The sunlight shining through the window woke Shane a split second before his door burst inward. Shane sat up with a start and was roughly hauled to his feet. Still half asleep and blind without his glasses, Shane was dragged out side and pushed to the ground. A hand grabbed him by the shirt and hauled him to his feet.

"What is wrong with you?" Renji screamed in his face. Shane recoiled back and Renji let him go, causing Shane to stumble and fall again. Shane looked up and squinted, trying to make sense of the blurry figures standing over him. Someone threw his glasses at him and he put them on. Renji, Rangiku, Olivia and the others were standing over him, looking none too happy.

"What's the meaning of this?" Shane asked tiredly. He sighed and slowly stood up. "My neighbors might call the police with all this commotion."

"Why did you leave like that? You had us all worried," Olivia said.

"WHERE IS HE?!" Tatsuki bellowed. Shane winced as Typhoon Tatsuki suddenly appeared. She pushed through the crowd, her face twisted with fury.

"Oh, man," Shane sighed and hung his head. Tatsuki took two steps toward him and unleashed a powerful right hook. Shane didn't bother to move and he took Tatsuki's punch square in the jaw. His eyes rolled up in his head and he was out before he hit the ground. The others simply stared as the shock of what happened slowly sank in. Then, as one, they all began shouting at Tatsuki.

"Serves him right," Tatsuki fumed. Her anger gave off a powerful aura and everyone stopped shouting and slowly stepped back to give Tatsuki room. Tatsuki walked over and gave Shane a good kick in the ribs, then turned around and left.

"Shane sure has some strange friends," Renji said and shuddered.

Olivia ran her hands through her hair and sighed. "Well, could someone help me get him back inside?" she asked. Renji and Ikkaku picked up Shane's limp form and carried him back inside his house.

When Shane woke up, he noticed the sun was coming in the opposite window. The next thing he noticed was the throbbing in his jaw. He touched his face gingerly and felt the swelling. He stood up and walked several steps to his kitchen. He opened the freezer and put several ice cubes in a washcloth and gently held it to his swollen jaw. Shane then looked at the clock and headed out.

Shane met Mr. Akagi in the park, and they did Tai Chi together every day for the following week. Shane proved to be a quick learner, and before long, he had learned the basic forms of Tai Chi. With the sun going down, they walked back to Mr. Akagi's house for tea.

"Tell me, is something bothering you?" Mr. Akagi asked. Shane blinked several times and set his cup down. "How could you tell?" he asked.

"It's in your movements," Mr. Akagi said. "You've learned the basics of Tai Chi, but your movements are stiff and mechanical like. Tai Chi should flow like water, slow but sure."

Shane folded his hands on the table and thought carefully. "I think I'm suffering what all young people my age suffer from," he said.

"And that is?" Mr. Akagi asked, leaning forward slightly.

"Uncertainty. I don't know what to do with my life and I'm unsure of where to go or what to do," Shane confessed.

"Well there you have it," Mr. Akagi smiled.

"Have what?" Shane asked, clearly confused. Mr. Akagi chuckled. "Shane my boy, what makes you think that you are the only one who suffers from not knowing what to do in life? Look around! Do you think anyone truly has any idea what they were meant to do, what their purpose is?" Mr. Akagi leaned back and took a sip of tea. "It seems to me you have recently been given a heavy responsibility and you have no idea if you are the right person. Am I wrong?"

Shane was flabbergasted. "Am I that easy to read?" he managed to ask.

"When you have lived as long as I have, you learn things," Mr. Akagi replied. "I don't know your situation, but it seems as if you boss or whoever seems to think very highly of you."

Shane nodded, thinking of Captain Ukitake. "But I don't understand why. I've never done anything outstanding or worthy of special attention."

"Perhaps you have something about you he finds very useful," Mr. Akagi suggested.

"If he does, I wish he'd tell me what it was," Shane frowned. Mr. Akagi smiled and shook his head. "Give it some time. Things don't happen immediately. Think of flowers. Without love, a lot of patience, and a guiding hand, a small seed won't bloom into a beautiful flower."

Shane nodded his head. "I understand what you mean, but that doesn't make it any easier," he said. "But even flowers bloom in the wild," Shane added.

