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New chap up. :D Finally!

Disclaimer: I definitely still own nothin' but the story. Kubo-sensei is awesome! :X

Four: Closer to the edge

"If it isn't the disappearing man..." Shinji's voice floated over to where Ichigo was slumped on his bedroom floor with his head bowed.

Ichigo ignored him and kept up the stream of notes on his guitar not even bothering to look up. His sketch pad lay open beside him to a page with something half drawn on it. Even from where he was standing by the open door Shinji could easily make it out. It was to say...familiar.

"Ah...it was a success then..." his earlier teasing tone had gone quiet as he took in his partner's passive unresponsiveness. He watched as Ichigo ruffled his slightly shaggy hair in a sign of agitation, duly noted was that he was playing his guitar again which he has not touched since who knew when.

"I guess...you could say that." He glanced at the man briefly as he went on plucking a random melody closing his eyes at the same time. "Did you take care of it?..."

Shinji sighed half-heartedly feigning dejection as he studied the young man before him with half-lidded eyes, "Of course. I don't slack off that much ya know...I wouldn't be much of a partner now if I live up to your half-assed assumptions of my work ethics."

Ichigo grinned, "Good to know there's one thing that went right today..."

"Did you have fun at least?" Shinji watched as Ichigo's eyes snapped open to look at the sketch and the corner of his lips twitched.

"It was...interesting."

"Did something...happen?" a slightly worried undertone in his voice made Ichigo frown at him in confusion.

"What do you mean?" just then Ichigo made the mistake of looking at his partner where his entire face was open for scrutiny. He could never really mask his emotions as they were almost always displayed in his eyes. His scowling visage could deter some people from actually discerning anything but that was for those who did not know where to look. And Shinji has always been good at reading people especially this orange block head.

"Was she...what you thought she would be?" Shinji carefully observed his reaction and was not surprised when his eyes only darkened even more. The silence stretched on for a while making Shinji suddenly awkward for having blurted out anything at all. He was just about to remedy his little slip when Ichigo suddenly spoke.

"She was...so much more...but not right now." A bit of a smile was in place on his face as he looked at the slightly guilty man leaning on his door frame whose own lips quirked into an almost amused smile at his response that echoed resignation.

"Does it make it easier...to know?"

"I never would've imagined it otherwise...how she is without that mask." That frozen smile she puts on...he didn't see it once.

"That...does not look like a mask to me." Ichigo followed Shinji's stare at his half-drawn sketch and smiled lightly.

"Yeah..." Ichigo merely kept the smile, careful not to let him see his face this time and closed his eyes not seeing Shinji loose his smile as he tore his sharp eyes away from him and finally pushed himself off the door frame. He knew when it was time to leave Ichigo alone with his thoughts.

"Stage One...Clear." Shinji muttered as he walked away gently closing the door behind him making him unable to see Ichigo's smile morph into a sneer his eyes shut tight.

This was harder than he thought it would be. Seeing her earlier, he let the sight scorch his eyes as he stared right into those large eyes. Her dark eyes ever-changing in color, so easy to get lost in.

"What was it...that she said?" he half whispered to himself still seeing her back to him as he approached that morning where she stood near the entrance to the gallery. Her hair was shorter framing her small face. It fit her. She looked beautiful as ever.

"Oh yeah...she said...nothing."

He looked right at her and she looked right back but there was nothing. It had felt so final until she bumped into him inside and had looked away from his gaze. For a moment he hoped. He waited for her to say something, what he actually did not know. Then she said it, she apologized. It was a good thing she looked down at that moment or she would have seen the dumb surprise on his face which would not have been good considering what he had to do.

She was quiet and somehow out of sorts and fidgety. But that time when she was surrounded by all those people, the music, watching the sunset she became different. She finally relaxed and she...smiled. His hooded eyes flickered to the sketch again, his fingers dancing on the fret board.

A smile. He got her to smile. Even if it was only that half-smile she used to always give him.

