A/N: This story is something that popped into my mind. I wrote it mostly in one go. Though I went over it, it's a lot of text, so expect some mistakes. Please be forgiving in that aspect. Also the pirate talk was kinda hard so I wonder if I did it right. It might seem inconsistent but it's mostly intended by the characters. Sorry about that too. Anyway, I do hope that the story is somewhat entertaining. The characters are often OOC. I've published the whole main story at once in these chapters and the epilogue has been added.

The link to the cover picture is on my profile.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or anything except my ideas.

Chapter 1

The bar smelt of alcohol and cigarettes. It was evening, so unruly men hung out at the place, drinking and playing cards, forming small scattered groups in the dim hall. Though purposely done, the lighting was pretty bad, so the corners were mostly in the shadows. Those were perfect places to negotiate most deals, especially the ones with no strings attached – purely business.

A shady looking tavern like this was not unusual in port towns like Rukongai. It was even less unusual here because Rukongai was the city of thieves – the city of the thieves of the wide sea, though more commonly known as pirates. Gathering together on evenings like these, exchanging information, hiring new seamen to replace the ones perished in battle. Fights broke out quite often in places like these. It's not even surprising to see a dead body or two lying in the backyard the next morning.

In such a tavern was a young lady, around the age of 20, sitting in a dark corner. Her dark hair barely reached her shoulders and the left side was held back with a clip. She looked rather young as well. It was odd for an individual like her to be present in a pub. However most of the men did not even dare look her way for too long. She was known in these parts as the Crimson Blade or more endearingly called the Ruby Princess. Now why would someone like her be here? Because she was waiting for something… and someone. For who? Well, who else but for–

"The Ice Ring! 'Tis 'em who raided that punk's house I tell ye! Flames went up, it was a sight t'see!"

"Oh shut up! Yer weren't even there!"

"Who do ye think yer talking to, hah?!"

"Hah?!"

The Ruby Princess got slightly distracted by the starting brawl a couple of tables away from here. She simply hoped that they wouldn't wander over to her spot. It would become troublesome otherwise.

"Miss, here is your drink", a young boy arrived and put down a cocktail on the table.

The girl gave her thanks and stared into the liquid in front of her. After judging that it wasn't poisoned, she started sipping at her drink. She leaned back and relaxed her tense shoulders, while setting her drink on the table again.

[Even though this isn't my first time anymore, I still get tense every time I hear that they might be in town. Why else would I go through all this trouble?]

A soft sigh escaped her lips as she pondered her next move, should her target not appear tonight – again.

Her hopes of achieving her goal were diminishing with every failed attempt.

[It's been six months since I've started this. Building up my reputation was hard but I need it. But it's so hard to get wind of them. The moment I arrive, they're gone. I always miss them or the info's wrong.]

Another sigh escaped her lips.

"Young lady, why are ye sighing?"

The sudden voice in front of her startled her, immediately bringing up her guard. She did not notice his presence because she was too deep in thought. The male voice was deep, not overly deep but deeper than the average and somewhat monotone.

She narrowed her eyes slightly, trying to see in the shadows. Though she had already accustomed herself to the dark, she could only faintly distinguish some features.

The person sitting opposite her seemed to have grey hair, but the shadows made her unsure. His hair was held up by a bandana though his fringe still reached the left side of his eye. She could not make out the eye colour.

"Just waiting for someone", she answered curtly while starting to have a hunch about the person's identity.

"Someone?", the person echoed and she nodded.

A short pause ensued when the girl didn't reply but instead took her drink and nipped at it.

"I didn't think that the Ruby Princess was this unforthcoming."

The girl froze in her actions for a split second before continuing to observe her conversation partner.

[I know that I'm well known around these parts but why would someone come to seek me out – unless it's a job and right now, it doesn't seem like it.]

"I would be a lot more outspoken, if the other person would introduce himself while knowing my identity."

From the nearby fight, the lighting was slowly swaying from side to side. The girl thought to have seen some eyebrow-raising at her answer but couldn't be too sure. Turquoise eyes shone for a moment when the light travelled to them.

