It was mid morning, on the third day of the Karakuran's stay in Soul Society. Ichigo and Chad were roaming aimlessly around in streets of Sereitei. They did not know in which squad they were exactly, since all the quarters looked identical anyway in Sereitei, but they knew for sure that they had wandered quite far from the 13th Squad. They had been walking since they left the 13th squad after their breakfast.
The day had started quite badly for Ichigo. Rukia had come to meet them as usual in the morning, but she had been quite in a hurry. She had not lingered around, and had informed them apologetically that she would not be able to spend the day with them, as she would be taken up the whole day by work. She had to do the handing over of her files to the new Shinigami who would replace her in her current position. The idea that he would not have some time with her had darkened Ichigo's mood considerably, seeing that it was the third day already and he had not make any progress in his endeavor so far.
After Rukia's departure, everybody had parted ways: Uryuu had, as expected, gone to his room to immerse himself in his dress making, Orihime had gone to meet Rangiku who had invited her over to her quarters for some girls' time, and Karin had set off to meet Toushiro. That had left Ichigo and Chad at a loose end, so they decided to take a walk around.
The weather was excellent, the sun shining brightly in the blue sky, but Ichigo's mind was too preoccupied to enjoy it. Chad could sense that his friend was somehow tensed, so he kept his usual silence, talking when only necessary. Ichigo was turning all sorts of scenario in his head on how to tackle his approach of the subject to Rukia, but all of them seemed as unconvincing as the other.
"Chad," he said suddenly, "how did you confess your feelings to Sephora?"
Chad, being who he was, did not seem surprised by the question.. He thought for a while about how he and his girlfriend got together, before slowly replying, "It was a gradual, there was no rush. We did not formally declare that we had feelings for each other, it just happened."
Ichigo fell in a gloomy silence at this. That's the easiest way for love to happen, he thought. Why should one go through the terror of declaring his feelings out of the blue and have the risk of being rejected?
"Sephora was the one to take the first step towards anything more…consequent. So I had it the easy way," continued Chad, a slight blush coming to his cheeks as he thought of those happy memories.
Ichigo sighed. Even with Kyoko it had been easy. She had been the one to call him the next day after the party, and he casually proposed that they went out for a coffee at the end of the call. From there, the rest had just easily followed through. And anyway, there had never been any declaration or whatsoever in that relationship. They had just been two people dating; they had never talked anything about love. He had not been in love with her, so the need for anything confession did not even arise.
Whereas now…
A Shinigami, wearing a weird flat hat, suddenly appeared in front of them, jerking him out of his dark thoughts.
"Kurosaki Ichigo," the man said, "you are requested to come to the communication room at 12th squad. Your father, Kurosaki Isshin, awaits you for a call from the living world. He has also requested the presence of Kurosaki Karin." The Shinigami paused, waiting for Ichigo's response.
He must be a messenger, thought Ichigo. What could his father be calling about, he wondered, slightly worried. He hoped that there was nothing wrong.
"Thank you for the message," he replied to the Shinigami. "My sister must be at the 10th squad at the moment, with Hitsugaya Toushiro. Could you please inform her about the call?" he requested.
The Shinigami nodded and was about to move off, when Ichigo remembered that he had no idea where they were and where the 12th squad would be. He quickly asked for directions, and after having made sure about which way to go, he turned towards Chad.
"You go ahead, Ichigo, I'll continue my walk around. We meet later at the 13th," Chad immediately told him. Nodding, Ichigo shunpooed his way towards the 12th squad, which was not far from where they were actually.
XOXOXO
Karin was at 10th squad, with Toushiro giving her a quick tour. She had been ecstatic when the previous night, before parting, Toushiro had informed her that he would be free for a couple of hours the next day and would be happy to show her around.
"If you do not have anything else planned, of course," he had finished.
She had not had anything planned, but even if she had, she would have re-scheduled, she thought to herself.
So, here she was, enjoying the company of Toushiro while visiting all the various compounds of 10th squad, including its training grounds and dojos. It felt was quite impressive to see how all the Shinigami would respectfully greet Toushiro. Up till now, she had been mostly used to how the gang, that is, Rangiku, Ikkaku, Yumichika and Rukia would usually treat him- with a little bit more of familiarity. But here, it was something else; all the 10th squad Shinigami they had met so far had greeted him with deep reverence.
"Wow Toushiro, I must admit that you are very impressive in the image of a Taicho over here, mush more so than when you are in missions in Karakura," she teased, after another Shinigami bowed and greeted him.
Toushiro slid a glance at her. "Well, hierarchy etiquette is very important here in Soul Society," he shrugged.
