ARRANGED LOVE OR COERCION?Disclaimer:I donot own bleach or its charactersChapter Three: Here comes the Bride
The day of the wedding came too fast for Ichigo; she woke up that morning surrounded by servants all of them ready to begin scrubbing her and dressing her up like a porcelain doll.
She had screamed death threats at the ones who insisted they must help her bathe.
"I am perfectly capable of washing myself! Get the hell out before I show you how a hollow feels when my Zanpakuto slices it's head in half!"
"But milady it's tradition!" One of the woman begged sounding close to tears.
"I don't give a crap! I can wash myself!" Ichigo yelled as she slammed the wash-room door shut and proceeded to barricade it with towel racks. The door began to shake soon after as the servants tried to gain entrance.
"Please milady we shall be in awful trouble if you don't let us in!" A voice cried despairingly from behind the wooden surface.
"I won't tell if you don't! Now piss off!" Ichigo cried as she stepped quickly into the warm, lavender scented water. After several minutes of army style scrubbing and scraping Ichigo stepped out red raw and clean as a whistle.
"Milady you are burned!" Wailed a brunette.
"Quick fetch a healer!" Shouted a redhead.
"Silence!" Ichigo screamed. "I am not burned. You are all a bunch of hypochondriacs. I'll be back to my normal colour in a few minutes. Just give me a few damn seconds to dry myself off, put on my under garments then you can all come back in and do whatever you want."
The women nodded and quickly scurried outside the room. Ichigo made her way over to her wedding Kimono. It was beautiful and so white that Ichida's Quincy attire would have looked dirty if compared to it. It suddenly brought home the reality of what was going to happen today. In a matter of hours she would officially be the wife of Byakuya Kuchiki. Lady Ichigo Kuchiki. It didn't have a ring to it at all she decided.
I wish my family were here. Ichigo thought as she dried her body with a soft towel. She could imagine what it would be like if this were a wedding to a man she loved in the human world.
Yuzu would be running around arranging the food, checking the decorations, helping her with her hair and make up. Karin would be trying to keep everyone calm, checking the extra details and making sure everyone was where they should be. And her Dad, well he would be crying into a hanky telling her how beautiful she looked in her mother's Shiro-Maku. Ichigo began to cry in earnest. She couldn't help it. She was envisioning the wedding she would never have and deep down had always secretly dreamed of. After all what girl didn't want a fairytale wedding? Now she would spend perhaps hundreds of years married to a man who may never love her like a man should love his wife.
She cried as she slipped the soft white undergarments on her now goose-pimpled body. Despite the warm weather she now felt bone cold. Tears dropped onto her chest leaving darkened patches on her clothes.
Wasn't a wedding supposed to be the happiest day of your life?
"Milady please may we enter. Time is ticking and we cannot afford to wait any longer."
"Come in." Ichigo sobbed.
The women entered paying no attention to her tears; and acting as though they were not there.
They began to pull at her hair, rub lotions and colours into her skin and painted and filed her nails to perfection.
It's like I'm a doll, I might as well be. I'm just another decoration for this farce.
"Milady please would you mind drying your face, the make-up will smear." Asked the brunette from earlier as she passed Ichigo a cloth.
All too soon Ichigo was stood at the entrance to the gardens where she would soon be making her appearance. Her Auburn hair pulled up into the white cloth that now covered her head, her face flawless due to the make-up, her cheeks rosy, her eyes large and bright. Truly the dressers had worked a miracle for underneath she was pale sickly and shaking like a leaf. Her Shiro-Maku was wrapped expertly around her slender frame, and was in her opinion the only thing holding her together at that moment.
"Oh Ichigo you look beautiful!" Rukia exclaimed as she took in her soon to be sister-in-law's appearance.
"I feel like a shopping window dummy."
"Don't say that you look so...so." Rukia looked about ready to cry by this point.
"It'll be you next you know." Ichigo Huffed. "Then you'll know what this outfit feels like. It's heavy, hot, itchy! Do me a favour Rukia when you get married, get married in winter!" She gripped the edges of the garment tightly as though trying to cause it pain.
"Me next? No. I'm afraid not" Rukia laughed.
"Yeah right, I reckon it'll be one month before Renji pops the question." Ichigo glanced at Rukia who suddenly turned beet red.
"You think so?" She asked timidly.
"I know so. He's all Rukia this, Rukia that. It's sickeningly sweet." Ichigo Smirked. "Besides now your free to marry whomever you want and no one can stop you."
Rukia smiled sadly.
