Supernova

By Willow Athena

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or any of its characters, but Rien and this story are definitely mine

Author'snote: THANK YOU to all my reviewers; I really appreciate the encouragement and kind words. I'm glad I'm not just talking to myself, and that you all care about the story and characters so much. Thank you for your feedback, I really do take it all into consideration and love hearing from you after every chapter. I really felt like jumping up and down like a fangirl when I read some of your reviews. Forgive me for the long chapter, but it had to be done.


CHAPTER 29 – Fear Is Necessary


Byakuya was awake. He waited for Yoruichi and Urahara to return. In truth he had not even tried to sleep. He had left Rien alone in her room, remaining in his undone shirt and black pants. He had leaned against her closed bedroom door for hours, waiting…for what, he didn't know. Maybe he was waiting for her to run after him and ask him to stay this time, she had never asked him to stay, not even the last time he had kissed her. Perhaps he should stop leaving, so she would not have to ask him to stay, he ironically thought.

"What are you thinking about, Byakuya-bo?" Yoruichi surprised him. He briefly wondered how long she had been standing there, but decided not to dwell on it. "Rien's door looks comfy, come scoot over," Yoruichi added, pushing him closer to the door knob so she could also lean against the door.

"I was standing guard," Byakuya lied.

Yoruichi let him have the lie.

"And you didn't even have time to fully change," she teased, taking in his almost shirtless appearance. "That's dedication for you."

"We must discuss things before Rien and I return tomorrow morning," he said more stiffly.

"Sure, Kisuke is already waiting with some tea in the dining room. I guess you've earned the right to know now," she said, walking away.

They had all congregated in the dining room and Byakuya had reluctantly accepted Kisuke's strange smelling herbal tea. Perhaps he had made it from expired merchandise from his shop, or poisoned it, Byakuya idly thought. Byakuya did not approve of Urahara Kisuke and his flagrant disregard for the rules, any rules! Kisuke had not warmed to Byakuya's icy demeanour either. Byakuya wanted to ask what he had wondered since Yoruichi had summoned him the previous night. Soul Society was never involved, Yoruichi and Urahara had managed to keep everything off of Seireitei's radar, with Ukitake's help.

Yoruichi had personally come to see Byakuya and ask for his help. Who knows what had led her to believe that he would break so many Soul Society rules and help her, but she had come to intrust him with a secret that could hurt Rien if revealed. He should have reported the new information; it was a standing order to both him and Ukitake to report any new developments in Rien's case. Although he knew neither he nor Ukitake had ever reported anything. He should have also reported the tattoo, now that he thought about it.

Byakuya had felt that he should turn them all in when Yoruichi had first burst into his bedroom. But, as soon as Yoruichi said Rien needed him, his will had crumbled and instinct took over. It seemed Rien was his only exception to many things. He would do anything for her, and his eagerness to help was perhaps too revealing to Yoruichi, who had begun to call him Byakuya-bo once more, just like she used to when she cared. His previous stance on Rien had put a strain on their friendship, but now that they were on the same page, Yoruichi reverted to her old condescending ways.

"I must know what she is," Byakuya inquired.

"Why?" Kisuke asked. "You knowing won't change anything," he added.

"You know who she is," Yoruichi argued. Byakuya needed to understand that he knew Rien, regardless of what she turned out to be.

"I would like to know if I will one day have to kill her because she is a new type of evil we have never before encountered," Byakuya said in earnest as Senbonzakura's protest rang in his ears.

"Even if she was, none of us would ever be able to kill her, not after loving her so much," Kisuke argued.

"That is precisely why she is so dangerous," Byakuya argued. Not realising that he should have denied loving her, instead of pointing out that she was dangerous.

"Just tell me," Byakuya insisted.

"I don't know what she is yet, but I have an idea," Kisuke revealed.

"Well?" Byakuya pressed. He needed to know, now more than ever. His heart was in danger. It was probably too late, even if she was an evil monster, he would not be able to stop loving her. He was hoping for the worst, perhaps it would shock him out of these feelings he could not defeat. But how could evil look so innocent and trusting? How could evil love so intensely? How could it be so beautiful?

"She is both alive and dead, both shinigami and not shinigami…I believe she may be immortal, but we must protect her until she is strong enough to withstand the force of her powers," Kisuke explained.

"Byakuya-bo, do you remember the legends I told you about Slayers?" Yoruichi tried to be less cryptic than Kisuke. She was well aware of Kisuke's reluctance to entrust Byakuya with Rien's secret.

"She cannot be immortal, she almost died in my arms. And if she is indeed immortal, why would she require our protection?" Byakuya questioned the former head and founder of the Research Bureau. Byakuya remembered the legendary Slayers and their deadly precision, and she could not be one, they were always men, and she was fragile. She could not be a Slayer, and she was certainly not immortal.

"It is a common misconception," Kisuke condescendingly began, to an expressively arched eyebrow from Byakuya. "I believe her immortality allows her to keep regenerating each cell as it dies, and that she would live forever unchanged if allowed to, but she can still be killed. There have always been small clues to her immortality, my successor Kurotsuchi taichou obviously missed them, for instance, because of her immortality she cannot have children, they would serve no purpose, she does not need to procreate to ensure her genetic code will endure, she will live forever. But only if protected," Kisuke added, for emphasis.

"She is evolving every day, she is getting stronger, but she is still at risk from others who would exploit her. Adaptation and accommodation are the two most simple and simultaneously complex processes ever discovered, and they are what she is instinctively best at – adapting to her environment," Kisuke hypothesised.

"Due to her time with Kurotsuchi Mayuri, her body has evolved to develop high-speed regeneration to fend off what it assumed were constant attacks. Because of her time with us, her shunpo and shunko are also at high levels of mastery, even though she does not often use them. Jyuushiro-kun tells us that her aikido and kido abilities are at a fukutaichou level, maybe even higher since she picks things up so fast. It's just with you that she has not allowed herself to shine. You must stop being afraid to hurt her and train her, she will need to be able to defend herself in the future," Kisuke explained.

"She came into existence in her current form because she can never change, and her soul chose you to protect it that day. When we are all old and frail, she will still be as she is now, but there will be no one left to protect her. She must learn," Yoruichi added.

"We must shield her from all this knowledge. She cannot know that she will eventually lose us all, I think loss is the only thing that can cause her to implode in on herself. And if she chooses to give away her life, then she will take out all of Seireitei with her," Yoruichi revealed.

"During our history lessons, do you remember reading about unexplained explosions taking out whole districts in Rukongai, hundreds and even thousands of years ago, it used to always happen around times of war, so everyone thought they were bombings. The Shihouin Clan was assigned to investigate these bombings while the Kuchiki Clan had been asked to investigate the troublesome Bantou at the time. I think that there have been others like her, always only one born, alone in the world, and always born during times of need. It's like Heaven was testing what conditions would be perfect for them to introduce this weapon.

Introducing Slayers into the world with all of their power, corrupted their souls, and often caused them to become power hungry tyrants. Unless you take time to learn to control power, the power will take control of you, and I think that's what happened to them. They used their power without discretion and understanding, and it eventually turned against them and killed them. Their power was supposed to be used to help Soul Society, but they started to think of themselves as Gods, and wanted to control every one. She is a Slayer, a weapon, born to kill.

I think whoever in Heaven was experimenting with this finally figured out that it was not enough to live, a Slayer needed something to live for, people to love, and consequently protect. She will be in agony as her powers bloom. The full force of her power alone may kill her," Yoruichi revealed.

"The wrist-guards I gave her limit her Ki. She must wear them everytime she fights or the magnitude of her unfocused Ki will tear her apart from the inside. I was previously afraid to have her with you, where I would not be able to help her. Neither her body nor her mind would have been able to withstand the force of calling out her zanpakuto last year, but it appears as though her zanpakuto may kill her if it not released soon. We now have no choice," Kisuke looked determinedly at Byakuya beneath the dark rim of his signature hat, trying to gauge his reaction and ascertain whether or not he could be trusted with their beloved Rien now that he knew the secret they had been keeping from Soul Society for almost two years.

