Chapter 6: Hunger

(Had a lot of requests for this one and have been neglecting the Ren/Bya pairing, so here you go! Love ya! Spunky)

"Byakuya," the head elder greeted the Kuchiki clan leader, "thank you for coming to speak with us."

"There is need to do so," Byakuya agreed, "I understand that I have caused all of you some concern and I wish to clarify my position so that there need be no speculation on what is happening."

"Again, we are grateful. You may proceed."

"Thank you, Nori-dono," Byakuya said warmly, "My brothers, I want to assure you that my first concern is to preserve the honor and dignity of the Kuchiki family. Before coming to you, I struggled with how to balance this with my very human needs for love and companionship."

"You are...speaking about your fukutaichou? Abarai Renji?" Nori inquired.

"I am," Byakuya confirmed, pausing as his words caused a small outbreak of whispers among the gathered elders, "I have been without a lover ever since the death of my wife. For fifty years, I was too burdened by the loss of her to consider letting another person into my heart. And even as I mourned her, I renewed my commitment to following the rules of our clan. I planned to allow the elders to choose my next bride. I thought that my heart was empty and would remain so. And I thought that commitment to the family's honor and pride would fill the place of love."

He paused again, carefully measuring his words.

"I was wrong," he went on, lowering his eyes for a moment as fresh whispers rose up about the room, "I understand the rules that must guide the leadership of our clan and I remain committed to bringing honor and pride to our name. However, the turns of the heart are never a constant, and I find myself in the position of having my own heart affected in a way I did not expect to happen. As you must have heard, or you would not have asked me here, yes, I have begun to see Abarai Renji romantically. It is a serious and intimate relationship. I know that under our rules, it is not allowed. Renji is a commoner and he is a man, but he is also a warrior. He is a taichou level fighter who has earned an honorable place in the Gotei 13. More than that, he is my friend. I did not plan for us to fall in love, but as you know, I am not the first leader to learn that his heart could overcome him. Renji has been my protector and has been at my side through several major injuries. He has proven himself loyal and he wants as much as I do to be able to have a relationship, while preserving the pride and honor of the family. To that end, although Renji will be moving into my residence, no official announcements will be made and we will be discreet about our status. When we are in public, we will conduct ourselves properly and we expect our privacy will be respected."

"And what of your duty to provide the family with heirs?" a female councilor asked calmly, "You did agree to this."

"Yes, and I will honor my promises," Byakuya assured them, "I do not know, at this point, the direction that my relationship with Renji will take. He is a young man and is sometimes impulsive, but he is certain that he wants to be with me. And I want to be with him. We are early in our union, so one cannot say what will happen, as yet. And I am well within an age where it should not yet be a great concern that I am not married. I ask the council's patience as I explore this and make plans with Renji for how I might later honor my agreement to have children."

The head councilor nodded briefly.

"Thank you, Byakuya. My lords, are there questions?" Nori asked, his aged blue eyes scanning the room, "Ryuu?"

"Byakuya, you say that you are committed to honoring your promises, and yet, you seem here to be abandoning your promise to obey the rules of the clan after convincing us to accept your decision to bring Rukia into the family as your sister. How are we to then believe that you will honor your promise to provide children to the clan?"

Byakuya took a steadying breath and nodded in acceptance.

"You are correct, Councilor Ryuu, that I made a renewed commitment to follow the rules of the clan after the council allowed me to adopt Rukia as my sister. I have made every effort to honor that promise. I am still committed to finding a way to do that, but not at the expense of losing the person I love. And the issue of heirs is a separate one that I will address later. I have not asked Renji to marry me, and he has not indicated a desire, as yet, for me to marry him. We are not completely outside the rules, as long as our affair is kept private and no public recognition is made. At such time as Renji and I are ready to consider marrying, we can take up that issue, but right now, it is not an issue. The topic of heirs, as I indicated earlier, is one that can wait, at least until after Renji and I have chosen our path."

"But," said Councilor Arisu, "wouldn't it be better just to avoid a situation that you know will bring chaos later? Assume for a moment that you do decide to marry Abarai-san. You will not be able to hide that and it is against our rules, which you have agreed to obey. How can you hope to mitigate that?"