Ichigo's grip tightened on his guitar, his face scrunched up so hard his eyebrows were trembling at his barely suppressed burst of emotion.

That smile...like that time when she turned her back to him and disappeared.

It rained that night. Blood stained his shirt; the material was ripped where the bullet grazed his chest. It burned but he paid it no mind. Its pain was nothing to what he was feeling at that moment. He wanted to call out to her but his voice was lost. He wanted to scream at her, make her look at him and scream back at him, call him an idiot—anything.

Just not that smile.

"Why...why did she have to smile at me like that?..."

He knew it was a mistake accepting this assignment. The moment Urahara called him to schedule for a personal meeting his gut nagged at him. It felt like a premonition and not a good one. What his boss recounted to him made his heart pound in anticipation. He knew whose work it was the moment Urahara mentioned the circumstance of the principal's death. He played it cool still wanting to protect her. And that wish had reared its ugly head. He wanted to see her badly. Yet somehow that desire haunted him ever since. He didn't forget. He couldn't stop thinking about it. The scar was a glaring reminder of how he was unable to do anything.

This was not retribution in his part. Not for himself and not towards her. She was the best as he found out that night. He told no one. He fought against his principles, betrayed his oath. He was a disappointment, an utter disaster. That one smile was his undoing.

She didn't even have to say anything. He knew. She was protecting him too.

But this time it was his turn to protect her. She was an extremely valuable asset in her company not to mention precious to her overly paranoid older brother who by the way was paying him good money to see to it that not a single strand of hair was to fall off her pretty head. The impeccable corporate magnate on the surface and an underworld lord beneath the old blood nobility facade having to result to such extreme measures made him want to laugh.

It was part of the perks of his job as a hired shield. He was privy to both legal and illegal dealings of powerful people. There was no sense of justice to be upheld only duty.

Right now his job entails a lot more than just everything to be taken into consideration put together and that includes even himself.

Ichigo sighed deeply suddenly wondering if all that cigarette Shinji chain smokes would work on his slightly frayed nerves. Then again he knew he'd only choke even if he wanted to start a habit.

He tried to strike up a few chords on his guitar but found none to his liking so he put it back in its hard case and let it go back to its hibernation. With a groan he trudged to his bed and collapsed onto it face-first his arm hanging on the side with his fingertips grazing the floorboard.

Somewhere at the back of his mind just being around her, standing so near next to her made things seem like they used to. He would be lying if he did not feel apprehensive when he thought about having to see her eye to eye after so long. But he reacted out of instinct the moment she spoke to him and as much as he wanted to deny what was happening before him she did too albeit subconsciously. He saw that it confused her. His presence in itself was something of a mystery to her. He could see that much.

He didn't expect her reaction to be so familiar. He would have thought that she would act very differently towards him. That he could possibly handle better than this feeling he knew just by being in her presence.

She was letting her guard down again just like when he was with her from that time. He used to feel pride that she let herself depend on him though consciously on some level at times. Also how he could just know what she needs and act upon it without thinking. How she could see past his defenses like she was looking through glass.

His large hands fisted tightly as if it could stem the emotion wreaking havoc within him. As if with his bare fists he could crush it.

He could see it again in his mind's eye, that blank look in her usually expressive eyes. She was slipping away slowly at first so he didn't notice the change. But by the time he actually saw it was already too late. She was too far gone for him to even try to reach her much less bring her back.

It was his fault she had to choose and destroy herself in the process. The guilt and his desire was an intoxicating poison he could barely digest to numb himself with.

He understood she was far from pure when he first met her. Somehow she knew he too suffer from some of the things she did. But all of that is gone now. Erased were the memories and time they coveted.

Neither of them bothered to ask for specifics and their separation was abrupt. No one knew. No one saw what transpired between them when they met on the job. It was a mistake or so he thought until he finally saw that mask.

Ichigo let out a haggard breath unwilling to move, feeling a chilly breeze sweep into his room from the open window. In the quiet of the house he heard distinct movements downstairs, his ear easily picked out the sound of light footsteps.

