Chapter Forty Eight: Hostage
It was cold in Keitarou's cells.
Juushirou pulled one of the worn blankets across his shoulders, stifling the urge to cough as he contemplated his position. Keitarou had seemed serious in his offer, after all, he reflected absently. But could he trust in the scientist's words any more than Seimaru could? A man who could kill a noble of Shouichi's standing was not someone who easily buckled to the wills of others...yet somehow Juushirou had felt that his words about District Eight and war were not far from the truth.
They said it themselves, after all. Shunsui. Everyone. That Eiraki-hime and Sumire-sama's coming could spark a war between the Kyouraku and the Endou. A war that the Shiba would join, and a lot of people killed. That Keitarou-san would say the exact same thing to me...sounds like those fears were realised. And...if there was war...Shunsui said he would fight. He'd take up arms, even hating the idea as much as he does. He might be hurt. More might be hurt. The refugees...innocent people in the villages. Hundreds of people, maybe even thousands. Just because of Seimaru's ambition.
He rubbed his temples.
If I believe Keitarou-san was telling the truth about that, then should I believe him about the other things? That he killed Shouichi-sama out of revenge for a dead kinsman, rather than on Seimaru's orders? That he helped Eiraki-hime and Sumire-sama escape because he has no interest in the bloodshed Seimaru seeks? That he could really change his allegiances so easily...a man who perpetuated reidoku to the point of creating poison designed to take Genryuusai-sensei down? I wish I knew. So far he's been frank with me, but I can't forget either what he said to me about Eiraki-hime. That truth was a useful tool in itself - has he been telling me truths to hide from me his deceptions?
He groaned, sinking back against the cold wall with a heavy sigh.
I can't figure him out. He's not raised a single finger against me since we came here. He's been polite and apologetic and he's answered questions easily without hesitation. In a way, he's almost been friendly. That in itself puts me on edge. Who comes in the middle of the night, manipulates a young girl to take a prisoner and then...offers to become his ally? What does he really want with me? Am I still a test subject for his reidoku? Was I ever? Or was it what else he said - about District shinigami and the promise for the future. Is he planning something beyond what I can see...? Probably. Possibly several things. And yet...
His brow creased as a spasm of pain rippled lightly through his chest, causing him to cough, and he reached for the second blanket, wrapping it firmly over the top of the other one and trying to ignore the musty, indistinguishable mesh of faint reiatsu traces that prickled against the rough fabric.
It's cold in here. Coming here was cold, too, and something about being down here makes my body feel more tired and heavy than usual. If it persists, I won't be of any material use to anyone...myself included. If I take sick here, there'll be no chance of my escaping. If I play along with him for now, I might give myself a little time and room to manoeuvre and get a message back to District Eight...but if I start a fever, then he'll probably decide I'm useless and give me to Seimaru anyway. And that won't do anything to prevent war. So for now, I have to...to focus on staying warm and keeping my haibyou at bay by not doing anything rash or panicked. I can't afford to not believe what he said about a potential war - everything else will just have to come from that point.
"Are you okay?"
A soft voice came from the gloom, and Juushirou glanced up, surprise in his hazel gaze as he registered the fact he was not alone. At the door, separated from him only by the thick metal bars of his cell was a young girl, eying him with a mixture of hesitation and concern. She was probably little older than his own youngest brother, he realised, dressed in rough robes and her feet bare against the cold stone. She was sturdy and chubbily built, thick waves of hair tied in an untidy knot behind her head, and as she rested her stubby hands against the bars, Juushirou could see that her fingernails were ragged and torn.
At his lack of response, the girl frowned, grasping the metal more tightly in her hands as she gazed at him.
"Onii-san? Are you all right?" She asked again, more anxious this time, and despite himself, Juushirou offered her an apologetic smile.
"Yes…I'm all right. I'm sorry – you just startled me, that's all. I didn't expect there to be anyone else down here."
"There isn't. Not now." The child shook her head, stray wisps of grimy hair flying every which way as she did so. "Just you and me, at the moment. Before there was just me on my own – and I didn't like that. So I thought I'd come speak to Onii-san. You don't seem scary, after all – you don't scream or yell like the others did before."
"Scream and yell?" Juushirou tensed, and the child sighed heavily.
"Most people who come here are frightening." She said sadly. "They scream and they shout and they make a fuss. They try to break the bars down, or climb out of the room, and then they get more upset because they can't. I've heard them, screeching. They stay here a little while, and then they go again…and I don't hear them any more. But you're not like that. You're not trying to make a fuss or climb out of the cell."
"I suppose I'm not." Juushirou acknowledged. "Though perhaps it would make more sense if I was."
He sighed, putting his hand against the stone wall, then,
"But it makes me tired, being here." He admitted. "This atmosphere…makes me tired. And there isn't any reason, is there? To fight, I mean. There isn't a way out – not that easy a one, anyway. Screaming and shouting when there's nobody here…there isn't a point, is there?"
"I suppose not." The young girl considered this seriously for a moment, then, "In that case, will you talk to me? Only I'm all by myself otherwise, and I don't like it very much."
"You live down here?" Juushirou asked her, and the girl nodded, letting out a heavy sigh.
"I didn't always, of course." She said frankly, settling herself down beside the cell door with a shrug. "I lived in a village before. But now I have to stay here. It's not safe otherwise. People might hurt me, if I go outside. So I have to stay here."
She shrugged.
