So this is the next chapter. It's a little improvised. Hope you enjoyed that previous chapter. Still can't get over how awkward it felt! Blegh!
Chapter 12
First Romance
Ichigo walked into his brother's room. There was a slight limp to his gait, although he still felt numb from his night's activities. He was surprised. Perhaps being a werewlove had its perks after all.
"Where have you been?" Shiro asked. He was smiling, picking up dirty laundry from the floor. Ichigo glanced at the bed which he was relieved to find it in the same condition as he had left it. He collapsed onto it, buying his face in the pillows.
"Are you okay?" the albino asked. He sat down next to his brother, dropping the clothes in favor of running a soothing hand along his brother's back. "Hey, what's wrong?"
The orange haired twin gave out a long groan. "I did something really stupid…"
"It can't be as stupid as Gin spiking all of the drinks last night," Shiro replied lightly. Ichigo turned his head so he could fix the albino with a glare.
"This is his fault?"
Shiro shivered at the ice in his brother's voice. He smiled weakly. "What happened?"
Ichigo's glare softened. He curled onto his side and took a hold of his brother's hand.
"I marked them. Stark, Aizen, and Grimmjow," he said softly. "They're bound to me now."
The fledgling's mouth dropped. "How did that happen?!"
"Well, thanks to your boyfriend, we ended up sleeping together," he growled angrily. "And when I bit them, it marked them. They are like my fiancés now."
Shiro saw the conflict in Ichigo's eyes and pushed aside his curiosity. He pulled his twin close to him until they were side by side. He ran a pale hand through vibrant locks of hair. They were still damp from a shower and Shiro couldn't help but notice his brother smelled faintly of Stark.
"So what does that mean?" he asked as gently as possible.
"I don't know," the younger brother admitted. "We've decided to try working out a relationship, so I suppose they're my boyfriends now…I can't even say we're a couple!"
Shiro chuckled. "That's going to be really hard, though. Being in a relationship with three Alphas sounds pretty intimidating. What made you even agree to it?"
"I don't know," he groaned. Ichigo buried his face into his brother's shoulder. "They were looking at me with these eyes, and I couldn't help but say yes to them."
Shiro was surprised by his brother's admission. Usually Ichigo was not affected by puppy dog eyes. It seemed as though there was perhaps something more to the story that not even Ichigo himself. Shiro knew that Ichigo was attracted to people who held firmly to their beliefs, and those that were not afraid of acting as themselves. Certainly that odd trio created prime examples, for all of them stood out from normal people for various reasons.
"So are you mated now?" Shiro asked. Ichigo shook his head.
"No, I'm not even marked. Anyways, mating is apparently more of a private ceremony," he replied. "Stark didn't really explain it to me, because it was complex. However, he did say it was rather hard to become mated to someone by accident."
"What a shame," Shiro teased. "The old man would love to know that his youngest finally tied the knot."
Ichigo elbowed his brother in the stomach. "Don't even joke about that! I don't even know them well enough to marry them."
Shiro winced as the minor injury began to heal. Then his expression became more serious.
"Seriously, though Ichi, you're lucky." Shiro gazed solemnly at his brother. "They are good men. Unorthodox at times, but they truly care for the people that they interact with and they are very loyal. If you were to be with someone, then I'm glad it's them."
The orange haired twin pinkened before looking down. "It's not as if I don't know that," he murmured. His face lit up at that moment. "As a matter of fact, Stark is going to take me out tomorrow to get me some clothes."
Shiro's mouth widened into a perverted grin. Ichigo scowled, punching his brother in the arm.
"Not like that, you moron!" he snapped. "He just noticed that I wear your clothes all the time and thought it would be good for me to have my own."
The albino laughed. "You know I was kidding!" Twinkling eyes turned onto Ichigo thoughtfully. "But you should take the opportunity to get to know him better."
"You mean like a date?" Ichigo asked suspiciously.
"Like a date," Shiro confirmed.
"Are you tired?" the seventeen-year-old asked his companion. Stark had been walking through the city with him for hours, the longest time that Ichigo had seen him function without napping.
"Sleeping is more a habit than a necessity," Stark explained. "Rut cycles are very painful, as we've told you before. Each wolve does something to take his mind off of it. I would sleep; Aizen would drink tea; and Grimmjow didn't really have enough time to develop his own habit."
"It would probably be fighting," Ichigo mused, more than a touch of irritation at hearing the blue wolve's name. Stark's lips twitched in amusement.
"Yes, it probably would be fighting," he agreed. Ichigo saw the laughter in the grey eyes and smiled to himself. He was surprised at how comfortable it was to be around his friend. Once he got over the initial shock that they had slept together and that he had marked him. He looked around, catching sight of the car that held all of the bags of clothes they had bought. Ichigo still felt a little guilty since he didn't pay for it, but Stark assured him that Los Noches had a budget for matters such as this and it wasn't really a concern.
"Can we stay a little bit longer?" Ichigo asked as they came closer to the car. Stark stopped walking and looked down at the seventeen year old. "There is a park just right there and it such a nice day…"
"You've been stuck on the estate too long," Stark replied. "It's fine if you want to stay here for a bit longer."
Having said that, the man took Ichigo by the arm. They crossed the street to the park and sat down at a bench that was facing a sidewalk and trees. Ichigo found himself quickly relaxing as he felt a cool breeze wafting across his skin and through his hair. Time passed in silence, both werewolves enjoying the weather.
