Protection

A frightened Orihime wonders what is happening and what Acidwire is before seeing her own body lying on the ground near Tatsuki and Acidwire. Recognizing herself, Orihime notices a Chain of Fate on her chest and begins tugging on it.

"I can't breathe." Orihime notes.

Acidwire presses his hand into Tatsuki's throat, causing Orihime to snap out of her daze and run headlong into Acidwire's arm, freeing Tatsuki.

Orihime runs over to Tatsuki and puts her hand on Tatsuki's arm while calling out to her, but Tatsuki only sees the imprint of a hand on her arm, causing her to recoil in terror and tell Orihime to stay away from her.

"Stay away from me!" Tatsuki shouted in fear.

"Tatsuki ! What's wrong!?" Orihime shouted at a frightened Tatsuki.

"It is useless, Orihime! She cannot see us or hear us!" Acidwire shouted at Orihime.

" H-how do you know my name!" A frightened Orihime asked. She also had a chain on her chest.

"Did you already forget my voice? You know who I am, Orihime." Acidwire tried to get Orihime to recognize him.

"I don't know you, stay away from me!" Orihime shouted back and started backing off from him.

"I am saddened by this, Orihime." Acidwire proclaimed as he swipes his giant hand at her.

*SHING!!*

*PSSSSHHHH!!!!*

Ichigo sliced Acidwire's arms in half. Acidwire screamed in pain before retreating back into the portal of darkness.

Ichigo stood in front of Orihime. Orihime looked at him feeling baffled.

"I-ichigo? Is that you?" Orihime asked him with a confused face. Ichigo looked at her and smiled.

"Don't worry, Orihime. You're safe now." Ichigo smiled warmly at her.

Suddenly, Acidwire emerges from a cloud of pink mist behind Ichigo. Ichigo looked at him and widened his eyes.

A fully regenerated Acidwire was grabbing Orihime by her chain. He rose up, causing Orihime to be pulled along with him.

"Don't move." Acidwire growled at Ichigo before slamming Ichigo with his tail from above.

Ichigo blocked the slam with the claymore on his right hand. "Try harder." Ichigo muttered and stabbed through his tail with the other claymore in his left hand.

"AHHHH!!!!" Acidwire screamed in pain before slithering away from the room, prompting Ichigo to chase after him.

"Get back here you hairy ass snake." Ichigo growled at him. He landed on the streets and saw Acidwire talking to Orihime.

"You need to finish him quickly or else he'll devour her!" Rukia told him when she arrived beside him.

"I know that, Rukia." Ichigo muttered.

"You're lying! My brother would never do this!" Orihime shouted while trying to escape Acidwire's grasps.

" I have grown so lonely because you have forgotten about me bit by bit. You praying to me is what gave me peace while I watched over you. " Acidwire growled at her angrily.

" After a year of my death, you became friends with that Tatsuki girl, you prayed to me less often. You completely stopped praying for me altogether after you entered high school!" Acidwire shouted at her. He began to choke Orihime with both of his giant hands.

" That's enough out of you, big guy. " Ichigo grumbled as he appeared in front of Acidwire. He cut off Acidwire's hands easily with one slice and grabbed Orihime.

He laid her on the ground and looked at Acidwire. "You do not deserve to be a big brother." Ichigo told him.

" Orihime is mine! I have raised and protected her since our parents abandoned us when she was three!" Acidwire looked at Orihime.

" Don't listen to him Orihime! He's just playing mind games with you. He no longer harbors feelings of a big brother. Just stay behind me and I'll deal with him! " Ichigo shouted at her. Orihime was stunned.

Acidwire looked at Orihime's hairpins. Upon seeing the hairpins, Acidwire recalls fond memories of raising and growing up with her as a Human.

" WRRRAHHHHHHH!!!!! " Acidwire started to scream in pain out of nowhere. He bashed his head to the ground.

"Big brother!!" Orihime shouted in concern. Acidwire pulls back.

"You belong to me!" He proclaimed crazily. Acidwire plunges towards Ichigo who blocks him by the teeth with his claymore on his right hand easily.

