Chapter 4

-The Next Morning—

Myssa's luggage, what little of it there was, was transferred to the Kuchiki estate. Byakuya oversaw the servants as they put away her clothing and personal items. He was rather surprised at what little she owned. The biggest surprise, however, was that Myssa owned a zanpakto and a dual one at that. The irony of her two closest friends also being dual wielders was not lost on him. He had watched as a servant removed each sword from their case and mounted them on a stand next to the bed. His mind was swirling with questions as the mystery of Myssa Starjax took on another layer.

Fifteen minutes before Myssa arrived, Byakuya had the estate guards and staff assembled in the courtyard to greet her. As he expected, she arrived early. When the front gate opened he saw her standing alone wearing blue jeans and a sleeveless, lavender blouse. Her long, wavy hair was pulled up in a high ponytail. She looked surprised to see all the household gathered. They all bowed as she passed, but she kept her eyes on Byakuya who stood on the top step of the front porch looking regal and indifferent.

She stopped a few steps from Byakuya and bowed, "My apologies for my unseemly appearance. I was not expecting a formal greeting."

"No apology necessary. I merely wanted you to feel welcome."

"Thank you, that is very kind."

"Where is Tamor?"

She pointed to the sky. Gasps ran through the crowd a second later. "He likes to make a grand entrance."

Byakuya couldn't believe his eyes. Tamor was huge! He was at least 30 feet tall and powerfully muscular under sleek, black scales. He roared and belched a great burst of fire into the sky before circling the estate. Many of the staff broke ranks and ran screaming, their eyes wild.

"Sorry, that's the dragonfear." Myssa apologized. "They can't help it."

Tamor slowly lowered to the courtyard, a golden glow surrounding him. He was shrinking. By the time he gently set his feet on the ground, he had returned to the size of a small dog. He strode toward Myssa and Byakuya. When he reached them, he bowed to Byakuya. "I bid you good morning, Lord Kuchiki, and thank you for welcoming me to your elegant and beautiful home."

"Good morning, Tamor." Byakuya said. "An impressive display."

"Enough of the theatrics, Tam." Myssa said. "Next you'll be breaking out the 'thee's and 'thou's."

He flew up to perch on her shoulder, his tail draping over her shoulders casually. "You'd do well to remember your manners! Lord Kuchiki is going to think you're a crass woman of…"

The rest of his admonishment was clamped off by Myssa's thumb and forefinger pinching his snout shut. "I love you, but you talk too much. Now, zip it."

Tamor huffed a puff of smoke and gritted, "As you wish."

Byakuya nearly smiled at the glare Tamor gave her. "Come, I will show you to your room." He began walking and she fell into step next to him. "How is Jushiro Ukitake this morning?"

"Much better." She replied. "He told me you were an officer under him when you were younger."

"Yes, I was put into his squad for a brief period of time after I graduated from the academy." His thoughts went back to those days of his youth when he had been such a brash young man.

A few moments later, he opened the door to her room and stood back so she could walk in first. She was looking around, clearly impressed. "Oh, wow…how did you know my favorite color?"

His lips turned up just a touch, "I have my sources."

She smiled at him, "Thank you, it's beautiful." The room had been decorated in burgundy and cream colors. Her eyes fell on her zanpakto displayed next to the bed. "I see all my things have been unpacked."

"What little there was."

"Years as a relic hunter has taught me to travel light." She searched his face. It was as calm and unreadable as always. "Wow, you're good, I'll give you that."

His brow tilted down ever so slightly, puzzled, "What do you mean?"

"I'm sure you stared long and hard at my zanpakto with at least a few questions buzzing around in your head. And now that I'm here you haven't asked a single one of them. That takes some impressive restraint." She turned her attention to her swords. Her fingers glided gently over the royal purple scabbard of one and runes ignited in a golden glow as her touch passed. His eyes widened and he couldn't suppress the small gasp that escaped. Her gaze flicked back to his. "You can ask me anything you want, Byakuya. I vow to you, on my honor, I will never lie to you."

