Impertinent little brat

Chapter 15: And so it's The End

There was little light from outside. Heavy rain clouds gathered on the dark sky and an ominous thunder crackled. A storm was coming, and Akihiko suspected that there would be somewhat stormy within the family for a while too once he finished. The weather fit perfectly.

The dark did make it a tad difficult to walk with the dignity he wished though, and he had to force himself not to fumble in the darkness. He'd never had the best night vision.

He bit down a curse when he stubbed his toe against what he could only assume was a chair. Pushing the furniture aside he squinted down at his cousin.

This should be when he woke up to plead for his life. That really would have made the scene perfect, but Byakuya, as always, disappointed him.

He idly wondered if he would have time to wait for the man to wake up. He wanted the man to see that it was he who was going to kill him. He had imagined that moment of triumph many times.

"Cousin." He muttered lowly, trying to rouse the unconscious man without speaking too loudly lest someone may be alarmed of his presence, but Byakuya remained unresponsive.

Akihiko frowned in dismay. This was not the way it was supposed to go.

How inconsiderate.

The sound of loud voices interrupted his thoughts and he turned quickly, stubbing his toe again on the same chair as before.

"…bastards! How the hell could those damn bastards…! Gods dammit it!" A furious voice resounded throughout the fourth.

"Renji! Dammit would you slow the hell down, asshole! Hey, don't punch me!" Another, equally irate, voice argued.

There was a loud bang.

"Feeling better?" the second voice asked. "Wanna punch some more walls?"

"Shut the hell up, Ichigo." The first voice growled, closer to the door now. Whatever was said after that Akihiko didn't know or cared to know. He quickly gathered up his unconscious cousin, slung him over a shoulder and ran for the window. He slipped on something and nearly barged straight into the window, but managed to catch himself and threw it open.

He was gone in a flash.

Rukia lay on her side. She suspected that her eyes were wide open but no other part of her was responding. Her eyes met with Akane's and she wondered if her own face was a reflection of the older woman's pale horror.

What had Akihiko done to them? It must've been the sake… something in it? Poison? Why couldn't she move?

Akane's face was just as beautiful as always, but now she looked paler and her eyes was starting to dim. No! Rukia wanted to scream at the other woman but her mouth wouldn't move. Don't give in! Don't give up!

Slowly Akane's eyelids fluttered closed.

"Shihoin-sama, please! Kuchiki-sama is dining and do not wish to be disturbed." The servant girl pleaded, hurrying after Yoruichi and Soifon through the corridors of the Kuchiki house. Some guards were trailing them as well, looking rather forlorn about what they ought to do. Certainly they had been invaded, somehow, by two women who didn't seem inclined to even spare them a glance, but they didn't seem like bad people. In fact Huuori remembered Shihoin-sama from many years ago when his father had let him come along to the Kuchiki compound. "Best way to learn the job is by starting out early" his father had said, and obviously he'd lived by this rule since Huuori hadn't been more than five when he first started to accompany his father.

Yes, he remembered Shihoin-sama's visits back then. How could he not? They were legendary. Legendary in the way that caused every servant to scramble to pin down what could be pinned down, tuck away all the priceless and regrettably very breakable heirlooms and some even went as far as to shove cotton in their ears. The long bouts of yelling matches between Shihoin-sama and Kuchiki-sama tended to put strain on the most hardened of ears.

So Huuori suspected this was not an 'attack'. Attacks tended to involve a lot more yelling and screaming, not to mention a lot of fighting and bloodshed. Yet the two women had invaded the compound without notice or invite and that was not to be had, so he ran past the servant girl and stopped in front of the women.

"Are you going to fight us?" the shorter woman asked testily.

"I will not, Soifon-sama. Unless no other alternative presents itself or you would deign to threaten the Kuchiki family." He replied and bowed. "I do however wish to make you aware of the breach of etiquette your invasion of this compound is causing. I cannot let you continue."

"Breach of etiquette?" Soifon nearly spat.

"Invasion?" Yoruichi commented with some amusement.