"I can't find the door, anyway." She concluded with a frown. "I don't know where it is."
"But you're not a prisoner? I mean, you're not locked away in a cell like I am?" Juushirou asked, and to his surprise the girl laughed, shaking her head.
"Of course not." She said, as if he'd said something foolish. "I'm not a prisoner, silly. I just live here because my village got burnt and there was nowhere else, and Kei-nii said…"
She faltered, a shadow crossing her gaze, and Juushirou frowned, picking up on the casual use of such a familiar nickname.
"Kei-nii? Keitarou-san?" He asked, and the girl nodded.
"Yes." She agreed. "I live with Kei-nii. Though he isn't my real Nii-san – I don't have one of those. Or any other family. They're all dead. And Kei-nii's family are, too. So I live with him. He takes care of me. Before I lived in the village with Dai-nii, but…the village isn't there now. And nor is Dai-nii. So…I live here."
She paused, then slid a fat fist through the bars, holding out her hand to Juushirou.
"I'm Shikiki, by the way." She said warmly. "What's your name? Kei-nii said you were coming, but he didn't tell me what you were called. And I'd like to know – since you're not scary like the others."
"Juushirou." Surprised, Juushirou shuffled forward, clasping the smaller hand in his and squeezing it slightly. "Ukitake Juushirou."
"Juushirou." Shikiki looked thoughtful. "Then…Juu-nii. Can I call you Juu-nii? You have a long name, like Kei-nii."
"My siblings call me that." Juushirou nodded. "I don't mind."
"You have brothers and sisters?"Shikiki's eyes lit up with curiosity, even as she withdrew her hand. "Real ones?"
"Yes." Despite himself, Juushirou laughed. "Seven of them – two sisters and five brothers. My youngest brother is about your age, I think – how old are you, Shikiki? Yuu-kun is eight – are you about the same age?"
"I don't really know, but Kei-nii says so." Shikiki seemed to be thinking this over carefully. "I don't really remember when I was born, or my Kaa-san or my Tou-san, since they died. Kei-nii rescued me when I was about four…and I've been with him and Dai-nii for four years. He says that means I'm eight."
She held up eight fingers.
"But I don't really know for sure."
She tilted her head on one side, eying Juushirou quizzically.
"What is your brother like?"
"Yuu-kun?" Juushirou pursed his lips. "You wouldn't know he was my brother, I don't suppose. He has dark hair and dark eyes and everyone says he reminds them of the night sky. That's what his name means – 'gentle night' because he was so dark and quiet when he was born."
"Yuu-kun means 'gentle night'?" Shikiki was confused, and Juushirou grinned, shaking his head.
"No. Yuuya does. His name is Yuuya. I just call him Yuu-kun." He explained. "It's written with the characters for 'gentle' and 'night' – you see?"
"I don't know many kanji." Shikiki admitted. "Jus' the one for numbers, cos Dai-nii taught me them for going to market and stuff, and a couple of others."
She sighed.
"Kei-nii says my name means 'weaver' or 'seamstress'" She added. "He said I have a Princess in my name, but I don't know how that looks, either. Most people say it's a funny name, but it was the name my Kaa-san gave me, so I like it and Kei-nii said I should keep it, if it reminded me of Kaa-san. So I did. Even though it's funny…I like it."
"You really like Keitarou-san, don't you?" Juushirou realised with a jolt, and Shikiki nodded.
"If I hadn't met him, I would have died." She said frankly. "Him and Dai-nii – they kept me alive. And Irie-san and Tenichi an' Ketsui…only they went away, and then Dai-nii and I were alone. And Kei-nii tried to keep us safe, but they came and…"
She faltered, her voice breaking slightly, and Juushirou was alarmed to see the glitter of tears in her aqua eyes.
"I'm sorry…did I ask a bad question?" He said softly, and Shikiki shook her head.
"No." She said softly. "No, it's all right. It's just…they came and they took Dai-nii away. An' I don't know how it happened, Juu-nii. But I know they did horrible things to him. They killed him, but it wasn't quick, like the way farmers kill animals when they want to make them to food. He was…all messy and I know…they killed him in a horrible way."
So Keitarou-san was telling the truth about that at least.
Juushirou processed this carefully for a moment, remembering the way in which the scientist had described his cousin's death.
A kinsman tortured and then killed, with nobody there to care about it. Nobody except Keitarou-san and this child. More than that...he's protected her. He's looked after her, and raised her, even when her parents...
Out loud he said,
"Was Dai-nii...Daisuke-san? Keitarou-san's kinsman?"
"Yes." Shikiki looked startled. "Did you know him too, Juu-nii?"
"No. Just Keitarou-san mentioned him to me." Juushirou became thoughtful. "Him and his family."
"I couldn't save him. Even though I tried." Shikiki looked crestfallen. "Even though he tried to save me. The shinigami still took him away and...and then he was dead, and...I saw his body, all broken and covered in blood. Dai-nii shouldn't have had to go through that. He was a good person. Good people shouldn't be killed, only they are...by the shinigami, they always are."
"Shini...gami?" Juushirou's heart skipped a beat, and Shikiki nodded.
"I saw them." She said sadly. "The ones who burnt my village and took him away. The one who grabbed him – he had a seven on his arm. He was wearing Shinigami clothes, an' he took Dai-nii and the next time I saw him, he was dead an' Kei-nii was crying an' we had to bury him."
She sighed heavily.
