Castle Toppler Chapter 23, a bleach fanfic

Something deep inside me purred as I devoured the offerings. He brought me food. It pleased the hollow inside me, making me warm. I was excited to reciprocate.

The job was simple. A quick in and out. Find a hefty one on the highest shelf, wrap it, and present it. That third part, though, presenting, that's where the trouble came in.

I had placed the raw meat on a large dish from the butcher's shop and sat it out before the Shoten. I was safely tucked away in my usual spot, peering over the edge of the taller building next to the Shoten.

Worry poked at me, growing as time went on. What if I chose a bad piece? Should I be doing this at all? What if they don't see it?

Emerging at the same time he did every day, Tessai's eyes narrowed at me suspiciously before his nose twitched. Looking down, his eyes widened.

"Oh? What's this?" Kisuke was next to emerge. The duo was likely going into town today just as they had last month, although I didn't follow them there. His fan flapped lazily in front of his face as he looked down at the offering.

His sharp eyes subtly shifted to look at me thoughtfully.

I relaxed somewhat after they accepted the offering, a new thought on my mind.

I feel so much more…hollow? Like an animal? I prompted Shiro.

It's because of the extent of the damage. My powers are dominant right now to heal you.

When can we travel back? My zanpakutous had both been stuck in shikai since I got here.

Shiro was noticeably silent, which put my nerves on edge.

How long?

I don't know. The damage is extensive. Besides…we won't be able to beat him, the King, she confessed, and I felt the grief and disappointment in herself weigh her down.

We can get Kisuke to help us. Just watch, I tried to reassure her. He'll know what to do.

Should I…? I looked down at the hollow that we had killed, its body not yet disappearing. Hunger gnawed inside me, growing day by day despite the human food I kept consuming.

My beak opened as I thought about it, my body and these new emotions urging me on.

The hollows appeared frequently in this town. I could only assume that my presence had made the local reapers back off on their usual hunts.

Snapping my beak shut, I turned away as the body disintegrated before me. I had lost my chance.

No. I'd rather starve than eat trash.

"Pspspsps." I listened with a half ear while Kisuke tried to entice a black cat into his shop, a pleasant bowl of milk resting just inside the doorway.

"Pspspsps!" I looked up from picking at my claws as he dramatically yelled the noise.

What? I turned to look at him as if complaining.

Kisuke had cupped his hand around his mouth, clearly directing it to me. "Ms. Hollow! You're so far away!" He produced a small glass bottle from his sleeve. "I have milk~!" He tried to tempt me.

I cackled, my beak opening and shutting with whooshes of air. As if! Milk makes me sick, same as every other Japanese person. I shook my head at his foolishness.

"Hmm, maybe not?" He tucked the bottle away and made himself content with praising the cat he had managed to capture. I watched as he closed the doors, trapping her.

I think that's Yoruichi. I placed my bet.

Returning to the small nest I had gathered, I breathed deeply as I realized that some of my things had been shifted. I hissed as I looked up, taking in the new canopy that had been placed over my assorted blankets, tree limbs, pillows, and leaves.

I pressed the edge of my beak against the legs of the canopy, sensing for the culprit.

My eyes narrowed on the shop.

The blond man waved at me cheerfully. "It'll rain tonight, Ms. Hollow!"

I swooped around Karakura, eyes searching for a proper gift as the wind caught and pushed me.

He's getting bolder. I had come back to roost, only to find a small disposable bento in the center of where I slept.

Maybe I should too. Natural as breathing, I dragged a claw in front of me. A portal to Hueco Mundo opened, and I easily flew inside.

With a heavy thunk, I dropped the almost alive hollow at the steps of the shop. Flapping, I paused from immediately leaving as the doors swung open. Was he waiting for me?

"Ms. Hollow! Thank you for the present." Kisuke waved his fan at me happily as he smiled. "You look filthy. Come inside and wash up!" he insisted.

My face turned deadpan behind my mask, and I swooped away. Wrong choice of words.

I stirred, a quiet cooing bringing me out of my restful sleep. Shifting my head, I quietly hissed before I even opened my eyes.

"So mean, so mean." The quiet voice was accompanied by small tink!s.

