penname has been changed from zepphyrasnowstorm to wintergenisis ;; this is my penname on Ao3 and URL on Tumblr
Disclaimer: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.
Well I finally got the 1st chapter out. This is the sequel to "You Don't Believe in Ghosts?" so if you haven't read that I suggest you read that oneshot before this.
In later chapters, there will most likely be a few lemons, but none in this chapter. Ugh. I hate writing lemons. They're tedious for me. XD But I try. lol Oh well, if I suck at them, you can tell me when the time comes. But it's not here yet.
I'm rambling o.o What I want to say is that this is different from the oneshot, and although there will be elements incorporated from that, it's mostly a crime/angst/romance fic. Also, there are a couple other pairings in addition to RenBya, the first to be introduced is GinRan. They're one of my favorite pairings, and I have something great planned for them.
xxxx
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Enjoy~
x~Snow~Storm~x
It was dark—darker than death. Shadows danced upon the buildings that the redhead passed by, making him more wary by the second. He couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching him. Quickening his pace, he reached the thick, lemon yellow glow of a streetlamp.
He widened his stance—hardly noticeable—and called out calmly (for he was in control, not this… other being), "Oi, who's there?"
He heard soft laughter, and the rustle of clothing. "Please," Gin grinned, illumination of the lamp glow lightening his pale visage. "Please, don't get yer panties in a bunch on my account." His voice was sweet like lead acetate; soft and comfortable like a lie.
Renji immediately dropped the duffel bags he carried, and assumed a slightly more aggressive posture, with one foot forward and fists raised.
Gin raised his hands in mock surprise. "Woah, there, ya damn hot head. I'm not here to fight. I know where yer damn house is and I'm not goin' there."
Renji just couldn't take that frivolous grin seriously. "I'm not going to my house." He lied.
"Oh?" Gin elevated a thin, pale brow. "Where are ya goin', then?" He had the striking appearance of a rattlesnake who'd just injected venom into his dinner.
"What's it to ya, Quincy?" Renji spat out the word as though it were the vilest blasphemy on the face of the earth.
Gin glared, all trace of humor gone. "Maybe I was tryna make some friendly conversation with a sad, lonely bastard." His reply dripped venom.
"Tch."
When Gin glanced down at his wristwatch, Renji asked, "Somewhere to be?"
"None o' yer business, Seireitei." Came the chilling rebuttal.
Renji shrugged. He remained on guard, but watched calmly as Gin hurriedly, yet gracefully, strode past him, bidding him a polite good night.
Weird ass.
Damn it. I shouldn'ta hung around chattin' so long… Now I'm gonna be late… Gin knew that she would wait for him, but she wouldn't be happy when he got there. Their relationship was delicate enough as it stood.
Gin pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. The address on the slip of paper appeared to be the house across the street, to his right. Excellent. There were two cars parked on the roadside, and he chose the one further down: a shiny, black '73 Charger. His pale, slender hand delved into his pocket once more and withdrew a set of keys. With a heavy click, the door unlocked, and Gin slid fluidly into the driver's seat. He revved the engine—once, twice—and took off, journeying with unholy rapidity into the countryside.
Yes, he was on the right track. The instructions on that little paper said as much. But he'd be late…
"Keh." Oh well.
An hour later, Gin entered a narrow driveway, filled with loud, crackly gravel. At the end of the driveway stood what looked like a goddess. Or, she would have looked like a goddess, had such an intense scowl not been adorning her striking features.
Gin quieted the automobile, and with one flowing motion, opened the door and stepped out of the car.
"Rangiku…" he murmured, already attempting to placate her anger.
"You asshole!" She drawled. "We get this one night to be together, and this is what you do." She crossed her arms over her ample chest, glowering prettily.
How she's still so damn beautiful is a mystery tah me…
Gin sighed. He'd admit it. He fucked up. "Look, Ran…"
"No! I… I can't do this anymore. I—"
"Rangiku." Gin's voice was quiet, but firm and commanding. Rangiku became quiet. "I understand if yah don't trust me, really, I do. But I met Renji tonight and I had tah avoid fightin' with him. So I talked my way outta it. Understand?"
