Chapter 11: Scars of the Past
Rina made sure that Morticia was comfortable and then shut and locked the door using a powerful spell. She walked back into the living room and noticed Shuhei staring at her. She blushed for the first time that he'd seen and it made him smirk. She turned her face away from him and walked over to the middle of the room to explain what was going on to the rest of the group.
"Alright, Ekaterina…what exactly is going on?" Ichigo demanded, scowling at her. She felt her jaw clench a second before she planted her fist in the orange hair boy's face. He flew back and landed in Orihime's arms, gawking at her.
"You're just like him. You don't care how others feel; whether or not what you're doing to them hurts…You want to know what my problem is? Why I am the way I am?" she hissed and dropped the spell hiding her true appearance.
Everyone, including Jelena, gasped. Jelena buried her face in Uryu's shoulder because she didn't want to see the horrible scars all over Rina's arms, chest and face. Shuhei stared, wide eyed. Those scars were healed over and he could tell it had been many years since she received them.
"Who…why?" Ichigo stuttered. Rina restored the spell and looked away from them.
"Maksim, my grandfather, did this to me when I was four and a half. That's why my father took off with us when we were little. He found me in a device that slowly and painfully bleeds its victims to death. Maksim calls them blood cuffs. He uses the blood of people with gifts, such as his own children and grandchildren, to prolong his worthless life." Rina couldn't look Jelena in the face. She turned her back on all of them.
"I was a child prodigy when I was born. I was walking and talking by my first year and I could wield incredible magic by three. On my third birthday, I summoned Octavius because I was lonely. It was common practice by the Bokovicts to leave their children alone on their birthdays for long periods of time to see if they could summon one of the beasts from the Nine Rings. Octavius is a Third Ring beast, and for me to summon him at such a young age was unheard of." She held no emotion as she looked out the window of the Kurosaki home.
"Maksim took an unnatural interest in me and started teaching me the black arts very young. My parents objected, but they couldn't do anything as long as we were in Russia. My grandmother was the only one that could make Maksim do anything. He taught me about the Nine Rings of Heaven and Hell, but he also told me that Bokovicts only summon demonic beasts from the Hell Rings and that the angelic beasts from the Heaven Rings would turn on us. I didn't believe him, but that's not unusual. I learned very early he couldn't be trusted." She felt their eyes on her, including Jelena's. Gods how she wished her sister didn't have to hear this…but it was necessary if she was to secure protection for them all.
"At age four I summoned a Ninth Ring beast by the name of Fyrevein. Angered that a mere child had summoned him, he tried to eat me. When I fought off his attack with my magic, he submitted and I became his Valkyrie. I know most of you have heard of valkyries as warrior women of the god Odin, but there are several different types of valkyries." She looked over her shoulder from the corner of her eye and found Shuhei staring at her intently. She sighed and continued.
"A Valkyrie of the Nine Rings, be it Heaven or Hell, is a being that has mastered the Nine Rings by summoning the Ninth Ring's ruling beast. Fyrevein is the ruling beast of the Ninth Ring of Hell, while…" she was cut off when Jelena stood and walked up to her. Everyone watched.
"While Andromeda is the ruling beast of the Ninth Ring of Heaven. I, too, am a Valkyrie. I am the Guardian of the Ninth Ring of Heaven." Jelena looked at her sister sadly and cupped her cheek. "I am sorry Rina, but I could not tell you for fear that it would put you in danger. I did not know you were Hell's Valkyrie." Rina smiled at her sister and patted the younger girl's head.
"Do not worry mishka…you are fine. I would not tell you for the same reasons, so I guess we are both at fault. However, there is one thing you have that I lack. You are my humanity, as mine was stripped very early in life. You are human, where I am not. I live only to serve and protect…to die for my family. That is my sole purpose in life." she said and she let her sister go and returned to staring out the window.
"As powerful as I am, my weakness is my family. I can not always protect them, as I am not always with them. Part of my…condition…requires that I sleep for days at a time…that is why you hardly ever see me on the weekends. As long as I live in the human world, this will be so. I will be vulnerable without this sleep. Jelena, as a Valkyrie of light, does not suffer this thankfully. She is the normal one of us." She turned stern, businesslike eyes on the two older ex-shinigami.
"I don't know what your stations are, or if you are even part of Soul Society any longer, but I do know skill and power when I smell it. It permeates the two of you like your natural scent. I came here tonight to ask for the Soul Society's help. I am willing to trade my life for the safety of my family. All I ask is that my parents, my little brothers, and Jelena be protected. If that requires me to die, then I will…after I have killed Maksim." She looked at her sister, who had tears in her eyes.
"Don't worry Jelly Bean…You will still have mum and dad and the little monsters. And I will always protect you." She hugged her sister close and stroked her golden locks. Yuruichi could feel herself tear up. It was noble that this girl of only seventeen years was willing to die to protect her family…however, there was no guarantee the Soul Society wouldn't just kill them after Ekaterina was dead.
