Chapter 18: I Want You in My Room

"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Zanpakutō"
"Hollows/Vizard"
"[Reading/listening to a message/letter]"
"{Speaking a different language}"

AN: Not gonna lie, Rocky wishes he could fight as hard as this chapter fought me. Won't go into it but suffice to say Real Life kicked me in the dick a few times. As before, lemons be marked with ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) if you wanna skip em.

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"How is she?"

Rangiku turned her head towards Renji; the redheaded lieutenant was obviously worried for his old classmate, even if they weren't as close as they used to be. With a heavy sigh, she said, "About the same. See for yourself."

Out in one of the 10th Division training fields, Momo howled like a demon as she hacked away at various training dummies. Rather than the Kidō specialist she was, the young lieutenant acted more like a berserker from the 11th Division. "MONSTER! TREASONOUS BASTARD! TOYING WITH US ALL!" Her rampage had already demolished much of the training area and members of 10th Division had quickly taken to avoiding this particular field. With an immense fireball from her Zanpakutō, she obliterated the last training dummy. "HOW COULD YOU-" And like that, all of her rage and energy seemed to leave Momo's body in an instant. "H-how could you, C-c-c-captain Aizen?!" The dam broke and she openly sobbed at her idol's betrayal.

Back at the edge of the field, Rangiku informed Renji, "She does this every couple hours. She'll fly into a rage before she breaks down crying." The orangette's expression was filled with sympathy as she spoke, "It's been a week but she just can't come to terms with what Aizen did. Right now, her 3rd and 4th seats are picking up a lot of the slack. Captain and I are helping where we can too, but…" Rather than finish, she simply gestured towards Momo helplessly before walking into the field to once more comfort the younger woman.

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As they prepared to leave, the (former) Ryoka said their goodbyes to the various friends and acquaintances they had made. "Maybe next time we meet, it won't involve stabbing each other. Just a friendly drink between comrades" Kyōraku's jovial voice broke Ichigo from his thoughts. Off to the side, he noted Candice cheerfully chatting with Rangiku not far from where Nemu was seemingly comparing notes with Isane and Retsu.

"I'll agree to the first, but I'm still underaged," Ichigo argued. "I can't legally drink for another five years."

"Huh, really? When did that happen? Ah well, raincheck then." Seeming to suddenly remember something, the older man said, "Oh yes, Jūshirō asked me to give you something." He reached into his Shihakusho and pulled out what looked like a flip phone. "Your soul pager. It'll keep track of Hollows as well as anyone nearby who also has one, like your friends. Not to mention it will be how you access your funds from both your salary and any Hollows that have bounties on them."

Taking it from the other captain, Ichigo cheekily asked, "And probably monitors us as well?"

"Er, yes, actually." Shunsui's expression suggested he was surprised Ichigo figured it out so quickly. The teen just shrugged in response. It made sense: they were a group of barely affiliated humans who beat most of Soul Society's top fighters. The Gotei 13 would have to be trusting to the point of outright idiocy to not keep a close eye on them. "Oh, and while you don't have to wear it most of the time, do make sure you wear your captain's haori for any captain meetings you attend. Yamamoto's very particular about that."

"Yeah, sure," Ichigo absently replied. He'd tried on his haori the same day he was recognized as a captain. Maybe it was because of who wore it last (metaphorically anyway, a new one had to be made after he'd killed Mayuri), but he just couldn't find a comfortable way of wearing the thing. For now, it was packed up with his other keepsakes.

Just before the group left, Nemu pulled Ichigo aside to make a special request of him. "Ichigo-sama? Catnipp-san and Basterbine-san have a proposition for you and I'd like for you to consider it."

That was a rather odd request. "What kind of proposition?"

"They want to ask you themselves. I just want you to know, I will fully support your decision either way but I would ask that you at least consider it."

"Sure, no problem, Nemu." Looking around, Ichigo saw everyone had gathered and brought all their stuff. "Everyone ready? Time to head back home then!" The attendant Shinigami opened the Senkaimon and once more, the eight of them charged through.

It was only once the portal shut behind them that Rangiku realized something. "Hey, did we remember to give them Hell Butterflies to escort them?"

