I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I got it out quite soon after the last so yey me! ^^

Warnings: Blood, gore, insanity (curtsey of Shiro and Nea but mostly Shiro) and a boy x boy pairing

Disclaimer: Me no own Bleach or -Man

"Talking"

'Thinking/talking to inner spirits in thoughts'

"Hollow/Noah/Zanpakuto talking"

'Hollow/Noah/Zanpakuto talking in thoughts'

Chapter 4

Problems with the Shopkeeper

"So much for a nice walk outside." Ichigo muttered. He couldn't have a single moment of peace without the fallen souls needing his attention, the soul reaper currently stationed in Karakura was useless.

"Umm... Ichigo, is it normal for there to be this many Hollows at once?" Allen asked unable to fully hide his anxiety, he had quickly hidden his now activated eye behind his hand faking a tired look.

"Huh? Oh, no, it's not. Some idiot must have broken a ton of hollow bait for there to be this many. I guess I'll have to deal with him later." Ichigo stated with mild anger, luckily for Allen still facing the hollows.

Allen also looked up making sure that Ichigo couldn't see his cursed eye, dropped his hand to not look suspicious and tried to suppress the shiver that the bloodthirsty souls of the hollows evoked in him. "Let me help you, I've healed enough to fight now. I know that Innocence works on them, that's how I killed that nameless hollow and these don't seem to be much stronger." Allen explained in a half pleading, half serious voice.

"I can't really stop you can I? If you want to fight them, then go ahead but in case you get tired pull back and if you need help just shout..." Ichigo trailed off searching his pockets for his shinigami badge, having found it he slammed it against his chest and his soul form separated, the badge absorbing his human body - he was thankful for that improvement that Urahara had made but he'd be dead or insane before he praised the former squad 12 captain. Ichigo's shoulder-length, sunset coloured hair turned a midnight black as soon as his soul was released.

Allen stared at the teenager clothed in black robes and couldn't help but gawk at the huge trench knife shaped sword wrapped in bandages on the soul reaper's back. 'So this is what a soul reaper looks like...'

'I have to admit I was expecting something more like the usual skeleton in black rather than a normal human shaped spirit. This is much more intriguing.'

Allen ignored Nea as he noticed Ichigo's left hand. It was completely black – darker than his own – all the way to the wrist, where it separated into many tattoos that crawled up his arm like tendrils of smoke. The fingers were extended by viciously sharp black claws that scraped against one another as Ichigo flexed his hand. 'I guess we are more similar than I thought.' The soul reaper brought his right arm up to grab the hilt of his sword and Allen saw a black, plated gauntlet that encased Ichigo's hand. As soon as his fingers connected with the sword's hilt the chain dangling from it's end lengthened and wrapped around the soul reaper's arm shredding the material of his black sleeve, then the bandages around the sword unwrapped and revealed an imposing blade which Ichigo lifted onto his shoulder with ease.

"So, are you going to continue staring..." Allen blushed and looked away. "not that I mind much, but you could instead show me your Innocence, we could finish up with these hollows and be on our way to a certain menace that was probably the cause of this." Ichigo added smiling as Allen tried to make his blush die down, refusing to face Ichigo completely. Allen's embarrassment quickly turned into surprise as he saw red out of the corner of his eye, he looked up and locked eyes with Ichigo. Silver met red. Eyes the colour of blood had replaced warm chocolate but the kind, protective light in them remained, Allen's heart clenched when he saw that the soul reaper's eyes were still darkened and dimmed by a shadow of grief, loss and past horrors. Allen knew his were no better and to him, Ichigo looked like a fallen angel come to earth to save souls. Allen smiled slightly.

Ichigo's eyes widened a fraction at the sight of Allen's left eye which had turned completely black with a red pentagram in it's centre and a cog shaped silver monocle whirring around it. "Allen... your eye... what happened" Ichigo asked cautiously but quickly added, "don't tell me if you don't want to. I understand you might not want to."

