Chapter 9: Frozen Tears
Byakuya walked calmly up the stone steps and entered the Kuchiki council hall.
"Good morning, Kuchiki-sama," the hall guards greeted him, bowing as he passed.
He proceeded into the entry, his feet tapping softly on the white marble floor with each light step. He turned to the left and was met by a hall attendant, who walked with him to an ornate door and opened it for him. Byakuya passed through the door and entered the small room where Tetsuya waited silently, his back turned and his sapphire eyes focused on something outside the window.
"Tetsuya."
The younger noble turned and met Byakuya's eyes quietly. He frowned in concern at Tetsuya's troubled expression, but he didn't have to ask why his cousin was feeling that way.
"Are you all right?"
Tetsuya considered the question for a moment.
"I am content."
"No, you are lying. I would like the truth. Before, you were comfortably accepting of this. Has something changed?"
Tetsuya held on to his composure and smiled stiffly.
"Things change all of the time, ne?" he answered, "Transient life suffers constant change. Do not be concerned for me. As I said I am..."
He paused, turning away form his cousin again.
"I am all right."
Byakuya's footsteps sounded softly, and Tetsuya felt a warm hand touch his shoulder. He closed his eyes for a moment, forcing down the emotions that welled up and the tears that longed to follow.
"It has happened, hasn't it?" Byakuya said solemnly, "My favored cousin has finally fallen in love again, ne?"
"I have," Tetsuya answered honestly, "But...do not worry. I had this obligation first, and I will see it through with you, Byakuya-sama. I really am content to do so."
"Does Rikichi know about this?"
"About me being in love with him?" Tetsuya pondered, a sad smile touching his lips, "Yes. And he returns the emotion."
"Does he know about...?"
"I had to be honest with him," Tetsuya confessed, "But you know that he will say nothing. He is not angry, and in fact, is more calm about it than I am."
"It is all right," Byakuya assured him, slipping his arms around Tetsuya and embracing him, "I, too, have a rather turbulent heart going into this. And if it will not offend you..."
He broke off, releasing Tetsuya and turning towards the chamber door as it opened, and a council sentry stepped inside to join them.
"The elders have gathered," he informed the two, "Come."
Byakuya followed the sentry, with Tetsuya a silent shadow, a step behind, at his right. They traversed the long hallway and entered the council hall meeting chambers, where the elders sat, waiting for them. Nori rose as the two moved out in front of the seated elders and waited.
Tetsuya felt Orochi's eyes watching him closely, but looked instead at the head elder and ignored him.
"Welcome, Byakuya-sama, Tetsuya," Nori greeted them, "The Kuchiki elders offer their blessing to this union, and hope that it will be fruitful."
"Thank you, Nori, members of council," Byakuya answered.
Nori started to say something, but paused, his aged blue eyes questioning as Byakuya went on.
"However..."
Tetsuya went breathless and still.
"With most abject apologies, it seems that I will be unable to fulfill the requirements for conception at this time."
"Why is that?" Nori asked, his eyes widening at the clan leader's words.
"There has never been a case of such a thing!" objected Kuchiki Fumio, frowning.
"I don't think we know what would happen if the purification ended without conception," added Kuchiki Arisu, her curious green eyes blinking slowly, "It has never happened in the whole of our clan's history."
"I think, rather than wondering about the 'how' of it, we should be asking about why he wants this, all of a sudden!" demanded Kuchiki Orochi, his striking black eyes fixing on Tetsuya. So, tell us, Byakuya-sama, why would you withdraw from this procedure at this late time? Has something changed that we don't know about?"
"It seems that our leader once again displays a blatant disregard for our rules and procedures," complained the more youthful, blue-eyed Kuchiki Hana, "I thought that he had promised to obey the rules of the clan."
"There is no rule on record that he must complete the purification and conception," Fumio explained, "The laws simply outline the conditions under which purification and conception must take place."
"Well then," said Orochi, his lips curling into the beginnings of a cold smile, "Perhaps we should also verify if there has been yet another circumvention of the rules."
"What are you saying, Elder Orochi?" asked Arisu, "Do you accuse our leader of something? Come out with it, then."
"Come now," said Orochi, shaking his head, "We know that he has spent the last two nights at his fukutaichou's apartment."
"That is because he collapsed near the Rukongai," Kuchiki Ryuu objected, "A clan healer visited him."
"Yes, he did," agreed Orochi, "And the healer reported that Byakuya-sama's life force had suffered from a fall-off. Now, you know that there are few ways that such a thing can happen and they are all illegal under our laws...which means..."
"It's my fault!" Tetsuya exclaimed suddenly, stepping away from Byakuya and facing the elders.
"Tetsuya," Byakuya began.
