Bleach (c) Tite Kubo
Black and Blue
Misunderstanding
Kon's annoyed. Like, super duper mega annoyed. (And maybe just a smidge concerned.)
Sure, Ichigo's a surly roommate at the best of times.
Even more so when those Shinigami bastards kidnapped Kon's beloved Rukia and dragged her back to the Soul Society for some bogus crime, leaving Ichigo lying in a bloody pool and riddled with holes for good measure. No small wonder why he was so pissed off back then, considering how handily he got his ass kicked.
But these last few days, its like that irascible attitude's been dialed up so high it broke the damn scale!
People don't give him enough credit, but Kon's actually a pretty observant little Mod Soul. Especially when he's forced to share bedroom space with the substitute Shinigami in question.
While Kon's existence isn't exactly known to the girls and that goofy old man (they just think Ichigo gets into a mood whenever Kon's piloting his empty body around), what he does see is the impact his foul temper's having on the family lately.
Last time Kon was in control, Yuzu was so worried when they spoke - more accurately, when she caught him before Kon had a chance to run and hide - that she asked if he was sleeping enough. Then she offered to make some of Ichigo's favorite meals to cheer 'him' up. Seeing her concern laid so bare, Kon wonders how Ichigo can stand to be such a crappy older brother sometimes.
When he's in that stuffed lion, Kon watches. He can't not.
Ichigo grumbles under his breath more than usual. He's got dark rings forming under his eyes, he's tossing and turning in his sleep and screaming awake from fitful nightmares.
Some of them are so bad his sisters came barging into his room in the dead of night to check up on him, followed by that crazy old dad of his. It's one of the tremendously rare occasions that Isshin actually looks deadly serious. An expression completely out of place for that twit.
Until Kon remembers that bumbling old man is actually a Captain-class Shinigami!
The face he wears when Ichigo's startles the house awake fits so easily into a command role that Kon can't not see it. But as much as Kon wants to, he's pretty sure Isshin would unmake him stitch by stitch then crush his pill into mush if he ever spilt those beans to Ichigo.
In return for their concern, Ichigo gruffly brushes them off... well, as gruffly as Ichigo dares where his precious little sisters were involved.
Doesn't stop him huffing and cursing something about Hollows under his breath when they're gone, and generally being a gigantic asshole whenever he's awake now.
Shouldn't things be the other way around? Shouldn't Ichigo be happier now that Rukia was safe and sound? Shouldn't sleeping be easier now there's no massive flaming bird-shaped guillotine looming overhead?
Kon only heard vague accounts about what went down in Soul Society, but what little he managed to wrangle from Ichigo was the fact their posse somehow ended up being hailed as heroes for something. Their half-assed blundering into the Seireitei ended up kicking a stupendous hornet's nest.
Entirely by accident, the commotion their presence caused ended up uncovering some pretty nasty stuff about a coup attempt.
And as it turned out, their half-baked scheme to barge in and save Rukia saved the entire Soul Society from the whackjob Shinigami who'd arranged Rukia's execution in the first place!
The Gotei 13 even gave Ichigo that special badge thingy that lets him run around as an official substitute with their blessing.
But contrary to all sane expectations, instead of celebrating the monumental success of their impossible stunt, Ichigo's sulking even more! (If that was even possible!)
Kon is still furious when he learned Rukia had chosen not to come back to Karakura Town like they originally planned, but that colossal disappointment aside, things should all be sunshine and rainbows now.
So just what the hell was Ichigo's malfunction?
Of course, out of selfless concern for his friend (benefactor? Partner? owner?), Kon does try to cheer Ichigo up in his own way. Trying to recruit him into Kon's own extremely important missions and liaisons, but Ichigo either ignored him or punted him out the window for the favour. (Kon's still working on a way to pay him back for that one.)
What time Ichigo didn't spend on half-heartedly doing his homework or on patrol as a Shinigami is spent flopped on his bed, staring at his phone screen. He's more of an introverted guy, but he's not the kind that stayed glued to his phone like his friend Mizuiro.
A little while ago, he came home from the rain with a slip of paper that he's so rudely refused to explain.
It was only when Kon glimpsed the phone number after several attempts to sneak a peak that he finally figured out Ichigo's drama.
It was a girl!
That had to be the only explanation!
Only a woman could vex a man so deeply. And this talk of hollows? Why - to distract him from said vexing strumpet, of course!
And that was what piqued the little soul the most. For what little pride he felt at his buddy finally getting some action, he was chaffing that Ichigo's been back barely a week and someone's already slipped him a number and asked for a date!
