Pairing : IchiIshi

Disclaimer : ...mine? I wish...

Author's note : Takes place during thenight when Ishida was admitted into the hospital in the anime filler arc and they were on guard duty, but before they got attacked by the water Bount. Rukia conveniently missing for the sake of (my) plot development. XD!

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The silence between them was filled by the murmurs of people talking quietly and the dripping of a faulty water faucet.

Uryuu stared down at his hands folded in his lap, sneaking glances every once in a while at the boy with fiery orange hair and a temper to match, who was seated by his bedside, currently trying to glare a hole in the wall opposite him.

Said fiery temper only applied whenever Uryuu was concerned, his other friends never on the receiving end of it, with the exception of Keigo perhaps. Uryuu couldn't blame him, after all they had started off on the wrong foot. However, Uryuu couldn't help the slight twinge his heart makes whenever he thought about it. No matter how much Uryuu hated to admit it, Ichigo was the closest he had to a friend.

Pushing that thought to the back of his mind, Uryuu poked at his glasses and cleared his throat to get the other boy's attention.

"Kurosaki, you don't have to push yourself. I'll be fine. Go and get some rest," Uryuu offered, only to be rewarded with a glare.

"And if those bastards came back with those things? Thanks, but no thanks Ishida. I won't let those people do as they please anymore," Ichigo spat out, planting himself, if possible, even deeper into his chair.

Uryuu frowned. This tone of voice was unusual for Ichigo. Was he upset over something? He peered more closely at Ichigo's face. There were more frown lines than usual.

"Kurosaki, is something bothering you?" asked Uryuu, staring intently at Ichigo. Ichigo turned to glance at Uryuu, then continued in his attempt to burn a hole through the wall opposite him.

"Nothing, don't worry about it. Get some rest, it's been a tough couple of days for you," grunted Ichigo, awkwardly patting Uryuu's knee which was in front of him.

Okay, now Uryuu was sure there was something wrong with Ichigo. He decided to try another approach.

"Who are you and what have you done with Kurosaki?" joked Uryuu, and was rewarded with a slight upturn of lips on the other boy's face before it vanished. Uryuu felt the disappearance keenly, like as though something precious had been taken away from him.

"Sorry Ishida, I don't make a good bedside visitor. Just…just rest, okay? I'll make sure everything's alright," assured Ichigo.

So that was the reason for his mood, Uryuu thought. He was beating himself up over what had happened earlier.

"You know, Kurosaki, I can take care of myself," started Uryuu. He saw Ichigo twitch, which meant that he was on the right track, and continued with what he wanted to say. "I may have lost my powers but whatever I can do, I'll do it to the best of my capabilities. I'm not a child, I will take full responsibility for my actions."

Uryuu watched Ichigo clench and unclench his fists.

"Full responsibility, huh? Even though it lands you in a hospital with bruises and broken ribs? Even though it may kill you?" Ichigo now turned his glare in Uryuu's direction, voice rising with every word.

"Hush, Kurosaki. Do you want everyone to rush in here with weapons drawn? I don't mind dying if I could save lives by doing so," Uryuu answered Ichigo's question once Ichigo had quiet down.

"Damnit Ishida! Don't you get it? You don't have to sacrifice yourself! If…If only I was faster, stronger…I could have protected you," whispered Ichigo, face turned resolutely away from Uryuu's. Ichigo's fists clenched again. "I was terrified that something bad might have happened to you, that you could be dying somewhere and there was nothing I could do about it!"

"Kurosaki, you can't save everyone. You're only one person, there's only so much you can do at a time. You did your best and that's all that matters," Uryuu tried to reason with Ichigo.

"Then what's the point of having these powers if I can't protect the ones I love? I…I almost lost Inoue, Chad and now you! I'm too weak!" Ichigo spat out, pounding on the mattress, causing Uryuu to feel the vibration.

The murmurs outside the room ceased and a knock was heard on the hospital room's door.

"Oi, is everything alright?" Renji's voice could be heard through the door. Uryuu glanced at Ichigo and saw that he didn't look like he was about to answer.

"Everything's fine Abarai-san. Sorry to worry you," Ishida called out. A grunt was heard and then footsteps heading away from Uryuu's room.

"I told you not to speak so loudly," chided Uryuu but Ichigo didn't answer him.

Uryuu sighed. This was going to be long night.

"Kurosaki…Ichigo, look here," said Uryuu, the usage of Ichigo's first name enough to make him turn to Uryuu's direction.

"No one blames you. We all know you've tried your best. And if your best isn't good enough, well tough luck, but that's no reason to beat yourself up over it. We'll understand, no one will blame you," stressed Uryuu.

Ichigo looked at him for a long time before turning away. He then spoke up.

"When I was young, my mum and I were walking along the riverbank. It was raining heavily at that time. As we were walking, I saw a little girl by the riverbank, she looked like she was about to fall in. I quickly ran out to save her. When I was about to reach her, something pushed me out of the way. The next thing I knew, my mum was lying over me and there was this huge pool of blood around us, her blood. She…," Ichigo trailed away, hands clenching into the hospital bed's blankets, crushing them.

Uryuu blinked back tears he didn't realize was forming in his eyes. Ichigo turned back to Uryuu, eyes determined. "That was when I vowed that I would never lose the ones I love ever again. I would do whatever it takes to keep them safe and happy."

