Author's Note: *pokes head out* Is it safe? *knives wiz past her head just missing their target* OH SHIT THAT WAS CLOSE! Okay I can do this. Let's pull an Italy. *runs out waving white flag* I'M SOOOORRRRRYYYYY!

Ichigo*sweat drop*: "Umm what are you doing?"

Me*grabs Ichigo and uses him as a shield*: "Hey how's it going?"

Ichigo*unable to break free*: "What the hell? Let go of me dammit!"

Me*Looks at angry mob*: "I rather not. So umm I'm sorry for the late update. I have been busy with…well stuff."

Ichigo: "Che yeah like that's believable."

Me: "It's true. What with school, reading, and drawing. I finally finished that one commission for The Dark Eccentric. Now I just need to finish the other drawings I'm supposed to do."

Ichigo: "Oh yeah. How many?"

Me: "Oh not much…just…*mumble*"

Damian: "What was that? We couldn't hear."

Ichigo: "What is he doing here?"

Me: "Oh right that reminds me… To dearest reader and friend, you know who you are; I apologize for I have lied to you! *grabs Damian* It seems I will be unable to show this beautiful face to world in this very chapter. Perhaps in the next…In fact I will be sure in the next chapter your children make a wonderful appearance."

Ichigo: "Let me guess Ja…"

Me*covering his mouth*: "Shhhh! You must not utter her name for it brings me shame."

Damian: "Did that just rhyme?"

Ichigo*facepalm*: "Of course it did. Wait a minute you're evading!"

Me: "Am not. I already said I have *lowers voice* drawings to do."

Damian: "SEVEN!"

Me*sweat drop*: "Thank you Damian. Nice to know I can count on you."

Damian*oblivious to sarcasm*: "You welcome! " :D

Me: "…..Get out of here before I beat you."

Damian: "Fine geez I'll leave."

Mason: "Ichigo's FAV Twin does not own Bleach or any of its characters. Thank you for your consideration."

Chapter 14

"Sooo…What were you and Rukia talking about alone in your room?" Karin asked while smiling at her brother from across the table.

Ichigo glared at his younger sister. He opened his mouth to respond when Yuzu suddenly chimed in.

"Yeah what were you talking about? Rukia took off in quite a hurry. She didn't even stay to have dinner with us."

"We…" he started.

"Yeah who knows?" said Karin interrupting Ichigo. She gave him a smirk before continuing, "It might explain why you had to take such a cold shower. I swear after you were finished I felt like I was in Antarctica when I went in there."

"You're exaggerating little sister," Ichigo replied through clenched teeth.

"Only a little bit big brother," Karin said while smiling widely at him.

They sat there glaring at each other from across the table when their father abruptly slammed his hands against the table and proceeded to get out of his seat. As his children gave him confused looks, Isshin walked over to his son, grabbed him by the collar, and forcibly pulled him from his seat. Isshin then started to talk very loudly and rapidly much to his children discomfort.

"You were alone with Rukia! In your room with the door closed! What were you doing? Nothing inappropriate I presume! Wait! What's with that look in your eyes? No…don't tell me…you did….with Rukia! And why am I barely hearing about this now?"

Ichigo stared at his father with wide eyes having only been able to understand the gist of what he had been rambling about. He was about to break free of his grip when his father suddenly trapped him in a bear hug as tears flowed down his cheeks.

"Oh I'm soo proud! My son has finally become a man!"

Isshin roughly released his son and ran to go hug a poster sized picture of Masaki that was pinned to the wall. He started to speak to it as more tears flowed from his eyes.

"Oh my dear wife! Did you hear that? Our little boy is now a man! Aren't you glad? See I told you giving him a pack of condoms for his fifteenth birthday was a good idea. At least that's if he remembered to use them. After all it would be understandable if he forgot. It was the heat of the moment and not to mention his first time. What a blubbering fool he must have been. Oh should have seen her! She's absolutely…"

Isshin's rant was rudely cut off by Ichigo landing a swift kicked to his head, knocking him unconscious. Ichigo stood next to his limp body huffing and puffing, his face red from anger and embarrassment.

He pointed an accusing finger at his father, "I told you I didn't do anything! I'm not a pervert like you! Listen to the words coming out of my mouth. WE. JUST. TALKED. Nothing else happened! You got that?" Ichigo walk back to the table, took his seat and added, "Oh and by the way I threw away those condoms. What kind of father are you?"

Isshin suddenly regained consciousness and gave his son a disappointed look having been able to hear all he had said even in his state.

"So you really didn't do anything with Rukia?" Isshin asked as he rubbed the side of his head in which he had received the blow.

"No," he replied curtly without taking his eyes off his food.

It took a while for all of this to process in Isshin's head. He took one last look at Ichigo and proceeded to sob into the poster of his wife.

