A/N: Number ten at last! I never thought this story would make it so far… -sniffle- Ah, the tears of joy…!
Disclaimer: I swear, one day I'm going to steal the zanpakuto presented in this chapter, and I'm going to make it so that I do own the incredible franchise we know and love, Bleach!! You know I will! …Someday…
-glances around slyly-
"Evil. What a simple term."
It is a casual remark, murmured pensively over a delicate china cup filled to the brim with an opaque, steaming tea.
A comfortable silence persists in the wake of the statement, merging quite well with the relaxed atmosphere of the room. There is a clink as the previously mentioned cup is then placed gently back upon its saucer. The sound is then followed by a soft rustle of clothing and the lightest of thumps as a glass bishop is lifted by a pair of careful fingers and set down once more, several consecutive squares from its original resting spot, cornering a nearby knight at the edge of the board in the process. Then, sitting back, Kyoka Suigetsu laces its fingers, elbows propped on each arm the leather armchair it sits upon, and it speaks again, demeanor utterly serene.
"By all means, I don't see why it should be such a common reference to the terms of wickedness and betrayal, of wrongdoing. There are always far more interesting ways to put it, and yet those who witness it always name it thus - evil." A soft chuckle. "I believe I dislike the word."
Sosuke Aizen taps his chin thoughtfully, ignoring his own tea for the meanwhile and instead grasping the threatened knight gently by its glass head, pulling it out of the line of fire and setting it down directly beside an enemy pawn halfway down the checkered glass board, simultaneously putting an opposing rook in jeopardy.
"That does seem to be the case, doesn't it?" he agrees amiably, briefly tapping the edge of his glasses. The slightest of frowns trails across his features. "It comes into questioning as to whether or not those said individuals even know what the word truly means."
"Indeed. I find it rather appalling."
"There are quite a few appalling things in this world. Such a matter might be considered a moot point in most cases."
"True, perhaps. But my opinion remains unchanged."
The rook is shifted, taking an undefended pawn in the process. The same rook, however, is decapitated shortly afterwards by a bishop sitting unnoticed to the side, awaiting the closing of the trap. Thus the first casualties of the game are taken off the board.
"You're a good player."
"Thank you." Aizen dips his head slightly. "I didn't think I'd be doing this well, actually. I remember watching a demonstration of this game once, but I've never actually played. Such strange concepts, these people of the West have…"
"Notwithstanding, some of their ideas can be quite innovative."
"So it would seem…"
In short, Sosuke Aizen and Kyoka Suigetsu happened to be indulging in a quiet game of chess, utilizing the fates of the glass pieces over periodic sips of tea and an occasional glance out of the balcony that branched off to the left wing of the room. The parlor itself was a picture taken from an European painting - a gleaming floor of dark paneled wood, overlaid by various graceful pieces of wooden furniture, including a moderately low table, the two leather chairs in which they were seated, and a few drawers and cabinets off to one side. The walls were paneled and gleaming as well, strategically adorned my ornately-framed paintings of various sceneries and landscapes. Otherwise the area was quite spacious, the spring sunshine filtering in from the balcony providing adequate lighting and warmth for the room.
And, beyond the balcony, the glimmering waterways and elegant towers of a fifteenth-century Venice, Italy could clearly be seen, the entire scene adorned by a wide expanse of clean blue sky and white cloud above.
This had greatly amused Aizen, in truth. Though unexpected, he supposed that in the end it was a rather tactful decision on the part of his zanpakuto. He had visited this area once in reality, a couple of years back, when a neighboring Soul Civilization had requested military support in the wake of a living-world plague dubbed the 'Black Death'. The disease had killed tens of thousands of humans, and the number of plus spirits - and the resulting hollows - materialized in such a short period of time had grown overwhelming throughout the West, to the point where the Soul Civilization existing there had been spread thin to the breaking limit. Posted in Venice, Sosuke himself had been assigned with a task that, in short, involved performing konso on as many plus spirits as he could find. Rest despite, however, he had taken a liking to the watery city immediately, though in reflection he could say that it might have been a bit more enjoyable without its inhabitants being plagued by a ravaging sickness. If it hadn't been for that slight mar, the place would have been quite lovely.
As such, he found himself rather enjoying this first encounter with his zanpakuto spirit.
Even if Kyoka Suigetsu had currently taken form as a mirror image of himself.
That aspect had been…almost unnerving, at first. The overwhelming impression that he was gazing into a reflective surface, watching himself move when he wasn't moving at all, watching himself speak when his lips hadn't so much as twitched…but after awhile, when the shock had toned down to a manageable amount, he found himself already learning new things from the experience, noticing habits that he had never noted before, glimpsing mannerisms that might be better changed, improved. If anything, such a perspective could come in handy.
But there was still a part of him that felt…disgruntled? A couth word, perhaps, but it illustrated the feeling well enough. Because Aizen knew, in a firm sort of way, that his inner world was not in fact comprised of the waterways of Venice. And, similarly, he knew that his zanpakuto form was not his reflection in the surface of a still pond.
He knew that this scene, beautifully constructed though it might have been, was a blatant lie.
At this point the chessboard was growing quite spacious, each side reduced to approximately half its original strength in numbers. Kyoka Suigetsu's pawn population had taken quite a beating, and it had lost a rook and both knights as well, but such statistics would be rendered equal to Aizen's own predicament, involving a lack of bishops and the loss of his queen. The remaining pieces were now scattered across the shining glass surface, result and victim to the tactical positioning of the last several turns.
