damned_institute | Day 28: Main Street

"I won't need him for the whole night," Renji said. "Only about an hour or so at the beginning. There's only so much he can learn in one day, and then he just needs to practice it. Which he doesn't need me there for." He shrugged. "I know you like working with him. So how about have him report to me at the beginning of the night, while Ed's making your sword. That'll be about the right amount of time, all said. Then after you can take him, and I'll go with whoever else and work the rest of the night in the basement." It seemed like the best solution; stuff would be accomplished.

He frowned. "Yeah, I'm afraid so." He cleared his throat. This was awkward, and not something he was comfortable talking about. But he felt like Hitsugaya needed to be aware of what was going on. "I... I think you should be aware. Rukia and I are... close." He hoped that implication would be enough for Hitsugaya to get the gist. While it was the truth, he was decidedly uncomfortable saying something like 'we're lovers' out loud. At least to someone else from Soul Society. Telling Daemon had been a rather special case and a moment of profound upset and weakness.

"I keep my personal life separate from my duty. Though... she is always first in my mind." That was something he felt the Captain should be aware of as well, and something he hoped the man would understand. He didn't know if Hitsugaya had anyone he was that close to, but he seemed passionate enough that he could at least imagine the sentiment. "I hope this doesn't cause trouble. But I also know that Kuchiki-taichou does not approve." There was more to say - a lot more, but best to start with the basics of it.

Hitsugaya nodded slightly. 'Like' was a relative term, but Artemis had grown on him. He wasn't entirely certain why, considering how many dumbass mistakes Artemis had made in his short time working with Hitsugaya, but there was something in the boy that Hitsugaya couldn't help but find at least halfway worthy of his attention, and he wasn't one to ignore his gut. Nine times out of ten, his instincts were true. "That's fine," Hitsugaya said. "I'll let him know." And possibly berate him for not explaining just what was going on with Farfarello.

He raised an eyebrow as Renji began to talk about his relationship with Rukia. He had never been completely certain about the relationship between Renji and the Kuchiki girl, had taken it as a childhood friendship like his relationship with Momo (what the hell was wrong with her?), and certainly not as a romantic fling. The idea of romantic interest on the job had never entered his mind. But hey, to each their own. It was a little strange to see a commoner and a noblewoman have this kind of relationship, but Renji was well on the path to position as a captain of the Gotei 13 on his own. As a captain, the boundary between nobility and commoner didn't matter, even if that commoner was as gruff as Abarai Renji.

"Kuchiki-taichou takes issue with it..." Hitsugaya echoed. The thought of dealing with Byakuya at the moment was not a pleasant one. He wasn't sure exactly what had happened between the captain and Momo, but he was sure he didn't like the thought of it. Until he knew more about it, he wasn't going to say anything. "So long as this doesn't interfere with your duty, your personal life is your own damn business. The same goes for Kuchiki-san for all I care. What the hell is Kuchiki-taichou's problem, anyways? You'll be a captain soon enough, so there's no issue of station..."

That was pretty much the answer that Renji had been hoping for, and expecting. "I'm only bringing it up because of Kuchiki-taichou," he said. "He's in... a temper. And I haven't really known him to be like that before." He shrugged, shifting uncomfortably. "I only say this because of the situation we're in. Normally I wouldn't speak of my captain in such a way. But... the trust between us is broken." He was still hedging a little, because he didn't like speaking disrespectfully of his Captain, but where they were now, it was important that Hitsugaya know what was going on.

"And he--" he stopped cold as Hitsugaya's speaking of rank finally sank in. "What? Excuse me?" He had to have heard that wrong.

Hitsugaya listened quietly, considering his words, but he couldn't think about something else when Renji began speaking about Byakuya's temper and broken trust. Byakuya was angry. Renji and Momo were friends. Byakuya broke Renji's trust. Either he'd done something to Rukia, or he'd done something to Momo...and Momo was the one with an injured lip. He stiffened slightly as he looked to Renji. "This doesn't have anything to do with whatever happened to Momo, does it?" Maybe he was looking for a reason to assault the other captain. Maybe he just wanted clarification as Momo had been so quick to force Hitsugaya to talk about other things...

