Chapter Fifteen:

Warm light tumbling down onto his face roused Ichigo from slumber, stretching wide like the cat that got the cream, he felt a contented smile tug at his lips as he rolled onto his front, burying his face in the pillows for a few further minutes before he finally raised his head and peered around the room.

Now his mind was clear of lust induced tunnel vision, he could appreciate the subtle scenery: calming tones of grey and purple on the walls, framed by white beams that ran the length of the room; two built in bookcases, some of which were currently missing their contents after his back had struck them; a plush looking love seat sat beneath the large bay window which was currently flung wide open, allowing cool autumnal breezes to seep into the room, tugging at the lace curtains that hung there. He noticed the presence of three doors, one was evidently the one he'd entered through, he assumed another was the en-suit bathroom, leaving the third one to perhaps be a walk in wardrobe.

Blinking lazily, he was sure he could hear running water coming from behind one of the doors, following by the realisation that he was currently alone in the bed. Curiosity getting the better of him, he slid carefully from under the sheets, standing up gingerly as the ache in his lower back presented itself, much as he had expected.

Nudging the door open, he wandered inside, leaning against the wall as he ran his eyes over the exposed back of his host, the man was drawing a bath but given how he already looked clean, Ichigo could only assume it was for his benefit.

"Mm, I'm disappointed," he purred, strolling forward like a prowling cat, sliding his hands up the pale spine in front of him, "I always imagined that you had servants do this kind of thing for you."

Byakuya peered at him in amusement, not bothering to conceal the shudder the touch caused, "I have attendants, normally. But I wanted to give you the special treatment. Not to mention, I wasn't sure how well you'd receive being woken by the sight of a cluster of people fussing over you."

"Oh, in that case, I'm flattered." He pressed a kiss against a bare shoulder blade, "You'd be surprised though, I've been walked in on doing far worse than sleeping."

"I can imagine." The noble turned and wrapped his arms around him, pulling him in for a kiss, "Good morning, by the way."

"Morning." He breathed against his lips, "Sleep well?"

"Very. And you?"

"Very." Ichigo grinned.

The noble was sorely tempted to recreate the passion from the night before when he saw that smile, but he resisted the urge and turned the taps off, holding a hand out to assist the younger man into the ceramic tub.

Ichigo, for his part, wasn't used to being treated with such refined manners, especially not after some kind of sexual encounter, but he shoved his apprehension aside and accepted the help, knowing the ache in his spine would leave him hard pressed to step into the water by himself.

Sinking down, he let out a relaxed sigh, water sluicing up and down his skin as he dipped all the way under, brushing his hair out of his eyes as he surfaced, surprised to see Byakuya preparing to wash him.

"You don't have to do that." He murmured.

"I know." A simple reply, but delivered with a smile.

Deciding he didn't want to argue, Ichigo rested back and allowed himself to be pampered; while it wasn't something he was used to he quickly decided he rather enjoyed it, the luxurious feeling of soap being massaged over his skin followed by shampoo coated fingers in his hair, digging deep into his scalp elicited purrs of enjoyment from him.

Once clean and dry, Ichigo was presented with his shihakusho which had apparently already been cleaned and dried as well, he was reminded again of how efficient the Kuchiki staff were rumoured to be, and gave a silent thank you to them as he dressed.

The pair headed downstairs together, the noble leading the way to the dining room where a hot breakfast was already waiting for them, he made sure Ichigo was sat down first before joining him.

"So, I didn't get a chance to talk to you about it last night, but I think I might be onto something as far as helping Rukia is concerned." The strawberry said between mouthfuls of food.

"Oh?" Byakuya twitched an eyebrow in response.

"Well, it occurred to me that what we need to do is very similar to the work Division Four does on an almost daily basis, especially with those idiots from Eleven always acting up... So I started going through some medical journals in the library. There was nothing conclusive but I managed to make a few decent notes that might help." He shrugged.

The noble offered him a smile, "Thank you for all your hard work. I can at least relax a little knowing you're doing your very best."

"Of course." Ichigo looked down shyly at his food, stabbing at it, "I'm as much to blame for Rukia being in danger as anyone... At least if I do something to try and help I might feel less guilty."