That, I have noted, Karin thought wryly. As she looked around, she was again struck by the ancient feeling of the place. Being from Karakura, a modern bustling town littered with skyscrapers, the difference here in Sereitei was extreme; the calm and serene atmosphere, the ancient architectures of the buildings, and the ancient way of living…She felt transported back in time by thousand of years! It was a wonder that the Shinigami who had to come to the living world for missions had adapted so well in the modern, up to date setting, she thought. Well, apart from a few occasional hilarious mishaps, that is.
They were standing in a wide training arena, when the messenger Shinigami appeared out nowhere, same as he did with Ichigo, and conveyed the message about Isshiin call waiting to Karin. He left as suddenly as he appeared, before karin could react.
"Err, but I do not have slightest idea where the communication room is!" Karin frowned, as she stared at the empty space where the messenger had been a second ago.
Toushiro promptly proposed to take her over.
"Oh, but I do not want to disturb you, just ask somebody else to accompany me!" she said hastily, sure that as a captain he must have more important things to do than accompanying her to the 12th squad.
"It's ok," drawled Toushiro, "I am free for some another couple of hours anyway."
XOXOX
Ichigo was the first to arrive at the 12th squad. He went in the main building's front room, and was immediately motioned to the back by one of the Shinigami. As he followed the man, he passed numerous rooms which were loaded from floor to ceiling with monitors and huge complicated looking blinking control panels. He was quite impressed by the technology he saw, never having been in the 12th squad before and never guessing that Gotei 13 could be equipped with such up to date technology. He was lead to a room at the back which contained only one huge screen, similar to the one which was found at Urahara. The screen held the blurry life size image of Isshiin. The 12th squad Shinigami immediately left, leaving Ichigo alone to talk in privacy.
"Hey Dad!" greeted Ichigo, happy to see his father.
"Hi there, Ichigo my boy!" Isshin greeted back cheerfully. "How are you doing?"
Before Ichigo could put a word in, Kon, in his human Ichigo's body, immediately appeared next to Isshiin. "Ichigoooo!" the mod soul exclaimed. "How is Nee-san?"
"Hi Kon, is everything all right over there?" Ichigo asked, ignoring the question. "Dad? How is Yuzu?" he addressed Isshin, seeing that Yuzu was not with them.
"Oh don't worry, we are all fine here, Ichigo!" Isshiin smiled. "Yuzu is fine, she is out with her friends, so she could not be here, but she sent her love. We just wanted to know how you are."
"Yeah, we expected to hear from you sooner!" put in Kon.
"So, how are you guys doing over there?" Isshin asked. "And where is my darling Karin?"
"We are fine, Dad. Karin is on her way."
"And how are things progressing? It's the 3rd day already, so we were wondering…" Isshiin's concern was obvious even via the blurry image.
Ichigo was silent at that, his face quite glum. "Well, there's not much progress yet," he finally said.
"Hmm." Isshin looked at the glum face. "Well, it's good to tread carefully, Ichigo. But don't take too long. There are not many more days left."
"Yeah, Dad, I know that!" replied Ichigo, miffed, not being able to hide the slight annoyance in his tone. Did his dad really think he was not aware of that fact?
"But how come you have not made any progress yet?" Kon stepped in again, "What's holding you?" He was almost jumping up and down in his indignation. "And where is Nee-san?"
"Hey!" rasped Ichigo, irritated. "Things are complicated, ok? More complicated than I expected. So don't be so pushy!"
"What's so complicated about it?" Kon spluttered and shook his finger accusingly at Ichigo. "You were just supposed to go to Soul Society, confess your feelings, grab Nee-san and bring her back! What's so difficult in doing that?"
"Hello Kon, still as loud and whiny as ever, I see…" suddenly drawled Karin's voice.
Ichigo, who has been turning red in anger at Kon's outburst, swerved his head around to see Karin walking in the room.
Toushiro was standing at the door, an astounded look on his face.
XOXOX
Some minutes later, Toushiro was waiting for Karin outside the 12th squad main building, after having left the communication room for the two siblings to talk in private. His mind was still processing what he had just overheard. He had certainly not meant to listen on the conversation, but as he had accompanied Karin to back room, Kon's loud voice had been impossible to miss. He and Karin had reached the room in time enough to hear Kon yelling out that tell tale last sentence, and it had been enough for Toushiro's sharp mind to put two and two together to get the whole picture.
As he mused over the conclusion he had reached, he realized that he should not have been so surprised. He had witness the obvious closeness between Ichigo and Rukia during their various missions together; even for someone as blank as him in the romantic field, he had felt the chemistry which had always seemed to flow between the two. But now, to have overheard that Ichigo was planning something was not good news at all to him.
