A/N: Fun idea I had on the way to work. Think it may be the first in a series of AU pieces. This is inspired by the handful of Korean dramas I've seen and josei manga I've read.
Disclaimer: Tite Kubo's world, I'm just playing in it.
"AU (1) Matsumoto PI"
"Matsumoto Rangiku-san…what business brings you to my office this morning? My family has its own slate of private investigators and attorneys for any matters that concern our business or private interests," came a voice as Rangiku was finally, finally let in to see the head of Kuchiki Enterprises.
The man himself stood, not at his desk but at the massive window behind it overlooking Tokyo. They were pretty high up so the view was spectacular. Rangiku tried not to be bothered by this, or the fact that he had had her waiting outside for more than an hour and replied, "Kuchiki Byakuya-san…thank you for agreeing to meet me. This actually has nothing to do with your family; I'm here on a matter concerning a friend of yours, Ukitake Jushiro."
"Ukitake-sempai?" asked Byakuya, He turned away from the window and walked back to his desk. As he got around it the light illuminated his features and despite herself, Rangiku felt her breath hitch.
The magazines did not do him justice. Tall and slim, with a head of sleek, black hair and bright grey eyes on a narrow face, straight nose, high patrician forehead, and that wintry-pale complexion, Kuchiki Byakuya was, without a doubt, the most handsome man in Tokyo business. In fact, he could give most actors and male models some serious competition. In his late twenties, he was already widower, his pretty young wife having died only a few years into their marriage of some undisclosed illness. They had had no children but she had a teenage sister who he had adopted and was supposedly grooming to join the family business. With his aristocratic heritage, wealth and features, he was currently one of Japan's most eligible bachelors.
If she was not still reeling from the whole Gin debacle, and well, quite frankly, the fact that he was way out of her league, Rangiku would have given it a shot.
"Y-yes," she replied, and then cringed at her stammer. She turned her attention to her tote—goodness, why did she take this Fugazi when she had that brand new Coach at home?—to retrieve the folder and distract herself, and continued, "The directors of a youth group he operates hired my company a few months ago, you see, when concerns were raised concerning his interaction with some of their members."
She looked up to hand him the folder to find him staring back at her, gaze flitting over her form though he was apparently unmoved and uninterested. Ah yes, that was the other thing about him that the magazines covered extensively, the fact that this man had a stone cold attitude that kept but the most persistent, and by that she meant, deranged suitors from pursuing.
Ayasegawa Yumichika had been treating her to lunch, dinner and other fancy gifts for weeks to get her to arrange a meeting between them. Yeah, like that was going to happen.
He took it from her and turned again, walking away from the desk to peruse it. She was forced to speak to his back, again, as she said, "The police have already declared that there is not enough evidence, and having met with current and former members of the programme everything seems to be above board. My employer, Hitsugaya Toshiro still volunteers with the group from time to time. The problem is one former member, the first, Ginjou Kugo-san, has been making some very shocking claims and threatening to take them to the media. I have made contact with some members of Ukitake-san's family, but they have little to no information."
She paused when he turned back to her. But when he said nothing, she said, "I heard that you once volunteered with them in the days when he was actively involved in their operations. I was hoping that you might be able to tell me about Ginjou Kugo while you were there…or, even better, get me a face-to-face meeting with Ukitake-san. His silence has the board of directors worried and since he's not at his family estate, but in fact at one of your family's vacation homes, I need your help to get on to him."
Rangiku punctuated this with an encouraging smile and hoped that that was all it would take. Some men in his position expected some kind of bribe, usually the kind that involved her surreptitiously popping a button or hiking up her skirt. She did not mind those too much. She knew she looked good and worked hard to maintain it, but there were others who expected more and fast talking, or sometimes a few judo moves was the only way out of it.
Byakuya's disinterested expression did not change, but he walked back to his desk and handed her the file. Then picking up his phone, he called to someone on the other end, "Cancel my appointments for the next few hours, and tell Abarai to get the car."
Rangiku felt her heartbeat pick up slightly, but before her imagination could run away with her, Byakuya looked up at her said, "I'll tell you what I can on the drive over to the airport. Ukitake-sempai is at Senbonzakura, we'll have to take the jet."
