(AN) Hi y'all! Sorry for the update wait,! As some of you know, I just finished Matchmaking Trouble. I've been focusing on trying to tie up everything this past month, and I finally succeed. It is my longest fanfiction, and it was kind of my "baby" ha. I'm proud of how it turned out. Since it's finished now, my goal is to update Love Under Gunfire once every two weeks. I want to update every week, but I don't know that will happen due to work. If you received updates about the story recently, I went back and edited some typos that I missed the first time. I did not change anything within the story. Thank you for reading and for your patience! On to the story!
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
Chapter 6
The house was dead silent except for the ticking of the large grandfather clock in the hallway. For some reason the night seemed ominous; yet, Rukia couldn't place her finger on the exact reason why. Maybe it was the lack of hustle and bustle within the normally busy household, or just facing the unknown.
For once, the unknown didn't quite terrify her. A small smile graced her lips. To many within this house, the unknown was anything and everything Byakuya Kuchiki, especially his study. The servants whispered of an old samurai spirit, who haunted the room when Byakuya wasn't there. It probably didn't help the servants' imaginations that Byakuya had a suit of ancient red samurai armor was near his desk.
Rukia laughed a little at the Kuchiki servants' superstitious belief. Sure, she had her own superstitions as well, but she figured the mysterious ghostly presence in the room was actually Byakuya. He was a man who guarded his secrets closely. She imagined him slipping in and out of the room unnoticed as he made sure everything in its proper order. He was quite talented after all. Granted, Senbonzakura ran a probability of being the culprit since his return. Rukia didn't put it past him for getting his kicks from stirring up rumors to annoy his twin.
Smiling to herself, Rukia made her way through the dimly lit winding halls with only her random thoughts for company. Eventually, Rukia came face to face with the daunting, dark oak door. It was better known as the gates of Hell, or Byakuya Kuchiki's study.
She knocked lightly, and the door slowly opened. Dark, stormy eyes greeted her. The normally stoic man had an unusual expression in his glaze.
Was that admiration… or something else?
Suddenly, the look disappeared only to be replaced his business mode. "You're late…" Byakuya stated as he moved out of the door way to let her inside. The petite woman went from confused to highly annoyed in a matter of seconds. It was bad enough that Senbonzakura summoned her from her room at this time of night, but to also deal with Byakuya's superior attitude without coffee was a massive mistake.
"And you need to learn some manners." Rukia mumbled under her breath as she entered the room. She saw Senbonzakura perched on the edge of a large, cherry oak desk. A smirk was etched into his handsome features.
Great! He heard me! Add that to the list of things I'll never live down.
A chill ran up Rukia's spine as she felt Byakuya behind her and place his hand on the small of her back nudging her forward. "Why don't you have a seat, Rukia? We have somethings that we'd like to run by you." He told her very businesslike, but all she wanted to do was throttle him for his emotionless tone.
Where was the man who had numerous suppers with her? What happened to the man with admiration in his eyes at the door?
How could one man be so hot, yet arrogant at the same time? Wait… don't answer that!
"I think I'll stand." Rukia replied as she tried to root her feet in place to annoy him.
A snicker escaped Senbonzakura's lips as he analyzed her all too familiar stance. His handsome face looked childish.
Awe, he looks adorable… What the hell am I saying? This is Zakura, Rukia! You shouldn't be having any feelings for either of the twins because they are OFF LIMITS. You need to get out of here, away from the Kuchikis! Maybe you'll regain my sanity then…
Deciding that it was time to intervene before Rukia made the situation worse, Senbonzakura hopped of the desk and made his way towards her.
Senbonzakura wrapped his hands around Rukia's and pulled her towards him until she was standing in front of a chair. "Rukia, please sit down." He said nicely before giving the stunned woman a gentle shove on the shoulder. "Like Byakuya so rudely said before, we have a proposition for you, but we need your option on it." He told her with a gentle smile.
He laughed as Rukia glared over at Byakuya, who looked slightly amused. She always did have a way of getting under the "cold" twin's skin and causing an unusual reaction out of him.
Rukia huffed in annoyance. "Fine, but only because you asked so nicely, Zakura, unlike someone else…" she grumbled.
The petite woman eyed both of twins wearily as they stood in front of her now side by side. To say the Kuchiki twins were unnerving was an understatement. They were both very formidable, but Rukia knew Senbonzakura all too well to be intimidated by him. One brother was a big deadly, kid and the other was deadly as well, but she was sure that he was a big teddy bear underneath his cold exterior.
Byakuya was the first one to speak as he and Rukia to eyed one another. "We think that we solved your issue."
"Oh, really? That's news to me since this is the first time either one of you have mentioned any ideas to me! Do you know that I've been worrying about everything from explaining my absence to the elders to running the clan?" Rukia exclaimed as she forced herself to take deep calming breaths. Being aggravated with the Kuchikis was not going to help her. She had to find her center of calm fast.
