Chapter 2: Teenage angst

Edited thanks to good reviewers who noticed the mistakes. Thak you!


Ichigo stared blankly into the bowl Yuzu had just set in front of him. The floating chunks of beef and vegetables stared back, daring him to eat them. Usually he would have been more than happy to down three, maybe four bowls of this, but right now his stomach was protesting.

He pushed the bowl away, looking regretfully at his little sister.

"Sorry, I guess I'm just not hungry..."

Yuzu gave him a smile, tinged with disappointment.

"Oh...okay nii-chan!" She chirped, letting her face light up. "Maybe you should go to bed early!"

"Yeah." The redhead mumbled, standing up.

"Oh! Is my dear son sick?! Let papa make it better!" Isshin said, rising from his seat and leaping over the table at Ichigo. The redhead grabbed the still airborne man by the collar and threw him off to the side, hitting the wall with a painful crash.

"Geez, what is wrong with you old man?! I'm fine!" At that the redhead stormed up the stairs, Karin's laughter following him. Ichigo scowled. His dad was the weirdest ever. He wished he could get away, at least for a little while.

The redhead walked into his room, shutting the door behind him, to be instantly attacked by Kon. His scowl just grew deeper as the lion started ranting about food and he performed the same technique on him as he had just done on Isshin. The lion hopped back up as Ichigo flopped face down on his bed.

"Oi, what's with the bad mood? You're grumpier than usual." Kon gave him a mocking, dreamy look, clasping his paws together. "Oh I know! You finally met a girl, didn't you! But she turned you down didn't she!"

Ichigo tossed a stray shoe at the stuffed animal, striking him right in the face.

"Shut up Kon. Nothing like that happened and you know it." He mumbled into the bed. Nothing like that ever happened to him.

Ichigo rolled his head over until his cheek was pressed against his bed and he was facing the wall. He sighed. The new school year had just started, his last year of high school, and he had never even kissed a girl.

Kon, picking up on Ichigo's teenage angst, trotted over to the bed, climbing up beside him. The lion patted Ichigo's back.

"Go away Kon, I'm tired."

The lion huffed.

"Fine! If that's what I get for trying to be nice for once!" He scurried back off the bed and dashed into the closet, sniffing dramatically.

Ichigo fingered his bedsheets. The bed felt colder than usual. The redhead had a sudden twinge of loneliness. He sighed and reached under his mattress, pulling out his substitute shinigami badge. He stared at it, wondering if he should just leave for a while, to get away from it all.

The soul society hadn't had him in any troops lately, seems Aizen had slowed the arrancar attacks to a trickle. They guessed the former captain was plotting his next move, so they were still on high alert, but everything had calmed down a bit.

'Maybe I should go...just in case they need me.' Ichigo reasoned with himself.

"Kon! Come here!" he called.

The stuffed animal sauntered out of the closet, glaring defiantly at him.

"What?" he scoffed, nose in the air.

Ichigo sat up, still staring at the badge. He looked up at Kon, the best company he had right now. That was sad. And it had to change. Ichigo hit himself in the chest with his badge, feeling his soul pull out of his body.

Ichigo, freshly adorned in his shihakuso, turned his gaze from his lifeless body lying on the bed to Kon, who was looking confused. The redhead picked Kon up by the scruff of his neck and looked him straight in the eye.

"I'm gonna be gone for a couple days. Take care of everything here and do it right!." He smacked the lion on the back of the head, catching the soul candy in his hand and putting it in his body's mouth.

Ichigo was gone out the window before the mod soul could utter a protest, headed for Urahara's shop.


Grimmjow glared disdainfully through one eye at his shattered blade, laying in front of him on the cold stone floor.

His whole body ached and bled. He could hardly remember what they had done to him, only that it involved several swords, fists, whips and other weapons of torture, and somehow his beloved pantera broken and given back to him, in a sign of mocking.

He heard the door open but he didn't look up, he was too ashamed. He knew it was someone here to deal him some more punishment. They wouldn't stop until he was dead, and it was only a matter of time before they pulled in the Espada.

"Hey bud..." Came a gentle voice, gentler than he deserved. He was so pathetic right now, so helpless.

It had been days since Grimmjow had heard that voice, but he remembered it clearly. Out of pure impulse he glanced up at Nnoitra, a look of despair coating his features.

"Please tell me they sent you to kill me..." The teal haired arrancar hissed. "You'll do it quick."

A look of horror crossed Nnoitra's face.

"Holy shit Grimm, what'd they do to you?" He said recoiling a bit. The sexta espada just shook his head, wincing at the pain of that simple movement. His left hand reached up and clasped his other shoulder. He had lost all feeling in that arm.

"Are you?" The teal haired arrancar insisted. He desperately wanted this to be over. He felt blood dripping down his face. Probably from one of the gashes in his head. Nnoitra sighed and shook his head.

"You look like a corpse already, I should just put you out of your misery."

A pleading look filled Grimmjow's eyes. This is what he wanted. This is what he had been waiting for all these days. Finally an escape.

The teal haired arrancar waited for his friend to unsheathe his sword, but he never did. Instead he heaved Grimmjow to his feet.

"Can you walk?" Grimmjow nodded. The only reason they hadn't shattered his legs was because Gin had needed him to be able to stand when he deployed his own methods of torture.

Nnoitra let go of him, checking to see if he could support himself and when he could, roughly grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, picking up the remnants of Grimmjow's sword. He put on a sneer and dragged the sexta espada out of the room, passing by the guards with ease.

Grimmjow didn't say anything until Nnoitra had dragged him outside, in the hot sun of the desert. Nnoitra forced Grimmjow to his knees in front of him and pulled out a spare sheath, putting the shards that used to be pantera into it. He tossed it to him and turned away.

"Go. Get lost. Run away."

Grimmjow stared at Nnoitra in shock.

"I can't kill you Grimm. Try to escape. Try to save yourself." Nnoitra looked back at his best friend with a sad smile. "Sorry I can't put you out of your misery, but don't break yet. You'll get through this. I know you will."

Anger surged through Grimmjow's body and for the first time in a week, he had some fight in him.

"Fuck you. I don't need your pity." He said, struggling to his feet. Nnoitra looked back at him once more. Grimmjow plastered his trademark smile on and straightened up as best he could, still partially bent over, hand clutching his shoulder, but confidently.

What had he been thinking? How could he give up on life like that? He needed to prove to this asshole that he wasn't a weakling. Though he had proved that many times.

He picked up the sheath and gave the raven haired Espada a small wave.

"I still gotta beat you remember? You and that Kurosaki shitbag. I'll be back."

He turned and started walking, or rather limping, away from the castle, wondering how long his confidence would last.

"You'd better live up to that bastard!" Nnoitra called after him, grinning. He lingered for a few more seconds, savoring what he expected to be the last he ever saw of the teal haired espada, before turning around and heading back inside.


A/N: Le second chappy. Introducing....(drumroll)...emo ichi! Tada! Please review!