Mr. Akagi shrugged. "Well you got me on that one. But that is part of what makes us human," Mr. Akagi said. At the word 'human', Shane stiffened slightly. Mr. Akagi didn't notice. "Humans struggle and toil endlessly under the heavens to find meaning in their existence. That is what separates us from other animals and machines." Mr. Akagi finished his tea and set his cup down. "Come now. Enough of this heavy, intellectual thinking." He slapped Shane on the back, causing him to spill several drops. "Don't worry about tomorrow, since today has enough worries of its own. What good is it to worry about things you can't control?"

Shane slowly nodded in agreement and Mr. Akagi could see the wheels turning in Shane's mind. "Yeah, that kinda makes sense," Shane said to himself. He finished his tea, thanked Mr. Akagi, and walked back to his house.

On the way back, Shane passed through the park where he and Mr. Akagi practiced Tai Chi. The clouds broke and the moon cast its pale glow on the world. Shane stopped and closed his eyes. He could feel the whisper of the wind and beat of his heart. The world was calm and so was he. On impulse he dropped into his stance and went through the forms of Tai Chi. With his eyes closed, he felt rather than saw his movements and he understood what Mr. Akagi was talking about. Shane drew in a deep breath and let it out. He cleared his mind of everything except what was happening in that moment. Shane opened his mind and let his feelings and emotions dictate his movements. Completely unaware of anything around him, Shane didn't notice that he had stopped performing Tai Chi and was merely moving to the sound of his own sprit, moving on instinct.

Deep within Shane's mind, something stirred.

Meanwhile, several sets of eyes were watching Shane. His movements were slow and deliberate, as if he were wading through water. A sudden flick of the wrist, and his hands moved faster, more precise, as if he were striking specific points. Shane's motions changed again and he became a whirlwind of arms and legs, striking with knees and elbows. He stopped, then a quick turn of the head, a step here, a shoulder dodge there, avoiding invisible attacks with little wasted motion. Shane then transitioned to something that resembled more of a dance than martial arts. But then, that's what martial arts is, a carefully choreographed dance.

In the farthest corner of Shane's mind, something stirred. It slowly pushed its way up and out, desperately trying to free itself from the darkness. Reaching, crying out to be free, it began to well up inside. Like a bursting dam, it finally broke free from the confines of Shane's mind. It spilled over and began to fill Shane's being.

free at last free from the darkness that idiot gets it now no more tight space no more being squished no more being ignored out out in the light

FREEDOM

They watched as Shane suddenly bent over, clutching his head . He fell to the ground and went into a severe seizure.

"Hurry! We must get to him!" Urahara called out. Olivia instantly appeared at his side and cast a kido spell to restrain him. Suddenly, Shane stopped moving and was still. Olivia carefully examined his body while Urahara looked on. "He'll be fine," Olivia said finally.

"Thank goodness," Urahara breathed a sigh of relief. He waved his hand forward and Yoruichi and Tatsuki appeared. Yoruichi merely looked on while Tatsuki wore a worried expression on her face.

"Shane is just resting now," Olivia said, noting Tatsuki's feelings. "He seems to be unconscious. Again." Olivia sighed and stood up. "I think Shane spends more time off in La-la Land than anywhere else."

"What happened to him?" Tatsuki asked.

"It seems that Shane has somehow tapped into his inner power. Since he wasn't dead or knocked out, the strain proved too much," Urahara said. "Help me take him back to the shop." Urahara and Yoruichi carried Shane's limp form back to Urahara's shop.

"What do you think Shane was doing out here?" Olivia asked.

Tatsuki thought for a moment. "In the beginning, it looked like Shane was doing Tai Chi, but after that, I don't know."

"Maybe we should call it something," Olivia offered.

"Like what?" Tatsuki asked.

"Oh, I don't know. How about 'Shane Fu?'" Olivia said and giggled. Tasuki stroked her chin while she thought about it. "Shane Fu? How about Akiyama-style Fist of the Unconscious!"

"Or Way of Knocking Yourself Out!" Olivia suggested. They spent the time coming up with silly names for Shane's fighting style and laughing hysterically.

"Seems like everyone always has a good time at his expense," Urahara noted.