Chapter Four- Gifts
"Hey, Ren?"
"Yes, Yoruichi?"
"I'm bored."
"No shit?"
"Nope."
"Well, what do you want me to do about it?"
"Find me something interesting to do!"
"Quit whining! You're a grown ass woman! You can find something to do on your own!"
"No, I can't!"
"You haven't even tried to move in the past three hours! You have made no attempt to find something to do!"
"Sure I have!"
"Alright, how?"
"I've tried thinking about something to do…"
"'Tried' thinking? You have had three hours, Yoruichi."
"That is not the point! What are you going to do?"
"I'm not telling you!"
"Why not?!'
"Because, you'll just invite yourself along, and you can't do that this time!"
"I swear I won't! I just want an idea of something to do!" This banter was starting to annoy Ren. She couldn't really blame Yoruichi, though; there really was nothing to do that day. There hadn't been any Hollow attacks in their area, and the newbies had a day off from training. On the other hand, Ren didn't really want to tell Yoruichi where she was going. She wanted her privacy today, or rather needed it for once.
"Why don't you go torment that Kuchiki kid?" Ren suggested.
"That sounds like a plan, but why are you avoiding my question?" Yoruichi prodded.
"What question?" Ren countered.
"Where are you going?" Yoruichi repeated.
"When?" Ren asked.
"After we leave in about thirty minutes."
"Leave where?"
"Work."
"Where's work?"
"Damn it, Ren! I swear if you don't tell me, I will follow you until I find out!"
"I could shake you."
"Come on, Ren!"
"If I tell you, you'll follow me. If I don't tell you, you'll follow me. Where am I supposed to win in that?"
"I swear, as your captain, I will not follow you."
"Is that supposed to mean something to me?"
"Ren! Please!"
"You are so nosy!"
"I know! I can't help it! Tell me!" Ren couldn't take it anymore. She hoped that she wouldn't regret it, but at this point, she didn't care.
"Me and Shinji are going out!" she conceded.
"No shit? I figured that. Why so secretive this time?" Yoruichi asked.
"He said to try to avoid stragglers. He wants us to actually have time with each other without anyone else around," Ren told her. It had been a year since Ren joined the Gotei 13, and almost every night since she and Shinji had had their little reconciliation, they had tried to meet up after work to spend time with each other. The problem was that every night, someone had just so happened to come across them, and they also decided not to leave the pair alone. This made the alone time that Ren and Shinji desired nearly impossible to attain.
"So, are you two, you know, together?" Yoruichi pondered.
"I-I don't know," Ren answered.
"What do you mean, you don't know?"
"I mean, we've never been able to talk about it. Someone's always been around us, so we haven't been able to discuss it."
"Really? Well, I'll do you a favor. I'll make sure that nobody bothers you tonight."
"Would you really do that, Yoruichi?" Ren looked so hopeful, and Yoruichi couldn't bear to deny her anything.
"Why not? It'd give me something to do."
"Thank you, Yoruichi. I suppose that I might have to owe you now."
"I'll think about holding it against you later. For now, I believe you have a certain long-haired captain to go meet. But first Ren, how about I give you some advice?"
Shinji's day was just about as eventful as Ren and Yoruichi's. Not a damn thing had happened, and for the life of him, he couldn't think of anything to do. Plus, his anticipation to see Ren after work made time go by all the slower. He wouldn't complain, though, not as long as he got to see her.
He had to admit, she had really grown on him in the past year. Not that he thought she wouldn't, but he didn't think he would be this attached to her. His day felt incomplete if he didn't get to see her, and he was absolutely miserable until he was able to see her, even if it was only for a moment. He had thought that he might be getting too attached, but he sort of just said to hell with that idea and went with it.
"Captain?"
"What, Aizen?"
"You've been staring at the same piece of paper for the past five minutes."
"So? It's interesting."
"It's blank."
"Bullshit."
"No, it's really blank, Captain."
"Is it?" Shinji muttered, looking down at the paper that he was holding. True to Aizen's word, it was blank.
"Captain?" Aizen continued.
"Just call it a day, Aizen," Shinji told him, throwing the paper away and laying his head on the desk.
"Alright, if you say so, Captain."
"Yes, I say so, Aizen," Shinji mumbled sarcastically as soon as Aizen shut the door behind him. He waited for a few moments, but his frustrations were getting the better of him. He couldn't hold it in any longer, so he just threw his arms in the air and tilted his head back to let out a loud grumble, one that he had been holding in all day.
"Ahhhh! I want to see Ren!"
"Well, now you see me!"
