On Blade's Edge
Chapter Two
Forgetting to Remember
Present
Sunday, May 18, 2014, late evening
Seireitei Safe-House
The first night was rough to say the least. The rest of the day had consisted of attempting to get him to eat and stop being so damn jumpy about everything. He refused to sleep and kept looking around as though he expected to be ripped away by someone at any moment. He absolutely refused to leave the room, which was no surprise, but more than that he almost descended into panic if the door opened at all, and Zaraki couldn't leave his side. Thankfully, these rooms were equipped with in room bathrooms. Finally, Ichigo ended up passing out sitting in Zaraki's lap. Luckily, the chair beside the bed was a recliner, so it wasn't so terribly bad. He seemed to not want to lie down at all in a bed. Zaraki's first attempt to lay the recliner all the way back had ended with him panicking and Zaraki found he had to leave it at least halfway up.
So it was that Zaraki ended up sleeping sitting up in the chair beside the boy's bed. There wasn't much else to be done about it; he simply wouldn't let him leave, even once he fell asleep he clutched him tightly. He could have forced him to let go, but Retsu had warned him that his ribs needed to heal, and the way he clutched him, there was no safe way to do it. So he'd fallen asleep there, with the blue pajama clad kid sitting in his lap and head buried in his shoulder. What he couldn't imagine was the horrors that played out in his mind that night.
Flashback
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Karakura Town, Japan
It was sunny, brilliantly bright, actually in Karakura Town that day. Ichigo stood with his friends Tatsuki, Inoue, Ishida and Sado. Some of their other friends hadn't been able to come to the big soccer game. It was the finals, and if his sister's team won, they'd take the area championship. He clapped and cheered for her and glanced now and then over to the stands nearby where his idiot father and eccentric uncle sat with his other sister, Yuzu. It was summer, and in a couple weeks, he'd turn eighteen. All in all, it was a great day. Everyone was dressed in casual summer attire, and it was a greatly relaxed atmosphere.
"Karin, don't let them get past you like that!" he yelled through the chain link fence as a pass got past his sister. There was a sheen of sweat on her, and her short cropped black hair was clinging to her face. She turned and glared at him and he shrugged at her.
Tatsuki clapped him on the back. "She's gotten good, Ichigo."
"I know!" he said and turned to smile at his friends.
"So is that crazy uncle of yours gonna be staying with you now?" Tatsuki asked, sipping her can of juice and glancing at the odd man in the green and white striped bucket hat. Her black hair was cut shorter than Karin's and to be honest, if someone didn't know better, they might mistake her for a boy with her looks and attitude.
Ichigo shook his head. "Yeah, looks that way. Never knew that my mom had such a nutter for a brother," he said shaking his hands and shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
"He seems nice, Kurosaki-kun," Inoue said with a blush across her face. Ichigo nodded and shifted a bit uncomfortably. Why did she always do that around him? She was best friends with Tatsuki, which was fine and all, but it seemed that every time she was around him she was blushing or batting her eyelashes at him. Then she'd do that hair sweep thing with her long, strawberry blonde hair. He really didn't want to burst her bubble, but he just wasn't into girls. Of course, no one knew that, not even his father. He wasn't sure he was even ready to say that out loud.
He shrugged. "I mean, he's nice, but he's crazy, man, I mean, I was up getting a snack last night and he was in the kitchen experimenting on rice balls. No idea. Just kind of strange. And I still don't know why he turned up all of a sudden…"
Ishida piped up. "Maybe he's on the run from someone," he said with a shrug.
Uryuu was one of their newer friends, and despite Ichigo's initial suspicion that he was gay; lately he'd been seeing the way he looked at Orihime. He was secretly chanting to him to ask her out already so she'd leave him alone to figure things out. They were a good match, he thought. Of course, considering how often Orihime's attention was on him instead of anyone else, he doubted she'd ever date anyone with him around. He'd just have to suck it up and tell her that girls were not his thing.
Beside him, leaning on the fence was their last friend, Sado, or Chad as Ichigo called him. Chad was huge, that was the only way to put it, and he was certainly imposing. He hardly talked. The large Hispanic boy was always at Ichigo's side though.
Ichigo shook his head. "No idea. If he's running from anyone, I've got a feeling it is something entirely in his head and not real. Oh well, I'm going to get a juice, anyone want one?"
Inoue colored again and smiled shyly. "I'll take one, Kurosaki-kun!" she said quietly.
He nodded and sauntered off toward the juice machine. He didn't notice the dark van that had pulled up in the parking lot behind the set of vending machines he was standing at. There wasn't anything unusual about the two guys standing in line behind him, either, in fact, he barely noticed them. He bent down and grabbed the two cans and that was when he realized something was very wrong.
