Love in Shadows
By SilverMistedMoon
Chapter 1: The Day the Glass Shattered
Rukia sat quietly, watching as Hanataro gently bound her wounded arm in fresh bandages, then offered a pleasant infusion of healing power to soothe the pain. He ran a hand down her side, pausing as he touched a place that still made her wince and groan. Another swift infusion made the discomfort fade and Rukia managed a smile.
"Thanks, Hanataro."
"It's no problem, Miss Rukia," the young healer answered, "It's good to see you're feeling better. Captain Kuchiki and Lieutenant Abarai were very concerned about you."
"Well, I'm fine," Rukia insisted, "Everyone got pretty banged up in the fights, not just me."
Her eye strayed to where Byakuya stood with his back to her, looking over the edge of the low wall at one edge of Tenjiro's palace, his dark eyes gazing downwards towards the ruins of the Seireitei.
"Was Byakuya hurt at all?"
Hanataro paused, his face paling slightly as he followed Rukia's eyes to where Byakuya stood.
"Eh...you were both unconscious when you were found," he admitted, "He had some burns from when he curled his body around yours to protect you and he had a pretty hard blow to the head, but nothing too bad. He's fine now."
"That's good," Rukia sighed, watching as Hanataro cleaned up the healing supplies and stood.
She went quiet as her brother seemed to sense they were finished and he turned back in her direction. His deep grey eyes focused on her for a moment, then nearly closed as they tended to do rather than look into anyone's eyes for too long. He walked gracefully towards her, a spectacle even with his oken cloak smudged and his uniform torn. He paused in front of her and she suffered a soft flutter in her chest as a recent memory returned to her.
"Rukia," Byakuya addressed her, his dark eyes touching her for a moment and his peripheral vision still watching the advancing enemy, "while I was on the way here, I felt your reiatsu."
For some reason that had nothing to do with her icy power, Rukia shivered at the words.
"You've grown strong, Rukia."
She felt a sensation like falling as every moment of their association paraded before her, and the feelings of inferiority that had always plagued her in his greater presence fell away.
My brother has acknowledged my strength, she mused inwardly.
"Are you ready to go home, Rukia?" Byakuya asked, his voice scattering her thoughts and leaving her confused and silent for a moment.
"Yes, Brother," she answered, finding her voice again, "I'm ready."
She fell in at his side, lowering her eyes and enjoying the feel of his strong presence that radiated around them.
"Is Renji coming with us?" she asked, "Do you think he'll be well enough?"
"Do you think he would miss the chance to accompany us back to the encampment where our cousin will be waiting?" Byakuya asked, a hint of amusement in his tone.
Rukia couldn't quite stifle a giggle.
"He will be wanting to see Tetsuya. Those two," she said, shaking her head.
Byakuya paused, spotting a pretty plum blossom that had fallen into the rubble. He bent slightly, capturing it in his palm and handed it to his sister-in-law.
"Love appears in many forms, Rukia," he said calmly, "It is always beautiful."
"Yes Brother," Rukia agreed, blushing as he turned away again and continued on his way to the waiting tenchurren.
"Hey Captain," Renji greeted them, "Rukia."
He flinched as Rukia touched his bandaged arm and gave him a sympathetic look.
"You still look like you should be in the infirmary camp," she observed, earning a little sarcastic huff from her feisty redhead friend.
"Huh, this is nothing," he scoffed, "just some bumps and bruises. I'm fine."
"Yeah," Rukia agreed, crossing her arms and smirking at him, "That's why your pupils are two different sizes."
"They are not!" Renji snapped, swatting at her with his good arm.
"If you two are finished, it is time to leave," Byakuya chided them, making the two snap back to attention.
"Of course!" they said together, shooting each other scathing looks behind Byakuya's back as they entered the tenchurren and took their seats.
"I wonder what it'll be like when we get there," Rukia pondered, looking out a small window as Captain Hitsugaya entered the tenchurren, alongside his unusually quiet red haired lieutenant, "Everything was really broken up before."
"It'll probably still be a mess," Renji concluded, "but Captain said that he received a message earlier from the clan's encampment. Thanks to Tetsuya and the house security staff, there were only a few fighters who died, getting the subfamilies to safety. No elders died, and all of the women and children made it out."
Rukia sighed.
"That's a relief, although, I think it's sad that the other clans wouldn't listen to Tetsuya's warnings before the war. If they had, a lot of lives would have been spared. As it is, who knows how many people lost their lives needlessly."
"Captain said that the losses in the other clans were heavy," Renji informed her in a regretful tone, "A few clans died out completely."
"Oh my god..." Rukia whispered, closing her eyes.
"Not any of the great clans, but..."
"That's horrible."
The two stopped talking as Byakuya sat down across from them and the tenchurren doors closed.
"Rukia," Byakuya addressed the young woman, his voice making her heart clutch for a moment and warmth spread onto her cheeks, "when we reach the encampment, we will be required to attend a meeting of the elders."