"Oh, this?" Allen said pointing to his cursed eye. "It's the result of something that happened in my past, it lets me see the souls inside Akuma and from the looks of things hollows too." Allen stated evenly although he cast his eyes down at the mention of his past and when he looked up at the hollow he trembled slightly.

"Do they look that bad?" Ichigo asked tentatively but with unsuppressed curiosity.

"I've become used to Akuma souls. They look like mummified remains bound in chains, their faces always frozen in a scream, tears of grief at their actions flowing down their faces. They plead for forgiveness, to love them, to set them free. Hollows are so much different. Their souls are distorted into dark forms, chained to the monster's body with a single thin, rusted chain. Most of the one's up there aren't that hard to deal with, they mutter to themselves about hunger, about emptiness. But some... some grin and laugh with amusement and blood-lust as they talk of blood and slaughter." Allen's finished barely a whisper, his shoulders shaking.

Ichigo knew no words to say to what Allen had just told him, he had seen horrors too but it must be hard to see something that no-one else can see. Ichigo placed his hand on Allen's shoulder and squeezed it lightly, letting his spirit pressure cover the two of them in it's protective embrace. An idea came to Ichigo and made him turn Allen to face him. "Can you show me, I never had to know what I was purifying. I would like to see what you see."

Allen stared at Ichigo. No-one had asked this of him before. Why would someone ask to see something that would haunt them for the rest of their lives? He remembered that he had once somehow allowed Lavi to see the souls once, back in Krory's castle. Ichigo's determination encouraged Allen, he closed his eyes and concentrated on what it had felt like to let his curse's powers expand. Letting them flow around him. He knew he had done it when he heard a small gasp from next to him.

Ichigo was looking at the hollows, then he felt something prod at his spiritual powers, seeking allowance to show him truth. He let it in and couldn't hold back the gasp that escaped his mouth as souls materialised, attached to all the hollows. Allen was right, they all looked tortured in some form accept for the few that seemed to be relishing the blood-lust that came with being a hollow. Ichigo looked with disgust at them, those souls were headed straight to hell, a voice in the back of his mind told him, they were sinners. The rest he simply pitied as they raved maddeningly about cold that replaced a hollow's memories, the loneliness that gnawed at their sanity and the hunger that drove them to kill.

"I wasn't expecting this..." Ichigo continued to look around from soul to soul. He came back to reality as the hollows noticed them. "Allen, your Innocence."

Allen nodded and concentrated on his left arm and called on his power. "Innocence, activate. Crown Clown." Ichigo watched with awe as a pure white cloak enveloped Allen forming a white trench coat undone at the front with a hood lined with fur. An intricate silver mask hung at Allen's neck, half with simple black decorations, half with complex engraved patterns. His right arm become completely enveloped in the white fabric of his coat with a silver cuff while his left arm became larger and metallic with spindly claw shaped blades that cruelly reflect the sunlight promising death.

"Now that's something else. Although I think it's misnamed, you look like and vengeful angel, not a clown." Allen's blush quickly returned causing Ichigo to smile.

Ichigo looked back up at the gathering hollows that had started to pick up on their spiritual power, although more Allen's than Ichigo's as Ichigo had his power mostly suppressed. "Now, how about we send this lot on to Soul Society."

Allen nodded and watched with shock as Ichigo disappeared in a whisper of air. Shaking himself off and remembering to add teleportation to the list of subjects he wanted to ask Ichigo about Allen extended Crown Belt in a web below him lifting his form into the air. He then used the momentum to jump at the closest hollow and pierce its mask with a single claw, noticing with satisfaction that the ghastly monster disappeared straight away and the soul glowed blue before vanishing.

