Fire Forged Friendship (Substituting Fire For Rukia) - 4/?
Title: Fire Forged Friendship (Substituting Fire For Rukia)
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Ichigo & Byakuya friendship
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): Set about six months after the current arc.
Warnings (if applicable): None
Summary: At first, they were only doing it because Rukia demanded it, but once they really got to know each other, it wasn't all that hard to get along.
Authors Notes: I'm going to try my best to finish this tonight or tomorrow since I start college again on Monday (OMG so not ready). That way I can work on my 15K fic when I'm not in school. So don't expect a whole bunch more fic that aren't drabbles in the near future.
---
The last few days hadn't been going too badly. It wasn't just Byakuya learning about him. He was learning about Byakuya as well. His sisters weren't put off by his demeanor and he detected a few small grins as Byakuya watched them interact with him. He had wondered if Rukia had that kind of relationship with him when no one could see, one like real brothers and sisters who were always raised together. He didn't ask, but he figured the answer was that they were working on it.
He seemed to be okay with his father, too, after his first night there. Ichigo listened when they talked later at night, his father quiet and serious, not goofy and obnoxious like he was with his children. He learned more about Byakuya's past that way, and he knew that if Byakuya hadn't wanted him to hear, or at least if he cared whether he knew it, then he would have been asked to leave.
There had been no more bullies picking on Ichigo's friends and family in the days since the events at the park. He had seen someone mess with the memorial to a little boy and he threatened them with bodily harm if they didn't fix it. Byakuya had looked on approvingly during that incident, so at least now Ichigo hoped that he knew he was serious about protecting not just the living in Karakura Town but the dead as well.
They had really gotten to know each other when they were fighting Hollows, though. There were always Hollows around, including some stray Arrancar who'd escaped from Hueco Mundo. It was while fighting two of them at once that he noticed they had a rhythm going. Yes, they were each handling one of the Arrancar on their own, but he kept checking to see if Byakuya needed help, and when he did he stepped in after having dispatched the weaker one first. He didn't complain, merely inclining his head in thanks as they went back to his gigai and Ichigo kicked Kon out of his body.
They were walking in the shopping district about a half hour later when Ichigo brought it up. “I thought you'd be pissed when I helped you earlier,” he said.
“In another time, I may have been,” he said quietly. “But Rukia has taught me that sometimes it is important to accept help. Your life may depend on it.”
“Did you have to learn that lesson the hard way?” he asked.
Byakuya nodded slowly. “The Arrancar Yammy Rigalo was not as taken care of as I and Kenpachi had thought. He found a way to get to Soul Society, looking for us. It takes a lot to hurt Kenpachi, but one well placed backhand and he was knocked out. Rukia had gathered others to help and we defeated him once and for all. I had felt that I could handle it myself, but I was mistaken. I have the scar to prove it, across my chest.”
Ichigo looked at him, his eyes slightly wide. “She said something about an attack that lead to her becoming a lieutenant. Was that the attack?”
“Yes,” he said. “She showed great courage in the Winter War, but still I did not want to let her become a lieutenant. I did not want her put in harm's way, when it first became apparent that she was capable of being in the position, long before you met her. I saw what had happened to Shiba and I did not want something like that to happen to her. But her performance in the Winter War and the actions of that fight lead me to believe she could handle the risks, so I withdrew my objections.”
“There's times I want to keep Karin and Yuzu locked up so they stay out of danger,” Ichigo said. “Can't do that, though, especially in Karin's case. Everyone wants me to go to university, and Karin's already started training with Urahara. I wanted to kill him when I found out, but she got in between us and told me to butt out. Dad supports it, so what can I do, you know? The only thing he told Urahara was that he better not turn his daughter into a Hollow. Dad gave up his powers again for her to have them.”
Byakuya's eyes widened slightly. “Your sister is very young to be making that decision, even with his approval.”
“She's going to be training for quite a while, because I'm going to stay here to go to University and I'll just go back to balancing it. Besides, this time you guys sent someone competent to protect this place. We've talked and we actually have a kind of schedule worked out. And if I don't make it at the university...then maybe it wasn't meant to be in the first place, you know?”
“Knowledge is important, however.”
“Yeah, I know,” he said with a sigh. “But...I hated being normal after everything. When I got my powers back, there was this feeling like I'd be useful again. And I have been, and if it means giving up school to keep people safe then that's what I'm going to do.”
“That is commendable,” he replied. He paused. “When I was younger, I would have liked to be anything but the one who would become head of the Kuchiki clan. There was a lot of pressure, and I gave up many things.”
