Monster Ch.2
Warnings and Disclaimer in prologue.
Monstrous Plots
Grimmjow frowned as he considered what he had heard. He didn’t know if Aizen would be angry that Kurosaki was tied tighter to the Shinigami, or if he would be pleased that Soul Society had tried to harm someone who Kurosaki obviously cared for and considered his. Kurosaki was obviously a natural alpha, though, because the first thing he had worried about was his Shinigami’s safety and then how to revenge the wrongs done. Grimmjow was rather impressed, even if he didn’t want to be.
Grimmjow stood and went to go find Ulquiorra. He needed to find out what was going on with the vizards before he could give his report, and he needed to get back to Aizen quickly. He had the feeling that if Kurosaki gained ties to the vizards before he gained ties to them, they would probably lose any chance of swaying him. Kurosaki was loyal and that trait in someone with Kurosaki’s powers made him very dangerous.
Upon returning to Hueco Mundo, Grimmjow found Aizen speaking to a small blue haired arrancar who smelled familiar. He waited until Aizen motioned for him to speak, and he began his report. "The vizards have not contacted Kurosaki yet. They seem to be setting up a base first." Hesitating slightly, Grimmjow told Aizen of the conversation he had heard regarding Kurosaki’s Shinigami.
P.O.V.
Aizen was surprised that Soul Society would compromise the good will of a very powerful ally, but if their arrogance drove Ichigo to him, then he certainly was not going to complain. The bond with the Shinigami bothered him because it increased Ichigo’s positive ties to Soul Society, and without seeing what the people in power were doing, Ichigo would not see the corruption and malevolence within it. The circumstances in which the bond had been formed may cause Ichigo to distrust Soul Society though, if for no other reason than they hurt what Ichigo considered his. Sighing, Aizen gave the orders to take Neliel to Ichigo but he changed them a little. "Instead of simply leaving Neliel there, remain with Ichigo under the pretext of making sure she is alright.
Once Grimmjow had gone, Aizen went to his room. Thinking back he tried to remember where he had heard about abnormal growth rates before. The way Ichigo gained power reminded him of something, but he was having a very hard time remembering what. It was right there but he simply could not grasp it.
P.O.V.
Ichigo turned when he heard Renji groan. He had been slightly worried that Renji was not going to wake up. "What happened?" Renji croaked. Ichigo handed him water and explained about the parasites. "So I’m going to die?" Renji whispered. "Of course not," Ichigo snapped. "If Urahara hadn’t known how to save you I wouldn’t be here. I’d still be in Soul Society kicking asses and knocking heads until I had something that would work." Renji relaxed back when he heard that, "So what did Urahara do to fix me?" Ichigo hesitated slightly before explaining.
When Ichigo got to the part about the reitsu transfer, Renji went still. "So you’re telling me that you" Renji began, stopped and took a deep breath. Began again. "We’re linked right now?" Ichigo nodded, "yeah, I’m feeding you reitsu to keep you alive." Renji leaned back and shivered at Ichigo’s words. "Are you blocking me from feeling it?" "Mostly," Ichigo said, "Urahara said it would be better for you not to wake up and my reitsu be the first thing you notice." Renji nodded and swallowed loudly. "Could I get something to eat? Preferably parasite free," Renji asked. "Yeah, hang on. I’ll get you something and Urahara should probably check you over," Ichigo said as he walked out.
Ichigo went to the kitchen and found Urahara there with three bowls of food. "I figured he would wake up about now," Urahara said sounding subdued. It raised the hair on the back of Ichigo’s neck, but Urahara had yet to do anything that would break his trust. Moving to stand I front of Urahara, Ichigo said, "you’ve been weird since this shit started. What’s going on with you?" "Let’s go eat and I’ll explain some things to both of you," Urahara said, picking up one of the bowls. When they walked back into the room, Renji looked up and his stomach growled, causing him to blush. Ichigo smirked and said "It’s probably a good thing I brought two bowls if that sound was any indication," as he handed the bowls to Renji. Ichigo ignored the look Urahara gave him, sat next to Renji, and turned to listen to Urahara.
"Renji, when you were in kidou training, what was the first lesson they gave?" Urahara began. Renji frowned, "I only got through theory, there was a skirmish with hollows the first day and the instructor was killed. The ones who lived were sent to the healers and I guess they forgot to reenroll us in that class." Urahara looked startled but most of the tension and anger were gone, and Ichigo decided he was only going to hurt people for forgetting, rather than slaughter them for trying to kill Renji. "Why," Reni asked, "Is something wrong?"
Urahara looked tense again and told Renji about the knots that he should have had. "So I should have died every time I used Zabimaru?" Renji asked incredulously. Urahara nodded, "the knots are what keep your reitsu attached and safe within your body rather than your kidou or bankai pulling all of it out of you. The point is rather moot now though, because Ichigo does that for you now." Renji nodded as he finished the food. He turned to Ichigo, "let me feel your reitsu." Urahara was immediately worried, "I’m not sure that’s a good idea." Renji shook his head, "I know, but I want to feel it anyway." Frowning, Ichigo looked between them. "Why is it a bad idea?" he asked. Urahara hesitated and sighed, "Look Renji, wait another hour so we know if you’re going to collapse again before you put that kind of stress on your body." "What stress?" Ichigo said louder, and was still ignored. "Fine," Renji said, "but you don’t get to interfere next time." "Guys!" Ichigo shouted, "What are you talking about?" "Just the stress that feeling a new reitsu under your barriers can cause," Renji said. Ichigo looked closely at Renji for a moment before nodding. "So does he have anything else wrong with him?"
"Besides the parasites, he’s fine. Is it difficult to keep the transfer going?" Urahara asked. "Not really," Ichigo answered, "the main problem I’m having is not giving Renji too much reitsu too fast." Renji and Urahara looked at each other and Renji casually asked, "I’m not putting much of a strain on you, am I." Ichigo shrugged and shook his head. Looking at Renji’s pale complexion Ichigo suggested Renji lay back down for a while.