AN: I am, in large part, writing this because of a somewhat criminal lack of good Bleach fics.
Yes, there are probably a bunch I don't know about, and I'm sure some will be recommended to me. However, since I don't know about them now, I see it as a criminal lack. And, on that same subject, since I've just been playing Kingdom Hearts II (I JUST BEAT SEPHIROTH! WOOO!), I've been wondering why there hasn't been any real attempt at a Kingdom Hearts/Bleach cross, since, by my reckoning, there isn't a huge gap to bridge between them.
Anyways, to the story.
Not that I think this will be a good Bleach fic. If any of you have seen my other attempts at writing, you'll know that it doesn't always go well.
No way to get better except to try, though, right? Might as well go for it.
Anyways, to the story.
Here we go.
This is a few bits and pieces of things based on Fosfor's (or, here on FFnet, Case13's) twenty-truths style work "Broken Mirror," specifically, numbers four, thirteen, and fourteen. As well as Elric's suggestion on TFF. For the only one that takes place in the world of the living, I am drawing on my own extremely limited experience of being in Japan. As such, I will probably be wrong. It was more than four years ago, and I have a horrible (but at times TOO DAMN GOOD) memory. And, of course, my own experience with music. I may need help at some points, though.
Anyways, to the story.
I don't know if I'll continue them at all, as separate pieces. Actually, they may work as part of one continuous story... Well, if I do, when this takes place in continuity will become clear pretty quickly, though for reference, it should be obvious that this all takes place after the Soul Society arc. Also, I'm working from the assumption that the characters, at least in the first bit, understand English well enough to be having the conversation they have.
ANYWAYS, TO THE STORY.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bleach or any of the characters associated with it. Nor do I own the song "Day Tripper," or any other pieces of music by the Beatles or anyone else, except a little ditty I wrote for the recorder 15-odd years ago.
NOW CAN WE GET STARTED, DAMNIT?!
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"She was a day~ tripper... one way ticket, yeah."
It wasn't often that anyone could catch Ichigo Kurosaki doing something that seemed extremely silly.
"It took me so~ long... to find out."
Indeed, one could say that Ichigo spent an almost inordinate amount of time attempting to not do anything that may make him look silly, or strange.
"And I found out."
Not that it helped, when he spent a large amount of time recently chasing after things that most people couldn't see, or talking to people who weren't, apparently, there; though peoples' perceptions of just what he was chasing and who he was talking to were slowly starting to change, as more and more powerful spiritual entities converged on Karakura.
"Tried to please her, she only played one night stands."
Not that any of that mattered at the moment, since Ichigo was certainly off in his own little world, though one more people would understand.
"Tried to please her, she only played one night stands, now."
And probably stop and stare anyways, if they were around, at the sight of Ichigo Kurosaki playing air guitar in the basement music store in the Karakura shopping arcade, singing (softly, thankfully) along to The Beatles. "Day Tripper," to be precise.
The relative loneliness of this particular music store was exactly why Ichigo chose it. Though Ichigo usually managed to avoid any public displays of oddity, according to his own mind, he did have a trend; indeed, one might call it a natural disposition; towards playing air guitar while listening to music. While he normally avoided this issue by listening to his tunes only while at home, in his nice, private bedroom, that didn't help when he was music shopping.
"She was a day~ tripper, Sunday driver, yeah."
Which is why he chose the least crowded music store at which to do said shopping. Where he could listen to the samples in the demo player, play along, and not be bothered.
"It took me so~ long... to find out."
That day he was indulging in a particular favorite of his. Another Beatles collection had just been released, and though he had almost all the songs gathered on it (on various discs)... Well, there was nothing wrong with listening to just a few minutes of an old favorite.
At least, until he was interrupted.
"Day Tripper? I prefer Penny Lane, personally."
Smooth tones ran across Ichigo's ears as he slipped off the bulky store headset.
"Eh. It's alright, but it's a little too bright for me, if you know what I mean."
The smooth voice tickled Ichigo's mind, something he should recognize, but didn't.
"Hm, I suppose, but I really like it because of the subject matter. A view into a perfectly normal life, people living as if nothing's wrong, all on one little street."
Maybe because of the incongruity of where he would have recognized the voice from, had he instantly recognized it, and where he was.
"I guess you like Paperback Writer too, then, since it covers the same sort of thing. You know, life, people with their problems, right?"
Who could blame him, really? He'd been living two very different lives recently, and was trying desperately to keep them as separate as possible.
"Actually, that song annoys me. Such a low ambition, to write nearly worthless little novels. If you are going to attempt to enter a business, why not try to sit on top of it?"
Ichigo froze, and the barrier in his mind keeping him from recognizing the other voice, as well as the invisible barrier that separated his life as a Shinigami and his life as a human, shattered.
He turned, slowly, and stared.
In terror, possibly, though he'd deny it. Shock, probably. And a little bit of "WHAT THE FUCK?" thrown in for good measure.
Sousuke Aizen, Shinigami traitor and leader of the arrancar forces currently antagonizing Ichigo and company, stood not two feet away, holding a copy of the Beatles collection Ichigo had been contemplating. He had put his glasses back on, and his hair was back in the "completely normal" style he wore before his treason was revealed, but it was undeniably him. Dressed in khakis and a white dress shirt, with the sleeves rolled up and the top two buttons undone, but him.
Ichigo's jaw worked furiously, as Aizen looked on, amused (not that he didn't really always look that way- as far as Ichigo had seen, which was, admittedly, very limited). His mind ran through the possibilities of using the substitute badge he had to transform into his shinigami self and fight, outright fleeing, or screaming.
Of course, it neglected to inform Ichigo's mouth of any of this, which proceeded to blurt "You know, I never would have pegged you for a Beatles fan."
"I must admit to the same. I would have thought you more likely to listen to 'Heavy Metal,' or whatever you call it."
At this point Ichigo's mind decided to throw in the towel, since there was obviously no way this could get stranger.
You know what? Fuck it.
"I would have thought you liked grandiose classical and pipe organ music. Seems to fit the 'evil manipulator' thing you have going better."
Aizen chuckled. Not a sinister, evil chuckle, but a humorous one.
Though, considering that he seemed to find everything we tried to do to him funny, maybe it isn't too different.
"I suppose it does. Classical would have fit the image I wore previously well, too, I suppose, but we can't always choose what we enjoy."
"So then I suppose you aren't to blame for trying to take over the world, since you couldn't choose to enjoy anything otherwise?"
"Possibly, Ichigo Kurosaki, though can you honestly say that you could have chosen to do anything but try to protect Rukia Kuchiki from me at that time?"
Ichigo sighed, and shook his head.
"No. Just... No."
He slowly backed away from the still-grinning villain, towards the door.
"I... have to go."
Then he ran out of the store, and up the stairwell to the street.
"Goodbye, Ichigo Kurosaki. See you soon."
Sousuke Aizen's grin turned sinister for just a moment before he turned, and walked to the counter to pay for the Beatles collection in his hands.
*********************
Later that day, two different conversations occurred, in two very different places.
One, in a land ruled by death, and those who sought to consume the souls of the dead.
The other, a house where a man tried to keep people from crossing that border.
Strangely enough, they both started the same way.
"Oh, you're back. Where have you been?"
Here they diverged, as the two people who met in a record store left it with very different views on the meeting.
One said: "Out. It was... interesting."
The other: "Out. I'm going to bed."
The two might have found it funny to know that the response to them was exactly the same.
"Huh. Well, see you later."
Or they might not.