Author's Blurbs: Greetings again, fellow readers. Hmmmm...where to start? Well, another update, this one a bit longer. It's a bit rough, no spellchecker for the lose. Anway, to continue what I started last chapter, the song I found myself primarily listening to last night while I crapped this chapter out was "Say Goodnight" by Bullet for my Valentine, acoustic version. I'd like to point out that though I'm sort of using the main canon for the characters, I'm trying to make them a bit more humanized. I personally don't believe in pure good or evil. Everyone is a good guy in their own mind. Remember this as you read Aizen's point of view.

Also, I'm holding a pseudo contest. Send me, either via email (v.e12y2 at gmail dot com) or personal message on fanfiction dot net your ideas for your own personal hollow. Descriptions, mannerisms, anything you can provide. I will take the best ones and use them in my story, giving credit to those I shamelessly ripped off, of course. The better you describe it (aka, do my work for me) the more likely you are to get a spot. I've gotten over 1.1k hits the first day of coming back, so I KNOW some of you must have some ideas you're just itching to provide, and I am ever a public servant.

That being said, I don't Bleach. I'd be able to swim in a pool full of gold coins, a la Scrooge McDuck, if I did.

Chapter 12: Two girls, One Surprised Bear

It hadn't been a good day and a half for Kon. Not in the slightest. His impromptu adventure had backfired quite wholeheartedly and the diminutive stuffed animal was feeling rather dejected about it all. In fact, the only thing that kept him going was the thought of Rukia's closet at the end of his journey. He'd sneak in, cuddle up to the Shinigami, maybe get a few squeezes here and there, and finally put this whole fiasco behind himself. Of course he knew most likely the ever alert woman would probably sense his presence and throw him out on his head in short order, but Kon was sure eventually she would crumble to his suave personality. Yep...was only a matter of time...

With a great sigh of relief, he climbed the last few inches up the drainage pipe and stepped onto the roof below Ichigo's window. Finally! Back home where he belonged. No doubt they were worried about him and were probably tired from staying awake all night. Well, he'd put that to rest.

He scampered up the window to sit on the sill. The curtains were drawn. Well, no matter. Using what little reiatsu he possessed in his stuffed form, he trickled it into the latch. Surprisingly it was already unlocked. Well, all the more easier, eh? With a huff he pulled the window open and dropped down to the floor of the room.

The dark room...meaning they were asleep...

He pouted a few moments, then grinned with confidence.. They weren't worried enough to lose sleep because they had utmost confidence in his ability to take care of himself, obviously. Humming, he was almost to Rukia's door, stepping over a lump of blankets on the floor, when aforementioned lump shifted and let loose a loud snore. Suddenly Kon found himself pinned underneath an arm.

Fuming, Kon shifted his body and pushed the offending appendage away, albeit with much cursing and grunting. All he got was a snort and a snore for his efforts. He was about to yell at the owner when he saw who it was. Orange hair. Check. Snored loud. Check. Flopped around. Double check. What was Ichigo doing on the floor of his own room?

Curious, Kon used the blankets on the side of the bed to pull himself up, before finally hoisting himself over the lip of the bed. There was a lump there, under the covers. Maybe his Rukia finally asserted her obvious superiority over that orange haired jerk and kicked him to the floor where he belongs? Yeah, that had to be it! A devilish glint entered the stuffed bear's eyes...well, as much of a glint that a prefabricated children toy can acquire.

Carefully, ever so carefully, Kon reached down, lifting the covers up at the foot end of the bed. Getting on all fours, he wiggled under the sheets, like some sort of bed worm, while taking every precaution to keep his activities secret from the occupant of the bed.

What was this? Rukia wasn't wearing pajamas? No, he could see the faint outline of a very well formed leg and, after a moment of deliberation, gave into temptation, reaching out with a trembling hand. The skin was so soft and silky smooth and he slowly ran a wooly paw up and down the length. So undeniably sexy! Oh how he loved his Rukia even more for it! Who would have thought, under the ducky PJs she always wore, that she was hiding such a treasure?

He gave a small gulp and slowly made his way to his goal. The Holy Grail. The 9th wonder of the world. He was after the Promised Land, two of them, to be precise. Pushing the blanket up, as to make a tent, he tactfully laid himself down between his Rukia's two mounds of glory, fully expecting to be launched across the room by a furious Shinigami at any moment. No such thing came, though, Nothing but the slow and steady rise and fall in time with each breath. Relaxing a bit, he snuggled in the warmness a bit further.

Wow! She was bigger than he remembered! Again he inwardly marveled at the incongruity of the Shinigami that stole his heart. She was pretty awesome. With a sigh, the tugs of sleep pulled at Kon's eyes, and with the bear being more comfortable and content than ever, he was quick to give in.