Ichigo's clearly crushing on this girl hard, or the girl's crushing on him and gave him her number in a moment of fleeting courage, or they were both crushing on each other but neither were brave enough to make a move. And what a dynamite babe she had to be for Ichigo to tie himself up in so many knots.
Meanwhile, Kon hadn't even managed to score once! Even when he'd been parading around as Ichigo during that month away.
Now that he'd solved the mystery, Kon had a whole new question on his hands: which girl in Ichigo's little group of friends caught his eye? Assuming it was any of them at all.
As far as the little Mod Soul could tell, the only girls Ichigo hung around for any decent period of time were Tatsuki (not a chance), Orihime (way out of his league!) and Rukia (hands off, Ichigo!).
Kon's hypothesis is only confirmed by the numerous times he's observed Ichigo type the number into his phone and his thumb hover over the call button. He'd wrestle with the decision for a few minutes with gritted teeth, as though locked in some internal debate. But the coward would wince, grunt and grumble in frustration, delete the number and discard his phone again.
Eventually Ichigo just saved the number in his contacts, but kept up that same stupid dance of opening his phone list, staring, debating, grumbling and chickening out.
Worst still, the silly teenager was completely unwilling to use the vast resource that was the Great Kon's intelligence to court this new paramour!
If Ichigo wasn't willing to let the wise Mod Soul help him out, then Kon would just have to take matters into his own hands and make a play. And if he just so happened to steal that girl's affections?
Well, that just means Kon's natural charm is superior to Ichigo's in every possible way.
And how serendipitous it was that such an opportunity would present itself so soon!
"Kon, get out here." Ichigo demands flatly, that badge in his hand and its eyes glowing with the presence of the Hollows.
The wardrobe slams open and Kon leaps out of his little hiding hole. He barely has five seconds to register how haggard Ichigo looks before he's out of that stuff toy and into Ichigo's body as the latter leaps out the window. Even with the abruptness of the switch, Kon can feel how rundown this body is.
Forget mischief, Kon has half a mind just to sleep on Ichigo's behalf.
"Do me a favour and stay out of trouble this time. I don't know what the hell you did last time you had my body, but I was aching all over like I'd been run over by stampeding elephants. Just stay put, for god's sake. I'll be back soon." Ichigo grouses,
"Of course, I promise it won't happen again!" Kon promises, mainly because its true.
There's no more Grand Fisher to crush Kon's bones into paste, thanks to Isshin slicing the giant hollow mutant in two.
Which... brings up another issue Kon's trying to puzzle out. As much as Kon feared Isshin's retribution, he remembers how much Ichigo hated that monster for murdering his mother.
And Kon understands if anyone deserves to know it's finally dead, it's Ichigo.
The rub is he needs to figure out some way of actually telling Ichigo about that tidbit. Something that's a bit creative in the details, though. Something creative but believable. Kon'll definitely say a Shinigami killed it, but he knows better than to suggest it was any Shinigami Ichigo knew personally - if only so they avoid Ichigo's recent explosive moods.
But for now Kon puts that thought on the back burner, watching Ichigo's form disappear into the night. He's got a different albeit equally dangerous sort of 'trouble' in mind to occupy him, and immediately scrabbles for the discarded phone on Ichigo's desk.
The password's easy enough to crack (largely because Kon's seen Ichigo type it in multiple times over the last few days), and before long, Kon's got the phone dialing that new contact and pressed to his ear. A wide cheeky grin on his lips.
Already, he's rehearsing his opening lines in his head. If he resolved this little lover's spat, or maybe spark a little magic, then maybe Ichigo would finally work that stick out of his ass.
It rings twice. Three times and then the line connects.
"Kaien speaking."
A man answered and Kon blanches, his face falls instantly. Ichigo's 'paramour'... the person that vexed him so deeply he's plagued by sleepless nights, is a man?!
Suddenly, Ichigo's relative disinterest in his female classmates made a hell of a lot more sense. They clearly weren't Ichigo's preference. At all.
No wonder Ichigo flipped his lid when Kon made a pass at Tatsuki the first time he'd got his metaphorical hands on a body.
"Hello~?" The man, Kaien, prompts again.
Suddenly, all of the pick up lines Kon concocted evaporated into thin air. He was expected a sexy sounding young lady on the other end of this line, and its thrown him entirely out of whack.
"Uh, Hi there, its me! Your boy, Ichigo."
Honestly, Kon's got nothing for this. There's no amount of quick thinking that'll get him out of this one, and he's not really sure how to... sweet talk these types.
"Wha-...?"
