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"I was on patrol after Tosen left; I needed time to think, so I made my way to the human world. I found myself walking around Karakura Town, it was the closest town and one I was familiar with, when Goro perked up and was staring at this one boy running around like a madman. I was a little irritated, thinking that this boy was going to get hurt and probably killed; but then he stood right in front of a moving car and he phased right through it. I was shocked at what I had just seen. I looked closer and saw that he had a severed chain of fate sticking out of his chest; he was a spirit. Goro and I were going to follow him closely, but he took off running through a bunch of people. I was wearing my gigai and couldn't follow him; Goro chased him down. I found a secluded space to leave my gigai and pursued the two. I found them in a clearing ten miles away.

"There was a hollow there, but something was wrong. There was a dust cloud from where it hit the ground. There was something sticking through the fog and it had impaled the boy; it was its tail. It ripped it out of his shoulder and the boy crumpled. When he hit the ground, the hollow started walking toward him. Goro tried to keep it from hurting the boy, but he was flicked aside by the hollow as if he weighed nothing. I ran forward as the hollow reached the boy. I wasn't going to get there fast enough, so I used Tenken and the hollow was ripped in half before it could touch the boy.

"I ran to the boy to assess the situation and was shocked to see how serious the wound was. He was making his way toward Goro to help him. I placed my hand on his shoulder and he started. I told him I was there to help him, but he insisted I help Goro first. I told him Goro would be just fine. He said he trusted me on that and let me help him. He closed his eyes as I started to heal him. He was unconscious before I was even halfway done. When I had almost finished healing him I noticed something unusual going on with his face; his mouth seemed to swell and then all of his teeth fell out of it. I was shocked and parted his lips to see what was happening. What I saw was the most bizarre thing I had ever seen; he had a new set of teeth coming in through his gums. I was still healing him when his eyes looked as if they were going to pop out of his head. Fearing something similar, I opened his eye lid and saw that the pigment in his eye was changing from a hazel green to an amber gold. His wound was healed by now and I stopped the treatment. His body relaxed and he resumed a peaceful sleep.

"I picked him up and brought him to Captain Unohona. When we got to Soul Society, I saw that his ears were a little sharper as well. He's starting to look like a canine, I started to think. I got him to the fourth squad's barracks and took him to Captain Unohona immediately. She looked at him and calmly got him situated in the medical center. I asked her what had happened to him; she told me that her guess was that his Reiryoku had a strangely adaptive quality that probably allowed him to duplicate my unique reiatsu, and as a consequence he started to take on my physical qualities. She told me that if the treatment had continued, he would have been completely transformed into the same thing as me. I told her to let me know when he woke up so I could talk to him and apologize. She told me to go get some sleep since I had been through a lot as well. I took her advice and came here and slept for a couple of hours.

"When I had finished resting, I took Goro with me and made my way to the barracks. I found Unohona, and she told me that he was in the garden behind the barracks. I thanked her and found the boy standing on top of the bridge, staring at his reflection in the pond. His hand went up to touch his face and teeth.

"Goro ran up to him and started nudging his hand. He looked at Goro and smiled; he bent down and started playing with him. I called out to him and tried to be calm about the event and told him that Goro usually didn't take to strangers. He didn't even seem surprised; he just went on petting Goro, saying that most dogs liked him and he them. He turned his head back to the water, and I told him to sit down as I explained what had happened to him.

"He sat there listening patiently without interrupting. When I finished, he sat there for a while and then said that he understood what happened. Before I could even apologize, he thanked me. I was dumbfounded; I told him I had made him a monster, and he said he didn't see it that way. He asked what about me had done that to him. I just sat there and stared at him. He persisted, so I took off my helmet. He just sat there and stared at me; I turned my head, disgusted with myself. I asked him if he was disgusted by me, and he said he wasn't. I thought he was mocking me, and I glared at him. He was taken aback and then asked if there were any other shinigami that were different. I started thinking and then decided to change the subject.

"I told him he would not be able to stay at the barracks; he would have to leave. He told me he knew this, but had no idea where to go. He asked me if I knew where he could go. I told him about Rukongai, but then I looked at him and decided I didn't want this boy to go through what I had. I suggested he go to the shinigami academy so he could become a shinigami. I must have flinched when I mentioned Rukongai, because the next thing I knew he was asking me if there was something wrong with going there. I told him it was alright as long as you weren't too different like me. He asked if he qualified as being like me. I let him know that if he were to hide his eyes and keep his mouth closed, he should be just fine. He thought about his choices for a while and then said he wanted to go to the academy. I asked his name, and he told me, Hiroshi Osamu.

"A week later, we walked to the Academy. On the way there, we saw a man beating a child with a plank of wood. I was about to intervene when Hiroshi stepped in and grabbed the board from the man. Hiroshi told the child to get out of there. The man was furious and drew a knife on Hiroshi. Before I could act, the man lunged at him and Hiroshi dropped to the ground and kicked his assailant in the stomach. The man dropped the knife, and Hiroshi picked it up and dropped it into a well.

