Romance and Rivalries

Chapter Five
by Rob

Sosuke Aizen was a man who’d learnt not only to see beneath the surface of things, but also to see beneath even that. He was a man who could see the shadows that even the shadows cast, the dreams that dreams dreamt and that world hidden in the reflection of the water’s surface. Life was full of hard lessons but learning to remain ever vigilant, ever observant, was one lesson that came easy to Aizen. His hardest had been learning to know his enemies better than they knew themselves, but – in time – that too was a lesson well learnt. It was of course impossible to know everything, but by understanding those around you better than they understood themselves, to expect the unexpected in every way, that was the closest one could get to omniscience.

To know how someone would think, feel, react and perceive an event was to fully comprehend their very being. It meant that they were effectively pieces on a chessboard, beings under your control, under which you knew how they would move and how that would best serve you. Those master manipulators like Byakuya-san were always able to understand how their pieces moved, always understood that even the pawn itself could prove to be the vital piece of the puzzle, but by merely planning one move ahead one left oneself . . . open to unexpected attacks. Aizen was not on the level of Byakuya, he was on level with the likes of Urahara, he was able to plan his moves three or more paces ahead, knowing how to move his men in order to win the game. He knew unlike others to treasure even the pawns and to sacrifice pieces when necessary, he also knew to take things slow as time really was rarely of an essence.

What was life if not a game? What were people if not merely pieces on a board? Life was a game that Aizen wished to win and to do that he had to use all the pieces on the board to his best advantage, he would openly admit to manipulation and deceit but never to those whom were still wrapped in his web of lies, to those he was merely the mild-mannered bookworm, never the cold-hearted mastermind.

No one was ever born on top, it was a place one must earn and always threatened by those below, however Aizen had filled that place on top only a few years ago with the creation of his new businesses, and now he had merely to defend his place from would-be usurpers. It was a well-known fact that in establishing his businesses he’d in a sense declared ‘war’ on a few others, even using his newfound powers to undermine any rivals that he had. Originally he’d been nothing but a law student working under Shinji Hirako, he worked his way from high school to university and soon had a Masters in both law and business, from there he’d went on to making new acquaintances and clever investments. It hadn’t been long before he’d set up the Arrancar Corp. in which he had a hand in law, pharmaceuticals, detective agencies and even a technological department.

However it hadn’t been all good and he’d been forced on a few occasions to file lawsuits against competitors who stood in his way, Shinji being one of them. To his knowledge the little blonde still despised him and was fighting off ill rumours to this day, always bitching about Aizen and court costs as if he was able to do something about it. It was like Aizen said however; sometimes sacrifices were necessary. Shinji was a smart man and always knew Aizen would one day betray him, but his distrust for Aizen forced the two at arm’s length and meant that Shinji never saw what hit him. He’d expected the obvious, but his distrust meant he never truly got to know Aizen for whom he was, he never learnt that Aizen despised the obvious and clung to the intricacies that made life so interesting, it meant that Shinji never could appreciate Aizen’s subtlety. That was the way the world worked though and Shinji had no right to complain. Aizen was a man who was a master of psychology, and it was because of that he could see the inner working of the blonde’s brain and use him as a pawn in his game . . .

In fact there was only one mind Aizen could not understand: Gin’s.

Gin was a man who defied all logic. Aizen had first met Ichimaru when he was still a child of eleven-years-old; it had been a bland, ordinary day until he spotted the child out of school, wandering about the back alleys of the Karakura. At first he’d merely overlooked Gin, finding him interesting for his albino-like qualities but ultimately not special enough to hold an interest for long. He was after all nothing but a street-urchin ditching school and perhaps running away from home. Aizen’s eyes lingered upon him for a short while, but it wasn’t until Gin walked that thin and dangerous line into the town’s red light district that Aizen grew wary, and when he saw the boy forcefully dragged into an alley he ran into action. He may not have been a caring man but there were some things even his cold heart could not ignore.

He ran to the boy’s aid, knocking down passers-by in the process, ignoring the looks he received or how late he’d be back for class, all he cared about was sparing the child’s life or innocence. The moment he turned and set foot in the alleyway he was shocked into stillness. Lying on the floor was the body of a grown man, twitching and jerking like he was receiving an electric shock. A pool of blood had grown from around his throat as he set forth such awful gurgling, spluttering noises Aizen could not even begin to describe . . . He was taking a dying breath, his eyes glassy and unseeing, and meanwhile Gin just stood there, unmoving. His skin looked so white that the specks of red blood on his cheek seemed all the sharper, and his bright, fox-like smile seemed all the more eerie as he held that bloody knife. The child’s only words were ‘He’d threatened me with a knife, can’t have that now, can we?’ to which Aizen stood completely speechless.

Needless to say he’d covered up the crime and took the time to get to know the child. It seemed Gin had came from a physically abusive foster home, although Aizen was relieved that there was no sexual abuse or neglect involved, and as a result of his home life the boy had taken to missing school and wandering the streets.

Aizen – in a fit of what seemed madness – became a mentor to the child, visiting him regularly and over time becoming a father figure to him, even convincing him to carry on with his schooling and education. It wasn’t a surprise then that with Aizen as his only role-model that he developed similar traits, becoming just as manipulative, secretive and emotionally unavailable as his fatherly figure. What did surprise Aizen Sosuke however was that to this very day Gin was a mystery to him. He still had no idea why Gin was in care and he never knew what the younger man felt or wanted, and frankly he didn’t quite trust his friend either. Despite this Gin seemed to know Aizen perfectly well, always knowing how he felt, what he desired and what he was thinking sometimes better than Aizen himself knew, and the very fact his pupil had now became the master terrified him. It was part of the reason he still remained so close to Gin even after all this time, he knew well to keep his potential enemies close to him.

