Persimmon

It was a cold and silent night in the Soul Society. Everyone was already dead asleep. But to Rangiku Matsumoto, none of that mattered now. She wasn't inside her quarters, although that was her honest intention. However, as she was dismissed for the day, Rangiku realized that she had forgotten to file away the reports for the end of the week. Normally, she wouldn't have to really worry about it, even though it was in her job description as Lieutenant of Tenth Division. On any given day of the week, it was nearly expected that she skip out early to go drinking or make sure her special weekly orders of fresh dried persimmons had been shipped to her room. Captain Hitsugaya was stuck with the rest of the paperwork, not that she ever heard him really complain. She supposed that he would rather do it himself so that he wouldn't have to double-check her work for mistakes.

However, this evening would sadly not be open for drinking, and even if she had received her persimmons, she wouldn't be able to find out until she got home.

"Of all the nights to be invited to go to a hot springs resort without telling me. Captain, I'm surprised you even took the offer!" she whined, clearly annoyed. Normally, he would turn them down without blinking. Oh well, at least the kid's getting out and about. He needed some exposure to the outside world.

After enduring several paper cuts and one instance of a file-laden box slamming on her pinky toe, Rangiku finally just shoved the mess of papers into the bottom drawer, which was luckily empty. Dousing the lights and sticking her forefinger in her mouth to ease the pain of the cuts, she slipped on her sandals and shut the door behind her. When she turned, her eyes lit up in awe as the moon hung delicately in the sky, giving everything around the area an eerie glow. A few silver-lit clouds floated distantly, barely seeming to move. Silver... and distant. She never liked thinking about it. Every time that man came into her thoughts, she forced them out by downing however many bottles of sake it took. But tonight... she had held it off for too long.

"Gin..." The name rolled off her tongue, and her heart wrenched. The wind carried her words away and she heard no echo. Her exposed skin shivered and she stared at the moon for a moment longer, before going back to her room. On the way there, loud snores of everyone sleeping could be heard. She was grateful that her quarters were at the end of the row, and that she had plenty of ear plugs in case she couldn't get to sleep. Continuing to hold her sore finger in her mouth, she silently opened the door to her room. Her sandals were tossed into the corner and a flickering light soon filled the room.

Rangiku was a strong woman, and never showed her deepest weaknesses to anyone. But now that she was alone, in the dead of night, she could be vulnerable without anyone hearing her. Making sure her door was tightly shut, she began getting undressed. The pink scarf fell haphazardly on the floor by her unmade futon and a tear from her shining eyes fell along with the cloth.

"Stupid..." she muttered, clumsily fingering the sash around her waist. "You're so stupid... for leaving me, Gin. And I'm stupid for waiting for you." Talking out loud never really accomplished anything, but it had been a while since she had done it. Sometimes it eased her pain, getting her thoughts out in the open. Other times... she fell asleep, clutching her blankets like a small child, wishing that it was him she was clinging to. She suspected that this was one of the other times. And she had no sake to drown her sorrows.

She unclasped the necklace around her neck and placed it on her small night stand. A few strands of hair got caught on the chain and she winced.

"Ow ow ow!" With a necessary tug, she ripped them out and let the hair flutter to the ground. The momentary pain seemed magnified with tears already in her eyes. She was also unfortunate in accidently biting her tongue. With her entire body seemingly in pain, she skipped getting undressed and pulled back her covers, intent on sleeping away her woes for once.

A small wooden box with her name burned into the side was underneath the sheets, along with a return address of 'Soul Society Fresh Produce'. Her dried persimmons! They must have been delivered while she was at work, and why they were in her bedding, she wasn't exactly sure. Rangiku carefully opened the box, not risking any splinters and was met with a delicious aroma. Her stomach let out a long growl, reminding her that she hadn't eaten since lunch that day. Without pretense, she unwrapped the fruit and stuffed them, one by one, into her mouth, the flavor filling her senses. She sniffled and cleared her throat before swallowing. Sometimes her favorite food could bring the same pleasure as warm sake, she realized. One last tear leaked from her eye, and she hastily wiped it away.

"I can't keep crying over you, now can I? What good does it do if you don't know about it anyway?" she mumbled to herself, licking her fingers. Her paper cuts stung. Looking down at the half-empty box, she decided to save them for later. She set it aside, her stomach feeling full... but her heart ever so empty.

A thump could be heard outside her door and she all but jumped at the sound. Who could be out there, at this hour no less? It wasn't unusual for one of the captains to take a midnight stroll, but to her knowledge, they had all gone to the hot springs for the weekend. Rangiku wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and quietly ran to the door with all the stealth she could muster. Whoever it was, she would give them a scolding for running around in the middle of the night. Narrowing her eyes, she could barely make out a shadow through her rice paper door.

Rangiku flung open the shouji and had to shield her eyes as a cold winter breeze rushed towards her. It died down quickly and she was left staring at the bright crescent in the sky. Nobody was there. She looked left and right, then left again and couldn't spot so much as a fleeting shadow out of place. It had to have been her imagination. Her heart felt heavy when she realized that she wanted someone to be out there. She wanted Gin to be standing there for her. But it would never happen. He had gone away for good, that was for certain. To pretend that he was capable of anything else was a waste of time.

Turning back after closing the door, she considered going out for a midnight sake run, and then eating the rest of her persimmons alone. She couldn't stay depressed like this for long, otherwise... she would spend all her spare time thinking about him. It was pointless. Frowning, she doused one of her lamps, creating darkness in one side of the room. Out of the corner of her eye, something glinted.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, then covered her mouth quickly, refusing to believe what she was seeing. In the far corner of the room, Gin Ichimaru stood. He was silent, tilting his head ever so slightly, making her wonder if he was an illusion. She stared rigidly at him, not sure what to think at the moment. Was he really, truly there?