"You're not a sacrifice for my happiness Ichigo. I'll make sure you're happy too, I promise." She stood up on tip toes and kissed Ichigo on the cheek gently.
"Make sure you do not smudge her Make-up Rukia."
Momoko appeared from behind the two her voice, scraping and reproachful.
"Yes of course. Forgive me Aunt." Rukia bowed. "I'll be heading down now." She said to them both and ran down the steps, she turned once as she reached the bottom and looked back. "Good luck." She said to Ichigo then disappeared from view.
"Well I must say you have scrubbed up rather well."
Ichigo glared at the old witch wishing that she would vanish into thin air. If death glares were fire then Momoko would be a towering inferno.
"Of course you have none of the radiance the late Hisana had. Which is a shame considering you are from a slightly more privileged background I would've expected more."
"Maybe that's because it was Lady Hisana's wedding day." Ichigo replied hotly. She respected the memory of Rukia's older sister and Byakuya's lost wife. But of course she felt like a poor replacement and Momoko's jibes were clearly insinuating that.
"What do you mean. It is your wedding day." The old woman sniffed her eyes glinting dangerously.
"Is it? I thought I was bartering for the safety of hostages."
Ichigo smirked as she watched Momoko's mouth flap open and shut.
"It's time you made your way down to the shrine." She hissed then stormed down the winding path.
Ichigo took a deep breath and gathered her kimono around her and carefully edged down the steps, careful not to fall and ruin her outfit. She could hear the ceremonial bells tinkling nearby and the hushed whispers of the guests that had come to see her wed.
She paused a moment before she came into view of the crowd. And seriously considered high tailing out of the whole affair. Yet all the words, all of the threats came back. Ichigo was by no means a weak woman, and she considered herself brave for going though with this whole plan.
A weaker woman would've run and let others protect her and her family. Yes it may have worked for another woman. But not for her not in this situation. Running away would only harm those that she loved.
She pictured her family, imagined that when she walked around the corner it would be them that she would see. And with that image conjured stepped forward.
She heard several gasps and a cacophony of whispers broke out.
"...Beautiful."
"...Who would've guessed she could look like that?"
"...Byakuya's one lucky guy."
"...Seriously is that really Kurosaki?"
"...She looks wonderful."
Ichigo kept her eyes planted on the ground and made her way towards the shrine where she would soon be joined with Byakuya in matrimony.
The sun was beating down on her neck and sweat began to cluster at her hairline. Why did she have to wear so many layers?
She raised her face to look forward. Byakuya was stood with his back to her. He was wearing the traditional Montsuki kimono for men with a short haori bearing the Kuchiki family crest and pleated hakama trousers. His scarf for once was hung over his shoulders instead of being wound around his neck but his kenseikan were in place as usual.
I bet he was facing Hisana when she walked down here. Ichigo thought viscously, then berated herself for thinking ill of the dead.
Of course he was facing her, he was in love with her. I'm just convenient. It doesn't matter what Rukia says. I'm never going to be anything more to him than an unwanted replacement.
She slowly took her place on the shrine next to him. He did not turn to look at her and soon the ceremony was under way.
Nearly half an hour had passed when Byakuya finally turned to her; in order to exchange sips of sake to symbolise the bond that now existed between the two of them. He took a quick deep sip from the Sake cup then his dark eyes raised to meet hers as he offered the drink towards her lips. His eyes grew wide with an unnameable emotion and his lips twitched.
His hands began to shake ever so slightly as he offered the cup. Ichigo placed her hands on the spare side to steady it; then let the salty liquid quench the thirst in her parched mouth. Two more times they repeated this action. Once that was finished the priest stepped forward in his hands on a silken cushion laid a cylindrical shaped silver clip; with cherry blossoms engraved onto it's surface. Byakuya took a lock of orange hair that had been deliberately placed behind her ear and with gentle movements attached the Clip that would identify her as the spouse of Lord Kuchiki to it and with that they were officially Husband and Wife.
A round of applause broke out. For the first time she allowed her gaze to wander around the crowd. All of the Captains and Lieutenants were there including the head Captain himself. As well as Various members of the Kuchiki Clan and many people from noble families that she did not know at all.
They all look so happy. Ichigo thought as she tried to force a smile on her face yet was unsuccessful.
I probably look like I'm going to burst into tears.
Byakuya offered her his hand to Ichigo without looking at her. She took it and felt grateful when she felt his strong fingers clasp hers tightly.
The rest of the day passed in a blur. People came to congratulate them both. Gave them gifts, read speeches and exclaimed what a fetching couple they made. Several people; including Captain Kyoraku, even had the gall to say how gorgeous looking and powerful their children would be.