Toushiro had always taken his duty as a captain VERY seriously; to him, rules and regulations was very important, and he had very little leniency to those who break the rules of Soul Society. But here in this case, he was at a blank end. As a captain of the Gotei 13, he did not know what he should do about what he had overheard. Clearly, Ichigo had come to Soul Society with the intention of stopping the wedding of Kuchiki Rukia. How did he actually planned to do that and what will be at stake for Gotei 13, would that be a threat to Soul Society? All these were very unclear yet to the young captain. Thus, Toushiro found himself at a dilemma on what should be the actions to take.
He was still working this out in his mind when Ichigo came out of the building. The two young men silently stared at each other, trying to size each other's intention.
"I should have realized that you had something up your sleeve, Kurosaki!" Toushiro growled after some minutes of tense silence. "What exactly are your intentions?"
"Hadn't anybody taught you that it's rude to eavesdrop on people's conversation?" Ichigo shot back, smirking as he saw Toushiro's immediate angry reaction.
"I did not eavesdrop and you are avoiding the question, Kurosaki!" Toushiro almost snarled.
"This is of no concern to you, Toushiro," Ichigo calmly said. "I am not breaking any rules as far as I know."
"It is against the law to attempt overthrow of the balance of Soul Society. To do so is treason," Toushiro cited. "And as a captain, it is my duty to stop you…"
"Overthrow the balance…? How am I overthrowing the balance of Soul Society? Don't you think you are going a bit too far, Toushiro?" Ichigo growled in turn, scowling angrily.
Toushiro had the grace to look chastised at that.
"Try to use your common sense for once, instead of reciting laws from your captaincy books!" Ichigo snapped.
'Still, Kurosaki, watch your steps…" Toushiro started, only to be interrupted by Ichigo.
"Toushiro, please stay away from this," Ichigo's voice was soft, his face calm but his eyes held a hard glint as he looked at Toushiro. "Don't butt your nose in this or you'll have me to deal with." With that, he turned and shunpooed away.
"And ME to deal with as well," Karin's voice echoed.
Toushiro's head snapped around to see Karin standing by his side, her expression identical to what Ichigo had, calm face but hard eyes.
"Karin!" He looked at her, partly angry, partly exasperated.
"Toushiro, stay out of this. This is a matter of the heart, your rules and regulations have nothing to do with it."
Toushiro frowned deeply as he gave a defeated sigh. "But what are his plans? As a captain of the Gotei 13, I do feel concerned if it means a threat to Soul Society."
"Ichi-nii doesn't have any plans…" replied Karin, her eyes worried as she looked in the direction to which Ichigo had shunpooed away. "You can't plan these things, can you? He is just going with the flow…" she almost whispered.
Toushiro frowned as he considered his stance on this, but he had to concede that as things were, he could not do anything anyway. It was true that as far as things were, Soul Society was not in any threat…yet. So, as long as there was no breach of the security of Soul Society, he would let things stay as they are. But he would definitely keep an eye on Ichigo, he decided.
Why did I have to overhear that conversation? he thought as he gave an inner groan. The idea of the two angry Kurosaki siblings on his back was definitely NOT something he wished upon himself. He looked at Karin, noting her rigid stature and the slight scowl on her face as she looked straight ahead.
"Anyway, there's not much I can do at this stage. I just hope he does not do anything stupid," he said. "So, what do you want to do now?" he asked, not wanting her to remain angry.
"Well, do you want to spar?" Karin replied, turning to look at him.
And face your wrath? No way! thought Toushiro to himself. "Why don't we continue with the tour? I'll show you more of Sereitei" he said aloud.
Karin smirked, guessing why he preferred not to spar with her at the moment. "Okay," she agreed.
XOXOXO
Ichigo went to 13th squad, still reeled by the conversation he had with Toushiro and some with his Dad and Kon. All in all, everything was pointing towards a rapid action on his part; he needed to take some steps very soon. He was not worried about Toushiro informing anybody else about all this, because Ichigo was sure the young captain was not the type to go behind backs to tell upon people. If Toushiro had a problem with what he was intending to do, Ichigo knew that the young captain would come to deal with him about it face to face. So for now, he had a respite in that aspect.
Chad was waiting for him, and since it was already past lunch time, they decided to go and find something to eat in the canteen. Uryuu shortly joined them, needing to take a short break from his work. Orihime was apparently still with Rangiku, Karin must still be with Toushiro, Rukia presumably still taken up with her work, so it was only the three of them for lunch.
"How's is your work progressing?" Ichigo asked Uryuu, munching his food unenthusiastically as he was not too hungry.
