Warning: POV change ahead.
Rukia Kuchiki woke with a start, jolting instantly awake and forcing her mind to catch up with her surroundings. She'd heard Renji's voice calling her name but when she looked around, he was no-where to be seen. She was practically alone in a room that rivaled the finest rooms in the Kuchiki manor with regards to the quality of its furnishings, though the style was decidedly Ottoman in its feel. There were carving and geometrics on all of the furniture, patterned upholstery in fine fabrics and thick plush rugs on the mosaic floor. The other occupants of the room, Inoue and that mortal woman Renji had been traveling with, lay stretched out on the beds on either side of her.
:I wonder where we are...: Rukia thought to herself, looking around in vain for some sort of window or anything that might give her a substantial clue as to where Aizen had taken them.
They weren't in Las Noches, that was for sure. Before Renji had written back to her about the other Realms in the Dangai, she would have swore that the only possible places they could be hidden away were in the World of the Living, Hueco Mundo, or Soul Society. Now she knew that wasn't true, there were an untold number of little pocket Realms carved out by old Gods and Nature Spirits and she and her fellow prisoners could be in any one of them. This wasn't to be like last time where a rescue party could simply come charging in to save them. If there was to be any rescue, they were going to have to do it themselves.
Rukia flexed her spiritual "muscles" testing out the strength of her powers with a small flare of reiatsu. She was both dismayed, yet unsurprised to feel no upwelling of spiritual force come to her call. Aizen had, naturally, found a way to suppress her powers. Her Zanpaktou was nowhere to be seen but...
Disguising the movement as a sneeze, Rukia very carefully spat out the stone that Renji had passed to her when he'd...
Her face flushed, remembering the heat and power behind that kiss he'd stolen from her. That had been no awkward teenage fumble, nor had it been hesitant or shy in any way. That had been a man's kiss. Rukia's mouth went dry as her face flushed of its own accord. She was accustomed to having all of the power in their dynamic, when they'd been kids anything he had was pretty much hers for the taking and if she'd taunted him with that fact well, that's what he got for chasing after her. It had come as an unwelcome shock that he'd given her up without a whisper of protest but she hadn't been able to blame him for it really, he'd been stronger than she, and better in all of his subjects save kido, so it was only natural he'd want to be able to get on with his life without her keeping him back.
Rukia had thought she'd firmly squelched and buried any silly girlish notions about the life she'd dreamed about having with him after they graduated and became Soul Reapers on the day when her brother officially adopted her. Her rank was higher than his would ever be, they lived in two separate worlds so there was no point in longing after something that would only ever be nothing more than a fantasy. She was fine with dreams that wouldn't come true... hence her crush on Kaien Shiba. He had been safe for her to love, or so she'd thought, her reasoning being that he wouldn't ever love her back, but likewise he wouldn't leave her either. Oddly enough her unrequited feelings for her lieutenant had been what made the lonliness and solitude in the Kuchiki's easier to bear as she tried not to look on with raw envy while Renji made friends and fit in and gained rank and got stronger and more powerful while she... became a lady. It had been hard and painful thinking that she didn't matter to him anymore then all of a sudden he came breezing back into her life, along with Ichigo, just at the moment when she had resigned herself to giving it up, fiercer and stronger and more powerful than ever, and knowing her just as deeply and instinctively as he always had. It had felt like an amputated limb that had still on occasion given herphantom limb syndrome was suddenly and unexpectedly restored to her. He'd followed her to Hueco Mundo as easily as he'd followed her to Soul Reaper Academy and strangely, her world seemed to regain its balance. Despite her better efforts to repress it, a small, tiny hope tried to raise pry itself out of the little box she'd stuffed it into to get through her new life.