So when he had phoned Gin at approximately midnight, the Saturday of Shihoin’s party, and asked his pupil and friend to meet him at his house in an hour’s time he had foolishly expected his order to be carried out. That was the reason why – as he left the headquarters’ office – that he was completely surprised to see Gin standing outside the doors to reception, with that familiar smile upon his lips . . .

Aizen kept his face passive and calm, he refused to give any indication of his surprise lest he give Gin the upper hand, and instead closed the office doors behind him as he walked down the stone steps onto the street.

Gin stood unmoving behind him, cast in complete darkness as he lurked in a corner, he was hidden in a way which was perfect for people watching but unnerving to all those being watched. He shortly began to gracefully descend the steps and began to walk in time with his elder.

It was a bitterly cold night and so Aizen had dressed accordingly with an expensive, black Armani suit with white accessories such as scarf and gloves. Gin meanwhile was dressed in a white yukata, which although fashionable – despite being out of season – must have left him incredibly cold and even open to some hostile or provocative remarks in the city after midnight. He didn’t see it fit to question his friend however, not considering how he had called him out at such a time, it was not his right to. Instead he kept up a brusque and light pace, keeping a subtle smirk on his lips as he watched Gin with amusement, admiring the way he could look graceful, jovial and nonplussed even at such a time of night in such an area.

“Ya know, I could hear ya in the main office.” Gin said cheerfully, pretending not to notice the plain-clothed bodyguards that walked no more than twenty feet away from them at all times. “Ya talk to all your clients like that?”

Aizen gave a soft little smirk, the corner of his mouth perking up slightly as his eyes sharpened considerably. He removed his glasses and pushed a hand through his brown locks, smoothing them out so that only one stray lock fell over his features, then turned his head so that his chin was slightly out and his gaze fixed at an unknown spot up ahead.

“Were you eavesdropping again, Gin?”

“Nah, of course not! I wouldn’t dream of eavesdropping on you, Aizen-sama.”

He said that so casually that many other men would have been inclined to believe him, however Aizen had trained himself to detect that very subtle hint of sarcasm that laid on his friend’s lips, that one that spoke of mockery and contempt. It seemed always with Gin what he said and what he meant were always two entirely different things, and right now he seemed to be saying ‘if you were foolish enough to get caught then don’t complain about the consequences’. What made Aizen irk most of all was that honorific – ‘sama’ – added onto his family name, that honorific which always sounded so insincere on Gin’s lips.

He didn’t fool himself; of course Gin was being insincere in his respect, that much was after all obvious. He had heard from Kaname that he personally believed Gin to be disingenuous, and apparently even Grimmjow’s ‘respect’ was a complete farce if one heard the things he said away from his boss’s ears, but as long as the two did what he paid them to do and showed him respect to his face then he didn’t care what they said behind his back.

“Then may I ask how you managed to overhear my conversation with my client?” He said softly, almost drawling his words as they walked cheerfully along.

“Ah, I wasn’t at home when ya called, I was over in Rangiku’s bar, she’s got a theme night on as ya can tell.”

Gin lifted his arms and bowed his head slightly in a mock pose, a weak smile lay on his lips but his eyes were soft and relaxed, showing that he was content and happy with the situation at hand. Aizen was forced to note at once the almost feminine style of the yukata, like most of Gin’s clothes the style was plain and not the least bit fussy, however – again like most of Gin’s clothes – it covered his entire body save a small expanse of chest, and covered his arms and hands entirely. It worried Aizen somewhat because the style only accentuated Gin’s thin frame, and his friend was incredibly thin at the best of times . . .

“Rangiku’s not too far from here, ya know?” Gin answered brightly, as he regained his pace with Aizen. “Thought I’d do ya a favour and meet ya at your work. Nice, ain’t I?”

“Indeed, you are, so nice that I am – in fact – loath to mention your birthday present to Kaname. Whilst it is true I cannot read Braille I am told your book choice was not at all appropriate.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, Kaname has a strong affection for Komamura-san and although he is more muscular than most, along with his excess hair and masculinity, I am told a book on ‘dog-rearing’ has deeply upset him. I believe some pranks go too far, Gin.”

“Oh, I must have picked it up by mistake, ya know me, Aizen-sama.”

They turned a corner and walked along the street casually, the moon was just visible behind a high-rise hotel and the stars were hidden behind a blanket of black night and artificial light below. The air was crisp, cold and with each breath a cold mist expelled from their mouths; the noise of the town refused to die down, the cars seemed to be at a standstill despite the ungodly hour and people were going in and out of clubs and pubs, acting as if reliving their teenage years.

Beside him Gin was striding along as if without a care in the world. There was of course a slight pull in his lips and a paleness to his cheeks as he looked somewhat worried about his gift to Tousen, but if Aizen had to guess he would have said it was a false display of guilt. Although Gin and Kaname were well acquainted and were good friends the two were prone to bouts of intense rivalry and dislike. Gin tended to act out some of his crueller pranks upon Kaname, and Kaname often retaliated in unexpected ways, more often than not that meant general indifference that drove Gin insane. This latest little ordeal was nothing unusual, but it was something Aizen disliked, after all he liked his men to act as a unit and with trust, bickering and fighting would be bad for morale, no matter how soon this incident would blow over it’d leave a mark on their trust for one another.

