AUTHOR'S NOTE: All standard "I don't own this" disclaimers apply. This is my first femmeslash story so please forgive me if something isn't quite right. This story was "built to order" for a friend but I liked it enough on its own merits that I finally decided to post it. Oh yes and I know it's horribly cliched to take titles from song titles but "Hush" is a truly fantastic song by Deep Purple and I thought it set the mood pretty well. Enjoy!

Hush

This encounter is set following Aizen's escape from Soul Society and prior to the invasion of Hueco Mundo to rescue Orihime.

Pink blossoms fell to the ground like rain every time the wind shot through the secluded grove. In the moonlight they flashed briefly before meeting the earth. A lone figure padded silently through the trees, her movements agitated. Though her footfalls made no sound, her twin braids swept against her back as she moved, making a rustling not so different from the airblown branches surrounding her.

So it's a promise then? It played through her head over and over as she paced, a theater with only one reel of film. There in the grove, she ducked and dodged, swinging wildly with her sword, beating back with all her might the self-doubt and weakness she carried. There her goddess showed her another way. It wasn't about the lesson in swordplay. It wasn't even about the reassurances that the inadequacies she saw in herself were of no consequence. It's a full moon tonight. Her purple-haired goddess's head lay in her lap. All was right with the world.

"Liar!" the captain of the second squad screamed to no one in particular. She broke into a run, then leapt up, planting her feet against a tree trunk. Drawing her sword as she sprang across the length of the grove, Soifon slashed through a bough on the opposite side, scattering blossoms everywhere. When she landed, she gripped her sword tightly and her eyes widened. She never heard the branch hit the ground.

Soifon turned with a jerk, wild eyes cast over her shoulder. She shouldn't have been surprised at her visitor's identity. There was only one person in the Seireitei who could ever sneak up on her. "You."

Yoruichi Shihoin held the dismembered branch in her hand, turning it over thoughtfully. She traced her fingers along the blossoms that remained, frowning as she stared down at them. "Why make a mess of something so beautiful, I wonder? Has the tree offended you, or was this assault on nature unprovoked? Who will speak for the tree that has been wronged so?"

"What are you doing here?" Soifon asked, her voice shaking, as she lowered her sword. Her old mentor lifted her head and flashed her trademark grin, eyes closed, white teeth gleaming in the darkness.

"I knew I would find you here! It's a full moon. But I'm sure you knew that." When Soifon didn't respond, Yoruichi's grin vanished and she cocked an eyebrow at her protégé impatiently. "Don't tell me you're going to start crying again."

"Absolutely not! Don't expect me to be shedding any tears over you!"

Yoruichi's smile returned. "That's good! I was worried you'd pout again for a moment there. I'm glad you got it out of your system."

Soifon bit her lip and approached her old commander warily, struggling to keep herself under control. She was closer to tears than she cared to admit. "How can you be so flippant? You know now what it did to me when you left."

"Of course. So once the battle was over, I knew the first thing I should do was spend some time with you. But you vanished and no one could find you. I just waited until nightfall because I knew you'd come out. Sure enough, I was right!"

"You are too cruel."

"I don't mean to be. But you're determined to be upset. Why? Of course it's terrible that Aizen is a traitor and made off with the Hogyoku, and we'll surely have to fight again before long. For now, let's just enjoy the time we have! It's been too long."

"It's been over a hundred years…Yoruichi-sama," Soifon whispered. She walked away from her mentor and slumped against a tree, sinking down into a pile of blossoms.

Yoruichi sighed. She turned her face to the sky, the moonlight illuminating her dark, smooth skin. "Soifon," she said at last, "what do you remember of this place?"

"I remember a promise, an oath that I would always be by your side to protect you! I remember the happiest moment of my life, a cherished memory that you have tarnished for me forever. How can I ever believe anything you say now? How can I – " Soifon could not stop her eyes brimming with tears. "How can I believe in you again?"

