AN: This came from my FP account so I changed the names to suit the story. If you think any of the Non-bleach characters can be replaced with Bleach characters, please tell me! and I will give out rewards for those that I use!

Pairings: StarrkXGrimmjowXIchigo. KenpachiXUlquiorra. AizenXShinji. (Don't whine about the pairings, because I'm not changing them.)

On with the story then. *drum roll*

Two

Ichigo's eyes snapped open and he tried to sit up immediately. A pain from his side made him wince as he fell back down onto the rather lumpy mattress. He studied his surroundings and let his eyes wonder over the unfamiliar ceiling. He couldn't remember anything past the point of Constance trying to suck his blood. No, there was also Kisuke. He had asked the vampire to get him out of the mansion before he fainted.

"Ah, good. You're awake. Gave me a bit of a scare when you washed up by the bridge." The voice startled the hunter and he tried to sit again. Pain flared up in his side and Ichigo curled up against the bed with a loud gasp. After his vision stopped swimming, he looked up and studied his savior. It was a man in his late thirties or so. He had a mass of tangled black hair and an unshaven face. Then the orange haired man turned and looked at the man's home. There was a small sagging couch with a faded quilt hanging over it and an even smaller TV in a corner. There were a lot of cats. His brain clicked into place.

Oh gods, I got kidnapped by a hobo.

"Are you a hobo?" Ichigo blurted out suddenly. The man snorted and turned to him. Ichigo noticed the man had really deep stormy grey eyes and long lashes that looked somewhat out of place on such a dirty face.

"Sorry to disappoint, but I'm not a hobo. Very interesting, you have a fetish for such people?" he asked and tilted his head to look at the hunter. Ichigo ducked his head and flushed bright red when he realized he was in the man's bed and wearing nothing. There was a thick bandage covering his chest but still left everything else bare to the eye. He glared up at the man.

"I demand you give my clothes back." He said coldly.

The man just shrugged his shoulders. "You can have them when they dry off. You were covered in blood when I found you, you know. You also had three broken ribs, a fractured wrist and a puncture through your left lung. I'm surprised that you made it through…although I doubt you'll be leaving here soon. What's your name, youngster?"

Ichigo looked down at his hands. "Ichigo."

"Nice name, I'm Starrk, by the way. Feel free to explore my dump if you're up to it." He shrugged his shoulders and walked out. Ichigo looked around. Starrk really looked like he needed money. He laid back down when he started to feel dizzy. The slowness of the healing was what scared him. Normally he would have been able to heal any wound after a good night's sleep. By the looks of it, he had fainted for at least a day. It was mid afternoon right now. He sighed when he realized his cell phone was missing. Ichigo vowed silently to himself to kill Kisuke when he got back.

A loud hiss caught his attention and he sat up just in time to see a black kitten latched firmly onto one of Starrk's trouser legs. The man grimaced and looked up. "Oh hello. Say 'hi' to Angel. She's a real bitch. Oww… don't bite me!" the hunter tried to hide his smile as the man kicked at the kitten on his leg. It refused to let go and growled deep in its throat. Starrk overbalanced and fell over the small couch. Laundry went flying as he struggled with the cat.

Ichigo checked the other man's aura with a frown. He was definitely human alright. But there was a nagging feeling in his gut, especially after he had seen the grey eyes. It reminded him of someone he had seen a long time ago. But no matter how much Ichigo thought about it, he couldn't recall.

xXx

"Here open your mouth. Bear with me here, I know my cooking sucks." The man was holding up a spoon of lumpy grey material that looked a lot like cat vomit. Ichigo wondered if it was toxic but obviously the man had eaten his own food.

"I can cook…" he said softly before leaning forward and taking the food into his mouth. It tasted like…Ichigo blanched. "I'm allergic to oatmeal!" he grounded out through his teeth before spitting the mouthful out.

"How is that? Oh…" Starrk stopped talking when he saw the hunter's tongue start swelling. "Oh gosh, I'm sorry. I swear I wasn't trying to kill you…" he trialed off and wiped his brow with the end of his t-shirt nervously. The hunter just glared at him in silence.

