Venomously Attractive

C H A P T E R T H I R T Y S I X

Phantasm

Deleterious smoke enclosed the room in dense smog.

Takudaiji Ren sat by the window dressed in a simple linen robe, the burning tip of her cigarette casting a glow to the darkened room, as her eyes stared indifferently at the naked back of Akayama Koji.

Koji rested peacefully on his stomach, arms folded underneath his head and dark eyes watching her blurred form through the grayish smoke. He had already grown accustomed to the smell. It was a mixture of raspberries and plums. She started smoking a new brand for the past month and it was the only scent that lingered on her clothes. Simply smelling it reminded him of the lonesome noblewoman as she stood in the midst of flowers or in a crowded tavern—wherever he went it seemed to follow. During long evenings like that she seemed restless, staring out the window of her bedroom with a blank gaze and the slightest bit of emotion etched into her expression.

She held a tiny opaque-colored bottle of sake in her hand, winding her wrist to swerve the liquid inside until he swore he could hear it from that distance. The tip of her cigarette burned until the ashes gathered and fell onto her lap. She swept them and allowed the bits to gather beneath her feet. She took the cigarette from her lips and had a swig of her sake. It tasted bitter as it ran its course through her esophagus and stung slightly as it passed.

Sake stopped tasting sweet, sometimes it seldom had a flavor in her tongue, and most times it tasted astringent. It had the same effects alcohol had on her except they took time and patience. She needed plenty patience, otherwise the liquor would lose its purpose and without it reality awaited her. She was still moving backward, away from everything piling up before her eyes. She hated thinking about the past, but mentions of her father's manuscripts started forcing bad memories through her head. A chain of recollections she would rather ignore because she had grown to be an insolent, arrogant child. She did not live wonderfully in comparison to others. She wandered around giving orders and bullying her brother because he had selfishly been born male and stolen all the attention from her. She made him do ridiculous things, pinned him to their mother because a little part of her preferred her father and all the fairytales he wrote for her.

Then she thought about Ichimaru Gin looking to extort her father's legacy. He would take the only good thing she had of her childhood for his own gain—was he that sort of man? Had that been the only reason for them coming together? Play the pieces correctly, move them as you please, and two, otherwise, complete strangers come together and start that sinful thing she called a relationship.

It made her scoff, the mere thought of it.

She developed feelings for what she considered trash in social hierarchy. The idea was beyond ridiculous! She ridiculed men and women who had fallen for those beneath their rank because it was—always, in a deep part of her head—idiotic. She thought it natural to be attracted to someone and use them for sexual gratification; it's what she did whenever she grew bored of the same old nobles. Most were drunken escapades whenever she sauntered into those popularized taverns in the afterhours of her shinigami duties. They were the closest thing to anything decent and she held no objections towards that fact.

And she remembered spending four days and four nights without a wink of sleep and thought herself stupid at the ghost of a smile curving her lips.

She shook her head slightly, averting her gaze from the glittering lights surrounding the gazebo to Koji sitting upright with a hand through his long ashen blond hair. His eyes were lowered but for the past five minutes they had been fixed on her.

"Do you fancy brunch?" asked Koji.

"I dislike intimate dinners."

She was the sort of difficult woman one enjoyed trying to please.

"A cup of tea?"

"I hate teatime conversations."

"We can always drink."

Her eyes narrowed. Irritated. She stood while tugging her robe closed, cigarette between her teeth and bottle in her hand. "Forgive me, Koji-sama, but I rather drink alone."

Koji stayed silent as he started gathering his clothes.

Ren noticed the sudden change in atmosphere and crossed the room to push open the door. The cluttered smoke had begun filtering out into the hallway. "Do not worry, Koji-sama, if I desire your presence, trust that you will be the first to know."

He watched her on the way out, but said nothing after watching her slip into the corridor.