The first, a tall man with bright blue hair lunged forward and grabbed him around the neck. He started to struggle and managed to pull the guy off and land a blow across his jaw when he flipped around. "The fuck!" he yelled then as something hit him on the back of the head, making him see stars. Vaguely he heard someone yelling at him and then the other guy, wait where'd he come from? He hadn't seen another guy, just the blue haired guy. This guy had bright green eyes that stood out as much as the other guy's blue hair. The other guy jammed something into his neck and the world faded to black.
Ichigo came to consciousness slowly, like swimming upward through a pool of thick, sticky glue or something. He swallowed a lump in his throat and tried to move to stretch his limbs, but he couldn't move any of them. His eyes fluttered open and he found himself lying on the ground. No, not the ground, it was a floor. The floor was hardwood, dark grain, he noted. Why was he face down on such a fancy floor?
"He's up, boss," came a voice he didn't know.
"Pick him up, let me see him," he heard another man, and he was lifted in a mind whirling trip to somewhat stand on his feet. He stared down and realized he couldn't stand, his ankles were bound to each other with rope, and obviously his wrists were tied behind him as well.
He lifted his head up and found himself staring at a man with brown hair, thin rimmed glasses and a white suit with a red tie. He blinked away the fuzziness and wondered just who the hell it was. He'd never seen the guy before and for some reason he'd been kidnapped by these guys. Great. Just wonderful. How the hell was he going to get out of this? These guys were professionals, not just the street thugs he was used to fighting with Chad at his back.
"He looks a bit like his cousin. And his mother. A shame about both of them, you know. I actually rather liked Kaien up until the point I put a knife to his throat. And your mother was quite a pleasant lady. Shame indeed," the brown haired man said. "I'm Sōsuke Aizen, and you're mine now."
Ichigo frowned and only then realized he was gagged. A heavy cloth was tied around his mouth. His eyes bulged at the words and he shook his head, muttering obscenities through the gag. He had no idea who the hell this guy was. He had no clue what he was doing in front of him.
"Yes, my sweet boy, you belong to me. I've decided that I'm not taking any chances with your father and uncle. They dare to think they can turn on me? No, I have you now. They won't take the chance I'll send you back in pieces. I had no problems murdering Kaien. I have no qualms about murdering another family member. For now, you're going downstairs and spending some time in the cellar. Smile, princess," he said, snapping a picture of the bound boy on his phone.
Ichigo struggled as the blue haired man that had kidnapped him and his dark skinned companion drug him down a set of stairs and tossed him into a metal cage. He was left there; bound and gagged for long enough that he was sure they'd forgotten he was even there. He was certain he was going to end up pissing himself if someone didn't let him up soon. Eventually, the door up the stairs opened and a freakishly tall and thin man with black hair came down the stairs and grinned at him. He had beady black eyes that reminded Ichigo distinctly of a rat. His smile was way too wide and very creepy.
"Hey there baby boy, how are you?" he said, kneeling down in front of the cage. "I'm gonna let you out of those ropes, so roll over here and I'll cut off the ones on your wrists, baby boy."
Ichigo was wary but didn't have much choice, he rolled onto his belly and over onto his side again and scooted his back against the bars. He felt the cool metal of a knife against the flesh on his hands and he stiffened. There was another moment and then the ropes were cut and he was pulling himself to the middle of the cell and yanking the gag out of his mouth.
"Who are you?" he asked, working the stiffness out of his jaw and grimacing as his bladder reminded him that he really needed to relieve it.
"Name's Nnoitra, baby boy. And I'm gonna get to take you home soon with me," he said, his grin widening.
Ichigo shook his head and untied his ankles with shaking hands. He scooted back against a low cot that sat along the side. The cell was just long enough front to back to fit the five foot cot. It was about a foot wide, and there was maybe another three feet in width to it. The bars on the top were about five foot high, so even Ichigo who wasn't much over five six would have to bend down in it.
"What do you mean?" he said, eyes wide and looking around. There were other cells down here he realized. Lots of them in fact. All were empty except the one he occupied.
"See, I sell precious merchandise. But you, you're too precious to sell. I specialize in taking care of fragile merchandise like you, baby boy, and I'll take real good care of you," he said, long tongue snaking out and licking his lips.
Ichigo felt a shiver go down his spine. "M-merchandise?" he asked, wincing as the pain in his bladder seemed to spike along with the fear he suddenly felt.
"Don't you have to piss, baby boy?" Nnoitra asked, walking around the cage and gesturing to the bucket that was set in the corner. "You probably should. Don't want you getting some sort of nasty infection. Aizen isn't took keen on the medical care."
Ichigo swallowed. Like he was going to go to the bathroom in front of this perverted bastard. He simply stared at him.
"Okay, but if you piss yourself, you won't get any clean clothes. And we can't have you in pissy clothes, so you'll just have to sit there naked after we take the dirty ones," he said. "Boss doesn't want you getting messed up too bad…yet. Gotta make sure your pop and the fucking uncle goes and disappears properly."
