The conversation in the tearoom went quiet the moment the door had been thrown open. Everyone inside the Shōten could sense the fierce Pressure of the Hollow Zanpakutō as he headed towards the tearoom, his intent unknown but resolve unshakeable.

Ichigo turned around in time to see Getsu appear, his outstretched arm being the first to come into view. The pale right hand smacked flat against the doorpost to catch his momentum and the attention of all who were in the room. The rest of him followed all at once, standing still in the middle of the doorway. His skin and hair were cleansed from the blood and gore that he had bathed in to get his revenge on Muramasa.

Yet, even showered and dressed in clean clothing, Getsu still managed to look like a mess. His hair, while clean, had not been combed, the shorter tresses standing whatever way while the longer strands were hidden under the safety of the vest. The stuff Ichigo had picked out for him was a size too large on him and it showed, the pants swallowing his feet almost completely and the sleeves of the vest coming all the way down to his knuckles; like a child wearing their parent's clothes.

But it was his face that held Ichigo's attention. A strong blue-coloured pale cheeks, most likely a remnant from his shower, did little to soften the dark half-circles beneath his eyes. His silver irises had swirls of gold in them, both colours bright and burning into warm chestnut with a determination of which the cause and purpose were unknown.

And, as it turned out, even the other half of the Zanpakutō Spirit had no idea what went on in Getsu's head. Being dragged along by the wrist as he was didn't leave Tensa with much room or many options to avoid collision with his counterpart. The moment Getsu came to a halt, Tensa brought his captured wrist up to use his forearm as a buffer. Getsu allowed it, fingers releasing their steel vice and vanishing from Tensa's sight as he, too, came to a stop.

'G-give me a warning next time you—'

Tensa's objection was cut off when the same hand that had captured his wrist landed on his hood-covered head. It didn't move and try to mess his hair up, only applied a bit of pressure. Bewildered, Tensa was a bit late in his attempt to swat the offending hand away from his head. Any ire he'd wanted to give voice to was replaced by even more confusion when Getsu suddenly stepped forward into the room.

Ichigo put a hand on his son's shoulder to convey that he had to stay put. Fortunately, Kazui seemed to pick up on the growing suspense that hung heavy in the air and obeyed the silent request of his father without argument. Standing up and turning around in one motion, Ichigo was ready to help his Zanpakutō in whatever manner needed when Getsu took another step forward towards him and—

—embraced him?

Ichigo blinked as one of his arms was trapped against his side and two palms pressed against his shoulder blades to bring him flush against his Zanpakutō. He was shaken from his stupor when he felt a chin rest on his right shoulder, his arms automatically wrapping around the spirit in return albeit a bit awkwardly.

'Uhm... Getsu?' He tried to see the spirit's face but it was hidden in the crook of his neck. 'Is there something wrong? Are you feeling unwell?'

Getsu shook his head, inadvertently also nuzzling his wielder in the process as he mumbled out a response, 'Nah... I'm good'.

'Then why are you— not that I mind it but you rarely—'

'Ichigo'.

The tone had Ichigo pause, '... yes?'

'Thank you'.

Ichigo quirked a brow, 'Huh...? What are you talking about? I haven't done—'

'Ya gave me a second chance', Getsu murmured, fingers grasping the loose fabric of his wielder's shirt. 'Ya accepted me an' defended me and I...' His voice trailed off into nothing as he ran out of words. He knew what he wanted to make clear but he didn't know how. Which words did he need to string together to get his intention across? Did the words he needed even exist in the tongues he spoke?

Letting out a sigh, Getsu pulled back just enough to look his wielder in the eyes in the hope he could find the words he needed there. The pupils were a fraction smaller than was the norm, he noticed absentmindedly. Guess his impromptu embrace had stirred up quite a bit of confusion if it warranted such a bewildered expression on that dumb face that he would do literally everything for to see smiling —

'I love you'.

Brown eyes widened and it was then that Getsu realised those three words hadn't been said by Ichigo. It had been his own voice, his own mouth that had spoken them.