She paused for a moment, then looked into his eyes with understanding and a measure of sadness.

"We are not without comprehension of your feelings, Byakuya. But, the way you speak, I wonder if you are not wanting to look that far into the future, as you say, or is it that you already have doubts about your future with this man?"

Byakuya felt an uncomfortable twinge in his abdomen and froze for a moment, his mind turning over the words.

"I am in love with Renji," he confessed with equal calm, "He tells me that he loves me. But who can ever know how a love will play out? If you are asking me about the future, I cannot say what will happen. But I am committed to loving Renji and I will accept whatever comes of that choice. While exploring this, I will take due care to protect our family from criticism and from any dishonor. I think we are all aware that it is not unheard of for a leader to take a same gendered lover. Until such time as marriage becomes an option, there is nothing directly prohibiting me from seeing Renji, as long as we are discreet."

"And does your boyfriend plan to continue seeing other people?" asked a male councilor, "We have been made aware that Abarai Renji, being youthful and, shall we say, popular among his peers, has a reputation for having multiple lovers."

Byakuya paled slightly, but kept his voice calm.

"I am aware that Renji was seeing other people before, but we are seeing each other seriously now. As he is moving in with me, he knows that he must be careful of his public displays and will behave accordingly. My brothers, I will point out again that I am not the first male leader to take a commoner or another male for a lover. If it becomes more than that, I will of course, report to this council and we can work out our differences then."

"Thank you, Byakuya," Nori said, nodding, "We understand your position on this and will respect your request to address the matter if your relationship with Abarai-san becomes more serious...or if the understandings we have made with you are violated."

"Agreed."

"This meeting is adjourned."

Byakuya left the room quickly and descended the front steps to find Tetsuya and Arashi waiting for him. He mounted behind his cousin and Tetsuya turned Arashi back in the direction of the manor.

"So, how did they take it?" Tetsuya asked quietly.

"They took it fairly well," Byakuya answered, gazing over the top of the stallion's perked ears as Arashi carried them towards home, "They are not happy, but they realized quickly that, as long as I have not agreed to marry Renji, I am technically not breaking the rules. Renji and I must just keep our relationship private."

"I know that is not a problem for you, watashi no itoko," Tetsuya replied, "but are you sure that Renji-san is up to that? I am sorry. I know it is a delicate question..."

"But you are not wrong in asking," Byakuya assured him, "The council is already aware of Renji's reputation and it did come up. I was able to pacify them about it by assuring them that Renji had agreed to honor the need for privacy. And Renji was very clear in his commitment to honoring our rules as he is moving in."

"I know you love him, Byakuya," Tetsuya said softly, "and I am sure that Renji-san honestly means to keep his word, but...don't you think it will be hard for him to change his nature? Noble family life is very different."

"And I don't think Renji realizes what he is getting into, no," Byakuya confessed, "But..."

Tetsuya sighed regretfully and laced his fingers lightly together with his cousin's.

"But you are in love," he went on solemnly, "and I will do whatever I can to make your way easier. You know that. I love you in a different way, but it is no less powerful a love. I will be here for you, Byakuya-sama."

"I know that, and I am grateful, Tetsuya," Byakuya said, squeezing his hand gently.

Arashi slowed as he entered the manor grounds, then stopped. Tetsuya slid down and turned back, offering a hand to his cousin as Byakuya dismounted.

"That was fast," Renji commented, appearing on the wooden walkway at the entrance to the main building, "Did things go all right? You look like you're still in one piece."

"Yes," Byakuya said, meeting the redhead for a warm kiss of greeting, "I think we understand each other. As long as you and I keep things private, they will not interfere overly much. But I must warn you, they will be very sensitive to anything that could bring the family negative publicity."

"It's fine," Renji chuckled, "I told you last night. I'm done seeing other people. I am glad you let me move in. I love you and we're gonna be real happy together, Taichou. I promise."