Ichigo's face flushed red and he swallowed, glancing at the bucket. This was so undignified.
He stood up slowly on wobbly feet and moved toward the bucket and then looked up to see that this Nnoitra was staring at him intently. He frowned. "Do you mind?" he asked.
Nnoitra grinned at him. "Nope, go ahead, baby boy."
Ichigo didn't have much choice. He was going to piss himself if he didn't go soon, and he really didn't want to be stuck without any clothes. He didn't doubt this bastard would take the chance to strip him…and who knows what else he'd do when he did it. So he closed his eyes, trying to imagine he was alone desperately while he relieved himself. He knew he'd never had to piss so bad in his entire life. Finally, he opened his eyes and zipped his pants back up and moved to sit on the cot. Before he could, Nnoitra's long fingered hand shot through the bars and grabbed him by the bicep.
"Enjoy your time alone, baby boy. Once your pop and uncle are off the scene, you're gonna come with me. If you find it embarrassing to piss in front of me, you're in for a surprise. You have no idea the kind of things I'm going to do to you. By the time I'm done, you won't fucking remember your own goddamned name," he said with a hiss then let go and grinned. "Bye bye, baby boy, love and kisses."
Ichigo rubbed his arm and sat down dully on the cot. Just what the hell did that mean anyway? He bit his lip and shuddered. He sat against the bars and pulled his knees into his chest and waited. A few hours later, a silvery haired man came down and slid a plate of a couple rice balls and a cup of water through the slot at the bottom of the doorway. Ichigo wanted to ignore him, but he was starving. He took it and sat back down, eating slowly and trying to calm his stomach. The strange man didn't say anything, only grinned at him.
Sunday, June 24th, 2007 – 8:00 am
He slept through exhaustion and was woken the next morning to the sound of a woman screaming. He jerked awake and sat up and saw they were dragging a petite young woman, maybe twenty he thought, with short dark hair and bright violet eyes down the stairs. She was tiny, though, and screaming her head off at the blue haired man that was manhandling her. She was bound in the same way he had been but without a gag. He watched as they tossed her in the cell next to him. The blue haired man shook his head and left without even saying anything.
Ichigo looked over to the girl. She was wearing a pair of black slacks and a pink polo shirt with the logo of a local ice cream shop on it. She turned and looked at him. "What's happening?" she asked.
Ichigo shook his head. "I'm not sure, but here, scoot over to the bars, I'll untie you," he said, dropping down to the floor and reaching through the side opposite his cot and undoing her hands. "What's your name?"
"Rukia Kuchiki. You?" she asked, rubbing her wrists then untying her ankles.
"Ichigo Kurosaki. They got me yesterday from my little sister's soccer game. Some guy named Aizen?" he said.
He heard the other person gasp and she turned and fixed her violet eyes on him. "Aizen? You said Aizen?"
Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, something about my dad and my uncle. I'm not sure…" he was interrupted by the banging of the door and his least favorite person currently carrying two trays with him. Nnoitra was whistling and slid a tray under each door.
"Hi there, babies," he said with a grin and crossed his arms and appraised them.
"Nnoitra Gilga," Rukia hissed and stood up against the bars and glared at him.
"Oh, little sister knows things, does she?" he said with a grin. "Don't worry that pretty little head, sugar. I'm not interested in you. I've chosen my little boy already," he said and leered at Ichigo through the bars. Ichigo swallowed and saw the look the short girl next to him shot his direction.
"Nnoitra, you sick…sick…man!" she said. "What does Aizen want with us?"
"Well, you, sweetheart, have a nosy fucking brother. And he's got the worst luck to be the nephew of Kisuke Urahara," he said with a snarl.
Rukia's eyes went wide. "What? You're Urahara's nephew?" she gasped at Ichigo.
Ichigo looked between them. "What does that crazy bastard have to do with this?" he asked.
"You don't know?" Rukia asked, moving to stand against the bars on his side of her cell. "You don't know who he is and who Aizen is?"
Ichigo shook his head. "I don't know what's going on! My crazy ass uncle showed up a week ago at our house, and I didn't even know I had an uncle!"
Rukia sighed. "Aizen's built a cartel, right under his half-brother and business partner's nose, and his partner was Kisuke Urahara. They built the pharmaceutical giant, Kyōka Suigetsu, you know, where you get all your prescriptions from. Urahara is a scientist, and he wanted to help the world by making new medicines, and Aizen eventually wanted him to make designer drugs. He refused, saying that they got into business together to help people. Urahara had no idea what Aizen was doing while he was locked up in his lab with his experiments. When he found out, he fled with enough evidence to put a stop to everything. He wasn't happy with what had happened. Aizen had been using Urahara's money, experiments and research to fund his organization…"
"And the boss wants to make sure he doesn't keep his promise to turn over on him to her big brother," Nnoitra said, coming to stand in front of Ichigo's cell again, staring at him in that disconcerting way again.
