"Were the lights out extra long last night?" Ichigo asked. He had either woken very early or the darkness had persisted for longer than usual.

"Yeah."

"Does that happen often?"

"Sometimes." Grimmjow didn't seem pleased himself. It was a terrifying thought—that maybe one day the lights would go out and not come back. They'd spend the rest of their lives blind, probably dying soon because of it. It was too creepy for Ichigo to consider but one look at Grimmjow told him he was thinking the same.

"Who controls them?"

"No one, the power was once on a timer, I think, but now the system is old and glitchy." He leaned out the door to see what kind of movement there was. "You should stay in here today."

"What, why?"

"Because if the lights go out and you're in the pit or meal hall, you might not survive. Even hollows don't like the dark. You could get trampled or something."

Ichigo swung his legs over the bed. "Hey, after yesterday I thought-" he stumbled unexpectedly and gripped the wall before he fell.

"You get wounded in that fight yesterday?" Grimmjow watched him hold his lower back.

"No I'm fine." Ichigo tried to straighten unsuccessfully.

"Don't lie." Grimmjow crossed the room and Ichigo tried to shove him back but he pulled his shirt up anyway. He stopped short when he saw the pale pink scar in the shape of a six. He let the teen go at once.

"It just hurts sometimes," Ichigo muttered without making eye contact.

For a moment, Grimmjow said nothing. Then he moved back to the door and slammed it shut after him. "All the more reason not to go out then." And he disappeared down the hall.

Ichigo glanced back at the wound and let out a long sigh before sitting down again.


"Do you think anyone will ever come for us?" They were both fresh from the showers—this was one place Grimmjow still never let Ichigo go alone—and water dripped from Ichigo's hair as he stared straight up at the pale ceiling high above. Even though he knew not all of the cells between here and the top were occupied, their sheer number meant there must be countless other creatures he'd still never laid eyes on.

He'd once wondered why Grimmjow hadn't suggested they move up there out of the dangers of the pit, but he knew the answer now—after nine weeks in Purgatory, with no hint of sunlight or fresh air—he knew he would have gone crazy without the games, the brawls, the requirement of constant vigilance it took to stay alive down here. It at least kept his skills a bit honed, and now that Grimmjow had decided it was best to improve his hand to hand combat skills, it was something to do. Every day they sparred on the pit floor. Chances were, Ichigo would get in another mix-up sooner or later, so Grimmjow thought it was a good idea to show him how to take down opponents far bigger than himself—he also thought it was necessary Ichigo learn how to finish a fight—and by that he meant kill.

Ichigo didn't argue, though he wasn't sure if he'd follow through when it came down to it. Even though the people here were still hollows, without spiritual pressure everyone felt a little more human. And bodies didn't evaporate like in other spiritual planes. Really, when it came down to it, he was a fighter, but not really a killer.

"I dunno." It took Grimmjow so long to respond to the question Ichigo forgot what he'd asked for half a second.

"You know it's been nine weeks since I arrived."

"Yeah, I know."

"What do you think that means?" Ichigo didn't want to say anything more overt about Grimmjow's plan.

"I'm not sure." He looked around to see if anyone was listening before continuing. "But in my gut, I know Bach wouldn't keep you alive here just for kicks. He knows you brought down Aizen. If he'd really won the war, he'd have come back here to finish you or convert you."

"So..." Ichigo didn't dare let himself trust in hope, but he felt his heart quicken at Grimmjow's words. "You think the Soul Reapers didn't fall that day, when I came here?"

"No. In either case, if the war had ended then, I think someone would have come for you by now. I think it's still going. That Zero squad you told me about must have intervened or something."

"I hope so." It meant his friends might still be alive. He lowered his head. Grimmjow watched him for a long moment. "What?" Ichigo asked.

"Nothing. I just wish whoever the fuck wins would hurry up." He didn't add the rest of the thought out loud—so he could slip out whatever portal they created with them.

"Who are you hoping for?"

"Neither," Grimmjow grunted.

"Yeah but one has to win."

"Obviously. I dunno, whoever I can kill easiest." He pushed back from the bar where they'd been leaning. "Come on, you look too good."

