Fulfilling a Promise

by Akrximay

In a time where things were different, Ichigo always stayed the same, even when years went by. When the weight of someone's word to fulfill a promise is put to the test, one can never be too prepare for disappointment to crash down on them. Warnings, rated MA, m/m, slight ooc. The summary sucks but the story is waaaaay better! Happy GrimmIchi day!

1. Part 1

AN: Hey all! It's been a hot minute since I have posted anything but I just had to honor my favorite shipping on their special day. So here is a happy GrimmIchi day fic for your enjoyment! This was meant to be a oneshot, but as always my oneshots turn into novella xD so I've split it in two parts to make it a bit more manageable. That being said, there wont be any more planned parts to this! If you guys have any questions feel free to PM me or leave the question in a review! So enough of this, enjoy the story and make sure to drop a review for me!

~May

---

All three worlds are connected to one another. There is no Soul Society away from the Human world and no Human world away from Hueco Mundo or even Hueco Mundo away from Soul Society. This was a time and place when all the inhabitants of the universe lived side by side, admittedly not very well or happily, but they managed in a way that was never seen before then or after then.

There were, however, "districts" in this world. There was one district where humans with physical bodies dwelled, another where human spirits with spiritual bodies lived and another where creatures whose cries were as hollow as their eyes appeared to be. These districts were how any one person was able to differentiate between another, though it didn't have much standing or meaning in this time, it was useful to see who could con who into paying more for goods and things of such nature.

The humans were referred to as 'mortals' seeing as they had another stage of death; that being when they died they began living as a 'being'. Beings are what the spirit beings were called, many could not leave the confines of their own district because they would slowly begin to fade and disappear all together. There were special cases that were able to roam all worlds with no quarrels and these people were too given a name. Reapers. No one knows how the name came about but it seemed to fit them and no one seemed to mind the name much.

Lastly were the creatures most feared in the whole of the world. They were simply called 'Hollows'. They were a cold bunch, with the capability of thought and intelligence but only at times. They varied the most in the world. In size, personality, skill, threat level, appearance and even down to how hungry they became could differ from Hollow to Hollow. Some hollow seemed very animal like, others very human like, most seemed to follow no constitutionality set by Mother Nature. Some were able to leave their district, others couldn't, some wanted to and others didn't, some wanted to speak with Mortals and Being but couldn't, some could speak with them and didn't. Hollows were the present conundrum of the world but mostly if left alone and away from their district, there were not many encounters that ended with death. Unless there was that unbearable pressure and heat that was rumored to occur when one happened upon the especially powerful Hollow.

No one really noticed when the world began to function in this way but it became a reality and it was lived with. They moved on with the facts and death hardly seemed to matter until one became a Being, where once they died they disappeared though they lived much longer than Mortals. Hollow of casual power occasionally wandering in a field was just as common as seeing a horse pulling a carriage along a paved dirt road. It was just as common to see a Mortal in a Being's market trying to obtain a special herb or lower prices than in Mortal markets. Life ebbed and flowed with the passage of time, free of constraints from rulers or royalty.

Those with money lived their lives sheltered away from the common folk and never bothered with interactions. It was a relatively simple life where one grew crops by the strength of their backs and the sweat of their brows to maintain their families and possibly sell the goods in market. Criminals were dealt with by way of the sword or lynching, the people holding no tolerance for such tomfoolery. It was a very feudalistic way of living in the sense that people and the relationships formed were derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour. There was no advanced technology. There was just work, loyalty and honesty.

This was how most people of the land lived, there were always those trying to change things by becoming more powerful than everyone else, or the more radical people like Genryūsai Yamamoto. He was a Reaper, one of the special Beings that went on and on about needing to create an organization to help control 'nuisances', though most of the towns people which have heard him spewing his ideals would call the young and brash man a nuisance. The man in his late 20s would head down to the town center to rave and try to convince Beings, Reapers and even Mortals to join his group which he named The Gotei.

This was another time that Ichigo Shiba was listening to the man rave from his seat on the lip of the town's grand water well. The black haired lad watched on as Yamamoto would try and catch the attention of passersby and wayfaring strangers alike. Ichigo giggled and outright guffawed at some of the things the older man would say. Some of the shop keeps surrounding the plaza would laugh alongside him or laugh at the joyous energy the young Shiba would spread with his enjoyment. Yamamoto didn't find his laughter as enjoyable as some of the other townspeople.

"Shiba, why must you insist on sitting there all day laughing at me?" Yamamoto called, as he did every day. He received the same answer as he did every day.

"Why Yamamoto I am not sitting here just to laugh at you, I am helping my uncle tend to his shop right along the way there." Ichigo called back with a grin that split his face and his arm outstretched and finger pointing to said aforementioned shop just a road's width away from where the young man sat.

"Yes, but why must you sit there and not inside the shop, where I might not hear your unappreciated laughter?" Yamamoto called in return as he stepped closer to the young man.

"Why? The reason is, because this seat has the best spot of light to bathe in while the sun is high in the sky Yama." Ichigo chimed in his cheerful voice, calling to his older friend.

The black headed man took the spot next to the boisterous teen and huffed out a frustrated breath. He could never understand why the people of the town would not heed his warnings and agree to help him to form his vision. He especially could not understand why this teen, who listened to him every day and was more than highly qualified to help him, refused time and time again.

"No Yama." Ichigo suddenly said just as Yamamoto was opening his mouth to ask the teen to join his cause once again.

"Won't you at least let me propose my question before you refuse me again?" The man asked, his frustration rising to another level.

"No, because I have answered your inquiry time and time again. I have even given you my answer as to why I won't join your cause. You, my friend, just don't like taking 'no' for an answer and I loving giving it as one." Ichigo responded, his feet fluttering back and forth past one another as he swung them from his perch.

"I still do not understand your reasoning Ichigo. You have heard my warnings; you have even said they hold logic to them! Yet you refuse to take action and help me." The older man told the man incredulously.

"My friend you are too set in your ways. I am as free a Mortal, Being or even Hollow wishes to be. I am here because I wish it, I help because I wish to do so. I have no worries for the people around me, having no wife or children of my own, my siblings under the watch of my uncle, my uncle and his own family well taken care of, my friends well off. You and the way you speak of is not how I wish to spend the remainder of my life as a Being." Ichigo told Yamamoto for what felt like the millionth time.

"What way is that, a life free of torment from those wretched Hollows? A way of life dedicated to serving and protecting the people who truly need it? Or maybe it is the weight of actual work that frightens you away from such a path." Yamamoto lashed out with harmful words out of frustration and resentment.

Ichigo threw his head back and laughed loudly once again. The black haired man shook his head in disbelief. This Shiba would always laugh off any attempt the revolutionary had to getting a raise out of the man. It seemed that the younger was too involved in living his life joyously to allow silly words to upset his center. Hopping off of the stone lip of the well, Ichigo stretched his arms high above his head and stood on the tips of his toes, enjoying the feel of his muscles releasing their tension.

"My friend, the path I chose is my own. Your path is yours to live and if you wish to persuade my path to switch to yours you must provide me with inalienable proof that which you speak of is true. In both my lives as a Mortal and a Being I have yet to encounter a Hollow that was fit to be deemed 'wretched'. So forgive me, yet again, for finding amusement from your claims." The free willed Shiba answered his friend and moved off to the shop when he observed that a customer was waiting for him.

"Inalienable proof?" Yamamoto asked to himself.

"What would inalienable proof look like?" He spoke aloud again. He turned to look at the man who was in conversation with the blonde woman who had been waiting for the Shiba earlier. He watched as the teen gave the woman a charming smile and laughed at something she said as they exchanged produce for currency. Inalienable proof. He would get Ichigo his inalienable proof.

*_(*)_*

Stalking through this forsaken land was beginning to get tiresome. Though being on the verge of becoming a Vasto Lorde was worth staying in this place he supposed. Nothing but laziness was stopping him from going into any of the other districts and perhaps the panicking of the Mortals and Beings that would occur if they saw him strolling leisurely through their towns. Not that he minded causing a bit of panic; really it was his favorite pass time but he was in no mood for seeing people, he hadn't for a long while now.

The last time he saw Mortals or Beings with his own eyes was when the curiosity that bubbled within him became too much to ignore. He was a new adjucha, or second power level of Hollow, and he left the sanction of bone white sands to explore the world of colours and sensations besides grains of sand digging into the bottom of one's feet and the feel of crunching bones and ripping flesh beneath one's teeth. The Mortals and Beings were cautious of his bone white body and ferocious appearance and kept their distance, wary but not yet fearful.

