Tiger won! Yea! XD The first night of Ichigo finding a mate =D I have to admit, the possible mate is sort of predictable... but I bet you'll never guess what happens near the end!
Shiro: What happens?
Ichi: *sighs* Shiro we go through this all the time. You're in this fic, you should know what happens! =(
Vae: *looks around innocently* Actually, I sort of left him out of the loop on this one. ^^;
Ichi: ... Why?
Vae: Well, last time I did somethign he didn't like I had to sleep with one eye open, so...
Grimm: Wow. Really? You're like... the goddess of these fics. Our wellbeings are held within your hands, you can do whatever the hell you want with us... and you're scared of Shiro?
Vae: Well, no... not scared. I just want to catch him when he does something stupid so I won't have any doubts on who I'm tormenting for it! =D
Shiro: ... Sounds more like her. T^T
Chapter 6
The next night, Ichigo is pacing nervously within the meadow. Shiro is lying beside him, tail flicking ever so slightly to tap against the group. Ichigo's been wound up since he woke, the stress within amber eyes so horribly obvious it worries Shiro. His baby twin is so concerned he'll let down their parents.
"Ichi, this ain't fer ma and pop. Stop worryin' 'bout lettin' 'em down," he remarks. "This is the one thing in yer life yer gonna do just fer ya, got it? When ya look at a possible mate, ya gotta think 'will they make me happy an' take care a me'. No one else matters tanight, just ya."
"But… shouldn't I find someone that momma and dad will like?"
"Nope. Tanight is all fer what ya want. Not ma, not pop, not me… just ya. An' if ya find a mate that don' take ta ya right 'way, but ya really want 'em… beat the shit outta 'em an' they might change their mind!"
"… That doesn't seem like it would work," Ichigo murmurs in confusion.
"That's how ma got pops!"
Ichigo rolls those amber pools, slightly glowing in the lack of light, and finally curls up beside his brother. The purr that rumbles through Shiro at the contact relaxes the young cub further. They're torn from their moment of warmth by approaching paws, forms great and small slinking from the brush and into the meadow. Byakuya's tigers and Mayuri's clan both come sauntering up to the twins, eyes glimmering beneath the moonlight.
"Shiro," Mayuri purrs quietly.
"Mayuri! Byakuya!" Shiro greets.
"Shiro," the older tiger comments quietly. "Shall we introduce our young ones?"
"… Always straight ta the point," Shiro grumbles.
"I'll start!" Mayuri cheers. "I've brought Kenpachi, Yachiru, Nemu, and Ikkaku! Yumichika will also be joining us, but he's late."
"Rukia, Matsumoto, and Shuuhei have come with me," Byakuya comment's. "I'll also be participating myself. Might I remind those here that Rukia is my cub and I'll kill the first feline that attempts to harm her for the sake of mating."
Ichigo whimpers and glances over at his brother, the other drawing his younger twin closer with one large paw and tucking him halfway beneath his weight. All eyes are on Ichigo now, curiosity filling them. Yorouchi and Kisuke had bragged about having twins, but they never mentioned anything but the names… and the fact one was a runt.
"This is Hiyori, Mashiro, and Love. They're the only ones that chose to participate this year," Shiro sighs. "I'll be lookin' fer a mate myself an' my baby brother will also be available… don' fuck wit 'im past courtin'."
"Courting? That?" the massive tiger guffaws. "Who in their right..?"
He's silenced by Byakuya's claws, the other nodding before turning to saunter away. Ichigo glances at his seething twin, perfectly content to stay right where he's at. Once everyone is scattered within the area, Shiro stands and Ichigo is left alone in the shadows. Yorouchi had bathed him meticulously earlier, making him wash up a second time in the lake for extra measures, yet even that doesn't seem to be enough. He lies down and huffs in irritation, half hidden by the longer grass and half by darkness, when a tiger trots over to him. They approach slowly once they get closer, sniffing curiously and making certain the other shows signs of welcome. Ichigo sits up a bit more, tilting his head to the side and sniffing the air himself.
"You're Shiro's baby twin?" the other wonders.
"Yes," Ichigo remarks. "And you're Shuuhei?"
"That's me," Shuuhei grins widely. "You don't seem like you want to be here… did you really want to participate in mating season?"
"Not really."