"These are the first bridal dresses that I'm making, and I want them to be perfect for Rukia," Uryuu replied. "But I have made good progress and they will be completed soon," he continued a little pompously, correcting his glasses. He looked at Ichigo, noting the slight dejected air. "And you, how are… things progressing?"
Ichigo looked at him quizzically before continuing to eat, not bothering to reply. He has had his dose of answering to people for today, he thought, annoyed.
Rukia came in the canteen right at that time, preventing Uryuu of pursuing the subject further. As she spotted them, she hurried to their table and slid in a chair.
"Hi guys. I only have some minutes to get something to eat," she said hurriedly. She eyed Ichigo's plate, pulled it towards her and quickly started to eat.
"Hey!" Ichigo spluttered in annoyance, only to be cut by a puppy stare from the violet eyes.
"Please…you can go get yourself another plate, I do not have enough time to get one for me," she said mouth full and in her most sweet voice.
Ichigo huffed and went to the counter to get another plate. By the time he was back at the table, Rukia had almost finished eating.
"I'm so sorry to not being able to spend the day with you guys," she told them regretfully.
"It's okay, Rukia-san. We understand," replied Uryuu. Chad nodded silently.
"I've still got so much to do, and tomorrow is my last working day before I start with my 3 weeks vacation; I really need to finish most of the things by today," she sighed, standing up. "See you guys at 7.00 tonight at the Kuchiki house, okay? I don't think I'll see you before that, I'll need to go home directly as soon as I finish here."
"Hey, try not to kill yourself by overworking, Midget." Ichigo frowned as he watched her weary eyes.
"Ha, as if!" she huffed, then her eyes softened. "I'm not made of porcelain, you know, Baka!" With a quick wave, she hurried out of the office.
"You cannot expect the opportunity to talk to her to fall out from the sky, Kurosaki," Uryuu's dry voice broke Ichigo out of his thoughts, as he had been staring blankly at the now empty door through which Rukia had exited.
"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked, turning his head to looking at Uryuu.
"You are not going anywhere by playing this waiting game. If you want to talk to her, create the opening and the time to do it," Uryuu said, looking at him seriously. Chad watched on, silent.
Ichigo decided that it was time to drop the pretence. "You have seen how busy she is all the time!" he exclaimed frustratedly.
"In this case, invite her for a drink or something! I saw a small tea shop at the outskirt of Sereitei yesterday on the way to the fabric shop; invite her for a tea over there!" Uryuu suggested.
"Well, that's not possible for today. You heard her, she's busy, she'll go directly home afterwards," Ichigo was almost talking to himself, but the idea of getting Rukia out of the Gotei atmosphere, somewhere where they could talk without any disturbance was perfect.
"Then be sure you do it tomorrow!" Uryuu said exasperatedly.
Ichigo nodded quietly. This was yet the best idea since he had come to Soul Society, he thought.
The friends hanged out together for another couple of hours, before Uryuu decided to go back to his work.
"Hey, thanks, Ishida." Ichigo quietly told him.
Uryuu looked at him almost sarcastically. "I should be annoyed that all the work I'm doing on the dresses could be for nothing, Kurosaki. But then, if you do succeed, just make sure that they'll be for use soon," he said before leaving.
XOXOX
At 6.45 that evening, the Karakuran friends were all standing at the front office of the 13th squad. They were waiting for Renji to arrive, as the plan had been that Renji would come to meet them, then they would all go together to the Kuchiki Manor.
Uryuu has had a surprise for all of them. Earlier, he had asked his friends about what they had been intending to wear for the dinner.
Ichigo had looked at him, as if he had asked an Einstein level question. "What do you mean? It will be these!" he had replied, pointing to his usual Shinigami clothes.
Karin, too, had pointed to her Shinigami garb. "I have not brought any other clothes other than Shinigami kimonos," she said. Nobody had deemed it important to ask her how come she had not brought any dressy attire, seeing that she had supposedly come to a wedding in Soul Society.
"I have another similar pair of pants and shirt, so I'll wear that," had quietly announced Chad.
Uryuu had turned up his nose in apparent exasperation to all their replies. "We are going to the Kuchiki manor for a formal dinner with nobles, not to the canteen at the corner!" he had exclaimed.
He had disappeared in his room to return back some minutes later with a few garments hanging over his arm; kimono, to be more specific. He had given one to each of them; a navy piece for Ichigo, a bottle green piece for Chad, a grey pale grey blue piece for Karin.
"We need to wear…kimono?" Ichigo asked incredulously as he looked the navy garment he held up.