Rangiku still glared, but it wasn't really at anything in particular. Gin understood. He understood completely. She was hurting because all of this was a secret. All of this, as far as anyone else was concerned, didn't exist. She was hurting because she had to hear rumors about the last girl that he slept with, because if he didn't occasionally get laid (that people knew about), Quincy would think he was gay and toss him out. She was hurting because every second they were together like this was a rare, very singular blessing to them. And every second, they were in danger of being found out, and possibly killed right on the spot.
And tonight, he fucked up. Not as bad as it sounds, but bad enough that it upset Rangiku. So to Gin, it was pretty damn bad.
Ignoring Rangiku's mutters of displeasure, he continued walking up the driveway towards her angelic form. Not once did he look at her, not even when he embraced her tightly in his shaking arms.
"I'm sorry," it was just loud enough for her to hear. "I'll just leave earlier next time, yeah?"
Renji walked the rest of the way home on high alert, looking for any other unwanted surprises. Honestly, he was shocked that a prestigious member of the Quincy wouldn't try to knock a high-standing Seiretei member down, when he had such a brilliant chance. But he shrugged questions such as this off, and pulled his house keys out of his back pocket with a jangle. The door unlocked with a soft click, and he stepped into his dark house. While taking off his shoes, he flicked on the light and then began to trudge up to his room. He figured that he may as well unpack now.
Renji pulled out all of the clothes contained in one duffel bag and roughly stuffed them in a hamper. He removed his hair tie and brushed his hair, reveling in the feel of the bristles against his scalp. Looking at the time, he sighed. Guess I'll have to shower in the morning. Renji undressed down to his boxers and threw a Chuck Norris t-shirt on. After tossing his empty duffel bag into his closet, he proceeded to take the other one—full of leftover food—into the kitchen to empty its contents. After putting all of the food away, he went back upstairs into his room, and looked at his cell phone.
Damn it. Looks like it's about to die.
Renji hurriedly plugged his phone into the wall next to his bed, and soon, an icon popped up indicating that it was charging. Once he was settled under the covers, he began dialing.
-"Hello?"-
"Hey, Baachan."
-"Oh, Renji! Hello, how are you, dear?" -
Renji smiled softly. "Fine. But, I had a favor to ask of you and Sofu[1]…"
-"Of course, dear. What is it?" -
"Well… You remember I talked a bit to you about Byakuya?"
-"Yes?"-
"Well… I think I need to tell him about Seireitei." He heard his grandmother gasp. "Look, I think it's fair—and much safer—to just let him know what he's getting into with someone like me. Plus, he needs to know more about the history of his family. He knows how to handle a sword damn well (sorry for the language, Baachan,) and he might even want to pick up where his clan left off."
Renji's grandmother was silent for a long, long time. He added, after some reflection, "I think we should also let Grimmjow's boyfriend, Ulquiorra, know about it—if Grimm wants to tell him, of course."
-"Renji…"- his grandmother sighed. -"I hope you know what you're doing. I will consult with your Ojiisan about this, but if this at all compromises the safety of Seireitei and its inner workings, then we will have to force you to remain silent about this matter."-
"Yes, Baachan, I know."
-"Unless I tell you otherwise, bring yourself, Byakuya, and those other friends of yours if they wish to come, to the only base that is currently in disuse tomorrow at fourteen hundred[2]."- She couldn't tell him directly where to go on the phone, but her instructions were fairly easy to follow considering she told him to go to the only base that the Seireitei never actually used. He knew that one pretty well—it had often been a sanctuary for him during his later years of childhood.
"Got it, Baachan."
-"Bye, Renji. Take care, now. Don't eat so much instant food, okay? If you don't have time to make home cooked meals, go home to your Okaasan[3] and package up some of her food, alright?"-
"Yes, Baachan, I know. Bye." Click. Renji had to grin at his grandmother. She could be such a scary yakuza lady sometimes, then the next second she could turn into an over-concerned grandmother.
He texted Grimmjow. He didn't know if he was still up or not, but Renji figured he'd see the text eventually.
-hey grimm. um. how 2 go about this… well, r u up? i was gonna just tell ya but on 2nd thought this would b easier if u were up…-
A couple of minutes later, Renji's phone vibrated.