"I shouldn't talk about it. It makes Kei-nii sad and angry, and I don't like it." She added. "But I get scared, sometimes, that someone will do the same thing to Kei-nii. He says he's strong, but I'm afraid… that something will happen and I'll be all alone again, just like before."
"Keitarou-san…cried?" Juushirou's eyes glittered with surprise, and Shikiki bit her lip.
"I shouldn't have seen, only I wanted to say goodbye to Dai-nii too." She said guiltily. "Please don't tell him, Juu-nii. I might get told off, if he knew I'd seen him. Kei-nii…he protects me as much as he can, I think. And he wouldn't have wanted me to know…that Dai-nii's death made him cry."
"I won't tell him." Juushirou's mind was whirling. "But he's not here now, so he won't hear you. You needn't look so worried. I can keep a secret."
"You're really not like any of the other people who've come here." Shikiki reflected pensively. "You're easy to talk to. Most of them just shout and cry and Kei-nii won't let me talk to them…and Seimaru-sama…"
She faltered, clapping a hand to her mouth. Juushirou frowned.
"Seimaru-sama hurt you?" He asked quietly, and Shikiki shrugged.
"I don't like him." She admitted uneasily, glancing around her as if expecting the nobleman to appear from the shadows and hoist her aloft for daring to say something against him. "He's strong and he scares me. I worry he might hurt Kei-nii. He makes him do things…he made Kei-nii dye his hair black, and dress in funny clothes, and pretend to be someone else. And Kei-nii is always running errands for Seimaru-sama…"
She sighed.
"Kei-nii says it's all right. And that even though people are looking for him, he won't get hurt." She said helplessly. "But when he's not here, Juu-nii, I get scared he won't come back. Even though he tells me he will, and even though he promises…when Dai-nii was taken, he told me to wait for him. I waited and waited but he n…never came back. S…Seimaru-sama is a shinigami. And…shinigami hurt Dai-nii, so…"
She trailed off, and Juushirou sighed, coming to kneel beside the bars.
"Not all shinigami hurt people." He said quietly. "Seimaru isn't a good example for you to base your opinions on. The shinigami in this District are governed by cowardly people who hurt others because they're afraid of them. That's all. That's why your Dai-nii got taken, I expect – and it's certainly why Seimaru is the way he is."
"You didn't call him ~sama." Shikiki's eyes became wide, and Juushirou shrugged.
"I'm not afraid of him." He responded simply. "I hate him, too. He hurt a close friend of mine – and would have killed me, too, if he could've. He tried to make another close friend do something horrible by threatening him…so I understand, Shiki-chan. I understand how you feel about him completely."
"Shiki-chan?" Shikiki looked startled, and Juushirou smiled sheepishly.
"I'm sorry. Don't you like it? It's habit, I suppose." He admitted. "Having so many younger brothers and sisters…for a moment, I suppose, I forgot I wasn't talking to one of them."
"No. I like it." Shikiki dimpled. "Nobody ever calls me 'chan'. Not now. Kaa-san probably did, I s'pose, but Kei-nii and Dai-nii just use my name. But I like it. You can call me Shiki-chan, Juu-nii."
She pursed her lips, tilting her head on one side.
"Why are you here?" She asked curiously. "Kei-nii said he would be bringing you, but I don't understand why he's locked you in here. Aren't you Kei-nii's friend? He seemed happy, when he talked about you coming…not like at other times. But he said you needed to stay here, because you were different...you weren't 'used to' this. I didn't understand - aren't you his friend?"
"I wouldn't say that." Juushirou shook his head. "He wants me to help him with some experiment or other, I think. I'm not really here because I chose to be, Shiki-chan. At least, I did come of my own free will but…if I didn't, I thought someone might be in danger. So I came. And now I'm here. But I suppose he locked me in just to make sure I didn't escape of my own accord."
His lips thinned.
"Not that I suppose I could. You're right. I'm not sure how he got us in, and I don't know how to do shunpo like he does. So even if I wasn't locked in…it wouldn't be easy for me to escape."
"Kei-nii said the stone is special stone to help us hide." Shikiki responded. "You get used to it, after a while. It makes you tired, but Kei-nii said he damped it, or something, so that I could still practice and he could still work and stuff."
"Practice?" Juushirou latched onto this. "Practice what?"
"What indeed."
Before Shikiki could answer, Keitarou's voice broke through the conversation, and Juushirou tensed, realising that once again he had not felt the other's reiatsu until that moment.
At his sudden, startled glance, Keitarou laughed, looking amused.
"Yes, I've come back in one piece, Shikiki." He said lightly. "But you should be careful what you say to Juushirou here, all right? I told you, after all - he's not used to this way of seeing things yet. He will be - I have faith that he will be. But for now..."
"Did I do something wrong, Kei-nii?" Shikiki looked upset, and much to Juushirou's surprise the scientist grinned, shaking his head as he reached down to ruffle the messy, curly hair.
"No. You didn't." he said softly. "I just don't want you to get yourself in danger unecessarily."
"But Juu-nii is...Kei-nii's friend?" Shikiki glanced between her two companions, seemingly confused, and Juushirou snorted.
"That's still not the word I'd use." He said quietly, and Keitarou smirked.
"Not yet. Not yet." He agreed. "There's some way to go before he sees things entirely the way we do. You see, Shikiki, Juushirou is different from you and I. And because of it, I think...for now, it's better to keep the bars between you. Just in case...it doesn't work out how I think."