"Uh…should I go get something else for you?" he finally asked, stormy grey eyes still concerned. Ichigo shook his head and lay back down. They sat there in silence for a few minutes. Starrk sighed.

"Sorry again. I guess you should leave soon, I don't want to kill you with my cooking by mistake." He suddenly looked like he remembered something and ran off into another room before coming back with something in his hand. "You dropped this."

Ichigo blinked as his cell phone came into view. The hunter sighed. He wanted to contact Shinji to come and get him, but his tongue was too sore to speak. Damn his stupid allergies. He flipped open the phone and saw twenty-five missed calls from Shinji and ten from Ulquiorra's cell. Ichigo sighed and sent a text message to his fellow hunters to reassure them. Then feeling oddly drained, he let himself fall back onto the mattress. He could deal with the mess tomorrow. Ichigo closed his eyes and fell asleep.

"Rise and shine, boy!" the sound of Starrk's voice made him snap out of his nightmare. He was sweating and twisted in the blankets. Ichigo took several deep breaths and closed his eyes in annoyance. Part of him was grateful for the rude awakening the other part still wanted to sleep some more. The man was standing in a pair of bright yellow banana boxers and beaming down at him. Ichigo groaned and shook his head. He was feeling much better than yesterday but he was still reluctant to get up. He suddenly felt guilty for sleeping on the only bed in the house.

"Where did you sleep?" he asked reluctantly. The man shrugged his shoulders and went to the kitchen.

"I slept on the floor because the cats like the couch." He said and rubbed his back with a small grimace.

Ichigo flipped open his cell phone and glanced down at the bunch of unread messages. Shinji had asked for the street address he was at and told him to get his stuff ready to be picked up. Ichigo waited until the man had come back before asking him where they were at exactly. He was mildly surprised when Starrk shook his head.

"You're a hunter. Rescuing you was risky enough. I won't have you dragging another bunch of people here, not when I've finally gotten used to this part of town." He said with a frown. "I know this sounds selfish but I would rather you leave on your own when you heal and forget you ever met me."

Ichigo felt slightly puzzled. The man was clearly a human even if his eyes had the same dizzying affect of a vampire on Ichigo. He nodded, respecting the man's wishes.

The next few days dragged by rather slowly, until Ichigo could actually walk around the room unaided. After that, Starrk immediately made him work to pay off the fees for bandages and medicine. The hunter complied and washed the animals the man dragged home. He had found out a few days ago that Starrk worked as a vet at a small pet clinic and he often lugged home injured animals and other pets. But the man was extremely lazy and tended to sleep at the oddest hours of the day.

After washing a few cats without getting scratched or bitten like Starrk. The man had come up with a conclusion. "You're a cat person." He said as they both sat on a low rooftop next to the man's balcony. Ichigo felt slightly out of place in his black leather pants and jacket. Everything about the neighborhood was peaceful and innocent. He almost felt guilty for ending up there and bringing his dark presence into such a place.

"You know, I think I'm more of a bird person." Starrk suddenly said and brought the hunter back to reality. Ichigo blinked at him and nodded along. "You don't really look like a hunter… you've got that dreamy look of a child underneath the cold mask you always slip on to hide your feelings from the rest of the world."

Again the human named Starrk surprised him. Those deep grey eyes were peering at him curiously and Ichigo refused to meet them. For a moment, the uncomfortable feeling was back. He was out of place here and really needed to leave if he didn't want Constance to come and find him. Shinji had told him a few days ago that Constance was a fledgling of Dominique and that wasn't too good. The female Ancient was definitely hot for his blood. Ichigo grimace at that thought. He had just intended to flirt with her a bit until she fed a bit to make the killing blow but the vampire seemed to have taken in interest in him.

"Hey, dreaming off in your little world again?" he suddenly glanced up to see Starrk looking down at him with a curious look. "Do you want to leave?"

Ichigo smiled bitterly and nodded. He didn't belong in this man's normal life. Somehow a pat of him longed for the easy life. Starrk took care of cats and dogs everyday and had a small salary to raise himself while Ichigo's food depended on how many damned vampires he killed. For the few days he stayed there, he had taught the man some simple dishes to make when he left, just so he wouldn't poison himself by accident. There was always laughter in the small messy house when Starrk was around. He didn't make as much money as Juliann did, but he was certainly happier than her. The feeling of warmth was inevitable when he was around Starrk. Ichigo found himself smiling more often when he was washing a scrawny cat and watching another one clawing out Starrk's eyes. And now he was leaving. A wave of sadness washed through him and he had to remind himself that he didn't belong in such a place.

