Hey, I finally got to a double digit chapter. Thank you, to everyone whose been supporting my story so far.

Special shout out to both Enjali and NekoLover90 for leaving reviews for most of the chapters so far. Thanks guys!

Chapter 10

"Got you!" Ichiru exclaimed triumphantly as he gripped a squirming albino in a headlock with his right arm. Shiro smirked, reached behind the teen grabbing onto the hood of his ocean blue hoodie, and yanked it down, causing the orangette to momentarily loosen his grip. Immediately, the pale replica slipped out of Ichiru's grasp before spinning around and ramming his left knee into the teen's gut, causing him to double over and gasp in pain. This lapse in concentration allowed Shiro to slip behind him as he was still bent over and viciously kicked him in the back, forcing him to fall to his knees. Shiro roughly grabbed Ichiru by his long orange hair, causing him to hiss, and pulled back harshly so that their eyes could meet.

"Che. Ya couldn't even last 5 minutes, there's stuff just begging to drag you down, and if you can only see what's in front of ya, then don't ya dare get cocky" The orange haired teen gulped as the words stung his chest. He took a shaky breath as kept his eyes locked onto the other's burning gold pools, not daring to even blink. The albino sneered as he bent over to speak into the orangette's left ear.

"I guess if ya can't handle this, then I guess I shouldn't bother bringing ya in here. Maybe I should take yer place as King and let ya rot in here for awhile." Ichiru felt his heart drop at the threat. This was their first spar, so why was Shiro being so dead serious? Was he only helping out earlier because he thought the teen was strong only to be having second thoughts? Was he truly that weak? He clenched his teeth in anger at the last thought, refusing to let things end like this.

'You want a King? I'll show you a King!' His thoughts raged as he drove his left elbow into the albino's face, forcing the pale replica to release his hair. Using this opening, the orange haired teen leaped up and delivered a roundhouse kick to his opponent's abdomen, feeling satisfaction when Shiro backed up to catch his breathe and glad that he wore his grey sweat pants, before entering his inner world, for a wider range of movement, but remained alert to the albino's actions. In a heartbeat, Shiro rushed forward, aiming to uppercut the orangette, but he was ready. As soon as the porcelain white limb came into range, Ichiru grabbed onto the arm and sidestepped, wrenching it behind the albino's back as his momentum propelled him past the teen. With a swift kick, Shiro's feet were swept out from beneath him, leaving Shiro to land onto the side of the building, sprawled on his stomach.

The pale replica flipped himself around as he tried to get up to face the teen again, but Ichiru was already onto him. Quickly pouncing, the orangette straddled Shiro's waist while simultaneously grabbing both of his pale wrists and slamming them against the side of the skyscraper, right above stark white hair and pinning the albino down. The pale man squirmed, failing to free his wrists from the unrelenting teen.

"Why the hell would you leave me here to rot?!" Ichiru demanded in outrage. However, Shiro simply bust into a fit of psychotic laughter, causing the teen to grit his teeth in frustration.

"Now why would I ever do that?" Shiro asked, oh so innocently, once he'd calmed down. The teen tightened his grip in frustration.

"YOU said you'd do that if I couldn't handle it!" The orangette spat, the feeling of betrayal slowly creeping up and his grip on the man below him loosened. However, the albino simply smirked. Freeing his right hand, he reached up and affectionately stroked long strands of sunset orange as cocoa eyes stared on in confusion.

"But you won, didn't you?"

"I really need to stop getting knocked out. Not that I don't like coming here." Ichiru groaned from the pain in his head as he peered at the the sideways skyscraper above him, blinking repeatedly to clear his dazed mind, the flashback from a week ago, before learning Zangetsu's true name, still fresh in his memory. Once again, he'd found himself lying on the side of a building in his inner world.

"Unlike the last time, this was completely yer fault." Shiro spoke up. The teen turned his head to see the Zanpakuto spirit sitting cross legged to his left, with his arms crossed and tucked out of sight in his long sleeves. An amused smirk and raised eyebrow gracing his face. "Ya need glasses or something?"

Ichiru rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah, I need to be aware of my opponent and my surroundings." He grumbled, but still had a small smile of amusement. "That tree gave me a big enough lecture when it hit me on the head."

