A.N.: This is written in collaboration with BlueShard20. A word of warning before I being this chapter: There is going to be some heavy stuff as I add more to Bambietta's character.
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.
Chapter Twelve
While Ryuken ambushed Bambi….
Karakura Town; Unagiya House
Bambietta was in danger.
Ikumi couldn't explain how but her mother's intuition was never wrong. Sitting at her desk, she had a bad feeling, one which she'd only had once before on the day that Bambietta and her father had vanished from her life. She was no psychic but she felt a dreadful gnawing in her stomach, telling her that her daughter was in danger.
Getting up as fast as she could, Ikumi grabbed her van keys and was out the door, speeding away to find her Bambi, hoping that she was alright. She didn't know what she'd do if she lost her daughter a second time.
Meanwhile….
Ichigo ran through town, looking everywhere for his friend. Uryu had tried to locate her and his father's Soul Ribbon but for some unknown reason he was unable to.
Fear crept into Ichigo's heart, the thought of another friend in grave danger filling him with dread. He ran towards Ikumi's house, hoping to find her there but he saw Ikumi driving away in the distance. His eyes caught the look of panic in the mother's eyes as she sped away and instantly knew that Bambietta was not home. Pulling out his cell phone, he tried for the umpteenth time to call her, hoping to get a response but to no avail. "Dammit!" he shouted before reaching into his bag to pull out something.
Or rather, someone.
"Hey!" Kon shouted in protest as he was yanked out of Ichigo's bag, having snuck inside in order to spy on the girls in Ichigo's class again. "How about some care here, Ichigo?"
Ignoring the protesting Mod Soul, Ichigo gave the toy's neck a hard squeeze. Kon's Soul Candy was coughed up and ejected from his mouth. Grabbing the green pill, Ichigo put it into his mouth and swallowed it, forcing himself out of Human body. Ichigo took to the sky and left Kon standing inside his body. "Kon! Look after my body and head home with it!" he called down before heading off to find Bambietta.
Kon shouted at Ichigo as he sped away. "You better save her, Ichigo!" he shouted, overhearing Bambietta's plight. "I still haven't forgiven you for leaving me in your drawer for a week!"
The Mod Soul inside Ichigo's body watched as the boy flew off to save Bambietta for a moment before turning and walking away. However, he wasn't heading for Ichigo's house.
"While Ichigo's off finding his honey…" he said in a jovial voice, "I'm going to find me some honeys of my own!" Running off with a goofy expression, the Mod Soul headed for a destination where he could peep on some girls….
Meanwhile….
Graveyard
Bambietta ran for her life as she dodged another arrow. Blood dripped down her side as she ran. Only her honed reflexes from sparring with Ichigo and Uryu had spared her a deathblow, her swift agility saving her from being shot in the chest. Instead the arrow had grazed her side, ruining her school uniform. "Dammit! He hit me while my guard was down.
She dashed past rows of graves and used Hirenkyaku to put some distance between her and her attacker. Landing over by a tall tree, she turned around to face her attacker. Whatever this was, she was NOT in the mood for this. "Who the hell are you?" she shouted in anger, a hand going to her bleeding side. She used her Blut Vene to stop the bleeding but it still frightened her that her Blut had been so easily penetrated.
Getting a closer look, Bambietta saw that it was Uryu's father, Ryuken Ishida, who'd attacked her. Lighting another cigarette, Ryuken glanced at Masaki's grave, the grave that Bambietta had visited. His eyes narrowed with venom as he turned back to Bambietta. "How dare you touch her grave with those hands," he said.
"What the hell is your problem, you asshole?!" she shouted in anger. "Why are you attacking me?"
"Ryuken took a moment to look at Masaki's grave again before turning his attention back to Bambietta. "You should have stayed dead in the war with the Soul Reapers," he proclaimed adamantly, his free hand pushing up his glasses in a manner mirroring his son's. "Since my son is incapable of what he should have," he pointed his bow at her and formed another arrow, making Bambietta tense in alertness, "I'll be the one to put you back in your grave."
The Quincy fired again, forcing Bambietta to run away, dashing up the steps. Dodging more steps, she began to get frustrated. "Dammit! I want to fight back! But all these graves make it too hard to maneuver!" She wasn't the kind of girl who preferred open terrain for combat. In the past she'd always used The Explode in order to clear out any obstacles but that was no longer an option.