"I let him know that he would make a lot of enemies doing things like that. He said he didn't care and that the bastard deserved what he got. We were close to the academy, and Hiroshi asked how long it took to graduate from the academy. I told him on average it took someone about ten years. He started to look sick and I reassured him, saying that with the way he dealt with that mugger he could probably be done faster." Komamura took a breath and started to absentmindedly stroke the mirror still hanging from his sash.

Iba noticed and asked, "Does that," he said, indicating the mirror, "have anything in common with what you just said?"

"More or less; when we arrived at the academy Hiroshi pulled this from his pocket and handed it to me. He said to keep it for two reasons: the first being so that I would not forget him until he got out of the academy, as if that were going to be possible; and secondly, so that I could look at it and see that I was not the monster I claimed to be," Komamura explained, taking the mirror off of his sash and looking at himself in it. "I still don't see whatever it is he does."

Iba chuckled and then covered it with a cough. "Sounds a little sappy to me, but I guess it works for some people."

"At first, I felt obligated to help him in every way possible since I had corrupted him; but then I started thinking about how casually he had reacted to seeing me and how he insisted that I was not a monster. I saw him stop that thug without any regard for his own safety, and he's not even a shinigami. It was then that I stopped pitying him and started appreciating him for his abilities and personality, not a charity cause. I found myself thinking about him from day to day. Eventually, I started following his progress at the academy and found out he was already at the top of his class. I even asked Captain-commander Yamamoto to look into him for me; he came back the day of the fight and said he was astounded at how strong the boy was," Komamura said, proud of Hiroshi.

Iba sensed something was still not being said, "There's more isn't there, sir?"

Komamura looked at him for a minute before sighing, "Yes there is. Yesterday after you returned to your quarters, Hiroshi came out and thanked me for letting him stay with me. I told him it wasn't anything worth mentioning, and then he insisted it was. He then told me everything he was grateful for. I was frustrated that he still didn't understand what I had robbed him of, so I ended up yelling at him. I've hated myself for what I did and he casually threw it aside as if nothing happened. He told me that for a while, he had tried to hate me but then realized he couldn't. He told me how I had given him a weapon to fight if ever disarmed: the sight to see in total darkness, and the ears so he could tell what people really thought about him. He also told me that in the short time he had known me. . . . . . . . He had fallen in love with me," Komamura finished as Iba's Jaw dropped to the floor.

"What did you do then?" Iba said, recovering his composure and feeling a little bit uncomfortable with the touchy feeling atmosphere.

"Nothing," Komamura started, "I couldn't look at him, and I mean how could he love a beast like me? I walked away to my room and sat in my bed for an hour. I took the mirror and stared at it. I sat there until I heard Hiroshi whimpering in here. I tried to ignore it, but then he started screaming. I rushed in here and shook him awake, and when he finally woke up, he looked me in the eye and cried. He buried his face in my chest, and I let him cry until he had finished. I couldn't leave him alone to his demons, so I took him to my bed. I sat him down on the bed and climbed in next to him. I was beginning to doze off when he asked me if I hated him." Komamura stopped a little embarrassed to finish.

"I'm guessing you said no?" Iba said, beginning to put two and two together.

"I told him I couldn't if I tried. . . . . . and then I kissed his forehead. I told him to go to sleep, and he said okay. He moved closer to me and we fell asleep." Komamura agreed. "That is it," Komamura said, leaving out the fact that Hiroshi had kissed him back that morning.

Iba sat there for a minute before scratching his head, "Wow. . . . . I don't really know what else to say, but wow." He scratched his head before looking away in embarrassment. "Are you happy?"

It was Komamura's turn to look away in embarrassment. "Yes, you could say that."

"Then, I guess I'm happy for you," Iba said. This conversation was really to awkward for him. "You just want to drop the subject? Don't worry, though, your secret is safe with me."

Komamura let out a sigh of relief, "Yes, and thank you."

They both fell into an awkward silence before Iba said, "I better go. Let me know when he wakes up. I want a rematch, or you can get me if he cooks again," He finished with a laugh.

The tension was gone from the atmosphere as Komamura said he would. Iba stood up to leave and noticed a gold eye staring at them through a thin crack in the door. He smiled, "See ya later Hiroshi!"

The eye blinked in surprise. Iba left the quarters laughing.

*****************************Change of View****************************************

I stepped out into the room before Komamura asked, "How much of that did you hear?"

"I woke up when you started talking about the mirror," I said with a small smile on my face. "Would you like me to tell you what I see?"

Komamura looked at the mirror one more time and shrugged his shoulders. "Yes, I guess I would."

"Well, that didn't sound very convincing." I said playfully.

He put the mirror down and looked at me. "I would like to know what it is you see that I don't."

I smiled before walking over and sitting beside him. I picked up the mirror and angled it so his eye was reflected back at him. "I see eyes filled with such sincerity, kindness, and beauty that it drives me up the wall every time look into them; and this," I said, angling it toward his mouth, "I see a mouth that has never uttered a harsh word at a person who didn't deserve it, and also," I pulled the mirror back so he could see his entire body with my face right next to his, "I see a good soul that despite its good, gentle, and kind nature; is filled with self-loathing, guilt, and sorrow. I hope by being here I can ease that," I say and then kiss his cheek again, "bit by bit."

He looked at me then with the faintest hint of a smile on his lips. "You are," he bent down and kissed me gently on the lips, "more than a bit."