"What bothers you, Jūshirō?" Shunsui asked as he came into the office of the thirteenth's captain. "You seem sad," he said as he wrapped his arms around his love's body from behind.

Jūshirō reached up and clutched Shunsui's arms and sighed. "I…I just got back from Kuchiki manor where we left Ichigo. I…the poor thing doesn't even acknowledge anything was wrong with what his father did to him."

Shunsui sighed. "Well, then you need to show him why it was wrong," he said as he nuzzled into Jūshirō's neck gently. "I feel the pain inside your heart, love. Can I help?" he said softly.

"I…might need your help with him. I don't want to do anything wrong with this."

"Aww, is my sweet Jūshirō embarrassed by his attraction to an orange headed Shinigami substitute?" Shunsui said with a soft grin.

"That is beside the point, Shunsui. And completely inappropriate at this juncture."

"Aw, it is fine to have a crush on him, my love," Shunsui said with a smirk as he slid hands down inside the front of Jūshirō's hakama, making the slender man gasp. "He needs love, you know that," he said with a smile as he found the prize he was seeking, causing Jūshirō to whine loudly.

"Shunsui, what…" Jūshirō tried to say as Shunsui's fingers deftly stroked him to full arousal quickly.

Shunsui pushed his upper body forward onto his desk and shifted Jūshirō's hakama down just enough to reach his entrance with probing fingers. "Should I stop?" he asked as he worked three into his lover without hesitation, causing him to let out a pent up groan and grasp the other side of the desk.

It wasn't like this didn't happen a lot, so Shunsui knew they wouldn't be bothered by anyone. Their respective divisions had learned, most the hard way, not to go into an office that contained both of them without someone else. Shunsui fished in the pocket of his kimono for the jar and paused in torturing his love's sweet spot long enough to coat his own throbbing arousal with the oil he kept on him all the time. Shunsui liked to be spontaneous. He hummed as he slipped into Jūshirō's warmth without hesitation, feeling him tighten immediately around him as he panted out Shunsui's name.

"There, now, does that feel nice, my love?" he said as he began to thrust into him, slowly at first, then moving to a more frantic rhythm that set Jūshirō into a fit of moaning. He leaned over and clamped one hand over Jūshirō's mouth to stifle the noises he was making. "Hush, now, or they'll hear you," he whispered as he pushed his fingers into Jūshirō's mouth to keep his sounds to a minimum. "You feel so warm today, love. Have you missed my attention while you were sick?" he asked as he felt Jūshirō go over the edge without a touch from him. Shunsui gripped his mouth again as he let out an almost inhuman sound as Shunsui followed him. The next moment, he flipped Jūshirō around and locked him in a fierce kiss as they both panted and heaved breaths into each other's mouths.

"Dammit, Shunsui…" Jūshirō muttered as he clung to him. "I just changed clothes…"

"Hmm, well, you will have to do so again, else you'll smell of me and you all the rest of the day. And as much as I would like that, so everyone could smell that you belong to me, I know you would not like it," he said as he languidly licked and sucked at Jūshirō's neck.

Jūshirō couldn't help it. No matter how he tried, Shunsui's attention was addictive. He was the one thing he counted on more than anything. He almost thought about letting him have another round, but really, he needed to go check on Ichigo after he'd slept the night before. And he should take Shunsui with him, he supposed. What his longtime lover said was true, he had fallen a bit enamored with the fiery boy. However, now was not the time to even think of that in the least. The poor creature was too confused for words at the moment. He headed back and changed into a fresh set of hakama and shook his head at Shunsui.

"Come," he muttered.

"I just did," Shunsui said as he swatted Jūshirō's ass as he passed him. Jūshirō's face reddened a bit but he followed him back to Kuchiki manor.

"Have you spoken with Abarai or Kuchiki?" Shunsui asked as they walked through the morning sun to the manor.

"Not yet. With everything that happened yesterday, I didn't want to stay after I put him to sleep again," he said with a sigh as they were led into the front room where Byakuya was sitting with Renji.

"Ukitake-taichou," Renji said and stood up. "Kyōraku-taichou," he acknowledged.

"How did the night go?" Jūshirō asked with a sigh. He almost didn't want to know.