Reaching the top of the steps she saw a meadow on a nearby hill and sped towards it, hoping to outrun the Quincy. Ryuken watched her flee before giving a small smile. Taking out a small rod, he stabbed it into the ground before following her, the rod glowing white….
Running up the hill, Bambietta stopped for a moment to catch her breath. As much as she didn't want to stop, she didn't quite have the stamina for long chases. She took off her cap and wiped the sweat from her brow, fanning herself with her hat. "Good grief, what the hell does this guy want? Uryu never said his dad wanted to kill me!"
Looking around, however, Bambietta couldn't displace the feeling that something wasn't right. The air in the forest seemed stale, as if the wind had been shut off. She knew that Ryuken was up to something and decided to try to use Hirenkyaku to get out of the forest. She could run to Urahara Shop and get help from Kisuke and Yoruichi. She made it to the edge of the forest…before she slammed face-first into an invisible wall. She put a hand up and touched the wall. The invisible barrier came to life, five pillars of white light surrounding the meadow and forming a dome around it. "This is-"
"Barriere."
Bambietta whirled around, Reishi sword at the ready, to see Ryuken standing nearby, a metal rod embedded in the ground behind him. "I've heard of this but I thought it was a dead art," Bambietta questioned.
"The Ishida family was one of the oldest of Quincy families in the World of the Living. After Yhwach's dregs cowardly fled to the Soul Society, my family archived much of lost lore," Ryuken explained. "Much of what the Vandenreich deemed as obsolete, we've mastered." He gestured to the white barrier surrounding them. "A technique that was originally meant to hide one's presence to keep enemies from finding them in order to maintain stealth and protection. It's meant to keep a single Quincy protected. However," he cocked a thumb to the metal rod behind him. "By sealing my spirit energy into five Seele Schneiders I can expand the barrier in order to ensure that my trap was set."
Bambietta processed Ryuken's words and came to a startling realization: she'd been played. "You lured me here! You meant to chase me away from the graveyard!"
"Yes," Ryuken replied in his cold tone while drawing his silver bow. "I'm putting down Yhwach's last legacy. And also," his mouth spat venom as he continued, "I'm putting The Bloody Butcher back into the grave where she belongs."
The name that Ryuken spat out caused Bambietta's mind to race backwards, to her time as a Sternritter. It was a name that her fellow Quincy had dubbed her behind her back: The Bloody Butcher.
She hesitated for only a second but that second was more than enough for Ryuken as he fired. Blood erupted from Bambietta's lips as Ryuken's arrow impaled in her stomach, punching through her Blut. The girl dropped to her knees in pain, blood spilling from her wound. She stopped the bleeding with Blut Vene but as she looked up she saw Ryuken pull back his bow again.
Bambietta was strong but fear had sapped her of her indomitable strength. She couldn't even grip her sword to defend herself. The fear of death claiming her for a third time made her shake uncontrollably, knowing that this time there would be no return. As Ryuken fired, Bambietta braced herself and her thoughts turned to her family. 'Mama! Kaoru!'
When Bambietta didn't feel the pain of an arrow sinking into her chest, she opened an eye and realized that she hadn't been hit. 'Huh? He missed?' She looked up saw that she and Ryuken wasn't the only ones inside Barriere. "Ichigo!"
The Substitute Soul Reaper stood between her and her attacker. Nearby was a giant crack in the barrier, a result of Ichigo forcing his way through before saving Bambietta. He had his short sword in hand and a scowl on his face, both aimed squarely at Ryuken. As the barrier around them shattered to pieces due to the large crack, Ichigo spoke, "Why the hell are you attacking her?" Ichigo demanded.
Recognizing the boy, Ryuken lowered his bow. "I'm doing what needs to be done." His eyes turned to Bambietta who shivered from his venomous gaze. "I'm putting down this monstrosity. It should have died with the rest of its kind."
Ichigo couldn't believe how cold Uryu's father was. And he thought he had daddy issues. But Ichigo could tell that there was more to this than what he already know. Ryuken knew something about Bambietta that he didn't. "Ryuken," he said in a serious tone, "Uryu told me about you giving him the reports of those punks at the bridge. And how you consider Bambi to be Yhwach's last living legacy."
Ryuken pushed up his glasses. "Do you have a point, boy?"
