Chapter 15

No one knew her mother.

Or when she'd been born.

One day the child had just appeared. Toddling after Lieutenant Aizen on stubby legs that had just gained enough strength to walk while the Lieutenant made his way across his division. With his nose buried in whatever work he'd been occupied with at the time the Lieutenant had no idea he'd been followed to work until his Captain had stopped him.

"Seems you got yourself a little duckling," Shinji Hirako, previous Captain of the Fifth Division had said, a wide smile on his lips as she'd failed to stop in time with Aizen.

Aizen had been confused until the little body had run smack into him. Her lack of coordination causing her to land on her bottom before she could figure out what had happened. With a curse, Aizen had swept the child into his arms, confirming everyone's suspicion that the little one was at least under his care.

"It's okay," he cooed as wide, green eyes filled with tears. They never fell, though. The child sniffled a bit before snuggling into his chest. "I'm sorry about that, Captain Hirako," Aizen had muttered as he rocked the child back and forth. "I'll take her home right away."

"Nonsense," the Captain had said, while waving his hand dismissively. "You'd waste too much time doing that. Besides, she'd not bothering anyone. Just keep her out of underfoot and you'll be fine."

Aizen had nodded gratefully though, later on that day, he'd given a certain silver-haired boy an earful.

"What do you mean you just 'lost track of her'?" he asked, red-faced and angry but the boy didn't even flinched. He'd smiled in fact and shrugged helplessly.

"She's good at Hide an' Seek," the boy had say by way of explanation, causing Aizen's face to become acquainted with his palm.

"Gin."

"Sorry, Lieutenant Aizen, it won't happen a'gain, I promise."

However, it did happen again. More times, than Aizen would have liked and, before he knew it, everyone in the Imperial Division knew of his daughter. The child followed him everywhere and not too long after he'd stopped bothering to ask Gin to babysit. Especially, since the boy always seem to 'lose track of her.'

Soon seeing them together was a common occurrence and the members of the Imperial Guard no longer spared them much thought. No. Everyone was too preoccupied trying to guess who the mother of the child was.

More than one had bet on Daisy.

The Fourth Division Lieutenant could be found around Aizen more than any other woman but no one had remembered seeing her pregnant. She's been slim, fit, and in active duty long before the child had appeared. Plus, while the child obviously took a liking to her, most could see that the little one preferred Aizen's arms to hers.

With her out of the picture, they'd all drawn blanks and given up. Some even theorized that maybe the child had just appeared like any other soul and Aizen had taken her in but their resemblance were too great for that to be the answer. However, with no more clues and Aizen refusing to talk about the child's heritage, the identity of her mother had remained a secret.

Even Aizen's close circle of friends did not know the answer because Aizen never bother to share and they knew better than to pry. They loved the child regardless and treated her like a little miracle.

Gin had played with her in between training sessions and his duties a member of the Fifth Division. Daisy babysat as often as her position as Lieutenant would allow her, along with Tōsen. They were a happy little family during that time until it all went wrong.

No one can remember exactly how it happened.

One day the child, so used to escaping her babysitters and toddling after Aizen, had done just that. She had toddled right after him into a live battleground.

The Hollow had been on her in seconds and there was nothing anyone could have done. The identity of the careless babysitter was never found out, though the Third Seat of the Fifth Division had gone missing no more than an hour later. Gin's promotion to Third Seat had been a quiet affair, the entire Division grieving too much for their Lieutenant to properly celebrate.

That is what fueled them.

That is what drove Aizen to begin his research on Hollows in earnest. Sure, he had dabbled in that area before. He'd even manage to make a Hōgyoku that was far from complete, but never at the lengths of which he'd gone through afterwards.

The others had joined him without question. The man was devastated. They could see that and they hoped that if they'd kept him occupied he'd avoid the break down they could all see coming.

He'd worked long hours.

Organized hunting party after hunting party to catch Hollows to experiments on. He spent more days awake than asleep but he couldn't do it. He couldn't complete the Hōgyoku so in a bid of desperation he'd gone to Urahara, the Captain of the Twelfth Division during that time. Urahara who'd given him a look filled with pity and sorrow and promised to do what he could.

None of them had expected what had happened next.

Urahara's facility went under investigation.

The Hōgyoku was hidden within Rukia

The break down happen.

Aizen had been consumed by grief, smashing beakers and test tubes in a fit of rage.

A Hollow had broken loose in the confusion.

It had wreaked so much havoc and chaos before they finally managed to subdue it. Though, by then, Captain Shinji Hirako of the Fifth Division, Captain Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi of the Third Division, Lieutenant Mashiro Kuna of the Ninth Division, Captain Love Aikawa of the Seventh Division, Lieutenant Lisa Yadōmaru of the Eight Division, Captain Kensei Muguruma of the Ninth Division, Vice-Chief Hachigen Ushōda of the Kido Corps, and even Urahara's own Lieutenant, Hiyori Sarugaki, had been infected.

They'd wiped out one-third of the Imperial Guard's command without even trying and would have been more impressed with themselves if they had really been the bloodthirsty killers everyone had made them out to be. However, they weren't impressed. They were panicked, ashamed, and guilt-stricken.

As they stared over the lives they had ruined, if not completely taken, Urahara had found them. Daisy was nowhere to be seen. Already long gone and devastated though none of them would know for days to come.

Urahara had taken one look at Gin, Aizen, and Tōsen and known they had not meant for any of this to happen. They'd thrown themselves at him, then. Asked if he knew anyway to reverse this and he knew what he had to do.

Securing a promise from them, he'd perform the forbidden Kido. He sealed his fate that day with Tessai at his side. Together they'd done what they could; figuring being stripped of the powers would be worth it if they could save the lives of the Captains and Lieutenants.

Though they should have known that neither Aizen nor Yoruichi would have let that happen. Securing her own bribe from Aizen, Yoruichi had swooped in and saved them. She'd gotten them out of The Soul Society and, together, they had started their new lives in The World of the Living, unaware that that Aizen's obsession had not yet been curbed.

Even with the disaster that left the Imperial Guard many members short, Aizen, Gin, and Tōsen had continued to try to find a way to reverse the Hollowfication process. They pawed through his Research Facility, searching for Urahara's Hōgyoku and it's location.

They had continue to comb all three words in hopes of finding Aizen's little, green-eyed daughter.

They didn't care if they found her as a Human, Hollow, or Soul.

They just wanted her back.