Nanao winced as Mori made another pass over her back with the cloth. She was glad she was facing the other way in the bath so the girl couldn't see her expression and apologize again a million times for hurting her.

"They're actually healing pretty well considering how bad it was," Mori said after letting out a hum of contemplation. "I still can't believe those kidnappers treated you so horribly. Its a good thing Tanaka-dono's men found you when they did."

Nanao tried to stifle a snort at the official story Tanaka's out of the loop employees had been fed. It was one of the first days she'd actually been able to move properly since that night, without her body screaming at her in pain. It was pretty amazing what an ordinary kido chain could do when applied with enough anger and force. She was ashamed to admit she'd been crying by the end, but still couldn't see how she could have prevented herself. Apparently shoving your future punisher down a flight of stairs wasn't the best idea ever. At least she hadn't told them how the children got out. Hopefully that exit could be used for future escapes either by herself or for other kids.

"Oh shoot, it's bleeding again. Hang on, let me get the cream," Mori said and rushed out of the room. Nanao let herself slump further down in the bath hissing when her wounds made further contact with the water.

She glanced at the bruising on her wrists and ankles from being restrained and was somewhat satisfied that they at least didn't look like they were going to get any worse. The bruises had already turned fascinating shades of yellow, blue, and green. Mori rushed back in and went back to the arduous task of cleaning her wounds before she would help her out of the tub and rewrap them. What Nanao wouldn't give for some nice 4th division healing right now. She'd been injured worse on the field than this, and yet had been able to move and feel a lot better in a shorter period of time with proper medical attention.

"You really are lucky they found you so quickly," Mori said, genuine concern showing through in her voice. "It could have been so much worse. I hope Tanaka-dono hunts them down and teaches them a lesson in respecting a lady."

"Mori-chan?" Nanao asked calmly.

"Yes?"

"Could we stop talking about it?"

"Oh yes, of course, how insensitive of me," Mori said sounding chastised. Nanao sighed and sat quietly allowing herself to be tended to. Mori was a sweet girl but rather naive and chatty. "Ne, Ise-sama?" the girl asked finally after a few minutes of silence.

"Yes?" Nanao prodded unwillingly.

"How did you get this scar on your hip?" the girl asked inquisitively. "It looks like it was a bad one."

"Hmm," Nanao murmured trying to identify what she meant and then remembering. As it was on the back of her hip, she often forgot it was there. "Oh that's an old injury. It was from a hollow attack."

"Oh, oh my goodness, were you terrified?" the girl asked curiously. "I've only ever seen a hollow from very far away."

Nanao figured she wouldn't confuse the girl by explaining that she'd been with the Gotei 13 and simply answered, "Yes, it was quite frightening." It really hadn't been at all.

That particular wound had been earned when she was out on a mission as the 8th's third seat. It was a simple enough assignment. There had been an increase in hollow activity in one part of the living world and a small task force had been sent from the 8th to take care of the problem. As some of the hollows sighted had been higher levels, they had also dispatched the 8th's third seat and fukutaicho. The fukutaicho at the time had been a boisterous man who disliked all female shinigami, thinking them below him, and had a particular distaste for Nanao specifically. It probably didn't help that her Taicho obviously favored his third seat to his fukutaicho in just about everything including division decisions.

Despite being able to admit that Kyouraku's favoritism was a bit unfair, Nanao thought the man was a cocky idiot who only earned the fukutaicho position because Kyouraku cared so little who was there, and the Soutaicho was desperate for someone to do some paperwork. The man had actually been one of the biggest motivating factors in her joining the SWA a few years later.

As it so happened, the hollow threat hadn't been very great at all, and their small group had been able to quickly cleanse the area. They were headed back when Nanao had paused, thinking she'd picked up on something out of place. When nothing appeared in a few moments, the fukutaicho had gone on to berate her and make fun of her for her skittishness. He'd been so enthralled in the opportunity to talk down to her without the watchful eye of their Taicho involved, that he'd completely missed the hollow rising up behind him. The only option to save him had been to get him out of the way, and Nanao had taken a hard hit from a hollow claw in the process of moving him. It really hadn't been that serious, just rather unsightly, and Nanao had quickly turned and dispatched the hollow.

Of course, the fact that it wasn't life threatening in any way had meant very little to her Taicho who had met them at the gate when they returned. He'd rushed her off to the 4th, and she'd told him vaguely that there had simply been a hollow that had surprised them. Kyouraku must have gotten the real story out of one of the other squad members, most of whom had grown to respect her over the years of proving herself and even like her to a certain extent regardless of her age and his favoritism, because when she came back to work the fukutaicho was gone. Apparently her Taicho had gotten rid of him rather quickly and subsequently refused to get a new one. It wasn't long until Nanao was elevated to the position.

"There, good as new," Mori said reminding Nanao that she was still in the room. "Now we can bandage it right back up." Nanao stood and allowed the maid to do her work trying not to react as the bandage material touched the wounds.