"Why do you have a zanpakto and what are those markings I just saw?"

"Hmm, I thought for sure you'd go for the throat and ask who and what I am."

His eye met hers, mild irritation laced his look and his tone. "I told you I would wait. I always keep my word."

"Before I answer your question, let me ask you first: Would you like a demonstration of my skills? We could visit your squad's training grounds and have some fun sparring."

His eyes twinkled much like her brothers would when she would ask them to spar with her. It was like asking a child if he wanted to go come out and play. "Yes. I would like that."

She smiled and began strapping on her swords in an 'X' across her back. "I wield zanpakto because the trait runs in my family on my father's side. The markings you saw are runes of power. Something also exclusive to my bloodline. They are tied to my…powers." She was ready to go. "Shall we?"

He walked with her across the garden, heading for the front gate. "I have never known any other than soul reapers and arrancars to wield zanpakto."

"I'm going to warrant a guess that you have also never been to Dragon Realm."

"No, I haven't."

"My father is a dragon, Byakuya. My brothers, their families, all dragons."

"But," he glanced at Tamor, "how?"

"There are three different types of dragons. Forget the myths. Tamor is a beast dragon. He is always in non-human form. He can change his size at will and has some capabilities that are exclusive to his species. On the other end of the spectrum there are human dragons who are always in human form. They have no reiatsu much like most of the humans in the world of the living. Unlike those humans, those in Dragon Realm have powers over the elements: fire, water, air, earth, and the rare element of spirit. Those that are truly gifted become powerful mages that serve in the military. The last species are the shapeshifters. They are rarer and remain in human form mostly. They usually only shift into dragon form for battle. My family fall into this category. Shifters are beings of immense power and wield zanpakto. All zanpakto manifest early in life for those of our bloodline." She explained as they walked.

"Except yours." Tamor blurted.

"How long did it take yours to manifest?" Byakuya asked.

Myssa scowled, mostly at Tamor. "Mine didn't manifest until I was 20 years old. Those early years I was with my birth mother…my powers were suppressed…forcibly."

He stopped walking. She stopped two steps later and looked back. "Please, don't ask, not yet."

"As you wish." He said then fell back into stride with her. "Do you 'shift' as well?"

"No. I'm a half blood. My brothers pick on me and call me 'tailless' because I can't shift. Rygar loves to shift, pick me up with his tail and take flight." Her voice took on the sound of fond memory. "The last time I was home he flew out to sea during a full moon. It was so peaceful. The moon looked so big it was like you could reach out and touch it." She paused a moment before speaking again, "There are quite a few helpful aspects that come with being half dragon."

"Like what?"

"Well, I'm fireproof. The only fire that can affect me is dragonfire. I also heal really fast. Depending on the injury, I can heal in minutes. Anything really severe can take hours or days." She hesitated as if deciding if she should say something. "I can…heal others too."

"You possess healing powers?"

"They're not like you've seen with squad 4. I…take on an injury then let my accelerated healing ability heal me." He looked confused. "It would be easier to demonstrate it than explain it."

He pulled his sword and sliced his arm. She grinned, "Mark one for the power of curiosity." She led him into a small alley, out of the sight of any casual observers. "I don't allow too many people to know I can do this, so I'd rather not be seen." She reached over and touched his arm. The runes on her hands and arms ignited, spiraling up to her shoulders. A glow enveloped them. Byakuya felt warm like he was standing in sunshine. The pain in his arm disappeared as did the cut. He watched in horror as the injury appeared on her arm in the same spot it had been on him.

"Myssa!" He gasped.

"It's all right. It will close and be gone in a few minutes. The cut wasn't that deep." She said as he handed her a handkerchief to cover the wound.

"This is what you did for Jushiro last night?" He asked.

She nodded. "I cannot heal disease or illness. I can only heal damage to flesh, organs, and bones. I am able to heal the physical damage to Jushiro's lungs and give him about six months of relief, but I cannot take away the disease. More's the pity."

"How long does it take you to heal after you treat him?"