A couple awkward seconds pass where the line's silent. Kon's about to break the silence, or hang up like a chicken and totally crush Ichigo's chances with this guy, until this Kaien person breaks it for him.
"Oh. I know who you are!" There's a genuine note of delight in the man's voice as if something spontaneously came from memory.
Kon mentally sighs in relief. Look, he's not one to judge, but he'd really hate himself if he blew this for Ichigo. Forget anything Isshin could do, Ichigo could do a hundred times worse.
"Yeah, its-"
"You're Ichigo's little Mod Soul friend, aren't you? It's Kon, isn't it?" Kon's face drops instantly. How did he know about that?!
"Uh, What - uh - what are you talking about? I'm Ichigo!" He tries to pass it off with a laugh that sounds nowhere near as confident as he'd hoped. If anything, he comes off as a nervous wreck.
"Then that's a real trick and a half, considering Ichigo's halfway across town from that little clinic, fighting a small pack of hollows. But I can totally believe that his body's still there, and you're the Mod Soul taking care of it right now."
"I-I'm not a Mod Soul," Kon lies and it earns a laugh, indulgent yet weirdly soothing?
"Relax. I'm not gonna tell anyone. Besides, if the Seireitei ever got it into their heads to give this town more than a surface level glance? I promise they'll find far worse things in this place than you, Kon."
"H-How did you know? How could you know all that?" Kon demands, a sudden protective instinct sparking within him, a deep dark dread lancing through his guts, "Are you a Shinigami?"
"I was. Damn proud to be one too. But... not anymore." Kaien answers with no small amount of melancholy. And was that regret Kon heard?
"Then what do you want with Ichigo? Are you the reason he's been such a colossal bastard lately? 'Cause I gotta tell you, you need to lay off! The guy's barely sleeping, he barely eats and he's snappin' at his own family!"
Is Kon still a little angry about that whole Soul Society fiasco? Yes. Does this guy really deserve that anger aimed towards him? Probably not. Does Kon care at this juncture? Nope.
He expects a hard defensive counter in return, but all Kon hears is a dismaying little curse under the other's breath and a click of the tongue, "That bites. I'm sorry to hear that. I'll be straight with you, Kon; Its less what I want from Ichigo and more what I can do for him. Your heart's in the right place, I like that, and if you're really all that concerned about him-"
"I ain't concerned! I just want him to stop acting like such a jerk!"
Kon's feeble protest is answered by another indulgent chuckle before Kaien continues, "-then do me a favour and keep your eyes on him for me; make sure Ichi doesn't get too lost in his head. Way he is right now? being isolated is the last thing he needs. And while you're at it, remind him that help's never too far away when he needs it. All he has to do is ask."
"So... you're not the reason he's being a prick, but you do know what's happening to him?" Kon questions, suddenly very serious.
"I do, for the most part. That being said, if you want to learn more about it, that's between you and him. Not my place to spill another man's secrets."
Kon's about to prompt another question. All his previous thoughts of trying to woe some paramour flew out the window. First Isshin, now this guy Kaien - he wants to know just what is going on in this town. And what's with all these weirdos popping up out of the woodworks? But before he can get a word out he hears an all too familiar voice bark at him.
"Hey!"
Kon nearly jumps out of his skin in fright, confronted by Ichigo glaring at him from the other side of the window.
Ichigo's back already and looking more thunderous than ever as he snatches the mobile phone out of Kon's hand, "What in god's name do you think you're doing?! I thought I told you to stay out of trouble!"
Kon scampers back, his back hitting the wardrobe door. "I wasn't doing anything - I swear! I was just-"
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me..." Ichigo's groan cuts off his words, glaring down at the phone and the ongoing call. He's biting his lip, his haggard eyes pin Kon in place, glaring daggers at his Mod Soul before he presses the phone to his ear.
"This is Ichigo speaking," Kon watches him pinch the bridge of his nose and blew out a frustrated breath, "I'm sorry about my... friend calling out of the blue, I promise this won't happen again."
Even from so far away, Kon can still hear the response. It also doesn't escape his notice that as a Soul, Ichigo can somehow use his phone like he would in his physical body. By his own admission, that Kaien guy has spiritual powers of his own too, so its clearly no trouble to converse like this.
"No problem at all. I think he's funny if a bit jittery, but I'm guessing he may have had entirely the wrong impression about things when he phoned me up."
Kon doesn't miss the implication, nor does Ichigo and that puts him in a darker mood. "And now I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you're insane."
"That's besides the point," Kaien dismisses casually with a laugh, "But seeing this little misunderstanding's been cleared up, I won't keep you any longer. That being said, my offer still stands. Reach out any time you want, day or night - I'll answer."
