What Once Was: Chapter 2
First Chapter
He growled in irritation as he shoved and pushed his way through the crowd. He squeezed his way through moving bodies, breathing a silent sigh of relief when the door he was trying to reach came into his line of sight. He slid it open and burst into his office, panting from exertion.
"Sumimasen*, Taichou!" he said quickly, bowing to his commanding officer. He stood, rubbing the back of his neck and smiling sheepishly. "It's real crowded out there today. Is there somethin' goin' on that I don't know about?"
Kuchiki Byakuya looked up from his work as his flambouyant vice-captain walked in, frowning slightly as he took in his disheveled appearance and what appeared to be a new pair of those ridiculously expensive sunglasses. "I take it you have not gotten the memo, Abarai-fukutaichou?" he said coolly, dark eyes trained on Renji's face.
"Memo?" Renji asked, looking confused.
Byakuya sighed, frown deepening as he looked at the redhead. He reached in a drawer in his desk pulling out an official looking paper. "You really should keep track of these things, Abarai."
Renji blushed and stared down at his feet, mumbling a 'yes, sir' as he took the note from his captain's hand. He scanned the words as he walked over to his desk, brow creasing as he read. "Scouts from 2nd Squad? Coming here?" he said, looking even more confused. "Why?"
Byakuya had returned to his work while Renji read, and he didn't bother to look up as he answered. "Half of our squad is busy taking care of this increase in Hollow activity, and the rest are becoming lax in their work. We are behind, Abarai-fukutaichou." he glanced at Renji coldly and the redhead had a feeling Kuchiki-taichou blamed him for alot of the late work. Which wouldn't be too much of a stretch... He hated paperwork. "This scout from Covert Operations is supposed to be extremely efficient and good at motivating workers. She will help us to get our squad back in order."
"She? It's a girl?" Renji asked, feeling even more curious. Not many girls worked in 2nd, and even fewer made reputations for themselves that could catch Byakuya's attention.
Byakuya lifted his gaze from his work to stare emotionlessly at Renji, causing the vice-captain to gulp and avert his gaze. "Yes, Abarai. This woman is supposed to be a prodigy of Soi Fon-taichou's." His eyes burned into Renji's face, making him blush nervously. "I expect you will show her that we are not complete barbarians in this squad."
"O-of course, taichou..." Renji said quietly, turning to his work stiffly. "So... The crowd out there is waiting to see this scout?" he asked, trying to ease the awkward silence.
"Yes. They seem to be waiting on her arrival." The brunette captain replied, glancing up at the door. "Which should be any second."
As if on cue the door slid open, blurry, black shapes pouring inside in quick succession. Renji stared as the blurry black blobs focused into people, four men in a straight line, kneeling behind one woman, all of them bowed before Byakuya's desk. The woman rose, bowing to the captain formally and pulling down her face mask.
"2nd Squad 3rd Seat Aoki Tatsu reporting in, Kuchiki-taichou." she said briskly.
Renji froze, eyes widening as he took in the sight of the girl who had once been his friend. She was tall, only a couple inches shorter than himself and her long hair now reached past her waist. And she had filled out in their time apart! No one would ever think of Aoki Tatsu as being skinny again... She was lean and tough, muscle rippling under smooth ivory coloured skin. She wasn't outragously curvy like Matsumoto, and she wasn't tiny and flat like Rukia, she was athletic. Her curves were balanced out between a delectable ass and firm breasts that looked like they'd be perfect handfulls, totally proportioned. He dreamily imagined his hands trailing up those tight, curvy thighs and following the path his eyes made from her butt to her waist and further up to her...
He shook his head, had he just been thinking that about Tatsu? The same girl he'd protected from bullies at the Academy and who'd put braids in his hair when he'd fall asleep during break? No way!
"I thank you, Aoki-san. And your captain as well. Your assistance is much appreciated here." Byakuya's voice broke through Renji's thoughts, bringing him back to reality.
