Told ya it'd be quick. lol We're officially ending the Soul Society Arc here with a little last minute business meeting before Ichigo and Rukia settle in back at home.

Note: Bleach, property of Kubo. Yada yada. Oh, and mature content ahead. You've been warned.

Chapter 40: Whispers in the Dark

I will be the one that's gonna hold you.

I will be the one that you run to.

My love is

A burning, consuming fire.

No,

You'll never be alone.

When darkness comes, I'll light the night with stars.

Hear the whispers in the dark.

...

Whispers in the Dark - Skillet

The last shades of orange were being overtaken by deep purples and pitch-shaded blues in the sky as a white light only the spiritually sensitive could see shone bright rays down upon the area surrounding Urahara's shop. A pair of footsteps echoed on the reishi of the air as the Senkaimon resealed itself, returning the coming night to its natural hues.

"Never a dull moment, huh?" Rukia said with a slight chuckle as their eyes met the familiar quiet sight of Karakura town.

"With you around, not a chance" Ichigo said with a relieved smirk, earning him a playful kick to the shin.

"I suppose we ought to grab our bodies and check in with Kisuke" she said, her fingers still intertwined with his as they gazed out at the peaceful sight before them, taking it all in while they could. "I'm sure, knowing him, he already knows just about everything, but still."

"Oh, I have plenty to check in with him about" Ichigo said as his Kurosaki Scowl™ made its appearance, eager to give the man a piece of his mind.

With that, they simultaneously let the reishi settle back into its natural state and dropped to the ground with nary a sound and only the smallest wisp of dirt and dust upon their landing. "Not going to kill him, are you?" she asked as they strolled up to the store front.

"I have half a mind to" he said without inflection, making her smirk.

A quick knock at the door prompted the little brunette Ururu to answer, sliding the door open a bit to check who the visitor was at such a late hour. "Oh. Ichigo. Rukia. Welcome back" she said meekly, her expression never changing from its shy default as she slid the door open more to allow their entry. "It's good to see you're both alive."

"Heh, yeah, nice to see you, too…" Ichigo greeted awkwardly. "Is Hat-and-Clogs around? We need to talk before we head out."

"Yes…I'll go get him. Your bodies are in your room from earlier if you want to get comfortable. Tea?" she offered quietly as they began their trek through the halls.

"Sure." Rukia said with a kind smile. They parted as they reached the door to what had been their quarters, Ururu heading off to retrieve her master, the two lovers stepping inside to find their body/gigai respectively, both sat leaning against the far wall.

"Wonder if Urahara had Kon and your Chappy mod soul standing in while we were gone" Ichigo idly wondered as he sat back into his body, groaning at the stiffness and transferred soreness from his battles while he acclimated back to his mortal coil.

Rukia laughed dryly as she did the same. "Convenience aside, I'd rather explain away our absence than their antics. Besides, there's no way I would let Kon around my body unattended" she said matter-of-factly while standing and dusting herself off.

"Point taken" he answered with a nod, scowling at the thought of what the little pervert might try. "I'm sure Dad probably already has us covered, anyway."

"Huh? Isshin? Why, what makes you say that?" She asked as she gave him a hand getting up, resting comfortably against his side tucked under his arm.

He gently squeezed her to him as he went back over the conversation he'd had the night before they'd dove through into the Dangai. "He knows about us. About everything. I think he's known all along."

A stricken look came over her face for a moment, her form pulling away slightly to stare up at him. "You're kidding. How?"

"I dunno, but he told me as much before we left. Knowing him, he told Karin and Yuzu that we went on some school trip over the break."

Rukia settled back in against him as they exited the room headed towards the common area, consternation clear in her eyes. Ichigo's innate ability would suggest he already had ancestry within the Soul Reaper ranks, so…could it be?

"Ah, the lovers have returned triumphant" Kisuke greeted them with a flourish of his fan, already seated at the low table in the center. "Well, mostly, anyway."

Ichigo's face went blank as he gently removed himself from Rukia's grasp. "Urahara…" He slowly strolled over closer, the former Captain seemingly none the wiser. In an instant, a foot flung in a soccer-style punt very reminiscent of Karin cracked across the man's face, sending him flying into and through the wall behind him, wood and canvas crashing down. As much as it pained Ichigo's muscles to do that, he refused to show it, lowering his foot back to the ground with a satisfied grunt.

