"It's always summer, under the sea..."
Scarred fingers gently brush through Ichigo's hair. A heartbeat, long since forgotten, reverberates through his head while it rests surrounded by love and safety.
"I know, I know... Oh, oh, oh."
He doesn't open his eyes. He doesn't move at all. The scarred fingers continue their movements and the old song washes over Ichigo.
"The birds have scales, and the fish take wing."
He's seven years old again. Back when the biggest problem of his life was the possible health problems he may have because of his extremely early presentation. There had been no death, no abuse, no terror.
"I know, I know... Oh, oh, oh."
Masaki hums quietly, craning her neck to press a gentle kiss against Ichigo's head. She carefully maneuvers the pup to press his head against her scent gland, purring softly.
"The rain is dry and the snow falls up..."
Ichigo's cheeks suddenly burn in two vertical lines. His breath hitches and the wail gets stuck in his throat, coming out as a choked up whine.
"I know, I know... Oh, oh, oh..."
He wants his mother. He wants her back. He wants his pack back. He wants... he wants to rest.
Freezing droplets gently fall against Ichigo's face, waking him up. He doesn't even flinch and simply opens his eyes.
The black clouds slowly fell down, moving across the sky. Ichigo doesn't know how he knows, but he's positive that no matter how much the clouds fall, the sky will never be seen.
Ichigo blinks slowly. His head turns to the left and his dull eyes stare lifelessly at the person‒the man standing beneath a decrepit skyscraper to stay out of the rain.
He was tall, taller than that man. His dark hair was messy and long, a few strands covering his sharp and almost weather-worn face. Ichigo did not need to wonder what hid behind the visor the man wore; he already knew that the man had eyes of an almost crimson red that would be unnerving and possibly frightening to most people. He was completely shrouded in shadows, taking the outline of a cloak.
It registers much longer than it should have; Ichigo has no idea where he was... and who this person was. It takes even longer for him to realize that his instincts weren't screaming at him to fight or protect or even run. He has yet to even twitch at the unnerving revelation.
"You have fought for a long time, Ichigo... and you have fought well," The man speaks in a pride full of heartbreak and a solemn sadness.
Something splintered and corroded and gnarled curls around Ichigo's heart and imbeds itself inside. His chest and throat are clawed and torn to shreds by the wail that wants to leave him. The rain turns to shards of ice instead and slices against his exposed skin.
Blood falls instead of tears. Lifeless brown eyes simply close as Ichigo's heart is further invaded by the agonizing and corroded shards that embedded themselves inside.
...he just wants to rest.
Ichigo wakes up to the sound of a snap to his right. He almost falls off the curb he sat on before he precariously balances himself with a death grip around the chain-link fence behind him and a dark snarl plastered on his face. His eyes sweep from his left to his right until he finally notices incredibly worried brown eyes hiding behind a plastered smile.
"Ichigo~!" Keigo whines loudly, much louder than his normal exuberance, and crouches next to the ginger. "You've gotta stop fallin' asleep on me! I was talking about super important stuff!"
Ichigo eases his snarl back and plasters blank indifference on his face before glancing to his direct right. Rukia, silent in her own worry and seemingly focused on the unopened juice box in front of her, sat next to him. Ichigo glances back up when he hears an exaggerated hum and spots Mizuiro walking closer from behind Keigo.
"You've gotta stop lying Asano-san! We only just made it up here!" Mizuiro teases brightly and seamlessly pulls Keigo's attention away from Ichigo. His own dark green eyes stared at Ichigo in immense concern.
"Mizuiro! Why are you so mean to me?!" Keigo cries out almost piercing in his volume. Ichigo's jaw twitching is the only sign of his hidden flinch before he rights himself with his legs loosely crossed and his hand reaching out for Rukia's juice box.
"God, you're helpless, you know?" Ichigo states as he takes the straw off of the juice box and pierces it through before handing the carton back to the Alpha. Rukia rapidly blinks her eyes, her mouth slightly ajar and her hold on the juice box somewhat loose. She narrows her eyes with a huff before she moves her leg slowly. Ichigo immediately stares down at it, but makes no move to avoid the smallest of nudges Rukia gives him with her knee. He still tenses at the contact.