He continued jumping from hollow to hollow using Crown Belt to pull himself to them and quickly disposing of the fallen souls. He could see a black blur from time to time as Ichigo purified hollows further from Allen. The exorcist paused momentarily as he felt a heavy pressure gathering to his right, he turned to see Ichigo, standing in mid-air with his sword drawn back and glowing with black flames. "Getsuga Tensho!" The soul reaper muttered and let loose an arc of pure black energy. "Show off." Allen mumbled as the arc ploughed through the air tearing apart hollow after hollow before dissipating a fair distance from where Ichigo had stood. The black attack did leave Allen's senses on edge. Whatever it was made of felt powerful and dark but strangely not evil - not that he suspected Ichigo of being evil, he was used to dark being equal to evil, take the Noah for example. Then again it could have just been the endless times that the mentality of the Black Order had been drilled into him.

'How about you show him what you can do Allen? You should be strong enough to something more complex than just your base Innocence now.'

Allen smirked and and pulled himself towards a centipede shaped hollow, he scratched a cross into its mask. "Cross Grave!" Allen shouted pulling his arm back, the cross engraved into the hollow's mask glowed white and spread to split the hollow into quarters, the same happened to all hollows within a considerable distance around Allen, effectively purifying them. Allen's smirk turned into a full grin as he continued to purify the hollows occasionally using cross grave to clear a larger amount at once. He would have preferred to use it more but he could feel it tiring him out. At least he wasn't helpless.

Ichigo had to admit he was impressed Allen may not look to have an ability close to shunpo or hirenkyaku but his use of the white material that his Crown Clown was made up of made up for that. He didn't have the speed or manoeuvrability that accompanied either of the spirit techniques but he made up for it with experience and some very precise acrobatics that let him turn while hurtling at full speed towards a hollow.

Shunpo'ing from hollow to hollow wasn't giving much progress so Ichigo decided to take it up a notch. He stopped in mid-air and drew his sword back, condensing reiatsu into the blade. He swung it forwards, making sure that Allen was far enough away from the blast – however fast he may move, Allen wouldn't be fast enough to get out of the way of a Getsuga Tensho and Ichigo didn't want to obliterate the material body of a boy he just met, no matter how amusing Shiro would find it. "Getsuga Tensho!" Ichigo said to himself releasing the reiatsu inside his sword into a pitch black crescent of reiatsu.

The technique dissipated quite quickly and Ichigo continued shoot Getsuga Tensho's at any nearby hollows speeding up their extermination. Between using his signature technique he would go back to shunpo'ing between hollows.

Very soon the gargantas that let hollows into the living world started to close as the hollow bait wore off, finally progress could be seen in the decrease of minus souls in the area and very quickly. Ichigo breathed a tankful sigh as he slayed the last of the hollows and shunpo'ed back to the ground where Allen was standing looking slightly ragged but not battered or hurt in anyway.

"You did great back there!" Ichigo clapped Allen on the shoulder.

"You too. First time I saw a soul reaper but I have to say that I'm impressed." Allen grinned at Ichigo.

Allen deactivated his Innocence and was hit by a sudden feeling of vertigo. The floor was flying towards him and he couldn't make his muscled move more than a pathetic twitch. Strong, lean arms caught him as his face was inches off the cement, the exorcist looked up to see a frowning Ichigo, his eyes brimmed with worry.

"You ok? Did you overdo it back there?" He asked softly helping Allen back up to his feet and steadying him with an arm around his back.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I guess I haven't recovered as much strength as I thought I did." Allen laughed lightly to himself. "Umm... I may have a small problem though... my legs refuse to move for some odd reason..." Allen trailed off with a faint blush.

"Don't worry about it, if it's only that then you should be fine soon. Now, how about we go see about this menace that has ruined our peaceful walk?" Allen nodded slowly trying to figure out how he'd get there considering he couldn't move his legs all that much. Allen's question was soon answered as he felt Ichigo shift around him and lift him so he was carrying Allen bridal style. Allen felt more blood rush to his face and looked wide-eyed up at Ichigo.

"What's with that look? You can't walk for now so I'm carrying you." Ichigo explained easily.

"But... I... but... aren't I heavy?" Allen mentally glared at himself, 'Of all the arguments... that is what I choose to say?' It didn't help that Nea was laughing at him uncontrollably.

"Nah, you're not that heavy and anyway even if you were, a shinigami's body is much stronger than a human's so no worries." Ichigo grinned down at the glaring Allen and started to make his way towards Urahara Shoten.