Rangiku stared at him wide-eyed, stunned. Airport? Jet? He took a cell phone from his desk and then walked to the door just as it opened and a secretary entered with his coat.
"Kuchiki-sama," greeted the young woman, holding it out for him.
He took it from her and began to put it on before he noticed that Rangiku had not moved. Then he looked up at her and said, "Ukitake-sempai is a good man who has dedicated his life to improving the lives of at-risk youth throughout Japan. He has also been in poor health for much of his life and this matter will do him no good. Are you coming or not?"
That started Rangiku from her daze and she snatched up the folder and hurried after him, thinking as she went that this must be some kind of relationship for him to drop everything to go deal with a matter that was hardly his business. So much for stone-cold.
0o0
The car was a Mercedes, of course, a stretch limousine that took them to a private airport to a private jet and less than an hour later, they were on a small sub-tropical island to the southwest of Japan. There was another car waiting for them there, a black Audi R8 and from the looks of the seating, only Byakuya and Rangiku were going to fit.
Rangiku had spent much of the journey trying her best not to look overwhelmed. It was kind of hard not to be. The Kuchiki were loaded and that was understating the matter entirely. The island they were heading to was technically all theirs, though a portion was rented to the Japanese Defence Forces at an obscene rate. Senbonzakura was a private estate that had been constructed sometime in the Edo period but restored by Byakuya's wife after their marriage. It took up thirty acres and then some and when they flew near to it on their approach, Rangiku could not help pressing her face against the window to get a closer look at the beautiful blooming sakura trees that gave it its name.
Fortunately, Byakuya had taken the time on the way over to detail some of his relationship with Ukitake Jushiro and his history in the Substitutes. Nothing he said sounded too different from what her employer had said. Ukitake was a good man who loved children but would not have any of his own since with his ill health, he did not think that marriage was a good idea. His family and the Kuchiki had been friends for many years; he had even taken Byakuya along with him during summer vacations to the sea for his health.
Was there anything unusual about Ukitake's relationship with the members of the group, particularly the male ones? Well, no, Ukitake just had that personality that children were drawn to and liked to play but he had never touched any of them appropriately, even Byakuya with whom he had been trusted alone on numerous occasions. But Ginjo Kugo…well, that was another matter entirely that was best cleared up by Ukitake.
When they got to the new car, Byakuya climbed into the driver's seat and Rangiku got in the passenger side. There was a second car waiting for Byakuya's tatted-up, red-haired bodyguard/assistant, Abarai Renji (who Rangiku would have been convinced was yakuza if it was not for Gin.) Renji's eyes had threatened to pop out of his head when he first saw Rangiku exiting the elevator in the parking garage behind his boss. No points for guessing where most of his attention lay: 38DD was a size both difficult to shop for and to miss. And it did not hurt, as Rangiku had been invariably reminded, sometimes painfully, uncomfortably since she hit puberty, that she also had the height of a supermodel, an athletic curvy build, golden blonde hair and bright blue eyes.
As she pulled on her seatbelt, Byakuya said, "I should warn you, Matsumoto-san, there's a reason my guard prefer to follow in another car when I get behind the wheel."
"What?" she asked, and a moment later her question was answered when the car suddenly sprang forward like a cheetah on the trail of a gazelle and they sped out of the airstrip.
Rangiku had once dated a guy who liked to speed. He used to drag race at nights in the mountains and talk about making it to the Grand Prix. Too bad he could not drive worth a damn or he might have made it too instead of dying in a horrific crash with a truck and a tree. Rangiku had not been there that night, she never went after sitting through one of his "races" as navigator, but she had seen the aftermath. Sitting beside Byakuya now that image flashed through her head briefly, only to be quickly replaced by the desire for them to go much faster, maybe along a scenic route with lots of winding corners and not another car on the road.
Byakuya could drive worth a damn and he knew it, handling the car with the practised ease of a professional though nowhere in his authorised biographies did anyone mention this. Probably would never. No way in hell having the head of your company racing sports cars on his downtime would not affect your bottom line. Rangiku spent much of the ride gripping her bag and the door handle like a lifeline and kind of hoping that he maybe would take them around the whole island instead of hurrying over.