"That tree has better defense than you since it's still standing! Meanwhile, yer passed out ass is getting carried to Urahara's like a damsel in distress." Shiro laughed. The teen remained silent as he stared with narrowed eyes at the albino. After a minute or so, he finally sat up, adjusting the black sword on his back, and turned to face Shiro before addressing the albino, who was now quietly observing the orangette in curiosity.

"Why do you do that? The insults I mean." Ichiru asked, tilting his head to the side. "I know you're telling me what I'm doing wrong and how to get better, but do you have to say it through insults?"

The pale Zanpakuto hummed as he considered the question. "Suppose I could tell ya the method to my madness." His brilliant gold eyes locked onto bold chocolate ones.

"The way I see it, you could be the most powerful person in the entire universe, but that strength is pointless if ya have a fragile mind." He explained. Ichiru turned his eyes to the sideways clouds, smiling warmly as he considered this logic adding one more item to his list of things that he's grateful to Shiro for.

"Yer doing it again."

Startled, the teen whipped his head around, only to find that the Zanpakuto spirit had scooted closer and was leaning forward so that their faces were several inches apart. "I keep catching you smiling off into space for the past five days or so since ya started yer job. What's going on?"

"What? You having second thoughts about teaching me to keep my thinking to myself?" The orangette smirked teasingly. However, he knew what Shiro was referring to and felt guilty for keeping it hidden. Before, he'd kept the subtle thoughts and fluttering feelings, shoved into the very back of his mind, but when he saw the sleeping albino's content smile in that strange house/building five days ago, he began to second guess himself. So, he began focusing his thoughts on work and training as much as possible in the living realm and only let his thoughts maul over his feelings whilst in his inner world where Shiro couldn't read his mind. Now, it seems like it's time he actually did something.

"It's not that." The Zanpakuto spirit spoke up as he leaned back, his watery voice snapping the teen's thoughts back to reality. "Something's been bothering you, and you've managed to keep your thoughts hidden by bombarding me with thinking about work and shit." He frowned, as if trying to remember something.

"Sorry. I've just been thinking… about someone." Ichiru laughed sheepishly. This caused the albino to stare in surprise.

"Someone? Wait, do you mean like… yer in love?" The teen looked away in embarrassment, nodding in confirmation as he fiddled with the ebony trench knife strapped to his hip.

"Is it Rukia?" Now it was the orangette's turn to be shocked.

"What makes you say that?" He sputtered. Shiro frowned as he pulled his right arm out of his sleeves to scratch the back of his head. "Well, you started withdrawing on the same day you began getting to know her. Plus, I'm pretty sure she might like you."

"Really? With the blushing and Tsundere attitude, I thought she hated me." Ichiru laughed. The albino cocked an eyebrow and scooted closer to be right next to the orange haired teen.

"So, are you gonna answer me?" He asked, getting more and more confused. The teen saw the confusion and proceeded to burst into laughter, earning him an irritated growl. Smiling, Ichiru leaned closer to the zanpakuto spirit, as if he were going to whisper something. Suddenly, he grabbed both of Shiro's upper arms to keep him still, and crashed his lips against pale petal ones. The kiss was soft and sweet, like vanilla, as vibrant, multicolored fireworks exploded in the inner world's sky, reflecting on its King's answer.

"Still think I like Rukia like that?" Ichiru chuckled as he pulled away. Shiro Zangetsu was frozen, gold on black eyes wide with shock, his brain short circuiting as a pink blush dusted his pale cheeks. Gradually, shock melted into the warmest smile that the orangette had ever seen. There was no cockiness, no mischief, and no sadness, only pure joy and affection. Shiro reached forward and embraced his King, burying his face into the teen's right shoulder.

"As my only King, that means a lot yanno? Thank you." He mumbled. Ichiru wrapped his arms around the albino's shoulders, mindful of the ivory Khyber sword strapped to his back, and nuzzled into snowy white hair to return his affection. He could feel Shiro's content reiatsu radiating from the pale figure as he took in the scent of fresh rain and spice. After a minute of serene silence, the two eventually broke the hug and pulled away.

"So, is this ok? Even though we share the same soul?" The teen asked gingerly, furrowing his eyebrows behind a curtain of orange bangs. The pale spirit chuckled, his usual insane smirk slowly returning to his face.

