Chapter 2: Preparations
Ichigo quivered as the heavy restraints snapped into place, and darkness and icy cold closed in around him. And even more unnerving than being bound and left to rot in the blackness of Muken was the knowledge that out in that darkness, not only was Uryu Ishida likewise sealed away, but Sousuke Aizen, too, was present.
I wonder why he helped us. He didn't have to, and it cost him his immortality to do it. I suppose he could have remade the hogyoku after, if he had been released. That's probably what those councilors figured. It's why they wouldn't let him go. I guess I understand, but it's strange.
The more I think about it, the more it seemed that Aizen wanted to sacrifice the hogyoku. Neither he nor Kisuke could figure out a way to destroy it. And I wonder if, once he fused with it, he realized that he was giving up too much by doing that. But by then, it was too late.
But what does it really matter now. Aizen, Uryu and me are all going to die in here...locked away from everything. Still, at least most of the people I care about are safe...Dad, Karin, Yuzu, Rukia, Byakuya, Tetsuya, Renji, Kisuke, Yoruichi...all of my friends in the living world. Knowing that because I fought my hardest, they are going to be all right...yeah, that's some comfort.
But even though he was glad for them, a tear escaped his eye and dribbled onto his face, where it was quickly absorbed by his bindings.
I want to go home.
I miss my family and friends.
I wonder if they'll ever be allowed to come and see me here.
I don't know if I want them to.
He forced his breathing to slow and focused on relaxing himself.
It won't do any good to upset myself. It's not going to change what happened before, or what's happening now. Besides, when we were in that council room, I saw something. There was something in Byakuya's eyes that told me he isn't going to just accept things.
Though, it's weird.
Byakuya's one who follows the law to the letter. He sometimes subtly acts against it, but it wouldn't be like him to completely defy it. He left that behind a long time ago, when he made that promise to his parents. Then again, he was different after As Nodt almost killed him.
A very soft sound of anguish broke the silence around him, distracting him out of his thoughts.
Uryu...
He couldn't call out because of the bindings, but he remembered Byakuya telling him that prisoners in Muken could 'speak' using their reiatsu.
My reiatsu is pretty feral. I have trouble controlling it, but maybe since I'm under the seal, it'll be easier. I have to try. Uryu sounds reeally miserable.
He breathed more slowly yet, letting his reiatsu curl around his bound form, then working steadily to force out a slender stream of it that he sent snaking away in the direction from which the sound had come.
Uryu.
He imagined his friend the way he had been before the war.
He was always kind of a jackass, telling me we were enemies. Yeah, he'd nearly die to protect me, but he'd finish and tell me that the next time, we would be enemies.
I never once believed him.
When the quincies attacked Soul Society and Juha Bach went after the king, I thought it couldn't be true that Uryu was one of them. That was tested a hundred times over while we struggled, but something in me wouldn't believe he was my enemy. I don't know why I still believed in him, even when he had attacked us all. But it turned out at the end that he was everything I had believed...everything I loved.
Uryu...
He felt a heavy inward jolt as his quincy friend's voice sounded loudly in his mind.
Would you stop that, you idiot? he complained, Or at least, don't let your mind be open like that when you're letting your mind run off on tangents.
Ichigo felt tears threaten again.
Uryu!
His heart ached at the long silence.
You sounded like something hurt, he observed, Did...something happen?
He had a sudden flash image of a group of guards positioned around Uryu, who had been bared to the waist, exposing the pale, vulnerable skin of his back. In turns, they struck him, as he bowed his head forward and gritted his teeth.
Abruptly, the vision faded, leaving Ichigo with an icy feeling of dread inside.
Uryu?!
The quincy youth was quiet for a long moment.
I have blut vene, you know, he reminded Ichigo.
Ichigo scowled under his bonds.
Do you think I'm stupid? he inquired in an annoyed tone, I have that power too, and I know that it only works when you can absorb reiatsu from around you to support the flow in your veins. Don't fuck with me, Uryu. They hurt you!