Aizen looked at Gin through the corner of his eyes and then cast his gaze ahead again, he didn’t want to chastise his friend at a moment like this because he had a favour to ask of him, but Gin was smart and his silence would perhaps alert him to the favour to come. He wanted to chastise him just to keep Gin on his toes, prove that he was not as predictable as his friend seemed to think, but he would still need to ask a favour afterwards and his chastisement would of course then seem false, letting Gin know that his assessment of him was indeed correct.

“Gin, I have a request of you. I am afraid I was forced to call you out in person for it is a matter too sensitive to discuss on the telephone, thus I am required to talk to you face-to-face.” He looked at Gin and saw that incessant smile gone, his eyes were somewhat frowning and his mouth was pouting, he seemed intrigued which was exactly the reaction he was hoping for. “Recently some allegations have been made in the Espada Law Firm, and I find myself needing to ask for your advice. I understand you are a close acquaintance with Luppi. How would you judge his character?”

“Luppi-san? He’s great, he’s the only one of the Arrancar Corporation who talks to me and ain’t afraid of me, he always keeps me company when I have work over there. If you were to let him go I’d miss him. Why do ya ask?”

“Luppi came to me yesterday stating he had overheard a conversation between Jeagerjaques and a young boy in the office, the boy was in school uniform and had threatened to come to me with a confession that Grimmjow had been harassing him. Luppi – along with several others – then saw Grimmjow and the boy in the cafeteria later on. Luppi claims that Grimmjow has sexually assaulted the boy and somehow has convinced him to keep quiet about the ordeal.”

“Really? Nah, I don’t believe it.”

Aizen frowned.

He had taken a risk going to Gin with this problem, as loyal as his friend was there was always the chance he would go to Kaname with this problem, and should that happen Kaname would likely take the matter into his own hands. He couldn’t afford to lose any of the defence attorneys working for him, each one was valuable and helped to oversee his other business aspects, and should one side of his business fail then the others would no doubt suffer also. He had no personal preference to either Grimmjow or Luppi, but the evidence pointed to Luppi’s accusations being correct, in fact the security tapes had even showed a redheaded youth entering the building, conversing angrily with Grimmjow and then eating with him in the cafeteria. He knew from experience however he couldn’t take this further without solid proof, and for a clearer idea he had came to Gin, after all Gin knew the Arrancars better than anyone, perhaps even better than Aizen himself.

When Aizen had first started the law firm he had employed a wide variety of men and women, and when he opened other businesses he had employed again even more from all over the globe. This clash of cultures and people meant problems often arose, sometimes fights and sometimes claims of bullying or harassment, in which case Aizen was forced to hold meetings and then seminars, and for these seminars and lectures he often hired Gin for he was the only one with enough patience to teach anger management, harassment courses or assertive training. If the problems persisted or were serious enough then the main perpetrators would face Kaname, the man in charge of discipline within Arrancar Corps. Out of all his departments and businesses it was his law firm that caused the most trouble, and so Gin and Kaname often found themselves run ragged with work – not that Gin minded, the extra money on top of his teacher’s wages were most welcome.

They turned another corner and crossed a road, lucky to find the light on to ‘go’ as they reached it. Aizen carried on speaking as they walked through the crowds; “You teach at Karakura High, have you ever crossed a student by the name of Ichigo Kurosaki? Luppi used our detective agency to find out the student’s name and school, I believe he is genuinely concerned over the matter.”

“Huh? Kurosaki-kun?” Gin taught a lot of kids over the years but there was only a few that really stood out, and a redheaded brat in a Japanese school with anger problems was one of them, “Yeah, I teach him history along with Izuru, nice kid but a little odd. He does well at history though, other teachers got no complaints either.”

“Does he seem the sort to match Luppi’s story?”

“I don’t know,” Gin said, giving it serious thought, “Come to think of it he hates displays of affection and people touching him, he often fights Abarai-kun because he gets too close to him. Could be a sign of abuse, ya know? Ichigo’s a tough kid, but not strong enough to win Grimmjow-san in a fight . . .”

Aizen considered this seriously for a moment. It was true indeed Grimmjow had a reputation for street crime and violence growing up, but he had no actual criminal record and was insanely smart at law, Aizen had been willing to overlook his anger issues and take him on once he’d gotten qualified. He wasn’t prepared to drop his services just yet, but he wasn’t stupid, everyone had seen the huge scar on his chest that he’d worn with pride, claiming he’d gotten it from a ‘hot-headed strawberry’, and if the aforementioned strawberry was indeed the same Kurosaki in question it did not make Grimmjow’s case look good. In fact it added to his motivation for sexual assault against the boy, and an investigation would have to be led into the matter, maybe even involving the police.

“You are not letting your bias cloud your judgement?” Aizen asked softly, “I know you have a dislike for Jeagerjaques.”