"I will pass your gratitude along to my taichou. Now," her face was serious and nonchalant, comfortable in her authority. "Where would you like my men?" she indicated the masked shinigami behind her, who all jumped to their feet and bowed at her gesture.
Byakuya's eyebrows rose slightly at the display of discipline and order, pleased. "One of your men should supervise the training courtyard, we are having trouble with brawling and misconduct. We also need men to help with the new recruits, they're restless so it will likely take two of your men. The last would be useful patrolling the office corridors to ensure that work is being done."
Tatsu nodded, turning to her men with fluid ease. "Alright, Shiki is to take the training yards, I want an immediate report should anything go awry." The man nodded and took off, going quickly to fufill his assigned duty. "Tama and Ichijou, you help with the recruits, I expect you can handle inexperienced new blood?" She received curt nods from the two men and indicated that they should leave. "Alright, Aidou you take the patrols, you catch anyone slacking off I want you to give them one warning and report their behavoir to Kuchiki-taichou, understood?" The last man nodded firmly and she dismissed him, turning back to Renji and Byakuya with the easy grace that came from authority. She expected her men to follow her orders without question, and they did without hesitation. It showed considerable faith in their leader that they trusted her judgement and power.
She smiled in wry amusement at Byakuya, "And myself, Kuchiki-sama?"
Byakuya blinked and gestured all around the office. "I daresay Abarai-fukutaichou and I can use your assistance here."
"Very well." she removed her headscarf, letting her hair fall completely loose, and tucked it and her face mask into the folds of her shihakusho. "Can I get you some tea, Kuchiki-taichou?"
Byakuya nodded as he returned to his work, "The Darjeeling Black would be pleasing."
"Of course." She turned to Renji and bowed, "Can I get you anything, Abarai-fukutaichou?"
Renji floundered, taken aback by her indifference. "Uh.. No, no. I'm fine thanks."
"Very well." she walked to the back of the room, sliding back a panel to reveal a small kitchen and beginning the process of brewing Byakuya's tea.
Renji just sat for a moment, staring at his work as if stunned. Did she not recognize him? He hadn't changed all that much since the Academy... Perhaps she was just being formal because he was a higher rank and his captain was here? Yes, that must be it.
"Abarai-san?" He jumped as her voice sounded directly behind him, turning to look at her.
"Y-yes?"
She leaned over his chair, arm extending to point at something on the page in front of him. He held back a shiver as her body heat washed over him and her chest brushed the back of his shoulders. "Your math is a little off here. Seven plus eight is fifteen, not fourteen. There are fifteen new cases of unusual Hollow activity in this sector."
Renji looked at where she pointed and blushed crimson when he saw his mistake. "Right! Sorry, stupid mistake." he laughed sheepishly, correcting it quickly and sighing mentally when her body retreated from his. She turned back to Byakuya, handing him his tea. They exchanged polite words before Tatsu pulled up a spare chair and pulled some of Renji's unfinished paperwork towards her, looking them over and grabbing Renji's spare brush so she could fill in the important parts.
"I need you to sign this, Abarai-san." she said, holding out the page for him.
He gulped, eyes trailing to her thrust out breasts, currently pressed against the edge of his desk. He blinked, signing the page she was holding distractedly and trying to look at anything but her. They continued to work in silence, Renji finally shaking off his nerves and concentrating on his work. But he could feel her eyes on him every so often and it made him uncomfortable. He looked up to see her staring at him, face tipped to one side curiously. When she saw his attention on her she turned back to her work, as calm and stoic as before. Though he could have sworn he saw a hint of a blush across her pale cheeks.
//
A few uninteresting hours later, while they continued to work in almost complete silence, Tatsu suddenly seemed restless. Though they'd barely said anything as the time ticked by, only the occasional request for a signature or to pass something closer, the silence all of a sudden became tense. A few moments later Tatsu jumped to her feet, bolting to the window in a flash just as one of the men that had come with her burst through the glass.