"There is more to that night than just a promise. I showed you the proper way to wield your sword, did I not?" Yoruichi examined the cleaved end of the tree branch she still held. "And you have remembered your lesson well. A surgeon could not have made such a clean cut as this."

"Of course. I have always taken what you have taught me to heart, Yoruichi-sama." Soifon looked at her teacher meaningfully. "Everything you taught me, whether you intended to or no."

"It seems that isn't true. There is an important lesson that you missed. It may have been my fault. I don't know." Yoruichi dropped the branch and stood over her former charge. "You have always been so eager to fight. But a true warrior does not fight senselessly. Battle for its own sake is wasteful madness. Why do we fight, Soifon?"

"Why do we fight? What a ridiculous question. Isn't it obvious? We fight for duty, for honor and glory. We fight because that is what we have been tasked to do, and any real warrior strives to fulfill their duties to the very best of their abilities. When those abilities are insufficient, a warrior improves until she can do her duty, or dies trying. This is how we bring honor to the role of shinigami, to the thirteen squads. This is how we prove our worth, not just on the battlefield but off of it." Soifon fixed her mentor with a withering gaze. "Honor is the only thing worth fighting and dying for."

Quicker than even Soifon could see, Yoruichi reached out and smacked the top of Soifon's head just hard enough to sting. "You are entirely too clever to say such foolish things. Fighting for duty. Hah! You want to grow gray and wrinkled like Old Man Yama? Keep thinking that fighting is about discharging your duty."

"What are you trying to say? What new heresy have you come up with during the hundred years you abandoned me?"

Yoruichi crouched down and took Soifon's chin in her hand. Her manner was all business, but she lifted her protégé's face so gently that Soifon felt the old reverence come over her again, in spite of herself. She resolved to take whatever it was Yoruichi was about to say seriously, no matter how farfetched it might sound.

"We fight for what is right. Justice is only an abstract concept until someone is strong and brave enough to put might behind it. In defending what we know to be right, we stay true to ourselves as warriors. In this sense it is true that we fight for honor, but your understanding of honor is flawed. You are thinking of it as something that is given to you or taken away from you by someone else. The truth is that you honor yourself when you uphold what is right and good. That is the reason we fight. No other reason will suffice."

Soifon's eyes went wide. "Yoruichi-sama…I never knew…"

"Do you understand now why I had to go? I saw what was right, and what a grave injustice was about to be done. I would be nothing, unfit to hold even the lowliest rank, if I did not stop it. Commanders and councils can make mistakes. Sometimes the only way you can act is to act alone." Yoruichi peered straight into Soifon's eyes. "Do you see that it was nothing to do with you, no unworthiness on your part and no lacking in my regard for you? If I had not defended justice, I would be undeserving of all of your esteem for me. I would never permit you to call me commander, in such an instance."

"So are you trying to tell me," Soifon began, unable to look away, "that not only did you do no wrong, but making any choice other than what you did would have destroyed your integrity?"

"That's exactly it," Yoruichi replied with an easy smile.

"No! I don't accept it!" Soifon shot to her feet. Yoruichi also rose and took a couple steps back. "You say that you were upholding your honor but part of honor is to fulfill your obligations! You had an obligation to me, and you disregarded it! You promised that I would always be by your side, that I would help and protect you, but you threw me away as if I was nothing to you!"

"Now you're just being overly dramatic," Yoruichi scoffed. "I never denied that I have an obligation to you. I never intended to walk away from that obligation." Yellow eyes flashed, wisdom and willfulness shining through all at once. "You've always been so impatient, Soifon. When will you stop confusing not now with not ever?"

Soifon was taken completely by surprise. "Yoruichi-sama…"

"I did no wrong. But I do regret the pain that I caused you, though I'd hoped you would trust me more than that. In any case, I do owe you a debt for the years we couldn't be together, and I fully intend to repay it."

"Repay? How? What could you possibly offer me now?"