Tessai whipped his head around the corner suddenly, taking in the scene in a second before relaxing as if all was normal. "Ah, Ichigo and Rukia. It is good to see you both in good health" he greeted, completely ignoring the mess as if he had expected it to happen. Even Ururu came padding in with her tray of tea, sitting it on the small center table and stopping it from wobbling.

"Nice to see you, too" Rukia greeted back as she went to take a seat. Ichigo remained standing, patiently waiting for the old man to extricate himself from the wall's remains.

"Not a very sporting greeting, you know" Kisuke said without any inflection to indicate he'd been hurt. As he shambled through the hole, he dusted off his hat before replacing it on his head, a trail of blood running from his busted nose. "Although, I can't say I'm too surprised."

"You shouldn't be, bastard" Ichigo spat, crossing his arms. "I know you had to know about Aizen's second Hogyoku, how much more dangerous the situation was, how outmatched we were. Hell, I needed even more training while I was there just to stand a chance. That's not even mentioning the trip through the Dangai. You knew about the sweeper, didn't you?"

"Perceptive, as always" Urahara said, smiling a bit wider. "I have my eyes and ears everywhere, just in case. So, I may have had a heads-up on how things were going to play out, seeing as you appeared in the Sereitei several days before I sent you three through. I saw no reason to alter things as they were, considering all was going according to plan even with that little setback."

Both Ichigo and Rukia gave him the evil eye at that little tidbit.

"Of course, I didn't know how the final showdown would play out ahead of time, so I do apologize for the injuries you both received at my expense."

"But you knew how strong Aizen was already" Rukia interjected.

"I had an idea from our past, yes." Kisuke nodded, conceding the point. "Even if we failed to stop him from escaping with his prizes, we now have a better idea of the timeframe we're working with. If he's combining the two Hogyoku to create a more complete version, it will take some time for the process to complete and the final product to mature."

"So you basically sent us out there to spring his plans out into the open…using us as the bait…" Ichigo seethed.

"Perhaps, but tell me this, Ichigo." His eyes peeked out from under the shade of his hat. "Would you have decided to stay behind and not try to stop him if you had known?"

This took Ichigo aback, making him grit his teeth in frustration. "Hell no…This thing could be the end of everyone's lives, my family's, Rukia's…I would've still done everything I could…and I'm still going to when that son of a bitch decides to show his face again…"

Urahara smirked. "That's what I thought." He nodded before wiping his nose with a napkin from the tea set. After a moment, he decided to switch gears out of curiosity. "I take it Yoruichi elected to stay for now?"

Ichigo was in no mood for casual conversation, so Rukia obliged after taking a sip from her tea to soothe her anger. "She had some business with Captain Soifon to address…"

Ah, that made sense. He nodded to himself knowingly. She may not show it much, but there were things she missed from her previous life, especially that certain someone. The werecat had always held a fond place in her heart for that girl. Maybe now she could fully appreciate it with the young girl now a woman and no longer her student/underling.

"She'll probably be along before too awful long, then. In the meantime, I'm sure you're both eager to get home and put this ordeal out of your heads for a while. Have some more tea before you go, if you'd like" Kisuke concluded, grabbing his own steaming cup. "I have some other business to attend to for now. I'll be seeing you both around, I'm sure." He tipped his hat before exiting. "Tessai, could you look into an insurance claim for that wall?" they could hear him ask nonchalantly down the hall.

The orange-haired teen stood stock still, scowling at the floor with his fists clenched at his sides. Much as he appreciated Kisuke pushing him as far as he did to protect those he cared about, it still irked the hell out of him that he'd been what amounted to a tool for the man's schemes. "If you were such a powerful Captain back in your day, you could've done all this yourself…" He half-mumbled, half-growled to himself.

His tension, however, was relieved a bit when a delicate hand gently pried its way into his, locking their fingers together. "What's done is done…"

Rukia's other arm snaked its way around his middle to hug herself tightly to him from behind, nuzzling between his shoulder blades. "We can't do anything about all this now. Besides, as much as I hate that Kisuke used us like this, I wouldn't have sat this out any more than you would have. We both made it out alive to fight another day. And that's exactly what we're going to do when Aizen makes his move."

