Quiet Protector

A/N: FanART!

Ichigo in chains: www. y-gallery view/987536/

Kira comforts Ichigo

www. y-gallery view/987538/

Chapter Ten

In Between the Whispers

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

UMSL Campus

9:00 am

Szayelaporro was an odd name to have. And Szayel was indeed odd in more than one way. He had dyed his hair cotton candy pink, and wore it pulled back at the nape of his neck most days. He was taking a program at the school to become a paramedic after a couple years. Szayel was quite flamboyantly gay, and perhaps could only have been more stereotypical "gay" only if he used glitter daily. He did use it, just not every day. He walked with a swish, as he put it, and he spoke with attitude, also as he put it. He didn't cross dress, at least, not most the time. He'd been known to pull a drag outfit off at the club a time or two, but usually, he wore tight jeans and t-shirts at school, and had quite the leather fetish when he went out on the weekends.

He was having a slow day. He was volunteering at the hospital but had the day off, so he was catching up on some research for class instead. He was walking along, head held up, in search of any new quarry for his overflowing affections, across the campus. He had hands shoved in his tight embroidered jeans and was wearing a think blousy poet shirt that worked well in the late summer heat. He was headed down to the library when he heard someone yell out in pain. He stopped, looking down the embankment and listening. He heard it again, a distinct groan of pain. He paused, sliding down the damp grass and heard someone talking.

"Fuck, keep still, goddamn it," he heard a rough male voice say. That didn't sound right, he thought to himself, frowning and continuing down toward a blind spot off the path where he heard someone struggling. The second voice was slurred and muffled. "I didn't think I'd need a second for this shit," he heard and there was a loud smacking sound followed by the unmistakable groaning of someone who had been hit. "Drug him, stick him, that was it," he heard the first voice muttering. "What could be easier? No you got to make my life hard…"

Szayel wasn't about to let that slide. He wasn't the most brave, and wasn't the biggest guy, actually, he was quite thin, but there was no way he would stand by and let someone get hurt. He came around and was more than a little shocked by what he was seeing. He expected to see a student being bullied, or beat up, or worse. What he didn't expect was someone being held down by a middle aged guy in a hoodie that was trying to inject something into his wrist.

"What the hell are you doing?" Szayel yelled. The man in the hoodie looked up.

"Fuck, this shit ain't worth the kind of money I'm getting paid, fucking Opie giving me shit jobs," he said, and took off, dropping the syringe and running toward the edge of campus.

Szayel let him go, and dropped to his knees to find a man lying on the ground, semi-conscious. Blood was dripping from a puncture in his left wrist and from his lip.

"Hey man," Szayel said, pulling the dark haired man to sit up.

He looked around hazily and blinked at Szayel. "Mah…head feels funny," he slurred, swaying in Szayel's grip.

Szayel looked at him and pulled open his eye wider. His pupils were complete blown. "Honey, you've been drugged to the gills," he said, seeing the obvious signs. "Come on, up you go," he said, lifting him up. "You know your name?"

"Ur…Uryuu…" he muttered, swaying dangerously against Szayel.

"Okay, I'm Szayel, and I've got an apartment nearby, but more importantly I've got a car closer," he said with a sigh, pausing to pick up the syringe as he walked through the rest of the area and into the parking lot. He quickly loaded him into the car and headed off to his apartment that he shared with his brother Illfordt.

Illfordt was in the veterinary sciences program, and unlike his brother, he was straight. He often teased his older brother about being a fairy, to which Szayel, when he was in a snarky mood would go get the pair of fairy wings he had from a few Halloweens ago and prance about their apartment. If Illfordt was lucky, Szayel would be wearing more than a tutu, and if he was really lucky, no one would be visiting at the moment. Illfordt was rarely lucky in that respect and more than one girlfriend had been scared off by his overly flamboyant brother. However, if they left because of Szayel, he had no problems, and he'd kicked more than one homophobic whore to the curb for saying something rude about Szayel. Illfordt was the only one allowed to call his brother a sparkling fairy fuck or a sugar coated faggot. In turn, Szayel was the only one he'd tolerate calling him a man-whore or whatever slur was on Szayel's lips for that day. Anyone else, Szayel would deck. The brothers were a year apart in age, and complete opposites, but there were few brothers as close as they were at the end of the day.

