#this has to be rukia's fault

[recurring-polynya]

zabimaru, why do you look like that?

[bleachbleachbleach]

Bleach Fanfic: Stories for the Sea 

Start from Chapter 1 || Tumblr Masterlist (with chapter summaries)

Summary: The Shiba Clan have always acted as peacebrokers between Soul Society and the sea in West Rukongai. After the Blood War, the Gotei must prove that they are still worthy of peace. But since Shiba Kaien is dead, Rukia’s the next best thing. The problem is, now Ukitake is gone, too, and Rukia doesn’t think she’s ready to carry Kaien’s memory alone. 

No one’s ready. Not the Vizard, as the reality of re-joining the Gotei begins to clamp down; not the 10th, which has its own debts to West Rukongai; and not Renji, who’s pretty sure he is. The most deadly threats may not be the monsters lurking in the woods and water, but the damage they’ve all brought with them. One thing that’s certain: Six months after the end of a war, you have not reached the end of the war. 

ft. Rukia, Renji, Matsumoto, Hitsugaya, Kensei, Rose, Hisagi; Hinamori, Kira, (Kaien)

⟢ Chapter 3: Muguruma Kensei

Summary: Kensei’s been trying to learn how to have bygones, but it’s not like that’s the Gotei’s style. Just saying.

A Kuchiki is a Kuchiki. That’s the long and short of it. Kuchikia Rukia has the same dark, serious features as all the rest of them. Kensei remembers Kuchiki Byakuya a very only child, so she has to be an adoption from some lesser branch. Abarai is an enigma. The 6th Division Kensei knew was many things, but never surprising. It’s unsurprising that a hundred years hasn’t changed that. As the 6th's vice-captain Abarai should be an easy read, too. But Abarai is too many things to too many people, a wildfire of personalities. Kensei can’t clock him, which means he can’t trust him. Matsumoto is the only one who seems to care that Mashiro is homesick for the Living World. Bafflingly homesick, so Kensei’s not sure if this is indicative of Matsumoto’s capacity for empathy or evidence of her own delusion. But she’d had an animated conversation about Tokyu Hands with Mashiro, which meant Kensei hadn’t had to. Hitsugaya, on the other hand.

[Read on AO3]

[krewekreep]

Baby Daddy Red Flags: Bleach Edition (😜🤍)

This one…this one for the sluts! 😭💕 I’m an old anime bitch like lemme get it out my system! (We gonna tag this #ToxicTalk lmaoo, this is a safe space)

(If you wanna know who we share 😒, I’ll add an asterisk or whatever. ((They still mine first 😂💝🫡)) (will update and repost with new additions, semi-live post)

***ICHIGO: Lemme get my baby daddy out the way. Biggest issues would be his availability before and after the kid. Probably got pregnant in a makeup sex situation anyway. Ichigo doesn’t seem to type to breakup but will say let’s break. Based on how selfless he is it also can be seen coming from him not being able to save his mom—so he may have a savior complex. It may seem valiant at first like “oh wow you became friends with Chad helping him with bullies? You became closer to Orihime (😒) after helping her grieve her brother? You’re such a good person!” Til you realize seniority is in place and when his friends call he drops whatever he is doing to go help. It’s been time, money, etc and increasingly his selflessness comes off as codependent. Like he can’t stop trying to make up for something that wasn’t his fault.

He will also randomly reserve to right to become reclusive. Not necessarily secretive but less energetic, talkative, or engaged. (You def realize your baby got some functional depression going on. Iykyk). Might not annoy you but the random times he doesn’t want to be touched or seemingly avoids you does hurt…but he sincerely comes back letting you know he was in a weird space etc.

Ichigo’s biggest yes or no is if you’ll be able to sometimes come second or third (likely til you marry and/or have kids with him.) His father and sisters are absolutely #1, his friends are #2, and his oath to the Soul Society and humanity at large is a consequence of him protecting the first two so that’s of course #3. See where I’m going? Even on your best days you might be upset he runs off to Rukia’s or Orihime’s aid. That he has to “save the world,”to save you too. Jealous types might really become frustrated with Ichigo. And tbh I don’t see him breaking out of his ways. He won’t see a need to because there’s real results of his good deeds in his life. He knows he’s saved lives, so he knows he can continue to—so will you be able to handle the fact his duty and mindset will be self sacrificing? I don’t know I think I’d tie him down with a baby and move on.

**KENPACHI: I fully accept and am attracted to his animalistic tendencies. I absolutely can admit that about myself 😭 but…realistically you’d def have to tell him he’s too rough during sessions. He’s grown up wayward, defensive, survival mode, stomach touching his back— during a time so seemingly historical and old who knows how bad the conditions of poverty were—most kids died if they simply weren’t rich and able to eat. Or turned to crime at extremely young ages or exploited….That’s just global history in real life. And the soul society is that much more complex and arduous. Kenpachi will be a man of few words but immense action. If you want someone who will open up even eventually that is not Kenpachi Zaraki. You will highly likely never know of his past because he will never say he is excruciatingly doing everything to never have to. And no, he won’t communicate ever if anything terrible is on his mind. Although kenpachi is coded as barbaric he really is just that protective—he’s as angry as he will be based solely upon someone’s proximity to him emotionally. You and Yaru will be so exclusively held in a regard he won’t even understand. Just the black hole of his awareness he’ll surpass anything to save y’all. He won’t speak on why Lady Unohana isn’t around anymore (new anime, manga lore). But again, when he ends up rough too many nights in a row you distance yourself from him. He can’t admit to you he disassociates and goes back to bad times. He can’t tell you your comfort and warmth makes him remember the times he needed it before—he doesn’t mean to hurt you but he lives for a fight. But he wants to stop making everything and everyone something to “conquer.” He’ll be a real deal handful and it will solely up to you to either tell him you can’t be with him until he figure shit out or you’ll stick beside him and work through it together. (In this case Yaru is the “kid” yall share, I see him being weary of birthing a child and being a dad in such a “visceral” way. Will have total abandonment trauma and just can’t see him getting over it completely to bring new life into a world he already sees the worst in tbh.) but in terms of “baby momma” treatment? Or your prioritized and protected best believe. 💕 he also will force you to learn combat cause you should be able to take care yourself too. Which might either be hot or burdensome. You’re gonna know how to fight. And tbh he might try to bring it into the bedroom on some weird let’s play fight shit so watch yourself. That’s a BIG MAN! 😭😂💕 “HA! Now that you know how do a few things why don’t you test it on me?” Big cheeky sneaky ass grin girl don’t fall for it!

