Hajime's presentation on Indian culture the next day went wonderfully.

Even Ichigo was impressed. The demon had clearly put a lot of work into it, finding actual information about India on the internet. He interspersed that information with carefully edited stories about his own experiences. The samosas were delicious, particularly with the chili dip, and his dance was an interesting experience for the class. It was too strange for a lot of them to appreciate, but it did look very authentic.

The only thing that bothered Ichigo about it was that Hajime was probably going to get better marks in social studies than he was. Actually, that bothered him in general. The demon was as focused as a laser beam when he was working on something, so his marks in everything might outdo Ichigo's. It was weird to feel competitive with the albino, when Hajime had to obey his every command, but he couldn't help it. Maybe it was because Isshin liked to treat Hajime as a second son.

Ichigo sighed to himself as he worked. Sometimes, it seemed like he was the only one who remembered that Hajime was a demon. He knew what demons were capable of and Hajime had freely admitted to killing huge numbers of people. Of course, he did have a soul now, and he'd said that made a huge difference in how he felt.

"Maybe I'm being too hard on him." Ichigo mumbled to himself, then sighed. "Ugh."

"Hey Ichigo, want some sweets?" Ichigo blinked and looked up from his desk. Speak of the devil… Hajime was standing in the doorway to his room, holding a bowl of some odd looking balls doused in syrup, as well as a couple plates. "I made these yesterday, they're gulab jamun. You have to soak them overnight to get the best taste."

"Uh, sure." Ichigo wasn't the biggest fan of Hajime's desserts, but they were okay. Hajime put a plate down and transferred a few sticky balls into it with his fingertips. "That's fine, thanks." Ichigo tried one and decided it was decent.

"You're welcome, master." Ichigo winced at that but decided not to bother correcting him. It was probably just a slip of the tongue. "Do you have time for some training?"

"Huh?" Ichigo looked down at his work. It wasn't due for a few days. "Sure, why not?" He agreed and got out the cushions Hajime had insisted they get. He rather doubted the bright, tassled things were actually necessary but they seemed to make the albino happy. They both took their seats and Hajime gave him another lesson in meditation. Ichigo found it quite relaxing, although he wasn't sure yet how this would help him control his powers.

But hopefully, it would come with time.

Hajime lifted his head from his pillow, glancing around the room.

It was midnight, and he wasn't sleeping. The truth, that he hadn't mentioned to anyone, was that he didn't need to sleep. He only needed to spend a single hour in a meditative trance to awaken feeling completely refreshed. The priests had known that, and had sometimes kept him working around the clock, forcing him to only rest when it was absolutely required. Hajime grimaced to himself as he remembered that feeling, a growing, dazed confusion stealing over his mind as even the hour he needed was denied to him.

But here, he had far too much time on his hands. Hajime sighed, sitting up and going back to his schoolbooks. But he was almost completely finished all of them. He was doing all the problems he could, things he didn't have to do at all, and reading portions of the books the class would never cover. And when the class reached the parts he'd already done, he redid them. What else did he have to do?

But he was tired of it, tired and in need of something… dangerous. Hajime licked his lips as he thought about it. If he wasn't ordered specifically NOT to do something, than he could do it. In the temples, he was often ordered to stay within the temple grounds. Ichigo had never issued an order that prohibited wandering, so as far as Hajime was concerned he could come and go anytime he pleased. He took care not to let Ichigo know that in the daytime, but the teen was sound asleep. Why shouldn't he make use of the freedom laid before him?

Mind made up, Hajime stood up and slowly padded out of his room. He moved as silently as a shadow, and vanished into mist for a moment to leave the house without unlocking the door or taking his key. Then he walked down the road, just wandering.

Karakura town could be more dangerous at night. The gang problem was not huge, but it did exist. There were nightclubs and plenty of bars in the centre of town. Hajime had time to kill and walking through the darker side of the town made him feel at least a whiff of danger. So far, though, nothing had dared to cross his path. He was beginning to wonder if anyone would ever get up the nerve or stupidity to challenge him.

Tonight, as it turned out, was his lucky night. He was just walking down the street when five men surrounded him, three in front and two behind. They were thugs and wore the insignia of one of the local gangs. If he were a normal person, Hajime knew, he would be wetting himself right now. But since he was actually a demon spoiling for a fight, the albino grinned.