By now, Shuuhei has crept to Ichigo's side. He sits down carefully and reaches out to tap the other's leg, garnering Ichigo's undivided attention. He offers his side to the smaller male, purring happily when Ichigo hesitantly crawls over to lay down. The other tiger isn't as warm as Shiro is, nor is he as comfortable, yet Ichigo stays put.
"So why are you here?"
"Momma told me I have to… the jaguars ran into us and she didn't like that one of them took a liking to me."
Shuuhei nods, a rumbling purr quickly turning to a vicious snarl. Ichigo is stunned when he's quickly knocked back behind the male tiger, the other crouched in an aggressive manner. The others are acting much the same way and Ichigo can barely hear the sound that triggered it… heavy footfalls rustling through the brush. The scattered felines quickly take to the trees, Ichigo and Shuuhei following suit. There's a quiet blast of air and Ichigo feels a horrible sting on his thigh, tripping over a rock and tumbling to the grass. Shuuhei skids to a stop, torn between helping Ichigo and running for his clan.
"Just… go," Ichigo murmurs brokenly.
Shuuhei does just that, turning tail and hurrying for the others. He turns to face the oncoming danger, growling weakly as his head starts to spin. Two tall figure on two feet head over, their bodies covered in green material and baggy green pants. Before they can reach down to retrieve their catch, a furious snarl is echoing in the foliage. For one moment filled with both happiness and horror, Ichigo thinks Shiro is coming back for him. He's wrong, however, and his savior is none other than the jaguar cub with blue locks.
"What the fuck!" one man shouts out.
Grimmjow dives from a tree he had scaled effortlessly, tackling one man and biting down on their shoulder. A tear in the material sounds, Grimmjow's nails cutting into the flesh beneath. When the other draws a metal weapon on him, Grimmjow kicks back and sends it clattering to the ground. Ichigo's never seen anyone so wild before, his eyes left gawking as the drug in his system is pushed to a standstill.
"Grimm," Ichigo whimpers. "I don't feel good."
The other concentrates on his task, tearing down the men before him and ripping into their jugulars. Once they're both still and hot blood drips from his mouth, Grimmjow turns to Ichigo. The other is half asleep already, falling back against a tree trunk. Carefully, Grimmjow moves closer to him and curls up against him protectively. His cyan orbs are alight within the pitch of night, alert for the slightest danger as Ichigo drifts off.
Shiro looks among the striped felines, frantically searching for the orange head he knows as his twin. His maw is slightly agape, his golden eyes large as he lumps through the throng of large cats. The group had retreated to Kisuke's den for safety purposes, the chatter unbelievable as Kisuke and Yorouchi step out curiously.
"Ichi!" Shiro calls. "Ichi! Where's my baby twin? Did anyone see 'im?"
"Shiro?" Yorouchi purrs quietly. "Please calm down, there's no reason to go ballistic. I'm sure Ichigo is fine. Someone please tell me what happened."
"There were two legged creatures with armor and weapons," Rukia pipes up. "I saw them!"
"Humans," Byakuya growls in distaste. "Once more they plague our serene home. Twice before they left behind bloodshed and bones, do we really want the wolves to do that again?"
"Calm yourselves, I'm sure they're better prepared for such a harsh life," Kisuke comments. "There was no shipwreck this time, which means they came of their own volition."
"That doesn't help matters," Mayuri purrs. "That just means they know what they're doing… and are after something."
The argument is quick to take off, each feline leader ready to put in their opinion. Yorouchi is quiet during the exchange, her eyes scanning the area meticulously as Shiro reverts back into a kittenish stage. His ears are lying flat as he breathes in panic, so much like when he was just a terrified baby. Kisuke draws their cub close to console him, yet he's startled from his parental role when he hears Yorouchi snarl in aggression… that perfect head of orange locks she raised from a tiny little cub is missing.
The new pool: Divine x2, Dream x10, Hacking x2, Life x4, Tiger x1. Still working on that second chapter to Divine ^^; As always, first to request from the pool gets what they want =D Remember, the chapters for Dream are the last chapters you get. It's all over after I post them... but there's room for a third enstallment in that series XD
Shiro: They'll wanna read that one! Tell 'em ta pick that one!
Ichi: No, they'll wanna read Divine. It's getting good and I don't want to be preggers anymore! =(
Grimm: Ichi, you're preggers in just about every fic here. I did an awesome job! =3
Vae: Yes. Yes you did XD