Renji held to him as the female officer came over to them, talking into her walkie at her shoulder. Karin and Yuzu were standing frozen as they watched Isshin being taken out of the house in handcuffs and their brother having had a complete breakdown.

"I'm Yana," she said to Renji. "I talked to Ichigo at the hospital last week. I knew he was hiding something," she said as she checked his pulse where Renji held him against his chest. "I didn't think…" she said with a sigh.

A few minutes later another couple officers had arrived and taken Karin and Yuzu to the station until they figured out what was going to happen. Ichigo still hadn't come back to consciousness by the time an ambulance pulled up. Renji looked at Yana.

"C-can I go with him?" he asked.

Yana nodded. "Yeah, go ahead. I'll be there after they check him over, but right now, I've got to do a search here."

Renji nodded as he went with the paramedics and he hoped Ichigo was okay, even though he passed out like that. If the police hadn't been there, he would have gone for Orihime, but as it was, they were stuck in the World of the Living's legal system. Sure, he could snatch Ichigo and take him, but there would be major consequences for Ichigo's sisters, and he knew that wouldn't do.

At the house Yana, and her partner approached Uryū who was still standing in the doorway after the ambulance left.

"You're Ryūken Ishida's son, aren't you?" she asked.

Uryū nodded. "He…he told me his suspicions. We tried…to get him out this weekend, but he didn't leave the house all weekend. He's…he's done something, I can tell. Ichigo wasn't stead on his feet when we got here. He might be hurt again…"

Yana sighed. "Would you have any thoughts as to where evidence about what's happened might be in this house?" she said to him.

Uryū thought. "Ichigo had a false back to his desk drawer, I found a flash drive, some ketamine in a pill bottle, and a notebook with disturbing drawings there and took them. I couldn't unlock the flash drive, it needed a password…" he said as he pulled it out of his pocket and showed her.

She nodded. "Stay here, I may need your help, but we'll go through the house. Where is Ichigo's room?"

Uryū pointed up the stairs. "There's a plaque with a fifteen on it."

Yana nodded and headed up the stairs with Charles. Charles and Yana had been partners on the special victims' investigation branch for a while now. They were used to dealing with mostly female victims. A male victim, and a victim of long term incestuous abuse, was rare for them. But that was why they were a mixed team. She opened the room and looked around.

"What should we look for?" Charles asked as he glanced around the very neat room.

"Did you grab the kit?" she said.

Charles nodded, patting the case he had at his side. "Luminol?"

She nodded. "Yeah. They said he didn't leave this room much. If anything happened, most of it would be here, I would think," she said as Charles began spraying the liquid around the room in the most likely spots for a reaction.

When Yana shut the light off and turned on the ultraviolent she sighed in exasperation. "How long do you think this has been happening?" she asked as she ran her hands over the various splatters and splotches that lit up on the walls and the sill of the window.

"The boy seems to be under his control pretty well about it," Charles said as he snapped pictures of the room. "My guess? A while. He's what, eighteen, nineteen now?"

"Eighteen…" Yana said.

Charles put away the lights and flicked the light back on. He went and knelt to look under the bed, running his hand between the frame and mattress. "Huh," he muttered as his fingers touched something. He frowned and pulled until whatever it was gave. He stood up and looked at what he was holding. "What's this?" he asked.

Yana looked at it with a frown. It was a wad of papers folded in half. She opened it and saw that it was pages from a rather raunchy manga, and was about to put it away when she looked at the date. "Wait. Look."

"Look I'm not into that guy on guy stuff," Charles muttered.

"Dammit, Charles, look what it's about."

Charles took it and blinked. "Oh…shit…it's about a father raping his kid and then starting a sexual relationship with his father afterward…"

Yana nodded, and turned it so she could see the date on it. "This…this is over five years old. And it's been folded up under that bed for a very long time," she said as she looked at her partner. "Bag it," she said and felt something rising in her chest.

There was nothing else to be found in that room. They went through what they found to be the girls' room quickly, not finding anything of note. They went to the last bedroom and found a similar reaction to the luminol, though, centered around the bed.