Shinji almost had a heart attack. He hadn't felt any spiritual pressure what-so-ever around him, which was why he was finally able to let his frustration vocalize itself, when seemingly, out of thin air, came Ren. One moment he was shouting, and then the next thing he knew, Ren was falling out of the ceiling and onto his lap. It scared the hell out of him, although he did appreciate the fact that she was sitting on his lap.
"Magic, eh?" Ren teased. The look on Shinji's face went from 'I-just-got-shot' to content in a split second. Just seeing the smile on her face made his day go from awful to perfect, and he couldn't think of any other place that he'd rather be.
"Yeah, I'll say," Shinji agreed, staring into the deep burnt orange pools that were her eyes. She stared right back into his, with such a gentle look, that it made him get lost even deeper into her gaze. It was like the two were staring into each other's very souls, and they were very comfortable with what they were seeing. Ren took a small lock of Shinji's hair and started to twirl it gently in her fingers.
"So, no stragglers today, huh?" Ren began.
"Nope, not today. Just you and me," Shinji agreed.
"Privacy, hm? I'm not sure I know the meaning of the word," Ren joked.
"Ah, it might make things weird, won't it?" Shinji played, rubbing a hand down Ren's upper arm.
"I think I'm willing to take that chance, that is, if you are, Shinji." Goodness, he loved it when she said his name.
"Eh, I might be. It'd be something new, ya' know?"
"Something new, huh?" It was funny that he had mentioned that, because Ren had been thinking of trying something new all day. The thing was, she wasn't really sure how Shinji would react to it, which kind of scared her. But, it had been quite a boring day, and what was life without chances? Plus, according to Yoruichi's lovely advice, it was time for Ren to "grow a metaphorical pair" and step things up in this relationship, a.k.a. actually make it a legitimate relationship. No one was blind, not even Ren or Shinji: they knew where this pairing would end up. The question was, who would have the guts to make the first move?
"Hey, Shinji?" Ren called in a playful tone.
"Hm?" Shinji replied, mildly spacing out as he tugged at a strand of her highlighted brown hair.
"Can I, try something?" Ren asked, not real sure how she could go about this.
"What do you mean? Why would I stop you from anything?" Shinji replied. He wasn't quite sure what she was asking, but he figured it wasn't anything too big.
"Well, you are involved, Shinji," Ren playfully warned him, moving slightly closer to him.
"Well, I trust ya', Ren, for what it's worth," Shinji assured her, still mesmerized by her hair.
"It's worth a lot more than you think," Ren mumbled, wiping her thumb across his cheek, so gently that he barely felt it.
"What-" Shinji couldn't finish his sentence, and it was because of such a wonderful reason, surprising, but wonderful.
He hardly realized that it had happened at first. She had been so quick and so gentle, that it took him a moment to process what was happening, and just who it was happening with. And even when he finally realized what was going on, his mind went blank. The thought had crossed his mind that she might not want to be with him in that way, that maybe he was chasing a hopeless dream, but here they were, and oh, how the tables had turned. And what surprised him even more was that she was the one that made the first move.
Ren took a huge leap of faith. Yoruichi was right: it was time for her to grow a pair and get this show on the road. She couldn't ignore the way her feelings were developing for Shinji, and she couldn't stop them: they were way too strong, and they made her far too happy, so it would have been foolish for her to try to get rid of them. So, without thinking about her fears or about the possible disastrous outcomes, Ren finally acted on her feelings, and she could never have imagined how amazing the outcome would be.
Shinji was in a positively blissful daze. Nothing could compare to the sweet, gentle softness of Ren's lips. If he wasn't smitten with her before, he sure as hell was now. Shinji was slow to respond at first, that is, until he finally got a grasp on what was happening. When the realization hit, a wave of joy washed over him, and he responded to Ren's kiss with an eager passion. He reached up and tangled one of his hands in her hair, while he used his other arm to wrap around her waist, pulling her closer to him in a tight, amorous embrace. He never wanted to let her go and as he moved his lips in ardent unison with hers, it looked like he wasn't about to any time soon.
Ren was a little worried at first. When she first pressed her lips against Shinji's, and he didn't respond, she thought it would be the end of her. She was afraid that her leap of faith had all been for naught, and that she had been pursuing a fool's dream, but as soon as his arm wrapped around her and he started to return her kiss, relief flooded through her. She was taken off guard by how enthusiastic he was, but she couldn't complain. She had never felt so safe before in her entire life, and she would have been perfectly content to just stay there in his arms for the rest of eternity. She tried to pull away for a moment so she could catch her breath, but Shinji pulled her right back in, and this time, it was her that was in the blissful daze. The eagerness, the passion, the emotion in Shinji's kiss showed Ren just what she needed in her life, and it was Shinji; there was no denying it now. She had thought that she was enamored with him before, but now, she couldn't deny the love that was rooting its way into her heart for him.
