#ch:ururu

[m3kuroshirt]

House of Assassins Part Two

Link to Part One

Word Count: 1588

Warnings: None

“Oi, Ichigo, your boyfriend is on the move!” Renji called from where he was sprawled across the couch.

“He’s not my boyfriend!” Ichigo protested, but even so, he rose from his place at the table to take a look out the window. “Looks like he’s going for a walk.” Ichigo had a distant tone to his voice, as if completely unaware how infatuated he sounded. Renji snorted.

“Right. He’s not your boyfriend at all. Sure,” he replied. A bag of chips rustled as he grabbed a handful to munch on. Jinta felt his irritation rise with every crunch that Renji made as he chewed. He gripped his pencil tightly, but didn’t move otherwise. He breathed in through his nose, out through his mouth. This was supposed to be his time with Ichi-nii, but that damn neighbour had interrupted it again. How was he so good at infringing on Jinta’s time with Ichigo when he wasn’t even in the same house as them? There was a muffled yelp and a thud, loud enough that it sounded like Renji hit the floor. Jinta aimed a glare at his math homework.

“Hey what’s wrong? Is the word problem really giving you that much trouble?” a voice asked. Jinta looked up to see Ichigo returning to the table. He let his glare fade into a pout.

“…no.”

Ichigo smirked and ruffled Jinta’s hair. “Then don’t glare so much.” He plopped himself back in the seat next to him. Jinta sighed through his nose. Ichigo chuckled softly. “Alright, let’s start it over again.”

***

Jinta wiped the counter over and over with the towel, not realizing it was already dry. He frowned as he thought more and more about the neighbour Ichigo seemed fascinated with. “Hey, Ururu,” he said abruptly, “what have you heard about Kisuke’s new neighbours?”

“Dad, Jinta. You can call him that, you know,” Ururu responded quietly. She was sweeping the floor. “And I haven’t heard much. Just that Ichigo really likes the blue-haired guy, and the green-haired lady sounds fun.”

“Hmph. I’ll call him ‘dad’ when he deserves it,” Jinta muttered. “And that’s not much information. If I wanted to know something so unspecific I could find that out on my own. I thought you girls talked about things like that. What did you even do with Orihime and Rukia all day?”

The trash can creaked as Ururu opened it to empty the dustpan. “We went shopping. We didn’t talk about the boys much at all, really.” She tapped the dustpan on the side of the garbage can to shake any excess dust and dirt loose. “Why are you so interested, anyway?”

“…Ichigo’s the best big brother. He always helps us and makes sure we’re safe and stuff. Plus, he’s the one who comes to see us the most when we’re at mom’s. Now it’s my turn to make sure he’s the safe one. Gotta make sure that blue-haired weirdo is good enough for him,” Jinta admitted, rubbing more furiously at the counter without realizing what he was doing. Ururu replaced the broom in the little closet behind the kitchen table.

“So, you’ll call Yoruichi ‘mom’, but you won’t call Kisuke ‘dad’?” she asked calmly. She adjusted her hair, brushing it out of her face and tying it up in a long ponytail. “And I think Ichigo is really capable of taking care of himself. At the very least, I don’t think he’d want a child to be the one watching out for him.”

“Mom is mom. And Kisuke is…” Jinta’s voice trailed off, and he realized finally that the countertop was dry. He didn’t finish the sentence but started folding up his towel.

“You know they’re still friends, right?” Ururu’s voice was softer than usual, but not timid. More like…gentle. Comforting. Jinta pursed his lips.

“Doesn’t mean mom doesn’t still cry on their anniversary,” he muttered. He rubbed the back of his neck. “I wanna make sure that doesn’t happen to Ichi-nii.” Then he spun around and marched out of the kitchen. Ururu didn’t follow him. She gave a soft, sad smile at her brother’s big heart.

***

It was two in the morning. On a Tuesday. He had work in a few hours. I don’t have time for this bullshit, Grimmjow thought to himself as he stared down the intruder in his kitchen. The intruder, short with flaming red hair and a scowl on his face, glared back at him in silence. Grimmjow rubbed his temples. All he wanted was a glass of water. And when he’d turned on the lights he’d been surprised to find the young boy on his counter, looking through his cupboards.

