So I wrote this when I was obsessed with that Mystery Skulls Animation for Ghost because it was freaking awesome. Tweaked some things and made it a kinda angsty GrimmIchi thing? Like past relationship junk but you'll figure out whose who when you read it~ :3 Hope you all enjoy~~ Also major apologies for being pretty much nonexistent on this website, but life is just fighting me right now. I'm going to try and get back into writing more, but please be patient! Thanks, peeps~ :D
The night was dark, broken only by the flickering streetlights lining the road. Grimmjow frowned as he stared at the slight glimmer of windows hidden behind a wrought-iron fence and scraggly trees. Turning to his companions, he quirked a brow at the albino figure slouched in the passenger seat with a cat perched regally on his lap.
"You sure this the place?" He was skeptical of scrounging out an abandoned house in the middle of scenic nowhere, especially when Shiro of all people advertised it like the latest video game.
The albino rolled his eyes before pushing the cat onto the middle console between the seats, "Yeah, dumbass. It's the only house out here."
Grimmjow clicked his teeth at the smart reply, pulling the keys from the ignition and sparing the house another questioning glance. It had a slightly purple sheen in the moonlight, parts of the worn wood and shutters glowing orange from the streetlights. The grass was overgrown and stretched onto the sidewalk in jagged patterns that resembled fire. Grimmjow's eyes remained locked on a particular patch that surrounded a single red flower, the plant contrasting greatly with its haunting surroundings.
"C'mon, pussy cat. I wanna get this place looked at before the sun comes up." Grimmjow growled at the nickname but stepped from the car regardless. He held it open for his cat to follow obediently, the feline sitting daintily on the asphalt while shaking a loose rock from its front paw. Smirking at the action, Grimmjow closed the door to the van before scooping the animal up and depositing it on his shoulder.
"Lead the way, your highness." Grimmjow laughed at Shiro's pinched expression, following the albino past the gap in the fence and up the winding path that led to the front door of the house.
From up close, Grimmjow could see just how dilapidated the house truly was, the windows and parts of the foundation cracked and open showing overgrown vines twining in their depths. The two paused when they reached the door, Grimmjow taking in the chipped wood that was boarded up with equally worn planks. It only took a well aimed kick from Shiro for the doors to cave in, the two stepping past the broken wood and into a surprisingly well-kept foyer.
"Damn. This ain't half bad."
Grimmjow hummed in agreement as he stared at the many portraits lining the walls, the deep red of the wallpaper causing the dark wood of the frames to stand out in stark contrast. There were men and women, children and adults, priests and portrayals of devils. It was unnerving to say the least, especially when Grimmjow got the feeling he was being watched by something.
"C'mon. There's supposed ta be a really cool room downstairs or something." Grimmjow followed his friend blindly, absently petting Pantera to hopefully keep his nerves under lock. There was something truly daunting about this house, and feeling growing as they walked diligently down the hallway.
It was only when Grimmjow noticed the strange red light casting shadows along the walls that he took notice of the many candles- the many lit candles- lining the tables and walls of the entranceway. His hand fell from where it was once tangled in Pantera's fur, blue eyes narrowing as he watched candles further down the path light themselves when they got close enough.
"Shiro. The hell is going on here?" The albino paused at the entrance to a large room, the candles at his side casting haunting shadows along his sharp features and causing his inverted eyes to glow maliciously.
"Whatcha mean, blue?" Grimmjow motioned towards the candles surrounding them in a reddish glow, Shiro finally taking note of the strange anomaly and frowning in confusion. "The hell?"
Grimmjow gave the surrounding hall another once over before stepping closer to his friend, "I think we should go."
Shiro looked like he wanted to argue before a sound, like the igniting of a fire, roared behind him. The two turned to see the once shadowed room be illuminated by the same reddish light as the hallway, a large chandelier suspended from the ceiling glowing with hundreds of white candles. Grimmjow felt his skin prickle as though someone were behind him, whipping around to see the shadows cast by the flickering candles sink back into the wall as though nothing had happened.
The blue haired teen swallowed thickly.
"We need to get out of here." Grabbing the albino's hand, Grimmjow turned- ready to sprint out the door and never look back- only to slam into a hard chest. A very hard, very real chest.
Looking up into glowing yellow eyes, Grimmjow felt his breath catch in his throat as the figure grinned. What was supposed to be a mouth was a jagged line that ran in a zigzag pattern horizontally where a mouth should be. The space behind the mouth was illuminated by a red flame, one that rose to bigger proportions as the figure's grin grew.
"This time you might just disappear~" Grimmjow didn't know what to think about the strangely melodic voice, nor the creature that seemed to sprout clones that took up places at its back.
