The next morning found the realms' newest Soul King sitting atop the roof, Myndræl's tail curled comfortingly around him and his head lowered down. Absentmindedly the boy ran his hand over the smooth blue scales of his partner's forehead.

"Even though I've been training for months to do this…" He muttered, his dragon's eyes turning to look at him, "I don't know what to do next."

"Take your time." Myndræl purred. "The Royal Guards will hold the fort; they understand that you need time to grieve."

"But I don't have time." Toshiro sighed and laid his head atop his dragon's, letting the cold skin calm his nerves. "Those demons are probably still attacking. Anyone could be hurt; the Captains, Ichigo, Rangiku…Karin." He sat up. "Is Karin alright? Please, ask Dyrilæn."

The ice drake was about to turn inward and speak to the dragoness when someone appeared atop the roof with them, a messenger. The nervous girl stood fidgeting before quickly bowing in a way that suggested she was from Kavain's branch. Had the European commander found something of interest?

"My king, word from the Head Captain of the Japanese branch of Soul Society." The messenger reported. Toshiro's interest was perked and he stood, Myndræl lifting his head to listen as well. "A terrible demon force attacked the Seireitei naught but a week ago. Many were heavily injured and the death count has not been tolled but there are thankfully not many. The force was too great even for their new power, they request your aid."

"A week ago?" Toshiro's expression hardened. "Just when Ichigo and Karin left…Where were the Royal Guards assigned to protect the Seireitei?"

"They are among the injured. The attack was sudden, unexpected, and there was no way to get word in for help in time. The force has only recently let up on their attacks. Lady Ruala awaits you below if you wish to go with her."

"I'm coming too." Myndræl stood quickly, his massive frame starting to take up a lot of the roof space.

Hitsugaya nodded to him and let out a burst of his Spiritual Pressure. He turned to the girl.

"Send word to Sylfie Greenleaf that I'll be heading to the Soul Society, I would like her to cover for me while I'm gone."

The messenger nodded and darted off to do what was asked of her.

Ruala was quick to answer her king's call with Sofia at her shoulder, fur a bit bristled as she anticipated a fight awaiting them. They wasted no time exchanging information and simply touched hands, Toshiro's other going to rest on his dragon as all of them together were transported to their main line of defense against Kamai and his seemingly never ending demon forces.

They arrived atop the Sokyoku Hill and turned outward, the damage easy to spot within seconds. Smoke rose from various places inside the walls, the Rukongai untouched as it held no one of importance. Buildings in repair were once more broken. Soul Reapers milled about, finding the wounded or chasing down remnants of what he'd been told was a greater demon force. The shadowy creatures moved about easily, almost playing with the Reapers that chased them. Ruala moved from his side to the healing quarters in the hopes of ridding the Fear in their victims.

Furious that such chaos had managed to occur despite his efforts, Toshiro let his increased Spiritual Pressure flare, targeting the demons specifically. Cold air wafted throughout the entirety of the Seireitei, washing over the Soul Reapers in a calming breeze while wrapping the horrid demons in a harsh ice that shattered them easily. Now the darkness had passed, and those who recognized the owner of the cold power either turned to the hill in surprise, awe or pure joy, others wondering what kind of being had descended upon them to save them. The figure of the ice drake could be seen even from a distance and some feared it was perhaps a new attacker, while others welcomed the sight, having met both Shimmer and Dyrilæn.

The demons dead, Toshiro leashed his power down to a more harmless level. As he did so, a rush of air signaled him to a new arrival.

"Head Captain." Toshiro greeted without having to look, sensing the aging Reaper walk to stand beside him. "I arrived as soon as I could."

"I am grateful." The older man nodded. "How long can you stay?"

"However long I choose." The young king lifted his hand to look at his now permanent mark. Even with his power suppressed as it was to avoid hurting the weaker Reapers, though he wasn't worried about the Head Captain, it still glowed brightly.

"I see…" Yamamoto mused, catching a glimpse of the mark. "I'm sure you'll be needing a report of the events."

"That would be helpful."

"Very well," He cleared his throat. "Early morning just a week ago, two elites within the demon forces, Star Blodgharm and Erol Nightstalker, managed to infiltrate the Seireitei from above and bring with them a terrible force of demons. We apprehended the two here on the Sokyoku Hill, but they were stronger than anticipated. Our force was thinned as we attempted to protect the Seireitei and so we suffered heavy injuries. Somewhere during the battle, Karin Kurosaki managed to defeat and kill Star Blodgharm with the help of Ichigo Kurosaki and the dragon Dyrilæn. The demons retreated then."

"Is Karin alright?" Toshiro questioned as he caught the lull in the report, knowing the Head Captain meant it for him to ask such a question.

"She suffered a wounded leg and some bruises but nothing major." The Head Captain assured him. "We were allowed a day's rest before the other, Erol Nightstalker, returned with another large force that broke through our weakened defenses easily, catching us off guard and creating heavy losses. He continued these hit and run attacks until finally the forces seemed to thin out and he retreated for good just yesterday, a few demons trapped inside which you have just gotten rid of."