"No. Orihime belongs to me!" Ichigo declared with a mad grin. Acidwire jumps away, prompting Ichigo to leap at him.

All of a sudden, Acidwire shot out green acid from his mouth. The green acid covered Ichigo's body. Ichigo landed on the ground and looked at himself. He looked at Acidwire.

"That ain't doing shit!" Ichigo grinned madly at him.

Acidwire roared and charged towards him. He opened his mouth widely, wanting to bite Ichigo. Ichigo stabbed one of his claymores down to the ground.

'Mizu no Kokyū, Eleventh Form: Dead Calm—

*CHOMP!!!*

" Oh come on! " Ichigo groaned. He looked at Orihime who jumped in between them. Orihime had intercepted Acidwire's bite with her body.

She fell to her knees. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry that I begged you to not leave me that night. I'm the reason why you couldn't rest in peace. " Orihime sobbed while tears were flowing down her eyes.

"I have always sensed you beside me. You protected me from being hit by that car just now. You will never be able to rest if I keep depending on you. " She continued. Acidwire stayed silent.

"I wanted to show you that I am happy and that you don't need to worry about me anymore. Instead.... Instead that made you sad and lonely..... " Orihime whispered and collapsed to the floor. Ichigo appeared beside her and grabbed her.

He appeared beside Rukia and laid her down gently.

" That.... That's not true, Orihime. " Acidwire muttered while his Hollow mask kept disappearing and reappearing.

"Arghhhhhhh!!!!!" Acidwire began to scream in pain.

" He's fighting the Hollow within him. He didn't become a Hollow by choice, mostly likely he was taken over by a Hollow. " Rukia explained to Ichigo. Ichigo stayed silent and kept looking at the situation.

Suddenly, Acidwire's mask shatters completely. Orihime slowly sat up and smiled happily when she saw Sora's face before falling over.

"Orihime." Ichigo muttered and went to help her.

"Don't worry, Ichigo. I'll heal her. You focus on him." Rukia told him. Ichigo nodded and looked at Sora.

" You will soon revert to a monster even if you stay here. " Ichigo pointed out the obvious. Sora nodded and looked at Ichigo's claymore stabbed through the ground.

Ichigo grabbed it.

"I want to disappear while I still have a measure of sanity left. Please, Orihime's friend, would you help me?" Sora looked at Ichigo. Ichigo nodded and raised his claymore.

"Sora!" Orihime shouted. Sora looked at Orihime.

Orihime who was already healed by Rukia sat up and looked at her big brother.

"You gave me the hairpins on the day you died. We had an argument because I thought they were childish.... I let you go to work without even saying anything to you.... I....I want to say this before you go..." Orihime looked at Sora in the eyes.

" Have a nice day, big brother....." Orihime told him and smiled sadly at him. Sora smiled back.

" I'm off, Orihime....." Sora replied to her for the last time. He closed his eyes, waiting to disappear from this world for good.

Ichigo stabbed Sora in the neck, causing him to dissipate into motes of light that fly up into the sky.

Ichigo was having a blank face the whole time. He stabbed both of his claymores on the ground and kneeled in front of them.

As she watches this, Orihime turns to Rukia and begins crying into her chest. Rukia didn't know what to do, so she just hugged her and patted her back.

.

.

.

The next day, at Karakura High School.

"I'm really telling the truth guys! Last night, a sumo champion came to my apartment and blasted a hole in the wall with a gun." Orihime insisted to the disbelief of Ryō, Mahana, Michiru, and Chizuru.

" Maybe make your story a little more realistic, Orihime. A professional wrestler causing a brawl outside sounds more logical." Mahana suggested. Chizuru giggled.

" I really love your silly imagination, Orihime." Chizuru told her. Orihime pouted and looked at Tatsuki.

"C'mon, Tatsuki. Back me up!" Orihime whined. Tatsuki sighed and nodded.

" It's true, that was what happened yesterday. I was there with her. " Tatsuki backed Orihime up to the surprise of the other girls.

Ichigo looked at Rukia.

" You guys have memory swapping devices? What kind of society do you live in, Rukia? " Ichigo asked her with concern in his voice. Rukia huffed.

" Shut up, idiot...

To be continued.....