BYAKUYA: This is the guy who will match your freak everywhere but in public. No PDA—actually don’t even look at him or try to talk to him in public…be professional. He will be joking with others and you’ll get upset saying “Hey! You let the other members of the society tease you?” And in private he’ll admit it’s just to keep up appearances and he hates it all. 😭 I think his biggest issue will be coming off fake or disingenuous or you’ll have a hard time sincerely seeing him cause he’ll be so different depending on where y’all are. People wouldn’t know he’s like a mom boyfriend who makes sure you eat, sleep, and keep up with yourself. Yes, he will absolutely unintentionally say something insulting like “This doesn’t suit you. Find something else.” And yes he will be very clearly on guard when in public. People will openly wonder why you’re with him tbh. Which will frustrate the both of you of which neither of you ever bring up to the other. Byakuya has lost a love before—he won’t talk about it ever. You MIGHT get something out of Rukia about it cause it was her sister but I doubt she’ll go super intimate about THEIR relationship cause she respects both his and her sister’s privacy. So you might be stuck on an eavesdropping side quest with Renji that amounts to nothing cause he’ll sense yall. He’ll be amused and somewhat touched you wanted to watch him work though. He’s usually the one keeping check or track of things so he’ll never say he likes that you peep on him and mind his business. You care about him and he knows he’s a bit unfair not allowing any PDA. But he so openly loved on Rukia’s sister he couldn’t help the shameful self imposed embarrassment once he had to walk the halls alone…Byakuya will be a very intentional, quiet lover. I doubt he’ll moan very much tbh unless he’s exhausted and allowing you to take care of him. Sometimes he’ll absolutely disappear all day into work. Other times he’ll be sure to direct his underlings to wait on you in his stead. He’s more manageable if you can accept his sometimes snarky, distant, super private ways. As a father he’ll be annoyingly big on exceptionalism and them being smart and talented. You’ll have to be sure he isn’t burdening your kid when you aren’t around. And you’ll have to be sure he doesn’t inadvertently impart his insensitive habits too. Likewise, you’ll ABSOLUTELY have to “deal or no deal” him about giving affection to your kid in public. You will absolutely have to go off and tell him it’s y’all or his image. And yeah now he’s holding both yall hands albeit defeated. 💕😭

AIZEN: Shit…girl (im black my “girl…” is gender neutral don’t be annoying 💕) you already know what it is. Yandare, selfish, self righteous, MEAN, EVIL…but fine and rich as fuck. 😔🫤 it will be a doozy to be with this one. You literally have to know and accept what you getting into bestie. I can’t even warn you, you know! 😭 but seriously if your an aizen bias you accept him as is 😭 psycho ass. So I wanna just write how’d he be as a baby daddy. Now not to get…too mature…but if you happened to be someone captured/kidnapped by him and pregnant…baby you is a victim! BUT ITS FANFIC SOOO if you were the captured baby momma that’s in his realm with him…well girl you in the realm lord you stuck. “Can I go to the human world?” “For what?” “Uh, sun?” “Humph what do you need sun for…” He’ll look down at your crying child and be like “Ugh okay whatever but Grimmjow is your chaperone.” And you won’t care cause Grimmjow lets you run off and live life. Which Aizen knows but the minute you aren’t overtly scared and submissive to him he’ll lose his weird sense of “power.” You’re man crazy bestie. He’s definitely someone you won’t talk back to until you’re a parent and equally going to advocate for your kid. He’ll realize and laugh to himself “Their not really submissive at all…little minx…” and hold you in completely new regard. “So you took me as is because you wanted to?” He’ll start thinking shit that confuses him and decide to randomly kill a grunt to distract himself like no he’s not gonna reflect into a better person. 😂 you’ll have everything you want cause you can’t go nowhere 😭. Mind you yes the sex is mind blowing so you sadly do take what positives are there…his eyes don’t fall sexually to anyone but you. His body doesn’t respond certain ways to anyone but you. And as you stand next to him more and more he’s leaning into you and your baby’s energy rather than tryna to overtake yall with his. Just don’t speak about the change and it’ll be fine. The minute you tease or openly acknowledge his becoming softer and less controlling you’ll ruin all the progress you made. Let him feel like he’s in control or whatever.

New Additions (1):

Hitsugaya: (adult of course) Hitsu will be a blend of Byakuya and Ichigo. The best aspects of him will be how attentive and actionable he is about his love for you. But — he will shy away from PDA and sometimes have moments of separated solitude. Unlike Byakuya, he will absolutely open up to PDA, just will never be the initiator of it. Maybe grab your hand at the end of the day to hurry back home or stare at you as long as he can while he observes your dutiful working. He’ll be shy always which keeps your love feeling young and refreshed. You’ll always be able to make him blush and unlike Ichigo, he’ll warm up to you imposing yourself on his alone time. He’ll be big on love making and planning when to have a child so it will be less spontaneous. He’ll have the baby registry and wishlists prepared, printed, and passed out to members of the Soul Society. He’ll enjoy trips to the human world to acquire new toys and trinkets for your baby.

As a baby daddy he’s almost too protective. You wonder what he’s been through as he’ll have a firm grip of your hips as you cradle your child. He’ll have a habit of looking at your baby and then between the both of you stunned at how he can see the perfect blend of your features on your child’s face. He’ll be very close to a simp honestly (which I’m a fan of) and be at your beck & call no matter the hour. Definitely the dad to tell you don’t worry about tending to the little one, keep resting cause he knows how tired you get. He’s honestly the perfect idea of a new father as he’ll be bumbling a bit but with so much to prove. I realize I kinda didn’t write red flags cause I truly see Hitsu adjusting to parenthood and a long term relationship the best. Only thing I can think is that he’ll be overtly willing to sacrifice himself for your family’s safety. So any massive issue in the Soul Society will make your heart sink a little because while he’s capable he’s been in enough life threatening predicaments to cause ample, appropriate worry. He’ll be hard to break out of working I think until your child starts schooling which could be frustrating cause he’ll overcompensate parenting in lieu of his work commitments. Overall, I think he’d be the baby daddy with the least to really worry about.

Renji: Oh lord— all tea, all shade this man will STRUGGLE. « What do you mean the baby is hungry AGAIN ? You just breastfed! WAIT DO NOT PULL YOUR TIT OUT IN PUBLIC WOMAN ! » He’ll have a hard time adjusting to your freedom as a breastfeeding mom for sure (if you choose to). Work ? What’s work? One thing you can count on is that he will absolutely commit to being a family man and even a stay at home dad. He’ll take all his PTO or even « quit » (basically will say don’t call me to help unless the Soul Society is about to die.) He will wait on you hand & foot because he can’t imagine how much your body and mind has gone through and the strength it takes to be so tired but smile and laugh with him and your kiddo. But, he may end up a bit controlling about you leaving the house without him. He’ll either become a sad puppy or an angry old man. « Baby…what do you mean you want me to stay home ? 😓🥺 » or «  Woman, what did I tell you about going out without me ? What if a crazy person tried to rob you ? » You laugh at him always being some level of dramatic but it may get annoying how clingy and worried he’ll become. You’ll have to remind him you lived this long for a reason…and plan to live longer, so he can chill out sometimes cause his worried nature worries you…you might benefit from guilt tripping him into apologizing and giving you a breather on leaving the house. But just know someone is watching over you. Renji would be a great cook or a terrible cook who improves over time. He might be great at catching the baby right when they poop or…end up shat on rushing to a sink. I really see him either being weirdly good at being a dad or definitely suffering from the learning curve.

