Restoring Order: The Gate [Byakuya/Chidori]

Byakuya approached this meeting with little certainty of how it would unfold. Despite the occasional casual conversation he and Chidori had shared, they were not friends, and he could guess she would not be fond of his way of handling the Central 46 meeting. He only hoped that she could see how crucial her aid in his endeavor was and would agree to build a new Senkaimon.

The nobleman approached the Shihoin attendant and, with calm composure, announced, "Please inform Lady Shihoin that Byakuya Kuchiki would like to speak with her." He did not like showing up without warning, but with the current state of affairs, he felt time was an important factor to consider.

"Hm... let him in." Chidori wasn't very pleased by the information but her mind was racing with the possibilities of why Byakuya Kuchiki was at her doorstep and what she was going to get out of it. It better be good, she was spending some quality time with her children before being abruptly interrupted. With the current state of the soul society she wanted to hoard as much time as she could with her kids as possible

It would only be a few minutes from the gate to Chidori's meeting room. It was small and intimate, sporting only one window. Definitely not the grandest room on the estate but it didn't need to be. They were only talking, right? As he would enter he would find Chidori already sitting there, eyes immediately trained on him as he walked through the door.

"Welcome to my home. It's been a while, Byakuya."

With no instant rejection, Byakuya followed the attendant to the room where he would be speaking with Chidori. Upon entering, he nodded out of respect. “Good morning, Chidori,” he said, his calm gaze resting upon her as he made his way into the room. “I appreciate you speaking with me on such short notice. Normally, I would not arrive without requesting a meeting, but with the state of things in the Soul Society, time is a luxury even we cannot afford.”

“I am in the middle of establishing a new group of Shinigami and require a Senkaimon in order to efficiently do the job. I come to you to request your aid in building one, as it is your family that holds the secrets behind it.”

"And what do you have for me?" There was an expectant pause following her statement before she continued. People have been coming to her for a lot of things, but they keep forgetting that they aren't family. Just because Chidori was a noble didn't mean that she was some sort of saint who had started believing in charity all of a sudden.

"The Senkaimon isn't something so easily built that I can just do it for you as a favor and just say you owe me. No, I'm going to need something... tangible." She spoke in a disinterested tone, hoping it would lead him to giving her something of value versus thinking that this was just a walk in the park. In truth, she didn't like him currently. With the situations plaguing the Gotei and his lack of leadership despite volunteering himself for the role, it all left a bad taste in her mouth.

For each of the Great Noble Families, wealth was of little consequence—a resource so abundant it could be exchanged or dismissed without a second thought. Each house possessed enough fortune to appease the others for generations without the faintest impact on their own stability. Approaching this meeting with a specific offering was, therefore, an exercise in flexibility and compromise; without deeper knowledge of each other’s values, discerning what 'tangible' exchange might hold genuine worth was almost impossible.

Byakuya's gaze remained stern as he spoke, his tone as precise as his words. “We are prepared to offer appropriate compensation for this request,” he stated, observing the subtle tone in the room. “Is there something specific you seek?”

"Drop the we, Byakuya." He was stuck in the formalities, which would normally be fine but he approached her. Out of the blue, if she were to add. This did not seem to have to backing or drive of the Kuchiki family behind it and rather was fully born of his own selfish desires. As such, she was going to call it out like it was. "You didn't bring anyone here besides yourself, and nobody besides yourself asked me for a favor. This is merely between two people and such whatever you were going to offer needed to impress me. For your age and attitude you seem quite... inexperienced. Though," Her tone dropped low as she spoke frankly. "That's what got you in this mess in the first place."

"I'll keep it blunt with you Byakuya, for the sake of your time and mine. I have something you want, surely someone of your position knew that you would need something to offer in kind. I gave you the chance to offer up your world but if I have to take it from you then so be it." Once again she caught herself using a word she didn't want to, or rather a word that was too harsh for the context. She wasn't going to forcibly take something from him but this was a situation of give and take; if she was going to give then she was going to take too, as was her right.

"The Kuchiki and Shihoin have been friendly for generations. You've been familiar with my father, my aunt, and now me. For three generation you've called yourself an ally but in times of great peril it seems that we've always been the ones to bail you out, whether it be the Aizen incident or now. I wish to see us flourish together in the future and I would love to grant you a senkaimon, but I need a guarantee of your commitment to the cause." A smirk landed plainly on her dark skinned beauty, an idea was cooking in that devious head of hers. Chidori had nothing but free time lately so there has been things she has yearned for, things that even a noble couldn't just get.

"Marry me, Byakuya. A union of Kuchiki and Shihoin, a symbol of your dedication to the betterment of not only the relationship of our families but also to the Soul Society. With two great houses coming together you're bound to get the support of the others, and with a united Sereitei the Rukongai will quickly follow." This was not a request born from love or even interest in the man, but it was rather purely political. Chidori had no more intent of marrying anyone for love as her hands were already full with enough children as is. Though, with a husband such as the head of the Kuchiki coupled with a child being raised by the Koizumi, the Shihoin would be slated to be absolute powerhouses in only a few mere decades. It was through plotting such as this that Chidori felt as if her father was guiding her hands. Yushiro was not only a warrior but a master negotiator as well and it seemed that Chidori may have indeed learned a thing or two through is parenting.