Jyuushiro had known for a while now, and Kisuke did not think it was necessary to include Byakuya, but Yoruichi had finally convinced him that Byakuya could be trusted with Rien's secret. However, there was always that unpredictable part of Byakuya, like his mind worked in a different way to other people. Byakuya's thought processes were often complicated and hard to follow, and would no doubt make an interesting research project, but Kisuke did not think they should rely on a love he denied he even felt for Rien.

Byakuya said nothing.

Perhaps he was still clinging to denial. He could have handled her being human, or Bantou, or Vizard, or even a loathsome Quincy….but, as immortal as they are, Slayers never live forever. She would be persistently coveted for her uniqueness; even the simplicity of dying would be dangerous enough to warrant her banishment and isolation. Slayers were perfect weapons: powerful, stealthy, intelligent, and even in their deaths able to eliminate their target with no regard for themselves. Loneliness and isolation caused them to become self-destructively reckless, the only flaw in their genetic code. Power was nothing without control – Byakuya had learnt that early on. He should not love someone who would surely die, someone who danger followed like a shadow, looking for every opportunity to take her from the world, and from him. He should not love someone so vulnerable, and yet…he did.

He would protect her with everything he had, every resource at his disposal, every breath he took. He could not lose her. And no one would ever take her from him. No tests, no experiments, no isolation! As long as he made sure no one ever got the chance to hurt her, there would be no danger to Soul Society. He understood the gravity of the situation, he understood what he could lose if anyone ever found out he had conspired with these two outcasts, but there was a force stronger than gravity, and one thing he could not endure losing – Rien. He raised his eyes to Yoruichi in defeat. She had known that he would love Rien enough to protect her, more than enough, maybe even too much.

"It's just a theory, and I don't like to go around spreading rumours – you know how that turns out, Kuchiki-san. We know nothing for sure," Kisuke gave Byakuya an unnecessary warning.

"Take care of my little sister, Byakuya-bo," Yoruichi added, standing next to his seated form and ruffling his hair, her breasts pressing inappropriately against his cheek, just like they used to.

"I see you don't tie it up anymore, Byakuya-bo," she teased as he batted her hand away.

"Stop addressing me in that way," Byakuya warned.

"Aaaawe,…so cute. The little girls must have gone wild last night," she laughed as Byakuya's left eye twitched, the way it used to when they played.

Kisuke had been too paranoid; of course her little Byakuya could be trusted. Yoruichi had noticed Rien's calming influence on Byakuya, even if Rien did try his patience, she brought out everything Byakuya usually hid from everyone, and breathe life into the aspects of himself that he had previously discarded because he felt they were unnecessary. Anger was necessary, fear was necessary, passion was necessary, and love…love was nothing less than essential.

Her little Byakuya was finally back.


Rien awoke to a warm purr against her body, and she absently stroked the black cat she knew lay beside her. The purring became louder and she felt a wet nose touch hers. With her eyes still closed, she turned and gently shoved the disruptive cat away. She then felt insistent licks on her neck from a small sandpaper tongue, and she immediately groaned and tried to pull the covers. She suddenly felt the pinpricks of sharp razor-like claws on her bottom.

"Ow!" Rien screamed.

Ahhome, she thought as she jumped out of bed and rubbed her bottom.

"I think you drew blood this time," Rien accused as she pulled down the silky blue sleeping shorts she had worn to bed, checking for damage.

"You're welcome," Yoruichi said, transforming back into herself.

Ichigo burst through Rien's door and immediately began blushing and regretting the intrusion as his eyes bulged at the naked Yoruichi and the scantily clad Rien, talking to eachother as though it was all normal, on the other side of the room. They both suddenly stopped talking and stared at his reddened expression with curiosity.

"Clothes!" Ichigo yelled.

Rien wasted no time. She sprinted from the other side of the room, jumped on one side of her bed, ran across it, and launched herself in a swan dive off the other side, towards Ichigo. Ichigo turned to leave, but it was already too late, he didn't have enough time to dodge Rien. Rien deftly landed on his back, the impact making him face-plant against the opposite wall of the corridor.

"What the hell!" Ichigo shouted as he straightened, and grabbed her legs so she would not fall off.

"Come, give me a ride, Ichi-Nii," Rien demanded.

"Why?" Ichigo asked looking over his shoulder at her, confused. He hadn't given her a piggyback for a long time, and it mostly only happened when he had had to shunpo with her because she couldn't shunpo back then.

Rien's eyes vulnerably widened, impossibly large, stars sparkling all around her, and the cutest expression she could muster. "Because I'm so cute and you love me," Rien chimed in her most adorable voice.

"Fine," Ichigo agreed, smiling in spite of himself.

"Giddy up," she brightly said, wrapping her arms and legs more tightly around him.

"Hey, don't take advantage," Ichigo chuckled.

"Mush, Ichi, mush," She said excitedly pounding on his shoulders. Rien made him run around the house a few times before they settled into the dining room for breakfast.

"You can get off now," Ichigo suggested. Rien flipped lithely into the air off of his back, and gracefully landed in a bare footed crouch on Ichigo's shoulder, as light as a bird.

Kisuke clapped. "That's my girl. Feeling better, I take it," Kisuke beamed from beneath his hat, seeing so much of Yoruichi's playful attitude in her.

"Kinda," she acknowledged as Yoruichi walked in, in a loosely tied dark green robe, obviously one of Kisuke's, legs and cleavage poking out from everywhere. At least she bothered to put some clothes on, Ichigo thought.

Ichigo turned to chide Rien, who was still lightly perched on his shoulder, only to find himself at eye level with her short silky shorts and bare thighs. He began to turn red again.

"Rien," he scolded, brushing his shoulder with the opposite hand.

"Fine, Ichi," she exhaled while jumping down.

"Doesn't anyone in this house wear clothes?" Ichigo complained.

"What's wrong Ichi-Nii?" she teased, seeing his strawberry blush.

"Yoruichi is a bad influence on you, that's all," Ichigo revealed. Yoruichi pretended to look hurt.

Rien's silky blue pyjama shorts and her ¾ snug lace camisole were perfect for sleeping. Ichigo had been lucky he hadn't found her sleeping naked as usual. Rien hated feeling restricted as she slept, and this barely-there sleep ensemble was at least something.

Rien went over to Ichigo and lay on the ground next to where he sat, stretching her long bare legs over his lap. "What are you doing?" Ichigo demanded.

"I'm just showing Yoruichi and Kisuke how the girls were looking at you last night," Rien was trying to boost his ego with some truth. A fair number of girls had stared at him and dreamily concocted a reason to talk to him. Rien placed her right hand, palm up, on her forehead, trying to look coy; she lifted her belly button off the ground like an invisible string had tugged it up, arching her torso up to him, causing her shirt to rise even higher, exposing the lower crescents of her breasts.

"Ichigo, save me," she said in her most vulnerable tone, remembering to look demur and helpless.

Kisuke and Yoruichi burst out laughing. Ichigo turned red.

"It's not like that," Ichigo shouted due to embarrassment. "They were just friends," he added.

"I'll do anything, Ichigo," Rien continued to tease, her body enticingly ached up towards him, exposing the smooth slope of her bare, toned abdomen, all the way up to the peaking crescents of her…Ichigo began trying to pull her too short shirt down a little more. Rien and Ichigo wrestled eachother on the ground for a while.

"It's indecent," he argued.

"Oh Ichigo, don't be so rough," Rien continued to tease as they wrestled, using her akido skills to her full advantage, making Ichigo's own momentum and strength work against him. Yoruichi and Kisuke were rolling on the ground laughing along with Rien.

"It's not like you haven't seen a naked woman before," Yoruichi shouted in hysterics, clutching her stomach. Kisuke was laughing so much he lost his hat.

Ichigo managed to get his t-shirt off and tried to put it over Rein, but wasn't having any luck.