Within the Dangai

Ichigo and company ran for their lives from the Kōtotsu. The train shaped mass nipped at their heels as they sprinted for the exit. "Whatever you do, don't let it touch you!" Yoruichi shouted.

Bambietta yelled, her voice full of fear and outrage, "Can't they call this fucking thing off?!"

Back In Soul Society

Unconcerned, Hisagi shrugged. "Even if we didn't, I'm sure it'll be fine."

Just then a series of loud explosions rang out over the Seireitei, causing thousands of Shinigami to look up in alarm and confusion. In the air above the barrier, a massive fireworks display was going off, rockets exploding in a multitude of colors. The various Shinigami smiled at the display, even if they didn't know precisely why it was occurring. Then a special series of rockets detonated, spelling out a message, "I told you. Signed, Urahara Kisuke."

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Once the group had exited the Senkaimon, they found themselves falling through the air once again. Though unlike when they entered Soul Society, a massive flying piece of paper caught all of them. From the "front" of the flying paper, a cheerful voice called, "You lot are pretty lucky I was able to sense the Senkaimon opening!" Urahara sat cross-legged from where he was apparently piloting the device, Alfred in Ichigo's body sitting next to him. Turning around to face them, he continued, "I see the mission was a success."

"Sorta? Didn't you want us to retrieve the Hōgyoku?" Ichigo questioned as he re-entered his body, catching Alfred's pill as he went.

"That would have been ideal, yes," Urahara admitted. "But if all I was concerned with was keeping Aizen from obtaining it, I'd have sent Yoruichi alone to do the deed." That idea gave the teens pause. Yoruichi was not only stronger than any of them had been when they entered Soul Society, she was also clearly a stealth expert. The shopkeeper carried on, ignoring their surprise, "But while that plan had the greatest odds of success, it also had much worse consequences should it fail. Namely, Yoruichi's death, my exposure, and Aizen's plans continued unhindered. At least this way, even though Aizen has the Hōgyoku, he and his minions have been exposed as traitors and now they have to face Soul Society's combined might rather than working from the shadows." Kisuke shrugged, "All in all, I'd call this an acceptable outcome."

Uryū spoke up, realizing Urahara's plans, "So rather than take a single path towards victory, you chose a method where as many paths as possible led to victory in some form or other."

"More or less. Though unfortunately, even I don't know what Aizen's plans are yet. His declaration about "sitting atop the heavens" suggests he plans to overthrow the Soul King, but the question is how. Until we know that, we'll be stuck on the backfoot." After a brief silence, he perked up, once more acting the eccentric shopkeeper, "So where am I taking everyone? I've tracked you before a time or two but I never really paid attention to your addresses."

After all of Ichigo's classmates were dropped off, Candice spoke up, "There! Rest of us there!"

Looking down, Urahara followed her arm to the building she was pointing at. The sign outside made him grin. "Oho! Very well, young lady. Your wish is my command." In just a few seconds, Ichigo, Candice, and Bambietta were dropped off right outside the door while Kisuke and Yoruichi flew away.

Curiously looking at the building, Ichigo quickly recognized exactly what kind of building it was. It was a love hotel. Immediately, he put the kabob on what the two apparently had planned, "No way! I'm with Nemu and I am not cheating on her!" As he spoke, Ichigo formed an X with his arms for emphasis.

Candice, not quite catching what he said, looked at Bambietta in confusion. The older Quincy replied, "{He said he's not going to cheat on his girlfriend.}"

"{Didn't she say she was gonna tell him? The hell?!}"

"{Hold on, she gave me a thing.}" As Bambietta rummaged around in her clothing, she muttered to herself in her native German, "{Damnit girl. She's hot and all but would it have killed her to explain things properly to her boytoy? Aha! There it is!}" The German woman pulled a small device resembling a black marble from her clothes and held it up triumphantly. "Hey, Ichigo! You girlfriend wanted you to watch this."

