Bleach (c) Tite Kubo

Nepenthe

Questions

Kukaku Shiba bites her lip, pouring over boring old archive records, family trees and any speck of documentation that could even possess a remote connection to the tangerine haired little conundrum her beloved big brother dragged home days ago.

Its become her all-consuming hobby when she isn't covering the more mundane duties of clan leadership Kaien delegated to her when his own duties as a Lieutenant piled up or his Captain Jushiro Ukitake, was experiencing another poor episode and required Kaien to cover his duties in the mean time.

Officially, Kaien is the Head of the Shiba clan and assumed the role when he came of age, but Kukaku does her fair share making sure the day-to-day logistics run as smoothly as possible to ease his burden. They've always been like that, glued at the hip and covering each others backs, ever since they were children causing righteous mischief in Rukongai's 3rd district.

Sadly, Kukaku no closer to unravelling the mystery despite the hours she's put into their records. She'd long since grown weary of that musty old cavernous pit the Shiba claimed as their archives and migrated as much information as she dared to her rooms in the Shiba compound for her surveying, sending Koganehiko and Shiroganehiko out for new batches of parchment and tomes after she's finished with her current set.

Books have taken over her rooms and Kukaku's about ready to tear her hair out in frustration.

Her stump arcs. She rubs it with a sigh.

This was maddening.

Yeah, tea's not gonna cut it as a pick-me-up. Kukaku's got half a mind to crack open the liquor cabinet and sneak a nip of something a little stronger.

A sip of her favourite sake would do her nicely, thank you very much.

Her room's door slides open and closed with a light clack, then-

Twump!

"Ow."

Kukaku sniggered, her mood instantly lifted.

The only person with permission to enter her room without any preamble was her big brother, and the idiot had flopped himself down on a pile of cushions Kukaku left haphazardly about with a bone deep sigh. The landing jolted some of his injuries, but beyond the verbal complaint he made no effort to move.

"You right down there?"

"Yeee-up." Kaien says, face muffled by the cushions.

"Wanna get up anytime soon?"

"Nooope."

"Yeah. Figure you had about as much luck as I did trying to dig anything up about your comatose clone, huh?" Kukaku muses, leaning back in her chair putting on the air of good humour. "Although, come to think of it, I think Akira and Sakura had a bet about whether or not you'd bring back a whole undiscovered cadet branch or come home empty handed."

Kaien grumbles something indecipherable but doesn't move. "A whole branch of orange-haired Shiba doppelgangers? That'd be the day."

Kukaku watches her brother fold his arms, resting his chin on his folded arms with a sombre expression. "I went back to the village, more of a hamlet really, where I found the kid. The Village Elder said he was alone, meandered into their little township already half-dead with no memory of where he'd came from. Poor bastard couldn't even give his own name."

Kukaku's shoulders slump at the implication and its magnitude. "Oh shit."

Kaien made a noise in his throat, "My thoughts exactly. So much for hoping he'd give us answers when he woke up."

"Damn it." Kukaku forks her hand through her hair, lips pressed in a thin line. "If that's the case. Should we be considering the possibility that he might not even be a Shiba at all? If he has no memory, its possible he's come from the transient world. Most souls forget in the passage, either by choice or because their death was too traumatic."

Kaien looks at her and Kukaku waves a dismissive hand. "I know. I know. Long shot, but a girl's gotta ask. No matter how remote the possibility is. It'd be a decent enough explanation why we can't seem to make head or tail of him. Or a trace of whom he might belong to?"

Kaien scrunches his nose and shakes his head in disagreement. "Nah, that doesn't sit right by me either. He's got a nasty head wound that the Doctors say would be likely cause for potential amnesia symptoms - actually, scratch that. Nothing 'potential' about it. Plus I took a closer look at that sword he had now all the blood's been cleaned off. That's definitely an awakened Zanpakutou. Can't say I've seen one with a black hilt before but if it was just a garden variety Asauchi, the hilt would be dark blue and the guard wouldn't be uniquely defined. And-"

"And if he just arrived from the transient world, how could he even get his hands on an Asauchi at all?" Kukaku finishes the thought for him and Kaien gives her a languid thumbs up as confirmation.

Kaien exhales a deep breath, fatigued from both his injuries and the travel. "Plus he looks even more like Granny Nariko than I do."

"Before we drove her the rest of the way grey, you mean." Kukaku mutters under her breath with a private smirk that gets a bark of laughter out of her brother.

"Oh please, she egged us on the entire time."

Thoughts of their mischievous misspent youth come and go like the wind, before the sibling duo could launch into another round of fond reminiscence. The light mood evaporates quickly enough before he returns to a more serious tone. "Of course, the follow-up questions from that are: How did he get himself into that sorry state? Why? And do we need to worry about any more pesky surprises down the line?"

Kukaku's gaze narrows sceptically. "Long shot: You think he might've drawn the hollows there?"