"Ooh, we're getting serious, aren't we?" she laughed, "Be gentle," she huskily added. She managed to roll him over and pin him beneath her bare thighs.

"Maybe I should take something off too," she teased, seeing his eyes bulge and him turn scarlet when she touched the edges of her top, threatening to take it off.

"No!" Ichigo used all his strength to flip her beneath him and pin both her hands above her head, causing her short revealing top to dangerously climb higher on her breasts.

"Ooh…," Yoruichi said in awe, controlling her fit of unrestrained laughter, "very stylish Byakuya-bo. I'm sure all the girls will swoon," Yoruchi chuckled, attempting to sit up again.

Both Rien and Ichigo's heads snapped towards the dining room entrance where Byakuya stood, eyes wide with shock. They didn't know how long he had been standing there in his stealthy gigai. A light blush had appeared on Byakuya's cheeks as he turned his head politely away.

Ichigo hastily climbed off of Rien, who silently accepted his shirt and drowned in the excess fabric as she placed the garment over her head. Ichigo sat shirtless and looked like a tomato, and even Rein was a deep shade of copper. It felt like Byakuya's mere presence had sucked the fun out of the room. Yoruichi and Kisuke were the only ones who looked unphased. Kisuke rolled on the ground laughing and pointing at Ichigo and Rien with his fan. Yoruichi stomped on him as she got up, effectively ending his laughter.

"Breakfast, Byakuya-bo?" Yoruichi affectionately beamed, pulling him by the elbow into the room.

"I have asked you to refrain from calling me that," Byakuya corrected, having composed himself by then.

"You can't tell the Goddess of Flash what to do my little Byakuya," Yoruichi teased, trying to make him feel included in the fun and insults.

Ichigo decided he had done nothing wrong, and defiantly scowled at Byakuya, daring him to comment. Byakuya said nothing. He serenely sat, crossed legged, in the available seat next to Rien and thoughtfully ate his breakfast. Byakuya averted his eyes as he saw the bare thighs that Ichigo's t-shirt did not cover.

Last night was uncomfortable enough, but after this morning, Rien wished she could simply crawl out of her skin. Byakuya looked more heartbreakingly handsome this morning than he had when she first saw him yesterday. Simple again: dark blue fitted jeans and a black short sleeved t-shirt. Even though it was simple, it all looked expensive, probably was, the again, Byakuya could probably make a brown paper bag look expensive.

Rien almost immediately jumped up when she felt Byakuya's knee accidentally touch hers under the table. It was obviously a mistake, but he did not move away to correct it. He didn't say any more, just silently ate. Rien had felt this strange shift in his mood recently, especially here in the world of the living, constantly masking his significant reiatsu was probably tiring, she decided. Rien pushed her useless thoughts about him aside and quickly ate, excusing herself soon after, before anyone else had finished.

Rien had finally come to the conclusion that she had done nothing wrong either, and had nothing to be embarrassed about, this was her home, and she could do as she pleased while she was still in it. He could dictate all he wanted when they returned to his house, she decided. Not that she would listen, even then. Rein got up and walked to the door, Byakuya didn't even look up. Rien defiantly stood at the door and took Ichigo's shirt off, throwing it back to Ichigo.

"Thanks, Ichi-Nii," she said, unashamedly tall at the doorway. She then left to shower.


When Rien emerged after her much needed shower, she wore a very short black pleated skirt and a cute v-neck red shirt. It was a typical outfit, and would easily blend in with any other girl's in Karakura town. Rien wore the outfit with a generous helping of grace and a hint of mischief. She knew she would not get another opportunity to wear these types of clothes for a long time. She wasn't sure, but she imagined the outfit being grounds for incarceration if anyone saw her walking through the conservative Seireitei. Not that there was anything scandalous about the outfit, but just because it was unusual, and would probably need to be studied by Mayuri. Rien's irritation flared, thinking about him.

She was ready to go, she had resigned herself to her fate. She had decided that if she was going down, then she would be leaving as herself, and so her small rebellion of wearing this outfit was important to her.

When she emerged, she was ready to say her goodbyes and leave, but found Ichigo and Tatsuki sparring in the cleared out dining room with wooden kendo swords. Byakuya stood on the porch outside the open dining room door, disinterestedly leaning against a pillar, his hands in his jeans pockets, pretending not to watch the fight.

"You'll get your chance in a minute, Rien," Ichigo breathed heavily as he tried to dodge Tatsuki's attack. Rien's socked feet made no sound as she warily walked around the fight and went to stand next to Byakuya. He briefly glanced at her before his eyes returned to the fight.

Thwak. Ichigo got hit again.

"What does Kurosaki Ichigo study?" Byakuya's question seemed to come out of nowhere. "The university looked respectable," he added, seeing her confusion.

She knew what he meant – 'it looked too respectable for Ichigo to be going there'. Before she realised what she was doing, she backhandedly flicked him on the shoulder…like she would have anyone else. His eyes momentarily widened, and a gentle crease had begun to form on his brow before he turned from her and controlled his expression into nonchalance.

She couldn't believe what she had done, and was immediately sorry, but instead she began nervously rambling and trying to answer his question more seriously.

"You should give him more credit. Ichigo is carrying on his family traditions, just like you and Ishida," she revealed. It irked Byakuya that she suggested that he was in any way similar to that neanderthal or that dull Quincy.

"Tatsuki is training as a paramedic, and Inoue, Ishida, and Ichigo are in med school for the long hall. Ichigo wants to take over his dad's community clinic. I don't know if Ishida has a choice or not, but his dad is the head surgeon and runs Karakura Hospital, and I'm sure Ryuuken wants Ishida to one day take over, although I'm not sure Ishida will. And Inoue, well…natural talent," Rien smiled at Baykuya, hoping that by now, he had forgotten all about her flicking him on the shoulder.

Byakuya folded his arms across his chest, said nothing, and pretended to look uninterested again. He obviously hadn't forgotten. Rien noticed the ripple of his muscles as his t-shirt stretched slightly over his bicep, she hadn't ever had the opportunity to notice how well toned he was. Byakuya was a tall guy, six feet, but his frame was not wide and brutish. His muscles didn't look excessively large or too defined, just lean, beautiful and efficient…like he could snap someone's neck if he needed to. The thought kind of turned her on. The silver of his skin looked breath taking against the black of the shirt…She turned away before her eyes became too dreamy.

"Huh, take that Kurosaki," Tatsuki triumphantly jumped around, waving the wooden katana. "Like taking candy from a baby – a crying, helpless, strawberry of a baby," she added.

"Hey Rien," Tatsuki called for her to honour the accepted challenge from last night. Rein walked in without a second glance to Byakuya.

"Before we start, I wanna give you this," Tatsuki whispered at the far end of the dining room, while Ichigo remained sprawled out in the middle of the floor.

"Keigo gave it to me this morning, to give to you," Tatsuki had retrieved something from her dojo bag, and now held an unsealed envelope out in front of Rien.

"It's not another picture of him in a speedo, with his phone number on the back, is it?" Rien warily waved the envelope away.

"No," Tatsuki assured her, removing the contents of the envelope.

"You and Rukia's brother won the best dressed couple competition last night. Keigo accepted the prize on your behalf, and two copies of the photo," Tatsuki explained.

"But, we're not a couple, we didn't even go together," Rien protested, still pushing the things away.

"I don't think the photographer judging the contest cared about technicalities. And if you take a look at the photo, you'll see how easy it was for him to make the assumption. He gave two copies of the photo he took that won you guys the prize," Tatsuki explained while shoving the photo into Rien's hand.

"You can see why he made the mistake," Tatsuki teased, pointing to the photo they were both now staring at. "For two people who are not a couple, you guys sure look cosy," she winked and nudged Rien.