"Hey," Charles said from the closet as he came out with a black back. "This is fucked up if he actually was using this stuff…"

Yana pulled it open and arched both brows. "That's…quite a selection…" she muttered, hearing the clinking of metal. She couldn't see everything that was in it without dumping it out, but she saw enough. "Put it in evidence."

Yana went to the dresser and opened the top drawer. She ran her hand under the top of it, then did the same for the other four drawers. In the second drawer, she found something taped to the top. She pulled it out and found it to be a flash drive. She pulled out her tablet and connected it.

"Oh fuck…" she whispered.

Charles came over and looked at it. "Is that…those are videos."

"They're AVs, and they're all father/son fantasy videos. All of them…" she whispered and pulled it out.

When they finished, they headed down to find Uryū was still standing by the door with his arms crossed. He looked up as they approached.

"I have an idea on the flash drive you found, Uryū, on what the password might be," Yana said as she walked to him.

Uryū handed it to her and she put it into the port on her tablet. The screen came up and she sighed. She somehow hoped it wasn't the password. But she also knew it probably would be.

Daddy.

The file explorer opened and she winced and shook her head. "You might not want to see this, Uryū," she said and looked at him.

He shook his head. "I need to."

She looked it over. There were files neatly organized in folders. Each one was labeled with a year going back about six years. She opened the first and found the only document was a long journal. She scanned it a bit, but it seemed like the journal of a kid in school. Then she stopped at the end of one of the entries.

I shouldn't have said something about her. It was a mistake. I ended up throwing up in the bathroom afterward and he came in to tell me he was sorry that he had hit me that hard. I told him I was fine, but rubbed my back while I threw up again. But I felt weird when he did it. Why would that be?

She closed it and brought up the next folder. This one had several files in it. Each one was titled with different things. School, home, sisters, and things like that. She clicked open the home one and saw that it was another journal type file. The same as the last, but the entries stopped for three months before they resumed. When they resumed, though, they were different. Once in each one at the very least, he referred to his father as "daddy" and would say something about being good or bad. There was no direct notation about what his father did to him, but it was easy to infer it.

The shower was too hot. I passed out but he put me in bed. I wish I hadn't passed out. That was so stupid and he reminded me of it.

Then there were long rambling entries of self-depreciation. The next files were the same, then for a period of almost a year, there were no entries. Uryū recognized it as when Rukia had shown up and they had done things with Soul Society. When they resumed Uryū winced and wished he had paid better attention.

I'm so stupid, after everything, I've lost it all, all of it, and he's not letting me forget how tainted I am now. I can't believe he hid this from me, and then…to have let the others know and not me. I shouldn't have said something about his lies. I shouldn't have. Because then he reminded me that now, he was the one in power, and that was how it was going to be. I have to be his good boy again, or what might happen? I can't let them find out. I can't let them know… And my sisters. He said that I looked like my mother…and that Yuzu does too. No…I won't let him touch her. Not ever.

Yana sighed and went to the most recent one. It was before he'd gone into the hospital with the lung collapsing on him.

It doesn't matter this time. I can't leave. Not while they're living here with him. I have to stay, and that's fine. He loves me, I know that. But why does it feel wrong? If I tell him to stop, he'll hurt me, and then someone might find out. No, I have to be a good boy. I have to. I just…I know he's high today. I saw him. I just hope he doesn't bring The Bag with him…I don't want that…I don't…

Uryū glanced to the evidence box and saw there was indeed a black bag in it. He looked at Yana. "What's in the black bag?" he asked.

"Uryū, I can't discuss that, it's bad enough I'm letting you see this stuff, but I talked to your father a lot in the last few days, so…"

Uryū moved quickly, though, and grabbed the back and opened it, considering it. "What the hell…" he breathed.

"Come on, we should go to the hospital. Your father was already waiting there for him," she said and put her arm around the boy. She felt sorry for him, seeing a close friend like this.

-oooooo-OOOOOO-oooooo-

Ryūken hadn't wanted it to go this way but he was not surprised at the same time. He had already got a nurse he trusted, and prepped a private exam room with a high dose sedative on hand. He knew he'd take more of it than others, and he had to get this done properly. He didn't know what would happen in the human world, but he was going to follow procedures and record everything when he came in.

