Chapter 13: Lack of Evidence
Byakuya's flash step sent repercussions through the trees and bushes that lined the pathway to the Kuchiki Council Hall. He pushed down the feeling of illness inside, brushing it off as a mere symptom of his condition. Fire flashed in his veins at the thought that the elders would dare to do something so heinous. They had argued and attempted different sorts of manipulations before, of course…but to dare to lay hands on and cause the impregnation of a clan leader…and an unwilling clan leader at that.
And to top it all off, by doing so, Nori had caused Renji to mistrust him again. He ached all over, thinking of how he had tried so hard to mend things and how their situation had seemed to be moving in the right direction. Had Nori not involved himself, he might have been able to tell Renji everything…to deal with the emotional and practical issues and come to a solution. He might well even have offered to carry the child…but by going behind his back, Nori had caused him to look guilty of deep dishonesty.
No wonder Renji mistrusted him…
With all of the machinations, he wondered if Renji would ever trust him again…if he would even dare to hope for such a thing. He sighed in frustration, sliding to a stop for a moment as emotion welled up inside him in a way that was wholly unfamiliar. Instantly, tears threatened to fill his eyes and he had to work hard to maintain control that had been so easy before. He knew, of course, that chemical changes in his body, due to the pregnancy were likely the cause, but he had no idea that it would affect him so soon…or so strongly. His level of fury, although certainly justified, seemed equally heightened. He took a moment to breathe and considered what he was doing…and came to the same conclusion he had before. He had to go before the council and hold Nori accountable for what he had done. He flash stepped up the front stairs and into the front lobby, then, seeing the council doors were closed and guarded, he simply drew Senbonzakura and calmly ordered the guards to step aside.
"Sir, with all due respect…"
"The council is in session, ne?" Byakuya asked in a low, threatening voice.
"Well, yes, sir, but…"
"And I am the ranking member of that council…so unless you wish to die, step aside!"
A blast of kido sent the guards scrambling and shattered the large double doors into splinters. Byakuya strode forward with his weapon in his hand and flash stepped the head of the table. He placed his blade at Head Councilor Nori's throat, his reiatsu shaking the room.
"What is…the meaning of this?" roared Nori, careful not to move his head, "Lord Byakuya, have you taken leave of your senses?"
"What are you talking about?" asked the clan leader in a sarcastic voice, "I know exactly what I am doing! How DARE you lay hands on me and cause…cause…THIS! You and your manipulations are tearing everything apart! But you know that, don't you?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," commented the councilor coolly, "What manipulations?"
Byakuya's reiatsu rose dangerously and his stomach pitched softly in warning.
"Don't LIE to ME!" Byakuya fumed, "This council was present when Renji and I were soul bonded. And while you know that neither of us sought this union, we accepted that it was our duty to find a way to make it work. We were committed to that…and working our way closer together, when your machinations threw everything into chaos!"
"With all due respect, Lord Byakuya, there is no evidence of any wrongdoing on our part," insisted Nori, "Honestly, what makes you think any of this is true?"
Byakuya let out an impatient breath.
"Because you were left alone with me after Renji and I were together…and that is when the impregnation had to have occurred, because we were not together again after that!"
"And why do you assume that means that I did anything at all? There have been accounts of male pregnancies that occurred naturally within the clan…"
Byakuya glared at him.
"Nori, you and I know perfectly well that all of those pregnancies were of questionable nature…and all that says to me is that the Kuchiki council of elders has a long history of placing its abnormally large nose into its clan leaders' lives! But that will stop today! None of you are to set foot in Kuchiki Manor without one or more of my own house guards present."
"Well, Lord Byakuya," said Nori, barely hiding his smirk, "You can hardly put the cat back in the bag, once it's out…"
"But I have leave to kill the cat if it steps outside the boundaries of law again, do I make myself clear?"
"Oh, abundantly…but I still say that you have not offered a shred of evidence that any member of this council has acted improperly. Indeed, merely being in your presence the day Abarai impregnated you does not saddle me with responsibility. Really…it's not as though I fathered your child!"
"No…you simply altered my body to make it suitable for pregnancy…" noted Byakuya, "And then you plotted to set Renji against me by…"
"By going to the manor to see how he was doing?" asked Nori calmly.
"You told Renji about the council's expectation!"
"I actually mentioned it in conversation, assuming you had told the man what would be expected. I was not aware that it was any kind of secret…"
"You knew…I know you did. You lured me away and dropped that information…then you made sure that when Renji left the manor, that he was followed…by your servant, Ima."