"Tama!" she said, expression strained as she caught him, supporting him. The man was bleeding from his side and his clothing was torn in many places. "What has happened? Where is Ichijou?" she demanded. Even though the situation seemed to have taken a drastic turn her voice remained calm, commanding.
The man called Tama coughed, blood splattering on the floor. "H-Huge Hollow, out by the training center where we had the new recruits. Ichijou is trying to hold them off, the new ones are scared stiff." He coughed harder, the sound sickeningly wet. "I-I came as fast as I could."
Tatsu nodded, "You've done well, Tama. I'll take it from here." she laid the man back, turning to Byakuya and Renji, both of whom had risen to their feet in alarm. "I need to go to my men. Will one of you call a relief squadron from 4th for Tama? There will likely be others injured by the training center as well."
Byakuya strode forward, lifting the now unconscious officer into his arms. "I will take him to 4th Squad and order a relief team for you. Abarai, you will go with her to exterminate the Hollows."
Renji nodded, "Yes, sir." He walked to the broken window, hand already on his sword.
"Thank you." Tatsu said, already halfway into shunpo. She raced ahead of Renji easily, her flash step considerably faster than his, and arrived at the recruitment site just in time to see her subordinate, Ichijou, tossed like a ragdoll into a nearby wall.
A growl escaped through her clenched teeth as she went to kneel beside the prone body. Renji followed a moment after, panting with the effort of trying to keep up with her. He stepped forward as if to lift the fallen soldier, only to have the blonde woman beat him to it. She lifted the man with surprising ease, flashing him over to the panicked group of quivering newbies. "All of you! Watch this man and do not allow anything to come near him until the relief team gets here. Am I understood?" she barked at the wide-eyed youngsters who nodded helplessly and surrounded the injured man who'd protected them. They were desperate for something to do, needing a focus before the hysteria set in.
"Abarai-fukutaichou!" Tatsu called to him, eyes eerily dark as she looked at her officer's still form. "You should take care of your recruits... They need their Vice Captain."
He knew that look, he'd seen it on many different faces over the years. That look meant that she didn't want his help with the hollow, it meant that the battle had become personal. Her men, who trusted her entirely, had been greivously injured by this creature. She meant to make it pay for that.
He nodded and turned to the recruits, "I'll leave the hollow t' you then... Tatsu." he said, seeing her face soften in gratitude before she was out of sight. He turned to his men, examing their condition. A few were injured, some unconscious and bleeding, lying surrounded by their comrades. Others were less hurt, leaning on their friends for support or cradling broken limbs. But no one's injuries were life-threatening and overall they seemed okay.
"Alright, you lot!" Renji called briskly, voice ringing with command. "Gather the injured and head for the training center! Get goin'!"
He led them into the makeshift shelter, organizing his soldiers into groups. The healthiest of them formed a circle around the less fortunate, a guard against attack. He had led them into the basement, where the building's foundations were strongest, the last thing his skittish recruits needed was a building falling down on there heads. He frowned at their trembling forms, they were scared stiff.
"Alright. I'm going to assist Aoki-san, I want all of you to stay here until you hear forom me, got it?"
There were mixed mumbles and nods, a few shouts of 'yes, Abarai-fukutaichou!' and Renji nodded in awknowledgement.
Once he came back out, it was to a blur of heated battle. Zanpakuto steel clashed against Hollow claws with a resounding cry that quivered through the air. Renji drew Zabimaru, ready to jump in if needed, but Tatsu was holding her own without him. Teeth bared in a feral smile with eyes flashing like the blade she was swinging, she was a fiery maelstrom of female battle-fury.
Renji blushed slightly when he realized that even in the midst of all this chaos he could still see the beauty in her features and form. He just couldn't seem to find the sweet, shy little girl he'd once known in the tough, in-control woman he now saw.
"Sakidasu, Aiyoku Yuka!**"
Suddenly the blade Tatsu had been holding lengthened and stretched, becoming a bladed quicksilver whip. She slashed the plated disks of steel across her body blood bursting from the jagged wound that broke out on the hollows face. Black, inky marks spread across the bleak white expanse of its mask and when Renji looked, he noted with some irony that the marks formed into the shape of a lily. The flower you bring for the dead.