Szayel pulled into the complex and into the garage and pulled the other man stumbling into the duplex. He heard Illfordt coming down from the second floor as he dumped Uryuu's mumbling body onto the couch.

"Really? You can't tell me you're brining home boys now. I thought I was the one who brought home sluts," Illfordt said with a smirk as he looked over. "The hell, he's doped up," he said, smile fading.

Szayel nodded, grabbing the first aid kit and kneeling by the couch. "GHB if I don't miss my guess," he said with a nod, taking an alcohol pad and wiping his mouth and wrist. "I caught this dude holding him down and trying to shove a needle into his wrist," he said, holding up the syringe and putting it on the coffee table.

"What do you think he was trying to do?" Illfordt said, sitting on the coffee table and pulling his blonde hair back and tying it up with a rubber band.

"Not really sure, might be able to run some tests on it at class tonight," Szayel said. "Until then, get him some water and let's try and flush his system," he said with a sigh.

Uryuu was teetering on unconsciousness, but he would flinch every now and then. "Um, go 'way, gonna get sick," he muttered.

"Hey, it's okay," he said with a smile, sitting him up. "Hey, can you hear me?" Szayel said, holding his face and staring into his eyes.

Illfordt handed him a glass of water and Szayel tipped it back into his mouth and Uryuu's eyes widened and he grabbed the glass and drank like a man dying of thirst. "Shh, hey, it's okay," Szayel said with a gentle hand against his back. "Easy. Here, here, just rest, you're okay."

Uryuu blinked and shook his head. "Yeah, feel funny," he said, sighing.

Szayel nodded. "You'll be okay in a minute. How about your hand?" he said, holding up the left hand which he frowned at because it seemed to spasm randomly.

"Little numb," he muttered, but Szayel continued to watch as his fingers randomly flexed on that hand.

"Do you know who would try to hurt you like this?" Szayel asked, frowning.

Uryuu shook his head. "M'dad…prolly," he muttered.

Szayel shook his head. "Your dad?" he asked.

"Fuckin' bastard, in jail, prolly…prolly sent someone…fuckin' son of a bitch…" he muttered.

Illfordt gasped. "Hey, I know him," he said, eyes wide. "He's the son of the Dean of Business that was just arrested, Ish…Ishida, right?"

At the name, Uryuu sat up almost violently. "Fuckin' bastard!" he said.

There was a knock at the door and a female voice yelled. "Illfordt, babe, forgot my purse last night!"

Illfordt stood up to catch her before she came into the area but was too late. "What's going on?" Lisa Yadōmaru was Illfordt's latest girlfriend. "Wait, Uryuu?" she said, coming around and seeing who was on the couch. "Uryuu? What's wrong with him?" she said, sitting beside his as he turned and looked at her.

"You know him?" Szayel said, wrapping a bandage over his left wrist.

"Yeah, he's in my fashion class. He's a master with a needle and thread… I've never seen anyone that can sew by hand as well as he can. I heard his dad was put in jail," she said, looking at him. "Is he on something?"

"Lisa…" Uryuu said. "Watch out fer da free coffee…has a kick…" he said, grinning at her goofily.

"Free coffee?" Szayel said, grabbing a syringe and taking a blood sample quickly. Uryuu didn't notice until he was done. "That's how they drugged him, I bet."

"Who drugged him?" Lisa asked, looking at Szayel.

Szayel took out a pen light and shined it in his eye for a minute. "I don't know, down by the library I caught this guy holding him down trying to inject something into his wrist. I'm guessing it may be something to deaden the radial nerve if I'm right. He said his father would have done it to him. Did he help put him away?" he said, leaning back.

Lisa looked at him. "Szay, you been under a rock?" she asked. "It's all over the news. Ryuken Ishida was arrested on some serious charges, along with the deputy mayor and several other really high profile people in the city. Uryuu's dad was running basically a forced prostitution ring, and what got him caught was he was forcing his nephew into it, and people noticed finally what was happening. He's being charged with sex trafficking and aggravated assault, as well as drug charges. I guess he was doping up Uryuu's cousin on some heavy opiates. The deputy mayor's being charged with first degree rape and assault and battery."

Illfordt frowned. "Oh, my god, that's…that's the kid in my chemistry class, the orange headed exchange student, isn't it? He's been gone like a week," he said, realization dawning on him. "Something Kuro…Kurosaki?"

