[LOG] Rangiku and Byakuya
[Rangiku visits the Kuchiki District to have a nice talk with Byakuya; no warnings]
[Inspirational music: This is my dream by Lacuna Coil]
Byakuya spent the twenty minutes he’d given Rangiku to shower, in his new apartments setting his many books up on shelves. When he had informed the family elders that he fully intended on adopting, or at least housing Rukia since he had found her, they had agreed to give him a place of his own ahead of schedule. So he moved into his parents’ home in the Kuchiki district, and sectioned off two rooms solely for Rukia’s use-a sitting room and a bedroom. He himself had three rooms-a library, which he was in now, a sitting room, and his own bedroom. He would make the point that she was free to look upon his own modest wall-to-wall shelves as her own, so technically they shared it and each had two and a half rooms.
When fifteen minutes were up, he left the work, and a booklist, to a maid to finish, and went into his room to change from casual clothes-that is to say, fitted jeans and a button-down white shirt-to clothes for going out-black slacks and a very similar shirt, but in green. He brushed his hair through a few times before deeming himself, ready, then grabbed his cell phone, pager and handheld, and went out. He stopped to look in what would be Rukia’s room with some dismay-it didn’t look at all like a girl’s room, but he supposed she would like to furnish it herself. With a sigh, he headed out of the District and to Rangiku’s house, arriving precisely five minutes after the scheduled time, giving her a chance to dress, he supposed, before he knocked on the door.
Rangiku, being well Rangiku - had just stepped out of the shower as she heard a knock on the door. And throwing on a towel she hurried out into the hallway - having been foolish enough to lock the door earlier otherwise she would just have yelled at him to let himself in. She glanced at the wall clock and winced slightly, tugging the towel tighter as she opened the door. "Hey, I'm sorry I'm just gonna go.. dry up and um...get dressed..." Feeling herself blushing slightly she scurried off down the hall to her room, slamming the door closed behind her and never looking back to see if Byakuya actually entered or if he was still standing there in the doorway.
Byakuya blinked-then a single brow sky rocketed. It was not the first time he had seen a woman in nothing but a towel, but he had thought Rangiku would be ready by the time. Then he remembered that she was stressed and had been self-confined to her room for a period, and probably needed the extended shower. He called quietly for her to take her time-quietly in case Toshiro was present-and stepped in through the doorway, looking around. The house seemed much more lived-in since he had last been there-unlike his own apartments, which where currently full of boxes full of his possessions.
Cursing slightly Rangiku dug out a shorter blue skirt as well as a simple white top, throwing her still very damp hair back in a high knot as she hurried getting dressed. Buttoning up the shirt she made her way out into the living room again, this time giving Byakuya a slightly sheepish smile. "Sorry, I... guess I lost track of time."
“It is quite alright.” He nodded in greeting from where he was almost anally straightening the living room. He wasn’t trying to be rude; he was just still in cleaning mode from moving in. “Are you ready to go out?” he asked, crossing to the doorway. “I have two surprises for you that will hopefully ease your spirits.” As a clue he withdrew from his pocket a single, perfectly pink cherry blossom, that, though slightly crushed from residing in that place, looked as though it had fallen there just moments before. Actually, it had fallen on his head that morning, but that need not be mentioned; it was his clue.
Resisting the urge to roll her eyes at him she nodded. "Yeah, I guess..." She hadn't been out since, when was the last time she'd left the house.. Thursday? Friday? last week. Stepping closer she allowed herself to smile softly as her fingers caressed the pedals of the cherry blossom before she looked up at him. "The park?"
“Indeed not. A much better view.” He smiled and offered his arm.
"Okay, well lead the way then." Accepting his arm she moved towards the hallway, only stopping to grab her purse and the set of keys that hung by the door.