Renji was with him as they brought him in. Ryūken came out as they transferred him to the bed and Renji looked at him. He nodded. "Go on," he said to the nurse. "I'll be fine here for now."

The nurse nodded, leaving without questioning him. Ryūken looked at Ichigo's slack face and at Renji. "What happened?"

"He started freaking out and just passed out after they came to take Isshin away," Renji said, looking up at Ryūken with a worried glance.

Ryūken sighed. "Alright, for the best, I'm sure," he said as he started the IV in his arm and turned the sedative on.

"What's that?" Renji asked.

"Sedative. It's the only way I'll get an exam done on him. He won't cooperate, I know that, so we'll have to do the evidence collection while he's unconscious. As soon as the officer arrives, I'll have her verify it while I do this," he said with a sigh, crossing his arms over his chest.

Renji brushed a hand over Ichigo's head, feeling the dampness on his forehead. "Why would he do this to him," he asked no one in particular.

"I think there's something seriously wrong with Isshin, and I've suspected it for a while, but could never prove it."

Renji sat down to the side and waited as Ryūken took photos and checked over Ichigo's face and neck while they waited. After a while, Uryū and the female officer came into the room. Uryū looked pallid as he looked at Renji and at Ichigo's unconscious form.

"Hasn't he woken up yet?" Uryū asked, somewhat concerned.

"I've left him sedated," Ryūken said. "Will you assist, Uryū?"

Uryū looked at him. "What, me?"

"You're going to be a doctor, right? You may as well get some experience with this sort of thing, and I really don't want anyone else in here, even my nurse," he said. "But I'll call her if you can't…"

"No, I can assist," Uryū said, straightening his back. "He's my friend, I want to help."

Ryūken nodded. "Alright. But you're going to have to keep it together, understand?" he said as he moved up and started undoing the buttons on Ichigo's shirt.

"Grab a gown out of the drawer over there, Uryū," Ryūken said as he carefully pulled Ichigo's arms out of his shirt and rolled him to get it out from under him.

Uryū handed him the gown and he put it on Ichigo's front, tying it behind him. He moved down and undid Ichigo's slacks and finished removing his clothes quickly. He nodded to the officer.

"Do you want another kit?" he asked her.

"If you think we can take another. Do you think he was assaulted again recently?" she asked.

"I wouldn't doubt it," Ryūken said as he began rolling the leg stirrups from the end. Uryū tensed and Ryūken glared at him. "Are you able to hold it together?"

Uryū nodded once curtly. "I am."

"Alright, then, you are going to help steady him while I do the PRAK and check him over. I know he'll heal fast," he said and glanced at Uryū and back down at him.

He pulled him into positon and Uryū tried his best to forget who this was, as he followed his father's instructions as he went through the procedures. Uryū was very glad Ichigo was sleeping through it. Ryūken growled under his breath and looked up at Uryū. "Get me a suture kit and a speculum," he said with a look of deep exhaustion on his face. Uryū nodded and went to retrieve them, handing them to his father.

"Is it…what…" he asked.

"Just a minute, Uryū," Ryūken said as he finished with relatively quick flicks of the needle.

Ryūken sat back and shook his head. He let out a long breath and then pulled down the table's stirrups and had Uryū help him move him up on the table. He put a shit over his lower body and pulled the gown up to look over his upper body. He shook his head as he wrote down a few things.

Uryū, knowing that Ichigo wasn't human entirely, couldn't imagine what sort of damage would have been done to someone who was. There were no scars were Orihime had healed Ichigo's other wounds, and Uryū was very glad that the officer seemed not to notice that he was suddenly completely healed of that. He had enough new ones. There were several purpling spots on his chest and stomach, but Uryū had no idea what would have caused something like that. He looked closer and was even more confused.

They found Ichigo's back in a similar state when they checked him over. "He avoided anything that would cause serious damage to him," Ryūken said. "No damage around the spine or the kidneys. No damage to other sensitive areas. Nothing on the extremities. He knew what he was doing."

