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Hey! Remeber this fic? I sure hope so. Save for a few one-shots here and there, the majority of my time will be spent on this fic for at least a while. Until I get distracted by another new idea...
My first update using "Sui-Feng!" Fuck Yeah!
The wind swept down from the mountains, creating a deafening roar as the invisible force rattled the leaves of the trees as it passed through.
All around Sui-Feng, the shoots of bamboo swayed gently with the wind, creating a disorienting illusion not dissimilar to the waves of the ocean.
As quickly as the wind came, it went, leaving an almost deafening silence in its wake. There was no chirping of birds or scurrying of small creatures. The only sound Sui-Feng could hear besides her own rhythmic breathing was the gurgling of a far off stream.
Readying herself, Sui-Feng parted her feet. Instinctively, she leaned to her left to center her weight. In one swift motion, faster than the eye could see, she lifted and extended her left leg while pivoting on her right.
Her feet fell into the places that had held mere seconds before as she watched the bamboo split and fall.
Breaking bamboo was not an impressive feat in and of itself. Anyone could fracture the resilient plant with enough force. What was impressive was that the breaks on all the shoots that lay before Sui-Feng were all clean, as if created by a blade.
Sui-Feng let out a heavy sigh and let her posture relax. Normally, she would not be so proud of herself for such an accomplishment. She had been able to cleanly cut bamboo without a blade for centuries. However, since the loss of her arm, she has had to retrace her steps and relearn several fundamentals.
In the beginning, Sui-Feng had focused on raw power. Her strikes and blows were wild and fierce, in an attempt to compensate. The bamboo would shatter and splinter. But today's feat was very important. Not only had she regained her strength, but she was starting to regain her finesse.
Again, this alone was nothing to be proud of. The entirety of Sui-Feng's fighting style relied on precision, not brute force. It was more a mental exercise than a physical; involving the concentration of her reiatsu. And concentration in any form was a difficult task when your emotions were in a torrent.
Sui-Feng left the bamboo grove and walked back to the stream. Near the edge of the water lay a large, flat stone. Crossing her legs, Sui-Feng sat on the stone in a meditative state. Normally, in times like these, Sui-Feng would take the opportunity to commune with Suzumebachi. But today, all Sui-Feng wanted to do was let the serenity of the area calm her.
She currently sat a few kilometers from the Seireitei. Captain-level training was a very dangerous affair, often involving a large amount of collateral damage, which was why so few of them actively trained. Sui-Feng didn't have that luxury. As the head of the Onmitsukido, she needed to be in top form at all times. Recent events had shown that even Captains could be criminals.
But there were other, less pragmatic reasons for Sui-Feng's choice of training locale. Though she wouldn't admit it to anyone, she enjoyed the scenery. The peace and tranquillity helped clear her head and ease her nerves, which was exactly what she needed at a time like this.
Fate has never been kind to Sui-Feng. It seemed that every time things started to turn her way, they just as quickly fell apart on her. Though looking back, Sui-Feng could see that she hadn't done much to help her lot in life.
The rapid succession of the death of her brothers was huge blow to Sui-Feng. They were the only ones who really understood her. They all shared the experience of growing up as Fengs together. Yet she did not grieve them, publicly or privately. She kept telling herself that it was because of their weakness that they had died, and tears would lead her down the same road.
The grief that she refused to express over them eventually manifested itself in a still somewhat lingering case of clinical depression, as well as various self-destructive habits such as self-affliction and starvation. Luckily, the Onmitsukido was a dangerous place so nobody asked where all the new scars came from.
Then, after years of dedicated service spent wandering though the lower echelons, Sui-Feng was promoted to the personal guard of Yoruichi Shihoin. The promotion alone was enough to pull Sui-Feng up from her out of her depressed state, but the woman she was now assigned to protect was what really helped raise Sui-Feng from the brink.
In Yoruichi, Sui-Feng found a kindred spirit. Having shared very similar childhoods, Sui-Feng felt that Yoruichi was the first person since her brother that fully understood her. Her time spent serving under Yoruichi was the first time Sui-Feng could say that she was truly happy.
Sui-Feng was sent into a similar state as the Onmitsukido in the time following Yoruichi's betrayal. The loss left the organization almost completely decapitated, having already lost Urahara not but a few years ago, and his role as the head of the Keiratai had yet to be filled. While Marenoshin struggled to keep the divisions running as the acting Captain, Sui-Feng's state of shock left her practically useless.