In all actuality Hollows did not become dangerous until they were denied what was once always available to them. They were much like a child when instructed not to indulge in a particular activity; it only made them want to do said activity that much more. Many could survive with the richness of the air and those that needed more than that, would hunt another Hollow. They were not shy in the ways of cannibalism but not for lack of morals or caring, but all understood that there was not much point in hunting other creatures. Mortals lacked any nutrients for Hollows, and though Beings and Reapers did have said nutrients, it took much more energy for Hollow's bodies to convert them into a usable source and many of the nutrients were lost. Much easier was eating other Hollows. Though that came at a cost; power was a necessary part of the Hollow world.

His curiosity had been sated with that one visit many, many years ago and he had no desire to leave the bleached sands. Perhaps once he became a Vasto Lorde , one or two more meals away, he would consider such a venture again but for now he was content.

Suddenly there was a shift in the air and the adjucha took off like a shot in the night. Something big had enticed his appetite and perhaps this meal would be enough to push him over the edge of evolving. As he neared the site where he felt the disturbance, he slowed, becoming suspicious. The scent of blood was in the air and all had gone still. Crouching low to the ground as he slunk up to round the top of a sand dune, the adjucha cautiously surveyed the situation below.

There sat a Being, a Reaper from the very fact that he was outside his district, blood running down his temple as a sword lie in the sand next to him. A few yards away was the carcass of a sizeable adjucha, a large meal just what the small adjucha had been searching for. Wary of the stranger in his lands, the adjucha stood on all four paws, tall and proud from atop the dune. The Reaper immediately took in his presence and his hand dove for the hilt of his sword, his legs shaky under him as they struggled to support his weight.

The adjucha merely tilted his head curiously, knowing that he could kill this Being easily if it came to such a situation. The man was too drained from his battle with the defeated beast. Rounding the top of the dune and letting the sands fall away from the bottom of his feet, the adjucha slid down the dune with minimal effort and looking graceful doing it. Slinking his way closer to the carcass he eyed the man warily. He suddenly broke the silence, which startled the black haired man.

"What brings you here Reaper?"

The Reaper's red eyes widened in shock at the raspy and eerie voice that echoed to him and his stance stiffened. The adjucha watched and waited for an answer and after a few moments of silence, he crouched in front of the dead body of the weaker hollow, dismissing the Reaper altogether.

"What are you doing, wretched Hollow?" The Reaper asked as the adjucha began to sniff and was about to take a bite out of the hollow's hid.

The adjucha raised his head to watch the Reaper once again.

"I am pretty sure I asked a question you haven't answered yet, Reaper." The adjucha responded his eyebrows rising at the hostility emanating from the man. The man sneered before huffing out a breath and giving the Hollow a response.

"I've come looking for something. Now, what are you doing with that kill?"

"Were you going to eat it?" The adjucha asked the man, almost incredulously. At the repulsed expression the Hollow was given, he nodded his head and stood once again, moving towards the neck of the carcass.

"As I thought, we here in this district don't let resources go to waste. This hollow is too big for you to carry to the market and you are too exhausted to fight over it with me. I am taking it and eating dinner for tonight. Farewell Reaper, for the nearest border of this district is half a day's journey."

With that the adjucha grabbed the dead hollow by the neck and with incredible strength and speed, took off with the meal. Yamamoto watched on as the adjucha disappeared into a cluster of the strange, quartz like trees which was likely where its den was located. Yamamoto took a seat where he stood and waited for a few hours, praying to Kami-sama to heal him and give him the strength to capture a Hollow so he could carry out Kami-sama's wish. He knew which Hollow he needed and he knew where it resided, he only needed strength. He only needed guidance. Within a few hours his prayers came to be. He was healed and Kami-sama gave him the power he needed to take the hollow alive.

*_(*)_*

Day was on the horizon as the sun began to crawl ever so slowly over the sight of the earth; it was the time where one could confuse the traces of reds and oranges for the end of another day. It was in these moments when Ichigo Shiba was idling down the streets of the town, heading for the center plaza to open his uncle's shop for the upcoming market.

The Shiba man was confused as he approached the plaza and was greeted with the sight of most of the townspeople crowding the space. He gently flitted through the crowd, his mid back length, ebony black hair trailing behind him as continued forward in order to find the source for this unusual occurrence.

"Why pardon me young miss." Ichigo called as he breezed past a young woman, a gentle smile gracing his lips as he moved. The young woman not even acknowledging the man as he spoke, her eyes wide with fear and pinned firmly in front of her. Her mouth was covered by her hands as she held them close to her chest, her complexion pale as a sheet. This confused the man more.

Turning to face forward, Ichigo's breath caught in his throat harshly as he locked eyes with the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen. Its body was long and slender, with curves that hinted at its lethalness. The bone white colour of its skin only marred when the pitch black markings took over. The creature was lying on its side as strips of light bound it tightly. A strip of light holding its two fore paws together which connect to a ring of light at the base of the creature's neck, holding the powerful and deadly sharp looking claws close to the beast's neck. Another two holding the back legs while there were more binding its head. Around the muzzle was one, another just under the head snuggly set under its jaw line. This particular binding was connected to one at the base of the creature's tail, the connecting beam of light taunt as to not allow the beast movement.

The poor creature could not move a single inch.

Worst of all, the beige colored bricks of the plaza underneath the animal were stained with blood. The red life substance was pooling around the hollow and oozing out of gashes that littered its body.

"What on green Earth is happening here?" Ichigo called out incredulously.

His question was heard clearly over the crowd since there was dead silence to begin with. It was in that instance in which Ichigo registered the presence of his friend who was not heard of nor seen for many days. Yamamoto sat on the stone lip of the town's water well, exhausted from his venture and blood dripping from a cut above his eye, but a smug, satisfied smirk barely pulling on his lips.

"What is the meaning of this Yama?" Ichigo asked as he approached cautiously, seeing as the creature was just at the foot of the well.

"This, Shiba, is your inalienable proof." Yamamoto called to the teen.

"You told me that there had not been a hollow you'd met in either of your lives that was fit to be deemed wretched. Well I went away to provide you with such a hollow."

"You have finally gone mad, haven't you? How can you sit there barely a scratch on you while this poor hollow is immobile and bleeding to death and dare label it as wretched?" Ichigo asked the man in disgust, the teen's face twisting in horrified awe of his friend.

"Barely a scratch?" Yamamoto asked as he stood from his perch. He ripped open the front of his shihakushō and showed the Shiba the deep gouges that ran along his chest and abdomen.

"That fiend tried to cut me in half and I was lucky to escape with my eyesight. No, that thing deserved every slash my sword administered to it." Yamamoto practically spat out the words

A loud rumbling suddenly erupted and with shock Ichigo realized it was the creature growing at his feet. Immediately the hilt of a sword came down to smash against the beautiful hollow's muzzle ruthlessly.

"Silence, you filthy hollow." Yamamoto told the creature angrily.

"W-what are those lights Yamamoto?" One of the townspeople asked.

"This is the power the organization will hold. Kami-sama gave me the ability to use these lights that he calls Kido. It is another tool for us to use against the hollows that plague Mortals and Beings alike." Yamamoto responded loud enough for everyone to hear him. Maybe now they would believe that the Gotei were necessary.

"Will they hold?" Another asked, worry clearly evident in their voice.

"They will as long as I am awake and have energy, but we will need a cage to hold the beast as I'm not at my best." Yamamoto again answered the townspeople. Ichigo completely disregarded in the fervor of the people.

"I will have a cage big enough for the creature by the end of the day!" The blacksmith of the town shouted and ran off, presumably to create said contraption.

"Where is the doctor? Yamamoto needs medical attention." Called a woman as she pulled gently on the man's arm, everyone forgetting about the creature and Ichigo's protests in favor of treating Yamamoto like a hero.

Ichigo was baffled at how everyone could just forget that Hollow's were intelligent creature capable of speech and rationale. Looking down, he locked eyes with the creature and swore to himself that he would not allow such injustice to continue on.

As promised the blacksmith returned a little after mid day with a cage big enough to hold the hollow and with the assistance of a few men from town they hauled the creature into the cage. After securing the door with a heavy looking lock, Yamamoto spoke words of nonsense and his spears of light once again appeared, reinforcing the bars of the cage. Once making sure the Hollow could not escape from the cage he released the hold the strips of light held on its body. The Hollow only glared hatefully at Yamamoto as it stood to stretch its sore muscles.