"What?" Hitsugaya said in response to Renji's confusion. He wasn't quite sure what had surprised the vice captain about his words. It couldn't have been about rank...he had his bankai, wasn't he intending on becoming captain? Why else would he be where he was?

"Umm..." Renji shifted uncomfortably again. "Sorry. I don't know why you'd think I'd be promoted," he said. And he honestly didn't; he hadn't achieved his bankai with any eye toward rank. He'd done it so that he might have a chance of defeating his Captain, of saving Rukia, and it hadn't done him a damn bit of good. And considering his recent record of disobeying orders, insubordination, attacking his own captain... he wasn't sure what the hell Hitsugaya was thinking.

Did Renji actually not have plans for promotion? What the hell? And even if that wasn't his plan, he should have known he was on the path for it. Did he need a list?

"For one," Hitsugaya said while still wondering why he even needed to bother going over this, "You have your bankai. That makes you a candidate if nothing else did. If not that, then you have my recommendation, you likely have Kenpachi's, and I'm sure that Ukitake-taichou would be willing to support you for your efforts in protecting one of his shinigami. Kyouraku-taichou would go along with whatever Ukitake-taichou suggests. That's four of the six you would need to be considered right there. Either path you choose, I don't see promotion far off in your future, especially after what you've done here."

He folded his arms across his chest. "Are those enough reasons, Abarai-fukutaicho?" he asked.

Renji stared at Hitsugaya as if he was speaking a foreign language. He'd only been a Vice Captain for two months. While he'd been the sixth seat in the Eleventh division for quite some time, that hadn't ever involved leading anyone. The idea was just... bizarre. And... bizarre.

He crossed his arms over his chest, feeling distinctly uncomfortable with the entire subject. It felt like something had just flown out of the distance and nailed him between the eyes.

"I got my bankai for her, to protect her," he said, very quietly. He never would have admitted that much if he hadn't been put completely off balance by the entire turn of conversation. And he had only tried so hard to become a Vice Captain so that he could speak to Rukia again. It was something no one but Rukia knew.

The whole idea just seemed... ridiculous. He'd gotten the distinct impression that he was a shitty Vice Captain, from his short time with Byakuya; he didn't know why anyone would think he'd make any kind of... Captain. Renji looked away, just out at the street. "Hadn't really occurred to me," he finally said.

He was also getting the feeling that Hitsugaya thought he was an idiot, too. And he was probably right.

Renji's response caught Hitsugaya off guard. Although he had never admitted it to anyone, not even Momo, his reasons were the same. He hadn't even wanted to become a Shinigami until she goaded him into it. He was the captain he was because it put him in a position where he could protect her, because some childish notion inside of him told him that he "So did I," he replied, just as quietly, before shaking it off. What was getting into him? Why was he feeling so weak today?

No, there had been other reasons for his becoming a captain. He wasn't just there to protect Momo, he was there to knock some sense into the 10th Division. He was there to actually get things done that needed to be done. It wasn't just about Momo. That wasn't it at all.

Clearing his throat, he added much louder. "Well, idiot, maybe you should start thinking about it. You don't get your bankai without some expectations for the good of Soul Society. When we get back, you have my recommendation."

Renji had to wonder if Hitsugaya was crazy. But this wasn't really an argument worth having. He didn't twitch at being called an idiot; he'd been called much worse in his day. "I see," he said. He supposed he would have to think about it. But the person he really wanted to talk to about this strange idea was Rukia. She'd probably help him laugh it off as ridiculous, and then everything in the world would be back in balance. "Thank you, sir."

He cleared his throat, trying to pull himself back on track. They'd been talking about Byakuya before things had gone off onto that bizarre tangent.

It had been about broken trust. Hitsugaya no doubt knew the important parts of the fighting between Renji and Byakuya. At least he hoped so. "I don't know if things changed after Rukia almost got executed," he said. "Right now I am ashamed to say that I don't... can't trust my own captain. And earlier, River told me... Kuchiki-taichou struck either Rangiku or Momo. I don't know which." And it made him angry all over again; he had no idea why Byakuya would do such a thing.

Suddenly words that he had blocked out and forgotten from earlier in the day, before the random kill kissed him, came flooding back into his memory. He heard Momo's words again,

"Signum already punched him really hard in the gut when she saw him hit me"

And the anger that had been lost when everything stopped making sense came back. Byakuya...he was going to pay for this!