Opening my eyes, I forced myself up with alarm. I held my beak open threateningly as a dark mass threw…

Peanuts?

I stopped short, beak cracking closed as I looked down at the evidence.

"There, there." The quiet, calm voice cooed. My eyes narrowed as I took in Kisuke Urahara kneeling a few meters away, a small white paper bag rustling as he produced yet another nut.

I stared as he tossed this one a little closer.

"Ms. Hollow~"—he teased his given name for me—"have a peanut." He baited me, throwing another.

What in the world is he doing? I wondered, head following the peanut that landed nearest to me. Is this a trap? Cautiously, my tail came around to gently prod at it, shifting it.

"It's safe," he insisted quietly, not wanting to break the trance.

Taking it into my hand, I examined it. I guess it looks…normal? I cracked it open with a wince, expecting something awful to happen. Instead, I was rewarded with the tasty inner contents.

Kisuke watched intently as I examined it, his eyes tracking my coordinated movements despite my slight tremors, the intelligent glint in my eye, the way I seemed to listen to his words.

I tossed the leftovers into my beak, tipping my head back to swallow them down.

He experimentally tossed another.

Weighing myself mentally, I decided to save them for later. I rolled some of the farther ones to me with my tail, collecting them in a small pile.

Seeming satisfied, he put his bag down. "Here. You can have the rest," he decided, flash stepping back to the shop.

I stared after him, confused.

I couldn't deny how my blood sang louder and louder as time went on. Shinji's hands were ever present in my mind, running up and down my back pleasingly, softly touching me before they grew harsher, both feeding my needs and demanding attention.

I'll get him back. The thought was the only thing that had me continuing on. I felt like a sundial thrown off the face of a watch and directly into the black vat of time.

I could barely remember my origins.

It was mildly disconcerting how that no longer perturbed me.

If I can control my bankai, then I can jump forward to where I disappeared. No time will have passed for him at all. The thought soothed me, a warm balm.

Today something tickled at my nose. The sun was high in the sky, leering down at me as I sniffed around.

The Sahara Desert had a unique smell. Usually it was from the flambeau of the curious individual's face. But, on the off chance someone could resist the bone-dry heat, they would find that the desert smelled pleasantly absent, almost earthy in an abstract way.

It was that quiet smell, the smell of my lover and mate, that teased up into me as the shop doors opened that day.

Unbidden, my heart raced as it clenched. Looking down, eager, I was disappointed to only see Kisuke setting up the storefront today. A small sign was brought out from within, and he propped the splitting wood up.

Hollow's Welcome!

I scoffed, disappointment apparent, and turned back to my devices.

As the day drew on, the sun slowly creeping just underneath the canopy of my nest, a new tantalizing scent trailed up. As my stomach growled, I peered down at the shop. The duo had set up a small grill outside, and they seemed to be slowly cooking a large piece of fine pork.

Kisuke attended the grill, fanning the smoke out of his eyes, and waved once he saw me.

"Ms. Hollow! Come join us!" He waved as Tessai brought out a plate of precut watermelon.

Tessai frowned at us but said nothing.

My wings grew itchier, begging for activity as the weeks drew on. The reapers had become accustomed to my presence, now only taking notice when I was absent. Kisuke cheekily waved every time he saw me return from a successful hunt.

Each day my soul grew more pained as I was separated from Shinji.

I need to go back. I need to see him again. While I was assured in the fact that only seconds had passed for him, the lonely days, nights, and weeks dragged on for me.

My eyes narrowed at the shopkeeper that was unloading packages from the brand-new family car as I contemplated him. Kisuke Urahara, after deep meditation and consultation with my powers and wounds, was the only answer to speed up my healing. Orihime wasn't even born yet, the complex she had lived in still unbuilt.

I hissed at him quietly as he gave me a friendly wave.

Okay. I can't wait any longer. My tremors had reduced, but not left completely, and so I felt more confident.

Opening my wings, they settled somewhat from the itchiness as I shook them out. Kisuke had retreated into the shop, likely storing the rest of the new goods, and I intended to take my chance before they closed the shop for the day.

Hollows welcome, huh? I landed softly on the dirt, my tail balancing me out as I crouched into the fall lowly. Wrapping my shikai around me as a cloak, I slowly approached the shop.

