~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~ (Ichigo's POV)
His legs were burning and so were his lungs, but he couldn't slow down. His body was moving faster than it ever had, but somehow his mind was going even faster. He actually had been the one to hurt Uryuu; maybe not him him, but him Hollowfied horrifically, no memory, no recollection, sudden memory, running out in class -
Oh Shit. It wasn't just Uryuu; it had only been Uryuu hurt, but he'd put everyone in danger. Rukia, Chad, Orihime, his dad, his sist- Oh god, his sisters! How could he have lived with himself if he'd done something to his sisters? How could he even live with himself, knowing without remembering all of what he'd done to Uryuu? Images of the broken, bloodied Uryuu he'd come to before taking him to the hospital flashed into his mind, tormenting him further, driving him insane.
He couldn't take it anymore, couldn't think anymore without that memory creeping up on him, seeing Uryuu's face twisted in agony and terror and -
Ichigo involuntarily gasped as he stumbled, one of his legs suddenly buckling under his weight. At high speed, he watched the ground of the alleyway come up to greet his face and felt the stinging, burning pain of impact as his body rag-dolled, skidded and rolled, pain blossoming around his entire body seconds before his left side and shoulder were slammed up against a wooden fence. The wood splintered and gave way beneath his body, part of the fence collapsing underneath him.
As the dust finally settled on and around the orange haired boy heaving and panting on the ground, he closed his eyes tightly, trying to erase the images from his mind. He was almost in tears, but not from the pain that suddenly surrounded his body. No, the burning pain from pushing himself to the limit was bearable. The stinging of cuts and bruises with dirt mixed blood was forgettable. The pounding headache that was making it hard to look at the light around him was easily dismissed. All of his pains and more, he had put Uryuu through; what had him in tears was he wasn't sure what to do now.
How could he show his face to anyone now? He'd managed to almost kill Uryuu without anyone knowing; not even himself. It was dreadful to think what might have happened if he hadn't woken up when he did, but... even still, he was left with the uncertainty that stemmed from not knowing if or when it was going to happen again. It would be better for everyone if he just... disappeared, it seemed.
"Is this a new thing with kids these days - breaking down people's fences?"
The voice startled Ichigo, snapping his eyes open and jerking his head toward the sound, despite the groaning protests of his aching body. When he finally managed to make out the blurry image of green and black before him, he let his head hit the ground again, groaning quietly as he heard Urahara walk over to his prone body. Great; someone else to see his humiliation.
"Come on, Ichigo. Let's get you inside."
He didn't respond when Urahara leaned down to grab his shoulder and help him off the ground, though he did hiss when his joints pulled painfully. What could he say?
'Don't touch me, my hollow might rape you?'
Something piqued his interest, however; Urahara seemed... like he expected Ichigo. Like he'd been waiting on him to show up. That thought alone kept him quiet as Urahara helped him up, dusted him off slightly, and led him into the shop where he stayed. Each step was painful, but Ichigo forced himself onward without a sound of discomfort, knowing that Uryuu had suffered worse.
He had no room to complain.
~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~
Urahara helped Ichigo bandage what cuts and scrapes he'd gotten from his fall without a single word, and had even given him new clothes to change into since his were dusty and filthy. Ichigo, hard pressed to keep his mouth shut, but unsure of what to say, eventually started talking in the silence between them as Urahara put some tea on to boil.
Unsure of exactly where to start, Ichigo just started talking about Uryuu.
"He's there because of me. I mean, not because of me, but still because of me. I just can't believe it... and his dad; his dad hates me now. I don't blame him, but I still want to help Uryuu and now I can't do anything!"
"Calm down; why can't you do anything?" Urahara replied without bothering to turn away from the stove to look at Ichigo, who was bracing his back and head against one of the walls.
"Because... because I don't know 'what' to do."
"And what 'did' you do before?"
"... I..." Ichigo started, but his tongue felt like lead in his mouth.
There was no turning back; he had to tell someone. Even if he was labeled a monster, even if Urahara agreed that he should find a hole to die in... he had to say something.
So with a churning stomach and a burning in his chest, Ichigo began his story. To his surprise, when the tea was finished half way through Ichigo's explination, Urahara served him his cup without hesitation, and sat down in front of him, keeping eye contact like they were talking about the weather. It startled him, but with a silent encouragement from the male, Ichigo kept speaking until facts had given way to opinions and feelings, and he was near tears expressing something he had only admitted to Rukia until now.
