AN: I'd like to begin just with a humongous thank you to all you reviews out there! A hundred reviews. I've never had that before and it makes me all fuzzy and warm inside. I was truly in shock. So, cheers to you all! Now on to things that can be addressed… subtle fluff… it could be that. In all honesty, I don't really think about things in terms of fluff or not. I just kinda write stuff and what you see is it… and stuff (I'm oh-so eloquent, as you can tell). I'm sure people will manage when this is finished. To be honest, I haven't quite finished the last two chapters. Eheheh, but they'll get finished. University is hellish this time of year. I think I'm amazed that people are willing to sacrifice schoolwork to read my story. I can understand how this chapter could have gone in many completely different directions. It meandered into the territory it did, though it could easily been a lot more light hearted. I do love writing little quirks into characters. I can't resist. Anyway, enough rambling for tonight. Thank you all once again – I'm glad people stick with this story and new people join in! And now may I present theme eleven, chapter twenty-one!

11. Gardenia

"What are you doing?"

Byakuya looked up to see Hisana sitting on the edge of the veranda, her hands propped underneath her face. She looked surprisingly fascinated, considering he was only holding a small pair of secateurs and standing in front of a lone bush.

"I sometimes like to try my hand at new hobbies. Shaping bushes into art sounded interesting, so I am having a go. What do you think?" he asked, gesturing to the bush behind him.

From what Hisana could tell, it was meant to be a person… she thought. It had a childlike cloud shaped body with two arms sticking out, each with three fingers. It had no discernable face, but appeared to be friendly. Although not being a classic work of art, Hisana had to admit it was better than anything she could have done.

"It's very… artistic." It was all she could think to say that sounded like a compliment.

Byakuya gave a slight smile and Hisana had the feeling he knew she was trying to spare his feelings. He turned back to his work and continued. They both enjoyed the peaceable silence. Hisana stretched out and before she knew it the soothing sounds of the outdoors sent her to sleep.

When she awoke, the sun was beginning to set. She opened her eyes to see Byakuya above her. It was then she realised her head was resting on his lap and she sighed.

"What's this about?" she asked and Byakuya looked down at her, slightly confused.

"I grew tired of gardening for today and chose to prevent my wife looking like a sprawled wreck in public," he serenely replied, returning his gaze to the gardens.

Hisana's eyebrow twitched in annoyance.

"Do you ever tell the direct truth? Since when has the Kuchiki gardens been public? If you just wanted me closer, or to have my head rest on your lap, say so. I'm not going to flip out. If anything, I'd be pleased," she pointed out. Byakuya gently lifted her head and placed a kiss on her forehead before getting up.

"Hisana, you remember it's the annual gathering of the four noble families for a formal dinner and dance, don't you?"

She sighed at his sudden change of subject, but nodded and stood up alongside him.

"Come with me. There's something I wish you to have for the evening."

He took her hand and began leading her through the gardens. Hisana's interest was definitely piqued. After minutes of venturing into the Kuchiki gardens, he drew to a halt at a cluster of small trees with beautiful white flowers. Byakuya gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before letting go. He plucked a small group of the flowers and twisted the stalks together.

"Hisana, I thought this would be nice for the dinner and dance. Do you want it?"

She was at a loss for words.

"It's beautiful… but what is it?" she asked.

"They're gardenias. My phase of learning to garden got me interested in growing all sorts of species of plants. I thought these were quite pretty. I like Chinese bellflowers better, but they're too delicate to be made into a corsage," he explained.

Hisana plucked the gardenias off him and examined it.

"A corsage? What do you do with it?"

Byakuya looked incredulous for a moment, then began to quietly chuckle, which prompted Hisana to narrow her eyes and lightly hit his arm.

"Sorry for being so uneducated," her tone suggested she was ticked off, but her heart wasn't in it.

"Here," Byakuya took the corsage back and placed it on her wrist, tying it securely. Hisana admired it and smiled.

"It's… like a bracelet," she paused, becoming a little fidgety, "… Thank you, Byakuya. It's beautiful. I'll wear it tonight."

"That means a lot to me."

His words caught her off guard.

"Byakuya…" she began, but knew he'd get annoyed if she kept thanking him. She was happy when he came out with something that wasn't hidden with fancy words. When the plain truth came out of his mouth, her stomach flopped like a fish out of water.

Instead of her usual thanks, she slipped her arms around his waist and stepped up on her tiptoes to almost crush his lips against hers. He seemed surprised, but quickly pulled her closer. Some rather passion filled minutes passed until Hisana's feet couldn't take being on tiptoes any longer and she pulled back.

"Do we have to go to this dinner?" she asked breathlessly, raising a suggestive eyebrow.

Byakuya drew breath and checked the sky for the position of the sun before hauling her into his arms and using shun-po to return to the house.

"… I think we can be fashionably late."