"Rukia, we didn't mean…" Senbonzakura commented before the little spite fire continued to voice her opinions; although, calmly this time. The men noticed the chance in her demeanor.
"Honestly, I appreciate both of you for everything that you have done, and I know that you are trying to help..." The twins mellowed out at her words instead of being defensive. "But I am highly upset because I wasn't consulted as you brained stormed. I've had been wracking my brain for a way out of this shit storm since Zakura began his recovery, but neither of you spoke to me."
"We brainstormed together for two reasons. Firstly, you've been traumatized enough that we wanted you to just relax. Secondly, Zakura and I were trying to list the possible murderers of your parents. This would also give us a chance to look at people without basis. We needed to know who's involved before sending you back out into the world. In good conciseness, neither one of us could place you at the head of the clan right now. Your safety is questionable anywhere, but here." Byakuya told her calmly. He could see the bright like of recognition in her eyes. She understood why they did what they did even though she didn't like it. Rukia was the type of woman to have a say in her destiny rather than let fate decide for her.
"What did you decide, Byakuya?" She asked because she knew that he was going to be the majority of the brains with their plotting.
To her surprise, it was Senbonzakura who answered her. "You're not going to like the answer, and there isn't an easy way to tell you this, but we believe that you should get married to…"
Immediately, Rukia jumped up from her seat. "Why is marriage always the answer? Huh! You know, I may be young, but I can run the clan fairly without a husband!"
"It's not a matter of running the clan, Rukia. We are concerned about your safety on multiple levels. Once you step into the spot light, you're back will have a target on it. People will be trying to control you and use you as their puppet so you need someone strong to stand by your side." Senbonzakura answered while Byakuya gave him a supporting nod. The brothers rehearsed their lines previously, but everything seemed to be going to hell-in-a-handbasket.
"We wanted you to marry someone you know and trust." Byakuya stated earning him an icy glare from Rukia.
Sighing heavily, Rukia looked back and forth between the brothers. "You're Kuchikis. I thought both of you cared for me, but the jokes seemed to be on me. I must be burden to both of you." She stated sadly. "I'll leave right now, and you won't have to look back. You'll have a clear conscious I promise." She whispered before turning around to head for the door.
"Rukia, wait! Senbonzakura yelled. "It's not like that and you know it." Senbonzakura walked over towards her and tried to pull her into a hug.
"Let go, Zakura. I'm going to call Ichigo and Shirayuki so don't worry. I'll be safe." She told him as she edged her way closer to the door.
A large body stood in her way this time, and she knew he wasn't going to be so easy to manipulate. He was always the voice of reason of the two.
"Go sit back down, Rukia." Byakuya commanded the little spite fire in his iciest tone that caused normal men tremble and lesser men flee. His words made Rukia stare at him.
"Move, Byakuya." She growled. Rukia was content to leave. Why weren't they letting her go if that's what they wanted?
"No. You are going to go sit down and hear the rest of the plan!" He instructed her.
"Make me!" She replied. Only, she wasn't expecting Byakuya to pick her up and place her on the little couch near the window. He sat down with an arm around her so if she even thought about going somewhere she wouldn't.
"You will sit, and you will listen to the rest of the plan before you make any more rash decisions." Byakuya growled. She felt the heat of his arm seeping through her shirt.
Rukia turned her head to face Byakuya, almost coming nose to nose with him. A red tint crossed her cheeks, and she prayed that they believed she was angry. "Uhm, excuse me, but you wanted to marry me off! Do you know how that feels? The two most important men in my life wants to be rid of me! How am I supposed to act?" She whined.
Byakuya wanted to strangle Rukia's beautiful neck for being so stubborn. She had yet to hear their full plan. The silly woman jumped to conclusions too soon. "Rukia, you are going to marry one of us. That was the plan. We weren't going to leave you. We were going to keep you safe." He told her in a soft tone. Though he had a little smirk on his face.
She glanced towards Senbonzakura, who was smiling broadly at her. Byakuya released his hold on her letting her analyze his words. The twins were content that they finally got Rukia to listen to the whole plan. For a while there, they thought tying her to the chair would be best just to explain everything to her.
"Uh… Uh" Rukia stared in shock and slight terror. Was she ready to be married? To one of them at that? "I need time to think." She said as she left the room.
The twins stared at her retreating form. "Well, that could have gone better…" Senbonzakura stated.
"Like you were much help. This was your idea after all." Byakuya growled.
"Hey, I wasn't the one who pissed her off earlier." Byakuya shrugged at his brother's comment. All that was left for them to do now was wait.
The cold night air greeted Rukia as she made her way onto the roof top balcony. The night beaconed her from her window, calling her spirit. She didn't care that the time was 2 in the morning or that the boys would be annoyed at her disappearance. High places helped her think, and the roof of the Kuchiki Mansion was perfect with its gently sloping angles and perfect mini garden in the small open rectangle. This little sun area gave Rukia a chance to absorb the beauty of nature at its maximum potential.
A few minutes went by as she admired the stars from the floor. Then, she felt a gentle breeze beside her.