"And how can I help you gentlemen?" He said, his voice rasping and amused. They all just laughed as one particular man closed in on him.

"Beat the shit out of him Iwao." One of the others urged the man, who aimed a punch at Hajime's midsection.

The demon simply moved out of the way. He was very fast, and it took a spiritually powerful human to match his speed. This man didn't have a hope, and he hadn't figured it out yet. Hajime tucked his hands in his pockets before kicking the man in the ribs viciously as he went by. There was a scream and a crunch as the man hit the ground, and a brief silence from his companions.

"Oh, that didn't go quite the way you wanted, did it? How sad." Hajime said, his voice full of mockery. Then one of the others screamed and attacked.

At first they tried individually, and Hajime simply moved away, every move expressing his contempt for their inept attacks. As he dodged, he began to sing, his voice a rasping echo in the quiet streets.

How it all began,
In truth I'm told,
Had a master plan
Now I rule the world.

Took 'em by surprise
Worked my way up hill,
They looked into my eyes
I became invincible.

The only man he'd hurt so far was climbing to his feet, gripping his side. Hajime pretended not to see as he pulled out a knife.

"Invincible this, you bastard!" He screamed as he plunged the blade at the albino's back. To his shock and horror, the albino turned and caught his hand with a wicked grin, the blade only a millimeter from his unprotected heart.

No one can stop me, for only I am in control,
If you want me you'd better contact my people.

Hajime broke his wrist with casual malice, laughing at the scream. Then he let go, moving aside as the four remaining thugs tried to mob him and ran into their injured friend instead.

In my crown, I am King,
I love their endless worshipping,
I am raw, a dinosaur,
But I will never be extinct.

So don't mess with me.
I'll shoot you down,
Don't mess with me.

Hajime pressed his fingers to a forehead in the mockery of a gun, enjoying the terror on this man's eyes. But the others weren't really afraid yet, just angry and confused that their pretty prey never seemed to be where they wanted him. And that just wouldn't do. The dark, malicious part of his soul wanted to feel their terror.

'Cause all your heads are gonna roll,

Hajime let his nails turn into claws, and turned and waded into the men. Light slashes, nothing fatal or even crippling, but oh so painful.

I've made your misery my goal,

Blood splattering across the ground and screams, pretty screams and his own raspy laugh as he enjoyed every moment of what these fools had brought down on themselves.

So if you want survival,
Kneel on my arrival.

Hajime kicked one of them to his knees, grinning wickedly, then kicked him in the back and placed a foot firmly on his neck. The man was blubbering, now, utterly terrified by the monster in their midst.

For this is how I rule the world…!

Hajime's raspy laugh echoed through the air as he looked at the man beneath his foot. It was the one who had pulled the knife, the one with the broken wrist. He lowered himself so he could breathe into his face, letting him smell the odor of his breath. He knew it smelled of incense, sweet and heavy.

"That was fun. We'll have to do it again someday." He said and stood, licking his claws clean before tucking his hands away in his pockets. He walked away, feeling utterly content.

A good bit of excitement had been exactly what he needed.

Ichigo watched the reports of new gang violence without any concern. Gang violence had nothing to do with him and his family, and while there was a minute chance of being caught up in a shootout, it was minute. This was Karakura town, not Tokyo. It was a quiet sort of place.

He had no idea how wrong he was.

"Breakfast!" Yuzu announced cheerfully as Hajime poured them all some tea. He was very good at making tea by now, although he still preferred black tea to the Japanese green. Hajime smiled as he ate his food, and Ichigo noticed that the demon seemed very cheerful for some reason. "You're happy today, Hajime! You have a date?" Ichigo nearly choked on his food, but the albino laughed and nodded.

"Sort of. Orihime and Tatsuki both decided they'd be interested in dance lessons." He said with a grin. "So I'll be home late today."

"Really?" Ichigo figured Tatsuki was in it to try to protect Orihime from Hajime's advances. However, he thought he'd feel a lot better if he was there too. "Mind if I come? I'd like to learn a few steps." Actually, he couldn't care less about dancing, but it made a good excuse. Hajime's grin widened.

"You trying to horn in on my girls, Ichigo?" He said teasingly and Ichigo blushed as Karin and his father laughed. "Sure, I'd be glad to have ya." Ichigo blinked in surprise at that. He'd expected Hajime to get sullen again.

