Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, nor do I dye my hair.
Authors Note: -mopes- I only had 14 reviews last chapter. ;.; (the actual chapter, not the note before it)
Warnings: In which Ichimaru Gin is actually not screwing with the halls for once and Szayel gives his much awaited theory.
Kuso Gaki!
Dressing Room
Szayel wasn't fond of children- actually; he wasn't really fond of anything that he hadn't created. A thing the product of science and his own ingenuosity. Science was fascinating; the combinations of existing things could create another that was completely new-- purely the result of calculation and the taking of predetermined steps. People on the other hand were beings of emotions; their brain chemistry reacted to situations in which the particular person was trained to think of as as good or bad. All humans, despite having the same basic genetic beginnings, were raised and taught differently. As they grew they combined what they already knew to create more beliefs, finally culminating in unreliable, unpredictable personalities. The unconscious boy in front of him was absolutely no exception.
The steady hum of the laboratory's machines soothed the previously irritated Octava as he read the information that scrolled down his screen briskly. His eyes glinted as he caught a particularly remarkable piece of information. The boy was not completely Hollow, but neither was he a Shinigami. It would be impossible for the boy to be a Plus spirit; Hueco Mundo was too dense in spirit particles for a Plus to survive; the boy's Hollow mask proved that.
Szayel rested his left hand on his chin and splayed the fingers out in thought while with his right hand, he cradled his left elbow. He loved a good puzzle, and this one was by far the most captivating enigma he had been given. His eyes darted from the boy to the unmoving Fourth; if only he had been given more leeway…
"Don't even think about it."
"Hai, hai…" Szayel sighed dramatically before pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose with a long, slender finger. He returned his attention to the screen as the machine began to measure and record the boy's spirit pressure, having finished with the physical examination. Amber eyes widened in pleasant surprise as the information continued to gather. The boy was leaking incredible amounts of reiatsu from his body, as some are prone to doing when death is upon them. The spirit particles, however, were drawn into the boy's Hollow mask before they could scatter. He tapped several keys on the machine and turned a knob to focus in a little further.
Unlike Neliel, whose reiatsu leaked only from her mask, Ichigo's seemed to do quite the opposite. Szayel tapped his cheek thoughtfully. Wouldn't that cause the child to return to his previous teenaged form? He stared at the words and equations that flitted across the screen of the measuring device at lightning speed. The boy showed absolutely no sign of growing up anytime soon, as it were, which seemed utterly bizarre and wholly against the natural process. Could the Hollow mask be a medium for Ichigo's reiatsu? A device that recycled the spirit particles that tried to escape so that the boy could then use them. The idea wasn't entirely far-fetched. Szayel hummed softly. From what he had gathered, the little Kurosaki was a strange hybrid of all the creatures possessing souls-- Shinigami, human, and Hollow. His human life-energy probably forced the two other conflicting reiatsu phenomena to mesh and intertwine, breaking down the barrier between Shinigami and Hollow.
Aizen had attacked the Shinigami representative through the Orb of Distortion, with full intent to kill. The Hougyoku was created originally to destroy barriers and complete the whole. In this case, the carrot-top nuisance lacked a true death (having a still-breathing body could do that to a person). Was that the final ingredient: Death?
The lack of any discernible Chain of Fate? Aizen had wanted to kill Ichigo when using the Orb, which rendered its subject complete (or freakishly mutated). Ichigo had previously been part Shinigami, part human, part Hollow... yet, it had all happened artificially, due to the Kuchiki girl and probably someone else, without any of the natural process... Szayel stared intently at the readouts, becoming further convinced the further along he read. By amplifying the final addition to Kurosaki's mixed soul by at least ten-fold, it had knocked his fragile spiritual balance out of whack. Szayel's eyes stayed fixated on the simple porcelain-like mask. Along with the fact that they were in Heuco Mundo and the Shinigami had been hit whilst in his Vizard form, yes; it sounded oddly logical. Ichigo seemed to have turned into something more akin to an Arrancar-- half Vasto Lorde, half Shinigami, with just a trace of human left-- he had even consumed enough other Hollows, as was natural, while in the desert with Nell. All of this had happened while having skipped the Hollowfication process. So, the only thing preventing his balance from tipping towards the Hollow side was the lack of reiatsu. Which was currently being absorbed by the mask.
