Chapter 5: Dark Promises

(Back to a crazy work schedule, but wanted to get this out to the many wonderful Aizenfans out there. Sorry for the dry spell. I will have more for you soon! Love, Spunky)

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"So, why are you taking me along to this meeting?" Renji asked, "Do you think your elders are gonna have a problem with me taking over Tetsuya's job?"

"I think they would be wary of whoever was recommended for a position so close to their leader," Byakuya answered, leading Renji through the courtyard and out onto the quiet street.

They continued on, past buildings and homes that stood in various states of repair as building crews worked tirelessly to restore them.

"They are going to see quickly that you are an obvious choice as you are familiar with me and you already act as a close protector. There shouldn't be any dissent. This is more of a formality."

"Huh, and are you planning on telling them that we're kinda dating now?" Renji asked, smirking.

"Hmm," Byakuya mused, slipping a hand into Renji's, "I don't know if you're ready for me to give them a formal declaration of a courtship. Are you sure you want to be tangled up in that, Renji? While the elders cannot tell me who to see romantically, I do have certain commitments as leader. While I would love for us to be able to just let things develop as they will, clan courtships are more complicated."

Renji gave him an amused frown.

"Are you saying you don't want to date me?" he asked, sounding offended, "Cause, from what you said before..."

"I am saying no such thing," Byakuya answered in an unruffled tone, "I am only warning you that we aren't going to be able to just see where it goes. If I approach the elders about formally seeing you, then it is with the intention of being married. I think maybe you'd prefer we say nothing to them until we are ready to take that step."

"You think they're not gonna figure it out themselves?" Renji mused, "But I guess you're right we probably need some time to just enjoy things the way they are."

"I agree. We have all been through a lot. We need to move slowly and take a few breaths before plunging into anything too deeply."

"Is that your way of telling me that we shouldn't have sex yet?" Renji teased gently, tickling Byakuya's palm and laughing softly at the resulting blush it brought on.

"You certainly aren't subtle, are you?" Byakuya said, shaking his head, "To be honest, I do want us to progress sexually too."

"Hey, I was just joking around with you," Renji objected, "There's no rush if you wanna take things slowly."

Byakuya gave him a very slight smirk.

"I think we should handle this the way I handle your training. You do what feels natural to you..."

Renji grinned widely.

"And you'll hurt me if I do something you don't like?" he laughed.

"I will indicate my comfort level with what you do," Byakuya corrected him in an amused tone.

"Well, what if I don't want to be putting myself out there and risking you rejecting me?" Renji complained.

"Let me explain in a different way," Byakuya offered, "You are a naturally impulsive person, while I am one who thinks things through, sometimes to a fault. If you follow your instincts and lead me, with me indicating what is comfortable, we will progress more steadily than if you have to wait for me to think everything through first. I am just suggesting a strategy that uses both our strengths in tandem."

"You make it sound like a battlefield strategy," Renji chuckled.

"There are many similarities," Byakuya agreed.

"Well, you're the master strategist, so we'll go with your idea," the redhead decided, curling an arm around Byakuya's waist and pulling him into a copse of trees, where he pushed the noble up against a tree and invaded his mouth hungrily. His heart raced and his loins throbbed viciously as he felt Byakuya return several powerful kisses, before pushing him away and brushing the fallen leaves from his clothes.

"We need to continue walking before we're late," he stated primly.

"Yeah, and you'd better hope it's a long enough walk so we'll get the blush off our faces or those old farts will know something's up!" Renji laughed.

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"Are you awake, Tetsuya?" Aizen asked, bringing the younger man out of the haze his mind had slipped into to ward off the darkness and cold.

Tetsuya shivered under his bonds.

"I am awake."

"I think I may have an idea."

"Okay..."

"I know that your powers are held back, but that only means that your reiatsu is gathered around you. You were weakened and haven't yet recovered from what happened when your cousin attacked you, but you still have certain abilities that haven't been effected, by nature of the fact that they require little to no reiatsu exchange, right?"

"That is true," Tetsuya agreed.

"The problem we have is that we can't use our powers together because we can't touch. But...you can make water? Rain?" Aizen inquired.

"I can usually make rain," Tetsuya corrected him, "I don't have the strength for rain right now."

"But could you make droplets of water, perhaps on your fingertips?"

"I think so. Why?"

"I believe if you can make a puddle of water beneath you and it comes a bit in my direction, it can touch me. The water will eventually leak through tiny openings in my bindings," Aizen explained.

