Hello! This is set waaay back in the Soul Society arc, from the day before Aizen's "body" is found, up until the night where Gin breaks Kira out of jail (just before that happens). Any reviews would be really appreciated. I sort of tried to do angst, but I think angst is hard to get right, so I don't know if it worked. Anyway, I'm going to shut up and get on with it. :)

Hope you enjoy!

"MATSUMOTOOOO!"

"I'm awake!"

Rangiku bolted upright in her chair, finding a note stuck to her face. She peeled it off before realising that she hadn't actually been to pick up the spare uniforms like it had reminded her before she fell asleep. Hitsugaya Toshiro didn't look happy.

"How many times do I have to tell you to sort out the squad's business before napping?"

Matsumoto looked around and saw the uniforms on the sofa.

"But you do such a good job, taichou!"

"It's supposed to be your job! With these ryoka running around I have enough to do without you giving me more. I suppose the paperwork hasn't been finished either?"

Matsumoto's excuse was cut off before she even began by a hell butterfly fluttering in through the open door. It landed on the vice-captain's finger.

"All captains to first division for a meeting A.S.A.P." she translated.

Hitsugaya sighed.

"Get this finished by the time I get back or I'll pour all the sake in the desk down the sink."

"Yes, captain!" She saluted, wondering when he found her latest stash as Hitsugaya flash stepped towards the meeting, leaving her to her work.

She picked up her brush and started reading through the form in front of her.

Time and location of incident, damage caused, persons involved, estimated repair cost; at times Matsumoto thought the rules of the Soul Society made it incredibly tedious to keep a lookout for the human world. She enjoyed being a shinigami, but had never been a fan of paperwork.

"Excuse me, Matsumoto-san?"

She looked up, grateful for any interruption to her current endeavour, to see Kira leaning around the doorway.

"Hi Kira, come on in."

"Have you seen Ichimaru-taicho? I've been looking for him to give him a message but I can't seem to find him."

"Sorry, I haven't. There's a captain meeting on at the moment though, he's probably there."

Kira said something along the lines of thanks before disappearing. Matsumoto had wondered why he had bothered to ask her. It was true that she had known Gin ever since she could remember, but she felt like he always kept her at arms' length. Aside from that, he had become increasingly distant lately. She chewed on the end of the writing brush, wondering what might be wrong before deciding that whatever it was, it couldn't be as serious as what would happen if at not even one form had been completed by the time Hitsugaya had returned.

The paperwork had finally been cleared, and Matsumoto, having returned from a vice-captain meeting, was sitting by the window watching the sun paint the sky an assortment of pinks and oranges. It was hard to imagine the chaos that was unfolding across Soul Society with an evening so calm and beautiful. She felt her captain's reiatsu approaching, and hoped he wasn't in a bad mood. He entered the room silently, and stood near his lieutenant, looking out at the same sunset.

"Matsumoto, I think third division has something to do with," he hesitated, still not entirely sure what it was he was suspicious of, "something to do with what's going on."

She turned to the boy. He was young, but advanced for his years in many respects. She never had any reason to distrust his judgement. Her heart wavered when she found herself debating whether Gin really could be involved.

"Yes, sir." Was all she could think to say.

"I know this won't be easy for you, but try to avoid speaking with them unnecessarily until we've figured out what's really going on around here. We don't want to put ourselves in a difficult position if we can help it."

"Yes, sir." She decanted some sake from the flask to the cup on the windowsill. "Why do you suspect them?"

Hitsugaya's troubled expression deepened.

"I don't trust Ichimaru."

Matsumoto leant on the sill, tilting her head to track the sun sinking behind the horizon.

"I understand."

The captain bid his goodnight and retreated to his quarters for the evening. He had a lot on his mind, and he had a feeling things were only going to get worse.

Matsumoto blinked and jerked her head instinctively, as a stone hit the windowpane.

"What in the world?" She began, opening the window and leaning out, trying to see where the rogue pebble had come from. Her eyes caught a glimpse of silver.

"Rangiku, you'll get wrinkles if you frown like that."

Matsumoto didn't usually like people using her first name. There was one exception, however. Gin was standing there on the little garden area below, looking for the entire world as if he belonged there.

She shushed him, before looking behind her to make sure that her captain was indeed gone.

"What do you want?" She whispered, as loudly as she could, still half hanging out of the window.

"You assume I want somethin' just because I came over to say hello? Tsk tsk, that's not very nice, Rangiku. And here I was, thinkin' we were friends."

She usually enjoyed the playful conversations with Gin, but tonight she wasn't sure she could stand the teasing. When she didn't reply the grin dropped slightly from his face. Rangiku was too busy trying to avoid looking directly at him to notice.

"Let's go somewhere." He suggested. He knew he had been neglecting her lately and he wanted to spend some time with her, before it was too late.

She fidgeted, Hitsugaya's words echoing in her head.

"I'm busy tonight."

With that the smile disappeared altogether and his shoulders sank a little. It hadn't escaped his keen eye that she wasn't looking at him, but he didn't want to make her uncomfortable. He turned to go, speaking over his shoulder.

"Maybe another time then."

She watched him slink away, and pondered that she had never seen him look so gloomy in a long time. Even after decades of practise, it seemed that he still couldn't completely mask his emotions. It relieved her somewhat that he had paid her a visit, but the timing of it unsettled her at the same time. She really hoped that he wasn't involved, but if he was she wasn't sure she would be able to confront him. He was, after all, the start of her world.

