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ūshirō met Shunsui's parents while they were students at the Academy. The Kyōraku estate was among the largest he'd ever visited, but the atmosphere was a cold one. Shunsui’s parents were polite enough, but their smiles were distant and their air of nobility had made Jūshirō uneasy. Even though Jūshirō knew that they hadn't seen Shunsui in years (he avoided going home unless absolutely necessary) there was still no real affection shown for their youngest son. It had made Jūshirō grateful for the home he had grown up in - both of his parents had died before he entered the Academy but he'd known love right up until the day they died. They were exhaustive in their efforts to find a cure for his illness, and even though they hadn’t been able to find one, Jūshirō would be eternally grateful.
That was what prompted Jūshirō to invite Shunsui back to Ugendō. At the time, most of his younger siblings still lived at the family estate, which made for a very chaotic environment, but a fun and exciting one. Jūshirō had been hesitant to take Shunsui to Ugendō, his family was of nobility, but very low-nobility when compared to the Kyōraku
family, and the estate reflected that fact.
“Do any of your younger siblings have spiritual powers?” Shunsui asked as they packed for the trip.
“No, not yet. I’m sure at least a couple of them will; it would be really strange for me to be the only one seeing as there’s eight of us in total.”
Shunsui whistled, “I can’t believe that. Eight kids – your parents were saints.”
Jūshirō nodded, his smile reminiscent. “They were. They were exceptionally kind people. I was lucky, because I got to spend many years with them. My youngest sister was still learning to talk when they died.”
Shunsui nodded slowly, and there was a moment of silence before he did the zipper on the bag up with a flourish.
“Alright! Let’s get out of this place, Ukitake!”
The trip to Ugendō was a quick one, especially since they both learned how to flash step and they were there in no time at all. The outside of the estate was serene; the koi ponds were a myriad of different coloured fish and the bonsai trees were all perfectly trimmed. Jūshirō had to admit that he was surprised at the cleanliness and order of the estate, then again it was very possible that they had cleaned in preparation for his arrival.
When they entered, Jūshirō didn’t even have time to announce their arrival before a blur of long black hair streaked down the hall and Jūshirō found his arms full of one of his sisters.
“Onii-chan! You’re home!”
Jūshirō laughed, and hugged the girl close. “Seiko! You get bigger every time I come home!”
Shunsui found himself unable to resist laughing as he watched Jūshirō hug and tickle his younger sister. Before long the entrance was full of people from an entire spectrum of age. It was the first time Shunsui had met any of Jūshirō’s family. It was an interesting experience; the majority of them had the same fair complexion as Ukitake, although Jūshirō was far paler. The hair was the main difference – Shunsui had had a hard time imagining Jūshirō with black hair, but seeing his sibling made it a little easier; they all had dark hair but there was slight variation between colour.
When everything had calmed down, Jūshirō was finally able to make introductions, although Shunsui had a hard time keeping all the names straight. No one seemed to mind though, and he was quickly enveloped into embraces and ushered further into the room. It was incredibly loud, but Shunsui loved it, it was everything he didn’t get at home and reminded him of the parties at the Academy that he loved.
Dinner was an event. Shunsui had left the elder Ukitake siblings to cook and he’d tasked himself with entertaining the younger ones. He was the younger brother, so he’d never had the chance to experience younger sibling, but he fell in love with Jūshirō’s siblings almost instantly, and they were great fun.
Later into the evening Shunsui and Jūshirō sat out on the back porch, listening to the crickets and watching the stars. Both of them could feel the tiredness that accompanied a long and eventful day begin to drape over them, but they were happy nonetheless.
“They really like you, you know,” Jūshirō began. “They’re already planning for you to come back over the winter break.”
Shunsui laughed, “I look forward to it. I can’t believe you manage to support this place basically on your own…just how good of a tutor are you?”
Jūshirō smirked, “Well I don’t drink nearly as much alcohol you do. It’s impressive how much money you can save with sobriety.”
Shunsui rolled his eyes, “Boring!”
Jūshirō chuckled and pushed Shunsui lightly, knocking his friend slightly off balance. They spent the rest of the break at Ugendō, and Shunsui was almost reluctant to bid farewell when they were ready to leave. It was easy to fall in love with the Ukitake children, they all shared a kindness and genuineness that had attracted Shunsui to Jūshirō initially.
Shunsui had gone home with Jūshirō to visit his family numerous times throughout their career at the Academy and onwards. They were an extended family of sorts of his, and it was always an occasion when they all managed to get together.
That was the trip that had made Shunsui promise himself that one day he’d have a large family of his own. A home filled with love and laughter. As time went by, that dream was pushed to the back of his mind as more prominent and pressing issues arose; but he never forgot his promise.
Some things were worth the wait.