They haven't talked about what happened only a few days ago. Ichigo woke up after only ten minutes of unconsciousness and simply led the way back to the clinic. Rukia didn't ask, but she didn't hide her concerned glances or her increasing trepidation. Ichigo refuses to speak, first or second.
"Ichigo! Why are you all being mean to me?!" Keigo sobs dramatically while he has his arms wrapped around Mizuiro's torso.
Ichigo rolls his eyes with a loud snort. "I was talkin' to Rukia, you fuckin' dumbass. And stop your grovelling. You'll only make a scene."
"That's right... you're Kuchiki Rukia, correct?" Mizuiro actually puts away his phone to hold out his hand with his normal charming smile. "It's surprising how you're already on a first name basis with Ichigo... my name is Kojima Mizuiro. Nice to meet you!"
Ichigo rolls his eyes, pretending that the twitch at the corner of his mouth didn't happen. Rukia puts on her sickly sweet persona and shakes the teenager's hand with a joyful smile.
"Nice to meet your acquaintance, Kojima-kun!" Rukia greets sweetly.
"What a beautiful name for such a beautiful girl such as yourself! My name is Asano Keigo!" Keigo immediately perks up from his exaggerated crying and holds out his hand while on one knee in front of the black haired woman.
"Ignore Keigo. He thinks he's a womanizer... and Mizuiro is one, so be careful around him," Ichigo says without missing a beat.
"Ichigo!" Mizuiro exclaims with a hand over his heart. "You know I prefer older women!"
"Exactly why I'm warning her," Ichigo retorts vaguely, smirking at the glare Rukia points at him and her hiss that follows after. She simply huffs with an eye roll and sulkily drinks from her opened juice box.
"...are you free today after school?" Rukia asks quietly as Mizuiro and Keigo distract themselves with a one-sided argument.
Ichigo leans his head back with a heavy sigh. "Nah. Got Karate Club. I only have Sundays off."
"...Karate? What's that?" Rukia questions, making Ichigo turn his head towards her. He stares at her in complete disbelief before his eyebrows rise.
"Holy shit, you're serious. You don't know what‒"
"Woah!" Ichigo snaps his head towards the loud shout, already reaching out to stop Keigo from faceplanting against the ground.
"Ow!" Keigo instinctively leans into Ichigo's hold while looking back with a glare. "What are you do–"
A small growl escapes Ichigo's throat before he quickly swallows it back down. His eyes remain cold and angry, glaring at the teenager who hit Keigo.
ᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛ.
"Yo, Kurosaki," The Alpha, newly presented it seems, greets sarcastically with his horribly dyed hair and all. Looks like he did learn something during his suspension.
"Ō-Ōshima... They lifted your suspension..." Keigo comments nervously, momentarily glancing back at Ichigo.
"I'm not talking to you. Hey Kurosaki, when are you gonna dye your hair? With that bleached hair and drooping eyes, you're copying me," The wannabe gangster sneers before spitting at Ichigo's feet.
Ichigo holds back a sneer as he slowly sits back against the curb once Keigo shuffles out of the way. He keeps a leg outstretched in front of Rukia and has both of his hands exposed in case he needs to fight.
"You're the one copying me, asshole." Ichigo tilts his head back, not backing down from the Alpha. "How many times do I hafta tell you, this is my natural hair color. Do something about your own hair, chicken-head. Lay any eggs lately?"
"Chick‒you bastard..." Chicken-head sneers, taking a step forward. Rukia releases a low growl next to Ichigo, quiet enough where only Ichigo, Keigo, and Mizuiro could hear it. Ichigo glances at her through his peripherals, somewhat surprised by the protectiveness of the Shinigami.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Keigo stumbles in front of Ichigo and Rukia with his hands raised in a placating manner. "Let's not fight! Okay!"
Chicken-head snarls and pushes Keigo towards Mizuiro. "Get out of my way!"
Only a couple of things happen in only a few seconds after the newly presented Alpha uses Alpha Voice against a Pup. A loud wail echoed across the entire school rooftop as Mizuiro held a terrified Keigo in his arms with pure horror stricken across his own face. Ichigo had leapt forward with a yowl and forced the Alpha to the ground with both of his hands wringing around his neck. Rukia had taken to growling loudly with her body standing protectively in front of the two Pups.