Uryuu sobbed suddenly. "I'm so stupid!" he cried out, tears streaming down his face. "I shoulda stopped it, protected him, my…my cousin…Ichi, I'm so sorry…how could…could I…"

Szayel moved beside him and put an arm around his back. "Shh, honey, shh. Don't fret, honey," he said, patting his back as he turned and sobbed into his shoulder. "What could you do? Your father was a dick, honey, there's no need to blame yourself. Come on, let's put you to bed to sleep this drug off," he said, nodding to Illfordt who helped get him up the stairs and into Szayel's bed.

Szayel sat down beside him and grabbed a book. "I'll keep an eye on him; make sure his breathing stays normal. I don't think he needs to go to the hospital, doesn't look like there's a danger of overdose, but I'd still like to make sure. And if someone's after him, it might be in his best interest to stay away from public areas."

Illfordt nodded and went to leave as Lisa stuck her head into the room with an evil grin on her face. "Oh, Szayel, by the way, he's bi," she said, before leaving.

Szayel blushed and glanced over to the passed out man on his bed. Why did she have to say that when he had him sprawled like that in his bed? Really? Szayel sighed, ignoring it. Chances were he had a boyfriend or a girlfriend, anyway. Though he was cute, really hot, actually, with those silver rimmed glasses sitting askew on his nose and mouth hung open slack. He dressed kind of preppy, slacks and a button up shirt, but he looked to be leanly muscled underneath that shirt. He shook his head and turned to the next page in his text for tonight. Not a good place for his mind to go. The guy had a date rape drug in his system for godssakes, what was he thinking…even if he was bi, it didn't mean he'd be interested in him.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Hisagi/Kira's home

9:30 am

Ichigo was warmer than he had been in so long. He was so comfortable. Arms were around him and he just melted into them. He was on his side and snuggled his face into someone's shoulder, and it smelled so delightful, like jasmine flowers. He hadn't dreamed last night and it felt so nice to have that happen. The arms tightened around his back and then the second pair tightened around his waist and he realized someone was lying against his back as well. He hummed happily because it felt so very nice. Then he gasped and suddenly felt trapped. It was a strange thing, to go from happy to absolute panic so quickly.

He started to try and get away from the arms that were holding, no trapping, him and he started to panic more.

"Stop, Ichi-ai," came a familiar voice. "Calm, calm," and he opened his eyes and found himself staring into Kira's face. "Calm down," he said, petting his hair gently. "You're with me, remember? Me and Shuuhei?"

Ichigo swallowed and nodded, grabbing him tightly with his arms and panting for air. He didn't know what caused the panic, there was no reason for it really, but he was so afraid so suddenly. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.

Kira pushed him back. "Don't, Ichi-ai, you have nothing to be sorry for."

Hisagi, likewise, clutched him from behind. "Please, you're safe and we're not going to let anything happen," he said, suddenly very comfortable saying it. "We're going to see Mistress Cybelle today, to talk things over, okay? Remember? We filled out our papers and all three of us are going," he said, setting his chin on Ichigo's shoulder.

Ichigo nodded, still nervous, but he didn't know why, these people were going to keep him safe, help him, love him, even. They weren't like Master Black, they weren't going to humiliate him, and hurt him, and tell him such awful things to make him shake and cry when he left the room.

Kira smiled and got up, pulling Ichigo from the bed. "Let's shower, okay? We'll go with you, if that's okay?" he said.

Ichigo nodded, stepping off and following Kira into the large bath with Hisagi behind. Hisagi started unbuckling the collar and his hands went to it. "Shh, we're not taking it," he said, rubbing his hands gently. "You can't shower with it, babe," Hisagi said, laying it on the counter and taking off the cuffs.

Kira unbuttoned his pajama top and carefully pulled it away, frowning as he began to peel the bandages off his back. Hisagi worked on the ones on his chest, only a couple, as most the damage had been to his back and legs. Then they helped him out of the pajama bottoms and his boxers and Ichigo, a week before, might have felt strange being naked in front of others, it didn't faze him in the least now, he just blinked and looked up at Hisagi who smiled at him, having pulled the bandages from the front of his thighs where some bright red lash marks still hadn't healed up.

"Are you okay?" Kira asked, pulling off the ones on his buttocks and the backs of his thighs.

Ichigo nodded, but his eyes had gone back to the ground, and Hisagi lifted his face up and looked at him. "You can speak here, remember?"