"Me?" Rukia inquired, her violet eyes blinking curiously, "Why do I need to be there? I'm never asked to their meetings."
"I informed the elders by hell butterfly that you have achieved bankai," her brother explained, "They will be acknowledging your accomplishments in the war."
He paused, measuring his next words carefully.
"And," he added, "it is likely that, as you have proven to be powerful and you are close to me, you are to be offered to a gentleman of one of the great clans for marriage."
"Whoa..." Renji managed, his jaw dropping for a moment.
Rukia stared at Byakuya, wearing a dumbfounded expression.
"I have to get married?" she asked, her voice shaking slightly, "But I thought that since I'm a..."
"You are my sister," Byakuya said quietly, "and you have respectable powers. I was able to shield you from having to enter a marriage of state before, but the war has impacted the noble clans greatly and the elders of all of the clans are anxious to make sure that no more clans die out as a result of losses in the war."
"I understand why," Rukia said, furrowing her brow and trying to blink back the tears that threatened at the thought, "I just...I assumed since I was adopted, the other clans wouldn't be interested in me."
"I am sorry," Byakuya apologized, "While it is true that, if not for the war, that would have remained the case, things are different now, and the responsibilities for preserving the clans must even fall on you."
He went silent for a moment, considering his words, then surprised her by slipping his hand into hers and looking into her eyes. Rukia froze, staring back at him.
"I will do my best to see that you are matched with someone who will be kind to you and respect your abilities," he promised, "As long as your suitor is not an heir, I will also be offering to house your family at Kuchiki Manor."
"At least you won't have to leave home," Renji said bracingly, then he brightened slightly, "and if you really don't like him, you can always hide out at your division."
"Actually," Byakuya interjected, the regret in his voice increasing, "as the need to increase births in the clans is so dire, females in the military services will be on leave until they produce a child."
"Brother..." Rukia said, her face falling.
"Again, I am very sorry, Rukia. If not for the war, I could have avoided this altogether. But as a leader, I am committed to the well being of all of the clans, and even though ours escaped with minimal losses, the others were not so fortunate."
"Y-you don't have to explain to me, Byakuya," Rukia assured him, bowing her head.
"I will be having to remarry as well," he informed her, making her head jerk upwards and her eyes widen.
"You, Brother?"
"Are you really surprised?" Byakuya asked softly, "I am widowed and have no heir. The elders were already pressuring me to choose another wife. The pressure to do that will only increase with things being the way they are."
"I guess that does make sense," Rukia mused, shaking her head, "but I'm sorry for you too, Brother. I know you don't want to marry someone else. You loved my sister, and even though she died, I know you still think of her every day."
"I do," Byakuya confessed, "She was an exceptional person, and my closest friend. I will accept the responsibility I have to marry and produce children, but I don't think I will ever fall in love again."
"And it looks like I'll never fall in love at all," Rukia said sadly, sliding her hand out from under Byakuya's and turning away.
An awkward silence opened up between the three as the tenchurren rumbled for a minute or so, then dropped through an opening in the ground and shot towards the Seireitei.
"Hey Captain?" Renji queried, "Does all of this mean that Tetsuya might have to get married too? I mean, I know he's a half-blood, so you said no one would care he was with a guy, but..."
"Tetsuya's case is different," Byakuya explained, "As you say, he is a half-blood, so usually, he would be excluded from a marriage on those grounds. However, since there is a need for more births to sustain and grow our numbers, he will either be expected to accept a marriage within a lower clan, or he will have to provide semen for the impregnation of some of the lower clan concubines."
"Wh-what?" Renji asked, blinking, "They're gonna use his semen to make babies, but he doesn't have to get married?"
"He's lucky to get a choice," Rukia commented, "I would just give semen if I was a guy. I wish I could just give away some eggs or something..."
"I wish that was possible," Byakuya said sympathetically, "but it is you as much as your child that another clan will want. The other clans, even the lower ones will want Tetsuya's power, but not his presence in their family."
"I don't know whether to be pissed at how stupid that is or just glad it means he won't have to dump me and marry some girl he barely knows."
"Tetsuya would never directly impregnate a woman," Byakuya said with certainty, "He saw too many young women abused when he and his family were imprisoned for the mingling of noble and common blood many years ago."
"You mean, Itamigiri?" Renji asked.
"He finally told you about that?" Byakuya asked, looking surprised, "He rarely says anything about the prison. He must feel very close to you, Renji."
"I feel close to him too," Renji confessed, "And yeah, he told me about it."
"Prior to my marriage to Hisana, marriages between noble family members and commoners were treated as crimes. Tetsuya's father was my father's first cousin. My father and his father were close. But Takao left the family to marry a Rukongai woman, and when they were tracked down, they were imprisoned, along with Tetsuya, who was a baby at the time."
"Tetsuya told me they executed his father and his mother died of illness not long before you led the raid that freed him," Renji remembered.