When the two were finally able to pull away from each other, everything was quiet except for their heavy breathing. With her eyes still closed, Ren leaned forward until her forehead was against Shinji's. His arm was still tightly around her, and she had twisted both of her hands into his haori at some point during their passionate escapade. She slowly untangled her hands, and she began to smooth the wrinkles that she had made in his haori when she finally opened her eyes. There was no awkwardness between them when they locked eyes together, only affection, and a blooming love.
"I told you that you were involved," Ren breathed, a smile etching itself across her face.
"Yep," Shinji relied. He was at a loss for words, really, still trying to wrap his mind around what they just did.
"That wasn't too soon or out of line, was it?" Ren asked, panicked by his shallow reply and the lost expression on his face.
"What? Hell no! We should've done that sooner!" Shinji assured her.
"Oh, good. I was worried for a minute there."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why were you worried?"
"I-It's nothing, really."
"Oh, come on, Ren. Don't just say somethin' and then play it off like you didn't."
"It's silly, Shinji. You don't want to hear it."
"If somethin's bothering you, Ren, I want to hear about it."
"Nothing's bothering me, I mean, I was just worried you wouldn't enjoy it. But, I'm really glad that you did enjoy it, because, uh, well, I don't know, uh, you know."
"I think I do know, actually."
"Do you?"
"Well, I either do, or I'm about to make an idiot out of myself."
"That wouldn't surprise me, actually."
"You're not helpin', Ren."
"Please, I'm adorable and you know it."
"As I was saying, Ren, I figure ya' probably feel the same way I do: I really care about you, Ren. I know that it's only been a year, and that we haven't exactly had much alone time together because no one wants to leave us the hell alone, but what can I say? Seein' you is the highlight of my day. I'd go through a horde of Menos Grande just to catch a glimpse of you, Ren, and I think you feel the same way, or at least I hope you do."
"Couldn't have said it better myself, Captain Hirako."
"You're such a tease, Lieutenant." Shinji leaned forward and quickly gave Ren another quick kiss, which in his mind was the perfect finisher to his explanation.
"So, does this mean we're together now?" Ren playfully asked.
"I don't know, you tell me."
"Hey, don't pull that shit now. I asked you first, Shinji."
"Well, do you wanna?"
"Of course I wanna, dumbass. I wouldn't have kissed you if I didn't."
"See? You answered your own question."
"No, I didn't. Just because I wanna don't mean you wanna. Jeez, I'm starting to talk like you already."
"Is that a bad thing, Ren?"
"It could be."
"Thanks."
"So, do you wanna?"
"Wanna what?"
"I swear, Shinji, I will slaughter you in your sleep."
"Damn, I thought that would work."
"Please: I'm a master of deflecting conversation. That would never work on me."
"Should've known. You're damn straight I wanna, Ren."
"Really?"
"I wouldn't lie to ya, doll."
"Ah, I should've figured that, eh?" This time, Ren was the one to lean down and give Shinji the small peck on the lips.
"I'll never get tired of that, you know," Shinji commented.
"Consider it a small gift from me," Ren teased.
"Speaking of gifts, Ren-chan, I gotch'ya somethin'," Shinji began.
"Really? Why'd you go and do that?" Ren asked.
"Well, I had planned to make the first move and give you something, but, somebody just had to go and make the first move before I could, so there's really no need for the gift now," Shinji explained.
"Well, sorry to burst your bubble there, Captain Hirako," Ren joked. "Oh, and is this the gift you're talking about?" Ren had pulled out a rectangular black box, much to Shinji' surprise, and she held it out in front of her.
"How the hell did you-"
"Queen of Thieves, Shinji, Queen of Thieves."
"Yeah, yeah, just open the damn thing, Ren."
"Thought you'd never ask." Ren quickly flipped the lid of the box open and her eyes went wide when she saw what was in it. It was simple, yet it was so beautiful to her. It was burnt orange crystal pendant that matched her eyes perfectly, and it was held by a solid black choker. It wasn't anything over the top, but it was perfect for her.
"Oh, Shinji, you know me too well," Ren commented, running her finger down the pendant.
"You like it?" Shinji asked her.
"Love it," Ren told him.
"Want me to put it on you?"
"Of course." Ren quickly flipped around in Shinji's lap so he could have better access to the back of her neck, and as she held her hair up, she looked back and gave him a smile.
"Have at it, Captain," Ren told him.
"I'll get ya for that teasin' one day, doll," Shinji warned her.