Yana's phone rang and she answered it. "Okay. I see. Okay, I'll let you know what we find here. Yes, taking anther PRAK. Yes, sir. There was. I…don't know yet. I'll be there with the report in an hour."

She hung up and looked at them. "They did an initial interview with Isshin. He…was quite willing to give information, and they've already booked him into a cell without bail."

Ryūken looked at her. "He admitted to what he did?"

"I don't know the details, just that they had a full confession. I…am unsure what he said in it. I'll get back to you when I know something," she said with a sigh.

Yana looked at Renji and back to Ryūken. "He's one of them, huh?" she said.

Renji's head snapped up and Ryūken nodded. "He is. They're going to take him when I clear him. You'll have to run something believable by your boss when he disappears."

"Wait, she knows about us?" Uryū said.

"Yana is an old friend. She's spiritually aware, and I at one time, interceded when she was being attacked by a hollow. She's seen the other Shinigami and hollows as well. I told her what Orihime had done for Ichigo already, which is why she didn't question the missing wounds. That's why I wanted no one else in here," Ryūken said as he handed her the paperwork and the sealed kit.

"Is your statement in there?" she asked as she flipped through the clipboard.

"Yeah, all done. Thank you. What will you say when they take him to Soul Society?"

She smiled. "Well, if you can get a taped conversation with him, that would be wonderful, but my plan was to list him as a runaway. Considering what's happened, it wouldn't be untoward."

"What will happen to the girls?" Renji said, looking up at her.

"I believe a man has come to the station saying he would like to take them in for the time being until procedures are done, ah…" she looked at her messages. "Kisuke Urahara."

Ryūken nodded. "He's a good person to keep them, he'll make sure nothing happens to them. You…you need to realize that he might leave. Isshin, I mean," he said.

"We have him locked up…" she started.

Renji popped a soul candy and stood up out of his Gigai and walked toward her. She could see him easily enough. "He can leave his body like I can, and so can Ichigo."

She nodded. "I didn't realize that was possible…"

"Yeah, so if he suddenly 'dies', you'll know he's either escaped on his own, or one of us has come to take him to face justice with our people," Renji said seriously as he returned to his Gigai.

Yana nodded and headed out of the room. A few minutes later there was another knock and Ryūken looked up in surprise.

Renji jumped up. "Kuchiki-taichou! Ukitake-taichou!" he said as the two men walked in behind Rukia. "What are you both doing here?" he asked, looking between them.

"The head captain worried that with Isshin Shiba in an unpredictable state that we should come and help keep Ichigo safe until we can take him to Soul Society without arousing local suspicions," Byakuya said as he moved to lean against the wall. Ukitake nodded and walked over to where Ichigo was lying and looked at his face.

"He's not been healed," he said and looked at Ryūken.

"Not yet, I was going to summon Inoue, but I haven't had the chance yet. The police have come and taken my statement and the evidence kit. I had to…suture some," Ryūken said with a sigh.

Ukitake nodded as Ryūken went up and took the IV out. "I'll let him wake up now that it's over, I didn't think he'd allow us to do the exam on him while conscious. Not exactly the way it is supposed to go, but this was a definite special case."

It didn't take long for Ichigo's increased metabolism to run through the sedative and he started to wake up. Renji got up and went to stand beside him as he blinked wearily.

"Wha…where…where am I…" he muttered as he looked up at Renji. "Renji?" he said.

"You're in the hospital, right now," he said softly.

As soon as he said that, Ichigo's eyes went wide and he sat up and locked eyes on Ryūken.

"You did this!" he said. "Why did you do this? Why? They…they…" he panted, feeling dizzy still. Renji caught him as he tried to tip backwards.

"Ichigo," Ukitake said from the side.

He looked over to see the white-haired captain. "Jūshirō?" Ichigo asked. "What…why are you here?"

Ukitake smiled at him and stood beside Renji. "Ichigo, this is a Soul Society matter."

"No! Look, just go back, leave me alone, I'm fine and I don't want any of you to bother with this!" he yelled and glared at all of them.

