Chapter 5: When it Rains
(Thanks again to my fabulous collab partner, Sesh! *blows kisses* You are amazing! Warning for non-con oral sex.)
Byakuya stepped out of the sixth division headquarters and immediately found a smile on his lips as he felt the gentle touches of tiny raindrops. The tender brushings that cooled the flesh of his exposed face and hands reminded him immediately of the one who he was sure was already waiting for him in the softly moonlit gardens.
"Goodnight, Kuchiki taicho," his third seat called out as he left the office.
He returned a polite farewell, then headed through the dark streets, his mind slowly setting aside the stacks of reports he'd been addressing, and the various missions assigned to his group, and focusing on more pleasant things, the freshness of the rainy air, the dark clouds and the intermittent openings that gave him glimpses of the stars. He thought fleetingly of his absent fukutaicho and realized suddenly that Renji hadn't reported in from Karakura Town as expected, so he made a mental note to send a hell butterfly to request an update.
Not that I have any worries about the state of the mission. Renji is nothing if not completely reliable. His progress in both work matters and fighting ability have been improving admirably. He has also proven himself to be an invaluable friend.
We have come a long way since the days of Aizen's betrayal. Yes, we have become close…so close that he was the first person I wanted to tell about my upcoming wedding.
Thinking about the wedding distracted him from his thoughts about his absent fukutaicho, and his eyes drifted up to the night sky again to contemplate the stars. He could imagine Tetsuya standing quietly beneath the lovely carpet of lights, touched with shadow from the dark, broken clouds, waiting for him, patiently as ever. By the time he reached the front gates of Kuchiki Manor, his heart and mind were peaceful, and he smiled more warmly.
"Good evening, Byakuya-sama!" the guards at the gate called out, bowing as he passed.
He nodded in answer, then proceeded into the gardens. Right away, he spotted Arashi's nearly invisible form, in among the sakura and plum trees. He sensed that Tetsuya was not in the gardens, but seemed to be out near their favorite training spot, a tall cliff with a lovely waterfall that dropped down to a lake and wide, grassy meadow. Byakuya frowned at the edge to his fiancé's usually calm reiatsu and quickened his step. His frown deepened then, as he picked up the reiatsu of another, less welcome cousin, who seemed to be near to Tetsuya. He hastened his step and approached the top of the cliff, where he spotted Tetsuya standing near the edge with Kuchiki Orochi beside him.
"You know Byakuya-sama has said you are not welcome here," Tetsuya said sternly, "You should go."
"Should I?" Orochi answered with an edge of sarcasm, "But I am here on council business. Since your careless fiancé couldn't be bothered with attending to the council meeting this afternoon, someone has to bring him up to date on what took place."
"I will pass on whatever you need to relay," Tetsuya said sternly, "but be warned that your message is all you are to relay."
"Of course," Orochi chuckled, smirking at him in a manner that made Byakuya's blood boil, "You can pass on to Byakuya that the council has given final approval for him to impregnate you immediately."
He turned suddenly, trapping Tetsuya up against a sakura tree and grabbing him under the chin to force their eyes to meet. Byakuya tensed, but held himself back from interfering as he spotted the glint of Tetsuya's drawn sword that was pointed directly at his foul cousin's heart.
"Are you going to kill me, Tetsuya?" Orochi scoffed, ignoring the blade entirely.
"You deserve it," Tetsuya answered in a low, angry voice, "You know very well that I am not the weak little slave boy you remember."
"I know you think that," Orochi mused, glaring down into his cousin's widened blue eyes, "Byakuya may have taught you to dress, speak and act like one of us…"
He slid his fingers into Tetsuya's hair and tightened it, making Tetsuya wince and make a sound of pain at both the discomfort and the memory it caused.
"But deep down, you know you are still my little plaything, and anyone who lays a hand on you…"
He broke off at the sound of Byakuya's hissing flash step and the sting of Senbonzakura's tip touching his back.
"Leave," Byakuya loosed icily, "before I kill you. Tetsuya may hesitate, because he is a gentle soul, but I know you are aware that…I am not."
"Huh," Orochi huffed, stepping out from between the two blades, "Enjoy him."
He waited until he was out of hearing to add, "…while it lasts…"
XXXXXXXXXX
Renji sighed as he descended into the brightly lit training room. The underground cavern was massive, the ground covered in sandy dust. He took off his shihakusho, baring his heavily tattooed breast, then he laid the black garment on a boulder. He warmed up with a scripted set of moves and stretches, then when he was focused and lightly sweating, moved on to his training.