"I'll leave tomorrow morning. Good night." He said calmly and made his way inside the room. Starrk didn't answer and stayed on the balcony.

That night, Ichigo had a hard time sleeping. The nightmares were more vivid than ever but he didn't wake up when the werewolf screamed for the woman like he always did. The dream changed settings and he found himself standing on a fancy balcony overlooking a large land.

"Master, he is waiting for you." A servant bowed her head respectfully.

Ichigo's eyes widened as a figure stood up and approached where he was standing. The familiar grey eyes looked at him unseeingly and he almost called out to the vampire. Straight black hair framed his breathtakingly beautiful face and stormy grey eyes stared out at the scene before him. He didn't smile.

"Alright. I will be there in a few minutes." He said calmly. The servant bowed again and left. For a few moments the vampire kept his gaze locked on the land before him before speaking. "Isshin, you can stop your ridiculous game of hide-and-seek. Come out, I need to talk to you before I go see me brother."

The hunter whiled around when a shadowed figure stepped out of nowhere and smirked. It was the brown haired man he had seen in his more bloody dreams. His dark hair hung around his face like a halo of light and the blue eyes twinkled with amusement. There were no bloody wounds on his body and he was dressed in a light tunic.

"I don't see why you just won't take the place of power. You're more capable than James, aren't you?" he said and pulled a woman from behind him. Ichigo's breath caught in his throat as he stared at the woman. Masaki's hair was bound in a simple braid and she wore a black dress that made her pale skin stand out even more vivid.

"I don't want to see my people slaughtering each other like animals again. If James can rule without war, then I'm more than happy to stand by." The man replied simply. The werewolf snorted and grimaced but he stayed silent.

"Uncle, look at him. Isn't he amazing?" the female vampire stepped forward and held out a bundle to the older vampire. The black-haired man took the baby and Ichigo watched as a small gentle smile flickered onto his face. He looked up at the woman tenderly.

"I can already tell he will do wonders. What did you name him?" he asked softly.

"We decided to call our baby I—"

Ichigo didn't get to hear the name. The door burst open and the silver-haired vampire, James entered the room. His eyes narrowed when he saw his brother standing on the now empty balcony. The dark haired man stood perfectly still and ignored the dark glare.

"I know they were here. You can't lie to me this time. I can smell the werewolf's stench." His silver eyes flashed in challenge. The other vampire just shrugged.

"You cannot win against me in a physical fight. I do not feel threatened by your words. They deserve a chance together. Your daughter is truly happy. Why can't you just let go of your prejudice?" he asked and turned around to face James. The vampire narrowed his eyes and suddenly lunged forward, fangs bared to---

"How long do you want to sleep? Your cell has been ringing since four thirty. Damn, I have a headache." Ichigo opened his eyes to stare into the same grey eyes from his dream.

"You…" he whispered before he could stop himself. The human male raised his eyebrow and frowned.

"I hope your brothers don't loose their patience and come get you by force." Starrk scratched his unshaven face and grimaced. Ichigo nodded and packed his very little belongings. Half an hour later, he was ready to go.

"Hope you can come by to visit some times. It'll be nice for me to have a little bit of help washing the animals…" the human said in a rather awkward voice.

Ichigo paused by the door and turned around to study the human. Starrk shrugged in embarrassment and looked away. Ichigo smiled slightly.

"I will respect your wishes and forget this place. Good bye …" he said and stepped out onto the street. The sun poured its warmth down on his shoulders and he turned for one last glimpse of the man's house. Starrk was standing on the old balcony and watching him with a small thoughtful frown. Ichigo sighed softly before making his way over to the nearest coffee bar.

xXx

"Man, I thought you were dead for sure! Urahara said he almost got caught so he left you by the bridge and was going to double back for you when he lost the pursuers but I think he's just a fucking coward. Don't ever do that again!" Ichigo's face stayed neutral as Shinji grabbed him into an enthusiastic bear hug and rubbed his head affectionately. The brunet sitting beside him pursed his lip at the childish behavior.

