Chapter Sixty One: Endou Inheritance
At the sound of her name, the woman let out a chuckle.
"So you know who I am, then, whelp?" She demanded, disdain in her tones as she strode forward, her long robes creating a shuffling sound against the hard stone floor beneath her feet. "You've come far, I'll give you that much. But if you think a boy like you is going to break down Hokujou's mighty fortress, you should think again. I've lived here for a long time…and I have no intention of letting worms invade it at this late stage."
So his suspicions had been right.
Hirata's brows knitted together as he processed this information. Riku was no longer a prisoner – she was held here in name only, but in truth she was more in charge of the fortress than she was confined by it, and Hirata greatly suspected that this had been at least in part Seimaru's work.
Perhaps in return for lying about Urahara Keitarou and adopting him into her branch of the Clan. Maybe that was the trade off. To give over Hokujou to her and allow her to surreptitiously grab power in the North.
But then, he remembered, Seimaru was dead. And that meant…
He stiffened, standing up straighter as he faced her head on. Defiance glittered in his unfocused blue eyes, though he hoped that she could not see the uncertainty and fear that coursed through him, making his palms slick with sweat against the fabric of his peasant clothes.
"Yes." He said quietly. "I know who you are, Riku-sama. Riku…obasama. I know very well."
"Obasama?" There was incredulity in the woman's voice, and her shuffling movements stopped as though from that distance she was trying to size up his appearance. "Then…do you mean to say, dressed in those ragged clothes and in such a pitiful, feeble state…that you are my nephew, Hirata? That you…are the son of that idealistic fool Misashi?"
Hirata bowed his head curtly towards her, though inwardly his heart was still racing both from fear and from his sudden, unexpected shunpo. Riku had not been trained as a warrior, and he was sure that she had never studied demon arts, either…so in that respect, he was above her. But he was not foolish enough to believe her helpless. This was the woman who had tried to organise the assassination of his Grandmother. The woman who had birthed Seimaru. The woman who had cloaked Urahara Keitarou in the security of her Clan name so that he could go about his business…the woman who had married and manipulated Mibune and had taken hold of a castle that was meant to be her prison. This was his aunt, Riku, and he would not underestimate her, not even for a moment.
"I can't believe it." Riku's voice was soft and faintly mocking, and she stepped more slowly towards him, raising her hand to indicate to the guardsmen behind her to hold their ground. "This pitiful, insignificant little boy is the Hirata I've heard of? The one who is said to possess the skill and potential to outstrip my son? I don't believe it. It's not possible. You can't be…"
She faltered, then a low chuckle of amusement escaped her throat.
"But I see it." She whispered. "Misashi's countenance…your appearance…I see it all too clearly. You are not lying to me, are you, boy? You truly are my nephew Hirata – the one that people believe could be a match for Seimaru one day."
She snorted.
"Impossible lies." She added derisively. "Why have you come here? So I can kill you, and deliver your body back to the main house? You aren't even worth time fighting – and for this reason, Seimaru hesitated in dealing with Misashi? Incomprehensible."
Hirata's eyes narrowed.
Did that mean, then, that Misashi was at Hokujou after all?
Out loud he said,
"I have come seeking Raiden-dono and Jinkei-dono. I believe they rode this way earlier this morning."
"Those two fat old fools." Riku snorted. "Yes. A nice distraction they gave me, too, turning up in pomp and splendour and demanding I hand over to them the prodigal prince Misashi."
"Did you kill them?" Hirata demanded sharply, and Riku shook her head.
"They're simply cooling their heels in one of the cells below." She said sweetly. "Execution of a noble is an order given by the Clan leader, after all. I wouldn't dream of disobeying or overruling that right."
"Then I'll have you take me to them, please." Hirata said firmly, and although he could not clearly see her face, somehow he knew that disbelief had crossed her features. He clasped his hands together to stop them shaking – though he wanted to believe it was from cold, he knew that it was really fear and apprehension that was overtaking his body bit by bit. He was frightened of Riku – of her reputation and of her presence, and every instinct was telling him to turn tail and flee for safety or the protection of his two Council guardians. And as he realised this, he felt once more ashamed.
I'm always scared. Always hiding. But no more. I can't hide. Not any more. This time I'm standing my ground. This isn't a fight for Midori-sama or Kyouki-sama to take on. This isn't something they should put their lives in danger over. I've come so far as this and I'm not backing down now. I'm still alive as it stands, even though I easily might not have been. So if I'm alive now, I'll use that fact. I've come to find Father, and I won't stop until I do. If that was his bird I saw outside, I won't leave here until I find him.
"You…are giving me instructions?" Riku demanded now. "Know your place, boy!"
"I know my place." Hirata shook his head. "I've tried to – wanted to – escape it for a long time. I still do. If I had a choice, I wouldn't be here…and that's the truth. But I know what my duties are all the same. And because of that, I would like you to take me to Jinkei and Raiden, please. I didn't come here to harm you – I don't want more blood spilled than is necessary. But I want to know they are safe. And then I want to know where my father is being held, too."
"Harm me?" Riku let out a derisive chuckle. "A weed like you…? Believe me, boy, that is the last thing on my mind. You're almost not worth killing – you're shaking like a leaf and white as a ghost. I feel like if I even touched you you might shatter – why would I think you could cause me harm?"
"I would like you to answer my question, please, Obasama." Hirata met her gaze as calmly as he could, inwardly glad that his bad vision prevented him from seeing the mocking expression on her face. "And I would prefer you do it now, so as you don't cause more trouble for yourself and other people. You are after all still technically a prisoner of Seventh District and as such, you should consider your decisions and their consequences very carefully."
"You are very arrogant, considering your feeble form." Riku said disdainfully. "But even a grandson of Shouichi doesn't have the right to command a hime of my bloodline. I had no loyalty towards that old man, and I despise the fool that is your Father. You should simply count yourself lucky that Seimaru hasn't ordered me to kill you on sight – because otherwise, you would be dead in a heartbeat."
She used the present tense.
Hirata's heart leapt as he processed the woman's careless reference to his missing father.
If that's the case…if he is here…then that means, surely, he's still alive. And if so, I can find him. I can find him…I can bring my family back home safely after all.
Out loud he said,
"That order will never come."
"You shouldn't be so sure about that." Riku was right up close to him now, reaching out a long, elegant index finger to touch his ash-smudged cheek. "Just because he takes pleasure in the idea of killing you himself – in the end, a corpse is a corpse and a dead man can do nothing at all."
"That's why I say the order won't come." Hirata reached up to push her arm away, his hopes for his father's safety giving him a new sense of purpose and resolve. "Seimaru won't be giving you or anyone any orders any more, Riku-sama. He can't. He's no longer head of this Clan. He's dead."
Riku froze, tension enveloping her whole body for the briefest of instants. Then she laughed, shaking her head.
"You expect me to believe that? Such a ruse…from such a boy…to make me give up my fight?"
"No. I don't expect you to believe me." Hirata stood his ground. "But you should be able to see it for yourself. The ash on my cheek that you just touched – where do you suppose that ash came from? You birthed Seimaru. Even if you are strangers, surely as a mother, you more than any should know his reiatsu. Surely you know that…that this is Yojinmozu's ash that stains my clothing and marks my face?"
"I…" For the first time, Riku faltered, and Hirata pushed his advantage home.
"Would I be alive now, if I had faced Seimaru and he had won?" He asked softly. "Do you think it likely that he would have let me walk so easily and so uninjured from the field of battle if I had not managed to best him and come here of my own free will? Your son is dead, Riku-sama. The Clan looks to me now. To me and to my father, Misashi-sama."