Heading out of the house, he lead her back the way he’d come, to the Kuchiki district. He didn’t suppose she had ever been there, so he counted on it being a surprise. The District it’s self was more of a small town of no less than fifty houses, enclosed by a tall wall. All of the houses were traditional Japanese houses, and all of the customs held within were traditional. One could fully expect to look down the hall and see a man in traditional kimono and pants walking towards you, as if this were a full time-turning experience. And, in the very center of the district, was a tall, gloriously beautiful cherry tree graced with a pond at its feet. Byakuya unlocked the gate in the wall and led her through, pausing every now and then to introduce her as “My good friend Rangiku” to a family member, all the while leading her to the cherry tree.
Smiling all-thought slightly awkwardly she tried to remain as polite as possible to the people she was introduced too. Seeing how Byakuya always acted she assumed it was best to be on her most polite behaviour when they were withing the walls of the Kuchiki district. "This is nice, looks really.... you know~"
“I know.” He nodded, with the smallest of smiled, then introduced her to his youngest cousin-the boy who loved books-and the child gave her several hurried bows before running away again, in search of some volume or other. When finally they reached the center of the district-it was a maze of open hallways and sliding doors-Byakuya stood back to let her see the magnificent cherry tree, just as a little gust of breeze blew through, alighting some of the petals to swirl like dancing fairies.
Rangiku caught herself laughing at the boy as he hurried off to do whatever it was he was going to do. And at the sight of the cherry tree she found herself speechless at first. The sight in front of her was beautiful to say the least. "Wha- Byakuya... it's, it's beautiful." her eyes followed some pedals that was making their way to the ground.
He smiled, pleased to have given her this view, and gestured for her to sit at the stone bench underneath the tree, where she could look up into the branches. “Your first present.” He gestured to the expanse of the courtyard. “Now if you will excuse me while I fetch your second…” He bowed lightly and went into his room, which was right on the edge, facing out, though he opened and closed the door quickly-and properly, sitting down to close it-so she could not see the mess, and started looking for the jar of pickled peppers he’d purchased. He hadn’t entrusted it to a maid-it might go to the kitchens and he would never see it again. For the Kuchikis all had one large kitchen, one large pantry, and one large bath house-though the latter was located in another part of the house from the kitchen-and it was not considered rude to help one’s self to the pantry.
First present? He was spoiling her and as endearing as it was it felt slightly wrong. All those things he did for her, it made her feel strange since she knew there wasn't a lot she could do to even try and repay him for everything - though she wanted too, she desperately did. Looking up at the cherry blossoms spreading out on the ground and around her she couldn't stop smiling, picking one of the pale flowers up she twirled it around between her fingers and sighed.
Byakuya returned presently with a present much funnier than the cherry tree: a rather large jar of pickled peppers, which he presented to her. A maid came behind him and set a tray bearing tea, as well as the proper additives, on a small stone table made like the bench. The maid bowed once her task was completed, and addressed him as ‘Kuchiki-sama’ and addressed Rangiku as ‘master’s friend’ before exiting the courtyard quietly. Byakuya did not seem at all affected by these titles as he popped open the jar with a small ‘oomf!’ and took a few out, setting them on two ivory plates matching the tea set, with little forks to eat them with. Then he sat down next to her, with the tray between them, and poured the tea, one for her, one for him, and gestured to the little cup of sugar and spoon, as well as the milk, though he took neither in his.
Surprise, utter surprise and shock was visuable on her face as she looked over at him. "Y-you just never stop to amaze me do you?" adding a spoon on sugar to her tea she used the spoon to stir it around before taking a sip.
“If I did, would I not be boring?” he pointed out, waiting for his tea to cool before sipping it. “And I did say I would take you to the Kuchiki district, did I not?” He gave her a smile, setting his tea cup down on the tray, picking up his plate, and using his fork to pick up a pepper to eat it. Normally he would not object to using his fingers, but everything was done properly in the Kuchiki District, at least by it’s family, even if not outside by those same members. And I, he suddenly realized with a jolt, must teach Rukia these customs, as she has no ‘onee-chan’ to teach her… He almost got a headache just from thinking about it, and it showed on his face-mild distaste, for the customs and mannerisms were both a pain to learn, and a pain to teach. Usually an older sibling of the same gender of the child in question would learn, but as he was the only sibling she would have, the task would fall to him.
