A/N: I have two more days in this lab and intend to make the most of them! After this, the updating speed should relax, but I'm going to try to get at least one update out a week.

I just realized that the Kurosaki siblings are kind of like the anti-Rukia in this verse. Since they're related by blood to a noble house without being members, and Rukia's a member of a noble house without being related. Although if you wanna get technical, Ichigo's married to Rukia, which would mean he's loosely tied to the Kuchiki. As a consort. Since he chose not to marry into the family (to Byakuya's immense relief), he doesn't get all of the perks associated with it, which means he doesn't get a say in the politics, doesn't have to take orders from Byakuya, and just has to go to official functions with Rukia when she has to go so he can stand there (and look pretty? XD).

Doing some reading on marriage practices in Japan, it also hit me that the Kuchiki clan's (okay, it was Byakuya, the elders would be more than happy to let go of Rukia at this point) compromise for IchiRuki would not ordinarily be allowed—modern-day law says that someone has to change their name, and Ichigo already indicated that it sure as heck ain't gonna be him. So Ichigo's probably a little testy about it on the inside, though considering the circumstances, at least they got to have the wedding. It does not surprise me that Byakuya managed to twist the law that way—at this point in the canon, the man has become a master of Loophole Abuse.

laughingspider, luck, drama, trickery, 20+ years of training, what have you. Byakuya and Ichigo both got away with (relatively) minor injuries, and Ichigo would probably have won if the fight had been allowed to keep going. (She was knocking him back, which is a fairly common occurrence with Ichigo's 'attack! attack! attack!' battle plan, but she wasn't actually hurting him much). The only reason she managed to get Byakuya on the ropes was because he isn't immune to her illusions and literally can't tell where she's coming from. Ichigo also managed to beat Aizen by using techniques that were so damaging to himself that he lost his powers for 17 months—I don't think he'd want to pull those out again unless absolutely necessary. And drama. Drama was a big factor in that chapter too. (Thing is, she's Aizen's zanpakuto. She's smart enough to realize that she couldn't win, which is probably why she went for someone she thought she might be able to kill.)

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach. At all.

Chapter 26: The chains of duty

Karin slammed her fist into the punching bag, feeling it shake with the force of her blow. She pivoted easily, bringing her foot around and kicking at it before punching it again. The Eleventh Division's indoor training hall echoed with the sound of her strikes, most of its other occupants keeping their distance. Sweat trickled down the side of her face as she punched at the bag again, her long tail of black hair swinging out behind her like a rope. She had stripped down to sarashi wrappings and hakama, exposing an X-shaped scar over her left shoulder, some remnant of the ten years she had spent in this division.

Her fist pulled back, slamming into the punching bag again.

It had been two days, she thought as she worked, two days since the rescue team had returned from Inuzuri. Two days since the soutaicho had declared Seiretei to be in a state of emergency.

Two days since Yuzu, Kohaku, and Masaryu had been admitted to the Fourth Division. Two days since she had had to see her twin sister's bloodied, broken body being carried to the Fourth Division by an injured Kuchiki Byakuya and an enraged Kurosaki Ichigo.

Two days since Kyoka Suigetsu and her band of allies had disappeared from Soul Society without a trace.

It occurred to Karin, as she slammed her fist into the punching bag with enough force to send it knocking against the wall, that she had never felt more useless before in her life.

It was all Ongetsu's fault, she thought, pulling her fist back and slamming it into the punching bag again. The zanpakuto spirit had retreated to his inner world after seeing what had happened to Yuzu and Jungetsu, and every time she picked up the sword, she could feel him seething with rage, but that hadn't been enough to force him to hand over his bankai name.

Which was stupid, in Karin's opinion, because by all accounts, she had won.

It was just after coming back from the human world when Karin managed to manifest her zanpakuto spirit in the outer world. Ongetsu stood in front of her in a deserted forest somewhere in Rukongai, a small smirk on his face as shadows swirled around him. Even now, in broad daylight in the outer world, Ongetsu's features were difficult to see. It was as if the light shied away from him, like it didn't want to touch him. One of his hands was curled around his scythe form, which rested just over his shoulder.

She didn't see the rabbit.

"So, Karin-chan," he had said, his voice echoing strangely in this place. "It looks like you're ready to face me."