He started off with hand-to-hand combat techniques, hands and feet flying as he attacked the padded training dummies. Despite trying to keep his mind clear, as usual, thoughts of Byakuya kept popping up. That led to thoughts of Tetsuya's request, which led to frustration that swelled in a red glow around him as he howled and turned the emotion on the dummies, leaving black burns on them where he struck.
"Son of a bitch!" he snarled, trying to turn the men in his thoughts to big, nasty hollows to retrieve his scattered focus.
But, how the hell are me and Kisuke supposed to teach the guy what he needs to know?
The thought was promptly followed by thoughts of the shopkeeper. First, his sexy, perverted smirk, then him stripping his clothes off, then him on his knees, moaning and panting and Renji's hungry dick buried in his handsome, raised white ass.
What the fuck is going on there?
Ok so we slept together. Twice. Ok. So now what? The first time we were fuckin' drunk and the second time we just wanted, no, needed the goddamned comfort. Still, I wanna sleep with him again, and if we do end up sleeping together again, we'll definitely be something, whether in a relationship or friends with benefits.
He tried to ignore the part of him that wanted that. He didn't even care who topped, just as long as they did it again.
…and again…
He snarled, his cinnamon eyes glowing wicked red and his mind filled with the images of the even more wicked things that the two could do to each others' naked bodies. He could almost feel Kisuke's hot, wet tongue snaking along his heaving, tattooed breast, and those strong hands that knew just how to touch him to unleash the worst of the angry beast between his thighs.
Renji flew at the cardboard dummies, his mind in a whirl. He couldn't contain himself anymore, and in a loss of control, he loosed a furious blast of kido that reduced the dummies to ash.
"FUCK!" he howled, dropping to his knees, "DAMN IT ALL TO FUCKIN' HELL!"
He wasn't sure how long it took for his body to stop shaking and the tears to stop running down his face, but eventually, the emotion drained out of him and he forced himself to his feet, watching as Kisuke's training dummies simply regenerated.
"Fuck…" he managed in a ragged sigh, "Ain't that just how it is…"
XXXXXXXXXX
Byakuya sheathed Senbonzakura, his eyes watching as Tetsuya also sheathed his blade.
"Are you all right, anata?" he asked quietly, "Your reiatsu is very disturbed."
Tetsuya shook his head and sighed.
"I am all right," he reassured his worried fiancé, "Orochi is unpleasant on the best day, but he knows not to overstep the boundaries you set."
"Not while I am looking, in any case," Byakuya said unhappily, "I do not like the way he still tries to corner you when I am not here. Tetsuya, I know very well that you are capable of defending yourself, but I want you to be exceptionally cautious. When you leave the house, I want Koji to accompany you. Perhaps it is a strong reaction, but we will be conceiving our child soon, and that is likely to tease that man into some kind of defiance. You remember how he fought the council on our engagement."
"I remember," Tetsuya assured him, "I am well acquainted with Orochi's temperament. I will be cautious."
"Good," Byakuya sighed, embracing him and closing his eyes as he rested his chin on the top of his cousin's head, "I do not want anything bad to happen to you. You have had enough befall you to encompass an entire lifetime. I only want the best for you."
"You are the best for me," Tetsuya said, blushing as Byakuya's head bowed and his fiancé's warm lips found his. His first kisses were tender, but Tetsuya's heart skittered and raced as they became less restrained and more passionate. Byakuya noticed the sudden tension in his cousin's body and paused, drawing back slightly and running gentle fingers through the misbehaving strands of Tetsuya's black, silken hair. Tetsuya's slim body went taut, his eyes closed tightly and his jaw clenched in reaction. His mind shot back to a darkened room in the guards' barracks in the noble prison, where Orochi had lain with him many times before.
Orochi glared down at the back of his younger cousin's head, sliding his fingers into the long strands of his hair and clenching painfully. He forced Tetsuya's head down, then pulled up again, groaning at the intoxicating sensation of that soft mouth working desperately to bring him pleasure. The sharp, fast motion brought him quickly to the ends of his wits, and he shuddered and groaned more loudly as he released into Tetsuya's mouth and his cousin began to choke and cough.
Byakuya's breath caught in dismay and he released Tetsuya immediately, watching with tragically sad eyes while his cousin fought to steady himself.
"Tetsuya, I am…sorry," he apologized.
Tetsuya shook his head firmly and rubbed at his stinging eyes.
"I'm the one who is sorry," he managed brokenly, "You've never done anything to hurt me and I remain in counseling to help me cope, yet I…I just can't seem to…"
He stopped and took a deeper breath, forcing calm back into his shaking body. He blinked to clear his vision, then made his eyes meet his cousin's.
"My apologies, Byakuya," he said solemnly, "I will try to do better."