"Is there a reason he refused to retreat before then? A weakness, perhaps?"

"He seemed upset with the loss of his partner so perhaps his attacks were based more on revenge than simple orders. In the end, though, he retreated, leaving behind his army."

"So the demons can feel." Toshiro sighed. "This also makes them dangerous and unpredictable. At least now we have time to recover and Ruala can repair the barriers to prevent further invasion."

"And it will give some time to grieve for those lost."

Somewhat surprised by this show of sympathy, Toshiro turned to look at the aged Captain, the old man leaning on his staff-sealed zanpaktou, gaze spanning slowly over the Seireitei.

"May I ask who all was killed?" He questioned.

"If I may, Soul King," He coughed, "I would suggest visiting young Karin Kurosaki first. You seemed rather…distracted when she was mentioned."

Myndræl gave a low warning grumble, knowing full well the sensitivity of such a topic for his partner. Toshiro, however, didn't seem to mind and put a hand on the dragon's side to quiet him.

"Alright." Toshiro mounted the blue drake. "If you need me, send word."

"Of course." The Head Captain bowed respectfully just as the dragon spread his wings and took off, heading for where a subtle fiery power stood waiting. It was quite a sight to see up close, he realized, as the dragon glided easily through the air, the white figure at his back sitting tall with no outward sign of the pain that could be seen in his eyes. "That boy has gone through too much in too short a time…"

Heaving a sigh, Yamamoto began to head back to his barracks.

Standing alone in the courtyard of the Squad Five Barracks, everyone else running around somewhere repairing or helping the wounded, Karin took in a breath of the chilled air. She would have been running around too if not for the crutch in her hands keeping her weight off of her left leg, wrapped in a splint. In her battle with Star she had been tossed roughly to the side before getting her leg broken by a demon, which Ichigo had been quick to kill. Only her fuel of adrenaline let her keep going long enough to send the demon bitch to Hell with Homuratei through her heart. Sometimes it sucked to be the demons' favorite target.

"The minute my leg is healed I'm tearing those bastards to bits." She growled, her wyvern spirit roaring in agreement. This wasn't over until all the demons were gone.

Absentmindedly she stuck her hand in her pocket, slipping on the silver bracelet. Whenever a fight had started she would take it off, participating or not, but afterwards she was quick to put it on again, admiring the crystal at its center. Ruala would be furious if she knew Karin hadn't kept her promise to keep it on at all times.

A cool breeze stirred the air, bringing comfort in the sun's rays, as well as a slight nervousness. She knew who was coming even before he arrived, his dragon flying on overhead towards Dyrilæn as his partner landed without a sound nearby to her. He made no move to approach her, standing silently with his gaze to the ground, nothing showing in his expression save for the pain in his eyes. Jumping too quickly to conclusions she assumed that look was because she had left and was ready to snap at him that he had ignored her before she left.

Pain shot up her leg and she realized she'd shifted her weight onto it when stepping forward to gripe at him. Her words cut off quickly with a hiss and he looked up from the ground, brows knitted in worry.

"I'm fine." She snapped. He did not approach but the worry did not leave his expression. "Unohana says it'll be fine in a week if I stay off of it."

She hoped he would say something, anything, even if it was to point out how she was standing on it now, not following the healer's orders. But he said nothing. That only made her angrier.

"Apparently you still don't want to talk to me." She huffed. "Fine, it can go both ways."

He looked a bit hurt at that and she almost took it back, but her Kurosaki stubbornness pulled through and she turned away, keeping her word and staying quiet. Not that he said anything either.

After a minute she found she couldn't stand the silence.

"Never mind." She growled and looked back at him. There was still pain hidden in his expression but he was trying to hide it and she couldn't help but loosen up her anger a bit, gaze softening. "Okay, so I'm not really sure why you were such an ass and didn't talk to me last week other than you didn't want me leaving, but…" He quirked an eyebrow at her, waiting. "I was frustrated that you didn't at least TRY to have a normal conversation. Hell, you didn't even come out to say goodbye. Normally I'm not so mad about stuff like that, but we're supposed to be…together, right?"

There was the barest hint of a nod, as if it pained him to agree. He still felt horrible about not speaking to her that final day, not having the courage to say goodbye to her face. It wouldn't really help him to tell her he'd said goodbye only after she'd left.

"Anyway, I guess I was kinda rude earlier." The teen shifted nervously. "Sorry about that."

"Why are you apologizing?"

The words startled her, half expecting him to still ignore her. She could swear his voice was a tiny bit deeper than before.

"Um…" She pulled her thoughts back together. "I just said it, didn't I?"

He stepped closer to her, making her tense a bit. What was he planning?

Unable to keep his hands to himself, Toshiro cupped her chin in his hand, the cold touch making her shiver a bit though she did not move away. He was inches away from her, spotting the blush spreading across her cheeks.

"I should be apologizing to you." He said softly. "And you know that." His hand moved up to her cheek, brushing away a strand of black hair, the endearing look in his eyes almost too much for her.

