Whereas Kenpachi's battle had been one of pure might and will power, the battle that the Soul King and his companions faced was a clash of magical might. There was a battle of will as the two siblings of winter fought for control over the blizzard around them, and flashes of fire as Karin tried to lessen the intensity of the cold with her power, but there were no clashes of swords. Seeing as the witch did not have a blade, it made sense she didn't want them getting closer. Her wolf aided in keeping them at a distance, mostly fending off Yoruichi as she tried to get past and knock the young woman out.
"I pick fights with my brother but I would never try to kill him, are you crazy!?" Karin snapped at the blind woman angrily.
"He may be my brother by relation, but he might as well be a stranger." She argued back icily. "I wanted to know him, I truly did, but if it's him or the ones who raised me then I will fight even my own blood!"
The earth shifted beneath the Substitute's feet, threatening to trap her into the floor in a pool of quicksand. Scowling, she jumped back out of it, but the floor would soften wherever she tried to escape to, forcing her to stand on a platform slightly above the ground.
"Can you really still trust Dethmaiyn now that you know he was hiding things from you?" Toshiro called out to the woman, finding it difficult to keep the blizzard away from his allies. He would have to go into Bankai to take away her control, the runes she used quite powerful. His aunt had never used any in his presence, preferring lesser magic, and Ruala was an Elementalist who had no need for them, twisting nature to her will. But his sister's use of the old magic proved they improved flexibility and power of the spells by a lot.
"He has only ever tried to protect me." The young woman snapped back. "If he sees fit to kill you, then I will accept it."
"Just like that? After all this time hoping you would get to know your family? Don't you want to know our side?"
"I don't need to!" Her voice shook, clearly having doubts, but she traced another rune into the air and the mist twisted viciously into warrior forms. Hitting them served no purpose, their blades passing through the mist as it should, but the illusions obscured their vision from the earth that rose up in spikes to strike at them. Rangiku and Isane just barely managed to avoid the attack, Karin hurrying over to assist with a twisting of fire while Yoruichi just used her speed to get around it. None came after Toshiro, meaning that despite her temper their opponent still knew better than to harm the Soul King before Kamai could. Toshiro was still frustrated about it though, tired of his allies taking the hits for him.
If possible, he needed to get them out of here. As long as they stood with him, they would be the targets. The problem was this witch could control the earth and had closed off their arena of battle to any escape. He had no such ability over that element and couldn't make an escape route for them.
"Then if it's me you have a problem with, let the others leave." He spoke up.
"Don't you dare, Hitsugaya." Yoruichi turned towards him with a scowl before dodging back from the wolf guardian's glowing fangs. Whatever magic the wolf was capable of as the nameless girl's guard, it kept Yoruichi from getting too close.
The king's supposed sister lessened the storm around them and listened.
"You stated before that you wanted only me here to talk to. Well, let's talk, but they must leave first."
"That was before you mentioned that Lord Kamai promised to kill you. The choice has been made." She turned her nose up in his general direction since she couldn't really see. "What good will talking do now?"
"Because I know something about you that you don't, something I learned from my… our father before he passed."
Instantly she was interested, her curiosity easy to notice as she gaped and leaned forward slightly. The others looked at Toshiro in concern, wondering if he really had any information or if he was just saying things to help them escape. Karin stepped over to the king's side.
"I'm not leaving." She argued firmly.
"Karin, your injured, I've noticed that you've only been holding your zanpaktou with one hand." He replied softly, his worry showing through in his expression. He could trust their opponent not to strike right now, she was too eager for the secrets he had to share. If he was right, he might have exactly the information they needed to prevent any further fighting. He had questions now, too, and if she really was a sister by blood, he wanted to know why he never had the chance to know her.
"I can still fight!" The Kurosaki twin snapped stubbornly. "Toshiro, I'm not going anywhere."
"It's going to be fine, please, go get healed."
"Toshiro-"
"Come on, king's orders." Yoruichi had approached now that the wolf had backed off and began to usher the young woman back over to Rangiku and Isane. A section of wall opened up, allowing access back to the maze.
"Fine." Karin pushed off the older woman's grip. "But you better come back out or I will come back in!"
"Yes ma'am." He managed a sad smile in her direction before turning back to focus on the white-haired woman on the other side of the courtyard.
The sound of footsteps slowly retreated behind him, cut off by the rumble of moving stone before only the whistles of the dying storm echoed around them.
"What did our father say about me then, dear brother?" She was clearly impatient to know, the wolf beside her mirroring her irritation by keeping their hackles raised with a low growl in their throat.
"Something that makes me wonder just how Dethmaiyn came to be the one raising you." Toshiro replied, trying to stall a little longer to make sure Karin and the others were well out of range before he gave away his leverage. As long as he had it, this woman couldn't try to hurt them out of his sight.
"I told you, I was born a girl and was unwanted, nameless." She spat coldly. "Lord Kamai took me in when I was clearly being neglected, and they never even bothered to look for me."