"Ichigo, I know you think that you don't want our help," Jūshirō said and looked at him. "But there are rules, and your father has broken one of the most important ones. We very rarely have Shinigami who have children, and to have one harmed so directly…"

"I'm not harmed! I'm fine!" he said and rolled off the opposite side of the bed and grabbed the gown. He turned to Ryūken. "Where the hell are my clothes?"

"I put them elsewhere, Ichigo," Ryūken said with a sigh. "I know. We collected another evidence kit."

"What?" Ichigo said. "I wasn't even awake! You can't just…just do that!" he said and backed toward the door.

He hadn't seen Byakuya though, so he nearly shrieked when Byakuya's hands stopped him from backing closer to the door. He stared at him and dropped to his knees. "I don't want…it isn't…I can't…" he stammered and just sat on the floor for a long moment.

Jūshirō moved and knelt in front of him, reaching out to put his hands on Ichigo's shoulders. He looked up at him with very lost looking eyes. "Ichigo, come with me. We'll take you to Soul Society, and we'll deal with your father there. He…"

"He didn't do anything I didn't want him to do," Ichigo snapped and then sucked in a breath, looking down when he realized what he'd said. "Dammit…" he muttered.

"How long, Ichigo?" Byakuya asked from where he stood in front of the door.

Ichigo looked at him. "I…I…"

"At least five years," Uryū said from beside Ryūken. Ichigo turned and glared at him. Uryū held up the flash drive.

Ichigo was up and moving before even Byakuya could grab him. He snatched the drive out of Uryū's hand and held it tightly in his fist. "That wasn't yours to see!" he said, and it was obvious he was growing angrier. "That was private! You went through my things to find this! How…how dare you?"

"I was worried about you," Uryū said with a sigh.

"I don't care! You…you all just…you're interfering and I don't want it! Just leave me and my…" Ichigo choked on the words and stopped himself. He put his hand over his mouth and turned away from them to stare at the wall. "Just leave it. Please. Let it go back to normal," he said without turning around.

Jūshirō glanced at Byakuya and nodded to him. Byakuya moved to him and pushed Ichigo's soul form from his body with the glove he was wearing over his usual white gloves. Ichigo gasped as his soul form fell backward into Jūshirō. Jūshirō sighed, putting a hand on his head and whispering, "I'm sorry, but this is for your protection."

Ichigo struggled a minute before the kido hit him and he went completely limp in Jūshirō's arms. Jūshirō looked at Renji who came up and picked him up. Jūshirō paused to hack uncontrollably for a minute and then sucked in a deep breath.

"We should go. Are you coming or staying here, Uryū?" Jūshirō said to the Quincy.

"I'm staying, I want to make sure things go right here," he said with a nod.

Renji nodded to him. "We'll take care of him, I promise," he said.

"Just…watch him. Some of the stuff he wrote that is on this drive," he said as he picked it up where it had fallen. "This is some dark and disturbing writing. He could try to run or worse."

Byakuya sighed. "I'll confine him in Kuchiki Manor. He won't be able leave without me knowing about it, and even if he does get out into the Seireitei, I can track his reiatsu easily. He still can't control the release of it at all."

Jūshirō nodded and they left quickly through a senkaimon, leaving Ryūken and Uryū with an empty human body for Ichigo.

"What do we do with his body?" Uryū said.

"Urahara can hold it until he returns for it," he said with a nod. He paused and sighed deeply. "If he returns."

Uryū glanced at his father and the weight of those words struck him harder than he expected. If. Not when.

-oooooo-OOOOOO-oooooo-

Yana got back to the station with the evidence kit and went to see her captain. "You said he confessed?" she asked.

The captain, Hanjin Saraiki, turned to look at her. "Yes, we taped it, but you might not want to watch. It is…disturbing."

She looked at him then turned his computer around to play it.

Isshin was sitting at the table staring at his hands when Hanjin went into the room and sat across from him. He was wearing a very loud shirt, she noted, and he looked rather calm.

"Isshin Kurosaki, do you know the reason why you've been brought in?" Hanjin said as he looked up from the file.

"I do," he said with a sigh. "Things caught up with me, as they often do when people do things like this."

Hanjin looked at him. "What things exactly?"