After all... he was a lieutenant now, and not only that but her brother's lieutenant too. There was every chance that, given time there might grow a certain fondness on the side of her brother for the young man under his command. She knew already that her older brother was the sort to become set in his ways, like an old man, he disliked change. Rukia had hoped that, after a few years to get used to Renji being a regular fixture in his life, a reliable dependable person of whom her brother could generally approve of, she might brach the subject of marriage. it would be a hard sell, even if he was a lieutenant, but if Rukia couched it in terms of Renji being his lieutenant, someone he was already accustomed to, and that in this way Rukia would not be bringing some stranger that her brother did not know and might not like into the house, well, it might just be enough to make the idea palatable to him. But that notion had hinged on the uncertainty of Renji himself going along with the idea.
The issue had never been broached, had never even been hinted at. The fact that their bond was so strong after decades apart had given her hope, but...
She shook her head, deciding that she was going to deal with her reaction to that kiss and what it might mean at a time when her life wasn't in possible danger and she wasn't being held in durance vile by a mad genius. She switched her thoughts back to the stone he'd given her. That it was special she had no doubt of. For one thing, it's wasn't merely sparkly, it actually glowed with inner power and it...
:Is that...? It feels like... No, it can't possibly be so...: Rukia thought in confusion as he reiatsu settled and started picking up a strange spiritual vibration from the stone that Renji had passed to her surruptitiously when he had kissed her.
It felt like Renji.
Even after thier years apart, you didn't grow up two inches away from a person day in and night out for all of your formative years without knowing the exact scent and nuance of thier spiritual energy as closely as you knew your own. The stone had Renji's reiatsu in it, Rukia would know it anywhere. She frowned in confusion at it though, she had never heard of anything like that...
:Except that orb that Ichigo and Orihime told me about maybe, the one that Kuukaku Shiba had let them use to create a poweful spirit barrier to shoot them into Seireitei with. But this doesn't look like an orb.:
Looking more closely at the stone, Rukia noticed that it was put into a setting that was shaped like a snake and a baboon, the counterparts of Renji's nue-zanpaktou-spirit, Zabimaru. That clinched it, the stone definitely belonged to Renji. He had gone to strange lengths to slip it to her however, and Rukia didn't know why he might do such a thing.
:Man, when this is all over with... Nii-sama is gonna kill him,: Rukia thought.
She allowed the recent revelations to catch up to her in her own mind; he had been traveling with the reincarnation of her own sister for weeks on end and hadn't even slipped a hint of it in all of the letters he'd written back to her, add to that he'd had the temerity to kiss her without her consent, even if it was possibly to slip her some artifact that he no doubt felt was going to protect her somehow... which just sort of made it worse as far as Rukia was concerned.
:What, I'm not good enough for mister High and Might Lieutenant to kiss under ordinary circumstances, so he just steals my lips whenever he wants to do covert, sneaky stuff?: she thought, allowing her temper to mount.
As usual, it was so much easier to be angry at him than to be hurt by him.
:And what was with all that non-sense he spouted off about the rules of the streets?: she scoffed to herself.
The only street rules Renji had ever taken to heart were "protect your gang-mates" and "nut up or shut up" What was all this nonsense about the strong ruling over the weak? Renji didn't believe any of that crap... it was the very first and most basic thing that the two of them had ever had in common! Sure, he might push people around every now and then, but that was just his way of trying to make them grow a bigger spine...
:And you're getting off track,: she chided herself.
Regardless of what he said, Rukia knew in her heart that the crap he'd spouted off to Aizen wasn't true. She had the proof of it in her hands right now, the stone that glowed with a soft indigo light that pulsed like a heartbeat in her cupped palms felt like Renji.
:He had to have slipped me this stone for a reason,: she thought. :Which means that he clearly hasn't thrown his lot on with Aizen.:
She was surprised by how much the very logical nature of that realization made her feel relieved. Relieved enough that she could set her doubts about whatever else was going on aside and try to prod a bit at the mysterious stone that renji had slipped to her, maybe it was some kind of hint or something.
:it has his power in it somehow. Maybe if I try putting in a little of my own power into it...:
Rukia gathered up and spun out a fine tendril of her own reiatsu, just the same way she would to start laying the careful, delicate groundwork for a kido spell, and prodded it at the stone. It flickered a bit when her thread of reiatsu came into contact with it but she couldn't find a way to put it in the stone.