“You have thirty seconds to start explaining,” he stated, looking the intruder dead in the eyes, “before I call the cops.” The intruder’s eyes widened. He leapt off the counter, hands up in submission.

“Please don’t! Don’t call the cops, I didn’t take anything, I swear!” the intruder babbled, and Grimmjow felt himself wince internally. The kid sounded even younger than he looked. Grimmjow sighed and pulled out a chair to sit in it. He gestured to one of the other chairs and the young intruder hesitantly sat in it.

“Talk.” It was a command, not an option.

“…I just wanted to see why Ichi-nii is so interested in you,” the young boy muttered. He tugged at his red hair nervously, eyes downcast. Grimmjow narrowed his eyes.

“…who?”

At that, the boy looked up. “Ichigo. The neighbour?”

Grimmjow blinked. “Uh. Who are you? How do you know Ichigo? And why do you care what he thinks of me?” he asked, feeling a little annoyed that he still didn’t know what exactly was going on.

“…’m name’s Jinta. He’s my older brother! Well…step-brother. Sort of,” Jinta admitted. He kicked his legs, eyes back on the floor. “He’s a good person.” Then he aimed a glare at Grimmjow, body suddenly tensing as if ready to attack. “And I’m here to make sure you’re actually good enough for him and won’t hurt ‘im!” The declaration was a bit loud in the silence, and they both paused afterward, listening. No sounds came from above so Grimmjow assumed Nel was still asleep in her room.

With a roll of his eyes, he replied, “what, so you investigate all your brother’s friends like this?” Jinta shook his head.

“No, you dummy! He doesn’t wanna be your friend?”

“Hah?” Grimmjow could feel his irritation growing with every contradictory word the boy spoke. Until…

“He wants to date you!” As soon as the words were out, Jinta slapped both hands over his mouth, eyes wide. Grimmjow froze, eyes also wide, brain whirring and spinning but not actually producing any thought beyond ‘Ichigo’ and ‘date’. Sure, he’d noticed how pretty the other man was, had admired his strength when he assisted Grimmjow and Nel with moving in, and thought he was pretty chill on the few occasions they’d talked since. But…he’d never thought the other was interested in him. And now that the truth was out there…well now he found himself strangely drawn to the idea.

Sounds of sobbing brought him back to reality. “Please…Please don’t tell him I told you! Please act like you don’t know! I…He…he’ll be so sad if you stop talking to him because of this, and…and…and I don’t wanna make Ichigo sad! Please!”

“Woah, calm down…Jinta, right? Relax, I won’t, uh, won’t tell him anything, ok?” Grimmjow tried to soothe. Jinta’s sobs quieted and he sniffled.

“Promise?”

“Yeah. I promise.” Grimmjow looked over at the clock above the stove. “You really should go home now, ok? I can walk you over.” Jinta shook his head.

“No, we’ll get caught and I don’t have a good enough story for Kisuke to believe me,” he replied. He wiped his tears and snot on his sleeve. “I’ll climb back over the fence and go in through the basement window. Ururu’s there, she’ll let me in.” Grimmjow raised his eyebrows.

“If you’re sure, then.”

Jinta nodded. “Yeah, I’ve snuck out loads of times. I know what I’m doing.”

Grimmjow opted to keep from pointing out that Jinta had been caught this time. Instead, he just nodded and watched the boy as he left the house, scaled the fence, and dropped down on the other side. He couldn’t see anything more due to the fence in the backyard, but he hoped the boy made it inside as easily as he claimed. With a sigh, he ran a hand through his blue hair and turned to get what he originally came to the kitchen for: a glass of water.

Water acquired and drank, Grimmjow returned to his bed. Only to lay and stare up at the ceiling, replaying the strange meeting in his head. Or rather, one particular sentence. ‘He wants to date you’. Usually, Grimmjow wouldn’t think too hard about those kinds of things, but Ichigo seemed to be different from other people. He didn’t shy away when Grimmjow was gruff. When he helped them move, he took just as much physical work as Grimmjow did. He was strong. He was friendly. He had a smile as brilliant as the sun.