Ichigo's eyes snapped open as a loud thump sounded off the wall. This was accompanied by much cursing. What really woke up the substitute shinigami was the fact that the voice was very much female, and it was very much not Rukia. He sat up, rubbing his eyes, before he stared agape at the scene before him.

Yoruichi, the human version, was standing with a pissed off expression on her face with her arms raised, yelling at whatever it was that she had thrown. Ichigo managed to catch the words "pervert", "taking advantage", and "I'm gong to kill you" in her tirade. Speaking of pervert, the male side of him decided to just then took notice in what the feisty woman was wearing. He recognized the shirt, it was an old blue one his dad had bought him while on a trip to the beach, complete with a fading picturesque printing of a sun rising over a tropical island. It was rather small on him now, so it was very form fitting on the dark-skinned woman and old in this case meant holes and the bits of skin that showed through that made his mind wander to all the wrong thoughts.

Then there were the boxers...which he noticed were his... The elastic waistband was just barely enough to keep the article of clothing from riding down below her waist, but combined with the small shirt, it exposed a very fit stomach and Ichigo's eyes automatically followed the curvature of the muscles downward. The ensemble left very little to imagination.

Wait a minute, what was Yoruichi doing with his clothing on anyway? "What the hell is going on?" he groaned, pulling himself up from the covers, diverting his eyes anywhere but at the woman still standing on his bed.

"Your teddy bear tried to get frisky with me last night, kid."

Ichigo looked down at the floor by the wall on the far side of the bed. Sure enough, a rather dazed Kon was slowly staggering to his feet. "What are you doing in Ichigo's bed?" the furry animal yelled with his typical bluster, one paw shaking with accusation.

"Will you shut up, Kon?" Ichigo grumbled. It was too damn early in the morning for this and Kon being a pervert was nothing new. "I've got a better question. Why are you wearing my clothing?"

"It got chilly last night, so I thought I'd grab something to keep me warm, unless you like me sleeping naked?" Yoruichi practically purred the last part, giving Ichigo a lewd wink.

"No! You know what I mean! Why are you in human form? Do you do this just to drive me insane?"

"Of course not. In case you want to know, I can't maintain that form forever. So I'm resting. Anyway, is this how you treat all your patients? I mean, you act as if you're not happy to see me. I thought we were friends?" Yoruichi teased, her lip sticking out slightly in a pout.

Ichigo was all apologies. "No no, I'm happy that you're alright, just that…well, this is all too much for it being so early in the morning. And put some better clothes on."

Yoruichi didn't miss the way his eyes avoided her. She hopped off the bed, trying this way and that to get herself in his field of vision, but no matter which way she went, Ichigo's eyes went the other way, and his rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"Something wrong, Ichigo? Why won't you look at me?"

"You know exactly why! That outfit of yours! Stop trying to embarrass me!"

"Wait…you're Yoruichi?" Kon interrupted, disbelief framing every word.

"Wow, you catch on quick." The purple haired woman crossed her arms as she looked down on the stuffed bear with disdain

"Wow, to think that man cat that was such a jerk to me could be this sexy easy woman?" Kon's eyes lit up with thinly disguised glee. The sudden picture of himself trapped between this buxom woman and his beloved Rukia was just too much of a mental image for him to contain his excitement. Unfortunately, all daydreaming was quickly literally stomped out of him by the purple haired woman.

"Stop. Being. Such. A. Good. For. Nothing. Idiot." She emphasized each word with a progressively louder stomp of her foot on the animal's head.

"Wow, isn't it too damn early for such a ruckus?" Rukia yawned, sliding out the closet door, looking somewhat amused at the situation presented before her, "I'm going to brush my teeth and go down for breakfast. Oh, and I think the shirt looks better on you than him." With one final smirk at Ichigo, she opened the door, not fully shutting it behind her.

"Rukia!" Kon was quick to find an excuse to rush out the door, abandoning Ichigo to the former Special Ops Commander.

Ichigo sighed, looking at the ground to avoid the dark skinned woman. "Hey, umm, I have to go get ready for school now. Are you going to be okay here alone?"

He couldn't see her face, looking at his toes as he was, but he heard the soft smile in her voice, "I'll be fine, kid. Go ahead, you can be my servant when you get back. Though,"she added as an afterthought, " I wouldn't mind something to read or to occupy my time. Might die of boredom."

"I'm not a servant!" he protested half-heartedly, but chuckled despite himself. She wasn't half bad, when she wasn't teasing the hell out of him.

"Of course not." She responded in a patronizing tone, patting his head, laughing lightly when he stepped back.