“You do a good job running it now, though, right?”
“Yes,” he said with a nod. “I suppose it is not hard. Being a captain in the Gotei 13 is more time consuming, actually, even with help.”
“Just imagine being in Rukia's position. I know Ukitake was sick before, and she said he's worse now. She's basically running the division, isn't she?”
“In a way. He makes the final decisions, but yes, she does the day to day business.” He paused, and smiled a bit. “She has learned bankai in the time you have been gone. Should anything happen to him, many are going to recommend her for captaincy, myself included.”
“She did?” he said with a grin. “Good for her. I just hope she doesn't get one of her third seats as a liuetenant.”
He laughed slightly. “Kotetsu and Kotsubaki transferred out of the division to other divisions when Rukia became Lieutenant, where they were given Lieutenant positions of their own. Kotetsu is in the 9th, and Kotsubaki is in the 3rd, since the lieutenants of those divisions took over as Captain. Her third seat is a capable shinigami. If she becomes a captain she should be fine.”
“That's a lot of responsibility to shoulder,” he said. “But I think she can do it.”
“As do I,” he replied. “It is not unlike the situation with your sister. Sometimes we must step out of the way to let them fulfill their destiny.”
“I guess you're right,” he replied. He stopped for a moment, and looked at Byakuya. “I never thought there'd be a day when you and I would actually just talk, you know?”
“I had never expected such a day to come, either,” he said.
“You could probably say we're friendly now.”
“That would be a safe assumption, yes.”
“So you can go home soon,” he replied.
“Are you trying to get rid of me?” Byakuya asked, raising an eyebrow.
“No,” he said. “You've only been here five days. You should at least finish out the week, make it a real vacation. And besides, tomorrow night there's going to be a festival. I think that could be cool, if you want to go.”
“A festival could be interesting,” Byakuya said with a nod.
“Then we'll all go to the festival tomorrow and then we can go back the next day, show Rukia we're friendly and she doesn't need to worry about us killing each other anymore.”
“I like the sound of this plan,” he replied. “I shall send her a message tonight.”
“Good,” Ichigo said with a grin.
“I shall have to inquire about my division,” he replied. “I do hope Renji has not run it into the ground.”
“Eh, have faith in him. I'm sure everything will be perfectly fine.”
“He had best hope so.”
Author: Ragna (afteriwake)
Pairing: Ichigo & Byakuya friendship
Rating: PG
Spoilers (if applicable): Set about six months after the current arc.
Warnings (if applicable): None
Summary: At first, they were only doing it because Rukia demanded it, but once they really got to know each other, it wasn't all that hard to get along.
Authors Notes: I'm going to try my best to finish this tonight or tomorrow since I start college again on Monday (OMG so not ready). That way I can work on my 15K fic when I'm not in school. So don't expect a whole bunch more fic that aren't drabbles in the near future.
---
The last few days hadn't been going too badly. It wasn't just Byakuya learning about him. He was learning about Byakuya as well. His sisters weren't put off by his demeanor and he detected a few small grins as Byakuya watched them interact with him. He had wondered if Rukia had that kind of relationship with him when no one could see, one like real brothers and sisters who were always raised together. He didn't ask, but he figured the answer was that they were working on it.
He seemed to be okay with his father, too, after his first night there. Ichigo listened when they talked later at night, his father quiet and serious, not goofy and obnoxious like he was with his children. He learned more about Byakuya's past that way, and he knew that if Byakuya hadn't wanted him to hear, or at least if he cared whether he knew it, then he would have been asked to leave.
There had been no more bullies picking on Ichigo's friends and family in the days since the events at the park. He had seen someone mess with the memorial to a little boy and he threatened them with bodily harm if they didn't fix it. Byakuya had looked on approvingly during that incident, so at least now Ichigo hoped that he knew he was serious about protecting not just the living in Karakura Town but the dead as well.
They had really gotten to know each other when they were fighting Hollows, though. There were always Hollows around, including some stray Arrancar who'd escaped from Hueco Mundo. It was while fighting two of them at once that he noticed they had a rhythm going. Yes, they were each handling one of the Arrancar on their own, but he kept checking to see if Byakuya needed help, and when he did he stepped in after having dispatched the weaker one first. He didn't complain, merely inclining his head in thanks as they went back to his gigai and Ichigo kicked Kon out of his body.
They were walking in the shopping district about a half hour later when Ichigo brought it up. “I thought you'd be pissed when I helped you earlier,” he said.
“In another time, I may have been,” he said quietly. “But Rukia has taught me that sometimes it is important to accept help. Your life may depend on it.”