"I know," Byakuya answered, sinking more deeply into his embrace and accepting a longer, more amorous kiss, "I just want you to be sure about your choice, Renji. They will not always make it easy for us. Just remember when things happen that are not pleasant, we are in this together. I went before them and I told them that we are in love. They have no choice but to accept it. Still, some of them might try to make you feel uncomfortable."

"Eh, bring it on," Renji said saucily, "I know what I have here."

He fastened his mouth on Byakuya's, trapping the clan leader in his arms and walking him backwards down the walkway as they kissed. As they neared the bedroom, their kisses continued to become more passionate.

"Maybe we should take a walk or something," Renji suggested, his voice slightly husky from the arousal caused by their kissing, "You're still not supposed to be having sex. You're supposed to be resting."

"Yes," Byakuya said unrepentantly, "but I feel like celebrating."

He turned his head and glanced at his attendant.

"Torio, will you have Matsuko prepare some chicken teriyaki and a lot of taiyaki?"

"You don't like taiyaki!" Renji laughed.

"Yes, but you do," Byakuya said affectionately, "And I feel like doing something for you. I am pleased you wanted to move in with me."

"Really?" Renji asked, smiling widely, "You didn't seem so sure before."

"I only wanted to make sure that you weren't being too impulsive," Byakuya corrected him, "You do seem to sometimes make decisions in a rather headlong fashion, Renji."

"Well, I don't like wasting time," the redhead said, good-naturedly, slowing as they reached the bedroom.

Byakuya looked back in the direction Torio had gone.

"You want me to help you change?" Renji offered.

"I don't need help changing," Byakuya chided him.

"You always let Torio change you," the redhead objected.

"Torio has been dressing and bathing me for years. And he is not in love with me. I don't get aroused by his hands."

"Oh? Is that a problem?" Renji asked, following him into the bedroom and across to the dressing area, "You're worried you'll be too aroused and we'll have sex?"

Byakuya sighed.

"Very well, then. If you think you can restrain yourself, go ahead."

He stood quietly as Renji moved around in front of him and began to remove the formal kimono Byakuya had worn to the council meeting. The redhead's hands moved quickly, copying the way he had seen the Kuchiki heir's attendant undress him and carefully folding each piece and laying it neatly aside, until Byakuya stood naked in front of the mirror. He started to pick up Byakuya's yukata, but couldn't help pausing to admire the noble's pale, lovely body.

"Torio would cause a family scandal if he looked at me like that while dressing me," Byakuya commented, sending a blush roaring across Renji's face, "Are you going to put that yukata on me, or are you going to stand there ogling me all evening?"

"I didn't know ogling was an option," Renji laughed, moving closer and pressing his fully dressed body against Byakuya's naked one while they kissed, "I've got to admit, you're too tempting for me. I don't know how Torio can see you naked like this and not want to make love to you."

"Torio is a cousin and close friend. We have never been interested in each other that way."

"What about you and Tetsuya?" Renji teased, "You never experimented together? Never?"

"You seem awfully curious about my sexual history. I assure you, it isn't nearly as interesting as yours, although, yes, Tetsuya and I experimented with kissing and a little bit of touching, nothing serious. I told you that I was virginal."

"Yeah," Renji giggled, "but you can do a lot of things and not actually fuck."

"Ah, I see. So, is all of this verbal foreplay really about my personal history, or were you angling for me to provide you relief from the fact that I am not supposed to be having sex while recovering?"

"Erm...w-well," Renji chuckled, nudging him in the direction of the bed, "actually..."

Byakuya stopped his words with kisses, devouring the redhead's rough lips hungrily and rubbing his naked body against Renji's still clothed one.

"Oh...ah, this is really tempting, Taichou..."

"Byakuya," the noble said, nipping his lips sharply.

"Ow! Shoot, mmm'okay, Byakuya. Hey, uh..."

Byakuya's fingers worked swiftly, baring Renji to the waist and revealing a sea of golden skin and dark tattoos.

"We really sh-shouldn't..."

"Shut up, Renji," the noble hissed in his ear, "I told you. I want to celebrate your moving in."

"We can celebrate, just, I don't want Unohana taichou to kill me and we already had sex when we weren't supposed to."