"Of course it is, Ichi! All Zanpakuto yearn for recognition from their Shinigami counterparts, but to develope a relationship that transcends the limits of a simple partnership of coexistence? Besides, who cares what others think?" Shiro turned his face to the side, eyes staring off into the distance in a manner that Ichiru recognized as a remembrance of nostalgia, but seemed much more pleasant than all of the other times that the orangette had witnessed. Any other time, only pain and loneliness flashed through bright gold despite the ever present grin of insanity that graced the albino's face. The more the teen saw this, after each spar, lesson, or lecture, the more definite he felt about about the next decision he needed to make. The one that's been hanging over his head since the day he learned Zangetsu's true name.

"I don't want my old memories back." He blurted out. Shiro looked up, but remained silent as he nodded in understanding. The orangette laughed sheepishly. "To be honest, I want to get to know my friends the old fashioned way. I'd feel like I'm cheating by just suddenly remembering everything about them."

The pale Zanpakuto spirit burst into laughed psychotically. "Ha! You've been gone for 20 years, King. You'd still have to catch up with what's happened in that time, regardless if you got yer memories back or not!" He snickered.

"Maybe, but they sure do stick out, huh?" The teen commented as he removed the ebony swords from his hip and back before placing the to the side and laying back onto the side of the skyscraper.

"They're all so different, yet they seem to go together like birds of a feather." He mused, remembering the group discussion he had with them over random topics just an hour or so ago outside the movie theatre.

"Don't forget that Geta-boushi! He means well, but the bastard's a bit too smart for everyone else's sanity." Shiro added as he crawled up to the orangette's right side and laid down on his stomach, resting his chin on top of crossed arms.

"Pretty sure he's smart enough to figure out how we get Wi-Fi in here." Ichiru stared in bafflement at the notion.

"Of all the things you could bring up, that's the one you chose?"

"Yep."

"Why am I not surprised?"

"Cuz ya know me too well."

"Of course." The teen smirked, rolling his eyes in amused annoyance.

"So, what are you going to do about Rukia?" Ichiru paused at the question. He honestly wasn't sure since he currently doesn't know her as much as he probably did in the past. So far, she'd only shown signs of possible attraction with blushing, avoiding eye contact, and hugs, but those could all be justified by other reasons. Like blushing out of embarrassment when she starts to bicker with the teen on impulse. If anything, it could just be a fluke and both he and Shiro were overthinking things.

"I won't do anything for now. Let's just wait and see what happens." Decided the orange haired teen. This caused the albino to snicker in a knowing manner.

"That's so like you." The Zanpakuto exclaimed. When Ichiru raised an eyebrow in quiet questioning, he decided to elaborate through actions. He was bored anyways. Leaping to his feet, the albino whipped out his giant ivory Khyber sword and swung it in a downward arc. Instantly, the teen rolls to the left and onto his hands and feet, dodging the blade aimed for his head.

Chocolate eyes narrowed as the orangette rolled forward, grabbing the ebony trench knife in his left hand, and brought it up just in time to block the oncoming Khyber sword. Reaching behind him, Ichiru attempted to grab his own ebony Khyber sword, only to get kicked in the side, tossing him towards the skyscraper to his left. Flipping in midair, the teen flew towards the building's side feet first, bending his knees once he reached the window and used his given momentum to propel himself back. Halfway back, he crashed into the albino who'd shunpoed after him. Their trench knives locked together as they pushed against each other, the reishi of the inner world supporting them as they stood suspended in the air, reiatsu slowly rising and dancing together.

Ichiru noted, as he parried his laughing pale counterpart, that while his black Khyber sword lay on the sideways skyscraper below them, right where he'd left it, Shiro's alabaster copy was left to lay right next to it and keeping the two combatants on an even playing field. Leaping away, they broke bladed contact before the inverted reflection threw his bleached trench knife straight towards the tangerine teen's face. Startled, the orangette deflected the snowy projectile with his own obsidian blade. This created just the opening the albino needed as he lunged forward in a burst of shunpo and grabbed onto his King's hand, ripping the short sword from his grasp. The two let the inner world's twisted gravity as they tumbled down, wrestling each other as the teen desperately tried to grab his falling blade.

Finally deciding to disregard the trench knife, Ichiru viciously shoved Shiro to an arm's length away from him before harshly grabbing the collar of the Zanpakuto spirit's white Shihakusho and yanked him forward. Flipping their positions, the duo crashed into the side of the skyscraper below them in the tilted gravity with the albino taking the brunt of the impact in a cloud of debris. Loud, watery laughter reverberated throughout the hollow inner world, as Ichiru breathed heavily whilst his adrenaline gradually died down and the dust settled. The teen sat up, straddling Shiro's waist as he lay sprawled on his back, laughing his ass off. A spiderweb of cracks that ran across the surface of the sideways, originating where the pair lay, was slowly repairing itself as the two fought to catch their breaths.

