Gekkouha
Moonlight flower
Written by: Maru de Kusanagi
Beta read by: Persistence
-Terminology for this story-
DEMI-HUMAN: a half animal person, like the nekobito.
NEKO: 'cat' in Japanese.
NEKOBITO: it means 'cat person', and I made up this one. It's the conjunction of "neko" and "hito" (person). The Japanese grammar makes the 'h' change to a 'b' in this.
(new) INUBITO: Dog + person… I don't like how it sounds, so, I don't think I'll be using it too much.
OK, meanwhile I fight with chapter 7, I give you the story of the pretty black nekobito!
****=^..^=****
INTERMEZZZO: THE BLACK CAT STORY (1)
"A connection like this is never lost"
Why did the words of the young orange haired cat replay in his mind so many times? He was a man who kept things to himself and usually found a way to deal with his troubles, but what always happened with a particular matter, he never got a definitive answer.
That day it rained and the smell of the earth filled his senses. He went to the captains meeting with Yamamoto sou-taichou leading it like always. If he was a little out of it, it did not matter and after work he went home. He requested for a bath to be drawn and rested for a while in the great pool. He liked the feel of the warm water around his naked body; it was so relaxing that he closed his eyes.
He remembered Hisana with her sweet smile and absolute love for him. Her fragile health, which took her away from his side so early, was also the thing that made it impossible for them to have children. That was why the black cat came to his life.
***
They just discovered the cold hard truth and the news crushed their dreams. Unohana was conclusive: there was no hope for a baby. Even if she got pregnant, there was a small chance for it to reach the term or even the mother surviving the first month. Her body, after such a hard life in Rukongai, couldn't afford it.
A few days later, he decided to take her out to Karakura for a distraction. He wanted to let others know that even though she couldn't bear children, he loved her unconditionally and did not care what others thought.
Karakura was usual a lively place full of people coming and going. The people who recognized him bowed with respect. Other people looked at them with hatred and envy, but that was usual. They stopped in the park where something was being displayed.
"Can we go to see?"
"Of course"
They approached to see a man on a stage, talking to different people, men and women. On the stage behind him, various demi-humans were on display. They aged from around fifteen to mid twenties, both genders with different body sizes. Most of them were nekobitos, but there was also some inubito.
It was a demi-human auction, something so low that even Byakuya felt his anger rise. That was what the breeders usually did with his "merchandise".
"Come see one of the finest selections in years! Males and females! Pure breeds!" called the seller and with his arms he signaled the long legs of a female nekobito that was barely covered. "They are already fixed, so you don't have to deal with any unwanted offspring or the aging process! They are going to be like this for the rest of their lives! You will not find a better price for such quality!"
At that time, Byakuya didn't know how they "prepared" the nekobitos or cared to know about it. He felt disgusted and wanted to get Hisana out of such dirty place, but when he was about to touch her, her scream stopped him.
"Oh god!"
Hisana covered her mouth in horror. He followed her eyes and saw a small child that was put up for sale. It was no older than five with white skin and black hair. It wore a white piece of clothing with a hood that covered his head. Behind the hood, black hairs bloomed and sweet eyes shined under square glasses with innocence. The black pointy ears were up under the material and the tail waved from one side to the other.
"This is a special offer!" The seller announced, indicating the child "Since he's not a pure breed, I'll give him away at half price! He can talk and learn, although it is something that most people would find useless on a pet."
Some people looked interested and asked some questions to the seller. Meanwhile, Hisana approached and looked at the child. In his eyes one could see the fear and the traces of dry tears.
"Hello there" she said, smiling sweetly to him "What's your name?"
The boy sniffled and looked at his seller with fear, squeezing his hands nervously.
"Don't worry" she said, taking one of his small hands in hers "I'm Hisana and that's Byakuya-sama. And you?"
"Uryu...." whispered the nekobito.
"Uryu." she smiled again.
"Honorable lady" said the seller; getting her attention "I wouldn't recommend for someone like you this mutt thing... I have better specimens..."
"How can you say that?!" yelled Hisana "This is not a thing! It's a living creature, a child! How can you be so cruel...?" she started to cough and Byakuya held her. He looked coldly at the man, who gave two steps back. He knew that getting this man angry wasn't a good idea.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you..." he started to say.
"Here" Byakuya threw enough money to pay all the demi-humans on sale at the seller. The man was speechless "You, come with us. The rest of you are free to go anywhere you want."
All the people around looked at them like they had a second head. The demi-humans looked at each other for a moment. Freedom? Something that they only remembered in dreams, was it finally theirs? One after the other, they ran in different directions and the seller didn't know what to do. Uryu stayed there, looking at the couple that just bought him.
"Are you better?"
"Yes, thank you, Byakuya-sama" Hisana turned to Uryu and placed her hand to him "Let's go home, Uryu-chan."
A little hesitant, Uryu took it.
The short time that Hisana had left, (Byakuya never had another way to put it) was filled with her smile and the young Uryu together. He also liked the black cat; it was such a sweet thing.
And that kid loved to talk.