When evening came they all entered the banquet room for the wedding feast; Where yet more speeches were made. Ichigo had to sit beside her Husband of course. He had yet to utter anything personal to her. So far he had only said.
" Lets go this way." "We are to sit here." and "Excuse me a moment."
By the time they had ended the main course, Ichigo wanted nothing more than to return to her rooms. Which she remembered were no longer her rooms. Now she would be staying in the Lady's quarters which adjoined to Byakuya's own personal rooms.
Dinner had tasted like ash in her mouth and the smell of sake was beginning to make her stomach churn.
A bell rang in the corner of the room signalling the end of the festivities. She smiled with relief. Now she was free to get out of the damn outfit. Her head was beginning to pound due to how tightly her hair had been wrapped.
"I think I'll be heading off now." Ichigo whispered to Byakuya.
"Of course."
He stood and offered his hand; which was expected of the groom; all the while avoiding eye contact and walked her to the doorway before leaving her and returning to the party. Yagari was stood waiting for her.
"May you and my lord be blessed with an heir." He said calmly bowing his head slightly towards her.
"Uh...Thanks." Ichigo answered uncomfortably. She didn't know why but Yagari had a way of making her skin crawl, his balding head, thin fingers and plump face made her feel ill at ease. She reluctantly followed him as he showed her to her new quarters which were much more welcoming than she had expected. She had thought that there would be a lot of tacky designs and over the top ordainments.
But she was pleasantly surprised. Her quarters comprised of three rooms. All had dark wooden floors and in each room the walls were a soft cream; with fine paintings of mountains, gardens and water views on their surfaces.
The first room held a table, chair, bookcase, lounge, an array of flowering plants and a seating area; This rooms purpose was obviously for study and a private area in which she could spend time which her friends and had a set of doors which led to the common garden.
The second room held a bathroom with a deep tub inset into the ground.
The third and last room was the bedroom; it held a door that accessed Byakuya's private gardens, there was a screened dressing area, a table with cushions, a wardrobe, drawers and lastly a very large bed covered with many pillows and dark cream covers.
Yagari excused himself, Much to Ichigo's relief and a female servant entered the room in his stead.
These rooms are not so bad, she thought as the servant helped her to undo her wedding Kimono. She gently removed the Silver clip from her hair and placed it into a small black box motioned to by the helper. Soon she was neck deep in the water of her new bath, allowing the sweat and make up of the day to wash from her skin.
She spent a good while trying to forget her situation and simply tried to relax and for a few moments managed to find some peace. Once she was clean and dried she made her way back into the bedroom. Another Servant had appeared much to Ichigo's dismay.
Can't a girl get some peace? She wondered.
"Lady Kuchiki, these are you new bed clothes, goodnight." The servant gestured to a draw full of soft, simple night Yukatas'.
"Thank you. Goodnight." Ichigo watched the Servant leave the room. It was going to take some getting used to being called Lady Kuchiki; when she still felt like Ichigo Kurosaki. She slipped on her new nightwear and wondered around her new rooms. Her possessions (Not that she had many) were all in their respective places. She looked over to the bed wondering weather or not she should get in and go to sleep. After a short moment of deliberation she had made up her mind and was just about to pull back the covers when she heard a knock at the door. It came from Byakuya's side of the quarters and she stiffened.
For a moment she contemplated getting into the bed and pretending to be asleep but decided to answer instead.
"Come in" She called.
The door slid open to reveal Byakuya. He looked different. He was no longer in his Montsuki kimono which had now been replaced with nightclothes nor was he wearing his Kenseikan or his Scarf. He looked simple and approachable.
"You remember that we were to discuss certain things tonight?" He asked his eyes looking somewhere behind her left shoulder.
Ichigo's face turned bright red and she nodded dumbly.
"Is now an appropriate time?" He asked nervously it was obvious that he was uncomfortable with this situation.
"Uh, yeah, I guess." Ichigo replied her face downcast. He walked over to her and gripped her chin. Startled, her eyes met his and silence reigned between them for several moments.
"Consummating this marriage is necessary, However I do not wish to force you to do anything you do not want to."
"I, uh. Why is it necessary?" Ichigo asked.
"You will be checked." He replied quickly and honestly."
Ichigo shuddered and her legs unconsciously squeezed together.
"We can, If you want to. It is our wedding night after all..I...I" She trailed off her face burnt red and her heart thundered heavily within her chest.
He nodded in agreement then took her hand in his and guided her shaking figure to the bed. She got in after a moments hesitation. He then walked around the room extinguishing all the lights and soon after he joined her on the other side.