Rien couldn't believe what she was seeing. Rien hadn't noticed a flash as they had danced in the garden, then again, she hadn't noticed anyone but Byakuya while she was in his arms. Now there was evidence. The picture was a close up of the top halves of their bodies as they danced, their arms possessively around eachother, their eyes staring deeply into one and other, and their lips a whisper apart. Their faces were crystal clear, and the angle of the picture made it look like they were about to kiss eachother. It was taken completely out of context, Rien thought, no such thing was ever in danger of happening.

Rien resisted the temptation to caress Byakuya's handsome face in the picture. It was a breathtaking picture…but, none of it was real.

"It was just a dance. The perspective of the picture makes it look like more than it was. We are not romantically involved, never have been, never will be," Rein tried to make it sound matter-of-fact, and explain the picture away to Tatsuki.

"Whatever you say. No one who sees that picture is gonna believe you though," Tatsuki suggested.

"I thought you said there were two copies, where's the other one?" Rien asked, assuming Keigo had swiped it.

"I gave the other copy to Byakuya-san. One for you, one for him, just like the photographer's note said," Tatsuki explained.

"Someone should kill me right now," Rien sighed, slapping her hand onto her forehead. She turned to see Byakuya staring straight at them, and she quickly hid the offending photo behind her back. No one in Seireitei should ever find this picture. No one anywhere should ever see it again.

"Byakuya-san put his picture in his bag and said that I should give you the other prizes, and that you should take whoever you wanted," Tatsuki explained.

He's probably just going to throw it away, after he shreds it into indistinguishable pieces with Senbonzakura, Rien gloomily thought.

Rein read the voucher Tatsuki placed in her free hand – a romantic dinner for two, all expenses paid, at an exclusive restaurant. "You have it," Rien offered Tatsuki. Rien would never be able to use it.

"Oh yeah…Rukia's brother was talking to Ichigo about you going home with him," Tatsuki remembered, gratefully accepting the voucher. "If you're sure?" Tatsuki asked.

"I am. I won't get the opportunity to use it, and you deserve some kind of a reward for Byakuya dragging you to the dance. He was your date after all," Rien smiled, Tatsuki blushed a little.

All expenses paid. Tatsuki began to dream of all the glorious things she could eat.

"How can you guys be living together and still insist that nothing is going on between you two?" Tatsuki was nothing if not direct.

Rien looked up, to find Byakuya still staring intently in their direction. He was obviously listening in by now – maybe she should talk to him about eavesdropping. "Our families know eachother, and he only puts up with me because he has to," Rien explained, still looking straight into Byakuya's quicksilver.

"It looks like more than that to me, but what do I know," Tatsuki suggested, aware of the intimate way they were now both looking at eachother, like she wasn't even in the room.

"He's just over-protective, he's like that with a lot of people," Rien tried to explain it away.

"Uh…ha," Tatsuki disbelievingly replied.

"Hey, first one to ten points wins, okay?" Tatsuki tried to steer the subject away from their denial, to something more productive – battle! "Ichigo, you score," she suggested, kicking Ichigo who was still lying on the floor.

Kendo was different from the way Rien normally trained, no powers, no shunpo, no sharp magical katana that could decapitate people…All kendo required was technical sword skills and was fought with a wooden sword. Rien had never tried something like kendo before, but decided to treat it the same as normal training with Byakuya, just without the katana, and without Byakuya.

"I'll go a little easy on you, coz you have never done kendo before," Tatsuki magnanimously offered.

"Don't. I'll never be able to enjoy my victory if I knew you were flying at half mast," Rien affectionately taunted.

"Ten bucks on Tatsuki," Ichigo joked.

"A hundred on Rien," Byakuya countered, pulling a note out of his pocket.

"Uh…Sure, I'll take that action. You saw Tatsuki just beat me down, right?" Ichigo asked, after he got over the shock that Byakuya had agreed to bet, and on Rien who had admittedly never done kendo before – he thought Byakuya was smarter than that. Rien wouldn't be able to use any powers, and Tatsuki was stronger than she looked and almost unbeatable to Ichigo.

"It is a matter of pride – I train Rien in this skill," Byakuya stopped leaning and stood a little straighter as he said it, and Ichigo could imagine the kenseikan and flowing scarf.

"How's zanpakuto training been going without a zanpakuto?" Ichigo tried to rattle Byakuya's confidence, but was unsuccessful. Byakuya simply menacingly towered over Ichigo, standing straighter than usual, before turning his attention to the fight.

Rien picked up the wooden katana left on the floor by Ichigo. An uneasy feeling rose within her, almost like her own voice was screaming in protest. Rien shook her head, trying to physically shake the strange feeling rising in her. It slowly got quieter. Tatsuki just looked at her strange behaviour, already in her stance. Rien took up a stance she had never seen before. Her training must be strange, Tatsuki thought before she launched herself at Rien.

Tatsuki hit Rien with her full force, Rien easily saw the attack and defended, but the resulting vibrations she felt down the length of the wooden katana made her hands feel like they burnt on the hilt. Tatsuki was stronger, and over powered Rien.

"One point to Tatsuki," Ichigo smugly screamed, glancing sideways at Byakuya.

And in the very next moment…

"One point to Rien," Ichigo called, slightly less enthusiastically.

"Second point to Tatsuki," he added after a while of parrying and defending from both girls.

Rien was assessing the situation. She now felt confident that she could win. Rien easily dodged a few more of Tatsuki's attacks. Tatsuki was a good friend, and she knew Tatsuki would never want Rien to let her win, but Rien decided to let her get in a few shots and make it look close. Rien saw Ichigo's face fall as she dodged another of Tatsuki's emotion-filled attacks, Tatsuki appeared to be enjoying the spar, but Ichigo looked a little pale, and Rien wondered why.

"Two, three, no…four points to Rien," Ichigo sighed.

"Go Rien," Yoruichi cheered, having just joined the crowd of spectators from the Urahara shop who were eagerly watching the beautiful fight.

At least one person was supporting her, Rien thought. Rien turned in Yoruichi's direction and smiled, only to be whacked on the shoulder and the leg by Tatsuki.

"Four all," Ichigo cheered.

"Concentrate Rien," Byakuya scolded. Rien glared at Byakuya, only to have Tatsuki get in two more good hits, just to piss Byakuya off.

"Six to Tatsuki," Ichigo cheered.

Rien gracefully swung the wooden katana out in a sweeping arc, hitting Tatsuki twice, only to change hands and pivot to hit her two more times on her back and bottom as Rien's socked feet slid past her.

"Eight points to Rien," Ichigo sighed.

"Ooh, so stylish," Kisuke commented. "What have you been teaching our little Rien?" he laughed, turning towards Byakuya. It was true, Rien seemed to have picked up the same dramatic flair that Byakuya normally fought with. All those endless days spent swishing at air during training were evident in her muscle memory, Byakuya's constant criticisms of her stance and his insistence that she learn the correct way to do things, made Rien's attacks seem like a deadly dance.

Rien had felt incompetent and unworthy for such a long time, and only now came to the realisation that the reason she lost every fight was because she trained with Jyuushiro and Byakuya. Rien wouldn't have been able to win against either taichou, they had a few hundred years of training and experience. Tatsuki was physically powerful, but her movements were slow and predictable when compared to Byakuya's deadly precision. Rien could have easily won the fight long ago, but did not want to obliterate Tatsuki's confidence. Rien allowed Tatsuki to get in two more hard shots, bruising her thigh and her hand. Tatsuki's power was formidable, but Rien knew speed would always be more deadly.

"Eight, all," Ichigo cheered, only to correct himself a moment later. "Ten to Rien. Rien wins," he sulked.

Tatsuki didn't even see Rien's last two shots as Rien slid to a crouch behind her, dramatically sheathing the wooden sword, like she would a real katana. She only now felt the slight sting on the front of her thigh and the back of her calf muscle. Tatsuki finally turned around as Rien stood up from her crouched position near the ground. She was energised from the fight, she had finally found someone good enough to spar with, someone who would challenge her to better her skills. Ichigo was pretty good at kendo, not that she would ever admit it to him, but Rien's emotionless style and flair was beautiful to watch, even when hit Rien expression never changed, she simply always looked thoughtful, like she was planning her next move.