Your baby will definitely be conceived in a wild love making, (maybe rough, passionate sex) session. And you’ll catch him blushing when he holds your baby and looks at you remembering the night you had. You’ll be the type to walk in on them sleeping crazily on the sofa, his arm instinctively holding your baby firm. He’ll be grateful to not have to jump up to go to work honestly. His biggest red flags will be being overbearing, needy, and likely requiring a lot of overt reassurance. (Which isn’t necessarily a red flag given he just will want to be a really good dad and partner.) Otherwise he’ll become a stubborn dad who will try (and fail) to « put his foot down. » Which will likely result in him sleeping on the sofa…💕

[anothanobody]

Death’s Love

It was sudden. It was an accident. He blames himself for it, the guilt eats him alive and anger arises, she protected him when he was supposed to protect her.

Inoue Orihime is dead. Ichigo Kurosaki might as well be dead too.

Pairings: Ichigo Kurosaki x Orihime Inoue, Renji Abarai x Rukia Kuchiki.

A/N: Though the summary has only Ichihime, it has a lot of Renruki from chapter 2, the events happen just before WDKALY.

Chapter 1: Fault of None but Fate.

Chapter 2: Life or Death.

Chapter 3: …

…

note aside: i’m bad at mood boarding lol send help…

[iamumbra195]

Y’know, the reason tatsuki probably latched onto Orihime is probably because she lost Ichigo. Not in the literal way but in the sense that Ichigo was probably her closest friend as a kid and even now, she’s still incredibly fond of him but there’s this very palpable distance between them. It’s like when you have a best friend for years and then suddenly you don’t feel like your their best friend anymore while they’re still yours

So when Orihime came along who 1) had orange hair and 2) is the literal embodiment of sunshine like little ichigo, she latched onto her. And then when Orihime got her powers and sort of started to drift away, Tatsuki noticed

she doesn’t like change because change took away her first best friend and now she’s scared of losing her second. But when things don’t change the way she feared they would she doesn’t say anything when she sees Orihime and Ichigo doing weird spiritual stuff, content to ignore it because unlike with Ichigo at first, she and Orihime both began seeing spirits about the same time and supported each other so even if Orihime can fight the monsters there’s like an equalization in their relationship-- Tatsuki protects Orihime from real world stuff and Orihime protects her from spiritual stuff. It’s why their relationship works in a way Ichigo and Tatsuki’s didn’t at first, because Orihime doesn’t stonewall Tatsuki in the same way Ichigo does. At first, anyways.

It even says the Tatsuki can sense her so even if she doesn’t have powers they have a connection on a spiritual level and she’s scared to lose that. So when Orihime disappears out of nowhere with no warning, she’s angry and terrified and she knows exactly who to go to because this kind of stuff only happens around Ichigo

So when he stonewalls her YET AGAIN, she snaps because this time, one of the most important ppl in her life is missing and someone who is supposed to be her friend refuses to tell her anything despite all the time, the years they’ve known each other. It’s double the hurt for her, seeing how little Ichigo trusts her, even in matters that concern others

which is great call out to Ichigo’s issues with trusting ppl and making every little thing his responsibility while refusing to rely on anyone else, adressed by Renji and Rukia later on in the arrancar arc when they yell at him for not waiting for them and trusting them to come back and help

the repeated theme of being asked if they’re friends and why he can’t trust them is just so painful because the difference in thee responses to Tatsuki and Rukia just put into perspective how much Ichigo pushd Tatsuki away since his mom died

That was tatsuki’s breaking point and it’s an accumulation of all the hurt of losing her best friend and hearing him say that probably hurt both her and Keigo and Mizuiro because they’ve been there the entire time, haven’t they? It wasn’t fair for them to be sidelined like this, especially when it’s their friends, when they can see all the weird stuff that’s happening but feel as if they can’t talk to Ichigo because he tries so hard to protect everyone that all he ends up doing is hurting them

once again, Ichigo’s trust issues, even with ppl who can fight, even with ppl who have raided sereitei with him

‘Not strong enough’ is interesting. He tries to deter ppl from helping him and coming to his side because he feels that being around them hurts them, he feels that Orihime’s kidnapping is all his fault. And he does this by hurting them with words.

‘Don’t come near me’ ‘You aren’t strong enough’

Another beautiful call out

Hearing Ichigo say he’ll save Orihime and apologize to her and the others probably made her realize how much he’s been surpressing and how much he’s been hiding from her in a stupid attempt to protect and she hates it, hates how much she understand it because it’s always been in his nature

It makes their friendship post-aizen both bitter sweet and awesome because she finally knows everything but he no longer has his powers so their positions are switched because no she’s the spiritually aware one while he has nothing to hold onto

But she treats him the same nonetheless (Mizuiro and Keigo do as well, Keigo even goes out of his way to check up on Ichigo, after the timeskip to makesure he’s doing okay)

Anyways that’s enough of my rant about the messy friendship that is Tatsuki Ichigo and Orihime :)

A beautiful fic from Tatsuki’s perspective and some cute Ichigo & Tatsuki friendship: https://archiveofourown.org/works/47193712

[fanfictions-i-cant-write]

What if Aizen took a greater interest in Ichigo’s life? What if Ichigo survived the Grand Fisher attack because Aizen stepped in (after his mother's death) to protect him? This newly vulnerable child, now left with a neglectful father and more responsibility than a child of his age should have, is perfect for manipulation.

What if Aizen approached Ichigo a week or two after his mother's death and, having felt his potential, offered to train him and teach him how to tell apart the living and the dead and how to protect his precious sisters from the Hollows? Ichigo, drowning in grief and guilt, would accept this offer because why wouldn't he? Aizen then begins training him in Shinigami arts in secret and tells Ichigo of Soul Society of its many faults and failures.

Being more intelligent than people give him credit, Ichigo soaks up all this information like a sponge and is fully integrated into Aizen's plans before Rukia even arrives in the picture. When Rukia does arrive, Aizen has already instructed Ichigo to pretend to be ignorant of all things Shinigami, and being Aizen’s student, he is also rather good at performing.

What if Aizen instructed him to gain the Shinigami’s trust so he could see for himself the corruption of Soul Society, and at some point during the Winter War, the cards would be down? Ichigo has to choose between Aizen and Soul Society, and is it really even a choice?

[ichinoue]

"Well guys, it's 2023 and here's another dolt ranting about pronouns in the lust arc, just like the IH Fail essay that ended up being a fail in and of itself."

No its 2023 and people are deciding to keep ot real with you instead of deluding themselves and changing fhe narrtive to cater to a ship.

Respectfully, lets not speak on a language we dont know shit about, lmao.

Ichigo omits the pronoun when he tells rukia 'i've come to save you' in soul society that's because he was literally speaking to her, had been bickering with her from the previous page and had already told her he was there to rescue her back on the bridge - so he didn't need to specify to her 'who' he'd come to save: this is a typical example of "japanese omitting pronouns because they're obvious"

in the lust arc, ichigo is quite literally unconscious and unaware of his surroundings: in order to make it clear to the readers that ichigo recognized orihime, a pronoun (actually not even, he should have used her damn name like ichigo always did when he thought about rukia in ss) **needed** to be there without it, especially coupled with the fact that he speaks in broken japanese from that moment to the end of his transformation (i.e. he uses a mix of kanji and katakana, the latter of which is only used for foreign words, robots or - in bleach's case - hollows, and usually to signify that the speaker is just muttering sounds and doesn't understand the actual meaning of what they're saying), and the fact that he literally quite literally proceeds to throw orihime off the dome with absolutely no care for her well being, it's damn obvious that he had no idea who was yelling at him, he was only aware of the fact that someone was asking for help and got triggered by the word 'save'

"I mean this is just hilarious to me. Here's Orihime and Ichigo, literally placed together in side by side panels as Ichigo continues to chant about protecting...And ichiruki shippers are like, "hmmm well, it's not super clear who he's talking about because there's no pronoun so...I guess we'll never know 🤷‍♀️."

