FicWad

Everything had gone wrong and their mission was turning into a bigger disaster than any of them could have predicted. One by one he felt his friend’s spiritual pressure disappear and it was when Ulquiorra told him that Rukia was dead that he began to wonder if it was all a mistake. They were supposed to leave with more, not less.
Ichigo had always felt invincible until he had fought Grimmjow and lost, but it only made him want to work harder to get stronger to protect his loved ones and friends. He was still young and at the point in his life where he felt he couldn’t be touched. He went against some of the strongest captains in Soul Society and came out alive. He faced so much but it wasn’t until he was running away from Ulquiorra with Nel in his arms that he felt the end was coming.
He felt his hollow pulling to release himself from deep inside him, but refused to let him take over. This was his problem and he would deal with it, there was no need to involve Shiro.
“Let me out!” He ignored the hollow as his attention was turned to Ulquiorra who had materialized next to him as if he wasn’t running at all. His eyes widened in shock as he felt the kick from the Espada hit him and sent him flying into a building.
He felt it and he didn’t know how to explain it. It felt like something inside of him broke and fell out while traveling through the building. He could hear Zangetsu in his mind yelling at him to get up, but Shiro was no longer there. He had only materialized the mask for a split second and now he didn’t feel a trace of his hollow anywhere.
His eyes narrowed as Ulquiorra’s form appeared in the hole he created. He felt anger burn inside him to not give up. If he could beat him it would be all over, with the strongest Espada down, the rest would be nothing.
He had been wrong. As the Espada continued to gloat about how he would never be able to defeat him he revealed his number.
Four.
After all the hardship in the short battle and power this arrancar possessed, he was only number four? It was this that shattered his resolve, not Ulquiorra’s words or when his hand shot forward into his chest.
He felt his eyes go dim as the Espada pulled his bloody hand away and felt the ground coming closer. Words were spoken, but he did not hear them. All he could think about was how he had failed. His friends, family, and everyone who counted on him to protect them.
Shiro didn’t know what had happened as he felt Ichigo use his power for a split second before it shattered and he felt himself catapulted out of his inner world and hit a solid wall. He opened his eyes and felt a pain in his head. His pale hand went to his right side and felt blood slipping down.
The first thing he thought was he had gained control over Ichigo’s body, but that wasn’t it. If it were the case he would have begun to hollowfy, but he looked exactly how he did while in the inner world with Zangetsu. He didn’t have time to think as he heard voices from the stones he was thrown behind. One was the Espada freak they had been fighting just seconds ago and the other, Ichigo?
He got onto his hands and knees, feeling pain rack through his body as everything felt so new. He had never been able to gain control for more than a few minutes. A gasping sound from Ichigo startled him as he peeked over the stones to see Ulquiorra’s hand through his king’s chest. His eyes widened and he felt his hands claw into the stones that were supporting him to stand.
His eyes never tore away as Ichigo descended towards the ground in a thump and the Espada bragged about how he would never defeat him. He felt behind him for Zangetsu, but the Zanpakuto was not there. His hand dropped to his side in rage as he glared at the lucky Espada. If he had his sword he would have butchered the freak for what he did to his king.
When Ulquiorra had finally left, Shiro made his way to Ichigo collapsing along the way. His legs still felt weak and parts of his sides hurt from hitting the wall. He ignored the pain as he clawed on his hands and knees, fingers digging into the dirt of the ground as he made his way to his king.
“King.” Shiro turned Ichigo over slowly as saw the teen’s life was fading fast. His eyes wandered from the barely lit eyes down to the hole in his chest where black raietsu swirled from it.
A pain began to flare in his chest as he could practically hear a heartbeat’s slow rhythm. He didn’t know what it was, hollows did not have hearts nor did they feel emotions. Yet he felt sadness and loss even more powerful than rage or anything else.
“Shiro.” Ichigo whispered startling the hollow. His eyes looked back at his king who’s had tears circulating on the edge of his own. He watched as Ichigo tried to lift his heavy hand up to Shiro, who instantly took it into his own.
“Idiot king.” Shiro muttered to hold back his frustration. The entire situation caused him anger, not at Ichigo, but himself. He could have done something, trained Ichigo to use his full potential instead of letting him figure it out himself. Instead he left all the training and words of wisdom to Zangetsu. It was useless wishing now.
“I’m sorry.” He heard Ichigo whispered causing the white figure to stare at him in shock. Ichigo had never shown any love or kindness towards him, maybe that was why he was so bitter with him and wanted to crush him whenever the boy did anything stupid.
Tears were running down Ichigo’s cheek and were wiped away by Shiro with a gentleness he never displayed before. “It’s a little late, king. You’re…” The albino began to tell him when he couldn’t finish the rest of the sentence. Ichigo already knew death was coming, why remind him.
“I’m sorry I…never listened to…you.” Ichigo clenched his eyes shut in pain. How he was still alive at the moment was beyond him. However, from the look of things, Ichigo was forcing himself to keep conscious knowing when he lost it he would be gone.
Shiro remained quiet listening to his king breathe and cough up blood making him wince. He was always the strong one, never felt pain or emotion until this moment. Seeing Ichigo struggle to remain alive was doing something to him. He didn’t know if it was because they were now separated he missed the closeness he shared with his king before or the foreign emotions he was feeling.
“I always wanted…to be as strong like you.” He coughed causing Shiro’s heart to clench. His eyes widened as he brought his free hand up to his chest and felt a steady beat within it. His eyes then immediately looked at the hole in the teen’s chest. He passed his heart to Shiro.
“It’s why…I didn’t accept help from you.” Ichigo closed his eyes in pain as Shiro shushed him as he sat up feeling his regeneration taking affect making him stronger. He moved over to Ichigo and pulled his other half into his lap to hold him.
“I love you, Shiro.” Ichigo whispered into his ear not knowing if he could hold on much longer. A tear finally sprung from Shiro’s eye as he hugged Ichigo close to him, these new emotions overwhelming him. Finally, after all this time he received the acceptance he had longed for from his king and it was at the end. It couldn’t end like this!
“I love you, Ichigo.” Shiro choked on the words as he leaned down to kiss his king for the first and last time. He felt Ichigo give a small smile as their lips met and opened his eyes to look into Shiro’s. There was no sadness within them. He was finally able to rest now that he told his beloved hollow how he always felt.
Shiro felt Ichigo go limp in his arms and his head fall back when he broke apart from the kiss. He brought his kings body close to him in a tight hug as it began to disappear. He didn’t move for several minutes, only sitting on the ground that was still stained with blood. He brought his hand up to his eyes to wipe away the tears before he stood up.
He wondered if Ichigo knew he wasn’t going to beat Ulquiorra and that was why he released him. Shiro closed his eyes at the thought. He didn’t want to drag him down like he felt like he had been doing all along. He knew Shiro was strong, but didn’t want to risk it. Instead he gave his heart to Shiro to remind him of his love.
“I’ll find you again, no matter how long or far, and then we’ll never be separated again. After all, what kind of horse would I be if I abandoned my king?” Shiro vowed leaving the area. He had one thing that would forever be on his mind: find and protect his Ichigo.