"But, what good is that?" Tetsuya asked, frowning, "Once the water is out of my range, I will lose my connection with it."

"That is true," Aizen admitted, "however, water is highly conductive, and if the water runs between us, I should be able to use my power to provoke you."

"What does that mean?" Tetsuya asked anxiously, "What are you going to do?"

"Nothing that will hurt you," Aizen said soothingly, "One of my abilities will allow me to return you very briefly to the moment you discovered your powers and released the stallion you told me about. If I do that, it should trigger you and you will do so again."

"But how can I when I am still not recovered? What power...?"

"I will explain in more detail later, if you wish, but you know that your cousin is still plotting. And with every moment, we risk him returning and perhaps taking you elsewhere, which would put an end to any hope of escape for us. I know you still have questions about me, but I'm sure you can see the necessity of us working together."

"But...you're sure that I will be able to break our bonds?" Tetsuya asked warily.

"Yes," Aizen said firmly, "Trust me, Tetsuya, this strategy will work. Now, I need you to begin making water, as much as you can."

Tetsuya hesitated.

I know this man is dangerous. I don't know if he should be loosed on Soul Society. But if I don't free him, I know I can't escape these bonds. It's a maddening decision, but Byakuya-sama is definitely in danger from Orochi and his father, as well as some others who worked with them on the plot to kill me. I have to protect Byakuya-sama.

And...there is something I can do to make sure that this man does not deceive me and harm me as soon as he is free.

"Very well," Tetsuya answered, relaxing his body and turning his focus inward.

His spirit centers ached and burned fiercely at even that small usage, but Tetsuya managed a smile as he felt moisture begin to build on his skin. He breathed slowly, keeping his body calm and relaxed, letting the moisture grow into droplets and feeling a throb of hope swell inside as the first drops rolled down and fell from his fingertips onto the floor beneath him.

But it will take so long to do this! I can only hope that Orochi remains too intimidated to return, and that he doesn't bring back others and take me away as that man said he might. It would be like Orochi to do that. He has always been strangely provoked by me. I don't know what I ever did to make him that way or why he focused all of that on me.

"Focus, Tetsuya," Aizen said quietly, "It seemed the power emanating from you started to fade slightly.

"Sorry," Tetsuya apologized, returning his thoughts to the matter at hand.

I know that my emotions are a large part of this power. If I tap into my darker emotions, then maybe I will be able to create more water. I must be cautious, though, not to overtax my body before he invokes whatever power he will use.

Tetsuya took a steadying breath and brought to mind the darkness in his past, reliving slowly, the long years of his incarceration and the horrible cruelty his cousin had subjected him to. Gradually, the intense emotion gathered like rain inside him and began to slide down his shaking arms.

"Be careful, Tetsuya," Aizen warned him, "Too much force and you could damage yourself. My power will undo the need for that kind of caution, but you must reach me first."

"I understand," Tetsuya answered, quivering as he worked to control the release of the much larger droplets.

With time, the initial pain of what he was doing began to fade and the water welled up more easily and slid down in little streams. The pool underneath his restrained body widened, and he coaxed the edge nearest the other prisoner into moving towards him. The growing pool thickened and extended, slowly meandering across the space between the two prisoners and finally reaching Aizen.

Aizen loosed a low groan of relief as he felt the water begin to soak into his bonds. He waited until he could just feel Tetsuya's presence through the watery connection.

"I am going to test the connection," he warned Tetsuya, "Relax and allow this."

Tetsuya forced the rising tension out of his body and waited silently as the other prisoner's power began to hum and throb warningly, then suddenly flashed through the connection, sending Tetsuya's mind into a gripping illusion.

"Tell me what you sense," Aizen directed him.

"I am lying on my back in a starlit field, under a full moon," Tetsuya answered, "It's like I'm really there! Everything...the air smells fresh. I feel the breeze..."

"Good," Aizen said approvingly, "Now, I am going to take you back. I apologize if this will be difficult for you, but..."

"You are thinking that if you put me back in that moment, it could cause me to release my powers here, right?"

"Exactly," Aizen confirmed, "Relax as much as you can now. I am going to begin."

Tetsuya shivered involuntarily, but forced his wary body to obey. The other prisoner's power flashed again, passing through the fallen water and taking control of Tetsuya's senses.

He found himself suddenly dropped back into his thin, dirty more youthful body and being dragged to his feet by Byakuya. He stole a glance at his teen cousin and felt an inward shock at seeing Naoki's limp body slung over Byakuya's shoulder.

"Come on!" Byakuya cried, "Follow me!"