"Impossible." Riku's words were barely more than a whisper now, and from the distress in her tones, Hirata knew that she believed him. "A boy like you…a man like my son…impossible. How could…how…I don't…"
"Your son was greedy. He sought to take too much and ended up with nothing at all." Hirata said softly. "I'm sorry, Riku-sama. Even though he was a stranger to you – I still robbed you of your son, and for that I apologise. Even though he would have robbed my mother of me, I still…"
"Are you mocking me?" Now anger spiked through Riku's aura, and Hirata only just dodged back in time to escape being hit across the cheek by a wildly flung left hand. "Are you trying to gloat in your victory, you worm of a boy? How dare you come here…how dare you show your face to me! I'll kill you. I'll kill you!"
There was a stifled sob in her last exclamation, her reiatsu flaring and scattering in confused waves as pent up emotion flooded through her body. Hirata took a second step back, raising his hands to defend himself from her irrational, desperate lunge.
"Bakudou no Yon. Hainawa." He murmured, and tendrils of amber energy shot out from the tips of his fingers, snaking around Riku's exposed wrists and pulling her hands together as they fastened into a holding knot of kidou fibres. Riku let out a yell, but Hirata's spell held fast, and he sighed, rubbing his temples as he felt suddenly exhausted.
It had already been a long day, and yet this was still only the beginning.
"Stop him!" Riku shrieked, and the guards that had waited at the far end of the corridor now drove forward, weapons raised as they made a bee-line for Hirata's slim form. Hirata tensed, aware that he could make out their movements less clearly than he had his aunt's, and his only guidance was the sweep of a weapon through the air…
His eyes widened as he understood the deeper significance of this.
Without my glasses, I can't see. Yet I can sense people's reiatsu, and now…by following the movement of air around them…I can work out where they intend to strike. In a narrow corridor like this one I can feel it even more keenly. The exact shift of the current between the far window and where I am…it's as though it's drawing a line around them, so even though I can't…
"Bakudou no Ichi! Shou!" He exclaimed, firing a blast of compressed kidou energy towards the nearest guard and he saw the man's hazy outline stumble, pushed back by the unexpected wall of spirit power that had gone his way. They were, after all, normal fighters, unprepared for dealing with demon magic – and as the first guard fell heavily onto the stone floor, the second faltered, eying Hirata uncertainly.
"I want to know where my father is." Hirata said clearly. "I don't want to hurt anyone here. I have only come to find Misashi-sama – who by Seimaru's death is the true head of the Endou Clan."
A deathly hush greeted his words, punctuated only by the sobs of the fallen Riku, and Hirata felt the fight and resolve slowly seeping out of her as she struggled in vain against his kidou restraint.
"Hirata!" Midori's voice came from behind him at that point and he turned, offering her a relieved smile.
"Midori-sama." He murmured, and Midori let out an exclamation, her gaze flitting to Riku and then the fallen guard.
"Hirata, what have you…on your own, what were you…"
"Sorting my family out." Hirata said gravely.
"But by yourself?" Midori's fingers rested against his arm, and Hirata nodded.
"I don't want anyone else hurt because I'm a coward and I'm weak." He said quietly. "The bakudou I used probably won't last very long, either – but I didn't know what else to do. I didn't want to…"
He faltered, dropping his gaze and putting a hand up against the wall of the hallway as the world seemed to grow even more hazy.
"I'm tired." He admitted. "And cold. But we're not done yet, are we?"
"No." Midori's voice was grave. "That woman's your aunt, I presume? The Lady Riku – Seimaru's mother?"
Hirata nodded, biting his lip as he read the waves of anguish that now dominated Riku's broken reiatsu. All too easily he understood…that from her cell and throughout her captivity, Seimaru had been the thing that had kept Riku strong. Far from their bond growing weaker by the forced divide, Riku had put her entire heart and soul into her hopes for her only son, continuing to love him with a level of resolve and obstinacy that maternal instinct had kept burning deep inside of her. Now, in an instant, he had gone, and it was as though that fire had been doused with ice – Riku's fight had faded and all that remained was a grief-stricken mother weeping for her slain child.
"I took her son away from her, and now they will never meet." He said sadly, as for the first time a twinge of guilt touched his heart. "I hated Seimaru, Midori-sama. I don't regret what I did or what happened. But I…I regret making Riku-obasama hurt like that. Because…I suppose…he was still loved by someone. And…and no matter who is killed, someone would cry."
"For an Endou, you're still a little soft-hearted." Midori told him evenly. "You don't have time to worry about mercy for Seimaru's mother now…you have other things to do. If your Hainawa won't hold out, let me use a spell that will – but lingering here is a waste of time. Killing her would be more effective – and quicker into the bargain."
Hirata pursed his lips, then,
"I don't want anyone to hurt her." He said quietly. "Seimaru used his connection to her and her loyalty to him, that's all. Riku-obasama's crime was against my Grandmother, and my crime against Riku-obasama is greater. If I leave her in your custody, Midori-sama…I don't want any harm to come to her."
"I understand." Midori nodded her head, letting out a heavy sigh. "But you realise, Hirata, that far more than with men, a woman's grudge is hard to break. She won't ever forgive you – if you leave her alive, she'll hate you until the day she draws her last breath. Probably she has already conspired against you here – and most likely she will plot and scheme and try to bring you down – are you all right, knowing that?"
"I'm prepared for her to hate me." Hirata nodded. "But my mind's made up. Even if she has been acting here on Seimaru's behalf – I don't intend on killing anyone else today. I was only trained to take down Seimaru. That was all Father asked of me. He didn't ask me to cause a massacre of kinsfolk."
His gaze flitted to where he could make out the huddled, broken form of the Endou princess.
"Please, Midori-sama." He added. "Seimaru committed crimes…Grandmother already punished Riku-sama for hers. I don't intend on punishing her for loving her son – and Father won't, either, I'm sure. This is Hokujou…this is where she'll remain. That…that's my decision. In my Father's absence…as…as acting leader of the Endou Clan."
Midori paused for a moment, then Hirata made out her bowing low towards him.
"I understand, Hirata-sama." She said gravely. "I will do as you instruct me. And also, one other thing. With the help of that District Eight guardsman, Kyouki-sama has found some sorry souls in the cells at the bottom of this place. A guard or two at the barracks have confessed to locking them in there – I believe they're your missing Raiden and Jinkei. Either way, there seems to be another, more firmly fastened cell beyond theirs. It's possible…that your father is inside. Though if he is…I cannot sense his reiatsu."
"Then I'll go there." Hirata made up his mind. "I can sense where she is, even if I can't sense him."
He inclined his head towards Midori, then took to his heels, hurrying along the corridor that Riku had done her best to barricade. The guards that she had ordered to attack him made no attempt to stop him, one of them even bowing his head low as the young boy hurried past. Hirata paid them no heed, however – his mind once more focused on the objective of their visit.
Being separated from loved ones is painful. What Riku-obasama feels right now is something worse than any punishment the family could devise – even if Midori-sama is right, I can't order anyone to kill her. Eiraki-chan tried to kill me, after all, but in the end that wasn't her fault. Seimaru was the evil one. Seimaru was the rotten core of all of this. Riku-obasama never knew her son. She never knew that he was evil – so she can't understand why I killed him or what my feelings are. So if she hates me, its understandable. She can hate me, if it helps. Even if she remains here, at Hokujou – even if she's once more a prisoner of the Clan. Even if she causes trouble in the long run – I can't blame her. So we'll just have to deal with that if and when it happens – after all, all crimes have a retribution price, sooner or later. Even mine today.
"Hirata!"