"I would offer Soul Society's help, but I am no longer a part of it." Yuruichi looked at both girls and sighed, deciding to tell them the truth. "And there is no guarantee they wouldn't kill your family as soon as you were dead. Many of your kind have died at the hands of the shinigami when they were told the Soul Society was going to protect them. You can not count on them to help you." Rina stiffened and narrowed her eyes at the older woman. Jelena burrowed closer to her older sister.
"However…there is a small group that operates outside the Soul Society." Rina turned and looked Ichigo in the face. He was smirking and he had his arm around Orihime's waist. Rina noticed this and narrowed her eyes at him once more, looking at his arm. He chuckled and looked at Orihime, who smiled.
"We were worried about you guys finding out who we were, but I guess that with the spirit awareness you both have you knew that there wasn't something right about us." Ichigo smiled at them. Rina sweat dropped and looked at him, then at her sister.
"Jelena can hear shinigami a little, but she can't see them. I've known what you guys were all along. I could see the shinigami when I walked in…and I could hear them." Rina turned her ice-like eyes on Ikkaku and Yumichika then. Both gulped and hid behind Chad, who had Tatsuki standing very close to him.
Ichigo was about to say something when Chad spoke for the first time. "How long have you known about us? And how much do you know about each of us?" Rina looked at him and smiled a nervous smile.
"Well, uh, you see…" she chuckled nervously and then looked away from them as she answered. "I knew what you guys were before I even met you. I could feel your presences throughout the school. It's why I allowed myself to make friends with you. It's nice not being alone anymore. It's not often I meet someone that can do some of the same things I can." She noticed everyone sweat drop at the fact they had been so easy to read. She cleared her throat and looked at Tatsuki.
"The day you asked me to join the fighting club was the day I found out about you, Tatsuki. You don't have as much awareness as the rest of them, but your aura was the hardest to read. You know how to hide your ki better than the rest of them. You were the one it took me the longest to figure out. Ichigo, however, was the easiest." she heard a choke and looked over to see Ichigo's leg in the air twitching.
"HAHAHA…little Ichi was easy!" Renji teased until she pointed to him and said he was the next easiest to figure out what he was. He shut up then and scowled. Ichigo stifled his laughter and looked at Rina.
"How much do you know about us then?" Rina sighed and sat on the coffee table while Jelena joined Uryu on the coffee table.
"I knew from your ki pattern that you were a shinigami, Ichigo. You are one of the more powerful ones. Your Zanpakto is rare…it's not really an element, unless you count humanity as an element. Where the others have beasts, much like my own, yours is human. You have a hard time controlling all your spiritual energy. I can help you with that. I'll show you how I mastered control of my magic. It's the same concept, except mine is unlimited while yours is stored inside your own body. Also, you're a vizard, meaning you are a Shinigami that has the powers of a hollow. Hichigo, your inner hollow, needs to be taught a lesson by the way. I can hear the way he talks about Orihime all the time and it pisses me off." She turned and looked at the others then, not noticing Ichigo blushing violently.
"Renji was almost as easy as Ichigo, but I didn't get the connection between him and his Zanpakto until I actually watched him fight. Then it was easy to figure out. Rukia was next, as she has the same ki patterns as all shinigami. I couldn't figure out her Zanpakto, but then I realized that her ki was extremely drained. Didn't take me long to track her signature and talk to her Zanpakto. I can't believe Ichigo took all her power…greedy little bastard." she smirked as Ichigo turned red and scowled.
"After I figured out Rukia, I met Uryu. I knew as soon as I looked at him that he wasn't a normal human. His ki was much more advanced than most humans and more concentrated than Ichigo's and the other shinigami. When I touched his arm for the first time I knew immediately what he was. It's because he's human that I entrusted Jelena's safety to him…plus I knew he was her type of guy. He's smart, fun to be around, and polite. Something none of you guys are…except maybe some of the captains. The underlings certainly aren't…" She grumbled the last part and glared at Ikkaku and Yumichika again.
Both men shrank back and held up their hands defensively. Several chuckles were heard and the tension dispersed. Everyone was feeling better now that a joke had been made. Rina smirked and looked at Orihime with a smile similar to the one she always gave Jelena. "Then there Hime-chan. I knew she had a special power, but I didn't know it manifested itself as shield wielders that lived in her hairpins. I didn't learn that until I actually touched her for the first time. Her little friends could sense me and gave me a warning probe." Orihime stared at Rina with wide eyes as the older girl laughed.
"Chad was probably the hardest of our group of friends to figure out, next to Tatsuki. I still haven't figured Tatsuki out completely. Chad, however, became more of a game to me. I knew he had spirit awareness, that was evident in everything he did. I just didn't know that he was a half-breed. No offense to you, Chad." Rina held up her hand and Chad just nodded at her. She then looked at Urahara and Yuruichi.
"All the others I knew what they were as soon as we drove up. I could sense their ki levels. Including the one that is attempting to hide. I suggest you come out if you value your life. I can feel the blood lust rolling off you in waves." She turned to see a large man step forward from thin air. There was a small pink haired girl on his shoulder.
