;Hello I am back with more shit this time it's not even my fault it's grimmichiconfessions on tumblr's fault don't look at me.:
:WARNINGS- BLOOD, GORE, EXPLICIT VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN, CANNABALISM, HORROR THEMES.:
...
You've got more bones than a graveyard,
There's more love in a dead man's arms...
...
There's more love in a dead man's arms...
...
He's stacking shelves when his phone buzzes; and he frowns even as he fishes it out of his pocket and checks the caller ID. His friends and family know not to ring him while he's working unless it's an emergency, and his heart thumps with a strangled kind of worry as he reads Karin's name.
"What's wrong?" He huffs over the line, tucking the phone between the arch of his cheek and his shoulder as he returns to stacking canned food.
"Ichi-nii, there's a ghoul." Her voice is scratchy and raw and he can hear commotion in the background, sirens. A voice over a megaphone, trying to organise students by their classes.
"Where's Yuzu. Is she with you on the grounds?" His spine stiffens, an unlucky can crumpling slightly in his grip.
"She's inside. She- she's inside with the ghoul, Ichigo what do I do- the police won't help no one is going in there to get the remaining students; some of class 4B came out with blood spatters and no teacher-" Her breath hitches and she starts to hyperventilate, sobbing audibly. "The cops are saying it's the one that's been on the news recently, they called him White Hollow? I don't know, it sounds like something stupid from- from a tv show or something-" Her weeping takes over her voice until it's unintelligible.
The can crumples into nothing but twisted metal, baked beans oozing from the blown out end and splattering onto the floor, speckling his shoes.
"Stay there. Stay there, Karin." He hangs up after she manages a weepy agreement, shoves the phone back into his pocket and hightails it out of the small grocer's immediately, not even pausing to remove his name tag as he sprints down the blocks towards his sister's school. His legs feel light, like he's not even moving them, a blur as he hurdles a fence with one arm, losing no momentum even as he takes the shortcut through the old oval. He can see the lights flashing at the front of the massive building, a throng of people huddled behind police barriers while they cordoned off the entrance. They're already spreading out to the side entrances, presumably in an attempt to cut the ghoul off from any escape. He hears a whisper of an 'incoming task force' from a man with a handheld radio (but that could be too late to save his sister, so he doesn't pause) before the policeman is screaming at him to stop. He doesn't listen, just tucks and rolls when he leaps into the closest ground floor window, rising to a crouch in the silent hall. Glass audibly slides off him, and he can feel blood dripping down his cheek, sharp points embedded in his shoulders. He can hear the fuss he's caused outside, but he doesn't care in the slightest. There's a monster hunting his sister and he's never been known to be reasonable when it comes to his baby siblings.
It's eerily quiet, his chest fluttering as he catches his breath, fluorescent lighting doing nothing in the too-bright sunlight streaming through the windows. Absently he thinks that must be a waste of power.
Another part of him muses that it should be dark and cloudy and somber, befitting a horror story. He can smell the metallic aroma of blood from here. His stomach twists even as he moves forward on silent feet, peering around a corner. He moves faster the less he finds, cautiously peering into every classroom as he scouts the ground floor, before taking the stairs up. The smell of blood is stronger here; and he grimaces at the smeared trails along the floor.
Incredulity washes over him, abrupt and staggering. He can't fight a ghoul. They're not human. They're nothing like the thugs he tussles with on a regular basis, too strong and too fast. The news shows them taking down men in swathes with strange red appendages til special forces are called in- the ones no reporter is allowed to film; but everyone knows they 'take care' of ghouls.
Yuzu's smile flashes through his mind and any hesitation bleeds out of him like water through a sieve; because he'd rather die fighting than do nothing. Karin would never forgive him, he'd never forgive himself.