Little Boy Blue x_x[4]: —ey. —
Renji rapidly texted him back. —look, not2 get weird on ya or anything, but, how much do ya like ulquiorra? —
Little Boy Blue x_x: —…. alot….. y…?—
—look… i was thinking… i'm gonna tell bya about the gotei 13… and i told my Sobo already, so… I also told her i'd b askin u if u wanted to let ulquiorra know about it 2… cuz ya know… their safety n shit… plus i feel like bya should have a chance 2 say whether or not he wants 2 join, cuz in the past his clan was a big part of the gotei… & idk how you feel about that w/ ulquiorra… just wanted to let ya know u guys r invited 2 our little get together. —
It was a long time before Renji got a text back. He had almost fallen asleep.
Little Boy Blue x_x: —*sigh*… ugh. idk. i'm just… nervous. cuz of my family history. —
Renji chewed on his bottom lip. He wasn't great at the comforting aspect of friendship, but he'd give it a go. —i understand. but it's not like that anymore. ur 1 of us now. if u wanna come it'll b ok. my family, least, is fair & stuff… so, what do ya wanna do? —
Little Boy Blue x_x: —...i'll give er a go. i'll let ulqui know, I'm textin him right now. —
—Come to the place that no one uses at fourteen hundred tomorrow. ok? —
Little Boy Blue x_x: —aight—
Renji turned his phone off and stared up into blackness. He wondered vaguely if he had told Grimmjow the truth, about everything being okay now, about no hard feelings. Oh well. Shrugging off troublesome thoughts like those, he closed his eyes and drifted off into a deep sleep.
Blinking rapidly in the pale yellow morning light, Renji sighed. His limbs were heavy with sleep, and he just wanted to snuggle under the covers and close his eyes once more. He turned his head, struggling to read the time on the digital alarm clock resting on his bedside table.
8:47.
Slowly, Renji brought his arms above his head, elongating his body in a fantastic stretch that caused him to simultaneously yawn and groan in pleasure. Sliding out of bed, he smoothly shed his clothing and dragged himself into the shower. Some of the water poured into his mouth as he gave another massive yawn. He could have cared less.
Stumbling—naked—down the stairs, he made it into the kitchen and began a batch of tea. He couldn't stand coffee. Tempted as he was to just crumple into one of the chairs at the kitchen table, he managed to pull himself back up the stairs to put some clothes on. Catching sight of himself in the full length mirror behind his door, he began to seriously consider getting those tattoos he had spoken of to Byakuya.
Images flashed through his head of the haunted compound. He shuddered. There was no way he was ever going back there again. So creepy… not to mention depressing as hell...
Thoughtlessly, Renji pulled on a white undershirt and Mario boxers. He reached blindly in a drawer for a light blue pair of pants and, seeing that they were indeed one of his looser pairs of skinny jeans, threw those on. Lastly he slipped into an orange short-sleeve button up, but didn't even bother to tuck it in, let alone actually button it up. He ran a brush through his hair, and put it up in his customary pony tail. He tied a white bandana with black detailing around his head, proudly signifying to others who were privy, that he was Seireitei.
A bit more awake now, but still quite sluggish, he grabbed his phone and shuffled back downstairs, padding softly into the kitchen, where some freshly brewed red tea awaited him. He sat down at the kitchen table and closed his eyes, breathing in the pleasantly strong scent. After taking a few delicate sips of the still scalding hot drink, he turned his phone on to check the messages.
There was a voice mail from his grandmother. She had called him much earlier this morning.
—"About today, your Ojiisan has approved. I'm sorry, but I wire tapped into your texting. It was a necessary evil, dear. But, now we know that the Jeagerjaques boy is coming, along with someone named Ulquiorra Cifer, so we know what to expect. We are still waiting for you to ask your Byakuya. How impolite of you. Are you simply expecting him to be free today? You're such an inconsiderate boy. I know your Okaasan taught you better, Renji. Now go and ask him, right now!" —
Renji winced. Oops. He had just sort of assumed that Byakuya would be free today. He didn't even know if the guy was up yet; but knowing that busybody, he would have been up long before Renji. So, with the assumption that Byakuya was probably up, Renji sent a text message.
—hey. u up?—
Byakuya texted him back almost immediately.