Byakuya shook his head. "Nothing, surprisingly. He slept through it, but I believe it was mostly due to sheer exhaustion of the events of yesterday. Have there been any leads from the World of the Living about Shiba?"

Shunsui shook his head. "None. Jūshirō wanted me to come talk to him today, since I wasn't in attendance yesterday, perhaps as a neutral party since I didn't come to retrieve him."

"Might be for the best," Byakuya said with a sigh. "He woke a few minutes ago, but he hasn't come out."

Shunsui nodded and headed down to the room he sensed the young Shinigami in. He knocked gently on the door.

"Um, come in?" he heard from the other side.

He slid the door open and grinned at the young man. "Ah, Ichigo-san…" he said as he came in, shutting the door behind him. "My lovely Jūshirō said you had been brought over. Though not by choice, I hear."

Ichigo was sitting on the futon and staring at him. "Yeah."

Shunsui sighed and sat down on the other end of the futon. "Ichigo, I've been told what happened already, so you don't need to explain it."

"I don't even want to be here," he said and stood up, crossing his arms over his chest. "Nothing's wrong with me. My sisters need me."

"Yoruichi and Urahara are taking care of your sisters, Ichigo."

Ichigo nodded. "That's good."

"He can't harm them," Shunsui added.

Ichigo turned back toward him. "Why do you say that?"

"That's one of the reasons you want to go back. Because you think he'll hurt one of your sisters."

"You all don't understand!" he said and turned away from him toward the barrier that kept him from leaving the house into the yard. He could go into the rest of the house, he just couldn't leave it.

"Then make me understand," Shunsui said and leaned back against the wall. "Tell me what it is that we don't understand."

Ichigo swallowed a ball at his throat. "It was…it was…special to me," he said with a sigh. "As fucked up as it is, as messed up, I thought…I thought it meant something."

"Ichigo, you were a child. You were not his property to do with as he liked. You understand that, right?" Shunsui said as he sighed.

Ichigo ran his hands over his head. "But…I could have stopped it, so many times, I could have left, I could have told someone, I could have gone away…"

"You couldn't," Shunsui said softly. "You couldn't go away because you didn't want to leave your sisters."

Ichigo turned back to him and a feeling he felt so familiar with struck him. He needed to be someone's, it had become such a part of him. He was… Before he thought he moved to Shunsui and dropped to his knees before him, looking up at him. Shunsui looked at him, slightly surprised.

"Ichigo. No. Don't do this," Shunsui said, reaching out and tipping his head up toward him. "I am old, very old, Ichigo, older than your father is, and I see what he has done easily. I know games, my dear, I know games well, and the games he has played with your mind are terrible. And now you see me, an older man with a powerful disposition, much like your father, and you want to reclaim what it is you found comfort it. No, my dear. This does not happen like this," Shunsui said with a gentle smile.

"But…I need someone to…to…"

"You need no one, Ichigo. But I will make you a promise, will that do?" he said with a smirk.

"A promise?" Ichigo asked, looking at him with confused eyes.

"Ah yes, should you work hard, and should you come through all of this, once you get to the other side, if you come to me again, we can talk about any feelings you might have at that time," he said as he turned and left the room with Ichigo still kneeling where he landed.

"You look more worried than when you went in there," Jūshirō said as he stood up from the table.

"He needs to be kept away from those of us he can perceive as similar to his father. The urges are strong in him to have someone control him like that. He equates what his father do to a kind of twisted form of love. It is all tangled in guilt, shame, and misinterpretation of love or affection. It was a game, and now we must undo it."

"How can we do this?" Byakuya asked with a deep frown.

"The younger ones, for the most part. I'd suggest Izuru, for one. He has a quiet nature, and has more than enough guilt for all of us. Possibly Shūhei, but he may be to brash for him. He needs contact with those that will not trigger the reactions his father programmed into him," he said with a sigh. "Working in concert with Unohana, of course."

Renji looked at him. "You called it a game. What do you mean?"

Shunsui sighed and shook his head. Shiba gave up everything when he left Soul Society for the World of the Living. He gave up his position, he gave up his power, all for Masaki Kurosaki. He sacrificed everything and to be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if the whole thing didn't warp his mind in some fashion. Aizen's plans were long reaching and did more harm than anyone could have imagined, even though the next generation. What he did…there is no forgiveness for it. He took a child, a scared, afraid and very lonely child, and completely warped Ichigo's sense of what a loving relationship with a father should be."