[I think I've seen this person before…]

The Ruby Princess's brows furrowed slightly together in her effort to discern the person's identity.

"Forgive me my rudeness. Me name's Toshiro, also known as the Captain of the Ice Ring. I'm delighted to make your acquaintance."

This time the girl almost choked on her drink. Wariness came upon her and slight fear. Was her cover blown already?

Why exactly would her target come to seek her out?

[Calm down and just probe for more information] the girl thought to herself.

"The Captain of the Ice Ring? It's a pleasure to meet someone as renown as yourself. To what do I owe the privilege of meeting you?"

"Miss Ruby Princess has quite the reputation as well, especially since yer a woman working in the line o' our trade."

"Oh please don't flatter me and do call me Momo instead."

"Momo…?"

"Is something wrong?"

"No… no, just reminded me of someone."

"Is that so?"

Momo felt her interest peek.

[Could it be…?]

"I hear that you are currently not tied to a ship?"

The way Toshiro spoke was more of a statement rather than a question.

Momo nodded.

"Then I would like to ask you to join my crew."

Momo was about to nod when she halted her action. It was an understatement to say that she wasn't surprised. Actually Momo was a lot more shocked than she let on the surface.

[Could it be that my efforts finally paid off?]

She did not dare yet rejoice.

"And why do you want me?"

"I'm setting out for something quite interesting and for that I need the best crew I can get."

[Is it another treasure hunt?]

"And what do I get out of it?"

"Something befitting your services."

[Not so easily giving it out, huh? Well, I don't care as long as I can get to my goal but I need to play hard to get a little more, or else it would be suspicious.]

"Hmm… well I don't know…"

"You can think about it tonight. My ship's anchored at the port. How about coming with me tonight and having a look. Give me you answer tomorrow."

"…Why not?", Momo finally agreed and drowned the rest of her drink.

The tavern was not far from the docks, so it would be a short walk. Still Momo tried to enjoy the soft night wind that swept through her hair. The smell of the sea calmed her heart.

[The moon's out tonight] Momo noticed.

Since Toshiro walked in front of her, she could get a better view of him in the moonlight. His hair was a pure white and the moon made it glow faintly.

[Just like him… but that's not enough.]

His lean body moved with decisiveness as if he was full of purpose. Momo trailed behind and observed him.

[Hmm… Turquoise bandana, dark blue waistcoat over a white shirt and black trousers stuffed in knee-high boots. I must say that he doesn't really look like a captain.]

"Are you coming?"

Toshiro's voice called her out of her thoughts. She didn't realize that she had slowed down. But now that Toshiro had turned around, she could see his clear turquois eyes gleam in the moonlight. His hand hung loosely by his side with his thumbs in the pockets. His posture gave off a laid-back feel.

"Yeah", Momo answered leisurely and stepped up her walking speed.

As she walked side-by-side with him, she noticed that she was almost as tall as him – though she was wearing boots with heels. She herself was only averagely tall, so Toshiro must be considered somewhat short for a man.

[Short…]

Momo giggled unconsciously. A 'what's up' immediately shut her up as she noticed her mistake.

"Nothing", Momo replied calmly.

The young man beside her raised an eyebrow but let it slide.

Soon they arrived at the ship and Toshiro led Momo to the captain's quarter. Inside was a bed, loads of shelves filled with books and maps and other things, a large table and four chairs scattered around the room. Toshiro took the nearest two chairs and placed them in front and behind the table. He pulled one of the chairs back and let Momo sit before taking a seat himself.

[He's got quite some manners.]

Such a thought floated through Momo's mind.

A knock on the door and a 'come in' brought two glasses and a bottle of wine to the table.

"Wine?", Toshiro offered before getting confirmation and pouring them both a cup.

The wine swirled as the glasses clinked together. Momo took a gulp and placed the glass on the table. The pair's sights crossed but both stayed silent as if waiting for the other person to move. So there was only one thing left to say for Momo.

