I Knew Your Name [Watari/Closed]

There stood the symbol of the Suzemei family, emblazoned upon the giant wooden gates that were before Reika. She had finally found him. With the knowledge gained from Zabel, the young redhead had used her Denreishinki to find his home. Before her stood an impregnable fortress that contained the man that she had fought a few days before.

Why was she here? She had many questions to answers. The main one being, why had he lied. This man, Bill, or Watari, whoever he really was, had pulled her to the breaking point. She wanted to know more about him. She wanted to learn how he had been able to do what he did during there fight. Yes, he was more powerful than she was, but maybe there was a chance that she could learn from him.

Reika’s hands trembled at the thought of seeing him again. A man who was able to take the full force of her Shikai without breaking a sweat, or releasing his own blade. It was her inexperience that had cost her the battle. Yet, despite the words of warning about the man from Zenji, she stood in front of the gates.

She had to know his knowledge, his experience, in order to become better. He had the capabilities of becoming a zanjutsu and kido master as if it were nothing. Even if Zenji said it was best to avoid the man, she had to do it for the people of the districts, for herself, if she were to survive in the Gotei.

With barely a nerve left in her body, Reika pressed the button on the panel next to the great gates and readied herself as it buzzed back. “I’m Reika of the Third Division, Fifth Seated Officer. I wish to speak to Watari Suzumei, or Bill if he’d prefer.”

The redhead shinigami swallowed hard. Was it fear or anticipation? It didn’t matter. She was about to meet the devil that pushed her over the limits to unleash her Shikai. Hell be damned, it was time to meet her maker and make the best of it.

“Titus, reroute the Senkaimon to the Shimazu’s estate” Watari said to his butler as he passed through the halls of the Suzumei Estate. The elderly man raised his head in response and nodded, usually this wouldn’t be conventional but Titus always found a way, all noble estates had a private Senkaimon, a lot left there’s inactive - if this was the case for the Shimazu then it would be very convenient wouldn’t it? The elderly man vanished behind the Head as he passed the estates libraries and exited down the stairs of the building.

A messenger met him at the foot of the stairs. Watari turned his head and Bill shot the man a smile, oh look, his shoulders slumped he was so relaxed. Whelp. Watari should kill him for insolence, not bowing? What sort of man didn’t bow to his master? They were dogs after all.

“Suzumei-sama, there is a woman at the gates waiting for you” Watari’s eyebrows shot up, had Yuki come to visit? Usually she only came at nights so having her coming this early would just send a bad message. Yuki usually didn’t take the conventional ways into the estate however so what was she up t- Bill twisted as they passed the messenger with a nod, he stopped. It wasn’t Yuki. No way it could be. So what?

“Who?”

“No idea Suzumei-Sama, she has red hair”

Watari slammed his fist into the nearby wall as Bill laughed in delight. Reika was visiting? Was she an idiot, surely she knew better that to come see him - surely she’d figured out who they were by now? If she had any modicum of intelligence she would stay away.

They passed through the building leaving the servants far behind, unfortunately Bill was far too intoxicating, too heady of a drug to let somebody go. But wasn’t that the entire Watari Suzumei experience? Once you were invested, you were infected an insatiable itch that willed you to go onwards towards insanity, to be lost in the dark of your mind.

“I’ll kill her just for trying to come here” Watari snarled, he was sure the sight of her blood running on the ground would be a great accompaniment to her red hair. Hell’s Gates, since when had everything devolved into murder for him? He’d punish her sure, not kill her.

Bill stood at the gates of the estate and allowed them to open, as he saw Reika in front of him he flourished in a deep bow as one would expect from the Head of a Noble Family. His usual formal attire of suit and tie made the movements unusually stiff to follow eastern culture, but he would cope.

“Well, if it isn’t the Stormcaller herself, tell me Reika-chan, have you ran into any trees lately?”

“Chain her to the cold room, see how long it takes her before she tells us why she’s here”

Silence. Nothing but silence greeted her as she waited. So this is what it was like to be a commoner in the world of nobles - left in the dark as if they didn’t matter. This was never the case with Yuki or Zenji. They always seemed to be ready with open arms, but that didn’t matter. Reika was now ready to face the man that bested her with those pesky demon arts and that damn blade of his.

The gates creaked open suddenly, catching the redhead off guard. Straightening her attire, she spotted Bill in formal attire. So the devil himself decided to get off his high-horse and come greet her himself. This was an interesting turn of events. Still, it didn’t take him long to start in. Couldn’t he have at least greeted her without bringing up the tree?

Reika rolled her eyes. There wasn’t time to show the man any fear or run away screaming, even though she was warned about him. “You don’t waste time bringing up bygones, do you?” She said flatly. “And if you must know, no. I haven’t touched any.” Her left hand gently rested on her zanpakuto as she eyed the various trees around the property. “But, if you’d like, I can fell a tree to open up a bit more space on your estate.”

There really was no winning with this guy, so she might as well play his little game and jab back. Reika drew close to Bill, her gaze drifted over him, unsure of what he might pull this time around. She was on his home turf, so he had the advantage. Soul King knows what he’d be able to pull behind these stone walls. This was the belly of the beast.

“I’m not here to fight, nor draw blood. I’ve come on my own accord in hopes that you might help me. As you asked me in our fight, I fight for myself. I wish you to help me become something more than I’m capable of. I want to be able to best even you. I ask you to help me so that I might be able to protect those who face the unjust and unwanted in this world. Will you help me?”

It was a long shot, but this was a risk she had to take. Sure, Reika could have easily asked Yuki for help, but Bill had a history with the redhead. A history that seemed to irritate her to the point of wanting to face the man who taunted her with those worthless, horrible puns. This was embarrassing to even ask. However, Bill wasn’t one to hold back.

“So let me get this straight,” Bill said, eyeing the girl who had yet to come even through the gates of his estate. He wouldn’t move, didn’t need to, the anticipation in her posture was palpable. Her words were contradictory. Bill could feel Watari seething, he really was just becoming a killer and then on top of that, this compulsion to strangle her seemed to deeply routed into those negative feelings for Yuki.