"Leave him alone, Nnoitra, he's a kid!" Rukia yelled, her face reddening in anger.
Nnoitra snickered. "I don't mind. He'll find out soon enough, won't you baby boy?" he said and lapped his tongue against his lips again.
Ichigo moved back against the back side of the cell again and stared at him. "L-leave me alone," he said, another shudder wracking his body.
"I will, baby boy. I will. For now. But once boss man comes and tells me you're all mine, you're all mine, my sweet baby boy. And you will be my special boy, in every way I can imagine. And I've got a hella imagination…" he said and turned and left, leaving Ichigo to slide down the bars to the floor. He pulled his knees into his chest again.
"Ichigo, don't let him get to you," Rukia said from beside him. "He won't give you over to him, surely, what purpose would it serve?"
Ichigo shook his head and hoped she was right. Those beady black eyes were something he didn't like, and that leering grin left him cold inside. He had little doubt the man would follow through on those threats. But Rukia said it. Aizen had him because he wanted his dad and Urahara to do what he wanted. So that meant he had to be kept healthy and unhurt, otherwise, his dad and Uncle Kisuke wouldn't listen. He nodded to himself and knew that had to be right.
Tuesday, August 14th, 2007
Ichigo was wrong, though, very wrong, and he soon found out exactly how wrong he was. Judging by the meals, it had been almost seven weeks when Aizen himself came down the stairs. The room had filled up since Ichigo and Rukia had come into it. In fact, it seemed that all twelve of the small cells were full now. Ichigo and Rukia were on the right side, followed by a blond girl named Menoly, a dark haired girl named Loly, a blonde boy named Tesla, and a redheaded man named Renji that knew Rukia. On the other side, there were the other six. There was a slight young man named Hanataro, another short but loud dark haired boy named Ggio, a tall blonde named Findorr, a young blonde boy named Di Roy, a short boy with pure white hair named Toshiro that didn't really talk much, and finally in the last cell across from Ichigo was a dark haired guy named Shuuhei.
All twelve of them were being kept for some reason, and none of them had a lot of information. Some of them, like Rukia, Renji, Toshiro, Hanataro, and Shuuhei were all connected to law enforcement, political figures, in other words, mostly relatives of prominent people. Some of the others, like Ggio, Tesla, Findorr, Loly and Menoly were witnesses to gang activity. No one had quite figured out why Di Roy was there, and for some reason, he didn't seem to care, claiming he had food and a bed, so he was quite happy. Granted, the beds weren't much, and the food mostly consisted of rice balls, water and occasional unidentified meat.
Aizen sauntered down the rows. "Seems we've reached capacity," he said, and Ichigo saw the blue haired one, Grimmjow was his name he'd found out, was following him, as was Nnoitra and an older darker skinned man with perfectly coifed white hair. "Take your pick, Barragan, Grimmjow, Nnoitra. The ones with the star on the door are free for you to have if you want them. Otherwise, I'm having Ulquiorra execute them in the morning." Ichigo stood up and stared, seeing that all those that were witnesses and Di Roy had a star marked on the front of the cell in marker. When had that happened, he thought…?
Barragan approached Ggio and spoke to him for a while, while Nnoitra spoke through the bars to Tesla. Grimmjow went over to Di Roy and smirked when Di Roy said something a few moments later. He opened the door and let him out and led him up the stairs. Barragan let Ggio out and then talked to Findorr for a minute, then took him off up the stairs as well. Nnoitra let Tesla out and headed up the stairs with him. A few moments later Barragan came back down and went to Loly and then Menoly's cells, each one let out and following him out of the basement. The two girls looked somewhat frightened of the old man, which was strange because he didn't seem imposing at all to Ichigo.
Aizen then turned to those that remained. "Now, my, aren't you a nice, quiet bunch?"
The door opened and closed and the dark haired man with very pale skin and bright green eyes that had helped kidnap Ichigo came down and stood beside Aizen. Soon, a tall and quite buxom blonde woman came down and stood beside Aizen. Aizen turned to the woman.
"Harribel, have you received the payment for Mr. Hitsugaya and Mr. Hisagi?" he asked.
"We have sir," she said with a nod. "We have also confirmed that Kuchiki has been dropped from the Las Noches case, and Urahara has disappeared off the grid along with the Kurosakis."
Ichigo's hands tightened around the bars at the mention of his family but he didn't say anything. More than once he'd had his knuckles wacked for speaking. It was like being in elementary. He supposed they had to be kept intact since they were being used as leverage over their families, though. Beating them to death wouldn't keep their families in line.
"Good, good. Ulquiorra, please take Zommari and Grimmjow, deliver Mr. Hitsugaya and Mr. Hisagi to their families at the appointed time tonight. Harribel, if you would take Mr. Abarai and Ms. Kuchiki and deposit them on her brother's doorstep tied up nicely. Perhaps next time he decides to get into my affairs he'll remember vividly about what I can do with his lover and his sister," he said with a smirk.
