This is an Alternate Universe story, but it's going to be told in bits and pieces and through different characters points of view- at most, there will be three people sharing a chapter, but generally it will be one or two points of view per chapter. The best way to put it is that this story is actually a series of different events seen through the eyes of different people that combine to make a plot. So go on and give it a read, and let me know what you think. I'm experimenting with a new writing style.

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Bleach (manga/anime OR the chemical)

Shattering Glass I

Ashido Kano had spent centuries hunting and fighting the hollows in Hueco Mundo. Had spent most of them alone, his team cut down even as he tried and failed to save even just one of them. He'd never really explored the place outside of the Forest of Menos, but he knew generally which direction everything was. Los Noches, the palace of Arrancar, was south, the desert surrounded and sometimes covered everything else.

It had been centuries of monotonous fighting, and so it didn't surprise Ashido too much to one day realize that the stitch in his side from constant fighting wasn't a stitch, it was a gash that was spilling blood. The Hollows had retreated, probably looking for easier prey, and Ashido slumped against a tree.

He was getting tired, tired of the constant fights, tired of the solitude, tired of existing when the rest of his team were already dead. He was no coward, he would not lie down and die, but he was starting to yearn for a battle in which the hollows weren't as weak, in which he might die fighting.

Of course, there was the matter of his soul then getting devoured, but he wasn't sure he'd care at that point.

A branch snapped, and Ashido's head snapped up, focusing on a thin, strangely dressed teenage boy. A slightly mangled soul-chain hung down his front, and he looked rather beat up and scared. Ashido frowned, the boy's reiatsu was pulsing- with the power of shinigami. Ashido tried to stand, but found he couldn't even push off the tree he leaned against. The wound was poisoned.

"Hey, do you know where we are?"

"We're in Hueco Mundo, home of the negative spirits called hollows." Ashido studied the boy, despite being roughed up, he looked alright, for a soul trapped in this place. "Plus spirits are you and me- Shinigami and Human." His attention focused on the chain, it was mangled, but it still looked solid and strong- was the boy still alive? Then how'd he get here?

"How do we get out of here, then?"

"We don't. Once you're here, there's no way out unless you lose your heart and become a hollow." Ashido closed his eyes. A living soul- the kid shouldn't be here. A gentle pulse from the kid's reiatsu- the kid had the strongest he'd ever felt- and he opened to look at him, frowning at the obviously shinigami power- no human was ever born from a Shinigami, it was impossible. "Your reiatsu's leaking all over the place, you're going to start attracting hollows." The boy scowled at Ashido.

"And what am I supposed to do about it?"

"Pull it in. Close your eyes, find your reiatsu, and pull it in under your skin." The boy scowled, but actually obeyed, and a minute later the boy's aura faded almost completely. "Good, that's much better, try to keep it in." Ashido's vision grayed and almost tunneled, but he blinked the world back into focus. Was he dying? He'd lost a lot blood and the wound had some sort of paralyetic poison in it. Something touched the wound, and Ashido blinked to see the boy, jacket removed, trying to put pressure on the wound. "It's no use, kid, there's poison in it."

"Would you rather I let you keep bleeding out? I need someone's help to survive." The boy retorted, and Ashido couldn't help the small smile. An idea- forbidden, treasonous, but an idea nonetheless- came to him.

The boy had shinigami powers of his own. They were close to manifesting, but barely- the boy was still living, so he wouldn't be able to make a contract with a Zanpakuto, those were made when one died and received a sword in the seireitei. And mangled chain or not, the boy was still alive, though for how much longer was unknown- one of the links on the chain looked like it was being dissolved as he watched. But if he gave his power to the boy now . . . it would bring out the boy's power and would act as a template for it- would show how the boy could survive . . . and Ashido was dying anyway, so he wouldn't be executed for treason if it was ever discovered that the boy had received a boost of shinigami powers from someone else. Though technically, all Ashido would actually be doing is using his power to pull the boy's shinigami powers to the forefront of his soul.

"Tell me, do you have something to fight for?" Their eyes met, and Ashido could clearly see the concern barely masked by the boy's frown, and the slightest flicker of agreement to the question. "Something that you would fight for even if you were bloody and beaten? A reason you will never lose your heart?"

"My sisters, my dad and my friends. I'd do anything for them." The boy responded. "They are my heart."

"Then," When had his sword gotten so heavy? His vision went completely gray for a moment, before he could continue, "take my sword and pierce your heart. I can give you the power to fight hollows, to survive." The boy was holding the blade, but hadn't placed it against his heart.