Taking the device from her, the teen held it curiously for a moment before a bright blue light shined from its surface, almost making him drop it in shock. The light quickly coalesced into what looked like a hologram of Nemu, albeit blue and roughly fifteen centimeters tall. "Hello, Ichigo-sama. I asked Basterbine-san to give you this in case you forgot my earlier request. Both her and Catnipp-san have expressed interest in having sex with you, something I am not only willing to allow but would actually request of you. If you are not interested, all three of us will understand. But don't worry about hurting my feelings: I want this." At those last three words, Nemu's voice changed from the soft tone she usually spoke and sounded more wanton, like when they had made love. With its message delivered, the device seemingly broke apart, its fragments lifting away and disappearing from Ichigo's sight into the night.

Taking a deep breath to center himself, because his life was never normal but sometimes he forgot how not normal it was, Ichigo said, "If Nemu wants me to, then I guess I have no objections."

Chuckling good-naturedly, Bambietta quipped, "Such nobility, fucking two gorgeous women at once. Truly a paragon." With that, she led the way into the hotel and towards the front desk. Once the receptionist acknowledged them, the ravenette quickly spoke up, "One room for the night."

The woman manning the desk hesitated for a moment. "You are of age, yes?"

In response, Bambietta rolled her eyes before slapping her ID down on the desk. "I'm 20, alright? Now, room for the night." Jerking a thumb over her shoulder, she said, "That dick won't suck itself."

Satisfied the ID was legitimate (or at least looked legitimate enough for her to no longer care), the receptionist accepted Bambietta's money and passed her a key.

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Dragging Ichigo into their assigned room, Candice and Bambietta didn't even glance around before shoving him onto the bed. Both women quickly stripped out of their clothing, though when Ichigo tried to follow his example, they grabbed hold of his wrists. "No fair unwrapping our gift for us," Bambietta chided before speaking to Candice in English, "{You can go first. I wanna see how well he eats.}"

"{We best get him ready then.}" The pair of nude women moved forward and pulled Ichigo's shirt up over his head. Though they had seen his muscles before, they had refrained from touching them. Now, they took their time exploring his physique with their hands and mouths. Candice in particular enjoyed leaving little bites here and there, never hard enough to break skin, but certainly enough to make Ichigo jump slightly each time. While she toyed with his pecs and shoulders, Bambietta ran her tongue between his abs. Ichigo reached out for them, placing his hands on their heads. Though Bambietta ignored his efforts, Candice smacked his hand away. "No touch hair."

As one, both women took hold of his pants and pulled them down to his knees along with his underwear. Ichigo's rock hard erection swung upwards, freed from its confines. "I like a man who landscapes," the German quipped. "But," she swung her body around and planted her legs on either side of Ichigo's face, "If you want head, you give head." With that, she lowered her dripping crotch onto his mouth. Having rather enjoyed going down on Nemu, Ichigo didn't hesitate to spread the older woman's lips and go to town on her. Bambietta shuddered in pleasure at his efforts before directing her attention back to his dick, which Candice was already fervently licking. Though she had yet to actually take it in her mouth, the verdette ran her drooling tongue over every single millimeter of cock, enjoying the way it throbbed and pulsed at her actions. "{Hey! Share slut!}"

"{First come, first served,}" Came the Irishwoman's smug retort before she gave a long, slow lick from Ichigo's balls all the way up to his tip. "{Buuuuttt~ you were generous enough to give me the first ride. So I suppose I can share.}" She gripped Ichigo by the base of his cock as she angled the meat pillar towards her fellow Quincy. Leaning forwards, Bambietta braced her hands against Ichigo's thighs and took half of his shaft in her mouth at once. She took a moment to savor his flavor before she started bobbing her head. For her part, Candice moved lower and focused on Ichigo's balls. All while he eagerly lapped away at Bambietta's folds.

While Bambietta was certainly a louder lover than Nemu had been, Ichigo found she didn't respond as strongly to the same techniques. 'What if I-?' He changed his focus to her clit and groaned as her responding shriek sent vibrations all along his member. Emboldened, the teen renewed his assault on her even as he fought the near overwhelming urge to come. Two skilled mouths working him over was far beyond anything he had experienced in his, admittedly short, sexual career so far. However, the duo proved to be more than a match and, with moaned curse, the Shinigami let loose. From where she was dutifully sucking on one of Ichigo's balls, Candice felt his sack tighten as he came, his seed surging out of his balls and up through his shaft.