Rukia glanced at Ichigo and down at Hanataro as Aizen turned to leave. "What about them?" she called.
Aizen turned back and glanced at the two he hadn't mentioned. "Ah yes, Kurosaki. And the Yamada child. Return the Yamada boy, as well, Ulquiorra. We're going to clear out of this building in the morning. As far Kurosaki…" Aizen paused.
Ulquiorra looked up. "Did you not promise to give him to Nnoitra when you confirmed his family was off grid?"
Aizen smiled. "Ah yes, that's right. I forgot. Poor Nnoitra, I believe he must have believed I forgot that promise…have him retrieve the boy."
"What, you can't do that! Let him go too!" Rukia screamed. Aizen turned and grinned.
"I'm afraid I can't do that. You see, his uncle knows far too much, and I'm a bit sentimental, so I just can't bring myself to murder my half-brother and very best friend growing up. So as long as I have him," he said, gesturing to Ichigo's frozen form. "I have nothing to fear from my half-brother."
"You can't give him to Nnoitra! You…you know…!" she was already starting to cry.
Aizen smiled. "He'll hurt him? I'm certain of it. He won't kill him, I told him that was all I cared about. He has to be alive. Now, what shape he's in, that doesn't matter. I'm certain Nnoitra will have less of a problem…ah…fucking his merchandise if he has a permanent playmate. He does have a tendency to cost me money by damaging the goods he's supposed to sell…so this is the best solution."
Aizen turned and headed up the stairs again, leaving a silence on the room. Rukia grabbed the bars. "Ichigo, I'll get my brother to help you, I promise, I will! He's a cop, he's…"
The door opened then and Nnoitra practically skipped down the stairs. "Oh, boy, I thought the boss forgot," he said happily, and Ichigo's eyes went wide to see that he had a collar in his hands and a chain. "But no, he remembered, thanks Ulquiorra!"
Ichigo moved as far back into the cell as he could get, swallowing against the rising bile in his throat. This was not going to happen. No way, no how. He shook his head. "No, get back!" he said in a low voice.
Nnoitra opened the door. "You're gonna be a good baby boy and let me put this on you and then you're going to follow me like the good little boy you are."
Ichigo was not going to take this easily. He reached into the waistband of his pants and pulled out a shiv he'd made. A few weeks before, he'd managed to sliver off a small piece of the wooden leg of the cot. It wasn't much, but he figured that if he could use it to stab whoever opened the cell in the eye or throat he could get past them and maybe, just maybe, get out the door. His fingers gripped the piece of wood. Honestly, he doubted his sanity at this idea. It wasn't a terrible lot more than a big splinter. Still, he had to try, even if it earned him a real beating. If he didn't escape, he was pretty damn sure a beating was going to be the least of his worries.
When Nnoitra had come in far enough he lunged forward with as much strength as he could muster and drove the piece of wood into his left eye as far as he could. If he could lodge it deep enough, it would kill him. He wasn't sure that it wouldn't just break first. Nnoitra screamed and blood sputtered everywhere. Ichigo gasped and dropped to his knees and scurried under the man struggling with the wood embedded in his eye and was out the door and to the bottom of the stairs in a second. He sobbed out loud when the door opened and he was looking up at Grimmjow who was frowning deeply, obviously summoned by the yelling. Ichigo sucked in a breath and felt something heavy hit the back of his head. He dropped to his knees, the world wavering sickly in front of his eyes.
"Fucking bastard!" screamed Nnoitra's voice behind him. Grimmjow laughed at the top of the stairs.
"Well, he got you before you got him, Gilga," Grimmjow commented.
"Fuck you, Grimmjow, shit, I think the fucker put out my goddamned eye! Go get fucking Szayel!" he yelled. Grimmjow, still laughing, left. Ichigo felt something clamp tightly around his neck, making him feel even more lightheaded than he already was. His hands were yanked behind him and he felt the roughness of ropes tightening around his wrists. He swayed a bit and fell forward with Nnoitra pushed him, and then yelled when he landed a blow in his ribcage with his foot.
The world was hazy by he saw someone with pink hair come down the stair. "Dammit, Nnoi, fuck, yeah, eye's done, man, sorry."
"Fuck!" Nnoitra screamed and yanked Ichigo up from the floor by the collar. "Look at this you little fucker," he said, pointing to the mangled remains of his eye. "You're gonna pay for this. A lot. To think, I was gonna be nice to ya, mostly. Now you went and fucked up, you little fuckin' bastard. You are going to fuckin' live in pain for this shit. I can't kill you, but I can fuckin' make you wish you were dead with every breath you take!" Ichigo swallowed, the world fading out from lack of oxygen and the head wound. He hoped that he was dying. He wasn't.
