Before you ask, yes; I am crazy. I know what a bad habit it is for authors to start on a new idea in the middle of another story, but this plot bunny just wouldn't leave me alone!

So, yeah. Here I am, presenting you all with what's been bothering me for weeks. I hope you all enjoy it. Get ready for some HitsuKarin-ness! Boo-yeah!

*takes a deep breath*

Here goes. And as much as it pains me to admit, I DO NOT OWN BLEACH!

NOTE:

MING: means a "brilliant light" or "bright one"

MONG: means "complete idiot"

In short, these two taken together = normal

To Be Ming Mong

Karin Kurosaki had had a bad day.

First, she had been late to class after giving some bullies a fair beating, which had landed her a stern warning from Miss Ochi. Her mood had been dark enough by then, but during lunch Kiku (the school b*tch) and her posse just had to make snide remarks about Ichigo's "disappearance."

This made Yuzu cry and Karin had to be forcefully restrained from breaking Kiku's nose.

After that, the principal had forced her to cancel the last soccer practice before the Break as punishment . . .

Yeah, Karin really needed to demolish something soon, and she could feel her already strained control beginning to snap completely as she headed towards the gate at the end of the day, Yuzu trailing behind her.

As soon as she saw the gate, Karin knew it was the last straw.

There was a bottleneck in effect, and it was blocking her way to freedom.

It was the beginning of Christmas break for crying out loud! The least the extremely large swarm of females could do was get out of the way.

Wait a second, Karin realized, why are they all girls?

Then the crowd parted like the Red Sea, and Karin saw the reason.

She couldn't believe it. She. Could. NOT. Believe. It.

Why was Toshiro Hitsugaya, captain of the 10th Division of the Gotei 13 leaning on her school's gate with his arms crossed as though him being there was perfectly normal?

If Karin had been mad before, she was ticked now. Furious, she shoved her way through until she was within five feet from him.

His beautiful teal eyes followed her as she drew closer and closer, slowly taking in how much she'd grown and changed since he last saw her. She'd definitely filled out, and he cursed his hormones for making him notice.

Toshiro completely ignored Kiku and her friends as they tried to flirt with him, instead cocking an eyebrow curiously at the scowl on Karin's face and the terrified look on Yuzu's.

Ignoring Kiku's protests, Karin pushed past her and stomped up to the white-haired "teen."

She grabbed his collar and pulled him down to her eye-level as he now had a few inches on her (in the back of her mind, Karin wondered when he'd grown so much, but put it down to a lot being liable to change in three or so years), and snarled, "What the heck are you doing here?"

Dead silence descended on the crowd of new fan-girls as they all held their breath, wondering how the handsome mystery boy would react. Would he back down in the face of the Kurosaki's legendary temper? And what gave Karin the right to treat him that way? Actually, how did Karin now him at all?

Toshiro remained unfazed as he smirked at her, "Hello to you, too."

Her had clenched on his shirt so hard that her knuckles turned white, "Answer the question, Toshiro –" the fan-girls squealed; so that was his name! – "I'm in a bad mood."

"I can see that," he said calmly. She hissed and he finally relented, "Your brother told me to come get you and take you home."

Everyone gasped at this; Karin and Yuzu's brother was alive and well? He wasn't missing after all?

Apparently the twins weren't expecting that, because they stood with their mouths open for some time.

Slowly, Toshiro pried Karin's hand form his shirt and pulled her into his lean, muscular chest. He held her tight as he snaked his arms around her, whispering in her ear, "I also wanted to see you again."

A sob reached the ears of the gathered crowd, and with a shock, everyone realized that the Karin Kurosaki, captain of the soccer team, #1 tomboy, and the best karate master in the school, was crying.

It was official; the world had ended.

But while everyone was busy falling over in astonishment, the white-haired stranger's cool features melted into a look of tenderness, and he pulled her even closer, burying his face in her hair.

"It's okay, Karin," he whispered soothingly. It made Toshiro furious to see her like this. Who knew how long she'd been pretending to be strong, when all along Karin had suffered and no one had tried to help. The sight of her so beaten down, and knowing that he could have prevented it made an overwhelming wave of guilt wash over him.

The sight of her twin in tears sent Yuzu into hysterics, and Karin pulled away as soon as she noticed.

Toshiro tried not to frown, but he missed her body heat almost immediately.