"More than ready," said Karin, holding her own scythe with the shaft pointed down at the ground. She stared at Ongetsu, knowing her zanpakuto spirit well enough by now to know that she couldn't just charge in immediately. "What are the rules?"

"For bankai?" asked Ongetsu, sounding amused. "Let's see…If you win, I give you my bankai name. If you lose, I don't. Let's keep it that simple."

Karin snorted, picking up her scythe and holding the shaft with both hands. "Good enough for me," she said.

The two of them came together, scythe blades flashing in the bright light of midday.

It hadn't been an easy fight. In fact, it had been a goddamn difficult fight. Even her fight with Yumichika three years ago had been easier than that one. Ongetsu knew her fighting style more intimately than she knew it herself; he'd been able to predict most of her moves, and had blocked them easily. He was small, and he knew how to take advantage of his small size, making him damn difficult to hit. And to make matters worse, he was a motor mouth. He taunted her incessantly, insulting her abilities, her growth, comparing her to her siblings, reminding her of moments in her past that she had been less than proud of. Each taunt had made her angry, yes, but it had also made her stronger. She kept at the fight for hours, until she finally managed to gain ground and drive Ongetsu back. Ichi-nii would have been proud.

She'd won. She'd won! So why—?

"I won," she said as Ongetsu collapsed onto the ground, the fading sunlight casting long shadows on the clearing around them. Her scythe was pointing downwards, the tip piercing the earth, and the blade of it inches from Ongetsu's neck as the spirit breathed hard, staring up at her. Shadows covered the ground around him, encircling him, and continuing to hide half his face from view.

There was no smile on his face, no mirth in his eyes now. She looked down into gold eyes, and for a moment, she saw a reflection of herself. Younger, male, but still herself. His chest rose and fell with his breathing as he stared at her, his own scythe lying embedded in the ground a few feet away.

Shadows swirled around that too.

"No," he said, his voice sounding strangely sad as he looked up at her. "No, Karin, you haven't won. You lost."

"What do you mean?" Karin asked, her eyes narrowed. "I beat you fair and square, didn't I?"

Ongetsu shook his head, closing his eyes. "You lost," he repeated, shadows wreathing him. He sank downwards, into the carpet of shadow, into the earth. Karin's eyes widened as she felt his connection to the outer world disappear, felt him sink back into the inner world of her soul.

His words echoed in the air as he vanished, leaving her alone in the clearing.

You lost…

Karin sucked in a frustrated breath, blinking sweat and something else out of her eyes as she slammed her fist into the punching bag again.

Yuzu wished that the ceiling she woke up to was unfamiliar, but unfortunately, it wasn't, though it was only the second time in her life that she had seen it from this angle. From the smell of antiseptic that hung in the air, the clean white sheets that surrounded her, and the curtain that hung around her bed for privacy, she could tell that she was in the Fourth.

She lay there for a while, staring up at the ceiling and taking stock of her senses. For a moment, nothing hurt—indeed, for a moment, she couldn't feel anything at all, just a groggy haze, as if she was floating. She blinked, trying to get eyes that wouldn't focus to cooperate with her as she honed in on one particular corner of the ceiling. Drugged, she decided, fighting through the haze in her mind.

But alive. She had that to be thankful for, at least.

When she felt well enough to move, she raised her right hand, moving it towards her mid-section where she remembered being impaled. Her fingers came into contact with bandages, but the wound had obviously not recovered fully. The healers of the Fourth were probably waiting for her own reiatsu to take it from here. Her left hand, she noticed, was bandaged too, the wrapping going from her fingers all the way to her wrist. She curled her fingers slightly, wincing as they protested. Yuzu slid her hands slowly to her sides, braced herself, and tried to sit up.

Instantly, she regretted it. Pain flooded her midsection, a dull fire that nearly made her cry out. She grit her teeth against the scream, managing somehow to pull herself up far enough to lean against the headboard. A thought occurred to her at the back of her mind—that she was currently being a very bad patient—but she dismissed it impatiently, pausing to catch her breath. She was a Kurosaki. They were all infamously bad patients.