When Ichigo woke next, he was in pain. Of course he was in pain, what did he expect? He knew it was risky, maybe he should have gone for the guy's throat instead of his eye…but it wouldn't have mattered. There were too many of them. He let the world come into focus and he realized he was on something softer than the floor, which was probably a good thing, because it felt like Nnoitra had beaten his body while he was unconscious. There was a dull throbbing in his sides and his head was on fire. He groaned and moved a little, and realized he was bound up tighter than he had been. He looked up and saw a chain leading from the collar on his neck to something…a ring, a big metal ring in…a headboard. He was on a bed.
Oh shit, he thought to himself, turning his head from side to side. He was on a bed. Nnoitra's threats all came back at once. He struggled but he couldn't get his hands free. He realized his hands were bound to his thighs. There was some sort of band across the top of each thigh, like a belt, and somehow his wrists were connected to the side of each one. It felt like there was a cuff or something on each of his wrists and on his ankles too. He was lying on his stomach and felt like his left ankle at least was secured to something, but he couldn't see since there was a sheet lying over him. He was close to freaking out until he heard a door open and close and his breath caught.
"Ah, my pretty baby boy," came Nnoitra's voice. Ichigo turned his head and saw that he had a bandage taped in place over his left eye. "You are going to be punished, baby. So much. And I'm going to enjoy every second of it."
"P-please, don't….I…I'm sorry…I didn't…" Ichigo stammered as the sheet was yanked off of his body. He had felt he must be naked under it and now he was sure of it. He bit down on his lip. Strength, he told himself. He could get through this. It was only pain. Right?
He was terribly, horribly wrong. He heard something and then jerked as a sharp pain lanced through his back. It whistled as it went through the air and hit his back again. His breathing sped up. Nnoitra moved around where he could see him and Ichigo could see he had a horse riding crop in his hand. Ichigo shook his head and struggled against the bonds holding his hands in place to no avail.
"Tsk, tsk, baby you are such a bad boy. I can't reward you until I punish you," he said and laid into his back, buttocks, and the back of his thighs until Ichigo couldn't take it and screamed, sobbing into the bed, tears soaking the sheets. He begged him to stop, telling him he'd do anything if he'd just stop.
He felt Nnoitra's hands in his hair and then his head was yanked painfully upward against the chain. "Don't fucking cry."
Ichigo tried desperately to control it, but he couldn't and then Nnoitra was laying burning swats across the back of his arms and his calves. "I'm sorry! Sorry!" he gasped out, finally.
Nnoitra grinned and laid down the crop. "Good. Always be sorry for fucking tears. They're useless and only make me angry, you little bitch. You deserve this, every goddamned ounce of pain I give you, you will accept and fucking thank me for, do you understand?" he said, yanking his head up by the hair again.
Ichigo swallowed and nodded. "Good, then what do you say, baby?"
Ichigo's mouth worked and he knew what he wanted and he didn't want to say it, but the pain on his neck and the burning across his body was pleading with him to do whatever it was he wanted. It was only words, right? Just saying what the sadistic fucker wanted wouldn't hurt. How could it?
"Th-thank…you…" he whispered, panting against the rising lightheadedness that was overcoming him from the awkward position.
"Good start, baby," he said and dropped his head. Ichigo laid there panting and then felt the bed move as Nnoitra sat down beside him. He crossed his lanky legs and pulled out a cigarette and took a long drag.
Ichigo was quiet despite the fact he was in more pain than he remembered being in ever before. Even when he'd gotten into fights, he didn't remember hurting this much in so many places. He almost let out a sob again but it came out a low whimper. Nnoitra turned to him and patted him on the head.
"There now, was that so bad? I'm sure you thought it was. But this is just the beginning. I'm not near done punishing you for this," he said, pointing to the bandaged eye. "No, not nearly done."
Ichigo wasn't sure how much of this he could stand without losing his damn mind. Then Nnoitra got up and rummaged in a draw he couldn't see and then came back to the bed holding something that looked like a plastic gun. Ichigo blinked and realized it was a piercing gun. Nnoitra looked it over.
"New hobby of mine," he said, and gestured to the several rings in his ear. "So let's have some fun."
Nnoitra sat back a few minutes later after putting six rings up the outside of Ichigo's left ear. Ichigo was not keen on this because it hurt and now his ear felt like it was on fire. Nnoitra smiled. "That's a good start. Now, for the eyebrow…" he said, reaching over and pulling out a curved needle.
"What…no, stop!" he started to pull his head away but there was a clink and the chain on his throat pulled tight leaving him gasping.
"Stay still, or I might put your eye out to match mine," Nnoitra said with a smirk.
What felt like an eternity passed and finally Nnoitra was putting away his stuff. Ichigo had blood dripping down the left side of his face now from the four rings he'd put across his brow. It hurt too. Ichigo wasn't sure what hurt worse, the ear, his eyebrow, or the burning welts and cuts on his back.