“No, I am not here on my own behalf, Chidori,” Byakuya replied curtly, unfazed by her assumptions. Her words, laced with presumption, reflected a misunderstanding he had encountered too often. At times, he considered speaking more openly, but in moments like these—listening to Chidori Shihōin’s brazen remarks—he felt reassured in his restraint. Each unspoken thought affirmed that silence, coupled with precision, was the most effective response to such displays. And at her request, the room remained silent…

‘So, that’s her game…’

"Entirely unacceptable," Byakuya stated, his gaze sharpening, voice colder. "A union between the heads of two Great Noble Houses would provoke resistance from every level of the aristocracy. This friction would yield only disruption, helping neither our families’ standing nor strengthening the Soul Society."

He paused, observing her with a calm composure. "However, I can see your father’s negotiation skills at work. Rather than entertain impractical suggestions, let us focus on what reasonable compromise you are prepared to make."

"Inadequate. Irresponsible. Incompetent. Obsolete." Chidori was no child, she could handle rejection easily. What she could not stand was when somebody was wasting her time, and it was slowly starting to seem to her that Byakuya had no intention of striking a deal but rather expected a handout at a price he deemed it worth. The audacity it took to come into her house, ask her for something, then mock her price? It was getting to her but the calm demeanor never left the Shihoin head. The shoes of her father, though incredibly large, were something she was comfortable wearing.

"Sorry, I thought we were just saying what we thought about each other." In the silence that followed she stood up and approached the nearest window, staring outside of it at the back of the estate. With the view she could see family, she could see those who she was surrounded by all of her life and the people she would protect with her dying breath. The same people who relied on her to be strong, those who gave her strength. "Impractical as it may be, you sit here and speak of compromise yet don't even refute with an offer. You seem to forget the blueprints are mine, my birth right. You ask to come see me. You step foot in my house. You sat there, heard my offer, and refused it with no recourse."

"I'm not going to sit here and waste my time blindly shooting in the dark hoping to please you, Byakuya. I am willing to meet you halfway but you have yet to leave the starting line. There are many similarities between my father and I, but I am not nearly as kind nor as patient." With a sigh escaping her lips her gaze averted back to his, the cold blue stare seemed to absorb the light that dared to touch it. Even if her face was calm it was clear that her mind was somewhere else.

"Marry me or not, I do not care. At this rate you will be leaving empty handed. And, for the sake of entertaining this discussion I will refrain from speaking freely." The last remark was sharp. Chidori had no problem making it very clear to the man how much she did not like him and did not agree with his recent actions. Nevertheless she was going to have to do business with him, or else at this rate there will be no more great noble houses after he's finished doing his work. "And before you open your mouth again, please do us both a favor and think very, very hard about what you want and why you want it." That was the mother in her speaking, those words having come from her multiple times in the past couple of years as she's had to learn to deal with growing children.

Nothing annoyed her more than a noble who forgets what it meant to be one. Because, unfortunately, it just reminded her of an old version of herself. And she hates who she was.

Byakuya remained impassive, though the Head of the Shihōin’s outburst was, frankly, beneath the decorum he’d anticipated from her station. If she chose to conduct herself in such a manner, it would represent her own character, not his.

“Very well," Byakuya replied with a level tone. "I began by asking your terms as a matter of respect. If you interpret this as weakness or ineptitude, then clearly you are unfamiliar with whom you are addressing. We are prepared to offer Rio Shihōin a captaincy, granting your family formal representation among our forces. Furthermore, since there is possibility she decline, we are willing to lease the Fifth Division Grounds, which remain under Shihōin management, ensuring your family a steady and endless stream of revenue. This is the most that will be acceptable, as the cost is shared beyond myself alone.”

Byakuya understood that while wealth often seemed inconsequential to families of their status, it could quickly become essential when circumstances changed—whether due to economic downturns, conflict, or other unforeseen crises that threatened stability. A steady influx of income provided a valuable cushion against the unpredictability of power, which was something many were going to be feeling the pressures of for years to come after this most recent invasion.

Now he was playing the game.

A sense of pride washed over Chidori as she finally got him to begin negotiations, a smirk finding its way on her face. She had no problem showing her emotions in that moment, speaking through the smile: "I like what you're proposing Byakuya, but it could be a little better. Perhaps we combine them and cut out the middle man? If Rio is given captaincy I'd prefer to have her returned to a position formerly afforded to the Shihoin: the Omnitsukido. Probably not returning in the same capacity and I would like to have a say in it's function before it's final, though afterwards it would be in both your and Rio's hands."

Losing their noble seat in the Gotei was shameful though Chidori had little say in the matter. Her father wasn't a hoarder of influence and often decided towards peace rather than turmoil when it came to matters that included Abalia, so when downsizing led to a loss of privilege there was no retaliation. If Chidori was able to reacquire something like that in not only such a short time, but can mold it into something even better than it's predecessor than she'd be quick to leave a mark on the history of the Soul Society.

Plus, Rio deserved captaincy more than anyone. Probably more than Byakuya, but that's neither here nor there. He won the vote fair and square but she wasn't going to be any happier about it.

"She'd work under you, you'd still get the Fifth Division grounds, you'll regain the privilege to utilize the Omnitsukido's skills once again. And a Senkaimon on top!" Chidori was sweetening the deal a little bit to try and sell him on it, though realistically that's as far as she'd be willing to go.