"Good match," Tatsuki bowed to Rien.

"Yeah, that was close," Rien lied, bowing respectfully back.

"Your teacher must be brilliant," Tatsuki added. Rien's eyes involuntarily darted to Byakuya who was looking smugly at Ichigo.

"He likes to think he is," Rien admitted, placing the wooden sword against the wall.

"I've had mandatory training almost every day of my life," Rien admitted, to make Tatsuki feel better. Although Rien's beautiful features appeared delicate, beneath her feathery soft skin were muscles of steel that remembered every swing she had ever taken.

"I will dedicate my time to improving my skills, until we next battle," Tatsuki bowed in respect, and went off to beat Ichigo over the head for screaming so loudly during the fight.

The strange feeling had stopped now that she had put the wooden katana down. Rien looked down at her hands, they looked almost burnt. She quickly closed her hands into fists so no one would see, they would heal in a few minutes anyway, and she didn't feel like being fussed over in her last few minutes at home. She was probably allergic to the wood or something. Rien picked up the unsealed envelope with the picture inside it.

"I see Byakuya all over you," Rien heard Yoruichi say from behind her.

"What?" Rien snapped up, turned around, and hid the envelope behind her back.

"Your fighting style is very similar to his. I remember catching him endlessly swishing through air when he was younger, and then making him play hide and seek with me. He was such a nice boy, impulsive and obsessive, but very kind hearted. But I guess all his training paid off," Yoruichi explained.

"He's still a nice boy, but now I'm the one stuck swishing through air," Rien smiled.

"Your form is beautiful. You're graceful, decisive, and dramatic, and it's all tempered with compassion….you could have quickly ended the fight, but unlike Byakuya, you don't feel the need to crush your opponent," Yoruichi thoughtfully added.

"Your technical skills have soared since we last saw you fight," Kisuke added, walking up behind Yoruichi, only to have her comfortingly lean back into him. Rein involuntarily flashed back to the contentment that washed over her as she leaned back into Byakuya, the security she had felt as he had towered over her and ran his fingers along her bare skin…No! She knew she would pay.

"Byakuya would say that compassion is a weakness in battle," Rien half-heartedly replied, revealing that she knew Byakuya far too well. She suddenly excused herself to her room so she could hide the photo in her bag, where Yoruichi and anyone else wouldn't happen to see it.

Rien heard Inoue, Tatsuki, and Yoruichi scream in the dining room and immediately left her bedroom and ran to them. Rien walked in in time to see Ichigo smirk and affectionately punch Ishida in the shoulder. Yoruchi was almost jumping up and down, and her and Tatsuki's eyes were almost merging with Inoue's left hand.

After a missed beat of her heart, Rien walked over to them, her stomach had already dropped, and she knew what the commotion had been all about. Rien appropriately gasped as she saw the sizeable but elegant platinum ring, all the diamonds were set in the shape of a Quincy cross.

"It's beautiful," Rien said in awe, now also bending with the other two to get a better look. "Congratulations," Rien said, hugging Inoue and squeezing her tightly, only to have Yoruichi and Tatsuki also join in the hug and smother Inoue and Rien in the middle.

"Congratulations, this must be a happy time for you both," Rien heard Byakuya say to Ishida, while she was still held captive in the bone-crushing hug.

Once freed, Rien ran over to Ishida, only to stop a little uncertainly in front of him once she saw him begin to blush. "Hey you," Rien addressed him, "I am happy beyond measure that you both have found eachother," she said, kissing Ishida's cheek and then hugging him. Ishida slowly wrapped his arms around her.

"She loves you completely, just as you should be loved," Rien whispered to him alone as he exhaled into her strawberry scented hair. He had been worried about her reaction all morning, but he now realised that she had always been a true friend to him and would continue to be one, even when they had been more, they were always friends. His worry felt silly in her arms.

"Tatsuki is going to be my maid of honour, and you have to be at least a bride's maid," Inoue gushed from behind her. Rien let go of Ishida, and turned, waving her arms as if to say no, but looking into Inoue's hopeful eyes made it difficult to refuse her.

"I can't promise anything, but if I am allowed to return, then I will," Rien agreed, only to have the life squeezed out of her once more.

"Ishida, can I borrow your fiancé for a minute," Rien teased him.

"Ooh, fiancé sounds so grown up," Inoue smiled.

Rien tugged Inoue's arm. "Bye, Uryuu," Inoue said, and then delicately kissed him. Ishida hated when Rien called him by his name, so she had only ever called him Uryuu when annoyed or trying to taunt him…he obviously didn't hate it when Inoue said it.

Rien dragged Inoue to her bedroom with Tatsuki and Yoruichi in tow. "So, come on, it is my right to know everything, I did save his life once," Rien joked as everyone settled on her bed.

"Isn't this Byakuya-san's jacket?" Inoue noticed it lying on the non-used pillow of Rien's bed and hoped against hope that her interruption last night was only momentary.

"I was cold," Rien tried to look accusingly at Yoruichi, now that she remembered she should be mad at her for last night. Inoue's heart sank a little.

"Don't change the subject Inoue, we want it all, word for word," Rien was relentless. It was hard to live vicariously without the details. But, truth be told, Rien didn't know if she could handle the details.

"Okay. When we left the dance, Uryuu said he wanted to take me somewhere. We went to that waterfall near his house, where he used to sometimes train…," she paused, her eyes going dreamy.

"It was beautiful and so peaceful, and we just stood there for a while, while he held from behind and we watched the waterfall and the night sky. I guess he was nervous, and I kept catching him looking at me and then turning away like he wasn't. After a while, he said:

I haven't been here since we started dating. I used to come here often, to be alone, and get away from everyone else, and sometimes to think. But, I haven't felt alone or like I needed to get away ever since I let you into my heart.

"I thought it was so sweet of him to say, and he's often like that, so I didn't expect what happened next," she admitted.

"He walked around to in front of me and went down on bended knee and took this little velvet blue box out. I almost screamed when he opened it and I saw it was a ring. I tried my best not to cry and ruin the moment, but I could feel the tears welling in my eyes," Inoue looked around, and saw tears welling up in the eyes of all her friends. It felt good to have such close friends she could share this with.

"He took the ring out of the box and said:

I have never loved anyone as I have loved you, and on my pride as a Quincy and my honour as a man, I promise to love you forever. Would you do me the honour of being my wife?

"And I just couldn't say anything but yes. I have loved him so strongly and I have wanted to be able to call myself his wife, but I just didn't think he was the marrying type. He never talked to me about before. I knew that he loved me, but…," Inoue squealed with delight. There had always been that small spec of doubt in Inoue's mind due to Ishida and Rien's close relationship. Ishida and Rien always seemed so comfortable with one and other, like they could fall back into loving eachother at any moment and she would be cast out. But, without any pressure or prompting, Ishida had chosen her to love forever.

"He really loves me," Inoue began crying out of nowhere.

"Of course he does, how could he not," Rien assured her, wiping stray tears from both their cheeks.

"You must come for the wedding," Inoue pleaded once more.

"I promise to do my very best to make that happen, I have to first see what the situation is when I return. Speaking off, we should be off," Rien added. Byakuya had been very patient this morning, but considering what was waiting for her when she got back to Seireitei, it was probably guilt that forced his patience.

They all returned to the dining room to say their goodbyes.

"Romantic devil, aren't you," she teased Ishida as she hugged him goodbye.

"No! She didn't tell you…everything, did she?" Ishida blushed and looked accusingly at Inoue.

"Not everything," Inoue suggestively added, making Ishida even more self-conscious, forcing him to push the bridge of his glasses up so at least his eyes were unreadable.

"You don't have to go, you know," Ishida whispered back to Rien as he hugged her close. "Ichigo and I will find a way," he added, refusing to let her go, and breathing her in more deeply, like he would never be able to drown in her strawberry-lavender infusion again.