I could see Kisuke straighten up from where he had bent over, fan pausing as he saw my approach. His crafty eyes looked me up and down, stalling around my beak and wings as he evaluated them.

"Ms. Hollow…" He took a step forward, hovering in the opening of the shop as I slowed to a stop. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" He subtly glanced at his cane, which rested off to the side.

Knowing my words would not come out, I pointed at my head. This. Heal me here.

A small confusion glinted in his eyes. "Sorry?" he asked.

I pointed again.

"Is…something wrong?" he guessed at.

I nodded, my beak dipping up and down.

He flapped his fan thoughtfully.

The sun had set, but the lights from the Shoten ran through the open doors, pulling insects inside. Kisuke sat before me with a small computer at his side, a long extension cord running it to the shop. A small scanner rested against my forehead.

"Hmm…" He looked at the results methodically. "You seem to have damage to the left side of your brain…" he diagnosed me. He moved the scanner to a different part of my head as he continued to evaluate. "It looks like you went through severe pressure…the ocean, maybe?" he guessed at the cause.

"Ordinarily, you should be dead…" He frowned at the screen while he dragged the sensor across my head. "Hey, Ms. Hollow…" He put the scanner down. "Are you part Soul Reaper as well?"

I froze on the spot, going rigid.

"It's okay," he told me, a small warm look on his lips. "I won't tell anyone," he promised.

I could never get away with lying to him. I slowly nodded, resisting the tremors that could make my agreement confusing.

"Can you take your mask off for me?" he asked, voice going a tad quieter at the nature of the request.

I shook my head no but decided against telling him I had to wear it to heal. Trying to communicate would only leave me frustrated.

His small smile tipped off, but he accepted my answer. "Ms. Hollow…may I study you?"

I shouldn't have been as surprised as I was by the request. I tipped my head back and forth, thinking as my eyes focused on the skyline.

"I might be able to heal you," he slyly suggested.

I eagerly shook my head yes, squeezing my hands together excitedly.

He laughed at my reaction. "Well, I can't blame you for that." He subtly glanced at the computer as it beeped. "Come back tomorrow," he decided, standing. "I'll be ready then." The almost unnoticeable tenor in his voice that I had come to recognize a century ago betrayed how excited he was at this new research prospect.

"Stop that!"

I growled as Kisuke tried to grab at my beak and stop me from completely dislodging the Shoten's second door. I lightly squeezed his fingers playfully.

"Ow!" he started, jolting back and examining his finger. "So mean, Kokyu!" He used the nickname he deemed me worthy of because of my hissing.

I hissed, hitting my beak against his perceived injury.

"Ow!" He popped it in his mouth while he turned back to the computer as it beeped.

The third day Kisuke spent with me, it rained quite heavily. The sprinkle had been light, sparse, until it had grown more confident to the point that he had resorted to bringing his equipment inside.

Tessai frowned in the background as we made ourselves at home just inside the shop doors, staying clear away from me.

I hissed nervously as the computer gave a negative beep.

Kisuke put a hand in the tip of my beak, pressing his finger into the sharp edge as he rubbed up and down. "Don't worry, Kokyu. I'll figure this out."

As the days fell together, I fell in step with Kisuke deeper into the shop. We sat in the living room, a familiar brown table between us, when he finally put his fan down on the table.

I perked up, picking myself up from laying across the table, as I sensed a shift in what little reiatsu he let spill out naturally.

"Ms. Hollow…" he started, voice unusually serious. My eyes tightened in worry. "I'm not sure what happened to you. But whatever it was, it had a tremendous effect on your soul. It's almost like you were compressed under an impossible amount of pressure." He glanced at the green lines of code on his screen as if to double-check. "You're lucky to be alive, plainly put."

He paused here to jot a note down by hand. "Spaghettification…?" he murmured quietly.

He continued after circling the term. "Because of what happened, your soul is…wobbly." He gestured oddly to exemplify it. "If we were to heal you right now"—he made his hands shaky as if they were unsteady—"you would destabilize." He let his hands fall apart.

"Soul suicide," he termed it.

I sat frozen, feeling the iron links of a chain wrapping around me as I slowly processed what he said.