"What about you?" Ashido couldn't stop the smile that crossed his face. This boy was scared and in an unknown place, but he was showing concern for someone he had barely met. This would be a good kid to give his power to.

"I'm dying, kid, don't have much time left, even if I didn't give you this power. Just remember, use a blade to exterminate hollows- destroying them, purifies the souls that make them up and sends them to the Seireitei, or heaven, if you prefer- and don't lose your heart or your nerve for a moment, or you'll never see your family again."

"Alright." The boy placed the tip against his chest, right over his heart. "I'm Ichigo Kurosaki."

" . . . I'm Ashido Kano." He almost let go of the hilt as the resulting explosion of reiatsu as the boy's shinigami powers manifested almost blew him away. Ashido crumpled to the ground, hazy vision making out the orange hair and black robes. In the boys hand was an overlarge katana- a weapon that was just an extension of the boy's soul and spirit energy, not a true zanpakuto- but it would work like one. "One more thing, Ichigo." The boy knelt over him. "If you find a soul that's lost, if you can rescue it before the hollows turn it into one of them, use the hilt of your sword to purify them." He wasn't sure if the words even left his mouth, but he felt the boy grip his hand and give it a gentle squeeze. "Good Luck, Ichigo Kurosaki." The boy's grip on his hand tightened, and Ashido Kano, the lone shinigami hunter of Menos Forest, finally rejoined his teammates.

So, how was that? Okay, good, awesome, or 'eh', bad, horrible?

(The following is a long author's note, that I figured you wouldn't want at the beginning of the chapter, if you want, you can just skip straight to the review button.)

This is going to be AU (obviously, please note that Ichigo is in Hueco Mundo and getting his powers jumpstarted by Ashido instead of Rukia or Urahara) So I'm only going to be taking parts of the manga canon and expanding on them, as well as parts of the anime and the movies and expanding on those as well. The point of this note is: DON'T REVIEW COMPLAINING ABOUT SOMETHING NOT BEING CANON! I have already warned you multiple times that it was AU, so really, what you're going to get is my view on how the characters could have developed with a different set of circumstances than shown in Manga and Anime Canon.

Also, Pairings. I am well aware that people like certain pairings and can be avid fanatics in support of the pairing they like (I have seen more debates on youtube comments about this topic than the videos themselves, and am quite sure there are several forums on this site dedicated to each pairing. I know for a fact there are several communities for the various pairings) and that being said- I'm not a big romance fan, I've read several good fics with various pairings, and all were very good, but don't expect a lot of fluff from me. If it might help the story go forward and the characters to develop further, I'll pair characters up, but only then. I will always use canon pairings, that is, pairings expressly stated to exist by Kubo-sensei, like MatsumotoxGin, or ByakuyaxHisana. So please, don't review asking for a certain pairing.

On that same vein- Yaoi. I'm not a big fan, though I have read some of it just to see what was out there. I will exploit it for humor, (Soifon's crush on Yoruichi, Yumichika's love of beauty) but just because I have one character teasing another doesn't mean that I'll pair them up. If there is a scene of two guys hugging and or comforting each other, I can assure you right now, it'll be out of friendship, not romance. Some characters will be put through some emotional hell, I mean, stress, and as macho and prideful as they all are, I see nothing gay about a guy giving comfort in the form of a hug to another guy, especially if one is older than the other. Physical contact can be a lot more reassuring than words, after all. (Though, now that I think about it, Ichigo's main form of reassuring physical contact tends to be a fist to the face.) So, yeah, any heart-to-heart you see between members of the same sex will more likely be out of friendship or brothers/sisters/mentors relationships, than of yaoi leanings.

That all being said, I love constructive criticism and suggestions on how I might develop the characters, it's really helpful, especially when I have writers block. So if someone suggests a relationship that they think will help the character's development in some way (and actually tell me why) then I will take that into consideration. I may not actually use it in the story, but it will be considered from all angles.

Finally, Flames- I have yet to have a flamer that actually has a penname on this site, and who doesn't use profanity and bad grammar. I allow anonymous reviews because sometimes people don't have the time to login and review when they get the email alert, or do not actually have an account but still enjoy reading anyway, and I like to hear their input. It really annoys me that people take advantage of that to pretty much just type as many expletives as they can. So if you're going to flame- at least learn how to spell (or even type, for that matter) before you do. Flames will be deleted and ignored, but not after I have a good laugh at the grammar and spelling.

Sorry about the long author's note, but I thought I'd just put it out there.

(I know 'Soifon' is supposed to be spelled 'Sui-feng', but I have seen both spellings used in fics and so I'm going to use the one I'm most comfortable with.)