How long….A month….I'm sorry!!!!!!!!!!!!! This chapter is mostly about Byakuya, to the point it implies ByakuyaXRukia. But I'm a ToshiroXRukia person to clarify. Again sorry and hope that you enjoy this
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Chapter six
Finding the captain of the sixth squad sick worried of anything was rare; those rarities only presented themselves when the topic was a certain little sister. Today was one of those days. He had a distant stare as he looked out the window to the white coated gardens; the greenery now gone. He released a sigh
'What if she didn't like it that I said love, I probably scared her or something' his eyebrow twitched
'Off course, I'm an idiot, I knew I shouldn't have wrote that'
"Um, Lord Byakuya, your sister has arrived" The assistant spoke hesitant as he saw the captain mumbling under his breath. Byakuya looked up, his worries hidden under indifferent eyes in just a matter of seconds.
"Thank you" He walked down the hall to the estate's entry. She stood in front of the door, but not alone; that made his smile vanish into complex feelings.
"Brother! How have you been?" Rukia forgets her public manners with him, going up to hug him.
"Good" he simply replies, a small hint of embarrassment in his tone. "And you" he asks, noticing her small arms still around him.
"I'm okay" she lets go and smiles. Byakuya knew that smile meant something was up. "Brother, I invited Captain Hitsugaya over for dinner, is it okay?" She questions, sounding completely innocent. Byakuya looked up to the Captain waiting patiently by the door
"Good evening Captain, If you prefer I could leave" Toshiro added, noticing the undistinguishable stare of the older brother. Was it anger, annoyance, or destroy-the-white-haired kid look? He pondered.
"No, you're welcome to our home" he says, backing it up with a smile that sent shivers down the boy's spine
"Thank-you" he bows silently. He, like Byakuya, could hide the worry with ease.
"Yes, brother thank-you" she smiles politely. The petite shinigami leads the way to the dining room, excitedly talking of the tag game earlier. "It was so much fun, but in order for anyone to do the chase we had to give them a reason to" She laughed, remembering the insults Ichigo and Renji threw at each other, even Toshiro threw a few, an unusual spot for him to be in.
"You had a good time, that's nice" Byakuya smiled softly, forgetting for a second the captain that walked next to him and focusing his attention on the joy of his little sister.
"Yes, but at the last minute we ditched them because they were too busy fighting over Ichigo not having tagged Rangiku or something crazy like that" Rukia sighed. They arrived -to Toshiro's surprise- a small dining room, the table fit for a maximum of six people.
"I'll help them bring the food" she bowed quickly and left to the kitchen. Left behind were two uncomfortable captains. Toshiro gave a quick glance to Byakuya, who now sat at one of the chairs.
"Please sit" Byakuya gestured to the chair opposite his own
"Yes, thank-you" he did as was told. He wondered why the captain disliked him (If he did) so much. Maybe he liked Rukia more than a sister; after all, they were not blood related and were first meant to get married before any adoption came to mind. Jealousy…did he feel that? Toshiro had never felt it but understood the meaning to some extent.
"Captain Hitsugaya, do you talk often with Rukia?" Byakuya questioned nonchalantly, his hands on his lap. Toshiro didn't know what to answer. He could say yes but no one has seen them talk, he could say no but that would be lying…
"Not so often" that was partly true; the hours he wanted to talk to Rukia were not enough for him to admit often.
"Captain Ukitake says that Rukia's night strolls have taken longer than usual these past few weeks. I wonder why that is" Byakuya takes a quick look at the younger captain, still as calm and collected as when he first came in. Toshiro wasn't about to loose in this interrogation.
"There are actions that sometimes remain a mystery Captain Kuchiki" or a secret that should be left undisturbed. Byakuya looks up, he wondered of this boy. So many could have started to get annoyed with him for that single question alone: no one likes to be suspected. Was he dumb and didn't understand, or did he actually have control.
"Exactly what I think when Rukia spends those night strolls with you" Byakuya adds in indifferently. Toshiro shots up, shock overruling his state of mind.
"It looks delicious! The cooks are amazing" Rukia headed in with a platter in her hands. The chef behind her blushed lightly at the compliment. The food was put down quickly, the helpers giving a last bow before leaving. The only one trying to break the ice was the little girl seated beside Byakuya, occasionally one or the other would add a comment. The more he observed, the more Toshiro noticed the smiles and caring tugs she'd give to her brother an couldn't help but feel irritation.
"Did you like the food Captain?" Rukia smiled brightly at Toshiro, having finished her last bite
"I enjoyed it" He replied. He saw as Rukia played with her brother's hand, not forgetting to notice the small, faint blush that spread on his cheeks.
'I-It's not fair, that's how she plays with my hand. Does she like me because I act like him? I mean, that dorky, stupid half-smile when he talks to her..,. I don't like being compared…Why the hell am I even thinking of this?'
Toshiro got up, realizing his emotions were getting annoying to himself.
"Are you leaving already?" Byakuya smiled the cold smile again, almost showing he had won an unknown battle.
"Y-yes, its dark out side, I should get going" he didn't care anymore, not right now, he felt a strange anger
"No, wait" Rukia shot up, still holding two of her brother's fingers "Please stay longer"
"I would be intruding, I have to get back to the barracks to help Rangiku" Toshiro stays staring at his feet.
"Then are you going for any night strolls" Byakuya mentions. It wasn't any secret that he would know, Rangiku had said about her captain's strolls during one of her sake parties. Toshiro looked at Rukia, feeling convicted of his answer
"Not tonight" he walks around the table
"I'll take you to the door" Rukia insists, following behind him. Silence was bearable for Rukia in so many occasions, but it felt wrong right now.
"Are you sure you're not going" She nearly whispers. Her mind was getting ready for any bad reaction.
"Rukia" Toshiro lets go of his train of thoughts, turning to face her "is…love, a good word to use for the relationship between you and Captain Kuchiki" Toshiro grits his teeth at the simple, defenseless word. That word was always annoying to him, tonight was no different, it always has to be added somewhere in the world, even if one doesn't want it
"Brotherly love" she corrects. She looks at the captain. How was love defined in his mind, and it was that small thought made her cheeks turn hot.
"Yeah…tomorrow, I'll see you at the party" He changed the topic, noticing Rukia's cheeks sparking up red. He found out, though, that staying mad near her was a challenge.
"Y-yes!" Rukia clapped her hands together, she wanted to know what bothered him, but that could wait till then. She felt like a child when she was with him, and it would only cause her self pity considering the age differences.
"Good" Toshiro gave a small, half-crooked smile to the cause of his mixed up mind.
"Wha…" Rukia's cheeks heated up quickly in response, that smile could make any evil mastermind surrender immediately. Toshiro chuckled softly at her deafness.
"Are you okay?" he covers his mouth gently with his hand
"Y-Yeah" she puts her hands on either side of her face. Toshiro spins and leaves, not before throwing a 'good and safe night' to her. Rukia would never admit that that night she couldn't sleep, still oblivious as to why the room felt so hot.
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Bet you didn't like this boring little fiasco. Sorry, I am so late and don't even give you a good chapter. -_-
Thank-you