Hey, thank you for reading this story. This stroy has been on hiatus for a while, but I am planning to finish this soon. I have done some modifications to this story and thus decreased the amount of chapters.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or its characters. I only claim the OMC, and I let him play in the field.
AN: English is not my native language, so bare with me.
Sleeping Beauty
Chapter 1 Dreams to memory
Byakuya Kuchiki walked gracefully and quietly along the hallways of his mansion. His path took him further away from the regular living chambers towards to a room that only few members of his clan knew about. This room was made just for him. He turned in a corner and walked past the private areas the mansion where no servant was allowed. Then he stopped in front off beautifully painted sliding doors. Eight dark blue butterflies had been painted on the silk. Byakuya opened the doors and entered to the bedroom. The chill air whispered greetings to his ears and Byakuya walked further inside the dimly lidded room. The room was plain, only little furniture was there. Byakuya walked towards the area where he needed to be. Where he really wanted to be.
A man was laying on the futon and the only sound in the room was the slow even breathing. Byakuya kneeled next to the bed and watched silently the rise and fall of the man´s chest. This man was his promised betrothed. Byakuya smiled and slowly lifted his hand to lovingly caress the sleeping man´s cheek.
You still sleep. You are beautiful when you sleep. I will take care of you. I promised this to you. Forever we are together. Just like you promised to me. Tamashiro, come back to me.
Byakuya took his off his sleeping yukata and crawled to the futon. He took the sleeping man into his arms and cradled him. He gently whispered loving words the sleeping man´s ears secretly hoping that the man would respond. No response would come. There had been no response in the past six decades. Byakuya knew the man was alive and only sleeping. But the reason why he sleeps like this and why he would not wake up and return to him was something that Byakuya was confused about. While thinking about this Byakuya stoked gently the man´s long lavender colored hair. Silk, it feels like silk.
Byakuya felt comfortable holding the quiet man. Sleep would come to him soon as well. Only he would wake in the brake of dawn and the other would continue his sleep. Byakuya felt sad. He snuggled closer to his sleeping lover and fell asleep. He dreamed again.
"Byakuya, I am truly happy. When time comes we will be bound together." Dark blue eyes looked into the gray ones.
They were in Kuchiki gardens looking at the sunrise. They had been training the entire previous day and evening. Now the two men were sitting side by side in the early morning admiring the view.
"Tamashiro, it will be sooner than you imagine. Our clans approve and we are engaged now. There is nothing that would stop our happiness."
Genuine smile came in to the man´s face and Byakuya could not help but smile himself. " Ai Shiteru, Bya-Chan" Lips touched and gentle kisses were given. Then suddenly the lavender haired man collapsed into the ground. "Tama-chan?"
The smile on Tamashiro´s face changed into a painful frown. There were tears in the man´s face and he seemed to be in agony. Byakuya yelled and demanded for help. People came from the house…everything came haze… only the haunted look on Tamashiro´s face remained.
"Byakuya, I … uh….tea…" He then collapsed.
Byakuya woke up from the dream. He was panting. The dream was not merely a dream it was also a memory, a memory of the last time they were together awake. Byakuya looked his sleeping companion and laid him gently down. The dream had been the same for the past sixty years except the last part.
"Byakuya, I … uh….tea…"
Tea? Was there something in the tea? They had drunk tea, prepared by a servant. It had tasted good. At least there was nothing on his tea. Was there something in Tama´s tea? It had been more that sixty years ago. How could he not have remembered those words before?
Sleep would not come anymore that night and it left Byakuya wondering the reasons why his lover was like this. It was like the fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty Rukia had told him about.
"Tamashiro.."
Byakuya was tired. The whole day of writing reports and trying to keep his stubborn fukutaicho awake while doing this seemed to drain his energy. His only console was that he could return home and see Tamashiro again. However that had to wait for few moments. Byakuya walked towards his private study to find his old diaries. He needed to recall the day that had ended so horridly. He did remember part of it, but the moment when his precious Tama had collapsed had become a blur. He needed to confirm the feeling he had inside. He entered to the room and walked towards the bookshelf. He opened it and took one of the old books and started to read the pages.
I have never been this happy. Ojii-sama has approved him. Tamashiro and I will be wedded. We have been training for bankai this whole day and in the end of this day Ojii-sama announced our engagement in the dinner. Tamashiro has now the privileges of a consort. I feel happy and our future will be joyful. I can hardly wait the day that I can truly embrace him. Ojii-sama is allowing us to spend the rest of this evening together and tomorrow Tamashiro´s family will join us for a celebration. I feel strange, but I knew this would happen the moment I first looked at him. I will write more about our day after I retire to sleep later…
Horrible thing happened to Tamashiro. We were watching the sunrise and talking about our future union when it happened. The sheer look on his face told me that he was suffering. He was in agony. We had just drunk tea and talked when he collapsed in my arms whispering something that could be barely heard and after this he did not respond. Ojii-sama alerted Unohana Taichou and Ukitake Taichou to help but Tamashiro is not responding to anything. I was not allowed to see him. They took him away and alerted the rest of the Ishikawa clan. Ojii-sama told me that he is merely sleeping. Why they won´t allow me to be with him if he is only sleeping?