“You came here, not to fight but to become something more?” She was either an idiot or a genius. Bill was pretty convinced people just didn’t rock up to the Suzumei estate because they were damn well terrified of what Watari was capable of. She had balls, he’d give her that but that was about all he was going to give her considering the sheer insanity of the request.

“You know who I am Reika-chan, go home or big bad Watari’ll kill ya” with that Bill spun on his heel and began to walk down the stone path back to his estate. He however didn’t gesture to the guards, there were some things that Bill and Watari both shared - expectation was one of them. It was like a contract, sure he could teach her what she asked but he had no idea when Watari would rear his head enough to get close to her - and if he did Bill couldn’t protect Reika. It was pretty simple.

There it was, Bill’s true nature. Or perhaps this was Connie or Watari - whoever it was at this point in time, it didn’t matter. He was just shrugging her off like it didn’t matter. It seemed like history just had to repeat itself with their meeting once again. Why did he have to be such a difficult person? This wasn’t a noble trait, was it? At least not with the few that she had met.

Boreas.

Oh, I do enjoy having fun.

It didn’t have to come to this, but here Bill was pressing her buttons perfectly once again. Either he was testing her or he really just didn’t care. Either way, it was time to prove that she was well worth the effort. After all, she had come all the way out here to improve herself. Why not start it off with a little fun. Boreas was more than willing to lend a hand with the matter. The little spirit was always pushing her. Why not try with someone who she knew was a stronger opponent.

With her left-hand setting on her Zanpakuto, Reika held out her right hand before her, closing her eyes. “Oh, cursed winds from above, I call your might before me. Send the sky and tear the earth!” Reishi suddenly erupted from her palm, calling forth the unknown demon art to cast a dust devil before Watari, blocking his path forward.

“A novice I may be, I will do what I must to get stronger to protect the weak against the strong. To destroy those who look down upon the people from there ivory towers. Whether they be those of noble blood or hollows. I will strike down those who do injustice. Now, I ask you once again: will you help me?”

This was her chance to make a change. It was just a challenge to muster up the courage to come here. He had to help. There was no if's, ands, or buts about it.

Kido? Since when did Reika-chan start using kido? Something new as well, a dust devil that materialized swirling in front of him. If Bill took a step forward it’d probably make his nice shirt dirty and that would be a real shame. He titled his head at it, nice kido, he wondered what the name was something to do with dust, big ol blowy dirty thing? Yeah, that’d do.

“You’re asking the wrong person. Did they not tell you who I am? Watari Suzumei, man of mystery - unfortunate things happen to those who play with me” Bill wanted to know who’d let it slip, who’d told Reika who he was? Who had been stupid enough to not give the full story. Seriously, he’d even warned her before he’d left, don’t meet me again, I’ll kill ya! There wasn’t anything more black and white than that and yet the girl still decided to come around.

“Do you want to die?” they asked. To be fair, Bill could get behind some self-righteous whatevers and happily convince Reika that the world was sunshine and rainbows up on that ivory tower of hers. The truth was, Bill would rather they did it anywhere but here and would rather Reika hadn’t shown up when he was still trying to sort things out with Watari. Just another thing to blame Yuki for - but then blaming Yuki was what Watari did, Bill just wanted to solve their problems.

He snapped his fingers and the gate slammed shut as his guards sealed the wooden doors with kido and iron bar alike. There was just Reika, with her storming personality and with whatever their coin flip of a life was, Bill was sure he could write poetry about it, but Bill wasn’t much here anymore.

“Why should I help somebody who's just going to kill me?” Watari said accusatory, he hated that, the idiotic mantra of being justice to strike down those who would commit injustices. The world was a stark shade of grey, these little girls needed to really grow up and look at everything like it was, he blamed Yuki for that. Justice? There was no justice, you couldn’t just believe in the Hell’s Gate and Friendship and expect to triumph.

Why did she fight?

She fought because that’s all she knew to do.

A Two Dimensional Image of Reika in a Three Dimensional World of reality.

Child.

There it was. There was that old Bill she knew, his flag finally unfurling to reveal to no one but here. This was the man she had met back at the Sixth Division, denying, asking if she wanted to die. This was the man that Zenji had warned her about. A shadow that seemed to cast long in the light of the Gotei. Nothing more than the shell of the stories told of noble cruelty in the districts. This was the real Watari.

Reika could feel the pressure of the gates shut behind her as he uttered nothing but nonsense. She wasn’t here to kill him. No, she was here to attempt to train, learn to get better. That was for not. This man was nothing but bitter and broken, hiding behind stone walls to hide his frail ego. Her heart quickened at the thought that this was going to go downhill rather quickly. Yet she stood fast, her right hand wrapping around Boreas as she eyed him and the dust devil that blocked his path.

“I don’t know if you’ve had someone plainly speak to you, but you’re an idiot.” She said with venom on her tongue.

There wasn’t a need for death. There wasn’t a need for bloodshed at all. She came here to ask if he would help, that was all. Instead, he just had to be a little drama queen and shut the gates behind her. What kind of fragile male ego did he wave? Here he was waving his dick around like he had all the power in the world while he stood in his glasshouse. It seemed like Reika held the little stone to shatter his reality. This was all rather pathetic consider he was the stronger one.

“No one is here to kill you. I just want your help so I can better the Gotei. Instead, you’re acting like the asshole of a noble whose fragile ego can’t handle criticism. Why not be better than them and act like an actual person? Be like me and improve. Don’t act like these stone walls protect you when your own ego can’t handle shit.”

It was cold, yet the truth. She might die here, but it wouldn’t be without raising hell. The Third knew she was here. Reika had warned them if she wasn’t back within a few hours to come looking for her. Surely, even with the noble title, hell would be paid for her life. “I ask you once again, title be damned, will you help me?”

