A/N: I'm back my lovelies! Here's another installment for this story… I really meant for this to be the epilogue but I realized it would be rather long. (So, wait for the next one, ayt?) Enough said. Go ahead and read.

PS: a bunch of thank you's to the usual suspects, you know who you are. =)

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Chapter 13

The Plan

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It was a brilliant plan really, but then again, it was conceived by none other than Kisuke Urahara himself.

Starrk's apartment, Shibuya District

June 22nd, 12:55am

Starrk rarely went to his own apartment, except to take a shower and change his clothes. He would usually spend the nights in some faceless woman's bed until morning came. But that was until he met Ichigo. Though he still rarely spent time in his apartment, the mornings that he woke up in Ichigo's bed, touching his soft skin and smelling his fragrant hair were all worth it.

His heavy footsteps echoed in the gloom of the hallway leading to his apartment. He wanted a space to do some rather serious thinking, something that he wasn't really known for. At any rate, he felt dead tired and was about to go insane. Thoughts of losing Ichigo filled his head until he couldn't take anymore. His apartment provided the perfect escape.

Entering his own apartment felt like he was invading someone else's private domain. Everything felt strange, yet it was all his. He never really thought something was amiss until he switched on the light. Lo and behold, the man he most loathed to see was seating in a plush leather armchair, the unmistakable hat on his head and smirk in place.

"Nice place you got here, Starrk-san."

The goateed man's defense mechanisms went overdrive, ready to draw the hidden pistol in his jacket if the blond man made any attempt to hurt him.

"You know, there's no need to be so tense." Urahara said nonchalantly.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" the man asked, rather guardedly.

"Nothing much…" the blond man said in that same unnerving nonchalance.

Starrk nearly wondered how the man could behave like that in a situation like this. It dawned on him that maybe this was why Urahara was one of the most feared (and revered, at the same time) assassins in all of Japan. He realized that this man could kill anyone without any hint of remorse, or any emotion for that matter.

His feet though automatically led him in front of another armchair and sat in it in silence. He still kept his guard up though; after all he was dealing with probably the cleverest and deadliest assassin he ever met.

The goateed man leaned forward, forearms resting on his thighs. "Tell me." At this Urahara smiled the chilling smile he always loathed but could do nothing about.

Thus, a plan was conceived, though it was no brain child of his. He was secretly glad Urahara sought him out.

Before Urahara left, he turned and once more reminded Starrk of an undeniable truth. "Always do bear in your mind that this has nothing to do with you. Ichigo is and will always remain my top priority." Then he was gone, closing the door silently behind him.

Somewhere in the Shibuya district

July 3rd, 1:55am

There was a tender spot on his chest where the bullet hit. Though he sure that it wouldn't bruise because of the vest he wearing underneath his clothes, the "blood" that was oozing out of his "wound" would definitely leave a terrible stain on his shirt. He would most probably die of asphyxiation instead, there were too much people pressing around him. They needed to realize they were no help at all if they were just going to gape at him like that! Such were the thoughts that were going through Starrk's head as he waited for the ambulance to arrive. He lay there unmoving on the concrete, blood spattered on his chest, while a smart enough person was trying to suppress the "bleeding" by putting pressure on his "wound".

He nearly panicked when that person (was it a man?) had a mind to open his shirt to put even more pressure on his chest. Suddenly the crowd parted to give way to the paramedics, who he recognized as that Soi Fon woman and Tessai. If he wasn't pretending he was on the verge of the death, he would've given a big sigh of relief.

He heard the small woman give commands to make space for them. Then he felt Tessai kneel beside him and took a quick look at his wound, then felt for his pulse, not forgetting to thank the person who helped try to stem the blood loss. In his low rumbling tones, he heard the man say, "Unfortunately sir, it wasn't enough. This man is already dead by the looks of it."

Soi Fon and Tessai carefully loaded him into a body bag then onto a stretcher. The corn rowed man was even concerned enough not to zip the bag all the way, so he could still breath some air. He felt he had to hold his breath for a few minutes though, lest someone with a sharp eye notice that he was still alive and breathing.

It wasn't until he heard the engines start and the vehicle actually move did he relax, knowing he was already heading to where his lover was. The body bag was unceremoniously unzipped by Soi Fon. The first thing he saw was Tessai's stoic face as he gingerly sat up. He turned to look around. Driving the ambulance was Yoruichi. The tiny black haired woman sat behind the driver's seat. He inwardly sighed in relief at not having to see Urahara again.

"I hope you're alright." The corn rowed man said.

"I've felt worse." Starrk answered, inspecting the fake blood now sticky on his shirt.

"We'll first take you to the safe house to spend the night or whatever's left of it." Soi Fon said, in her soft yet harsh tone. "Then Urahara-san would take you to the airport. Your flight leaves at 9:20 in the morning."

The rest of the trip to the safe house was uneventful. Yet Starrk felt even more alive than ever. He would be seeing Ichigo soon.

July 4th, 7:13am

The night was spent tossing and turning on his bed. When Starrk got tired of it, he rummaged through his ruined clothes and thankfully found a barely touched pack of cigarettes. He was still smoking his lungs off when Urahara found him hours later.

"Aren't we excited."

Starrk looked at the blond man. He wanted to thank him, he really did. It just felt awkward. How would one thank his savior considering the circumstances they were in?

"I just couldn't wait to hop on that plane." The goateed man said, in all honesty.

Urahara smirked. He then handed the man a change of clothes and a packet containing documents. "You are now officially known as Daisuke Tachibana. You were born in Osaka, raised in Manila and currently working as an administrative assistant in a bank."

The younger man perused the documents carefully as the blond man rambled off bits of information they contained.

"And Ichigo?"

"Safe and sound. Don't worry your pretty face about it, Starrk-san. It's my job." There was a short bout of awkward silence before Urahara rebounded. "Don't you think you should be getting ready? You will be flying out of this country in about two hours, you know."

"Yeah."

After a quick shower, the goateed man felt refreshed enough for his flight. He thought he couldn't sleep though, he felt there was too much adrenaline flowing in his bloodstream.

They reached the airport in about an hour and fifteen minutes, leaving Starrk another fifteen minutes to reach his plane. It felt surreal for him, to leave the life he was so used to. But thinking of what lay in wait for him; he couldn't help but feel relieved. He'd rather be next to Ichigo than live the rest of his life without him.