Ikkaku and Yumichika gasped and looked at their captain. "Sir…what are you doing here?" they asked at the same time. Everyone looked at Kenpachi then. Shuhei narrowed his eyes on the man that was shaking with the need to fight.
"I can feel your lust for a fight. I will not give you what you want shinigami. My purpose in seeking out help is to preserve the lives of my family. That is something you can appreciate, ne?" Everyone noticed Kenpachi stiffen, and then he gave a snort of laughter.
"Perhaps we can fight at a later date then." he looked over his shoulder at the little pink haired girl. Yes, he could appreciate trying to preserve the lives of family. The little cotton candy haired girl that was his lieutenant was very precious to him, even if no one could really tell by their actions around each other. Kenpachi then turned to his fellow shinigami. "Because I want to fight her, I will not tell anyone in Soul Society about her…unless she poses a threat." He then turned his back and was about to leave when he felt a small hand on his shoulder.
He turned and saw the young blonde mortal that was obviously the sister of the one he wished to fight. The girl's warm amber eyes looked up at him entreatingly. "Won't you stay and have some sake, Taicho-sama?" she asked with a smile. Kenpachi was taken back by the young woman's lack of fear. He took a menacing step towards her, but she didn't even open her eyes. He did, however, hear a growling noise. He looked up to see the other girl glaring at him with menacing blue eyes. For the first time in his life, Kenpachi wasn't sure if what he'd done was smart.
"You lay one finger of my baby sister and we won't have to wait for me to destroy Maksim for me to send you to hell." Kenpachi noticed that she had a warriors stance, something not many women, mortal or not, used. He put up his hands and backed off the small blonde. The blonde smiled and looked over her shoulder at her sister.
"Don't worry Rina…I'm not afraid of him. Even in my mortal form, I am much stronger than him." the young girl's reply made everyone gasp except the girl she was talking to. Kenpachi arched a brow and bared his teeth.
"You want to test that theory little girl?" He was about to take a step towards her when he was suddenly frozen. The girl had opened those amber eyes and they were no longer warm and smiling. There was a promise of pain in them he'd never seen in such a small woman.
"Zaraki Kenpachi. Born November 19 to two peasants in the 80th District of Rukongai. Real name is unknown, age unknown. Height 201 centimeters, weight approximately 90 kilograms. Captain of the 11th Division of Soul Society's Gotei 13. Surrogate father of one Kusajishi Yachiru…his only known weakness." She had a glint of menace in those eyes that made Kenpachi nervous.
"How do you know so much about me little human?" he hissed and turned the shoulder Yachiru hung on away from the girl. The girl went back to smiling, all menace gone. She giggled lightly and actually poked Kenpachi in the head.
"Silly…I'm Andromeda's Valkyrie…I can find out anything about anyone in Rukongai by just asking her. She was the one that just told me all that information. Besides, Andromeda likes to keep tabs on the people that do good deeds…even the ones in Soul Society. When you saved Yachiru and took her in, you were guaranteed salvation. Not everyone would have done that…not even the 'pacifist' Kaname Tosen." she heard them all gasp at the mention of the traitor. They hadn't quite defeated ALL of Aizen's forces, but they were really close. Most of the Arrancar had been destroyed, along with most of the Espada. Only two had lived through the battle and they now worked WITH Soul Society, though begrudgingly. All either of them wanted was to be free.
The tension was broken when 'Dance Floor Anthem' by Good Charlotte started playing. Everyone saw Rina jump and then dig into her jacket pockets for her cell phone. "Hello?" she asked in an exasperated tone. Her eyes lit up immediately and she smiled the biggest smile anyone had ever seen. "Are you fucking with my head!? Seriously, you're at the house now!? How'd you get here!? When'd you get here!? How long are you staying!?" everyone noticed her excitement die a little, but then she smiled again. "I'll be there in like two seconds to get you. I'm at a party with Jelly-Bean…don't worry about it…just dress for a mess girl!"
Everyone was looking at her as she grabbed her coat and ran out the door. They then all turned to Jelena, who looked pale and frightened. "What's wrong Jelena-chan?" Uryu asked and was instantly by her side. She looked at him, then back out the door.
"We are in so much trouble if that is who I think it was…" Everyone looked at the door as they heard the car peel out of the driveway and down the road. They looked back at Jelena, who had her head in her hands.
"What do you mean by that, Jelena-chan?" Orihime asked, sitting beside her in worry. Jelena looked up at them and held up her hands.
"I am not getting in the middle of this. You will just have to wait and see for yourselves. Tonight is about to get much, much weirder." She walked over to the kitchen and did a very un-Jelena-like thing…she grabbed a bottle of sake and chugged half of it. Her eyes watered and she shook her head. She walked back over to Uryu and put her head on his chest, right above his heart. "We are so screwed if that was Liz…" she muttered and sighed, cuddling up to the blushing young man.