When her vision stopped blurring at the edges, she started surveying her surroundings. She was dressed in a clean white robe, the sort given to all patients of the Fourth, and had obviously been placed in a private room—whether because of her rank or because she had been admitted for an extended stay, she couldn't say. The door to her room was open a crack, revealing an empty hallway, and there didn't appear to be anyone in the room with her right now. The light coming in from the window told her that it was nearly dusk. She wondered how long she had been asleep.

Someone had pulled a chair next to her bed, on the side nearest the door. Yuzu turned to stare at the empty seat, her eyes alighting on a cup placed on the end table beside her. She rested her fingers against it, feeling the ceramic at her fingertips.

A cup of tea. Still warm.

Byakuya.

Her breath caught in her throat unexpectedly, and she lowered her hand to her side.

A soft mew caught her attention, and she looked around, realizing suddenly that she was not alone.

A brown and white cat padded its way over to her, looking at her curiously. He had been cleaned up since coming from Inuzuri, and wore a shiny new collar around his neck with a design on the tag that looked like the Kuchiki emblem, but there was no mistaking Mikado. He pushed his head against her hand and she obliged, reaching out to scratch him behind the ears with a small smile.

"Hello, Mikado-san," she said. "How did you get here?"

"Mraw."

"He brought 'im here," said a voice from her side, making her look up. The small figure that sat on the other side of the room had been so unobtrusive that at first, she hadn't noticed him. He slid out of his seat and padded over to the bed carefully, still looking like he might break and run at any moment. Like Mikado, the boy from Inuzuri had obviously been cleaned up too—his hair had been cut, he had been scrubbed clean, and was now dressed in a simple, but clean blue yukata. He was also wearing shoes, a pair of sandals that he seemed distinctly uncomfortable with. "He brought me here too—sorta—."

"He?" asked Yuzu.

"The—uh—the lord person," said the boy, flushing. "He carried you out from Inuzuri. You looked pretty bad—I thought you were done for. Anyway, the cat wanted to come, so he made some other shinigami carry it. And then, I—uh—I asked—you know—to come too." His flush deepened, and he stared down at the ground. "Not because of you or anythin'!" he added hastily, folding his arms. "Just because I wanted to see Seiretei! That's all!"

Yuzu smiled, covering her mouth to hide a giggle. The laugh became a gasp when her torso twinged in pain. Mikado hissed in protest as her grip tightened on him, shrugging out of her hands and jumping to the floor. Yuzu watched the cat pad his way across the room, leaping up into the boy's abandoned seat and curling up on the cushions.

"Anyway—uh—onee-san…" The boy blinked up at her. "Did you…really take a sword through the gut?"

"I—I guess I did," said Yuzu, looking down at her bandages. She couldn't remember much of what had happened, besides knocking Byakuya out of the way. She remembered one last desperate attack, and guessed that something must have worked, because she was still here. Had it really been that bad?

Pain, steel, her hand closed around a cold blade. Byakuya's shout, Kyoka Suigetsu's eyes. A flash of blue light—

She cringed at the memory. Yes. Yes, it had been that bad.

"An' are you, uh…feelin' better?" asked the boy.

"I'm…feeling okay," she said hesitantly, unsure if better was the right word for it at this point. The boy nodded as if that satisfied him, putting his hands behind his back.

"That's good," he said. "Because that lord guy would be pretty upset if you weren't. You know he didn't let anyone else touch you until you got here? Even that orange-head—he's your brother, ain't he?—he got a hell of a nasty look when he tried. He had to carry those other two instead—."

"—Other two?" asked Yuzu, ignoring the way her heart beat faster at the boy's description. She remembered feeling everyone's reiatsus in the street that day. A shot of fear suddenly ran through her. Was everyone else alright?

The boy opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, the door to her room opened. "Nozomu?" asked a woman's voice, causing the boy to tense and turn towards it. "You are supposed to be in the kitchens."

Yuzu watched as Maki, the middle-aged head-servant of the Kuchiki Clan stepped into a room, a frown on her face as she looked down at the boy. The boy—Nozomu, apparently—turned towards her.

"That lord person said I could stay here," he protested.

"That lord person," said Maki, frowning severely, "is called Kuchiki-dono. You will remember that, if you're to take up work on his estates. Now, come along, and stop bothering Yuzu-sama. She needs her rest." The boy frowned, but reluctantly walked out the door, Mikado leaping down from his perch to follow him.

