Shiro rested his chin in his hand as he tried to pay attention to the lecture.

It was hard though. This was physics class and he didn't have the slightest clue what the teacher was going on about. He was doing his part for Ichigo by simply copying every note the man made into his notebook. That part was easy, he was a fast writer. So the rest of the time he spent surreptitiously examining the girls in the class.

Tatsuki he dismissed instantly. He honestly didn't like her much. It was an old, old grudge, dating back to the first time she'd made his Ichi-chan cry. He might have been able to forgive that but her attitude rubbed him the wrong way in general. She was a good friend to Ichigo, though, so he was careful not to let his dislike show. It probably wasn't her fault anyway. Sometimes people just didn't click, it was the way things were.

Orihime, on the other hand, amused the hell out of him. She puzzled Ichigo all the time with her weird attitude, but Shiro had her figured out. She liked Ichigo but when she thought about it she embarrassed herself, and she did something peculiar to distract herself from the intense embarrassment. Shiro understood because he tended to do the same thing. When something raised very intense, unpleasant feelings Shiro would talk to himself until it went away. It looked peculiar as hell to outsiders but it was just a coping technique.

"I like her." Shiro mumbled to himself. He really did like Orihime. She was sweet, kind and would be a great homemaker. That was the kind of thing he wanted in a mate. Women going out and getting jobs was fine, but he firmly believed that little ones needed their mama. Both of his mothers, hollow and human, had reinforced that opinion. Glancing at the board he began noting down the new set of designs and symbols. Hopefully Ichigo would understand all this.

He was a bit surprised when Ichigo didn't come back for the rest of the day. Fortunately, pretending to be his twin wasn't really hard. He knew Ichigo inside out, backwards and forwards. The only problem was remembering not to grin too much. His grin was vastly different from Ichigo's smile and someone was likely to notice.

Waiting for the bus was boring though. And he was all alone for some reason. Usually Chad and some of the other kids were there. Shiro tried to think if he'd forgotten something. A game maybe? But he drew a blank and shrugged to himself. Aside from his lessons at the dojo Ichigo wasn't into sports. He wouldn't care if they were missing a game.

As he waited, Shiro hummed to himself. The humming moved naturally on to singing. And the singing moved naturally on to dancing in place. And dancing in place moved on to real dancing. Ichigo never danced, but Shiro was not Ichigo and he absolutely loved to dance. He stopped when he spotted the bus and blinked when he heard a bunch of feminine giggles. Glancing away he saw a bunch of tweens staring at him and laughing. Shrugging to himself he grinned and waved before getting on the bus.

He had no idea if they were making fun of him or thought he was hot, and he didn't care.


"Mrph." Shiro closed his eyes in bliss as he slowly chewed on a nut bar. "Love these things." Larabars were his second favourite sweet. The combination of sweet honey and salty nuts just made his day. Ice cream was even better, with its beautiful, creamy texture, but that was the only thing that could compare.

"Thanks for taking those notes for me." Ichigo said from his spot at the computer and Shiro lifted his head. He was on the bed, just spread out and chilling. "Rukia said that since you were taking my place we could make it a longer training. She took me to Urahara's and drilled me on sword work for a while."

"Oh yeah!" That made Shiro sit up. He'd been thinking of something related. "That reminds me. I made an appointment for us both at the dojo on Saturday. We need t' get our butts in gear." Ichigo looked over, surprised, and Shiro grinned. "Dad's coming too. We need to get our sword work in order and he's the guy to do it." Right now their abilities with the sword were definitely a weak point. They hadn't taken those lessons seriously, and for good reason. Shiro didn't have a sword and why would Ichigo be using one in a real fight? Fists were far more likely.

"Wait, dad?" Ichigo frowned, turning away from his computer. "Have you told him what's going on?" He asked and Shiro hesitated.

"No, not yet. I thought we should do that together and maybe bring the midget." Shiro scratched his head, looking up at the ceiling. "We really should tell him soon though. He can probably teach us a lot, even if he can't leave his gigai anymore."

"What?!" Shiro bolted upright and Ichigo stared as the door to the closet suddenly opened. Rukia jumped out wearing… was that Yuzu's pajamas? "Your father wears a gigai? Who is he really?!"

"The hell?" Ichigo said as Shiro looked at what had once been his nest. She'd cleaned it up! "What are you doing in my closet?!" He sounded incensed but Shiro was rapidly passing him.

"My nest! That was my nest! What've you done to my nest?!" He nearly howled and Ichigo winced as Rukia stared, taking in his appearance. "You can't have the closet, that's mine ya bitch!"