That last question Katen had asked them had made Getsu dig up a memory, one he'd never bothered to reflect on before. He had more-or-less forgotten that moment even existed until today. Yet, he could still remember it so vividly. He could recall with frightening clarity how each of Ichigo's fingers was positioned on the scabbard, what words were spoken, and how strongly his wielder had reacted to the head captain's "suggestion".

It was strange to think he hadn't realised how monumental that moment had been before now. How, at the time, it just hadn't felt important; he had merely taken it in stride and cursed the confusion that it had brought along. Now, however, the implications and significance were as painfully clear to him as a slap to the face by a hand full of rings.

But it had also made him wonder…did Ichigo know? Did their wielder know how important that moment was? How much that single "no" meant to his Hollow Zanpakutō? He should, right? After all, it was Ichigo's acceptance of Getsu's duality—his own inhumanity—in that moment that had caused his Hollow heart to start to beat properly. Surely Ichigo knew that...

…Right?

Try as he might, he couldn't fully convince himself that his wielder would know something Getsu only figured out himself almost a decade after the fact. Ichigo wasn't stupid by any means and when it came down to emotions he was far more skilled in handling and understanding them. That said, Ichigo had a record of being dense, oblivious, and prone to bouts of idiocy when facing something that contradicts or challenges his convictions and beliefs. There was no way of knowing where this instance would land. No way except one: he would have to ask.

So that is why Getsu had stood up and made his way to the tearoom—taking Tensa with him because he wasn't going to leave him alone with someone so dangerous—fully intending to ask Ichigo if he knew and make sure he did if he didn't. The keyword here being "intending".

He had intended to ask one simple question. He had intended to tell Ichigo how much that "no" had meant to him. What he had not intended was the word vomit that had come out of his mouth instead that left his wielder speechless.

Ichigo stared at his Zanpakutō, jaw trembling while his voice left him to dry and refused to work. His brain wasn't helping, either, repeating the three words over and over again to try and process what they meant.

His Zanpakutō weren't the type of people who vocalised their affection. They preferred to show it with small gestures and let their meaning hang in the air, as opposed to telling another outright with kind words.

Zan—and Tensa by extension—tended to smile or put a hand on his shoulder whenever Ichigo did something that was appreciated or approved of. And sometimes, when Zan was in an exceptionally good mood, he would take it a step further and give praise:

"Very good, Ichigo".

"I see you have been practising".

"I'm proud of you".

Getsu, however, felt no need to give voice to such things. At least, not unprovoked. He had no problems responding in kind whenever Ichigo declared his love for them—often after waking from a nightmare—but it was never with the same intention. It was always a dismissive "we know" or an exasperated "yeah yeah, we love you too, idiot". Always "we" and not "I". Always as a response, never as a statement.

Always until today.

Getsu watched as Ichigo's jaw trembled, his eyes glowing with something he couldn't quite place while tears started to line up in preparation to spill over. Fuck! He had messed up, hadn't he? What in the three worlds had possessed him to—!

Whatever air he had in his lungs was forced out as Ichigo pulled him back into an embrace. It derailed his thoughts, grinding them to a halt as Ichigo's Pressure washed over him. His wielder wasn't upset or sad or any other emotion Getsu had expected at the sight of those hated tears that would flood their world. No, there was only love and happiness and joy that made their sun in the Mindscape shine its brightest. It made Getsu realise that, despite how sudden the words had come out, he did stand by them. Those three short words conveyed his feelings better than any of Shakespeare's Sonnets ever could.

'Ichigo?'

'Hmm?'

'I love you'. Getsu said it again, this time pouring all of his gratitude and affection he held for his wielder into his Pressure for Ichigo to feel.

Ichigo tightened the embrace, shoulders shaking as badly as his voice cracked, 'T-the fuck, man. You gonna make me cry'.

'Why? Did I say it wrong?' Getsu asked only to have his ribs squeezed so hard he could have sworn he felt some poke his lungs. Geez, he hoped Ichigo didn't break a bone or pop a joint in that fragile human body of his by doing that.

'N-no!' Ichigo denied with a watery laugh and so much affection that Getsu felt that weird but pleasant churn in his abdomen. 'No, you—you idiot...you've said it just right'.

