Author's Note: Please check out the Bleach Halloween writing challenge on the "So You Want to Write Bleach Fics" forum: .net/topic/63974/17804413/1/ and on DeviantArt! Deadline for entries is midnight EST Tuesday, 10/27/09, voting will begin on 10/28/09 on my profile - fic with the most votes wins!-Lex
Chapter Nine: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea*
Ichigo woke with a start - he was lying on his bed in the captain's quarters of the Vincent, a cool morning breeze wafting through the open cabin window. He stood up, grimacing as his muscles protested the abuse they had suffered. The splint on his leg was gone, leaving only a dull ache where there had once been a broken bone. He had no idea of how long he had been unconscious, but he guessed it had been days.
"Damn," he thought, wondering what excuse he might use for his prolonged absence. He walked out of the bedroom into the main cabin to get a drink of water.
"Sir!" squeaked George, the young cabin boy, who saluted his captain and then scrambled out of Ichigo's quarters and up the steps. Ichigo shrugged and poured himself something to drink from a pitcher on the table. Several minutes later, Hisagi entered the room, George following behind, barely visible behind the set of broad shoulders. Hisagi's face was unreadable.
"Not dead, sir?" he quipped.
"Apparently not," Ichigo replied, scowling. "Although it feels like I've been keel hauled."
"Three sheets to the wind, more likely, given the, ah….stench….when we found you…sir," Hisagi said, coughing politely.
"I…" Ichigo broke off, realizing he was far better off trying to explain why he was drunk than attempting to explain the truth of his extended absence from his ship. "I guess I had a bit too much rum. How did I get here?"
"Stephens found you, unconscious, in a…," he coughed again, "…house of ill-repute." Hisagi replied. Then, turning to George, who was listening to the conversation with rapt interest, Hisagi said pointedly, "George, Lieutenant Jones needs help checking the sails." The boy blushed fushia, then nodded and saluted the two men before scrambling out of the room.
Hisagi raised an eyebrow. Then, lowering his voice, he said, "So are you going to tell me what really happened, sir?"
The question was left unanswered, however, because voices were heard outside the door, followed by some scuffling and finally, a loud knock. Hisagi walked over to the door, which flew open and nearly hit him in the face. A very short sailor stood in the doorway, clearly uncomfortable and shaking slightly.
"What is it, Davis?" Hisagi asked.
"Visitors, s…s…sir," Davis stammered, his face slightly red to see Ichigo, shirtless, standing by the window.
"Who?" Ichigo barked.
Davis trembled noticeably. "R…Royal…N…Navy….C…C…Commodore Ichimaru, sir."
Hisagi shot Ichigo a dark look.
"What does he want?"
"I have no idea, s...s…sir," Davis replied, clearly intimidated. "He says he must s…s…see you i….immediately."
Ichigo grabbed a clean shirt from his dresser and turned back to the trembling Davis. "Show him down here, Davis," Ichigo ordered, pulling the shirt over his head and taking his jacket from the back of a chair.
"Aye, sir!" Davis replied, relieved, rushing out of the cabin and back up the steps.
Ichigo glanced in the mirror. His face was covered with several days of reddish-brown stubble and there were deep black circles under his eyes – he looked terrible. There was no time to shave. He looked at Hisagi. "All you know is that I had too much to drink in port and got a little carried away, understood?"
"Aye, sir," Hisagi replied.
"I'll explain later." Hisagi nodded.
Ichigo finished buttoning his jacket and smoothing his hair just as the door flew open again. A tall, thin man with silver hair walked in the cabin, flanked by two aides in full uniform.
"Kurosaki," said Ichimaru Gin, waving his hand to his companions, who stood at attention by the door.
"Commodore Ichimaru, sir," Ichigo responded, his voice clipped, formal.
"At ease," said Ichimaru, studying Ichigo's face with undisguised amusement.
"Sir," Ichigo replied, relaxing his stance.
"My, my, Kurosaki, but you do look like hell," Ichimaru drawled, with a smirk.
