'Lo all, finally the next chapter :) I prostrate myself at your feet and beg forgiveness for the insanely long time it has taken me to get this up. However, I now have a job, so all I have to do is find a place to live, and then I may even get a couple weeks break over christmas (which would be amazing, because the only day I had off last year was christmas day itself).

Anyway, this chapter has been giving me trouble, but then I managed to break my writers block with something completely different (I apologise for anyone who read my Code Geass oneshot and wondered why I was posting anything other than this) and it seems to have worked.

I haven't had chance to properly proof this chapter, so it might be a bit typo-heavy.

Reviews are love as ever, and will save you from the green fluorescenet flying monkeys that I will unleash on the world one of these days. Also, I have now succumbed to LiveJournal (same username) so if anyone feels like giving me a challenge or just keeping up to date with any of my writing, please befriend me on there (I accept prompts for any of the animes I watch!)

Thankyouthankyouthankyou all so much for still reading, if you haven't got bored of waiting for this update :)

Orihime looks nervously at Renji from her perch on the side of the bed, wondering what is coming. Had he been more badly hurt than they though? Was there some news from Soul Society?

Whatever it is, she has a bad feeling about it. Because Renji won't meet any of their eyes, and the hands resting in his lap are clenching and unclenching. Even Rukia is looking at him wide-eyed. The expectant silence stretches out, until the rough voice finally comes.

"It was… using Ichigo's sword."

The silence is broken by the chorus of shocked denials, vehement protests, that spill forth from every one of the others.

"I know it sounds fucking crazy!" Renji's voice persists. "But I know that sword. Me an' Ichigo did a lot of sparring when we were waitin' for Rukia to recover. Tryin' out our bankais and all that. I saw that damned blade a bit closer up than I'd've liked, and I'd recognise it anywhere."

Orihime continued to shake her head. It couldn't be Kurosaki-kun. He might scowl at everyone, but he was kind. He saved people. He would never have done to Renji… what that monster did.

"There's somethin' else, too. Somethin' Kuchiki-taicho said to me before he sent us off." Renji's voice was quiet, but held everyone's attention nonetheless. "I thought it was weird, at the time but… I didn't really think so much more about it. But he said…" The red-head looks away, fists clenching, then continues slowly. "He said… Kurosaki had more power than a human should have, and that there'd never been a case like his before. He said that if Ichigo couldn't control that power, then…" Another pause. Even Rukia's eyes were wide… Orihime guessed Renji hadn't even told her what had been said.

"Then I had to do the right thing, whatever it took." Renji's words had spilled quickly from his mouth, echoing in the frozen silence that followed.

"Nii-sama…" Rukia had breathed, finally.

Renji had stood, then, pacing away from them, every muscle corded. "Look, you know as well as I do… there's no way anyone other than it's owner can wield a zanpakutou, especially not in bankai form. It's like… it's like Kuchiki-taicho knew what we were gonna find."

Orihime looks around at the others, horror in her eyes. No, no, no... they can't believe… surely they wouldn't think that…

Rukia's gaze shies away from hers, purple eyes filling with tears even as her lower lip trembles and her fists clench. And then Ishida is speaking, and he looks calm, oh so calm, and Orihime wants to scream at him.

"Kurosaki-san did fight Kuchiki-san at the execution, if I recall rightly. Perhaps something occurred during that fight?"

Shutupshutupshutup…

"The thing you described sounded like a hollow." Chad offers, and even his normally strong voice carries just the slightest hint of uncertainty.

"It did look like one. But.." Rukia's response is hesitant. "It didn't feel like one. At least, not one I've ever felt. But it was so strong… the only reiatsu I've ever felt that was that strong was… Ichigo's…"

"Hollows are the souls of humans," Ishida points out, pushing his glasses up his nose. "And Kurosaki-san's soul is human, as well as shinigami. I've never heard of a case like it before, but it is possible…"

"No!!" It's only a second after the cry silences them that Orihime realises it's come from her, and that she's on her feet, tears trembling at the corners of her eyes and threatening to spill down her cheeks.

"Kurosaki-kun… is a kind person! He wouldn't do that!" Her desperate gaze rakes over every one of them. Rukia turns her head away. Ishida meets her gaze only for a moment, but she sees acceptance on his face. Chad meets her eyes with only sadness in his calm gaze. And Renji… Renji is looking at her with something like pity.

"I know it's tough, Inoue," he offers. "I didn't wanna believe it either. But… it's not just the sword, or the reiatsu. There was somethin' in the way that thing fought… like the way it moved was familiar. I don't know how it coulda happened but…"

"How can you say that?" Orihime realises she's screaming, and Ishida is holding her shoulder, trying to calm her down, or hold her back, she's not sure which. "He's your friend! He's all of our friend! He saved us! He saved me!"

"Orihime…" Rukia's voice, and now those large purple eyes are on her, pleading.

"I won't listen! I won't believe it!"

Orihime runs from the room, slamming the door behind her, even as Ishida calls after her.