"Yeah, I do!" Ichigo shouted in anger. It was almost enough to make Bambietta jump; she'd never heard him this angry before. "I'm obviously missing something because you clearly think that Bambi's still a killer! Those punks walked right into the beatdown! If Bambietta wanted to kill them, she surely could've done so with ease!" Ichigo pointed out. "And my father told me what Yhwach did to your wife. Bambi has nothing to do with it so don't take your grudge out on her!"
Silence filled the meadow as Ryuken stared Ichigo down for a minute. He held up two fingers. "You're correct on two points," he said calmly. "First, you're quite right about what that gang deserved. They were nothing but degenerates and deserve no sympathy. Second, you're also correct that this girl has nothing to do with my prejudice with Yhwach."
"So then why?" Ichigo asked, more confused than ever. "Why are you so insistent on killing Bambietta? She hasn't hurt anybody!"
The Quincy looked down at the bloodied Bambietta for a moment before looking up at Ichigo. "I find it very hard to believe that this girl has changed at all in such a short amount of time." He looked at Ichigo with an accusing stare. "How about you use the head on your shoulders instead of letting your hormones do your thinking and ponder this: What do you actually know about the girl?" When Ichigo couldn't give a response he continued, "The Ishida's kept constant vigilance over the Vandenreich since my father escaped them. We learned much of the Sternritter, including her…" he stared down at Bambietta, "and her reputation."
Bambietta felt what blood she had left in her freeze. 'No! He can't know this!' Bambietta thought in a panic.
She opened her mouth to speak but Ichigo was faster. "Reputation? What do you mean?"
Ryuken saw the frightened look on Bambietta's face and knew what was making her so scared. "It looks like she told you nothing about herself. Very well then, I'll fill in the blanks."
Strength returned to Bambietta in a flash and she grabbed her sword. Throwing caution to the wind she charged past Ichigo's safety and roared in fury at Ryuken. "SHUT UP!" she screamed at the top of her voice. Ichigo was caught off guard by Bambietta's vengeful charge and tried to stop her but was too late to grab her. Right as Bambietta swung her sword to take Ryuken's head off, he blocked with his bow, the weapon surprisingly resilient to her sword. "You shut the hell up!" she screamed into his face. "Don't you DARE say anything else!"
Bambietta's fury didn't faze Ryuken at all. "I will not be silenced by the likes of you." He stepped back and dodged Bambietta's next slash. He pulled back his bow and fired at Bambietta at point blank range. This time Bambietta managed to block it, the impact making her skid backwards. "Especially from the Bloody Butcher of the Vandenreich."
The wind whipped around the hill as Bambietta froze, her blood turning to ice as Ryuken spilled the beans. She turned to see Ichigo stare at her in confusion and felt ashamed by his questioning glare. She could do nothing but look at the ground in shame.
"Bloody Butcher?" Ichigo repeated, not understanding what this was all about. "What are you talking about? If this is about the Soul Reapers that she's killed-"
"Wrong," Ryuken countered. "Her jovial murdering of the Soul Reapers I can consider a justifiable act of war. A good Soul Reaper," he narrowed his eyes as he stared at the Substitute before him, "is a dead one. That's the mantra all Quincies hold to. However," he turned his gaze back to Bambietta. "From what we learned, this…thing was dubbed as The Bloody Butcher by her own people after she gleefully slaughtered hundreds of her own fellow Quincy for years, way before she went to war with the Soul Society."
The Substitute stood there stunned as he processed what Ryuken told him. He was fully aware that Bambietta acted like a complete psychopath during the war but to murder her own kin? He turned to Bambietta and the look on her face was all he needed to know. "Bambi?' Ichigo called out.
"It's true," Bambietta admitted, her head hanging low as her dark hair billowed in the wind. "He's telling the truth. I killed my fellow Quincy within the Vandenreich." She fell to her knees and felt her eyes begin to mist. Ichigo was her friend and was special to her for all the kindness he'd shown her. Now he was going to see the skeletons she kept in her closet.
Staring at the crying Bambietta, Ichigo knew that there had to be more to this than just Ryuken's rumors. Bambietta was unstable, he could see that better than anyone. But he refused to believe that Bambietta would kill for no reason. He walked over to her and knelt down to her level. "Bambi, why?" he asked in a soft voice, not wanting her to think he was trying to interrogate her. "Why did you kill your fellow Quincy?"
Ryuken spoke before she had the chance. "For fun from what I've heard. She'd lure men to her room for "relief" then butcher them like cattle."