"Like I'd hurt a child!" Juushirou exclaimed indignantly.
"No...perhaps not." Keitarou eyed him keenly. "But even so, we're still strangers yet. I have to be careful, too. Shikiki is precious to me - I won't have any harm come to her. You have a lot of spirit power - for all I know, you might be hiding an end game I haven't fathomed out yet. And I wouldn't forgive it, if you hurt Shikiki. Deliberately or by accident."
"I just said I wouldn't!" Juushirou snapped, and Keitarou rested his hands against the bars, eying Juushirou contemplatively.
"Even though you're a shinigami?" He asked softly, and Juushirou saw Shikiki flinch, staring up at him in horror. "Who bears a sword as sharp as the one Seimaru holds?"
"A...shinigami?" Shikiki whispered, taking a step away from the cage bars. "Juu-nii is a...shini...gami?"
"Shiki-chan..." Despite himself, Juushirou felt wrenched by the sudden doubt that flared in the child's aqua eyes, and Keitarou raised an eyebrow.
"Well?" He pressed. "You believe in the truth, don't you? Answer her question. You're not ashamed of it, after all...so you told me before."
"I'm not ashamed." Juushirou gritted his teeth, sending the scientist a black look. "And manipulating her to hate me isn't going to make us any more allies, you know. I'm a shinigami in training, Shikiki. I have a zanpakutou, but I would never use it to hurt you. You or any other person. I'm not like that. I raised my weapon to fight Hollows and protect my family - not to attack people and take them from their homes."
"But protecting your family means raising a blade in attack, doesn't it?" Keitarou observed lightly. "Training in kenjutsu means that at some time you'll use that sword as a weapon in a fight. And Hollows are souls too. There is a thin line between them and the others who inhabit this world, you know. The difference is a thin thread of spiritual sanity holding those darker impulses in check."
He smiled.
"I didn't make Shikiki fear shinigami." He added, patting the shoulder of the young girl who now clung to his sleeve. "That began when she saw her parents killed by those who follow the Endou-ke and answer as members of Seventh Squad. It was only increased when she saw them take my cousin prisoner, and then saw what wounds they'd inflicted on his body after his death. I haven't had to tell her to hate them. She's seen with her own eyes what shinigami do."
"Not all shinigami." Juushirou said quietly. "Not this one."
"That's what I hope to discover." Keitarou leant up against the bars, fumbling in his obi for the silver key. "I want to see your sword, and judge whether or not that's the case. Whether or not you raise your sword to oppress those weaker than you - or to protect them. Either way is a fight, Juushirou. You can't pretend otherwise. Raising a zanpakutou shows an intention to kill something or someone with it. That's what I intend to find out from you. Whether you hold your sword for the Clans or whether you hold it to defend the Districts from being trampled underfoot."
He smiled, but there was no warmth in his smile.
"I hate the Clans. All of them, even my own." He added. "And I don't have allegiance to any of them. I simply use what's useful to me and slip through the cracks to avoid detection. Till now I didn't think there was the possibility of doing it any other way - that I would perfect Father's reidoku, and prove to Soul Society that with it I could create a force to vindicate his word and avenge his murder. I've planned that way for a long, long time. The Endou-ke have provided me with the opportunity to work in secret with a shield to keep me from the Council's spying - and their paranoia with a means by which to test and fine-tune the chemical into something workable. I intended to use that to show those Clans that executing Urahara Keitsune and his companions was the real crime and a miscarriage of justice - that they turned against something that would eventually be their downfall."
He shrugged, the sudden coldness gone from his gaze as quickly as it had come.
"But now...I'm starting to see a different path. Inborn District potential I didn't see before - first in Shikiki, and now in you. So now I realise...more than reidoku, my bringing you here...opens up another possibility on that path."
He glanced at Shikiki.
"It's all right. I've brought you food, so run along and eat." He said gently, and Juushirou was startled by the genuine note of fondness in his tones. "Juushirou might not see it yet, but I'll work with him and you won't need to be afraid. I promise, Shikiki - all will be well."
"Yes, Kei-nii." Shikiki bobbed her head, scampering off into the blackness, and Juushirou glared at his captor indignantly.
"Why did you tell her that? You have a zanpakutou too, why does that not matter? And of course I wouldn't intend to hurt her - most shinigami aren't..."
"Naive." Keitarou cut across him. "If you truly believe that, you're a fool. Swords are weapons with which you kill. However you look at it, that's what you are learning to do."
"Purifying Hollows isn't killing them."
"Purifying Hollows." Keitarou looked amused. "Who told you that fairy story? Of course it's killing them. It's severing through their soul. The Urahara-ke like to pretend they've perfected a way to send those souls to a safe place, but they lie. Those souls...do you know what really happens, Ukitake? When you slice through a Hollow's consciousness?"
"They go to Rukongai." Juushirou responded promptly, and Keitarou nodded.
"And do you have any idea what that means?" He asked coldly. "A quick death or an eternity of struggling and isolation in a barren, empty world shunned and ignored by the noble families who govern Seireitei? Have you ever seen Rukongai? Even a peasant like Shikiki lived in luxury and plenty in comparison. Shinigami don't free souls. They imprison them to an unimaginable life of squalor and misery so dark and grim that every year hundreds of souls trying to slip the border into Seireitei are killed by the stationed guards. Why would they risk certain death to come here and live with nothing if the world over the border was not already worse than a living Hell?"
Juushirou paled, and Keitarou smiled.