Yoruichi stepped back further until she was in the center of a clearing, the light from the moon full on her lithe form. She drew a dagger from within the folds of her tunic. Soifon's surprise turned to shock and alarm when she saw her mentor raise the gleaming blade over her chest. She crossed the distance between them in a heartbeat, but Yoruichi was always faster. "Yoruichi-sama!" As if time slowed down Soifon saw the dagger sweep across her mentor's chest just below her throat. By the time Soifon threw her arms around the taller woman the cut was complete.

Soifon trembled as she clutched the woman she worshipped as a goddess to her thin frame. She mustered the courage to look down and see what damage had been done. To her amazement, the coffee-brown skin was unharmed. Soifon suddenly thought how strange it was to see Yoruichi's flesh at all. Her jaw dropped and a deep blush crept into her cheeks when she realized that her hands touched bare back. Yoruichi was pressed to her naked from the waist up.

The warrior sprang back as if she had been burned. She tried not to stare, but it was impossible. Yoruichi looked radiant even in the darkness. She attempted speech, but words would not come.

Yoruichi smiled mockingly. "Can't restrain yourself for even a second, little bee? I wasn't finished!" A few more quick strokes of the dagger, and the remainder of Yoruichi's clothing dropped to the ground. "There. That's better."

"Yoruichi-sama!" Soifon squeaked, unable to tear her eyes away. "What are you doing?"

"I'm giving you the one thing that you want more than anything in the world, but would never ask for. I knew nothing less would be sufficient to settle my debt."

"I don't understand. I – I – why are your clothes gone?"

Yoruichi chuckled. "You're silly. If my clothes were on I wouldn't be able to give myself to you completely!"

"Give yourself…?"

"Tsk tsk. Having trouble with words tonight, are we? You seemed to be doing better before, when you were furious with me." Yoruichi offered her dagger innocently to Soifon. "Are you still mad? You could take it out on me now, if you'd like. I won't fight back."

"No!" Soifon cried out in horror, knocking the dagger out of Yoruichi's hand. It skittered dully over the blossom-covered ground. "Yoruichi-sama, I would never!"

"Oh, so earlier when you were trying to kill me you were only playing?" the older woman teased.

Soifon tenderly placed her hands on Yoruichi's bare shoulders, her face full of remorse. For some reason seeing her mentor nude and defenseless in front of her made her at once bold and reverent. "I am ashamed for everything that happened earlier today. We never should have fought."

"It was necessary. It was a step that had to be taken, just as this is. I am offering myself to you to do with as you please, until you are satisfied that my debt has been repaid."

"Well, how long will that take?"

"As I said," Yoruichi replied, a smile playing on her lips, "until you are satisfied."

Soifon was unable to hold back any longer. She crushed her mentor's face to her own, kissing her deeply. She was somewhat surprised when Yoruichi returned her kiss with equal ardor. Soifon couldn't be sure how much of her mistress's willingness was purely out of obligation or whether, as she hoped, Yoruichi wanted this as much as she did. Tears brimmed in her eyes as she tangled her fingers in the purple hair. For several minutes they continued on, body-to-body, barely moving save for their periodic intakes of breath. Soifon's kisses grew increasingly frantic until she finally pulled away. She stepped back cautiously, on her guard. "I don't believe it."

"Don't believe what?"

"That this is really happening. That you are giving yourself to me this way."

"No? I suppose you could make me prove it."

Soifon's eyes narrowed. "Make no mistake. I will." She paced backward, never taking her eyes off of Yoruichi, until she found an old stump which she sat back upon roughly. "Now come to me."

Yoruichi smiled playfully. She shrank down to her cat form and padded lazily over to Soifon, coming to a stop between the other woman's feet. The black cat turned in a circle, sat on its haunches, and became the dark woman once again. Yoruichi was in more or less the same position she had been as a cat, sitting back on her heels. She smiled up innocently. "You called?"