He tilts his head when soft sobbing catches his ears; a wet tearing sound accompanying it. Goosebumps prickle along his arms as he edges towards the closest classroom, peering achingly slowly around the corner of the door. Hot bile rises in his throat and he fights the urge to gag as the man sinks teeth into the body of a little boy, face frozen in horror as Yuzu and another girl, (at least two grades below her, he thinks) whimper and tremble in the corner, watching with horrified fascination, unable to tear their eyes away. He pulls back around the corner, leans against the cool wall for a second, takes a deep breath.
That's his baby sister in there. His baby sister.
He peers back around, tense and ready to grab the nearest chair and pounce- but the ghoul isn't there. Yuzu meets his eyes with terror in her tear streaked face. Fear latches along his spine, sweat beading at his temple as something snickers in his ear. Behind him.
"Ooh a hero! A hero with such bright hair... what a silly hero..." The voice is raspy and unused and the smell of rancid flesh is overpowering with every creaky breath the ghoul takes. Ichigo lashes out on automatic, hands flat on the ground as he goes for a low sweep. The ghoul jumps over it without the slightest change of bland facial expression, and fear pumps through him again even as he launches backwards to get some breathing room. He doesn't get it- the ghoul moves forward in a blur and it's all Ichigo can do to raise his arms and block the fists and lashing whip of serrated, pulsing red flesh he can't truly get a lock on the details of, and the adrenaline doesn't even begin to lessen the aching pain each blow causes, the sting and tear of the foreign appendage gouging at his arms, then at his legs and shoulders when he finally stumbles, giving out under the onslaught.
"You smell good, little hero!" The ghoul cackles softly, high pitched and morbidly gleeful; white hair falling in it's eyes, gold on black. Ichigo vaguely wonders why they aren't red on black, like other ghouls, when there's something putting pressure on his lungs and stomach.
He looks down, blinks at the pulsating tail speared through his insides. It is kind of a tail, he thinks vaguely, because he can see that it comes from the base of the ghoul's spine when he looks up, bewildered.
Yuzu screams his name from the doorway but he feels so fuzzy and far away from her. There's an awful slick noise and suddenly nothing is holding him up and he collapses to the floor, face down like a puppet with it's strings severed. The cackling starts again, distorted voice coming in and out of focus as Ichigo tries so hard to grasp at his own consciousness.
"ICHI-NII!" Yuzu screams again, and Ichigo's fingers twitch.
"Aww, poor little girl... don't worry. I'll eat you first. You won't have to watch me consume your darling brother. Pity he couldn't be a real hero, could he?" He can hear Yuzu thrashing in the ghoul's grip and the blood on the floor underneath him is sticky, congealing, seeping through his shirt and pants and into his skin, cold and clammy. His fingers dig at the smooth linoleum, fighting for purchase even as he struggles to feel his legs. He wonders if his spine has been severed.
"Aah, looks like the silly boy is still going... better put him down for good. Watch carefully little girl!"
Yuzu screams again, a wordless wail that barely sounds human as something impacts directly through his chest, and his eyes go wide.
The scream echoes.
It echoes.
Yuzu chokes on air as the monster who killed her brother lifts her into the air by her throat, a wet noise interrupting her sobs as the appendage is wrenched from Ichigo's body, making it jerk and spasm briefly. It's speaking now, almost consideringly tilting it's head at her. "You're crying." It says, amused, and squeezes tighter. Her eyes fix on the bloodied form on the floor nearby, and Yuzu hates. Hates more than she's ever hated in her entire sweet existence, more hate than she even thought a human was capable of mustering. She wants her Ichi-nii to stand up and crush the monster like he drove away all her nightmares. Like he told off the older kids for bullying her when she first started school. She wants the blood to go away. She wants him to stand up.
Yuzu Kurosaki wants and hates and loathes and desperately wishes, and the ghoul opens it's mouth, saliva bubbling up like poison as it leans in, rotting breath invading her senses. She looks away from her brother, towards wide white teeth, set in an equally white face and thinks this is her own fault for pausing to grab the younger girl when she'd fallen in the evacuation. It's a cruel thought, but protecting someone else has cost her Ichigo and her own life and-
Oh but that's what Ichigo did. He died to protect her, didn't he? He came from his job to try and save her. He tried to fight a ghoul though he knew he'd never match one physically. He'd be proud of her for protecting someone else.