"Good, your wounds have healed. You can come on the bug shift with me this afternoon." Ulquiorra said curtly and sipped his black coffee. Ichigo grimaced in annoyance. A bug shift was slang for hunting inferior vampires down in the dark smelly sewers. They didn't need good bullets for them but the exploding gore and deafening screams were very nerve-grinding, not to mention the smell of rotting flesh. Killing those things were usually the jobs of new apprentices under Juliann, but sometimes when their numbers got too much, older hunters were sent down.

"Not to worry, I'll go with you too. It's too stuffy with just emo boy here. You might just suffocate under the heavy no-nonsense atmosphere." Shinji said with a smirk and winced when Ulquiorra stepped on his foot under the table. "Fuck, who shoved a stick up your ass and left it there?" he said half-jokingly.

Ichigo watched as Ulquiorra's eyes widened in shock and blinked when a flash of pain appeared in the hunter's eyes. The brunet's hand went to his bandaged neck briefly before lowering it down on Shinji's face. The deafening slap made the whole coffee shop go silent and Ulquiorra stood stiffly. Without a backward glance, he let the restaurant. The blond stared at the back of his fellow hunter in shock.

"Your big mouth will get you killed someday soon." Ichigo said calmly and motioned for the waitress. They paid for the coffee and left the restaurant.

"Dude, you're going back to the gas station?" Shinji asked suddenly. Ichigo nodded silently. When he wasn't hunting down a vampire, he worked part-time at a gas station. He usually washed cars and fixed a few problems for people. The pay was tiny compared to his hunting fees but he didn't feel like staying around Juliann when he was free. The woman was not the best companion to be around. The free time he got to spent to at least pretend to be normal was great. The feeling of belonging made him relax. Sometimes Ichigo thought about leaving for another city and getting away from all the chaos but a part of him knew there was no turning back from the day he got his hunting tattoo.

Shinji walked him to the gas station before turning and leaving. "Come back at four this afternoon."

Ichigo glanced at his watch. There were six more hours left until he had to go. The hunter smiled politely at the gas station manager as he slipped into his grimy uniform. The tools felt good in his hands as he worked on the car of an old lady. She didn't leave it there like most people. Instead, she stayed and chatted with him. Ichigo enjoyed the small talk as he fixed the small problem. He stiffened when he felt a hand suddenly land on his shoulder.

"Kisuke, I would suggest you fuck off or I just might gut you for last time." Ichigo said in an icy voice. The vampire just brushed away the threat and sat down next to the old lady much to Ichigo's annoyance.

"I came to warn you. You should thank me for it." He leaned forward and dropped his voice. "Constance is begging Dominique to have you as her pet. You wouldn't believe how expensive you are on the night market right now. Mercenaries will be after you all the time now…" He smirked.

"Did you forget I'm a mercenary too?" He hissed back before turning to smile at the old lady.

"It's all done, ma'am." He said and wiped his forehead. The old woman thanked him, reached up to pet his head and left to pay for the repair.

Ichigo took the time to throw a dirty look at the vampire sitting next to him. Kisuke looked slightly bored. The vampire was a freelancer. He didn't own a land or a bunch of slaves like some of the other vampires. He was a merchant and did business with all kinds of people. He was a useful source of information sometimes, which was the only reason Ichigo hadn't killed the annoying thing yet.

"I suggest you hide for a while, at least until Constance looses her interests in you. It's dangerous to go against one of Dominique's. And not to mention, you also pissed off Kenpachi last time you killed one of his fledglings so I'm guessing he's not going to be on your side." Ichigo ignored the chatty Ancient and went back to washing another car.

"I'm not leaving anywhere. I've been through worse. Dominique won't last against Juliann. As for that Constance, I won't make the same mistake as last time. If I see her again, she is so dead. "

Kisuke sighed and rolled his eyes. "They always say 'curiosity kills the cat' but in your case it's 'stubbornness kills the cat'. But I won't let you get hurt. I'll always protect you, sweetheart..." he make kissing gestures at the hunter.