Taking a cautious step back, Grimmjow gave an unmanly squeak as his wrist was grabbed and he was yanked down an adjacent hall. Turning with some difficulty, Grimmjow followed the frantic pace of his albino friend down the dim hallway. He was sure the paintings were watching them now, could see the painted figures slowly inch from their frames as the teens rushed to find a place of safety.
They rounded a corner at the end of the hall, immediately coming upon a live suit of armor that threatened to take their heads off had Grimmjow not dove for Shiro at the last moment.
"What the fuck?!" Grimmjow returned his friend's sentiments mentally before grabbing the prone form and continuing their mad dash down the hallway.
The two came to a dead end a short time later, Grimmjow backing up against the wall as the portraits turned to them with demented grins on their faces. Shiro pressed against his back as he stared at the few paintings on the opposing wall.
"This time I might just disappear~" The words struck a chord in Grimmjow, blue brows furrowing as he stared at the smirking figure of a young woman in a Victorian setting. Her smirk turned deadly as she gripped the rope cord hanging before her portrait, yanking downward and waving the three away as the floor swallowed them up.
Grimmjow found his voice lodged in his throat as he fell, eyes locked on the strange floating objects that surrounded them like an Alice in Wonderland remake. Shiro was doing the same, though he seemed a little more panicked.
Pantera had fallen from his shoulders some time during the whole running ordeal and was floating upside down across from Grimmjow quietly, licking her paws as though nothing were wrong. The blue haired teen would've laughed had the situation not been so dire, instead focusing on the three mirrors that were approaching them from below.
He turned just in time to see his reflection as they passed, eyes widening at the strange image. Everything was normal except for his eyes which were a pitch black. He just barely caught the reflections of Pantera and Shiro in his own mirror, brows furrowing at the spiderweb cracks that marred his cat's mirror and the strangely missing limb in Shiro's reflection.
He didn't have time to think on the strange phenomenon before they reached the bottom. Grimmjow grunted as he slammed into the ground, wondering how he survived for only a moment before he registered the lack of cursing from Shiro and purring from Pantera. Sitting up, the blue haired teen took in his surroundings, what he could see of them that is.
Directly across from his there was a strange coffin with symbols etched into the black wood, a strange skull face printed directly in the middle with jagged teeth and a sharp chin. A red rug led up to the coffin, torches lining the wall on either side. It was only when he registered the echoing creak that he returned his attention to the coffin where the beginnings of the silk linings could be seen. The lid continued to shift away from the coffin to reveal an impeccably dressed skeleton- with a skull much like the one printed on the lid- with a yellow heart floating above his chest where a real heart would reside.
Grimmjow felt his skin chill as the skeleton moved, eyeholes being ignited by a red flame as he stepped from the coffin. The dead man watched the silent teen in contemplation, his left hand rising up unconsciously to run lovingly over the golden heart beating above his chest. Grimmjow felt something in his chest stir at the action, his own right hand moving to press against the empty space around his neck that felt unnaturally light.
The teen jumped as he registered the skeleton moving again, hands motioning for him to stand up. Grimmjow did so willingly, holding his breath as the figure stopped a couple feet in front of him. From this close, Grimmjow could see that the red light he once thought illuminated the skeleton's eyeholes was actually a deep umber. He shook the thought off as the skeleton lowered its head before snapping it backwards as though tossing hair out of its face.
Grimmjow felt his amazement grow as orange flames sprouted from the skeleton's head, taking the form of jagged spikes that sputtered and hissed as they moved with the ghostly wind. Grimmjow was lost as to how any of this was possible, but pushed the thought away as the figure extended a hand to him.
It was thankfully covered in a leather glove, Grimmjow taking the appendage cautiously before he was suddenly yanked down a hallway he never noticed earlier. His feet barely scraped the ground as they went farther, the skeleton only stopping once they reached a balcony of sorts.
Grimmjow looked around the strange area, taking in the chipped rocks and broken banisters that lined the edges before he noticed the sudden light getting closer to his face. Taking a step back, Grimmjow quirked a brow as the skeleton seemed to pull into himself, gently easing his heart back to its previous place above his chest. Silence stretched around the duo as Grimmjow tried to put the strange happenings into some type of context.
He was in a haunted house with a living skeleton and his friend and cat were lost somewhere else. Nothing strange about the situation at all.
Grimmjow jumped as he felt a hand on his elbow, turning to the skeleton with suspicion in his eyes, muscles tensed. The skeleton pulled away slowly, the flames in his eyes dimming slightly as he nodded towards a sturdy section of the balcony where a stone bench resided. The blue haired teen gulped before walking the short distance and flopping on the cool stone, relishing in the chilled breeze of early autumn as he tried to clear his head.