Ayasegawa would sell his soul to have a tidbit like this.
Twenty minutes later they drove through the front gate of the Senbonzakura estate, scuttling gravel in their wake. Before they could get to the house though, the front doors were thrown open and a small girl came running out to greet them followed by one severe-faced woman and two maids. Rangiku's heart nearly stopped until she remembered the detail about Byakuya's late wife having a younger sister…though nothing had mentioned the girl was practically her spitting image. Same shoulder-length raven-black hair, same wide violet-blue eyes, same cherubic face and petite build that inflated protective instincts in men. If she was not a heartbreaker already, she was going to be.
"My sister, Rukia," said Byakuya by way of explanation.
The girl—well young woman actually, she was in her early twenties now—pulled open the door almost before the car had completely stopped, then paused, remembering herself, and said with a bow, "Nii-sama…welcome home."
"Rukia," said Byakuya, and for a moment Rangiku was sure she heard a softening of his tone.
The girl looked up and smiled warmly at him, and then stuck out her tongue at Renji walking by, who tried to ignore it but then scowled. And then her gaze fell on Rangiku. Then she was stone-faced, expressionless, just like her brother, and she asked, "Who is this?"
"Matsumoto Rangiku-san, she's here to see Ukitake-san." Byakuya replied. "She's a private investigator with Hyourinmaru Investigations, with Hitsugaya Toshiro."
"You work with Hitsugaya-san?" asked the girl, and then her gaze drifted none-too-discreetly at Rangiku's chest before she said, cheeks red, "But he never mentioned that you were this…hot!"
Rangiku's cheeks warmed and she replied, "Oh, well, Boss is actually entirely unaffected by me, so if you're interested he's all yours." She added a wink for effect.
The girl went redder, flashed a quick, anxious look at her brother, and said, "We were just going to have lunch, Ukitake-san should be back from the beach now." She could not get back into the house fast enough.
Rangiku looked back to Byakuya to find him watching her with a raised eyebrow. She smiled wider and said, "Cute kid."
Byakuya just grunted and led the way into the house.
Walking into the house, a vacation house was like going to the jet all over again. Her entire apartment could fit into the vestibule. Byakuya led her down a long corridor past long rooms through which she could catch glimpses of the sea on one side and either a small courtyard or a tatami-covered room on the other. Before they got to the end of the corridor, Byakuya turned right and then it was down another corridor, this one with another view of a great courtyard with a Zen garden on one side and more rooms on the other. At the end of this corridor they turned left and then out of the side of the house entirely to a modern patio where lunch was being laid out by the cooking staff and there, at long last, sat Ukitake Jushiro.
He stood at once when he saw them, a tall, and thin man with long white hair, though dark eyebrows, bright green eyes, an unhealthy pale complexion and a young face. But it was Byakuya he greeted, "Byakuya-kun? Rukia-chan said that you were back…" His voice trailed off when he saw Rangiku and then his eyebrows climbed his forehead to his hairline a moment before descending again as he narrowed his eyes and, pasting on a smirk, asked, "And who is this lovely young lady? It's been so long since you brought home a girl."
Before Byakuya could reply, Rangiku stepped forward and said, "Matsumoto Rangiku, it is a pleasure to meet you Ukitake-san. I'm here about the Substitutes group and Ginjou Kugo."
Jushiro flashed a quick look to Byakuya, who clarified, "Matsumoto-san was hired by the Substitutes group to investigate Ginjo Kugo. I suspect they were impressed by her handling of the Ichimaru Gin-Aizen Sosuke-Tosen Kaname affair."
Rangiku nearly choked and swung around to look at Byakuya with wide eyes. He did not look at her but, taking a seat at the table, replied, "You did not really think that I would accept your request for an interview and bring you to my home without some kind of background check, did you? I told you before; my family has our own private investigators and attorneys. You took it quite well for a woman whose fiancé was murdered by the yakuza group he had grown up with. But then, at the time you and Hitsugaya-san were preparing to bring down that same group. How courageous. Do you know how many police officers vanished trying to do the same thing?"