So, this time, Grimmjow let himself fantasize. In the gentle moonlight, it was easy to imagine things. He let his mind wander, wondering what it would be like to date Ichigo, to hold his hand, put his arms around the other. A soft warmth grew in his chest and he couldn’t stop the smile that stole across his face.

[m3kuroshirt]

House of Assassins Part Five

Links to Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four

Word count: 2632

Warnings: coarse language, family disagreements/fighting

The darkness was warm…heavy…firm. Ichigo didn’t want to leave it. But even as he struggled to stay in the comfort of the shadowy realm of sleep, his eyelids fluttered open, beckoned by the day light. With a low groan, Ichigo tried to move. He was unsuccessful. Something was stopping him, wrapped around him, holding him down. His eyes widened and he tensed, completely awake and alert now, ready to face whatever threat he needed to. Scenarios whirled through his head: how to get untied, how to get out from under a crushing weight, who was after him? Was it Aizen??? Did he find out about the assassination plan already?!

Ichigo’s eyes locked on what, or rather, who, was weighing him down. Blue hair was the first thing he saw, short locks splayed across his own chest. A strong jawline. Broad shoulders, with biceps emphasized by the lack of sleeves from the tank top their owner wore. Ichigo blinked once, twice. Then his face erupted in warmth, blood rushing to his cheeks. Grimmjow is on top of me?! When?! How???? Is this a dream????? Ichigo swallowed nervously and shifted. The arms around him loosened and a low grumble came from his companion as he slowly blinked awake. Ichigo just watched with wide eyes. Grimmjow pulled back a bit, his weight shifting uncomfortably onto Ichigo’s midsection, making Ichigo grunt. Grimmjow paused and looked Ichigo up and down, seemingly unsurprised by their position.

“Sleep well?” he asked. Ichigo felt his cheeks flush more. An odd look came across Grimmjow’s face; one that could be described as someone analyzing the pieces of a puzzle.

“M…more or less,” Ichigo managed to get out, shifting uncomfortably. He was acutely aware of every inch of his body that was in contact with Grimmjow’s. And while he didn’t hate the sensation, he wasn’t sure how his friend would react to his feelings. He swallowed. “Um…why…why are you on top of me?” he mumbled. Grimmjow tilted his head.

“Oh. Yeah.” He looked a bit embarrassed now, as he crawled off of Ichigo completely. Ichigo drew his legs up to his chest and the two of them sat on the couch, facing each other. “I was helping you to the couch last night, but when we got here you grabbed onto me and wouldn’t let go. So…I ended up sleeping here. With you.”

Ichigo groaned and closed his eyes. He rested his forehead on his knees. “I’m so sorry,” he replied. He could feel the blush spreading down his neck. He prayed Grimmjow only thought it was from acting out in his sleep and not the fact that he secretly enjoyed having the other man on top of him.

“Don’t worry about it,” Grimmjow replied. “It’s not like you did it on purpose.” Ichigo looked up at him a little glumly but nodded along. Grimmjow shifted awkwardly, eyes shifting toward the kitchen, then back to Ichigo. “Uh. Breakfast?” As if on cue, Ichigo’s stomach growled. He hunched in on himself even more.

“Please,” he agreed. Grimmjow nodded and stood. He walked straight to the kitchen without looking back. Ichigo slowly slid off the couch and followed after him. The mugs from the night before were still out on the table. Grimmjow grabbed them as he passed and casually put them in the dishwasher. He walked over to the fridge.

“What do you wanna eat?” Grimmjow asked over his shoulder. Ichigo shrugged, then realized the other man couldn’t see him.

“Uh, whatever is fine,” Ichigo mumbled. Grimmjow did look at him then, eyebrow raised and expression slightly exasperated. “Ok…uh, eggs?” Ichigo amended.

“Ok.” Grimmjow turned back to the fridge and grabbed a carton of eggs. He started bustling around the kitchen, grabbing a frying pan, various seasonings, and some butter. Ichigo stood awkwardly in the kitchen entrance and just watched. He enjoyed seeing the way Grimmjow’s body moved, confident and strong. The tank top allowed a nice view of his arms and shoulders, and Ichigo couldn’t help remembering that those very arms had been wrapped around him this morning. His blue hair was messy and tangled, and Ichigo flexed his hands, resisting the urge to walk over and comb his fingers through it. It looked soft.

