so. back to the day-to-day stuff. also, we get to finally see Halibel, though she won't really be hanging around long.
Rukia awoke with a nasty headache. She was glad that whoever had left her in her room had made an effort to block out as much light as possible from coming into the room.
Wait.
She was in her room. In the Kuchiki estate.
Last thing she remembered was Captain Yadomaru… goading her into a drinking competition.
Rukia groaned at the thought. She had gotten blackout drunk. And she either didn't remember if she walked home or was carried home.
Given her state of dress, being in proper sleepwear and the knot of her yukata being in good shape, she guessed she was carried and a servant had changed her into her current dress.
"Lady Kuchiki, you're awake," the soft voice of one of the servants could be heard near the door.
"Why are you here?" Rukia asked in a groggy and slightly pained voice. She really wanted to go back to bed.
"Lord Ginrei wanted to make sure nothing happened while you slept," right, she was asleep while still intoxicated. There were risks associated with that.
"Thank you. Could you get me some water?" Rukia had a bad case of cottonmouth. Why did she do something so dumb? She then remembered what Orihime had said.
Ichigo quite possibly was in love with her.
She had wanted to delay processing that for as long as possible.
Rukia had sat up in her bed by the time the servant returned with the glass. A silent nod as thanks and a slight bow were all that needed to be said before the servant left her to herself.
The boy she dragged into this hell, the nephew of her mentor and predecessor, had fallen in love with her.
A part of her wished that the glass before her was more sake. She quickly dismissed the foolish wish from her mind. It would ease her hangover, but it would only delay the worst of it. So Rukia drank her water, moved to her wardrobe, and got ready to put on her shihakusho and head to the thirteenth.
That was when she noticed a note tied to the front of one of her uniforms. She took the note and read it.
'Lieutenant Kuchiki, Sentaro and I figured you would be having a nasty hangover after last night. Whatever caused you to drink that much, we figured you needed it. Take the day off, don't worry about the division. -Kyone'
She smiled at the note. The two of them were great subordinates and had done a lot to curb her worse tendencies over the year since Ukitake's death.
This was something she was glad she had now. Her first few decades with the Kuchiki were not nice. She didn't even have an emotional support structure until she had met Kaien. Then after his death, she again had no one until Ichigo.
She sighed. Ichigo really was a turning point in her life. Before him everything was simple. She was going day by day simply waiting for the day fate would finally punish her for her sins and end her solitary existence.
After Ichigo? She knew someone valued her, that someone thought she deserved to live, deserved to be happy. Her life had changed in three short months.
A part of her though felt like she didn't deserve any of it. She may have very well robbed him of his human life.
Why did that idiot have to fall in love with her of all people?
Candice didn't like her new combat outfit.
Because Uryu was the only one skilled at tailoring out of all of them he basically had veto power on the outfits they wore in combat. Granted the Naraki op was mostly in plainclothes so that they could blend it, but this op into Hueco Mundo actually required that they be distinct from the other former Wandenreich quincy they were facing. So that ment they had to use the uniforms Uryu had made.
Fortunately, they weren't some archaic shit from before the genocide, but she didn't like wearing a full coat, let alone with a cloak over it. It was just too damned restrictive. She liked wearing clothes that breathed damnit.
"Hey, Candy, stop complaining about your damned uniform and get to the gate already," Bambi was getting tired of Candy's complaining.
"I wasn't complaining," Candice's protest was met with a skeptical glare from Bambieta.
"Not verbally," Bambi was used to calling her friend on her bullshit. The two had a friendship that was far more in line with what was seen among the rank-and-file quincy of the Wandenreich than was would be called as such among the sternritter.
"How can you tell?" Candice looked at her long-time friend with a skeptical look of her own.
"You had that look on your face," Bambi then got up to move for the sun gate that Uryu had set up in the basement of his house.
"Fuck you," Candice yelled out in response to Bambi's astute observation.
"I don't take offers," with that Bambi left the changing room.
Candice was soon to follow. Uryu's cell was an eclectic mix of people, as shown by the inclusion of the so-called 'Bambis.' Candice and the rest of the bambis joined out of pragmatism. Uryu was the only one with a claim to the throne actually concerned with the long-term survival of the quincy. Candice and the others didn't care about the promised vengeance against the shinigami, nor did they care about trying to finish a war they clearly lost. There was no way they were ever going to achieve their original objectives now. So why risk retaliation from the shinigami over what is at best a pipe dream?