Kiku chose this moment in time to snap out of her daze and enter full b*tch mode.

"OMG (a/n: yes, I realize it's an American slang term, but deal with it), how do you know a fine man like this? Isn't it illegal for you to associate with someone so pathetically out of your league?" she mocked. Toshiro turned towards her and raised an eyebrow in disbelief. Was this human really crazy enough to take a dig at Karin when she was in this emotional state? She was either very brave or suicidal.

Sure enough, Karin tensed and turned toward her, that fire that Toshiro loved returning to her eyes in a heartbeat.

Hmm, the captain thought, Even if this human is risking life and limb, I might just have to thank her for getting Karin back to normal. He felt pride well up in his chest as he watched the black-haired girl bristle. It was so unlike him, he reflected, but there was just something so endearing about seeing her so . . . stoked.

Opposites certainly do attract.

"Karin," he called, and the tease in his voice made her pause and turn. "If you hurry you'll have more time to beat Ichigo up," Toshiro smirked.

A grim determination lit in her eyes.

Karin wasted no time on the lowly little superficial brat. In about two seconds, she'd decked Kiku and broken her nose, bowled through her "loyal" subjects, and otherwise wiped out the opposition.

Blowing the dust off her knuckles, Karin beckoned Yuzu and exited the gate at last. As she passed him, Karin snatched his hand and dragged him along as well. Not that he minded.

By the time they reached the clinic, Yuzu was laughing and all was well in the world.

Ichigo looked very nervous as he witnessed the brutality of Karin's reaction when Isshin tried to hug her, and sweat dropped at the crater he made in the wall as a result of her kick.

Ignoring the dignity of his Captain status, he tried in vain to hide behind Rukia when she stormed over.

His girlfriend snorted and betrayed him by stepping aside.

The carrot top took a deep breath as he prepared for his little sister's wrath.

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Karin found Toshiro on the roof a couple days later, as usual. He was gazing at the stars and didn't appear to register her presence.

Undeterred, Karin plopped herself next to him and unfolded the blanket she was holding, spreading it over the two of them and resting her head on his shoulder. His arm wrapped around her waist in response.

"Even though you have an ice-based zanpaktou, I still can't believe you don't get cold in December. It's supposed to snow later tonight!" she whispered heatedly.

A deep chuckle was her response.

"Thank you for your concern, however misguided it may be," he murmured, draping his captain's haori over her shoulders.

She huffed, he smiled.

"It's almost time, you know," Karin said after a while. The arm around her waist tightened.

A few minutes later a loud cheer resonated from the house below their feet.

A cool hand was suddenly cupping her cheek, and she closed her eyes and leaned into it, smiling.

When she re-opened her onyx orbs, she discovered beautiful teal ones not six inches away. They drew closer agonizingly slowly.

Karin felt Toshiro's other hand clasp the back of her neck, and shivered with excitement. She'd waited so long for this . . . .

Just before his cool lips touched hers, Karin's eyes closed and she tilted her head up, her own hands lacing themselves behind Toshiro's neck.

Their little exchange was passionate and heated; something the 10th squad captain was well-known for trying to avoid. They loved every second of it.

When they pulled apart, Karin's face was glowing and Toshiro's legendary coldness had completely melted away. A rare, genuine smile graced her lips as she rested her head on his chest.

For the first time in years, even though their love was forbidden and dangerous, Karin felt content.

In that moment, it didn't matter that he was a genius and she wasn't. It didn't matter that he was dead and she was alive, or that her brother had been "missing" from the World of the Living for three years and was presumed dead.

The fact that he was a war hero and she killed evil spirits with soccer balls on a regular basis had no meaning, either. Even the drastic age difference between them was forgotten.

Karin Kurosaki and Toshiro Hitsugaya were just a boy and a girl in love, which was as common as the snowflakes now falling all around them were in Antarctica. They were normal, with no boundaries separating them. And for that, Karin was thankful and happy.

"Happy New Year, Toshiro," she whispered. He hummed quietly.

As the snow fell softly all around them, Karin smiled again.

To be ming mong; to be normal.

It was a feeling only he could instill in her.

So there you have it! My first-ever shot at romance . . . *sniff*

So how did I do? Any tips? Should I continue? I have a couple more ideas . . .

Feel free to drop me a line. ;)

Ja ne,

- Home By Another Way