Snake Eyes

By Spunky0ne

(Dedicated to Sariniste...simply the most enthusiastic Aizenfan I have yet encountered. Hope you all enjoy the story...and the continuation of Gin's birthday month!)

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Always, my eyes watched you...from a distance, from out of the darkness, from the shadows. I slithered closer and watched you smile as I wrapped myself around you. With your eyes locked on mine and both our bodies enchanted and swaying, just who was the snake? And who was the victim?

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Chapter 1: Rukongai Souls

Gin felt a cool, wet cloth brush over his face and heard soft, feminine voices conversing over him.

"He should regain consciousness soon," said a voice he recognized as the human girl, Orihime, "He'll be all right now."

"Thank you," said Rangiku's voice, "I know that he was one of the ones who was responsible for Aizen holding you hostage..."

"Don't worry about that," Orihime said soothingly, "We know now that he wasn't really with Aizen. But...even if he was, at the end he tried to stop him. And even if not for that, what Aizen did to him was horrible. He didn't deserve to die that way."

Oh, Gin groaned inwardly, but, having failed that way, I did get what I deserved. That man is still alive and he still did not give back what he stole from her...

"I wish that Central 46 felt the same," Rangiku said softly, "They won't even consider clearing him of charges. If they knew he was alive, they would just have him killed. Unlike that bastard Aizen, Gin can die. And they want to kill someone. It's good for Tousen that he died in the fighting as well."

Gin didn't hear Orihime give an answer, but he knew her well enough that she probably wouldn't wish anyone dead, ever.

Not even the devil, himself.

He was surprised that thinking of the word 'devil' no longer conjured Aizen's image in his mind. That was certainly the impression that he'd had of the man as he had meticulously prepared his plans against the monarchy, then carried them out in an equally choreographed set of moves.

And we all danced around him, like pieces on a chess board that he was moving...even me. Yes, he even anticipated my betrayal, though not the exact moment or way in which I would betray him.

There was an odd, dark inward thrill that he encountered, thinking about that.

But then, as much as I hated him stealing that piece of Rangiku's soul, something very different from hatred began to form while we were in Las Noches. No...even before that.

He suffered a sharp, sudden flash of memory.

Aizen's hand reached out and curved around his cheek, and Gin felt as though the floor had fallen away beneath him.

"What was that you said when we met, Gin?" the smooth, deceptively gentle voice said, "You said that you were a snake? Well...it just so happens that I have a very deep fascination with snakes. If you desire it, now that you have come of age, we can begin to explore that fascination."

He hadn't a moment to think about what the man was going to do. Like a snake striking, Aizen's mouth was fastened on his and bit down indulgently, sending strange, mingled waves of slight pain and intense throbs of arousal through Gin's reeling body. He didn't feel when he was taken down onto the bed, and only felt the light sting of the other man's fingernails as he was hastily laid bare. Strong, searching hands roamed over his flesh, touching him everywhere, neither asking, nor demanding, but calmly taking what they willed and making him writhe brazenly beneath them.

"You see," said Aizen's silken voice in his ear, "I have a gift for handling dangerous things, Gin."

Gin hadn't planned to ever sleep with the man, but there was no stopping him as he invaded the younger shinigami's slender body, first with insistent fingers, then with his painfully hot and swollen member. He was not rushed, but every moment of his entry into Gin's body was sweet agony...a test of his strength, perhaps. Gin clenched his teeth and panted harshly, but let no cry escape him. And when Aizen's eyes found his, he let a slow smile spread onto his face.

"I am glad to see that this pleases you," Aizen said, holding himself still as Gin's body shook softly and struggled to adjust, "I was worried that I had misunderstood you."

"You understood me perfectly," Gin assured him breathlessly, "You are good with snakes."

Words left him again as Aizen's body moved, sending jolts of mixed pain and pleasure, and exciting soft sounds of pleasure from somewhere deep in his chest. There was something that belied the gentle face that still looked down at him, so albeit reckless, he decided to cross a boundary he imagined no one had before.

"I have shown you my true face," he panted, hanging on to the man's shoulders and opening his eyes a bit wider, "Why don't you show me yours?"

