Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
Word Count: 298
A Kiss for Shelter
In the Wee Hours
The night wore on, the candle burning low. The hour did not matter. More often than not did he seek his bed at, or just beyond the midnight hour. This was the nature of a man whose duty stretched beyond that of a mere captain.
With a little effort each vertebrae in his spine shifted pleasantly with barely a sound as he set his pen aside. The flurry of the day's activities and conversations was indeed catching up to him and he felt a weariness in his limbs that did not often touch him.
Byakuya arranged his desk, snuffed out the candle and rose from the zubuton that he had warmed for time he chose to be ignorant of.
He set an even pace down the outer fusuma, inhaling the fragrance that accompanied the early hours, impassive gaze taking stock of all that surrounded him despite the dark. His gait slowed as his sharp eyes pierced through the twilight and the trees to note the glow of candlelight. He drew to a halt, deliberating.
The captain turned on his heel back toward his office.
…
He could see her outline through the shoji. Her figure was appealing even in shadow. He closed his eyes.
He called to her softly.
Soon enough the shoji slid open and he briefly glanced down at her kneeling figure before striding past her.
When she had shut the screen behind him she turned into the room and noted he was watching her expectantly and there was a chest in his hands.
For a moment Xochitl could only stare at him, surprised by his presence and even more surprised that he had ventured in carrying an item she recognized.
An onyx eyebrow rose and she quickly remembered herself, "My lord… Will you take tea?"