The next morning, Aizen's body had been found pinned to a wall. The drama which followed was difficult to believe, but ended in the lieutenants of both fifth and third squads being arrested. Matsumoto found the incident very unsettling; Hinamori had attacked Ichimaru. The girl was usually so timid, but in this case she had such a bloodlust in her eyes that Matsumoto had barely recognised her. She had just left the jail cell where Hinamori was being held after giving her the letter from Captain Aizen. The girl looked so sad and weak in the cell that Matsumoto almost felt sorry for her. She couldn't understand what had caused her to turn her sword on Gin.

She took the long way back to headquarters, meandering through the streets. She felt like she needed to clear her head. Too many doubts, theories and accusations were bouncing around her mind for her to be able to concentrate. Eventually, she found herself back at the office. Avoiding paperwork was once more at the top of her list of things to do. Hitsugaya was at the desk, diligently filling in forms.

"Taicho, what are you doing those for?"

He didn't look up as he replied, but carried on writing.

"I volunteered to help with fifth divison's work, and I guess if I want it done on time I'll have to do it myself."

"Anything you need me to help with, sir?"

"Thank you, but no. Go and rest for a while. I need to know I can count on you later, and don't want you falling asleep then."

Matsumoto tried to ignore the implication that her captain was expecting something to happen soon, and as instructed lay down on the sofa to try and rest. She was just dozing off when she could have sworn she heard something hit lightly against the window. She got up, and excused herself to the bathroom before sneaking outside.

"Gin?" she whispered, before he appeared from around the corner of the building. "Dammit, you can't be here. Do you have any idea what would happen if my captain saw you?"

"He'd probably try to kill me."

"Most likely."

A mischevious glint came into his eyes.

"Let's hide then."

Gin took Rangiku by the hand, hid his reiatsu and hurried inside the tenth squad building.

"What is going on?" she hissed, trying to keep her volume as low as possible.

"I don't want to - "

His sentence was cut off by approaching footsteps. He grabbed her hand and directed her behind the nearest door, closing it tightly behind them.

They were face to face, and about three inches from each other. She blushed – she thought she could feel the heat from Gin's body in the cramped storage area. She stared resolutely at the space between his collar bones and swallowed. Her mouth had become dry. Unconsciously licking her lips (an action immediately noticed by the man), she shifted her weight to her right leg and folded her arms. She could taste the excitement in the air, willing him to notice neither the slight rise in her heart rate, nor the increasing urgency of her breaths. His chest rose and fell in a quick, hypnotic rhythm. The anxiety of their current predicament mixed with the butterflies she felt whenever she was within a short distance of the man sent adrenaline coursing through her. Now not only was she talking with him, but she was hiding with him inside her own squad's property.

Muffled voices could be heard on the other side of the door. Rangiku couldn't identify who they belonged to or what they were saying, but she hoped that they'd leave soon.

The touch was a gentle one, but nevertheless, his hand on her left hip made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Her head tilted upwards imperceptibly as his mouth moved close enough for her to feel his breathing on her ear.

"Calm down." His voice was barely above a whisper. It was almost lost above the roaring of blood in her ears. "Hide your reiatsu or they'll sense us."

She inhaled deeply in an attempt to steady herself, and caught traces of Gin's scent. As he straightened, the rough skin of his jaw scuffed the side of her face. She blinked in surprise, and brought her fingers up to touch the offended skin. Thinking better of it, she balled two fists and held them awkwardly by her sides. The smirk across his features made her brows furrow even more.

He had a way of making her feel fragile in spite of the strength she knew she had, like she needed someone to permenantly look out for her just incase. She didn't mind it so much, except for wanting him to be the one to fill the role. She had felt him slipping away over the years like the sun at dusk and she knew there was no stopping a night that was beginning to fall.

"You shouldn't pout; it makes you look like a moody kid." He said, teasing her. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to slap or kiss the face in front of her.

She folded her arms, brushing against him again. She fixed her stare on the door, trying her best to ignore him. This really wasn't the time to be teasing one another. His hands found themselves lightly holding onto her arms

"Rangiku," His voice was entirely more serious this time, and any hint of amusement had vanished from his face. She couldn't tear her gaze away from him now.

"I want you to trust me, I know it's a lot to ask."

Her heart fell. This wasn't a denial of involvement, nor was it an assurance things would be okay. In short, it was a disappointment. His gentle grip on her didn't budge, but she tried to put some space between them. In such a cramped area, she had limited success.

"Not without knowing what's going on. Tell me, please. Did you have something to do with Aizen-taicho's death?"

He sighed, and Rangiku wasn't sure if she noticed him holding her a little more tightly.

"I want you to know I would never try to hurt you."

"That's not what I asked."

In the pause that followed, the voices on the other side of the door moved away.

"The only thing I can say is even if you can't trust my actions, try to trust me. Please."

She felt a cold chill down her spine, and her eyes stung with tears she was trying not to acknowledge. She wasn't sure it was an admission of guilt, but she couldn't shake the feeling that it was.

His hand cupped her face, and his thumb wiped away a tear the moment it made its escape.

"Always such a crybaby."

He tucked her hair behind her ear as Hitsugaya could be heard shouting for her a short distance away.

"Looks like it's time for me to be goin'."

Rangiku blocked the door handle with her hand. She felt his settle on top.

"I'll trust you," she conceded, "on one condition."

He raised an eyebrow in question.

"Come back to me, Gin. Make sure you come back."

He slid a hand around her waist to the small of her back, guiding her toward him, holding her in an embrace he never wanted to forget. The smell of her hair, the feel of her in his arms, the knowledge that she cared for him gave him his purpose. In what seemed to be a single moment, he softly kissed her on the cheek and disappeared, leaving her behind, alone, once more.