Once Miracle, Twice Fate
Chapter Two – Twice Hidden
The young man couldn't quite believe his eyes, as the spearman that so vigorously engaged him suddenly poured blood from his mouth and laid lifeless in front of him.
His body started to fail him, without the adrenaline of battle forcing him onward, he couldn't tell the cold of the rain from the temperature of his own body and even his vision started to blur, with the weakness of the loss of blood melting his senses. He knew death was nearing him, as he laid soaked in scarlet.
Amidst the dizziness and all the colors becoming bright around him, he noticed an indistinct figure, scantily clad in red dressings, kneel down in front of him, carrying a light that almost blinded his eyes. He held his sword up in instinct, as it spoke Japanese with a womanly voice.
"Don't be afraid."
"Are you… an angel?... Am I dead?..."
Rukia curved her lips slightly on a sad smile, seeing that he had learned Japanese, and listening to his spirit scream the torn state it was in. The light forming on her palm grew, as she focused more of her vital energy into it.
"Not if I can help it. If you have any gods to worship, pray to them I can suffice." The beacon of light left her hand and entered his chest, before he collapsed into a restoring sleep. She immediately felt weaker, but still managed to drag him to the stretcher and lead her horse away from the battlefield, as the last war cries and metal clashes were taking place, on the northern plains of Seiretei Island.
It took almost two hours to reach her hut, in the high reaches of the Kuchiki lands, choosing the softer and most sheltered paths. The rain had stopped, and a dense fog started to engulf the lower hills.
Also in the lower plains, the fog was forming, veiling the Seiretei people carrying the dead and the wounded from the crimson splattered grass. Among them, two warriors baring the arms of the Aizen household stood watching their fallen leader.
"White feathered arrows… the Kuchiki witch." said the silver haired man, turning to see Byakuya healing some of his men, at the distance.
"Where is she?" The dark skinned warrior grabbed the handle of his katana, while looking around him.
"Easy, Tousen." his lips curved in a sinister smile "We'll avenge our master's honor. But all in due time… For now, let's be discrete, shall we. We don't want him coming for us afterwards, you know." and he motioned his head slightly towards Byakuya.
The dark skinned man relaxed the hold on the sheathed katana. "Yes, Gin… We shall wait for when the Kuchiki princess can be found alone, unattended and unseen."
In truth, right now, the Kuchiki witch wasn't alone. After laying the man down on a mat, she proceeded to wash his wounds with a cloth soaked in essences meant to purify his body. Her life force had been enough to stop the bleeding, but she couldn't use it to fully regenerate him, afraid of becoming too weak to keep him alive.
Kneeling beside him, she gently brushed the cloth over his forehead, down his neck, on his broad shoulders, chiseled torso, watching concerned the way his chest was heaving and all the scars on his defined abs. He had become a strong man, a striking man, that boy she once concealed atop a hill and was now concealing in her own house. His fingers were continuously flexing in feverish compulsion and his breathing was rough and uneven.
Rukia bit her lower lip, deciding to risk another direct infusion from her life force, her palm already coming alight over his chest, but, amidst his delirium, he grabbed her shoulder blade and held her across his torso. Laid thus, his heart was pounding directly below her ear. It was beating strong, pulsing all through her senses. She allowed herself to remain on that position, comforted by the beating of his vital muscle. "Don't you lie to me." she whispered. "Don't you dare stop after screaming so loud that you can already beat on your own." And she spent the night veiling over the truth of his heart's speech.
The next day, he opened his eyes, while she was drawing symbols on his skin, with element consecrating oil moistened fingers, reciting ancient chants of spirit mastery.
"What happened to me?"
"Shh. You're hanging on. I'll get you well soon."
"I can't move… I can't see… " his eyes were moving around repeatedly in panic.
"It's just for today. I canceled all your superfluous functions, so your spirit can use more power to regenerate your body."
"I don't want to stay like this!"
"You lost too much blood, some of your vital functions are still at the verge of collapsing, the less your spirit gets drained in secondary functions, the more the chances of it being able to regenerate your body completely."
"I know nothing of such spirits."
"But I do." And she leaned closer to his ear. "Trust me."