Taking a deep breath to let the rest of his stress fall away, Ichigo slowly turned in her grasp to place his hands on her slender shoulders and hunch down to gently kiss her lips. "You're damn right…" He smiled a little bit, though his stance made his body ache from the effort to hold it, showing the strain around his eyes. "It's gonna be harder to kiss you until I'm back at a hundred percent, midget."

She smirked with a vein ever so slightly throbbing in her temple, planting her fist in his chest a little harder than would be considered playful. "Keep it up with that mouth, idiot strawberry, see what happens."

The walk back to the Kurosaki household had been mostly quiet, the both of them worn out for various reasons and therefore taking their time. Much like their stroll up to the Senkaimon earlier, Rukia was content to just enjoy their proximity, though she was much more open about it away from prying eyes, gladly pressed into his side as tightly as was comfortable while letting his scent engulf her. Simple moments like these would never get old.

By the time they'd reached the house and got safely inside, all was quiet. Ichigo found a note from his father on the counter. Apparently, he and the twins were preoccupied at the clinic. How he'd known they would be back tonight, he could only guess. Urahara, probably. It again begged the question of exactly what Isshin's background as a Shinigami was. Ichigo planned to get to the bottom of it the first chance he had. For now, though, he wasn't going to complain about having a quiet night away from prying eyes with his raven angel and save any necessary explanations for in the morning.

In spite of his body's protests, he surprised her by sweeping her up in his arms bridal style, causing her to shriek and giggle even around the soft kiss he planted on her.

"What are you doing, Ichigo?" she asked, blushing like mad at his sudden action. "Where did that come from?" Her arms tangling around his neck showed how little she wanted to complain.

He just smiled down at her in his grasp as he started up the stairs, taking his time in heading for their room. 'Our room' he repeated to himself, making him smile a little wider. "Just felt like treating you is all…"

Her face fell ever so slightly. "But…I'm not hurting you, am I?" she asked cautiously.

"Not with how small you are" he teased, resulting in a light smack to the back of his head followed by her giggling half-heartedly. "A little, but I can handle it long enough to carry you to our bed."

"What do I keep telling you about thinking about yourself for once?" she countered, reaching down to open the door for him.

"Compared to everything else that's happened, this is nothing" he assured her as he gently kicked the door closed behind them before taking her over to the bed, not bothering with the light.

As he went to lay her down, she grinned, letting him drop her legs onto the mattress before dead-weighting him, her arms still latched onto his neck dragging him down with her and causing them both to laugh softly. Violet stared into warm brown in the darkness of the room as he settled in on his side beside her, slipping his arms around her tiny waist. The moment seemed to stretch on and on, the silence welcome as they just took each other in, finally in the safety of their own domain without any distractions between them.

"How do you feel?" she finally asked, barely above a whisper.

"Better, now" Ichigo answered just as softly. "Still aching, but nothing like it was."

"Hmm…Maybe I can do something to help you feel even better" she said, sounding nonchalant, though her arm sliding down to allow her to gently drag her fingertip down the center of his chest implying otherwise.

He smiled playfully, eyeing her through his lashes. "I appreciate the affection, but I don't know if I have it in me right now…not with how…athletic we usually are…" he said with a hint of disappointment, hoping he wouldn't hurt her feelings.

"Don't worry…" She leaned in to softly, deeply kiss his lips, the tip of her tongue just barely grazing them between it before she broke away. "You've always been so concerned about taking care of me in that regard. You can just lay back and let me take care of you…"

Her fingers slid into his hair, gripping the spiking mess ever so slightly as she gently nuzzled her nose against his. "Besides, I think I want to try it a little differently…special…"

(LEMON! PARENTAL ADVISORY: Children under - Oh, you get the point.)

She pulled him in a bit closer, kissing him softly, enjoying the contact between them. Unlike their past intimacy, when their heated states would drive them to basically attack each other, Rukia kept it slow and gentle. Perhaps it was just how close the two of them came to losing each other this last time, but whatever the cause, she wanted to draw out every moment. Even as she tentatively added her tongue to the mix, silently asking permission to let her in, there was no urgency like their usual need.

Ichigo reciprocated, allowing her entrance and gaining his own in the process, their tongues dancing around and exploring one another between their lips. For once, he simply followed her pace, curious what exactly she had in mind. So far, he wasn't opposed. He could practically taste the level of affection and care she was delivering to him this way. It sent a different kind of rush through him, a warmth he hadn't expected.