Destabilizing…? I tried to force the word out only to receive a pitiful look as Kisuke realized I was trying to speak.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, looking remorseful.

Unable to express my emotions, all I could do was give a gruff shrug as I started to weep silently.

His mouth twisted down at how upset I clearly was behind the mask.

"You can stay with us," he suggested, surprising me. I sniffed loudly, turning back to him. "I might be able to come up with something else," he hoped.

Tessai's mouth fell open as he watched us through the barely cracked door from the kitchen.

My beak fell open as I sucked in air, trying not to cry in front of him.

Shinji…

The first night in the Shoten, tucked away in one of the guest rooms with as many blankets and pillows as they had been willing to sacrifice to me, was the hardest.

Kisuke's scent still intoxicated me after all these years, causing my body to stir intimately as I imagined him laying with these pieces of bedding.

His reiatsu was a light see-through fog that hovered just over the floor. After the initial shock of the gunpowder scent and once I had enough time to adjust, it drew me in as it once had.

The thoughts of another's flesh hummed in my bones as my guilt for my lost partner rose.

Looks like I'll have to wait for this the long way around.

The idea was painful to come to terms with.

The next day felt strange, pulling myself out of the cushions sloppily as Kisuke sat before me with a food tray. I teased my forgotten hair stick back in.

"Oh, what a pretty hair stick. I've never seen anything like that before," he commented pleasantly.

Never seen this before…?

Kisuke watched expectantly while I looked over the tray. Pieces of fruit, nuts, even a little dried meat.

"I have a shortage of what you usually eat." His fan came up at this, hiding his face.

Ah. Kisuke had always seemed interested when I came back to roost with whatever unlucky shop's best-quality meat I had been able to find that night.

I picked at the fruit first, enjoying the freshness.

"So, Ms. Hollow"—Kisuke started confidently, fan waving, making me look at him somewhat nervously—"I have a favor."

I dropped what was left of my bite as I realized this was a "Terms and Conditions" conversation but stayed still because of my continued interest in Kisuke Urahara.

He said he might be able to figure this out, I tried to convince Shiro.

She huffed.

"You see…" He eyed the bit of dried meat I'd abandoned. "I need to get to Hueco Mundo. Just to run some tests, things like that. Maybe capture some hollows." My feathers twitched as he tried to downplay that last part.

Capture hollows, huh…? I was suspicious.

"I'm actually looking for a certain pair of hollows." He tried to laugh it off as he noticed my reaction. "But any pair will do!" he insisted, bringing out a paper pad.

"I think you're my person!" he finished, smiling at me innocently over his fan.

I tossed a walnut in my beak, loudly cracking it in half and enjoying the slight uneasiness that put into his eyes.

"So…later, then?" he pestered.

I had been corralled down to the basement, Kisuke eagerly guiding me by hand until I had gotten the point. Tessai stood off to the side, looking stressed at my intrusion.

I watched as the two talked, hushed words reaching my ears as it was decided that Tessai would watch the shop and that, yes, Kisuke would really be fine on his own.

"Ready?" Kisuke flash stepped to my side, overly large backpack slung over his back.

Making a face that he couldn't see, I gently spiked my reiatsu to acknowledge him. Holding my hand out, I watched as reality bent as I dragged my claws down.

The ripped hole revealed the same blackness that Ichigo and the others had traveled through with me all those years ago.

Ichigo… The memory was bittersweet on the tongue. On one hand, his courageous, confident face as he leaned through. On the other hand…

"Let's go!" Kisuke decided, and I was grateful for the distraction.

"See?" I was pressed up against Kisuke as we sheltered behind a particularly cold dune. He pointed to two hollows circling each other, snuffling into the sand and occasionally pawing it up.

One resembled a crocodile, the other a rhinoceros. The crocodile snapped at the rhino, only to immediately make a low rumbling sound.

"They're going to mate."

I looked over in pure outrage at Kisuke. I threw up a hand. How? Absolutely how, Kisuke? I questioned the ridiculous man.

"They're in heat, see?" He pointed out the profuse sweating, dilated eyes, the aggression and almost apologetic behavior when they lashed out. "Some hollows are said to mate for life," he told me, almost talking to himself.

