Ties that bind us
So hey I'm back with a new story now that I've finished my Kisuke and Yoruichi arch (Thanks to every one who read it and especially to Belmot my most loyal reviewer (You're brilliant!).
This new story is set after the winter war so enjoy. :)
obviously Bleach does not belong to me but Kubo Tito all other original characters however are mine (cackles evilly :P )
Chapter 1 Strangers in the dark
It was raining, it poured like tears from the swollen sky. It drenched the white wash streets and ran of the gold coloured roofs.
Soft footsteps echoed like a thousand marching soldiers threw the desolate puddles.
"Are you sure this is the way," a gruff voice asked?
"Yes I'm sure," a female voice snapped back.
"Really? 'cause hey all these damn streets look the same t' me," her companion complained.
"Quiet," the young woman snapped!
The young man held up his hands in defeat, "Sheesh, I was just saying."
"Well don't!"
The young woman pushed her sodden hair out of her face, "Not long now," she said quietly.
The streets parted to reveal a large building with the number one stencilled on the main entrance. Two burly guards stood outside complaining loudly about the weather. They didn't even notice the two approaching figures.
The man grinned wolfishly, "Looks like I get a fight after all."
The woman shook her head, "You are hopeless."
The man edged forward flicking put a small blade from his kimono sleeve. He caught the first guard across the throat and then the second in the chest, they dropped like stones.
The young woman stepped over them and eyed the seal on the door critically before starting to fiddle with it.
The man glanced anxiously around, "Hurry it up will ya I want t' get outta here as soon as possible," he grumbled.
The woman threw him a venomous look but said nothing.
The seal cracked down the middle and she grinned, "Gotcha."
The door swung open easily now admitting them into the courtyard beyond.
"There should be regular patrols of three form here on out," the woman warned her companion.
"So we clobber them," the man replied carelessly.
The woman spun to face him furiously, "Are you a complete moron? We can't be seen," she hissed back."
The young man laughed softly, "You are so easy."
Shaking her head in annoyance the young woman turned away, "Men," she muttered.
The sound of heavy foot falls mad them stop in there tracks. Fear clamped down on them like freezing water. The man yanked his companion into a near by doorway. They held their breath and hoped that they hadn't been spotted.
The patrol passed them by and they could breath again as the chatter faded into the distance.
"That was close," the young man muttered.
"And who's fault is that you big buffoon," the woman snapped?
"Definitely not mine Hikari," the male snapped back.
"At least I'm not an ape Saru," Hikari retorted.
"Shut it," her companion silenced her, "Now who's gonna get us caught?"
Hikari glowered sullenly at him but fell silent.
They sneaked passed the second patrol with ease and slipped into the first division office.
The room was large and spacious with a desk piled with papers at the far end. It was sparsely decorated with only a few hangings decorating the walls.
Hikari glanced around and nodded at the dark wood cupboard by the opposite wall, "You get the cupboard, I'll check the desk," she ordered.
Saru gave her a mock salute, "Yes madam, right away." He ducked the punch his companion threw at him and meandered over to check the draws and compartments.
Hikari rummaged threw the papers on the desk and ransacked the draws to find nothing. She scowled crossly.
"Found any thing," she called?
Saru shook his head, "Nope."
Hikari nodded and turned back to the draws. She was about give up when her nail caught under a loose piece of wood. She smiled to her self and levered it up. She smirked, clever but not clever enough.
She fished out the lump of gold and swore.
Saru glanced over, "What's the matter?"
Hikari held up the fractured piece of metal, "The damn bastard broke it!"
Saru hurried over to her side and swore, "The boss is so gonna kill us," he groaned.
"Let's just get out of here," Hikari sighed heavily.
"I'm with you on that," Saru agreed.
They sneaked out of the barracks undetected and headed for the exit. They had nearly mad it out of the compound when a loud shout made them freeze it rabbits.
"Hey what are you two doing out here?"
They glanced up to see the large patrol officer waddling towards them.
Saru swore, "You get the damn thing back t' the boss, I'll hold them off!"
Hikari arched an eyebrow, "Are you crazy," she hissed?
Saru shook his head and shoved her away, "I don't have the time to argue with you, go!"
"But..." she protested weakly.
"Go! Dammit don't make this any harder than it has t' be!"
Hikari spun on her heal an fled. Tears streaked her face and mingled with the rain. She darted threw the many streets and hoped that Saru would make it out some how.
She rounded a corner and collided with some thing hard. Looking up dazedly she saw a tall man with dripping crimson hair and swirling tattoos.
Aberi Renji, vice-captain of sixth division had been muddling his way home after a hard nights drinking. He was lost in the numbing oblivious happy haze that only vast quantities of alcohol could provide when he collided some thing small and sent them both sprawling.
Years of honing his instincts and reflexes in the rukongei snapped him back to cold harsh reality. He leapt to his feet his hand on the hilt of his zanpakuto.
On the ground in front of him sat a startled young woman. She hastily got to her feet and pushed her curtain of inky hair out of her face.
"I...I'm so sorry," she stammered.
Renji rubbed the back of his neck feeling awkward, "S' okay," he muttered.
Brilliant, Hikari thought, I just might be able to make it out alive with this oportunity.
"Who are you," Renji asked curiously?
"We...I...um," she stuttered, "My names Ito Hikari," she told him pulling her self together.
Renji nodded but the name didn't ring any bells, "Aberi Renji," he grunted.
Perfect, Hikari thought smiling inwardly.
"What are you doin' out so late," he asked?