Yamamoto returned the glare and spoke as he turned away from the still wounded Hollow.

"Retch Hollow, serves you right to be there."

Ichigo could see the rage build in the Hollow's eyes and in that moment Ichigo could feel the air around him buzz with energy. The Hollow opened its jaws wide and let out an ear splitting screech that was loud enough that it shattered shop windows and even cracked the bricks which the cage was sitting atop of. The five men that were near the cage fell to the ground desperately clutching onto their ears, which were bleeding. No doubt their ear drums exploded.

Ichigo scoffed at the men from his uncle's shop as they slowly stood trying to recover as the Hollow just watched them. The black haired teen had been smart enough to cover his ears before the creature let out the pitch that was harmful and as such was unharmed. Word spread quickly that the shock waves were caused by the Hollow and all throughout the day people were glaring banefully at the creature and some of the children even took to throwing rocks into its cage. As one little boy flung a rock with his sling shot right at the Hollow's eye, Ichigo stepped in.

The children eyed the Shiba man with a bit of remorse and guilt as the observed his hand was bleeding from catching the jagged projectile.

"Now children, I know your mothers haven't taught you to be cruel to other species, despite what you have heard around town. Run along now."

Ichigo watched as the children did as instructed, even calling out an apology to "Mr. Shiba and Mr. Hollow." Sighing Ichigo dropped the stone to allow it to clatter to the cobble stones and pulled out a cloth to bind his hand for the time being. He walked back to his uncle's shop, grabbing one of the ceramic basins that were for sale and a rag, and headed back to the well and cage the Hollow was in. In no time at all the black haired teen had the basin filled with water from the well and was approaching the Hollow.

"Hello, my name is Ichigo Shiba. I am very regretful that you have been put in this situation by the gorilla of a man. Drink if you'd please." Ichigo said as he dropped to his knees and pushed the bowl through the bars of the cage. The hollow merely looked at him, not glancing at the water once.

"I am quite aware that you understand me. If you won't drink, then please don't attack me for what I'm going to do." Ichigo said as he pulled the basin away and walked around to where he could touch more of the Hollow through the bars.

Immediately the Hollow turned, hissing and baring its large teeth at Ichigo. Said man was already on his knees and the Hollow was hovering over him, even through the protection of the bars. Easing back from his hunched over position, Ichigo stared the creature directly in the eyes and spoke calmly and confidently.

"I know you don't want all these people to witness you trying to clean your wounds. That would make you look weak, which I know you are not. This is not pity and it is not me thinking I am above you. I see you as another intelligent creature and I want to help you because that would be what I would want should our situation have been reversed. Now please allow me to clean the blood off of your beautiful hierro."

The Hollow was mildly surprised at the way Ichigo spoke to him; not afraid and not with pity but as another person. He was also surprised that this Being knew Hollow terminology, most did not know because they never neared Hollows. Cautiously and still very wary, the Hollow turned and lay with his most injured side pressed against the bars, allowing Ichigo access. This was a very crucial moment of trust and Ichigo was very grateful that the Hollow was still willing to be reasonable with Beings and Mortals despite his situation.

"Thank you very much." Ichigo said softly with a genuine smile on his face. The Hollow watched Ichigo gently wipe off the blood from his hierro and carefully dab water into his wounds to clean them out. The Hollow sensed that this Being was different from the others, and his own curiosity spiked with interest at what it was that made this Being act the way he did. He was gentle and had even put himself in the way of harm to defend the Hollow.

"May I ask what your name is?" Ichigo asked as the light of day was fading to night. Most the shops had closed for the day a few hours ago, though the black haired teen didn't notice one bit. Just admiring and tending to the Hollow in front of him made the day seem to pass in the blink of an eye.

The Hollow only continued to watch him as he had done since the moment he laid so Ichigo could reach him, only having moved to flip around and allow the man to reach his other side. With a quiet sigh Ichigo stood and rinsed out the basin, filling it with clean water once again and this time sliding it through the bars and leaving it where it was.

"I can also get you something to eat if you wish. I do not know what Hollow's consume besides other Hollows. Is there something you would like me to get you?" Ichigo asked the Hollow, his last attempt for the day to try and get the Hollow to speak. Yet silence from the creature was the only thing Ichigo received in return. With another sigh Ichigo bide the creature a good night.

"Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez."

Ichigo whirled around at hearing the distinct gravely, raspy and eerie voice of a Hollow. His amber eyes were wide in awe and thanks. He held contact with the iridescent blue eyes that glowed brightly in the dark of the night.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Jaegerjaquez-san." Ichigo said with a smile that seemed to brighten up the dark plaza.

"Grimmjow is just fine. You have my thanks." Grimmjow motioned to his body with a tilt of his head and Ichigo understood what he was saying. The teen laughed, almost a giggle, and shook his head just glad that the Hollow spoke to him.

"No need to thank me. Yamamoto is ridiculous and if I could get you out of that cage this instance I would. Unfortunately I'm not even sure what magic he is using to keep you in there, let alone how to get you out." Ichigo responded sadly taking a few steps back to the cage and touched one of the bars that was charged with thrumming energy.

"Tending to my body and the water is plenty, Shiba." Grimmjow's quiet yet strong voice answered back.

"Please call me Ichigo, no need for the distance."

"Ichigo then, you have my thanks once again." Grimmjow spoke again, his eyes boring into Ichigo's as he watched the teen's reaction. The smile once again returned to the young man's face and he wave a hand in the air to signal that the thanks were not needed.

"Why do you defend me?" Grimmjow suddenly asked. Not expecting the question, nor for the Hollow to want to continue conversation it took Ichigo a moment to answer.

"Are you not an intelligent, living creature?" Ichigo asked in return. When he received a grunt in affirmation he continued.

"Well that is all the reason I need. There is no difference between you and I besides the way we look and what we eat. Those are no reasons for you to be persecuted and deemed some horrible monster."

Grimmjow tilted his head at the curious response and seemed to take the young man into consideration.

"You would defend any Hollow then?"

"If any Hollow committed a crime knowing what they were doing, then no but from what I have seen you've committed no crime, and if I were to wager money I would say it was you who were wronged in the first place."

Grimmjow let out a laugh at the Being's mannerisms and words. He was spot on the money. Ichigo watched as the Hollow laughed and couldn't help but join in, his quiet yet joyous laughter was heard in tandem with the Hollow's eerie but comforting laugh. As their mirth calmed Ichigo couldn't help but wonder how the Hollow ended up in this town. How was Yamamoto able to capture him?

"The bastard caught me by surprise."

The Shiba hadn't noticed he spoke aloud and was startled by the sudden answer, wide amber eyes focusing on the bright blue of the Hollow.

"He caught you by surprise?" Ichigo asked incredulously, putting extra emphasis on "you."

"I was in the process of transforming into a Vasto Lorde when he leapt at me from behind. I regret not killing him in the desert when I met him there." Grimmjow growled out angrily.

The black haired teen was confused by the pieces of story, not completely told. He sat back down on the cobbles next to the cage and asked Grimmjow to clarify. Once he had Ichigo had many a questions buzzing about.

"If you are a Vasto Lorde now, how on green Earth was Yama able to lay a finger on you?"

"I had no reason to harm the being when I saw him in the desert. He was exhausted and was of no threat. I had no idea he tailed me because of the pain I was in." Grimmjow answered as he shifted positions to alleviate some discomfort.

"Pain?"

"The power influx of becoming a Vasto Lorde was pretty tolerable, what was painful was my body shifting into a humanoid shape. My bones condensing and realigning, my hierro retracting and skin stretching across my body, my skull and jaw changing completely. The process is not something I wish to experience again, I'm told the transformation does not hurt after the initial time. He attacked me when I was testing out the shifting between this form and my new one." Grimmjow described, and answered Ichigo's next question in the process.

"So he ambushed you. Wouldn't you be able to unlock the door if you were in your other form and just walk right out of town?" Ichigo's following question came pouring out without thought, the young man's curiosity amusing to Grimmjow.

"His magic has prevented me from shifting into my other form. Without having any idea as to what it is nor how to stop it I can do nothing but sit in this cage." Grimmjow answered with frustration and anger tinting his voice.

"No need to worry Grimmjow, I will be here to speak with you." Ichigo smiled sweetly at the Hollow. Grimmjow felt the pull of his lips as he smirked at the other unintentionally.

"Yes, I suppose so."

Ichigo bid Grimmjow farewell, this time quiet seriously since he, again, was to open up the shop early tomorrow morning.