"My wife died nine years ago. She…was everything to me. Her smile, her face, her very life was my breath. I…loved her so very much. So much I would have died ten times over for her. Then, one night, she was killed by the river, I'm sure you have the report, and my boy was the cause of it," he said and looked away.

"How could your son have caused her death?" he asked.

"She was protecting him from something that had come after him. See, he's a monster, inside, and he didn't know it yet, but he does now."

"What does that mean?" Hanjin said and stared at him.

"Inside. He has a thing inside him, a creature that can take him over if he becomes weak. He will eventually give in to it, there's no chance that he won't. Even the strongest person gives in to evil inside them, eventually…" he said and looked up to Hanjin. "I certainly did."

"So you're admitting that you hurt him?" Hanjin said.

Isshin sighed. "I didn't mean to, not at first. I loved him, I still do, but I hate him at the same time, and I couldn't…I couldn't handle losing Masaki. I needed to be numb, so…it was easy. A narcotic here, a few benzodiazepines there, you know, helped me make it through those first days. I'm a doctor, I knew the risks. But something happened when I took them. I could do the things I wanted, needed, to do so I could relieve this…uncontrollable anger and rage in my chest."

He paused. "But the problem with depressants and hypnotics is that you a start having trouble thinking and get clouded. So I needed something to bring me back up when I needed to be alert. I certainly could have stopped the rest, I knew that, but then…it was easier just to take something else. But it made that rage and anger worse when I did. I couldn't control it, and the first time, it was just…it felt so good to strike the thing that killed my Masaki."

"Thing? That's your child. How old was he?" he asked, quite surprised at what he was telling him.

"Ten, I think. He said something about his mother, crying again, he cried all the time when he was small, all he ever did. He was more of a girl than either of his sisters when he was little. Always crying and clinging to Masaki no matter what happened. And I just got so angry and before I knew what happened he was on the floor and I told him he should have just stayed quiet and stopped crying for her. He ran to the bathroom, and I went away and then I felt bad for what I had done. I went and I sat with him, cleaned his nose, held him and told him how sorry I was. I believed I was sorry, and I believed that I wouldn't do that again. I was wrong," he said and sipped the cup of water in front of him. "I don't remember what it was the next time, but it was almost a year later. I had been so careful. When I was up, I'd stay away from him because I was afraid I'd strike out at him. But then it did happen again and this time, when I cleaned his lip…something dark rose up in my chest. Something I couldn't make go away, then."

"When was the first time you touched him inappropriately?" Hanjin said, and Yana could see how hard he was trying to keep control of himself.

"I…it was not long after that. He wasn't aware, asleep, and I just…my mind didn't see him, because he looks so much like his mother. I knew how wrong even thinking it was, you know? So I ended up hurting him so much for a long time. Never where anyone could see it, mostly because of what I had wanted to do, how I wanted to…" He paused. "Then I caught him reading a magazine story. It was a really badly drawn manga, but what it was about…"

"The one the officers found hidden under his bed, about the father and son incest."

He nodded. "Yeah. It made me so angry, probably because I was having a really rough week, and had taken way too much. I honestly don't remember what happened the first time. I just remember showing him videos of it, of AVs where they were acting out the same fantasy. I'd never thought about it being something, you know, until then. And he just was so scared by what I said, and it felt good, to have that control over him, to make him cry like that… Then, whatever it was, when I came out of it…I found him in the shower and I felt terrible, horrible, and I didn't know what to do. I did something that couldn't…shouldn't…ever be excused. I…I just told him not to tell anyone, that I loved him, and that he was my special boy, that it was okay, and that I really loved him, and I wanted him to know that. But I still hated him."

"How old was he?" Hanjin asked with a surprising degree of control.

"Thirteen," he said with a sigh. "I mean, of course, he was exploring sexuality. That's what all boys do, all girls too, but the girls…they hadn't killed their mother. He had."

"You realize that he didn't kill his mother."

