Devil You Know - Chapter 4 Conflict
Previously
Rukia gasped loudly at Ichigo's new appearance as he turned his face, the longer orange hair peppered liberally with white, the black and yellow eyes but what was most frightening of all was the unfamiliar grin etched across his features which turned her blood to ice. "Ichigo! What have they done to you?" She cried out, stopping dead in her tracks only a few feet from him.
"Hi Rukia, nice to see you too." Ichigo chimed, looking questioningly into round violet eyes.
October 9th- Vizard Hideout-
Rukia was frozen in shock, her mouth slightly open and her eyes fixed upon the creature that could not be her friend. It looked like Ichigo, but it simply couldn't be him, it wasn't just the changes in his physical appearance or even the Hollow-like quality of his voice. It was the smile or more accurately the smirk, it was so wrong. No, this was not Ichigo not her Ichigo anyway, not anymore. Rukia's heart dropped at the familiar feeling, I can't do this, this is just like Kaien! She cast an accusing glare to those around her but the fire in her belly roared when she settled on Urahara, the annoyingly secretive shop keeper hiding behind his fan. "This is all your fault!" She accused murderously, finally cutting through the heavy silence.
The Vizards stared disapprovingly at the small Shinigami while Urahara seemed simply saddened. The blond man flicked his fan closed and smoothly tucked it away before sighing loudly. When he spoke his voice was soft and gentle much like the tone used when talking to a frightened child. "I'm sorry you feel that way Kuchiki-chan, however I-"
"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Ichigo's voice echoed loudly in the underground desert. Everyone was taken aback by the sudden change in Ichigo posture and tone. The young Vizard's hand was firmly grasping Rukia's upper arm, keeping her from reaching the hilt of her zanpakuto.
"What's your problem Rukia?" His grip tightening painfully on her arm spinning her around so she would face him, he could feel the mix of rage and fear battling inside her and he easily ignored the fought back tears glistening in the wide violet eyes.
Yes, Urahara could be a major pain in the ass but he had done so much for them both. The man was too brilliant for his own good and was as much a cause of their problems as the solution but in the end his heart was in the right place. To accuse the man who had helped him acquire the strength he had wanted wasn't just a blow Urahara but to Ichigo himself. She was acting like Ichigo was barely there, almost like she felt there was something wrong about him. "I don't know what the fuck you keep harping on about, no one did anything to me, damn it!"
"Have you seen yourself Ichigo! Do you hear yourself right now! I thought you had that thing under control!" Rukia snatched her arm away from Ichigo grasp, it hurt but she managed to hide it by glaring back into the black and gold orbs pinning her where she stood.
"Do you have any clue what you've done, what will happen to you if the Soutaichou finds out about this?" She was so focused on Ichigo she never noticed the reaction her last statement had enticed from the others around them. The anger rising from the Vizards was interrupted when Ichigo let out a dismissive cackle.
"Like I ever gave a shit what Soul Society thinks of me!" Ichigo was having a hard time controlling himself, his anger was giving him a rush of excitement. "I know exactly what I did Rukia, I did exactly what you told me to do!" He spat back at her harshly. "Don't you remember! How you dragged me halfway across the school and made me humiliate myself in front of Inoue! You! You made swear to her I would get stronger so I could protect her! So I could protect all of you!" His face was twisted in anger and shame at the memory, the way she had grabbed him and made him bow.
Ichigo lowered his voice but there was a steel edge to it. "I was weak! I let my fear get in the way of what I'm supposed to do. I came to them willingly," he gestured to the group gathered around him, "and got my ass handed to me over and over again so I could get stronger and it still wasn't enough." Ichigo fits tightened, he barely felt his nails biting into his palms but he never broke his gaze away from Rukia's challenging stair.
"I made the same choice I did when I first met you and the one after that when I saved your ass! I'm gonna keep making those choices because no else can!" Ichigo's face twisted into that unfamiliar grin, there was a confidence in that grin that Rukia had never seen before. "And now I'm gonna kick that bastard Aizen's ass! I'm gonna kill that fucker and I sure as hell ain't doing it for Soul Society so I don't give a fuck what I look like to them!"
Rukia stared up at him completely lost for words, where fear and anger had held her now she felt a heart crushing pain. This was all her fault... She cast her gaze around to the strangers that had gathered around Ichigo. The ones that were still trying to help him, all she had done was shame herself in front of these people. She felt a hand on her shoulder but she couldn't bring herself to look up.
"Baka!" Ichigo's voice chided gently, he moved the hand off her shoulder to lift up her chin forcing her to look at him. "Stop worrying so damn much midget."
Rukia felt like she was suffering from emotional whiplash, there was something about the feel of Ichigo's hand against her face that was strangely comforting and she found it hard to hold on to her misgivings. The black and gold eyes had softened slightly but the glint of something dark beneath the surface was still palpable. She grasped at what to say, nothing seemed appropriate so she simply gave a short nod and stepped away from him. "I should go see Inoue, she should be back by now..."
"Back? Back from where?" Ichigo questioned, his familiar scowl sliding back into place at the mention of his friend.
Rukia's posture stiffened and glared at Urahara who suddenly seemed to find the ground very interesting. "I took her to Soul Society and got permission from Ukitake Taicho to train with her... There was no time for me to wait for the Senkeimon to be adjusted for her but she should be back by now."
The small Shinigami fished around her Shihakusho and retrieved a cell phone. "I still need to give my report and I won't get any reception down here. I'll come back after that..." She hesitated for a moment. "I'm sure Inoue will want to see you..." Rukia wasn't sure if it was the best idea, she wouldn't report Ichigo's new... Actually she wasn't sure what to call it but his friends deserved to know what was going on. The now white and orange haired Vizard blinked a few times at her statement seemingly confused by what she had hinted at. Rukia was relieved that at the very least, some things about Ichigo had not changed all that much. He was still clueless.
"Do what you want." He answered almost flatly and turned to Urahara. "I have a feeling there a few more things you should be telling me, ne?" He did not miss the sheepish expression the ex-Taicho was failing to hide. He sighed loudly and raised a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, he was getting a headache. He was still riding the waves from his change, he felt raw and listless. The teen was sure of two things right now, he wanted to fight and he was hungry, he just wasn't sure which one he should do first. The short outburst with Rukia had piqued his blood lust but the transformation had drained him, if he wanted to have a satisfying sparring session it was best to eat first. "Hey Shinji, got anything to eat?"
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TBC
Re-edited oct.2013