The Dragon's Queen

by Jo Terry

A/N: I do not own Bleach and its characters.

Chapter 27

"To Kuchiki Rukia — one of the best bartenders Nichibotsu's Bar has ever had and forever our New Girl," Harukami toasts, lifting a glass of whiskey above her head.

"To Kuchiki Rukia!" everyone else in the bar echoes.

It was Rukia's last day at the bar. She will begin working from home for Sugino Nami the following Monday as her designer.

"So the Most Promising Young Fashion Designer got signed up six months after she received her university award. With how competitive young talents are in Japan, you're bloody lucky to be offered something big like that within the first year of your undergrad studies," Nichibotsu says, causing Rukia's cheeks to colour.

"I wasn't expecting this either," she admits. "Honestly, I don't think Sugino-san even knows about that award."

Beside her, Uryuu shakes his head. "She knows. She's one of the stakeholders of TUAD, remember? Dr Sugino told me she wanted to hire you after the New Year's holiday. But he said she was being too hasty and should at least wait until you've finished your first semester."

Another round of toasts is called for and Rukia swears, if it weren't for her Kuchiki training, she would've broken down in tears by how touched she is.

The decision to take up the offer was made the night she came back from Shibuya, where she discussed it thoroughly with Uryuu. She had gone in to work earlier the next day to verbally give Nichibotsu a two-week notice, followed by a letter of resignation when he agreed to let her go.

Tonight, at the closing of the bar, Harukami, Rio, and Nichibotsu insist on giving her a small farewell party. Uryuu was invited by them, unbeknownst to Rukia.

"We're going to miss you, New Girl," Harukami says, throwing an arm over Rukia's petite shoulders. "That step stool is going to miss you, too."

"You're all not going to let me go until you see me cry, aren't you?" Rukia snickers. She could feel the stinging in her eyes. Kuchiki or not, there's no way anyone could stand this sort of farewell. She thinks about how it's going to be when she leaves the World of the Living for good but quickly pushes that thought aside. Leaving the man next to her will be the most painful part of it all.

"Of course! You're always so tough. A little emotion will do you good, Kuchiki," Harukami continues to tease her.

"You'll both visit, though, won't you?" Nichibotsu asks.

Uryuu nods. "I'll make sure to take her here once in a while. Hopefully before she goes crazy from staying at home all the time."

Rukia rolls her eyes as she backhands her boyfriend. "I'll still be going for classes."

"I agree with Dr Ishida," Rio, who has been busy filling everyone's glass, says. "You'll only be going to and fro between campus and home. You should drop by often to drink away your mundane routine."

"Thanks for the advice, Youtuber-san who spends his time at home all-day until his bartender duty calls."

Rio chuckles and lifts his glass. "To staying at home and remaining sane."

The others toast one last time together. It is nearly 2.00 am when they decide to call it a night, assured that this would not be the last time they had a round of drinks with Rukia and Uryuu.

The couple exits the bar moments later to make their way back to their apartment with a bottle of Hibiki 21 Years Mount Fuji Limited Edition as a gift from Nichibotsu.

"Do you have any plans for tomorrow?" Uryuu asks as he pulls out from where he parked by the roadside.

"Chad and Karin are coming over for their usual lunch, right?" Rukia replies, leaning her head on Uryuu's shoulder.

The man grunts. "Can they not come over tomorrow? I want to spend the entire day with you."

Rukia scoffs. "You know they will come even if we tell them not to, right?"

"It's our house! They can come over for dinner after I leave for my night shift."

She chuckles. "I'll drop Karin a text. I hope she checks her phone. She and Chad have been spending so much time on the Wii lately."

Rukia excuses herself to the bathroom when they arrive at their apartment. Renji is in town and has promised to patrol Karakura with Karin that night so the shinigami captain would be able to take her night off.

For the past few months, they have been patrolling during the day as well, in case the new stray reiatsu shows up. It hasn't, though, since the first time it was sighted months ago. But the Gotei 13 decided that they can't be too careful, after the Ulquiorra Cifer incident. If a dead Espada could come back to life and turn into a human, anything could happen. They are also secretly monitoring Ulquiorra's activities with a hidden soul scanner installed on the lamp post outside Orihime's house. It detects his movements, mostly, as he no longer has any active reiatsu for them to follow.

Rukia has a feeling whatever that new stray reiatsu is, the three of them won't be enough to track it down. They have combed all areas of Karakura for almost four months. If that reiatsu truly exists, obviously the owner knows how to conceal it. Better than Ulquiorra did even. Whoever they are probably also knows Soul Society is tracking them down. If only the Gotei 13 could station a few more shinigami at Karakura.

Huffing at her gigai's dark circles around the eyes, Rukia taps a bit of eye cream under her bottom eyelids. She makes a mental note to take the gigai to Urahara on Monday for maintenance while her classes will be online. It's been awhile since she has done so.

