Chapter Six

Renji tapped his foot impatiently, trying not to blush or to look for very long at the goddess sitting on his bed. Kadenokōji Seren had come to his room a few minutes ago, and sat without asking permission on his bed. At the moment, as they spoke, she was loosening her kimono and untying her ridiculously complicated hairstyle. However, the result of that was that now she looked a bit like a lascivious noblewoman who had been having far too much fun with a stable boy, and Renji winced as he realized that was his part in this preposterous situation.

"Hey…can you…change into one of my spare uniforms if you're going to stay?" he grumbled, though she had been speaking. He couldn't even listen.

She looked up at him with surprise for a moment. Then she smirked and tilted her head, causing some stray locks to tumble off her shoulder. After she had loosened her beautiful furisode, quite a lot of her bare collar bone was visible, and it seemed to be calling to him from where he was standing across the room. "Well, I don't mind, but that would defeat the purpose."

"What purpose?"

"You think I came here dressed like this because I like it?" she asked with a chuckle. She sat back a bit and slipped off her heavy shoes, then slid one foot up the bed so her bare leg was visible under her kimono. "Obviously, I'm here to tempt you."

Renji balked. "You-?! Do you have no shame?!"

She sighed. "Not really, but you do seem to be just uncomfortable. All right, hang on."

To his disbelief, she then turned around, and in moments untied her obi and let every scrap of clothing slip off her shoulders at once. He got an amazing view of her naked body from the back before his modesty provoked a wild blush and he forced himself to turn around and clap a hand over his eyes.

"You…you…just…" he stammered, though quite unable to think of a point to make with the image of her body still sending heat surging through his own.

A few moments later, she chuckled and he heard the sound of her sitting on his bed again. "You're a few inches taller than me. And honestly, this area is a bit tight…"

He glanced back – foolishly – to see her tugging at the spare fabric of Renji's uniform which now just covered her breasts. Renji gritted his teeth and looked away as a flush overtook his face again. "Okay. You have to leave now."

"Hey, I'm sorry, I won't do anything, okay?" she said, her smile fading. "I know you're a good man. Of course, good men also have sex, but…"

"Get out!"

"Okay, okay. New topic. I actually wanted to ask something of my lieutenant also, as it happens."

He gave her a suspicious glance. "Really?"

She nodded, now finished undoing her hair and placing her usual kanzashi back inside it. With the exception of the overly long sleeves and tight chest area, she now looked roughly like she normally did, so it was a little easier for him to concentrate. "I heard the higher-ups are taking a few third and fourth seats from different divisions out on a mission to the lower world tomorrow. From what I can gather, they're looking for potential new lieutenants. I wanted to know if they'd take me if I asked."

Renji blinked at her in amazement. "You want…to go on a mission for third and fourth seats?"

"Yeah."

"To…get yourself killed?"

She merely smiled, though he got the vague impression that she was offended. "You're the one who told me to fight. As I see it, the only way my father is ever going to accept me as I am is if I show him I'm capable of becoming a captain in the Gotei 13." She lightly hopped off his bed and sauntered toward him as she spoke. "Before I can to that, I need to show your bosses that I'm capable of becoming a lieutenant. And before I can do that, I need to get promoted. And to do that, I need to kick some ass. Get it?"

He frowned at her as she stepped inside his personal space, pretending his heart wasn't pounding. "You're not just being reckless, right?"

She shrugged with a smirk. "Maybe. But sometimes you have to be a little reckless, when it matters." She placed a hand on his cheek and drew him closer. "Have I fought enough to earn another kiss yet?"

Renji's lips parted. His mind went blank whenever she touched him, and pleasant heat built up under his skin. He wanted nothing more than to oblige her with the kiss she wanted. But slowly, he looked away.

Her smile faded immediately. "Fukutaichō?" she murmured.

He closed his eyes for a moment. "Don't," he said.

Seren's eyes went wide. She slowly drew away from him. After a moment, she stepped back and turned away, staring at the floor with a look of confusion. "You've changed your mind?"

"No."

She chuckled, though her eyes still showed confused sadness. "Are you sure? Because you look like you have."

"Nothing has changed. That's the point." She glanced back at him as he briefly rubbed his forehead ruefully. "I don't think…you should be so brazen about disobeying Kuchiki Taichō."

Those lazy eyes went wide again. Then as he watched, bitterness began to flow into them until they narrowed again. "Wow. 'Brazen'," she said with a bitter smile, folding her arms and looking away. "That's a word my father would use."

"Don't start, it isn't about that. It's about Taichō's pride," Renji insisted, stepping toward her.

She frowned at that. "How so?"

"He's…he's not a forgiving man," Renji supplied at last. "He remembers everything, and if he has a chance, he'll pay back every debt." Renji sighed, leaning back on the table behind him. "And you haven't just disobeyed him, you're consistently insulting his family and his honor. Trust me, he's the one man you do not want to insult in those areas."