"I will see you tomorrow!" Ichigo called a final time to his new friend as he rounded the corner of a building.

True to his word Ichigo returned the next day, and many days after that, and resumed his perch on the town's water well, the only difference now was his attention was consumed by Grimmjow. The occasional costumer would steal his attention away from the large panther Hollow, but never for long. He also refused to speak to Yamamoto even when the man would seek out the young Shiba.

The man wanted to share with his friend the success of the forming of his organization. The Gotei had at least 30 members now and that was only including members of this town. Soon he would be carting that wretched Hollow away to other towns, showing it's true, ugly nature and convince others to join his cause. Yet Ichigo would have none of it.

Yamamoto could not fathom as to why his friend was so hateful towards this just cause. Kami-sama himself is supportive of the formation of the Gotei and the extermination of the vile Hollow yet there Ichigo was being tricked by one of those devils. Day after day Yamamoto would watch as the Shiba spent the entireties of his days speaking to the Hollow even though the hollow never spoke in return. The most the young man got in return was a nod of a head or the huff of breath, Yamamoto never heard a word uttered from the Hollow besides their first encounter. What was truly incredible was when Ichigo's younger siblings would near their brother and the Hollow out of curiosity, Ichigo telling them that there was nothing to fear and soon the children adored the Hollow.

Sudden anger bubbled through Yamamoto as he thought that his friend preferred the company of that detestable thing instead of him. He prayed that that Hollow would be in withering pain and burned for the pain he's caused others. Suddenly an unholy sound pierced through the air and he realized it was the Hollow. The creature was howling in pain as it rammed its body to the sides of the cage, hissing and spitting in anger and distress.

Yamamoto faintly realized that he could make out glowing red marks on the bone white flesh of the creature. Ichigo could be heard as he yelled out for assistance; shocked at the sudden actions Yamamoto took a step forward as to help Ichigo. Immediately the Hollow dropped to the steel of the cage floor, panting and exhausted. Painful looking welts and deep burn marks could be observed on its skin and Yamamoto could only assume it was his wishing and praying for the Hollow's pain that allowed the burns on its flesh to appear. A sick grin twisted onto his lips as he turned his back and saunters away from the plaza center. It severs the wicked thing right to be in pain.

"Grimm, are you alright? What happened? Please tell me." Ichigo desperately asked his friend as the panther lay still in pain. It took a few minutes to recover but he spoke clearly, and quietly leaving no room for doubt.

"It was you greedy bastard friend. He and his magic caused me this pain."

Ichigo pulled back in shock, not believing that Yamamoto could cause such pain with no cause. Then again Grimmjow was ambushed, and locked in this cage on Yamamoto's behalf. Was it so hard to believe that the man was also the cause of this? In all honesty, Ichigo had to say it wasn't surprising in the least.

Ichigo stood and refilled the water basin that he fills everyday for Grimmjow. He told the Hollow that he would return with burn ointment to treat him. Ichigo quickly made his way to the doctor's clinic and purchased what he needed. He couldn't have been gone but a quarter of an hour but when he returned men surrounded the cage where Grimmjow lay. The panther was hissing in pure rage as he swatted the spears that were jabbing in through the bars. The other townspeople in the plaza only looking on, some in fear, others in agreement and others still in protest though none of them dared move.

Ichigo could hear the cracking and splitting of the wooden spears, attesting to just how strong Grimmjow's swats were. The panther was ramming himself against the bars trying to reach the men that were attacking him, his claws catching clothing and even managed to slash at a man's arm. Ramming the cage again Grimmjow managed to knock the heavy steel cage over onto its side, giving him protection from some angles but exposing him to being attacked from above.

Grimmjow desperately tried to protect himself as he pressed himself to the solid steel top of the rectangular cage. His ears were pinned back in aggression and his wickedly sharp incisors bared and his deadly sharp claws brandished for the attack. Even in his injured state he was a sight to see. The men were yelling and encouraging each other, practically ready to kill the Hollow.

In that moment there was the ominous sound of a katana sliding free from its hilt, the deadly silence of power enveloped the area and all went still. The men and their spears ceased their movement and sound, Grimmjow's threatening sounds quieting, and a hush fell over the townspeople that were gathered and watching.

"Please remove yourselves from the vicinity of that cage." Ichigo's calm and confident voice carried over the crowd. He stepped forward from the front of his uncle's shop, where he ran to retrieve his sword. The lethal steel glinted as the sunlight hit the sharp edge of the blade as its tip hung near the ground as Ichigo walked forward, no hurry in his steps.

"Shiba-san, what are your intentions with that sword?" One of the men gathered asked the well known teen quietly, almost too afraid to raise his voice any louder.

"What are your intentions with those spears, sir?" Ichigo asked politely as he slowed to a stop in front of the cage, turning around so that he faced the men who clustered together in an effort to feel safer.

"Yamamoto ordered us to kill the Hollow. Are intentions are to purge that thing from existence." A different man, one who felt more courage than the others, answered Ichigo's question.

"Did he now? Well gentlemen, please return to your master's side and inform him that this Hollow is now under the protection of Ichigo Shiba and if he wishes to kill the Hollow he will have to send more than spears and a few town's men." Ichigo told the men, an arrogant air coming over the man.

One of the men shoved forward with his spear, if he was aiming for Ichigo or Grimmjow was unclear, but in either instance Ichigo neutralized him quickly. Hitting the spear away with the flat of his blade, Ichigo invaded the man's space and plunged his fist deeply into the man's abdomen, the man fell back, coughing and in pain. Ichigo's blade pressed gently against the edge of the man's jaw, almost mockingly caressing.

"If you'd please to leave with your lives now would be the time. If you wish to press the matter I can oblige you without difficulty, but please know it will end with the forfeiting of your lives and not a scratch more on the Hollow nor I." Ichigo told the man, his amber eyes hard and deadly serious.

The man shook his head in fear and giving his answer to wanting to continue. Ichigo backed away so as his sword was no longer touching the man and the attacker was helped to his feet by his fellows, all of them turning and heading away from Ichigo and Grimmjow.

When they were all out of view, Ichigo sheathed his blade and turned back to face Grimmjow to assess his condition. The Hollow came out barely a scratch on him, thanks to his thick hierro but not without his anger being stirred.

"Would you please help me to move your prison upright again Grimm?" Ichigo asked the Hollow and within a few short minutes they both had the cage rightened with the help of a few braver folk who had been gathered in the plaza.

"They will not come near you again, do you hear me? I will not allow it." Ichigo spoke, technically to Grimmjow, but more to himself.

For weeks after the incident Grimmjow grew increasingly volatile to anyone who as so much as looked in the general direction of the prison that was keeping him locked away. Ichigo was the only one allowed near the cage, he was the only one to have gained the Hollow's trust and the man stayed within eyes view of his friend at all times, no longer going home at night. Between both Grimmjow and himself they managed to bend one of the bars far enough for Ichigo to curl up next to Grimmjow at night for warmth.

The night they had done so was awkward. Ichigo was shivering as he sat outside on the lip of the well seeing as the summer nights were becoming colder as the changing of the season was approaching. Grimmjow had told the teen to leave him and go to the comfort of his home but the teen refused. It had been just days prior that the Gotei attempted another attack, once again stopped by Ichigo single handedly.

Grimmjow recalled sighing heavily as he stood and suddenly rammed one of the bars with his shoulder, the noise in the dead of the night startling Ichigo horribly. The teen inquired as to what the Hollow was doing and only received a grunt in response. Again and again Grimmjow targeted a single bar but had little success. Finally Ichigo stood and grabbed the bar Grimmjow had been working on and pulled with all his strength to the side, Grimmjow ramming the bar again with his shoulder taking care to not catch Ichigo. About a half hour later the bar had moved enough to allow Ichigo to move between the bars.

Grimmjow told him to hurry inside before he caught a cold or froze to death. Slowly making his way inside Ichigo felt daunted as he was before the Hollow without the barrier. Sure he called Grimmjow his friend and he knew the Hollow wouldn't attack him but he looked so much bigger when there was nothing stopping him from taking a bite out of Ichigo. Grimmjow eyed the katana still held in Ichigo's hand, not tensing or attacking but just observing the weapon, seeing what Ichigo's next move would be.

Taking a deep breath Ichigo knelt over and released his grip on his beloved sword, returning the gesture of trust Grimmjow had first shown him many weeks ago. The panther relaxed completely and curled around himself as he laid down for the remainder of the night. He motioned for Ichigo to come closer and when the man was in reaching distance the panther moved quickly. He used a strong forepaw to grab Ichigo around the waist, careful of his razor sharp claws, and pulled him down to curl around the teen's body.

