"Inoue-san? Sado-san?" Ishida asked warily as Chad and Orihime herded him towards the furthest corner. He held tight to the Reishūkaku, looking between the two of them in confusion and then back to where Kaito and Ichigo were standing.
Chad shook his head. "They need space," he told Ishida before glancing at Orihime, wondering if she felt up to elaborating. She remained silent, head down and gaze distant, worrying at her lip as she worked her way through her thoughts. He let her be; she had been the most affected by their initial training with Kaito, no matter what she pretended. "You said that Kaito-san was more powerful than Ichigo." Not that he had ever thought otherwise; not after that first morning's training.
"Well, yes," Ishida agreed, fiddling with the Reishūkaku and making it flicker like a firefly. "But his control is very good—"
"It isn't," Orihime interrupted, then gave Chad a pleading look.
(The weight of feral power forcing them to the ground, brutal and heedless of potential harm. Leashed by a thread he could feel straining whenever Kaito began to struggle.)
(Kaito was a man on the verge of drowning and clinging desperately to life.)
"He has enough control to keep himself from hurting us," Chad explained slowly, struggling to put into words what he knew. "But it's… wild. Like… like a young horse, wanting to go everywhere and see everything. He knows his strength but he doesn't… know his strength."
Ishida frowned and stared down at the Reishūkaku in his hands. "He doesn't want to hurt us," Ishida said slowly, working through Chad's words. "I know what it feels like when he does, and he doesn't. If… if he has enough control to keep from hurting us, then… why would he need to practice control? He can use the Reishūkaku easily, he showed us, so… I don't… I…" he hesitated, tilting his head down and tucking his chin into his chest, gaze fixed on the orb and avoiding both Chad and Orihime. His next words were spoken with reluctance, and so faintly that Chad needed to strain to hear them, "I don't understand…"
(Ishida was expecting to be mocked.)
(They really all were a mess of problems, weren't they?)
(And that was leaving aside the fact that Ishida knew what it felt like when Kaito wanted to do harm. When had that happened?)
"Not wanting to hurt us doesn't change the fact that he could by accident," Chad said, keeping his tone gentle and even. "Would you blame a young horse for knocking you over in its excitement to reach you?"
"I… no," Ishida slowly agreed, not looking up. He pulled the orb closer to his chest, cradling it in one arm and tracing abstract patterns on it with his free hand, the light within pulsing and swirling in time with his motions. "But is he really..?"
"He is." Orihime stepped closer to Chad, pressing against his arm in search of comfort, then continued, "I don't… know how old Kaito-san is, but after everything he's been through…"
Chad rested a hand on Orihime's shoulder, trying to offer what comfort he could.
(Feral power, thick with bloodlust and fury, undercut by so much fear and pain Chad had nearly choked on it.)
(Kaito hadn't wanted to strike them, but he had still powered through, ruthlessly disregarding his own desires and wellbeing in favor of theirs.)
(In favor of giving them a chance at survival.)
(Had Ishida's exposure been the same, or had Kaito actually attacked him?)
Ishida swallowed thickly and raised his head to eye the two of them warily.
(Power tightly leashed, control as natural as breathing… nearly feral beneath it all.)
(It was so easy to see why Kaito paid the most attention to Ishida. If Ishida broke, how much more would he resemble Kaito?)
(Had Kaito once had perfect control as well?)
(Had Kaito initially hated Ishida for being what he could no longer be?)
"Out here," Chad began again, hoping he could find the right words this time, "Kaito-san has space. His reiatsu can… linger however it wants, and he can keep it from us if he needs to. But he said we need to balance our reiatsu, and he… we…" Chad huffed in frustration, the words slipping from his grasp. He wished he could just show people what he felt, instead of needing to slot it all into words.
Orihime lifted a hand to rest it atop his and gave him a warm smile; even Ishida made no motion to hurry him on, just watched and waited, brows drawn together and mouth twisted into a puzzled frown.
It gave him a moment to breath, to sort himself out and find the words he needed to hopefully clear up some of Ishida's puzzlement. Trying to explain a lack of control to someone naturally in control was… more difficult than he had expected. "We need balance, but Kaito-san's power is… is overwhelming. He could drown us without even noticing or meaning to. In a space as small as that," Chad gestured to the Reishūkaku, "it wouldn't even take much. A moment's distraction, and we're all paying the price. Ichigo might be fine, but that won't help us."
"I… guess," Ishida agreed, beginning to relax his grip on the Reishūkaku and visibly collecting himself. "But… are you sure?" he asked softly, gaze steady on Ichigo and Kaito. "He can't hide himself like his father can, but… but surely…"
Orihime moved forward and rested her hands on the Reishūkaku, fingers overlapping Ishida's and a gentle smile on her face. "He is incredible, isn't he?" she asked. "Even with all that power, it's so difficult to spot how fragile his grasp on it is at times. I wish… I wish he wouldn't hide so much of his struggle from us. I wish we could do more for him than we are."
Ishida's hands twitched, shying away from Orihime's touch, and he stared at her with mostly-concealed uncertainty. "I don't think he'd allow that," he answered.
"No, he probably wouldn't, would he." She sighed, then looked at Chad and nodded towards the Reishūkaku. "We should get to practicing, though. I wonder… how difficult is it to find a balance?"
Chad stepped closer and settled his hands on the Reishūkaku as well. Ishida didn't seem to truly understand, not yet, but that was okay.
(Small steps. For both trust and understanding.)
(He hoped his Abuelo was proud of him.)