Nyoko stood at the end of the hall waiting for her orders, but as she passed Ren dismissed her after placing the half-empty bottle of sake in her hand and tossing her lit cigarette inside. She heard it sizzle as it made contact with the liquor. She wandered outside to admire the floating lights above the garden trails and the colorful bulbs wrapped around the stands holding the gazebo up. She took the stone path toward the concrete steps and met Hisoka looking outward to the wilting garden, flowers losing their petals and trees barren of leaves.

He held two warm cups of tea in his hands, one of which he gestured for her to take. She did and let the sweet smell wafting about the pentagonal structure mixed with the familiar scent of nature in the midst of early winter surround her.

"Akayama?" He turned his head slightly, eyes moving to the window to her bedroom.

"Yes."

"Is he any fun?"

"He talks too much."

Hisoka snorted as he took a sip from his tea. "You wouldn't have that problem with me."

"You disgust me."

He chuckled while giving her a sidelong stare. His eyes glued to her profile as her form swayed along with the pleasantries the sake had provided with the just amount of patience. Her eyes almost glittered beneath the glimmering lights and her skin glowed underneath a vibrant green shade showering over her.

She took only a sip of the sweetened tea before setting it aside on the rail encasing the structure.

"I heard about your pregnancy from Nyoko-san."

Ren shot him a disbelieving stare. "You heard or eavesdropped?"

"Either way doesn't matter," he stated stringently. "Have you any idea what you've done?"

She mockingly patted her stomach as a smirk appeared on her face. "What do I look like? Four? I've got a bun in the oven, obviously."

For whatever reason she decided to pretend a while longer, anything to enjoy her final months alongside the Sakamoto clan, and the idea was too good to let pass. Her aunt and uncle would die—if not literally, at least stay petrified an amusing while.

"And you're still sleeping around?"

"It's not a horrible thing, sex, in fact, it's rather healthy. It keeps me without stress and leaves me quite peaceful."

Hisoka scoffed humorlessly and overturned his admonishment. "This sort of lie will get you in trouble, Ren."

She arched an eyebrow as she turned to lean onto the rail. "Do you honestly believe I'm lying?"

"You can't honestly be serious," he said with a light ring to his voice. He thought it preposterous and who could blame him, the lie itself was and he was no fool. "You should be happy this new development hasn't reached my parent's ears. They're already angry with you and honestly, I don't think your reputation can stand anymore defilement."

She shrugged her shoulders and dropped her arms to her sides, embracing the silence.

She could ruin whatever tatters remained of her reputation, making it impossible to redeem herself, but it would never matter. Her position within Soul Society had been set in stone by her father, but she had yet to understand the reason.

Ren took a breath and straightened out, shoulders back and eyes forward. "It's never enough, Hisoka."

"Hmm?"

"Ruining my so-called reputation," she stated. "It won't ever be enough."

Hisoka lowered his gaze as his expression changed and she felt that had been a look she had never seen before. Everything was changing before her eyes and she had barely taken notice.

She took her leave shortly after. He had nothing left to say.

Ren walked up the same stone walkway leading into the manor, but felt odd as she went. A chill ran down her spine, eyes lingered on her form, a distant shadow vanished in the darkened night. She looked around her as she took the steps onto the verandah, hands curving over the threshold, but there was nothing out of place.

At times like those she wished Fusae was around to give her the comfort she so needed the most. She wanted her security blanket to veil and blind her so she would not need to fear that which surrounds her.

Another breath, deeper, almost imposing—she ventured inside. To warmth and slight security, to the world that welcomed her with open arms where there existed pricey silks, jewels, and superciliousness, and fear seemed unnecessary.

She returned to her empty bedroom full of those things and moved onto a tall dresser where she slid opened the top drawer. Beneath the jewelry box and the unimportant testaments of love she received throughout the years and kept as a mocking gesture was a letter sitting between the many stacks. She received it two weeks ago. It was written by her father and it told her the reason for the clan's existence since he changed their noble status to something of larger importance. It mentioned his three manuscripts and their purpose.