He could almost see his friend frown back at him defiantly.
And why do you care? he asked, I hurt you and the others. I helped Ywach to...
He paused as Ichigo's voice broke in.
He killed our mothers. You were trying to destroy him. You helped me to kill him. You weren't ever our enemy.
Uryu drew in a shuddering breath.
But I was. I attacked all of you.
Tears filled his eyes at Ichigo's answer.
And I felt what was in your heart when I caught your arrow in my hand and broke it!
Ichigo...!
The quincy youth's chest heaved with misery under his bonds.
Why can't you stop! he pleaded, Why can't you hate me?
Ichigo's voice rang inside his head as he dissolved into tears beneath his bindings.
Because I care about you, Uryu...because...even after what you did, I still love you.
XXXXXXXXXX
Tetsuya looked up as a hell butterfly flitted into the dressing area, where he awaited his attendant. Byakuya's voice issued from the insect and the young noble tilted his head slightly as he listened.
Some things have arisen at the sixth division. I will have to remain here for the next several hours. I will see you for dinner later.
"Hmmm..."
Tetsuya's mind meandered back to Byakuya's odd behavior at the Central 46 headquarters and he sighed softly and closed his eyes. As he did, a pair of male hands began to undress him. He opened his eyes, beginning to greet his attendant, then inhaled sharply at finding the Shima clan leader standing behind him.
"Kuri-kuri," he objected, blushing fiercely, "P-please, you must not!"
"Shh, it is all right, my Tetsu-hana. No one will walk in on us. Your attendant...has other things to see to right now, so I will attend you."
Tetsuya's blush deepened, but his lips smiled as Kuri stole a kiss over his shoulder and continued to undress him.
"Eres hermoso, (You are beautiful) he breathed into the young man's ear, paralyzing him as the Shima leader's hand finished baring him and began to slide very slowly over the soft expanses of his flesh, " Eres más hermoso que la luna y todas las estrellas. Por favor, mi amante, déjame mostrarte lo mucho que te amo. (You are more beautiful than the moon and all of the stars. Please, my lover, let me show you how much I love you.)
"Kuri-kuri, you know that I am not a suitable match for a clan leader," Tetsuya said regretfully, "I love you too, but I will not bring dishonor to your clan."
Kuri let out an amused breath and laughed softly.
"What are you talking about? Dishonor? What dishonor is that? Mamà and Deripie adore you. They would likely kill me if I dishonored you by not capturing you."
"I was speaking about the Noble's General Council," Tetsuya said sternly, "Yours is one of the great clans, so you are expected to..."
Another deep, penetrating kiss stopped Tetsuya's words as Kuri dove into his mouth again, running his hands over the young man's naked torso, teasing his flushed, erect nipples, then sliding down to address his hungry nether region.
"Te quiero, my lovely Tetsu-hana. Solo te quiero a ti." (I want you, my lovely Tetsuya. I want only you.)
"I want you too!" Tetsuya confessed, his head spinning and his voice soft and feverish, "But we mustn't! You are to have a wife chosen for you."
"They can offer who they will, but I will have only you, my Tetsu-hana!" Kuri insisted, caressing him until he was dazed and panting, "Come now, we have waited long enough, looking into each other's eyes and longing. Surrender your body to me now. We have had each others' hearts for some time now. Acostarme conmigo y te voy a dar todo." (Sleep with me and I will give you everything.)
Tetsuya gave a surprised inhale as he was swept off his feet and carried back to his bed. The Shima clan leader laid him on his back, then stood beside the bed, very slowly removing his clothes. Tetsuya watched raptly as Kuri's violet eyes ensnared his sapphire ones, and the Shima leader bared himself, bit by bit, until he was completely naked. He climbed onto the bed and knelt at Tetsuya's side, caressing him gently with one hand, and sliding another down to prepare him.