"Show me."

Toshiro pulled out a rolled parchment from underneath the stack at his side and spread it out. He got right down to business.

"The place I'm looking for is the island that conceals the Grand Crimson Lotus."

Momo's breath halted as the name dawned on her.

"You're looking for the Grand Crimson Lotus?!", Momo's voice went up a pitch at the end due to her surprise.

Toshiro looked up at Momo with seriousness in his eyes that left Momo rather speechless.

"I-I see", was all that the girl could get out.

"I know that you think it's a myth, but I know that it's not."

Momo couldn't really believe what she was hearing. The Grand Crimson Lotus was a treasure lost during the reign of three predecessors ago. Only those privileged to study royal history would know that's it's not a myth. It was a treasure chest filled to the brim with gold diamonds and more. And within it all lay the Lotus Crown, the original crown of the royal family, crafted with such delicate craftsmanship and artistry. The current one was more of an imitation that could not even compare – or so the legend goes.

"How?", Momo needed to know how the man in front of her came into the possession of such knowledge.

"Secret."

Disappointed, the girl pouted and drank another gulp from her glass.

"I hear that you are well versed with the royal history and its Nameless Language passed down only to the royal family and those connected to it. So I need your knowledge for this expedition", Toshiro finalized his standing.

Annoyed that she would not be able to get anything more out of the captain, made her take another gulp of wine.

"You did your research Captain. Very few know that I can read the Nameless Language."

"It is however still a mystery on how you acquired it."

"Trade secret. Well, I am rather interested in the treasure – not so much the monetary value as the history behind it. It's expected that the Nameless Language would be included in matters such as those."

"And that's why they call you Princess. Yer superior knowledge is on a different level. Yer almost never interested in the gold but rather just do things on your own whims and still get away with it. And all the while you are still able to dress in such extravagant clothing", Toshiro said while gesturing at Momo from top to bottom.

Momo frowned a bit as she looked at herself. Was he praising her or insulting her? She was only wearing a deep crimson velvet waistcoat and a white cashmere shirt underneath tucked into her black pants. On her belt were her cutlass and pistol. Her dark red leather boots were knee-high and concealed two daggers within. She wasn't wearing anything overly posh.

Well, okay… maybe she was dressed a bit extravagant. But it was her style. An embarrassed laugh came out as an answer in the end.

"You don't really look like a captain yourself", Momo stated and took another sip from her glass.

Toshiro laughed as he refilled Momo's glass.

"You're not the first one to say it but the first one t' say it in my face."

A nervous laugh followed as Momo realised her mistake.

[If he was not so laid-back, then I would be joining the sharks by now.]

While trying to wave her unease away, Momo finished another glass.

"You're a fast drinker", Toshiro said while refilling another glass.

"Not really.. I normally would just.. sip a glass until its empty.. and then stop, but ye know, yer wine is really delicious… Where'd ye get it from?", Momo asked, her voice a little unsteady and about to slur.

Toshiro was starting to doubt that refilling would be a good thing for his guest. However the girl in front of him was starting to become more talkative. Barely anyone talked to him in such an easy-going way anymore – not since he became captain of this ship.

"Just during one of our raids", was his relaxed answered.

There was a brief pause while Momo let the wine in her glass swirl around.

"Ye know? Yer stupid for givin' money away so easily. Wat's use o' it? Ar' ya'll trying to justify yer actions?", Momo snorted.

Toshiro halted in his drinking and his voice held a tinge of anger as he spoke:

"We don't just give them away freely but we give 'em more than the value we get back. Me men and I know the harsh life that everyone has to go through."

He then sighed for getting worked up about something a drunken girl said. He rolled the paper in front of him together and stood up to put it away. When he returned, he found his guest sleeping soundly on the chair.

Making the Ruby Princess fall as sleep was not intended but what could he do now? He contemplated for a while before coming to a decision. He picked up Momo and carried her over to his bed, lay her down facing away from him and covered her with his blanket.