"I'm not a shinigami, because I don't care about reaping souls." He said evenly. "Chudokuga doesn't fight Hollows, after all. The souls it seeks to cut are those belonging to other people. That's the only way to change this world, after all. Killing Hollows won't do. Taking out the ones who make the rules...that's the only thing that does."
He slipped the key into the lock of the door, turning it with a soft click.
"In the end, your principles will make you see things my way." He said matter-of-factly, stepping into the cell and grabbing Juushirou by the arm, pulling him roughly to his feet. "But for now, this is the relationship we have to maintain. I'm sorry for it - but I'm patient, too. Your power is enough to help change this world - and I'll make sure it gets that chance."
He pulled Chudokuga from his sash with his free hand, and before Juushirou knew what had happened, the scientist had lashed the silver knife through the straggling ends of his hair, cutting it to the nape of his neck. The weapon pricked faintly against his skin, producing blood, and Juushirou flinched back, glaring at his captor in indignation.
"Hey! What are you...keep that thing away from me!"
"It's all right." Keitarou laughed, folding the hair in half and poking it into his obi. "The blade is complete. I didn't release it into you, so don't think I did. Just it has a better message if there's a little blood as well."
"Message?" Juushirou's heart froze in his chest, and Keitarou nodded.
"I'm going to send an invite to the Clan friends you trust in so much." He said calmly. "And we'll see if they try to come and get you."
"You sent for me, Shunsui-sama?"
Shunsui rested his hands on the polished wood of Tokutarou's desk, a troubled look in his dark eyes as he met the gaze of the nervous young princess that stood before him. She was on edge, tension rippling through her slight frame, and her cheeks were devoid of colour – yet somehow Shunsui did not believe her to be as delicate as he had done the last few times they had spoken. What had seemed like a fading, fragile flower now appeared as a normal young girl simply unused to the harshness she had encountered in the past several days, and this observation did nothing to settle Shunsui's apprehensions.
She was a hime of a foreign Clan who he had acted in favour of. He had sought to protect Hirata's family…now he needed to know whether or not Hirata's family were the ones at the heart of the previous night's affairs.
Slowly he nodded, gesturing for her to settle herself more comfortably opposite. It felt strange, he mused, being perched in a place such as this – behind the desk and giving instruction as opposed to lounging all over it while listening to his brother. It was not a sensation he liked, but he was determined not to send for Tokutarou or Kyouki if it was possible to avoid it.
He had dispatched Yasuhiro who, briefed on Tokutarou's instructions had made no demur, immediately agreeing to send two divisions of soldiers out into the wilderness to search for the missing boy. He had not even commented on Shunsui's unusual attire, merely bowing his head and withdrawing to carry out the orders to the letter. Kai had opted to go with him, saying that he was sure he could drag Ryuu and Sora both along too if it was a matter of Ukitake's safety. Shunsui had agreed, reiterating the fact that Hirata was to stay behind and that he wanted to see Eiraki on her own as soon as possible. Kai had promised to send her, and so, a short time later found him and the youngest member of the Endou Clan alone in Tokutarou's study, apprehension on both sides as they met gazes over the smooth, dark wood.
In the end it was Shunsui who broke the silence, carefully setting the dagger down on the desk between them.
"I wanted to ask you about this." He said softly, and at the sight of it Eiraki let out a gasp, flinching back from it in alarm.
"I didn't mean to." She whispered, tears glittering in her bright blue eyes. "Please, Shunsui-sama, believe me. I love my brother…I didn't mean…"
"I wasn't accusing you of anything." Shunsui bit back uncharacteristic impatience, shaking his head. "I know already from Kai-kun that someone or something was manipulating you and that it wasn't your fault. You've Mitsuki-chan speaking in your favour, too – and her senses are a lot more difficult to fool than any of ours are. It wasn't that I intended to ask you – I wanted to know instead where the dagger came from."
Eiraki shook her head slowly.
"I don't know." She murmured. "I just remember holding it…in Nii-sama's room, when Ukitake-san…"
"You don't remember anyone giving it to you?"
Eiraki shook her head again, and Shunsui's lips thinned. Was she telling him the truth or was she lying? He wasn't sure, and it bothered him. This girl was a stranger to him – and like many Endou, she was capable of covering her true thoughts with her natural survival instinct. Yet even so he had to persevere.
His gaze flitted to the hilt of the weapon, then,
"And nobody was there last night that you recall? Just Juu…Ukitake?"
"Yes sir." Eiraki's eyes flickered slightly, but she held his gaze, and Shunsui sighed.
"Do you care if Juushirou dies?" He demanded sharply, and Eiraki started, staring at him in dismay.
"Shunsui-sama, I…"
"Do you care?" Shunsui repeated softly. "Or are you just relieved that he stopped you from attacking your brother last night? If Juu hadn't have interfered, what then? What would we have awoken to this morning, Eiraki-hime? What would you have found yourself doing – blood on your hands, Hirata dead in his bed. What then?"
Tears glistened on Eiraki's cheeks and she shook her head hurriedly.
"No, but Shunsui-sama…"
"You owe Juushirou your brother's life." Shunsui said flatly. "You know that you do, don't you? And more, you owe him yours, too. My brother would not have stepped back and ignored it, had you committed a murder in his grounds. It's only because Juu came after you – and so did everyone else – that we know you weren't acting on your own impulses and that Hirata is all right this morning. You owe it to him to at least tell me the whole truth – even if that truth is patchy and missing pieces."