Allen remembered the questions that had piled themselves up since he met Ichigo. "Ichigo, why did your hair and eyes change colour when you went shinigami-mode?"

'Shinigami-mode? Never been called that before.' Ichigo mused to himself before answering. "It is quite a change isn't it? It's kind of recent. After a certain encounter my soul became more shinigami than human when my reiatsu merged with the reiatsu of Zangetsu – my sword spirit. My reiatsu is black and red and like with a few others I know it influenced my appearance, changing my hair and eye colour."

"I like it, it makes you look like a true God of Death." Allen smiled up at Ichigo making his lips curl up slightly too. "Oh, that reminds me, can all soul reapers teleport like you did back with the hollows?"

"Teleport? Oh, you mean shunpo. It's not teleportation, I just use my spirit power to move faster, it's something that all soul reapers have the ability to learn but not all reach the point at which it's considered a shunpo. Oh, and if you're wondering about how I can stand in the air, it's based off the same principle – I just harden the spirit particles in the air under my feet."

"That's awesome, you were even quicker than Lenalee." Allen's look turned distant as he mentioned the girl's name, she must have been someone from the Black Order too, probably a close friend. Ichigo's eyes lit up with mischief as an idea popped into his head.

"Allen, how about I shunpo the rest of the way so you can see what it's like?" Allen looked back up at Ichigo quizzically.

"Umm... sure." Ichigo grinned internally at Allen's uncertainty. 'Let's see how he handles a captain level shunpo.'

Ichigo nodded down at the exorcist as a silent warning for what he was going to do next then flew forwards in a burst of shunpo. The buildings around them turning into a blur of indistinguishable colours. Allen felt the force of going into such a high speed movement hit him like a truck, knocking some of the air out of his lungs. He squinted his eyes at the rush or air that hit his face, the wind howled in his ears.

Ichigo fell out of shunpo for a second to let Allen catch his breath before he started again. He himself loved the freedom that came with travelling by shunpo, you felt weightless, unbound by rules of physics. He looked down at the white-haired teen in his arms and smiled, the exorcist seemed to be enjoying it too as could be seen by the small grin on his face.

Allen was smiling, he felt like he was flying. After Ichigo had gone back into shunpo Allen knew what to expect so had managed to steady his breath and was enjoying the experience more. A random thought came to him, soul reapers truly were more like angels than the undead skeletons of children's stories.

He felt a slight tug as Ichigo stopped for the second time. When his vision settled he came face to face with a dilapidated, old shop, a sign above the entrance read 'Urahara Shoten'. A boy with red, slicked back hair was standing before the shop waving his broom animatedly at a black-haired girl who was sweeping up the remains of a wooden box. Ichigo raised an eyebrow at the usual behaviour and after another minute or so the boy noticed him.

"Hey Strawberry! Should I get Urahara for ya?" He grinned cockily and half turned towards the shop.

"You might as well get Geta-boushi. Oh, and you may want to remember. Don't. Call. Me. Strawberry." Ichigo's voice turned menacing and the boy run inside the shop to get Urahara – at least that's what he kept on telling himself, there was no way he was scared of the orange-haired soul reaper.

Ichigo looked at Allen. "Can you walk now?"

Allen's head snapped up out of his thoughts, he grinned sheepishly. "I can try, I think I should be able to at least stand by now."

Ichigo lowered him to his feet and let go of him. Allen felt like pouting at the loss of contact with the soul reaper but when his knees threatened to give again and Ichigo's arm snuck around his back to hold him up Allen smiled. Ichigo laughed slightly, the sound was deep but cheerful. "Maybe not yet, but at least you aren't dead set on kissing the floor again."

Allen laughed along but couldn't help the slight tinge of embarrassed red on his cheeks at the memory.