As he pulled back the heavy door that led to the underground dungeons that still flanked Hokujou's cellars, he heard Kyouki's voice, and he raised his hand to acknowledge her even as he sensed her coming towards him. It was almost pitch black, yet he was able to discern her movements once more through the sharp draughts of air that seeped in through badly formed cell blocks and loose window latches, and it was no surprise when a pair of hands clamped themselves down on his shoulders, giving him a short, sharp shake.
"Kyouki-sama…"
"Midori found you then. What were you doing, you stupid boy, running off like that?" Kyouki demanded, and Hirata shrugged, offering her a faint, humourless smile.
"I found my Aunt." He replied evenly. "And now Midori-sama has her."
"I see." Kyouki paused, and Hirata could tell she was assessing his countenance. Then she sighed, nodding her head.
"Very well." Was all she said, however. "Follow me."
She grabbed him by the wrist, pulling him further down the long dank passageway until they reached a second large wooden door. This one had been blasted open at the lock with enough force to leave it half hanging off its hinges, and as Hirata ran his fingers over the splintering wood, Kyouki laughed ruefully.
"I didn't have a key." She said unrepentantly, flexing and un-flexing her fingers. "And it seems the long ride has helped my spirit power recover a little. It was almost cathartic, blowing a hole in ancient Endou wood."
"Kyouki-sama." Despite himself Hirata smiled, and Kyouki patted him firmly on the back.
"Come speak to the two idiots." She suggested. "I haven't blown a hole in their door too – but if necessary…"
"Mm." Hirata nodded, letting the head of the Shiba Clan guide him through the blackness to an end cell. With a screech and groan of scraping wood and metal, Kyouki pulled open the small slat in the chamber door. There was an exclamation from within, and as Hirata pulled himself up to peer in as best he could, he heard someone speak his name.
"Hirata-sama!"
"Raiden-dono." Hirata's heart surged with faint relief. "Why are you imprisoned here? Surely you came to find my Father?"
"Yes, sir, and we did." Raiden's fuzzy silhouette shifted slightly and Hirata realised the man had bowed to him, despite the cramped and uncomfortable provision of the little cell. "But we were ambushed by the Lady Riku and a group of traitorous soldiers acting in her name!"
"Are you hurt?"
"No, sir, and glad to see you likewise." That was Jinkei, though Hirata knew in the gloom they could see no more of him than just his eyes and nose.
"You said you found my Father?"
"Some men said he was in a cell beyond this one, but we do not have a key nor could find a way in. As we were attempting it…"
"They were ambushed." Kyouki snorted from her position behind Hirata. "Like the noble, alert Endou soldiers they are, no doubt."
"Kyouki-sama, is it possible to open this door using Kidou?" Hirata asked, and Kyouki sighed.
"Probably, if I can muster another blast like the last. I'm still running on a lowish power supply." She said evenly. "But the door to the other cell, that's a different matter. If you can call it a door – it seems to have been sealed on all sides. And more, it's crafted from Sekkiseki. I imagine the cell itself is the same inside – and that's why we haven't felt Misashi-dono's reiatsu."
"Sekkiseki." Hirata murmured, and Kyouki nodded.
"You know what that is?"
"Very vaguely." Hirata said bleakly. "I know that it's something used in prisons and dungeons so I'm not really interested in knowing more."
He dropped himself down onto the ground again, then,
"I'm sorry, Kyouki-sama, but I'd like to get them out. If I…"
"You could always try using a key, Kyouki-sama."
Midori's voice cut through the conversation, making Hirata jump, and the Shihouin princess laughed, holding up her hand to allow something to glitter in the dim light.
"One of the guards with Riku-hime had these." She said blithely. "I suggested it would be better if they gave them to me and they agreed."
"Did they survive the interrogation?" Kyouki asked, and Midori nodded.
"Like I said, they agreed." She responded lightly. "Riku-hime didn't want me to have them, but I overruled her and now she's sleeping in her room. She won't trouble us any longer – the key to that door is also on this ring."
She tossed them up in the air, catching them in her other hand.
"Well? Let's see which one fits the lock, shall we?"
"You didn't hurt my aunt?" Hirata asked anxiously, and Midori shook her head, coming to slide the keys one by one into the rusting hole in the door.
"Just a gentle anaesthetic." She responded evenly. "Shihouin always carry a variety of things with them, and this one will knock her out for a few hours. She was quite hysterical, anyhow – probably it will calm her down, at least until someone can talk to her properly about what's gone on here."
"And about Urahara Keitarou." Hirata murmured. "Since he was masquerading as her kinsman to gain Eiraki-chan's trust."
"This is a tangled web." Kyouki said grimly. "I think it might take some time to unravel all the strands."
"Well, for now we can only do what we can do." Midori turned the fourth key and it clicked, the door creaking open. "But that's one thing down at the very least. Raiden-dono, Jinkei-dono, you're free to go – a fact I'm sure you're glad of, given that this cell is barely big enough for one person and, if I may say so, it's a style of accommodation that doesn't suit either of you."
"Midori-sama." Jinkei edged his way out of the cell, bowing his head hurriedly before being followed by his companion. "We are Hirata-sama's allies – you aren't here to take us before the Council?"
"No. We're not here for that." Midori sounded faintly amused at the deference in his tones. "We came on the same errand you did. To find and set free Misashi-dono – and acknowledge him as the Head of the Endou Clan."
"May I see the keys, please, Midori-sama?" Hirata asked softly, and Midori turned in surprise, nodding her head as she held them out.
"Yes, but I imagine with your eyes you can't make out the difference between them." She responded. "One of them is undoubtedly the key to the sealed cell – but it's been sealed, and it's formed from Sekkiseki. Sekkiseki rejects spiritual magic and kidou would be useless against it. So would zanpakutou be…getting in there isn't going to be so easy."
"We only found the door by accident." Raiden dusted his rumpled clothing down, casting Hirata a hesitant glance. "Yet we are sure that's what it is, Hirata-sama. Both Jinkei and I recall quite well that there was one further cell along this hall in times past – even though it was a time before Riku-sama's incarceration in this place. Back when it was still a functional centre of power – both Jinkei and I remember it, and so…"
"It's a logical deduction." Kyouki agreed. "That if there was one more cell down here, and the rest of the structure hasn't changed, there must still be that cell behind the sealed in door. But if it's a Sekkiseki cell, I'm not sure how to break into it."
Hirata ran his fingers along the wall, feeling the unfamiliar, unfriendly prickle of the harsh stone as he did so.
"Father." He murmured, then, "They didn't intend him to get out, did they? Whether they fed him or not, gave him water or not…the idea was to leave him here and forget about him bit by bit in a place nobody could find. That's what Seimaru wanted for my Father. To kill him yet without me knowing that he was dead. With no body, nobody would ever be able to prove it – he was buying time by keeping Father a prisoner in this place."
"Probably that's so." Midori agreed, tapping her finger against the door's keyhole. "This is where the key goes, but…even if I turn it…"
"Sekkiseki creates a barrier around everything it shields." Kyouki said thoughtfully. "In this confined space, that barrier is restricted – in fact, I'm surprised that we can even stand here like this, given the effect that stone is known to have. The barrier should block us from walking down this hall – yet it doesn't."
"Meaning?" Midori looked startled.
"That the Sekkiseki isn't evenly distributed enough to form a stable barrier." Kyouki's eyes narrowed. "And if that's not stable, then if you make it even more unstable…"
"Kyouki-sama! My father might be in there!" Hirata exclaimed, anxiety flaring in his heart, and Kyouki nodded.