After a moment, he slightly nodded and closed his eyes again, while Rukia dipped her fingers in the small oil pot.
"Why didn't you cancel my speech as well?"
She smiled, resuming the drawing of the symbols down the side of his waist, thinking she very much liked his voice.
"Because panic would also trouble your spirit."
She slept uneasy that night, constantly observing him from her mat. She missed the reassurance from the nearby beating of his heart, but knew there was no need for such a close watch, given his body was giving signs of recovering steadily.
On the next day, she cleaned all the markings from him, freeing his spirit to all the regular functions again. Her own spirit had recovered some of its energy, and she plunged a small amount from it into him, while he slept, as an extra boost, before leaving the hut to do some needed trading in Rukongai.
She decided to walk instead of taking her horse, roaming down the paths down the hills that she knew by heart, that lead from her home into the small village. Not many people besides her brother and trusted personnel from the Kuchiki clan actually knew where she lived. Most people thought she lived in the Kuchiki main house, and in truth, she would spend there most of her time. But not now. She surely wouldn't be able to hide the keeping of the Russian from her brother's sharp eyes, he would certainly notice the weak state of her spirit, so he was the last person she wished to bump into today.
She strolled around the market, slightly smiling while testing the fabric of some western style shirts and suits. The young man was recovering swiftly, it filled her heart to know she managed to save him. But what would happen, once he was fully recovered?
"Can I keep him?"
"Rukia, he's not a toy for you to keep."
He's not even a boy anymore. Still… did she want to keep him?... She's not a girl anymore neither. But she did not want to think of such things. Right now, all she wanted to concentrate on was restoring him back to health. Whatever lies beyond, time would tell.
So deeply was she delved on her thoughts, that she never noticed the two men watching her through the crowd, while leaving the market with all her new purchases tied behind her back. Their hands gripping their katanas and their nod sinister the enough to make the market sounds resemble a rattle-snake's warning.
On her way up the hills, Rukia was wondering if the Russian was strong enough to start eating, when a flight of startled birds around the trees called her attention. She halted, scouting her surroundings with her acute, though weakened, spirit master senses. She could sense one – no – two strong spirits with the intent to kill, stealthily approaching behind her. Holding her breath, she considered her options, while cursing herself for being so careless. She didn't have enough spirit force to successfully damage them with spells, she had left her own weapons on the hut and her only defense was the small dagger she kept tied to her inner thigh. Her only option was to run, and thus she darted forward, making the two men rise from their hiding, to follow suit in open chase.
Inside the hut, the orange haired Russian suddenly sat up from the mat, looking around in confusion and urgency. He grabbed Rukia's white katana from the stand, before hurriedly leaving the wooden shelter.
Down the hills, Rukia had disentangled herself from the goods behind her back, but the pursuers easily jumped over them without losing terrain. Even though small and quick as a fox, she was rivaled in agility by the two men from the Aizen house, that, not so familiar with the terrain, were still surpassing her speed due to their superior physical condition. She looked back to realize how close Gin was from gripping her, and screamed in desperation, on a last attempt to force her body to plunge forward beyond its limits.
In front of her, she saw her own horse running down the path, mounted by the Russian, wielding her katana. Their eyes met mirroring each other's urgency for a moment, before Rukia rolled out of the way and Gin only barely raised his sword in time to prevent a fatal blow, being tossed against a tree by the violence of the clash.
The Russian dismounted the horse and shielded Rukia, as Tousen approached. They engaged in vigorous swordfight, the foreigner proving to be a skillful master of katana handling, even on his weak condition, but Rukia didn't wait to see the end of it. As soon as the dark skinned man showed an opening, she emerged from behind her protector and plunged her dagger in between the warrior's ribs. They witnessed the dark man gasp and fall, when death reaped his soul.
Rukia's eyes widened seeing Gin emerge from behind the Russian, but as he picked up the sign and turned, a blade was already pierced through the silver haired man, and he was dripping blood from his mouth, falling lifeless at their feet. Behind him, Kuchiki Byakuya was retrieving his katana from the limp body.
The Russian was turning to see if Rukia was unarmed, when the same blade, still tainted with Gin's blood, rested underneath his chin.