Getsu hummed, the sound growing deeper and heavier the longer he was exposed to his wielder's reciprocation. Ichigo was smiling into the crook of his neck, content to bathe in the moment for as long as the Universe allowed them to.

'I love you, too'.

It was whispered soft enough that only Getsu could hear and it was all that was needed to push the hum to a purr. One loud and strong enough to vibrate through fabric, skin and bones to shake them both to their very core.

'...You silly goose', Ichigo murmured. 'Just storming in and saying stuff like that'.

'Had to be said', Getsu argued.

'Why, though? What brought this up?'

'Nothing...we're just playing a game'.

'A game?' Ichigo questioned.

'Yeah...it's like her Shikai—'

'She used her Shikai on you?!' Ichigo whipped his head around so fast it could give people witnessing it a whiplash, his eyes locking on Shunsui with a golden glare that bordered on murderous.

Getsu dug his nails into his wielder's shoulders to pull his attention back. 'Gave permission', he explained. 'It was just asking questions and shit, no real repercussions'. He relaxed his hold to be more comfortable for both of them, nails playing with the seams of Ichigo's shirt that ran from the neckline to the shoulders. 'Made me think. Realised I've never thanked ya'.

'And you decided to do so now?'

'I dunno, it suddenly felt important', Getsu dismissed. He angled his head, 'How long do ya need him fer still?'

It was then that Ichigo realised they were, in fact, not alone—you would think he would know since he'd just given Shunsui a death glare but the implications of that had slipped his mind somehow. No, they stood in the middle of Kisuke's tearoom surrounded by four unfamiliar Zanpakutō, two captains, one Kidō master, one shady shopkeeper, and his own son. Not exactly the place for a heart-to-heart with a part of his soul but here they were.

Ah, shit. He had cursed in front of his son, hadn't he? Ichigo prayed Kazui hadn't picked it up and would start using it. Orihime would give him an earful about his language if she found out.

To his absolute dismay, the two captains appeared to have been very invested in the scene that had been playing out in front of them. They were sipping their tea, eyes on them as if watching the best prime-time drama show television had to offer.

'Oh, we were as good as done, I believe', Jūshirō replied with a smile.

'Yeah, I agree', Shunsui said. 'We have our answers'.

Getsu hummed, reluctantly breaking away from his wielder but not moving away. 'So, what's it gonna be? Are ya gonna lock me up or shackle me?'

Ichigo nudged him, 'Oi! You think I would let you get locked up?'

'So it's a shackle', Getsu concluded.

'Please understand that our hands are tied', Jūshirō said. 'If the decision was ours to make then we wouldn't have needed to discuss anything'.

'Unfortunately, Yama-jii expects us to do something and we can't exactly come back saying we let you roam free unsupervised', Shunsui added.

Pale lips pulled to one side in dismay. While he couldn't complain about the arrangements—mostly because he didn't even know what they were yet—he wasn't exactly happy he had to wear some kind of shackle. Hope it ain't a bracelet or a co—

His train of thought was interrupted by a weight slamming into his side. Getsu blinked and looked down to find his wielder's offspring hugging his waist, big round eyes filled with childlike affection of which Getsu still failed to understand how he had earned it.

'What'cha want, lil' Heir?' Getsu asked, ignoring his wielder's objection to the nickname.

'A hug'.

Getsu eyed the kid with suspicion even as he put a hand on Kazui's head to mess up the short orange tresses he had inherited from both of his parents. 'That all ya want from me?'

'I love you, Jii-san!' Kazui said excitedly. Almost as if he were expecting something.

'Sure ya do'.

The happy smile turned upside down and Getsu knew his gut had been right. Kazui puffed up his cheeks, 'No fair. Tou-san gets a hug and an "I love you" but I don't'.

'Well, you ain't my wielder', Getsu said, hand holding on to the waistband of his borrowed pants. 'And stop tugging! Yer gonna pull 'em down!'

Offended that his love was not returned, Kazui pulled back and crossed his arms. He paused a moment and then turned to Ichigo. 'Tou-san, Jii-san is being mean to me'.