They both laid in the dark listening to the others breaths. Ichigo tried not to fidget despite how much she wanted to.
Was she supposed to make the first move? She didn't even know what to do. Sure she had learned the basics in class and had even seen a few things on TV but nothing could've prepared her for this.
Byakuya shifted next to her; he rested on his elbow on the mattress and turned onto his side so that he was leaning over her, his hand touched her cheek hesitantly and then he leaned down and kissed her. Ichigo gasped as she felt his surprisingly soft lips embrace hers. She had not expected it. The gesture was so intimate.
She found herself curious and responded to the tentative pressure with equal force. The kiss was gentle and not really much of a kiss at all now that she thought about it. Their lips grazed each others in a feather light brushes, but it caused a feeling like electricity to jolt over her face. She leaned up and deepened it by forcing their lips closer together. She was inexperienced and although this was not her first kiss she felt like it was.
Byakuya pushed down onto her, his body settled over hers like a blanket. The weight of him on top of her was unexpectedly comforting. For several long minutes they continued to kiss. Her Husbands hands ran up and down her sides as hers clutched at his back and shoulders.
It felt so unreal. Only a week ago she was in the human world not even thinking about getting a boyfriend and now she was married and about to lose her virginity to a man who had more than once tried to kill her.
Ichigo whimpered as she felt his calloused hand open the tie to her nightclothes and pull them open. She felt exposed and began to shake as his hand roamed over her naked waist.
Not knowing what to do she simply decided to follow Byakuya's example and untied his own nightclothes and pushed the soft blue fabric from his shoulders. He continued to deepen the kiss as he slid his arms out of his sleeves and helped her to push the garment down to his hips.
She nearly froze when she felt him pull the rest of her clothes open and off them of her frame. He pulled away from the kiss. Ichigo opened her eyes to look up at him and fought the urge to cover her now naked body. His dark eyes scanned her tanned flesh. He slid his hands up her stomach and cupped her modestly sized beasts. She watched his face and tried not to shiver under his administrations. He leaned down and kissed her neck as he gently fondled her.
He's trying to make this enjoyable for me. Ichigo thought as he placed open mouthed kisses along her collarbone. She felt her nervousness melt away as he continued to caress and kiss her torso. She didn't know what to do in response so settled on massaging his back in encouragement. After all it did feel good.
He looked down at her. His eyes now filled with an emotion she could not name.
"Are you ready?" He breathed heavily.
She thought about it for a moment then pushed his nightclothes free from his hips in response.
He leant down and covered her mouth with his own once again; only this time he pressed the length of his body against hers. The feeling was extraordinary, hot skin, against hot skin. She could feel his muscles flexing against her own, could feel his heartbeat, his every breath. His tongue swiped against her lips and she opened her mouth. They briefly fought for dominance over the kiss before relaxing again into a more lazy lip lock.
She felt him rise up against her body, and moaned into his mouth as she felt him enter her. It was painful. Very painful. She had known it would hurt but she had not expected how uncomfortable it would be.
She winced and contracted against his body breaking the kiss and letting out a cry of discomfort.
"It's okay, relax, The pain won't last for long." He shushed as he ground to a halt, allowing her body to adjust to the intrusion.
Ichigo nodded. Relax okay, try to relax. That's easy for him to say!
She bit down on her lip fearlessly as she felt him shift.
"Relax."
Her Brown eyes rose to meet his. Byakuya's voice had sounded almost reproachful.
"I'm trying."
She focused on doing as he said and after a few minutes the pain began to fade and was instead replaced with a bearable throbbing sensation.
"Are you ready?" Byakuya asked. His face now heavily flushed, sweat had gathered along his brow, his long black hair hung down over them like a curtain and his breaths hit her face in short warm blasts.
She paused for a moment then nodded.
This is gonna hurt in the morning.
He pushed upwards then began a gentle rocking motion. His hips ground down against hers as she concentrated on keeping herself relaxed. Byakuya grabbed her legs and guided them to wrap around his waist.
Byakuya moaned into her shoulder throatily. I feel good to him. She realised as a wave of pleasure coursed throughout her body. Soon she was meeting him thrust for thrust and returning his kisses with equal passion. The two of them moved together in a steady and increasing rhythm and eventually Ichigo could hold on no longer; a wave of ecstasy surged forth as she reached her climax and from the look on Byakuya's face he had as well.
They both collapsed against the bed exhausted from their activity. He removed himself from her and rolled over onto his side. Both remained in their respective places without speaking. No longer able to keep her eyes open Ichigo fell asleep.
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Stay tuned for the next Chapter