Business: I only own the Heirverse ™
a/n: Still exhausted from Proxyposting Hell when I posted the packs 7sins collection plus writing my addition to that collection and being so crushed for time it was ridiculous. But this is for SeshommaruFreak for her birthday [October 10th]. Happy birthday darling! Yes its a Krakenverse piece it eats everything. Hope you enjoy and that I didnt butcher the characters too badly... like I did canon... *glances at brutally butchered Bleach canon in the corner* ...yeah, that got slaughtered like the Central 46... Anyway Seshy, please enjoy and have mercy on my eardrums.
Notes: A Sun&Monkey side piece/prequel – for the unfamiliar, that's SesshomaruFreak's 'Healing the Moon' meeting my Heirverse. [well more like HtM was hijacked because i loved it so much]. RenBya with a side of AiGin. A bit of 'grass is always greener', but primarily happyfluffyshppy. And RenBya/AiGin parallels thrown in just because.
Enjoy. And if you haven't already please go read and review Healing the Moon :)
Can I Kiss You?
Renji sighed heavily, laying back on the soft grass, having lost all interest in the book he'd been reading. It just wasn't fair, dammit. Every time he looked up from his book to enjoy the peacefulness of the park, he'd always, always caught sight of some happy couple or another, kissing and holding hands. He even saw Rangiku and Shuuhei cuddling and napping together. And while he was pleased his friends had found happiness, he was just a little bit jealous. In all the time he and Byakuya had been together, the noble had never once kissed in public. Or even just held his hand in public.
Okay, he got it, they had to be professional while on duty and discreet in their downtime. And yes they'd said they would take it slow. But dammit just once he'd like Byakuya to show him some affection in public. Even just a little peck on the cheek. He cast a furtive glance at his lover sitting beside him, still thoroughly engrossed in his book. Oblivious to the world. Yeah, it would never happen. Though it didn't stop him hoping, though. Who knew, maybe if he waited long enough, Byakuya would come around to the idea. He'd already waited this long, right? What was another few years? Maybe more time was all his captain needed to loosen up a little around him in public and behave the way he did when they were alone - or to a lesser extent, when they were with the pack. Those were the moments his lovely Moon was being himself, and what made Renji fall even more in love with him each and every day.
He smiled to himself as he reminisced, and reminded himself Byakuya was worth waiting for. But still, he did wish they could be just a little bit affectionate out in the open. Just like...
He looked up at the real world again, dragging himself out of his daydreams just in time to see Ichimaru Gin out walking his little fox. Renji watched him bend down, pick up a big stick and throw it for her. He watched her yip happily and zoom off after it, nothing but a white blur on the green of the grass.
Renji watched Gin laugh at her antics, just as another white blur shot past after the stick, yipping. Another white fox with black paws and ears, and he smiled because it seemed even Cherry had got herself a boyfriend. But then, he had heard Aizen Taichou had gotten himself a pet fox too, so it made sense for the two happy couples living together. Renji wouldn't be at all surprised if there were the pitter-patter of tiny little fox paws come next year...
As expected, Aizen himself appeared shortly after, walking quickly to catch up to Gin. And Renji observed them for a few moments.
Now, Renji had always had excellent hearing, and the gossip surrounding those two always made for interesting hearing, so he couldn't help but hear snatches of their conversation. Of course, Renji never contributed to or spread such gossip, having much better things to do with his time – namely a certain noble Kuchiki – but it was always interesting to listen to and compare it with his actual observations on people. Which were usually completely opposite to the rumours in circulation. And okay, he admitted it, he wanted to see what these two were actually like together.
He watched Aizen sneak an arm around Gin and kiss him on the cheek. Saw Gin smile at the affection. He saw Aizen lean over and whisper something into Gin's ear. Renji couldn't hear what it was, but t made Ichimaru's cheeks flush a bright pink and made him swat at Aizen and tell him quite loudly and sternly to behave himself while Aizen laughed at his own mischief.
'Will you behave?!'
'No, never.'
Renji snickered quietly. Well, he supposed Aizen Sousuke still had the charm he was known for. But Renji was still surprised at how much of a normal couple they were. How much like everybody else. Nobody who saw them could doubt how much in love they were.
Whereas him and Byakuya...
Renji sighed again, frustrated. He could only dream of being affectionate so openly with Byakuya.
"Renji."
The redhead almost jumped out of his skin.