Ichigo cringed at the words. It was almost time for the lights to go out and Grimmjow hadn't knocked him around for a while. It wasn't like in the beginning. Ichigo felt much more like an equal now—though Grimmjow never hesitated to remind him of his place. But even if he'd gained more independence in this place, it all relied on their charade and he had to put up with the injuries it gave him. Grimmjow shoved him down on the bed. His strong hand wrapped around Ichigo's throat and the teen couldn't help that his hands shot up to pry Grimmjow's away. He squeezed hard and long, to ensure a dark, visible bruise.

When he withdrew, Ichigo waited for the punch and other standard strikes, but Girmmjow backed off with the barely audible comment of "that should be enough."

The lights went out but Ichigo continued to stare after Grimmjow. Ichigo supposed it made sense that as he became more resigned in his position in the prison, presumably he'd become more resigned in the bedroom as well. That must be what Grimmjow was thinking too.

It couldn't be possible he felt bad about hurting him, could it?


The lights did not come on in the morning. Grimmjow ordered him to stay in his bed. He heard the door clanking open and Grimmjow left. He shouted after him.

"What?" Grimmjow barked back.

"Oh, I thought you were leaving."

"No, I was just looking to see if there were any lights anywhere else." Their door banged shut again, then Grimmjow added with an invisible smirk. "What, you afraid of the dark?"

"Shut up."

The laugh he got back was the first he'd heard from Grimmjow since his arrival. It was strange, because it wasn't actually so much a mockery as it was a moment of levity. But that died quickly when the minutes passed and the system didn't reboot like normal. Then hours went by. Ichigo could hear Grimmjow's finger tapping impatiently. People began shouting beyond the cell. Ichigo was very glad their door was locked.

"Has this ever happened before?" Ichigo asked part way through the day.

"Never for this long." Grimmjow sounded strained. Ichigo had long since felt the firs wells of panic in himaelf. It was a terrible claustrophobic feeling, especially when you didn't know if it was going to end.

"And you can't see anything?"

"Nope."

"And everyone else is just as blind?"

"Yep."

"What will happen if they don't come back on?"

"What do you think? I'd give it a day or two before this whole place self destructs and everyone goes crazy."

"Great."

The tension grew all day. Ichigo tried to sleep more, but he couldn't under the stress of the situation. He tried to keep up conversation but Grimmjow was short with him. He hummed a song from his favourite band until Grimmjow told him to shut up. He counted the seconds until they became too many to count.

Then there was a flicker of life from the bulbs, the system rebooted and they all blinked and shielded their eyes from the sudden light. Ichigo didn't think he'd ever be so happy to see iron bars and grey cement.

"Shit," Grimmjow swore in relief and stood, stretching out the tension that had built in him. He looked outside at once. "Dumbasses." He commented at the four or five bodies in the pit.

"What did they do?"

"Probably just bumped into each other and slaughtered whatever touched them. That's what happens in the blackout. So like I said before, never get caught out here in the dark."

"Yeah I know, I'm always back before dark." He couldn't believe how much it sounded like something he'd have said to his dad a few years ago about his curfew.

"Yeah but blackouts are different, people go crazy."

"Okay."

"So stay in here for now. I'll get your food."

"Grimmjow-"

"Argue and I'll chain you back to that fucking bed."

Ichigo stopped. "I wasn't going to. I was just going to say, shouldn't you wait, in case it happens again soon?"

He shrugged. "There's no telling when it'll go again, and we need food." With that he left. It turned out to be the best decision as they got their meal in before lights out.

There was a buzz in the air the following day, everyone was antsy after a long day in the dark. More fights than usual took place on the pit floor. Ichigo spent most of his day watching at Grimmjow's side, the hand print bruise on his neck nice and dark and on display. He wasn't sure anyone paid him much attention anymore though, which was certainly for the best. Maybe someday Grimmjow wouldn't even bother putting on the show.

But then he caught himself. How could he be thinking that far down the road? He should be thinking about how to get out of this place. Since his arrival, he couldn't shake the feeling in his chest he got every time he thought of the last battle and the chances that most of his friends were gone. He knew that had something to do with his complacency—mainly the fact he hadn't torn this place apart looking for a way out. The other reason he hadn't was because he knew Grimmjow had, and all the others before him. If there was a way out, surely they would have found it. No the only way out was with their keepers—that was Grimmjow's plan after all.

Still, he'd grown far too accepting of his circumstances. If he didn't get out of here soon, he wasn't sure he'd recognize himself anymore.

Ichigo's attention was caught when the regular cheers turned to frantic shouts. There was a surge of movement all around him and for once the still, stale air of this place was disrupted by a cold blast, and the whole world shook around them.

