Holy infant so tender and mild
Ichigo Kurosaki, substitute Shinigami, cursed under his breath, sending little vapor clouds into the night. He'd been looking forward to a quiet Christmas dinner at the Kurosaki residence with his father and his sisters. Instead, his Shinigami badge had deemed it necessary to start its familiar but annoying warbling noise about ten minutes ago.
As always, this meant one thing only: one or more Hollows had appeared in town. And with Rukia out on an errand, and his faith in the town's appointed local Shinigami (Afro-san in his head, since he kept forgetting the dude's real name) close to nonexistent, it fell on him to protect Karakura town on Christmas eve, not something he was looking forward to. There was still a good hour to go until dinner started, and Ichigo had hopes he'd be able to finish this job before that – he'd better, because his body, that he left behind in his bed, was now an empty shell with Kon away to celebrate with his fellow Mod Souls at Urahara's… If worst came to worst, it could pass for him sleeping and nobody would find out.
The badge had quickly guided him to the center part of town, to the edge of the park where he'd had so many encounters with Hollows before. Squatted on a tree branch that supported his weight, he scanned the area for any clues. A sudden tap on his shoulder roughly interrupted his thoughts.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!"
Expecting an attack, Ichigo swiftly turned, his Zanpakuto ready. Only to drop it again at the sight of a familiar face.
"Ishida, you idjit! I could have cut your head off just now!", Ichigo hissed angrily.
His fellow student and Quincy, wearing his trademark white outfit, took a step back, smirked and pushed his thin-rimmed glasses back up his nose.
"I'd like to see you try, Kurosaki. Anyway, sorry for sneaking up like that – I keep forgetting that your Reiatsu-sensing ability still sucks bigtime. Found out anything yet?", the white-clad boy asked.
The Shinigami substitute looked over his shoulder, then back to the raven-haired youth before him.
"Nothing yet, I just got here. It seems pretty quiet. Strange place and time for a Hollow attack – you won't even find a homeless person in the park tonight…"
The Quincy took a probing step towards the park grounds, peering in the distance.
"Can't expect a Hollow to know about that, right? I guess they don't celebrate Christmas in Hueco Mundo… Or anything else, for that matter…"
Ichigo eyed his friend, suddenly reminded of something.
"On that subject, what are you doing here, Ishida-san? And so fast too, don't you have any Christmas party to attend?"
The bespectacled Quincy seemed put off by the question, color rising to his cheecks.
"Eh..n-no not really… I didn't have anything else to do tonight…", he stammered.
Ichigo smiked teasingly. "All by yourself, eh? Why not have someone invite you?"
Ishida didn't look inclined to go further into this, and with a soft grunt, leapt down from the tree onto the grass at the edge of the park. "Let's cut the crap and see what's going on here, Kurosaki-san."
Ichigo wasn't about to disagree and jumped down as well, following his friend into the snow-covered park.
"You hear that?"
They had ventured on to the park grounds for a few minutes now, snow creaking steadily under their feet, when Uryu halted, his head tilted sideways. Ichigo pricked up his ears, then raised his eyebrows.
A faint but persistent wailing could be heard in the distance, carried by the cold breeze blowing through the park. Ichigo looked at Ishida. "Sounds like…someone crying?". The Quincy nodded in agreement.
On his guard, the substitute Shinigami drew his Zanpakuto before proceeding. Likewise, Ishida was keeping his Heilig Bogen on the ready.
As they made their way towards the source of the sound through the veil of falling snowflakes, it became more distinct and Ichigo halted again, puzzled.
"It's almost like…"
"…a baby or small child?", Uryu finished for him, sounding equally surprised.
"Perhaps the Hollow is attacking a child?" he offered.
"If that's the case, we don't have a moment to lose!" Ichigo decided, picking up speed and running towards the source of the crying as fast as the slippery underground allowed. The Quincy followed silently.
After circumnavigating some bushes, they entered a wide open space in the center of the park.