"I don't think that's the case." He argued with a shake of his head, flinching when the storm grew aggressive once more. "Did your lord tell you himself exactly what happened to you?"
Hesitation. So Toshiro's concerns could be correct; just because Kamai was under curse not to ever tell a lie, that didn't mean his Demon Lords were. If they were the ones who planted ideas into her head and Kamai never corrected them, simply avoiding the truth so that she thought what she knew was real, then it was likely that her disappearance from the Soul King's family was not by abandonment.
"He told me was unable to name me because my father never told it to him. He told me I had been forgotten, that they had moved on by having a son." She told him, her voice quieter.
"Maybe it wasn't because they abandoned you." He pointed out. "Perhaps they thought you were dead."
"But they didn't even look for me!" She scowled fiercely. With her temper back, ice threatened to spear the Soul King's shoulder. His blade brought the attempt to a halt. "They wouldn't even give out my name! They were ashamed!"
"You have a name." Toshiro spoke up calmly.
The storm stopped short, leaving a mist settling into the air in an uncanny silence.
"What?" Her voice had a threatening chill to it, as if daring him to speak such offensive words again. A dare he took on.
"You have a name. I remembered it." Toshiro stood tall as he had her full attention. "Dethmaiyn couldn't give you a name because you already had one and he couldn't replace it. That's what he meant saying he couldn't name what wasn't his, he couldn't give you a new name if you already had one, but he never bothered to learn it. He used that to make you angry."
"I don't believe you." She hissed. "I won't believe you! Lord Kamai… did everything for me! He is my family!"
"But it wasn't him who named you, Miyuki."
There was an odd stir in the air the moment the name was spoken. His sister had frozen in shock as the name reached her ears, a strange feeling nestling into her heart. It seemed to echo within her mind, the echo having a different voice than the man in front of her. Her father's voice? She never got to hear it so she didn't know. The echo seemed to lift a veil from her mind and suddenly nothing was clear to her anymore. Her conviction to fight her own brother in loyalty to the one who took care of her was fading. Her guardian wolf looked to her with a concerned whimper.
"What… did you call me?" If the wind hadn't died down, her whisper would have been unnoticeable.
"In Satoru Hitsugaya's last moments, he said something I didn't quite understand." Toshiro explained. "He said 'forgive me, Miyuki.' I never knew who he was talking about, but it always stuck with me. I knew it was important if it was his final thought. There was pain in his eyes, not just from his sickness, but something more. You may be right, he was ashamed, but I don't think it was for the reason you think."
She didn't say anything in response at first, her face twisting in thought as she took in his words. Toshiro could tell her loyalty to the one who raised her was conflicting with this new information that she had perhaps been lied to all along.
"I need to know the truth." She said with a shaky voice. "I must know…"
"I'm afraid I can't know what our father was thinking when he said that, I only have his words and face to remember by." Toshiro stated with a small shake of his head, truly sympathetic that he couldn't give her any more to go by.
"I need to know…" A tear was forming in the corner of her eye.
"All you need to know is that your brother is not to be trusted." A harsh voice snapped.
The two white-haired siblings tensed and turned towards the source, spotting Kazara perched above on the wall. The storm demon looked less than pleased with the current situation, and her presence agitated the blizzard the icy clouds already created by the witch, causing it to gather up and rumble with electricity. They noticed she had a black colored bandage around her arm, though, suggesting an injury.
"Dear one, you were supposed to stay inside." Kazara snapped at the woman.
"I was promised that I could see my brother." She argued back. "Lord Kamai said I would get to meet the last of my birth family, that I could speak with him. Is it true he was going to kill my brother?"
"It is the only way to become Soul King, child." Kazara answered and the young woman looked irritated. "Once you have accepted the throne, giving it away brings about a horrible weakness to the former King. Without the power of the realms, they lose all of their Spirit Energy, falling to illness. It signals the end of a reign, which is why our Master awaited the day your father reached that end, only to learn the son was still alive and took what was meant to be ours. Even if our Master doesn't kill the boy himself, your brother will likely die anyway. If anything, we are giving him mercy."
"Mercy!?" The elder sister hissed. "I was told by the other sisters that everything would be fine!"
Kazara narrowed her eyes at the girl's attitude. This was exactly why Kamai didn't want her getting out of the palace during the battle. She was easily swayed by the words of others, and if anyone among Toshiro's allies told their side of the story, the witch was likely to start questioning her masters, especially if she got to meet her own brother. If Kamai had truly promised that she would get to meet Toshiro, he likely meant after the boy was already dying from giving away the Soul King's title, after it was already too late to get into her head, that way the Solar Five Sisters – whoever was left – could ensure she stayed on their side with pretty little lies about a corrupt brother.
"Little one, if you don't return to the palace now, the Master will be angry." Kazara ordered. If the girl didn't obey, it was time to count their losses.
"My name…" The storm turned bitter cold once more as the sister did her best to glare in Kazara's direction. "Is Miyuki!"