"Thank you, Maki-san, but he wasn't bothering me," said Yuzu when Nozomu was gone, turning towards the woman.

"Be that as it may," said Maki. "He has duties he needs to be attending to. Kuchiki-dono put me in charge of his education, and I intend to see it done. It's good to see that you are well, Yuzu-sama."

Yuzu shifted uncomfortably at the woman's deferential tone of address. Ever since her connection to the Ankoujin had become public knowledge, Maki had insisted on using the more deferential term, no matter how many times Yuzu tried to tell her that while she was related by blood to the members of that house, she wasn't actually a member of it herself. She'd given up on correcting Maki by now. You didn't become Kuchiki Byakuya's head of staff without an impeccable grasp of manners.

"Is Nozomu-kun going to become a servant, then?" she asked.

"For now," said Maki, glancing out the hallway. "Although I'm given to understand that he wants to try for the Shino Academy when he's older. It's his right, of course." She paused, as if wondering whether or not she should leave, then looked back at Yuzu. "Your family is outside," she said. "Ankoujin Seishin-dono and his wife are with their son, but Seishin-dono expressed his intent to see you soon. Your father…Isshin-sama and Ichigo-sama are here."

Something in Maki's words made her look up. "My cousin?" she asked.

"Is awake," said Maki. "Masaryu-dono awoke earlier this morning. He was heavily injured in Inuzuri, but is now stable. His companion, Iwase Kohaku-san is stable but has not yet woken. They are down the hall."

Kohaku-chan too. Yuzu wondered grimly how many of her friends and family had been injured that day. Maki's expression softened at the look on her face. "Their injuries were much less serious than your own," she said. "They are both expected to make full recoveries."

"My brother?" asked Yuzu. "Rukia-nee? The other members of the squad?" Byakuya had been hurt too—she remembered that much. Although, not as badly as she had thought, if he was able to carry her back. Her cheeks flushed with warmth at the thought, and she did her best to ignore it. "What about taicho? Is he—?"

Maki raised a hand, stopping her questions. "Ichigo-sama is alright, as is Kuchiki-dono. Both sustained some injury in the battle, but recovered quickly. Rukia-dono suffered minor injuries from her own battle, but nothing that warranted more than basic first aid. There were no casualties from the Sixth Division. Third Seat Shiyougi and Fourth Seat Koyanagi have already gone back to work. Fifth Seat Yamagishi and Sixth Seat Okada are being held for observation, but they are also expected to make full recoveries. It's been two days since your arrival here," said Maki, easily predicting Yuzu's next question. She smiled. "Honestly. Kuchiki-dono did warn me you would have questions."

"Taicho did?" asked Yuzu, wondering what else she had missed.

Maki's smile was nothing if not secretive, her eyes moving towards the discarded tea cup. Yuzu wondered, for the first time, how long Byakuya had been sitting in that chair. Her heart stopped, and it was almost difficult to breathe. Maki's eyes returned to her, and Yuzu looked up, suddenly remembering the other woman was there.

"Shall I send your father and brother in, or will you want a few more moments?" She asked the question as if she already knew what Yuzu's answer would be. Yuzu exhaled, tearing her eyes away from the cup.

"Send them in," she said, already knowing what Ichigo and Isshin's reactions would be.

Isshin would make a fuss over her, and Ichigo…

Her eyes moved from the teacup to the bandages around her chest, torso, and palm of her left hand.

…Ichigo was going to throw a fit.

Byakuya did not want to be at this meeting, and all the elders knew it.

He stood straight in the center of the room in front of them, trying hard not to let his displeasure show on his face. Ordinarily, it might not have been difficult, but two days without sleep would crack anyone's composure. He suspected—strongly suspected—that that was why they had called him out, and did his best not to resent them for it. Why bother, when there were so many other things to resent them for?

"I believe I have given my decision," he said, a century of training himself to control his temper being the only thing that kept his voice level. "That decision stands."

"Circumstances have changed," said one of the elders, frowning at him. "You could have been killed in Inuzuri."

"Demonstrably, I was not," said Byakuya. "Circumstances have changed nothing."