"Y-yeah," he said quietly. "It's just…you know…being…like this…I…"

Kira put a gentle hand on the small of his back, one of the few places he wasn't marked, and smiled at him. At least he knew not to strike places that could lead to real injury. He also noted that the other sensitive areas of Ichigo's body were not covered in the deepest strikes. Over his kidneys, the small of his back, his lower belly and the sides of his neck near the veins were either not marked or marked lightly or with obvious care.

"I know, when you were like this before, it was for Master Black."

Ichigo nodded, trying not to avoid Kira's eyes. Kira smiled, stripping himself and looking at Hisagi who was staring at him. "I'm not showering in my clothes, Shuu, but feel free if you want to," he said, dropping his clothes in the hamper. "Or you can skip showering with us and take a shower later, I'm not going to insist, but you'll have to get used to this if you're going to be involved."

Hisagi stripped quickly without another word and followed as Kira took him to the shower. His only fear was getting an obvious problem while showering with Ichigo. That was not appropriate at this time. Ichigo was staring at Kira's body as he got into the shower, then his gaze shifted to Hisagi's body. Hisagi glanced at Kira who shrugged. Hisagi smiled and nodded to Ichigo.

"I'm sorry," Ichigo said, glancing toward his feet again, realizing he'd been staring at both of them and blushing.

Kira sighed, and lifted his chin as Hisagi turned on the shower. "Don't be sorry. You didn't see Master Black like this, did you?"

Ichigo shook his head. "He kept most his clothes on all the time," he said quietly.

"He didn't want to be revealed in front of you, because it makes him vulnerable and exposed. By making you be naked in front of him while he was clothed, he was showing that he was above you. We feel no such need," Kira explained, washing Ichigo's hair as he spoke, smiling as he did so.

Kira couldn't explain it. This simple act, helping Ichigo shower, was so much more fulfilling than anything he'd ever done in his life. He ran his hands through Ichigo's hair and he swore the boy practically purred at the feeling, at the positive attention more than anything. He felt rough patches on his scalp, no doubt where Aizen had ripped pieces of hair from his scalp. Anger flashed inside him. That wasn't the way to treat him. He needed to be treated with care, with adoration, and he would flourish. Pain wasn't the way to Ichigo's heart, and he knew it.

Hisagi was watching mesmerized by his friend he thought he knew so well. Now, he was standing naked in a shower, thankfully large shower, with his best friend, and he found himself not bothered at all by this fact. What they shared stood between them, looking completely lost and alone one moment, and then completely content the moment he was given attention he needed and craved. Hisagi washed himself quickly then began washing Ichigo's unmarred skin with the special soap that had been sent home with them from the hospital that was safe for his healing wounds. He winced as he washed the purple to brown bruising on his arms and wrists. He understood that people enjoyed this sort of thing, but it was obvious that Ichigo didn't.

"Ichi-babe?" Hisagi asked, and Ichigo tilted his head toward him, though he still had his eyes closed as Kira rinsed the soap from his hair. "Was there anything that Master Black did that you liked?" he said thoughtfully. After filling out the sheets he was curious. "Not what he told you to like, what you actually liked?"

Ichigo swallowed hard and frowned. "I…I don't know…I put it on that list," he said, though blushed brightly in the warm water, and Hisagi smirked at Kira who raised a brow at him.

"Alright, babe, we'll talk about it later," Hisagi said, taking the hand sprayer and helping rinse all three of them off. Kira reached out and grabbed two towels, wrapping one around Ichigo and handing one to Hisagi before he led Ichigo out and grabbed his own.

"Stay there, Ichi-ai," he said. "Let me dress real quick, then we'll bandage your back and legs again," he said gently, patting the small of his back. He nodded as both Kira and Hisagi got into their clothes. Hisagi looked at him. "I'll grab him a pair of my jeans and a t-shirt again. We're going to have to take him shopping later today," he said with a grin, taking off.

Kira nodded and led him over to the mirror and began putting the antiseptic on his back again and putting the smaller bandages over the worst wounds. The smaller ones should air, he knew. Then he took his towel away and took care of the ones along his backside and thighs. They were much worse than the ones on his back. He had to wonder how in the world he could even begin to sit comfortably… Hisagi came back and handed him a pair of boxers and jeans and they helped him into them. Hopefully, once the worst of the painful tears in his back and legs healed, he'd be able to dress himself easier. As it was, bending over for him was still painful and pulled on the scabbing wounds and the stitches in the worst of them.