Having been paying less attention than her partner, Bambietta was caught by surprise as the first volley filled her mouth. As such, she didn't react in time before the second shot arrived, causing thin streams of cum to leak out of the corners of her mouth. Pulling back, she allowed Candice to take the next two bursts while she swallowed her mouthfuls. The two stroked their lover's slickened shaft vigorously, making sure to milk every last drop. When Candice passed the tip back to her, Ichigo's next shot was maybe half of his initial burst. Bambietta let her partner take the rest, Candice bobbing and licking to make sure she got it all. Once they were certain he was done, the two passionately kissed, swapping spit and cum between them. 'Hope Nemu's enjoying the show,' Candice thought as she played things up for the cameras she knew were watching. Honestly, even if Nemu hadn't made her request, she might have made a move on Ichigo. He ticked so many of her boxes even before she learned he killed the one who was slowly genociding her people. Though she couldn't be sure if she'd have gone for a threesome like this. Unlike Bambi, Candice preferred men and seldom found herself interested in a woman. 'Though, I gotta admit, I've met some top tier women lately.'

The pair broke off their sloppy French kiss, noticing that despite his orgasm, Ichigo was still raring to go. "{Time for next round.} And you! Don't stop licking just because you came when I haven't yet!" Bambietta directed at Ichigo as she sat back up. Indeed, the raw pleasure of his orgasm had brought Ichigo's tongue to a near standstill.

The teen renewed his assault while Candice stood up and climbed onto the bed. Turning around, she held Ichigo's member in place as she ground her drooling snatch against it. After several seconds of this, the verdette lifted herself up and carefully aimed his cock as she lowered herself down. Thankfully, Bambietta lent her a hand, spreading her cheeks to expose her backdoor. Candice jumped ever so slightly as the biggest dick she'd ever seen made contact with her rosebud. But no way was she backing down from something like this. With a bit of careful effort, she managed to work the tip into her bowels. "{Oh fuck~ He's thick!}" She groaned through gritted teeth. Behind her, Bambietta's lips stretched into a mischievous smirk as she let go of the Irishwoman's ass and placed her hands on her shoulders. With a grunt of effort, she pushed downwards, forcing Candice down until she'd taken Ichigo all the way to the hilt in her ass.

Candice's mouth opened wide in a silent scream, a mixture of rage and bliss etched onto her face. Yet the seconds passed and she didn't retaliate. Instead, the young woman placed her hands on Ichigo's lower abdomen and leaned backwards as she began to move. Slowly at first, but she quickly picked up speed until her ass was loudly slapping against his hips. Ichigo did his best to match her pace, but the Irishwoman moved like a woman possessed, driven to get more of that delicious friction.

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Within her new personal laboratory, Nemu watched the trio fuck on a sextet of screens, her robes discarded as she leaned back in her chair and molested her body. Her creator's micro-drones had been repurposed towards her own goals. Right now, half a dozen of them were spread across Ichigo's room in the love hotel, letting her view the action from every angle. Before meeting Ichigo, Nemu hadn't thought of sex except in purely academic terms. But his encouragement to be more human led to further exploration of her own, including looking at the porn the teen had saved on his computer. While watching the saved videos, Nemu found herself fantasizing about being present to watch the couples have sex almost as much as she fantasized about actually having sex. And so, once she deduced the two foreign women would likely have sex with her lover if given proper provocation, the violette decided to indulge her new fetish and learn if it was as exciting as she had theorized.

It was. More even. She could scarcely imagine what it would be like to actually be in the room itself, rather than just having the participants know she was watching them. Nemu slouched lower in her chair, exposing her backdoor as her eyes flitted between all six screens. Pulling her fingers away from her drooling snatch, Nemu slowly slid a finger into her ass, her left hand taking over tending to her needy pussy and clit. 'It feels different, but still pleasurable.' The lieutenant groaned aloud as she hit a particularly sensitive spot inside her. Her eyes fluttered briefly before once more focusing on the show, not wanting to miss a nanosecond of the action her Ichigo was providing.