"Did you understand what I meant?" Shiro panted as he propped himself up on his elbows. Ichiru smirked as he peered down at the albino through a curtain of orange.

"Maybe, but why don't you tell me, oh wise one?" He asked teasingly as he got off of Shiro to sit cross-legged to his right. The fair-skinned male scoffed as he sat up completely, dusting the debris out of his short snowy hair.

"You never make plans for anything. When something happens, you react accordingly, but can easily be caught off guard. Like when I suddenly threw my knife at you only to get into close to steal yours." He tried to elaborate, earning a nod from the teen.

"Alright, but I'm pretty sure you brought this up just so you could have an excuse to spar." The orangette scowled at the hollowfied Zanpakuto spirit, who burst into yet another round of double-toned laughter, confirming the teen's suspicions.

"Yeah. Anyways, your body is currently sleeping at the shoten. You wanna head back now?" Shiro questioned, but the tangerine teen snorted at the suggestion.

"They set me up with that so called 'test'. Waiting a few more minutes won't kill them." He grumbled. Silence seeped into the realm as the two sat, plagued by private thoughts. Ichiru stole several glances at his alabaster counterpart, who was unusually quiet and staring off into space. He wondered if Shiro actually felt the same way he did, or if he only showed affection because he was bound as a Zanpakuto. He'd mentioned that all Zanpakuto yearn for recognition, but is love beyond the boundary going too far? Plus, he was a hollowfied Zanpakuto and doesn't exactly follow all the rules, so how does it apply to him?

"Hey." Yanked away from his thoughts, the orangette snapped his head up to find that Shiro had crawled closer to him. His porcelain white face was inches from his own with those hypnotizing gold eyes swimming in obsidian. Ichiru blinked and looked away, feeling his heart beat faster as a faint blush tinted tan cheeks. A stark white hand reached forward, grasping the teen's chin and turned his face so their eyes could meet. Concern swirling in molten gold.

"Now why're you getting all shy me?" The watery echo asked smoothly.

"Are you sure you're ok with… how I feel towards you?" Ichiru asked, feeling shame clawing at his chest. As cliche as it sounds, he just couldn't muster up the courage to say that single word. He'd felt so confident admitting his feelings earlier, even going as far as to boldly give his first kiss to Shiro, but now, self-doubt was twisting him into nervous knots. A soft chuckle escape the albino as he moved the hand gripping the teen's chin, up to cup the side of his face.

"Be honest. Do you want me?" Chocolate eyes stared hesitantly into gold, but determination clawed its way to the surface.

"Only if you want me." He answered with confidence. With that, pale petal lips pressed against his own rosy ones. Eyes closed, the two pressed against each other with surprising gentleness as they wrapped each other in enveloping warm embrace. Colorful fireworks, once again burst in silent celebration for the couple in the sideways sky.

"I love you." Ichiru whispered once they broke for air, relief sweeping through his soul.

"As sappy as it sounds, I love you too." Shiro Zangetsu smirked while his lover merely rolled his eyes. The albino adjusted himself to sit comfortably in his counterpart's lap, draping his arms around a tan neck, and rested his chin on the right shoulder, without the red-scaled shoulder pad. The orangette, in turn, wrapped his arms around the pale spirit's torso to keep him secured in place.

"Kurosaki Ichigo." The teen looked up in surprise as the unknown, yet familiar name was spoken. Sensing the confusion, Shiro continued.

"Ichigo was your old name. It means 'number one protector'." The watery echo voiced with a subtle tinge of serenity. "Thought you'd like to know."

Ichiru smiled in gratitude as he placed his forehead onto a clothed shoulder, emotions of elation coursing through his blood by his counterpart's acceptance.

"Thank you."

Finally! They're a couple now! Did I do ok? Or was it a bit rushed? Let me know!

Link to a cute picture of Ichiru and Shiro Zan: (Copy and paste this into a web search and remove the spaces)

fav . me / dabhffc

Ichiru: ...

Verteller: ...

Ichiru: ...

Verteller: Why are you still here?

Ichiru: *shrugs*

Shiro: Yes! He's mine now!

Verteller: ... When did you get here?

Shiro: *snicker* That's my secret.

Ichiru: Review?