"There was nobody with us." Eiraki's tears ran unchecked now, and she grasped hold of the edge of the desk, sending Shunsui a pleading look. "I swear, Shunsui-sama. I didn't see…I didn't see anyone. I woke up in Nii-sama's room, saw the dagger and was frightened, so I dropped it. I ran and Ukitake-san followed me. He found me when I felt ill and had to stop – and he told me he'd help me. I don't remember after that…until Mitsuki-neesama and the others found me. That's all of the truth, I promise it. I don't remember anything else!"
Shunsui tapped his fingers against the ancient weapon, consternation in his expression as he digested this.
"Then where did you get the dagger?" He asked helplessly. "Someone must have given it to you. You couldn't have brought it all the way from District Seven, could you? A girl carrying a foreign blade through the border…no, that doesn't make sense. And if you'd done that…if you had, it would mean you'd intended to hurt someone with it, wouldn't it? Yet…"
"I never saw it before last night." Eiraki shook her head firmly. "I never did. When I woke up and it was in my hand…that's the first I ever saw it."
"I believe you." Shunsui sighed, pulling a rumpled handkerchief from the folds of his night-robe and holding it out to her. "I'm sorry. But I don't understand…so many things. And more, I should've been alert last night. I'm angry at myself, too – and at Juu, for whatever he's got himself involved in. If you're right and there was nobody there, it does suggest he ran off by himself. And…he might have done that. But if that's the case…how did you get the knife? Why did you have it at all?"
"I honestly don't know." Eiraki calmed slightly at this, taking the handkerchief and folding it between her fingers as she wiped her eyes dry. "I'm sorry."
Shunsui pulled the dagger closer to him once more, tracing his finger over the distinctive Kyouraku-ke emblem embedded deep into the wooden tsuka. Worn and slightly faded, he could clearly see the flowers and swords engraved in a style that had been popular among his Clan when his great uncle had inherited the Kyouraku title. He had seen it before, on the faded spines of his great uncle's books during his brother's frequent ploughing through ancient records. Yet it was the framing of the insignia that had most chilled him – a distinctive pattern of leaves woven together that marked out the crest of one particular Kyouraku family branch. He closed his eyes briefly as he once again remembered Irie's words.
"His mother's name was Shiori – Aizen Shiori. And he went by her name from his childhood through to now. He's known to most in District Seven under the name Aizen Keitarou"
"Aizen." He muttered, too softly for his companion to hear, and then, "Eiraki-hime, I know I've upset you enough already, but will you allow me to upset you a little more? One further question – but an important one – if you don't mind."
"I'll try." The young girl was composing herself now, and again Shunsui was struck at the difference between her current demeanour and the one in the days leading up to the wedding. She had seemed breakable, then – stricken by fits of fatigue and coughing yet, although she was by no means sturdy, Shunsui no longer got the impression that her health was as delicate as Juushirou's. This too bothered him more than he liked to admit – that despite being out in the frozen night weather she had not taken chill. In fact, he acknowledged to himself, the young girl was both frightened and emotional but her reiatsu suggested her to be healthier than she had been before.
If something was manipulating her last night, and no longer is – could it have been manipulating her longer?
This jarred suddenly against Shunsui's senses, causing him to pause before voicing his question.
Could it have been inside of her since she came here – could she have been allowed to leave Seventh because it was inside of her? Something that dominated her and drained her spirit power by working its way within her body. What if, last night, something happened to withdraw it? Did Juu break the spell by waking her from her daze? Or…
He sighed, wishing yet again that he had not had so much to drink the night before and had been as alert during the early hours as his classmates had been.
"What is the question, Shunsui-sama?" Eiraki asked curiously, bringing him back to the present at that moment, and he frowned, nodding his head.
"I wondered if you knew anyone by the name of Aizen." He said quietly, and Eiraki pursed her lips, slowly shaking her head.
"I do not think so." She said thoughtfully. "Should I know that name?"
"This crest – on the weapon you had – it belonged to them. To a branch of my Clan whose name were Aizen." Shunsui said simply, tapping his finger against the insignia as he did so. "It's an old weapon and so far as I knew, that line had completely died out. But I heard it again more recently – and now, I can't think this to be a coincidence."
"Do you think someone in your Clan is working against us?" Eiraki paled. "Against Hirata-nii and I, trying to cause trouble between us?"
"No." Shunsui shook his head. "No, this is too blatantly a Kyouraku weapon. And like I said – there are no Aizen here. The family no longer exists in the modern Kyouraku Clan – they died out of disease, mostly, and nobody in the current Kyouraku family tree has more than the faintest of links to that name. I know that because I looked it up myself – it was a lead that didn't go anywhere in particular at the time."
"Then…" Eiraki was confused. "How…why did I have that?"
She pointed at it, loathing clear in her eyes.
"I've never carried any kind of weapon at all – Father wouldn't forgive me if he thought I'd taken to it now. Please, Shunsui-sama, I want you to catch whoever did this to me. I don't want anyone thinking I'd hurt my brother…I came here because my family need him, not because…not in order to…"
She faltered, unable to say it, and in that moment Shunsui knew that she was sincere. He smiled, nodding his head.
"I believe that, too. That's why I convinced my Clan to let you stay." He said evenly. "And it's also why, so far, I'm trying to find Juushirou without anyone else having to find out what happened last night. I don't want harm to come to you either, Eiraki-hime – and certainly not to your brother. So we are on the same side."
