Summary
She gets a visit from a rather unexpected someone...
A/N: Sorry about the lack of updates! I've been working some weird hours recently. Like 4am in the morning weird. It completely ruins the chance for me to do anything else by the tiime I get home. All I want to do at that point is sleep. Anyways, hope you guys enjoy!
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She had to admit it; the gardens in the Kuchiki manor were extremely relaxing. In fact, they were the perfect place for meditation. Kagome let her eyes slide closed and took in a deep breath as she sat with her legs tucked serenely under her in the middle of one of the smaller gardens. The crisp clean smell of the air sent a pleasant tingle down her spine.
It reminded her of the Sengoku Jidai.
'So peaceful... I wonder if Captain Kuchiki will let me come back to do this more often? He'd probably be fine with it if it helps me concentrate better.' Opening her eyes, she gazed up at the trees that were just starting to bud, 'I bet it's beautiful when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom...'
Shaking her head, she took another breath and shut her eyes again, reminding herself that she wasn't here to play. She was here for meditation.
'I also need to thank Rukia again for letting me in today. I wouldn't have been able to do this with all the things Miroku's been working on recently.' The former priestess had been badgering her monk friend over the past couple of days about what he'd been up to. His response had been to inform her that if they were going to start working on breaking the seal, she would need to begin calming and clearing her mind again. When no further information was forthcoming, Kagome had huffed and flounced off to find Rukia to let off some steam.
The younger Kuchiki sibling had then cheerfully invited her to use the gardens on her brother's property for relaxation. Kagome had grudgingly accepted, insisting that she would stay out of the way so she wouldn't be bothering the clan.
And now, here she was. Calm, collected, relaxed...
'And bored... I was never all that amazing at mediation,' the ex-time traveler thought, blowing her bangs out of her face absently before scooting that thought out of her mind. She needed to stop thinking about so much!
Several minutes later, she was resolutely trying to think of nothing with very little success.
The priestess was so focused inward that she never felt the cool aura coming up next to her. She did, however, feel the tug of her dark purple ribbon coming loose and the sensation of her hair tumbling down around her. Gritting her teeth, Kagome snapped her eyes open and jerked to face the intruder.
"Captain! Will you stop already! I'm trying to conce-! AIGH!" she started, shrieking loudly and scrambling backwards when she realized that the man she was berating was definitely not her Captain. "Wha-! Who-! Who the hell are you?"
He merely stood over her, clutching her ribbon delicately as the wind picked up. Perhaps he was another Kuchiki? His general air sure screamed pride and superiority. He was dressed rather traditionally in samurai regalia with his long dark hair tied high to his head; but that mask... It was extremely intimidating! She couldn't see any of his face at all! The priestess blinked when a few brightly colored cherry blossoms danced in front of her vision, then gasped when her attention refocused on the her silent watcher.
He'd vanished into thin air.
"Wh-What? No way," the former time traveler whispered, swallowing harshly and looking around carefully. There was no sign of him anywhere! How the hell had he moved that fast?
'I don't... understand. Who was that?' she thought, sitting up straighter and running a shaky hand through her hair. Her concentration was completely shot. There was no way she'd be able to meditate at this point. 'Miroku is going to be unhappy about that...' Another thought hit her and she twitched murderously, 'That samurai bastard stole my ribbon!'
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"What, exactly, have you been up to," Byakuya asked as he passed under one of the verandas on his property, not even bothering to glance at his new companion, "Senbonzakura?" There was a tapping of shoes on the tiles and the whoosh of clothes as his visitor landed next to him on the other side.
"Nothing too overwhelming, Master." Deciding to let it go, the clan head merely shrugged and continued walking. His Zanpakuto fell into step beside him and the two males remained quiet for a few peaceful minutes.
"I believe I can understand your reasoning now, sir," the spirit finally spoke, elicting a single raised brow from the Captain next to him, "She has a certain fire to her that draws one in."
That stopped the nobleman in his tracks, an annoyed glare flitting across his features. "What are you talking about?"
"It's not like you to feign stupidity, Byakuya," Senbonzakura chided, pulling a familiar dark purple ribbon from his sleeve and letting it wave in the breeze teasingly in front of the other man. He'd seen Higurashi briefly today when she'd come back with his sister, chattering brightly with her ponytail waving in the breeze. That long dark hair had been tied up with a purple ribbon, and he'd resisted the initial itch to appear next to her to steal it. With a quick movement, it was snatched out of Senbonzakura's hand, and the masked spirit chuckled, "You're welcome, by the way."
"I specifically told you not to bother her!" Byakuya hissed, narrowing sharp gray eyes on his Zanpakuto as he stuffed the delicate wisp of material into his haori. He'd return it to her later... much later.
"I was curious," the other man shrugged, not the least bit repentant at his actions. He tilted his head a fraction to one side before smirking beneath his mask, "She's coming, by the way. Perhaps you should take a few more steps forward?"
"This isn't some elaborate game!" the clan head snapped, flicking his thumb over the hilt of his sword in his agitation.
"It could be... if you lightened up a little, Byakuya," Senbonzakura replied, his form glowing for a few seconds before he burst into a shower of cherry blossoms and faded away. "She might just enjoy being chased, Master..."
The Captain snorted quietly and waved away the fading blossoms before he stood completely still for a moment. He could hear Higurashi cursing about samurai that stole hair ribbons, and he grimaced inwardly.
She came barging through the trees in the next heartbeat and ran right into him. Sheer instinct kept them from tumbling to the ground as he pulled her close to steady her when she gasped in shock.
