Chapter 20
"Buffy, you have to come with me," she said quickly. "Your brother and Ikkaku have been arrested for attacking a seated squad member."
Buffy's stomach dropped to her feet. No. No, they couldn't have. They wouldn't have. Oh, those selfish bastards were going to get the full ass kicking treatment when she got to them.
"I swear to God, I'm going to kill them," Buffy snarled.
"Do you want to know who they attacked?" Yoruichi asked as they made their way to the Second Division barracks, where they were being held.
"I think I already have a good idea who it was," Buffy replied before relaying everything that had happened in the last couple of days, starting with running into Mayuri Kurotsuchi and the two highest ranking members of the Twelfth Division. "I swear, I should have tied them up and tossed them in a closet or something until they calmed down."
"Like that would have stopped them," Byakuya snorted.
"Remind me again why he had to come along with us?" Buffy asked, shooting a glare over her shoulder.
"He didn't have to, he wanted to," Yoruichi replied. "Please, don't argue like a couple of children. That's the last thing we need right now."
"Sorry."
"Sorry."
"Let's just go, sort this out," Yoruichi said. "If we're lucky, they'll just get kicked out and banned for life."
"If we're lucky?" Buffy asked, incredulous. What worse punishment could there be? Well, she supposed that they could be locked up, but since they weren't technically Shinigami she wasn't sure if imprisonment in the Nest of Maggots would be applicable, because from what Buffy understood, the Nest of Maggots was just for Shinigami who would pose a continual threat to Seiretei, other Shinigami and themselves.
Fat load of help that is, Buffy thought. "Do I want to know what the worst case scenario is?"
"No. Let's just hope it doesn't come to that, aye?" Yoruichi said as she continued to lead them.
The remainder of their walk was quiet enough, Buffy trying to formulate a plan and Yoruichi and Byakuya were probably trying to figure out a way to talk Buffy out of any plan she came up with. When they reached the headquarters, Buffy had to use every ounce of self-control to ignore the poisonous glare shot at her by Soi Fon. Buffy knew the other woman couldn't stand her; Buffy wasn't fond of her either, and it was mostly because of the outright hostility the smaller woman showed to her. the other part was because Buffy knew Soi Fon believed Buffy would never be good enough to be friends with Yoruichi, which got her hackles up.
Yoruichi led them down to the holding cells, where the boys were held. Buffy tried not to look too angry, although in reality she was absolutely furious with them. As she tried to understand why they would risk their entire careers just for her, Yoruichi stopped in front one of the cells about halfway down the row. Both of her boys were sharing a cell; Ikkaku was seated on one of the mat like beds and Yumichika in a stiff backed chair.
Neither of them looked particularly apologetic.
"Come and get me when you're finished yelling at them," Yoruichi said, patting Buffy on the shoulder before leaving them alone.
Buffy stared at the boys. They stared back at her, expressions defiant. The seconds of silence ticked by, tense and awkward.
"What the hell were you two thinking?" she asked, her voice low. Both Yumichika and Ikkaku gulped, eyes a little wider than normal. They'd learned, many a time, that a quiet, menacing Buffy was much, much more terrifying than a yelling Buffy. "Am I really worth risking that much? Yoruichi told me that the best case scenario is you guys getting a permanent, life long ban from Seiretei. Life long ban. And that's the best case scenario. Yoruichi didn't want to tell me the worst."
"You are worth the risk. We love you," Yumichika said. Ikkaku just grunted. "Okay, I love you. Ikkaku doesn't want to kick your ass most of the time, which is the best we can hope for from him."
"What part of 'I can't do this without you guys' didn't you understand?" Buffy asked. "Remember when you said that if I got kicked out, you were going to be coming with me no matter what? Didn't it occur to you that that might go two ways? Where you guys go, I go, even if it means leaving the Academy."
"You can't do that!" Ikkaku exclaimed.
"Why not?" Buffy asked. "Family sticks together. You two are family. I'd die if I never got to see you again, and if you guys get kicked out that's bound to happen. I don't even wanna think about the alternatives."
"We'll find a way," Yumichika said softly. Ikkaku scowled darkly, averting his gaze from her. "We always do."
