Not to be used loosely

Chapter 25

A/N: I do not own Bleach and its characters.

It was kind of nostalgic when Isshin drove the family car to the shoten. No, not the drive to the shoten. But the family in the car, albeit short of screaming kids including a bright-haired boy; and especially with his wife sitting on the passenger side next to him. Karin and Yuzu were enjoying the nice quiet ride and for the first time, truly appreciating the existence of both parents in their lives.

Until their father spoke up, "What happened to the old man?"

There was a hint of annoyance with some rare, genuine panic in his voice, the twins noted and curiously wondered which old man he was talking about.

Their mother snickered. "He should be at the shoten by now."

"What other things are you cooking up with him?" Isshin asked accusatively.

Boy, the girls needed to get used to their father's new set of vocal patterns. He was usually the crazy goon who was never serious for two seconds. They couldn't remember their parents' interaction before Masaki passed away. They were only toddlers, then. Now, their mother seemed to be the one with the playful edge.

"Nothing else, Shinigami boy. He'll meet us at Urahara's and then, we will all travel together to the Seireitei," Masaki explained.

Karin was just about to ask whom the old man was – for the third time – when Isshin said, "So he is going to run through the dangai with us? Somehow, I find it hard to believe that the Soul King would perform ordinary terrestrial tasks like that."

The girls gasped, "The Soul King?"

"Of course, not!" And there was that melodious but ragging laugh again, their daughters' astonished reaction ignored. "He has prepared soul tickets for all the humans. We could all just walk through the gate together."

Isshin grunted. "He could've at least told me earlier so I could prepare the kids beforehand."

The girls were just looking back and forth between their parents from the backseat, wide-eyed as they guessed that they were about to meet the Soul King. It didn't even matter that he was their grandfather. They were about to meet the King that governed the souls in all three worlds! He's practically god.

"Kami-sama... We're going to travel with the Soul King," Karin muttered.

Isshin raised a brow as he took a quick glance in the rearview mirror at his dark-haired daughter. "Do not call him 'Kami-sama' when you see him. He does not need a boost of ego like that."

Masaki snorted. "Anyway, they will have to meet him sooner or later. What is there to prepare the kids for?"

"What do we call him, Okaa-chan?" Yuzu asked, feeling the anxiety creeping in as they neared the shoten.

"'Ojii-sama', I suppose. I started off by addressing him as 'Kokuo Heika' but he insisted that I called him 'Otou-sama'. Takes a bit of getting used to," Masaki replied.

Karin was already texting Rukia with the warning. They were less than five minutes from the shoten and she felt that her brother, who was driving his car behind them with Rukia, should at least know what to expect when they arrived at the candy shop. Things were going to get interesting. She didn't know how to feel about it.

Rukia took out her phone when she felt it vibrate against her backside in her jeans pocket, alerting her to a message that had just come in. "It's from Karin," she told the orange-haired man driving on her right as she slid the screen to unlock.

Ichigo took a quick glance at her and asked, "Did she forget something? Do I need to turn back?"

The petite shinigami remained silent, perusing the text over and over again. She wanted to read it out loud but she wasn't sure if what was displayed on her phone was real.

Ichigo was getting annoyed as he pulled up outside Urahara's shoten. They were getting engaged at 6.30 pm and even though that's two hours away, he didn't want to waste any more time going back to the clinic to get something that's not important. Rukia still had to put on her complicated engagement kimono and dolling her up would take some time.

"What is it, Rukia?" he asked again, snapping her out of her stupor. He could see his parents and sisters getting out of their car and entering the shoten.

"Ichigo..."

The man let out an impatient growl before snatching the phone from Rukia's hand. His eyes bucked at what he read…

From: Kurosaki Karin

Ojii-sama is waiting for us at Urahara's.

4.34pm…

They should be going on their way to Soul Society. But the day was full of surprises. Ichigo wondered if they were supposed to be expecting more after this one. Hopefully, not. He didn't think his heart could handle any more of these. But then again, a pre-mature death would mean an immediate permanent residency at Soul Society and an earlier promotion as a full-fledged Shinigami, so it's not really such a bad idea.

Right now, though, he and his siblings and his fiancée-in-two-hours were sitting on the tatami floor of Urahara's living room, completely awestruck as they watched their father interact with the Soul King before their very eyes. The Soul King, literally in the flesh! Faux flesh, but who's anatomising? They're having tea with the Soul King!

Apparently, Mum was the one most at home with Grandpa. Favouring daughters-in-law over their sons must be a trait that ran in the Shiba blood. Am I going to be like that, too?