Soifon said nothing. She grabbed the back of Yoruichi's head and forced her face down into her lap. She had expected some resistance, but found none. Instead, Yoruichi began to slide Soifon's loose trousers down until they were out of the way.

"Good kitty," Soifon growled, then gripped the purple hair tighter and shoved the other woman's face between her knees. She had wanted her dark idol to devour her hungrily, without reservation, but instead Yoruichi held back almost imperceptibly. Soifon was about to protest until she felt the agile tongue touch her. She was being teased instead of ravaged. She ceased to care. Soifon gasped and her eyes rolled back. Her hands tightened into fists and twisted her mentor's purple hair but she did not try to guide Yoruichi any longer. Yoruichi clearly knew what she was doing, flicking the tip of her tongue here and there playfully before shocking Soifon by driving it into her. Her laughing eyes danced as she looked up at her chosen successor's reactions. Soifon's breathing grew more rapid and her head fell back as Yoruichi worked, prompting the woman on her knees to withdraw her tongue and lock her lips over Soifon's tender flesh. Soifon screamed and began to shake, releasing Yoruichi's head and grabbing the stump on which she sat with a white-knuckle grip. Yoruichi stayed where she was, sucking and licking with increasing intensity, until Soifon suddenly went stiff and still, crying out so loudly that nearby wildlife scattered in alarm. Yoruichi gently withdrew and flashed a self-satisfied grin at Soifon. Soifon, panting, returned the smile, a grateful expression on her face. "It's been a while," she said sheepishly, pale cheeks flushed.

"I always told you that you needed to learn to relax and let go. I'm not surprised to hear you've neglected yourself. Let's make sure it's not nearly as long until your next release, eh?" Yoruichi helped Soifon to her feet and efficiently stripped off her clothes, then led her over to a soft patch of ground where the fallen blossoms formed a layer thick enough to sleep on. As Soifon lay back and saw Yoruichi move over her, she thought to herself that she clearly was in the presence of a goddess after all. Her dream was rapidly becoming reality.

Yoruichi kissed her and she could taste herself on the supple lips. She pulled her down and kissed back more deeply, ravenous now. As Yoruichi straddled her waist and kissed her she felt dark, dextrous hands move over her skin. Yoruichi stroked her back, her arms, her sides, and her breasts as they devoured each other until Soifon felt the fire rise in her belly once again, rekindling the thirst she thought had been slaked. Yoruichi made no move to touch Soifon below the waist until the smaller woman was squirming beneath her, hips bucking up involuntarily. She then moved back and pushed Soifon's knees further apart, lazily running her fingertips up and down the pale, well-muscled thighs. Soifon looked up at her with pleading eyes. Yoruichi smirked and slid her hand all the way up, the backs of her fingers brushing short, damp curls. Another scream caught in Soifon's throat as she shuddered at the touch. Seeing the expression on her lover's face Yoruichi chided, "Not just yet, little bee! Contain yourself a bit longer. I promise I'll make it worth the wait." Without warning Yoruichi drove two fingers into Soifon, hard, her thumb curling over the top. It appeared she could lift the woman beneath her off the ground if she wanted. To her surprise, however, she saw Soifon wince, so she instantly became more gentle. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I wasn't expecting it to."

"I have ever been devoted to you, and ONLY you, Yoruichi-sama," Soifon explained through gritted teeth, smiling wryly.

In response, Yoruichi quite tenderly kissed her on the forehead. "All the more reason to proceed slowly, then." Yoruichi stroked her former charge softly, brushing her lips all over the pale and trembling face, until Soifon sighed and Yoruichi felt her relax. Her thumb teased at Soifon's tender bud, causing her back to arch so sharply that Yoruichi slid her other arm underneath it for support. The purple-haired woman held Soifon close as she worked her into a frenzy, her thumb and fingers stroking expertly. Soifon was begging in her ear. Yoruichi smiled wickedly. "Not so commanding now, eh little one?"