"They have changed everything!" said one of the elders, raising his voice. He slammed his hand down on the table in front of him, causing Byakuya's eyes to narrow dangerously. The elder appeared either not to notice or not to care—he eyed Byakuya with a look that could only be described as annoyance, bordering on blatant disrespect. "Byakuya-sama, we must concern ourselves with the future of the Kuchiki Clan, even if you will not."

The glare Byakuya gave him would have sent a smarter man running. It had, on more than one occasion, motivated Abarai Renji to take cover behind his desk. As it was, the elder that Byakuya had turned it on shrank back in his seat somewhat, but the fire in his eyes had not abated.

Another elder took up where he left off. "If you insist on fighting, then you must also accept that we must insist on security. As the head of the Kuchiki Clan, you can do no less."

"Do not presume to tell me what I can and cannot do," said Byakuya, directing his gaze at the one who had spoken. A hint of his anger broke through his normally calm voice. Lack of sleep, he reminded himself, reasserting his control over his temper. Lack of sleep, and the desire to put this issue to rest for the last time. He reminded himself that no matter how tempting it was, the wholesale slaughter of the elders of his own family was generally frowned upon in polite society. Instead, he took a slow breath, willing his hand to fall away from Senbonzakura's hilt.

A twitch of his eye and the movement of his hand were the only sign the elders would get of the internal struggle playing out within.

"What would you have me do?" he asked, when the room had gone silent.

"Disinherit Kuchiki Rukia," said one voice.

Byakuya opened his eyes, glaring in that direction. "I refuse."

"Then marry."

He held the elder's eyes for a moment, his gray eyes cold. In that one instant, his mind raced, working through the possibilities. He could no longer deny the elders' concerns, to do so would be to deny his duty. He would not deny Rukia what was hers by right. Which meant that there was only one thing he could possibly do. The elders had him, and they knew it.

He thought of expressive violet eyes, dark hair, ivory skin. A warm smile, the whisper of his name. He thought of plum blossoms, a cold day in spring. He remembered feeling like his world was ending.

He held all those thoughts in his mind for an instant, then forced himself to let them go. "Fine," he told the elders, the single clipped word being the only answer they would get from him. He turned on his heel and left the room, not waiting for a dismissal. A defiant part of his mind reminded him that he needed none. The elders didn't stop him, allowing him to walk out of the room and towards the gate of his manor, back to…

…Back to the Fourth, he realized. Back to his vice-captain.

It was only duty that held him there, he told himself. Only duty.

He was so wrapped up in those thoughts that he didn't notice the figure standing in his garden until the man cleared his throat. Byakuya turned his head towards the visitor, his eyes widening slightly as he realized who it was.

"Ryushin-dono," he said.

"Byakuya," said Ankoujin Ryushin, using the informal address that he would only tolerate from those who had known him since childhood—those he respected. "I was wondering if I could steal a moment of your time."

Byakuya frowned, his eyes moving back to the manor gate. Any other day, perhaps, but he did not think he could bear being in this manor another second. "I am busy," he said.

"I am aware," said Ryushin, the look on his face telling Byakuya that he knew much more than he let on. "But I believe it is high time we had this discussion. You see, it concerns my granddaughter..."

The Eleventh Division was quiet that night, the excitement of the soutaicho's state of emergency having finally worn itself out to something more like battle readiness than the frenzy of the first few days. The only lights on after midnight were those coming from individual rooms, or those carried by the lower-ranked shinigami, who had to guard the perimeter. No one noticed a single shinigami making her way over the wall, a bag of supplies slung haphazardly over her shoulder, and one hand on the hilt of her sword as she disappeared into the night.

Well, almost no one.

Kusajishi Yachiru, vice-captain of the Eleventh Division, reached out and poked the division's captain in the shoulder. Zaraki Kenpachi groaned, rolling onto his side and appearing to go back to sleep. Anyone else might have been fooled, but Yachiru knew him well enough to know that he was awake.

"Ken-chan," she said, sitting cross-legged on the floor beside him. "Rin-chan left."

"Yeah, I know," grumbled Kenpachi, his head pillowed on his arm. "Go back to sleep."

"But shouldn't we go after her?" asked Yachiru, frowning. "Gramps is gonna be mad, you know."

"Don't care," Kenpachi growled. "Go away."

"But—," began Yachiru.

"Kid, sometimes you gotta let people pick their own fights," said Kenpachi. "Now, shut up and let me sleep."