"Not necessarily, there is a certain comfort in knowing what a person will do next though I'm not complaining that much about you doing it. If you one day would stop surprising me I might start to wonder if the world is going to end soon." Take the customs as they come her parents had thought her and being on a territory that was far more formal than what she was usually assorted with she did as he did and picked up the plate, using the fork to eat the pepper. Noticing the look on his face Rangiku tilted her head some. "What's the matter?"
“Hm? Oh.” He inclined his head a little-a shrug in disquise; one did not shrug in the Kuchiki household-and set his fork down on the side of his plate. “I was considering who would take up Rukia’s training. Hisana would have done it, you see, as her older sister. But the task must fall to me. I do not know how much training she would have received from Primary schooling and such, but it will be tedious work.” He inclined his head-translation: shrug-again and went back to his peppers. “Perhaps one day you will know me well enough that I will not surprise you any longer.”
"I'm sure you'll do just fine. We all learn basic things in school and as long as she attended something somewhere she's bound to have some basic knowledge." Placing the plate down she took another drink from her tea. "And well, call me crazy but I hope I never get to know you too well. I love your surprises."
“You know me well enough already. A man cannot seem to keep his secrets around you,” he said with mock sternness, though he was smiling to the side as he popped another pepper in his mouth with the little fork. Though he would have never admitted it a month ago, he liked this arrangement much better. He found it relieving to not have to keep everything bottled inside, as he had been-with ease, one must understand; a mask is easily worn. He enjoyed his confidence in Rangiku as much as he would have it she had been his mother or a close sister-which was how he viewed her.
"Maybe, but you still manage to surprise me. I don't know anyone else who does that." But then again the only ones that she spent a lot of time around besides him were Gin, Shiro and Sakura and the two first she had known for years - literally and Sakura, well Sakura reminded her a lot of herself. Rangiku half attempted to run a hand through her hair before remembering she had it tied back and instead settled for fiddling with the spoon as her eyes trailed over the buildings around her.
“Perhaps.” He set his plate down and took up his teacup again, taking a sip before asking, “Have you discovered anything?” Ah, the rub: a place away from cares is the perfect place to discuss them. He of course was referring to Gin. But he made it seem as casual as their previous small talk-carefree in a carefree world-and hoped it affected her to not drop her spirits.
Her movements stopped and instantly her shoulders sank, she didn't know anything else, Aizen didn't know and Gin was still missing. None of it had made her feel any better, well getting out of the house and forgetting for a few had but now... "No." It was a weak mumble as she raised the cup and took a sip.
He frowned concernedly and set his tea down, then moved the tray back over to the little table and scooted over, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders. “Nothing at all?” he said gently, thumb rubbing her back a little. “Would you like me to call on the private investigator who assisted me in the finding of Rukia?”
She shook her head before leaning it against his shoulder, sighing heavily. "No, no... I-I'm sure he'll show up. I'm just worried.. That's all." Worried sick to be honest, she hadn't slept since Saturday and the stress of talking to Aizen earlier had worn her thin, taking a much larger toll on her than she wanted to admit.
“Rangiku-chan, I can discern simply by looking at you that this is not truth. Customarily, you hold yourself with certain pride, with your own elegance. There is none of that today. You are worried. It is as plain as day. I want to make that go away.” The first few statements were stated with careful thought and proper concern, but the last was said with the air of a small child asking an older sibling if he could ‘kiss the owie away’; the age-old remedy.