Ichigo heard a clink and his foot was released. If he'd felt stronger he might have tried to kick the bastard. But no, he just laid there. Then, he gripped his hips and flipped him, but the chain on his collar was still secured at his throat, which twisted his head to the side with a whine of pain at the pressure on his neck. He was shoved upward so he could lay his head back flat now. His back was screaming in pain, leaving him panting as the sheets pulled against the torn flesh. However, now he was exposed completely to Nnoitra, hands still clamped to the bands on his thighs.
"You are too pretty, you know?" Nnoitra said, and ran a hand down from Ichigo's collar to the nest of orange between his legs. Ichigo jerked at the light touch, pressing his legs together.
"Nah, no hiding, pretty baby boy. Here, we'll fix that," Nnoitra said, and grabbed his ankles and pushed them upward until he heard and felt a click on the underside of his thigh. His eyes went wide and he looked to realize his hands were hooked to the outside of the thigh strap, and now his ankles had been hooked to another clamp on the strap. If he were sitting up instead of on his back, he would have been bound on his knees, seated on his heels.
"Much better," Nnoitra said, eyes roving over Ichigo's now fully exposed body.
"It hurts," he said finally, the muscles in his thighs and calves straining with the odd position. Nnoitra smiled and adjusted him so his feet were flat on the bed. It didn't help much.
"You'll get used to it, baby boy, promise," he said and leaned down and began licking at the inside of his thighs. Ichigo gasped at the sudden gentle and intimate contact.
"What…what…are you doing?" he said.
"It isn't any fun unless I make you come too, baby boy, sweet baby boy. Whether you want to or not," he said with a grin.
Ichigo couldn't go anywhere, he could barely move at all in the position he was in so when Nnoitra's wicked tongue began to wake his arousal, he could do nothing. He fought it, but Nnoitra was insistent, tongue following every dip and crevice of his body, all the way down to the entrance of his body. He jumped when Nnoitra's tongue swirled around the puckered entrance and then worked inside. He hummed against him and Ichigo's body jolted.
"Hmm, so sensitive," Nnoitra said with a smile.
"Please, no," he said, tears starting to fall again.
"What did I say about tears?" Nnoitra said, moving upward and leaning over him. Ichigo shook his head.
"I'm sorry, sorry, sorry!" he whimpered, but unable to stop completely.
Nnoitra reached a hand down and forced a finger inside him then. Ichigo's eyes widened and he stared up at him, tears still streaming from his eyes. Nnoitra shook his head and continued working his fingers into him until he was three deep and searching…aha, he thought as Ichigo's body lurched as he brushed the bundle of nerves he was looking for. He grinned and removed his fingers and slid his body up and pressed against him with his own weeping cock. He looked down to see that the orangette was still crying and muttering "sorry" every once in a while and he smiled to himself.
He forced his way in with one thrust, getting a pain filled scream out of him. Nnoitra felt something tear in his baby boy, but that was inevitable. He was a big man, after all, in more than one way. He grinned as he moved inside him slowly, making sure to brush his prostate when he could and feeling the boy's cock twitch despite the pain of him taking him so roughly.
"Shh, that's it baby boy," Nnoitra said, leaning forward to kiss and suck on his neck. "Just let go, let me take care of you, baby boy," he said. Ichigo whimpered and continued to cry and mutter apologies for crying to him. "That's it," Nnoitra said, and began to stroke Ichigo in time to his rough, deep thrusts. "You'll learn to love it, baby boy," he whispered into his left ear before biting down on the fresh piercings. "You'll love the pain I give you, and you'll thank me for it, and you'll want more of it," he said as he sped his way to his own completion.
Finally, he stroked enough to send Ichigo over the edge and he groaned with his own release into the bound body. He watched as Ichigo cried again, sobbing in sheer embarrassment, Nnoitra was sure. They never liked to be forced to cum like that. He smiled and reached over and grabbed a thick plug from the box at the side of the bed. He pulled his softening cock out and pushed in the plug quickly in its place.
"Oh, there you go, baby boy, now you can keep me with you," he said into his ear. He reached into the box again and wrapped a rope around his waist and then around between his legs and cinched it up against the plug he'd seated inside him. "And that will make sure it doesn't come out before I come back. Now, you'll lie here, until I return, sweet love. Be a good baby boy," he said, patting the inside of his thigh and leaving him bound. He cried until he fell asleep. He remembered Nnoitra's threat that he wouldn't remember his own name when he was done. He was now completely sure that he wasn't exaggerating at all.
Present
Monday, May 19th, 2014, 6:00 am
Seireitei Safe-house
Zaraki woke to screaming. He came awake with a start and found he no longer had a lap full of Ichigo. By the time everything had happened the day before, Ichigo had been exhausted and slept for more than twelve hours straight. Unfortunately, that had been on Zaraki's lap. Several times he'd tried to move him off to the bed but he'd end up crawling back into his lap. He supposed he needed safety. He leaped up to find him in the corner of the room, hands over his head and sobbing uncontrollably, muttering, "Sorry, sorry, sorry," as he rocked back and forth.
