more. Gone were his duties as a substitute Shinigami. Hitsugaya and the rest who had volunteered to take over Soul Society's business in the human world would time and again pay him a visit, while the company of his schoolmates proved to be sufficient means of evading boredom.
And yet, he would often find his train of thoughts receding into the past, recalling every square inch of that face, the owner of which had caused him too much anguish and given him too great an adversary to be worthy of dear remembrance. The fact was, he was gone, long dead, as what all the evidences where pointing frankly at. That being said, Kurosaki Ichigo was determined to hold himself detached from whatever the residues of the Espada's existence were inspiring: satisfaction, a sense of accomplishment, there was the slight remorse, and alas, he was reluctant to admit it, sorrow. He would forget him, or convince himself to, rest assuredly, for who was he but his nemesis, the archrival who once threatened to annihilate everything he held dear, an evil being whose lust for blood was way beyond the confines of the imaginable as far as sanity was concerned? The entire world would rejoice upon his absence. Only Ichigo would not.
The images of their final encounter were all too lucid, too fresh in his thoughts to sink below the properties in which his memories thrived. Grimmjaw's hoarse and warm breath still lingered in his ears, and the voice that spoke seemed to be forever reverberating against the walls of his ears: "Go and leave me if you mind ending up in more than one piece." The Espada warned as around him Hueco Mundo was succumbing to self-destruction. All there was in sight was being devoured by the tremulous ground beneath the shinigami's feet while Sexta Espada lied on his back, bloody and mortally injured, his eyes devoid of malice at last, his lips parted laboriously to utter his last shot at redemption: "Go." And he was no more.
Ichigo closed his eyes in concentration as if to listen to a voice that was long past the possibility of re-emerging. He finally resigned with the fact that he could as soon forget Grimmjaw Jaggerjack as his existence.
There were too many intrusions from the past that would insistently lead him back to Hueco Mundo's ruin. Needless to even mention, even the slightest rustle of the leaves boded that ill sound, which, he was sure, was the sound of madness, shooting across the galaxy on that night. Even so, he only wished to be back there, amidst the turmoil of the melting world that was being forced back to oblivion. For there, he could treat his eyes to a hearty feast, the sight of the sixth Espada, even for a few minutes, and hear that voice again that reeked of concern and sincerity, things that were scarcely conceivable among the army of Aizen.
The breeze was swarming intensely against his face, assaulting his comfort as once again, he thought of him, him who was utterly, irrevocably lost, only to be conceived in the mind; he was no more than an idea now. Ichigo sighed as if resolve could be attained by a succession of deep breaths.
There was a scraping sound, indicating the presence of another soul. Any disturbance was hardly of any effect to him lately. Nevertheless, he straightened his back anyway to military erectness without turning to look at who it was.
"Why the long face?" Said a voice. It was the same mocking, sneering, and occasionally murderous voice that many times before had scorned and taunted him; the same voice he longed to hear more than anything else. Someone had clearly risen from the ashes of death.
"G-Grimmjaw?" It was beyond anyone's imaginative powers to grasp the magnitude of the orange-head's astonishment. If it could even be described, bewilderment, hysterics, and amazement all rolled into one would have been a mere less-than-good start. Common sense would have demandingly dictated immediate Shinigami transformation, but Grimmjaw merely stepped closer without any hint of hostility. If anything, his air only signaled amicability and transparent relief.
"So you managed to escape, huh?" The Arrancar asked, and the sharp contrasts of the shades of their heads were subjected to a confrontation as Grimmjaw strode into close proximity.
"Y-You're dead—h-how—"
"Am I really? What you see suggests otherwise."
"How?" The shinigami asked weakly.
"Not important. Listen, shinigami; it's over. Like a distant dream all is gone: hollows, Arrancar, Aizen, Espada; they're all gone. And I am but a—I wouldn't say renewed man—but I refuse to associate myself to any of these again. So if ever your lot, Soul Society, comes hunting me down, I know they would, I want you to—"
"—bear witness that you mean no harm to anyone?" Ichigo interjected before he could weigh down the possible implications of his utterance.
"No. I want you to at least know that I mean no harm."
The fruits of Ichigo's perseverance to remain composed and reserved obscured any sign of his crumbling guard, but his mind was a hazy mess. What would his trust mean to this being who appeared to regard it with stellar value?