Central 46 sent it, but she had for a few untold moments felt immeasurable joy of holding something that her father had written and the imaginings of a child staring at a letter of love written by her just-deceased parent. It would have an expression of feeling not once told and if it had been written just right…there might be tears in her eyes as she read its conclusion, but she had been fantasizing too much that the realization came quickly. Her father had written the letter as he would any other, addressing business…solely business…and it lacked any emotion aside from its crisp professionalism.

Ren fisted her hand over the letter, crumbling it as she took it from its hiding place and tossed it into the ashtray atop the dresser. She lit a match and dropped it inside. The flames seeped through the delicate paper, tearing holes that expanded until there was nothing but ashes left. It would be enough for her to have read it because she would remember everything written upon that letter that had been a part of her mental track for the last fourteen days.

She wanted to forget it.

Ren begrudgingly agreed to take the hike through the sylvan in Rukongai with her captain to continue senseless zanpakutō bonding. The trees surrounding the terrain were in overabundance and stricken with winter, frosted branches brittle to the touch and barren of blossoms. She could see the peculiar shapes of every tree aligning the dirt path leading to the clearing. There were tall, thin trees and a few were slanted with drooping branches, others looked robust though there were no leaves to decorate them that bitter season.

The wind whistled and swerved at her surroundings, shaking the frosted branches crisscrossing overhead. Flecks of yesterday's snow swirled around her slim form, forcing her to draw the dark shawl over her shoulders and suppress a shudder. She lifted her gaze from the snow crusted pathway, glassy eyes reflecting Ichimaru's back and the dark scarf he had pulled forward. He arrived at the Sakamoto manor that crisp morning, once the storm subsided and the sun rose, and waited at the gate for her instead of barging inside without caring whether she was ready or not as she expected the night before.

She almost purposely prepared a scene that would send any normal man into a jealous fit knowing he would sneak in through her window. Akayama Koji stayed the evening and he lay splayed naked with a heavy pelt covering the bottom half of sculpted body—his only superior attribute as he tended to be overbearing, arrogant, and loquacious. He snored the entire night, depriving her of necessary beauty sleep, but she bore with the incessant noise by downing the rest of the wine served that evening and drawing circles along her unclothed torso until her nightly companion roused from slumber to take her a second time. He lasted very little, vitality was not his strong point when inebriated or drowsy—something she absolutely abhorred—but she only needed to deal with the horrible sex that night. Taking Koji as a lover had been a gamble as he either delivered a passionate, lust-driven night that could leave any girl breathless or the horrid seven minute session before ejaculation.

She had a hate/love relationship with his vitality, but needed to moderate her sexual escapades. It got to that point when she had to question her actual desires for these men. She mentally reprimanded herself for painting a foolish picture of herself. She started caring what her dead family would think of her unscrupulous behavior, as if their opinions would have mattered if they had been alive.

Her father might have said something crude about her conduct but his focus would be on her safety and he may audaciously resort to picking the men for her. Her mother would complain about it, chase her husband and give a list of reasons as to why he needs to talk sense into her, and may try pilfering her meetings to get her motherly advice through her stubborn skull. And Kazuya…he would whine about other men besting him and she wouldn't deny it to see him cry. She wondered if he would still be a crybaby once he grew older and whether or not he might have clung to her as he did as a child. She hated the obnoxious brat for being born male and effortlessly raking everyone's attention, but he loved her from the moment he started spouting incoherent babble and begun following her wherever she went the second he could crawl.

Ren banged her head on the wall a couple of times, blaming the haze in her mind from all the alcohol consumed, but during her hangover she had the brightest idea and it involved forcing Gin's true opinions out by inviting Koji to stay. It obviously backfired because he did not actually appear inside her bedroom as she expected. He waited at the gate for her to forcibly greet him after asking him not to touch her when he patted her back and begun leading the way.