Ichigo gave his father a side-long glance before directing his anger toward the person who started it all. Karin Kurosaki sat calmly eating her food as if she didn't have a care in the world. She looked up to see her brother giving her a cold stare and stared right back at him with no emotion on her face.

"Karin," he hissed.

Said girl just continued to stare at her brother as a small smile graced her lips. She tried to suppress the laughter that was threatening to escape. They once again sat staring at each other until Karin could no longer hold down her laughter. She laughed so hard that tears brimmed her eyes and she nearly feel from her seat. Ichigo growled in annoyance, grabbed his plate, and left the table.

He was about to wash his plate when a small, pale hand took it away from his hands gently. He looked down to see Yuzu smiling at him brightly.

"Don't get to mad at Karin. She's just teasing," she said as she walked towards the sink with their plates.

Ichigo couldn't help but smile at his little sister. These were the times when she reminded him so much of his mother.

"Don't worry about Karin and me so much," he said as he ruffled her hair playfully. He walked into the living room to find his father curled up in the fetal position and he rolled his eyes. Karin was already sitting on the couch looking for something to watch on the T.V.

Ichigo quickly made sure that Yuzu wasn't looking before went to stand in front of Karin, blocking her view of the T.V.

"Move," she said in a bored tone.

He just crossed his arms over his chest.

"You're acting like a child," she replied as she tried to look around his body.

"Am I?" he hissed.

Karin smirked, "What's the matter Ichi-ni?"

Ichigo just continued to glare at her.

"Oh I get it now. Rukia didn't want to kiss you right? Don't blame her. You probably scared her off with that ugly mug of yours," she said while grinning widely.

Ichigo tried to think of a comeback but came out empty. He decided that he had been humiliated enough for one day and headed towards his room.

"Stupid little black haired demon," he mumbled under his breath.

He heard a faint "I love you too" from Karin as he reached the stairs and suppressed the urge to choke her right then and there. He replayed today's events and smiled involuntarily. He loved his family no matter how much of a pain in the ass they were.

He stopped on his way to his room to look at a picture that hung on the hallway wall. A picture from a time where everything was right and fair. A time where everything made sense. His smile fell from his lips as he realized the current date.

'It's coming up soon. Must be why I've been thinking about her more than usual. Also why the nightmares are getting worse.'

He rubbed his temple already anticipating a restless night. 'They feel so different from before but why?'

{"Feeling sentimental king?"}

Ichigo groaned as the voice in his head proceeded to laugh at him. 'Great your just what I need right now.'

{"No need to be that way? I was merely inquiring on your well-being."}

'Bullshit' Ichigo replied harshly before attempting but failing to ignore him.

{"So you still haven't figured out what makes these dreams different from the other? Tsk tsk you really are a hopeless case aren't you."}

Ichigo snorted in annoyance, 'Shut up. I don't have time for you.'

"Ichigo?"

He turned around to see Yuzu staring at him.

"Weren't you going to bed?" She asked.

"Yeah I was. Night," he said hastily before rushing to his room and slamming the door shut.

{Well that was a close one. What were you thinking standing there staring into empty space? At least you weren't talking to yourself or else they would have thought you were crazy."}

Ichigo cringed as he heard his inner voice laugh hysterically. 'Well since I can hear you in my head I must be crazy. Even more so since I'm actually talking to you!'

His voice hesitated before responding back, {"Do you want to know what really happened that night?}

Ichigo sighed in exasperation. He had already had this conversation with him before. 'I already told you. I don't care. It's in the past so what good will come of it. It was all my fault. What else do I need to know besides that?'

{"You never found it odd how you can never remember that night? How it sometimes feels like it never happened?"}

'But it did happen dammit! So drop it!' Ichigo dropped into his bed hoping that would be the end of it.

{"Oh but it doesn't end there."}

"I. Don't. Want. To. Talk. To. You," he responded aloud.

His voice ignored him and continued, {"Is it strange how your memories are always muddled and unclear? How you constantly have to question yourself on whether something happened or not? Almost as if you weren't even there to experience it but yet…people say you were there. You rely solely on what others tell you instead of your own memories."}

"What use are they to me?" Ichigo said in a dead tone.

{"What?"}

Ichigo placed his arm over his eyes and laid there silently for a while before responding, "What use are memories to me? They don't mean anything. They are all in the past so what's the use reveling in them. I know it's odd that I can hardly remember anything from my childhood."

He chuckled, "But then again I was always an odd kid. Even at a young age I felt…different."

He waited a while for his voice to make a snide comment of some sort. After a minute of silence, Ichigo continued, "All I know is that I remember all the important things. Her eyes, her hair, her hugs and kisses, but most importantly her smile. That's all that matters to me."

'Mom.'

Ichigo lay there quietly. His eyelids soon became heavy and he was almost drifting into sleep when suddenly…

{"HA! You really are pathetic you know that! All that matters are the memories of your mother? BULLSHIT! You have no idea!"}

Ichigo growled in anger, 'Oh and you do? What the hell do you know?'