Ichigo's only reply was a flying wrench aimed at the vampire's face.

xXx

"Stop complaining!" Ulquiorra grounded out through his teeth and turned to give Shinji a dark glare. The blond-haired man pouted but did as he was told. They were trudging through the dark underground sewage system slowly and shining their flashlights at every smelly corner. It was by no means a good place to be. Dirty water leaked from the cracked pipes above their heads and rats squeaked as they darted past the three figures.

"Hey, look at this." Ichigo ignored Shinji, who was shining his flashlight at a pack of rats in the corner. The rats scattered and screeched as they fell into the water. The eldest hunter cackled in glee, took a few hurried steps forward to catch up and promptly fell flat on his face. The other two whirled around with their guns drawn and focused on the sandy-haired hunter.

"Aww, fuck! I'm covered in…rat shit and other crap! God, I think I ate some of it…" he suddenly sat up and began wiping off his face. Ulquiorra curled his lip at the sight and turned to walk away.

"Wait, what's this?" Ichigo bent down to examine the thing that had tripped the older hunter and frowned. It looked like the pelt of some kind or animal floating in the knee-high water. He flipped it over with his the front of his gun and almost fell over in shock. It took all of his training not to puke at the sight. It was the ripped-off skin of a wolf.

"Damn…looks like someone got in trouble down here. But why would a werewolf be down in the sewers anyway?" Shinji peered over Ichigo's shoulder and grimaced at the bloody thing. "Hey, Ichi, you ok?"

"Peel it off of him. I want it made into a rug for the front hall." The cold voice said. Not short after, there was a heart wrenching scream of pain…

"ISSHIN!" the woman's voice echoed through the hall.

Ichigo flinched away from the skin and closed his eyes to hide his discomfort. The flashes from his dreams were coming more often now and he found them distracting and disturbing. He pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to breathe calmly.

"We're not alone. Ready your guns." Ulquiorra's voice suddenly cut in. he turned and saw the older hunter close his eyes in concentration. When he opened them, they glowed an eerie bright green before fading back to their normal hazel green. "There are about seventy coming this way. We'd better find a better place to fight. Chances are we can't outrun them."

Ichigo snapped out of his dazed state and checked his guns. They turned to follow the brunet. The three hunters had just reached their destination when the first one came out of nowhere and leaped for Shinji with a strange hiss. Ichigo readied himself for the screams and exploding bodies. A filthy blond inferior vampire launched itself at him and got a mouthful of bullets. The orange haired man curled his lip as blood and bits of brain splattered onto his face. He didn't understand how Ulquiorra could stay almost spotless in such situations. The brunet hunter was shooting calmly and dodging the flying intestines at the same time with ease.

Something slammed into Ichigo's gut and threw him off balance. The vampire tried to sink his fangs into the tough leather jacket he had on and the hunter shot it in the left eye. Ichigo was back on his feet in less than a second and nodded when Shinji asked him if he was alright. They had almost killed the whole lot when one of the inferior vampires did something strange.

It started to climb away from them. Normally they were very bloodthirsty and if the creature had any body heat they would attack without hesitation. Ichigo kept an eye on the one that was sneaking away as he fired at the ones that got too close. It was too late when he realized what the thing was aiming for. All he could do was watch in horror as the vampire disappeared. There was a hatch right above their heads and the inferior vampire pried it open and climbed into the outside world.

"Ulquiorra! Shinji! We have to go." He pointed to the opening where others were crawling out after the inferior vampire. Normally the manholes were bolted down from above, but this was the hatch they had crawled in, so it wasn't locked. It took him a while to get over the shock that they had been tricked.

The screams above started not soon after the last one crawled out. The hunters followed but at a slower pace. The ladder was long and covered with fungus and other slimy things. It was very easy to loose their footing and slip. Ichigo looked up just in time as the last inferior vampire slipped through and closed the opening with a loud bang. There was a scraping sound as the bolt was pushed back into place.

They were stuck inside the sewer with rabid vampires and limited bullets. Glowing eyes blinked eerily from the darkness and the vampires hissed before they launched themselves at the three hunters.

"Oh shit." Shinji said.

What do you think? *hopeful eyes* Review please!