DISCLAIMER: I don't own Bleach or any of the characters associated with it. They belong to their respective owners. This storyline, however, does belong to me.
Before you get to reading...
Let me clear something up. I never said I was going to keep Hisana alive in this story and then "changed" my mind. I'm usually a woman of my word and when I say I'm going to do something, I stick to it. I did, however, say I was considering making a separate fic where she lives and I wanted everyone's opinions on that. If you want to go find a "better" fic and then come back when I write the one with Hisana living, by all means go ahead. But don't think I'm going to be nice and reply to your reviews at that point in time.
Thank you to those of you who were supportive of my decision, though. Means a lot to me. :) Now, without further babbling from meeee: Chapter 19!
The House of Kuchiki
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Arisu sat back down at the table almost as swiftly as she had left, smiling at the elders encouragingly.
"What did you say to her?" Byakuya frowned as the elders nodded in Arisu's direction.
She winked at Byakuya. "You can thank me later."
Hisana, who had finished getting dressed, slowly walked out of her room, closing the door behind her before heading towards the dining room she had finally managed to learn how to get to.
Why did I distance myself so much recently...? It couldn't have been because I told him about Rukia... I felt more comfortable knowing he didn't disapprove of me...
She turned a corner and looked down at the flower in her hand. It had managed to remain in one piece, and very much alive, thanks to Kanaye's advice to put it in a small bowl of water for hydration.
It's just the two of us against all of the nobles in all of Soul Society... did that scare me?
She turned yet another corner, mindlessly getting closer to the dining room.
Byakuya-sama's the most powerful nobleman, though... that couldn't have been it... Was it because I realized he's too far out of my reach...?
After all... I'm just... an academy student. There's no way I could ever be good enough for him.
She suddenly remembered the time Byakuya had come to her classroom to apologize. Hisana smiled, remembering his words. I can assure you, she's perfect...
Finally arriving at the dining room, she stopped and took a deep breath before stepping into view. She saw Byakuya looking at Arisu with his usual cold expression. Arisu was smirking, obviously teasing him about something. As the people at the table noticed her entrance, the room began to grow silent.
She bowed deeply and looked up once more to see Byakuya's eyes transfixed on her, noticing the trace of joy that Arisu had mentioned. Is it really true that he never smiled before...?
She walked towards her seat and sat down, smiling warmly at Byakuya. "Good morning, Byakuya-sama."
Byakuya smiled in return, obviously very much relieved. "Good morning, Hisana."
With the exception of the occasional requesting permission to be excused from the table, nothing was said throughout all of breakfast. The final elder to leave the table turned to look at Byakuya and Hisana, who were having the same conversation with their eyes they had been having all through the meal, and sighed.
"Byakuya. The elders wish an audience with you at your convenience." Simply nodding to acknowledge the elder's words, Byakuya continued to stare into Hisana's eyes with a faint trace of a smile.
"It's been over a week since I've been able to see your eyes shine this way..." Reaching over to put the flower she had brought in her hair, he didn't seem to notice when the table began to clear completely without checking with him first.
Not that he cared, really. It DID get annoying after a while. What was he supposed to do? Forbid them from leaving the table until he was done? Besides... he'd much rather be here with Hisana at the moment anyways, and not being bothered for such a silly thing was much appreciated.
"I missed your eyes almost as much as your voice, Hisana." Hisana blushed as his hand trailed down from running his fingers through her hair to gently cup her cheek.
Arisu stood in the doorway watching with a content smile as Kanaye came up to her. "Change of heart, I see, Arisu-san?"
"Look at him, Kanaye." She glanced at the old servant before looking back at her cousin. "Why can't the elders just..." she sighed deeply, "They annoy me. Too stubborn and old to realize that he's only bitter when he's without her."
Kanaye nodded with a smile. "He wants to marry her, you know."
"What? He told you?"
"No, but it's obvious in how he looks at her."
This time, it was Arisu's turn to nod. "I told Hisana-san that I'd handle the elders."
The servant looked at Arisu with a raised eyebrow. "It was certainly nice knowing you, Arisu-san."