Gin acted strangely afterward, nothing out of the ordinary, but definitely eye catching. If she realized it, he hadn't put much effort into hiding it. She figured it had to do with their previous conversations concerning her father's manuscripts. He might have been plotting other ways to get information from her. She half expected that morning's training session to be relevant to the manuscripts. She felt they would be the topic of their exchanges for years on end until he got what he wanted or she ended up dead because it was an impossible feat.

Somehow her mind was in a flux she had no control over and as she entered the clearing a few steps behind Gin she wanted to push everything out of her head at once.

A branch snapped deep within the path causing her to turn abruptly to see the morning light shining through the large trees and shadows dancing along their barks. A sense of insecurity washed through her like a rushing stream.

"Someone following ya 'round?"

Something like that…

Ren's attention snapped back to her smirking captain. She frowned. "No."

She tightened her grip on her shawl as she approached the center of the area.

"Ya seem a bit distracted, Takudaiji-san."

She ignored the mocking tone and drew her zanpakutō from her sash, fed up with his attitude.

"Enough with the chitchat," she admonished. "We're here to help with my zanpakutō training not converse. I'd like to get through these morning sessions as quickly as possible. I hate receiving special treatment."

"D'ya now?"

Her eyes narrowed in annoyance as she dropped her shawl to the ground, spread along the rocky terrain, and plopped down cross-legged. She placed her sword over her knees after struggling to find comfort over uneven ground and watched him take a seat on one of the large flat stones sitting by the trees.

She needed to concentrate.

Ren took a deep breath.

"I'll know if you aren't meditating, by the way."

"Shut up."

It took another deep, angry breath to relax the tension building in her shoulders. Even in Ichimaru's presence, though she found him incomprehensibly abominable for what he had done, she could reach a soothingly calm ambience—perfect for meditation. She hated him for that singular reason. He soothed her when he only needed to repulse her. She could not fight against the tumultuous affection raging war against her common sense and better judgment.

Ren fell into meditation before she finished counting from twenty. The calamity previously ensuing in her mind was disregarded and she entered a paradise in which she felt at complete ease. There were no worries there, but she made no contact with her zanpakutō spirit during that lengthy session.

"It might be as petulant as you are, Takudaiji-san."

She scoffed as she brushed the dirt from her uniform.

"I wouldn't be surprised." He gave a slight indifferent shrug. "It would be a reflection of you."

She gave him a sidelong stare while sliding her zanpakutō back inside her sash and started in the only direction out. She wasn't fond of useless prattle and continued walking through the thick forest. Truthfully, she understood what time would do if she were to delay her stay by Ichimaru's side. She needed to act professionally, like any subordinate would with any captain—act as she always had before her superiors.

A voice inside her head told her it would be impossible because she singlehandedly ruined her peace of mind by developing feelings. The mere notion sent her into an uncharacteristic tirade of self-insults and an episode of tears that marked the lengths of her disappointment because it was grand. She could tear her hair out and rip her pretty dresses and destroy her pricey jewelry and throw it all at Ichimaru's face.

Ha! A smile spread across her lips, chasing away the dark countenance once clinging to her features and replacing it with an amusing expression. That would show him!

Show him what exactly? She didn't know.

Ren growled as she kicked the dirt mixed snow along the path and halted at the sudden crunch of feet behind her. She turned quickly but had expected a snide comment to pass her by before she did. She found nothing but the long winding path before her eyes, the clearing sat beyond sight.

She bit her lower lip, feeling an odd chill. "I forgot my damned shawl."

Forget it.

She sighed deeply, pivoting and going back toward the clearing. The walk felt longer as if there were twists and turns she never noticed before. Her mind started playing tricks on her as she arrived, there were shadows dancing around her and she progressively felt faint. She held her head, fingers tangling in her already disheveled hair until the world started spinning and she realized her shawl was gone.

She headed straight to Third Division in a horrible new mood.