"This is dangerous." She agreed cheerfully. "So I want you to take the boy, Midori, and these two gentleman and wait some way down the corridor. If the worst happens, you see, this whole area might be a sea of rubble – and I don't want to compromise the Endou-ke by killing their surviving heir to save one who may already be dead."
"But…Kyouki-sama…" Raiden faltered, and Kyouki grinned.
"The Shiba-ke are not just known for being great Shinigami." She said glibly, sliding her fingers beneath the fabric of her obi and producing a handful of small objects that Hirata could not make out in the poor light. "District Five's native industry – what we're really famous for – is fireworks. And like the Shihouin always bring the tools of the assassin when they travel, well, we always bring our own party tricks, just in case there's a need for them."
"You're really not kidding, are you? You're going to blow this corridor sky high?!" Midori's eyes almost fell out of her head, and Kyouki laughed.
"Something like it." She agreed casually. "This is underground, but it isn't underneath the main house itself. You can tell that we're too far across here - the castle itself only goes about as far as the main entrance, so if I bring the ceiling down, it will only be trees and earth that fall in on us, not the whole estate. The fireworks are not kidou, so they won't be rejected. And I've never done this before, but I don't see why it wouldn't work. So do as I said, Midori - and put a barrier up, if need be, to protect yourselves from the fallout. Don't worry about me - I won't take any harm from a few small explosives."
"She's quite mad after all." Hirata heard Midori mutter under her breath, but nevertheless the Shihouin princess took Hirata by the arm, indicating for Raiden and Jinkei to follow her to where the hallway widened and where four supporting pillars stood, holding up the floor above.
"Structurally this is probably more stable than down where Kyouki-sama is." She explained with a sigh, spreading her fingers as she did so to create a transparent barrier of spirit matter around them. "And fortunately I know the spell for Kyoumon quite well, so we should be fine here. Falling rock and stone shouldn't break through my kidou - unless the entire inside of the cell is also Sekkiseki, in which case, be prepared to duck."
"Here we goooo!"
Kyouki's shout prevented anyone from answering, and the next moment came a tremendous bang and flash of colour as a huge tremor rocketed through the hallway. It was as though an earthquake had ripped through one side of Hokujou to the other and instinctively Hirata screwed his eyes shut, fear flooding through him as he heard the rumbling of stone and debris around him. Despite Kyouki's casual description of what she was going to do, it felt as though the whole of the castle was about to tumble down around them, and it seemed forever before the noise and shaking quieted.
"Hirata, open your eyes." Midori's hand on his shoulder told him it was over, and he did so, blinking as he tried to work out what was what in the haze of dust and clutter that now surrounded them. At the far end of the hallway, where Kyouki had been, there was now a gaping hole in the ceiling, and dim light filtered through it, flakes of snow slipping through the cracks and crevasses to land for the first time on the dusty stone of the dungeon floor. Kyouki herself was nowhere to be seen, and for a moment Hirata thought that she had been caught up in her own explosion. Then he heard an exclamation, and saw Midori take a hurried step or two forward as something emerged from the cloud of debris, coughing and choking yet triumphant.
"Kyouki-sama!" Midori exclaimed, then, "M...M...Misashi-sama?"
"Father?" Hirata's heart skipped a beat and he stumbled forward, grasping at Midori's arm desperately. "Midori-sama, I can't see...I can't see them. Please...tell me. Is it really...Father?"
"He's in a poor shape. Out cold." It was Kyouki who answered him from somewhere in the foggy darkness, and the shape bent, lowering something else down gently onto the ground. "Probably being surrounded by Sekkiseki has drained his strength, and I doubt he's had a square meal for a while, either. But he hasn't been completely starved. There are scraps of food and animal bone inside the cell - so I guess Seimaru didn't want to kill him just yet. Either that or someone else was feeding him behind Seimaru's back."
"Father." Hirata took a hesitant few steps, sinking down on the ground beside the still, dusty form. Gently he touched the other's throat, feeling the gentle beat of his father's pulse, and tears began to roll silently down his own cheeks.
Father is alive. I wasn't too late. We weren't too late. Father is alive. And...and now...maybe...things will start to be all right.
"Hey, buck up, kid." A dust-monster loomed from the shadow, but Hirata did not flinch away from it as he felt the warmth in Kyouki's voice. "He's alive. Weak, but he's not dead. He'll be fine as soon as we get him back to the main estate and get Retsu-sama to look him over. So don't start hysterics of your own, all right? You've been an adult up to now - don't ruin it by being a kid at the end."
"Kyouki-sama." Midori chided. "Hirata is still a child. And for him...what he's been through today...it's probably better he can cry now than fret about it later."
She got to her feet.
"I'm going to collar a messenger and send him to the main estate." She added. "Maybe that District Eight guardsman, since he seems vaguely honest. So I suggest you find a way to get Misashi-sama upstairs so that he can rest more comfortably until appropriate transport can get here to ferry him home. He won't ride a horse in this condition."
"Next on my agenda." Kyouki agreed playfully. "Well, Hirata? Go grab Raiden and Jinkei, and we'll do as Midori suggests. Once he's cleaned up, I'm sure he'll look a lot more like your Father - and I'm sure he'll be more than glad to see you after so long apart!"
The sun was shining over the meadow that morning.
As Shunsui picked his way slowly through the gentle landscape, he drew a deep breath into his lungs, the faint scent of floral perfume gently enveloping his senses. There were no clouds in the sky overhead, and for a moment he stood there, gazing dreamily up at the peaceful, unmoving sky as he sought a moment of respite.
So once again this is your sanctuary, then.
The voice was soft, yet it pierced through Shunsui's wits and he started, swinging around in surprise as he tried to locate the source of the sound. There was a soft chuckle, then he felt a sudden whoosh of air, and something dropped a thin, claw-like hand down onto his shoulder, a second hand brushing against his hair as it carefully but purposefully drew the boy's head round to face the front.
"I told you the last time. I don't hide behind you."
Shunsui drew breath sharply, staring at the intruder as recognition flooded his dark brown eyes. Before him stood a demon – tall, spindly and with skin stretched so tightly over the bone he was barely more than a skeleton, robed all in batwing black with eyes that flickered and flared with an unusual reddish flame. Yet though the apparition before him was terrifying, Shunsui did not feel as afraid as he had done before. This time, after all, he knew what he was facing. This time he understood.
"Amaki." He whispered, and the demon smiled, a horrific grimace that seemed to stretch the skin even tighter across his bony face.
"You remember, then." He observed, loosing his grip on his companion and standing back to gaze at him as though passing some inner judgement. "Or you listen when Seibara chirps at you. One or the other – I'm glad you know my name."
"I'm not likely to forget, considering that the last time we spoke, you threatened me with several levels of torment." Shunsui reflected, and Amaki laughed, a strange, eerie sound that echoed surreally around them. Shunsui's gaze flitted briefly to the ground, yet this time the flowers had not begun to die, and he sighed, relief flickering in his heart.
So it is me, after all. I destroy this place. I build it. Amaki really has no power over it…all of it is me after all.
"You sound as though you bear me a grudge for that." Amaki observed now, and Shunsui smiled ruefully, shaking his head.
"No." He said honestly. "I owe you a debt for it. I'm alive because of it. I didn't understand that then. I do now. Seibara's better at explaining things than you are – so you don't scare me any more. And I'm grateful."
"Well." Amaki's eyes narrowed, flickers of stray flame darting from his eye sockets as he considered his companion's words. "I can't say then I had any desire to save you. I despised you. You were weak and pathetic and falling to the same hell that your Father did. What he did to Tensonshin was unforgivable. I won't forgive it. But now you understand it – you must, else Seibara would never have spoken to you at all. So if you know that…you've accepted who and what we are. And you're not going to fall into those traps – are you, Shunsui?"
