Rule One: Pride comes first, even before family. You fight with honor until you are the winning opponent
Rule Two: You do not aide someone convicted in a crime. To do so is to dishonor your family and your name.
Rule Three: You will not engage in sexual intercourse unless you are wed to the other
Rule Four: You will only enter a marriage with someone of the opposite sex. Children must be reproduced
Rule Five: If your husband or wife passes away you must remarry within a year and do what ever means are necessary to bare a child in order to continue on the Kuchiki name. Love is unnecessary you do not marry for love but who is worthy enough to be called a Kuchiki.
Rule Six: Do not allow emotions to over rule. Emotions are for the weak. Your duty is to serve and protect the soul society, not to make friends and form relationships.

There they were. The six rules Byakuya was forced to abide by. They seemed so simple when he was a child and a teenager. Why would he ever fight for any other reason but pride and to protect the soul society? Why would he defend a criminal? Why would disgrace himself by sleeping with someone that was not his wife? Why would he not have children? Why would he ever expect to love another or feel love in return?-It really seemed so simple.

Three hundred years ago he would have never fathomed breaking his rules. His families rules. The same rules that his father, uncle, grandfather, great grandfather and his ancestors before him had to obey. They had been re-written to sound more "with the times" but the context was exactly the same. They were all able to obey the rules. Every single one of the Kuchiki's, by blood, had followed instructions perfectly to the T. So then why was Byakuya the only one who couldn't?

He had tried. He had tried with every fibre of his being to do as his family requested-no, demanded of him but it had been so futile. As he looked over his obligations to his family name he found himself feeling fortunate that none of his blood relatives were alive to see his disappointment.

He had put family before pride, he had aided a criminal, he had not re-married after Hisana died, he had not bore children and he had formed friendships. The only thing that Byakuya had done right was he had married a woman. But that was two hundred and something years ago. Byakuya had pride still. Pride he kept sacred and honored it, making up for the times he hadn't. He would not let a soul live if they dishonored his pride or questioned it. That was something he did not withstand. But was he still a good man? was he still worthy of the Kuchiki name? Since there was no other Kuchiki alive that was related to him by blood to otherwise tell him so then his was the only opinion that he could take.

Byakuya sighed as he walked away from the framed parchment that hung perfectly straight on his quarter wall. Why was this happening all of a sudden? why now after so long was he concerned with what he did and did not do correctly? what rules had or hadn't been broken? He already knew the answer to it. Rukia. She moving on. It was okay for her to do so. She was a Kuchiki by adoption and although she took being a Kuchiki seriously there was nothing stopping her from making her own decisions and choosing what she felt was right for her self.

It seemed that Rukia was not the only one that was moving on. After the Quincy Blood War so many had gained a new outlook on their long existences. All around him Byakuya was noticing Shinigami entering relationships, moving forward. They were fixing to make lives for themselves. Create future soul reapers to protect the Seireitei's integrity and assure that there will always been a generation in the society doing what they had all been trained to do.

One day he along with the older reapers would be gone. Commanding captain Kyoraku, captain Ukitake, himself-all of the captains in fact were leading old lives, one they had lived for centuries upon centuries and there were even lieutenants that were aged more then Byakuya that would eventually pass away. It seemed logically that those who really cared for the soul society were doing their part to see that it continued to thrive.

What did he do other then protect the Seireitei with his own body? There were others that would do the same but it seemed so minimal. Byakuya spend most of his time in division six and doing what? paperwork. Meaningless paper work that could have been done at anytime. He was going through his existential break down. He had never thought he would suffer something so-common but it was what was happening to him and if he loved the soul society as much as he had told himself he had he was going to have to change some things in order to feel as if he was doing something right.

He should have been on his way to division six but the queasy feeling in his stomach drew him away. He didn't know where he was supposed to go. Where did Renji go in the morning before work? Byakuya frowned, Renji would have still been in bed. He could go for a walk through the Rukongai district and seek out a potential mate. Someone that would impress him and someone that would deserve to be in the soul society but it was only luck that Hisana didn't fear him.

He wondered how much easier it would have been if she were still alive. He would have probably had his children and they would have been grown by now. He would have taught them well and they would have been prestigious members of the Seireitei if not the Gotei thirteen. He would not be having his existence drama.

"Ah- captain Kuchiki? Is everything alright?"

Byakuya was bought out of his temporary lapse by the sound of lieutenant Shuhei Hisagi talking to him. He had to applaud the young man-well younger than he was. There were very few that would actually approach Byakuya. It was one of the many reasons he liked Ichigo Kurosaki and approved of his and Rukia's relationship. Ichigo didn't fear speaking to Byakuya. He didn't flinch around him or appear uncomfortable. Byakuya was somewhat jealous of Rukia. Not jealous because she had Ichigo but because she had what he had desired to have from Hisana but never got.

Hisana loved Byakuya but she was not in love with him. Byakuya had tried to give Hisana a wonderful life and he hoped that he had done so. It was interesting to crave something that he had never had. He didn't know what it was like to have someone love him. He didn't know what it was like to have someone that would live for him, die for him, give up anything for him. Someone that would forever stay by his side no matter how far he pushed them.

He supposed that Renji was like that to him. He was loyal and he would die for Byakuya but did Renji love him? He hardly doubted it. No one could love him not in the way he wanted them too. Even if Renji did love him it was not allowed anyway.

"Yes. I am fine. Thank you. Lieutenant could you tell me where I might be able to find Renji? I assume he would be sleeping but I am hoping I will be surprised to discover he is already awake"

"Sure captain Kuchiki. Renji's probably out at the courts with Ikkaku"

Renji was with Ikkaku. Byakuya felt that ping of annoyance. He held nothing against Ikkaku Madarame personally. He was a fine warrior with good battling values but he did have a problem with division eleven and it's captain Kenpachi Zaraki. Kenpachi was a barbarian, brutal and seemingly blood thirsty. He still recalled the battle they had to decide who was to defeat Yammy Llargo, the Espada. That was at least a hundred years ago but since then, even before then, Byakuya and Kenpachi always had an odd tension between them.

"Thank you"

Essentially Byakuya was harmless out of battle. His personality was what deterred people. He may have shot glares that were as deadly as Senbonzakura but he was not someone that others should have been afraid of.

He made his way to the sakura courts. He was curious as to why exactly Renji was spending his morning with Ikkaku. It could have been a regular thing but Byakuya wouldn't have known because he didn't care to ask. It made him feel even worse about the whole thing. The one person that had been closest to him. Someone that probably knew him better then anyone else did even more the Rukia or Ukitake or Kyoraku even Yoruichi. They had all been around Byakuya for such a long time, the latter three being there since he was a kid but Renji had bothered to get to know Byakuya. He hadn't just assumed or guess he had actually asked.

Byakuya liked to think of himself as a gentleman but he was far from. He hadn't even had the courtesy to know who Renji was and not just Renji but anyone else in the soul society. He decided to change his route. He would leave Renji be doing what ever it was that he was doing. Byakuya had a more suitable idea and it was going to start with commanding captain Kyoraku.