As she inserted a second finger into her rosebud, Nemu thought to herself, 'Ooh~ Perhaps Ichigo-sama would like to do this with me as well?' Yes, anal definitely was something they'd have to indulge in during future trysts. 'It's a shame I can't attend to my breasts like this. Perhaps I should create additional arms? It would aid in lab work, combat, and…' Nemu's thoughts were interrupted as she watched Candice's eyes roll back in ecstasy, the verdette leaning back heavily against Bambietta as the German fondled her breasts. At the same time, Bambietta bit down on her shoulder as her own orgasm struck her like a tidal wave.

Once Candice had regained her wits, she dismounted from Ichigo's member and quickly set to work licking it clean for Bambietta's use. It was this sight that finally set Nemu off, her eyes clenching tight as she let out a lewd moan and further soiled her chair.

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'Maybe I should give girls a try more often,' Candice reflected as she delightfully tugged on her nipple rings. She laid on her back with Bambietta's head between her legs, the German's tongue wriggling inside her ass. Behind Bambietta, Ichigo hips slapped against her ass as he slammed into her sopping shaved snatch. On Candice's advice, and to Bambi's vocal approval, he gathered up the ravenette's hair into one hand and lightly pulled on it, giving him better leverage with which to fuck her. With his other hand, Ichigo held onto her hip, only letting go to give an occasional slap across her bouncing backside. As Bambietta's writhing tongue sought out more cum in her backdoor, Candice mused that the night was still so very young. And it looked like Ichigo had a similar learning curve for sex as he did for combat.

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It was only after everything had settled down a couple hours later that the trio noticed exactly what room they got. The walls and ceiling were made to resemble a cave and there was a particular symbol everywhere. Though Ichigo wasn't fluent in English, he certainly knew enough to understand Bambietta's incredulous, "{Did we fuck in the Batcave?}"

-]|[-

Ichigo awoke a couple hours later. Having long since grown used to a warm body pressed against him as he slept, it took him several seconds to realize there should have been another as well. Opening his eyes, he blearily looked around the room. A freshly showered and dressed Bambietta walked out of the attached bathroom, adjusting her hat. The first thing that came to his sleep-addled mind was, 'I never did ask how she got her clothes back after they exploded.'

"You're awake." She sounded mildly surprised but not alarmed or worried. "Not expecting love confession, I hope? I'm not one for lovey-dovey. Just a good fuck and a favor to Nemu." Ichigo needed a second for her words to penetrate his still half-asleep mind. Once they had, he wasn't sure how he felt. He had only known Bambietta for less than two weeks, so a declaration of love would be rather odd. But he wasn't sure if he liked the idea of a simple booty call. The German woman interrupted his musings by nodding towards Candice, who was still very tightly snuggled against him. "Candice though, she likes you. Don't fuck that up."

"I don't plan to, but this is all pretty new to me," Ichigo explained, his arm unconsciously stroking Candice's back.

Bambietta quietly snorted. "I'd fucking hope so. Anyway, we're paid up til morning so have fun. I'm off. Oh, and one more thing," Bambietta reached into her pocket and tossed a small bundle of cloth to Ichigo. He snatched it out of the air and realized it was the Quincy's panties. "A souvenir for you. Maybe you can earn another pair off me some time." With that, she quietly left the hotel room.

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After checking out of the love hotel (and turning down the offer of a quickie), Ichigo finally made it home to the Kurosaki Clinic. "I'm home," He called as he exchanged his shoes for house slippers. In all honesty, it was good to be home. Two weeks away and almost dying more times than he cared to count made him miss even his father's "surprise training". Okay, maybe not that but still, he hadn't seen any of his family for far too long, especially since he barely got to see them in the weeks leading up to going to Soul Society. After a long day of training, he could barely stay awake long enough to reach his bed, never mind actually spending time with anyone.

The pounding of feet heralded the arrival of his little sisters. "Big brother!" Both of them shouted as they ran into the entryway, leaping through the air at him. With a smile on his face, Ichigo caught each of them in one arm. 'Karin must've really missed me if she's acting like this.'

"Hey, you two, sorry I've been gone so long," Ichigo apologized. While Alfred had mentioned that he hadn't been filling in for Ichigo and that there had been a better plan, the Gikon hadn't shared what exactly said plan was.