Kuchiki No. 1: —Of course I am, you moron. It is already almost 10:00. —
—well… r u free today?—
Kuchiki No. 1: —…Yes, why? —
Renji sipped his tea and sighed. How to put this so that he doesn't freak out…
—well, when can u come 2 my place?—
Kuchiki No. 1: —Anytime. —
—ok… i need 2 talk 2 u bout somethin… it's y i wouldn't have sex with u the compound. get me?—
Kuchiki No. 1: —So… it's important? —
—yeah… and can u please make sure ur not wearin blue and white 2gether? like, the dark kinda blue. If ur just wearin 1 of those colors it's fine.—
Kuchiki No. 1: —Umm… Alright… You're strange.—
—shut up :P there's a reason. but i can't tell u right now.—
Kuchiki No. 1: —Whatever. I'm coming over now. —
Renji's heart skipped a beat, and suddenly he became a bit nervous.
—ok… c u.—
Replenishing his mug full of tea, he quickly began brewing some green tea for Byakuya. It was his favorite kind. Trotting back upstairs, he pulled on some socks and brought a pair of black low-top Converses out of his closet. Back downstairs, he dropped them by the door, where he debated if he should just leave it unlocked, or if he should make Byakuya knock. He went with the latter, deeming the former too… eager. Really, he was truly acting like a nervous school girl. It was disgusting. Renji scowled, plopping on the couch and throwing his feet onto the coffee table. He flicked on the TV and decided to simply wait there—calmly—until Byakuya arrived.
About a half hour later, someone knocked on the door. Renji's heart pounded. He was beyond nervous. Stop being retarded. It's not like this is a date. Geez… What are you, a girl?... I wonder if I look okay… Shit! I don't think I brushed my teeth!
Renji raced upstairs and hurriedly brushed his teeth. The person knocked on his door again. Damn it… He rinsed his mouth and flew back down the stairs, two and three at a time. He almost barreled into the door, which he whipped open with a giant grin.
"Hey!"
Byakuya scowled. "What in the world were you doing?"
Renji laughed nervously (he didn't think it sounded nervous) and pulled Byakuya inside. After shutting the door Renji wound an arm around his boyfriend's waist, pulling him in for a kiss. Renji felt any irritation the man may have felt towards him disappear as his body melted against his own. Byakuya wrapped his arms around Renji's neck, and just as the redhead was about to pull away, Byakuya deepened the kiss. Renji pressed him against the door, sliding his hands down his sides. He allowed Byakuya to explore his mouth for a short time, but the redhead soon took over, pushing Byakuya's tongue back into his own mouth. Gently yet passionately tasting his tongue, Renji's hands wandered to his boyfriend's ass. Byakuya gasped, breaking the kiss, but Renji went straight to attacking the smooth curve of his neck.
However, it hit Renji just then that they had to be somewhere in a few hours. And it happened to take a couple hours to get there.
"We should stop…" he murmured softly into Byakuya's ear.
Byakuya shuddered at the sensation of Renji's breath, but nodded.
Renji took his hand, smiling almost gently. He pulled him into the kitchen. "I made you tea. It's the green tea you like."
Byakuya blushed, and politely thanked Renji, who poured him a cup.
With both of them seated at the kitchen table, Byakuya spoke.
"So, what did you call me over to say?"
"Well…" Renji looked away, feeling uneasy. "Do you trust me?"
Byakuya immediately nodded. "Of course I do." He laid a delicate, pale hand on Renji's large tan one. Renji met Byakuya's eyes. They seemed to burn through him "Tell me. Please."
"Well… you have to come somewhere with me…"
"Where?"
"… I can't tell you…"
Byakuya glowered. "Why not?"
Renji winced. He's getting annoyed… "Because… Listen, it'll be explained when we get there, okay? I would tell you right now if I could, but I don't have the power to do something so frivolous…"
Now Byakuya looked confused, and he took his hand from Renji's. "I have to say I have no idea what you're talking about."
"I know…" Renji sighed and glanced at his phone. "It's 11:43 right now, so we have about fifteen minutes before we should leave. Please just trust me."
Byakuya rolled his eyes. "Whatever."
Renji hesitated to do this, but… "If it makes things better…" he tentatively began, "you can come up to my room, and I'll show you something… I have to get it out for today, anyway."