“Have you ever been told that words can get you killed? I think you’d be a better member of society with that tongue cut out” Watari smiled unsheathing Bezaliel and spinning the Zanpakuto in hand. Who did she think he was? Bill? Sad times for lil Reika, she wasn’t Yuki, only Yuki had really got to him, had really broken him apart and he hated her for it. As far as Watari was concerned this was just a Yuki wannabe and she didn’t have the tail to hold him back from suffocating her.

“I’ll ask you again, because I’m a Head of a Noble House and the folks up there will expect it” He pointed to the guards that were in stoic formation on the walls of the estate. These men were trained by Titus, they wouldn’t falter, they wouldn’t show emotion, if he ran Reika through right now all of them would say they had seen nothing, that an assassin had come to kill a nobody if anybody asked. The faultless loyalty that all of those men showed up there, that was his kindness to ask her the following question, to give them an out in their minds that everything was okay.

“Why. Should. I. Help. You. When. You’re. Just. Going. To. Try. Kill. Me?” Hell’s blasted unfathomable doorway, did this woman not understand? He wasn't an asshole, he was an asshole. He wasn’t badly handling criticism, he was accepting it. Watari Suzumei did not care and he definitely did not care about some whelp turning up on his doorstep asking for his guidance in vague metaphors that Zenji Hatayama would spi-

“Zenji” phlegm spattered onto the ground as Watari eyes narrowed and he stared Reika up and down “that Soul King-bashing, spell-slinging, Quincy-Hating Bell-ringer put you up to this didn’t he?” Watari spun his Zanpakato and slammed it into scabbard, that pious monk had convinced her to do this. It was all part of some game, he couldn’t be sure that she didn’t have an armor of kido around her that the man himself had laced her with.

“I’m out. Let me know when she wants to cry”

Shoulders slouched again from rigorous poise, Bill raised an eyebrow.

“What do you think I can help you with anyway?”

Oh, ho ho! There was that venom, there was that fight that Reika remembered from that fight days ago. He spewed forth that visceral as if it were natural. This was the Watari that Zenji had warned her about. Nothing more than what all the commoners had spoken about. She bet if he could, he’d reach right over and choke the very life out of her. Or, if he wasn’t willing to muddy his hands, have his own grunts do the task for him.

Yeah, that was definitely Watari’s style. He seemed the type to do something more sly than straight forward. Perhaps poisoning instead of actually ending someone’s life with his own hands. Yes, this was the man before her. Not Bill, but Watari Suzemei.

Reika was ready, her hand on blade to draw. Yet, it was as he spoke of Zenji that her spirit faltered. How did he know!? Wait, no. He had drawn his own conclusions just as he had drawn his own weapon  This didn’t stop Reika from drawing Boreas, readying for a fight.

Then it was as if nothing happened. The man seemed to relax his shoulders and asked her a casual question. An oddity that caught Reika completely off-guard. What in the world had happened? She wasn’t even sure how to answer him as he interjected his question.

“I… uh…” She righted herself. “I know how strong you are. I just want to improve myself at zanjutsu and kido like you have. I don’t care about your title. Your ability makes me want to test myself over and over again.” That was a hard admission. She was beginning to realize she saw him as a rival. Someone who could push her to the limits and beyond. This was something she needed. “I just want to become strong and make a change in this world. Please… just help.” She spoke with exasperation.

This was simple. There was no political intrigue. She didn’t want to be brought into some circle that she didn’t want to be apart of. No, she wanted to get stronger to protect the weak. The people of the poorer districts needed her and her division so that they might actually thrive for a change.

“That’s what I thought,” Bill said shrugging and beckoning her to follow. She wasn’t going to leave, she had her own moral compass telling her that the Soul King and friendship was going to make her see through the day. It was cute, in the same way that you watched a toddler fall off a bridge and then try again - over and over. It was naivety at its core.

“You don’t get it. There’s an entire generation of you that just don’t get it. It’s sad really, I’m meant to be this big scary man who everybody is terrified of and you come to my door and ask for me to train you?” He sighed as a few servants rushed towards him with trays in hand, offering drinks and various snacks to the guest and himself. He selected a small juice box decorated with oranges and cracked the small plastic straw and popped it into the box without taking a sip.

“Reika-chan, the only way you’re going to get stronger is by just ‘being’ in the moment. I can’t teach you that, I can’t show you ingenuity so that you can weave kido and I certainly can’t show you discipline so you can use Zanjutsu. These things aren’t taught in a day, they’re forged in the heat of combat” He’d fought Reika, he’d seen her Zanjutsu - it was impressive she understood all the core fundamentals. Bill had even seen moments ago that her knowledge of Kido was impressive as well. Why she thought he could teach her what she was missing, he had no idea.

He guided them across the estate into one of the sakura groves that Reika would find reminiscent, his estates watched on and Bill had no doubt there were guards hovering in the distance somewhere. They came to a stone table with two stone stools in the middle of the grove, the servants had already been and gone, having left a jug of water with two small glasses.

He sat and took a long sip of his juice until the loud sucking of the box echoed off the cherry trees and then Bill looked at her.

“But you didn’t come here to improve Zanjutsu or Kido” She could’ve gone to Zenji for that, or somebody in the fifth division to beat her over and over in the way of Zanjutsu. What he’d detected before was true in both regards, Reika didn’t need training in either of those things, she was far superior to most Shinigami.

“So tell me, Reika Stormcaller, why did you come to see Watari Suzumei?”

Watari’s words, they seemed to cut deep. He had her seem like she was nothing. Just another cog in the machine known as the Gotei. Calling training worthless. It was the heat of the battle that seemed to call forth and sharpen the shinigami’s skill. Nothing about training seemed to help in the eyes of the noble.

Yet even in his words of battle and life or death situations, he called upon the pampered lifestyle of his. His servants came and went ushering them into a sakura grove reminiscent of the place that they first met. Why the sudden change of heart? First, he seemed to call her forth to battle, now he was basically asking her to sit and have a pleasant chat.

Is this guy bipolar or something?