"Should we not find someone that can nurture that type of relationship with him?" Byakuya asked and looked between them. "Obviously not one of us. We're far too similar in that we are all authority figures. He will defer to us as men in position of power simply by our status as captains in the Gotei 13. That puts us on an equivalency with his father we cannot ignore."

"This is an out there suggestion…" Renji started and looked between the three captains. "Ryūken Ishida might be an option."

Shunsui exchanged a look with the other two. "I…that is possible, I suppose, but would he even consider coming to Soul Society?"

"He was the one that found out what was happening with Ichigo," Jūshirō said and looked around.

"But Ichigo was livid and angry at him," Byakuya commented.

Shunsui thought. "That isn't necessarily a bad thing. Ichigo needs someone that will do what Ichigo needs, not what he wants."

"Urahara is also someone who might be able to help in the same way," Jūshirō offered.

Byakuya shook his head. "That's not the best option. That might be too close to home for him. Urahara was the one that trained him, so he may see him as a father figure already."

"I don't think Ryūken is going to be amenable," Byakuya said with a sigh.

"He's the closest thing to a relative that Ichigo has, considering his Quincy blood," Jūshirō said with a nod. "Kuchiki-san, will you speak with him about it?"

Byakuya hid the grimace. "Yes. I will go through and see what he says."

Byakuya had his doubts about this course of action, but as it was, they needed to do something to help him. He had no idea why it was so important to him that they help the brat. But it was for some reason. He stepped out into the World of the Living and easily followed Ryūken's reiatsu to the hospital. He walked into the emergency and immediately felt the other man's eyes on him. He saw him put down a clipboard and come to him with a thunderous look on his face.

"What do you want?" he asked. "I have no other news about…"

"We have a request."

Ryūken frowned and looked at him. "What?"

"Ichigo is…having difficulty adjusting to things. We thought that it might benefit him to have someone work with him that isn't a person he sees as an authority like his father was over him," Byakuya explained.

"What does this have to do with me?" Ryūken asked, narrowing his eyes at the Shinigami.

"We'd like you to see if you can make some headway with him where we are unable."

Ryūken blinked. "Wait. You want me to come be a father to Isshin's son? I was barely a father to my own son," he said and rolled his eyes a bit.

"If you are not willing, I will see if one of us can manage to help him, but he has already show submission to those of us he perceives as in power over him. His father's position as a Shinigami seems to have influence over how he reacts to the rest of us now that he is not under his control. It might be detrimental, but we will try."

Byakuya turned to leave. "Wait," Ryūken said with a sigh. "Wait a minute."

A few minutes later, Ryūken came back with a look on his face that wasn't much different than before. "I will not stay for long. I've taken some leave time from my job here. Should I bring Uryū with us?"

Byakuya nodded. "I am sure that it would benefit Ichigo to have him there. Hitsugaya-taichou, Matsumoto-fuku taichou, and some from the eleventh have come to the World of the Living to search for Shiba."

A few minutes later, they stood in front of a very surprised Uryū. "You want him to work with Ichigo? Really?"

Byakuya nodded. "He needs someone who is not a Shinigami. There is much for him to work through. Your father is the only one that Ichigo might be able to deal with right now."

Uryū held the urge to laugh. "Alright, well, I'll go along, if only to help when he isn't able to do anything…" he muttered the last as he followed them.

Ryūken hadn't been to Soul Society and even though he didn't show it, was interested. He'd been unsure of how he would react, but the reishi rich environment was different. He sighed as he followed Byakuya into the Kuchiki manor. Uryū stopped.

"I should at least tell him what you're doing here. He wasn't the most pleased with Ryūken when he last saw him," he muttered.

Byakuya nodded and took them down to the room that Renji was sitting outside of. He stood and looked at them. "Kyōraku-taichou and Ukitake-taichou went to speak with Unohana-taichou. Thank you for coming, Ishida-san," he said with a slight nod of his head.

Ryūken snorted and shook his head. "This is not going to accomplish what you hope it will."

Uryū shrugged. "Either way, I'll go talk to him first."

When Uryū opened the door, Ichigo was sitting in front of the barrier between him and the outside. He was just starting. He looked up when Uryū came in.

"The hell do you want?" he muttered.