"You're delusional…"
"I saw her…"
"You weren't in the Rukon…"
"I am soul bonded to Renji. I said I saw her!" Byakuya insisted.
"Well, then, you were mistaken," Nori said, looking smug, "Go ahead and find her…ask her. Good luck. You see, if you check my house records…"
"I don't need any house records to know how you manipulated Renji and me. You wanted the heir and you wanted Renji gone! Well, I'll tell you that you have failed…that Renji is returning to Kuchiki Manor and we are going to live there together. We are soul bonded. You have no right to try to separate us!"
"And you have no power to take action without due cause."
Byakuya's anger flared, his reiatsu spiked, making the room shake and Senbonzakura was out and released before he could think to stop himself. Petals exploded in all directions, turning everything in the room to tiny particles. Only Byakuya and the councilors were left untouched. Their clothes, however, were not spared. Byakuya found himself facing a room filled with furious Kuchiki cousins in tattered, shredded clothes, whose rising reiatsu send fresh waves through the room and disturbed the broken bits of what Byakuya had destroyed. Byakuya made the petals disappear and sheathed his weapon.
"Lord Byakuya…how dare you…" Nori began.
"How dare I what?" Byakuya countered primly.
"We all saw you!"
"I saw you. As you said that I have no evidence, neither do you have evidence, but it makes the truth no less the truth…"
"You've gone stark, raving mad!" Nori hissed, "You can't…"
"I cannot what?" Byakuya asked, drawing and raising Senbonzakura, "tell the truth and have it be believed? I won't let you ruin my relationship with Renji! I won't…"
He stopped as a shock of pain passed through his abdomen. Nori's eyes became concerned.
"Lord Byakuya, are you all right?"
"As though you would concern yourself…" the clan leader groaned, holding his midsection and going pale.
"Come," said Nori, "You need to lie down."
He set a hand on Byakuya's arm that was viciously thrown off.
"Don't…touch me!" Byakuya hissed, his chest heaving and another shock of pain moving through him.
"Don't be difficult," Nori said, motioning to the guards to assist him.
Byakuya backed away, holding Senbonzakura ready.
"Lord Byakuya," said Nori in a placating voice, "We just want to help you. You are obviously unwell…"
"I don't…need your…help," the clan leader panted, lowering the sword and leaning on it.
The guards moved in and cornered him.
"What are you doing?" Byakuya said, lifting his sword to fend them off.
"Come now, lower your weapon. You are in pain. We only wish to help to relieve it. Be calm now, Lord Byakuya," Nori said moving closer and raising his reiatsu.
The guards flash stepped in and took hold of Byakuya's sword and arms. His reiatsu rose as he tried to fire a kido spell, but found he couldn't.
"What is happening? What did you do?" Byakuya asked, weariness and pain clouding his mind.
"We did nothing," Nori said, gazing at him oddly, "Sleep for a bit. You will feel better…"
He tried to object, but his body no longer obeyed him. He sagged in the guards' arms, his mind turning oddly and his consciousness beginning to fade.
"You became too upset for the good of your child," said Nori, "We will see that you get proper rest here, and no interruptions. After all, it is best for your baby…"
"N-no…I demand to be returned…home. N-nori…"
"Obviously doesn't know what he's saying…" said Nori to the guard.
The council guards began to carry the delirious noble out of the room, but as they reached mid way across, what was left of the entry doors shattered and Renji flash stepped into the room, looking furious and wielding Zabimaru in his jagged shikai form.
"What the fuck is going on here?" he exclaimed, "What are you morons doing with him?"
The council stared at the redhead in stunned silence for a moment, then Nori loosed his tongue to answer.
"We were conducting a meeting of council…a private meeting of council, to which you were not invited, Renji Abarai."
"Huh," huffed Renji, "And is that how your clan leader usually conducts business? Unconscious?"
He glared at the guards.
"Give him to me," he said in a low, warning voice.
He waited for a moment, then continued.
"Maybe, you didn't hear me," he went on, "Give him to me now!"
He didn't wait, but flash stepped forward and pulled the noble free of the guards, then backed towards the door.
"I am taking my life partner home. None of you are to so much as set foot in our manor without his permission!"
"How impertinent…" growled Nori, but he remained where he was, watching as Renji carried Byakuya out the doors and flash stepped away.
He turned back to face the others.
"That was reckless, Nori," said Arisu, examining her ruined clothes, "He got all out of sorts…and he could have done real damage."