"You're a hollow!" She pointed at him and Shiro snarled, summoning in his bone armor. He started forward but Ichigo caught him from behind, looping his arms under Shiro's in one smooth move.

"Shiro, no!" He said sharply as his brother wiggled, trying to get away. The bone covered tail lashed his legs and Ichigo winced at the force behind it. His brother was really pissed.

"Let me go Ichi, I'm gonna kill her! She ruined my nest!" Ichigo glanced at the closet and saw what Shiro meant. The messy pile of blankets on the bottom was gone, replaced with neatly arrayed shoes. He'd always kept the shoes in there but they been sort of jumbled together on one side, with Shiro's nest on the other. Shiro's nest had included a few pillows, too, and those were missing entirely. Then they all froze as the door opened.

"Ichi, Shiro, what the hell! Some of us are trying to… sleep…?" Karin stopped as she saw Rukia, caught in the act of trying to jump back in the closet. "Um…" She glanced over Shiro and Ichigo. The scene was peculiar, to say the least. "Okay. Are you guys going to explain this?" She asked and Shiro's bone armor flaked away. Ichigo let him go, running a hand through his hair and trying to think of something believable. "And no bullshit please." Karin said firmly and he winced, glancing at Shiro.

"She's a space alien and she came to raid my nest – OW!" Shiro winced as Karin punched him firmly in the chest. "That wasn't bullshit, it was a complete fantasy, there's a difference!" He complained and Ichigo sighed.

"It's complicated… I think we should explain to everyone at once." They were all getting ready for bed but still awake. Now might be a good time. Rukia shook her head vigorously and Ichigo scowled at her. "You can't live in my closet, it belongs to Shiro." He wasn't going to evict his hollow from his nest, and he doubted very much the shinigami would want to share the closet with him. "You'll have to take the guest room. Or do you really want to sleep with Shiro?" He glanced at his brother who easily took the cue and leered at the little shinigami. She took a fighting stance and narrowed her eyes.

"How dare you insinuate such a thing." She said a low, angry tone and Shiro's leer turned into a more natural grin.

"Aw, we don't mean it. I'm still an innocent virgin!" He said lightly and Ichigo choked before slapping him on the shoulder. It was true though. Despite his eyeing up the girls and his excellent porn film leer, Shiro was a stranger to actual sex. He didn't even have much in the way of desire, yet, although that would eventually change. "But d'you want to share the closet with me when I rub one out?" That wasn't a frequent event either but it did occasionally happen. Rukia and Karin both looked revolted.

"I'm getting mom and dad, go down to the kitchen and we can have this out. And don't ever mention that to me again you disgusting freak!" Karin threatened Shiro who looked hurt, before glancing at Ichigo. Ichigo looked at him with a steely glint in his eyes and seeing he was getting no support, Shiro sighed and grabbed his gigai. It was tucked up beside the dresser and Rukia watched, wide eyed, as he got into it.

"A hollow using a gigai? I didn't think that was even possible." She murmured before following them downstairs. Shiro flicked a glance back at her.

"I ain't a normal hollow." He said briefly before the rest of the family came down the stairs. Of course, that got interesting very fast.

"Ichigo! You are sneaking girls into your room?! My son is growing up!" His father looked ready to hug him, to Ichigo's alarm and Shiro's amusement, before Masaki held him back with a hand on his shoulder. "Will we be having grandbabies soon?!"

"Oh dear I hope not." Masaki murmured before giving her two boys a stern look. Ichigo went red, then pale and Shiro just shrugged and nudged his foot into the carpet the way he did when he was guilty but not about to admit it.

"It's nothing like that! This is Kuchiki Rukia. She's a shinigami." Ichigo said hastily and that wiped any amusement out of the room. Yuzu and Karin edged away, looking at her warily as Isshin and Masaki froze for a moment. "It's a long story…" As everyone gingerly took a seat, Ichigo launched into his rendition of events. Rukia corrected him on a few minor things until they reached the part about her giving her powers to Ichigo.

"You gave your power to a human boy? Kuchiki, that is a very grave offense!" Isshin said as he stared at the shinigami. She stared right back as Ichigo and Shiro exchanged a glance. An offense?

"Who are you, to know about the laws of Soul Society?" She demanded and Isshin hesitated before standing up and pacing. Masaki just sipped her tea, unperturbed by the tension in the air.

"Will you swear, on the honor of the Kuchiki clan, to never reveal this?" Isshin demanded and Rukia hesitated.