:Maybe something else...:
Rukia cleared her mind, wrapped her reiatsu around the outside of the gem, closed her eyes and, bringing the stone in closer to her heart where she could feel the warmth and steady presence that she always associated with Renji radiate on her like a minuature sun she pictured him in her minds eye and...
There was a thumping pulse along her senses and she was thrown mentally into a half-trance state, much like the one she got when she went into the inner-scape to commune with her Zanpaktou, except that instead of going inward she went outward. Sort of. It wasn't quite like seeing through his eyes, it was more like looking over his shoulder, she could see his body and most of what he himself saw and
::That should be enough practice to convince that Aizen-bastard that I'm serious about takin' on the Captain, now ta find and excuse ta look around this place and see if I can't find that damned stone!::
Rukia could hear him as clearly as if he were standing right next to him, speaking but in the next moment she actually saw him move his mouth.
"Who the hell do i have ta kill ta get a drink around here?" he demanded loudly of the air.
::There, that should fool that shadow-watcher that Aizen's pinned on me, and any other covert means he has of keepin' an eye on me,:: Renji thought.
Rukia watched, impassive as a ghost or a Vision, while Renji went ranging grumpily through the halls, growling like a hungry wolf, tearing the place apart to supposedly look for food. His thought would suggest however, that he was using his stomach as a ruse to look for something else.
The place they had landed in was immense and filled with ... things. Some of the things had a clearly defined purpose, or at least an origin, there were rooms filled with the treasures of ancient tombs, the Egyptians, the Babylonians, the Greeks, the Incas, the Aztecs, the kings of the Songhai Empire, the Ottomans, Romans, and hundreds of other related civilizations. There were rooms that were filled practically to bursting (but still eerily organized, as if by an OCD) with every type and size of article, there were ornate boxes, urns, furniture, atrifacts, all of which of precious metals and encrusted with jewels.
In one section of the immense and sprawling estate, Rukia was awed to see the scrolls and texts of the Lost Library of Alexander the Great, the one that had been burned (lamentably) thousands of years ago, all of them in perfect condition (though some things were smoke singed). Room after room, trove after trove; the treasures went through various periods througout history, from the Indian sub-continent to the Spanish galleons, from the paintings of the famous Renaisance Artists to the statues of the ancient Greeks. Any museum keeper worth his salt would have sold his children to the tenth generation to get his hands on a fraction of the items displayed in even one of those rooms let alone all of them. Renji just scanned around them, sniffing the air like a dog on a scent, and dimissed the immense treasures with a grunt and a roll of his eyes.
They came across a room stacked floor to celing with nothing but lit, glass display cases filled with priceless fabrige eggs.
::Hn!:: Renji dismissed poking at one, opening it up and finding its elaborate contents. ::Only the wealthy and foolish would spend so much time and money on an egg with no food in it! Stupid nobles.::
:Only you, Renji would come across a treasure trove that would make Ali Baba weep with jealousy and Aladdin ask his genie for more wishes, and lament the fact that you can't eat it!: Rukia thought, internally shaking her head at him.
"Rukia?" Renji asked aloud of the empty room.
:Renji?: Rukia replied mentally, realizing for the first time that he could hear her.
"You can hear me?"
:I can see you,: Rukia replied. :That stone you slipped me when you kissed me connects us.:
:Can you hear me if I don't speak out loud? Aizen's got a watcher on me, merged into my shadow that follows me around and reports to him everything I say and do.:
:I can hear you fine, dummy. And you've got some explaining to do. We'll start with how that mortal woman you've been off gallivanting around the Divine Realms with is my reincarnated sister and you saw fit not to inform either myself or my brother, and go from there.:
:Uh...: he said.
Rukia could taste his chagrin as easily as she would feel her own wave of discomfort and unease at the thought of meeting the person who had abandoned her in Hangdog as a baby. Granted, she owed everything that she was now to the woman who searched for her until her dying day but Rukia honestly didn't know how to feel.