Rangiku hesitated only a moment before taking a seat at the table as well, across from Ukitake but beside Rukia, and then asked in a low voice, "How did you know that he was my fiancé? No one knew about that." Ah, yes, why did she think that Kuchiki Byakuya of all people would not have investigated her before bringing her here?
Byakuya had a drink of water before replying, "The shop where he purchased your engagement ring keeps excellent records. Our investigators are quite thorough…as I am assured that you are. You would not be here if you did not think that anything Ukitake-sempai could tell you was of any use."
Rangiku felt for a drink herself, but a strong one, like tequila. Definitely tequila. In a matter of moments she had gone from seriously daydreaming about what it might be like to spend the winters in this place…to wanting to storm out in a huff and maybe put a key to that fancy car in the driveway too on her way out. There was being "thorough" and then there was "invasion of privacy" and she was pretty sure that that line had been crossed somewhere. It was nobody's business that Gin had asked her to marry him. Instead, she replied, "I won't work for someone who I think might be guilty. I needed to speak to Ukitake-san myself to be sure of that before I started tearing apart Ginjou-san's story. And trust me, by the time I'm finished with him, he's going to regret the day he started this campaign. Everything I have found suggests that he is a very spoiled brat throwing a tantrum because he no longer gets his way."
To her surprise, Ukitake's face fell and he exhaled heavily. When she glanced over to Byakuya, brows furrowed, Ukitake replied, "I was hoping that it would not come to that…Ginjou…I have already forgiven him."
Rangiku dropped her gaze to the table and said, "Be that as it may, Ginjou-san is quite intent on destroying you. The people who work with you cannot allow that to happen, for their sake and yours."
Silence fell over the group at the table, save for the sound of Rukia's fingers as she tapped away at her phone. Then Byakuya said, "We can eat and talk. I have two hours before I have a really important meeting to get back to and the sooner we deal with this matter, the better."
"Yes," said Ukitake, smiling again at Rangiku. "Matsumoto-san, do you like candy?"
0o0
Two hours later, Rangiku followed Byakuya back out to his sports car convinced that if Ukitake Jushiro was not a saint then he was the most dangerous paedophile in Japanese history. He had held back nothing of his story from the first moment he met Ginjou Kugo to the day the boy disappeared. It was not a happy story.
Ginjou Kugo had been orphaned at an early age and Ukitake met him at the hospital where he had been receiving treatment for his illness. After hearing the boy's story he had immediately applied to be the boy's foster father and with him created the group, Substitutes. But Ginjou had expected more of Ukitake than care to adulthood. He had hoped to be made Ukitake's heir and when he realised that this was not going to happen he reacted with anger. There were fights, loud arguments in front of others in the group and accusations of inappropriate behaviour. When Ukitake finally threatened to throw him out, a threat he claimed he had no intention of following through on, Ginjou disappeared. And now he was back, with fresh accusations and the support of a few other disgruntled former members of the programme.
Rangiku promised Ukitake that she would do what she could to ensure that Ginjou was not treated too harshly by the authorities after this but they all knew that this was not possible. If she was an attorney, they probably could have made some arrangement where Ginjou could disappear again, perhaps for good to someplace far away from Ukitake and his family. Of course, no one involved in trying to protect Ukitake's good name was going to go for that now.
The ride back to the airport and the private jet was just as thrilling as it had been earlier. That dark part of her mind that Rangiku had lost control of on the way over fantasised about her making him pull over somewhere so that she could have her way with him with the engine running. As they neared the airport, she could not stop herself from saying, "Is this how you get the girls? Take them for one hell of a ride in your fancy car and just wait for the panties to drop?"
He looked over at her with a slightly raised eyebrow. She stared back, waiting, though she felt her face warm slightly. Then he gave a small chuckle and said, "This is nothing. If I was really trying, we could be in Paris in the morning."
She ignored the skip her heart made again—good God he was handsome and yes, she could imagine it and yes she was utterly ashamed that she would probably let him take her on the plane before they even got to Europe—and said, "Unfortunately, I have to get back to work now."
They got out of the car together; a valet was on standby to take it back to the house and Renji and the others were already on the tarmac. The bodyguard/assistant greeted them with news for Byakuya and Rangiku found herself forgotten, and boarded the plane ahead of them. She settled into her seat with a happy sigh, and then looked out the window at the island around them. The Ukitake family was nowhere near as wealthy as the Kuchiki but she could see why someone would be so desperate to lay claim to their lifestyle.