The fury was evident in his face and his eyes as Renji finished speaking. Without bothering to respond to Renji's response, he turned and moved to bolt.

Renji reacted out of instinct more than anything else. Really, if he'd been thinking about it, he probably would have either let Hitsugaya go, or at least stopped him in a different way. But there wasn't that time for consideration; Hitsugaya was fast, and angry.

But somehow, Renji still managed to whip a hand out to grab the captain by the back of the shirt, pulling him up short.

"I got forced to check my temper this morning," he said, tone dry. "I don't think it's a privilege you should get, either, even if you are higher ranked than me."

The hawaiian shirt Hitsugaya was wearing had made the perfect handhold for Renji, and Hitsugaya felt himself being jerked back by Renji's strong grip. Bastard! "Give me one good reason to check my temper," Hitsugaya growled in response to Renji, realizing that in these weakened Gigai there was no way to easily dislodge himself from the Vice Captain without needlessly weakening both of them for the coming night. And besides, Renji wasn't the one who had laid a hand on Momo. Even at the height of his anger, he avoided harming those who had not earned his ire.

In Soul Society, his main concern would have been one of the Captains dying; he wasn't certain who was stronger, Byakuya or Hitsugaya. Obviously, that wasn't something he needed to worry about here. But in a way, here he was even more worried.

"Well," he said, taking his time with his words because he needed to think, and because maybe it'd force Hitsugaya to calm down a little more. The real problem was, Renji did want to see someone haul of and break Byakuya's face at this point, though he would prefer it was himself. "Getting drugged this late in the day would be kinda dumb, since you'd still be drooling on yourself at the beginning of the night," he said. Which was a valid reason, at least. "And here might not be the best time or place to declare war on Kuchiki-taichou's pride. Though I guess it'd be cosmically hilarious if you knocked him off and kept Ichimaru." That was rather overstating things. He didn't think Hitsugaya picking a fight with Byakuya would be that much of a disaster, but maybe it'd at least get Hitsugaya to stop and think a little.

For a moment, he sounded very bitter. "And frankly, sir, this also puts me in a bad place, because I want to smash his fucking nose myself, but even if my trust in my captain's been broken, I still have a duty to him." That was the most uncomfortable thing of all. Renji wanted to hurt Byakuya, himself, but as his Vice Captain he should be trying to defuse this situation, stand between his captain and Hitsugaya and keep everyone working together.

He let go of Hitsugaya's shirt, shoving his hands in his pockets. "If you cool down and still think it's a good idea, I won't get in your way again."

Damnit, he was right. Why the hell did he have to be right?

"Fine," Hitsugaya said, relaxing somewhat. "I'll let it be for now. But if he harms her again, I will kill him." It was an extreme sentiment, but Hitsugaya was an extreme man when it came to Momo.

The idea of him choosing Ichimaru over Byakuya was so outrageously silly that he might have smiled if he weren't too busy trying to control his rage. Instead he just kept his back turned to Renji. "I need to find Fowl."

Renji had to wonder, for just a moment, if Hitsugaya would have quite this attitude if it was Rangiku, instead of Momo. He'd been getting a weird feeling off of the whole thing since he saw Hitsugaya punch the one guy in the cafeteria. He really needed to ask Momo about that sometime.

"And if he ever lays a hand on Rukia, I'll be killing him," Renji agreed, seemingly unbothered by the idea of killing his captain, at least in these kind of cases. He wasn't at all happy about Byakuya touching Momo, either, since they were friends, but it didn't send him in to quite as much of a homicidal rage.

"Alright," he said. "I'll be awaiting my orders for tonight."

Some part in Hitsugaya's subconscious chose not to follow the logical reasoning that followed Renji's statement about Rukia in relation to his feelings about Momo. Instead he focused on the task at hand: preparations for tonight. "If you see Sora," he said. "Find out if he's joining us tonight."

He glanced at Renji over his shoulder. "Orders will be up as soon as I've conferred with Fowl."

"Will do," Renji said. He didn't see any reason to prolong the goodbyes. Neither him nor Hitsugaya were big talkers. He bowed, then headed off to find Momo.

[going here]

Day 28: Main Street

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