So being places together in panels side by side means he's referring to her? May I remind u he's just raised from the dead, and orihime is shocked as she processes what's happening. Those panels were to emphasise that. Not only have u attempted to educate me on the Japanese language and failed, you've now tried to say side by side panels somehow equates to the fact that he's referring to her? 💀.

"You think Kubo drew this^ entire page, at such a pivotal moment, to show that Orihime's...wrong? Like some sort of gag? She's just *imagining* that Ichigo rose up for her, but it's not actually true? That's...certainly an interesting way to interpret things lmao."

This was orihimes own perception of the situation. Orihime isn't a fact page, she's her own charecter with her own dialogue and thought. The fact she perceived it that way doenst mean its the case. She didn't imagine anything, it jsut looked that way too her, may I remind you she was the one screaming. She knows she's the person the screams belong too, ichigo doesn't. So of course she's gonna think it's here fault, common sense people.

You also proceeded to bring more asspulls and try and say how the databook confirms its about orihime when it was in third person.

"The readers aren't the ones who bound Ichigo to Orihime's screams (especially not you, anon, since you keep insisting it had nothing to do with her lmao). Kubo did that. That's how he meant for this scene to be interpreted: that Ichigo was bound to Orihime's screams. But you're still here fighting against it for some reason lol."

Did kubo tell u that he meant for the scene to be interpretated this way? Or did some angel come to you in ur dream and tell u that? If thats true, kubo wouldve simply added confirmation that hes talking about orihime by adding pronouns or her name. Instead he doesnt do that and has ichigo propell her away

He was bound to her screams, it's just that he didn't know the screams belonged to her, as long as those screams belonged to someone, he's gonna get up... that's who he is. It could've been anyone else screaming there and he would've stood his ass the fuck up, that's his charecter and what he does. Lmao you think this would go without saying, but the lengths ppl go for shipping is hilarious.

"Ichigo did know she was calling out to him. It was part of his internal monologue, as she's screaming, before he hollowfied. Whether the pronoun is there or not (because again, the pronoun for her doesn't *need* to be there to make it clear who he's talking about when she's clearly the only person screaming, placed directly next to a panel of him rising him up...) he could hear her voice. He could hear her calling him. He ruminated over ORIHIME'S screams and was bound to ONLY that purpose. Only her. "

He could hear her voice, he just didn't know it was her. Just that it was somebody, it's not that hard to grasp. There's nothing wrong with ichigo not knowing it's orihime but since shipping has rotten yalls brains, it has to be about the Princess hime, and not about ichigos own charecter, because everything has to be about orihime, right? (💀).

Your opinion on this probably won't change, that's granted as a deluded shipper. What also won't change, is the fact that this isn't an ichihime moment. U attempted to educate me on the japanese language and failed, I recommend doing more research time. I also reccomend not bothering to reply to things like these if ur arguement is just gonna end with "well ichihime is canon, deal with it" because it makes u look silly to say the least, and has nothing to do with the convo.

how i sleep knowing ichigo literally rose up from the dead for his future wife 🥰

[substituted-shinigami]

Hey guys...

Is… Is this Rukia’s weird roundabout way of saying "I love you"?

(More under the cut cause it gets kinda long XD)

Let me start off by saying that I’m more of a Bleach anime watcher than a manga reader, so I never saw this full scene until I happened to read an old Polynya post about it. (It’s really good, you should check it out!)

I had seen the second part, mostly in a humorous context about how Renji fails to conceal himself, but now that I have seen the full thing, it really kind of clicked for me. This isn’t just Rukia being instructive. This is Rukia’s weird and very roundabout way of saying "I love you" to Renji. 

Now when I say that, I’m not saying this is Rukia’s big confession scene. I think she either confessed before or after this. If she confessed before, this is a confirmation. If she hasn’t, this is a “Listen, I desperately want to tell you I love you. I really, really do. But this isn’t exactly the time, what with the war and all, and also I’m still not sure if you’re in love with me (because I’m a bit of a lunkhead when it comes to these things). So instead, maybe I can just get the feeling across without actually having to say the words out loud.” So yeah, not a confession, just either a confirmation or a beating around the bush. Anyway, let’s get into it.

Let’s look at the first line.

“We’re gonna be landing right in the middle of enemy territory. If we’re surrounded we’ll be at a disadvantage even with our training.”

This tells me that she already sees them as a pair. Although to be fair, they would be fighting together (eventually anyway, after they split up and rejoin), so whether she means this romantically or not is a little more vague.

Let’s actually talk about the last part next since it’s the one I think circulates around more.

“So… …conceal yourself after every battle. Do not let the enemy get a jump on you! You got that?! Renji!!”

Now at first glance, this may come off as “typical Rukia bossiness” or in other words “typical Rukia”. But I don’t know, to me, it comes off more as a plea? I think it’s how it’s broken up. “Conceal yourself after every battle.” (stay hidden, stay safe) “Do not let the enemy get the jump on you! (your safety is more important to me than you beating up a bunch of bad guys) “You got that?! Renji!! (I need you and you specifically to get through this. You are important to me.) Now I’m pretty new to this whole writing thing, but I do know that generally when a writer/character repeats something, it’s because it’s pretty friggin’ important. So the fact that she repeats phrases asking for his safety, tells me that it’s really important to her. She’s not telling him to stay safe, she’s begging. Also, something about how she says his name here reminds me of how she said his name on Sokyoku Hill. I think it’s how it’s separated. It’s not, ‘You got that, Renji?” It’s “You got that?! Renji!!” as if to emphasize the way she is saying his name. It’s almost another way of saying, “You specifically are important to me.”

Now let’s go back to the second part, the line I’m not sure I had even seen until I saw the post.

“And knowing the way you fight, you’ll quickly attract attention.” “I’ll live with that. I’ve accepted it.”

This. This right here was the main line. She doesn't say, “I’ll deal with it”. Instead she says, “I’ll live with that. I’ve accepted it.” She understands his faults and has chosen to live with and accept them. She has chosen to accept him. That’s honestly pretty huge. I can't remember the last time someone has said that they understand my failings and accept them! I know I have people in my life who do, but to feel comfortable saying it all out loud is a whole nother thing! The shipper in me pushes the "I'll live with that" line further to “I want to live with you”, but that uh… might be pushing it past it’s intended meaning. xD

So we got Rukia seeing them as a pair specifically. Then you have her saying she understands his faults and has accepted them to the point that she has chosen to live with them. Lastly, you have her begging for his safety, reminding him that he is important to her, and calling out his name.

Or in other words, “I see us together. I accept you as you are. You are important to me. I want you specifically.”

And if that’s not a weird, roundabout, Rukia version of “I love you”, I’m not sure what is!!! xD

[godkilller]

SHIPPING INFO. answer the following for your muse(s) so people know how shipping works on your blog.

What’s your OTP for your Muse(s)?