"I'm just tired, that's all." She wasn't going to tell him how long it had been since she slept since she knew he would start making a fuss over it. After all right now it didn't matter, right now she was comfortable and almost unnoticed she yawned, trying to bury her head deeper into his shoulder.
“Of course.” He nodded seriously, feigning belief in this; after her yawn he didn’t doubt it, but it was a half-truth. Then, in an equally serious voice, he said, “And I am a Paris-based pop singer with too many piercing.” He smiled faintly at his own lame joke, then rubbed her shoulder again. “Perhaps a short nap before you return home?” In his head, he started making calculations; he felt Gin would never turn up without someone seriously looking for him, and, as he had said, he wanted to make Rangiku’s worry over the man go away, and therefore, wanted very badly to be able to present Gin to her himself-after having words with the man for making Rangiku worry. For that, he would need to consult the private investigator, and start asking questions.
"Mmmm, how nice~" Rangiku didn't really pay attention to what he was saying, she was so comfortable right now. Byakuya was one of the few people she allowed herself to completely relax around and by now she was already half asleep on his shoulder, one of her hands having gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly as she she tried to pull him closer.
He smiled, standing and supporting her head with his hand in place of his shoulder, then scooped her up bridal style to go back over to the house. He contemplated where to put her; not in his own room-there were boxes everywhere, even on the bed. Instead, he opted for Rukia’s room, using his toe, improperly, to push the sliding door open. This room looked as if there had been great effort in making sure it was fit for a girl, but had most definitely been designed by a man, and that man was Byakuya. There were nice blankets and sheets on the bed, and a few odd trinkets he’d thought looked feminine on the nightstand. After short research, a poster of Jessica Simpson had been hung on the wall-‘how feminine’ the poor stupid male mind of Byakuya had thought. It was onto the bed that he lay Rangiku, then tucked her in gently. It took him some time to pry the hand off his shirt, and he wouldn’t have had any objections to sitting there while she slept, letting her hold on, but he wanted to speak with the investigator and begin his search-hopefully to be able to present Gin, there in that room, when she woke, but he maintained a healthy amount of pessimism.
[Inspirational music: This is my dream by Lacuna Coil]
Byakuya spent the twenty minutes he’d given Rangiku to shower, in his new apartments setting his many books up on shelves. When he had informed the family elders that he fully intended on adopting, or at least housing Rukia since he had found her, they had agreed to give him a place of his own ahead of schedule. So he moved into his parents’ home in the Kuchiki district, and sectioned off two rooms solely for Rukia’s use-a sitting room and a bedroom. He himself had three rooms-a library, which he was in now, a sitting room, and his own bedroom. He would make the point that she was free to look upon his own modest wall-to-wall shelves as her own, so technically they shared it and each had two and a half rooms.
When fifteen minutes were up, he left the work, and a booklist, to a maid to finish, and went into his room to change from casual clothes-that is to say, fitted jeans and a button-down white shirt-to clothes for going out-black slacks and a very similar shirt, but in green. He brushed his hair through a few times before deeming himself, ready, then grabbed his cell phone, pager and handheld, and went out. He stopped to look in what would be Rukia’s room with some dismay-it didn’t look at all like a girl’s room, but he supposed she would like to furnish it herself. With a sigh, he headed out of the District and to Rangiku’s house, arriving precisely five minutes after the scheduled time, giving her a chance to dress, he supposed, before he knocked on the door.
Rangiku, being well Rangiku - had just stepped out of the shower as she heard a knock on the door. And throwing on a towel she hurried out into the hallway - having been foolish enough to lock the door earlier otherwise she would just have yelled at him to let himself in. She glanced at the wall clock and winced slightly, tugging the towel tighter as she opened the door. "Hey, I'm sorry I'm just gonna go.. dry up and um...get dressed..." Feeling herself blushing slightly she scurried off down the hall to her room, slamming the door closed behind her and never looking back to see if Byakuya actually entered or if he was still standing there in the doorway.