She rolled her eyes and turned to leave. "I'll see what I can do to soften them up before Byakuya snaps out of his trance and goes to meet with the old fools' council."
"Best of luck, Arisu-san." Kanaye bowed and watched her leave before walking slowly up to Byakuya.
"Byakuya-sama." Kanaye bowed slightly, not expecting much of a response. "Summon me when you need me." He watched Byakuya nod slowly before bowing once more to leave.
Hisana felt her entire face go extremely warm. She had never received this type of attention before. It was... intimidating. And yet still nice. There was something different in his eyes that morning she realized, not able to put the correct word on it.
He seemed calmer, happier... his eyes full of a warmth she had never before seen. What was it, exactly? It almost as if... he was admiring her.
"Byakuya-sama... what about the elders?" Hisana moved her hands up to hold his and moved his hand away from her face. "Don't they wish to speak with you?"
"Does it matter?"
Okay, that was certainly unexpected. Moving her hand up and slowly tracing her finger along the side of his face, she smiled. "You really should go see what they want... I'll come with you."
Bringing his hand up and catching her hand before she pulled it away, Byakuya nodded and kissed her palm gently before standing up with a sigh. "These meetings... drive me crazy."
Hisana, whose face was a vibrant shade of red, smiled and stood as well, wrapping her arms around his. "Well, we should go to it quickly so you can get it out of the way."
---
Arisu stood in the conference room, facing the elders. "With all due respect, I don't think you understand how much that girl means to him."
An elder spoke up, sounding very angry. "I don't think YOU understand how big of a stain his foolishness is going to cause on our name. Do you think we want an heir with blood mixed with dirt such as her?"
"You haven't even given her a chance!" Arisu raised her voice for the first time in this entire meeting.
"We don't need to. Once a filthy commoner, always a filthy commoner. And when did your alliance change, Arisu? You were against her just this morning."
"I..." Arisu sighed and looked down at the floor before looking back at the speaking elder defiantly. "I didn't understand then. He LOVES her. She makes him happy! Makes him SMILE! How often do you see him SMILE?"
"He's being fooled, as are you. We're going to put an end to this foolishness once and for all."
"You can't stop him, you know."
"No, we can't stop his stupidity. But we can deny any rash actions he takes. We will not have a stain put upon the white name of Kuchiki, do you understand me?"
Arisu sighed. "You just can't be reasoned with... no wonder Byakuya is so cold with you..."
"We no longer have a reason to speak with him; tell him that. If he's going to give the same ridiculous argument as you, hearing it once is more than enough. I, for one, do not wish to hear his confession of love for her."
Arisu let out an exasperated sigh and nodded. "Yes, sir."
---
As soon as Byakuya and Hisana arrived at the conference room, Arisu opened the door and slammed it shut behind her. "They don't need you anymore."
Byakuya blinked in mild confusion. "And why not?"
"Because I talked to them for you. They're not exactly supportive and they're not giving any blessings, but they won't get in your way. We're going to have some bumps, but I'll help in smoothing those out."
Byakuya smiled, putting his free hand on Arisu's shoulder. "Thank you."
"Ah, don't mention it. What are bothersome younger cousins for?" Arisu smiled and looked at Hisana. "You're going to look so pretty."
Had she missed something? What were they talking about? "...pretty in what?"
"No, nothing. Well... I have things to get to." Arisu bowed deeply. "I'll see you later, Byakuya. And you too, Hisana. Have a nice day," she winked before smirking and adding, "alone."
As Arisu began to leave, she stopped halfway down the hall and looked at Byakuya. "Oh, and I better be the one to handle decorations, Byakuya."
Byakuya rolled his eyes, but nodded. "Of course, Arisu. I wouldn't have anyone else in charge."
Hisana frowned, feeling very left out. "Decorations for WHAT?"
"All in good time, Hisana." Byakuya looked down at her with a smile before pressing his lips briefly to hers. "All in good time."
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Another chapter up tomorrow, keep an eye out. I'm finally getting room to breathe and omaigawsh, when did 100 reviews happen?! Thank you all sooooososososo much. Love ya all! :D