I will always ship Ginran above all else, but Aigin is lovely too and has some spice to it -- and I could be convinced to dabble in other pairings considering activity's been sparse from my shipping partners (not their fault, life's tiring and I'm barely here too!) and Gin's a social butterfly. I've opened my eyes to the potential for Gin and Izuru, but on my terms and not at all in the fanon's direction. Ultimately people shouldn't try to ship with me unless they're mentally prepared for their character to be constantly contesting against Rangiku in terms of their importance to Gin. As a sidenote; Shipping Gin with an OC is nearly impossible, as he requires knowing someone since the dawn of time to ever consider developing feelings for them, and I'm not too keen on people inserting their OCs into my character's past solely to avoid doing the heavy lifting of courtship.

What are you willing to RP when it comes to shipping?

I'm not afraid of dipping into the toxicity of certain dynamics, nor am I one to ignore the cruelty that Gin can exude -- he's manipulative, possessive, and altogether a murderous obsessed freak. No amount of unconventional devotion can hide the darker parts of him, though I am also one to enjoy writing Gin experiencing and attempting domesticity and the softness that comes with it. I'm flexible.

How large does the age gap have to be to make it uncomfortable?

Shinigami age-gap discussions are tricky, especially the whole 'Tite forgot how old this person was / how ageing works' undertones with some of his characters (Hiyori is the same age as Gin????? Hello?), but basically I don't want anything to do with creepy shit, thanks. If Gin can comfortably punt your character into the stratosphere because they're snack-sized then he doesn't want them sexually or in any manner.

Are you selective when shipping?

ABSOLUTELY. Gin can get the ick, no matter how hypocritical he is for getting it, simply because your character didn't reply 'right' to his throwaway comment. Gin gets bored easily; if your character isn't as smart or smarter than him (and I mean that in a cunning / well-rounded way, not a 'this character knows everything that could possibly be known about the development of spoons throughout history' or some sort of thesaurus-vomit of them trying to sound super smart to him, he'll immediately become violently unimpressed he'd sooner gut himself with Shinso than finish a conversation with them) or your character is immensely weaker than him, then he isn't interested. Gin requires being challenged. Both Rangiku and Aizen challenge Gin pretty outright in different ways. Keep him on his toes, push and pull at him, make him want to pick you apart. Don't bore him.

How far do steamy moments have to go before they’re considered NSFW?

I don't tend to tag things until it's literally inappropriate if it was a visual medium instead. Kissing and clothed touching, even if in raunchy positions, aren't NSFW to me -- I expect everyone following me to understand my blog is an adult space. Tags won't come out till genitals get involved. If people read the written word 'nipple' over your shoulder from ten feet away and get you into hot water then you gotta tell me where they get their superior hawk-esque eyesight from, I'd like a slice.

Who are other muses you ship your muse with?

Just Rangiku and Aizen for now, but as I said before I am opening up to the potential for Gin and Izuru. Gin and Byakuya is hilarious, too, and I've made jokes in the past about Gin and Kenpachi. Pfft. It's hard to ship Gin with other female characters in Bleach considering Orihime's a human teenager, no thanks, and Rukia hates his guts and Gin clearly didn't like her either so it'd be a hateship purely, Harribel and Gin never exchange actual canon dialogue, Unohana is way older than him and probably thinks he's an amateur at murderous intent, the Zero Squad ladies only exist after he's canonly dead, Hinamori's a whole child and is traumatized by his Aizen-killing/not killing stunt, Tatsuki is a lesbian human teenager, Soifon is laughably a lesbian so pent up she might explode if a man ever tries to lay a hand on her, Yoruichi is too close to / complicit with Hogyoku-maker Urahara Kisuke whom Gin loathes for inspiring Aizen to steal a piece of Rangiku's soul, Nemu is too busy being Mayuri's... whatever the fuck, Isane would faint if Gin opened his eyes once at her, Hiyori is literally split in half by him and she's a literal child, Yachiru is a literal child, Lisa is also at least bi-woman preference if not fully a lesbian, Kukaku probably hates Gin's guts ever since he lopped off Jidanbo's arm at the gate because that's a sore subject for her, Kiyone is a literal child, Sung-sun is too boringly quiet and weak for his tastes, Loly isn't quiet enough and is too weak, Apacci is even worse, Mila Rose is on thin ice too, all of the Femritters are introduced after Gin's dead so we'll never know for sure if he'd even tolerate their girlbosses-don't-look-at-explosions-then-get-stupidly-defeated act, oh god who am I forgetting -- I want y'all to know I had to stop here to Google it and for some reason in the list of all female Bleach characters, somehow, Omaeda is on the list at the very bottom.... congratulations on your transition <333

Anyway long story short I don't think Gin's very compatible with the existing female Bleach cast, hence my various male/male ships instead. Gin's fluid. I acknowledge and approach shipping with the assumption that most if not all Bleach canons probably think Gin's gross or deplorable or both. But hey, I have a soft spot for writing enemies-to-lovers.

Does one have to ask to ship with you?

Yes because otherwise I'll just stew in the possibilities and assume it's one-sided and never bring anything up 'cause I don't wanna freak people out. But please keep in mind I am very picky because Gin himself is even pickier. You may be rejected ultimately, and it's really not something that's personal with me. A better approach would be the age-old, tried and true method of jokingly saying 'wouldn't it be funny if they caught feelings?' at me and then we spiral together from there. I'm not open for that currently, but in the future perhaps.

How often do you like to ship?

I kinda wanna only ship things if it's been earned -- we put in the work, things escalated naturally, and then we're exploring the dynamic thoroughly from there instead of just jumping to the juiciest parts first. I am a patient person, Gin is too, we're not about to pounce on somebody just because they stuck their leggy up real high. I'm a previously single-ship-only kinda guy, I yearn for that commitment.

Are you multiship?

I am duo-ship at the moment, with the possibility of opening up from that in the future -- so technically yes. I approach things though with a strict refusal to write cheating, so everything is a separate verse. Gin isn't sleeping with Rangiku and then tiptoeing to Aizen's room after, I refuse to do that sort of shit. Gin's all-or-nothing and so am I, so expect that if I ever do multiship -- it'll probably not be willy-nilly, I'll be severely selective.

Are you ship obsessed or ship more-or-less?

Daydreaming about dynamics is my bread and butter. I'll be cooking up entire scenarios on my own while watching paint dry, my mind knows no limits and the links to musing posts/quotes/aesthetics/tiktoks that make me think of our characters together merely scratch the surface. If a ship hits right it consumes me.

What is your favorite ship in your current fandom?

I'm a sucker for Ginran, Aigin, Ulquihime, Shunuki, Ichiruki, Grimmjow and anybody really, Ichihime, Mayuri and permanent death, Ishihime, Rangiku and genuine happiness, whatever the ship name for Urahara and Yoruichi is, Aizen and touching grass instead of committing atrocities. I could be down for Gin and Izuru, I also think Kenpachi and Byakuya make a funny / cute pair. I'd also die for the ship I have with @madestars with their OC Hotaru and Gin's daughter Keiko.

Finally, how does one ship with you?

Hit me on the head with a brick irl.

tagged by : @despairforme

tagging: @dokuhai, @keikakudori, @madestars / @rejekshun, @gyakusama / @owabisuru, and anybody else!