"Thank you." Relief glittered in Eiraki's eyes. "We've caused you such trouble, and now, yet more. I'm sorry, Shunsui-sama. If I could help…if I could…"
"Urahara Keitarou." Shunsui said softly, and at the sound of that name the girl froze, words dying on her lips as she stared at him in dismay. Shunsui's eyes narrowed, and he nodded his head.
"That is a name you know, then." He reflected. "I thought that it might be."
Eiraki bit her lip, and Shunsui could see the apprehension and uncertainty in her gaze. For a long while she was silent, then,
"I am Endou-ke, Shunsui-sama. What would I know about members of the Urahara Clan? District Three is a good distance from even your land, let alone my own."
The words were correct and proper, yet to Shunsui they were blatantly untrue, and he sighed, burying his head in his hands.
"If we're on the same side, why are you lying to me?" He asked softly. "You know who he is. I saw it in your eyes – Urahara Keitarou, the son of Urahara Keitsune who was exiled from District Three as a child a century or more ago. A man who shouldn't exist – but he does exist, and you know where he is. Why won't you tell me? Why are you protecting him?"
Eiraki did not answer, and Shunsui got to his feet, coming and resting his hands on her shoulders.
"Juushirou's life is at risk." He said grimly. "I won't help to protect anyone who won't help me to protect him. Understand that now, Eiraki-hime. Juushirou is important to me. Very important to me. You may think of him as just District – you might think of him as beneath your or my notice. But even so, I won't forgive you if you keep secrets that end in his death."
Eiraki stared at him in fear, then she swallowed hard, shaking her head.
"You don't understand." She whispered. "I gave my word…I swore…"
"Swore what?" Shunsui was on her in a flash, and Eiraki shook her head again.
"I can't." She murmured. "You worry about your friend, Shunsui-sama, and I'm sorry that you do. But…but Kei-sama has nothing to do with this. Nothing to do with any of it. He's a victim – a victim of my Clan and of all the Clans. I've seen it! Bruises on his face when Seimaru went into a rage and almost broke his jaw. I promised to protect him, just as you promised Ukitake-san. I can't b…break my promise. I can't."
Kei-sama.
Shunsui's eyes narrowed as he worked out where he'd heard that before, even as he returned to his position behind the wooden desk.
Surely…wasn't that the name of her fiancé? Minazake…Roukei…or something of that nature. Kei-sama. Roukei. Keitarou. So that's it, then, is it? That's the secret that she doesn't want to tell me – that the forbidden Urahara is the man she's been told to marry. Or maybe it's not so much a case of a forced alliance, after all. Perhaps it's more than that…perhaps it's a matter of female heart over common sense this time.
Out loud he said.
"I'll only ask you one thing then." He said frankly. "I won't ask you to tell me where he is, or what name he may be living under to keep his whereabouts secret and secure. All I will ask is whether he's made contact with you since you left your homeland. All you need to say is yes or no – I don't need you to tell me any more than that. Then you won't be breaking any promises – and if, as you say, he's innocent – no harm will come of it."
Though I'm quite certain now that he isn't. Whether he meant it as a message or whether he thought it would fool Tokutarou-nii and I into looking for a Kyouraku I don't know – but either way, I'm quite sure that this is the same man Irie-san was talking about. The scientist – the man who created reidoku for Seimaru and who disappeared without a trace after the Shihouin Clan fell. The man Shouichi-sama was hunting – and then Shouichi-sama conveniently died, leaving Seimaru room to take control. Eiraki-hime might believe him to be innocent – but I'm sure that there couldn't be anyone so far away from innocence in this than Urahara Keitarou. And if that's the case…if that's who Juu went after…we really don't have time to play with.
Before Eiraki could answer, however, there was a knock at the door and it slid back, revealing Yasuhiro who bowed his head solemnly as he stepped into the chamber. As the door opened, Eiraki took her chance to escape, bowing hurriedly back towards Shunsui before fleeing into the hallway beyond.
Yasuhiro glanced at Shunsui, his expression asking whether he wanted the girl pulled back by force, but the young nobleman held up his hands, shaking his head to indicate that it was all right for her to go. Yasuhiro inclined his head slightly in silent acknowledgement of the command, and instead he approached the desk.
He was still pale, Shunsui realised, his dark hair a stark contrast to his ashen features and Shunsui remembered what Kai had said about the drugged guardsman. Perhaps they had been lucky, in the end, he mused apprehensively. Perhaps someone had not intended them to wake at all.
"My apologies for disturbing your conversation, Shunsui-sama – but my men and I have found no tangible trace of Ukitake Juushirou anywhere within a realistic area." Yasuhiro began evenly. "Given Ukitake-sama's health and his lack of knowledge of the area it seems unlikely he could have walked extremely far without going to a town or some other place for help, but nobody has seen him and there are no visible tracks. Shihouin Kai-sama and Kuchiki Ryuu-sama also assure me that there is no trace of his reiatsu in those locations, either. I'm sorry."
"Thank you, Yasuhiro." Though he could hear the words coming from his lips, Shunsui's mind was racing far away from them, fear rushing through his senses as he processed this. "I'm sorry to have dispatched you at such short notice – and without my brother's say-so."
"When Tokutarou-sama is absent, Shunsui-sama's orders are to be immediately obeyed." Yasuhiro said gravely. "So the Lord himself has instructed us."
"Yes…more fool him." Shunsui rubbed his temples.