“I’m just saying what I know, Aizen-sama. I know Luppi had it bad for Grimmjow and they broke up, but I can’t see him making up these kinds of lies. He did prank call Grimmjow thirty times in half-an-hour though, but that’s kind of like obsessive and creepy, not vindictive. Luppi’s a nice guy, I like him, but sorry to say his story seems to fit, ya going to have to talk to Grimmjow directly. I can’t see why Luppi would lie to ya, and ya got the pair on security tape, and Kurosaki-kun’s got the symptoms . . . It’s also well known he gave Grimmjow that scar too.”

“Very well. I will deal with the matter accordingly.”

Gin gave a soft nod and raised a hand to his lips, thinking hard for a moment about the situation at hand. He didn’t like Grimmjow at all but Kaname liked the guy even less, if it came down to a disciplinary meeting with Kaname then Grimmjow was liable to lose an arm and a leg.

It was harsh but not if he deserved it, and that was the thing, but Gin wasn’t sure he did deserve it. The matter would obviously need looking into but for the life of him he just couldn’t picture Grimmjow as a sexually aggressive guy, if anything he was like Zaraki-san and loved a decent fight but preferred his sexual partners to be willing, someone who fought back was totally off the menu like they should be. He could talk to Ichigo about it on Monday morning of course, pull him aside out of class and discuss the rumours with him, but he’d have to be careful not to name names. The whole thing was very serious; he’d have to be careful how he’d address the matter.

“I for one do not however believe the matter to be so simple,” Aizen carried on, “Grimmjow is currently on a rather low wage as he goes through his two-year training, he is looking most forward to his promotion next year and already had plans for a new apartment, not only that but he has a younger sister to look after. I believe their two cousins are currently raising her, but the fact remains a large chunk of his pay cheque goes to Nel. I find it unacceptable to believe he would risk it all for a quick roll in the hay with a schoolboy.”

“A schoolboy who’s of legal age,” Gin added quickly.

Aizen smirked.

He knew of course of Gin’s infatuation with his pupil, Kira Izuru, and he knew of the legal difficulties such relationships faced, and despite how his friend had sworn not to pursue a relationship such comments made him think otherwise. Of course if Gin were anyone else he could legally date Kira, but the fact of the matter was he wasn’t anybody else, he was the boy’s teacher. They could of course wait until Kira was eighteen and in university, but somehow he doubted Gin could wait that long, and judging from the rumours he’d heard about ‘extra tutoring’ and ‘preferential treatment’ he judged that to be the case. It was not his place to get involved but at the very least he had a duty to his friend to warn him.

They crossed by a small, crowded café on the way down the street and Aizen tried to hold back a moan of annoyance as teen idol J-Pop blasted into his ears, through the window he could see all sorts of teenagers and young adults dancing along. The streets of Karakura were indeed frightening at night, he could only be thankful that his next and final client of the night was not too far away, it meant he could retreat from his final meeting into the safety of his own home and rest for tomorrow’s trials. He would need to discuss matters with both Grimmjow and Luppi, and judging by how things went even need to involved Kaname. It would be a very stressful day. It would only be made worse with Grimmjow using his baby sister for sympathy and to guilt Aizen, and by no doubt a call from Gin at some point discussing something incredibly foolish he’d done with Kira. Aizen had a heart but he lacked empathy, especially with certain individuals on busy workdays.

“If you are trying to hint that your growing relationship with Kira-san is acceptable,” Aizen said coldly and firmly, “then I must inform you that it is not. If this were to go to court I could help you avoid jail time and fines, but you would be unable to teach again, and would be working full-time for me to pay me back for my legal skills. I do not recommend you risk a scandal by seeing this boy, Gin.”

“Aw, why not? He’s cute!” Gin tilted his head to one side and smiled brightly, “When you lean right into him he thinks you’re going to kiss him and his legs start shaking, he even stutters! He even does all my work for me when I ask, I think he likes me, and when he has a drink he goes all red and forgets about personal space! He really lets go when he drinks, ya know?”

“I do not care, Gin. You will remember how your last romantic liaison ended? It is clear you cannot judge who is right for you as far as relationships are concerned.”

“No fair!” Gin pouted. “If you’re referring to Tousen-san at the New Year’s party, we were both drunk and ya throw boring parties, in fact ya should blame Stark who spiked the punch. It’s not like I’ve ever been with anyone else anyway, and he was only a one-night-stand. ”

He folded his arms and stared off across the busy main road at the flashing lights of a nightclub, there was a steady stream of people heading inside and it was a welcome distraction as they walked.

He remembered that party pretty well; all the Arrancar employees of importance were there along with a few associates of Aizen and Kaname’s, Gin had been twenty-one at the time and still training to be a teacher, after a rough term getting to know the students and studying hard himself it’d been a nice break to have a big party. He remembered at some point drinking far too much, he could remember Kaname flirting with Komamura-san and then at some point he’d ended up in Aizen-sama’s office with Tousen-san. He hadn’t regretted losing his virginity to Tousen at all, but he had regretted the stains left on Aizen’s desk, as far as he remembered they’d blamed a low-ranked employee and tried not to look too guilty when they got fired the next day. Aizen eventually found out they’d gotten together, but luckily he’d still to this day yet to find out where they’d done it.

“Ya know . . .” Gin mumbled, “not that I have anything to compare it too, but Tousen’s pretty good for a blind guy.”

“Thank you for that mental image,” Aizen replied coldly.