"So, one more time isn't a problem," Byakuya concluded.

"Aw, come on, don't make me have to be the bad guy!"

Byakuya smirked and teased a dusky nipple with the tip of his tongue.

"Very well, we won't have sex, if you're so worried about Unohana taichou."

Renji yelped in surprise as Byakuya slid down his front, his graceful hands sliding slowly over his chest and belly as the noble knelt in front of him.

"Oh!"

The redhead was left speechless as his noble lover worked his hakama free, letting it drop to the floor, then placed his hands firmly on Renji's muscular thighs and paused to breathe in his wild, masculine scent.

"You, uh, having second thoughts?" Renji teased, slipping his fingers into Byakuya's silken hair and caressing gently.

"No, I was enjoying your more feral scent," the noble informed him, leaning forward to address his nether region.

"Oh, you don't have to do that!" Renji panted, sweat breaking out on his forehead as Byakuya pleasured him, "I was r-really okay with us not having sex while you recovered."

"Oh?" Byakuya said, pausing and looking up at him through smoky eyes, "You want me to stop, then?"

"W-well, if you want an honest answer, it would have to ne hell no! But...AH!" Renji yelped as Byakuya snapped at his hungry nether region and began to pleasure him again.

Renji caressed the back of his neck more firmly, trying and not quite succeeding at holding his hips still as the noble's attentions swiftly overcame him.

"Y-you should stop if...!" Renji gasped, reeling, "Sh-shit! S-swallow!"

Byakuya's body stiffened slightly, but he maintained his composure, only coughing a few times after Renji had loosed his release and fallen onto the bed.

"Holy hell, Taichou," the redhead panted dazedly, "Sorry, Byakuya. I know you're not used to that."

"It's fine," the noble assured him, climbing onto the bed and embracing him, "I enjoy making you feel good."

"Well, you succeeded, that's for damned sure."

He kissed the noble, then ran his tongue along Byakuya's damp lips, tasting their mingled flavors.

"Would you like me to return the favor?" he offered, grinning.

"Perhaps in a while," Byakuya replied, taking a steadying breath, "I feel a bit giddy."

"I told you it was too much while you're recovering," Renji chuckled, kissing him on the cheek and curling his body around Byakuya's as the noble laid down, "Unohana taichou is going to kill me!"

"Stop fussing over me, Abarai," Byakuya scolded him, "I will be fine after I have eaten and rested a little. Besides, I was not going to neglect showing you my appreciation."

"For...?"

"For choosing me," Byakuya said, touching his face gently and offering him a long, lingering kiss, "I was not sure that you were ready to move in to the manor and focus your attentions on only one person. I am glad to see I was wrong about that. You seem to have given this a lot of thought."

"I have," Renji agreed, running his fingers through the satin strands of raven colored hair, "I love you. I'm not gonna mess this up. We're gonna be okay, Byakuya, I promise."

The words warmed Byakuya as he surrendered to sleep in his lover's strong arms, with Renji planting slow kisses on the side of his neck as he rested.

"I love you. I really, really love you. I know that now," Renji whispered in his unhearing ear.

He dropped off to sleep as well, only being awakened suddenly sometime later when Byakuya made a sound of discomfort and escaped the bed quickly. Renji frowned as Byakuya disappeared, then sat in the bed, scratching the back of his neck and listening as the sounds of his lover's retching leaked out into the room.

"Damn, now I really feel like a jerk."

He gave the noble a sympathetic smile as he returned to the bed.

"Sorry. If it makes you feel any better, you get used to it after a few times."

"I am not a child, Abarai," Byakuya said, kissing him on the cheek, "I am fine. I was feeling a bit off before anyway. I just need to eat something."

"What? But you just..."

"I said I'm fine, Renji," Byakuya said, looking up approvingly as Torio appeared alongside another attendant, each carrying a dinner tray, "Stop worrying so much."

"But you were hurt and you were supposed to be resting."

"It's fine," Byakuya said, digging into his meal, "I feel better already."

"W-well, if you say so," the redhead sighed.

Man, if he was a girl, I'd think he was eating for two!