"Do you…do you blame yourself for that?" asked Uryuu quietly.

Ichigo shrugged. "Found out which Hollow bastard did it. The next time I see it, nothing on this earth's going to stop me from slicing it into a million tiny, unrecognizable shreds and recycle it as toilet paper."

Uryuu gasped. "It was a Hollow? I…I'm so sorry to hear that."

Ichigo grinned a little at him, sitting back in his chair with his hands behind his head. "Don't sweat it. I did beat myself up over it for years but I had a little chat with my old man and that helped. The old man was actually good for something this time."

Uryuu heard the confident tone but saw remnants of the old pain in his eyes. However, Uryuu was confident that Ichigo would get over this obstacle and become stronger. This person, he was the only one Uryuu knew who could beat down obstacles bigger than he was, that would swallow a weaker person whole, and emerge stronger than before.

"I envy your relationship with your father," Uryuu said, turning the conversation to another direction.

"Are you joking? That old man, he thinks a kick to the gut is the best way to say good morning," snorted Ichigo.

"Nevertheless, he's there for you when you need him," Uryuu argued. "My…my father, he was never there, ever since I could remember. It was always my grandfather. He was the one who took care of me, made sure I ate properly, taught me the way of the Quincy."

"Huh? Wait a second, this is your dad's hospital isn't it? And you're in such a nice room as well. That must mean something…," trailed off Ichigo.

"Yeah, but did he even visit once? I don't know what his intentions are, letting me stay here, but whatever it is, it can't be anything good. He would probably be happy to find out that I lost my powers. He was the one who forbade me to take up the Quincy bow and forbade my grandfather to teach me. He said that, what the Quincy was, what we do, was useless in the world today. But I wanted to protect the innocent, and if killing Hollows was how I could do it, then I would," Uryuu concluded. He was a little shocked actually. That was the most he had ever told another human being about his life. But after what Ichigo had revealed earlier, he thought that he should return the favor.

Uryuu continued speaking. He felt that he owed Ichigo a reason for the way he acted when they first met. "The reason why I hated Shinigamis was because the Shinigamis put the remaining Quincys under close guard, supposedly to protect what remained of the Quincy clan. But it was in actual fact to keep an eye on us, to prevent us from using our powers. One day, when the Hollows attacked, the Shinigamis were late in arriving and we weren't allowed to use Quincy powers so…He died protecting me," Uryuu took a deep breath, the pain of betrayal still there even after all these years. Uryuu guessed that certain things can't heal perfectly, leaving behind no scars, no matter how much time has passed.

In that aspect, Uryuu thought, he and Ichigo were the same. They both lost someone dear to them at a very young age.

"Huh, I guess we both had it tough, wouldn't have known that from your looks. You look like some pampered prince from a wealthy family," teased Ichigo.

"And you look like a street punk. Who would have thought that you had something in that head of yours besides air?" returned Uryuu, grinning.

"Hey, hey, now that was a cheap shot," Ichigo objected, smiling.

Uryuu smiled back at him, a warm feeling in his chest. Was this what it feels like to have a friend to talk to, sharing troubles to lighten the burden carried around for so long? Now that everything, well almost everything, was out in the open, Uryuu felt much lighter, the weight of knowledge on his shoulders reduced. He wanted this feeling to last longer but he had to bring the topic back to what they were discussing earlier.

"You know, Ichigo, I understand your feelings but have you thought of the feelings of the one you're protecting? Do you seriously think that they could live happily if you had died protecting them?" Uryuu asked.

"Well I can't stand it either, just standing by and not doing anything when I have the power to prevent that, when the people I love are in trouble," Ichigo insisted stubbornly.

Uryuu chuckled. "If that's the case, then what should we do?"

"Beat the bad guys up until they give up on bothering us. That way, we don't have to worry about sacrificing lives for each other or other nonsense," Ichigo nodded.

Uryuu gave up on chuckling and started laughing instead. That was such an Ichigo-thing to do! He didn't allow anything else to distract him from his goal and just plowed over all obstacles to get there.

Uryuu shook his head, he gave up, he really did. He was just going to believe that Ichigo could make what he believed in come true through sheer strength of will. That wasn't anything new either, he'd done it before. So who's to say he wouldn't do it again this time?

Ichigo smiled. "You finally laughed. You have been rather quiet ever since you told us the story that Bount lady told you."

Uryuu blushed, embarrassed that Ichigo had noticed such a thing. "I-I wonder where Kuchiki-san went to? She said she was going to get a drink and it's been a while since she left," stammered Uryuu.

"Who knows? She better not be slacking off and leaving me to do all the work," Ichigo said as he turned to look at the hospital room's door, as though by staring at it, it would make Rukia come back faster.

There was silence once again in the room, but this time the silence wasn't an uncomfortable one, but rather a companionable one. Uryuu took of his glasses and laid them on the side table next to him as he made himself more comfortable in his bed. After that really complicated, soul-baring talk, added onto the events of the past few days, fatigue was finally catching up on him.

As Uryuu nodded off to sleep, he heard the whispered words, "I'll protect you no matter what, I promise," as gentle fingers brushed back his bangs.

Uryuu smiled as sleep finally claimed him, secure in the knowledge that Ichigo was a man of his words.

And through it all was the sound of dripping water.

-Owari-