After changing clothes, Toshiro also slipped into his bed. He put out the candle and made sure to face away from Momo before trying to sleep. It wasn't very easy when knowing that someone of the opposite sex was lying behind him so unguarded.

Outside the clouds parted and moonlight filtered through the window into his room. Toshiro who was about to fall asleep turned around to avoid the light. What he didn't expect was the sudden appearance of Momo's face. Unknowingly to him the young woman had turned around in her sleep. The moonlight cast upon her skin an unearthly glow while her black hair shimmered when she moved. Toshiro barely noticed himself tracing her features with his eyes. He had never seen anything like it before but his tiredness was catching up on him and he finally fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning Toshiro awoke earlier than usual… in an awkward position – at least it was for him. Momo had seemed to wrap her arms around his arm like a sleeping pillow during sleep. She had snuggled up against him. It wasn't as if he couldn't get out of her embrace, but instead if he would be able to do it without waking her up. He had heard that the Ruby Princess was a light sleeper, though right now he felt that she was a deep sleeper as she tightened her grip around his arm and pressed herself against it. He could feel certain parts of her pressing against him and tried very hard to not think about it.

First attempt.

Toshiro slowly peeled Momo's fingers of his arm. Once his arm was free, he slowly pulled it back to him but froze when he heard Momo whine. He saw the girl's left hand search for his arm by patting the area around it. Once she found it, she pulled it with a sudden yank and turned around. Toshiro felt like his arm was about to be dislocated. He stifled his shout of pain.

Second attempt.

As if feeling uncomfortable, Momo had turned back into her original position again. This time Toshiro tried to tickle her softly so that she would let go on her own and this time he would definitely pull out his arm as fast as he could. He trailed his fingers along her side, trying to find her ticklish spot. A small giggled came from Momo soon enough and her fingers loosened a little but gripped him tightly again afterwards. Toshiro tried a different place and tried the neck area while wandered to her backside. Momo began to laugh again. Her left hand let go and her right fingers loosened. Toshiro immediately pulled his left arm out, his right hand still tickling her. He was about to rejoice, when Momo's left hand suddenly clenched together and punched him in the stomach. Toshiro bit back a cry of pain and while he struggled to contain himself, Momo had somehow found his arm again and this time she even put her head on it. Toshiro let out a silent sigh.

Third attempt.

Toshiro decided that he should just wake her up and deal with the situation afterwards. Momo would definitely have lots of questions for him. He shook her shoulder while saying her name. Momo gave an irritated grunt and let go of his arm while taking the blanket with her and turned to the other side. Toshiro couldn't believe his luck when she let go on her own. He quietly slipped away from his bed and clenched his fist in an action of joy.

He quickly took his clothes to change and proceeded to the bathroom. After a while he came out again and saw Momo still asleep. He left her there and steered towards the kitchen.

#####

Momo awoke to the smell of eggs and bacon. The delicious smell wafted through the air as he rubbed her eyes in an attempt to clear her sight. What she saw was the captain of the Ice Ring setting up the table for breakfast.

"Finally awake?", came the question from the young man.

"Hmm… ", Momo replied lazily and yawned her sleepiness away – of course she did not forget to cover her mouth when doing so.

[Where am I? Ah, I must have fallen asleep last night… This is…?]

Momo took a look at the room she was in.

[…the captain's room… Wait. This is – the captain's bed?!]

A slight panic crept up inside Momo.

[But… we didn't do anything last night…?]

Toshiro noticed Momo struggling to find her bearings.

"Ye fell asleep last night aft' drinking too much", he explained.

"…I see", was her short answer.

[Fell asleep, that's right. I'm such an idiot for drinking so much.]

"I'm sorry for the inconvenience I caused", Momo couldn't help but feel guilty about using the captain's bed.

"Tis fine", Toshiro shook his head while biting back his thoughts about her sleeping habits.

A fleeting thought of where Toshiro slept last night passed through Momo's mind but did not dwell on it when the said person spoke.

"Why don't you go an' freshen yourself up while I'm preparing?"