"It's a great idea!" Karin firmly said. "Thank you, Uryuu san!" She looked at her beautiful pale grey blue kimono, which had charcoal grey and silver designs at the bottom and sleeve hem, and a charcoal colored Obi. "But when did you made this?" She asked, awed at how good the kimono was.
"Oh, I made these today, they are simple designs, so no big deal!" Uryuu replied airily.
So, finally, that was how they all found themselves donning kimono, as they waited for Renji to go to the Kuchiki manor for the dinner. Ichigo looked very distinguished in his navy colored set, the dark formal color giving him a more pronounced masculine look. Karin looked very good too, her dark hair and eyes and pale skin beautifully complimented by the grey blue and charcoal hues of her kimono. Uryuu was wearing a brown piece, and Inoue a cream colored with red and blue designs and red Obi. Soon Renji joined them, wearing a kimono as well (to Ichigo's relief) of grey color, and the group set out in the direction of Kuchiki manor.
XOXOX
As 7 O'clock approached, Rukia was having great difficulty to calm her nervousness. She had managed to contain her annoyance and deep irritation though, and hoped that the evening would go without any hitch.
She had left the 13th squad at about 5.30, coming home directly as she had scheduled. She had been looking forward to the evening at the idea of her close friends meeting Haruko, and hoping that her friends and her soon to be husband would click. The first thing she did as she got home was to go in the kitchen, to ensure that the cook was ok in the preparation of the food for the menu which they had gone through together on the eve. But when meeting the cook, she had learnt that there had been some variations on the menu, and the cook had also informed her that he had received instructions from Kenji, the head man servant, to cook for 5 additional people. But he did not have further information than that.
Not happy about this last minute change, Rukia had gone in search for Kenji to know more. But instead of Kenji, she found Byakuya, who had proceeded to tell her that there was going to be 5 additional guests to the dinner, which comprised of the 3 Kuchiki elders, Chuyo, Hirashin and Mitachi, and the parents of Haruko, Shotoku Akira, the head of the Shotoku family, and Shotoku Miho, his wife and mother of Haruko.
Rukia had been totally stumped by this news. "But…How?" she could not finish the sentence, but her displeasure at the news was obvious.
This dinner had been supposed to be for her friends only! Byakuya would have been present, of course, but the idea had been to welcome her Karakuran friends who had come for her wedding, and to introduce them to Haruko; in short, an intimate party comprising of close friend only! How come the Kuchiki elders and Haruko's parents were now included?
Byakuya looked her expressionlessly, and Rukia immediately felt ashamed for her impertinence.
"I'm sorry, Nii-sama," she said in a contrite voice.
"Chuyo sama learnt about the dinner, and she thought it was only proper to invite the parents of Haruko as well," offered Byakuya as explanation. Even though he did not elaborate further, Rukia got an idea of what must have happened. She was sure after she had invited herself and the two other elders, Chuyo must have demanded that the other Shotoku be invited.
As she left to her room to get ready, Rukia could not help but feel angry at the insertion of the elders in her evening. She would have happily cancelled the whole thing with Ichigo and the group if she could, but now it was too late. Her idea of a good relaxing party was thrown to the air, as she thought apprehensively about the stiff ordeal ahead.
The Karakuran group and Renji arrived at the Kuchiki manor at 7 sharp. Apart from Renji, who was used to the place, the others looked around in awe. As they all made their way to the house, they admired the huge garden through which they went, which was a magnificent masterpiece in itself. Through the fading summer sun, they could see numerous sakura trees which adorned the space, the grounds immaculately tendered, and a few other trees and huge rocks scattered artistically about and a thin stream rustling along completed the picture of perfection.
"Wow, this is totally something else!" Karin whispered, as she looked around opened mouth in awe.
"Isn't it?" Ichigo said in a low voice. He had been to the Kuchiki manor once, but he was still impressed by the place.
"Good thing that we are dressed appropriately," whispered Orihime, she too being the first time that she was coming to the Kuchiki manor.
As they reached the house, they all looked interestingly at the large one storeyed building, awed by the ancient grandeur emanating from it. It was of traditional Japanese architecture, made of wood and shingled roof.
Rukia came to greet them at the main entrance door. She was looking fabulous in a rust red kimono, with pink sakura designs on brown stems and a brown Obi around her petite waist. The color contrasted nicely with her white skin and her black hair. Her usual bang had been tied away from her face, a golden comb holding it in place at one side, giving her a sort of contained look, Ichigo could not help thinking as he looked at her. She looked the accurate image of a noble lady, as she stood there, gracefully straight, to greet them.
"You all look so good!" she exclaimed, studying their kimono.