Reika stood there wide-eyed as the man sucked on his little juice box as if he was a child. What in all of fuck was actually going on here!? This man set the young shinigami’s hair on end as goosebumps rose on her skin. Hollow seemed to make more sense than this man. Was he even sane? The chain of events seemed more like a circlejerk than actual reality.

Quietly, Reika sat down, joining Watari as he asked his cutting question. He just had to dig at her with his own little nicknames. How unbearable was this man?

“I want to become stronger.” She said with a sigh. “I’ve seen the reports from Zenji. I know about the ailing Gotei and the failings of the nobility. This place, the people, they aren’t going to be protected without those that are willing. The military will fail without leadership and I’m at my wit's end. I want to change that, and without power, it’s not possible to get these idiots to understand. Power, power, power.” She said banging her fist on the stone table. “You should know that all these people understand is power and fear.”

It was hard to admit it. This society had grown stale, complacent as the world outside had changed. There was a calling for action in their world. Something that she could hear despite deaf ears elsewhere. “I need your help for the betterment of our society, for the world.” She sighed softly. “I know as a noble that you’ve seen it. You have the power and the capability, that’s why I’m here.”

Bill whistled and crunched the box in his hand and placed the crumpled remains on the stone table before pouring himself a glass of water and swirling it whilst he contemplated what she’d said. She really understood nothing didn’t she?

“Power and fear, that’s what you think? If you want to be scary, I can take you to some pretty cold dark places and we can see how long you’ll last in the face of true terror” the cold room sprung to mind, but Bill wasn’t going to take her there, he had no doubt that the cold room was the stuff of nightmares and whilst Watari would probably take great delight in showing the collection, Bill was unfortunately the opposite.

“If power and fear was all it took to be in charge of the Gotei 6, I’d already be there. No Reika, the only thing the Gotei 6 understands is sloth and pride” He watched her eyes, that look of defeat, why had Zenji sent her here? Did she not know that man’s place in the plan? What Zenji and Watari stood to accomplish? Was she just here because of some whim? To be fair it was all beyond Bill, but at least his juicebox hadn’t been grape, that was a small victory.

“From your statement, it seems like you want three things, you want a just Soul Society, you want power and you want to be broken” Watari rapped the table with his knuckle and moments later a bald man would materialize like a shadow behind the head, he’d whisper a few short words to the man before the figure bled away into the background as if the butler of the Suzumei had never been there at all.

“The perimeter is contained. You want to be trained? You want to learn of my Suzumei Kindness and my mercy? Then you strip all you know of Zenji Hatayama and everything you know of the Gotei 6 - you become a Suzumei -”

A roar echoed in his mind as Watari charged from the forefront.

“This child? Our blood?”

“Tchk, you’re the one who wanted to marry Yuki, this one we can work with and I’m not offering her marriage, just our name”

“She’s got the scent of Hatayama all over her!”

“And by the time you’re done she won’t”

Bill smiled.

“Otherwise my dear Reika-chan, I can’t trust you”

Power and fear, that’s all that Reika knew would work. She knew that from coming from the cesspit that was the districts and rising to the position that she was in. Yet, what Watari spoke of seemed to shake her to the very core. Those dark eyes have seen the edge of the world and stood upon the precipice and looked down. It was scary, harrowing. Even.

Now she was trapped in his home, gates locked, perimeter secured by guards. There really was no way out without causing trouble. Even if her subordinates came looking for her, she knew that the guards would turn her away as if she wasn’t there. Reika knew she was a fool for even coming here.

Never play the game of nobles.

Boreas just had to butt in as Watari chastised her for being such an idiot. She reached beyond her means by asking for help and now, like a pawn, Reika was being played. A just society was what she wanted. The power to make the changes necessary is another. To be broken… Soul King be damned, it was needed to become stronger. Watari had read her like a book before she even knew.

God damn him. God damn him to the nine hells and back.

Yet, he offered it all. All that she wanted. It was as if it was nothing

Become a Suzumei?

You played the fool, now you play the pawn.

What did Boreas mean? There wasn’t any time to really question the spirit, his wisdom came at the price of her ignorance. Regret filled an aching void in the pit of her stomach. Nothing really mattered, rank, or title, when someone outplayed you, you had to bow out and accept the consequences. Reika could feel her body quiver. Was it fear?

“If - if it helps protect this world from the harm that comes it's way.” She paused, feeling her hands trembling in fear. “I will become a Suzumei. I will do what I must to protect this w-world.” Reika steeled her heart. This wasn’t the time to feel sorry for herself. No, it was a sacrifice necessary to ensure that this world, its people were protected. She was a martyr for Watari’s blade.

Bill smiled a small sad smile.

She should’ve ran. He’d given her so many chances. This wasn’t him anymore, he could feel himself drifting. Matters of blood and honor? Duty and the Suzumei name? Those belonged to Watari. His soft eyes would grow hard, his words edged not with scorn but with magnitude. Watari might be a bloodthirsty killer but if his other half had decided that this was a course of action then Watari was obligated to follow through with it, even if it came into his territory.

“My name is my offer. To be Suzumei is to be merciful and it is to be kind. To be Suzumei is to have our honor above all else” Watari stood placing his glass of water down, he hadn’t even taken a sip as he outstretched his hand towards Reika. He would bind them by blood using magics older than kido, of blood and flesh, for that was the Suzumei way.

“What is to say that you won’t run off and tell Zenji my family's secrets? That you won’t just turn on my entire family when they need you most? What do you offer Reika, as part of this pact, that betraying it would mean your life?” The bond to Yuki Kameko was easy, marriage was a powerful bond, it meant an obligation to bear children, it meant the obliteration of her clan. That was why Yuki Kameko hadn’t taken it. It meant giving up her independence and being tied down. So even though Reika had agreed to joining the family, there were other ties that needed to be wrapped around her limbs first, other bonds to her mind, body and soul that Watari needed to secure first.

