~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~ (Ichigo's POV)

By the time the hospital came into sight, he had exhausted his will and felt like he was no closer to regaining himself than Uryuu was. About to give up complete hope and wait for death to come for him, his Hollow surprised him when his legs ground to a halt, too close to the hospital for Ichigo's comfort. He could feel the smirk on his face, reminding Ichigo of just how awkward it was to actually be seeing and feeling like he was still in control of himself, yet unable to actually do anything but watch and listen and feel. That was when he spoke.

'So King, what do ya think we should do to the Quincy boy now?'

The remark was followed by a snicker, and just that was enough to rile Ichigo's blood back into a boil, and with a burst of effort, he tried to raise his fist to punch himself.

He succeeded.

Ichigo felt his neck snap with the force of the sudden, unhindered movement, and knew without a doubt just how much it surprised the both of them; heard his Hollow's low growl and felt it when his Hollow gripped the hand that punched him with his other hand, holding both flush against the front of his body. He could feel the pain spreading through his cheek, and knew if he'd aimed any higher, he might have dislocated his jaw, if not broken it: if he'd really been aiming at all, that is.

'The hell was that for?!'

'LET ME OUT!'

His intention was to scream this at the top of his lungs, but his lips wouldn't move, so he was reduced to screaming at his Hollow as loud as he could from within his mind, which gave him a headache. Why did this have to be so confusing?

'Yer gonna die, anyway, King.'

The words gave him pause, and despite his better judgment, he gave his Hollow time to continue.

'You can't feel it? Those freaks from the Soul Society... the little Quincy's daddy dearest... even yer friends; they're all turnin' against ya and they can't wait ta just get rid of ya. This is yer last chance to even say g'bye to the guy. Yer really gonna just lay down like a dog after everythin'?'

Ichigo felt his heart skip a beat. He knew Chad had gone to Urahara about him. Which meant Urahara would have told the Soul Society. Uryuu's dad was pissed enough to want him dead... which meant his Hollow had to be telling him the truth. Was this really his last chance to see Uryuu...?

'If ya don't get yer ass in gear, that last chance ain't gonna be there fer long.'

'Give me back control.' Surprised at how steady his voice sounded, he pleaded under the guise of making a deal, 'Give me back my body and I'll go see Uryuu. And I'll tell him everything.'

Somewhat frightened at hearing the quiet purr his Hollow made, he was barely able to make out the words as he suddenly dropped to his knees, his entire body shaking as he tried to catch himself with his hands before his nose met concrete. Breathing heavily, Ichigo tested his body first by glancing around, then by leaning onto his legs and clenching his hands into fists before he finally stood and took off at a dead run toward the hospital. He didn't even know if Uryuu was there, but this was where his Hollow had brought him. He could find him. He could make amends.

He would tell Uryuu just how sorry he was for everything that had happened... and finally tell him that he loved him.

~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~

Ichigo was flying down the halls of the hospital, for once following his Hollow's suggestion without hesitation, the constant thought of time running out weighing against him. He allowed his Hollow to search for the reiatsu and tell him how to follow it, so he could focus on simply getting there as fast as possible. The one time they seemed to be in unison, and Ichigo couldn't find it in himself to care. He had to see Uryuu one last time.

One... last... The thought was almost too much to bare, and he blinked the starting of tears back before they could cloud his vision. He didn't have time to waste on emotion.

'Left.'

His muscles jolted without a seconds hesitation, his entire body peeling left without wondering if there was a wall or a door in his way, but he was met with no resistance as he took off down another hall. It didn't take long before he heard his Hollow's voice again, saying Uryuu was just behind the door on his right. When he made a hard stop, he was somewhat relieved his shoes didn't squeal on the tile floors, and silently counted his blessings that he hadn't passed anyone working yet. Unsure of whether or not to chalk that up to his Hollow as well, he put the thought aside as his hand instantly came to the door handle, but froze there.