Ichigo was frightened for only a second before he realized his friend was trying to help his predicament even through his brutish nature. Needless to say the Hollow's body temperature was much higher than Ichigo's and the fact that the weather was getting chiller was of no consequence with their new sleeping arrangements.

For a few weeks more the situation seemed to become increasingly worrisome. Yamamoto was gaining more momentum with his organization with the neighboring towns believing his ridiculous claims wholeheartedly. More skilled warriors were sent to the town plaza to deal with Ichigo and his Hollow friend, all dispatched but when they came in fours and fives with skills nearing his own the difficulty of forcing them to leave was increasing.

It was a night after many sleepless ones for Ichigo that Grimmjow spoke to him of an impending problem.

"Ichi, I must leave this prison soon. There isn't any time to waste anymore." They were once again curled around one another when Grimmjow broke the silence.

Ichigo sat up with a concerned look on his pretty face and Grimmjow loathed being the one who put such an expression on his face.

"What do you mean there isn't time to waste? I have been attempting to break the cursed hold Yamamoto has on these bars, I have not been wasting time." Ichigo told the Hollow, hurt evident in his voice. Grimmjow let out a low purr to calm the other, an endearing lick placed on the teen's ebony locks in an effort to comfort him.

"That was not what I meant. As you know Hollows must continuously eat for fear of regression, I have not eaten since the day I was captured and though I have managed to survive without regressing I can feel it looming. If I do not leave this prison and eat within the next few days, I may be stuck in this form forever." Grimmjow explained to the teen while he rubbed his face over the teen's chest.

The blue eyes were closed in pleasure as he continued his rubbing and could feel Ichigo's hand in the dip of his shoulders. The purrs grew in strength and Grimmjow was soon immersed in claiming Ichigo through scent, his rubbing growing frantic. Ichigo laughed as this progressed. Grimmjow's whiskers tickled the teen and the purrs vibrating through him only amplified the feeling. Grimmjow even used his forepaws to keep the teen from wiggling out of his grasp as the teen began to really guffaw.

Grimmjow calmed at hearing the teen's joyous laughter and just held the teen tight against himself. Ichigo sighed peacefully as he calmed from his bout of laughter, his hand cupping Grimmjow's face and cradled the cat's huge head against his chest.

"I promise I'll break these bars and when I do, we'll leave together." Ichigo told the Hollow.

Grimmjow rose his head to look directly into Ichigo's eyes and gave the man a lick to his cheek, the best he could do in this form, and conveyed through his eyes alone that he believed the man.

"I'll take you Ichigo, just as soon as we are far from this prison." Grimmjow promised the teen in return. Ichigo's cheeks tinted a shade of red not knowing if Grimmjow meant the statement the way it sounded.

The next few nights Ichigo tried everything he could think of to break the magical hold Yamamoto had over the bars of the cage. The teen exhausted himself trying to help his friend out of his prison. With minimal sleep and hardly having eaten Ichigo was physically weakening but with no other choice to continue, the teen carried on. Another attempt on Grimmjow's life late one afternoon had Ichigo suffering some injuries. Curling up next to Grimmjow that night Ichigo allowed himself to express the weakness he was feeling. It was but a lone tear that made its way down the Shiba man's face.

"I do not understand the hatred felt by the others Grimm. Why can they not see that everyone is just alike? I can only pray for your safety and that I can break these bonds before it is too late." Ichigo told the man with a broken voice.

Suddenly the cage began to creak in protest and in a flourish of sparks the yellow lights that had been holding Grimmjow captive vanished. Both Being and Hollow sat in astonishment as the lights faded and the darkness of dawn, just before day break, crept over the pair once again. Ichigo stood abruptly and squeezed through the bars to stand on the outside of the cage. Amber eyes locked onto bright blue and without much prompting Grimmjow rammed his body into the already bent bar. The steel crumbled under Grimmjow's power and body weight easily, the two bars on either side of it following in its wake without hesitation.

Grimmjow tumbled out of the steel frame as the bars collapsed and the Hollow stood immediately, stretching out his enormous body and shaking out the tightness in his muscles. Ichigo's laughing reached the Hollow's ears and he turned to watch the teen standing and watching. The teen was glad that his friend was free and all he needed was to collect some of his things from his house and they'd both be on their way before the town awoke.

Ichigo moved swiftly collecting his minimal amount of belongings and grabbing food to eat before he heard Grimmjow's rumbling growl from inside his house. His pack ready and his katana in hand Ichigo quickly ran outside to see what was happening. Grimmjow stood in a defensive stance with his back to the road that lead out of the town, men with swords blocking his path to town and from Ichigo's house.

"Yamamoto-sama was correct when he said the vile beast was out of its prison." One of the men spoke to another. Their stances led Ichigo to believe they were all skilled with swords and they would have to fight their way out of the situation. Quietly Ichigo made his way around the men and came to stand next to Grimmjow. Without warning the teen lunged at the men with his sword drawn and engaged them in battle. Disarming a few and managing to scare a few off with threat of death, Ichigo barely noticed his once friend moving behind Grimmjow as the panther fought off another group of men who appeared in the mist of the battle.

Ichigo watched as Yamamoto's blade was blanketed in a fiery energy, flames coming off of the sword and its master. The sun already risen so the flames weren't overly noticeable and Grimmjow was left unawares to the man's deadly presence. Yamamoto aimed right for the Hollow's chest, sure to burn up his lungs as his blade of flames plunges through the hierro as though it were nothing. That was to be the case as Yamamoto felt his blade sink into flesh and the squelch of the sword embedding through bone and muscles.

The road fell silent as a crushing weight filled the air. The people of town who came out of their homes at the sounds of battle were left in shock. A mysterious energy swirled around Ichigo as he stood between Yamamoto and Grimmjow, his katana hanging low still in his grip. Yamamoto's blade piecing the man's heart all the way to the hilt, his clothes burned from the flames but the strange vortex around him consuming the flames, smothering them and Ichigo's skin was left unmarred. Cold amber eyes watched his once friend with distain as the leader of the Gotei watched with shocked eyes.

Ichigo turned around to look at his beloved Hollow, his sword falling from his hand. Taking a step forward Grimmjow met him with no hesitation and pressed his head close to Ichigo, giving the man a chance to stabilize himself.

"My fellows, please realize that we in this world must live as one with no hatred in our hearts because this is the end result." Ichigo spoke clearly and strongly, blood seeping out of the corners of his mouth. The Shiba's breathing becoming heavy and Ichigo kept the urge to cough under control.

"Yamamoto, quit with your foolish actions for they have killed your only friend and I leave it to you to explain what has happened to me to my siblings and uncle. So help me if you give them foolish lies, I will haunt you in the next life. I bear that toll with the full weight of the Shiba name." Ichigo did cough violently this time, unable to keep the urge down as blood filled his lungs.

Turning again to look at Grimmjow, the Hollow had his beautiful blue eyes set hard and his jaw tense. He knew this was the end of his time with the Being he came to care so much about. No matter how much he wants to save Ichigo there was no way of treating a sword plunged right through his heart, let alone one that also pierced his lungs.

"Grimmjow you need to leave. Escape and become strong. Find me in my next life, yeah? Then you can fulfill your promise from the other night." Ichigo told the panther, lowering his face and kissing Grimmjow on the bridge of his nose. A sensation of warmth spread from the area of the kiss and seeped into his very bones and the Hollow shuddered as he felt something innately different from just a second ago. Ignoring the feeling for now, Grimmjow nodded his head to tell the man that he would do so.

"I'll find you Ichigo and then I'll ta-" Grimmjow was cut off by Ichigo falling to the ground.

Grimmjow slowly turned to look down at the black haired Shiba, a smile set on his face as his clothes were bled through and a pool of blood began to spread around him. He could feel that Ichigo was no longer among the living and let out a mourning roar, turning Grimmjow bound off towards his own district determined to follow Ichigo's last wish.

"You could have at least allowed me to finish my sentence, Ichi." Grimmjow said as he stopped at the top of a hill overlooking the town, sadness filling the Hollow to the brim. He will find his Being again, and when he does he'll make sure to follow through with his promise.

...Centuries later…

"Damn that Kurosaki! Fucker can't even finish off an opponent." Grimmjow grouched as he slowly made his way under the cover of one of the demolished stone pillars Ichigo and he destroyed during their battle.