[animeloverskylarmoon]

Byakuya Kuchiki (Bleach) Short Story: Chapter 1

"You're slow."

"G-Gomen, Kuchiki-taicho!"

You replied trying to match pace as you jumped through the skies of Karakura Town.

Just your luck that you would get stuck with this stickler.

Truth of the matter is you weren't even a seated officer. Usually you were fine hiding out in the fourth squad barracks healing the wounded.

However, for this mission they'd requested someone to accompany the team on this trip to the world of the living and your Taicho had so graciously nominated you. Now you are tracking activity with Byakuya, Rukia and Ichigo. You understood why Rukia was here. She was always trying to assist her brother. Ichigo has just stumbled upon you three and decided to join.

"Are you certain this is where the others were?"

"Of course I am. I took down the first two. You think I'm stupid!!"

Byakuya didn't reply to Ichigo's statement which only irritated him more.

You sighed internally.

Between dealing with this perfectionist and hoping these hollows had taken a vacation, you were nearing your limit. You weren't used to this. You kept feeling like you would make one wrong move and be banished from Byakuya's sight. He wasn't that heartless, but his gaze was chilling.

It's obvious that whatever had been here is gone now.

For the next half an hour, you all do a sweep of the town. When it's decided that the threat is diminished, you all retire to Kisuke's shop to regroup and possibly implement a new plan tomorrow.

Rukia and Ichigo have left for a while. Byakuya refuses to stay in Kisuke's place, so he'd also left. Now it's just you. It's weirdly peaceful. You have a chance to gather your bearings.

Think.

The night has already fallen.

The day feels like a complete waste and you can't help but wonder if it's your fault.

You flash step, landing on the roof of Kisuke's shop, a bit defeated.

"Why are you still awake?"

You scream at the voice, and Byakuya just watches you blankly.

"G-GOMEN!!!"

You bow repeatedly, and he says nothing, standing there, looking up at the sky.

It's awkward, you don't know why he's back here. Maybe he was doing another check for the hollows.

You feel another pang, sitting down slowly.

His dedication is just another display of how amazing he is in this position.

You're nothing more than a healer, and an average one at that.

The reminder is painful.

"I know the only reason I'm here is because of Unohana-taichou. I really think you guys could have gotten someone better."

You laugh awkwardly, scratching your head. It's embarrassing to admit that you're weak. Compared to Rukia, Byakuya, Ichigo, your abilities were that of a bug.

Useless.

"Unohana was not the one who requested that you come, it was me."

You freeze at his words.

"You may not recall, but when Aizen injured me, you were one of the reapers who helped me heal. I had already accepted my faith. I almost abandoned my only family. Your hands were shaking as you worked to summon your kido. You were scared. Something about your gaze was comforting. It was a sign. Even though you were afraid, you did the job. It was a reminder that fear did not have to be absolute."

You barely believe it. You hadn't even remembered the moment until he brought it up. So much had gone down then. It felt so far away.

"I admire your strength, despite your clear weaknesses. You..remind me of someone. Someone strong that I knew."

Your eyes are shaking. You can't say that you ever expected those words to leave his lips. Especially not directed at you.

"T-Thank you Kuchiki-taicho!!!"

You bow, because at that moment you aren't sure what else to do. You almost feel like crying. When you straighten, he smiles.

Actually smiles.

"Call me Byakuya."

You might just die.

[imreallyonthishellsite]

bleach fans....I get yall now. rn im at ch. 71 so here's a few of my thoughts out of order

¤ ichigo acting like he's just a normal ass high schooler while seeing ghost 24/7: 😠 (yk bc he got a rbc)

¤ karin saying with her full chest she doesn't believe in ghosts despite also being psychic is just perfect

¤ rukia pls I love you but just explain stuff to him ahead of time, not just when it's suddenly relevant (this is probably just a writing problem if I'm being honest)

¤ haven't even seen all of soul society yet but what I know so far...I don't fuck with them Ichigo stay away from those hoes

¤ kurosaki family 🧡 enough said

¤ got mixed feeling abt kon bc at first i was like oh modified soul made to fight hollows and was left to die and now values all life was cool asl but now he seems like a generic perv/simp character which is a giant pet peeve for me

¤ princess oriheme🩷🌸🧚‍♀️🩷🧚‍♂️🌸🧚🩷you have my whole heart

¤ chad is such a good kid too💛💛 bro just want to help others

¤ so like is tatsuki gonna have reaper powers bc she also sees ghost now and is aware of all the weird shit happening???

¤ ichigo claiming that he's not a good person and doesn't care abt helping other people despite going out of his way to help others multiple times even tho he has no responsibility towards them: 🤡

¤ every time they show people bothering ichigo over his hair and reference the problems it brings him is adding to evidence that he's biracial

¤ ururu and that damn bazooka!!! slayy girl slayyy your enemies

¤ kisake urahaha after killing ichigo watching him turn into a hollow and then a soul reaper:😊🤪. (surely nothing bad can come of this action/s)

¤ ichigo thinking that he ruined his family's lives and that they should hate him made me want to cryyy. boy that's not your fault and isshin going she protected my child how could i hate that 😢

¤ rukia living in this man's closet is just insane, I love her

¤ Ishida pls stop getting into fights that you can't finish/keep losing your embarrassing me

¤ you can never just be a silly guy in a shonen anime, urahaha I'm waiting for super tragic backstop

¤ byakuya pls be a secretly good brother and care abt rukia or else I'm hitting you with a car

¤ now that ichigo has went through his first(?) training arc I'm waiting for the king fisher to make a comeback. ichigo needs to get his get back for mommy kurosaki 👏🏽

¤ need more chad and ichigo bonding now!!!

¤ work relationships to best friend pipeline rukia and ichigo 💜🧡

¤

[prideblades]

Talk about Rukia!!

❝ Perhaps it is my fault that Rukia has insecurities. I do admit that I blame myself for her disposition. As her brother, it was my job to support and be there for her as her family and I did none of that. I let my grief paralyze me and my ability to relate to her.

I do not believe I deserve her adoration. In fact, if she hated me, I wouldn't blame her. I was callous to her and while we have made up, I do believe that I must truly do more to earn her adoration as a brother.

However, I do want her forgiveness. There is much I would like to tell her . . . including how proud I am of her accomplishments. Rukia does not give herself the credit she deserves. While she did not make a seat, she believes this is because she is lacking yet that is far from true. She has blossomed into a superb shinigami. Perhaps . . . if I told her this, she would gain a boost in confidence ----- yet I wonder if she would truly appreciate hearing it from me when I caused her such distress . . . ❞

[madmanwonder]

prompt crossover

college roommates

it's bad that rukia has to deal with her friends teasing her about the incident, and makoto doesn't. when her roommate comes over with his friends to ask if she has a pen, she is going to make it sound like a girlfriend giving it to her boyfriend. maybe imply some things happening in their room.

call her petty, but rukia won't suffer alone. if makoto's friends tease him, then perfect.

