Meeting of Hearts and Worlds
A cool breeze floated through the air of Seireitei, it was a calm and peaceful night that would one day become chaos in the war against the Quincy. But for now, it was a tranquil time that allowed one Kuchiki Byakuya to walk through his mansion's garden without worry.
As he went, he soon reached the small pond filled with large koi. Though while he stared down at the reflection of the moon upon the water, Byakuya's focused gaze briefly softened. His thoughts filled with memories of times he spent with Hisana under the moonlight just like this. Despite their time together being short, he felt happiest when he had been with her.
Hours passed through the night and Byakuya remained mostly motionless as he was completely lost in thought. Of which didn't allow him to notice the moon beginning to glow even brighter. But as his eyes soon sharpened once more, he tilted his head up to look at the bright light radiating from the moon in the night sky.
After a brief few moments, the glowing died down and the raven-haired captain wondered if it was just his imagination. But the moment he looked back to his garden, his eyes briefly widened when he noticed a figure standing on the other side of the pond. His hand moved toward his katana, but with this person facing away from him and having the moonlight shining on them, it was difficult to identify them.
"Who are you?" was Byakuya's demanding question, his tone serious and somewhat cold.
Immediately following this however, the person across from him turned around. They revealed to be a young woman with large purple eyes, long flowing hair of a similar, yet darker color and very gentle features. She wore a traditional kimono that was white and a red-purple in color, along with a long white ribbon draped over her arms. There was a white crescent moon shape design on her kimono's sleeves, and a necklace that had a round mirror with three, long golden charms leading down toward her knees. Lastly, she had a strange golden ordainment in her hair that Byakuya identified as something that would likely be worn by royalty.
Upon seeing her, Byakuya's eyes widened once more as his mind flashed an image of Hisana in place of this young woman before he truly saw her. However, his features quickly return back to normal as his hand was fully on his Zanpakuto.
"Oh! My sincerest apologies." she said quickly before bowing her head.
"I was attempting to contact a friend of mine, but it seems that something caused me to accidentally cross into your dimension." she continued as she bowed her head once more.
This made Byakuya look at her with a briefly raised brow and relax his hand on his katana. "What do you mean 'cross' into this dimension?" he questioned as he continued to give her a hard stare.
"Well...its a little difficult to explain, but that's one of my many powers. But I promise I'm not here to bring any harm...and I will leave the moment I'm able to." she said with a gentle, yet sheepish smile toward he man before her.
"Oh!" she started once more as her expression turned to once that showed she just recalled something; "And my name is DaidÅji Tomoyo by the way...but you can just call me 'Tomoyo'. What's your name?"
After her words, she gave another gentle smile that made her look so innocent and pure that it brought back many memories of Hisana. This was only the second time in his life that he met someone who appeared to have an untainted soul, which made her seem almost angelic. Yet he quickly narrowed his eyes slightly on her and stepped forward.
"I am Kuchiki Byakuya." was all the raven-haired man responded with as he looked at Tomoyo with a nearly emotionless expression.
Though on the inside, the head of the Kuchiki clan was far from quiet, his mind filled with multiple questions. Each one related to this stranger in some fashion, but he soon figured that he wouldn't get the answers without asking.
"So where are you from?" he questioned silently as he stood like a statue in the moonlit garden.
"I'm from Nihon Country, though you can just call it Japan." Tomoyo said with another small smile to him.
"So you're from an alternate version of the World of the Living." Byakuya commented mostly to himself as he tilted his head down and briefly closed his eyes.
"I guess so, if that's where your 'Japan' is." Tomoyo said with a short shrug of her shoulders as she glanced around.
Her eyes shined brightly with interest of everything around her, it looking somewhat similar to her own world in terms of it resembling the feudal-era of Japan. Though her gaze soon turned back to Byakuya as he spoke up once more, though it was in a slightly more urgent tone.
"But if that is true, then you shouldn't be able to survive here. The dense reishi of Soul Society causes those that are not in a soul form to be crushed by this force and die." were his words of warning, to which Tomoyo blinked many times in response.
"Well...I'm not really sure what you mean by that, but I guess my powers might be protecting me until I'm able to gather my strength to travel back to my own world." she said with another glance around.
"Though I must say...this world seems quite beautiful." Tomoyo continued as she turned to Byakuya and gave another small smile.
"I don't mind having to wait in a place like this." she whispered as she briefly closed her eyes while smiling wider.
Byakuya raised a brow to her in response for a moment, yet he couldn't think to ask her anymore questions as he deduced she might know as little as he does about the situation. Though he was brought out of his thoughts as Tomoyo made her second question since arriving.
"Would you mind showing me around a bit? I really interested in this world." she said as her smile remained constant.
"If you don't mind it of course." the purple-haired girl added quickly as her voice continued to sound remarkably innocent.
This making Byakuya feel as though if he denied her, he was somehow doing a terrible thing. Of which lead for him to just nod his head lightly and speak in a silent tone; "So long as you don't cause any trouble while you're here, I will accept the responsibility of showing you around. But we will have to stay within my mansion as to not alarm everyone in Soul Society."
"I don't mind that at all." she started before glancing around once more with wonder in her eyes.
"This mansion is amazing, I like it. It's really big and looks lovely." Tomoyo continued with another smile toward Byakuya.
Whom looked at her with a briefly raised brow before he turned to the side and started walking. "If you'll follow me." he said silently, to which the purple-haired girl quickly rushed up behind him to let him lead.