The larger man went over and kneeled beside him and touched his back. Ichigo started violently and backed further into the corner and panted harshly staring at him with wide, tearful eyes. Zaraki wasn't sure what exactly to do with him.
"Ichigo, are you okay? Did you have a nightmare?" he asked softly, as though he'd been awoken by his little sister's scream in the night and not some twenty two year old boy that had spent seven years being tortured by a sexual sadist.
"Not…baby boy," he said softly, eyes wide.
Zaraki frowned and shook his head, not following what he meant. "No…"
"Not baby boy," he said, and looked down at his wrists, which were deeply red but missing the cuffs he'd been wearing. "No, not baby boy."
"Is that what he called you?" Zaraki said, understanding what had happened.
He looked up and stared at him. Zaraki smiled and nodded to him and smiled. "Come here, Ichigo, come here," he said gently. Despite his size, Zaraki had raised a little girl and she turned out fine. He knew how to handle scared children, and right now, he was nothing more than a scared child. He was a child, just like Yachiru, he told himself, pushing any other thoughts aside.
Ichigo gasped and buried his head in Zaraki's chest again, clinging to him. Zaraki picked him up easily enough and sat down on the bed with him, but Ichigo refused to remove his face from his chest. Zaraki just ran his hands over his back as he lay against him and sighed deeply. It was going to be a long road. Hell, it was going to be a fucking long week.
Monday, May 19th, 2014, 9:00 am
Zaraki felt someone shaking him awake and blinked to see Yachiru standing beside him. He looked at her with a smile. "Morning already?" he asked in a rough voice.
"Yeah, brother. I heard last night. He okay?" she asked, staring and the deeply sleeping body draped over Zaraki.
Zaraki shook his head. "I don't know, brat, I don't know."
Then, Ichigo lifted his head and looked up into Zaraki's face and blinked, yawning and squeaking when he did. Zaraki couldn't help it; he snickered when he did it. It was incredibly adorable and made Zaraki want to hug him even tighter. Ichigo blinked and looked at him and then laid his head back down on his chest.
"Want breakfast?" Kenpachi asked quietly to the top of the orange head.
He felt him nod and sigh against him. Zaraki frowned. This was certainly odd behavior considering what happened the night before. He didn't seem bothered by Yachiru anymore, and was extremely relaxed. Kenpachi looked at Yachiru who had noticed as well.
"Ichigo?" he asked and he looked up with wide brown eyes again and nodded, sliding off his lap and to the floor and watched them in utter silence. Kenpachi got up slowly and opened the door, and Ichigo followed him out down the hall to the dining room, limping somewhat with the awkward wrapping on his ankle. Kenpachi sat down and Ichigo sat beside him, miming everything he was doing.
"Ichigo, are you okay?" Kenpachi asked, looking at him. He shrugged.
Yumichika walked into the room and glanced at his boss. "Kenny, what's wrong?" he said, then glanced to the boy beside him who was just staring at him.
"I don't know, he woke up screaming last night and now this morning, he's just acting weird. Ichigo, do you remember yesterday?" he asked.
Ichigo looked up and shook his head and smiled at Kenpachi. He leaned forward and rested his head against Zaraki's arm. Yumichika moved closer.
"Ichigo, do you remember who you are?" he asked.
Ichigo shook his head and shrugged, sighing into Zaraki's arm in a contented fashion. Yumichika stood up straight. "Oh…we might have a problem."
Post traumatic amnesia was a possibility of course; however, that wasn't the case. Ichigo had simply decided to shut down for a little while. In his mind, though, there was a white demon that was screaming at him to stop it, screaming that he had to let the memories stay fluid. The white demon though was annoyed and tearing down the walls. Ichigo couldn't stop him, he knew that. This white demon was so very strong, and he would rip down every bit of his resistance, it was a simple given. However, he would try very hard to ignore what he was trying to do.
He was comfortable, leaning into Zaraki's strong body and not feeling pain for now. He could just shove the memories away and pretend they didn't exist. That was the best. Master was gone, master was gone, so he couldn't think about it. He wanted master, and his heart ached horribly because master was gone. Master had not come for him yet. They thought he was scared because he was afraid Nnoitra was going to come back for him. The truth was, Ichigo was scared that Nnoitra, master, wouldn't come back for him. To Ichigo's warped and twisted view of the world, that was almost a death sentence. He wouldn't survive without his master.
Because of that, he simply stopped thinking, talking, and just let everything go blank. If he did that, he didn't have to think about how master had abandoned him. He wouldn't have to think that this new master had stolen him. He wouldn't have to think at all. It was actually kind of nice for a change.