Just then, Isshin entered the room. "Hey girls, I know you're happy to see your brother but he just got out of quarantine. Let the boy breathe." The old goat looked the same as ever, if less goofy than usual. "Say, didn't you two plan to go see Howl's Moving Castle? You don't want to be late."

Instantly releasing Ichigo, Yuzu shouted, "Oh no! Sorry, Ichigo, gotta go!" Grabbing her twin's hand, Yuzu swiftly put on her shoes and bolted out the door, barely giving Karin time to do the same.

As the door closed behind them, Ichigo turned to look curiously at his father. "Quarantine?"

In response, Isshin shrugged nonchalantly. "It seemed like a better explanation than 'Your brother ran off to the afterlife to save his android ghost samurai girlfriend'. Between me, Urahara, and Ryūken, everyone thinks you and your friends caught a highly contagious virus and had to be completely quarantined for a couple weeks." Ignoring his son's incredulous stare, Isshin headed towards the kitchen. "C'mon, I'll put on some tea and we can talk. You want answers and I wanna hear what you got up to in Soul Society."

Once the pair were sat at the kitchen table, tea in front of them, Ichigo asked, "Alright, how the hell do you know about Soul Society?"

Isshin's answering look suggested that he thought it obvious. "Urahara told you that you had your own Shinigami powers, didn't he? Didn't you ever wonder where you got them from?"

Ichigo awkwardly shifted in his seat at the reminder. "To be fair, I've been kinda busy since then. It sorta… slipped my mind." His father chuckled in response, understanding just how busy his son was. "So, you're saying that you're a Shinigami? Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"Same reason I never told you I have a boating license: it never came up," Isshin shrugged. "Besides until recently, I hadn't been a Shinigami in roughly twenty years." He paused with a frown. "Wait, I'm making a mess of this whole thing. Let me start from the beginning."

"That's generally the best place to start," Ichigo snarked at his father.

"Nobody likes a smartass, son. Anyway, my birth name is Shiba Isshin. I used to be head of a branch family of the Shiba Clan back in Soul Society. I heard you met my cousin Kūkaku?" He sent a questioning glance at Ichigo, receiving a nod in return. "Right. For about a century and a half, I was captain of the 10th Division. One day, I received word of something killing off Shinigami in Karakura Town. Even a patrol led by a 5th Seat was butchered without seemingly managing to put up a fight. So, I went to investigate myself. What I found was a Hollow unlike any I had ever seen, possibly a Vasto Lorde. It was stronger than any Hollow I'd even heard of; even with my Shikai, I wasn't able to slay it. Just as I was about to use my Bankai, someone attacked me from behind. Going by what I know now, it was probably Aizen or one of his lackeys. Either way, they injured me badly enough that I couldn't use my Bankai, leaving me at the Hollow's mercy. Then, an arrow came out of nowhere and distracted it. A young Quincy woman had come to my aid; a woman named Kurosaki Masaki."

"What?! Mom!?"

"Yep. Your mother was incredibly strong. So the Hollow decided to go after her first, maybe out of anger or maybe it thought she was the more dangerous enemy. I don't know, the bastard never spoke a word. And I can't tell you how weird that is; most high-level Hollows never shut up, especially the Menos. Either way, it went after her and I was too slow to catch up before it sank its teeth into her shoulder. Just as I thought she was dead, the magnificent woman says, 'I got you now' and blows its head off!"

Ichigo couldn't help but gape in awe. Given her age, his mother had to have been in her late teens at the time, yet she killed a Hollow that could compete with a captain in just one attack. "Holy crap. Mom was badass," He breathed.

Isshin sighed wistfully at his son's words. "That she was, that she was. Hell, she wasn't even harmed! Turned out she had used some Quincy technique she called Blut Vene. Not even that bastard of a Hollow self-destructing right on top of her could get through it. So there I am, a Shinigami captain being rescued by some young thing not even a third the age of my 3rd Seat."

For a time, the older man was silent, staring off in fond reminiscence. After several seconds, Ichigo quietly coughed, pulling Isshin from his thoughts. "Then what happened?"

"Sorry, got lost in my thoughts," Isshin apologized. "Once I was sure she was alright, we went our separate ways. I healed myself up and stuck around for a few days to see if I could find any clues as to where that Hollow came from and if there were any more like it. In hindsight, I probably should've contacted Rangiku and let her know what was going on. But if I had, you three might not have been born."

