Chapter 3: Look of Death
(Thanks so very much to Aku (Waiting's over, enjoy!), Anata no Misu (I'm surprised at how cute it's coming out. Glad you like it!), Red Cr0w (Thanks for the notes. I'm so excited about the things you suggested. More is coming soon!), Kittykins (Ah yes, who wouldn't enjoy 'taming' Grimmjow!), Winterheart2000 (No more waiting! Here you go!), Periwinkle (Grimmjow is a joy to write. He'll say just about anything and is so very temperamental. Love him!), Picklez80 (I am trying a few new things here, so that's always pretty exciting.), Dawnwind (You've got it, kiddo!), Kyuumihaira (lol, can't get anything past you! :) You're quick!), Aria6 (I really like Starrk/Shunsui too! Who knew?), SunlessNights (They are a fun couple! And here's more to enjoy!), Tomyallen (Yeah, Shunsui did get the more grounded partner. Byakuya will have his hands full as Grimmjow's pendulum swings around and his moods swing and fluctuate. This will be fun!), Kurai Daten-Shi (Whew! You may be right about Harribel/Soi Fon and Grimmjow/Byakuya. There's a lot of combustive energy and potential for damage there, but then that makes for some really passionate exchanges too!), Nyma (The funny thing about Grimmjow is that he's passionate and mercurial about everything, so he will respond strongly and have some dangerous mood swings. And Byakuya will be as usual, calm on the surface, but Grimmy will get to him. I'm glad you're enjoying this! I will have more to post soon!), and jmi (I love Shunsui/Juushiro too. After I get a few more storylines done, I have to write one about them. I've had them as supporting cast, but not in their own storyline. I'll have to see what I can come up with!), Take care all! Spunky loves ya!)
Thanks for checking in," Shunsui said good-naturedly, "How are our guests adjusting to their situation?"
"This is ridiculous!" Soi Fon spat, "What were they thinking? I don't care what that witch did in the war. She's disgusting and refuses to follow even the simplest orders. And because of the rules for their care, we can't even punish her!"
"Well, of course not," the captain commander chuckled, employing his wit to soothe his colleague's obvious frustration, "They aren't prisoners, after all."
"Right..." Soi Fon muttered sarcastically, "They just aren't allowed to leave."
"It is for their own good that they must stay," Byakuya reminded her, "Once Urahara's method was used to begin their transformation, they became dependent on us for their survival. And do not forget, they did not choose this path. Central 46 took this action without regard for our feelings or theirs."
"Typical," huffed the second division taichou, "But you're right. They didn't ask for it either. I just wonder why they sent her to me. She's pig headed, won't listen to anyone or obey orders and she's about as pleasant to be around as a menos grande!"
Byakuya averted his eyes and cleared his throat softly, while Shunsui suppressed a chuckle and patted the female taichou on the shoulder.
"They gave her to you because they know you can handle her. Can you imagine Zaraki taichou trying to manage her? They'd have killed each other already!"
"And good riddance to both of them," Soi Fon snapped.
"I'll tell you what," the captain commander said soothingly, "I'll take Starrk and go over to have a talk with her. He's coping pretty well and maybe we can find some grounds for the two of you to work things out."
"Good luck with that. I've had about all of her nonsense I can take!"
"And how about you, Kuchiki taichou?" Shunsui asked, changing the subject, "I've been wondering how Grimmjow would do, replanted in your noble manor."
"He is coping as well as can be expected, I imagine," the Kuchiki heir posited, "He was difficult at first, but once he realized that he couldn't do harm to my staff, grounds or me, he became somewhat sullen and quiet. I don't pretend to think our disagreements are over, but for the time being, the situation is acceptable."
"Huh!" huffed Soi Fon, "What did you do? Tie him down? I'd love to do that to her."
Byakuya observed her quietly for a moment out of the corner of one grey eye.
"I used my power to make harmless, but effective sakura ropes that apply themselves only when he is going to cause damage."