"Would you like something to drink?" someone asked.
Rangiku looked up to find Byakuya beside her seat holding out a glass of red wine. She took it from him with a soft "Thank you"...and then that dangerous part of her brain that kept forgetting how way out of her league this man was perked up and she said, "Wait, what's in this? I was not kidding when I said I have to go to work. Boss does not like it when I go missing. Hueco Mundo wasn't always a smoking ruin, you know."
Byakuya gave her a small smile and said, "It is just wine. I have to get back to work as well. Besides, if I was planning to kidnap you, I would not have brought you back to the plane."
She lifted an eyebrow even as she took a sip of the wine. What does expensive wine taste like? A lot like regular wine but being where she was at that moment, Rangiku was sure it was just that much more delicious. Then she said, "What, you have another estate on this island? Like a harem? Hmm, Ginjou-san was way off base about who was the real predator here…"
He settled into his own seat opposite her and replied, "Ginjou Kugo is a fool. I trust that you are satisfied?"
Rangiku was tempted to say no, she was more frustrated than anything because seriously this guy, but instead she said, "Yes. I expect this matter to be over within a matter of days."
"Good," said Byakuya, and then, "I would like a copy of your report, if possible."
"I don't know about that, I don't work for you and a lot of it is pretty sensitive stuff," she replied, looking him directly in the eyes. If he was the client he would have everything he needed, but he was not so he had to forget it. And yet, "Of course, I'm sure your investigators and attorneys already have half this stuff anyway, seeing as they are capable of finding out things I did not know about myself until after Gin died."
His expression did not change. He said, "My sister is here. I have to be careful about the people I let near her. I…am sure that if the situation were reversed Ichimaru-san would have done the same. Aizen Sosuke…is a despicable man."
Rangiku paused and looked at him, really looked at him and finally saw the storm raging in his grey eyes. Her brow furrowed again, a flash of memory, a newspaper article about an assault on a teenage girl and then she looked back at him with wide eyes.
"Rukia-chan…that girl he…that he tried to…was Rukia-chan?" she asked.
Byakuya's jaw clenched and he looked out the window. Rangiku immediately regretted her statement but before she could say anything else, the captain announced that they were ready to go and she focused on committing to memory every part of this lovely island that she was never going to see again. Yumichika was going to pay dearly for details, like new pair of Louboutins dearly.
0o0
Back in Tokyo, they took a helicopter to the Kuchiki building and as soon as they were out of it and heading down to Byakuya's office, Rangiku turned to him and said, "Okay, now you're just showing off."
His expression of mild boredom did not change, but Byakuya replied, "Hardly. I have a meeting to attend and as you kept reminding me you have to get back to work or, correct me I'm wrong here, Hitsugaya-san will 'tear Tokyo apart like a tiny, white-haired Godzilla' looking for you." He did not smirk, but it was heavily implied.
Rangiku bit back a smile and said, "That's right. It's been nice, really, and I'm very grateful that you took the time out of your schedule to help me help your friend. Perhaps another time…"
The elevator dinged and the doors opened to reveal Byakuya's stop. He and Renji stepped off and Rangiku stepped back for her three minute ride to the ground floor and her markedly less impressive Corolla. But just before the doors closed, a hand stopped them and when Rangiku looked up, surprised, it was to find Byakuya there.
She blinked, and then asked, "Yes?"
"Another time," he said and presented her with a small rectangular card. She took it, staring at him, stunned, and he stepped back and let the door close. She blinked again and looked down at the card. He had written his cell number and a time, "7:30", onto it. How long had it taken her to get this meeting with the Kuchiki? Three weeks, three weeks during which her investigation had stalled, she began to second guess her decision to contact him...and he had apparently doing a "thorough" examination of her background. And how long had it taken him to give her his number? A few hours. What the hell did he see in that report on her? She blinked again, surely she was still daydreaming, then shook her head and stuffed the card into her tote.
Oh. Yea, best keep this quiet lest Yumichika murder her and try to assume her identity when she went in to deliver her report. And he could keep the Louboutins.