Shunsui gazed at him for a moment, then he sighed, sinking down onto the petal-covered grass.
"I hope not." He said soberly. "But I am my father's son, Amaki. I can't promise you'll not get mad with me again."
"I expect to get mad with you regularly." Amaki's eyes glittered ominously. "I've a lifetime's worth of pain and torment still to unleash on you if you look as though you're starting to fall behind – and I'm quite happy to do it, even if you are the one I'm supposed to call 'master'. Remember that, all right? You're not close to summoning your zanpakutou yet. Just because Seibara let you wield her power once…you're a long way from being able to maintain both of us before you in one go."
"Seibara said it would be tough, bringing you together." Shunsui acknowledged. "And probably it will. I like the easy path, so I'm fairly sure that means I'll have to take the hard one."
He tilted his head on one side.
"This is a dream." He added. "I know it is, because I took injury and I'm not yet healed. Seibara said you could not fight with me because my arm was broken. Yet you're here now and not her. Why?"
"Your resolve melted into despair and regret, didn't it?" Amaki asked softly, and Shunsui bit his lip.
"I suppose." He admitted. "But it wasn't…easy. And…I don't suppose…anyone would have found that easy."
"Your friend died." Amaki nodded. "He died and you saw no way to reverse it. Nor did we, in truth. The young girl's powers were beyond either Seibara or my calculations. It was true, too, that you could not physically wield my sword in that fight. Your right arm is a mess of broken bone and you would not have been able to grasp a blade's hilt, let alone use it to battle. But there was another reason, too. You are ambidextrous. In theory, you can use either blade in either hand if you so wish. The truth is that I chose to wait, this time. Because I know you, Shunsui. And I knew that Seibara's demand for resolve would be followed by negativity and despair."
Shunsui's eyes narrowed.
"You were waiting, in case I decided to kill myself after killing Juu." He murmured. "That's what you thought…that's what you intended. To be here to frighten me back to life…if I showed signs of giving up."
"Yes." Amaki agreed. "I wasn't going to let it happen, Shunsui. You are not Matsuhara. You have still to learn that life isn't a game you can throw your hand in at will and walk away from. Seibara and I don't intend to support someone who's content with simply taking part, even if it means they lose. I will not tolerate that attitude, and I will not be treated like Tensonshin."
"I don't understand," Shunsui admitted, "what that has to do with Otousama, except that he didn't fight back when Uncle killed him. But I wasn't going to kill myself, Amaki. I don't know what I was thinking…I don't suppose I was thinking very much at all. I expected punishment. Perhaps the worst punishment – and I won't pretend I would've cared if it had come. But…I wasn't going to kill myself. Because…that would have meant me killing you and Seibara, too. And I don't like killing. Taking Juu's life would've been bad enough. I wasn't going to hurt you both too…you've been hurt by me enough."
Amaki's eyes widened, as if he had not expected this, then he smiled, and somehow this smile seemed softer and less terrifying than the one he had unleashed before.
"You have learnt." He whispered. "Seibara was right. You are stronger than Matsuhara was. And you understand…that we aren't just objects for you to discard and ignore. We are part of you…after so long being shut away, are you finally ready to listen to what we have to teach you?"
"I don't know." Shunsui admitted. "If you say I am, maybe I am. I guess we'll see."
He rubbed his temples, then,
"I can't hide from you when I'm uncertain or negative." He added. "You see it, don't you? Whether I speak it or not. Better than anyone around me, you've felt every one of my dark moments just as deeply as I have. Seibara said that's why you are the way you are – and I wanted to apologise, although that would add another level of regret and negativity to the whole thing and I figured you'd probably get mad at me. So I'm trying not to be negative. I'm trying to smile, and keep control, and…and not let the petals fade or die. But I can't hide it from you…even if I smile, can I?"
"No." Amaki said bluntly. "And there's no sense in you hiding it. It gets worse when you do. I know how often you've smiled without meaning it and left me wanting to rip shreds from you inside as I've watched the flowers wilt."
"Mm." Shunsui grimaced. "Then I won't try and hide it. Juu's alive thanks to Shikiki, but I'm not sure yet…how to face him when he wakes up. I'm still clinging on to the thought that he must wake up – but I don't even know yet if he will. I don't know whether Shikiki returned just his heartbeat or his whole spirit – and if she really did manage…whether he knew. He mouthed my name as he fell – I'm sure he saw me in that moment the sword went in. That frightens me, Amaki. If he remembers…facing his questions and trying to find an answer. It makes me weak and cowardly, but even so…"
"It makes you normal." Amaki cut across him frankly. "And that's probably the first and last time I'll ever say that about you, so treasure the moment and hold it dear."
Shunsui smiled wryly.
"Thanks…?" He ventured, and Amaki snorted.
"I'm still undecided as to whether or not I like you." He warned. "Even if you've made steps, we'll see. But there's nothing abnormal about it. Ukitake Juushirou is your friend. If you were the kind to be happy or fine after a fight like that, Seibara would never have let you use her blade to do what you had to do. Resolve isn't about accepting everything. Resolve is about doing what needs to be done, and putting that before your likes and your dislikes. It's putting it before yourself, Shunsui. And accepting all and any consequences in the process. If you have resolve, you know there's no turning back. If you're resolved, you know you've done what's right. And if you've acted right, you have no reason to hide. No reason for shame."
He paused, then reached out to ruffle his fingers through Shunsui's messy hair again, and this time there was something faintly reassuring and almost paternal in the approval of his touch.
"You acted right, Shunsui." He whispered. "There was nothing else you could have done…you acted right."
He turned to leave, but paused at the last minute, shooting Shunsui another wicked, grotesque smile.
"You're the one who preaches to others that things can only be accomplished before you die." He said flippantly. "You and your friend both still live. Maybe you should try starting from there."
The next minute he was gone, a faint, sulphurous breeze wafting through the meadowland and Shunsui sighed, flopping onto his back and staring up at the hazy blue sky as he carefully digested Amaki's words.
So long as I don't give up, you're not as awful as I thought you were. Perhaps that's a nice, symbolic cliché itself, in the end. That if I face the bits of myself I don't like, they're no longer as frightening as they first seem. Which means…maybe the same is true outside of this place, too. Perhaps that's really what he came here to say.
A faint smile touched his lips.
I don't know yet what to say to Juu, or how to explain…or if I even can. I don't know what repercussions will come from that fight, but whatever they are, I'll try…to embrace them and keep going forward, even if it's unpleasant. Even if he hates me – at least he's alive to hate me. I…I can live with that, in the end. I…I think.
Amaki's right. So long as there's life…I need to start listening to myself a bit more. Perhaps I'll find that I give good advice.
He closed his eyes.
And if not, well, Amaki and Seibara are there to poke me and prod me and drag me back to where I should be. Juu said that with his sword spirits he felt he was never really alone. Now I know exactly what he means. They're going to ask a lot of me…but no matter who or what else does, they're not going to abandon me. Right now it hasn't fully sunk in – but when it does, perhaps it will be comforting to know it. That the world out there and the world in here are different – and whatever happens next, Seibara and Amaki will be with me.
A violent tremor in his surroundings caused his eyes to snap open, alarm in his gaze as the blue sky hazed and warped, starting to fragment into slithers of silvery light. For a moment he thought that his inner world had once more started to destabilise, but the next moment a shooting jolt of pain rocketed up his right arm and he let out an involuntary cry as suddenly he found himself in a small, cleanly furnished bedchamber, leagues away from the peaceful world of flowers in his head.