"That sounds like a pretty creative application, Byakuya," Shunsui chuckled, "But I suppose Soi Fon wouldn't be able to use her power in that manner."
"I don't think so," the female taichou sighed regretfully, "My shikai is deadly and my bankai too destructive. Kido ropes maybe?"
"As long as she is only restrained when she is likely to do damage," Byakuya reminded her.
"Yeah, no using that for seduction," quipped the captain commander.
Soi Fon glowered at him rebelliously, but let out a defeated breath.
"Can I go now? I have some scouting missions to see to."
"Why don't you take her along with you?" Shunsui suggested, "Her stealth abilities are good and she is powerful."
"I don't need her help doing my job!" the second division taichou snapped.
"No one said you did," Shunsui countered calmly, "It just might be good if you gave her something useful to do. Keep her busy so you two aren't butting heads."
He sighed and shook his head resignedly as the second divsion taichou disappeared in a scathing flash step.
"That's one volatile pair," he sighed, "I wonder how we're going to keep them from killing each other."
"Although either way, the problem would be solved," Byakuya said, sounding perfectly serious.
XXXXXXXXXX
Tetsuya watched quietly as the blue haired Espada peeked out of his room and looked around the quiet gardens, then stepped out onto the walkway and looked around again. The noble suffered a moment of distraction and brief uncertainty as a pair of warm arms wrapped around him from behind and a hot mouth nipped at his pale throat.
"Renji!" he gasped softly, breaking into a smile, "What are you doing here?"
"I got off a little early and came to see how you were enjoying your guest. He's not giving you any trouble, is he?" the redhead asked.
"Not as yet," Tetsuya answered, his sapphire eyes watching closely as Grimmjow stepped onto the garden path and moved slowly along, pausing to look around and to sniff softly at the flowers.
"I guess there aren't a lot of flowers to enjoy in Hueco Mundo," the redhead said, his voice betraying a measure of sympathy, "At least there's something good for them in all of this. Central 46 really screwed them over."
"I wasn't pleased to hear how they began the transitioning," Tetsuya admitted, "and I'm even more anxious that Byakuya-sama and the other taichous were compelled, rather than asked, to be involved."
"But, what are we gonna do?" Renji sighed resignedly, "That's what that bunch of councilors does. It wouldn't be a day of the week if they weren't pushing someone around."
He fell in at Tetsuya's side as the noble used a waterform to conceal them, then led Renji in the direction Grimmjow had taken. The two observed as the Espada moved silently along the trail, breathing in the cool, fresh air and blinking in the bright sunshine. He paused at the koi pond, looking down at his reflection on the water's surface, then examining the colorful fish.
"You are welcome to feed the koi," Byakuya's voice said suddenly, startling Grimmjow as the sixth division taichou appeared at his side, "but I would prefer you didn't eat them. I went to a lot of trouble to breed them properly."
"You bred them yourself?" Grimmjow asked, finding himself too distracted by the notion to be angry about being taken by surprise when the clan leader appeared.
"Is that so surprising?" Byakuya asked, "I am, after all, the one who made the gardens."
"You made them?"
"Yes," Byakuya confirmed, lowering himself onto his knees and touching the soft soil near a cluster of bright flowers.
As Grimmjow watched, he closed his eyes and focused on his hand, causing a flicker of reiatsu to swell around it. He sent the reiatsu into the soil and the two watched as a green tendril emerged from the ground and slowly matured into a lovely red flower.
"Huh," the hollow mused, "I haven't seen that before. Aizen had a sort of atrium that he made so that the shinigamis who came to Las Noches would have a place where something grew. The bastard had to fool the damned things with his illusions to convince them the sun was shining on them. But it was nice to smell something alive and sweet like that. So...is that why you smell so good? Because of your connection with the gardens?"
Grimmjow felt a strange, warm jolt inside at seeing the light blush that rose instantly on the noble's face. Byakuya turned his head slightly to avert his eyes before continuing.