"Rangiku? You mean Matsumoto?" Ichigo asked in surprise.

"Oh, you know her? Yeah, she was my lieutenant back in the day. Say, I don't suppose she got off her lazy butt and became captain after I disappeared?"

"No, the captain is some little kid. She's still the lieutenant I think."

"Shiro-chan became captain? Wow, captain in less than 30 years, that must be a record! Well, not counting the Kenpachi. Zaraki just showed up one day, killed Kiganjō, and became captain. Wait, where was I? Oh yeah! A couple days after Masaki saved my ass, Ryūken runs up to me carrying her and she's got a Hollow hole forming in her damn chest! We're busy shouting at each other, and honestly not helping the situation, when Urahara shows up and insists he can help her."

"And you just trusted him?"

"Fuck no! Urahara's a shady bastard at the best of times and as far as I knew, he was a criminal. But, we weren't exactly drowning in alternatives. I don't know if you know, but Hollow Reiryoku is toxic to a Quincy. It's a large part of why they hate them so much, I imagine. A Shinigami who undergoes Hollowification might come out of the ordeal stronger than ever, but a Quincy will merely die. In order to stop it, Urahara said he had to bind Masaki's soul to a Shinigami's. It was my mess so I volunteered. I'm told the process was rather boring from an outside perspective but it was like a bad acid trip from mine. So, I lost my powers but saved an extraordinary woman's life. Fair trade."

"Alright, so that explains how you know about Soul Society and all but then what? You just became a doctor in the human world?"

Isshin shrugged, "More or less. I wasn't an expert at healing but I knew enough to get my license and open up a clinic. Masaki quickly figured out what I did despite my attempts to mislead her. We started dating and next thing I knew, I was married to the most wonderful woman in the world and the proud father of three amazing children."

But one thing stood out to Ichigo, a nagging thought he couldn't get rid of. "Why?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Why didn't you save mom?! You were a captain, right?! Why didn't you save her from Grand Fisher?!" Ichigo thought he'd healed from his mother's death. He thought that receiving absolution from her spirit had made things better. But his father's story tore the wound open again.

Sighing heavily, Isshin answered, "I couldn't." At his son's disbelieving stare, he insisted, "Really, I couldn't! Some time after you kids were born, our powers started returning. But it was slow. Very slow. A few years ago, I couldn't even see spirits. Six months ago, I couldn't enter my Shinigami form. The more power we had, the faster the rest returned. But six years ago?" Isshin hung his head despondently. "I was just an ordinary man who could sometimes sense spirits nearby, even if I couldn't see or hear them. Masaki was a bit better; she mentioned she could usually see spirits, though not clearly. In the end, it was just bad luck and bad timing. That's all."

Ichigo stared into his tea, which had long since grown cold. Finally, he said, "I believe you, dad."

Isshin's smile was soft and warm, unlike his usual goofy grins. "It's been a while since you called me that." His grin grew more mischievous as he said, "So, when are you going to bring over your girlfriend and formally introduce her to us?"

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AN: So there we have Ichigo's tragic/dramatic origin story. As I believe I mentioned before, there was no contrived "Quincy Jesus/Satan stole Arrow Mama's powers at the exact second she needed them". She just hadn't recovered her powers yet beyond being able to see ghosts. Did it bother anyone else that in canon, Ichigo knew for something like a year and a half that his father was a Shinigami yet never once asked him about it? Nor did he ever seem to care that he had family in Soul Society?

On a more lighthearted note, we have the true start of the harem and Nemu's into voyeurism! This might be one of the more unique ways to start a harem. Usually it's "So long as you love us all" or "Something something politics something something entitled to extra wives" or some such. Real talk, Bambietta was totally going to be in the harem but during the planning phase, I struggled to make her more than "Candice's +1". So instead she was a one night stand, at least from a romantic/sexual standpoint.

Oh yeah, also I made a TvTropes page for the fic. A couple on my discord wanted to but didn't know how and I hate explaining stuff step by step, especially in writing, so I just did it myself.

Next time on Vow Of The King: Ichigo takes it from behind and Nemu develops her own brand