"You should not have to," she repeated what she had previously said. "I'll be okay, you don't have to worry about me," she lied, as she regretfully slipped out of Ishida's comforting arms. His arms were the place she had felt most protected, and she knew that was why she found herself instinctively waking up in them when she was scared. Ishida hid nothing from her, and was always there for her...and she was happy for him.

All her friends left, to save Tatsuki from seeing Byakuya open a senkai. Byakuya now stood, patiently waiting, no longer in his gigai. Rien felt a little self-conscious that he was wearing the new captain's haori, and didn't have his usual kenseikan or scarf on. Yoruichi noticed the change and slyly winked at Rien, making her turn copper. Why could she never hide anything from her all-knowing sister?

Yoruichi and Kisuke were the only ones left to say goodbye to, and Kisuke looked more reluctant than Yoruichi to let Rien go. Yoruichi had filled Rien's bag with her old training clothes that she used to wear while training with Kisuke, and old shinigami academy uniforms, that Yoruichi swore were made better in her day. Yoruichi and Kisuke both hugged Rien at once, and began repeatedly kissing either side of her cheek.

"Gosh you guys are embarrassing," Rien complained while she giggled.

"But you're so cute and little, remember," Yoruichi teased, throwing some of Rien's earlier words to Ichigo back in her face.

"I'm not little!" Rien moaned. "I'm 5ft4 and you're 5ft2, so who's little now?" Rien straightened to her full height, and loomed a little proudly over Yoruichi.

"Always you, my kitten," Yoruichi beamed, leaning up to kiss her cheek once more.

Byakuya resisted the urge to roll his eyes at them. Instead, he picked up her bags and went through the opened senkai, and Rien followed reluctantly behind, leaving the life she really wanted to live behind in the world of the living. She had felt so isolated living in the Kuchiki manor, and now she was yet again banished to her solitude.

"I promise to visit more," Rien heard Yoruichi scream as the senkai closed.


Byakuya had opened his own senkai, and so they emerged within the Kuchiki manor. She followed him silently to her bedroom. She opened the door, and he waited for an invitation before he went in and placed her bag next to her bed. As he floated past her, she caught his sleeve. He looked down at her, confused.

"Before you take me in, can I at least say bye to Renji and Rukia?" she shyly said, not looking up at him.

"Where do you think I'm taking you?" Byakuya evenly inquired.

"To…Mayuri," she sighed, "he'll probably want a sample of me or something, so he can figure out why the hollows are after me," Rien explained her thought processes, letting go of his sleeve. She removed the black thigh high boots Yoruichi had given her, readying herself to change into the black and red training outfit. She would at least have her own clothes this time, she morosely thought.

"You think I'm taking you to Kurotsuchi taichou?" Byakuya could not understand how she had gotten that impression.

"Soul Society sent you because I was causing trouble, so I expect they will want to study me further," Rien had incorrectly assumed.

"It's okay, don't feel guilty or anything, not that you would. I'm not mad at you, not that you'd care if I was," Rien added. It had recently made her uncomfortable to be alone with him. He was unpredictable. She could never guess what he was thinking or predict how he would behave. He usually either hated her or wanted to torture her, neither of which ever ended well for either of them.

"You came with me, even though you thought I was going to hand you over to Kurotsuchi taichou?" Byakuya inquired in his flat expressionless tone, giving nothing away. He couldn't believe she was actually trying to make him feel better about hypothetically condemning her to torture.

"I didn't want you to get into trouble or anything, I know you've probably been ordered. And you were nice enough to come and clean up the mess I made by going over there, so I figured, I owe you," Rien nervously rambled as Byakuya stalked closer to her. She apprehensively backtracked until she could go no further and was flush against the wall next to her desk. She could not understand why Byakuya continued to move closer to her. He was probably trying to intimidate her, she guessed. Had she said something wrong?

With a speed that would have made any enemy cower, he placed his hands on the wall on either side of her head, making escape impossible. He was tired of her continuously running from him. As his eyes held hers, he could see every emotion cross them, every plan she was concocting to keep her distance from him. He would not allow it.

"Are we living in different worlds?" he asked as his warm breath danced across her skin, causing goose bumps to prick up all over her body.

"What would give you the impression that I would ever again allow that monster to touch you?" Byakuya's annoyance was evident, but he continued to move his face closer to hers. He was tired of this uncertainty that lingered between them. He hated that the most dominant impression she seemed to have of him was the once he first cast – of the man who cared so little about her that he could condemn her to torture.

"Have my actions not proven that I would do anything to protect you?" He was leaning down so close, that his cascading hair tickled her cheek.

"I don't want your protection," she irritably replied.

"And yet you have it," he matched her tone.

"Perhaps I welcomed the change. Maybe my time with Mayuri was less painful than standing here with you, right now," she explained, turning her face away from his, but she could move no further with his body and arms all around her.

"I protect only what must be protected," his words dripped with ice as he turned her face towards his once more. Even with their close proximity, Rien had not expected his gentle touch on her cheek. She gulped as her mouth suddenly became dry, and her heart increased its shallow erratic rhythm.

"You would rather be anywhere else, than here with me?" he transformed the hurt he felt into anger, now securely holding her arms within his hands, and menacingly glaring down at her. His hands felt so gentle on her arms, but undoubtedly possessive as he moved her away from the wall and closer to him. Why was she never afraid of him? Any other girl would have withered away by now. Her defiance was evident as her large blue eyes looked up into his, but there was so much more than defiance in her electric blue, there were emotions that ran so much deeper between them.

"You're eyes say one thing and your lips another, which should I believe?" venom coated his every word.

"Aren't you the pot calling the kettle black," she shouted, pushing his shoulders and shunpo'ing out of his grip, leaving an after-image of herself behind. He had not thought her capable of the speed required for utsusemi. Yoruichi's meddling influence was everywhere he turned these days.

"What does that mean?" Byakuya did not understand the silly human expression, and was unsure of how to respond.

"It means I hate your eyes, so keep them to yourself and I'll do the same," she replied in irritation.

"My eyes do not say anything I do not mean," he replied, more calmly.

A beat of silence.

"You know what, you're right. We're supposed to be friends, and I'm the one ruining this shambles of a friendship that we have. You should be able to dance with a friend, and help them out with a clothing malfunction without them reading more into it or freaking out. I'm sorry for treating you so unfairly; you cannot help how I feel. That is my own fault. Please forgive the way I have acted recently. You were in love once, you must remember how it felt," her large blue eyes looked vulnerably up to his.

I'm in love now, he thought but could not bring himself to say it.

He remembered what it felt like to be in love with Hisana, and it had felt nothing like this, which is perhaps why he had not immediately realised his growing affection for Rien until it was too late and he had already fallen.

His love for Hisana was filled with concern, compassion, and acceptance. They had both always been truthful with eachother, and he had known what he was getting himself into, but he had hoped that the love he showered upon her would be enough to allow her sadness to melt away – but it never was. Hisana never allowed herself to be happy, and they both suffered as a result of it. Hisana had been the perfect companion to his restrained, solemn nature; because she withheld so much of herself, she understood and accepted his boundaries – that there were parts of himself that were only his, parts that he could not share with anyone.

Rien had no such understanding and respected no boundaries he tried to maintain between them. She always demanded more of him, challenging him, even daring him to reveal more of himself. He hated her at times. It was that affectionate hate only born out of intense feelings. She was insane. How could she enjoy fighting with him? Perhaps she enjoyed the predictable way his control would slip every time. Her smug satisfaction when he became angry was annoying, and only served to intensify his hatred, causing him to fight dirty.

When they fought, he couldn't use any tools in his usual arsenal: avoidance didn't work; glaring didn't seem to work either; he had never succeeded in invoking fear in her; and she was now too strong to bend to the pressure of his reiatsu. Holding her seemed to be the only thing that worked – it efficiently shut her up, allowing them both to calm down due to their closeness, and usually ending the argument they were having all together.