"Nii-sama, NO!" Rukia tried to pull her brother's arm down.
"Give me one good reason not to." He was glaring the stranger, fully recognizing the Russian traits on his pants and boots. The man returned every spark of hostility with his gaze, unaffected by the katana that held his neck hostage.
"Is having saved your sister's life so little to you?" and she let go of his arm, with a hurt expression, letting him measure her words fully.
Byakuya closed his eyes for a few moments, before swiftly drawing back and sheathing his katana. He looked at his sister, not needing to say he wanted a word with her, in private.
Rukia turned to the soldier, while gripping both her arms nervously. "Please, take my horse back to the house, I'll be fine now." The Russian just looked at Byakuya and back at Rukia, reluctant to leave her behind. "It's alright. He's my brother. I'll return soon." The young man stood looking at her for a moment longer, before heading towards the horse and leading it up the path, still eyeing both of them over his shoulder, every few yards.
Byakuya watched him, before lowering his eyes to the ground. "Rukia, I've always tried to give you room for your private affairs, but do you mind telling me what's going on?"
She was too uncomfortable to look him in the eyes. "I guess I just saved him again, Nii-sama."
"Am I supposed to understand this statement?"
"Don't you remember?... The orange haired boy, about fifteen years ago? That I saved after they killed his parents, back when the foreigners were still outlawed?"
"You don't mean…"
"Yes, Nii-sama, that's him." and she added with a shy smile "I guess miracles do happen."
Byakuya frowned his eyebrows together. "Seriously, what is it about you and that boy?! And what do Aizen's men have to do with all this?"
"I already told you, Nii-sama…" She gripped her arms tighter. "I… saved him again."
"You didn't…" he whispered, stressing his features in disbelief.
"I had to." she whispered back.
Byakuya closed his eyes and paced away a few steps. "… I'm going to visit our parents' grave… Beg them for forgiveness, for I clearly ruined you with my spoiled upbringing… To think that you so easily killed your own kind to save an enemy…"
His words were hurting her and she dared to talk back. "I'm sure they'll understand. They too killed and fell by their own kind, during the clan wars." Byakuya suddenly turned to her, his face clearly showing he was taking insult to their ancestors from her words. His eyes hurt more than any slaps he could punish her with and Rukia shrugged and shivered, not daring to look at him no longer, but still finding the courage to speak under a trembling voice. "One's enemy is the one opposing one's interests. Fifteen years ago, you could kill him because he was a foreigner. Now, you can only kill him because Russia has been trying to occupy the islands. In his army, he killed who he was told to kill, same as you. He is not my enemy. One day, when they sign a treaty, he won't even be anyone's enemy."
Byakuya walked back to her, using a stronger tone. "Right now, he's an enemy of my nation and I won't have him on what is still the patch of land under my rule." He stood towering over her. "I'll spare his life as favor for his protection of you, but either you send him back to his land or I'll do it myself."
A long silence ensued. Byakuya still looking down at her, while she kept her head low, hiding her eyes from his scrutiny. Fifteen years have passed, but she was still the little kid. Finally, she spoke, with a weak voice. "… Two days."
He sighed, gazing the distant horizon. "Rukia, my tolerance, even for you, has limits."
"Two days. … Let me just heal him completely. … Please."
"Promise me." He lifted her chin to force her to look at him. Her eyebrows were knit together, but he could see more sadness than anger in her eyes. It ached inside his heart see her like this, but he didn't waver. "Promise me you'll send him back two days from now."
She blinked repeatedly. "I promise, Nii-sama." He slightly nodded and turned, walking away. "… I also promise…" Byakuya stopped and turned his face slightly to the side. "that it's the last time I'll send him away. … If he finds his way back to me again, I won't let go of him unless he or I so wish it. If you'll still wish him off Seiretei, should that happen… I'll leave as well."
Byakuya took a moment to reply. "… You said it yourself. It's a miracle your paths crossed again. And a miracle only happens once." and he resumed his path.
Rukia watched him walking away, her eyes framed under a sad frown, as she whispered to herself "Then this time, I'll just ask for whatever happens twice."