{"EVERYTHING!"}

This confused Ichigo, "What are you…"

{"I know everything! Every memory, every feeling, and every person you ever met!"}

He snorted, "So what? You can have all that for all I care."

{"I know exactly how that BITCH of mother of yours died!"}

"DON'T YOU EVER CALL HER THAT AGAIN!" he yelled back forgetting that there are others in the house.

{"Or what?"}

There was a knock on the door.

"Ichigo?" said Yuzu in a concerned voice as she slowly opened his door.

Ichigo pretended to be asleep when he heard her knocking on his door.

She walked over to see if everything was in order. When she saw nothing out of the ordinary she walked back towards the door. Yuzu gave her brother's sleeping form a concerned glance before shutting his door closed and going back to bed.

His eyes slowly opened once he heard his sister's retreat. He stood still and tried to control his erratic heart.

Ichigo responded to his voice's question, 'I will kill you.'

{"Ha! I like to see you try! You know I could…"}

'No I don't want to hear anything from you. Go. Away.'

{"Easier said than done king. Such a shame she was such a nice girl."}

This piqued Ichigo's interest, 'What girl?'

{"The one who was there with you when you mother died. The one who spent nearly two years with you before she too was taken away from you and you never saw her again. I can only imagine how the poor girl would feel if she found out that you didn't even have the decency to remember her."}

'Liar. How can I forget someone who I knew for two years? Don't be ridiculous. I have had enough of your mind games.'

{"Oh this isn't a game Ichigo. It's the truth. You even said it yourself king. You are different. You always have been different."}

'I still don't believe you. Even if I don't remember my sisters, my father, and even Tatsuki would have!'

His voice chuckled, {"There you go relying on others to tell you what you did and didn't do. You're sisters were still too young to remember much. I can't say anything about your father and Tatsuki… Don't tell me you also forgot that she left to go live with her grandparents for a while. How long was? Almost…two years."}

He was right. Ichigo knew he was right. How could he have forgotten about that? She wasn't there to beat him in every match they had in the dojo and she also wasn't there to protect him from bullies. So…How could he forget? Ichigo didn't know what to think. 'What if everything he said is true?' He can hear him laughing at his obvious distress in the back of his head but it was slowly fading away.

'Wait! Wait! I need to know!'

{"I thought you didn't care king! You lost your chance! The time for questions is over!"}

He desperately tried to cling to whatever connection he had with the voice in his head but it was no use. He was gone and he had served his purpose. Though Ichigo wasn't foolish enough to think that this was last he will ever hear of him. No. This was only the beginning. Ichigo had to be patient.

'They are my memories after all. If that bastard has them then at least I know they aren't completely lost from my mind.'

He was content with this…for now. Ichigo felt incredibly worn out and it wasn't long before sleep took him captive. He forgot of the day's events and became lost in his dreams until, like the nights before this one; he woke up in a start in the middle of the night. Only this time it was different. This thought he awoke with knowledge. A knowledge that will lead him down the road of no return, the road down memory lane.

'She exists. She isn't lie. She's…real.'

Author's Note: "I'm sorry for my incompetence. I hope this was alright. I have been absent for quite a while."

Ichigo: "Now if only you would disappear for good."

Me: "Aww you don't mean that. *points up* Now do you?"

Ichigo*looking up to see a boulder hanging above his head and notices the rope in my hand*: "Oh no no no! I don't mean that at all. I was just joking."

Me: "Hmmm okay" ^^ *accidently releases rope*

Ichigo*protecting his head*: "Shit!"

*the boulder doesn't move but a giant crate lands next to Ichigo and explodes*

Me*Having taken cover*: "It worked!"

Ichigo*was blown 20 feet away*: "What….the…" *collapses*

Me*shakes head*: "What a girl."

*the smoke clears up but theres no one in the crate*

Me*baffled*: "Where is she?"

Damian*shocked*: "Oh. My….You finally did it. You killed somebody."

Me*unfazed*: "It would appear so."

Damian: "Don't act so nonchalant about it!"

Me*shrugs*: "I'm not acting."

Damian*facepalm*: "Of course."

*we hear a girl's laughter*

Yachiru*giggling while jumping on an unconscious Ichigo*: "Strawberry head is dead! Dead! Dead! Dead! Kenny isn't going to like this!"

Me: "Oh there she is. Guess I didn't kill her."

Damian: "I don't think it's possible to kill her."

Me: "True….Ladies and Gentleman! YACHIRU!"

Yachiru: "Hello! You, you,you, and especially YOU!"

Ichigo*gaining consciousness*: "*groan* What…happened?"

Yachiru: "Yay Ichi didn't die!"

*Yachiru continues to bounce on Ichigo and he is helpless*

Me: "A HAPPY ENDING! NOW…"

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