"How fucking dare you?!" Ichigo screeches in rage. He ignores the hands scratching at his own face and neck as he continues to choke out the Alpha that dared to use Alpha Voice on his friend.
"Rei-chan! You bastard, get your hands off of him!" Ichigo snarls at the Alpha's lackey when he kicks at his side. He clenches his eyes shut when a punch lands against the side of his head. His hands don't even slacken a bit.
"Don't touch Ichigo!" Rukia roars before she charges forward with a kick aimed right at the lackey's head. He whimpers loudly before he's thrown back by the force of the kick, slamming into the chain-link fence.
"You used Alpha Voice on Keigo?! Are you fucking insane?! I'm going to fucking kill you!" Ichigo snarls loudly as his instincts scream.
Chicken-head glares up at the disguised Omega with bloodshot eyes and his entire face turning eggplant purple. Ichigo doesn't notice how his attention is pulled away to something behind him until he feels a large and gentle hand grab his shoulder.
ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛ.
Ichigo releases his chokehold and whirls around. He tries to claw at the person behind him, but his wrist is quickly caught in a gentle, but secure hold. Ichigo growls loudly and tries to wrench back, vaguely hearing his wrist popping from the sudden force.
"...Ichigo." The orange haired teenager freezes at the familiar baritone. He continues to growl as he blinks away the fuzziness of his vision.
A tall and broad teenager was crouched behind him. His dark brown hair is somewhat brushed out of both of his dark eyes, an unusual sight. Ichigo instinctively quiets his own growling, his breaths coming out in short pants, when his brain registers the familiar and friendly–and bandaged–face. Chad...
Ichigo opens and closes his mouth, pulling at his wrist still in Chad's hold. He releases after a moment to make sure Ichigo wouldn't hurt Chicken-head. Ichigo lifts his hands and grabs Chad's face, inspecting the bandages.
"...hurt. Hurt. You... you are hurt?" Ichigo questions shortly, trying to calm his still screaming instincts. It feels like he's barely cognizant of his own actions right now.
"Nothing major... all good... what happened?" Chad reassures quietly before he glances over to where Mizuiro was desperately trying to console a terrified and still sobbing Keigo. Ichigo shakes his head and scrambles off of the stupid Alpha he had been choking to rush over to the two.
ᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛ.
Ichigo collapses to his knees as he reaches for the crying teenager. "Hurt? Hurt? Are you‒"
He holds Keigo's face in his shaking hands and checks for any visible injuries. He runs his hands through his brown hair in case of any hidden cuts and carefully brushes his knuckles against Keigo's scent glands for any bite marks. Keigo cries out and barrels into Ichigo, wrapping him into a tight hug.
ʀᴜɴʀᴜɴʀᴜɴsᴀғᴇʀᴜɴsᴀғᴇsᴀғᴇsᴀғᴇᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀsᴀғᴇʀᴜɴʀᴜɴ.
Ichigo stays completely still. His hands hover over Keigo's back as he looks around with wild eyes. What does he do? What does he do?
Run? Stay? Run? Run? Stay? Run? Stay? Stay? Stay? Run?
Rukia crouches next to Ichigo with a hand outstretched, but not touching. "It's okay, Ichigo... it's okay now. That asshole's being handled. We're all okay."
Ichigo stares at her with wide eyes. He doesn't blink as he searches her eyes for... for something. What‒what is he looking for? What is he doing? This‒this...
"Trust... you are looking for a reason to trust." Ichigo almost flinches back at the sudden realization‒he doesn't think about how it's the man in his dream that spoke–and glances back down at Keigo. He releases a shaky breath as he slowly lowers his hands to rub Keigo's back.
The movements were heavily stilted and sharp, but Keigo barely noticed. He crumbles into Ichigo's lap with another wail and fully accepts the comfort given to him.
Ichigo sits directly across from the infirmary door. Papers and books were scattered around him, but he ignored it all. His face was covered in bandages and a fresh set of scent blockers were placed on his scent glands.
Keigo was peacefully petting and playing with Chad's new parakeet in the infirmary bed Ichigo leaned against, occasionally trembling from the Alpha Voice that had been used on him during lunch. It was near the end of the school day now, but Ichigo didn't care.