Joining a noble family wasn't as simple as taking a name, sure Hatayama would probably have told her otherwise. Zenji Hatayama’s clansmen weren’t part of his family, they weren’t part of his blood. Whether he cared for the olds or he didn’t, Zenji knew that to truly be blood related was to do things some families wouldn’t care to speak about. Ancient traditions so fundamentally sealed into the lineage of the family that each “ritual” was probably as vastly different as the next.

To be family.

Watari remembered when Titus had held his hand into the pooling blood of his dying father, and had been forced to bear the Suzumei line through bloodbound chains alone. These accursed words so seared into his mind because at the time he’d been loathed to speak them.

“What do you offer in your pursuit of nobility and fear?”

That smile he gave, it seemed so sad, so distant. As if the very world was being held against him and he had to put up a facade to carry on his day-to-day life. Something seemed rather off as if his whole persona seemed to shift. Yet, he gave her an offer: his family name. Something that Reika lacked in this world. She was a nobody, striving to be someone, someone to make a change for the better.

Why did it seem like everyone in her life was always handing her something that she didn’t deserve? Her acceptance into the academy seemed handed to her. Zenji gave her the rank of a seated officer in the Third. Now - now Watari, a man that she had only met once was giving her his family name. The name of the nobles. The title that everyone spoke of his hushed tones.

None of this seemed right at all, especially when he began to speak about being merciful and kind - ‘our’ honor being above all else. Was this his mercy? Sealing a woman within his walls because she asked for help. Was this what she was going to become a part of? This all seemed so nonsensical as if her head was left in a whirlwind of doubt.

Her friend was brought up in an accusatory tone as if she were to run from here, her tail tucked between her legs, to return to him as if he were her master. The world of nobles seemed like it was filled with knives in the dark, waiting for the chance to strike. Was he afraid? Reika looked up at him as he stood, biting her lower lip, unsure what to do next.

He loomed over her, his hand extended asking what she could offer. It was a moment suspended in time. What could a nobody offer to a man who had everything at his fingertips? Reika had nothing to give that he could want in exchange for a chance to change the Gotei for the better, to save the lives of the innocent that knew not of the dangers that lie ahead.

Reika’s hand trembled as it moved to Boreas. The spirit offered her no words of wisdom, no chastising remarks. No. She was on her own for this. She had to make her own destiny.

Boreas was drawn from his sheath as Reika kneeled before Watari, placing the hilt in his hand as she bowed her head. “I offer you my blade against all that comes before you. I offer my life so that our name shall always be great. I offer you it all, for it is all that I have to give.” The redhead looked up at Watari with renewed resolve. “I will do what I must, and damn the consequences.”

“You give me your Zanpakuto, the only thing in the Soul Society that gives you a name? You wish to bind your blade to my family? You really are the person I think you are. You are the storm Reika” Bill eyes flickered, then back to the accusatory eyes of Watari. Her weapon now lay in his hands, he could run her through right now for it, leave her for dead but Watari Suzumei knew the web. His mind flickered to his room, where the swirling lines of interaction spread like a lattice of malice. If he killed her right now, Watari could kickstart a war by prodding the right people into the right places - but he wouldn’t - above all else, Watari Suzumei knew how to hurt people.

Zenji.

Yuki.

Reika to them was a friend. He’d seen the reports, heard the musings, a drunk night out with a new friend? A confidant in kido when she needed it most? Of course Watari Suzumei knew! Who wouldn’t? The interactions were so telegraphed - so labelled that Watari didn’t need to know what they talked about - just the bond they had.

There was a poetic irony in Reika coming here after befriending Yuki Kameko. It seemed where Yuki’s righteousness drove her to change Watari, Reika’s intoxication of the power Watari held allowed her to be changed. It really was unfortunate they met in the bar, it was almost as if somebody had pushed money in the right direction or something.

Funny that.

“Repeat these words as I speak them, for the blood of Suzumei demands oaths”

Watari reached and grabbed her wrist, her Zanpakuto in his other hand, her hand exposed.

“Kindness of the North Wind, Mercy of the South, Blood of the Eastern Gales, Bind the Western’s Mouth” the Head of the Suzumei dragged the tip of the blade across his hand, forming the tip of an S, as it curved it cut into into Reika’s wrist, the wound welling crimson blood that didn’t spill. The Sakura Glade grew quiet, the wind hushed as the clouds seemed to cover the mid-morning sun, an orange tinge bathed the grass as Watari’s spiritual pressure uncoiled and laced around them.

“Kindness, Mercy, Blood to Bind. My fathers' fathers came to find - “ the world around them flickered, for a moment countless generations of Suzumei men and women garbed in hakama - each member of the Suzumei family that had passed on stood in this circle and watched on. The closest of which, a tall man with a cruel face held a particularly misshapen Zanpakuto brandished at Reika.

“From steel to flesh and our blood will bind” the figures flickered away as the welling blood seeped from the wound to hover in the air, a bloody S before the skin began to knit closed and the symbol seemed to hiss away into a red mist.


--- Somewhere in the present.

Watari blinked, he hated this ritual and now he remembered what he’d seen of his own father’s moment. Of proud faces heralding the next Suzumei in line to take the lead. He despised nobility.

The wound had closed and he held out her Zanpakuto.

“Reika Suzumei, Lady of the Storm - stand as my sister”

Remember Yuki, the House Always Wins

Watari grabbed her wrist, directing Reika to repeat the words he spoke. Anxiety seemed to seize at the woman’s chest, unsure what he would do with her blade. Would he run it through her? The man could easily make this all a spectacle for himself, cutting her life short as he played her for a foul. She stood on bated breath as he spoke.

“Kindness of the North Wind, Mercy of the South, Blood of the Eastern Gales, Bind the Western’s Mouth” She repeated, watching as the man raked her blade over his skin. What trance held her in the moment was broken, her skin was carved into, causing blood to well up without pain. Was it the adrenaline or Watari’s spiritual pressure that stopped her from recoiling? Hard to say as the world around them seemed to fall silent - one could hear a pin drop.

