Title: Reborn Into Innocence

Summary: Ukitake has just woken up in a hotel room with no memory of how he got there. What he does have are several injuries and a little boy calling him "Mama." And he has the Soul Society after him...

Pairings: ShunUki in later chapters.

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Bleach series, so you can't sue me. Not that you'd get much, anyway...

Warnings: Shounen Ai, fluff and kissing in later chapters. Don't like, don't read! It is also set after chap 402 in the manga, but holds little spoilers.

AN: Hey there. First attempt at a Bleach Multi-chaptered story and I'm kinda excited to tell you the truth. I've been bouncing this idea around in my head for a while now. I hope you'll give it a chance and leave a review for encouragement. I eat reviews for breakfast, don't you know?

"It ends now, Aizen."

"There isn't any other way! Kill him!"

"Justice will not come today."

"I'm sorry, but this is the only way to save both you and everyone."

"It is the will of the Hougyoku."

"It's not fair..."

"Don't you see? This is justice!"

"He's only a child..."

"Run, Ukitake! Take him with you!"

"Mama?"

"Mama!"

Ukitake awoke from a world of blurred darkness and faint voices to the noise that sounded suspiciously of sniffling and the feeling of a feeble tugging on his arm, but it was so light he immediately assumed that it was just his body responding as he returned to consciousness. He first tried to move, but soon realized that he couldn't. His body felt heavy, hot and weak – he just general hurt all over, muscles felt strained and bones ached. The left side of his face was beginning to throb and his torso was incomprehensibly painful.

He cracked open his eyes, only to squeeze them shut again as even his eyelids hurt and continued to lie still. Drawing in a sharp breath, he used his years of experience to push the pain aside to focus instead on his current location.

His first realization was that he was laying upon a rather prickly bed, the pillow thin and course. His second realization that he had no idea where he was. He couldn't still be on the battle field as he couldn't sense the aromas of war. Nor was he in the Fourth Barracks; there was no disinfectant in the air. And the beds were nowhere nearly as uncomfortable as this cot felt to be. Thirdly, his body felt heavier and stiffer than usual, and that he was actually occupying a Gigai!

Fourthly, he felt a sense of alarm when something stirred next to him, a small source of warmth suddenly pressing to his stomach. Then, the weak tugging on his shirt was becoming more anxious. And the sniffling sounded more shaky and frightened.

Wait, so he really did hear those timid cries and felt the gentle prodding?

"Wake up, mama."

That voice, it didn't belong to anyone he knew. It was a child's voice and he was calling him mama? What in the world was going on here?

Never mind that now. There was a child crying, looking for comfort, seeking his reassurance. All other matters could be dealt with later.

Forcing his eyes open and working hard to keep them open, Ukitake tilted his head to the side to see the sight of a young human child with messy brown hair and wearing an oversize shirt sitting on the bed next to him. His tiny little body was trembling with streams of tears flowing down his little cheeks. He was so distressed that he was hiccupping and gasping for breath.

Immediately, Ukitake forgot about his aches and pain. He forced himself to sit up and pulled the distraught child into his arm, resting him on his lap as he ran a comforting hand through his messy hair.

"Shh, it's alright little one," he said in a soothing voice, his hold tightening when he felt the child grasp onto him desperately. "Don't cry."

"I was so scared," the little one whimpered into his chest.

"What were you afraid of?"

Another heart-clenching sniffle. "You wouldn't wake up."

"I'm so sorry I frightened you, little one," Ukitake whispered as he rested his chin on top of the child's head. He let the child cling to him for a few moments longer, all the while wondering who this child was and why he was calling him mama.

Just what was going on here? Was he a victim or a criminal? Was he this child's saviour or his kidnapper?

Don't you remember, Juu-chan? Sogyo no Kotowari's voice echoed through his mind, a much welcomed sound amidst the confused silence. You need to protect Sosu-chan!

"Sosu-chan?"

The child in his arms lifted his head up in response, unwittingly giving Ukitake confirmation that this child's name was in fact Sosu-chan. Looking into the child's eyes, he saw fear, desperation and weariness. And it was within those eyes Ukitake reaffirmed what Sogyo no Kotowari said to him; he will protect this child, no matter what.

The matter of why was of little concern. You don't need a reason to protect a child.

"Why don't you get some sleep, Sosu-chan?" Ukitake suggested to the child, his voice and expression soft and gentle, an expression of a mother.

"Will you be here when I wake up?" Sosu-chan asked him as he gazed up at him with watery brown eyes, his bottom lip trembling from the fearful thought of being left behind.

"Of course I will be," Ukitake gently reassured him with a tender smile as he moved to lower the child onto the bed, lifting up the thin blanket and draping it over him. "I am your mama after all."