The thing about this new model of gigai is that it is fueled by Rukia's reiatsu. Every time she comes out of it, it is as if it runs on alternate current, whether her reiatsu is being replaced with Chappy's false spiritual pressure while the latter is inhabiting it or nothing at all when Rukia leaves it empty in her room. Over time, this can cause the cells of the gigai to weaken and the synthetic skin to deteriorate. Because of the hunt for this new reiatsu lately, Rukia has been leaving it with Chappy whenever she was supposed to be at her classes.

Patting her cheeks, Rukia scowls at her face in the mirror. She can't do much now. Even putting the gigai to rest won't be of much help. Turning around to open the door of the bathroom, she exits only to crash into a shirtless Uryuu.

"I heard the shower turned off quite a while ago. Thought you were done," Uryuu chuckles, holding her by the elbow as she secures the towel wrapped around her body to prevent it from falling off.

"I was applying the skin treatment given by Urahara," she explains, feeling her skin heating up for no reason at all.

Uryuu brings a hand up to cradle her jaw, his thumb smoothening over the apple of her cheek. "You look fine to me."

"Soon, I won't," she snickers quietly with her eyes closed, leaning into the warmth of his hand. "I need to send this faux body for maintenance."

"As long as your soul form is here, I'm fine with anything," he says, tilting her face up to kiss her lips.

Rukia opens her eyes. "It's different, isn't it? Does my soul form feel solid to you?" she asks, curious as he's never mentioned what it's like to touch her in her soul form. They've cuddled a few times in her shinigami form after she returned from her patrolling before she entered her gigai.

"You always feel real," he hums, dropping little kisses on her bare shoulder. "I can see and feel spirits better than most humans, remember?"

Rukia fights the urge to moan under the touch of his lips, his movements getting bolder by the second as he trails kisses down to her chest above her dangerously loosening towel. "Uryuu…"

At the sound of her trembling voice, Uryuu's attention returns to her lips and, grabbing her by the hips, he places her on the counter next to the bathroom sink and settles himself between her knees. "I've never told you this, but," he begins giving her open mouth kisses, sucking her lips and teasing her tongue with his in between his words. "I'm not sure if it was ever a good idea to let you call me by my first name."

Rukia reaches a hand around his neck to pull him closer, not satisfied with the barely-there touches he's peppering on her mouth. "Then, what should I call you, Uryuu?"

He grunts at her taunting, digging his fingers into her hips through her towel as he deepens their kiss.

Her other hand scrambles up to card their fingers through his hair and she realises too late that her towel is slipping down her chest. Gasping at her mistake, she presses her body to Uryuu's, hoping to save the situation but getting a deep, guttural groan from him instead.

"Rukia…" he hisses, tightening his arms around her as his startled blue eyes stare into her violet orbs.

Looking up at him and trying to suppress the heat that's building up in her gigai, she hesitates, "Room?" She's not even sure what she's insinuating but the next thing she knows, Uryuu has moved them into his room, her towel discarded along the way and he's towering over her in his bed with his lips back on hers.

Inoue and Ichigo sit awkwardly opposite each other at the coffee shop two blocks from her apartment. He has the large envelope with him but he's not willing to sign anything until they've discussed Kazui and all the little details which are usually overlooked, one of them being the financial support she needs as she is medically unfit to work.

Ichigo may be pissed about how she's ending things for their family. But the protective side of him is driven by compassion for anyone who's in need. Whatever the case is between them, the fact remains that she was his classmate, comrade, and family who has no means to support herself because of her medical condition.

"I don't need your money."

"How are you going to survive?"

"I have my own savings plus the little gratuity Soul Society pays me every month. And I'm planning to start baking again," she replies stubbornly.

"What about…"

"Ulquiorra-kun? We've got that settled."

"I'm talking about Kazui," Ichigo says through gritted teeth. That Espada's name is the last thing he wants to hear right now. He's the cause for Kazui losing his mother.

"Don't worry, I won't take him away from you," she says, fixing him with a determined look.

"That's not what I'm saying, Orihime," Ichigo snaps, unable to hold his impatience towards this woman who has become someone he doesn't recognise anymore. "He's your son. He needs his mother."

Inoue heaves a long sigh as she takes her eyes away from him and looks out the window of the coffee shop. "I can't right now, Ichigo. I really can't. There's just too much pressure on my emotions."

"How about his emotions?" Ichigo demands, clenching his fist over the blasted envelope on the table. Have you ever thought of that? He's barely six years old. What are you punishing him for?"

"That's not what I'm doing!" she all but growls, glowering back at him. "Stop accusing me of not loving my son!"

"I never said you didn't love him. Why are you doing this to him? He doesn't deserve to be treated like this. He is just a boy!"