She'd been told early on in the day that Tanaka required her presence for a get together tonight. The guard that she'd shoved down the stairs had grinned as the clueless maid told her the information, and Nanao guessed easily that it was going to be yet another unpleasant evening. Mori had come up to help her get ready and she was sure a plethora of maids were on their way to help her with hair, clothes, and makeup.

Tanaka had mainly left her alone after the incident with the children. She had no doubts he was still angry, but she figured he'd been more than satisfied when he came in to see her the next morning and found her on the floor mainly unable to move without crying out in pain. He'd taken great pleasure in stroking her hair and telling her she'd only brought it upon herself and that she should be a good little princess in the future. Had she been in even slightly less pain she would have definitely tried to injure him. At least after that, he'd sent someone to care for her and regular forms of pain medication. This was the first night that she'd be seeing him again and she hoped desperately he wasn't going to surprise her with another group of worn out children.

"All done," Mori said happily, having finished wrapping them. "Now we'll get you dressed and ready for the evening, and you'll forget all about those nasty kidnappers. Won't it be fun meeting your fiancée?"

Nanao whipped her head around at this comment and got a sudden rotten feeling in her stomach. Something told her it wouldn't be a group of children tonight. "My fiancée is coming?"

"Oh no," Mori gasped, looking worried. "Was it supposed to be a surprise? I'm so sorry!"

"No," Nanao said weakly. "It's fine. It just slipped my mind."

"Oh my, you just got really pale," Mori said examining her worriedly. "Are you sure you're up to tonight? I'm sure Tanaka-dono would understand if you still weren't feeling well. I can go tell him you need to reschedule."

"It's fine," Nanao said straightening her shoulders. She wasn't going to give him the pleasure of further knowing what he was doing to her. "I just turned my head too fast."

Mori looked at her in slight disbelief and then grinned knowingly. "It's ok if you're nervous you know. I'm sure your betrothed will love you."

"Yes, I'm sure you're right," Nanao said accepting the excuse easily. Love was the last thing she was worried about. She supposed she should regret the fact that she had never told her Taicho she loved him, but she couldn't find it within herself to be anything but happy she hadn't told him. She knew him well enough to know he was already kicking himself for her disappearance, and had he had the extra burden of knowing her feelings, she had an inkling he would have just drank himself to death by now. If nothing more, at least keeping it to herself had spared him some pain. Nanao had always known that beyond all the other things stopping her from trying to have a romantic relationship with her Taicho, fear of loss had ranked as one of the things on top of the list. Right now he'd lost a fukutaicho and a friend. It had happened before, and he'd survived, and he'd do it again. Had he lost a lover, well she wasn't so sure he would get through that one, although that was of course presuming he'd have returned any of her feelings at all.

The maids made short work of getting her ready for the evening. She went along in a half daze regretting having ever thought about Kyouraku as it brought up all sorts of bittersweet emotions and memories. She was almost grateful for the times during the process that her injuries would be aggravated if only to drag herself away from her own inner musings. It didn't help that when she'd try to stop thinking about him she'd inevitably start thinking about her brother, which was still a situation she wasn't prepared to fully emotionally deal with.

"Tanaka-dono has asked for Ise-sama to be down in a few minutes," a guard said sticking his head in.

"Oh yes, we're almost done," Mori responded cheerfully as another maid put the finishing touches on Nanao's makeup. "Oh my, there's no chance he won't love you," Mori said confidently, turning back to her. Nanao was lead to the full-length mirror to examine the stranger standing in front of her.

Once again the maids had out done themselves. She stood there staring at herself with no glasses and her hair neatly styled down wondering which version of herself was really her. The large bracelets at her wrist covered the bruising there, and the dress was a gorgeous color that brought out her eyes. She was almost thankful for her injuries since they forced her into a dress that at least covered more skin to hide the wounds, than Tanaka would have probably otherwise permitted. Not that it did anything to hide her body, what with the sheer gauzy fabric that clung to every inch of her and the high side slit up her right leg.

"No man could resist you," Mori said misinterpreting her hesitance as worry and trying to comfort her.

"Might as well get this over with," she muttered turning away from her reflection violently. She much preferred her shinigami uniform and her strict hair and glasses. The maids exited in front of her and the two guards peeled away from the door to escort her down to whatever part of the house Tanaka happened to be hosting in. He greeted her at the door with a lingering look and a dark smile, and Nanao resisted the urge to hit him.

"You look lovely tonight," Tanaka said reaching up to touch her chin and tilt her face up towards him.

Nanao jerked away and glared at him. "What is the meaning of all this?"

"Now, now, Nao-chan, you can't expect this level of costumers to buy products sight unseen," Tanaka chastised kindly. "No, men of this distinction need to view the products before they go to market."

"I figured as much," she said darkly. "Don't expect me to behave just because you beat me once."

Tanaka laughed easily and put an arm around her waist tugging her flush against him. "I wouldn't dream of it," he said into her ear as she struggled to get away and then quickly calmed as the twisting motions sent shockwaves of pain through her back. "You should be proud, little princess. You're my crowning jewel for the evening. Even your first buyer has come back to see how you've grown, and trust me, it took some time to regain his confidence after your first escape. Come along then."