He stood up. "Presentable," Kira said but Ichigo looked distraught and Kira smiled, reaching behind him and buckling the leather collar back onto him. He smiled, just a tad, and Kira could feel him relax as he gave him his hands to put the cuffs back on him.

"Okay, we've got a couple hours before we meet the Mistress, why don't we go ahead and stop at the mall on our way there?" Kira said, thinking that Ichigo would be much happier with something of his own rather than wearing their clothes.

Ichigo wrung his hands a bit. "If…if you think it's okay…I don't…I don't have any money," he said, looking between them.

"We're taking care of you, remember?" Kira said, putting an arm carefully around him and gently pushing him out of the bathroom to get his shoes downstairs.

Isshin and the girls were at the table as they came down. Ichigo froze for a second, at first trying to avoid their gaze but then managed a small smile.

"G-good morning," he said finally.

Isshin got up and came forward. "How are you this morning, son?"

"Okay, we're going to get some clothes at the m-mall…and then to see…M-mistress Cybelle…" he said, looking between his father and his sisters.

Karin and Yuzu looked at their father. "Can we go with them?" Yuzu said with a grin.

Isshin started to say something but Kira smiled and spoke up. "Of course, might be a tight squeeze in my car, but we can take you with us. No problem at all. Though you'll have to hang out at the club while we're speaking to Imelda in the back, I'm afraid you can't be involved with that, girls."

Karin and Yuzu smiled and nodded, looking at Isshin who sighed and nodded. "Listen to Kira and Hisagi, please, girls," he said.

The girls both nodded, just happy to spend time with Ichigo, and were a little confused when he clung to Hisagi's hand at the car. Hisagi nodded as Kira got in the driver's seat. "Um, Karin, want to take shotgun on the way, then Yuzu can have it on the way home?" he asked as Yuzu climbed in the back.

Karin frowned but got in the front while Hisagi slid into the middle, letting Ichigo take the spot behind Kira. The nerves were obvious at having his sisters see him like this. He adjusted and Hisagi frowned, glancing down. Ah, his knee, he realized, seeing that he was trying to get into a comfortable position. He realized that revealing pain was likely hard for him to do.

"Izzy, pull up a bit, you're cramping Ichi-babe's legs a bit," Hisagi said. Ichigo started to say something, obviously that it wasn't a problem but Hisagi put a finger up. "No, I can see it is bothering you, so no nonsense about how it isn't." Ichigo blushed a bit and looked down at his hands. Hisagi reached over and grasped one. "Hey, none of that, either," he said.

Karin cleared her throat and looked over at Kira. "So, is this a big mall?"

"Oh yeah, called the Mills, a huge outlet mall," Kira said with a smile from the front.

The rest of the trip was small talk about the malls in the area, and Kira promising there was something there for everyone, even the sports aficionado that Karin was. They only had about two hours, but that would be plenty time to get a small fall wardrobe for Ichigo started. Kira also intended to make a stop at a special store or two while Hisagi and the girls were picking out clothes for him.

They pulled in and as usual, the crowds made Ichigo nervous. That, however, wasn't new. Crowds had always made him nervous, and now it was simply worse. He picked at the cuff on one of his wrists. Hisagi took one of his hands and Kira the other and smiled at him. He nodded nervously as they headed in. Karin and Yuzu talked about everything they saw in Japanese since they knew both Hisagi and Kira understood them. Every once in a while, Ichigo would chime in response to something or ask a question of his own. The got to an American Eagle store and headed to the young men's department and Kira smiled at Hisagi.

"I've got to go grab a couple things, pick him out whatever he wants," he said, handing over a card. "You know my code. No limit, got it?"

Hisagi nodded. "Got it. What are you using?"

Kira held up a credit card. "One my dad gave me."

He went over and put his hands on Ichigo's shoulders and kissed his cheek, surprising him. "Ichi-ai, I'll be back, get whatever you like, and I'll be back in no more than half an hour, okay?"

Ichigo nodded and blushed brightly to which both his sisters giggled. Before long, they had quite a pile of mixed clothes. Ichigo kept saying it was too much and Hisagi told him he had to have clothes of his own because he couldn't wear his jeans forever, they didn't fit right. After a while a lady came over to ask if they needed help.