Gingerly he pushed himself off the bed and lithely got to his feet not caring about his rather rumpled appearance as he made his way silently down the stairs to the kitchen where he could hear the faint sound of conversation. He smelt cigarette smoke and heard the sound of a bottle being opened.

He crossed his lean arms and leaned on the wall peering at the intruders with a less than pleased expression on his face as he saw them liberally consuming his beer.

"Yo. How've ya been, scowl-face?...did we wake ya or somethin'?" a small blonde haired young woman mock saluted him from her perch on the precariously tipped wooden chair, the bottle on her tiny hand looking so out of place.

He chose to ignore her and raised an eyebrow at the black haired woman who was taking a swig from her own bottle as she leaned on the counter. Her red-rimmed eye glasses gleamed in the lamp light as she turned her head to face him with a slight smirk.

"What are you two doing here and drinking my beer at that..." he unfolded himself from the wall and dragged himself to the fridge to get himself a bottle, ignoring their gazes fixed on his sluggish self.

"We saw you..." the small young woman spoke again, her unapologetic bluntness more cutting than usual almost sounding like an accusation to his overly vulnerable sensitivity.

"I knew you were following us to La Boheme...Hiyori." he replied quietly closing his eyes for fear that they'll see the anger smoldering in them.

"Oh~...che. I thought we were being cautious. But I guess nothing really gets past you, huh." Her smart mouth was going off again and if he wasn't careful she might have the wrong button pushed tonight.

"Hiyori, that's not why we came here for..." Lisa gripped the young woman's shoulder firmly, enough to make Hiyori wince lightly at the sudden pressure.

"How did your little outing go then? Find anyone to black mail yet?" Ichigo glanced at Lisa's stoic face, betraying nothing even her eyes were blank as she stared back steadily.

"No. Those idiots were from around here. They were henchmen from one of the lackey of underworld clans strongly opposing the leaders of the elite. We're here right now because they're not the problem..." Lisa's tone was nonchalant but her eyes were serious.

"Then what is the problem?..." he kept his gaze directed on her and she was the first to look away as she shared a brief glance with Shinji who was sitting on top of the counter smoking his hundredth cigarette. He gave an imperceptible nod not looking at Ichigo who was frowning in his direction.

"Yoruichi just got back." Lisa was looking at him again with the same emotionless face. "Her information might explain a few things for the high success rates of the new series of assassinations and how they were carried out."

Ichigo felt his heart stop at her words. His eyes widened before he finally got himself in control remembering Shinji sitting across from him in the same room.

"Since ya can't be called back to HQ we just had to come here to get ya up to date. Be thankful or I'll make ya regret we had to follow yer ass all the way to that little—" Hiyori's diatribe was cut short when Ichigo slammed his empty bottle on the table.

"I know. And I am thankful..." Ichigo turned his back to them as he spoke, his hands shoved in his jeans' pockets, his head bowed turned to the shadows masking his face. He didn't turn back as he slowly made his way back to his room. He couldn't have them seeing his hand shaking even as he held them in fists in his pockets.

The past was catching up faster than he would have liked. It couldn't have been more of a perfect timing that she was in his care as the agency finally unearthed something this important.

He plopped down on the floor again resuming his earlier position; his head bowed his hand grasping his hair.

Somewhere under the covers and pillows on his bed he heard his Blackberry chirp. He leaned back a bit and rummaged for it with a frown. Who would be stupid enough to send him a message at this ungodly hour? With deceptive nonchalance he looked at the screen only for his eyes to widen in shock.

It was Rukia.

Before he could even fully register his surprise, his eyes had already brightened at the sight. His lips quirked into a half-smile as he opened the message.

She wanted to ask him more about his paintings and possibly see them all. She wondered if they could meet up again. Soon.

Ah...Ichigo's emo self. :P

Is it exciting? kekeke!

Please review!

Onegaishimasu! :)