Byakuya blinked-then a single brow sky rocketed. It was not the first time he had seen a woman in nothing but a towel, but he had thought Rangiku would be ready by the time. Then he remembered that she was stressed and had been self-confined to her room for a period, and probably needed the extended shower. He called quietly for her to take her time-quietly in case Toshiro was present-and stepped in through the doorway, looking around. The house seemed much more lived-in since he had last been there-unlike his own apartments, which where currently full of boxes full of his possessions.
Cursing slightly Rangiku dug out a shorter blue skirt as well as a simple white top, throwing her still very damp hair back in a high knot as she hurried getting dressed. Buttoning up the shirt she made her way out into the living room again, this time giving Byakuya a slightly sheepish smile. "Sorry, I... guess I lost track of time."
“It is quite alright.” He nodded in greeting from where he was almost anally straightening the living room. He wasn’t trying to be rude; he was just still in cleaning mode from moving in. “Are you ready to go out?” he asked, crossing to the doorway. “I have two surprises for you that will hopefully ease your spirits.” As a clue he withdrew from his pocket a single, perfectly pink cherry blossom, that, though slightly crushed from residing in that place, looked as though it had fallen there just moments before. Actually, it had fallen on his head that morning, but that need not be mentioned; it was his clue.
Resisting the urge to roll her eyes at him she nodded. "Yeah, I guess..." She hadn't been out since, when was the last time she'd left the house.. Thursday? Friday? last week. Stepping closer she allowed herself to smile softly as her fingers caressed the pedals of the cherry blossom before she looked up at him. "The park?"
“Indeed not. A much better view.” He smiled and offered his arm.
"Okay, well lead the way then." Accepting his arm she moved towards the hallway, only stopping to grab her purse and the set of keys that hung by the door.
Heading out of the house, he lead her back the way he’d come, to the Kuchiki district. He didn’t suppose she had ever been there, so he counted on it being a surprise. The District it’s self was more of a small town of no less than fifty houses, enclosed by a tall wall. All of the houses were traditional Japanese houses, and all of the customs held within were traditional. One could fully expect to look down the hall and see a man in traditional kimono and pants walking towards you, as if this were a full time-turning experience. And, in the very center of the district, was a tall, gloriously beautiful cherry tree graced with a pond at its feet. Byakuya unlocked the gate in the wall and led her through, pausing every now and then to introduce her as “My good friend Rangiku” to a family member, all the while leading her to the cherry tree.
Smiling all-thought slightly awkwardly she tried to remain as polite as possible to the people she was introduced too. Seeing how Byakuya always acted she assumed it was best to be on her most polite behaviour when they were withing the walls of the Kuchiki district. "This is nice, looks really.... you know~"
“I know.” He nodded, with the smallest of smiled, then introduced her to his youngest cousin-the boy who loved books-and the child gave her several hurried bows before running away again, in search of some volume or other. When finally they reached the center of the district-it was a maze of open hallways and sliding doors-Byakuya stood back to let her see the magnificent cherry tree, just as a little gust of breeze blew through, alighting some of the petals to swirl like dancing fairies.
Rangiku caught herself laughing at the boy as he hurried off to do whatever it was he was going to do. And at the sight of the cherry tree she found herself speechless at first. The sight in front of her was beautiful to say the least. "Wha- Byakuya... it's, it's beautiful." her eyes followed some pedals that was making their way to the ground.
He smiled, pleased to have given her this view, and gestured for her to sit at the stone bench underneath the tree, where she could look up into the branches. “Your first present.” He gestured to the expanse of the courtyard. “Now if you will excuse me while I fetch your second…” He bowed lightly and went into his room, which was right on the edge, facing out, though he opened and closed the door quickly-and properly, sitting down to close it-so she could not see the mess, and started looking for the jar of pickled peppers he’d purchased. He hadn’t entrusted it to a maid-it might go to the kitchens and he would never see it again. For the Kuchikis all had one large kitchen, one large pantry, and one large bath house-though the latter was located in another part of the house from the kitchen-and it was not considered rude to help one’s self to the pantry.