"They're gonna detect your reiatsu sooner or later. As such, you better go into hiding." There was a worried haste in his manner of speaking, and he wondered if he could manage to persuade anyone at all with such tone.
"Do you honestly think I can outsmart a battalion of Shinigami?" Grimmjaw asked, a world-weary air hovering about him.
"What can I do? Anything?" Ichigo said, not actually hearing himself say these well-meaning offers.
"I just told you: believe me when I say I intend to lead peaceful life from hereon. I'll run for as long as I can, even knowing they'll catch up soon, thus until then, I'll enjoy being a free man."
"Grimmjaw…." And words were missing in action. Ichigo could grope around in the dark alleys of his thoughts to stretch the reaches of his memory for whatever reply; all to zero success. His gaze came traveling down the sizably wary territory that this man before him was occupying. He was real enough to feel and to hold, and so real enough to lose. "I never want to part from you again."
Any movement seemed vastly harder to perform than it formerly was. A reverent silence perched upon them, both their faces manifesting minimal expressions. The pairs of eyes that met had only slightly given way to their breathing. The Espada inched closer as understanding and recognition of what should be known flowed through the invisible link that bridged their gazes.
"Afraid you'll lose me again?"
Nod.
The Arrancar smiled tolerantly, though there was an evident uncertainty in the execution and bitterness was not amiss. "You're not about to make this sadder than it already is, Ichigo."
"I'm not. That's why I'm asking you to take refuge here with me."
"And what good would that do?"
"I'd be the last person they'd suspect of conniving with you."
"Is this just plainly conniving?" The former Espada asked, performing an earnest scrutiny on the other, as if to read the contents of the youth's thoughts and locate the source of the helpless frown plaguing his face.
"No. It's me wanting to keep you in my sight."
"You know as much as I do that I can't stay here."
"Then where do you propose is the appropriate shelter for a highly convicted Arrancar?"
"Nowhere. I'll just run."
"I'll take you to Urahara-san."
"Who's that?"
"He can open a path to the other dimension; we'll send you back to where you belong and…" Ichigos' voice trailed off as he realized where it was leading him to.
"…and not see you again."
"Not see me again, yeah." Ichigo agreed. The nocturne wind brushed against their cheeks, only to fan flames of sorrow and defeat.
"You know, I leaped through dimensions, worlds, just to see you." Grimmjaw said informingly, his voice edging between disappointment and mild indignity.
"Just why did you come here in the first place? You knew it wasn't safe—"
"When do you ever listen? I came to see you."
If anyone was watching the spectacle and listening to these most solemn exchanges, he would most likely be requesting for anything at all that could reduce the inescapable drama that these two young men were conducting.
"You mean to say, you are still capable of entering and exiting the human and hollow world?" The orange-head asked slowly, though hints of longing and hope were present in each syllable.
"What do you think, I just popped out from nowhere land?"
"Then…you can come and see me again?" color started to course its way up Ichigo's formerly pallid face as happiness ceased to be just a wild hallucination.
"Don't party just yet; I'll be taking huge risks in the future just to see you. Meaning, that doesn't entirely rule out the possibility of getting caught, and being back there in Hollow world…just sucks." The Arrancar gave a stir that resembled or was intended as a shudder.
"Yeah, but you'll still get to see me." The shinigami couldn't help but smile, for there was a surge of feeling that promised liberation.
"True." Grimmjaw said ponderously. "So, am I free to see you, er, which hours of the day?"
"Anytime."
"I want my seclusion to Hollow Land fully compensated for whenever I get my lonely ass back here okay?" Grimmjaw said, pining for the assurance that was already thrown at him with open arms, as if he was the one in need of reception.
"Rest assured. Just come through my window."
Silence was urged on by their inability to verbalize their utter joy.
"So," The ex-Espada started, "That's settled. For formality and regularity's sake, expect me around this time every night."
"Every night, yeah." Though the addition of "every morning" would have really been super.
"And I can afford to stay for a couple of hours, max."
Ichigo glanced at his watch.
"So, if today's the official first visit, you still have approximately an hour to spend here."
"Right."
And the outline of what they were thinking began to take shape in the form of their eyes darting towards the empty bed beside the window.
END