Hikari put on her best pathetic mask, "I was seeing by boyfriend, he's a shinigami but we had an argument and I ran off and now I can't find my way back to the main gate to get home," she told him looking miserable.
Renji gave he a sympathetic look, "All right, here I'll take ya back okay."
it may have been the lose alcohol burning in his veins but he felt strangely empty. His senses felt numb and he didn't even feel the sparks of reiatsu clashing near by.
Hikari took his hand, "Thank you," she murmured.
Renji felt his face tinge pink and ducked his head embarrassedly.
He stared glumbly at the ground as they walked. He thought about Rukia and how she always fawned over Kurosaki. He also thought about his captain and how the noble always snubbed him. He glowered and kicked a rain slick stone across the street.
"Your like me aren't," Hikari said quietly.
"Mm," Renji replied, "How'd ya figure that one out?"
"You're all alone," Hikari told him softly.
Renji's head snapped up, "How'd ya know that," he whispered?
Hikari tilted her head to one side, "It's in your eyes, your longing to belong, yo be accepted by the ones you want to impress."
Renji gapped in horrified fascination, "What did ya say?"
"You're all alone," Hikari repeated, "No one believes in you, not even your closest childhood friend."
"How'd ya know all that," Renji asked again weakly?
Hikari shrugged and gave him a tiny smile, "It's a talent of mine."
"Some talent," Renji said looking depressingly up at the pouring rain.
Hikari reached up and touched his cheek with her small pale hand and turned to face him looking him in the eye, "I don't think that you're a waste of space Renji, I think that you're very honourable."
Renji gazed into her whirlpool eyes and vaguely wandered when they'd become so familiar but he was distracted by the way Hikari's eyes seemed to change colour depending on the way the light caught them.
"What're ya doin'," she slurred drowsily?
Hikari smiled sweetly up at him, "Don't worry about it."
Renji nodded sluggishly, his whole head felt like it was filled with some thing warm and fluffy and it made it hard to focus let alone think about any thing.
He didn't notice that Hikari had taken the lead as they approached the gate. They walked in blissful silence oblivious to the commotion behind them. The alarm was blearing in the distance but Renji hardly noticed it.
Hikari smiled at him, "Forget all of them," she breathed, "All the people who discard you all the time, all the people who treat you like trash. Forget them all."
Renji felt briefly confused, like he was suddenly missing some thing important but couldn't put his finger on it. But what did it matter his mind reasoned, when every thing was so calm and safe.
Hikari smirked to her self, men are so easy she thought smugly.
The reached the gate and finding it abandoned Hikari lead Renji out into the rukongei. She slipped into shunpo and vanished into the wild untamed jungle of the slums.
The rain was abating now but had left huge puddles on the uneven road. As they ventured furtherer and furtherer the small lanterns that illuminated the streets began to petter out. Dark shapes slumped in the mouths of ally ways and huddled for warmth in doorways.
Hikari lead him deeper and deeper into the maze of filth and crumbling huts. She was nearly there she suddenly realised. She hopped that Saru would make it in time.
She diverted from the muddy road and stopped next to a fast flowing river just outside the view of the huts.
She smile soothingly at Renji, "Time to sleep," she whispered.
Before he even had time to react the vice-captain of sixth division felt sleep overcome him and try as he might he could not hold it off. The last thing he remembered seeing was a pale pinched face and a pair of slate grey eyes like whirlpools.
Hikari smirked as his body dropped to the mud like a rock. She dragged him to the river's edge and toppled the unconscious body into the swollen depths.
"Sweet dreams," she muttered.
Now she'd gotten rid of her cover she'd have to move quickly before any one noticed her presence. She hurried along the bank towards the fringe of spindly trees in the distance. She ducked under what little shelter they provided and wrapped her arms around her self.
Glancing around she could see that Saru wasn't there yet but that was all right, they had ten minuets left.
She shivered in the frigged air and her soaked cloths stuck to her body uncomfortably. Hurry up you dumb monkey she grumbled.
Saru arrived with three minuets to spare. He was filthy covered in mud and blood. His hair was matted and he clutched his left arm which had crimson liquid spiralling down it. He looked terrible.
Hikari smoothed his sopping hair away from his face and smiled softly, "We did it. Now let's get the hell out of here."
Saru gave her a crooked grin, "I am so with you on that one."
Carefully she pulled a small molten silver orb from the folds of her kimono and held it in the palm of her hand.
It shimmered in the cool night air and Hikari took Saru's uninjured hand in her free one.
"Ready," she asked?
Saru flashed her a winning grin, "Let's get this show on the road."
The silver light engulfed them and they vanished from the seireitei's radar.
Saru's perusers arrived a mere second too late.
Soi-fon scowled, "Search the area he was injured that means he can't have gone far unless he had help."
"Captain," one of her men called saluting!
"What is it," Soi-fon snapped irritably?
"There's no one else here but we have found Vice-captain Aberi in the near by river," the man reported.
Soi-fon nodded, "Take him in for questioning," she ordered coldly, "Any one found guilty of aiding the intruder will be punished severely."
"Yes sir," her men echoed to the silent night.
Author's Note
well here's the first chapter finally, I had a lot of trouble trying to upload it :(
I wander what's going to happen to Renji and who are the mysterious intruders in the soul society and what did they steal? You'll have to wait for the next chapter I'm afraid. :)
There will be a lot of characters in this story but I'm posting this under Ichigo and Rukia because they are the main pair that the story follows. :P
I would also appreciate feed back so I know how things are going, thanks. :)
thanks for reading silvermonkey