"Ichigo," Chad speaks up from his spot on the floor on Ichigo's right, holding out a notebook. Ichigo snaps his eyes over towards it and blinks before he glances back at the door. He grabs the notebook and skims over Chad's notes.
"Oh my gosh~! You are such a smart bird!" Keigo gushes brightly and quietly, scratching the parakeet's head. "Ichigo! Praise Yūichi-kun! He's so smart!"
Ichigo hums noncommittally as he starts to copy Chad's notes from today's classes he had missed to stay with Keigo.
He nearly attacked the teachers themselves when they implied that he should leave Keigo alone in the infirmary to go back to class. Thankfully for Ichigo's near perfect attendance, they didn't punish him for his physical reaction and left him be, with promises from the other students that they went back to class. Chad had to carry both a near-crying Mizuiro and a ticking time bomb that was Rukia out of the infirmary in his arms before they staged a literal riot in the hallway. It had at least gotten a laugh out of Keigo.
"...good. You're really good...Yūichi," Ichigo forces himself to speak through the almost suffocating tightness in his chest and the agonizing lump in his throat.
ᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛ.
That was the other thing. The bird. He can feel it–or him, rather. The soul attached to the parakeet. The soul of a Pup that had attached himself to the bird. Ichigo had only glanced at the bird for a moment when Chad had used him to distract and comfort Keigo while they were still on the school rooftop. He didn't even face his direction since then.
If Ichigo sees that soul again... he's going to either weep or scream in his despair. The Pup acted so much like his. It made his breathing stall just from hearing him speak.
DING. DING.
ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛ.
Ichigo growls loudly at the sudden noise, his fingers the form of claws and his eyes flickering between brown and silver. He swallows back the noise and almost slams his knuckles against the floor; he still uses the slight ache to ground himself and keep himself out of his spiraling thoughts and cracked self-control.
"Ichigo..."
The orange haired teenager roughly turns his head when he hears something rustling behind him. He narrows his eyes at Keigo's outstretched hand for a few long moments before slowly sliding his eyes towards a grateful and immensely worried gaze.
Keigo smiles, barely even a ghost of his usual exuberance and cheer, and lowers his trembling hand. "Tatsuki'll kick your ass if you don't start heading towards the Karate Club."
"And let you out of my sight?" Ichigo states, almost snarling in disbelief. He scoffs loudly with an eye roll before turning back around to focus on his homework.
"Ichigo..." Keigo says again, this time in exasperation. "I'm sure Chad and Mizuiro will keep me in their sights just fine. You have a tournament coming up in the summer. You've gotta practice."
"It won't hurt if I stay, so I'm staying with you," Ichigo retorts vehemently.
"Ichigo, go."
"What am I, a fucking dog?! No!"
"Ichigo, you've already skipped the rest of school, and no one has tried to attack me. Go to Karate Club."
"No."
"Are you seriously pouting?! Chad, help me out here!"
"...he won't get hurt."
"Even with Chad's betrayal, my answer is still no!"
"Ichigo."
"No! Do you want to hear it in Spanish?! No."
"You are a fucking‒"
"ASANO-KUN!"
The infirmary door is slammed open and a crying Orihime barrels in and jumps onto the brunette still sitting in the bed. The parakeet screeches loudly, but carefully gets out of the way in time before he's crushed in between Orihime and Keigo.
"Are‒are you okay?! Do you need to go to the hospital?! Do you need some food? K-Kojima-kun and-and Sado-kun came back and s-said that‒that you were in the infirmary! Said that Ōshima had–had‒" Orihime cries loudly before hugging the teenager to her chest.
"Of course, Hime would comfort even the most annoying of our classmates!" Honshō Chizuru, weirdly enough a sort of frenemy of Keigo despite being so close in personalities, cheers brightly as she walks in with Mizuiro rushing past and both Tatsuki and Rukia following behind her.
"As bitchy as ever, Honshō," Keigo snarks back once he frees his face from Orihime's hug. No one mentions how his shoulders relax from the usual insults Chizuru gives him.
"Where's Ōshima?" Tatsuki asks with her arms crossed and her body blocking anyone entering the infirmary.
"Teachers took him," Ichigo answers quietly with an almost snarl. Even hearing the name makes his hackles rise.