"My grandpa was called Itchida.... No, I-shi-da! Yep, that was it! He said I was Uryu Ishida! But after he died, the seller said that because I was a cat, I didn't need a last name... And that was why I couldn't stay at my house anymore"
Uryu bit into a pear unceremoniously and got his face all dirty. Hisana smiled and cleaned him with a handkerchief.
"There. And your mom? Or dad?"
"My grandpa told me that my mom died when I was born. As for my dad…he went to work... so it was only grandpa and me" It was an easy way to tell a small child that his father left him.
"Can I have another? The seller never gave me something this good!"
"Yes, go ahead" said Hisana and looked at him while he ate with eyes full of love. Even if this wasn't actual their child, Uryu was now with them.
"Yummy!" Uryu lifted his head and the hood fell from his head, revealing his soft black hair in all his glory. It smelled with pure and innocent love to his new "parents".
Hisana hugged the small child to her chest and kissed his head. "This is your home now."
"Really?" the voice of the nekobito was full of illusions and fear. He looked at Hisana and then to Byakuya, who bowed his head.
"Yes." he caressed the child face.
It didn't matter if this child wasn't human. It made Hisana happy and that was the only thing that mattered.
Hisana taught Uryu how to read, count, and sing some child songs. She also taught him how to sew (And that kid had a very good hand for that). Uryu grew up before they knew it (was it a year? Two? The time looked so vague when he tried to focus on it), maybe because he was a nekobito his body grew faster than a human child's. Never in the Soul Society's history was a nekobito raised so nobody knew how to help. Byakuya would never go to the seller to ask about it. Maybe Mayuri could give him some information, but surely he would try to dissect Uryu first. He knew what most did such as soon as the boy reached maturity he would stop growing. There were also some rumors about the sex, but he couldn't remember what they were.
Uryu was more attached to Hisana, and that was obvious. Even though Byakuya liked the child, he actually never let him to get too close because of his pride as a noble. It was still a heavy burden for him to hear the soft whispers about them being people of such status taking in a strange creature as their own. When he realized this, he tried to amend himself, but it was too late. Hisana died and he was too hurt to share the pain or comfort Uryu.
He still remembered the broken sobs of the kitten when they attended the funeral ceremony. He was hidden behind furniture because he didn't want to be seen (and he was glad because he did not need the accusing eyes of his family on him or on the cat's). Uryu started to become a very reserved kid, almost like himself. It was during this time that he lost the way to connect to Uryu, even though Uryu never stopped being at his side. But what hurt him more was the love the young cat still had for him in his eyes.
***
Byakuya got out of the pool and let the water drip off his body before and taking a towel to dry himself off. He put on a bath robe and walked to his room. He lingered in the doorway. The silence was complete.
"Uryu?"
Like usual, the cat was his shadow.
"Yes, Byakuya-sama?"
"Prepare some tea and bring it to my room."
Byakuya walked to his room and sat on the bed. That was their key words since that day.
***=^..^=***
Uryu didn't know how or when exactly he fell in love with his master. After Hisana-sama died, he felt so lonely, not even when his grandfather died did he feel this way. Back then, he was around the age of nine and hid behind a table to see how the ceremony was done. The priest made his prayers and they burned a scent into the air that smelled weird. He saw Byakuya stop in front of Hisana's portrait and pay his respects. After many hours, the visitors left and only then did he get his refuge. He approached the picture and closed his eyes. He put his hands together, just as he saw the others did and then he remembered he didn't know any prayers, so he didn't know what to say. Then, he decided to speak his heart.
"Hisana-sama, I promise you this: I'll never leave Byakuya-sama side."
And he never did, he learned how to prepare his master's favorite tea, assist him with getting dressed, and how to fix his hair. He even learned how to sew his kimonos and repair broken parts after he returned from some mission.
When he turned fifteen (but his body was like a boy around seventeen), one of the maids did a commentary about the "lovely way he attended Kuchiki-sama". That put a lot of things into his head to think about. For some time, he had this odd sensation in his stomach when he was near his master and his cheeks burned when Byakuya touched his hair. That year was hell, adding to the strange hardness in his underpants.
When the strange feelings started to get worse, he told this to Byakuya that he felt strange and his master took him to the Fourth Squad. After a regular check up, Unohana asked Byakuya if she could speak with the nekobito in private.
"So, Uryu, do you have anything you wanted to share?" the gentle eyes of Retsu Unohana looked at him with sympathy. "Don't worry, this is a patient-doctor talk so anything you say, I will keep it private."
Uryu arranged his glasses on his nose and looked at her.
"I... don't know... Lately, I have these weird feelings...."
"Like what?"
"Like... like anxiety.... heat on my face and a strange tickling in my stomach. In my... private part.... odds reactions..." Uryu felt the burn on his face even though this was a doctor, talking about this was very uncomfortable.
"Tell me Uryu, is this something that happens all the time or a specific moment like when you are next to certain person?"
"Well...sometimes my under part reacts alone, usually when I wake up. The other time..."
"When you're next to a special person?"