"He did, he drew the thing that killed her. I tried to think that she drew it, but there was no way. He just couldn't control the monster. Then, the more I thought about it, the angrier I got at him for taking Masaki, for not being able to contain the monster. So it went on, and I decided to punish him in earnest. I…bought things…and I wanted him to suffer because he made me suffer. But only when I was on the pills. Never when I was aware. I didn't think that way when I was sober, but it got so that I was never sober. I couldn't be sober because then…I knew what I'd done was wrong. I knew it then, and I couldn't handle what I'd done to my son. So I just…stopped being sober. It was easier that way."

Hanjin sighed deeply. "So it continued until now?"

"There was a time I…I stopped doing anything. He met his new friends, and he was out of the house a lot, and his new friends…I was afraid they would notice something if I didn't stop. I thought surely he would tell them, once he realized that other people didn't have to endure what he did. Then, it all disappeared. He lost the monster's power, and was weak, and everything his mother gave him died. I was angry then, and I…I made it much worse for a long time. He did a good job, though, hiding it. I really thought he'd break, I did. I think that's why it got so bad. I wanted him to break, I wanted him to tell someone, and I wanted to pay the price for it. But I had done too good a job. He didn't. He was too scared that his friends would find him disgusting and horrible. He was too sure that I loved him and that's why it was what it was. I tried to tell myself the same thing, that I loved him, that it was just something he needed, even when he was trembling and trying not to cry. I…made so many excuses."

Hanji swallowed. "And recently?"

"He grew up, became capable of walking away, capable of doing anything he wanted, you know? But still, he'd stand there, letting me touch him…not moving, not resisting. He just…wanted to be a good boy. That…that was all he ever wanted to be, you know," he said with a sigh. "And so help me, I used it. I used it and I made him believe that being a good boy meant doing what I said; letting me punish him for the things I told him he deserved to be punished for. He didn't, of course. But I needed to blame him, because if I didn't, I'd have to blame myself."

Hanjin looked at the file. "The incident that Dr. Ishida reported to us?"

"Ryūken," he snorted. "I never would have thought it would be him that figured it out. He'd known Masaki, they were loosely related, not really, but in the way they came from the same extended family. He hated me, and I was sure that he hated my son too. I'd told him never go to the hospital. I know the procedures. Anyone that comes in gets checked over, and I wasn't careful. Never. Especially not now that he was stronger. He healed fast from any injury, due to the monstrous thing inside him. So I used it to make sure he hurt so much every time. Then when I was sober I'd regret it, and I'd bandage him, hold him, and tell him how much I loved him. And sometimes…I'd…take advantage of that. I thought I was somehow making up for the violence by showing him…gentleness. But by then, I don't know that even sober I knew what I was doing."

Hanjin looked at him. "I…can't believe you would do this to your own child. A boy that young, you had to know how much you would hurt him."

"I did, and that's why I did it. I couldn't…I couldn't do worse than strike him in ways others couldn't see it, and this…this was so easy to convince him that he was part of it. That he was my good boy, that he was letting me do it, so that meant he wanted me to do this. Then I'd show him the AVs and how the other fathers treated their boys, and he would just stare at them, and when he became aroused by them, I thought…it was okay, because he obviously wanted this. And I just let it convince me that it was okay when I was sober. When I wasn't, I didn't care," he said with a sigh.

"You still believe he's infected with some monster?" he asked. "I know he is, but that's a whole other thing. He'll be taken away, though, by them."

"By who?" Hanjin asked. "He's at the hospital, and they found some rather disturbing injuries."

"Yeah, he'll be fine. They'll come take him and he won't come back again. They'll try to come take me, too, but I won't be here long," he said with a smile.

"What does that mean?" Hanjin said with a frown.

"There's a fate that I deserve, and I'll get to it soon enough," he said and looked away from him.

The video cut off. Yana, of course, knew what he meant. He was going to leave the body he was in, and escape. She turned to Hanjin to say something when the door opened.

"That Kurosaki…he just passed out, he's dead, there's nothing…he just flat died!" the officer said.

Yana ran out into the main part of the office. She saw the black outfitted man walking toward the door. He turned to her and put his finger to his lips and walked through the wall. Hanjin came out from a few minutes later and looked at her. "I guess that saves money for the taxpayers," he said with a sigh. Yana looked at him. "Yeah, I'll tell Ryūken Ishida…"

She walked out into the hall and dialed the number. "Ishida," came his curt voice.

