For as long as Ichigo could remember, he's been able hear a voice that only he could hear. In addition to that, he was able to see the dearly departed and odd mask-wearing creatures the voice called 'Hollows'. This voice has also been one of his few...
A: YES! We do not condone the neglect and/or abuse of children in this house! What Isshin did in canon was shitty and I don't like it so he's gonna be a good dad to his kids. Asides from the looming threat of a pissed off Kaien and Hell hath no fury like Aizen's scorn, he likely feels some guilt over not being able to properly take care of his kids due to just how badly Masaki's death affected him. Him becoming a better parent to Ichigo, Yuzu, and Karin might help him with the process of grieving and coming to terms with Masaki's passing. By taking on her responsibilities, there wouldn't be a reason for her soul to linger.
Q: How much of his Quincy powers can Ichigo use?
A: At the moment, he can only absorb reishi through one of Zangetsu's techniques: Erfreirung (German for frostbite), which allows him to absorb someone's reiatsu by biting them or to deconstruct reishi constructs like kido, akin to how frostbite can cause necrosis. As to why Ichigo can't use the full scope of his abilities, that's courtesy of Ossan. He still wants a way to keep Ichigo away from Yhawch for as long as he can and if that means suppressing Ichigo's Quincy abilities then that will be the case.
Q: Will Ichigo be able to use his bow?
A: Eventually. That's actually going to tie into a story arc in the future and while I cannot reveal too much, we will be seeing some Quincy show up. Also some worldbuilding about them since we don't have that much for em.
Q: Is Byakuya ok?
A: Nope! Homeboy's been through the ringer like a sock in a clothes dryer. Grief and guilt hit him real hard, namely with him thinking that he's tarnished Hisana's memory by not being able to look after Rukia as he should be able to. He also has to deal with how a lot of the Kuchiki estate likely didn't have the highest opinion of Rukia even if she's his sister. He started sparring with Kenpachi to subtly vent his feelings.
Q: Is Kenpachi soft for Byakuya?
A: He doesn't realize it. Byakuya and Kenpachi, at least in this AU, tend to spar frequently. Kenpachi finds Byakuya the most fun to fight and doesn't want to lose his favorite fighting partner so Kenpachi has been kinda helping Byakuya with all his grief. They're basically gonna go from sparring partners to friends that fight to lovers... that also fight.
Kyoka Suigetsu Illustration
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Ichigo: Your zanpakuto's really cool, Aizen!
Aizen: She's just trying to look intimidating.
KS: Hmph! I'm plenty intimidating-
Ichigo: And short.
Aizen looks between the two of them, getting a quick grasp on the situation. He walks over to Kyoka Suigetsu, hefting her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Suddenly, Ichigo smirks as he thinks of when Kaien held him in such a position.
Ichigo: Aizen, why didn't you tell me your Zanpakuto had stubby kid legs?
Aizen sighs, using a quick kido to push Kyoka Suigetsu back into his Inner World.
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Zangetsu: KING! THEY CAN SEE ME!
Ichigo: Wait, do we need to censor your tsuba?
Me: For context, the symbol on Zangetsu's tsuba is the manji. However, it's often confused with the sw*stika. Damn N*zis have to ruin everything.
Zangetsu: FOR FUCK'S SAKE! CANT GET SHIT AROUND HERE!
——————
And that's it! I'll try getting the next chapter out before the end of the year.
And it's gonna be one centric on Aizen, Ichigo, and their Zanpakuto. I've had so many thoughts about Kyoka and Aizen's dynamic, namely them having a sibling-esque dynamic. Not to go too much into it, but Aizen has had Kyoka for a long time and was there for him during his pre-Gotei days.