Huuori decided that she was the one he ought to speak to, she seemed more reasonable. "Yes, Shihoin-sama. An invasion is, as you know, an armed force of one geopolitical entity aggressively entering territory controlled by another such entity, generally with the objective of either conquering, liberating or re-establishing control or authority over a territory. With the manner in which you have entered Kuchiki grounds I cannot draw any other conclusion of your acts thus far."

"That's ridiculous." Soifon snapped.

"Actually I think he's got us there, Soifon. We are armed and neither of us belongs to the Kuchiki family, and we both know the reason for us being here. Heh, I guess we have invaded the Kuchiki compound." Yoruichi grinned.

Soifon seemed to want to protest but one look from the other woman silenced her. Yoruichi's yellow eyes turned back to him.

"Would you inform Kuchiki-sama of our presence?"

"Yes, Shihoin-sama." He bowed again and waved the servant girl away to do just that. When the girl hurried off Huuori turned to his guards and told them to get back to their posts while he stayed with the invaders.

Soifon looked furious.

Yoruichi looked… thoughtful.

"I think I remember you. You have been here a long time, haven't you?" she asked him.

"Yes, Shihoin-sama. I'm Huuori Nuituji, Head guard of the Kuchiki compound. My family have been guards of the family for generations. I…" he hesitated. "…I was very young last time I met you, Shihoin-sama. I'm honoured that you remember me."

"Huuori…" the dark skinned noble nodded. "Yes, you were the boy who fell into the pond while trying to catch the koi. "

"Er… yes, Shihoin-sama." He hoped that he didn't blush, but knew that it was a vain hope.

"You dragged Bya-bo in with you too."

"Yes, Shihoin-sama."

Well it had been against all etiquette to drag the Kuchiki heir into to pond, of course, but it was amazing how that thought hadn't presented itself when he had waved his arms around to try to find balance. Heck, he had been five at the time and though the heir hadn't been much older he had seemed the only thing possible around to stop him from falling in.

The Kuchiki lord had been very understanding. Huuori's father hadn't. It had been months before he let the boy come with him to the house again.

"You know, Bya-bo found it very funny."

"He… did?" Huuori blinked. That memory was one of great shame to him, so to have someone tell him that the victim of his youthful failing had found it funny baffled him. Back then there had been so many adults around, first to fish them up and then to drag the young heir back into the house, that he had never had the chance to apologise.

"Yep, he…"

A scream interrupted them. They ran and when they all came to a halt outside of the dining room where the scream he come from, the servant girl came rushing out. She was sobbing and when he grabbed her to hold her still she fell to the floor in a heap.

"They're dead! They're dead!" She cried and huddled on the floor.

Looking past her into the room he saw the bodies on the floor.

Huuori moved to reach them but Yoruichi was faster and was already by Rukia, while Soifon leaned down to check on Akane.

"Call a doctor," Yoruichi ordered. "She's not dead, but she will be soon if she doesn't get help."

Huuori ran.

Renji leaned heavily against the wall while he struggled to contain his temper. It had flared so suddenly that he scared even himself, and to push it back now was almost beyond him. Questions ran through his mind, round and round like mice caught in a maze, and no matter how he tried he couldn't understand the answer.

"I just don't get it." He growled. "How the hell could Sentaro and Kiyone do this? I mean… hell we thought it had to be Aizen or some kinda enemy or somethin' and then it was them all along? They're fuckin' Gotei people, we're not supposed to run 'round stabbin' each other in the damn back. Why would…?"

Ichigo shrugged. "Hell if I know."

"Yeah…" Renji muttered. Just when he thought that things were finally starting to make sense again it all got all… complicated and shitty again. "At least the cap'n's back to normal." He said in an attempt to lift his own spirits.

"Yep. He'll be back to busting your balls in no time." Ichigo grinned.

"Yep." Renji grinned. It had to be the first time ever that that sounded like a good thing.

Feeling calmer now he straightened up from the wall and opened the door to Byakuya's room. A rain cooled wind blew through the room and his eyes fell on the open window. That was not opened when he left. His eyes turned quickly to the bed.

"Fuck no." He swore and ran to the empty bed. "No, no, no, no, no… where is he?"

Ichigo was already by the window, squinting out into the rain. "There's no way he'd have left on his own, right?"

"Heck, no."

"Yeah." Ichigo nodded grimly. "Let's go."