Damn the man was like a cat… no more like a panther. A cat would be friendlier and less deadly.
"Hello, Byakuya. Care to join me?" She asked the figure looming next to her prone form.
"You're going to have to tell me how you sense me." He said in a state of wonder.
"It's simple. You're like Zakura. I can sense when I'm being watched, but sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between the two of you unless I can feel the judging glaze on me." She said with a laugh as Byakuya scowled. He instantly knew that the jab was at him.
Ignoring her remark, Byakuya replied, "Zakura trained you well then."
"Of course, he did. Do you expect anything less from your brother?" Rukia asked.
"No. I guess not." He replied as he was slightly envious of his brother for the umpteenth time, especially where this unusual woman was concerned.
Byakuya took a page from Rukia's book and sat next down to her prone form. The couple enjoyed each other's presence and stared up at the sky. Suddenly, Byakuya turned his head over to the beautiful woman next to him.
"Rukia, don't take what I am about to ask you the wrong way, but what is your relationship with my brother" He asked nonchantly, any apprehensiveness about asking the daunting question was devoid from his voice.
"He's my best friend and mentor." She replied with a slight tint of amusement in her voice.
"Was there any feelings better the two of you?" He asked curiously.
"Are you trying to open a can of worms, Byakuya?" Rukia sighed. She knew the point of what he was getting at. "If you are wondering who I would chose as I husband, I'm not sure. You and Zakura have perks and cons."
Byakuya bristled at her finding "cons" in the leader of the Kuchiki Clan. "Besides, there was a rumor that I was to be married to Kaien Shiba. I'm not sure how he would like be marriage either of you."
A startled Byakuya asked, "You knew about the arranged marriage? Zakura thought that it was some big family secret."
"Yes, I knew. How could I not when Ichigo is one of my best friends and Kaien's cousin? It was hard not to hear things when you're around the Shibas a lot. Besides, Kaien and I are friends."
"Oh." Such a simple word held disappointment and expectancy in his tone.
"If your wondering did I form a romantic attachment to Kaien, then the answer is not really. He's handsome, but I always thought his heart was with someone else when we tried to get to know each other on a deeper level." She replied. Rukia turned to see a ghost of a smile on Byakuya's lips.
"I think that was best." He murmured before he stood up.
"Leaving already?" She asked.
"Unfortunately, I have an 8 o'clock meeting so I should get some sleep. Thank you for talking to me, Rukia. I'm sorry if we seemed unsensitive. We should have talked to you earlier, but we were trying to find the best option to make you happy and safe." He said humbly – a thing Byakuya Kuchiki hardly ever did.
Rukia stood up as well staring into his eyes. She could tell that he was being sincere. "I'm sorry for being a brat. I should have taken your advice better and listened like a leader would."
He wanted to reach out and touch her cheek, but he kept his hands by his side. "You're headstrong, but you'll be a good leader, Rukia." He told her as he took his leave.
Byakuya's words replayed in Rukia's mind as she looked over the edge of the roof top balcony. She may not know which of the men she was going to choose, but she did know that she had the best options in the world.
Rukia remained standing in one spot for a while until a noise startled her. She sensed that this person was not Byakuya or Senbonzakura. "Who's there?" She called out, but no one answered.
Something moved a few feet from her and out of the shadows emerged a man covered from head to toe in black. All you could only see were the whites of his eyes.
An assassin? How did he get past all of Byakuya's guards?
Inwardly, Rukia asked as she cursed herself for not packing her normal knives. Hell, she was just previously meeting the boys, why would she need a knife?
Instead of charging her, the assassin looked relieved to see her in one piece without a blemish on her pale skin.
"So this is where you're hiding…" The man trailed off as he took in Rukia's startled appearance. "Or are you here against your will?"
Rukia remained silent as the man approached, but she then took a defensive stance. "You need to leave whoever you are." She commanded bravely.
His eyes crinkled making Rukia assume that he was smiling. Her show of bravo seemed to amuse him. "Never fear, Rukia. You shall be rescued soon." The mystery main disappeared into the night leaving her utterly confused.
Who was he, and what did he mean by rescue?
Thank y'all for reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting!
(AN) Just a note if anyone is confused about the roof, I envisioned the big mansion having an open courtyard area on the roof to host small gatherings if they wished. This would be the perfect place to have a few plants that love the sun and it would serve as a refuge.
I'm just curious, but would y'all continue reading if I changed this to M? Ohhh, on a side note for all my ByaRuki lovers, I have a one shot up called Spa of Dreams celebrating her birthday! Warning it does have a light lemon in there!
Thestarsinthesky: Thanks for the review! I'm sorry that I can't help with clarifying that! You'll just have to read the story since its a big part of it ;) But I can promise more Rukia Zakura interactions!
anon: You are so right! It's going to take a while for her to warm up to the idea. Thanks for the review!
Guest: Thank you for the review! I hope to write faster now that I have my larger fanfiction complete!