Surprised, Byakuya reached out and brushed the back of his hand with his own, "Rukia's condition is not your fault, Ichigo, in this instance at the very least the blame lies with Kisuke Urahara."

"I won't argue with that." He chuckled weakly, "Have you heard from Renji yet this morning?"

"I received a brief report, Rukia is doing well, her condition appears to be the same but is not worsening."

"I'm glad to hear she's not getting worse... Hopefully before long we can put this right." He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck restlessly.

Byakuya nodded in agreement, "Until then, I still feel it best she remain unaware of what is going on, try as she might to hide it... She has a perpetual fear of Gin, and I fear he would know immediately if she was aware of something."

"She does?" He frowned, he'd always found Gin rather entertaining, certainly favourable compared to Tōsen's moody presence.

"He has a habit of stirring negative emotions in people, I'm sure you'll discover that in time too now. He is a snake, powerful and skilled, but a snake none the less. Be sure to watch your back if he is around." The raven haired Taichou's voice dipped, it was unlike him to openly speak ill of a colleague but he made a special exception where the fox was concerned.

"I'll keep it in mind." The strawberry murmured, leaning over and kissing him softly, sighing as he felt a hand brush his cheek in response, "Do you have anything on today?"

"Nothing I can't put on hold." There was a hint of a smirk there as he slyly pulled the younger man from his seat and onto his lap.

Sliding his arms around the noble's shoulders, Ichigo grinned, "Well, if you are sure then I think there are a few finer points of interest we still need to go over about-"

The dining room door flew open to reveal Renji, sweating slightly from his Shunpo and panting, a Hell Butterfly perched on his finger, "I'm sorry to intrude, Taichou, but I-" His eyes fell on the scene before him and he blinked several times, apparently trying to comprehend the sight of his best friend sat so snugly in Byakuya Kuchiki's lap.

"What is it, Renji?" The noble asked, grip tightened on Ichigo's waist to prevent him moving, apparently not in the slightest bit embarrassed.

"I... Uh..." The redhead shook his head to organise his thoughts, "I... Apologise for interrupting your weekend, Taichou, however I was with Rukia just now and this message arrived," he cleared his throat uncomfortably, "I'm not sure why it was sent to me rather than Ichigo..."

"Renji." Byakuya's patience was wearing thing.

"Sorry, sorry! There's a report of some kind of disturbance at the Division, there's no specifics but it sounds like there's some trouble." He explained finally, the Butterfly seeming content that its message had been delivered, flew off.

Ichigo was about to ask why such a message had been delivered to Renji, surely something as minor as that should have come directly to him, it was his job after all, but recalled that his friend had already said he was unsure why the message had been sent to him.

With a sigh, he slipped gracefully from Byakuya's grasp despite the man's attempts to hold him still, "Don't give me that look," he huffed, "As your Third Seat it is my duty to deal with such matters, especially while Renji is meant to be looking after Rukia."

Byakuya had to school his expression into something resembling normal, "Very well, but come back when you are done, we still need to go over those finer points as you mentioned."

Ichigo chuckled throatily, "I'll be here." He turned to the redhead still loitering in the doorway and grinned at him, pausing as he saw the surprised look he was given, "What?"

"N-Nothing... It just..." Renji smiled weakly, "It's nice to see you happy."

Flushing slightly, he patted his uniform down "Well don't get too used to it, I'd planned to take the weekend off but it can't be helped. I'll have to take one of those-" He froze on the spot and patted himself down again.

"What's wrong?" Byakuya frowned.

"Ugh..." He gritted his teeth in a flash of annoyance, "I left them in my office."

"I do hope you are joking." The sudden lack of amusement in the nobleman's voice was a dangerous warning sign of his concern.

"I wish I was." He muttered, rolling his eyes, "It's fine, I'll head straight there, pick them up and then deal with whatever is going on. If I see anyone in the mean time I'll just have to act."

"Ichigo." Byakuya said firmly.

He looked around gingerly, half expecting to be scolded, "Yes?"

"Be careful."

"Of course." He smiled once more and hurried out, slipping into an easy burst of Shunpo once he was outside.

Renji watched him go before glancing at the noble again, eyebrows raised, "So... You and him..."

"Is absolutely none of your business, Abarai."