School was the usual grind, but the dance practice afterwards was fun. They held it at Tatsuki's dojo, and they were all panting and winded by the time it was done.

"I didn't think dancing would be that hard!" Tatsuki said, stretching out. Hajime shrugged, arching his back until he could plant his hands on the floor, displaying his stunning flexibility. Ichigo looked at the demon a touch grumpily. He was pretending to be tired, to keep up appearances, but it was clearly a pretense.

"Just uses different muscles than you're used to. Give it time and you'll be good. Heh, if you ever pick a fight with a dancer always remember they've got a kick like you wouldn't believe." Ichigo wasn't expecting a white foot to nearly part his hair and yelped, landing on his ass as he frantically jerked away. "Like that! Stop being a pussy, Ichigo."

"Oi! I'm not a pussy, you're just a jerk." Ichigo snapped, pulling himself to his feet and glancing outside. It was starting to get dark out. "Come on, we should be going home."

"Bye Ichigo! Bye Hajime!" Orihime said with a brilliant smile that Hajime returned. Ichigo just scowled before nodding and tugging his white double out of the studio. They both went out the door and Ichigo shivered as the autumn wind chilled him a bit. He'd been sweating quite a bit in the dance class.

"Hey, can you climb? Because I know a shortcut." Hajime said and Ichigo snorted.

"Can I climb? What kind of question is that?" He asked as Hajime gave him a grin. "What is this shortcut?" He was curious now. Hajime sometimes went for walks before bed, Ichigo wasn't about to keep him strictly in the house, so he could certainly have found something.

"This way." Ichigo followed willingly as Hajime led him through some interesting back alleys. They had to scale a chain link fence and take a trip through an elementary school playground, then scale another fence. Ichigo was completely lost and just taking it on faith that Hajime knew where he was going.

Then the albino abruptly stopped and Ichigo glanced past him, eyes going wide as he saw the man in front of him. He was heavily bandaged and had a cast on his wrist, but he was still holding a gun and pointing it right at them.

"Fuck you you fucking albino prick! Eat lead!" He screamed and Ichigo felt frozen as he heard the gunshots. Hajime's body jerked and blood flew, splattering the chain link fence and the ground. Hajime was knocked back by the force of the impacts and landed on his back, twitching and shuddering. Then the stranger turned the gun on him and Ichigo stared at the barrel. It seemed to fill his vision. He'd never known something so small could be so large.

"You his brother or something? Well, you can die too." The man spat and pulled the trigger as Ichigo tensed for the pain.

But there was suddenly white in front of him. Hajime spread his arms as the bullet hit his body, sending more blood flying. The thug screamed and began frantically firing into the albino. More blood flew, and Hajime's body twitched and shuddered with every impact, but he didn't fall. Ichigo stumbled back, watching in horror. Then the man's gun clicked, emptied. He tried to shoot a few more times, futile clicks as Hajime stood still, grinning.

"You done?" He asked, his voice raspy and mocking. The thug was dead white and backing away, fumbling in his pockets for something, likely more bullets. "Good. Because I'm just starting. And for the last few moments of your life, I'll let you in on a secret. Lead can't kill me."

"Hajime!" Ichigo screamed as a black scythe appeared in the demon's hand. He wasn't sure what he would have ordered the albino to do, and he would never find out, because the scythe swung in a movement almost too fast for the eye to follow. Chunks of flesh fell onto the ground and Ichigo stared. He'd seen blood and guts before, helping his father at the clinic, but never like this. Never a lake of blood, organs spread out like red and purple flowers, a head that had been neatly bisected with one eye staring…

Ichigo reeled away, leaning against the wall and emptying his stomach. As he did he heard a hideous slurping sound and looked up, horrified. Hajime was kneeling beside the body and sucking up the blood, his white throat moving. As Ichigo watched, the body began to dissolve into more blood, eagerly taken in by the demon.

"Hajime…" Ichigo didn't know what to say but a horrible, practical part of his mind saw and understood what the demon was doing. He was getting rid of the body, and in a far more efficient way than an unmarked grave or tossing into the river. It was taking very little time, he was drinking the blood and liquefied flesh at an insane rate. "Hajime…" Ichigo put a hand over his mouth at one very large slurp, and had to fight not to puke again. This was the most disgusting thing he'd ever seen in his life.