What if he only caused Uryuu more problems by saying goodbye? What if his Hollow was lying to him again, and just wanted an easier way to get to Uryuu? Did he just provide that...?

'They're coming.'

He didn't know who 'they' were, but his mind suddenly raced with images of being taken back to the Soul Society and executed the way Rukia had almost been, and the thought was more than enough to put his body into action where as his mind was still floundering. He opened the door with a quiet but audible 'click', and stepped into the room.

The room was small, but open, with only a few shelves on the wall with books and nick-nacks, a desk at the very back, and two comfortable looking armchairs almost facing each other in front of the desk; and sitting in the right most armchair was a stiff shouldered Uryuu, who very slowly turned around to glance at him with wide, terrified eyes.

For a moment, Ichigo didn't know what to do. This was a bad idea. This was a horrible idea, but seeing Uryuu just sitting there, curling in on himself slowly as his body began a very fine trembling that he almost couldn't even see... Ichigo had taken a few steps forward without even realizing, startled by the sudden reaction Uryuu gave him. Uryuu's hands flew to cover his head, his eyes scrunching shut even as he yelled at him,

"YOU'RE NOT REAL! JUST GO AWAY!"

Everything he was going to say, everything he'd semi-planned out melted from his brain with those words, and he felt it acutely like someone had stabbed through his heart with a knife. Through the pain, he wasn't sure when he'd closed the distance between himself and Uryuu's chair, or when he'd dropped to his knees in front of him. All he knew was looking up at Uryuu's blurry outline, he'd never felt so guilty in his entire life.

And then he said it.

~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~ (Byakuya's POV)

The human world was exactly as he didn't want to remember it; quiet and peaceful when his mind would give him none. He was sorely regretting the decision to bring his lieutenant, for every few steps was a question he either didn't want to answer, or didn't plan to answer, and it was starting to gravely annoy him.

'At least the 11th's 3rd seat knows when to observe for his answers, instead of ask for them,' he thought in frustration, glancing over at the bald man who still had yet to say a word to him.

It had only been moments earlier when they arrived in the human world, but already Byakuya could feel something amiss; something that credited not only his sister's earlier claims, but the claims of a certain Kisuke Urahara. In fact, the very people who had been so eager to defend Ichigo before were all but throwing him to the wolves this time around, and he had vaguely wondered why that was; at least, until now. Now... he could feel it. The crushing weight unlike any other that was a powerful Hollow melded with the intense spiritual pressure of a strong Shinigami.

It was a feeling he had never forgotten since the day of Rukia's scheduled execution, yet it was one he had hoped to never feel again. His memory flashed through still images of his battle, when the Hollow mask had formed and he had almost been blown apart by the spiritual pressure he exuded alone. This boy continued to place balance of the worlds in danger, and Rukia was right; he had to be stopped.

"What... is that?" came Renji's sudden and startled reply, dragging Byakuya from his thoughts.

It was about time he noticed, as they had been walking for a while, with Byakuya heading the way, toward the spiritual pressure. He glanced over at his partner, tossing aside the fleeting thought that he shouldn't have brought him, and watched the answer to his own question don in his expression. He had been there that day; he had felt it, and finally, Byakuya watched as recognition dulled his features before finally fading into a disquieted shock. He was expecting a challenge of his authority, or another volley of questions directed at his intellect, but what he didn't expect was Renji to grab onto the sleeve of his captain's garb, halting his steps by the sheer force of the tug backward.

Turning his head to give Renji a death glare, he was about to tell him off for touching his uniform when Renji's unsettling tone found its way to his ears.

"How could you not tell me about this...?"

Constantly aware they had an audience, Byakuya tugged his sleeve out of Renji's grasp and gave the man his back, walking several steps forward before finally answering over his shoulder,

"You found out for yourself why we're here, did you not, Abarai?"