He forced his aching legs into a stumbling run, barely keeping pace as he and Byakuya fled amidst blazing fires and blasts of incoming kido.

"W-we won't make it! There are...t-too many g-guards!" he panted.

"We'll be all right. Just keep running!" Byakuya encouraged him, "It's not much farther, Tetsuya."

Something about hearing such care, such concern in the other youth's voice brought tears to his eyes. He felt new swells of even deeper gratitude, but held back speaking so that his effort was all spent on escape. They reached a small rise and ran onto it, then Byakuya skidded to a stop, letting Naoki fall to the ground and raising his hands in reaction as four heavily armed guards appeared in front of them.

It was all too clear Byakuya couldn't react quickly enough to save them.

Fear rose up like a stone wall around him and he felt oncoming panic, but deep inside his chest, something else burned, so painfully, but with the promise of rescue. Tetsuya knew better than to hesitate. He closed his eyes and let the rising power roar through his thin body and out to fire itself at the threat in front of them. He heard the scream of a stallion and the ground shook with the pounding of hooves. The power loosed in their direction crashed harmlessly against the tall beast that had appeared between them. The stallion screamed again and released a blast of what looked like hailstones, but it cut through the guard's defenses, through even their heavy armor, scattering them on the ground in front of Byakuya and Tetsuya and leaving the two teens staring in disbelief.

"Tetsuya, you've done it!" the other prisoner's voice hissed, bringing him suddenly back to the dark cell, "I am free!"

Tetsuya moved cautiously and felt pain crack across his mind, coursing through his strained body and ripping a scream of agony from his chest. He heard footsteps and splashing water, then someone knelt beside him, tearing away the last of the broken bonds and examining him closely.

"I c-can't move!" Tetsuya gasped, "I can't see!"

"You've had a horrid shock to your body. Don't worry, I can get us out of here now."

The other prisoner lifted him, and Tetsuya felt the man's power curl around them. He looped his arms around the other man's neck and rested his head on a muscular shoulder. In some part of his stunned mind, he realized that the man was simply carrying him past the guard posts, and that the guards greeted him as though they knew him, simply letting him pass through, from level to level until they reached the surface. He carried them outside, then stopped within the cover of some thick bushes, setting Tetsuya carefully on his feet and gently sealing his burning spirit centers to allow them to heal. Tetsuya remained leaned heavily against the man's shoulder, breathing harshly and struggling to keep his shaky legs from collapsing.

"We are free," Aizen said quietly, touching his cheek with soft fingertips, "Will you look at my face now?"

Tetsuya's eyes blinked and he lifted his chin, taking in the other man's wickedly handsome and devastatingly familiar face, the wicked smirk, dangerous brown eyes and the telling curl of brown hair that trickled down onto his forehead.

Aizen Sousuke?

I've freed Aizen Sousuke?

His body went instantly numb with horror, and he felt the beginning of the man's power and took the only action that he could.

Aizen's eyes registered curiosity for a moment, then disappeared into a roar of water. Both men felt themselves jerked away from the place just outside the Central 46 prison and thrown down roughly onto unforgiving ground. The impact stole what was left of Tetsuya's reeling senses and left him unconscious beside Aizen.

Aizen sat up slowly, frowning with curiosity at what appeared to be a huge library. Everything around them looked clean and fastidiously well kept, from the tall bookshelves that ran from floor to ceiling, to the dust free furnishings and lovely display cases. He climbed to his feet and left Tetsuya collapsed on the floor behind him as he moved towards one of the display cases and reached out to touch the smooth glass surface of the case.

Instantly, the case glowed brightly and a protective kido snapped into place. The glow extended and slowly enveloped all of the books and other items in the library. Aizen's lips curved upward and he glanced back at Tetsuya's fallen form.

"This is...the Kuchiki family archive?" he whispered, "Interesting..."

He walked back to Tetsuya and glared down at him.

"I suppose that you would only have brought me here if, first, the materials were protected from me and second, that I couldn't escape. You probably concluded when you recognized me that I was going to kill you. I wasn't. I have another use for you, but I have to speak my appreciation of your intelligence in acting quickly and successfully capturing me here. We'll undo that situation when you wake...but for now..."

He picked Tetsuya up and located a recess that had been made into a bedroom, likely, he concluded, for the master to sleep in when taking breaks from exhaustive study and research. He laid Tetsuya in the bed and used a powerful kido spell to bind his wrists together and lash them to the thick iron rail at the head of the bed. Then, he bound each slender foot to the rail at the bottom of the bed, before sitting down on the edge of the bed and leaning over Tetsuya to set a soft scarf he found over the young man's eyes. He patted Tetsuya's comely face to wake him.