Breaking off for a slow breath of air, she smiled lovingly as she eased him onto his back and straddled his midsection, placing butterfly kisses along his jawline as she rested her arms on either side of his head. Creeping her way across the sharp contour of him, she made her way to his ear, nipping and softly sucking the lobe for an instant. At the slight shudder that ran through him, she giggled just above a whisper before giving his neck a similar treatment, mapping the slope of it with small kisses and nips at the exposed flesh.

She bit down just a tad harder, sucking at the tendon between his ear and shoulder, forcing another larger shiver accompanied by a soft groan of pleasure. This was definitely new. Sure, Ichigo had done similar things to her all across her body, albeit more roughly, but he'd never thought to let her try that. Who knew the neck was such a sensitive area?

She bit her lip at her own rush of excitement from causing such a reaction in him. When she'd thought to herself about slowly showing appreciation and love for his body before the main event, she hadn't thought he would enjoy her actions so much. This was going to be fun…

Raising up to smile sweetly down at him, her dark locks falling around her face over his, she carefully lifted him into almost sitting, kissing him softly yet again as her hands caressed their way down his pectorals and abs to the hem of his shirt. Sneaking her fingers underneath, she reversed the caress upwards, memorizing every curve and crevice of his muscles while working his shirt up bit by bit. Reluctantly, she broke the kiss to lift his arms and slowly drag the offending material over his head, tossing it aside to the floor.

One more sweet kiss and she was nipping down the other side of his neck, teeth just barely grazing his skin. She crept her way down inch by inch, planting soft kisses on his collar bone down to the center of his chest. The flush added to his sun-kissed skin tone revealed the effect that her ministrations were having on him, that and the slowly growing tent she could now feel pressing into her backside through her dress. Another shiver ran down her spine, her own anticipation growing with the thought that she was getting such a rise out of her man.

'God, it's getting warm in here…' she thought, her own blush creeping further across her pale skin heating her up. Sitting up atop him, her loving smile never left as she reached back and made a show of sliding the zipper of her sundress down and letting it drop from her shoulders to reveal the cute pink bra underneath. Seconds ticked by in her head as she made the excruciating effort of taking her time in removing her arms from the dress one by one before her fingers made their way to the clasp at the front. Her smile disappeared as she bit her lip teasingly, letting the clip pop free and leaning back so the undergarment would slide free of her arms.

Ichigo's eyes were glued to her form, taking in every inch of her slender frame topped with her little handful breasts, nipples rigid as could be in her slow-burning excitement. When she met his gaze once more, she couldn't get enough of the want and longing in it, all for her alone. Her soft adoring smile returned right before she leaned down to softly kiss a trail from his chest down his abs, paying attention to each bunch of muscle.

His breath caught in his throat as he felt the tip of her tongue between them, chills washing over him again as her dainty fingers working his pants open. She really took her time at the v leading down to his erection, continuing to tease him as she worked the zipper down. Finally, she scooted back and grasped his pants and underwear on each side of his hips, working them down in one go. Her eyes were laser focused as his cock was freed and lightly bounced in the air. "Missed you…" she said softly, giggling playfully as she got rid of the last vestiges of his clothes.

With that, Rukia crawled back up to him ever so slowly, her arms pressing what little cleavage she had together more tightly as they moved back and forth, perking her tits out a bit. Smirking at how this got his undivided attention, she arched her back and leaned down betwixt his legs, softly kissing his inner thigh in an inching pattern upward. The closer she got to her target, the more his scent enveloped her, driving her arousal even higher. Her mouth was watering as she forced herself to keep this steady pace, gently wrapping her fingers around his length and bringing it up closer to her for easier access. She locked eyes with him, hers a mixture of smoldering lust and love as she began pressing her lips to the underside of his shaft all along the length.

Ichigo couldn't decide what to watch, her mouth or her eyes as she stared back at him, watching his every move while simultaneously telling him how much she loved and wanted him just through her gaze. Every gentle caress of her lips and the light suction that followed caused a small jolt of his member, his soft breathing getting progressively heavier. He couldn't contain the low moan that escaped when she suddenly dragged her tongue up the length along the same trail she's painted with her lips.