"No!" the younger shinigami insisted, "You cannot let them corner you into taking blame for something like that. The truth is...I could not go through with it! I wanted to, of course, but..."
"Tetsuya, you must..."
"No, please, Byakuya-sama," Tetsuya argued, dropping onto his knees in front of his surprised cousin, "You must just let me take responsibility! They are trying to accuse you of a capital offense. You have done nothing wrong. But...I have."
Byakuya looked ready to argue the point, but Tetsuya went on quickly.
"I...was...attacked," he said, swallowing hard and not daring to glance at Orochi, "And...Rikichi-san of the sixth division stopped my attacker from sexually assaulting me."
Shocked exclamations filled the room and Orochi's smile grew more wicked.
"I don't understand," he said dulcetly, "You say that you were attacked, but you never made a report of this. We would, of course, have investigated the attack thoroughly, and attempted to bring the perpetrator to justice."
Tetsuya's eyes narrowed, but he held back from accusing his cousin directly.
There is no way that, without any other witnesses, I could prove that it was Orochi who assaulted me. It would be my word against his. And I have experienced just how such a thing plays out...
"We understand that such a situation would certainly unnerve you," Nori said kindly, "And we are willing to consider delaying the conception."
"I agree that, given the attack on Tetsuya, we must refrain from any further action until the incident has been fully investigated. And Tetsuya should be examined by our healers to ensure that..."
"I am fine, Byakuya-sama," Tetsuya insisted, "It is not that I have become unnerved, but that, in the aftermath of what happened, I...acted irresponsibly."
"You must stop, Tetsuya," Byakuya said warningly, meeting the younger man's eyes meaningfully, "I appreciate what you are trying to do, but..."
"By all means, go on," Orochi said, a cruel glint in his eye, "Tell us the rest. You said that there was more."
"We agreed that there should be a postponement," Byakuya argued, "There is no reason to question Tetsuya any further. I will investigate the attack personally."
"But a postponement assumes that he is still fit to perform this duty," Fumio said, looking down at the notes in front of him, "If Tetsuya has something to confess that may affect his fitness as a clan concubine, then he should speak it before the council."
"Do you have more to confess?" Nori asked in a regretful voice.
Tetsuya came to his feet and stood proudly before the elders.
"Rikichi-san healed me. And more than that, he comforted me. And in the course of that, we kissed and admitted our feelings to one another. And although we held back from making love, I did break the rules of my contract by spending two nights, sharing his bed. We only kissed and slept in each other's arms, but I understand that this is not appropriate behavior for a clan concubine. I submit to the will of the council as to my punishment, and I offer my sincerest apologies."
The room went silent for a moment, then Nori moved to confirm with Fumio. The other elders whispered and stole glances at Tetsuya, where he stood quietly in the center of the room, with his head bowed and his body in a calm pose of waiting. After several minutes, Nori returned to his place and cleared his throat softly. Tetsuya's eyes lifted and met his anxiously.
"Kuchiki Tetsuya, the elders recognize your honesty and penitence by invoking a lesser punishment for your offense. You will serve thirty days in the council hall holding facility, and your place as clan concubine will be revoked."
Byakuya did not miss the shiver that went through his cousin's slender body at the mention of imprisonment, and moved forward to address the council.
"May I have a moment with my cousin before he is removed?" he asked quietly.
"Of course, Byakuya-sama," Nori said, sympathetically, ignoring an icy glare from Orochi.
Tetsuya followed silently as the two were led from the council chambers to the room where they had waited before. Byakuya waited until the guards had left them, then embraced Tetsuya firmly.
"Why did you do that?" he asked softly, "I was guilty of sharing my life force with someone...as you said, a capital offense."
"If you did, then there was compelling reason," Tetsuya answered, "I assume this has something to do with the rumor about Renji-san caring for a very sick friend."
"Yes, but..."
"Then, it is right to let this be as it is," Tetsuya affirmed calmly, "I am not sorry, neither for spending those two nights with Rikichi-san, nor for offering myself up for punishment. Mine is the lighter sentence."
"But you cannot tolerate imprisonment..."
"I will be fine," Tetsuya insisted, "I survived many years in Itamigiri, and I have only grown stronger."
Byakuya sighed and placed a warm hand on his face.
"Then, if you insist on doing this, so be it...but you will not suffer."
"B-bya..."
Tetsuya's eyes widened and stared as Byakuya invoked a flicker of his life force that fired through Tetsuya's stunned form and dropped him lightly into his cousin's arms.
"Sleep, Tetsuya. If you are determined to protect me this way, then I will protect you as well. Your sentence will be served peacefully, and when you wake, you will be free to enjoy the love that has conquered your heart."
He kissed his sleeping cousin gently on the forehead.
"I am happy for you. I hope that someday, I too, will feel the return of love into my life."
Byakuya carried Tetsuya out of the room and gave him over to one of the hall guards.
