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Aizen disliked the taste of alcohol.
It left a bitter feel on his tongue and a nameless ache in his belly, as if he'd been eating thistles. Today, though, was special, and so there was a sake dish in front of him and a half-empty bottle near his left hand.
Hinamori Momo was a hundred years old today.
She still looked, as she always had, like a mere maiden of fifteen, with her wide dark eyes, clear skin, and glossy hair tied back into a girlish style. No one looking at her could possibly have guessed at the death and horror she'd seen in her lifetime. Nor could they guess at what she would see in the years ahead of her.
No one, that is, but himself. He had a very clear idea indeed of what was in store for her in the near future. It was ugly, and painful, and he really doubted she'd survive. But if she did... if she did, she would become someone worth a second glance. He had not chosen her as his lieutenant as a whim. He did nothing without good reason.
She was smiling and blushing and very, very drunk. Kira, who became much more personable when intoxicated, had an arm draped across her shoulders from the right, while Abarai Renji's arm circled her waist from the left. The three of them, though no longer in school together or training together or really anything together, were still practically psychic when it came to each other's feelings. They still trusted each other implicitly.
It would be so entertaining to watch them shatter when he put just a little pressure in just the right places.
For now, though, he would celebrate her birthday and toast to her good health like any good captain would do, and after the party ended he would take her to the bridge he knew that overlooked all of Seireitei and hold her gently in the moonlight. Very gently, because she was very fragile and it wouldn't do to break her before the main event.
She would be so happy. It would make the fall just that much sweeter.
Hinamori laughed at something Abarai said, eyes tearing up and hand held quivering before her mouth because even this drunk, she was still a lady.
Aizen smiled.
Tomorrow would be beautiful.
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