"What is it?" he asked Grimmjow in alarm.

"A newcomer." He leaned in over the bar. "Stay here."

Grimmjow dropped down to the next level with ease. He was still no more than human, but he moved like a parkours runner between the levels of the prison when he needed or wanted to get somewhere fast.

Ichigo turned his attention back to the bright light forming in the middle of the pit, hungry hollows quickly moving in. He got a sick feeling in his gut, knowing whoever came through there didn't have a chance. He'd been saved by Grimmjow, but the espada wouldn't have any interest in saving another.

But what if it was another soul reaper? What if it was one of his friends?

He vaulted over the rail after Grimmjow.

He hadn't seen where the espada had gone but he was forging his own path through the hoard of men pushing their way to be close to the victim who came through. His size gave him an advantage in that he could slip through narrower spaces than most and that way weave around the larger forms. But this did him no good in the thick of it on the pit floor. He was shoved and jostled and even got an elbow in the nose. He could no longer see the opening past the other people.

What he did see, were furious blue eyes stuck on him from across the room.

And then the lights went out.

It was everything Grimmjow had said it would be, but even worse. Everyone had been in a frenzy to reach the newcomer. Now that surging, violent mass had been plunged into darkness. And just like the other day when those five or six had bumped into each other and turned on one another, now the whole crowd was a sea of lethal creatures.

He would have hit the ground if there had been room. Then he would have died under all the feet. But because they were so jam packed he just fell into more bodies when flailing limbs struck. His nose was busted, his lip split on his front teeth, he heard a ringing in one ear.

Then he heard his name.

"KUROSAKI!" The powerful cry some how cut through the other jumble of shouts and cries. He called back. "Grimmjow!" He called his name several times, until that iron grip was around him, and he'd never before been so happy to feel and smell the sweat of Grimmjow Jaggerjaques.

They were hardly better off together at first, but Grimmjow forced them through other people. Ichigo wasn't sure where he was trying to go, there really was no where to go. They had no hope of finding the stairs or reaching the upper levels. But then Ichigo felt the cold wall press into his back and Grimmjow's collar was against his face.

"Shit, Grimmjow." Ichigo realized what the other was doing. With no other options, he'd shoved them against a wall and now he was between Ichigo and the hoard. He was essentially using himself as a human shield.

"Shut up, you know I need you alive." He grunted as he was struck from countless clawing hands, angry fists and desperate kicks. His body was shoved tight against Ichigo several times. In this proximity there was no hiding his noises of pain.

"Fuck." They were almost drug down by whatever smashed into Grimmjow's back. Then Ichigo felt the tug and Grimmjow let him go.

"Grimmjow!" He could make nothing out in the dark, but he thought he could distinguish Grimmjow's curses above the others. Someone had gotten hold of him and now he was fighting for his life.

"Dammit," Ichigo swore but remained flat against the wall. "Grimmjow!"

"Motherfucker!" Came the coughing response and he felt Grimmjow hit the wall hard beside him. There were several wet thuds, rough scrapes against the wall, then something fell against Ichigo's feet.

"Grimmjow!"

"I'm right here." The voice came from his side and he gasped out in start. Grimmjow had come out on top, but when he reached for Ichigo again, the teen smelled the blood on him, then he felt it and instead of Grimmjow holding onto him it quickly became the opposite and Ichigo had to take his weight.

"There's alot of blood." Ichigo felt it on his back. Grimmjow's breaths were heavy and wet.

"He had a blade."

"Where did he get you?" But Ichigo felt the source of the wound in Grimmjow's back and the other cried out, one knees giving completely.

"Shit it's bad."

"I fucking know that." Grimmjow barked at him. There was more breathing room around them—Ichigo guessed enough had been wounded or killed to slow down the frenzy, so he worked his way along the wall in the dark, holding Grimmjow up the entire time. They tripped on bodies, some groaned, most didn't. They never let go of the wall, knowing it would eventually bring them back around to the staircase. When Ichigo ran into the metal rail he swore but grabbed hold of it and guided them up. Even the stairs were slick with blood and cramped with bodies.

Grimmjow halted once, coughing harshly. It sounded bad, like blood was in his lungs. Then he gripped Ichigo back all the harder and they continued on, up three flights until Ichigo was patting down the wall and finding their cell.