"About fifteen minutes. Healing takes a toll on me. Physically I recover quickly, but the hit to my reiatsu takes longer to bounce back."

"Have you recovered from healing Jushiro?" He wasn't going to spar with her if she was in a weakened state.

"Yes. That isn't too taxing. A good night's sleep and I was back to normal this morning."

They reached the squad six barracks. Renji Abarai was in the courtyard with several squad members. He saw Byakuya and greeted him. When he saw Myssa, his whole face lit up. "Hey, Myssa!"

"Hey, Renji!" She smiled brightly at him.

"I see you have your zanpakto with you. Did Head Captain Kyoraku finally talk you into joining a squad?"

"No, I'm here with Captain Kuchiki. He has agreed to some sparring."

Renji goggled. "Seriously? You're finally going to show your skills? This I gotta see!"

Byakuya walked toward the training grounds. Myssa followed with Renji, the squad members trailing after them.

Byakuya and Myssa stood facing each other in the middle of the field. "Should I go easy on you?" He asked in that calm, semi-smug voice of his.

"Never. I'll learn nothing if you hold back."

"Let me know when you have had enough." There was no denying smug tone.

She laughed, "Oh, I get it, this is your version of smack talk, eh?"

He quirked a brow and drew his sword. She pulled one of her swords from a scabbard and took a stance.

He struck first and hard enough to rattle her teeth. She parried and swung to strike back, but he was gone in a blur of shunpo, appearing behind her. "Too slow." He swung and then she was gone, appearing just out of his reach.

"Now, now, let's not make snap judgments." She was unflustered.

He went after her and she countered with a handless cartwheel from which she tried an upswing with her sword. He nearly saw it too late. He dodged, but she cut through the leg of his hakama. He narrowed his eyes at her. She responded with raised eyebrows and a look that said, "See, I'm better than you thought."

"Impressive agility." He commented. "Now let's see how you fare with a long exchange." He launched into a barrage of offensive moves. He was relentless as he gave her no chance to think of anything but defending herself. She held him off with adequate skill, although he could see so much room for improvement. He allowed her a small opening to mount an attack. He was impressed that she not only took it, but attacked with a combination of moves skillful enough to make him take a step back. No small task. He ended their contact. "Why do not draw your other sword?"

"Dual wielding is lovely to watch and I enjoy it. However, it divides my striking power and would give me no tactical advantage against you. In fact, with your skill, I'd be at a serious disadvantage if I tried to use both swords." She grinned at him, "Although, if you ask me nicely, I'd be happy to do a blade dance for you before dinner."

He had no idea what that was, but he was pretty damn sure he wanted to find out. He grinned back at her, "Scatter, Senbonzakura."

Myssa watched in awe. "Byakuya, that is so beautiful…" She was so busy admiring his shikai that she almost didn't jump out of the way in time. Her jump sent her high above the field. She drew the other sword as her voice rang out, "Merge, Hirakitoyami noshuken."

Both of her zanpakto shimmered, one black, one white. They seemed to dissolve and slither up her arms in spirals. The runes on her arms and hands lit up and merged with the zanpakto. When she landed her left arm was covered in thick, black, glowing runes. Her right arm was the same, but glowing with white runes. "My turn." Her hands lifted over her head, quickly gathering power. She pushed toward Byakuya and a huge blast of white energy tinged with black roared straight for him. He put up a kido barrier and was stunned at the strength of her power as it rushed around him. The barrier cracked and he had to shunpo out of there before it shattered.

He directed his shikai at her. She held up her right hand, white runes glowing bright. Suddenly she was gone and then so were the swirling blades of his Senbonzakura. He stood alone on an empty field. Where had she gone? And where was Senbonzakura? He could still feel the presence of them both, he just couldn't see them.

She re-appeared, standing so close he startled. She held all of the "petals" of his shikai in an orb of white edged energy. "I believe these belong to you." Her tone was playful which echoed in her eyes. She released the petals and they returned to the hilt, reforming his sword.

"How did you make yourself and my zanpakto disappear?"