A thick breeze billowed across the desert, carrying their heady smells to us.

As the pair got down to it, Kisuke began to take hand notes, and I could only shake my head.

I returned to my nest that night, needing some time to myself. I held my hair stick out and above me, my thumb rubbing it thoughtfully.

He really doesn't remember me. I had pushed off the leaden feeling until I couldn't anymore. I mulled over the idea, clouds gathering in my soul.

If I were to relive a timeline I've already been in…would that…erase what I did previously?

My heart pulsated painfully.

Something was mounting inside me. A strange, almost compulsive need on top of the already growing hollowistic tendencies blossoming within.

And so I found myself in Hueco Mundo, flying high above the desert to get a bird's-eye view as I searched.

My target was found near the tree line of a tall ancient forest. I swooped low, easily puncturing the hollow on my beak, before I ripped open a garganta to return to the World of the Living, specifically above my nest.

Slowly falling down, I coasted to the front of the Shoten. I let the hollow slide off my beak, falling roughly on the ground under the night further blackened by the absence of streetlights. It'll last until morning. I made sure the body would not disappear, as so many did, before retreating to my nest.

I nestled inside my nest, happily eyeing the shop and my offering.

"What—!" Tessai opened the doors to the corpse. His face looked stricken, and he covered his mouth from shock. "Boss!" he called out.

"Hmm? What is it so early?" Kisuke bumbled into my view only to stop and stare at the deceased hollow. His eyes pinned me down, and I made a softer hissing noise.

Something inside me desired him to take in the offering more than usual, to use it for his own purposes. The thought of Kisuke, his powerful reiatsu taking an interest in what I had to offer…

I shivered pleasantly as Kisuke began to look it over.

Shinji's face appeared in my dreams when I slept and was at the front of my thoughts when I was awake.

I don't want to erase what we did. But how can I recreate what we had? We had fallen together so naturally, water on a streambed, embracing each other and supporting. I'm not even sure it was an exact science.

Days later, the lingering smell of hollow blood emanating from within the shop spurred me back into the silent world of Hueco Mundo, a second larger hollow balanced on my back.

Pausing in front of the Shoten, I slowly lowered the hollow in front of the shop. A pathetic noise passed from its dual mouths as it fell to the concrete.

I put a hand over its mouths, hushing it with kido.

I was sure that the blond man would like this one. It was larger, more meat and more blood. Its claws were sharper as well.

I lay low in my nest, anxious to see if my cares would be accepted.

When Kisuke finally emerged that morning, strangely bright and early, my feathers fluttered in happiness as he brought the body into the shop.

I tipped my head curiously as I watched Kisuke flash step away from the shop. Curiously, I flapped my wings as I took off after him.

Kisuke jumped easily over the still low buildings of the town, his pace neither hurried nor slow. My eyes appreciated his footwork as I silently followed behind, disguising my spiritual pressure.

I watched as he landed in a small park, a small soul that was resting on the seesaw nearby also taking notice. Kisuke beckoned the child to come to him as he crouched down.

I floated, my feathers letting me hang weightlessly in the air, as I observed. Kisuke had lured the small child soul off the play toy with quiet, reassuring words.

My eyes narrowed as I sensed a small garganta emerge behind the child. I watched, impressed, as Kisuke flew into action. He flash stepped to the boy and used his blade to block the hollow hand that had flown through the opening.

Parrying the hand, Kisuke stabbed his blade into the wrist and dragged his blade forward. The hollow emerged, screaming, before it was cleanly sliced in two by his zanpakutou.

Taking his sword more carefully now, Kisuke bopped the small crying child on the head with the hilt of his blade.

My eyes widened as I watched a beautiful, serene white light envelope the boy. The light died down, and the newly formed hell butterfly fluttered away into the ether as it carried the soul to Soul Society.

"Ms. Hollow!" I blinked in surprise as he turned to yell at me, apparently seeing through my deception easily. He held out his arms to gesture toward his kill. "This is for you!" he offered before disappearing.

Slowly approaching the kill, my eyes lingered on the blood, the damage, but also on the claws and the mane of the beast.

Something swooped in my chest as my face heated up. This…This is a good kill.

