Hello-z! apocalypticFirebird here! So, here's the next chapter of this lovely little story. Please review and enjoy!
and...I wish I owned Bleach, but I don't. heehee
/
Why am I so cold? were the first thoughts flowing through Ichigo's mind as he began to wake up after being knocked out for the second time. He kept his eyes shut for a few more moments before he dared to force them open. What he saw was even more confusing than waking up strapped down to a chair. That was something he could figure out. He had been kidnapped. Taken. Of course they would strap him down somewhere. But now, as he looked around, Ichigo wondered what happened. He was sitting at the end of an old alley somewhere in town. He heard the cars driving and people walking by. However, what he didn't know, was what time or day of the week it was. It was daylight, so that was a good sign. But, how long had those people kept him?
He shivered for a moment and stood up to get off of the slightly cold ground. Ichigo quickly realized that the jacket he had been wearing when he was taken was gone. But, on closer inspection, he realized it was just thrown down next to him. He picked it up and threw it on before checking to make sure he had everything else with him. His bag of school books was also on the ground, and his Substitute Soul Reaper badge was in its place in his pocket.
However, something was still off. It wasn't the same feeling he'd been having - like someone was watching him. It was more like he was sick, but couldn't quite place what was wrong. Using his hands, he felt around his limbs, checking for any sources of pain and discomfort. It wasn't until he got to his head that Ichigo knew something was seriously wrong. His ears were no longer the same.
With a gasp, Ichigo moved his hands to the small of his back. His shirt was pushed up slightly to make room for the long tail that now resided there. He pulled it forward with one hand to examine, to make sure it was real. It was long, just brushing the floor when hanging down, with slightly bushy fur. It was also orange. The exact same shade as his hair.
Ichigo wanted to be sick. He quickly stuffed the tail up into his shirt and did his best to try to cover the pointy ears. He ran as fast as he could to the Kurosaki Clinic. Luckily, nobody was home. He didn't think he would be able to handle it if anybody was. Oh God, what am I even going to say? he though as he quickly ran into the bathroom, stopping in front of the mirror.
He gasped instantly at his appearance. His new cat ears rested close to the top of his head and were bright orange with white accents in the middle. He now had two pointed canine teeth. And, of course, the long orange tail. Ichigo felt like he was going to be sick. However, as much as he hated to admit it, he also felt slightly good. His hearing was excellent. He realized that on the way, when he could clearly pick out full conversations that normal people wouldn't have been able to understand. He also felt that his agility and speed might have increased as well.
No, no! Stop right there! Nothing about this is good! Ichigo yelled at himself as he walked out of the bathroom and moved to his own room. As soon as he opened the door, he regretted it.
"Who are you?!" he yelled, pointing at a girl sitting in the middle of his bed. She had bright red hair that was pulled into a ponytail on the left side of her head. Her long, thick bangs also covered her left eyes. She had bright green eyes and an almost child-like face with a bright smile on her face. Even sitting down, Ichigo could tell she was short. Her black dress went to her knees, but was poofed out slightly with a silvery lace on the bottom. Her tights were silver and she wore black slip on shoes.
"Oh, that's right." She said in a voice Ichigo instantly recognized. "I never showed you who I was did I? Well, no matter. My name's Amaya. I just came to check up on how you were doing."
"How I'm doing? You changed me into an animal!" Ichigo yelled. "Why did you do this to me?"
"I already told you. This is to help you. You just can't see that yet." Amaya said, a giggle of happiness at the end of her sentence.
"How is this helping anything?"
"You'll see!"
"When?"
"Soon!" then, she moved over to the open window and jumped out. Ichigo ran to look and see where she would go, but she had already gone out of sight.
Ichigo moved back and slid the window shut before locking it tight. He needed to find someone who would be able to help him figure out how to fix the problem. Only one person came to mind. Urahara
Ichigo lifted his shirt and flicked his tail. Now that he though about it, he could move his ears and tail at will. That's good. he wrapped the new appendage around his torso and lowered his shirt again. Then, he grabbed a grey hoodie and pulled it on, lifting the hood up to cover his new cat ears. Looking into a mirror, he sighed and nodded slightly at his appearance. You couldn't tell anything was strange unless you looked closely at his teeth. But, that wasn't too noticeable.
He opened the door and walked out quickly, moving as fast as he could to the merchant's house. When he reached the shop, he looked around. Nobody was standing out front, which was slightly surprising. However, Ichigo still walked forward and opened the door, knocking one and he came inside.
"Hat-N-Clogs? Are you here?" he called out, waiting for a response.
"Ah, Ichigo. What a pleasant surprise! How may I help you?" Urahara asked, coming to the front of the store from the back. Trademark hat, clogs, fan, and cane all with him. "Everyone else is out for the time being. It's just me here. Something you need help with?" he asked, his voice taking on a slightly more serious tone.
'Does he know what's going on?' Ichigo thought before he began to speak. "Well, you see -" he began.
The two were now sitting down, a cup of teas settled in front of each of them. Urahara had listened quietly as Ichigo told every detail of the story of what had happened to him.
"Interesting." he said after a moment of silence. "I've never heard of something like that being possible. Hmm."
"Is there a way to fix it? Can you do something?" Ichigo asked, leaning forward as he waited for an answer. If anyone could do it, Kisuke could. He was sure of it.
"I know you believe that I'm able to fix everything. But, unfortunately, I'll be forced to disappoint you this time around." Urahara said, speaking carefully. "This sounds as though it has something to do with fate, or morals. She did say something about this was for your happiness, did she not? If that's the case, then it is more that pure medical science. Therefore, I'm unable to fix it."
Ichigo frowned, partially from disappointment, anger, and sadness. "So what am I supposed to do? There must be something you can do!"
"The only advice I can give you is that you seem to need to find what will make you happy." He said, opening his fan out in front of his face.
"Great, thanks." Ichigo snapped before standing up, getting ready to leave.
"Oh, but Ichigo." said Urahara after a moment of silence. "I will try to find out something that might be able to help you. If I know anything, I'll tell you."
Ichigo nodded. "Ok, thank you." he said before pulling his hood back up over his head to cover his ears and walking out the door. By now, after the long talk with Urahara, he saw that the sky was already beginning to darken. It would be nighttime soon and Ichigo figured he wouldn't be home before the sky became completely black. He sighed, breathing slowly and taking a deep breath, trying to calm down before walking forward. He hadn't gotten a hollow call since the night before he was taken. The substitute was even starting to wonder if that girl - Amaya was her name - was behind that as well. It would make sense if she was.
Lost in though, Ichigo didn't even bother trying to get home quickly. He walked at a slow pace through the streets, not even sure why he was doing it. The only thing that pulled him out of his own thoughts was the sound of a heavy door being pulled open.
Ichigo looked around and realized it was a door down on one of the alleyways. Curiosity took over his senses and he moved forward after the door closed, realizing that they tossed something outside. Moving closer, the orange-haired teen waited for his eyes to adjust to the dark - which took an abnormally short time - so he could see what it was.
Looking closer, Ichigo saw that it wasn't a what that was tossed outside, but a who. The person was knocked unconscious, laying on their side with their jacket ripped in a few different places. But, two things about the person caught Ichigo's attention.
The first thing. They had a tail and cat ears, just like him, except they were blue.
The second. Ichigo recognized this person to be Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez.
