Chapter Two

The sun seemed more unbearable than ever. Cursing himself for having run into the desert blindly, Kurosaki made his way to only Death Gods know where. However soon he was finding himself further and further away from Hollow's Break, and towards a mountainous area. Staggering in the burning sands below his beaten boots, Kurosaki moved forward, hat tipped low.

Then; a glint. Just a half mile or so, there was a glint as if there were water reflecting the sun. With a huff of both relief and exhaustion, Kurosaki decided to make his way there. Only ten minutes away, the dehydrated outlaw found himself standing in shade; right next to a dingy house that was half blown to shreds, half in tact. A little disappointed by the fact there was no water, Kurosaki decided to have a look inside. Stepping into the dusty and abandoned atmosphere, he noticed some familiarity with his surroundings. He had been here before. Quite recently and it was almost as if…

"I've lived here." Kurosaki's voice cracked. He turned and took off outside, just to find a small pool in the back. He took his hat, boots and accessories off, and plunged in fully dressed. The water was so refreshing and cool to his skin he sighed happily. The sun on his face burned, but he wiped that sensation away with handfuls of crisp liquid to his gritty face. He took a moment or so to bathe, then washed his clothes and gathered drinking water with a bucket he found. He got out and dried off in the blasting heat, letting his clothes dry some before putting them on. Shaking sand out of his boots and dusting his beloved hat off, Kurosaki felt refreshed. But the only thing keeping him from being happy were the thousands of questions pounding into his mind. Who was this 'Aizen' person? Why were the Espadas, as he now knew them by, so obsessed with this 'betrayal' of his? What did he even do?

But the thoughts all came back to this house he was now standing in. Looking down at the dusty dining table, Kurosaki wondered if he truly had lived here. With whom? And what happened here? That's when he saw it; a small sepia colored photo just at his boots. He bent down and picked it up to study it. There were two young girls and an elder man in the background looking too overjoyed. The youngest, Kurosaki presumed, wore a cute plaid dress and pigtails. The other looked like she had been doing work and was stuck in overalls and an old hat. The old man looked like he could be a farmer. But they all looked happy. But most of all, a tall orange-haired man who was hugging these girls seemed to be the happiest of all. Kurosaki's eyes widened and he clutched his head as the memories came flying back at him.

"Brother! I made applesauce today! I'm sorry if it's bitter, but we ran out of sugar again!" Little Yuzu came bounding towards him, a small bowl of yellow slop lifting up for him to grab. Yuzu smiles happily, her brown eyes close to grin even bigger.

†

"Hey, Ichigo! Hurry up and do your chores!" A harsh bark came from the tall girl covered in mud. Black hair from her father, but her personality closely matching her own elder brother's. She smirks at said brother. "The laundry's outside by the pond." Karin says, then walks off, hands behind her head.

†

"ICHIGO! My son! What beautiful hunting skills you have! Look at this fine buffalo! You are fantastic! Come give your father a hug!" A kick to the face sends Isshin flying out the open door. As he rambles, Yuzu and Karin giggle and welcome their big brother Kurosaki Ichigo, home.

The memories were there in a flash, and then they were gone. Everything went black, and Kurosaki knew no more of what happened to his family.

When he awoke, it was dark out. However, he was not in the same house he had been in before. Under a moldy blanket and a hard mattress, Kurosaki looked up from where he lay. The only thing that lit up the dark room was some firelight coming from a fireplace. He heard the sound of scratching and he slowly looked over the blanket to see the black haired cowgirl planted on a stool, whittling soap with a sharp knife.

"Good. Yer awake. Remember anythin' yet?" She remarked, not looking up from her craft. Kurosaki lay blank, not knowing whether to treat this girl as a friend or threat. So far, she didn't seem too hostile besides the random beatings and scolding. Perhaps he could learn more about himself through this woman. After all, she did seem to know him well. He just had to be careful, in case she tried anything. It was then he noticed his gun and hat were off him. Either he left them at the house or she took them. Hoping she had them somewhere, he sat up slowly. "Where am I?" he asked, his voice still gruff from sleeping.

She then stopped and looked at him, her steady gaze eerie in the firelight. Her violet eyes were burning with both curiosity and knowing. Several more seconds passed before she spoke again, continuing her whittling. "Dun ya wanna ask where were ya?" She countered. She was right, that was more important. However before he had the chance to ask, she was explaining.

"That was the ol' Kurosaki residence; home to Isshin Kurosaki and his three children; Yuzu Kurosaki, Karin Kurosaki, and Ichigo Kurosaki." Her eyes glanced up briefly from her work to look at Kurosaki's reaction. He was a little dumbfounded, but more desperate for her to continue. She didn't let the tension build.

"The ol' Kurosaki family was a family from the north. They had moved 'ere 'bout six years ago. However within that first year, their wealth decreased to da point wheres they was scrappin' for crumbs. Poor Ichigo couldn't bare ta see his sisters starve, so he joined a group; an' a dangerous one at dat. Doin' dangerous jobs, filthy jobs dat even Ichigo didn' wanna do. But he did, and he got paid. Paid a lot. Bags o' gold coins and a pistol worth both a mill'on lives, and coins 'round. He became the star of Las Espadas. He became so envolved dat he was sent away for weeks on end. His family starved, but they waited, thinkin' he be huntin'. So once he came back, they praised him, they adored him. Little did they know tha' he be stealin' and doin' bids for the man known as Aizen Sousuke. And little did he know that he was bein' watched by dat man. And when Aizen found out that the murder assignments he gave to Ichigo were bein' faked, o'boy did dat man get mad. But das' da t'ing. He stayed mad. Fueled it more and more like a roaring fire to a train of gasolin'."

She paused now, looking into the fire with a sort of sadness. Kurosaki stayed quiet, too absorbed in all this to really pay attention. Kuchiki paused a bit more, then gulped and continued with a tongue of bitterness.

"One day Aizen sent out Kurosaki and the rest of the Espadas on a mission most vile and cruel for reasons only Aizen truly knew. He sent them out to destroy a whole town. And destroy they did, but it was not Kurosaki whom everyone blamed. No… instead Kurosaki, by order of Aizen, had his mind wiped an' den he was left for dead. All because he, dat good man, decided dat enough was enough dat day. All he wanted ta do was ta go home ta see his family. But little did he know…. they was already dead… all by Aizen's orders."

The silence that followed was painful. Kuchiki got up to fix the fire just to break the quiet. Kurosaki stayed in bed, looking up at the ceiling in thought and an impassive face. Kuchiki got him a bowl of soup and a chunk of bread. He ate slowly, but he didn't taste anything. He didn't even know he was done until Kuchiki took the bowl away from him.

This Aizen guy… was the one who destroyed his memory, his family, and everything he'd ever known. Revenge wasn't a good word to explain what Kurosaki was thinking. Vengeance seemed to be the closest.

/Kinda short but I hoped you liked this chapter! Keep reading!