Chapter 7: With Eyes Opened

I'm always more inclined to sleep late than Byakuya and we were awake the greater portion of last night, so it is late in the morning before I come awake again. Byakuya's body still rests heavily against mine and he is deeply asleep.

"Byakuya," I say, stroking his face gently, "C'mon, wake up. We need to go home."

He doesn't move. I feel a stab of fear.

"Byakuya," I call, rubbing his wrists.

There is no response. I try to wake him gradually with kisses, but I quickly realize that he is, once again, unconscious. I go to find Michi who confirms this and immediately sends for Captain Unohana.

"This poison is very strong and Byakuya is held tightly in its grip, now. Even though her stronger power will wake him, you must know that his time is running out," Michi tells me.

"Damn! We were just getting to the point where we were finding some answers. Michi, I need his help. I don't know if I can figure this out on my own."

He puts a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"She will wake him and get him on his feet again. Between us all, we will give him the strength to fight for his life. Trust in that."

"But there is so much to do, Michi. I have to know why that group targeted me…what they think was given to me…and by whom. I need to know why they used me to poison Byakuya like that. That part wasn't just about this information they want. It was personal…like payback."

"I know the group that occupies the warehouse, Renji," Michi states quietly, "I will tell you what I know, but then you must not fail to shut them down, because they will learn I have told you about them…and I will disappear in the blink of an eye. They are dangerous, Renji. I think you know now just how dangerous they are."

I can't help but stare in surprise. But Michi has lived here in Inuzuri for so many years…it makes sense.

"Renji, back before Suosuke Aizen left the Sereitei, he gathered a group of soul reapers together to set the groundwork for his rise to power. They handled many different kinds of tasks for him. They went out searching for support amongst the soul reapers and here in the Rukon District…even among the hollow. It shows how far he was willing to go to gain power. They also prepared hideouts and gathered intelligence for him. The head captain became aware of this group's activities and sent a special agent to infiltrate the group and to bring back information on its activities and personnel. That agent's name was Kasumi."

"What the hell?" I gasp, "Not…"

"Yes…she wasn't what she seemed at all, Renji. She was carefully concealed. She looked just like a Rukon teen given to prostitution. That's what everyone was supposed to think. But she was a carefully placed agent…and she was the best, Renji. She infiltrated the group as planned and she gathered information over several months, which she compiled and stored on a special computer chip. She placed this inside a blue pendant she always wore and she was supposed to deliver it to her associate to take to the head captain."

"I remember the pendant," I say softly, "It disappeared the day she died."

"Yes, it did. This is where the story gets complicated. The group she infiltrated was led by a man close to Aizen named Raiden. During the course of the mission, Raiden fell in love with Kasumi, but she was not in love with him."

"Wait…if she wasn't a prostitute and she wasn't seeing this guy, that means that the child she was having was…"

"Yours, Renji. The child was yours. Raiden found out she was pregnant and demanded to know who fathered the child. She wouldn't tell him. She ran and stayed with you. But they tracked her down and they thought they killed her."

What the fuck?

"She was dead! I was there, Michi. There were no signs of life!" I yell, "You don't think I would have known?"

"She was trained to put herself into a deathlike state. They were killing her and she didn't want her child to die, so she went into this state and she stayed that way until she was brought to me for burial preparation. I revived her. You must know, Renji, that they had hurt her too badly and she was dying, but she did tell me where to find the information…and she was able to bear your son."

"I have…a son…"

"Yes, Renji. The boy, Takeo, grew up here in hiding. I watched out for him. I didn't dare tell you because she said that it would be dangerous for you to know. Raiden could find out. But things took an unexpected turn. Takeo found out somehow about Kasumi and he tried to get close to Raiden to exact revenge, but Raiden became suspicious…and then through Takeo…he learned of you. He sent Takeo with the poison to set Byakuya up to die."

"Why kill Byakuya and not me?" I ask in shock.

"He knew you and Byakuya are life partners and he blamed you for them having to kill Kasumi, because you were the reason she left him. He considers it payback. But, Renji, the interesting thing is that he is convinced that you were the associate Kasumi was working with. He thinks you have the information. But you said that the pendant was gone."

"Yes, she was wearing it when we were together that night…and it was gone when I found her."

"The head captain never got it, so no agent took it. It is possible that it was stolen by an opportunist…but I have another theory. Renji, I believe that Raiden took the pendant, not because he knew about the chip, but as a token. He has what he seeks from you and he does not know it."

"If that's true, then we need to get that pendant back from him. But how do we do that? He knows me…he knows Byakuya and Byakuya's in no condition for a mission anyway. Who can get the pendant?"

"Takeo…" Michi says softly.

"But Michi…he is just a kid!" I say, my heart pounding, "and you said they already figured out who he is."

"Yes, Renji. But Takeo is a Rukon child…and he is your child. He is strong and he is intelligent…and we are out of options."

"So we send him to retrieve it…but Michi, none of this is going to help Byakuya. We need a counter-agent for the poison."

He lowers his eyes.

"There isn't a counter-agent," he says softly, "Byakuya is going to die, Renji."

"What? How in the hell do you know that? How do you know all of this that's going on?" I demand, "There's only one way you could know this!"

"Yes," he admits, "I am Kasumi's associate. She was trying to get the information to me. And I know about the poison, because it was developed by the Research and Development Department in the Sereitei. It was stolen by this group. They have used it several times with perfect success."

"Well," I say, forcing down my fear, "Mayuri Kurotsuchi and Kisuke Urahara are both working on a counter-agent, so I will put my money on them to complete it in time to save him. In the meantime, I have to get Byakuya back to the Sereitei. He can't help me anymore and we have to preserve his life for as long as possible. I'm going to convince him to let Captain Unohana place him back in suspended animation until the counter-agent is found."