"Ichigo, you know, no one wants to see you hurting."

"I'm not hurting. I want to go home, and I want you all to stay out of it," he said with a sigh. "I didn't ask for your help. I don't need it. Just leave it alone," he responded and refused to look at him any longer.

Uryū nodded. "I just wanted to let you know, they asked Ryūken to come see you, maybe talk to you."

"I don't want to see him. He's the one that caused all this to happen."

"I know. But he came anyway. So. I just wanted to tell you," he said and turned to leave.

"I'm sorry," Ichigo whispered. Uryū turned back to debate asking what he was sorry for, but nodded instead and went out.

Ryūken looked up as he came out. He sighed. "He blames Ryūken for his, so I really don't think he's going to react well to him being here."

"Whatever he thinks, I won't walk away from it. It's my responsibility because I discovered it. I'm a doctor, first and foremost," Ryūken said as he opened the door and went it.

"I don't want to talk to you," Ichigo said as soon as the door shut.

"Don't care," Ryūken responded and sat down on the futon behind him. "Look, first, I didn't want to get involved with any of this. It wasn't like I went out of my way to find this out. But I did. And I'm a doctor, and it isn't something I can turn away from. And I owe it to your mother."

Ichigo did turn and look at him now. "What do you mean?"

"Masaki Kurosaki," he said with a smile. "She knew my wife, Kanae Katagiri. They were friends. Quincies, we always have kept in contact with other Quincies. Your mother was no exception. She was a good woman," he said and sighed. Ichigo was just staring at him. "She had such a good heart, well both did. I had little respect for Shiba, even when he gave up his status as a Shinigami to save her from White." When Ichigo's face changed to surprise Ryūken nodded. "Yes, I know about White. I know it passed to you, and I understand that he used that against you, which doesn't surprise me. He faced that thing directly inside Masaki's mind. I truly believe he feared that creature."

"Why would he fear him?" Ichigo asked, quiet and listening closely now.

"Shiba saw him, at the most powerful, as it tried to turn Masaki into a hollow. It surprised me to find that it had passed on to you, as your Zanpakutō. I admit, I feared the same as your father, that it would overpower anyone that it had control over. But Uryū believed that you would never submit to it."

"Shiro isn't anything to fear," Ichigo whispered, looking down. "He…he isn't. He wants to protect me, that's all. He…he will do anything to protect me," he said and sighed. "I hid it from him, locked up inside as tight as I could. He…he didn't know, otherwise…he would have hurt him," he said as he looked away.

Ryūken stared for a minute. "You speak of it like another person."

"He is," Ichigo said and looked at him. "I don't fear him. But others should."

"You really believed him when he told you that you were a monster because of White," Ryūken said with a sigh. "You believe that it…he…makes you a monster."

"Of course, it does. I don't fear him, but if he takes over, he has no mind. He'll kill without a thought. I nearly killed Uryū! I didn't even know him, I was watching and he said…he warned me…don't die. And I wasn't strong enough to keep him at bay. I couldn't…I wasn't strong enough to avoid dying. So Uryū got hurt. If that's not proof that I'm a monster, I don't know what is…" he said and looked away. "I…I…did so many things…"

Ryūken was beginning to understand. "Ichigo," he said and stood up, moving to stand behind him. "You blame yourself for a lot of things, don't you?"

Ichigo turned and glared at him. "I blame myself for what I've done, nothing else."

Ryūken sighed and sat down near him. "Ichigo, why are you protecting him, even now?"

He looked at him. "I don't know," he said and stared at his hands. "I don't…I just…if it wasn't…wasn't love…what was it?"

"Love doesn't hurt, Ichigo."

"But it made it real," he said finally and looked away from him. "The pain was real, nothing else."

Ryūken sat beside him for a while, and despite his attempts to not care, he did. He saw Masaki in the boy. He saw the woman he remembered when he was a younger man. He swallowed and before he knew what he was doing, he put an arm around his shoulders. Ichigo flinched at first but then let him.

"I'm going to be here, Ichigo. I'm…I'm not a very good father figure. Not really. You can ask Uryū, I was pretty horrible. So, I can't tell you I'll be a father figure at all. All I can say is that I'll be here. That's all."

