xl: Nearly two years since the conclusion of Venomously Attractive, I am pleased to present to you the sequel. The only excuse I have for having taken so long to start writing is that I shouldn't have taken that break after completing VA because it psyched me out when it came down to writing this and I wrote draft after draft of material that I wasn't pleased with...until this little number came along.

That being said, I had no intention of having a prologue, but I figured after so long, I should have something to jog your memories on the more important details of Venomously Attractive, or at least those relevant to the plot to this. But if you haven't read Venomously Attractive, I suggest you go do that because that way you might like Ren better.

This won't be as long as Venomously Attractive and I decided it will deviate from the Bleach storyline to some extent. The first chapters after this one should be lengthy ones packed with some early drama before I dive straight into the Ryoka Invasion, which should be fun to write.

I also want to thank lady of the wild things for being a wonderful beta and working out the kinks in this prologue.

Please enjoy.

Beautiful Disease ||

Prologue

For one deceiving moment, Ichimaru Gin believed the ordeal had ended. He watched her hold the manuscripts over an open flame, one by one, and saw its secrets furl and blacken until only a mound of ashes remained. It should have spelled the end to Takudaiji Ren's chapter in the grand scheme of Aizen's plans. She would return to being the annoying highborn she used to be, before Gin approached her with ill intent, and everything they experienced together during that timeframe would be forgotten.

He wouldn't have a reason to worry for her now. He shouldn't have been concerned in the first place. Ren meant nothing more to him than a cheap thrill, and he had waited on the moment when he could permanently shut her out of his life. The conclusion of their association should have been the day she destroyed the manuscripts, but it wasn't. She was snide, vain, insatiable, and shameless, but she was intelligent and skillful in bed—sensual and exciting, and although she wasn't a woman of obvious appeal, she carried herself with an alluring confidence.

He couldn't shake the thought of her, even after spending so much time apart. She had developed feelings and even though she had claimed not to have any intention of pursuing them, she did. In the heat of the moment, she had said she didn't care what happened to her, no matter how many times he told her that pursuing those feelings could result in her death. She had been so honest then, and though he enjoyed the warmth of her body, the teasing conversation, and the unpredictability of her, he had rewarded her emotions by turning his back on her. He had left her standing on her own, after she had resigned from her position in the Gotei 13, to let her live. He wanted her to live more than he wanted to miss her if she were dead because there weren't any more Fusaes to sacrifice themselves for her.

He rarely heard her name mentioned, and the last he had, it had been in the same sentence as one of her present lovers. The new scandal had made him feel at ease, because it had meant she had gone back to her usual haunts and was working through a new string of lovers, but it had irritated him to see how easily had she moved on because of the last intimate conversation they had shared.

She had confessed to him and she had refused to take no for an answer because somewhere deep down inside it hadn't been about her getting everything she wanted, but that she had been certain something existed there.

He tightened his grasp on her face. He wanted her to stop talking because she would undoubtedly regret her confession, no matter how compelling an argument she made.

"Whatever nonsense it is that you're plotting is of no concern of mine…even if I happen to be at the center of it," she said, struggling to speak.

He kissed her and loosened his grip, sweeping her dark hair out of her face and relaxing as she took control. She wrapped her arms around his neck, seeming at peace.

"Yes?" she asked, smiling sweetly.

"That's a tough one, Ren-chan, I might have to think about it." She kicked him in the shin. "Ow!"

"Yes, or I might be the one to reconsider since you're such a horrible man."

"Ya don't care what I do?"

"I can probably do much worse."

"Haa, ya might."

"Well?"

"I'm up for some more fun, no problem, but yer gonna need to keep yer mouth shut."

"I'll make sure to tell everyone the second you leave," she teased.

He laughed. "That's naughty."

In the silence of his office, during the afterhours of his workday, he thought of Takudaiji Ren after a chance encounter.

He pretended not to see her standing in a crowd of peddlers showing off their merchandise. She was hard to miss when she towered over everyone, with the exception of the ex-psychopathic stalker who acted as her servant. She wore a deep green kimono and her dark hair was held up in a high ponytail that swayed with the passing breeze.

Kira spotted her and thought it polite to greet her. Gin only went along to get a rise out of her, to see some reaction. When she turned to address them, she didn't bat an eyelash. She offered them a sarcastic smile and talked about the weather, while her loyal servant remained silent at her side.

Once Kira stepped out of earshot, called out by a fellow lieutenant, Gin caught her biting on her thumb in deep concentration as a male vendor attempted to coax her into buying a particularly expensive shawl while an older woman prattled on about hairpieces. She uttered something to Yokoshima Tetsuya before returned her attention to him.

"Been havin' fun lately, haven't ya?" he started in mock tone.

"I've discovered the spoils of being a rich orphan," she answered.

Three different vendors handed several boxes to Tetsuya, who struggled to balance them, and, immediately, Ren gestured him forward as she walked. She stopped before him, standing close enough to create another scandal, judging by the sudden background silence, but she lived for that thrill. She enjoyed the rumors, good or bad—she thrived on them.

"It was nice seeing you again, Gin," she susurrated, fingers brushing against his chest before she was gone, striding down the street with that confident walk of hers.

Gin sat, reminded of something else after a dizzying new thoughts of her, dating back to the day he last saw her.

He had questioned the terms of her retirement until Aizen had confirmed his suspicions. She had traded her knowledge of the manuscripts for a series of demands that included the reestablishment of the Takudaiji name among higher nobility and her withdrawal from all shinigami titles and responsibilities. She had proposed to rewrite the manuscripts for the Central 46 to do with them as they liked and any doubt in her ability to accomplish the feat had been dismissed when she recited the first page to each manuscript verbatim.

But she had made a mistake by trying to bribe the judges of Central 46, because they wouldn't be around long enough to collect their bounty, and the manuscripts her father protected for so long would inevitably fall into the wrong hands.

"I don't need to do anything," Aizen had said the day Gin had lied about the charred manuscripts going up in flames with the remainder of her family. He had jokingly brought the bowl of ashes to show for his confession, wishing in secret that Aizen would not speak of her again. "The manuscripts will fall into my hands without me lifting a finger."

"What about Takudaiji?" Gin had asked. His had been the biggest mistake.

Aizen had prolonged his response by pacing about his office before pressing the tips of his fingers down on the surface of his desk. He had spoken no words, only lifted his face. The glare of silver light had caught in the lenses of his glasses, blocking his eyes from view as he had awarded Gin with a sinister smile.

Gin had steeled himself then. He had understood he had committed the mistake wherever Takudaiji Ren was concerned and had seen that the path towards reaching Aizen's goal would be a bloody one. Sacrifice was key.

It won't be long now.

CH 01: The Bad Joke and the Noble Death ( preview is currently available at my livejournal, find a link there on my profile )