Ichigo said nothing, but stared coolly at Gin. He despised the man, and trusted him even less, despite his superior rank.
"Of course, far be it for me to deny any sailor his shore leave," Gin continued, blithely. "However, I hardly think it a good example for your men to…"
"Permission to speak freely, sir," said Ichigo, interrupting Gin. Gin's grin grew – he enjoyed a challenge.
"Of course, Captain," Gin said, stressing Ichigo's rank. Hisagi shot Ichigo a furtive glance. He had witnessed this particular power struggle several times before, and knew how much his captain loathed Ichimaru.
"Why are you here…sir?" Ichigo asked, not bothering to mask his contempt for his superior. "Clearly this is not just a social call."
"How perceptive of you, Kurosaki," replied Gin, silkily. He sat down in one of the leather chairs by the windows and motioned Ichigo to join him. Hisagi moved to stand behind Ichigo, his hands resting on the high back of Ichigo's chair.
"I have received some rather disturbing information, Kurosaki," said Gin, crossing his legs in the chair and leaning back for effect.
"And what would that be, sir?" Ichigo asked, nonplussed. He knew this game, and he would not be intimidated, regardless of rank.
"I heard tell that you have located the Soul Warrior, Captain," said Gin, with his usual serene grin. "And that you let her go."
"Then you've heard wrong, Commodore," Ichigo replied, curtly, not missing a beat. "We did chase a pirate ship off the coast of La Prière, but it was not the Warrior." Ichigo felt Hisagi's hand tighten on the back of the chair at the lie.
"And where is this phantom ship, then?" Gin inquired, smoothly.
"We lost her, sir, off the northern tip of the island," Ichigo answered. "We have searched for her, but she has either sailed for other parts, or she is well hidden."
"How unfortunate," Gin said, grinning more broadly now. Ichigo knew that the Vincent's failure was a boon to Ichimaru, and that he would report back to Yamamoto without delay.
"Quite unfortunate," said Ichigo. "But there are still plenty of pirate vessels to be found, Commodore. In fact, I have recently received word that several of Captain Aizen's ships are in the area."
"Is that so?" mused Gin. "And how do you know this?"
"I make it my business to know, Commodore," said Ichigo, smiling at Gin. "The Vincent is, after all, assigned to patrol these waters."
"True," said Gin, standing up and walking back over to the doorway, feigning boredom. "You will contact me, of course, if you locate the Warrior," he added. "Oh, and any other pirate ships you may lose along the way."
"Of course," replied Ichigo, ignoring the jab and saluting.
Gin waived his hand and the two aides opened the door to let him through. Ichigo and Hisagi watched, in silence, until Ichimaru had disappeared up the steps. Hisagi then closed the door and turned to Ichigo.
"Permission to speak freely, sir," he said, stiffly.
"Permission granted," Ichigo replied, eyebrows raised.
"What the hell game are you playing at?" The words came tumbling out of Hisagi's mouth with such vehemence that he added quickly, "No disrespect, of course, sir."
Ichigo laughed. "It's no game, Hisagi," he said, shaking his head, his face suddenly serious.
"Then why lie to Ichimaru? You know it was the Warrior we chased here."
"You and I know that," said Ichigo, "but it will not be in my report to London," Ichigo replied, calmly.
"But sir…"
"There is far more going on here than meets the eye, Hisagi," Ichigo interrupted, "and I am not going to give that…collaborator….any information until I understand it all."
"You really believe he is working with Aizen's pirates, then," said Hisagi.
"I'm convinced of it."
Hisagi looked mortified. "But sir," he said, uncomfortably, "he's your superior officer. If he…"
"I'm well aware that I could be tried for treason for lying to a superior officer," Ichigo said. "I need you to trust me on this."
Hisagi looked at Ichigo and sighed. "Of course. I trust you implicitly – you've never been wrong before. It's just that…"
"Trust me, Shuuhei," Ichigo said. "Please, old friend."