The brat already took off to Karakura town and left Hueco Mundo in the wake of his destruction. He would have been completely alright dying by the hands of his beloved's reincarnation, but sadly the man was the same in both lives; unwilling to take another's life.

"Have you forgotten your promise to him then?" A woman's voice broke the calm that had settled over the desert plains.

"No. Now mind your own damn business Pantera." Grimmjow growled at his zanpakuto.

He released the seal placed on his powers and took to his natural form. Grimmjow then switched to his adjucha form and moved away from Las Noches and farther into the desert of Hueco Mundo. He was well aware that Ichigo wouldn't die at the hands of that weak fuck Aizen, so he decided to take to the desert once again and recuperate. Ichigo promised him another chance to fight, and though that was not the kind of fight Ichigo had intended, he would give their next battle his all. So once again, Grimmjow was to bide his time to go find Ichigo again. He'd already waited a few centuries, so a year or two were nothing to the old spirit.

Finally emerging from that wasteland that was Hueco Mundo again after almost three years was refreshing in and of itself, especially after having to kill all those arrogant Quincy bastards. What was that moron's name that was "god of all and could see the future?" Yhwach? Something like that. His infantile attempts to imprison Grimmjow were amusing to say the least.

It wasn't until they had captured Tier Harribel that they really angered Grimmjow into action. Sure he and the she Hollow didn't get along well but being one of the few to survive through Aizen's reign and one of the few Arrancar remaining, she deserved to live. Especially since she and Starrk Coyote were expecting cubs.

In any case Grimmjow was back in the Human world, the moon high in sky and the bluenette was already on the search for his intended target. His pesquisa spreading out to find the reiatsu of the man he was looking for, finding it with great difficulty, Grimmjow languidly made his way down the streets of Karakura, his reiatsu and spiritual pressure hidden with the utmost care. He was a ghost that no one would be able to find unless he so wished it.

Strolling right up to the front porch, Grimmjow took a seat in front of the sliding doors and sent the man he was looking for the slightest bit of his reiatsu to signal his attention was needed. Not a full minute later Grimmjow was flanked on three sides, the large panther not even flinching at the three powerful captain class shinigami that appeared. A woman dressed in all black with powerful legs the color of sweet dark chocolate perched on the railing of the porch just off to his left, her purple locks flowing around her, just settling from her lightning quick shunpo. She was crouched and balancing on the small beam with all the grace of a feline, ready to pounce in the blink of an eye, and he recognized her as such in an instance. The brawny man just behind his back and offset to the right had energy crackling around him and Grimmjow needed no more than a few seconds to realize that this man's offensive attacks consisted mostly of Kido, his years of life allowed him this insight. Though he too recognized that the man's mastery of the wicked prayer were of expert level and he did not doubt that he would have trouble with the man if he was not careful.

Lastly, the man he came in search of, Kisuke Urahara stood in front of him. The sliding door of his Shoten wide open and his green kimono was fluttering about him, also just settling with the swiftness of his shunpo to answer the door. His eyes were hard as he eyed the Hollow from below the brim of his hat, all the usual goofiness he'd heard the man held about him was gone.

"Thanks for opening the door so fast." Grimmjow spoke, realizing that he'd startled the man and his companions. Grimmjow made sure to address them politely for now, his brash attitude hidden away for now, as he needed to get these people to trust him.

Kisuke eyed the panther that loomed above him, even seated, and was trying to analyze the situation as quickly as possible.

"Let's not waste time ne?" Grimmjow spoke again.

"You are the sixth Espada. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez." Kisuke stated as fact, not asking as a question. Grimmjow tilted his head in confirmation and allowed the man to think of his next words.

"Why are you here?" The blond man asked.

"And how did you get so close without us sensing you?" The woman asked right on the heels of the previous question her voice betraying her suspicious nature.

"I'm here for yer help, and there ain't no way a Being could sense me if I didn't want them ta." Grimmjow answered both questions.

Kisuke's eyes widened at the term the arrancar used, wondering if he meant it in the way Kisuke thought he had. The blond had been researching into the age when such terms were used and with the Espada using such words, his curiosity was peaked.

"Being? As in any living being?" Kisuke asked, feigning ignorance.

Grimmjow sucked his teeth and cursed his age. He was still not used to calling the shinigami as such since the term was so new in Hueco Mundo. He had no interactions with any Mortal or Being since the Soul King split the three worlds, well, until Aizen came along. He was still used to calling them as in the old days when not in that farce of a persona he had while "under" Aizen's reign.

"As in you shinigami, I don't give a shit about Mortals- damn it! Humans." Grimmjow answered having to correct himself.

Kisuke waved his hand to signal the other two to retreat, his curiosity of this Hollow increasing in leaps and bounds.

"Now Grimm-chan I can only assume what you've come to ask help for is something only I can help you with, is that so?" Kisuke asked the Hollow, a fan appearing out of thin air and Grimmjow pinned this as being the man's more childish side. Grimmjow sneered at the name but nodded his feline head once again and decided to change forms as to be less intimidating to the shinigami. Putting the seal once again on his powers Grimmjow stood before the trio in his arrancar form, only the shredded remains of his old hakama covering his form, Pantera held firmly in his grasp.

"Yeah that's right." Grimmjow told the man, cocking his hip in a bit of boredom of this back and forth.

"Listen," Grimmjow cut Urahara off as the man opened his mouth to speak again.

"I'm looking for the reincarnation of Ichigo Shiba and right now he is Ichigo Kurosaki. Since the brat thinks I'm his enemy I need yer help in convincing him I ain't and have him remember his memories from his past life."

"Shiba? Where in Kami's name did you hear that name?" The woman asked the Hollow, surprise evident in her voice.

Grimmjow sighed as it seemed he would have to explain the entire story to the trio before he got any of their help.

"I'm Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez and I'm over a millennium old, no fucking comments about it." Grimmjow growled as he saw the blond opening his mouth and the glimmer in his eyes.

"In my third century of being a Hollow I got caught by a man named Yamamoto who is now the captain commander of the Gotei 13. While the fucker had me locked up, I met Ichigo Shiba. We were gonna be together after he helped me escape. The night we were escaping Yamamoto killed Ichigo, pushing his blade to the hilt into his heart." Grimmjow growled out, the rage on his face evident, the pain still clear.

" I made a promise ta Ichigo that I would find him in his next life and we would be together when he remembered. He has only rebirthed once since his initial death." Grimmjow said, taking a pause. The arrancar looked extremely tired.

"He went insane trying to cope with the fact that the supernatural was real and trying to force the memories of a time in an effort to save his sanity. I'm here fer your help trying to get my mate ta remember me and not die or go bat shit crazy this time." Grimmjow explained as shortly as he could.

The trio were baffled by the short story and quite frankly Yoruichi and Tessai didn't believe the man's story. Kisuke was the only one to hold the weight of the story in mind, his eyes wide with curiosity and a slight bit of awe. If the man was telling the truth it would be a wealth of knowledge and insight to not only the past but to the inner workings of the lives of Hollows.

"Well Grimm-chan, I don't think the problem of Ichigo's past memories will be too much of a problem, but as you know everything comes at a price, yes?" Kisuke told the arrancar.

The bluenette eyed the man warily as he took into consideration what the man could want. Despite the risks Grimmjow nodded his head to indicate that he knew that was the case and Kisuke couldn't help the grin that spread across his lips.

"Very well then Grimm-chan, please come inside. We'll start with the first bit of your payment and get Ichigo-kun down to the Shoten." Kisuke told the man as he moved aside and gestured him in with the wave of his arm. The blond gave the woman a quick look and with the flick of an eye she was gone, presumably to get Ichigo.

Cautiously Grimmjow moved further into the Shoten, sitting in the proffered seat on a low rising table. He was offered tea but immediately rejected the beverage, in his time with Aizen, tea was one of the few things the man managed to ruin for the panther. Kisuke sat across from him and decided to formally introduce them.

"Well Grimm-chan, as you know I am Kisuke Urahara, this here is Tessai Tsukabishi one of my close friends and the lovely lady you saw earlier is Yoruichi Shihōin." Kisuke said, picking up his cup of tea.

"I can introduce myself Kisuke." Said lady said as she reappeared in the room, taking a seat next to Grimmjow and eyed the man curiously.

"I met Isshin at his house and told him it was time to explain things to Ichigo. They should be here in a bit." Yoruichi told the three men as she leaned in close to Grimmjow. Her feline side showing through when she lifted her nose as she took in the other's scent.

"Are you really as old as you say you are? Wouldn't you be old and wrinkled, like Yamamoto or that Espada Baraggan?" Yoruichi asked, her curiosity just as potent as Kisuke's.