Ryūken stood up and left quietly, shutting the door behind him. Byakuya was standing there still with Uryū. "I'll stay," Ryūken said and nodded. "I'll try. For Masaki, not for Shiba."

-oooooo-OOOOOO-oooooo-

Ichigo had no idea how to deal with the whole thing. He was torn inside for so many reasons. He sunk into his inner world slowly.

"King," he heard and opened his eyes. He was lying on the side of one of the buildings. He looked beside him to see Shiro sitting beside him.

"Shiro, what is it?" he said with a deep sigh.

"Please, stop this."

Ichigo closed his eyes and opened them again to see the house that was coated with ice still. Shiro was standing beside him. He reached over and took Ichigo's hand. "We have to go in together," Shiro said and looked at him again.

"I can't go in there," Ichigo said as the ice started to fall heavier around them.

"You have to." Shiro saw under the ice, a crystal-clear butterfly was trapped.

Ichigo looked at him. "How can I?"

"I'll be with you, King. I promise."

Ichigo looked at him and nodded. "Why do I have to go in there?"

"Because if you don't, nothing is going to change, King. You've got to deal with this."

Ichigo clutched Shiro's hand tightly and nodded. "Okay, I'm ready."

The house was identical to his own. However, when he walked into it, there was a feeling of oppression and pressure.

You are at fault.

I am at fault.

You killed her.

I killed her.

The voices alternated between Isshin's and Ichigo's own.

You are a monster.

I am a monster.

Weak and disgusting…

The world spun and he was standing in a reversed reflection of his room. He was watching a nearly transparent image of himself and Isshin there.

"You understand, right? You understand that I love you, right son?"

"I know. But why…"

"Because I love you, that's all, I love you, and you're mine, remember?"

"I don't know what to do…"

"Do what I say…"

Shiro gripped his hand tighter. He world spun again. The TV in front of him was playing one of the videos. He heard the whispered voices around him.

See…you aren't the only one…

Please, I don't want this…I never have…just stop…

I can't stop. You make me do this. You make me hurt you. I'm your father. I must punish you, don't I? Or do you think you don't deserve to be punished?

I do…I deserve it...

Remind me why?

I…I'm a monster. It is my fault Mom died.

You also almost killed Uryū when you were weak.

I know. It was because I was a monster.

Are. You are a monster still. Stop crying. You don't deserve to cry.

"He's wrong," Shiro said, and Ichigo could still feel him clutching his hand. "You don't deserve to be punished just because I'm here. You aren't at fault for existing. You did everything you could to protect your sisters from him. You aren't weak. I've watched everything, Ichigo. Everything you hid from me. And I've seen it. You never asked for what he did to you."

Ichigo swallowed a ball in his throat and looked at him. "How…how do I make it stop?"

"The pain you're feeling? I don't know."

"I let it happen. It wasn't…"

"You didn't. You were a child. No matter what happened, you didn't deserve to be hurt. He was wrong the first time he struck you. It was his own fear of being caught that led to the things he told you. He convinced you he was right and you deserving. It couldn't be further from the truth. He was supposed to take care of you," Shiro said and turned Ichigo to look at him. He put both hands on his shoulders. "What are you afraid of now? He's gone."

"I love him, he's my father…" Ichigo whispered. "No matter what he did. There's no changing that."

"I know." Shiro exhaled and looked at him. "See that butterfly trapped in the ice?"

Ichigo looked up and saw the crystalline creature fluttering madly against the icy barriers. Around them, the ice was beginning become thicker. "What is it?"

"You have to exhale," Shiro said and looked at him.

"What's that mean?" he asked with a confused look on his face.

"Until you exhale, it can't live. You are going to have to let go, exhale…"

Ichigo sighed and blinked. He was staring outside of Kuchiki manor again. He put his head in his hands and had no idea what to do. His head was a mess and he had no idea how to fix it. He nearly yelped when he felt someone put hands on his shoulder. He looked to see Rukia.

"Rukia?" he said and smiled a bit. "Hey."

She smiled and sat down beside him. "Hey. I wanted to come see you but I hadn't had a chance until you got here."

"Yeah," he said and sighed.

"Why didn't you say something?" she asked without looking at him. "I would have helped you."

"I didn't need or want help," Ichigo said with a touch of annoyance.

"You know that's not true, Ichigo. Stop acting like it is. You know what he was doing was wrong," she said and looked out on the yard.