Hisagi smiled at her and shook her head. "Nope, we're fine, just getting a wardrobe for Ichi here," he said patting him on the shoulder very lightly. Ichigo turned to her and gave her a shy smiled and continued chatting to his sisters in Japanese. Hisagi chimed in here and there with his opinion. His opinion mostly influenced him to buy things that showed off his cute ass.

"Are you sure you don't need help?" she asked, frowning as she looked at Ichigo with a narrowed glance.

Ichigo turned back and looked at her. "Um, no, fine," he said in English. "Just…need clothes, is all," he said, glancing to Hisagi who shrugged at him.

Hisagi had no idea why the lady wouldn't buzz off. She finally stepped away, but Hisagi noticed she hovered close by. He rolled his eyes. Great, just like the waitress, another nosy bitch. And this time they didn't have police back up. He glanced over at Ichigo. Of course, a lot of his bruises were on bright display along his arms and when the girls were having him try on jackets, flashes of the darker bruising and red lash marks could be caught her or there on his body. Not that the huge now fading to green bruise where his cheekbone had cracked wasn't enough.

Hisagi sighed because nosy retail worker was joined by nosy department store security guard. He was plain clothed, but Hisagi knew the stance and the fact he had a walkie-talking kind of gave him away. He hoped he kept his distance. Ichigo couldn't take an assertive male figure, which is why they'd agreed for the girls to come. Hisagi knew this drill though. The guy had no right to do anything unless he believed they were shoplifting. Even then, legally he couldn't do anything unless they left the store without paying for merchandise. He was in criminal justice, after all. However, he knew that these security guys could often be assholes on a power trip, so he kept an eye on him.

"Onii-chan!" Yuzu said coming toward him holding up a t-shirt. "You'd look good in this!" she said, grabbing his left forearm by the wrist and pulled him around. He gasped and yelped at the touch, and she looked shocked.

"Oh, sorry, Onii-chan!" she said. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

He shook his head, rubbing his wrist over the leather cuff; it covered most of the purple marks around it. "It's the bad one right now, no problem," he said, smiling at her.

Hisagi was pulling off some jeans and didn't notice the security guy come up from the other side of Ichigo. Ichigo turned around and gasped, almost walking right into the larger man. Behind him, the nosy shop girl was standing with her arms crossed. Ichigo dropped what he was holding and took a step back and looked panicked. So, of course, being the proper security guard the guy was not, he grabbed him to stop him from bolting. He looked up at him and started hyperventilating almost immediately. Hisagi was about to turn around when he heard the plaintive "Master," from behind him. He turned and immediately flushed in anger. He saw that both Karin and Yuzu were staring at the guy confused, and Hisagi took two steps forward and looked at the guy.

"Let him go," Hisagi said, looking at him. "Now."

The security guard looked at Hisagi. "He was trying to run for some reason, so no, I think we'll take him to the security office for a little search and questioning."

Ichigo's eyes went wide and he looked at Hisagi. "N-no…Master!" he said, looking at him. It was the first time he'd called either Kira or Hisagi that, and while Hisagi wasn't keen on the name, he was reverting to comfortable behaviors. Hisagi looked at Ichigo evenly and kept himself calm.

"Ichi-babe, be calm, I'm right here, okay?" he said softly, seeing both the shop woman and the security guard glare at him. "He's not going to hurt you, okay?" Ichigo whimpered in response, trembling. "And he has no right to make you go anywhere."

Karin glared at the guy. "You bastard, let him go," she said, putting both hands on her hips. Karin was really wishing she knew more cuss words in English. Boy she would let him have it in Japanese, though.

"Listen, miss, you keep out of this, or I'll have you picked up by the cops and taken home to your parents, you shouldn't be running around by yourself here anyway," the shop woman said.

Karin turned to her. "Oh no you didn't, bitch. This is my brother, and you will let him go before I plant my third degree black belt foot in your ass, you jackass," she said, turning to face the man with a glare. "And trust me you will not get up again for a while."

The guard looked at her. "Are you threatening me?" he asked, glaring at her.

"You bet your ass, I am," she said. "Now, let him go. You aren't going anywhere with him alone."

"See, see, I told you, he's being abused and they're hiding it!" the shop woman said. "Just look at him! Get him to the office so he can tell you the truth, Jake," she said, sneering at them.