"Over there!" Ishida pointed to what appeared to be a small snowless pit in the field, not big enough to be called a crater, but definitely the result of some impact. The wailing seemed to come from that spot.
"Careful Ishida, that Hollow can't be far…" Ichigo said cautiously, carefully making his way to the pit.
The Quincy stepped up next to him. "But it's weird, I don't feel any reiatsu around here – all I'm sensing comes from over there…" – He pointed at the place they were headed to.
"Come on, that pit's not big enough to hide a Hollow…." Ichigo said incredulously.
Ishida shrugged. "Perhaps it's one of the digging kind, and it's hiding under ground? Hell, we've seen plenty of different types…"
"Anyway, let's find out", Ichigo said, more tensely now, suddenly wary of the ground below him.
The rest of the way was uneventful and as they approached the shallow depression, the snowfall picked up and the temperature seemed to drop a few degrees. All that time, the sad bawling had continued, the source now clearly in the pit before them. The sound now clearly audible, Ichigo made it out to be a very small child, or even a baby. Somehow, the crying had a familiar feeling to him, but not something he could put his finger on…
They both peered into the foot-deep hole, still on edge for an attack from any direction. A wave of nausea engulfed Ichigo and with it, again, a weird sense of familiarity. He shook his head to clear the double vision and could finally make out what was before him.
Anticlimactically, what they both saw was exactly what they somehow expected – but still an unusual sight in this park, at this hour.
"How the hell did that end up here!?" Ichigo piped up.
In the middle of the pit, in a patch of snowless dirt, was a baby, crying its heart out. It had an even, healthy pink complexion and was covered by nothing but a neatly folded, cloth diaper covering its lower body. The kid's eyes were pressed closed, its stubby limbs vigorously flailing up and down while it continued its loud sobbing.
"It's not an 'it', Kurosaki", Uryu remarked dryly. "You better pick it up, it's not safe here."
"You pick it up!" Ichigo retorted, slightly blushing. "I'm…not good with kids. Besides, I like to keep my hands free for when that Hollow shows up."
Sighing, Uryu put away his bow and stooped down. He examined the child closer. The infant, now aware of the people who had come to visit, had ceased its wailing and now looked at the two in silent curiosity, its bald head moving from side to side. Uryu's eyes suddenly widened.
"I don't think a Hollow is going to show up, Kurosaki-san. Look." Carefully, the Quincy picked up the child with both hands, lifting it up, then cradling it against his chest. The baby made no protest but kept its hazel eyes on Uryu silently. Amazingly, the baby didn't feel cold at all, while it must have been in the snowfall for some time now. Ichigo watched with something resembling admiration on his face, which made way for surprise when he saw what Uryu had been referring to.
"Those are…. That means it's…" He pointed a shaky finger to the now plainly visible bony extrusions that crested the back of the child's head on both sides.
"Uh-huh…", Uryu nodded curtly. "It's a Hollow baby. More specifically, I'd say an Arrancar baby. This is our target."
"Hollows have babies ?! How? And where is its-its…" Ichigo jabbed a finger at the kid's body, who made a pass at grabbing it with one chubby hand.
"Hole? Beats me. Perhaps they only grow them from a certain age…", Uryu shrugged, still holding the baby against him.
"That's ridiculous! Hollows don't grow! They evolve! By –" Uryu cut his friend off "Look Kurosaki, I'd love to discuss Hollows physiology with you all night in this freezing cold, with this baby here, but I suggest we find shelter first, then decide what to do with it!"
Suddenly aware again of the falling snowflakes, now even denser than before, and the ice-cold wind blowing through the park, Ichigo nodded and looked around. He knew this area well. They were in a grass-covered large open space in the park, favored by pick-nicking families during summertime. A little further ahead were the dark outlines of a lone abandoned pavilion, used by musicians and street performers in the warmer seasons. As far as nearby shelters went, this one looked the most promising, Ichigo decided.
He pointed at the nearby building. "Let's go there."
Together, they plodded through the thickening layer of snow, towards the pavilion.