“Kindness, Mercy, Blood to Bind. My fathers' fathers came to find - “ The world seemed to flicker for but a moment, as if a brief hallucination had taken hold of Reika. Her heart leapt in her chest as some unknown man loomed over her, his weapon drawn as if he were ready to kill. She couldn’t scream, she couldn’t run. And just as she blinked, he was gone. The steady sound of her heart beating was all the redhead could hear before she turned back to Watari.

“From steel to flesh and our blood will bind” Blood seeped from the wound on her arm, hovering into the air. In a flash, it disappeared into a mist as faint whispers seemed to cast on Reika’s ears. Distant at first, growing louder until they came as a scream. A chill went down her spine as she recognized the sound.

The world she knew disappeared. There was no estate, just an empty dark room filled with hollowed footsteps echoing off distant walls. Reika had no idea where she was. There was nothing but fear that crept into her heart as she frantically looked around for something, yet there was nothing.

“You’ve finally done it.” Boreas’ voice came harsh and cold. “You’ve bent your knee to someone not worthy of who you are.” The man appeared out of the darkness, looking haggard as if he’d been through hell and back. “You’re better than this and you know it.” The words carried nothing but venom on them. “Well,” He gestured to her, “what do you have to say for yourself?”

Reika faltered, there was nothing she could really say to defend her actions. This was something she knew in her heart that she had to do in order to become stronger. “I have to become stronger. Countless people will die if I don’t! The balance of our world and living has to be maintained.” The redhead was basically pleading her case on deaf ears.

“At the cost of your own life. No one asked you to play the role of a martyr. You’re playing the jester in a king’s court, dear Reika. And I fear you’ll never see the light of day again.” He raised his right hand, the redhead’s blade appearing within it. “I ask you this once: are you the king or the fool?” The spirit held out the hilt of the zanpakuto to her, questioning where her true thoughts lie.

“I am the king.” Reika grabbed the hilt and suddenly the world disappeared around her, leaving her standing before Watari. She had said those last with a smile as the air around them began to fill with Reika’s black spiritual pressure. The winds around them roared to life, cascading around the estate’s lawn, swaying the great trees around them.

Boreas had been heard and the wind knew who commanded it. Reika rose from the ground, no longer a nobody. No, she was Reika Suzumei, Lady of the Storm. Now was her time to shine and the Gotei had no idea what was in store for them - for it was the calm before the storm.

Watari’s shadow warped and recoiled at the winds, it stretched out from him and then back in. He needed to contain his rage, if he killed her right now then who would she leave to live? No, she was kin now, another member of the motley crew he called his family. To be fair, she was the first, she deserved a little more credit than just that. Let her have her moment of glory and triumph. She can bathe in the absoluteness of her nobility.

Wasn’t she just like the rest? Yes probably. There was a deep seated satisfaction in the way she held her name, in the way she strode. Nobility corrupted even the paupers, even those who thought themselves incorruptible. Reika Suzumei saw herself a King but she’d changed. All kings fall before god.

As she landed whether it be because of ancient magics that still echoed in the glade or the intensity of Reika’s flaring black spiritual pressure, the energy coalesced into a figure that lunged towards her passed Watari and thrust it’s hand of night through her chest. Watari could only widen his eyes as he watched the figure be absorbed into her form and a lock of her red hair turn black as pitch.

Watari clucked.

“All things have a price dear sister, I hope you didn’t love your hair” Sister - family - Watari needed to treat her more than a tool, ah he was terrible at this. Hells Gate, he could feel himself drifting now there were things to do, people to betray! Soul King’s toe, not everything needed to be a scheme, Bill wished Watari would understand that.

“Black suits you though, goes well with that whole Suzumei shtick you’re going with” Bill shrugged and turned back to the table to sip from his glass of water. He had a sister now, fantastic time for all that familial bonding - what did family even do anyway? The laundry? He had servants for that - more's the pity.

“We have things to discuss, arrangements to make, I guess we’ll start with the simple things. How do you feel?” And I swear to god, if you say not guilty, I’ll bring Watari out just to slap you. He sat down on the chair and stretched his legs, boy it was a good thing the sun had passed out from behind that cloud - a man could get chilly with all this blood pact family bonding nonsense.

The reishi faded, the moment was gone. Or so our little shinigami thought. That little flourish from Reika connecting with Boreas had turned into something, a black figure, that lunged toward her before she could even react. It plunged its hand into her chest, quickly being absorbed into her body. The young shinigami stood wide-eyed for a moment, placing her hand over the very spot it had entered.

There was no hole, no pain. Nothing at all. What in the seven hells was that thing and why did it suddenly appear like that!? Was this some kind of Suzumei demon art that Watari had released on her or something that protected the estate? There was so much to learn and Reika’s mind was whirling from all that had transpired.

The black lock of hair hung over her eye like a damn eyesore. Whatever the hell that thing was, it changed her. She grimaced for a moment, tucking the strand behind her ear. Thinking about the possibilities of whatever that thing was causing the rest of her hair to follow suit. If that were to happen, she really wouldn’t be the same Reika that stood before the Suzumei gates just a small time ago.

“Sister…” It hit her like a fully loaded semi. Reika had a brother now. Blue eyes finally took a measure of the man, now her brother. He was so much taller than she was, he seemed to loom over her, those blue eyes looking back. “Thanks… dear, brother.” Soul King, that sounded so odd to say out loud.

Sheathing Boreas, Reika gave a small sigh as she took her seat back. The world around the shinigami was changing fast. A seated officer, now a member of the nobility. When Watari asked her how she felt, she looked at him blankly. “Like an outsider in your wonderland.” The truth was easier to say. Besides, the oath had been spoken. There wasn’t a need to start a rift. A small smile appeared. “What? Were you expecting a pun?”

Reika pulled the streak of black hair from behind her ear, playing with it between her fingers. “I meant to say, I feel like I’ve hit a lucky streak.”

