tampered | (no subject)

(no subject)

When; December 20th, night
Rating; PG... Ran's mouthy at times.
Characters; Rangiku and Aizen
Summary; Conversation, seasoned with a little steel
Log; It was amazing to Rangiku. The abscence of sight always made senses much higher, but the forest was noisy; even more than usual. Carefully, if she concentrated, she was able to pick out all the different birds sounding before they made for thir nests, and the soft footfalls of the animals around her.

So far, she'd been able to avoid any of the truly dangerous creatures by her own speed and stealth. Once the few challenges had been met and bested, Haineko settled beside her mistress, silent as she watched the bare branches move in the breeze.

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Aizen stepped into view at her left side, hands tucked casually into his pocket. As usual, he hadn't let his presence be known until he was right on her.

"Salutations, Rangiku. What did you want to speak of?"

Eyes still closed, Rangiku turned her head towards him, expression even. "Good evening, Aizen. Glad you could make it." Haineko's ears flicked back a little as he approached, growling softly. She went quiet at a soft command from Rangiku, though her nose still wrinkled up as if she were just barely holding a hiss back.

"You violated our truce by going after Momo. I want to know why."

"She was being annoying. Besides, I didn't outright go at her. I simply said that if she wished to stop me from asking the boy questions, she could at least try to stop me. We entered into a non-lethal duel. She didn't even have to accept."

Without moving, she slowly stretched her legs out from their curled position. She could figure his position and distance just from the sound of his voice. "She was quite bruised up. You don't need to hurt her anymore. You've caused her enough pain by your past actions." Taking a deep breath of the chilly night air, she paused for a moment, then continued, head still turned in his direction.

"You knew she'd accept. It's in her nature to protect what she feels needs to be protected. Isn't that one reason you chose her? You know you'd always have a staunch defender in case anyone ever found you out back in Seireitei."

"You know I don't like when people impede me."

He took a seat on a nearby tree stump and continued.

"I was only questioning the boy on his abilities."

The change in direction caused her head to tild a little more, head moving to face him. "He's just a boy. He doesn't need enemies like you sniffing around him for information. Besides, he's from Konoha. They're allies of ours. She'd never let you harass an ally."

Haineko rose from her spot and padded closer to Aizen, watching him with icy eyes.

"I don't recall making any deals with the Konoha. If it makes you feel better, I am breaking off ties with Orochimaru. I no longer see much benefit from our joint venture."

Lyouka Suigetsu surrounded Aizen's body with itself, regarding Haineko with caution.

"Her inability to control herself is not my problem."

The news he shared with her relaxed her a good deal. She'd had issues with anything and anyone dealing with Orochimaru since her return, but she'd made a point to keep it quiet. "It does. Thank you for sharing that." Haineko paced in a circle around him, her eyes never leaving his form. Finally, she stopped behind him, growling softly.

"I told her I wouldn't coddle her anymore, but that doesn't mean I'll allow her to be hurt."

"Fine. I'll just ignore her like she isn't there, then. I'm sure she'll love that even more...And is there a reason your "partner" is pacing?"

Finally, Ran's eyes opened, blue bright in the shadows. "Do what you like, but don't physically hurt her again." Full lips curled up into a smug smile. "She's restless. That's all. She never liked you, even back in Seireitei. Always said you 'smelled wrong'."

"Please tell it to retreat a bit, Kyouka knows more than one way to skin a cat, and she's getting over-excited."

He stood up again and sent a burst of his energy into a tree, shaking an apple loose to snack on.

"So," he said between mouthfuls of apple, "Have their been any new events on your end?"

Without a word from Rangiku, Haineko huffed softly and backed off several yards, but still stayed behind him. "It's not an it, Aizen, and you know it." His little trick to get an apple was seen as a waste, but she figured he had more than enough to spare, so she shrugged her comment off.

"Mmmm... went to dinner with a handsome god the other night. I can't think of anything else."

A sudden shift in the spiritual atmosphere around them signaled his change of mood. He cocked an eyebrow, obviously displeased.

"Oh no. Don't tell me...The so-called Red God?"

Ran didn't miss the change. It made her smile. "Yes. It was... interesting. He's a legitimate god, too."

"I call his godhood into question. He seems more interesting in fucking his subordinates and making bizarre proclamations than doing anything impressive."

Grinning, she copied Aizen's trick, allowing her reiatsu to sweep the last leaves from the trees over them. Haineko purred her approval and went back to her mistress' side, laying down like a contented lap cat.

"Oh, he's the real thing. I felt his power. It was... intoxicating." Her eyes went a little glassy, remembering the feeling.

"And you DO realize he's no better than I am? He traipses through minds to get them to see his way. He's a bloody, wrathful god, you fool. Covering his words in honey catches flies much more easily. I would know."

The grin widened. A lot. "Are you jealous that there's someone here that's more powerful than you are? Or is it the fact that I find he's much more interesting than you?"

The smile stayed in place, though her gaze grew a little hard. "I know what he is, but there's a huge difference here. I KNOW what he is. You hid it from everyone. Honesty is a valuable thing to me."

"That would mean I DID consider him more powerful than me, which is false. I fail to see how that ugly beast could ever be interesting."

"Woman, any ills I have committed pale in compare to that thing's sins."

"Sins are still sins. The power he has is something I've never felt before. Not even from Yamamoto-soutaichou."

"His power has a tinge of...uniqueness, I will admit. Not quite in magnitude, but more in type. It's darker than any magic I am familiar with."

"You should feel it up close," she purred, so very much like the cat next to her. "It's warm, like velvet in the winter."

"I'd prefer to feel the warmth if it's lifeblood running down to Kyouka's hilt. She's quite hungry for him."

"Maybe she needs a good bout to lose some of that bloodlust. It isn't good for a weapon to be left so hungry." Haineko shifted, going transparent before melting away into the ash of her namesake.

He brought his zanpakutou to bear in front of him, measuring the distance between them.

"Very well, then. The rules of this sortie?"