She flies her spaceship through the maze of stars and planets represented by the lights surrounding her. A flashing neon sign becomes the laser of an enemy craft, and she rolls and dives, dodging fire. The enemy is protecting something… a planet, she thinks. Orihime lands her spaceship, pushes open the hatch, steps out onto red sandy ground. A cry rends the air, and she turns, finding herself faced with an alien, tall, lean, skull-faced and grinning as a light builds between wickedly curved horns…

Orihime reins her thoughts in with a shiver, wrapping her arms around herself as she tries to calm her racing heart, staring blankly into the window of the store she stands in front of. Her imagination had gotten the better of her again. She had been trying to think of something else, take her mind off the problem at hand, but of course, it wouldn't let this particular horror escape her.

She replays the earlier conversation in her mind. Renji's rough voice, the way his eyes slid over all of them without making contact…

"I had to do the right thing, whatever it took…"

Kurosaki-kun, it's not true… I know it's not…

Orihime follows her feet, relishing the feel of the night air, trying to take that calm into herself. There's something about walking under the night sky, anonymous under the indifferent glare of the ever-spinning galaxy. It's one of the few times she can be surrounded by silence, by calm, and she pauses, closes her eyes and stretches her arms wide, lifting her face to the stars, letting the cool air seep slowly into her, settling the roiling of her stomach and the feverish thoughts of her brain… calming the racing images of a monster with orange hair and yellow eyes staring at her, of a scowling orange-haired boy blocking the claws aimed at her heart with his sword.

Opening her eyes, she realises her wandering has taken her out of the centre of town, and she's alone out here, away from the gentle bustle of a cool evening in the small town. Sighing, she turns to retrace her steps.

The others will be getting worried.

She sees the first glimmer of light up ahead, and starts toward it.

That's when the reiatsu hits.

Oh god… that feral maelstrom of rage and hate and darkness. Orihime stops, blood frozen in her veins, unable to breath, her heart beating so wildly, so loudly that it feels her pulse will jump right out from her throat.

Pleasepleasepleaseplease… let it not be here…

The growl comes from behind her, and she spins, terrified, only to see it. White bone turned a sickly sulphur-yellow by the street lights, red traced over the contours as dark as dried blood, and those haunting, surreal yellow eyes.

For a moment, as her eyes meet its gaze, Orihime is sure her heart stops beating.

When her brain unfreezes a moment later, she wonders why she is still alive. That thing… it had been so fast. It could have killed her easily, already. And yet here she stands, heart beating wildly, her breathing soloudsoloudsoloud in the silence.

And then it stalks a step toward her, head lowering, those eyes finally releasing her from the frozen silence it had wrapped her in. Another growl fills the air, and it begins to move toward her.

Oh god… she's going to die… and they'd all blame themselves for letting her run…

Protect yourself, idiot! Or what was all that training for?!

Her hands fly to the pins in her hair.

"Sa… Santen Kesshun!" Her voice is strangled, high-pitched, but she somehow forces the words out. "I reject!"

The shining golden shield forms between her and the creature, and it stops. She trembles as it stares at her through her shield, the coldness of its regard apparent even through the warm gold between them.

It continues toward her, and Orihime's panicked mind wonders what to do. She is unprotected from behind, and its right in front of her, and the shield… she knows how strong this thing is and it won't stand up for long.

She hears the sound of metal, the jingle of a chain, and she realises the creature has a hand on the hilt of its black sword…

Please… everyone… don't blame yourselves… Tatsuki… don't hate me for dying…

Ichigo… I'm sorry…

It releases the sword, and one long, clawed finger reaches out and scrapes along the shield.

Orihime thinks her heart will leap out of her chest and run screaming down the road behind her.

And then the clawed hand strokes over the golden shield, and an odd rumbling comes from the inhuman throat of the thing facing her. A growl, rising to something like a howl, then fading to a half hiss. And it sounds… it sounds like…

…

And Orihime almost, almost drops her shield, eyes widening, as the thing growls her name.

The long nail scrapes over the surface of the shield again, and the sound is repeated.

"Ku…." Her voice won't obey her, it trembles and shivers and tries to avoid saying the word she's trying to form.

"Kuro… saki… kun…"

It throws back its head and howls.

And then

"Inoue!"

A flash of blue before her eyes, as a spirit arrow speeds past her shield, and the thing jumps back hissing.

Ishida skids to a stop beside her.

"Are you alright, Inoue?"

"A.. ah." She manages to get the affirmation out from trembling lips.

She sees Ishida draw back his bow, about to shoot another arrow. And just as suddenly, the creature is gone, vanishing with a roar into the darkness.

Ishida drops his bow, and his gentle hands reach for her, trying to sooth her.

"It's alright, Inoue. It's gone. You can let the shield down, now. I'm here."

Orihime lets the shield fall, and stares at her trembling hands.

"Inoue?"

She throws herself into Ishida's surprised arms as the first sob tears its way out of her throat.

Please note that as this is taking place some time after the return from Soul Society, I'm assuming Ishida has talked daddy dearest into getting his powers back. probably a lot easier as well, because without Ichigo around, he wouldn't have to worry about associating with Shinigami.

Hope you enjoyed reading. Remember, no reviews means a green flourescent evil monkey pointing at you from your bedroom window one of these night...

...ok, that sounded weirder than I thought.