Grimmjow chuckled at her behavior. She wanted to rub against him from her natural instinct but her suspicion kept her at a distance. He reached out a hand and placed it on her head, a comforting gesture that was received well and he was glad. The woman looked like a spit fire.

"Shinigami age a shit ton slower than humans do, but eventually their age shows and they die, Hollow are different. They were human but instead of becoming spirits and then maybe shinigami, they came out different. The age when a Hollow died as a human is what they will look like for the rest of eternity, until something kills them." Grimmjow explained; Yoruichi practically lying in his lap as Grimmjow played with her hair.

Kisuke looked at the pair with a bit of jealousy seeing as Yoruichi never cuddled with him like that. He just chalked it up to the woman being finicky and proceeded to question the arrancar until he felt two familiar reiatsu show up at the front of his shop. Grimmjow stiffened and immediately changed into the large panther form he first appeared in, he informed Kisuke to not say a word of who he was until the time that Grimmjow spoke up for himself. Slightly surprised Kisuke agreed as the large adjucha curled around the blonde's form like an overgrown housecat and laid his head down. The display was both a show of trust and a threat; Yoruichi too shifted to her feline form and curled in between Grimmjow's front paws.

The father and son duo walked into the shop and found Kisuke at the table drinking tea with a huge panther Hollow sleeping beside him and Yoruichi sleeping with it. Ichigo found this odd and was so stunned by the beauty of the Hollow, he froze in the doorway staring at the creature curiously. He felt as though he'd seen the Hollow before but he knew logically that he would have either slain it or certainly he would not have forgotten it had he seen it before. With eyes on him Grimmjow lifted his head and peered open his azure blue eyes. Amber eyes held azure ones and Ichigo's sense of curiosity grew into one of discomfort and unease, there was something about that Hollow that was too familiar and it disturbed him.

"Mah, Ichigo-kun come in and take a seat. There are things your father and I have to inform you of." Kisuke said his tone slightly more serious than normal. Ichigo did as Kisuke said and took a seat across from the blond still watching the Hollow, Isshin sitting to his left and away from the panther's jaws where he could potentially become a target.

"Alright hat and clogs, goat-face, what's all this about? Could it really not wait until tomorrow? I really don't like getting taken out of bed at 11 at night." Ichigo mumbled the last part unhappily and Grimmjow found the teen amusing.

"No it couldn't. There was a factor that has come up that has forced the situation." Yoruichi answered from her very comfortable spot, the purr in her voice was unmistakable.

"Factor?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"Mah, you're getting ahead of me dear Ichigo~" Kisuke sang, his fan coming into existence as he waved it in the air to then cover his face with it.

"Hurry the hell up then." Ichigo snarled in response.

"Ichigo, this story gets a bit messy. It goes back to when I was a captain in the Gotei. My name was not Kurosaki." Isshin started off with a sigh.

Ichigo didn't comment as he saw the look on his father's face, just waited for the man to continue.

"I am actually the eldest son to the Shiba clan. Kukaku and Ganju are your aunt and uncle."

Ichigo's face contorted into something akin to horror as he thought of Ganju as being his uncle, though if he thought about it, the family resemblance between the two Shibas and his father was uncanny.

"Then where the hell did we get the name Kurosaki from?" The teen asked, confused.

"When I left the Gotei and came to the human world to be with your mother, her name was Kurosaki. I took her name and sealed off my powers for various reasons." Isshin finished the very lengthy story with the short version. If he were to tell the story in its entirety, there would be no sleep getting done that night.

Ichigo took the information with hardly the bat of an eye. It was a bit strange to think that some of his family was only made of spirits and that he actually met them, though stranger things had happened.

"Please tell me this wasn't the only thing, it's great to know that we have more family but that really could have waited." The orangette told the group of adults, his hand ruffling his hair and a yawn break through his lips.

"Actually there is more my dear little berry." Kisuke said teasingly. There was no need to lose his fun while they conversed.

"I have new information that tells me that you are more special than we initially thought."

Isshin and Ichigo both looked confused and waited until the eccentric man decided to explain what he meant.

"My friend here has informed me that you are a reincarnation of one of your ancestors." Kisuke motioned to Grimmjow with a tilt of his head.

"A reincarnation? How does that even happen? And who exactly is that?" Ichigo finally asked the question he had been itching to ask since he walked in.

"I can only assume that this is a very rare case. The reincarnation of a soul is not uncommon. Once the soul passes on to Soul Society it lives there until it eventually dies there as well and the soul moves into the cycle of rebirth and eventually the soul is born again in the human world. It is truly strange that your soul that was originally a Shiba should be reborn into the same family a millennium later." Kisuke said in a curious voice as his fan fluttered in front of his face. Ichigo nodded his head at the explanation of reincarnation and it wasn't too hard to believe since he knew souls that died in Soul Society were born again, though it was news to know that the soul was exactly the same.

"You still never introduced your friend. Plus, how do they know I'm who they say I am?" Ichigo told the blond and eyed the Hollow suspiciously.

With a sigh Grimmjow lifted his head and looked at the wary Amber eyes that watched him. The panther Hollow nudged Yoruichi and she huffed as she moved into Kisuke's lap instead of being curled up next to the Hollow. A bit nervous, which was highly unusual for the bluenette, he once again transformed into his arrancar form. His chest exposed and sword firmly clutched in his hand, Grimmjow sat just to the left of Kisuke, completing the circle around the table.

Ichigo sprung to his feet immediately and grabbed the hilt to Zangetsu, since both he and Isshin were in their soul form, and moved into a defensive position.

"What the fuck is he doing here?" Ichigo spat as he glared at the arrancar.

"Can you chill the fuck out and sit the hell down Kurosaki? If I wanted to kill your bitch ass I would have down so a million times over by now." Grimmjow snarled at the teen, his attitude rearing its ugly head. The teen just brought out the fire in him.

Kisuke raised an eyebrow, interested in the shift in Grimmjow's attitude but chalking it up to centuries of pent up frustration and needing an outlet. Ichigo hadn't moved an inch, his sights locked onto Grimmjow, the bluenette not backing down even though he was seated.

"Mah, mah Kurosaki-kun~ I did say that Grimm-chan was a friend of mine. I trust him completely, otherwise he would not be curled around me like the large house cat he is~" Kisuke sang from behind his fan, loving to rile up the teen and the vicious snarl he received from the bluenette because of the comment was just as amusing as Ichigo was.

The teen eyed the man with harsh scrutiny trying to detect the truth in the statement. It was apparent that he didn't sense the humongous lie Kisuke just told him as the orangette slowly removed his hand from the hilt of his sword and cautiously sitting down once again. Grimmjow sighed again, his face scrunching up almost as if snarling out in pain, as he tried gathering his thoughts to recount the tale to Ichigo.

"Alright brat, first of all you need to know that I ain't who you thought I was. My name is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez and yes being the sixth Espada was a title I had but it was only for a short time." Grimmjow started off, needing to clear the air about the shit that went down with Aizen. Ichigo practically growled out in anger at the "brat" comment but kept his mouth shut at the blank and unamused face Grimmjow gave him.

"To tell you the truth I have been alive longer than most of the shinigami, souls and Hollow in this world." At the incredulous look Ichigo gave him he snorted. The teen didn't even hide the fact that he eyed Grimmjow's toned and muscled chest, the skin taunt and tanned to perfection.

"Don't give me that look. Hollow don't die because of age. Hollow don't age. We only die when we are killed by, usually, other Hollow or a Shinigami." The orangette glanced at his father and Kisuke to verify the statement seeing that both nodded, indicating that it was true; Isshin knowing from his first hand experience with Shiro.

"Alright, so you're a really old piece of shit, what of it?" Grimmjow growled audibly at the crass comment, but mentally thought at he walked right into that one.

"I knew you in your other life. I met ya when ya were Ichigo Shiba. Your hair was black, but you had the same infuriating eyes and the same "I don't give a shit" attitude. You still did whatever the hell you wanted and you didn't care what any son of a bitch said or thought." Grimmjow said, his voice betraying the soft edge and fondness the words actually held. Ichigo felt inclined to believe the arrancar for a strange reason that he couldn't really pin down.

"Alright then, why are you telling me this? What does it matter? I don't remember any of that, so it shouldn't matter." Ichigo said, crossing his arms over his chest in an effort to distance himself from the situation. The orangette had a feeling that it wouldn't end well for him. When did anything ever end well for him?