"Come on Buffy, it's time to go," Yoruichi said, with Byakuya at her side. Buffy sighed; while the prison made her nervous, she didn't want to leave her brother, not yet, but considering it was a captain telling her what to do, even though said captain was a friend of hers, she decided that this would be a good idea to do as she was told.
"Fine," Buffy said with another sigh. With one last glance at Yumichika and Ikkaku, she turned and left. Yoruichi smiled sympathetically as she wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
"I'm going to try and do what can to make this as good as possible," she said as she led Buffy back up to the main barracks. "I can't make any promises, but I'm going to fight for them as hard as possible."
"Thanks," Buffy replied gratefully.
"Come on, let's get you home," Byakuya said when they got to the top of the stairs.
"I leave Buffy in your capable hands," Yoruichi said before turning and leaving, probably to go and do captain-y things.
"You didn't have anything to do with this?" Byakuya asked.
"How can you ask me that?" Buffy shot back.
"Don't answer a question with a question," Byakuya retorted. "Just answer mine."
"No, I had absolutely nothing to do with it," Buffy replied. "I told you, I practically ordered them to stay away from him. I thought the whole 'don't leave me, I can't do this without you' speech would be enough. Obviously, it wasn't."
"All right. I just had to check," Byakuya said. "Can't have the son of a captain and royalty consorting with a felon, right?"
"Of course not," Buffy agreed, but it was only half-hearted. If she had, would she have lost at least one of her friends? Not wanting to dwell on it further, she allowed herself to be led back to her dormitory, heading up after a quick good-bye to Byakuya.
XOXOXO
"They did what?" Rangiku asked at lunch the next day. She, Buffy and Iba were sitting together in one of the rare lunch periods they had together. She would have told the other girl the previous evening, but she had been off studying or… something. Buffy didn't make it a habit to get too far into her friend's escapades, only telling her to be safe and if she wanted to talk, she had someone available to her. Iba didn't know because Buffy hadn't wanted to go out after getting home, trying to do her homework and failing miserably.
"They attacked Mayuri Kurotsuchi and got arrested," Buffy replied for what seemed to be the umpteenth time.
"I can't believe they'd do something that stupid," Iba said. "I mean, there's stupid and then there's stupid, you know?"
"Believe me when I saw I wish it were true," Buffy said with a sigh. "At least they waited this time. That has to say something, right?"
"Not much," Rangiku said with a snort. "What's going to be done to them?"
"I don't know yet," Buffy replied. "Yoruichi is trying to get them the best case scenario, but I'm not holding out much hope. If we're lucky, they'll get kicked out and banned from Seiretei."
"What are you going to do?" Rangiku asked, curious.
"I don't know yet," Buffy replied. "It all depends on what happens to them."
"What are you talking about?" Rangiku asked, arching an eyebrow. "You're going to stay at the academy, graduate top of your class and end up as a captain. Right, Iba?"
"Well, I wouldn't go that far," Iba said. "I mean, you need Bankai to become a captain and we all know how rare that is."
"Not necessarily," Rangiku replied. "Buffy knows a captain who doesn't know Bankai. Right, Buffy?"
"Like I'd be able to beat down and kill a captain using sheer power," Buffy replied with a roll of her eyes. "And I don't know him know him. He watched him beat the crap out of Ikkaku and nearly kill him. I know his name and saw him at Kurotsuchi's sentencing hearing. He might have recognized me, but I doubt it."
"You have to admit, though, you kinda know a lot of captains," Iba remarked.
"It's only two," Buffy replied in a small voice. "Well, three if you count Urahara, which I don't. And only one of them actually likes me. Kuchiki only puts up with me because of the teaching thing. If he had it his way, I wouldn't be allowed anywhere near his kid."
"Lucky Byakuya likes you, then," Rangiku said.
"Maybe, but I don't know for how much longer," Buffy replied. At the perplexed looks she got, she explained. "He went with me to see the guys after they got arrested. When I was done he asked me if I had anything to do with the ass kickage. When I said I hadn't, he seemed kind of relieved, I guess. but it makes me think, you know?"
"Don't hurt yourself," Iba joked with a grin.