Her eyes took in the navy kimono which Ichigo was wearing. "Traditional kimono really suits you!" she told him almost in surprise. Apart from his Shinigami hakama, she had always seen Ichigo in western clothes. Seeing him in a kimono was something new. The kimono hinted his cut shape, suggestive more than showing off his excellent physique, the dark color accentuating his bright hair and hazel eyes. He looked so utterly masculine and... She could not finish her thoughts as her eyes met hazel eyes, which had darkened as she had been giving him a look over. She jumped in embarrassment, realizing that she had been staring.
"Please come in," she said hastily, beckoning them inside.
They all trooped into what looked like an equivalent of a living room. The wide room was very sparsely decorated, but the discreet opulence was evident, as they looked around.
"Welcome to the Kuchiki house," the low voice of Byakuya resonated in the room, as the paper covered sliding doors found at the back of the room opened to reveal the man himself. He looked at all of them, his face devoid of any expression, as usual.
Renji, Uryuu, Orihime and Chad immediately bowed their head and respectfully greeted him back.
Ichigo looked straight in his eyes. "Byakuya," he greeted back, with a nod.
Despite the years, Ichigo still refused to call Byakuya by his Taicho title or by the respectful 'sama', as his nobility title demanded. And, as usual, if Byakuya was riled with the casual greeting of Ichigo, his calm expression did not bear any hint of it.
"Nii-sama, this is Kurosaki Karin, Ichigo's little sister." Rukia introduced Karin to him, as they had never met before.
Karin looked at the man she had so often heard about. She had heard the stories about how he had been so willing to have Rukia executed; Ichi-nii always called him "totally stuck up Byakuya" with disdain, Yoruichi shishou called him "little Byakuya" with mischief, Rukia always "Nii-sama" with such reverence and Renji "Taicho" in respect. But none of them had ever mentioned that THE Byakuya was so handsome! She had always imagined the man to be a big, cruel looking, dry, pompous, old noble guy! Sure, he did have a cold aloof air about him, his expression icy calm and his stance regal, but still, he was so incredibly handsome… She bowed her head in greeting, as Byakuya regarded her calmly.
"So you are Kurosaki's sister," he finally said.
"Yes," Ichigo butted in, a note of pride very obvious in his voice as he came to stand beside Karin.
Byakuya looked at both of them, then turned to the others. "Please come in," he invited, and he and Rukia lead them through the sliding doors.
As they followed the 2 Kuchikis, Ichigo could hear a low hum of voices coming from somewhere at the back. He was intrigued. He had got the impression that apart from the Haruko guy, they would be the only one invited, but apparently there were to be more people. They were lead to the wide terrace which gave directly to the back garden. There were already 6 people there, Ichigo immediately counted, and his eyes zoomed to the youngest man present.
This must be Haruko…he thought, breathing in as he looked at the guy, a pulse beating in his jaw.
He snapped his attention back to Byakuya who was doing the introductions, learning that 3 of the old people there were the Kuchiki trio elders, and the remaining two were Hirako parents: Shotoku Akira, the head of Shotoku family and his wife, Shotoku Miho. Then, as he had correctly guessed, Byakuya introduced the younger man as Haruko.
Glancing sideways at the others, Ichigo saw faint blushes on Orihime's and even Karin's cheeks.
Good gracious, Karin was thinking as she looked at Haruko, Ichi-nii sure has a solid competition here! She had barely surfaced over how handsome Byakuya was, and now…this? Soul Society sure held among the most handsome men I've ever come accross, she thought, as she looked at the incredibly handsome man that Haruko was. Coming from Karin, this was quite a feat, as the young girl was not the type to gush over young men.
Tall, excellently built, looking around 25 to 30ish, long blond hair falling gracefully beyond his shoulders, cerulean blue eyes, high cheekbones, sharp pointed nose well defined lips...Haruko was the image of handsomeness. Same as Byakuya, he held himself with a regal bearing that denoted his status as a noble. But, contrary to the Kuchiki leader, his face held a smile as he greeted the group upon being introduced.
Ichigo looked over at the guy, dimly noting the excellent built and the sharp intelligent look his eyes held. From what Ichigo had learnt before, Haruko was more of a political type rather than a warrior type, even though he did have high reiatsu level being from one of the noble family. So he wondered how come the guy had such a good athletic build, if he was supposedly taken with politics. Wasn't political guys supposed to be fat and heavily balding guys? he thought, scowling. Feeling an elbow kicking his side, he turned to see Karin looking at him.
'Hide that scowl, Ichi-nii," she told him dryly in a low voice, ensuring that nobody else heard her.
Ichigo immediately schooled his express into a neutral one.
"I'm happy to meet Rukia-san's friends," Haruko said, his voice deep and beautifully toned, as he nodded at each of them.