First present? He was spoiling her and as endearing as it was it felt slightly wrong. All those things he did for her, it made her feel strange since she knew there wasn't a lot she could do to even try and repay him for everything - though she wanted too, she desperately did. Looking up at the cherry blossoms spreading out on the ground and around her she couldn't stop smiling, picking one of the pale flowers up she twirled it around between her fingers and sighed.
Byakuya returned presently with a present much funnier than the cherry tree: a rather large jar of pickled peppers, which he presented to her. A maid came behind him and set a tray bearing tea, as well as the proper additives, on a small stone table made like the bench. The maid bowed once her task was completed, and addressed him as ‘Kuchiki-sama’ and addressed Rangiku as ‘master’s friend’ before exiting the courtyard quietly. Byakuya did not seem at all affected by these titles as he popped open the jar with a small ‘oomf!’ and took a few out, setting them on two ivory plates matching the tea set, with little forks to eat them with. Then he sat down next to her, with the tray between them, and poured the tea, one for her, one for him, and gestured to the little cup of sugar and spoon, as well as the milk, though he took neither in his.
Surprise, utter surprise and shock was visuable on her face as she looked over at him. "Y-you just never stop to amaze me do you?" adding a spoon on sugar to her tea she used the spoon to stir it around before taking a sip.
“If I did, would I not be boring?” he pointed out, waiting for his tea to cool before sipping it. “And I did say I would take you to the Kuchiki district, did I not?” He gave her a smile, setting his tea cup down on the tray, picking up his plate, and using his fork to pick up a pepper to eat it. Normally he would not object to using his fingers, but everything was done properly in the Kuchiki District, at least by it’s family, even if not outside by those same members. And I, he suddenly realized with a jolt, must teach Rukia these customs, as she has no ‘onee-chan’ to teach her… He almost got a headache just from thinking about it, and it showed on his face-mild distaste, for the customs and mannerisms were both a pain to learn, and a pain to teach. Usually an older sibling of the same gender of the child in question would learn, but as he was the only sibling she would have, the task would fall to him.
"Not necessarily, there is a certain comfort in knowing what a person will do next though I'm not complaining that much about you doing it. If you one day would stop surprising me I might start to wonder if the world is going to end soon." Take the customs as they come her parents had thought her and being on a territory that was far more formal than what she was usually assorted with she did as he did and picked up the plate, using the fork to eat the pepper. Noticing the look on his face Rangiku tilted her head some. "What's the matter?"
“Hm? Oh.” He inclined his head a little-a shrug in disquise; one did not shrug in the Kuchiki household-and set his fork down on the side of his plate. “I was considering who would take up Rukia’s training. Hisana would have done it, you see, as her older sister. But the task must fall to me. I do not know how much training she would have received from Primary schooling and such, but it will be tedious work.” He inclined his head-translation: shrug-again and went back to his peppers. “Perhaps one day you will know me well enough that I will not surprise you any longer.”
"I'm sure you'll do just fine. We all learn basic things in school and as long as she attended something somewhere she's bound to have some basic knowledge." Placing the plate down she took another drink from her tea. "And well, call me crazy but I hope I never get to know you too well. I love your surprises."
“You know me well enough already. A man cannot seem to keep his secrets around you,” he said with mock sternness, though he was smiling to the side as he popped another pepper in his mouth with the little fork. Though he would have never admitted it a month ago, he liked this arrangement much better. He found it relieving to not have to keep everything bottled inside, as he had been-with ease, one must understand; a mask is easily worn. He enjoyed his confidence in Rangiku as much as he would have it she had been his mother or a close sister-which was how he viewed her.