The malaise eventually gave way to a consuming drive to obtain the Captaincies that Yoruichi left vacant, not out of any sense of duty, but so that she would be the one to apprehend the defectors, personally. She trained relentlessly, alienating herself form the people she had once served with. To Sui-Feng, there would soon just be soldiers. Best to cut ties with them as cleanly as possible.
Yoruichi's reappearance was almost like a new beginning for Sui-Feng. For the first time, she was able to work with Yoruichi not as a subordinate, but as an equal, though she often deferred to the older woman since she had more information in regards to the situation that they were in. Things were going so well for her, until Yamamoto gave her the order to move out to the decoy Karakura.
There, standing on the edge of the abyss, Sui-Feng then made possibly the most foolish choice in her life; she chose to confess her love to Yoruichi. She had prepared herself for ridicule and outrage. The notion was preposterous on so many levels. Sui-Feng hadn't prepared herself for outright dismissal.
Yoruichi disappeared again after the Winter War, but unlike the first time, Sui-Feng wasn't surprised. In fact, she was grateful. She didn't know how she could face her again after such an embarrassing display of weakness.
However, unlike all the other times before, Sui-Feng actually did the right thing. Her life did not freeze in place; in fact, she made quite a few great leaps forward. And then Yoruichi suddenly and inexplicably reappeared.
Sui-Feng couldn't quite articulate how she felt about Yoruichi's being around again. On the one hand, she was somewhat relived to see her again, as the fact that Yoruichi sought her out meant that there was some hope of salvaging their relationship. Sui-Feng would rather keep the woman as a friend than lose her entirely.
But on the other hand, Yoruichi never did anything without a purpose, and to her knowledge, there was no real reason for Yoruichi to be here. Her presence was perplexing and somewhat worrying.
Sui-Feng's thought's turned outward as she felt the heat on her body change. Opening her eyes, she saw that the sun had started to dip behind the surrounding mountains, which meant that her training was over for the day.
Leaning over, Sui-Feng dipped her hand into the cool water of the stream and washed the sweat from her face. She grabbed her haori off of the nearby branch that she usually hung it off and put it on. Deftly, she tied the sash around her waist, an act that took her several hours to re-learn one-handed, donned Suzumebachi, and left.
Her extraordinary speed brought her back within the Seireitei's walls in under a minute. Once there, she decided to slow her pace and walk the rest of the way.
Evening was setting in and the whole of the Seireitei was calming. Since the Gotei 13 had returned to peace-time protocol, the average Shinigami's day ended with the daily training, which varied from Division to Division. Only a handful of Shinigami were unlucky enough to have evening and night patrols, the rest were free to do as they pleased.
All around her, Sui-Feng could see enlisted men retreating to their quarters as the smell of fresh meals wafted though the air. Sui-Feng couldn't restrain a small smirk as the scent filled her nostrils.
It's always about food with her, Sui-Feng thought to herself as she thought of the woman that was most likely cooking dinner for her right now.
Rei had a strong affinity to food. Whenever Sui-Feng was in a particularly sour mood, she would offer to make her something to eat. Whenever Rei was bored, she cooked. Sui-Feng recalled Rei commenting one time how she was glad that she was in the military because it was a mandatory fitness program.
Sui-Feng approached the gate to her quarters and watched with slight amusement as the guards, who had been slouching and leaning on their poles, now stood erect. The two men saluted their Captain and opened the gate. After a curt nod, Sui-Feng entered the long hallway before her quarters.
The coarse grinding of wood against wood could be heard as Sui-Feng slide the shoji open. Somewhat carelessly, she kicked off her shoes onto the usual spot next to the door, not noticing that they landed next to a very familiar pair of shoes.
Just as she expected, Sui-Feng could hear the sizzling of cooking food coming from the kitchen. Somewhat listlessly, Sui-Feng made her way towards the cooking meal.
The affect this place had never ceased to amaze her. Almost immediately after entering her quarters, a wave of tiredness washed over her. She kept herself going all day with her own personal training and directing the training of the Division that her body involuntarily relaxed once she reached her quarters. The idea that Sui-Feng had a place and person that she could relax around was as foreign to her as it was comforting. And after yesterdays shock, Sui-Feng was looking forward to a relaxing meal.
"Hey Sui!" Every muscle is Sui-Feng's body seized up as she rounded the corner. Sitting cross-legged at the dining table, smiling wide and waving, was Yoruichi.
Sui-Feng's mouth literally hung agape, unable to mobilize itself for speech. Quickly, Rei turned at the sound of Sui-Feng's name and waved her own greeting.