"Oh shut up," Buffy retorted, sticking her tongue out at him. "As I said, it made me think. If I hadn't been all law-abiding, would he have dropped me like a hot rock?"
"We'll never know," Rangiku said. "But still, if they get kicked out, you're not serious considering leaving with them, are you?"
"I don't know," Buffy replied. "I mean, the only reason I'm here is because of them. We've been together since I dropped in on them three years ago. It wouldn't be right to stay here and have them go off into the wild blue yonder, y'know?"
"But you have a life here, you have friends here, you're doing well here," Rangiku said, her pale blue eyes welling up in tears. Before Buffy could brace herself, Rangiku had thrown herself at her, burying her face into Buffy's neck.
"I think what Rangiku is trying to say is she'll miss you if you decide to leave," Iba said with a chuckle as Rangiku let out a particularly loud sob.
"And you're not?" Buffy asked, arching an eyebrow at him from over Rangiku's shoulder.
"Of course I'm going to miss you," Iba replied. "But that doesn't mean I'm gonna be a girl about it. I'm upset on the inside."
"You guys have nothing to worry about it yet," Buffy said as she patted Rangiku on the back in an attempt to calm the younger girl. "Nothing's been decided and I'm not making any decisions until that happens. You guys are stuck with me for a little while longer."
XOXOXO
Two weeks had passed since Ikkaku and Yumichika had been arrested. Two weeks had passed since they had heard of anything regarding the kind of sentence they would get. Buffy visited them as often as she was able, and she suspected that if she hadn't been friendly with Yoruichi, her visiting privileges would have been severely reduced. She had never been more thankful for her friendship with the female captain, even if it meant that there were grumblings about her having an unfair advantage over the other students.
The only really dark spot in this period of darkness had come from a surprising source. Out of all her friends, Byakuya had been the least supportive of her. Even Rangiku admitted that family came before everything, and even if this all ended in something she didn't wand, she wasn't going to try and force Buffy's hand. Byakuya, on the other hand, wanted her to sever ties with her boys completely.
"Would you abandon your grandfather in this situation? Or Yoruichi?" Buffy asked. "Would you expect them to do the same?"
"I wouldn't have to worry about that because neither my grandfather nor Yoruichi would do something so heinous," Byakuya retorted with a snort.
"The day you find someone to break the rules for I am going to laugh my ass off," Buffy said.
"The day you officially throw your lot in with them is the day you and I can no longer be friends," Byakuya said. "As the grandson of a captain and the future head of the Kuchiki family, I cannot be seen associating with criminals."
"I'm not a criminal," Buffy replied.
"You are if you associate with them," Byakuya spat, glaring at her.
"Maybe it's for the best then," Buffy said, her voice sad. "Your grandfather thinks I'm less than dirt. The only reason why he puts up with me is because I'm providing a service. Once I'm unable to perform that service anymore, he'll toss me out faster than week old garbage."
"He doesn't believe that," Byakuya said, but there was no conviction in his words.
"And I'm the queen of England," Buffy replied sarcastically. "Look, you've made it obvious how you feel about this. Maybe I should just go."
Buffy got up and was about to leave when she found Yoruichi blocking her path. The captain's expression was as serious as it had been two weeks previous when she had delivered her last bit of unhappy news. However, this time there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes.
"They've made a decision," Yoruichi said. She didn't need to elaborate; they all knew what she was talking about.
"Good or bad?" Buffy asked.
"There's an uphill battle here, but I have hope," Yoruichi replied. "Come on, they haven't made the decision public. If we hurry, we can make it before the announcement is made."
"Let's go then," Buffy said. to her surprise, Byakuya followed along, although it was probably because he wanted to cut ties with her as soon as she made her decision. It stung a little, but after the discussions they had had over the past two weeks, she was hardly surprised.
The walk to the First Division's headquarters was a quiet one and passed far too quickly for Buffy's liking. Yoruichi ushered them in and instructed her and Byakuya to stay out of the way. Apparently, they technically weren't supposed to be there.
"We are here today to hear the fates of these two men," Captain-Commander Yamamoto began, gesturing to Yumichika and Ikkaku, who were seated behind him, chained to their chairs. "The Central 46 have sentenced them to expulsion from the Shinigami Academy."