By now, they have managed to attract the curious looks of the other patrons in the shop, but Ichigo is far from caring about the unwanted attention. Inoue is certainly pushing his limits.

Inclining her head, she takes to staring emptily into her tea cup that's cradled in her hands before she mutters, "He also doesn't deserve to have a mother like me… he's better off without me. Please tell him that."

"How could I… why would I… what the fuck is wrong with you, Inoue?" he explodes, acutely aware of the manager of the shop approaching their table.

"I'm sorry. I can't. I have to go," she says as she rises from her chair and leaves the shop.

Ichigo huffs into his palms, trying very hard not to entirely lose it in public, when all he wants to do now is rage and punch a hole into a wall like he did six years ago.

He flinches when a hand touches his shoulder. When he looks up, it is Chad's enormous frame standing beside him that he sees. Behind the gentle giant, the manager of the shop has a genuinely concerned expression on his face.

"Ichigo…"

The orange head sighs, taking a couple of deep breaths. "I'm okay, Chad. Sorry about the show. What are you doing here?"

"Getting a take-out before heading to… a friend's place," he replies.

Ichigo notices the cautious pause before he mentions where he is going. He could very well guess whose place Chad is talking about but he is drained of energy to care.

"Do you want me to give you a lift home?"

"It's fine," Ichigo says, getting up from his seat. "I drove here."

Bowing in apology to the manager as he walks by, Ichigo exits the shop in despair, with Chad in tow.

He has decided that there's nothing he can do about Inoue, at this point. The envelope in his hand pricking his palm as he resigns himself to its demand for his signature.

Pulling out of his parking spot, he makes his way to the lawyer's office to submit the documents before he changes his mind.

Rukia squints as she feels the sun hitting her eyes. Turning away from the glare, she finds her face nuzzled into the naked chest of the body spooning her. That is when she recalls what happened the night before. Last night… she breathes, his musky scent overpowering her senses that are still blurry from sleep. Burrowing deeper into his embrace, she winces at the sore she feels on the lower half of her body. She'll never hear the end of it if she leaves her gigai at Urahara's within the next few days. He would surely know.

"Good morning," Uryuu murmurs into the crown of her head, his fingers skittering up her hip. "You, alright?"

Rukia tilts her face up and presses her lips to his. "A little sore," she admits.

"Wish I could perform a healing kido," he says, sliding his hand around her waist and tracing his fingers up her spine. Rukia is sure he can fill her shiver under his touch. Uryuu has always been gentle with his hands. "I don't think you're suited to be a shinigami, Dragon."

"Not sure if I should feel insulted or…"

"It's a compliment, Uryuu," she assures, assaulting his skin with her teeth, tongue, and the flat of her palms.

Uryuu groans deeply at the sensation. "Explain."

Rukia pushes herself up to properly face him. "You're a Quincy, Uryuu. Your race is refined, sophisticated, and elegant."

"That sounds like your brother," his mouth twitches, obviously trying to hide his smile.

Rukia giggles at that. "Unfortunately, he's the only shinigami who's well-cultivated."

"So on top of being refined, sophisticated, and elegant, you also think I'm well-cultivated…"

"You make it sound like that's a bad thing."

"It's not, I'll admit. But I'm not sure how I feel about being associated with your brother's…" he pauses dramatically to search for a suitable word. "class."

"Urgh…" Rukia rolls her eyes in annoyance as she hitches a leg over him and straddles him, sitting dangerously low on his abdomen, even as her face reddens at her state of undress. "You don't know compliments when it's served on a platter to you."

Uryuu grunts at her bold move, his hands grasping her hips as his eyes shine appreciatively at the sight before him, causing Rukia to be more aware of her body and promptly lowers her torso against his.

"Rukia…" he wheezes under her weight. He has barely taken her bottom lip between his teeth when his phone rings on his side table. "Fuck… don't tell me there's an emergency."

Rukia snickers, snuggling her face into the crook of his neck as he blindly reaches for his phone, only to find out it is Karin, of all people.

Uryuu scowls irritatedly as he shows her the name that has appeared on his screen. "I wasn't aware her number was saved in my phone."

"Yeah…" Rukia drawls, taking the phone from his proffered hand. "I saved it there quite some time ago."

Karin's voice is loud when she answers the call, causing Rukia to wince and Uryuu to grumble under his breath at the offending volume.

"What is it, Karin?"

"I tried calling you like a million times, Rukia-nee! Where are you?"

"I was asleep?"

"Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Err…" Rukia stammers, removing her phone from her ear to check the time. Casting Uryuu a startled look, she mouths to him: It's 11 o'clock?

"It's almost lunch time! We're on the way to your place. I was calling you to tell you that you don't need to cook because Chad and I are bringing food over."