Bambietta gave Ryuken an ugly glare before looking up at Ichigo. "I killed them because it was my orders to do so."
Ichigo blinked. "Orders?"
For a moment Bambietta didn't respond until she looked down at the ground. "Yes. I was called forth to fulfill an assassination job to keep the Vandenreich strong." She looked up to see Ichigo was more confused than ever. "It all started the day I turned thirteen. I was summoned to Yhwach's chambers…"
Long ago...
Dressed in the white garb of the Quincy, Bambietta Basterbine neared the throne room of Silbern, her head held high as she walked with a strong aura.
She saw the tall and thin Grandmaster of the Sternritter, Haschwalth, standing near the door. The man ushered her in and shut the door. The throne room was cold as Bambietta walked towards the man on the throne. Dressed in a black robe, Yhwach looked at the approaching girl.
Bambietta knelt down on one knee before her liege. "You summoned me, Your Majesty?"
The king nodded. "I have. But first, congratulations are in order. You did well to create a squad of female Sternritters. Unity will be what prevails when we go to war. You are to be commended."
"Thank you, Your Majesty," Bambietta responded while still keeping her head bowed. She knew not to raise her head until given permission. She'd seen others blasted to pieces for lesser offences.
"Raise your head." When Bambietta complied the king's order, Yhwach continued to speak to the Sternritter. "I have called you here to discuss a task. This shall be between nobody but you, myself and your Grandmaster."
"A task?" Bambietta questioned.
"Yes. Conflict," he said while gesturing out the window to the city surrounding them, "whittles away at a kingdom from within, like a parasite. I have chosen you to perform a task meant to quell conflict within my kingdom." Beside him was a stack of papers. Picking them up, he gestured for the girl to approach him. "You are tasked to ellimante those whom the Vandenreich can do without."
Bambietta took the papers from him and looked through them. She saw that it was a huge list of names and faces of men within the Vandenriech. "You want me to kill my fellow Quincy?" she asked, confused by her king's orders.
Yhwach sat back in his chair and nodded. "I'm pleased to see that you're not naïve enough to fulfill this without question," he praised. He gestured to the list of names. "My eyes and my ears are everywhere. These are men who would invite strife into my kingdom. You, on the other hand," he gave the girl a rare smile, "are loyal to me and have proven to be due diligent in your missions. That is why I am tasking you with this instead of your compatriots."
Looking down at the list, Bambietta felt uncertain. She'd slayed Hollows before with no trouble but this? He wanted her to kill her own kin? Why? And how?"
Sensing her hesitation, Yhwach decided to explain himself. "This is not murder," he said to the girl. "This is a culling. A purge of the weak. Those who serve us must be strong, intellectual and most importantly loyal." He could see that Bambietta was still hung up on how to kill so many people and decided to give her a hint. He pointed a finger at the girl. "There is something you have that the men on that list will want. Use that to your advantage."
Bambietta's blood became hot when she realized what Yhwach meant: her body. She was to use her feminine wiles to ensnare these men into a bloodbath. As lowbrow as it was, Bambietta could understand the reasoning behind it and nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty. I won't fail you," she told her liege, bowing her head.
Pleased by Bambietta's loyalty, Yhwach continued. "This is to remain secret. Under no circumstances are you ever to divulge your mission," he threatened with a menacing glare. "Should you succeed," he said as he put a hand on the girl's head in an almost paternal gesture, "I shall grant you the wish that you've wanted most."
A small gasp escaped Bambietta's lips at the prospect of having her most secret desire fulfilled. She knew what she wanted more than anything and if this was what got her wish fulfilled, she'd do it without question. "Yes, Your Majesty."
"You're dismissed, Sternritter Basterbine."
Back in the present, Bambietta Unagiya looked up at Ichigo with eyes full of shame. "From that day on, I would lure men into my chambers with the promise of giving me relief. I took the lives of countless Quincies in order to keep the Vandenreich strong by purging the weak and the ambitious. At first I hated it," she confessed, "but after I killed so many I began to grow numb. I didn't enjoy it," she said quickly, "I was raised by my father to be a cold-blooded killer and was taught to use whatever means to fulfill my mission. Haschwalth would give me new targets in secret. Eventually word got out how men I lured to my room never came out alive. They suspected that I was a psychopath and began to call me the Bloody Butcher after Candi and the others came in when I cut some punk in half. Now I know why Yhwach chose me to do it." Tears fell from the girl's eyes as she confessed her dark secret to Ichigo.