"Maybe, but you still manage to surprise me. I don't know anyone else who does that." But then again the only ones that she spent a lot of time around besides him were Gin, Shiro and Sakura and the two first she had known for years - literally and Sakura, well Sakura reminded her a lot of herself. Rangiku half attempted to run a hand through her hair before remembering she had it tied back and instead settled for fiddling with the spoon as her eyes trailed over the buildings around her.
“Perhaps.” He set his plate down and took up his teacup again, taking a sip before asking, “Have you discovered anything?” Ah, the rub: a place away from cares is the perfect place to discuss them. He of course was referring to Gin. But he made it seem as casual as their previous small talk-carefree in a carefree world-and hoped it affected her to not drop her spirits.
Her movements stopped and instantly her shoulders sank, she didn't know anything else, Aizen didn't know and Gin was still missing. None of it had made her feel any better, well getting out of the house and forgetting for a few had but now... "No." It was a weak mumble as she raised the cup and took a sip.
He frowned concernedly and set his tea down, then moved the tray back over to the little table and scooted over, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders. “Nothing at all?” he said gently, thumb rubbing her back a little. “Would you like me to call on the private investigator who assisted me in the finding of Rukia?”
She shook her head before leaning it against his shoulder, sighing heavily. "No, no... I-I'm sure he'll show up. I'm just worried.. That's all." Worried sick to be honest, she hadn't slept since Saturday and the stress of talking to Aizen earlier had worn her thin, taking a much larger toll on her than she wanted to admit.
“Rangiku-chan, I can discern simply by looking at you that this is not truth. Customarily, you hold yourself with certain pride, with your own elegance. There is none of that today. You are worried. It is as plain as day. I want to make that go away.” The first few statements were stated with careful thought and proper concern, but the last was said with the air of a small child asking an older sibling if he could ‘kiss the owie away’; the age-old remedy.
"I'm just tired, that's all." She wasn't going to tell him how long it had been since she slept since she knew he would start making a fuss over it. After all right now it didn't matter, right now she was comfortable and almost unnoticed she yawned, trying to bury her head deeper into his shoulder.
“Of course.” He nodded seriously, feigning belief in this; after her yawn he didn’t doubt it, but it was a half-truth. Then, in an equally serious voice, he said, “And I am a Paris-based pop singer with too many piercing.” He smiled faintly at his own lame joke, then rubbed her shoulder again. “Perhaps a short nap before you return home?” In his head, he started making calculations; he felt Gin would never turn up without someone seriously looking for him, and, as he had said, he wanted to make Rangiku’s worry over the man go away, and therefore, wanted very badly to be able to present Gin to her himself-after having words with the man for making Rangiku worry. For that, he would need to consult the private investigator, and start asking questions.
"Mmmm, how nice~" Rangiku didn't really pay attention to what he was saying, she was so comfortable right now. Byakuya was one of the few people she allowed herself to completely relax around and by now she was already half asleep on his shoulder, one of her hands having gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly as she she tried to pull him closer.
He smiled, standing and supporting her head with his hand in place of his shoulder, then scooped her up bridal style to go back over to the house. He contemplated where to put her; not in his own room-there were boxes everywhere, even on the bed. Instead, he opted for Rukia’s room, using his toe, improperly, to push the sliding door open. This room looked as if there had been great effort in making sure it was fit for a girl, but had most definitely been designed by a man, and that man was Byakuya. There were nice blankets and sheets on the bed, and a few odd trinkets he’d thought looked feminine on the nightstand. After short research, a poster of Jessica Simpson had been hung on the wall-‘how feminine’ the poor stupid male mind of Byakuya had thought. It was onto the bed that he lay Rangiku, then tucked her in gently. It took him some time to pry the hand off his shirt, and he wouldn’t have had any objections to sitting there while she slept, letting her hold on, but he wanted to speak with the investigator and begin his search-hopefully to be able to present Gin, there in that room, when she woke, but he maintained a healthy amount of pessimism.