Ren kicked a bucket full of murky water over the verandah and basked in the squeals of two nebbish girls working on scrubbing the floors outside clean. The braver one of the two stood to confront her sudden act with a straight face and both hands on her hips assuming a pose that did her tiny form no justice. She stared up with narrowed golden orbs at her towering form. Ren never considered her height premise for intimidation, but she acknowledge the fact that she was indeed taller than most women as it was a familiar trait in her mother's side of the family and reason as to why her aunt and uncle were a ridiculous sight. It certainly worked wonders on the girl trying hard to reproach her actions.

"You have done absolutely nothing since you've arrived to this division—"

"Is that any of your business?" Ren interjected obnoxiously.

The girl bristled and growled in response. She hated midsentence interruptions and the division's self-proclaimed princess did nothing but interrupt whenever she saw fit like adding oil to an already explosive situation. She had half a mind to slap her, teach her that within the division, though she held a higher position than them, it was rude to do as she pleased because she arrived with a horrid temperament. Of course, it bothered her knowing Captain Ichimaru was lenient on her for questionable reasons. That month they spend together at the start mapped out the events playing out before their eyes now and nobody within Third Division aside from its captain and lieutenant were exactly happy about her sudden transfer. Everyone had thrown a celebration when she returned to Fifth Division, being introduced to her again that long month ago was a hideous realization.

"We spent hours cleaning the murk off these hallways to have you dirty them again," the girl's voice rose and her fisted hands trembled as she tried containing her anger.

Ren leaned in, eyes hardened but her expression set to one of amusement, and saw the girl jolted back slightly. She stood her ground; she had to give her that. "Excuse me." She pushed past her without confrontation, but the girl's whirl of insults managed to reach her ears.

Kira came into view as she turned the hall, away from the girl's vision, and she quickly called to him.

"Morning, Takudaiji-san," he greeted as he approached.

She leaned over the rail as he came to a halt. "Isn't there anything interesting to do here?"

"Have you not gotten used to Third Division?"

"No."

"Have you made acquaintances?"

"No."

Everyone hated her, how was it possible to make friends within a hostile environment?

He smiled fleetingly and raised the documents in his hand. "You could always stay indoors and help me sort these out."

"Does this require being in the presence of your captain?"

Kira shook his head. "The captain will be out of the division for the next few hours."

"Oh?"

She nodded to herself with a pensive expression before deciding to assist him and walked around the verandah until she walked down the steps awaiting her. She met Kira on the path toward the office building and walked alongside him discussing the dreary weather they knew would get worse with time. Winter had only started a few days ago and it begun with a ruthless blizzard that proved troublesome for various shinigami on patrol duties within Soul Society.

Kira guided her into the warmer building and the up to Ichimaru's office to sort a bunch of papers. Ichimaru failed to finish a few papers concerning the division's budget and that month's expenses along with the reconstruction of the main dojo. She nonchalantly sat behind his desk while staring at the varying numbers before taking the nearest pen to sort the budget issues and add up the expenses while included the charges for the dojo's reconstruction to avoid having to waste time wishing he were there to do his job rather than spend the next hour and a half stalking around Seireitei observing unsuspecting individuals. She assumed that was what he was doing that afternoon. She only remembered him heading out of the division for that purpose at the same time…sometimes without so much as a warning.

He did many unnecessary things.

"Are you feeling better now, Takudaiji-san?"

Ren finished fishing through many stacks of papers and reorganized them as she lifted her eyes to face him. ""Yes. Why?"

"Captain Ichimaru gave you such a lengthy vacation I worried your injuries hadn't been treated properly."

Her eyebrows furrowed. Was that his excuse? "I hope my absence wasn't a nuisance."

"It wasn't. We haven't had a Fourth Seat in the past five months."

"I didn't know that."

"Takiyama-san was transferred to another division after you returned to Fifth."

"That makes sense."

Kira took a stack of documents and turned to her. "Would you mind taking this down the hall and archiving them?"

Ren checked the clock. Gin was set to return anytime soon.