He had to close his eyes and wait for the demon to finish. Ichigo had no idea why the stranger had tried to attack them, but he'd deserved this. There was no doubt at all he'd have murdered them both, and Ichigo had never seen him before in his life. He was almost okay with it when the sounds finally stopped.

"Done, m – Ichigo. Sorry, I just thought you wouldn't want an inconvenient body for the police, especially one slashed in two." Hajime said, rubbing his lips as he stood. There was blood on his knees but it vanished, absorbed into his clothing, which was technically part of the demon's body.

"That makes sense." Ichigo said weakly, still feeling nauseated. If he'd ever needed any reminder of Hajime's true nature, he had one. But… Hajime had taken all those bullets to protect him. That did mean something, even if the demon was compelled to protect him. "Let's go, I want to get home." He really wanted to go to sleep and pretend this never happened. Maybe if he tried hard enough, he could convince himself it had just been a really gory horror movie.

He doubted it, but maybe.

"Hey, Hajime, I got you something." Ichigo said quietly. He and Hajime had just finished a demon magic lesson.

Ichigo had mastered meditation and learned how to suppress and release his own spiritual power. Now, he was moving on to kido. Kido was the more advanced manipulations of his power, and Ichigo was having a few problems with it. It just didn't seem to come naturally but Hajime said that was rather common and he should just be patient. Eventually, Hajime had promised to introduce him to the greater powers, the ones the priests used to effectively mimic the abilities of shinigami. Ichigo wondered how the death gods, the demon slayers felt about that. From a few hints Hijame had dropped, there was no love lost between the shinigami and the priests.

"Mmm? What's that?" Hajime stretched, rubbing his back for a moment as Ichigo searched through his pocket. He came out with a necklace. "Oooh, pretty! It's for me? Really?" Hajime admired it and Ichigo smiled to himself.

He thought the necklace was gaudy. It was a very glittery gold toned pendant with a large, blood red stone. It was hung on an absolutely terrible chain when he'd picked it up at a garage sale, but Ichigo had replaced that with another cheap chain. This one, though, hadn't lost its gold yet. The whole thing had cost only twenty dollars, and most of that had been for the replacement chain. But Ichigo didn't have a lot of money and as he'd thought, Hajime liked it.

Hajime tapped the stone and Ichigo blinked as his face went blank for a moment. Then he tensed as he felt the demon magic in the air. Now that he could control his own powers a bit better, he was more sensitive to when Hajime was using his.

"A red spinel, almost flawless, set in gilded silver. Very nice, Ichigo." Hajime murmured, blinking as he suddenly grinned. "You always do just the right thing without even knowing. It's what I love about you."

"Love?" Ichigo suddenly flushed as he heard that word. It made him feel strange and uncomfortable, and he gave his attention to the pendant. "You're saying its real? It's huge!" The stone in the pendant was enormous. Hajime shrugged.

"Perhaps it's artificial, but that doesn't matter to me at all. In fact, it might be better for my purposes. I can use this as a focus. Hah, you know, so can you… but I don't think red spinel would be the best focus for you." Hajime stared at him for a moment, eyes narrowing in concentration. "It's hard for me to tell but you should keep an eye out. I think a really big sapphire or diamond would do for you. It would make separating from your body and opening a portal much easier." Ichigo was speechless. A sapphire? "Look for a good synthetic. You'll know it when you see it."

"Uh, okay." Ichigo put that on his list of things to do. Although he had no idea where he would find a good synthetic stone. Maybe he could just buy a stone online and get it set by a jeweler? Hmm. "So what are we having for supper?" He could smell something cooking. Hajime had discovered the joys of a crock pot and put on a meal for them this morning.

"Nihari. It's a lamb stew, you'll like it." Hajime promised. Ichigo nodded and when they went downstairs, he found that the demon was right. The stew was absolutely delicious and he mopped up the last of the liquid with a crust of bread.

"Thanks for making this, Hajime, it's delicious!" Yuzu said and Hajime smiled, eating a bit of his stew.

"It was a pleasure. I do enjoy cooking." He said and Ichigo smiled as he glanced around the table. He was really getting used to having Hajime there. He was genuinely starting to feel like part of the family. "So how'd your dance class go?" Ichigo let the small talk wash over him as he went to get a bit more stew.

Life was pretty good at the moment.