Save Me From the Dark

Rend the Heart

Heyyy, long time no see... again. So legitimate reason behind the unintentional hiatus of this story: I was being smart and planning ahead. I do in fact now have a reasonably well thought out plan for the direction of the story. Unlike with literally any of my other stories, I've been putting some serious thought into the pacing and the direction I want to take this story. Unfortunately that planning has taken some time and pulled me away from actually updating at a reasonable pace. So here we are, this chapter kinda slows things down a bit, and the next one will feature some domestic fluff!

I'd also like to dedicate this chapter to BoiHunter66 for consistently commenting on these chapters, and as such has decided the direction that this story will ultimately lead to. Thank you random citizen for your support!

Also above, some fanart I did for IchiHime Week 2022.
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Isshin slid open the front door of the Urahara Shop, stepping in quickly to escape the torrential rain. The man maneuvered his way around the displays and shelves of candy, and made his way back to the main room of the Urahara residence.

"Welcome back, Isshin, it's a little late for a social call, don't you think?" Kisuke Urahara snapped his fan open as he sat at the table in the center of the room, a freshly brewed pot of tea steamed next to him.

Isshin scoffed as he sat across from Urahara, "Cut the crap, Kisuke, how much longer until the spirit blade is done?"

"My, my, what's the sudden rush for? You've waited patiently for over a year now, why worry about my progress now?" Urahara lightly fanned himself, a knowing smirk danced across his face. "Does this have something to do with yesterday's events?"

Isshin sighed, "Yeah. Ever since he lost his powers, Ichigo has been different, he hides his emotions even more now than when Masaki was killed. He doesn't know it, though he probably does now, but there's been an increase in hollow activity around him, and I worry his determination to not be helpless is going to get him killed."

"You'll be happy to know, then, that I just sent the spirit blade off to the Soul Society. With luck, it should be back in a month and ready for use." Urahara snapped his fan shut, and poured Isshin a cup of tea. "There are a few other things I'd like to discuss before you head back home."

Isshin took the cup of warm tea, reveling in the heat it brought. "What else is there?"

"The Soul Society detected the presence of a second hollow yesterday at the location of the attack."

Isshin scowled, "What kind was it?"

"A Vasto Lorde." The severity of Urahara's voice left no room to question the surety of the statement.

"Why do I have this sinking feeling that this is connected to something else?"

Urahara smirked slightly, "So astute. There's been word from the Soul Society that large numbers of hollows are gathering in Hueco Mundo. Their numbers drop and rise with each of the attacks attempted on your son, including yesterday's attack. These attacks also coincide with the movements of Kugo Ginjo."

"Well, shit." Isshin wanted to slam his head into the table.

"Your son attracts a lot of trouble, Isshin."

The father could only nod as he took in what Urahara had said.

Ichigo sprinted down the sidewalk, the cold rain whipping his face as he sped towards the hospital. The tall building loomed ahead as dread settled firmly into Ichigo's gut. He didn't know how long ago Uryu was attacked, and he didn't know if his friend was going to be okay.

Ichigo slammed into the doors of the hospital, the doors opening too slowly for his liking. He ignored the bewildered looks of the nurses and the receptionist at the front desk as he blew past them towards the elevator. He pressed the button to the doors repeatedly as the people in the lobby stared him down. Finally, the elevator dinged, and the doors opened. Ichigo barreled inside, not even checking to see if there were others on the elevator.

The ride to the top floor of the hospital seemed agonizingly slow. Ichigo tapped his foot, and checked his phone to see if he had missed any more messages from Orihime. Other than her last text providing him with Uryu's floor and room number, it was radio silence. Four. Five. Six. Ichigo scowled as the numbers ticked by slowly. Seven. Eight. The elevator sputtered to a stop at floor nine and dinged brightly.

Ichigo stepped out, walking swiftly down the hall, counting the rooms as he went by. 801. 803. 805. 807! Ichigo opened the door and the smell of chemicals assaulted his nose. The room was pristine, and devoid of color aside from a vase of irises that Orihime must have gotten from the small flower shop in the lobby. Orihime herself was sitting in a chair next to Uryu's bed.

Ichigo made his way over to the girl, trying to be quiet as to not disturb Uryu. "How is he doing?" Ichigo's voice was soft and rough as he finally took a moment to breathe after sprinting across town.

Orihime turned to look at him, dried tear streaks covered her trailed down her cheeks. "His dad came by a while ago and said he was stable, but since this wasn't done by a hollow or a spiritual being, I shouldn't heal him. The attack's already been reported to the police, if the wounds are gone it'd be suspicious."

"Dammit, I wish I could have done something," Ichigo growled as he slammed his fist down on the railing of Uryu's bed.

"You can't blame yourself for this, Ichigo. There's no way we can predict normal crime, and we can't use our powers against normal humans. As terrible as it is, sometimes this just happens," Orihime said as she fidgeted with her hands.

Ichigo sighed heavily. He knew this. He knew Orihime was right. While his powers had reawakened, he didn't know how to use them yet. It was almost surreal to Ichigo that one of his friends was affected by what was a normal, yet unfortunate, occurrence.

"He'll be alright. Uryu is strong, there's no way he'd let some mugger get the best of him," Ichigo said resolutely, his fists clenched as if he could fight Uryu's battles for him.

Orihime smiled and nodded along, "You're right! And when Uryu's done fighting off those evil blue men that are keeping him asleep, he'll wake right up, and together we'll take out that guy who did this!"

Ichigo checked the time on his watch, the face read eleven thirty-seven. "C'mon, Orihime, it's late, and we still have school tomorrow. Uryu will be safe here, the nurses will take care of him."

Orihime suddenly jumped up from her chair, "I still have homework to finish! I'd have totally forgotten if you hadn't reminded me, Ichigo!"

Ichigo smiled slightly, "I only said that it was late..."

"Shoot! I still need to do laundry and dishes too! I rushed out of my apartment and completely forgot about it." Orihime pouted as the list of things she needed to get done before she could get some decent sleep.

"The homework was that paper for literature, right?" Orihime nodded. "Then I'll help out with the dishes and laundry, while you get it done. Besides, it's late, and after what happened with Uryu I'm not letting you walk home alone."

Orihime blushed furiously, "But... What... Ichigo! You really don't need to—"

"I'm not arguing with you on this, Orihime," Ichigo said firmly.

"But by the time everything's done, it'll be even later when you get home," Orihime shot back, not wanting to trouble Ichigo.

"Hmm... I guess I'll just sleep on your couch if that's alright with you? I can throw my uniform into the laundry with your clothes and get a shower before bed."

Orihime's blush seemed to grow even redder, "Yeah! Um... that's alright with me, that is, if you really want to."

"Well, we better get going then, visiting hours end in a few minutes." Ichigo walked to the door of the room, giving Uryu one last glance, wishing him a swift recovery.

Orihime quietly put her chair back against the wall, and fell in step beside Ichigo. Together they made their way out of the hospital into the cold, night rain.