"Hi Sui-Feng!" Rei smiled brightly but remained behind the sizzling pan of food. Her initial reaction was to go to Sui-Feng and bestow some display of affection on her, but she wasn't sure if Sui-Feng was comfortable with that sort of thing in front of other people. They kept things private because relationships between Captains and enlisted men were highly unorthodox, but Rei didn't know how Sui-Feng felt about public displays of affection. Something in her gut told her that she was against them.
"W..wha…?" Sui-Feng stammered, her mouth dry.
"I ran into Yoruichi today at the Fourth," Rei giggled slightly, "And decided to invite her over for dinner so you two could catch up." She clarified, reading the obvious confusion on Sui-Feng's face.
"I came by yesterday to see how you were doing." Yoruichi spoke after she finished her cup of tea. For once, Yoruichi's smile was actually genuine. Her time alone with Rei had been filled with awkward, stilted conversation, if it even could be called that. The two women were obviously uncomfortable around each other and they both were looking forward to having someone familiar around. "But I obviously picked a bad time." She ended teasingly, doing her best Yoruichi impression.
"Sit, sit!" Rei urged and then turned back to the sizzling pan. "I hope you're both hungry. I made unagi and for desert there's mochi ice cream."
To Rei, the silence that enveloped the room was wholly peculiar. The table was set and the food was served, and yet nobody had said a word in over five minutes. Rei, who was sitting to the right of Sui-Feng, looked between both women a little anxiously.
"So...ummm…" Rei fidgeted. "How did your training go today?" Rei figured that would be a good topic to break the ice, since both women were noted for their combat prowess.
"Fine," Sui-Feng replied evasively. The last things she wanted to do was to go into her shortcomings in front of Yoruichi. The brown-skinned woman sat across from her, and she could feel her eyes on her, probing and searching. But for what?
Slowly, Yoruichi took another measured bite of the eel and rice that was on her plate. The meal was actually quite good, but she didn't want to seem too appreciative of Rei's cooking, so she had to restrain herself.
"Ummm…" Rei squirmed a bit. She was completely at a loss. Perhaps this was a bad idea. She truly didn't know what the relationship between Sui-Feng and Yoruichi was. She assumed it was friendly, but that assumption was based on rumors. Now that she thought about it, Sui-Feng had never mentioned the woman in the two years that they had been together.
"I'm sorry," Yoruichi chuckled after she swallowed her last mouthful. "I'm just still having trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that the fearsome Sui-Feng settled down and basically has a wife now." It was a true statement. The word "wife" caused Rei's checks to flush. "So…how did you two meet?" Starting at the beginning would help Yoruichi get a grasp on the whole situation.
Rei turned to Sui-Feng, but the Chinese woman continued to eat her meal impassively.
"Well," Rei began after seeing no signs from Sui-Feng, "We first met right after the Winter War. She was brought into the Fourth, still badly wounded since she had refused treatment."
"I prefer my wounds to heal naturally, when possible." Sui-Feng interjected, keeping her voice even. It was a half truth. She did prefer her wounds to heal on their own when they could, but that wasn't why she had refused treatment on this occasion.
"At first I didn't pay much attention to her." Rei continued. "I mean I was your nurse, I did my duty. But your wounds were stable and, to be honest, you kind of scared me, so I tried to spend as little time around you as possible." She finished meekly. "I think the first time we actually spoke was a week after you were brought in. I was changing your bandages when I noticed that your food was untouched. I asked you why and you said the food wasn't good."
"It wasn't," Sui-Feng said bluntly. Again it was a half-truth. The food was bad, but that wasn't why she wasn't eating.
"Well, I offered to make her meals myself." Rei turned back to Yoruichi. "The next day, I brought her a freshly cooked meal. She refused it at first, but I had taken the time to make the meal especially for her and I wanted to see it eaten!" She mimicked the stern tone she had used in the moment.
"At first you ate my food just to get rid of me," Rei continued. "But I started bringing her meals regularly and I stayed with her until she finished them. The more time we spent together, the more we started talking…" Her voice trailed off wistfully.
"Since I had lost my arm," Sui-Feng picked up. "When it came time for me to be released, I was going to be assigned a live-in nurse to help me acclimate to life missing an appendage. I requested Rei." She injected a bit of finality in the last statement.