Something wet and cool splashed against his cheeks, momentarily rousing him and he wondered why the servants had left the window open while he slept. Whatever small awareness he had soon pointed out that this wasn't the case. He was not in his bed. Cool air whipped around him and by the feel of it he was being carried.

Had he been injured?

Had there been a battle?

He couldn't remember. His head ached and his limbs felt like deadweight. He couldn't even force his eyelids to open, so he did the only thing his body currently seemed to allow him to do; He waited and tried to assemble the pieces of the puzzle of his current situation. He'd always been good at puzzles, though they bored him. He didn't see the reason in cutting up a perfectly good picture and then reassemble the pieces.

This proved itself to be more difficult than he expected. Normally his memory was clear but now it felt muddled like an old muddy river. The one thing he knew for certain that he could remember clearly was being in his office. It had been late, the moon had been up he recalled because he had spent some time looking up at it while deep in though. There had been a knock on the door… and then what? Some shinigami, not someone noteworthy, had served him tea. After that his memory was a mess.

He thought he remembered Renji and being very irate at him for some reason, but this didn't feel completely like his own memory. It felt almost like someone else's memory had been shoved into his head and that they didn't really want to stick around in there.

What else? Something about a stapler…? Why would a stapler play a mayor part in any sort of memory? And the hall filled with captains… heavy eyes on him… why would they stare at him? Stare down at him… No this couldn't be right. Byakuya mentally shook his head.

He recalled a small apartment, which was ridiculous because he knew he'd never seen a living quarter that small, and yet it remained rather clearly and fondly in his memory. Perhaps he had been dreaming? Had he fallen asleep in the office? No that would not explain his current situation even if that was something he'd ever allow himself to succumb to.

Whoever was carrying him made a sudden, sharp turn and for a moment he felt himself slide. Then he was roughly steadied again by arms he couldn't see. There was something familiar about this person's reiatsu though, but the reiatsu was weak and his brain was buzzing uncomfortably which made it difficult to concentrate.

Another memory flowed to the surface and this one was even more muddled than the rest. No clarity of what it was exactly except for a faint memory of being in someone's arms and an odd feeling of being safe.

Safe? Now there was an unusual feeling, he couldn't recall feeling it for over fifty years. Definitely something wrong there.

A sharp noise cut through his thoughts, making him aware that the air had stopped whipping about him and the rain had stopped falling. They were inside then. Abruptly he felt himself dumped on the ground without care.

The air was knocked out of him by the fall and he heard himself groan, but otherwise his body remained unresponsive.

There was a moment of silence, and then the sound of quick feet drawing close. Someone pulled him up by the front of his clothing and he hung heavily in the grip.

"Are you awake?" that voice he knew. It was low and hissed out in a tense whisper, but he would have known it anywhere. Akihiko.

He felt anger rise up inside him and struggled to open his eyes to glare at the other man, but his eyelids still felt like led and his lungs burned in his chest. He pushed it aside and forced his eyes opened.

Akihiko was looming over him, looking far more dishevelled than he'd seen him in decades, with his hair wet and stringy and in general disarray. His dark eyes were lit with triumph rivalling that of a either a warlord or a complete maniac, and Byakuya suspected that the latter would prove to be the case.

"Finally." His cousin hissed and then chuckled. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this moment when you look upon me and see your bane. No, wait, you probably do. You were there when my humiliation took place, so of course you know." Akihiko hissed out and drew a dagger. Byakuya recognised it, it was the ornamental dagger of Nori Kuchiki, and he couldn't help but find that ironic. How very like Akihiko in all of his theatrical splendour to choose a weapon with that legend attached to it. The dagger of Nori, also known as the dagger of Law. It was said that Nori had received it from the king himself to "cut the laws with" in the days when Seireitei had been in shambles. It was a stupid legend because the law was not something that could be cut up by a dagger, but legends rarely made sense, and any noble house loved to be in the possession of at least a few such old pieces of junk.

The dagger descended. Akihiko's eyes widened almost comically and he froze. Looking down realisation slowly dawned on his cousin's face when he saw the zanpakuto buried in his side.

"You…" he forced out.

"Chire…" Byakuya whispered and felt himself being flung back forcefully. "…Senbonzakura."