"I will swear only as long as you are no threat to Soul Society as a whole." She said, lifting her chin. Isshin laughed.

"Oh, I am not that! Very well. When I lived in Soul Society my name was Shiba Isshin, former taichou and clanhead of the Shiba clan." He gave her a full, formal bow and Rukia stared, shocked. Masaki lifted her hand with a smile.

"I am Kurosaki Masaki, and I used to be a Quincy." She said cheerfully and Rukia's gaze snapped to her. Then she looked over at Karin and Yuzu.

"Um? Oh, we're normal!" Yuzu said with a smile and a small wave as Karin crossed her arms.

"For now anyway. Dad and his friends say I'm going to be more like him and Yuzu is more like mom. But neither of us are powerhouses like Ichigo. He's the lucky one who got Shiro-chan." Karin sounded grumpy and Shiro grinned.

"That's probably just as well. I wonder how his power would have reacted to twins? And he was a boy, I think, when he was alive." Masaki mused and Shiro nodded. It was true, he'd been a little boy when he'd attacked Masaki and Isshin. Ichigo had resonated with him in many ways. Rukia drew a deep breath.

"Where did Shiro come from, and what is he? Please explain." She asked and they told her about being attacked by a tiny, but astonishingly powerful hollow without a hole. "A hollow without a hole? There is no such thing."

"We found out about that later." Isshin continued with the story, explaining how they had discovered that Shiro was real, not merely a figment of Ichigo's imagination. Then came Shiro's explanation for his existence. Rukia's gaze snapped over to the hollow, who grinned and waved. "Yes, it's amazing isn't it? We were all absolutely fascinated to find out hollows can breed!" Isshin said happily and Shiro rolled his eyes. He was getting a bit tired of all the tests, although they hadn't done any in a while. But he was betting he'd get a whole new battery now. "It's only a shame we couldn't let anyone in Soul Society know. But given what they would likely do to Ichigo…" Isshin's expression became very serious and Masaki nodded, giving Rukia a firm stare. She blinked before clearing her throat.

"Is there any way to remove him?" She asked and Shiro and Ichigo both scowled as Masaki shook her head.

"No. Isshin, Ryuuken and Kisuke have all examined them both quite thoroughly. Any attempt to remove Shiro-chan from Ichigo would kill them both in a matter of minutes." She said and Rukia bit her lip. "It would be like destroying a shinigami's zanpakuto."

"Even worse. Theoretically, a shinigami could survive the destruction of their zanpakuto for a few days." Isshin said heavily as Rukia winced. "Removing Shiro from Ichigo would completely destabilize them both, with no hope of recovery. It would be a soul shattering." They were two souls in one and there was just no getting around that.

"'Sides, we wouldn't want it." Shiro said, smiling at everyone. "My dam's dead and my sire might be too. Even if he ain't, he's gone on by now. I belong here." This was his family now. Even if he could find his sire, there wouldn't be much connection between them anymore. "Now what did ya mean, that's a serious offense?" That sounded like something they needed to know about.

"A shinigami is forbidden to give their powers to a human." Isshin said heavily and Ichigo and Shiro exchanged a look. While that was bad for Rukia, it was sort of good for them. At least she couldn't report them to Soul Society. "That is because it would kill most humans. The punishments can go up to execution."

"Hoi! That's a bit fucking harsh!" Shiro said, taken aback, and Ichigo nodded with a frown.

"Especially since there was no chance of us being hurt. Shiro swallowed her power with… well, a bit of indigestion. But he came out just fine." He said and Rukia suddenly looked outraged.

"You! You're the reason he took all my power!" She pointed at Shiro, who just shrugged and toed the carpet again. "I was trying to only give him half, but you took everything!"

"Oi, you should be glad I didn't take your soul in the bargain. I'm guessing the only reason I didn't was I wasn't actually trying to feed on ya. You practically force fed me your power, it kinda hurt." Shiro said and Isshin frowned.

"Oh, you and Ichi are so going to get tested again, whitey." Karin said, amused, and Shiro groaned as Ichigo scowled. "They're all going to be all over you for days."

"Well, maybe they can figure out how to get her power out of us and back into her." Ichigo said and Shiro sighed. He was strangely reluctant to give up this power. It felt like something was happening to him, something profound, and it was still in the process of occurring. He didn't know what it was exactly but he didn't want it to stop too soon. On the other hand, if Rukia's life was in danger he would have to give it up. He finally nodded, seconding Ichigo. "Now, can we put her in the guest room?" It was getting late and they all needed to sleep. Masaki nodded.