Well, that could easily be fixed.
Szayel quickly jotted down his thoughts and a complete hypothesis before printing the readouts and then switching the machine off. He then removed the disk from the boy's arm, stitched the wound shut with a spell, healed it with a simple application of reiatsu (Hollow kidou!), and wrapped the child in a starched white laboratory sheet, then hunted around for a blanket. It wouldn't do for the specimen to get sick, annoying bastard he might have been or not. He signaled one of his Fracción to take the boy. Seemingly on cue, another Fracción shrieked before babbling incoherently.
"Now, now ya don' need ta' be that loud 'bout it. Quiet down." The Fracción whimpered but obeyed as the two trespassers came into view. In a swish of white robes and an ever constant smirk, Gin rounded the corner of the large Laboratory tailed by one of Szayel's distraught Fracción. He put on a show of being surprised at the sight of the disgruntled Eighth and the impassive Fourth. "Well, well, fancy meetin' y'all here."
"This is my laboratory. My locked and guarded laboratory." the deadpan reply seemed to delight the tow-headed intruder as he practically skipped towards the two Espada.
"Aw, I jus' wanted to see lil' Ichi-brat since you were finished n' all." Gin's smile widened and Szayel's frown deepened. There was a moment of silence as the two stared, or in Gin's case, grinned, each other down. Finally the pink-haired Octava turned away and adjusted his glasses.
"Do as you wish."
Gin smiled before happily plucking the unconscious boy from the Fracción's arms. "Lets get you some clothes. Though I'd surely like to see his face, Sōsuke-san wouldn't be that happy wit' me if I let you run 'round naked." The happy chirp fell on deaf ears as Ichigo mumbled disjointedly in his sleep before nuzzling into Gin's robes.
Szayel sniffed crossly as the unusual duo left. A soft thump was all the warning he had before a pair of frigid green eyes drilled into his own. The scientist stepped back, startled, and reflexively tensed, prepared to spring away at the slightest hint of an attack. Those same green eyes that seemed much more like a matching pair of emeralds, equally cold and deep green, shone inwardly in silent amusement before Ulquiorra stepped back revealing what he had set on the table. Neliel.
Embarrassed, Szayel coughed discreetly into a clenched fist, "Of course, the examination… right…" Szayel averted his gaze and moved to hook the former Tercero Espada up to the machine. The laboratory quieted down once more and too soon did the Eighth hear the same Fraccion on guard duty shriek before the sound was abruptly cut off with a solid smacking noise and an indignant squawk.
"Shut the fuck up, ya stupid fat ass!"
Szayel rolled his eyes and sighed. He was going to take a nice long break after this; he felt abused.
"Oi! You! Where's the brat?" Grimmjow stormed angrily into the room. The Espada had skulked around Las Noches in the hopes that he could calmly reflect upon his bothersome new mission. Such hoping was all in vain, as the more he had thought about it, the further enraged he had become. After an hour had passed (during which he paced and alternately ground his teeth and pulled in a highly stressful manner at his hair), Grimmjow had decided that he would treat his nemesis in a similar fashion as he had before-- but toned down some. He couldn't abide hurting a defenseless little kid, even though he would never say it aloud for fear of being thought soft. There was no need to put his life at stake just because he had harassed a child to the point of tears. With those reflections thought and planned, the Sixth Espada had hurried back to Szayel's laboratory.
Szayel's frown rearranged into a cunning smile. "You're late, Grimmjow, by fifteen minutes. Didn't I tell you that it would only take one hour?" His voice was quiet, yet had a decidedly cool, harsh edge. He had not even turned to look at the growling Sexta.
"So what?" Grimmjow snapped. He was annoyed at his current situation but couldn't help but let his eyes rove the room for the tell tale sign of bright orange hair. A slight feeling of anxiousness appeared when he couldn't locate the bright neon mop nor the childish Vaizard attached. "Where's the brat?"
"It seems as though young Kurosaki has left the room. You just missed him Grimmjow, what a shame. Fifteen minutes earlier and you could've caught up-Urk!" Szayel's soft taunt was interrupted halfway when he suddenly found himself pressed up against one of his machines; Grimmjow's sword calloused and clawed hands wrapping themselves around his throat.