"Maybe? Probably? Honestly I'm just thinking out loud." Kaien confesses, finally rolling over to sprawl out on the pillows with his eye on the ceiling. "Much as I hate to admit it; it is a possibility. One I admittedly didn't consider when I first brought him back here. Slightly more focused on trying to keep the sorry sap alive."

"Not that it would've mattered to you anyway. You'd of done it regardless." Kukaku points out.

"Yeah, I know. But I'm considering it now and I'm not charmed by the implications. Its not entirely out of the question that Hollows did all that to him and being whittled down from constant battle left him in that miserable state. Some of the older ones get together and travel in packs and that kid's got resilience in spades if nothing else. Sadistic bastards might've thought hunting him would've made for good sport. Not that I relish considering that scenario."

Kukaku doesn't like the idea either. There's the urge to put it out of her mind, but there's also the fact they'll probably end up asking a hell of a lot more questions before they get their answers. If any would ever be forthcoming.

Kukaku slumped in her chair. "Whatever happened to him; those injuries were bad enough Granny actually sent runners with a special request to the Fourth division."

Kaien bolts upright, undisguised shock playing on his face. "Oh shit. You're serious?"

Kukaku gives a single nod. "Serious as the day is long. How often is it that you see Granny swallow her pride and ask Captain Unohana for help with anything?"

"You're kidding."

Kukaku shakes her head. "Nope. First thing Granny did when she saw Mr Orange Kaien was send a call to Captain Unohana -"

Kaien pulls a face and groans, "Please tell me you haven't been calling him that this entire time."

Kukaku shrugs, dismissive and unrepentant, "Don't blame me; all the ankle-biters started it."

"Terrific." He laments, burying his face in his hand with another frustrated groan. He draws in a breath, "How bad was it?"

"You'd have to get the details from the Doctors, but from what I was told? His Saketsu and Hakusui were barely salvageable." Kukaku reveals gravely to Kaien's horrified curse, "If - when that kid wakes up, assuming he hasn't lost all his marbles, he's gonna be in for a long road for recovery. Whatever power he had; he's gonna have to claw it all back the old fashioned way."

Kaien pinches the bridge of his nose and Kukaku can practically hear the gears churning in his brain.

Silence fills the void between them before finally Kaien climbs to his feet. "I guess I should probably go get a full briefing from the Doctors then. I think most of the family's leaders are in the compound tonight, I'll confer with them about what to do with him. More importantly, try and figure out where he'd fit in the easiest."

"You're planning on inducting him into the clan." Kukaku surmises. It should probably shock her that he'd make that decision in a snap, but honestly? She pretty much already guessed this was coming.

"The resemblance is damned undeniable so its pretty much a given, if the kid wants it. Especially with that whole 'Orange Kaien' stuff. Gah, we need a better name for the sleepyhead. 'Kid' is just too damned impersonal. Whatever. Frankly, the only real question is who'd be willing to take him as a ward. I'd induct him as just a long lost cousin from a recently discovered cadet branch, or whatever administrative bull I'd have to cook up for the official paperwork, but I'd rather he had some kind of support and stability to help him get back on his feet."

"We could." Kukaku suggests casually. "The main house, I mean. We could take him as a ward."

Kaien gives her a crooked smirk, "What, adopt him into the main family? Why little sister, you never told me you were in the market for a third brother."

"I suffered the two of you for centuries, what's one more?" The traitorous curl of her lips betrays her teasing jab.

"Suffered?" Kaien echoes incredulously, putting on his own particular brand of theatrics. "'Suffered' she says. Oh please, I'm the best damn big brother you have and you know it."

"You're the only big brother I have. Only reason I haven't been able ta trade you in for a better model is 'cause I lost the receipt."

Kaien snorts and rolls his eyes. "You're all heart, sis."

The jovial cheer fades and Kukaku's stern once more. "Of course, it's all fine and dandy to talk about this, but ultimately the choice is his right? If he wakes up."

Kaien forks his fingers through his hair with a sigh, "I'm hoping its more 'when' he wakes up. Mr Sleepyhead is an enigma and a half, and I doubt anything about that situation will change any time soon."

"And until then?" Kukaku prompts.

"I think its a little pointless to chase ghosts." Kaien gestures to the tomes collecting on her desk. "Call me crazy, but I have a pretty good hunch we won't find anything on him in our family tree."

Kukaku heaves a heavy sigh of her own, slamming the volume she'd been pouring over with a dull final thud. "Yeah, you're probably right. It was worth a shot at least. Besides, I was nearly finished anyway. And I figure if I hadn't found anything by now, I doubt I ever will."

"Seems to be a recurring theme. You noticing that too?" Kaien jokes mildly. "Gonna come with me to the healers or are you gonna tinker and putter around here 'til dinner?"

"Why? Need someone to hold your hand?" Kukaku mocks playfully.

Kaien shakes his head with an indulgent smile, leaving her be with a casual "Later, sis."

Alone with her thoughts, Kukaku contemplates what Kaien just shared with her and her lips set in a grim line. She didn't like the smell of any of this in the least.

Author's note:

Yay! Sibling banter!

Regards,
Aurora313