"It doesn't matter; it was my choice."

"No, it wasn't," she commented and looked at him now. "You had no choice, and you know it. He groomed you. He made you believe that he was right. He encouraged your guilt and used it against you."

Ichigo turned and locked eyes with her. "Don't you think I know that?" he whispered finally. "I'm not stupid, Rukia. If…if I had been told by someone else that their father did to them what he did to me, I would have had no doubt it was wrong. But it's different when you're inside. It's so easy to look in from the outside and tell people what to do, and to even think what you would do. I need…I need someone now. I need someone because I'm used to it and it…it is the only think I can count on."

Rukia was quiet for a long time. "I understand that, Ichigo. But…I'm worried about you. I care for you a lot, you know that. And so, do a lot of other people. Nii-sama said that you had some problems when you got here with a few people."

"I can't look at them, in their shihakuso and the haori, and not see him. Every one of them is my father. Every one of them is demanding my complete obedience and I can't stop it. I'm unmoored, Rukia. My tether is gone. I've depended on it for so long…you don't see, it wasn't what he did, it was different…" he said and ran his hands over his hair. "When I was without my power, you can't imagine how bad it became," he whispered. "I was glad you all couldn't come see me. I thought he was going to kill me, and then I was so scared that he'd go after the girls, especially Yuzu. She was the one I worried so much about. I just…I was so afraid that he'd go do something if I wasn't there. He…he needed to get rid of the anger and frustration somehow, right? I could take it, so…so…I had to let him…and I came to depend on him…"

"Depend on him for what, Ichigo?" Rukia asked with a sigh.

"I don't know anymore, Rukia. I don't know. I thought it was…how it was supposed to be. I got what I needed, he got what he needed…" he said and fell back onto his back to stare at the ceiling.

"I'm sorry I didn't see it, Ichigo. I'm sorry."

"He stopped while you were there. I didn't get it then, but now I know it was because he knew the whole time. He said he was afraid I'd tell but that was stupid. Why would I tell anyone something so horrible?" he whispered and shook his head. "I didn't want anyone to know and now they all do."

"Not everyone, Ichigo, the captains know, and the people that are trying to find your father, but that's all. No one else knows," she said and brushed her hand over his head.

"I guess that's good," he said and turned his head to the side. "Can you...um…"

Ichigo stood up suddenly and went to the futon and sat down. It was growing dark already.

Rukia came and sat by him. "What is it?"

He looked at her. "It's stupid."

Rukia shook her head. "No, please, tell me? Do you need something?"

Ichigo swallowed thickly. "Can you stay with me tonight?"

"What?" she asked, genuinely surprised.

"See, dumb," he said and flopped down to face the wall.

Rukia sighed. "I think I understand," she said. "Just wait here. I'll be back," she said as she got up and headed out the door past a confused looking Renji to find her brother.

"Nii-sama?" she asked, finding that Byakuya was sitting at the dining with Ryūken. He looked up.

"Yes, Rukia?" he asked.

"Ichigo wants me to stay with him tonight, I think it would help," she said and looked at him seriously.

Byakuya narrowed his eyes at her. "Stay with him?"

Rukia's face turned to a horrified expression. "Not like that! Nii-sama! I can't believe you'd think that!" she said and put her hands on her hips. "For one thing, he doesn't even like girls like that," she muttered.

"Wait, what?" Uryū said as he came in and sat down near Byakuya.

Rukia arched a brow at him. "Really? Inoue has been practically throwing herself at him for years. If he was into girls, that would have happened a long time ago. Besides, he's got a crush on Renji," she muttered with a small smirk.

The three men at the table stared at her and she rolled her eyes. "You are all clueless," she muttered. "He needs someone to comfort him, that's all."

Byakuya nodded. "Let me know if he needs something," he said and smiled at her.

She nodded and headed to change into a yukata for the night, grabbing a stuffed panda that sat in her room. It wasn't for her, of course. She passed Renji again who looked even more confused as she disappeared into the room. Ichigo looked up and gave her a small smile. She slid into the futon under the covers and put her arms around him from behind, letting him curl in on himself. As he was falling asleep, he slipped the panda into his arms. He clutched it to his chest. She ran a hand over his head with a sigh.

She didn't notice when the door opened and Renji peeked into the room.