"We were never gone. I only manipulated light to make us invisible to you. If you couldn't see your blades then you couldn't control them. And, of course, if you couldn't see me, you couldn't attack me. It is half of the ability of my zanpakto." She held out her left hand. Shadows gathered in her hand becoming a black sword. "My other ability is the control of darkness. I can hide in and attack from shadows. I can envelope my opponent in darkness, blinding and disorienting them. However, my favorite use of darkness is to draw it into sword form and use it to fight."

"Hm. Sovereign of light and darkness, that is the meaning of your zanpakto's name?"

"Yes. That is the power of my zanpakto. It merges with the powers I was born with, the runes you have seen on my hands and arms. When I merge, they function as one. My zanpakto augments my powers and gives me control over light and dark."

"Interesting."

She released the darkness of the sword. He watched the runes slither down her arms to become her swords again. She returned them to their scabbards.

"Have you achieved bankai yet?" He asked.

"No, I haven't."

"It will be interesting to witness it when you do."

She looked down at his sliced hakama. "Sorry about your hakama."

"I have more." He smiled at her and her heart nearly stopped. "Your skills are impressive."

"Thank you, high praise coming from you. And a smile too. I'm a lucky gal today."

"Yes, you are," his voice was nearly monotone, "I went easy on you."

She made a sound of outrage, "What?! You better be teasing me!"

He chuckled and she used her hip to bump his enough to catch him off-guard so that he had to take a step to the side as they walked. "Be glad we're in public or I'd have to exact some tickle revenge for teasing me." She said, playful.

"I'm not ticklish."

She narrowed her eyes to peer thoughtfully at him, "My guess would be the back of your neck…but that one is a good tickle that gives you the shivers and is just on that fine line between feeling good and making you squirm."

She was surprisingly accurate, but he wasn't about to let her have any inkling that she was right. "You have a vivid imagination, Myssa."

"If you say so, but those flinty peepers of yours say I'm right."

Before he could contradict her, Renji and the squad members surrounded Myssa. They had questions and comments as they headed back to the squad's courtyard. Byakuya decided that he really liked her. Along with the other attributes he'd seen, he could now add strong and fun to the list. She was also beginning to open up more about her family. The more he got to know her, the more he enjoyed her. Being able to be comfortable and feel good about spending time with a female was something he hadn't had in a very long time. Most of the time the women he encountered socially were either too intimidated by him to say anything, or if they did, it was inane chatter that made his eyes glaze over. Myssa had any easy way of talking to him that just made it seem like he was the easiest person to get along with that she'd ever met. He was finding that with her, he could just be himself, no need to constantly guard his words. His teasing hadn't angered or offended her, it had made her playful and he really wanted more of that.

She had mentioned a blade dance. Would she like to dance with him? He imagined holding her close as they danced to slow music. Her lovely green eyes would look up at him with affection. He would lean down the scant inches to press his lips to hers. He would wait until he heard a sound of need from her – a whimper or a little moan – before sweeping past her parted lips to…

The fantasy shattered when a messenger called his name. He was being summoned to the head captain's office. He barked, "Myssa, go with Renji, he will escort you home." He realized a heartbeat later that "home" had rolled rather easily off his tongue. He didn't wait for any parting words from her, he left.

Myssa watched the back of his swaying haori for a moment, "Well, that was abrupt."

Renji sounded amused, "You get used to it." He fell into step with her as they headed out of the squad six courtyard. "So, to the head captain's house?"

"No. This morning I became a guest at the Kuchiki estate."

His eyebrows rose, "Really?"

She explained everything as they walked. Renji was intrigued, "Lost relics and a ring of power. Sounds like the basis for a great action movie."

"Except the reality is that it's just a lot of reading musty old books and chasing information." She said. "The hunts are usually pretty tame. Once in a while I have to take down a hollow or some other critter. Truth is, you see a ton more action than I do."

"Way to kill the romance!" He groused. She snickered.

He delivered her to the Kuchiki estate and then returned to his office. Myssa went into the library to work on research.