“Good morning!” A soft, sing-song voice called. Ichigo jolted and looked behind him to see a pretty girl with long green hair.

“Oh…hi Nel,” he answered. “Uh. Good morning.” Nel smiled brightly at him.

“It’s nice to see you, Ichigo! I missed you,” she declared, not even questioning why he was there so early. Ichigo was not quite sure what to think of that. He gave her an awkward smile, while Grimmjow huffed.

“We live next door to him, you can literally go and see him any time. The hell do you mean you ‘missed him’,” he muttered. Nel just smiled wider, though her brother couldn’t see, and stepped past Ichigo into the kitchen.

“Ehhhh, Grimmy, are you making us eggs this morning?” she asked as she bumped shoulders with him. Grimmjow narrowed his eyes at her.

“I’m making Ichigo and myself eggs. You are on your own,” he retorted. Nel pouted at him. Grimmjow met her gaze and the two of them stared for a long moment. Finally, Grimmjow sighed and cracked another egg into the pan. “Fine. Whatever. You’re making lunch, then,” he grumbled. Nel cheered and threw her arms around Grimmjow in a hug. Ichigo couldn’t help but smile at the exchange. Then, seemingly satisfied that she’d gotten what she wanted from her brother, Nel whirled around and strode over to Ichigo. She grabbed his hands and led him to the table.

“Come on, Ichi! While Grimmy makes breakfast we can talk! It feels like we haven’t talked in foreeeeveeeer!” Nel all but shoved Ichigo into a chair, and then perched herself in the one directly opposite him. “How have you been? Still busy? How are Rukia and Orihime? Do you know if they’re free anytime soon? I want to go shopping! You would have to come, too, and we could bring Grimmy and make it a day for the group of us! Oh, and there’s a cute little cupcake place I found, that I really, really want to try, but Grimmy won’t go with me, but he’d probably go if you came and…” Ichigo just blinked and nodded along as Nel babbled on and on. He couldn’t quite keep up with every leap her train of thought seemed to make, but he did his best. Her enthusiasm and bright attitude made him feel more at ease, and he really did enjoy spending time around her.

It seemed to be in no time at all that Grimmjow placed the eggs on the table, along with a plate full of toast. Ichigo didn’t even know when he’d prepared that, too caught up in listening to Nel to even realize what the other man was cooking. He ate gratefully and assisted with clean up afterward. Nel gave him a very enthusiastic hug as he left and Ichigo patted her shoulders awkwardly. He did a half wave to Grimmjow, who only grunted and nodded. Then, Ichigo was on his way over to his own home. He braced himself at the door before opening it and stepping inside, tensing at the thought of the comments he knew would be coming his way.

He expected teasing. Jibes. Smirks and grins. Suggestive comments, even.

What Ichigo did not expect was chaos.

“Listen here, if I find out you did anything. Anything to him. If one single hair on his head is out of line, I will fucking end you. Do you hear me, Shunsui?!” Kisuke’s voice was the first thing he heard. It was odd, though, strained and erratic, almost panicky. Ichigo blinked. What’s going on? Who is he talking about? What happened? He wondered. He wandered to the kitchen cautiously.

A map was spread out on the table, held down by various make-shift paperweights; a shoe, a few books, and a…knife? What? Ichigo frowned. Around the map stood Rukia and Yoruichi. “Retsu said there’s a store here and here under Hueco Mundo Pharmaceuticals,” Yoruichi was saying as she pointed to two different places. “And then they have a warehouse where they deal with shipping here.” She pointed to another location. Rukia nodded.

“My brother said he can loan us a few bodyguards…we can have them help as drivers so we can split up and take all the places at once,” she stated matter-of-factly. Yoruichi purse her lips.

“Does he really want his name attached to this? When we go in, it won’t be a quiet operation,” she pointed out. Rukia gave her a firm look.

“This is more important. To me, and to him,” she replied. Ichigo opened his mouth to ask what was going on but was interrupted by a loud thud.

The door to the basement banged open and Jinta entered the kitchen with a large box marked ‘Dangerous: Explosives’. “I’ve got enough here to blow all of the town away,” he announced. “Tell me who needs ‘em.” Ururu followed from behind him, carrying another box, this one unmarked.