'Jii-san is mean to everybody'.

'Nu-uh, he never is to you!'

Ichigo sighed, 'Jii-san likes you plenty, he has just trouble showing it'.

Kazui huffed, clearly not convinced by his father's assurances.

With a soft and short growl did Getsu nudge the child with his leg, 'Oi, look at me, Yer important ta mah wielder, so yer important ta me', Getsu said. 'Now stop brooding, yer at least a decade too young for that'.

Ichigo gave his spirit a side-eye for that remark. 'See, Kazui? He likes you'.

Kazui just looked away with a huff, his narrowed eye widened as he spotted someone else and he sped past his father and uncle. Getsu and Ichigo turned their head to see Kazui launch himself at Tensa.

'Jii-san, do you love me?'

Tensa shot his counterpart a quick glare before he squatted down to be at relative eye height with the child. 'I'm afraid I don't know'.

Kazui frowned, 'How can you not know?'

'Because "love" is a very broad term, Kazui', Tensa told. 'And I don't know what it means when you say it'.

When all Kazui managed in response was a confused "huh", Tensa elaborated. 'The word "love" can have many different meanings to different people. It can change depending on who you are referring to. For example, when your Tou-san says "I love you" to you, he means something different than when he says it to his friends, your Kaa-san, or us'.

'But...but I thought "love" meant you like someone very, very much', Kazui said.

'But you can like people in many ways, can't you?' Tensa pointed out. 'Do you love your Tou-san the same way as you love your friends at school?'

Kazui pursed his lips into a pout, 'I...I love my Tou-san more'.

'See? Love is different for everybody', Tensa said. 'For us, it is something very valuable. So we prefer to say we like people instead. Does that make sense to you?'

Kazui frowned, 'Love is confusing'.

'That, it is', Tensa agreed with a small smile. 'But you will figure it out'.

'Parenting my kid, huh?' Ichigo said with a grin.

'Do you disagree with what I said?'

'Nope', Ichigo said. 'Not at all'.

'That's what I thought'. Tensa let his eyes briefly sweep the room, 'Is it alright if I take Kazui with me to the side room? It is rather crowded in here'.

'Oh right'. Ichigo quickly gave Tensa a sign of approval before turning to Kisuke, 'Are you done yet?'

'Almost, Kurosaki-san!'

Using his senses to keep tabs on his other half—who was taking Kazui back to the side room—Getsu followed his wielder's gaze to the shady shopkeeper who was busy sketching on some paper with Kazui's colouring pencils. 'What ya scribbling there, Getaboshi? Ya plans ta take over the world?'

'Of course not, Zangetsu-san! For what kind of amateur do you take me for?' Kisuke asked in a faux shocked and offended tone that not even Kazui would have believed to be genuine. 'I keep those in my secret lab like any other self-respecting scientist would'.

'Evil scientist', Getsu corrected.

'Well, this evil scientist is done scribbling down his non-world dominating plans'. Kisuke turned, holding up the paper like a child showing off his newest artwork. An array of various pieces of accessories were depicted, each with a handful of lines that connected to some notes no one except Kisuke could read; the man had terrible handwriting when he was taking notes.

'Because everyone is different and I would like to make something more fun than three identical bracelets, I wanted to give you all a choice in what you could wear for the next week', Kisuke told with a cheery smile. 'Something as simple as this will be done in an hour so choose whatever strikes your fancy!'

Ichigo gave the shady shopkeeper a look before accepting the paper. There were rough sketches of various designs for bracelets, rings, necklaces, piercings, glasses, a hair- and tie clip, and even a broach. Kisuke wasn't joking when he said he wanted to give them options.

Getsu threw an arm over Ichigo's right shoulder and planted his chin on the left so he could look at the designs as well. Ichigo gave him an annoyed glance but didn't try to shake him off, holding the paper so they could both see.

'What's it gonna do?' Getsu asked.

'Track location and Spiritual Pressure output', Ichigo told. 'I'm going to be wearing one as well so they know where you are in relation to me'.