"Ran..." his voice whispered. She was startled, but took a tentative step forward.

"Gin, is that really you?" Real or not, he kept looking at her and she kept coming towards him. Once she was in reach, he held out his arms, ready to embrace her. Not waiting any longer, she rushed to him and flung her arms around his neck, pressing herself against him. He felt so warm that she nuzzled her tear-stained cheek to his chest. She felt his hands touch her back in a soothing motion.

"Yes, I'm here. See for yourself, Rangiku." The young woman complied, looking up into his face. His eyes weren't their usual closed slits, but were open, dark red and alluring. His unnerving smirk was replaced with a genuine smile of relief. Silver hair fell over his brow, and seemed to glow in the shimmering lamplight. Rangiku reached up to touch his face, needing to study him to confirm his presence.

"So... it is you," she finally said. Gin nodded, and began pulling her closer. However, she stepped back, just out of his reach. He felt her ki rise, along with her right hand. In a flash, her palm connected squarely with his face, hitting him with as much force as she could gather. Surprisingly, he stumbled back, falling against the wall. He said nothing.

"You idiot!" she screamed. "You come back here, knowing full well that you could be caught... and yet you still-" She was at a loss of what to say next, she was so confused. Didn't she want him here in the first place? No matter what the cost? She was breathing hard, the inside of her hand stinging. Her handprint reddened on his left cheek and he stood in shock.

"That's quite a welcome, Ran. I came all this way to see you," he said, a hint of his old smile lingering on his lips.

"You shouldn't have come here. It's not right," she protested, shaking her reddish-gold locks.

"But I came all this way. And don't you like your present?" He looked past her to the box next to her futon. She clenched her hands to her sides, willing herself to not cry again. Why was she being so sensitive?

"They are your favorite," he said quietly.

"Since when are you so thoughtful? Hm?" she questioned, steeling herself against the emotion welling up in her body. "And why choose now, of all times, to be thoughtful? Since when do you even think of me?" In a flash, he was hugging her to him and she had to bite her bottom lip to hold back her tears.

"I think of you too much," he replied honestly. Her shoulders were shaking as he tangled his fingers in her hair, and brushing his thumb underneath her eye to catch any stray tears. "I know you inside and out, Ran. I know all your movements. I even knew you were gonna hit me just now."

"What? Why didn't you stop me? You idiot!" She found herself repeating the dull insult, all while beating her small fist against his chest.

"Well... let's just say I needed it, and leave it at that." His hand caught her wrist and pulled it over his shoulder, then gave her an unbridled kiss. Her limbs seemed to melt and the tears finally began to flow. Everything exchanged from beforehand didn't matter anymore. All she knew was that an inexplicable warmth was flowing into her veins. Rangiku had forgotten how heady his kiss could make her feel. She felt a bit overwhelmed and tried stepping backwards. Gin refused to break away, following her instead. When the back of her foot touched the futon, she took control and made him let go of her. He gave a moan of discontent, but then saw where she was going. Gazing downward, he took hold of the halfway loosened sash around her tapered waist and stripped it away. She then loosened her hakama and tossed it aside, leaving only her black gi, which came mid-thigh. She repeated the action on him, and soon his clothing mirrored hers.

"Have you stopped crying, Ran?" he asked her. She was lying between the covers, holding back the corner so he could slip in as well.

"For now, at least," the young woman replied. He leaned forward, giving a slight nibble on her ear.

"Good," he whispered, sending a shiver down her spine. "I don't make love to women while they cry."

"I won't cry anymore if you stay," she reasoned, arching her back as he bit lightly on her neck. She wanted to hit him again when he didn't answer her. However, her hands were busy, meandering through his silver locks while he trailed kisses down the center of her body. She was already forgetting that she was supposed to be angry with him.

Time moved on. He made love to her twice, and her fervent moans echoed in his mind, laced with her screaming his name. He could taste the sweetness of persimmons from her lips. The moon cast soft beams of light through the thin door, illuminating them long after the lamp had gone out. As it rotated past the horizon, the sun would soon take its place.

"Please, don't go... I need you here, Gin," she begged, kissing him along his jaw line.

"You know I can't do that, Ran." She pouted, giving a childish whine.

"Then... stay as long as you can." Gin sighed, then made the decision to stay until sunrise.

"Go to sleep, my Rangiku."

Author's Note: Hey, it's me again. So I was writing some more of that one-shot stuff between Gin and Orihime in 'Silhouette', and I noticed how much I was mentioning Matsumoto. So I just decided to write a straight up GinXRangiku fic today. Sorry it's so short, but it's 2 AM here in Okinawa. I wanted to make the love scene longer (don't we all!), but there were 2 reasons why I didn't. One, I just wasn't feeling it. I know, lame excuse. And two, Mom is literally shoo-ing me out of the computer room and telling me to go to bed this very second. Luckily, she doesn't read this stuff, ahah. Ehhh... Why am I still 22 and living with my parents?? I can has life please? Anyway, this is and will most likely remain a one-shot, but we'll see. At the very least, I'll try and expand on it in the future. So please review it. And in case you're wondering, this takes place after Gin leaves with Aizen to go to Hueco Mundo. Though why the captains of Gotei 13 are going to a hot spring in that kind of situation, beats me!

What do you think, hm?