She said something, but Ichigo lost it in the sudden outburst from Kisuke.

“I don’t care what time you said he was there! You’re the last one who fucking saw him. That means that as far as I know, you’re next on the list if he’s not with that bastard!” he shouted. Footsteps pounded on the stairs and Ichigo barely turned in time to see Renji race down them, dressed completely in work gear, hair yanked back in a ponytail. He was followed by Chad, who was wolfing down some food as he ran into the kitchen.

“Chad and I are ready!” Renji announced. “’Hime! Where are the first aid kits!” Orihime was in a corner with Tessai, three first aid kits open in front of them on the counter.

“Here! Almost finished, we’re just making sure they’re all fully stocked!” she called, her usual bright tone now direct and sharp. Ururu carried her box over to her, and Orihime said something, but it was lost as more commotion arose.

“I’m ready to go, and I’m not waiting,” Uryuu announced as he ran down the stairs. He took a brief glance at the map on the table. “I’ll be at the warehouse. There’s an apartment complex right next to it; it’s a prime spot to set up my equipment.”

“The first aid kit!” Rukia protested. Uryuu turned away from her.

“I’ve got my own personal one,” he shouted over his shoulder. He almost smacked right into Ichigo as he turned around, and he flinched and stepped around him. “Move out of the way, Ichigo! We need to go find Ichigo!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, there was a pause. Silence descended on the household. Ichigo blinked. He glanced at each member of his household, before looking back at Uryuu.

“Find…me? I’m right here?” he stated finally. Everyone stared at him. Ichigo shifted nervously from foot to foot. “Uh. Is…is everything ok?” No one answered.

“Crisis averted,” Kisuke muttered into the phone, presumably to Shunsui, before he hung up. He pocketed his phone and walked over to Ichigo. He stopped right in front of him and crossed his arms. “So. Where were you?”

Ichigo swallowed. He glanced around at everyone nervously, before answering. “Uh. I was…next door…” Kisuke raised his eyebrows. He wasn’t wearing his hat and his hair looked a complete mess, as if he’d been running his hands through it and tugging at it.

“Next door. This whole time?”

Ichigo shrugged. “Um. Yeah? Since Shunsui dropped me off last night. Grimmjow was up and he…invited me over?”

Yoruichi frowned, hands on her hips. “And you didn’t think to send someone a message? Or at least answer your phone this morning?! We called you at least six times!”

“Wait, so you’re saying that while we were all worried you were fucking found out already and kidnapped by that fucking pharmacy, you were just over there getting laid?!” Renji demanded. Ichigo felt his cheeks heat up.

“What does ‘getting laid’ mean?” Jinta asked. Ichigo’s face reddened even more.

“No one answer that,” he snapped. Rukia glared at him.

“Oh no, you don’t get to make any rules right now,” she told him. Renji opened his mouth, but Rukia turned to him. “And you! You won’t answer Jinta right now, because I said so.” Renji shut his mouth.

“You should have answered your phone,” Chad stated, seemingly the calmest one in the household. Ichigo shook his head.

“It didn’t ring? I would have woken up if it did,” he replied as he fished his phone out of his pocket. “See…” his voice trailed off as he tried, unsuccessfully, to turn it on. “Oh. I…I guess it died.”

“Well, we can’t fault you for that,” Orihime tried to smooth the situation over, but Renji interrupted her. He shoved past Kisuke, grabbed Ichigo by the shoulder and shoved him against the wall. Uryuu protested, but Renji ignored him, focused entirely on Ichigo.

“Are you stupid? Do you just regularly go out on jobs without your phone fully charged? And why the hell would you not come home?! It’s right next door! It’s not like it’s that hard!” he shouted. Ichigo glared at him and shoved him off of himself. He stepped forward, bracing himself, muscles tensed and ready to fight.

“Am I stupid?! Me?! What about you all?!!! You were ready to go in, guns blazing, to destroy our cover, completely wreck our credibility, ruin the entire business we have going, because I was a little late in coming home?!” Ichigo snapped.

“As if you wouldn’t do the exact same thing!” Rukia shot back. She strode over to stand beside Renji, arms crossed.