"Tell me about yourself," Ichigo said suddenly. He himself was surprised that the words had slipped out so freely from his mouth. The grey eyed wolve chuckled a little bit.
"What would you like to hear? There is a lot that I could tell you about myself," he replied good naturedly.
"I don't know," Ichigo admitted. "How about your family, your likes. The basics I guess."
Stark stretched himself leisurely beneath the sun's pleasant warmth.
"I am 526 years old," he began. "My parents were both wolves. One of my fathers died in a massacre set up by the Slayers. The other is still alive. He lives in Madagascar, traveling I believe. I enjoy sleeping, as you have noticed. Fighting is a smaller interest. And you have probably met my niece, Lilynette."
Ichigo's eyes widened. "You're 526? Are werewolves immortal?"
"Only as immortal as vampires. We age according to our mentality, after maturity is reached."
"And you had werewolve parents?" Ichigo asked.
"It is very unusual for wolves to have offspring," Stark said ruefully. "We prefer to have mates when we reproduce, and it has taken me over five centuries to even be marked."
"Why have you waited so long?" Ichigo asked. Stark's gaze seemed kind.
"The same reason why you waited; to fall in love." The man's mouth turned upwards. "Of course it seems as though Fate has something else in mind for us."
Ichigo felt guilt well up inside of his chest. He had bound someone to himself without their permission, someone who had been waiting to fall in love like him. "Why aren't you angry with me?"
"Angry?" Stark repeated. He took Ichigo's hand in his with a very serious expression on his face. "Ichigo, I have lived such a lonely life. This was completely unexpected, but I do not regret what happened to us. I was interested by you when we first met. I wanted to learn more about you because you seemed like a mystery to me. This is my wish. Perhaps no in the manner I expected, but nonetheless, I have received my wish."
"How could this be your wish?" Ichigo asked. He didn't understand why Stark remained unaffected by this change in relationship. Ichigo felt as if he had forced the werewolve into this.
Stark smiled, cupping Ichigo's cheek as if it were precious.
"My wish," he whispered, "was to have a mate that I could love."
Ichigo's face felt hot, though it was a different kind of heat from blushing. He looked into Stark's eyes and only saw raw honesty. It was so intense that the young man's breath caught in his throat; it made his heart beat faster.
"Can you love me?" he questioned. Instead of replying with words, Stark merely pressed his forehead against Ichigo's and kissed the tip of his nose. The gesture was pure, and impossibly sweet. Ichigo couldn't help but smile as his stomach began to flutter.
"I hope that you feel the same way," the man murmured. Ichigo scowled a little.
"I wouldn't have agreed to a relationship if I hadn't," he mumbled. He tried to sound angry about it, but his voice came across as embarrassed. Luckily Stark didn't seem to mind.
。o.0.o 。o.0.o 。
A Little Bonus
Aizen stared at the phone that was in his hand. Ichigo was spending the day with Stark, which he was relieved to hear. It meant that the young man would return, more at ease with the rest of his Alphas. Nonetheless, Aizen had heard from Shiro that Ichigo had not called their father after the birthday party. Ichigo apparently didn't want to upset his single parent, who was dealing with a madman at the moment. Unfortunately the leader of Los Noches felt it was his duty to inform the parent of one under his care (and who had now marked him) about the relationship status of his son. Aizen dialed Isshin's number reluctantly.
Isshin saw an unfamiliar number ringing on his phone.
"Hello?" he answered suspiciously.
"Isshin Kurosaki. We celebrated the birthday of your sons yesterday. Something happened," Aizen explained. Isshin rubbed his forehead warily.
"What did Shiro do now?" he sighed.
"It wasn't Shiro." The father's hand fell to his side and his head snapped up. "Ichigo marked three wolves two nights ago. You have met Grimmjow and Stark. I must apologize for not stopping your son, especially when he marked me."
Isshin' eyes bulged. "Marked?! But that's—"
"Do not worry, none of us marked your son," Aizen informed him.
"Marking requires consummation—" Isshin tried to say.
"Have a good day," Aizen said quickly. There was silence, and then a dead end. The werewolve growled low in his throat before slamming the phone down.
"That bastard hung up on me," he fumed. "How dare he sleep with my son! How dare he let Ichigo mark him!"
Isshin drew in several deep breaths. He was not pleased to hear that three older wolves had take his youngest child and accepted being marked. He would skin all three of them if he ever got his hands on them. And Aizen could have worded the conversation better, perhaps been a little more friendly about it.
"Bastard," Isshin repeated, meaning every syllable of the world. Inwardly, he had to admit there was a portion of pride; his little Ichigo had marked three Alphas. That was unheard of.
So this was a bit longer than yesterday. Originally the Chapter 11 and 12were one chapter, but that was too long for met to type. Because these have a lot of parts taken out from them. Anyways, I though it was a cute little scene between Stark and Ichigo, right? And I have no idea where the thing with Isshin came from, but it just had to be in there. It isn't actually in my story (yet, maybe never) but Aizen feels really guilty for sleeping with Ichigo because he was supposed to make sure that Ichigo stayed safe. He also feels Isshin's wrath, haha!
Please review and if you have any pointers, please feel free to give them!