When there were finally no more words to say, Ichigo felt like every part of himself had broken into tiny shards. With every gap in memory he had to explain away, his mind came up with things his Hollow probably did to Uryuu that he still couldn't remember, and it only broke him further. The one friend he'd counted on to always have his back despite their quarrels and fights and heated words... he'd utterly destroyed from the inside out and it killed him to think about it.
It startled Ichigo out of his thoughts when one of Urahara's hands came down on his shoulder, the normally aloof and eccentric man looking solemnly and seriously at him.
So this was it. This was the confirmation he was dreading. He would say he was a monster and the world would be better if he were dead. Despite himself, Ichigo could feel a shudder go through his entire body; he didn't want to die. But he didn't want his friends to die, either. So with a held breath and an almost imperceptive trembling lip, Ichigo waited for the confirmation that never came.
"Isshin wasn't kidding when he said you were devastated."
What?
The hand lifted off Ichigo's shoulder, and unable to process much more than that single question, he looked at where the hand had been, and then back at Urahara, who's eyes were hidden under the shadow of his green and white stripped hat.
"But, lucky for you, I've been working on a solution. Depending on its effectiveness, it could work exactly as planned, or leave you in a coma for a few years... But! That's just a side effect. Nothing to really worry about anyway."
As Urahara spoke, he had gotten up and moved away from Ichigo, leaving the younger male to sit and stare without much thought going through his mind. He watched Urahara reach into a box in the corner and pull out a small, silver amulet on a black chain, dangling it from his fingers for a few seconds before standing and returning to Ichigo, presenting it to him like it was the holy grail.
When Ichigo didn't reach out to take the thing, Urahara placed it on the ground between them, and in the silence, he sighed before he finally explained,
"Look, your dad filled me in a while back, okay? See, he came and found me the night you went to him..."
Ichigo found himself listening to Urahara's story with wide eyes, unable to help the numb, shocked feeling that had spread throughout his body.
~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~ (Uryuu's POV)
He knew he should stop crying. He knew that any moment, the careful embrace he was folded in would be broken, and his father's stern glare would be back, berating him for being weak enough to get taken advantage of. Still, no matter how many times he told himself he was worthless for continuing, he couldn't make the steady stream of tears stop. They just kept rolling down his cheeks and onto Ryuuken's shoulder, soaking through the material of his shirt and possibly ruining it.
Something else for his father to tell him he was worthless for.
Uryuu closed his eyes, but even that wouldn't stop the flood of tears. It was over; it was all over. No matter what lie he managed to tell the man before him, he would still be too weak to be considered worth anything. This was probably a bittersweet goodbye, something that Ryuuken would laugh at later. So when the man finally pulled back from Uryuu, hands still on Uryuu's shoulders, the boy braced himself for the worst.
So when Ryuuken looked him dead-set in the eye and began to speak, Uryuu wasn't prepared for what he heard.
"That boy is going to pay for what he did to you."
At first, the words weren't registering properly to his brain, and it took him a few seconds to actually dissect what Ryuuken had meant. That boy... Ichigo? Would pay... for... what did he do? Did he mean...
Uyruu wasn't able to stop the widening of his eyes, and even though he heard the slow beeping in the background begin to climb in speed, his mind began to race. Someone had found out. Now Ichigo really WAS going to kill him. He was going to come into the room and beat him until pain was all the world revolved around, and then he was going to kill him. He'd just been spared, and already he was looking at another death sentence! Unable to keep the stammer from his voice, he tried - pleaded - for Ryuuken's understanding.
"I-I don't... You don't know what happened. This is just... it's all a misunderstanding!"
His entire body shivered under Ryuuken's intense gaze, and for a moment, he felt himself waver. He could tell just one person... and not get caught, right? But his fear of Ichigo outweighed his fear of Ryuuken in the same moment; he had thought that once before, with Rukia. Ichigo had still found out; so it didn't matter what he did, or who he tried to tell. If he spoke out about their secret, he would be found out, and he would be as good as dead. Not even Ryuuken would be able to change that.
"And exactly what am I misunderstanding? Your torn anus?"
Uryuu flinched at the harsh words, but Ryuuken wouldn't relent.
