Title: A Power-Hungry Madman is Having Fun Playing With One of Urahara's Toys.

Dislcaimer: Don't own.

A/N: 24 days since DiamondDust Rebellion came out… by the way, I found this cool video on Youtube. It's some sort of preview for DDR, but get this: It has the first six minutes of the movie, and vaguely explains what happens for the next half-hour to an hour!!! SQUEE!!! It's called "Bleach The Movie 2: The DiamondDust Rebellion 6 Min Pre Sub" and those who don't care about vague spoilers that don't spoil anything important really should go watch it! The translation on the subbing is word-for-word so it's somewhat hard to understand at points, but it's still awesome. What I don't get is this one part at the end, WHERE IT LOOKS LIKE HITSUGAYA GREW HALF A FOOT! WHAT THE HELL IS WITH THAT?

And that part at the end of Chapter Six? It will happen. But I need to know: should it be a truce or a "Shinigami must die" sort of thing?

Wish: Reviews!

Urahara sat down next to the futon. "You have met Inoue Orihime, haven't you?"

"Yeah. Ditzy girl. Can't handle electronics to save her life. That one?"

"Yes. Anyway, her power is to reject things that have happened. In this way she trespasses on God's territory."

Ed sat straight up. "You mean she can bring someone back to life?"

"Technically yes, if they weren't completely blown to oblivion."

Ed lay back down. "What Al and I would have given for a power like that."

Urahara's eyebrow raised almost imperceptibly. "Anyway, after Jinta and Ururu brought you back and Hitsugaya-taichou showed up wondering where you had disappeared to, Hitsugaya-taichou had the idea of getting her over here. So Matsumoto-fukutaichou ran off to find her and found Hoenheim in the process."

"Found." Ichigo grumbled. "More like he was listening in on our entire conversation." He then moved his glare from the floor to Hoenheim. "Speaking of which, I still don't know who the hell you are."

Hoenheim pointed at himself. "Van Hoenheim."

Ichigo pointed from Hoenheim to Ed and back again. "But aren't you his father? You don't share names at all."

Hoenheim sighed. "His mother and I never married. And besides, I'm old enough that I never had a last name to begin with."

"But isn't Hoenheim your last name?"

"No; one would think that Van is my first name but it is just part of Hoenheim I'm afraid."

"So everybody just calls you Hoenheim?"

"Or Hikari no Hoenheim, or Hoenheim-taichou of Sixth Division."

Ichigo pointed at Urahara. "So you're a shinigami like him?"

Urahara smirked. "Ah, good times, good times. When Isshin decided to abandon Sereitei for Masaki, I decided to go along with the fun, and of course Yoruichi wouldn't let me leave without her. When Hoenheim learned that his two best friends were leaving Sereitei, even the noble Hoenheim couldn't stay."

Hitsugaya snorted. "I remember that well. Yamamoto-soutaichou threw a fit. He would have ordered the entire Special Forces out to look for you, if it wasn't currently leaderless. He actually threw the captain's haori at me. Told me it was for the greater good and that I might as well keep doing what I had been doing."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

Hitsugaya actually smirked. "Your father was second only to Kyouraku-taichou, the only difference being levels of drunkeness and the fact that while Kyouraku has Ise-fukutaichou your father was stuck with foul-mouthed brat."

For some reason Ichigo had problems imagining Hitsugaya as a foul-mouthed little kid. Then something clicked. "Wait a moment… my father was a captain? He didn't tell me that… THE BASTARD!" And he charged out of Urahara Shoten, intent on spilling ex-shinigami-captain blood.

Meanwhile Ed was pointing a shaking finger at his father. "You… you were a shinigami? No… you were a captain?"

Hoenheim folded his arms, and gave the closest thing to a smirk Ed had ever seen on his face. "How else would I be here? You saw me die yourself… it was over seventy years ago wasn't it?"

Ed nodded, not quite sure what to say.

"By the way, if left to your own devices shouldn't you still be alive? Or at least not be dead long enough to be a captain."

Urahara motioned for the others to leave, leaving Ed and Hoenheim alone.

Ed looked at the floor. "What we did affected nothing. The Nazis still gained power and still went to war with the rest of the world."

Hoenheim nodded understandingly.

"Those in charge somehow knew what had happened that night. And besides that, Al and I refused to enlist. They had us deported to Japan. But then the Americans nuked Hiroshima, where I was doing forced labor. The city was annihilated in an instant."

"And how is Alphonse?"

There was a painful silence. "I… I haven't seen him since we were deported."

Again, painful silence.

Suddenly Ed lunged himself at Hoenheim and started sobbing. "And I don't know whether he died when the bomb hit, or if he's still alive out there, or if he's lost in Rukongai somewhere, or if he's already died in Rukongai and I'll never see him again!"

Given no other choice, Hoenheim embraced his son, and comforted him to the best of his abilities.

In another room, the others were having tea. Hearing the quiet sobbing, Hawkeye set her cup down. "That boy hasn't had an easy life."

Hitsugaya took a sip form his own cup. "You keep saying that, but you never elaborate. Either explain, or stop saying that."

Hawkeye looked into the distance. "I'll just say that he joined the military at twelve and leave it at that."

Hoenheim suddenly came out of the other room and shut the door quietly behind him. "He's resting now, God knows he needs it. He's been under way too much stress lately."

Hitsugaya took a sip from his tea. "We've all been under too much stress lately. I'm sure Urahara here has filled you in on the details."

Hoenheim sat down and poured himself a cup. "Not really; he just mentioned a power-hungry madman who is having fun playing with one of Urahara's toys."

"That's not the half of it. Aizen Sousuke defected along with Ichimaru Gin and Tousen Kaname and stole the Hougyoku."

Hoenheim spewed tea. Then he looked at Urahara. "Please tell me… Please tell me the Hougyoku is not in the hands of someone who wants all of Sereitei dead."

"Heheh… heh… heh."

Hoenheim stared at his cup. "Now I'm not so sure about leaving Sereitei. I wish I could help."

"Of course you can help! Do some unofficial Earth-side duty!"

Suddenly the door opened and Edward Elric walked in. Hoenheim glared at him. "You weren't really sleeping, were you?"

Edward yawned. "Actually I was. But I just got a message from Sereitei. Hawkeye, we're being ordered back, effective immediately."