Buffy's gasp rang out and echoed in the room, causing nearly everyone to turn and glare at her. Ducking her head and blushing, she looked properly chastised as the captains turned back to the Captain-Commander.
"However," he continued, glaring one more time at Buffy, "because of the nature behind the attack, I am allowing them to join the Thirteen Squads, provided they are able to find a captain who is willing to take them in."
"They don't stand a chance," Buffy murmured. "No was in hell they're going to find someone who is going to take them in."
"That's probably why the Captain-Commander set down this sentence," Byakuya murmured back. "A little cruel if you ask me. I'd just toss them out on their asses. Giving them false hope is cruel and unusual punishment."
"They have one week to find a squad," the Captain-Commander continued. "After that, they will be expelled from Seiretei, never allowed to return. Until then, they may tay in a separate dormitory room and have access to their personal belongings. Release them."
The chains binding Ikkaku and Yumichika to their chairs disappeared, and both men sat there for a few moments, stunned. When they were sure that no one was going to drag them off if they moved, they got up and made a beeline across the room to where Buffy was. As soon as they were close enough, Buffy wrapped each of them in a one-armed, bone-crushing hug. Both men wrapped their arms around her, sandwiching her between them. The captains looked on, warmed by the awkward-looking three way hug. Buffy glanced at Byakuya over Yumichika's shoulder; his eyes had turned to stone, cold and unfeeling towards her. As she squeezed her boys tight, she shed a few tears for the friendship that had just ended.
"Come on, let's get you packed up and moved," Buffy said, her voice quiet as she linked arms with her boys, leading them out of the First Division headquarters, a gaggle of captains bemusedly watching them leave.
XOXOXO
"I'm going with you."
"Absolutely not," Yumichika said, shocked. It was the next day, the boys were moved into their new room – jail cell, more like it – and they were now discussion what kinds of options the boys had.
"Why not?' Buffy asked, arching an eyebrow. "It's not like you guys are getting chucked out on the street."
"We will if we can't find anyone to take us," Ikkaku grumbled, glaring at the wall.
"I normally don't like doing this, but I'm pulling the big brother card," Yumichika said firmly, crossing his arms. "You're not throwing away what could be the best thing to happen to you because of me, because of us."
"But I won't be throwing my life away because of you," Buffy replied. "I mean, if I end up going with you to whatever squad that takes you, I'll still have, you know, done what I came here to do."
"And if we don't get into a squad?" Ikkaku asked, arching an eyebrow at her. "What are you gonna do then? Start slummin' it with us lowlifes?"
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you guys don't want me around anymore," Buffy said with a snort. However, while she tried to make her voice light, it hurt that they were pushing her away. First Byakuya, now her boys. Who was next, Iba and Rangiku? Yoruichi?
"That's not it at all," Yumichika said, alarmed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "We just don't want to stunt your progress through the squads. Let's face it, if you're seen associating with us you might be stuck on the lowest rungs for a long time."
"But we practically live forever anyway, right?" Buffy asked. "What's a hundred years?"
"Buffy…" Yumichika began uncertainly, but trailed off when Buffy continued.
"Look, I'm not leaving you guys. You took me in, now you're stuck with me," she said. "But how about a compromise? If you guys find a squad, I get to come with you. If you don't, I'll fight tooth and nail but stay here and complete my education. Can you live with that?"
"Not really, I suppose it's the best offer you've given us," Yumichika replied. "What do you think, Ikkaku?"
"Looks like the girl has made up her own mind. Nothing we can do to change it now," Ikkaku replied. He wasn't glaring at the wall anymore, but he was still a little sullen.
"Excellent," Buffy said, rubbing her hands together. "Now, let's find you a squad."
XOXOXO
Chapter 20 is done, folks. One more chapter and this fic is done. Finito. Completed. It's going to be a short final chapter, tying up most of the loose ends.
It's been a great ride, guys. Once this is done, it'll be my longest piece of completed fiction. Not my longest piece of fiction ever (About the Blood takes that prize… if you haven't checked it out yet, you should *shameless plug*), but longest completed is pretty cool.
Anyway, let me know what you thought of it. Feedback is my fuel. Thanks for reading.