:I know the idea's probably a weird one for you,: Renji said picking up on her emotional state as easily as she had felt his. :But for what it's worth, she's... not so bad. Her new life has given her chances to ease the errors of her old one. She's a good mother, very protective of her son. Still has her share of faults, not the least of which is an annoying knack for bossing me around.:
Rukia felt a sly bit of tease from him as Renji added
:I think it just runs in the family.:
Rukia sniffed. She could sense that he was trying to jolly her into a better mood so that she would fogive him faster. It wasn't going to happen. Rukia felt Renji's minor bit of dispiritedness as she failed to respond favorably to his attempt, but as usual, he shrugged it off and got down to business.
:That stone I gave you is actually my heartstone,: Renji told her. :It contains the core of my spiritual power. I got it when I sent on the Katschei. You probably read my report to the Captain about it. I put in the official report that I had to use my own reiatsu to push his power out of the keystone that held this realm together so he would stop getting around the reincarnation-after-dying thing, well what I didn't mention was that the Realm he'd built, this Realm actually, needs a master, a will, to keep all of the spells together and from disintegrating. My power was already in the stone, so I was accepted as this Realm's new master kinda by default. I haven't really noticed any harm from it, I just have a little peice of me that's outside of me. I gave it to you so that no matter what happens, no matter where you are or where Aizen thinks he can stash you away... I'll never loose you. You keep that Heartstone on you and I'll always be able to find you, no matter what.:
Rukia tried not to feel touched at the unwavering solidity of his promise. She wanted to tell herself that the things he was saying to her were nothing more than Renji just being himself.
:This stone connects us,: Rukia said, partly as a way of changing the subject so that she woudn't have to notice some of the other things she was beginning to sense from Reni's hearstone.
She had no doubt of his sincerity, seeing as it was now impossible for Renji to lie to her without her knowing it, but there were greater things than simple sincerity going on underneath the surface of his thoughts and Rukia didn't think she was quite ready do deal with that. She could feel that Renji wasn't ready to have to tell her about it so by somewhat mutual agreement, they both ignored it in favor of getting down to business.
:Speaking of heartstones,: Renji said. :I'm all but certain Aizen has one. You and I both know that he's not the sort of man to not have a back-up plan, and having a way to get around staying dead after one of us kills him is just the sort of thing he'd do. That's what I'm doing right now, tell the mortal Missy and miss Inoue-:
:Don't you mean Hisana and Orihime?: Rukia questioned him archly.
:I don't use names,: Renji replied shortly. His emotional tones felt a little uncomfortable.
:Why the heck not?: Rukia demanded. :You can't possibly tell me that you've been traveling with Hisana-:
:She's Isana in this incarnation,: Renji corrected.
"Isana then,: Rukia said impatiently. :You can't possibly tell me that you've been traveling with her all this while and you've never once called her by her name.:
:Using names encourages familiarity,: Renji explained. :I never had any intention of getting close to the mortal woman.:
There was a starnge cocktail of emotions swirling about but the strongest among them was resentment as Renji said
:After all, she did put a geas on me; an obedience collar just like you'd put on a pup ta bring 'im ta heel.:
Oh, Renji did not like that at all. Suddenly his ambivalence toward Rukia's reincarnated sister made a lot more sense. Rukia could sort of sound it out for herself... He was a proud warrior who valued his strength and independence, but then again, Renji, whether or not he'd admit to it, had a good deal of the Knight Errant in him. A damsel in distress wasn't something he could easily turn his back on. He was willing to help out someone who didn't have anyone else to turn to, added to that was an additional sort of familial obligation... Renji and Rukia had once been close as family once upon a time, and this Hisana-reincarnation could still be considered sort of as Rukia's sister, so Renji would probably feel some vague sense of obligation there. If any of that weren't enough, the woman, Mortal or not, was still considered to be his Captain's wife (her Elder Brother still considered himself very much a married man regardless of the fact that his wife was passed and reincarnated already) and Renji would very definitely feel an obligation there. But Renji had probably not liked being bound into service by force, regardless of whether or not he probably would have helped her out anyway.