"Herufaia!***"
The lily-mark erupted in eerie green-black flame, the Hollow's unearthly scream of agony piercing Renji's ears and causing him to drop his sword in favour of covering his ears. Tatsu just watched calmly as the creatures body gradually melted down into a puddle of black and white. The melted Hollow dissolved into the air into a shower of soul particles at her feet. she 'hmphed' lightly and turned on her feet, looking over at a very stunned looking vice-captain.
The redhead just stared up at her as he retrieved his sword from the ground and resheathed it. She'd looked so... sexy as she'd taken that hollow down. So strong and dominating. The look in her eyes as she'd dealt that fatal blow had been devastating.
His mouth went dry as he looked at her, shihakusho torn at her shoulder to reveal creamy white skin, hair mussed and tousled, and a small gash on her cheek. The cut on her face dripped a single, ruby drop of blood, coming dangerously close to her lips. He felt the sudden urge to lap the blood from her skin with his tongue and caught himselfleaning forward slightly to do just that when she came closer.
He cleared his throat to hide the blush as he quickly shift from awe to concern. "Are ya hurt?"
She smiled softly, eyes no longer holding the same predatory edge they had moments before. With the warrior Tatsu gone Renji found it a little easier to reign in unwanted thoughts and cravings. "No, I am fine. Thank you for asking... Renji-kun." she hesitated on his name, expression a little unsure as she waited on his reaction.
He just grinned, "So ya do remember me!"
She laughed softly, the sound light and tinkling, like a bell. "How could I forget?" The smile faded, eyes growing distant again, "But, of course, that was a different time..." She turned her face away from him, voice cool, "Congratulations on all of your success, Abarai-san."
Renji frowned, upset that her formal mask had been put back in place. "Thanks. Same to you..." he murmured politely, disappointed. He looked at her face, the pristine ivory marred only by the laceration of one cheek, and still strangely soft for the injury, as though the gash had attempted to taint the feminine curve of flesh but had failed. "You should get that checked." he said, watching another red bead of blood flow down to her jaw.
"Get what looked at?" she replied distractedly, eyes fixed on a stray lock of his vibrant hair.
Their eyes met and, for a moment, Renji could have sworn the sensual jolts of electricity between them were visible. Sexual tension crackled in the air around them, sparking like liquid flame along her nerve endings when he reached out to wipe away the blood on her face.
"This." he answered quietly, thumb stroking across the cut gently.
Tatsu blinked and the spell was broken she jerked her head out of his reach a little too quickly, only to reached up to the wound and speak as if nothing had happened. "I hadn't even noticed it was there. But it's alright. Not deep." she stated curtly, almost like she was giving a report. "It will heal quickly enough on its own."
She turned to the training center and began walking towards it, Renji falling into step beside her.
"So..." she ventured, looking at him after a few moments, apparently composed now despite the awkward moment. "If the Relief Team here yet?"
//
Their goodbyes were as stiff and formal as protocol dictated, their actions and words revealing nothing of the burning desire that simmered just under the surface. Renji was almost sad to see her go, a part of him wishing desperately to regain the friendship they'd once shared, but he was also relieved. Without her in his sight, tempting him, his mind was a little more clear. And his captain didn't seem to care that his subordinate acted strangely around the 'girl from 2nd'. Byakuya did not dwell on such trivial matters.
She had done her job, Renji had done his. So they would part ways again, head home. And try to forget that the person they once knew had changed so much in their time apart. They would try to keep those innocent, childish memories pure, despite the fact that they were already tainted.
They would never see eachother the same again...
//
They were laying in a grove of trees, starlight filtering through the leaves. It was past curfew, but they didn't care. It was too fun to lay in the grass and watch the stars, especially when they weren't supposed to. They did this alot back in their school days, sneaking out of their dorms to enjoy the night. They had tried to convince Rukia to come along too but she'd said she needed her 'beauty sleep'. Ever a princess, even then.