He should have given that bastard something permanent; remind him what will happen if he uses Alpha Voice against a Pup. He should have killed that–
Something cold, but secure, gently grabs a hold on Ichigo's nape. "Stay calm. Everyone is safe, Ichigo."
Ichigo twitched at the whisper only he could hear before his entire posture relaxes. He releases a heavy breath and closes his head with a hand rubbing over his face.
"Good fucking riddance," Chizuru states before she plops herself down on the edge of the bed with a leg tucked under her and the other outstretched on Ichigo's left.
"Are you okay, Asano-kun?" Orihime asks again, slightly calmer than her panicking when she had barreled into the infirmary.
"It's so sweet of you to worry about me, Inoue-chan~!" Keigo exclaims with a clearly strained smile. "I'm okay! I'm just trying to convince Ichigo that, the overprotective bastard."
"I'm not leaving you alone!" Ichigo snarls with a heated glare.
"I'll be fine! You have a tournament, and Tatsuki will be at your fucking ass if you don't train today!" Keigo repeats his earlier argument, making the orange haired teenager growl.
"Keigo will be safe, Ichigo. Chad and I will watch over him," Mizuiro says with a small smile. Ichigo continues to growl and crosses his arms almost petulantly.
Everyone blinks at the scowling pout on Ichigo's face before everyone, except Rukia, glances over at Tatsuki. The tomboy rolls her eyes with a sigh and an exasperated smile and reaches down to grab the back of Ichigo's collar.
"Wha–lemme go, you fuckin'–" Tatsuki cuts Ichigo off by dragging him behind her as she starts to walk out of the infirmary.
"Kuchiki-san, can you collect Ichigo's stuff? We're heading to the gym," Tatsuki calls out over her shoulder before turning the corner. Ichigo growls loudly and scrambles to grab the doorway, spouting cusswords and unintelligible growls at his childhood friend.
"Okay." Rukia crouches down and starts to gather up the textbooks and the papers that had surrounded Ichigo's spot on the floor. Chad helps her by opening up Ichigo's bag and shoving some notebooks and other papers inside.
Everyone ignores how Tatsuki forcefully pulls Ichigo off of the doorway with enough power that he breaks off some of the archway. They also ignore his shouting and snarling.
"This should be everything," Chad mentions when Rukia shoves the last textbook inside the bag before closing it. Rukia smiles brightly in her persona and gives him a curtsey before she stands up with the bag thrown over her shoulder.
"Thank you, Sado-kun! Be safe, Asano-kun!" Rukia exclaims cheerfully before she walks out of the infirmary to follow Tatsuki and Ichigo.
"Hey... Kuchiki-chan..." Keigo calls out apprehensively. Rukia stops and turns, staring at the brunette with wide eyes.
Keigo smiles brightly and inclines his head. "Thank you for helping Ichigo during lunch. And for protecting me."
Rukia blinks once before her pale cheeks flush cherry red. A genuine smile grows across her face unbidden before she shakes her head.
"No need to thank me, pu–Asano-kun," Rukia states genuinely before she walks out of sight. No one mentions the running footsteps they hear the moment Rukia is out of their sight, but Mizuiro and Chad glance at each other knowingly.
The entire rest of their classes, Rukia had been growling at anyone who so much as walked past Ichigo's desk, save for Ichigo's friends. She managed to swallow back the growls to be mostly silent, but the meaning was still there.
It seems Rukia and Ichigo are a lot closer than simply classmates; even if only Ichigo's friends can see it. They're a lot closer than Ichigo ever was to them when they first started becoming friends after all. Not that any of them were upset by it.
Hopefully Rukia can help Ichigo with whatever dark secrets he keeps from everyone else.
Hey! Hope you all like the new chapter! I didn't really realize until I finished the last chapter that I've been doing my own scenes that loosely follow canon before going into the canon fights and now I'm like–well, there's no turning back now.
I sort of hated how little screentime the rest of the Karakura Gang got throughout Bleach. Mostly because they would either go with Ichigo's plan, or be the buffers between his impulsiveness and the plan. At least, that's how I see them as.
I don't know for sure if I'm going to have them be involved anymore than knowing about what goes on from the very beginning... but we'll see!
I hope you all are enjoying the story so far! Bye.
WhovianWhoudini