:Whatever, Renji,: Rukia snapped, trying to ignore her empathy towards his very very mixed up situation he'd landed in. :I just want to know why you didn't feel the need to inform my Honorable Brother about having found his wife!:
Or if he weren't going to tell her brother, Renji should at least have told her about it!
:I wanted to,: Renji replied, clearly still uncertain about it. :But the situation wasn't simple at all. She was detirmined to get her son back, even if it meant dragooning me into being her bodyguard while we played hopscotch across the Dangai. I knew nothing about who or what new enemy had taken him and also turned me mortal. I couldn't even prove that this mysterious new enemy of mine even existed, much less that Aizen was behind any of it. It was already an uncertain muddle, if I'd brought up the complication of his wife putting herself in the path of danger it would have only made things even more complicated than they already are.:
True, at the very least her brother would have ordered his lieutenant to desist in his quest (which would have taken Renji off the one hope he had of undoing his unfortunate state of mortality). Generally speaking, Mortals were not alowed to come and visit the land of the dead while they were still alive, but in recent time exceptions to that centuries-old rule were flowing through it like water through a seive... if her Brother had wanted an exception made to ensure that Hisana was kept well out of harms way, Rukia was certain that one would have been made. If Byakuya Kuchiki had taken Renji and Isana off the trail of the Shadow that took her son and turned Renji mortal, they would not now have a way to bind the Shadows... heck, they probably wouldn't even have proof they even existed. More to the point, the battle with array in Hueco Mundo would have been a disaster of epic proportions if Isana and her spell had not been there to shut down the device properly.
In short, they had indeed been much better off with Renji keeping his counsel than they would have been if he'd decided to spill the beans about Isana. But all of that didn't change the fact that Renji was still in the doghouse.
:You do realize that my Brother is going to have Words with you when all this is through,: Rukia said with all of the malicious delight she usually derived from the anticipation of watching Renji get raked over the coals.
:I don't think he's going to bother with words,: Renji said with resignation. :He'll probably just move right on to showing me the business end of Senbonzakura.:
:You are in soooo much trouble,: Rukia said relishingly.
:Don't I know it," Renji said. "But that's for another day. Right now, we've got bigger problems to worry about. I've got pretty much free run of the place, but everything I do is going to be monitored and reported back to Aizen. I don't know what he's up to now or what he plans on doing. I'd try to spy on him, but I think he's on the lookout for that, I really, seriously doubt he trusts my sudden conversion to the Dark Side.:
:Then why is he letting you run around free? Why wouldn't he just lock you up like the rest of us?: Rukia questioned.
:He thinks he knows me,: Renji replied with a mental shrug. :He's certain that I'm so obsessed with having my big show down with your brother that it's all I'm thinking of or care about right now. After all, he doesn't know that i know more about his plans than anyone else besides Yoruichi. He thinks I'm just some harmless dumb jock he can use at his own discretion. So I'll keep up my end of the ruse. I'll find that heartstone of his, I'm sure it's hidden in this place somewhere. I need you to do someting for me though. I need you to find a way to get in touch with your brother. He's being hidden in the West Wing, I don't know where exactly. That stone i gave you, my heartstone, it's also the keystone of this Realm. I've never actually tested it out, but if I'm not mistaken, I think it might give you some kind of mastery here. Try it out, but you really gotta promise me that you'll be very very very careful with what you do and how you do it. If Aizen catches you and finds that stone on me, we are all screwed beyond belief.:
:Why is that?: Rukia asked in confusion.
She felt Renji hesitate for a very long moment, internally debating over what he should say to her.
:Just spill it already!: Rukia mentally snapped at him in irritation.
Sheesh, they were already connected by thier thoughts, now was not the time to be holding back.
:Well... that stone is not just the keystone to this Realm. Heartstones... they aren't just storage devices for extra spiritual power, of you hold a person's heartstone, you hold their very essence in your hands. That stone would give a person, absolute and total mastery over me.:
Rukia paused for one long, shocked instant while Renji waited for the implications of his statement to sink in. Renji had given her something that made the little obedience collar that isana had reportedly put on him look like a joke in comparison.