Byakuya nodded, and they both stood, Byakuya with his tea, to go upstairs.
At the threshold of his room, Renji turned to Byakuya. "You'll have to stay out here for a second."
Renji went inside, turned on the light and closed the door. He tapped the top center of his full-length mirror, then the bottom right corner, then the top left corner, then bottom center. Silently, the top of the mirror leaned out toward Renji, forcing him to move to the side. Slowly, the mirror flipped over, revealing a steel board in place of the mirror. Vertically attached to the board was a large, sheathed sword.
"You can come in." He called through the door.
The door creaked open rather slowly, and Byakuya crept inside. He seemed… not afraid, but rather uncertain—perhaps even suspicious. Renji put an arm around him.
"Come on. I'm showing you how much I trust you right now."
Byakuya nodded, and entered the room fully. His gaze immediately locked onto the sword.
"What…?" Clearly, Byakuya was stunned.
Renji went over to the sword, gently removing it from the steel board. Turning to Byakuya, he held it horizontally, slowly unsheathing it.
"This," he said, almost affectionately, "is Zabimaru."
Byakuya's eyes widened, taking in Renji's prized possession. The metal gleamed dully in the florescent light, and it had an odd shape to it. Instead of being just a blade, at the top a prong stuck out from the sharp side of the blade. The sword gradually got smaller closer to the hilt, and there were three more prongs stemming from the sharp side of the blade, each one shorter than the last.
"It's older than either of our ages put together, but it's amazing. I love it." Renji whispered, almost becoming enraptured with the sword himself.
"Can I… Can I hold it? Just to feel the weight of it." Byakuya asked, his voice filled with awe.
"Sure. Be careful, though." He carefully handed the sword over to Byakuya.
"This is a lot heavier than my sword!" He was smiling, and that made Renji smile, too.
"Why are you so—I don't know—excited by my sword? You have one, and you've seen many as well…"
Byakuya shrugged, giving the sword back to Renji who sheathed it. "I don't know. I guess I just have a certain… affinity for swords."
"I know what you mean." Renji smirked, tapping the top of the steel board for it to go back into place as a mirror.
Byakuya gasped. "What is this?"
Renji shrugged, turning the light off and leaving the room with Zabimaru in hand. "Dunno." He replied mysteriously.
Damn, he felt smug.
He heard Byakuya make a noise of frustration behind him as they made their way down the stairs and Renji had to bite back laughter.
"We're gonna go now, okay?"
"Hn."
Renji grabbed his keys and his wallet off of the kitchen table, and sat down in front of the door with Byakuya to put his shoes on.
"Ready to go?" he helped the raven haired man up, pulling much harder than necessary so that Byakuya fell into Renji's chest.
"Yes, I am." A blushing Byakuya hotly replied, shoving Renji away.
The redhead just grinned. Outside, he locked the door. Slipping his hand into Byakuya's, they left for the abandoned Seireitei base.
A/N:
1) Sofu: the humble way of referring to your own grandfather
2) Fourteen Hundred: This is the way most countries tell time, but I don't know if they actually say it with the hundred or what, cuz that sounds like military time to me cuz I'm an American :P So, dealing with yakuzas, we're gonna tell time like this. By the way, fourteen hundred means 2:00 pm.
3) Okaasan: the respectful way of referring to someone else's mother
4) Little Boy Blue x_x: You know how some people put other (certain) people in their contacts, with retarded names. For example, one of my friends, Lindsey, is in my contacts as Pikachu 3 3 and another is in as Poptart when his name is Matthew. And there are stories behind these names... It's just something fun and stupid some people do. In this case, I'm just making fun of Grimm with his blue hair and stuff :P This is just sort of gonna be one of running gags in the fic.
I was gonna make this chapter longer, but then it got too long, and I just had to stop somewhere. So I chose this spot. Incidentally this means that I'm well along the way in the 2nd chapter XD But, I hope you enjoy this, and I'm sorry it came out so long after the original oneshot.
Please leave reviews! I love reviews!
So. This chapter has been edited again. :D (16 April, 2013) I hope it's better/you like it/there aren't too many problems. lol I'll be going on and editing the other chapters, and I'll actually be posting a 3rd chapter soon since I've finished writing it. *sigh* A lot's been going on lately so it's been a while.