"Is there your friend, Sweetheart?" Rukia asked in an overly sweet voice as she looked over to her roommate's friends who looked at her in surprise. "I didn't know you were going to have company over especially when we got a big plan going on tonight that doesn't need their presence~"

Rukia saw her roommate's face turn an atomic shade of red as he stuttered and stammered over his words while his friends were asking and teasing and congratulating him about his roommate/'cute girlfriend' which the luckster tried to deny they were in any relationship.

"That wasn't very nice Rukia-san." Orihime said the sweet and kind young woman looked at her friend in clear disapproval which made Rukia flinched but stand her ground.

She knew it was quite the petty move of her to make Makoto suffer...but she will be damned if she suffer it alone. It was his fault in the first place anyway.

[toshiro-taichou]

Hello 👋 I was wondering what was whole Kurosaki family reaction to Hitsukarin being in a relationship and having kids? What their reaction to Karin being a teen mom? Are you plan on updating the Bleach Next Generation story or theHitsukarin family dynamic story? How will Ichigo react to being a uncle and why didn't he every visit? How did Karin find out that Toshiro can cook? What activities did Karin, Toshiro, and Ryunosuke did when he was younger? What was Karin thoughts on being a mom?

Hello Anon!!!

The whole Kurosaki family reaction to the HitsuKarin relationship and kids? Well Isshin, for starters, was jumping with joy. He has his son figure finally officially being in his family. That and he knew he could trust Toshiro to protect and care about Karin after her asshole boyfriend. He also loves spoiling the HitsuKarin kids, he's a grandpa. Yuzu had called it ever since she first saw Toshiro and Karin together back when he stayed over for the night during one winter. She loves her nephews and nieces. So she was happy that Karin is happy.

When Karin was pregnant with Ryunosuke, Isshin and Yuzu were surprised but after learning what had happened, they supported Karin and help when he was born.

When Ichigo finally finds out that Toshiro is his brother in-law and that he married Karin, he was angry and tried to yell at Toshiro until Yuzu, Karin and Rukia stopped him. However, an argument did play out between Toshiro and Ichigo. Karin had to step in and yell at him that him being gone for nearly 20 years was his fault for not being in the loop. He was gone for many years as he is now the lieutenant of the 13th division as he didn't want to be a captain. Ichigo hadn't seen his family in years because of his Shinigami duties and being a father.

For the Bleach Next Generations, I plan to rewrite the series. I am not happy with it and I want to make something new and better while keeping the characters.

Karin found out Toshiro could cook when she too ill to get out of bed after having Ryunosuke. Toshiro was the only one at the Kurosaki house at the time, he decided to go and make something that will be filling, easy to swallow and light.

Activities? Well there was a variety. Playing football was definitely a family favourite activity to do on an autumn afternoon. Ryunosuke also be a part of Tatsuki's Karate Dojo thing. So Toshiro would play fight with Ryunosuke. Karin and Ryunosuke would like to draw together.

At first, Karin was afraid and nervous but she wanted to experience the life of a mother when she could, so when she was pregnant with Ryunosuke, she decided to keep him and raise him with love, the opposite on how he was conceived.

[uraharashouten]

What're your thoughts on Urahara being autistic?

Interesting question, Anon. I suppose whenever a character has quirks, this question must arise. So, fair enough; let's consider evidence, and how well he fits some typical traits of autistic-coded characters. I looked these up, so please forgive any oversights or discrepancies they might come with.

1. Social Difficulties. The character might have difficulty interpreting body language, facial expressions, or tone of voice, leading to awkward or misunderstood interactions. They might find small talk uncomfortable or unnecessary and may prefer more direct or in-depth conversations.

Kisuke actually seems generally good at reading people and speaking to their unvoiced thoughts.

He's generally good with small talk and jovial banter, as well.

2. Literal Thinking. Autistic-coded characters may take things literally and struggle to understand figures of speech, sarcasm, or jokes that rely on double meanings.

This one's a bit tougher to pin down, because while I certainly can provide examples of him using sarcasm and figures of speech, I'm not sure I can point to many that he must interpret from others. He can be pedantic, though, for the sake of mischief.

3. Focused Interests. These characters often have highly focused interests that they pursue with intensity. They may talk at length about their interests, sometimes to the point of alienating others who don't share the same level of enthusiasm.

If you were looking for a character that fit this characteristic, I would probably point you to Mayuri, who relentlessly and repeatedly pursues his special interest of creating life. Although we do know that Kisuke spent years trying to find a way to prevent Hollowfication, we don't really see him engrossed in that research except in a brief flashback. We also have developed fanon that he loses sense of time while focused on research projects, mostly from that anime-only TBTP episode in which Soi Fon stalks him. But otherwise, the only time we see him emerge unkempt and disheveled is when Rukia visits the shop so early she wakes him from sleep. So while I do enjoy leaning into the headcanon that he can become absorbed in his projects, we really never see him in that process. They're always presented as a fait accompli.

4. Routine and Structure: They may rely heavily on routines, schedules, or predictability in their day-to-day life. Changes to these routines can cause them distress or anxiety.

This characteristic might fit. He does wear the same outfit daily, even after Kubo released the NBFH chapter and every other character got a glow-up... except him. He's the same. At least get a haircut, my guy.

5. Sensory Sensitivity. Autistic-coded characters may be overwhelmed by loud noises, bright lights, certain textures, or strong smells. Alternatively, they may be under-responsive to sensory stimuli.

We don't really see him react negatively to sensory input, though we do know from Klub Outside Q&A that he has a bland palate and prefers rice. This might point to sensory issues with food.

His monotonous wardrobe might also be a comfort issue—he's basically in his pajamas 24/7!

6. Blunt Communication. These characters often say exactly what they mean without worrying too much about social norms or diplomacy. They may be perceived as rude, even though they don't intend to offend.

Oh my. I think if anything he has the opposite problem—indirect and evasive to a fault! His speech, too, is meticulously polite. He consistently uses soft, practically feminine-coded polite Japanese grammar, very diplomatic.

7. Difficulty with Eye Contact. The character might find eye contact uncomfortable or even painful, preferring to look away or focus on other things during conversations.

We don't see this during TBTP, but we do with the hat. It is a form of armor, in a way, to keep folks at a distance. This, however, has likely more to do with trying not to draw attention to himself for most of canon. He would prefer to avoid the spotlight; there is more room to maneuver in the dark. But he has no trouble making eye contact when he wants to be intimidating.

8. Emotional Expression. Their emotional expressions may not match what others expect. For example, they might seem to have a neutral or "flat" tone of voice or facial expressions, even when they are feeling strong emotions.

This... is the opposite of a flat affect.

9. Logical and Analytical Thinking. Autistic-coded characters may be exceptionally good at logic, analysis, or pattern recognition, sometimes to the detriment of understanding emotions or social dynamics.

Well, all right, you've got me there. I don't think I even need to spend time on this question. Next?

10. Difficulty with Change. They might find it hard to shift from one task to another or adapt to changes in plans or environments.

In terms of changes in plans and environments, I can't think of anyone more adept to the ground shifting beneath his feet, can you?

So! How did we do?

Points 3, 4, 5, and definitely 9 might have him on the spectrum... but that's less than five out of ten, and aren't we all on the spectrum? That's why it's a spectrum!

If he's a little bit of a jerk when it comes to being considerate and sensitive with peoples' feelings, well, I'm going to say that's just his personality.