"He has high expectations of you." Yasuhiro said simply. "And I will have them too, until I see reason not to. Besides, Shunsui-sama, my men and I were also targeted in whatever occurred last night. If we had been at our posts, nobody would have been able to leave the manor. We are also at fault for being so easily deceived – therefore whatever we can do to rectify matters – we shall."
"At least your absence was down to someone else's actions." Shunsui grimaced. "All right. Then…I need to get up. Properly up, instead of roaming around like this…I need to do things the right way. Yasuhiro, please will you report this matter in full to my mother – and also to Kyouki-sama, if she and her kinsfolk have not yet left the District."
"The Shiba are still in situe – Hakubei-sama arose in ill health and so Kyouki-sama decided to wait a day before they travelled." Yasuhiro said evenly, and Shunsui pulled another face.
"I bet he did." He agreed ruefully. "But in this case it's a good thing. Yasuhiro…" As the manservant made to leave, "Did you hear anything that was said before you entered the study?"
"Nothing that wasn't for my ears, Shunsui-sama." Yasuhiro said lightly, and Shunsui knew that he had probably heard most of the last exchange. "And nothing that I will repeat, not even before the Lady of the Shiba without express instruction from you."
"Thank you." Shunsui offered him a grin. "You're really very handy to have about the place, you know that? I'm realising why Nii-sama thinks so much of you."
"I do what I can to help the Clan I am sworn to support and defend." Yasuhiro's lips twitched into a faint return smile. "I will tell Kyouki-sama that Ukitake Juushirou is missing after discovering Eiraki-hime sleepwalking in the cold outside. Sora-sama has already joined the operation - I trust more is not needed than that to mobilise the remaining Shiba into helping in the search?"
"I trust not." Shunsui agreed. "In the meantime – I'm going to get dressed and go and try to speak to someone else. One other person who might be able to tell me something important about the night that Eiraki-hime and Sumire-sama left District Seven."
"Kibana-dono?" Yasuhiro asked, and Shunsui nodded.
"I don't know his current state of health." He admitted. "But even so…"
"Tokutarou-sama received word yesterday before he left that the man had regained consciousness." Yasuhiro said softly. "He was unable to act on it then – but told me that he would do so when he returned, and so to maintain the security around the man's chamber. It is a secret – but a secret you are privy to, as heir of this Clan."
He frowned, his lips thinning.
"Shunsui-sama, it is perhaps not my place to say this." He added. "But the man you asked Eiraki-hime about…is a man your Lord brother also has concerns to track down."
"Yes, I know." Shunsui nodded. "And the fact Eiraki-hime left as she did without answering means she probably knows a lot more. I think he was here last night, Yasuhiro – but the fact that Juushirou seems to have gone of his own accord doesn't mean that the two of them met up. It may be a coincidence, in the end. Even if we consider Urahara Keitarou to be dangerous in some way, I can't see Juu willingly collaborating with a mad scientist wanted throughout the eight Districts for illegal research and rebellion. I just can't, no matter how I look at it. And Eiraki-hime did say she was alone out there last night. In that at least, I believe she's telling me the truth."
Yasuhiro was silent for a moment, then,
"Are you quite sure, Shunsui-sama, that Ukitake-sama went of his own free will?" He asked gravely, and Shunsui sighed.
"Mitsuki apparently says he wasn't attacked." He replied helplessly. "And I have faith in her wits to know the difference. It occurred to me that if someone manipulated Eiraki-hime they may also have manipulated Juu – but I think Mitsuki would have felt it if someone had tried to cast a spell like that. She's that sensitive, and she's fond of Juu so that would make her even more alert to anything that happened to him. Even the slightest change in his health at school she's aware of before any of the rest of us. If she says he wasn't attacked – then I believe her."
"I am sorry." Yasuhiro bowed his head apologetically. "I did not mean to question Edogawa-sama's ability."
"It's all right. You were looking for answers, just like me." Shunsui rubbed his temples, then, "Yasuhiro, I've changed my mind. I'll speak to Kibana before you report to Kyouki-sama, if you don't mind – and if Sora is still not with her family, tell her to sit on it for now."
"Sora-sama made it clear when we were riding that she wasn't reporting it to her family until you or Tokutarou-sama gave the instruction." Yasuhiro assured him. "Apparently it was made clear to her last night that to take such an action might cause more problems than advantages given the uneasy nature of the Kyouraku-ke in general towards the Shiba alliance. That said…if things persist, I would advise…"
"I know. It makes sense to go to her, but in this I'd like you to humour me." Shunsui responded. "I want to hear what Kibana has to say – but I want to hear it without anyone of any major Council importance being present. As a friend of Hirata's and a kinsman of the Kyouraku, I hope I can get him to talk to me…Kyouki-sama is Shiba and that's foreign. To her…he might not."
"Then what would you have me do? Report to Yoshiko-sama?"
"Yes." Shunsui nodded. "And…"
He faltered, then,
"It's an imposition, but I'd appreciate it if you'd deploy your men out again and keep searching until I give the word otherwise. Even if Ryuu and Kai say that he wasn't around there…even so…please."
"With pleasure." Yasuhiro agreed. "I was already considering such an action – I only returned to report to you on our initial findings. We will keep hunting until the sun sets if need be."
"Thank you." Relief flickered across Shunsui's dark eyes. "Then the next step is to speak to Kibana Hiroto-dono…and find out exactly what he knows about any of this."