She had never been afraid, and certainly not of him, not even as he ran her through with Senbonzakura. He sometimes wished she would feel fear, it would be a sobering experience for her, and make her realise what it feels like for him when she places herself in danger.

What he felt for Rien was so different from what he thought love should feel like, from what his life with Hisana had been like, that at times he wasn't sure what he was feeling. It became futile to continue his denial the more time he spent with her. His feelings for Rien were this chaotic, complex rush he felt when he was around her, and then the serene contentment he felt when he was holding her. And now, his indecision tortured them both. He refused to be without her, and at the same time his logical self-restraint would not allow him to give in to his feelings for her.

He did not reply to her previous words but instead began an investigation of his own. It had been plaguing him. "Do you love the Quincy? You were hurt today, when you found out about their engagement." Byakuya had watched her carefully as she realised that her beloved Quincy had chosen another, and he saw the momentary flicker of pain before she hid it beneath joy.

"Why are you so interested in how I feel about him?" she asked. She could not understand Byakuya's fascination with the topic. If it were any other man, she would have assumed it were jealousy, but Byakuya did not think about her in that way.

He did not answer.

"Of course I love him, I always will. He is the only man to ever love me, and besides the fact that we did not make love, we know eachother intimately," she replied in frustration as she angrily paced.

"I only asked to make sure you were okay. I don't want you to feel any unnecessary pain, if you don't have to," he flatly replied.

That was rich coming from him, she thought.

"Shove your concern up your…I'm sorry, I'm doing it again. We're friends, so of course you should be interested in how I feel, but I am afraid if we have this conversation that I will say something you don't want to hear, and you will end up never speaking to me again," she apprehensively revealed.

"Were you not the one that requested that we be honest with eachother?" Byakuya's logic, as always, was flawless, especially when he wanted information.

"I suppose, but I sometimes feel like I'm the only passenger in this honesty train," she argued. "I can't even ask you to promise me that we will still be friends after, because..."

"I promise," he interjected. There was nothing she could say, and nothing she could be, to keep him away from her. He could not find the right words to explain how he felt, and he would have shown her by now if she didn't seem so unwilling.

"Don't," she sighed.

"I already have, and I take my promises very seriously," he added for good measure as he strolled further in and sat at the foot of her bed, hoping she would forget about keeping her distance from him for once. He could deny it all he wanted, but without all his usual accessories to remind him he was Kuchiki Byakuya, he was a lot more like himself, far more compassionate than he usually allowed himself to be.

He had actually sat down. He usually just lurked. Rien was slightly confused by his intense interest, and paced back and forth in front of him.

"You love him?" Byakuya offered her a place to start. Even though she had stated it before, he posed it as a question, because he still could not understand how she could love them both. Perhaps, somewhere deep within the unexplored recesses of his heart, he was afraid she had just realised that she had made a mistake and had loved only the Quincy all along. Perhaps that's why she kept her distance from him now.

"Yeah," she reluctantly replied, which didn't give Byakuya much to work with, and did not reassure him in the least. This must be a similar type of frustration that others felt when speaking to him, he concluded. He couldn't remember the last time he was interested in what someone was thinking or feeling.

"Did you not know this before this morning?" he interrogated.

"Of course I knew, I'm not an idiot," she irritably replied to his probing.

"Then why were you hurt when you found out about their engagement?" It came out almost sounding like an accusation, like he had finally caught her out.

"Look, let's get one thing straight, I'm genuinely happy for them," she insisted. Who the hell did he think he was, asking her to admit to things she barely allowed herself to think, let alone say out loud.

"But?"

"But I know him, I know why he asked her yesterday, I know why he waited." Rien debated whether or not to be truthful with Byakuya. She was sure he would hate her, but did they both not deserve the truth for once. Would it not be better for her to die with the truth than live with a lie?

"They have been living together almost as long as we have, he loved her for a long time, even before he knew me. I would have done exactly as he had, it's the only honourable option. It is irresponsible to marry someone you cannot give yourself completely to." Rien delivered her first blow, to no reaction.

"He waited to see me, to make sure that he had made the right decision, that he didn't have any lingering romantic feelings for me that would later tear his marriage apart. Like I said, I understand and would do the same thing…it's just sad, like the end of an era. This crazy picture keeps popping into my head, of him seeing me the other day and thinking, 'Thank God I didn't make that mistake'. I know it's only my loneliness that makes me think those irrational thoughts. I don't really believe he would ever think like that. Our love was never intense enough to tie ourselves to eachother in marriage, we just understand eachother," Rien revealed, and finally stopped pacing in front of him. Her large liquid blue eyes looked deeply into his quicksilver, causing her to become reckless again, and sit down on the bed next to him, her hand inches away from where he placed his, wanting, but not daring to touch him.

Byakuya's eyes were a unique combination of compassion, concern, and anger. He was surprisingly good at listening, and after a pregnant pause, she slowly began admitting her most vulnerable thoughts to him because she wanted him to know her, like she knew him. "But, because we were momentarily together, when I look at how happy he made Inoue, it really hurts…because in my most silly moments, I feel like that could have been me, for a while, until he realised that we didn't love eachother enough, and that he really loved her all along." Her eyes welled up with tears, but she did not allow them to fall. "It hurts because I will never have that, with anyone," she took a controlling breath, while she inspected her socked feet dangling off the edge of the bed .

"And it hurts most of all because it's entirely my fault, because I'm weak-willed, and I couldn't force myself to love him and not you. Maybe I'm wrong, but true love should feel like you live and die in every touch, it should be so much more than words can express. I would never hurt Ishida the way you were hurt. I would never half-heartedly marry him, even if he loved me enough to ask," Rien dealt her final blow to their friendship. She knew they would not survive.

Silence.

"I knew we should not have discussed it," she sighed, wiping her tears from her cheeks and standing up, walking around her bed and him and climbing into it. She smothered herself with some pillows, hoping this was one of those nightmares she could wake up from.

"Senbonzakura is far too revealing about the subject, you should tell him to shut up, he doesn't listen when I say it. I'm sorry if how I feel about it hurts you, I won't discuss it again," Rien offered, looking at his back, still seated at the foot of her bed.

She scrambled out from under the covers, straightening her short black pleated skirt and red top, and scooted to the end of the bed, just behind him. "I'm sorry, okay. I don't know what I'm saying, I'm just stupid," she added as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hugged him from behind. Surprisingly, he didn't recoil out of the hug, but he didn't turn around either, and she was too scared of his expression to look around him. They just stayed that way for a few minutes. Perhaps she needed the hug even more than he did. She knew she should let go of him, that she should stay away if she valued her sanity, but her heart was stronger than her mind and wanted nothing more than to comfort him.

"With all the loss you have experienced, I know it's scary to even think about letting someone in. I know a lot of your actions are driven by fear...,"

"I am not afraid," he angrily interrupted. At least he was still talking to her, she decided.

"You're afraid to lose people, so you become over-protective of those you care about, and isolate yourself, and never get close to or care about anyone new, because what's the point if you're just going to lose them anyway," her interpretations were surprisingly astute, now that he considered her words.

"What besides fear would motivate a man to marry someone he knew could not love him back? Only to lock his heart away when he lost her, as though her loss proved his theory that love was a pointless emotion. Can you imagine how unbearable it would have been if he lost somebody who he loved and who loved him back?" He didn't feel angry within her arms, and for that she was incredibly grateful. She wasn't trying to hurt or anger him, just let him know that she understood him.

"The intensity of the love we feel for somebody brings with it an equally intense pain if we lose them. I have never lost anyone. You have made me finally understand the danger. It is terrifying now that I think about it. You've convinced me, I now understand how pointless my love is," she conceded, unconsciously playing with a lock of his hair that fell over her fingers. Rien instinctively knew that she would gladly risk the pain to experience the radiance of his love, but she now understood why he would not, and especially why he would never with her – she gave too much of herself and required too much of him. As it stood, the thought of losing eachother was excruciating, if they were to ever love eachother, her loss would kill him as efficiently as it would killed her. People did strange things to protect themselves, Rien thought.