Yuzu now glared at her. "You whore!" she said. Karin sighed exasperated. That was totally not an appropriate insult. "You dare say something like that."

The shop woman gasped and looked at the guard who was still holding onto Ichigo's arm. "Come on, kid, best you come with us and let us know what's going on, okay? We're just trying to help you here," he said and Ichigo tried to pull away again, shaking his head. "And I can do this just fine. I suspect shoplifting," the security guard said with a grin at Hisagi.

Hisagi frowned. "Fine, you want to do this the hard way, fine," he said, pulling out his phone. He knew the asshole couldn't be manhandling Ichigo, he shouldn't even be touching him, let alone claiming to have seen him shoplifting. He wasn't going to argue, he had to just hope there was an officer in the mall.

"Captain Zaraki, please," he said. There was a pause. "Ken, we've got an issue with another asshole who thinks they know shit they don't. I need someone down where I am asap. Don't care who it is, any uniform will due. Oh? That's perfect." He gave the store they were in and hung up, crossing his arms.

"Who did you call?" Jake the asshole security guard asked.

"Oh, captain of the homicide division, he's sending someone over to talk to you," he said.

A few minutes later, Hisagi looked up to see Estrella in street clothes. He waved at her and she came over and frowned the minute she got near. She looked at Hisagi.

"Shuuhei, what's going on?" she asked.

"The security guard thinks it is in Ichi-babe's best interest to take him and have a one on one talk about his situation by using the excuse he's shoplifting to do it," Hisagi said, glaring at him.

Estrella looked at the security guard. "Just what the fuck do you think you're doing?"

"My job, sweetheart, who do you think you are?" he said.

"Your job isn't to harass customers, and my name's not sweetheart," she said, pulling out her badge and showing it to him. "It's Detective Estrella Navarro, and I was on the case that got this young man out of a bad situation this weekend. So you really need to back the fuck up," he said with a snarl stepping forward and extracted Ichigo's arm from him. "You know as well as I do you can't detain someone for shoplifting unless you, one see them shoplift, and two, they leave the store with the items. And you damn sure can't manhandle someone."

The second Ichigo got away and ran to Hisagi and buried his face in his chest and started to pant heavily, panic edging black into his vision. He was on his way into a full scale panic attack and he felt like the world was caving in on him. He couldn't get his breathing under control and he was scared out of his mind. His heart was going to explode, and he was wondering if it was indeed possible to jump out of his skin.

"Shit, shit," Hisagi muttered, dropping with him to the ground. "Karin, bag, there, the front pocket, syringe, now," he said.

Karin fumbled through it and pulled it out. Hisagi popped the cap and injected him through the thigh and handed it back. "Sharps container in there, toss the needle in it. Hey, Ichi-babe?" he said, lifting Ichigo's face. "Okay?"

Estrella turned to the man who was staring openly now. "Feel good about yourself? Both of you?" she said, glaring between them.

"But…I thought…he looks…" the woman stammered.

"Yeah, and it is already all over the fucking news because dipwads like you couldn't keep their fucking traps shut, so you can satisfy your morbid curiosity that way. I'm sure there will be all the disgusting details of what happened to him and the other victims, like always. Do you have no tact whatsoever? He's trying to get back to a normal life and people like you are the biggest goddamn problem. He can't stay inside until every mark is gone, and you need to fucking mind your own business!" she said, glaring at them. "This will be reported to management, and as I stand here, I'll see you both fired, now leave."

Both of them left, looking shocked. Estrella kneeled beside Hisagi and Ichigo. "Hey are you okay?" she asked, putting a hand on Ichigo's shoulder very gently.

Ichigo was much calmer. Of course, a shot of valium tended to do that. "Better, I'm sorry, he just…when he grabbed me…I just…"

"Shh," she said, helping him stand with Hisagi. Ichigo took a deep breath. "I think…I'm okay now, a little tired, but okay."

Hisagi looked at her. "How did you get here so fast?" he asked.

Estrella smirked. "I'm off duty actually; I was shopping down at the bookstore when I got a call from Captain Zaraki asking if I was near the mall. He knows me well, I spend my spare time in only a few places, and this bookstore is one of them. I like to read adventure books in my spare time, and the bookstore always seems to have some good rock climbing and fitness guides."