Others joined for different reasons, however. Shaz Domino joined because of his loyalty to Yhwach, and Yhwach declared Uryu his rightful heir, thus his loyalty to the late god-king demanded he declares his loyalty to Uryu.
Then there was the aide of Jugram who pulled her and the other Bambis out from Warwelt in the aftermath of the war. He joined for a similar reason. Hachwalth was unflinchingly loyal to Yhwach as well. Thus had Hachwalth survived, he probably would have joined Uryu as well. Regardless if he disagreed with how he wanted to deal with the post-war aftermath.
Helping the Queen of Hueco Mundo however… she didn't like this one bit. Hollows were monsters and were responsible for the deaths of countless humans over the millennia. It was the stance of the quincy at large that they didn't deserve the mercy given to them by the shinigami.
The eventual collapse of the barrier between worlds if that had their way however was not something she liked to think about. The amount of death that would arise from that.
It was chilling.
So for both the continued survival of the quincy and for the continuation of the status quo, Candice and Bambi walked down the hallway into the room containing their new Gate of the Sun.
Hallibel was anticipating the arrival of her promised reinforcements today.
The Queen of Hueco Mundo had reestablished Las Noches as the seat of power for her regency, as her last base of operations had been all but leveled by the Wandenreich invasion. Leaving the old castle of Barragan and Aizen as the best place to project her power from.
The irony caused her to smile slightly beneath her mask fragment. What was once a monument to ego, was now a refuge for those who wished to escape the ruthless life outside the walls of the fortress.
Under the guidance of her and a fully restored Nelliel, Las Noches became a refuge for the weary, and arrancarification a means to free those who could not achieve the level of vasto lorde of the pressures their hunger put upon them.
This was what Hallibel wants to protect so desperately to the point of potentially appearing weak to her rivals.
But weakness was not the image shown by her visage.
The Queen wore a high-collared shirt that bared her midriff. Unlike her attire as an Espada however, the collar didn't hide her mask fragment. The striking visage of her shark's teeth serving as a means to remind those who challenge her that she is still a hollow.
A small cutout over the middle of her cleavage served to reinforce this as well as her claim to the throne. Prominently showing the three that indicated her strength among the Espada, and her legitimacy as queen.
This was capped off with golden tabi and her own take on the cloak Barrigan had worn during his time on the throne she now sat upon.
She sat upon her throne waiting for her guests to arrive when the oh-so-familiar sound of the very shadows becoming a gate between worlds indicated the arrival of her petitioned aid.
"Welcome quincy," Halibel spoke. The regality of the immediate hall of her throne room was understated. She wasn't an egotistical person like Barrigan or Aizen, and the only reason the throne was above the reception area was that it was once Aizen's. She considered moving the throne itself but they had found it was fixed to the floor. So here she was elevated above where the quincy had arrived, with Nelliel and Grimjow standing on either side of her.
"Hey," Bambietta replied in a manner that, if she were Barrigan or Aizen, would have gotten her killed on the spot. "I know you probably have a big song and dance for guests, but I'll be honest. I really don't want to be here. Just point me at the problem so I can make it disappear and I can go home."
"Bambi," Candice face palmed. Her flippancy was going to get the both killed at this rate.
"How dare you speak to Lady Hallibel like that!" Appaci all but roared through the room. She was even about to launch herself at the quincy before Hallibel motioned to stop her.
"Pardon my subordinate's overzealous response," Hallibel then leaned forward in her throne, putting her elbows on her knees and steepling her hands. "I agree with your… distaste for the situation. I would have preferred to deal with this situation myself, and having to turn to the ones who tore down everything I built previously for help is a bitter pill," Halibel then stood up from her throne. Turning to face another of her subordinates. "Gantenbainne, take our guests to the war room and brief them on the threat. I would also like you to guide them through Hueco Mundo for the duration of their stay."
"Alright," and with the loud boom of sonido the former espada was among the two quincy. "Are we expecting any more or are you it?" the orange-haired arrancar towered over the two quincy as he spoke.
"Yeah, we're it. 'His majesty' couldn't spare anyone else," Uryu's title was spoken in a mocking tone.
"I take it you don't like that he's king?" Mosqueda was carefully judging his supposed ally.