"Don't worry about me so much," she requested. "Promise to stop leaving me, and I will never leave you. We can both just wallow in self-pity, together," she offered. She wasn't trying to convince him of her love or promote her case, she didn't want him to simply give in to her because she was persistent, and until recently she had kept her feelings and her pain to herself. She just wanted him to know that she understood and was there for him if he needed a friend to talk to, not that he was doing much talking at the moment.

"I would rather be miserable with you than happy with anyone else," she revealed. She couldn't believe he was still letting her hug him. He wasn't hugging back, but Rien decided that this was at least a start.

"I will protect your heart, even though it will never be mine," she sighed, relaxing her body around his. She felt a peace. Holding him didn't feel awkward or strange, it felt warm and comforting – like snuggling under a warm blanket on a cold rainy day.

She placed her one leg on the ground, and half stood over him, so she could snuggle closer. She finally laid her chin on his shoulder, and held onto him tighter. Her hand moved between the open folds of his uniform, and over his heart once more.

"Live, Byakuya," she whispered, letting her lips brush his ear. She felt him hold his breath as she did it, but could not understand why.

"I feel your heart beating beneath my touch, and yet you're not alive. Give yourself permission to live again, even if it's not with me. As a friend, I am begging you, please don't condemn yourself to this. You can have so much more. I just want you to live," she brokenly whispered into his ear.

He grabbed a hold of both of her wrists, and gently but firmly removed himself from her arms. He stood up not bothering to turn around. Rien just silently sat down in his vacated spot, her one leg folded under her. She felt a bit unsteady as his electricity pulsed through her body. She lived and died in every touch. She looked at her right hand and wondered where she had gathered the boldness to touch his heart, or even to hug him for that matter. She should have been a better friend to him all along. That's what he wanted, that's what he needed, that what he had asked for. He had asked for it to be enough that they spent most of their time together. It was not enough for her, but she decided that she would stop being so selfish and conceal her hurt feelings so he would not have to feel guilty. He could not help that he did not love her, and should not constantly be reminded or feel guilty about it. He should love again, even if it wasn't her.

Byakuya simply stood at the foot of her bed, with his back to her, trying to fight against his feelings. If he spoke before he was in control, it would all come tumbling down. His heart was racing, and he regretfully had to remove her hand before she realised the effect she had on him. Perhaps he had waited too long, his thoughts were already irrational as he felt the adrenalin course through his veins. He was furious with himself. He had never meant to cause her so much pain, or for her to feel condemned to this solitude with him. Perhaps it was time to put an end to his indecision. He suddenly turned around and lunged down at her holding both her wrists above her head on the bed. She didn't have enough time to react, let alone defend.

He saw something he didn't expect clearly reflected in her eyes.

"Who's afraid now?" his voice was like silk, tenderly caressing each word as he leaned down closer to her. He could see the fear in her eyes increase as he moved closer. She was obviously not afraid of him, she didn't even bother to struggle out of his grip. What was the one thing that scared her, he wondered as his knee pushed down on the bed beside her. She liked to play this game with others, but why would it evoke fear in her when he decided to played along?

"Do you wish I were someone else?" he seductively asked, "Perhaps Kurosaki Ichigo or that Quincy?" His possessiveness was out of control in that moment. He had wanted to kiss her, but she now looked so afraid.

"Why are you doing this?" she pleaded while her body reacted against her wishes. He only required one hand to gently hold her wrists above her head, while his other supported him above her, allowing him a controlled steady descent closer and closer to her. Her heart raced in her ears and she felt like she couldn't breathe due to his subtle sakura scent intoxicating her. Did he decide to torture her for what she had said about his marriage? Perhaps she had been too harsh and deserved it, she thought.

She knew she could never escape, she closed her eyes in resignation and turned her face to the side, unwittingly exposing her beautiful, succulent neck to him. She felt his silken hair gently run up her neck as he breathed her in, stopping just below her jaw. "Stop...running...away...from me," he whispered in her ear, his lips brushing her earlobe.

And just like that, without notice, or explanation, the pressure was gone. Her hands were fee to move. She still did not feel safe enough to move or open her eyes, just in case he was still hovering above her. Why did he keep doing this to her? It was excruciating. She would not allow him the torture of a kiss, only to have to erase it from her thoughts and have it haunt her memories.

"I will see you at five pm for afternoon training," Byakuya addressed her with is usual disinterested tone, this time from her doorway, snapping her out of the thoughts. He was obviously done playing.

"Isn't that a bit late?" she finally replied, trying but failing to pull herself together, like he had, as though nothing had happened. It was always like this with him – like nothing happened, she had even expected his usual disinterest. She sat up on the bed again, noticing how hot she suddenly felt. She was unsure if she was meant to take him seriously, or pretend like nothing happened, just like every other time. She wasn't running away from him, she just refused to let his eyes lure her into being reckless with her heart any longer. She would not survive another kiss that meant nothing.

"We will have an extended training session. Eat before we leave, you will need your energy if you want to begin real training. Perhaps you are ready after all," Byakuya admitted. If she had enough mental control to resist giving in to something she obviously wanted, perhaps she had enough control to handle releasing her zanpakuto.

He had controlled his desire to kiss her last night, not wanting to dull the experience by being in his gigai, but wanting his own hands and lips and body to be against hers. He could still see her love for him in her eyes, but everytime he had gotten close, there was an equal amount of fear reflected in those beautiful blue depths. He could not understand her sudden fear or what he should do to alleviate it, so he left to consider his next move. In the back of his mind, he knew what he should do, he just didn't know if he could. It had to be all or nothing with her, and he knew that.

Rien tried to distract herself, and concentrate on the excitement of finally beginning training. She knew it would be difficult, but she was up for the challenge – as long as he kept his distance – she supposed whether or not he kept his distance was probably dependant on how skilled she was at avoiding him. It sounded like they would be training somewhere special. Either that or he was going to lure her to some secluded spot so he could murder her for what she had said earlier. Rien decided she would take her chances either way.

Rien changed into her usual black training outfit with the red inner lining and black tights, the one Ishida had made for her. She sighed once more and began unpacking some of the new clothes Yoruichi had given her. She suddenly found the envelop at the bottom of the bag, and picked it up, only to find Yoruichi's untidy scrawl on the envelope:

He loves you. Don't let him lie to you both.

Rien could have done without all the advice everyone kept giving her. He didn't love her, it only sometimes seemed like that. She used to be fooled into believing it too, just like everyone else now was. He just enjoyed the power he felt when toying with her, she decided. Why would he condemn them both to misery if their happiness was so attainable? It would be an unnecessary torture.


Author's note

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. Believe me when I say that I'm as tortured as you guys when it comes to Bya and Rien. Rien is uncompromising and Byakuya is incredibly stubborn and heard-headed, which often leads to misery for them both. I feel kinda bad for Byakuya because he's really struggling with his emotions. Rien also appears to be struggling to keep her promise and to do what she thinks he wants.

Now you know a little about what she is, but the way it plays out is going to be the real test. I researched how Bleach introduces a new race or slight variation of a race, and tried to follow that format in the beginning (And by researched, I meant watched loads of Bleach related to this topic).

*utsusemi –empty cicada...a shunpo technique developed by Yoruichi where copies of one's self are left to take damage, the user shunpo's out of the way so fast it leaves and afterimage behind

*Aikido – is a martial arts fighting style where the force of the attacker is redirected and requires very little physical strength as the momentum of the attacker is used to throw them. This is why she is always ending up with Jyuushiro throwing her on her ass but never seriously hurting her. It's all about the attacker's strength and momentum being used against them.

How did you like the IshiHime proposal? I've been considering writing a companion IshiHime piece because I miss writing Ishida so much, what do you think? Everyone's emotions are on the page this chapter, so I hope I didn't disappoint. Like I said, I enjoy hearing from you guys, good or bad, so don't forget to REVIEW. Thanks

~ Willow~