"I'll kill you. Where is he?" the killer intent was tangible as the provoked Espada tightened his grip on the fragile windpipe, "You better not be fuckin' around with me... Szayel Apollo Grantz," he spat the other's name out as if it were poison. He pulled back and smashed the scientist into the side of his own exam table. "Now where is Kuro-fucking-saki?" He loosened his grip just enough to allow the other the opportunity to breathe.
"Are you sure you should be wasting your time with me?" Szayel coughed and spluttered through his taunt, "How many of the Arrancar here could resist a little snack like that brat?" he choked once more when the pressure around his throat tightened, "If it eases your mind, he is in the northwest wing." The strangling hands disappeared before Szayel was thrown into the wall.
"If I die because of this I'll be taking you to hell with me!" The angry shout was snarled before Grimmjow disappeared with the unmistakable signs of Sonido. Szayel slumped down onto the floor, and coughed up a little blood. Two, maybe three ribs had been broken from Grimmjow's careless toss. His lips curled into an arrogant smirk. It was dangerous but incredibly amusing to wind up his fellow Espada. Suddenly remembering the presence of Ulquiorra, Szayel stood up and sent a withering glare toward the Fourth. Ulquiorra was looking in completely the opposite direction and was unaffected by the death glare, Szayel was however offered a rare explanation for the Fourth's lack of action:
"It was amusing,"
Szayel felt incredibly abused.
Ichimaru Gin on the other hand, was having the time of his life. Though it really wasn't a well-known fact, it was Gin who designed and tailored the outfits for the population of Las Noches. Though Aizen himself could've cared less, Gin had insisted that they change their wardrobe to differentiate themselves visually as well as in nature from the guardians of Soul Society. Not to mention the fact that nobody wanted certain minions strolling about in their birthday suits. Especially those such as Barragan.
Gin certainly would have been fine with, say, Cirucci Thunderwitch in the nude, however. He quickly returned his mind to the task at hand with a quick, efficient palm to the forehead.
"Hehe... I can't think what would suit ya better, little guy..." Gin's fox-like smile widened as he mused out loud and his unresponsive victim shifted nervously in response. Brandishing his measuring tape he gleefully recorded the child's sizes; how often did he receive willing (though shell-shocked) volunteers? Well, he could count them all on one hand. Though the unconscious ones didn't complain, that really wasn't entirely voluntary, now was it?
He lightly tapped a pressure point at the base of the boy's ear when he began to fidget once more. He didn't hide his delighted smile when little Ichigo, just a little dizzy from the swat, bit his lip and twined his fingers together in another attempt at patience. Ichigo had woken up riding Gin's shoulders and had begun wailing as soon as he remembered the previous day's events. The man had hushed him with nonsense sounds and reassurances that his makeshift family was alright. The silver haired man made the boy nervous, and he practically started bursting at the seams with questions. Gin was actually surprised with the boy's stubborn will and lack of inquiries. It wouldn't last long though, the ex-captain thought as he swatted the boy once more. Ichigo had begun fidgeting again.
"Um…"
"Is somethin' the matter?"
"…Um," Ichigo twined his fingers together and worried his bottom lip with his teeth. His wide chocolate eyes focused on Gin's shifting robes, "What's mister's name?"
Gin stopped his relentless measuring attack and put down his weapon. Smile continually present, Gin crouched slightly and pointed one finger towards himself, "Ichimaru's th' name, but you kin' call me Gin!"
"Oh-okay, Gin…" Ichigo smiled shyly before averting his gaze to the floor, curiosity temporally sated; the silver haired man seemed nice enough. Gin just hummed in response and moved behind the tiny Vizard, once again wielding his measuring stick. Unleashing a steady stream of clearly useless babble (about what styles he could dress the youth in), Gin opened brilliant blue-green eyes halfway to fully contemplate the child.
"What do you think you're doing, you punk!" (1)
This shy and happy creature was a sharp contrast to the sharply angry, righteously motivated teen that was once known as Kurosaki Ichigo. This was not what he had expected. Gin couldn't really help but feel suspicious; just how much did this child remember? This child who had absolutely no internal resemblance to his former enemy?
"Now, now, stop fidgeting, an' don't suck in yer' stomach either!" Ichigo pouted, now at ease with the smiling fox.