They both stopped at the edge of the pavement. Rangiku’s bar was directly to their left where – should Gin wish it – he could return to his party, where hopefully he’d avoid the alcohol and any colleagues . . . but Gin’s house wasn’t too far away either, only twenty minute by foot, so his friend’s direction was decided regardless. His client however was waiting in a building to their right, less than five minutes away in what was officially the ‘upmarket’ part of town. It would not make sense to continue walking together, so as informative as their talk was it was time for them to finish and part ways.

“I trust you will join me for dinner today at five, Gin?”

“I’d love to, but I promised Zaraki-san I’d baby-sit for him, I’m hoping I can get Izuru-kun to join me,” Gin said cheerfully, making Aizen wonder if he was merely making excuses or actually sincere, “Sorry, but I can meet you and Tousen-san for tea if you like, about three?”

“I am afraid I have a meeting then. Eight?”

“Nah, can’t do that! I promised to tutor Izuru-kun some more, and I’m hoping he’ll let me stay over until Monday, ya know?” Gin smirked, “Besides, as of twenty minutes ago it’s now Sunday, technically you’ve had me for two days, you should let other people enjoy my company. I didn’t know you were so greedy, Aizen-sama.”

“Gin.”

“Don’t worry! I’ll make sure I get Izuru-kun to school on time.”

Aizen gave a smile reminiscent of the ones he so often gave during the day, one that seemed so innocent and calm, but one that hid the turmoil of his heart. He truly worried about Gin but it was impossible to know what the man felt, everything about him was so secret and hidden, it didn’t matter what the situation was at hand he rarely ever showed any sign of emotion. Very rarely did one see Gin look upset or angry, and it was virtually impossible even then to get him to say what he felt or needed, so to see him engaging in such dangerous activities – although very in character for him – was still somewhat worrying.

He cast a sad gaze across the town to his client’s building and tried to remember a carefree time in his life, and yet the sad thing was he couldn’t, he could not remember one single carefree memory. It seemed his whole life was cast in mind games and illusions, playing with other people and toying with them for his own benefit, and at times he wondered if he was even human anymore, if he could feel the things other people felt. Was it any wonder Gin was like he was, raised by a man who could no longer feel empathy or long for love? He could warn Gin all he could, but he knew the younger man would regardless do as he wanted anyway.

“Take care, Gin.” He said, walking away slowly.

“I will do, Aizen-sama,” Came the strong reply, “Bye, Bye!”

* * *

If there was one thing Kisuke regretted about family life it was definitely the early nights . . .

When they’d first fostered Renji-kun he was nine-years-old, and when they officially adopted him along with Jinta and Ururu a year later he was ten, with his two siblings four and three respectively. It had meant Kisuke and his husband had gotten to skip the waking up in the middle of the night for feedings, forgo the nightly toilet trips and enjoy the wonders of children who slept throughout the night and who were already toilet trained. The only trouble they ever really had from the kids was Renji and Jinta’s intense rivalry, and the situation between the two brothers was only made worse by their biological relation and family background; Renji being born out of wedlock whilst Jinta was born within. Yet despite being biologically full-blooded siblings the moment they’d been born they’d both been thrown into foster care, and it seemed that Jinta was pretty effected by that judging by his anger issues.

Still, although the three kids were admittedly a handful Kisuke wouldn’t have traded them for the world. He knew his friends often joked that he’d only adopted them for the free manual labour, but he really did love the little brats, he loved teaching them and training them, he loved annoying them and disciplining them, in short he loved everything about being a parent, except those damned early nights.

After all being a parent meant being unable to go out as much or even at all at times; dinners had to be cooked, discipline had to be carried out, injuries had to be tended to, and it wasn’t as though they could party all night with a teenager and two pre-teens. It was a shame of course because Yoruichi’s parties were amazing, but they couldn’t take the children with them when they’d be out so late and they also couldn’t expect Renji to baby-sit for so long, so it meant having to leave around midnight to get back home. Of course Yoruichi understood, she always did, but Kisuke missed having those late nights, heavy drinking sessions and wild parties, hell he was even starting to miss the mind-shattering hangovers and humiliating memories of the dreaded ‘night before’. Still, on the bright side at least it meant that Tessai and himself were able to get back early enough to enjoy some ‘alone time’, and because they could only consume so-much alcohol it meant they were drunk enough to be needy but sober enough to enjoy it. It was like a perfect balance.

The moment they’d gotten home Kisuke had made sure the shop was securely locked up whilst Tessai saw to the kids, then they’d left for the bedroom for some well needed ‘grow up, alone time’. It was the best time of the day in Kisuke’s opinion, nothing could be better than taking or being taken and waking up with a huge-ass smile, and right now Kisuke was going to do his damned best to recreate that feeling.

He stood silently in the corner of their bedroom with a subtle smirk, the corner of lips pulled up in a sort of half-smile as he undid his shirt and loosened his trousers. His shoes were in the entranceway with everyone else’s, his jacket was lost somewhere on the shop floor and his tie was lost forever in the winds of nowhere. He hated formal dress, he really did, but the bright side was getting to see his husband sitting on the bed undressing. Tessai looked hot as hell in those formal clothes, he really did, but to see him slowly stripping item by item as he prepared for bed was perhaps the sexiest thing that Urahara Kisuke could ever imagine. He loved the way that Tessai effortlessly made the whole thing look like a strip-show, each item of clothing he removed was done so slowly it was almost agonising, an inch of skin coming on show at a time as if to tease Kisuke, make him cry out for more knowing what the rest of that skin would look like.