Before he hit the ground again he saw his zanpakuto release itself into a thousand glistering knives and he heard Akihiko scream.

Then there was silence. He could feel Senbonzakura hesitantly reforming itself and he instinctively knew that he would not have the strength to call on it again. Only forcing the sword to form in his hand at all had drained him and now his body screamed in pain.

"…You… bastard…" Akihiko's voice floated over him. It was strained and he was panting, sounding almost choked. He heard the man cough violently. Apparently Senbonzakura had wounded him badly, but not badly enough, Byakuya thought. He gritted his teeth against the pain raging through him and tried to gather power he didn't have to use the sword again. When Akihiko flung him away from himself he must've gotten far enough from the zanpakuto to avoid being torn to shreds.

Byakuya's head was pounding. His body felt almost like it was suspended by invisible strings, disconnecting him from the world around him. He realised how weak he was, his body wanted to give in and fall away into oblivion and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't… couldn't… damn it…

"I'll kill you…" Akihiko's voice wheezed again. Then there was a pause and when he spoke again he sounded surprised. "You? Why are you here? You don't need to be here, I said I'd finish this myse…"

The sentence ended in a gurgle.

Byakuya opened his eyes and vaguely saw his cousin's body crumble to the ground, and another figure standing over the unmoving lump. Then his own body finally gave into the darkness. From somewhere he thought he could hear the distant yelling of voices but…

"Come on! This way!" Renji roared and lead the way through the streets of Rukongai. Ichigo followed him, surprisingly without comment. They were close, Renji knew it, he'd felt his captain's reiatsu only moments ago but now it was dwindling fast.

Come on, cap'n, just a bit longer, he thought wildly. Just keep it going a little bit longer 'til I fuckin' find you!

"There!" he yelled and pointed to a large, run down building ahead. He was in there! He didn't bother to open the door, too much in a hurry he merely drew Zabimaru and blasted through it.

"Byakuya!"

There was no answer but through the dust he saw his captain's body on the floor, curled on one side, and he rushed towards him calling out for him again.

Turning the limp form over onto his back he bent over him looking for any sign of life.

"Is he alright?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah, yeah… I think so…" Renji muttered, relieved to find his captain breathing steadily although shallowly. "He's breathing."

He looked around at his friend and frowned.

Through the dust he thought he could see someone slipping out on the other side of the building. Ichigo must've seen it too because he was already chasing after it so Renji pushed it out of his mind and turned his attention to Byakuya.

"Yer breathin' cap'n." He said, not really sure why he felt the need to assure the limp form of this. Nor was he certain why he couldn't keep his hands from stroking Byakuya's much too pale face. He's cold, he thought, and wet. Right, it's raining outside. Pushing his own top off he wrapped his captain in it and pulled the other man close in an attempt to keep him warm.

Byakuya's eyelids fluttered.

Renji's breath caught in his throat when grey eyes wearily gazed up at him.

"Renji..?" the voice was so low it was barely more than a breath yet it made his heart swell and beat like mad in his chest.

"Yeah, cap'n. It's me. Yer gonna be alright, I'll…" He rambled and only halted when his captain's eyelids widened ever so slightly. They seemed unfocused but he could see pain there right on the surface and beneath it more layers of pain and somewhere beneath it all a flicker of... relief?

Again he wasn't sure why, it later seemed to him like a whole lot of his actions that night were out of his control, but now he leaned down and brushed his lips gently against Byakuya's, feeling those smooth lips part in a silent intake of breath under his own. His heart was hammering so fast he was sure it would break out of his chest any second and splash onto the floor in a bloody lump, and it felt like the only reason it didn't was because Byakuya's lips anchored it to him. Later he reflected over how stupid that thought was but that was what it felt like, and he pulled his captain's body closer to his own to hang onto that feeling.

When he opened his eyes again Byakuya's were closed, obviously he'd fallen victim to unconsciousness again.

Kami-sama, the red head thought in sudden and terrified realisation, what the hell did I just do? And right after that came the inevitable thought that never really lingered far from Renji's mind whenever his captain was near; Kuchiki-taichou's gonna kill me.