"We're glad to meet you too, Haruko-san," smiled Orihime, after a silence which none of the others seemed in a hurry to break.
The 5 older people all had a haughty air as they unsmilingly greeted the Karakurans and Renji. They all held the same arrogant air that Byakuya had when Ichigo first met him, looking quite down their nose at the young group. After the first polite greeting, they continued with their own conversation, talking only among themselves and only including Byakuya, Haruko and sometimes Rukia. They were not really openly rude, but still, to the youths who were used to a more open social gathering, the snuff was apparent enough.
The Karakurans shuffled around, quite uncomfortable at the austere atmosphere of the 'party'. Even the socially very prim and proper Uryuu seemed quite short of polite conversations, as the young group tried to maneuver around the awkwardness which seemed to have settled. Renji as well seemed to feel out of place. Finally, it was easier to stay among themselves and not make any effort to talk with the noble set.
Rukia inwardly groaned at the obvious uncomfortable air of her friends. It was what she had feared, and she felt guilty.
"Guys," she said softly and her tone apologetic, "I'm sorry, they were not suposed to be in the picture," she said in a low voice so that she was not heard by the older group.
"It's ok, Rukia-nee," Karin whispered back, seeing how guilty Rukia looked, "it's quite an…experience to be among nobles, anyway."
Orihime and Chad smiled encouraging at her as well, while Ichigo and Uryuu looked at the Kuchikis and Harukos, feeling wary at what awaited them for the evening.
About 5 minutes later, which seemed like hours to the friends, Kenji came to announce that dinner was ready to be served. Breathing a sigh of relief, Rukia lead the way to the dining room.
The dining room, same as the first room they've been in, was sparsely decorated, but there was this sense of old grandeur present in the simplicity of the room. They were all seated on cushions on the tatami floor, around a wide low wooden table. Byakuya sat at one end of the table, while Haruko Akira was seated at the opposite end. Then the rest was seated in between. Rukia was seated besides Haruko, and Ichigo sat opposite to them, having Karin on one side and Orihime on the other.
Dinner was soon served, and the conversation was very subdued. Orihime was the only one of them who was trying hard to maintain a general conversation, the others preferring to eat in silence or just murmuring polite acquiesce. Rukia looked around at her friends contained air, and could not help but compared the atmosphere of the previous night, at the 10th squad, where they had been so relaxed and at ease in each others company. It was such a far cry from the relaxed ambiance that she had wished for, she thought sadly.
Being the first time that Ichigo was mixing with so many nobles at once, and so cold to boot as that, he was hit suddenly by how hard it must have been for Rukia to have come to live in the Kuchiki family. This was the environment that she must face daily in her life, he thought. He had the biggest difficulty in equating the Rukia he knew, the mischievous, spitfire, fiery tempered, always arguing Rukia he knew, living in this uptight cold environment, surrounded by these type of people.
Byakuya at least, even though still cold outwardly, has changed over the years. Ichigo knew that in his own way, Byakuya had come to care for Rukia and was very protective of her. But the Kuchiki elders were something else. In fact, Ichigo had never realized that the elders were so much present in Rukia's life. As he watched them, Ichigo noted their expression and mannerism, which were proofs enough of how much they were the typical strict blue blood noble type people. Ichigo remembered how Byakuya had told him that his marriage with Hisana and Rukia's adoption had been considered as rules broken in the Kuchiki clan, and looking at the old Kuchikis, Ichigo was not surprised with that fact. In fact, he felt a respect for Byakuya, to think that he had dared go against these people's wishes!
Finally, it must be said to be an achievement that Rukia had turned out as she was, he realized. To think that for the past 40 years, she had been exposed to such type of people, and still retained her spontaneity, her down to earth attitude and extrovert outlook. True, she sometimes had her 'noble' bouts, but all in all, she had always be as close to a normal girl as possible.
"So, from which squad are you all?" Shotoku Akira asked, the first time that he bothered to have a direct conversation with the group.
Renji was the first one to reply. "I'm from the 6th squad, and the fukitaicho under Kuchiki Taicho".
Ichigo hesitated, and looked at Byakuya, not knowing what to reply. He did not want to commit a faux pas by saying anything that he should not.
"The rest of the group are from the living world," Byakuya quiety announced. "They are all very important allies of the Gotei 13, and had had a major hand in the victory of the war against with Sosuke Aizen."
"Oh..." Akira replied, after a short silence. "I did hear about the unusual news of Gotei 13 having some humans as allies." He did not say anything else, but his tone did indicate that he did not approve of that fact.