Tessai was a tall man, exceptionally so, and his large, muscular frame made it seem like he was dominating the bed and its surroundings, and the more of that muscled flesh that came on show the more Kisuke had to swallow hard, thinking about how it felt to be completely dominated by that powerful, godlike body. They never really stuck to one position but some nights – like tonight – Kisuke would have a very clear preference, he’d just feel that thrill and desire which came with being completely dominated, with being totally submissive to someone else’s will, and to be held down as that strong body drove into him was a thrill like no other.

The only downside was that with kids sleeping not too far away they had to keep their voices down, which meant Kisuke screaming out behind a gag or biting hard into Tessai’s shoulder, but luckily for him Tessai seemed to get a thrill from hearing his stifled moans, his held back screams and faces of frustration as he tried not to cry out. It seemed Tessai really got a turn-on from seeing his lover at the brink of insanity that the overriding pleasure brought, knowing that he was so desperate for more he craved that vocal ability to express himself, and to see him on the brink of losing all self-control was completely erotic. Kisuke wasn’t ever a loud man or even one that ever lost his composure, so to see him let go in bed was enough to make even the strongest of men melt into a pool of sex hormones. It reminded Tessai of when they were teenagers, of when Kisuke was this mild-mannered, nervous, shy man who even a child like Hiyori could push around, and to feel that powerful edge that he was stronger than Urahara . . . it was a rush that he couldn’t quite express.

Kisuke licked his lips as he saw his lover now completely bare-chested, lifting himself just slightly enough to slide down his trousers and reveal his lower half to him, it was a sight Kisuke never got tired of, but as so many others pointed out to him he could be a little perverted at times . . . Still, it had been a nice night and to see Tessai now sitting naked on their marital bed, stretching in such a provocative manner . . . Why, Kisuke was simply a lowly-but-handsome shopkeeper with an extensive background in medical research, how could he possibly have the self-control to resist such a tempting sight? Why, could anyone blame him for giving in to temptation?

Slowly he sauntered over to his husband’s side, swaying his hips seductively as he went, his own trousers now dangerously low on his hips as that golden-brown trail down to his groin started to come on show. He noticed Tessai rummaging around their bedside table for his sleepwear, but as he dropped to his knees in front of his lover Tessai stopped and turned his full attention onto Urahara.


Kisuke looked up with his dark blue eyes and smirked at the sight of Tessai. His cheeks were dark red with arousal and embarrassment, his eyes somewhat dilated behind his glasses, and his mouth partially open in shock under that heavy moustache. It didn’t matter how many times they’d made love softly, fucked hard and fast or even just watched each other dreamily as they wandered to and from the bathroom naked, Tessai always looked like the blushing, virgin bride about to be taken for the first time . . . and Kisuke loved that look. Sometimes Tessai would stutter nervously or refer to him as ‘boss’ like they were still on the shop floor, other times he’d try and hide his arousal much to Kisuke’s amusement, but no matter what he did it just made him look even hotter. Of course Kisuke preferred the times when he was so hot, horny and stuck in disciplinarian mode that nothing would faze him, but his blushing moments were still equally as arousing.

“Ki-Kisuke!” Tessai stuttered, watching as his lover licked his lips provocatively, “Renji-kun and Jinta-kun aren’t even asleep yet!”

“So? Just make sure to be quiet.”

“B-But what if they start fighting, or break something, or cause trouble?”

“Then we’ll deal with it in the morning.”

Truthfully Urahara was a little worried himself, when they’d came home they’d found Renji asleep on the shop floor with Jinta teasing Ururu incessantly, it wasn’t exactly anything new but Tessai’s handling of the situation was. Renji’s punishment was working fine but Jinta obviously needed discipline of his own, what with bullying his sister and running out without permission at night to see his friends, so Tessai – in his usual way – decided to teach his troublesome son a lesson. Now Tessai usually dealt with Jinta’s discipline but today it seemed he’d wanted to be a little hard and extra stern, he’d wanted to really teach Jinta a lesson considering how running out without an adult knowing was very dangerous, and so – in a classic maternal moment – he’d handed over Jinta’s punishment to Renji.

Yeah, Kisuke didn’t understand either at first, but as Tessai explained older siblings already had their fair share of punishments and usually found their younger siblings a source of utmost pain, and so when given the chance they’d deal them the worst punishment ever as a form of revenge. Given Renji and Jinta’s already established relationship they could be sure Jinta would be severely punished, which was probably a good thing, but that said Urahara didn’t want to wake up and discover his youngest son had died during some sort of slave labour gig.

“Very well, Kisuke,” Tessai relented, “but be sure to keep your voice down.”

“Not a problem,” he replied arrogantly.

He gently pushed apart his lover’s legs and crawled forward between them, more than willing to help prepare Tessai for his role to come. He loved how intimate this position was, how he could be staring down Tessai at his most vulnerable point and still feel completely submissive, he was after all on his knees between his husband’s legs with that large, strong hand now stroking his head and despite everything he knew that he wasn’t the one in control, not really. He loved that feeling of complete helplessness, with those fingers running through his soft, blonde-brown hair and massaging his scalp, gently guiding him downwards, silently commanding him to take that length into his mouth. He loved feeling so exposed despite being the one clothed, and most of all he loved Tessai.