They gathered the clothes and headed to the checkout and about the time they were done, Kira had returned, without a bag, but he was so angry his ears turned pink when he heard what had happened. Estrella assured him that things would be handled, and not to worry. They bid her farewell and headed back to the car for their contract meeting with Mistress Cybelle.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Imelda's club

12:30 pm

They got to the back door of the club and knocked lightly. It was answered once again by the man with black and red hair. He smiled at them and nodded. "Master Kira, Master Hisagi, please, come this way. You have other companions?" he said, looking at Karin and Yuzu.

Kira nodded. "This is Karin and Yuzu," he said, pointing to them in turn. "I know the club isn't open, and I was hoping it would be okay if they came, but they're Ichi-ai's sisters, and…"

"Of course, Master Kira. Master Cyr's sister is in the main club waiting for him as well. They are more than welcome to stay out there with her," he said, nodding and backing away. "Masters, if you will go down to the last room, I will escort the ladies to the front."

Kira nodded and smiled. "Thank you," he said, taking Ichigo's hand and heading down the hall.

"Come this way," he said. "I am Edrad, or Leo, I belong to Master Treppadora," he said, nodding and leading them to the larger open club area.

At an area with couches and coffee tables near the front, sat a pair of other young women. One was slender with a head of long curly blonde hair and the other was rather plain looking with brown hair and staring away. Edrad bowed slightly and left. Yuzu and Karin shrugged and went over where the other two women sat. The blonde wore a nice, ankle length broomstick skirt in fall orange and red, and a matching red peasant style blouse; perfect for the cooling fall weather, but still comfortable enough if it warmed. She wore a pair of simple sandals to compliment the outfit. Her companion had plain, shoulder length brown hair and glasses, making her look very plain in comparison to her companion. She wore a nice tunic style shirt in black and a simple pair tailored gray slacks with sandals.

"Hi!" Yuzu said and sat down opposite of them. Karin smiled and nodded. She felt like she was dressed down in her jeans and t-shirt. Yuzu at least was wearing a pencil skirt and a white blouse. Granted, Karin didn't wear skirts, but she could have dressed a little nicer if she'd wanted.

"Oh, hello," the blonde woman said. "I'm Cosette, and this is my girl, Lavender. I've not seen you here before."

Karin shook her head. "I'm Karin; this is twin sister Yuzu, my brother's in the back with someone named…Mistress Cybelle or something."

"Oh, goodness, really? So is my brother, Narcisse. He told me about Izuru, are you his sisters?" she said with a smile. Beside her, the other girl looked rather uncomfortable and didn't look at Karin and Yuzu.

"No, Kira and Hisagi are taking Ichigo, our brother back to work out details of whatever this is all about," Yuzu said with a nod. "We just went shopping with him, but it wasn't very nice because this mean security guard was rude to us."

Cosette frowned slightly. "My, that's not good at all. What happened?"

Karin sighed. "Ani is still bruised a lot, so people stare at him, and this nosy woman thought she should get the security guard to take him to the back. He freaked out on them. He has anxiety anyway and after that Aizen guy…"

"Oh, yes, Narcisse told us about that! I'm so sorry that happened to your brother. This lifestyle isn't for everyone, we aren't into it and neither is our other brother, Narcisse's twin, Florian, but we do know that it is not supposed to be like that at all," she said with a sad smile.

Karin and Yuzu nodded. "Yeah, sucks," Karin said, looking around.

The mousy looking girl beside Cosette spoke up very softly. "Wasn't Florian coming too?" she said, and Karin recognized the slight British accent to her voice.

"Yes, he did," Cosette said and looked at her phone. "Oh, no, he had a seizure this morning, I just got a text from Jackie saying he was asleep."

"Ah, too bad," Lavender said, nodding, leaning back into the couch.

Cosette smiled the girls. "The fun of having family, right?" she said with a smile. "You never know what's going to happen, and sometimes plans made aren't fulfilled, right?" She paused. "You came to help your brother after what happened?" she asked, looking between them.

"Yeah, when the police called, they sent us plane tickets and we flew from Japan immediately," Yuzu said. "I love Ani so much, I don't want him to hurt…I hope this…stuff doesn't hurt him."

Cosette smiled softly. "My dear, don't fret. From what I understand your Kira is much like my brother. He wants to love and nurture, not humiliate and hurt. I believe your brother should be well taken care of."

Karin sighed, looking away. "I hope so," she muttered, still unsure about the whole thing.