Ichigo hurried back towards Division Six as fast as his Shunpo would allow, ducking and diving through the Shinigami he could see, not wanting a reason to slow down or worry about them noticing how different he was. As long as he reached his office before he had to talk to anyone, he would be fine.

He skidded to a stop and threw the door open, darting inside and searching his desk for the small tube Urahara had given him. Frowning deeply as he searched, he was sure they'd been right on top of his paperwork, in fact he was certain he had put them there the day before.

His hand froze over a few scattered documents. Thinking about it, he had locked the office door before heading to the Estate the day before, and yet he'd been able to open it without a care in the world. Swallowing hard, he forced himself to remain calm, if someone had broken in they were likely looking for a reaction.

The hairs at the nape of his neck stood on end and he whirled around, hand flying to Zangetsu but a firm hand coiled around his wrist, holding it in place and slowly lifting him clean off his feet; his teeth clenched as he came face to face with Rukia's worst nightmare.

"Gin, what are you doing?" He growled, making sure to keep his expression as dead as he was used to it being.

"Ne, Ichi-Berry where are your manners?" The silver haired fox smiled widely, "Even if we are comrades I'd expect you to address me properly."

"My apologies... Ichimaru Taichou, what are you doing?"

"It's funny you should ask, actually, you see I rather wanted to ask you the same question..." The man dipped his free hand into his shihakusho and slowly revealed the tube Ichigo had been looking for, "I found myself wondering what these were... Havin' seen you take them so often recently."

"Seen me... Have you been following me?" He demanded, it would make sense, Gin was a master of concealing himself, if he was indeed the source of the feeling of discomfort Ichigo had recently been experiencing it would explain everything.

"Of course, Aizen Taichou was insistent on me keepin' a close eye on your progress." He man chuckled, twirling the object between his thumb and forefinger, "So, are you going to tell me what these are for?"

There was no quick lie which sprang to mind, nothing he could say that the man wouldn't counter, he was sure, his mouth was going dry as that smile seemed to grow wider and wider, threatening to swallow him whole if he wasn't careful.

"Just something to give me extra energy, Kuchiki has been running me ragged recently with missions and schedules and paperwork, I mean you've seen my desk." He gestured to the piles of incomplete work with his free hand, wincing as the action caused his elevated shoulder to creak.

"Is that so?" The man sounded amused, rattling the tube gentle in consideration before he pulled Ichigo closer to him, his nose brushing the younger man's ear, "Would you care to explain the smile you had on your face last night?"

The strawberry stiffened, shuddering at the chilling breath that blew across his neck, "As I've told Aizen Taichou in the past... I can be very convincing when I want to be."

"I'm sure you can be."

He stumbled as he was released, gripping his wrist with a wince as he observed the ugly looking bruise that was already blossoming against his tanned skin, the Third Seat couldn't quite believe Gin had believed him but he was grateful as the man turned to leave.

"Where are you going?" He asked, the question slipping free without permission.

The silver haired fox glanced over his shoulder at him and smirked, "I was thinkin' of paying Rukia-chan a visit, I hear she has been unwell for a while now. It would be a terrible shame if she was sufferin' the same illness as her late sister."

Ichigo flinched, and a fist balled at his side, "Stay away from her."

"Oh?"

"I mean... It might be contagious." He added.

He was done for, and he knew it. The moment his demand had left his lips he knew he'd fallen headlong into the trap Gin had been laying for him, he could see the change in the other man's posture, it was intimidating and taut, like he was ready for a battle. Ichigo took a small step back as he watched those pale blue eyes reveal themselves in an almost disappointed frown.

"You know... Ichigo... I would have given you the benefit of the doubt."

That was the first time Gin had ever said his name properly, and he wouldn't be surprised if it was the last, "No you wouldn't." He said quietly.

He made no move to dodge the strike that came his way, he'd never have made it through the door even if he had, all he could do was accept it as his body turned to lead and the world went black. What a wretched way for his day to play out when the morning had been so utterly blissful.

Gin's expression was one of regret, his usual smile now missing as he scooped up the strawberry haired man he'd come to respect while they worked together. He had desperately hoped his instincts had been wrong on this occasion but it seemed more and more likely that he was right.

He knew one thing, without a doubt in his mind. Aizen was going to be pissed.