#I hope Yoruichi ruins his birthday parties

[kaicko]

Happy (?) Birthday Byakuya-bou !! 🏃🏻‍♀️🌸🎂

[akaluan]

Kisuke Adopts the Kids Pt9

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9

((Okay I’m calling this here bc it’s a halfway decent stop point. There will probably be more in this AU at a later point, but for now this is it. In the end, I wrote just over 11k words in this AU and... I really didn’t expect that.

In a month or so, I’ll probably do some heavy edits on this story and post it on AO3 and ffnet, but that’s a while down the line for certain.))

School resumed, and the children went back with a grumble.

Ichigo came back more than once with bandaged knuckles and bruises and sullen silence at Kisuke’s questions. He refused to meet Kisuke’s gaze, even when Kisuke patched him up, and Kisuke… worried.

He took to stalking Ichigo, keeping an eye on the boy throughout the day. He watched as Ichigo was goaded into fighting by bullies, and how Ichigo was the one labeled the troublemaker. How the teachers looked away and chided Ichigo for dying his hair and inviting trouble.

(Kisuke reminded himself that Ichigo would not thank him for ruining everyone’s lives.)

Instead, Kisuke dedicated more time to teaching Ichigo, starting the boy on some basic hand-to-hand that was more… suited to group combat than what Ichigo was learning at the dojo. Ichigo gave him a thoughtful look the first time he proposed it, but the boy didn’t protest, and he /did/ start returning home with fewer injuries.

Uryuu was the surprise.

He insisted on joining the lessons, learning Kisuke’s variant of hand-to-hand with a single-minded focus that was almost frightening. And when Ichigo /kept/ getting into fights even with the lessons, insisted on switching schools to be in Ichigo’s class with him.

(Or, rather, he first insisted that Kisuke change /Ichigo’s/ school.)

(”No,” Kisuke informed Uryuu with a frown. “It’s Ichigo’s choice, and he has not requested to change schools.”)

(”But he’s getting hurt there! Why won’t you—”)

(“People are not objects to keep and control, Uryuu-kun,”  Kisuke interrupted firmly, leaning forward as he did and inwardly praying he could keep Uryuu from repeating his own mistakes. “I’ve suggested changing schools to him, and he doesn’t want to.”)

(”Fine! Then I want to change schools! Put me in his class!”)

(Kisuke smiled faintly at Uryuu’s insistence, but nodded in agreement and inwardly swore to keep an eye out for any other… familiar habits beginning to form.)

And when Kisuke gave in, placing Uryuu where the boy wanted to be, suddenly he had /two/ boys to patch up most afternoons. Not that he’d expected otherwise; Uryuu had practically announced his intentions from the moment he asked to switch schools.

But it was okay. Together, their reputation was… not the best, and Kisuke got more than a few calls about Uryuu’s unruly behavior, but at least the bullying began to taper off.

Which was, of course, when the two boys began to actively /look/ for trouble. And the after-school healing sessions began all over again.

(But he couldn’t really reprimand them either. Kisuke knew what they were doing, and while he felt it /naive/… it was still heartening, to see such /good/.)

(Kisuke promised himself to keep an eye out, to make sure that protective instinct didn’t turn dark.)

It was during one damp, late fall afternoon, while Kisuke was healing Uryuu’s arm, that he realized Uryuu’s birthday was around the corner.

“What would you like to do for your birthday?” Kisuke asked as he finished healing the bone bruise.

“Ah- uhm,” Uryuu started a bit and looked up from watching Kisuke’s healing kido. “I don’t… really know? Maybe just… Ichigo and Arisawa-san if she’s free?” he said tentatively, gaze examining Kisuke’s expression as he spoke.

“We can do that,” Kisuke agreed easily. “I’m sure Arisawa-chan would love to come.”

Uryuu relaxed at Kisuke’s words, a small smile crossing his face. “Thank you.”