"No need," Soifon panted. "You don't seem to require much instruction."

Yoruichi put her lips close to Soifon's ear and whispered only loud enough that she could be heard. "I admit to having given the subject a lot of thought over the years." Before Soifon could mull this revelation too much Yoruichi brought her to, then over, the edge. Soifon's cries were muffled by her mentor's lips placed over her own. Yoruichi did not let her go until she stopped shaking. When Soifon went limp Yoruichi withdrew her hand at placed her fingers to her lips, a thoughtful expression on her face. She was watching her best student recover her senses. Soifon looked up and met the golden, sparkling eyes. "So I take it I have served you well, little bee. My obligation to you is discharged."

"I don't think so," Soifon replied, still breathing hard, as she propped herself up on her elbows. She smiled her hard, unreadable smile. Yoruichi raised her eyebrows in genuine surprise. "You've always been such a clever one. But you haven't outsmarted me this time."

"Have I neglected to do something?" Yoruichi was truly puzzled, off her guard.

"Oh no, not at all. And that's just the trouble. This whole time, you're supposed to be giving yourself to me, but instead you've maintained control of the situation at every step, in your usual way. You said that you are in my service until I am satisfied. My satisfaction requires your surrender, my mistress Yoruichi, and nothing less."

Yoruichi nodded as understanding dawned on her. For a moment she seemed to hesitate. Then she smiled easily and shrugged before she laid back on the petals. "Do with me as you will," she said as she put her hands behind her head and closed her eyes.

Soifon planted her hands on either side of Yoruichi's flawless torso. She was glad that the darker woman's eyes were closed so that she could not see the apprehension in Soifon's face. Yoruichi had given her everything she had ever dreamed of, but she had to know why. Was it merely to ease the sting of all their years of separation, or was it something else? Soifon had to know whether she dared hold out her hope for her goddess returning her feelings, and she planned to find out here and now. She gulped and mustered her courage. She resolved to lay herself on the line for Yoruichi once more, holding nothing back, no matter what came of it.

Yoruichi was shocked when she felt Soifon's lips on hers. Before now, their kisses had been passionate and hungry, but there was no mistaking the emotion behind this one. She knew, with certainty, that her protégé's feelings for her went far past admiration, and had matured beyond the worship of her youth. The older woman was surprised at herself. She thought she had been prepared for anything, but this was almost more than she could take. Yoruichi might have withdrawn, might have walled off a part of herself as she was accustomed to doing, except that Soifon showed no hesitation or weakness in her actions. Her purpose was singular. Her kiss was more than a statement – it was an order.

Soifon knew full well that Yoruichi had not answered to anyone in years, if she ever had. She would change that. Her lot had been cast as soon as she took charge of the situation. Now there was no choice but to follow through. She was the mistress now, and Yoruichi would know it, but not by force. Soifon drew her goddess close to her, her tongue driving deep into the other woman's mouth. She engulfed her, her hands everywhere, caressing, stroking, teasing, and petting but never asking permission. Yoruichi was astounded. Was this confident, self-assured young captain really her Soifon? For the first time she could remember Yoruichi felt like a plaything in another's arms, yet it did not upset her as she had thought it might. She had never been so secure. She had never been so loved.

Yoruichi sighed in bliss as Soifon kissed her stomach and kneaded her back with strong fingers. Soifon took her time. She would not make Yoruichi do anything. Yoruichi would discover for herself that she had no choice. Soifon nuzzled her head in between Yoruichi's breasts and rested it there, running her hands up and down the smooth muscles of her sides. Soifon's thumbs traced paths on either side of her navel. Yoruichi gazed down at the mound of short, dark hair spilled across her chest. She smiled slightly, but her golden eyes were not laughing as they usually did. Yoruichi ran her fingers through the cropped hair softly, scratching between the two long braids which had fallen across her. Slowly her knees fell apart.