Uryu bowed with his head, feeling his cheeks burn harder.
"Well, I think the thing is clear. You're in puberty, when everyone's body makes a transition to adult and that's why your body reacts like this" stated Retsu, putting a hand on his shoulder before walking towards the door "and the other is simple: you're in love."
She opened the door and called for Byakuya to bring nekobito home. She told him that what happened to him was a normal aging process, so it was nothing to be afraid of.
The simplicity of the fact that Unohana revealed left Uryu silent until they reached home. In love...with Byakuya-sama? How did that happened?
Only when his master touched his shoulder did he shake out of his thoughts.
"I asked you what you talked with Unohana-taichou, if it's not something personal".
He knew it, why was asking him about it. But he wanted to talk to Byakuya's; usually when they were together there was a heavy silence.
"I... She explained to me what I feel is something normal, that I'm reaching the adult age."
"So, there is nothing to be afraid of" stated Byakuya, repeating the same words Unohana used. With nothing else to say, Byakuya excused himself and left him alone. Even with such a cold attitude, he loved him.
Thinking of this made him feel that odd sensation in his groin again. Damn. He went to his room and started to touch himself. He found himself doing this often to release his needs and give him his release since he was being denied what his soul screamed for. Uryu understood then that if he had such a need, maybe his master's was worst (well, his young mind was horny!). So, now he had to think of how to deal with his new goal of taking care of his master.
***
Byakuya wasn't oblivious to the young black cat's troubles. He did know that Uryu was dealing with puberty, but never expected that he was also dealing with a crush. Not until Retsu met with him to talk.
"Being such a fine captain and you don't seem to know what is happening under your roof. Maybe you aren't even seeing what happens inside yourself."
Byakuya never expected a lecture, but when he was about to open his mouth, Retsu put one hand up.
"Don't get me wrong." she said "Your little neko is all grown now and it's extremely attractive with the same needs like everybody else. He loves you and I know that you must feel something towards him because you wouldn't have kept him so close if you didn't feel the same way. Even if it was a promise you made to your late wife."
Retsu smiled at the soft blush that crept across Byakuya's cheeks. It was funny to see the usual cool attitude of the captain being changed so drastically.
"You have needs too, but for how long will you try to deny yourself liberation? How long have you been mourning Hisana?"
"It's not as simple as going and taking him to bed...."
"Dear, life is as hard as you want it to be."(2)
So everything started one night with a cup of tea.
Uryu was so serviceable as always and helped him to get undress. Byakuya took his usual bath and asked for tea.
In the dim light of the room, with just the two of them, everything looked so simple. With a simple kiss their night meetings started. (3)
***
After the first night, Byakuya couldn't help, but feel guilty. The cat's body stopped growing and that was when he found out how the breeders prepared the nekobitos. He avoided meeting Uryu for a while and then Rukia came into their lives. The young girl was just like her sister and Byakuya adopted her as his own. She came to live with them and got along with Uryu easily because she had the same kindness radiating off her as Hisana had. But she wasn't her and Byakuya found the one he desired in his house was the one with the pointy ears.
One night, while lying in the bed and trying to relax after the night's meeting, Byakuya felt the blue eyes of the black cat on him. He opened his eyes and saw the soul of the cat in those. Uryu never questioned him, but, after a few moments, he said:
"Did I do something wrong?"
It was a question filled with terror. Byakuya couldn't answer him and Uryu didn't repeat the question.
He tried to break his relationship with the cat and keep a distance between them.
Then, Rukia told him that she also met a nekobito in Karakura, an orange haired one. Byakuya went to where she said and found Urahara's place. It was a little unnerving to him at first to speak with the expelled shinigami, but he found that Urahara was a very intelligent man that hid it under a façade.
He discovered something about himself the day: he had a thing for cats.
Ichigo was so different from Uryu, straight forward and less hesitant. He had a nice body which didn't escape to Byakuya's evaluation. As he started to think about it, if he took Ichigo for himself it would stop placing Uryu in such awkward situation. Yeah, he was selfish thinking about getting a new one only to stop sleeping with the other. But destiny took the orange cat away from his grasps.
****^..^****
Uryu did not say anything while he drank the tea. He looked at him in silence, resigned to what he had. Byakuya put the cup down.
"Uryu" he said suddenly.
"Yes, Byakuya-sama?" said Uryu, raising his ears.
"No, you didn't do anything wrong." He answered, caressing his face. Uryu took the hand in his and kissed it. Even though his relationship wasn't clear, he was happy to know that his master didn't want to leave him behind. With a look on the image in front of him now, with the clean loose hair and the robe that hid his gorgeous naked body, he felt in paradise.
****=^..^=****
1-I don't know if there'll be any other of this episodes. I wanted to get clear this couple first before going on in the main story. Also, I think I'll need to check some stuff in earlier chapters.
2-so my mom said. She must know, she raised five kids!
3-Also, I didn't wanted or try it to do a lemon scene here. I thought it will not be something in harmony with the tone of this chapter.
4-see yah in the next one!