"I was angry when Tetsuya told me about it," Rukia said, frowning, "but if it was still a crime, I wouldn't be having to get married to someone I don't love. I don't even know how to feel about that."
She thought for a moment, then looked up at her brother.
"But...if things were still like that, you wouldn't have been able to marry my sister and I wouldn't have been adopted into the family," she concluded, "And I might never have become as strong as I am or reached bankai."
"I think you would have reached bankai anyway," Byakuya said with certainty, "The assistance we received in the royal realm did not increase our abilities, it only raised them to the highest level attainable at that time. As you continue to train, you will also reach higher levels, possibly adding alterations to your bankai, as I have with mine over the years."
"Do you really think so?" Rukia asked.
"I do."
The tenchurren clunked down, making a cloud of dust around it. Inside, the passengers unlocked their restraints and walked out into the landing area. The five officers stopped and stared at the wreckage around them, the memories of the initial battles rising up sharply in their minds.
"Byakuya," Rukia whispered, her eyes taking in the crumbled buildings and cracked roads, the fallen trees and torn up land.
"It is dreadful," Byakuya agreed solemnly, "but you should remember that this can all be repaired, replanted and rebuilt. We have lost much more in this conflict that can't be replaced."
Hitsugaya and Matsumoto took their leave of the other three and Byakuya, Rukia and Renji headed down the road towards Kuchiki Manor, passing a number of makeshift shrines and friends and family members of fallen soldiers kneeling and offering their respect.
"It's horrible, Brother," Rukia whispered, moving closer to him.
"The first wave came on suddenly," Byakuya said quietly, "We were told that the enemy would attack in five days, but they did not wait that long. They took us by surprise, and the loss of life was horrific."
"That's part of the reason we're having to get married now," Rukia acknowledged, looking around.
"Yes," Byakuya agreed, "I am glad that, even if you are distressed about what we have to do, you at least understand and perhaps accept why it is considered necessary. As for me, as much as I do not want to be married again, I do want the clans to thrive. And if I will be asking the young people of our family to accept marriages of state, I should lead the way by accepting one, myself."
"And I'm your sister," Rukia added, "It makes sense that I should also set an example for the others who have to do this."
"I am glad you see that," Byakuya said gratefully, "This will not be easy for either of us, but I will do what I can to control what factors are in my grasp."
"Thank you, Byakuya," Rukia said sincerely.
Byakuya paused as they reached the gates of the manor and Tetsuya appeared in front of them, flanked by several other house guards. As he recognized the Kuchiki leader, he nodded briefly to the others, who flash stepped away respectfully.
"Lord Byakuya," Tetsuya greeted him, bowing, "Miss Rukia, Lieutenant Abarai, I am glad you have returned safely."
Tetsuya," Byakuya greeted him, surprising the others by offering his cousin a warm embrace, "You have done well. Thank you for seeing to the clan's protection so capably. Now, I think you and Renji will want to have some time to reconnect while Rukia and I prepare for the meeting of the elders."
"We have received the recommendations of the Noble's General Council for the matching to be done tonight," Tetsuya reported, "The couples will be announced at the meeting and the weddings will begin in one month...starting with your own."
"As is expected," Byakuya said evenly, "Go on now. You and Renji have been away from each other since the start of the war. I am sure you have much to talk about."
"Man, have I got some stories for you!" Renji laughed, taking Tetsuya's arm and starting into the manor, "I'll bet you have some good stories too. You know, the royal guards were pretty impressed with what you did."
Byakuya waited until the other two had gone inside and he stood alone with Rukia, studying the unhappy expression on her face.
"They look really happy together," she said solemnly, "I'm really glad for them, Brother."
She sighed softly, earning a curious look from Byakuya.
"I just wish that I could fall in love like that," she admitted, "For a while, I thought that maybe I liked Ichigo, but...I don't know."
"Ichigo is an heir of the Shiba clan," Byakuya reminded her, "I could arrange a marriage with him."
"You would do that?" Rukia asked, looking surprised, "I mean, I know you respect Ichigo's abilities, but you've made no secret that his behavior still irritates you sometimes."
"Sometimes," Byakuya agreed, "But Ichigo has proven his worthiness, and if it would make you happy."
"Well, he'd be better than a stranger, that's for sure. But...it would make things awkward between Orihime and me. She really likes Ichigo."
"But he is going to have to marry someone here...unless of course, he follows in his father's footsteps and abandons his duty."
"That's kind of unfair. I mean, he did do it to save Ichigo's mom," Rukia remembered, "The Shibas aren't bad people."
"No," Byakuya agreed, "just...free-spirited."
He waited for a moment, considering, then took Rukia's hand.
"If you want me to try to have you matched with Ichigo, I will...whatever will make this as acceptable to you as possible. I...don't want you to be unhappy."
"I won't be unhappy," Rukia assured him, her tone less than certain, "And don't set me up with Ichigo. He's too much like a brother. After all we've been through and knowing it would hurt Orihime's feelings, I just can't do that. Whoever the elders choose and you agree to will be fine."