:And if Aizen ever gets his hands on it,: Renji continued. :I'll be his minion in fact instead of using it as a cover to bring him down. He'll be able to find out any plan we make and he'll be able to coerce my loyalty and there won't be a damn thing I or anyone else can do to stop him. So please, just be careful okay?:
:Why in the world would you give me something this dangerous in the first place if you're going to play double agent?" Rukia demanded.
:It was the only way I could think of to keep you safe!: he snapped back in exasperation. :As long as you have my heartstone on you, even if you get moved across Realms, I'll still be able to find you. I couldn't trust that Aizen would keep us all in one place, and this was the only thing I could think of that would guarantee I'd be able to search you out and he couldn't hold you hostage in a different location against my and yer brother's good behaviour.:
Well. That made sense.
:Anyway, I want you to try using that stone to see if you can't magic up some kind of messenger servant or something. You're a smart girl, I'm sure you'll think up something, just be real careful when and how you do it. I can't have Aizen leaning about the heartstone. If you can get in touch with the Captain, tell him I'm looking for Aizen's heartstone. Once I find it, and I will find it, it'll give us an enormous advantage over him... if we can figure out a way of getting to it that won't alert the stone's owner. I know when I gave my heartstone to you, I was aware of the fact that it had left my possession, you can just feel it. Tell him also that Aizen gave yer sister a drink compounded from the water of Lethe, he said it's supposed to restore her memories from her past life, which wasn't very nice of him. I don't know what Aizen's game is with that one, other than maybe he's just cruel. I'll try and look into that one if I've got the extra time. Also, tell him that-:
:Geeze, okay okay!: Rukia said mentally holding up a hand to cut him off so she could catch up.
:Well, Captain needs to know these things if he's going to come up with a plan,: Renji said pitilessly. :Right now you're the only link I've got to making a full report. So, Aizen's heartstone, water of Lethe, Um..."
She could sense Renji pause for a long moment to ruminate. It was strange to be able to almost feel him going over in his mind what he should reveal and what he felt might be better off keeping a secret for now. It distressed Rukia to sense how much her friend was holding back from her. It made her wonder a little bit if she even knew him at all anymore.
:well, in for a penny, in for a pound I guess,: he continued, apparently oblivious to the questions formed in her mind about him. :I was going to tell him about it when I got back anyway and if he's going to plan effectively, he'll need to know this. Zabimaru has two forms.:
:Wait, what?: Rukia demanded incredulously.
:Yep,: Renji said, his mental voice saturated with proud smugness. :There's the snaketail form that I've been using for the last several decades that is one half of his power, but when I cleansed my chakra and unsealed my reiatsu from the binding marks that my zanpaktou put on me, the ones that everyone thinks are tattoos, I also unlocked his second form, the sword-form of Baboon King Zabimaru.:
:I've never heard of such a thing,: Rukia said scornfully, and truth be told a little jealously.
Why the hell did he always insist on leaving her developmentally in the dust dammit!
:That's because i have the most awesome zanpaktou in the whole seireitei,: Renji replied, still smug. Then he turned serious.
:Anyway, howl-form Zabimaru has three attacks, they're reiatsu-charged lightning-based attacks, and their level of power increases based on how many chakra I unleash. i can make it up to three with no problem, four is a bit of a struggle, but anything beyond that... well let's just say it probably shouldn't attempted for a while yet. Aizen doesn't know about the other form and if it comes down to it, we might be able to use the element of surprise to get the jump on him. Also, Rukia, this is very important. Tell the mortal-:
:Which one? I'm surrounded by them,: she pointed out.
:the one I've been traveling with,: Renji said impatiently.
He was being really stubborn about not using Hisana's name. Had he really gone all of this time without calling her by it? She called Ichigo by his name all of the time, and she didn't even use the more formal "kurosaki-kun" that Orihime insisted upon. Then again, she considered Ichigo to be her friend, and it was very apparent that Renji's feelings for the mortal he'd sworn his protection to were far from being that simple.