Yuzu hates and loathes this monster and loves her brother and the swirling mixture of emotions makes her bare her teeth in defiant rage even as she cries.
The grip around her throat vanishes abruptly and she lands hard on her hands and knees with a cough, blinking rapidly in shock. She looks up as the ghoul hisses, white face turning an unpleasant shade of green.
"You should be dead. No human can-" it's cut off with a gurgle when a familiar hand wraps around the ghoul's throat and squeezes, awful crunching noises emanating from the pressure. She stares in awe, because not even Ichigo could do that, could he? To be so strong...
"You won't hurt her." Ichigo's voice is a raspy wheeze and she realises he's still bleeding heavily despite his sudden unnatural strength. The ghoul thrashes around, unable to breathe or reply, and then Ichigo's other hand comes up and plasters over the monster's face and part of it's scalp and squeezes, inexorable and unstoppable. The ghoul screams, high pitched warbles of agony until the bone cracks and creaks; then caves, and it's head resembles a crushed watermelon, Ichigo's hand holding the last messy pulp.
Yuzu finally, blissfully passes out, but not before seeing Ichigo raise his bloody fist to his mouth, eyes wild. Somehow, it doesn't bother her. Ichigo would never be a monster.
...
"Mama, I'm hungry. Tou-san said he's full, but I'm still hungry." Ichigo mumbles, standing up on the tips of his toes and gently tugging at his mother's apron, trying to be discreet as he whispers. His hand comes to rest on the side of the curve of his mother's stomach and she smiles at the automatic look of awe on his face at the touch to where his new sibling was forming.
"That's because you're growing, Ichigo. You'll be hungry and hungry til you stop." She hums, but he frowns instead of taking the answer as it is, tugs on the soft cloth again.
"But mama, I'm REALLY hungry. So hungry even seconds don't help. I just feel all puffed up and round and still hungry, like a tummy full of water instead of food." He pouts, and Masaki's cheer fades slightly. She turns from the dishes and bends down to kiss his forehead.
"I'm sorry, Ichigo. But you have to be strong for mama, and pretend you aren't hungry after you've eaten." She pulls back, looks him in the eye, and he stares up at red in black in his mother's pretty face. "Promise me you'll keep this hunger a secret." The little boy nods, and when he blinks Masaki's eyes are honey brown again, and she smiles widely. "Go play with tou-san while mama finishes the dishes."
"But I can help!"
"Maybe next time, sweetheart."
...
The next time Yuzu wakes, she's cradled against her brother's chest, sticky with blood. His blood, she thinks, blinking wearily. The younger girl trails behind him, and Yuzu is relieved she escaped unharmed. Her memories are blurry and faint, and she doesn't fight when the paramedics take her away and usher Ichigo towards a different van. At some point Karin is there, holding her hand tight enough to bruise, but she doesn't mind. Her head hurts and she keeps falling asleep, but she knows she'll be fine because Ichi-nii saved her and Karin is here and they're both okay now.
Later in her hospital bed Urahara Kisuke slips a pill down her throat and her memories blur further, beyond recognition. She's asleep while he does this, and it hurts him to have to, but he promised a woman long ago that he'd keep her son safe, and Yuzu knows things now, things that she shouldn't have to live with. He's already been to see Ichigo, unconscious in the room across the hall, needing surgery to fix the damage done to his insides (and maybe one day Kisuke will regret pulling strings to acquire specific organs from specific 'donors' for the lung transplant the boy needed, but for now he's just glad Ichigo is alive). He sits down heavily, lets out a sigh as he watches the small girl breathe, calm and easy. This feels like the calm before a storm, and he doesn't know what to do about it. He knows Masaki would hate him, for amplifying the monster she put inside her son, but he has to live. It's like a bizarre anime, and he can't help chuckling to himself at the thought.