"Yes…" said Nori, thinking, "That is very true."
He gazed at the others.
"In light of our leader's unstable behavior, I move that we have him extracted from Kuchiki Manor and removed to someplace Abarai won't find him."
"But they're soul bonded," Leiko reminded him, "Won't Abarai just 'see' where he is?"
"Maybe," said Nori, "But not if Byakuya remains unconscious until the heir's birth."
"At which time, you'll do what?" Arisu asked pointedly.
The other councilors nodded in agreement.
"Oh…I think our duty is very clear. I think Lord Byakuya has unfortunately become quite unstable. And after the birth of the heir, he should be sent to our treatment facility…at which time, our council will choose a guardian to guide the heir in his growth."
"Oh, Nori," laughed Leiko, "You are horrible!"
"Come now, all of you have been complaining ever since Lord Ginrei left."
"True enough," agreed Arisu, "But you must be careful not to overstep certain bounds, Nori."
"I am aware of exactly what I am doing," he assured them.
"And what about Renji Abarai?"
"Oh," said Nori, "I have a special plan in mind for him…"
XXXXXXXXXX
Byakuya opened his eyes and was surprised to find himself back in his own room. He sat up slowly, one hand on his midsection. The garden doors were open and cool air wafted in from outside and he heard the soft sound of birds chirping. The inner door opened and Torio entered the room, carrying a tray. He set it on the nightstand and handed Byakuya a cup of tea.
"Torio," he said quietly, trying to ignore the uncomfortable throbbing in his head and stomach, "How did I get home?"
The attendant smiled.
"Master Abarai brought you home," answered Torio, "He said you lost consciousness at the council hall and he brought you home."
"And…where is Renji now?" Byakuya asked uncertainly.
"Michio put him to bed, sir," the attendant explained, "He was feeling none too good after carrying you home from the council hall. But we had the healers here for you both. They said that both of you need lots of rest…oh, and they gave me some vitamins and nutrition information, which I gave to the cook. You haven't been eating enough and it's putting a strain on your body. Also, the healer said to avoid stress."
"Of course," muttered Byakuya, "Easier said than done, I'm afraid…"
He sipped quietly at his tea.
"Arigato, Torio, you may go…"
He lay in bed, drinking his tea and looking out the doors into the garden.
What do I do now? He said that he doesn't believe me…and neither of us is in any shape to argue. We have to find our way through this, but…how? He isn't invested in me or in our relationship…just this child I carry. He stays, but he does so grudgingly…and that cannot be good for a body still healing.
He slipped out of bed and stepped out onto the outer walkway. He stood outside Renji's door, listening.
"You must rest, Master Abarai," Michio said quietly, "The healer said the stress is what's keeping you from getting well. Please…lie down."
"Lying down isn't going to help," Renji sighed, "nothing is. I am stuck here now and I have no choice at all about that. I lost all of my choices…all control over my life when I was bonded to him."
Byakuya knew he didn't mean it in a cold way, but it didn't remove the sting from what was said. He was just a liability to Renji now…just something unpleasant that forced him to stay. He thought back to the day Renji had taken him…how good it felt to be held and taken with such strength. He had never experienced love of that kind before…and when he sought Hisana's help before, she had led him to finally release himself from mourning…to move on and try to truly bond with Renji.
But once again, I need your help, Hisana. Renji despises me…and I understand why. He thinks I set him up to father this child. But what do I do? How do I fix this?
This time, there seemed to be no answer. The voices in Renji's room had quieted. Byakuya turned and walked back to the house entrance, then made his way across town to the Squad Six office. He went inside and sat down at his desk, trying to remember the last time they had been there together. Things had been normal then. Renji was just his vice captain, and Byakuya was just Renji's captain. He wished they could go back to the way they were before, but realized the futility of the wish. So unable to think of anything that would make things better between them, he busied himself with paperwork, then retreated to his quarters to sleep. If he tuned everything out, perhaps he could ignore Renji's absence. If he didn't dwell on it, perhaps the emptiness there would somehow disappear into his busyness. He sighed deeply and closed his eyes, falling into a deep, troubled sleep, and didn't open his eyes again until his door was thrown open and Renji burst in the next morning. Seeing that no harm had come to him, the redhead said nothing, but turned and closed the door, then walked away. Byakuya sat staring at the door for several long moments, then in a very unKuchiki-like manner, he dissolved into silent tears.
I don't want him to look after me because of this child. I want Renji to love me…but maybe that's asking too much. Maybe I've just done too much to hurt him…