It always amazed him how easily his larger lover found it to become aroused, even after all these years, even now they’d not even begun and yet that thick member inches before his lips was beginning to rise and strain. It was long even in its limp state, and now with blood rushing below it was starting to look like a monster, and as Kisuke breathed hot and heavy onto it the thing only grew more.

He teasingly pushed out his tongue and licked a slow, long trail from the base of the penis to the tip of its head, making sure to follow the now pulsing vein and dip into the slit for a taste of the beading pre-come. His hands braced themselves upon Tessai’s chiselled, muscled thighs as he slowly delivered wet kisses up and down his member, occasionally going low enough to place his lips on the man’s large balls. Above him he could hear his lover gasping loudly and feel those hands tightening in his hair, the never gripped so hand as to hurt him but always hard enough to remind him of his lover’s power and strength, of his desire and lust. When he took one of those heavy balls fully into his mouth he felt Tessai hiss loudly and buck upwards, making Kisuke smirk and let go, before licking quickly several times up his length, almost like an eager kid licking an ice lolly.

The sounds Tessai made were deeply erotic. His lover was always the silent type and even in bed he wasn’t much of a moaner or screamer, instead when he came it was silent but always with hands clenching the sheets so hard they ripped, or nails scratching cuts down Kisuke’s back, or once even coming so hard he passed out and banged his head on the headboard. It was amazing to see the power he had over his lover, and to hear those gasping breaths and feel those bucking hips made his own arousal grow twofold.

Without warning to Tessai he quickly opened his mouth wide and took the whole length in at once. Immediately his partner thrust upwards and forced Kisuke to hold his hips down lest his choke. Whilst he’d learnt over the years the art of deep-throating Tessai was still a very large man, if he bucked too much it could force Kisuke to gag. He made sure to breathe deeply, to swallow continuously to not only trick his gag-reflex but to provide extra pleasure to Tessai, and as that thick length slipped in and out of his mouth he even began to hum Tessai’s favourite songs for some added vibration. It seemed either he was really good at oral activities or that Tessai had one too many glasses of wine, because soon enough he could taste the hot, salty tears of pre-come rapidly falling from that tip onto his tongue, and he could feel those heavy balls tightening in his left hand as he fondled them. He began to bob his head faster now, relishing in the sounds of both Tessai’s heavy breath and his own slurping as he sucked hard and fast, his cheeks hollowing out . . .

“Oh, Kisuke . . .”

Kisuke smiled inside, readying himself for the burst of come that was surely about to spring forth, and loving the moment, knowing his own skills had forced his partner to the brink of ecstasy and beyond. They’d have to wait ten or twenty minutes for Tessai to be able to go again, but in the meantime he’d return the favour and then they’d be able to get to the main act.

Yet before Tessai had a chance to come there came a deafening scream . . .

At once Tessai jumped up at the sound and knocked Urahara back, making him gag heavily as that mushroom head struck the back of his throat, causing his reflex to kick in and make him choke somewhat. Tessai however seemed to ignore him and was right away pulling on a pair of sleeping-bottoms and a dressing-gown that had been lying on the floor, before he had a chance to head out of their bedroom door they heard another scream – this time Urahara identified it as Jinta’s – and right away he was on his feet with his husband, racing out from their bedroom and down the corridor into Jinta’s bedroom.

Kisuke had honestly never felt more frightened than he had in that very moment; suddenly all thoughts of lust had gone from his mind and his only concern was making sure his son was safe.

It was an odd feeling as he’d always been the harsh parent and the strict one, the indifferent father who as long as his children were still breathing couldn’t care less about most other things, yet then and there he felt nothing but terror. His heart was pounding in his chest and his mind was blurred with visions of worst-case scenarios, true he was an expert at martial arts and handling weapons but what if someone had already hurt Jinta, or what if this wasn’t something he could fight or make go away? Damn it, what had fatherhood done to him? He was in the middle of a sex session and he’d stopped -! That was the first time in his life he’d ever turned away from sex, and this feeling of fright was far from a nice one. Hadn’t he taught all three children how to fight though, shouldn’t any one of them be able to defend themselves against attack? What the hell had happened?

When they finally reached the room they saw the paper door slid wide open, revealing a pitch-black interior with a TV running in the far corner, the images sending white flashes of light inconsistently about the room with the sound echoing about. Renji stood to the left of the door looking suspiciously guilty and terrified, meanwhile Ururu stood to the right looking terribly upset and also guilty. Kisuke’s alarm only grew when he still couldn’t see his son. Where was he? What the hell had these two brats done to him?

He was tempted to call out and shout for him but it wouldn’t do much good. Renji had learnt long ago to answer back to Urahara, and Ururu always turned to him first for support and help, but there was only one person who Jinta ever responded to . . .

“Jinta-dono!” Tessai called out. “Come on out! Jinta-dono!”

Right away from he corner of the room a blanket was thrown down and a short, redheaded boy came hurtling out of the room right into Tessai. The older man knelt down at once and Jinta flung himself into his father’s arms, clutching him tightly and shivering like a leaf in the wind, his eyes were scrunched shut and he was so pale that Urahara was forced to reach down and feel his forehead, worried in case the boy was running a fever. The moment his skin touched Jinta’s though the boy screamed out and seemed to try and bury himself into Tessai’s chest. Well, this was certainly unexpected . . .

“What the hell happened, Renji?” Kisuke asked, “Is Jinta okay?”