"You shouldn't have to try at all," Byakuya answered, cupping a palm around his damp cheek, "I think I've been selfish, considering only my own desires and not what the cost to you would be. Maybe…perhaps, Tetsuya, we should call off our engagement."
"What?" Tetsuya managed his already pale face going white, "No! I'm sorry! I said that I would try harder…"
"This is hurting you too much," Byakuya whispered, as much to convince himself as the younger man in front of him, "I love you too much to hurt you, Tetsuya."
"Then, please…j-just give me a chance to adjust," Tetsuya pleaded, his blue eyes filling with fresh tears, "I only need a little more time and I will be all right."
"But, you know that the council is requiring that we make our child immediately. I am not going to make love to you until I know that it won't hurt you."
"It won't!" Tetsuya insisted, "Byakuya, please…don't give up on me."
Byakuya gave him a tormented look.
"I am not giving up on you," he said urgently, "I…"
"Then, trust me," Tetsuya requested, "I will find the strength to be the partner you need."
A ragged sigh escaped the Kuchiki leader and he held Tetsuya against him, hating the wretched man that had shattered his beloved cousin's heart.
"Tetsuya, you are a healer. You know well that there is no substitute for time when it comes to wounds of whatever kind. A wound forced into healing quickly will…"
"Will heal imperfectly," Tetsuya finished, "I know. But, it will heal."
XXXXXXXXXX
Kisuke balanced a tray of snacks as he entered the training room. Reiatsu like fire flared through the air, the sounds of training echoing. He faced the waves of energy with a smile - if he was just about anyone else, it would've made him stumble or at least catch his breath.
He rounded a rocky formation and stopped. Renji was demolishing the targets in a blinding flash of red, tan, and black. The younger man was breathing hard as he used close-combat techniques on the dummies.
Kisuke watched, admiring the power and grace of the redhead. Renji sprang at a cardboard silhouette, driving his knee into its face before whirling at another. Kisuke tilted his head as he sensed the frustration and confusion in the flaring energy.
Was Renji upset over their...whatever they had? It'd make sense - the younger man's heart was broken, and then Kisuke had gotten him drunk and they'd slept together. Sex had probably complicated Renji's entire mindset, especially after Tetsuya's request.
But try as he might, Kisuke could not bring himself to regret what had transpired between himself and his fellow Rukon survivor. Both times, it had brought desperately needed comfort and relief. He couldn't be ashamed, especially as he watched Renji train.
He stepped closer, and the redhead landed lightly, cinnamon eyes meeting his. For a moment, a storm of various emotions clouded the strong features, then they smoothed out into a mask Byakuya would be proud of.
Kisuke was struck by a memory of another man so able to hide what he was feeling.
"You'll always be mine, even when I'm gone."
Kisuke frowned. "'Gone'? Are you going somewhere, Sosuke?"
A charming smile was sent his way. "Nothing to concern yourself with."
His protests were smothered by kisses, and as always, some tiny part of him doubted this man. And, as always, he dismissed it as paranoia.
"Hey, Kisuke?"
He jolted back to reality, seeing Renji watching him with concern. "I'm fine," he replied, caught off-guard by the coldness in his own voice. He held out the tray, seeing it shake. "Here. You should eat."
Renji frowned at the sandwiches. "Thanks, but I'm not feelin' so hot."
Taking the tray and setting it aside, the younger man stepped closer. "What's wrong, Kisuke?"
He shook his head. "You should get back to training."
Renji touched his cheek, leaning in to kiss him. Kisuke's eyes slid closed as he met the contact fervently.
Then he felt Renji pull back a bit, hearing, "Sorry."
He blinked as Renji continued, "We...we should probably talk."
Kisuke started to reflexively agree, but found that his mouth wouldn't move to say the words. Instead, he gave the redhead a lurid grin and snickered.
"Lookin' at you," he said in a low, sexy tone, "I don't think talkin' is what you want to be doin', Red…"
Renji stared at him for a moment, then before he could stop himself, he crashed into the shopkeeper, taking him to the sandy floor and making a heavy cloud of dust erupt around them. Their clothes were off in seconds and with little thought for preparation, Renji drove his throbbing member into the shopkeeper's wonderfully hot, tightness.
"S-sorr…"
His words ended in a yelp as Kisuke tightened warningly and hissed, "Shut up and fuck me, okay?"
"You sure?"
"Yeah. We both need it, right?"
"Right."
The two started to move again, and that was when Kisuke felt Renji's energy plummet.
What the hell?
"You all right, Red?" he asked worriedly.
Renji's face went white and he managed a short grunt of agony, then he collapsed in the surprised shopkeeper's arms.
"Renji!"