Ichigo tensed his jaw. “That’s…different…”

“How, exactly?” Uryuu demanded now. Ichigo was starting to feel cornered. Adrenaline pumped through his veins and his eyes darted around, scanning for an exit route.

“I think we all need to calm down,” Yoruichi began. Next to her, Ururu was trembling. She placed a calm hand on the girl’s shoulder and stepped in front of her. “We should talk…”

Uryu ignored her and prompted Ichigo again. “How is it different?”

Ichigo was beyond listening. “Just! Shut up! It’s just different!”

“You can’t keep treating your life like it’s disposable!” Renji shouted at him. He took a step forward into Ichigo’s space again. Ichigo leaned forward and hollered back.

“Shut up! I’m fine!”

A hand slammed against Ichigo’s chest, and one against Renji’s, shoving them both backward two steps and effectively separating them. Between them now stood Yoruichi, eyes blazing.

“I said, calm the fuck down,” she ordered. Her voice was not a decibel above her normal volume, yet the silence that took over the household let her voice carry as if she was in the center of the colosseum. A few seconds passed. No one dared move a muscle. Yoruichi turned her gaze to Ichigo. “Ichigo: go upstairs and take a shower, cool off, then come back to the kitchen. We have some talking to do. I did not like what I was hearing just now.” She turned to Renji. “Renji, go have a glass of water or something. Get your hot head under control. Charging and aggression will get us nowhere.” Renji glared for a moment longer, before turning on his heel and heading to the cupboards. Ichigo thought about defying. He really did. But one look at Yoruichi’s fiery golden eyes told him that wasn’t even an option. With a huff, he stepped back and made his way upstairs. He didn’t look at anyone as he passed by, eyes firmly on his feet, face still heated in anger.

[m3kuroshirt]

GrimmIchi fic

words: 423

warnings: none

based on an idea I had, while watching my cat do the butt-wiggle before jumping on the window sill.

“I am not a cat!” Grimmjow snapped, his sharp glare directed at Jinta.

“You say that as if being a cat is a bad thing,” Yoruichi commented dryly from where she was curled up on a cushion. In her cat form. Grimmjow ignored her.

“I am not a cat. I do not go crazy for catnip, I do not want ‘treats’, and I will not chase that damn laser so stop shining it in my face; it’s annoying!” he was shouting now. Jinta stuck out his tongue at him and Grimmjow growled. Yoruichi stretched and yawned before turning over to face the wall for a nap.

At that moment, the door slid open and Ururu walked in, talking softly to Ichigo. “…I suppose it can be lonely sometimes,” she was saying. Ichigo didn’t seem to notice Grimmjow or Jinta at the moment. Grimmjow narrowed his eyes. That wouldn’t do. He didn’t like being ignored. Especially not by Ichigo Kurosaki. Why exactly that was, Grimmjow decided, was something to unpack another day.

Ichigo was angled away from Grimmjow, focused on Ururu. “Well, you know, Yuzu and Karin would love to have another friend, too. So, if you’re ever too lonely or bored, you can always come around and visit,” he was saying, but Grimmjow didn’t really hear him, too focused on his target to really notice anything else.

Jinta slipped the laser pointer back into his pocket and watched with a not-so-subtle grin. Grimmjow leaned forward into a crouch. He adjusted his shoulders and tensed his muscles, reminding Jinta of the little ‘calibration butt-wiggle’ cats do before leaping…

Jinta watched as Grimmjow’s eyes locked on Ichigo. One. Two. And the Arrancar pounced. Ichigo got knocked over in a rush of flailing limbs as he tried to turn and fight off the playful arrancar. It was to no avail. In a moment, he was on his back, pinned with the weight of the arrancar sitting on him, grinning down at him in triumph.

Jinta snorted. “Noooo, not a cat at alllll,” he drawled. Grimmow’s grin disappeared, and his head whipped around to face him. And that’s when Jinta knew: He fucked up.

***

It was to pleading shrieks and a Jinta-shaped hole in the wall that Urahara Kisuke returned to his shop. He blinked and looked at the damage, saw the disgruntled substitute Shinigami holding ice to his head, the broken table, the torn pillow, Yoruichi holding Grimmjow by the ear and Jinta by the ankle. And then, Urahara Kisuke turned around and walked away.