"He's gone," she whispered.

"What?"

"I saw him, he left his body, they…they think he's dead…but I saw him walk out of here in one of those black outfits."

Ryūken made some noise of anger. "Alright. I'm going to find him. Keep an eye on the body, don't let it be put anywhere unsecure. He could come back to it at any time."

"I can't tell them to lock a dead body down," she growled into the phone.

"I…I'll do something. Thank you, though."

Yana put her phone away and looked up as the coroners came in to retrieve the body. She was actually afraid for that boy more now than she had been.

-oooooo-OOOOOO-oooooo-

The world was wrong when Ichigo opened his eyes. He at first couldn't figure out why it was so wrong. Then he realized why it was wrong. He sat up and locked eyes on Jūshirō and Byakuya who bot stood in the room with him. He saw Renji sitting on the floor beside him.

"What…where am I…what did you do?" he said, looking between them.

"Ichigo, calm down," Renji said. "You're in Soul Society; we're at Kuchiki Manor, okay?"

"I want to go home!" he said, getting up and going toward the wall, but finding it barriered. He looked at them. "What…what is this? Are you…are you holding me here? You can't do this! I…I…"

"Ichigo, you need to stay here for the time being. Your father left the police in his soul form, and we're not sure where he is," Jūshirō said as he looked at him.

"Why…why is that a problem? He's my father, he's…he wouldn't…I mean…He wouldn't try to hurt me…"

"He already did, Ichigo," Byakuya said as he looked at the younger Shinigami.

"He didn't!" he yelled and turned away, crossing his arms over his chest and staring at the floor. "He…he…"

Renji put his hands on Ichigo's shoulders and squeezed. "Please, don't do this to yourself," he said. "He hurt you. He did. We're going to help you get through it."

Ichigo turned around and tried to punch Renji in the face, only to have his fist easily caught. Renji knew he was in a bad place because his reactions were slow. Renji pushed him back to the wall and held him there, putting his hands over his head. Then, Renji realized what was happening. Ichigo's entire body seemed to relax and he looked at him with eyes that were wide and incredibly vulnerable looking. Renji let go and stepped back. He glanced at Jūshirō with wide eyes. The reaction was unconscious. The minute Renji had slammed him back into the wall he'd completely gone into a submission state.

Jūshirō stepped forward and tilted Ichigo's face upward. "Ichigo. Please, we're going to help you. I know you don't trust us very much right now and you feel like we've betrayed you more than once." Ichigo's brown eyes were still wide as he stared at Jūshirō. "You have been hurt, deeply, and by the person that you should have been able to trust more than anyone in the three worlds. I never would have believed that Isshin Shiba capable of such atrocities to anyone, let alone his own child."

"He loves me," Ichigo whispered. "I…I just…I wanted to be a…a…good boy…" he said as tears started to drip down his cheeks. "I love him. He's…he's my…my…" Ichigo was struggling between two things, what he had drilled into his head for the last five years, and what he knew was the truth of the matter. "I just…I took everything away from him, from them…" he finally said. "My mother…she…she was everything to them, to me, and if…if I hadn't been born like this…with this monster in my soul…if I could have controlled my own energy…"

"Ichigo, you were nine. No nine year old Shinigami can control their energy. You had to be protected. You've got an incredible amount of spiritual energy, and that is very rare," Jūshirō said as he put his hand against Ichigo's cheek.

"But…but…he was so sad and he…he went to taking things…and then…I had to help him, he needed…needed me to…to do those things. I was strong, I could take it!" he said but his voice was wavering.

"You didn't need to take it," Jūshirō said and sighed deeply, pulling Ichigo into his chest. "You never should have been treated as anything but a precious child who was possessed of incredible power."

Ichigo couldn't help it; he hugged his arms around Jūshirō, trying to gain something…something he didn't understand from him. He needed this, this contact, warmth of another person that could take care of him. He needed someone, anyone. He needed to be a good boy for someone if he couldn't be one for his daddy.