"I was a Hollow when we met, a brand new Vasto Lorde. It was really fuckin' different back then, even the structure of the three worlds ain't the same. It was about a millennium ago that everything started to change, that was also when Genryūsai Yamamoto was trying to start the Gotei. Long story short, he captured me with Kido and locked me in a cage that I couldn't break free from in my moment of weakness." Grimmjow told his story.

Four sets of eyes watched him with interest and curiosity. The intensity in their gaze belaying their awe and thirst for new knowledge of world they never knew existed.

"After starving me and physically abusing me, you got fed up of his shit. You proclaimed to the whole damn town that I was under your protection and proceeded to beat or scare the shit out of anyone who wanted to fuck with me. You spent every waking moment with me from then on, for weeks on end." Grimmjow's voice formed the words but his eyes were far away in another time.

"I don't know where that shit got so fucked up. It was probably cuz of the circumstances and that Mortals, Beings and Hollows were more trusting of each other. In the end I realized that there was no one in my life except you. I was yours from then on and I wasn't going to give you up." Azure eyes now came into sharp focus and locked onto Ichigo's amber orbs with unrelenting determination.

"Yamamoto decided he wanted to murder me the morning we managed to break the Kido on the damn cage and escape back into my district, Hueco Mundo. The idiots that followed him attacked us when we were leaving town and while I was fighting trying not to fucking kill them all, Yamamoto tried to stab me right through the heart, his zanpakuto in the early stage of development. Your stupid ass jumped right in front of the blade, it went right through your heart and lung." Grimmjow recounted; his jaw clenching and his eyes hard, just like they were that day.

Ichigo's heart clenched and fluttered at the sight of Grimmjow. The words caused a strange sense of déjà vu but he refused to let that get to him.

"You told the people of town to live without hate, you told Yamamoto to quit his shit and stop trying to exterminate Hollows and you told me to find you in your next life, to make sure you remembered and to keep the promise I made you. You dropped dead right at my feet before I could even finish my vow to keep that promise." Grimmjow finished his retelling of a tale that he hadn't said out loud until that day.

"What was the promise?" Ichigo spoke in a soft voice, not wanting to upset the man more than he already was.

"I promised I would take you to be mine after we had escaped." Grimmjow answered shortly. He reminded himself of that promise everyday he woke.

"I can't believe that." Ichigo said shaking his head in denial.

Grimmjow's head snapped up to look at the teen at the softly spoken words. The tone was in disbelief and the teen was closing himself off to the thought.

"What?" Was the only thing Grimmjow could voice.

"I can't believe you! Why would Yamamoto do any of that? Why would I do any of that? You can't even be sure it was me!" Ichigo was panicking now, not wanting to consider that being the truth for one second.

"Why the fuck would I make any of that shit up? It is you and I fucking know it. Trust me I wouldn't get this shit wrong after all this time you asshole!"Grimmjow growled, his voice escalating in voice.

Ichigo bristled at the yelling and shot to his feet in an instance, Grimmjow immediately taking up the challenge and stood to meet the teen's fierce glare with one of his own, equally as potent.

"Calm down you two. Grimm-chan, please sit. You must realize that this is a lot for our young berry to take in." Kisuke told the man, trying to keep the two from jumping at each other's throats.

With a very animal like snarl Grimmjow backed down and sat back in his seat, his eyes never leaving Ichigo. The bluenette watched as Isshin grabbed the teen's arm in a strong grip; a silent conversation happened when Ichigo looked at his father and after a few moments the teen snatched his arm away and sat back down. Silence hung heavily in the room, the tension thick before Isshin broke it.

"As the eldest Shiba child, there was this family heirloom that I was supposed to read when I came of age. It was then that I left to become a shinigami before ever reading the thing. When your uncle Kaien was killed I went back to Soul Society in secret to meet with my siblings and to attend his funeral. Kukaku had inherited the book by then and she gave it to me to take after reading it." Isshin said as he reached into the folds of his haori and pulled out a small book, placing it on the table in front of his son.

"Kukaku vowed that the Shibas would never again be involved with Seireitei. After I read the book I realized the mistake I had made. The beginning of the book is accounts for a shop, numbers and inventory, things like that but after a certain page it becomes a journal." Isshin explained as he leaned over and slowly and gently flipped through the book, the pages illustrating exactly what he was saying. Grimmjow frowned in frustration as the conversation drifted away from what he came here for. What the fuck did this stupid book have to do with the situation? Isshin stopped at a page and pointed his fingers to the faded words.

"'It was a dark day in the Shiba house. I know not how to give an explanation to Marginette and Akihiko. They both adored their elder brother dearly, and this news is surely to devastate them.'" Isshin began to quote, by memory, the words on the page.

"What is this dad?" Ichigo asked, appearing shaken.

"Eiji Shiba was the second son of the Shiba family to be born and the brother of Hisao Shiba, who was the father of Ichigo Shiba. Eiji was Ichigo Shiba's uncle and this is his journal." Isshin explained what the journal was and its importance was suddenly clear. A small smirk pulled on Grimmjow's lips and he shook his head, a snort left him.

"You always spoke about how lazy the bastard was, leaving you to watch that piece of shit shop all day by yourself. Marginette and Akihiko would come around occasionally when you were guarding me; they were beautiful just like you. I always wondered what happened to your family." Grimmjow spoke softly, it was as if he hadn't meant to speak aloud.

"Marignette married into another wealthy house, had three children and died rather happily after her children grew older. Akihiko had two children who became the heirs of the Shiba name and continued the family." Isshin told the arrancar, who only nodded his head at the information.

"Eiji Shiba was there the morning that his nephew was killed. He wrote down what he saw that day. 'I watched as the Hollow which my nephew placed under his protection fended off attacks from all sides. With just one swipe of its deadly claws it could surely kill all the men that dared trifle with it, though I suppose the influence Ichigo has had on the creature prevented it from killing the men. Instead it danced around them in an effort to spare their lives and leave the town unharmed itself, Ichigo himself fending off attacks from a few men. It was in these moments of chaos that I observed Yamamoto unsheathe his blade, a strange energy flowing around the man and flames bursting forth, immersing the blade in their fiery touch. Wasting no time the man lunged to drive his blade through the Hollow he held captive, trying to dispatch the beast from the world. It was Ichigo who moved with immeasurable speed.'" Isshin continued to quote from the book.

"Shunpo," Ichigo whispered as he listened to his father speak and the older Kurosaki nodded his head.

"'Through Ichigo the blade plunged and all the breath in my body left me in that instant, my eyes widened as I watched everything go still. I stumbled forward from the very back of the crowd, where I had been watching from a safe distance. I stopped my movement as I heard Ichigo speak addressing the town folk 'My fellows, please realize that we in this world must live as one with no hatred in our hearts because this is the end result,' he gestured to himself and the carnage around him. He spoke again, addressing the man whom he once called friend, 'Yamamoto, quit with your foolish actions for they have killed your only friend and I leave it to you to explain what has happened to me to my siblings and uncle. So help me if you give them foolish lies, I will haunt you in the next life. I bear that toll with the full weight of the Shiba name.' That boy was a strong one, he had always been.'" Ichigo listened intently to his father as he also read the same words on the page before him.

"'My poor nephew coughed something horrid, blood flowing from the corner of his lips. He turned to the Hollow in that moment and held the large head of the creature tenderly; he spoke softly to the Hollow, as I was barely able to disconcert what was said. 'Grimm you need to leave. Escape and become strong. Find me in my next life, yeah? Then you can fulfill your promise from the other night.' He then proceeded to kiss the beast, leaving a trail of blood on the bone white skin. Ichigo dropped, dead, to the floor as the Hollow was speaking, the heart break clear to see on his face. The creature left in a hurry afterwards, the roars of pain could be heard well into the morning. I left the crowd before I was seen, allowing Yamamoto to honor my nephew's last wish. That vile man betrayed Ichigo to the end. Lies spewed from his lips as poison would, blaming his death on the Hollow as he carried the body and handed over Ichigo's corpse. Never will the Shiba forget the disgrace.'" The journal entry ended and the room was once again coated in silence.

Grimmjow suddenly stood, a pained look on his face, but he turned to face Ichigo determinedly.

"I ain't gonna force you into being with me. I ain't a dick like that, and I've waited long enough to be with you again I can wait some more. I ain't gonna leave you alone though. I'll be around constantly until you remember on your own, or I help you remember, either way you're stuck with me Ichigo." Grimmjow told the stunned orangette. In the next moment the bluenette was gone from the room and even his reiatsu was gone.