***************************************
Rukia sat in her small house, looking out the window at the harbor below. The Soul Warrior would sail tonight and, for that, she was extremely thankful. Their stay in port had been far longer, and more eventful, than she had hoped it would be.
She had left Ichigo, with Renji's help, in a brothel in Le Péché, the main port town of La Prière, dousing his clothes with a good measure of alcohol to give him an excuse or, at least, a fair attempt at an excuse for his nearly weeklong absence from the Vincent. She still feared that he might reveal the secret of Thyilea to the Royal Navy, but the Assembly had voted to release him, convinced that he was, in fact, who Urahara had claimed him to be.
"A direct descendant of the High Priestess, Reika, and a Yamamoto," she said, to no one in particular. "Unbelievable."
"The Assembly believes it, Captain," said Urahara Kisuke, walking through the open front door, "as do I."
"How is it that the Captain-Commander never mentioned to Ichigo that he's Ichigo's great uncle?" Rukia asked, still unconvinced.
"I'm quite sure the Captain-Commander has his reasons," said Urahara, with a coy smile.
"There are more Druids in the Royal Navy," Rukia said, realizing the implications of Urahara's comment, "and you know exactly who they are, don't you, Kisuke?"
"I hear you and Abarai left Captain Kurosaki in town," Urahara said, ignoring her question and abruptly changing the subject. She hesitated for a moment and glared at him before responding.
"It took us nearly a day to heal him," she said, accusingly. "You nearly killed him, Kisuke."
"He nearly allowed himself to be killed," replied Urahara, evasively.
"You fought him," she said, shaking her head. "He had no idea he was fighting you, though, did he? What did you use this time – a dragon, a lion, a…?"
"A sea monster," answered Urahara, peering up at her from under the brim of his hat. He was grinning broadly, obviously pleased with himself.
"A sea monster?" she laughed. "No wonder he didn't believe it was real."
"He shows promise, Captain Kuchiki," Urahara said, "and you know it."
"Promise of what, Kisuke? To come after the Warrior with his ship and actually sink her this time?"
"You know precisely what I mean," Urahara replied.
"We'll be lucky if he doesn't turn the entire town over to the authorities," said Rukia, darkly.
"I'm convinced he will not do that, as is the Assembly. You know, he is quite intelligent, Captain," Urahara parried, "he already suspects there are other forces at work here."
"You still believe Aizen has infiltrated the Royal Navy?"
"Absolutely. And I believe our handsome Captain Kurosaki suspects of the same," Urahara replied.
*******************************************
The Soul Warrior left the safety of the hidden cove after dark – not an easy feat, given the dangerous rocks at the mouth of Thyilea Harbor. Rukia, however, knew the treacherous passage better than anyone, and guided the ship safely onto the open water without incident.
Back in her cabin after midnight, she sat up in her bed, unable to sleep. As they were want to do these days, her thoughts strayed to Ichigo and the Vincent. She told herself, as she always did, that she was just worried that Ichigo might come after the Soul Warrior. But, to be honest, she was less concerned about that particular problem than she was about her growing feelings for the Vincent's captain. And then there was matter of another man about who she often thought: Renji.
Abarai Renji. Loyal, strong, kind - all of the things she knew she should want in a man. Why on Earth did he have to fall for her? She had never given him reason to believe that she…
"I have never given him reason to believe otherwise," she thought, with regret. "I should have realized…"
Now, in the darkness, with just the sound of the waves against the ship's hull as company, she had to admit to herself that she had seen the signs, but had just disregarded them: the concern for her welfare which went beyond just concern for a superior officer; the look of disappointment when she told him she would not join him for drinks in town; the hint of jealousy in his eyes when he saw her with Ichigo.
"You're a fool, Rukia," she told herself. "Even more the fool because he is a good man, and he would be good to you."
They had grown up together, she and Renji, in one of the poorest neighborhoods in London, begging for food, lucky to have a roof above their heads when the rain fell. He had been both a brother and a father to her, fighting off the larger children who sought to steal their food and pitiful shelter. She owed her survival, her very life, to him – and she knew it.