Tea. There had been tea. The tea was the reason. What was in it? Byakuya felt horrible. Sixty years and this was the reason. Poisoning? Was there a poison that could make someone sleep forever? And why? Tamashiro had been approved to the Kuchiki clan by the Elders. The Ishikawa clan had been excited to find that their member would join the Kuchiki. Byakuya felt dizzy, he had never thought that there would have been someone against him being with the member of the Ishikawa clan. He needed to find the culprit and bring him to justice for hurting the one he loved.
He slowly put the book away; his hands were shaking with both anger and sorrow. There was nothing he could do right now until he would find a way to counter the effect of the poisonous tea. Right now he would pretend that everything was fine and take the cold appearance of a clan leader of the Kuchiki. He would need to pretend it in front of Rukia. The small woman who now was his sister had no idea what had ever happened in the past and he needed to keep it that way. So with a sight went to his bedchamber to change clothes. Dinner would be served soon and he would spend time with Rukia before he would retire for the night. The time spent with Rukia was the only other time on the day he was waiting for beside the silent moments with Tama.
During the dinner Rukia chatted about her day in the 13th Division and Byakuya kept listening her light bubbling sound with a content smile on his face. He was happy that he had been able to keep his promise to Hisana and find Rukia and adopt her to this clan. He only hoped that he could also keep his silent pledge to Tamashiro. Rukia suddenly stopped her talking and looked at her brother.
Rukia was worried; her beloved Nii-sama was doing it again. After the winter war against Aizen, Rukia had been permitted to join Byakuya´s evening routines which contained the almost formal dinner and instructing the daily staff for the evening chores. Rukia had started to take notice about her brother activities and mannerism. Rukia was determined to get to know her brother as a man who he really was and not the cold surface he pretended to be. Now after several evenings spent with him their relationship was more open, Byakuya was actually more responsive to her conversations and he did listen to her, even thought he did not look like it.
But Rukia had realized something else about her adoptive brother; when the dinner was over, the instructions given and them saying good night to each other the man would stay put and look oddly happy but sad. She had always thought that her brother would then go to his bedroom and stays there until the morning and try to sleep. However Rukia and found out by accident that Byakuya did not always spent time in his own quarters of the house during night time. She had seen her brother leaving his bedchamber and disappears to the night. This had made Rukia curious, so incredibly curious that she needed to know what the reason was for this. She had started to look for patterns or some mannerisms on her brother´s evening routine and she did find some. For example while writing instruction for the staff for the next day Byakuya would unconsciously stoke the box containing his calligraphy brushes and ink bottles. The box had been one of his well treated items. It had the Kuchiki crest emblem on the lid and each four side was decorated with two butterflies. This had seemed odd to Rukia and when she had tentatively asked about the box Byakuya had looked at her like a deer caught in a light and after s small silence he had simply told her that the box had been a gift from a friend. Rukia had come to conclusion that the box had probably a deeper meaning and that her brother was keeping a secret. Maybe he is courting someone? This was a good moment to ask about the topic. Some engraved boxes were popular courting gifts. She knew that much.
"Nii-sama? I was wondering something. I know you told me that you and Hisana were only friends and you married her to keep her safe. I know that you did not love her the way of a wife, and you really did not do the courting ritual but I need an advice and it is about courting and… well there is no other I could ask it from."
Rukia..courting, that better not be that insolent Ryoka with orange hair. He has no manners. But Byakuya looked at Rukia and decided to answer her.
"Rukia..Courting in noble families is done with precise protocol. And yes, it is true that my feelings with Hisana were merely friendship, but it was mutual. I have told you the reason before. I wish to know who the one to court you is."
"Oh no one Nii-sama. I was just wondering that maybe in the future someone would court me and I would like to know how it goes."She blushed and started to talk again about her day at the Division. Rukia knew that the marriage between her sister Hisana and her adoptive brother had not been a love marriage. It had been some sort of a contract between them. Hisana had gotten healthcare and Byakuya had gotten something too, what ever it had been, Rukia did not know. Rukia had been told that Byakuya had truly cared about Hisana and had truly been hurt when she had passed away, and thus had been determined to keep his promise to find Rukia. About this Rukia had been grateful. But now Rukia was determinate to find about this secret her brother was obviously keeping. She made a plan to follow Byakuya the next time he would leave. And something told her that tonight Byakuya would not spend the night in his own bed.
AN2: Reviews would be very nice thank you. I would like to know what you think about this story so far.