"Please see my cousin safely to the holding chambers. He is to remain in dreamless sleep for the duration of his sentence."
"Yes, Kuchiki-sama," the guard said respectfully.
"And Miki..."
"Sir?"
Byakuya glanced down the hallway at the entrance to the council chambers.
"Do not allow Orochi anywhere near Tetsuya's cell. Do you understand? That man is not to approach Tetsuya for any reason. And if he attempts to do so, I want you to inform me immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
XXXXXXXXXX
"Can I take this blindfold off yet?" Sakiko asked, smiling, "We've come a long way. Are we in the Seireitei?"
"Yeah," Renji answered, looking around the field they stood in, "But no, you can't take it off yet."
He chuckled at the unusual impatience in her demeanor.
"You don't want to ruin the surprise."
"I already know that you're taking me to the snow," Sakiko laughed, "What's so surprising about that?"
"Heh, you'll see. Just don't take that blindfold off."
Sakiko caught her breath as she stumbled, and Renji caught her nimbly.
"Whoa, be careful, all right?" he admonished her, "You could get hurt."
"Hmmm," the girl said, smirking, "It is a little late to be worrying about something killing me, ne?"
She sensed, rather than saw Renji's instantly crestfallen expression.
"It was a joke," she said, shaking her head and tightening her hand in his, "Don't be so serious. It isn't like you."
"Right," Renji chuckled, "Come on."
Sakiko held on to Renji's arm and continued moving forward.
"So...how is your taichou doing? Did you say that he as still staying with you?" she asked, casually.
"Oh...yeah, well he was until this morning. I was pretty worried about him. He's been without his powers for a while now, partially to finish up his healing, but partially to do some sort of ritual for his clan. I don't know what that's all about. But I'll be glad when he's done with it. I hate seeing him so tired looking and having dizzy spells and such. It just isn't my taichou to be like that...although...I have to admit, I really like taking care of him."
Sakiko remembered the gentle infusion of life force that the noble had given her and felt a twinge of guilt, hearing of the uncomfortable side effects.
"I am glad he has you," she said, smiling sadly, "And I am even more glad that I do! You are a wonderful friend, Abarai Renji...to Byakuya-sama and to me."
"Heh, yeah, well I guess I just like underdogs and hard luck cases, ne?" Renji laughed.
Sakiko smacked him playfully on the arm.
"You're mean!"
"Oh, so I'm such a good friend and I'm mean?" Renji said, laughing harder, "Just wait. We're almost there. I'll show you mean!"
They reached the crest of a hill and Renji stopped her at the top. Sakiko felt an odd, icy touch of wind on her face, then something very soft and cold making contact with her skin.
"Open your eyes," Renji told her.
Sakiko's eyes opened and her breath escaped her entirely as she took in the sight that laid out in front of her.
"Oh! Oh, Renji!" she gasped happily.
While the weather was warm and comfortable where they stood, the small valley before them was covered in a thick blanket of new snow, with more drifting lazily down from the cloudy sky. It neatly frosted the trees and grass, making a glistening, white spectacle in front of them. Tears rose in Sakiko's eyes and she wrapped her arms tightly around the redhead.
"Abarai Renji!" she cried, pressing her face into his strong shoulder and fighting tears, "This is...unbelievable!"
"So, you like it?" Renji asked, letting his fingers sink into her hair and kissing her on the top of the head.
"I love it!" she whispered, a tear leaking onto her face, "It's been so long since I saw snow...Renji, how did you do this?"
"A friend of mine has an ice zanpakutou. He's a taichou, so it's a damned powerful one. The spell he used here is one of his strongest attacks, actually, but he convinced the spirit in his blade to make it safe for us. Go on. You can touch it, make snowballs out of it, eat it, whatever!"
"Oh, I know what I will do with it!" Sakiko said, flash stepping forward.
For a time, all of the sadness around the two disappeared. Like the Rukon children they had once been, they bounded through the thick snow laughing and grabbing handfuls to throw at each other.
"Oh kami, what is that?" laughed Sakiko as Renji worked at a tall, oddly shaped snow sculpture.
"What? You can't tell?" the redhead said, giving her a look of mock reproach and turning to face her, "It's you and me covered in snow!"
Sakiko laughed harder and placed a hand on her aching stomach.
"R-renji, that...th-that is h-horrible!"
"All right, you!" he complained, hitting her with a soft snowball, "Let's see you do better!"
The midday turned into an a lovely, chaotic revelry, and through it all, neither of the two registered the dark, contented eyes that watched them from within a cluster of trees. Byakuya's heart ached softly with memory as he observed the two for a time, then turned back towards Kuchiki Manor,
Who are you, Renji, that a soul can be so happy in your presence...even when it is slowly dying?