:Hey, Renji...: Rukia said.
:what?: he asked, clearly impatient to finish imparting the whatever dire information he felt she needed to know.
:How do you feel about her? I mean, you've been traveling with her for a while, you must feel something about her.:
:Could we not talk about this right now?: he growled frustratedly.
Rukia felt an ominous feeling clench in her belly. Renji wasn't answering the question. If he was as indifferent to Hisana as he claimed he would have come out and said that he didn't like her, but he'd just dodged the issue.
:You're getting off track here. I need you to tell the mortal woman that no matter what happens, no matter how scared she gets or how Aizen provokes her, she absolutely must not use that present I gave her.:
Rukia felt herself go hot and cold for a long moment. Renji's urgent voice faded to the back ground as her simmering temper rose by several degrees. He had given her a present? What did he think he was doing, getting another woman presents? All the various implications of Renji giving resents to a woman danced before her eyes. Sure she might have been the reincarnation of her dear older brother's wife, but Rukia had looked at the woman for herself and she could see that her sister's new mortal form was very attractive, and now Renji was mortal too... he might have developed feelings for her. That was the way things were supposed to work after all. A young man, bold and daring, aides a beautiful woman on her quest to rescue her son from durance vile, in any movie or story, they would fall in love with each other. If he was already givng her presents, that meant he was already wooing her because Renji only gave gifts to people who really mattered to him. He must have fallen for her, despite the consequences. Clearly, Renji wasn't worried about his Captain's anger; he'd already faced him down once, and if something was important enough to Renji, he'd fight for it tooth and nail. Looking over at her sister's reincarnation it was clear to see that she was as brave as she was beautiful, but she also looked mature and sophisticated as well, of course Renji would fall for her!
:Rukia!: Renji snapped at her, interrupting her mental tirade before it could quite get started. :Focus! We'll have plenty of time for your pet peeves later, however you want, but right now this is a matter of the Court Guard Squads and I need you focused and professional.:
Rukia abruptly got it. This wasn't her friend Renji Abarai, the guy she pushed around, made fun of and picked on for her own amusement, she was currently speaking to Renji Abarai, Lieutenant of Squad Six. Rukia blinked and collected herself, trying not to feel too hurt by his treatment.
:I'm... What else did you need me to relay?: she asked still in a slight state of shock.
:Okay, I also need you to tell Captain that I can't rescue him on account of that shadow-watcher attached to me. If I act out of character Aizen will know and our whole opperation will get blown out of the water. Sooner or later Aizen is gonna have the two of us out to fight each other like dogs in a ring, probably for his own amusement, I'm hoping to be able to find his heartstone before then. This place is huge, but I'll be able to sniff it out. I sort of have a vague idea but it's sort of risky. It involves Miss Isana, that's why I need her to keep what she can do a secret.:
:What can she do?: Rukia asked.
:I can't tell you. The less you know now, the less you might have to lie about later. But tell the Missy that it's about that thing I really yelled at her for that one time. Her power is gonna be our ace in the hole.:
:Geeze, this is a lot to remember,: Rukia grumbled to herself.
:I have every confidence in you. You are the brains of this outfit remember, i'm sure you can keep everything under control. Oh, and by the way, there's a mirror in your chamber with you. Be careful around it, I'm not exactly sure what all it shows but it seems a little dangerous.:
:Is it magic? Did you look in it? What did you see?: Rukia pried curiously.
Rukia felt Renji's internal guard go up to block her from sensing a very strange cocktail of emotions.
:Let's just say that the phrase "be careful what you wish for" definitely isn't without it's truth.:
And with that mysterious little statement, Renji cut off their connection and concentrated on getting his job done, leaving Rukia to figure out a way to make things happen on her own.
:...His heartstone eh?: Rukia thought to herself, looking down at the glowing stone in the palm of her hand, her mind turning over the implications of what little that Renji had told her about the stone. :Absolute and total mastery over him. I wonder how far it goes? I wonder what I can do with this stone.:
I have no Excuse... I'm just lazy. So sorry. ^_^..."