Yumichika wrenched himself forward, into the waking world, with a scream.

Pain.

Both hands raked perfectly manicured nails down his face, his tears and blood mingling in pink rivulets.

Fear.

His eyes squeezed closed, trying to escape the trembling of his body.

A warm, strong pair of hands wrapped around his wrists and carefully pulled his bloodied nails out of his face. He struggled against their calming hold.

"Don't touch me! Don't touch me! Oh god, please, let go of me." His cries mingled with the sky, and it began to rain. His hoarse voice quieted with a sob.

"Yumichika," a voice whispered. "Look at me." Yumichika looked up into Ikkaku's dark eyes. Another sob wracked through his frail body.

"I'm so ugly," he cried, moving to clutch at the other man's shirt. He buried his face into the bald man's shoulder, letting the pain and the fear wash over him.

"No, you're not. You're the most beautiful person I've ever met," Ikkaku whispered, quietly into Yumichika's hair. Ikkaku frowned at the lack of response. "And you'd better believe that. I don't go saying shit like that to just anyone, you know." He could feel Yumichika smile, and relax into the embrace. The distraught man soon fell asleep.

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"What the fuck was that?" Zaraki Kenpachi grunted, removing his hand from the mouth of the pink-haired child in his lap.

"Ken-chan?" Yachiru sounded like she was about to cry. "That one's sad. Ken-chan, why is that one sad?"

Ikkaku glanced down at the sleeping figure in his arms, worry furrowing his eyebrows. He carefully untangled himself from his friend, and laid the sleeping man back down into his blankets. Long fingers brushed shiny black hair from sleeping eyes.

"When Yumichika was alive, he would get all sorts of shit for being so pretty. His parents hated him, tried to make him fight to make him manly and shit like that, and he used to get beat up a lot. There was this one guy, an older guy, a neighbor or something like that. I don't remember. But one day he decided that Yumichika was too pretty, too girly and that he was going to fix that."

Ikakku paused.

"Yumichika's got a pretty face, so most people don't notice, but he never let's anything but his hands show." He glanced again at Yumichika.

"He's scarred. I've seen them. That sick motherfucker used to hold him down and beat him and cut him, but never his face or hands. He wanted Yumichika to walk around thinking that he was ugly and that no one should ever love him. He ended up raping him and I just want to kill that motherfucker." Ikkaku clenched his fists, murder shining in his eyes.

Yachiru hopped off of Kenpachi's lap, and ran over to hug Ikkaku.

"We'll make sure nobody ever ever hurts him again ever, right Ken-chan?" Yachiru looked back at the big warrior. "Right?"

"Yeah," Kenpachi grunted. "As long as I get to fight the bastard who tries." Yachiru smiled. Ikkaku looked shocked.

"Really? I thought you didn't care about nobody." Kenpachi grunted and moved to go back to sleep.

"Ken-chan…" Yachiru warned, arms crossed. Kenpachi stared at the girl for a moment.

"He's a prissy little faggot." Kenpachi paused. "But he's our prissy little faggot. And people shouldn't mess with our shit." Ikakku grinned.

"Yeah, yeah, don't strain yourself with all that emotion there. Go back to bed."

Kenpachi grunted, and laid back down in his blankets. Yachiru giggled and skipped over to her spot near Kenpachi. Ikkaku looked up at the stars for a moment, then back down Yumichika. He ran a hand through the man's hair.

"You're safe now, pretty boy."

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A/N: Oh man, I botched Kenpachi hardcore. XD Sorry guys. It's been a while since I've written anything. I just needed to write something about Yumichika and Ikkaku. They're my favourite. And I have to torture them. I'm a terrible person. XD