The small child seemed satisfied with that, nodding his head before curling up under the questionable quilt. Ukitake stayed still for a moment, his fingers moving through Sosu-chan's hair in a comforting fashion to ensure the child really did fall asleep.

When he was certain that Sosu-chan had fallen asleep, Ukitake slowly and carefully, as much as his beaten and bruised body would allow, climbed off the bed to this time take in his surroundings with his own eyes.

He appeared to be in a hotel room, a rather shabby one to be perfectly honest, the room quite small with no kitchenette and a tiny bathroom that looked more like a small closet. The room was also quite dark and cold, the curtains drawn together tightly, seemingly in an attempt to keep anyone from looking in.

Again ignoring his protesting body, Ukitake forced himself to stand upon his feet, using his hand pressed against the wall to steady himself when an excruciatingly slow head spin took hold.

After the room stopped spinning, he decided now would be best to assess the situation in greater detail.

First things first; check for injuries as he knew he was littered with them.

Stumbling into the bathroom, Ukitake peered into the mirror only to blink his eyes harshly in rapid concession. Well, that would explain why his face was throbbing, he had a most hideous bruise marring the entire left side of his face; from his cheek bone down to his jaw. How he got that, he didn't know either. He also had a black eye, but that was probably more from the swelling than anything else.

Speaking of eyes, both of his were tired and bloodshot, giving a small indication of how much pain and discomfort he was in. No wonder Sosu-chan was terrified when he wouldn't wake up.

A child really shouldn't be exposed to such things.

Turning his attention to the rest of his body, it was then that Ukitake noticed his current attire. He was wearing a haori type garment, but not a Captain's haori of course. This one was the colour of aqua green with a dark blue lining. Underneath that he wore a simple pair of black pants that sat snugly on his hips due to the belt holding them in place and a large plain white shirt.

And under that shirt was a thick wadding of bandages around his midriff, an injury he knew how he had attained. Wonderweiss was far quicker than he had expected him to be. He was also highly careless as well.

Pressing his hand against the bandages, Ukitake was able to breathe a small sigh when he realized that he had healed mostly, which meant it wasn't life-threatening. How fortunate, someone must have attempted to heal him.

Shunsui...

"God, I hope you're in better shape than I am, Shunsui," Ukitake whispered to himself.

Shunsui wasn't dead, that much he knew. Honestly, if he was dead Ukitake would have felt his heart shatter into a million pieces from the loss of his soul-mate. No, he was still alive...somewhere.

After finding no other life-altering injuries, Ukitake turned his attention to what possessions he could have. He had Sogyo no Kotowari, his beloved Zanpakutō sitting safely on the table near the bed and a Gigai he was currently occupying.

Again, why he even had a Gigai to begin with, he didn't know.

It was becoming more and more distressing that he didn't know a lot of things at the moment.

Glancing over to his Zanpakutō again, Ukitake's eyes drifted to under the table where a bag laid, seemingly thrown there in haste. That was most certainly not something he had owned previously and definitely not something that would lay forgotten in a hotel room somewhere.

Maybe it would offer some sort of explanation as to what was going on?

Approaching the bag somewhat cautiously, Ukitake picked it up off the ground and sat it on the table, his curiosity growing at how heavy the bag seemed to be. Slowly, he pulled back the zipper and peered inside. Immediately, he stifled a gasp of surprise.

The bag was filled to the brim with money!

He couldn't even guesstimate the amount of money that was sitting in this ratty shoulder bag. It was full!

It was both a blessing and a curse, in his opinion. He had no idea where this money came from, but at least now he knew that if he had to flee this hotel room he could easy book himself into a new one. And buying food now shouldn't be a problem either...if this money hadn't been stolen, of course.

This was becoming all too confusing and a little terrifying. His memory blanks on how he got into this situation was highly upsetting. He knew he had to protect this child and he will do whatever it took to do so. However, who or what was he protecting him from?

Then, he felt a terrible fear grip his heart.

He had been a captain for many years, so knew the Spiritual Pressure of all his fellow Division Soul Reapers like the back of his hand. And the presence of those approaching now brought a shiver of concern down his spine. It was the Silent Ops, being led by Captain Soi Fon, who seemed to be burning with determination.

Run, his beloved Sogyo no Kotowari urged him. They want to hurt Sosu-chan!

Without wasting any time, Ukitake grabbed his coat, wrapped it around little Sosu-chan to keep him warm, grabbed his Zanpakutō, the bag of money and then fled into the cold winter air. He didn't know where he was supposed to go now or what to do, but it didn't matter. As a split second later, the window to the room he was moments ago occupying was shattered.

And he just kept running.

Chapter one: Complete. What do you think so far? Please let me know!