"Of course. The bed is all set up, we can worry about everything else tomorrow." She said with a smile and Shiro hissed.

"Except my nest! Where'd ya put my pillows?" He demanded and Ichigo resigned himself to spending a good half hour putting back together Shiro's nest. It would be worth the effort though. If Shiro had to sleep in his inner world, he'd be hearing the hollow whining a lot longer. And honestly, he didn't really mind.

He wanted his brother to be happy.


The next couple weeks were rather predictable.

As Karin had said, Ichigo and Shiro got subjected to plenty of tests. Isshin, Ryuuken and Kisuke all worked together to analyze the results and had many sage things to say, but the gist was that Shiro and Ichigo had completely absorbed Rukia's power. It wasn't coming back out short of desperate measures. However, that was not the end of the world. Shiro hadn't taken her soul, and it was the soul that generated reiatsu. Given enough time, she would recover her strength. Shiro and Ichigo just had to buy her that time.

Easier said than done. We're gonna have a fun time trying to keep the other shinigami from figuring it out. Shiro commented and Ichigo sighed, rubbing his head. They had no choice though. He didn't want to see Rukia punished for this, although she thought execution wasn't likely. She would probably get a prison sentence. Ichigo decided not to think about it and opened his juice box, sticking the straw in. Then Mizuiro showed up and started being a bit annoying, insinuating there was something between them.

"She's not my friend. She's Shiro-chan's girlfriend." Ichigo responded with hardly a thought and grinned as he heard Shiro burst into mental laughter. Rukia's yelp and getting hit on the head by a flying juice box was worth it.

"Oh, your mysterious cousin?" Mizuiro said with a smile. "Well, I wouldn't want to get on his bad side!" Ichigo shrugged. He really didn't understand how Shiro had such a fearsome reputation with his friends. He'd never done a single thing to them and they couldn't see him in his full hollow mode, they'd only seen him in his gigai. Yet, they were all afraid of him. "You know, you had that same… feeling he does, a few days ago." Mizuiro said and Ichigo paused, the straw between his lips.

"Feeling? What feeling?" He asked, feeling Shiro's dismay. If his friends could detect his brother when he was handling their body, they had a problem. Mizuiro shrugged with a smile.

"Oh, you know, that thing he has." He said vaguely and Ichigo grimaced. His friend was probably trying to spare his feelings. Everyone knew he and Shiro were close. But it really wasn't helpful right now.

"Mizuiro, I can't feel what 'that thing' is. Please, tell me." He asked and noticed that Rukia was watching and listening curiously. Well, it definitely was interesting. Mizuiro ran a hand through his hair and was about to say something when Keigo interrupted. Ichigo waited patiently as he nattered on about holding a party and thanked Rukia for joining them in the 'squalid garden of manliness.'

He's got a point, actually. Never see the girls up here. Shiro commented and Ichigo smirked before taking a sip of his juice. Might as well put up a 'no girls allowed' sign.

"Ah, but they want girls. Hey! Keigo!" He said sharply and the other kid turned, giving him a slightly freaked out look. "Can you tell me what 'this thing' Shiro-chan has is, exactly?" He wanted to get to the bottom of that. Keigo just looked confused for a moment, then winced.

"Oh, um… that thing! It's nothing really." He said hastily and Ichigo just gave him a patient but deadly look, folding his arms over his chest. "…He's just so cold!" He blurted and Ichigo blinked, feeling Shiro's puzzlement. His brother's personality was anything but cold. "I mean, it's, it's like he sucks the heat out of the air! And the way he grins is super creepy… ah, don't hurt me, I'm sorry!"

"It's okay." Ichigo said absently as he tried to process it. Sucked the heat out of the air? That was just odd.

It might be an instinct. Shiro said reluctantly and Ichigo frowned. I'm a predator and they're prey, that sort of thing. And I don't know what my powers would have been if I'd grown up properly. Maybe they would have been ice based. Ichigo nodded. That made as much sense as anything. Although if Shiro had that aura when he controlled his body, they might have to think of something else. Halving your power all the time probably isn't a good idea anyway.

"Yeah, you're right." Ichigo said quietly then blinked as Chad showed up with the talking cockatiel. He was shocked when the thing introduced itself, for all the world like it was a person. Then he stiffened. Maybe it was…?

Definitely is. Not a hollow, though. Feels like a ghost. Shiro supplied and Ichigo nodded as Rukia whispered the same thing to him. Then she mentioned giving it konso later and he grimaced. This was killing his sleep, but there was no choice.

Showing spirits the afterlife was Death Gods were for.