So he set about preparing. Made sure the Arisawa’s knew Tatsuki was invited, and that Ichigo and his sisters knew when it was. He ordered a cake and some treats, then tried to decide what gift to give. There were so many options, and none seemed quite right, either too impersonal or too grand a gesture, or both.

Finally, he settled on something he /hoped/ wouldn’t be too much. Kisuke gathered his notes and observations and every little piece of Quincy information he and Yoruichi had managed to piece together… and attempted to condense it into a book.

He would never be able to fit /all/ of it, of course, but… the beginning steps, at least. The basics of Quincy knowledge, laid out in straightforward language. Skills and steps and observations all neatly written down and explored.

(A just-in-case. Something for Uryuu to pass on to his children, and their children. So that his descendants would hopefully never need to rely on finding a stranger skilled in reverse-engineering skills to teach them their birthright.)

Kisuke waited impatiently for the boys to return to the shoten, the day of the party, hovering and fretting and making such a nuisance of himself that Tessai finally chased him from the shoten and told him to /fetch/ the boys if he was so anxious.

(He wasn’t! He absolutely wasn’t. Still, that was a good enough idea as any.)

Uryuu was surprised to see him at the school gates, a happy, /wondering/ smile spreading as he trotted closer and saw that it /was/ Kisuke. “You didn’t have to pick me up,” he told Kisuke with an affected huff that did nothing to hide his happiness. “Ichigo and I are perfectly capable of walking home by ourselves.”

“After taking a few detours,” Kisuke said with an amused smile. “Besides! I wanted to!”

Uryuu gave him a considering look, then made a rather adorable noise of comprehension. “Tsukabishi-san kicked you out of the shoten, didn’t he?”

“Maa, maa, it was merely a suggestion that I liked!” Kisuke defended.

Uryuu’s and Ichigo’s laughter was contagious, and the three of them settled into a conversation about the day as they headed towards the school where Ichigo’s sisters went. Tatsuki joined them halfway to the shoten, and by the time they returned Tessai had set everything out properly, including three wrapped presents.

Uryuu stopped to take in the table, with the cake and treats and the presents laid out, then ducked his head and settled at his usual spot. Ichigo, his sisters, and Tatsuki all stepped around him and dropped their presents onto the small pile and sat as well.

They sang, and Kisuke cut the cake and handed out slices, and Ichigo prodded Uryuu into their usual banter and got him to relax. Presents also went over well, especially Kisuke’s hand-written book once Uryuu had skimmed a few pages and realized what he was holding. The bright, cheerful smile he received was… pleasing, more than he expected it to be.

(Well. He’d already suspected how attached he had become. This was just… confirmation.)

That night, as Tessai saw off the other four and Kisuke tidied up the room a bit, Uryuu curled up with the book Kisuke had given him and slowly read through the pages. He began to nod off before Kisuke was entirely done, however, eyes drifting closed and head tipping forward.

Kisuke chuckled softly and knelt at Uryuu’s side, pulling the book from the boy’s lax hands. “Come, it’s bedtime for you I think,” he said, setting aside the book and gathering Uryuu into his arms.

“’M not tired,” Uryuu protested sleepily, blinking up at Kisuke.

“Perhaps not, but it /is/ your bedtime,” Kisuke responded. He carried Uryuu out of the room and down the hall. “You can read later, Uryuu-kun. That book is yours, after all.”

Uryuu huffed but leaned his head against Kisuke’s chest. “Thank you, tou-san,” he murmured around a yawn, then stiffened and pulled away, staring warily up at Kisuke.

Kisuke kept moving by sheer willpower, mind racing, and mustered a warm smile for Uryuu. “You’re welcome, musuko,” he replied. And when he didn’t react further to Uryuu’s slip, the boy slowly relaxed in his arms again.

(Uryuu didn’t mean it. He couldn’t think of /Kisuke/ as his father… could he?)

(It was just a slip of the tongue. Kisuke didn’t deserve the title; surely the boy knew that.)

(But either way… Uryuu was his, and any Shinigami who attempted to harm the boy would face Kisuke’s wrath.)

(Kisuke had never claimed to be a good man, after all.)