"Shunsui?"
That was Tokutarou's voice, and Shunsui hurriedly gathered his wits, blinking to bring his surroundings more clearly into focus. He had not been here before, he was quite sure of that - the colours and decor were foreign to his senses, yet the voices were familiar, and beneath the window glittered the black hilt of a sheathed sword.
Kai's wakizashi.
Memories flooded through him, and a second stab of pain ran through his broken arm as he took a deep, shuddery breath to quell the panic, realising that he had returned once more to the real world.
The dream was over, at least for now.
"I'm sorry, Kyouraku-kun, but I need you to remain still for the time being."
That was Unohana Retsu's voice, and Shunsui's eyes darted across to his right hand side, making out the Clan Leader as she bent over his injured arm. There was a glittering shield of light already extending around it, and Shunsui knew that the older woman's healing Kidou had probably been the thing to disrupt him from his dream.
"It hurts a good deal, I know." She met his gaze, offering him a sympathetic smile, and in that moment Shunsui felt that Retsu was talking about more pain than just the physical sensation rippling through his damaged limb. "But you must remain still – at least for a little while longer."
She turned towards the doorway.
"Tokutarou-sama, would you come sit at your brother's side and keep him distracted while I treat this arm?" She asked softly. "Until it is fully straightened, I cannot adequately dull the pain – but I am sure he would rather have your company to take his mind off what I am doing."
"Mm." Tokutarou came into Shunsui's line of sight, dropping down heavily at the boy's indicated side. His eyes were grave, Shunsui noticed, and his expression was troubled and preoccupied. Shunsui's heart lurched as he struggled to interpret this. Was Tokutarou simply worried about his injury? Was he cross because Shunsui had taken off without warning and had wound up hurt in the process? Or was it something else…was it…
"Nii-sama?" Somehow he managed to form a word, though his throat felt dry and his voice croaky. "Juu…"
Tokutarou was silent for a moment, and Shunsui's heart skipped a beat as he saw the darkening of the other man's gaze.
"He's asleep." At length – and it seemed like an eternity – Tokutarou spoke, then sighed. "I wish you'd worry about yourself half as much as you worry about him, Shunsui – Juushirou is sleeping, and you should be focusing your attention on letting Retsu-sama heal your arm."
Relief crashed over Shunsui like a tidal wave, then,
"But…Juu…was…my…" He stalled, not sure how to word it, but Tokutarou nodded.
"The child told us everything." He said frankly. "The one sitting guard over the both of you when Retsu-sama and I arrived to help. I know what happened, Shunsui. I…I don't really want to talk about that with you until you're feeling better. All I have to say to you right now is that you ought to keep it better in mind, sometimes, who and what you are. If your arm had been much worse damaged…"
"Now is not the time for such recriminations, Tokutarou-sama." Retsu chided lightly, pausing in her ministerings to shoot him a reproachful look. "Your brother's arm is badly broken and bruised, but I can heal it and it will be as good as new. It may take a little time, that is all. He has no other serious injuries – all in all, considering the event, he has come out of things surprisingly well."
Shunsui cast Retsu a hesitant glance, and she smiled.
"Your friend's spirit is disturbed and fragmented, but it is whole." She added softly. "Ukitake-kun is sleeping very deeply and as yet he has not awoken. But I have faith that he will, so do not fret. That young girl is something very special – and I have faith in what she can do."
"Shikiki?" Shunsui murmured, and Retsu nodded.
"I have heard of them, but never before seen one." She agreed lightly, running her index finger carefully along the line of Shunsui's arm and Shunsui winced, fighting the urge to pull his body away from her touch. "Yes, I realise this is hard for you – but I promise, it will be over soon."
"Then that chibi really did save Juushirou's life?" Tokutarou asked. Retsu nodded again.
"Without a doubt." She agreed calmly. "Her aura is unlike most other children – unlike even those gifted like your brother and his friends, if I am truthful. Very occasionally I have read of them in my family's annals - healers who are not actually healers but are something unique and significant. They are gifted with a particular talent – the talent to reject time and force it back to an earlier period. At one point in Seireitei history such people were prized and considered vital to the stability of Soul Society. However, as with so many with power, they made people afraid and so were condemned and hunted into near extinction. Genryuusai-sama has spoken to me of his attempts to protect them, but in a pre-Council world, often his efforts amounted to nothing. The child, Shikiki, has no surviving family – so it is impossible to know if her talents were hereditary or coincidental. Still the truth remains. She has the ability to create a shield and force back the flow of time within that shield so that everything within it returns to a previous state. She is young yet, so her powers have yet to fully mature. But when they do…she will be an exceptionally powerful young woman."
Which is doubtless why she was in the company of Urahara Keitarou." Tokutarou muttered. "Really, Shunsui, you shouldn't go off after people when you know nothing about them. You could've been killed. Juushirou might have been. It's only the fact that child was there that prevented this being an all round tragedy. I thought I could trust you to be sensible – perhaps my judgement was premature after all."
So that was it, after all. Shunsui sighed, then regretted the movement the next minute as fresh pain ripped through his broken limb.
"I wanted to help Juu, and help Hirata." He murmured, then, "Hirata! Nii-sama, where is…"
"Somewhere to the North, so I understand it." Tokutarou said briskly. "Heading towards a fortress known as Hokujou. Apparently there's a likelihood his father might be imprisoned there – so he's gone with Midori-sama and Kyouki-sama to see if it's true."
"Then he's alive, too." Shunsui whispered, and Tokutarou shrugged.
"I can't tell you much about that." He responded simply. "All I know is that a messenger came to tell us that Hirata, Midori-sama and Kyouki-sama were riding north to find and free Misashi-sama. It sounds like Kyouki-sama took down Seimaru – but in Hirata's case, I imagine that means he's unhurt. Guren-sama has pacified Seventh Squad and Genryuusai-sama has taken charge of the Endou council in the absence of a suitable Clansman. When Retsu-sama felt the changes in your reiatsu and your kidou flare, Genryuusai-sensei instructed us to come find you boys and bring you back to the main estate. That's where we are now – in a disused guest wing of the Endou manor. It's not ideal, but for the time being, it will do."
Shunsui closed his eyes, struggling to put all of this information together.
Hirata is alive. Kyouki-sama and Midori-sama saved him, so that's all right. Seimaru is dead – which means that the Endou-ke can start to rebuild District Seven. If Misashi-sama is imprisoned and alive, then so much to the good. If not…
His thoughts faltered, then,
I promised Hirata he wasn't on his own, so if the worst comes to the worst, I'll make sure to stick by him. And that means Nii-sama too – even if right now he's mad at me.
Out loud he said,
"I intend to support Hirata, Nii-sama."
"The Council came here to do that." Tokutarou said pointedly. "Through the proper channels."
"Even if Misashi-sama is dead. I intend to support Hirata." Shunsui's gaze became more determined. "Even if he's too young, Nii-sama. I intend…"
"A minor will not be supported at the Council of Elders." Tokutarou cut across him, shaking his head decidedly. "And I won't let it happen any more than anyone else will."
"Then…"
"We pray that Misashi-sama lives." Tokutarou told him firmly. "Because otherwise, the Council will have to install a protectorate. If Sumire-sama could be accepted by the Endou council, so be it – otherwise…"
"Hirata wanted to protect and save his family." Shunsui protested. "The Endou-ke may have accepted Yayoi-sama, but I know they don't allow female leaders and even Yayoi-sama didn't ever directly rule the Clan. Sumire-sama would more likely be hurt…and then…"
"You shut up until you know what you're talking about." Tokutarou's words were frank and unyielding. "You don't understand, yet, the pressures of leading a Clan or what they would do to a young boy like your friend. You have no idea at all, Shunsui…so don't act as though you do. I left you to take care of District Eight – not to become a vigilante and act out on your own whims."