“Funny, Lewis Carroll had a way with words, I remember Alice in Wonderland was the only book my father let me and my brothers read, in a way it kickstarter our imaginations. Tell me, does that make me the Cheshire Cat?” Bill grinned, later on he’d read Lewis’s other works such as the poem the Jabberwocky, people somehow attributed it being canon to the Alice in Wonderland universe which Watari didn’t mind at all, the vorpal blade went snicker snack after all. Reika however most definitely wasn’t Alice, Alice hadn’t succumbed to the wonderland, if anything she was the Queen of Hearts and she didn’t even know it yet.

“And as much as I enjoy your quick wit around puns time is of the essence” He snapped his fingers and the same elderly man from before seemingly appeared to hover behind Reika his long sleeves steepled as if waiting on every beck and call. Watari gestured to the tall man who had yet to say a word.

“This is Titus, he is the Suzumei Butler and my own personal servant. You of course will have your own serving staff but if you acquire a servant colder touch, Titus will be more than happy to serve” the daunting older man would bow at this and then would once again fade into the background, an eerie trait to have in a serving staff. Titus more than likely was orchestrating the serving staff in preparing Reika’s rooms and luxuries and making sure that when given the word everybody would know.

A voice would echo from somewhere behind Reika "A pleasure Lady Suzumei"

“There is no luck involved dear sister, only action. Our duty is to the Suzumei and our purpose is for ourselves. I do not care what you do as long as it benefits us and doesn’t cross me - well my darker agendas which if Hatayama actually did send you here you’ve probably heard” He turned back to the table and poured himself more water whilst he let Reika mull over her thoughts.

“What do you know of Zenji Hatayama? More importantly, would you betray him given the circumstances?”

Oh, my. What we have here was a learned boy who delved into a literary classic. Seemed like the man had some semblance of a childhood. It’d be hard to guess who was truly behind the mask of Watari Suzumei until she got closer. His question did strike a particular tone. Was he the Cheshire Cat from the tale? The Cat seemed to have drawn bad conclusions from faulty assumptions. No, the noble had his fingers in everything if Zenji was right about him. He’d never do such a thing. Was he a guide like the Cat? That had yet to be seen - no he was like another character. “Well! I've often seen a cat without a grin, but a grin without a cat! It's the most curious thing I ever saw in my life!” Reika chuckled, continuing to play with her hair in hand.

“No, dear brother. I see you as another character from Carroll’s books.” Her eyes looked up at him. “You’re the Red Queen. Like her, you have a fury, but of another type; her passion being cold and calm – she was formal and strict, yet not unkindly; pedantic even. I’ll let you write your own chapter to prove me wrong.” Maybe it was pressed too far, however, it was what she had seen so far in the noble. Like a book though, you couldn’t judge one by its cover.

Watari did appreciate her quick wit at least he seemed to with his modicum of praise. He had other pressing matters to attend to. With a snap of his fingers, it seemed as if he summoned a man out of thin air, giving Reika pause. That speed was beyond incredible! Not even Azalea could compare to this old man and his control.

“I, uh.” Reika was getting her own personal staff and servant - such an odd thing to hear. The thought of it made her uncomfortable as if something were crawling beneath her skin. Matters only got worse as Watari said she could use Titus if she needed a colder touch. She had become everything the common folk had dreamed of and more. Nothing felt right about it. But this was for their benefit, not hers, right?

Now came the darker side. The redhead turned her gaze from the empty spot that Titus had stood and looked back to Watari. She had heard the stories, read the reports, but didn’t want to believe it. If it were all true, would she even still be alive? Well, so much for wanting to give the benefit of doubt to him. Watari asked his two simple questions that raised goosebumps on her skin.

“What do I know?” She faltered for a moment. Should she even say a word? Betraying the trust of her friend so that the Suzumei family could use it for their own dark machinations. There was no doubt that the shinigami was stuck between a rock and a hard place - she gave the oath - swore to the family.

Reika placed her palms flat on the table, pressing them down firmly as she stood up. “I know less than you do, brother. If your - our reach is as far as I think it is, you’ve already been watching him.” Cerulean eyes met his own. “The only difference is I can get closer to him than you. Trust is what I have with him - as long as mum’s the word, he’ll know that I’m not your kin. We can use that to gain more intimate knowledge for whatever gain our family needs.”

The young Suzumei moved in front of her brother, lightly tapping her index finger on the tip of her nose. “Then, The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!” A soft sly smile crossed her face as she moved away from him, grabbing her cup of water and raising it up in his honor. This wasn’t right, but now her loyalty had to lie with the family she was a part of. That was the hardest drink she had ever had - it taste of lies and self-doubt as she played her part in Watari's wonderland.

“What? The noble sensibility getting to you now of all times dear sister? You wanted the power, with power comes responsibility. These servants of ours are loyal to the Suzumei House, they would die for the Suzumei House it is in everything they do” He stood brushing his pants off and allowed two servants to take the remaining glass and decanter. Bill gestured to follow him as he took off down the stone path towards the mansion. It was here that Reika would begin to see the gears moving behind the estate, of gardeners that just lay out of eyesight, of serving staff that lay in wait in corners and of guardsmen with asauchi hovering in the shadows.

The Suzumei Estate wasn’t ‘just a’ fortress. It was a fortress, the men and women in it having sworn to contracts and morals to protect the family with their lives. The Suzumei Estate was more than equipped to handle siege or attack of any kind, a well-oiled machine.

“Zenji Hatayama is a pious fascist. As long as the Quincy threat exists, Zenji will do anything it takes to make sure they are eradicated. In that we have a lot in common, Zenji and I will work together as long as a threat exists” they walked up marble stairs towards two large oaken doors with a servant on either side that was dressed in the Suzumei garb, they pushed the door open as the two siblings entered the halls.

“There’s no point in lying to the man about the family you belong to, it would be too much administration to keep it quiet. We’ll focus on what we know, Zenji Hatayama hates quincy and he thinks I’m insane. Feed that. Play the victim, everybody will expect it of you, I nearly forced Yuki Kameko into marriage after all - at least to him” Bill gestured at a small table that sat in the middle of the hall with a bottle of whiskey and another two glasses. Of course he’d drink, it was time to celebrate wasn’t it? There was much to do. Much to plan.