Years later, when Kuchiki Byakuya had found her, stowed away on one of his many sailing ships, Renji had come to her defense at considerable risk to himself. Already a crewman on the ship, Renji had argued that she should remain aboard – that her knowledge of sailing was far superior than the other deckhands'. And when Byakuya's family had adopted her as their own and sent her to apprentice with Urahara, Renji had been nothing but supportive, never once trying to dissuade her from pursuing her dream of commanding her own ship. Even now, he chose to stay by her side, despite the knowledge that he could have his own command should he just ask.
"Renji," she thought, bitterly, "I don't deserve you. I never have."
**************************************
The Soul Warrior reached Antigua two days later. They would restock here, in preparation for their return trip to Europe, dropping anchor in a secluded cove not far from the main port. They had seen no sign of the Vincent nor of any other Royal Navy vessel that patrolled the area, but Rukia took no chances. All supplies would need to be carried, overland, from the port, and crew would need to take turns to go ashore to purchase their last-minute gifts and items for the return trip.
Having reassured herself that the preparations for their crossing were well underway, Rukia donned a pair of men's britches, threw a large white shirt over her tank top, and hid her now-long hair underneath a bandana to make the short trip into town by foot. She looked a little like a cabin boy, as small as she was, her face smooth and her checks flushed from the warm Caribbean heat.
She walked around the port and purchased a few trinkets to bring back to London for Byakuya – not that he needed them or had any particular use for them – but it gave her great pleasure to do this, as a token of her love and appreciation for him. She knew he appreciated the gesture, despite his ever-cool demeanor. Trekking back through the warm sand towards the ship a few hours later, she heard a familiar voice from behind her.
"You didn't tell me you were going into town," Renji said, cajolingly, "I'd have escorted you, sir."
"Stop, Renji," laughed Rukia, waiting for him to catch up with her on the trail. "You know I'm perfectly capable…"
"I know," he interrupted, grinning "but at least you could take advantage of my highly honed skills as a negotiator to get you a better price at the market."
She laughed. "I probably should have."
They walked for a while before coming to a small beach about halfway back to the boat.
"Care for a swim?" she asked, wiping her forehead with her sleeve. The sun was beating down from overhead, she was hot a sweaty, and the water beckoned.
"Sure," he said, taking off his shirt and tossing it to the ground. She pulled the bandana off her head and tied her hair into a high ponytail, tossing her over shirt next to his.
The water felt wonderful. As she floated, watching the puffs of clouds float by overhead, she realized how long it had been since she had just taken the time to relax. She resolved to take a few days when they got back to London to go to the Kuchiki family's country home, outside of the city.
"It's good to see you unwind a little, Ru…I mean, Captain," said Renji, watching her as they lay on the beach, a short while later, enjoying the cool breeze on their wet skin.
"It's been an interesting few weeks, hasn't it, Renji?" Her eyes were closed, and she took a deep breath.
"Very," he said, overly conscious that she lay only inches away from him on the sand.
"Thank you for everything you've done to help, Renji," she said. "This has been a challenging trip." He sat up and watched her lying there for a few minutes.
"Rukia?"
"Hmmm?" she said, stretching her hands over her head.
"I know it's probably none of my business, but…" His voice trailed off.
"It's alright, Renji. Just ask me," she said, opening her eyes and smiling at him kindly.
"Did you…," he hesitated, clearly uncomfortable. Then, rephrasing, he asked, "Do you care about him?"
"Kurosaki?"
"Yes," Renji replied.
"It's over, Renji," she said. "It was a mistake."
Renji looked relieved.
"Listen, Renji, I think I'd better…" she began, but she was interrupted by Renji, who grabbed her and pulled her to him, kissing her squarely on the lips. "Renji? What are you…"
He kissed her again. In spite of herself, she found herself kissing him back.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, Rukia?" she thought, with alarm. "He's like a brother to you."
He ran his hand through her hair.
"Stop," she said, abruptly, pushing him away.