But it was strange, he hadn't been to the Academy in years, and yet, here he was. He looked down at himself, he was wearing his usual bedclothes, namely the white and pink yukata he wore when out of uniform. He was himself, not 40 years ago but himself today. He turned his head to look beside him at his nightly star-gazing companion.
Tatsu was her grown-up self as well, dressed in a plain black kimono that only just grazed her thighs. He gulped, this was not a memory of the past.
"This's gotta be a dream..." he murmured, more to himself than to her.
"Yes, I think it must be." she replied anyways, rolling onto her side so she faced him.
He licked his lips nervously, this was one hell of a dream! Tatsu looked sleepy and sexy, hair looping in a tousled golden halo around her face. And her legs, gods her legs! Even the tight fitting pants she'd worn before did no justice to those long, lean collumns of smooth ivory flesh. He wanted to lick all the way up them and bite a mark into one silky thigh.
She bit her lip, apparently giving him a similar examination and her eyes glinted with lust.
"You're different..." she murmured, "Masculine. Strong...Tempting..."
Her voice sent a shiver up his spine. "You are too. Sexy." his voice was husky.
She edged herself closer to him, eyes flickering between his face and his body. Suddenly she climbed on top of him, straddling his hips in one swift movement. He gasped and blushed, feeling himself harden as the warmth of her body settled over his crotch. "T-Tatsu..." he whispered, "W-we shouldn't...."
"Why not?" she whispered hotly, leaning down to nip at his ear, "If this is a dream, why not enjoy it?"
She had a point, he supposed, and her hot mouth doing entirely sinful things to his ear and neck was not helping his thought process. "I-I guess..." he answered lamely, groaning helplessly while her hands parted his yukata and stroked over his chest and sides. Her hands were fast and hot, moving over him purposefully and removing what little clothes he had quickly.
She bit down on his neck lightly, sucking and nipping, while her hands mapped out every muscle and scar. She traced his tattoos with interest, loving their tribal darkness on his skin. But when she reached down to stroke him he couldn't stand it anymore. He flipped her over onto her back lips crashing down on hers with carnal force. She was surprised for a moment but responded readily and buried her hands in his thick hair. He dove into her mouth, savouring the sweet, tangy taste. Like honeysuckle and lemon. When he was forced to part for breath he moved down her jaw and neck instead, leaving a darkened mark at the base of her pale neck. He tugged at her clothes impatiently, wanting, needing, to feel her skin against his. She wiggled under him, easing his way, until they were both naked in the grass with moonlight reflecting off their already sweat slickened bodies.
He stroked his large hands down her slender back, making her arch up against him. While he shuddered from the feel of her skin gliding against his, soft and supple, he continued his hands path down, over the firm curve of her ass to her gorgeous thighs, lifting them up and over his hips. They were close, flesh nearly fused together as they stroked and petted. Tan on white, ruby on gold, skin and hair and flesh and sweat, tangled and desperate with throbbing, keening desire.
He kissed his way to her breasts, perfect handfulls, just like he'd thought, and proceeded to suck hungrily at her peaked nipples. The moan she gave him was throaty and deep and he growled in return when her nails dug into his back. He bit down harshly, licking away the love bite even while she cried out and whimpered. She was so delightfully responsive, arching and moaning for each of his touches. Demanding more with her wet, soft mouth all over his body. He groaned huskily as he entered her, filling her with fast, hard pumps that had her writhing under him. He moaned, growling rumbles deep in his throat, as she surrounded him with hot, wet, silk. His pace was fast and hard and she had to bite into his shoulder to hold back a scream as she came over and over again. It wasn't long before he reach orgasm as well, burying himself deep inside her and filling her with cum.
But as they lay there, panting and slick, he felt a breif tug on his mind...
//
And he woke up alone, aroused and unsatisfied. Just as she too, awoke.
But she was the only one who cried...
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