"The boy is a photocopy of your younger self, Isshin," Katsuo commented, regarding Ichigo with a smirk.

Karin snorted, eliciting a nudge in the ribs by Yuzu who bit her lips to keep from snickering. Rukia hid her smile behind her slender fingers as she braced herself for Ichigo's reaction, knowing all too well that it would be an over-reaction since he hated being associated to his father in any way. Most of the time, that is. Rukia also knew the orange-haired man, in truth, had a certain amount of respect and honour for the eccentric head of the family but he would never admit that.

Masaki, the comfortable one in the group, couldn't be bothered about keeping her amusement to herself. She outwardly laughed at both Isshin and Ichigo who had an identical scowl on their faces.

Ichigo looked like he wanted to retort but was afraid that it would be disrespectful to the King. He ended up looking rather constipated.

"Oh please, I did not have such ridiculous hair colour," Isshin protested, earning a glare from his insulted son.

"But the unruly hair and that juvenile facial expression are definitely cast in the same mould," the King pointed out.

Isshin scoffed, "Different side of the same coin, perhaps. He got the ugly side."

"Have you seen your face in the mirror, old man?" Ichigo finally snapped, waving a fist at his father and forgetting about his grandfather's presence altogether.

The women gave in to their snickering, with an extra to the chorus by Yoruichi who just entered the room. Urahara covered the lower part of his face with his faithful fan.

"What did I say about speaking to your father with respect, Ichigo?" Masaki chastised, a stern tone masking her teasing voice.

But Katsuo shook his head. "It's all right, Masaki. This only shows how much alike the father and son are."

"I'm sorry but I have to interrupt this interesting family reunion," Yoruichi said. "We need to get going before Byakuya-bo starts panicking and rains down flowers over all of us. He is not informed of Your Majesty's visit to the living world."

Urahara nodded with a smirk. "Yes, minna-san. Please proceed to the gateway. His Majesty will have to keep his gigai on until he crosses over the senkaimon. It's a bit too soon to suffocate the earth off its atmosphere, no?"

"I can always repair that with a snap of my fingers, Urahara-san," the King replied.

Isshin rolled his eyes. "Let's just go before the old man gets too full of himself," he grumbled, stepping away from the group.

"Fuck," Karin whispered to her siblings. "Goat-chin is really like Ichi-nii when he is around Ojii-san." She instantly warranted for herself a tug at her ponytail from her brother and another sharp elbow in her ribs by her sister. But the worst was yet to come.

"Language, young lady," Masaki reproved, pinching the dark-haired twin's ear as she walked beside her.

"I'm sorry," Karin pouted. And for the first time, there was a look of mortification on the usually smug face.

With a smile, Rukia walked up to the other side of the elder twin and wrapped an arm around the latter's waist – she couldn't slump it over her shoulder like she used to when the girls were much younger. They were much taller than the chibi reaper now. "Here's a new side of you I've never seen before," she whispered – and she had to tiptoe a little.

"The only two people I could ever lose to – you and Mum," Karin harrumphed, prompting a soft giggle from the woman she looked up to as a sister, friend, and mentor.

The orange-haired substitute Shinigami watched from behind as the four women in his life crossed over the gate to the other world where his second home would soon be.

Kurosaki Ichigo knew that the Kuchiki Manor was huge but he had never expected its grand hall to be able to house so many people. There were at least 250 in attendance including the Shiba and Kuchiki clans, some Shinigami from the Gotei 13, and a few humans from the living world.

The yuinou ceremony was a very short one. It began with the exchanging of gifts wrapped in rice-paper envelopes between the two clans. After that, Ichigo presented Rukia with the engagement ring, which used to belong to his mother. Both Isshin and Masaki watched this part of the event with pride and honour.

When the ceremony was over, everyone adjourned to the Takizakura Hall for a sit-down 10-per-table dinner prepared by the best Kuchiki itamae. It was a rather rigid one as the guests were all assigned to their tables according to a seating arrangement by Kuchiki Byakuya himself. There were also short opening speeches by him and Isshin where they thanked their guests for being a part of the grand celebration and formally acknowledged the union between the Shiba clan and the Kuchiki clan. As expected, Isshin made a few remarks that embarrassed his son, so much so that Rukia had to practically pin Ichigo down in his chair before he could attack his father and further made a fool of himself and their clans.

After the traditional multi-course dinner, most of the guests (especially the distant family members of both clans) left the manor with well-wishes for Ichigo and Rukia. The ones who remained were close friends of the officially-engaged couple. Byakuya invited them to the Japanese garden behind the banquet hall. In no time at all, they had moved into their own cliques, carefully scattered all over the vast acreage of green grass, sakura trees, water features, and teahouses.