He looked mortified. "I…I'm sorry…I didn't mean to…"
"Renji," she said, looking horrified. "You've done nothing wrong. It's just that I…"
He stood up. "Hey," he said, offering her his hand. "It's alright. I don't know what came over me." She took his hand and got to her feet.
There was an uncomfortable moment of silence before she said, "We'd better get back to the ship. I need to review the duty rosters or my first mate is going to let me hear about it." He laughed, and they walked along the trail, discussing ship matters – anything but what had happened between the two of them - for nearly a half hour until they reach the edge of the cove where the Warrior was anchored.
As they reached the top of the high dunes which overlooked the water, Renji reached out his arm and pulled Rukia back into the brush.
"What is it?" she asked, alarmed.
"Navy ship, alongside the Warrior," he whispered.
"No," she gasped, inching up over the dunes to see. Sure enough, she could see a ship reefed to the Warrior. It was not the Vincent, but that knowledge gave her little relief – it would have been simple for Ichigo to discover where they had been headed and alert another ship.
"If I find out it was you who told them where to find the Warrior, Ichigo, I'll kill you myself," she thought, angrily.
"We need to get out of here," Renji whispered in her ear. Several soldiers were headed in their direction from the beach, evidently looking for any crew who had gone ashore. She nodded towards the thick underbrush and trees that led back where they had come, and they scrambled quickly off the trail.
"Could you read the name of the ship?" she asked, once they were out of earshot of the troops.
"No," he replied, as they made their way slowly through the thick vegetation, pushing branches out of the way. "Definitely Royal Navy, but not the Vincent. I'd recognize her in a heartbeat."
"You think he told them where to find us?" she asked.
"It's certainly a good guess," he replied, with a scowl. "Who else knew we were headed here?"
A branch snapped behind them, and they ducked behind a stand of mango trees. Two uniformed Navy men walked in front of the trees, a hair's breadth from where Rukia and Renji hid. Rukia summoned her weapon, and Renji did the same. After a few minutes, the men turned and walked off, back in the direction of the trail.
"We've got to find a place to hide," Rukia whispered, looking around. "They'll be all over the place." Keeping low, they walked further into the tropical forest. The going become more difficult, as the brush grew thicker. Rukia's shirt was now torn in several places, the result of several close encounters with thorny branches. Renji's cheek bled from a deep scratch.
The sounds of branches cracking again, and Rukia pulled Renji down into a slight indentation in the ground. They could see blue and gold through the trees – more soldiers – at least ten of them, following in their footsteps.
"We've got to get out of here, Renji," she said, as they began to back up slowly away from the advancing troops. They walked about thirty feet, and saw a flash of white in front of them.
"Need a little help?"
"Ichigo!" said Rukia, startled.
Renji pointed his sword at the orange-haired captain, his upper lip curled in a silent snarl.
"I'm not your enemy, Abarai," Ichigo hissed.
"Renji," Rukia said, realizing she had little choice but to trust Ichigo, "lower your weapon."
"But, sir…" Renji began.
"Lower it. That's an order."
Renji reluctantly lowered his weapon. Ichigo gestured for them to follow him, leading them to a rocky outcropping and through some more vegetation. They reached what appeared to be a dead end, and Ichigo pulled back a thick vine, revealing a small crevice in the rocks. They squeezed through the crevice and found themselves in a dimly lit cave.
"Thanks," said Rukia. Ichigo grinned.
In a flash, Rukia held the edge of her sword to Ichigo's neck.
"What the hell…?" he squawked, stunned.
Rukia's eyes blazed red as she said, in a low, controlled voice, "You've got just one minute to explain how you had nothing to do with the fact that my ship has been boarded by the Royal Navy, Captain Kurosaki, or I swear I'll slit your throat."
*Between the devil and the deep blue sea - An idiom meaning to choose between two undesirable situations (equivalent to "between a rock and a hard place"). Its original meaning may be that of a nautical reference citing the deep blue sea and a "devil"- a piece of wood or joint that is difficult to reach on a ship.