I held the small form by the scruff, intending to let it drop to the doorstep of the Shoten. My fingers were refusing to cooperate. Instead, they tightened.

Is this from my injury? I wondered at the purple oozing from the gash the small fox hollow had given me. Looking at it made my stomach turn, and I wavered slightly.

"Ms. Hollow?" I looked up to see Kisuke looking down at me questioningly. I had missed him opening the door. "Are you all right?"

I stumbled slightly as I realized I couldn't feel my feet. I felt myself begin to fall forward only to have green fabric gently stop me.

Kisuke's voice was in my ear as he slowly lowered us, but my only concern was with his smell.

He smelled delicious. My mouth was watering, and I felt a deep heat in my stomach start to feed into my soul. A light sweat glistened on his neck, and I had to resist the urge to taste. My useless hand came up to try and grab at him.

His voice, deep and soothing, calmed me as he carried me to a back room. Feeling the numbness reach up to the edges of my face, I willingly closed my eyes.

The week following was spent recuperating in the Shoten. The small hollow had had a neurotoxin, and it had spread quite quickly in my weakened state.

Now, Kisuke took notes as we sat together in the Shoten's back porch, Tessai keeping a healthy distance from us in the kitchen.

"Does the light bother you?" he questioned as I scooted farther into the shadow of the tree.

I gave a vague shrug, and he held his pen up to his chin before scrawling something down. He dragged a towel over his forehead, the humid heat getting to him.

"How about this?" Kisuke presented another meal before me, something much more solid than the soup he had tried to tempt me with earlier.

I picked at it, the warmth in my stomach detracting from my usual hunger.

Sitting across from me, Kisuke smelled more decadent than any high-grade meat.

The third week I woke up to hear raised voices in the living room.

"Kisuke!" Yoruichi's voice was hard to recognize after so long. "You can't keep that thing here!" she insisted.

"Oh? Can't I invite who I want into my house?" Kisuke challenged, a mocking edge in his tone.

"Tessai? Are you okay with this?" she challenged the normally quiet man.

The living room remained quiet, and after a moment I heard rapid footsteps leave the shop and the front doors bang close as she left, upset.

The fever was growing in intensity in both Kisuke and I. My sweat was starting to dribble like his had the past week, and he was starting to resort to ice bags on his head while he moaned pitifully either in the living room or his bedroom.

What did I do to deserve this…? I wanted to cry out as the sweat sullied my pristine feathers.

My nightly dreams of Shinji had grown extraordinarily racy as time went on, and I could barely contain them within myself, hints of them leaking out through my spiritual pressure.

I squeezed at my midsection, a strange discontent building in me. I knew what I needed, but I didn't understand why it was affecting me like this.

A drop of sweat rolled down my face despite the cool night air as my body overreacted to whatever this affliction was.

I fanned myself with my hand, slowly growing desperate.

By the end of the following day, I was absolutely desperate for relief. My wings felt like they weighed a ton each, and my limbs ached painfully.

What…What is this? My thoughts were wild and erratic. My bankai…? I thought helplessly.

I think we're in heat, Shiro's voice finally sounded, exhausted from the flames within as well.

Heat? What's that? I immediately shot back, desperate to make this end.

It's what happens to hollows…every so often… she panted, and I felt sympathy for how scorching my inner world had to be for me to be this hot on the outside. It's like…an animal's… She faded somewhat as I felt her pulse within me.

Are you okay? I tried to direct my attention to her as we lay spread-eagle, placid, in the shade of the back room. I had dragged most of my nest in from outside in an effort to comfort myself.

Just…hard to…focus… She sent a mental picture through the link of her trying to heal me.

Right… I just couldn't get my head straight while feeling like this. How does it stop? I begged for one last answer.

You either…wait it out for…a while or…mate, she told me, tense.

What aren't you telling me? I picked up on it quick.

The mate connection can be…long-lasting… she confessed before burrowing deeper into my soul, likely to try and hide from the heat in my shadowy zanpakutou.

Long-lasting…? I questioned myself. Shinji was at the forefront of my mind. This must be because of the damage from my bankai… Shinji…

The thought of being with someone else without his permission left me sick to my stomach, but the scorching flames within me left me unable to function and inconsolable.