Absently twisting a lifted pawn between his fingertips, Sosuke spoke, tone as friendly as ever.
"You seem worthy of your name, Kyoka Suigetsu. This place is exactly as I remember it."
His own face smiled faintly at him.
"You flatter me. But I try, I suppose. You have nice, sharp memories, you know. It's a good attribute. Quick, accurate. It wasn't very hard to replicate the area."
"Or myself, apparently."
Another quiet laugh. Aizen watched as a second pair of his own glasses flashed in the sunlight.
"That was the easiest part, my friend."
The next few turns passed without event. Both sides remained reluctant to lose any more men. Pieces moved, but remained unused. And the tea was cold when Aizen took a quick sip in passing, mouth slightly dry in the wake of his concentration.
Glancing from the interior of his cup to the board set before him, however, brought an eyebrow flying sharply upwards. He set down the piece of china flatly, regarding the gently smiling young man opposite him gravely.
"You rook was not there when you last moved."
And, indeed, a rook was now positioned in an insignificant area of the board, almost unnoticeable, but clearly on a crash course towards Sosuke's own king. One more move, and he would have lost the game.
Kyoka Suigetsu meets his gaze evenly, borrowed face the epitome of surprise.
"Well…"
And, slowly, a true smile broke upon its features. Aizen's features.
"So you noticed after all. That's good. You had me worried there, for a minute…"
Sosuke blinked once, carefully. Then he placed a hand on the table in a casual manner, expression easy as ever.
"I suppose we've both had enough of this game, then?"
His tone was just as amiable as it had ever been, but to those who might know him better, the new note to be found there was unmistakable. And Kyoka Suigetsu had known Aizen from the moment of his birth.
However, it was loathe to back down quite so easily.
"It's not like that, my friend," it objected mildly. "As I've said, you're a good player. And I hate to lose. I really, really do."
"As do I. Yet here we are."
A pause.
"…Show me who you really are. Who I am. That is why we are here in the first place."
This was responded with another smile.
A deadly smile.
It looked strange, inhuman, and yet…fitting…on his own face…
"Are you quite sure about that, Sosuke?"
"Should I not be?"
"Who is there to say that you'll like what you find?"
"Who is there to say that I should?"
Another pair of eyebrows climb into an untidy brown hairline. Kyoka Suigetsu's eyes glint behind the borrowed glasses.
"…I suppose you're right."
With an immaculate sort of precision it rises to its feet, Academy robes rumpled from the long sit-down. Aizen follows its movements.
And the world around them slowly melts away.
Aizen Sosuke knows that he has always had a…different way of viewing the world. This place of mankind, with all its imperfection and cruelty. Behind his own caring façade there is a black, black hatred of the world and its ways, and a burning scorn for those around him, those people who seem to remain blind to the glaring wrongness of their very existence. And he has always fumed, inwardly, silently, as those fools with their power and their pride nurture the injustice already naturally planted, as the crimes and tears to go unseen and unheard.
He knows that his views go against those of all around him.
Views of a new world, a new power.
And he knows that he is right. That he and he alone has been gifted with the insight, the foresight, and the power, to correct that which has been done, to enlighten all of existence.
Thus, it is with this resolution that he stands serenely, watching the colors of a pleasant illusion as they shred and fade into a void of blackness, a blackness before the truth. He stands, and his resolve is firm that he will look at himself, and he will know he has been right all along, right about everything he has learned of the world. He will embrace his heart, his zanpakuto, without a shred of doubt or regret.
And he steps into the void willingly, confidently, the lingering voice of Kyoka Suigetsu guiding him forward.
He is not evil.
He is not that simple, unruly four-letter word.
'Evil', is for those ambitious fools that aspire to take over the world.
A/N: Whoo! Phew!
-wipes sweat from forehead-
-.-'
Okay, don't ask me why, but this chapter took a great deal of effort to write…though at the same time, the words almost flowed from my fingers. Yep. Very, very weird. O.o
Anyways…I find Aizen to be practically a monument of all ironies, even compared to Tosen. Seriously, when you compare his intentions to what he's actually doing…just goes to prove that there really is some sort of little fireball of insanity festering behind all the intelligent words and calculated actions.
Rest assured, I don't like the guy. Unsurprisingly. His esteem in my eyes dropped to abysmal even before he went and betrayed Soul Society. I'd always thought something was just…off…about him, in the beginning. Though, like everyone else in the Gotei 13, I could never quite pinpoint it until he went and jumped the gun on us. Sly dog, that one.
-shakes fist at nonexistent Aizen-
Back on topic, I apologize for my uncreativeness with Kyoka Suigetsu. Totally uninspirational, I know. T.T However, when dealing with a character like this one, I just didn't have the heart to tamper drastically with it, considering things. -sigh- Is it just me, or has my creativeness sort of abandoned me recently? A worrying prospect…
And, for any curious about the whole 'Soul Civilization' theory…it's a vague hinting of a plot I've got going for a future fic…
However, moving on.
Unto the Hall of Thanks, I bestow much luv and adoration upon St. Kitsune, Moonrise31, hu3long2, DelMarch, kimi108909, Cymru na Alethaira, wisdom-jewel, D R A G O N L I L I E S, and rldragon for your reviews! Without you guys, this fic would have never reached chapter ten!! Again, THANK YOU!!