Aizen paused, admiring the bright flecks of blue that peeked up at him through Gin's partly opened eyes, and loosing an enigmatic smile.

"You are more perceptive than most, Gin. Truly, you are the prodigy they said you were...though a trifle more wicked than they imagined, ne?"

"Is that a problem for you, Aizen taichou?" Gin asked, flinching as the man reached up and removed his glasses.

It wasn't, Gin thought, just that his eyes had been uncovered. As though a shade had been drawn back, a more wickedly handsome and crafty looking face laid beneath the surface illusion.

And that's what this is, Gin thought to himself, It is not reflections to confuse, this is a greater, more dangerous power he has.

"Is that better?" Aizen asked, drawing a breathy moan from between Gin's parted lips as he began moving again.

"Hai, Aizen taichou," Gin whispered feverishly, "Much...better!"

He went quiet, then, letting his eyes slide shut again and feeling the deep penetration of his body by the other man's. He hadn't considered himself to be a homosexual and still didn't. Indeed, he had partaken of some pleasures with Rangiku from time to time, so he knew that it wasn't that he preferred males in general. But there was something about this man...this man he had gotten close to so that he could kill him. He was like no one Gin had ever encountered, and every moment in his presence was a game with deadly consequences. But it was hard to worry about those possible consequences while being made love to by Aizen Sousuke.

"You're going to be all right now," Rangiku's voice whispered as she washed his face gently again.

Something feels different about her...

He tried to open his eyes, but found he was still too weak. Instead, he loosed a tiny flicker of reiatsu, then reeled at what returned to him.

Her soul...that piece he took from her!

It is...returned?

His mind flashed back to the few moments when he had held the hougyoku tightly in his hand, then opened it to look down at the artifact.

What was that I heard?

Just before he reappeared, it said something to me.

"It will be as you wish."

Then...

He shivered under Rangiku's hands, earning a sigh and the touch of her hand on his.

"Yes, she healed all of you," Rangiku went on, "Even that."

Something else has been healed, Rangiku, but by whom? Was it the hougyoku? But Sousuke said that he controlled it. Surely he would not have given me such a gift in the midst of my undoing.

What happened, then?

"Gin, I want to thank you."

For what?

"I know it sounds strange, but...I understand now, why you left the way you did. You didn't want Kira and me hanging on to the memory of you. You wanted us to move forward. And you will be glad to know I have. I don't know if you realized it, but that day...the day Aizen was captured, something happened to me. It was while I was with you that I felt something inside...something that I hadn't felt in a really long time. And when everything was done and I returned to be checked out at the fourth division, Unohana taichou said that whatever had held me back from achieving bankai for so long had disappeared! I have reached manifestation."

Ah...!

"I wouldn't have done that without you, Gin."

But, I had nothing to do with that. It was either the hougyoku or Sousuke...or both.

"I want you to be the first to see it when I achieve it. So, rest. Get well again. We are safe here in the lower Rukongai. There are few patrols that venture down here, and no one asks questions. Just...stay here and get stronger. I will come to you when I can. The healer will stay with you until you can take care of yourself. Behave for him, okay?"

Gin dropped back into a deep sleep, dreaming more contentedly, now that Aizen was behind bars and his mission to recover the missing piece of his friend's soul was done. Yet, even though his dreams were pleasant, something else broke through that reached down inside him and resonated more strongly.

Ah, you can hear me again. Listen carefully, then, Ichimaru Gin. I know that you have discovered the action I took the day that Aizen Sousuke took your life. You have wondered, I am aware, whether it was his will or mine that gave back what was taken...but neither answer was correct.

"What?" Gin whispered softly, his eyes widening as the shining hougyoku appeared before him, "What do you mean?"

You know what I mean. It was not my will or Aizen Sousuke's that caused that girl's soul to be restored.

"Then...?"

It was yours.

"M-mine?" Gin breathed, "How could that be? He said that he still commanded you."

Think back, Ichimaru Gin. You suspected some time ago that I was not what that man thought he created. In a sense, I was. I did bring to life others' desires. And he did grow strong enough that I allowed him to fuse with me. But...that fusion did not give him complete reign over me. You must have suspected...

"I did wonder when he claimed to be in control. But things still happened that I know he didn't specifically will to happen."