"No, more that I don't like that the quincy have to have a king. Uryu is probably the only one of us with both his head on straight enough to see the writing on the wall, and the conviction to make sure we don't get ourselves exterminated," The idea of a monarch was really begining to leave a bad taste in Bambietta's mouth. She had lived during the tail end of feudalism in Europe, and had thought that Yhawach was better than the others that claimed the title of king. Now after his failure, she was finding old sentiments rising once again.
"Ah," Gantenbainne understood. He had wondered why Halibel felt it necessary to take up the title of queen as well. Though now with the challenges she faced, it made sense. Someone needed to keep the secrets of arrancarification out of the hands of those who would simply use it to cause more needless destruction. "Follow me,
Ichigo found himself eating breakfast in the Kuchiki Estate after carrying Rukia home.
"I thank you for your consideration of Rukia's well being young Shiba," Ginrei thanked Ichigo. There was no obligation nor expectation for him to do so. In fact some circles could consider his action to be somewhat problematic. Though the former captain could tell that Ichigo's intent was pure.
"Please, just Ichigo is fine, and don't worry about it," Ichigo was finished with his food, though Ginrei wanted to take the opportunity to know Ichigo better as he never had the opportunity to meet him last time he was here.
"I hope you don't mind if I don't heed that. There are certain expectations that a Kuchiki is expected to follow young Shiba, even as an old man I find it hard to deviate from them," Ginrei took a sip of his tea. They had both finished eating a short while ago. Though Ginrei had insisted on waiting for Rukia to arrive and have her breakfast for some reason.
"Fair enough, hell I'm still getting used to things myself," Ichigo scratched the back of his head. This nobility business was beginning to become a pain for him.
"That is to be expected. Your father tried to make sure you and your sisters had as normal a life as he could provide," Ginrei may have his issues with the exact decisions Isshin chose to make, but he dare not imply that he did anything less than his best when raising his own.
"If that was his best then I don't know whether to be disappointed or impressed," Ichigo though could take whatever potshots he wanted at his father. After all, he lived it.
"Perhaps both would be appropriate," not that Ginrei could resist getting his own licks in. he was too old to not have a sense of humor.
"Yeah, you're probably right," after Ichigo's response, the sliding door to the room opened to reveal an only slightly disheveled and very hung-over Rukia. "Ah, Lady Rukia, glad to see you're awake."
"Glad to know someone is Lord Ginrei," Rukia then sat down across from Ichigo to await a servant to deliver her breakfast without realizing it. Then she realized.
"Ichigo, what are you doing here?" Rukia stared at him in mild shock.
"I was the one who carried you here…" Ichigo had thought she had figured that out already.
"... I thought that it was a servant or Lord Byakuya," Rukia was contemplating the potential for gossip, oh this was going to suck.
"Your brother was in a similar state and needed to be carried back himself," Rukia looked at her adoptive grandfather with a look of shock, asking why without saying it. "The elders brought up marriage again, specifically starting with you this time."
"Shit, you too?" Ichigo said sympathetically almost without thinking.
"Ichigo!" Rukia spoke out indignantly. Did he not know where he was?
"It's fine. My ears aren't made of porcelain. I've heard much worse in my time as a member of the Gotei," Ginrei spoke with a small smile upon his face. He knew Rukia had heard much worse, if not said much worse herself.
"I apologize Lord Ginrei," Rukia then sat down again after apologizing and then shot Ichigo an icy glare.
"No need, he does need to be reminded that most of the family would have a meltdown if they heard half the things we have in our careers," Ginrei then looked at Ichigo. "Would you mind if I asked you a personal question with Rukia here?"
"Yeah," Ichigo really didn't think that there would be much that he would ask about that he would care about Rukia knowing, or didn't know already.
"Was your mother a quincy?"
Silence.
Both Rukia and Ichigo looked at each other as though an invasion alarm had just gone off.
Ginrei interpreted their stunned silence as a yes.
"Don't worry. I do not doubt your loyalty. And as Rukia shared your reaction, I assumed you told her," at the old man's response Ichigo and Rukia let out a breath they didn't know they were holding.
Then the door opened again as Byakuya entered the room.
"Could anyone explain why the servants were acting unusual today?" Byakuya's question caused Ichigo to look at him.
What Ichigo saw was a cartoonish mustache drawn on his face with black marker.
The sight of such a thing after such a tense moment caused Ichigo to erupt in laughter, and Rukia to let a small smirk show on her face.
this chapter was a bit slower, and that will be the case largely for a little bit.
if you have any feedback, you are welcome to leave it below.