[recurring-polynya]

I had been thinking about it as a WIP, and I completely forgot how many deleted scenes I had from a little in love, now and then, acts i-iii

To make up for it, here's two versions (because of I couldn't decide between them) of prime ByaHisa banter from back when I was trying to decide (by writing every possible permutation, apparently) how much of Renji Hisana had already gotten figured out, and also of how much Hisana should pull Byakuya into her confidence. I think the final version I settled on did the best job of moving the story along in the way I wanted, but these are awfully fun and I'm a little sorry I had to trash them.

🌸 💮 🪷

version 1

Hisana shot him a sly look back. “It’s very pleasant to have a handsome young man fall in love with you,” she retorted. “I seem to remember someone trying to convince me of that, when he suggested that I leave my home and vocation to come do…” she waved her hand dismissively, “whatever it is I do around here.”

“I was a duplicitous youth, as we both know.” Byakuya considered his adjutant, who seemed much more relaxed to be walking with Rukia than… well, than Byakuya had ever seen the man. “You know I find our Rukia to be a young lady of utmost warmth and grace, but what leads you to believe Abarai has been felled by her many charms?”

“I only invited him over because I was testing a hypothesis,” Hisana explained, slipping her arm through Byakuya’s fondly. “And the evidence seemed to support my theory.”

“You’ve only met him a handful of times yourself,” Byakuya frowned. “What made you suspect an attachment? Do I need to give him a lecture on proper comportment during business hours?”

“Oh, no, he comports himself with perfect Sixth Division propriety, although it always cheers you up to deliver a good solid lecture on office etiquette.” Hisana paused to admire a particularly blue hydrangea. “I became very curious, you see, after you told me he agreed to that hare-brained scheme of yours to disrupt Rukia’s execution. A young man a mere month into his post as vice-captain would only have two reasons to do so, in my thinking, and I wished to know which it was.”

“Duty? Loyalty? Admiration of his wise and respected commanding officer? Is it not obvious?”

Hisana raised one well-sculpted eyebrow. “That was possibility number one. And, your incredible modesty aside, it seemed the most likely. I seem to recall you telling me he had seemed very… eager in his job application.”

“Vice-Captaincy of the Sixth is traditionally inherited. It was a rare opportunity that the position happened to be publicly advertised. Can I fault him for being rational? Not that I have seen any evidence of it, since.”

“Ahh, so you must have had a large number of fully completed applications dropped on your desk the very hour you announced the opening?”

“As you said, he clearly has great admiration and respect for myself, an open and shut case,” Byakuya replied grumpily. “What has this to do with your sister?”

“Possibility number two! His cooperation had nothing to do with you, and everything to do with the object of the rescue!”

“What makes you think they had any previous dealings with one another?” Byakuya asked. Of course, he knew about their previous dealings, Abarai had told him. He just wasn’t sure if Hisana knew about their previous dealings.

Hisana gave a disinterested half-shrug. “You had him watching over her while she was in lockdown, no? Picture it-- my poor sister, alone, despondent. A tragic waif!”

Byakuya regarded his wife with half-lidded eyes. “‘Despondent’ is a bit strong. My understanding is that when she wasn’t trying to gnaw through the bars, she verbally harassed him extensively.”

Hisana fluttered her eyelashes at him. “Who could possibly fall in love with a woman under such circumstances, eh?”

Byakuya smoothed the front of his kimono. “Only a great fool, clearly.”

“Precisely,” Hisana grinned back. “So, here is a man either greatly devoted to my darling husband, or infatuated with my precious sister. Either way, it was in my best interest to find out.”

“And you have determined it is the second?” Byakuya asked. “A shame. I shall fire him immediately.”

“I have determined…” Hisana corrected, “it is both. And you shall do nothing of the sort. He is clearly a man after my own heart, a kindred spirit.”

“You seem to have left one small item out of your assessment, my dear.”

“And what would that be?”

“What if she does not return the attachment? Perhaps jail is not nearly as romantic a time as you imagine, and she has hardly had time to form an opinion.”

Hisana rolled her eyes. “The jail bit was a lie. Goodness, Byakuya, don’t you even read the service records of the people you hire? He’s from Inuzuri, as if every word out of his mouth weren’t a dead giveaway, and he entered the Academy the same year Rukia did. At the very least they would have run into each other at the Shinigami Recruitment Station, but I would bet anything that if they weren’t childhood friends, they were childhood enemies, which is even better.” She narrowed her eyes grimly and gave a terse nod. “She knows him well enough, and if she hated him, she would have told me. Rukia has never hesitated for a moment to tell me about things she dislikes.”

“How did you get ahold of his service record?” Byakuya asked, horrified.

Hisana skidded to a halt, impressive, given the glacial pace at which they had been processing. She clutched at Byakuya’s sleeve. “Oh! Oh!” she gasped. Up ahead, on the bridge, Renji had his head tipped down toward Rukia’s. It only lasted a moment, and then he knelt down beside Touma, talking solemnly to the small boy, and pointing down at the water.

“Did you see that?” she whispered breathlessly.

“See what? That was nothing.” Byakuya squinted at the pair of young people and then back at his wife. “You are delusional.”

“My scheme is working perfectly,” Hisana announced grandly as Touma nearly tossed himself off the bridge, and Renji caught him neatly by the back of the hakama.

Byakuya had been married to Hisana for close to 50 years. This was not the first time he had heard these words. “As you say, dear,” he agreed. 

version 2

“I was surprised,” Hisana began loftily, “when you told me you had hired someone from the Eleventh.”

“I told you,” Byakuya interrupted, “his skills and test scores were superlative--”

Hisana waved a hand dismissively. “Not that part. Nothing you do is surprising. No the question is, why would someone from the Eleventh want to work for you?”

Byakuya made a hurt face. Hisana did not appear to notice. “So I asked around a bit, and it turns out he came from the Fifth. Who does that? People rarely transfer in and out of the Eleventh at all-- either you enter the Gotei through the Eleventh, or you avoid it like the plague, apparently.”

“Who have you been talking to?” Byakuya asked, perplexed.

“I assumed he was from Rukongai, for obvious reasons,” Hisana went on, “and I could tell he was from the deep south the moment he opened his mouth. And that made sense, I could see that. Comes to the big city, does well enough in school to get into a fancy pants squad, gets disillusioned, joins the brute squad. But if so, why set his sights on the Sixth, the fanciest pants of squads?”

Byakuya glared at his wife. He had specifically asked her not to refer to his unit as the “fanciest pants of squads” before. His glare did not seem to be as withering as he had hoped.

“No, the Eleventh was the outlier,” Hisana moved on. “I think he was there to brood.”

“You are ridiculous. No one joins the Eleventh for dramatic purposes.”

“You, Kuchiki Byakuya, threatened to join the Eleventh if your Grandfather wouldn’t let you marry me!”

“It was an idle threat and also, I told you to never speak of that. Also, you have truly spent more time thinking about this man than I ever have, and I spend most of my day in the same room as him.”

“He’s your second! You think I don’t care about the man who watches my husband’s back?”

“I think you find Gotei business to be exceedingly dull and this is most out of character for you.”

“All right, I got interested in him after both you and Rukia neglected to mention that he carried her around half the city and I had to hear it from someone else.”