"Wow…" Yoruichi breathed. It was the classic story of the soldier and the nurse; almost too perfect to be true. And yet it was sitting in front of her. "Still, to be so bold about it. I mean there's the rank difference, and the fact that you're both women. I have a hard time believing Sui's willing to break so many rules when it was like pulling teeth to just get her to call me "sama."
"Actually." Rei sipped some tea. "I'm still technically on duty. I've been filing extension requests to Unohana-taicho for quite some time now, and she's been granting them. Personally, I think she knows and is just helping us out."
"Really?" Yoruichi's jaw tightened. "That's…nice…of her."
Sui-Feng continued to eat her meal in relative silence, listening to the other women talk. She just couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more to what was going on. Why else would Yoruichi show up suddenly after such a long and conspicuous absence? Something was not right.
"What's the matter Sui?" Yoruichi asked, shaking Sui-Feng out of her thoughts.
"Nothing's the matter." Sui-Feng replied hastily.
"Yes there is," Yoruichi replied. "You've got that little crease in your eyebrow that you get when something is bothering you and you won't talk about it."
"Oh my goodness!" Rei exclaimed, covering her mouthful of food with her hand. "You've noticed that too?"
"Of course." The relaxed manner in which the statement came out surprised Yoruichi. There was no hint of the bitterness that she felt over the insinuation that Rei somehow knew Sui-Feng better than her. "She keeps so much bottled up inside that you have to learn to read her, or else you'll never get anything out of her. Like how her hands twitches a little when she's antsy…"
"I know! And like how her shoulders get all tense and square when she's angry." Rei squared her own shoulders in imitation.
"I always liked how she chews on her lip when she's nervous." Yoruichi dug back in her memories.
"Really?" Rei looked over to Sui-Feng for a moment. "I've never noticed that before…"
"The best thing though, is when she blushes..." Yoruichi started.
"Yes!" Rei almost squealed. "Whenever she does something even remotely romantic, she blushes. It's so cute!" Both women's heads turned to Sui-Feng, who was, despite her best efforts, now blushing. "It's so adorable and lets me know that you're human." Rei gushed as she rubbed Sui-Feng's arm gently, which only served to deepen the blush. Sui-Feng shot a deathly glare towards Yoruichi, but the combination of the glare and red cheeks only served to elicit laughter from the target, which Rei joined in on.
After she had calmed down, Yoruichi finished off her plate somewhat sadly.
"That was good." Yoruichi finally let the compliment that had been on the tip of her tongue all evening fall.
"Thank you." Rei beamed. "I hope you have room for desert. I made plenty of mochi ice cream." Rei got up and grabbed a platter that had a large pile of multi-colored balls about the size of fist. She placed the platter on the table as she sat and took one for herself and began to nibble at it delicately.
"Yes please!" Yoruichi said eagerly as she took one in each hand, devouring them in two bites each before she took more.
"No thank you." Sui-Feng stood from the table and left. Rei looked a little concerned as Sui-Feng walked away.
"Don't worry about it," Yoruichi said through a mouthful of mochi. "She's just in a huff because we had a little fun at her expense, but she'll be over it in a little bit." Rei looked on with a small amount of amazement at the woman with the courage to fearlessly tease Sui-Feng.
"This mochi is great." Yoruichi complemented as she picked up another ball. "Where did you learn to cook like this?"
"Thanks!" Rei brightened. "Where I come from, if you wanted good food, you had to learn to make it yourself." She grabbed a few of the balls and placed them on another plate. "I'll save these for Sui-Feng, help yourself to the rest." Yoruichi obliged happily.
Sui-Feng stepped out onto the balcony overlooking the mangrove and let the fresh air fill her lungs in deep breaths.
What is going on? Sui-Feng's mind raced. She couldn't figure out what Yoruichi was doing. She was acting completely normal, as if nothing had happened between them. Sui-Feng didn't know what to make of it. But she did know that it was driving her insane.
"Well," Sui-Feng turned around to see Rei walking Yoruichi to the door. "I should probably get going. Now that the whole debacle with Aizen is over, I need to figure out what to do with myself. So you'll probably be seeing me around."
"It was nice meeting you." Rei smiled. "I hope this won't be the only time we have you over."
"I'm never one to turn down a free meal." Yoruichi replied. "See ya Sui, Rei." Yoruichi waved and left. Sui-Feng couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief once Yoruichi was gone.
"Is…everything alright?" Rei asked hesitantly.
"I'm fine." Sui-Feng replied defensively. Rei frowned, be didn't press the matter, instead returning to the dishes that needed cleaning, wondering how long it will take her to "be over it" like Yoruichi said.