"I shouldn't let you do this," Tetsuya breathed shakily, his member reacting almost painfully to the other man's touch, "but I cannot resist you. Just...we must be careful."
Tetsuya's hand reached over and opened his nightstand drawer, then removed a small charm on a silver chain that he hung around his neck.
"If we make love without this, it could awaken my breeder ability."
Kuri smiled in amusement.
"Tetsu-hana," he said with mock sternness, "I thought that you told me that there had been no one who made love to you since your dear love, Naoki, just before his death. What happened to that? Did Ren ren-nii steal your love while I was yet only dreaming of this?"
"No," Tetsuya said, blushing, "Renji and I dated and we kissed a few times, but I think he was just too afraid that Byakuya would kill him if we ever made love. He's barely even come to see me lately."
"A mistake he will come to regret very deeply," Kuri purred into the younger man's ear, "But...you still haven't explained the protection charm, Tetsu-hana."
"Oh," Tetsuya said, his flush intensifying, "well...after Byakuya caught you cornering me in the gardens, he took me aside and spoke to me about our...attraction."
"Is that so?" the Shima leader chuckled, smirking, "And he gave you this? Byakurai?"
"He said that I must promise to tell you that if I use this and you leave me, he is going to make it his life's mission to see to it that you never descend another flight of stairs without falling," Tetsuya giggled.
"Did he really?" Kuri laughed, reaching down to part Tetsuya's creamy thighs, then positioning himself between them, "Well, it may be that no pushing will be required for me to fall indefinitely, my love. Estoy siempre cayendo para ti." (I am forever falling for you.)
Tetsuya turned his head aside, flinching anxiously as the Shima leader began his entry. But Kuri's warm hand coaxed the younger man's eyes back to his.
"Don't worry. I won't hurt you...not ever, Tetsu-hana."
"B-but I saw you are...bigger than Naoki or Orochi were," Tetsuya confessed breathlessly, "And I haven't been with anyone in a very long time."
"Ah, it is like being virginal again for both of us who have lost our lovers, then, isn't it?"
Tetsuya's lips moved, but no words sounded. Kuri's fingers touched his pale face lightly and the Shima leader's smile left him feeling safe and relaxed once more.
"Trust me, Tetsu-hana," Kuri whispered into his ear as he slowly made their bodies one, "I will never hurt you. I will never leave you. I will forever love you. I swear it upon my heart."
Tetsuya's lips parted and breathy sounds of pleasure escaped into the cool afternoon air around them. The Shima heir's powerful hips moved rhythmically and Tetsuya moved with him, lost in Kuri's handsome violet eyes and entangling his fingers in the long ends of his unbound hair. The elder man's head dipped and he fed on the sweet, soft flesh of his lover's white throat, then he brought his lips to Tetsuya's flushed earlobe as the younger man neared climax.
"Eres mía ahora. Cásate conmigo." (You are mine now. Marry me..)
Tetsuya gasped as the meaning of the words struck him just as Kuri's movements sent him tumbling headlong into release. He moaned loudly and thrashed beneath the Shima leader as intense heat exploded all through his body and his mind spun with the beauty of that sweetly enchanted moment. There were tears in his eyes as Kuri collapsed onto his chest, kissing him more lazily and sighing in deep contentment.
"I don't hear your answer, Tetsu-hana," Kuri teased him gently, "I will assume you are still too breathless."
Tetsuya started to laugh, then his eyes widened in dismay as he spotted the broken protection charm lying on the bed beside them.
"Oh no!" he gasped, going sheet white.
Kuri smiled wickedly.
"Oh yes!" he hissed elatedly, "Now, you can never leave me!"
"B-byakuya's going to kill you!" Tetsuya snapped, trying to sit up, only to be brought down and kissed into submission again.
"Then, you will come and bring our child to visit my grave, won't you?" Kuri joked.
"Don't say things like that!" Tetsuya said, swatting at him, "That's horrible, Kuri-kuri!"