"Tokutarou-sama." Retsu said softly, but Tokutarou ignored her, shaking his head.
"Our father was fifteen when he inherited the Kyouraku Clan." He said quietly, meeting Shunsui's gaze with uncharacteristically steely brown ones of his own. "Fifteen, and without any prior preparation. Our Grandfather and our Great Uncle were both victims of reidoku – and for that reason, Father was forced to inherit too young."
He pursed his lips.
"Genryuusai-sensei shielded him, and forced the Council to accept him rather than allow District Eight to fall into other hands." He continued softly. "But he was too young. He was always too young. He never learnt how to lead a Clan, and in the end, it took its toll. In the end..."
"Matsuhara-sama died of grief, Tokutarou-sama." Retsu stood back, eying the angry Clan leader thoughtfully. "Grief for many things, including the burden of his duty. Had he been ten or a hundred, that burden would have remained. Genryuusai-sama did what he could to lessen that burden, but it was an exceptional circumstance. Nothing else could have been done at the time – the Kyouraku-ke needed a leader and Matsuhara-sama was the first in line."
"But…" Tokutarou turned, and Retsu shook her head.
"Matsuhara-sama died of grief." She repeated. "He was slain by his brother in a battle of swords, but that battle was tantamount to suicide and we are both aware of that fact. Matsuhara-sama was not cut out to be a Clan leader, perhaps – but he was an intelligent, sensitive man who cared for his subjects and for his family. Those two burdens proved too great for him – and asked too much of him, in the long run."
She sighed, shrugging her shoulders.
"I attended the scene, after his death." She added. "On Genryuusai-sama's request, I examined Matsuhara-sama's body. No interference with the Kyouraku-ke was permitted – but the death of a Gotei shinigami had to be objectively examined. It was clear from Tensonshin's maltreated blade that this had been Matsuhara-sama's choice. He had wanted a reason to die and his brother had provided it. But I have been a Clan leader for more than twenty years and I met Matsuhara-sama before his first wife died. I met him before he remarried, before Kyouraku-kun was born. I met him when he was still a Gotei Shinigami of high repute…and I personally heard his doubts and hesitations about the spiritual duties asked of him. I treated his first wife's sickness for some time before she died - and so occasionally he would take me into his trust. He was planning on giving up his sword to focus on administration in District Eight and on attending to his dying wife, and he asked my advice on how best to make her comfortable whilst ensuring everything was in place for his own son to inherit without contest. He was concerned about how the Kyouraku-ke - especially his brother - viewed the Shiba connection and he thought that if he made plans now, perhaps he could ensure that your inheritance would be smooth, Tokutarou-sama. I think, maybe even then, he was considering resigning his position in your favour, but it was made clear to him that you were only a child - and to do so would put the Clan in jeopardy."
"He spoke to me once, before Mother died, about plans that never came to fruition." Tokutarou acknowledged sadly. "But I was only young, and I didn't really absorb all the implications. I didn't understand what was really going through his head - why he was so worried."
"Yet even so, at that time, his mind was troubled but sound." Retsu said lightly. "He had many worries, but I do not believe his accession was among them. That man was not made weak because he came of age too soon. He was made weak by other factors. He carried heavy burdens, and those burdens forced him to act against his heart and his conscience. He disliked the suffering his sword brought, and he disliked that he had been pressed to take a second wife when he still had not resolved his emotion over the loss of the first. I am sure that as time went on he found it hard to even meet his own reflection - he believed he had betrayed far, far more than in reality he ever had."
She rested a hand on Tokutarou's shoulder.
"I also hope Misashi-sama lives." She said sincerely. "But should it be otherwise, Endou-kun will require support. If he cannot look to his friends for that…who can he look to? Kyouraku-kun is not a Council representative, therefore his decisions are not constrained the way that ours are. He is simply proving what all students at Genryuusai-sama's Academy must learn. That the bonds you form must be upheld and consolidated and that you fight for others, not just for yourself. You should be proud of your brother, Tokutarou-sama. He is showing resolution – and because of it, I believe, he will soon take the next steps to becoming a Shinigami."
"Turning my hair grey in the process." Tokutarou muttered, but resignation glittered in his dark eyes. "Perhaps I know those things, though. Perhaps I know best of anyone that it was grief at my mother's death which truly destroyed my father and his will to fight."
His gaze met his brother's, and Shunsui was startled by the depth of emotion he saw in the other's dark eyes.
"To tell the truth, I was frightened, Shunsui. Especially when the girl told me what had happened. I was worried what that may have done to you and what it might compel you to do afterwards. To have you wake up and babble about other people…after I worried so much, it was the last thing I…"
"I could've killed Juu." Shunsui agreed solemnly, as Retsu began to strengthen the kidou barrier around his broken arm and little by little the pain subsided. "I intended to kill him, because it was the only way to break the spell. And I would've hated that, Nii-sama. I would have struggled with it for the rest of my life. But it was still…the right thing to do. I know that. Shikiki…Shikiki was a blessing. But I…I had made up my mind. If the only way to help Juu was to kill him then…I wasn't going to let him suffer any more."
Tokutarou sighed, rubbing his temples.
"You are your Father's son." He whispered. "And that's why I was so worried – that you could act like that to save someone from suffering, and yet…the consequences…"
"I don't understand." Shunsui frowned, and Tokutarou nodded.
"Juushirou didn't tell you, then." He reflected. "Perhaps, like me, he didn't know how best to do it. Shunsui, as Retsu-sama has said, my mother was very ill before she died. Very, very ill. She suffered constantly and it broke my father's heart. She changed so much from the vibrant Shiba hime he had defied his Clan's advice to marry into a frail shell of a creature, existing rather than living. I remember the change, too. It happened quite suddenly, in my recollections, though I imagine she was sick long before a child like I noticed. I just knew that rather than chasing me and shocking her maidservants by playing hide and seek with me around the manor grounds, she took more and more to her bed. And, as time went on, she became unable to leave it."
He sighed.
"She hated that. Anyone would." He murmured. "But especially my mother. She was Kyouki-sama's cousin, and her close childhood friend - you can imagine therefore what kind of a woman she was. To be inactive and useless pained her, and the disease ate away at her till she was suffering more than even the Unohana-ke could keep under control. One day it became too much, and she asked my father to put an end to it. Kyouki-sama and I both believe that he granted that wish. That the last time he released Tensonshin…was to take my mother's life and give her peace. To stop her suffering – regardless of how much he would add to his own. And though he did it...though he resolved himself to do it...he never forgave himself. He couldn't, in the end, live with the grief or the guilt, and he punished himself, dragging himself further and further into a vicious circle of despair as he tried to blot it all out. Yoshiko-dono knows it as well as I do, but his remarriage simply added to his torment. That he could continue, re-marry, birth another son...I'm sure he found those things unforgivable, when he had brought to death someone he had held so dearly. And...and, of course, robbed me of my mother. I had letters from him while I was with the Shiba. He often mentioned her...how she would be happy about this or that thing, and most of all, that he regretted my not being able to tell her and show her myself. He never told me directly what he'd done...but as I got older, Kyouki-sama spoke to me about it. I then understood...that that decision had given my mother peace but had created hell for my Father and, by proxy, for me, for his second wife and for you - the younger brother I'd never met. He'd neglected you shamefully, and it made me twice as determined that, when I took the Clan, I would make sure you weren't alienated from it. I was sure, in the end, that that would be Mother's wish as well as Father's. But for you to be so like Father...has often worried me. And continues to worry me. You have so much talent, just like he did. But...Shunsui...what that comes with..."