She took the small stack from him and received a few explanations as to where everything went before she took her leave down the hall to a dimly lit room. She had only been there once during her previous stay at Third Division. She wanted to get away from Gin to have a smoke…before she knew he wouldn't rebuke her for openly smoking…and slipped into the archive room at the end of the curving hallway because it surprisingly had a large window to vent out the smoke. She puffed through the remainder of her carton and snuck out the window to appear at the front of the building once nobody stood underneath the area. She got through the rest of the day without arousing suspicion.

Ren maneuvered the documents onto one arm as she slid the door open with the other and propped out the carton of cigarettes hidden inside her sash. While stepping inside she accidentally kicked the door hard, dropping the papers to the ground and cursing aloud. She slinked in and shut the door behind her noisily before causing a ruckus.

She leaned into the door and continued fumbling for a cigarette unaware of another's presence until she lit her smoke.

She jolted, bumping her shoulder hard into the threshold and nearly choked on smoke she puffed out.

"You could at least say something," she started, coughing hard as she leveled her gaze with her captain's.

Gin had been sitting in the corner of the tiny archive room, looking as though he's been there quite a while rather than out causing mischief. She noticed the smell of alcohol lingering in the enclosed space and the fact that he seemed a tad feverish but not in a way that he looked sick.

He took a haggard breath as he turned to face her. "Oh, it's Ren-chan." He looked to the mess on the ground. "Aren't ya a bit clumsy?"

"Takudaiji," she corrected stringently. "Takudaiji!"

"Fine, fine, Takudaiji-sama," he conceded.

Her eyes narrowed as she took another drag from her cigarette and lazily starting picking the documents from the ground. "I don't appreciate your sense of humor, captain."

"You don't appreciate anything, Takudaiji-sama."

She shot him a glare after hearing him chuckle.

"Are you simply drunk or are you on something?"

"Just drunk," he remarked truthfully, which surprised her. She expected to poke at him until he managed a response. "Yer always invited ta join, Takudaiji-sama, if ya won't be bothered with spending time with despicable me."

She slammed the documents gathered back to the floor. "Yes, I will be bothered, Captain Ichimaru, in fact, I'd be disgusted."

"Yer still mad at me?" he asked as if he simply pinched her ass…like Fusae hadn't been a big deal. "It happened so long ago, Ren-chan. Fusae would be happy knowing she died for your—"

She bristled the second he uttered her deceased servant's name and slapped him once he threw her emotions onto the table. Her hand stung as she felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise in the midst of rage.

"How dare you spit on her grave?" she cried, fisting her hands over the collar of his uniform. "You think saying sorry is enough, Ichimaru? Do you think seducing me will make it right? Do you honestly think me a fool?" Her jaw set as her anger boiled. "I may have been a fantastic pastime, the bottle of all your petty lies, but I am not falling for it this time or another. Even if it fucking kills me, Ichimaru, what you did to Fusae is something I won't forgive."

Fusae knew enough, but at the same time, knew nothing at all. It infuriated her to think she died because of someone's selfishness—to acknowledge it.

Gin grasped her hands. "But ya will forgive me, Takudaiji-sama."

Ren jerked out of his hold with a growl. "You imbecile!" she shouted. "You can grovel at my feet and beg and I won't think of forgiving you! And you can forget about seeking me out to cater to your sexual needs. I don't want your filthy hands ever touching me."

He chuckled as she fumbled toward the exit, putting out her unattended cigarette on the wood beside the door, and reached for the handle when his hand shot up to catch hers. He stood behind her within the blink of an eye and drew her close to him by the hips. She struggled, elbowing him hard in the chest to force herself from his hold and bustling out the archive room…forgetting her assigned duty.

She turned, struggling to contain her fury. "Don't fucking touch me!"

Gin was close behind. He liked troublesome women, that he knew, and understood Takudaiji Ren wasn't the woman he should take an interest in because she had what Aizen wanted. It was a messy deal, but he couldn't help getting his hands dirty.

He didn't mind it, not in the least.