"Damn women." He grumbled, "I'll be back then. I'm sorry about hitting you." The apology was rushed, he wasn't very good at such things, but it seemed like the right thing to do.

"I know. Now go to school. You need it." She flopped down on his bed, crossing her arms behind her head.

A sudden thought entered Ichigo's mind. He had decided to try and get to know his friends didn't he? Well Yoruichi ranked up there with people he didn't know well and he considered his friend, so why not start with her? He had an idea forming in his head. "Hey, Yoruichi?"

"Hm?"

"Wanna just hang out or something later, after school? I'm planning to invite Rukia, Ishida, the whole gang from school, and maybe even that crazy old man from the store." He was so nervous for some reason, it felt like he was asking her out.

Yoruichi raised a single eyebrow. "I thought I was hurt and was supposed to remain here?"

"Well, as long as you take it easy…I just figured, you know, it'd be a good reason for everyone to hang out. Build relations with Soul Society or something. I'd invite them if they'd come too, but I don't know how to get in contact with them. Heh." He sounded so nervous, it wasn't like him. He preferred to grab things by balls and get it done. It annoyed him.

"Hmmmm. Sure, I guess. I'm still tired though, so until then, shoo." The discussion over, she turned to her side and pulled the blankets up. With one final shake of his head, Ichigo quietly closed the door to get ready for school.

Yoruichi waited until the makeshift Shinigami had closed the door before sitting up. For some reason, and it bothered her, she found herself touched at his moment of concern over her wellbeing. She wasn't the type to accept coddling, and it annoyed her that she didn't mind him fussing over her a bit.

How long had it been since she allowed someone to take care of her? Besides Kisuke and his associates in crime, it had been ages since she had called anybody her friend, truly. Soifon was probably the only other person to receive that dubious honor and that was more an issue of adoration on the diminutive girl's end than any equality in friendship.

And yet this high school boy with a temper as loud as his mouth had somehow roped her in and put her under his broad reaching umbrella. Taken her in, and she grinned at the comparison, like some sort of stray cat, without any expectation on her end.

Damn, she hated gatherings, and somehow, she just didn't have the heart to turn the kid down.

She was getting too soft.

"Well, Tousen?" Aizen sat on his on his cold stone throne in the heart of the Las Noches castle, idly staring at a cup of wine as he waited for his subordinate to report in.

"Master Aizen," the blind Shinigami began, taking a knee, "It is as you expected. Our first foray was stopped quite thoroughly by someone other than the boy."

"I see. Odd, considering there is no assigned Shinigami as of yet for the area. Seems as if Soul Society is a bit…shaken…by our betrayal. Who was it?"

"Yoruichi Shihoin, of the—"

"Shihoin family and former commander of the Secret Mobile Corps…" Aizen interrupted, murmuring to himself.

"Yes."

"Oh? And what is that little girl doing protecting our target, hm?" The ever amused voice of Gin chirped as the grinning ex-Shinigami stepped out from the shadows of the doorway.

"Please do not assume things without proof," Tousen frowned.

Gin held out his hands and laughed, "You're too serious, blind man. Thinka 'bout it. Why else would the princess be there doing his job after she spent so many years in hiding? A pardon from Soul Society ain't enough to get that woman back under their heel, eh? She's there to protect the human, for whatever reason."

Tousen had nothing to say, his lips set in a grim line.

Aizen sighed, looking over at the rose on the table next to him, gently stroking the petals as he mulled over this turn of events. Let the two of them bicker as usual. The rose had been something he acquired while on a mission to the real world, and in a way had become his most prized possession. Something about the flower calmed him, though he didn't know why.

He was ruthless, like the flower, sharp and with thorns. Aizen didn't consider himself the bad guy. No, he was a revolutionist. A freedom fighter. Soul Society, and the God they served had ruled for too long. It was up to him to ensure that they answered for their atrocities. And that bullshit about them serving good was just bullshit. Good, bad, all of it was just words to give solace that what they were doing was justified. They weren't some innocent fighters of justice, like they believed. Who policed the police, after all? No, their sins would be laid bare when he took over and took accountability.

So what if he had to break a few eggs while making his omelet? He chuckled inwardly; leave it to Gin to come up with the perfect analogy from his strange obsession with human writings. Still, the atrocities he had to commit to get the job done were nowhere as bad as the everyday ones by Soul Society and their "God". If he was so good, why did he create a world that was full of such hurt? Where was this "God" when Aizen called out to him? Feh, it was enough to make him want to lash out. No, no matter how far he descended into darkness, it was a small pittance to create a perfect world.

"So, what's the plan, boss?" Gin interrupted.

"We send a few more…presents to see how well this boy is guarded."

"And then?"

"And then we kill them and break the human."

Gin smiled.