"Yeah, yeah, just not today," Ren added. Shinji shook his head, but he gently took the necklace out of its box, and (after throwing the box aside in a very unceremonious fashion) tied it around Ren's neck. It was a little snug, but it wasn't too tight for her.
"Thank you, Shinji," Ren said, turning back around in Shinji's lap.
"Anything for you," Shinji replied.
"You hungry?" Ren asked.
"Starving," Shinji agreed.
"Well, I'll go make us something, Captain Hirako," Ren offered.
"I guess it'd be rude of me if I didn't escort ya then, wouldn't it?" Shinji said, starting to stand up after Ren finally climbed out of his lap, but she quickly pushed him back down.
"Nuh-uh, Captain. You, sir, have been slacking today. I see a blank form on your desk that has to be turned in tomorrow morning, so you just hop to that and you can come over when you have it finished," Ren ordered.
"But, Ren," Shinji started.
"No 'buts' Shinji, only writing," Ren warned him. She quickly leaned down and kissed him on the cheek.
"There: a little incentive so you can work faster, Shinji."
"I'll be done in no time."
"I'm sure you will. I'll see you in a bit, Shinji." And with that, Ren finally left Shinji's office. Before Shinji could even start on the form, he had to sit back and just absorb the moment. He was finally together with Ren: he could not have been happier at that moment, although, he could have easily done without that damn form. But, Ren would have had his head if he didn't do it, plus Aizen would have annoyed him about it all day, as well, so he quickly started filling the piece of paper out. The sooner he got it done, the sooner he could have a nice dinner with Ren.
Ren was practically skipping her way back to Second Division. With her new pendant bouncing about her neck, Ren was almost glowing. She couldn't wait to tell Yoruichi that she had taken her advice, but that would have to wait, because for now, Ren was more concerned with getting back so she could make Shinji one of the best dinners that he had ever had.
"Heading home, Ren?" Ren quickly turned around, only to come face-to-face with Shinji's lieutenant, Sōsuke Aizen.
"Yeah, it's starting to get late, so, you know," Ren told him. "You heading that way, too?"
"Not quite yet. I've been showing a new officer around," Aizen told her, giving a nod to the officer standing behind him. Ren had heard that Fifth Division had received a new officer recently (she hadn't heard that from Shinji, of course; she doubted that he even knew that he had a new officer), and that this particular officer had graduated from the academy early, but she never would have guessed that he was so young.
"Ah, you must be Ichimaru-san. Nice to finally meet you!" Ren greeted.
"Hi there, Ren-chan," Gin replied, and that was it. He didn't say another word; he just kept that same creepy, wide smile on his face. It didn't bother Ren, though; she had met people that were way stranger in District 80.
"At least you're showing him around," Ren commented.
"Yes, I don't think that Captain Hirako knows that he's here," Aizen agreed.
"It wouldn't surprise me in the least. Anyhow, I'll catch you later. Good luck with Shinji, both of you: I'm sure you'll need it," Ren called, beginning to walk away from them.
"Watch yourself, Ren. You never know who might be lurking out there," she heard Aizen call. If it creeped her out, she didn't show it, at least not until she was far away from him and back in her own division. Once she reached her division, she couldn't help the shiver that went up her spine. Just the way that he said that was enough to make her want to crawl under a rock and stay there for the next century.
"Ren-chan." She knew that voice all too well. She had heard it for far too long not to recognize it.
"He is not one to be trusted," another voice warned. Both of these voices couldn't be heard by anyone else; they were the voices of the dual spirits of her zanpakutō, Hitokiri, the Human Slayer. The voice that had first called her name was the clear, light voice of woman, and even though it may have sounded innocent, that voice held the music of death in it; it belonged to Kiri, her right blade. The second voice was that of a man, and it was much more threatening, so threatening that it could make the bravest of souls quiver; it was the voice of Hito, her left blade.
"I know, you two, I know. I feel it, too, but there isn't really much I can do now," Ren told them.
"Just be wary, Ren. I would hate to see that beautiful face of yours scarred because of some psychopath," Kiri warned.
"Yes, and I would hate to die with you because of some psychopath, so watch your back," Hito agreed.
"Thanks for the confidence guys. You make my day so much brighter," Ren muttered sarcastically. But, even though they weren't exactly nice about it, she understood her zanpakutō's point: be careful around Aizen. She trusted her zanpakutō with her life, and she also trusted her own instincts, and right now, her instincts were screaming at her that danger was close by.
Author's Note: A special thanks to Soren Tamazki, alexma, Snowy12345679, Oowwll, Naruhinalov3, CeeGilbert8987, Buzooka Zooka, and CirceanPoison for the follows, favorites, and reviews!