Though as he took her from room to room, and area to area, Byakuya explained things about how Soul Society worked and things of that nature. However, it quickly started to become more about his family and clan than anything else. Tomoyo's curiosity stemming from the small, yet very noticeable memorials that were in many rooms of the mansion. But as they passed by a specific room, Tomoyo happened to glance inside and notice a row of candles illuminating a single picture in the center of a mantel.
"Ne...Kuchiki Byakuya, what's this?" she called out to Byakuya as he had kept on walking.
He turned to look at her, though his eyes briefly widened as he intentionally left 'that' room out of the destinations he was going to put on display. Though he soon joined her in the doorway and looked to the picture with a much softer gaze than normal.
"This is the room I dedicated to my late wife, Hisana. She died from an illness fifty-two years ago." he said silently, causing Tomoyo to gasp.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to bring up such a painful memory." she said quickly as she looked down sadly.
Byakuya looked to her for a brief moment before he turned away and shook his head; "No need for you to apologize, it happened many years ago." he said as he slid the doors closed.
"You really loved her." Tomoyo said silently, her bringing her head up to look at him as she slowly developed a smile of happiness on her features.
"Yes, I did." Byakuya confirmed with a light nod, despite not looking to her until after he finished speaking.
"Would you like to continue viewing the rest of the mansion?" he questioned as he turned to her fully.
Tomoyo gave another small smile to him before shaking her head; "My feet are a bit tired, would you mind if we just sat and talked for a little while?" she asked quietly.
Though it was obvious to Byakuya that she wasn't feeling fatigue at all, he merely nodded in response and gestured her to the ledge of the floor. Of which they sat down on and looked up at the night sky in near unison.
"I'm curious...what sort of life have you had?" Tomoyo asked as she glanced to him and tilted her head slightly.
Byakuya briefly returned her gaze before looking back to the stars in the sky; "I had a natural childhood, filled with rebellion and attempts to try and prove myself better than others. Though after becoming the head of my clan, I matured very quickly and learned to lead by example." he began, despite not really knowing why he was telling her this.
"I lived this way for many years, until I met her. Hisana was a woman from a poor district and the fact that I began a relationship with her was seen as bad as a crime in my family. But I didn't care what they said, because after spending time with her in the dealings my family had with the leaders in Rukongai, I fell in love." he continued on silently as his eyes closed, him recalling all of these events in his memory.
"We both did...and despite her illness, I wished to be with her for as long as I possibly could." Byakuya said as his eyes slowly opened, yet the sadness of Hisana's death was very clear within them.
"I spent five wonderful years with her before she died and out of my sorrow, I vowed to my parents that I would never break the rules again. But I broke it many times because there were moments that my sense of justice clashed with the justice of Soul Society. Though it was because of 'him' that I was able to see that...and I've become a better man as a result." he finished as he gaze a glance over to Tomoyo.
Whom was giving him a soft smile, to which she then nodded her head lightly. "You've had a hard, yet wonderful life, Kuchiki Byakuya. I'm glad to hear that you've found happiness even after going through so much." she said with her joy could be felt through merely her voice.
Byakuya briefly blinked to her words, yet he gave a thankful nod in response. Though he then tilted his head to the side in question as he spoke up silently; "What about your life?"
"Me?" Tomoyo all but squeaked out with blinking eyes before she smiled sheepishly. "W-Well...I guess I had a similar upbringing as you."
"I was born the Princess of my country, but also as 'Miko'...which in my world is a powerful sorceress that protects others from demons. But along side my sister, we rule the country with fairness and kindness." she continued with her smile becoming a happy one now.
"I've made many friends over the years and though we've gone through many things...we've all stayed strong and have become not only closer, but better people as well. I suppose I don't really have as much to tell as you." Tomoyo finished as she giggled lightly, her covering her mouth with one of her long sleeves.
Byakuya raised a brow briefly, to which he then gave a light nod of his head in response. "It looks like we have both grown quite well by our own devices." he said before tilting his gaze up toward the moon.
"Ah...it seems so." Tomoyo whispered as she too looked up at the brightly shining orb in the sky.
As the two stared at the soon ending night sky, a brief breeze blew by them, allowing a few sakura petals to dance in front of their view of the moon. They then looked to one another once more, yet the moment seemed to stretch as neither knew what more to say. But it wasn't awkward, as this silence seemed to be one of understanding between each other.
After a few brief moments, Tomoyo smiled a bit wider and closed her eyes in the process. "You're a truly wonderful man Kuchiki Byakuya, I'm glad to have met you." she whispered to him.
"As I you, Tomoyo. But you may address me as 'Byakuya'." he responded as a very rare smile curled his lips slightly.
After his words, Tomoyo smiled wider before she stood up and walked out into the clearing before them. Her beginning to glow brightly as the moon's light was starting to fade when the sun's rays came into view. Though she glowed brighter than both of these and turned to look at Byakuya, whom had also stood up.
"I pray we may meet again, Byakuya." she said with a gentle and kind smile.
"As will I, Tomoyo." he said back as his own smile remained on his features, even as the woman before him glowed even brighter before vanishing with the rising of the sun over the horizon.
Byakuya briefly squinted from the sun's light, yet he soon turned toward the doors he shut before. He then slowly walked up to them and opened them once more and looked at Hisana's picture with a soft gaze.
"Could it be?" he whispered silently, him thinking back to the moment when he saw Hisana's image in Tomoyo for that split second.
Following his words, he gave another small smile before closing the doors once more and began walking down the path toward his quarters. "It's always possible."