"Kaien, Wait." Ichigo blurts, and Kon can see his shock at his own words. Almost like they slipped out before he had a chance to filter them.
"Yeah?"
A couple tense seconds pass before Ichigo blows out a long breath and continues,
"Look..." He sighs, Kon watches him fork a hand through his hair while he takes a moment to collect his thoughts, "This isn't how I wanted things to go but I do have a couple questions I'd like to - that I need to ask. Things are... I think you can guess they're getting worse. And I know they can't go on much longer. Can we talk?"
"Now?"
Ichigo shakes his head, taking a seat on his bed. "No. Can we meet somewhere? Last thing I want is one of my sisters to barge in and hear all this commotion... I don't, um... I think I've caused them enough grief as it is right now. I don't want them worrying about me any more than they have to."
Kon's still leaning against the wardrobe, only feeling safe enough to peel himself away when he's satisfied Ichigo isn't going to skewer him on his cleaver of a Zanpakuto.
Kon hears Kaien hum sympathetically, "Yeah, I get that. Fine. You free this weekend?"
Ichigo blinks in surprise, "Not tomorrow?"
"Pretty sure its a school day tomorrow."
Ichigo's trademark scowl is back in full force, emphasized all the more by his fatigue and fraying nerves, "I'm pretty sure me trying to figure out how to deal with an inner Hollow ranks a little higher on the priorities list. I can afford to play hooky and skip a few classes."
Inner Hollow? Kon frowns. Is Ichigo possessed by a Hollow? Was that why he's been such a pain in the ass lately?
There's a pause on Kaien's side. Hesitation if Kon's one to guess, "Are you sure about that, though? Do you think you'll be able to make up the classes you've missed already? This town's crawling with Hollows and I know you've been running around left and right killing them-"
Ichigo huffs and snaps, "What are you, my mum? Are you gonna meet me or not? That is what you wanted, right?"
Most people would've been offended by the lashing out, but Kon's shocked this Kaien guy's just taking it in stride, "Alright. Settle down. No need to get so upset. Tomorrow, it is. I'll text you a time and place, that okay with you?"
"Yeah. Yeah, that's fine."
"Right, I'll see you then. Ain't too happy about you skipping out on school, but I'll call up the admin staff tomorrow and make up some excuse. We'll just steer clear of that district to avoid any questions from your teachers. You alright with that, too?"
Ichigo grunts in acknowledgement. He leans forward, elbows on his knees with that scowl deepening, "And one last thing: Get Shinji out of my class. You said he's your friend, so you should be able to convince him to quit the whole fake student shtick. Its pissing me off."
"I won't make any promises there - we're very stubborn people - but I'll talk to him." Kaien answers honestly, "Fingers crossed, we won't need him hanging around your school much longer anyway."
"It's that easy to take care of an inner hollow, is it?" Ichigo questions haughtily, and a little sarcastic.
"I'll be more than happy to explain all of that crap tomorrow. Right now its late and you need to get some sleep. You sound dead on your feet."
Ichigo scoffs and rolls his eyes, "Are you always this much of a mother hen to people you barely know or is it just reserved for people you're indebted to?"
Kon cocks his head to the side. Indebted to? What has Ichigo done to get an ex-Shinigami in his debt? If it were Kisuke Urahara or Yoruichi Shihoin, Kon could probably imagine... something. But he doesn't know who else would fit the 'ex-Shinigami who owes Ichigo a favour' category.
In fact, he's pretty sure Ichigo and Kaien have both forgotten he's existed as they carried on their conversation.
Even from here, Kon can hear Kaien's upset but there's understanding and patience there too. Just who was this guy? "Now you're just hurting my feelings. Is it really that hard to believe I'm genuinely concerned about your health and wellbeing, Ichigo? And that would've been the case without all the extraneous bullshit coming into play?"
Kon watches Ichigo's expression. The scowl's gone and his face is unreadable. He's staring at the floorboards now, once more locked in his own thoughts before answering with a shockingly even tone, "No, its not. I think that I might know a couple reasons why."
His eyes slide closed, "We'll talk tomorrow. See you then."
Author's note:
I know Ichigo didn't go to the Visoreds as quickly in the canon storyline, but given the pitch Kaien made and name dropping a few people Ichigo respects, I think he'd be more willing to reach out of his own accord... even if Kon kinda pushed it.
Sorry this didn't come out Sunday/Monday like I wanted. I was caught in a car accident and it left me a little shook. Good news is no one was hurt and that's what matters. :)
Edit: 11/12/2022 - just cleaned up the chapter to make it flow better.
Regards,
Aurora313