“Did you have to learn that lesson the hard way?” he asked.
Byakuya nodded slowly. “The Arrancar Yammy Rigalo was not as taken care of as I and Kenpachi had thought. He found a way to get to Soul Society, looking for us. It takes a lot to hurt Kenpachi, but one well placed backhand and he was knocked out. Rukia had gathered others to help and we defeated him once and for all. I had felt that I could handle it myself, but I was mistaken. I have the scar to prove it, across my chest.”
Ichigo looked at him, his eyes slightly wide. “She said something about an attack that lead to her becoming a lieutenant. Was that the attack?”
“Yes,” he said. “She showed great courage in the Winter War, but still I did not want to let her become a lieutenant. I did not want her put in harm's way, when it first became apparent that she was capable of being in the position, long before you met her. I saw what had happened to Shiba and I did not want something like that to happen to her. But her performance in the Winter War and the actions of that fight lead me to believe she could handle the risks, so I withdrew my objections.”
“There's times I want to keep Karin and Yuzu locked up so they stay out of danger,” Ichigo said. “Can't do that, though, especially in Karin's case. Everyone wants me to go to university, and Karin's already started training with Urahara. I wanted to kill him when I found out, but she got in between us and told me to butt out. Dad supports it, so what can I do, you know? The only thing he told Urahara was that he better not turn his daughter into a Hollow. Dad gave up his powers again for her to have them.”
Byakuya's eyes widened slightly. “Your sister is very young to be making that decision, even with his approval.”
“She's going to be training for quite a while, because I'm going to stay here to go to University and I'll just go back to balancing it. Besides, this time you guys sent someone competent to protect this place. We've talked and we actually have a kind of schedule worked out. And if I don't make it at the university...then maybe it wasn't meant to be in the first place, you know?”
“Knowledge is important, however.”
“Yeah, I know,” he said with a sigh. “But...I hated being normal after everything. When I got my powers back, there was this feeling like I'd be useful again. And I have been, and if it means giving up school to keep people safe then that's what I'm going to do.”
“That is commendable,” he replied. He paused. “When I was younger, I would have liked to be anything but the one who would become head of the Kuchiki clan. There was a lot of pressure, and I gave up many things.”
“You do a good job running it now, though, right?”
“Yes,” he said with a nod. “I suppose it is not hard. Being a captain in the Gotei 13 is more time consuming, actually, even with help.”
“Just imagine being in Rukia's position. I know Ukitake was sick before, and she said he's worse now. She's basically running the division, isn't she?”
“In a way. He makes the final decisions, but yes, she does the day to day business.” He paused, and smiled a bit. “She has learned bankai in the time you have been gone. Should anything happen to him, many are going to recommend her for captaincy, myself included.”
“She did?” he said with a grin. “Good for her. I just hope she doesn't get one of her third seats as a liuetenant.”
He laughed slightly. “Kotetsu and Kotsubaki transferred out of the division to other divisions when Rukia became Lieutenant, where they were given Lieutenant positions of their own. Kotetsu is in the 9th, and Kotsubaki is in the 3rd, since the lieutenants of those divisions took over as Captain. Her third seat is a capable shinigami. If she becomes a captain she should be fine.”
“That's a lot of responsibility to shoulder,” he said. “But I think she can do it.”
“As do I,” he replied. “It is not unlike the situation with your sister. Sometimes we must step out of the way to let them fulfill their destiny.”
“I guess you're right,” he replied. He stopped for a moment, and looked at Byakuya. “I never thought there'd be a day when you and I would actually just talk, you know?”
“I had never expected such a day to come, either,” he said.
“You could probably say we're friendly now.”
“That would be a safe assumption, yes.”
“So you can go home soon,” he replied.
“Are you trying to get rid of me?” Byakuya asked, raising an eyebrow.
“No,” he said. “You've only been here five days. You should at least finish out the week, make it a real vacation. And besides, tomorrow night there's going to be a festival. I think that could be cool, if you want to go.”
“A festival could be interesting,” Byakuya said with a nod.
“Then we'll all go to the festival tomorrow and then we can go back the next day, show Rukia we're friendly and she doesn't need to worry about us killing each other anymore.”
“I like the sound of this plan,” he replied. “I shall send her a message tonight.”
“Good,” Ichigo said with a grin.
“I shall have to inquire about my division,” he replied. “I do hope Renji has not run it into the ground.”
“Eh, have faith in him. I'm sure everything will be perfectly fine.”
“He had best hope so.”