Grimmjow collapsed onto his bed with a noise of pain, but he was still conscious of the danger. Ichigo safely locked up behind him but it wasn't good enough for Grimmjow. "Close the curtains."

Ichigo obeyed.

"You can't let them see you weak," he guessed.

"You can't either. Remember who's keeping you alive."

"Yeah well, right now it sounds like it's gonna be me keeping you breathing." He moved back through the dark to Grimmjow but his wrist was caught and he stumbled to his knees, Grimmjow's angry breath hissing out past the pain.

"Only cause you fucked up. I told you to stay where you were."

"I know." Ichigo pulled his hand free but he couldn't find it in himself to apologize after everything Grimmjow had done to him. "Just let me help you, okay?"

"Fuck off I'll be fine." The hand that tried to push him back was weak. It was Ichigo's turn to force Grimmjow into doing something he didn't want to do. He felt a large rip in Grimmjow's shirt. The other hissed in pain as his fingers found the wound.

"Damn, how many times did you get cut?"

"Dunno..." Ichigo grabbed the tear in his shirt and split the fabric. "Hey!"

"Grimmjow let me work."

"Don't fucking touch me!" Ichigo ignored him pulled the shreds of fabric away just when the lights came back on.

He froze, and suddenly understood Grimmjow's protest. Ichigo hadn't really given it much thought, but it now struck him that all this time in their close proximity he'd never seen Grimmjow with his shirt off, unlike his espada days when his chest and half his back were on display. All over Grimmjow's torso were scars. And from what Ichigo could see of his back it looked like the skin had healed thick over old lash marks. Despite the urgency of the situation, Ichigo dropped the bundle of cloth in horror.

"You were tortured?"

Grimmjow glared at him, despite his current pain.

"The Vandenreich?" Ichigo asked.

"Of course," Grimmjow finally muttered and, seeing now that he had no other option, lay back on his cot, relaxing his bruised and cut muscles. He didn't look at Ichigo when he spoke. "Didn't give 'em nothin' either. But they sent me here, with the promise they'd come back to finish the interrogation when they had more time."

"Two years ago."

"Not quite"

Ichigo cringed. How long had they had him?

"Well, you gonna patch me up or what?"

"Uh, yeah, okay."

It was an awful job, once Ichigo got going and saw the extent of the damage, mostly to Grimmjow's back. Terrible bruises riddled his whole body from shielding Ichigo. But worst of all the creature he'd fought in the dark had had something sharp that had cut him up all over and punctured him deep in the back, just below his ribs.

He was in terrible pain and even after Ichigo diligently wrapped every wound, redressed him to hide the damage, there was no way to pretend he was fine. If someone chose to challenge him now, he was done, and then, so was Ichigo.

But when they finally dared roll back the curtain, and were hit with the wall of stench of rotting corpses and saw the absolute devastation of the pit and all the lower levels, they knew no one would be coming for a fight. No one in their right mind would be walking around in that and everyone was also probably licking their wounds back in the safety of their cells. Ichigo quickly sealed their curtains shut again to keep out the horrible scent and scene.

"What happens now?" He asked the pale faced espada braced against one wall where he'd half collapsed after backing away from the smell.

"I don't know. Something like this has never happened, not on this scale."

"What about the person who came through?"

"No chance they made it in the middle of that."

Ichigo nodded, he knew that as much as Grimmjow but he still feared it had been a soul reaper, maybe even a friend.

"Do you think many survived?"

Grimmjow sat slowly, a low groan escaping him. "Less than half maybe." Ichigo wondered if the ones he'd gotten to know and with whom he spent his days had survived. "Don't go out there."

"You don't have to tell me." Ichigo turned to find Grimmjow hunched painfully. "Grimmjow?"

He just shook his head and took slow breaths. It was the wound on his back, Ichigo was sure. He was afraid it had gone deep enough to puncture a lung. His suspicions only deepened when he spit a clump of blood on the floor.

"I'll keep watch." Ichigo said, knowing Grimmjow was concerned about attackers while he was weak. The espada looked at him and then without comment he lay back down. After a few moments of painful breaths, he was under. Ichigo stood at the curtains, watching him. If ever he'd wanted to escape, now was the time, but he knew he was well past that option now. Their best chances of survival were together, and nothing had driven that home more than the brawl.


Here you go, a faster, longer update to make up for the short one last time. Thanks for the reviews!

Riza