Soifon did not react immediately. She moved her hands down to rest on the tops of Yoruichi's hips and pressed her forehead into Yoruichi's chest. She could feel her goddess's heartbeat thudding against her skull. It betrayed everything but still Soifon waited. "Please…" Yoruichi breathed, and the beating grew more insistent.

Yoruichi could not see Soifon's smile underneath the cover of her hair, but she watched the other woman slide down her body, bringing her face to rest above a short shock of purple. Soifon looked up, and their eyes met. Yoruichi thought that she saw amusement in Soifon's eyes. When she felt the soft tongue touch her, her head fell back and she covered her face, muffling a groan. Soifon worked steadily but she was in no hurry. She gripped Yoruichi's hips tightly and felt shapely legs slide up her arms to rest on her shoulders. She slid her tongue up and down, alternating between using the flat center and the pointed tip, changing speed and pace. She kept Yoruichi off-guard, never letting her become too aware of what was coming next, until she could hear the other woman's cries and whimpers become more insistent. Then she settled into a steady rhythm to bring her goddess to her peak. Yoruichi's fingers dug into the earth, her heels pressed hard into Soifon's back, and she was out of her head with pleasure. Soifon backed off as if to let Yoruichi come down, then drove straight in with a vengeance. She tormented Yoruichi mercilessly, giving her no respite. By the time she was finally through, her mentor was almost unable to move, exhausted to the core. Soifon carefully laid the legs on her shoulders down, then shuffled forward on hands and knees to examine her work.

The great Yoruichi Shihoin was gasping for breath, drenched in sweat despite the coolness of the night. Her eyes were closed. Her head was turned to the side, and some of the blossoms on the ground had become intermixed with her flowing, disheveled hair. Soifon had never seen a more beautiful sight in her life. Her old reverent self again, she laid her head on Yoruichi's chest and wrapped her arm around her, holding her tightly. Without a word Yoruichi planted a kiss on the top of Soifon's head, bringing tears to the younger woman's eyes. She tried to hold back, but she had been holding back for a century, and in seconds the formerly masterful Soifon was weeping like a child. The spell was broken. Yoruichi gathered her protégé up in a protective embrace. "It's all right, my little bee," she soothed. "I'm not going anywhere this time. I'm right here with you, where I always should have been."

"Please don't leave me again, Yoruichi-sama," Soifon sobbed. "My heart will break. I need you."

"Well, broken hearts will never do. There's enough sorrow in the world already." Yoruichi surprised both of them by speaking of hearts, in the plural sense. She stood and pulled Soifon to her feet as well. "But we can't run around the Seireitei naked all night, not when there's a war on. Our comrades will think we've lost our minds. Why don't we go back to your quarters and clean up?"

"M-my quarters?" Soifon stammered, all business once again. "But Yoruichi-sama, do you think it's wise for you to be in the Captains' district right now? It's not so long ago you were declared a traitor! Someone might think the orders to kill you on sight still stand."

Yoruichi yawned and stretched in her faintly catlike manner. "I'm not worried. I have excellent protection. And besides, folks need to get used to seeing me around your quarters again sooner or later."

Soifon's eyes brightened. "Do you mean, you'll be around regularly?"

"Well of course! We have a lot of work to do, now that there's a war on. Who do you think is going to be my first commander in battle? Uruhara's still in the world of the living, and Byakuya's grown up into such an uptight, brooding fellow…" As Yoruichi went on, Soifon felt a twinge of the bittersweet nature of their reunion. Her mentor spoke only of work and missions, which pleased her but also left her wanting. Could she be certain of the meaning of tonight's encounter after all?

"And most importantly, who else is going to share your bed at night?" Yoruichi finished. Soifon's jaw dropped, stunned as she was. Yoruichi playfully closed her mouth for her.

"Do you really mean it, Yoruichi-sama?"

"I really do, little bee." In a flash the pair, as well as any traces of their presence in the grove, were gone.