"I don't want to insult him? I think you're forgetting, I don't want to 'anything' him," she said, a strange smile concealing a mix of confusion and subtle anger. "Does it make any difference what I do? I'll end up insulting him no matter what if I'm successful in this. I'm planning to break off our engagement."

"I know that. But…" Slowly, he looked away. "You don't understand. You don't know what he went through back then."

"Back then?" she muttered, tilting her head in false playfulness, her smile still bitter. "Ah. You mean his previous wife. I'm from a noble family, Fukutaichō, I've heard the story."

"Then you know it wasn't just that he loved her. He defied his family for her. A man like Kuchiki Byakuya throwing away law and honor, I can't even imagine it."

She scoffed. "Now that you mention it, he has a lot of nerve to criticize, doesn't he?"

"You think it's funny?" he demanded in a soft voice.

She closed her eyes, unconsciously tightening her jaw. "I suppose I think it's ironic."

"It's not supposed to be amusing," he continued. "He can't ever go against his family again, do you understand?"

She watched him for a time with a somewhat suspicious look before coldness returned to her dark eyes. "To be honest, no, not really. I'm getting a few mixed signals here. Fight, don't fight. Fall for me, don't fall for me."

"I never said-"

"You never said much of anything," she interrupted, her smile now a sad and hollow thing. "And now I think I know why."

He felt rage start to build in his chest as he thought he knew what she was going to say next. "What does that mean?"

Even the vestiges of her smile now faded, leaving only sad eyes. "What a fool I was. How could I not realize I'd be making Kuchiki Byakuya my rival?"

His eyes shot open with anger. "I'm not in love with him."

"No, I can see that," she said, and slowly began to gather her things. The anger was gone from her face and voice, leaving only disappointment and a hint of sadness in her eyes. "It's something much more powerful than that, actually. It's something I've always admired, so I know it very well." Now she did gain a soft smile, though it did not reach her eyes. "A brotherly bond between men. I can hardly resent you for wanting to protect that."

He struggled to find a way to reply to that, but wasn't sure he understood what was happening. "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing." She paused for a moment, staring at the clothes laid out on his bed. "I should have realized. I've been so foolish." She lowered her head for a moment, and he thought she was crying. But she started to fold her kimono as if nothing was wrong. "I'm sorry I tried to force my feelings on you, Fukutaichō," she said, her voice softening and her movements slowing. "It was my mistake, and I won't repeat it." Her eyes flicked up to his, and he thought they looked a little red, but he saw no tears. "This doesn't change how I feel about Byakuya, just so you know. I'd still rather eat my own leg than spend my life with a straight-laced nobleman who doesn't want me in the first place. But in any case, it's none of your concern now."

Renji's chest felt tight. What was she saying? "Seren…" he murmured, without much thinking about it.

She looked up in surprise, but as she did a tear rolled down her cheek. She broke out a wide smile, her sadness all but disappearing. "You said my name. Thank you. I'll take that gladly as a parting gift." Her eyes briefly lowered to the floor, and another tear rolled down her cheek. "And I guess…I hope you'll forgive me if I take just one more thing."

He was relatively powerless to resist as she approached him and gently took his hand in hers. She gazed at his rough fingers with an affection that took nearly Renji's breath away. Then she managed that when she brought his hand up to her, then gently kissed his palm. Renji felt his heart might break, but he still wasn't sure why this was happening. She slowly drew back, though she held his hand a moment longer. Then, without looking at him, she turned around and hurriedly left his room, picking up her formal clothes on the way.

Renji stood stock-still for a time, his hand still held awkwardly out where she had let it go. He felt his eyes start to sting as the realization came to him of what had just happened. He couldn't stop himself. He tightened his hand briefly, then brought it up to his lips, and kissed the place where hers had been.

…

Seren was relatively numb as she walked back toward her own quarters. But that numbness disappeared with a harsh jolt when she saw the figure that had been standing at the end of the row of officers' rooms, watching her from the moment she left Renji's. Her mouth fell open, and she almost dropped the heavy kimono in her arms.

"Kadenokōji Seren," said Kuchiki Byakuya. A casual glance would reveal nothing at all in his face or body language, impeccably unreadable as always. But she could see, in the hardness around his eyes, and the stiffness of his shoulders, he was barely containing his rage. "Please accompany me to my home. You will be staying there from now on."

Seren's face lost all joy. She slowly lowered her head. "Hm. This is probably a stupid question, but what might happen if I said 'no'?"

"I would take Renji with me instead."

The bottom dropped out of her stomach. How foolish, she thought to herself again. Spending all this time thinking what he would do to her, never imagining what might happen to Renji if Byakuya found out. She looked down at the clothes in her hand. What was Byakuya to assume from this, anyway? Couldn't be helping things.

She took in a slow breath. When she let it out, her noblewoman's expression had returned. "I understand," she murmured.

Then she followed Byakuya to the Kuchiki mansion, knowing full well that she might never come out of it.