"Ye-yes, Taichou?" he answered, sneaking a look at his partner, who'd put his book down on his lap and was looking at Renji with a rather exasperated expression.
"What is wrong? You've been sighing all morning and it is most distracting."
Renji rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Ah, sorry Byakuya."
Byakuya placed a bookmark in his book to and set it on the grass beside him.
"Talk to me, Renji," he said softly. "Tell me what's bothering you. You know you can tell me anything... we already established this."
Renji took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. "Yeah, I know."
Byakuya smiled tenderly across at him. "So, are you going to tell me about it?" he asked. Renji just sighed again. And Byakuya waited.
. . .
"Well?" Byakuya prompted when Renji lapsed into silence. Gently rubbing his thumb over the back of Renji's hand as he held it. Something that Byakuya knew would soothe his anxiety. Renji often overthought things, and worked himself up over the most insignificant things, sometimes.
Well, it's just that..." Renji began, "We've been together for a while now and... I've been wondering... I've been wanting to... to..."
Byakuya waited for his sweet Renji to find the words he was looking for. He knew Renji would sit there fumbling about for them for a while but, eventually he'd find them. So he would be patient.
He was not, however, prepared for Renji to suddenly blurt out, "Can I kiss you?"
Byakuya blinked at his lover, completely taken aback by the request. A kiss? That was it? Damn, he'd been expecting a marriage proposal just because of how nervous Renji was.
"Oh." he said. Trying not to feel a little disappointed. "Just a kiss?"
"Yeeeaaah," Renji said slowly. "Of course you don't have to if you don't wanna, I mean we did say to take it slow and be discreet in public but..."
Byakuya said nothing, still a little stunned by the request. Of course, he'd kissed Renji plenty of times. And Renji hadn't been shy about kissing him back, either. Or showing him affection. But then again, whenever they'd been affectionate before, it had always been at Renji's apartment, or in his private quarters at the manor... never in public. And most certainly not in front of people.
Renji must have mistaken his digesting of this request for hesitancy, because he was quickly backpedalling.
"Look, I... I know it's a big step, and I know you like your privacy, so... so if you don't wanna it's fine. I get it. But I just thought, you know, if maybe I could maybe at least kiss you when we're out together." Renji paused for a second to breathe, "And what I mean is well, we've been together for some time now and since your family knows about us, I thought it might be alright if I could show you some love in the open. Y'know, like holdin' hands an' stuff."
Renji paused, to breathe again and look nervously at him again.
"That is, if you're okay with that, cuz I want you to be comfortable and oh god I'm rambling now aren't I?"
Renji laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. No doubt thinking he'd just made a total idiot out of himself.
Renji sighed heavily again and settled his hands in his lap again. "I'm an idiot, aren't I?"
Byakuya smiled at his partner. "Only sometimes," he said softly "But then I suppose love makes idiots out of all of us."
He watched Renji crack a small smile at that. "Alright, now you're just being generous,"
"Perhaps," Byakuya smiled back at him. "I am known to be where people I care about are concerned."
Renji's smile lit up his whole face at that. "So, is it alright if I kiss you?" he ventured, still hopeful.
Byakuya just smiled back at him. His Renji. His lover. His partner. "Yes, Renji," he said warmly, leaning over so he was close enough to kiss. "It's perfectly alright if you kiss me."
And as soon as those words left Byakuya's lips and his warm breath tickled Renji's skin, those soft lips were on his, with Renji's tongue pushing into his mouth for a deep and passionate kiss. Making him moan softly and his whole world shrink down to just the two of them. With him laying on top of Renji. Kissing.
When they broke apart, Renji had a grin on his face that could rival even Ichimaru Gin's. Or at the very least, the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland.
"Wow," Renji sighed, utterly content. "I aint gonna forget that in a hurry."
Byakuya just smiled at him, looking down at his lover. "Me neither."
Renji still grinned like a loony at him. "so I take it you're okay with being affectionate in public now?" he asked.
"Yes," Byakuya answered. I feel like it's time we took that next step in our relationship. Stop hiding."
Renji leant up to give his lover another quick kiss. "I like the sound of that," he said. "Cuz all I've wanted to do since we got together is tell the whole damn world 'I love Kuchiki Byakuya!'"
Byakuya smiled, chuckling a little. "Yes, you would do something like that. I can envision you standing on a rooftop screaming such," he said. "But let's not go that far." He said softly. "I think telling the pack would be a good place to start."
"Yeah," Renji said, unable to wipe the broad grin off his face. "It's a good start."