He faltered, and shock followed by comprehension flooded Shunsui's features.
"I see." He murmured. "So that…that's why. That's why you look so stressed and worried and why you're yelling at me like you are. You think…because I'm like Father…I'll do as he did. I'll act because I have to but…I…I won't be able to deal with it now I have. And that…in the end…it will break me, too."
"Juushirou is still alive, so I hoped it would be otherwise." Tokutarou admitted. "But I didn't want anything to happen to you…because, like Father, you care about things too much. And I've seen it before, Shunsui. What happens when you can't cope with something. I don't want to go back to that...not when you've moved so far ahead."
"I hate what I had to do. What I resolved to do. I hate it." Shunsui's voice shook slightly as he read the obvious concern in his brother's face. "But I…I already decided, Nii-sama. While I'm alive, that's when I can do things. If Juu had died then…then I'd have had twice as many reasons to live. I'd have had to have achieved things for him as well as for me. Worked twice as hard. Succeeded twice as well. Changed the world twice as many times. Otherwise Juu would have died for no reason…and if I had to…to do that then…I would have…I…"
He faltered, closing his eyes as tears glittered on his lashes.
"I'm not all right with it yet." He admitted slowly. "But Nii-sama, I would be. I will be. Juu dying would have made me twice as determined to live. Even if I hated it, I would have done it regardless. Dying would have been an easy way of running away, after all. And I promised myself – I promised you, I promised Juu. I promised Tensonshin, too. I'm not going to run away. I'm going to wear Eighth District's h…h…haori and help change this s…stupid world."
"Well spoken, Kyouraku-kun." Retsu reached across to gently wipe away his tears. "But for now you should sleep. Your arm is set in place and will begin to heal – it is best for you to rest and recover your spiritual power."
"Mm." Shunsui took a shaky breath into his lungs, feeling drowsy once more as Retsu's soothing kidou got to work over his body. "But before…Nii-sama…I don't want you to…worry. I will…be all right. So long as…I'm not alone."
"I don't think there's any risk of that happening any longer, is there, Kyouraku-kun?" Retsu's eyes were gentle, and Shunsui knew that she understood his meaning far better than his anxious brother. "I'm sure that Genryuusai-sama will be pleased, too – to hear you speaking that way."
"Retsu-sama?" Tokutarou cast her a questioning look, and Retsu nodded.
"Kyouraku-kun's aura is very vivid at present." She said quietly. "And healing him like this, I can feel it quite clearly. On Ukitake-kun's body, too, I felt the same sensation. During that fight, Tokutarou-sama, your brother was not fighting alone. Something came to his aid…something that you and all of District Eight have been waiting for."
"You mean…?" Tokutarou's eyes widened, and Retsu nodded.
"Kyouraku-kun's zanpakutou spirits." She agreed. "Isn't that right, Kyouraku-kun?"
Shunsui managed a faint, drowsy nod.
"I have two." He murmured. "Like Juu…Seibara and…Amaki. And…I know they're with me, now. I promise…Nii-sama…I'm going to…learn how to raise my sword. And then…maybe…I can be of use in…District Eight."
With that he closed his eyes, allowing his companions' voices to blur and become indistinct as he sank back into a sea of dreams. Amaki was long gone now, but he did not mind. At the back of his senses he was aware of them for the first time, watching and waiting for his body to heal.
So when it does, we'll talk again. You can beat sense in me and I'll try to listen. It's nicer, after all…even if I'm being nagged at, lectured and threatened with hellfire and eternal torment. I couldn't have fought that battle alone…but I didn't have to. And I guess I see now that if I carry on training, I never will have to. So long as I'm here, they're here. And I never realised it before…but…I like knowing that. Even if Juu doesn't forgive me, or even if I don't, in the long run. No matter what happens, they're on my side. And for now…for now, that's enough.
"You too should probably rest, Tokutarou-sama."
In the quiet chamber, it was Retsu's gentle voice that broke the silence. "He will sleep for some little time, and you should take the opportunity too. It has been a trying time for you - particularly since you are only recently married. With all of this...you must be under some strain yourself."
"Mm." Tokutarou reached across to touch Shunsui's good arm, then he sighed. "I've already proven a terrible husband, abandoning my bride so soon after our marriage. But Rae-hime understands, I think, what maybe Shunsui doesn't totally yet. And I think she'll forgive me...when I tell her what's happened."
Retsu's expression softened, and Tokutarou knew that she had read the unspoken message in his words.
"Your father may have neglected his duty towards his younger son." She said softly. "But you do not have to repay this debt on his behalf, Tokutarou-sama. Carrying extra burdens on your shoulders is unecessary. Your brother knows that you act in his interests and that is enough. You should not take so much upon yourself."
"I know." Tokutarou nodded. "But Shunsui is the only direct blood kin I have - someone who is connected through the same bloodline, even though we have different mothers. And it's not just about duty, either. I did promise myself that I would make Shunsui a proper part of the family when I came to take the leadership. And that I would try to be his brother where he had lacked a Father, but..."
He paused, tapping Shunsui's fingers gently as he did so.
"Probably, there is nobody in Seireitei I care more about." He admitted. "I'll form alliances, and bridge political gaps. I'll trust in and build bonds with my wife and I will hope to bring strong, healthy heirs into this world so as my line is secure and stable for generations to come. But those things are political. They are entirely wrapped up in the position Father left me too soon - the same position as he inherited too soon from his predecessor. I'm fine with that responsibility. I've learnt how to take it on because I knew from my childhood that it was my future path. But I grew up in District Five, and so outside of those duties, I have...very little in District Eight, really. Except a crazy, irresponsible little brother who drives me out of my mind with worry at the least thing."
Retsu chuckled softly.
"He is a very genuine young boy, in many ways." She said wisely. "And I understand, Tokutarou-sama. I trust, however, that that loneliness of command is something your brother will never have to face. You seek to teach him how to lead the Clan whilst doing all you can to ensure he doesn't have to - but from this point on, I think you can cease to concern yourself quite so much. This experience has hurt him, but he will grow from it."
She smiled.
"If you trusted in your sword more, you'd realise that a zanpakutou spirit is often an ally in the bleakest of times." She added evenly. "Matsuhara-sama overlooked that fact, and so do you. You rely on your physical power alone, and he hid himself away from his. But it sounds like your brother has the balance right. It seems that he has begun to listen to his sword and will grow to learn from it, too. So long as that bond forms...Kyouraku-kun will move forwards. And I believe he will keep his word. One day, he will wear that haori. And, doubtless, one day he will help change this world. He and his young friend...whose future path is quite as dogged with decision and responsibility."
"Juushirou will live?" Tokutarou asked, and Retsu nodded.
"I have no doubts." She agreed. "Ukitake-kun's will to live outstrips anyone's on account of his battle against haibyou. And that child gave all her strength to bring him back. This is a turning point for the both of them - but I am sure they will both go forwards. And so you should not worry...but should take a moment to rest. District Seven is still in an unsteady state - and we will be much needed in the days and weeks to come. For the sake of all those refugees who will want to go home...you understand, don't you?"
"Yes." Tokutarou inclined his head. "All right. I'll do as you say. Thank you, Retsu-sama. You've put my heart somewhat at ease about my brother, in any case."
He grinned.
"I should have faith in him, as well as just worry about him." He added. "I'll try and remember what you said. That this really is a turning point - and from this point on, I won't have to worry about him quite so much any more."