Blood Ties

'I'm going to die!' Thought Ichigo. Blood was rapidly pouring out of his stomach, the warm thick liquid drenched his kimono; pooling on the ground beneath. 'I can't believe I'm going to die.' Ichigo watched Byakyu walk away sheathing his sword, he looked at Ichigo. "You are weak and simple, die with your shame Kurosaki, Ichigo."

"Ichigo wake up." Said a voice .Ichigo opened his eyes and saw his little sister Yuzu staring at him with concern.

"Ichigo you were screaming, are you okay?" Yuzu asked her older brother.

"Yeah, I'm fine Yuzu; why don't you go make breakfast for dad and Karin. He watched his little sister leave and then got up, he walked into his closet and grabbed his school uniform. He pulled the white collar shirt over his head And buttoned up it up to one below the neck. Then he put his dull gray pants on one leg at a time, taking as long as he possibly could. Hollow activity was always the worst in the morning, and his spirit communicator would not work until he left his house for school.

He walked over to his dresser and picked up his substitute soul reaper license and tied it around one of the belt loops in his pants. He grabbed his schoolbag, and walked into the bathroom. As he looked into the mirror he remembered the dream, it had all seemed so real, the blood, the pain, the hardness of the ground. Why did that dream keep playing over in his head at least once a night sometimes twice? 'I need to call Rukia later, and ask her if anything is happening in the soul society.' Ichigo thought to himself.

'Beep, Beep, Beep." Ichigo grabbed his cell phone out of his bag, he flipped it open. "Hello." Ichigo said.

"Hello Ichigo, how are we this morning?" Someone yelled into the phone.

Ichigo jumped and yelled back into the phone.

"What do you want Orihime?" Ichigo asked holding the phone a foot away from his ear.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to walk to school with me." Orihime said crest fallen.

Ichigo felt a pang of sadness for yelling at her. "I suppose but y-." Ichigo started to say but Orihime cut him off saying.

"Yes I will see you in a little bit Ichigo bye." Orihime said.

"Whatever." Ichigo said out loud smiling as he shut his phone. He walked downstairs and sat down at the table, he poured himself a glass of orange juice. Orange juice was Ichigo's favorite in the morning.

"Good morning Ichigo How are you this morni-."Splash. Karin fell asleep in her cereal. Ichigo jumped up and his eyes grew huge, he yanked Karin out of her cereal.

"Karin wake up ." Ichigo yelled into her ear

"Oh, Ichigo good morning." Karin said happily milk dripping from her face. "What are you going to do today?" She asked her older brother not realizing what had happened.

"Karin you really need to get more sleep or just be more careful." Ichigo yelled at her. She just looked at him.

"What are you talking about?" She asked still just staring blankly.

"Never mind, just eat your breakfast." Ichigo said finally letting her go. He started picking at his own breakfast. Yuzu's cooking was usually amazingly good. but ever since that dream started happening he just did not have an appetite. Almost like that hole in his stomach was really there.

"Ichigo hurry up, come on were gonna be late" Whined a voice he recognized as Orihime's. Ichigo pushed away his still heaping plate of Ham, and eggs to the side. As he got up he grabbed his school bag and made sure his spirit communicator was on.

Orihime stood on the porch and waited for Ichigo as he walked out she stared and took in his features. Orange hair in pixie spikes, that half cocked smile, those piercing blue eyes, and the few streaks that fell and fluttered on his forehead. All this combined his hand some face, gave him a look that was both rugged and beautiful.

"Good morning Ichigo." Orihime said happy to see him she hugged him tightly. This was completely normal for Orihime, her and Ichigo had been best friends since Kindergarten always there of each other.

"Orihime stop it." Ichigo said struggling against her.

"Why?' Whined Orihime. She liked to feel his warmth on the brisk winter mornings.

"Because it feels weird" Ichigo said as he broke free from her. The truth was Ichigo like Orihime a lot more than she knew, he practically loved her, her smell, her figure, her beautiful face and her always eager mind, though sometimes just full of hot air she was perfect to Ichigo.

"Fine, be mean" Orihime said as she stuck out her tongue at him. They started walking and stopped only to let traffic go by before crossing the roads. Ichigo's thought wandered back to the dream.

'The fight in my dream was much different in my head than it had been in real life.' Ichigo thought as he walked down the sidewalk. 'I mean I was the one that won the fight, not Byakyu. So why did he always beat me in my dreams? I can talk to Rukia later I guess she can confirm that I did beat him. After all I was hollowized, but I do remember some of it like when Zangetsu rent his blade into millions of pieces.'

'HOONK!!' Ichigo was not paying attention and had walked out into the road.

'What happened?' Ichigo thought, he saw Orihime crying; then everything went white.

An ambulance paramedics yelling something, white again.

Rushed down a hall with people screaming, all inaudible' white once more.

He awoke again, this time he was alone in a place of endless white as far as the eye could see.

'Is this heaven.' Ichigo thought but then he noticed that he was in his soul reaper kimono. 'That's right!' Ichigo thought even though I'm only a substitute soul reaper my spirit won't die unless I get killed in this form. So does that mean I'm dead, or at least part dead?' Thought Ichigo panic started welling up in side of him.

Then it changed white turned to black, on his left side only. Ichigo turned to look at it with curiosity. He stared wondering why it had changed, then he had the strongest sensation that he was not the one staring at the black' but the black was staring at him.