Back and forth, she went, not missing an inch of the underside of his cock while being careful not to touch his sensitive tip until she was good and ready. All the while, her fingers lightly massaged as they held his dick steady. By the time she finally let her tongue up to circle the head before gradually engulfing it in her mouth, he had to throw his head back, eyes squeezing shut at the sensations of it all. "Damn…Rukia…" he blurted breathlessly.

Her hum of approval caused another involuntary shudder through him. If she could smile around his tip, she would have. Instead, she swirled her tongue around his girth before slowly bobbing down and then back up, repeating the process over and over while keeping the focus on the head. She let her hand take care of the shaft, softly pumping it while she suckled from him, already getting a little taste of precum.

"Mmm…angel, you'll make me cum like that…" he groaned. That groan turned into one of disappointment when she stopped.

"Not yet, berry…" She moved to stand beside the bed, turning her back to him and watching him over her shoulder. There was no teasing in her smile or her stare. "I want everything you can give…" She grasped the remains of her dress, ever so slowly wiggling it off the slim curves of her hips, letting the drag take her panties in the process as she arched her back to let him get a good peek at her sex. "Right here…"

Something about how she was looking at him made his heart pound and warmth to spread throughout him. She didn't just want him right now, at least not like that. She wanted to love him and vice versa. His smile came to echo her own. "It's all yours…"

Rukia's smile seemed to soften even more as she turned back to him and proceeded to crawl back up his body, letting her folds rest on his erection, pinning it between them. He had to crane a bit with the height difference, but they kissed languidly as she idly ground her slit against him, moaning just the slightest bit into the kiss. Her moisture began to coat whatever of his girth she happened to touch as her anticipation reached as high as it would go. Caught between wanting the loving kiss to continue and wanting him inside her, she begrudgingly broke off and sat herself up, reaching down to guide his tip between her labia. She could not help indulging herself a bit, slowly swiping the head back and forth, making her gasp every time she hit her little nubbin. Still, she saw the desire in his eyes as he watched her playing, knowing he couldn't stand the torture any more than she could.

Biting her lip once more, she aimed him at her entrance, eyes never straying from his brown orbs as she began to sit back. Both of them let out a simultaneous sigh as his length spread her open bit by bit as she leaned back into it, her brows drawing up and together in the almost painful ecstasy as her mouth fell open. She cried out a little louder as she let her thighs touch his hips, more of him inside her than she had ever taken before. "Oh, god…Ichigo…" She almost had all of him filling her up. She had never felt so full, and yet it felt cruel that she was refused that little bit that remained. She wanted all of him.

As his hands came to rest on her hips, she pressed her hands to his chest, pinning him down. "Let me…I'm taking care of you this time…remember?"

Ichigo just nodded, breathing deep as he got reacquainted with her being so tightly wrapped around him. "All yours…just like I said…"

Although she badly wanted to shut her eyes and focus on the feeling, she kept them on her lover, not wanting to lose a second unless her body made the decision for her. Shuddering as she leaned forward, her breath came out in a rush with another soft moan as she leaned back on it again, feeling just a little bit of give, maybe a centimeter more of him pushing into her. She needed it, she craved it. She wanted to be completely connected to him. Her nails dug into his chest ever so slightly as she started grinding back and forth, seeming to make slow and steady progress.

"Ichigo…my Ichigo…" she called around her soft cries. Her eyes tightened bit by bit as each second passed, the slow build of the sensation so different and yet so good. She could barely handle it, and his own soft moans each time she pressed back onto him were not helping. She would never have guessed that this need, born from the heart and not just from their bodies alone could be so much more…powerful.

Clamping her lips shut tight between her teeth only just barely muffled her mewls as sweat began to bead on her brow. Her hands wandered up on their own, cupping her breasts and letting her nipples drag between her fingers as they kneaded her soft mounds. A sudden light pinch by accident jolted her so much, she threw her hips back a little harder than intended, and…

"Aaaah! Ichigo!" she cried as she took all of him at last, feeling no separation at all. Her mouth fell open wide in shock and overwhelming stimulation as something new was touched inside her. It was painful, yes, but certainly not in a bad way. Surrounding that little pain was a new source of pleasure, hilting him inside her bringing his tip into rough contact with her cervix.