“Speaking of Yuki Kameko - she is a wildcard”

Despite his apparent love of Wonderland, it seemed his humoring Reika was over. Power, responsibility, and those who serve the house who would die for them. Daunting was the word that came to the young Suzumei as she bowed her head slightly to Watari, following his lead further into the estate.

Into the belly of the beast they went, her new home, where what appeared to be hundreds of staff, servants, and guards seemed to lay in wait or tending their duties. This was all unreal - this was a fortress that she had walked into with truly knowing what lie and wait. And now it was all hers, or at least her new sibling was willing to What in the seven hells had she gotten herself into? There was no escaping it now.

“I see.” Reika managed to say as Watari spoke of Zenji. There was no venom in his words at least. A faint flicker of hope that those two could actually work together without fighting was something she could cling onto.

As the two siblings entered into the Suzumei’s halls, Watari shot down her plan to keep everything a secret. The idea was good in Reika’s mind - she’d be able to live as none of this had even happened. So much for a semblance of a normal life outside of these walls. Reika could do nothing but frown for a brief moment and nod, taking a seat at the table with him.

He wanted her to play the victim - that was more than easy enough. She was a victim to her own stupidity, trying to gain power. Well, she got power for the cost of her own soul. Reika looked at the bottle of whiskey and the empty glasses before her. The urge to grab that bottle and down the entire contents was more than substantial. Trying to be a kind sibling, she grabbed the bottle and poured them both a glass, pausing at the mention of Yuki’s name.

Reika looked at her brother wide-eyed. Why the hell was he even bringing her up!? Zenji was one thing, but Yuki, she was her one true friend that she had in this damn place. Setting the bottle down, a shaky hand grabbed a glass, drawing it close to the edge of the table. “I… I feel like you’ve managed to know everyone that I call friends in the Gotei.”

She looked down at the trembling whiskey in the glass, her mind a veritable storm of thoughts. “If I’m going to help. I’m going to need to know everything and what I need to do.” Reika’s spiritual pressure flickered for but a moment, her emotions getting the better of her.

“The truth be told Reika-chan, who's to say that not everything that has happened to you at this point wasn’t a noble game?” Bill picked up his glass and swirled the amber colored liquid before taking a sip from it and watching Reika’s eyes. Of course she knew Yuki that closely. Watari had had a hunch but he hadn’t known, it seemed everywhere they turned the tapestry of fate dealt them another hand.

“Tell me, when you met Yuki did it seem convenient? Like she wanted you to meet her? How about Zenji? I’m sure Yuki was intoxicating . . . wasn't she? her vision of a better Soul Society! Down with the nobility! Up with truth” Bill took a long sip of his whiskey and let that fire down his throat. Bill liked Yuki, part of the reason he thought the way he did was because of her. He thought of her as the light at the end of the tunnel, the potential to better, to start afresh! But first he had to set the scene - he had to have a little fun.

“Reika, dear sister, if Yuki is so determined to get rid of the nobility - why is she still a noble? Why at the most important noble party in recent noble history was she one of the select few left alive?” Bill pointed to one of the numerous portraits on the walls, it was a painting done of the moment when they’d joined forces - the Suzumei, the Baozhai, the Shimazu and the Akimoto but there in the back was a wolf girl - smiling.

“Finally, everybody knows I proposed to her that night but nobody ever asks me ‘why did I?’ they just assume me mad! I am the insane one? Dear sister you’ve been a part of her game all along” He drained the last of his drink and slammed the glass on the table. The burning painted eye of Yuki Kameko’s burning a hole into Reika’s truths, crucifying her maledictions and sealing her to the path she’d chosen.

“Yuki Kameko is the most twisted Shinigami in all of Soul Society!”

Watari Suzumei despised Yuki Kameko for what she’d done to him, how her benevolence and self-righteousness had somehow broken his mind so it was within all reason for Bill that because she made a monster of him - now he was going to welcome Reika with open arms into his wonderland.

Reika looked up from her glass as Watari spoke about noble games and everything that had happened up to this point. Was there a narrative in her day to day activities that she wasn’t aware of? Nothing could be that convenient. There was no way that she was at the whims of nobles without knowing it - pushing and prodding her into the direction that they wanted her.

Then came him connecting dots that weren’t in her mind’s eye. How Yuki had discovered her and Toji in the middle of nowhere at a closed bar. Surely it was just a coincidence. She just had to be walking by and noticed the sounds of two people enjoying themselves. Right? Yeah, that had to be right.

Next came Zenji. Yes, he had found her lost, looking around the first division. But anyone could become lost! Besides that, how would anyone know what day she would be there in order for them to plan to meet up? Wait, was it their idea to make her an officer for their own little ploys?

This was all beginning to sound like the ramblings of a mad person. Reika was in her own head trying to figure it all out. Was all of this fake? Did Zenji feign friendship to get her close and control her? Did Yuki draw her close to gain a soldier for some imaginary war on the nobility? This was all insanity! Yet, there was Yuki. There was no mistaking that one-eyed wolf girl on the portrait. Reika’s world was beginning to crack

Watari slammed his glass on the table, snapping the young shinigami out of her head. Startled, shaking, she looked down at her glass and downed it like water, quickly filling the empty glass once more. By the Soul King, her brother’s crazy ramblings were beginning to sound like the truth.

Reika downed her drink, slamming the glass against the table. Her eyes were stinging as she tried to fight back the tears. It all sounded like the truth. She was handed a position in the Third Division like one handed out candy. A true friendship came out of nowhere. Why would nobles want to befriend her? She was just a nobody from the districts.

Tears streamed down Reika’s face as she narrowed her eyes in anger at Watari. “And what do you get from playing noble games with your ‘sister’? Or is this the ‘mercy’ of the family opening my eyes to all the lies? Why me of all people? Why would ANYONE want to play games with a nobody from the districts?”

The fragile heart of Reika Suzumei was broken. All she could do was to look to Watari for some kind of answers.