Isshin and Masaki were seated at the main table during the dinner with the Soul King, Byakuya, the leader of the Royal Guard – Ichibe Hyosube, Byakuya's aunt – Kuchiki Ayumi, the Kurosaki twins, and the couple of the day. They hadn't had the chance to socialise much with their friends as they had to entertain relatives and clan members whom they hardly saw. So at the garden, the Soul Prince brought Masaki to the teahouse to formally introduce her to his former comrades. Present there were Ukitake Juushirou, Kyouraku Shunsui and Ise Nanao, Unohana Retsu, Kenpachi Zaraki and Kusajishi Yachiru beside Urahara and Yoruichi. With the cat lady there, Sui-Feng and Shiba Kuukaku also came in to join the group. Much to Isshin's chagrin, everyone teased him for being the last to know of his wife's return.

Isshin had invited Ishida Ryuuken for old time's sake; more so because he was Masaki's cousin than anything else. The former Quincy wasn't very keen at first but he had gone anyway because of Masaki... who was once his fiancée. There was a little tension between the two men but it was quickly resolved when Masaki reminded them about whom she had married.

Instead of joining the after-party at the garden of the Kuchiki head, Shiba Katsuo had invited Yamamoto-soutaichou to his palace for a game of shogi. The five members of the Zero Division who had attended the wedding also decided to return with the Soul King.

Most of the Visored wanted to stay back to hang out but a slap up each of their heads with Sarugaki Hiyori's slipper was all it took for them to go back to the world of the living. Otoribashi Rose and Aikawa Love had wanted to have a couple of drinks with their Shinigami comrades. Yadomaru Lisa thought she should spend a bit of time with Ise Nanao.

But the captains Hirako Shinji and Muguruma Kensei agreed that it was better for those Visored who were stationed in Karakura to go back to the world of the living in case a Hollow showed up. Currently, all the real world Shinigami were in Soul Society, leaving Karakura a very vulnerable and defenceless town without anyone to protect it. The only ones who didn't really mind going back were Ushoda Hachigen and Kuna Mashiro.

Sitting around Byakuya's koi pond was a mixed group of humans and soul reapers. The humans had arrived an hour before the ceremony together with Urahara where they were briefly introduced to Masaki and the Soul King. Recognising Arisawa Tatsuki, the brown-haired mother enveloped Ichigo's childhood friend in a tight hug.

Currently, Abarai Renji had his arm around his kendoka girlfriend as they shared a quiet conversation despite how brash the two of them usually were. It was definitely a sight to see that these two people had managed to tone each other down by a huge degree.

A few yards away from the couple, a rowdy bunch of idiots were talking out loud, seemingly at rather than to one another. Ichigo shook his head as he watched his cousin Shiba Ganju rise to his feet in a defensive stance while trying to prove his point to Asano Keigo and Hanakari Jinta, before Kuukaku appeared out of nowhere to kick him in the arse. It was a good thing Bonnie the wild boar was not allowed to enter the Kuchiki property. That would have been chaotic.

Yuzu, Tsumugiya Ururu, and Yamada Hanataro looked on in mild amusement at the crazy things that were happening before them. They were the only noiseless ones in the group. Well, them and Kojima Mizuiro, who didn't exactly count. It wouldn't have made a difference whether he was there or not. The dark-haired playboy was texting away on his phone, completely undeterred by Keigo who kept bumping into him whenever he gestured with his arms like a drowning person. Ichigo did not want to know how there was any reception in Soul Society. Something told him that his former classmate had gotten Jinta to help him secure some kind of connection between the two worlds. Mizuiro could never keep away from his phone for a long time, anyway.

Across the pond from Renji and Tatsuki, Ichigo's non-Shinigami comrades of war huddled together in their own sub-clique. Ishida Uryuu and Inoue Orihime looked like they were having a very pleasant conversation, judging from the smile on their faces. Obviously, something had happened recently between them. Ichigo made a mental note to tease his cousin about it one of these days. Of course, beside them was the best third wheel anyone could ask for – Yasutora Sado. All he did was observe his friends in silence, chuckling softly every once in a while and contributing one or two words where necessary. I must hang out with the big guy soon. It's been a while, Ichigo thought.

Out in the open field where Byakuya used to train his meditative martial arts, Ichigo could barely make out the 'izakaya gang'. They were a different sort of rowdiness. Most of them were laughing like hyenas, probably drunk from the sake Matsumoto had stolen from the cellar she found while sneaking around the Kuchiki mansion.