"The first incarnation of the soul king made his own gardens, and it was within them that he created the souls of the first great noble lords. My ancestor was fashioned from a limb given by an ancient sakura, and because of that, all members of the Kuchiki family carry traces of her scent."
"Tch," Grimmjow laughed softly, "If I want to smell like flowers, I have to go roll around in them."
He blinked as he suffered a sudden mental image of himself, naked and entwined with the blushing noble's also naked body.
What the hell?
"Grimmjow?" Byakuya said, frowning, "Is something wrong? Do you need an infusion?"
The Espada started to refuse, but suffered another powerful jolt in his loins at the thought of those soft, slender hands touching him.
"Y-yeah," he answered, closing his eyes for a moment and catching a soft breath of sakura, "Sorry, it must be a pain in the ass to have to drop everything and take care of me."
He realized that the noble had paused and was looking at him curiously.
"What?" he snapped, scowling, "Don't stare at me like that."
"My apologies," Byakuya said, touching his arm to turn him back towards his bedroom, "You were wearing an odd expression for a moment."
"You'd look odd too if you were yanked out of the life you knew and forced into transition like this, wouldn't you?" he asked, pulling free of Byakuya's hand.
"I suppose I would," Byakuya admitted.
He paused for a moment, standing on the wooden walkway outside the bedroom.
"Grimmjow, will you tell me something honestly?"
"Maybe."
"Do you want to be a shinigami? Not a hollow?" the noble asked.
"Huh," the Espada huffed, "You actually have to ask a question like that? Who in his right mind wants to be a hollow? Being a shinigami isn't the part that fucks with my head."
"What part is that?" Byakuya inquired, his dark eyes fixing on the hollow's icy blue ones.
"Think about it," Grimmjow said, meeting Byakuya's eyes unabashedly, "Those bastards didn't just screw with our lives, using us as guinea pigs to test their way of reducing the enemy's power and raising their own, they used three of their own taichous. And I'll bet that there wasn't a lot of safety testing done first, was there?"
"This is the test," Byakuya said softly, "And you are right. The council did not ask us if we would participate. They determined somehow which ones of us resonated most highly with the three of you and they ordered us to assist you in the transition."
"I figured it was like that," Grimmjow sighed, turning back to look out across the gardens, "You know, Aizen was a complete bastard, but we knew that going in. These guys..."
"I understand your feelings," Byakuya said quietly.
The two froze for a moment, their eyes locked and the truth of their position radiating dangerously around them.
"Come," Byakuya said, breaking their reverie, "Let us see to that infusion."
XXXXXXXXXX
"So," Shunsui said casually, setting a cup of doctored tea in Starrk's hand, "How did it go with you and Harribel Tier today? Were you able to make any headway?"
Starrk sighed and leaned back against the shinigami as Kyouraku's arms wrapped around him and began the stabilizing infusion.
"She was difficult," he mused, closing his eyes and feeling a sense of relief as the discomfort in his abdomen was soothed, "She is always difficult. But I think she realizes that taking her frustrations out on the lady taichou was not going to get her what she wants. She should be more reasonable now."
"Heh," Shunsui chuckled, "women..."
"I thought you liked women," Starrk mused, feeling a touch of giddiness as his reiatsu began to fall back into balance.
"Of course I like them," Shunsui clarified, "but liking them doesn't mean I understand them. I guess that's why, even though I like women, I am more comfortable with men."
"I see that you are more relaxed with your male colleagues," Starrk commented, "I supposed that's natural."
"Yeah, say what you want about how exciting it is to unravel the mysteries of the feminine gender. When you're talking about the likes of Soi Fon taichou and Harribel Tier, the only thing that'll come unraveled is your head!"
"I'll drink to that," Starrk chuckled, touching his teacup to Kyouraku's, then tilting his head back slightly to drink the last.
Shunsui set his cup on the nightstand and placed his hands behind his head, sinking into the soft pillows as Starrk moved and settled beside him. For several long minutes, neither spoke, each just enjoying the calm peacefulness of the evening. Starrk looked up at the other man curiously as Shunsui suddenly loosed a soft chuckle.