"S-Stop that." She reluctantly reached a hand up to push his away and finally managed to look away from his eyes. "What's gotten into you? First you act mute and now you look like you haven't seen me in months."

"It feels that way." He sighed. "I…I didn't say anything because I was worried about what I would say." She tilted her head in question. "You knew you had to return here and that I had to stay but you stuck to it, for your family. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to let you go if I said anything, so I kept quiet. I didn't say goodbye to you directly because I was afraid I wouldn't let you leave. I wasn't going to be selfish…I wasn't going to keep you from your family."

"Still," Karin pouted, "even though I know you tend to say stuff without going through a filter first, you still could have said something." Then she smirked. "Push comes to shove I could have just used a Kido Bind on you, I'm better at those than Ichi is."

"Now who's an ass?" Toshiro smirked as well and she laughed.

His other arm went around her waist and pulled her closer, lips touching hers to silence her quickly and satisfy his need for her kiss. His apology paid in full he broke away and looked down at her, no ice barriers around his feelings, his love for her plain to see. Despite herself, Karin giggled.

"So how long is the Soul Prince staying this time?" She said in an alluring tone, arms moving up around his neck as he became her support off her injured leg.

"The Soul Prince is gone." Toshiro's smile faded a bit. She felt his right hand move from her waist and then saw it held before her. "As of last night, I'm king."

"Oh!" She looked excited for him before remembering what such a promotion entailed. "Oh…then…your dad…"

"He's gone." His eyes closed for a moment as the memory rose unbidden.

"I'm sorry…"

The thought of death seemed to remind the young king of something and he looked Karin in the eyes once more.

"I was told there were casualties…who all was lost?"

Biting her lip, the Substitute was hesitant to answer him, especially after learning about his father's death. But she owed him the truth, and though painful that was what he would get.

"A lot of seated officers were killed, mostly the lower ones, though a few of the stronger ones were lost, too." She motioned over to a nearby bench. Getting the message he helped walk her over to it and they sat down together. "In the first raid, Nightstalker managed to kill Lieutenant Iba Tetsuzaemon. Blodga…ugh, I can't say that name…Star also killed Lieutenant Marechiyo Omaeda."

"Two Lieutenants and many seated officers." Toshiro sighed. "And the Solar Five Sisters haven't even shown themselves in months."

"There's…one more, Toshiro."

He stiffened at her tone, knowing whoever it was would be someone he knew all too well. Dread filled his heart even before she spoke the name.

"In the second raid, when Nightstalker surprised us…we really weren't prepared." She bit her lip. "Captain Ukitake was sick but he tried to fight…and he…he was killed."

Karin heard him intake sharply and was quick to put her arms around him in comfort. In her grasp he shook, unprepared for such a close loss so soon after the loss of his father. But at the same time he'd almost expected it, knowing the man's illness would one day be his death in battle, yet after so many years of roughing through it such a death seemed nearly impossible.

"I'm sorry; there was nothing we could do." Karin's voice brought him from his thoughts. "I was in Squad Four with Yuzu, I wasn't there to see it."

"It's fine." He grasped one of her hands in his. "These things…they're bound to happen…I knew we would lose people…"

"But Toshiro…"

He shook his head, white locks falling in front of his eyes.

"Though I hate to say it I can't let every death get to me…" He turned to look at her. "He at least got a decent burial, yes?"

She nodded with a smile. It was clear that made him feel better.

"Good, he deserves it. I won't be the only one missing him…I'll be back later, I need to speak to my guards." He stood carefully to avoid hitting her leg.

"It's good to see you again." She grinned.

Having been about to leave, he paused and looked down at her sitting there with a smile. Then, he leaned down and kissed her again, heart racing as he did so.

"I love you." He whispered, standing straight once more.

"Love you too, Ice King." She snickered and was rewarded with a laugh.

"I promise you, I will protect this realm from the demons."

No words were needed, just a big grin and a nod to show she trusted him to act on that promise, to stand proud before his people and defeat the shadows inching towards them. Nothing could stop them now but death, and that was almost a welcome to the warriors, a friend they knew well. They'd almost all of them met the beyond several times where death awaited them, only to send them back, their mission not over. They had a war to fight, spirits against demons, light against dark. The fate of the worlds rested in the hands of those who were willing to brace their lives on a gamble. So would chaos or peace win over?

And at the center of it all, the two beings of separate realms held themselves together. A King of Ice and a Lady of Fire. Behind them the Reapers, the dragons, the powerful entities of nature. Against them, all the forces of Fear. It was a battle that could not be lost.

And so the Prince takes his place as King.

The End! Sort of... There will be an Epilogue posted soon and after that a Q and A kind of thing, i'll explain later.

So Karin is able to put him in a better mood ^^(I'm so sorry to everyone who I made cry, i'm so sorry) But there are still casualties. IT's not a good story without some deaths T^T I will be killing off characters...sorry...

BUT, Toshiro will be a frequent visitor to Soul Society to help fight, and for Karin, so way more fighting and action and stuff in Soul King. Yay! Enjoy!