'So that's what he meant by taking a few steps forward...' the noble thought faintly, his Zanpakuto's words echoing in his head. And then, he had to wonder if that was actually true. Would someone like Higurashi enjoy being chased?
C-Captain! I'm sorry!" Kagome squeaked, embarrassment causing her face to flush before she shook her head, "I was looking for someone, actually. Maybe you can help me?"
Byakuya grit his teeth in annoyance, knowing exactly who she would be describing to him but unable to tell her exactly who Senbonzakura was right away. It would make it look like he'd planned everything that might have happened, and he refused to be toyed with!
"Perhaps..." he started, deliberately pausing before changing the conversation's direction suddenly, "You've obviously been outside too long. Come. We'll return to the manor."
"E-Ehh? W-What do you mean?" The back of the aristocrat's hand brushed against her cheek, sending a fissure of shivers down her spine. His hand was actually pretty warm; she hadn't realized she'd been cold at all.
"You're cold," Byakuya stated quietly, turning his hand and letting it settle just under her jaw for a few precious seconds before he pulled her along towards the main house. It bothered him more than he cared to admit that she would think so little of her health. Perhaps it was because Hisana had been so ill all the time?
The Kuchiki head inwardly shook those thoughts away and started up the stairs onto the main porch with Kagome in tow. "Tea will be served. The last thing that needs to happen is for you to get sick. Again."
"R-Right... Thank you, Captain," Kagome answered automatically, letting the noble lead her around the large house. She still got lost occasionally when she didn't have Rukia to point out where she was. Which reminded her...
"Umm... About that person I was looking for..."
"You need not concern yourself with him. I will deal with him accordingly," Byakuya intoned, an icy note creeping into his voice. In the inner world Senbonzakura resided in, the spirit laughed.
"Okay... When you see him, tell him I want my ribbon back. It's bad enough I have to guard them from you," the priestess grumbled, crossing her arms and huffing as he ushered her into one of the sitting rooms, "I don't need someone else stealing them too."
"I will inform him." Satisfied with his answer, they fell into a quiet silence that wasn't entirely uncomfortable while waiting for the tea.
"So... Rukia went to visit Captain Ukitake today, right?"
"Yes. He was unwell again."
"Poor guy," Kagome muttered, a worried look on her face, "Maybe I should go visit him too?"
The Kuchiki noble grit his teeth to keep from snapping out an immediate "No!" and merely made a noncommental noise in the back of his throat. It was time to change the subject again. "Has the monk learned of anything else recently?"
"Only that I need to start relearning to center myself if I'm going to get this seal business over with," the priestess sighed, a glum expression flittering across her features, "Problem is I've never been very good with meditation." At her superior's raised brow, she flushed and continued, "I get distracted really easily. You could seriously wave something shiny in front of me and it would catch my attention."
"That is a problem. How did you manage to use your kido for so long in the academy?" he couldn't help but ask. Kido required a certain amount of concentration to be able to manifest properly. Kagome shrugged and tried not to look sheepish.
"I dunno. I just kinda flew with it. It was all really instinct for me."
Byakuya stared at her for a gobsmacked moment before he shook himself out of his incredulousness. How many times could she have injured herself or someone else?
"... We'll begin with that before we even consider your control issues," the Captain finally stated decisively, elicting an embarrassed flush from the smaller shinigami. She nodded and became extremely interested in her tea as it arrived. It was several minutes later before she spoke again.
"I... Thank you, Captain Kuchiki. You've been very patient with all of my problems, so I really appreciate it." Glancing up from a report he'd decided to read, Byakuya nodded at the priestess as she stared at her tea with an exasperated expression on her face, "Even when I don't completely know what's going on, you've been helping me the whole time." She looked up then and gave him a small smile, "So thank you."
"You are under my jurisdiction, Higurashi, and I take care of my own," the noble replied, a sense of stubborness creeping into what Kagome could read of his aura, "even if they are as riddled with problems and issues as yourself." She glared at him for a moment before waving him off and finishing her tea. Setting the cup aside, she rose to her feet and bowed politely to him. The Captain blinked. She was leaving? Already?
"I told Miroku that I would be back this afternoon. He said there were a few things he wanted to research before running them by me," Kagome explained, somehow managing to read the curiosity in his eyes as she started towards the door, "I'll let you know what happens and where we'll go from there."
"Very well. You will need to return here this weekend to go over some rudimentary lessons for your kido." The priestess flinched at the idea and Byakuya smirked inwardly, "Do not think that I have forgotten our wager, Higurashi. I will not tolerate you becoming a danger to everyone around you because you can't control your spells."
The former time traveler grumbled under her breath for a few seconds before muttering a "Fine" for him to hear. As she was leaving, he decided to add another log to the blaze.
"We will also be working on your lack of concentration." She glanced back at him with a deadpan expression before dropping her gaze and nodding sullenly. Then she was gone.
The Kuchiki leaned back in his seat, reveling in his accomplishments for the day. He'd successfully roped her into spending more time with him. Reaching into his sleeve, he fingered the dark purple ribbon and remembered that he needed to have another little talk with his Zanpakuto.
'If only to make sure he doesn't do something like this again without my knowledge. The ast thing I want her to think is that I would willingly allow my own Zanpakuto to stalk her for entertainment.'
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A/N: I feel like I kinda rambled a little with this one, but I like it. I thought the idea would be cute. Poor Byakuya and his meddlesome Zanpakuto. I have a feeling Senbonzakura will be making another appearance or three. He's hard to keep in character, but so is Byakuya. Anyways, please review! I'll have the next one up hopefully soon!
Until next time!