Momo nodded and left for the bathroom in the direction that Toshiro pointed.

#####

"I'm surprised that you don't have a hangover from last night", Toshiro noted.

"I usually don't have them when I get a good night's sleep", Momo answered while cutting the bacon on her plate.

Toshiro couldn't help but laugh a little when he thought about this morning. Momo certainly seemed like she was having a good sleep.

Meanwhile when Momo saw the small smile on the captain's face, she was very surprised. She had heard that the Ice Ring's captain was very serious and did not smile, much less laugh. She had stopped in her motion of eating, so her fork was still in her mouth as she watched him. Toshiro noticed this and raised his eye brow with a questioning look at Momo. His laugh had already stopped and his serious look returned.

"A-ah, n-nothing", Momo stuttered when she realized that she had drifted off again.

She hurriedly continued eating, finishing her plate much faster than intended. So she took her time in drinking her tea as she inconspicuously observed her opposite. She didn't know that Toshiro noticed her inquiring glances while he ate. He himself was observing her as well.

He heard a lot about the girl in front of him. She was a lot more known than she realized. Her red attire, her ruby earrings as well as her ruby hairclip were her trademark outfit. Her weapons all had a ruby embedded on them somewhere – thus calling her the Ruby Princess. Not only that, but her navigational skills, her swordsmanship, as well as her scholar-level knowledge were said to be impressive. Her action were refined so many say that she was a former young lady of some noble household before it fell into ruin and he guessed that it would probably not be so far off from the truth. Her tranquil beauty had already many a man fall for her. He would not have really believed it if he hadn't seen her last night in the moonlight. However, she was also a deadly killer, having executed quite a number of ruthless pirates that just rubbed her the wrong way. As such Crimson Blade was a fitting name. Toshiro felt being a bounty hunter would be a better job for her. He wondered how someone like her got into the pirate business.

[Captain Toshiro of the Ice Ring: age unknown – probably not too far from mine – and average height if not somewhat short for a man; turquoise eyes and white hair. What a strange man… leisurely eating with a stranger. His attitude does not befit a captain at all and neither does his attire. Where's the hat and the coat that so many captains love to wear? Or the gold rings that they have in their ears? He looks pretty young to be one as well. Most are already in their late twenties or thirties. Though he looks like a bandit as befitting of thieves. He dresses rather humbly.]

As Momo scrutinized Toshiro, he finished his food and one of the crew brought the dishes away. Toshiro waited for another second before speaking.

"So what do you think?"

"What do you what?", Momo asked confused before realizing that he meant yesterday's conversation, "Oh. I think that it's not bad. I'm quite interested in how you got the info though. It's not something that someone could usually know unless he had a certain standing or someone unusual provided him the info."

Toshiro didn't miss out the doubt in Momo's voice and the implications with it.

"…I'll tell ye if ye agree. Plus you won't have to sign the article if you join. It's only for this time."

Momo frowned and thought about it for a bit before deciding that she could take the offer.

"Hmm… well then, fine. I accept your deal."

A satisfied smirk formed on the captain's face and he stretched out his hand.

"Welcome to the Ice Ring."

Momo clasped his hand and shook it, a small smile forming on her face.

#####

Toshiro led Momo to the deck and called for attention.

"All hands set sail!"

Stupefied Momo's head whipped around to Toshiro and demanded:

"Wait! What do you mean 'set off'?! I still have my luggage at the inn!"

However Momo was met with a swift reply:

"Yer stuff's already here. I sent someone to fetch it already."

[He– he knew…?!]

"…you knew that I would agree?!"

Toshiro faced her with an incomprehensible smirk.

"No, but with what I've heard of the Ruby Princess, you would definitely be interested. Anyway, ye were the only one I needed to persuade."

[He knew!]

Momo instinctively felt that Toshiro wasn't telling the whole truth. Her reputation was not enough to make that assumption.

[He must have heard from somewhere that I wanted to get on the Ice Ring. Or something made him come to that conclusion.]

Momo sighed inwardly.

[At least I got on the ship like planned.]