"What is it?" the hollow asked.
"Oh," Kyouraku sighed, "I was just wondering if the councilors of Central 46 knew that providing the infusions would make us aroused."
"You're aroused by me?" the Espada mused, looking slightly surprised.
"It seemed I wasn't the only one reacting," Shunsui observed, giving him a sidelong glance.
"No, I suppose not," Starrk admitted calmly.
Another pregnant silence opened up between the two as Shunsui sank further into the pillows and sighed again.
"Perverted bastards," he mumbled sleepily, "Sometimes I really don't like them."
Starrk found himself smiling wryly.
"I never liked them," he answered matter-of-factly.
"Probably another reason you were identified as a being of high intelligence."
"So, why do you do it?" asked the Espada, "Why did you become the captain commander? If you don't like them..."
"Well, someone has to sort of balance their insanity, right?" Shunsui chuckled, "It never gets boring, that's for sure."
"I imagine. That's something like why I followed Aizen and helped lead the Espadas. I guess that the strongest have to do something, otherwise things would fall apart quickly."
"Yeah, my thinking exactly."
"You're quite intelligent too," Starrk commented.
Shunsui smiled.
"Thanks."
XXXXXXXXXX
Grimmjow felt something soft against his cheek and cracked open one blue eye. He almost stiffened at finding himself tucked securely in the embrace of the lovely sleeping leader of the Kuchiki clan, but found himself inexplicably frozen at the sight. Byakuya rested against the pile of pillows, his expression peaceful and his raven colored hair swirling around his head. The soft folds of his dark blue yukata mingled with the tumbled covers around him, making the whole scene more surreal. Grimmjow had turned aside and rested against a partially revealed, pale shoulder with Byakuya's arm curled around him.
"Shit," he breathed, entranced by the unexpectedly attractive display.
For several minutes, he remained poised within Byakuya's embrace and just looked. The man was beautiful, probably one of the most beautiful creatures Grimmjow had seen up close.
Yeah, seen up close and not been attacked by instantly.
But he wasn't sure that Byakuya wouldn't try to kill him when he woke and found himself in that extremely vulnerable position.
Of course, those sakura ropes would keep me from hurting or killing him...but what if...?
Grimmjow's heart pounded wildly in his chest as he continued to gaze down at Byakuya's lovely sleeping face, wondering if he dared to follow his rising instincts. He held himself back carefully, breathing in the noble's warm sakura scent and feasting visually on the teasing bits of exposed flesh that tormented him. Finally, he could stand it no longer. He reached out a careful hand and ran his fingers through the ends of the noble's hair, marveling at how it was every bit as soft as it looked.
But as soon as his fingers touched the man, Byakuya's hand shot up and captured the Espada around the offending wrist and his eyes snapped open and glared at Grimmjow.
"Whoa! Hey, don't get so tense," the Espada said, trying not to sound as scared as he suddenly felt, faced with the noble's death-promising glare, "I was just...I mean, you know that your sakura ropes would've stopped me if I was trying to hurt you."
Byakuya continued to stare at him icily.
"Besides, can you really blame me for doing that, waking up and finding myself in the arms of a really beautiful guy like you? What do you think I'm going to do?"
The noble remained frozen for a moment longer, then climbed out of the bed and turned away.
"You are not to ever touch me without my permission," he said calmly.
He started to take a step, but stopped as Grimmjow's voice sounded.
"Byakuya."
The hollow let out an impatient breath at the annoyed look he received in return.
"Kuchiki taichou," he corrected himself.
Byakuya's lips twitched very softly, but he said nothing.
"Sorry."
The noble's angry expression shifted to a look of surprise. He regarded the hollow silently for a moment longer, then flash stepped away. Grimmjow placed his hands behind his head and laughed softly as he laid back against the pillows.
"I'm lucky he didn't fucking kill me," he chuckled.
It wouldn't be a bad way to die, would it?