If Ichigo hated Yhwach before, he outright despised him now. Not for the first time he wished he'd made the insane king suffer more for the sins he'd committed rather than just end him in one slash.
Bambietta looked down at the ground. She pulled her hat down to cover her eyes. "I did what I did because I was loyal to His Majesty. I thought that I could trust my king and that he knew what was best. But after hearing from you about what he did to my fellow Sternritters and what he planned to do to our worlds, I know why he did it…" she cried as she told him her true feelings. "He made me his scapegoat! All to protect his goddamn image! All I ever wanted was to have my wish granted and it was nothing but a joke to him!" She remembered how Yoruichi and Kisuke told her of Yhwach's Auswahlen, how he cut down the Sternritter deemed useless to him. She came to realize that she was never one of Yhwach's precious children. She was merely a tool for him and in turn he turned her into a psychopathic serial killer.
Baring her soul to Ichigo made the dark voice of Zombietta come creeping from the depths of her consciousness, a reminder of her dark sins. "He knows what you are now. Ichigo knows that deep down, you're a murderer of not only his people but your own. He'll never accept the excuse that you were just following orders. You deserve to die, Bambietta. And you deserve to stay dead."
The girl snapped out of her depression when she felt warm arms wrap around her. When she looked up at Ichigo she saw eyes, not filled with disgust or hatred, but of comfort and understanding.
Speaking for the first time since Bambietta told her story, Ichigo merely smiled at Bambietta. "Let it go." Bambietta stared in disbelief at Ichio's behavior and warm voice. She couldn't hold itin anymore and buried her face in Ichigo's chest, sobbing into her friend as the pain she'd held for so long came out.
While all of this was going on Ryuken watched and listened while his victim told her story. At first he was ready to simply renounce her as a liar and shifting the blame to Yhwach to score sympathy from Ichigo. But he knew a liar when he saw one and this girl wasn't lying.
When he'd learned of Bambietta's survival he was taken aback by how these teenagers could willingly let a killer walk among them. His confusion and anger grew thanks to his conversation with Uryu. But now, hearing her story and understanding how much she was just as much a pawn of Yhwach's as his son was, led him to understand why Uryu stayed his hand as well. This girl was a killer but it wasn't a reason why he should become one. Feeling ashamed of himself, Ryuken dispelled his bow.
When Bambietta's sobbing subsided Ichigo noticed how she'd gone slack in his arms and found that she'd fallen asleep, her injuries and exhaustion taking its toll. As carefully as he could, Ichigo lifted Bambietta up bridal-style. He had to get her to Orihime before her injuries became worse. Reminded of her injuries, Ichigo turned his head to angrily address Uryu's father but saw him walking away. "Hey!"
Ryuken stopped and turned his head to the side. "I apologize for this misunderstanding. I'll leave before I cause any more harm." And with that, he calmly walked away, clearly a lot on his mind.
Knowing when to pick his battles, Ichigo Flashstepped away from the hill, carrying the sleeping and wounded Bambietta with him.
Ryuken walked down the hill and headed back to the cemetary where his car was parked. He lit another cigarette and sighed ashamedly. "Guess I really messed up, huh?" he mumbled.
"YOU'RE GODDAMN RIGHT, YOU MOTHERFUCKER!"
WHAM!
A metal bat came out of nowhere and smashed into Ryuken's head hard. The doctor stumbeled to the ground and gasped when he saw who his attacker was. He paled when the familiar face of an old classmate greeted his eyes. He had a very bad feeling about what was about to happen next.
Seething with rage only a mother could possess, Ikumi Unagiya glared at her daughter's attacker as she stood over him. Nearby was her van, having followed her intuition to the graveyard. "HOW DARE YOU ATTACK MY BAMBI!" She hefted her bat up and clenched her teeth. "THIS!"
WHACK!
"IS WHAT YOU GET!"
CRACK!
"WHEN YOU TOUCH!
SMASH!
"MY!"
THACK!
"BAMBI!"
Having sensed his father's spiritual pressure, Uryu hurried into the graveyard only to find his father being beaten senseless by Ikumi. Stunned by the sight, he quickly turned around and walked away, leaving his father to the mother's vengeful rage….
To be continued