Gin was positive that the memory loss was not pretense, from the very few encounters he had had with the Substitute Shingami, it was clear that he really wasn't one's strategist of choice; he was instead straightforward, violent, and predictable. Actually, if the two hadn't been on opposing sides, Gin was sure that Ichigo could've been a great friend (source of entertainment).
"Um…"
"Hmm?"
"…Can I call you Uncle Gin?"
A pause. "Of course you can, Ichi! Want me ta' tell you sumt'in inter'stin 'bout somebody?"
"Shoot to kill, Shinsou!" (2)
"Where the fuck is that brat!?" The echoing scream of rage cleared the halls of any loitering Arrancar. Grimmjow, with renewed fury flickered though the halls, driven by anger and a slight twinge of fear. When Ichigo was a teen, his reiatsu leaked out like a flooding faucet; it wasn't hard to find the annoying carrot top. Ichigo's other form was almost undetectable in Heuco Mundo's atmosphere, which was positively rife with spirit particles, much more so than the other worlds. Turning the corner, Grimmjow skidded to a halt. Taking a deep breath Grimmjow fought to steady his emotions. With a concentrated strong pulse of spirit pressure, Grimmjow used Pesquisa.
Though Ichigo's spirit pressure was weak, he wouldn't have too much trouble finding it. Or at least that's what he reasoned. His brow furrowed further downwards and his scowl deepened. Didn't the low-level Arrancar scum scram when they heard his furious roar? Grimmjow huffed angrily and mentally sorted through the nearby spirit signatures. Yammy, Ulquiorra, Szayel, Lin-bitch-something, Gin... wait... Gin? Wasn't he always in the control room screwing around with the halls and driving the newbies insane? With a sudden epiphany (gut-feeling) and understanding (assumption), Grimmjow followed the signature towards a very familiar and dreaded place.
The fitting room.
Grimmjow would never forget the humiliating moments he had spent there shortly after his 'rebirth'. Was it really a mystery to the fox face to why exactly he was disliked so much? Was it really?
His flashback came to a halt when he skidded to a halt in front of the door, and with a deep breath kicked it open in what he considered a very macho yet appropriate move.
Gin smiled, already facing the door, both hands clasped over Ichigo's shoulders.
"Hey, hey, this is the guy I was talkin' bout, Ichi-kun!" he bent forwards and mock-whispered into Ichigo's ear.
"Remember what I told ya?"
Ichigo looked curiously at the seething blue-haired stranger, then made a tiny 'ohhh' sound; with outstretched arms and a blindingly white smile from ear to ear he chirped, "Kitty!"
All hell broke loose.
Authors note:
(1) + (2) is (3) (Joking! Joking! Don't stab me!) Bleach Chapter 75 pg 10 and Bleach Chapter 75 pg 15. Gin and Ichigo's first meeting.
Kermit's Sister helped me alot for this chapter (I mean more than the usual alot), my inspiration (reviews) died. It seems the more chapters I put up the less reviews I'm getting, nuuu Don't do this to me... So for the first time I'm going to ask:
Review Please! And If you've got the time give me some constructive critisism and feedback as I value those the most. Just give me a sign I'm doing this fanfiction thing right xD
I didn't start chapter seven yet. ;.;
Without Author's Notes: 2842 words:
Chibi!Ichigo: Uwah! Nell! Don Chakka! Pesche! Where are you?
Gin: Aw don't worry! They're safe, don't cry!
Chibi!Ichigo: Really? -sniff-
Gin: Really really!
Grimmjow: -sneers- No way!
Chibi!Ichigo: Uwaaaah!
Gin: Aw don't cry! -Pat pat-
Ichigo: Hey! Don't touch him-er me! Fox-face!
Gin: But he's crying! And he's so cute!
Ichigo: I'm Not-he's not-he is..-I'm NOT- ARG! SHUT UP YOU BASTARD! -Leaves the room-
Chibi!Ichigo: Baaaa-bas-Baaasture?
Grimmjow: Review if ya' want to see hell break loose. -Reaches for Chibi!Ichigo- Now, what the fuck did you call me?
Chibi!Ichigo: Kitty!
Gin: Oh dear,
Ulquiorra: We're out of screentime.