"Am I misunderstanding all of your broken bones, or the blood in your room? Maybe I'm misunderstanding the fact I caught him over you before you were rushed here. Do tell me, I'm curious at exactly what I'm misunderstanding here."
For several seconds, Uryuu was unable to even formulate an excuse under Ryuuken's hard gaze, fear warring against every other sense Uryuu had. Why was he pushing this? Why did he care? In fact... why DID he care?
Suddenly, Uryuu found himself growing just as angry as he was fearful under Ryuuken's steady gaze. He'd never cared before; called him worthless, worse than even that, never even bothered to make sure he was okay before; oh, but it was okay to threaten him, to want to kick him out of the house for being weak!
"Are you going to talk to me?"
The sound of Ryuuken's agitated voice only fueled Uryuu's own anger, and sent him over the edge, the fear finally taking a back seat as he spat back,
"Get out."
"What?"
Ryuuken's eyebrow raised a fraction, but Uryuu was beyond being able to notice. With his eyes closed, hearing the beeping continue to climb in speed, he raised his voice.
"I said get out! Get out, get the FUCK OUT! I don't want to see you, I don't want to talk to you, and I don't CARE what you think about that!"
"I saved your life."
"YOU LEFT ME FOR DEAD MY ENTIRE LIFE! AS FAR AS I CARE, JUST LET IT STAY THAT WAY!"
By the time he was finished shouting, Uryuu's eyes were screwed shut, and his heavy breathing and blood thrumming in his ears almost drowned out the erratic beeping that broke the tense silence in the room. He refused to open his eyes, his anger draining quickly for fear of retribution from Ryuuken, but the only thing that met his cringe was the feel of Ryuuken leaning away from the bed before footsteps fading told him that his father had indeed, gone to leave the room.
He cringed heavily at the loud slam the door made when it was shut after Ryuuken had left, and it was only then that he opened his eyes.
Nothing but an empty room.
Still... somehow, he felt even worse than before.
~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~ (Ryuuken's POV)
"YOU LEFT ME FOR DEAD MY ENTIRE LIFE! AS FAR AS I CARE, JUST LET IT STAY THAT WAY!"
You left me for dead my entire life. Was that really what he thought? ... Was that really what he had done? Ryuuken kept his gaze remarkably steady, despite how he could feel his fingers beginning to tremble slightly, but Uryuu never looked up at him again. He made it painfully obvious that he wasn't needed, or wanted here, and despite himself, Ryuuken had to bite back a scathing retort. Still... he couldn't quite manage to draw his anger into the fray, either. No matter what had happened... he hadn't done anything to help Uryuu. He was right.
He had left him for dead. Or at least, just as well might have. So it was without another word that he leaned away from his son, swallowing to ease the sudden lump in his throat, before he turned on his heel and forced himself to walk to the door. He wasn't wanted, or needed, despite what he had already done for Uryuu. It didn't matter that he had come to realize exactly what Uryuu meant, and it didn't matter that he had fretted over what to say when Uryuu had finally awakened.
He knew he slammed the door harder than he'd meant to, but his own fury was building that he refused to let Uryuu see. It was that same fury that was doused with ice water as he turned from the room, only to come face to face with the dark haired woman whom he'd seen in Uryuu's room before. She was panting, her hair askew, with wide eyes and an almost panicked look about her even as she fought to catch her breath.
Narrowing his eyes slightly, it didn't take much to piece two and two together. Something had happened with the orange haired bastard, and she had come here to stop it.
Now at least he had someone to take his anger out on.
Placing his hand upon the girl's shoulder, he steered her off to the side, so their voices wouldn't float into Uryuu's room. There, he told her to tell him everything she knew.
A/N: There; it's not my longest chapter, but I finally feel like I've got a good direction for this story again. We're going to have a lot of revelations coming up, so hang onto the edge of your seat, people: this is about to become a bumpy ride!
Special thanks again go out to the lovely Zfrine, LadyGinoza, Isame Kuroda, Anna, Baerbelhaddrell, ellablack9110, Gleca, Axelkin, and the ever anonymous Guest. You seriously don't know how much your reviews mean to me. Every time I read a new review on the story I'm working so hard on, I smile so hard it hurts my cheeks. You're all amazing! Together, we'll see this story through to the end!