For some reason, Ayasegawa Yumichika was repeatedly hitting the heads of Madarame Ikkaku and Hisagi Shuuhei – most probably reprimanding them for doing something 'ugly'. This whole racket was witnessed by Hinamori Momo, who was seated between the legs of – well, here's a shocker – Kira Izuru. Ichigo didn't even know there was something going on between those two. He only knew them as Renji's classmates from the academy.

Kotsubaki Sentarou was engaged in an argument with Kotetsu Kiyone – over what, Ichigo couldn't guess. But the two third-seated officers of the 13th Division were also somehow laughing at the trio in between their bickering. Beside Kiyone, her sister Isane sat silently with her back ramrod-straight as she sipped her drink and tried to ignore a red-faced Iba Tetsuzaemon who seemed to be trying to pick her up by showing off his biceps. That one definitely had had one too many drinks. Somebody needed to stop Matsumoto from supplying them those booze that didn't even belong to her.

And that somebody – Ichigo glared in distaste – was none other than her own taichou, Hitsugaya Toushiro. However, the chibi captain was currently busy making out with Karin on a bench next to the garden's water feature. They probably thought no one could see them.

The newly-engaged man was about to make his way towards the couple when a small hand held tightly onto his arm stopped him. Glancing down at his beautiful fiancée, Ichigo narrowed his eyes at her.

"Don't do it, Idiot. Let them be for today. You don't want to make a scene," Rukia warned.

"They are already doing that for themselves," Ichigo muttered. "And besides, Toushiro needs to keep his fukutaichou on a leash. She's causing a riot."

Rukia crossed her arms over her chest. "She's not. It's just that group over there that's drinking and they are not making any trouble for other people. If they were, Nii-sama would've thrown them out."

Ichigo scoffed, "That's because he is not even aware of what's going on, Midget. You see, he's kind of busy, himself." Grabbing Rukia's shoulders, he steered her to face where her brother was.

She gasped as her eyes widened in shock. Right there, under his favourite sakura tree, stood Kuchiki Byakuya who was apparently enjoying – in his own stoic way – a conversation with the busty Matsumoto Rangiku. The strawberry blonde was obviously flirting with the stiff host. And he was letting her do that, their shoulders brushing every time she swayed seductively.

"Kami..." Rukia gasped, her hand rising to her face to slowly cover her mouth. She didn't know what to think.

Ichigo smirked. "So which one do we want to save first? Your brother or my sister? I vote Karin. She's still a child."

"Karin is not a child anymore, Ichigo. You have to learn to give her more credit than that and stop being an arse of a brother. Your dad has accepted Hitsugaya-taichou," she replied before turning back to regard the interaction between her brother and Matsumoto.

"Right. So I assume you're okay with that as well?" Ichigo tipped his head at the Kuchiki leader.

A small smile graced Rukia's face. "You know what?" she began, slowly tearing her gaze away from the two people talking under that sakura tree. "I think it's time my brother moved on to find his own happiness."

Ichigo raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "You're saying you don't mind if Byakuya and Matsumoto get together?"

Rukia's smile broadened as she turned around to fully face her new fiancé. Placing her palms flat on his kimono-clad chest, she shrugged. "As long as Nii-sama is happy, why not?" she asked, tilting her head and raising herself on the ball her feet in her clogged slippers at the same time to reduce the height difference between Ichigo and herself. "Why should we be bothered about the love-lives of our siblings when we have ours to... explore?"

The Shiba heir couldn't help the grin that was tugging at the corner of his lips. He closed the small distance between them while pulling her body closer to his by taking hold of her slender waist with both hands. "And how do we do that, my Moon Queen?" he breathed, leaning in to brush his lips against hers, all the while keeping his amber eyes on her enthralling sapphire ones.

Rukia hummed, seizing his bottom lip between her teeth and eliciting something between a moan and a gasp from the man. "I was hoping you'd have some ideas, my Sun King," she murmured.

"I guess I do have a few," he replied as he pecked the corner of her mouth before locking their lips in an affectionate kiss. Feeling Rukia's smile against his, Ichigo was taken back to the first time he came to Soul Society all those years ago. He gently pulled apart from her, keeping his smile so she would keep hers as well for him to behold as his most precious treasure.

I remember now...

The reason I wanted to save you...

- THE END -

I'm done.

This fic has ended. Bleach has ended. But the IchiRuki fandom will never die and we will continue to support one another despite how this manga ended.

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