Renji merely began to gape like a fish and turn to Ururu for support, who in turn merely shrugged and clenched tightly on her teddy bear for the innocent ‘I didn’t do anything’ look. Ururu was still dressed in her cute, pink pyjamas and Renji was in a white, sleeping yukata with his hair in a loose plait ready for sleep, if Kisuke were to judge by appearances he would have thought them both innocent to anything that had gone on, but he knew better. Whatever had happened these two were guilty as sin itself.

“Well?”

“Ah – well – you see,” Renji began with a stutter, “Tessai-Otousan said that it was up to me to punish Jinta, so Ururu and I decided to come up with a super good punishment, you know, to make him behave . . .”

“He looks scared half to death. Sure you weren’t just trying to get revenge on him, Abarai-kun?”

“N-No! It was – I mean –!”

Kisuke turned and looked down at Ururu who was looking sheepishly at the floor, she seemed to want to be anywhere but there and was even gnawing her lip nervously, the poor girl looked as worried as Renji and considering the seriousness of whatever they’d done she had good reason to be worried. She kicked nervously at the floor and drew in a deep breath before turning large, watering eyes to Urahara and giving the most adorable look he’d ever seen. Jeez, if she thought the puppy-dog eye trick was going to work on him she was sadly mistaken.

“Onii-san’s the one who scared Jinta-kun,” she said softly and quietly, refusing to make any eye contact now. “He said for punishment that Jinta had to watch The Grudge alone in his room with the lights off, but when the really scary parts came up he closed the door and wouldn’t let Jinta-kun out, so Jinta-kun started to scream.”

“Oh really?”

He turned to his husband and gave him a severe, narrowed glance as if to say ‘see, this is the reason I’m usually the one disciplining them, what kind of idiot gives Renji that level of responsibility?’ The look was lost on Tessai however who had a look of murder in his eyes directed at Renji, and was busy hugging and reassuring Jinta who was verging on what could only be called ‘manly tears’. The poor kid wouldn’t be sleeping for weeks by the look of him, and Lord knew what kind of trauma this would inflict upon him. Hell, even Tessai couldn’t sit throughout that film all the way through, what chance did a nine-year-old have?

Still Renji was only fifteen himself, it wasn’t like he could be expected to be mature or responsible when he was still developing and learning, not even yet an adult. He was still getting an education at school, still getting trained by himself and Byakuya-san, and still getting into trouble and learning that his actions had consequences, so whilst it had been a nice test to give him it wasn’t one that would ever have worked out. Tessai should have known Renji’s bitterness to his brother would have come out as an act of revenge, rather than actual discipline, and although he’d been creative and probably what he’d thought was funny his scary prank had backfired with near dangerous results. It would mean of course Kisuke would be having serious words with Renji tomorrow morning, but he couldn’t seriously punish the kid because – as adults – he and Tessai should have known better than to give him that responsibility, so all in all it was their own fault. What more could be done?

The only thing now was to slap Renji hard around the head, send them all off to sleep and then get back to ‘adult alone time’, hoping that this would be the last of all interruptions. Frankly with this level of stress Kisuke was looking forward to being alone with Tessai, it would definitely kill any stress and with his adrenaline running it could perhaps be even more fun, hard and energetic than it would have been. Huh, maybe Renji had even done them a favour.

“Well, it’s too late to worry now,” Kisuke said with a rather annoyed smile, “I’m very disappointed in you Renji, we’ll be having serious talks tomorrow, but considering Tessai was the one who gave you free-reign over punishing Jinta-kun there’s not really much I can do . . .” He sighed and shrugged, “Right, everyone off to bed. We’ll talk about this in the morning.”

At once Jinta yelled out and jumped to his feet, he was still trembling and shaking, his eyes wide with fear and his voice shaking as he spoke; “No way am I going to bed alone! That thing will kill me! I’m sleeping with you two!”

“W-Wait!” Kisuke started, eyes wide in horror, “Why not spend the night with onii-san? It’ll be a nice punishment for him seeing as he’s the one who scared you.”

“No! He’ll feed me to that freak! I’m sleeping with you!”

He watched solemnly as Jinta ran from Tessai straight for their bedroom, and inwardly cringed as he heard a thud of the child’s body hitting the bed. First of all that meant no more ‘alone time’ with him and Tessai, which was sheer torture considering how horny he was and how much he was looking forward to a long night of passion, but even worse was that it meant for the entire week or longer they’d be a battle to get Jinta to sleep in his own room, the kid would just be too terrified. Secondly, being so terrified, he’d probably toss and turn all night and when he did finally sleep he’d probably have nightmares, which would mean a sleepless night for Urahara too. This was definitely not what he had in mind when he pictured this evening . . .

With a warm, if insincere smile, he turned to Renji and gave him his full attention, when the redhead gulped loudly and took a step back he merely sharpened his gaze and brightened his smile.

“Well, well, Renji-kun, it looks like I’ve changed my mind. Seeing as Jinta-kun will be keeping me awake all night, it looks like I’ll have plenty of time to think of a fitting punishment for you.” He nodded his head in acknowledgement and then turned his back to his son, heading for his bedroom, “I hope you sleep well, after all who knows what I’ll come up with by tomorrow. Night, son.”

He smiled to himself as he heard Renji groan loudly in exasperation, as far as he was concerned it was the most pleasing sound he’d heard all day . . . he could only hope that whatever punishment he eventually came up with would leave Renji just as frustrated.