Renji was received by a legion of shocked faces when he bustled into the Fourth division carrying Byakuya in his arms like a bride. He vaguely realised that some time after he and Ichigo had gone chasing after the captain the alarm must have been raised that Kuchiki-taichou was gone.

Unohana-taichou came rushing through the throngs of shinigami, quickly but gently urging him into a room where he could put Byakuya down on a bed while the woman and several other fourth division members looked him over. Renji remained in the room feeling rather out of place but at the same time not knowing where else he should go.

"Abarai-fukutaichou," the brown haired woman eventually said, albeit not unkindly. "You do not have to oversee my actions, I know my own work. Your captain is in good health considering the circumstances. You should visit Rukia Kuchiki."

His mouth opened to protest but then her last words registered in his mind. "Rukia? What happened to Rukia? Is she alright… Unohana-taichou?"

Unohana straightened. "She was poisoned."

"Poisoned?" Suddenly the blood felt like ice in his veins.

"She will be healed." The captain assured him. "She was found before it was too late for her."

He felt sudden relief rush through him and breathed out a breath he hadn't been aware he had been holding. Then he frowned when he again ran her words through his muddled brain. "Who died?"

"Akane Kuchiki, a cousin of your captain. She had consumed too much of the poison and we were too late to save her life."

"Oh." He wasn't sure how to feel about that. Mostly he felt relieved that Rukia and Byakuya were alive. The rest of that damned family… after what he had seen and heard about them… still to be poisoned. Poison was the weapon of a coward in Renji's opinion. No one deserved to die like that.

"You may leave, Abarai-fukutaichou." Unohana kindly reminded him.

"Yeah, but…"

Apparently the captain knew in which direction his thoughts had headed and she nodded at him seriously. "I will not let anyone get past me, Abarai-fukutaichou."

"Yeah…" he hesitated. Another stern but still somehow gentle look from the captain made him aware of that this was not a suggestion but an order. Ducking his head he muttered a "Yes, Unohana-taichou" and left.

He found Rukia in another room with a mournful Ukitake sitting beside her, talking to her in a low voice. When Renji stepped inside he smiled but Renji could clearly see that the mournful look never left his eyes. Abruptly he stood.

"I need to leave. The… questioning is soon to take place, and I should be there." He explained softly before leaving.

"I really wish this wasn't happening." Rukia sighed. "It's very difficult for him."

Renji frowned, currently he didn't much care for Ukitake's feelings. "Ya alright? Unohana-taichou said you'd been poisoned."

Rukia looked almost surprised, as if she had forgotten about such an insignificant fact. "Oh. Yeah, I'm alright. How is Nii-sama?"

The red head slumped into the chair next to her and sighed in relief. "We got him back. Unohana's checking on him n…"

Rukia bolted upright. "What do you mean 'you got him back'? You lost him? Again?"

"Woow! Rukia, it wasn't my fault! It was that Aki-Aki guy!" He quickly defended himself, nearly jumping out of the chair. "He kidnapped the cap'n and nearly killed him."

"You stopped him?"

"Yes! No! I mean… well we didn't… er… there was some other guy there. He got to him first. Ichigo's chasing him… er… I brought the cap'n back… er… Bottom line is Byakuya's safe."

At least Rukia agreed that that was the important part after all because she settled back down in the bed.

"Rukia!" The door slammed open and Ichigo stampeded into the room. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Rukia attempted an assuring smile but it looked bleak.

"Oi! Did ya get that guy back there?" Renji asked, standing up.

"I lost him. He must've blended in with the crowd." Ichigo announced gruffly and sat down on another chair.

Some time later they were all sharing all information they'd gathered over the past days, trying to make sense of what had happened. Rukia was particularly happy to hear that her brother was back to his adult sized self.

"So Sentarou and Kiyone were behind the whole turning-the-taichou-into-a-brat business, and Aki- whatever guy, was the one behind the assassin attempt. So who killed Aki-Aki… er?" Renji finished lamely by waving his hand.

"Akihiko." Rukia corrected automatically. She seemed to ponder the question.

"Uh…Yeah." Renji muttered and mentally scoffed. Who the hell cared what that ripe bastard's actual name was, anyway?

"He poisoned me and Akane-sama too." His friend added.