Tetsuya stirred and groaned at the return of pain that seemed to radiate everywhere. And even more disturbing was the sudden realization he was carefully bound and blindfolded.

"What are you doing?" he asked in a shaky voice, "I helped you get free!"

"Let's not start our association with lies, Tetsuya," Aizen said sedately, "I know where you've brought me. I know I can't touch the resources here and that I can't leave. When you saw me, you thought I was going to kill you and leave, didn't you?"

"I-isn't that what you were going to do?" Tetsuya asked.

"No. Your powers interest me, and I would like some time to explore them. I have no interest in destroying you. I want to understand you...scientifically."

"You want to use me as a guinea pig?" Tetsuya asked, his voice shaking harder.

"I want to understand why your cousin's attack failed to kill you," Aizen corrected him.

"I don't have time for that!" Tetsuya exclaimed, "Byakuya-sama is in danger! I have to..."

"You are as trapped, Tetsuya, as I am," Aizen said firmly, "Now, I know you will have both a way to let me access the books and materials here, and you have the means to allow me to leave. I want both of those things."

"I am not doing anything for you unless my cousin is protected!" Tetsuya snapped angrily, "I don't care what you do to me. It doesn't matter. Just...Byakuya-sama needs protection from the ones in the family who are trying to hurt him!"

"I see," Aizen said, a wicked smile overtaking his lips, "You are offering a compromise?"

"One that is solely based on what happens to my cousin," Tetsuya insisted.

"Very well, tell me your terms, Tetsuya," Aizen invited him.

"I have no powers to protect Byakuya-sama with," Tetsuya reasoned, "But your powers are fully freed. Use them to protect my cousin."

"And in return...?"

"In return...I will allow you to access the books and items I can. I can't help you enter the protected vault or to use the door that leads into the royal realm. Even Byakuya-sama can't grant use of those to another. It is for the protection of the king and Soul Society."

"Very well...and?"

"I will allow you to leave when you are done examining me," Tetsuya promised.

Aizen's eyes darkened and his smile deepened.

"Oh, I think I want more than that," he answered.

"I don't understand," Tetsuya said hesitantly, "What more do you want? You have your freedom, access to the archive and you are free to explore me to understand my powers. You have me bound, but you gain nothing by trying to force me to give everything."

"I don't think your position is as strong as you think," Aizen whispered into Tetsuya's ear, making the soft shell blush, "You see, I am not really trapped. I only need to wait until your cousin come inside, and I can use him to escape...and kill him and walk out of here without having to make any kind of deal with you."

"Then, why offer me a choice at all?" Tetsuya mused, "If you can just take what you want..."

"But then, you would be a simple hostage. I would have to concern myself with you trying to escape. I would much rather have you in no position to leave, Tetsuya. Now, here are the terms. I will end the threat to Byakuya and I will leave protection in place for him. In return, you will allow me to use the resources here and you will allow me to enter and leave at will. You will also...give yourself over to me completely."

"I...!"

"Oh, I don't mean I'll force you sexually, Tetsuya...although I would like it if we eventually became lovers. What I mean is that you will be tied to me permanently and subject to my will without question."

"I won't deceive and kill people for you!" Tetsuya exclaimed, "I could never...!"

"I will do my own killing," Aizen agreed, "But...you will not try to escape me, you will not defy me, and you will not refuse my orders."

"As long as Byakuya-sama is protected?"

"As long as Byakuya is protected," Aizen agreed, "So, do we have an agreement? Or do you perhaps need time to think?"

Tetsuya shivered at the thought of his probable future, then let out a long breath of resignation.

"I agree to your terms," he said softly.

Aizen watched approvingly as the heavy glow around the books and display cases in the archive slowly vanished.

"Will you let me up now?" Tetsuya asked.

"No," Aizen said, smirking, "I think it's better if you stay here. Start showing me how committed you are. And I want you to heal as quickly as possible so that I can conduct tests of your power."

"But...?"

"Oh, I will be back in a while with some food. I saw a kitchen in the next recess."

"But Byakuya-sama!"

"He will be protected. Relax. Sleep, Tetsuya. You have nothing left to fear."

"You're crazy if you really believe that!" Tetsuya hissed angrily.

"I am not crazy, Tetsuya, I am determined," Aizen said, rising from the bed and leaving the Tetsuya blindfolded and tightly bound.