"Alright. If you say so," said Yachiru, getting up and leaving the room. Kenpachi listened to her go, lying on his side with his back to the door.

The day dawned brightly on the Sixth Division Barracks, the sunlight coming in through the open windows. Kurosaki Yuzu smiled to herself, making her way slowly down the hallway as her third seat tried his best to block her progress, darting in front of her and waving his hands frantically.

"Fukutaicho, you shouldn't be here! You should be resting!" he said, his eyes wide as she continued her slow pace.

"I am resting, Shiyougi-san," said Yuzu. "Unohana-taicho said that desk work should be okay."

"But, fukutaicho—!"

"I'll be fine," said Yuzu, continuing to walk. "Look, see?" She smiled. "I'm all better."

"That's a lie," said Shiyougi-san, leaping in front of her and blocking the door to the office. "That's a lie and you know it. I cannot allow you to enter this office, fukutaicho. Someone come escort Kurosaki-fukutaicho back to the Fourth!"

"Shiyougi-san, I outrank you," said Yuzu, clasping her hands in front of her.

Shiyougi's face fell. "You're pulling rank on me now?" he asked, with a sigh. "You're a cruel, cruel person, fukutaicho."

"Mm-hmm," said Yuzu, still smiling. "And this cruel, cruel person is getting inside that office. So if you excuse me—." She moved past him and slid the door open, her smile widening as she prepared to greet her captain. The nervous excitement that had filled her since she first found out what had happened in Inuzuri had come to a head, and she found that she couldn't lie around the Fourth any longer. She needed to be here, where Byakuya was.

She thought she understood her feelings now.

Yuzu froze as the office door came fully open, the cheerful greeting dying on her lips.

Byakuya wasn't alone in the office. A woman stood there beside his desk, talking to him. She was obviously a noblewoman, tall and slender, with bright green eyes and brown hair partially pulled up in a neat bun. Her kimono was green silk, with elaborate designs on it that made her think of a forest. She turned her eyes on Yuzu, and Yuzu caught the barest hint of distaste.

She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't, because Byakuya's eyes were suddenly on hers, and in those eyes, she saw none of the warmth that she had gotten used to seeing over the past ten years. They were cold, as if she was a stranger again. "Kurosaki…" he said, a brief pause following the name that could have been hesitation. "…You shouldn't be here."

Her mouth went dry, and she found it difficult to speak. "U—Unohana-taicho said I could do paperwork," she said, forcing the words out. "T-Taicho, who is this?"

That cold stare again. Yuzu wondered if she had done something wrong, or offended him in some way. She couldn't think of anything she could possibly have done, besides kick him out of the way back in Inuzuri, and she hadn't had much of a choice.

"This…" said Byakuya, after a few long moments. "…is Lady Azami of the Nishimori clan. My betrothed."

Yuzu's train of thought came to a screeching halt.

TO BE CONTINUED

A/N: *runs for cover dodging (probably) thrown objects* Don't hate me! Blame Byakuya! He went all noble and dutiful! It's all his fault! *points at him* I'll explain it later, I swear. I did warn you that those two were Shakesperean-level screw-ups, didn't I? *ducks for cover again* It's only temporary, I promise! *ducks again as glass shatters* I LIKE HAPPY ENDINGS!

Omake

Masa sighed from his bed in the Fourth Division, watching as Kohaku slept peacefully in her own bed on the other side of the room. She still hadn't woken up since returning from Inuzuri, and it was starting to worry him.

Still, he supposed there could be worse things.

A knock came at the door, making him look up. It opened, and Ichigo poked his head into the room.

"Oi, Masa," he said. "There's some guys from the Ankoujin out here who want to bring you back to your house to rest. Something about propriety."

Masa frowned, glancing at Kohaku again. "Tell them to piss off," he said.

Ichigo blinked. "You want me to use those exact words?" he asked.

"Fine." Masa sighed, straightening up. "Tell them that I appreciate their concern and respect their wishes, but would like to remain in the Fourth Division while I recover, as is appropriate for a shinigami of my position."

"Masa says 'piss off'," said Ichigo, leaning back and talking to someone outside the room.

Masa's eyes widened. "This is why I don't bother!" he shouted at Ichigo as the captain closed the door.