"Yeah." Ichigo looked grim and Renji had a feeling that if Akihiko wasn't already dead Ichigo would've made him wish that he was. Renji felt much the same way. "Hey, Rukia? That Aki-whatever dude – did he know that Akane woman?" Ichigo asked.

"She was his twin sister." Rukia said softly.

"He poisoned his own sister?" Ichigo asked and pulled a disgusted face. "That…! Damn! I don't know who the hell killed him but… damn… that guy should get a fucking medal."

Renji agreed whole heartedly, but from the frown on Rukia's face he realised that she didn't.

Apparently he had been unconscious for some time. Not a great surprise once Retsu Unohana and Renji had taken turns of explaining what had happened. It would seem that his body had been through rather the ordeal during the past few days.

"Oi, Bya-bo!"

He didn't bother to open his eyes and look up. That voice, not to mention that annoying nickname, was unmistakable.

"Baka-neko." He replied. It was one of those age-old conversations that had bounced back and forth between them for so long that the bite had rather been lost. "What do you want?"

He could hear her step into the room and close the door behind her.

"Akihiko is dead." She announced. "But you know as well as I do that he was not the one in charge."

"Yes." He agreed and opened his eyes. They stung a bit but he figured it was merely that infernal fatigue his body was feeling. "How did you know?"

The dark skinned woman looked grim. "I interrogated the assassin that cut you, and he gave me a name. It wasn't Akihiko's."

"You would trust the word of an assassin." He raised an eyebrow to incline how very dumb this was.

"I'm no cretin, Bya-bo. I do not trust the word of an assassin for no good reason." She sounded almost offended. "He was under the influence of a kido that kept him from speaking the name and when he did he died."

He nodded and wearily closed his eyes again. So then, he reflected, they were two to know. Possibly three if Rukia lived up to his expectations, and so far, he added with unfamiliar pride, she certainly had.

"You realise that Rukia and Renji will be wondering who it was that killed him." It wasn't posed as a question, just a statement.

"Of course."

"Will you tell them?" She prompted.

Byakuya pondered this only for a moment before answering with a curt: "No."

"Guessed as much." Yoruichi commented. "They'll be hounding you about it, you know."

"Indeed."

When he reopened his eyes Yoruichi was gazing down at him seriously, her very stance telling him that she thought he'd be better off telling them something but also knowing that he wouldn't. Then the serious look faded quickly, replaced by an impish smirk he knew all too well and he barely had a second to steel himself for the inevitable teasing. "Guess you don't mind Renji hounding you for a bit, huh?"

Byakuya blinked. He hadn't expected that and he frowned, wondering what that was supposed to mean. Against his better judgement he opened his mouth to question her about this unusual turn of conversation but halted when a… something flashed in his mind. It was too vague to be called a memory but somehow he knew that that was what it was. A memory of strong arms wrapped around him and soft lips… kissing… him?

Inadvertently he reached up to touch his lips and as soon as he did he knew it was a mistake. Yoruichi's face lit up with glee.

"I knew it!" she exclaimed and cackled with triumphant laughter.

"Get out." He blurted, only barely managing to keep himself from hurling anything within reach at her.

Yoruichi continued to laugh and Byakuya grabbed the cup on the table next to him, hurling it at her. If anyone asked, he later decided, he'd blame it on the medication. She easily dodged and ran for the door. Before closing it behind her she popped her head back in, grinning from ear to ear.

"And they call it puppy love…" she sing-songed and slammed the door shut when a pen came flying at her. He could hear her cackling all the way down the corridor.

Struggling to remain up right in bed Byakuya felt his anger slowly fade and as it did it took what strength that remained with it. With an undignified huff he let himself fall back into bed. It would seem, he thought as he lay gazing up at the ceiling, that his life may become rather complicated in the future.

END

October 2011 - I updated this story just to clean it up a bit, add those neat lines and such, to make it simpler to actually read the blasted thing.

I know this story got a lot of loose ends that leads nowhere; I still wanna do a sequel, only I rarely find the time to write, but I'm still keeping the option open. I got a sketch of a plot in my nogging - spinning about- but that'll be for the (most likely distant) future. At any rate whatever sequel I write will have to be freestanding.

Anyways, thanks for reading this far, and I hope you liked it!