Grimmjow blinked as he was suddenly staring into a pair of reddish-brown flames, the fire swirling in such a way that it gave the skeleton faux-pupils. Blinking dumbly, Grimmjow tried to push back into the banister only to realize he was as far away as he could get.
"What do you want from me?" The question came unbridled and, thankfully, without a hint of fear. Grimmjow watched as the flames in the skeleton's head seemed to slow their chaotic swirl into a calmer pattern of loosely twirling tendrils.
He would've called it beautiful had he not felt so out of place.
Instead of answering verbally, something Grimmjow was sure the skeleton had no ability to do, the skeleton reached for Grimmjow's right hand with his left. Grimmjow could feel the jagged bones beneath the leather of the glove as his hand was raised, fingers rubbing across the golden heart at the skeleton's chest.
And it was like a switch being flipped.
Grimmjow gasped as his eyes widened, unseeing to the brightening flames in the skeleton's eye holes as he was pulled unwillingly into a surreal world where he knew this undead creature, knew his story and his dreams and everything he loved and hated about the world. He knew his name- Ichigo- and he knew his father and sisters and mother who died when he was young. He knew how old he was when they met- the first day of high school where they had gotten into a skirmish over the last pudding cup in the cafeteria- how old he was when he died, how they had planned to grow old together!
And suddenly it hurt.
It hurt like the fires Grimmjow could feel burning inside Ichigo's skeletal chest; burned like Ichigo's flames rushing out at his death to take away his memories of the one he loved the most; burned hotter than the sun and then some. And then he was being pulled into a surprisingly warm chest, gloved hands patting gently at his hair and back in a manner that was so familiar and so painfully craved that Grimmjow could do nothing but clench the back of Ichigo's pressed suit in his hands. And, oh god, there was just something so complete about being held in his arms, a hole in his chest he didn't know existed closing the longer the two held each other.
And suddenly it was over.
"Grimmjow!" The blue haired teen pulled away from Ichigo's chest with a sniff, not allowing himself the privilege of crying considering just how much his undead love had been through. Shiro stood in the doorway to the house, chest heaving and eyes wide as he watched the two. Pantera pushed past his friend's legs and walked calmly towards them, pawing pitifully at Ichigo's pants leg before purring as she was picked up and held against his chest. Grimmjow smiled at the familiar sight, finally able to attune the sharp features of the skull with the dead teen.
"What the hell is that?!" Grimmjow glared at Shiro with as much intensity as he could muster, barely refraining from growling as the albino only glared back.
"He-" Grimmjow made a show of grabbing Ichigo's unoccupied hand in his own, ignoring the strange vibrations he felt as bones rubbed together, "is Ichigo Kurosaki."
Grimmjow paused before turning to the cat purring happily in Ichigo's arms. Jabbing a finger in the feline's content face, Grimmjow glared with as much force as one could when they were glaring at a cat.
"And what the hell are you!?"
"Meow?"
Grimmjow suddenly registered a gravelly crackle that he assumed was Ichigo's version of laughter, easily recognizing the motion as his shoulders moved up and down and his flames crackled sporadically. Smiling at the sight, Grimmjow pushed his worries about his (demon?) cat away as he just enjoyed the surreal moment for what it was.
"Seriously, what the hell is goin' on?" Shiro was now leaning against the doorway, a hand on his forehead as the other pressed against the cracked door frame. Grimmjow chanced a glance at the skeleton at his side, Ichigo piercing him with reddish-brown flames before the blue haired teen chuckled.
Just like when he was alive.
"So what had happened was…."
"And then you showed up." Grimmjow leaned back into the banister as he finished his tale, Shiro sitting on a large portion of broken stone in front of him.
"Whoa." The albino ran a hand through his hair- one that sported strangely metallic fingers, Grimmjow noticed- before fixing the silent skeleton leaning into Grimmjow's side with a guilty look, "I'm sorry for killin' you. I swear I didn't know what I was doin'."
Ichigo only waved him off with a glove-clad hand, quickly returning to petting Pantera as she bumped her head against his raised palm. Grimmjow smiled at the sight, sifting through his new memories of how close they all used to be before the accident.
"Hey, Ichigo?" Grimmjow faced the albino like the skeleton, quirking a brow at Shiro's confused expression. "The hell is with the heart?"
Grimmjow blinked as he, too, focused on the glowing cartoonish heart beating soundly above the skeleton's chest. Grimmjow could vaguely remember blurs of it in his broken memories, but nothing solid that would explain its existence.
Ichigo nodded, not surprised by the question, before pulling the heart away from his chest gently. It continued to beat as it floated about an inch above his hand, Grimmjow watching in fascination as he laid it flat in his palm before pressing on it. There was a soft click before the top lifted away, the golden glow disappearing to be replaced by a metal finish as the interiors of the locket were shown.