"Why hello Kurosaki-kun~ How nice of you to drop by~" Came a sing-song voice from the entrance to the Shoten. Standing there was a man in a green haori with a white diamond pattern, a green and white stripped bucket hat casting a shadow over his face. He was waving a fan in a way that covered the rest of his face - leaving only the eyes visible. From under the hat chin-length blond hair stuck out at random angles. He closed the shoji doors behind him and bowed slightly to the soul reaper and exorcist.

"Urahara-san." Ichigo forced out the polite suffix through clenched teeth. "What idiot broke the hollow bait?"

"Why Kurosaki-kun, straight to the point like always. Why don't we go inside for some tea?" Allen could see Ichigo getting more and more irritated and he himself couldn't help but feel the same. He concluded that the blond man must have a unique talent for annoying others.

"Urahara. Just. Answer. The. Question." Ichigo looked like he was about to tear something apart and Allen could feel Ichigo clench his fist into his shirt. The shopkeeper didn't say anything but instead walked towards Ichigo with deliberate slowness while waking his fan continuously.

"So that's a 'no' for the tea then?" That was all that Ichigo needed to snap and before Allen could register what happened Urahara was flying through the doors of his own Shoten breaking them into pieces, he landed in a heap in the centre of his shop. Allen was taken aback slightly by how quickly Ichigo had snapped and was still staring at the twitching pile of green and white in the shop.

"Answer the question or I swear, I'll have another sparring session with you!"

"Kurosaki-san could you please calm down." Allen jumped at the sound from behind him and Ichigo turned slightly to face Tessai and nodded in greeting. "I'm sorry for causing you trouble. I'll explain what happened."

"We had a new delivery of hollow bait and I got the children to take it to the storage room. Jinta was having a go at Ururu again and it escalated until Jinta decided that it would be a good idea to attack Ururu with what he was holding, which happened to be a box of hollow bait. He broke the box and the bait inside. But don't worry Kurosaki-san, his behaviour has been dealt with and he's now on cleaning duty for the rest of the week."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow at the punishment but said nothing. It was impossible to argue with Tessai.

"Oh, Kurosaki-kun~ I see you have a new friend with you~" Urahara's unmistakable voice resounded from the entrance of the shop again. "How about you introduce us Kurosaki-kun~"

Ichigo sighed in defeat. "Urahara-san, this is Allen Walker..." Ichigo trailed off looking at Allen for permission, and Allen nodded understanding. "an ex-exorcist. Allen, that's Urahara, the crazy scientist and ex-captain of the twelfth division in Soul Society."

"Why Kurosaki-kun, I'm just a humble candy shop owner." Urahara said with feigned hurt.

"Humble by ass." Ichigo muttered under his breath.

"But an ex-exorcist, that's new. A pleasure to meet you Walker-kun."

"It's nice to meet you too Urahara-san." Allen bowed to the shopkeeper with his signature smile plastered on his face. It really was a perfect mask, his eyes were closed while he smiled making sure no-one saw that the smile didn't reach anywhere near them.

"Right, we should be getting home now. Allen can you walk yet?"

"I think so, but I'm still slightly shaky." Ichigo nodded and let go of Allen to take out his shinigami badge. He slammed it into his chest again ejecting his human body from it and going back into it before placing the badge back in his pocket.

Ichigo supported Allen again as they turned to walk away. "See ya Geta-boushi!"

"Bye Urahara-san." Allen replied turning away. Out of the corner of his ye he swore he saw a flash of red inside the shop.

Urahara turned and walked back into the shop.

"I expected him to get to at least Japan, but to get to Karakura. I'll admit I'm impressed. And he befriended a soul reaper – the God Slayer no less – the kid never ceases to surprise me." A deep, rough voice spoke from the back of the shop.

"You have to make sure Ichigo doesn't hear you say that, he doesn't appreciate the title. As for the kid, he really is something isn't he?" The shopkeeper mused. "Now how about we go back to our tea?"

Yey! I managed to get this chapter out quite soon but I was hoping for at least Monday. Ah, well.

So, who's the mysterious stranger with Urahara? (I bet most of you have already guessed)

All flames will be used to toast marshmallows :D