The Demon Lord let a look of surprise slip across her face as she dodged the phantom of an icy wolf that charged at her from the storm clouds, covering her former perch in a deadly array of frozen spikes. The thorns thrashed in the presence of magic and Kazara took to the air instead.
"Name?" Kazara growled, not expecting this. "The Master gave you no name."
"My brother did." Miyuki spat back. "Now tell me the truth, Lady Kazara. Why was I raised by Lord Kamai?"
The Demon Lord gave a click of her tongue and refused to answer, bringing forth a bolt of lightning from the twisting storms and aiming at Toshiro. This was a first from them, as so far they had avoided directly harming the Soul King in any way. An ice dragon took care of the lightning bolt and another wolf came at the Demon Lord herself. With both siblings capable of long-range attacks and her shoulder still in the process of healing, Kazara decided this was not a battle to be fighting. Electricity crackled in the air and in an instant she was gone.
"I have just committed a grave sin against Lord Kamai." Miyuki stated to her brother. "It's best we leave now before he comes here himself."
"I'm glad you're listening to me, but how do I know I can trust you?" Toshiro asked first before going anywhere. "Not long ago you were willing to attack me and my allies for simply suggesting that Dethmaiyn lied to you."
"I… I don't know…" She sighed, reaching out and waiting for her wolf to push its head against her hand before petting it. "Something… about the name you mentioned, my name… it was as if a curtain had been pushed aside. It had stayed there so long, obscuring my thoughts, but now it's gone. It's almost like I can breathe easier… All I want now is to understand what was hidden behind it. If I had a name… what else have I been missing?"
"How do you know I'm not the one lying?"
"I'm still thinking about that, I assure you, but… the name feels right. Even if you're lying about our father, I know the name is real. For those of us that use the magic of runes, names are everything… and I know that this one is mine."
Toshiro paused for a moment.
"You know that Dethmaiyn and I will inevitably face each other." He told her. "You might be helping me now, but what about then?"
Her shoulder slumped slightly as the question she didn't want to think about was said allowed.
"I… I don't know. Right now I just want to understand the truth, and I don't know if I'll find it here. Not now that I know he's been keeping the truth from me somehow. I thought I could trust him completely, but…" She held her hands out in front of her. "You can take me prisoner if you feel like I might stab you in the back, but I will lead you back out of this maze."
"I don't have anything to stop your magic." He commented.
"Oh… right." She reached up and began to twist her hair as she thought about what to do, knowing full well she wasn't going to be trusted immediately. "Well, I have a rune that can cut off my magic. If you draw it, only you can remove it. I will be reduced to a normal human while it is active."
"Alright, we'll go with that for now."
He stepped towards her cautiously as she drew the rune in the air to her side, a faint icy mist staying in place where her finger traced a path so that he could see what it should look like.
"If I may ask, how did you learn to use runes without vision?" He questioned as he took the hand she held out for him. "Also what do I draw with?"
"Just trace the pattern with your finger, once you're done it will be set, runes need no medium other than thought." She explained. "As for how I learned them, Lord Kamai drew them in the earth for me so that I could feel them. I learned that way until I learned a spell that lets me see through the eyes of my wolf."
"Through the wolf?" Glancing at the symbol in the air again, Toshiro somewhat awkwardly recreated it onto Miyuki's arm.
"My wolf has been with me for years. She is of a similar demon type as Lady Lyrah, but while Lady Lyrah keeps a human form and uses blood magic to give her strength, my wolf prefers her canine form and shares my power. Our bond allows us to temporarily share thoughts and abilities as well, especially once I put the guardian rune onto her. She lets me use her eyes when I need to see."
"That explains how she kept Yoruichi on her toes."
The rune flashed icy blue once it was finished drawing. It was an old Celtic sealing symbol, a circle with a line run through but not touching the circle, two V shapes pointing up and two pointing down. He could sense Miyuki's Spirit Energy drop to almost nothing and he had to drop his own as he saw her sway and look faint under the pressure of his own Spirit Energy.
"You are definitely a king." She stated wearily, leaning onto her wolf for support. "Follow me please."
She pushed herself up to sit side-saddle on the wolf's back, the creature large enough to carry her and proceed at a steady walk. Toshiro didn't immediately follow, watching carefully before moving behind the pair. He wanted to be able to trust family, but knowing the circumstances she was raised under he couldn't allow himself to put his guard down. She wasn't wrong about them being the same… they had both lived under lies for so long, he just had the advantage of being kept away from Kamai, simply ignorant of his birthright rather than hidden from it. He couldn't imagine how it must feel to find out the one who raised you like family was holding back such powerful secrets.
His thoughts strayed to Momo. Aizen had done to her exactly what Kamai had done to Miyuki. One was a pseudo-sister he grew up with, the other a sister by blood he never got to know. Perhaps they should meet… Momo would be able to help Miyuki find herself again after dealing with such a betrayal, and he could start figuring out why Miyuki was taken from her true home to be raised with demons.
If she was even telling the truth in the first place.
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