Even as he spoke the words, he felt it acutely when the spiritual pressure he'd been following... dropped off the map. Completely up and vanished, leaving no trail for him to follow except the general direction he'd already been heading. He could tell Renji and Ikkaku felt it too, but for whatever reason, Renji kept himself quiet. He honestly wasn't complaining, it was just odd to not have to deal with a torrent of obvious questions any longer.

So they followed the presence to where it disappeared, and Byakuya took note that they stood a little ways before a rather large and wide building with a familiar cross upon it.

It only took him a few seconds to recognize it as the Quincy cross.

~.X.~ ~.X.~ ~.X.~ (Rukia's POV)

Sitting on the roof of the Kurosaki home, her gaze and her thoughts were turned toward the clouds that obscured the stars above. She'd done something to anger Uryuu, his father be damned; even in his state, Uryuu wouldn't have allowed himself to take on the emotions of another person, or be so easily persuaded to tell her to leave with such vehemency. No, she had done something wrong, and she felt like she knew exactly what it was.

Rather, what it was that she hadn't done. She hadn't helped him; not in the slightest. Even after all of her guilt and her attempts to right the wrong done to him, in the end, she was the one at fault here. She should have picked out the signs earlier, understood what was going on sooner, and taken him from the situation or solved the problem before things had gotten out of hand. She should have known, should have looked harder, should have...

It wasn't fair. Shivering slightly in the autumn wind, she curled her legs up to the rest of her body, wrapping her arms around her knees as she rested her chin there. It was her fault all of this happened. The signs were there, and she stood by and did nothing; when she finally did act, of course it all would have seemed like a farce, since she still didn't stop anything. She had let Uryuu sink deeper into depression and she had let Ichigo run free to continue his tormenting... It was all her fault...

She felt his presence the moment he arrived, her body stiffening against the bitter wind, and the implications made her blood run colder than her skin felt. The Soul Society had finally acted, and among everybody they could have sent to do the job, they sent her brother.

Her brother, of all people...

But the direction in which he seemed to be headed confused her; and made her heart pound heavily in her chest at the same time. He was headed in the direction of the Quincy hospital, and it took her a few seconds to figure out why. Once she felt it, it was hard to believe she'd missed the spiritual pressure, even as lost in her thoughts as she was. Once she felt it, she was moving before she'd even had the thought of moving.

Once she felt it, the crushing weight disappeared, leaving her blood as cold as the icy wind around her: leaving her with the knowledge she had to get to the hospital.

Now.

Her legs were flying faster than they ever had before, and not even the impact of jumping off the second story roof jarred them enough for her to stumble. She hit the ground in a dead run, tearing through the streets as she followed her brother's presence to the area where Ichigo's Hollow had managed to mask his pressure, paying no heed to the buildings flying by. It was because she was unaware of her surroundings that she rounded a corner and ran head-first into a person, causing both of them to go flying forward, into asphalt. She rolled on impact, trying to lessen the bruises and scraps she knew she would end up with but couldn't feel in her adrenaline rush, and with a quick and sputtered, "Sorry," she made her way onto her feet again, taking off.

She didn't expect a hand to grab her arm and pull her back, and it was with a startled and somewhat frightened gaze that she turned her head, almost expecting to see a Hollow's mask on Ichigo's face baring down on her. The sight that did meet her was less frightening, but no less astonishing.

"So you felt it too, then?"

"Urahara?!" her exclamation came a little louder than she'd expected it to, and with his free hand, Urahara lifted a finger to his lips to quiet her before letting go of her arm.

He began walking at a normal (If not slightly brisk,) pace, and struggling not to run, Rukia fell into pace beside him, knowing he was headed in the same direction as she was. Thoughts swirled in her mind, fueled by fear and anxiety for Uryuu and Ichigo alike, but just as soon as she was able to grasp onto the words to voice her fear, she noticed Urahara lower the brim of his hat to shade his eyes, seconds before he interrupted her unspoken thoughts,

"I guess this means the countdown is over. Tonight... we find out if either one will survive."

In spite of her panic, Rukia felt her hands begin to tremble at his words.

How had everything come to this...?