"I know," the Shima leader purred unrepentantly, "I am an awful man. However did I get so lucky as to impregnate so fine a beauty as you, Tetsu-hana? I must thank your cousin for that defective charm."
"Don't you dare!" Tetsuya exclaimed, sitting up, "And don't try to convince me that the charm just broke! Kuri-kuri, you...!"
"Shh, it will be all right," Kuri promised softly, "Byakuya is an intelligent man. Whatever he thinks of me, he knows how much I love you. It will be fine."
"I know," Tetsuya said quietly, looking down at his slim belly, "I just don't know why you want me so badly. Most nobles don't even see me."
"I see you, Tetsu-hana," Kuri whispered, laying him back and teasing his thighs apart again, "I see you, and what I see of you, I love passionately."
XXXXXXXXXX
Byakuya stared blankly at the hell butterfly in front of him, trying to think of what message to leave for Renji, but no words presented themselves and his mind kept returning to the darkness of Muken and Aizen's words that had left him chilled inside.
"I want you to marry me."
Byakuya stared at the bound man wordlessly.
"You look surprised, Aizen chided him, You shouldn't be. You know why I expect this."
"If you marry me legally," Byakuya said numbly, "then you become a ward of my clan. As there is precedent based upon your actions in the war to commute your sentence, I can demand that you be remanded into my custody."
"But that is not all, is it?" Aizen hissed softly.
Byakuya's eyes widened.
"Yes, I know about the breeder ability that you have in common with your cousin, Tetsuya. I know also that if we produce a viable heir, it strengthens the protections around us."
Byakuya gazed at him raptly, lost for words.
"Come now, you aren't really so surprised, are you? It's only what I need to protect myself, and in exchange, you will be able to pay the great debt you owe to Ichigo, ne?"
"You? How did you...?"
"I will be ready when you arrive tomorrow," Aizen said sedately, "Be sure that you do not tip your hand, Byakuya. If anyone suspects a thing, this will be over before we are three steps out the door. You wouldn't want that, now, would you?"
Byakuya remained silent and backed slowly away, the ice inside him spreading through his entire body. He tried to imagine, not just marrying the traitor, but lying down and letting Aizen touch him sexually. The thought made his insides lurch.
"You look unwell," Aizen commented.
"I am not a homosexual," he managed thickly, "I am in fact, virginal."
"A formerly married man virginal?" Aizen mused, "But then, your wife was ill already when you married."
"Yes."
"Then, you are a blank slate. That makes you quite a prize. I shall remember this when we are together tomorrow after our escape."
Byakuya's insides quivered warningly and he closed his eyes against the rising emotion.
"I don't know if I can do this," he whispered, half to himself and half to the man in front of him.
"Of course you can," Aizen assured him calmly, "You will do this because it is the right thing to free those of us who have been imprisoned unfairly. But...I am curious. Will you be releasing the quincy, Uryu, as well?"
"He is Ichigo's friend."
"Oh, I would think he's more than a friend if you are risking charges of treason, yourself, to free him on Ichigo's behalf. Interesting. Byakuya, I'm impressed. You are a much more complex person than I gave you credit for being. I very much look forward to exploring you more closely."
"Captain, are you all right?" Renji's voice asked, jarring him out of his reverie.
Byakuya startled, then swallowed hard and quickly reined himself in.
"What are you doing here?" he asked his subordinate, "I sent you home."
"Oh," the redhead said sheepishly, "I forgot my keys again. Had to come back for them."
"I see."
"You looked pretty uncomfortable. Are you feeling sick? Maybe you should take tomorrow off," Renji suggested.
Byakuya paused, then nodded briefly in assent.
"Yes, I think I will do that. I am sure that you can handle whatever comes your way. You have grown into a fine vice captain."
"Thanks," Renji said, smiling, "Have a good rest, Captain."
"Arigato, Renji," Byakuya replied gratefully, "I will."