Michi nods and turns back to Byakuya. Suddenly, I notice that his eyes are open and although he isn't moving much, there is comprehension. I lean over him and give him a gentle kiss.

"You heard all that?"

He can't speak at this point, but he squeezes my hand. He knows…

I see him gathering what strength he has, trying to speak. I lean close and I can barely hear his whisper.

"I will have a fate…no different…than Senbonzakura."

Stubborn bastard!

I almost say it to him, but I end up just squeezing his hand and gently kissing him on the lips.

"Captain Unohana is on her way," I assure him, "Just hang in there. If you're so damned determined to stay with me, then she'll get you back on your feet. But just so you know, I think you're crazy, Bya. Just so you know, I think you are out of your mind!"

He smiles.

"Don't…call me that…"

He gives the word stubborn a whole new meaning. I love him for that.

The door opens and Captain Unohana comes in. She quickly leans over Byakuya and spends some time examining him.

"This is quite serious," she says finally, "You will need to return to the Healing Center for a few hours for treatment. After that, I suggest you return home and rest."

Michi and I carry Byakuya outside, while Captain Unohana releases her zanpakutou. We climb onto it and return quickly to the Healing Center in the Sereitei. While Byakuya is being treated, I inform Captain Soi Fon of the group hiding in Inuzuri and then I return to the 6th Division office. I have Takeo summoned. As he walks into the room, a very strange feeling rises up inside of me. It occurs to me that this is my kid. This is my kid and right now, he's in a lot of trouble. And I'm expected to use him. I hate that. I don't want to use him…not any more than I would use Takeshi so. Damn!

"You sent for me, sir?" he says softly.

His eyes are red and he looks worn. I know he can't have slept last night. I don't know that he can do what we're going to ask of him. But he's already in the group. He can get to the pendant. We're pretty much trapped in our roles right now.

I look more closely at him, now and I start to see it. He has my eyes. He is tall for his age. Even that expression he's wearing now, looking at me. It's the way I looked at Byakuya when I first met him…scared witless. Then I remember…Takeo knows who I am.

"Sir?" he says again.

I know I can't do this. I can't send my kid into that den. They're already suspicious. And he might be a Rukon kid, like me, but he isn't battle-hardened. One mistake and they will kill him…and Kasumi's nightmare will come true. She didn't want me to know, because she wanted to protect him.

"Takeo," his name feels different when I say it now, "You are to report to the Kuchiki manor, where you will attend Captain Kuchiki for the next few days."

His eyes widen with a blend of disbelief and relief.

"Yes sir," he says.

"Bring clothes and supplies for several days," I add, "This will be an on site assignment."

"Yes, Vice Captain, sir," he says, turning and racing out of the room.

I look after him for a moment before leaving the division office to return to the Healing Center. When I enter his room, Byakuya is sitting up and even though he's three shades too pale, he is, at least eating.

"Well, that's a welcome sight," I tell him, closing the distance and pulling him into a warm embrace.

He lets his head fall against my shoulder as I sit down on the bed next to him. Too pale…too warm…trembling just slightly. Even after a couple hours of treatment, this is the best they can do. And predictable as ever, the first words out of his mouth express concern…for me. Damn!

"It must have been difficult talking to Takeo. Are you all right?" he asks.

"I'm fine. I just told him that he is assigned to attend you for the next several days. I…didn't tell him the rest. I wanted to talk to you before talking to him about that."

"What is there to say, Renji? The boy is your son. He knows who you are. There is no sense in hiding the fact that you know him as well. It would, perhaps make things easier."

"He is the one who poisoned you, Byakuya. How am I supposed to deal with that?" I ask, gazing out the window.

"It sounded to me like he was used to do that," Byakuya says softly, "You should talk to him, Renji. We should offer him our support. He is your son. His mother is gone. It sounds to me like he really needs his father. Would you…like me to remain here tonight so that the two of you can talk?" he asks.

I look into the depths of those beautiful dark eyes. I love him so much for this!

"Byakuya, if he is my son and we make it through this, you will be an important person in his life. You should be there."

"I don't…know that I'll play any kind of role in his life, Renji. You know that I'm running out of time. And even if I survive, if I lose Senbonzakura it will take whatever life is left in me."

I take him by the shoulders and he stares back at me.

"Don't do that, damn it! Don't give in! You have to keep giving this all you have, Byakuya."

"Renji, I heard what Michi said about the poison. There is no counter-agent, Renji. Michi said that I am going to die."

I grab his face in both hands and force him to look back.

"I don't give a damn what Michi said, Byakuya! I don't give a damn if every doctor in the fucking Sereitei says you're going to die! I am choosing to believe in Kurotsuchi and Urahara. I believe in your strength. I believe in our love for each other. Byakuya, what we feel for each other broke the power of Kyouka Suigetsu! Do you understand? You are not quitting, damn you! You are going to fight until you draw your last breath! Don't fucking talk to me like a man who expects to die!"

He can't answer for a long moment. He just stares at me, wide-eyed. Then his hands come up and rest over mine on each side of his face. The dark eyes fill with tears.

"I'm sorry, Renji," he whispers, "You are right to be angry with me. I shouldn't have said that."

"No," I say in a much softer voice, "you shouldn't have. You can't give up. Otherwise, how can I keep fighting to save you? We need to fight for this together. Byakuya, I can't do this without you."

I brush the tears away and bring his head down onto my shoulder.

"Just rest a bit and gather your strength. You're going to need it, Byakuya. We can get through this. We can. I promise you, Byakuya, we can."

He doesn't say anything, but the arms that wrap around me hold on for dear life.