"Oh, that's very interesting!" exclaimed Haruko, looking at the group with new interest.
He began to ask them questions about the living world, to which Rukia, Orihime, and Uryuu did their best to answer. Ichigo only participated in short comments and monosyllables.
"Oh, Rukia-nee, you should know that last month there was an exhibition in Karakura town hall about Chappy the Rabbit complete collection," Karin said.
At any other time, this would have gained a squealing reaction from Rukia. But right then, although her eyes danced with excitement, her voice was subdued when she replied, "That must have been wonderful!"
"Chappy the rabbit?" Haruko asked mystified.
"Chappy the Rabbit is a character which is very popular both here in Soul Society and in the living world," explained Rukia, her eyes shining as usual when she talked about her beloved Chappy the Rabbit. "There are all kinds of effigies for it: plushies, posters, cards, mugs, etc."
"An animal character? But isn't that very… juvenile?" asked Haruko with a hint of disdain in his voice. It took all of Rukia's willpower not to get into an obfuscated tirade about her beloved Chappy the Rabbit being called juvenile, but before she could muster anything,
"It's NOT juvenile. It's a very interesting character which draws millions of people towards it. My adult sister Yuzu affections Chappy the Rabbit a lot too."
Uryuu chocked in his food, while Rukia and Karin stared at Ichigo, their jaws hanging, both wondering whether they had heard correctly. Ichigo…defending Chappy the Rabbit? He who was always taking every opportunity to talk down on Chappy, who was the first one to call the passion of Rukia and Yuzu 'childish'? Even Chad was hiding a smile, while Renji looked at Ichigo, with raised eyebrows.
"Oh…I see," Haruko said, looking intently at Ichigo, assessing him. "But still, it is unusual for adults to be attaching to such characters, isn't it?"
Ichigo held the stare of the young Shotoku. "No, it's not that unusual," he replied silkily. "And it does not mean that these people should be looked down upon. There is no age to hold affection to anything and have fun." A subtle challenge entered the hazel eyes as the eye lock lengthened; challenge which Haruko did not miss and which made his eyes fill with speculation.
"So, in what field are you, Haruko san?" Uryuu quickly intervened.
Haruko broke the stare with Ichigo to look at Uryuu, his expression still speculating. "Oh, the Shotoku are in the governing of the finances of Soul Society. Right now I assist my father in this management," he replied slowly.
"Until the time that Haruko takes over the head of the Shotoku family," put in Shotoku Akira, joining in the conversation.
The talk successfully shifted away from Chappy the Rabbit, as Haruko talked a bit about his responsibilities.
"He has always been good at what he does." The note of maternal pride was clear in the voice of Shotoku Miho.
Orihime smiled at the woman. 'Rukia-san is a very strong Shinigami, she is very good at her work too!" the young girl said enthusiastically. "It's great that she gets to continue to stay at the Gotei 13."
"Oh yes, we could not refuse Byakuya-sama's request for Rukia to stay at the Gotei 13," Miho said softly. "But Rukia needs to understand that when the Shotoku new heir comes in the picture, her rightful place will be at home to raise and educate the baby, as is expected of a noble wife," she finished.
"And the Shotoku expect the next heir as soon as possible, so hopefully that will not be too long," Shotoku Akira's voice cut in again.
A heavy silence fell on the table at this. Rukia has stiffened, and she darted a glance at Byakuya, not knowing what to expect to see there. Beneath the calm façade, though, she thought she detected a flicker of surprise. Knowing that it would be of utmost impudence for her to say anything back right then, she bent her head wordlessly, her hands fisted on her lap.
"That's very true," drawled Kuchiki Chuyo in a haughty voice. "The role of a noble lady is a very serious one. It should be by the side of the husband and the heir, not in a battlefield."
Ichigo looked at the bent head of Rukia, his fists balling tightly on his lap while a slow anger rose within him. A sudden soft hand descended on his clenched fist, and looking sideways, he saw Karin discreetly shaking her head. Her worried eyes were enough to calm his anger.
"Isn't it terrible that Gotei 13 has to give up such excellent assets in the name of…indulging in wifely duties?" Ichigo said, not being able to hold himself and smiling sarcastically as he looked squarely at Chuyo.
The old woman's eyes flashed angrily as Ichigo held her glare unflinchingly, before Byakuya's calm voice cut through the tense silence.
"Who would like some tea?"
"Oh yes, I would!" Orihime immediately replied. "The food was excellent! You do have a great cook, Rukia!" she continued in her brightest cheerful tone. The others immediately murmured their agreement, and again the tense atmosphere was successfully diffused.
To the big relief of the Karakurans, it was not too long before the dinner was over and it was time to leave.