"Didn't you receive my text last night? I told you not to come over. Uryuu and I have plans for the day."

"Huh… really?" the younger girl chuckles nervously. "We're downstairs, though."

Ishida is not very happy that his time with Rukia was interrupted. The two of them had to have a quick shower before they opened the door to Kurosaki and Chad. He and Rukia didn't even have the time to be conscious about their first time showering together.

"I bought the main dishes while Chad bought the desserts," the Kurosaki girl brags. She had briefly apologised to Rukia for missing her text last night. "What were your plans for today?"

Ishida fights the urge to blurt out that they wanted to spend the entire day in bed. "I was going to take Rukia to watch Days of Future Past," he says instead.

"Ooh… X-Men! Chad and I watched it with our roommates on Friday!" But she shrinks away when Ishida shoots her a murderous look. His murderous look. It's subtle but it's enough to shut his kid cousin up.

The four of them continue their lunch, taking turns to talk about events of interest around them. Ishida's bad mood begins to subside a little as he comforts himself that he'll have more time with Rukia now that she'll be working from home.

Until Chad mentions Urahara's name…

"He needs you to do what now?" Rukia asks.

Ishida is just as taken aback as she is. He and Chad… and the other two comrades have been out of the picture for ten years, where the spiritual world is concerned. But…

"He wants me to go back to train my Fullbring."

"Did he say why?" Ishida scowls. Why can't Soul Society leave the humans to live in peace?

"He said something about a new reiatsu appearing in Karakura. Is that true, Rukia-san?"

Ishida inwardly groans. Rukia has mentioned it a few times but apparently, this reiatsu has not been traceable for months.

"Yes. Is he recruiting you again to help us track it down?"

Chad nods. "He said you're short of manpower to cover all areas of Karakura 24/7."

"We are. But wouldn't it be better to send reinforcements from Soul Society instead? I'm pretty sure the rowdy gang of shinigami from the 11th are dying to come back to the World of the Living. And Matsumoto-fukutaichou would surely prance at the chance to put on modern-day clothes again," Rukia reasons. "My squad can spare at least ten non-seated shinigami for the job."

"I'm not sure why he wants me back there, Rukia-san. My Fullbring assessment is tomorrow night."

"Why do you need to be assessed?" Ishida asks, not comfortable with where all this is going.

"It's been dormant for years. He wants to see the extent of training I need in order to revive my Fullbring again," Chad explains.

At the word 'revive', Ishida is reminded yet again of what Inoue said about the revival of Kurosaki Ichigo's shinigami powers.

"Kuchiki Rukia has always been the one to put those powers back into him. She's his soulmate, isn't she? And reviving Kurosaki Ichigo has always been her only purpose."

"Uryuu?" Rukia's voice jolts him out of his thoughts and he realises his knuckles are white from clenching his fist.

He looks up to see that his younger cousin and Chad have gone to the kitchen with their dishes but Rukia is crouched down next to him with her hands over his fist.

"Is everything okay?"

Ishida swallows the urge to begin telling her about his fears. Now isn't the time. Not with their guests in their apartment and his hospital shift starting in a few hours. Even if Chad and Kurosaki were to make a move right now, Ishida cannot find it in him to leave Rukia behind with a head full of his anxieties about their relationship when he has to go to work later this evening.

"Sorry I spaced out for a while there. I'm okay," he lies before he catches himself at the same time Rukia does. "What's wrong, Uryuu?" she asks, her voice laced with suspicions and the kind of tone he never thought would be directed at him from her.

He exhales heavily through his throat and it comes out gravelly. "I can't talk about it right now," he says, stealing glances at the kitchen and hoping neither of their guests could hear him.

"You've been acting peculiar the past few months," she sighs as she rises to lean on the dining table, crossing her arms over her chest. "When will you be able to talk about it? Why are you not telling me what's been bothering you?"

Before he could come up with any answers, Kurosaki comes out of the kitchen with Chad and announces that they should leave the two lovebirds alone and, "Sorry for interrupting your day together."

Rukia thanks them for the food and sees them off, the younger girl still not done chatting even as she's standing by the open doorway. That girl can really talk whenever she's with Rukia.

Ishida remains at the dining table after bidding goodbye to Chad as he tries to work out how to begin telling Rukia about his encounter with Inoue and Ulquiorra Cifer — something he should have mentioned to her right after he met them at the A&E.

"Oh, by the way…" Kurosaki's voice carries into the apartment, much to Ishida's annoyance. "I overheard something huge last night! I'm probably not supposed to know, let alone tell anyone about it since it's not certain yet and Byakuya-sama thinks it's a horrible idea; but… Urahara says he has forwarded his appeal to the Gotei 13 to look into getting Ichi-nii his powers again."

Yeah… I can't write smut. Sorry.