Grimmjow felt his throat tighten at the picture of Ichigo and himself, the smaller teen wrapped in his arms and looking up at him in adoration as he returned the look two-fold. It's strange to think he could forget such an important part of his life, but the sight of the undead skeleton walking before him gave Grimmjow hope for their weird future.
"That's sappy as hell. I bet twenty Grimm got it as an apology for forgettin' your anniversary." The blue haired teen blushed as he glared at his friend, the color deepening when Ichigo only nodded from beside him.
"I told you I'm not good with dates!"
"It was also his birthday, dumbass."
"Shut up!"
Grimmjow only growled as the two laughed at his expense, Ichigo patting his shoulder in apology. He allowed the action, welcomed it, as he registered the first inklings of sunlight peeking over the horizon. At the same time, he noticed the diminishing pressure from the skeleton at his side.
Turning to his undead lover, Grimmjow's eyes widened at Ichigo's translucent form. The skeleton's flames continued to burn brightly, though the light from the sun broke through their orange haze.
"The hell is going on?" Grimmjow gripped one of Ichigo's hands with his own, the glove growing lighter until his fingers were gripping nothing but air. Blue eyes were wide as they followed the slowly disappearing arms up to the relatively opaque skull. "Ichigo?"
Grimmjow felt his chest constrict as Ichigo only shook his head sadly. The skeleton motioned his head towards the still tangible locket sitting in his lap, Grimmjow grabbing it with shaking fingers before piercing the undead teen with his stare. He could practically feel the morose smile the skeleton was giving him, wishing he could see it just one last time. Grimmjow swallowed the lump in his throat as Ichigo's remaining hand grabbed the hand holding the locket and lifted it towards his skeletal face. The whisper of jagged bone against his knuckles was the only thing Grimmjow felt before the last of Ichigo's body shimmered out of existence. His hand fell to the empty space at his side with a clatter of the locket against the stone bench.
"I'm sorry…" Grimmjow blinked at Shiro, the albino lazily running his fingers along Pantera's back, eyes trained firmly on the rising sun. The blue haired teen turned away from the dismal look of his friend, unused to the weight of upturned emotions on Shiro's pale features.
"It's not your fault." And it never would be, Grimmjow reminded himself mentally. Ichigo died in the line of work that he adored, his bitterness strangely absent after a year of being trapped in a dilapidated house in the middle of nowhere. Grimmjow's fingers clenched around the locket, a strange warmth spreading through his fingers a few moments later.
Blinking at the smooth silver, Grimmjow pressed his thumb against the cover and popped the lid open. He stared at the picture of himself and Ichigo for only a moment, eyes soon straying towards the words being etched into the metal opposite the photograph by a reddish-orange flame. Grimmjow smiled softly as the flames died down and left a smooth inscription in the reflective metal: "Got my heart burning, though I lost my spell."
Grimmjow closed the locket with a solid click, pressing the necklace against his chest with a wistful smile. "Let's head out."
"You sure?" Grimmjow offered Shiro a reassuring smile as he levered himself to his feet. THe albino followed him slowly, Pantera pressed against his chest like a deceptively fluffy shield.
"Yeah. I think our job here is done." Grimmjow offered the bench one last lingering look before turning and stalking through the elaborate hallways of the building. They seemed less daunting after spending an evening with the sentient skeleton of his dead lover, but there was also something strangely comforting about the wine red walls, hardwood floors, and unnerving paintings.
Grimmjow exited through the busted front door, stepping carefully over splintered wood and the cracked porch. He stopped at the gate to the house, turning to offer the clouded windows and hole-filled foundation a fond look. His hand pressed against the rusted metal of the gate, running down the chipped paint and coarse metal before it fell limply to his side. "Grimmjow?"
The blue haired teen glanced at Shiro, the albino waiting outside the fence with Pantera sitting calmly at his feet. Grimmjow offered the house one last look before following Shiro towards the car and getting into the driver's seat. He started the car with a small frown, taking one last glance at the house as Shiro hopped in the passenger seat. Pantera shuffled across the albino's lap towards the back of the van with a purr. Grimmjow offered the cat an exasperated look, still confused on the creature he witnessed in Ichigo's foggy memories, before he faced forward and pulled back onto the road.
When he was a safe distance from the house, Grimmjow peered through his rearview mirror toward the house, almost surprised to see it shimmer into nothing in the early morning sun. Grimmjow swallowed the lump in his throat as he took a hand off the wheel and gripped the locket around his neck, breath stuttering past his lips as he focused on the road ahead.
I really don't know where to go from here, so I'm just going to end it~ :D sorry not sorry, hope you all enjoy~~~