Rukia didn't want to move, shuddering hard as her nails dug into him harder. She couldn't say a word. Finally, she managed to pull at his shoulders, drawing him to sit up so she could wrap herself around him, burying her face in his neck. Her legs shaking, she could just barely get herself to grind his cock against this new pleasure zone so deep within her. He took the initiative, his arms wrapping around her as well as he nudged his hips up into her, keeping her slow and steady pace. This sent her into a series of barely audible squeaks of moans at first as she held on for dear life, trembling.

It took a bit, but she slowly came down from this high, leaning back enough to kiss Ichigo deeply, her own hips starting to grind back into his. Her moans were breathless as their tongues began exploring each other again, his quickly coming to match hers in that regard. While normally such subtle movement wouldn't have been enough, the tenderness and intimacy of this moment between them brought the pleasure to the edge for Ichigo and seemed to hold it there. He was content to ride it out as long as they could last.

Several minutes of this simple, slow love making between the two slowly spiraled Rukia back up towards her peak. "Ichigo…I'm…getting so close again…I-I…I want your cum…"

The pleading in her voice drove him closer as well. "I'm…almost…"

Before he could even finish the words between pants for air, one more gentle nudge in her depths had her clamping down on him like a vice, a flow of her love juices spreading between their hips. That split second of sensation was all it took to set Ichigo off as well. Her long loud moan of release came a hair's breadth before his own groan of her name in her ear as he held his hips as tightly to hers as possible. While she'd soaked them both, his tip was sat meeting with her cervix, his seed filling her gigai's womb without a drop escaping. Around the powerful aftershocks, she could feel the foreign warmth deeper than she had ever felt before, egging her orgasm on further.

(END LEMON)

Ichigo dropped back onto the mattress, Rukia sprawled on his chest, softly spasming periodically. As he went to draw her up into his arms and closer, she resisted.

"No, strawberry…" she whined dazedly, sounding drained. "I want…to stay with you like this…as long as I can…" Even so out of it, she wanted to greedily hold onto the feeling of being so completely connected to him.

All he could manage was a breathless chuckle before kissing the top of her head.

She hummed in approval, giggling weakly every couple seconds. "I love you, Ichigo…so, so much…"

He shut his eyes as his breathing slowed to a more manageable level. "I love you, too, Rukia…"

Looking as if she was on the verge of passing right out, her hand fumbled around for just a moment to find his without opening her eyes. "Never die on me…okay?" she mumbled as sleep began to take her. "I…can't lose you…"

His free hand began stroking her hair as his own exhaustion started to set in. "Cross my heart…"

There we have it. Reviews with CONSTRUCTIVE feedback are always welcome.

Well, the next chapter I'll post will be the start of a new arc in the story, and hopefully it won't take long to get it published. I've received reviews in the past that have criticized how the plot follows closely with cannon, and while I have made some changes with certain events, the reason I went this direction was to revisit character actions and reactions and possibly change them to be...I dunno, nobler in some cases while exploring more emotional depth in others, I guess. Regardless, the next arc will be something new before the Winter War starts up, some cannon elements mixed with non-cannon source material, also presenting abilities never seen in either. I can't promise that it will never have been done in someone else' work here. lol After all, it's hard to be completely original. One form of art will likely always have been done by someone in the past.

On another matter, injecting some romance between Ichigo and Rukia again after so long has me thinking about another criticism I've received. In a past review that made the same claims as above, it also took issue with how their relationship progressed so quickly, well, as far as what my story outlines within the chapters anyway. The words "wish fulfillment" were thrown out. I made it a point that they were working together a few months longer before events were set in motion, meaning that they were constantly together for a while, building up sexual tension and emotional attachment before the story began. Still, I can see where that point was coming from, seeing as this skipped how their stubborn personalities would have initially denied how much they mesh together and would work as a couple, as so many of us fans have seen for years. While I don't want to waste time and go back to completely rewrite the beginning and completely wreck what I've built thus far, I've been throwing around the idea of writing a short prequel story from the Menos Grande event up to the start of Raven Angel's plot. I'm not in any hurry to do so, but if any of you would like to see the events leading to their romance finally coming to fruition, let me know, and I'll mark it down to formulate ideas while I continue with this story.

Anyway, that's all for now.

Next time: A new hellacious threat rises.