Tanaka stepped away from her and tugged her hand through his arm, walking confidently through the doors and dragging her a staggering step behind. Nanao resisted the urge to throw up and placed on an emotionless mask hoping to make it through the evening. At least it was just a viewing, as he'd put it. She got the feeling that no matter how much Tanaka disliked her he was enough of a businessman to known not to give out free samples of the goods without monetary returns. She'd be relatively safe until the actual bidding.

Looking around the room she could instantly spot the girls that were there under the deluded belief they'd be treated well, the girls that were there because they thought they had no other way to survive, and the ones that had been brought by force. She let her rage at Tanaka boil up to a new level if only because getting angry was more productive than being scared. The men around the room were chatting with the girls and looking them all up and down unabashedly. The moment she walked in a rather slimy looking man took an intense and unembarrassed interest in her figure, and Nanao wondered what Tanaka would do if she slapped the man. At least years of living with sexual harassment from her Taicho had done something to prepare her for the lewd looks and comments that were sure to come her way this evening. It was just that with her Taicho she knew she was safe no matter what sort of jokes he cracked. He'd kill himself before he'd actually hurt her or go against her will. She was quite sure these men didn't share a shred of that emotion.

"Tanaka-san," the slimy man said coming over to them. "So good to see you. And this must be Nanao-san." He leaned over taking her hand and pressing an uncomfortably wet kiss to the back of it. "You did grow up exquisitely."

"I promised you as much," Tanaka said calmly, watching the interaction.

"You promised she would do as much in my care," the man snapped coldly. Nanao looked him over and realized he must be the mysterious man who had bought her all those years ago before Mamoru broke them out.

"And I've apologized for that," Tanaka said, looking unhappy to be making anything even remotely like an apology. "But your money was returned and as you can see we have the opportunity to put things right. Really, she's collared so it shouldn't be a problem to break her even if she's not a child."

"I still say my first offer should stand," the man said looking her over greedily and brushing a hand up her throat to the jewel-encrusted collar.

Nanao was about to slap his hand away, but Tanaka moved first, snatching it and removing it from her neck. "And as I said, your money was returned in full. Taking into account rising cost, and the considerable danger I placed myself in to retrieve her, her price has gone up as well. I'm sure we can strike a fair deal at the bidding tomorrow. You can't honestly expect me to sell a thoroughbred racehorse at the price of a mule. Although, I do have many other lovely options if you don't want to buy quite so pricey of an item."

"You would do well not to offend me," the man growled out.

"I meant no offense," Tanaka said smoothly, "But she is my precious daughter and I must look out for her best interests."

As Tanaka finished talking a breeze ran through the room. The door to the outside had been opened once more by a footman, allowing new potential clients into the room. All three of them turned to glance at the newcomers out of habit, and Nanao thought her heart might stop in her chest when she recognized them. She felt Tanaka's hand move to her arm and jerk her roughly closer to his side.

"One wrong move and I kill him before he knows what hit him," Tanaka hissed low enough that the slimy man couldn't hear. He adjusted the blade hidden at his wrist, and Nanao had no doubts it had some sort of nasty poison at the tip. "Do you understand me?"

"You wouldn't dare do it with both of them here and this many witnesses," Nanao said scathingly, hedging her bets as she felt slight flutters of hope coursing through her system. How had he even found her here?

"Maybe you're right," Tanaka agreed. "But he's not the only one I can hurt. How is that nice family that took you in and hid you doing? I hear they have two lovely little daughters." Nanao looked at him in surprised and then glared at him. "Thought I didn't know did you? I did my research to find you," he said calmly already seeing his win. "One word to him and I slit the parents' throats and sell the girls off to the most vicious client I have."

Nanao tugged her arm from his grasp, but did nothing further to indicate her displeasure. "That's a good girl," Tanaka cooed. "I knew you could be reasonable. Now I'm going to go handle the disturbance and you are going to stay here."

Tanaka took off in quick strides across the room and Nanao couldn't help but watch him go. She looked again towards the door and instantly found herself locked in her Taicho's gaze. Despite being terrified for him, and not knowing what he could possibly do besides simply throw her over his shoulder and take her back, it was the first time she'd felt this calm in days. If nothing else he'd come for her, found her despite everything. Kyouraku gave her a slight nod and then turned towards Tanaka giving him a carefree smile, as Tanaka approached him and Ukitake.

A sweaty hand touched her arm and she jerked it away, only to find the oily man standing next to her. "Come on then, you and I are going to have a talk," the man said smarmily.

"Perhaps," Nanao conceded knowing she couldn't risk the family that'd helped her by being too confrontational, but unable to help looking back at her Taicho conversing with Tanaka at the door. A slight smile touched her lips and she said, "But I don't think it'll be a very long talk at all."


A/N: You're reviews were so nice they made me teary eyed :) It also gave me encouragement to get over the part I was stuck on and write more of this story! (I'm also getting an idea for an AU story with them to be written in the future... perhaps I should have continued to only read fanfic and not write it. I'm slowly cultivating an addiction, ha) Hopefully I will have the next chapter up in the next couple days.