Yes. He commanded me in part. But...I could still respond to the souls around me. I could still give them their desires as well. And I also could act on my own.

"Fascinating..."

I had a choice about the desires that I granted...and even as I fell under the seal, I granted one last desire...yours.

"But...why?"

You will discover that in time. But let me give you something to think on. Gin, why do you think that you hear my voice?

"Because this is a dream?"

No. This is not a dream. And you heard me before, did you not?

"I was holding you in my hand."

You would have heard me, even if you had not been touching me. Such is the power of the bond between you.

"The bond...between...me and who?"

Aizen Sousuke...your soul bonded.

"My...what?"

He is your soul bonded. This was made so when your souls were created. That is why your paths eventually crossed and you became lovers.

"I never loved Aizen Sousuke," Gin objected, knowing even as he said the words, that they were a lie.

You are lying. You loved him, and you became conflicted in what you intended...so conflicted that even had I not protected Aizen from your blade's poison, it would not have killed him.

"But it...?"

He would have overcome it, in the end. You struck with less than proper intent. And you know why.

"I do not love Aizen Sousuke," Gin said again.

It does not matter that you feel this way. What you feel for him is even deeper, and it will bring you back to him.

"Why are you telling me this?"

I am putting you on the path. This is the will of my true master, Ichimaru Gin.

"Who is your...?"

That does not matter. What matters is that you do what I say. Wait until night has fallen. Then, return to where Aizen was captured. In the ruins of the battlefield, you will find the shattered sword he wielded. Go and find Kyouka Suigetsu...then quickly return here and heal him.

Gin let out a soft, disbelieving breath.

"I do not want to have anything to do with any part of him."

That is a lie.

Gin woke suddenly.

He found himself alone, except for the sleeping healer, who occupied a bed on the other side of the room. His body still ached, but he found that he was able to move, even to sit up. He sipped briefly at a cup of water that had been left at his bedside, then rose onto shaky legs and walked to the window. Looking out, his eyes came to rest on a lovely, full moon. And it made him feel good to know that Aizen Sousuke could not look out and see the moon from the depths of Muken, where Rangiku had said he was taken.

But even as his mind took on the thought, he felt a restlessness inside.

Go and find Kyouka Suigetsu...then quickly return here and heal him.

"Why would I even consider doing such a thing?" he whispered to himself.

He tried to think of other things, but the hougyoku's voice refused to leave his mind. He left the small house, walking out into the night and acquainting himself with the area he was in. It wasn't far, he realized suddenly, from the place where the battle had been waged. And before he registered what he was doing, he began to walk slowly in that direction.

I heard her say that it disintegrated, he told himself, There isn't anything left. And if there was, why would I even consider healing him? He was a part of Aizen's plan.

But there was something about that thought that suggested it was a lie...or at least a misunderstanding.

After all, if Kyouka Suigetsu was, indeed, abandoned, then how much of a part of Sousuke's plans could he have been? And how interested would he be in being healed now? Wouldn't it be better to let that tortured soul die?

He remembered, then the way it felt to have that sword's power wrap around him. He had always rather enjoyed the way it felt...as though it brought him that much closer to Sousuke.

But, why would I still feel a desire for that now? Everything broke apart then, when I betrayed him.

But that seemed a lie too.

Gin moved forward, noting the scorch marks on the ground as he reached the place in question. He reached out with his senses and was shocked at how quickly the fragments of Kyouka Suigetsu responded. As though not of his own accord, Gin moved quickly to the place and knelt, retrieving the small pieces of the sword that he could find, then abandoning the sight and fleeing back to his new home.

The healer, he found, was still sleeping. So Gin sat down on the bed and contemplated the pieces of Aizen's blade, before wrapping them carefully in some of the extra bandages and slipping them underneath his mattress. He laid back down and was surprised to find that sleep came more easily this time.

And when he woke in the morning, he found that his body seemed to have been completely restored.

The healer examined him thoroughly, his aged face evincing disbelief. But finally, he nodded in approval and left, giving the silver-haired man an admonishment to rest. Gin returned to his bed and started to reach under the mattress, then frowned as his hand found something hard. He pulled gently and found himself looking at...

Aizen Sousuke's fully healed sword.