Title: Vide Cor Meum (See my Heart)
Author: Infinite Breath
Rating: K+/ PG
Warnings: None
AN: Written for a very dear friend, PrincessKitty1, for her birthday.
Byakuya did not understand what Yourichi saw in Urahara Kisuke. The Kuchiki heir would concede to the fact that the man was a proven genius, but the scientist was an insufferable fool who offended him with his mere presence. To think that the princess of the Shihōin noble family would be connected to someone so inferior was almost inconceivable, but Yourichi brazenly paraded around her former love interest just to remind all within eyesight that she had no plans of submitting to her familial duties.
War may have ravaged more than one universe down to the bones, but Shihōin Yourichi had survived the assault with nary a scratch to her personality.
The Soul Society had been in a state of reconstruction for many weeks now, and instead of attending to more pressing matters concerning the four great houses, the former Commander of the 2nd Division had taken it upon herself to help with the manual labor of repairing buildings. Byakuya could not fathom why she would insist on performing such grueling work when there were plenty of lower-class citizens who were more than able to get the job done.
Only, the Kuchiki heir knew his former teacher well, and he knew deep down inside that Yourichi's heart was just too large and full of too much light. Her unbelievable compassion and a fierce sense of responsibility to her environment ran through the woman's veins like restless children. Yourichi could no more sit down and ignore what was playing out around her than she could walk away from a dying friend, and that was what Byakuya truly loved about her.
Of course he would never voice his affections, especially with that hopeless buffoon hanging around at all hours of the day. Byakuya was sure that the man had somehow glued himself to Yourichi's side just to spite him, and this ridiculous notion bothered him more than it should.
Byakuya rose from his desk with a grace that would make even the daintiest orchid weep and walked outside of his Division's offices. He stood near the covered entryway for a long moment and gazed at the sweaty form spreading mortar across the surface of a freshly laid brick layer. A sweet warmth bloomed in his heart at the thought of Yourichi volunteering to personally take on the repairs to the 6th Division facilities, but the Kuchiki noble's face remained impassive as he continued to stare at her.
The sun sat high in the sky, and Byakuya found himself wanting to shield her from it despite the fact that Yourichi had chosen to submit herself to its heat. He bit back a sigh and stepped out of the cool shadows guarding him from the intense sunlight, and proceeded to glide across the small courtyard towards his princess's side.
Not a word was spoken as Byakuya reached up and unwound the priceless heirloom from his neck with quick movements from his slender fingers. Yourichi sensed his presence and turned to face him. She greeted him with a playful smile that blinded him for an instant, but not before he caught sight of the sour expression on Urahara's face in his peripheral vision. Subjecting himself to the sun's heat had been worth being able to witness the scientist crumble before his attendance.
Byakuya pretended not to notice the bewilderment dancing in Yourichi's golden gaze as he bent down – just slightly – and covered her head with the silk scarf, making sure that there was enough hang over of material to guard her face.
"It would be a shame to allow a noble woman of such as distinguished house to wilt away in the afternoon sun like a neglected flower."He flicked a cool gaze towards Urahara before dismissing the man altogether and turned his full attention back to Yourichi once again. "I expect my property to be returned to me by nightfall – without any damage."
The Kuchiki head allowed himself a moment to revel in the softness that momentarily blurred the harsh lines in her bright irises before turning to walk back towards his office. He knew that he would receive no words of gratitude from his rogue princess, nor did want to hear any. That was not her way, nor was it his, but the silence would not weaken the energy that bound them together as student and teacher, friend and foe, and man and woman.
Nor would their mutual silence diminish the fact that Shihōin Yourichi would always be his princess.