Ren rushed down the staircase, but had Ichimaru waiting at the bottom. She tched and rolled her eyes. He dragged her into the nearest empty room where she stumbled and tripped him. They fell to the ground hard though she had cushioned his fall and felt her face redden with rage as she pushed him from her aching body.

"Sorry," he whispered, the alcohol heavy on his breath.

Her heart thumped hard inside her ribcage and her eyes glazed over, expression twisted in apprehension. He held her hands tightly encased as the voices outside rang in their ears.

He bent his head over slightly so the tips of his hair tickled her nose.

"Sorry," he said again and again, softer and lighter until she could block his voice from her head.

Ren closed her eyes tightly and felt his lips against her forehead. He lifted his body from hers and cast a heavy shadow over her. She turned her face away, draping an arm over her eyes.

"Ren."

"Get away from me," she ordered bitterly. "I want to keep this professional, but I can't with you doing these things."

"Can you survive on your own?"

She wanted to hit him again, harder this time, but resisted.

"Does my survival matter to you, Ichimaru?"

He ignored her question and stood. He said nothing as he departed, leaving her sprawled on the ground with her anger. She hated him, that was a given, but she hated herself more than anything for feeling the way she did.

Forgiving him was the last thing she wanted to do.

Even if it killed her.

Ichimaru Gin leaned back in his chair, head back and eyes fixed on the man standing before him. Aizen Sōsuke came to visit Third Division on various believable pretexts, but he arrived to address his sole interest at the moment. He figured he had more time before Aizen decided to pay him a visit. They had made an agreement a couple months ago, when he first mentioned Takudaiji Naoya's manuscripts and revealed to him the reason as to why he agreed to have Ren sent to his division in the first place. The pleas of nobility are usually overlooked unless they are of the same tier as the Kuchiki, which Ren obviously was not—not anymore at least—and Sakamoto Kyozo's so-called punishment to the woman's insolence became his axiomatic leader's window of opportunity. He allowed the temporary transfer to occur, though at the time Gin thought it to be a complete gag—a new toy to keep him entertained, which worked, evidently—and it suddenly developed to what it had…whatever that was.

The rest worked out on its own. He managed to get underneath Ren's skin as she proved difficult for Aizen. Gin thought that to be a pleasant surprise as she seemed to be the only one with an aversion to the charm he had on everyone. He annoyed her, it seemed. Ren could confide enough in him to admit the manuscripts existed at some point in time.

"You are taking quite a bit of time with this," said Aizen, standing with his hands tucked into his sleeves and an unpleasant expression finding its way into light. "Are you, perhaps, enjoying your final days catering to Takudaiji's needs?"

Gin chuckled. A mocking laugh. Aizen was enjoying himself.

"One does anything but enjoy themselves with that woman, she's a toughie, but I'm getting to 'er," he answered quickly.

"Have you found the manuscripts?"

He shook his head. "Looked and looked, but haven't found a clue. She's got plenty of manuscripts, but they aren't her father's." He tipped back his chair and begun balancing on to pass time, anything to make these cryptic meetings less…cryptic? "You sure they didn't burn in that fire?"

Aizen smiled and his features darkened. "No. Takudaiji Naoya is a smarter man that one gives him credit. He would not allow his best work go to waste. He must have gone through great lengths to ensure their safety before his imminent death."

"That don't mean Takudaiji's got any idea where they are."

Aizen shook his head. "I am certain they are in her possession. She just may not know it, yet."

I'm not going to lie, I had trouble writing up these chapters but managed to get them to a stage in which I can deem them presentable and the least bit acceptable by my standards. Takudaiji Naoya's manuscripts play an important role throughout these chapters...as you can see...but someone is bound to steal the limelight soon. Just thinking about it makes me laugh, but that's as far as I'll go with running my mouth. I'm definitely trying to speed things up because I have bigger things prepared for Ren in the future, so I hope I don't take things too fast.

Thank you for reading. :)

Next Update: April 7