"It's my fault for looking like Hisana" she said, now wishing she wasn't her sister's almost exact replica.

"No. I would love you even if you had nothing to do with Hisana" he insisted, putting a hand on her cheek. Lowering her eyes, she braced herself for another kiss, only to have him gently embrace her.

"You should get some rest" he whispered in her ear, releasing her.

"I'm sorry" she repeated before leaving. That night she had intended on leaving, running away from Byakuya, but she couldn't force herself to do it.

The next day Byakuya received a message from Yamamoto-taichou, requesting an important meeting as soon as possible. He assumed it was because of his reluctance to allow the Shinigami Woman's Society to take pictures of him. That had to be the reason, unless Renji reported him to the Captain Commander.

"Come in" Yamamoto called before Byakuya could knock. He entered the room with slow and thoughtful strides, wanting to still maintain the image of a noble.

"Captain Commander Yamamoto" he said, bowing.

"Byakuya Kuchiki-taichou, I have called you here to discuss your sudden letter of resignation. We have lost three valuable captains and cannot afford to lose any more" Yamamoto explained.

"Sir…" Byakuya began.

"I ask you to remove your letter of resignation. You are one of our best captains, we cannot afford to lose you as well" the Captain Commander continued.

"With all due respect" Byakuya argued.

"This is no longer up for debate. I hereby deny your resignation. You may go now" Yamamoto finished, showing Byakuya to the door.

"Thank you sir" he said, bowing before exiting. As soon as he was out the door he stood face-to-face with Ukitake-taichou. He turned and began walking towards an unused room, gesturing for Byakuya to follow. Closing the door behind them, he turned around with a stern look. Now intimidated, Byakuya returned the icy glare.

"Byakuya Kuchiki-sama, I understand that there seems to be some sort of developing close relationship between you and Rukia. Now I'm not here to discourage you, in fact I wish you both happiness…I just think that this should be said, to clear the air a bit. You and Rukia are in fact not blood related brother and sister, so it is not as much of a sin as you seem to believe. I only ask that you try to be subtle about your blossoming love around Abarae Renji, not that you should be concerned about him being jealous" Ukitake stated.

"Jealous? Why would my fukutaichou be jealous? Such petty human emotions are useless here. He's young and unwise, he'll find other women to love" Byakuya snapped, swiftly exiting.