Getsu scoffed, 'Knowing Getaboshi it's gonna do more than just that'.

Kisuke put his hands over his heart, 'So cruel, Zangetsu-san!'

'If ya don't like the truth then change', Getsu said before giving the paper his focus. The bracelets were a no-go, just as the rings and necklaces. Once they had sealed their Bankai he would have no use for the hairclip and he didn't wear ties so those were out. He frowned, that didn't leave much to choose from…

'What's that one?' Getsu pointed at the sheet. 'It ain't a ring'.

'That's a piercing', Ichigo supplied. 'Goes into your ear, I think'.

'I want it'.

'You know he will probably need to shoot it in, right?' Ichigo questioned with a raised brow.

That had Getsu take his arm back. He hadn't really thought about that part. Not that the idea of shooting a hole in his ear put him off—it sounded pretty cool, actually—but he didn't trust Kisuke anywhere near him, especially by his head with something that could be considered a weapon. Maybe Ichigo could—

'Oh, don't worry, Zangetsu-san', Kisuke piped up. 'That won't be a concern. These will be more like cuffs, no need to shoot any holes'.

Oh, well, in that case...

Kisuke then turned to Ichigo, 'And you, Kurosaki-san?'

'The glasses'.

'My, you had your answer ready fast', Kisuke noted with a knowing smile. 'Could it be that, maybe, your eyesight is declining, Kurosaki-san?'

'Oi, watch it', Ichigo hissed.

'That isn't a denial~' Kisuke pointed out. 'Mah, Kurosaki-san. So young and already declining'.

'You know I don't need to see you, to kill you, right?'

'Ah, no need to get worked up I was merely teasing', Kisuke said. 'But I can make the glasses with a subscription—'

Ichigo kicked, barely missing Kisuke who had to use a minor hop of Shunpo to get out of the way. 'You're lucky I'm in my body'.

'Such violence!'

'Just go make yerself useful and hole yerself up in that evil secret laboratory of yers', Getsu said. 'Quicker ya get those shackle trackers done, quicker we can go home'.

Ichigo exhaled loudly, 'They are not shackles'.

He was ignored.

'But I still need to know what Ten-kun wants', Kisuke objected.

'Oi!' Getsu glared at the shopkeeper. 'Dare to call him that again and I'll rip yer intestines out from yer left eye and strangle ya with them'.

Kisuke held up his hands, 'Mah, I meant no disrespect, Zangetsu-san'. He took off his hat, 'You have my sincerest apologies. I meant Tensa-san'.

Getsu didn't let up with his glare, the scowl on his face matching the one his wielder had been infamous for in his teenage years.

'Easy', Ichigo warned, smoothing out the agitation in Getsu's Pressure with his own. He then turned back to Kisuke. 'I will ask Tensa. You go work on our trackers and I will tell you what he wants later'.

'And leave my guests alone? I would be a terrible host!'

'You are a terrible host! Tessai is the one who takes care of everyone', Ichigo shot back, pointing at the man that was currently pouring the two captains more tea. 'Thanks, Tessai'. The man nodded in acknowledgement.

'Oh, don't mind us, Urahara-san', Jūshirō said. 'Tsukabishi-san is taking good care of us. We will entertain ourselves'.

'You go make those trackers so we can go back and Kurosaki-san can get his kid in bed on time', Shunsui added.

Kisuke deflated, 'Oh well, I suppose I will go make them then'.

'Stop the act, Getaboshi. Even the lil' Heir wouldn't buy it'.

'You're all just no fun', Kisuke said. 'I will have those two done in forty minutes or so. Please let me know what Tensa-san wants before then'. With that, Kisuke left the room to make the trackers. Getsu stuck his tongue out as the man passed him.

'You go too, Kurosaki-san', Jūshirō said. 'I'm sure you would like to spend time with your son'.

'Thank you for your help', Ichigo said.

'It was no problem', Shunsui said. 'Neither you nor your Zanpakutō have done anything wrong and you deserve to be treated as such'.

Fingers wrapped around Ichigo's wrist and pulled. 'Let's go, Aibō'.

'Yeah'.

#

To Be Continued